《Birth of the D.S.》 Chapter 1: 01. Birth Darkness. This was his first thought after waking up. ''Where am I?'' He tried to move his limbs but the sensation of touch had something amiss from what he was used to. ''Wait, can I think?'' ''I clearly remember getting shot in the chest by those gangsters. Am I in a coma?'' He tried again to move or open his eyes but the only thing he could feel was the sensation of being cramped and the only thing he could see was darkness. ''I guess I''m still alive, seems that I can''t even achieve a quick death in my life. Well, at least it''s warm in here.'' There was a constant warmth in his body, making the environment quite cozy. ''At least after I wake up my parents will let me off the hook for a while. Maybe I should just take this chance to get away from that house and go abroad, there should be at least a cleaning service hiring me.'' He thought of the possibility of exploiting that near-death experience as a mean to break free from the cage he called home. He considered how his parents would react once he said to them that he will drop the university to be a dishwasher. ''Dad will not make too much trouble for me, but mum will surely go crazy. Nowadays the only thing I can do home without starting a fight is reading. Maybe I will lose that too'' Since he remembered, he loved playing games, reading books and getting drunk. He found anything else boring and this seriously affected his school career since high school. So, the situation in his house grew more and more difficult for him to sustain as his parents would rather yell all the time than accept that the university wasn''t fit for him. ''I guess a big part of that situation is my fault, after all, I''ve spent most of my life being drunk or isolated in some book. Not a good job as a son indeed.'' Thinking this, regret emerged in him. If he knew better at that time, he would''ve not used booze as a mean to vent and maybe the situation in his family would have been more peaceful. ''Well, I can''t change what has already happened, and I didn''t really have many options to keep myself cool while pretending all the time'' When he was 14 he figured out that something was not entirely right with him. He would see his friends going after girls or pretty clothing, emphasizing love and social status in a group of people. Yet, he only felt curiosity toward sex without ever being able to really bind with someone. As for human society, he saw it as a bunch of rules created by humans in order to force them to live together. ''Aren''t those rules created by men? As a man, I should have the right to ignore them and live the way I want to.'' Time kept on passing while he was thinking, without him noticing that his thinking speed was way lower than usual. ''In the end, it''s a world ruled by money. If you have it you can do whatever you want; if not you can only end up in one of the gears of society, accumulating money till the moment you die.'' ''What a pitiful way of living. Forced by the rules of humans to work in order to accumulate pieces of paper, while those have value only thanks to the same rules you are obeying. True freedom is only achievable by gathering enough paper. Is there even value on living a life like this?'' His reasoning would stop from time to time as he would sleep or try to wake up his body. In this way, days passed. ''Maybe I''m in a permanent coma and I will have to wait for true death in order to be freed from this darkness.'' The darkness surrounding him started to affect his mood, the only thing keeping him sane was the warm feeling in his body. It was at that point that light appeared in the world of darkness, which seemed to get bigger as time passed by. ''Finally a change! I should follow th---'' All of sudden, some kind of compression pushed him from the cramped space he was in towards the light. It seemed to be a slow and painful process of which he felt the pressure. After some time, the world of darkness became a world of light so bright that his eyes hurt. He started hearing some cheers and voices speaking an unknown language. When his eyes got used to the light he could finally see what was around him: a middle-aged fat woman was looking at him with worry, lightly touching his chest. The strange thing was that her hand seemed to cover his entire body. ''The fuck is happen---'' He could not finish his line of thought that the fat woman already turned him to the side and lightly slapped his buttocks. For some reasons, he felt pain from that light slap. ''What the fuck are you doing woman?!?'' He said, yet what came out of his mouth was only a shrill cry. After hearing that cry, the faces of the people in the room relaxed and the fat lady brought the baby to the arms of a pale but beautiful woman lying on an old-fashioned bed. "It''s a boy, my lady, and a pretty curious one, according to the way he looks at everything" Even though he understood nothing of what the fat woman said, the young man in the body of a baby could easily figure out the situation he was in. ''Am I reborn? Wasn''t it a coma?!?'' The woman holding the baby uncovered her chest and attempted to feed him. ''Wai--!'' Before he could say, or rather yell anything, a liquid poured down inside of his mouth and he lost himself in the dizziness of his first meal. "I will name you Noah, yes, Noah Balvan it''s a good name" Noah looked at the woman feeding him with half closed eyes. The woman had long black hair untied on his back and ice-blue eyes below her thin eyebrows. ''Sure my mother is beautiful. Noah should be the name she gave me, at least it''s a good name'' The door of the room opened and a man in his forties with short black hair and a stern face walked directly toward the woman on the bed. "Lily let me see the child" Saying so, the man directly took Noah in his arms and raised him in the air to have a better view of the baby. The fat woman and the other 2 maidservants on the side of the bed lowered their heads at the sight of the man. Even Lily held her angry voice back at the sight of Noah being suddenly taken away from her chest. "Mh, a bit pale and skinny but there seems to be some kind of wits in him. Maybe he will not be able to be a guard for the main family but he might succeed as counselor. You did a good job Lily" Saying so, the man gave the baby back to his mother and moved toward the exit. Seeing this scene, Lily said softly: "Rhys he''s your son and his name is Noah, can''t he aim at being more than a simple guard?" Stopping at the edge of the exit, Rhys turned to look at Lily and said in the most natural manner: "Even if he has my blood in his veins he has yours too mixed in, the son of a whore should consider himself lucky enough if he can protect the descendant of the main family" And he went out of the room, leaving Lily with watery eyes hugging Noah. She didn''t saw the deep stare of the baby in her hands toward his father after he left through the door. ''It seems that this family is not so simple, I should do my best to learn the language of this world as fast as I can'' Thinking so, he closed his eyes and went to sleep. Chapter 2: 02. Dragon Five months have passed since Noah got reborn in this world. It was spring, or at least it seemed so for what he saw of the outside environment. The mansion he lived in resembled a countryside villa from his previous life, yet it had the size of a castle and was mostly made of wood, with a wall made of rocks on the perimeter. In that moment, he was in the arms of his new mother, peeking around while she was walking through the mansion talking to him. Little did she know that Noah managed to understand most of what she said. ''The language of this world is not so hard, also because it has a lot of similarities with the English of my previous world. Well, it''s also thanks to Lily never leaving my side and continuously speaking to me'' These five months were spent by him mostly in his mother embrace walking around Balvan mansion, with Lily explaining the most random things to him. Thanks to that he had a general idea of his position in the family and how the mansion was structured. The mansion was divided into 2 rings, outer and inner. The inner ring was composed of a 4 stories building and it was the place where the main family lived; the outer ring had two 2 stories buildings and a 3 stories one and they were respectively inhabited by guards, servants, and guests. At the moment, they were on the first floor of the guest''s building, which was reserved to them since he had the blood of the main family in him, and since Lily was the beloved whore of Rhys. Noah''s father, Rhys, was the third and last son of the old patriarch of the Balvan family, Thomas. As such, even though they did not get access to the inner ring, they could still live a comfortable life in the outer one. "You must grow strong, little dear, the people in the inner ring will see you as a bastard and will spare no effort to abuse and bully you, especially the legitimate grandsons and granddaughters of the patriarch" Hearing this, Noah''s mood became heavier. ''I lived a life without meaning, in a world full of compromises and now that I''m reborn I''m asked to endure bullying because of my social status only to become a tool for the main family to use. It seems that I will live another life void of meaning'' Lily kept talking but Noah''s mind was away, trying to figure out the best course of action for this life. ''If I stay here I will probably have a lot of benefits, after all, the Balvan family seems quite wealthy. I just don''t know enough of the outside environment of the mansion so I can''t be sure of the possibilities the outside world has to offer'' Noah was already considering running away from the family. He appreciated the affection and the efforts of this new mother, but these feelings were far from the love he should''ve had for a parent. ''I already had a family and it didn''t go so well. This time I don''t have to go through various experiences to understand the kind of person I am so I can always choose the things that suit me the most. If life in the inner circle is too hard for the sole reason of being a bastard I won''t mind abandoning the mansion. Plus, I have 25 years of experience in advance and the knowledge of a more advanced world, my possibilities should be plenty.'' From the clothing of the people, the structure of the buildings and the state of the furniture, he could guess that this was a world without electricity, so way behind in the field of technology compared to his previous world. ''Yet, this might be also a disadvantage; my habits are those of the industrialized society and my thoughts are those of a guy from the 21st century, I don''t know how the people here might react to some ideas. I must be careful.'' Sometimes thinking about his future, sometimes listening to his mother, the day passed and the night was approaching. Lily walked to a balcony in order to watch the stars appear on the dark sky. Noah used this chance to study the environment outside the mansion. Outside the defense wall, there were sheep grazing the fields, there was a large stone road that started from the main gate of the mansion and stretched in the distance, cutting the green fields into 2 halves. A field of what seemed corn was being cultivated on his right side and a forest was barely visible on his left in the distance. It was a beautiful scenery, one Noah wasn''t used to seeing, and now this was his new world. Then he shifted his gaze to the sky, and he seemed to see the darkness enveloping the redness of the clouds due to the sunset. At the beginning it was like a small dot in the distance, becoming bigger and bigger as it was going in their direction. Only then he realized that something was wrong. The darkness wasn''t caused by the nightfall but by the silhouette of something undulating through the clouds. It was fast and it was getting closer and closer. At some point, a deafening roar ran through the peaceful countryside. It was coming from the figure in the sky. A black winged body dove from the clouds diagonally, speeding toward the flock of sheep outside the mansion wall. It was 7-8 meters long and had big black scaled wings, actually the scales were covering all of his body. It dove at such a high speed that Noah could not make out the time difference between its exit from the clouds and its nearing to the terrain where the flock was. Suddenly, the wall illuminated with purple and runes appeared on its surface. It emitted a steady but loud hum and the purple color of the wall spread toward the countryside in the direction of the flock. The beast seemed disturbed in its descent and tried to halt itself mid-air spreading its wings. But its speed was too high and it inevitably fell on the ground where the purple halo was going, creating an immense pit. The moment the purple halo touched the dragon, smoke rose from the pit and another roar, one of pain, sounded in the dusk. The dragon rose to the sky again as fast as possible and stared with venomous eyes at the mansion. Smoke kept flowing out of his belly like from an open wound. Apparently, the purple halo had injured the dragon. Filled with hatred, the dragon inhaled and then spat out a tongue of red flames toward the mansion that took the form of a lance as it kept nearing the outer ring. Lily was frozen in fear seeing the lance of fire coming in her direction while Noah was still too stupefied by what he was seeing in order to even recognize the danger he was in. Before the flames could reach the outer wall though, a figure appeared mid-air in between them. He raised his right hand and mumbled something then the lance of flames hit something like a wall of air. The attrition between the flames and the shield lasted for some seconds before the flames were extinguished and the floating figure was visible again. He was an old man, with a straight combed long white beard reaching his waist and unbound long hair flowing in the wind. He was wearing a Chinese kimono with large sleeves yet the right one was now burned, showing his slim but sturdy arm. He looked at the dragon right in its eyes and the dragon did the same. This stall lasted for about 10 seconds before the dragon roared once again and turned to leave at high speed through the sky, in the direction of the forest. The old man waited a bit more in the air over the wall looking at the direction where the dragon went. After being completely sure that the beast was gone he sighed and disappeared. Lily was still frozen by fear and did not notice that was holding the frail body of Noah too tightly. This pain was what made him return to reality as he left a small groan to wake his mother from the reverie. Lily returned to reality too, softening the grip on Noah, and she was about to say something before being interrupted by an aged and deep voice. "So, this is my latest grandson, am I right?" Chapter 3: 03. Power Noah didn''t believe in the existence of the soul during his previous life, living was after all about empirics and reality, no place for religious or spiritual thoughts. But after he was reborn, he started considering the idea that there was much more than the eye or the advanced machinery could see. As he was staring at the old man gently standing on the edge of the balcony, seemingly appeared out of nowhere, his mind fell into chaos. ''There was a dragon appearing and going after a sheep. So this world has dragons in it. Then the wall lighted up and hurt the dragon right? Then the dragon got angry and wanted to burn all of us but this old man, which apparently is my grandfather, blocked it with one hand while flying and then stared at the dragon to make him fly away.'' After a brief sum up the previous events in his mind he only had one thought. ''Where the fuck did I end up?!? This guy can literally fly and fight dragons and they want me to protect them?? Is something wrong with their minds? Wait, if they want me to protect them, it means that I should be able to learn a thing or two.'' His line of thought got interrupted by Thomas entering the balcony and slowly walking in their direction. "Yes, lord Patriarch. This is Noah, son of Rhys and my own son." Lowering her head, Lily gently exposed Noah to Thomas in order for him to have a better look at the baby. Maybe Lily wanted to use this occasion to impose a tinge of love in Thomas for his grandson so that he could protect him in the future, or maybe she was just scared stiff at the sight of the old patriarch that she could do nothing else but to expose her son with trembling hands. Noah, in the meantime, was staring at the old man with fervent eyes. He didn''t even notice the passion and curiosity that his stare was displaying. ''People in this world can fly and fight with fucking dragons! Old maaaan, look at how cute I am! Teach me how to fly!'' But only some sounds came out of his mouth, they resembled words but they had no meaning. So Noah stretched his little arms toward Thomas, in order to appeal to his feelings, putting a face of happiness at the sight of the nearing patriarch. ''You fight dragons but you still love your kin, right?'' Needless to say, the whole dragon accident left a deep impression on him. After all, dragons were only legends in his world and were represented as mighty and unbeatable. While their might was up to fantasies, in this world dragons could be fought, and you could win. "Oh" Looking at the baby happily stretching his arms toward him, Thomas could not help but show a trace of warmth on his serious face. Then he picked up Noah from his armpits and stared at him with a slight smile. "Ooh, he seems pretty interested in me, there sure is some smartness in this child. Maybe he will really become a good counselor of the family. I''ll keep an eye on him from time to time" Hearing this, Lily was ecstatic and hurried to say the most respectful thanks she could muster. "Many thanks, lord Patriarch. I''m sure that his safety can be assured for life with just one gaze of yours" She bowed saying so, with both hands forming a praying form. "There is no such being that could do that. Here, take Rhys'' son and bring him back to his room. Today''s events are not for a child this little to see" Thomas handed Noah back to Lily and disappeared from the balcony. Lily could not stop her excitement after he left and kept cheering Noah. "Have you heard? He will keep an eye on you! The Patriarch of the Balvan family will keep an eye on my son. Hahaha, this is wonderful. And he said that you could become a counselor, this is wonderful too. Not only my son will be protected by a mighty cultivator, he might also be away from the battlefield for life." As a mother of a bastard son, Lily knew that the possibilities of Noah were not the brightest compared to the other descendants'' of the main family so she was suddenly relieved when she heard some insurance from the patriarch. Carrying Noah back to their sleeping quarters in the center of the first floor, she did not notice that the baby in her arms was silent and that his eyes were growing more and more determined. ''A counselor my ass! What''s the point in giving advice to people with such powers. Any problem can just be blasted out like the old man did with the lance of flame! To think that a power like this actually existed! I must get my hands on it. I might have to risk a bit though, it seems that the purity of the bloodline is kept in high regard inside the Balvan family so showing some talent might attract unwanted attention from the main family descendants. Yet, I need some information to really understand what''s going on'' From all the books he read, he could imagine that the fight for succession or even the envy of someone with a higher status than him might end up in blood. ''I already died once, and it was by accident. I don''t want to be put in a political scheme and end up dead again, being powerless about it.'' A never felt determination ran through his little body, while Lily was preparing to put him in his cradle. ''A world where power is not given to men from the society they created. A power that seems to come from the inside of each individual, a power that belongs only to themselves. Lily called him a "cultivator", I must find something about it. I must learn to walk and read as fast as I can so that I can have some form of independence and at the same time show some early talent in the literature field. It might bring me to books that describe what a cultivator actually is and how to become one.'' From that day on he started eating more and more in order to grow stronger and get rid of the skinny physique he was born with. He started to actively try to walk, first in the cradle and then on the ground, worrying the maidservants or his mother every time he fell from his attempts to stand on his feet. Yet, this kind of pain was nothing. ''A bullet in the chest hurts way more'' And so, only 8 months after his birth, Noah was standing upright on the ground, taking his first steps. ''This is so fucking slow, I need to train for this. I should start running from time to time in order to be more healthy and be more comfortable with my body.'' Even though he was disappointed with how slow he was growing up, Lily and the maidservants were stupefied. "This baby has been trying to stand up for 3 months and now he did it. Most importantly every time he fell he would not cry but try to stand up again. If we didn''t stop him every time he could have gotten a big injury by now" The chatting maidservants were totally ignored by Lily as a sense of pride enveloped her seeing her baby walking at the age of 8 months. "This must be the patriarch blessing, I knew something good was bound to happen since that day." Luckily or not, Noah achievement was pinned to the supernatural character that was Thomas Balvan. Surprises in the first floor of the guests building were far from over though. After being sure of having a good balance, Noah took slow and careful steps in the direction of his mother. Slowly but surely, and with a bit of sustain given by the wall at his side, he arrived in front of his smiling mother. "Come to mummy little one, you did a wonderful job today. Mum is happy!" Saying this she half-kneeled on the ground with spread arms waiting for Noah to reach her embrace. Noah looked at her and smiled, then moved with spread arms toward her and yelled at the last moment before the embrace: "Mommy!" And then he fell in his mother embrace, while Lily and the maidservants stared at him with wide eyes. ''This should be enough to get me an early education.'' Chapter 4: 04. Breath of Heaven and Earth Time kept passing, and rumors about an intellectual prodigy spread through the Balvan family. "I heard he was able to talk fluently only one year and a half after he was born" "I heard that kid started running around every morning before breakfast only three months after he learnt to stand up" "You won''t believe me, but I personally saw that kid going alone in the library of the guests building trying to pull books out of the shelves. Believe me, I was doing the cleaning service there at that time and I found him looking at the symbols on the book as if he could read. And he was only two at that time!" "That''s impossible, his mother requests to get him a teacher got approved two years and a half ago, are you saying that he knew how to read before he even got a teacher?" "I''m only stating what I saw. I''m not sure he was reading, but he sure looked like he was trying to" Rumors like these were everywhere in the guests building, spreading from servant to servant. Everyone was waiting for the next record the bastard son would break in his growth speed. Five years had passed since his birth in this world with him working hard to improve himself and gain a stable foothold in the family. He kept running every day, adding some light workout in order to make his still frail body less weak. This gave him a slim but rosy figure and he felt his body growing stronger every day. Yet, even if he was stronger than the average kid, he was still just a kid. He would only do half an hour per day of training since that was the limit of his young body. The rest of the day was spent eating large meals made of rice and meat, sleeping or reading. Two and a half years ago he finally got his teacher, so he could stop sneaking out at night trying to decipher the strange symbols they called writing. His teacher name was Li Neregnes. He was one of the scholars hired by the main family to instruct their descendant and his position in the family was quite high for a guest. Noah''s father, Rhys, accompanied him to the outer ring personally, underlying how much the instruction process should be taken seriously and not as a game. Apparently, the scholar position was of a higher rank than his in Rhys''s eyes, since that was the first time Noah saw his father after his birth. Li Neregnes was a man in his sixties, with grey hair tied in a ponytail and a short black beard noticeably cured. He had an apathetic face as if nothing was of his interest and explained things in a slow but concise manner. Yet, even this lofty character had to change his disposition toward Noah when he found out that he learnt how to read in less than 6 months of teaching. After that, he would finish every book the scholar imparted him in less and less time and he even had time to rent books of his interest from the library on the ground floor. The servants were so used to him picking books that they would not even remind him to bring them back. At the age of five, Noah had a general understanding of the topography near the mansion, of the social status of the Balvan family, and finally, he found something regarding cultivators. Balvan mansion was situated in the countryside near Evergreen Forest, called like this for the type of trees that forest was made of. The big stone road of the main gate flowed into an even bigger road that led to the nearest big city, Mossgrove, that was ruled by the Shosti family. Balvan family was an underling of the Shosti family and had to pay an annual tribute of gold or goods in order to keep his rule over this part of the countryside. They were the landlords of the 50 square kilometers surrounding Balvan mansion and had to exact annual taxes from the villages in this area and protect them from the attack of bandits or magical beasts. Magical beasts! In that world, there were species of animals with the innate gift to absorb energy from the world and using it to empower their natural abilities. The lance of flames used by the dragon years ago was a type of usage of the energy of the world that empowered its already powerful flames, giving them more range of attack and destructiveness. Finally, about a year before, Noah found a book about cultivation. It was an old and heavy book, written by a cultivator that wanted to spread the notion of cultivation to the common people and that later became a classic of literature. The cultivator''s name was lost with the passage of time but the name of the book was still known to all people of culture as "Yin-Yang system". ''According to that book, the energy of nature is called "Breath of Heaven and Earth" and cultivators and magical beasts absorb and store it in order to empower their bodies, prolong their lives and use magical techniques. The "Breath" can be used as a mean to empower the body and the martial techniques or can be linked to someone''s own mental energy to release elemental attacks. The 7 elemental types are light, darkness, fire, water, earth, wind and thunder and someone''s aptitude to one of these is decided at birth. Generically, everyone has the aptitude toward one element yet the difference in mental energy decrees his ability to manipulate that element'' Noah was currently having a lesson with Li Neregnes about philosophy in a room on the first floor of the guests building, but his mind was constantly wandering on the topics described in the "Yin-Yang system". ''Magical beasts have an innate ability to manipulate and absorb the "Breath" and they will learn to use it naturally in the course of their life, it can be said that their bloodline is quite advantageous according to this aspect. Yet, Heaven and Earth are fair so most of them lack the intellect to better use their gifts.'' ''Humans, on the other hand, can make a lance out of rocks and bow and arrows out of a tree but they need techniques in order to absorb and use the "Breath" and even special devices to understand their attitude toward an element'' ''No wonder this book wasn''t destroyed by cultivators and managed to survive till now, even if you know the general theory behind those powers you can''t do much without the proper techniques. The best this book can do is give a better understanding of the supernatural to normal people.'' ''Heaven and Earth are fair he says, yet if you are born in a poor family you can just dream about obtaining techniques. Even for me, born in a family with cultivators, it''s hard to say if I''ll ever be able to take a look at these magical techniques... Fair my ass'' Even though Li was engrossed in his exposition, he started to notice that Noah would just nod at him in answer every time he would look at him, while his eyes had been staring fixedly at the same point of the book in front of him for one hour. A bit enraged, Li took a wooden stick from behind his back and trusted at Noah''s left arm. SNAPP!!! A slapping sound ringed and Noah lifted his head to stare at his teacher while holding the spot where the stick had just hit. "Are you still thinking about that cultivation nonsense? How many time do I have to tell you: don''t waste your time. You are just a bastard of a medium-size noble family, even if the Balvan family had some techniques they are not meant for you. Moreover, literature is the real representation of humans, cultivation is just about killing and getting killed, there is nothing noble in that." Li berated him, apparently this was not the first time Noah''s mind wandered. Actually, it was since he finished the "Yin-Yang system" that he completely lost interest in the instruction of literature. After all, he reached his objective of finding out more about the world of cultivation so these lessons became only a boring obligation. "But teacher, even the wisest man has to bow his head to the weakest magical beast. If you don''t have the power to protect yourself all your knowledge is useless" SNAPP!!! Another hit of the stick landed on Noah''s right arm. To teacher Li''s helplessness, Noah would just hug his arm and let out a little grunt while no trace of fear ever appearing in his eyes. ''What''s wrong with this kid, I instructed the son of the patriarch''s firstborn and even now that he turned 25 he still fears my stick. This kid though...'' These were the thoughts of Li Neregnes, incapable of taming a five year old kid. "Nevermind, just go to rest and don''t wander in the library all night like your usual. I''ll see you again in two days and you will better have forgotten about all that cultivation garbage." Massaging his temples, he said that while pointing the exit door to Noah. At his words Noah got up, picked his books, bowed and then left the room. Chapter 5: 05. Training Noah''s life kept going. His black long hair kept growing so his mother would often comb them for him. Lily kept managing the first floor of the guests building, occasionally meeting Rhys deep in the night. She would often beg him to do more for his son, explaining Noah''s interests in cultivation and martial arts but Rhys would always refuse, hiding behind the rules of the main family. "I can''t do anything about him, Lily. The rules are fixed: his position allows him only to get access to the low-level techniques and that is only permitted if he shows some merits in the family guard and completes some mission. You can send him there and see how it goes." Lily''s face darkened hearing these words. Truth was that Noah wasn''t spending his time in the library anymore since he had turned 8, he would rather go to the guards building doing chores in exchange for some combat tips. With the most pleading voice Lily could muster, she asked Rhys: "Our son is smart, he has already figured out that he can not find anything relevant about cultivation in the library and shifted his attention to the guards hoping to obtain something valuable. He is only 10 now, he must be 13 to officially join the guards, but he has been doing chores for them for 2 years now only to get a better starting point! Can''t you give him anything? You did that with your other two sons----" SMACK!!!!! A slap hit Lily''s left cheek. She yelled lightly and then she recomposed herself in a half-kneeling position with her head lowered and a metallic taste enveloping her mouth. "Remember your position! Remember that it was me who allowed you to give birth to that bastard and that''s only because you can ease the grief I feel for my dead wife. Don''t you dare compare the son and daughter Rebecca gave me with the son of a lowly whore anymore. You should never forget that I''m the one allowing the two of you to live." Trembling a bit, Lily answered: "I''m sorry my lord!" And then she completely kneeled with her head touching the ground. "Tsk, you better stand up and make up for making me angry" . . . At the same time, in the guards building, a kid about 10-11 years old was carrying 2 large buckets of water to a group of guards sweating under the sun. This kid was, of course, Noah doing chores for the guards. Since he understood that he could not achieve anything reading books he started searching for other ways to come in possess of cultivation techniques. Apart from breaking in the inner building and steal the books, which was impossible, the only option he had was to enter the family guards and obtain enough merits to be granted access to the inner circle. His teacher scolded him for half a day before giving up on him and going back to the inner circle while his mother only hugged him and said: "Be careful" Even though Noah could see a trace of disappointment in Lily''s eyes he could not help but follow his decision. He didn''t want to give up and live another worthless and unappealing life now that he saw hope to be more than a normal man. ''Yet, she really loves me. After all this time she still keeps seeing that father of mine. It''s probably for my sake that she endures his character.'' Lately, whenever he would go back to his quarters, he would find some new bruises on his mother body and yet, he never saw Lily without a smile when she looked at him. ''I guess I should try a little harder in this life. I don''t think I can live happily if I don''t do my best to take care of her.'' A slight smile appeared on his face after this line of thought. Sadly, it was interrupted by a guard yelling to him: "Hey, whoreson, the fuck are you doing smiling like an idiot while still carrying our water?" He snapped back to reality and hurried himself to the group of guards to deliver the buckets. "I''m sorry honorable sirs, I hope your training went well. Maybe you want to ease your mind ranting about how hard your workout is, which are the harder positions to maintain, how to--" "Shut your mouth, the last guy you scammed was sent by the captain to clear the latrines for three months. No one will tell you anything, yet if you like helping us in the usual way I bet that there will be more than one candidate" The guard interrupted Noah''s facade before it even started. He was right though, in the previous two years, Noah managed to obtain some techniques by faking innocence in front of some lonely and tired guard. He would usually choose the ones that seemed excluded or bullied so that he could start some kind of connection with his status as a bastard and then he would ask them to show their forms and techniques in order to be "impressed" and boost their morale. In the last year though, the higher-ups of the guards building started to notice his true intentions and chose to punish the guards revealing important information. They didn''t dare punish him since he was still a young kid and, even has a bastard, he had the blood of the main family in his veins. As for the "usual way of helping", it basically consisted of the guards hitting Noah a couple of times till he was on the ground as a form of "combat training". It must be said that the combat training was still Noah''s idea after he could not manage to scam any more guards. After all, in his previous life, he had basically no experience in fighting so it had to make up for that. "I guess there is no other option. Let''s go for a round, should be fun." The group of guards cheered when they heard Noah''s answer and started playing some hand games in order to decide who would have been the lucky one to teach that shameless kid a lesson. In the meantime, Noah went to the training swords deposit to pick a short saber out of habit. The guards building featured a large courtyard at the center in order to give the guards a spacious and private place to train. Noah only managed to get in thanks to his initial fake innocence and his diligence in doing their chores. The deposit was on the side of the yard so after a couple of minutes he came back to the group of guards with a steel blunt short saber. The guards were, by then, used to this kid able to wield with quite dexterity the saber with his left hand. "HAHAHA! Kid today is my turn, I''m still mad about the last time" The guard standing at a distance from his group was 1.80 meters tall and had a burly musculature. He was bald and had a long curly beard, and hairy chest and bulging muscles. From his shirtless status, you could describe him as the archetype of the perfect soldier. " Oh come on Micky, it was just a sword form and not even that well done!" Hearing this, a tinge of anger rose in Micky as he started to get closer to Noah. "Using weapon won''t be fair since you are still a kid, so I will limit myself to these armpits. I know you are training the Ice-Fire revolving technique so don''t expect me to go easy on you." Micky sprinted toward Noah while using his arms in a crossed guard to cover his head and chest. Noah went in a position he learnt from a sword style and waited for the right opportunity, shifting his weight on his front leg, ready to sprint at any time. When the guard was one meter and a half far from him, Noah sprinted lowering himself to dodge the guard''s charge and hide from his line of sight. He was basically half the guard height after all. While he was sprinting he slashed his saber diagonally to the right leg of the guard. CLANG! The sound of metal against metal sounded as an armpit appeared in the saber''s trajectory. The guard anticipated his move. Without waiting any further, the guard pushed himself toward Noah aiming to hit him with his already lowered shoulder. Contrary to the expectations, Noah did not dodge but twisted his left wrist holding the saber in a strange manner. The saber disappeared for a second only to reappear on Micky''s neck without him noticing anything. ''I finally did it in real combat, I guess it''s time to lose'' Thinking this, Noah let go of the saber and let the burly man hit him in the chest. He flew for 2 meters before landing on the ground. Then he kneeled and coughed a bit of blood. "You are lucky I went easy on you if I used my whole strength you would have been bedridden for at least 6 months." After that, Micky cheered, happy to have triumphed on a 10 years old kid. "You are super-strong Micky, now I should go home and rest. Your mighty strength is hard to digest." Noah said getting up and hurrying towards his building. When he was on the exit he heard the group of guards laughing with an angry yell in the middle of the laughter that resembled his name... In a room in the guards building, two figures were staring at the courtyard across a window where the group of guards was mocking a bald one. "So, what do you think of him?" One of the figures asked the other one "He clearly won the round but still faked his loss. He is conscious of his position in the family so he tries to lay low as much as possible, yet he can''t give up to his search for power. He''s surely a genius, the rumors were not fake. I didn''t think that he would learn the snake-wrist technique in less than two years..." Chapter 6: 06. Master "What is your opinion of him, instead, captain?" The other man on the window thought for a while and then said: "If Micky had used a weapon and his full strength that kid would not have had any chances. Yet, he used his age and appearance to his advantage, using our men as training for the few things he learned in these years. He is calculative, manipulative, fearless of pain and of great determination. That incident with the dragon 10 years ago must have twisted his mind to no small degree. To think that a kid can be so relentless in his greed for power scares me a bit" Silence ran through the room as the two men kept on staring at the guards in the yard. That group, in the end, got bored of mocking Micky and agreed on a round of wine to end the day. "So, what should we do with him, captain?" "If that guy is left free like this it''s just a matter of time before some major trouble will happen. It''s pretty obvious that he will not stop his research for techniques, I just don''t know how far he is willing to go." "So, what should we do, captain?" The other man repeated. After working together for so many years they had a tacit understanding of how their conversations went. Seeing the captain thinking with his eyes closed he kept silent waiting for his orders. The captain opened his eyes and with a light sigh he said: "We train him." . . . In the meantime, Noah returned to his quarters and found out that his mother was still closed in her room. Light moans could be heard if you listened closely. He chose to take a bath to wash over the dust from the chores of the day, then he ate an abundant meal and went to sleep. Around midnight, a servant came to his room to wake him up with a bowl of water. After sending the servant away he washed his face and put himself in a cross-legged position on the floor, breathing in a strange but rhythmic way. Seeing how smoothly the process went, you could see how used Noah was to this kind of process. His body muscles would bulge from time to time only to return to the normal size with a slight increase of volume. After about an hour, he woke up from his meditation with traces of sweat on his body. ''The Ice-Fire revolving technique is only a way to strengthen the body through forcibly absorbing yang energy during midday and yin energy during midnight, far from the standard of a cultivator. Plus, my body is now saturated with energy, so my limit is the strength of a 14-15 year old boy until my body grows up and allows me to absorb more energy.'' Then he got up and picked a short metal saber from under his bed. Flicking his wrist, the saber disappeared and appeared in another position from a different angle. After he did this exercise with both his hands for a while he put the saber back under his bed, then he lied on it and fell into deep thought. ''The snake-wrist technique is just a trick to surprise your enemies and finish them in one hit, it''s not really worth being called a combat technique. Its usage is even limited by the quantity of "Breath" I can hold in my wrists. The other forms that I learned from the guards are either part of a set or are about weapons that I still cannot wield. What should I do now? The guards are wary of me by now and they won''t reveal any kind of information. Do I really have to wait 3 years before officially applying for the family guards? This is way too slow, especially since I can''t make valuable progress in these years.'' His stream of thoughts kept going for a while as he started to consider more illicit ways. ''I might steal some books from the guards, but that would require me knowing which techniques are worth the risk, who has them in the form of a book and it also would require me to escape from the mansion after that. There is the death penalty for crimes about cultivation and similar.'' Lily''s face smiling to him appeared in his mind, a little grip formed in his throat. ''I don''t think I can leave after all. To be more precise, I don''t want to leave. Apart from my mother''s problem, the technique issue still remains. I know this family has the techniques but I''m unsure of the situation of the outside world.'' Light struck his window, the sun was rising. ''Never mind, maybe I''m being too greedy. I always knew that I would have had to catch up with the lucky brats in the main family at some point. My body is still growing and the Ice-Fire revolving technique can keep up till I reach 18 years of age. In the worst case scenario, I can still be admitted in the inner circle through merits in the guard and scam some of the other descendants of the main family.'' ''No, the worst case scenario is me scamming them and being killed out of their anger. Life here is too peaceful, I''m starting to forget my position. I won''t be surprised if there is some servant giving information to the inner circle after the display of abilities in my early days.'' "Are you done with your reasoning, I''m getting bored of waiting" Hearing this voice, Noah''s body stiffened as he sprinted to the opposite point of the room toward the exit door. Then he bumped into something and fell on the ground, some blood went down from his nose into his mouth. The object he ran into was the body of the person talking that moved towards the door before he could. ''I can''t escape!'' He was ready to turn back and pick the saber up from under the bed when the man said with a nonchalant voice: "Relax, I''m not here to hurt you. Actually, I think you might like my offer." After he talked again, Noah stopped and thought for a bit. Then he slowly turned around to take a look at the man. He looked like an average man in his forties, 1.70 meters of height, no beard and some slightly long blonde hair. He had a playful face and a slight smile. "Who are you?" Noah asked. "I''m the vice-captain of the guards of the outer ring, William Challi. I''m here by order of the captain of the guards, we want to recruit and train you before you make some mess." Noah was a bit speechless when he heard the words coming out of William''s mouth. After a moment of pondering he asked: "What kind of mess might I ever be able to do, some guards voluntarily gave me some pointers on how I should train." He put the most amiable smile he could muster, after all, he was still in a 10 years old body. "Cut the crap, we know that you learned the snake-wrist technique and that you faked your match with Micky. Plus, do you really want to keep scamming soldiers for some shitty technique like the Ice-Fire revolving technique? That thing is just an imitation of a cultivation technique" Noah went from scared to know that his disguise was so easily discovered to dispirited when he heard that the most complete technique he learned was considered an imitation. Looking at the smiling man in front of him he finally asked the only question that mattered in his mind. "Will you make me a cultivator able to fight dragons?" William was a bit taken aback from the honesty of such a question. He looked at Noah in the eyes and, sensing his determination, he chose to answer in full honesty. He sighed a little and, putting down his smile, he said: "The road of cultivation is a personal road, people with the best techniques might not reach the level of the patriarch in their entire life, while people with just a simple respiration technique might cleave the sky in two. I won''t hide it from you: I can''t teach you the best techniques the Balvan family has but I surely will put you on the road of cultivation. Honestly speaking, this is the best bet you will be asked to take considering your position. So, what wil---" "I accept!" Before he could finish his speech, William got interrupted by Noah. Looking at him, he could now see that part of that honesty he had before disappeared, replaced by determination and scheming eyes. ''What a frightful kid, I can''t lower my guard for even a second'' Putting back his smile, William happily said: "Then from now on, you must call me Master!" Chapter 7: 07. Techniques The day after he accepted William as his Master, Noah went early in the morning to the guards building as per William instruction. The previous morning he explained the situation to his mother and, seeing the new bruises on her body, he could not help but feel gloomy. He entered the building and went straight to the first floor, apparently the men guarding the stairs were informed of his arrival and let him pass without troubles. Before he put his foot on the last step, he heard the voice of William at the end of the corridor. "You''re early" Watching the yawning figure that was now his master dressed in a white gym suit he felt a bit of trepidation. He put up a serious expression and did a slight bow with his left fist in his right hand. "Disciple was eager to learn, Master" William didn''t even look at him and gestured to follow him. Together they entered a spacious room with weapons on the walls and some wooden dummies sparse around. Suppressing another yawn, William pointed at the floor: "Sit, I''m not really good at mornings so I wish to explain everything just once, then you can ask me questions" Noah almost immediately sat cross-legged on the floor. Yearning clearly visible in his eyes. William sorted his thoughts for a little and then started explaining with a serious face: "First, I want to make sure that you understand the reason why the captain chose to let you enter the guards. We can''t have people scamming men for their rightfully earned techniques, especially a kid with your position. Weighing the pros and cons of the situation, we decided that it was better to use that greed of yours for our needs rather than punish you. So, remember to thank the captain for allowing you to keep your hands, when you see him." A drop of cold sweat ran through Noah''s back, he finally realized how reckless he was. ''The facade of the kid can''t work against powerful people, maybe it''s more right to say that they don''t care that I''m a kid'' "Second, we won''t gift you anything, a guard has to gather merits to obtain rewards and you will be no different but since you are now my disciple I will give you something to start with. Consider it as a loan that you will repay through serving in the guards. Do you understand me? You will have to spill blood for your family to obtain what you want" William looked at Noah''s eyes with probing intention. His situation wasn''t exactly a secret, so it was reasonable to question his will to protect the Balvan family. ''I know what he wants to say. He is afraid that since I''m a bastard I might have accumulated hatred towards the Balvan, and use the guards as a mean to strengthen myself only to get revenge. He is not wrong but he totally missed my reasons.'' Looking conflicted and in thought, Noah lowered his head only to rise it with an even more determined face. "Disciple understands!" William stared at him, trying to decipher his face. ''If he is lying, he sure is good at it.'' Then he gave up on understanding the kid in front of him and resumed his explanation: "Then it''s settled. You are now the youngest member the guards of the Balvan family ever had. Our duties consist mostly in solving issues with bandits and magical beasts in Balvan''s territory since it''s the duty of the troops in the inner circle to personally protect the family members. I will explain more about missions later, now pay attention, I''m starting with the part you almost lost your hands for." Needless to say, Noah''s attention skyrocketed. "You read the Yin-Yang system so I can skip the part about the "Breath" and elements. Human cultivation can be divided into 3 centers of power: dantian, body, and sea of consciousness that are deeply connected to each other." "The dantian is in your lower abdomen and it''s usually formed by the age of 15. It is the place where cultivators accumulate the "Breath" and, once accumulated, it will nourish the body and the mind as a consequence." "The body is the shell of a cultivator, it can be nourished by flooding it with "Breath" and the stronger it is, the more stable your dantian and mind will be. You have already started nurturing it with the Ice-Fire revolving technique." "The sea of consciousness is at the center of your brain and it''s the place where your mental energy is generated and accumulated. Enlarging your sea of consciousness will not only give you more space to store mental energy in and raise its production, but it will also sharpen your senses and fasten your thoughts. It is said that at some level you can even start predicting imminent dangers." "Now, you can start with your first round of questions." Noah closed his eyes and repeated what his master said in his mind in order to memorize it. After scanning through the pieces of information a couple of times he found two things he was unsure of. "Master, I have two questions: haven''t you said that the Ice-Fire revolving technique is just an imitation of a cultivation technique? If the dantian is formed at the age of fifteen, does this mean that I cannot cultivate for the next five years?" William''s answer was immediate, as he had probably foreseen the doubts coming to his disciple''s mind a moment earlier. "Real body-nourishing methods use the "Breath" in the dantian to flood the body and nourish it. In comparison, the Ice-Fire revolving technique is just a process to forcibly store "Breath" in the body that will be naturally used as nourishment. The difference lays in the quantity of "Breath" used, besides the fact that the technique you practice can only accumulate a tenth of what methods using the dantian can accomplish. Moreover, you can clearly feel that that technique is bound to the physical limits of the body, while real body-nourishing methods can allow you to break those limits." "As for the other question, yes, the usual age at which a human has completely formed his dantian is fifteen. Yet, as I told you, the three centers of power are deeply connected. Probably you have already sped the process of creation of the dantian up by practicing the Ice-Fire revolving technique. Who knows, you might have gained some months of growth already." Hearing this, Noah''s eyes lit up. ''This means that I can speed the process up by training the other two centers of power. Wait, something is strange, doesn''t that mean that when someone trains all three of them at the same time his growth will be exponential?'' A confused expression appeared on his face. Eyebrows knitted together, he looked at his Master and was about to ask more questions when he got interrupted. "You will understand more once you start practicing. Cultivation is innately an act of defiance against Heaven and Earth since we take its power and make it ours, so the process is extremely long and painful. Therefore, since the three centers of power are connected, if it''s true that empowering one will affect the other two, it''s also true that leaving behind one will slow the growth of the other two. But as I said, you will understand it once you step on the road." William then sat on the ground and took out a pile of sheets from beneath his suit. "I will give you a training technique for the sea of consciousness and let you choose a martial art and a body-nourishing method that doesn''t need a dantian out of the ones I sorted out for you. These sheets are only the general description of the techniques so come closer and read them carefully. Remember to pick those in line with your personality and needs." Before he could even put the sheets on the ground, Noah was already sitting on his knees in front of him. ''This fucking kid didn''t even run this fast when he was running away from me'' Releasing a soft sigh, William added: "Take note that you will have to change the body-nourishing method once you form a dantian and that the martial arts use "Breath" to express their true power, so for now you are limited to the one you accumulate in your body." After the last warning, he laid the sheets on the floor, with body-nourishing on the right and martial arts on the left and watched with a slight smile this disciple of his reading them with fervent eyes. It seemed he could consume them with just one stare. ''He sure has the will of a cultivator, I wonder how far he can go'' Chapter 8: 08. Helplessness Noah chose to first sort out the pile of sheets on the left, the one having the martial arts. ''Five sheets: Balvan sword style, a two-handed sword style created by the Balvan family, balanced in both attack and defense, perfect for soldiers. "Breath" will empower the thrust attack, able to shatter rocks. Rank 1; Phantom saber style, a one-handed saber style made of peculiar moves hard to defend against, good attack and poor defense. "Breath" can make any of the willing body parts disappear in order to catch your enemy unprepared. Rank 2; Flow of the sword, a two-handed sword style focused on deflecting your opponent''s attack and counterattack at the right time, excellent defense. "Breath" can create a shield of air for a period of time. Rank 2; Twin saber style, a one-handed saber style wielding two sabers, focused on speed, can defend and attack at the same time. "Breath" will enhance the perforation ability of the sabers allowing the wielder to cut without the need for the blade to touch. Rank 2; Iron palm style, a weaponless style that uses hands as a weapon, excellent attack and maneuverability to strike. "Breath" will harden the hands of the user making them able to stop blades or release a shockwave to hurt the internal organs of the opponent. The hardening of the hands can be permanent with training. Rank 2.'' Noah fell deep in thought. "Master, why is there a rank on the side of the arts?" As if expecting the question, William seriously explained: "The rank represents the potential of the technique when using the "Breath", it basically defines how strong their effect and destructiveness can be. There is a rank for every technique and magic and there is a rank even for cultivators, but I will explain the cultivator''s part once your dantian is formed." Noah started to think again, looking at the sheets in his hands. ''I guess I can already reject the Balvan sword style since it''s rank 1. The iron palm style seems cool, especially for the permanent hardening part, but I got quite familiar with the saber in these years so I should stick with it.'' Saying so, only 2 sheets were left in his hands. ''The Phantom saber style should be where the snake-wrist form came from, so I''m actually advantaged in learning this one, but it feels like it''s a killing method against men, will a dragon fell for the invisibility trick?'' Like this, only one sheet remained in Noah''s hands. "I choose the twin saber style as a martial art." William happily smiled and kept on nodding. "Good choice, since you need to wield two sabers it will be a bit harder at the beginning, but you will soon understand that it is a style which fits every situation." Noah shifted his attention to the group of the body-nourishing methods. He didn''t notice that the smile on William''s face had disappeared, being replaced by a worried expression. ''Mh, maybe I expected too much from a group of methods without the need for a dantian. Every technique seems similar to the Ice-Fire revolving one, they just add some peculiarity like more strength or more speed. At least they are all rank 2 so they should be better than my current one.'' He was almost ready to choose a nourishing method that would enhance his speed when he reached the last sheet. ''Rank 3'' The worry on William''s face grew, as he stared with pleading eyes at the kid in front of him. ''Please don''t choose that one. That is not a technique but pure torture.'' He didn''t want to put that method in the block from which Noah had to choose but his captain thought differently so he had no choice. "William, we have to respect his desires. If he gets in the guards and then finds out that we kept that method hidden from him, he might lose trust on us and revolt." Such were the words his captain said to him the day before. ''Still, I don''t think that a kid can understand the kind of pain we are talking about here.'' While William was lost in worry and thoughts, Noah was reading incredulous the rank 3 method in his hands. ''Forging of the Seven Hells, the peak body-nourishment of the ones that do not require a dantian, it equals the methods that require a dantian in terms of power, so if the user survives the treatment he will obtain a rank 3 body capable of blocking rank 1 martial arts and rank 0 magic spells almost without harm. In addition, since it''s a body shaped by the "Breath", it will have a better attunement with it, speeding its recovery and its manipulation. The treatment consists of breaking a fixed number of acupoints in a specific place in order to create an absorption vortex that will force the Breath of Heaven and Earth to enter the body and reconstruct the acupoints. Then the man must rest and let the newly acupoints shape and nourish the body for a period of time. Then he must repeat the treatment 6 times. Warning: extremely dangerous, the user must not lose consciousness during the process in order to manipulate the "Breath" or else there might be an error in the reconstruction process causing permanent paralysis or death. Warning: extremely painful'' Raising his head, Noah finally noticed the worried expression of his Master. "Master, I think that in order to choose properly I have to understand in a better way the difference in ranks between the different arts." William tried to hide his worry with a slight smile and said: "Sure. Try to look at it in this way, the more variables you add into one attack the more powerful it is. The weakest of all is the body, which consists only in a strengthening, like reinforcing a wall. Then comes the martial art, which is a mixture of body and "Breath", so of course, its power will be one time and a half higher than the simple body. In the end, there are magic spells, which use a specific element of the "Breath" you accumulate in your dantian mixed with mental energy to create spells, so they will be the most powerful and destructive. Generally speaking, a cultivator''s highest rank is the body, while the level of his cultivation and mental energy is pretty similar. For now, just consider the dantian level as a form of fuel: the higher it is, the stronger its effects will be once used for martial arts and spells." Noah shifted his gaze back to the sheet in his hand. ''The advantages of this technique are pretty awesome, I just don''t know if it''s worth the risk.'' "How much does it takes for a man with a dantian to obtain a rank 3 body with the orthodox way?" William hesitated a bit before answering, and then he simply chose to tell the truth. "If from the beginning a man trains a method for a rank 3 body, without going through methods for rank 1 and 2, it will take between 5 and 15 years." "What body level am I right now? How much will it take with the orthodox methods once I get a dantian and while training a rank 2 method in the meantime? How much with this technique?" A tempest of questions came out of Noah''s mouth. If he had to risk his life he wanted to make sure that the benefits were way higher than the dangers. "Right now, your body is below half rank 1, since your body is still growing and you trained in a method without the need of a dantian the results will be lesser if compared with the benefits provided by the techniques of the same rank which instead need a dantian. The same will go for the rank 2 methods below you. If you start training in one now, by the time you get your dantian you will have a body of rank 1 and a half, so to say, and you will probably reach rank 3 in 5-9 years. If you use that torture instead, it might take you between 3 and 5 years to complete the process." Noah was a bit stupefied. The orthodox method didn''t seem too slow at all. He was confident that with his rigid schedule, he would have achieved the rank 3 body in the shortest possible time, wasting about four to five additional years, but also avoiding such an extreme risk of his life. He was about to reject the idea of going through the Seven Hells technique when he looked at his Master''s eyes that seemed filled with shame. Then he thought of something and asked with a bitter smile: "How hard is to get a proper rank 3 body-nourishing method?" This time, shame ran through William for being found out. He lowered his head a bit to recover his composure and then said with a soft voice: "You must enter the inner circle in order to request it." Still smiling bitterly, Noah handed the sheet to his Master. "Then I choose the Forging of Seven Hells method." Chapter 9: 09. Sea of consciousness William''s fear came true, and he could not help but feel sad. After a moment of reflection, he straightened himself up and walked around the room. Then he started talking: "I accept your decision and I will help you train in that method but I have some conditions. First, I want you to train your mental energy for six months and if after that time I won''t consider you ready I will not allow you to begin the treatment. The second condition is that you will have to train the twin saber style with me personally. Will you accept?" Noah looked at him a bit confused and rebuked quietly: "May I know the reason behind these conditions?" William stopped in place and answered: "To withstand that kind of pain and still be able to manipulate the "Breath" you''ll need a way stronger mind than the average man. If you train your sea of consciousness for some time you will increase your chances to survive the treatment. As for the second condition, I will be practicing torture on a kid and I don''t really feel good about it. At least I will vent a little by training you and you might even raise your tolerance of pain during the process." Noah was a bit taken aback from this answer, especially concerning its last part. "Master, you don''t have to force yourself to do the treatment to me if you don''t want to." "No one from the inner circle will help you do that and the only ones in the outer circle that can use the "Breath" skillfully enough are me and the captain. Yet, my precision in its usage is far better, so I''m the best candidate to perform it." Noah fell into thought. ''Even though he tried to con me earlier, he''s not a bad character. Well, it''s either trusting him or going back to scam guards so I don''t have much of a choice.'' "I agree" Said Noah in the end. "Wonderful" Answered William, and then he took another piece of paper that was folded from a pocket in his pants. He handed that folded sheet to Noah and then started explaining again. "Inside that sheet, there is written a rune called Kesier rune after the species of magical beasts they were obtained from. It is said that these beasts had such a powerful mental energy they could squeeze an adult man into a little ball of flesh with a single thought. They were similar to big monkeys and each of their kind had a different number of these runes embodied on their back, the more runes they had, the more powerful their mental energy was. When humans found out that they could use these runes to empower their mental energy, a big extermination begun, and of the Kesier species, only the runes remain now. The method to train the mental energy is the result of years of experimentation on these runes. Nowadays, there are three sets each made of three runes for a total of nine runes." William paused a bit and then pointed at the folded sheet in Noah''s hands. "That one that I gave you is the first rune of the first set. When you will read it, you will feel a terrible pain in the center of your brain, which is caused by your first interaction with the sea of consciousness. Actually, there is a painless method to interact for the first time with the sea of consciousness but it will take you a week and knowing the kind of masochist you are I figured out that this method will suit you better. Go ahead and try reading the rune, after the pain comes, focus on it to enter your sea of consciousness." Noah smiled a little at being called a masochist, he was just eager to get stronger, wasn''t that the same for everyone? He slowly unfolded the sheet in his hands till a strand of ink was visible. Immediately, he felt like his head was going to split open. He groaned, enduring the pain and hiding again the rune and then he focused on the origin of the pain. He felt that he was in another world. The feeling of being on the ground disappeared and there was no smell, only the constant noise of sea waves was present. He opened his eyes and looked around him. He was sitting cross-legged in the air, his figure half transparent. Above him there was darkness, separated from him by a spherical barrier, beneath him there was an azure sea, with slight waves on its surface. After some seconds of pure amazement, he found himself back in the room with William staring at him, it seemed just one instant had passed. "Master, can you explain?" Asked Noah completely stupefied by this out-of-body experience. "You have just seen your sea of consciousness. Consider it a personal dimension, where your thoughts, emotions and mental energy are stored. The bigger that dimension is, the more influence it will have on the material world. The water inside it represents your ability to think, so be careful when you train mental energy or cast spells because it will deplete that water, and once you are out of it, your ability to think will be greatly affected until the sea of consciousness is replenished. You might even faint in that situation and if it happens too often, you can even damage your sphere. Once the sphere is broken, your mind will shatter and you will just be a living body with no will or thought." William was talking with a really serious face in that moment, it was hard to imagine how many men had shattered their own sphere trying to push their limits or overexerting themselves. "The training method of mental energy is pretty simple, just memorize the rune. You will know that you have memorized it once the rune appears inside your sea of consciousness like it did on the skin of the Kesier species and looking at it will cause no more depletion of mental energy. Once you''ve done it you can be considered a rank 1 mage and you can learn your first spells after confirming your elemental aptitude. The ranks of mages go from 1 to 9 based on the number of Kesier runes in their sea of consciousness and they have an auxiliary title based on their rank. For rank 1,2 and 3 it''s apprentice mage; for rank 4,5 and 6 is intermediate mage; for the rest of them is high mage. Basically, every wealthy family has a set of the first three runes, Balvan family should have the first five ones, while for the higher ones only the Shosti family or similar high-noble families might have them. Now, enough with the explanations, go back to your home and start practicing the first rune. I will send the twin saber style forms and descriptions to your lodging including another saber. I will see you again in one week from now to check your progress with both of them. Remember not to exhaust your mental energy!" Chapter 10: 10. 324 Inside his room, Noah was staring fixedly at a piece of paper in his hands. The process seemed hard, as beads of sweat ran down his forehead and his eyes kept trying to close themselves. ''This is fucking hard! Keep going, keep going! Fucking eyes stay open!'' Noah was completely focused on his task and ignored everything around him. As time went on, his hands started to tremble and his eyes become redder and bloodshot. Inside his sea of consciousness. Waves kept surging from the center of the sphere where Noah''s half transparent figure was standing with closed eyes. A deep frown was present on his face. The waves would crash on the borders of the sphere enlarging its circumference by few millimeters every time. As this process kept going the sea level would lower and right now it was already covering less than a quarter of the sphere. Noah abruptly folded the sheet containing the rune and let out a long breath while lying on the floor with speed arms. ''I feel that my head is about to explode! My sight seems confused and even thinking makes the pain increase. Terrifying, this kind of training is terrifying! And I feel so sleepy too." Some knocks sounded from the door of his room. Noah cursed a bit in his mind, only to feel again an increase of pain that made him curse again. He stood up while supporting himself first to the floor and then to the walls and went to open the door. The figure of Lily appeared on the other side of the exit, carrying two old books and a case with a radiant face. "Some guards took these to the building. They said that the vice-captain sent the-" She interrupted herself seeing the state her son was in. He looked incredibly tired. His face was ashen and his eyes were half closed and completely red. She noticed how he was using the door as a support to keep himself standing. She hurriedly jumped on him and put her shoulder below his armpit as support. She then moved to the direction of the bed yelling: "What happened to you!? It''s that William right? Or it''s the guards? I''m gonna talk to the captain right now! I''m gonna-" Before she could finish her venting, Noah sat on the edge of the bed and raised a hand to stop her from yelling any more than that. His head ached like hell but he forced himself to talk because he felt the need to explain something to his mother. "Mum, don''t worry. It''s just a special training that will make me able to do magic one day. I exaggerated a bit because it was my first time doing it but I will feel better after I get some sleep. Don''t worry, the guards are nice to me, they don''t do anything against my will." Lily halted from talking any more and looked at her son. Touching his black hair and looking at those icy blue eyes she felt warm from how similar looking Noah was to her. She then sat next to him an hugged him caressing his head. ''This son of mine is so stubborn. His precocity is surpassed only by his determination'' Looking at the kid in her embrace she observed how carefully defined were his muscles and the high number calluses on his hands. A bit of pride for such a hardworking son invaded her and so she broke the embrace and put him in front of her, her hands locked on his shoulders. "Ok I won''t do anything but you must promise to be more careful! I don''t want to see you anymore in this pitiful state! And don''t work too hard, remember that rest is also a part of the training process. And don''t you dare anymore to skip your lunch otherwise there will be consequences! Do you understand me, young man?" Noah felt extremely warm in hearing these words. But his focus was elsewhere. ''One, two new ones, and that''s only as far as I can see'' He was counting the new signs of violence on his mother body, it was a habit he picked up since he saw the first one appear on Lily, it was about the time when he requested for a teacher. "Ok mum, I promise, I''ll be careful" Said Noah forcing a smile. Lily looked at him for some other time and then stood up leaving the books and the case she was carrying on the bed. "I have to go now, I will ask the servants to bring you a big meal. Always remember that your health is the most important thing. As long as you''re alive you can do anything!" She then kissed Noah on his forehead and after a last look at him, she exited the room. Noah kept looking in the direction his mother went, the smile disappearing from his face and his red eyes acquiring a coldness that he rarely showed to others. ''324 visible one till now, daddy is increasing his ratio.'' He would only see Rhys entering and exiting Lily''s room randomly, never once his eyes went to the son of his. ''It seems that I can practice the mental energy only at night or my mother might see the after effects of it, I don''t want to worry her'' As coldness enveloped him, the pain on his head kept going but he totally ignored it. ''I spent about 4 hours in the sea of consciousness, I can probably stay for more time if I force myself, I just have to understand the recovery rate with one night of sleep'' He looked outside the window and saw that it was probably still 5 or 6 in the afternoon. Then he shifted his attention to the books to his side. ''Twin saber style and Forging of Seven Hells, apparently my Master wants me to get accustomed to the treatment even if he hates it so much.'' He first picked the book describing the saber style and started reading it, ignoring the pain it caused to his head. ''It is indeed a complete martial art and the usage of the "Breath" seems a bit easier than with the snake-wrist technique'' In order to activate the true power of the martial art, one had to move the "Breath" according to a specific rhythm and pattern and then he had to synchronize this manipulation with the correct body movement. ''I can''t really train it now since it might do more harm than good but tomorrow in the morning I will definitely start practicing it.'' He closed the book and opened the case, a short saber was inside it, the quality of it seemed to surpass the saber he stole from the training yard. ''What a nice saber, William is really taking this Master stuff seriously.'' Then he took a look at the book containing the Forging of Seven Hells method, in the meantime, an abundant meal arrived composed of rice and chicken meat. Noah ran through the information of the book while eating, a bit of nausea arose from his stomach due to the strong headache but he forced himself to eat anyway. ''The Mad Doctor joined and founded at least 12 cults to do his experiments on body-nourishing methods. The cults were responsible for providing children of age inferior to 13 in order for him to experiment on them. At the end of the process, the Seven Hells method was created but the mortality rate only got lowered from 99% to 85% without considering the after effects that the treatment caused on the specimens.'' Noah stopped his reading seeing that the night came and felt completely drained. ''I''ll go to sleep, tomorrow I''ll start training with the twin sabers and I''ll probably begin with mental energy late in the afternoon, I wonder if tomorrow I will see some changes from today''s training.'' Thinking that he put the books to the side of his bed and the saber back in the case and went to sleep. Chapter 11: 11. Chea The next morning Noah woke up at dawn, the first lights of the day disturbed him. He got out of bed and was ready to go to wash his face when he stopped in place. ''I''ve never got disturbed by the first daylight before!'' He entered his sea of consciousness focusing on the center of his brain. When his half transparent figure opened his eyes he could see that the level of the sea resumed the original level of half of the sphere. ''So one night of sleep is enough to replenish half of the sea! I will test again late in the afternoon for how long I can endure the training'' What he didn''t know was that since he was a transmigrator his mind was far stronger than that of an average kid of his age. Overall, his mental age was about 35 years old and the events of both his lives contributed on strengthening his mind even more, so it could endure looking at the rune for far more time than any young man. If a 10 years old child was to look at the Kesier rune for 4 hours straight, his mind would shatter. When he neared a bowl of water and washed his face, he shivered a little. The water seemed colder than usual. "Why the water is so cold?" He asked a passing servant pointing at the bowl. The servant put her hand on the bowl and looked at Noah with a confused expression. "The water feels of the same temperature as always, young master. Is it possible that you caught a cold? Do you want me to call the madam?" Noah was a bit surprised by her answer but then he thought of something. ''Is it possible that my perception of sensations got stronger with only one session of training? That shouldn''t be so fast right?'' "No, it''s fine, keep going with your work." He dismissed the maidservant and went to eat breakfast. ''I will ask Master when I see him. Now I should focus on the twin saber style.'' He went back to his room, opened the martial art''s book and picked the two sabers. He did the same thing he used to do whenever a guard would "give" him a martial form or a technique: closing himself in his room and practice till those movements became a habit. This time tho, he found difficulties in managing two sabers at the same time. ''I guess it''s really harder getting used to it, as Master said. I can only practice more until I can use these moves in an actual fight''. Like this, his day passed by. Noah went out of his room only to get his lunch and spent the dinner reading the Forging of Seven Hells closed in his room. When he felt that he digested it was already night. He closed his book and took out the Kesier rune from his clothing. As his most important asset, he would always keep it with him. He stared at the rune sitting on his bed and kept going until the level of the water inside his sea of consciousness was below 1/5 of the sphere then he folded the sheet. Some retches ran through him but he suppressed them with closed eyes until they were gone. Only then, he looked outside the window to understand how much time he spent training. ''About 4 hours again, even by reaching my absolute limit. It seems that practicing all day has its toll on the mind otherwise I''m confident I could have held for about 5 hours.'' Even though he reached the limit his body could withstand, of about 1/5 of the sphere, he stayed in the sea of consciousness for the same time as the previous night. He added another question to the list of those he had to ask his Master once he saw him. ''If tomorrow morning I wake up completely fine too, I will keep going like I did today. Training all day is tiring and this terrible pain at the head is discouraging but I can hold on! What is a bit of sweat and pain confronted with power?'' Reaffirming his determination, he lied in bed completely exhausted both in body and mind and slept soundly. In the morning, Noah woke up again at dawn, as soon as he noticed the light on his window. Checking that everything went smoothly in his sea of consciousness and that apart from some soreness from his limbs he had completely recovered, he chose to repeat the same actions of the previous day. He would train from morning till mid-afternoon in the twin saber style, read the Forging of Seven Hells while eating dinner and digesting it and practice with the Kesier rune during the night till his body was on the verge of throwing up. Like this, the day of his meeting with William arrived. In the same spacious room from a week ago, Noah was sitting on his knees looking at his Master standing in front of him. He was waiting for William to finish his yawn before asking him to clarify some of his doubts. "Master, ever since I began training my mental energy I can notice the light of the morning at the window during my sleep. Plus, everything seems colder or warmer than what it used to be and I''m pretty sure I can hear some servants whispering in other rooms if I concentrate enough." Noah never slacked off in these days and the changes in his perception grew every day more evident. William was a bit surprised when he first heard that but then remembered how stubborn his disciple was when it came to training. He thought that he should impose more limits on his training habits before Noah hurt himself due to exhaustion. "It seems that you practiced really hard on the Kesier rune. I remember that when I first started practicing my mental energy at the age of 15 I could not keep going on for more than 2 hours before collapsing. I remember the captain called me a rare genius! Haha, don''t worry, as you grow up your mind barrier will solidify and become sturdier, allowing you to train for more time." Noah was left speechless, staring at his Master with wide eyes. William put a proud expression a thought: ''Yes, that''s right, your Master is a genius. Are you comparing yourself with me right now, right?'' A slight smirk was on his face as he thought that he finally obtained some respect from the kid. ''Wait wait wait wait, is he saying that he collapsed ONLY after 2 hours? A rare genius, him? What is the double of a rare genius? Maybe because my mind has already undergone another life it can be considered as a fully formed mind, so I can train for the same period of time of grown-up men while being still 10 years old. Isn''t the same as saying that as long as I don''t slack off, no one of my same age will ever reach me?'' Noah''s mouth became a little dry and then he gulped. Trying to shift the focus of the conversation away from the hours of training he questioned William about another one of his doubts. "How much did you take, Master, to memorize the first rune?" William smile grew and said with a proud smile: "About 6 years, but I could have done it in 5 if it wasn''t for the captain always sending me in missions" ''So, if I keep going like this I might actually become a rank 1 mage in 3 years! Maybe the process will be slower due to my still not formed dantian, yet it''s extremely good!'' Noah already wanted to drop this talk with his master and go back in his room to train, he was eager to understand what it felt like to cast magic spells. Willam dropped his prideful pose and looked at him smiling. "Have you trained in the twin saber style too, right?" "Yes, Master" Answered Noah, that remembered the main reason he came here today. "Do you want to show it to me?" "Yes, please! Master, don''t go easy on me." Noah stood up and picked 2 training sabers from the wall behind him. "Don''t worry I won''t." Said William, putting his left hand behind his back and raising his right one to his chest, the side of the hand pointing at Noah. Immediately, the atmosphere in the room changed. Chapter 12: 12. Smile The atmosphere became heavier, Noah felt a little like suffocating. He looked at the stern expression on his Master face and gulped, then released a long breath and got in a charging position with both his sabers pointing ahead. ''He is strong, way stronger than any guard I''ve faced and they are stronger than me already.'' William was unmoving, he didn''t even seem to breathe. He stared fixedly at Noah''s figure waiting for his move. ''He won''t underestimate me like Micky.'' Noah''s eyes became full of resolution. ''So I can only charge ahead and see how it goes.'' Once decided, Noah didn''t waste any more time. He charged ahead, in a moment he was in front of William aiming for a horizontal double cut. A loud THUD resounded in his mind. "Reckless, what''s the point of wielding 2 sabers if then you use both of them to attack against an opponent of which you know nothing?" Noah found himself on the ground, his left shoulder hurting. ''I didn''t even saw his attack'' "Again!" Ordered William. Noah stood up pointing with his right arm and went back into an attacking position. Then he charged ahead again but made a feint before entering William''s range of attack and twisted to his left slashing with his right saber, the left one was held still to cover his head. THUD! "A feint can only work if your ability to perform it surpasses your opponent ability to see through it. Again" This time it was his right leg to hurt. Noah slightly sensed something after he made the feint but it was too fast for him to react and so he ended up again on the ground. Like this, the day went on. THUD "If you use a jump attack on someone faster than you, you are just cutting off your road of retreat." THUD "Whenever you try to use your height to your advantage, your opponent will do the same with his peculiarity." THUD "Aiming for my blind spot was smart but I''m a cultivator! I don''t have blind spots because I can sense you clearly with my mental energy." THUD "I''m almost moved from your perseverance but even throwing your saber won''t work" THUD "You sure are stubborn but that won''t get you anywhere until you understand the lesson of today" THUD This time William didn''t speak, he just looked at the kid full of bruises in front of him. He was pointing with trembling hands and legs at the floor with his sabers. His breath ragged and his whole body full of sweat yet, his eyes were still staring at William with fervor. "And... Cough... What would be today''s lesson about?" Asked Noah confused. "Tell me, my disciple, what can you do against an opponent faster than you, stronger than you and that you can''t outsmart?" Noah lowered his eyes and thought for a long time, then he answered with a questioning tone: "Nothing?" William half smiled sighing softly. "Quite but not totally right. The only thing you can do is giving up. You must understand that sometime you simply can''t win, even if you put your everything on the line, no matter how unjust it can be." Noah looked at his Master smile. He had nothing to say, he was right. "Today I wanted to make you understand this and also train you a bit, but your stubbornness carried on for 3 hours so it''s best to call it a day. I''ll see you again in a week at the same hour and same room. Now go to rest and don''t do works that require your body." And then, William left. The atmosphere relaxed and Noah could not hold on the sabers anymore and fell on the floor. He coughed a couple of time and then went in a cross-legged position. "Fuuuuuuu" He strongly exhaled with his eyes closed and then tried to resume a normal rhythm of respiration. A smile appeared on his tired face. ''He is incredibly strong! From start to finish I never saw his movements and only sensed them a little. This mental energy stuff is incredible, a cultivator is incredible! I wonder if he would be able to stop a bullet from my previous world. Hahaha, I love this! The more I see a cultivator the more I want to become one! So much strength in just one man! A hand to stop 2 swords, a hand to stop a dragon! I want to train more, I want to get stronger, I want to forge my life with my own power! Who cares if I die again, this is the first time I felt so alive in 2 lives!'' Then, the image of Lily appeared in his head and his smile became more complicated. ''I guess I should first solve her situation otherwise I won''t be at peace'' The smile disappeared and he opened his eyes, resolution was everywhere in his expression. ''Either way, I need strength to do both things, so my course of action can only be more training.'' He stood up with difficulty and carried himself back on his room. He ate a large meal and studied both the manuals till after dinner, then he carried on looking at the Kesier rune. The next morning, he woke up with his body hurting all over the place but he didn''t care. He stuck with his schedule with even more passion. Steadily but surely, he was becoming stronger. The next week he arrived even earlier at the appointment with William. This time he actually had to wait for his Master to come. When he entered the room he looked at the disciple looking at him with expectations and could not help but to shake his head. ''And here I thought that he learned something last time.'' He yawned shortly and then took a wooden stick from the wall behind him. "Today we will exchange defense and attack and I will point out every mistake you make by hitting you with this." He pointed at the wooden stick in his hands. "Come on, start attacking me." Noah hurriedly stood up and took 2 training sabers. Then he directly charged at William with his sabers crossed in front of him. THUD The tip of the stick hit his head as he fell back in guard. "Your body must be more crouched to use that type of charge so to protect your whole upper body. Again" Noah tried again with the same charge but following his Master advice this time. THUD The stick struck the point where the sabers crossed and pushed them back on Noah''s chest. "Put some strength in those arms. How can your weapons protect you if you let them hit your body" And so, Noah charged again. THUD The stick hit the same spot as before but this time Noah held on and deflected the stick entering in William''s guard but when he was about to strike he heard a voice coming from behind him. "That wasn''t bad, now try with a different form." The William in front of Noah had disappeared and reappeared behind him. Noah looked at the smiling figure behind him and shook his head to suppress any thought of cursing him. This way the morning passed with William perfecting Noah''s technique. "Today was good, see you next week." Noah was in a pitiful state but this time managed to make a bow before his Master exited the room. He was really grateful for the time William invested in him, and today he really did some great progress. He could not wait for 7 days to pass! Chapter 13: 13. Small success Life went on peacefully in the outer ring of Balvan mansion, the only peculiar thing was a little kid going every week to the guards building. At first, he would always come out of the building full of bruises but as time went on, the wounds on his body diminished and a faint pressure was created around him. Today that same little kid was seen early in the morning again as he marched towards that guard''s building. ''It''s been 2 lessons since I last got hit. I wonder if in today''s sparring Master will again raise his level'' Since his second lesson, Willam kept on engraving the forms of the martial arts on Noah''s mind. After 3 months of conditioning, his techniques were near perfect in their execution so his Master chose to raise the level of the training. They started to spar freely as William would hold himself back only to raise his level when Noah managed to consistently hit him. Now tho, the condition was fulfilled twice already by Noah but his Master would still not raise his level. Entering the usual room, Noah was surprised to find his Master sitting cross-legged on the floor waiting for him. No traces of his usual sleepiness was present as he was staring at a fixed point of the room with vacant eyes, probably in deep thought. "Master, you''re early!" William''s eyes regained its focus as he stood up and looked at his disciple with a complex expression. "Can you use the "Breath" in your style?" Noah was taken aback by this question. Since the "Breath" in his body was limited, his Master always forbid him to release it during their spar or his personal training. Noah''s schedule was always so full that he could not find the time during his day to refill it with the Ice-Fire revolving technique. His Master knew this, so he chose to forbid its usage and let it focus on nourishing the kid''s body. As such, Noah only manipulated it during his training, without ever releasing it. Today tho, things seemed different. "I think I can, even if I never used it in an actual fight I should get the hang of it in a couple of tries. Why is that?" William did a light smile as a bit of warmth was exposed in his expression. During these months he began to understand better his disciple. He would always smile and speak seemingly without thinking too much but he knew how things really were. Noah was ruthless, he treated his body and mind like a piece of metal going into forging. If the body would not bend he would hammer it till it did, no matter how much pain he would suffer in the process. If his mind was weak, he would heat it till its effects would reverberate to the body, causing a constant nauseous feeling lingering on him. He knew how much Noah trained and how determined he was in his search for power, so Willam could not help to give birth to some kind of affection for him and even respect. ''This kid saying that he might do it in a couple of tries, does he knows how much does it usually takes to do it? What a pity, if his position was different he could have taken things slowly and have a bright future, with his talent and perseverance it''s just a matter of time before he even surpasses me. Yet, the guys in the inner circle will never allow for someone from outside the family to become too strong, especially someone that might have reasons to get revenge on them.'' The complicated expression on William''s face became more evident as he exhaled a sigh. "Do you know how much time has passed since our first meeting?" Noah thought for a little and then realization dawned upon him. He was so engrossed in his training that he forgot about the passage of time but when his Master asked the question he understood. "That''s right, almost 6 months have passed and your progress with mental energy have long since surpassed the standard I had set for you. Next week we will begin the treatment, so the "Breath" in your body is not that useful anymore. It''s better to start with the real martial art so to have some advantages if you manage to survive next week." Noah''s expression became serious. ''The time has indeed come, the life I was living was too perfect to continue, I almost forgot that all my training will be useless if I don''t push my body to the next level.'' Thinking this, he went to the usual wall to pick 2 sabers as he stared at his Master with resolution. "No reasons to waste time then, right Master?" The slight smile on Noah''s face was a blow delivered to William''s mind. ''Does he really not care about death?'' He shook his head to repress the thought and took the usual wooden stick and pointed it at Noah. "Then come at me like we always do, but this time try to mix some "Breath" attacks in the spar. You should be able to do 3-4 of them before the "Breath" in your arms depletes." Hearing these words, Noah waited no more. He charged at William swiftly with his body crouched so low it seemed he would fall on the floor anytime. When his Master entered in his range of attack, he thrust both his sabers in a diagonal uppercut infusing "Breath" according to the art''s instruction. Yet, his timing was a bit off and the result was only a simple double uppercut that William blocked easily positioning his stick horizontally. "Almost, again." Noah rushed again, this time in a cross-slashing position but the result was the same as before. "Concentrate! You can do your forms almost perfectly and I know you can move your "Breath" according to the instructions, you only need to synchronize them!" William knew that the process of synchronization wasn''t so easy as he said but wanted to increase the pressure on his disciple. The only thought in his mind was how to increase the chances of survivance of his disciple. He wanted to increase his handling of the "Breath" even of just a little before the treatment. Noah, this time, didn''t immediately rush to attack him but closed his eyes to sharpen his mind, his only thought became the rhythm of the twin saber style. When he opened his eyes he was ready for the last attack. He exhaled slowly and then charged at William with a horizontal slash. William mentally nodded and received his attack. A piece of wood fell on the ground, it was half of the stick in William''s hands. William stared astonished at the saber laid on his throat. ''That... That''s a perfect execution! I aimed for him to slightly dent the stick, never would I imagine that he could cut right through it with some blunt weapons!'' Noah realized the situation he was in and hastily retracted his sabers. Some sweat was on his face and back, apparently using a martial art synchronized with "Breath" was way more tiring than what appeared. "I''m sorry Master! I didn''t realize I could actually cut through it, luckily I stopped myself at the last moment." William cleared his throat and touched the spot where the saber was lying just a moment ago. "Don''t... Don''t worry, it''s fine. Do you think that your Master is so weak that a mere disciple could hurt him? Hmph! I have a rank 3 body, do you think that a martial art of rank 2 powered with your poor "Breath" can actually-" He had to interrupt himself seeing Noah pointing at his throat. A drop of blood was slowly falling from there. "You wretched disciple don''t be so smug about it!" Noah could not help but laugh a little when he saw his Master lose his cool but then William calmed himself and looked seriously at Noah. Noah understood that now was the time for his last instructions before next week so he listened attentively. "Next week don''t climb the stairs for this floor but wait at the bottom of them, I will meet you there. I will perform the treatment in another place after all the screams of a kid are not the happiest sounds to hear." Noah gulped when he heard the word "screams" but then focused again, he had already decided to put his life on the line. "If you survive, you will probably spend a week bedridden in order for your body to get used to its new acupoints, so remember to inform your mother about it. The day before the treatment don''t practice anything, and I''m talking seriously here. The only thing you are allowed to do is rest and read the tome about the Forging of Seven Hells, your condition must be at the peak when you undergo the process." William looked again at Noah, smiling this time. "Now go, sharpen your mind even more if you can. Next week it''s life or death." Chapter 14: 14. Lie When he went back to his room, Noah felt tired. Even if the meeting of today was short and only half of the morning passed, the depletion of "Breath" from his body caused tiredness to envelop him. ''To think that with just that little "Breath" that I have I can make a blunt weapon cut, I wonder how much more powerful the twin saber style can be with an actual dantian. It''s understandable why cultivators give so much importance to the dantian; if it can accumulate a higher quantity and quality of "Breath" every technique the user use will be exponentially more powerful. The difference will be really too big.'' Sitting on his bed he engraved the sensation of the execution of his last attack. ''That sharpness of mind must be my normal state from now on, no! It must be my starting point! I can''t rely only on the sheer quantity of my mental energy I must also refine it in an orderly way in order to speed up my thoughts and my learning process.'' One of his biggest secrets was that his mental energy was progressing at an astonishing rate, in these 6 months since he started training it he raised of half an hour the time he could stay in a training session. The effects of this increase were evident as he would learn faster every lesson his Master imparted him and his ability in manipulating the "Breath" became more precise and smooth. Inside his sea of consciousness at the center of the sphere, there was a slight disturbance in the space above the sea. It seemed that something was about to appear but could still not consolidate itself. ''During this week, I must focus completely on the Forging of Seven Hells and on increasing my mental energy. Training in the twin saber style will be used as a rest when I need to take a break. I can''t lose any more time.'' Deciding himself on the new schedule for this week he immediately got to work and used all his attention to read and memorize the body-nourishing method. At night he practiced hard on the Kesier rune. In the morning he spent some time in meditation, trying to maintain the sharpened state his mind experienced with his Master, then he would practice the forms on the twin saber style for about 2 hours. The rest of the day was dedicated to the memorization of the nourishing method and the night was used to increase his mental energy. Like this, days went by till the day before the appointment with William. As per instructions, Noah didn''t practice the martial art nor trained with the Kesier rune but spent the day reading the Seven Hells tome and focusing his mind to sharpen it. During lunchtime, he went to see his mother. Noah knocked at his mother door lightly saying with a firm voice: "Mum it''s me, I got something to talk to you." After some moments, the door opened and Lily''s figure appeared with a radiant smile and said happily: "It''s so rare for you to look for me, I believe that if it wasn''t for your need to eat you would spend all your time training." Noah instinctively looked at her body before focusing again his eyes on her face smiling lightly. ''4 more since the last time I saw her.'' His father was growing more violent as time passed, and Noah had the sensation that it was linked with his success in entering the guards. "It is actually about training. I will go on a special training with my Master tomorrow and he said that it will take a week or so for it to be completed. So I''m not coming back here starting tomorrow." Lily instantly got worried and wanted to ask more about this training but then realized that her son had somewhat changed. His eyes were more focused, his presence was more imposing, he seemed like a rock standing in a river constantly resisting the flow of water. She knew her son. She knew that he had decided to take part in this training and that nothing will make him change his mind, so she limited herself to touch his cheek and ruffle his hair a bit. "Promise me that you won''t do anything reckless or dangerous." "Don''t worry mum, my Master will be with me all the time and he is really strong so there is no real danger that can affect me." "I don''t care, promise it to me anyway" His mother plead was resolute and unmovable. "Ok mum, I promise, I''ll be careful" He lied as her mother kept on staring at him. Then she hugged him and adjusted his clothes a bit. "Then you are free to go but remember to not force yourself too hard, the work of a mother is to take care of his children while they are still young after all." . . . Back in his room, Noah was inside his sea of consciousness. He was not training, he was simply focusing all of his mental energy on the treatment of tomorrow, reviewing the various steps and setting his mind for the task. When he thought that it was enough he left his mental sphere and lied in bed. ''Now that I lied to her, I really can''t allow myself to die.'' And then he went to sleep. The next day he went to the appointed place where his Master was already waiting for him with a stern face. He lightly nodded seeing the focus and determination in Noah''s eyes. "Do you have some question before we move?" Noah thought a little and then asked softly: "Is the place where we are going really soundproof? No one will hear me right?" ''Should he not worry about his life? Is he worried that his mother might hear him?'' "Yes, the place where we are going to is the underground prison of the outer ring. We are used to keep and torture prisoners there and no one ever noticed. Even some of our men don''t know where the place is so you can rest assured." Noah nodded, erasing the last doubt from his mind. "Then I''m ready." Willam nodded and then started moving toward the bottom of the corridor. "While we go there I want you to repeat to me the procedure, so I will be sure that you won''t make mistakes." Noah started explaining: "The Forging of Seven Hells is a treatment consisting of destroying 7 acupoints on the back of the specimen in order for the body to naturally create an absorption whirl that will accumulate the Breath of Heaven and Earth on his back. Since the absorption process is chaotic the specimen must be conscious during this process in order to direct the "Breath" in the place where the 7 acupoints were destroyed and reconstruct them with a mixture of their leftovers and "Breath". The specimen must also use his mental energy to hold together the newly created acupoints until they solidify and connect completely to his body. The last step is to endure through the transformation the new acupoints will cause to the body of the specimen and then wait for his new body to be filled with "Breath" completely in order to go through this process for 6 more times." William stopped at the end of the corridor and tapped on the wall in front of him in seemingly random points. The wall then went back on itself and slid to the right showing a dark and rocky passage that went downward. "We are almost there, now explain to me the dangers and advantages of this method." Saying so, he started walking through the passage and Noah followed. Chapter 15: 15. ENDURE IT! "The biggest disadvantage is the high mortality rate of the treatment since one mistake in the process might cause the specimen to die. Then there is the difficulty of the process since the specimen must actively control the "Breath" while his body is being destroyed and reconstructed. There is also the problem that the destruction process can''t be made by the specimen itself since the acupoints are on his back and there is the need for a skillful helper. The specimen can''t, also, practice any different body-nourishing method before finishing the 7 cycles of the treatment since the acupoints on his body are still fragile and can''t withstand any different process of nourishment. Last is the worthiness of using such a process since the specimen can just wait for his dantian to be formed and then use an orthodox nourishing method instead of risking his life. It is said that the Mad Doctor, the creator of the method, had his dantian severely damaged but didn''t give up on cultivating and that''s why he came up with this method." Noah kept explaining while he was following William down the rocky passage, his Master would only nod every time he finished a sentence. A sound came from behind them as the source of light was cut, it was the wall closing again by itself. Only then Noah noticed some little lights at the bottom of the passage that were wooden torches fixed on the walls of this cavern. With his mental energy already quite strong, it was not a problem for him to keep going down even before his eyes got used to the darkness. "The greater advantage once completing all 7 the cycles is that you will obtain a rank 3 body extremely sensitive to the "Breath", so it will enhance your usage of martial arts and vastly strengthen your senses. The reason the body can be considered of rank 3 is that after 7 cycles the quality of "Breath" will equal a dantian one so the level of nourishment will be the same. Plus, differently from any other nourishing technique, the Seven Hells method doesn''t need meditation using forms or postures to refill the "Breath" in the body because the acupoints created will keep absorbing "Breath" according to the cycle the specimen is in continuously until the body is full of it. At last, when the treatment is over, the body will work like a smaller dantian, so the cultivator absorbing process will be faster and his storage space will be bigger. It is to underline that most of these advantages will diminish in effectiveness once the cultivator steps on a higher realm." While Noah was speaking, they passed a number of metal cells, mostly empty. Only some of them had chained people inside of them. They were no more than skin and bones. After some time they turned to the right and passed through a metal door, entering a room full of torture tools. Willam pointed at a rusty metal table with metal handcuffs on both its sides. "Take off the upper part of your clothes and lie down with your belly pointing the ground, I will tie you to the table and give you some piece of cloth to bite. Then we will begin." As Noah was about to take off his clothes, Willam put a hand to his shoulder and asked hesitantly: "From now on there is no turning back, this is your last chance to stop yourself from doing something you might regret." Noah smiled a little seeing how concerned Willam was and answered honestly: "There is never been a way back for me Master, not since this bastard, son of a whore, had the stupid dream of becoming strong." Then he undressed and with his half-naked body he lied down on the metal table with arms and legs spread and his back pointing at the ceiling. William felt a bit of pity. Heaven and Earth were fair to everyone giving them talent and methods to become strong, yet humans were greedy and monopolized the methods in order to obtain even more power. ''If it''s power you seek, you must serve under those that can teach you how to obtain it. I wonder what would have I done if I was in this kid situation'' Observing this 10 and a half years old kid lying on the table used to torture prisoners, William steeled his resolve and got near to him. First, he chained both his arms and legs to the handcuffs and then he took a piece of cloth from inside his sleeve and put it in Noah''s mouth. "I''m going to begin, I will destroy the 7 acupoints in the order described by the Mad Doctor then you will be on your own. Good luck." William put his hand on Noah''s back and concentrated. He scanned the body searching for the precise position of the acupoints and, once he found them, he gathered 7 slivers of "Breath" from his dantian and inserted them on the boy''s back. "I''m gonna start." Noah tightened his grip on the chains ready for the wave of pain. CRACK The first sliver of "Breath" detonated destroying one acupoint with it. An indescribable pain ran through Noah as he let out a scream through the piece of cloth in his mouth. "GHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" He felt his back shattering as he convulsed as to try to run away from the pain inside him. William remained impassible since he knew that he could not lose his focus on the other 6 slivers of his "Breath" "Now two more!" He yelled. CRACK CRACK Two more slivers detonated destroying the corresponding acupoints. This time Noah felt as someone was using a hammer to keep on smashing his already broken back. Even while he was screaming and convulsing, Noah repeated the same simple sentence in his mind. ''ENDURE IT! ENDURE IT! ENDURE IT!'' His entire focus was on staying conscious, during this process his extraordinary progress with mental energy showed its fruits. But William could not wait for him to get accustomed to the pain. "Three more!" CRACK CRACK CRACK Noah stopped trying to control his body, or to say it better he could not control his body anymore. If it wasn''t for William holding him down on the table he would have probably torn out his own hands and feet from the shackles. Traces of blood appeared on the cloth inside Noah''s mouth as he kept on screaming without end. He entered a frenzied state where he could not understand if he was thinking something or yelling it. Yet, the sentence in his mind was still the same. ''ENDURE IT!'' "Last one!" CRACK This time, the pain didn''t increase but a familiar feeling dawned on him. ''This is... death? So it''s a race between the death of the body and the reconstruction of it! Bring it on!'' The whirl was being created and Willam kept on holding down Noah''s body in order to let him focus on the reconstruction. Through all the pain and the feeling of his body dying, Noah finally felt the presence of the "Breath" on his back. It was being accumulated at fast speed and was lingering over him. ''Now!'' Ignoring all other sensations, he solely focused on the "Breath" drawing it towards the 7 places where his acupoints once were. The "Breath" entered the now empty spaces and accumulated until they were full. After the spaces were full, Noah used the remaining "Breath" over him to close off the space around the new acupoints waiting for them to form. Little by little, the "Breath" mixed with some bone shards started to solidify and to link themselves to his skeletal and circulatory systems. Another wave of pain assaulted Noah as the newly acupoints forcefully fixed themselves on the already existing parts of his body, but he was ready for it. He kept holding on with his life slowing sliding away, going toward a darkness that he knew too well. Then the first acupoint ended its solidification process and completely fixed itself within Noah''s body. A wave of strength ran through him as the acupoint started working. Then it was time for the second one, and then the third, till all the 7 new acupoints started working properly inside Noah''s body. He held on the barriers he created to isolate the process for fear of something going wrong but feeling the darkness getting further and further away he started to relax and slowly released his concentration. With this new life invading his body, drowsiness took control of him as he fought to stay awake but at that point, William held his head and said with a whisper: "It''s ok, you did it. You can rest now." Noah''s last mental resistance fell hearing these words and he collapsed unconscious on the spot. Chapter 16: 16. Advancemen When Noah woke up, he found himself in an unknown room lying in a bed. His mind was foggy and he tried to turn his head to have a better look around him. Immediately, a wave of pain came from both his back and head resulting in a grunt from the young man. "You better not move, only two days have passed and your body still needs to recover. Your mind too was exhausted so you better not think of using this time forced in bed to train." William''s voice sounded from the side of the bed, he was holding a book as he casually browsed through its pages. "Did the treatment succeded?" Noah asked with a low voice. "You really don''t have anything else in your mind, do you? Yes, everything went well and as the nourishment of the first cycle goes on, you will break through the barriers of the rank 1 body and stabilize in its early stage." William closed the book and took a basin full of a green liquid from a table nearby. "Drink this, it will work as a meal and will speed up your recovery process." He held the basin on Noah''s mouth and slowly poured the liquid inside paying attention not to make him suffocate. A cold sensation invaded Noah as he forced himself to drink the soup, ignoring the pain he felt from gulping. When he was done he felt sleepy again. "I think I will sleep some more, Master." Then he closed his eyes and immediately fell asleep. William shook his head but a smile was everpresent on his face. ''The treatment was actually worse than I thought but he handled it well. Such determination and such mental energy, I feel blessed having such a disciple.'' Willam sat down on the chair on the side of the bed and picked again the book he was reading. He wasn''t going to leave his disciple side until he was fully recovered. It was only 3 days later that Noah was finally able to stand up from the bed on his own, though with a bit of effort. William was still on his side and could not help but feel amazed. "In only 5 days of rest, you can already stand up, the advantages of the Seven Hells method sure are amazing. Even your mental energy completely recovered yesterday, I believe that in another day you might be almost at your full strength." Noah was trying to feel the changes in his body while he was standing, he clearly felt the absorption force on his back that was constantly providing "Breath" to his body speeding its recovery process. "It is indeed wonderful, Master. I think that after my body is fully recovered and the "Breath" focuses on nourishing it, my strength will rise exponentially!" William shook his head, noticing how since he became this kid''s Master shaking his head had become a habit. "For now just focus on your recovery and on getting used to your new strength, from next week onward we are going to spar using the "Breath" every session since its replenishment won''t affect anymore your free time." Since he said that, Noah became excited and focused wholeheartedly on resting. The following day, Noah went back to his lodging and was overwhelmed by questions by his worried mother. After managing to hide the dangerous parts and eating more than he ever had in his life, Lily let him free to go back to his room, satisfied of the time she spent with her son. Noah''s life went back to his previous rhythm with the only difference being his weekly sessions of training with his Master being more heated. They would spar all morning and Noah''s usage of the "Breath" synchronized with the twin saber style grew in ability with every session, with his Master addressing his fast improvement to the Forging of Seven Hells method. Yet, his biggest progress was still his mental energy. Right now he could train with the Kesier rune for 5 hours straight, apparently, his mind got stronger after holding on against the pain of the treatment. ''It seems that the experiences one goes through in life can strengthen the stability of the sphere in the sea of consciousness. The stabler one mind is the more it can endure its exposition to the rune.'' Noah realized this after another night of training in the mental energy. Two months had passed since that day in the torture room, and he felt that his body had reached some kind of limit, yet his 7 acupoints kept on absorbing "Breath" so he tossed the idea of undergoing the second treatment away. His head hurt, like every night after he stared at the rune for many hours but that pain could not make him flinch anymore. ''After surviving that day, I''m afraid my concept of pain got a little twisted.'' He smiled lightly and then went to sleep. Early in the morning, when the sun had yet to rise, he abruptly woke up feeling some uneasiness in his body. He stared at himself and noticed that his pores were secreting some black substance that had a nauseous smell. Not knowing what to do and thinking that it was an after effect of the Seven Hells method, he hastily jumped outside the window in his room and ran toward the guards building, falling from the first floor only caused him a little discomfort as he activated the "Breath" in his body to reinforce his lower body. He ran way faster than he ever did in his life, but he was too worried to notice it. When he arrived at the first floor of the building he hastily called for his Master. "Master, help! There seems to be a problem with my body." William was a cultivator of the age of 41. He cultivated for more than 20 years. A person like himself would notice when someone ran near his room but would usually ignore it since he loved to sleep. Today though, he was forced to wake up listening to the call for help of his disciple. He hastily left his room and looked in the direction of the voice. Noah was covered from head to toe of some black liquid that had a terrible smell. From his expression, you could see how worried he was. William, seeing him in that state, smiled at first but then got a bit angry at himself. ''Shit, I totally forgot to explain it to him. If I told him earlier I could have kept on sleeping. Well, how could I know that it would have been so soon.'' He yawned and then rubbed his still sleepy eyes. Seeing the relaxed attitude of his Master, Noah calmed himself a little and waited patiently for an explanation. "So what''s the problem?" Said William a bit irritated. Noah was surprised. ''Isn''t it obvious?'' He thought. "Ehm, I woke up in the night with this dirt coming out of my body. Could you please explain what is happening to me, dear Master?" William put a surprised expression and acted like he didn''t notice anything until Noah mentioned it. "Oh that. Well, your body advanced to rank 1." Chapter 17: 17. Magical Beasts "Eh?" Noah was first surprised, then happy. Only now did he inspect his body. His 7 acupoints where absorbing "Breath" at full speed and the limit he felt last night disappeared. His body felt light but was sturdy and full of strength. He also seemed to have a better perception of the "Breath" inside his body, as it felt a little empty. ''Now that I think about it, I''ve never run so fast in my life and my sight seems to have improved. Logically speaking, my other senses should have had an improvement too.'' He kept staring at his dirty body with curious eyes. He had to stop cause his Master scolded him. "What are you doing still here? Go take a bath, you stink!" William pointed at a door at the start of the corridor while holding his nose with the other hand. Noah happily bowed and went hurriedly through that door. Inside the room, there was a large basin that Noah supposed was used as a bathtub and some buckets full of water. He washed himself carefully and then took a white kimono from a pile in the corner of the room. When he went out his Master was waiting for him in the corridor. He was dressed in a tight dark green gym suit with a sword sheathed on his back. "Since you woke me up you will have to come with me. I have to retrieve some special herbs for a mission the only problem is that a group of four-eyed wolves has recently made the place where the herb is found their lair. Those magical beasts are just rank 1 and even of the lower level so you should be able to easily take them down even if their number is around 15. I could do it by myself but it''s about time you have an actual fight and you can even familiarize with your new body since you are at it. Go to your room to pick your sabers and meet me at the main gate of the defense wall." Noah was instantly excited and almost forgot to make a bow when he was about to leave. He happily ran back to his building to pick the two sabers hidden in his room and since he had no sheath for them he just tied them to his waist with pieces of a blanket. ''A fight to the death! This is totally different from a simple sparring with Master. And this body is amazing, I did nothing but run today yet I''m still not sweating. Even the "Breath" stored in my body is increasing, right now I should be able to attack with it at least 7 times just using the one in my arms!'' The advantages of a rank 1 body were already this evident with just some hours of nourishment. ''I wonder how much time has to pass before I can go through the second cycle.'' The sudden increase of power made Noah totally disregard the pain and dangers of the treatment, leaving inside him only an endless eagerness to become stronger. When he arrived at the main gate of the Balvan mansion he found Willam waiting for him with a sleepy face, apart from his previous outfit he had a leather bag in his hand. Looking at the shabby way Noah tied his sabers he could not help but shake his head. "Did you forget to steal a shelter from the guards last time?" Mocking him a bit, he threw the leather bag at the feet of his disciple. Noah looked inside the bag and was surprised to see two short sheaths inside it, with a leather belt that could hold them. ''He really thought of that too.'' He could not help but smile when he saw how caring his Master was of him. He hastily replaced his gear with the one in the bag. When he was done he bowed deeply to his Master trying to express all his gratitude to him. William nodded at his figure right now that even though was that of a kid, resembled a bit more the one of a warrior. No master would like a shabby disciple after all his appearance would reflect on the image of his master. "Follow me, we are gonna run to the wolf''s lair immediately and take care of them." Noah was a bit surprised. "Are we not taking horses?" Horses were the main form of travel in this seemingly medieval world and a stable was situated right before the main gate in order to provide its services more rapidly. "You are a cultivator now, even if a weak one. Your body broke through rank 1, and even if it''s not as fast as a horse, it can still run pretty fast. Plus you seem to forget that we are going to fight against magical beasts, a normal horse can only run away at their sight. Come on, I will explain things more in detail as we run." William exited the gate and started running with Noah trying to follow him hurriedly. This was the first time in his life that Noah left the mansion and he could not help but look around with curiosity and the green fields surrounding him, at some mountain in the distance and at Evergreen forest. William saw his behavior and did a snort internally, raising his speed to force Noah to focus on following him. ''You are gonna fight for the first time and instead of being agitated you waste your time looking around, I guess he really is a kid.'' Noah and William sped in the direction of the forest that was at 3 days of distance on a horse. After about 15 minutes of running, when the mansion was quite at some distance away from them, William started explaining. "The four-eyed wolf is a magical beast the size of 3 meters, it generally has a pale-yellow fur and, as its name says, it has one pair of eyes on each side of his head. Its attacks consist of scratching and biting like every other wolf, and of a mental shockwave to momentarily startle his prey. With the steadiness of your mind, standing your ground against that attack is a stroll in a park so don''t be too worried about it." Noah lowered his head a bit to cover his complicated expression. The reason was that no matter what level of mental energy his Master thought he had, he would always have way more of it. ''I know I can trust him but there is really no way to explain the transmigration thing to him. I''ll just let him think of me as hardworking and with a high proficiency in it.'' William didn''t notice the change in expression on his disciple and kept on with his explanation. "Before, I said that the four-eyed wolf is a rank 1 magical beast so I think it''s time to explain the ranks of a magical beast. It is humans who give a rank to the species of beasts based on their strongest attribute. For example, the four-eyed wolf has a rank 1 body but its mental attack is below that threshold, so the rank 1 of their species is given by their body." Noah was really interested in this part of the explanation since he could never read something more specific about the cultivation world due to the fact that all the books about it were in the inner circle library. He was about to ask which rank the dragon that attacked 10 years ago was when William continued speaking. "Yet, Heaven and Earth are fair and since humans have a higher intellect and can create techniques to better express their strength, magical beasts have an easier growth process. Other than absorbing "Breath" naturally they can get stronger by eating other living beings full of "Breath" like magical beasts or cultivators. This causes innate aggression in their behavior and often causes cannibalism to happen inside their groups." Chapter 18: 18. Slaughter "And what happens if they get strong enough to break through the limits of a rank?" Asked Noah. They were now running for 30 minutes and traces of sweat appeared on Noah''s face, yet his Master seemed completely fine and continued to explain. "They evolve, or to put it simply, they hibernate themselves for a period of time and when they wake up they will have a boost in all their natural abilities. Let''s say, for example, that a four-eyed wolf of rank 1 was to evolve. Its rank would be 2 cause of its body but it would also have a rank 1 mental attack which will make it extremely more dangerous than its rank 1 version." Noah finally had a better understanding of the evolution process of magical beasts and could not help but be a bit envious. They had just to eat and sleep to get stronger while humans had to train nonstop only to take small steps toward a higher realm. This time, William took notice of his disciple''s expression and smiled a little. "I know what you are thinking but don''t worry, you will see humans advantage when you fight those beasts." Noah was surprised but did not fully understand his Master words. He started to focus his mind on the imminent battle trying to anticipate the worst possible outcome. They moved for 20 more minutes till they reached a small hill, there William stopped and took a sack of water from inside his suit. He passed the sack to Noah and said with a serious face. "Over this hill, there is the wolf''s lair. Their number amounts to 15 so you should be careful not to get surrounded. You will go alone while I will be watching closely enough to intervene if something bad happens. Remember all our training and don''t be stingy on using the "Breath" until you have a complete understanding of your strength. Catch your breath a bit and then go, don''t worry, you won''t be in any danger." Noah became even more serious in hearing these words. He took a small sip from the sack and sat cross-legged on the floor to steady his breath. He looked inside his sea of consciousness, where the faint shape of some lines was forming at the center of the sphere and checked that he was at peak condition. ''Do not hesitate, do not make mistakes. Be wary of your surroundings. 15 wolves to go.'' He exhaled with force and then stood up, his mind was ready and his body felt no fatigue, there was no reason to waste more time. He unsheathed his sabers and started climbing the hill paying extra attention to anything that got perceived by his senses. When he reached the top he could see the wolf''s lair at the bottom of the other side of the hill. The wolves were 3 meters long and 2 high, had 4 big and sharp eyes and yellow fur. 10 of them were lying on the ground, seemingly sleeping, while the other 5 were on guards on the sides of the sleeping group. A slightly bigger wolf was at the center of the pack, he was probably the alpha one. ''If I charge I will be completely in the open, there is no way I can catch them by surprise but there really seems to be no other option. Maybe if I run at full speed going down the hill and using the "Breath" I can land a couple of hits on one of them. Yet will it be enough to kill it? And then what about the other 14? Fucking Master, why can''t you explain things properly'' He thought for a bit more but he really could not find other ways to get an advantage on them. ''Well, if I screw up, Master will just come and save me, so I might as well go all out.'' Steeling his mind, Noah concentrated and then jumped downward toward the lair. He boosted his speed with the "Breath" in his legs and crossed his sabers in front of him. He was fast! A rank 1 body using the "Breath" and going downhill reached an explosive speed. Yet, Noah seemed not to notice as his mind was completely focused on taking out a wolf before they could surround them. In a few breaths of time, he was at the bottom of the hill with one of the wolves staring at him. As if it recognized some form of danger, it inspired as to prepare a howl to warn the other members of its pack. Before it could though, Noah jumped horizontally and slashed at full strength toward the head of the wolf. The saber, empowered with the "Breath", cut the wolf horizontally from its head till half its body like it was butter. The wolf was dead on the spot! Even Noah was stunned for a second by the perforating ability of the twin saber style but was immediately forced out of his amazement seeing that the other 4 awake wolves were ready to give the warning signal. "AUUUUUUUUH" Hearing the howl, Noah hurriedly took out the saber from the wolf corpse and jumped to one of the howling ones. He was right in front of it before it even finished howling and without wasting any time he slashed at his head. Even though he used less "Breath" than the first time he still felt almost no resistance from the wolf skull, as his saber pierced right through his brain. The light in the wolf''s eyes disappeared since it died and this gave Noah the signal to jump on another target. Suddenly, a shockwave hit his sea of consciousness, the remaining 3 awake wolves attacked together in order to stall for the other members of the pack to get up. The attack was like a shrill sound inside Noah''s mind, yet his sphere did not even tremble being hit by it. ''So weak!'' Noah thought as he jumped right through the pack slashing at two wolves that were almost on their legs. Two half-circles of blood were created in the air as the two sabers slashed vertically the heads of the two wolves. This time Noah felt some resistance as he used even less "Breath" than the last time. ''I can use even less of it and still manage to cut right through their skulls with my body strength. 11 to go!'' Blood continued to flow as Noah moved around slashing at the heads of the wolves in the pack until a shrill sound way stronger than the one before made his mental sphere lightly tremble. The alpha wolf was staring at him with venomous eyes as it used a mental attack together with the remaining 7 wolves. Noah felt a bit of pain coming from his head, but it was so soft confronted with what he had been through that he didn''t even stop for a second in his slaughter. He would use less and less "Breath" to deal with the wolves as he estimated the strength of his body and he moved too fast for them to encircle him. If a wolf jumped at him he would cut it in half with a double vertical slash, if it came from his side he would rotate on himself to deal a devastating blow. The onslaught continued till only the alpha wolf remained, it had a large wound on his neck since he managed to avoid the clear hit on his head. ''This one is a bit stronger than the others, after all, it was the only one that dodged one of my attacks even if barely. Well, I must consider that I''m getting tired, so my speed is diminishing. Next time, I must aim for the stronger ones first.'' The wolf was still looking at him with anger but there was fear now in its eyes. Noah slowly got closer while the wolf retreated, yet the wound on his neck was too serious to heal on its own. The wolf so tried a desperate attack, jumping with its jaw open toward Noah. He watched the fangs of the wolf getting closed and then dodged at the last time to his right, delivering an upward slash to its neck. The body of the alpha wolf fell on the ground and its severed head rolled for some more distance. After killing all of the 15 wolves he finally had some confidence in his ability! Chapter 19: 19. Threa Noah breathed roughly. Now that the battle was over he was overwhelmed by the tiredness of his body. Even if he decreased the quantity of "Breath" as he got used to killing the beasts he still had almost none left. He constantly used the one in his legs to boost his speed and agility and still used a bit of the one in his arms to activate the perforating ability of the twin saber style. He sat on the bloody ground to rest a bit and allow his acupoints to refill the "Breath" in his body. "You did a good job for your first time." William arrived from behind him, smiling and carrying some flowers in his hands. "So now you know why I told you that you would have been fine?" Noah nodded and answered shortly. "I use a rank 2 martial art, with just their rank 1 bodies they stood no chances." William nodded. "Yes! Martial arts and magic spells are what make humans the overlords of the world. A rank 2 martial art can damage a rank 3 body. The same goes for a rank 1 magic. Of course, if you don''t have the corresponding quantity and quality of "Breath" you won''t be able to fully use the potential of the techniques and you will be heavily limited in their usage." Noah reviewed the battle he just had in his mind as he was waiting for his body to recover. ''I indeed wasted a lot of "Breath" during the battle and no one of the wolves could keep up with my speed so it was a one-sided battle. But I might run out of "Breath" if an enemy keeps dodging and that''s if I consider my opponent a magical beast. Against a cultivator with the same martial art rank as mine, how would things go?'' He didn''t like the answer he found. The limits of having limited "Breath" were evident. William shook his head, he could vaguely understand what his disciple was thinking. "You don''t seem to realize that no other kid of your age can slaughter a pack of rank 1 beasts without even getting hurt." ''Right, I almost forgot that I''m not even 11.'' He really did forget his age in this world for a moment. His morale was lifted a bit. The duo waited for 10 minutes before Noah stood up and nodded to his Master, signaling that they could go back. When they could see the main gate of Balvan mansion, William got closer to Noah and spoke with a low voice. "I believe that you acupoints will stop working soon since you advanced so you will be ready for the second treatment. After you enter the second cycle I will let you take on guard''s missions." . . . Inside the guards building, on a table in the courtyard, 5 men and a kid sat in a circle reading a sheet in their hands. The kid was, of course, Noah. He was wearing a black gym suit with two sabers tied on his back inside their respective sheaths and his black hair was combed in a simple ponytail that fell on his back. 6 months passed since his fight with the four-eyed wolves and other than becoming 11 he also went through the second treatment. He was still short since his body was still growing but his body seemed exceptionally sturdy with distinct muscles lightly bulging from his small body. ''Even though by now I''ve been in the second cycle for the same time I did with the first one my acupoints are still working at full speed. My body should be in the middle tier of the first rank right now.'' He thought before focusing again on the sheet in his hands. Written on it there was the description of a mission and the reason for this group of guards gathering together. ''Lilun village, 5 days of travel by horse going south. Request for help due to continuous attacks from giant spiders, presumably a nest of ironclad spiders is inside a cave nearby. The mission consists of finding and destroying the nest.'' Noah raised his eyes from the sheet and looked at the frowning faces of his companions for this mission and waited for their group captain to explain further. The group captain was called Mason and was a senior member of the guards of the outer ring. He was a tall man in his 50ies, with a long black beard and short red hair. His weapon of choice was a big two-handed ax. Mason was waiting for everyone to finish their reading before nodding when he noticed the other 5 people looking at him. "First, you must know that the ironclad spider is a rank 2 beast and apart from a really hard body it doesn''t have any notable abilities. The only problem is that they reproduce at a really fast rate so their nest will probably be filled with newborns of rank 1. We will take the classic approach for the mission: get to the village, find clues about the nest, extirpate little by little their population. Any questions?" No one seemed to have any objection until a guard of the group stood up and pointed at Noah. He had only one eye and a deep scar that cut the now hollow eye cavity. He was a little shorter than Mason and was bald with a short beard. Yet, even though he was pretty tall, he was also quite fat and sweaty. "I have only one question Mason, why the fuck are we taking a kid with us?" Some of the other guards in the group seemed interested in Mason reply as to indicate that they had the same doubt. Noah didn''t even look at the fatty as he waited for the captain answer. "The vice-captain vouched for him, so he can come and help us. And Balor, when this mission starts you must refer to me as captain or group captain." Mason answered calmly but at the words "help us", the fatty named Balor exploded into laughter. "This one was good, group captain. You could have just said that part of the mission was to babysit this kid cause his mother was busy serving the inner circle. Hahaha, help us!" While he said so he neared Noah as to put his arm around his neck. "Don''t worry little kid, we will take good care of you, and maybe you can make me meet your mother in exchang---" Balor stopped talking, or to better say, he had to stop. A saber pointed at his left eye and the kid he was trying to hug with his right arm disappeared. A threat sounded from his left side. "Try to touch me, you fat pig, and I''ll make you blind." Noah was staring at him with icy eyes, the coldness he was emanating was intensified by his now extraordinary mental energy, it caused pressure to fall on Balor mind as his legs went soft and he kneeled on the ground. Yet, the saber always followed his remaining eye like it was attracted by it. Noah kept looking at him applying mental pressure on the guard''s mind. Then he moved the saber toward the powerless guard and retracted it only when it was about to cut him. After that, Noah sat back on the table as if nothing happened. Chapter 20: 20. Siege The guards were surprised but nodded internally at such a show of power. They were soldiers, after all, they respected power. The captain didn''t seem to care too much as he was used to these kinds of events being among soldiers all his life. "Since everything is settled, the meeting is over. See you tomorrow at dawn, I will take care of renting the carriage but remember to take some provisions with you. Clearing that nest might take more time than we imagine." The group got dismissed and everyone went their way, yet Balor took a bit more to get up since his legs still had no strength. ''That fat idiot, I really hope he won''t cause problems to me in this mission. At least, the other guards should trust my abilities a bit now'' Noah was still irritated by Balor''s previous act. He didn''t know if it was the mocking of his mother, his daringness even though he was weak, or simply his aspect. ''On the bright side, I''m finally going to fight rank 2 beasts, I was getting bored of only sparring with Master.'' He went back to his room and packed things for travel. He ordered the servant to make some portions and checked that everything was ready. He had only one doubt. ''Should I take the Kesier rune with me? I can''t train in it since I would be exhausted after every session and I can''t allow me to be weak while in a mission.'' He was about to hide the sheet under the bed when he thought of something and happily put the rune in his suit. ''If I train for only a couple of hours it should be fine right?'' If his Master was to listen to him saying something like that he would probably beat him up. Two hours were nothing for Noah as the second treatment made his mind even firmer. . . . The next day he was the first to arrive at the courtyard. As the other members of the group arrived, they would nod at Noah and wait for everyone to gather. The only exception was Balor who did not even try to hide his resentment and hate for Noah. Noah didn''t care enough to pay attention to him and when the last man arrived they moved together toward the main gate to pick their carriage. When they were on the road, Mason, from inside the carriage, cleared his throat to get everyone''s attention. "In order to have better teamwork, we should introduce ourselves and our weapon of choice." The guards of the outer ring were a group of soldiers that amounted to a bit more than 100 people so it was safe to say that they knew each other at least superficially. ''Is he doing this for me? He wants to get on William''s good side?'' As Noah thought, Mason was trying to do a favor to him because of his relationship with the vice-captain. "I''m Mason, one of the eldest in the group of the outer ring, I use a big ax." The other guards didn''t seem to hate the idea and answered shortly. "Luke, bow and knife". "Robert, longsword, you can call me Rob." "Eddy, longsword." Balor only snorted but two heavy hammers were placed to his side as a self-explanatory answer. "Noah, sabers." Silence fell inside the carriage which was particularly awkward. Robert took out some dice form his backpack smiling radiantly. "I brought these with me, someone wants to play even and odd?" It was a simple game where you had to bet on either odd or even and the result of the rolling dice would decide the winner. The soldiers quickly agreed to kill their boredom with only Noah and the captain remaining on their seats. Like this the 6 days of travel passed, since a carriage was slower than a horse, setting a campfire every night and playing games during the day. Noah would manage to sneak up some hours of training in the rune when everyone was asleep but never forced himself over the 2 hours limit since that would affect too much his condition and he wanted to be ready for any danger. On the evening of their 6th day of travel, the shape of a village appeared in their sight. There was smoke coming from it and the light of torches was creating a red halo in the darkness. "Something is wrong." Said Mason. "Get out of the carriage, we run there and check the situation as soon as possible." The group of 6 got out and ran at full speed toward the village. Noah was the fastest, even though he didn''t have the most powerful body of the group, he was smaller and had a lighter weapon, so he sped like a bolt leaving the other soldiers behind. ''Finally a battle!'' He really got bored in these 6 days since he could not train or spar with anyone. The village was getting closer in his eyes as screams and vague orders were becoming more clear to Noah''s ears. When he was about to enter the perimeter of the village he unsheathed his sabers ready to fight. Inside Lilun village, the scene was terrible. Big spiders with dark gray bodies were freely killing the powerless commoners and carrying their corpses away. The men of the village were trying to set up a line of defense to allow the women and the children to escape but they weren''t more than a meat shield that could only stop the spiders'' tide for some moments. Blood flowed continuously on the ground as the villagers were stabbed to death by the sturdy legs of the spiders and then carried away on their back, the brown ground was transformed in dark mud by the battle. An ironclad spider managed to pass the human wall and reached for a screaming woman holding a child in her hug, trying to block the imminent blow with her body. SHRIIIIII! The sound of metal sliding against metal sounded as the woman mustered her courage to look at the scene behind her. A little kid, not older than 12, was staring at the spider corpse at his feet. A deep cut ran for half its head and green blood flowed from it. The spider body was 1 meter and a half long and its head made only 30 centimeters of it. She was about to ask if it was him who saved her and her son but stopped seeing the frowning expression on the youth''s face. ''I didn''t use that much "Breath" but the results were way less than I anticipated. A rank 2 body sure is amazing, if I didn''t go through the second treatment I''m afraid I could be able to kill only 6 or 7 of them before having to rest.'' The ironclad spiders had an incredibly tough body, as their name suggested, their defenses were top tier in the range of the rank 2 magical beasts. The other soldiers caught up with Noah and were surprised to see that he got rid of one spider in that short amount of time. An 11 years old kid that was able to take down a rank 2 beast wasn''t exactly a daily sight! Chapter 21: 21. Selfless spiders "What do we do captain?" Mason came back to reality and watched his surroundings. The spiders seemed satisfied with their reaps and slowly retreated carrying around 40 corpses on their backs. The eyes of Mason became resolute as he ordered. "We stop as many as we can. I don''t know why they are stockpiling food but we cannot allow so many of them to run away like this. Luke, you will follow those that escape and find out where their nest is. Good luck!" He waited no more and went in pursuit of the beasts, the others followed behind him. The group focused the spiders busy with the transport since they could not counterattack and in their poor intelligence they did not set any defensive formation around them. Noah used his speed to appear in front of them and deal a clean lunge to their heads, which was his best method to spare "Breath" against their tough exoskeleton and still finish them in one blow. Meanwhile, he used his mental energy to pay attention to the guards'' fighting method. Mason would use his big ax to deal devastating blows not caring about hitting the corpses on the spiders'' backs. He swung his weapon with great dexterity and momentum creating his personal area of destruction as he advanced in the middle of the retreating group of beasts. Noah could not help but think that if he got struck by one of those swings he would die on the spot. Eddy and Rob had more difficulties. Their martial art was the Balvan sword style which was rank 1 so its effects were limited against a rank 2 beast specialized in defense. After they realized that they were only wasting energy, they used their swords to slow as many spiders as they could waiting for some of their companions to finish them. From time to time, a sharp sound would run between them and a spider would fall dead on the ground with an iron arrow struck deep in its head. Luke was helping them from some distance away as he followed the faster specimens returning to their nest. Balor was doing fine. His strikes were not precise but had great momentum, with his body weight added to his hammers one, every downward strike would kill or heavily injure a spider. The slaughter continued for 20 minutes with only a small part of the beasts group managing to escape. More than 30 spider corpses were scattered on the ground staining the terrain with green blood. The corpses of the villagers were either reduced to a pulp or heavily mutilated from the battle. "Haha! The bodies of the ironclad spiders are really useful to the creation of magical weapons, when the inner circle comes to clean up we will be greatly rewarded!" Balor exclaimed happily, and Eddy and Rob followed suit smiling radiantly. Only Mason and Noah were frowning deep in thought. ''These beasts never reacted to our presence, they were only concerned on retreating with the dead villagers, something doesn''t feel right.'' He looked in the direction of Mason and saw that he was probably thinking about the same thing. He raised his eyes from the ground and looked at Noah shaking his head, neither him, with his experience, found an answer to the strange behavior of the spiders. "We will know more once Luke comes back, let''s rest at the village for now, maybe the villagers'' stories can enlight us." Noah nodded while the other 3 men looked confused by the captain words but chose to follow his orders anyway. They needed food and rest after this battle, and the mission was far from finished. Back at the village, Mason asked questions around but in the end, he found nothing useful. He exposed what he had learned to the other four while they were eating some soup made of the leftovers inside the village. "The attacks started around a week ago. At first, the spiders would kill the livestock of the village and carry it back to their nest. When the livestock ended, they targeted humans with the same pattern: kill and bring back. The situation escalated till the invasion of today. According to the elders of the village descriptions, this was the highest number they attacked with, so we can assume that they are increasing the number of their group." Noah frowned. ''This makes no sense, there was selflessness in their actions, they didn''t even protect themselves!'' "We killed quite a lot of them though, I think we can assume that their number in the nest should not go over 60." Rob argued trying to lift the group morale. The door of the house they were in opened as Luke''s figure appeared. He calmly sat on the opposite side of Mason and took a drink from Eddy''s soup. "The entrance of the nest is at a few hours of travel going East. It is an underground cave naturally formed. I followed the spiders inside for a bit but then opted to retreat for fear of being surrounded." Mason nodded and asked. "What do you think of the situation?" Luke took another sip from Eddy''s bowl. "It was strange, I could clearly tell that they were amassing food but there were a lot of spider''s corpses inside the cave. It''s like they are undergoing a forced reproduction only to eat their offspring." Rob was disgusted thinking about this and cursed loudly. "A beast, even if a magical one, is still a beast in the end." Noah was even more confused now, their behavior made no sense. If they needed food to reproduce themselves why would they eat their offspring? What was worth dying for, for a magical beast? Mason reviewed all the information he had and made the attack plan. "We gather some resources tonight and then set an encampment in front of the entrance of the nest. Tomorrow morning, we will go inside to explore and clear the cave. If we cut their replenishment of food and diminish their numbers little by little we will be completely safe while still completing the mission. Get ready, we depart in one hour." No one objected, so they got ready and by midnight they had set a fireplace 50 meters from the entrance of the nest. They took turns to keep a night watch. When it was Noah''s turn, he could not suppress the faint sense of danger that the cave made him feel. No matter how much he reviewed the information he had, he would always feel that he was missing something. ''Selfless magical beasts, continuous accumulation of food, cannibalism. What is actually happening?'' Nothing that could link all these pieces of information came to his mind. He calmed himself and sorted his mind, he was ready for the battle coming in the morning. Chapter 22: 22. Betrayal At dawn, a group of 5 men and a kid stared at the entrance of an underground cavern large 2 meters and tall 3. It went downward till eyes could see and was completely silent. "The passage will go on for about a kilometer and then will divide itself in different directions. I only know in which direction the spiders went last night cause I stopped there." Luke explained. "I will be in the head, the rest of you follow tightly." Mason ordered and went in, the rest of the group followed with Noah at the center of it. The passage was made of rocks and terrain and didn''t seem too stable and, as they moved on, the light of the sun could not reach their position. The passage was growing darker which made the group advance slowly. Mason was being very careful of where he stepped since he knew that, in the enemy''s nest, even a little sound could cause a catastrophe. The passage got larger after some time and they could stand side to side, then they arrived where the cavern split into different branches. Luke pointed at one of them and Mason went directly inside. They walked for about an hour before the passage split again. The light was scarce and the air was stifling wet but the group had to wait until Luke found some traces of the beasts to decide in which direction they had to explore. "There are no conclusive traces, well, there are signs of their passage in all 4 the directions. I advice we take the rightmost since there seems to be light coming from there." Mason thought a little and then decided on following Luke''s advice. They moved again and after another hour of march, the cause of the faint light coming from the end of the rocky corridor showed itself. A big basin occupied a space of some hundreds of meters square and, at the center of it, a lake was situated which glowed with faint blue light. ''Water that glows?'' Noah was surprised, he never heard of anything like this. He looked around to see if any one of the group knew something. Mason''s eyes were wide open like his mouth hung on his jaw. Noticing Noah''s gaze he recomposed himself and talked in a soft voice. "I might have an idea of what that is and if I''m right we could not need to work anymore for the rest of our life. Yet, to be sure I must look at it closely." Everyone attention was picked by Mason words as they started to stare at the lake with greed. ''Strange, the concentration of "Breath" seems higher than the surface.'' Noah could feel his acupoints slowing their work as the air had a higher percentage of "Breath" in it. Before he could investigate any further, Mason moved toward the lake. On the walls of this big space, there were countless holes of different dimensions and on the ground, there were countless bones belonging to different species. ''Ironclad spider''s legs, human skulls, those should belong to a sheep.'' As they were getting closer to the edge of the lake the numbers of body''s remains grew as it grew the concentration of "Breath" in the air. When they reached the lakeshore, Mason could not hide his excitement anymore. "Yes, I''m sure. Inside the lake, there must be a "Breath" blessing, it''s a legendary mineral that can attract "Breath", the inner ring will pay any price to get it, imagine our rewards if we bring it back!" Everyone stared at the center of the lake, trying to find this legendary stone with their eyes, they didn''t notice that the sound of crawling started to resound in the basin. Noah was the first to pay attention to the sound as his alertness and mental energy were the highest in the group. "They are coming!" He unsheathed his sabers without hesitation. The men were started awake by Noah''s warning and cursed loudly when they heard the sound coming from every direction. Spiders crawled out from the holes in the walls, they were of different dimensions as some of them were still rank 1. Yet, at least 50 of them were rank 2. "Don''t panic! We might get wounded but we can handle their numbers." Mason yelled looking at the hundred of magical beasts surrounding them. Suddenly, the bones on the shore of the lake rose as a figure that was hidden beneath them was revealed. It was 3 meters long and had 8 long and sharp legs. 3 pairs of eyes were on the sides of its face and 2 big pincers protruded from its mouth. "Rank 3!" Luke yelled but the mighty beast did not hesitate. It shot one of its legs at Noah that blocked it but was sent flying for a couple of meters. "RUN!" Ordered Mason, as the group moved in the direction they came from, uncaring of the spiders in their path. Noah jumped on his feet and followed them a bit behind. ''Fuck! My hands are still trembling from that blow and I think my sabers cracked a bit. Why the fuck I didn''t reach this conclusion, it was obvious! The only reason a magical beast would be so selfless is that something more powerful than it gave the order! I''m so stupid! I have to run!'' He sped through the pack of spiders like he was a shadow, crouching and jumping to avoid their legs. The other guards had already reached the passage and were swinging their weapon to force the blockage of spiders, when Noah arrived they had already proceeded and new spiders came to block his escape. Without wasting any time he executed the best forms he ever did in his life and killed 2 rank 2 spiders on the spot only to continue speeding toward the passage. Inside it, more spiders were crawling out from the walls using their powerful legs to obstruct the road but Noah didn''t care. He let them scratch and cut his skin in order not to waste any time. When he arrived at the place where the first passage was, Balor was there preparing to enter. He didn''t seem in a good condition as wounds were all over his fat body and blood flowed out of them. He looked at Noah speeding toward him and smiled. "Don''t worry young man, I''ll definitely tell everyone of your brave attempt in holding back those beasts to allow our escape. And don''t worry about your mother, I''ll be sure to console her properly eheh." Noah''s eyes widened hearing these words but he could only look as the man in front of him raised his hammers and struck the wall on his side. The passage walls could not hold the impact and crumbled in front of him, while Balor was speeding on the other side. "NOOOO!" A rough yell came out of Noah''s mouth as his only way out was destroyed in front of him. ''Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!'' "Fuck you, you worthless pig, if I ever come out of here alive I''ll make sure to kill you personally!" He could not contain his curses. Meanwhile, spiders kept coming in his direction leaving him no time to for desperation. Chapter 23: 23. Exhaustion Noah turned to face the spiders coming from his back. He jumped on them dealing 3 fast slashes. 3 rank 1 spiders fell on the ground cut in half. His mental energy was aiding at full speed his decision making while he brainstormed about the situation. ''What can I do? That rank 3 beast must have been in hibernation in order to evolve so it can''t still control his body properly, that''s why I survived so easily its attack but I don''t think I can face it even with this.'' Two other strikes were shot out from his figure, a rank 2 spider had its head pierced while the rank 1 was halved. ''There must be another way to the main corridor of the surface, there were other branches that we didn''t enter, maybe one of these passages leads to them.'' Once finding that his theory was possible, he didn''t waste any time and ran into the leftmost corridor. Hordes of spiders kept going for him but he would just kill them with the least amount of "Breath" needed. He was too focused, in this time of life and death his mind steeled like never before. Even though he went through the treatment twice already, that only required to endure the pain. This time had to find a way out, kill everything that threatened him and still conserve energy in case the rank 3 appeared. This pressure made his sea of consciousness as a whole focused only on survival. The passage had many branches but most of them had a blue light at the bottom of it that Noah linked to the lake, which is to say the rank 3. That''s why he never took them. Sometimes a branch that went upward appeared, Noah would take them and find himself back in some places he already passed, once he even found a corridor that led back directly to where he came from. The cave was like an underground maze and since there seemed to be no patterns in its passages he could only test all of them from the ones that felt safer to the ones with the blue light at the bottom. At no point during his exploration spiders stopped from appearing. Even though most of them were newborns of rank 1 they still required a little bit of "Breath" to be dealt with because their defense was high. Noah was helpless about the situation and even with his acupoints working at full speed in an environment with a higher concentration of "Breath" the one inside his body kept on diminishing. He found himself again standing where Balor destroyed the passage. ''I mostly explored every ramification in the other passages. Only one left, if this one ends up as a dead end too, I''ll be forced to follow the blue light.'' He went inside the road on the left of the rightmost one. The passage was large, it could fit 3 grown up men. Seeing the blue light getting closer Noah was almost ready to turn back but then he saw a cavity entrance to his left that went upward and in his opposite direction. Noah was overjoyed. ''That must be the one, it''s the only road till now that goes straight in that direction!'' He sped right to the entrance but found strange that no spiders appeared since he entered this corridor. ''Did I kill too many of them? Impossible, I mostly killed rank 1 spiders and only about 10 rank 2. I have a bad feeling.'' As if answering his premonition, the wall to his right collapsed and a huge figure came out. Noah didn''t even wait for the figure to be fully visible as he hurriedly turned back to escape. Yet, the passage behind him was crumbling on itself from all the ruckus the beast created by going through it. He slowly turned to face the figure that was standing still, blocking the only road left. The rank 3 ironclad spider was standing of 4 of his legs with half his body raised in the air. The other 4 legs were pointing in the direction of Noah and its pincers kept opening and closing at an uneven rhythm. It seemed to enjoy the feeling of trapping its prey as it just waited for Noah to act. ''If it''s fear you are waiting for you''ll be disappointed, the threat of death cannot cause it in me.'' He had already died once and the treatment would force him to see its doorsteps every time, death really had no hold on his emotions. With his back on the crumbled wall and his front facing the massive beast, only calmness could be found in his mind. ''If I die it''s fine, but that doesn''t mean that I would just give up.'' He remembered his first lesson with William about impossible situations, yet, even an ant had its right to defy the will of a dragon. Coldness exuded from his figure like an extension of his state of mind. ''But I''m not an ant and you are not a dragon! I can do this!'' His plan was to go through the spider and run for the upward passage. He jumped toward the beast dealing the strongest strike possible with his technique. 2 iron legs blocked the blow, while the other 2 shot to Noah. Red blood flowed as wounds appeared on his body, he managed to avoid a critical hit but the legs still scratched his skin. He could not pass it. If he defended he would be bounced back on the wall if he deflected the other two legs would be there waiting for him. Tens of attacks were exchanged between the kid and the monster, but the stamina of the spider was nearly infinite and it kept getting stronger as it got used to its new body. In contrast, Noah was being covered by wounds and even if not serious ones they would still add up the blood loss as time kept passing. Plus, "Breath" was growing scarcer in his body and his sabers were losing pieces of their body with every exchange. ''I can''t keep up for much longer. Think! Think of every single possibility you have. Think of every experience you had in two lives. There must be something that I can do, I refuse to die here when I barely started my cultivation''s journey!'' He kept on blocking and attacking until his face lit up. ''That might actually work.'' The plan was set in his mind as he got ready for his last assault. He charged straight at the spider and blocked with one saber the incoming leg, he let the other one pierce his left shoulder. Since he allowed the spider to strike a small window of opportunity opened and he threw his right saber straight at the beast face. The flying saber could not hurt the spider but was enough to catch him by surprise. In the few instants the spider used to deflect his saber, Noah freed himself from the leg in his shoulder and got closer to his face, his now free right hand scrammed through the insides of his suit. When the beast turned back to face Noah he found him standing at one meter of distance holding an unfolded sheet in his hand, pointing it to the spider field of view. The blue light coming from behind it made clear the figure of a rune written on it. CRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! A painful scream shot out from the spider, as its first interaction with a Kesier rune hurt its sea of consciousness and stunned him momentarily. ''Now!'' This was the chance Noah betted his left shoulder and right saber for. He held the remaining saber with both his hands and put all his remaining "Breath" in one last lunge aimed at the beast''s head. The saber pierced with difficulty the spider head and went through it emitting a shrill sound. After it came out on the other side of the head the blade shattered from the cracks it received in the battle and from the amount of "Breath" it had to withstand. Noah fell on the ground feeling completely drained. THUD A loud sound came right on Noah''s side as the spider too fell on the ground. Its body was not moving anymore, it was dead! Noah looked at it for a bit for fear that it would stand up but relaxed when he saw no more movements coming from it. He hugged the sheet that saved his life and closed his eyes overwhelmed by exhaustion. Chapter 24: 24. Anger Sounds of iron against rock reverberated in the passage. Noah opened his eyes and was almost scared by the corpse on his side. But when the pain from his body arrived he remembered the situation he was in. ''I have basically no "Breath" left. The one being absorbed by my acupoints is being used to mend my wounds, I believe I won''t be able to kill even a rank 1 beast, let alone the remaining rank 2'' He tried to stand up pointing with his knees and elbows but he remained in a crouching position for a while. The noise from the other spiders was getting closer. ''They are probably attracted from the body of the rank 3. I must get away, come on body MOVE!'' He managed to stand up holding the wall, he put the Kesier rune back in his clothes and moved slowly to pick his remaining saber. He limped slowly toward the passage on the left only to find that the sound came from the bottom of it. ''Shit! Don''t tell me that I''m going to die even after killing the rank 3!'' He was at loss of what to do, he needed time to rest but he had no food or water with him since he left his backpack in the fireplace on the surface. ''Wait! Water! Maybe I can sneak out to the lake while the spiders are busy eating their previous boss.'' He looked in the direction of the blue light and moved toward it. He was walking at a slow pace and supporting himself on the rocks on the wall. It took him one hour to reach the basin. The environment there was completely silent, either the spiders were still busy eating the rank 3 or their low intelligence didn''t make them realize that now they could use the lakeshore to their will. Since there were no more walls to sustain him, Noah chose to crawl till the center of the underground room. ''Luckily they have low intelligence, I believe that if it was a rank 3 four-eyed wolf the effect of the rune would have not been so decisive.'' He reached the lake and took a mouthful of water to drink. The water relieved his body from some tiredness and even filled it with a bit of "Breath". ''Right, the Breath blessing! These waters must be filled with "Breath" I can speed my recovery!'' Spiders began to crawl out of the holes in the underground room and move toward him and at their sight, Noah only smiled faintly. ''Of course, another danger would come after I find a bit of hope.'' He threw himself in the lake and floated toward its center. ''Now that I think about it, it''s the first time I''m swimming with this body. Well, even the rank 3 was staying on the shore where the concentration of "Breath" is less than the water so it''s safe to say that they can''t swim.'' His hypothesis was right as the spiders would just surround the lake without entering it. A peculiar scene was unfolding. A kid wearing a smile was floating on the surface of a lake towards its center while 60 or so spiders were waiting on the shore. ''This feels too good! My body is being nourished at an incredible speed, apart from the wound of my shoulder, the others have mostly stabilized. And the concentration of "Breath" is still raising.'' When he was at the center even his wound on the shoulder showed signs of getting better. Noah stayed like this for a while waiting for his wounds to heal. ''Maybe if I go to the bed of the lake I can speed the process.'' Once he had the idea, he followed through it immediately. He kept going down through the water and at around 10 meters depth he saw a blue oval stone. It was shining on its own and was beautiful to the sight. As Noah got closer to it the thickness of "Breath" rose exponentially and when he was in front of it he could even feel his body getting stronger. He didn''t think much as he took the stone big as a man face and went back to the surface to breathe. The Breath blessing was extraordinary, it was constantly attracting "Breath" of such a quality that all his wounds were closing and the acupoints went back on completing the second cycle of the Seven Hells. After half a day, Noah found himself laughing happily, a sense of completeness filled his body. ''This thing is amazing! Not only it healed my wounds, it even helped me complete the second cycle! I''ve never felt so strong! I wonder if I can manage to keep it?'' He thought for a bit but then shook his head. ''A treasure is one only if I have the strength to protect it. If I''m weak it''s just a calamity. Better to just give it to the inner circle and take some rewards.'' His acupoints had stopped working since the cycle was complete and his wounds were healed, there was no point in being here anymore. He tied the stone to his clothes and looked at the spiders still waiting on the shore. ''Well, let''s see what my body can do now!'' . . . Going back to the time the guards escaped, 4 men were staring at the entrance of the cave. Then a fifth figure came out, revealing itself as Balor. The group was mostly fine, they only had some light injury that needed some mending. When Balor came out, he found the other 4 men staring at him with disgust and repulsion. Mason didn''t even waste time talking, he arrived next to him and punched hard his face. Balor fell on the ground confused. "Ca-Captain what are you doing?" Mason could not control his anger as he kicked the fat man on the ground. "What am I doing? What have you done is the question! We all heard Noah cursing you, apart from being a disgusting man holding grudges with a kid do you know what mess you''ve put all of us in?" Balor took the insults but still felt wronged, wasn''t Noah just the bastard kid of a whore? But Mason didn''t care of his confusion and kept kicking in anger. "When I said that the vice-captain vouched for him it wasn''t the whole truth. That kid was the only disciple of the smiling blade William Challi! Do you know what he will do to us when he arrives?" Realization dawned on Balor as he trembled in fear. "Th-then let''s just say that the rank 3 killed him while we could do nothing, like this he would not do anything to us?" But Mason only shook his head. "I already contacted him through a special talisman that he gave me explaining the situation. I will not risk my life to cover a piece of shit like you. Men, tie him up!" Everyone got to work and tied Balor while they waited for the judgment of the vice-captain of the guards to fall on them. A day and a half later, a figure appeared on the distance. It was speeding like a bullet on the ground, and its legs were barely visible from how fast they were moving. It abruptly stopped in the fireplace where the guards were waiting. It was sunset and the figure got revealed by the last ray of lights of the day. Willam stood there catching a breath, the tiredness for his hurrying here was surpassed only by the anger of one of his men betraying his disciple. "Where he is! Tell me where my disciple is!" Chapter 25: 25. Return William was furious. After all the pain his disciple went through only to get a bit stronger, he got betrayed on his first mission by a worthless soldier. Mason stood up and explained with his head lowered. "Vice-captain, we last saw him a day and a half ago when he got hit by the rank 3 beast. The last thing we heard was him cursing Balor." He pointed at the man tied on the ground. William focused on the man on the ground, the mental pressure he was emanating made Balor incapable of breathing. "Please vice-captain have mercy! That kid threatened and insulted me and I was scared for my life, I only did what I had to do to survive!" Lies came out of Balor''s mouth as William was getting closed. He took the tied hands of the trembling soldier and held them in his hands. Then he spoke with a cold voice. "If my disciple threatens you, you lower your head and ask for mercy." The grip became tighter as the flow of blood in Balor''s hands stopped. "If my disciple insults you, you smile and thank him for his pointers." Cracking sounds came from his hands as bones were compressed on each other. His anger was so overwhelming that he didn''t hear the faint sound of steps coming from the cavern entrance. "If my disciple is risking is life, you exchange your place for his and risk yours, and if you die in the process you do that happily." CRACK The bones in Balor''s hands shattered but he could not make any sound. He was too terrified by Willam''s anger that he had no air left in him to talk. The guards watching the process trembled when they heard the sound of his hands breaking and prayed that they could survive the vice-captain venting. "Master, what are you doing here?" A young voice came from the cave as a figure was visible on its entrance. He was a kid with his upper body naked, pieces of his suit were pending on his sides. He was bathed in a green substance from head to toe making him look like he had some kind of skin disease. A broken saber was in his left hand with only half of the blade remaining. He was looking half smiling at William with tranquil eyes. "Noah?" William immediately got up and jumped on him as he checked for injuries on his body, but apart from some scars and his suit reduced into pieces, everything was fine in him. "Yes, Master?" Noah looked at him in confusion, he still could not link his presence with this place. The other guards were looking at him with wide eyes and even Balor had his mouth hung open as if he didn''t believe in what he was watching. Willam was happy beyond measure in seeing his disciple safe but could not help to release a storm of questions. "How did you survive? What about the rank 3? Why didn''t you come back earlier? And why are you green?" He was holding Noah by his shoulders shaking him every time a question came out. Noah was forced to answer in order to calm his Master down. "Well, the cave is pretty big so I just kept running around killing spiders. The wall was destroyed by the fatty so I had to find another way out. The rank 3 is dead and the green is the blood from the other spiders." This time, everyone had their mouth open as they metabolized the information. William was the first to recover and kept on questioning him. "What you mean the rank 3 is dead?" "Well, dead is dead, I killed him." Another wave of shock went through the men hearing this. This time it was Balor the one who talked. "Bullshit! How could you kill a rank 3 magical beast and come out uninjured?" He regretted saying that when he saw the Master-disciple duo staring at him with killing intent and he lowered his head for fear of another round of torture. "That scum is right though, how did you do it?" Noah took out a folded sheet from his waist and showed it to his Master. "I showed it the Kesier rune and took the chance when he was confused to strike a fatal attack. I believe it still was in its process to adapt to the evolved body, that''s why I could hurt it." Willam felt a bit of irritation going through him. He smiled at Noah and said with a calm voice. "And why would you have the rune with you in the mission?" Noah answered with honesty like it was the most normal thing in the world. "Well, it was a travel of 6 days and I wanted to train in the breaks." A light punch arrived at the top of his head. "You are impossible! Do you really think of nothing but training? Uff, I guess it''s fine since it saved your life. Still, how are you uninjured?" Noah seemed to remember something. He took out an oval form tied with a cloth and gave it to his Master. When William unfolded it, a blue light shot out from it. "Breath blessing! No wonder that specimen managed to reach rank 3! Haha my disciple, this time you really did an exemplary job. Don''t you worry, I will intercede with the inner ring for you and take the best reward I can bargain for." Hearing the word "reward" Noah''s eyes lit up and he liked his lips. "I will need better sabers, Master. These ones cracked only after some hits from a rank 3 beast." William was about to reprimand but then shook his head smiling and ruffled his untied hair. "Most importantly, what do you want to do with him?" He pointed a Balor on the ground that was looking at him with pleading eyes. Noah got closer and looked at his pitiful figure. "Please, young master have mercy. I swear I will serve you with all my expertise from now on, I will..." A torrent of pleads came out of his mouth but Noah only kept on looking at him with cold eyes. When Balor stopped talking Noah gave only a short answer. "No." The saber did a horizontal arc and Balor''s head detached from his body and rolled on the ground, blood flowed tainting the terrain. His Master got close to him and asked in a soft voice. "Are you ok? It is the first time you kill a human after all." Noah looked at him smiling and said in a shameless voice. "You know, my second cycle is complete, so I thought we could do the third treatment as soon-" Another punch hit the top of his head and forced him to shut up. Chapter 26: 26. Deserters Noah woke up in a room of the guards building. 2 weeks have passed since he came back from the mission and 4 days ago he went through his third treatment. His back still hurt a bit but his mental energy had recovered. He would train if his master didn''t take the rune from him worried that he would not focus on healing. His worries were right on point. ''Mh, my body should reach the limits of rank 1 at the end of this cycle, I wonder how much will it take. What a pity, if I had that stone I could go straight for rank 2 this month.'' The Breath blessing was delivered by William to the inner circle so it was probably gone forever from his grasp. He focused his mental energy on aiding the healing process since he had nothing to do while eating the food left on the table nearby. The door of the room opened as William went inside the room with a bigger smile than usual, he was carrying a leather bag and a big wooden box. "Haha my dear disciple, good morning, I bring good news!" He placed the box and the bag on the bed and pointed at them. "These are the rewards I got for you and I have to say that they are awesome, you won''t be disappointed." Noah didn''t waste any time and started opening the box, his Master made him curious. In the box there were 2 sabers inside their respective sheaths, their hilts were clean shiny, they seemed brand new. He picked one of them and unsheathed it, the body of the blade was black and sharp. "They were specially forged for you from 2 legs of the rank 3 ironclad spider that you took down. They are not magical weapons but surely are top tier between the normal blades." Noah was unconsciously smiling looking at the blade and swinging it around, he would get up and try it if it wasn''t for his body still needing rest. He sheathed the saber and looked at the bag. An old book was inside and when he looked at the first page his eyes widened as he could not hide the shock he was feeling. He looked at his Master in disbelief. "Is this really for me?" William smile grew even more as he nodded. "Your Master is amazing isn''t he?" He wanted to brag a bit but Noah''s eyes went on the book as soon as he saw him nodding. William just shook his head and waited for his disciple to finish his reading. ''Nails of the Kamaitachi, rank 3. Martial art created imitating the rank 4 magical beast Kamaitachi. Highest speed and perforation between the arts of the same rank. It allows the user to cut at an unbelievable speed and precision surpassing every protection. The user might also cut things at some distance away from the blade and, at full mastery, it can shot wind slashes through the air. Limited to two-weapon wielders'' Noah raised his gaze from the book. "The Kamaitachi is a weasel-like beast that runs the wind and cuts to death without the victim even noticing. It should fit you really well." He took the folded sheet containing the rune from his clothes and gave it to Noah. "Next week we begin to spar again, I believe you will want to test your new techniques." Noah looked at him and bowed deeply uncaring of the pain on his back. William ruffled his hair and got out of the room leaving him alone to concentrate on the book. Having finally something to do, Noah''s days of recovery passed rapidly. His weekly sparring with William continued but he noticed a problem with his new martial art: his "Breath" was insufficient to express its potential. To be precise he could only use one of its abilities twice before being drained. "That is completely normal, you always forget how early you are in things. Normally, to use a martial art of high level you would need a dantian but you complain about being able to use only two attacks. Your biggest gain, for now, is the improvement in your forms, anything else must wait until you get a rank 2 body." William explained. Their sparring session had ended and Noah was exposing his doubts to him. "So, what you think I should do, Master?" "You could just let your body grow but you don''t seem to know how to stay still." William felt a bit of exasperation saying this. "You can gather battle experience doing missions, I believe you should be fine against any kind of rank 2 magical beasts." . . . Months passed by. Noah alternated between his usual schedule in the mansion and his travels outside it to clear magical beast''s nests. There was a pack of four-eyed wolves with a specimen that reached rank 2 but they were wiped out in half a day. A horned snake appeared in the vicinity of a village in the North. Its scales were hard, his body 10 meters long and large 2, and had poisonous fangs in its mouth. It was a beast at the peak of rank 2 and Noah had to resort to his rank 3 martial art to kill it after a strenuous battle. He was forced to rest for 3 days because of that fight. Yet, his most troublesome opponent had been a mud demon. This type of magical beast was naturally created when too much "Breath" accumulated in one place and consolidated. The consolidated "Breath" would act as the core of a beast that could manipulate the terrain around it. It was not a powerful beast but countered heavily Noah''s techniques. He had to cut it in small pieces repeatedly to find the core and destroy it while dodging the earth spikes that it created to attack him. Yet, his battle proficiency rose at a fast pace having to face different situations as he could decide more quickly the best way to deal with an opponent. Today, he was sitting on his knees waiting for the usual mission that his Master would hand to him every month. "This time will be different, you will go with a group of people that I picked personally." Noah was immediately intrigued. ''Since he always let me go alone the difficulty of the mission must be higher to require a group.'' He picked the sheet describing the mission from William''s hands. ''Deserters of the Shosti family have raided the village of Tasart, only the corpses of men and elders have been found, they probably took away women and young girls for their enjoyment. Find the rebels and execute them. Warning: there are cultivators inside their group.'' Chapter 27: 27. Contes "As you know, the Shosti family rules over us and since the rebels are in Balvan mansion''s zone of influence they ordered us to take care of them." Noah listened to the explanation but had a doubt in his mind. "Master, can I fight a cultivator?" His ability to fight with beasts of higher rank than him was mainly due to the fact that they were, in the end, just beasts. A powerful body and some peculiar ability could be matched by powerful techniques and perfect execution of them. But what would happen against someone who had a dantian and practiced techniques as powerful as his? "Generally speaking, no. If he matches your abilities he will just overwhelm you by the sheer quantity of his "Breath". You might catch him by surprise using your rank 3 martial art but then you will be mostly drained. And if he has a rank 3 martial art too, well, just run." Noah felt depressed listening to this. He was hardworking and talented, mostly due to his powerful mind, but others were too. And if he had to clash with them the difference in time spent cultivating would be decisive. "So why are you giving me this mission?" If he really could not do anything about the situation there was no point in going toward danger, he liked to fight but he was no idiot. "Your role would be only of support. You will take care of the non-cultivator and of those with a rank 1 martial art between them, leaving the real fight to the others of your group." William was about to dismiss him when he thought of something. "Ehm, you can trust them this time, I made sure of that." He showed a complex expression while he said that, apparently the events with Balor were still lingering in his mind. Noah smiled and reassured his Master. "Don''t worry Master!" As he left the room his smile disappeared transforming in a cold expression. ''No way I''m gonna trust anyone except Lily and Master, I should hide my strength from the time being, the nails of the Kamaitachi must be my hidden ace in the sleeve.'' When Balor betrayed him it made him remember the cruelty of men, which he had forgotten living as a kid for so much time. He went back to his room and practiced again in all of the forms of the rank 3 art, only then he calmed himself. His weakness was making him feel restless. The more he knew about this world, the more he understood how dangerous it was. By clearing nests he got an idea of how populous were the magical beasts in this world and yet humans still were at the top of the food chain, that meant that their power was unimaginable. ''While I''m just 2 steps away from the bottom of human power, I can surpass only commoners and dumb soldiers.'' In his mind, a soldier with a rank 1 technique became a dumb soldier. His irritation reflected itself on his night training in the rune as he almost collapsed after forcing himself to watch it for 7 hours straight! After more than one year and a half of training non-stop, the faint shape of the rune was visible in his sea of consciousness, he was sure it would not take much before he became a rank 1 mage. ''I guess I should start creating excuses for my rapid progress in mental energy, I wonder what face will Master make if I reach the apprentice mage status before I turn 13.'' He smiled imagining at his Master''s astonished face but then the wave of pain from his head arrived so he went to sleep to rest his mind. The next morning, he found his Master in the courtyard with 3 men and a woman around him, they were waiting for him. "Noah, they will be your companions for the mission." "So it''s him?" It was a tall muscular man between them who talked, he had no beard and short dark hair with a greatsword almost as big as him on his back. He stared at Noah with focus, applying pressure with his mind. ''Is he testing me?'' His mental energy was heavy and was pressuring Noah''s sphere but was far from enough to make him stand back. Noah took the chance to harden his sphere since it was the first time he felt a constant pressure from the outside of it and closed his eyes to concentrate on it. The man mistook his behavior as his attempt to resist the pressure and felt challenged, so a stalemate was created. Noah would focus on strengthening the walls of his mind while the guard would raise the mental pressure to win the imaginary contest he thought he was in. After 10 minutes, blood came out of the guard nose and he was struggling to keep the pressure. The woman, seeing the blood, gave a strong slap to the back of his head stopping his concentration and dispelling the pressure. "Ethan, stop, the kid is using you." The man named Ethan was about to complain when he got hit but then the words of the woman made him look carefully at Noah. He still had his eyes closed and a slight smile was on his face. When Noah opened his eyes he showed a disappointed expression but then he noticed that everyone was looking at him. "I swear he almost did it, I bet that if you let him try for one more hour he will definitely do it!" A punch arrived at the top of his head as William moved behind him placing his hands on his shoulders. "This shameless kid is my disciple, Noah. Always pay attention when you deal with him because he will say and do anything to learn more about your powers." Noah raised his head to look at the Master behind him and complained. "Come on Master, it''s not fair if you break my cover so soon. Don''t listen to him I''m a pure and innocen-" Another punch hit him. Ethan was incredulous, the woman was surprised while the other 2 men were almost suffocating from holding back their laughter. They never saw someone threat the vice-captain like this and from the look of it, William actually gave up on fixing his disciple behavior. "Haha, kid you''re the best. I am Sanford but you can call me Sandy." "We won''t get bored in this mission, right Sandy? Haha. My name is Mark. Young man, we will get along." The two laughing men could not hold themselves anymore as they greeted Noah. The woman massaged her temples while exhaling. "Don''t listen to those two idiots. I''m Susan the captain for this mission and their nanny. The other guy is called Ethan, he is stupidly competitive. Now let''s get somewhere private to decide how to complete the mission." Chapter 28: 28. Scroll Sandy and Mark had both brown hair and a short red beard. They were of medium stature and were, apparently, brothers from two different mothers and the same father. They were quite young, as their age didn''t reach the 40ies. Susan was a woman nearing her 50ies, with blond hair and an imponent frame and with her right ear missing. Ethan was the youngest of the group, around his 30ies, and he was the tallest between them. They were in a room inside the guards building sitting around a circular table with cups of hot tea on the side of each of them. Susan was explaining the information she knew about the mission. "We know the group is formed by a former mercenary group that was going to be absorbed by the soldiers of the Shosti family. Some of them, unhappy with the status of a stable soldier, rebelled and became robbers. You all read the report about Tasart village, I don''t believe they could have cleared all their traces while kidnapping so many women. Of course, our best option is to start investigating from there." Everyone nodded. "What about their number and capabilities? And what do we do if they use the hostages?" It was Noah speaking. He wanted to make sure that he was ready for anything in his first battle with cultivators, even if he didn''t have to participate. "We have some description of the strongest of them and their group should amount to 20 people in total. As for the hostages, we save them if we can, we cut through them if they are used as shields." Noah nodded, he was happy with her answer. ''In this world, the weak are to blame while the strong are to revere, I won''t endanger myself to save other people I don''t care about.'' A village would be wiped out because, by chance, a pack of magical beasts found it in their way, weakness was indeed a sin in this world. Having cleared his doubts, Noah listened carefully to the questions of the other soldiers. They set up the priorities of the mission, the plan of attack and everyone''s role. Noah had to clear anyone trying to get closer to the other 4, leaving the cultivators to fight themselves with no one interfering. "Since everything is settled, let''s set off immediately. We will see each other again in 2 hours." The group got dismissed and went to prepare for their mission. Meanwhile, on the side of a small mountain covered with trees, 20 or so men were camping near a campfire. It was winter so the temperature was low but these men didn''t seem to care too much as they were doing a line to enter the bigger tent of the camp. Cries and pleads could be heard from the tent but the men outside it would just laugh and lick their lips eager to enter. Two men got outside of the tent and proudly announced. "Now, there are no more virgins inside!" Disappointed sighs and curses were spat out by the men still in line but then were suppressed by a yell coming from higher in the mountain. "Shut up you beasts, I''m trying to concentrate here!" The men shut up but soon whispers sounded again on the mountain. "I heard that the boss managed to steal a magic spell''s scroll from the old captain." "Shhh, he is still in the process of learning it, he doesn''t want any distraction. He let us raid the village just to make us happy and stop complaining." "What a pity though, he had been a mage for such a long time and the only way he got a magic spell was with the rebellion." "You chose to rebel too remember?" "Well, we are mercenaries, we follow gold and women!" The deserters talked for some more time and then went back to enjoy the contents of the tent. . . . 4 days later, a carriage appeared in the outskirts of Tasart village, or what remained of it. The houses were burned to the ground and not a living being could be seen inside it. A group of 3 men, a woman, and a kid got out of the carriage, they were, of course, Noah and his group. "Aww man, you are too boring, you did nothing but meditate and practice during the trip. Aren''t you in the age when you want to talk about women?" "Sanford, don''t try to corrupt the kid, he still has time to become a waste of air like you." "Captain you are so mean! I''m just trying to educate him to the way of manhood!" Sandy and Susan bickered, they basically did it through all the trip. Mark would just laugh on their side at every word they spoke to each other while Ethan tried to imitate Noah in his compulsive way of training. ''Don''t tell me that you become an idiot when you start cultivating your dantian?'' These were his thoughts about cultivators after 4 days of travel with them. ''Now that I think about it, even Master isn''t too normal with his constant smile.'' He was considering the possibility that cultivating could have some side effects on the psyche of the practitioner. They neared the remains of the village and looked around it in search of clues of the deserters. Dead bodies were still on the ground, left there since the raid. As the report said, no females were among the corpses and signs of dragging were present everywhere. "What there is in that direction that can hide 20 lustful men?" Mark asked the question while pointing where the traces of dragging went. "A mountain." Answered Sandy. "Cliffshear mountain." Ethan pointed out. Susan massaged her temples to hold back from yelling at the 3 of them. "They must have gone there, we should hurry while they are still busy using the hostages." Noah could not help to feel a bit of wariness toward the heartlessness of Susan after her proposal. "Oh, something is coming." "Yes, they must have been attired by the smell of blood lingering on the ground." "Uh?" It was the first time that Noah wasn''t the first to notice something approaching. ''Are they already mages?'' Looking at Sandy and Mark staring in the distance he followed their line of sight, focusing on a dark dot few hundreds of meters in the distance. The dot became 2 dots and then 4. Then the silhouettes of 6 thunder wolves were made clear. "Kid, you take care of them, have fun." Sandy patted Noah''s shoulder and sat on the ground like he was waiting for a show to being displayed. Chapter 29: 29. Flame snake The thunder wolves were all rank 2. Generally speaking, wolves types of magical beasts had all the ability to coordinate their attacks together. This particular one could send bolts of lightning from its mouth or coordinate with the pack to create a massive thunder that could destroy everything in its path. If it was shot from 6 rank 2, its power could match the top tier of their rank. Mark sat next to Sandy and they started betting on Noah''s performance. Even Ethan this time didn''t show his usual competitive side and just sat on the ground looking annoyed, a fight with those magical beasts was not worth his interest. Susan remained standing but just kept looking for more clues around the ruins of the village. ''These guys.'' Noah felt a bit irritated. ''Each one of them should be able to wipe those wolves in one hit yet they chose to let me do it. Basically, I''m here to clean the trash.'' The wolves kept getting closer and their tails were accumulating electricity to release into an attack. "You know, I really hate being tested." Said Noah to the group, while unsheathing his sabers and jumping towards the wolves. His attention was on the tails of the wolves since it was from them that you could understand when the lighting bolt would arrive. During the period of clearing nests, William gave him a slim bestiary to memorize. It had general information about magical beasts below rank 3, with some advice on how to dodge their most powerful attacks. In the case of the thunder wolves, it was when their mouth opened to release the electricity accumulated in their tails. There was no such thing as the perfect attack in this world, everything must have a weakness. In the thunderbolt case, it was the long preparation required and its poor maneuverability; In Noah''s style, it was a limited area of effect. A bolt shot from one of the wolves mouths in Noah''s direction. He hastily moved diagonally to avoid it and then resumed in his original direction. The bolt passed near him an hit the ground, a one-meter large hole was formed with smoke coming out of it, the special ability of a rank 2 magical beast was not to be underestimated! Another bolt shot out but Noah avoided it sliding below it at high speed, then he jumped to end up in the middle of the pack. From the sight on a normal human, Noah only stopped in place for few instants between the 2 wolves on his sides before moving toward the other 4. Even the 2 beasts got a little confused by his behavior and tilted their heads to follow the kid entering their group. At that moment, a red line appeared on the 2 wolves'' necks, followed by an eruption of bright red blood. Two beast''s heads fell on the ground, accompanied by their now headless bodies. "Oh, that is indeed the speed of the Kamaitachi style, when William told me that he gave a rank 3 martial art to a kid I almost was sent to the prison for mocking him. I wonder how much power of the technique he can express." Sandy commented from his position on the ground, while the other 2 men nodded in approval. Even though Noah''s attack was fast, it could not fool the eyes of cultivators on their level. Only Ethan seemed to frown a bit, he clearly saw one of the attacks but completely missed the other one. Meanwhile, Noah was still in the wolves'' pack, this time the beasts were preparing a coordinated attack since the death of 2 of their companions made them realize the danger they were in. But it was too late! If they used immediately their most powerful attack while Noah was getting closer they could have had a chance, but now that he was among them their fate was written. Noah seemed to casually stroll between the magical beasts but every time he passed one of them, their head would be severed and fall on the ground. In less than a minute, the pack was no more, only headless corpses were around him. ''My forms are on a completely different level. If previously they were on the level of a middle-tier rank 2 magical beast or even lower, now they are definitely on the upper-tier! It''s just a pity that I still can''t cross the boundaries of the rank 3 because my body is still weak.'' Like usual, he would analyze the battle and his techniques to fix any mistake he found in it and to evaluate his power level. ''The events with the ironclad spider were really too fortunate, I don''t think I could have killed him if he hadn''t just evolved.'' Noah was still standing in thought when Susan came back to the group sitting on the ground. "The village has nothing worth left in it and since the kid finished clearing up the beasts we should get going. What do you think, can he block the weak deserters while we fight?" Sandy stood up while answering: "The non-cultivators are of no concern for him, the low-level ones should give him some problems but he can handle it. The only problem is for how much can he hold them off, after all the "Breath" in his body is limited." Susan nodded and then said with resolution: "Then we end our fights before he''s out of it, I don''t want to be killed because some weak scum disturbed me." "Agreed captain, and when we have completed the mission we can all go to the brothel in Mossgrove city to celebrate!" Susan sighed loudly while massaging her temples, forcing herself not to get irritated by Sandy. Meanwhile, on Cliffshear mountain, a middle-age muscular man was sitting cross-legged on the ground frowning deeply. Screams and pleads would resound in the air but he seemed not to care or to be used to it. A scroll with an intricate linear design written on it was open lying on his hands. At some point, he raised one of his hands in the air and pointed at a tree on his side. His whole arm lit up and a snake made of flames shot out of it, it slammed on the tree, destroying it and continuing for some meters before extinguishing. The man smiled and opened his eyes to look at the destruction created by his first magic spell. An area of 5 meters was wrecked by his spell, with some small flames still burning the destroyed tree. The man nodded with satisfaction and put the scroll on the lingering flames burning it without any hesitation while deep in thought. ''I finally managed to learn the flame snake magic, the rebellion was totally worth it!'' Chapter 30: 30. Battle The group of the Balvan family arrived at the base of Cliffshear mountain. They jumped off the carriage and stared silently at the trees filling it. Everyone was in a serious mood since the battle was imminent, the usual exchange of jokes and scoldings was absent, only concentration could be seen in their eyes. Even if they could arrive sooner if they ran all the way here, they prioritized their physical condition, so they rested during the night in the remains of the village and took the carriage before dawn. It was still some hours before midday but, even though the sun was high in the sky, the field of view in the mountain''s path was limited by the numerous trees on it. Mark was the first to break the silence. "They will obviously have sentries around their camp if they are still here." Everyone nodded. "The terrain is not in our favor but we should have better scouts, once we find them we can prepare a plan of attack." Susan said. Sandy put his arm around Mark''s neck and proudly announced. "The best the outer ring has to offer." Noah finally understood why they were able to spot the thunder wolves before him. ''So that''s why. I wonder if they are just good scouts or if their mental energy is so high that they can take on that role easily.'' He was continuously trying to figure out the real strength of his companions but they rarely showed any clues about their powers. With the exception of Ethan, he didn''t even know what kind of weapon they used. "You two go ahead and point the way, we will follow. " After Susan''s order, they entered the mountain forest following Mark and Sandy. They would often go in two different ways before regrouping and point a direction on the ones following them. Few hours passed by, with no one in the group speaking a word during their exploration. Then, Sandy and Mark went toward them signaling to be silent. They crouched on the ground and spoke with a soft voice. "We found the encampment a few minutes in that direction. It should be them since there were screams of women coming from there." "The common soldiers are tired and sleepy, I believe that they did nothing but **** those women these days. You are lucky Noah." Since it was his job to take care of the non-cultivators this was good news for him. Apparently, no one cared about the fates of the hostages at this point. "What about cultivators?" Asked Susan. "There is the one in the highest place of the encampment that must be the stronger of them, we could not find more about him for fear of being discovered." "There are 5 of them worthy of our concern after him, the others are just weaklings for the kid." Sandy and Mark would explain things by dividing the explanation between the 2 of them, Noah was almost certain that cultivating would cause some brain damage by now. He thought that he had to ask his Master about this matter once he came back. "How do we proceed?" He asked and everyone''s gaze went on Susan since she was the captain of the mission. "I will jump straight in the middle of them and face the strongest guy. While they are busy following me, Mark, Sandy, and Ethan will ambush the cultivators trying to lower their number while Noah will storm between the weaklings. Once the situation stabilizes, we go hunt for the remaining ones. Remember your roles." ''She is actually planning to be the bait?'' Noah was doubtful but still decided to follow with the plan, after all, if Susan wanted to take the danger on her, so be it. They moved toward the perimeter of the encampment and when everyone was ready, Susan jumped out in the open, speeding toward her target. "Just follow us kid." Sandy said as he and Mark took out a short knife from their clothes. Ethan unsheathed his greatsword so Noah did the same with the sabers on his back. The normal soldiers didn''t notice Susan figure as she was too fast, it was only when she was halfway through the camp that someone gave the alarm. "Enemy attack!" The camp fell into chaos as the soldiers went to pick their swords left on the ground. When Susan was nearing the top of the encampment, a man jumped out from a tent and directly swung his sword at her. Susan raised her hand and the sword got deflected by it, the sound of metal against metal resounded in the air. "Now!" Yelled Mark, and the group still hiding in the perimeter of the camp shot out in the open. Sandy and Mark went directly in Susan''s direction while Ethan did an ample half-circle with his greatsword severing 3 soldiers in two, then he went in the same direction of the other 2. Noah was the last one to appear and he took advantage of the confusion created by his companions to sneak out inside the group of deserters. Blood spilled and heads flew as he ran through the group, the more he killed now while reaching Ethan and the others, the less he had to care about later when the surprise effect dispelled. When he appeared on the other side of the encampment, 5 soldiers fell dead on the ground. On this side, Susan was still deflecting different weapons with her hands while trying to reach her target, Sandy and Mark took out one of them with their excellent teamwork but then got encircled by 3 cultivators limiting their movements. Ethan was fighting a tall man with a big ax alone. At some point, Susan did a palm gesture with her hand that released a shockwave that stunned momentarily the 2 soldiers that were fighting with her. She hurriedly grabbed the head of one of them and squeezed tightly. The head of the unfortunate man was reduced to a meat pulp while Susan didn''t even look at him before resuming her original direction, the other man on her side was too scared to react to the woman speeding through him. Noah turned back to face the other soldiers unleashing another wave of seemingly invisible attacks, Ethan used a destructive move to shatter the big ax and then thrust his greatsword into the tall man chest. Sandy and Mark were nimbly dodging every attack the 3 men were unleashing on them while delivering fast strikes as a counterattack, all 3 of the deserters had their wrists and arms wounded as a result. Noah killed another 3 of them leaving standing 2 men that blocked his attacks. Only 7 deserters remained alive, with 3 of them injured. At that point, a ball of flame fell from the highest point of the encampment and stopped on the ground in the middle of the battlefield, Susan''s figure was barely visible between the flames. Chapter 31: 31. Inspiration The battlefield became silent. Susan was the strongest of the group from Balvan mansion and right now she was convulsing on the ground engulfed by flames. ''Fuck!'' Noah was the first to react. He hastily slashed the throat of one of the men in front of him while he was still stupefied by the unexpected event and then got ready to run away. He didn''t know much about magic spells but he was sure of one thing. ''If that man can do that attack again we are doomed! I must retreat! I will never be the last one to escape again!'' He swore this to himself since the events near Lilun village, if you have to escape be the first to do that! This was the main reason why he was the first of the group to react, he was constantly wary of any unexpected thing that could happen, like a rank 3 magical beast rising from a shore made of bones, or a misleading report not mentioning a mage in the group of deserters. Before he even managed to turn back though, a shockwave ran from the flames, extinguishing them. Susan''s figure struggled to get up, showing to the onlookers the pitiful state she was in. She was completely naked without any hair left on her body. Her skin was almost completely burned and crackling sounds came out of it. She was missing her right arm, that probably took most of the destructive power of the spell, while her left hand had only 2 fingers left. A guttural voice came out of her mouth while she spoke slowly. "Can... hold back him. Complete... mission." Then she jumped back on the man now visible high in the mountain path. He was staring at her with a slight smile, apparently satisfied by the damage dealt by his spell, yet his complexion looked pale like he was tired. Noah was stupefied. He was ready to run away but then he saw what should have been a burned corpse getting up and speak. ''She should have been killed already just by the injuries created by the flames, not even considering the impact of the attack hitting her. Is this a real cultivator?'' He looked at the remaining man standing in front of him, about how he blocked his attack, and could not help but feel like he was an ant fighting another ant. ''I really am incredibly weak.'' He wasn''t thinking only about his physical power but also about his mental state. Seeing Susan''s determination inspired him. As if sensing the change in his mental state, his acupoints started absorbing "Breath" at a speed like never before, slowly refilling the "Breath" he used till now. The man seeing the kid slowly moving toward him felt a chill down his spine and got ready to block any incoming attack. "It''s useless." Said Noah walking past him. "You are already dead." The sword in his hands, held in a horizontal position in front of his chest, divided itself into two halves, then a red line appeared from his head till his waist. Blood sprouted from the red line as the man was cut vertically in two. A weak cultivator could do nothing against the full power of a rank 3 martial art! Even though Noah could have defeated him conserving most of his "Breath" that would have taken some time, and he was eager to give support to the other people in his group. ''Even if I can''t defeat the mage, they probably can if they work together. I have to use my last full power attack wisely.'' The "Breath" in his body was halved by his last strike but now he could assist the others in their fight. Meanwhile, Sandy and the others had resumed their fights after seeing Susan''s attempt to buy time for them. Ethan was fighting with the man that tried to block Susan previously while the brothers were still dealing with the 3 injured cultivators. Ethan seemed at a disadvantage against the maneuverability of the man''s short sword and he kept getting wounded superficially by its fast attacks. On the other side, Sandy and Mark seemed close to delivering a fatal attack to one of the men surrounding them but they would always be obstructed at the last moment by the other two, the advantage in numbers was slowing the arrival of victory in their fight. Noah chose to help the brothers since their fight was the easiest to end with his help and since he wasn''t too sure that he could block the short sword of the man if he focused him. Uncaring of their bleeding wrists, the 3 deserters were still delivering powerful blows containing great force, they used their martial arts empowered with their higher tier of "Breath" to continuously unleash peak rank 2 attacks. Noah could do that only twice and that was because his martial art was rank 3! Even though theirs was an art of a lower level, their attacks contained the same power and the deserters had fewer restrictions in their usage. Yet, the brothers would always dodge them while delivering swift counterattacks that would either be blocked by one of the deserters or wound them lightly. Wounds kept accumulating on the trio but they held still, waiting for their boss to finish his fight with the almost dead woman. Another counterattack was launched by Sandy but was blocked by one of the men confidently, he was preparing himself to deliver another powerful blow when he felt a sudden pain to his back. He turned around to see a kid with black hair in a ponytail getting away from him at high speed. He had icy-blue eyes and donned a tight black kimono, in his hands there were two black sabers, one of them had dripping blood on it. He had no time to say anything because Mark didn''t let this occasion slip by and planted his knife in the man chest, the man died still wondering where the kid came from. After one of the 3 deserters died, the fight became completely one-sided and Mark and Sandy took out the already injured opponents in a few rounds of attack. They didn''t waste any time as they sped toward Ethan''s battle, Mark only slightly nodded at Noah''s figure following them at some distance. Ethan was having a rough time, his opponent was slowly overwhelming him, locking him into a passive position. There were a lot of light wounds on Ethan''s arms and a deep one on his left leg that was hindering his movements. The brothers arrived at full speed stopping the man from inflicting another heavy wound on Ethan and then, together with him, unleashed a series of attacks on the encircled deserter. Seeing that the situation wasn''t looking good, the man chose to escape, getting purposedly injured to escape the encirclement and then running at full speed toward the forest. But then, a black saber appeared in front of him. Chapter 32: 32. Victory In order to block the saber, the man had to stop his escape, allowing the guards from Balvan mansion to encircle him again. Enraged, he tried to find the owner of the saber only to see a small figure getting away at high speed. In this moment of distraction, Ethan stabbed him on his waist followed by Sandy and Mark''s knives. In a battle between cultivators, one instant of distraction could cause your own death. That''s why Noah''s job was to ensure that the cultivators would fight themselves without interferences, and interfering was exactly what he was doing. He would lie in wait in order to find an opportunity to cause a misstep in the enemy that would be exploited by his companions. BOOM! An explosion resounded from high in the mountain path. A serpent made of flames was coiling around the deserters'' boss right arm. On the ground near him, Susan''s charred corpse was lying unmoving, no more life was in it. "Bos... s." The man stabbed by the trio made a last plead of help before dying. The flames slowly dissipated and the serpent with them, showing how proved the mage was by using the spell two times. Noah, Ethan, Sandy, and Mark regrouped and stared at the pale man that killed their captain. "Your name?" Ethan asked, breathing heavily from the fatigue of his two consecutive fights. "Tsk, what, the Shosti family forgot to mention it when they gave the reports?" The group and the man stalled in order to regain some energy. "We are simple people, reading the names of those that we have to kill is just useless work." Sandy said shrugging his shoulders. "My name is Orson why do you want to know it?" "Well, you killed our captain, we need to report your name after we kill you to complain about their shitty report." Mark''s time to speak had arrived but Noah didn''t care this time as he was completely focused on Orson. ''Can he do it again? Anyone of us that gets hit by that spell will probably die, but Susan managed to make him use it two times. Can he do it a third time?'' "Oh, no wonder she was so strong, it was your captain! Her body should have reached the limits of rank 3. What a pity, if she was a noble she would have had the technique needed to break through rank 4 but alas..." Orson seemed really sad for Susan as he kept on speaking. "You know, that''s why I rebelled. I have been a rank 1 mage for ten years now and managed to obtain a spell only by stealing it. Don''t you think that it''s unfair? Don''t you think that someone as talented as her, as talented as ME has the right to obtain what he deserves?" His speech was about the common problem in the human''s cultivation world. Noble families would accumulate wealth and techniques to have a monopoly over them. Anyone not belonging to their inner circle could just serve for life hoping to be rewarded accordingly, or resort to illicit ways. Ethan breath returned to a normal pace, he looked at his companion and nodded. "Shall we start?" Orson shook his head but got in position to fight, he took a big iron mace from the ground with his left hand and yelled: "Come then!" The group waited no more and jumped right at him. Ethan was the first to clash with the mace causing the ground beneath him to crackle, Sandy and Mark slowed their pace on purpose to deal with Orson''s sides. Before the brother''s knives could hit Orson though, the serpent of flames appeared again, this time protecting him. Sandy and Mark had to halt their charge while Ethan was pushed three steps back with his hands lightly burned. The serpent disappeared and the exchange of attacks and defense repeated itself. It seemed that if Orson used the magic spell only to protect himself, its consumption of mental energy would be lower. After three rounds of attacks, Ethan''s left arm was hanging on his side while he wielded his greatsword with his right hand. The wound on his left leg was constantly spilling blood and he was deadly pale, he probably could hold only for another round. Sandy and Mark were relatively better, the fire only touched them superficially and managed to cause only some spots of burned flesh. Orson, on the other side, was panting heavily, he looked completely drained, like after a full session of training in the Kesier rune. It was obvious that the next round would be the last. Ethan''s eyes became resolute as he charged recklessly toward Orson. Like the times before that, his greatsword met the mace and he pushed hard with all the strength he had left to lock Orson in that position. The attacks of the brothers arrived as punctual as always, aiming for the blind spots of the mage. At one step from death, Orson resolutely chose to raise once again his right arm to unleash his strongest attack. The arm lit up and a serpent of flames was being formed when a blade of wind, with the form of a crescent moon, hit the arm and severed it! Noah was a few meters away from the mage, kneeling on the ground and managing to keep his upper body erected by pointing with his sabers on the ground. He had watched the whole battle from a small distance away and understood one thing: the flames originated from his right arm. So he waited till Orson exposed his arm again to deliver the only ranged attack that his art had. The execution was perfect and the magic got interrupted, Sandy and Mark used this chance to directly cut off Orson''s head with two strikes from opposite directions. The mage was dead! Noah and Ethan immediately fell on the ground, one had his "Breath" completely drained while the other was heavily injured. The brothers, on the contrary, were still standing looking around the battlefield and on Orson body. After their search, they came back to where Ethan and Noah were resting. "No traces of the scroll containing the magic spell, he must have destroyed it." "Except for some starving women that survived and us, everyone is dead." They divided their lines as usual but there was a trace of sadness this time and not the usual irony. Noah looked at the charred corpse at some distance from them and spoke. "If she didn''t make Orson use the spell twice, at least another one of us would be dead." Everyone nodded and bowed to the corpse of their former captain. Chapter 33: 33. Rarity Inside the carriage, the group from Balvan family was returning to the mansion. Having completed the mission, there was no reason for them to remain in Cliffshear mountain. They had signaled the place where the encampment was and left the hostages there waiting for someone from the noble families to pick them up, in a matter between cultivators those women were treated only as casualties and were for normal soldiers to handle. The atmosphere during the trip back was pensive, everyone was silent with their mind wandering. Sometimes their gaze would lie on a charred corpse lying on the wooden seats of the carriage, sometimes on Orson''s head on the floor. After he stared at the mage''s head, Noah broke the silence wanting clarity on a pressing question in his mind. "Is it really that hard to get a magic spell if you don''t belong to the nobles'' inner circle?" The group was a little surprised form the question but then realized that this companion that fought with them was, in fact, a kid. Mark did a complex smile and spoke. "I''m sure that your Master already said something to you but I''ll try to be more precise. You were probably misled to think that if you put enough efforts inevitably you will receive rewards. That is true only until a certain level." He pointed at the corpse on the ground and continued. "Susan was the third strongest in the outer ring, below your Master and his captain. She served in the guards of the outer ring for more than twenty years. Do you know the reason why she could not receive a technique that surpassed rank 3?" Noah''s answer was immediate. "Because she didn''t join the inner ring." Sandy broke the silence too and corrected him. "No, because she had talent and will." Mark nodded to the answer of his brother and continued. "You saw the power of a magic spell now, what would happen if the nobles gave that kind of power to someone that might become stronger than them?" ''One single cultivator having a magical spell could kill and injure 5 of them, with some of them stronger than him in other aspects.'' The answer this time was obvious. "Rebellion." Mark nodded, his smile becoming more complex. "Exactly, that talented person might not welcome the control of the noble''s families anymore after he obtains the power to fight them. You probably thought that you could find some ways around it since you got rewarded with a rank 3 art but let me tell you: that was the most valuable reward they could give you. Remember that you gave a "Breath" blessing, which is one of the most precious treasures for low-level cultivators, for it and you had your Master help in the delivery. I''m afraid that if you lacked one of those you would have received only some amount of gold as a reward." Noah remembered how just by standing next to that blue mineral his injuries were healed and his second cycle was completed. ''That was indeed a good stone, no wonder they gave me such a high tier martial art for it.'' "With magic spells, the process is more complex." Mark kept explaining. "The first issue is that you need to be at least a rank 1 mage to learn it otherwise your sea of consciousness won''t be able to bear the pressure of its diagram, many cultivators would rather train in other aspects that give an earlier increase of power than spend hours looking at a rune for many years. This greatly reduces the number of people that can strive for a magic scroll." "After that, there is a problem with the attitude of a person. If your attitude doesn''t match the element of the spell its power will be immensely reduced. Mages would rather serve a noble family that has accumulated a sufficient variety of spells rather than going around stealing scrolls only to end up with something that they would rather not use. I believe that Orson chose to rebel when he finally found the spell matching his attitude." ''So his attitude was fire. I won''t know mine until my dantian is formed which means that it''s useless to search for a way to get spells until then.'' "The last thing is the rarity of your element. The most common spells are of the fire and water element, followed by wind and earth. Thunder has a spot over them surpassed only by light and darkness. Of course, the rarer the element the stronger would be the spell compared to those on the same level." This was the first time Noah heard something like this. He could not help but interrupt Mark explanation to ask: "Why is there such a division?" Mark had to think for a bit before continuing his speech. "Well, truth is that the creation of spells is a process that went on for thousands of years and only top cultivators with a specific talent in magical diagrams can attempt to draw them. According to the common knowledge, the rarer one element the harder is to create diagrams of it, that''s why there are fewer spells of them and that''s where they took the name ''rare''." Mark then pointed at himself and his brother. "Our element is thunder. Even if it''s a rare element, with the accumulation the Balvan family has they should have some scrolls of it. Yet, do you think that they will give them to us even if we enter the inner circle?" Sandy didn''t give time for Noah to answer and spoke directly. "The answer is: probably no! With the character that we have, the inner circle will never allow us to have that kind of power, they simply don''t trust us. Why do you think we are still wandering in the outer circle doing these kinds of missions while we both have reached the level of rank 1 mage?" ''So they were indeed mages and not simply talented scouts.'' "My brother is right, our power would increase too much with a spell of a rare element in our set of abilities. Because of that, the inner circle would not let us in and will just leave us to age in the outer circle." Noah was confused. "Then why do you still serve the Balvan family?" Mark''s smile showed only helplessness at this point. "Because it is the only place where we can receive something for our cultivation, and in the bigger families there is only more competition for rewards at our level. The only option would be the academy in the Royal city but alas..." He winked at Noah. "They only enroll people below 18 years old." Chapter 34: 34. Problem Since Noah found a way inside the cultivation world he completely disregarded any other type of knowledge, not that he had time to study anyway with his rigid schedule. He only had a basic understanding of the political power system of this country and of the environment near his family''s mansion. The subdivision of power was similar to the feudal system from his previous world: small-size noble families would pay taxes to the medium-size ones in order to keep their territory; like this till the large-size noble families that answered only to the Royal family. Any large-size noble family would be in control of a city, like the Shosti family with Mossgrove city, and would run it according to the orders of the Royal dynasty. Yet, Noah''s mind was mostly oblivious to any names concerning these topics, he focused so much in cultivation that he only barely remembered that this nation was called Utra. ''So there is an alternative! I would have known more if the cultivation topic wasn''t so hidden to the public. I need to have one or two backup plans for when I leave the family.'' If there was one thing Noah was sure of, it would have been his departure from the Balvan family in the future. He knew that his possibilities were limited in that environment due to his status as a bastard so he had no plan to stay, he would rather be a fugitive like Orson than spend his whole life serving nobles, hoping one day to be rewarded. ''Unfortunately, I''m still weak, I should wait for my dantian to form and for my attitude to be determined before thinking of running away. I would also need a general plan on how to become stronger without the nobles'' support and there is the situation about my mother too...'' There were no immediate solutions to his problems, so he just chose that he would think about them when he had a clearer understanding of things. . . . Life kept going as usual in the outer circle. With the exception of the ceremony for Susan''s funeral, Noah did nothing but training and clearing magical beasts'' packs. It was a few days after he became 12 that a big event happened: his acupoints had completely stopped absorbing "Breath", his third cycle was completed! In the next cycle, he will obtain a rank 2 body! Right now, Noah was in the torture room below the guards building, he was screaming in pain tied to a metal table. Willam was next to him, yelling the number of the acupoints he was going to destroy. "All of the seven acupoints are destroyed, the whirl is forming, focus!" Noah was, by then, used to the treatment or at least to its procedure. The pain he would feel from having his acupoints broken was still as terrible as the other times, no matter how much he increased his mental energy he had to put all his concentration on managing to stay conscious. The usual feeling of death approached Noah''s mind but that could not make him flicker, he was completely focused on the "Breath" accumulating over his back. After reaching a decent amount of density, he manipulated the "Breath" to enter and fill the space where his acupoints previously were. Yet, at that point, something unexpected happened: the "Breath", instead of accumulating in the empty places, was absorbed by his body. The most worrying thing was that Noah didn''t feel any increase of strength, the "Breath" had completely disappeared inside his body while the feeling of death was still getting closer at high speed. He tried again to flow "Breath" in the acupoints'' previous spots but the same thing happened. He was at loss of what he had to do! Any strand of "Breath" he tried to accumulate would be absorbed by his body and he didn''t even know why! At that point, a drop of a familiar black liquid got expelled by his right arm, seeing it Noah finally understood: he was going through the advancement of rank of his body! ''Is the "Breath" being absorbed pushing my body over the rank? Does this means that I can''t form acupoints until my body advances?'' He could not think of any different explanations and he had no time to ask William because of the darkness getting closer in his mind so he just went all out with the absorption process. He continuously absorbed "Breath" without even stopping to check if his acupoints were forming. The black liquid began to be ejected from his body at high speed. William was holding him down watching this process with worry. He understood that his disciple encountered some kind of problem but there was nothing that he could do to help, so he just let his hands getting stained by the black substance while keeping him still on the table. Meanwhile, Noah was being entirely covered by the liquid as he hurried in the absorption process to avoid being engulfed by the darkness. Then, finally, "Breath" began to accumulate forming his acupoints. He hastily isolated the newly formed acupoints waiting for them to solidify and link themselves to his body. He completely disregarded the pain caused by the connection process and focused only on the barriers incubating the mixture of "Breath" and shards of bone. The mixture, in the end, became solid and he felt an immense wave of strength running through him. Like the previous times, he waited some more time before releasing the barriers around the newly formed acupoints in order to be completely sure that the treatment went well. His body felt extremely strong. His mind was tired and his mental energy was almost completely expended, but there was no pain coming from his back. He gave a powerful pull with his arms and the metal chains tying his hands broke. Then he did the same with his legs and the chains holding them shattered. He stood up on the metal table trying to sense his body but his mind was too tired from the pain he had endured to size his new strength precisely. William, in the meantime, was smiling warmly looking at him, he was proud of this disciple continuously surpassing any difficulty with determination and bravery. Noah got down from the table and bowed to his Master, it was the first time he could do that right after finishing the treatment. "Thanks a lot, Master. Oh right, it seems that since my body broke through I won''t need to be bedridden this time so we can spar tomorrow, I''m eager to feel the strength of my new body!" The smile on William''s face disappeared, replaced by an irritated expression. "You damned workaholic, tomorrow you will clean this room to get rid of the filth that your body expelled! And you will do extra missions to repay my handcuffs!" Chapter 35: 35. Doub When Noah woke up the next morning he clearly felt the increase of strength of his body. He had taken a bath before going to sleep to wash away the filth his body secreted during the advancement of rank and now he was standing in his room sensing attentively any change he could feel. The most immediate thing was that his muscles increased in size and were more defined, not an inch of fat was present on them, giving to Noah''s figure a slender and sturdy appearance even though he was still quite short. Yet, the biggest changes happened inside his body. The seven acupoints on his back were absorbing "Breath" at a speed at least two times higher than they did in the previous cycle. The quantity that his body was holding had already increased threefold and its quality seemed higher! ''With this amount, I can launch full strength attacks at least six times before running out of "Breath"! I''m not even factoring the new speed at which I''m recovering it, I might as well have the energy for another attack when the other six are used, and this while the fourth cycle is not even complete!'' The newly found power was making Noah eager to spar with his Master so he hurriedly donned a white kimono and got ready to exit the room before a thought stopped his tracks. ''Right, first I have to clean the torture room.'' . . . CLANG! The sound of swords clashing resounded in a room of the guards building. Noah was fighting against William with decision and resolution while getting used to his body. It was some time since William had to drop the wooden stick an use a real sword to block Noah''s attacks. Nevertheless, Noah was never able to surpass his Master''s defense, William would just block any attack coming at him while commenting on its execution. Yet, the happiness for his body''s improvement wasn''t present on Noah''s expression, which exuded only coldness and concentration. He had met with his mother before going to the sparring session and was crestfallen to see a big bruise on her face right under the left eye. Some sort of pressure had formed in his mind, hurrying him to improve faster before something irreversible happened. William noted his disciple state of mind and raised the stakes of the training as a form of respect for his determination. It was only when Noah was breathing heavily and sweating profusely that his Master decided to stop the sparring and sit on the floor to discuss things with him. Noah sat on his knees on the spot in front of him and sorted the questions he wanted to ask. "So, how is a rank 2 body?" William started the conversation. "It''s really amazing! My strength and speed rose to an absurd level, I believe that now I completely crossed the boundaries of a rank 3 magical beast." William nodded. He knew that every advancement in rank comported a sudden increase in strength and that the higher the level of the rank, the bigger would be the difference with the previous level. Noah chose his first question. "Master, are cultivators all idiots?" William was surprised by the question and could not help but to ask for the meaning of it. "What do you mean?" "Well, in the mission against Orson I realized that cultivators have... well... peculiar traits in their personality." William was at first confused but then realized something looking at his disciple complex expression and became irritated. "You, the kid that at the age of 8 scammed guards for techniques, the kid that in 4 years did nothing but train and fight, the kid that can''t think of anything than cultivation all day, are saying that cultivators are peculiar?" Noah seemed to be taken aback by these words but just put a slight smile on his face as an answer. Willam shook his head and continued. "It''s not the cultivation process that causes these peculiarities, rather a person needs those to keep pursuing power. Only a strong personality can continue on this long road unmoved by the many difficulties that it will encounter." Noah was enlighted. The body-nourishing methods required constant meditation and great patience to be trained, and those were the easiest techniques to practice in. Most of the people would just grow bored or tired of such methods, no wonder they could not pursue higher powers. Who would be willing to practice every day in a martial art till his body was exhausted? Who could spend hours looking at rune that would cause him pain and exhaustion? Only strong-willed people! And they generally had some particularity in them that were unwilling to abandon, like Noah''s stubbornness in his search for power or Sandy''s uncaring attitude. "I think I understand now. There is another thing though." Noah was about to ask about the academy in the Royal city but then a doubt crossed his mind. He held back from speaking the last part of the sentence and changed its subject at the last time. "Can-can I take a look at the information about cultivators in this country? You know, the knowledge about this topic is quite hidden and I wouldn''t even know where to look for it." William was astonished but then nodded for a few times with a radiant smile on his face. "You finally want to know more about this country''s history! Don''t worry, I''ll bring a book from the inner circle on our next appointment. To think that I would live till you asked me something not concerning training!" Noah had a guilty smile on his face, it was only after he left the room that he could finally relax. ''I almost made a mistake. I know that Master cares about me but what would happen if he understood that I want to leave the family? Will he help me or will he punish me? Just to be sure it''s better not to disclose anything with him until the Forging of Seven Hells is completed. Plus, I don''t really know how to get to the Royal city anyway.'' Noah went back to his room while deep in thought. He didn''t really like hiding things from William since he helped him so much, yet his future came first. He could not accept to be a simple guard in his life, he wanted to be free to soar the sky without anyone having the power to obstruct him and to do that he needed a power that he could not find staying in the mansion. ''It seems that it''s really my nature to disappoint those that love me. I''m sorry Master, but there is no chance that I''ll simply accept my status as my fate. I hope that you can understand.'' Out of habit, he picked his sabers and practiced. The "Breath" in his body was replenished by a quarter since the sparring had ended. Chapter 36: 36. Bandits The was only one imminent problem with Noah''s lifestyle. He kept on training and fighting but one aspect was pressing him. ''How the fuck am I supposed to tell Masted that the rune in my sea of consciousness is almost complete!?'' It has been only two years and a half since he started the training for his mental energy but with the advantage his rebirth gave him he had almost become a rank 1 mage. ''Well, I''ll think about it after this mission. At least there were no problems with the fifth treatment.'' About one month ago he successfully completed his fourth cycle and entered the fifth one. Apparently, the cycle right after the body''s advancement was the easiest to complete, followed by the middle one that required a long time of nourishment, to the last one that forced the practitioner to break through ranks during the treatment. ''I should be able to obtain a rank 3 body some months after I turn 13, I hope that the last treatment will be similar to the fourth.'' Since the unexpected event during the treatment, Noah reflected more on the various cycles of the Seven Hells method in order to be ready when another unexpected situation appeared. After all, one misstep during the process will cause his death or a permanent injury. During these months, he also expanded his knowledge of this country thanks to the many books his Master kept on giving him, and, in the end, he found the information that he wanted. ''The Royal city takes the name from the dynasty that runs it and since two thousand years ago it has been called Elbas.'' Any noble family that manages to take control of the Royal city will become a dynasty. Two thousand years ago, the Elbas family waged a war against the previous Royal family and won, since then they never lost to any rebellion against them. One of the reasons why they resisted for so much time was the creation of the academy. "The academy is the best training ground for the descendants of the noble families and for young talents. It was made by the Elbas family as a mean to get any talented individual of the younger generation closer to the Royal family since you can get a prestigious position in the Royal city once you graduate from the academy. It''s a smart move that increases their power while lowering that of the noble families at the same time, that''s why they invested so much in it giving access to many techniques and spells to its students. The problem is that I can only enter there through a competition.'' The academy enrolled twice per year and only through two methods: money and strength. You could either pay an exorbitant sum of gold and precious materials or you had to win a competition set up by it against other contenders. Needless to say, Noah''s only option was the second method. ''I even prepared a couple of escape routes for when the time comes, I can only hope that it will be near the time of one of the enrollment competition.'' After obtaining the information about the academy, Noah had just to inspect the maps about the continent of Utra to plan some escape routes toward the places where the selections would be. While he was brainstorming about his recent discoveries, Noah was speeding through Evergreen forest. His mission consisted in finding a group of bandits that assaulted a merchant caravan that transported body parts of magical beasts. He had to execute the bandits and retrieve the goods. His Master ensured him that they weren''t extremely powerful cultivators and that he could choose the reward for the mission between the stolen merch. ''The reports said that this group calls themselves "Gray Shadows" and they have seven members. In the last year, they operated in the zone near Evergreen forest so their base should be here but even after some investigations, they have never been found. I guess that Sandy and Mark are busy somewhere else for Master to choose me for this mission.'' With his strong mental energy, Noah was one of the best candidates for this mission since he could sense clearly the environment around him. It was his second day inside the forest but he still had to find traces of the bandits. Even though the surface of Evergreen forest was bigger than the one the Balvan family ruled on and was full of dangerous magical beasts, the area near its perimeter was relatively safe since the Shosti family would periodically send soldiers to clear it from dangers in order to make the merchant routes safer. ''Master said that if I find nothing after one month of search, I can just give up and go back to the mansion.'' So, its solitary mission had begun. Noah would travel during the day looking for traces of the Gray Shadows and train at night in the Kesier rune. He liked this type of mission because it allowed him to learn how to survive in the wilderness, he took it as a preparation for his big escape in the future. After one week of exploration, he still ended up with nothing. Noah didn''t really want to fail the mission, or to say it better he didn''t want to give up the free reward from the bandits'' deposit. He stood on a tree deep in thought until he had an idea. ''What if I follow a caravan?'' The idea seemed worth a shot so he moved toward the perimeter of the forest in the direction of Mossgrove city. He waited there for three days, letting pass the caravans that were too small or looked like they weren''t carrying anything important until he finally found the perfect target. It was a big caravan made of two different carriages. It had a big red emblem inscribed on its side representing a tiger with wings on his back, Noah supposed that it belonged to one of the middle-size noble families in the Shosti''s domain. One of the carriages was ridden by a group of soldiers that alternated the coachman role between themselves, while on the other one a bald fat man without any beard and a young girl were in the rider''s position. ''That one looks like the ideal target of the Gray Shadows, the soldiers don''t look that strong but for a noble family to send them to protect a merchant it means that the goods they carry should have some value.'' Mental energy could be used to scan the surroundings but also to evaluate someone''s strength, yet before becoming a mage its precision would still be somewhat lacking. To evaluate these soldiers though, Noah''s level was more than enough. ''So it''s decided, I''ll follow them!'' Chapter 37: 37. Thef The caravan took a path inside Evergreen forest. Noah was jumping from tree to tree following it at quite some distance, he was waiting for the moment the Gray Shadows appeared. He was quite bored, all he could do was wait for something to happen or to enter his range of perception, a big contrast with his usual days spent on training until he had to sleep to recover. Meanwhile, on the caravan. Quinn was a merchant that took on his family''s job at the age of 16. He was talented in the art of trade and managed to raise his position till being the preferred merchant of the Merger family, a middle-size noble family under the domain of the Shosti family. Right now, he was doing a trip back to Merger mansion, situated on the other side of the forest not far from its perimeter. He had successfully sold the goods given to him by the noble family in the market of Mossgrove city and made quite a sum. Since the business trip went well, his mood was joyous as he took the shorter road back to mansion uncaring of the dangers of the forest, after all, he had in his defense the soldiers of a noble family! ''Haha, if my ancestors were to see me now! I singlehandedly raised my family status so much that a noble family actually protects me during my travels!'' These were his thoughts. Of course, he knew that the soldiers'' mission was to protect the goods and not him but his mood was unaffected since his trip this time was really profitable. ''After I complete the trade and give back the accounted goods, I will have enough to retire and build a small mansion. Who knows, in a few generations my family might become a noble one!'' His gaze involuntarily shifted to the young girl next to him. She was his only remaining family since his wife passed away, yet, this daughter of his inherited his talent as a dealer. Quinn taught her all his knowledge and experience but never thought that one day he would be near setting his own mansion. ''I wanted her to marry someone from a small-size family but if I wait a bit she could actually strive to be the first wife in a middle-size one! After all, her relationship with the young master of the Merger family is not too bad.'' Quinn was lost in his thoughts while the caravan kept going. He would just plan things and sort the inventory during the uneventful travel. However, one week after his entrance in Evergreen forest, something unexpected happened. An arrow, shot from behind the trees, hit the horse carrying the carriage in the front. The horse fell dead on the ground immediately as three figures came out from their hidings. The soldiers got enraged and jumped off the carriage yelling at them. "How do you dare to assault the carriage of the Merger family! You must be tired of living!" The three figures had gray hooded cloaks that completely covered their faces and large sleeves that hid their hands. One of them started laughing when the soldier threatened them. "Haha, did you hear him second shadow, third shadow? He actually thinks that we are scared of them!" Another one answered, "First shadow, don''t you worry, they will soon understand." Like it was some sort of signal, the three hooded men directly attacked the soldiers, throwing knives and unsheathing short swords from their sleeves. The soldiers blocked their attacks and started to encircle them. There were, after all, five soldiers against the three of them, the advantage in numbers was showing itself. At that moment though, another arrow shot from behind the trees and hit one of the soldiers'' legs and two more hooded men came out from their hidings. With the injured soldier the thieves were having the advantage, yet they didn''t seem too focused on killing their enemies. Quinn was hiding with his daughter inside the carriage since the assault started, he knew that the goods were the soldier''s core mission so he smartly chose to hide between them. He was quite relaxed in the whole process since he had complete confidence in the power of a middle-size family. "Don''t you worry, simple thieves won''t dare to kill anyone wearing the emblem of a noble family, even if they resorted to a life of crimes they still fear the power behind nobles." He was consoling his daughter when a voice interrupted him. "He''s right cutie, we are too scared of the powerful cultivators protecting them. However, that doesn''t mean that we will simply run away when we see their emblem." Quinn was startled, a hooded figure was at the end of the carriage looking at the goods. He did a hand gesture and all the inventory was sucked inside his sleeve. "Many thanks!" The thief lightly bowed and then hurried outside the carriage, in a few instants he had disappeared between the trees. Quinn lost all his strength at this sight and released a weak statement. "I''m ruined." Turning back time a bit, Noah was still following the caravan. It had been seven days but there was still no sign of the Gray Shadows. ''This is so boring! Don''t tell me that it was the wrong decision to follow this caravan and that they went after the poorer ones.'' Noah was hiding at the top of a tree but doubts were starting to accumulate in his mind. He got ready to kill some time by looking at the rune when he sensed something getting near the position of the caravan. He completely switched his state of mind to total concentration and stared at the unfolding of the events on the ground. He saw a hooded man shooting an arrow to kill the horse in the front carriage and then three men engaging a fight with the soldiers. He saw the soldiers slowly going into a passive position when the other two men appeared, but he waited. He had to know how they were going to steal the goods and where they would put them. As for the fate of the caravan, he couldn''t care less. At that point, a fast figure went inside the rear carriage and came out after a few instants. Some seconds later, the merchant came out of the carriage crawling on the ground and pointing in the direction of where the figure went. The merchant''s skin was pale and he seemed devoid of any life. Quinn''s condition made Noah understand the situation. ''The goods have been stolen!'' Once the realization lightened up his mind, he wasted no more time and jumped directly in pursuit of the figure in the forest. If someone looked from above the forest, he would see a black dot running at high speed on the top of the trees. Chapter 38: 38. Ring Noah was jumping from tree to tree at high speed toward the faint presence that he felt with his mind. When the figure entered his field of view, he slowed his pace to make sure that he would not be noticed. The member of the Gray Shadows kept running for about an hour deep in the forest unaware of a black figure hiding in the trees behind him. Then he stopped in a seemingly random location and hid in a bush, probably waiting for any pursuer to show up. After a quarter of an hour, he got out of the bush convinced that no one was following him. He happily folded his sleeve and raised his now exposed right arm into the air, then he closed his eyes in concentration while furrowing his brows. A twinkle shot out from his hand and various items appeared on the ground. There were magical beasts'' parts, weapons, bottles with shining liquids and so on, all of those had appeared out of nowhere. The hooded man was about to sort the items on the ground when a black blade appeared on his throat, followed by a cold threatening voice. "Tell me how you did that and I''ll let you live." The man realized that he had been followed and cursed internally. ''I''m the fastest in the Gray Shadows but my brothers should be near here by now, maybe if I stall for a bit...'' The plan of the hooded man was simple but effective, so he went for it. "Oh, you know, it''s a special technique passed down by the ancestors of my fa-!" He could not finish his sentence that a sharp pain coming from his right shoulder assaulted him forcing him to crouch on the ground holding his shoulder. However, when his hand reached for the spot where the pain came from he only felt a warm liquid flowing from it. He opened his eyes to look at it and discovered that his right arm had disappeared from its spot and was on the ground staining it of a red color. Before he could say anything though, the black blade reappeared on his throat and the cold voice sounded again. "Next is your left arm if you don''t speak." The Gray Shadow was terrified by now and hastily explained with a trembling voice. "I-It''s the space-ring on my right hand, sir. If you use your mental energy you can bind it and use it to store non-living things. It''s all yours, just give me one second to remove my binding." "No need." The cold voice sounded one last time and the head of the thief fell on the ground severed by its body. Noah gave a look the severed arm on the ground an found a plain-looking silver ring. He took it in his hands and focused his mental energy to inspect it. A type of connection was created and the half-transparent image of the ring appeared in Noah''s sea of consciousness. When Noah focused on the ring, he could see a separated space of 30 cubic meters inside it full of precious material and similar. He was amazed! He shifted his gaze toward the items on the ground and just by willing it, they got sucked inside the space of the ring. He tried to do the same with the corpse of the thief and the same thing happened. Then he concentrated again on one of the items inside the ring and it suddenly appeared in front of him. He put the item back in the separated space and inspected the ring carefully, from every perspective it looked perfectly like a normal ring, only by inspecting it with mental energy you could vaguely sense that something was off with it. ''This thing is amazing! There is no way that I give it back. If I just hide it under my clothes no one would be able to find it!'' While he thought of this, he sensed six presences coming from the forest in his direction. ''Right, let''s solve this issue first.'' The remaining six members of the Gray Shadows arrived in the spot where Noah once was and got perplexed seeing the stains of blood on the ground. One of them touched them and spoke in a worried voice. "The blood is still warm, I think that seventh shadow was followed and injured, as we all know his battle capabilities are pretty inconsistent." Another one of them answered him. "What do we do now? All the stolen goods are in his space-ring and, without it, we are just some lousy robbers." ''So everything they have is inside the ring, no need to waste time then.'' Noah was back in his hiding position at the top of a tree listening attentively to the conversation of the thieves to make sure that there were no more secrets to uncover. Once he was sure that the ring was the main reason they managed to operate in secret for so much time without getting caught, he slashed the air in their direction and jumped toward them at high speed. The slash created a blade of wind that crashed on the remaining members of the Gray Shadows catching them by surprise. Two members of the group got injured instantly and were about to unsheath their weapons when a black figure passed next to them, their heads detached from their bodies as if they were only leaning on it. Noah touched the ground and released four more wind slashes in the direction of the remaining four hooded men, then he followed the slashes without even waiting for them to hit. Every time he moved, someone''s head would be severed, he was using his rank 3 martial art at full strength! Since he entered the fifth cycle, the limit on the usage of his full strength got raised to 10 attacks, so he wasn''t going to hold himself back against six enemies. In less than a minute, the Gray Shadows were all dead and put inside Noah''s space-ring. ''I have less than two weeks left for this mission. I might have a plan on how to get the highest benefits from it, but I must first clean this place and go deeper into the forest to make it work.'' Noah hurriedly dug out the terrain that got stained by blood and put it in the space-ring, then he refilled the holes and checked again to be sure that he left no traces of his battle. ''This should be enough, now I need to find a suitable place in the forest to create a fake deposit.'' As he thought that, he ran in a straight line toward a deeper part of the forest. Chapter 39: 39. Goods Deep into Evergreen forest, in an area not cleared by the Shosti family. Noah was standing in front of the entrance of a small cave. He found this place after a full day of running into the forest. He entered the cave and carefully inspected it. It was large 50 meters squares and was quite dark, it seemed perfect for his intentions. Noah unloaded the contents of the space-ring in the deepest place of the cave to create false proofs that this spot was, in fact, the deposit the Gray Shadows used. Then, he placed the bodies of the band of thieves on the ground with their respective heads near the bodies. To better create the facade of a battle, he slashed randomly on their corpses until he was satisfied with the scene being displayed. He was about to nod in satisfaction when a thought crossed his mind that made him reveal a complex smile. ''To think that it was less than two years ago that I first killed a human while now I''m falsifying a murder scene to steal some items.'' Since the events with Balor, he never hesitated again to kill any of his enemies. He never thought too much of it since he had no time to think about it but now the situation was different. He was actively covering his tracks to gain benefits from it, but the thing that made him depressed was something else. ''I don''t feel anything.'' He kept on looking at the torn corpses but could not find an ounce of disgust or guilt inside him. ''It was my mission to kill them so I simply did it, now I want their items without consequences so I simply raged on their corpses.'' He stared for a few more moments before he found the answer he was looking for. ''Life has no meaning, the one of both humans and magical beasts. Yet, in a world where one being can stand at the top of all things, life''s meaning might be found in power. If you are an ant, you can be swept away by a dragon that was simply passing by. If you are a dragon, you might be denied a meal by one hand gesture of a cultivator. Power stands above any definition of good and evil. And to obtain power...'' Noah''s eyes in this moment of realization became extremely dark and cold. ''I must be willing to create mountains of corpses.'' A light chuckle came out of his mouth. ''I guess I''m a bad man after all.'' In the end, he smiled, this process of completely accepting himself left his mind clear of doubts and he felt freer than ever. ''Now, let''s inspect the goods.'' Noah neared the pile of stolen items on the ground and started sorting it. He looked through all the magical beasts'' body parts first. There were tails of thunder wolves, legs and pincers of ironclad spiders and many others of which Noah didn''t recognize the species, but they were all separated in a different group away from the pile. ''I can''t keep those, even if I hide them in the space-ring their usage is limited since I don''t know anything about how to forge a weapon or vendors willing to buy them.'' He was sure of one thing: the less he stole, the fewer were the possibilities of being discovered. Next, it was the turn of the weapons. They were in great number and seemed all newly forged but their quality matched at most the one of his own black sabers. ''Mh, I think I can take some of these, I won''t necessarily use them but they can be traded more easily. They can be my reserve funds, 10-12 of them should be a fair number.'' Noah took various weapons of different types and put them inside the space-ring and then moved the remaining 40 or so in the group with the beasts'' body parts. In the original pile of items, only boxes containing pills or bottles with strange liquids remained. ''Are these drugs? Their effect should be good if they were stored with the other items'' He took some pills in his hands and sniffed them one by one, sometimes he would feel a nauseous smell that almost made him faint, sometimes a faint odor that made the "Breath" in his body restless. ''These things are powerful! I can''t take them carelessly, let''s put them away for now and focus on those with a description.'' There were only three drugs that had a description attached to them, the first he picked was a box with dark bottles in it. ''Beast''s essence, concentrated blood of magical beasts refined to be used by humans. Smear it on the crucial spots of the body-nourishing technique to increase the ratio of absorption of "Breath". Its effects mimic the innate absorption ability of magical beasts to increase the speed of cultivation of the body. The effects will diminish if used too many times.'' There were 12 bottles in the box, yet they instantly disappeared inside the space-ring when Noah finished reading their effects. He didn''t hesitate for even an instant in his decision of stealing them. Then he picked a small box that contained 3 red pills. ''Inner-fire pill, ingesting it will create a burning sensation that reinforces the sphere in the sea of consciousness. Helps to stabilize the mind in the training for rank 1 mage.'' Noah looked at the 3 pills for a bit before deciding to put them into the pile of items on the ground. ''My mental energy is already nearing the level of rank 1 and the constant pressure I undergo during the treatment has the same effects. Even if I can have a small increase in mental stability, they are not worth the risk.'' The constant worry in Noah''s mind was that if he stole too many items he could become one of the suspects. Since these goods have been in the hands of the Gray Shadows for about one year, it was normal to think that they have used some of them, yet Noah still wanted to play it safe and not take unnecessary risks. ''Last one.'' He picked a tiny case that looked more refined than the others, only one big brown pill was inside. ''Earth pill, increases the density of "Breath" in the dantian. It helps in breaking stages inside one rank of the cultivator. It has a 100% success rate of breaking through the liquid-stage and an 80% success rate for the solid-stage. If used on a rank 2 dantian, the success rate diminishes by 60%.'' This was Noah''s first time hearing about stages in the ranks of the dantian, actually, it was the first time he had any information about the cultivation of the dantian at all! Chapter 40: 40. Meeting In a cave, deep into Evergreen forest, a young man was sitting on the ground with his upper body naked. He was smearing a black liquid on his back while looking at a sheet with a complex rune written on it. ''This beast''s essence is good, I''m sparing weeks of nourishment using it and I still have 8 bottles left!'' The young man was of course Noah. He was using his remaining time for the mission to make use of the goods he chose to keep. ''I bet that the Earth pill will be amazing too.'' In the end, he was too tempted to not keep the brown pill for the dantian. After a few hours, he stopped his training in the Kesier rune even though he was far from his limit. He never forgot that he was still in the wilderness, he had to be ready if a sudden attack of a magical beast arrived. ''I bet this smell is keeping them away.'' He looked in the direction of the corpses that were now starting to decompose. The smell they emitted was awful but Noah didn''t care, they had to stay in their spots to create the perfect scenery of a battle. Noah had already made a plan to appear as innocent as possible and to carry it out he needed 3 days, so he decided to use the days left before them to increase his strength as much as possible. ''I can use two bottles of beast''s essence per day, in four days I''ll be out of them and I can start preparing for my return to the mansion. I wonder how much of the fifth cycle I can complete.'' A few days after the medicinal bottles were emptied, Noah was carrying a huge pile of items tied together with the clothes of the dead members of the Gray Shadows. He wasn''t going to lift it since its form was too uncomfortable to raise up so he simply dragged the goods with an improvised rope. ''This will leave a good amount of evidence that my version of the story is the real deal.'' . . . Some days later. Quinn was feeling desperate. He was camping on the perimeter of Evergreen forest near Mossgrove city waiting for the orders of the Merger family. Only three soldiers were left standing guard on him, while the other two went to their family mansion to inform the inner circle of the events during the trip. Yet almost two weeks had passed, and of the envoy from the family there was still no trace. ''I''m totally ruined! Even if they manage to take back the goods I will receive no share from it. I might even lose my privileged position as their merchant. My dreams, my plans, everything is ruined!'' He was completely powerless in this situation and the remaining guards started to treat him with coldness even though the job of protecting the shipment was theirs. In this world, it was always the weaker one to get the blame for any faulty situation. "Tsk, if that idiot of a merchant didn''t take the path in the forest, everything could have been avoided." "You are right, now our position in the guards will be severely affected because of such a greedy man. And we also have to stand here with him!" The guards were speaking in such a loud voice that Quinn could clearly hear them. His daughter understood the situation and remained silent for the whole time, scared that one misspoken word could trigger the anger of the soldiers. It was at that moment that a kid donned in black and sweating profusely exited the perimeter of the forest carrying a big pile of items tied together by clothes stained with blood. The group from the Merger family stared with wide eyes at the small figure dragging a burden that was four times his frame. Quinn looked at the items and recognized some of them as the ones that were stolen from him. He hurriedly got close to the young man yelling loudly. "Wait, wait! You, kid, where did you get those items?" The excitement from finding his assets made him speak without any form of respect. Noah looked at the fat merchant and answered nonchalantly while continuing o his tracks. "Found them on the forest." Quinn felt finally hope after two weeks of desperation. "There are some items that were stolen from me between those that you are carrying. Please, return them to me." Noah still didn''t stop and only asked a short question. "Do you have any proof?" Quinn was at a loss for words and only now realized that the young man in front of him could have not been a simple one, he was, after all, coming back from the forest with a great burden on his back. When he looked at the signs of dragging on the ground he realized with fear that he could not see where the signs started from. ''For exactly how long has he carried such a weigh?'' The guards though had slower minds than the merchant and when they overheard the conversation they arrogantly neared the items. "Kid, if the merchant said that these are our items then so it is. If you have any complaints you can come to the Merger mansion to apply for a refund." The soldiers only saw wealth in the pile in front of them and were already imagining the reward the family would give them when they brought them back. Just when one of them was about to undo the packaging made of clothes to inspect the items, a kick came in his direction. The attack was too fast and too sudden, it hit the soldier chest sending him flying away for five meters before he fell on the ground unconscious. In the spot where he was previously, Noah was now standing with his right leg still raised. "So you want to rob my Balvan family of the earned reward from a mission assigned by the Shosti family?" Noah shamelessly used the names of the noble families to stop their claims on the items. The group was stupefied seeing a kid knocking out a soldier with just one attack, their attitude became immediately more respectful. Noah simply snorted and went back to his dragging toward Balvan mansion, yet, before he could move again, Quinn placed himself in front of him with a wide smile on his face. "Ehm, young sir, I want to apologize for my earlier rudeness. That thing that you are carrying seems heavy, would you like a ride back to your mansion?" ''Oh, it seems that this man is not that stupid. Well, they can be my witnesses if I go with him.'' "I agree, but I have a condition." Quinn lightly bowed while speaking. "Please speak, young master." Noah pointed at the pile of items behind him. "I can take one of those things as a reward so you have to explain to me the effects of the pills in there." Chapter 41: 41. Heads Noah was standing on Quinn''s carriage listening to his explanation while moving toward Balvan mansion. "Young master, this is a Snake essence. It''s a powerful elixir that can cure any poisoning! It is made from the livers of snake-type magical beasts and..." "Young master, that one is the Bear-Fury pill. It will give you a temporary boost in strength and resistance, not that you would need it. You are strong as a bull and graceful..." "Oh, you surely won''t need that one, young master. That''s a purple mouse concentrate, they are weak magical beasts but their reproductivity is extremely high, I bet you can guess already the effects of such a fluid, eheh." Quinn would flatter Noah every time he had the chance while explaining the properties of the many pills and elixirs in Noah''s pile of items. The goods were already moved back on the carriage before they moved again and Quinn, his daughter and one soldier from the Merger family came along. The other one was left on the rendezvous point waiting for his family''s envoy and taking care of the collapsed guard. Yet, as Quinn''s exposition continued, Noah began to feel irritated. ''What''s up with this guy, does he have a crush on me? And why is he avoiding all the drugs that seem more powerful?'' His brows furrowed making the merchant panic a bit. He understood that he overdid a little and so he moved to the next part of his scheme. "Young master, I''m old and quite tired from all the previous events. Why don''t you allow my daughter, Sophie, to keep up with the explanation? I can assure you that I taught her all my knowledge so she is more than fit for the job!" Realization struck Noah after hearing the merchant''s words. ''He wants to set me up with his daughter? Does he think I''m some kind of noble heir of the family?'' Sophie was a young girl that was about 14 years old. She had long brown hair and green eyes, her body was gracious but was still developing the curves typical of an adult woman. In Noah''s eyes though, still tied to his previous world''s canons of beauty, she was just a kid. Sophie blushed when her father mentioned her and peeked shortly at the young man only to lower her head blushing even more evidently. Noah was a bit stunned by her reaction. ''Am I really that good looking? Well, I do have Lily''s facial attributes but I never thought that they could cause such reactions.'' Noah had taken his mother''s pretty face and had her same eyes and hair, coupled with his well-toned body, his strength and the possibility that he was a noble, no common girl could possibly reject him. Before Sophie could pick up where his father left, Noah stopped her. "Quinn, I want to make clear that I''m just a bastard inside the Balvan family..." He continued speaking while taking out something from the pile of goods, a fetid smell enveloped the carriage as seven heads hidden inside layers of body parts of magical beasts were made visible. Quinn lost all colors from his face and Sophie trembled lightly at that sight. "And I really think that it''s time for you to start speaking about the important drugs." A wave of coldness enveloped the carriage. The guard that was on its rear had his head lowered the whole time. The merchant and his daughter might have not understood Noah''s real strength but an initiate on the road of cultivation like him knew that one had to be on the level of a real cultivator to knock up a guard with one kick. Seeing the severed heads, Quinn understood that the kid in front of him not only did find the robbers'' hiding but also killed them. And he did all of this while being alone! Quinn hastily kowtowed with his head hitting the floor of the carriage. "I''m extremely sorry, please forgive this lowly merchant!" Noah at that sight just shrugged his shoulders and pointed at the goods. "Keep going." . . . When the group was nearing Balvan mansion, Noah was lying on the roof of the carriage deep in thought. ''The Inner-energy pill is my best choice for sure, but it belonged to the Merger family so I don''t know if they will let me pick it.'' Apparently, most of the good drugs belonged to the stolen shipment of the merchant so he was unwilling to speak about them, at least until Noah''s threat. The Inner-energy pill was among the best pills that Quinn pointed out. It was made by concentrating "Breath" in the form of a pill and was one of the best nourishment for the body of the cultivator. ''The other option is its worse version in the form of an elixir, but I believe that the effects will be much lower. I hope it will be enough to complete the fifth cycle.'' The Inner-energy potion was the less powerful version of the previous pill. Noah''s choice as the reward for the mission was between these two options. ''My fifth cycle is almost complete anyway, I believe that in two months my acupoints will stop working so even getting the worse version is not a bad thing. I already got the best possible rewards after all.'' His hand unconsciously went on a spot on his waist where a silver ring was hidden. Inside it, there were 12 well-made weapons and a big brown pill. ''I can''t wait to have a dantian to test the Earth pill, I bet the results will be amazing!'' A light smile appeared on his face as he was daydreaming about his future strength, but he was suddenly forced to awake by a rough voice yelling in their direction. "You there stop! This is the territory of the Balvan family, you must first state your name and your business with the family if you want to proceed!" The carriage stopped and Quinn stood up in order to deal with the guard but at that moment a young voice sounded from the roof of the carriage. "Karl, it''s me, let them pass and inform my Master that I''m back!" Karl was, of course, the guard that stopped them. Since his constant going out in missions outside the mansion, Noah got to know the names of all the soldiers patrolling the territories near Balvan mansion. "Oh, it''s you! Did you got caught in another mess this time?" Karl smiled looking at the kid waving at him. With the accident of the rank 3 ironclad spider and the mage in the group of rebels, Noah''s reputation was not particularly good. The soldiers thought that anywhere he went, something unexpected would happen. "No mess at all, this time I might actually have done a really good service for the inner circle." Karl shook his head seeing how conscious Noah was of his troublemaking character. "Then go, I''ll tell the vice-captain of your return. You know, he was in a bad mood recently when he saw that you were late." Noah just smiled while his eyes became darker. ''I''m sorry Master, but I really need to lie to you.'' Chapter 42: 42. Isolation "Explain it to me again." Noah was in a room in the guards building with a big map laid on a table. William was in front of him with a stern face looking carefully at his disciple. Noah pointed at the map and spoke in a calm tone. "I went inside Evergreen forest looking for the Gray Shadows. After searching for two weeks I found no traces of them so I chose to explore deeper in the forest. After some days of travel, I felt signs of life inside a small cave and so I investigated. The bandits'' group was inside sorting their items, so I killed them and used their clothes to carry the goods back to the mansion. On the perimeter of the forest, I found Quinn, the merchant, and he willingly offered me a ride back to the mansion inside his carriage. That''s all." Noah would point out on the map his route while he was describing the events of the mission. William stared at him for some time before speaking again. "The merchant said that there was an Earth pill with its description among the goods, are you sure that you took everything from the deposit?" Noah shrugged his shoulders and said with an innocent expression. "I''m sure that I took everything from the cave, I''m not totally sure that all the items remained in the package though while I was dragging it. What is an Earth pill? Is it good? I can go search for it again if you let me keep it." Noah had his usual attitude greedy for power which only made William sigh and shook his head. "Never mind, you can go. I''ll give you the reward you asked for once everything is delivered to the inner circle." Noah lightly bowed and exited the room. At that moment, a figure appeared behind William. "Do you trust him?" William looked again in the direction where Noah went and answered with honesty. "I think he said the truth, after all, it''s quite impossible to hide such a good pill from us. And, captain, you seem to forget that he didn''t even try to hide the "Breath" blessing last time even if he risked his life to obtain it." The captain of the guards just looked at William before turning back. "You are getting too affectionate to that kid, remember that our duty is toward the inner circle and his position will never be good there." Willam''s face darkened hearing these words. He could clearly imagine in his mind the small kid repeating the same techniques every day alone in his room only to get a little bit stronger. He remembered all his determination during the treatments, even with his body broken his mind was still completely focused, striving to make a small step toward a higher level in the road of cultivation. For the first time in many years, William felt that life was being unfair and he gave voice to his thoughts. "Are Heaven and Earth really fair?" The captain stopped his steps for a second before replying for the last time. "They are, humans are not." Then he left, leaving William with a conflicted expression alone in the room. Meanwhile, Noah went back to his building. He wanted to meet his mother and reassure her on his well-being, yet, her room was closed with only faint sounds coming from inside it. It has been a while since Noah became able to completely hear anything happening in the room but he forced himself not to because it would only ruin his mood. He entered his room and unsheathed his saber, then he practiced in all the forms of his martial art until he calmed himself. Then he picked the Kesier rune and began a full night training in it. It was only around midday that he was forced to stop the training because of someone knocking on his door. Nowadays, even if 8 hours of training consumed a lot of mental energy and made him tired and sleepy, he could still force himself to do basic actions and simple reasoning. He opened the door only to find Lily standing on the other side with a small box in her hands. Her figure looked extremely weak and pale, she was visibly tired as her hands were trembling slightly. A big bruise was on her jaw. "Your Master sent this for you, he said that you did an amazing service for the family." She was smiling proudly looking at her only son. Noah took the box from her hands and gently caressed the spot where the bruise was. Lily just shook her head. "It''s fine, don''t you worry. Your father simply can''t handle how amazing you are compared with his other son and daughter." Then she got close to Noah and took his face between her hands looking at him seriously. "Promise me that you won''t do anything reckless, you have to be safe! Don''t worry about me, just focus on your future!" Noah looked at his mother and nodded showing a slight smile, but in his mind, he could only think about how cold Lily''s hands were. Lily seemed satisfied with his answer and hugged him before going away, while Noah stood still for a while before he closed the door and sat on the ground. CRACK! The box in his hand shattered from the pressure applied by Noah''s squeeze and two bottles fell on his legs. ''As expected, it''s just the Inner-energy potion. It doesn''t matter, it should be enough.'' He directly opened a bottle and drank its whole contents. A wonderful sensation of being strengthened ran through Noah from inside his body but he didn''t care, he was already looking at the Kesier rune in front of him continuing his training. . . . One month and a half passed by, with Noah barely going out of his room during this period. He would only attend the weekly sparring with his Master and the lunches with his mother, he didn''t even go out for missions anymore. Right now, he was standing in his room, his face was pale and there were large bags under his eyes, yet his eyelids were completely open. There seemed to be some source of light inside his pupils as his eyes shined in the darkness of the room. ''So, that''s what it feels like.'' He was holding the Kesier rune in his right hand in front of his face, yet he seemed to have no difficulties in looking at it. It was like he was reading any other book! He smiled and then he put the rune away. ''Next is the sixth treatment!'' Chapter 43: 43. Amazemen In this month and a half of isolation, Noah''s advancements were immense. The first one was the conclusion of the fifth cycle. With the help of 12 bottles of Beast''s essence and 2 bottles of Inner-energy potion coupled with one month of natural absorption from the acupoints, the fifth cycle got completed in less than three months! The second one had happened this same day a few minutes before. He was training in the Kesier rune when its image in his sea of consciousness formed completely. After that, a humming sound shot out from it and reverberated inside his whole mental sphere making it tremble and enlarge. Noah only felt a splitting pain in his head and endured until the pain dispersed and the sphere stopped shaking. The world he saw after the process was over was a different one. Even though it was deep in the night he could see things almost as clearly as during the day and there seemed to be more details on those. He took one of his black sabers and carefully inspected it. The black blade looked perfectly smooth before he advanced but now Noah could see some small dents on it. He put back the saber and focused on his hearing and perception. He could sense all the people on the floor! If he focused enough he could hear the steps of the servants still awake in the distance. He could feel the air entering his lungs, the blood running in his veins, the "Breath" filling his body. Even his thoughts seemed to run more smoothly and at a higher speed. He tried to move the "Breath" according to his martial art with his fingers and he noticed a faint gaseous trace of the color of the rainbow left in the air. ''Is that the Breath of Heaven and Earth? Can I actually see it now?'' He was amazed for a moment before he shook his head. ''No, that was the concentrated "Breath" inside my body. I don''t know if I would be able to feel the one of other people so easily too.'' He then lied in his bed to rest since his mind was still a bit confused from the advancement. ''The only problem is how Master will react tomorrow.'' . . . "WHAT?! How is it possible that you completed the fifth cycle?" William had his mouth wide open and was standing in front of Noah in their usual training room. "How is it possible? Even with the Inner-energy potion, you should have at least still two months to go! Are you sure that your acupoints stopped working?" Noah only nodded and then strongly exhaled to calm himself. He took something from inside his clothes and raised it in front of his Master. William was still shocked by the earlier news that he simply stared at Noah''s hand without recognizing its contents. Then he finally discerned that something was strange and picked up the sheet in front of him, he unfolded it and looked at the Kesier rune written on it. He furrowed his brows and looked at Noah''s eyes with a confused expression. "Are you giving up on being a mage?" Noah could only show a wry smile as he looked around him for a bit, then he got close to his Master and spoke with a soft voice. "Actually, I would need the next rune because I became a mage last night." A yell that made the walls tremble sounded in the guards building, the soldiers in the courtyard felt that the noise was similar to the vice-captain''s voice. Inside the room, Noah was sitting on his knees with his hands tightly plugging his ears. He was waiting for his Master to come out of his amazement afraid that he would release another monstrous yell. William was breathing roughly with his eyes wide open, but after some seconds, he forced himself to calm down and focused on Noah''s forehead, staring at it with a serious gaze. Noah felt some pressure on his sea of consciousness and so operated his mental energy to defend his sphere. The fight between internal and external pressure lasted for a minute before William stopped his probing and sat in front of Noah with an incredulous expression. "You really did it." Noah just nodded, he really could not give any explanation about it. "If I was called a rare genius what would you be called then?" William was deep in thought before he understood the real problem about the whole situation. "I''ll find an excuse to get another copy of the second rune, the inner circle must not know that you became a mage, it''s too dangerous." He still didn''t realize that what he was doing was lying to his superiors. "Then, after you pass the sixth treatment, it''s better if you always be outside doing missions. The possibility of the family giving you a magic scroll is low but it''s better to accumulate merits before you know your element. You never know, they might actually acknowledge you as a real descendant!" William was planning the best course of action for his disciple, uncaring that his words were an act of treason themselves. Noah, looking at the mumbling man in front of him, could not help but feel some warmth inside his chest. ''He is really a good Master, if only his position wasn''t so tied to the Balvan family... I should at least make sure not to make trouble for him when I''ll run away.'' William stopped his planning when he noticed his disciple staring at him with a simple and honest smile on his face. "What are you looking for?" Noah only gave a simple answer. "Thanks." William was a bit stunned but then smiled shaking his head. He placed his hand on Noah''s head an ruffled his hair a little before speaking with a joyous tone. "You worked hard, it''s fair to have some rewards, and if Heaven and Earth won''t give it to you, I will." The internal conflict that the vice-captain of the guards had before was solved. ''If humans are not fair, so be it. At least I''m doing my part to make things right.'' Noah could not know of his Master''s doubts so he didn''t really understand his words. William rose from the floor humming a happy tune and then sat behind a table in the room to sort through some reports, yet, after some minutes, he looked at the kid still sitting on the ground. "What is it?" He was still smiling when he asked that. "Uhm, Master, are we not gonna do the treatment today?" William''s newfound happiness vanished, replaced by a familiar feeling of irritation. Chapter 44: 44. Overbearing The sixth treatment went more smoothly than the others. The advantage of having reached the level of a mage showed itself during the process as Noah was able to ignore almost completely the inhumane pain that he had to go through. When his bedridden time was over, his Master abruptly sent him outside the mansion to complete missions. "Getting the second rune might be difficult but I should be able to do it. For now, just focus on the missions that I give you." That was what he said to Noah before sending him away. Noah completed the usual tasks of defending villages from magical beasts'' attacks or hunting them down when their packs became too large. It was not much after he became 13 that a seemingly important mission was delivered to him. It consisted of escorting a noble caravan from Mossgrove city to Lansay mansion. Apparently, the Lansay family, a middle-size noble family, committed a crime against the Shosti family and as a punishment, added to a heavy monetary fee, they had to send their main descendant as a political hostage in Mossgrove city. Now that the punishment ended, the descendant had to go back to his mansion, yet, he chose to set up an escort before starting his trip back. ''I feel that I''m getting myself into some political struggle, why would the main descendant need an escort otherwise?'' Noah was the only one from his mansion that took the mission but a group of soldiers and wanderers had already formed in front of the caravan of the Lansay family when he arrived. He was wearing his usual tight black outfit with the two sabers sheathed on his back, and his hair was tied together in a simple ponytail. As he moved toward the group, the soldiers looked in his direction and started to laugh and taunt him. "What are you doing here little kid, are you lost?" "Ehy look, those are some nice blades, why don''t you lend them to your uncle here? I will give them back after the mission is over!" "This mission should not be so bad since a kid showed up, hahaha! Look he is coming to us! Are you mad young boy?" It took Noah one instant to understand what he had to do but he could not help to feel irritated by their words. ''Every fucking time! How is possible that weak people are always so stupid? I''m getting tired of being treated like a kid!'' He neared the soldiers while enduring their taunt and when he was in front of them he just put his hand in front of him in and handshake gesture. "Nice to meet you, my name is Noah. I hope we can take care of each other." Noah was smiling innocently and had a pure and clear tone of voice, he was the perfect image of innocence. His words caused another rain of laughter from the soldiers'' group while one of them returned his handshake. "Don''t worry little kid, we will take good care of you." The soldier could almost not contain his laughter when he spoke those words, yet his face froze when he felt the pressure applied by Noah''s grip. CRACK! The soldier fell on the ground with his broked hand still in Noah''s hand and begged for mercy. "AHHHHH, please, I was wrong. Please let me go, it hurts!" The other soldiers were still laughing thinking it was some kind of performance from their friend to mock the kid, however, their expressions paled when they saw the state his hand was when Noah released him. The hand was completely soft, it seemed that no bones were inside it. Noah turned his gaze toward the soldiers and pointed at two of them. "You and you, I believe you mocked me earlier. Come here, I need to congratulate with you." He still had the same innocent smile as before but it only caused fear to appear in the eyes of the witnesses this time. The two soldiers looked around them just to notice that the group was stepping away from them. One of the two tried to apologize. "Uhm, I am sorry, I didn''t know my place." Noah just shook his head and stated in a cold voice: "Your hand or your life, your choice." The other one got angry and unsheathed his sword, yelling loudly. "If you think that I will be scared of you, you are mistaken. Come, take my life if you have the guts to!" Noah shrugged his shoulders and moved toward the soldier with a calm expression. At that moment, a burly man wearing a green robe with an emblem sewed on his left chest area jumped between them and faced Noah. "Stop making all this noise before we start the selection for the escort or you will have to face me!" The soldier with the sword in his hand relaxed seeing the man from the Lansay family and lowered his sword but then he felt his vision spinning and then descending into darkness. These were the last things he saw. Noah was beside his headless corpse with his hand raised in the direction of the remaining soldier. The man from the Lansay family felt cold sweat running down his spine when Noah completely disappeared from his field of view only to reappear behind him. The remaining soldier was scared stiff but after some seconds, he managed to place his hand inside Noah''s one. CRACK! He fell on the ground with the bones in his left hand broken but uttered no sound, he was too scared of enraging the monstrous kid in front of him. All the presents gulped and swore to themselves to never look Noah in the eyes in the days to come. Noah went in front of the burly man still petrified on the spot and asked smiling: "I''m sorry, were you saying?" Before the man could answer though, a voice sounded from the caravan and another man donned in the robes of the Lansay family appeared. "You must be the envoy from the Balvan family, William could have not chosen a better disciple. I''m Kevin Lam, head of the guards of the Lansay family, I hope you can accept my excuses for the bad behavior of my man." Kevin was the most brawny man Noah had ever seen, he was more than two meters tall and his arms were almost as large as a man''s waist. Noah felt a faint sense of danger coming from him so he chose to stop to his overbearing attitude. He lightly bowed and said in a cool voice. "If it is Mister Lam''s request, of course I will accept them." Chapter 45: 45. Formation Noah was sitting inside one of the carriages of the caravan. Kevin had invited him inside finding unnecessary his participation in the selection for the escort group. "You know, me and your master were considered the best warriors of our generation. We would usually meet during our training days doing missions since the relationship between my Lansay family and your Balvan family has always been friendly." Kevin was speaking while being seated in front of Noah. "But, well, he became the vice-captain of Balvan''s outer ring while I became the head of the guards of my family, so we didn''t have a chance to meet in a long time." He was pouring what seemed wine in two cups from a clay jug in his hand, then he offered one of the cups to Noah. "When I heard that his disciple was going to assist for this mission I was instantly curious. I must say that you live up to your master''s reputation." He raised his cup in a toasting gesture and Noah welcomed it by doing the same with his cup, yet he was using his mental energy to scan the liquid inside it. ''There seems to be no problem with the wine, I think he is telling the truth, his relationship with Master must be really good.'' Noah didn''t hesitate anymore and took a sip from the cup. A familiar burning sensation ran through his throat but was soon suppressed by the healing ability of his body. ''Oh right, with a rank 2 body in the higher tier I bet it will be pretty hard to get drunk.'' He had entered the sixth cycle so the effects of the Forging of the Seven Hells were becoming more prominent as he neared the competition of the process. His healing abilities had improved, the same went for his "Breath" perception and his martial art execution. ''Well, I could not feel the increase in perception since it was outclassed by my advancement to rank 1 mage but my martial art has reached a whole new level, it should have fully broken through the level of a rank 3 magical beast.'' His most powerful attacks were already on that level after he obtained a rank 2 body but with the sixth cycle already nearing the rank 3 limit, his whole martial art had reached that level. ''My limit should be around thirty attacks at full power and if I factor the absorption of the acupoints I should be able to double that number. I should be fine unless I find myself in a really long fight.'' The disadvantage of not having a dantian was greatly reduced but still existed which made Noah still concerned about a fight with a real cultivator. "Do you like the wine?" Kevin''s voice made him realize that he had lost himself in thoughts and he hurriedly made an explanation. "I''m sorry, I had something in my mind." Kevin looked confused and said: "You are too polite, no one has ever apologized for a few seconds of silence." Noah was surprised. ''Uh? Few seconds? Has my thinking speed become that high?'' He hastily raised his cup again to hide his confused expression and took another sip. Then he put down the cup and stared at Kevin with a stern expression, a bit of coldness was released by his eyes. "Shall we start with the real talk?" Kevin seemed to approve as he emptied his cup and answered with a calm voice. "What do you want to know?" Noah''s question arrived instantly. "Why the escort?" The question hit some crucial point as Kevin sighed and a sad expression appeared on his face. "As you know, the young master in the caravan is the main descendant of the Lansay family. Logically speaking he should succeed his father as the patriarch of the family but..." He filled another cup of wine before resuming his speech. "But he is too young. His father is gravely ill and will not live for long so his uncle might use this trip as a chance to kill the heir and take control of the family." Noah understood something but there were still some doubts in his mind. "How is it possible that a patriarch of a medium-size noble family could have let the situation escalate to this?" Kevin drank again and answered. "It was the patriarch''s fault if the Lansay family got punished so his brother, Tobias Lansay, used these events to gather consensus with the other soldiers in the inner circle. The only corp that remained loyal to Benedict Lansay, the patriarch, is the one with me in this mission." The situation was far worse than what Noah imagined. "And what bringing back the heir can even do? They can just kill him once he is in the mansion." Kevin put down the cup and got near to Noah. His voice became extremely low. "This is a secret of the inner circle so if I ever find out that you disclosed it to anyone I will make killing you my lifelong mission, do you understand me?" A dense killing intent was released by Kevin. The soldiers and wanderers that were going through the selection outside the carriage trembled as the atmosphere became incredibly stiff. Noah simply kept looking at the big man in front of him but a trace of admiration was formed his mind. ''He is a veteran of the battlefield, I can''t even imagine the number of lives he has taken.'' The stalemate lasted for a whole minute before Noah made up his mind and nodded. Kevin stared at him for a few more seconds before he revealed the information. "Lansay treasury is protected by a special formation. I don''t know much about formations but I know the rules behind this one. Only the current patriarch or his descendants can control it and can determine the fate of every item inside the treasury. Benedict Lansay already gave the control of the formation to his son but he must first get there to accept it. If he was to die before that, the control of the formation would directly go to the next in line of succession, which is to say Tobias Lansay." ''There is such a thing in this world, the branches of cultivation are really various.'' He remembered how when he was still a child, the mansion''s wall wounded a dragon. ''That should be a formation too, they seem some really powerful things. I should ask Master about the various applications that cultivation has once I go back.'' "Are you saying that the formation will know if the heir dies?" Noah''s question was answered by a slight nod from Kevin. He fell deep in thought before asking with an expressionless face: "What do I gain from helping you?" Chapter 46: 46. Spoiled noble "Magic scrolls and various techniques are off-limit. As for resources, I believe we can work out a deal." Kevin''s answer was immediate, he knew too well the difficulties of getting stronger without a noble status. Noah had suspected such restrictions so he demanded what he needed more at the moment. "I need potions or pills for the nourishment of the body, the level must be the same as the Inner-energy pill." Kevin furrowed his brows. He was surprised that such a young man knew of the existence of the Inner-energy pill but he was principally impressed by the fact that Noah directly requested something of that value. "I don''t have the authority to promise such a good reward." Noah shrugged his shoulders at the answer. "Then bring me to someone who has it." Another stalemate followed by, with a giant man and a kid staring at each other in silence inside the carriage. At some point, Kevin nodded. "Follow me, and please remember to be respectful." Kevin jumped off the carriage with Noah following close behind him and went for the second-last carriage of the caravan. He knocked at the door and bowed speaking in a firm voice. "Young Master, it''s me." A young voice came from inside the carriage. "Come in." The door opened and Kevin went through it indicating to Noah to follow. A young man donned in green was sitting inside the carriage with a chalice in his right hand. He had curly blond hair and some traces of beard, he was around 14-15 years old and had a pale complexion. A bit of arrogance was exuded from his expression. Noah looked attentively at the heir of the Lansay family and could not help but feel disappointed. ''He is so weak, what''s the point of being a noble if you don''t even make use of your status to increase your strength. No wonder his uncle is so close to deposing him.'' There was the faint presence of "Breath" around him which meant that he had at least trained in some body-nourishment technique but, apart from that, he had only his status to protect him. Noah was still staring at the young man when he felt and angry gaze looking at him. He turned in its direction and saw Kevin staring at him as he was waiting for something. ''Oh right, a weak noble is still a noble.'' Noah lightly bowed. "Greetings, heir of the Lansay family." The nobleman seemed to notice Noah''s presence only after he spoke and looked with an inquisitory gaze toward Kevin. "He is Noah, the disciple of a good friend of mine. He will be a good asset in this mission." Kevin spoke and then he turned to Noah. "He is Basil Lansay, son of Benedict Lansay, the true heir to the title of patriarch." Basil put the chalice down and asked with an annoyed tone. "Why did you brought him here, what''s the matter?" Kevin bowed. "He is asking for a reward that I don''t have the authority to promise." Basil snorted. "Hmph, once I get access to the treasury I can make sure that you won''t have to work anymore in your life. There is no need to come here in person." Kevin continued. "He is asking for body-nourishment pills, and of high level too." Basil''s eyes opened wide. "How can someone younger than me be worthy of such resources, just kick him out and teach him a lesson." Noah got immediately irritated and a cold pressure began to be exuded from him. The pressure emitted from a mage was unsustainable by a weak person like Basil and he started to gasp for breath. At that moment though, Kevin''s killing intent surged again forcing Noah to retract the pressure. Basil breathed roughly and got angry beyond reason. "How dares a lowly one like you hurt me! Kevin, don''t bother with what I said earlier, just kill him and show his corpse to those animals out there. Maybe they will understand the difference in status this way!" However, Noah was already going out of the carriage. ''Nevermind, it''s useless to take on such a risky mission just for reputation and merits. I''ll go back to the mansion and make up an excuse.'' Before he jumped off though, Basil''s voice sounded again. "Wait!" Noah turned to look at Basil. "It seems that I misjudged you. I indeed need strong people for this mission since we will have to go against the guards of my uncle. We can work out a deal, but first, you have to apologize for your behavior from earlier." ''So he does have some intelligence between all the noble crap.'' He looked in Kevin''s direction and saw him smiling proudly while nodding at him, he presumably managed to persuade the young noble with his words. "No." Noah''s answer was firm. Kevin''s smile froze and even the young heir was at loss for words, he only managed to stammer a weak question. "W-Why?" "Because you are weak, noble or not you don''t deserve my apologies." Basil got angry again and was about to yell when Kevin placed his hand on the nobleman''s shoulder. "Young master, I know that he is rude but we really need all the help that we can find. Only once you get your position as a patriarch you can act as overbearing as you want." Noah just shook his head hearing these words. ''Don''t tell me that even the descendants of the Balvan family are like this. Maybe my theory on the idiocy of weak people is right.'' The discussion between Kevin and Basil went on for a while, with Noah''s irritation increasing for every second that he was forced to hear more of it. In the end, Basil agreed to Noah''s request and Kevin hurriedly carried him away before he said something that could ruin again his young master''s mood. When they were back in the previous carriage Noah could not help but mock Kevin. "A mighty cultivator like you being forced to be the nanny of a spoiled kid, you sure have it rough." A slight smirk was on his face as he looked at the big man massaging his temples to calm himself. "It''s not entirely the young master''s fault. He grew up with the descendants of the Shosti family bulling him all the time and when his moment to do the bullying finally came he met with a man like you. Don''t worry, when we reach the mansion I''ll personally make sure that you get what he promised." Noah nodded, he believed in Kevin words. Meanwhile, the trial for the escort mission outside the caravan was over. They were ready to set off. Chapter 47: 47. Massacre The caravan began to move in the direction of Lansay mansion. Their speed was slow due to the high number of people moving by foot around the carriages. The caravan had four carriages and the men that had passed the elimination process of the selection amounted to forty, so it was impossible for all of them to find a sitting spot. Coupled with the ten soldiers belonging to the Lansay family, their appearance resembled a small troop going to war. With their speed, it would take them about a month to reach their destination. Noah was sitting on top of the roof of the second carriage, but whenever he looked at the group below him he would just shake his head. ''Do they even realize in what mess they got themselves into? We will have to fight against the guards of the inner circle of a noble family. The Lansay family might have declined but their sheer number of cultivators still surpasses ours. They will be just used as cannon fodder.'' Before he accepted, Noah stormed Kevin with questions about the plan to be sure that it was actually feasible. When he heard about the quantity of the cultivators under Tobias Lansay, he was about to give up on the mission uncaring of the promised rewards. ''Twenty-five cultivators against ten of them and a bunch of meat shields, it would be impossible to do if not for the fact that we only have to get Basil inside the mansion for the mission to succeed.'' If the two groups were to fight, the only outcome would be a total defeat. However, Kevin revealed to him that once Basil entered the gates of the mansion he could already take control of the formation. With the resources accumulated by the Lansay family for years at stake, Tobias would either have to abandon his plan to become the patriarch and run away or forsake his status as a noble. After all, nobility was about wealth and techniques. ''If we use the non-cultivators as a shield and run straight to the middle of their defense, we might actually do it.'' That''s why Noah decided to stay, he was sure that with Kevin''s frame, breaking through a line of defense was a feasible task. The first week of travel passed with nothing out of the ordinary happening, the caravan had moved smoothly, but then trouble appeared. Noah was the first to sense an unusual amount of people on their road and when the caravan stopped the blockage was clearly visible. Fifty or so men were blocking their path, yet there were no cultivators among them. They were dressed in commoner''s clothes or rusty armors but their weapons seemed newly made and of good workmanship. Noah jumped off the roof of the carriage and walked in the direction of Kevin that was already staring at the group with a bit of anger in his eyes. When he sensed Noah next to him, he spoke. "They must have been hired by the young master''s uncle from nearby villages. He wants to probe us. If I send my men to fight them we will reveal most of our abilities, but if I send the non-cultivators their numbers will decrease endangering the plan. I never thought that Tobias would be so ruthless to actually send people to die just to investigate us." Noah was looking at the troop of commoners but internally he was sneering. ''Aren''t you doing the same? It''s not like most of your newly recruited men will survive anyway.'' He sighed a little and then replied. "Then we just have to be more ruthless." Noah unsheathed his sabers and walked toward the enemy troop. "If I take care of them we will reveal almost no information and we will keep uninjured your precious meat shields." Kevin felt a bit of shame from Noah''s comment but did not reply, he just watched the kid getting near the group of commoners. When Noah was at twenty meters from them he stopped and then spoke loudly. "Anyone that still wants to live will better step away from this path. After I count to three, all those still in front of me will die." A kid was threatening fifty or so grown-up men. However, before they had any chance to laugh, a chill ran through them as they saw the kid''s eyes emitting a suffocating coldness. "One!" All these commoners were recruited from villages that suffered from the Lansay family''s punishment, they were poor beyond reason. "Two!" Since the Lansay family had to pay a huge fee to the Shosti family, they heavily raised the taxes on the people in their domain, bringing them on the verge of starvation. "Three!" Because of that, no one of the villagers stepped back in front of the dreadful kid, they had already taken part of the payment from Tobias and if they managed to survive, that sum would duplicate. What followed was a massacre. From the point of view of the weak soldiers around the caravan, Noah was just walking between the enemy lines. However, anyone he passed near to would just fall on the ground with their throats sliced or their chests pierced. Blood was flowing on the ground filling it with red puddles. No one noticed that some of the best weapons of the villagers disappeared before touching the ground and were sucked in a spot on Noah''s waist. When Noah came back to the caravan, his leather shoes were drenched in blood and were leaving vivid red marks on the ground where he walked. An indifferent expression was on his face, like he had just come back from a simple walk. ''The stronger I become, the less I consider weak people as humans. I guess that the emotional detachment from normal humans is just a natural cause of my power rising.'' The soldiers moved away from his path and left a road for him to go back on the roof of the carriage. Noah casually jumped on it and threw away the dirty shoes, leaving his bare feet in the air hanging from the roof. BLEGHH Basil was outside his carriage puking on the ground. He had secretly watched Noah''s battle and could not hold back the retches he was feeling. Kevin hurriedly went next to him and brought him back to the carriage under the disappointed gaze of his soldiers. They were comparing internally this young noble with the ruthless kid on top of a carriage and could not help to shake their heads concerned about the future of the Lansay family. Chapter 48: 48. Introspection In a basement inside Lansay mansion, a man in his fifties with curly blonde hair was watching a map with some pawns on it. At some point, a soldier appeared behind him and kneeled on the floor. "Lord Tobias, the spies in Basil''s escort have sent the report. None of Kevin''s men joined the battle, only a kid went to fight and killed all of the peasants. They now have resumed their trip toward our direction." Tobias nodded not even turning back to look at the soldier and moved one of the pawns on the map. "Did you find the carriage where Basil is staying?" "Yes, the spies reported that he went out of his carriage to relieve himself from the harshness of the battle." Tobias shook his head. "That kid is too weak, the patriarch''s bloodline has gotten too soft, no wonder we are in this situation." He sighed and then pointed on the map. "Send the mages to intercept them on Twilboia Cliff, put an end to my nephew''s dream." . . . Meanwhile, on the caravan, Noah was lying on the roof of a carriage concentrating his mental energy to scan the surroundings. They were nearing a place called Twilboia Cliff which in Kevin''s opinion was the perfect place for an ambush, so he was wary of anything out of the ordinary that entered his perception. Lansay mansion was in the opposite direction of Balvan mansion from the point of view of Mossgrove city, so Noah didn''t know much about the environment of this region. At some point, he felt someone getting close to his side. He turned to look in that direction and saw Basil clumsily trying to climb to the top of the carriage where he was. Noah waited patiently for the nobleman to succeed in his climbing and smiled a little when he saw him sitting next to him. "Can I help you with something, mister heir?" Basil nodded and answered. "I want you to reply to some of my questions." Noah became slightly interested. "Go ahead, I don''t have much to do anyway." He had yet to receive the second Kesier rune so his training had momentarily halted. "How did you kill those men?" Noah was momentarily confused and pointed at the sabers on his back with a questioning look. "No, I mean, how could you do that so naturally?" Basil corrected himself and Noah finally understood the meaning of his words. "Mh, I believe you won''t feel bad about killing animals to feed yourself. It''s the same with humans on my road toward power: they stood in my way so I killed them." Basil was bewildered seeing a man younger than him speaking in such ways about human life. "B-But you won''t die if you don''t have power, it''s not the same! They were just hungry commoners fighting for food!" Noah looked at him with scorn. "Weren''t you the one that wanted to show my corpse to the animals defending you?" Basil became silent to Noah''s reprimand and a bit of shame appeared on his face. "I-I was just imitating the way the people in the Shosti family acted. I never saw a corpse before your fight." Noah shook his head. ''He is still a kid after all, I''m the strange one since my appearance doesn''t reflect my real age.'' He thought for a bit and then he answered with sincerity. "If a dragon was to pass by right now and attacked us we would all be dead. Good, evil, and all the other human constructs would be reduced to ashes by a random event. You say you won''t die if you don''t have power but that is false: those villagers were weak so they got exploited until they chose to go against a group of cultivators, their end was decided the moment they accepted your uncle''s deal; you are weak so your family is hunting you down due to the status you were born with and all you can do is hide in a carriage hoping that Kevin will be strong enough to protect you." Basil lowered his head hearing these words but Noah''s speech wasn''t over yet. "If you care about something, you should be strong enough to defend it. If you want something, you should be strong enough to aim for it. If you are weak, you should aim to become stronger. If you want to become stronger, you must have the resolution to climb mountains of corpses. You should have understood by now that the cultivation world is not a nice one." Basil nodded and expressed the last question he had in his mind. "Killing fifty innocent men to protect one only for some small increase in power, aren''t you afraid that the world will consider you a demon?" This question made Noah fell in deep thought. He ran through all the experiences he had in this life. The battles with the magical beasts, the sparring with his Master, his mother''s smile, the various missions until only one image remained in his mind. There was an elderly man floating in the air. He had one hand raised to block a lance of flames launched by a dragon. In the eyes of a baby, he looked like a god free from any restriction, untouchable by normal humans. ''I wonder how much will it take for me to reach that level.'' Noah had unconsciously raised his gaze to the sky, staring at a fixed point with vacant eyes. A pure and boundless yearning for power made itself clear inside his mind and then, he answered. "So what?" Basil was about to ask more before a chilling sensation enveloped him. Noah was still looking at the sky but his eyes were dark and cold, like a beast looking at its prey. Seeing no changes in his attitude, Basil gave up on asking more questions and climbed down the carriage to go back to his original lodging. Noah stared at the sky for a long time before he moved his gaze toward a small mountain next to a cliff in the distance. ''If the world will call me a demon, so be it. If it will give me the power to save my mother and to pursue the road of cultivation without restrictions, I will gladly forsake my humanity.'' The caravan continued on its road to Twilboia Cliff unaware of the spies in its group or of the battle that was waiting there for it. Chapter 49: 49. Battle inten Twilboia Cliff was a deep gorge next to a small mountain called Twilboia Mountain. A narrow passage divided the two and, since the caravan could not climb the mountain, it was its only possible road. When the caravan neared the passage, a faint pressure dawned on the escort group. They were aware that if Tobias had set up an ambush here, the battle would not be an easy one. They had the disadvantage of the terrain while the enemy could attack from the mountain and retreat at will. Kevin was staring at the gorge with some solemnity and Noah could not help but go next to him to ask more questions when he saw that expression. "What''s down there?" Noah asked following Kevin''s gaze. "It''s not sure. We know that the concentration of "Breath" is high at the bottom but the place is magical beasts'' territory. The last time someone tried to clean the gorge and put their mansion there the cultivation world lost a medium-size family." Noah gulped a bit, the cliff had become incredibly scary in his eyes. "What''s the plan for the ambush?" They were against a man aiming for the title of patriarch of a medium-size noble family, if the gorge was the best place for him to attack, Noah was sure that an attack would be there. "We can''t retreat and we can''t allow them to push us in the gorge. I''ll charge ahead as soon as I see an enemy while you with some of my men will be in charge of defending the young master''s carriage. The others are free to use their lives to give me the time to kill everyone." A thick battle intent exuded from Kevin which made Noah tremble a bit. ''I really did the best choice by apologizing back then.'' His confidence in holding his own against Kevin was reduced by a large amount. ''He was the head of the guards after all.'' The caravan entered the passage and the escort group set up a battle formation around it. Noah was on the roof of Basil''s carriage with his eyes closed, sharpening his senses to sense the enemy approach. The passage was not long, only about a day of travel with their speed, yet every minuted passed in there seemed to last an eternity. The concentration of "Breath" had already increased when they entered the passage and seemed to reach its peak when they were in the middle of it. At that moment though, something happened. A bullet made of water hit one of the cultivators near Noah and pierced his skull, the man fell lifeless on the ground. No one on the caravan had seen the attack coming and a suffocating silence followed the death of the soldier. "MAGE!" Noah broke the silence with his warning as he hastily unsheathed his sabers staring in the direction of the mountain. He didn''t feel the enemy attack coming which meant that the assailant had bigger achievements in mental energy than him! The escort group was about to fell into chaos when Kevin''s yell calmed them down. "Get in position! Push toward the mountain! Follow me!" He took the vanguard position and charged toward the mountain wielding a huge hammer with both his hands. Another water bullet was shot in his direction but Kevin simply swung his hammer and shattered it, and then he jumped toward the area where it came from. Two more bullets were fired only to get blocked by the hammer, then Kevin swung it downward hitting the ground in front of him. BOOM! An explosion rang out and a five meters deep hole was created on the side of the mountain. "Irvin come out and fight me face to face!" Kevin yelled seemingly to the air but then a figure appeared between the smoke raised by his blow. "You never change Kevin, always charging ahead. I''m afraid that this time it won''t work though." A short man donned in green robes came out of the smoke and faced Kevin. Irvin raised his hand and two more water bullets shot out from it. Kevin just deflected them and charged in his direction with an oppressing killing intent. Seeing the huge man rushing at him, the mage simply stood in his place releasing a torrent of bullets. Most of the shots were deflected by the hammer but some of them hit Kevin''s skin and left some small wounds on it. When Kevin was about to reach the mage, three strings of water sprouted from the ground and tied themselves around Kevin blocking his movements. Irvin nodded at the sight of the trapped man and spoke with pride. "As expected from a rank 4 body, my water bullets can''t hurt you consistently. If you were the one to kill the situation would have been really troublesome, yet your life is of no importance to Lord Tobias." As soon as he said these words, a group of soldiers wearing green armors shot out from another point of the mountain aiming for the group defending the caravan. Irvin had used himself as a decoy to draw out the stronger person of the escort, weakening deeply the defenses of the caravan. The enemy soldiers amounted to fifteen people and directly stormed through the line of defense made by the normal soldiers, none of them could block any of the enemies. The normal soldiers that were on their path were instantly killed or gravely wounded by just one swing of their weapons. ''They are all cultivators!'' Noah from his position on the carriage could clearly see that his moment was imminent and sharpened his mind like never before, a tinge of battle intent could be discerned in his cold eyes. ''Finally a real battle against a cultivator. I really want to see how far I am from their level.'' Tobias Lansay''s soldiers broke through the first line of defense and engaged a battle with Kevin''s soldiers. Noah scanned the enemies and picked a man with a heavy ax as a target. He sent a wind slash at him following it to deliver a melee attack when the soldier tried to block it. The soldier though, seeing the wind slash, swung his ax to meet the slash. The slash was shattered by the sheer strength of the blow and Noah was forced to block the ax that maintained its trajectory. CLINK! Two sabers blocked the heavy blow and Noah was sent flying for some meters before safely landing on the ground. The soldier turned in his direction and was a bit surprised to see that the kid easily blocked his swing, but most importantly, that he was smiling looking at him. Chapter 50: 50. Transformation Noah had never fought for real against a cultivator. His fights with William were only sparrings and against Orson''s group, he was just playing a supporting role. At that moment though, he was facing a real cultivator alone and that made him feel extremely excited. ''Finally, someone that doesn''t die in one hit!'' The soldier from the Lansay family was initially stunned by Noah''s smile but then focused again on the battle and charged ahead with his ax raised. Noah didn''t notice his own smile, all his attention was one the ax coming to him. When the ax was a few centimeters from his head, Noah abruptly dodged on his left rotating his sabers in the process aiming for the soldier''s head. The soldier hid behind the metal handle and blocked the swing, yet a cut appeared on his cheek: the handle could not block the blow completely! He retreated by some steps and resumed his posture, wary of the smiling kid slowly moving toward him. They jumped at each other at the same time and exchanged a few blows before separating again. This time a couple of light wounds appeared on the soldier''s right leg. Noah didn''t choose his target randomly but picked the one who would suffer more from his fast attacks coming from two different directions. The big ax the cultivator was wielding wasn''t suited to block Noah''s two sabers and, with his ability in deflecting and a rank 2 body nearing the peak of the rank, it was almost impossible to break his defense with only sheer strength. Noah understood that he could not directly kill the soldier until he made a mistake and the soldier had his same thoughts so they charged at each other again waiting for one of them to commit an error. Wounds kept on accumulating on the soldier''s body as Noah pressed on attacking him everytime he tried to separate from the kid to resume a defensive posture. After more than ten exchanges, the soldier''s armor was almost entirely tarnished by its owner''s blood. However, Noah wasn''t in a better situation. Even though he had no wounds on him, the "Breath" in his body had halved and he didn''t manage to deliver a fatal blow to the enemy. The battle had become an endurance competition. Noah attacked again slashing with both his weapons and the soldier raised his ax to block them. CLINK! Another clash occurred but the soldier became confused when he heard that only one of the sabers had hit his handle. The other saber had momentarily vanished only to reappear in his face pointing at his left eye. He hastily ducked but, in that moment of surprise, Noah had already slashed with his other blade on his chest area. The invisible blade was dodged but the other one cut vertically his abdomen leaving a deep wound on it. Noah didn''t waste any time and quickly retreated on the roof of the carriage to replenish the expended "Breath", as for the soldier, he only had the time to look at his wound before his insides came out from it and he fell dead on the ground. ''As expected, the Snake-wrist form is too weak to consistently hit cultivators, at least it gave me the chance to end the battle sooner.'' What he had used was the first technique he had learnt five years ago by scamming guards. He had never used it because the techniques he received after it were much stronger than an incomplete form of a rank 2 martial art, yet that didn''t mean that he had forgotten it. Seeing that the battle could have lasted for many other clashes, Noah chose to try a feint with the Snake-wrist technique and, even if it didn''t fool the soldier, it was enough to create a decisive flaw in his defense. ''At least now I know where I stand compared with a cultivator. My techniques and their executions are above their average, but the flaws of not having a dantian are pretty severe.'' He understood that he could not fight prolonged battles on this level so he chose to rest and analyze the situation to find where his help would create the biggest results. Meanwhile, on the mountain path. Kevin was still immobilized by the water magic of the mage but was moderately safe since Irvin was assaulted by the horde of non-cultivators that came with him. Nevertheless, the situation could not last for long since Irvin took out a whip from his back and randomly slaughtered the normal soldier that charged at him. Kevin felt restless watching the fight in front of him and the cultivators attacking the caravan so he chose to use his hidden ace. His skin became of a yellowish-brown color and his muscles swelled, his height too seemed to increase. A roar came out of his mouth as he used all of his strength to break free from the water bindings. The ground under his feet cracked and the strings holding his body still stretched until they couldn''t handle Kevin''s monstrous strength anymore and shattered. Kevin was finally free! When he was out of the strings his body continued to grow until he was three meters tall! The soldiers around him froze when they saw the form he had assumed and even Irvin''s expression became serious looking at the brown giant. "You''ve mastered the ability of your body technique in the end." Kevin didn''t reply to Irvin''s words and slowly walked in his direction wielding the big hammer in one hand. The mage shot two water bullets but when they hit the brown skin, they only left some small white marks on it. Seeing that his magic had no effect on him, Irvin summoned again the three water strings which fused together to become an azure half-transparent whip that he wielded in his left hand. Together with the other whip in his right hand, he charged straight at Kevin. Irvin launched an attack with the normal whip but Kevin easily raised his arm to block it. The whip though, wrapped on his arm and the mage was about to launch an attack with the other one when Kevin grabbed it and forcefully pulled! Irvin was immediately sent flying in Kevin''s direction and was about to clash with the hammer when the water whip transformed in a shield and blocked the incoming blow. The water shield managed to stay intact against the tremendous strike but Irvin still suffered from the impact and was flung away at over ten meters of distance! No one noticed that a small crack had appeared on Kevin''s shoulder. Chapter 51: 51. Loss Irvin got up from the ground. His complexion was pale and a bit of blood was coming out of his mouth, the previous blow had injured him internally. Kevin didn''t waste any time as he charged in his direction, yet his speed was lower than before, apparently, the technique had slowed his movements in exchange for great strength and defense. Irvin dodged the charge and swung relentlessly the water whip in his hands. The whip clashed multiple times with Kevin''s skin leaving deep marks and some cracks on it. Kevin didn''t seem to care and continued to chase the retreating mage. Irvin''s hit and run tactic seemed to work since cracks kept on accumulating on Kevin''s body but then, Kevin threw his hammer toward the mage. The heavy hammer flew at an insane speed and almost hit Irvin that dodged at the last moment. However, when the hammer met with the ground, a big tremor was created unbalancing Irvin''s posture and halting his escape. Kevin made use of this chance to get close to Irvin and deliver a massive strike but the mage''s whip transformed again in a shield that blocked the hit. Irvin was once again flung away. This time it took him longer to get up, the second wave of internal injuries had weakened him thoroughly. When he managed to stand up he found himself looking at Kevin''s giant figure in front of him that had already raised his hand to strike. "You lost Irvin." His fist descended and was about to hit the mage when a thunderbolt hit Kevin straight at the center of his chest. Kevin was sent flying and when he hit the ground his body turned back to its original appearance, his technique had expired! A black web of burned flash that was releasing smoke constituted the wound on his chest. Kevin coughed and tried to stand up but there seemed to be no more strength left in his body as he pointed with his arms on the ground just to fall again on it. Irvin relaxed and sat casually, then he looked behind him and angrily yelled. "You took your fucking time! I was almost gone for good!" A tall man dressed in green large robes appeared from a hole in the mountain. His skin was pale and some drops of sweat were on his forehead but he was smiling happily in spite of everything. "I''m sorry Lord Irvin, as you know it still takes me a lot of time to cast this spell." The tall man went close to Irvin and handed him a bottle with a white liquid. Irvin took it and directly drank it, a bit of color returned to his pale cheeks. "Tsk, to think that the family values you so much because your attitude is to the thunder element. It''s a pity they only gave you that slow spell." Irvin shook his head but his attention was on Kevin still struggling to get up. "Julian, don''t bother about him, the technique he used earlier left him exhausted so he is not a threat anymore." He closed his eyes for a brief moment and then spoke again. "My injuries are too serious, I can''t help in this fight anymore. The next phase of the mission is up to you." Julian bowed and closed his eyes to focus. Meanwhile, on the caravan. The group of cultivators was creating chaos inside the escort''s lines of defense. Noah was moving between the top of the carriage and the fight below him trying to tilt the scales of the battle but he was having poor results. The soldiers became wary of him when he killed one of them and chose to slow their offensive to limit their losses. They had a higher number of cultivators after all, so a prolonged fight would benefit them more. Noah could not find any valid opportunity to increase their chance to win. Then Kevin transformed and fought on even ground with the water mage lifting the morale of his soldiers that fought with more fervor. However, Noah''s mood became gloomy. ''We might win this battle but we will never reach the mansion. If these are the troops that they can send out in mission how many more there will be defending the treasury?'' In his mind, he understood that they had miscalculated Tobias Lansay''s strength. ''I was too rash, I should have never accepted this mission. My power is only equal to that of these cultivators and they are being used as pawns! Now I''m stuck here to hope that Kevin will win his fight and help us'' A bit of frustration was building inside Noah due to the situation he was in and he could not help but blame himself for his recklessness. ''No point in holding back then.'' From his position on the top of the carriage, Noah slashed the air in the direction of the enemy soldiers. Fourteen wind slashes shot out in the direction of the cultivators, one for each of them. The cultivators were forced to block or dodge the strikes and could not focus momentarily on the men around them. Some of Kevin''s soldiers managed to take advantage of this situation and wounded the enemies'' cultivators making them retreat. One of them though surpassed Kevin''s men and went straight for Basil''s carriage. Noah jumped down the carriage and clashed with the man''s sword blocking his advance. More than ten collisions rang out in the battle as Noah and the soldier didn''t hold anything back in their attacks. Noah''s acupoints were refilling his body of "Breath" at a way higher speed than the normal one since in Twilboia Cliff the "Breath" concentration was greater, so he could keep fighting at full force even after his previous display of power. The swordman and the kid proceeded on fighting making metallic sounds reverberate in the battlefield. Then a rumble burst out from the sky and a thunderbolt fell on the carriage where Basil was staying. The thunder was massive and directly blasted the carriage apart. A shockwave then spread from the area of impact of the spell sending everything from its center away. Noah was too close to the carriage and was overwhelmed by the shockwave that launched him past the narrow road and over the cliff. Noah could not stop himself from falling in the gorge. Chapter 52: 52. Fall Noah was falling at high speed toward the foggy bottom of the gorge. The pressure on his face was becoming impossible to withstand even with a rank 2 body, it was useless to say what would happen if he crashed on the ground with this speed. Noah cursed in his mind and tried to thrust his sabers on the rocky wall of the canyon but the rocks were incredibly hard and only the tip of his blades managed to pierce their surface. Two straight trails were left on the wall as Noah kept on falling and held on his weapons. His speed was slowly lowering but then the rocks along the wall became even harder and his sabers came out from the groove they created. Noah falling speed increased again and no matter how many times he tried, his sabers couldn''t pierce the rocks anymore. He looked below him and saw a small cavity a few hundred meters downward on his left side. He steeled his determination and sheathed his sabers, then he pressed his hands and feet on the wall. The rocks coupled with his speed rapidly minced his skin but Noah held on waiting for the best moment to act. When the cavity was at the right distance he pushed against the wall toward his left side. Noah fell diagonally and crouched mid-air to reduce his surface, putting his head between his legs to protect it. His body smashed into the inner wall of the cavity and cracking sounds came from it but when he touched the ground he slipped again toward the gorge. Both his legs and his left arm were unresponsive so he shot his right hand toward the edge of the cavity. Noah felt an extreme pressure on his right shoulder but he never allowed his hand to lose its grip, he endured the pain he was feeling until the pressure disappeared. He opened his eyes and found himself hanging on the edge of the hole with his other limbs swinging powerlessly toward the bottom of the gorge. Noah pulled with his right arm and lifted himself in the hole, then he forcefully bit the ground and moved his arm deeper in the cavity dragging his body in the process. His teeth did not pierce the rocks but could last as a handhold for the time needed to his hand to find a handle deeper in the hole. After repeating this process a few times, Noah''s body was fully lying on the floor of the cavity. ''I''m alive.'' That was his first thought when he managed to stop his fall. He used his remaining strength to check a place on his waist under his clothes and smiled a little when he took out a silver ring from it. He relaxed at the sight of the ring and collapsed after one last thought. ''I can survive.'' . . . Noah was woken up the next day by a wave of pain coming from his body. He looked around him and remembered the events of the battle. ''I don''t know if it would have been worse to stay there. Basil is probably dead so my fate should have been the same if I remained in the battle.'' He slowly moved his hand toward the silver ring on his side and wore it on his index, a cold sensation hit the scraped skin on his palm. A piece of dried meat appeared in front of him and Noah hastily ate it. Since he had obtained the space-ring he started accumulating provisions and useful items inside it as a preparation for his travel toward the academy. While he was eating he looked around the cavity and checked the condition of his body. The cavity was barely two meters square large and one high, Noah lying in it occupied almost its entire space. ''Luckily it wasn''t any smaller than this or I don''t know if I could have centered it at that speed.'' Then he focused on his body. ''My legs are broken, so is my left arm. The skin of both my hands and feet is flayed, my right shoulder is close to being dislocated and I''m quite sure that some of my ribs are cracked.'' He looked outside the hole and saw only a faint fog lingering in the gorge. ''Adding the fact that I''m inside a place that a medium-size noble family could not claim I''d say that I''m probably dead.'' He thought again at the thunder that destroyed Basil''s carriage and smiled a little. ''Well, probably dead is better than dead for sure. I wonder why Master allowed me to go in this suicide mission.'' He thought for a bit but then shook his head. ''No, if he knew all about the situation he would have surely stopped me. Yet, who could have the power to purposely keep him in the dark only to send me there?'' The face of his father appeared in his mind but he tossed the thought away. ''I''ll think about it later, after all even if it was him I can''t do anything about it otherwise my mother wouldn''t be still suffering.'' Noah slowly straightened up, supporting himself on the wall and looked at his injuries. ''I need to recover before thinking of how to get out of here. The concentration of "Breath" down here seems even higher than on the surface so I should heal faster but I should still do something to speed the process.'' Three weapons appeared on his side as he tore his clothes apart to make some strings. He straightened his broken limbs and used the weapons from his space-ring as splints and tied them together. Then another piece of dried meat appeared and he slowly ate it, then he closed his eyes and focused on the "Breath" inside him to prioritize the healing process rather than the nourishment one. Days went by with Noah motionlessly lying on the ground waiting for his injuries to heal. Sometimes he would open his eyes to eat and drink or to change the position of the splints but most of his time was spent directing the "Breath" on his wounds. It was only two weeks later that he was able to move again. Chapter 53: 53. Snakes Noah undid his splints and put everything back in the space-ring. He lied on the ground to stretch his limbs and test their recovery and was happy with the results. ''I''m almost back to my peak form. In another week I should be completely healed but like this is fine, I can''t waste more time.'' His injuries had mostly healed so he decided to start moving to find a way back to the Balvan mansion. Noah peeked outside the cavity and looked upward. Only fog filled his field of view and, apart from some dents in the rocks of the walls, there seemed to be no viable handholds. ''I fell for a few hundred meters. Climbing them back would be doable if it wasn''t for these rocks being stupidly hard. From here I can''t even see if the handlings would last till I reach the softer part of the wall.'' Noah stared for a long time at the wall above him until he gave up on the idea of climbing it. ''If I don''t find a handhold I have to come back here through the fog, what if I can''t find my original path? What if I slip once? Climbing the wall is just a bet too risky to be taken.'' He turned around with unwillingness to look at the path below him. The fog was thicker toward the bottom of the gorge and the number of handholds was the same as the other side. However, some yellow roots sprouted from small holes in the wall downward. ''It appears that nearing the bottom some vegetation starts to emerge. I can totally cling to them to slow my descent.'' Noah was deep in thought, he continued to look down but he could not find any flaws with the roots, the path toward the bottom of the cliff was definitely easier to tread. ''Do I really have to go there?'' He was reluctant to enter such a dangerous place but there was no other feasible option for him. ''It''s either going up and try my luck, which for now has always been awful, or going down and have fun with the magical beasts that destroyed a medium-size noble family. Well, I can always wait here for someone to rescue me.'' He smiled and shook his head at the absurd idea of being saved but then his expression became cold and stern. ''No mistakes allowed from now on.'' He sharpened his mind cutting off every superfluous thought as he crouched on the edge of the cavity. He slowly pushed his body over the hole, remaining hanged on the edge with his right hand. When he confirmed his target below him he released the grip and slid on the wall using his body to slow the descent. The skin on his back and feet was scraped by the attrition with the hard rocks but Noah didn''t care, his eyes never left the root below him. As he went over it, he grabbed in its direction and steadily held on it. The root was elastic and it stretched when Noah''s weight fell on it, yet it didn''t break. Noah was relieved seeing that the root could support his body and hastily looked below him to find a new one. Nevertheless, the root in his hand moved and a soft hiss sounded from the hole. ''Fuck!'' Noah immediately understood the situation and released the grip to continue his downfall. He grabbed on the next "root" and started searching for another one before his body even stopped. As he found a new one he again left his hanging and descended again. He repeated this process for more than one hundred meters but there still wasn''t any sign of the bottom of the cliff. Meanwhile, the hissing sound behind him became stronger and filled the fog over him. Noah wasn''t thinking about anything other than the next handhold and he continued sliding ignoring the sound. At some point though, the noise appeared in the fog below him. When Noah went for the next "root" he found out that it had two eyes and a tongue pointed in his direction. ''Earth snake!'' The "roots" on the wall were, in fact, snake-type magical beasts, specifically Earth snakes. Before the snake could bite him though, Noah grabbed him by its throat and held on it. ''You are just a rank 1 beast, you are no different from a root in my eyes!'' These were his thoughts as he continued to slow his fall using the same method as before. More and more snakes came out from the holes in the wall till Noah could see about a hundred of them below him. He could not stop or retreat so he directly jumped in their pack kicking and punching any beast that attacked him. The snakes were weak and almost harmless to a rank 2 body in the higher tier but Noah''s real threat was the fall, he could not allow himself to gain speed. Since a slow descent was no longer possible Noah chose to directly walk on the bodies of the snakes, jumping from beast to beast like they were the steps of a stair! He was walking down the cliff on the heads of a pack of rank 1 magical beasts! After a few hundred meters treaded in this way, the fog finally began to disperse showing the valley at the bottom of the gorge. The environment was filled with green grass and a small river ran in the middle of it. Noah though had no time to enjoy the scenery as a scary view unfolded in the valley below him. Tens of yellow snakes more than seven meters long were coiled on each other on the ground with one longer than fifteen meters in their center. Noah stared with wide eyes at the beasts while moving toward them, he could not stop even if he wanted to. When he was at less than fifty meters from the ground, he unsheathed his sabers and let his body falling freely in the middle of the dreadful pack of snakes. ''About thirty rank 2 and one rank 3 Earth snakes, bring it on!'' Chapter 54: 54. Snake valley Noah landed on the pack of magical beasts. The snakes were already awakened by the noise coming from the wall and immediately attacked Noah. A two meters large head with the mouth open came in his direction but was instantly cut in two halves by a vertical slash. The snakes grew restless when one of their pack died and madly punched at Noah that was forced to block the incoming blows. He was sent flying on the wall where he came from and brutally crashed on it. He could not waste any time as the rank 1 snakes were jumping at him from the holes above and the rank 2 ones were encircling him. Generally speaking, a group of rank 2 magical beasts could not hurt Noah in a normal situation. However, he had to jump straight in the middle of their pack due to the fall and the snakes were already prepared for his arrival. There was also the problem with the type of magical beasts they were. Snake-types magical beasts were usually very resilient and had a strong body with few weak points, they were considered among the most dangerous kind of magical beasts. In the case of the Earth snakes, their bodies were extremely tough and had immense strength, yet they could not secrete poison from their fangs. ''Killing the rank 2 is quite easy even if troublesome, but the rank 3 is problematic to handle in this mess.'' The rank 3 snake was in the rear of the group keeping its eyes on Noah while the rank 2 attacked him, it seemed to study his movements waiting for the right moment to strike. Noah pushed back the snakes in front him launching six wind slashes on them, he completely ignored the rank 1 jumping from above. The slashes hit their bodies leaving deep wounds but they seemed not to care and begun to charge again. Noah dodged this time and ran toward the right part of the valley madly slashing at anything that came near him. ''They are too many and I''m not even at full strength. I should escape.'' The concentration of "Breath" on his right side was slightly lower than on the left one so he chose that direction. ''Magical beasts will prefer a higher concentration of "Breath", so it''s safe to assume that the beasts within the areas with a lower concentration will be weaker.'' Snakes kept on trying to encircle him but he would simply slash forward creating a path through their bodies. Dark red blood fell on him continuously as he forced the blockage of the beasts. When he was almost outside the borders of the pack, the rank 3 beast decided to strike. Its massive body reached Noah''s position in an instant and it shot on him with its mouth wide open. Seeing the four meters large head coming from behind him, Noah jumped in the air and blocked the snake''s fangs with his two sabers. The clash flung Noah at some distance away from the pack and made him crash heavily on the ground. ''Peak rank 3!'' Thought Noah while he stood up inside the hole he created. He was lightly injured from the previous attack but he had managed to get away from his disadvantageous position. Noah didn''t look back and ran at full speed following the decreasing concentration of "Breath". The snakes behind him followed but could not catch up with him, their speed was below the average of the beasts on the same rank. The chase continued for an hour. Noah had to face the continuous assaults of other snake-type beasts that appeared in front of him while escaping. ''Fire snakes, Horned snakes, Two-headed snakes, why don''t they straight up call this place snake valley?!?'' Noah cursed in his mind while relentlessly slashing at any new beast that appeared in his sight. ''If it wasn''t for all these magical beasts randomly attacking me I would have shaken off the rank 3 from my back already! Luckily they are all rank 2.'' Corpses kept on accumulating on the path he was treading on and red blood kept on flowing on the river at the center of the valley. At some point, an imponent figure appeared in front of him. Its body was eighteen meters long and large four, it had three horns on its head and from its fangs was dripping a violet dense liquid. ''Rank 3 Horned snake!'' Behind it, a handful of rank 2 horned snakes were coiled together looking in his direction. The rank 3 Horned snake wasn''t looking at him but at the rank 3 Earth snake following him, there seemed to be hatred in its eyes. Realization dawned on Noah looking at the Horned snake''s expression. ''They must have fought for the spot with the higher concentration of "Breath" and the Horned snake lost! That''s why its pack is smaller. I can make use of it.'' Noah went in the direction of the Horned snake with resolution. The beast was enraged by the small human trespassing its territory and shot out violet liquid spheres from its mouth. Noah dodged them and sensed that when they hit the ground they corroded it instantly, leaving deep holes in it. ''To think that at rank 3 it can use its poison as a ranged attack.'' He kept on running and passed the Horned snake jumping straight in its remaining pack. The rank 2 snakes attacked him but he simply shot out more wind slashes making sure only to wound them, they were his precious helpers after all. He continued his escape without caring for the events happening behind him. The rank 3 Earth snake had met with the rank 3 Horned snake and engaged in a furious battle. Meanwhile, the pack of Earth snakes arrived and were about to overwhelm the one of Horned snakes when Noah got too far away and could not sense their fight anymore. He ran for another hour to be sure that he was outside of their patrol area. As he ran, the quantity of rank 2 magical beasts diminished being replaced by rank 1 beasts and the concentration of "Breath" began to resemble the one of the cavity he was in. The beasts there seemed to be afraid of him as none of them tried to attack. Noah looked around him for a bit and found a small cave inhabited by a few rank 1 fire snakes. It was quite hidden and there weren''t any holes on its walls so he chose to rest there. He cleared the beasts inside it and laid on the ground to rest. Chapter 55: 55. Golem Noah rested for half a day. After he woke up, he ate a light meal and stretched a map in front of him. The map was pretty simple but it described a large area of the Utra continent, it was the best one Noah managed to find in the outer circle. ''I''m going in the opposite direction of Balvan mansion but maybe there will be a path to the surface there.'' He had gone where the "Breath"''s concentration was lower during the fight which was on the contrary way of his mansion. ''I should first explore this area. I don''t really want to face those beasts packs unless I''m forced to.'' He stood up and exited the cave. He finally had the time to look carefully at the environment of the valley. The ground was filled with green grass and light shone brightly from the fog above it. ''Strange, it has been half a day but the night did not come. Maybe the fog has something to do with this.'' The fog was constantly releasing daylight making every detail of the valley vivid and clear. Noah continued his exploration of the area where the "Breath" was less dense. Many rank 1 snake-type magical beasts were hiding at his sight, returning to their caves or simply crawling away. The walls around him were steep and were not suitable for climbing, Noah almost considered to give up on the exploration of this side of the valley when something unusual appeared in his sight. It was at the end of the valley and there were almost no magical beasts, the walls too were still steep. However, on the ground, there were remains of a man-made building. ''How is this possible?'' Noah got close to the wrecked structure to inspect it but then a massive figure shot out in his direction. Noah hastily unsheathed his sabers to block the attack and got flung away for some meters by it. He raised his guard and waited for another attack to come but nothing happened. He took a look at the immobile figure standing in front of the building. It was a three meters tall set of armor with no face appearing on the helmet''s hole. Blue runes emitted a soft light through all its body creating a blue halo around its figure. There were signs of combat on the armor as it was full of dents and holes. Seeing that the armor was unmoving, Noah relaxed and thought for a bit. ''Is it defending that area? How do I destroy it?'' He slashed in the air and a blade of wind shot out in the direction of the golem. The golem raised its arms to block the blow and only a slight mark appeared on them after they clashed with Noah''s attack. ''Mh, I should be able to break it if I go all out but that would leave me powerless. I don''t know if it is the only one there.'' His attention shifted to the blue runes. ''It should be fueled by those inscriptions, maybe it will stop working if I break them.'' After he set up the plan, he no longer hesitated. He jumped straight at the golem launching three wind slashes and moved to its side. The golem had to block the slashes and could not focus on Noah''s attack from inside his guard. The saber cut through a rune on the chest armor turning off its blue light. ''One down, nine remaining.'' Noah and the golem fought for some minutes as he would use a hit and run tactic always going out of its defense perimeter to limit the dangers of the battle. ''Ten down.'' When the last rune was pierced, the golem fell lifelessly on the ground. Noah examined the armor a little before shaking his head and putting it in the space-ring. ''I really don''t understand inscriptions. I should keep it, maybe it''s worth something.'' Then he turned his head to the broken building and concentrated. He moved toward it wary of his surroundings, he didn''t know if another golem would appear. However, everything was silent and no dangers arrived. Noah relaxed and began to make conjectures. ''This structure was almost as big as the Balvan mansion, it should have belonged to one of the medium-size noble families that came to explore the valley.'' His eyes lit up when he realized that if the family had completely moved here, they must have moved their treasury too! Noah began to gain speed in his exploration as he could not wait to go deeper into the building. Sometimes he would find old skulls or bones, sometimes only useless remains. Meanwhile, a doubt formed in his mind. ''If they were at the same level as my family, how is it possible that they were destroyed in this relatively safe area?'' The signs of struggle indicated that a battle had occurred but Noah did not understand who or what had the strength to defeat them. ''Even the pack of Earth snakes could not do it, so how did they die?'' He arrived at the inner part of the mansion while thinking that. A big broken door divided the area and three four meters golems were in pieces on the ground. Noah examined the dents on their armor and concluded that it was the work of a magical beast. ''This place has more dangers than simply rank 3 magical beasts.'' A sense of restlessness grew inside him as he became determined to get out of the valley as soon as possible. He passed the big door and entered the inner part of the mansion. The insides were slightly more intact than the outsides and from some of the remainings, you could imagine how luxurious it should have been before. Noah moved quickly and stopped only after he found a small metal door still closed in one of the rooms. He became excited and pushed the door open still holding his sabers. The door was heavy and scraping sounds came from the ground as it opened. Noah took a look at the other side and noticed that saw a small room almost empty except for a skeleton sitting on a throne with his limbs crossed. Chapter 56: 56. Blood companion Noah focused all his mental energy on the skeleton but he found nothing wrong with it, so he decided to examine the room. The room was clean and completely empty, its walls seemed more resistant than the others of the building. ''This should have been some kind of vault, which means that the treasures are with the skeleton.'' He neared the throne and inspected it. The throne had nothing special with it and the skeleton was the same except for a box in his hands. Noah took the box and opened it, inside there was a book with some runes on it. Expectation was mounting in Noah''s mind as he sat on the floor a started reading. ''The beasts tide broke through the outer ring, they will be here at any moments. My Assea family is doomed but our will must go on so I decided to write this book and seal it with some inscription to make it last the passage of time.'' At these words, Noah became completely focused as one thing came to his mind. ''Inheritance!'' ''My family is famous for our inscriptions and animated puppets, its a noble art passed down by my ancestors but its power in combat is lower than the average martial art. That''s why we came here, we wanted to nurture our descendants in this environment and study more application of our art.'' ''Everything went well for a period, we were making progress and our descendants were growing strong but then we have awoken the King of this place.'' Noah was surprised for a moment before he resumed his reading. ''The King was sleeping below the area with the highest density of "Breath" and was extremely angry when it realized that there were trespassers in its territory. It sent hordes of magical beasts to attack us and the previous patriarch, my father, died in the process of defending us.'' ''We were forced to hide in this place but the King didn''t want any non-snake creature to be in its domain and so we arrived in this situation.'' Noah imagined something stronger than the dragon in his childhood and shivered at that thought. If a patriarch of a medium-size family could not win against this King how could he hope to survive? ''We can''t fly like my father and the passage to the surface is on the other side of the valley so this will be the end of my family. I will pass to you the pinnacle of our art that we managed to create, I hope that it will help you to survive this place and, one day, to avenge us by killing that King. My name is Uriah Assea, and this is my lifelong achievement.'' Noah''s eyes kept going on the next pages without blinking once and a smile began to appear on his face. ''I can use it! I can use this spell!'' The spell read: ''Body-inscription spell, rank depending on the strength of the companion, no elemental requirements as the spell will be stronger if paired with a magical beast of the user''s same element. The spell consists of engraving the figure of the chosen magical beasts on the user body to create a blood companion. The blood companion will have the same strength of the actual beast if its element matches with the user since it''s fueled by the "Breath" in the user''s body. The process to create the blood companion is complex and must be followed strictly otherwise the inscription will fail.'' ''To create the inscription on the body, the user must dip a sharp stick or a weapon on the blood of the magical beast that he decided and draw its image on his body. The drawing must be done below the skin so the user must cut through it in order to reach the specific depth. After the drawing is complete, the user needs to eat the center of power of the beast to give life to its image. The center of power is generally the hearth of the beast. When the drawing becomes alive, the user must subdue it with his mental energy and then he will have completed the procedure.'' There were examples of drawings that reached the standard required for the spell and many of them were of snake-like beasts, the Assea family had probably experimented a lot on them. Noah meanwhile had a bright smile on his face. ''It is totally doable! My first spell! I wonder if I''ll get the right element on the first try.'' The description of the spell continued listing its advantages and disadvantages. ''The blood companion can attack on its own or be controlled by the user so its efficiency vastly surpasses normal puppets. The user will share his "Breath" and mental energy with the companion and will need to use a part of them to feed it or to make it recover. The pressure on the sea of consciousness of the user will grow as the companion sensations will be shared with the user. The beast needs to be recently killed or the "Breath" in its heart will not suffice for giving life on the inscription. It is better if the user killed it as it will be easier to subdue on the last part of the process. The blood of the beast must be filled with the "Breath" of the user in order to have a better control over the body of the companion, that''s why the valley, with its high density of "Breath", is the perfect place to create these types of inscriptions. To remove the companion, just kill it.'' Noah''s hands trembled from the excitement he was feeling and he hastily stored the book in the space-ring. ''Hahaha! It is perfect for me right now! Yet, which beast should I choose? The Fire snakes are the weaker but I didn''t find any rank 3 till now and the Earth snakes have a pack too big for me to go there and kill their boss quietly.'' He thought for a bit before doing an evil smirk and looking in the direction where he came from. ''That horned snake should have survived right?'' Chapter 57: 57. Preparations Noah walked slowly toward the other side of the valley. He would stop frequently to train in the writing showed in Uriah''s diary and to review the details of the spell. ''Since the body of the companion is made with its blood mixed with my "Breath" its rank is fixed. Well, theoretically it is possible to upgrade it but you would need a different technique and the risks of the companion dying will be high. It is simply safer to switch to a stronger one once you have the necessary strength to tame it.'' He was drawing on the ground the shape of a snake with his saber while holding the book in his other hand. ''I wonder if I''m being too greedy going for a rank 3 right away. If I kill it I should have some advantages in taming it, yet can I sustain it? Well, having a rank 2 companion at my level is useless anyway.'' His prey was a peak rank 3 Horned snake while he was only a rank 1 mage, it was natural for him to have some doubts. ''It doesn''t say anything about making more than one companion either, I guess it depends on the pressure I can withstand with my sea of consciousness.'' The was another reason he was moving slowly and it was the "Breath"''s density. The density was so high that the effects on his body resembled those of the "Breath" blessing he found during the events with the Ironclad spiders. Noah was having the faint sensation of getting close to a sort of limit. ''If I stay here for a couple of months I should reach the end of the sixth cycle, and that based on the density in this area. If I go further in the valley it will take even less.'' He was purposely slowing his trip back to the mansion to make use of the quality of this place. ''There is also that King''s problem, but I''m really powerless about anything related to it.'' The drawing was done and Noah nodded looking at it, he was satisfied with the result. ''Now where that snake can be?'' . . . The rank 3 Horned snake was lying on the river to let the water filled with "Breath" enter its body. There were many wounds on its body, probably due to its battle with the pack of Earth snakes, and no rank 2 snakes of its pack were present. The snake was sleeping but it was right in the open, there was no way to take it by surprise. Noah was hiding behind a rock looking at it, the saber in his hand was drawing the snake''s figure on the terrain. ''Mh it looks injured, this is good, but there is no way to take it by surprise.'' The drawing was over, the snake''s figure this time had three little horns on his head. ''Time to get the main ingredient.'' Noah smiled unconsciously, the prospect of having his first spell was making him elated. He charged with his two sabers unsheathed and crossed in front of him. The snake woke up sensing something coming in its direction and was enraged to see again the little human that caused the incident with the Earth snakes. It immediately spewed a poisonous ball in his direction and then punched with its head where he was dodging to. Noah jumped and rotated horizontally, continuously sending wind slashes on the body of the snake. The slashes cut through its skin but only light wounds appeared. ''It is indeed powerful.'' Noah admitted and then assaulted it again. Clashes kept on happening and the Horned snake fought fiercely, but new wounds appeared on its body on every clash and, added to the old ones, they were starting to affect the massive beast. The Horned snake tried a desperate attack launching a poisonous projectile at melee range but Noah used this chance to jump over its head and pierce it with both his sabers. The sabers stabbed deeply into the snake''s skull as it started to thrash its body around the valley to remove the human from above its head. However, Noah held strongly on the sabers and pushed them deeper into the beast''s brain. After a minute of struggles, the snake finally fell dead on the ground. Noah jumped off its body and could not help but feel surprised. ''What an incredible vitality! Even with my blades in its brain it still resisted for so much.'' He could not put its body in the space-ring as it was too big so he hastily made a deep cut along its body. He took out a cask from his ring and threw the water inside it away, then he put the cask below the cut to accumulate the dripping blood. Then, he entered the cut and explored the insides of the snake''s body until he found its heart. After he came out of its body, he took off his upper clothes and washed in the river, he didn''t want any form of contamination to happen during the creation of the blood companion. Noah waited patiently for the cask to be filled and then he put everything back in his space-ring and went to hide in a cave nearby. There were some rank 2 snakes inside but they were immediately cleared and he had to go back to the river to wash again. When he was clean and in a safe place, he took out the cask and placed his hands on it. "Breath" flowed from his body into the snake''s blood inside the cask while his acupoints where absorbing madly the one around him. It took him an entire day to make the blood reach the standards described in the diary and when the process was over, the blood had become a dark dense liquid. Noah waited some more time for his body to be filled again with "Breath" and after making sure that everything was set he unsheathed a saber and dipped its tip in the liquid. His eyes were shining in excitement as he looked at the black blade dripping the dark blood. ''Time to begin!'' Chapter 58: 58. Not earth Noah took the saber with two hands and pointed its tip to his chest. He pushed firmly and the blade stabbed his skin. The dark blood poured in the wound and mixed with Noah''s body leaving a black mark. ''Again!'' He took out the saber and dipped it in the cask and then he stabbed his chest again. As he repeated the process, a figure began to appear on his body. Noah took two hours to complete the drawing and when it was over it covered his entire right chest area and a half of his shoulder, as for the pain he felt during the process, it didn''t even make him tremble. Noah had, by then, survived six treatments of the Forging of Seven Hells, some cuts on his skin were nothing to endure. Next, he used the remaining dark liquid in the cask to add details to the snake figure which took him another hour. When the blood was over, the drawing on his body began to feel heavy, like some sort of burden was added there. Noah stared at his shoulder and nodded in satisfaction. ''The first part is complete, now the heart.'' The heart of the snake appeared in his hand and Noah closed his eyes to concentrate on refilling the "Breath" in his body and sharpening his mental energy. After half an hour, he was ready. The heart was three times bigger than his hand, there was no way that he could eat it in one bite. Noah decisively took the first bite and gulped immediately, an awful taste invaded his mouth and a strong heat began to spread from the piece of foreign flesh in his body but was suddenly absorbed by the drawing. Noah took another bite and the same thing happened. When he took the last one and the heart had completely vanished the temperature of the drawing began to rise until Noah thought that his shoulder was on fire. The snake figure started to move and a tremendous pressure hit Noah''s sea of consciousness. Inside his mental sphere, the half-transparent image of a Horned snake appeared and went berserk! The snake directly head-butted on the sphere making it tremble, it seemed that it wanted to break out at any cost from that confinement. Noah felt an incredible pain in his head and focused on his sea of consciousness ignoring the pain on his shoulder. His figure inside the sphere opened his eyes and flew straight at the snake, two balls of water from the sea below him rose in the air and transformed in sabers that were caught firmly by his half-transparent hands. Noah cut directly on the snake image making it hiss in pain, but it didn''t care about him and continued to hit the sphere with all its body. Another wave of pain came from his mind that forced Noah to slow his assault. The snake attacked again and this time a small crack appeared on the sphere. Noah felt his consciousness fading for an instant before he focused again. ''If I let it continue like this I will surely die!'' He focused on the Kesier rune at the center of the sea which released a loud hum as an answer to Noah''s calling. The snake this time shook in pain, it could not focus again on the wall as it trembled and fell in the sea. Noah rapidly followed and dove in its direction. The sea was a representation of its thoughts and mental energy, it could not hurt him at all. With the rune humming continuously and Noah''s relentless assault, the snake figure became less and less corporeal until it completely shattered and was absorbed by the sea. The shards of the snake''s previous image recomposed and appeared next to the space-ring projection, Noah relaxed when he felt the connection with it. The Horned snake was coiled lazily over the sea and it was smaller than the previous one that Noah fought. Noah went close to it and inspected it carefully. The snake sensed his presence and opened its eyes, raising its head to stare at Noah''s figure. After a few seconds of them exchanging stares, the snake lowered its head and Noah felt that it had surrendered. He patted its head satisfied and came out of his sea of consciousness. Meanwhile, the snake drawing had stopped burning but was now moving freely along his body. Noah felt his companion moving and tried to control it with his mental energy. The snake followed his order and moved to the chest area but some of the "Breath" inside his body was expended and the crack in his sphere released a wave of pain due to the usage of mental energy. ''I''ll experiment later with this guy, now I have to heal from the injuries. Luckily, I thought of using the rune at the last moment otherwise...'' Another wave of pain came from his mind, it seemed that the crack was pressuring his sphere. Noah decided to stay in the cave as he consumed the sea in his mind to fill the crack and close it. In this period, he would consume all the mental energy he had to secure the wound and then go to sleep to refill it. It took him one week to completely heal his sphere. ''Wounds on the sea of consciousness sure are troublesome, I had to focus on the crack for the whole time incapable of doing anything else. Well, at least now I have succeeded.'' "Breath" from his body and mental energy were expended as a half-transparent snake twelve meters long appeared in front of him. The snake seemed ethereal, with just its edges completely material, the insides were filled by black smoke. Its tail was connected to Noah''s body from his left foot. ''Attack me.'' Noah ordered as more mental energy was expended. The snake raised its head and shot at Noah that unsheathed his saber and blocked the blow, he was pushed for a few meters before stopping. A disappointed expression was on his face when he focused again on the snake. ''Rank 3 strength but of the initial stage, while that Horned snake was definitely a peak stage. Horned snakes belong to the earth element, so now I can be sure that I''m not of that one.'' Chapter 59: 59. Testing ''Well, nothing I can do about it, I should just be happy to have a rank 3 blood companion. Also, the pressure in my mind seems to work like an inferior version of the Kesier rune.'' The pressure on Noah''s sea of consciousness with the addition of the snake''s figure had increased greatly. The snake''s image would release a constant weight on his mental sphere steadily enlarging it. ''The effects are not as noticeable as the training in the rune, yet it''s still the first increase of mental energy I had since I became a rank 1 mage.'' Since William had yet to give him the second rune, his training had halted in that field. However, with the new burden in his mind, his sphere was finally enlarging again. ''It''s a pity that I can''t create another companion. I feel that my mind has reached the limits of what it can withstand.'' He controlled his companion for a bit to get used to the new ability and to familiarize himself with its peculiarities. The snake shared all its senses with Noah, it was like having a mind inside his mind and that was what caused the constant pressure. Noah had to get used to looking in two different directions at the same time, deciding twice the actions to make, useless to say that the expenditure of mental energy was high. Nevertheless, he could sustain it, he was after all a rank 1 mage. The only problem was, as always, the "Breath" expenditure. After a whole hour of training, he had to stop to refill the "Breath" in his body which was almost completely consumed. A bit of irritation struck him as he patted is low waist looking at it angrily. ''Fucking dantian form already! I''m sick of having this stupid limit.'' He sat on the ground to calm himself and decide on his next move, the companion had retreated in his body in the meantime. ''First, I have to get used to my new combat strength and I can do it by fighting some beasts during my trip to the other side of the valley. Second, I should take things slowly to raise the level of my body as much as possible, I don''t know what dangers are lying in wait for me on the road. Lastly, I have to get out of here a go back to the mansion, I bet that Lily and Master are worried about me.'' He set his priorities and rested, in order to escape the valley he had to be at his peak form every time he decided to move. . . . A week passed, as a young man with his upper body naked walked cautiously in the valley. Sometimes he would jump in some cave and come out covered in blood, sometimes rank 2 magical beasts would attack him to be devoured by a huge black shadow. ''The density of "Breath" is increasing so much that if I release my companion for only a few attacks I can refill the "Breath" expended immediately. The only problem is that my clothes get torn in the process.'' Since the companion was mostly wandering in his chest area, the upper part of his dark gym suit had been ripped during the recent fights. ''It seems that I have to store clothes in the space-ring from now on.'' He reached the middle part of the valley, in the area where he first had fallen and a familiar scene presented to him. A large pack of rank 2 Earth snakes was coiled around a rank 3 one. The rank 3 snake was sleeping and some violet spots were present on his yellow body, the fight with the Horned snake had left some injuries on its body. ''I guess it is time to test my real strength now. I wonder if it will be happy to meet its old friend.'' The blood companion came out from his body and covered him, Noah was inside its gaseous interiors being carried by the snake. This was one of the applications of the spell that Noah managed to discover, not only the body of the snake would act as a form of protection but it could also hide him pretending that he was some kind of magical beast. This was also the best option he could think about in the unfortunate event that the King found him. The companion moved toward the pack alerting its rank 2 members. The rank 3 also woke up but looked confusedly in its direction, it seemed that it found some similarities with its old enemy but, at the same time, it was different. It hissed an order to the rank 2 snakes and they moved in the companion''s direction. Before they could encircle it though, the companion raised his huge body in the air and sibilated at them. A rank 3 beast was a leader among rank 2 beasts, and even with its initial stage strength, it was still a threat to their pack. The group halted their advancement for a moment and, in that instant of hesitation, a small figure shot out from the body of the companion severing immediately two snakes heads. A small gaseous line connected the small figure to the one of the ethereal snake. The pack moved their attention to Noah but at that moment the blood companion attacked and bit the head on one of the snakes crushing it one blow! In only one move three rank 2 snakes had died. The rank 3 Earth snake got enraged and shot in their direction but, in the meantime, Noah had already pierced another snake''s head and the companion was chewing on another beast. When the big Earth snake arrived, it directly head-butted toward the blood companion which was forced some meters back from the clash. A wave of pain hit Noah as more "Breath" was expended to heal the injuries just suffered by his snake but he was prepared for that. He slashed promptly at the rank 3 beast leaving a deep wound slightly below its head. Chapter 61: 61. Sea When Noah woke up, Assea was still on his side with just its head sticking out of his body. He felt completely rested, both mentally and physically, but he knew that the "Breath" in his body could sustain his companion for one entire night only because of the "Breath"''s density in this place. ''Now it''s time for the really dangerous stuff. Uriah''s diary said that the passage to the surface is on the other side of the valley but it should also be where the King sleeps since the concentration of "Breath" keeps on rising in that direction.'' A stern expression was on his face as he ate and looked randomly in front of him still deep in his thoughts. After some time, when he had finished his meal, he sighed and shook his head. ''If it''s death that waits for me than so be it, no reason to hesitate.'' He stood up and a cold determination was exuded from him. Mages had a mind so strong they could affect some of the environment around them, Noah wasn''t on that level yet, but he still radiated a sort of pressure depending on his state of mind. What he was spreading then was a pure resolution to do anything in his power to survive. With his mind focused and his body rested, Noah moved out of the cavity. His advance was slow, he was wary of anything that moved outside of his perception and he would stop every time to carefully inspect the area in front of him. ''I''m not gonna make another mistake like the one with the roots on the wall, and with this pace, I can even raise the level of my body a little before reaching the other side.'' Noah would take any chance to increase his strength before going into such a precarious situation. However, something unusual came to his attention during the trip. ''There is not even a magical beast.'' No snakes were present in this area of the valley, it was completely void of any beast''s life forms despite the density of "Breath" being way higher than before. Noah continued his slow voyage full of doubts. Every time he felt slightly tired he would find a cave and rest, only to move again when his strength was at its peak. Four days passed without him encountering any threat. ''Maybe I''m lucky and all the magical beasts are somewhere busy with something.'' Of course, that was not the case. When he neared the end of the valley and the wall of its other side was visible, Noah saw a scene that almost made him lose hope. The last part of the canyon was large with a waving sea in it and a small white mountain at its center. Nevertheless, the sea was not made of water but of thousands of slithering bodies. Noah could only stare astonished at the view. Thousands of rank 1 snakes, hundreds of rank 2 and about one hundred of rank 3 were all coiled together forming a multicolored sea. ''I''m dead if I go in there, dantian or not there is no way I can survive.'' Noah watched attentively the huge pack trying to find anything that he could use and noticed a few details. ''Why do they seem so malnourished? And what is that thing near the mountain?'' The snakes were incredibly thin, Noah thought he could hear the rumbles of their stomachs but they weren''t doing anything about that. Sometimes a snake would bite a beast near it and continue on its way like it did the most natural thing in the world. Most shocking thing was that the snake that received the wound would just allow it uncaring of its body being eaten. There also seemed to be relief in those that were hurt and fear in those who ate! Noah''s conjectures of this world nearly crumbled watching their unnatural behavior. Near the mountain, at its base, a big yellow pile of what seemed snake''s skin was rhythmically emitting soft rays of light. ''What is all of this?'' Noah decided to study the mass of snakes for some time before determining his next action. Two more days passed with him trying to find some hidden pattern in their conduct to exploit but all he managed to notice was that the pile of snake''s skin had accelerated the cadence of the leakage of light. He had a hypothesis about that event which made him restless. ''Don''t tell me that it is a magical beast in hibernation to evolve? But, considering its dimensions, wouldn''t that be a rank 4?'' Noah had never fought a rank 4 beast but he was sure that he wasn''t its match. ''If it is really like that then it would be better to move before it evolves. The passage should be behind the mountain and since the snakes seem so passive I might be able to reach it disguised as Assea.'' He resolved himself and summoned his blood companion, entering its body. He was about to go out in the open to join the sea when the cocoon cracked and a loud hiss resounded in the valley. A giant yellow snake emerged from the pile of flesh, it was thirty meters long and it raised its body in the air as to show the pack its achievement. The pack looked at it with a bit of awe as its pressure unfolded in that area of the valley, even Noah was affected and trembled a little inside Assea''s body. At that moment though, a tremor ran through the canyon and rocks began to fall from the walls due to the earthquake. All the snakes in the pack lowered their heads in fear in the direction of the white mountain. Even the newly evolved rank 4 beast turned to look at the mountain with reverence as a loud hiss engulfed the valley. Noah felt pain in his ears as the sound hit him and had to focus completely on them to avoid becoming deaf. When the noise stopped everything was silent, none of the thousands of snakes were uttering a sound. Noah looked in the direction of the hill and, in his bewilderment, he saw that the mountain was moving. Chapter 62: 62. Cruelty Noah did not move, or to say it better, he could not do that. The pressure released by the mountain was immense, everyone had to stay still to resist it. Then, the mountain showed a reptilian head large seven meters that went in front of the rank 4 snake that had just evolved. Only then Noah could make out the true form of the mountain. It was a colossal snake more than fifty meters long and its skin was so white that it seemed to shine on its own. Looking at it, he wondered how it was possible for a being to reach such splendor with a material body. The snake appeared like some sort of godly existence, surpassing anything Noah had ever seen in his two lives. The rank 4 snake looked majestic on its own but in front of the King of the valley, it was just another member of its pack. ''W-What is that monster?'' Noah managed to have this sole thought before his mind underwent another shook due to the following events. The King and the rank 4 stared at each other for a long time before the rank 4 lowered its head in submission. The King then opened its mouth and laid its head on the ground waiting calmly. The rank 4 snake looked at it for a moment before entering the King''s mouth on its own will! It was thirty meters long and it took a while before its body entered completely in the King''s mouth but the latter just remained still during the whole process. When the body of the newly evolved snake disappeared, the King closed its mouth and raised its head to look at the pack below it. It released a soft hiss that made Noah shake in the distance and that set off a change in the behavior of the snakes. They started to eat each other violently uncaring for their own lives. Blood flowed endlessly as the epitome of cannibalism unfolded in front of Noah. It was only when their number was almost halved that the King hissed again to make them stop and coiled on itself to resume its sleep. The snakes of the pack, having eaten fully, were showing signs of becoming stronger, some specimen seemed even to be on the verge of breaking through a rank. However, there was no happiness or excitement in the beast''s eyes but only helplessness and fear. Before the King settled again though, Noah noticed a hole in the wall behind its body that had a faint light coming from it. The snakes resumed their aimlessly slithering and Noah assimilated Assea back in his body as he fell on the ground in his hiding spot. His hands were shaking and his mind was in turmoil, it took him an entire hour before he managed to calm himself. ''Fuck, fuck, FUCK!'' Countless curses sounded in his mind as he took control of his body again. ''I could only tremble at that thing sight! Its sole presence is almost enough to kill me, and the patriarch of the Assea family fought it? How many monsters like them there are in this world?'' He was quite proud of his achievements in this life, after all, he had trained for less than five years and he was only a bit more than thirteen years old. That pride though was shattered seeing how meaningless his accomplishments were in front of such might. When he reviewed the previous scenes in his mind he could only find one word to describe them. ''Cruel.'' He thought. ''The world is incredibly cruel.'' He was calm when he understood the situation in the valley. ''The King forces the snakes in its pack to eat each other and it waits until a rank 4 is born between them. Then it eats it to become stronger and repeats the cycle. I believe that with the concentration of "Breath" in that area and with the forced cannibalism he manages to create one every few decades.'' A feeling of respect appeared inside Noah as he looked again in the direction of the King. ''All of this only to increase its already incredible strength by a little. Even as a beast, its determination in its pursuit of power is commendable.'' He shook his head and a complex smile formed on his face. ''I simply kill everyone in my way while it actively exploits its own kind to reach a higher realm. Our wills are on a completely different level.'' He stood still for some more time until the fire of ambition flared up from his eyes. ''I can''t die now! I don''t want to die after I saw such an otherworldly strength. I want to reach that level, I want to surpass it!'' He moved his gaze away and entered the closest cave he managed to find. ''First I''ll complete the sixth cycle.'' . . . One month went by. Noah spent his days meditating to increase the absorption rate of his acupoints. He also practiced in his usage of the blood companion as he needed to be perfect in his snake form to succeed in his escape. He had seen the hole in the wall behind the King and that was the only way to the surface that he could think of. ''Uriah wrote that the passage is there and since that one is the only cavity I could see, I have to bet on that.'' The rest of his time was spent looking at the pack of snakes. There were no changes in their behavior during the month that passed and since they had eaten recently, only some of them had resumed giving small bites to those around them. He had looked attentively to all the rank 3 in the pack and ascertained that no one of them was ready to evolve. When he woke up one day, he was happy to find out that his acupoints had stopped working and he felt that his body had reached a familiar limit. His sixth cycle was complete! He was ready to leave. Chapter 63: 63. Death area Noah reached his usual observation spot and looked toward the pack. The snakes were doing their typical efforts in resisting the hunger to avoid any increase in their strength, yet their will to live wouldn''t allow them to simply starve to death. Everything looked the same as the other days, so Noah decided that it was time to move. He could not increase his power any more than that, it was better to move before something unexpected happened. Noah entered Assea''s body and slowly slithered toward the mass of snakes. The beasts in the pack were a bit surprised to find a new specimen joining them, no one would force himself to undergo their kind of life. Nevertheless, they did nothing and just watched for a moment as the black ethereal snake entered the coiled crowd. Noah sank inside the sea of bodies and began to move using his mental energy as a compass to not lose his way. He had to reach the wall at the end of the valley and he would rather avoid bumping in the King''s body in the process. His advance was slow as he preferred to maintain the same pace of the specimens around him. Noah''s trip across the sea of snakes had begun. He didn''t dare to be on the surface but the presence of the King disturbed his orientation so he had to systematically emerge to understand his position. Sometimes he would feel a sharp pain due to Assea''s sensations as the other snakes around it took small bites of its insubstantial skin. However, he simply ignored it, he had already considered this situation while formulating his plan. Every time he was bitten, he would sink deeper into the pack to heal his companion. Repeating this cycle, he was slowly getting closer to his target. He was completely immersed in snake''s bodies and the King radiated a constant pressure that made him nervous. Noah felt like suffocating inside the pack but Assea''s protection managed to make him keep going. It took him half a day to crawl across the thousands of beasts and he felt extremely tired due to the constant stress he had to endure. However, the scene that he saw on the other side was disheartening. There were no snakes on the back of the King''s body, or rather there could not be. The cavity radiating light was right in front of him but he could not go for it recklessly. The King had its head pointed in the hole''s direction and every time he breathed, pieces of terrain would crumble and the ground would corrode. Even in its sleep, its breath could kill any weaklings! Noah saw a rank 2 Two-headed snake slip from the pack and ending in the area in front of the King''s head. Its body was shredded into pieces as soon as the King breathed out! A conical area of death started from the King''s head and ended at the entrance of the passage in the wall. ''Now I know why no beast is escaping, they simply can''t.'' The last dilemma that bothered him when he created the plan was solved. ''With its strength, it should be able to subdue snakes more powerful than rank 4. Does it immediately eat them because they might manage to escape?'' The constant pressure it radiated forced the snakes to stay in the pack and its breath closed their only way out. ''The real question is: can I survive till I reach the cavity?'' If Noah entered the area of death from its closest point to the passage the distance would be around one hundred meters. With his speed and the rate at which the King exhaled, he would need to survive two to three attacks. ''I don''t have any other option, I will first replenish my mental energy and then go in.'' The "Breath" in his body was not a problem since he completed the sixth cycle and since the density of "Breath" in this area was the highest of the valley. However, the mental energy he had to use to move to the other side of the pack was plenty and he needed to refill it before crossing the last hurdle. ''Luckily I only need to give an order and Assea will do that autonomously until I have "Breath" to support its actions.'' One of the strong points of the Body-inscription spell was that the user had to spend only a bit of mental energy when commanding the blood companion, the rest of the time it will just act on its own following the order. That meant that, apart from the initial expenditure and the pressure from sharing its senses, the mental energy''s cost was extremely low. In a place where the "Breath" was so concentrated the blood companion could work almost endlessly with just a bit of mental energy. Of course, this was also due to Noah''s body-nourishing technique as it absorbed "Breath" on its own without Noah''s need to meditate. Noah chose to rest in the pack of snakes. He fell asleep inside Assea''s body while it quietly moved at the edges of the empty conical area. The pressure from the King was still there so it took longer for the water level inside Noah''s mental sphere to rise till it occupied half of it. When he woke up, he was met with the familiar scene of snake''s bodies coiled on each other. ''Life or death is all in those one hundred meters.'' Assea moved toward the edge of the pack, in the closest place to the cavity. Noah cut off any useless thoughts from his mind, focusing only on moving forward and enduring any pain that assaulted him. He stared at the King''s head waiting for the moment it exhaled to have the best timing possible. As the breath smashed on the wall and dissipated, Noah jumped at full speed toward the cavity. The snakes in the pack saw a black snake moving in the area of death toward the hope that they had long abandoned. Chapter 64: 64. Laugh Assea moved at full speed alongside the wall. Noah inside it was only looking at the path in front of him, nothing else was worth his attention. Some of the snakes in the pack started to hiss in his direction as if it was some kind of entertainment. Then, when he had crossed a bit less than fifty meters, the first blow arrived. What Noah initially felt was an incredible pressure that flung him into the wall. Then, the pain came. Assea''s body was the first line of defense and was shredded into pieces almost immediately! Noah forced its body to reconstruct but it only delayed the impact on his body for a moment as Assea was wrecked again in just an instant. He slammed into the wall and many cuts appeared on his skin but, before he suffered any serious injury, he summoned Assea a third time to endure the rest of the attack. Its body was destroyed till only a silhouette remained but the first blow was successfully blocked! A huge amount of mental energy was expended because Noah had to withstand the pain Assea felt having its body destroyed three times. However, as soon as the pain stopped, Noah started to run again, no hesitation was present in his actions. His eyes were still fixed on the road and he left a trail of blood due to the injuries. He didn''t dare to use the "Breath" to stop the bleeding because all of it was being used for Assea''s healing. The pack of beasts yet had noticed his disguise and began to hiss madly at the sight of the small human hidden in the snake''s body. As if to shut down their noise, the King snorted lightly sending another stream of air in the area in front of it. Noah had moved for only thirty more meters before the second blow came. He was once again slammed into the wall and more wounds appeared on his body every time Assea''s figure collapsed. Nevertheless, he held on. His body was completely red due to the massive blood loss and was excoriated in many parts, but the vitality of a peak rank 2 body gave him the strength to keep running even in that condition. Noah movements were slower than before but he still managed to cross the last twenty meters entering the mouth of the cavity. The snakes behind him hissed even more crazily seeing that he had succeeded in reaching the escape route and began to move in its direction as to follow his example. The King woke up and roared to stop the riot of its pack and a shock wave hit Noah that had just entered the passage. He hadn''t relaxed yet so Assea''s body was still covering him. Its body crumbled at the impact and its figure inside Noah''s sea of consciousness cracked. Noah felt a tremendous pain in his head before getting hit by the roar. He could not resist even if he tried and his body was sent flying along the passage. Blood came out from his mouth, ears, and eyes but all he could do was protecting his head to avoid any fatal damage. He slammed repeatedly on the walls in front of him but the strength of the roar continued to push him forward and he was impotent in front of its might. Then, he crashed again but this time the rocks of the wall were soft enough for him to dig in them. His body created a small hole through the stones and finally stopped. No noise came out of the hole as Noah had fainted due to the last collision. Two days passed before Noah opened his eyes. His sight was cloudy and a constant buzz invaded his ears. It took him a while to remember the situation he was in and a bright smile appeared on his face when he understood that he had survived. Then he laughed loudly but had to stop quickly because a wave of pain hit him as he moved. ''I don''t want to see a snake anymore in my life.'' After he thought that, he fainted again. . . . One month later, in an area near Twilboia Cliff. A field full of shining flowers spanned for two hundred meters. This place was called Iano field due to the rare flowers that grew there. The Iano flowers had no use to the cultivators but were very appreciated by couples since they had the ability to gather sunlight making their own figure shine. At night, they resembled the starry giving a romantic vibe to the scenery. A small-size noble family called Wilford possessed this field and used it as a small form of income, selling the right to spend the night in that place to anyone that could afford it. A guard of the Wilford family was yawning lazily near the fence that determined the entrance to the field and a line of peasants and rich people was waiting for their moment to get inside. As the line moved on, the guard raised the price of the ingress arousing the anger of the costumers. However, any time someone tried to complain, he would proudly show his chest where the emblem of his family was and say arrogantly: "Are you saying that me, an honored guard of the Wilford family, would dare to profit on lowly commoners?" This was a line he practiced a lot to shut down the complaints about his attitude, after all a small-size family was still a noble family. This time though, something unexpected happened as soon as he said that. A slash made of wind shot out from the ground below of the Iano flowers. A small opening formed showing an intricate passage below the field, illuminated by the shining roots of the flowers. Noah came out of the opening uncaring of his surroundings. ''To think that the light in the passage was caused by these roots.'' He was almost naked, only some strips of clothes remained on his lower body. He looked around him and found the guard with his mouth open looking in his direction. Noah raised the saber in his hand to point at him and spoke in a calm voice. "Hey you, where is this place?'' Chapter 65: 65. Rank 5 A carriage with the emblem of the Winford family moved in the direction of Balvan mansion. When Noah came out of the ground, the guard wanted to obtain a refund for the damage he had caused on the field but it was enough to say the name "Balvan" to receive his apologies and a ride back home. That and a little threat of course. The ride was gladly accepted by Noah since he had yet to fully recover from his injuries. He had decided to go out of the passage in the valley as soon as he was able to move for fear of another roar from the King. The family even gave him a new set of clothes so he could hide again his space-ring in there. During the travel, he focused mostly on healing Assea''s cracked figure in his sea of consciousness and when he arrived at the mansion he was back at full strength. Looking at his home he could not help but smile a little. ''I''m finally back!'' . . . Turning back in time a little, about two weeks after Noah fell in the canyon. William was reading a report in the guards'' building. As he continued to read, his hands began to shake and an angry expression formed on his face. Then, the reading stopped and the sheet he was holding disintegrated. ''Fucking nobles, they sent Noah into a trap!'' He hurriedly went outside of the mansion and ran in the direction of Twilboia Cliff. It took him a week to reach the gorge but all he saw were corpses and remains of the battle. He searched all the bodies but he could not find Noah''s one. ''The report said that the caravan was assaulted here but he is not among the corpses.'' He fell deep in thought as he analyzed the situation. ''It''s unlikely that he was taken hostage by the Lansay family, they have no use for him. Where is he though?'' His gaze eventually fell on the cliff and William''s eyes widened. ''Don''t tell me that he decided to escape in the canyon! That is one of the danger zones of this area.'' He neared the cliff and stared at the space below it, only fog occupied his field of view. ''If you really are down here, may the Heaven have pity on you, my dear disciple.'' He stayed in that position for a whole day praying for Noah''s well being. Then he shook his head and sighed, going back on the road for his mansion. ''It''s better to hide this news from his mother.'' Months passed and his worry began to transform in helplessness. He forbid every guard to speak about the incident but ultimately, some rumors about Noah''s situation began to spread. Many believed that he had escaped and joined the Lansay family in exchange for cultivation resources. Others that he was taken as a prisoner to trade with the Balvan family. Lily, however, had a bad feeling about Noah''s condition as she noticed a change in Rhys'' attitude. He would visit her less frequently and was less violent during their nights spent together. Her worries accumulated but she could do nothing but harass William with questions. Nevertheless, she soon understood that even William knew nothing about her son''s situation. The waiting was becoming suffocating but nothing could be done. Then, after more than four months from Noah''s departure, the happy news came. Noah had returned to the mansion! Lily and William ran immediately from their respective buildings to the front gate of the mansion. William was the first to arrive and stood in place looking at the smiling youth on the carriage of the Wilford family. The youth had long black hair and shining blue eyes. He was wearing large clothes that didn''t seem fit for his stature and two sabers were sheathed on his back. A mature look was exuded from him and William could not help but smile radiantly at that sight. ''He has grown.'' Before he could move toward him though, Lily''s figure passed him and jumped directly on the smiling youth. "I told you to be careful and yet you disappear for so long! Don''t you know how worried I was? Enough, I''m not letting you out of your room for an entire month, no wait, let''s make it two months!" Lily was half hugging half rebuking her son but it was clear that she was happy from the bottom of her heart to see Noah safe. It took Noah and an entire day to calm her mother and reassure her, while William could only look from some distance at the family reunion. Lily feel asleep in Noah''s room that day, a smile was present on her sleeping figure. The next day, he spent all his morning with his mother before going to William''s room to deliver a report. Willam too was smiling unconsciously but his face became stern when Noah described the environment of the valley. He said nothing about the Assea family or the spell but he had one doubt since he escaped the canyon. "Master, which rank the King was?" William was still digesting Noah''s speech when he heard the question and fell deep in thought. After some hesitation he said in a soft voice: "Probably rank 5. You said that you opened a passage to the valley on the Iano field right? I must warn the Shosti family, they will manage the situation. I''m afraid that this circumstance is too dangerous for a medium-size family to handle.'' Noah became interested. "Will they kill the King?" William shook his head. "A battle with an entity on that level will shake all their area of power, they can''t afford that. Also, the valley would probably be destroyed in the process and they would lose the only benefits they could get. They will just secure the passage and make it a forbidden zone.'' Noah felt a bit disappointed since he wanted to see a battle of that might but what William said was reasonable. Then, he remembered something and smiled shamelessly toward his Master. "You know, my sixth cycle is complete. We might do the last treatment immediately." Looking at the smiling kid, a part of William wanted to throw him again in the cliff. Chapter 66: 66. Black Noah was in the torture room below the guards'' building, tied to the metal table. A black and smelly liquid came out from his body as he absorbed "Breath" in the point where his acupoints once were. Noah had already predicted that situation so he was calm during the process even though some scream was still yelled from time to time. Assea''s figure was hidden under the clothes on his lower body and was waiting patiently for the process to be over. A huge amount of "Breath" was being accumulated in Noah''s body, strengthening and refining it. The process lasted for about ten minutes before he could finally form the new acupoints. These acupoints were crystalline and seemed incredibly sturdy. They absorbed "Breath" at an unimaginable speed and Noah felt an immense surge of power coming from his body. He nodded to William that was at his side and he undid the bindings to set Noah free. A smile was on William''s face as he saw that his disciple was finally released from that dangerous technique. "You really did it." He patted Noah''s shoulder uncaring of the filth on it. Noah nodded again happily, he wanted to test his new power right away but his mental energy was almost completely depleted and he could not sense things accurately. However, before he managed to bow to his Master, something unexpected happened. A strange sensation hit his low waist and a small empty ball formed there. Noah touched the spot but felt no uneasiness in having this new organ. William noticed his behavior and inspected the spot where he was pointing. His mouth opened and his eyes widened, he put one hand on his head and exclaimed in a soft voice. "That is not possible." Noah looked at his Master''s expression and was confused, then an idea hit his mind and he widened his eyes too. "Don''t tell me?" William nodded and carefully inspected the spot again. "Your dantian formed." Noah was stunned but then he exulted loudly. A wave of pain was delivered from his tired head which forced him to calm down. "But Master, I''m only thirteen and a half years old. Last time you spoke about gaining months not a whole year." William mumbled with himself for a little before answering. "Rank 1 mage, rank 2 body for most of your growth and now rank 3 body. I told you that the centers of power were linked but I never thought they could be influenced this much." Noah''s thoughts were slow since he had just done the treatment and could not keep up with his Master''s reasoning. He was still inspecting the new organ when he thought of something. "Does it means that now I can know my element?" William nodded but then he shook his head and put a stern expression. "First, go wash and rest, I''ll make the needed preparation in the meantime. Meet me here tomorrow morning." Noah was a bit unwilling to go and wanted to ask more question but another wave of pain hit him so he decided to follow his Master''s order. He bowed deeply, there was only gratitude toward the man in front of him. "It''s only thanks to you that I am growing this much. So thank you, Master!" William looked at the young man covered in filth and memories about him emerged. The first time he received the command to take him as a disciple he thought that he would be some kind of nanny but Noah surpassed every expectation that he had for him. He had to admit that his disciple made him proud beyond reason. William ruffled his dirty hair a bit and smiled. "Just go now, we will talk more tomorrow." Noah left and the happy expression on William''s face transformed in a worried one. ''This time I really can''t cover you.'' When Noah woke up the next day he could clearly feel the changes in his body. He felt an incredible vitality coming from it and when he checked the amount of "Breath" he had he was astonished. ''This is enough for more than one hundred attacks!'' Then he remembered the dantian event and his excitement built up. ''I wonder how the training will work and there is even the question about my element.'' He hurriedly went into the guards'' building and then in the underground prison. William was waiting for him with a small book and a transparent stone as big as a fist. "Read this, it is a rank 1 cultivation technique for the dantian, it has no limitation to the element of the user so it''s perfect to determine the cultivator''s attitude. Every family uses it." Noah took the book and hastily read it. It was a simple respiration method to be done in a fixed position, with his status as a rank 1 mage he memorized it instantly. "Ready?" William asked and Noah nodded in response. William then gave the stone to Noah and explained. "This is a Pharos stone. It has the peculiar characteristic of changing color based on the element of the "Breath" that passes through it. Put it on your waist and start meditating in the cultivation technique, your body will naturally absorb the element of your attitude, changing its color.'' Noah didn''t waste any time and sat on the ground in the cross-legged position indicated in the technique. He put the stone on his waist and began to practice. The "Breath" moved toward his body and entered the small empty dantian, filling it with a gaseous substance. As the gaseous "Breath" entered the dantian, it pressed on its surface, enlarging it. The pace was slow but also relaxing, Noah felt a bit more refreshed every time his dantian was charged. After about one hour, William''s voice sounded. "You can stop." Noah looked at his Master''s face and saw that he had a worried expression. Then he lowered his gaze on the stone on his waist. The Pharos stone was completely black. Chapter 67: 67. Dantian Noah stared at the black stone for some time before raising his gaze toward his Master. "What does that mean?" William still had his worried expression when he answered. "Darkness." Noah was surprised but happy. ''I have one of the rarest elements, won''t that mean that my potential is ensured?'' However, when he realized this point he became worried too. ''Doesn''t this imply that the inner circle will try to suppress me?'' He looked at William and spoke with a pleading voice. "Can we hide this news from the inner circle?" William shook his head. "The Pharos stone is quite rare as a mineral. It has to be given back to the family in order to clean it from the "Breath" that tainted it to use it again in the future." Then he lowered his head and continued. "Actually, I already reported that your dantian formed. I needed to say the name of the cultivator that I had to test to borrow the stone." Noah fell deep in thought. ''So they will be able to discern my element as soon as they get the stone back. I have a bad feeling about this.'' Noah sighed and then gave the Pharos stone back to William. He put it away and then sat in front of his disciple. "Do not linger too much on things that you can''t control. For now, just focus on your dantian, I still have to explain how it works." Noah nodded and listened attentively to his Master. "Generally speaking, the rank of a cultivator is determined by the stage his dantian is in. I am a rank 3 mage with a rank 4 body and a rank 3 dantian, which makes me a rank 3 cultivator." Noah was amazed, he knew that his Master was strong but he didn''t imagine he was this strong! "The dantian is where we store the majority of our "Breath", but the "Breath" is an energy too powerful for normal bodies to handle. Tell me, what will it happen if you accumulate too much power and you can''t contain it?" Noah''s answer was immediate. "You would explode." William nodded and resumed the explanation. "Exactly. I must say that if the family didn''t give me a rank 4 body nourishing technique I would still be stuck at the last stage of the rank 2 dantian. That is about how much a rank 3 body can handle." He went silent for a moment to sort his thoughts and then continued. "Every rank of the dantian has three stages: gaseous, liquid, and solid. Every stage is vastly more powerful than the previous one. The training of the dantian consists of two phases: accumulation and compression. First, you accumulate "Breath" and enlarge the dantian till its maximum potential, then you compress it to make the "Breath" inside it change state. The process is not so easy as it might seem and cultivators usually have pills to help them in advancing stages. Actually, going through the compression phase is wearisome for the dantian and a failure might even damage it permanently. Remember to never attempt to break through if you don''t have the necessary mental energy or some pills." Noah maintained a calm expression but inside he was cheering. ''Now I know how to use the Earth pill!'' "Also once you are in the next stage your dantian will only accumulate "Breath" of that density so the process will be slower." William pointed at the book near Noah. "That is a rank 1 cultivation technique and doesn''t even have requirements for the element, which makes it the lowest tier of cultivation techniques. A rank 1 technique can at most take you to the peak of the rank 1 dantian and there are specific ones for each element which speed up the absorption process. To break through ranks you need a reagent that will heat your dantian, purifying the "Breath" inside it. The solid "Breath" will be consumed and only a strand of gas will remain that will be of a higher purity than the gaseous "Breath" of the previous stage. Then you start again to cultivate in the stages." Noah was about to speak when William stopped him and added something. "Never advance in rank even if you find the reagent if you don''t have the corresponding technique for the next rank. What''s the point of reaching a higher rank if then you can''t accumulate the purer "Breath"? Always remember that the technique comes first, and if you can, try to match it with your element, some higher tier techniques can also give peculiar proprieties to the "Breath" you store." Noah finally had a complete image of the powers of a cultivator and was eager to go back to his room to train all day in the rank 1 technique. He smiled innocently and pointed at himself. "Master, so now I''m a rank 1 cultivator?" William nodded and smiled. "Yes, rank 1 cultivator in the gaseous stage." Noah was happy, but then he remembered his position. "There is no chance that I''ll get a better technique than this one?" William shook his head. "No chance at all." "How do I know that my dantian is ready for the compression?" "You won''t be able to accumulate more "Breath" once you''ve reached its limits." Noad nodded in understanding, a plan was forming in his mind. ''I can only wait till the peak of rank 1, then I have to go away from here. Not only my advancements will be halted if I decide to stay, but my mother is also nearing her limit of endurance.'' He looked again at his Master. "How long does it takes to cultivate the dantian?" William thought for a little and then answered. "It took me twenty-five years to reach the gaseous stage of the rank 3 but that was caused by the limits that my body had. Don''t worry too much about the time spent, a cultivator''s lifespan gets longer as you advance in the dantian or in the body." He misunderstood his disciple''s intention but still gave the answer Noah wanted. Chapter 68: 68. Scheme "So what should I do now?" William shook his head and showed a complex smile. "The news of your dantian and element will astonish many inside the inner circle. You are, after all, a cultivator younger than fourteen and have one of the rarest elements. I won''t be surprised if people will call you a prodigy." Noah nodded at his Master''s words. "And this is a bad thing right?" William answered. "Yes, they had already tried to send you in a trap with the escort mission and I''m afraid that they will use more direct methods to hurt you from now on. Well, maybe the family will be divided when choosing which role you will have but it''s better to be careful anyway. As always, don''t spend too much time inside the mansion and take only missions about magical beasts. I will probe the situation in the meantime." Noah stood up and bowed and then he exited the room. William stood in the room for some time before he sighed. ''I''m sorry, your Master is really useless some times.'' . . . Noah went to see his mother and explained the situation to her. She didn''t understand much about cultivation but when he said that he was possibly in danger because of his talent, she didn''t hesitate in sending him away. "If the mansion is not safe then just go away, don''t care about me!" These were the words she said and Noah could not help but steeling his determination as he exited the mansion. He took the first mission he could find and went to the appointed place where the report said that the magical beasts were gathering. The beasts were all rank 2, it took him less than five minutes to annihilate their pack. ''Rank 2 beasts can''t really do anything now that my body advanced and the "Breath" in it is on the same level as the one in my dantian. It seems that the hardest part in cultivating the dantian is the "Breath" necessary to enlarge it, while only refilling it doesn''t take that much time.'' He was experimenting with his new strength and was completely satisfied. His dantian was still small but he could feel that its maximum capacity was way higher than the one of his body, and this without considering the stage he was in. ''There is really a great difference, if I didn''t practice in the Forging of Seven Hells I''m afraid that I could haven''t lasted for more than five clashes against a real cultivator. Now my weakness is gone, I only have to cultivate and I will be able to fight for a long time.'' The advantages of having a dantian didn''t stop at that, but Noah''s body was too strong for him to feel any other positive change yet. Noah decided to spend some nights outside the mansion to focus on his new organ, the missions were the perfect excuse for his absence. Meanwhile, William was kneeling on the floor of a luxurious hall. The hall was big, as large as an entire floor of the guards'' building, and many paintings and colorful items were exposed on its walls. In front of him, many spacious chairs were placed on top of short marble steps, making those that sat on them look down to whoever asked for their presence. Thomas Balvan was seated on the central chair, carefully inspecting a black stone. After some time, he lowered the stone and looked at the kneeling vice-captain. "Are you saying that Rhys''s bastard not only developed a dantian before the age of fourteen but that is also of the darkness element?" William''s answer was immediate and loud. "Yes, Lord Patriarch, I was there myself when he did the test with the Pharos stone." Thomas thought for a bit and then he nodded. "I''ve decided, no one is allowed to do anything to that kid, let''s see how he develops. Do you understand me, Rhys? I don''t want to see another scheme done behind my back." Rhys was seated in one of the chairs on Thomas''s side and at his words, he stood up and bowed. "I understand Father." Thomas then waved casually his hand. "The meeting is over, you can go." At his words everyone stood up and bowed, returning to their tasks. William was relieved at the Patriarch''s words as he went back to the outer circle. However, not everyone in the Balvan family was happy with the disposition. In another room inside the inner circle. CRASH! A big and seemingly expensive table was crashed by Rhys'' blow. ''Fuck, he is my son, I can do anything I want with him.'' He looked at the broken desk and focused his gaze on it. The table burned and was reduced to ashes. A bit of sweat appeared on Rhys'' face which made him even angrier. ''Fuck, who does he thinks he is growing so fast. The son of that whore has to always, ALWAYS be weaker than the son and daughter that Rebecca gave me.'' He sat on a pillow on the floor to calm down. Rhys Balvan was the weakest inside his family. Since he had everything he wanted he never cared about training. However, the descendants he made with his dead wife Rebecca had taken his carefree attitude and were unwilling to spend too much time cultivating. Rhys had already given up on the idea of succeeding his Father since his two older brothers were way better candidates yet, he couldn''t accept that his bastard son could become someone important in the family when his other ones couldn''t. He thought for a while before his eyes began to emit a cold light. ''I can''t hurt you but I can make sure that you''ll never be loyal to the family and then I''ll just wait patiently for your mistake. I can''t wait to see your sorry figure being chased by our personal guards.'' He stood up and yelled seemingly to no one. "Wayne, I''m going to the outer circle, take care of my children." A guard appeared from nowhere and half-kneeled on the flow. "Yes, my Lord." Chapter 69: 69. Lily Inside the guests'' building, in Lily''s room. Lily was holding a small mirror checking her make-up. She would do this action every time she felt that Rhys was coming. ''He will vent on me, he always does.'' Lily never had the chance to get instructed due to the fact that she came from a poor family. However, her beauty was renowned, attracting even the attention of the nobles. That was how she met Rhys and managed to live in the Balvan mansion. From the commoners'' perspective, she was blessed and she felt that too before Noah was born. ''To think that such happiness could turn into so much pain.'' She knew that her son was amazing. She might not know anything about cultivation but she was sure that Noah would become someone important in the future. ''I still remember when he tried so hard to learn to walk. How could a baby have that kind of determination?'' She smiled when she remembered the scenes from his youth. ''You''ve worked so hard, and I know that you hide a lot of things from me. You are not even a man but you already want to protect me.'' She shook her head. She knew that Noah cared for her, that he always checked her body every time they met. She knew that part of his hardworking personality was because of her situation. She then remembered the first night that Noah spent training in the Kesier rune, his pale face, his bloodshot eyes. ''How many nights did you end up like that? How many times did you end up worse than that? Jeez, what a reckless son I have.'' She moved the mirror to point at her right cheek, some bruises were still healing on that spot. ''I never told you that your father hits me to hurt you. Everything he does is for ruining your life, I''m just a tool for this goal and it seems that his methods are working.'' She sighed. What she learnt most since she came to the mansion was Rhys'' personality. She could almost predict what his every action would be. ''Today you seemed really worried otherwise you wouldn''t have told me. That means that Rhys'' response will be harder. Don''t worry though, I might be useless as a mother but I finally have the courage to stop being your burden.'' She threw the mirror on the floor, smashing it. Then she picked two sharp shards and hid them in her sleeves. ''I hope you will understand and, in time, forgive me.'' Then her eyes became resolute as she waited on the bed for her lover to come. Rhys didn''t make her wait much and arrived in her room only a few hours later. As he went inside, he noticed that something was wrong with Lily''s expression but then he remembered his plan and put a smile on his face. Before he could speak though, Lily took the initiative. "Have you come to kill me?" They have been together for a long time, Rhys knew that Lily wasn''t just a stupid woman. "Kill you? Not at all, you probably don''t know but it would be against the direct order of my Father to do that. Our son has become quite a celebrity already." She raised her head to look right in Rhys'' eyes. "What will you do then?" Rhys put a complacent smile and answered. "Well, everyone knows about the treatment that I reserve you. I was just thinking that I might as well leave some permanent sign this time. I might have lost the chance to kill you but that doesn''t mean that I can''t increase the hate he already has for the family.'' Lily smiled at his words. ''If he hates him this much it means that my son really is extraordinary.'' "So, what were you thinking of doing." Rhys put a pensive pose and then casually answered. "I was thinking if I were to disfigure your face, wouldn''t his hate for the family increase every time he looked at you? The lofty Patriarch sure wouldn''t intervene personally for a few cuts on a whore''s face.'' Lily continued to smile and stood up with her hands behind her back. Then, she went close to Rhys with a bewitching expression and put her arms around his neck. "Don''t you want to enjoy my face one last time before you do that?" Rhys excitement grew and he held the woman tightly by her waist, putting her close to his groin. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. "You sure are a whore, eheh." He was about to kiss her when Lily took out one of the mirror-shards from her sleeve and stabbed it in Rhys'' left eye. Rhys instinctively flung her away at full strength and she slammed in the wall of the room and then fell on the floor. Rhys was weak but still a cultivator, his blow broke some of Lily''s ribs. He began to yell madly at Lily''s figure on the ground. "You mad woman! Now nothing can save you, not even the Patriarch! I will slowly torture you and make sure that your bastard son watches as I do it!" Blood flowed from his eye socket, the shard had pierced him deeply, he wasn''t sure that the injury was curable. However, Lily had already held her other hidden shard and stabbed it on her throat. She showed a bright smile as life left her and was happy to know that her plan had succeeded. ''Now he won''t have any hold on you, my dear son, and you will think that your mother was just a weak woman. I hope that like this you will grow strong in the Balvan family and you won''t do anything reckless. Be safe my dear.'' Then she died. Rhys was still yelling and was about to near Lily''s corpse when a suffocating pressure engulfed the room. "You idiot son, are my orders only farts in your ears?" Thomas Balvan appeared in the room and stopped Rhys from taking any other step. Chapter 70: 70. Inner circle Rhys was covering the wound on his eye and turned around to look at his father. Thomas had a disappointed expression on his face as he looked at his son. "Not only you disobeyed me, you even let a common woman hurt you. As a cultivator, you really are a failure." Rhys began to complain. "But Father, that whore attacked me f-" He could not continue to speak as more pressure was applied by Thomas. If he didn''t want his son to speak, then Rhys could not speak. "Tell me, what makes a family a noble one?" Rhys had been educated for years so he knew what his father wanted to say. He lowered his head and answered with a soft voice. "Strength." Thomas nodded. "Correct. Your brothers understood that and worked hard to become strong. They even forced their children to train in order to maintain the power of the family. You instead..." He shook his head and continued. "You spoiled your descendants too much but that was fine, you weren''t actually hurting the family. Now, however, you made us lose the only tie we had with a promising cultivator." At his words, Rhys became angry again, he really could not bear seeing his bastard son being praised. He had to hold his feelings back though, and he bowed slightly while asking a question. "What do you want me to do?" Thomas massaged his temples and sighed. "I might be able to heal your eye, but I won''t. The kid needs a proof that you were punished. As for the other arrangements, I will take care of them myself. Furthermore, no one is allowed to touch anything on this floor, let my nephew decide how to interpret the situation." . . . Noah didn''t know anything about what happened in the mansion and continued to train and fight. A week had passed since he went out and he finally felt accustomed to his new strength. His dantian had enlarged a little but he felt that it was too soon for it to show its power. There was one thing that bothered him though. ''I want to change my blood companion already!'' Now his body was on the same level as Assea, but that wasn''t the limit of the technique. If he could find a peak rank 3 magical beast of the darkness element, his battle capability will rise by a lot. ''Sadly I don''t really know where to find one. It''s not like rank 3 magical beasts are easy to find.'' He hid the space-ring in his clothes, he would always wear it whenever he went outside after the events in the valley. ''Time to go back.'' As he neared the mansion, he saw that the patrolling guards were avoiding his gaze. An ominous feeling began to form inside Noah that reached its peak when he saw William waiting for him at the main gate. Noah hurriedly went toward him and asked: "What happened?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. William shook his head and answered. "You can judge it by yourself. The Patriarch didn''t allow anyone to modify the scene." There were guards in red armor in front of the guests'' building and they opened a way for Noah and his Master. Noah sped up and reached the first floor in an instant. When he saw the scene that was displayed, he felt completely void of any strength. His mother''s corpse was on the ground, her throat was sliced and a mirror-shard was in it. He was about to rage and ask something when he saw the smile on her face. He neared the corpse uncaring of the awful smell that it was exuding due to its decomposition and kneeled in front of it. William began to talk at that moment. "She met with your father one week ago. According to the report, she stabbed his eye and then sliced her throat. To show his condolences, the Patriarch had forbidden Lord Rhys from healing the wound that she caused." Noah didn''t pay much attention to his words and gently caressed his mother''s face. ''You did it for me, didn''t you?'' Noah wasn''t a common thirteen years old kid. After he saw her smile he immediately understood his mother''s intentions. ''Why? You just had to wait a bit more and then I would have taken you out of this place. I was so close too.'' He placed his front on hers and closed his eyes to memorize every detail of her face with his mental energy. ''I understand, I will not do anything reckless for now.'' Noah stood up, his heart grew cold, his mind released a bit of pressure as he vowed to himself: ''Yet one day, I''ll definitely kill my father.'' The more he stared at his mother''s corpse the more his mind became sharp. Some cracking sound came from the furniture around him as he was losing control of his state of mind. William noted this and placed a hand on his shoulder. Then he neared his mouth to his disciple''s ear and whispered softly. "You will have to control yourself from now on, remember to never fall for any provocation. They will suppress you but secretly you will always be ahead of them. Endure it, your time will definitely come." He slipped a piece of paper in his clothes. When Noah turned to look at his Master with a confused expression a guard in red armor arrived at their position. William bowed lightly at his sight and gestured for Noah to do the same. Noah was still confused but trusted his Master so he followed his example. The guard nodded and put a stern expression before he spoke. "Per order of the Patriarch of the Balvan family, Noah Balvan has to be immediately transferred to the inner circle to join the personal guards of the family. Please follow me to your new lodging." William looked at Noah and smiled slightly. He ruffled his hair a bit and spoke in a warm tone. "Go, and remember to be careful." Chapter 71: 71. Abuse Thomas Balvan had three sons: Adrian, Evan, and Rhys. His wife was a noblewoman of a small-size noble family who died giving birth to Rhys. Adrian Balvan was his first son and the second in command of the family. He was in charge of the military power of the family and was married to Gillian Lansay, from which derived the friendly relationship with her family. He had only one son, named Keith, who he trained to be his successor as the head of the Balvan army. Evan Balvan was in charge of the economic aspect of the family. He managed to marry the daughter of one of the nobles in the Shosti family, her name was Sibyl Shosti, and from her came most of the financial support of the Balvan family. He had two sons and two daughters named respectively Maxwell, Neil, Valerie, and Lena. Neil and Lena were about the same age as Noah while the other two had more than twenty years. Rhys was in charge of the management of the mansion but he rarely bothered to do that, leaving all his duties to his trusted guard Wayne. He had a son and a daughter, Fabian and Rose, with Rose being the oldest. Each of Thomas'' sons had a group of personal guards always attending them. Noah had been assigned to Evan Balvan as a guard and he ordered him to attend his younger children. His days were spent escorting Neil and Lena around and satisfying every request they had. His position as a guard of the inner circle granted him access to many manuals and body-refinement methods of rank 3, but he already had those. For rank 4 ones, he needed to accumulate more merits and obtain a more prestigious position. As for better cultivation techniques, the family would always refuse his request which made Noah understand their intentions. ''They want to slow my growth.'' Even if he was granted access to the inner circle, the family still hadn''t recognized him as a true descendant, so they had to suppress him. They could not allow for an outsider to be stronger than the actual family members. In their view, Noah was still young, losing a few years of training to ascertain his personality was totally worth it. However, from Noah''s perspective, it was just a way to prolong his torture. The Patriarch had declared to let him outside of schemes but he could not control the behavior of every family member, especially of the youngest ones. Every true descendant would feel a sense of superiority toward a bastard, especially since they were used to their noble title since birth. Neil and Lena were no exception and would always try to get a reaction in their new young guard. A few months after his enrollment, Noah was already used to their daily abuse. "Hey cousin, I knew that your mother was good at taking hits, you surely inherited that from her." Neil said that looking at the bleeding youth in front of him. "No, she wasn''t that good at that. She decided to kill herself because of that remember?" Lena answered her brother with a bit of sweat running down her forehead. Noah was shirtless in front of them with a small cut on his chest. Since he had a rank 3 body, he could be used by the members of the family as a test dummy for their weaker spells. Almost all the guards in the inner circle had a body that strong but the brother and sister always chose him for practice. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. "Then it''s just because of his body, right? I can''t wait to reach rank 3 too so I might spar with him a little." A mischievous smile was on the face of the young man when he said those words. "That is because you always waste time playing around. You have the same age as him but you never train. Do you want shame on our family by letting a bastard be stronger than you?" The sister answered while she focused again and a small water bullet shot out to hit Noah. Noah took the hit without moving, the bullet penetrated his skin to be stopped by the muscles below it. Only a cold expression could be seen on his face. Lena nodded seeing the blood coming out of his chest and smile happily. "Mh that will do, my control of the spell is really growing. You can go now cousin, I''m already sick of your face." They didn''t even look at him while he put back his red armor, bowed, and moved toward his lodging. When he was back in his room, he took away his armor and threw it on the floor. ''All the fucking day doing the punching dummy for those fucking spoiled kids. What control is growing? I could kill that bitch with one thought!'' Neil and Lena would spend every day with him so he could not train or fight. Adding the constant mocking, Noah irritation grew day after day. He sat on the floor and took out a folded sheet from the space-ring that pinned on the wall in front of him. He began to meditate in the rank 1 cultivation technique with his eyes closed. The "Breath" began to enter his dantian and slowly enlarge it. Then, strands of "Breath" from his body moved toward his low waist and joined the one gathered from the technique. Most of it was unable to mix with the one of the technique and dispersed but a small part still blended and entered the dantian. Since the quality of the "Breath" in his body was the same as the dantian, Noah discovered that he could use it during the absorption process. However, only the one belonging to the darkness element could enter the dantian, while the other part was dispersed. Nevertheless, it was still an increase in cultivation speed and Noah didn''t hesitate to constantly use this method since the "Breath" in his body was refilled autonomously. Then, he opened his eyes to look at the sheet on the wall, an intricate rune was written on it. Chapter 72: 72. Inheritance ground William had secretly given him the second Kesier rune right before the guard from the inner circle took him away. The piece of paper he slipped inside his clothes was precisely that. Noah continued to cultivate while he stared at the rune on the wall. Immense pressure was applied from inside his sea of consciousness, making the waves continuously crash on the mental sphere, enlarging it. Since he was cultivating and looking at the rune at the same time, his mental energy was expended at a higher speed and he had to stop staring at the rune after just one hour. Then, he spent the rest of the night focusing on enlarging the dantian and only when the first light of the day showed up he stopped and laid on the bed. ''Even by sleeping only every two days my training is slower compared to when I was in the outer circle.'' He thought of Lena and her water bullets. ''She has no special talent and yet she managed to become a rank 1 mage at the age of seventeen. The advantage given by all the potions and pills can overcome any gifted individual.'' He thought of his situation. ''I can train harder in the second rune, but that will give me no immediate increase in strength. On the other side, reaching the liquid stage can boost both my martial art and my body.'' That was the solution he found during his months there. He would focus more on the cultivation technique since he could not obtain anything else. ''However, the more time I spend here the more I will lose my initial advantage. I must find a way to escape soon.'' His escape was something set in stone in his mind. Now that his mother was dead he really had no more reasons to hesitate. ''I must be ready at any time. The academy surely isn''t waiting for me to knock at its doors.'' Time passed but there were no changes to his daily routine. Every dawn he would wake up and attend the siblings and after a full day enduring their treatment, he would go back to his room to train all night. His complexion became paler as he began to sleep only every three days to increase the time spent in training. Cultivating was refreshing but it couldn''t replace sleep, he was relying on the vitality of his rank 3 body to keep up with his schedule. Sometimes Rhys would show up and look at him from the distance. He had a smug smile every time he looked at his bastard son being used as a training dummy for Lena''s spells but the bandage on his left eye made his figure less lofty. Noah continued to endure and only showed a cold face to anyone while his mental sphere became sturdier and sturdier with the passage of time. The external experiences could reinforce one''s state of mind and in that environment, Noah''s mind was becoming extremely tough. He could not accumulate merits since his duties were merely inside the mansion, so he waited patiently for the right moment to come. A few weeks after he became fifteen, that moment came. It was dawn and Noah was about to leave his room when someone knocked at his door. Noah opened it and found the head of Evan''s personal guards standing in front of him. Since he was his direct superior, Noah bowed and made a respectful greeting. "Good morning, captain Logan." Logan nodded at his etiquette and handed him a few papers. Noah took them and gave a short look at the title on the first page. ''Shosti''s inheritance ground.'' Logan explained. "A month from now, the Shosti family will open the inheritance ground to all the families in its domain. Since you have the required age and strength, you have been selected to be one of the guards accompanying the descendants in this event. All the relevant knowledge about the event is in those sheets and you''ll be free of your duties in the period time till its opening to prepare for the task. Remember to bring honor to the Balvan family." Noah felt that Logan''s speech was over so he bowed again to his departure and then closed the door of his room. His eyes became dark as he sat on the floor to read the contents of the sheets. ''Finally an opportunity!'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. ''The Shosti''s inheritance ground is a separate dimension supposedly left behind by a powerful cultivator. It is said that what made the Shosti family a large-size noble one was the discovery of this place. However, it is required an age below twenty years to explore it so the Shosti''s had no other options but to involve the other noble families in its exploration. They will then offer huge rewards to any family whose descendant manages to obtain something from it in exchange for what they had gained. The dimension will open every twenty years, so each descendant has only one attempt in retrieving something from it.'' Noah had to stop reading to sort the first line of text in his mind. ''Separate dimension? How does it work? Even in my previous world humans didn''t achieve in such a task!'' Then his focus moved to the age requirements. ''This powerful cultivator, was he looking for an heir? Also, the Shosti family''s move to open it to every other noble is smart, they can accumulate prizes while improving their image to those they govern.'' The sheet then listed the known rewards that had been retrieved since the first opening. ''Mostly cultivation resources of high quality, but there are also magical weapons, high-rank techniques, and powerful spells.'' Noah was astonished. ''How powerful the cultivator that set it up has been to accumulate all this wealth?'' As he kept reading, a smile appeared on his face and his eyes became colder. ''I can do it, this is the perfect chance to escape even if I obtain nothing from it. It is time to use the Earth pill in my space-ring.'' Chapter 73: 73. Liquid stage The Earth pill had the ability to help a cultivator breaking through the stages of the dantian. However, that would still require the user to have reached the peak of that stage. ''Even though I could only train at night, with the help of the "Breath" inside my body I''m already close to the limits of the gaseous stage. Now that I''m finally free to train at will I can definitely reach it one week!'' Noah focused only on the cultivation technique for eight days straight, he didn''t sleep at all during this period and only stopped his meditation to eat. On the night of the eighth day, he finally could not enlarge his dantian anymore. ''Peak of the gaseous stage!'' He then fell asleep on the floor as he had no strength left due to his intensive training. It took him one year and a half to reach this stage and he had to focus only on the cultivation technique to achieve that feat. The "Breath" inside his body also helped a lot in the process as it assisted in overcoming the weaknesses of his rank 1 technique. If he could not have a technique that fitted his element, he would just use more "Breath"! Sadly, this method only gave him some relevant advantages in the gaseous stage since the "Breath" in his body was in that same form. He woke up after a whole day of sleep, in the night of the ninth day. He ate to make sure that he was in top condition and then took a small box from his space-ring. Inside the box, there was the Earth pill that he took from the Gray Shadows. He held the pill in his hand and put back the box in the ring. ''Time to start.'' He ate the pill and directly gulped it, then he closed his eyes to concentrate on his dantian. The pill was absorbed by his body and created a sphere around his dantian that began to compress on its own! Noah aided the process controlling the "Breath" inside it to not oppose the condensation. The "Breath" though seemed unwilling to contract and tried to resist the pushing force. However, at that point the sphere pushed with more strength, forcing the "Breath" to amass in the restricting space. Noah gave up on forcing the "Breath" to stay still and just controlled the dantian to help the sphere advance. The dantian became smaller and smaller and the "Breath" inside it seemed to grow unstable. Then another push from the sphere forced the dantian to the size of a small circular nail. The gaseous "Breath" agitated more but the sphere was unmoving so the walls of the dantian stood still and resisted the internal pressure. After a few minutes in that state, the "Breath" began to change form and from all that compressed gas, only a drop of black "Breath" came out. The sphere dissipated and Noah opened his eyes and pointed with his arms on the floor to prevent himself from falling. His breathing was rough and his face was pale, sweat continued to pour from his orifices. ''That was incredibly tiring!'' The process seemed smooth but a quarter of his mental energy was expended to assist the effects of the Earth pill. ''Am I supposed to force the compression simply with my mental energy if I don''t find another pill?'' He calmed himself and resumed a normal pace of breathing while in his mind he was analyzing the process he just went through. ''This is so strange, it''s like the "Breath" didn''t want to be compressed. Does that mean that Heaven and Earth don''t want cultivators to become strong? I''ve read that cultivation is innately an act of defiance against the will of the world but to think that it could affect even the "Breath" in my dantian.'' He inspected his now small dantian and the new "Breath" inside it. The black drop seemed to contain a tremendous energy, way more than all the gaseous "Breath" in his body. ''It makes sense. After all, this drop is the result of the condensation of all the "Breath" that was in my dantian which was already three times the one in my body.'' It was still deep in the night and he had no need to sleep so he chose to cultivate. He used the same absorption method with the help of the "Breath" in his body but the results were disappointing. He stopped meditating at midday but his dantian had enlarged only by a little bit. ''This is incredibly slow! It would take me three to five years to reach the same size as yesterday and that''s only if I can train freely. I really need a better cultivation technique.'' He was eager to escape but suppressed that feeling and unsheathed his sabers. He practiced his forms like he used to do back in his room in the guests'' building and he could not help but spread a cold pressure around him when the memories of his life there emerged. ''Soon dear nobles, I will come for you soon.'' When he felt that his attacks had regained its previous apex, it was already deep in the night. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. ''I have around twenty days of closed training to get used to my new stage and enlarge my dantian as much as possible. Since going out of the mansion is impossible I only have one method.'' He took out his upper clothes and thought of a name that he didn''t use for a long time. ''Assea.'' A big head of a snake came out of his body. Noah wore his space-ring and put all the items in his room inside it, the empty room was about ten square meters. ''Spar with me, don''t touch the walls.'' His blood companion didn''t hesitate and charged at him but was met with a black wind slash that almost cut it in half from head to tail. A sharp pain hit Noah due to the damage to Assea but he didn''t care and dodged the assault of the snake that had already healed. He spent the days before the opening of the inheritance ground fighting with his own companion and cultivating, giving a look at the second rune in the spare time. Sometimes metal sounds would reverberate from his room but since he was appointed for such an important mission, no one dared to interrupt him. In the end, his month of isolation ended and the inheritance ground opened. Chapter 74: 74. Gathering Three luxurious carriages moved in the direction of Mossgrove city surrounded by thirty or so guards in red armor. The red emblem of the Balvan family was drawn on the sides of the carriages giving them some traces of solemnity. Noah was on foot among the guards, his eyes were focused as he studied carefully the composition of the caravan. ''Twenty guards are below twenty years of age, so they will enter the inheritance ground, the other ten are all elites that will stand on the entrance. I feel the same sense of danger I felt with Kevin when I inspect them, they must be on his same level or a bit lower than that. In conclusion, I must avoid those ten.'' His focus shifted to the twenty young guards. ''They should all be rank 1 cultivators around my level, with Assea on my side I''m sure to win against each one of them but together they are a problem. There is also the issue of the appointed captain.'' The appointed captain for the mission in the inheritance ground was a nineteen years old man with short black hair and a big figure. His name was Trevor and he was the son of one of the elite guards in the inner circle. His position was quite privileged between the guards due to his father''s position and his loyalty to the family was unquestioned so he received a better treatment than Noah. ''I''m sure that I can beat him if he doesn''t have a spell, but if he does...'' Then Noah''s attention went to the three carriages. ''Neil, Lena, and Fabian occupy each one carriage and will enter the inheritance ground. Neil and Fabian are not strong but I have to be careful about some special items that the family could have given them. As for Lena...'' Lena was nearing the age of nineteen and with all the nurturing from the family and her constant training on Noah, her strength had become something that Noah had to be careful of. ''Summarizing: the ten elite guards are to avoid at all cost; Trevor and Lena are to fight only if necessary; the others are to fight two at the time at most and I have to be careful of the precautions the family gave on their descendants.'' Noah sorted everything in his mind while continuing his march with the other soldiers. ''It would be easier to plan things if the inheritance ground wasn''t so unpredictable though.'' The inheritance ground was divided into two stages. The first one was fixed and it was a barren land full of magical beasts. Each group had to defeat a pack of beasts and kill their leader to obtain the coordinates of the entrance for the second stage. Each ingress led to a trial different from the others. During the many attempts to explore the separate dimension, the types of trials that were recorded were countless. ''Retrieving of an item in a dangerous zone, escaping from a threat under a time limit, solo fights against puppets, tournament against a different family. How can a human set something so massive?'' Noah reviewed the information on the separate dimension and felt amazed. ''My knowledge of the cultivation world is only about fighting styles, for things like formations and similar I''m really ignorant.'' His resolve to escape increased even more. ''That''s why I have to reach the academy, my foundation will only stagnate in the Balvan family.'' The caravan continued on its road until they reached the external walls of Mossgrove city. There a banner with the emblem of the Shosti family was planted on the ground and was fluttering in the air. As per their tradition, the Shosti family would gather all the medium and small size noble families and then lead them to the entrance. The Balvan family was one of the first to reach the gathering point with only a couple of other small caravans waiting there. When they arrived, one of the elite guards gestured to the group to rest in order to wait for everyone to gather. Noah saw many caravans arrive with colorful emblems on their carriages and had a better understanding of the effective power of a large-size noble family. He saw the familiar emblems of the Merger and Lansay families, but on the latter, there were no signs of Kevin or Basil. ''I guess they really died back then.'' He slightly shook his head. He didn''t care about Basil, but he remembered the transformation that Kevin went through when he used his full strength. ''He was so strong and yet he died against a couple of mages. If I really want to kill Rhys, how powerful do I have to be?'' He didn''t know the precise answer to that question but he knew that it would take a long time to reach that level. When fifteen or so caravans gathered under the banner, a figure jumped down from the walls of the city and lightly landed on the top of the banner''s staff. Many young guards opened their mouth in surprise seeing how gracefully she managed to alight from a fall of over twenty meters. "I am Virginia Shosti and it''s my duty to accompany you all on the inheritance ground of my family. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. As you all are aware, my family''s descendants have already attempted in the task in the previous days so they won''t greet you. I hope that my presence is enough to represent my family in front of you all." Virginia Shosti was one of the most beautiful women that Noah had ever seen. She was around 20 years old, with golden hair and shining green eyes. Her figure was graceful with small curves tightened by a luxurious white dress. She lightly bowed in sign of respect to the group below her while all the soldiers and descendants bowed almost to ninety degrees to symbolize submission. Virginia nodded at that sight and showed a brilliant smile that mesmerized everyone that saw it. "Since everyone is here, we can move. Follow me, we will arrive at the ingress in half a day." Chapter 75: 75. Door of ligh The group of caravans moved following Virginia''s lead. Initially, the soldiers on foot gave each other some hateful look, but then they were mesmerized by Virginia''s figure walking ahead of them. Noah had his eyes fixed on her too but for a different reason than the others. ''I really can''t understand how strong she is.'' No matter how hard he inspected her, he couldn''t get a clear perception of her level. She seemed to be submerged in some invisible membrane that negated the mental energy coming at her. ''Is she too powerful for me to investigate her? Or it is just a method of the Shosti family to protect themselves?'' Of course, he wasn''t going all out with his mental energy for fear of being discovered from the other party. After half a day of travel, they arrived at a desolate yard surrounded by guards in white armors. The white guards bowed seeing Virginia coming and opened a passage for the caravans to enter the yard. The caravans arranged themselves in a casual manner and all the descendants jumped off of them joining their respective groups of guards. Virginia neared the end of the yard and took out a shiny gem from seemingly nowhere. The youngest guards were surprised but Noah knew what had happened. ''Space-ring!'' However, what came after that shocked even him. The report had described briefly the event of the opening of the separate dimension but many times words could not express the true beauty of something. Virginia placed the gem on the ground and immediately a vast amount of runes lighted up on the terrain. The yard that was more than two hundred meters square became completely covered in dazzling orange runes. The runes then gathered their brilliance on the gem in the ground that shot out a vertical ray of orange light in the air that stopped at five meters of height. The ray stood still for a moment before it began to enlarge forming a rectangular orange figure. A door made of light was created! Everyone was so stunned by the scene that they almost didn''t hear Virginia''s next words. "The gate is open. I will call the name of a family and their group will enter. The order is decided based on the contributions given to the Shosti family in the past twenty years." Being called as first not only gave the family an advantage in choosing an easier beasts pack to attack, it was also a sign of honor in the social environment of the noble families. According to the tests made in the previous years, most of the second stages gave additional rewards if the time spent in the separate dimension was lower than a certain average. "Sawler family, come forth." Virginia announced and a group of men and women dressed in blue neared the door made of light. Then their appointed captain moved and touched the light disappearing in an instant. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. The guards and descendants behind him followed and they too disappeared leaving no trace of their presence. ''This is basically teleportation!'' Noah had his mouth opened since the rune appeared. ''To think that by using the "Breath" the humans of this world achieved something only theoretic in my previous one.'' "Next, Noorge family." This time it was a group donning black armors that went forth and entered the inheritance ground. "Balvan family." Noah came back to reality after hearing the name of his family. Trevor took the lead of the group in red and moved toward the door followed by the other guards and descendants. When they were in front of the door Noah could feel the pressure of all the "Breath" that was used to keep the entrance opened. ''The report said that the consumption of "Breath" was immense but to think that it was actually so much. No wonder in the week the inheritance ground is open we get only one chance to enter, the cost is way too high.'' The gem that Virginia used was a concentrate of "Breath" of great value. Since the trials inside the separate dimension were hard and dangerous, a group had generally to rest for more than one week after one attempt, but by then the gate would be closed for another twenty years. That''s why the Shosti family chose to use two of those gems every twenty years, one for their family and one for those under their command, in order to increase the chance of obtaining something more valuable than simple wealth. Spells, magical weapons, and techniques had immense value and helped to increase the foundation of a family, what was money compared to a solid foundation? Trevor couldn''t waste much energy from the gem and trespassed the edge made of light. The others followed. When Noah touched the door, he felt his vision spinning and a huge pressure was applied to his sea of consciousness. With the toughness of his sphere though, he only had to close his eyes for a moment to resist the force before opening them again. What he saw then was an immense grassland. His eyes were filled with the green color and the horizon seemed to have no end. He looked above him and saw that the sky had become orange, with no sun or stars in it. The concentration of "Breath" was a little higher than on the outside but it was barely noticeable. ''So this is a separate dimension, if not for the sky and the fact that I can''t see anything but plains in every direction I would swear that I was still in the outside world.'' He was still looking around him when he felt a gaze fixed on him. Noah turned to look in that direction and saw Trevor staring at him with wide eyes. Noah was confused but then he noticed that all the members in his group had still his eyes closed to resist the pressure of the teleportation. The next to open her eyes was Lena and when she saw the look on Trevor''s eyes she understood that Noah was the first to recover and joined the appointed captain in his surprised stare to Noah. ''As if I didn''t have enough problems already.'' Noah thought, answering to their gazes with his usual cold one. Chapter 76: 76. Rabid moles Noah''s mind had reached unimaginable levels of toughness for a fifteen years old man. His transmigration, his mother''s suffering, the bullying, the treatment of the Seven Hells, the pressure of a sleeping rank 5 beast, all these experiences piled up gave him a firm and sturdy mental sphere. It wasn''t surprising that he surpassed everyone there in that field. The exchange of stares continued for a few seconds before the rest of their group recovered and opened their eyes. Noah moved his gaze away and went toward the edge of the troop unsheathing his sabers. He still felt the two different pairs of eyes on his back while he acted like he was inspecting the surrounding area. Trevor then gave up on analyzing him and spoke with a loud voice. "We better begin to search for a beast pack. My lords and lady, I advise you to stay in the middle of our formation." Lena snorted giving another look in Noah''s direction and then positioned right behind Trevor, while Fabian and Neil went obediently at the center of the composition. The formation was set so Trevor chose a random direction and gestured to the others to follow. Their pace was not fast but neither slow like the one they used while marching, Trevor was directing their speed so that they did not waste too much energy in the exploration. However, even after a few hours of research, the only thing they saw was the endless grassland. Trevor gestured to stop and gathered the descendants to speak. Noah could vaguely guess the topic they were discussing. ''He is asking if there is some hidden information about this place.'' The report said clearly that this dimension was full of magical beasts so it was strange that they hadn''t met any pack in all this time. The only option was that there was some secret intelligence that the family didn''t disclose with the guards. However, even the descendants seemed clueless about that situation. While they waited, small black figures became visible in the distance. The group from the Balvan family became a bit excited at their sight but were disappointed when they discovered that the black figures were just the soldiers of the Noorge family running in their direction. The man in their lead separated from his group and yelled toward Trevor. "Nothing on your side?" Trevor just shook his head in response which made the appointed captain from the Noorge family curse a little. Noah continued to look at his surroundings when he felt a slight tremor in the terrain. He tried to inspect the area below him but the dimension was made of "Breath" so there was a strong interference when he used his mental energy to investigate. Noah decided to kneel on the ground to place his ear on it. The two appointed captains noticed his behavior and their eyes lit up as they began to stare carefully at the terrain. Noah heard some crawling sounds coming from the ground. The noise was moving and it was nearing their position. There was a moment of silence underground when the sound arrived right below him only to start again nearing at a speed much higher than before. Noah was almost caught by surprise and pressed with his four limbs on the terrain to jump at more than two meters of height. Meanwhile, a sharp nail had pierced the ground and moved in his direction. Noah crossed his sabers in front of him and clashed mid-air with the gray fang. CLANG! The blow pushed Noah more in the air and he made a backflip to land inside his group. His eyes were still fixed on the blade that came from the ground while in his mind he judged calmly the strength of the attack. ''Rank 3.'' The young guards were about to panic when Tremor''s roar made them come back in formation. "Rabid moles! Set the formation, protect the nobles!" The Rabid moles were a type of magical beasts that lived underground. They used their extensible fangs to create underground lairs and to take their enemies by surprise. As soon as Trevor yelled, more fangs sprouted from the terrain, injuring the soldiers in the Balvan''s group. The soldiers of the Noorge family stared with greedy eyes at the magical beasts that were crawling out of the terrain and moved to join the other group. The first to kill the pack and their leader would enter the second stage before the other! Trevor yelled orders relentlessly. "Fight back, don''t let them get you unprepared! Find the leader! We must secure the coordinates!" The soldiers chosen for this mission were young, but they were still the strongest among those below twenty years. After the first moment of surprise, they began to attack the beasts in brown fur that came out of the ground. Noah had already jumped toward the rank 3 that attacked him and numerous clashes happened between him and the beast. Noah maintained his cold face but internally he was ecstatic. ''Finally a battle! I''ve had enough of that confinement!'' His battle prowess had increased since the last time he fought. The effects of the liquid stage were showed clearly in the might of his blows. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah attacked relentlessly, having solved the disadvantage of having a small amount of "Breath" available he was fighting at full strength with no reserves. After more than twenty clashes, Noah sent a black wind slash toward the mole. The magical beast tried to block the attack with its fangs but they were broken by the blow. In just a few impacts, the weapons of a rank 3 magical beast could not endure any more the black sabers of the young man. The slash hit the beast''s body and cut deeply into it, yet no blood came out of the wound. The Rabid mole screamed in pain and was about to charge ahead when Noah appeared at its side and severed its defenseless head. The body of the beast fell on the ground and then turned into smoke that dissipated in the separate dimension. ''I see, so they are just a creation of this world. The more I learn about this place the more it surprises me.'' Chapter 77: 77. Venting The soldiers from the Noorge family arrived and joined the battle. The soldiers from the Balvan group separated into two troops, one attacking the moles and one defending Fabian and Neil. Lena was right beside Trevor sending water bullets on the beast in front of her. The two families didn''t fight each other but chose to kill as many magical beasts they could before the leader of the pack was found. It was momentarily useless to start a battle between themselves and there was some hesitation on both sides in attacking the soldiers of another family. After all, the people here were the most prominent figures in the younger generation of the families, killing some of them might lead to future frictions between their noble houses. Therefore, unless it was absolutely necessary like in the case of the appearance of the leader of the beasts, they would rather focus on increasing the kill count to have better chances to obtain the coordinates of the second stage than fight each other. Noah didn''t know the specifics of the method to receive the coordinates but the report said that it depended on the number of beasts killed in the case a pack was divided between two different groups, so he decided to storm the area. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. ''I believe they already know that I have plenty of battle experience so going all out should not be a problem. The important thing is to keep Assea hidden.'' He surely could have held back but the truth was that he didn''t care enough to do so. In the last year and a half, he had to endure the constant mocking of the siblings while mourning his mother''s death, all he wanted to do was to vent and these fake beasts were the perfect targets for his anger. Noah ran freely in the pack of moles that kept on coming out from the ground, their number had already surpassed the fifty specimens! However, most of them were simple rank 2 beasts with few of them being rank 3. Noah ran from rank 3 to rank 3 killing every other weaker beast on his road with a single attack. The guards protecting the descendants stared with their mouths open at the kid running carelessly among the pack. Every rank 2 beast that he passed would find its body divided into two pieces and when he finally reached a rank 3, he would unleash a torrent of black wind slashes until its defenses were destroyed. Even Fabian and Neil stared astonishedly as he killed the third rank 3 magical beast without even sweating. Lena and Trevor were definitely doing their part having taken down six rank 3 beasts, but they were working together and had the backup of the other soldiers around them. Lena gave a look to Noah and had to admit that his battle experience far surpassed hers. ''Why does he seems so unsatisfied though?'' Noah was relentless, he never stopped for a second in his search for better opponents. ''I''ve seen a man fight a dragon! I survived the snores of a rank 5 beast! You are too weak!'' He was venting all his accumulated irritation to the pack looking for a battle that could satisfy him. It had to be said that his martial art was perfect for dealing with large groups of enemies of low level, his attacks were fast and precise, and the rank 3 beasts had only the strength of the initial stage so they weren''t that much of a threat. The soldiers from the Noorge family were losing their morale. They could keep up with Trevor and Lena killing speed but with Noah''s presence, they were falling behind in the number of beasts vanquished. At that point though, a crater opened in the terrain and four big moles came out of it. Their brown fur seemed more shining compared to the others and they were bigger. The size of the other moles was lower than one and a half meter but the height of the newcomers surpassed two meters. Everyone on the battlefield understood that the leader was among those four beasts. The Noorge group didn''t hesitate and rushed toward them, followed by Lena and Trevor that signaled to the guards around them to follow. Noah too saw the new beasts but he was still in the middle of the enemy pack. He attempted to create a path toward the stronger beasts but was stopped by two rank 3 moles that blocked his path. No matter how hard he tried to avoid or pass through them, they stood still and hindered his movements. Meanwhile, the other rank 2 were surrounding him from all the sides. The strange thing was that their actions seemed intentional and aimed to prevent him to join the fight against their leader. ''Aren''t these just creations of this world? How could they keep their instinct to protect their boss and even try to set a formation?'' He deflected the incoming strikes and thought of a plan to escape the encirclement. The blows were stronger than before and for the first time, he became wary of the rank 2 beasts. ''Did their power increase? How is it possible? Wait, don''t tell me...'' He deflected again and pierced two rank 2 moles with his sabers while retreating. ''This is a test, right? So the appearance of the leader must have triggered something in their patterns. It should be a signal that the first stage reached its climax, at least for us.'' He pondered for a long time still immersed in the pack. ''A test should have points to evaluate its participants, so let''s say that each beast killed gives to a group some points since it''s the only variable here. I can''t reach the leader any time soon anyway so I should focus on dealing with the pack, maybe we can get the coordinates through quantity rather than quality.'' There were around forty empowered moles around him of both rank 2 and rank 3. ''Anyhow, losing the early ingress on the second stage doesn''t concern me. My objective is to find a way to escape, not to fight for some random inheritance.'' Dealing with the pack gave him also more chances to hide Assea as he was sure that he would not need it if he was careful. As he decided in his mind his next course of action he didn''t waste time anymore. He took a deep breath and slashed with his sabers at an unimaginable speed. More than twenty black slashes appeared in the air from his position. Chapter 78: 78. Leader The wind slashes slammed in the beasts around him, some rank 2 beasts were killed on the spot or heavily injured while the rank 3 ones were pushed back due to the might of the blows. A small circular area was emptied around Noah as he jumped toward a rank 2 beast stabbing his saber in its head. ''Let''s see the limits of the liquid stage!'' Meanwhile, in the area where the four strong Rabid moles appeared. The soldiers of both families were facing each other to leave the battle against the powerful foes to the best in their groups. Five people were engaged in a fierce battle against the beasts, with Trevor and Lena from the Balvan family and the appointed captain and two descendants from the Noorge family. Trevor was swinging his sword with dexterity, deflecting all the attacks that came at him while Lena was shooting water bullets, injuring the beast she was focused on. Since there were four moles, the five of them were momentarily focused on two each. Trevor deflected another blow but was sent back by the fangs of the second mole that they were fighting. "Dammit!" He cursed loudly. "Mylady their strength equals a peak rank 3 magical beast, I''m afraid that if we remain this passive we will lose ground to the Noorge family." Lena retreated with him and nodded. "The biggest problem is that they all look identical so we don''t know who the leader is. I think we should get serious." As soon as she said that, she clasped her hands together and then separated them while concentrating. A water whip was created between her hands! Lena''s complexion paled a bit but then a bottle appeared in front of her and she directly drank it. Her sweating stopped and she immediately struck with the whip. The mole that she focused on with her previous spell was surprised by the speed of the new one and was struck in the head without having the chance to block the blow. Trevor didn''t let this chance be wasted and thrust his sword in the terrain. Then, he strongly held on it while stretching his right arm toward the mole with his fingers pointing at it. The wind blew around his arm and amassed on the fingers before releasing a piercing attack made of compressed air. The lance of wind struck the already injured mole and pierced through it, leaving a hole as big as two fists on its body. The mole fell on the ground and turned into smoke, the had successfully killed it! Tremor smiled while supporting himself on his sword, the attack from before had consumed most of his mental energy but the effects were amazing. ''A pity that it takes so much to prepare, in a one versus one battle it''s almost impossible to use.'' He analyzed the spell in his mind but then he heard another thud. The three from the Noorge family had defeated a mole too. The two remaining magical beasts were identical in every aspect, it was impossible to understand which one of them was the leader. "We can only pray that our luck is good." Lena spoke, sensing the doubts in Trevor''s mind. He nodded in acknowledgment and raised his sword toward the mole in front of them. He charged ahead, now that the numbers were in their favor the battle became onesided. Trevor blocked every attack of the fangs while Lena swung her whip with high dexterity relentlessly hitting its body. The fight continued for a while until the mole could not keep up anymore and lowered its arms devoid of any strength. Trevor stabbed his sword into its body and Lena wrapped her whip on its head as she pulled with great force. The mole died on the spot and turned into smoke while it was still standing. Before they could cheer though, the remaining beast roared with vigor forcing the five people to plug their ears to resist the shock wave. A golden crown appeared on its head and the injuries that were inflicted on it began to heal. All the soldiers understood that the leader had appeared. When the shockwave was over, Trevor and Lena hurriedly jumped toward the beast but they were quite a distance away from it compared to the group from the Noorge family. The three from the Noorge family didn''t waste their advantage and assaulted the pack leader with their most powerful attacks. Two big fireballs shot out from the two descendants while the appointed captain had his hands on the ground controlling four snakes made of terrain to restrict and wound the beast. The leader could not evade the fireballs as its lower body was bitten by the captain''s snakes. The spells collided with its body and a loud explosion occurred. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. When the dust settled, what remained of the mole was just its lower body still blocked in the snake''s embrace. Then, the remains of the body turned into smoke which signaled that the leader was dead. The three from the Noorge family cheered loudly and turned toward Trevor and Lena. The two descendants were two sisters both of the fire element and looked at Lena with a bit of pity. "This time we were lucky, your brother and cousin are simply too young to affect this fight. It was a nice competition though." They bowed as a form of respect to Lena. Lena sighed and bowed silently to accept their courteous greeting. At that point, the battlefield illuminated and many brilliant runes shot out from the terrain. The runes exploded mid-air and released a bright powder that entered the bodies of the men and women in the area. However, only the people from the Balvan family underwent this process! The two sisters were surprised and complained loudly. "How is this possible, we killed the leader! How many more beasts could they have killed to make up for that!" As if remembering something, they turned their heads to look in the direction where the pack was. They saw a young man in red armor sweating profusely and breathing roughly. There were no beasts around him and only a few strands of smoke were recognizable among the bright powder that surrounded him. Chapter 79: 79. Tes Noah''s liquid "Breath" in his dantian was below half of its maximum capacity. Even though most of the beasts around him were rank 2, he still had to fight at full strength due to the encirclement. From the start of the battle till that moment, he had released more than two hundred attacks fueled with his dantian and yet he still had some spare energy. His body was recovering at fast speed and his condition was stabilizing while the powder entered his body. ''My limit right now is around three hundred and fifty full power attacks and I also have more than one hundred weaker ones due to the gaseous "Breath" in my body. Good, really good.'' He could have spent less liquid "Breath" if he used Assea but he was firm in hiding it. ''The higher the density of the "Breath" the stronger my attacks will be, but they will also consume more of it. However, these are just beasts. Against another cultivator, my only real advantage is Assea since it''s a spell useful in any situation.'' Like he was in the liquid stage, so were many others. Like he had a rank 3 martial art and a rank 3 body, so had many others. His battle experience was something remarkable as it was his strong mind, but the first could be acquired easily and the other was useless without spells. ''I need abilities specific to my attitudes and talents and not anything that is simply one rank higher than the other.'' For example, Lena had the water bullet that was a versatile spell with a low cost of "Breath" added to her water whip that paired perfectly with her dexterity with that weapon. Her foundation was stable and she might even have some other spells that Noah was unaware of. Of course, that knowledge came from his days spent as a training dummy, during the previous battle he was too focused on the pack and didn''t see the fight against the four peak rank 3 moles. ''I guess that if I had a darkness-type beast as a blood companion things would be different.'' He knew that the spell he had was very powerful, yet he still couldn''t use its full potential. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. ''Dammit, everything always points to the academy.'' The light faded and the powder was completely absorbed by the Balvan group. Noah felt a series of new information in his mind that described a precise route toward a certain spot in the grassland. He looked at the others in his group and from their whispers and gestures he understood that they had received the same type of knowledge. ''Even transmitting pieces of information directly in someone''s mind is possible. Why do I even bother being surprised anymore?'' He shook his head while he sat on the ground to meditate to recover from the battle. Trevor nodded to his behavior and gestured to everyone to do the same. As the appointed captain, failing to obtain the entrance to the second stage against the Noorge family would have had a negative impact on his position so he began to view Noah under a different light. He and Lena had done their parts going even with the Noorge family but it was still Noah who titled the scales of the battle. Lena looked at him for a bit while she sat and took out some medicines from her space-ring. There was some wariness in her eyes and she decided in her mind to ask for advice to her parents on how to handle the situation when she went back to the mansion. After all, she had already made sure that Noah hated her but only now she realized that he could actually become someone important in the family. The group from the Noorge family looked dejected at the resting soldiers and decided to resume their march at a slow pace searching for another pack of beasts. Lena was the first to recover thanks to all the potions that the family gave her and went to check the condition of the other guards. Apart from a few injured ones, everyone could still fight at full strength. Fabian and Neil had done almost nothing during the battle. They both had a rank 2 body and since a big part of the pack was handled by Noah they had barely made any effort. After half a day of rest, Trevor stood up and commanded everyone to move. Noah lazily stood up, his dantian had refilled by a quarter of his full capacity so he was more than ready to march. There was no need for directions or gestures as everyone knew the route they had to move to. Hours passed and all they could see was the endless green plain which made them feel like they hadn''t moved at all. It had to pass another half a day before they reached the spot signaled in their mind. It was still in the grassland but anytime they looked at the terrain forming the entrance, the ground would light up and color itself orange. Trevor looked at the ground for a bit before facing the soldiers behind him and speaking. "Here is the entrance for the second stage, we will all jump inside at the same time. Remember that this stage has no fixed pattern so you have to be ready for anything. Bring honor to the Balvan family!" "For the Balvan family" The soldier echoed Trevor''s battle cry and positioned themselves around the perimeter of the ingress area. Trevor had the descendants on both sides while Noah was in his opposite position. He raised his hand to make everyone concentrate and then he lowered it with a fast gesture. The soldiers jumped, while Trevor made sure that everyone went inside. Noah had no choice but to jump because Lena''s gaze was fixed on him. He felt again the pressure of the teleportation and when he opened his eyes he found himself alone in a dark spacious area. After a few seconds, a metallic male voice sounded in the place. "Inheritance ground second stage: solo battle prowess test." Chapter 80: 80. Endless waves ''Solo battle?'' Noah carefully inspected his surroundings with his mental energy. Every time it hit the walls of the room, his perception would flutter, disturbed by the "Breath" which they were made of. He seemed to be in some sort of underground closed area large fifty square meters and he sensed no living forms around him. ''It seems that I''m really alone here.'' He coldly watched in front of him as some runes in the terrain began to shine and rose in the air. A rank 2 Rabid mole appeared between the halo of light and the voice sounded again. "If you want to give up, please break the rune that formed in your sea of consciousness." Noah''s eyes widened and he hastily checked his mental sphere. His cross-legged figure inside it opened his eyes and was astonished to find an orange rune between his hands. Noah came back to reality and could not help but feel some reverence toward the cultivator that set up the separate dimension. ''This world can directly interfere with the insides of my mental sphere! This is incredible!'' The beast stood still as if waiting for Noah to make the first move. ''This inheritance ground was made for cultivators under the age of twenty so this stage should be calibrated on a reasonable difficulty. I might really get something valuable here.'' His reasoning had no flaws so Noah decided to make a serious attempt in obtaining a good reward. His eyes focused as he took out his upper armor and put it in the space-ring. Then he wore the ring on his finger and made a step in the direction of the beast. His sabers were unsheathed since he jumped in the second stage. The rank 2 mole charged as soon as he moved but was instantly killed by a casual strike from Noah. The beast turned into smoke that accumulated back where the runes were and two rank 2 moles came out of the halo. ''Ohh so that''s how it will work. Well, I always wanted to know my true limit too.'' A slight smile appeared on his face as he ran toward the two beasts killing them in an instant. The same process repeated and four moles appeared. Noah charged at them without hesitation. . . . Time passed and the number of beasts appearing together kept on increasing. Noah had just killed the last specimen of the latest wave of enemies. ''Forty this time. I wonder how many there will be now.'' He didn''t use the liquid "Breath" in his dantian at all and was only relying on the one in his body to fight. Since it recovered even as he fought, using it was the best method to maintain himself at peak form. After the forty strands of smoke rejoined the halo, the runes shined with more intensity as if they were charging themselves. Then, a rank 3 mole came out of it and stood still looking at Noah. ''So it''s time for the advancement in rank, luckily I''m alone now.'' He charged toward the beast and pointed his sabers to deliver a blow. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. The mole prepared to block the blade raising its fangs but was met by the black teeth of a reptilian head. Its paws were locked in the snake''s mouth so he had no way of protecting itself from Noah''s strike in its blind side. Its head was severed and it turned into smoke. A rank 3 beast was killed with only two attacks! ''It''s way easier when I use Assea. Magic spells are awesome!'' The smoke went back to the halo and two rank 3 Rabid moles appeared. ''The real challenge starts now.'' . . . About an hour later, still in the area of the second stage. Noah was surrounded by six rank 3 Rabid moles with their strength being in the middle-tier of the rank. He had begun to use his liquid "Breath" long ago and he swung his sabers madly in every direction. Assea would randomly appear every time he needed to block an attack or to deliver a sneaky bite to a beast. Wounds kept on accumulating on the six moles and their movement began to slow down. At some point, one of them appeared in Noah''s blind spot and was about to raise its fangs to strike but it was soon enveloped by Assea''s mouth. Noah turned and hastily pierced its head, its body transformed into smoke. Now that their number was lowered, the fight became easier. It took Noah another fifteen minutes to vanquish the beasts and when the fight was over he sat on the ground to meditate. He discovered that the test gave him a ten minutes break after every battle. Initially, he didn''t need to rest but as the numbers of rank 3 moles increased, he found himself depleting more and more liquid "Breath". The new beasts would be created immediately but they would stay still until the ten minutes passed. Noah wouldn''t even look at his opponents and he opened his eyes only when an attack came to him. Doing that allowed him to maximize the time spent recovering. Ten minutes passed and Noah felt a threat in front of him. He suddenly opened his eyes and dodged the incoming attack. ''Peak rank 3!'' There was only one enemy in front of him but it was at the peak of the stage. ''The difficulty increased again by one tier.'' Against a single enemy, he actually had it quite easy as he could exploit the numerical advantage given by his blood companion. The battle was fierce. Noah had fought magical beasts in its same rank twice already but they were injured both times. However, he now had a rank 3 body and Assea wasn''t hindered by any other enemies. Little by little, the rank 3 mole lost terrain as it was being assaulted on two sides. Then, Noah forced it to block a powerful frontal blow and Assea bit off a big piece of its defenseless back. The beast turned into smoke and Noah sat to meditate. When he reopened his eyes, two peak rank 3 moles were punching at him. Chapter 81: 81. Drained Noah retreated hastily sending Assea in front of him to block the beasts'' assault. By then, he was used to fighting while withstanding the pain that Assea suffered. His blood companion''s body was shredded but recomposed instantly and locked one of the enemies in a fierce fight. Noah could defeat a peak rank 3 beast alone so he just chose to divide the attention of the two Rabid moles between him and Assea. Assea''s body continued to be injured and broken, there was no way to compare its strength to that of the beast. However, one of the strong points of the companion was its recovery. Assea continued to lose every clash with the mole but it never let its opponent attack Noah. On the other side, Noah was releasing torrents of wind blades on his enemy. The pain he felt due to his companion was nothing he couldn''t endure. The battle protracted for more than twenty minutes. Even though Noah had the advantage the whole time, his opponent was still a king among rank 3 beasts. Its resilience was immense and endured wound after wound that he managed to inflict. Noah didn''t let it rest for even an instant as he continued to strike trying to deliver a fatal blow. Inevitably, that moment arrived. The mole was covered with tens of cuts, no blood came out of its wounds but the effects of the injuries were still shown on it. Its paws were one second too late and Noah''s blade passed through its defenses. FFFFFFF The soft sound of its body turning into smoke reached Noah''s ears and he didn''t hesitate to turn himself and charge toward the remaining beast. Assea was just acting as a punching dummy while it kept on charging selflessly at the mole. When Noah gave the command, it coiled around the beast uncaring of its body being broken continuously. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah took advantage of the restrained beast and severed its body in half with a double strike from his sabers. The round was over and Noah sat on the ground to meditate. Even if he managed to be uninjured, a large quantity of his "Breath" had been depleted. During the previous battle, he had to fuel Assea''s body with liquid "Breath" because the gaseous one in his body could not keep up with the intensity of its fight. ''For how long will this keep going? I''m quite sure that even Lena could have won the last round only thanks to her potions.'' The standards of this trial had to be set considering the ages of the candidates. Noah knew that his biggest advantage in the test was that he could divert some enemies'' attention to his blood companion, the numerical difficulty of the trial was halved for him. Hadn''t been for Assea''s presence, the previous battle would have most likely been his last. ''I can''t continue for much longer, what kind of requirements did this cultivator had when he set up the dimension?'' When the ten minutes were over, he had less than one hundred and fifty attacks available. He felt something charging at him and he opened his eyes while jumping in retreat. ''This will be my last round.'' He could not help to think of that seeing four peak rank 3 Rabid moles. Noah took a deep breath, his figure in the sea of consciousness held the rune tightly, ready to break it at any moment. The magical beasts advanced at high speed and as soon as they reached him, they stretched their nails to deliver a powerful strike. Thirty-two gray blades pierced the air toward his position, one for every finger of the beasts. Noah waited until the tips of the fangs were a few centimeters from his head to call Assea. Then, the huge body of a snake appeared in his position. Its body was pierced and cut in many points by the attacks until it could not support itself anymore and shattered, yet there was no one in the now empty area where Assea previously was. He instead appeared below one of the moles, ready to swing his weapons. The beasts reacted and tilted their fangs to reduce into pieces the human below them. Deep marks were left on the floor as the moles didn''t have time to retract their nails but before they could hit the young man, the body of the snake reappeared slowing the blows. Assea''s body shattered again but from its disappearing figure, two shadows flew out. One of them was Noah that was retreating with a light wound on his back. The other one was a wind slash that hit one of the moles'' fingers and directly severed it! ''Thirty-one to go.'' Mole-types beasts were generally weaker than snake-types ones, their bodies were not as strong and their only method of attack was through their extensible fangs. Noah could not win in a frontal battle so he decided to destroy their weapons in order to decrease their dangerousness. However, to achieve that feat he had to continuously sacrifice Assea''s body fueled with liquid "Breath" and he still could not avoid getting stricken from time to time. Noah smiled unconsciously, a cold aura radiated from him as his concentration reached its peak. ''One mistake and I lose. If I run out of "Breath" I lose. This is how a real battle should be!'' . . . Almost an hour passed. In the underground room, one young man and four moles were staring at each other. The four moles had all their fingers chopped off from their paws and they assumed a four-legged stance to charge at the human in front of them. On the other side, Noah was breathing heavily, his complexion was paler than it had ever been and countless wounds were on his body dripping blood on the ground. Inside his sea of consciousness, Assea''s figure was cracked and in need of recovery, that day its body has been destroyed so many times that the damages had extended to Noah''s mental sphere. The beasts didn''t have their fangs anymore so they chose to assault him with their bare bodies. Their charge began and they opened their mouths ready to bite the small human. Noah was still smiling and looked at the incoming beasts with a calm gaze. As the moles jumped on him, his sabers moved and released the last eight attacks that his dantian was capable of providing. The four were hit by two strikes each while still mid-air and their bodies were cut from head to toe by Noah''s final blows. What hit Noah was just the smoke of the dissolving beasts. He fell on his knees completely drained of every bit of energy, he didn''t see that the halo generated by the runes was becoming more intense. Chapter 82: 82. Bad luck Noah gasped for air, his acupoints were already refilling the "Breath" in his body but his dantian was completely empty, he had expended every drop of "Breath" he had in it. ''That is the best I can do, I even injured Assea to pass the round.'' He turned to look at the runes and saw that the halo was becoming more intense. ''Don''t tell me that there is more? What is it going to be now? Six peak rank 3? One rank 4?'' The scenes from the Twilboia Cliff reappeared in his mind and he trembled a bit remembering the newly advanced rank 4 snake. ''I can''t win against that thing even if there were three of me fighting it.'' He sat in the cross-legged position to refill his dantian, he didn''t want to go back to the first stage totally exhausted. ''I''ll just see what comes out and then break the rune in my sphere.'' The vitality of his body was already healing his wounds as the acupoints rotated, in the ten minutes break he could at least stabilize his most serious injuries. However, ten minutes passed and nothing happened, the light continued to illuminate the room without creating any other magical beast. Thirty minutes passed and there was still no changes in the halo. Noah didn''t bother to think much about it and welcomed the extra time given to him to recover as he continued to cultivate. Healing Assea would take too much time so he focused on accumulating liquid "Breath". When one hour had passed, the halo dispersed and a peculiar figure was shown to Noah. He had a loose orange robe with golden thunders sewed on it. He was levitating in a cross-legged position with his eyes closed and he had a long combed white beard. The thing that attracted Noah''s attention the most though was his incredibly large pointy hat. It seemed one of those hats that warlocks or witches wore in the games of his previous world but that one was almost three meters of diameter and was made of some metallic material. Noah was so surprised that he stopped meditating and just stared at the elderly man in the air. Then the man opened his eyes and looked around him in a confused manner. The runes at his side exploded and released a powder that flowed into his body. As the powder was absorbed, his eyes regained clarity and he began to nod. "Mh, mh, I understand." Only then his gaze went on Noah that was still looking at him and after nodding a few more times he spoke. "You are of the darkness element am I right?" Noah''s eyes widened and he gulped sonorously while nodding. The elderly cultivator saw his answer and shook his head. "What a pity, what a pity." Noah wanted to understand more and struggled to stand up to perform a respectful bow before speaking. "S-senior wh-" The man didn''t let him finish the phrase and waved his hand sending orange powder in Noah''s direction. The powder was too fast and entered his body under Noah''s incredulous gaze. He began to retreat instinctively but an orange halo was already surrounding him. Noah started to panic but then he noticed that his dantian was being refilled on its own! The wounds on his body healed in an instant and even the mental energy in his sea of consciousness was restored to its maximum capacity. Assea''s cracked figure recomposed completely and was filled by so much energy that the blood companion came out from Noah''s body autonomously and hissed at the ceiling! "That is indeed a good spell. Never would I have expected that spells regarding puppets would have reached such a level in the future." Noah was still examining his body that had returned to his peak form. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. When the man spoke, Noah''s gaze moved to him, only reverence was shown by his eyes. "Thank you very much, Senior!" Noah said repeating his bow. The elderly man placed his feet to the ground and stretched one of his arms assuming an imposing posture. "The world knows me as Eccentric Thunder, I''ve accumulated wealth for hundreds of years and set this inheritance ground to find an heir worth to be called my disciple." He stared at Noah, a bit of disappointment was exuded from his eyes. "I am already dead but my will resides in the runes of my dimension. Young one, you are indeed worthy of being my disciple, sadly it appears that the luck both of us is bad." Eccentric Thunder sighed before continuing his speech. "There are two conditions to become my heir. The first one is to have the necessary strength and you clearly fulfilled that or I won''t be here. The second one is for him or her to be of the thunder element." Noah felt dejected, he had fought so hard only to be punished by his bad luck. Eccentric Thunder continued seeing his expression. "I am but a will, I need to obey the rules set by my true self when he created the dimension. Since you passed the test you have the right to obtain my most valuable asset of the darkness element. Rejoice, it''s a top tier spell that will accompany you through all your cultivation journey." Noah''s eyes lit up hearing his words and a bit of eagerness invaded him. "I''m really sorry, young one. The rules that I set up clearly state that anyone that doesn''t fulfill the two conditions has the right to receive only one reward. I could not risk that my accumulations might have been expended before I had found a successor. One test one reward, that''s the rule. The dimension is now preparing to transfer the diagram directly into your sea of consciousness, you will be sent out soon." Noah fell deep in thought. ''One spell doesn''t help me that much to escape, there are still the elite guards waiting on the entrance to the first stage and I can''t possibly defeat them.'' He bowed again. "Senior, is there another exit from the separate dimension to the outer world?" Eccentric Thunder snorted and sent another ray of orange powder toward Noah. "Hmph, who do you think I am? Here, this is the complete map of the inheritance ground. Take it as an apology for the single reward." Many pieces of information were injected in Noah''s mind and he rejoiced to see that there was hope to escape from the Balvan group. He was about to bow again when a strange idea formed in his mind. A shameless smile appeared on his face as he neared the elderly cultivator. Chapter 83: 83. Deal Eccentric Thunder''s words made Noah realize something. ''The map of the inheritance ground can be considered as a reward, right? Giving it to me should have been impossible if the rules had to be followed strictly.'' Noah came from a different world so he had two points of view on everything. ''If the separate dimension can be considered as a program that would mean that there are ways to cheat it.'' He thought of the potential loopholes that there could be in the dimension''s rules and the cultivator''s words gave him some ideas. He arrived in front of him and asked in the most persuasive voice that he could muster. "Grandpa Thunder, if you could, would you be willing to give me more prizes?" Eccentric Thunder was a bit shocked. The runes had shown him Noah''s battle and the expression that he was making at that time was the complete opposite of the cold smiling one he had when he was fighting. "Hm, well, yes, but as I told you: rules are rules, I can''t help you with that." He crossed his arms on his chest and looked away from Noah. Noah continued his persuasion. "What if you gave me more tests before I return to the first stage? Passing them wouldn''t mean obtaining more rewards?" Eccentric Thunder thought for a moment and then slowly nodded. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. "Yes, that might work. But the diagram for your spell will be ready in the time it takes an incense stick to burn, you will never be able to clear one of the tests in that little time." ''Five minutes so.'' Noah thought for a little and could only find one solution. "Mh, what if you set a new test that consists of simple questions? I believe that a mighty Senior like you could do that without much effort." The old man snorted. "Of course I can do that, but that would be giving you things for free. It is immoral! A cultivator has to earn his power!" He raised his head to the ceiling to appear pure and virtuous but his enormous hat made the scene look a bit ridiculous. However, Noah''s next words made him turn abruptly with his eyes widened. "What if I find you a worthy descendant?" Eccentric Thunder stared at the young man and gulped, Noah could not help but remark the realism of the dimension. "Do you know of someone that fulfills the conditions?" Noah moved his gaze to the ground and shook his head. "Well, not currently. But you must know that I''m planning to join a famous organization full of young talents even stronger than me." He shrugged his shoulders and took out one of his sabers while sighing sonorously. "However, the journey will be long and hard. There are guards waiting for me on the first stage from whom I have to escape. Then, I would have to travel alone for many months and all of this will be useless if I don''t pass their entrance test." He laid the saber on his hands and showed it to the cultivator. "Look, my sabers are full of dents from all the battles I went through. My cultivation technique is a weak rank 1 technique that has no elemental requirements and my blood companion doesn''t even fit me! I guess I will have to give up on escaping after all, I don''t think I can manage in my mission with only a new spell." Eccentric Thunder was about to respond but Noah continued. "I hope you the best luck Grandpa Thunder. Even if your inheritance ground is occupied by the Shosti family and the entrance is under their control, I believe that a worthy heir will appear in this remote countryside sooner or later. Heaven and Earth can''t be so unfair to you." Noah seemed really disheartened when he spoke about the situation on the outside world making the worries of the elderly man increase. Many years had passed, Eccentric Thunder had no knowledge of the environment outside his dimension. He had set many entrances but until now only one had been discovered and the Shosti family had made it their biggest form of income. However, what if they restricted the ingress? What if his fated heir was among those that could not have access to the inheritance ground? Eccentric Thunder didn''t have much time to think about it since Noah was about to be sent out to the first stage. A few seconds passed before the man spoke resolutely. "Scoundrel, give me your hand, you have a deal." Noah immediately raised his right hand toward him, he expected his approval since his conditions were good. Eccentric Thunder held his arm and orange light began to shine on their handshake. "Swear upon your dantian that you will do anything in your power to send a worthy young cultivator of the thunder element in one of the entrances that are on the map that I gave you." Noah''s smile disappeared replaced by his usual cold expression as he set a condition. "A cultivator that I''m sure will not harm me in the future." Eccentric Thunder looked for a moment deep into the young man''s eyes and nodded internally. ''He sure has the attitude needed to reach a high level.'' "Fine." Noah then smiled again. "I swear!" The orange light condensed and inscribed a rune on Noah''s arm that was then absorbed under his skin. Information on the specifics of the agreement and on how to fulfill it entered his mind and he felt satisfied with them. Eccentric Thunder let his hand go and thought for a moment before a rune appeared in front of him. He was about to speak when Noah spoke again. "Really simple questions, my knowledge is lacking." The old man nodded and pressed his hand on the rune. "Which one is the best element?" ''EH!?!'' Noah was a bit surprised. He answered with a hesitant voice. "Thunder?" Eccentric Thunder smiled and the rune shined briefly. "Good, good, since you were able to answer this difficult question you deserve this rank 2 cultivation technique of your element." A scroll appeared in front of Noah and he hastily put it in his space-ring. Chapter 84: 84. Ready In the underground room of the second stage. Noah and Eccentric Thunder were smiling at each other while the rune between them shined shortly from time to time. "Which color is the most good looking?" "Orange!" "Ohh, I see that you are an expert. Take this reagent, it will help you breaking through ranks." "What about hats?" "The larger they are the more awesome they appear!" "Correct! I think this pair of sabers will suit you. They have an inscription that repairs them through "Breath"." "Who do you think is the most awesome character in the history of cultivators?" "Senior Eccentric Thunder is the best of course!" "You think so? I will humbly accept this compliment and give you an Earth pill then." Noah was taking everything that the rune made appear in his space-ring without even looking at it, he wanted to make the best usage of the little time he had. "As for beards, mh? Which ones are the best in their kind?" "Long and combed like yours Senior!" "Ohoh, you are such a smart kid. Here, take this new space-ring, it has more than fifty cubic meters of space inside." Noah wore the newly appeared ring on one of his free fingers and looked at the old man with eagerness. Eccentric Thunder seemed to like having someone that approved his appearance and would smile every time Noah answered one of his questions. Noah began to understand why he was called "Eccentric". However, after he asked the fifth question, he stayed silent for a moment and closed his eyes while knitting his brows. When he opened his eyes he shook his head in Noah''s direction. "I''m sorry, it appears that I can''t stretch the rules more than this, I''m beginning to feel a backlash from the dimension." Noah''s enthusiasm was crushed but then he accepted the outcome. ''I have obtained a cultivation technique, new weapons, a new space-ring, and the means to reach the second rank of the dantian, this is already incredibly good. And there is the top tier spell that he spoke about earlier.'' Noah sorted the rewards in his mind. "How long till I''m sent out?" Eccentric Thunder answered. "Two parts of incense." ''Two minutes so, I have to hurry.'' He put his old sabers in the space-ring and took out the new ones. They were silver with some green symbols inscribed on them. Noah swung them a couple of times and then nodded in satisfaction. He donned again the red upper armor and tied the sheaths of his new weapons on his back. The sabers were held tightly in his hands while in his mind he reviewed the path that he had to take to escape. He was ready to abandon the Balvan family! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Eccentric Thunder smiled a bit seeing again the cold expression of the young man. "When the diagram will be inscribed in your sea of consciousness it will hurt a bit. However, all the specifics about the spell will be passed too, so you won''t have to train in its activation." Noah looked at the elderly man and made a bow in gratitude. "I promise I will bring you a good disciple." Eccentric Thunder snorted but smiled happily. "Of course you will, a deal with me can''t be broken that easily!" They smiled looking at each other. Noah then felt the pressure of the teleportation and disappeared from the second stage. Eccentric Thunder shook his head while mumbling softly. "Kids these days have become too cunning." . . . A few hours before, on the first stage. Soldiers from the Balvan family appeared one by one and began to discuss the contents of the trial. They were exhausted and rested on the ground making bets on who would be able to last more in the test. Neil and Fabian arrived almost at the same time, creating silence between the guards. Their complexion was a bit pale but they were uninjured, the soldiers understood that they had retreated before the situation became too difficult. Time passed and in the second stage remained only Trevor, Lena, and Noah. Then, Trevor appeared, he had a large wound on his chest and his armor was broken but his arms were tightly holding a spear with some inscriptions on it. He was smiling since he managed to obtain some rewards but his expression froze when he saw who was missing. ''I killed one of the two peak rank 3 magical beasts but I had to suffer a severe injury to do that. I understand that Lady Lena can do better than me but how is it possible that Noah is still not here?'' He sat on the ground to threat his body but his gaze would often fall on the ingress of the stage. Another person arrived and when the light of the teleportation disappeared, Lena''s almost naked figure was shown to the group. Trevor hastily stood up and jumped toward her, tearing off some of his clothes in order to cover the descendant. She didn''t care much and just sat on the ground swallowing pills and potions to heal the harsh damages on her body. When her injuries stabilized, she smiled toward Trevor and showed him a small scroll. "I did it, I obtained a spell. Sadly I couldn''t clear the successive round but this should be enough. Once I''ve recovered, we can move." Trevor''s expression became complex and lowered his head to speak in a soft voice. "My lady about that, ehm, Noah is still inside the test." Lena''s eyes widened and her gaze ran through the group but she couldn''t find her bastard cousin. She looked again at Trevor. "How is that possible? The next round had four peak rank 3 beasts while he doesn''t even have a spell! I bet that he is running around against the single peak rank 3 waiting for us to think that he died down there. Hmph, if he thinks that I''ll let him go that easily he is wrong." Trevor nodded at her theory but was a bit doubtful inside his mind. ''He can definitely kill a peak rank 3 alone, is he really stalling for time? To what point though, there is only one entrance.'' He sat beside Lena and calmly waited for Noah to appear. A bit more than an hour passed and the light of the teleportation flashed again. Noah appeared, he was holding two silver sabers in his hands. His eyes were closed and some sweat ran down his forehead. He seemed in pain. Chapter 85: 85. Insubordination Inside Noah''s sea of consciousness. Black roots tangled themselves on the figure of the first Kesier rune. A complex diagram appeared with the roots as its lines. The roots then tried to extend on the faint form of the second Kesier rune but its image was too ethereal and they retreated after they failed on grasping it. The process sent waves of pain on Noah''s mind. However, with it came also the knowledge about the spell. Its effects, the usage, the strong points, and the weak ones, everything became known by Noah in an instant. ''He wasn''t bragging when he said that it was a top tier spell.'' This was his first thought when his mind was freed from the pain and he opened his eyes. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. The group from the Balvan family was staring at him with wide eyes. They could not understand how he stayed in the second stage for so much time and came out unharmed! He had remained in the test for about one hour more than Lena and she was supposed to be the stronger of their group. Noah released a cold aura seeing that the attention was focused on him, he laid the sabers on his shoulders and gazed at Trevor and Lena. He was waiting for their move. Lena stood up and Trevor did the same, the others behind them didn''t quite understand the reason for such tension. Lena spoke. "Did you obtain a reward?" Noah answered briefly. "Yes." "What have you got?" "Why should I tell you?" Lena''s eyes sharpened and the soldiers behind her stood up, insubordination wasn''t allowed in the slightest among the guards of a noble family. Lena continued. "Because I''m your superior, you serve me." Noah looked at the fake sky, only an orange color filled his sight. He spoke. "I believe that you can''t ask about the secrets of a cultivator. My Master once told me that this is an unspoken rule in the cultivation world." Lena snorted. "But you are not a cultivator, you are simply a bastard that had the chance to learn some tricks because his mother opened her legs to a noble." Noah smiled faintly at her remark and moved his gaze back at her. "And that would make me less of a cultivator? I believed that there was only one way to judge that." Lena smiled too. "What would that be?" Noah''s face became stern. "Strength." Lena laughed and pointed her hand at him. "You are so naive! Strength means nothing! So what if someone is powerful? He can always be overwhelmed by numbers! And numbers come with wealth! Hurry and give me your reward, your punishment will be a light one if you stop here." Noah shook his head. "That is not happening." Lena began to lose her cool. "What, do you think that back at the mansion they will let you keep it for yourself? The Patriarch will personally open your sea of consciousness to retrieve what you learnt and give it to the Shosti family." She was about to speak more when Trevor stepped in front of her. "He is not coming back." As a guard, Trevor too had desired to escape. He was privileged but he was still the dog of his masters. No matter how well he was treated, his position remained one of servitude so he could understand Noah''s thoughts better than Lena. In her mind, soldiers could never think about rebellion or escape due to the might of her noble family. As her eyes widened in understanding, Noah jumped ahead. Twenty black slashes were sent toward Trevor and Lena. Except for Lena that had mostly recovered thanks to her resources, the group was tired and wounded while Noah was at the peak of his strength. Lena created a wall of water and Trevor raised his sword to take on him some of the force of the slashes. There was no need to do so as Lena''s spell absorbed that attacks completely. However, Noah had disappeared from their vision. They turned when they heard a scream from one of the soldiers in their group. Noah was freely swinging his sabers on the exhausted soldiers. They had given their outmost in the test and even if they had time to restore some of their "Breath" and to stabilize their body, their battle prowess didn''t reach half of what they were capable of. Heads flew in the air and blood poured on the ground as the guards fell lifelessly one by one. Trevor prioritized securing the descendants and ran toward Neil and Fabian taking them where Lena was standing with her arm raised. She was trying to aim for Noah with her water bullets but he was always behind some soldier and she never had a clear shot. In the end, they could only watch as the twenty guards were killed. Lena didn''t hesitate, as the last guard fell on the ground and Noah''s figure appeared in the open, she shot five bullets directly at him. Noah swung his blades and ten slashes shot out to meet the spell. The bullets pierced the technique but they were slowed enough to give Noah time to dodge. He rapidly charged toward the remaining four members of the Balvan group. Trevor put himself between him and the descendants, ready to take the first impact. Noah clashed with him, two sabers met a sword, their physical strength was equal. Lena smiled and raised her arm to aim for Noah but then a drop of a warm red liquid fell on her cheek. Her eyes widened when she noticed that a big black figure had appeared on her side. On one end of the black body, there was Noah''s leg. The other extremity was behind her with the shape of a reptilian head. Between its fangs, Neil''s body was being crushed and multiple wounds appeared on his body. An invisible membrane though was protecting him, stopping Assea''s teeth from stabbing deeper on his flesh. Lena yelled and turned to attack the snake. Trevor''s attention was diverted on the beast but when he tried to look at it, its body had already disappeared. He felt a sharp pain in his low waist and noticed that the snake''s mouth had already bitten him there. "How-?" He could not finish the phrase as Noah tilted his sabers and thrust them into his chest. Chapter 86: 86. Fiend Trevor was already deeply injured, he had sacrificed his body to use his spell back on the second stage. When the sabers pierced his heart and life began to leave his body, he looked deep into Noah''s eyes. They were cold and focused and had already moved toward his next targets, he didn''t even deign him of one last gaze. For some reason, he felt that Noah''s escape was ensured. ''He will be Balvan family''s biggest tribulation.'' The blades were pulled out of his body and he fell dead on the ground. Lena was confused. She had turned to help her brother but then the black snake vanished and reappeared in the opposite position. She instinctively deployed a water shield to cover herself and the other two descendants. A strong force hit the shield that made it bend toward the safe area behind it. Lena focused and summoned the water whip yelling orders to the two boys. "I need your help! Use everything you have to attack him and rely on the protective items of the family to keep yourself alive. I will face him head-on, you take care of the magical beast." Another impact resounded from the shield and shattered it! Assea shot out from the crystalline drops of which it was made of and Lena''s complexion paled due to the collapse of her spell. However, she had no time to care about her condition and she raised her whip to block the blood companion''s charge. She endured its assault and her whip tangled on its body but then a figure shot out of it. Noah jumped toward Fabian and delivered a descending double cut. He raised his arms in panic and a metallic sound echoed from their clash. On Fabian left arm, a deep cut appeared while a bluish membrane covered the spot where the sabers hit. ''The fuck are those things.'' The attack should have severed the noble in two but as the damage surpassed a determined gravity the membrane showed itself to prevent it. Neil jumped toward him wielding a rapier adorned with blue gems. Noah deflected it but then the gems blinked and shot a ray of light following the trajectory of Neil''s blade. Noah was unprepared and was hit superficially on the shoulder. He retreated sensing the unknown threat and water bullets shot in his direction. Assea''s body appeared and was pierced by the bullets. There was a moment of silence after that as no attacks were launched from both sides. Noah looked from behind Assea and saw that the three nobles were all wielding shining weapons. Lena had taken out a black whip with inscriptions on it, Neil had his rapier, and Fabian held a short white sword with both his hands. Lena began to speak. "I have to admit that your strength is remarkable but you can clearly see the advantage given by numbers and wealth." Noah didn''t mind spending time speaking. Neil and Fabian were both injured and were losing blood while his body autonomously refilled "Breath". "What''s left of your numbers are two inexperienced brats. As for wealth..." He focused his eyes on their armaments. "Why none of you use sabers? I really wanted a new set of them." He shook his head to mock them. Lena saw that he had closed his eyes and hastily took out a pill from her space ring. She was about to eat it when a few black slashes came in her direction forcing her to throw the pill away in order to block the attacks. Noah had charged ahead again sending Assea on Lena to keep her busy while he tried to break the defenses of the other two nobles. Neil was easy to handle, he simply had to avoid that the rapier pointed at him. With his battle experience, dealing with such a weapon which was also poorly handled was easy. The ability of Fabian''s sword though was a bit more annoying. It covered its wielder with a white circular shield that absorbed most of the force behind Noah''s blows. Even when Noah managed to pierce the shied the bluish protective layer would appear, negating any damage. Meanwhile, Lena was destroying Assea''s body time after time. Every time her whip hit, the inscriptions would light up to amplify the power of the impact. Assea was thrashed around sending waves of pain on Noah''s sea of consciousness, it was not Lena''s opponent. Seeing that Noah could not succeed in hurting them seriously in the short term, the two nobles began to lose their fear of his blades and focused only on attacking. ''This is getting troublesome.'' He was one against three so his "Breath" consumption was higher. He didn''t want to prolong the battle for more than it was necessary. ''I guess I had to try it at some point.'' Inside his mental sphere. The diagram on his first Kesier rune illuminated and the level of the sea began to decrease at high speed. Noah sent a black slash in Neil''s direction. The descendant was used by then on relying on the protection of the membrane so he didn''t even try to block the attack. Lena had sharper senses and felt a sense of danger from the slash. She was about to yell something when Assea jumped on her again. The blow hit Neil''s abdomen and clashed with the invisible layer of defense. However, black smoke sprouted from it which corroded the membrane creating an opening for the strike. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah''s attack cut unobstructed Neil''s body in two. A noble from a medium-size noble family died. "NEIL!!!" Lena screamed in sorrow seeing her brother''s death and turned to look in anger in Noah''s direction. What she saw though made her tremble in fear. Noah''s body was being covered in black flickering smoke. It hovered right over his skin forming a sort of quivering armor. The black smoke protruded on his sabers and only his icy-blue eyes remained visible of his face. ''Wha-'' Even her thoughts stopped seeing the fiendish figure. Then, the man said something in a low rugged voice. "Demonic form." Chapter 87: 87. Escape ''Demonic form, rank based on the mental level of the user, darkness element. Creates an armor of corrosive smoke that enhances the body of the user. The black smoke can envelop the attacks of the user to destroy any defense on his path. The smoke is extremely deadly and since it covers the user it will also weaken any threat coming near him.'' That was the knowledge that came with the spell along with the specifics on its activation. The spell was extremely ductile, it could be used separately on any part of the body or in its full form creating the fiendish figure that Lena was so stupefied of. The information made Noah think that it could be possible to extend it even to his blood companion but he still hadn''t had time to experiment on that. The only drawback was that the consumption of mental energy was enormous. ''But that it''s justified by its power!'' Noah thought, examining the data that he obtained with the spell. Lena was petrified. Every sense she had was madly sending warning messages to her mind. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. She was about to take a step back when Assea wrapped itself around her. "You stay there, I''ll take care of my brother first." The low rugged voice sounded again as Noah moved toward Fabian. With every step he took, smoke would be released on the ground, making the runes that composed it waver as if they were trying to resist the corrosion. When he was in front of the nobleman, he simply slashed with one of his sabers. The white shield appeared but was destroyed by the sheer strength of the blow! Then the blade hit the bluish membrane which fluctuated repeatedly and craked in the point where the collision happened. However, it held on and blocked Noah''s strike. "Oh, I see that daddy really cares about you." Noah didn''t bother too much and let go of the saber while his now free hand shot out to grab Fabian''s throat. He raised his body in the air while the smoke thoroughly wrapped around the noble. Inhumane screams resounded from the coffin of smoke until only silence reined in the area. Noah retracted his hand and picked up his saber. The smoke dispersed showing only emptiness in its spot. Of Fabian''s body, there was no trace. Lena stared horrified at the events unfolding and came back to reality only when Noah turned to her. Her aspect became even paler and some blood came out of her nose. BOOM! An explosion occurred and Assea''s body was shattered completely, even its figure in Noah''s mental sphere cracked slightly due to the blast. Lena came out from the dust that rose and began to ran madly toward the direction of the entrance of the inheritance ground. Her right arm was in pieces and only some flesh remained attached to the shoulder. However, she didn''t seem to care. There was only one thought in her mind. ''I have to reach the guards on the outside!'' "Remarkable, you made your whip explode in order to escape. The Balvan family sure taught well." A devilish voice sounded from her side and she turned her head with an incredulous expression. She only saw a blade releasing black smoke aiming for her head. A thud echoed in the area. Noah pressed his foot on Lena''s figure. An invisible layer of protection saved her life but still couldn''t prevent her from crashing on the ground. He pointed his weapon on her and spoke, the smoke expanded from his foot and began to corrode her protection. "Wealth." He turned the point of the blade toward himself. "Strength." Lena''s eyes were bloodshot. The protective membrane shattered and the smoke attacked her body. She gritted her teeth and through the pain, she managed to speak one last threat. "The Balvan family will come for you." Noah smirked, the face made of smoke cracked where his mouth was making his image even more devilish. He neared his head to Lena''s. "No, I will come for them." And then the smoke devoured her figure. Of the group from the Balvan family, only Noah remained alive. Noah dispersed his Demonic form. He was pale and sweat flowed from his every pore, the spell had consumed more than half his mental energy in that short time. ''I need to work hard on the second Kesier rune from now on.'' He absorbed the remains of Lena''s body in his space-ring and then he went back to the ingress of the second stage to put all the other bodies in the ring. The overall space of his space-rings was more than eighty cubic meters by then. After he was sure that he retrieved everything and nothing was left on the ground, he checked the map of the separate dimension. He found the farther exit from the one of the Shosti family and ran in its direction. The green plains seemed endless and could make anyone feel disoriented. Noah moved at full speed for one entire day without stopping for even a moment. His acupoints continuously absorbed "Breath" so he never had to slow down his pace. He reached the spot signed on the map in his head but there was nothing different in the environment. He carefully inspected the ground and found that there was a rune between the grass. Noah didn''t hesitate and touched hit. An orange halo was formed and the pressure of the teleportation attacked his mind. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in the middle of a forest. ''Evergreen forest!'' According to the route he had taken, he knew that the exit would have been in the forest but he didn''t know how deep in it he was. Noah climbed the tallest tree he found and looked around him from above it. The sky was crystal clear and there were mostly trees in his field of view. ''Found it!'' At a distance not too far away, he discovered the peak of a tower. ''That''s Mossgrove city and it''s only a half a day of travel from here. It seems that even space it''s stretched in the separate dimension.'' He was not in the mood to feel amazed at the accomplishment of Eccentric Thunder and he jumped off the tree and began to run again. His route was in the opposite direction of the city. Chapter 88: 88. Journey Evergreen forest was vast, it spanned for many kilometers in an uneven way. Inside it, there were many danger zones and, in its depths, it wasn''t unusual to find rank 3 magical beasts or large packs. Humans were the overlords of the world but magical beasts had the advantage in the evolution process, their numbers increased in every place where humans were scarce. Twilboia Cliff was one of those areas and there were many more like it in the world. Generally speaking, the areas were humans lived had to be secured often in order to stop the developing of the magical beasts. Most of Noah''s mission back in the mansion had that purpose. He was deep in the forest, hidden in an empty cave that he found along the way. A week had passed since the events in the inheritance ground and all he did was running in a straight line away from the Shosti domain. He was consulting a map at that moment, his clothes had changed to his usual black ones and his hair was combed in a simple ponytail. ''The academy''s entrance test befalls four months from now. The city holding one of them that suits me the most is Ebonrest city at two months of travel from my position. It is quite far from Mossgrove city and the communications are scarce with the Shosti family due to Sheflan Mountain between them.'' Noah had prepared his escape routes long ago. His space-ring was full of long-lasting provisions, new clothes, and all the useful means for a long trip. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. His clothes were mostly plain gym suits that he managed to steal from the servants, he could not be found wearing the armors of the Balvan family. ''I can reach it in less than one month if I travel at a decent speed but that''s quite useless. I''d rather use my time alone to raise my strength before the test.'' He still had to sort out the rewards from Eccentric Thunder and the bodies of the group from the Balvan family were still in his other space-ring. He had a long process of arranging goods ahead of him and he had to destroy the bodies but he prioritized his escape in that week. At some point, Noah nodded and put back the map in the ring. ''I will focus on traveling for another week and just spare some time for the Kesier rune in the meantime. After that, I will slow my march considerably, sort the goods, and return to a complete training schedule.'' He didn''t feel safe. Even if he left no proof of the battle in the first stage he still preferred to be as far as he could from his family''s influence. ''Though, it should be pretty hard to investigate in the separate dimension. I bet that things aren''t that good in the mansion.'' He resumed his march at a fast pace toward Ebonrest city, he was careful to avoid any magical beasts on his road, he didn''t want to leave any sign of his passage. ''There is also the fact that even if they reach the conclusion that the group is dead, they can''t possibly suspect me. In their mind I''m just a talented kid with no spells, never could they imagine that I have two of them which are incredibly strong.'' The blood companion had proved its value countless times by then and it was even of an unfit element for Noah. The Demonic form, instead, was extraordinary even for him, he couldn''t really imagine that something like that existed. Not only it was a specific spell of a rare element so inherently stronger than the others, but it was also a top tier one. ''No wonder nobles are so wary of giving spells to outsiders. My battle prowess doubled with one darkness spell.'' He was finally understanding the advantage of belonging to a rare element. Noah spent another week traveling at high speed. He would run during the day, train in the rune for one hour, and then sleep, he did nothing else in that period. When he felt that he had distanced himself enough from the Shosti''s domain, he decided that it was time to sort the items in his space-rings. He found a deep inhabited cavern and sat at its bottom. One body after another appeared in front of him as he inspected them and then threw them away in a corner. A nauseous smell began to fill the cavern but Noah simply continued in his process. The guards had nothing valuable, he couldn''t take their armors since they were a signature of his origins and they had no storage methods. Only their weapons seemed somewhat good so he chose to keep them. Trevor''s weapon and his reward were one tier higher in quality, especially the spear with inscriptions on it so Noah didn''t hesitate to store them. ''It''s time for the nobles.'' Noah''s eyes lit up as the shiny items entered his field of view. Fabian and Neil didn''t have a space-ring but their weapons seemed amazing. He tried to look for the item that created the protective membrane but there was nothing that resembled it. Since he only had Neil''s body, he inspected it carefully until he found a strange cracked pendant with runes on it. ''It should be this thing but it appears broken. Now that I think about it, Lena''s ring survived my black smoke so why the protective items didn''t?'' He had some theories but he knew too little to be sure. He threw Neil''s two halves and broken pendant in the corner with the other bodies and moved to Lena''s space-ring. She made her whip explode so the ring was the only valuable thing left from her. Noah used his mental energy to inspect the space on the inside but he felt a wall blocking his probing. Some runes illuminated on its surface. ''Is it protected? What if I destroy the inscriptions?'' His mental energy continued to assault the wall while black smoke rose from the hand that was holding the item. The runes began to corrode until the ring was near its breaking point. Then, the wall crumbled and his mental energy was free to inspect its interiors. Dozens of bottles and pills were inside with a small scroll and some change of clothes. Chapter 89: 89. Loo Noah decided to transfer everything except the clothes in his space-ring and then he threw Lena''s cracked ring between the corpses. He had then one empty deposit and one with things to evaluate. ''I have to take care of these things first.'' He looked in the corner of the cave where the dead bodies were amassed. He neared the pile and his mental energy began to deplete as he stretched his arm toward it. Black smoke came out of his hand and engulfed the corpses. As everything in the corner was consumed by his spell, Noah analyzed its effects. ''The corrosion is indeed stronger if the distance between me and the smoke is small. Assea.'' His blood companion came out from his other hand and Noah concentrated. Even more mental energy was expended as the body of the snake was being covered by the black smoke. Initially, it seemed that Assea''s body was becoming stronger but then it rejected the empowerment and started to corrode. Noah stopped the spell and retracted his blood companion while shaking his head. ''Assea can''t endure the Demonic form, it should be because its core it''s from a magical beast of the earth element.'' He was eager to change his companion and that''s why Assea''s figure in his sea of consciousness remained slightly cracked. He wasn''t prioritizing fixing it since it was still somewhat usable. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. The black smoke made everything in the corner vanish and Noah decided to find another hiding to sort the rest of the items, that cavern had become too smelly. About thirty minutes later, he was sitting on a large branch of one of the trees. As he went deeper in the forest the trees had become larger, he found trunks longer than two hundred meters along the way. ''Everything is bigger in this world, harnessing "Breath" gives every living being a limitless potential apparently. Such a miraculous power, I wonder how things really were in my previous world. Maybe the "Breath" there was so thin that it couldn''t be noticed.'' From time to time he would still compare the development of humans in his two different lives. Sure, his previous world created deadly weapons on a daily basis but could it have resisted the endless incursions of magical beasts? ''Personal power it''s always superior to the collective one of societies or governments. The King of the valley could have single-handedly destroyed entire cities.'' He shook his head and focused again on the items, a small scroll appeared in his hands. ''Surging river, water spell, rank up to the fourth, creates a perpetual flow of water at high pressure that crushes the target.'' ''Up to rank 4? Is it the limits of the strength of the magic spell? My education really is shallow.'' He put the scroll back in the ring and took out the silver sabers. These weapons were new a couple of weeks before but they had already been slightly blunted in the single battle that he had fought. Noah injected his "Breath" on them and the green inscriptions lightened up. The dents and the corroded parts began to fix themselves and in five minutes the sabers were as good as new. ''This is almost miraculous! I guess that Eccentric Thunder gave these blades to me because he knew of the disadvantages of the Demonic form.'' He was the only one immune to the black smoke of the spell, his weapons suffered from the same corrosion that everything else it touched experienced, even if in a weaker way. ''It is because I don''t want to damage them that they were degraded so scarcely. I wonder if there is a way to avoid it like it should be possible with the blood companion.'' He sheathed the sabers and took out the last item in need of inspection. The reagent and the Earth pill were one-time-use items and didn''t need any control, their usage was pretty straightforward. The potions and pills from Lena''s inventory were all sorted in an ordinate way with their explanation, their usage was essentially battle oriented, consisting of raising momentarily the healing process of a determined center of power. However, the scroll that he took out was of vital importance to Noah at the moment. ''Dark vortex, rank 2 cultivation technique, restricted to darkness element. Cultivating at night will speed the accumulation of "Breath".'' On the scroll, there was only this explanation and the descriptions of the respiration forms. ''With this technique, the Earth pill, and the reagent, my road to the rank 2 dantian will be smooth. He really thought of everything.'' Noah smiled a little thinking about the old man with the giant hat. ''I wonder why did he have that much stuff unfitting for his element, such a strange character.'' The sun was still up but he decided to give a try to the technique. He crossed his legs and joined his hands to form a circle where is dantian was. A drop of his liquid "Breath" was consumed to ignite a vortex at the center of the circle. "Breath" began to gather inside the spinning spiral coloring it in black. It seemed that the drop that he used attracted the "Breath" of its same kind. Since the "Breath" had not to be filtered before entering the dantian, the accumulation process was faster and smoother. During the meditation, the vortex abruptly enlarged and rotated at a faster speed, needless to say, even the quantity of "Breath" embodied was higher. Noah was surprised and opened his eyes. He noticed that the sun had set and the night had come. ''To think that there was actually such an increase in effectiveness! Cultivating during the day feels like a waste now.'' He calculated in his mind for a bit and believed that if he meditated every night during the time the sky was dark, he could reach the limits of the liquid stage in less than two years. ''I''ve decided. I will spend my nights cultivating and my mornings between the training on second Kesier rune and my sleep. As I wake up, I will repeat some forms and then proceed toward Ebonrest city during the afternoon.'' He had still four months before the test of the academy and he wanted to increase his strength now that he had the means and the time to train. ''I should also search for a rank 3 darkness-type beast since I''m at it.'' Chapter 90: 90. Hunting Days passed and Noah''s journey became dull. He spent most of his time awake training while he marched only during the afternoons. He liked this kind of life though, his strength was increasing steadily and having escaped from the clutches of the family left him with a sense of freedom. The only problem remained his blood companion. Since he only traveled under the daylight his chances to encounter a rank 3 darkness beast were low. However, that didn''t mean that there was a scarcity of magical beasts. Noah was standing on one of the branches of the trees around him. He was slowly eating a meal while watching the battle below him. Two peak rank 3 beasts were fighting to the death on the ground, probably they were deciding to which one that territory belonged to. One was a black bear-type beast of which Noah didn''t know the name while the other one was a Thunder wolf. The wolf used its speed and ranged attacks to continuously hurt the opponent but the vitality of the bear was immense, it endured every lightning bolt that arrived at him. ''The bear is probably an earth element magical beast, its defenses are awesome. If it catches the wolf once, the battle will be over.'' Everything happened as Noah predicted. The Thunder wolf went too close to the bear that abruptly jumped toward it. Its four meters frame stomped the wolf reducing its body into a pulp of flesh and blood. ''Wolf-type magical beasts are generally stronger in packs while the bear is a solitary being. It was stupid to fight it one versus one.'' He shook his head and resumed its trip. More days passed but of the darkness-type magical beasts, there were no traces. The shape of a mountain became visible as he neared Ebonrest city. ''That''s Shelfan Mountain, maybe I''ve been too paranoid in speeding for two weeks straight. Not even a month has passed but I''m already here.'' He didn''t want to return to the human society so soon. ''I guess I''ll slow down a bit more. I don''t want to stay in the open for more than necessary.'' The more time he spent among other people the more it was possible that someone discovered him. After all, the events in the separate dimension were still recent, it was better to hide for the time being. ''I need to explore during the night, my strength is increasing too much for Assea to continue to be useful.'' Even against Lena, the only usage that his blood companion had was to gain time to let Noah fight versus fewer people at the same time. ''In the academy, the cultivators will all be disgustingly rich or highly talented, I can''t go unprepared.'' He started that night with his research. He stopped his meditation during the darkest hour and explored his surroundings. Many different magical beasts were hunting during the night, the environment of the forest was radically diverse. Owl-types, snake-types, spider-types, the beasts of the night were all running around searching for a prey. Noah joined them, his eyes shone in the darkness giving him a perfect vision and he felt that his senses were sharper. ''It seems that since the darkness element is more abundant now, even my condition has become more focused.'' However, that night of exploration was unsuccessful. Noah didn''t mind too much and just repeated his research the following night. A week passed like this and Noah still hadn''t found any clue of his target. On the seventh night, he was jumping from branch to branch paying attention to his surroundings. He was about to stop his hunt and find a place to rest when a figure flew at high speed near him. Noah''s hand shot rapidly and grabbed the little beast. It was a bat-type magical beast, its strength was in the middle tier of rank 1 but when Noah inspected it he felt a familiar energy coming from it. ''Darkness element!'' The bat was struggling to escape his grip but Noah just stared at it. Then, he opened his hand and the bat immediately flew away. Noah followed it till the beast entered a small hole in the ground. He neared the hole and sent his mental energy inside to have an idea of its structure. The cavity seemed to lead to an underground cavern and he sensed the presence of many life forms coming from it. ''I finally found something.'' He chose to rest near the entrance for one day in order to gather more information. During the day, the entrance was silent and other magical beasts simply passed over it. However, at night, some bats would come out of it and return with little victims. When Noah saw a rank 2 bat bringing back another rank 2 magical beast, he knew what was happening. ''They are gathering food for the leader.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. He unconsciously smiled and prepared to enter the cavern during the daylight. He speculated that these kinds of beasts rested during that time so it was the best moment to explore the cave. The afternoon came and he directly jumped in the entrance. He fell for about three meters before touching the ground. In front of him, a long corridor stretched in the distance. Noah walked along it and noticed many other holes that led to the surface. ''The number of bats that I saw was probably just a part of the pack. That''s good, it means that there is a high chance to meet their rank 3 version.'' He advanced for a few hundred meters and the first living beings began to appear. They were mostly bat-type magical beasts but there were also few spider-type and rodent-type. The ranks of the latter were quite low, it was obvious that a bat pack ruled that underground area. He then reached what seemed the central point of the cavern as a wide room expanded in front of him. The ground was empty, but on the ceiling, there were hundreds of bat-type magical beasts sleeping hanging upside down on their lower claws. In the middle of the pack, three big figures were visible. They had two pairs of wings and one of them was slightly bigger than the other two. Noah could not help but smile brightly. ''Found you.'' Chapter 91: 91. Prey Noah dug a hole in the rocky corridor. He made it two cubic meters large to be comfortable, he didn''t plan on to leave it any time soon. He resumed his usual training schedule, waiting in the darkness of the hole for a bat to pass by. When the night arrived and the leader sent the order, the hundreds of rank 1 and rank 2 beasts of its pack left the central area and moved to the surface. One of the rank 2 specimens felt its body being squeezed and was dragged into one of the cavities of the corridor. Noah directly stabbed the beast on its chest, killing it on the spot, no one of its pack noticed its disappearance. Noah carefully looked at the bat, giving importance to the details of its body. He took out Uriah''s diary and opened it where the sketches were. After evaluating a bit in his mind, he began to draw on the ground the image of the dead bat in front of him. He continued to draw during the whole night and when the pack came back and went to sleep, he came out of his cavity to have a better vision of the biggest bat at the center of the group. He drew its form on the ground and repeated the process until the night came again. He spent one week practicing in the figure of the bat in order to be ready to start the procedure as soon as he gathered the materials from its body. On the eighth day, he was ready. He waited for the pack to go in its hunting and exited the hole he made. The two silver sabers were held tightly in his hands. His torso was already uncovered and the image of a snake moved freely on its chest. On the ceiling of the large underground room, tens of rank 2 bats were still in guard around the three big specimens of their pack. Noah ingress in the area alerted the group which began to launch sound attacks to him. He immediately deployed Assea around him to weaken the vibrations of the attack. Their shockwaves couldn''t pass the ethereal body of the snake and were blocked. The bats screeched seeing that their offensive had no effect but they were stopped by tens of black wind slashes that came toward them. Corpses and injured bodies fell from the ceiling, creating a noise that woke up the three bigger specimens. The three screeched loudly aiming for the black snake. Assea''s body cracked in many points and some vibration hit Noah that began to bleed from his ears. However, instead of being angry about the damage that he suffered, his expression appeared incredibly happy. ''Two rank 3 upper tier and one peak stage!'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. He had confirmed that the bigger bat was precisely what he was in need of. ''Demonic form.'' Assea''s body returned inside his body showing a fiendish figure from which black smoke was constantly released. Noah shot more slashes covered in smoke. The blows hit more beasts on the ceiling and released the corrosive smoke in the upper area of the underground room. The pack began to scream in pain and its members were forced to descend on the ground to escape the toxic cloud. Noah didn''t waste any time and jumped at the three rank 3 bats that flew down. One of the smaller ones was directly stabbed by him, the black smoke expanded from where the saber was and devoured its body in a few seconds. A beast in the upper tier of rank 3 was killed in few instants! The pack went crazy seeing that one of their group died so easily and began to disperse, however, their speed was inferior to Noah in the Demonic form. He was already over the other rank 3 bat as he slashed at him. The head of the bat was divided in two and its upper body was consumed by the smoke that his sabers released. The leader understood that it could not escape and turned to send another powerful screech in his direction. The armor made of smoke trembled but absorbed the vibrations, only some slight damage was done to his internal organs. Noah jumped and pressed his body on the bat. The beast screamed in pain as the smoke surrounding him consumed its body. However, the smoke retracted almost instantly and the figure of a young human was visible tightly hanging on its body. The bat was about to attack but it found out that it could not make a sound, a blade was deeply stabbed in its throat. The beast was hovering in the air and fell on the ground after a few violent struggles. As life left its body, Noah put it in the empty space-ring and ran away from the underground cavern. Once on the surface, he continued to run until he found a large tree with a big hole in its trunk. The insides were six meters large and tall three, Noah nodded seeing the place and took out the bat corpse. He put a large bowl under its throat and took out the blade from it. Blood began to flow, filling the bowl. A bottle then appeared in front of him and Noah directly drank it. The mental energy that he expended in the battle was being refilled at high speed! ''As expected, Lena''s potions are of top quality!'' When the bowl surpassed the amount of blood required for the procedure by one-fold, Noah opened the bat''s chest. He took out the heart of the beast and put it inside the space-ring together with the body. He then sat on the ground to concentrate on filling the blood in the bowl with his "Breath". As he was in the liquid stage, the process took less than the last time and in only half a day the blood had reached the required standards. He smiled seeing the dense dark liquid and put it in the space-ring too. He was eager to create a new blood companion but he had to make room for one first. Chapter 92: 92. Echo Inside Noah''s sea of consciousness. Noah''s half-transparent figure had one hand over Assea''s cracked image. His eyes were closed and his brows were knitted, he seemed immersed in a complex process. Shards of Assea''s image began to detach from its figure and feel in the sea. Little by little, the snake form in Noah''s mental sphere crumbled until there was nothing left in its place. Noah opened his eyes and the snake tattoo on his chest rejected the blood of the Horned snake, expelling it from the body. Of his blood companion, only a wound remained. Noah took out a bottle and a pill from his space-ring, one helped to restore his mental energy while the other increased the healing speed of his injuries. He had suffered some damage from the bat pack and the process of killing the blood companion left him in a tired state. He meditated to help the medicines do their work and noticed that his mind was clearer than ever. Without the drawback of the spell from the Assea family, his sea of consciousness felt extremely light. ''It won''t last much longer.'' Noah thought and picked a cask full of water from his space-ring. He washed neatly to prevent any contamination and then put everything away, taking out the bowl full of dense blood. It was time to begin! He focused and immerged his saber in the bowl and started drawing on his chest the outline of the rank 3 bat. Then it was time for the details: four fangs, pointy ears, four clawed paws, two eyes on the sides of the head with one in the middle, and two pairs of wings. A sort of pressure exuded from the drawing while Noah nodded in satisfaction. A small heart appeared in his hand, it was the size of one and a half fists. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. The rank 3 bat was smaller than the Horned snake, it was only three meters tall so it was natural for its organs to be tinier. Noah took two rapid bites and swallowed the heart, the drawing''s temperature began to rise till Noah felt his chest burning. This time though he was prepared. His eyes were already closed and focusing on his sea of consciousness. His ethereal figure had his eyes opened waiting for the bat image to appear. When it materialized, it acted in the same way as the Horned snake the previous time: it went berserk and moved at high speed toward the sphere with the intention of breaking it. However, the first Kesier rune hummed, followed by the faint form of the second one. The beast fell on the sea screeching in pain and Noah followed it. In a few minutes, the figure of the bat formed over the sea at the center of the sphere. The pressure generated by the sharing of their senses returned and pressed on the walls of the sea of consciousness. Noah was about to exit his mental sphere when the roots wrapped around the first Kesier rune shot out and entangled themselves around the bat. ''I knew it!'' He could feel from his connection with the new blood companion that it could enter the Demonic form without rejections! He opened his material eyes and stood up, the tattoo of the bat moved a bit over his body to then stop on his back. ''It seems more alive than Assea, does it depend on the fact that we are of the same element?'' He summoned it in front of him. The bat was quite lifelike, it had the same size as the original beast which reassured Noah on the success of the process. ''Attack me.'' As usual, Noah wanted to test its abilities. The bat didn''t hesitate and screeched in his direction, Noah spat out a mouthful of blood while his liquid "Breath" was consumed to fuel the ability. He hastily made it stop and stared with wide eyes at his new companion. ''It can use its innate abilities? But that wasn''t specified in Uriah''s diary.'' He sat on the floor and focused on healing his injuries, the sound attack had hurt him internally. He didn''t use the potions this time as he wasn''t in a hurry, previously he had used them afraid that the ingredients for the spell could have been wasted. He tested some more times and confirmed that the bat could use all the abilities that he had when it was alive. ''Is it because my element is the same? It makes sense after all, only the body changed while its instincts and its "Breath" remained the same. Anyway, it definitely kept the strength of a peak rank 3 beast.'' He tested some more and activated the Demonic form on it. Black smoke was released from its body and its power rose visibly but Noah''s mental energy was depleted at an even higher speed than when he used that spell for himself. ''However, its weakness is removed when it enters that form.'' Since the bat was smaller than Assea, it could just cover an area of a few meters around Noah. However, when it activated the Demonic form, the black smoke would work as a connection between Noah''s body and the blood companion, vastly increasing its area of action. ''So this is the true power of the Body-inscription spell, wonderful, my battle prowess increased again.'' He looked at the bat for a while and then nodded. ''I''ll call you Echo, now let''s see if you can make me fly.'' Flying not only was extremely useful to travel, but it could also be used as a way to run away from a dangerous situation. If he had had that ability back in Twilboia Cliff, he would have never faced the rank 5 snake. His expectations were not met as he discovered that he could at best use Echo''s body to float and not properly fly. Black smoke covered again the companion''s body and Noah entered it. This time it could fly for a period but its speed was nothing special and the expenditure of mental energy was immense. ''It seems that the body created through the spell is flawed in this aspect, or maybe it''s because my "Breath" is only in the liquid stage, or probably because bat-type magical beasts aren''t that skillful in flight in general. I''ll do more tests later on, now I should rest.'' He decided to return to the empty trunk and slept. Chapter 93: 93. Wings Noah was standing on the ground with his eyes closed. His torso was naked and, on his back, two pairs of black wings were opened wide. Then, black smoke engulfed the wings and they began to flap at an even rhythm. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah''s body slowly rose in the air until it reached five meters of altitude. Noah stayed in the air for a while before carefully alighting back on the ground. He heaved a long breath while retracting the wings. ''This is as much as I can do for now, humans don''t seem too fit for flight.'' In this period of time, he stopped his trip to continue testing his ability to fly. However, even if he managed to rise in the air, his aerial control was lacking. Humans were beings that walked on the ground, the sky wasn''t their domain. They didn''t have the innate instincts of a flying beast so Noah could only put more training in that field to solve the issue. ''There is also the problem of the mental energy''s consumption. Damn, if I hadn''t lost more than one year of training stuck in the inner circle now things would be smoother.'' He shook his head and returned to his position on the tree branch. Since he could not obtain back his wasted time he would just train more! His mental energy had become his main focus since his strongest spell heavily depended on it. Noah decided to resume his travel with an even harder training schedule. His nights were completely devoted to the cultivation technique, while during the morning he pushed his limits on the second Kesier rune. He would then sleep for a few hours and train his flight as he woke up. He spent the rest of the time marching toward Shelfan Mountain. More weeks passed. Noah''s escape had occurred almost two months ago by then as he arrived at the base of the mountain. In this month and a half of strenuous training, all his centers of power except for the body had become stronger. He exuded a cold and sharp aura which seemed denser in contrast to his previous state. He chose to put his weapons inside the space-ring in order to prevent any resemblance with his former figure from being displayed. His head was covered with a black hood as he gazed at the rocky slope of the mountain. ''On the other side, there is Ebonrest city. The peak of the mountain is classified as a danger zone but its path is inhabited by small villages that live of mining precious minerals. There should be even a public marked along the way, maybe I should accumulate some money before arriving at the city.'' He stood still, reviewing the knowledge he accumulated when he set his escape routes. He possessed a lot of weapons that he had no use of and since he never had to worry about buying anything, he had no idea about the prices of this world. He began to climb the mountain. As Noah moved along its path, many simple houses began to appear in the environment. The inhabitants were mostly men with a skinny complexion, they seemed to be on the verge of starving to death as they carried heavy pickaxes on their shoulders. Noah ignored them and they did the same with him, there wasn''t much cordiality around that place. He encountered many of these settlements as he continued to move forward and the situation of the residents was the same every time. ''I guess that they are exploited by the family managing the market, I don''t sense any cultivator among them so they can only be used for manual labor. I believe that many of them won''t survive for much longer.'' The society worked in the same way as the noble families: weak people were exploited to enrich the already powerful ones. When he was nearing the market, he saw with his mental energy that some of the healthier men stared at him whispering between themselves. ''Considering my luck, this will lead to trouble.'' Of course, he was right. As soon as he moved for a few kilometers away from the last village he passed through, a group of men with some rusty weapons blocked his path. Noah recognized one of the villagers among the group and noticed a couple of cultivators between them. However, he felt no sense of danger at all looking at them. The man in the middle of the group was tall and wielded a big hammer with both his hands. He stepped forward toward Noah and spoke with an intimidating voice. "You, leave all the valuable items in your possession and we will let you live." Noah sighed and shook his head, he put his hand inside his clothes and materialized one of the weapons of the Lansay family. After taking it out, he raised it in the air in front of him to show it to the thieves. "Hey, I''ve been meaning to ask, how much is this one worth?" The men were a bit surprised by his young voice but then their eyes lit up seeing the good manufacture of the weapon. "Haha! That''s a good blade! What else do you have?" ''Are they stupid or simply blinded by their hunger?'' How could be possible that a young man traveled alone in this part of the mountain during this period of time? ''I thought that they would have understood something from my voice at least.'' He shook his head again. "Listen, I need a guide for the market. I can promise some rewards if you do a good job so why don''t you drop this act? With your meager strength, you could at best defeat a rank 2 magical beast." The men''s eyes widened again hearing his words. Laughter began to spread in the group but the cultivators exchanged a concerned stare between each other. Noah had evaluated their battle prowess quite accurately and that put the cultivators on guard of the young man. They stared at Noah in silence trying to decide their course of action. Noah, however, was already at the limits of his patience. If it was a normal situation, he wouldn''t have hesitated to teach these weaklings a memorable lesson but he was doing his best to avoid creating any trace of his passage. He focused and a pressure began to radiate from his figure which silenced the thieves who raised their weapons in fear. Chapter 94: 94. Toottac town The group of thieves was hesitating and only then they linked Noah''s unusual presence with the academy''s entrance test. They weren''t sure that they could gain anything using forceful methods. The cultivator that seemed in the lead stepped further and slightly bowed. "If you can give my brothers fifteen pieces of gold, I will gladly be your guide." ''So, they finally understood something.'' Noah oscillated his weapon in the air and pointed at it with his free hand. "You still have to tell me how much this is worth." The leader looked at it from the distance for a bit and then answered. "I''m not an expert, but its value should be around five pieces of gold." ''I have more than thirty of these which makes it one hundred and fifty gold.'' He thought for a few seconds and then nodded. The leader was about to cheer when Noah continued. "However, you will receive the payment after you help me sell my items." The leader complained but Noah jumped at high speed and appeared in front of him. No one of the men saw him moving, his speed was too fast for these common people. He tossed the weapon to one of the men nearby. "Take this as a warranty. You, let''s move." Noah pointed at the leader and moved past the blockage. The men looked at each other for a moment and then the leader followed behind the young man. They walked for three days, resting only at night. In the afternoon of the third day, they reached the marked area on the mountain. "This is Toottac town, young master. The market is the main form of sustenance of the city and many merchants had set up their stands in this period due to the academy''s test. You might not know but many nobles will make a trip here before the test begins." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. In the previous days, Noah had briefly spoken with the tall man in order to learn more information about that area and to set some rules for their interaction. The man''s name was Grant and Noah didn''t reveal anything about his situation but simply ordered to be referred to as "young master". Grant also explained the general situation of the area, focusing on the large-size noble family that ruled Ebonrest city. The family was called Voydol and apparently, it had a really amicable relationship with the Elbas dynasty, which was the reason why one of the test areas was there. "Why didn''t they put their stands directly in Ebonrest city? This is just a peripherical city after all, how could they attract the noble families here?" Grant''s answer was immediate. "Young master, Ebonrest city will be completely reserved for the preparations of the Royal family. In this period of time, all the main shops in the city had moved here. It is common knowledge among the noble houses by now." Grant then realized that he might have inadvertently offended him but it seemed that the young man didn''t even listen to him. ''Nobles... I bet that many of them will create problems for the lonely cultivators like me.'' The test was a matter of personal ability but that wouldn''t stop the families behind the participants to scheme before its beginning. He was familiar with the mindset of the nobles so he could vaguely imagine the methods that they would use to increase the advantages of their descendants. ''I bet that they will at least try to eliminate as many variables as they can. I don''t believe that they will simply let someone with no status take the first place in the trial. They would lose too much face.'' Noah turned toward Grant. "Am I right to assume that even the families that will buy their ingress will send their descendants into the trial?" Grant nodded. "Yes, not only they will spare an immense quantity of resources if the heir succeeds, but they would also want to show the strength of their new generations. It is a demonstration of the future power of their family after all." Noah returned to look at the town. Its perimeter was empty, with just some lazy guard drinking wine on tables near the path. However, Noah could sense the liveliness of the city in its insides. "Let''s go." He stopped thinking about things he could not control and moved along the path, Grant hastily followed behind. When they were about to enter the boundary though, one of the guards yelled from his seat. "Hey, you two! The ingress to the town is one piece of gold each! Don''t make me st-" His words were interrupted by a metallic item that crashed on the table and directly broke it in pieces. All the guards there stood up scared and looked at the weapon. It was an ax of excellent manufacture, they knew that its value surpassed five pieces of gold. They turned to look at the two men walking down the city path. The hooded one was already walking past the entrance while the tall one was awkwardly scratching his head, making a bow in excuse. "I''m sorry but the young master is tired, I hope that the ax can cover for the damage and our ingress." One of the guards slowly nodded, a cold drop of sweat ran down his forehead. Grant bowed again and followed Noah that was already far ahead in the city. The guards looked at each other and whispered. "I think we should go easy on the wine in this period." "Agreed, if we offend someone with an even worse temper, I believe that we could really get unlucky." "Yes, yes, wise words. If we are drunk and a noble gets annoyed by us, we are done for." From that day onward, the guards of Toottac town were never found drunk again. Meanwhile, Noah continued to walk rapidly toward the stands that became visible in the distance. He threw the weapon as a show of strength, he knew that there would usually be an inspection every time a stranger entered a town so he decided to act as an irritated noble. As for the money loss, he really couldn''t care less if that granted him anonymity. Chapter 95: 95. Obsidian Credits After walking the main road of the city for a while, Noah began to see the various stands. There were tens of merchants with flashy banners on top of their stalls and even more people around them looking at their items. Noah looked around for a bit and noticed something strange: the customers used two different types of currencies. He turned to face Grant and pointed at the gems that some of the customers were using. "What are those?" Grant looked where he was pointing and showed a confused expression. "You mean the Obsidian Credits?" Noah shrugged his shoulders and replied. "If that''s what they are called. What value do they have?" Grant''s eyes widened as he continued to stare at Noah. "What?" It took a while for Grant to really believe that Noah didn''t know anything about it. "Aren''t you a cultivator?" Noah replied with a bit of annoyance in his voice. "Stop asking questions and explain." Grant cleared his voice and began to speak. "The Obsidian Credits, or commonly called Credits, are the currency mainly used by cultivators. It''s a peculiar crystal that is filled with "Breath" so it has more value in the cultivator''s minds. Anything regarding cultivation can only be bought with Credits, no one will ever accept gold for it." Noah focused again on the gems, they resembled the one that Virginia used to power up the inheritance ground, only less shining. ''To think that I wasn''t aware of such things¡­'' "Do they come only in that form?" Grant nodded and explained more. "Form? Yes. Value? No. Based on their brilliance, which is the quantity of "Breath" stored inside, they have more value. The ones that you see here are worth one Credit but there are crystals valued ten, fifty, and even one hundred Credits!" Noah turned to Grant and could not help but ask: "Why do you want to be paid in gold then?" Grant smiled awkwardly. "Well, I am a simple rank 1 cultivator with a rank 2 body, I don''t even have a martial art. I just want to feed my family and the ones of my brothers." ''So, selling the weapons can only give me money to buy food and a place to rest. I have the Surging river spell which should be worth some Credits but I don''t know if it''s better to sell it now or to keep it for a better use in the academy.'' He didn''t know enough to decide the best course of action so he just chose to inspect the market further. "Bring me to someone that can buy the weapons that I showed you." Grant took the lead position and they moved slowly around the city. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah soon noted that calling it "city" was a bit of a stretch. The city itself consisted of a few buildings with two taverns and ten hostels, all the other structures were simply subsidiary shops that opened while Ebonrest city was busy with the preparations for the test. In the end, they arrived at a small wooden house with the picture of a sword and a shield as a banner. Grant entered and loudly greeted the bald man behind the cash desk. "Kirk! I brought you a customer!" Kirk snorted and replied with a rough voice. "You only bring them when you gain something out of it." Grant laughed awkwardly and scratched the side of his head. Noah couldn''t be bothered to watch them argue and stepped toward the desk laying a blade on it. "I''m here to sell, how much for this?" Kirk was surprisingly quite professional as he picked the weapon and carefully examined it. He even slid his palm along the blade twice to check if there was any dent on it. When the process was over, he nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad. I can give you six pieces of gold for this one." Noah nodded and continued. "What if I have more than thirty of the same manufacture?" The two men''s eyes widened when they heard the number of weapons in his possession. Kirk coughed a bit and then cleared his voice. "I would need to inspect each one of them." Noah made a gesture with his hand and the thirty or so weapons appeared on the ground. In his space-ring, the weapons that remained were his two pairs of sabers, the descendants'' inscribed weapons, and the lance that Trevor obtained from the second stage. Kirk stared at him for a few instants before he started examining the items. ''It''s not his first time seeing a space-ring.'' Noah thought and then began to think of how to dispose of his remaining goods. ''I should wait with the spell, maybe the academy can give me something more valuable than money for it. The noble''s weapons have to remain hidden so they are better in the space-ring than wielded by someone. Lena''s potions are useful so I should just keep them. The Earth pill and the reagent are necessary for my cultivation so it''s not even worth mentioning them. My old sabers can be a clue for my identity so it''s best to keep them. I''d rather not sell techniques that I currently use, so Dark vortex and Body-inscription are excluded. That leaves me with the lance and Echo''s previous body.'' He faced Grant and asked with a plain voice. "Is it possible to sell magical beast''s bodies here?" Grant nodded and smiled. "I can bring you to a friend of mine that will buy it for a good price. If it is adequately intact, he might even pay you with Credits." ''He will pay me in gold then.'' Noah was sure that the body of the rank 3 beast was far from the standards of Grant''s friend. Kirk had, by then, finished his inspection and had put and hand under his chin, he was immersed in his thoughts. Then he spoke without changing his posture. "Thirty-three weapons of high quality. Sadly, more than twenty of them had been used previously so their price will lower. What do you think of one hundred and sixty gold for all the goods?" Noah didn''t hesitate. "Deal." Kirk hurriedly opened a secret compartment and took out three bags from it. He handed them to Noah who simply inspected them with his mental energy before storing them. Kirk was all smiles after the transaction was over and had his hands clasped together when he spoke with Noah. "Tell me if I can be useful with anything else." Noah thought briefly and then replied. "Do you know of a place that might buy an inscribed weapon?" Chapter 96: 96. Solomon Noah was walking on the streets of Toottac town playing with two shining crystals in his hand. ''To think that he would actually give me two Credits for the three-eyed bat''s body. Hunting rank 3 magical beasts can be quite lucrative.'' Grant had taken him to someone that traded in magical beast''s body parts and Noah not only learnt the species of his blood companion but he also made some gains. ''He gave me two Credits for its fangs and its third eye, added to three hundred gold for the rest of the body. He said that a completely intact body of a rank 3 beast can be worth between twenty and fifty Credits depending on the type. I might really think about gaining money that way.'' Noah had no difficulty in hunting rank 3 beasts, the only problem was keeping their corpses intact. ''I will think about that once inside the academy, now I should first sell the spear.'' He had already sent Grant away and gave him his pay. Not even a day has passed but Noah had already disregarded the value of the pieces of gold. As a cultivator, accumulating that currency was simply too easy. Noah first bought some provisions to refill the ones that he used during his escape and then went to the shop that Kirk mentioned. When he arrived at the pointed area, a two-story wooden building presented itself in front of Noah. ''Solomon''s inscription shop'' ''This Solomon is, apparently, an inscription master from the Voydol family. He opened a shop to increase the status of his noble family and to gain their acceptance. He should be an outsider and not a family member.'' Kirk mentioned that this illustrious man had graduated from the academy where he learnt the art of inscriptions and then joined the Voydol family to have a stable foothold for his work. Noah moved toward the entrance door of the shop but two guards blocked his entrance. They were both cultivators and Noah sensed that they were on the same level as Kevin. "Five pieces of gold to enter." ''They really are from a large-size noble family to have this kind of guards to stand in front of a subsidiary store.'' Noah smiled from behind his hood and took out the sum. "No problem at all, but may I know why is there an ingress tax?" The guards became more amicable once they saw that he had a space-ring and explained briefly while leaving open the passage. "Non-cultivators are interested in the items useful to cultivators. If Lord Solomon didn''t put a price for the entrance, there would have been a crowd of peasants admiring the goods." Noah nodded, he agreed with their explanation, and then entered the shop. Inside, many different inscribed items were exposed but no other customer was present. There weren''t only weapons, but also pendants, scrolls, armors, and so on. Noah immediately understood that this was the right place, yet his eyes could not help but widen when he saw the prices of the goods. ''Three hundred Credits is the lowest price that I can see! And that armor is priced ten thousand Credits!'' "Sir, may I help you?" A lovely female voice rang out from behind him. Noah turned and saw a young woman wearing a tight red dress that greatly emphasized her curves. ''Did they put this beauty here to confuse the customers?'' He shook his head internally and replied shortly. "I''m here to sell a weapon." The smile of the attendant diminished in brilliance but it was still kept on her face. "I would have to inspect the weapon before suggesting a price. The shop will try to make the best possible offer but we will take five percent of the total sum as a payment for our service." Noah simply took out the spear from the space-ring and handed it to the woman. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. As she inspected the weapon, he inspected her. ''Is she stronger than me? I feel that her "Breath" is more concentrated. Maybe she reached the solid stage, I wonder if I could fight against a solid stage cultivator in my Demonic form.'' The attendant misjudged his attentions and her smile widened a little but then it froze as she continued to examine the spear. She stood up and cleared her throat. "I need to call my Master, the quality of these inscriptions quite surpasses my ability." Noah nodded and waited patiently for the woman to climb the stairs to the first floor. She came back after a few minutes accompanied by a middle-aged man with no beard and long curly hair. Her gaze was lowered and Noah remembered that he had to show some respect to the cultivator. He politely bowed and greeted him. "It''s an honor to meet Master Solomon." Solomon nodded and his expression became more friendly. He picked up the lance that had been left on the desk and began to examine it. Sometimes he would mumble with himself while he looked at the lines inscribed. When he was done, he raised his head to look at the hooded young man. "Where did you get this?" Noah shrugged his shoulders and replied casually. "Somewhere, I don''t remember specifically." Solomon didn''t mind his answer too much and lowered his gaze again on the weapon. "Are you sure you don''t want to exchange it? I have a lot of protective items on sale, you might need them during the entrance test." ''Oh, what a smart man.'' Noah was a bit surprised. His voice was still the one of a young man so it wasn''t impossible to deduce his purpose in the city. ''I feel that he is even stronger than Kevin, are there that many strong people in this world? I really need to enter the academy.'' However, he shook his head at Solomon''s offer. "I''m sorry, but I''m still not sure of what I''m in need right now. I''d rather take the Credits and think about it. In the future, I will surely spend them here to buy Master Solomon''s products." The woman was surprised to see such courtesy by him. After all, Noah continuously exuded a cold aura due to the imposing presence of his mental sphere. All mages had a peculiar aura around them. Solomon''s one, for example, was casual and uncaring and became focused only when he inspected the item. Solomon nodded and smiled. "Good answer! I can give you one thousand Credits for this weapon." Chapter 97: 97. Seclusion ''One thousand!?'' Noah noticed how the attendant''s eyes widened before she lowered her head again, he understood that it was a big sum. "I agree." Solomon smiled seeing that Noah accepted his offer and waved his hand. Twenty shining crystals appeared on the desk, their brilliance far surpassed that of Noah''s Credits. Noah picked one up and examined it with interest. Solomon noticed his action and spoke casually. "They are worth fifty Credits each. Careful on your actions, someone might exploit your inexperience." He seemed in a good mood after he obtained the spear. Noah put the Credits in his space-ring and bowed. "Does Master Solomon have some advice for the academy test?" Solomon laughed. "Haha, as soon as you saw some goodwill you tried to take advantage of it! You remind me in my old days." Solomon shook his head a bit before speaking again. "The test changes every time so all the knowledge is dated, just go to Ebonrest city and follow the line of youths like you. Maybe you should be careful on the road to the city though." Noah nodded and bowed again before exiting the shop. Inside it, the woman turned her head toward her master and asked in a confused voice. "Master, if you knew that he was inexperienced why didn''t you lower the price?" Solomon replied. "He won''t be inexperienced for long. If I had tricked him, he would have never returned to sell more of these good weapons. And you never know, he might actually become the next talent of the academy." The attendant looked in the direction where Noah went and fell in thought. ''He is surely weaker than me. However, why do I feel that if I had to fight him, things would be dangerous?'' Meanwhile, Noah went to the poorer looking hostel that he could find and entered it. Behind the reception desk, there was a woman with almost no teeth in her mouth and oily and dirty hair. The main hall of the hostel had only a couple of cracked wooden desks with drunkards sleeping on them. The smell of puke and piss filled the room. ''This is perfect.'' However, Noah chose this place exactly because of the poor state in which it was handled. Solomon''s words had confirmed his worries about the noble families so he decided to be as low-key as possible. Living in a smelly place for a while was not a problem if that helped him arrive at Ebonrest city safe. Noah faced the old woman on the desk and spoke resolutely before she could say anything. "I need a single room for one month and a half, possibly a silent one. There will be no need to bring me any food, just be sure to leave a bucket full of clean water twice a day in front of my door." The woman smiled showing her ugly mouth and spoke a single sentence. "Thirty pieces of gold." Noah put his hand inside his clothes and when it came out, thirty pieces of gold were in his palm. He put the money on the desk and the woman hurriedly picked a big rusty key and passed it to him. "Last floor, at the end of the corridor, the one on the left." The hostel was a three-story building so Noah went directly to the second floor. At the end of the corridor, he opened the designated door and entered it. The room was small, with only a simple bed and no other furniture in it. To Noah that had spent the last two months in a forest though, it was more than enough. Noah sat on the floor and thought for a little. ''Two months before the test and Ebonrest city is at three days of travel from here. I will train hard for this month and a half and then move.'' It was deep in the night when he reached the hostel so he began to meditate in the cultivation technique. His legs were crossed and a vortex appeared between his joint hands. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Days passed, and then weeks. The environment of Toottac town became even more lively as luxurious carriages entered its borders and joined the marked area. Many noble families from different domains arrived and enjoyed the services offered by the city to important people. There were large-size, medium-size, and even small-size families, all gathering for the test of the academy. Noah didn''t join the commotion and simply remained in his room to cultivate. He knew that the families from the Shosti domain wouldn''t come there since there was another test area at one month of travel from Mossgrove city, he had chosen this place carefully after all. Sometimes he would come out of his room to gather some information from the desk woman about recent events and to buy more provisions. Many of the stories that she told him were just rumors but some of them alerted Noah, raising his caution. ''A group of bandits appeared in the forest between Toottac town and Ebonrest city. They are assaulting noble caravans, killing or gravely injuring their younger members. The bandit''s faces are completely covered so it''s impossible to know their origins.'' ''Bandits so strong that they can target noble families? It seems that they are not even trying to hide their actions.'' As he had suspected, the nobles had begun to scheme against the participants of the test. ''I didn''t imagine that they would have targeted other noble families too. The spot in the academy really is coveted.'' His eyes shined slightly as he thought of that. ''One more reason to enter it! Echo!'' The tattoo of the three-eyed bat released a soft sound inaudible to humans. Immediately, an image of a circular area of one hundred meters with Noah as its center appeared in his mind. There weren''t many details as the scene was created from the vibrations of the objects that the sound met but it was more than enough to know if there was someone spying on him nearby. ''Nothing suspicious today too, it seems that I really have no one following me.'' He had been careful in the city but there were still times when he had to expose something about himself. For example, Solomon knew that he was in possession of one thousand Credits, yet no one came searching for him in this period. ''That''s really good. Now it''s time to prepare. In one week, I will go to Ebonrest city!'' Chapter 98: 98. Chase Eventually, time passed until there were only two weeks left before the entrance test. Noah swiftly exited the hostel and went for the path that led to Ebonrest city. Toottac town was still crowded but the atmosphere was tense and many groups of armored people stared warily at their surroundings. ''So many.'' Noah had never exited the hostel in this period and could not help but be surprised at the number of people inside the market area. Echo continuously sent sound waves giving him a clearer picture of his surroundings and he always chose to cross the less crowded streets to reach the forest. His exit from the city was uneventful and the scenery of the forest illuminated by the daylight showed itself to Noah. He had decided to move during the morning as there were fewer chances to meet the bandits or more of spotting them and escape. He was wearing his usual black clothes and a hood covered his face. On his back, a big hump was present: Echo''s head had come out of his body to be more precise in its inspection of the environment. Noah entered the forest and ran at full speed in the direction of the city. He used the branches of the trees as footholds like he was used to when he had to move stealthily. Ebonrest city was at three days of travel. That meant that if he traveled without sleeping, he would reach his destination in one day and a half! That was precisely what he planned to do, the more he stayed in the forest the more problems might arise. It was only half a day later that a scream entered his ears. Noah didn''t stop but he could sense that a battle was occurring in an area a few hundred meters in front of him. A faint sense of danger was radiated from that place. Noah''s eyes became resolute as he hastened his pace. When he neared the battleground, a violent scene unfolded in front of his eyes. A caravan composed of four carriages was being sieged by more than thirty hooded men dressed in long black outfits. The guards of the caravan were strenuously resisting the assault but to no avail as the bandits were more numerous and were gaining ground. Noah sensed that their level was way above his own and chose to take advantage of the situation to pass through them. A known danger is less scary than an unknown one. Noah could have avoided the place but that would have meant facing the unknown. What if there were more bandit gangs? What if that new gang wasn''t busy dealing with another enemy? ''My best bet is to pass right through them!'' He rushed across the trees running right above the battlefield. Some of the bandits noticed his presence and decided to go after him since the outcome of the combat on the caravan seemed set. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah didn''t look back but Echo was constantly sending images of his pursuers. ''Three of them and they are all faster than me. Fuck! Demonic form!'' Smoke enveloped his legs and his speed rose drastically surprising the hooded men behind him. However, that only made them more resolved on catching him. After all, they were only pretending to be bandits, their real purpose was to reduce the competition in the incoming test and his increase of pace made him a dangerous contender. Noah ran releasing more smoke on the path he was crossing. Every branch he passed would break after being corroded by his spell and some lingering smoke remained in their spots. The men were surprised by the deadliness of the spell and were slowed to counter its effects. Noah seemed to finally gain some ground when one of the three nodded to the other two and made and hand gesture. Wind began to blow which carried at high speed the man in Noah''s direction. ''Wind mage!'' Noah saw through Echo that the bandit was flying in the air and that he would reach his position in a few minutes. His flight didn''t seem that stable though which made Noah think of a plan. Echo senses expanded and Noah''s liquid "Breath" depleted rapidly as a large area around him was pictured in his mind. The area had a diameter of four hundred meters and was the limit of Echo''s scanning ability. However, that was enough for Noah! He abruptly cut diagonally and moved toward a certain region in the forest. The mage changed his direction too even if with a bit of difficulty, losing some ground. His speed though was still higher than Noah and resumed his process of shortening the distance with him. When he was at less than fifty meters from him, he heard a sharp sound that slightly disrupted his balance, slowing him again. He resumed his chase immediately but more and more sound attacks came in his direction. There was no surprise effect those times and, even if he had to defend from Echo''s screeches, he still had a faster pace than Noah. ''Almost there!'' After less than one hundred meters, the trees became scarcer and a big empty area unfolded in front of them. There were more than one hundred meters from the last tree to the next one and Noah forcefully jumped once he reached that point. The mage smirked internally thinking that Noah had lost his mind trying to perform a leap of that length and changed his direction toward the ground, ready to intercept him while he was falling. Noah was mid-air with his senses focused on his pursuer. ''Not yet!'' Only when the mage was about to touch the ground did Noah act. Two pairs of black wings pierced the clothes on his back an began to flap with great might. Smoke was released from the wings that, paired with his fuming legs and his black outfit, gave Noah the appearance of a wicked magical beast rather than a human. The mage had no time to be surprised as tens of fuming wind slashes crashed in his position. BOOOM! Noah didn''t even look at the results of his attack and stored his just wielded sabers back in the space-ring. He continued to fly toward the distant tree until he landed on one of its branches and resumed his march toward Ebonrest city. No one was after him from that moment onward. Chapter 99: 99. Muwlos family In the treeless area of the forest. A big cloud made of black smoke created a death zone twenty meters large. At some point, the wind blew and forcefully carried the dark cloud along with it. On the ground, an almost naked middle-aged man looked in the direction of Ebonrest city. There was only one wound on his body, a small cut on his shoulder, but it was already healing at high speed. Two hooded men arrived in the place and looked at the messy scene. The ground was leveled and no trace of life remained in that area. One of them spoke toward the naked man. "Lord Abel wh-" However, before he could finish his sentence, a wind slash passed right on the side of his cheek creating a small cut on it. Abel turned and scolded the other bandit. "Never use our real names in this mission! I''m Number Three!" Both the bandits bowed asking for forgiveness while Abel simply waved his hand in irritation. "Number Three did you catch him?" Abel looked at the still bowing man under him and shook his head. The bandits were surprised. "But he was clearly only a rank 1 cultivator while you have a rank 2 dantian and a rank 4 body!" Abel became more irritated and replied loudly. "I know, ok? I have misjudged his strength and made a mistake. I will personally report this matter to the Boss. Just notify the young master that there is a dangerous individual that uses sound attacks and black corrosive smoke to fight." At the same time. Noah was still speeding in the forest. The chase had lasted for less than one hour but he didn''t dare to lower his pace until he reached the borders of the woods. His legs were still releasing smoke that destroyed everything it touched and his mental energy was depleting rapidly. However, after spending almost four months completely focused on training, some signs of progress were finally showing themselves. Since he had always had a blood companion, his mental sphere had never stopped enlarging even if by just a small amount. Now that he could couple it with the second Kesier rune though, his training speed vastly surpassed the pace of normal cultivators. ''A strong mind, the pressure from the Body-inscription spell, the Kesier rune. I might become a rank 2 mage before I turn eighteen.'' If William knew that his disciple was aiming to reach the level of a rank 2 mage in only three years of training, he would be coughing blood from the irritation. The time it took to break through ranks grew exponentially as it grew the level of the cultivator. The average for a talented person was six years for rank 1 mage and eight for rank 2. Noah though spent two years and a half to reach the first rank and had stayed for almost two years locked in the mansion with the blood companion exerting pressure on his mental sphere. With his accumulated time in there, the advantage of his rebirth, the stability of his mental sphere, his new blood companion, and his workaholic personality, becoming a rank 2 mage in less than three years was totally doable. It must be remembered that Noah was not even thirteen when he became a mage! ''If I don''t use the full transformation, the consumption of mental energy is bearable for longer times. Uff, if only those fucking nobles had let me train freely.'' He continued to run for some more hours until he finally was out of the forest. A vast green plain extended in front of him and an enormous defense wall made of massive rocky bricks was in its center. ''Ebonrest city!'' There was still time before the beginning of the test but Noah felt that it was safer to arrive earlier. He changed his clothes and wore a simple black tight robe with no hood. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. He tied again his hair in a ponytail and moved toward the city walls. There was only one gate along the walls and when Noah reached it, he could see the magnitude of the event. There were hundreds of people in line in front of the eight meters tall gate, with caravans and guards that formed a large and messy row. Near the gate, tens of soldiers with shiny green armors were sorting the people that wanted to enter the city. ''I suppose it will take a while to enter.'' Noah walked till the end of the crowd and waited patiently, he closed his eyes to pay more attention to his surroundings and moved whenever there was more space in front of him. Most of the people there were nobles and it wasn''t smart to provoke them. However, many had noticed his arrival and began to whisper between themselves, sometimes sneering, sometimes snorting. "Another foolish kid, what do they teach commoners these days?" "Hmph, they are just here to fill the empty spots, it''s not like they have any chance to win. They just hope that someone might have a good impression of them and then be recruited in their families." "If they survive the test, haha!" Many of these voices entered Noah''s ears but he didn''t mind it. He was specifically looking for something. Then, Echo sent an image to his mind. A guard on one of the most luxurious carriages neared a young man with long hair and whispered something in his ear. The guard pointed at the forest and then at Noah at which the noble nodded. The guard bowed and went away from their group but the noble stared at the end of the line for more time. ''It''s his family then.'' Noah was the only one in the last part of the line that was moving alone. He had suspected that the bandits would have reported the accident in the forest to their leader and he was the one that fitted the most the description of the man that had escaped the wind mage. ''If no one else arrives alone after me, they will pretty much be certain of some of my abilities.'' There were merchants along the row of people waiting, trying to make some business before the entrance test. Noah opened his eyes and signaled to one of them to get close. As the merchant arrived, Noah showed him ten pieces of gold and spoke. "If you tell me to which family that youth with long blond hair belongs to, these are yours." The merchant gave a quick look to the carriage in the distance and replied with no hesitation. "Large-size noble family, Muwlos family." Chapter 100: 100. Inside the city ''The test hasn''t even started and I have already made some enemies, my luck is always awesome.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah turned toward the merchant. "What else do you sell?" The man smiled and took out a bag from his back, opening it in front of Noah. "Oh, I sell many things, young master! From special weapons to wonderful talismans. Also, I have a lot of drugs that will help you greatly during the test." Noah looked at the goods but he couldn''t see anything valuable. He shook his head and sent away the merchant, then he resumed his inspection of the surroundings with closed eyes. As time passed, more people arrived behind him and silently put themselves in line. The young noble from the Muwlos family continued to look in his direction and Noah felt his gaze on him. However, he simply ignored him and moved along with the line. Caravans arrived unceasingly, increasing the size of the crowd in front of the city gates. After more than half a day of waiting, Noah finally managed to arrive at the entrance of the city. "Name and purpose for the visit." A guard in green armor spoke to him as he arrived at the edge of the line. "Vance, I want to join the academy''s entrance test." The guard took an inscribed marble tablet and showed it to Noah. "Place your hand on this, we need to confirm your age." Noah followed his order but the tablet remained unresponsive after he touched it. The guard nodded and gave him a medallion with his name written on it. "Follow the signs for your lodgings and don''t lose the pendant or you won''t be able to participate in the test." Then, the soldier let him pass. Noah put the medallion in his space-ring and entered the city. He was quite surprised by the magnitude of the buildings, it was his first time inside a big city of that world after all. There were many three-story houses and, in the distance toward the center of the town, some six-stories structures were visible. ''It is almost as if I''m back to my previous world.'' Large insignias stood in the middle of the paved main road, indicating different locations and their direction. ''Test participants area'' Noah followed the direction of the sign and arrived in twenty minutes at a large district full of three-story manors. Another guard blocked his path. "Show me the tablet and a room will be assigned to you." Noah took out the pendant and the guard handed him a small wooden card with a rune written on it. "Mansion E, room 14. The test will take place in fifteen days. Someone from the city troops will lead all the applicants to the examination area on that day. Good luck." Noah nodded and entered the district. Many youths were grouping and chatting on the yards of their villas but they all turned their heads to look at Noah walking along the central road. It was clear that he didn''t belong to any noble family as his clothes were shabby and untidy. Most of them felt superior to him and began to make jokes about his appearance but the strongest among them felt only danger from his figure. ''There is someone worthy of my attention.'' When he arrived at the mansion with a big "E" painted on it, a tall youth about the same age as Noah stood in front of the entrance door with a smirk on his face. "This mansion is reserved for nobles. A commoner like you can simply sleep on the courtyard. You have no problems with that, right?" ''I really hope that killing is allowed in the test.'' That was Noah''s thought as he stared fixedly at the youth in his eyes. He focused all his mental pressure on him and the young man paled instantly facing the might of Noah''s sea of consciousness. He began to sweat profusely and then he fainted on the spot. Noah simply stepped over him and opened the door under everyone''s gaze. The insides of the mansion were clean and tidy, with a large living room and many doors with numbers drawn on them. He stepped on the stairs for the first floor and walked on the corridor until he found the door with a "14" written on it. The wooden card appeared in his hand and he neared it to the handling of the door. However, nothing happened and the door remained locked. "You need to put some "Breath" in the tablet to make it work." Noah turned and saw a girl of about sixteen years old on the other end of the corridor. She had long red hair and a cute face, her eyes shined with a green color. Noah followed her instructions and transferred a bit of "Breath" from his body inside the tablet. CLACK! A metallic sound rang from the room and when Noah grabbed the handle, the door opened smoothly. He did a slight nod toward her and directly entered the room, closing the door behind him. "Why did you help him, sis? He would have figured it out by himself anyway." A tall man with short red hair appeared from behind the girl still standing on the corridor. "Mh, I have the faint sensation that we should be friendly with him." She put a pensive expression as she stared at the room 14. "Usually your instincts are right, the Patriarch had said that you are a natural talent in understanding the flow of the "Breath" after all." The girl nodded and replied with a bit of sarcasm. "Yes, yes, I will become the inscription master of the family elevating our status to a medium-size noble family." The man behind her just patted her head and returned to the room. Inside Noah''s room. Noah was already sitting cross-legged looking at the second Kesier rune. It was daytime and since there were still two weeks before the test, he would use that time to train a bit more. The room was quite luxurious but he was too focused on raising his strength as much as he could to notice it. The weeks passed with him never exiting the room and, in the end, the day of the test arrived. Chapter 101: 101. Begin A loud voice sounded in the district on the morning of the entrance test. "Gather toward the ingress and attend further instructions." Noah was cultivating and opened his eyes after hearing the voice. Meditation was refreshing for the body of a cultivator and if it was paired with enough sleep it helped maintaining someone''s peak form. Noah, of course, didn''t train his mental energy the day before the test, so he felt rested and full of energy. He exited the room and saw that all the other contestants did the same. They moved silently outside the manor and toward the appointed spot, a tense air surrounded the young men and women and no one was friendly to each other like on the day of Noah''s arrival. After all, depending on the test, they could all be enemies in a few hours. Only the girl with red hair seemed somewhat at ease as if uncaring of the incoming trial. She even waved her hand toward Noah that limited himself to nod before ignoring her. When they reached the ingress of the district, six beautiful women appeared in their line of sight. They were holding large buckets and their eyes were closed as they stood motionlessly in place. The voice then sounded again. "Leave your keys in the buckets, once everyone has done it, we will move." The process took ten minutes as more than one hundred youths had to drop their wooden cards. When the last card was dropped, a figure appeared in the air above them. He had a green full-body armor and he floated staring at the group below him. "Follow me and remember that an envoy from the Elbas dynasty will be overseeing your behavior." The group moved in silence along the streets of Ebonrest city while the man walked in the air leading them. Noah felt a stare full of hatred coming from behind him that belonged to the noble that tried to prevent his ingress in the manor back when he arrived in the district. ''Please, mighty Royals, let the test be a fight to the death.'' He dreamed of that unlikely chance. The Royal family couldn''t put so many lives at risk, the cultivators present there were the best of the best of the new generations of nobles after all. After another ten minutes of walk, they arrived at a large square that had a big diagram at its center. On the sides of the diagram, there were stands full of the family members of the participants. Meals and beverages of any kind were put in front of them as they stared at their descendants below them. ''No chances of laying low with this much audience.'' Noah thought. The guard in the air signaled to the youths to gather in front of the diagram and then a bright light shone from the highest place in the audience spots. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. A man donned in a golden robe appeared on the throne placed on the opposite side of the participants who raised his hand to silence the crowd in the square. "I am Thaddeus Elbas, the administrator sent from the Royal Academy for this test. I will now explain the rules and the theme of the trial so pay attention." He moved one of his blonde curls away from his forehead and resumed his explanation. "The formation that you see in front of you is a teleportation matrix, it will send you all near the peak of Shelfan Mountain. As you know, that area is full of dangerous magical beasts, mainly Ice-born Yetis, most of them in their rank 3 version. Once you are teleported there, a rune will appear in your sea of consciousness that will keep count of the number of magical beasts that you manage to kill and of their rank. That number will be also shown here. The five of you that will kill more beasts will pass the test." He stopped for a few moments to make sure that everyone understood the first part. Noah was already cheering internally after hearing Thaddeus'' words. "Now the rules. You must go back to the edges of the teleportation area for that number to be valid. Its borders cover all the mountain area so you just need to descend and at some point, you will reach it. If you break the rune, you will be immediately teleported back here but all your kills will be invalid. If you harm another participant, we will know and we will disqualify you. It is allowed to steal someone else''s kill however, so be careful. The rune will also gather information about your other qualities since we have reserved ten spots for those of you that don''t excel in battle prowess. The time limit of the test is three days and you must return to the teleportation area before that time or your kills will be invalid." Thaddeus stood up and spread his arms wide. "This will be all for the explanation. Remember to not be reckless and to preserve your life. Good luck and may the test begin!" The formation at the center of the square began to shine and the guard from the Voydol family in the air yelled loudly. "Everyone inside the formation!" The group of youths moved immediately in the borders of the diagram which shone more brightly as the last of the participants entered its range. In a few seconds, all the men and women at the center of the square disappeared and, in their place, four big blue screens appeared in the air. The screens had the names of the participants written on them with a "zero" next to each name. At the same time. Noah resisted the pressure of the teleportation with ease and when he opened his eyes, he found himself in a snowy environment. The area was so cold that he had to circulate the "Breath" in his body to fight back the assault of the frigid temperature to his skin. ''This cold is unnatural, it can even damage a rank 3 body!'' Some other people were around him who were slowly opening their eyes. ''It seems that we were all sent to different locations.'' He looked around and saw right behind his back that a vivid red line was drawn on the terrain. ''That should be the border of the teleportation area so the test is on its opposite side.'' He smiled a little, his cold aura fused with the one of the surroundings, scaring the participants near him. ''Let''s see if there is really someone that can surpass me!'' Echo began to scan the area as Noah charged directly toward the peak. Chapter 102: 102. Cold A big figure swung its thick arm toward a black silhouette. It resembled a bear but with humanoid features, it had pure white fur and it was tall five meters. However, it was slow, both in its movements and in its attacks, allowing the black figure to slash one of its shoulders. GRRRRR A low growl resounded from the tall beast as a wound appeared on its body but the cold winds in the surroundings gathered on that spot, fixing the injury. ''They are easy to fight but hard to kill.'' The black figure was, of course, Noah, testing the limits of the rank 3 Ice-born Yeti in front of him. He had moved deep into the mountain range toward its peak, separating himself from the rest of the participants. ''In five hundred meters this is the first rank 3 that I met. I should climb a bit more.'' They had been teleported in the peak area of the mountain but they were still many kilometers away from its summit. The Yeti roared and charged toward Noah seemingly angry for the injury just suffered. Its frame was imponent but its speed was not even worthy of consideration. Noah simply dodged its assault and appeared on its back as he placed his hand on the beast. Black smoke was released which devoured in a few seconds all the rear area of the creature. The Yeti fell dead on the snowy ground and a "1" appeared on the golden rune inside Noah''s sea of consciousness. ''Finally some reactions. I believe that the rank 2 versions don''t count or they are worth something only in big numbers.'' He had met some rank 2 Ice-born Yetis in his march but, even after killing them, the rune showed no changes. ''This environment forces the cultivator to expend a great deal of "Breath" to protect his body. Added to the vitality of the Yetis which is boosted in this field due to the cold winds, the test involves more than just brute force to be passed.'' The participants had three days to hunt as many magical beasts they could so they had to be wary of their reserves of energy. ''Yet, there are a lot of nobles from large-size families, I don''t believe that they don''t have any medicine to keep themselves in top condition. Even I have some of them after all.'' He thought for a bit while the mountain winds assaulted him and he raised his head to look at the summit after he had made up his mind. ''I need to go higher.'' Meanwhile, on another side of Shelfan Mountain. Another group of youths was climbing the mountain. There were the two red-haired siblings, the noble from the Muwlos family and some other cultivators. The noble was currently speaking while taking out a long spear from the body of a rank 2 Yeti. "This doesn''t work, we need to go higher or we won''t get any point." They had decided to group up and to divide equally the kills but it was obvious that the Muwlos descendant was trying to take the bigger share. "Samuel, I already told you that we should remain on a lower altitude. My sister is never wrong with these things." Samuel Muwlos snorted and replied to the tall red-haired man. "And what your small Eeggi family could even know? There are only rank 2 magical beasts in this area! We need to climb if we want to collect points!" The others in the group nodded and followed Samuel''s lead. The man from the Eeggi family sighed and turned toward his sister. "Still danger?" The girl nodded and trembled as she gazed at the mountain peak. "I feel that the higher we climb, the higher will be the chances of failing the test." The brother too looked toward the peak. "Isn''t it possible that you are just sensing the stronger beasts up there?" The girl shook her head. "No, I feel that the danger will come toward us." . . . Many small groups had formed during the first day of the test. Those belonging to small and medium-size families and even some lone cultivators chose to follow the lead of the descendants from the large-size noble families. After all, the environment was harsh and the Yetis were resilient, grouping up was completely in the forecasts of the academy. However, there was still some individual that chose to challenge the mountain alone. Noah was one of those and he was currently hidden in a large tree in which he had dug a small hole. The night had come and, even if he could clearly see in the darkness, the temperature on the mountain had dropped so much that he had to take many breaks during his advance. ''Moving at night will just tire me uselessly. I''d better move tomorrow in the morning. It seems that I''ve finally reached a more populated area.'' He focused on the rune in his sea of consciousness which showed a clear "22" on its surface. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. ''The thing is that I can''t see the kill count of the other participants so I don''t know if I should hold back or push harder. To be safe, it''s better to do my best and everything should be fine. I don''t believe that there is someone with a spell more destructive than mine.'' He was relying mainly on the partial Demonic form to kill the Yetis as any other of his abilities could only inflict injuries that the winds easily healed. ''I will move as soon as the temperature drops.'' Noah took out his clothes and let Echo come out of his body and envelop him. The body of the blood companion was made of "Breath" which naturally opposed the assault of the cold. Noah closed his eyes and slept in the warmth of the bat''s body. The next morning, he retracted Echo and donned back his clothes. He resumed his climb and noticed that the temperature lowered as he reached higher altitudes. At some point, Echo sent a peculiar image to his mind which made him change direction toward another higher area. He put one of his knees on the white terrain a peeked at the scenery below him. There was a slope that created a small cliff on the side of the mountain. It was a few hundred meters large and only at twenty from the terrain, it was like a small canyon in the insides of the mountain. Inside the small valley, tens of rank 3 Ice-born Yetis were resting or lazily walking around. A slight smile formed on Noah''s face as he looked at them. Chapter 103: 103. Messy fights Most of Yetis in the valley were laying on the ground, allowing the cold winds of the mountain to nourish them. Noah had a good amount of experience regarding packs of magical beast and could not help but be slightly confused. ''They are rather peaceful between themselves. There isn''t the same aggressivity of the snakes nor the same cruelty.'' Noah was evaluating their behavior as he peeked from the edge on the surface. ''Well, I will see their aggressivity pretty soon.'' Two silver sabers appeared in his hands as he jumped directly in the middle of the beast pack. Tens of horizontal fuming slashes shot out from his figure as soon as he touched the ground. ROOOOOARR The Yetis gave immediately the alarm and jumped toward the little figure. However, they were slow and a corrosive black smoke began to spread in the area which damaged them, further slowing their advance. Noah had already vanquished the creatures near him and shot toward the most densely populated area. The black smoke enveloped him, transforming his normal appearance in a fiendish one. The Yetis surrounded him but were obstructed by the dark cloud that enveloped Noah so they could never near his position safely. Noah used those unhindered moments to kill as many beasts as he could. Bodies accumulated on the ground as he moved undisputed between the five meters giants. ROOOOOAR Another roar resounded in the valley and the assault of the Yetis became more selfless. They charged into the black cloud uncaring of their skin being consumed in order to stop the threat. When one of the Yetis was near enough to touch him, a three meters bat shot out from the cloud and stabbed its fangs on the beast. The bat used the surprise effect to lock the Yeti on the ground and bit hard on its head. A shockwave was released from its ethereal throat that crushed the Yeti''s head on the spot. Noah was internally satisfied with the strength of his new blood companion as he swung his blades relentlessly surrounded by black smoke. ''Assea would have only been able to take hits on my place while Echo can actively fight on my side.'' That was precisely what continued to happen. Noah killed everything in front of him while Echo managed his rear side. Slowly, the entire valley was being covered by the toxic smoke. About half an hour later, the cloud dissipated, showing Noah''s figure in the middle of the empty cliff. Only some remains of the previously populated pack laid on the terrain. His complexion was slightly pale and he was sweating, more than half his mental energy had been depleted but he was smiling seeing the results on the rune in the sea of consciousness. The number "58" was shown clearly on its surface. ''This is the best altitude, I should rest and explore more.'' He reached for the surface and dug another cavity in the trunk of a tree. He took out a bottle and drank its contents. As he felt his mental energy rapidly increasing, he began to meditate to refill the missing liquid "Breath". In two hours, he was ready to move again. He didn''t climb any further as in the battle that he just went through he had almost reached his limits. The difficulty of that area was perfect for his level. It didn''t take much for Echo to find another similar spot full of rank 3 Yetis. Instead of a valley though, the pack was inside a large cavern. Noah smiled again seeing the beasts and didn''t hesitate to wield his sabers and launch himself in another messy battle. On the other areas of the test. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. All the participants had chosen to climb the mountain in search of more rank 3 beasts but they only managed to find some solitary specimens that were scouting the area. Samuel was quite irritated by the few numbers of Yetis that they ran into. His rune was still showing the number "7" and it had been a while since it changed. He had to divide the kills between the other members of his group after all, and even if he took the biggest share, their quantity was still minimal. "We need to go even higher!" He ordered those that followed him. "Why don''t you go alone? We won''t benefit much from endangering ourselves while you will always make sure to have killed more than us. Also, I think that we are doing pretty good for the second day." The man from the Eeggi family answered him. As their altitude increased, the shivers of his sister had become almost unsustainable and he was really worried about her health. "Why do you even speak to me? It''s clear that your sister is full of shit! Look, we climbed so much but the best that we could find were two rank 3 at the same time! I should have never grouped with people from such a worthless family." The insult didn''t hurt the red-haired brother so much as he knew that his social status was far inferior. "And what we would do if we find a pack with ten Yetis, mh? Will you use me as a meat-shield like the last time?" These nobles had never faced dangerous situations, and if they did, they were controlled dangers. Their experience in battle was limited to the hunting they did with their family and to the training that they did in their mansions. Noah completely outclassed them in real fights to the death. Added to his powerful spell that fully countered the regenerative ability of the Yetis, it was no wonder that he could kill those rank 3 beasts so effortlessly. So, the others fought the Yetis with crude methods, using one or two people in their group to distract the creatures while the others launched attacks until they had killed it. Of course, groups that had fire mages had a slight advantage but even with that and not considering Noah, the highest kill count didn''t surpass thirty units. In the end, the night came even on the second day of the test. Almost everyone had decided to climb more but they were surprised to find that nearly no beast was present at that height. Meanwhile, Noah was resting inside Echo''s body looking at the mark on his rune. ''"126". That should be pretty high right?'' Chapter 104: 104. Danger The light signaling the beginning of the third day of the academy test shone upon Shelfan Mountain. The participants exited their hidings and began to march again toward the summit. The number of rank 3 Yetis had become scarcer as they climbed and the cause for that unusual situation had to be attributed to a man in a black suit that was in the highest position among them. That man was obviously Noah who didn''t waste any time during the first day and climbed relentlessly until he had met a satisfiable number of magical beasts. His second day was spent clearing any large pack that he found, leaving the participants below him almost without any targets. As he woke up, he exited Echo''s body and explored once more the area but after a few hours and a single battle, he couldn''t find any more Ice-born Yetis. ''I''m only at one hundred and thirty-five, I should secure some other kill before I go back to the teleportation area.'' He had just to run toward the bottom of the mountain and even in a straight line to reach the exit area, the travel would take a maximum of ten hours from his current position. ''I''ll climb a little more, as the rune hits "150", I''ll go back.'' He moved toward the peak and the environment became increasingly cold, it was nearing the temperature of the nights. However, no more magical beasts appeared in his sight nor were they sensed by Echo. ''My estimate was a bit arrogant, at this rate, I will not be able to go much further due to this cold.'' He marched for some more minutes and was about to turn back when he saw a tall Yeti in the distance. It was a peak rank 3 specimen, one of the few that he met on the mountain but surely the tallest of them. Its eight was almost six meters. ''I guess, I should grab the last kill, what can possibly happen after all?'' Echo wasn''t sensing anything different coming from its direction and Noah took the chance to fight it without relying on his Demonic form. He had fought using the spell too much in the last period and he didn''t like to depend only on one skill. He jumped straight at the Yeti and two sabers appeared in his hands during his assault. The Yeti noticed him but it had to face more than twenty wind slashes coming in its direction before it could focus on the human. Its huge arms were cut in many spots but the mountain winds promptly gathered there to fix the injuries. However, Noah didn''t give it any time to recover. He was already behind the beast and slashed vertically with both his blades. Two deep wounds appeared on its back and more winds gathered on its body. Noah attacked again, he was using his speed to avoid any reaction of the creature and his precise strikes to deal more injuries that what the winds could heal. In fifteen minutes, the Yeti was powerless on its knees, showing its defenseless head to Noah. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. He didn''t waste any time and stabbed both his sabers in its brain while being deep in thought. ''My battle prowess without the Demonic form doesn''t reach even a quarter of my full strength. My martial art is falling behind my other skills.'' The rune inside his sea of consciousness showed "136" and Noah nodded internally but as soon as the body of the Yeti touched the ground, his senses and Echo screamed detecting a great danger. A small snowy hill right in front of him began to move and a deafening roar enveloped the area. The snow fell from the moving body, slowly revealing the mighty figure of an Ice-born Yeti ten meters tall! From its mouth full of sharp fangs, the cold winds that filled the mountain came out and dispersed in the environment. It looked at the corpse of the peak rank 3 Yeti on the ground and anger filled its eyes as it moved its gaze searching for its killer. In the distance, it saw a small black figure that was running at high speed toward the bottom of the mountain. Noah had begun to run away the moment he sensed the danger. Thanks to his rich battle experience, he knew that there was only one thing that could cause those sensations to his body. ''Rank 4 magical beast!'' ''Fuck, fuck! I will never, ever trust my luck again!'' Echo was staring at the scene behind him peeking from his clothes, Noah wasn''t satisfied with only the colorless images of its scanning ability. ''So, the mountain winds come from the rank 4 specimens. I wonder how many of them there are to fill the entire mountain, or maybe...'' Echo''s gaze moved to the summit. ''I bet there is something stronger up there.'' The rank 4 Yeti gave another powerful roar and started to descend the mountain to chase toward Noah. Noah didn''t think twice about it and activated the partial Demonic form on his legs, his speed increased drastically. From behind the rank 4 creature though, tens of rank 3 Ice-born Yetis appeared, they resembled a small army marching toward the world of humans. Noah saw the scene and paled a bit, there were hundreds of rank 3 specimens that gained speed as they continued to descend and the rank 4 was in the lead position. ''Well, I guess that the test is over.'' At a lower altitude, the group led by Samuel was still climbing in search of more magical beasts. Samuel seemed anxious as his rune showed the number "25". He had secured more kills than it was concorded due to the scarcity of Yetis and more discord was sewn between his followers. "Lord Samuel, I didn''t even reach ten units. Could you let me take the next one? Otherwise, my family will really lose face." A youth from a medium-size noble family pleaded him but Samuel only snorted in response. He knew that the average for these kinds of tests was around fifty units in the top positions. He came from a large-size family after all, they had accumulated an incredible quantity of knowledge during the years and hunting tests were frequent. ''Where the fuck are all the magical beasts?'' The ground began to tremble, making the girl from the Eeggi family shake again. She grabbed her brother''s sleeve and stopped his movements. "Big brother, it''s time, we have to run." Before his brother could nod however, Samuel turned toward her and admonished harshly. "What run! Don''t tell me that you are scared of earthquakes! Fucking small families, they shou-" His words were stopped by the girl pointing at a spot behind him. Samuel turned only to see a black fuming figure running at high speed toward them. Chapter 105: 105. Firs Samuel''s eyes widened seeing Noah. He knew that someone had escaped his men and that he had a skill that emitted black smoke. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. He was finally sure that Noah was that someone. Anger enveloped his mind, he had lastly understood why his group met so few magical beasts. ''He had come here first and killed them!'' He was a proud heir of a noble family, he couldn''t let someone with no background surpass him! However, before that he was able to scheme anything, the army of Ice-born Yetis became visible. Hundreds of rank 3 magical beasts were following Noah tightly with the imponent rank 4 Yeti in their lead. All Samuel''s anger vanished on the spot as he yelled unconsciously: "RANK 4!" From that point, it was chaos. Someone in their group directly broke the rune in their sea of consciousness moved by fear and a blinding light enveloped them, making them disappear. Samuel turned and ran uncaring of anything that he had in front. He swung his arms powered by the strength of his rank 3 body and flung away the other members of his group to make a way toward the bottom of the mountain. The two Eeggi siblings were sent flying in different directions. The brother had it easier as he had a rank 3 body too and could withstand Samuel''s blow but he still fell for a few meters. His sister though had only a rank 2 body and slammed powerlessly on a tree, fainting on the spot. The brother was about to reach for her when others above him banged on his body. He opposed with all his strength to the force pushing him down but the other cultivators were too scared. They instinctively used their weapons to create a path through him and he did the same to defend himself. At that moment, their runes shattered and they were teleported outside of the test area. Meanwhile, Noah was running at full speed with the army of magical beasts on his tail. He saw the chaotic scene below him and shook his head internally. ''Fucking nobles, it''s just a tiny rank 4, why do you get so scared?'' He focused again on the Yeti ten meters tall. ''Well, tiny maybe isn''t really fit for this one.'' He was feeling quite at ease. The Yetis were slower than him and he had enough strength to reach the teleportation area. Even if you are the strongest being in the world, why should I fear you if you can''t touch me? These were Noah''s thoughts as he descended. Then he saw the red-haired man trying to reach for his sister and disappearing after he opposed the other cultivators. ''So, the rune can even break on itself if you don''t follow the rules. Wait, why isn''t she escaping?'' He noticed that the girl that helped him with the key in the manor was laying on a tree unmoving. ''Is she unconscious? Wait, if she dies, will they blame me?'' After all, he was the cause of the rank 4 creature''s rage. The rune could understand if a participant broke the rules, what if it even registered the events that they went through? Noah was quite doubtful about that but he still chose not to risk his entrance in the academy. He slightly curved and more smoke came out of his legs. When he reached the girl, he hastily grabbed her collar a threw her over his shoulders. The clothes on his back tore and a big bat appeared which absorbed the girl inside its body. Noah was using the Demonic form, the smoke was toxic to anyone except for him and Echo, he couldn''t simply carry her. And then, his descent continued. A fifteen and a half years old man was running at full speed with his upper-body naked in a land of snow. A big bat had its two pairs of wings retracted and was standing on top of his shoulders. An army of Yetis was closely following him, unable to match his speed. More and more participants appeared in his field of view and they had the same reaction of Samuel''s group. Teleportation lights shined from time to time and many ran toward the bottom of the mountain uncaring of the test. Noah picked up a bottle from his space-ring to refill his mental energy. With the addition of the girl''s body on his back, his expenditure of mental energy had increased. Hours passed and, in the end, the red line on the terrain became visible. Noah''s eyes lit up seeing the borders of the teleportation area and accelerated his pace. The Yetis were still behind him but he had grown so used to their pressure that he almost forgot about them ''I should probably stop my spells. Even if many have seen Echo and the black smoke, they couldn''t possibly have paid so much attention to them since they were too scared of the beasts behind me.'' When he was at a few meters from the red line, Echo was reabsorbed in his body and the partial Demonic form deactivated. The girl came out in the open and Noah grabbed her with one hand, carrying her like she was some sort of bag. ''She is still sleeping even after so many hours. Damn nobles, they have it too easy.'' Then he jumped across the teleportation area and a bright light enveloped him. When the pressure on his sea of consciousness vanished, he was back in the square of Ebonrest city. All the other participants were staring at him. Many emotions were exuded from their stares: anger, envy, respect. Some lonely cultivator even had tinges of pride in his eyes. ''The fuck are they looking at.'' However, Noah couldn''t care less and looked at the screens in the air. The name Vance was in the first position but Noah didn''t feel too happy about that. That was because his kill count was at least four times the one of the second place. ''I really overdid.'' "Sister!" At that moment though, the red-haired man came in his direction, yelling. Only then Noah remembered that he was still carrying the unconscious girl and he threw her toward the brother. Chapter 106: 106. Specializations The brother caught his sister and bowed toward Noah. "Thank you so much!" However, Noah had already moved his gaze back to the screens. ''I guess I passed the test. Why is everyone still looking at me though?'' It wasn''t only the participants that were staring at him, even the cultivators on the stands had their eyes wide open looking in his direction. Thaddeus Elbas was smiling lightly as he inspected Noah, he kept on nodding as golden runes floated in the air around him and entered his mind. Samuel continued to look at his name on the screen. He was in the sixth position and he could not help but blame Noah for his failure. He raised his hand and pointed it to Noah while he spoke with a loud voice. "He cheated! He endangered the lives of all the participants of the test by awakening that rank 4 Ice-born Yeti. He should be disqualified!" No one of the others around him spoke though, there was no benefit in Noah''s exclusion for them so they would rather accept their loss humbly. After all, Noah''s kill count was so high that it was obvious that he was the strongest of them. Thaddeus then clapped his hands and the numbers on the screen changed slightly. The number "25" next to Samuel''s name was transformed into a "0". "Samuel Muwlos has almost killed a participant when he was escaping, his points shall be nullified." Thaddeus'' voice resounded in the square and he stood up. "The five of you in the top position, follow me. You are now members of the Royal Academy. The others shall remain here, I will announce those in the ten spots tomorrow morning." Noah and the other four youths moved across the group in the square and arrived in front of the throne where Thaddeus was standing. All the gazes remained on Noah while the five walked and a few whispers resounded from the stages. Thaddeus gazed at the five and launched a rune between them. The rune radiated a blinding light and the pressure of the teleportation pressed on Noah''s sea of consciousness. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a luxurious room large thirty square meters with a table at its center full of delicacies. His gaze then moved to Thaddeus that was standing in front of him. He was looking at Noah with a smile on his face while nodding. "What a strong mental sphere, it''s quite rare for someone of your age." He had been again the first one to recover from the pressure. Noah hastily bowed to accept the praise and Thaddeus made a small laugh seeing his action. "No need to be so polite, in the academy we give importance to strength over status and you are definitely the strongest in your generation." Noah maintained his bow and replied. "I was just lucky, my Lord." Thaddeus laughed again and teased him. "You know, since I belong to the Royal dynasty, you should refer to me as Majesty and not Lord." Noah raised his gaze only to see Thaddeus smiling slyly. The other four had recovered by then and were staring at the interaction between the two with wide eyes. Thaddeus laughed again and continued. "Anyhow, for you all, I''m just a professor of the academy. You will soon refer to me as Mister Thaddeus and I''m specialized in runes, mainly those regarding space. Now, you should be tired. You can use everything in this room for your wishes. I need to review the information about the test to fill the other ten spots. Use this time to rest and to get along with each other." Another blinding light surrounded him and he disappeared on the spot. ''Space runes? There are specializations too?'' He had to stop his thoughts though since he felt four pairs of eyes on him. He turned and saw that the four youths were all staring at him. They were two man and two women and an awkward silence was created in the room due to the exchange of glances. At some point, one of the men coughed and raised his hand. "I am Troy Orgoo from a large-size noble family. Fire element and sword wielder. Fifth in the entrance test." Troy had short brown hair and a small stature but his manners were refined and direct. One of the girls followed his suit and spoke. "Grace Harlyn, large-size noble family. Wind element. My weapons are the daggers and the bow. Third in the entrance test." Grace resembled a delicate flower and her skin was white as snow. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. She had long blonde hair and her gestures were precise and slow. It was then the other man''s moment. He was tall and burly, with dark skin and no hair. A trace of a black beard was on his chin. "Perry Illou, medium-size noble family. Earth element. I use the hammer. Fourth in the entrance test." The last girl snorted and replied shortly. "June Ballor, small-size, thunder element. Spear and second place." She had long and unruly silver hair that reached her knees. Her skin was clean and she was undoubtedly a beauty but some scars were visible on the uncovered part of her arms. She had never moved her gaze from Noah since she opened her eyes and a tinge of battle intent was exuded from her stare. ''I lacked only the battle maniac between my admirers.'' Noah was about to turn toward the food on the table when he noticed that the four of them had begun to stare at him again. "Oh right, my name is Vance." And then, he went to the table and picked a roasted chicken wing, eating it cross-legged on one of the couches in the room. After he finished his meal, he joined his hands on his waist and begun to meditate. June''s eyes sharpened and she released another snort before sitting right next to Noah. She then crossed her legs too and begun to cultivate. The other three looked awkwardly at the pair on the sofa and decided to ignore them. Chapter 107: 107. Exposed Meanwhile, in the square in Ebonrest city. The various participants had joined their families on the stages. They were socializing between themselves and inquiring their descendants about the events on the test. Samuel had his head lowered while a middle-aged man was heavily reprimanding him. "Don''t you dare speak again in front of the Royal dynasty like that! Have you seen how Thaddeus reacted? You made a fool out of yourself!" Samuel didn''t answer, he knew that his emotion had taken control of him at that moment and could only listen to his father''s scolding. "I wanted you to take the test so that you could lose some of that arrogance. So what if you belong to a large-size noble family? There is always a bigger mountain, you need to accept your weakness and work hard to fix it! I won''t always be here providing you support, one day the Muwlos family will be in your hand. Try to remember that." He shook his head and continued. "Look around you, how many large-size families do you see here? And why should you receive a special treatment?" He sighed and placed a hand on his shoulder. "The world is vast and you need more than your family name to survive in it. I hope that in the academy you will work hard." Samuel''s eyes lit up and he raised his head, asking in a timid voice. "Father, are you saying?" "What? Our family has enough wealth to buy the entrance for one person and you are the best candidate. Don''t make the family regret this decision." Back in the luxurious room. Noah was still cultivating. June had fallen asleep during her meditation and laid uncaringly on the couch. She moved a lot in her sleep and at some point, one of her legs landed on Noah''s shoulder. Noah opened his eyes and looked at the messy figure at his side. ''Is she a human or an animal?'' "She must have worked really hard during the test." Grace spoke looking at the scene. She was the only one awake, Troy and Perry had taken one couch each and were resting on them. Noah moved the leg away from his shoulder and stood up, walking toward the table. He filled a cup with some aromatic wine and drank it slowly while he pondered about his situation. "You are not the talkative type, I see." Grace spoke again, a slight smile appeared on her face. "I didn''t know that ladies from the noble families spoke to commoners." Noah replied while he took another sip from the cup. The wine was exquisite and it seemed to have a relaxing effect on the sea of consciousness. Grace''s eyebrows arched in surprise. "You lost your status as a commoner the moment you were accepted in the academy. Maybe you still don''t realize it but your future will be amazing only thanks to that. And I''m not even considering your extraordinary score during the test." Noah was taken aback listening to her words. ''My future will be amazing? This academy seems really incredible. I wonder how much time do I have till the Balvan family finds out that I''m alive.'' He never forgot about the events in the inheritance ground. After all, he had killed all the young descendants of his family in there, he was sure that their investigations won''t be stopped by the simple absence of clues. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. ''At least all my abilities are unknown to them. They can''t easily link me to Vance.'' At that moment, Thaddeus appeared again. The other three were awoken by the fluctuation of "Breath" and immediately stood up forming a bow. "Easy with the greetings, I just need to speak with Vance alone for a moment. Hold my hand." Noah was confused and he raised his guard internally while he held the professor''s hand. They immediately disappeared and reappeared in a small office where only a desk and an oil lamp were present. Thaddeus sat on the desk and stared silently at Noah. Then, he raised his finger and an image began to be displayed in the air. It pictured Noah in his Demonic form fighting against the Ice-born Yetis. Noah''s aura became unconsciously colder and Thaddeus began to speak. "As you know, my Elbas family ruled over the Utra continent for two thousand years already. We like for our subjects to believe that we don''t care about their behaviors but, in reality, we keep close attention to everything peculiar that happens." He pointed with his other hand at the image. "I believe that the black smoke belongs to the lost spell Demonic form. Our latest investigations about it had to stop more than one hundred years ago because of two reasons." "The first one was that the spell was believed to be stored in an inheritance ground in the Shosti domain. We could not afford to send so much man-power there so we simply let the Shosti family share its rewards with us." "The second one was that the spell linked itself to the sea of consciousness of the cultivator. It is then impossible to pass down and even extracting it will damage its diagram and the person that has it." He smiled toward Noah and continued. "However, a peculiar rumor spread out from that area not long ago. A medium-size family lost all its younger generation in the inheritance ground and no traces of them have been found. One really forgettable detail was that among them there was the bastard son of one of the nobles. I think his name was Noah and he was of the darkness element." Thaddeus retracted the image and shrugged his shoulder. "It''s strange for a cultivator without any background to be this strong and it''s even more strange for two cultivators of the darkness element to appear at the same time. I could not help but be suspicious so I dug deeper into the family''s weekly reports and created a theory." "What if the bastard son of the noble and the genius of the entrance test are the same person? Everything would make much more sense, don''t you think so?" Noah was stupefied. Never could he ever imagine that the network of the Royal family could reach even the medium-size noble families far from the capital. His eyes had become cold and dark as Thaddeus spoke and, in his mind, he was reviewing any chance he had to escape from this situation. However, his thoughts were interrupted by Thaddeus'' next question. "So, have you already thought about killing me?" Chapter 108: 108. Grayshade class Noah didn''t know what to answer. He knew that he had no chances of defeating Thaddeus, he was simply too far away from his level. He thought for a long time while Thaddeus limited himself to smile at him. Then, he asked the question that pressed him more. "What will happen to me?" Thaddeus shrugged his shoulder and answered. "You will become a student of the academy." "Uh?!" Noah was stunned and confused by his answer. Thaddeus continued. "What? The academy''s main objective is to take the most promising cultivators away from the noble families and bring them into the Royal family''s ranks. You might act like a little demon but don''t delude yourself: you aren''t the first problematic character that my family managed to control." Noah relaxed a bit hearing those words. "So, why did you do all that speech before?" Thaddeus'' face became stern. "Because you needed to understand what kind of a monster my family is. We have been the rulers for two thousand years after all, it didn''t happen because we were lucky." Noah understood. "You want me to behave?" Thaddeus nodded. "I will keep your identity a secret, we would rather have you as our asset in the future than leave you in a cage for life. Just remember that we are always watching so don''t pull anything funny or you will be done for." Noah nodded, he was planning to lay low and focus on his cultivation anyway. "One last thing. That bat of yours, is it a spell?" ''Is he testing me?'' "Yes." Thaddeus smiled again and launched a rune toward him. The light of the rune enveloped Noah and teleported him back in the room with the other winners. He could see that the four were interested in his private conversation but they didn''t ask anything. Noah sat back on the couch to cultivate, he completely ignored June emulating him again and sitting right next to him. ''When will I be free?'' He could not help but have these thoughts after his meeting with Thaddeus. ''When will I stop being used?'' He laughed internally. ''Little demon? If they want to put a leash on me, they should be ready to pay the price.'' He spent the rest of the night cultivating, eager to see what the academy reserved for him. The morning came and Thaddeus reappeared in the room. "We are ready to set off toward the capital, please follow me to the main deck." He pressed one hand on the wall behind him and a door materialized. ''Deck? Are we inside a ship?'' Noah was confused and followed Thaddeus'' lead with the other four youths. Outside of the room, there was a spacious corridor adorned with paintings. They then reached some stairs and climbed them. When they arrived at the top of them, Thaddeus pressed his hand on the ceiling and a large passage opened. The light of the sun passed through the opening and the sky became visible. On the other side of the passage, a large deck unfolded itself in front of the group. It was more than thirty meters large and had many spots assigned for meditation on it. Ten more people were present on the deck and Noah recognized the two red-haired siblings between them. However, his attention was on his surroundings. He could clearly see that they were still in the middle of Ebonrest city, toward its central part, but he could not understand where their transport was. ''Wait, he called it "main deck" and this place definitely resembles a ship. There is no water around us though.'' He thought for some more time until an idea formed in his mind. ''Don''t tell me.'' As if reacting to his discovery, the ship began to tremble. The youths from less important families were looking around them with a confused expression but those from the large-size families had their eyes open wide in surprise. Noah instinctively reached for the edges of the deck and looked below him. The ship was slowly distancing itself from the terrain. He turned to look at Thaddeus and noticed that he was holding a small crystal in his hand. ''I knew it!'' The ship continued to rise vertically into the air until its from was completely visible. It was long one hundred meters and large thirty, it almost made no sound while it set off and there was no air pressure whatsoever created from its movements. There were no masts nor veils and the uncovered part on the outside occupied only a third of the entire machine. Maybe, it was better to call it a flying submarine rather than an air-ship. ''I thought that my previous world was more advanced technologically but I was wrong. They actually created an air-ship with runes and inscriptions!'' Soft light was emitted from its sides showing the many runes that formed a peculiar pattern on the wooden hull. "This is amazing, isn''t it?" The red-haired girl appeared on his side and spoke casually. "The Patriarch once told me that these things existed but I always believed that he was saying that to make me train harder for the entrance test." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. Noah didn''t mind her too much and continued to stare at the environment. The air-ship had reached an altitude of more than three kilometers and then stopped its rise. It then began to move horizontally in a direction unknown to Noah. "I am Ruth Eeggi, I wanted to thank you for saving my life in the test. I hope that we will get along in the academy." Ruth bowed and Noah nodded seeing her gesture. He then inspected the ship for a few more instants before focusing on the new members of the group. ''They don''t seem that strong. I wonder what other abilities they have." Thaddeus then faced the fifteen young cultivators and spoke in a loud voice. "You fifteen are now students of the Academy. Adding you to the ones from the other four test areas and the twenty-five that will buy their ingress, we will create a new class. It will be called Grayshade and it will have one hundred students. I will explain more about the rules and the courses of the academy once we group up with the other students." Chapter 109: 109. Challenge The flight of the air-ship continued. Thaddeus explained that the trip would have taken one month since the Royal city was on the borders of the Utra continent. Fifteen single rooms were given to the new students and they had access to a big part of the ship. There were three common halls: the main deck, the library, and the training hall. The main deck was for those that enjoyed the scenery from the sky or to meditate in the open. It was also the place where a large table full of delicacies would appear twice a day. The library had many books regarding the history of cultivators and of noble families. The training hall had some small arenas where the cultivators could fight themselves using their martial arts. Noah had chosen to stay on the main deck but, at some point, a problem presented itself. "Challenge me!" June stood in front of Noah who was peacefully cultivating on one of the mats on the main deck. He was not in the mood to study after his conversation with Thaddeus and he wanted to increase his strength as fast as possible. He found out that his mind would relax more easily on the deck which increased his cultivation speed. Therefore, he preferred to meditate there rather than in his room. However, June never allowed him to focus completely on his training. ''It''s already the third day in a row.'' June had begun to challenge every person on the ship since she discovered the existence of the training hall. In only four days, she defeated every student with the exception of Noah. She had challenged him too but Noah had deliberately admitted defeat on the first day, he didn''t care about the title of the strongest and wanted only to cultivate silently. Initially, June had accepted the outcome and focused on the other students but then Ruth had said something troublesome when she was defeated. "I feel that even if all of us were to gang up on Vance, we wouldn''t be able to defeat him." Apparently, her good instincts were linked to her talent with inscriptions. Noah didn''t really comprehend how those things were connected but the descendants of the large-size families started to hold her words in high regard after they learnt about her quality. Since then, June''s battle intent was aroused and she spent her days standing still in front of the sitting Noah, pointing her spear at him. ''She is really stubborn.'' June had the appearance of a beautiful girl but her character was the one of a wild beast. She would just do whatever passed through her mind, uncaring of her surroundings. Noah opened his eyes and looked at the woman in front of him, her silver hair moved slightly in the soft breeze of the ship and her eyes shined with a golden light under the sun. She was dressed in a tight brown soldier suit that left uncovered the upper parts of both arms and legs to facilitate the movements and had long warrior sandals that reached her knees. Noah had to admit that her appearance was extremely valiant. However, only one word came out of his mouth. "No." All the other students were used by then at the morning commotion on the main deck and stared with interest to see if the outcome would have been different at that time. After all, they all wanted to see the genius that scored one hundred and thirty-six kills in action. "Aw, come on. Why are you so hard to deal with?" June complained and began to push Noah with the bladeless part of her spear. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. "Vance, come on, fight me at least once. I will let you cultivate in peace from then on." Noah was reaching the limits of his patience. The other two days she limited herself to stand for the whole day in front of him which Noah could easily ignore. That time though she seemed really firm on obtaining her battle. Noah heaved a loud sigh and moved away the spear to stand up. "Will you really leave me alone?" June''s eyes lit up and she nodded a few times before adding something. "But you need to fight seriously, martial art against martial art!" "Yes, yes, let''s just end this." He waved his hand and moved toward the training hall, June followed him tightly. The other students became interested too and moved with them. After a few minutes, June and Noah were facing themselves in the biggest arena of the hall. June was already in guard, her body was slightly crouched and her spear was pointing fixedly on Noah. Noah, on the other side, had just wielded his sabers and he began to speak. "So, no magic spells, right?" June nodded but, before she could reply anything, ten wind slashes arrived in her position. She rapidly attacked with her spear which created a shock wave in front of her, shattering the slashes. Noah had moved on her side in the meantime and launched a series of strikes trying to enter her guard. Yet, June''s dexterity with the spear far surpassed his predictions. She smartly used the length of her weapon to her advantage, never letting Noah near her. More than fifty blows were exchanged in a few minutes. June defended waiting for a mistake in her opponent while Noah had never given her any time to attack. ''She is indeed really good. Our martial arts are on the same level, I just have slightly more battle experience.'' Noah left a small opening on purpose and June''s thrust arrived immediately as he had predicted. Noah used his left saber to deviate the spear while his right one aimed for her throat. The spear missed his chest and stabbed his left shoulder while his blade was laid on the girl''s throat ready to take her life. Noah then spoke in an uncaring tone. "Can I go to cultivate now?" June looked in amazement at the scene in front of her. Her spear was stabbed deeply on Noah''s shoulder and blood flowed from the injury. However, there was no trace of pain or suffering in his eyes, only the cold determination to sacrifice part of his body to take the life of his opponent. She immediately knew that his mindset was on a completely different level compared to hers. She retracted the spear and bowed, leaving the arena directly after that gesture. Noah returned to the main deck without even treating his injury. The other students could not help but tremble a little when they stared at his back. Chapter 110: 110. Elbas city Noah''s trip became quiet. After his demonstration of ruthlessness, the other students had become quite scared of him. They were still young after all, their lives as nobles never allowed them to have any traumatic experience. There were a few exceptions though. The Eeggi siblings would usually bring him food during his cultivation sessions and June began to respect him as a true senior. The Eeggi''s felt indebted since he saved Ruth''s life while June was a battle maniac, she respected strength above anything. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. The atmosphere felt a little awkward to Noah since he was among the youngest of the group. He was currently holding a book with the second Kesier rune hidden between its pages. Some sweat ran down his forehead as he trained his sea of consciousness. When he felt that he had done enough, he put back the rune in the space-ring and closed the book. ''This feels really strange.'' It had been more than three weeks since they set off and Noah did nothing but train. However, he was now in a peaceful environment. There was no imminent danger nor someone close to him that he was trying to save. That lack of external pressure that forced him to become stronger left him with some unsatisfaction. ''The first hurdle on the cultivation journey is the access to techniques. The second one is the immense boredom caused by the extended periods of training.'' Noah liked to train, he liked feeling his strength increasing day by day, but he had to admit that he also liked to use that power at some point. ''I should not ask for more dangers now that I''m finally free from them. With my luck, I will end up in some mess sooner or later.'' His mental energy was expended and he had already cultivated for the entirety of the previous night, he was left with nothing to do. ''Maybe I should ask June to spar again. She is the only one that can face me here. I wonder what kind of spells she has.'' He stood up and moved toward the girl meditating on one of the mats near him but then Thaddeus'' voice resounded through the ship and he appeared on the main deck. "We are about to fly over Elbas city, I believe many of you will be interested in seeing it." ''Fly over?'' June stood up and moved toward the border of the deck when Noah spoke to her. "June, isn''t the academy inside the Royal city?" June''s eyes widened like she had seen the most unbelievable thing of her life. Noah was confused and continued. "What?" June seemed to return to reality and spoke honestly. "Sorry, it''s just that I never saw you speaking to someone on your own will." Noah was momentarily stunned. ''Now that I think about it, I never did anything else except cultivating in this life.'' He never cared much about people even in his previous life. Since he found a purpose in his other one, he completely disregarded anything else. He shrugged his shoulder to answer and waited for her reply. "The academy is inside Arolyac forest which is near the capital. Its exact location is known only to the students and to those in the Royal family though." "Oh, and why is that?" "Arolyac forest is a danger zone but many precious materials are hidden inside it. Part of the students'' duties is to gather them and send them to the capital." ''Mh, it seems the perfect area to train the next generation of cultivators. Also not knowing the exact location makes it harder for the families of the nobles to reach to them, diminishing their influence on their heirs.'' Then a doubt formed in his mind. ''Wait, she is a battle maniac, how does she know so many things?'' "How do you know all of this?" June spoke like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "It''s the story of our country, everyone knows about it. It''s common knowledge." ''I guess I really should pay more attention to topics outside cultivation.'' He sighed and moved to look at the landscape below the ship. Rivers and plains occupied the scenery but, in the distance, a massive figure began to appear. June neared him. "Didn''t you have an instructor when you were a kid?" Noah vaguely remembered the face of Li Neregnes back in his childhood. "Kind of." The massive figure became more detailed and their conversation was interrupted by their astonishment. Enormous was the word that better described the city that they were looking at. It was more than one hundred kilometers wide, it started to occupy all their field of view as the ship neared it. Many buildings eight and nine-story high were shown from above the imponent defense wall. As the air-ship flew over it, its streets became visible as it did its population. It seemed that every corner of the city was bustling with life. Noah saw caravans speeding across the larger roads with magical beasts carrying their carriages. Massive buildings appeared toward the center of the capital and, in its exact center, a giant castle stood higher than any other structure. "That''s the Royal Mansion." June spoke when she looked in the direction of the castle. "The level of extravagance in the capital sure is incredible." Noah replied. "Most of the extravagant things are made in the Academy. This ship is one of those." Thaddeus had moved behind them and spoke with a proud tone. June stiffened but Noah simply asked another question. "Why is that? I believed that once you graduated from the academy, you would work in the Royal city." Thaddeus smiled. "We are officially working in the capital but the best research ground remains the academy. We are surrounded by precious material and have the best talents in the country, why would we move elsewhere?" Noah nodded with his gaze still inspecting Elbas city. ''It seems yet another world compared to Balvan mansion.'' He repressed a smile from appearing on his face. ''It''s even better than I thought!'' Chapter 111: 111. Bargain It took a few hours for the air-ship to traverse the capital. Noah had never moved his eyes from it, trying to memorize its patterns. Then the ship lowered its altitude and moved in the direction of a red forest. "That one is Arolyac forest. They say that a mighty magical beast was killed in that spot and its blood has forever tainted the trees in there." June was still on his side, pointing from time to time the details about the environment. ''Wait, don''t tell me that I have a friend now?'' The people Noah cared about were only his mother and William and, since Lily was dead, William remained the only person he could trust. However, he found out that June''s character wasn''t that bad. ''We are actually quite similar.'' He didn''t want to admit it but he perfectly fitted the description of a cultivation addict. ''I guess I''ll see how it goes in the academy. If she is trustworthy, I might even consider giving her Eccentric''s inheritance. I must be sure that I will always be stronger than her though.'' He didn''t forget his deal with Eccentric Thunder but he wasn''t so reckless to give that amount of wealth to someone he knew nothing about. The ship floated over the red forest, Noah could clearly see how even the trunks of the trees below him had shades of red in their colors. ''A magical beast so strong that it changed the environment this deeply. Could the King of the valley do the same?'' They flew for some more kilometers until they were deep in the forest. Only then the ship began to descend. It landed on a treeless spot on the terrain and Thaddeus gestured for the students to gather near him. He then threw a rune between the group and they were immediately teleported on the ground. The ship was on their side and, from below it, the students could admire the magnificence of that machine in a better way. Thaddeus then waved his hand and the ship was absorbed by the crystal he was holding in his palm. "Follow me. We will group with the other students and then travel to the academy." The terrain had shades of red too but it could not compare to the color of the leaves on the trees. They were dark red and seemed to shine with a dull light. Noah was the most sensitive of the group and immediately noticed something. ''The concentration of "Breath" is at least twice the normal one!'' It seemed that the trees were naturally gathering "Breath", increasing its concentration. ''No wonder the location of the academy is inside this forest.'' The group moved for one hour until they reached an encampment that had about fifty tents. "Thaddeus, you are late this year!" A massive man came out of the bigger tent. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. He was two and a half meters tall with bulging muscles on every part of his body. He was quite hairy with a long curly beard but he was also bald which contrasted with the amount of hair on his body. "Students, he is Bruce Nairti. He is the professor for the real-battle course." The students bowed toward him but Bruce didn''t deign them of even a look a moved next to Thaddeus, strongly patting his shoulder. "So, how is your flock this time? I have one that killed sixty Fire wolves." Thaddeus smiled slyly. "What about Wanda?" "Only forty-five Six-legged horses on my side." A middle-aged woman with black hair came out of another tent. She had a warm aura around her, it could make anyone instantly trust her. "I''m Wanda Hamman, alchemy teacher in the academy." She performed a slight bow to the students. Thaddeus was a bit surprised. "You took care of two groups and that was your best one?" Wanda smiled and sighed softly. "My luck this time was really bad. Managing two tests wasn''t the right choice after all." At that moment, a loud snort resounded in the area and an imponent voice followed it. "Eighty-five Giant bears! This year I finally won!" A woman with short brown hair and a blindfold on her right eye arrived through the trees followed by a group of youths. Thaddeus announced her. "Megan Iccek, general cultivation course, specialized in body-nourishing methods." Megan spoke toward the other teachers. "Thaddeus you still have to say yours. Is the Royal dynasty really afraid to lose some Credits?" The students widened their eyes after she mocked the Elbas family, they were the rulers of the continent after all. However, Thaddeus didn''t seem to care and replied to her. "I''m afraid that this time I really was the luckiest of all. One hundred and thirty-six Ice-born Yetis." Only after Thaddeus spoke did the students realize what was happening. Noah lowered his head and stealthily moved to the rear part of the group, he had no intention of being at the center of the attention before even seeing the academy. ''Why the fuck are they betting on who has the stronger new student?'' The other teachers released a surprised sound and looked in the direction of Noah''s group. "Someone surpassed Daniel''s record?" Bruce asked turning to Thaddeus. "Yes. Vance let them inspect you." Noah sighed and moved toward the lead of the group. He arrived in front of the professors and bowed to them. "He surpassed Daniel? But he so too young!" Megan complained and gestured to a student behind her to move near her. "Let me see what he can do. Justin, go and fight him." Justin was a tall youth about seventeen years old. He had a long greatsword sheathed on his back that he didn''t hesitate to wield. Thaddeus looked toward Noah with a pleading expression. Noah sighed again and faced him. "I want five percent of the prize." Everyone''s eyes widened looking at the youth trying to bargain with the teacher. Bruce and Megan exploded in a sonorous laugh while Wanda covered her mouth with a hand to hide her smile. Thaddeus recovered from the amazement and put again his sly smile on his face. "Deal, but you can''t use that spell." Chapter 112: 112. Academy Noah shrugged his shoulders and faced the tall youth. Two sabers materialized in the air as he slowly approached Justin. Justin stood still, waiting for his attack. Noah lazily launched five wind slashes that were immediately crushed by one swing of the greatsword. ''He should be around June''s level. Well, Thaddeus didn''t say anything about my other spell.'' Justin saw that Noah wasn''t taking him seriously and pointed his sword at him. A large bullet made of air shot in Noah''s direction which forced him to block the attack. He crossed his sabers and successfully blocked the bullet but he was flung away by the force of the impact. "Hey, you! This is not a game! Don''t you have any face?" Noah landed a few meters away unharmed and raised his gaze toward the youth. His eyes shone with a dark light after he heard those words. Twenty wind slashes were instantly released from his position which crashed on Justin''s greatsword. He managed to block them again only to find out that twenty more slashes were coming from a different direction. He hastily activated a spell that made his sword incredibly sharp and fast which cut away all the attacks. However, Noah was already in front of him at that moment. Justin reactivated the spell and his complexion paled, his greatsword became so fast that it directly intercepted Noah''s melee blow. Then, Justin''s vision became black as a three meters tall bat stopped his attack with its claws. A cold sensation invaded him as two blades were laid on his throat. Noah spoke in a soft voice to his hear. "If this wasn''t a game, you would have been dead." Noah retracted Echo inside his body and moved back toward Thaddeus. The left part of his upper clothing was shredded, showing his defined body devoid of any sweat. Thaddeus nodded and threw two shining crystals to him. Noah grabbed them and noticed that they were Obsidian Credits of the same brilliance of those that Solomon gave to him. ''One hundred Credits for a little show, these nobles are crazy.'' However, all the youths were staring at him with wide eyes with the exception of Justin that had his head lowered. "I believe that we can move now." Thaddeus spoke and the other professors nodded at his suggestion. Noah followed while June neared him and began to storm him with questions. "What was that bat?" "A bat." "It''s a spell, right? Otherwise, you would have used it during our fight." "Maybe." "Is that your only spell?" "I don''t have spells." Seeing that he didn''t answer any of her questions, June became a bit annoyed. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click for visiting. However, Noah could see that her battle intent was aroused again. ''Don''t tell me that she wants to fight me using spells now.'' Noah ignored her but he could feel her stare during the whole walk. After another hour of march, a small mountain appeared in their sight. Thaddeus took out a token from his storage device and pressed it on the surface of the mountain. The terrain in that spot moved and created an entrance large three meters on the ground. It resembled any other underground cavern if not for the fact that the daylight shone inside the passage as if it wasn''t a subterranean area at all. The professors didn''t speak and simply crossed the entrance. The students behind them followed and were stupefied at the sight on the other side of the passage. Buildings of various height stood in an orderly way on an illuminated plain. There was a long river that divided the plain into two parts and birds sang from the vivid red trees planted in some areas. Noah raised his gaze toward the sky and was amazed to discover that they were still inside the mountain as the roots of the trees were hanging from the ceiling. However, the terrain of the mountain from its insides was completely transparent which allowed those in the interiors to clearly see the environment outside of it. ''How many things are possible thanks to the "Breath"?'' Noah did another comparison with his previous world. Even though something like that could have been achieved with the technology, the effects were far more marvelous when it was the "Breath" that powered the process. Thaddeus turned and faced the students. "We will wait here a bit. Those that bought their ingress will be teleported from the matrix in the Royal city directly here. Once they arrive, I will explain your duties as students." Ten minutes passed and soft light illuminated an area at fifty meters from their position. Twenty-five youths led by a woman in golden armor appeared from the formation on the ground. The woman bowed toward the professors and joined their group. Thaddeus smiled and spoke to her in a warm tone. "Sister, your timing is impeccable." She smiled too and looked at the students in his group as if searching for someone. Then her gaze stopped on Noah and remained fixed on him for a few seconds. She then faced Thaddeus again and spoke. "It seems that these years will be interesting." Thaddeus nodded and stole a glance in Noah''s direction. "Incredibly interesting." She then gestured to her students to join the other group. It was clear that those that earned they ingress thanks to their qualities felt superior to the others and a bit of scorn was present in their eyes as they saw them coming close. ''That noble is here too.'' Noah spotted Samuel Muwlos'' figure between the newly arrived and shook his head cursing his ever-present bad luck. Thaddeus then raised his hand to attract everyone''s attention and began to speak. "You are now officially part of the Royal Academy. A token will be given to you which allows you free ingress here and that will register your merit points. You will need to swear an oath before that but don''t worry, it''s nothing too restrictive. There will be open lessons during the first week of your enrollment to give you a general idea of all the topics that are taught here. At the end of this week, you will be requested to attend a test that will evaluate your nature. The results of the test will be known only to you but they will help you greatly in choosing the courses more suitable for your disposition." Chapter 113: 113. Lodging "You will also be examined every year in those courses and, if the results won''t be satisfying, you will be requested to abandon that subject. You will still be able to attend it but it will cost you some Credits." Thaddeus stopped speaking for a moment before resuming in his explanation. "You must also complete a mission for the academy every two months. There is a large board on the right side of the river where you can find all the tasks that you can complete. Being successful in a mission will grant you merit points that you can exchange for techniques, materials, or weapons. These services will be open for you after you undergo the test of your nature." "Lastly, any professor can choose a disciple and finance him. It is a great honor so be sure to shine in your respective fields." Thaddeus pointed to a building on the right side of the river. "Go in that structure and obtain your academy token together with a book containing the regulations and the other details of the academy. Your lodgings will also be decided there. Remember to visit the board to know the calendar of the courses, your lessons start tomorrow." Thaddeus gestured to the group to disperse and the students bowed before going in the direction pointed by him. The environment was peaceful and the density of "Breath" was high, there were small bridges on the river to facilitate its crossing. In a few minutes, the students of the Grayshade class arrived in front of the edifice. Before someone crossed its entrance though, a voice sounded from inside it. "The twenty-five with the highest battle prowess first." Those that had passed the test entered the building, Noah and June were among them of course. A big hall unfolded in front of them and, at the end of it, a desk was placed with an old woman writing something on a paper. She raised her look and spoke. "The strongest among you can come forth." The students turned to look at Noah. ''So much for laying low.'' He sighed and then moved toward the desk. "Place your hand on this tablet and read these words loud and clear." She pointed at a marble tablet with inscriptions on it while handing him a small sheet. ''Never reveal the location of the academy, the secrets of the academy, the activities of the academy, the teachings of the academy¡­.'' An oath was written on it which basically prevented him to speak of anything regarding the academy to outsiders. Noah found it reasonable and made the vow while placing his hand on the tablet. A rune attached itself to his skin and then was absorbed by it. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''I wonder what kind of after-effects do you have if you break the oath.'' It was already his second one but he still didn''t know what would happen if he didn''t follow its restrictions, he simply had a very bad sensation about it. The woman nodded. "Name?" "Vance." After a few seconds, she handed him a token with his name written on it. "Bind it with your mental energy. I already assigned you the first empty room toward the source of the river. Here is your book with all the required information about the academy." Noah received the token and the book but could not help to have some doubts. "What is the difference between the source and the end of the river?" She answered briefly. "The concentration of "Breath" is higher on the source." At her words, Noah understood why she divided the students. ''They want to nourish the already strong ones. It makes sense.'' The powerful gets everything while the weak is blamed, that rule was set in stone in that world. Noah exited the building while he bound the academy token. Immediately, a map of the academy was projected in his mind with all its various buildings and their functions. A small spot on the map was glowing with a red color. ''That one should be my room.'' He put everything back in his space-ring and moved in the direction of his lodging. He decided to give a look to the board first since it was on the same side of the river of his accommodation. There was no one on the streets of the academy and, when he arrived at the board, a large square appeared in his sight. At its center, a large wooden panel was erected with tens of different tablets affixed on it. Noah inspected the contents of the various missions before finding the tablet regarding the courses of his class. ''These tasks have a lot of requirements. Apprentice alchemist, beginner inscriber, rank 2 dantian. They all seem important assignments.'' Since he still didn''t know the value of the merit points, he didn''t bother to look at them and just memorized the calendar of the courses. Then, he went toward his lodging. After walking for a few minutes, he arrived in front of a small house. There were many like that one along all the right side of the river, Noah was sure that he had spotted more than five hundred of them. He checked again on the map and confirmed that it was his house. Noah neared the token to the door and a mechanical sound came from it. The door opened at Noah''s push and its insides were shown to him. There were two rooms inside, one with a big and comfortable bed and another one with a bathtub. It was very simple in its furniture but Noah appreciated the absence of useless things. The density of "Breath" was more than twice the one outside the forest which made Noah quite happy about his location. He sat on the bed and took out the book with the regulations and began to read it. He would nod from time to time while the remaining pages to read diminished. After he read through all the book, he sorted the most important information in his mind. ''I can''t kill or gravely injure other students but small fights are allowed. The enrollment to the academy lasts till you are twenty years old, after that you need to apply for a position and pass a test if you want to remain in this space. I will think about the other information after I have an idea of the techniques that I can obtain here.'' It was still the middle of the afternoon so Noah decided to rest before waking up at night to resume his cultivation. Chapter 114: 114. Lesson Noah opened his eyes, stopping his cultivation. It was dawn and he had to attend his first lesson. A wide smile was on his face due to the results of his meditation. ''This is great! Cultivating here is way more profitable, I might reach the solid stage in less than one year at this pace.'' The density of "Breath" was high and that affected the speed at which it was absorbed in the dantian. He had already cultivated for some months in the Dark vortex cultivation technique so his advancements in the liquid stage were not small. Now that he lived in an environment where the "Breath" was so dense, it was no wonder that the time required for the breakthrough would diminish. ''I wonder how the concentration is at the source of the river. Well, I should probably get going, today there is the lesson about general cultivation.'' He took a bath and exited his lodging, moving toward the other side of the river. The right area of the academy was assigned to the students while the left one was for courses and special training zones. Along the way, Noah saw the other students of the Grayshade class walking in the same direction. They all had radiant smiles and seemed eager to reach the building where the lesson would occur. "This place is amazing, isn''t it?" June appeared behind him. She had large eyebags but her figure was brimming with excitement. ''This maniac probably trained for the whole night.'' He then realized that he had done the same thing and cursed internally. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''Why is she so friendly anyway. I''m not exactly the most approachable person in here.'' Noah rarely smiled in public and when he did that, it was a fake one. His cold aura always accompanied him, scaring away most of those around him. However, there seemed to be exceptions in the academy. The Eeggi siblings spotted Noah and joined him in his walk. They began to speak with June about the environment in the academy and their preferred courses. However, June was quite reserved when she spoke with them, she didn''t seem too experienced in human relationships. "What about you, Vance?" The three turned to look at Noah when the red-haired man asked the question. His name was Ford, Noah had learned it during their trip on the air-ship. ''Are they talking about my courses? How should I know, I barely know anything apart from the three centers of power.'' Noah shrugged his shoulders and gave a short answer. "Those that increase my battle prowess." They were a bit surprised. June nodded and her battle intent was aroused but Ruth rebuked a bit. "There are way more applications to the "Breath" than simply using it to fight! Inscriptions can create marvels like the flying ship and improve the daily life of everyone. Alchemy can create potions to deter magical beasts from invading the human territory! Using this wonderful energy only to cause more violence is a waste!" Ruth seemed really invested in this topic but Noah had a different view of things. He had already seen a technologically advanced world and the image of the King of the valley assaulting its cities formed in his mind. ''A life where all humans are forced to be similar to each other in their mediocrity is only possible in a world with no external threats. And even there, humans will find a way to create more conflicts.'' He had understood the human''s nature, his mind was broadened by the experiences of his two lives. He continued to look in front of him toward the nearing appointed building while he answered in a cold tone. "All those things are useless if you die due to your weakness." Ruth was stunned by his answer but June and Ford were of a similar view. She was about to reply when they reached the structure where their first lesson had to occur. "This conversation is not over." Ruth said running toward the entrance. Her brother followed while June remained with Noah looking at the figures of the Eeggi siblings speeding in the distance. She spoke with a soft voice while her expression became dark. "She is so na?ve." Noah could not help but nod slightly. The building was two-story-tall and, on the ground floor, it had a large room full of seats. ''This really resembles the universities of my previous world.'' The seats encircled a small desk were Megan Iccek was sitting. She had her eye closed and her legs crossed, she seemed quite peaceful contrasted to her attitude when she first appeared to the students. It took the youths a few minutes to place themselves on the chairs. When the last one arrived, she opened her eye and stood up while speaking with a loud voice. "Today I will do a general overview of the known information about cultivation, I believe that many of you are already aware of the topics that I will discuss." The student''s attention was attracted and they listened quietly. "You are all cultivators so you are aware of the three centers of power and of many of their qualities but for the sake of this lesson I need to review them." "The sea of consciousness is a projection of your mind, it represents your mental processes and can influence any aspect of your daily life, from your thinking speed to the focus in your actions." "The dantian is the organ that stores the "Breath" and nourishes your essence. Raising its level will increase your lifespan and empower the abilities that use it. It is also what indicates your rank as a cultivator since its effects are more evident overall." "The body is the shell that allows you to contain that much power. Increasing its level not only will prolong your life, but it will also allow you to raise the rank of the other two centers of power. If your body is weak, it will not be able to contain the "Breath", stopping your advancements as cultivators." "The body is also the easier center of power to train and its rank should always be the highest compared to your mind and dantian." "However, things aren''t so easy when we talk about ranks above the third. For example, has any of you seen a rank 4 magical beast?" Some of the students nodded and a few of them stole glances in Noah''s direction when they saw that he remained still. Chapter 115: 115. Higher ranks Megan nodded and continued in her explanation. "Their strength is way higher than a rank 3, far more than the gap between a rank 2 and a rank 3 creature. This is caused by their ascending to a more powerful form of existence." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Most of the students became particularly interested in that part of the speech and Noah wasn''t an exception. He had seen two rank 4 magical beasts in his life and, in both cases, he had felt the same amount of danger. However, the first time he didn''t have a dantian while on the second one he was in the liquid stage. His strength had risen but he felt no difference when matched against them which always left him doubtful about their actual power. "Cultivators through the years have divided the nine known ranks into three groups: the first three ranks are defined as human ranks and they are the easier to make progress in." "The middle three are called heroic ranks and reaching them will distance a cultivator from his mortal nature, elevating his existence to something more than human. Comparing the human ranks to the heroic ones is like asking a child to defeat a fully armored soldier." "The last three are called divine ranks. As the name suggests, the cultivators at those levels would have completely abandoned their mortal nature to became an existence worthy of reverence and worship. Sadly, the information about the divine ranks is limited since so few manage to reach that level in their lifetime." The youths were staring at her with eager expressions. Noah''s eyes were shining with the flames of ambition but he could not help to be confused. ''If it''s just about cultivating, how is it possible that so few have reached those ranks? If it''s just about cultivation resources, I believe that any large-size noble family could provide them.'' Megan raised her hand to stop the whispers between the students and reclaim their attention. "That seems easy at first sight but the reality is harsh and Heaven and Earth are not so kind to those that want to raise their power by plundering the "Breath" of the world. There are two big obstacles on the road to elevate your existence." "The first one is the absence of techniques. Since you would gradually distance yourself from the human race as your rank increases, common techniques are not suitable for you anymore. Also, every individual is different and elevating your rank will enhance your individuality. Simply put, you would need to create your own training methods once reaching higher ranks. The academy through two thousand years of accumulation and research managed to store cultivation methods till the fifth rank but it''s always better to develop a personal technique as soon as possible. Luckily, the training for the sea of consciousness has been copied from the Kesier species which solves the problem for one center of power." Megan saw that many of the students had questions but she hastily stopped them from speaking. "The topic of the creation of techniques will be explored in further lessons. For now, just listen to me." The incoming commotion was prevented but the group on the seats was still eager to find answers. "The second obstacle is the presence of tribulations. As I said, Heaven and Earth don''t want divine beings to be born and will try to stop them with calamities. Every center of power has a different calamity and they will occur in the moment of their breakthrough toward higher stages of existence, I mean during the reaching of the fourth and seventh rank." "Humans and magical beasts share the same tribulation regarding the body which is called Pain Tribulation. It consists in enduring the pain of the reconstruction of the body and, trust me, it will make you wish to be dead. The "Breath" in your body will also change state: it will become liquid in the heroic ranks and solid in the divine ones. That will be all for the evolution process of the magical beasts since they only have one center of power but this is balanced by the immense quantity of "Breath" that they have to store before going through the transformation of the body." "The tribulation of the sea of consciousness is called Earth Tribulation. You will have to face a copy of yourself in your mental sphere created from the accumulation of your memories and experiences. It will be as strong as you are and it will have your same instincts, I don''t have to explain how dangerous it will be." "For the dantian, there is the Heaven Tribulation and it''s the only external one. The sky will gather clouds made of "Breath" that will release magnificent thunders of great might. It is advised to set up defenses and to undertake it in deserted areas as it is really destructive." She did a short break to be sure that everyone understood her words. "Now, back to the rank 4 magical beasts. In order to be able to fight them on even ground, a cultivator needs at least one center of power on their same rank. However, the first to advance is always the body and humans'' bodies are far weaker than those of magical beasts. So, your mind and dantian must be at a decent level too if you really want to kill a rank 4 magical beast. Yet, without a strong body, how could you be able to sustain the power held by your other centers of power?" Megan smiled looking at the faces of the students. "Now you know the importance of the body and this is why I specialize in body-nourishing methods. If in the future you have some doubts about the development of your body, you can ask me, I don''t charge much for private lessons. Oh right, remember that as your rank grows, the strength of the centers of power will begin to align. Otherwise, you would have needed to enter a completely different stage before doing a breakthrough in the heroic ranks with your mind and dantian." The lesson went on for some more time, consisting of Megan answering the question of the students about the topics explained before. Noah listened attentively for its whole duration and felt very satisfied when it ended. He was deep in thought when he went back to his lodging. ''My body has stopped improving since it reached the peak of the lower tier of the third rank. If I were to obtain a rank 4 body, would that increase the training speed of my mind and dantian? After this week is over, I need to raise the level of all my obsolete techniques!'' Chapter 116: 116. Talen The next morning, the students of the Grayshade class gathered in the same building to attend their second lesson. Thaddeus was the professor of the course and he was smilingly having his speech in front of the youths. "You must know that runes are a form of inscription. The fields in which inscriptions can be applied are limitless. You can inscribe a weapon and you would obtain a blade that can pierce anything. You can inscribe a ship to make it fly. You can inscribe runes for teleportation. Spells are a form of inscriptions too." He was holding the lesson regarding general inscriptions of which Noah was particularly interested. After his adventure in the separate dimension, he had really understood the might of inscription masters. ''The inheritance ground was completely made from runes. The defensive wall of the Balvan family had runes that could protect the mansion from a dragon attacking. My sabers have inscriptions that can make them fix themselves. This power is too useful, I need to understand how it works!'' "However, the requirements to be successful in this art are quite harsh." He looked in the direction of Ruth Eeggi and nodded in approval. "There is one main school regarding the process of inscriptions which is called "Attunement with the "Breath"". It consists in becoming able to read the fluctuation of the "Breath" and then copying it in a material form. For example, I specialize in space runes, which means that every time I create any one of them, I need to inscribe the behavior that the "Breath" would have during the action that I want to reproduce." He opened his hand and a small golden rune came out of it. He then crashed it, making a blinding light surround him. When the light faded, he had disappeared from his position. "This is just a simple version but it should be enough to give you an example." Thaddeus'' voice resounded from the back of the room and all the students turned in its direction only to see Thaddeus slowly walking back to his desk. "However, to make it I had to inscribe the act of teleportation that the "Breath" showed me. I had to inscribe my location of landing and I needed to use my power to make it work." "To learn how the "Breath" ''speaks'', I had to isolate myself for five years in an environment with a high density of "Breath" and attune with its flow. Then I had to learn how to translate that language in the form of inscriptions. Only at that moment, I had become worthy of the title of inscription master. Yet, there are exceptions in this world." He pointed at Ruth and continued. "Miss Ruth Eeggi was born with an innate attunement to the "Breath". As you know, the "Breath" is everywhere, it is the essence of Heaven and Earth. Heaven and Earth are the same world you live in so it''s no wonder that she is able to predict certain events by reading their "Breath". Her training as an inscription master will focus only on the translation process, I believe that in less than five years she will be able to perform her first inscriptions." The students turned to her showing envy for the most part. However, big smiles were on their faces as they looked at her. ''It seems that the position of inscription master is quite worthy of respect to make the heirs of the large-size noble families show courtesy.'' Noah thought briefly and then focused on his situation. ''I believe that the "Breath" is a form of representation of the laws of the universe. In my previous world, scientists used math to understand the laws and technology to make use of them. Here they use the cultivator to understand and the inscriptions to reproduce them. However, I never felt anything even similar to a language, it''s just a form of energy in my mind.'' Thaddeus spoke again, his expression turned in a stern one. "I will be honest, many of you won''t have any success in this field. The first step in the "Attunement" method is to become one with the "Breath" around you and then hear it speak. If you don''t have enough talent or your will is too in contrast with the standards of Heaven and Earth, you will never be able to cross the first step." ''Is my ambition an obstacle in the point of view of Heaven and Earth? How can someone test it?'' Noah thought but Thaddeus was immediate in solving his doubts. "The test at the end of this week will clearly tell you if you have any hope of pursuing the "Attunement" method so as your talents in the different disciplines that the academy teaches." He sighed briefly. "There are other methods to create inscriptions but they are generally more dangerous and with a smaller success rate. However, for those that have no talent in the "Attunement" method and still want to pursue the path of inscriptions, the academy will call external teachers to give you private lessons. Of course, you would have to pay every lesson unless they take you as their disciple. Also, many of them are not as reliable as the actual professors of the academy so I advise you to think carefully before deciding to invest your Credits in that." "Anyhow, you should all have a general knowledge of the topic since it is the most common process to create techniques. With a foundation in inscriptions, the process of creating cultivation methods suitable for you will be easier." The lesson went on discussing other applications of the art and many students were interested in the runes that Thaddeus used. He admitted that they weren''t his creation but a legacy of the Royal family. He compared them to a martial art with more requirements, with the most important one being reaching the level of an inscription master. ''This seems so complex.'' Noah though on his way back to the lodging. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''If I''m not talented in it, there are no real problems in the short run. However, when I will have to create techniques for myself the situation will be though. I can just hope that I''ll lucky with this one.'' He stopped right in front of his door. ''Shit! If it''s about luck, I''ll never be able to do it! After the test, I should probably start researching about the other methods that he mentioned.'' Chapter 117: 117. Mirror More lessons followed in the next days. There was the alchemy course held by Wanda Hamman, the real battle course held by Bruce Nairti, and then courses about the general history of cultivators and magical beasts. Noah was happy to discover that his chances of becoming an alchemist weren''t that bad. He had a strong mind and a good attitude at repetitive works, the only problem was is cold nature that contrasted with the warmth needed to take care of useful plants. However, during Bruce''s lesson, he shined like no one else. "It''s a pity that I already have a student as a disciple and he requires all my attention. Otherwise, I could have become your master right away." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Those were Bruce''s words after Noah didn''t lose any one versus one fight in his class. ''His student is called Daniel and it seems that he is some sort of celebrity around here. Apparently, he had the previous record of the hunting tests but I broke it. I''ve probably made an enemy out of him already if he is like the other nobles.'' Noah was in his house pondering about the events of the previous week. ''The courses of general cultivation and real battle are a must to attend. I''m really interested in the course about magical beasts too. As for the others, I''d better wait for the results of tomorrow''s test.'' The students had one free day before the test of their nature and Noah was spending it inside his lodging, cultivating. ''I wonder how the test will work, it doesn''t feel bad to have a clearer idea of how you are.'' The rest day passed uneventfully. Noah woke up on the next one full of energy and moved toward the appointed gathering area. The students of the Grayshade class had to reach a certain building on the left part of the river and wait there for further instructions. Noah walked alone like he was used to but the same three people arrived behind him and started a conversation. "You know, Mister Thaddeus said that it is highly possible that I will become his disciple." Ruth said without hiding the excitement in her eyes. Ford had a wide smile on his face when his sister spoke, being the disciple of a member of the Royal dynasty would be immensely beneficial to their family. "That is good for you." June cheered her without much enthusiasm. She had lost again against Noah in Bruce''s class and only managed to tie with Justin. She was eager to increase her strength so she didn''t care much about the test. Noah wasn''t paying attention to their behavior, he was still wondering how his nature could be tested effectively. June claimed his attention by lightly nudging his torso. "Do you already know which courses will you attend?" Noah had become used to June''s character. She was a bit wild in her manners and words but she was pretty straightforward so he could be at ease and not expect any scheme from her. "Megan and Bruce''s ones are a must in my opinion. I''ll just wait for the results of the test to think about the others." June nodded and a slight smile formed on her face. "It''s good that you don''t want to relax in the combat training. I don''t want to beat you because you were too focused on other things." Noah shook his head. "You should first surpass Justin, don''t you think?" June snorted and crossed her arms before replying in a loud voice. "If we could have used spells that guy was done for! Oh right, I don''t even know which element you have." Noah shrugged his shoulders but didn''t answer. He didn''t particularly mind that his element was exposed but he felt that hiding it as much as possible was the best way to slow down Balvan family''s research. ''If they knew that a new student with no background and of the darkness element joined the academy, I believe that all their inner circle would go to the Royal city asking for me.'' He was a fugitive after all, he had to take his precautions. June was disappointed by the lack of an answer but she seemed to think of something and nodded repeatedly by herself. Then she looked at Noah again and smiled. "I will just have to force you to show it the next time that we fight." Noah sighed and massaged his temples. The appointed building was deep in the left side of the academy. The area was surrounded by an eerie silence and a big door blocked the sight of the interiors of the structure. Megan was waiting for the students to gather in front of the building and raised her hand to obtain their attention when the last one of them arrived. "You will enter twenty at the time. The test consists of an illusionary dimension built after scanning your mental sphere. It will personal and nothing happening in the test is real but it will be a representation of your dreams and talents. After that, the results for your attitudes regarding the courses offered by the academy will be shown to you." She then began to call the names of those that obtained the highest score in the entrance test so Noah and June were allowed to enter with the first batch of students. The door opened and revealed a big circular area with a mirror as its floor. A large crystal was at the center of the room, it was transparent but it refracted the light that passed through it. "The formation will scan your sea of consciousness, don''t oppose it or the test won''t be accurate. Now sit and stare at your reflections on the floor, I will activate the inscriptions." Megan moved toward the crystal and took out a shining gem. ''That should be worth one hundred Credits.'' Noah judged before he sat and stared at his reflection. His skin was smooth and slightly pale, his eyebrows were thin and his eyes were bright. Megan then placed the Obsidian Credit on the crystal and many inscriptions lighted up on the floor like they were the expanding roots of a tree. Noah felt a stare on his mental sphere. The external force continued to look at his sea of consciousness for a few minutes until his reflection flickered and he was absorbed by the mirror. Chapter 118: 118. Undying Earth, endless Heaven There was no pressure on his mental sphere but Noah had instinctively closed his eyes. When he opened them, he found himself in a dark world illuminated only by the soft light of distant stars and by figures on the ground. There were tens of thousands of white glowing shapes that resembled humans wielding weapons and they were fighting in an immense barren plain with a mountain at its center. The mountain was incredibly tall with paths along its sides. The paths were shining as the glowing figures were fighting on them too. On the summit of the mountain, the brightest of all the figures was sitting on a black throne. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. It seemed that it was looking at the massive battle below but since it had no face, Noah could not be sure of that. However, the throne felt irresistible to Noah and he instinctively took a step toward the battlefield. He noticed that he hadn''t a body either but that he was made of the same brilliant substance of the others in the plain. Two glowing sabers were wielded by him as he began to battle. His thoughts were confused and he could not think of anything except reaching the top of the mountain. He began to battle in the crowded plain, every time he defeated a figure, a bit of its light was absorbed by Noah. He didn''t notice that once a shape was killed, a skull would fell on the ground behind him. He had random moments of clarity in which he could think about his situation. ''It seems that this world forces me to follow my instincts, I believe that this is all a metaphor for my search of power.'' He realized the intention of the test but he could not stop fighting. He felt his strength increase every time he defeated an opponent and he slowly neared the base of the mountain. However, there were only more figures on his path and Noah continued to defeat them one by one. He lost the perception of time, there was only the next opponent in his mind. Days passed fighting and then months. Noah had completely lost himself in the search of power but his sparse moments of clarity allowed him to always move toward the mountain. The light he was exuding started to surpass those around him as he was becoming far stronger than them. In the end, he reached the mountain. He found out that the ''paths'' were in reality only one road that coiled all the mountain linking its bottom with its peak. Noah didn''t waste any time an began his climb. Even more battles happened and more skulls accumulated on the terrain. He continued his solitary march toward the power that he had always desired. He was becoming increasingly shining, he clearly felt that his strength had long surpassed the limits of a human of his new world. Then, he reached the summit. The most shining figure rose from his throne and launched itself at Noah. The battle was incredibly hard but Noah felt satisfied when he won. There was no one else in front of him, only the throne remained on his path. He slowly neared it, it felt irresistible as if everything he had always desired were to be found there. He sat on the throne and the scene changed in front of his eyes. The throne wasn''t black anymore but it was white and made of countless human skulls. The mountain had changed too: instead of terrain, the ground was composed of bloody corpses and countless weapons. The plain disappeared and, in its place, a red sea occupied the whole world. Noah could clearly feel some familiarity with all the environment. The skulls and corpses belonged to those that he had killed to reach the summit while the sea was the blood that he had made them shed. He was alone, the last living being, king of a dead world. Time passed, Noah felt that he hadn''t left the throne for centuries. He had no reason move, he had reached the peak, the pinnacle of the world. Then, the level of the sea began to lower until it was completely absorbed in the ground below it. Slowly, life forms appeared. They were small shapes made of light that ran freely on the naked terrain. More and more lights formed until the first human was born. A second human appeared and then a third. The world repopulated at a fast pace until the humans were again the main figures of the world. The shining figures then looked at the mountain and at Noah''s brilliance. One by one, they fell on their knees and prostrated toward the white throne and the mountain of corpses. ''Heaven and Earth gave me a throne, even if it''s made of skulls. The Earth revives every time, doesn''t matter how much blood you pour on it.'' He raised his gaze to look at the distant stars. ''The vastness of the sky stands uncaring upon me.'' He looked again at the prostrated figures, he was the king of an entire world, there was only worship exuded from its inhabitants. ''I don''t want any of this.'' He understood that the throne was just a mean to obtain strength but he had no intention of being a ruler. ''I have no interest in ruling upon the undying Earth, nor on being deluded by the endless Heaven.'' He looked again at the sky, the light of the stars felt familiar, they resembled a bigger version of the shining shape that was previously occupying the mountain. He stood up from the throne and placed a foot in the air. A step materialized and Noah proceeded on placing his other foot on the empty air in front of it. Another step appeared on a higher altitude than the one before. Noah didn''t stop nor did he look at the figures below him, only the shining stars occupied his field of view. A stairway leading to the firmament formed and Noah continued to climb it until he disappeared in the dark sky. Chapter 119: 119. Inventory Noah opened his eyes. His image reflexed on the floor made of mirrors slowly brought him back to reality. In the eyes of his reflection, the brightness of the stars in the sky shined like it had become a part of it. ''So, this is who I am.'' He had a deeper understanding of his true nature after the test. ''An endless search for a higher power. It seems that even Heaven can''t suppress my ambition.'' He raised his gaze to look at the sky. Only the clear ceiling of the building was visible but Noah''s eyes seemed to look through it. ''I died and reborn. I was suppressed and forged my way to freedom. I shall not be bound by human''s law nor by Heaven''s will.'' A list appeared in his sea of consciousness which had the names of the courses and his attitude on them pictured on it. ''Attunement with the "Breath", highly incompatible, I had already guessed that much.'' Noah attentively read the list. He discovered that if he focused on certain courses, an explanation for the judgment of the test would appear. ''My nature is in deep contrast with the fairness of Heaven and Earth which will likely prevent me from ever hearing their language.'' ''My talent in alchemy is average, my uncaring nature seems to contrast with some procedures of the art.'' He looked for the tag "highly compatible" and found only two courses that had it. ''Real battle was quite obvious, I was going to attend that course anyway. However, what kind of subject is "Elemental forging"?'' The latter was the only other course where he was highly talented according to the test. Noah focused on its name and a line of text appeared. ''Since your nature is heavily opposing the will of the world, the inscription method "Elemental forging" is the most suitable for you.'' ''Oh, it''s another method for inscriptions. My chances to become an inscription master are not null then.'' Noah looked around him and saw that all the other students in the room were lost in thought. He stood up and went to Megan, performing a light bow when he reached her. "Am I now allowed to inspect the inventory?" Megan smiled lightly seeing Noah''s eagerness. "Yes, but remember to declare your courses in the building where you retrieved your academy token. You have one free week to do it. After that, the academy will formally start operating." Noah bowed again and exited the building. There were the curious stares of the students on the outside of the test area but he was too excited to care about them. ''Finally, I can choose new techniques!'' Since he had completed the test, he had finally access to the various services that the academy offered. There were some areas locked behind merit points but the inventory was not one of them. Noah moved rapidly through the streets of the academy, his mind was focused on a certain building on the map in his sea of consciousness. When he arrived there, he could clearly see that the structure was completely surrounded by runes and inscriptions. Two guards in golden armor stared coldly at him when he neared the ingress of the inventory. "We need to see your token." Noah took it out from his space-ring and the guards gave it back to him after a few inspections. "You can enter, Professor Lynn will explain everything to you." Noah nodded and entered the building. ''These guards are powerful. I guess it''s obvious since all the techniques and arts of the academy are stored here.'' The scent of old books and ink invaded his nose, the interior of the building appeared extremely old. An old cultivator was silently meditating mid-air behind a long desk. Even more runes were present on the floor from that point onward. Noah saw the man sitting cross-legged in the air and was slightly amazed. ''This elder is so strong that I can''t feel anything coming from him.'' He reached for the desk and bowed. "Professor Lynn, I''m here to inspect the inventory for the first time." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Lynn slowly opened his eyes and Noah felt a piercing gaze analyzing him. He slowly descended on the floor and stood up with his arms crossed. His large sleeves completely covered his hands and his white long beard was freely laid on his chest. "The academy offers one rank 4 martial art for free. Would you mind telling me your current one and your element so that I can sort those that fit you the most?" His voice was steady and no trace of his age was present on it. Noah nodded and spoke in a soft voice. "Nails of the Kamaitachi and, well, darkness element." Lynn''s eyes widened when he heard the last part but then a smile broke on his stern face. "What an interesting period to be alive! Give me a moment, I will show you a list of martial arts soon." He sat on the chair behind the desk and took out a white crystal from a drawer. He closed his eyes and focused, holding the crystal in his hand. The white light flickered from time to time and, after a few minutes, Lynn opened his eyes and handed the crystal to Noah. Noah took it and used his mental energy to probe the white mineral. Immediately, a list of about ten martial arts appeared in his sea of consciousness. There were descriptions on the sides of their names and Noah''s attention was completely drawn by them. Only a few of them had the darkness element as a requirement but they were all martial arts for two-weapon users that focused on speed. ''There is the rank 4 Nails of the Kamaitachi but it''s advised to be of the wind element to use it fully. As for those of the darkness element, they all have wide area attacks that oppose my current fighting style.'' His choice eventually fell on the only martial art that valued his fighting style and his element. ''Three forms of the Ashura, rank 4. Limited to dual-weapon wielder and darkness element cultivators. Consists of three techniques that have to be paired with my martial art and they expend both "Breath" and mental energy. It should be my best choice since it allows me to increase my battle prowess without giving up my accumulated experience.'' Noah decided in his mind and reported his choice to Lynn. Chapter 120: 120. Trade "This is a good choice but you must raise your level to fully use these three forms" Lynn commented on Noah''s choice while he stood up from his chair and brought the crystal in a deeper part of the room. He placed the mineral on a small cavity on the floor and the inscriptions around it lighted up. When the light faded, a small book had appeared in that spot. Lynn handed the book to Noah and he stored it, he had still other transactions to do. "Professor, I wonder if you could solve one of my doubts." Lynn caressed his beard and nodded. "Why is the value of spells and techniques so high? Isn''t it possible to simply copy the forms and diagrams?" Lynn smiled lightly before replying. "When and inscription master writes a diagram, it is generally drawn according to his comprehension. Since it''s quite impossible to copy someone else intention when he inscribes, it is hard to make copies of a certain technique. Martial arts are a bit different as they are simpler in their descriptions, that''s why their value is lower." ''So, I can''t make a copy of the Surging river spell.'' "Thank you, Professor. I would like to acquire more techniques, the instruction''s book said that I could buy them with merit points, Credits, and by trade, am I right?" Lynn nodded again. "Do you already know what are you looking for?" "Darkness spells and rank 4 body-nourishing methods that require the darkness element." Lynn''s eyes widened, he was surprised that such a young man was so certain of what he was in need of. "The value of darkness spells is quite high since not even the academy as that many of them. I think you can only afford a rank 0 one for now. As for the body-nourishing method, its price isn''t low either." Noah took out a small scroll from his space-ring and showed it to Lynn. The Professor carefully examined it and was quite interested after a few looks. Noah spoke before he could say anything. "I have one thousand Credits and that spell, are they enough?" The scroll contained the Surging river spell. Since Noah had no usage for it, it was better to exchange it for something that could increase his strength. Money was the same: what was the point of accumulating it? It was better to spend it on useful techniques. He could always make more of it later when he had become stronger. Lynn put a hand under his chin and fell in thought. After a few seconds, he picked the crystal again and concentrated. "Which body-nourishing method did you train into?" "Forging of the Seven Hells." Lynn stopped his concentration for a moment and looked at Noah. A bit of pity was exuded from his eyes when he looked at the youth. He then resumed his focus and tossed the crystal to Noah when he was done. The list of techniques and spells wasn''t long, it had at best twenty-five names and most of them were rank 0 spells. ''Dark blade, enhances sharpness. Dark membrane, light defensive ability¡­'' Noah read through them but he couldn''t find anything interesting. He saw a rank 1 spell called Black coil which he could use but he believed that his martial art enhanced with his Demonic form was on its same level. The others were supportive spells that existed for any other element. ''I couldn''t expect much more since I have one of the best darkness spells already. Buying a rank 1 spell now will only hinder my combat style since using the Demonic form will always be the best choice at any moment. I should probably pick a supportive rank 0 one that enhances my normal status so that I can rely less on the Demonic form.'' He switched his attention to the body-nourishing methods. There were ten methods but only three of them had the darkness element as a requirement. Of those three, only two of them had special abilities that could be mastered once he reached the fourth rank. ''These two are surely more valuable, they remember me of Kevin''s transformation.'' The prices were written on the sides of each name and Noah paled a bit when he looked at the ones of the two methods. They were priced more than forty thousand Credits each! The rank 0 spells costed "only" eight thousand Credits in comparison. He raised his gaze and spoke to Lynn in a soft voice. "How much is my spell worth?" Lynn shook his head and replied calmly. "It is a spell that can express the power of a rank 4 magic. Don''t worry, just pick one for each category and you will be fine." Noah focused again on the two body-nourishment methods. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''Way of the phantom, reaching rank 4 will allow the user to increase his stealth abilities, as well as becoming completely invisible and ethereal for a short period of time.'' ''Yin body, reaching rank 4 will give the user a body with high regenerative proprieties. It will also store "Breath" that can be used to momentarily enhance the qualities of the body, mainly the regenerative one.'' ''They seem both really good. The phantom form is really interesting, it could help me escape any situation and I believe that it has many applications in battle. However, the Yin body seems to match well with the Forging of Seven Hells since I should be able to store more "Breath" than normal cultivators.'' They were both really suitable for survival and it took Noah quite a bit to finally decide. He passed back the crystal to Lynn and spoke calmly. "I want the rank 0 spell Shadow steps and the rank 4 body-nourishing method Yin body." Lynn nodded and replied. "I will value the spell fifty thousand Credits. Sadly, it is of a common element which makes it easier to copy so its value is barely enough for you to buy what you''ve chosen." He returned to the spot where he first took the martial art and repeated the same procedure as before. When he came back, he had two scrolls in his hands and twenty shining Obsidian Credits. "These are the method and the spell that you asked for, added to two thousand Credits of change from the value of your spell." Noah put everything in the space-ring and he could not help to ask another question. "May I know how much it costs to buy a rank 4 darkness spell?" Lynn showed a complex smile. "They are pretty rare and almost impossible to copy. You should have a sum superior to two hundred thousand Credits if you really want to think of buying one." Chapter 121: 121. Private lessons Noah exited the inventory building. He was deep in thought but he could not hide the excitement that he felt. ''I should really find a way to make money. Well, at least now I have the means to improve all my centers of power.'' The Yin body for the body, the Kesier rune for the mind, the Dark vortex for the dantian, and the Three forms of the Ashura coupled with the Shadow steps spell for his combat style. He was eager to go back to his lodgings but there was another matter that had to be completed. Noah went to the building where he received the academy token. The same old woman was on the desk inside the structure. "I need to state the courses that I want to attend and I would like to ask information about one of them." Noah handed his token to the woman that gestured him to continue. "General cultivation, real battle, and study of magical beasts. I would like to know more about the Elemental forging course though." The woman nodded and wrote something on a tablet on the desk. She then raised her head to look at Noah spoke in a calm voice. "You need to request for an external teacher but it will cost you." Noah was aware of that aspect and replied. "How much?" She sorted some kind of inscribed sheet before answering him. "There is only one cultivator affiliated to the academy that teaches it. He requests for three hundred Credits for every private lesson." ''That much! What I have is just enough for ten lessons!'' Noah was quite conflicted about that. On one side, he already had everything he needed to increase his strength in the incoming years. On the other one, he was afraid that his lack of knowledge in the inscription field would be a hindrance to his future advancements. ''Fuck it, it''s just money.'' "I accept. How does it work then?" The woman wrote a line over the sheet and then did the same with the token. "It might take a while for him to arrive at the academy. Just attend your normal courses, the token has the schedule already stored in it. You will be informed when your requested teacher arrives and you will directly pay him." Noah took the token back and bowed. He hurriedly went back to his lodging. There were no lessons for the whole week and Noah had too many techniques to catch up with. He looked at the Yin body first, but he found out that it was required to be cultivated at night. Since it was still midday, he chose to inspect the rank 0 spell. ''Shadow steps, it creates small circles made of "Breath" under your feet. Stepping on them will propel you at fast speed in the desired direction.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. It was a movement type spell, it could vastly improve Noah''s footwork making his fast martial art more deadly. There was also another reason why he chose it: it was completely compatible with his flight through Echo''s wings! Noah focused on the diagram and memorized it in two hours. It was a rank 0 spell after all, learning it took no time to Noah that was already halfway through the first rank of the sea of consciousness. Noah stood up and replicated the lines of the diagram in his mind. Mental energy and "Breath" were expended but their quantity wasn''t much. ''This consumption is totally sustainable in long fights. I only need to train in it.'' A small black circle appeared under his sole as Noah raised his foot in the air. Noah stepped on it and pushed with medium strength. The ring shattered but Noah jumped till the ceiling of the room, blocking the impact with his hands. ''Definitely worth the consumption, I should train more in an open space. Maybe I can pick up some simple missions already.'' He tried some more times to get used to the sensation of the activation of the spell and then moved his focus to the martial art. ''Three forms of the Ashura, it basically consists of three techniques that have to be implemented in my martial art to improve its rank. However, I''m not totally sure that I have enough "Breath" and mental energy to use it. I should just memorize the moves for now, I''ll try its actual prowess outside the academy.'' Noah trained in the three forms, his sabers swung across the room as they moved according to the instructions of the martial art. He could clearly feel that there was an incredible power behind the positions and he tried to mix them with his already mastered art. In the end, the night came. Noah could not wait anymore and he stuffed some food from his space-ring in his mouth and sat on the floor with the Yin body scroll open in front of him. ''I first need to choose where the absorption should begin. It is usually advised to equally distribute the "Breath" on the body but I''m quite sure that my seven acupoints know what to do.'' His acupoints refilled the "Breath" in his body as soon as it was used. However, since he reached the liquid stage that "Breath" had become quite useless in battle. Noah focused on his acupoints. The Yin body method of absorption was similar to his Dark vortex cultivation technique. The Dark vortex was created consuming part of his "Breath" to attract the one of its same kind. The Yin body created a vortex that rotated at a certain rhythm that attracted only the "Breath" of the darkness element and distributed it in certain parts of the body. In the Yin body method, the focus was on the bone marrow. Noah didn''t need to create a vortex since he had already seven of them and only focused on changing their rotation rhythm. It was hard at the beginning since even a slight mistake would stop the attraction of the "Breath". After attempting for four hours, Noah finally managed to control one of his acupoints to follow the described rhythm. A cold sensation enveloped his back, the "Breath" that was absorbed sent chills down his spine. As more and more "Breath" entered the vortex, the acupoint below it began to darken. A wave of coldness invaded Noah, the new "Breath" traveled through his body and completely vanquished the one that was already stored by the Seven Hells method. Little by little, that emptied space was being filled by a dark and cold gas. Chapter 122: 122. Daniel Since the Yin body was a body-nourishing method specific for the darkness element, it was obvious that the absorbed "Breath" would be of that same element. The Seven Hells method didn''t distinguish between them and had freely stored "Breath" of various types but, with the new method, that "Breath" had become a hindrance for the advancement of the body. The dark gas slowly filled his body, lowering its temperature. Noah endured the coldness and pushed the new "Breath" toward the dantian. The dantian then refined the gas and dispersed it through his skeletal system. His bones began to emit a soft aura that slowly nourished the other parts of his body. ''So that''s how it feels like to use a method that requires the dantian.'' The refinement of the dantian was necessary for the process to render the cold "Breath" absorbed by his acupoint harmless. If his body tried to directly assimilate it, it would create a great deal of damage. Noah continued to practice in the Yin body for the rest of the night, trying to automate the procedure. When the sun rose, ending the night, Noah had managed to use two of his seven acupoints for the absorption part. He stood up and felt the "Breath" accumulated in his bones slowly nourishing his body. It was a cold sensation but Noah didn''t feel the slightest uneasiness. Conversely, he was feeling his body becoming stronger! ''Such a long time has passed since I last trained my body. It feels good.'' He smiled enjoying the sensation of his strengthening. ''Never mind the battle prowess, I will become used to my new techniques anyway during the real battle class. Right now, I should focus on increasing the level of my centers of power before wasting time in some useless missions for the academy.'' That''s what he did in the free week before the beginning of the lessons. The day was reserved for the Kesier rune and his martial art while the night was spent trying to cultivate together dantian and body through his two techniques. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. When the free week ended and Noah exited his lodging, his usual aura seemed even colder and his skin was pale but not in an unhealthy way. As he moved toward the building, he noticed that the streets of the academy were crowded with young students that he had never seen before. "It seems that the test period is usually break-time for the students. They were all back in their families or away doing missions for the academy." June arrived behind him and solved his doubts. She had even larger eyebags than last week but her eyes seemed more focused. "I didn''t see you two for an entire week, don''t tell me that you spent all that time cultivating!" Ruth arrived with her brother. The answer to her question was quite obvious seeing the aspect of Noah and June. "You should enjoy life more! We are young and talented, we can''t waste our best years like this!" June shook his head and snorted while Noah limited himself to look ahead of him. ''Enjoy life? I don''t even know when the Balvan family will find me.'' Rhys'' face appeared in his mind and some of his suppressed emotions were kindled again. ''I bet that daddy is pretty desperate about Fabian disappearance. What a pity, I''m way too weak to make a move against a medium-size noble family.'' Some traces of killing intent began to be exuded from his figure. However, before anyone near him could notice it, a big commotion invaded one of the streets near his position. Tens of students surrounded a tall man of about nineteen years old. He had short silver hair and a slender body. A warm smile was on his face as he greeted those that came to welcome him. His aura too was warm and fiery which improved his figure in the eyes of the others. Ruth suppressed an excited scream and whispered to June. "That man is Daniel! The prodigy of the Uyde family! It is said that not only his family is one of the wealthiest among the large-size noble families, he is also the stronger student in the academy! Think about it, he has the record in the hunting entrance tests with one hundred and ten Earth lizards killed!" June was speechless and pointed at Noah behind her. "But he broke that record." June didn''t hold her voice so all the students near her heard what she said. Whispers began to resound between the various groups of students until, eventually, those words arrived at the youths surrounding Daniel. "Someone broke Lord Daniel''s record? Hump, I bet he was fighting ants!" "But I heard that they were Ice-born Yetis, their strength is quite similar to the Earth lizards." "Nonsense. And even if they did that, Lord Daniel was less than seventeen when he did that accomplishment! We must all remember that." "But this Vance is not even sixteen apparently." "¡­" Silence reined on the streets and June sensed a cold stare on her back. She turned and saw Noah looking at her with the same gaze that he had back when they fought. "I''m sorry, ok? I''ll make up for this at some point. I just don''t think much about the consequences of my actions." She bowed while saying these words. Noah felt like an old man scolding a child and sighed loudly while massaging his temples. However, some stares and gestures that pointed at him had already begun to appear between the students. He then felt a scorching gaze on him and turned his head in that direction. His eyes inevitably crossed Daniel''s ones and they stared at each other for a whole minute. Noah felt that Daniel''s nature was completely different from his, he could not explain why. It was more of an instinct rather than a sensation. ''Is he stronger than me? Well, he is at least three years older.'' Noah felt that Daniel''s strength was slightly above his, he wasn''t sure that he could beat him. After their stares, Daniel began to speak. "So, you must be Vance! Why don''t you join me and my friends for a drink? Oh, you can bring your group too, the more the merrier!" Daniel''s smile began even brighter as he gently asked that. Ruth turned to look at Noah with an eager expression but he answered immediately before any plead reached his ears. "No, I have a lesson now." After these words, he walked toward his appointed building between the amazed gazes of the other students. Chapter 123: 123. Naked Noah entered the building and sat on one of the farthest seats from the teacher''s desk. Megan was already there waiting for all the students to gather. June arrived right after and sat next to him. "Why didn''t you join Daniel?" Noah replied in a calm tone. "Because I had a lesson." "But isn''t he the most famous person in the academy?" Noah shrugged his shoulders. "Should I care?" "Well, face is really important to nobles. There is a high chance that his group will retaliate." Noah shrugged his shoulders again and focused on Megan. The course went on for a few hours with the Professor explaining the most common usage of the various centers of power. After that, Noah went back to his lodging and found out that June''s warning was on point. Two male students were standing in front of his accommodation with smirks on their faces. "Do you think that breaking Lord Daniel''s record gives you the right to ignore him?" The other continued. "Lord Daniel is too kind and doesn''t care about that stuff but you clearly disrespected him this morning. You''d better follow us and apologize in front of him." Noah understood part of the situation. ''They want to gain points with that guy by using me as a sacrifice?'' Noah shook his head and spoke in an uncaring tone. "Hey, what is the meaning of "gravely injure" according to the academy rules?" The two students were a bit surprised by his words and replied honestly. "Well, any permanent injury of course." Noah nodded and wielded his sabers. "I only want to cultivate in peace but if you force me, I will break both your arms and hang you naked on the board on this side of the river." The two students were speechless for a moment before exploding in a sonorous laugh. "Who do you think you are!? If you ever touch me, L-" He could not finish his phrase since Noah had already appeared in front of him. The handle of his saber hit with incredible momentum the pit of the student''s stomach. The student fell on his knees and began to throw up. Noah grabbed his head and smashed it on the ground, making him faint. The other student grew scared and turned to run away. Noah charged again, a small black circle appeared under his foot, speeding up his assault. He immediately arrived behind the other student and strongly hit his nape with the bladeless side of his saber. He fainted on the spot due to the impact of Noah''s attack. ''The Shadow steps spell sure is useful!'' He had used the rank 0 spell in both his charges to obtain a greater momentum and the effects greatly pleased him. ''Now, let''s take care of these two.'' A great commotion occurred that day in the academy. One of the new students carried two of his seniors on the board at the center of the lodging area. The seniors were unconscious and were, most importantly, naked from head to toe. The new student then hanged them upside down on the board and went away uncaringly. ''I really went too easy on them.'' Noah sighed, he was back in his room. In the end, he didn''t break their arms, he was still too wary of Thaddeus'' threat. ''Well, they should have learnt their lesson at least. If they ever come back for more trouble, I''ll just be harsher with my methods.'' He was in a good mood since he had had the chance to test his new spell, its effects were like he had predicted. ''I should even be able to fly for longer times since I can continuously use the Shadow steps in the air. I guess I will have to do more experiments as soon as I pick a mission.'' He spent the rest of the day training, waking up early in the morning to attend the real battle course. There were many people on the streets of the academy and most of them gazed at Noah before whispering in their groups. ''Everyone should now know that I''m not to bother, good.'' His message seemed to be fully conveyed as no one dared to cross his eyes. "Was it a good fight?" With the exception of June, of course. "It wasn''t really a fight." June nodded and continued to move forward. "We need a sparring partner in today''s course. Can I count on you for that?" Noah thought for a bit and then nodded after adding something. "As long as you watch your mouth from now on." . Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. . . Time passed peacefully for Noah in the academy. He would attend his three weekly lessons and then spend the rest of his time cultivating. His knowledge of magical beasts became vaster as it did his expertise in the cultivation topic. His strength also steadily rose and, with June as his sparring partner, he had become quite used to the changes in his fighting style. Almost two months had passed since his entrance in the academy and it was time for him to complete a mission. Noah was standing in front of the board with a pensive expression. Since the events with Daniel''s followers, no one ever bothered him again. Adding that to his increasingly cold aura, it was no wonder that very few people ever approached him. ''However, if they want some kind of revenge, I believe that this will be the best moment.'' All the missions that he could accept were outside of the academy ground. If the two students managed somehow to place an ambush on him, things could get troublesome. ''They would need a man in the inside though. Well, even if they do plan something, I will just use this chance to test my progress.'' The oath they swore concerned the academy, the information about its students was quite free to divulge. In the end, he picked the hunting mission with the biggest reward and moved to the exit of the academy. He felt some gazes on him and one of them was especially intense. ''Here is the man on the inside.'' Noah turned to look in that direction only to see Samuel Muwlos calmly smirking at him. He then placed his token on the passage for the outside and hurriedly exited the academy. Seeing that, Samuel picked a wooden tablet and neared it to his mouth. "He went out, have fun." Chapter 124: 124. First form Noah ran at full speed toward the appointed location for his mission. He had to vanquish a pack of rank 3 Sun tigers that occupied a lake in the area near the academy. Since these magical beasts disrupted the environment of the lake, many precious plants had been lost and the academy issued a mission to restore the zone the way it was. However, Noah''s focus wasn''t on the road ahead of him but rather on the branches above. As soon as he stepped in the Arolyac forest, he felt that someone was observing him. That sensation didn''t stop as he moved but only became more real. He could clearly sense that someone was following him. ''This time, I won''t let them go with just a bit of public humiliation.'' Noah''s eyes shined and he uncovered his upper body. Black rings appeared under his feet and his speed increased drastically. His figure distanced from the pursuers and they increased their pace to keep their vision of him. Noah zigzagged between the trees, making his figure hard to follow. At some point, he reached a large trunk and went behind it. Shadow steps activated and black smoke was released from his legs as he forcefully jumped in the air. With the two spells empowering his leap, Noah reached a height of fifteen meters in an instant! Then, two pairs of wings came out of his back, which carried him at the top of the tree where he was hiding. As he reached the tallest branch, he used his mental energy to cover his presence and he stood still, waiting for his pursuers. That usage of the mental energy was one of the skills that he learnt in the general cultivation course. Since the mental energy could be used to inspect things, of course it could be used to hide them! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. However, it could only hide from weaker mental energies, stronger ones would just break its concealment. His pursuers went right past his position, his movements had been too fast for them to notice that he had disappeared. Noah watched coldly as the figures went on and, only when he was sure that no one noticed his position, he began to follow them. From the prey, he had become the hunter! As he neared them, he noticed that they had stopped after a few hundred meters. They were arguing loudly, he could not help but shook his head at their poor performance in the ambush. "I''m telling you he must have gone in that direction, there is no way that I lost him." "Mal, that guy managed to surpass Lord Daniel''s record at that age, I won''t be surprised if he knew some tricks." "And what tricks could ever do to the ten of us. We are nobles! He is just a no one with a bit of talent." "Norton, if you really think that some commoner with no background can surpass Lord Daniel, then you really deserved to be hanged naked." "If you ever speak of that again, I swear I-" He could not finish his phrase since a winged figure appeared behind him at high speed. Noah attacked him with the bladeless part of his sabers, hitting the student''s shoulders and cracking their bones with the impact. The student smashed on the ground releasing a painful yell but Noah simply stomped on his head. The student fainted due to the impact. The other pursuers looked at Noah''s figure in fear, his two pairs of wings coupled with his cold expression sent chills down their spine. Noah turned the youth below him and pointed his feet on his knees. Then, he grabbed his ankles and forcefully pulled. The student''s legs arched in the opposite angle releasing cracking sounds. Noah then raised his gaze toward the other students and spoke. "You know, I was really trying to be a good student but it seems that you think too highly of yourselves. Don''t worry though, I will fix that behavior of yours." One of the students gathered his courage and yelled at the others in his group. "He is alone and there are nine of us! Let''s teach him his place!" The other youths regained some of their confidence and began to wield their weapons but Noah had already charged at them. He immediately appeared in front of the one that seemed the stronger of the group and cut diagonally on his chest. Blood flowed but the wound appeared quite superficial, Noah was still holding himself back. The youth though backed for a few steps and a bat materialized behind him. Echo pushed him on the ground and Noah kicked his face a few times. Blood and teeth fell on the terrain. Noah stopped only when he was sure that the student had fainted. At that moment, a ball of fire shot in his direction. Echo appeared in its trajectory and endured the might of the spell. Its body broke in many spots but it recomposed almost immediately. Noah jumped through his blood companion and shot in the direction of the fire mage, Echo had been absorbed in his body making the wings reappear on his back. Eight students remained. They were inexperienced but still equipped with spells and martial arts. Since Noah could not use the Demonic form for fear of killing them, he used this chance to test the improvements in his fighting style. Noah attacked the fire mage relentlessly. In the eyes of the student, Noah''s sabers multiplied. From two attacks they became four, and from four, six. He didn''t understand at all how all these attacks were not illusory but completely real. In a few seconds, the mage''s shoulder was pierced and Noah punched strongly on his face. His mouth distorted and he retreated but Echo blocked him on the ground, giving time to Noah to neutralize him. The other seven had reached him by then and attacked with great dexterity. Since they were all near him, the usage of spells with a wide effect range was limited as it would hurt those in their group. It became a battle of martial arts! ''First form of the Ashura, endless assault.'' Noah slashed madly at the students encircling him. His "Breath" and mental energy depleted rapidly as more and more blades appeared in the air. Seven students attacked Noah in every direction but each of their strikes was blocked and counter-attacked! Noah''s figure was surrounded by the after-images of his attacks that clashed on all seven at the same time. Chapter 125: 125. Interrogation The Ashura was a humanoid magical beast with three heads and six arms. The Three forms of the Ashura, as a rank 4 technique, could inherently improve the martial art of a cultivator multiplying his attacks till they reached the number of arms of the Ashura. Each form, on the other hand, had more amazing effects. The First form could increase the number of attacks by a large amount, creating material after-images through the "Breath" of the cultivator. However, fighting in that way comported a heavy burden on the cultivator''s mind. Noah was battling seven people at the same time, his mental energy depleted to aid his concentration on his various opponents. He didn''t commit any mistakes though, there were no flaws in his combat style. He had already been used on dividing his senses with the blood companion so it had been easier for him to learn the First form. Little by little, all the students were pushed back with many small cuts appearing on their bodies. In Noah''s perception, it was like fighting each one of them in a one versus one battle. ''I don''t believe that any of them can match my proficiency!'' He had wielded a saber since the age of eight and he had fought nonstop since that moment, there was no way that some spoiled kids could match his blows. In about thirty minutes, the seven students were all on their knees, covered in injuries. Noah drank a potion to refill his mental energy, the fight had almost depleted it completely. ''The martial art is amazing but I still can''t use it. The First form is the limit of my current level.'' He was sweating profusely and his dantian was almost empty, yet he had managed to defeat all the youths without gravely injuring them. He neared one of them and pressed him on the ground. Then he pointed his feet on his junctures and arched his limbs in their opposite angle. Cracking sounds and screams resounded in that area of the forest as Noah proceeded to break the arms and legs of each one of the attackers. Then he tied them up to the biggest tree and slowly stripped them. The students were either crying, pleading for mercy, or cursing him loudly. They were eight man and two women, all tied, naked, and with their limbs broken. Noah spoke to the group. "I believe that you won''t die just because of these wounds and your limbs will be fine after a few weeks of rest. I will go and finish my mission now, I''ll take care of you when I come back." More curses were spewed from their mouths but Noah simply neared the ones that spoke and punched them until all their teeth had fallen. Silence reigned in the group of tied students after that treatment. Noah then pretended to go on his way but instead concealed his presence after he was away from their sight a returned to the tree where they were restrained. He sat on one of the branches and meditated to refill his dantian while his attention was on the students. "That fucker! How daring he is to-" "Shut up! This is all your fault! I should have never followed you in this suicide mission." "I agree, that guy is simply too frightening." "Frightening? That guy is a demon in a human''s hide! He didn''t even spare Val and Leah from this treatment." The eyes of the males unconsciously focused the naked bodies of the two girls who were crying and trying to cover their bodies. However, their limbs were lifeless, there was nothing that could hide their figures. "I believe that we should stop bothering Vance, I don''t really want to think of what would happen if we lose another time to him." The students agreed and Noah nodded from his position above them. ''It seems that I won''t have to plan a way to secretly kill them.'' Noah cultivated for half a day and then went to the lake that his mission indicated. Fifteen or so three meters tall yellow tigers were silently occupying that territory. According to what he had learnt in the magical beasts'' course, the Sun tigers stored flames in their bodies which forced them to continuously disperse the heat with external methods. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. It was common for their kind to occupy an environment with cold water in it. ''I''ll test my martial art a bit more.'' Rank 3 creatures had lost any form of threat in Noah''s eyes, they were simply training for him. Noah used twenty minutes to kill every tiger and stored their bodies in his space-ring as proof of his successful mission. He then rested to return to his peak form and moved back to the students. Most of them were struggling to break free from their bindings, they were cultivators after all, their wounds had already healed. Noah neared them slowly and shook his head showing his disappointment. "And here I thought that you had learnt your lessons. It seems that you really don''t care about your teeth." The students trembled, since their limbs were broken, they were powerless to oppose to Noah. "Mercy, please! I promise I will never d-" A kick stopped him from speaking any more. Noah sat in front of the naked youths and smiled coldly looking each of them straight in the eyes. Only when all of them had their head lowered, he began to speak. "I believe that Daniel isn''t aware of your plan, right?" One of the girls raised her head and spoke through the tears on her face. "How could he! He is generous and kind, he will neve-" A slap hit her face while Noah continued. "Only short answers from now on. If I want to know more, I will ask." After he was sure that they understood, he spoke again. "Why do you all follow him? I mean, I understand that his character and his status are amazing but that shouldn''t be enough for people to bother me just to improve their relationship with him." The students lowered their heads, unwilling to answer. Noah sighed. "It seems that I have to break your hands and feet too." He neared one of the girls and held her hand. He began to apply pressure on his grip and the girl screamed in pain until one of the boys gave him what he wanted. "Wait! Daniel isn''t just talented and wealthy, he is also the only light mage of the academy!" Chapter 126: 126. Agreemen ''Light element!'' Noah finally understood the reason for his conflicting instincts. ''Talent, wealth, and a rare element. No wonder he has so many followers, his future will be extraordinary.'' He let go of the girl''s hand and stood up. "I believe no one of you wants to get hanged naked on the board, right?" The youths shook their heads almost immediately. "Good, you must know that I''m quite short on money lately and this makes me really vengeful. Is it possible that you have some kind of solution to my problem?" The students understood the meaning behind his words and took out a total of two thousand Credits from their storage devices. Noah gathered the crystals and nodded at them. "Just one last thing. You are my seniors so you must have a better accommodation, am I right?" The lodgings were decided according to the seniority of the students and their distance from the source of the river was chosen based on their strength in their class. However, the academy allowed challenges between students if they wanted to improve their accommodation. They could also be traded or given away with the authorization of both interested parts. Noah didn''t really want to challenge other students but since the chance presented itself, he wouldn''t waste it. "So, who of you has the closest one to the source of the river?" The students turned to look at one of the boys. Noah smiled and crouched toward him. The student panicked and began to plead. "No please, my family invested so much in my studies here. I had to pay an incredible sum to g-." Noah stopped him and patted his shoulder while shaking his head. "I know, I know. The love of a family is important in the life of a cultivator. What are a few days hanged in front of the whole academy in comparison?" The student paled and gritted his teeth. "Fine but one da-" A kick hit him in the face. Noah''s eyes shined with a cold light as he focused his mental energy on the youth. "One day you what? I only wanted to cultivate in peace but you came to me seeking trouble. If it wasn''t for the academy''s rules, I would have killed all of you already." The students trembled at Noah''s pressure. They knew that he was telling the truth. "I will warn you just once: if you ever approach me again with bad intentions, I will gladly get expelled only to taste the pleasure of taking your worthless lives. Are we clear?" His mental pressure intensified, it could be said that the strength of his sea of consciousness was unmatched among those near his age. One by one, the students slowly nodded and Noah released the pressure. "Since we have an understanding, I say that we can go back to the academy. Our story will be that you were ambushed by Sun tigers and that I luckily saved you. Since you were so grateful to me, you decided to treat me with your accommodation, ok?" Some of them tried to complain but his pressure unfolded again. "You know, I''m open to suggestions. For example, what was your story for when you were done with me? I don''t believe you have the guts to kill me." They trembled, silently accepting his conditions and Noah helped them getting dressed. The girls wept to no end and the boys showed only envy gazes at the sight of Noah dressing the women. Noah was completely indifferent during the whole time. ''What''s the point of being this good looking if you are so weak? Luckily, I''m not a total newbie regarding women.'' He had lived for more than forty years over-all. Even without considering his aloof personality, the bodies of girls that young posed no appeal to him. When he finished dressing all the students, Noah took out some of his clothes from his space-ring and tied them together to form a large carpet. Then he threw the students over it while Echo exited his body. A youth and a big bat carried ten students with broken limbs through Arolyac forest. Their pace was slow but in half a day they managed to reach the gate of the academy. Noah put his token on the ground and the passage opened. Echo went back into his body and Noah slowly carried the crowded carpet into the academy ground. Samuel was still waiting there with a smirk on his face which turned in an astonished expression as he saw the outcome of the ambush. Noah saw him and put a smile on his face. "Ah, if it isn''t the heir of the Muwlos family. Come here and take care of these poor students that I luckily rescued. I have a small matter to attend with this one." Noah grabbed the one that had the best accommodation and uncaringly carried it toward the building where he first received the token. Samuel waited for Noah to leave before nearing the group of impaired students. They had all their limbs broken and some of them missed many teeth in their mouths. "W-what happened?" He could not help but ask that question. The students lowered their heads until one of the girls spoke with a soft voice. "He *sniff* saved us form a pack of Sun tigers." The story was obviously made up, how could a pack of rank 3 magical beasts beat that badly ten students of the academy? Samuel wasn''t that stupid and replied to her. "Tell me what has happened. I will report everything to a teacher and we will ruin him!" That time, it was one of the male students that answered. "Forget it, Samuel. That guy fights like a demon and he even had room to hold back. He didn''t even use that black smoke you spoke about. I just want to stay away from him." Meanwhile, Noah had arrived in front of the old woman that gave him the token. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. She was speaking with a skeptical tone toward the student on Noah''s back. "Are you sure that you, Kent Omon, want to exchange your lodging with Vance''s one?" Kent answered softly. "Yes, I''m sure." The woman sighed and shook her head. "Your tokens please." Chapter 127: 127. Professor It was night and Noah was silently cultivating. Seven vortexes were on his back, constantly absorbing cold and dark "Breath" and pushing it toward his dantian. In front of his dantian, another vortex rotated between his joint hands, taking in even more "Breath" from the environment. The process of training both his dantian and his body at the same time was quite taxing for his sea of consciousness and even the stress on his dantian was not negligible. However, Noah held on. When the dawn came, Noah opened his eyes. A sixth of his mental energy was depleted and he felt nothing but tiredness from the intensive training but he was used to it by then. One month had passed since the events with the other students and Noah never slacked off. He occupied his new accommodation and made the best use of the higher density of "Breath" by managing to practice in the Dark vortex technique and in the Yin body at the same time. He had to review his training schedule though as he had to rest after spending the whole night in that way. ''The advancements of my body are better than what I predicted. Since I was already at the peak of the lower tier, I should be able to obtain a rank 4 body before I turn twenty.'' He had the vague feeling that his fast improvements were due to the Seven Hells method. Noah laid on his bed and was about to take a short nap when two loud knocks resounded from the entrance door. ''Troubles? Unlikely inside the academy grounds.'' He went to open the door only to be assaulted by the worst smell he ever felt. Vomit, booze, piss, dirt, sweat, all these odors mixed together to create the most disgusting scent in the world. Noah unconsciously held his nose and looked at the cause of the smell. There was a middle-aged man in front of his door. He had long and oily hair, his beard was curly and full of dirt. Dandruff was everywhere on his face but, instead of being white, it was yellow-brown due to the smelly sweat that continuously came out of his pores. His clothes were ragged and full of holes, Noah recognized some dark stains on them that emitted even more smelly odors. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. A big jar full of wine was in one of his hands and, on his back, a ragged backpack hanged seemingly empty. Noah was confused and asked with his hand still on his nose. "You are?" The man sniffed and cleaned the remains of his mucus with the sleeve of his free hand, adding another dark stain on his clothes. "I am the professor that you requested for. You are Vance, right? I''m here to teach you about the Elemental forging method." Noah heard his words but was still quite doubtful. He picked his token and, to his surprise, it stated that his requested teacher had arrived at the academy. "Mister Ivor?" The man nodded. "That''s right." It took a bit for Noah to accept the situation. In the end, he simply moved away from the doorstep and lightly bowed. "Please come in." Ivor was a bit surprised by his manners and entered the lodging, sitting on the floor next to its entrance. Noah''s new accommodation was more luxurious than his previous one. It had three rooms with one big bathtub in one of them and a comfortable bed in another one. The last one was empty which he used to train his martial art. Ivor drank from his jar while Noah closed the door and looked at the man on the floor, he could not help but think of him as a beggar rather than a powerful cultivator. Ivor took a big sip and cleaned his mouth with his sleeve before speaking. "Give me the Credits and let''s start with it. Each lesson will last one hour but most of the time I will just resolve some of your doubts." Noah took out three hundred Credits and handed them to him. "Mh, so you don''t have any talent in the "Attunement" method and you requested for me. Let me give you some warnings first: this method is far from perfect, it involves a heavy burden on the mental sphere, one misstep and your journey as a cultivator will end." Ivor pointed at his head. "My sea of consciousness is full of cracks and there is no hope to heal it. That happened due to the backlash of the method so don''t come crying to me if you end up in the same situation, you''ve been warned." Noah could not help but imagine the life of the man in front of him. ''He lives with a cracked mental sphere all the time. No wonder he ended up in such a state, he must be in constant pain and yet he keeps on living.'' He had tasted the suffering from a damage on the sphere, he knew how painful it was. ''He is indeed praiseworthy for managing to stay sane.'' "The "Attunement" method uses the "Breath" of the world as the language for the inscriptions. It takes years of studies and constant practice to imitate perfectly the behavior of that energy. Its effects will then be within the range of what the "Breath" allows. For example, let''s say that you were to inscribe a weapon with the "Attunement" method in order to make it sharper. You would need to learn the ''words'' that the "Breath" uses to indicate that quality and then write it on the weapon. The inscribed weapon will then gain the sharpness dictated by the "Breath"." Ivor stopped speaking and took another long sip of the wine. He breathed roughly for a few seconds before continuing in his explanation. "The sharpness of the inscribed weapon will depend on how accurate the translation of the language of the "Breath" was in the material form. It will also never surpass the limits of what Heaven and Earth consider as sharpness." He took another big sip. "However, in the "Elemental forging" method, there are no such limits." Chapter 128: 128. Madness "Imagine the inscription as a line of text. You understand its meaning because it''s written in a language that you can read. However, simple words can''t express the language of the "Breath", that''s why cultivators use inscriptions instead of words. The same goes for the ink used in the writing: normal ink can''t contain the true meaning behind the words of the "Breath". So, what would the ink for the inscriptions be made of?" Ivor drank a mouthful of wine, waiting for Noah to answer. "Only the "Breath" can be used to write its language." Ivor nodded. "That''s right. Nevertheless, in the Elemental forging, it''s the will of the cultivator that dictates the effect of the inscription. There is no need for translation or understanding, the cultivator sets the meaning behind his writing." Noah sat on the floor in front of Ivor and fell deep in thought. ''In the Attunement method, a cultivator learns to hear the "Breath" and copies its meaning, writing it with the "Breath" itself. In the Elemental forging, the cultivator writes his own meaning, it''s no wonder that a strong will is needed to create a satisfactory effect.'' A doubt formed in his mind and he raised his gaze to look at the Professor. "What is the ink in the Elemental forging?" Ivar nodded again and continued his explanation. "This is one of the first problems of the method. Even if a cultivator has a will that equals the Heaven and Earth, it will be useless if he lacks the ink that can sustain the meaning of his words. However, only the "Breath" can give birth to such wonderful effects." Ivor took out a filthy book from his backpack and handed it to Noah. "You can imagine though that the "Breath" of Heaven and Earth will never follow the instructions of a cultivator, it barely allows some of them to hear its language after all. That''s why, if you want to use the Elemental forging method, you need to steal the "Breath" from Heaven and Earth." Ivor pointed at the book and Noah carefully opened it. He was so engrossed by the speech that he totally disregarded the poor state of its pages. Inside it, a description of a technique to absorb "Breath" and refining it was illustrated. Noah read with wide eyes before speaking with an incredulous voice. "Is this really possible?" Ivor nodded, releasing a small laugh. "This is only the first part of the method, it will allow you to store the ink needed for the inscription. Then, it will be the time for the forging but I don''t want to increase my headache to explain it before you are successful in this part." Ivor stood up and prepared to exit the door when Noah stopped him. "How do I know that all of this is possible? For what I read here, many of these processes are conflicting with the theories about cultivation." Ivor snorted and took out a small sheathed knife from his backpack. "Have you seen an inscribed weapon before?" Noah nodded and focused on the knife. "This is my masterpiece and the only stable product that I managed to forge. I made it imbuing my meaning of sharpness." He unsheathed the knife by less than a centimeter and hastily put it back inside the cover. "If you decide to give up, I want that book back." Ivor exited the lodging, leaving a confused Noah still sitting on the floor. ''Is he brain-damaged? I felt nothing form that gest-'' THUD! He stopped his thoughts because he heard a thump behind him. He turned and his pupils constricted looking at the scene. The bed was cut in two and a long vertical sign was on the wall behind it. ''What the fuck? When did that happen?'' Noah stood up and inspected the bed. It was a clean cut and some residual traces of "Breath" were still there. Noah looked again at the book in his hands, his expression became serious. ''I endured the Forging of the Seven Hells because my family wanted to slow my improvements. I find nothing wrong in doing something as dangerous because Heaven and Earth want to do the same.'' He sat on the broken bed and began to read through the pages. ''Absorption and refinement of the "Breath" in the sea of consciousness, this is madness.'' The technique created a way for the mental sphere to absorb the "Breath" in the environment and then refining it as a personal form of energy for the cultivator. ''But the sea of consciousness is almost immaterial, how can it store something so powerful?'' The mental sphere was the most independent part of a cultivator. Even in the dantian, the "Breath" would oppose the act of compression, maintaining its nature, what would it do to the mental sphere if it was refined in there? ''Maybe that''s how Ivor''s sphere cracked.'' Noah memorized the technique and decided to give it a try. ''Let''s start with the size of half a fingernail.'' Noah concentrated and his half-transparent figure in his sea of consciousness opened its eyes. Noah moved toward the bottom of the sea, in its deepest part. ''Here there should be fewer damages in case of a failure in the procedure.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. His figure crouched and touched the sphere with his hands. Slowly, the hands began to trespass the border of the walls, immersing themselves into the substance of his sphere. After a few minutes, the hands came out of the edges of the sea of consciousness, right into the material world. Noah felt his hands being disintegrated by the pressure of the outside world but the water inside the sea entered his ethereal body, reconstructing them. Noah endured the pain and hastily made a gesture which expended even more of his mental energy to create a suction force on the outside world. In a few seconds, a small strand of black "Breath" reached his hands and used the half-transparent body as a connection to enter his sea of consciousness. The "Breath" was surrounded by the sea as soon as it entered the borders of the mental sphere and struggled madly to escape the restraints. At some point, it self-detonated, creating a shock wave that made all Noah''s mental sphere shake. Noah interrupted the technique and opened his real eyes, holding his head due to the immense pain he was feeling. Chapter 129: 129. Wonderful The technique described in Ivor''s book was a method to connect the space inside the sea of consciousness with the outside world. The cultivator had to use his projection inside the mental sphere as a link where the "Breath" had to pass through. However, the sea of consciousness was a personal space of the cultivator, it was his same mind, not a place appropriate to store "Breath". But the Elemental forging method did exactly that: it forced the "Breath" of Heaven and Earth outside of their dominion and refined it through the mental energy of the cultivator, making it a form of energy that could be shaped as the cultivator wanted. The "Breath" had its own will though, it could even oppose the advancements of the dantian, it was no wonder that it struggled to no end when it was put inside a sea of consciousness. Of course, a failure in containing it led to a backlash. That was precisely what was happening to Noah. The "Breath" that entered his mental sphere self-detonated because he had failed to restrain it and that caused the trembling of the sphere. Waves of pain shot from Noah''s head while he could only endure them, waiting for his mind to stabilize. After about ten minutes, the trembling stopped and Noah could focus again. He was incredibly pale and cold sweat was everywhere on his body. His blue eyes were bloodshot but his expression was more determined than ever. ''I can totally do it! I just need to be more careful and start with even smaller quantities of "Breath". Also, I need to be at peak form every time I attempt on the technique.'' He forced himself to eat a small meal and then went to sleep to recover from the effort. It took a week for Ivor to appear again in front of Noah''s lodgings. He knocked at the door and waited for more than twenty minutes before Noah opened it. He smirked a bit seeing his appearance. Noah was pale with large eye bags under his eyes. The eyes were enflamed and half-closed and his long black hair were disheveled. "I don''t care if you want to quit now. I had to wait a lot for you to open the door so this counts as a lesson and I want to get paid." However, Noah simply snorted and answered him. "Shut up and close the door. I''ve done it." Ivor was about to retort when he understood the meaning of his words. "You what!?" During the last week, Noah had used all his free time in the day to attempt in the method and, in the end, he managed to store a minute strand of "Breath" in his sea of consciousness. His mental energy was almost completely consumed to render it harmless and without a will but he had succeeded. A small black ball of the size of a tenth of a fingernail was calmly standing above the sea in his mental sphere. It emitted a pressure far superior to Echo''s figures which slowly enlarged his sphere. However, that also caused a constant headache which led to his lack of respect toward Ivor. "S-show it to me!" Ivor was still incredulous and asked for some proof but Noah only snorted again. "And how the fuck should I do it? You only gave me the method to store and refine it. I don''t even know what to do with this thing stuck in my head!" Ivor seemed to remember something and took out another filthy book from his backpack, handing it to Noah. Noah hastily read through it and sat on the floor to concentrate. Inside his sea of consciousness, his ethereal figure neared the ball of "Breath". Mental energy was expended as the water rose from the sea and enveloped the ball. Noah was using all his focus to insert his will on the "Breath" and finally relaxed when his mental energy and the "Breath" had mixed completely. What remained in the hands of Noah''s figure was a dark blue ball. Ivor had waited expectantly for more than one hour in front of the sitting Noah. The process had taken a while but he didn''t mind, there was only anticipation in his eyes. Noah slowly opened his real eyes and raised his index finger in front of his face. A small dark blue ball came out of his finger and silently floated above it, Noah felt that it could control it like every other part of his body. "WONDERFUL!" Ivor screamed, interrupting Noah''s thoughts. "Old man, calm down. My head still hurts." Since the "Breath" was outside his mental sphere, the pressure had disappeared but he still needed to rest to recover completely. Nevertheless, Ivor didn''t care and carefully neared the ball of "Breath", inspecting it with shining eyes. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "You are of the darkness element, am I right?" Noah was a bit surprised but nodded. "I guessed so. This kind of shade can only be achieved with the black "Breath" proper of the darkness element and a crystalline blue mental energy. You have all my praises, your will and mental energy must be top tier to be able to succeed in the method in one week." Ivor sat and drank a mouthful of his usual wine. "That ball that you created is the ink that you need for the Elemental forging. Of course, it''s quantity is still not enough to do a proper forging but you passed the first hurdle." He pointed at the "Breath" over Noah''s finger. "That mixture is a form of energy belonging only to you. It''s not linked to any external rule and it''s the main material of the method. What you have to do now is keep storing it in your sea of consciousness to increase its capacity so that you can accumulate more of it. Remember: never be distracted while you accumulate it and always use your complete focus to restrain the "Breath". You are currently stealing from Heaven and Earth, they will stop at nothing to destroy your mental sphere and take your life with it." Chapter 130: 130. Bath "Wait, what do you mean with that?" Noah stored the dark blue ball back in his sea of consciousness. The pressure returned and, with it, the pain but he endured it as he did with any other form of training. If storing "Breath" in the mental sphere could speed up its advancements, Noah would gladly bore the pain that it caused. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Well, did you really think that you could take away the "Breath" without consequences? Your tribulations will be way more dangerous than those of other cultivators. It is recorded in the various experiments with the method." Noah became irritated again. "Recorded where?" Ivor seemed to think of something and smiled awkwardly before taking out another book from his backpack. "It seems that I forgot to give you this. You know, with the state of my mental sphere it''s easy to forget many details." Noah took the book and read through its pages. There were many experiments recorded with the insights of the cultivators on their sides. Noah could vaguely guess that there were hundreds of years of tests recorded in the book. ''The value of this knowledge is immense! It spans from ways to better tame the "Breath" to experiments in increasing its density inside the sea of consciousness.'' Noah looked again at Ivor, he could not help but wonder how such a shabby character was in possession of all those data. "Does every practitioner of the Elemental forging method have access to all this knowledge?" Ivor took a big sip from the jar before answering. "Even though this method is recognized as a valid branch of the schools regarding inscriptions, the requirements are too harsh and the dangers that come with it scare away most cultivators. It''s hard to find someone with a strong will and a sturdy mental sphere willing to take such risks only to attempt in an incomplete method." Noah''s eyes narrowed. "You didn''t answer my question." Ivor coughed lightly, putting again the previous awkward smile. "There are no more practitioners in this method, they are all either dead or mentally unable to be of any use. I''m the only one who is still trying to keep the method alive, that''s why I affiliated with the academy. I needed to find someone who could make the best use of our accumulated knowledge." Noah replied with a suspicious voice. "Don''t tell me, did all the practitioners die because of the method?" "Well, not everyone. Some of them gave up on performing inscriptions along the way. Let''s say that only nine out of ten died or ended up in my condition." Noah stared at Ivor for a long time before sighing. ''It''s not like I had any other options. Also, if I manage to make something like that knife, my power would rise exponentially.'' "I guess I''m now the only heir to the method, am I right?" Ivor nodded. Noah''s face became stern. "I want all the data, techniques, applications, and advice that you have. Don''t leave anything behind or I will never attempt to do something this dangerous again and your precious method will become history with your death." Ivor nodded again. "Deal. As a matter of fact, I can already make you my disciple and live here with you. I can give you pointers every time you have a doubt while you can focus completely on increasing the amount of "Breath" stored in your sea of consciousness." Noah shook his head. "No, I won''t focus completely on it. Actually, I intend to slow it down, just this much of "Breath" is almost my limit. I have no intention of betting my future on an incomplete method, I will continue practicing in it only because it should be my best hope in creating techniques in the higher ranks." Ivor took a long sip before falling deep in thought. Noah could see how the effort hurt him as he continued to drink from the jar every now and then. After about ten minutes, Ivor gave him his answer. "It seems the best option, I became too excited seeing that you had succeeded in the first step in only one week. The slow way is the best one in this method since one mistake might ruin you forever. However, I stand for what I said, I will live here and help you whenever you need me. I just need some Credits to afford the wine, you wouldn''t leave your poor Master suffering the whole time, won''t you?" Noah rolled his eyes and replied. "How much do you need?" Ivor scratched his beard and spoke in a soft voice. "Oh, about one hundred Credits every week." Noah''s eyes widened and he could not help but raise his tone to reprimand him. "That''s more than four hundred every month! I only have a bit less than five thousand Credits! What kind of wine are you even drinking to be this expensive? Can''t you find another way to ease your pain?" Ivor shook his head. "It is indeed a very expensive one done by an alchemy master. I guess I might lower the quantity a bit though if you really can''t afford it." Ivor began to count with his fingers while gobbling large quantities of wine from his jar. Noah felt a bit of pity looking at him and sighed again. ''He is even willing to suffer in order to see his method being passed down. Well, I can always make more money with some specific mission while I can''t underestimate the value of an experienced cultivator on my side the whole time.'' "Fine, four hundred every month, nothing more. Mind you, they need to be enough even for your food supply. Here, give me all the information you have on the Elemental forging method." Noah handed him four hundred Credits while Ivor unloaded all the contents of his backpack. There were more than ten books, all in a poor state. Ivor then began to point at each one of them, explaining its contents. It was at that moment that Noah remembered something and claimed Ivor''s attention. "There is another condition for you to live here." Ivor raised his head and waited for Noah to speak. "You need to take a bath." Noah said, pointing at the bathtub in the other room. Chapter 131: 131. Ass-licking Time passed quickly in the academy. Noah had almost no time left for his daily needs. He used all his nights to cultivate his dantian and body and all his days between the Kesier rune, his martial art, his courses, and the Elemental forging method. He had resumed sleeping only every two days in order to make room for all his exercises and some results were finally shown on his ninth month in the academy. His mind had grown stronger due to the intensive training in the Kesier rune and the pressure exerted from the "Breath" inside his sea of consciousness. His body had improved due to the Yin body and had finally entered the middle tier of the third rank. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. His dexterity with the Three forms of the Ashura and the Shadow steps spell had vastly increased thanks to the continuous sparring sessions with June, the First form was still his limit though. He had concluded three more missions successfully, they were all hunting tasks and Daniel''s followers never created troubles for him again in them. However, the most important advancement concerned his dantian. Noah was slowly walking toward a building on the left side of the academy. He would inspect his dantian from time to time and nod in satisfaction as he looked at its contents. Black crystals were amassed in that organ attesting his successful breakthrough in the solid stage! ''It has been only two months since I became sixteen but I already reached the last stage of the first rank of the dantian.'' Only a week before, he had felt that he could not accumulate any more liquid "Breath" and he had hastily made preparations for his breakthrough. He had already one Earth pill from Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance, the only thing he needed was to be at his peak form to advance. The breakthrough had gone smoothly, mostly thanks to the pill, and he had successfully entered the solid stage. He had spent the following week cultivating to increase the amount of solid "Breath" stored in the dantian and then he had considered his options. There were some useful facilities inside the academy that were accessible once a cultivator entered the rank 1 solid stage of the dantian but they also required merits points or Credits to be used. ''I only have two thousand and four hundred Credits remaining due to that scrounger but my merit points amount to one hundred and forty, they are enough for two hours inside the Sulfur domain.'' The scrounger he was referring to was, of course, Ivor that had stayed in his lodging for the whole time. He wasn''t much of an annoyance as he would spend most of his time sleeping or clearing some of Noah''s doubts regarding the legacy of the previous practitioners in the Elemental forging method but the cost of his wine was beginning to weigh on Noah. ''I need to increase my strength in order to have access to more remunerative missions. With my level, I can just complete those that have only merit points as a reward.'' The Sulfur domain had precisely that use. It was a closed area where an azure flame burned constantly and enduring the atmosphere near it increased the speed at which the mental sphere enlarged. Noah wanted to train there not only to improve his sea of consciousness but also to obtain some relief from the constant headache caused by the "Breath" in his mental sphere. He had never increased the quantity of "Breath" stored in his mind and the pain had indeed diminished due to the improvements in his sea of consciousness. However, he wanted to speed up his training even more to experiment with the forging method, he had only studied the theory in the last period. Yet, to enter the Sulfur domain, he needed to be at least in the solid stage of the first rank, so he had to train patiently until he reached that level. Noah had already registered for one hour in the domain, spending sixty merit points in the process. He was then left with eighty merit points and was quite eager to test the effects of that faculty. Noah arrived in front of a circular one-story tall building. It had a large emblem with a blue flame depicted on it. Noah had his confirmation that he had reached his destination. He took out his academy token and went toward the entrance door when three youths blocked his path. "I''m sorry but today the Sulfur domain is reserved. If you want to complain, you can talk to some of the Professors and I''m sure that your merit points will be refunded." Noah was quite jumpy in the last period due to the constant headache so he didn''t hesitate for one instant to reply with a bit of annoyance in his voice. "Who reserved it?" Another youth neared him and made an ample gesture with his arm before speaking with a proud expression. "Lord Daniel of course. He likes to be alone in the domain and we make sure that he remains undisturbed in there." ''That guy again.'' Noah looked at the three students and noticed how their clothes seemed clean and expensive. Then he moved his gaze toward the side of the entrance door. There was a guard in golden armor that feigned indifference to what was happening in his area of patrol. ''These three should be from large-size noble families and they most likely bribed that guard.'' He shook his head in disappointment before fixing his gaze on the closer student. "I don''t care. I have no time to waste for your ass-licking rituals. I registered for one hour and I will do my hour, the only difference will be in what I will step on to enter that building. It can be the terrain if you move aside now or your beaten bodies if you keep blocking my way." The three students were enraged by Noah''s mockery and began to reprimand him in a loud voice. "How dares a simple junior speak to us in such a way! Get out of my sight bef-" His phrase was interrupted since Noah''s fist had clashed with his face. Noah understood that his words had no effect so he didn''t hesitate to attack. Chapter 132: 132. Azure flame The student was sent back by the unexpected attack. The other two were about to jump on Noah but he activated the Shadow steps spell and immediately appeared in front of the first youth. He had wielded his sabers during his charge and he delivered two fast strikes with the bladeless sides of his weapons. The strikes multiplied mid-way and became six different attacks that hit the still stunned student on his junctures. Two blows for the elbows, two for the shoulders, and two for the knees. Cracking sounds sounded from his body as he fell powerlessly on the ground. The might of a rank 4 martial art coupled with the solid stage and with the surprise effect rendered one of Noah''s seniors harmless in a few instants! And that without even activating the First form! The other two students arrived on his back and launched a series of attacks with their weapons. ''Echo'' Noah''s upper clothes tore and his blood companion came out to block the incoming assault. Its figure was particularly lifelike and it successfully endured the strikes of the youths. Its body broke but, as the weapons sank in it, it reconstructed, blocking the movements of the blades. Noah didn''t waste that chance and promptly charged at the closer student. The other one released his grip on the weapon to prepare a spell but Echo screeched, releasing a sound attack that briefly disoriented him. It didn''t take much for Noah to defeat the youth, leaving him with only one opponent. Noah neared him with Echo quietly crouched on his shoulders. "You will not get away with this. Lionel, why haven''t you done anything?" The student yelled, looking at the guard on the side of the entrance. The guard shrugged his shoulders before replying to him. "Small fights are allowed in the academy. No one had suffered any severe damage so it''s up to you students to handle the situation." Noah shook his head seeing that the youth had sought the guard''s help. "How can you nobles be so weak? With all your wealth, is this the best you can amount to?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The student was angered by his words and tried again to launch a spell, his weapon was still stuck in Echo''s body after all. Noah was on him before he finished his preparations and strongly hit his waist, making him crash on the ground. He sighed and rebuked him to vent a bit of the stress he had accumulated in the last months due to the side effects of the Elemental forging method. "I believe that your expensive combat teacher in your mansion will be ashamed to know that you tried to launch a spell at such a short distance." He then stomped his head on the ground, making him faint. Noah put his sabers back in his space-ring, as well as Echo in his body, and wore a simple robe to cover his naked upper body. He then turned toward the circular building and moved to enter it. "That was a nice fight, it''s rare to find someone with that battle experience at your age." Lionel spoke to him before he could reach the door. Noah replied putting a fake smile on his face. "I didn''t know that you could bribe a guard to reserve the Sulfur domain. If you tell me your price, I might think of making use of your services." The soldier smiled awkwardly and scratched the side of his head. "Don''t blame me too much, I''m just trying to make a living in a word ruled by nobles. Sadly, the Utra continent is at peace so we in the Royal army can''t earn a decent pay." Noah reassured him. "No worries, they are not really a threat anyway." Lionel laughed a bit looking at the fainted students on the ground. "Will you apply for the Royal army? I believe you might become a captain in just a few years." Noah shrugged his shoulders but didn''t answer and placed his token on the entrance. The door slowly opened and a burning air came out of it. "Think about it. Our position is actually pretty privileged in Elbas city." Noah nodded at him and entered the building. The door slowly closed behind him. He found himself in a long and illuminated corridor, an azure halo was exuded from the end of the passage. The air was so hot that Noah had to circulate the "Breath" in his body to resist the temperature. At the end of the corridor, there was a large circular room with a flickering azure flame at its center. The room had no floor but only a sandy terrain. The grains of sand were yellow but contained azure shades in their colors. ''What a strange environment. This heat seems to have some effects on my sea of consciousness.'' As Noah neared the flame, he would feel his mental sphere loosening up, increasing its expansion speed due to the internal pressure from Echo and the "Breath". ''I understand, the flame has the effect of increasing the malleability of my mental sphere. Simply put, training here will enlarge my sphere faster.'' "I believe I said that I wanted to be alone." A voice sounded from the other side of the flame. Noah peeked and noticed that Daniel was sitting cross-legged on the sand, holding a small sheet in his hands. "Oh, it''s you." He had raised his gaze and stared at Noah, he could not help but be surprised by his presence there. Noah didn''t speak and simply moved in the area occupied by him. He noticed that the temperature increased even more as it did the effects on his mental sphere. He had to use his solid "Breath" though to oppose the temperature, his rank 3 body was not enough in that environment. He calculated the distance that he had to keep from the flame to last for one hour with his amount of "Breath" and sat on the ground. Noah took out the second Kesier rune and began to look at it. The pressure from the insides of his sphere enlarged at high speed the loosened sea of consciousness. ''This speed is simply amazing! I should always spend my merit points to use this building.'' However, Daniel spoke again. "Am I really not worthy of your attention?" Chapter 133: 133. Confidential Noah spoke without moving his eyes from the Kesier rune. "It''s not that, I just don''t have time for other people." His mental sphere was enlarging at an incredible speed, Noah didn''t want to waste any of his time inside the Sulfur domain on socializing. "What about Murray, Norman, and Scott?" Daniel asked but those names meant nothing to Noah. "I don''t know who they are." "The three seniors in front of the entrance door." Noah shrugged his shoulders. "Oh, them. They allowed me to pass." One of Daniel''s eyebrows arched when he heard Noah''s words. "All they want is to please me. They will never allow anyone inside unless I say so." Noah didn''t move at all, his gaze was always on the rune as he answered. "So, you do know that your followers are mindless idiots." Daniel chuckled softly. "Idiots? Maybe. Mindless? Not at all. It''s the nature of humans to stick with the strongest person or the one with the best future prospects. You might not know but I''m the only cultivator of the light element that has been seen in decades." Noah shrugged his shoulders again. "Is it something that amazing? Being of a rare element will only diminish the number of techniques available for you." Daniel continued to chuckle. "If you have enough money though, that''s not a problem. I can have the same number of techniques as other cultivators but of greater might due to my element." "You sure brag a lot." Daniel was momentarily silenced by Noah''s statement. An awkward silence occupied the room and only the flickering of the azure flame could be heard from time to time. Daniel resumed speaking. "Do you understand that I will become someone important in the future?" Noah replied plainly. "There are a lot of important people in the world, should I care about all of them?" "Well, yes! If you are powerful and you have the right amount of connections and man-power, you are invincible in this world!" Noah''s mind wavered a bit. He still maintained his eyes on the rune but he spared some thought for Daniel''s words. ''A group formed by powerful people is surely stronger than one single person. However, what if someone was so powerful that numbers couldn''t make him stagger? At that point, being in a group will only slow you down.'' "Listen, if you really want to keep talking, you better take out some merit points to prolong my staying in this building." At those words, Daniel shut up. The hour passed slowly. Daniel had to exit the building as he had exhausted his "Breath", he had been inside of the Sulfur realm for almost two hours after all. Noah spent all his time focused on enlarging the mental sphere. When his time was over, his token sent him a warning. ''If I choose to remain overtime, my merit points will be expended. There is also a feature like this.'' He thought, inspecting the academy token. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''Well, my solid "Breath" is almost completely depleted and I don''t think that a prolonged training in this environment is ultimately beneficial to my sea of consciousness. I will simply come here again after one week of normal training.'' He had still eighty merit points, he could afford another hour inside the area whenever he wanted. Noah exited the building and found out that only the guard remained in front of the entrance. "They all went away. That Daniel helped them." Lionel spoke and Noah nodded at him. He then returned to his accommodation and rested before waking up at night to cultivate again. Ivor stood most of the time in the empty room, he would go outside of the academy ground only to refill his stash of wine. However, he respected Noah''s dedication and never bothered him unless he was studying the researches of the Elemental forging method. His attitude made the cohabitation smoother. As the sun rose, Noah stopped his meditation and was about to rest again when he heard someone knocking on the entrance door. He went to open it and found Thaddeus standing in front of his lodging with a wide smile on his face. "I see that you got yourself a better accommodation." Noah hastily bowed and replied. "Oh, the students in the academy are too nice. A senior actually willingly gave it to me after I saved him in one of my missions." Thaddeus nodded while looking at the interiors of the house. "I believe that he must have felt really grateful to you. And tell me, was that before or after you broke his limbs?" "¡­" Noah raised his head and saw that Thaddeus was looking at him with his usual sly smile. "Am I in trouble?" Thaddeus shook his head, laughing softly. "Not at all! In my opinion, you did the right thing. Lately, the heirs of the noble families were growing up as weaklings, it seems that such an extensive period of peace has softened their character too much. With you here, they might focus more on their battle prowess so you have my complete approval in case you wanted to act a bit more wildly." Noah was at loss for words. ''Does he want me to be some sort of trainer for their poor battle proficiency? Being the bad guy so that they will value more the qualities useful in battle?'' However, he simply rolled his eyes and spoke in a soft voice. "There should be some better lodging than this one¡­" Thaddeus laughed again at his words. Silence reined after their last exchange of words and Noah could not help but speak again. "Professor, did you come here only to let me know that you were paying attention to my behavior?" Thaddeus seemed to remember something and began to speak. "Right! No, I actually wanted to make you an offer. I''m putting together a small team of young students to complete a special mission. There will be merit points and Credits as a reward, I felt that you might have wanted to join." Noah''s eyes lit up but he first asked about some of his doubts. "Why come here though? Could you not put the mission on the board?" Thaddeus lowered his voice before resuming speaking. "It''s actually a confidential mission. I went looking for students with high battle proficiency and with less affiliation to noble families. You, of course, fit these criteria perfectly." Chapter 134: 134. Agreemen Noah was interested and gestured to Thaddeus to come inside his accommodation. He was in need of Credits and he was rather eager to take a break from the monotony of the life in the academy. Thaddeus sat on the broken bed and took out a small jar exuding the aroma of sweet wine. He poured it in two glasses and handed one to Noah. Noah gladly accepted it but, before he could taste the wine, the door of the empty room opened, showing Ivor that fixedly stared at the jar in Thaddeus'' hands. "It''s been a long time since I saw the wine of the Peach river." Thaddeus'' eyes sharpened seeing him. "Ivor, I thought that you had finally resigned in passing down that madness that you call inscription method." Noah sighed and passed his glass to Ivor. Thaddeus saw that gesture and his eyes widened in understanding. "Is he your Master? Is he the reason why you didn''t pick my course?" Noah wanted to give a brief explanation but Ivor was faster than him in replying to the Professor. "Thaddeus, don''t even think of snatching him from me. He is the heir to our method, the most talented and meticulous of all the practitioners of our school." Thaddeus shook his head while looking at Noah. "Try not to kill yourself. There are many other methods that can give you the status of an inscription master. Even if you don''t have any talent for the "Attunement" method, you don''t have to force your way with that practice. Oh, and Ivor, I already have a disciple." He was speaking about Ruth. Thaddeus had become her Master in the last period, it was pointless to describe her excitement when that happened. Ivor snorted and replied after taking a sip from the glass. "And to what use? Only to become a second-rate inscription master? We both know that on a scale of power of the products, the Attunement method is second only to the Elemental forging one." Thaddeus smiled, fixing his gaze on the middle-aged man. "If we consider only the power held by the inscriptions of your method, then I can''t argue. But you must remember that the stability of your creations is low while the mortality rate of those that practice in that method is extremely high. Overall, a stable method, even if it loses a bit in power, is way better than an extreme one. Yours has almost disappeared after all, while mine is flourishing everywhere." Ivor snorted again but didn''t answer, Thaddeus'' words were unarguable, they perfectly described the current situation in the field of inscriptions. "Professor, I still need to know the contents of the mission." Noah stepped in, interrupting their conversation. He already knew all the disadvantages of the method that he chose so he didn''t give much importance to Thaddeus'' warnings. ''What''s the point of using a safer but inferior method? I''d rather risk my life to obtain something more powerful.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Thaddeus resumed his focus on Noah and began to explain the contents of the task. "We finally managed to track down the inheritance ground of the previous Royal family. However, there are a few problems involved that prevent us from attempting to retrieve it." Noah became extremely interested. ''The inheritance ground of a Royal family! It should be many times more profitable than Eccentric Thunder''s one.'' "The first problem is that its entrance is prevented to anyone connected with the Elbas family. Not even those in the Royal army can enter due to the oath that they have with us." "The second problem is that it''s placed outside the borders of the Utra continent. If we act incautiously, the countries nearby might notice something and attempt to claim the inheritance for themselves." Noah thought for a while before replying to Thaddeus. "So, you ask those with fewer affiliations with the nobles because we will demand a smaller share of the inheritance?" Thaddeus smiled slightly before answering. "That''s one of the reasons. The other one is that many of the current large-size noble families had a deep connection with the previous Royal dynasty. We are afraid that if they knew about the inheritance, they might gang up and start a revolution." Noah nodded in understanding. ''The wealth hidden by the previous Royal family should be tempting enough to create an agreement between the noble families. After all, the Elbas dynasty has only a marginal control over all the other nobles, they don''t have all the man-power required to stop a joint revolution.'' "What''s my share?" Noah asked. Thaddeus promptly answered. "We can give you two hundred thousand Credits and a prestigious position in the Royal city." Noah shook his head. "That''s too little. We are talking about the previous rulers of this country and I assume that we have to hide our identities during the trip." Thaddeus nodded. "How much?" Noah stared at the Professor for a bit before naming his price. "I want ten percent of the total value of the inheritance and a full set of potions and pills useful for the mission. I also want the freedom to choose which prestigious position in the Royal city I will get as well as the priority over the items inside the inheritance that can help my growth." Thaddeus raised his voice. "Ten percent!? Do you understand the amount of wealth that a Royal family accumulates during its domain?" Noah slightly smiled. "No, but now I know that two hundred thousand Credits are clearly not enough for my services." Thaddeus'' expression froze and Ivor exploded in a sonorous laugh. "You are getting old, my friend. The new generations are more cunning than you can imagine." It took a while for them to come to an agreement. In the end, Noah managed to bargain for three percent of the total inheritance that he could acquire in the form of Credits or items. The part about the potions and the prestigious position seemed to not concern Thaddeus too much since he agreed almost immediately to those conditions. When Thaddeus left the room, they had agreed to meet one week from then at the entrance of the academy, there Noah would receive the promised items and meet the other students for the mission. "I think you could have pushed for five percent, why did you stop?" Ivor asked that question when they remained alone. Noah smiled coldly. "Well, at least they won''t get too mad if I keep some souvenir of the trip." Chapter 135: 135. Nerere country The week passed quickly. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah went outside the academy ground donned in his usual black gym suit. He had left eight hundred Credits to Ivor and used again the Sulfur domain to make sure that he had increased his power as much as possible. He had only one thousand and six hundred Credits and twenty merit points left, he was in need of the rewards of the mission. However, his headache had vastly diminished in intensity which left him pleasantly surprised. ''I should really pay more attention to the faculties of the academy.'' Right outside of the entrance, in Arolyac forest, Thaddeus was waiting with three more students. "Why am I not surprised that you are here?" One of the students was June and she spoke as soon as she saw Noah arriving. "We are the best in our class as well as the poorest. It is quite obvious for us to join this mission." Noah answered. During the previous months, June had clearly shown her superiority to Justin, gaining the undisputed title of the second strongest in the Grayshade class. The first spot belonged, of course, to Noah who remained undefeated. ''She is from a small-size noble family, she needs Credits to buy new training methods. I traded the Surging river spell which was valued fifty thousand Credits, I believe that she still hasn''t upgraded all her techniques.'' "Let me introduce you before I review the details of the mission. We have to walk a bit so let''s move in the meantime. Oh, take these." Thaddeus spoke and one hundred or so shining bottles appeared on the ground. "The potions for the mission, divide them equally." The students gathered the goods in their storage devices and followed Thaddeus over the mountain where the academy was. "Vance and June joined us nine months ago, they are the best in the real battle class so don''t treat them poorly simply because they are your juniors." He pointed at a tall youth with black hair of about eighteen years old. "He is Errol. He joined us one year and three months ago and he is the one in his class that has improved the most since he entered the academy. He will be joining the Royal army once he reaches the proper age." Then he pointed at the last student. He was a short brown-haired man of about nineteen years old. "He is Nigel, he joined us almost two years ago. He has talent in understanding inscriptions and his battle prowess in not low. He will be the captain for this mission and his insights will be useful to surpass the trials of the inheritance ground." They passed the small mountain and ventured deeper inside Arolyac forest. "The location of the inheritance ground is inside the Nerere country. It''s a wasteland, almost uninhabited, that''s why it took so much for my family to find it." "The problem is that it borders with two other countries. Unless we want to start a war, we need to retrieve the inheritance unnoticed." "As for the trials, we cleared the first two layers but then we met the restrictions toward my family. Apparently, they were really mad at us to set something like that." The four students rolled their eyes. How could they not hate the family that dethroned them? Thaddeus made an awkward laugh and continued his explanation. "Anyhow, we learnt something in those two layers. There is a reward every time a layer is cleared and the tests inside have all been battle-related. The difficulty was still low, we only met some low stage rank 3 beasts but we believe that it will rise exponentially as you explore deeper. Don''t worry, if you ever meet something that surpasses your ability, retreat. You can always attempt again once you become stronger." ''So, this will be a long-lasting mission. It makes sense, how could a group of rank 1 cultivators retrieve something that valuable?'' Noah thought. "The maximum number of people that can enter at the same time is four, that''s why there are only this many of you. If you manage to clear more than two layers, we will consider the mission a success." Nigel spoke once Thaddeus finished his explanation. "Is the total number of layers known?" Thaddeus shook his head. "Unfortunately, we were unable to discover it. And having experienced only two layers, we aren''t sure of how much the difficulty will increase as you go deeper." Noah asked a question. "Deeper? Do you mean that the trials will be underground?" "Not exactly. You will understand once you see the inheritance ground." There were no more questions along the way. They traveled for one entire day before reaching the borders of the forest. A carriage was waiting for them with a hooded coachman on the rider position. Thaddeus spoke. "We will separate here. This carriage will take you to the Nerere country and across the desert. It''s a two weeks trip, sadly the air-ship is too eye-catching so we can''t use it. We can''t create an oath either since that will prevent you from entering the inheritance. We reached an agreement with all of you so try not to steal anything, we will gladly give you more Credits if you really find something exceptionally valuable." He stared at each one of the students in the eyes to make sure that they understood his words. He smiled after he finished with the warnings. "You can all go now. I wish you good luck. Be careful." The students bowed and went inside the carriage. They took a side each, the carriage was big enough to fit four small couches inside it. After a few minutes, the carriage began to move, their mission had finally begun! Nigel spoke with a friendly smile on his face. "Since we have to spend two weeks together, I say that we get to know each other. I would also like to know your specializations since I have to prepare a battle formation. I use the rapier and I am of the water element." "Mace, fire element." "Spear, thunder element." June had stared at Noah since the presentations begun, a slight smile was on her face. "I use two sabers." Nigel waited for him to continue but no more words came from him. "I''m sorry but I advise you to reveal your element. We are working for the Royal family now, if I lack some essential information about our actual power and fail the mission because of that, all of us will be blamed." Noah thought for a while before sighing and speaking with a soft voice. "Darkness." Chapter 136: 136. Tower The eyes of the other three students widened. Nigel was the first to recover and spoke with an excited voice. "Why didn''t you tell anyone? You are the first cultivator of the darkness element that has appeared in decades! One day, your fame might match Daniel''s one, why would you do these missions instead of finding a Master that finances you?" Noah shook his head and replied. "I have my personal reasons to keep this characteristic a secret, I''d prefer that you don''t divulge this information." Errol and Nigel nodded almost immediately at his words. "Don''t worry, we will gladly keep this between ourselves!" "Yes, we are a team now! We have to respect each other wishes." The students in the carriage were all from poor backgrounds. When they understood that they could become the first followers of the next Daniel, they didn''t hesitate to reassure Noah with their cooperation. June was still staring at him with wide eyes. She came back to reality and released a soft sigh. "It seems that even my element is inferior to yours." Noah snorted lightly. "It''s not like it would have made any difference if I were of another element." June''s battle intent was kindled again and she pointed at Noah while raising her voice. "Hmph! You will see! After this mission is over, I will upgrade all my techniques and teach you who is the strongest!" Noah didn''t reply and took out the second Kesier rune, he didn''t want to spend the two weeks of travel socializing. June saw his behavior and did the same while Errol and Nigel looked at each other in confusion. Noah had become used to June''s character. He had begun to loosen up a bit when he spoke with her even if their interactions mostly consisted of him teasing her because of his victories. The trip went on quietly. The four students would mostly cultivate inside the carriage and take small breaks only to relieve themselves. Nigel would claim their attention from time to time to explain some simple battle formations that they had to set up in specific situations. As the day passed, the environment changed drastically. From the green plains and the mountains filled with woods, the scenery transformed into one of desolation and death. When the last tree disappeared from their sight and only the yellow sand occupied their field of view, they understood that they had entered the Nerere continent. There was sand in every direction and no trace of life at all. The temperature was quite high during the day but not extremely so. ''It doesn''t seem that the desertification is caused by the heat, maybe this is another peculiar area like Arolyac forest.'' Noah noted in his mind as the landscape moved. In the end, the two weeks passed and they reached their destination. The carriage stopped and the coachman gestured to the students to jump down on the ground. "I can''t proceed from here on, just climb that dune and you''ll be greeted by the soldiers of the Royal dynasty." They had stopped in the middle of the desert, in front of a big dune made of sand. The students nodded and moved toward the direction pointed by the hooded man. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Everything looked normal but then they began to notice the presence of inscriptions in the sandy ground. Their numbers increased until the shape of a formation unfolded in front of their eyes. As they crossed its borders, they felt like they had trespassed some kind of invisible barrier and the scenery changed immediately. Tens of tents were placed on the terrain creating an orderly encampment. Soldiers in golden armors ran in every direction doing different errands and an enormous pit was present in the ground in the distance. A soldier noticed the presence of the four students and neared them with a friendly expression. "You must be the students from the academy. Please follow me to the tent of the captain, we will inform you of all the details that we discovered in the exploration of the inheritance." It didn''t take much for the group to reach the bigger tent in the encampment. As they entered it, the guard loudly announced them to a middle-aged man sitting behind a large desk. "Captain, the students sent by His Majesty Thaddeus have arrived." The man nodded and gestured to the soldier to leave the tent while he stood up to inspect them. The captain had a medium stature and a seemingly strong body. His skin was dark but his hair was completely white and long, giving to his appearance an exotic aura. He nodded after he had stared at the four for a while. "I''m Preston Bowend, I''m the captain of the troop stationed here. We have been investigating the inheritance ground for more than six months already so I believe that you would want to know what we have discovered so far. Come with me, it will be easier to explain if you see it." Preston went out of the tent with the students on his tail and moved toward the big pit. As they neared it, the shape of a tower began to appear in the middle of the sandy scenery. When they reached the edges of the pit, the eyes of the students were wide due to the astonishment that they felt. ''How much did they invested to build something like this?'' That was Noah''s first thought when he saw the structure. The hole was forty meters large and a big tower stood planted inside. It was a circular tower with each floor separated by large and inscribed marble bricks but the number of stories that the structure had was uncertain since it was impossible to know how much of its body was still inside the ground. There were soldiers carefully excavating inside the hole, trying to uncover more of the tower. Preston spoke with a calm voice. "We know for sure that the tower has been built directly underground but we managed to expose only five floors. Since there is more of the building underground, we are sure that there are at least six layers in the inheritance. We have already cleared the first two so you will start with the third one. Oh, you might want to know that every floor contains a different separate dimension so the environment changes every time." Chapter 137: 137. Inside Nigel asked a question to the captain. "Captain, what do you mean by that?" Preston moved some hair away from his forehead before answering. "On the first layer, the dimension was an icy field populated by rank 3 Snow bears. On the second one, we were in an underground area against Steeled centipedes. From that, we can imagine that all the other layers will contain a different environment. One thing you might want to know is that they are real magical beasts and not some creations of the inheritance ground." ''They actually created real environments and filled them with the magical beasts corresponding to each location. I don''t even want to think at the amount of preparation required to set up something like that.'' Noah thought, marveled by the Royal inheritance. Nigel spoke again. "So, we just need to clear the floor to pass it?" Preston nodded. "That''s the method that we used and it worked just fine." "Number of specimens?" "One hundred on the first layer and two hundred in the second one. However, their rank was about the same." "Do we have a time limit for each floor?" Preston pointed at the inscribed bricks. "We deciphered those inscriptions. The time limit was of one week on the first floor and two on the second one. It will be three weeks in the third one and so on, at least for the floors that we can see." Nigel turned toward Preston. "Anything else worth mentioning?" Preston thought for a little before nodding. "Yes! The passage for the next layer will appear only after you cleared the dimension while the one to the previous floor will be always open. You won''t have to worry about not having the chance of retreating. I believe that this is everything we know about the inheritance ground, tell me if you need anything." Nigel spoke almost immediately. "We need four separate tents to rest for the night, provisions for the mission, and empty storage devices for the rewards. Any chance to borrow some of the armors of the soldiers?" Preston shook his head. "They are inscribed per order of the Elbas dynasty, the inheritance ground would straight up refuse them." Nigel nodded. "Then, that will be it. If you manage to have everything done today, we will enter directly tomorrow morning." Preston called one of the soldiers and ordered to gather the requested items. Four tents were prepared and the students rested peacefully inside them. Noah did his usual training but with less intensity, he could not afford to be tired when he entered the tower. The day passed uneventfully and the four students gathered in front of the pit at dawn. A soldier had given to each of them enough provision for a one-year journey and a black space-ring. Noah was amazed when he inspected the width of the ring. ''There are more than one hundred cubic meters of space! And they gave four of them to us! I miscalculated their wealth, maybe I should have really bargained for a higher share of the inheritance.'' "Everyone ready?" Preston arrived behind them. "Yes, you can lead the way, Captain." Nigel answered and Preston made a gesture to the soldiers down in the pit. They placed a stair made of wood on the sandy walls and the group of four youths descended in the excavation site. A soldier brought them toward an area in front of the tower where more stairs stood on the sides of the building and he pointed at them. "You need to climb at the top of the tower where four runes are inscribed on the floor. Just stand on one each and you will enter the first layer." They hurriedly climbed them till they arrived at the top of the structure where they saw the designed runes. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Nigel raised a hand to claim their attention. "As we enter, we will run straight for the passage that leads to the lower layer. We will stop once we reach the passage for the third one to reorganize." Everyone nodded and stepped on one of the runes. The pressure of the teleportation pressed on their sea of consciousness and, when they reopened their eyes, they were in a field covered in snow. According to the information given by Preston, they ran toward a certain area. ''This is not as big as Eccentric Thunder inheritance ground but it sure is more realistic.'' Noah noted in his mind. The other separate dimension that he saw was barren and was quite different from the outside world. However, the Royal inheritance seemed to simply be a part of the world, there was no influence from inscriptions or runes in the environment. ''Don''t tell me that they actually moved a part of the outside world in this dimension. Well, I don''t really know which process is harder.'' The sky was clear but, in the distance, he could undoubtedly see the borders of the landscape. There was a faint circular wall surrounding an area of five square kilometers, delimiting the icy field. ''That should be the wall of the tower seen from its insides.'' The students ran for about an hour into the desolate field until they reached a glowing staircase that led underground. They hastily went down and in ten minutes they arrived in a completely different area. It was clearly underground and dark but what stunned the students the most was that they had descended the stairs only to come out from the terrain of the new area. ''Amazing, I didn''t even feel when there was the variation from descending to climbing.'' They stood still only for a moment before resuming their march. The second layer seemed vaster than the previous one but since they were underground, they could not see where the wall of the tower was. In about two hours, they reached the passage for the third layer. That time it was a big blue inscribed door that had again the four runes that they saw on the top of the tower on its surface. Nigel spoke turning toward his three companions. "Let''s rest for a bit before we enter the next floor, we might meet some trouble as soon as we cross the door." Everyone agreed and meditated to return at peak condition. Ten minutes later, they were all standing in front of the runes. "Ready?" Nigel looked at the others. "Go!" All four of them touched the runes at the same time. There was no problem with the teleportation, the inheritance ground didn''t link them to the Elbas family. When they opened their eyes, they were in a green plain full of rivers and more than three hundred pairs of eyes with vertical pupils were fixed in their direction. Chapter 138: 138. Third layer Noah immediately recognized the owners of those eyes. "River crocodiles!" He shouted, reviewing their characteristics in his head. ''They have a strong bite and a scaled body that offers a good defense. They can use fresh water to heal their injuries. In this environment and with their number, we are at a total disadvantage.'' There were more than three hundred beasts in front of them, all in the third rank. They had a body four meters long and one and a half tall. The crocodiles didn''t hesitate to charge at them, they swam in the rivers toward their position. Nigel wasn''t slow in his reaction and began to yell orders. "Let''s get in formation! We hold the first wave together and then alternate between two groups. Vance and June first and then me and Errol. Try to finish them in one hit!" The four students aligned, wielding their weapons. Noah didn''t hesitate to uncover his upper body and release Echo. They were only rank 3 magical beasts but their number was too high to underestimate them. The first wave of beasts arrived. The crocodiles jumped from the rivers and assaulted the students with their maws wide open. Noah launched a series of wind slashes that multiplied mid-air and crashed in the middle of the mouths of the creatures, almost severing them in half. June thrust with her spear that sent piercing blows from its tip, engraving bloody holes to any beast in the ten meters area in front of her. Errol swung a massive black mace, sending shockwaves in front of him that made the crocodiles bleed from every orifice due to the might of the vibrations generated from his weapon. Nigel thrust his rapier with his left arm behind his back, his weapon created sharp watery lines in the air that cut everything that passed through them. The power of four students of the academy using their rank 4 martial art was shown at its fullest in that situation! Tens of crocodiles died as soon as they entered the range of the attacks of the youths. Scales, blood, and lifeless bodies fell continuously on the ground tainting the plain and the water of the rivers. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. However, the assault of the magical beasts seemed endless. More and more beasts jumped from the rivers to crash on the group of four. Noah controlled Echo to block the attacks that were about to land on the defenseless spots of their formation, as well as finishing the beasts that survived the clash and wanted to reach the river to recover. Minutes passed and Noah and his group were slowly losing ground. At some point, Nigel gave another order. "Spells!" Noah and June jumped in the vanguard. June''s spear released faint sparks that increased the range of her attacks while Noah activated the First form of his martial art. The horde of crocodiles was momentarily pushed back, giving time to Errol and Nigel to retreat of a few steps and concentrate on their spells. The tip of Nigel''s rapier shone with a blue light and he thrust it repeatedly, seemingly in the empty air. However, from the top of his weapon, tens of water bullets shot out and pierced the crocodiles right in the middle of their skulls. Errol waved his mace which lit up and released a flaming phoenix that launched massive fireballs on the most crowded areas in the pack of beasts. The assault of the beasts was finally slowing down! "Change!" Nigel yelled again and June and Noah interrupted their techniques and moved in the rear position, leaving Errol and Nigel to physically face the charge of the beasts. June closed her eyes and her spear began to gather orange sparks through all its body. She then reopened them and forcefully lunged toward a crowded area. A thunderbolt shot out from her spear which reduced to ashes anything that passed through. Noah limited himself to deliver ranged strikes that multiplied mid-air due to the characteristics of his martial art. Six wind slashes shot out from his figure every time he moved, there was the faint image of four additional arms on his torso. Echo, in the meantime, continued its hunt for wounded prey or helped the students in the vanguard. Sometimes, a black fuming thread linked its body to Noah''s one. "Change!" Nigel yelled again and they switched their roles, June and Noah went back in the vanguard position. That was a simple battle formation that Nigel came up with after he had learnt about the abilities of the students in the group. Since the moment when a cultivator casts a powerful spell was generally his most exposed one, he decided that they would have had to alternate between front and rear position. Needless to say, the effect of the tactic left even Noah surprised. ''Well, it can only work since all of us have a high proficiency in close combat and Echo is covering for any weak point that appears.'' Noah thought. The beasts had diminished so much that he had time to analyze the battle. "Charge ahead!" Once the remaining crocodiles were less than fifty, Nigel gave the order to finish them. In less than fifteen minutes, the third layer of the Royal inheritance was emptied of any trace of life with the exception of the group from the academy. All the four youths sat on the ground as soon as the battle was over, they needed to recover from the fight. Even though the battle lasted less than one hour, they had to constantly use their rank 4 martial art to repel the horde of magical beasts and they even used some of their most powerful spells at certain intervals. "Vance, what is that puppet? It''s extremely useful and its expenditure of mental energy doesn''t seem high." Errol pointed at Echo that was quietly guarding Noah while he meditated. "It''s a spell." Noah replied calmly. At that point, some inscriptions lighted up on the circular wall in the distance. Their light gathered in the middle of the green plain and shone for a few minutes before fading. In that spot, a mountain made of Obsidian Credits and inscribed items appeared. Nigel smiled and turned to the other students. "Who wants to inspect the rewards?" Chapter 139: 139. Guil The four students neared the mountain of goods. They all had an amazed expression as they looked at the amount of wealth piled on the ground. Errol was the first to speak. "Just the value of these Obsidian Credits is more than a million! And there are more than a thousand inscribed items!" There was some greed in his eyes as he kept staring at the rewards. ''This is only the reward for one layer and it is worth a ridiculous amount of money. Isn''t it way too much for just three hundred rank 3 magical beasts?'' Noah thought while keeping his eyes fixed on the items. With the exception of their value in Credits, there was nothing that really interested him. Errol, on the other hand, neared a big metal mace with many runes on its body. He swung it a few times and then inspected it carefully. After a few minutes, he nodded happily and raised his head to look at the others in his group. "No one minds if I take this?" All three of them shrugged their shoulders, the Royal family wouldn''t really care if one of two of these items were to disappear. Also, they were all from poor environments so they could understand the need for better equipment. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Errol happily put away his new weapon and asked a question looking toward Nigel. "So, how should we divide everything?" Nigel answered in a calm voice. "Let''s just split it into four piles of equal dimension. Like this, the remaining space in the space-rings will be the same for all of us. We will see if we need to change this disposition in the next layers." He was quite sure that they could clear more floors. After all, the battle had been tough but not extremely so, they were all uninjured. The youths split the goods equally and put everything in their black space-rings, June, Nigel, and Noah had uncaringly seized a few thousand Credits for themselves in the process. When the pile of rewards was moved away, they noticed that a staircase had appeared in the terrain below it. "We should all rest until we return to our peak form. When everyone is ready, we will go to the fourth layer." The other three agreed with Nigel''s plan and freely rested on the plain. Half a day went by before all of them entered the staircase for the next floor. They were already wielding their weapons with Noah being shirtless and they slowly moved on the steps of the stairs. It happened the same switch of directions and they came out from the terrain of the fourth layer. The environment was covered in white fog with faint purple shades which limited the field of view of the students to less than ten meters in every direction. They looked at each other and nodded silently, Nigel pointed toward a direction and the others followed. ''I feel that something is looking at my mental sphere, the sensation resembles the one that I felt during the test of my nature.'' Noah thought. He had felt that his sea of consciousness was being observed since they arrived on the floor. However, as he thought of that, he noticed that the fog had become denser around him and that he had lost sight of his companions. ''Is this an illusion? It''s impossible that I really separated from them, right?'' "Noah." A female voice sounded from the fog and Noah''s eyes broadened listening to it. A figure moved through the fog toward his position. Little by little, its features became clear. Large icy-blue eyes, thin eyebrows, long black hair, it was a face that he remembered perfectly. "Noah, you''ve become strong my child." Lily appeared in front of him, her expression was one of pain and bloody tears fell from her eyes. "Mother." As his emotions were stirred, his mind became hazy and he unconsciously answered her. She drew close to him and continued to speak. "Can you save me now? Have you become strong enough to take me away?" A bit of guilt assaulted him, he could not control his emotions as he usually did and they began to attack his mind. "No." He honestly answered, even though almost three years had passed from her death, he was still very far away from the power that he needed to avenge her. Her expression became uglier and more bloody tears came out of her face. "When will it be enough? You had many chances to take me away if you just had chosen to give up on cultivation! We could have lived a simple life, away from all these struggles for more power but you chose to leave me in the mansion! Do you know how many abuses I had to endure? Do you know what your father did to me every day? You could have stopped all of that!" Noah lowered his head, the guilt became uncontrollable in his mind. He had always known that if he had put his mind into it, he had a chance to take Lily away before she died. A favor from William and a life as fugitives would have done the trick but that implied that he had to give up to any ambition regarding the cultivation world. She wasn''t his real mother, not in his mind at least, but she gave him nothing else but love. Without a doubt, she had managed to leave a deep mark on his second life. "If you had known, would you have given everything up for me?" She spoke again and Noah''s expression became complex. He answered honestly. "I don''t know." He mostly suppressed those thoughts with his constant training but as the question was asked, he had to admit that he really was conflicted about the situation. On one hand, there was the search for power that he desired. On the other one, the woman that gave everything up for him. Lily touched Noah''s cheek and lifted his face so that he could look at her. Noah saw how her beauty wasn''t covered even with all the blood that came out of her eyes. "Don''t worry, I forgive you. Now, just stay still." Her hand flickered and reappeared next Noah''s throat. Before it could hit him though, Noah grabbed her arm and squeezed it in anger. Chapter 140: 140. Fog goblins Noah''s eyes became cold as he regained control of his mental faculties. "Do you know what were her last words to me?" Lily''s expression became confused and she tried to retreat but Noah''s grip on her arm was firm and unmoving. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "She said: don''t care about me. That woman managed to endure any kind of pain in order to give me enough time to develop." A warm smile appeared on his face as he thought about her. Lily panicked and spoke. "How did you manage to break free from the illusion? Your mind was lost in guilt!" Noah shook his head. "I didn''t, it''s just that she always smiled every time she looked at me." She replied in a confused voice. "Then, how did you regain control of yourself?" "Because you tried to ruin my image of her and that made me angry." Black smoke came out from the hand holding her arm. "So angry that all the guilt disappeared and I could think clearly again." The smoke enveloped the arm and the scene shattered, revealing a skinny green limb that was holding a knife made of bones. "You know, I might be a psycho incapable of choosing between my mother''s life and cultivation. Call me a demon or whatever, I don''t care." The smoke consumed the limb almost instantly and Lily escaped Noah''s grip. "But if you thought that using my memories of her was a smart tactic, then you really understood nothing of her." She had killed herself to protect Noah, to prevent the Balvan family from using her to hurt him. Noah couldn''t let an illusion do the same thing that she tried so hard to avert. Black smoke came out from every part of his body, turning into a protective armor and covering him completely. The scene shattered in many parts, incapable of enduring the might of Noah''s spell. Lily''s figure turned into a humanoid green beast with pointy ears and a large nose. It spoke as it retreated. "Wait! The humans you came with are near you, you might hurt them if you keep going." Noah yelled in a rough voice to reply. "I DON''T CARE! DEMONIC FORM!" The spell completely activated and he turned into the fiendish figure that constantly released black toxic smoke. The beast tried to run but Noah arrived in front of him in an instant. He grabbed its throat and slowly watched its body being devoured by his spell. When nothing was left of the beast, he looked around him to inspect the situation. ''That was close, if Echo and the "Breath" in my sea of consciousness didn''t oppose the illusion, I might have died.'' He had lied to the beast in order to confuse it. It was true that he was incredibly angry but it was thanks to the internal pressure in his mental sphere that he managed to regain clarity. ''Now, I should first get rid of this fog.'' He focused and his mental energy depleted at high speed. More smoke was produced and it devoured the fog around him. As the fog disappeared, the environment shattered revealing the true form of the fourth layer. It was a rocky location, with purple crystals sparsely embodied in the terrain. ''They should be Fog goblin and those crystals enhance their innate ability to create illusions. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for me to get affected by simple rank 3 magical beasts.'' After he had seen their aspect and the environment they were in, Noah guessed which kind of magical beasts they were facing. The Fog goblins were humanoid magical beasts. Their intelligence was high, almost on par with the human''s one, and they mostly targeted intelligent beings as their prey. They covered an environment with fog that they naturally secreted which was used to confuse their victims. However, their actual battle prowess was low, once their illusion was broken, they were even weaker than rank 2 beasts. ''I should first find the others and then go wild.'' He released even more black smoke and carefully watched the scene transform. The first to appear was Nigel, he was in a confused state and a goblin was hugging him while he cried. Noah sent Echo to kill the beast and hastily made it retreat to avoid to disperse more smoke in his position. He was trying to save them after all, if he was careless, he could kill them with his spell. He then found June who was sitting on her knees with her face lowered. She was biting her lower lip so hard that blood flowed on the ground. A goblin was in front of her, holding a knife. Echo arrived in her position in an instant, killed the goblin, and returned to Noah. He lastly found Errol. He had some cuts on his body and he was retreating in panic. Noah vanquished the goblin and stopped his spell. Echo returned in his body and he carried each one of them in the spot where the passage for the third layer was. There was no fog in that position after Noah went all out with his Demonic form so they slowly regained clarity of mind. "Vance, what happened?" June asked as soon as her eyes focused. "Fog goblins with their abilities enhanced by those purple crystals. Stay here, I will gladly clear this layer alone." He turned before she could reply to him and disappeared in the fog. "Noah, my child." "Noah, I''m your mother!" "Don''t worry my child, I can endure a bit more." Many figures of Lily appeared around him as he moved. However, the only reaction that they caused was an increase in the coldness of his aura. He freely launched fuming wind slashes in every direction, cracking the illusion as the partial Demonic form devoured the fog. Lily''s figures shattered many times, increasing Noah''s need to vent. ''My mother might be dead but you are alive enough to withstand my anger!'' It took Noah an entire day to kill all the magical beasts in the floor. The Fog goblins, when they saw that Noah was unaffected by their innate ability, began to hide. Since his field of view was hindered, he decided to completely vanquish the fog itself with his spell. He had to drink many potions to keep up with the consumption of mental energy. Nevertheless, the test was completed and he rejoined his group to wait for the rewards. Chapter 141: 141. Underground lakes "Thanks, Vance, you really saved us out there." Noah nodded, sitting on the ground. The effort of vanquishing the fog in the entirety of the fourth floor had tired him greatly, he needed to rest. "As for the things that you saw when we were inside the illusion..." Noah raised one hand and interrupted him. "Don''t worry, everyone has its traumatic experiences." The other three nodded and lowered their heads, they were quite ashamed that they had been seen when they faced their most painful memories. Another pile of goods, bigger than the previous one, appeared in the middle of the layer. Errol laid his back on the terrain and spoke in a calm voice. "I wonder why we are given this much time for each floor." Nigel answered. "It''s probably in order to let the participants safely approach every test. If it wasn''t for Vance, clearing this floor might have taken a while." "So, what do we do now?" June asked. She was a bit annoyed that Noah had saved her and she kept her head lowered the whole time. "We wait for Vance to recover and then we inspect the rewards. We should also take those purple crystals in the terrain, they seem valuable." They all rested for an entire day. Noah had to refill his mental energy and dantian and sleep to get rid of his fatigue while the other three weren''t in the mood to do anything after reviving their painful memories. In the end, they divided the rewards and spent another day gathering the crystals on the terrain. A rocky passage had appeared in one of the hills in the environment which led to the lower layer. "We should be more careful from now on, the tests are beginning to change. There was only battle prowess tested in the first three layers but here there was the requirement for a strong mental sphere. I don''t really know what to expect next." Nigel warned the others in his group. ''He is right. There is also the problem of the environment that always favors the magical beasts, increasing the difficulty of the floor. I wonder when the first rank 4 will appear.'' The beasts that they met till then were, at best, in the middle tier of the third rank, only their numbers were incredibly high. ''More than three hundred River crocodiles and around a hundred Fog goblins. If we consider the goblins as an exception, we should meet five hundred or so rank 3 beasts in the next floor.'' The students went through the passage and exited in a sultry mountain location. Black smoke came out from the top of each mountain, they seemed volcanoes ready to explode. There were six spots where the smoke came out while every exposed area seemed deserted. Nigel spoke in a soft voice to the others. "We should check the cavities from which the smoke is released." They nodded and followed him to the nearest fuming hole. As they peeked downward, a red lake became visible. It was a subterranean lake made of magma and two meters long carps calmly swam in it. "Lava carps." Noah whispered. They were rather weak magical beasts. They had a decent defense and they could spew out bullets made of lava but, except for that, they weren''t a threat. The problem was the location which increased the difficulty of their hunt by several folds. Noah turned toward Nigel and expressed his doubt. "How do we kill them?" Nigel shook his head. "Let''s first inspect the other cavities, once we have a complete idea of this layer, we will think of a plan." They went to each mountain and noticed no differences: there were six lakes made of magma with Lava carps swimming inside them. The students sat in a circle and reviewed ideas on how to clear the floor. "We might launch spells until all of the beasts are dead." Errol spoke. "What if they hide at the bottom of the lakes? At that point, our only option would be to go down there and face the magma." June answered. "Can you send your puppet there?" Nigel asked Noah. He shook his head. "The distance with the surface is too much. My mental energy will be drained after a few kills." They stayed in silence, deep in thought, thinking of a way to handle the situation. At some point, Noah had an idea. "What if we destroy the mountain?" June replied. "We would be submerged by the lava." Noah continued. "No, I mean, if we break only their top and cover the lakes with their rocky ceiling, wouldn''t almost every carp die? Then, we can always walk inside and kill those alive." "It would take a lot though." Said Nigel. "We have five weeks of time since we are in the fifth layer. It should be enough." They thought a bit more but there was no other feasible approach. They went at the top of the first mountain and placed themselves in four opposite spots. "Let''s start!" Nigel gave the order and the students released their attacks on the terrain. The rocks were hard, tempered with the high temperature of the lake below, but they still cracked in many spots due to the might of the students. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Little by little, the top of the mountain was being cracked in many spots. They were only focusing an area of one hundred square meters but the rocks became harder as they neared the empty space above the lake. It took them five days to successfully crack the ceiling and make it fall on the area beneath it. Massive boulders rained down on the red lake, covering it almost completely. There were too many rocks and the lava was not enough to dissolve them all. In the end, the lake solidified, creating an uneven dark plain inside the mountain. Nigel hurriedly yelled. "It''s doable! I will inspect for remaining living beasts, you can start with the second mountain." A rope materialized in his hands and he bound it on the terrain to descend in the cavity. The others went to the nearest mountain and began to launch attacks on the ground around the second fuming hole. Chapter 142: 142. Fores As they kept on destroying the terrain, they became faster in the process. The second mountain took five days to crumble while they managed to destroy the top of the third one in four days. When they were done with the last mountain, almost four weeks had passed. They laid on the terrain, they had launched attacks non-stop for the whole time, they only rested for a few hours every day and used many potions to keep their dantian and sea of consciousness full. They were in desperate need to recover. However, they still paid attention to their surroundings, they didn''t dare to relax before the rewards arrived. In about ten minutes, the inscriptions on the walls lighted up and another pile of goods appeared. The students heaved a sigh of relief. "It seems that we won''t have to inspect the crumbled areas again." Nigel smiled, he was happy that he could finally relax. "How much do you think it''s the total value of the rewards of the three layers that we cleared?" Errol spoke, staring at the mountain of items and Credits. "It should be around ten million Credits. The Royals sure a rich to give away this wealth just for rank 3 magical beasts." Said Noah while he calculated the number of Credits he would receive due to his agreement with Thaddeus. ''It''s already more than three hundred thousand Credits without adding the little extras that we are keeping for ourselves. I''ve already surpassed Thaddeus''s initial offer.'' Nigel shook his head and spoke in a calm tone. "These are just Credits and common inscribed items, nothing too important. The really valuable things in the eyes of the Royal family are the techniques and the spells. Once you reach that status, money loses importance. What''s the point of having that amount of wealth if you can''t buy the things that makes you powerful?" The other three nodded, the importance of personal power was clear in their mind. They had achieved their status as students of the academy through power after all, money was mostly a tool for them. "Must be nice though to live the rest of your life in a mansion, uncaring of anything regarding the cultivation world. Once my life as a soldier is over, I want to raise my own noble family and forget about the struggles for wealth." Errol spoke, raising his gaze at the sky. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''A peaceful life, there was a time when I also desired something similar.'' Noah thought. He had been at a dead-end in his previous life. There was nothing that he was really interested in, he simply wanted to do a modest job and enjoy his few passions. ''But that was because everything seemed so pointless. You would have remained a simple man both as a dishwasher and as a successful director. It was all so futile. Here, you can become a deity, undisputed among living beings.'' He had no doubts regarding what he would do during his life, the test of his nature had confirmed his already rooted desires. He raised his gaze at the sky too, trying to look for the distant stars in that fake firmament. ''When will I be able to walk there freely?'' In the end, they decided to use a full week to rest and to return at their peak form. A path had opened in the terrain leading to the sixth layer. There was no need for warnings, their teamwork was quite solid since everyone became used to the other members of the group. ''We had a test of endurance, one of will, and one of wits. I wonder what''s next.'' Noah sorted his thoughts and focused, he had completely stopped wearing his upper clothes by then. When they arrived on the other side of the passage, a forest unfolded in front of their eyes. The leaves of the trees were large and green, creating a dark environment on the ground. ''No illusion nor anything out of the ordinary for now.'' Noah used what he learnt in his course about magical beasts to guess which type of creatures might appear. Nigel pointed in a direction and the others advanced behind him. The was the faint sound of a battle in the distance and they quietly moved toward it. After a few hundred meters, they saw two packs of beasts fighting between each other. "Earth monkeys and Toxic monkeys." Noah spoke softly. There were two different kinds of monkey-type beasts fighting. The number of specimens in each pack amounted to almost one hundred and there clearly was some peak rank 3 among them. ''Earth monkeys are physically strong and slightly bigger while the Toxic ones use their feces to poison their prey.'' Those magical beasts were not big, only about one and a half meters tall, and their individual strength was average. However, they were adept in fighting as a group, capable of attacking from every direction due to their high agility. "How should we approach them?" Nigel turned to Noah. They had understood by then that his knowledge regarding magical beasts was deep, he had managed to point out every creature that they found in four layers after all. "There is usually a leader in each pack. With monkey-types magical beasts, it handles most of their battle tactics so it would be wise to kill it first. They are quite wary of humans though, if we attack now, they will most likely stop their battle and focus on us." Nigel turned his gaze back on the fight. "So, we wait for them to disperse?" "We should wait for them to go back in their lair and then strike." Nigel nodded and added something. "We don''t even know if these two are the only packs in the forest. Even if there seem to be a few peak rank 3 specimens, only this number is too little for the sixth layer." The group moved and carefully inspected the entirety of the forest. They found five more packs, all of a different kind of monkey-type magical beasts. "In total, there should be more than seven hundred rank 3 magical beasts. Each of them has different abilities and we should carefully plan our assault based on them." Nigel summarized. The students created a hole in the trunk of one of the biggest trees and drew a map of the sixth floor as they debated on how to face the beasts. Chapter 143: 143. Blessing Seven packs of monkey-type magical beasts to defeat in six weeks of time. They had all the time needed to carefully plan their approach, they had just to be careful not to cause too much ruckus. In the end, they chose a simple tactic: Noah would be the bait and expose each leader and the other three students had to kill it. Then, they would regroup and apply a different combat formation to better exploit the weaknesses of each kind of beasts. Earth monkeys and Spiked monkeys relied on their bodies so it was better to fight them as a group in a solid and stable formation, using strong attacks to kill each specimen in one strike. Fire monkeys and Toxic monkeys were adept in spells with a large area of effect, the students chose to fight them separately, dividing the creatures'' attention into four different areas. Wind monkeys and Dwarf monkeys were fast and nimble, Noah and Errol had to stay in the center of their packs to attract their attention while June and Nigel did a pincer attack on them. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The last pack was composed of Enlighted monkeys. They were not extremely strong but their intelligence was high. They often ran away seeing that they had no chances of defeating the students from the academy. The only option of Noah''s group was to slowly corner them until all their specimens were dead. As for why Noah had to play as the bait, it was because his martial art and his blood companion were the most suited to handle large numbers of enemies. "We are finally done!" Errol exclaimed happily as he slowly raised his blood-stained mace in the air. Below him, there was the crushed corpse of the last magical beast of the sixth layer. "Yes, it''s finally over." Nigel said, releasing a fatigued sigh. It took them three weeks to kill all the monkeys, these long and constant battles had placed a heavy burden on his mind. Noah and June were not better off, they too felt extremely tired. ''I wonder if I could have done it alone. With my Demonic form, just this number isn''t enough to defeat me. However, I have to consider the amount of mental energy expended in the process.'' Noah analyzed the test and compared its difficulty with his actual battle prowess. ''They won''t be able to defeat me but I will probably be exhausted before the last one of them is dead. I guess it''s fair since the power of my spell is incredible.'' The inscriptions on the walls of the floor lighted up and converged at the center of the forest. The trees were tall and their leaves were thick, they could not see the rewards from their position. "Let''s inspect the rewards and then rest for a whole week, I''m afraid that we might face hundreds of peak rank 3 beasts in the next layer." Nigel spoke and they moved toward the central area. As they went deeper in the forest though, the density of "Breath" increased drastically, so much that it surpassed even the one of Noah''s current accommodation. "How is this possible? We clearly inspected this zone before." June spoke and the eyes of the four students sharpened. When they arrived at the location where the rewards appeared, their mouths unconsciously opened due to their amazement. On the terrain of the forest, there wasn''t the usual pile of items and Credits that they received in the previous three floors. Instead, a five meters large and four meters tall blue stone was placed on the ground. Noah had once seen a similar mineral at the bottom of an underground lake. "That''s a "Breath" blessing!" Noah exclaimed. ''I never thought that they could be this big! Its value should be immense!'' The other three youths stared with wide eyes at the imponent stone. The density of "Breath" was so high around it that a few drops of "Breath" were slowly accumulating on its surface. "The concentration is at the point where the "Breath" changes state by itself! My friends, I think that we struck it rich!" Errol spoke excitedly and moved with his mace to hit the stone. Noah appeared in front of him and stopped his advance. "Errol, what are you doing?" He answered in a confused tone. "Well, I wanted to divide it so that we can share its frame in our space-rings." "It will lose value if we divide it, it''s better to store it in one piece. I will take it, as the appointed captain for this mission, it''s my responsibility to handle such a valuable item." Nigel spoke from behind him. "I think you are all underestimating the addiction that he has for cultivation." June spoke calmly as she sat on the ground near the stone and closed her eyes. Nigel and Errol looked confusedly at her gesture and then moved their gazes on Noah. He was smiling slightly as he stared with a fervent gaze the "Breath" blessing. Sensing that the two students had their eyes on him, he turned and explained what June had already understood. "Since we cleared the test, we don''t have a time limit anymore. The sooner we advance, the sooner we would have to give this precious object to the Royal family. I say that we can cultivate here for a month or so before going in the seventh layer, we are advancing rather quickly anyway." He then moved his gaze back on the mineral and sat near it. There was no need to think if it was day or night on the outside world, the limitation in his technique existed only because it was required a higher concentration of "Breath" of the darkness element to make it work. However, near the mineral, the "Breath" of each element was so abundant that any restriction was pointless. Noah hastily used his Yin body and his Dark vortex cultivation technique at the same time and began to cultivate. June was doing the same in the opposite corner of the stone. Nigel and Errol looked at each other and smiled happily before occupying the other two corners and starting their meditation. Like that, a month slowly passed in the sixth layer. Chapter 144: 144. Seventh layer "I think it''s time to move." Nigel said as he stood up. Errol also stood up and looked at the other two students still sitting on the ground. June opened her eyes and nodded, joining the others in their stare at Noah. Noah had no other choice but to stop his meditation. ''If I had this stone for a whole year, I would reach the second rank of the dantian way easily.'' The density of "Breath" near the mineral was more than twice the one in his accommodation. They had spent more than three months in the inheritance ground which didn''t allow them to train much. However, just by cultivating for a month in front of the "Breath" blessing, Noah felt that his advancement could match those that he would have obtained if he had spent that time in the academy. ''I think they actually surpassed them by quite a margin. Well, that''s also due to the fact that I only focused on my dantian and body.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Since there were no restrictions on his technique in front of the mineral, Noah chose to put momentarily aside the training with the Kesier rune and focus only on the Yin body and on the Dark vortex technique. ''A twofold density coupled with twice the amount of time that I usually spend in meditation, it''s as if I cultivated for more than four months! Considering that we used two months concentrated only on clearing the layers, I basically gained one month of training for free!'' He was always satisfied when he shortened the time required for his breakthroughs, he only felt disappointed that it had to end so soon. "I have to say, your dedication is admirable." June spoke when he stood up. "I agree. You basically never slept for the entirety of the month, we should take a day or two to stabilize our gains and to recover from our intensive training." Noah''s eyes lit up and nodded but Nigel continued to speak. "Without the "Breath" blessing in front of us. I''m honestly afraid that you might forget about our mission if you keep cultivating like this." Noah wanted to argue but he noticed that the other two students agreed with Nigel''s opinion. He sighed seeing Nigel taking the mineral inside his space-ring and went to one of the branches of the trees to rest. Only then he realized how far he had pushed his limits, his mind was exhausted and his dantian showed signs of instability. He slept deeply for one entire day and focused on stabilizing his power on the following one. On the third day, they were ready to enter the passage for the seventh layer. They slowly crossed a wooden door that had appeared on one of the trunks and moved carefully. On the other side of the passage, a desolate area appeared in front of them. It was a plain with a tall mountain at its center. There were few traces of vegetation and many holes in the terrain, it was as if someone eradicated all the plants and trees that were supposed to be there. The mountain was devoid of any life too and there were many cavities on its sides. They resembled small caves and there were more than three hundred of them. However, the students sensed no trace of life at all, the layer seemed completely empty. ''Those should be nests for bird-types magical beasts but with that number, we should at least feel them even if they tried to hide.'' Noah analyzed, he had a bad feeling about that environment. For some reason, his instincts told him that the situation was similar to Twilboia Cliff. The students advanced cautiously, they were looking for anything that might reveal the entity of the test. "Vance, what do you think?" Nigel broke the silence and asked for Noah''s advice. Noah gazed at the mountain before speaking. "It''s strange. This place was clearly supposed to contain various lifeforms and I also believe that those cavities up there had to be the nests of a bird-type pack of magical beasts. However, the layer seems to be completely empty." Nigel''s eyebrow arched. "Are you saying that they starved to death? There had to be at least one hundred peak rank 3 magical beasts here according to the increase in the difficulty." At these words, Noah finally realized the situation they were in. His eyes widened and he raised his head to the sky. The sky was filled with clouds that obscured the artificial illumination of the floor. "I think that we should retreat." He said, slowly taking a few steps backward, his gaze never moved from the clouds in the sky. "Why do you say that?" Errol said frowning. At that point though, a small black dot appeared in the clouds. Noah shouted and turned to run in the direction of the passage. "RANK 4!" The eyes of the other three students widened and June immediately followed him. Errol panicked a bit before going after Noah while Nigel shot a short glance at the sky. In his field of view, the clouds were pure white but there was an enlarging figure nearing his position. He hastily began to run in the direction of the sixth layer. Yet, it was too late. The figure slammed into him in less than a second, creating a loud thud that made the other three students turn their heads to look in its direction. ''Rank 4 Cloud eagle!'' Noah yelled in his mind. ''This specimen must have been a bit stronger than the other peak rank 3 beasts in the pack and it must have eaten them during its time in the inheritance, finally reaching the fourth rank! However, the "Breath" in the environment wasn''t enough to sustain its higher rank so it devoured every lifeform remaining in the layer. For how long did it manage to survive without a proper meal?'' The Cloud eagle behind them was enormous. With its wings unfolded, it was more than thirteen meters wide. Its strongest characteristic was its diving speed, it could reach the ground from the sky in an instant, not giving its prey enough time to escape. The dust created from the impact of the magical beast with the terrain settled, showing Nigel''s body pierced by the three claws of the eagle. Chapter 145: 145. Arm The Cloud eagle slowly flapped its wings. It gradually distanced from the ground, staring at the three students at a few meters in the distance. Nigel''s body was firmly stuck on the claws of its right foot, he was still alive but blood flowed incessantly from his injuries. There was only one outcome in his situation: death. The youths understood that and hastily turned to continue their escape toward the passage to the sixth layer. However, while he moved his gaze away from Nigel, Noah remembered something that made him curse loudly. "Fuck!" Noah turned but not toward the passage, he faced the rank 4 beast, looking at it with determined eyes. He jumped ahead, black rings appeared under his feet and black smoke began to envelop him. ''Shadow steps! Demonic form!'' He activated his two spells and ran at full speed toward the beast. Errol and June noticed his behavior but continued to run away, no matter how frustrated they were about Nigel''s situation, they wouldn''t risk their lives to save a dead man. Noah gained momentum and, in a few seconds, he arrived near the eagle. He forcefully kicked on the terrain, using all his strength to jump in the air toward the beast. The eagle released a high-pitched whistle seeing its supremacy in the sky being challenged. It lowered its head, ready to take on the opponent''s assault. Yet, Noah didn''t aim for the head of the creature but rather for its right foot! Noah was covered from head to toe with black smoke, his Demonic form was completely activated. When he was at two meters away from Nigel''s body, two pairs of fuming wings unfolded themselves from his back, forcefully halting his assault mid-way. He slashed with his sabers using his most powerful technique empowered with his most powerful spell. ''First form of the Ashura!'' He didn''t dare to hold anything back when he faced a rank 4 magical beast. What he unleashed at that moment was his most powerful attack. Nigel was conscious, his eyes widened in surprise seeing of what might Noah was actually capable of. Hope shined in his young eyes. Ten fuming blows struck the eagle. It used its beak to block most of the attacks, the other ones landed on its body, they could only make some of its feathers fall. The eagle suffered no damage at all, no matter how much the toxic smoke tried to consume its skin, it wasn''t able to wound the beast. However, one of Noah''s attacks didn''t aim for the creature but rather to its prey! Nigel''s expression froze when Noah cut off his right arm and hurriedly seized it. Nigel stared at his young companion kicking the air to run away with his arm. ''He didn''t even look at me.'' Those were Nigel''s last thoughts. The Cloud eagle was enraged that such a weak human managed to steal part of its prey and tightened his grip on its feet, killing Nigel on the spot. Noah was flying away at his maximum speed. He held one severed arm with one hand and a saber in the other one. His four wings flapped incessantly and he kicked the air repeatedly, he was using the Shadow steps spell and Echo to perform the flight of his life! The eagle didn''t let him simply run away, it flew to chase him. However, its speed was nothing exceptional. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. It was still faster than Noah but the difference wasn''t that big. ''I knew it!'' Noah cheered in his mind as he inspected the situation behind him. ''It has starved for too much time and the horizontal flight isn''t the specialty of its species! Cloud eagles excel in diving speed and its poor condition allows me to almost match it in a straight flight!'' The Elbas family rose to the throne of the Utra continent about two thousand years ago. That meant that the previous Royal family had to set up the inheritance ground way before that moment. Magical beasts had powerful bodies but they were still affected by the lack of nourishment. The eagle slowly gained some ground on him but its vision became hindered by the black smoke that Noah constantly released. It had to reduce its speed to regain sight of its target and then it accelerated again. A massive eagle and a fiendish figure were flying in a straight line toward a small cavity in the barren terrain. Noah traced a black fuming line in the sky as he stared at the approaching exit. Seconds lasted like years in Noah''s mind but, in the end, he entered the passage successfully with the eagle unable to even touch him. He slammed on the walls of the corridor, he didn''t dare to lower his speed for even a second during his escape. He continued to scrape the surface of the passage until he came out in the forest of the sixth floor. There, he continued to roll until he crashed on a large tree that stopped his momentum. He fell on his knees and deactivated his Demonic form, the remaining smoke consumed the tree behind him. He was breathing roughly, he had used everything he had to retrieve Nigel''s right arm and to escape the beast. Errol and June had watched the scene of him successfully leaving the seventh layer, they had escaped while he was busy with the eagle. It was their first time seeing Noah using his full power, they had to admit that his fiendish figure had sent chills down their spines. Errol gathered his courage and neared him. "Vance, did you save him?" Noah raised his head to look at the tall youth. "How could I save Nigel? He was dead the moment he looked at the sky." June went close to him too and asked with her brows furrowed. "Then, what did you even do back there?" Noah smiled and opened his right hand. Nigel''s arm had been consumed by the black smoke but the item on his finger had been tightly stored by him. A black space-ring stood unscathed in his palm. Chapter 146: 146. Irregularity It was the space-ring given by the Royal army. It contained Nigel''s share of the rewards as well as the gigantic "Breath" blessing. It was needless to say that most of their gains from the inheritance were kept in there. June''s eyes lighted up and she smiled happily. "You''ve really done it! Now our efforts in the sixth layer won''t be wasted." She kneeled next to Noah and picked the ring, inspecting it carefully. After a few seconds, she nodded and her smile widened. "Everything is here." Noah finally relaxed and released a soft sigh. He didn''t have time to inspect the insides of the device since he was still stabilizing his condition. He wasn''t injured since his Demonic form had never been pierced during the encounter with the Cloud eagle but his mind still felt tired due to the effort. He had gone all out while facing a rank 4 magical beasts after all, it was quite normal for him to desire a long and peaceful sleep. Errol, on the other hand, didn''t manage to rejoice and lowered his head to stare at the ground. "Did you even think for a second about Nigel when you took his ring?" Noah raised his gaze toward the tall youth, he felt that the atmosphere had become tense all of sudden. "No, he was dead the moment that beast hit him." "But you surely could have done something more! Don''t lie to me, that power you used was at the peak of the cultivators in the first rank!" Noah shook his head at Errol''s complains. "And yet I didn''t even manage to scratch that thing, the heroic ranks are really something else. Also, didn''t you run away too as soon as I gave the warning? It was Nigel''s mistake that killed him and his hesitation almost lost us half of the value of our mission." Errol was about to retort again when June stepped in the conversation. "He is right, don''t let your feelings blind you. You should be grateful that Vance managed to retrieve the rewards." Errol trembled a bit and then he sat on the ground. He released a loud sigh as he calmed down and took out a jar full of wine from his space-ring. "I''m sorry Vance, I didn''t mean to offend you. If I have to speak the truth, I would have never managed to jump at that creature even if there was a chance to save Nigel. I think I was angry at myself for being this weak and shifted the blame to you." He poured the wine into three different glasses and handed them to Noah and June before raising his own in a toast. "Please accept my apologies." Noah raised his glass too and slightly smiled at Errol. "Don''t worry, it''s fine. Actually, if it wasn''t for the eagle''s starved condition, I would have been the first to reach the exit." Errol released a small laugh and emptied his glass. June shook her head and laid on the terrain slowly sipping the wine. Noah drank from his glass and raised his head to the sky. ''I would be lying if I said that I''m not disappointed by my performance. Rank 4 seems such a distant level.'' He had used everything in his arsenal and yet he didn''t manage to leave any sign on the beast. ''I can''t even face a starved bird, how could I even think about storming Balvan mansion?'' He repressed his thoughts and laid on the terrain behind him. He knew that his growth was extraordinary already but he could not help to feel that it was still incredibly slow. "What do we do now?" Errol interrupted his line of thought. "What can we do? We retreat." June answered plainly before turning to one side and falling asleep on the ground. Noah did the same and Errol shrugged his shoulders, finding a comfortable position too before falling asleep. One day later, they reappeared on the top of the tower, outside the inheritance ground. When they descended through the stairs on its sides, they were greeted by a concerned Preston. "You stayed for three months in there, I''m eager to know how far did you go." He then noticed that there were only three of them. "Where is the other student?" "Dead." June answered the captain. "Oh, I see. Why don''t you come to my tent and explain everything in front of a warm cup of tea?" The students immediately agreed to his offer and followed him in the biggest tent. The encampment didn''t change much during those months, the pit was a bit deeper and there seemed to be a dozen more tents but, apart from that, everything was as they remembered. "It seems that an irregularity had happened in the seventh layer, even the previous Royal family didn''t expect for a rank 3 magical beast to evolve." Preston said after the students gave him a detailed report of the five layers that they explored. "Don''t you worry about your companion, his family will be rewarded for the honorable service that he performed. Yet, we have a problem now. It''s not easy to put together a group with at least rank 2 cultivation without involving the Royals or the powerful nobles." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The inheritance ground still hadn''t started to give spells and techniques for rewards, which meant that it went way deeper than they thought. "I believe that if it wasn''t for that irregularity, we could have cleared at least two more floors." Errol spoke with confidence but Noah was of a different opinion. ''That wasn''t exactly an irregularity but the usual behavior of magical beasts. There is a high chance to meet rank 4 creatures after the seventh floor.'' Preston nodded and reviewed all the details that he annotated during their explanation. "It seems that there isn''t much that you can do here anymore, it''s better for you to return to the academy. We kept notes of each one of your courses so that you won''t fall behind in your instruction. I will notify the academy, a carriage should arrive in two weeks. Just leave your space-rings here and feel free to act as you wish in the perimeter of the formation." Noah''s eyes lit up listening to the captain words and a shameless smile appeared on his face. "You know captain, I think that I have an idea to better use our time here. It will also greatly benefit your troop." Chapter 147: 147. Guarding Noah moved toward an empty area of the encampment. "So, what is your bright idea?" Preston followed him with June and Errol at his sides. Noah looked around and nodded in satisfaction. "Captain, there should be around fifty soldiers in your troop, am I right?" Preston answered with a confused expression. "Well, yes. Fifty-three to be precise." Noah continued. "And I believe that the items from the inheritance ground will stay with you until the envoy from the Royal family arrives, right?" "That is true." June and Errol were already shaking their heads since they understood Noah''s intentions. Noah made a gesture and the "Breath" blessing inside Nigel''s space-ring materialized on the ground. Its appearance attracted the attention of the entire camp since the density of the "Breath" instantly increased by one-fold. Preston''s mouth was hanging on his jaw, he still hadn''t inspected the goods that the students retrieved and he was quite shocked to see such a precious mineral in that gigantic shape. "I thought that it would have been a complete waste to keep such a miraculous resource hidden in a space-ring, you and your soldiers should at least make use of it until the Royal family arrives." Preston came back to reality hearing his words. "N-no! That''s the personal propriety of the Royal dynasty! We can''t." However, his eyes fell continuously on the blue mineral as if they were captivated by it. Noah went next to him with a bright smile on his face. "But we are doing this for the Royal dynasty! Making their soldiers stronger will increase the stability of their dominion. Don''t you want to protect them? What if a day comes when you are too weak to fight their enemies? Also, we aren''t doing anything that endangers the item, we are simply storing it in an open field." Preston moved his gaze from Noah back to the "Breath" blessing. "Storing it in an open field you say¡­" He mumbled for a few more seconds and then a smile broke his stern expression. "Right! We are simply keeping it here for, ehm, safety! The space-rings are not safe anymore during these dangerous times, I should guard this precious item personally!" Noah coughed lightly at his side, interrupting the captain''s speech. Preston turned and saw that all his soldiers were staring at the mineral with eager expressions. Noah helped him in his delusion, answering to his previous words. "Captain, I think that this stone is too precious for you to single-handedly protect it. I can''t rest well thinking that you are all alone out here. Nevertheless, don''t worry, I will stay with you the whole time!" Noah made an ample gesture and turned to the other soldiers, subtly winking at them. Some of them understood the meaning behind his signal and hurriedly made a military salute, joining Noah in his promise. "Captain, I will not leave you alone!" "Neither I will allow my mighty captain to endure this burden alone!" Little by little, all the soldiers understood what was happening and swore to "protect" the "Breath" blessing. June shook her head as she neared Noah. "Couldn''t you simply do all of this inside the captain tent?" Noah smirked and lowered his voice to answer her. "In that case, it would have been my idea. Now, it''s Preston''s one, the Royals can''t use our time spent like this as an excuse to lower our rewards." June''s eyes widened seeing how much planning Noah went through to exploit that situation. "You are actually this evil." Noah snorted. "You can''t always rely on violence to obtain something, not at our level at least." June wanted to argue but found his explanation reasonable. "Since everyone is so faithful to the Royal family, we can start immediately our protection of their goods!" Preston shouted, interrupting their conversation. The soldiers cheered and neared the "Breath" blessing on the ground but noticed that Noah was already sitting in one of the closest spots available. They wanted to retort but their captain did the same, followed by June and Errol. A messy scene unfolded as the soldiers pushed away one another to secure a spot in the nearest positions. In about ten minutes, the commotion settled and all the cultivators in the camp were silently meditating in front of the blue stone. Two weeks passed like that. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Everyone was so engrossed in their cultivation in such a favorable environment that they totally forgot to check if there were news from the Royal city. On the night of the fifteenth day, a loud shout woke them up from their meditation. "What the fuck are you even doing!?" Everyone turned to see a woman in a golden armor staring at them with an angry expression. Preston immediately stood up and performed a deep bow. "Her Majesty Lisa! I wasn''t informed about your visit, what a pleasant surprise!" All the other soldiers stood up and greeted the woman from the Elbas family. ''She is Thaddeus sister, the one that led the other batch of students from our class.'' Noah recognized her from behind the guards and cautiously sneaked to the borders of the group. Lisa yelled again. "Of course, you didn''t know! You didn''t contact us for two whole weeks, we were afraid that one of the nearby countries had found this place. However, the formation wasn''t broken so we excluded that possibility. So, what exactly were you doing?" Preston recognized his mistake and performed another bow. "I''m deeply sorry! We¡­" His voice softened as he continued. "¡­were guarding this precious "Breath" blessing." Even as he said those words, he realized how unreal they were. Lisa stood speechless for a while before shaking her head. "Never mind, just hurry up and gather the items that I have to bring back to the Royal city. Also, I will bring the students with me, I will stop at the academy along the way." "Everything will be done immediately!" Preston turned to his side but noticed that Noah had disappeared from his position and was already slowly moving toward Lisa from the borders of the group. He arrived in front of her and bowed. "And what happened to you?" Lisa spoke, staring at the youth. Noah had large eyebags and an incredibly pale complexion, his eyes were red and he seemed to be malnourished. "Oh, don''t you worry, Her Majesty, I''m just a bit tired from the hard trials of the inheritance." The soldiers that heard his words wanted to curse him loudly but refrained to do so due to Lisa''s presence. Since those weeks were probably the last time in which Noah could have had access to the miraculous mineral, he went all out in his training sessions, even resorting to potions to keep himself awake an in a normal condition to maximize his training schedule. Chapter 148: 148. Unfilial disciple Noah used the first week of the trip back to the academy to rest, he had to stabilize his condition again. Increasing one''s strength so rapidly was quite dangerous. The dantian was an organ after all, too much stress on it could ultimately lead to an injury. The same went for the sea of consciousness, the mental sphere had to be enlarged gradually or there would be the risk of breaking it. Noah sat on one couch inside the carriage escorting him back to the academy, he was calmly analyzing the condition of his body. ''My dantian has completely recovered, there is no danger in resuming my previous training rhythm. My accumulated stress also has disappeared, it seems that the constant battles that we underwent in the inheritance ground helped my mental sphere quite a bit.'' Overall, they had been away from the academy for four months while his actual time spent training his dantian and body was equal to six months in his accommodation. ''Two months gained while my mind has still slightly enlarged due to the "Breath" in my sea of consciousness. I almost don''t feel any pressure at all from Echo these days, I wonder if I can create another blood companion.'' He thought for a while before tossing that idea away. ''Right now, I should just focus on increasing the level of all my centers of power. I should also start to absorb again "Breath" in my sea of consciousness, I''m quite eager to test some of the forgings of my inscription method.'' He slowly opened his eyes, confirming his plans for the near future. ''With the rewards for this mission I will finally be able to buy some spells that don''t have a limitation in their rank and I will be also able to use the facilities of the academy for a while. The first to break through should be my mind, followed by my dantian and body. I just need to quietly cultivate.'' "Have you recovered enough to give me your version of the events in the inheritance ground?" Lisa spoke to him wearing a slight smile. She couldn''t be in the open since she would be too eye-catching so she had stayed in the carriage with the other three students the whole time. Noah nodded, putting a stern expression. "I believe that my companions have already covered every detail of our mission." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Lisa laid her back on the carriage while putting a hand below her chin. "Vance, right? My brother has spoken to me about you. Did you reach the solid stage already?" Noah didn''t dare to lie to her as Thaddeus had made clear that the intelligence of the Royal family surpassed the common sense. "Yes, I did a few months ago." "And how old are you exactly?" "Sixteen years and six months." Errol and June''s eyes widened but they remained silent. According to the standards of the cultivation world, a human would acquire his dantian at the age of fifteen. However, in the academy, there were only talents, virtually each of its students had obtained a dantian before that age. Even so, the usual age in which cultivators reached the solid stage was when they were seventeen or more. It wasn''t a matter that concerned talent, they simply didn''t have enough time to cultivate till that level. June, for example, was seventeen and she had broken through the solid stage during the month that they spent cultivating in the sixth layer. She had actually spent less time than Noah to reach that stage but he had obtained his dantian at an incredible age. After all, how many people in the world could obtain a rank 3 body and a rank 1 mental sphere before the age of fourteen? "That is indeed a great achievement. If you and Daniel were of the same age, you would have surpassed him." Errol joined the conversation, intrigued by Lisa''s words. "Is it possible to know Daniel''s level?" Lisa waved her hand and answered as if it was a small matter. "He broke through the first rank and successfully became a rank 2 cultivator. His status as a student was removed and he joined Professor Wanda Hamman in the alchemy division of the academy. This all happened in this years'' tests, it should have caused quite a commotion in the academy." ''Oh right, the tests for my courses.'' Noah remembered that detail about his enrollment. Lisa seemed to understand his thoughts and reassured the students. "Don''t worry about those. You all did an excellent job in the Royal inheritance so you are exempted from them, not that I believe that any of you would have failed." The students relaxed and continued to look at Lisa, there was still another question that required her explanation. "You will get your rewards from Thaddeus after the total value of what you retrieved is estimated. He will contact you himself so you can just go back to your normal lifestyles." Having cleared their last doubt, silence occupied the carriage. Lisa didn''t seem like she wanted to speak anymore so the students began to spend their remaining time in the carriage as they wanted. Noah resumed his usual training schedule, causing June to imitate him. Errol simply laid on his couch, Lisa''s presence didn''t allow him to reach the relaxed state needed to train. Lisa slept most of the time, she was so silent that it almost seemed that she was only closing her eyes. In the end, another week passed and the carriage reached Arolyac forest. Lisa left the students at the borders of the forest and continued toward the Royal city while they went on their way back to the academy ground. They arrived at the small mountain and Errol pressed his token on the terrain, opening a passage. After so much time, they had finally returned! "I think I will rest for a few days and then resume my courses. See you around, friends." Errol was eager to return to his lodging and separated from the group. June and Noah slowly walked on the right side of the river. They reached June''s accommodation first and she silently opened its door. Before entering though, she turned to look at Noah and spoke with a plain voice. "You look older than your age." After that, she entered her place and closed the door behind her. Noah shook his head and resumed his walk toward his lodging. Considering her character, the meaning behind her words was something battle-related, he didn''t bother to think too much about them. ''I feel like I''m forgetting something though.'' As he opened the door of his accommodation, an awful smell assaulted him, accompanied by a loud lament. "You unfilial disciple, you actually left me to suffer all this time!" Chapter 149: 149. Convocation ''Oh right, I only gave him enough money for two months of wine.'' Noah looked at the pitiful state in which Ivor was. He had returned to his previous smelly and ragged figure and tens of empty jars were left all around the floor. Noah picked a thousand Credits and casually threw them to him. "Go to the alchemy division and buy some wine, money shouldn''t be a problem from now on." Just the amount that he had seized from the rewards amounted to ten thousand Credits, Ivor''s expenses could be covered for two years with those. Seeing that he was about to complain more, Noah revealed him something to placate his mood. "You might want to know that I''ve decided to accumulate "Breath" again in my sea of consciousness." Noah knew that even if Ivor didn''t pressure him, he had a lot of expectations regarding his improvements in the Elemental forging method. Ivor''s eyes lit up and regained some focus. "Are you sure? Is the internal pressure gone?" Noah shook his head. "Not completely but I''m quite certain that it can store at least twice the amount of "Breath" that I currently have." Ivor nodded and straightened his position. "Wonderful! That will also speed up your mental sphere''s growth. I will buy the wine, you just do what you have to." Ivor exited the lodging, leaving Noah alone. He gathered all the trash and threw it away from his house, the cleaning services of the academy would take care of that in the night. He took a bath and calmly focused on his sea of consciousness. His ethereal figure crossed the matter of the sphere and acted as a bridge where the "Breath" could pass through. The vortex on his figure''s hands was small, attracting only small quantities of black gas every time. Noah suppressed and refined each of the minute strands of "Breath", stopping his absorption each time. The consumption of mental energy was higher since he had to refine the "Breath" multiple times but he preferred that method. Even if it was more time-consuming, it was way safer than the reckless storage of a single and bigger quantity of "Breath". That method was noted in one of Ivor''s books, it was way slower than the normal approach but Noah didn''t mind it. As the "Breath" entered his sea of consciousness, it would be assaulted by the crystalline mental energy, making it harmless and mixing with its substance. Small dark-blue balls formed in his mental sphere that gradually joined the bigger one that was already present inside it. Little by little, the quantity of "Breath" in Noah''s sea of consciousness doubled in size. At that point, Noah stopped the absorption process. It still wasn''t his limit but he chose to leave some room for unexpected events and in order to maintain an almost normal state. After all, the internal pressure increased by a lot, making Noah''s headache return. Yet, the pain wasn''t enough to hinder his cultivation. ''This will be my normal state from now on, it should maximize my improvements till I become a rank 2 mage.'' He opened his eyes and found Ivor sonorously snoring in one corner of the room, there were more than three empty jars on his sides. ''He will probably need more money tomorrow. Well, until Thaddeus summons me, I can just resume my normal routine.'' The absorption process had taken him a few hours, it was already night. His mental energy was expended though so he chose to simply sleep instead of cultivating for the rest of the night. In the morning, he visited the management building to obtain the new calendar of his courses. Since it was his second year in the academy, his courses became more specific and profound in their teachings. The course regarding magical beasts would start to analyze the body-parts of each creature, underlying their proprieties and usage. The real combat course would focus less on the one versus one battle and explore the many formations used by the Royal army, allowing its students to take part in missions requiring a group. The general cultivation course would begin to study the creations of spells and techniques, exploring the achievements in that field done by preceding cultivators. They were also shifted to the afternoon hours instead of the morning ones, leading Noah to modify his training schedule. The environment of the academy was peaceful and Noah slowly improved his strength and his knowledge. It had to pass a month for Thaddeus'' convocation to arrive. Noah walked in the left area of the academy, he had received a warning through his token with the required indication to reach the appointed place. He arrived at a tall building and saw that June and Errol were already waiting in front of its entrance. "Vance! I didn''t expect you would be late." Errol greeted him with a smile on his face. "I was busy cultivating, I noticed the token warning only a few minutes ago." Noah replied honestly, there was no need to lie to someone that has seen his full strength. "I will enter first, then Errol, and lastly you, it''s based on our timing in arriving here." June spoke calmly and Noah simply shrugged his shoulders, he had done most of his training that day, he only needed to rest. After a few minutes, the door opened and June entered the building. She came out a while later with a bright smile on her face. "That good?" Noah asked, seeing her unusual expression. She nodded repeatedly. "It seems that Professor Megan Iccek noticed my character and was interested in taking me as her apprentice." Noah remembered the first time that he saw that woman in Arolyac forest and could not help but find similarities with June''s nature. "Now that I think about it, she is quite wild, just like you." June''s eyes narrowed. "What that supposed to be a compliment?" "I don''t really know, I think that''s just the truth." Errol laughed loudly seeing their usual bickering and entered the building. June went to greet her new master while Noah waited patiently for his turn to come. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Errol exited almost immediately, he was wearing a bright smile too. "It seems that I might receive a position as a captain in the Royal army as soon as my strength reaches the necessary requirements." He then patted Noah''s shoulder and went on his way. Chapter 150: 150. Hindered Noah entered the building right after Errol left. "This way." Thaddeus spoke, appearing on top of the stairs leading to the first floor. Noah hastened his steps and followed him. They passed many closed rooms and Noah''s gaze lingered on one of them that had a transparent glass that occupied half of its door. Inside, Ruth was meditating in an environment full of runes. That action seemed to demand her full concentration as her brows were furrowed and sweat ran down her forehead. "My disciple is training. Even if she is born with the natural talent of hearing the "Breath", she still has a lot of work to do before she will be able to perform her first inscription." Noah moved his gaze away from the room and continued to follow Thaddeus until they were in one of the last rooms of the corridor. Thaddeus sat behind a large and carefully adorned desk and gestured to Noah to occupy one of the couches in front of him. "I read the reports from my sister and Preston and, well, I actually asked June to confirm them. I really couldn''t believe that you faced a rank 4 beast only to retrieve part of the rewards." Noah answered shrugging his shoulders. "That eagle was heavily malnourished and had already attacked, the odds of succeeding were high. Also, my share would have diminished if I had left the "Breath" blessing with that creature." Thaddeus joined his hands below his chin, he was slightly amazed by Noah''s foolishness. "It would have diminished by a lot indeed. Here, you can take everything that this device contains." Thaddeus handed a black ring to Noah. Noah took it and was quite astonished by the number of Credits inside. "Since the most valuable item of the mission would have been lost if it wasn''t for you, I raised your percentage to four percent. I hope you won''t think that the Royals are the same as those blind and petty nobles." Noah nodded absent-mindedly, he was still counting the amount of wealth contained in the ring. ''Seven hundred thousand Credits! I can finally take a look at the inventory again.'' He moved all the contents in his empty storage device and handed the black ring back to Thaddeus. "Now, for the privileged position. I have a lot of empty spots available but I have sorted those that seemed more suited for your talents. You are free to take a look." He laid two piles of sheets on his desk. Noah took the bigger one first. It wasn''t to disrespect Thaddeus'' opinion but simply to have a broader vision of the various professions in the Royal city. ''Alchemy assistant, city guard, miner of precious material¡­ They basically cover every existent profession and there is a discount over the relative products of the executed job.'' He read through them quickly, there was nothing that attracted his attention nor that seemed especially suited for him. He picked the other sheets, there were only five of them. ''Hunters'' guild member, captain in the junior city troops, escort guard, soldier, and martial art trainer. These are indeed all made for me.'' "Is the position of the hunter really that privileged?" "Almost every valuable item is made using magical beasts'' body-parts. I say that having a discount over all those articles is pretty privileged." Thaddeus laughed lightly as he answered to Noah''s question. ''This one should also be less strict as a profession, I don''t really want to involve myself with the struggles of the army.'' "Hunter it is." "You really don''t want to join the army, as expected." Thaddeus commented and began his explanation. "A token will be sent to your accommodation. When you have time, go to Elbas city and formally join the guild. I advise to increase your strength first though, you won''t benefit much from it if you can only hunt rank 3 beasts." "Can I join whenever I want?" Noah asked in surprise. "Of course. Your main focus has to be on your studies. You can even wait till the end of your enrollment here before moving to the Royal city." Thaddeus took the sheet and stored it with him. "Give me your token, I think that three thousand merit points are plenty enough as a reward for your services inside the inheritance ground." Noah didn''t hesitate and happily handed his token to him. When he took it back, it clearly stated that he had three thousand and twenty merit points available. Noah was about to bow in order to leave the building but Thaddeus'' next words made him stop moving. "I think that you would be happy to know that we are hindering the investigations of the Balvan family." Noah''s eyes became dark and Rhys''s face materialized in his mind. "Are they still looking for clues?" Thaddeus smiled staring at the youth standing in front of him. "Yes, they even sent letters to the Royal city requesting an investigator specialized in inscriptions. Can you blame them though? They lost the best cultivators of the younger generation in that accident, without considering the three heirs. Their future prospects are quite grim." Noah''s expression remained still as he continued to ask questions. "How much do they know?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Not much. They have their suspects that someone betrayed them since the Shosti inheritance ground has never been that deadly but nothing is pointing in your direction. There is a matter about a space-ring being forced open in Evergreen forest but they only discovered that after the Shosti family allowed them to use their inscription master or, to say it better, after the Royal family allowed them to do so." "Why are you doing so much for me?" Noah wasn''t that na?ve to think that they had done that out of good-will. "You are a potential asset, a valuable one I''d say. Not only you have a rare element, but we also don''t need to force you to sever your noble ties. Also, almost all the cultivators that can face a rank 4 beast have sworn an oath with the Royal dynasty or are close to the most powerful noble families. You are our biggest investment concerning the Royal inheritance." Noah nodded in understanding. "Who is the Balvan''s biggest suspect?" "According to our reports, they are looking for a wind mage that uses a sword. Do you know of someone that fits that description?" ''They are looking for Trevor! It makes sense. In their minds, I didn''t have the power to kill them all and escape.'' "Not of anyone alive." Thaddeus nodded, showing a bright smile. "That''s for the best. You should just focus on becoming stronger and continue clearing the Royal inheritance. It''s a win-win situation after all, both of us will greatly benefit from it." Chapter 151: 151. Spells Noah walked toward the inventory of the academy. ''Win-win he says¡­ He just wants to use me to get the Royal inheritance, I don''t know if I''ll have any value after that.'' He was thinking about his conversation with Thaddeus. ''It might be fine till I''m discovered but what will happen at that point? I don''t believe that they will simply clear my name, nor that I will allow them to do so. My future clash with the Balvan family is set in stone.'' He would never make a deal to pacify with the Balvan family, there was no chance that he would just forget about the events in the mansion. ''What''s most likely to happen is that I will be blamed for all my crimes and the Royal family will trade my life to pacify the situation. If word gets out that the Royals hire criminals, I bet that their reputation would take a heavy blow.'' He was a criminal, there was no other way to see it. The Royal family was in charge of the county but they had to maintain a peaceful relationship with their subjects. Noah sighed after realizing that his only option was the usual one. ''I need power.'' He reached the inventory and showed his token to the guards that let him pass almost immediately. "What can I do for you this time?" Professor Lynn spoke to him with a trace of interest. Noah arrived in front of his desk and lightly bowed before making his request. "I would like to inspect all the spells having the darkness element as a requirement." Lynn''s brow arched in suspicion. "All of them?" "Yes, please." Noah''s reply was fast and polite. Lynn stared at the youth for a bit before picking the usual white crystal and focusing on it. When he handed it to Noah, a list of about thirty spells was shown at his probing. ''So few of them.'' A big part of the list was composed of the rank 0 spells that he had already inspected the first time that he went there. The others were mostly rank 1 or rank 2 spells and their prices were exorbitant. Noah carefully evaluated each one of them before sighing inwardly. ''To think that I believed to be rich just a few minutes ago.'' "Professor, I want the rank 0 spell Blind, the rank 2 spell Blood drain, and the spell Warp." Lynn''s eyes widened hearing Noah''s speaking. He stuttered as he answered to him. "B-but that''s will cost you more than half a million Credits!" Noah calmly replied to his words by handing him a space-ring. "Five hundred ninety thousand Credits to be precise. You can check my storage device if you don''t believe that I possess that sum." Lynn accepted the ring and was amazed to see its contents, all of Noah''s Credits were inside of it. He gulped and gave the ring back to Noah as he stood up from his chair. "Come with me, you will deposit the money and then receive your spells." Noah followed the Professor in the deepest part of the room through the inscribed floor. Lynn pressed on some runes on the wall and a passage opened. "Come." Noah didn''t hesitate and continued to walk. They walked through a dark corridor for a bit before Lynn stopped and pressed on a rune on the floor. A large pit appeared where a sea of Credits was stored. ''These should be the finances of the whole academy!'' "Drop the required Credits here, we couldn''t make that kind of transaction in the open." Noah waved his hand and emptied most of the contents of his space-ring in the underground vault. Lynn nodded and gestured to Noah to return to the previous room, the gap closed automatically as they stepped away from the area. As they exited the corridor, Lynn picked the white crystal from his desk and placed it on the same cavity of the other time. The inscriptions lit up and three scrolls materialized. "I don''t know where you obtained all that money but I advise you to train carefully in the Warp spell. You wouldn''t be the first cultivator to die because of an error in its execution." Noah stored the scroll and bowed to the Professor, then he hastily left the inventory to return to his accommodation. He didn''t even look at Ivor as he sat on his bed and took out the three scrolls. ''Blind is a simple rank 0 spell that covers a small area with black fog, it can be useful to surprise enemies with weak mental energy.'' In less than two hours he memorized the diagram and pointed toward a corner of the room. His mental energy was slightly expended and a small black cloud of about thirty centimeters appeared in that area. It lasted only for one second though and then dispersed in the air. ''A bit weak but I can''t expect much from a supportive spell. If used wisely, it can be useful.'' He took the second scroll, storing the first one. ''Blood drain, up to rank 2, limited to darkness element cultivator. Morphs one hand in a demonic claw that drains blood to heal injuries. It can slightly strengthen the body if enough energy is absorbed but there is the need to refine that power to do so.'' The spell was meant for those that relied mostly on the body to fight, which didn''t really fit Noah''s fighting style. However, he was deeply interested in the strengthening part. ''Magical beasts can freely absorb the "Breath" of other creatures and cultivators. I feel that this spell tried to imitate that ability and reached some satisfying results.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. His main goal in buying this spell was to study the mechanism behind it. If one day he managed to create his own spells, he would surely experiment in that same field. ''Well, I also need to rely less on my Demonic form, that spell simply consumes too much mental energy.'' It took him an entire day to understand the diagram and memorize it. At dawn, Noah was happily staring at his right hand that had successfully turned into a black fiendish claw. ''The expenditure on mental energy is not high at all! Even if I don''t use the spell to heal my injuries, it will still weaken my enemies! I will try its effect on my next mission.'' He dispelled the spell and the claws evaporated, revealing his normal hand under them. Noah turned toward the last scroll and his eyes shined due to his excitement. Chapter 152: 152. Monster ''Warp spell, rank based on the mental level of the user, limited to darkness element. The user teleports at a distance depending on the quantity of mental energy used.'' ''This one cost half a million Credits, spells without a rank limit are surely expensive.'' The diagram of the spell was so complex that Noah didn''t manage to make progress in it even after half a day of study. ''I need to take it slowly and carefully memorize everything. I was really lucky with the Demonic form since it was implanted directly in my sea of consciousness.'' Noah used the next two weeks to memorize the diagram. He had to diminish his focus on his training to do so but, in the end, he managed to learn perfectly the contents of the scroll. Of course, he decided to try it as soon as he did it. Noah was on his bed, reviewing the diagram. He had to manipulate the "Breath" to perform certain patterns and he had to do so in a specific rhythm. When he was sure that he wouldn''t commit any mistake, he stood up and stared at a spot in front of him. Ivor was sleeping in the empty room, he was completely alone. Noah activated the spell, his body was immediately covered in black flames. At the same time, those same flames appeared in a spot at one meter from his position. The two fires then extinguished in an instant, revealing Noah in the area where the second black flames had appeared. The process had taken less than a second from start to finish. Noah opened his eyes and supported himself on the near wall, his mind was assaulted by a powerful dizziness and he felt the urge to vomit invading his body. It took him a few minutes to suppress the after-effects of the spell. ''What a strong rejection! I need to spend a lot of time to get used to the teleportation before trying to use it in battle. For now, I should just be happy that I cast the spell successfully.'' He sat back on his bed and reviewed his situation. ''I''ve done everything I could to increase my battle prowess in the short run and I even invested in my future. There are no threats looming over me nor duties that require me to stop training. What I have to do now is to cultivate in a peaceful environment.'' And that''s exactly what he did. His courses were compelling and gradually increased his knowledge of the topics that he was interested in. Noah never skipped a lesson, not even when he went outside of the academy to complete his bimestrial missions. He trained in the Sulfur domain for one hour every two weeks, using that facility too often would ultimately soften the mental sphere and Noah didn''t want to risk it happening. He would also absorb "Breath" in his sea of consciousness every time the internal pressure diminished, added to his constant training with the Kesier rune, his mental sphere enlarged at an incredible speed. His body and dantian also steadily improved as Noah never slacked off in his night meditation. His remaining time was used to become accustomed to his new spells and to implement them in his combat style, which he then tested during the missions. Time passed quickly and, at some point, the event that he was waiting for finally happened. Noah was on the bed of his accommodation. One year had passed since he returned from the Royal inheritance, he was seventeen and a half years old by then. His facial features had matured and he had become slightly taller but remained still of medium stature. His hair had grown so much that he had to comb it in an intricate way to prevent it from touching the ground. It was the examination period of his courses, his second year as a student of the academy was successfully ending. However, there was no anxiety for his incoming tests on his expression, nor confidence. He had no expression at all. An unfolded sheet laid at his side, it had the second Kesier rune drawn on it. He had his eyes closed, carefully inspecting his sea of consciousness. There were Echo''s figure and a big dark blue ball that constantly emitted a pressure over the sea. Nevertheless, they didn''t manage to create any ripple on the water representing Noah''s mental energy. Two runes stood at the center of the sphere, both of them were covered by black roots that formed the diagram of the Demonic form spell. There was only stillness, nothing seemed to be able to shake the environment inside Noah''s mind. Noah opened his eyes. A wave of coldness invaded the room, his aura was overwhelming. ''This is completely different.'' He could clearly sense everything happening in an area of twenty meters around him. The colors of the world were shining as if they glowed on their own. "What happened?" Ivor was woken up by a wave of pain sent by his mental sphere. Since his sea of consciousness was fragmented, he was extremely sensitive to any powerful presence than naturally oppressed his mind. Noah shifted his gaze on him, his eyes had an unprecedented brilliance on them. Ivor stumbled, as Noah focused on him another wave of pain made him lose his balance. "Sorry, I''m still learning to control myself." Ivor''s eyes widened and he opened a jar of wine to take a long sip, he had begun to understand what had happened to his student. "How is this possible?" Noah concentrated and retracted his imposing presence, even with his eyes closed he could feel his surroundings clearly. He picked the sheet on his side and smirked a little looking at the rune on it, the sight caused him no discomfort at all. "You''ve really done it." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Ivor was incredulous. Noah nodded and moved his gaze back on him, he contained his mental pressure as much as he could but some of it was still leaked by the intensity of his stare. "I''m a rank 2 mage now." Ivor shook his head and drank more of his wine. "That''s¡­ How? The sea of consciousness is usually the last to advance! And even if we want to ignore that, you are not even close to being eighteen! A cultivator reaching that stage at the age of twenty-five would be considered a peerless talent! A situation like yours has never happened in the history of the cultivation world!" Ivor still couldn''t accept the event, in his eyes, Noah was a monster with limitless potential. Noah completely ignored his comments and stood up from his bed. "I think it''s time to start with the forging." Chapter 153: 153. Anonymity Noah wasn''t concerned about the tests of his courses. He was genuinely interested in the study of magical beasts so he had diligently memorized every lesson of that course, a simple written examination wasn''t something that could worry him. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. There was nothing to say about the real battle course, his strength was overwhelming among the students of his class and he had real experiences with battle formations, failing in that test was virtually impossible for him. Regarding general cultivation, the test emphasized the progress of the students during their enrollment in the academy, Noah could pass that one just by revealing half of his mental energy. "Are you ready to start?" Ivor recovered from his amazement and became excited. "Yes, being a rank 2 mage should allow me to forge something useful for my level. I just need to store enough "Breath" in my sea of consciousness to make it reach the same density of a cultivator in the liquid stage." In the various books that Ivor gave him, there were hundreds of notes regarding the power of the product according to the "Breath" used to forge it. Generally speaking, inscribed items had a rank that described their power. They were rank 1 if they replicated the strength of a rank 1 cultivator, rank 2 if they did it for rank 2 cultivators, and so on. They were then further divided in low, middle, and high tier, depending on which state of that rank they belonged to. If Noah was to create an inscribed item with the liquid "Breath" of a rank 1 dantian, he would obtain a rank 1 product in the middle tier. His sabers, the ones obtained in Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance, had precisely that power. "Why just liquid? You can surely push for a forging with solid "Breath"." Noah snorted at Ivor''s complain. "I want to exercise in the method first. I''d rather take it slowly than risk my mental sphere because I attempted to create something that surpasses my ability." According to the notes of the previous practitioners of the Elemental forging, a cultivator should always try to forge something less powerful than his dantian. In Noah''s case, that meant that he should stop at the liquid "Breath". However, those notes never considered the case of a cultivator having his sea of consciousness stronger than his dantian. ''Since I am now a rank two mage, accumulating "Breath" that equals the solid stage of a rank 1 dantian should be doable, the problem lays on its actual power.'' Noah wanted to create something that increased his battle prowess, having an item on the same level of his weapons was useless. ''With the solid "Breath", I might be able to forge something useful but it will still only reflect my current level, which I don''t really need. I have an idea that might actually give me a rank 2 weapon but I need more experience on the method to be sure of it.'' The products of the Elemental forging were the strongest among the various inscription methods. If Noah really managed to create a rank 1 high tier weapon, he would have an inscribed item that neared the second rank of the dantian in power. Nevertheless, he had already access to a similar power through his spells due to his recent breakthrough, that''s why he wanted something stronger. "You need a bigger house which should also have a reinforced room or basement. The unstable products of our method tend to explode." Noah nodded at Ivor''s words and pondered for a while with the academy token in his hand. He was searching for facilities that met his requirements. ''There are rooms that I can rent but they are quite pricy. Money really isn''t a problem but I''d rather not waste it if I can get what I need for free.'' He had more than one hundred thousand Credits left but he wanted to preserve them and accumulate a big sum in order to buy more spells or techniques. After all, with just one visit at the inventory, he had spent almost all the profits he obtained in the Royal inheritance. ''It seems that I only have that choice left.'' Noah put away the token and approached the door in order to exit his lodging. "Where are you going? I know that the alchemy division is quite experienced in explosions, they should have what you need." Noah shook his head. "There would be too many eyes on me. Maybe I can''t prevent the news about my breakthrough from being disclosed but I''d rather keep my creations a secret." "That is wise. So?" Ivor approved his line of thought, it was always better to have some hidden card under your sleeve. "Daniel, a guy that graduated once he became a rank 2 cultivator, joined the alchemy division which means that he had practiced in that field for a while." Ivor didn''t understand and opened his mouth to speak but Noah interrupted him. "He had the best accommodation in the academy and, according to the information in the token, that house has a large underground basement completely reinforced with inscriptions. It should be the best environment where to practice." "That''s wonderful, right? What do you have to do to occupy that house?" Noah sighed, lightly smiling at Ivor. "I have to beat the current strongest student in the academy." Ivor showed a surprised expression but then his brows furrowed and he drank from his usual jar. "You are a rank 2 mage, aren''t you the strongest student?" "I should be, but I wanted to avoid becoming too famous. Well, I need the Credits and the reinforced room so I can only completely give up to my anonymity." He was already known by the students as the one that broke Daniel''s record but since he spent most of his time isolated in his accommodation, only those in his class remembered his facial features. ''I should first pass my tests though and I need the third Kesier rune from the inventory. Also, I need to test my new strength, I might kill the student in Daniel''s lodging if I''m not able to control myself.'' He made up his mind and exited his house, his direction was toward the left side of the academy. Chapter 154: 154. Tests Noah first went to the inventory. Professor Lynn seemed to be particularly interested in his growth and showed an interested expression every time he entered that building. His face though turned to one of disbelief as soon as he heard of Noah''s request. "You are joking, right?" Lynn stood up from behind his desk and shouted, he was a bit angry since he thought that the student was making fun of him. Noah sighed and took out the second Kesier rune from his space-ring. He showed the contents of the sheet to the Professor and then he began to look at it with a calm expression. Lynn wasn''t convinced just by that and carefully stared at Noah''s face waiting for any sign of struggle to appear. However, as the hours passed, Lynn''s mouth slowly opened in disbelief. "Professor, it''s been half a day already, I have other errands to attend to." Noah had grown bored of that useless process and decided to move his gaze back on the cultivator. "How is this possible? Are you sure you don''t have Kesier blood in your veins?" Noah just shrugged his shoulders to answer. Lynn sat back on his chair and muttered with himself, he really couldn''t accept what he was witnessing. "Do you know that you probably are the first cultivator to ever achieve something like that? I have to inform the Royals, this is something worthy of the official records of the history of cultivators!" Noah''s eyes widened and he wore a shameless smile. "Isn''t it possible to keep this event private? You know, I''m quite shy." Lynn stared at Noah, his expression said that he didn''t believe one of the student''s words. "Even if I wanted to, I couldn''t do it. Everything inside the academy belongs to the Royal dynasty so every transaction has to be recorded and copied. You can be assured that the news of someone requesting for the third Kesier rune won''t go unnoticed." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''It seems that it won''t be known immediately, I should have enough time to take my new accommodation and isolate myself in there to train.'' Lynn continued to stare at Noah, there was still some disbelief in his eyes. "Ehm, Professor, I still need the rune." Lynn came back to reality and hastily picked the white crystal on his desk. In a few minutes, Noah went out of the building with the third rune in his space-ring. ''Now the tests.'' Noah went to look for the three Professors of his courses in their different buildings in order to ask to do his tests privately. The excuse that he used was that he had to complete a mission in the following days in order to meet his bimestrial duty. The three weren''t particularly opposed to it and accepted to examine him. Professor Roy, of the magical beasts'' course, was an old cultivator completely addicted to the study of those creatures, he gladly accepted to speak more of them. Noah underwent a long interrogation at which he answered perfectly, gaining the favor of the Professor. He didn''t really know why he liked to learn about magical beasts so much, maybe the events with the King of the valley had left a deep impression on him. Yet, he felt incredibly interested in the variety of those creatures and in their habits so he simply studied them. Bruce Nairti didn''t even test him, as soon as Noah made his request, he immediately said two words. "You pass." That left even Noah surprised. Bruce saw his expression and explained his reasons in a simple way. "You are the strongest in your class and that position was never questioned even after June became Megan''s student. You tell me what''s the point in testing you." June became stronger under the teachings of her Master but still couldn''t match Noah''s hardworking personality. Her character though matured quite a bit, she had become less impulsive in the last year. Megan Iccek was the last Professor that he visited. She asked him many questions about the inventions of famous cultivators but Noah only remembered the contents of their discoveries, being almost completely ignorant about the names of those mighty individuals. He couldn''t help it, he simply didn''t care about their names, he was only interested in their experiments with the various techniques. "You are really similar to my disciple, you listen only when it concerns something that you are interested in. I had to say that she could have beaten you if she managed to think more about her actions instead of always doing what she wanted. In a week, her combat style improved drastically." Megan said, shaking her head. "I think that she has taken you as her goal. For such a young girl to be so focused on battles, her life mustn''t have been easy." She sighed and Noah remembered a scene in the fourth layer of the Royal inheritance. June sitting on her knees with her head lowered, the blood from her bitten lips continuously tainting the ground. ''To have such a reverence toward strength, one must have withstood harshness in his life. Well, those that don''t do it are simply blind.'' In a world where the threat of magical beasts was constant, the search for power was a survival instinct of the human species. "You pass, just do me a favor." Noah waited for her to continue. "My disciple still didn''t realize it but she considers you as a friend so try not to hurt her with your actions. I know that your situation isn''t simple but that doesn''t mean that you have to involve her in your messes." ''Is she asking me to not drag her in my personal fights?'' "I will surely try to avoid that." Noah said. He really meant those words. His character was apathetic but that didn''t prevent him from caring about other persons. June was definitely far away from his definition of "caring" but he appreciated her character, he wouldn''t like to hurt her for no reason. After the issue concerning the tests was over, it was time to pick a mission and becoming used to his new strength. Noah spent a week in Arolyac forest and was extremely satisfied with the results of his breakthrough. ''Now I just have to beat that guy and take his accommodation. After that, I can start forging!" Noah thought and his eyes shined due to his excitement as he moved toward the management building. Chapter 155: 155. Crowd A big commotion occurred in the academy. It was the period after the final examinations of the courses, normally most of the students would return to their families or engage in long missions at that time. However, all the students chose to delay their plans due to an unexpected event. Vance, the recluse student that showed his face only during the lessons but that also broke Daniel''s record, challenged Manuel Gousho, the current holder of the title of the strongest student in the academy. The Gousho family was a large-size noble family affiliated with the Udye one. Daniel and Manuel had a friendly relationship but, due to their age gap, their level had always been quite far away, never allowing a proper confrontation between them. After Daniel left, Manuel had taken his position as the leader of the new generation, obtaining respect and reverence from his peers. Manuel was a man nearing twenty years of age. Since he had seized the best accommodation in the academy, his power had steadily increased, nearing the breakthrough for the second rank of the dantian. He was just a few weeks away from reaching the peak of the solid stage, after that he would use his reagent and undergo the breakthrough. Never could he had imagined that his academy token would send him a notification in that period. ''A challenge right before my advancement? Does this junior want to become famous by stepping over me?'' Manuel thought, sitting cross-legged on an extremely comfortable mat laid on the floor of his accommodation. ''Should I ignore it? I don''t think that I will lose face if I don''t agree to such a request.'' He pondered, scratching his head lightly. ''It''s from that student, Vance! The one that surpassed Daniel!'' Even though his relationship with Daniel was friendly, he still had a competitive nature, he just suppressed those feelings because the age gap rendered almost impossible for him to catch up. However, a random youth appeared which was even younger than him and surpassed his seemingly unbeatable friend. ''If I refuse his challenge, the other nobles will forever think of me as a second-rate cultivator, fearful of the real geniuses.'' Challenges could be ignored but there was a monetary fee to pay to do so. Nevertheless, Manuel was the heir of a powerful family, that sum was nothing in his eyes. What he was worried about was the impact that such a refusal would have on his image. He wanted to be considered akin to a Daniel by his generation, that''s why he was working so hard to reach the second rank of the dantian before the age of twenty, he wanted to match Daniel''s achievement. ''I suppose that a nice victory can improve my mood and increase my focus on cultivation. I also have to teach him that not all the nobles are as weak as he thinks.'' Noah''s behavior with Daniel''s followers was widely known, that was another factor that ultimately led him to be ignored by most of the students. ''Large-size noble families are untouchable in the eyes of common cultivators, it seems that the new generations have forgotten about that. It''s on me to restore the natural order.'' As he thought of that, he accepted the challenge through his token and stood up from the mat. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. On the day of the battle, scheduled four days after Manuel''s positive answer, a big crowd stood excited on the stages of the largest arena in the academy. It was a circular building on the left side of the river, with an empty space fifty meters wide encircled by hundreds of overhead seats. ''It resembles the Colosseum of my previous world, just way smaller.'' Noah thought, lazily standing at the center of the arena surrounded by the crowd of students. ''There are some inscriptions on the ground and even on the walls below the stages, it seems that I won''t have to worry about breaking it.'' He was waiting for his opponent to appear, turning a deaf ear to the screams of the crowd above him. ''I knew that there would have been a commotion but this is far greater than I thought. Basically all the students are here and there are even a few Professors!'' The students were shouting cheers and making their bets, there were even a few of them who were loudly mocking him. "He''s mad! Senior Manuel was one of Daniel''s strongest followers, it''s said that they were actually close friends!" "He probably reached the solid stage and thought that he could beat the strongest student! Hmph, he really underestimates the power of us nobles." "Senior Manuel should teach him a memorable lesson! Break his limbs and make his teeth fall! I will gladly buy one of them for a thousand Credits!" The most heated group that insulted him was composed by the students that Noah punished back when they tried to ambush him. ''Why don''t they ever learn? Well, this Manuel shouldn''t be as useless as them, there are nobles that don''t waste the privileges of their status after all.'' Like he used everything he had to improve his strength, there had to be other cultivators that did the same. When one of them was born in a large-size noble family, it would be labeled as a genius due to his fast growth. That hadn''t much to do with talent though, they simply had more resources and they used them wisely to increase their power. For someone like Noah that had to use every chance that he could find to accumulate more resources, their lives appeared way too easy. ''If you don''t fight for what you need, you will obtain a power that you can''t use. I wonder how many of my spells he will make me use.'' It''s not that he was underestimating him, the quantity of his "Breath" was definitely inferior to his opponent, implying that in a long battle he would lose. However, he was a rank 2 mage! His mind was on a completely different level and that advantage didn''t stop to the increase of the pressure that he naturally emitted. "Junior, if you thought that using me to become famous was a smart plan, you really underestimated the difference between or status." Manuel appeared from one of the passages on the walls. He was wearing a luxurious green battle robe that coordinated perfectly with his long brown hair. He wielded a long sword with a golden inscribed handle of the same color of the embroidery of his dress. ''Did he bought that robe only for this match? It doesn''t seem like he has ever used it.'' Noah inwardly shook his head, he couldn''t really understand the mental processes of nobles. He was only wearing tight black pants, showing his defined and pale upper body to the crowd. "Actually, I just want your accommodation." Chapter 156: 156. Untouchable The crowd was silenced by Noah''s statement but was then revived by Manuel''s words. "The best house in the academy belongs to the strongest student. If you want it, you have to defeat me." The crowd exploded in cheers, Manuel''s demeanor seemed to be more appreciated than Noah''s one. One was prideful and confident while the other was cold and indifferent, there was no doubt about who would attract the favor of the students. Noah shook his head and wielded his sabers. "Let''s just start, I have things to do." A wave of coldness enveloped the stage as Noah focused on his opponent. Manuel''s expression changed instantly, his smiling face transformed into a stern one. Noah''s stare seemed to pierce him physically and the pressure it caused was suffocating. ''His battle intent sure is worth of praise.'' Manuel thought, mistaking the pressure of Noah''s sea of consciousness for his battle might. It wasn''t to blame though, the possibility that the youth in front of him was a rank 2 mage was unthinkable. ''He is not bad, he is able to withstand my focus. Well, I stayed in the forest for one week to learn how to hold back after all.'' That wasn''t the full extent of the mental pressure he was capable of, he was restraining himself. Manuel decided to take the battle seriously and pointed his sword at Noah. Sparks gathered on the metal of the blade and the handle lighted up to accelerate the process. In less than a second, a thunderbolt shot out from the tip of the sword toward Noah. Echo appeared in the air in front of him with its wings spread wide. The thunder hit its body and pierced it, continuing on its way to hit the wall behind the blood companion. Noah had already moved, the moment he understood that Manuel was a cultivator of the thunder element, he knew that Echo could not completely block the blow. He had a vast experience regarding thunder spells due to his two years of weekly sparring with June, he knew that the bat''s body was not enough as a form of protection. Echo disappeared in his body as Noah ran, he wanted to get closer to Manuel in order to force a melee battle. However, another bolt of lightning arrived in his direction and he was forced to stop his advance and hide behind Echo. Manuel didn''t stop though, he launched two more thunderbolts in his direction, making Noah retreat. ''It''s his weapon!'' Noah was confused. Generally speaking, it would be impossible to use such a powerful spell that many times in a row and without a certain delay. Yet, Manuel did exactly that and Noah pointed the reason for that unusual ability to his weapon. ''That sword shortens the casting time of the spell and it seems to lower the mental energy required for its activation. Its definitely a rank 1 item at the peak of the tier.'' As Noah retreated, Manuel stopped using his spell and took out a bottle from his space-ring in order to restore some of his mental energy. Pills and items were allowed in those kinds of battle, wealth was a form of power after all. The only rule was to not attempt on the life of your opponent. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''This is getting annoying, I should try that thing.'' Echo''s wings came out of his back and Noah shot in a straight line toward Manuel. His opponent didn''t hesitate and pointed his blade back at him. Another thunderbolt shot in his direction but Noah didn''t change his pace. As he and the spell were at less than a meter from each other, a black ring appeared under his feet and he immediately shot in the air. He flew over the spell! Manuel, however, knew about his wings and promptly moved his blade to aim in his position mid-air. Little did he expect that, as soon as the spell shot out from his weapon, Noah kicked the air over him and diagonally changed his direction. Normally, when someone jumped during a battle, he was unable to dodge. Noah had his wings but they weren''t enough to change his course so drastically. Even when he used the Shadow steps spell, the concentration required to make those kinds of cuts in the air was high and the results were not always reliable. However, since he became a rank 2 mage, he finally managed to perfect that combat style. Noah''s cut speed scared Manuel that hastily released another spell. Noah didn''t even look at it and changed direction again, relentlessly moving closer to his opponent. That was proper flight, not simply floating in the air! As for how he could manage to understand the trajectory of the spells, that was also due to his rank 2 mental sphere. Each one of Manuel''s actions was under the strict control of his personal scan ability which had surpassed Echo''s one in precision when it concerned a short distance. When he was in the air, Noah was untouchable. Manuel gave up on trying to hit him and prepared to drink another potion but Noah launched thirty wind slashes toward his position. The slashes came from different directions as if there were more persons attacking him at the same time. Manuel gave up on refilling his mental sphere too and unleashed the might of his rank 4 martial art to block all the attacks. His sword moved slowly in the air in front of him, releasing small sparks. As the black slashes arrived in his position, the sparks exploded and instantly destroyed Noah''s attacks. However, that action gave Noah enough time to arrive in his opponent''s position. ''First form of the Ashura!'' He didn''t hesitate and unleashed his strongest technique. More than fifteen sabers appeared around Manuel and attacked him at the same time! Manuel resorted again to the shield made of sparks to defend himself. Another explosion occurred which distanced the two students from each other. "You are indeed strong." Manuel spoke with a slight smile on his face. "But my reserves of "Breath" are deeper than yours, this match is mine." Noah didn''t answer and simply pointed at his right cheek. Manuel didn''t understand the meaning of that gesture until he felt a warm sensation on the left side of his face. He swiped his cheek with his hand and found out that a small cut had appeared on it. Chapter 157: 157. Probing Manuel was astonished! ''How did he manage to hit me through the barrier of lightning?!?'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. His martial art focused on defense, logically speaking, it had to match Noah''s attacks. However, Noah still successfully hit him. He didn''t know that after his second time witnessing that technique, Noah could clearly see through its weak spots. ''Being a rank 2 mage is wonderful. The speed of my thoughts increased drastically and I can notice details that I was completely ignorant about!'' He felt that he could see through everything! Some merit must be addressed to his battle experience though, seeing a weakness and exploiting it were two different things after all. "Do you surrender or you want to see if my "Breath" will last till I hit your throat?" Noah mocked him with his own words. He was holding back, not using any of his new spells. He was sure that, after that match, his name would be widely known so he wanted to hide at all cost his power and, most importantly, the nature of his element. Echo could be considered a simple puppet, just black in color. The Shadow steps spell was hard to distinguish from rank 0 movement spells of other elements. His martial art was quite peculiar but, since his basic forms came from the Nails of the Kamaitachi art, he could be misjudged for a cultivator of the wind element. Even if they had their suspects though, it was unlikely that a simple rumor would reach the ears of the Balvan family. That''s why he would rather take a fast win instead of protracting the fight. If Manuel did a mistake because of his mockery, he was confident that he could transform it into a winning blow. Manuel didn''t take the bait but pointed his sword again at Noah. Thunderbolts shot instantly from it but Noah simply jumped back in the air and again shortened the distance between them through his flight. In a few minutes, Noah was in front of Manuel and the latter had to resort to his barrier of lightning to evade his assault. They were separated again but, that time, Manuel had two deep cuts on his legs. He was also quite pale as he launched more than twenty spells without having any time to recover. ''His mental energy shouldn''t be enough to continue with this tactic. What exactly is his plan?'' Noah was suspicious. His opponent wasn''t panicking nor was he resorting to reckless attacks. Manuel''s eyes were calm and focused, not those of someone that had given up. Manuel raised his sword again a resumed launching spells. The events occurred in the same way as before: Noah flew in the air, dodging his attacks and slowly neared his opponent. However, as Noah was about to attack him, Manuel planted his weapon in the terrain. A big explosion occurred as a thunderstorm expanded from the handle of his sword to the surroundings. Yet, Noah was expecting something like that and calmly decided to enter Echo''s body to withstand its might. Echo was destroyed multiple times due to the storm and many sparks landed on Noah''s body, burning and cracking his skin. Nevertheless, Noah''s eyes never flickered and remained fixed on the center of the spell. He lunged with his right saber and stopped it as soon as it reached Manuel''s throat. Manuel raised his head and smiled madly, continuing to fuel his spell. ''This fool would rather break the rules and kill me than admit his defeat!'' Noah had deliberately chosen to not use any of his other spells and endure the attack with his body but, in the end, he found himself in that situation. His eyes shone with a dark light as he hastily focused the entire might of his mental sphere on Manuel. What Manuel felt in that moment, was a cold pressure assaulting his mental sphere. As soon as a crack appeared on his sphere, the spell stopped and he fainted on the spot. The thunderstorm vanished, revealing Noah completely covered with injuries and Manuel lying unconscious at his feet. The crowd was silent for a moment before exploding in a loud commotion. Noah, however, emitted pure anger from every part of his body with his killing intent clearly focused on the youth below him. "Enough, you won." Thaddeus appeared next to him and spoke in a soft voice. Noah didn''t raise his head but retracted his pressure. "It''s funny that you didn''t stop him when my saber was on his throat." Noah said in a plain tone, finally facing the Professor and showing him a wide fake smile. "If you want to probe me, you should at least send Daniel." He continued and then he simply turned toward the exit of the arena. Thaddeus'' eyes glowed with a dark light as he stared at the departing youth covered in his own blood. Lynn appeared next to him and pressed a hand on Manuel''s head. "It''s just a small injury but he needs at least one month of complete rest." Thaddeus nodded without moving his gaze from the direction where Noah had gone. "So, he has really done it, rank 2 mage before eighteen, unbelievable. Do you really not know to which level of proficiency his other spells are?" Lynn shook his head. "No, and, as you saw, he is careful not to expose his full strength. Are you sure that it was for the best to let Manuel continue?" Thaddeus moved at last and threw a rune over Manuel''s body, making him disappear on the spot. "I had to know the extent of his growth." "What if he ends to hate the academy?" "He needs us and he knows that we need him for the Royal inheritance. We shouldn''t push him too much though, it will be a pity if we really lose someone that can match Daniel''s talent." Thaddeus'' thoughts concerned the bigger picture of the country. With Daniel as the champion of the new generations of the noble families, the Royals needed someone that could match him in strength and talent. However, Noah couldn''t care less about the politic scene of the continent and walked with his body covered in blood toward the source of the river. Chapter 158: 158. Refinemen ''Fuck all those control maniacs'' Noah cursed in his mind as he walked alongside the river. As he arrived in front of his accommodation, he strongly knocked on the door. "Ivor! We are moving." Ivor didn''t take much to came out of the small house and was a bit surprised to find Noah in that bloody state. "Was he that strong?" Noah snorted and directly turned toward the source of the river. "No, they just delayed my victory to see if I revealed more of my power." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Ivor understood immediately why they did something like that. "Did you do it?" Noah snorted again but didn''t answer. He focused on his body and his bones emitted a soft cold aura. As he walked, his many wounds began to heal and new skin was created under his burned flesh. "Did you make another breakthrough?" Ivor noticed the speed at which his body recovered and was quite surprised. "I entered the upper tier of the third rank of the body a while ago, just these superficial injuries are nothing." By the time they reached the source of the river, all his cuts had stopped bleeding and his burns showed signs of recovery. ''This place is better than I assumed.'' Noah thought. The accommodations became bigger as he neared the source and the density of the "Breath" increased by another fold. It wasn''t at the same level as the big chunk of "Breath" blessing but it was still an amazing area where to cultivate. The last house in sight was a two-story building with a large balcony on the first floor. Noah directly moved toward the entrance door and pointed his academy token at it. The door released a mechanical sound and unlocked, Noah pushed it without thinking twice. "Welcome back, young master!" Three cheerful voices rang as soon as the door opened as three young girls wearing revealing clothes welcomed him. However, once they saw Noah bloodied figure and Ivor shabby one, they stammered and one of them mustered her courage to speak in a trembling voice. "W-where is Master Manuel?" Noah was still irritated by the events in the arena and didn''t waste time to explain the situation. "This house is now mine, gather his stuff and go away. If I still see you around after two parts of incense, I will personally escort you out." He released a bit of his aura to make his statement clearer. The maids panicked and hurriedly picked everything that belonged to their master and ran away from the front door. Ivor couldn''t help but shake his head seeing the three beauties leaving the building. "Why didn''t you let them stay, we could have had fun!" Noah forcefully closed the door and directed an angry gaze at Ivor. "I barely have time to sleep and you want me to waste more time? Also, everything that I will do from now on must be completely secret, I can''t have those weaklings running around my house." Ivor complained some more. "But they were so beautiful! Why don''t you ever think about your poor Master when you make those decisions?" "My poor Master should stop being a scrounger and start helping me. All you do is drinking wine and sleeping." "Well, there isn''t much that I can do if you don''t start forging." At these words, Noah showed an excited smile. "Don''t worry, I will start soon." Noah inspected the whole house and felt satisfied. There were seven rooms divided between the ground floor and the first one. What hat he appreciated the most though was the underground basement of the habitation. It was clean and twenty square meters large, both its walls and floor had inscriptions that increased their durability. ''This is perfect.'' He sat on the mat previously owned by Manuel and calmly focused on his recovery. In two days, he was back at his peak form. Noah sat cross-legged on the mat. Inside his sea of consciousness, many small dark blue spheres gathered in the hands of Noah''s ethereal figure. The balls fused with each other, slowly forming a single big sphere that emitted a faint light. A faint pressure was emitted from it which made Noah nod internally. ''This one has reached the liquid stage.'' Its matter was denser than the previous balls that he had accumulated, he could clearly feel that the power of the one in front of him had surpassed the limits of the gaseous stage. ''Now, I just need to create more of these until I have enough "ink" to start forging.'' A week slowly passed in which Noah focused mainly on accumulating "Breath" in his sea of consciousness. After he felt that his headache was about to return, he decided to stop. A seemingly dark blue lake stood over the sea in his mental sphere, releasing an immense pressure. Noah, however, simply looked at it casually. He was a rank 2 mage, the "Breath" on the level of rank 1 cultivators wasn''t enough to make him flicker. ''If I continue to absorb more, I can surely make it reach the level of the solid "Breath" but my headache will return. I should just test with this to gain some experience with the process.'' "Ivor." He called his Master that was peacefully snoring in a corner of the basement. Ivor opened his eyes and it took them a while to gain focus. "What?" Noah had patiently waited for him to wake up and answered calmly. "I''m ready to start. I''ve gathered enough to attempt in a breakthrough in the solid stage." The quantity of "Breath" in his sea of consciousness wasn''t even close to the one in his dantian. However, since it was mixed with his mental energy, it could be compressed freely to reach the same amount of density of his dantian. Ivor stood up and held back his excitement. "Now, you have to start a second refinement to insert your will in it. Remember, simple intentions are the easier to imprint on your energy, so try to start with something easy and that you are familiar with." Noah thought for a while and decided in his mind. His ethereal figure immersed itself in the dark lake and they both descended in the sea below them. Noah reviewed in his mind all the moments in which his sabers had cleanly cut in half his opponents. Chapter 159: 159. Story He had a lot of memories of his battles. From the first time when he fought the rank 1 Four-eyes wolves to his recent fight in the arena, his combat style has always focused on two qualities: speed and sharpness. He tried to imprint his meaning of sharpness on the dark lake, concentrating on the memories where he killed his enemies in one blow. The refinement process took a long time. He had to first synchronize his mental energy with his idea of sharpness and then mix more mental energy in the dark lake to align the nature of the "Breath" with the one that he had set. Another week passed, with Ivor calmly standing right next to him, waiting for the results of his refinement. On the night of the seventh day, Noah opened his eyes and stretched and his arm in front of him. Over his palm, a blue liquid floated peacefully. Every drop in the small pond resembled a small blade and a faint sense of sharpness was exuded from it. Ivor immediately neared the liquid and carefully inspected, mumbling from time to time. "How is it?" Noah asked expectantly. "It''s definitely too diluted with your mental energy, you can see how its color has completely lost the shades of your element. However, for your first time, the will that you imprinted is definitely above average. You can use this energy to forge a rank 1 low tier item." Ivor''s judgment left him a bit disappointed. "Just low tier? But I definitely used "Breath" in the liquid stage." Ivor shook his head. "There is too much mental energy in it, it has lost some power. Next time, you should refine it directly with mental energy that has a will in it. That way, you will only do one round of refinement, preserving more power of the initial "Breath"." Noah understood his explanation and nodded. ''The last time, I have refined it simply because I wanted to show it to Ivor but I didn''t use any particular will, I just wanted to be able to manipulate it. From now on, I should just render the "Breath" harmless and leave it in my sea of consciousness until I decide what to do with it.'' As he thought of that, an idea popped into his mind. "Ivor, can''t I just take the "Breath" from my dantian? It will shorten the time required in the accumulation process and there will be less power loss during the refinement. I, actually don''t know why there are so few notes about this in the books that you gave me." Ivor looked at Noah with an irritated expression. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Do you think that it''s that common for a cultivator to have his mental sphere at a higher rank than his dantian?" "¡­" Noah was speechless for a moment and realized his peculiar situation. "So, is it possible?" Ivor sighed and nodded while he gulped some wine. "If you can endure the pressure of the "Breath" of your dantian, then yes. Yet, I recommend you to focus on increasing the intensity of your will for now so you would have to mix less mental energy with the "Breath"." "And how do I do that?" Noah shrugged his shoulders as he said that. The notes that he received mostly concerned the various processes, they stated though that the matters about the will were personal and every practitioner had to find his personal way to express it. "Well, there aren''t many general rules on that topic. Usually, strong emotions give birth to strong wills. You should try to empower the meaning that you want to imprint with something that you deeply desire." ''That is quite vague, I guess I can only keep on experimenting until I become good at it.'' "What did you think about when you created the will for your knife?" At that question, Ivor supported himself on the wall and drank a mouthful of wine. As he began to speak, a bitter smile appeared on his face. "You must know that I''ve never been too interested in cultivation, I was just a simple noble. I fell in love with a beautiful woman and she had the same feeling for me. Yet, my status wasn''t good enough and she was then married to another family. From that moment on, the "Attunement" method has been precluded from me. The moment when Heavens and Earth feel that you don''t believe in their fairness, you will lose all your chances to ever hear the language of the "Breath"." Noah''s eyes lit up in understanding. ''So, it''s not something inborn but it depends on your experiences and thoughts.'' "But I didn''t want to give up, she was the love of my life after all. Cultivating until I was strong enough to take her back was too slow so I decided to bet everything on the Elemental forging method as it was the fastest way to increase my power." "I refined the "Breath" thinking about my love for her and my anger toward the unfairness of the world. I tested the process for two whole years before I finally produced a stable item. I used "Breath" on the level of the solid stage of the third rank of the dantian and obtained an inscribed weapon that could express the battle prowess of the heroic ranks." ''Is he saying that it''s possible to surpass the barriers between ranks?'' "I know what you are thinking. It is possible to create something powerful with weak materials but you always need something that increases the level of the item. In my case, it was my will that propelled my creation directly in the heroic ranks." Noah lowered his head in respect. ''Such strong feelings¡­ I wonder if I have something like that.'' "Yet, a single weapon, no matter how strong it is, can''t compare to the full power of a large-size noble family. I was defeated so I chose to create something even more powerful. My current mental sphere is the result of that decision." Ivor emptied his jar as his story ended and looked at Noah with a bitter smile. "Our road is contradictory. We require an imponent will to create our items but we also need self-control to know our limits. Focus on the basics and never take a step further unless you are absolutely sure that you have what you require to complete the process. Use your strong emotions to forge and not to guide your actions. Now, get accustomed to the forging. Once you manage to create something stable, I will give you my legacy." As he said that, he stood up and climbed the stairs to leave Noah alone in the basement. Chapter 160: 160. Ambition The third year in the academy was generally used by the students to specialize in their future profession. There were no lessons unless someone requested for private ones, and the academy ground was mostly empty as all the students focused on their duties. Most of the students were almost twenty after two years of enrollment so the few exceptions like Noah could use that time to increase their cultivation level in that favorable environment. Noah was currently inside the basement, attempting in the forging process. Two weeks had passed since his first attempt but he still had to obtain some successful results. ''Fuck!'' Noah threw away the bone of a Sun tiger. As the piece of magical beast flew, it crashed with the wall of the basement and exploded, making all the inscription on the room flicker. ''Another failure, I even exhausted all the "Breath" that I refined.'' The Elemental forging was quite different from other types of inscription methods. Instead of "writing" the meaning of the quality that they wanted to reproduce, the practitioners had to use the "Breath" that they had accumulated in their sea of consciousness as one of the materials of the item that they had to forge. The meaning was imprinted in their mixture of "Breath" and mental energy after all, that compound had to be one of the core materials of the inscribed item. From that, it originated the appellation "forging". However, that compound was not enough as a material, it had to be put together with other appropriate ingredients. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. From that, it came the appellation "elemental", as it was strongly advised to use objects that fitted the element of the practitioner. The bones of the Sun tigers were definitely not suitable with Noah''s compound but he decided to gain experience with them anyway since finding a creature of the darkness element required him to leave the academy. He would rather do that when two months passed from his last mission in order to optimize his time. Noah sat on the floor, he was quite tired. ''Apart from the conflicting element, there is also the problem that my control over the process is lacking. I guess that I can only become better as I gain experience.'' He had to shape the item through his control over the compound that he created in his sea of consciousness and that required an incredible amount of concentration since he had to use it to modify the shape of the other materials too. ''I need to absorb "Breath" again.'' His daily life didn''t change much in the new accommodation. He would always cultivate body and dantian at night while he used the day to train his mental sphere and in his other various activities. One of those was exactly the forging. Noah spent five days to refill his mental sphere with the same amount of "Breath" that he had previously, as he became more used to the process, he had increased his absorption speed. That time though, he didn''t refine it but simply limited on rendering it harmless and without a will. A black lake stood over the sea in his mind when he closed his eyes to concentrate on the meaning that he wanted his mental energy to convey. ''Strong emotions, strong emotions.'' He initially thought that he could use his vengeful feelings for the Balvan family to empower his will but, even if the results were better than during his first refinement, they still didn''t meet Noah''s standards. ''It seems that those feelings are not selfless enough to reach Ivor''s level. He would have gladly sacrificed himself to obtain what he wanted while I want to be alive and well after I kill Rhys. My wellness was one of Lily''s wishes after all.'' Noah searched inside himself for stronger emotions and could only find one thing more powerful than his anger for his father. ''I wonder if my ambition will work.'' He focused and remembered the sensations that he felt the first time he gazed at the shining stars during the test for his nature. He remembered when his most powerful attacks that he spent so much to learn were completely ineffective against a magical beast in the heroic ranks. He remembered the King of the valley, able to block the exit for its entire pack with its breath. He remembered Kevin, withstanding uncaringly the spells of the water mage with the might of his body. And, in the end, he remembered the event that signed the beginning of his journey as a cultivator. A dragon, a mighty beast that he had only seen in fantasy books, spat a lance made of flames toward him. He remembered how marveled he was when he first saw the flames shaping themselves to form a piercing attack. Then, an old man, without any apparent quality, calmly appeared in the air and blocked that attack with one hand. Thomas Balvan, the first cultivator that he identified in his new life, was the picture of what he imagined as divine in his mind. ''That was when my ambition was born.'' Noah couldn''t notice it but his eyes begun to shine as he reviewed those memories, a faint light was emitted through his closed eyelids. He focused on the emotions that he had felt in that moment and that had accompanied him through all his life. Then, he imagined a saber, flying horizontally in the sky. It had never happened nor Noah had ever seen it, it was all his imagination. The saber ran through the air, cutting everything that dared to step on its way. Dragons fell from the sky cut in half, mountains were severed, seas were divided. At some point, even the matter of the same sky could not withstand the saber''s sharpness. It split, showing a black space filled with small shining dots in the distance. The black lake in Noah''s mental sphere was immersed in the sea at that moment. After three days inside Noah''s mental energy, it emerged in a different shape. It was still black with some shades of blue in its color but it was impossible to consider it a lake anymore. It was thin, with sharp tips on both sides. It resembled the body of a saber without its handle. Chapter 161: 161. Heir ''This should be the best that I can hope for with my current experience.'' Noah thought, analyzing the "Breath" in his sea of consciousness. ''Let''s try to forge with this.'' Another bone of Sun tiger appeared in his hand. Noah carefully manipulated a small part of the "Breath" in his mental sphere and slowly inserted it in the bone. It immediately started cracking, the piece of the magical beast was opposing that foreign substance. However, Noah controlled the "Breath" to force the item to stay still, using his mental energy and "Breath" in the dantian to envelop the bone. A black membrane appeared around the item in his hand. That was one of the incubating methods described in the forging procedures. With the membrane around it, the bone could not break toward the outside and was forced to mix with Noah''s "Breath". Its color changed, from a pale white with shades of red, it became darker, turning gray with purple tones. Noah then controlled it to change shape. Inside the incubating membrane, its form slowly transformed. It became thinner and denser, and its edges sharpened little by little. However, Noah lost control of the "Breath" inside the item for an instant, causing a chain reaction that destabilized the precarious equilibrium between the two different substances. ''Fuck!'' Noah hastily dissolved the membrane and launched the bone in one corner of the basement. Before it could reach the wall, the bone exploded, making the whole room tremble. ''Well, the power contained in the item definitely increased due to the improved purity of "Breath" that I managed to refine. Yet, I still can''t force it together with other materials.'' It wasn''t just a matter of different elements between his "ink" and the material that he was using, his control during the process was still lacking. It was similar to when he had to imbue with his "Breath" the blood of the magical beast to create a blood companion, only way harder and more profound. He was changing the structural design of a bone after all! He had to find the right way to do it without causing an irreversible destruction of the item. ''The worst part is that every item has a different conformation so it has to be treated in a different way. My experience with the bones of the Sun tigers can''t be applied to my future materials. It seems that in order to create something stable, one needs to experiment a lot on each of the materials that he wants to use.'' Different materials would lead to different products, even with the same will imprinted on the "Breath" used in the forging. ''Basically, I can only keep trying until I create something adequate.'' More than one month passed from that moment, Noah had stayed in the basement for two months already. The sound of explosions never stopped coming from there and Ivor had become used to that by then. ''It''s almost night, there should be two more explosions before he begins to cultivate.'' Ivor thought. He had lived together with his student for quite some time already, he had completely memorized his routine. Time passed but no more explosions rang out from the basement. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''Mh? Did he give up for today? He can''t be blamed, forging takes a heavy toll on the mind.'' However, more time passed and the night arrived without any other noise coming from the underground room. ''Don''t tell me that he is injured?'' Ivor became worried and hastily descended the stairs to check Noah''s situation. When he arrived in the basement though, his eyes widened in surprise. Noah was standing and looked with a radiant smile at a dark piece of bone in his hand. It had many cracks on its surface and it seemed so fragile that a simple movement from Noah could break it. Nevertheless, a faint sharpness was exuded by it. Ivor immediately jumped toward his student, fixing his eyes on the item. He inspected it from various angles, he even carefully picked it up to control its weight. Noah observed him standing still on his position, he didn''t really know how to judge the power or the quality of what he had created so he was waiting for Ivor''s judgment. It was the first item that didn''t explode, it was needless to say how excited he was to learn about its actual power. "Not bad." Ivor broke the silence without moving his eyes from the dark bone. "You managed to create something on the level of the liquid stage, it seems that you have improved in refining the "Breath". It doesn''t reach the apex of that stage though due to the conflicting element of its material and your lack of control during the forging." Noah attentively listened to his explanation and nodded in his mind, everything he had said was true. "It is also highly unstable and frail, it will break after one use if you are lucky or as soon as you power it up with "Breath" if you aren''t." ''It will definitely shatter soon then.'' As always, Noah considered the worst possible option. "Most of this result is due to your rank 2 sea of consciousness, otherwise it would be almost impossible to replicate the power of the "Breath" that you have accumulated." Ivor handed the bone back to Noah and moved behind him. "Try it." Noah held the bone as if he was holding his usual sabers. It was rectangular with smooth angles and only a slightly pointy tip, he knew that he had completely failed in shaping it correctly. He lightly swung it using a small amount of "Breath" in the process. The item immediately shattered and only dust remained in Noah''s hand, yet, from its tip, a small wind slash was released before it was reduced into pieces. The slash was dark, with faint red shades in its color. It hit the wall at the end of the room and the inscriptions on it slightly flickered. "The power of that blow was on the gaseous stage, it has lost some energy as it broke. Yet, a success is a success." Ivor said, handing a small book to Noah. "You are now the last cultivator practicing the Elemental forging method. As your Master, I''m officially passing down the entire legacy of our school to you. May your creations shatter the Earth and defy the Heaven!" Chapter 162: 162. Sword Noah took the book and inspected it. Inside, there was the description of all the procedures that Ivor went through to create his knife. ''Sword creation with the Elemental forging method.'' As soon as he read the title though, he turned his head to look at Ivor and smiled awkwardly. "Don''t you have something that describes how to forge sabers? I''m not that into swords." Ivor''s eyes widened and he took a long sip from his jar before snorting and rebuking his student. "Who cares about the name that you give to something! If a piece of wood can cut a tree then it''s a sword! If you stretch your fingers and use them to cut a man, then your fingers are a sword! Don''t dwell on useless things and remember that it''s the core of the item that matters, its external shape can be whatever you want it to be!" Noah still didn''t completely believe in Ivor''s words. "So, you are saying that I should just forge a sword with the shape of a saber?" "Precisely! It took me two years to figure out the perfect composition of those materials to create my knife. Of course, you can''t just copy it: your element is different so you will need different items but my experiences will definitely help you avoid useless mistakes." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''If he says that, it should be true.'' Noah could trust Ivor since he understood that the only wish of the ruined cultivator was to see his method passed down. ''I have more magical beasts'' bodies but none of them are of the darkness element. I''ve created something almost stable but, even if I had hundreds of those items, they won''t be useful to me at my current level. I should raise the stakes. Also, two months have already passed from my last mission so it''s time to gather materials.'' He had a vague idea of which had to be the materials for his first serious creation but he preferred to wait until his dantian had a breakthrough to attempt on that. Also, there was a lot of testing involved in that plan, he didn''t want to neglect his training because of his experiments. "Ivor, I''m heading out, I need to gather materials." Ivor opened his mouth to complain but was silenced by Noah throwing a thousand Credits in his direction before exiting the house. Noah went for the board at the center of the right area of the academy and read through the various missions affixed on it. He was looking for something specific at that time, he didn''t want a common hunting mission. ''Pack of Night panthers disrupting the environment in the perimeter of Arolyac forest bordering with the Nerere continent. Exterminate the pack to obtain fifty merit points, bring back the bodies to obtain one hundred merit points as a bonus.'' ''Perfect!'' Noah picked up the tabled from the board and moved toward the exit of the academy. The streets of the academy were mostly empty, all the students were busy with their specialization or outside doing mission. However, there was still someone that used his free time to improve his social network. One of those students was Samuel Muwlos and, at that time, he was loudly mocking Noah right in front of the passage for the outside. "I''m telling you, that match was completely rigged! My poor friend Manuel is still recovering from his injury. You must know that he was that close from matching Lord Daniel in his rate of growth but, due to that immoral fiend, all his hard work has been wasted! If it wasn''t for Lord Thaddeus, I don''t know what Vance could have done to him." A group of young students was attentively listening to him. They were the new batches of students that had arrived during the last year and were mostly from important families, it was natural for them to engage in those kinds of recreational activities. "I can confirm Senior Samuel''s words, I was in the audience looking at their fight. That Vance has surely cheated, otherwise it would have been impossible for him to survive Manuel''s last attack. Also, do you want to know the most deplorable thing that Vance has done? He took Manuel''s mansion, the symbol of the strongest student of the academy, and isolated himself inside it for two whole months! If this isn''t the behavior of a quack then I don''t know which it is." The young students showed disgusted expression as they continued in their stories. "Don''t worry though! I, Samuel Muwlos, will publicly challenge him once he stops hiding!" ''What the fuck are they doing there?'' Noah thought. His earing had vastly improved since he became a rank 2 mage, he had heard the whole conversation as he neared the exit. ''Why do they even use that area to loiter around? Are they afraid that I might hear them from my accommodation?'' His current house was directly on the opposite side of where the students were grouping, he could not help but find some connections between the two things. ''I don''t really care about my reputation but I should stop them before I find a horde of angry students at my doorsteps. Breaking all their limbs would be too troublesome.'' Noah slowly walked toward Samuel''s group surrounded by his usual cold aura. It was impossible to not notice him, his presence was overwhelming unless he forcefully suppressed it. Yet, what he needed at that moment was exactly that: showing the immense difference between him and the other students. As the students turned to look at him, they were slightly mesmerized by his figure. He was of medium stature but his body was slender and harmonious. The daintiness of his features was enhanced by his white and clean skin and his eyes shone during the daylight due to the power of his mental sphere. The girls in the group lowered their heads, too embarrassed to continue to look at his piercing gaze. "V-Vance! Y-you came out of your lodging!" Samuel stuttered seeing him and the new students showed confused gazes. They could not match his pure and cold appearance with the one that they had envisioned due to Samuel''s stories. "I never thought that you would still be around, trying to taint my reputation. I believed that what happened to your friends was enough as a lesson." Samuel remembered the poor state in which the students that tried to ambush him returned and immediately panicked. "T-that''s a misunderstanding! I will never dare t-" His words were interrupted by Noah directly jumping on him, grabbing his head, and slamming it on the ground. Chapter 163: 163. Panthers It''s not that Samuel hadn''t techniques or spells to avoid the attack but the surprise effect paired with the fear that he felt due to Noah''s presence left him defenseless for a moment. And that moment was exactly was Noah exploited. The head of the noble dug the terrain and a faint trace of blood came out of it. Noah raised Samuel''s head from its hair and waited for his reaction. "Why did you do this!? Who the fuck do you th-" His phrase was interrupted since Noah smashed the head back in the ground. He raised it again and waited. "You better be care-" Noah slammed it back in the pit and pulled it out. "Wait! I''m sorry! I will never talk behind your back again!" Samuel''s face was covered with blood and terrain with some trace of tears in his eyes. Noah released his hair and smiled toward him, lightly patting his shoulder. "Was that so hard? Next time I catch you doing something like this, I will gladly test at what depth the ground becomes harder than your head." Samuel shivered to hear those words, he knew that Noah wasn''t exaggerating things. "That won''t happen again, I swear!" Noah nodded at him and stood up, turning his gaze toward the other student that joined Samuel in his stories. "I didn''t know that juniors could make fun of their seniors." Noah slowly walked toward the other youth, his gaze never left him as he the distance between themselves shrunk. The student trembled, he was petrified due to Noah''s pressure focused on him. He didn''t even realize that Noah had already moved past him while softly whispering in his hear. "Be careful of who you call a quack, one day the academy rules might not protect you." As he said that, he left through the exit and went inside Arolyac forest. The atmosphere in the group had greatly changed due to Noah''s brief appearance. The youth that favored Samuel fell on the ground, incapable of stopping his trembling. Samuel stood up and left the area without even saying goodbye to his other friends, he had lost too much face that day. The other male students had their heads lowered, they didn''t dare to raise them for fear that Noah could notice them. The girls, instead, had a dreaming expression, like they were captivated by what had happened. Meanwhile, Noah was running at high speed toward the area in which the panthers had been seen, uncaring of the situation that he had created. His wings unfolded and he rose in the air to pick up speed. He wasn''t doing it only because he would arrive faster at his destination but also as a form of training. His flight technique was good but there were many aspects where he could improve, that''s why he would rather use every free moment to train in it. It took him a couple of days to reach the border with the Nerere continent. He could have reached the area sooner but he preferred to do many different flight exercises along the way, without forgetting his usual training schedule of course. He arrived at the border during the afternoon and calmly waited on one of the branches of the trees for the night to come. The Night panthers came out of their hideouts only during the night, as the name suggested. They were fast beasts with the ability to become momentarily immaterial. It wasn''t exactly the strongest beast to choose when creating another blood companion but what piqued Noah''s interest were their body parts. Due to their innate ability to enter an ethereal state, their bones and skin were highly adaptable to multiple treatments. They were the perfect material for Noah''s needs at the moment. ''Well, darkness beasts are not so common in this environment, I can always change it for a stronger one later.'' As the night arrived, the fauna changed and the nocturnal beasts came out of their lairs. Noah waited until he found what he was looking for. Thirty or so black panthers three meters tall slowly came out of the terrain. ''To think that they actually sleep in the ground during the day, there are sure peculiarities in this world.'' The Night panthers used the hours under the daylight to sleep but they never chose a fixed spot to create a den, they directly turned in their immaterial form and immerged in the terrain. ''Blood drain should be enough, I also want to see if I manage to learn more about the strengthening process.'' He had trained in his new spells so he was quite sure of their actual power. His mental energy was expended and both his hands morphed into demonic claws. His wings spread in the night and he jumped from his branch to fly over the pack. The panthers were moving fast, looking for some prey, they were completely unaware that they were hunted themselves. ''Only two peak rank 3, they really seem weak though.'' Noah shook his head internally and dove on the pack. His two claws stuck one panther each and immediately drained them of the blood in their bodies. Noah felt a wave of warmth coming from his hands and accumulating on his back, right below his acupoints. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The other panthers finally noticed the intruder and pounced at him but Noah simply flew back in the air to avoid the assault. He dove again as soon as he found an opening in their formation but, when he was about to stab his claw on the beast, it became ethereal and his arm hit nothing but air. ''I need to take them by surprise or expend their "Breath"'' Noah flew again and dove in another part of the pack. That time though, a small black cloud formed over the heads of two of them, momentarily blocking their vision. ''Blind!'' Since the panthers could not see when the attack would arrive, Noah could easily finish them off. The battle continued for a few minutes with Noah expending almost no "Breath" or mental energy. At some point, when only five specimens remained, the leader of the pack roared to make them retreat. Looking at the panthers running away, Noah nodded in understanding. ''So, it''s true that it takes a lot for them to sink in the ground, it''s not something immediate.'' Black flames covered him and, when he exited them, he was right in front of the escaping creatures. Chapter 164: 164. Experimen In the end, the whole pack was vanquished. Noah used the Blood drain spell to kill all the beasts except for the strongest one. He needed its blood for the Body-inscription spell. He then went looking for an empty cave and calmly made preparations for the creation of his new blood companion. ''I have thirty magical beasts'' bodies of the darkness element, they should be more than enough for two months of testing.'' He thought as he watched the blood of the Night panther slowly accumulating on an empty bucket. As he looked at the blood though, an idea popped in his mind. ''What if I use the "Breath" in my sea of consciousness instead of the one in my dantian to fill the blood of the panther?'' Theoretically, the "Breath" had to be used to prevent any rejection from the tattoo. Yet, what changes there would be if he used the one that he personally refined? Noah was curious so he decided to give it a try. There was no need to train in the drawing of the creature since his rank 2 mental sphere had perfectly memorized the appearance of the panther, Noah simply did a couple of sketches to be sure of his capability. ''I don''t have time to absorb more "Breath" or the ingredients for the spell would go to waste, I will use the liquid one that I have already stored.'' He had some "Breath" left in his sea of consciousness which was already refined so he decided to use it. The heart of the panther had already been seized by him so, as the bucket was full, he immediately started filling the blood of the creature with his "Breath". A couple of hours passed and the "Breath" in his mental sphere was completely expended to fill the blood in the bucket. The process had taken even less than the last time even if the stage of the "Breath" was the same. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''This is already an improvement! It has reached the standards for the technique so fast! It''s probably due to my will inside the "Breath".'' He was already satisfied with the results obtained by applying part of the processes of the Elemental forging in the creation of the companion. He neatly washed with some water in his space-ring and then began to draw the figure of the panther on his body. His saber cut precise lines on his skin, leaving black marks due to the refined blood of the beast. As the drawing was completed, Noah ate the heart of the creature in two bites. He then focused on his sea of consciousness. The ethereal figure of a Night panther appeared over the sea. It pounced toward the walls of the sphere but, as soon as Noah''s figure opened its eyes, it felt a force blocking its every movement. The Kesier runes didn''t emit any humming, Noah was simply using the faint connection that he felt coming from the beast''s figure to keep it still. ''Interesting! It seems that part of my mental energy was fused into the core of the panther since I used my personal "Breath" to create it. The taming part has become vastly easier.'' Noah''s figure neared the panther and immersed it in the sea. In a few seconds, the image of the panther appeared next Echo''s one and the roots of the Demonic form spell entangled around it. ''So easy!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as he opened his material eyes. ''This is amazing! Even though I would have had no difficulty in taming a rank 3 beast, that doesn''t strictly apply for magical beasts of higher ranks! I wonder if I could make a blood companion with a rank 4 beast with my current level.'' He thought about it for a while before tossing that idea away. ''Even if I were to find the blood and the core of a rank 4 beast and use this method to create the drawing, I don''t believe that I could tame it in my sea of consciousness. They reached the heroic ranks after all, their will can''t be that weak. I should just wait till I''m able to kill one.'' He focused and a panther appeared in front of him. It had the same size as the original beast but there was a faint sharpness exuded by it. He tested its power for a while before nodding in satisfaction. ''Its ability to become ethereal is quite useful and it seems that its attack power increased by a bit. Is it due to my will inside the "Breath" used? If that''s the case, I just fused together an inscription method and a spell.'' Noah pondered for a bit before finding his answer. ''The Body-inscription spell is already a simplified form of inscription. Since the Elemental forging is an inscription method, it was obvious that I could mix together those two powers. I should never use again the "Breath" of Heaven and Earth to create a blood companion and it would be better if I refine the "Breath" specifically for each companion that I want to create.'' His ability still didn''t allow him much flexibility in the will that he gave to the "Breath", yet that didn''t mean that it would always be like that. ''I should have given it my meaning of speed or something in line with its innate abilities. Well, it has the power of a peak rank 3 beast anyway so I can''t say that I wasted it.'' The added pressure on his mental sphere wasn''t much either so he considered the experiment a success. ''I should go back to my accommodation now. I need to begin the forging with the solid "Breath" and I should also focus more on my dantian, I feel that I''m reaching its limit.'' He was about to call back the panther when he remembered something. ''Right, your name should be Shadow due to your ability.'' He thought, patting the companion''s head and absorbing it back on his body. As he returned to the academy, he visited the management building to retrieve the merits points for his mission, he kept the bodies of the beasts of course. However, when he reached his accommodation, he was met by a strange scene. Twenty or so female students were calmly waiting in front of the entrance door. As they noticed his presence, they turned and exclaimed happily. "The dark prince came back!" Chapter 165: 165. Famous ''What the fuck is that?'' The girls had an excited smile when they looked at him. One of them gathered her courage and stepped toward him. "Ehm, dar-, Lord Vance, would you like to accompany me on a trip to Arolyac forest? I''m willing to give all my merit-" She couldn''t finish her phrase since Noah interrupted her with a cold answer. "No." Silence enveloped the area. Noah uncaringly passed the girl and moved through the crowd to reach his habitation. Yet, he couldn''t help but hear the whispers of the girls as he walked through them. "Kyaa, have you seen how cool he is! It''s the complete opposite of Lord Daniel!" "Yes, but Daniel was unreachable for us. Lord Vance doesn''t care about noble status." "I want him to scold me so badly but I can''t even face him, I feel like fainting every time I look into his eyes." ''These girls are crazy!'' Noah thought as the unlocked the door of his house. "Dark prince! Would you mind if I came inside and served you some tea? My family is famous for-" Noah didn''t wait for the girl to finish her speech and closed the door behind him. His irritation grew as he heard the girls screaming again in excitement and commenting on his last rejection. "Ah, you youths are so lucky to be able to savor these moments." Ivor looked at him with a complacent smile and nodded proudly. "My disciple took everything from his Master. Your charm is irresistible to such na?ve girls." "Old man, if you don''t stop, I will throw you outside with them." Ivor paled a shut his mouth while turning to leave the room. "Wait, I want you to see something." Noah stopped him and took out a diary from his space-ring. It was Uriah''s diary, the one describing the Body-inscription spell. "I applied the theories behind the Elemental forging method on this spell. Can I have your opinion about it?" Ivor''s interest was immediately piqued. Not only it was the first time that Noah explicitly asked for his help, but he was also interested in the experiments of his student. Ivor sat on a couch and began to read the diary with interest. Meanwhile, Noah sat in a corner of the room and focused on the energy accumulated by his Blood drain spell. He manipulated that energy to near his dantian according to the Yin body technique. His dantian refined the energy and redirected part of it on his bones. When the process was over, he analyzed his body to understand his advancements. ''The "Breath" absorbed this way equals to less than an hour of actual meditation. The spell is really not fit to strengthen my body.'' He was quite disappointed by the results but he expected much, if there was really a spell that could use magical beasts to increase the rank of the body of a cultivator, the magical beasts would be already extinct. "This is really interesting." Ivor finished reading through the diary and handed it back to Noah. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "What do you think?" Ivor pondered for a while before giving his honest opinion. "It definitely resembles an inscription method but it is used as a spell with heavy requirements to be activated. Can I see the companion that you created?" Shadow came out of Noah''s body and Ivor inspected it with interest. "What changes did you notice?" "Faster refinement of its blood, easier to tame in the sea of consciousness, and some of my will remained in the companion." Ivor nodded hearing Noah''s words before turning to his student. "I think that there is a lot of room for improvement. Once you become more skilled in inserting your will in the "Breath", you should be able to empower their innate abilities." ''He had my same thought.'' "Have you tried forging its center of power?" Noah''s eyes widened hearing Ivor''s words. "Should I?" Ivor nodded, moving his gaze back on the panther. "If you can obtain these results just by refining its blood, what would happen if you directly refine its core? You should obtain more evident results." ''That makes sense. However, I don''t think I have the ability to handle the center of power of a beast yet, I should go back to forge.'' Noah stood up and retracted Shadow. At that moment though, a loud knock sounded from the entrance door. ''Don''t tell me that it''s still those girls.'' Noah went to open the door and was surprised to find June looking at him with her brows furrowed. "Can you put a leash on those girls before I end up killing them?" Noah moved his gaze behind her and found the same crowd of girls staring at him in silence. He then noticed that he was shirtless due to the exposure of Shadow to Ivor. "Dammit, come inside before I do that." He dragged June inside his accommodation and hastily closed the door. He wasn''t fast enough though and an excited scream reached his hears. "When did you became so famous?" June asked after sitting on one of the couches. "How should I know, it''s not that I enjoy the situation. What happened to you?" June had never come to his accommodation before which made Noah curious. June snorted and moved her gaze away from him. "Apparently, since we have been sparring partners for over two years, they thought that we were in a relationship. Once they knew that, they harassed me to no end, it didn''t matter how much I denied that. I even asked Master for advice but she just said that it was normal for the strongest student to have followers." Noah sighed and massaged his temples. He didn''t really care about the crowd in front of his door but he didn''t think that the people that he knew would be involved. He sighed again before coming up with a solution. "You can take the first floor. The scrounger usually sleeps on the ground one while I''m always in the basement. Just don''t disturb me during my training." He then turned toward the stairs that led underground. "Wait, what do you mean by that?" Noah shrugged his shoulders as he replied to her. "I can''t really kick them away and they don''t have concerns when bothering you. So, you can just live here." Chapter 166: 166. Orange rune "But they will be even more confused about our relationship like this!" June complained, standing from his seat. "Do you prefer to go through their harassment every day?" June was silenced by Noah''s retort. "Anyway, it''s just temporary. As soon as I leave the academy, things should calm down." "Wait, will you leave soon?" Ivor appeared from one of the adjacent rooms and shouted at Noah in confusion. June too seemed surprised by his statement and waited attentively for his answer. Noah shrugged his shoulders. "We can''t stay here much longer, it''s already our third year. Instead of remaining here for the whole year, it''s better to take a profession in the Royal city and stabilize our position." Noah was already thinking about his job in the Hunters'' guild. He was constantly in need of materials for his experiments with the forging method and the position of a hunter could provide him with a wider assortment of resources. Also, there was a problem with his power. He was attracting too much attention on himself, he wanted to loosen the control that the Royals had on him inside the academy. ''I''m losing sight of my situation too. The academy is a peaceful place but the real world isn''t. Here I feel that my hands are always tied, I''m just accumulating problems without solving any of them.'' All the troubles he had with Daniel''s followers could be solved by simply killing the students. However, that was prohibited due to his status as a student, and all those noble youths were left alive harboring hatred toward him. ''Once I become a rank 2 cultivator, I will leave. The faculties of the academy can''t offer me much more at that level anyway.'' Places like the Sulfur domain lost their effectiveness on stronger cultivators. After all, if they really could be useful at each rank, cultivators in the divine ranks would be a common sight. June lowered her head in thought. Noah''s words made sense, they had to secure a position in order to ensure that their journey as a cultivator won''t stop due to the lack of resources. Also, leaving the academy didn''t mean that they would lose access to the inventory, their status as students would be removed but they could still contact the Royals to make transactions. It had to be said though that her situation was more complex that Noah''s one. He had to take care only of himself while June had a family full of expectations behind her. "I think I won''t stay much in Elbas city. I''m not really good at anything except for fighting and I can''t be a Royal guard or I will neglect my family. Maybe, with the help of my Master, I might ensure a friendly relationship with the Royal dynasty and appoint my family in one of the areas near the capital but that''s as much as I can do." Noah understood the meaning of her words. She could not freely cultivate like him, every noble heir that managed to be enrolled in the academy would have to shoulder enormous expectations. They would become the pillars on which build the future of their families, most of them would aim for the position of patriarch! However, in Noah''s eyes, those things were pointless. He couldn''t care less about his status, he wanted only to become strong. "So, will you stop trying to surpass me? I really can''t imagine you as a calm person managing the Ballor family." Noah mocked her lightly. June snorted and returned to her usual wild nature. "You will see! I will raise my family''s status to the large-size one and take all the resources for me! I will definitely beat you then!" "That means that you''ve given up on beating me while we are still students?" "Shut up!" June yelled and climbed the stairs for the first floor, the sound of slamming doors clearly resounded from there. Noah shook his head and turned to Ivor. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "We have a new roommate." Ivor sighed and sat on the floor, slowly sipping his wine. Noah moved toward the basement but a strange sensation emerging on his right arm made him stop. He checked the area and noticed that a faint orange rune was slowly moving toward his torso from under his skin. "What are you doing?" Ivor saw his strange behavior and asked in a curious voice. "It''s nothing." Noah didn''t explain and hastily went into the basement. When he arrived there, he carefully inspected the slowly moving rune with cold eyes. ''Is it because I kind of trust June?'' He had already considered giving Eccentric''s inheritance to June. She was honest and had a straightforward character, she seemed quite friendly with him as well. He was also quite sure that he could manage to be always stronger than her. Yet, he never thought that he had to decide so soon, he wasn''t even eighteen after all. ''I will wait a bit more, then I''ll decide. June is surely the best candidate but I would like to have more insurances regarding our future relationship.'' The rune was still on his arm. According to his deal with Eccentric Thunder, it had to reach his dantian for their agreement to be broken which meant that he had still time to carefully analyze the situation. He put those thoughts in the back of his mind and began to focus on the Elemental forging method. He had the material required for his experiments, he just needed the "Breath" to perform the inscription. Inside his dantian, a small fragment of his solid "Breath" detached itself from the amassed black crystals and moved through his body. As it reached Noah''s head, his ethereal figure inside his sea of consciousness stretched its hands outside of his mental sphere and grabbed the small shard. The solid "Breath" successfully entered his sphere and began to struggle madly. Nevertheless, Noah was used by then to the struggles of the "Breath". Mental energy immediately assaulted the shard, forcing away the will of Heaven and Earth from it. In a few minutes, the "Breath" was inoffensive, ready to be refined. ''The pressure from the solid "Breath" is quite strong but I can bear it. The only problem is this damned headache.'' Of course, storing solid "Breath" in his mental sphere caused his headache to return. Chapter 167: 167. Rivals It took Noah an entire day to reach the limit of what his mental sphere could handle. In the end, a big black boulder of "Breath" was formed over the sea. Noah felt that his head was about to split, the pressure from that "Breath" coupled with the two blood companions was stressing his mind to no end. Yet, taking the "Breath" directly from his dantian vastly increased the speed at which he accumulated it. ''Now, refinement.'' Noah focused, he endured the pain and forced his mental state to remember the image of the saber flying undisputed in the sky. When he felt that he was ready, he immersed the "Breath" in the sea. It took a long time to refine it. The "Breath" stayed in the sea for four entire days before coming out in a different form. It resembled again the blade of a saber but its color had more shades of blue than the last time. ''The headache hindered my mental state, I should not force myself so much next time.'' Noah judged and prepared to start his forging. He first ate and rested, he had to stay completely still during those days in order to achieve the best refinement possible. As he restored his energies, the leg of a Night panther appeared in his hands. Noah carefully ripped off the flesh from the leg until only the bone of the beast was left in his hands. A piece from the "Breath" in his sea of consciousness detached from the saber form and slowly entered the bone. Noah immediately created an incubating membrane to contain the process. The bone seemed to accept the "Breath", there wasn''t the same rejection as with the Sun tigers'' bones. The two substances began to merge and Noah manipulated them to transform their shapes. The bone became darker and denser, its tip slowly morphed into a sharp pointy head. Then, a crack appeared on the body of the item which caused a chain reaction through the whole bone. ''Failure.'' Noah threw the item in his hands toward a corner of the basement where it exploded. The might of the explosion though was way stronger than when he used the liquid "Breath" in the forging and the inscriptions flickered to no end to contain the tremors of the room. "What the fuck is happening?" June appeared on top of the stairs leading to the underground room and was surprised by Noah''s appearance. He had disheveled hair, bloodshot eyes, and a deep frown. "Are you ok?" June asked with a concerned voice. "Yeah, I just exaggerated a bit. Why did you come here?" Noah answered, he was so focused on the forging that he had almost forgotten that June was living with him. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Well, the explosion? Also, I wanted to ask if you were willing to resume our sparring, I feel that my technique is getting rusty." ''That''s not a bad idea, solitary training has its limits after all.'' "Sure, just give me a couple of weeks, I''m in the middle of something and I''d prefer to remain alone for that time." June nodded and returned to the upper floor. ''I should reduce the time spent in the forging too, I''m neglecting my training.'' Noah checked the rune on his arm, during these days it had surpassed his elbow and was moving toward his shoulder. ''It''s getting faster, I should spend more time with her to be certain that she won''t be an enemy in the future.'' As he thought of that, he stopped his experiments and rested. He resumed a normal pace of training, attempting to create only one inscribed item every day. That way, he could slowly reduce the pressure on his mental sphere without interrupting the growth of his other centers of power. There were no explicit improvements in his forgings, even though he felt that he was becoming better after each attempt, a new problem always appeared which made his creations explode. ''Even without the elemental rejection, I still can''t manage to create something stable. And what is the deal with my dantian? I should have reached the limit of the first rank by now but there always seems to be more space.'' He had slowed his cultivation to focus on the inscription method but that didn''t mean that he had slacked off. He felt that he was close to reaching the peak of the first rank but that time seemed to never arrive. ''Well, I''m not in a rush to leave anyway.'' He decided that it was time for his fight with June. Noah went to the first floor and found June calmly cultivating in one of the rooms. Her silver hair was everywhere over her face and she seemed to have sweated a lot since her clothes were wet and stuck on her skin. Her tonic forms were clearly exposed by the state of her outfit. ''She must have just finished her training, I''ll just go to sleep.'' Noah turned to leave but then he sensed something with his mental energy. His hand shot out and firmly held a spear that aimed for his head. "How can you never be surprised?" June stood with a disappointed expression on the other extremity of the weapon, she had attacked him as soon as he had turned. "How can you think of nothing but fighting me? You are clearly exhausted and yet you attempted to sneak on me." Noah shook his head but his grip stood firm on the spear, blocking it in its position. "A hunter attacks when his prey is at its weakest." "Am I a beast in your eyes?" June then released a small laugh and retracted her weapon, Noah didn''t let his guard down though. "You are right, I''m quite tired, I think I''m done for today." She sat on the floor and supported her back on the wall of the room. Noah stared at her for a while lost in his thoughts. "What?" June didn''t like his constant gaze and became irritated. "Say, what kind of relationship do we have? Are we friends?" Noah broke his silence and asked that question. June snorted and replied loudly. "What friends! We are rivals!" Chapter 168: 168. Ballor family "A rival should at least beat me in something." "Shut up! Did you come here to mock me?" Noah laughed a little, he had to admit that he had fun conversing with her. However, in the next moment, his eyes became cold. "Let''s say that you manage to beat me, what will you do? Kill me?" The atmosphere changed immediately in the room, June understood that Noah was being serious. "Why do you ask?" "I have my own reasons." Silence fell between them. It took a while for June to finally speak. "No, I will probably look for someone stronger. I don''t have any reasons to kill you." "What if you had them?" Silence again but that time it took less for Noah to receive an answer. "I don''t know, ok? What could you ever do to make me want to kill you? Why are you even so serious about this?" She was visibly irritated by Noah''s questions so he decided to relax. His gaze returned to an indifferent one and he sighed loudly. ''What could I even expect as an answer? I was a bit too pushy.'' He scratched his head looking at June and then sighed again. "I''m sorry, that was too sudden." He then went to the lower floor to find Ivor and took one of his jars from his stash. As he returned to June''s room, he lightly knocked on the door and showed the wine to her. "Do you want a drink? Ivor''s wine should be quite good." She nodded slightly and Noah entered in the room and sat on the floor right in front of her. Then, he took two simple glasses from his space-ring and poured the contents of the jar in them. The aroma of the wine spread in the air, it was clearly a strong wine. June didn''t waste time in ceremonies and began drinking from her glass, Noah wasn''t slow in imitating her. They stayed in silence for a while, slowly appreciating the taste of Ivor''s beverage. It was strong but it had an immediate numbing effect on their mental sphere, even Noah''s headache diminished greatly. "Why did you ask those things? Do you expect me to hunt you down in the future?" June broke the silence without raising her gaze from the glass. "It''s good to be prepared for every situation, I have trust issues." Noah gave a vague answer. "Do you ever tell the truth?" Her words caused a small smirk to appear on his face. "Do you want another lie?" June shook her head and stared at the student in front of her. They had fought so much against each other but she could never understand anything of his true nature, his image seemed to be constantly enveloped by fog. Such a genius appearing out of nowhere and taking the spot of the strongest student. His aptitude was of the darkness element, something that could create a wave of shock through the whole academy, yet no one seemed to know about it. He had no noble ties either, all his resources and results came from his hard work. "Are you running away?" She couldn''t help but ask. It was the guess that made more sense in her mind. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah didn''t answer, he limited himself to drink from his glass. "Are you a criminal looking for freedom?" Noah shook his head. "What freedom could you possibly have with our power. You know of the Royal inheritance, it''s safe to assume that the Royals will try to tighten their leash on us." "So, is it about that? Do you just want more power?" Noah raised his head too and returned the stare. "Aren''t you the same? I know that your childhood mustn''t have been easy but that alone isn''t enough to give birth to your addiction to battles." June lowered her eyes as she reviewed the memories from his life in her family mansion. "You saw me trapped in the illusion, right. Well, it was hard but not in the way that you think of." She took a long sip before continuing in her story. "As you know, the Ballor family is a small-size noble one, a declining one to be precise. My grandfather once told me that our ancestors traded all their wealth to obtain access to an inheritance ground. Their luck though wasn''t good: the inheritance only had spells and techniques related to the thunder element and none of them had that aptitude." "The contents of the inheritance were good but they were useless in their hands. However, they could not sell that legacy since their losses would surpass their gains, those that could buy it were medium-size noble families or above so my family could not set the selling price." "In the end, they decided to wait, wait for an heir of the thunder element to appear. Little did they know that the waiting had to last one hundred years. They were really unlucky." "Once my element was confirmed, I became the last hope of my family and they resorted to all kinds of harsh training to improve my strength as much as they could. I stopped being lashed every night only after I managed to become a mage." "You know, my father used to be gentle when I was little. After the discovery of my element, he began to throw me in the middle of magical beasts'' packs to increase the speed of my growth." "In the beginning, I thought it was a punishment for something that I did but then I understood. I don''t blame them though, they had to wait so much, their expectations had to be met." ''No wonder she is like that.'' Noah thought, filling June''s glass that had been emptied during her story. "What would have you done if you were in my place?" June honestly asked looking at him. "Take what they gave me, leave, and then never return. My life can''t be about fulfilling other people''s dreams." Hearing those words, June laughed. "Yes! I wanted that too for a while. But then I was accepted in the academy and found out so many strong people coming from many powerful families, in comparison I''m just a lone weakling. So I decided to use my family to become even stronger, I will be the heir that they waited so much for and they will be the means to realize my dreams!" Chapter 169: 169. Beak ''She has a point.'' One of the biggest hindrances in the cultivation journey was the lack of resources. With a noble family as a backing and a friendly relationship with the Royals, she would have access to both techniques and useful items. In comparison, Noah had to cover every expense with his own wealth. Just by thinking about the number of materials that he needed to experiment with the Elemental forging method, one could imagine the wealth required to train an inscription master. However, if he had the backing of a family, he could simply focus on the experiments without the need to accumulate materials. ''Well, I can''t do anything about that. I also have to constantly hold back for fear of being discovered.'' They continued to drink more, exchanging some jokes from time to time before calling it a day. Noah returned to the basement deep in thought. Eccentric''s rune was moving closer to his dantian so he had to make a decision soon. ''She saw how those that loved her changed their behavior all of sudden so she began to rely only on her strength. She is not evil nor ungrateful, she might actually give me a share of the inheritance in order to feel less indebted with me.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah was analyzing June''s personality to be sure of their future relationship. His most pressing question was: ''will she turn on me once I give her that power?'' The only answer he could find was: probably not. Yet, that "probably" was what held him back from giving it to her immediately. ''I don''t have a better candidate though, the only other youth of the thunder element that I know is Manuel and I don''t think that we can become friends.'' In the end, he tossed those thoughts on the back of his mind and went to rest. He didn''t really mind giving the inheritance to June but he still had some time to know her better. Days passed slowly in the academy. Noah limited himself to one attempt in the forging each day and vastly reduced the quantity of "Breath" absorbed in his mental sphere when he had to refill it. That allowed him to continue in his usual training without incurring in a splitting headache. The third Kesier rune, his two blood companions, and the "Breath" propelled the growth of his mental sphere at an unbelievable speed, Noah could feel that the internal pressure was diminishing continuously. The Yin body continued to nourish his body, slowly pushing it toward the peak of the third rank. The Dark vortex cultivation technique enlarged his dantian to its limits, Noah felt that it wouldn''t take much for him to reach the peak of the first rank. His free time was spent with June. They would fight twice a week and converse on the other days. They would talk about their dreams, their future projects, what they liked and disliked, their relationship became vastly deeper compared to when they were only sparring partners. Noah began to appreciate his time spent with her. They had a similar nature in the first place and, since she was quite straightforward, he could relax and enjoy their talks. They even did their bimestrial mission together, dividing their gains equally with Noah refilling his stash of darkness beast''s bodies. It was clear to her that Noah hid most of his personal information but she became used to that and stopped being bothered by it. She understood that his situation was complicated and that he wouldn''t lie if it wasn''t important to him. Noah was cold and indifferent, he wouldn''t waste efforts to make up lies just for fun. His first success arrived after the fourth month of his stay in the new accommodation. Noah was in the basement, excitedly staring at a strange looking item in his hands. It was originally the beak of a Moon owl, a bird-type magical beast that he and June hunted down in their last mission. As a material, its element was darkness so it was perfect for Noah''s experiments. It was small and thin, only about twenty centimeters long, yet a clear sharpness was exuded from it. ''It seems stable!'' There were no cracks on its body and it looked quite sturdy. That was his first stable creation! The only problem was its form. Due to its length, it had to be used as a throwing knife, yet its tip was curved, Noah didn''t manage to bend it during the forging. "Ivor!" Noah called for his Master, when it came to inscriptions his judgment was far more accurate than Noah''s one. Ivor arrived after a few minutes and showed a surprised expression seeing the item in Noah''s hands. He carefully took it and inspected it for a while, he would nod repeatedly every time he changed the angle of observation. "This is not quite usable but it''s indeed an inscribed item." In the end, he gave his judgment. "Its power couldn''t reach the higher tier of the first rank but it''s not due to your "Breath", it was the original material that was lacking. Also, you clearly messed up when it was time to shape it. It''s too short to be considered a small sword and too curved to be thrown successfully but you have finally managed to create something stable." Noah nodded at his explanation, the conclusions that he had reached were the same as his. "So, how do I improve?" Noah asked. "Familiarize with the process first, continue with this material until you manage to shape it as you wish. Then it will be time to find better materials and mix them together in order to find a good composition. I used four different materials in various quantities in order to create my knife and they were all from rank 4 magical beasts that fitted my needs." ''So much planning only for one item. I wonder what''s the value of rank 4 beasts'' bodies.'' He had sold a rank 3 beast once but he only managed to gain two Credits from it. However, that was because its body was ruined after Noah went through the requirements of the Body-inscription spell. "What do I do with this then?" Noah pointed at the inscribed Owl beak. "Just sell it. If it can''t be useful to you, there is no point in keeping it." Chapter 170: 170. Moon needle To create an inscribed item with the Elemental forging method, there were many hurdles to surpass. The cultivator had to endure the absorption of the "Breath" with his sea of consciousness that comported a big risk for that center of power. Then, he had to set his will on a specific meaning and imbue the "Breath" with that, otherwise there would be no effect attached to the finished product. After that, it was time for the choice of the materials. The compound had to be something that didn''t conflict with the element of the cultivator and that could sustain the activity that it was meant for. For example, you couldn''t use a hard material to create a whip, it would simply conflict with the purpose of the item. At the same time, you couldn''t use something too soft either, a whip forged that way would just fail to inflict any damage when wielded. The last hurdle was its form. The item had to be shaped according to its future usage: you could forge a sword but, if you didn''t manage to shape it with sharp edges, then it couldn''t be used properly. In Noah''s case, with his last creation, the first three requirements were met: his mental sphere could store the "Breath", he managed to imprint it with a strong will, and the material used coincided with his element. However, simply the beak of a Moon owl could not sustain many impacts and its form made it unusable as a throwing weapon. ''I can''t sell it directly or the world will be informed that I''m training to be an inscription master. I''ll just store it for now and maybe sell it in another place.'' He had no shortage of money, keeping that item wasn''t a burden. "I will focus more on shaping it right. Only one of these items can''t last much in battle but, if I make many of them, they might be useful." Ivor nodded. "Yes, once the form is in its place, your creation will only lack the proper components. Don''t worry though, it takes a lot of time to find the right mixture for your specific needs, your progress so far is already above average." More days passed. Noah became focused on the form of the item and he slowly improved in the process. First, he managed to make the beaks even thinner in order to increase their durability. Then, he forced them to bend. When two weeks had passed, he stared at three thick needles laid in front of him. ''It''s already the third day in which I can''t improve the quality of this item. It''s probably the limit of the compound.'' Noah took one of the needles and injected "Breath" in it before throwing it on the wall. The inscriptions lit up and flickered but they still couldn''t completely block the needle. It stuck in the wall for less than a tenth of its body before being stopped by the sturdiness of the basement. Noah was surprised. Generally speaking, the students of the academy were all rank 1 cultivators. It made sense for the inscriptions of that room to be tuned to block that level of power. One of his sabers appeared in his hand and he slashed the air. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. A wind slash ran across the room and smashed on the wall next to where the needle was, making the inscriptions flicker again. Noah stood up and neared the area of the impact. His attack left only a light mark on the wall but there was no damage at all. However, the needle managed to create a small hole in it, which meant that its piercing ability had surpassed Noah''s normal attack. ''To think that this small item could contain such power. It''s not even at the peak of the first rank but it''s able to pierce the defenses of the basement. The Elemental forging is amazing!'' Noah took out the item from the wall and inspected it carefully. Small cracks had appeared on its body, it seemed like it could be used only another time. ''So, it''s a two-use inscribed item, the material can''t sustain the power injected in it. I don''t know if it will be useful to me but its value should be higher than my previous creations.'' He still had about five unused beaks, if he didn''t count the needle that he had just used, he could forge a set of seven needles to sell. ''Seven needles mean fourteen attacks with the power of the solid stage. I don''t know if a cultivator with a weak dantian can use their full power but there shouldn''t be much difference. Oh right, I should ask Ivor''s opinion.'' He hastily went for the ground floor and asked Ivor to follow him in the basement. He then showed the needle that he had tested. Ivor became captivated by its sight and began to inspect it with interest. "Can you use it?" Ivor raised his head to make that request. Noah nodded and took the item from his hands to throw it on the wall. It happened the same thing as before, the needle lightly pierced the surface of the wall. However, since it was its second usage, its cracks expanded, ultimately causing its breaking in many pieces. Ivor didn''t mind that and went to inspect the little hole that had been created. "You made it reach the high tier! Good job!" He was happy that his disciple had managed to create something worthy of being called an inscribed weapon. Noah shrugged his shoulders. He was proud of his creation but, since it didn''t increase his battle prowess, he didn''t care much about it. It was just the result of his experiments after all, not something that had to be added to his arsenal. "Do you understand that you are officially an inscription master now? You might be at the beginning but you have successfully completed your first stable inscription!" "¡­" Noah was silenced, he really didn''t consider that detail. "Since it didn''t increase your power you didn''t put much thought on it, am I right?" Ivor rebuked him while shaking his head. "Give it a name at least!" Noah thought for a while before finding a simple name. "Moon needle." Chapter 171: 171. Break Noah spent the following days forging the other Moon needles, exhausting his stash of Moon owl''s beaks. The seven inscribed weapons were then carefully laid in a casket and stored in his space-ring. ''I will sell these once I move to Elbas city, now I should focus on my dantian.'' He had some other random materials left but he felt that it was pointless to experiment more on things that he didn''t need, he would rather wait to reach the Royal city and resume his forgings when he had access to better materials. Also, his dantian was nearing its limit, once he became a rank 2 cultivator he would have access to a stronger "Breath" and rank 1 inscribed items would lose their appeal to him. ''Yet, no matter how much "Breath" I absorb, I''m still unable to reach the limits of the first rank.'' Even if he had focused more on the forging during the last period, the increased density of "Breath" of his new accommodation should have covered that diminished time spent in training. However, he seemed to have miscalculated the time required for his advancement so he chose to momentarily focus on it. Noah began to cultivate even during the day with his Dark vortex technique. Many of his future plans required for him to have a rank 2 dantian so he decided to hasten its enlargement. According to the teachings of the general cultivation course, the differences in power between stages in the first rank were only marginal while they would be more accentuated in the higher ranks. "Vance, you are returning to the state when you had the "Breath" blessing in front of you." June said with a smile as she peeked from the entrance of the basement. Noah opened his eyes and released a soft sigh before laying on the floor. "You are right, maybe what I need is just a bit of rest to stabilize my gains." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Too much training could be detrimental, rest was needed to maximize the growth. ''Maybe my dantian is too stressed and keeps on enlarging without noticing that it has reached its limits. Now that I think about it, there were cases of cultivators that trained so much that their bodies fell apart due to the pressure applied to them.'' June saw that he had stopped his meditation and happily went down the stairs to stare at the youth on the floor. She then crouched next to him and pulled his arm. "C''mon, come upstairs, I found where Ivor keeps his wine." Since they began to spend more time together, Noah and June would appreciate being accompanied by Ivor''s wine. Yet, that didn''t please the old cultivator and he began to hide it in random places in the house. "Why does he even hide it, I pay for it after all." Noah said, raising from the floor and letting June pull him upstairs. As their relationship improved, June slowly lost all her mental barriers and began to treat Noah in a friendly manner. Once she lowered her defenses, she became a simple young girl that didn''t care about the behavior that a noble lady should have. She was not even nineteen and she was already living together with two men after all, it was pointless to say the number of gossips that spread through the whole academy. "Look, look! That geezer actually made a secret drawer in the wall." She brought Noah to one of the rooms and strongly pushed on one spot on the wall. The wood moved and a small hole was revealed behind it. "I don''t even know how he did that without us noticing!" June exclaimed looking at the hole. It was one of the accommodations of the academy, its sturdiness couldn''t be underestimated. ''That scrounger must have used his knife! He really cares so much about his wine.'' In the cavity, there were about five jars carefully stored. Noah took two of them and smiled toward June. "Let''s just laze around for today." She giggled and moved to the first floor, followed by Noah. "Your followers are becoming more daring! They actually waited for me outside of my Master''s building when I went out today." June complained as they arrived in one of the rooms. She sat on one of the couches and took out two glasses from her storage device. "Why are they even bothering me, this is becoming annoying." Noah said while sighing, sitting next to her and pouring wine in the glasses. They had become used to conversing like that, there was no awkwardness in their actions. "The strongest student in the academy who has no ties to any noble family. Did you really think that you would be ignored just because you act grumpy? I bet that if they knew your element, they would go crazy." "Those girls are already crazy enough due to your presence here. Sadly, they don''t realize that you are just a battle maniac." "Hmph! These words coming from someone addicted to cultivation have no value. For your information, I am rather popular among the male students, Master even said that there are girls interested in me¡­" "I bet that if Professor Megan didn''t say that to you, you would still be ignorant about it. Poor students, idolizing a wild beast." "Oh, shut up. Look at you with all the mysterious halo. If I didn''t know you, I would have thought that you were shy for real." Noah snorted but a slight smile was present on his face as he sipped the wine. June too seemed at ease and would lightly poke Noah every time he said something about her behavior. That was their usual conversation, simply spending time together and joking with each other. "You know." June''s smile vanished and was replaced with a bitter expression as she sat straight on the couch with both her hands on her glass. "I know that you have your reasons for hiding your past but it can''t be too beneficial to keep everything in your mind." Noah''s expression became complex as he reminisced his past. "Are you saying that I can trust you?" June nodded with her gaze fixed on her glass. Noah sighed. "I believe you will know it at some point anyway, I''m just trying to avoid loose ends." Chapter 172: 172. Reagen "You really like being mysterious." June sighed, giving up on probing more about his past. "When you find out about me, you can give me your opinion on what I should have done." Noah said, receiving another poke from June. They continued to talk and drink for the whole night, enjoying their peaceful time together. As the first rays of the dawn entered the room, Noah interrupted his line of thought and focused back on his surroundings. June had long fallen asleep on the couch, uncaringly stretching her legs over Noah''s waist. ''Is this a habit of her? She sure doesn''t care about appearances.'' Noah shook his head, carefully moving her legs away in order to stand up. June didn''t wake up, it seemed that the wine had relaxed her so much that she didn''t even pay attention to the environment around her. A bitter smile appeared on Noah''s face as he stared at the girl quietly sleeping in front of him. ''If my situation was different, I wonder how our relationship would have evolved.'' He then turned, going back to the basement to rest. He woke up in the middle of the night, it was the first time that he had taken a whole day of break from his training. ''Let''s see if there are some changes.'' Noah sat in his usual cross-legged position and began to meditate in the Dark vortex technique. "Breath" converged in his dantian through the vortex in his joint hands and black crystals slowly amassed in that organ. However, after two hours spent cultivating, Noah felt that he could no longer absorb more "Breath". He opened his eyes and they shone with excitement. ''Finally, the limits of the first rank of the dantian.'' There was still one month before he became eighteen but he had finally reached the breakthrough point. ''If I compare myself to the other nobles of the academy, my growth isn''t that amazing.'' It had taken him four years and five months to cultivate all the way from the beginning of the gaseous stage to the peak of the solid one, which was only slightly above the average time used by noble cultivators to achieve that feat. However, since he had obtained his dantian at the age of thirteen and a half, he wasn''t even eighteen and yet he was ready to become a rank 2 cultivator! ''To think that June actually helped. Well, it was almost time anyway.'' Noah checked his condition. He was virtually at peak form, he had only been awake for two hours after all. ''No reasons to waste time then.'' An item appeared in his hand. It was a small bottle with a silver liquid inside it, just by holding it Noah could feel the "Breath" in his dantian tremble. ''I can finally use the Silver reagent!'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The Silver reagent was an item obtained in Eccentric Thunder''s separate dimension. It was one of the most commonly used reagents for the breakthrough in the second rank of the dantian. Noah breathed deeply for a couple of times before drinking in one sip all the contents of the bottle. Immediately, the temperature on his low waist rose as the "Breath" in his dantian heated up. The scorching sensation reached the walls of his dantian causing immense pain to envelop Noah''s body. Nevertheless, his focus never wavered. Noah enveloped his dantian with his mental energy and checked for problems in the procedure. Advancing from the first rank of the dantian to the second one wasn''t strictly a difficult process but it was a rather dangerous one. The reagent forced the "Breath" to expel its impurities, refining it in a stronger form of energy. Yet, a simple dantian could not contain that much power, it had to be upgraded in order to allow higher types of energy to be stored inside it. What was used to increase its strength were exactly the impurities expelled by the solid "Breath". They were still a form of energy after all, and they were even in their most simple form so they were easy to absorb. However, if the cultivator didn''t manage to block them and let them disperse in the world, there was the chance that his dantian could break due to the internal pressure of the stronger energy that it contained. Noah''s mental energy was strong and steady, it enveloped the dantian and didn''t let any impurities reach the outside world. They stood on the walls of the dantian, slowly nourishing its matter. The organ then contracted, as its walls became sturdier and denser, it could not maintain the enlarged form that it had reached in the peak of the stage. Noah controlled that no impurity left the area of the dantian through the whole process. There were no problems and, after about four hours, his dantian had returned to the size of a quarter of a fingernail. Inside, a minute strand of gaseous "Breath" shone with a dark light. ''That was easy, being a rank 2 mage has its advantages.'' The process was smooth since all the impurities were contained in the walls of the dantian and managed to nourish it. The walls then seemed incredibly durable after the procedure was over. Noah activated the Dark vortex technique. A small part of his "Breath" was consumed and a vortex twice as wide as the previous times appeared and began to absorb the "Breath" in the environment. The absorption speed was many times higher than when he was in the first rank, yet that didn''t seem to matter for his dantian as it didn''t enlarge at all! Only when the first light of the day arrived, Noah noticed that some improvement was happening. Noah stopped his meditation and exhaled loudly. ''About two hours of cultivation and my dantian almost didn''t bulge, it will take a lot to reach the peak of the gaseous stage on this rank.'' He stood up and decided to test his new strength. A saber appeared in his hands and he casually slashed the air. A brilliant wind slash hit the wall of the basement, making the inscriptions flash to no end. In the end, they seemed to give up on blocking the attack and turned off. Noah inspected the area where his attack had crashed and noticed that a vertical cut had appeared on the wall. It wasn''t that deep, only about three centimeters, yet Noah was extremely satisfied with the results. ''Just a casual attack has actually done all this damage. I can make a thousand of these with the "Breath" that I have now! At last, I am a rank 2 cultivator.'' Chapter 173: 173. Departure Rank 3 body in the high tier. Rank 2 sea of consciousness. And, at last, rank 2 dantian in the gaseous stage. All Noah''s centers of power had greatly benefitted from his enrollment in the academy. In the two years and a half in which he had been a student, he had grown in all the fields where he was lacking. His knowledge about cultivation had vastly increased after receiving the instructions of his professors. All his techniques and spells had been upgraded according to his element and battle style, he wasn''t the kid that had to accept anything that had a better rank that his current methods anymore. He had also found a way to become an inscription master, paving the way to his future improvements. ''I don''t have enough money to buy techniques of higher ranks and I''m not even sure that they would sell them to me without roping me in some deal. I''ve exhausted everything that the academy could have given me.'' Realization dawned upon him, he knew that it was time to leave. A token appeared in his hand. It was green and it depicted the image of a lion-type magical beast with its head severed, it was the token of the Hunters'' guild that Thaddeus had sent to him a while ago. Then, he uncovered part of his chest area and looked at the orange rune that was slowly making its way toward his dantian. ''I need to stabilize my breakthrough before moving to the Royal city. Also, I need to take care of the matter about Eccentric Thunder¡­'' Noah cultivated for two more weeks in his accommodation. His dantian only enlarged slightly, it seemed that it would take a long time before he could reach the liquid stage. He had sent Ivor to prepare a carriage for their trip toward Elbas city, their coachman was already waiting in an area inside Arolyac forest. "Go first, I have to take care of something." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah said to Ivor in a soft voice. "I still don''t understand all your hurry, what''s better than a peaceful life accompanied by a beautiful girl?" Ivor complained, shaking his head. Noah moved his gaze on the stairs for the first floor and replied with a low voice. "There is no peace for me." He climbed the stairs slowly. He had to admit that a part of him was reluctant to leave but his first focus had to always be his personal strength. ''The faculties here are no longer useful for my rank and I believe that the Royal city will offer me many different possibilities to increase my strength.'' He arrived in front of June''s room. She had piqued up the clues about Noah''s departure and became colder toward him in the last period. ''She must feel as if what happened in her childhood is reoccurring.'' Noah had probably become the only person she trusted after her family turned on her and hearing of his departure raised again her mental barriers. "June, I''m leaving." June was sitting cross-legged on the floor and she opened her eyes hearing Noah speak. She snorted and spoke in an irritated voice. "Then leave, what are you doing here?" Noah sighed. ''It seems like our relationship regressed to when I first met her.'' "I need to give you something first." "I don''t need it!" ''Why is this so hard¡­'' Noah sighed again. "Will you abandon the thought of surpassing me?" She finally turned her head. "Why would I do that? You know my plan! I will use-" "Your family and your relationship with the Royals to gather resources in order to improve your personal power. I know, I can ensure you that it won''t be enough." Noah finished her phrase. June stood up and shouted angrily at him. "How can you be so sure? Tell me the truth, why did you become interested in me all of sudden? What were your intentions?" ''She has a point, I indeed approached her out of necessity.'' He sighed for the third time before staring June in her eyes. "One day, they will find me, I need to move in order to obtain as many benefits as I can before I''m forced to run away again." June was silenced as soon as Noah began to reveal information about himself. Noah continued. "Look, I needed to be sure of your character and I have to admit that among all those that wanted to exploit me, your frankness is a breath of fresh air." June opened her mouth to speak but Noah raised one hand to stop her. "I can''t have more enemies and I have to be careful of my every move. I lie a lot to cover my tracks and I don''t care much about anything except for cultivating, yet you didn''t mind it and have accepted me anyway. I thank you for that, I have to say that I honestly like your company." That was the truth. After losing his mother and abandoning William, the only people with whom he could stop pretending were Ivor and June. However, Ivor was mainly interested in keeping the Elemental forging method alive while June had no hidden meaning behind her actions. June blushed lightly and lowered her head, Noah''s words resembled a confession of some sort which made her embarrassed. Noah though had other intentions and stretched his right arm toward her. "I trust you. If you feel the same, take my hand. You will understand part of my actions like this." June raised her head and stared at the hand pointed toward her. She hesitated for a few seconds before resolving her will and stretching her hand to reach Noah''s one. As the two hands touched each other, Noah tightened his grip and spoke in a solemn voice. "I declare you Eccentric Thunder''s heir." The conditions of his deal were met and the orange rune moved from his torso toward his fingers before entering June''s body. A torrent of information flowed into her sea of consciousness and she released the handshake as she kneeled on the floor to support herself. "This, this¡­" She was speechless as the specifics of the inheritance ground became clear in her mind. Attached to them, there where the memories of Noah''s trial from when he entered the second stage to when he exited after making the deal. Eccentric Thunder had secretly passed them down to warn his future heir about Noah''s personality, he didn''t know that those memories had the opposite effect to June. Noah''s strenuous battle that ultimately led to a failure in obtaining the inheritance due to his aptitude only increased her admiration toward the mysterious man in front of her. "One last thing. If you ever try to use that power to harm me, I will forsake all the good moments that we had together and kill you without hesitation." Noah gave her one last warning before smiling lightly and leaving the room. From that moment on, he was no longer a student of the academy! Chapter 174: 174. Expensive The capital of the Utra country was placed near the borders of the nation. As the city that held the highest power in the country, it was the best line of defense in case of an attack from enemy nations. The Royal dynasty wasn''t the only noble family that occupied it, there were many small and medium-size families that were annexed in the borders of the capital. A single family could not have the power to rule over a nation for two thousand years without accidents occurring, it needed to have a man-power that vastly surpassed the one of the other large-size noble families. The Elbas family solved that issue by linking many smaller noble families to their rule, giving important positions to them and connecting their heirs with political marriages. Like that, the number of their descendants was largely increased and they could rely on them to take care of important structures of the Royal city. Thaddeus and Lisa were precisely two of those descendants with mixed blood. One was taking care of the matters of the academy while the other was a captain of the Royal guards. In that way, the power of the Elbas family was never divided between their subjects but only with families carrying their same name. As for the succession to the throne, that was a complex matter. The stronger cultivators in their ranks would often retire from the political struggles of the mortal world and focus on their training, leaving the command of the continent to their weaker descendants. It was easy to imagine the many internal battles that happened in the Royal Mansion in order to obtain that position. However, none of that was of any importance to Noah. He was sitting in the carriage with Ivor, waiting to reach Elbas city. The academy token was in his hands and he looked at it with indecision clearly present in his eyes. ''He will be in touch he said, the Royal inheritance seems to really bother him.'' As he was about to leave his token to the management building, Thaddeus had shown up and urged him to keep it. "We have other ways to contact you but the academy token remains the best method. Keep it so that we will know when you are ready to work for us again." That was what he had said. ''Does this token keep tracks of my movements?'' No matter how he inspected it, he couldn''t find anything wrong with the item, so he decided to ask Ivor for advice. "It might be possible to track you down through that token, it is linked to the network of the academy after all. Though, if you keep it inside your space-ring, it almost impossible for them to pinpoint your position. Space-rings are a sort of separate dimension themselves, creating an item that can ignore that hurdle would require much more than an inscription on this level." Ivor judged, handing back the toke to Noah. ''I guess I should just keep it then.'' Their trip was peaceful and, in two days, they arrived at the gates of the Royal city. "What''s our move?" Ivor asked, staring at the tall defensive wall that encircled the city. "We first reach the Hunters'' guild. After I know more about my duties, we will look for a place where to stay." Noah said, looking in the distance to find where the wall ended. Nevertheless, the walls were too big, being right under them made impossible for Noah to even see a part of it. ''I wonder if the King of the valley could take down this city.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The strongest being that he had ever seen was his meter of comparison regarding sheer power. He imagined the huge white snake crashing on the wall and destroying it but then he refused that vision. ''It''s the Royal city that I''m considering here. Balvan mansion had an inscribed defensive wall, how could Elbas city not have it too?'' Ivor and Noah neared the gate and put themselves in line with the other people that wanted to enter the city. The inspections of the soldiers went smoothly and, in a few minutes, they were inside the city. Noah was exempted from paying for his identification token since the one from the Hunters'' guild was considered as a formal invitation but he still had to give fifty Credits to the soldiers in order to allow Ivor''s entry. "How can you not have an identification token?" The reason why Ivor didn''t have it was simple. "I lost it." Noah cursed in his mind but still paid the required sum and two golden tokens were delivered to them. They were quite simple in their design, with only the names "Vance" and "Ivor" on them. Right after the gate, there were many structures used for renting carriages led by magical beasts with loud people publicizing them. "East gate''s fastest transports right here!" "Our business has the lowest transportation cost in the whole city, come to us!" "For a small sum, we offer the best services and comforts!" There were more than five businesses dealing with transportations inside the city, from that, one could see how populated the capital was. "East gate?" Noah asked Ivor in confusion. "There are three gates on the city walls: East, West, and South. The northern side faces the other countries so they didn''t build a gate in order to maximize the defenses of the city." Noah nodded in understanding. He moved toward the man that publicized the low prices. "How much to reach the Hunters'' guild for two persons?" The man happily turned toward Noah and joined his hands in a friendly gesture. "A trip for two people would be two hundred Credits. We can ensure that you will reach your destination in less than one day!" ''The fuck? One hundred Credits for a one-day trip?'' Noah looked toward Ivor that sensed his amazement and nodded. ''So, these are really the normal prices here. The Royal city sure is expensive.'' "Fine, but I want you to point out where I can find a map of the city." Chapter 175: 175. Capital A carriage led by a rank 1 Four-horned bull moved at a high speed through the streets of Elbas city. Inside, Noah was attentively studying a map while Ivor was snoring loudly. After quite some time, Noah raised his head from the drawing and put it back in his space-ring. ''Twenty Credits just for this simple map, to live in the Royal city you would require a profitable profession.'' If he didn''t consider the Credits that he had obtained due to the two inheritance grounds, his gains would be limited to the two Credits at which he had sold the body of the Three-eyes bat in Toottac town. ''I wonder if I really can live here without spending all my resources. As for hunting down rank 4 magical beasts, I don''t think I''m quite there yet.'' Based on his recent improvements, he was confident that if he met again the starved Cloud eagle, he could make it bleed. ''Killing it though is another matter, and I don''t even know what would be the situation with a rank 4 beast at its peak form.'' Unless his power advanced, he had to limit himself to hunt packs of rank 3 beasts. ''I''m overthinking, I don''t even know how things will work in the guild.'' He had learnt the importance that rest had in his growth so he had decided to not cultivate on his first day in the city. Yet, he didn''t imagine that reaching the guild would have taken so much. ''It has already been half a day, don''t tell me that it will really take another half to arrive there!'' The Royal city was enormous, more than one hundred kilometers wide. For a country filled with small villages and sparse mansions, a city that big was an unusual sight. However, the capital wasn''t only the place where the strongest cultivators of the country gathered, it was also the first line of defense if an enemy invasion was to happen. Most of the business in the city covered battle related topics, from inscribed weapons and armors to training grounds for soldiers. There were even research facilities that, coupled with the academy, represented the apex of what the Utra nation could offer in the cultivation field. Also, many quarters belonged to the different families tied with the Royal dynasty and to their different occupations. Thaddeus and Lisa''s family mainly provided soldiers to the ranks of the capital, with Thaddeus being an exception since he was talented in inscriptions. These were information commonly known by the people in the Royal city and were also the best that Noah could learn from his short interaction with the attendant in the building renting carriages. ''This carriage mustn''t be a normal one. I almost feel no movements from inside it.'' Noah thought, placing his attention on the transport. ''Maybe it''s an inscribed item with rank 1 low tier power, no wonder they just rent them.'' Noah was feeling nothing but amazement for every aspect regarding the Royal city. From its width to the facilities present inside it, everything seemed to belong to an entirely different world! ''That''s the result of gathering most of the wealth of a nation in one big area.'' Noah concluded before deciding to imitate Ivor in his sleep. As Noah predicted, it had to pass eleven more hours before they arrived at their destination. It wasn''t due to the bull''s speed though but rather to the many stops that it had to make along the way. Yet, a few hours after midday, Noah and Ivor jumped off their carriage, successfully arrived at their destination. "The Hunters'' guild entrance is right after turning that corner, I hope that you would advise our services to your friends!" The coachman said with a wide smile on his face before going away. Noah found himself in an ample road with three-story buildings at its sides. They had gaudy colors and some of them had big banners in front of their entrances. ''Three thousand Credits to rent for one month, are they crazy?'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah looked at the prices listed on the banners and his eyes widened in surprise. "Is everything in this city so pricy?" He asked Ivor. "This is actually an average cost. The closer you get to the Royal Mansion, the more the prices will increase." ''Average he says.'' "Do you know the usual income of a hunter?" Ivor shook his head. "No idea but with your forgings, you should be able to make quite a wealthy life." He still had the seven Moon needles to sell added to his one hundred thousand Credits that remained from the rewards of the Royal inheritance, money wasn''t an immediate problem for him. They began to walk toward the direction pointed by the coachman and Noah asked more questions. "Why is the density of "Breath" still quite high? This should be a normal area." "Since the capital is so pricy, it must have its benefits. There are "Breath" blessings in every quarter of the city and there are even special houses that have other features. As you near the central area of the city, the things that are offered surpass even my imagination." ''For the academy to create flying devices, there should be even stranger things produced.'' "What about guilds? What can you tell me about them?" "They generally detain control over certain businesses. The Hunters'' guild satisfies the need for magical beasts both alive and dead for example." "How do you know about that?" "I am an inscription master. The guild for that profession has a strict connection with the Hunters'' one due to its need for materials. You should pass there at some point to be acknowledged as an apprentice in that field." ''So, I also need some kind of certification. It makes sense, no one would buy the products of a no one like me.'' They turned the corner and they found themselves in front of a big wooden door with a crest depicting a lion-type magical beast with its head severed. Noah took out the token with that same design and the door opened by itself. A wide room unfolded in front of his eyes, with many cultivators holding jugs full of wine. The smell of booze filled the room and the atmosphere seemed lively and happy. Yet, as they noticed the entrance door opening, all the cultivators turned and focused on the figure that was becoming visible. Noah felt more than thirty wary gazes on him as he crossed the ingress. ''This really suits my tastes.'' He thought, suppressing a smile from appearing on his face. Chapter 176: 176. Ron Slassiw The life as a student of the academy was peaceful but also extremely plain. Rules can help the weak but can also restrain the strong. A life in a cage was something that Noah had tried to avoid in both his lives. As the cultivators in the Hunters'' guild looked at him, he knew that they weren''t na?ve brats. ''They surely had their share of battles.'' That was his first thought when they began to inspect him. Noah didn''t hesitate and walked steadily toward the end of the room, his eyes never lingered on any of the men staring him. As he was halfway through the chamber though, a tall burly man stood up and blocked his way. Noah stared at the man and he did the same, they were probing each other. ''He is stronger than me.'' Noah concluded in his mind but his eyes never moved from him, enduring the pressure that the man applied to his mental sphere. ''But he is only a rank 2 mage.'' Seeing that he could not make the youth lower his head, the man retracted his pressure and crossed his arms. "Who are you and why are you here? This is not a playground." He spoke in a deep voice. Noah raised the token still in his hands. "I''m Vance, from the academy. I believe that His Majesty Thaddeus Elbas had warned the guild of my arrival." He explained calmly. The man stared at the token for a moment before moving his gaze back on the young man. "Just because a Royal gave you that token, it doesn''t mean that you could join the guild for free." "And how I do that?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Some of the other cultivators on the tables nodded in approval, they liked Noah''s direct attitude. The man snorted before pointing toward Noah. "You students of the academy are all spoiled nobles who know nothing about real-life struggles. We can''t accept a useless kid as a hunter." As soon as he said those words, Noah understood his intentions and acted. His upper clothes tore and Echo threw itself toward the tall man. Yet, he only waved his hand and destroyed the body of the bat! Before Echo reformed though, Shadow appeared behind the man and pounced him. The cultivator strongly raised his elbow that clashed with the panther and destroyed its body in one hit! Noah didn''t stay still and attacked without hesitation, his two blood companions gave him the time needed to wield his sabers. Shadow steps activated and Noah passed the cultivator dealing two fast strikes on his torso. CLANG! As his two sabers hit the man''s ribs, a metallic sound resounded in the room. Noah was on guard on the opposite side of the room, looking at the back of the burly man. ''Rank 4 body!'' His attack didn''t manage to pierce the natural defenses of the body of the cultivator. ''I wasn''t being serious but I still charged using a rank 0 spell! So, a rank 4 body can be this strong.'' His eyes shined as he became excited thinking about his next advancements. According to his calculations, it wouldn''t take long for him to obtain a rank 4 body too. The man slowly turned himself, staring at the two cuts on his clothes before looking toward Noah. He was slightly surprised by the scene. The young man stood calmly on guard with his sabers crossed in front of him. A black bat and a black panther were on his sides with their empty eyes fixed on him. Four additional arms were faintly materializing on the student''s torso and an aura of coldness enveloped his figure. He was ready to fight. ''He has seen that his attacks can''t pierce my skin, yet he didn''t give up. It seems that the academy produced a battle genius.'' The man thought. "Kurt, stop messing with the kid, he is clearly up for the job." A rough voice sounded from one of the tables at the end of the room. "Vance, come here." Noah turned toward the voice only to see an old man with his arm stretched waving at him. Kurt shrugged his shoulders and returned to his seat, resuming his drinking and laughing with the others in his table. Noah moved toward the old cultivator and made a slight bow as he reached him. "Come, come. Have a drink with us while you tell me about yourself." Noah sat in one of the free seats near him and calmly waited for the man to talk. "You know, there aren''t many nobles from the academy willing to join our guild. They prefer to become a Royal guard and lazy around all day instead of spending their lives in beasts'' lairs." He spoke while signaling to one of the servants waiting at the sides of the room to bring a jug for Noah. "I''m no noble." Noah said briefly. The other cultivators on the table were a bit surprised by his affirmation but then they nodded in approval. Even if their status was high outside Elbas city, in the capital they were simple hunters. They were either talented soldiers from noble families residing in the city or of noble birth without any special connection to the Royal family. In the capital, where a big part of the population was composed of nobles and wealthy cultivators, their status was only average. Knowing that Noah''s status was similar to theirs made their attitudes more friendly toward him. He had been a student of the academy after all! If he wanted, there would be many families willing to hire him as a guard or attempting to rope him in with political marriages. The fact that he had entered the academy confirmed that his talent was extremely high, at the peak of his generation! Getting their hands of someone with such potential was a wise investment for the future power of their family. "And how did someone without a noble status enter the academy?" Noah shrugged his shoulders. "Luck." The elder scoffed and shook his head. "Not the talkative type, I see. Don''t worry though, here in the Hunters'' guild we all have our secrets. Oh right, I am Ron Slassiw, I manage the new arrivals." Chapter 177: 177. Guild A jug full of wine was laid in front of Noah and he took a sip from it after doing a quick inspection with his mental energy. It had become a habit by then to use his mental energy to look at everything before his eyes did. The wine was strong and dry, far from the quality of Ivor''s one. "I need to teach you some procedures before you can start hunting, I''d say to start with the activities of our guild." Noah raised his attention at Ron''s words. "We can hunt freely, there is a detailed map of the areas near the capital with the descriptions of the various faunas of each zone. Also, each magical beast had a different value, as it has each of their body parts. You can look at their values on the first floor of the guild, they generally vary due to their need in the Royal city." Noah nodded internally. ''That''s pretty standard, the value of something is given by its demand in the market.'' "We also sign the area where we are going to hunt so that other hunters can decide if the competition for a certain beast is too high and switch to another target, we always try to avoid internal fights and the rules are quite strict regarding the ownership of a certain beast''s body." Ron then pointed toward the table where Kurt was drinking. "That guy, Kurt, has been a hunter for more than ten years. He usually hunts rank 4 beasts with the cultivators that are seating with him. We trust him a lot so don''t be mad at his behavior from earlier, he just wanted to be sure that you were worthy of the guild." ''Hunts rank 4 beasts in a group? So not even he can kill one alone?'' Noah thought and could not help but ask more about that. "Are rank 4 beasts that strong?" Ron drank from his jug before answering. "Well, yes. They are entirely in the heroic ranks while humans need all three centers of power in the fourth rank to be considered at that level. Kurt has a rank 4 body but his other two centers of power are still in the human ranks. He has managed to kill a few rank 4 beasts alone though, it''s just way safer if it''s done in a group." ''So, it''s doable,'' Noah lowered his head on the wine to hide the excitement that he felt. "You can join or form a group, or even go alone, it''s up to you. All this can be done on the first floor." "The deposit is on the second floor. You can sell or buy beasts'' corpses and body parts there, you have discounts based on your hunts'' quota. There isn''t a maximum of the discounts that you can get but you must meet a minimum quota. It''s about fifteen intact rank 3 beast''s corpses per month, that number varies on the type of magical beast that you deliver. Don''t worry though, you will be paid for those beasts, the guild just does that to force its hunters to work and don''t take advantage of our favorable prices." ''That is pretty lax. Fifteen rank 3 bodies are really easy to collect each month.'' "Can you deliver thirty of them at the same time and then be free for two months?" He was worried that his forging sessions could be interrupted. Ron laughed and nodded happily. "Of course! Otherwise, everyone would just let their prey rot in their space-rings in order to deliver them in the next month. Trust me, there was that issue once the higher-ups tried the strict monthly method." ''No wonder, it takes a day just to get out of the city. By the time you reach the hunting area, kill the beasts, and come back here, at least half a month would have passed.'' Noah shook his head internally. ''I should just get the quota for a few months done in my first mission and then focus on forging.'' He didn''t forget his purpose. He needed to find a place suitable for cultivation and for his experiments. Since he finally had a rank 2 dantian, he could begin the tests to forge a real weapon, useful for his current battle prowess. "Oh, remember that you can also bring here alive beasts, we keep them in the underground rooms. Their value is way higher than the dead ones of course." Noah''s eyes lit up. "Do those rooms have rank 4 beasts?" Ron stood speechless for a moment before exploding in a sonorous laugh. The cultivators sitting near him that overheard Noah''s question did the same and laughed to no end. ''Did I say something wrong?'' Noah was confused by their reaction and waited for them to explain. Ron forced himself to calm down and gulped a mouthful of wine before answering. "Tell me, do you know of someone capable of dragging a rank 4 beast alive here? Do you also know of a cage capable of holding them? And, at last, if you really do know him, why would he lower himself on being a hunter?" "¡­" Noah realized how stupid his question was. Capturing a rank 4 beast alive was extremely more difficult than killing one. As for restraining it, that meant that its cage had to be an inscribed item with a rank surpassing the second one. Why would a cultivator with such capabilities choose to be a hunter? Someone with that strength could become the patriarch of a noble family or funding its own noble house, there was no reason to limit himself to work for a guild. "I didn''t think about it." His excitement had clouded his mind. If he could obtain the blood and the core of a rank 4 magical beast, he could attempt on creating a blood companion as his sea of consciousness became stronger. His two blood companions had the strength of a peak rank 3 magical beast, they could be only used as shields against cultivators on Noah''s level. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. They were still useful in dealing with other magical beasts but Noah was starting to rely less on them. ''I guess that, in my Demonic form, they can cause some trouble to other cultivators. Yet, having a rank 4 beast as a blood companion would really boost my battle prowess once I reach the heroic ranks.'' Chapter 178: 178. Albino snake "That''s about it. Go on the first floor, sign for a hunting area, and fill your monthly quota. The discounts on the second floor will be available to you after that." Ron spoke, ending his explanation. ''I need to complete a mission first then.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "What about accommodations? Does senior have any advice about the houses in the capital?" Noah asked and Ron showed a bitter smile. "The prices are high almost everywhere in the city. I advise you to learn the layout of the city so that you can avoid using the transports. Also, unless you are rich, you shouldn''t rent places for a long time. Since we spend most of our time hunting, a fixed residence is only a monetary burden. Most nobles prefer to be enrolled in the Royal army so to obtain free lodgings, us hunters live by the day." Noah lowered his head and fell deep in thought. ''Money is not an immediate problem but it will become one once I start experimenting with rank 4 materials. That scrounger is becoming a problem.'' He didn''t mind not having a fixed residence but he had to take care of Ivor. ''I still need him to clear my doubts on some aspects of the forging. I can also use him to run errands for me or to sell my creations, his certification as an inscription master should suffice and I will also avoid the trouble of going through their examination. I don''t think I can hide my aptitude from them.'' His choice of joining the Hunters'' guild didn''t solely come from his need for materials. There, he could continue to hide while still increasing his power. If he was to show his creations personally, it would be impossible to hide his element, after all, all his creations were made using his own "Breath"! ''I need more time and more money.'' "Thank you for your explanation, I will start to work immediately." Noah said as he stood up and bowed. There was no need for him to undergo examinations or enrollments as Thaddeus had taken care of them after Noah had chosen his position. Noah went directly for the first floor and a spacious room unfolded itself as he climbed the stairs. ''This is quite messy.'' There were more than ten men and women, all looking at various boards on the walls. At the center of the room, a big table was placed. Over it, a detailed map depicted a large area near the Royal city. Noah neared the table and inspected the map carefully. ''It reaches even the places on the other side of the border.'' The drawn area was huge, it covered at least five hundred thousand square kilometers of surface, it even reached hunting zones in nearby continents! ''It should work with mental energy, right?'' Noah found the picture of Arolyac forest on the map and used his mental energy to inspect it. As soon as his mind focused in that area, a long list of names and information appeared in his sea of consciousness. ''Whoa, that basically covers every possible beast of the forest.'' The list contained the names of every type of magical beast that could be found in the forest. There were also descriptions of the beasts, notes about their behavior, and the value of their body parts. Noah randomly moved his attention toward another area of the map. The list in his mind changed and a different fauna was shown to him. ''Amazing.'' Noah was honestly surprised. Not only the map was an inscribed item capable of storing an incredible amount of information but he really admired how much work was put into it. ''To gather all this knowledge, one lifetime is not enough.'' There were hundreds of environments described with thousands of magical beasts listed, Noah knew that behind the creation of that map there was more than a century of researches. He raised his gaze from the map and looked at the various boards on the walls. There were the names of the various hunting zones with cultivators either inspecting them or leaving a sign through their token. Noah randomly inspected one of the zones with many signs with his mental energy and its information appeared in his mental sphere. ''Drainston Crag, danger zone. High number of Toxic hyenas discovered recently. Hunters in the area: Orville, Lucian Aildwi, ¡­'' ''Ohh, even these boards are pretty detailed.'' Noah nodded in satisfaction seeing the organization of the guild, the disorder of the room didn''t reflect at all the orderly arrangements of the various tools. He then turned toward the end of the room. The stairs for the second floor were there with the largest board of the room on their side. That one was the only panel that no hunter was inspecting. His curiosity was piqued and he neared it. As his mental energy scanned it, the information was shown in his mental sphere. ''Special missions of the Royal family!'' There were several hunts ordered by the Royal dynasty with special rewards attached to them. However, their difficulty was far higher than anything Noah had ever seen. ''Thirty rank 4 Mountain trolls have occupied Green Hill Mountain, rewards ¡­'' ''Hordes of Golden dragons flying in the skies over Crumbled Plains, ten rank 4 specimens confirmed, rewards¡­'' ''Rank 5 Albino snake found in Twilboia Cliff, near the domain of the Shosti family. Rewards¡­'' Noah stopped reading at that phrase and remembered the huge beast that resembled a small mountain when it slept. "I wouldn''t even look at that board, most of the hunters that attempt in the missions of the Royals end up dead." Ron appeared behind Noah. "I forgot to warn you about that. There is the hidden rule of avoiding that board, I think that you can understand why is that." Noah nodded and looked again at the areas written there. "If even the Royal dynasty doesn''t want to involve itself in these hunts, why would we even attempt in those?" Ron nodded at his words and patted Noah''s shoulder. "Just stick to the other panels and to the areas at their bottom. The boards at the entrance of the floor have the names of the safer hunting zones on them while toward the end of the room there are only danger zones. This one with Royal missions is put here because of the incredible danger present in those areas." Chapter 179: 179. Hun Noah came out of the Hunters'' guild and found Ivor quietly waiting for him. He didn''t enter the second floor. Since he still had to deliver his first monthly quote, he had no discounts on the materials so he decided to complete a hunt before entering there. "So?" Ivor asked seeing him come out. "I''ve registered for a hunt, let''s find an accommodation now." He had signed for a danger zone mainly populated by Swamp lizards and, as their name suggested, their location was inside a wide swamp in Mellow forest. It was about fifty kilometers away from the Royal city, not too far away, and there was only another hunter signed for that same area. Rank 3 Swamp lizards'' bodies were valued thirty-five Credits if they were intact, quite a good price for a rank 3 beast, yet most of the hunters were scared by the presence of rank 4 specimens in the swamp to go there. If an area had rank 4 magical beasts in its environment, it would be branded as a danger zone so to warn those that wanted to cross it. However, Noah wasn''t scared of their presence. ''Even if I''m not able to kill them, that doesn''t mean that I have to fear them!'' Those were his thoughts when he signed for the hunting area. The reason was simple: none of the dangerous beasts in that environment could fly. Also, his power had greatly increased since the last time he faced a rank 4 beast, if there was the chance, he would gladly test the limits of his new strength. "Where to?" "Somewhere near the West gate, the rents should be more affordable there." Since the gates were the farthest places from the center of the capital, the concentration of "Breath" was on a normal level. Nevertheless, Noah had to simply drop Ivor there while he did his mission, there was no reason to spend more for something that he didn''t use. They requested for a carriage in one of the gathering spots and traveled for one day to reach the West gate area. The situation was the same as the other gate, with transport businesses crowding the main street. They found a plain-looking building, renting rooms for five hundred Credits per month. The room was simple, twenty square meters wide with only a bed in it but it was more than enough for Ivor. "Here, I want you to sell these while I''m away." Noah handed the casket containing the seven Moon needles together with two thousand Credits to Ivor. "Why don''t you simply take the test and become accepted as a beginner inscription master?" Noah shook his head. "My element must remain hidden, if you don''t want me to disappear, take care of this." Ivor saw the stern expression of his student and nodded, taking the casket and the Credits in his hands. "Try to gain something from that, I don''t want to come back and find out that you spent everything in wine." He reminded him before stepping out of the room and exiting the city. ''Finally alone.'' As he exited through the West gate and the vast prairie appeared in his line of sight, he felt like an enormous burden had been lifted off his shoulders. Most of the time, Ivor was a weight and, in the area of the academy, he always felt like he was under strict observation. Now that he was off for a long mission, he felt like he regained some of the freedom that he had obtained when he escaped from Eccentric Thunder''s dimension. ''She must have decided to go there by now, I don''t believe she can resist the temptation of a complete inheritance with her character.'' He smiled a little thinking about Eccentric Thunder and June. He knew that if it wasn''t for that fortuitous encounter, most of his current achievements would have been impossible. ''I can''t slack off either. I wonder if I''ll meet Doris once I reach the swamp.'' Doris was the other hunter signed for Mellow forest. ''I hope she won''t cause trouble for me. Well, I''m not in the academy anymore.'' As he thought of that, his eyes focused on a spot in the distance and his aura intensified, some of the magical beasts nearby cried due to the fear that Noah''s coldness caused them. Then he jumped ahead, shooting at high speed in the distance. Fifty kilometers weren''t a big distance for a cultivator with a rank 3 body but Noah still took eight days to cross them. He followed the general directions of the map on the first floor and, in the end, he reached Mellow forest. It could have taken less but he still decided to take many breaks to continue to train. Even if the concentration of "Breath" was nowhere near the one of the academy, he still didn''t want to completely stop his improvements. Also, the training with the third Kesier rune didn''t depend on the density of "Breath", so the enlargement of his mental sphere continued at a normal pace. ''Now, the swamp should be in the northern area of the forest.'' Noah didn''t waste time and wielded his sabers as he entered the wood. The daylight illuminated the uncovered spots below the trees and the environment was wet, that area seemed subject to frequent rains. A black figure jumped from branch to branch toward the more humid part of the forest. Noah had resumed his habit to move using the branches of the trees and he used his mental energy to scan his surroundings. From time to time, a sound inaudible by humans was released from his back, Echo scanned the area around him looking for magical beasts. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Yet, with the exception of a few rank 1 creatures, Noah didn''t find anything valuable. ''So much for a danger zone, even a kid could survive here.'' He didn''t meet any danger in his few hours of exploration and the swamp area was getting closer. ''Maybe the other beasts were eaten for the birth of rank 4 specimens.'' Noah ran for half a day before finding the first rank 3 creature. It was a Poisonous toad, one meter tall and with yellow eyes. However, it was deeply injured with cuts all over its body and missing a leg. It was frantically trying to run away from the direction where Noah was going to but its pitiful state made its movements extremely slow and clumsy. Noah jumped on it and directly severed its head before inspecting its body. Chapter 180: 180. Expanding The Poisonous toads generally lived in swamps like the Swamp lizards, it was reasonable to address its injuries to a conflict with the other species of magical beasts. ''These cuts are so small, they aren''t caused by rank 4 creatures.'' The toad was only one meter tall while the Swamp lizard had an average height of two and a half meters for their rank 3 version. ''Was it overwhelmed by rank 2 lizards? If that''s the case, how many specimens are ahead?'' Noah stared in the direction where the toad came from with a bit of uncertainty. ''For a pack to be this big, it usually means one thing: they are expanding!'' Magical beasts were a mutation of normal creatures due to the "Breath" in the environment. As time passed, each type of magical beast became a different species, giving birth to many peculiar creatures. At least, that was the most accepted theory about the birth of magical beasts. The "Breath" could turn humans into cultivators and animals into magical beasts, such mystical energy was indeed amazing. ''With the exception of mating, new magical beasts can be generated through the influence of high-level beings on the environment. A rank 4 Swamp lizard could have turned an unimaginable number of normal lizards in magical specimens of its pack.'' Noah reviewed those pieces of information in his mind. His knowledge in the field of magical beasts was vast, the academy had given him the best instruction in the entire country after all. ''How many creatures are there below rank 3? How many above it?'' He knew that killing a rank 3 creature using weaker beasts was a hard task which meant that the pack ahead had to contain at least a few thousand beasts. Noah resolved himself and put the body of the toad in his space-ring before continuing in his march. He had chosen that hunt because he was confident in his ability to escape if things became ugly, there was no reason to retreat before confirming the entity of the danger. As he continued in his advance, more bodies of Poisonous toads appeared on the ground. ''These died because of their injuries. If they had remained in the range of the pack, they would have been eaten already.'' A large pack required a big quantity of food. The best food for magical beasts was, of course, other magical beasts, there was no way that they would have let go of rank 3 specimens like that. The quantity of "Breath" remaining in their bodies was too alluring for them! Noah crossed another kilometer before reaching the borders of the swamp, there were no more corpses near it. ''This is wrong.'' According to the information about Mellow forest, the swamp area had to be at a few kilometers north from his position, yet it had appeared already. ''The environment is mutating due to their presence, there is more than a single rank 4 lizard.'' Noah concluded. Magical beasts, like cultivators, emitted a strong aura and the higher their level was, the more they could influence their surroundings. In Twilboia Cliff, that phenomenon hadn''t happened because the rank 5 Albino snake spent most of its time sleeping and it prevented any rank 4 snake to live for long. In Mellow forest instead, the swamp was advancing, which meant that there were strong beasts radiating their aura on the environment. However, to Noah, that meant only one thing. ''More bodies to collect!'' As far as he was concerned, he would just fly away as soon as a dangerous situation presented itself. Noah uncovered his torso and two pairs of wings came out of his back. He shot in the air and flew over the muddy waters of the swamp. Soon enough, he found the first lizards calmly swimming in the quagmire below him. ''Rank 1 and rank 2, they have no value to me.'' There were tens of lizards in his field of view, Noah thought for a bit before wielding one of his sabers. He launched two fuming wind slashes toward the crowded areas which collided with the terrain and dispersed toxic smoke. Two black clouds twenty meters wide were created in the swamp, devouring every living being that touched the smoke. Since he became a rank 2 mage, his Demonic form increased in strength, just with a casual attack more than fifty magical beasts were killed. As for his expenditure of mental energy, it was negligible. ''It''s better if I avoid being ganged up by them, I don''t think they can do much to me but it''s better to be safe when dealing with rank 4 creatures.'' He wanted to avoid being encircled by hundreds of beasts, that''s why he killed those weak creatures with no hesitation. The lizards that survived his attack dispersed and retreated toward a deeper area of the swamp. Noah continued to fly in that direction, launching attacks as soon as the number of beasts in one area increased. His advance was slow but that allowed him to preserve most of his strength and be sure that there would be no attacks from his back. He was basically securing an escape route. ''Finally.'' When he had flown for another kilometer, the first rank 3 lizards appeared. They were lazily standing over ten or so rank 2 lizards and some of them emitted peculiar cries as they moved over them. ''They are indeed mating.'' Noah thought. ''If even their rank 3 versions are allowed to do that, that means that it''s an order from their leaders. They are forcibly increasing the population of the pack to expand the swamp.'' The chain of command was quite strict in magical beasts'' packs, for weaker beasts to have their chance to reproduce indicated that the stronger ones in that pack allowed it. ''Only three of them sadly. Better than nothing.'' Noah flew toward them, revealing his presence. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The beasts roared seeing an invader but they had no time to react as the more powerful in their group were stabbed by black claws that drained every drop of their blood. Noah used the Blood drain spell to deal with the rank 3 beasts in order to preserve their bodies and then flew back into the air to clear the weaker specimens with fuming wind slashes. In less than ten minutes, that area was emptied of Swamp lizards. Chapter 181: 181. Doris Noah had flown for about half a day over the swamp. He had met with five more groups of Swamp lizards containing rank 3 creatures and he had easily cleared them, storing the corpses of the rank 3 beasts in his space-ring. ''Twenty-five lizards and one Poisonous toad, I''m nearing the required quota for two months.'' He didn''t pick up the other bodies of the Poisonous toads because their value was lower than the Swamp lizard ones, the space of his storage devices was limited after all. He could already go back to Elbas city and obtain the discounts on the materials but, since he was already in a hunting area, he decided to gather more bodies so to not be forced to hunt frequently. His experiments with the Elemental forging method required a long time so he would rather focus completely on them instead of being interrupted due to his duties as a hunter. ''I should rest now, I''m starting to feel some fatigue.'' He had used Echo''s wings, the Shadow steps spell, the Blood drain spell, and the partial Demonic form for the whole time. Even if he still had a lot of mental energy remaining, he chose to take a break in order to return to his peak form. The swamp occupied a vast area and there were many small pieces of terrain not covered by the muddy waters. Noah randomly chose one of those spots and landed on the branch of a tree. ''The situation doesn''t seem too out of control. Just with the damage that I''ve caused today, the advancement of the swamp should have been greatly slowed.'' Noah thought as he ate some of his stash of food. ''I should buy another space-ring, eighty cubic meters are too few for my current needs.'' Noah trained shortly his centers of power before going to sleep. He woke up as the first light of the day shined over the environment. Yet, gray clouds immediately covered the sky, it seemed like it was going to rain soon. ''The rain should force more lizards out, today I should be able to find enough of them to return to the city.'' Noah flew again in the air and resumed his search for magical beasts. It began to rain soon and the number of groups containing rank 3 beasts increased. Noah vanquished each one of those groups with no hesitation, the number of corpses in his space-ring rapidly increased to thirty-three. ''I''m almost reaching the maximum capacity of what I can carry. I don''t think that I can fit much more of them.'' However, at that point, Noah met the first hindrance in his hunt. It was a green lizard, three and a half meters tall, with a scaled body and a long tail. Its head was triangular and its four legs were thick and brawny, it seemed a small boulder placed in the middle of the swamp. ''Here is the rank 4.'' The giant lizard had its black forked tongue immersed in the water of the swamp and its dark eyes moved continuously, inspecting everything in the area around it. ''Is it looking for me?'' Noah had unleashed quite a slaughter in the previous day, uncaringly killing a few hundred lizards in the perimetric parts of the swamp. Those magical beasts used their tongues as an investigative method, capable of extending the surface perceived if they used the water as a channel. ''They must have sensed their numbers decreasing and they sent out this creature to explore, they are quite wary of external dangers.'' He knew that his actions couldn''t go unnoticed, the whole swamp could be considered the lair of those beasts after all. ''Should I stop?'' Noah thought. The lizard hadn''t found him and, if he remained outside the water, it would be difficult to be discovered. ''I will just go around it.'' Noah changed the direction he was flying to and went looking for other rank 3 beasts, instead of moving toward the center of the swamp, he was exploring its external area. He found more rank 3 beasts and the number of corpses stored became forty. Nevertheless, he was forced to stop his hunt due to an unexpected encounter. On one of the trees in an area not covered by water, a middle-aged woman stood staring in the distance. Following her line of sight, Noah saw two rank 4 Swamp lizards in the distance. ''That makes three already.'' Noah thought, moving his gaze back on the woman. The woman sensed something and turned in his way, she and Noah stared at each other for a while. Noah then took out the token from the Hunters'' guild, making her relax. She showed a token identical to Noah''s one and pointed toward another area away from the rank 4 beasts. ''Does she want to talk?'' Noah nodded and flew where she indicated. The hunter followed him closely, making big leaps to jump on the sparse trees present in the swamp. ''She doesn''t seem to be using spells but that doesn''t seem like a rank 4 body.'' Noah analyzed her strength as he flew, he wouldn''t trust somebody just because they belonged to the same organization. "Doris, right?" He asked to the nearing figure as he landed on the muddy ground. The woman jumped off a tree and landed right in front of him. "Yes, you must be new." She spoke in a friendly manner to Noah. "Vance." Noah said, moving his gaze on the big creatures in the distance. "How many rank 4 lizards did you meet?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He asked in a plain voice. "These are the first that I''ve met in a week that I explore the swamp." "I''ve met another one, there has to be more of them." Doris nodded. "They were in the center of the pack till now, something must have happened in order to have rank 4 beasts patrolling. Wait, was that your fault?" She realized that the only thing that changed since she had been there was Noah''s presence so there had to be a connection between his arrival and the new behavior of the beasts. Noah shrugged his shoulders before answering in a plain voice. "If by fault you mean hunting them, then yes. I thought that the whole point of being a hunter was about collecting beasts'' corpses." Chapter 182: 182. Puddle "We are not supposed to spoil other hunters'' work! You just disrupted my pace of killing!" Doris angrily shouted at Noah. Water continued to pour from the sky, Noah watched coldly as the middle-aged woman rebuked him. "So what?" Noah answered, he wouldn''t really care if his actions endangered other people. From his point of view, if you weren''t strong enough to face situations with rank 4 beasts than you shouldn''t have come there in the first place. "You have to compensate me for my losses! I''d say that one monthly quota is enough to pacify the situation." She smiled saying those words. ''Does she want me to pay her? I thought that only nobles could be so na?ve.'' His appearance was one of a young man but he clearly exuded the aura of a strong cultivator, asking for compensation in that way suggested that he was clearly being underestimated. "Have fun with your remaining time here, I''m going in that direction." Noah didn''t deign her of an answer and unfolded his wings again to continue in his hunt. "Wait, the rules describe this situation perfectly! If a hunter is to spoil the hunting zone of other cultivators of the guild, he has to recompense them with his own wealth!" Noah stopped, he didn''t really read the rules of the guild, he didn''t believe that they were so strict so he didn''t bother inspecting them. After a few seconds deep in thought, he raised his head to face the woman. "I don''t care." The rain poured nonstop and created large puddles on the terrain where they were standing. One of those puddles linked itself to the water of the swamp and Doris stepped her foot in it to chase behind Noah that had turned to leave again. "You newbie! You must follow the rules otherwise-" CREEEEEEEE! A loud cry interrupted her words and they both turned where the sound came from. The two rank 4 Swamp lizards in the distance were viciously staring at them with their tongues still immersed in the swamp. ''Fuck!'' Noah knew that they had been discovered and shot in the air in order to leave the area. "Hey, wait for me!" Doris chose to retreat too and followed Noah in his escape. She stopped using the branches of the trees to move and directly ran through the water, uncaring of the muddy terrain. Mud could not hinder a rank 3 body. CREEEEEEEEEEEE! Another cry resounded from their side, the other rank 4 lizard that Noah had passed previously was attracted by the earlier roar and hastily ran for their position. Swamp lizards weren''t extremely fast in their movements but they could swim skillfully if the situation needed it. The other two lizards chased them, immersing half of their bodies in the swamp to pick up speed, they were clearly faster than the two hunters. However, Noah was at ease. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He was in the sky flying freely, those magical beasts had no long-distance attacks so he could run away whenever he wanted. Doris, on the other hand, began to panic. She had approached the pack of beasts carefully, being extra cautious not to be discovered. Since she had no way to escape the stronger creatures, she had to take things slowly or it would have meant her demise. That was one of the reasons why she was so angry at Noah''s behavior, she had planned things meticulously only to be ruined by his appearance. "Wait, help me!" She yelled at the youth over her. Yet, no response came from Noah as he continued to fly, distancing himself from her. Doris knew that she was being abandoned. Her eyes became resolute and she gathered strength in her lower body. She then jumped, leaving a long trail of mud and murky water in the air as she rose to a height of ten meters with her action. One of her arms stretched and reached for the right foot of the hunter that spoiled her preparations. ''The fuck?'' Noah turned to see Doris hanging from his leg with a smug smile on her face. He couldn''t fly carrying another person with him and his altitude diminished rapidly as both of them began to fall in the swamp. Noah''s expression became dark and two sabers appeared in his hands. "Wait, we can escape togeth-" Doris felt the incoming danger and tried to pacify the situation. However, Noah had already decided. The first form of the Ashura was executed, coupled with his partial Demonic form that covered with toxic smoke all his material and ethereal attacks. Twelve fuming sabers clashed on her, leaving deep marks on her body and consuming her flesh. Her arms were severed, her waist pierced, her throat cut, she stared with wide eyes as the distance with Noah increased due to her fall in the swamp. Noah hastily grabbed the two arms that were about to fall and stood in the air, coldly watching the scene progress. Doris fell on the water and the rank 4 lizards immediately reached for her body, biting and eating every piece of flesh that they managed to tear. Of Doris'' figure, only a red spot remained that was quickly carried away by the waters of the swamp. She was dead! The lizards then raised their heads to look at the human in the air. Noah felt three pairs of eyes applying pressure on his mental sphere but incapable of doing any damage to it. ''Not yet.'' Noah thought, replying to the stare of the beasts with one of his own. ''I still can''t face you.'' Rank 4 creatures generally had a higher intelligence compared to their weaker versions. Once they saw that Noah could fly, they decided not to waste time in his pursuit and simply looked at him. Noah felt that they were threatening him not to come again in their lair. He continued to stare at the creatures for quite some time, enjoying the sensation of looking down on stronger beings. ''Is this what Thomas felt when he exchanged gazes with that dragon?''. He shook his head and put that thought in the back of his mind as he turned to exit the swamp. Two arms were in his hands, unceasingly dripping blood in the waters below. Chapter 183: 183. Spoils Noah flew for half a day before reaching the end of the swamp. He was back outside the lair of the magical beasts, on one of the trees of Mellow forest. Rain continued to pour from the sky, it didn''t seem like it was going to end soon. Yet, Noah didn''t care about it and simply inspected the two severed arms in front of him. There was a space-ring on each of them and he took them both before enveloping Doris'' remains with black smoke. Of the hunter, only her storage devices remained. ''She had a slow pace of killing but she had stayed for one week inside the swamp, her gains couldn''t have been small.'' Noah didn''t want to go back in the lizards'' lair but he didn''t even want to go back to the Royal city with only forty beasts'' corpses. The rank 4 beasts were alerted by then which meant that he couldn''t hunt as freely as before. Yet, two months spent on forging were way too short for what he was planning to do, he needed more corpses to fill more quotas. Noah inspected the first space-ring, using his mental energy to wipe Doris'' remaining one. The process was smooth, there were no added protections to the device and, since the previous owner was dead, Doris'' imprint was faint and frail. ''That''s not bad, she was actually quite prepared.'' The space-ring was fifty cubic meters wide, it was at the same level as Noah''s largest one. Inside, there were many situational potions and pills, they covered most of the possible dangerous situations in which a hunter could end up. ''Oh, this one can be used against poison, this one is very useful for burns, this can even immediately stop the bleeding. Good, good, Doris was indeed a prepared hunter.'' Noah wasn''t an expert regarding potions and similar but he had received a general education about them. The academy couldn''t neglect the teaching of such important resources only because a student wasn''t talented in alchemy. Together with those items and ten thousand Credits, there were also items useful for her cultivation. Noah found another Earth pill and something that made his eyes widen in surprise. ''Beast''s quintessence! Doris probably wanted to reach the peak of the third rank of the body with this!'' The Beast''s quintessence was the more powerful version of the Beast''s essence, a liquid drug that he had obtained a long time ago. ''It makes sense, since this also derives from magical beasts, she must have bought it for a discounted price. Yet, its value is not low, she has probably saved for quite some time in order to buy it.'' Doris had a rank 3 body, like Noah. However, her situation didn''t seem that good. She was still in that rank after having lived for at least fifty years, her growth was far below the average of other cultivators, especially considering the rich environment of the Royal city. It couldn''t be helped though, spells and techniques were controlled by the noble families, you could only obtain them by paying an overpriced sum or by submitting to the families. The academy was an exception since it sold those precious resources at a low price, allowing its students to improve steadily. It was no wonder that it was considered the best place where to train even for those with a noble status, the accessibility to cultivation methods had an enormous value. Yet, she was in the hunter guild, slowly accumulating the sum needed to improve her centers of power. As for enrolling in the guards of some noble family, there were hundreds of cultivators on her level in the capital, the competition was harsh. ''Pity she didn''t keep her techniques, she must have sold them as soon as she learned them.'' There were no cultivation methods or spells in her space-ring. It was understandable though. Diagrams and similar were almost unique in their kind, copying them was hard and required the help of an expert. Most cultivators would just buy them to learn the described skill and then sell them at a lower price. Only people that had no immediate need for money would keep them as an insurance for unexpected situations, or to simply hide their powers. Noah, for example, would never sell the Warp spell, he would rather avoid for another cultivator of the darkness element to appear in the future and be able to use it. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''And I have another weapon that I can''t immediately sell, wonderful.'' Doris'' knife was in the space-ring. It was and inscribed weapon so its value wasn''t low, yet, Noah could not sell it or it would expose the fact that he had killed her. ''The other one should be the one containing the magical beasts'' corpses.'' Noah moved his focus on the other ring. As he had expected, the device contained twenty or so rank 3 lizards'' bodies and was fifty cubic meters wide too. ''With these, I will fill my quota for four months but I can''t keep the bodies in this state.'' The lizards had clear knife cuts on their flesh, an expert would recognize the difference between the two hunting methods. Noah spent an entire day altering the signs left by Doris. He first used the Blood drain spell to remove the remaining blood for their corpses and then he made additional cuts on their skin, sometimes directly severing the limbs when the trace of the knife was too evident. Their value lowered like that, yet, when he had finished with each corpse, there was no evident difference between Noah''s hunting method and Doris'' one. ''This should be enough, now how should I sort things out?'' He liked to keep his space-rings orderly arranged in order to be more reactive in dangerous situations. In the end, he decided to keep all his personal stuff in one of his new storage devices, putting all his potions, techniques, spells, inscribed weapons, and cultivation resources in it. Since those items didn''t occupy much space in the first place, there were still many cubic meters left for future usage. The other three rings were assigned for the momentary items like the corpses of magical beasts. When he finished his ordering, he had two rings on each hand, with a total space of one hundred and eighty cubic meters! Chapter 184: 184. Quintessence ''I guess my first hunt is over.'' Noah thought that and a bottle containing a dark red liquid appeared in his hands. It was the Beast''s quintessence and its usage was similar to the Beast''s essence that he had used in the past. ''I''m not in a hurry to go back, I should just use this and improve while no one is around me.'' Noah was still shirtless so he only needed to apply the quintessence. He carefully opened the small bottle and smeared its contents on the spots where his seven acupoints were. The liquid was dense and had a bad odor but its effects were immediate. The acupoints reacted on their own and began to absorb "Breath" at a fast pace. Noah immediately put away the bottle and focused on the Yin body, he couldn''t randomly absorb "Breath", he had to redirect it through the proper channels in order to obtain improvements rather than harm. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Seven vortexes were created on his back, their rotation speed was incredible, they absorbed "Breath" at a fast pace. The Beast''s quintessence was a potion that momentarily allowed a cultivator to imitate the magical beasts'' ability to absorb "Breath", increasing the quantity of nourishment that their bodies received for a short amount of time. The "Breath" entered his body and accumulated on his back, it was cold like he was used to, he knew that the medicine was working correctly. He then directed it to his dantian in order to refine it before it could nourish his bones. Since the "Breath" absorbed that way was in such a higher quantity compared to its normal one, Noah could not cultivate in the Dark vortex technique at the same time or the stress on his dantian would be too much to withstand. Noah continued to cultivate like that for one week before emptying the bottle of quintessence. "Fuuu." He exhaled loudly as soon as the effects of the potion expired and he interrupted his cultivation. His skin had become even paler and his cold aura intensified. However, he felt that his strength had increased again. ''I''m still a bit away from the peak of the third rank but I''ve indeed made some progress.'' Noah concluded after inspecting his body. He wasn''t really sure of how much it would take for his dantian to reach the peak of the gaseous stage and his mental sphere was very far away from the third rank but he was sure that his body was nearing the breakthrough. ''Two years at most and I will face the Pain Tribulation.'' Since in the next rank his body would enter the Heroic ranks, he would face the first tribulation. ''I should go back now.'' It took Noah two days to reach the West gate of the capital. He had learnt the route by then, which shortened the time needed to return to the Royal city. When he returned to the room he had rented, he found Ivor sleeping in one corner surrounded by empty jars. "So, how was your stay?" Ivor opened his eyes after hearing Noah''s words and, as always, it took a while for him to gain clarity. He didn''t answer and simply handed Noah three thousand Credits. Noah was surprised, he had left him only two thousand Credits and the Moon needles. "What was the value of my creations?" Ivor snorted softly and cleaned his nose with his sleeve. "Those old geezers, they wanted to lower the price because they believed that the items were stolen. Yet, they shut up once they saw the element that the needles had." Noah waited for him to continue. "One thousand and five hundred Credits. Sadly, they were two-use weapons or their value would have skyrocketed. You should be proud of yourself, not many inscribed items can silence those arrogant inscription masters. You might climb to a higher social status if you invest more time in the forging." Noah ignored his words and took out his sabers to inspect them carefully. He still didn''t repair them after his last usage of the Demonic form and their shapes showed some slight cracks. ''My power has increased too much, my current weapons can barely withstand it.'' Every time he used the partial Demonic form, his sabers would undergo a corrosion. The toxic smoke was too powerful and wild, it was impossible to completely control it even for its user. ''Luckily, the creator of the spell managed to consider my clothes as a part of my body or I would end up naked every time I use it. Sadly, that''s the best he could do, this feature can''t be exploited in any way.'' Noah injected his "Breath" in the sabers and the inscriptions lit up, fixing the broken spots and sharpening the blades again. "Those are nice weapons, they might be worth a few thousand Credits." Ivor judged, looking at the silver blades. "Did they ask about me?" Noah could not sell his sabers since they were his only weapons so he changed the topic of their conversation. "Yes, but I''ve only given vague answers. It won''t be much before they find who you are though, your element is too rare to go unnoticed." Noah nodded, he expected that much too. After his sabers were fixed, he put them back in his space-ring and stood up, signaling Ivor to follow him. "Let''s go back to the guild and find a new habitation." "What? But we still have more than half a month of paid rent left!" Ivor complained but Noah just shook his head. "You said that yourself, I won''t be anonymous much longer. I need to start forging and I''m afraid that this whole building might explode due to my failures in my new creation." Ivor''s eyes widened and a big smile appeared on his face. "Will you stop testing and attempt in something serious?" Noah nodded and smiled too, he had to admit that he was quite excited by his idea. "I can now have discounts on rank 4 materials, there is no reason to wait further." As he said that, he exited the room, followed by an excited scrounger. Chapter 185: 185. Focus Noah was in a wide room, staring at a few items in front of him. He was deep in thought, sorting the events of the last day. ''Selling the magical beasts'' corpses earned me a bit more than two thousand Credits, their value was a bit higher than the Moon needles.'' As soon as he had left his previous accommodation with Ivor, he had directly taken a carriage for the Hunters'' guild in order to sell the bodies in his space-ring. He had sixty rank 3 magical beasts, that amount filled four monthly quotas and awarded him with a ten percent discount on the items deriving from magical beasts. No one asked him anything about Doris, hunters would ofter disappear for a long time after all. The items in front of him were exactly what he had bought on the second floor of the guild, yet, with just that discount, their prices were still high. ''Bones of a rank 4 Undead chameleon and two Beast''s quintessence for a total of twenty thousand Credits. If I''m not able to join hunts for rank 4 creatures, I will go broke soon.'' There were about twenty gray bones eighty centimeters long and two bottles with a dark red liquid in front of him. The Undead chameleon was a magical beast of the darkness element with peculiar qualities. It could enter a state of apparent death when the environment lacked enough nourishment, only to revive as soon as a prey arrived or the density of "Breath" increased. Its skeleton and internal organs were highly suitable for stressful procedures due to that quality and were easy to manipulate, which made them the perfect material for Noah''s current level. They were body parts of a rank 4 creature after all, weaker cultivators couldn''t process them so easily. Just the price for those bones amounted to ten thousand Credits which meant that the value of a complete rank 4 beast would be much higher! As for the two bottles, their price was about five thousand Credits each, Noah had decided to buy them after testing the effects of the quintessence in Mellow forest. ''This place is expensive too. Well, the density of "Breath" is high at least.'' The chamber where he was at that moment was one of the two rooms of his new habitation. It was near the Hunters'' guild and featured an area reinforced with inscriptions that met Noah''s needs. The concentration of "Breath" was also higher compared to the one on the streets of the capital. However, the price was four thousand Credits per month. ''Sixteen thousand Credits for four months of rent, added to twenty thousand for these items and deducting my gains, I have more than seventy thousand Credits left.'' They were still a lot of money but Noah was worried anyway. Twenty bones were enough only for twenty experiments after all, Noah wasn''t so delusional to think that he could succeed just with that. ''I''ll think about it later, now I should focus, it''s finally time to become serious.'' He closed his eyes and a small strand of the gaseous "Breath" in his dantian rose from his waist and moved toward his head. Noah''s ethereal figure appeared on the walls of his mental sphere and hastily took the strand of "Breath", using its body to connect the outside world with the interiors of Noah''s sea of consciousness. As soon as the "Breath" entered the sphere, it began to quiver madly, threatening to detonate right at the bottom of the sea of mental energy. Nevertheless, Noah expected that much and acted promptly. Mental energy was continuously expended as Noah forced away the will of Heaven and Earth from that minute amount of "Breath". The process took one hour and exhausted almost all of Noah''s mental energy but, in the end, the "Breath" was rendered harmless. ''This will take a while.'' Noah thought as he laid on the floor to sleep. The "Breath" in his dantian was in the second rank, the difficulty in refining it had increased by a lot. Noah could only absorb a small piece of it before he was forced to rest. Yet, just that quantity wasn''t his limit. His sea of consciousness had improved at a faster pace than his dantian and was also the first to break through between the two, it could withstand the gaseous "Breath" of a rank 2 cultivator. Noah rested and repeated that procedure as soon as he woke up before being forced to rest again. When the third absorption ended, Noah felt that his headache had reached the point where it could hinder Noah''s concentration during the forging, so he decided to stop accumulating "Breath". After another day of rest, it was time to inject his will. The black gas in his sea of consciousness was immersed in the sea and Noah stood for three days imagining a saber cleaving the sky in two. He had become better at imbuing his will on the "Breath", when the process was over, a small black blade stood in his mental sphere emitting a strong sharpness. ''It''s time.'' He waited for his form to return to its peak and laid the bone of the Undead chameleon in front of him. ''This will be the body of my creation. It will give it a sturdy composition and it will easily allow for the main material to fuse with it.'' The bone of the magical beast was not the main ingredient in Noah''s design. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. There was one material that he knew was far stronger and destructive than anything he had seen in his life. A substance that made possible his escape from the Balvan family. Mental energy was expended, as well as the "Breath" that he had just refined. On his two Kesier runes, the black roots lit up and black smoke was emitted in Noah''s hand. Noah focused like never before, trying to control the smoke of the Demonic form spell to stay still in his palm. He knew that the toxic gas was wild, almost impossible to restrain. However, if he used his own personal "Breath" to produce it and then use the reinforced connection to manipulate it, will that be enough to make it his main material? Noah''s eyes shone as his concentration reached its peak. The smoke on his palm stopped its expansion and gathered in the form of a small black sphere. Chapter 186: 186. Bucke Noah stared at the ball of smoke in his palm with an excited expression. ''It''s doable! I can use my Demonic form as a material!'' He wasn''t sure that he could use the toxic smoke as part of the forging process until he managed to restrain it. ''The easy part is done, now I need to fuse the smoke with the bone of the chameleon and shape it.'' Noah took the grey bone with his free hand and created an incubating membrane around the two materials. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He focused, manipulating the black gas to enter the beast''s body part. Since he had used his refined "Breath" to activate the partial Demonic form, the toxic gas could be used as if it was the "Breath" itself in the Elemental forging method. Of course, the difficulty in shaping the item would increase vastly that way. That method was described in Ivor''s "Sword Creation method", it consisted of defining one material as the core and using it to shape the other items. The notes about the Elemental forging also explained how that was the most effective way to forge when using more than one material, shaping two different ingredients at the same time would increase the difficulty of the inscription by many times. The smoke covered the bone and tried to enter it in order to fuse with its substance. However, it was a piece of a rank 4 magical beast, it was hard to shape and resisted the modifications that Noah wanted to apply. Noah stood still for a long time, his gaze never moved from the black membrane that encircled his hands. Two hours had to pass for the bone to lose its defenses and allow the smoke inside its matter. The two ingredients began to combine and faint pressure was emitted as the item condensed according to Noah''s will. ''I knew it, the Undead chameleon is the perfect material to use for the first prototype.'' The bone morphed almost without resistance once it allowed the fusion with the toxic smoke, it didn''t reject the new substance at all! Of course, what Noah was doing at that moment was just the initial phase of the experimentation for his masterpiece. Just two materials weren''t enough to create something durable and powerful, there had to be a more intricate mixture in order for the inscribed item to reach a pleasing level in both those qualities. That difficulty was ignored by the other inscription methods as they only had to perform an inscription on an item to apply a powerful effect. Yet, the Elemental forging method was renowned for the power held by its creations, the higher difficulty in creating a good product was balanced by the strength of every finished item. Just by looking at Noah''s Moon needles, one could understand the advantages of such a method. They had the power of the solid stage of a rank 1 cultivator and that with only a rank 3 material! They were indeed strong but lacked durability, something that items created with other inscription methods had by default as no one would choose to inscribe an item of poor quality. However, a problem appeared during the fusion of the two materials. There wasn''t any mistake on Noah''s side, he had maintained a perfect control over the process for the whole time. The issue was about the nature of the toxic smoke. As it originated from a spell that emphasized destruction, it was intrinsic in its nature to destroy everything that was not his user. The smoke began to corrode the bone. If even Noah''s saber couldn''t avoid being corroded, it was no wonder that the same happened with other materials. Noah tried his best to prevent the corrosion from happening but all he could do was staring helplessly as the black gas reduced the bone to nothingness. The bone was devoured and the incubating membrane dispersed, the toxic smoke spread in the room before being blocked by the flickering inscriptions on the walls. ''It was a rank 4 material, coming from one of the most adaptive magical beasts in this world and with a matching element. Not even this could contain my spell.'' He sighed, laying on the floor under him. ''Well, at least I know that my Demonic form can injure dead rank 4 beasts. When I obtain a rank 4 body, I should be able to deal with that starved Cloud eagle. As for the forging¡­'' He sighed again. It''s not that he didn''t foresee that circumstance, he knew the proprieties of his spell better than anyone else. He had already found another way to use the smoke as a material without letting it consume the other ingredients. Noah stood up and two items appeared in front of him. One of them was his saber that he wielded with his left hand. The other one was a bucket, like the ones he used to collect the blood of the magical beasts when he had to prepare for the Body-inscription spell. ''If the Demonic form hurts everything except me, then I have to use me as a material.'' The saber slashed his right wrist and Noah stretched his arm to make the blood drip in the bucket. His eyes were cold as he looked at his own blood coming out of his wrist, he was quite used to that scene by then. ''First the Horned snake, second the Three-eyed bat, and the Night panther as the third one. Who would have thought that I would be the fourth.'' He laughed internally at that thought, he realized that he wasn''t treating his body any differently from a beast''s corpse. ''If this gets me what I need, I don''t mind throwing away hundreds of liters of my blood.'' His body was alive though and had also excellent healing abilities. The wound on his wrist closed after a few seconds and Noah was forced to open it again. Little by little, the bucket began to fill. He had a rank 3 body, spilling about three liters of blood made him dizzy and pale but didn''t endanger his life. That was also due to the fact that his bones began to emit a cold halo that increased its production. In about twenty minutes, the bucket was full. Noah took out another chameleon''s bone and immersed it in his blood before going to rest. Chapter 187: 187. Tolerance Noah filled more buckets with his own blood in the following days and proceeded to sink the remaining eighteen chameleon bones in them. After sealing them carefully, he stored the buckets in his space-ring. According to Noah''s calculations, those containers had to be sealed at least for a month in order for the bones to change their nature. The Undead chameleon was a rare creature, its adaptability was widely known between the experts in the magical beasts'' field, that was partly the reason behind its high price. ''I guess, I''m eighteen now.'' Noah thought, looking at the light coming from a window in his habitation. Since he had to wait for the treatment of the materials to be over, he had returned to focus on his training, especially his Yin body. One bottle of Beast''s quintessence was already used and the other one was almost empty, he had enough liquid for only one more night of training. Noah wielded his sabers and practiced in his martial art, the ethereal additional arms became more real every time his power increased or his mastery of the art neared perfection. Once he became able to use the Third form of the Ashura, his martial art would lose most of its ties with the Nails of the Kamaitachi and transform in something different. It was already at the level of the fourth rank after all, his fighting style was mostly set, the time when he would have to create higher tier arts by himself was approaching. ''Generally speaking, martial arts are a weaker version of spells, cultivators perform diagrams with their movements and manipulate the "Breath" accordingly to obtain a similar effect. I wonder if it''s too early to think about it, I still have to master my current art.'' His knowledge of the cultivation topic was vast. Most noble families would just rely on their accumulated techniques and spells to nurture their descendants, they had no clue on the theories behind their creation. Noah didn''t realize it but his foundation was really solid, if one didn''t consider the specialized fields like alchemy and similar, there were really a few aspects of cultivation where he had doubts about. That was one of the advantages of being instructed in the academy, each of its students would have a smooth cultivation journey and avoid harmful practices. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Night arrived again and Noah emptied the contents of his potion to hasten the improvements of his body. However, halfway through the night, the effects of the quintessence vanished. Noah focused on his back and noticed that some remains of the substance were still there but his body seemed to be immune to it. ''I''ve developed a tolerance, I can''t use it anymore.'' Drugs couldn''t be used endlessly otherwise there would be cultivators in the divine ranks everywhere. The bodies of the cultivators were already particularly strong, it was no wonder that as their power rose, they would become used to a treatment faster. The solution to that was to either undergo a stronger treatment or to stop altogether. In time, the body would purify itself and allow weaker drugs to affect it. Noah had already used the Beast''s essence in his youth but his body had greatly improved in the time that had passed, that''s why he could almost use three full bottles before becoming tolerant. Since his dantian wouldn''t be stressed anymore, Noah spent the rest of the night cultivating both the Yin body and the Dark vortex technique. When the daylight shone and he was about to wield his sabers, a loud knock resounded from the entrance door. Noah was quite surprised and focused to be ready for every situation. He didn''t know many people after all, and those that knew where he lived were even less. When he opened the door, he was met by a familiar smiling face full of golden hair. "Professor, how come I''m not surprised that you know where I''m staying?" Thaddeus laughed lightly before pointing toward the interiors of the accommodation. "Can I come in?" Noah shrugged his shoulders and turned, moving toward one of the couches of the room and picking one of Ivor''s jars along the way. As he sat, he poured two glasses of wine and drank a bit before speaking in a sarcastic tone. "So, in which other shady business can I be of help?" Noah was quite relaxed in Thaddeus'' presence. He knew about the Royal inheritance and he also knew that Thaddeus wanted to use him before some complication appeared. Since Noah didn''t believe that he had come there for the inheritance ground, he supposed that it was about another activity in which the Royal family could not interfere personally. "Oh, I guess we left a bad impression on you after the last time. That was my bad, I apologize." He was referring to the match against Manuel. "Why didn''t you use the token?" Noah didn''t care much about that matter, it''s not like he would have trusted the Royal family anyway. "This matter is a bit personal, I wanted to speak in a safe environment." Thaddeus said while slowly sipping the wine in his glass. Noah became slightly interested in the matter. "There is a problem with one of the students. You know, the strong point of the academy is the number of techniques and spells available at a low price, this is what attracts most of the youths and gives us the time to recruit them in our ranks. However, we also know that we can''t keep all of them, some students will still decide to return to their families and aim for the position of the patriarch." ''That''s obvious, you can''t expect heirs from large-size noble families to just join the rulers of the country. They know that they will never be trusted in the ranks of the Royals.'' "Most of the techniques that we sell are copies made by the inscription masters in the Royal Mansion but there are few exceptions like yours and Daniel''s one. Yet, the value of these copies depends on how many replicas are around, if all those scrolls were to end in the hands of the noble families, our appeal over the new generations would fade." "So?" Noah said, he understood what he was saying but he couldn''t see the problem about it. Thaddeus'' expression became complex and he spoke with a soft voice. "So, one student spent ten million Credits and bought more than one hundred techniques and spells." Chapter 188: 188. Negotiation ''Ten million Credits!?'' Noah was speechless, he really couldn''t imagine a sum that huge in the hands of a single person. "How is it possible that a single student is in possession of such wealth?" He asked the Professor. "That''s part of the problem. We believe that some large-size noble families are planning to build an organization similar to the academy. Yet, their foundation is not as solid as ours, so they are investing that sum to accumulate enough appealing resources. Even if the academy would still be the best school in the country, we can''t allow for a competitor to appear." Thaddeus explained in a serious tone, he was taking this matter quite seriously. However, Noah really didn''t care about such political struggles. "What do you want from me?" Noah asked his most pressing question. "Stop the delivery of the items to the noble families." "Why don''t you do that?" Thaddeus smiled bitterly at those words. "We must maintain the social environment peaceful and calm. If large-size families were to be suppressed openly, a conflict would be inevitable. Oh, don''t get the wrong idea, the Royal family is fully prepared for an internal conflict, we would just prefer to avoid it." Silence occupied the room, Noah was considering the offer. "And what should I do once I intercept the student?" "You take care of him. It will be an undercover mission with other cultivators of a suitable profile. All the information will be delivered to you as soon as you accept." Thaddeus answered, the meaning behind his words was quite clear. ''They want criminals to do the job so that they can blame them if something goes wrong. Fucking Royals, they are so pitiful.'' Noah internally shook his head. The mighty rulers of the Utra nation, undisputed for two thousand years, asking for help from disposable individuals. ''What''s the point of having all that power if you can''t use it? Rules are bindings even in the cultivator world. Noble families are so powerful and yet so frail.'' He was honestly disappointed by such vision, he felt like a dragon had turned into a scared sheep as soon as one of its wings was pierced. He didn''t underestimate the actual power held by the Royals, he knew that if he made a mistake they wouldn''t waste one instant before taking care of him. However, he felt disappointed seeing such a grand organization unwilling to deal personally with their problems. In a world under the constant threat of magical beasts, weakness was a sin, even if only a circumstantial one. "I believe that the rewards would match the enmity with large-size noble families." Noah broke the silence. "Name your price." Thaddeus smiled again, he knew that his proposal had interested the young man. "Rank 4 cultivation technique of the darkness element." There was no hesitation in Noah''s answer, he knew exactly what he wanted. However, Thaddeus'' eyes widened in surprise and he stood up from his seat. "Are you crazy? Do you know the value of something like that!? You are overestimating your value! Do you think that we don''t know about those inscribed items that you ruined master has sold? This fake identity of yours is reaching its limits! If it wasn''t for us Royals always suppressing the rumors of a darkness element cultivator, how much do you think your family will take to find you? Show some damned gratitude and remember that your life depends on our goodwill!" Thaddeus was mad, such a request had clearly enraged him. Noah stared with cold eyes as his overreaction unfolded and he knew that what the Professor said was true. He was a pawn and pawns must obey the orders of the kings. ''This matter must be quite pressing for him to react like that.'' "Rank 3 cultivation technique of the darkness element." Noah took a step back and lowered his price. Thaddeus sighed and sat back on the couch behind him before answering. "That is doable but you must join some Royal organization first and to do that you will have to make an agreement. Since you are involved in the Royal inheritance, we still can''t do that. It means that it will take some time for it to be delivered to you." ''That won''t do either.'' Noah wanted to remain free from bindings, he wouldn''t join a noble family just to obtain some immediate benefits. ''Giving myself away can''t be done. If I join the Royals, I''ll always be an outsider and be suppressed. I don''t want to go through the same experiences of the inner circle of the Balvan family.'' He had been restrained for a year and a half in the inner circle of the mansion, spending most of his days being a testing dummy for the heirs and having almost no time left for his training. ''They will probably give me more freedom but a cage is always a cage, no matter how big it is.'' "I want an immediate payment, I might not come back after all." Thaddeus shook his head. "Then you have to choose something else, rank 3 cultivation techniques can''t be given away like that." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Silence again, Noah was deep in thought, trying to find what he needed the most at that moment. ''That would solve most of my problems.'' Noah found something that fitted his needs and stared for a long time in Thaddeus'' eyes before opening his mouth to speak. "I want a "Breath" blessing, one big enough to be useful through all the second rank of the dantian." Thaddeus'' expression became stiff, the meaning behind Noah''s words was clear. One of the problems in the higher level of cultivation was the amount of time needed to accumulate enough "Breath" for the breakthrough. Places like the academy or the capital were coveted due to the higher density of "Breath" which facilitated the cultivation process, the improvements of two centers of power depended on that after all. Yet, if one had a piece of "Breath" blessing big enough, he could cultivate everywhere, without having to bear the expenses linked to better accommodations. ''If I have that mineral, I can just live in normal rooms and still cultivate at a higher speed. Not only that, I can even use it when I''m outside hunting, eliminating the problem of a slower pace of training.'' Chapter 189: 189. Old enemy Thaddeus stared Noah for a while. Giving away a piece of "Breath" blessing wasn''t a problem, their accumulation was vast, they had large reserves of that mineral. The only problem was what giving it to him meant. ''If he obtains it, he won''t need the privileges of the Royal city anymore.'' Those were Thaddeus'' thoughts. Cultivators would need better resources as their level increased. In the Utra country, the resources and the techniques were all monopolized by the noble families, with the biggest shareholder being the Royal family. It was almost impossible to embark on the cultivation journey without having relationships with them. That need was amplified by the level of the cultivator. Taking Noah as an example, his improvements had been minimal since he stopped being a student, even with his hardworking personality. He had to use precious potions to boost his absorption speed but that method had its limits as his body would become tolerant to the drugs. The best method was to simply cultivate in an environment rich of "Breath". Yet, those kinds of environments were mostly danger zones or artificially created. Noah could not survive in the former and had to reach compromises to use the latter. However, the value of that mineral was still inferior to techniques and spells, that''s why he was quite confident that Thaddeus would accept his price. ''He has to decide between me, a lone cultivator that won''t be a threat in the imminent future, or a sudden increase in power of the large-size noble families. It''s just about what he fears the most.'' Noah wouldn''t be a threat for their dominion for some more decades at least, they had plenty of time to rope him in. The noble families, on the other side, were already established and powerful. If they really managed to create a structure similar to the academy, the accumulation of power would shift in their favor. Also, they would be doing that by using the Royal academy as the foundation for their new school, the Royals would lose too much face if they let that happen. "Deal." As Noah predicted, Thaddeus agreed. "I want the mineral before I have to move" Noah reminded him. Thaddeus nodded and stood up, that conversation had left him with a bitter taste in his mouth. "The stone will be given to you in less than a week, together with the specifics about the mission. I just want you to remember one thing." Noah waited calmly for the Professor to continue to speak. "We are not your enemies." As soon as he said that, he left the room and exited the accommodation. "Speaking about hidden threats, that Thaddeus must really care about this situation." Ivor said, appearing from the other room. "I understand them to be honest. You don''t rule a nation for two thousand years without being paranoid about everything that can endanger your position." Noah answered, laying on the couch and analyzing what had just happened. "Why are they so into you? Is it because of your element?" Noah nodded and answered Ivor in a plain voice. "All they want is control over their subjects. With Daniel being on the side of the nobles, they need someone of equal rarity and talent or their figure would lose importance in the eyes of all the other families. Well, I''m also useful for their dirty work" "So, will you join the Royals once danger knocks on your door?" Noah shook his head. "They must have realized by now that I don''t like to be controlled. Once my usefulness is over, they will give me an ultimatum." He was speaking about these matters with ease as if they didn''t concern him in the slightest. "And what will you do at that point?" Ivor asked in a concerned tone. He didn''t want to see his student being used by Royals but he also didn''t like the idea of losing the last heir of the Elemental forging method. He wasn''t sure he would survive until he found someone else as talented as Noah. Noah shrugged his shoulders and turned to one side to sleep, saying one last phrase to Ivor. "I will be long gone before things reach that point." What Thaddeus had promised didn''t take much to arrive. In just four days, a soldier in golden armor knocked at Noah''s door and handed him a space-ring. The space inside the ring was small, not even three cubic meters, but contained a pile of sheets and a big blue stone. Noah''s eyes widened seeing the "Breath" blessing and he immediately took it out to place it in the reinforced room. As for the ring, he simply gave it to Ivor to sell it while he was gone. The "Breath" blessing was cubic and its proportions were quite precise, it seemed that it had been cut from a bigger piece. It was one and a half meters tall and almost the same in its other dimensions. When it came outside of the separate space in the ring, the density of "Breath" increased by a lot and surpassed the one in the best habitation of the academy! ''Well, it''s coupled with the already high density of this room. Just this alone can probably only reach a level lower than the one in the academy.'' Nevertheless, Noah was satisfied. ''With this, my training won''t be slowed anymore even when I''m outside hunting! I can also use it to lure out beasts!'' Magical beasts would instinctively be attracted by such precious items, Noah could already imagine the number of traps he could set up in his hunts with that mineral. ''To think that I finally managed to get my hands on something like this.'' That was the third time in which he came across a "Breath" blessing. Due to his personality, he had always desired to obtain one of them, yet they weren''t easy to find and no one would ever sell it. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah moved his gaze to the sheets and began to inspect them. His brows furrowed a bit before relaxing in a surprised expression. ''That''s quite the coincidence.'' Written on the sheets, there was the various information about the mission from the Royal family, as well as the name of the student that made that absurd purchase. ''Samuel Muwlos.'' Noah''s eyes shone with a cold light remembering his previous encounters with him. Chapter 190: 190. Vonduhr Noah had never forgotten how the soldiers from the Muwlos family had tried to prevent his arrival at the entrance test of the academy. ''I wonder if that wind mage will be there to protect him. That one should be an interesting fight.'' The sheets described how Samuel was about to leave the academy after his purchase in the inventory but was instead held back by various means. ''That was probably a plot from the Royals, they needed time to put together a group for the mission.'' As for the objective of the mission, it was clearly stated on the sheets. ''Retrieve the copies of the techniques and kill the student that dared to join a scheme against the Royal dynasty.'' ''They must be really mad about this. I almost feel pity for Samuel, I bet he doesn''t really know in what mess he ended up.'' Noah shook his head thinking about the idiocy of that young man, he couldn''t really understand how most nobles were so stupid. ''One month from now, town of Vonduhr, Three-jugs tavern. That''s the gathering point for my team.'' There was a detailed map pointing out the best route to reach the appointed town. ''One month¡­ It might be enough to forge something.'' The bones of the Undead chameleon were being refined in his own blood. Before he had to leave to reach Vonduhr, he had about two weeks in which he could continue to experiment. However, that time could be used to increase his power as much as he could. ''Betting on the Elemental forging is quite risky, at least for my current ability in that method. I should just leave the bones to refine and focus on my training, that can only benefit me.'' Of course, the more the bones were left in his own blood, the more they would mimic its proprieties. Noah needed for them to be recognized as part of his own body by the Demonic form spell otherwise the black smoke would just consume them. Instead of risking a rank 4 material, he would gladly leave it to refine for some more time to focus on a more reliable power. After all, even if the materials were refined correctly, he wasn''t sure he could forge something stable in just two weeks. Having made his decision, Noah didn''t waste time and gave Ivor a list of items to buy together with the Credits needed. He needed to refill his stash of potions and food, he had to buy new sets of clothes, he couldn''t be left shirtless in an undercover mission. After he set everything, he took out the Kesier rune and began to train, every little improvement could be essential for his survival. . . . A few weeks later, in a small village near Vonduhr. Samuel sat in a poor wooden house with his two hands clenched on a cup of tea. He was trembling and drops of cold sweat ran down his forehead. "Young Master, it was the decision of the family. You must bear the responsibilities of the Cause." Abel stood right in front of him, trying to reinvigorate his spirit. Samuel shook his head and threw the cup on the wall, spilling all its contents on the old wood. "And what do you even know? I saw the monsters in the academy and I saw the power of the Royal dynasty! They have flying ships dammit! They could wipe out an entire large-size noble family overnight if they wanted and my family wisely agreed to make me the scapegoat for this fucking Cause! Did my father know about all of this? Did he know that his sole heir would be the target of the Royals'' hatred?" Abel lowered his head at the man''s complains. He had been a guard of the Muwlos family for his entire life, he had seen Samuel grow and knew how attached his father was to him. However, the Cause was too important and the benefits related to it were incredible. He spoke in an apologetic tone with his head still lowered. "Young Master, the benefits that our family will receive if this mission succeeds would be enormous. We would forever have a privileged position in the noble academy and we were exempted from paying our share to reach ten million Credits. Your father emphasized your worth greatly for you to be assigned to this role." Abel''s words didn''t manage to calm Samuel down who continued in his protests. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "What worth!? I''m basically stealing from the Royal academy! If they catch me, not only me but the entire family will pay the price for the insubordination!" Abel raised his head and put a hand on the young man''s shoulder. "You''ve never stolen anything, that''s one of our advantages. Since you have rightly purchased those techniques and spells, the Royal family can''t personally intervene in the matter, they can just send cultivators unrelated to them. However, all the strongest cultivators are under their rule or loyal to the Cause, even the other large-size families that are neutral have confirmed that they won''t interfere with this matter. With me here, the odds are on our side." Samuel was slightly reassured by his words and heaved a long sigh. "What is our actual battle prowess?" Abel sat next to him and took out a map from his sleeve, unfolding it on the table in front of them. "We have sixty soldiers, thirty-five of them are rank 1 cultivators in the solid stage while the other twenty-five are in the second rank. I know that you are still in the first rank but don''t worry, I will personally guard you." Samuel nodded seeing such manpower and then turned to look at Abel. "You have a rank 4 body, right?" Abel made a wide smile and patted his chest in confidence. "Yes, I am a rank 2 cultivator in the liquid stage, rank 2 mage, and have a rank 4 body. I know that my body-nourishment method is among the weakest rank 4 methods but its power must not be underestimated! Also, it sacrifices most of the physical strengthening to focus on healing abilities! I can be your meat-shield for the whole journey back in the mansion." Samuel finally became completely calm and gestured toward the map. "What''s our route?" "We move to Vonduhr in a few weeks and then we take the mountain path to return in the Muwlos domain." Chapter 191: 191. Demons Vonduhr was a small city situated at the beginning of a mountain path. It was mostly inhabited by non-cultivators, the people there lived off simple professions like hunting or farming. However, in the last month, many peculiar people were seen crossing its streets to enter the Three-jugs tavern. What was also peculiar was that the tavern, which was one of the few recreative businesses in the city, had closed its entrance to the normal citizen. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The common people of that world knew that when something unexpected or strange happened, it was likely related to the world of cultivation. Therefore, they began to avoid the tavern and continue with their own business, if those peculiar people were really cultivators, they would rather stay away from them. Noah arrived in Vonduhr exactly one month after he had received the "Breath" blessing. He was wearing tight black clothes as usual but his head was covered with a large hood and half of his face was hidden behind a tight scarf. Only his cold eyes were uncovered and they carefully examined the streets of the city. ''Should be that way.'' Noah moved toward a small building with a banner featuring three jugs. He had trained for the whole month, steadily improving his strength and making the best use of his new cultivation resource. Sadly, he didn''t manage to have any breakthrough of the sort, he simply had not enough time for that. ''I wonder what type of cultivators did the Royal family gathered.'' Noah arrived in front of the tavern and knocked three times before opening his mouth to speak through the scarf. "The golden eagle eats the red mouse." The door released a metallic sound after those words were spoken and Noah pushed it to enter the building. He was immediately assaulted by a tense atmosphere as twenty or so cultivators turned to look at him. They were mostly dressed like him, with their faces covered and wary gazes, yet there were a few exceptions. "My, my, another valiant warrior. Would you like a cup of wine?" A female voice sounded as soon as the door closed. Noah turned to see a figure walking toward him holding a jug that exuded an intoxicating smell. The figure belonged clearly to a female cultivator and that wasn''t only obvious from her voice. She was almost naked, with only a few strands of clothes wrapped around her bosom and buttocks. Her face was almost completely covered by yellow bandages, revealing only her shiny green eyes. Her sensual forms coupled with her gaze would test the self-restraint of any man. Noah felt that the odor coming from the jug was attempting to affect his mental sphere so he immediately reacted. A saber appeared in his hand and he swung it toward the wine. The woman dodged the attack but a few drops of the liquid contained in the jug fell on the ground and began to consume the wood of the floor. In a few seconds, a small fuming hole was created in the tavern. "¡­" An awkward silence was created in the room as all the cultivators stared at the hole. "Oh my! I must have switched the liquid, I''m sorry! Take this refreshing beverage as a sign of excuse." The woman took out another cup and tried to hand it to Noah. "Jean, stop it. We all know of your title ''Enchanting poison'', do you really think that the Royals would recruit someone that stupid to fall for your traps?" A fat man spoke to her from the back of the room. "Shut up, fatty! Let me have some fun. Those fucking Elbas have kept me in a cage till now!" The man snorted at her rebuke. "Didn''t you expect that much after you killed almost everyone in your mansion?" "Hmph! They were just blind idiots, they didn''t recognize my talent so they had to die." Jean said, sitting in a corner of the room with her legs spread wide, revealing the covered parts of her lower body. The gazes of the male cultivators turned to stare at her with eager eyes and many gulps could be heard in the room. ''Why must I always be surrounded by idiots?'' Noah internally shook his head and turned to sit near a wall of the tavern. "Hey, new one, what''s your story?" The fat cultivator asked Noah. "I don''t have a story." Noah casually answered and closed his eyes, he had understood by then that the people in there were just like him: criminals. "But you must have one, I''d even bet an interesting one for you to be here. I''m fatty Joe, I did some stuff on the western side of the country and now I''m a dog of the Royal dynasty." Jean snorted and looked at Noah. "Don''t listen to him, he is a fatty addicted to human flesh. I advise you to never turn your back on him if you don''t want to be bitten." "Come on, don''t be that mean, my cultivation technique works like that. I believe that everyone in this room has done its fair share of crimes to cultivate in this world ruled by nobles." "He is right, Jean. We are the demons that the Royals use when they don''t want to get their hands dirty." Another man spoke, joining the conversation. Jean snorted and spoke in an angry voice. "Those fucking nobles think that they can set rules that only benefit them and label as a ''Demon'' everyone that manages to break them. I could have been the genius of my generation in the alchemy field, instead I was relegated to be the maidservant of spoiled brats for half my life. No wonder the Elbas family ruled for such a long time, they don''t care much about your origins and just accept everyone that has talent." "Haha, that''s true. But it''s also true that they only use us as disposable slaves." "Well, we don''t have much choice. If we want to continue to cultivate, we need their support." Many other people joined the conversation and Noah listened attentively to their words. In the end, realization dawned upon him. ''They are just like me, talented people that had to break the rules to embark on the cultivation journey. I guess it''s true that the Royal family has gathered enough dangerous individuals through their rule, I''m just the last one to join their hidden forces.'' Chapter 192: 192. Representative Heaven and Earth were fair, they gave the ability to cultivate to every living being. Yet, the world was ruled by humans who monopolized the means to embark on the cultivation journey. Those that had accumulated more techniques and spell produced stronger cultivators over the years which allowed them to gather even more resources. Those cultivators were the nobles of the Utra country. However, for each noble, there would be hundreds of common people. Few of them would inevitably have wild ambitions and wouldn''t be restrained by the rules of the world. As soon as they had the chance, they would strive for power, uncaring of the danger that they would have to face. Humans were ambitious and greedy, they couldn''t just sit back watching the minority of them strive for power. If the rules didn''t allow the commoners to cultivate, they would just break them. Nevertheless, only a small part of those that rebelled managed to survive. Also, once they survived, they had to face even more restrictions due to the higher powers in the nation. Mortals could not obtain true freedom in a land populated by gods, that''s why they would become monsters. The Royals called them demons, individuals willing to do anything to pursue strength, and did their best to put a leash on them. Their determination made them the perfect disposable soldiers to use in their sensible issues. More cultivators entered the tavern and some of them joined the conversation that was being held. In their past, they all had a low status. There were guards, maidservants, cooks, concubines, and even bastards, each one of them unwilling to accept their status as commoners and be ruled by people that were simply born lucky. From the conversation, Noah could understand some of their backgrounds. ''Jean was a maidservant appointed to clean the inventory of her family. She learnt how to read by herself and discovered her talent in alchemy, secretly cultivating in her free time. Yet, she was discovered and was about to be punished by being appointed as a whore for the guards of her family. She then created a poison that killed almost everyone in her mansion, scorching her face in the process, and escaping.'' ''Joe was the son of the cook in his mansion. He luckily came across a forgotten cultivation technique that allowed him to cultivate by ingesting objects filled with "Breath". When his father discovered that he was stealing the best nutrients from the kitchen, he wanted to report it to the nobles of his house but Joe killed him and escaped. After that, he ate magical beasts and weak cultivators that he found on his way.'' Those were the stories of the most talkative of the group. They had to wait for the representative from the Royal family to arrive before they could move, the sheets that Noah received simply ordered him to wait in the tavern. "Hey, why don''t you show me that face of yours? If I like you, we might have some fun." Jean neared Noah, stretching her arm toward his scarf. Noah grabbed her hand and stared at her with his usual cold eyes. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Oh my, I like strong men." "I''m not a man." "¡­" Noah''s answer rendered Jean speechless and made some of the other in the room explode in a sonorous laugh. "Leave it be Jean, I can appreciate you if you want." "You found a tough one Enchanting poison, haha!" "Hmph!" Jean pulled back her hand and returned to her corner, staring fixedly at Noah. Her green eyes emitted some kind of alluring feeling, as if they forced those around her to look at them. ''What is wrong with her, we are about to engage in a fierce battle and she wants to hook up with a hooded person. But, most importantly, why me?'' Noah sighed internally at the events in the tavern and could not help but wait with eagerness for the envoy to arrive. As if answering his desire, a covered figure stood up and removed his clothes. A golden armor was shown to the presents and silence invaded the room. ''How cunning, he was here all along.'' "The thirty of us are all the cultivators recruited for this mission. Listen to me, I was just informed about the strength of our enemy." Everyone''s attention was picked and they observed silently as the man covered again his armor and sat back on the floor. "They have around sixty soldiers, about half of them are rank 1 cultivators while the others are rank 2." Complains began to escape the mouths of the presents, their man-power was clearly inferior to theirs. "Calm down and let me finish! We have the territorial advantage and, with Miss Jean here, their rank 1 soldiers are just meat shields." The representative turned toward Jean and pointed at her. She stood up and made a bow before taking out a large barrel that exuded a dangerous aura. "This is a similar version of the venom that I used back in my mansion. It doesn''t have its same power since I didn''t have access to precious materials but it can kill rank 1 cultivators in an instant. As for rank 2 ones, they would be at least injured." The people in the room instinctively took a step back after hearing her words. ''If what she said is true, then there won''t be any problem in dealing with the difference in numbers. Only one problem remains." "What about cultivators in the heroic ranks?" Noah asked. He wasn''t afraid of other rank 2 cultivators but he would rather restrain himself from showing all his strength in case a powerful cultivator appeared. ''I don''t believe that the Royal family would completely rely on us for this mission, they must have other soldiers lying in wait in case we fail.'' "My body is in the heroic ranks, does that suffice as an answer?" The representative replied to him in a cold voice, it was clear that he felt above the others in the room. Noah shrugged his shoulders and supported himself on the wall behind him. If the envoy was to take care of the real dangers in the mission, then he could simply use his martial art and preserve his strength in case something unexpected happened. Chapter 193: 193. Face After explaining the final dispositions, the representative from the Royal family ordered everyone to move. Thirty hooded figures exited the tavern together and ran toward the mountain path, outside of Vonduhr. Meanwhile, right outside the city, on the opposite side from where the group from the Royal family went. Sixty men wearing the emblem of the Muwlos family marched at a steady pace inside the town. Samuel was in the center of the group, he was wearing an anxious expression and his eyes darted every time he heard a loud sound. "Young master, please calm down. The Royals would never attack inside the borders of a city. The danger will come on the mountain path." Abel was right at his side, whispering with a soft voice to his ear. The soldiers around them were simple guards, unaware of the political struggles that the Muwlos family was creating. If they knew that they were against the schemes of the Royal dynasty, their determination might crumble and they might even refuse to continue in their mission. "I know but I can''t help it. It''s the first time that I''m in such a dangerous situation." Samuel whispered. As the heir of a large-size noble family, he had never faced a deadly danger. Jumping from his lofty position to being an enemy of the overlords of the nation was a heavy blow on his mind. "Don''t worry. With me here, there are a few things that can hurt you." However, Samuel wasn''t satisfied with that same answer when the danger was about to crash on them. "What makes you so sure that they won''t send someone on your same level or stronger?" Abel heard Samuel''s complaint and organized his thoughts to give him his best answer. Yet, when he opened his mouth to speak, what came out was a question. "Why do you think the Royals didn''t stop you from buying those techniques?" Samuel thought for a bit before answering. "Because I followed the rules." "Exactly. To create the current peaceful situation between the nobles and the Royals, the Elbas family had to always stick to their own rules. You must understand that if all the noble families were to fight together against the Royals, they would ultimately win." "What are you implying?" "I''m saying that the moment they break their own rules, the other noble families will feel authorized to act. Two thousand years ago there was no one that could match the Elbas family but now our nation is flourishing and every noble family has increased their power by a lot. They indeed have many large-size families as allies but the situation will change if they personally interfere with matters that happened according to their rules. Tell me, would you trust an ally that doesn''t respect his own agreements?" "Of course not!" Samuel''s answer was immediate, he was beginning to understand Abel''s reasoning. "This is exactly what is happening. If they were to kill you directly, their allies will lose their trust toward the Royals and shift their support to the Cause. That''s why they will probably use cultivators unrelated to them to make it look like an accident. I bet they have emptied their cells for this mission." Abel concluded, releasing a small laugh to relax his young master. "So, you are sure that you will be enough?" "Obviously, my body is specialized in protracted fights. Even if someone on my level appeared, I will just hold him back to give you enough time to escape. Also, these soldiers are the best that the family could give you, each of them has a rank 3 martial art!" Samuel nodded and finally showed a smile. For simple guards of a noble family, having a rank 3 martial art meant that they had performed many valuable services, which also meant that they weren''t inexperienced. "Then we should hurry up. Let''s refill our stashes of food in the city and move toward the Muwlos domain." . . . Noah and the others in his group reached for the mountain path and waited for further instructions. The representative stood with his eyes closed inspecting a rune in his hand. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. That rune was the inscribed item through which the spies of the Royal family sent information to him. The other hooded figures were around him, waiting in silence. After a few minutes, he opened his eyes and pointed toward an area. "They will cross that area. Hurry, prepare the trap with Jean''s poison." The cultivators hastily dug the terrain where the representative indicated and Jean carefully lowered her barrel inside it. Then, the hole was covered and they went on their respective positions in hidden parts of the mountain over that point. A group of ten cultivators stood in a newly created cave, hidden with roots and branches. Noah was among them, they had to attack as soon as the effects of the poison vanished, they were basically the vanguard of the mission. "Do you want to make a quick warm-up?" Jean''s almost-naked figure was behind him, speaking with a tempting voice. Noah still didn''t know how she could exude such a peculiar aura. "Why do you bother me? There are others that would gladly take my place." He answered her, keeping his focus on the road below. She tried to lean on him but was stopped by the appearance of a saber pointing at her chest, Noah had wielded it as soon as she became too close. "See, that''s why." She said, pointing at the blade. "Because you are the only one that refuses me." "I''m just focused on the mission." Jean chuckled and shook her head. "I believe that you are saying the truth but I also believe that you simply don''t care about my body." Noah turned and looked at her figure from head to toe. "You have a nice body, so what? Should I drool over you?" If that was a normal situation, he would just ignore her. However, since it was during a mission where he wasn''t clear about the strength of the enemies, he would prefer to end the conversation as soon as he could. "No, I just thought that since you don''t care about my body, you might not mind my face." Chapter 194: 194. Poison Noah was quite surprised. He wasn''t sure if Jean was being serious or if she was just playing with him but he understood that there was a deeper meaning to her words. ''Does she want acceptance?'' He could understand that need but he really wasn''t the right person where to look for it. Luckily for him, some movements in the mountain path claimed the attention of the cultivators in the cave. Sixty or so soldiers marched at a slow pace on the road, warily inspecting the area around them. They knew that if an ambush was to happen, it would have been in that area. The atmosphere inside the cave became tense as the cultivators focused on the mission, they had to wait for the trap to set off before they could assault the soldiers. ''Here is Samuel.'' Noah spotted the noble in the middle of the group. ''The scrolls must be with him, I don''t believe that his family would give them to a simple guard. Though, that man doesn''t seem simple.'' His focus shifted on the middle-aged man that was next to him. He exuded a calm aura, he was definitely an experienced warrior. ''I feel that he is strong but not extremely so, there is something off about him.'' Noah couldn''t know it but that middle-aged man was Abel, the wind mage that had chased him back in Evergreen forest. "You are about to witness a good show." Jean whispered next to him, it was clear from the light in her eyes that she was excited. The group from the Muwlos family moved along the road, they felt that something was off but they could not find out why. At some point, an arrow made of fire shot in their direction from the side of the mountain. Its power was low but its speed was great, the soldier only managed to react at the last moment and dodged it. However, right when the arrow hit the ground, an explosion occurred. The fire had ignited the barrel that was hidden in the previously dug hole and created a reaction with the poison inside it. Abel was the first to understand that the spell had never aimed at them but at the terrain! He hastily grabbed Samuel and ran away from the center of the explosion while using his mental energy to inspect the events unfolding behind him. The explosion was not strong, it only managed to push back the soldiers without hurting them, yet the poison burned quickly and released a green cloud. The cloud expanded, covering the soldiers in the area and suffused cries could be immediately heard from inside it. Abel watched it with wide eyes and decided to act before all his men were enveloped by the poison. As he focused, wind began to blow from behind him. From inside the cave, Noah stared at the spell and could not help but feel some familiarity with it. ''Don''t tell me that he is actually here.'' He became a bit excited. If it wasn''t for the fact that he had been underestimated back in Evergreen forest, that wind mage would have caught up with him, preventing him from participating in the entrance test of the academy. However, he had managed to escape and entered the academy, raising his battle prowess by a lot. All his centers of power had improved and his assortment of spells and techniques had increased by a lot. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''You chased me back then to improve Samuel''s chances in the entrance test and now I''m ambushing you to kill him. Life can reserve surprises at times.'' His grievances with the Muwlos family were finally about to be solved. Abel''s spell dispersed the toxic cloud, revealing the poor state of the soldiers that had been hit by it. They were covered in green bruises with the weaker of them laying on the ground covered in their own blood. The bruises pulsated, they seemed to synchronize with the heartbeat of the cultivators and began to enlarge as more blood flowed through them. As seconds passed, the bruises became large pulsating pimples before they reached their limit and exploded. Cries sounded again as most of the soldiers fell on the ground, incapable of dealing with the huge loss of blood. Also, the wounds created in that way seemed to stop the empowered healing abilities of their bodies, leaving the soldiers that managed to survive the initial blood loss to bleed continuously. ''That was really effective.'' Noah praised in his mind. Only the weaker soldiers died, the stronger ones managed to expel the toxins in their bodies by circulating the "Breath" of their dantian on the bruises. Yet, their complexion paled, it seemed that a vast amount of "Breath" was needed for that process. "Haha! That was amazing. The "Breath" of rank 1 cultivators can''t deal with my poison at all! However, the effects on rank 2 ones are quite disappointing." Jean judged, carefully analyzing the effects of her poison. "If I only had more rank 4 materials, I could have dealt with them too." She shook her head, sighing loudly. "Is it safe to go down there now?" Noah asked her. "Well, you should avoid those corpses if you can but it is safe now." He then turned toward the others hiding with him. "Should we go?" The leader of the group was the representative of the Royal family who was in another area. He would lead the second wave of attacks in order to catch the soldiers of the Muwlos family by surprise. "You go first." Someone in his group answered him. The others nodded in approval and even Jean seemed to like that idea. No one would like to be the first to engage their targets as most of the attacks would be focused on him. ''Can''t say I blame them.'' Noah understood that he had to take the initiative or the mission would be endangered. He wielded his sabers and directly launched twenty wind slashes on the soldiers below him. His attacks tore through the branches used to cover the cave, exposing their position to the group from the Muwlos family, and crashed on them in a few seconds. Noah aimed for the soldiers that had already been wounded by Jean''s poison so to better exploit the surprise effect. Two of them were caught off guard and had their heads severed but the others managed to either block or dodge the slashes. "Attack!" He purposely yelled to gather the attention on him. He wouldn''t be so stupid to charge alone on them, waiting for his group to arrive, so he just moved the focus of the soldiers on his position. Chapter 195: 195. Figh What Noah did wasn''t for the benefit of the mission. He had revealed their position, killing only two injured soldiers, the surprise effect could be considered wasted. Yet, he would rather do that then charge alone on the enemies, hoping for the group behind him to follow. ''If they think like me, they will use me to identify their abilities and then charge. I won''t risk my life for them.'' He had already obtained the reward for the mission, he couldn''t care less if it was to fail because he was unwilling to risk his life. ''Also, if the Royals really cared about this matter, they would have acted personally.'' Noah didn''t believe that his group was the only force deployed for that task. He knew that the Royals had spies set up after all so there was a high chance that there could be hidden troops too. The soldiers from the Muwlos family reacted quickly and set up a battle formation around Samuel with their bodies turned toward the now exposed cave. They wouldn''t attack since their task was to protect the heir of their family so they prepared themselves for the incoming charge of the assailants. Since they had been exposed, the other cultivators in Noah''s group showed themselves to the crowd below them. There were a few hundred meters of distance between them as ten hooded figures stared at the more than forty soldiers on guard. Jean poison had managed to kill most of the weaker soldiers and injure some of the stronger ones but they still had the advantage in numbers. "Let''s have fun!" Jean happily shouted and threw herself at them, launching bottles containing poisonous substances in the group below her. The others followed behind her and stared at the bottles crashing on the soldiers. Those poisons were less powerful than the one she had previously used but they still managed to do some damage. Some soldiers directly threw up when they came in contact with those substances, others lost their balance, a few more had cold sweat running down their forehead as they struggled to restrict the harmful effects on them. ''She sure is talented in attacking crowded areas.'' Noah praised in his mind. He didn''t let that chance go and joined Jean in her long-distance attacks, swinging his sabers to launch wind slashes. However, the soldiers were ready by then, Noah''s attacks had no success. ''Most of us will die.'' Noah thought. Even if the cultivators recruited by the Royal family were all strong individuals, they were fewer of them. ''Maybe, the Royals also want to use this mission to get rid of most of us.'' Noah couldn''t help but think of that possibility. The soldiers didn''t stay quietly to endure the attacks of the aggressors. Those of them that had spells or long-range techniques began to attack the descending group. Fireballs, water bullets, wind slashes, arrows, and more ran through the air and crashed on Noah''s group. Noah dodged the attacks and moved toward the area where the trap was set off. Now that the real battle had begun, he chose to separate from the group to act undisturbed among the soldiers. The others used their personal methods to deal with the incoming spells, using spells or protective items to endure the first wave of attacks. The Shadow steps spell was activated continuously, increasing Noah''s speed and allowing him to dodge at ease. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. An arrow made of water crashed next to him, leaving a deep hole on the terrain. A spear moved at high speed through the air, aiming for his waist, Noah casually jumped, surpassing it. While he was still in the air, another water arrow flew and pointed at his chest, Noah kicked the air to propel himself back on the terrain and dodge the attack. Even without using his wings, he was quite elusive! The others in his group were doing their best to endure the attacks too and some of them were inevitably injured, yet they still hadn''t suffered any real loss. When the distance between the two groups was shortened to fifty meters, the representative of the Royal family came out of the other hiding spot and assaulted the rear side of the soldiers, followed by the remaining twenty cultivators hired by the Royals. The soldiers were caught by surprise and immediately suffered casualties as the two groups attacked them from two different sides. Noah swung his sabers madly, engaging in short battles with the already injured soldiers. He had still to test his improvements in an actual battle. Even though he was holding himself back, the execution of his martial art was flawless and he managed to attack and retreat wisely in order to avoid being encircled. His constant sparring sessions with June and the instruction in battle-formation of the academy made it possible for him to always be in a safe position while inflicting a fair amount of damage. A soldier raised his sword to hit him but Noah blocked his blow and used his other weapon to wound his waist. A spear aimed for his shoulder but he used the Shadow step spell to jump over the soldier in front of him and reposition himself on the battlefield. He continued to move freely on the perimeter of the soldier''s group, doing his best to wound or kill as many enemies as he could, using only his basic martial art and his rank 0 spell to fight. Meanwhile, at the center of the group, a harsh battle was about to begin. The representative of the Royal family charged undisputed toward the center of the enemy troops. His rank 4 body was unmatched in that environment and he swung his greatsword freely, making a way toward the heir of the Muwlos family. Samuel panicked a bit seeing the hooded cultivator getting close but Abel promptly moved in front of him. "I will handle him, don''t worry young master." He spoke, fixing his gaze on the incoming warrior. The representative didn''t waste time, he swung vertically his big sword toward Abel. However, what happened next surprised him. Abel didn''t dodge the attack and let the blade cut his body. At the same time, he took out a small knife and attacked the arm that wielded the greatsword. Chapter 196: 196. Undead The greatsword cut Abel''s torso diagonally, leaving a deep wound on his body, but he also managed to hit his attacker, stabbing his arm right above the wrist. The two cultivators separated briefly and stared at each other in the middle of the battlefield. The representative of the Royal family looked at the bloody wound on Abel''s chest. Blood flowed from it but, in a few seconds, signs of healing manifested. In about a minute, that large cut that almost divided Abel''s body in two disappeared and only a faint white mark remained. "Impressive." The representative judged. The wound that he had suffered was small but deep, even if it was still bleeding it couldn''t hinder his battle capabilities. "It seems that you have a rank 4 body too, the Royals didn''t spare resources to kill a rank 1 cultivator." Abel said, pointing his knife at him. That weapon was an inscribed item, with its sharp edges shining in a pale light. Also, an invisible air current enveloped it, it seemed that Abel was boosting its power with a rank 0 spell of some sort. The representative''s eyes sharpened hearing his remark and opened his mouth to speak from behind the clothes that covered his face. "That is a rank 4 body? But its power seems only to reach the peak of the third rank." Abel nodded and showed a smug smile. "You are indeed right. My body-nourishment method sacrifices the physical empowerment to obtain the best regenerative abilities among rank 4 bodies. Sadly, it can only give me as much, my other qualities are similar to a rank 3 body." "So, it''s quite weak." The representative spoke. He didn''t mind spending time speaking with him. The others in his group were generally stronger than the soldiers of a noble family and the surprise attack had tilted the scales in their favor. They were gradually gaining the advantage, suffering fewer losses that their enemies and pushing the battle toward the center of the group. Instead of engaging in a dangerous battle immediately, he would rather wait for his allies to arrive. "Yes, it''s weak but that''s the best that my family could give me. I''m just a soldier after all. However, it doesn''t seem that yours is that strong either, I can''t see the so-called advantage in joining the Elbas family from you." Abel could not move either, his priority was to protect the noble heir right behind him so he had to stay still and believe in his men. Even though guards of noble families were generally suppressed and could only obtain second-rate techniques, the men appointed for that escort mission were among the best cultivators in the mansion of the Muwlos family. They all had a rank 3 martial art and some spells, they had lost the initiative due to the initial ambush but they were slowly managing to recover their positions. The biggest advantage that they had was their ability to fight as a group while their assailants were lone fighters. Even if they continued to be pushed back, some traces of a counterattack began to appear on the battlefield. In conclusion, the two groups had actually a similar strength. The representative believed that his allies could maintain the advantage initially created while Abel trusted that his men would recover their positions and win through their cooperation. The leaders of the two groups knew that the battle would be decided once one of them defeated the other so they took their time to inspect their opponent. Abel was right in his judgment. The representative of the Royal family only had a common body-nourishing method. It brought his body in the fourth rank but it gave him no special qualities whatsoever. It didn''t have a transformation like Kevin''s one nor was it specialized in defense like Kurt''s one, it was a simple empowerment of its basic capabilities. Humans already had a far weaker body compared to magical beasts, when it was coupled with an average nourishing method with no special abilities, the result was quite disappointing. It couldn''t be helped though, they had three centers of power after all and not everyone could have access to stronger techniques. Also, choosing to wait for a more powerful nourishing method would halt their improvements in the other fields. Reaching the third rank of the dantian was impossible if you only had a rank 3 body, that''s why most common soldiers chose to train in weaker but accessible techniques. A cultivator in the heroic ranks was still a valuable resource, even large-size families didn''t have too many of them. Especially considering those without a noble lineage, there weren''t many of them that could be granted access to powerful techniques. Only the Royal family was laxer in their control over precious techniques since they had the power to handle unexpected situations. The wound on the arm of the representative finally stopped bleeding so he decided to resume in his assault. His greatsword was swung many times, managing to wound Abel every time. However, the leader of the group from the Muwlos family only dodged the attacks that aimed for his vital points and counterattacked promptly every time the greatsword was busy cutting his flesh. It was a reckless fighting style, possible only thanks to the insane regenerative abilities of his body. After more than ten exchanges, Abel''s body was covered in bloody cuts while the representative had only a few stab wounds on his arms. It became clear to the latter that Abel was purposely relying on the ability of his body to slowly wear out his opponent. Nevertheless, there wasn''t much that the representative could do. No matter how many times he hit him, his body would keep on regenerating and the knife would find his way on his flesh. What was worse was that the regeneration didn''t seem to slow down even after all those wounds, the representative felt that he was fighting some kind of undead creature. ''However, he seems wary of his vital organs.'' Those were his thoughts when he resumed in his assault. The greatsword slashed the soldier''s body many times obtaining no apparent results while the inscribed knife continuously found breaches in the representative''s guard and stabbed his arms. At some point though, the representative released the grip of one of his hands from the weapon and grabbed Abel''s arm as soon as the knife stabbed him. He was using the same tactic of his opponent! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Being momentarily immobilized, Abel could not dodge the incoming attack and the greatsword pierced his chest, dividing his heart in two. Chapter 197: 197. Ten minutes The group from the Muwlos family immediately lost its morale seeing that scene. Their leader had been stabbed in the chest by the greatsword of the enemy. They knew that they would be the next to face that weapon. Samuel was right next to Abel, as soon as the greatsword pierced him a torrent of blood fell on his face, making him panic. The cultivators hired by the Royal family didn''t waste that precious moment of confusion and delivered precise attacks on the momentarily stunned soldiers, either killing or injuring them as they moved toward Samuel. Even the representative of the Royal family relaxed and took out his weapon from Abel''s chest, turning his gaze to the noble heir in front of him. However, right when the greatsword left his chest and his body was about to fall on the ground, Abel''s hand darted and drove the knife that it was wielding directly in the representative''s throat! Abel was alive! Everyone on the battlefield stopped moving to stare at the scene at the center of it. Abel''s figure was covered in blood and wounds, there was no strength left in his legs as they were laid casually on the terrain. Yet, the grip on his knife was strong, it kept him straight, hanging from the pierced throat of the representative. The representative, on the other hand, had his eyes wide open in surprise. He looked first at the knife and then at the body hanging from it, realizing his mistake. No matter how weak a nourishing method was, a rank 4 body was still in a completely different realm of existence from its rank 3 version. His own body had a strength that vastly surpassed the limits of the cultivators in the human ranks. Abel had the strength of a rank 3 body while he was in the fourth rank, which meant that his regenerative abilities had to be inhumane! Even with his heart pierced, he was still able to move and to deliver a deadly blow to his opponent! The light in the representative''s eyes diminished as blood flowed endlessly from his throat. The wound was too deep and the weight applied on it only worsened its condition. All he could do was internally praise his opponent''s determination as life abandoned his body. In a few seconds, his body fell over Abel''s one, the representative from the Royal family was dead! The silence in the battlefield continued, everyone was waiting to see if there was some kind of reaction from the bodies of the two leaders. Samuel reacted and moved away the representative''s corpse from Abel. The stares of the cultivators gathered on the body covered in blood. "Cough, cough!" Abel coughed, spitting mouthfuls of blood from his mouth. Inside the silent battlefield, his whispered words could be clearly heard. "Give me two incenses of time and I''ll stand up." Noah was at some distance away when he heard those words and he cursed internally. "Protect Lord Abel!" One of the soldiers shouted and the others followed his orders. They encircled Samuel and Abel, forming a defensive perimeter around them. There were only twenty soldiers remaining and some of them were injured while the assaulters'' number amounted to twenty-five. Between the surprise attack and the slaughter unleashed when Abel''s chest was pierced, many of them had died, further lowering their numbers. However, their leader was still alive! If they managed to hold their ground till he could fight again then the battle would be in their hands! Even Samuel understood that point and began to use his personal stash of potions to accelerate Abel''s recovery, they were all betting their lives on the leader of the expedition. The cultivators hired by the Royal family knew that if they wanted to win that battle, they had to act quickly. Every one of them had their personal reasons to follow through that mission, yet some hesitation still appeared in their eyes. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. If they ran away now, they were sure that they could escape. However, they would then face the consequences of disobeying the orders of the Royal family. That hesitation was vanquished by Jean directly throwing another poisonous bottle in the enemy group. When an area was crowded, her methods were among the best in Noah''s group. Nevertheless, the soldiers were ready by then to that attack pattern and three of them created shields made of water to fend off the poison. Also, a spear made of wind shot from their group toward her. The speed of the spell was too fast and directly pierced the woman''s waist, making her fall on her knees. ''Fuck!'' Noah cursed and decided to act. He didn''t really care about whether the mission succeeded or not but he wasn''t sure how his relationship with the Royal family would evolve once they learnt that he held himself back. What if they decided to remove his freedom like they had done with Jean? What if they decided that his character was too wild to be controlled? Also, he really didn''t want the noble families to create an organization similar to the academy. He knew that it would take a long time for him to be strong enough to storm Balvan mansion and allowing the nobles to raise their power could only hinder his vengeance. In the end, there was also the fact that he had some grudges against the Muwlos family. The First form of the Ashura was performed. More than fifteen sabers materialized in the air around him and attacked the formation of the soldiers. He revealed his rank 4 martial art! The cultivators in his group were surprised by his sudden increase of power but, when they realized that he was single-handedly forcing four soldiers back, they joined him in his charge toward the center of the formation. Time was crucial! They had about ten minutes to reach Samuel and finish off Abel so they resorted to their most powerful methods to break the line of defense of their enemies. However, even the soldiers were doing their best and used their teamwork at their advantage, synchronizing spells and techniques to take care of the most troublesome individuals. Only Noah remained untouched. His martial art was suited for fighting large numbers of enemies and since both his sea of consciousness and dantian reached the second rank, the power of the First form had increased greatly. The power behind every slash was incredible and even his control of the area around him improved, even though he didn''t manage to kill any soldier they were continuously pushed back! Chapter 198: 198. Guess Even though each cultivator recruited by the Royal family was singularly stronger than each soldier, they were unable to break the blockage. The soldiers were trained and had good teamwork while their opponents were disorganized. Each of their attacks was strong but always failed to inflict a severe injury on the soldiers. Their number started to diminish. The soldiers would alternate between a steady defense with water shields and wind walls to water bullets, fireballs, and spears made of air. Only Noah was somewhat able to keep pressuring the blockage. They had initially ganged up on him four against one but, as cultivators from the Royal family died, they could shift more of their attention on him. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He was the only one using a rank 4 martial art after all, he was definitely the most dangerous of their enemies. Due to his relentless offensive, Noah prevented them from preparing spells, yet his expression became serious after each exchange. The clock was ticking, minutes passed as if they were seconds and Samuel''s potions accelerated the rate of recovery of Abel''s body. The anxiety of the cultivators sent by the Royal family was increasing. Noah decided to attack with more fury. The number of ethereal sabers around him increased, from fifteen they became twenty. The soldiers had their focus to their peak, more enemies attacked Noah to block his unceasingly assault. However, once they moved their attention to Noah, the other cultivators in his group faced less resistance and began to inflict serious wounds on the soldiers. Little by little, the soldiers were being pushed back. Casualties happened from time to time. A soldier successfully blocked the thrust from a hooded figure and his companion behind him stabbed his sword in the figure''s chest. Yet, Joe arrived on their side and strongly bit the soldier''s throat, creating a big hole in his neck. That action though left him open and a soldier managed to shoot a fireball at him, turning his entire figure into ashes. As more deaths happened, the blockage was broken, creating small battles all around Abel''s body. ''It''s taking too much!'' Noah thought. Abel''s body was now visible and his complexion had greatly recovered due to Samuel''s potions, he knew that it wouldn''t take much for him to stand up. ''Should I use the Demonic form?'' Noah was reluctant in using it not only because it would expose his element. The black smoke was uncontrollable, it didn''t distinguish enemies from allies, he would avoid using it in that situation if possible. The number of soldiers in front of him was reduced to three, the others went to take care of the other enemies. Those three were specialized in defense, they used all their techniques and spells to slow Noah''s momentum. Yet, wounds continuously appeared on their bodies, they couldn''t hold for much longer. Then, a yell ran through the battlefield. Noah momentarily moved his attention to where the sound came from and his expression became dark. Of the cultivators in his group, he was the only one remaining. A heavily wounded soldier stood proudly over the corpse of a hooded figure. After he made a sign of victory toward the remaining three soldiers, he collapsed on the ground, devoid of any strength. ''Did they all die?'' Noah had focused completely on the area in front of him, he couldn''t pay attention to the whole battlefield when he executed the First form of his martial art. "It seems that you bandits had really underestimated the power of the Muwlos family." One of the remaining soldiers said proudly. They didn''t know that their enemies had been sent by the rulers of the nation so he supposed that they were a simple bandit group. ''So, my guess was right.'' Noah ignored him and inspected the area with his mental energy. He couldn''t find anything strange or peculiar which made him sigh helplessly. ''I don''t believe that the Royals have misjudged the strength of these soldiers which means that they wanted for many of us to die. Maybe they didn''t predict the death of their representative, that''s why we are in this situation.'' "Vance, don''t think that you can run away. You will pay for your sins against my family." Samuel spoke to him in an angered tone. They were in the same class in the academy, he had seen his martial art being executed that''s why he managed to recognize him. "Men, seize him." The soldiers followed the order of their young master and encircled Noah. Noah continued to ignore them and looked at the sky. ''I bet that they are watching everything in front of a cup of wine.'' "Put down your weapons and-" The phrase of the soldier was interrupted by a swing from Noah''s saber. The soldier expected some resistance and promptly created a water shield to block the attack. However, the saber began to release black smoke that consumed the shield in a few instants, allowing the blade to slash on the soldier''s neck. Surprise ran through his eyes as the saber directly severed his head, his spell couldn''t match the Demonic form at all! It couldn''t be helped though, the water shield was a common spell of the water element while the Demonic form was a top tier spell of the darkness one, the difference between their strength was enormous. The remaining two soldiers retreated and deployed their defenses. A wall made of wind appeared and a defensive martial art was unleashed. Noah didn''t waste time and executed the First form of the Ashura together with the partial Demonic form. Ten fuming sabers relentlessly crashed on the two soldiers. Their defenses were already strained by the rank 4 martial art, when a spell of such destructivity was added to those attacks, it became impossible for them to hold on for long. It took only a few exchanges for the soldiers to suffer a deadly injury and being consumed by the accumulated toxic smoke. Only Noah, Samuel, and Abel remained on the battlefield. "W-which aptitude do you have?" Samuel had his eyes wide open due to Noah''s power. Those soldiers were rank 2 cultivators after all! He could accept that Noah was able to kill one of them but three at the same time was a great shock! "Young master, step aside. He is a genius of the darkness element, I never thought that he could develop so fast." Abel opened his eyes and supported himself to Samuel in order to stand up. The leader of the soldiers could fight again! Chapter 199: 199. Ra "Did you realize it back then?" Noah asked Abel, once his element was exposed, he could finally stop pretending. "I had my doubts. The darkness element has no specific traits and could be easily mistaken for a martial art. However, after seeing it again, I became sure tha-" His phrase was interrupted since Noah began to attack! Abel''s complexion had regained some color and he was able to stand up but that didn''t mean that he had completely recovered. Noah wouldn''t let him return to his peak form, his words were just an initial probing, he wanted to be sure that no one in the Muwlos family had any suspects about his aptitude. After that was confirmed, he immediately attacked. Ten fuming sabers slashed at Abel, carrying with them the full power of Noah''s cultivation level and mental energy. However, Abel was a rank 2 cultivator in the liquid stage with a rank 4 martial art. The power of his art couldn''t be shown accurately in his fight against the representative of the Royal family because the difference between their bodies was too vast. Yet, against a body with his same strength, he could use it fully. His knife pierced the air and clashed with each ethereal saber, his weapon released sharp lights that successfully blocked every attack and a few of them managed to overcome Noah''s assault, ultimately ending on his body. Noah took a few steps back and inspected his arms. There were three deep cuts on his skin and he could not help but become extremely wary of his opponent. ''His martial art is as powerful as mine. Yet, his cultivation level is higher and even his body is stronger, my only advantage is the power of my spell.'' To counterattack Noah''s blows, Abel had to come in contact with the toxic smoke. The leader of the noble group stared with wide eyes as the black smoke continuously corroded his hands and fought with his regenerative abilities. After some time, the smoke lost power and the regeneration surpassed the rate of destruction, vanquishing the spell completely. "Impressive." Abel praised loudly. "If you were a rank 3 mage, I would have no chances to suppress such destructiveness. To think that three years ago you were only able to leave scratches on me, the academy surely is a gathering of geniuses." Noah listened to his words but his mind was focused on other thoughts. ''I can probably match his blows if I enter the complete Demonic form, yet I can''t fight for a long time in that state and my expenditure of mental energy would only increase if I use Shadow and Echo with it.'' His thoughts flashed rapidly in his mind as he analyzed the situation. ''I can surely run away but then I will be forced to either completely rely on the Royal family for protection or leave the country. I don''t believe that the Muwlos family will keep the information about my aptitude for themselves.'' ''Or, I can fight him and see if my strongest spell can match an exhausted cultivator with a rank 4 body.'' Only a few instants had passed since Abel stopped speaking with the two warriors staring at each other for the whole silent moment. Then, Noah''s determination surged and black smoke began to envelop him. ''For how long will I have to hide like a rat?'' Since his escape, Noah had to always be careful of everyone around him. The Royals wanted to exploit him, his family was searching for him, and each new individual that knew about his aptitude could lead to irreparable consequences. Noah did his best, focusing only on his training and joining every mission that could increase his power. Yet, no matter how much he improved, he could never shake away those restrictions that he had since the moment he was reborn in that world. ''I''m tired of running away every time something in the heroic ranks appears. He is wounded and I can make it bleed, which means that I can kill him! Running away would mean that all my hard work can''t match a cultivator in such a pitiful state.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He transformed into his fiendish form. The demonic form had changed slightly since he became a rank two mage. There were the faint shapes of horns growing from his head and there seemed to be a tail growing at the bottom of his spine. The power of the spell was linked to his rank as a mage after all, it was obvious that it would undergo improvements as his sea of consciousness enlarged. Abel stared with a stern expression at the transformation of his opponent and turned his head to the astonished Samuel behind him. "Young master, back off, I can''t protect you from that." Samuel gulped and retreated for a few meters. Twenty fuming slashes shot toward him as he did that but Abel promptly stood in their trajectory and swung his knife to block the attacks. Abel watched with wary eyes how the black smoke almost completely enveloped him and began to consume his flesh. ''The quantity of this gas increased!'' He judged in his mind, yet his line of thought was interrupted by a black figure jumping at him. Noah used the First form of the Asura, creating more than ten ethereal sabers that jointly attacked Abel. His physical qualities were empowered due to his spell, his body was now on even ground with Abel''s one. Abel fought valiantly, answering to each of Noah''s attacks with one of his own. Sometimes, he would let specific attacks wound him in order to exploit an opening in the guard of his opponent. His weapon darted over the fuming figure, piercing the black armor and continuously wounding the cultivator under it. Abel''s attacks could pierce the Demonic form! Yet, as the battle continued, more and more smoke accumulated in that area, creating a black cloud all around the two warriors. Abel was naked, his skin was long since gone and his flesh struggled to reform. Nevertheless, the assault of Noah''s spell was unceasing. Abel had to fight in that position or Samuel would be exposed while Noah could only gain advantages as that part of the mountain path became his personal area of destruction. ''Just die already!'' Noah watched as Abel''s body slowly lost its regenerative proprieties and pressed on in his assault. Seeing that he could not keep up anymore, Abel decided to do one last reckless attack. He stopped defending from Noah''s blows and focused in one last lounge. Twelve fuming sabers stabbed his body at the same time and began to corrode his interiors but he held on and released a piercing attack on Noah''s chest. Chapter 200: 200. Drain Abel''s knife shined with blinding light and released a piercing blow aimed for Noah''s chest. ''Shadow! Echo!'' Before that attack could hit him, Noah called for his two blood companions. Two fuming beasts tore Noah''s clothes and stood in the trajectory of the incoming attack. The knife cut through their bodies almost unhindered, those blood companions came from rank 3 beasts after all, they were not a match for Abel''s attack. However, the smoke that they released managed to slightly deviate the trajectory of the knife, making it land on Noah''s stomach. The knife dug in his body, stopping only after it came out of his back. Noah found himself with a hole at the center of his torso. However, pain wasn''t enough to stop him. Even with such a wound, he continued to focus on his opponent. His sabers were stabbed in Abel''s body, continuously pouring black smoke in his body, yet he was still alive! He was defenseless though since his weapon was stuck in Noah''s body. ''Give me a bit of that vitality of yours!'' Noah thought and released the grip on his sabers as he activated the Blood drain spell. His hands morphed into demonic claws from under the fuming armor which he stabbed right into his enemy''s chest. Warmth invaded his body as Abel''s blood was absorbed by the spell. Abel''s uncovered flesh began to lose its rosy color as the blood left those tissues. The spell redirected the blood toward Noah''s injuries, expending it to heal the wounds that he suffered during the battle. Abel, on the other hand, felt his already faint strength being sucked away. He tried to take out his knife to get away from that dangerous situation but, as soon as he tried to pull with his arms, his hands detached from his limbs by themselves and vanished in the black cloud. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Not even his body could withstand the joint damage of the Demonic form and the Blood drain, his healing abilities had finally lost to Noah''s spells. Looking at how his body was slowly being consumed, he understood that his end was near. ''In the end, I failed.'' He thought, before raising his head to look at the fiendish figure that had its claws stabbed deep in his chest. "If I didn''t waste most of my energies to recover from the wound that your leader inflicted on me, I would have won." He said proudly, using his last energies to mock the young man. "If you hadn''t been wounded, I would have already run away." A low and rough voice answered him. In the end, Noah watched as Abel''s body was completely consumed by the black cloud and his claws could not absorb blood anymore. Noah stood inside the cloud, panting heavily as his spells dispersed and taking out the knife from his body. The hole in his stomach was slowly healed by part of the remains of Abel''s blood. It must be said that his blood had incredible healing proprieties, once it was absorbed by Noah, it filled his body with vitality. It took only a few minutes for every wound to be completely mended while the remaining absorbed blood accumulated below the acupoints on his back. ''It''s finally over.'' Noah thought. His body was back in top condition but he didn''t have much mental energy left. The Demonic form''s main weakness was that its consumption of mental energy was too high, it couldn''t be used for prolonged battles. That''s why Noah mainly used the partial transformation, it was easier to control and could be sustained for longer times. However, he had to go all out in that battle, even resorting to the Blood drain spell to increase the constant damage that he could inflict to Abel in order to overcome his regenerative abilities. In the minutes that he used to heal his body, the black cloud slowly dispersed, showing the area of death under it. Samuel stared at it with an eager expression which turned in a scared one when he recognized Noah''s figure. "No! How is that possible!? Why are you alive?" Noah had the clothes on his chest completely torn, hanging on his body from their connection with the hood on his head. His pale and toned body was shown to Samuel. It had a large red stain on his waist created by the blood that came out due to Abel''s last attack, while a faint scar was visible on the center of his torso. Except for that, there was no apparent injury on him which increased Samuel''s astonishment. Noah inspected his surroundings to search for some remains of his previous battle. His sabers and Abel''s knife were on the ground but they were full of cracks, even the inscriptions on them had been broken. ''I need new weapons, these are now useless.'' He put the three weapons away and then picked a space-ring from the ground. He inspected its interiors just to put it in his clothes when he saw that the scrolls were not there. Then, he raised his head to look at Samuel at a few meters from him. With just a thought, two black sabers appeared in his hands. Those were the weapons that William had given him after his mission with the Ironclad spiders, Noah had kept them because he believed that they could be clues to his identity. Also, their value was low, selling them or keeping them made no difference in his mind. "No!" Samuel shouted as soon as Noah took the first step toward him. "Stay away." He shouted again. The one in front of him had defeated the strongest cultivator in his group, he felt nothing but fear looking at Noah''s hooded figure. "Here, take this! You want the scrolls that I''ve bought, right? I swear, I knew nothing about the Cause, my father forced me to do the purchase. Please, spare me, the Elbas family will understand." Samuel pleaded, showing a space-ring to Noah. Noah arrived in front of him and took out the ring from his hands. After a quick inspection, he found more than one hundred scrolls and books inside it. ''So many.'' He couldn''t help but be surprised, all those items were spells or techniques with the total value of ten million Credits, he couldn''t wait to take a look at them. "Will you spar-" Samuel began to speak again but Noah directly severed his head with a casual move of his saber. The heir of the Muwlos family was dead, the mission had succeeded. Chapter 201: 201. Plundering ''It''s over.'' Noah heaved a sigh and looked around him. The signs of the battle were clearly shown on the terrain. Large red puddles covered the ground and corpses filled the environment. The mountain path had been ruined, holes and marks were everywhere on the terrain, normal carriages could not cross that road anymore. ''I should first gather all the valuable things and then rest. Even with a rank 2 dantian, I''m almost out of "Breath".'' Noah went to every corpse on the ground and searched for storage devices or valuable items. The soldiers of the Muwlos family had no space-rings and their weapons could only be sold for pieces of gold so he simply ignored them. By selling one Obsidian Credit, one could obtain a large amount of gold, that currency had completely lost any value in Noah''s eyes. The only exceptions in that group were Abel and Samuel from whom Noah obtained three space-rings. As for the cultivators recruited by the Royal family, their situations were poor. Most of them had been detained till they were needed for that mission while the others lived a simple life, spending every Credit they managed to gain as soon as it entered their pockets. After all, their situation was different from Noah''s. He was enrolled in the academy and his strength was needed in the Royal inheritance, most of his wealth came from those two factors. "Hey, could you see my face before I die?" A voice sounded from an area on the battlefield. Noah turned in its direction only to see Jean with a large bloody hole on her waist. The bandages on her face had turned from yellow to red due to the blood that came out of her mouth. Yet, she was still able to speak. Noah neared her and inspected her body. The wound was too deep, she was still losing blood from it and the internal injury seemed impossible to repair. "Show me." He said. One of the reasons why he could fight against Abel while maintaining most of his strength was due to her poison, he wouldn''t mind wasting a few seconds to fulfill her last wish. Also, if she had seen his battle, he had to make sure that she died. Jean slowly raised her hands and removed the bandages from her face. Little by little, the scorched flesh behind them was revealed. She had almost no flesh left on her face, her facial muscles were clearly visible but they were green and they constantly released some yellow pus. That image was the complete opposite of her sensual body. "Do you like it?" She asked, trying to perform a smile with her ruined mouth. "It''s just a face." Noah answered calmly, inspecting her heartbeat with his mental energy. "I see." She said closing her eyes and exhaling her last breath. Noah sighed, that encounter left a bitter taste in his mouth. ''I could have ended in the same situation if things were just a bit different.'' In the end, Noah managed to retrieve a total of thirty thousand Credits from all the corpses, even though most of that sum came from the space-ring of the representative of the Royal family. Also, some of them had inscribed weapons that he could sell which Noah gladly took with him. Only Abel and Samuel''s devices had still to be completely sorted out. Noah sat in on the ground and began to inspect them. Abel''s ring only had a few thousand Credits in it and some potions of good quality which Noah took without hesitation. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The interiors of Samuel''s personal storage device, instead, were quite surprising. Not only its width was of one hundred cubic meters, but it was also filled with all sorts of potions and cultivation resources. Most importantly though, it contained fifty thousand Credits! ''Most of these items are useless to me, my cultivation level is too high. It seems that I will have a lot of things to sell once I go back to the Royal city.'' He had way more situational potions that he needed and a majority of them were of poor quality. He would rather gain some extra Credit to purchase rank 4 materials rather that keeping items that he would never use. In the end, he sorted everything out except for the ring containing spells and techniques. ''Eighty-three thousand Credits, nineteen inscribed weapons in the first rank, and more than one hundred situational potions. There is also this reagent to sell with all the storage devices that I found.'' He had taken Samuel''s ring for himself but decided to sell his smaller one. ''Two hundred and fifty cubic meters of space is more than enough for my needs, I should just transform the other rings in Credits.'' According to his calculations, his total gains from that mission would surpass one hundred thousand Credits! ''Another inscribed weapon that I can''t sell, I feel like I''m keeping trophies of my crimes.'' Noah thought, putting Samuel''s weapon together with those of the heirs of the Balvan family. ''Now, it''s time for the last ring.'' His eyes shone in excitement as he held the device containing the techniques and spells of the academy. "Young man, I believe that one belongs to me." A voice interrupted his line of thought and Noah raised his head to look in the direction where it came from. A middle-aged man stood in the air with his hands behind his back. He had short golden hair and wore a loose golden robe. Even if Noah was staring right at him, he couldn''t sense his presence with his mental energy. ''How strong is he?'' Noah guessed that the man came from the Royal family, who could arrive as soon as the battle was over after all? He immediately put a shameful smile on his face and stood up, performing a deep bow to the cultivator hoovering in the air. "My lord, do you mind if I take a look at the scrolls inside this ring? You know, the battle has been extremely hard and most of my resources have been expended¡­" The man snorted and opened his mouth to speak. "Why do you think I''ve let you plunder the battlefield? Also, my son had already given you quite a sum for your services. If that big boulder of "Breath" blessing hadn''t been personally retrieved by you, I would have have never allowed for it to be divided." Chapter 202: 202. Game ''My son? Is he Thaddeus'' father?'' Realization dawned upon Noah after he heard those words. He hastily performed another bow in excuse. "I''m sorry Your Majesty for not recognizing you!" Thaddeus'' father just waved his hand and scoffed softly. The space-ring in Noah''s hands moved by itself and floated toward the cultivator in the air. Noah stared at it with wide eyes, he had never seen a mental energy so powerful! ''His sea of consciousness must be in the heroic ranks!'' The man inspected the ring and nodded before turning to leave. "Your Majesty, please wait. I wonder if you could solve some of my doubts about this mission." The cultivator stopped his tracks and turned to stare at the young man on the wasted mountain path. "I guess you deserve some clarification to improve our future cooperation. Go ahead, ask me what you want." Noah had a lot of doubts in his mind, everything about that mission didn''t feel right. "Why the force of the Muwlos family was so weak? As a large-size noble family, they should have rank 3 cultivators to use. And why was our force so weak? I bet that there are stronger criminals in your prisons." Noah couldn''t help but think that this mission was way less important than what Thaddeus made it seem. ''Sure, there were cultivators a with rank 4 bodies, yet those should still be simple pawns if I consider the powers where they came from.'' The cultivator in the air thought for a bit after hearing Noah''s words and then answered in a calm tone. "You can think of this mission as a probe." Noah listened attentively. "Since the creation of our dynasty, the noble families have always tried to gain more power. Well, it''s in the human nature to strive for greatness, if the chance presented itself, everyone would aim for the position of King." "However, the conditions for our rule were fair and the nation developed under our domain. That''s why there have never been that many revolts in the last two thousand years. There weren''t many willing to risk their positions for the Cause." "Yet, a cultivator of the light element appeared and many nobles loyal to the Cause felt that their time to rise had come. You might not know it but a rebellion is likely to happen in the next decades." ''So, it''s still about Daniel. The nobles are betting on him for dethroning the Elbas family. He still has to explain everything though.'' "As for your questions, you are right, both us and the Muwlos family have stronger soldiers. Yet, a cultivator in the third rank is extremely valuable, only one step away from becoming an entity in the heroic ranks, powerful families are unwilling to use them as disposable soldiers. Also, our system is quite strict so to obtain a rank 3 cultivation technique you must have shown loyalty toward your organization. Sending them in battle would raise the importance of the mission." Noah lowered his head. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He understood that rank 3 cultivators were at the peak of the human ranks. ''Thaddeus told me that I had to join them if I wanted a rank 3 cultivation technique too, I guess they really value those soldiers. Nevertheless, that still didn''t completely explain the situation. "Your Majesty, are you saying that an heir of a large-size noble family is less valuable than a soldier with a rank 3 dantian?" Thaddeus'' father sighed and shook his head. "Young man, you must understand that the bigger one organization is, the more there will be internal fights. The Muwlos family didn''t completely trust the Cause so their patriarch had limited resources. The same goes for my branch of the Royal family. There is a tacit agreement between the powerful forces not to use strong cultivators for these missions because, the moment rank 3 cultivators fight, even those in the heroic ranks would be dragged in the battle. The last thing we want is a war through all the country." "So, the Muwlos family sent their heir as a representative for the nobles while our family''s branch was appointed to handle the situation. I and my son work at close contact with peculiar individuals and want to create a hidden army with them, yet we can''t hire every single criminal." There was silence for an instant. "We need to test them. We need to skim them. We need to be sure that, once that army is created, they won''t turn against us." Noah finally understood the meaning of his words. "Your Majesty, are you saying that the noble families were just probing your reaction while you were just testing your new force?" The man nodded and replied calmly. "Exactly. The Muwlos family attempted to gain some advantage out of their Cause and failed. The Royal family was testing its new army and obtained some results. In any case, the nobles can still create a new academy, even without our techniques, they were just unsure of our reaction." ''Basically, it was just a casual matter in his eyes.'' "Do we have that little value in your eyes?" Noah couldn''t help but ask. He felt like his actions didn''t matter at all, as if he had fought for a small political game between the Royals and the nobles. "Well, there is a genius in every generation. Your situation is peculiar because of your element but, until you reach the heroic ranks, you will always be just one human." The cultivator in the air turned to leave but then stopped as if remembering something. "Oh, you might be happy to know that we are willing to make you the captain of our new force. Keep working for us like you did till now and your future will be ensured." Noah showed a bright smile and bowed, excitedly thanking him for his words. Yet, Noah''s eyes under the hood were dark and cold, the position of the captain didn''t appeal to him in the slightest. He raised his head and saw that the man had disappeared, leaving him alone on the battlefield. Anger filled him as he went back to the cave on the side of the mountain. Chapter 203: 203. Birthrigh On one side, there were the nobles that wanted more power and wanted to dethrone the Elbas family. They tried to probe a reaction from the Royals to understand their line of rule and sent one of the heirs of a large-size noble family for the mission. One the other one, there were the Royals that wanted to maintain control over their subjects. They could not personally attack Samuel''s group because doing that would lead to a public uproar but they also wanted to limit the growth of the other noble families. That''s why they used the criminals that they were gathering for the creation of a hidden army. In a world were birthright decided most of your future, there was an overabundance of individuals that broke the rules in order to become stronger. Those individuals were under the control of Thaddeus'' branch of the Royal family. Noah clearly understood why the Royals needed to create such an army. ''There are too many noble families. No matter how strong they are or for how long they have accumulated resources, one family can''t match hundreds of them. Yet, if the Royal dynasty manages to create soldiers out of criminals, they would obtain the perfect expendable army and would fix the issue of the numerical disadvantage.'' He thought after going back to the cave to rest. Noah didn''t want to stay in that place for long but he needed at least a few hours to recover from the battle. His sea of consciousness and dantian were almost empty, he needed time to refill them. Luckily, he had enough potions to use which largely quickened his rate of recovery. ''I was used as a pawn in their political games. The Royals wanted to test the strength of their new force while the nobles wanted to see what kind of reaction the Elbas would have. Even the heir of a large-size family is nothing in the eyes of cultivators in the heroic ranks.'' He clearly remembered the cultivator''s words. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''"You are just one human". I hate to admit it but he is right, with my little strength I can''t avoid being involved in these matters. Refusing them would just aggravate our relationship and my anonymity depends on their goodwill. If I want to keep my freedom, I have to leave.'' Inevitably, Noah began to think about abandoning the Utra nation and escaping where the Elbas family and the Balvan family could not reach him. ''I have still things to do here though, especially the matter about the forging.'' He still couldn''t leave. He needed a safe environment where to experiment with his creations and he also needed the resources of the capital, the Royal city offered too many opportunities. ''No wonder cultivators don''t want to leave it and ultimately accept being on the Royals paybook. Sacrificing freedom for a smooth cultivation journey seems the smartest thing to do.'' If Noah didn''t have his wild ambitions, he would also think of joining the ranks of the Royal family. ''However, for how long will they support me? Will they allow me to become a rank 4 cultivator? Will they allow me to attempt in the breakthroughs for the divine ranks? I don''t think so.'' A ruler, in order to govern, had to be stronger than its subjects, it couldn''t allow for individuals to surpass its level. Noah was sure that if he joined some organizations, he would soon be suppressed like it had happened in the inner circle of Balvan mansion. He sighed thinking about that. His energies had still to recover so he had time to sort his thoughts. ''Is this world all about birthright?'' Noah ultimately had that doubt. ''Birth defines your social status, the number of techniques that you can obtain, the spells, and so on. Sadly, I''m not an exception as most of my battle prowess derives from my element.'' Noah wasn''t underestimating himself. He knew that, even if he considered only his martial art, he was one of the best warriors of his generation. He had trained nonstop since the age of eight after all, his determination and diligence were unmatched. However, most of his overwhelming strength came from the Demonic form which expressed the full power of the darkness element. ''Does my value strictly depend on my element? If I had a common aptitude, would I still be this powerful?'' Noah lingered on those questions for a while before determination filled his eyes. ''I obtained the Demonic form spell because I was the best of my generation. I surpassed nobles and nurtured soldiers to obtain it. Everything I have, I took it with my own hands.'' There was no reason to overthink issues over which he had no control. ''I might have been lucky to be born with this aptitude but I''ve also had to risk my life for each of my improvements. I would have been a great cultivator even if I was of the fire element.'' He stood up as soon as he resolved his doubts, moving toward the exit of the cave. Noah didn''t want to stay too much in that place. Even if the Muwlos family had a tacit agreement to not use powerful cultivators, that wouldn''t prevent Samuel''s father from arriving on the battlefield and kill the criminal that took his son''s life. ''To prove it, I will create with my own hands something that surpasses every birthright.'' His resolve was steeled, he knew exactly what he had to do. ''I need to buy new weapons, preferably inscribed items in the second rank. I need to sell all the items that I don''t need and stash rank 4 materials to be always ready to escape. I need to forge using the Demonic form as a material. I need to bring my body in the heroic ranks. In the end, I need to create my own techniques.'' Noah still had some of Abel''s blood to absorb but his priority was returning to the Royal city at that moment. ''Time to go back!'' Chapter 204: 204. Explosions Weeks passed after the battle near Vonduhr. The official report was that the soldiers from the Muwlos family had been assaulted by bandits and the young heir, Samuel, lost his life in the process. However, among the large-size families, the truth was clearly known. The families loyal to the Cause thought that by using a noble heir that was also a former student in the academy, the reaction of the Royals wouldn''t have been so harsh. Yet, their expectations weren''t met and they suffered quite a loss. The soldiers in their mansion were more valuable than the criminals that they faced. The Royals could refill those numbers at ease while the nobles had to slowly nurture worthy guards, it was clear who had been the winner in that event. That''s why their plans were delayed and an apparent peace returned since there hadn''t been consequences after that battle. Noah vaguely guessed much but he simply didn''t care. He had been busy selling all his useless items and buying new weapons and materials. He also absorbed Abel''s remaining blood, slightly boosting the strength of his body. Ultimately, he gained the piece of "Breath" blessing, one hundred and ten thousand Credits, two new inscribed sabers, new rank 4 materials, and a large number of potions from the mission. Even though he was still angry about how he had been used by the Royals, he had to admit that his gains when he worked with them were always extremely satisfactory. BOOOM! An explosion rang out from the reinforced room of his accommodation that made the whole building tremble. Noah had resumed his experiments in the Elemental forging method but he still couldn''t obtain some good results. The bones of the Undead chameleon had successfully mimicked the proprieties of his blood but the toxic smoke would always corrode the material, even if at a slower pace than before. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Yet, at that pace, Noah was somewhat able to mix the two materials. Though, as the corrosion began, the equilibrium between the two substances would break, creating a chain reaction that ultimately led to an explosion. "Do you want to destroy the whole house?" Ivor shouted, appearing from the other room of the habitation. "Why is it so hard! And why do they always explode!" Noah''s curse resounded from the center of the reinforced room. The inscriptions on the wall were starting to lose their light, it seemed that they had been through a lot in order to reach that state. "It''s already the tenth time and the power of the explosions has gradually grown! Usually, that means that you are getting closer to forge something stable but I''m worried that the building won''t hold till that point." Ivor commented, adding something else. "Maybe it''s an issue with the material." "Of course, it''s the materials!" Noah answered loudly before laying on the floor. ''Since my body is still on the third rank, its blood can''t completely affect the chameleon bones, it simply doesn''t have the power to do so. Should I wait for the breakthrough?'' It wasn''t even half a year since he became eighteen, even if Abel''s blood had boosted his strength quite a bit, the peak of the third rank was still at some distance away from his grasp. ''No, that would take too much. I should just hope that the other nine bones will benefit from the prolonged refinement.'' He still had nine sealed buckets containing the magical beast''s material immersed in his blood. Apparently, due to his blood being too weak, one month of refinement was far from enough. Noah sighed and stood up, two white sabers appeared in his hands as he did that. Those weapons were the new inscribed items that he had bought. The inscription on them vastly increased their durability, allowing Noah to feel at ease in case he was forced to use the Demonic form again. He found out that the inscribed items that could fix themselves were rare and extremely valuable, that''s why he had to settle for the increased durability. ''At least they are in the second rank even if only in the low tier. They should be able to keep up for a few battles.'' As his mental sphere enlarged, his Demonic form would become stronger, hastening the consumption of his weapons. ''I really need to forge a weapon with the smoke of my spell otherwise I would have to stockpile inscribed weapons forever.'' He had returned to his usual training routine. Yin body and Dark vortex during the night while Kesier rune, Elemental forging, and martial art during the day. However, the improvements of his body and dantian were not as slow as before due to the big piece of "Breath" blessing placed on the ground. He had still more than one month of paid rent so he simply focused on his cultivation. Like that, days passed. Explosions would ring out every day, threatening the integrity of the reinforced room. Ivor began to exit the habitation as soon as he felt that his student''s creations were about to explode in order to avoid an increase in his headache. However, one day, there were no explosions. Noah was overseeing the forging of his eighteenth bone. The black smoke slowly seeped into the reddish piece of magical beast. After more than two months of refinement, its color had changed and even its internal composition was heavily modified. The two substances mixed and their shapes changed according to Noah''s control. Its circumference diminished, increasing the density and the sturdiness of the item. Its edges became sharper and a pointy tip began to form on one of its sides. Then, the corrosion began. Noah was prepared, he had seen that same reaction happen seventeen times already! He hastily removed the incubating membrane, letting the leftovers of the process disperse in the room. Smoke and broken dark-red shards fell everywhere as the item between Noah''s hands diminished in size. From eighty centimeters to fifty. From fifty centimeters to twenty. Noah was cutting off every part that was nearing the explosion point, controlling the chain reaction that would lead to a complete waste of the rank 4 material! Chapter 205: 205. Shard Eliminating the unstable parts would reduce the effective power of the item but it made possible for the forging to continue. Noah''s attention was completely on the internal composition of his creation. Every time he saw signs of instability, he would manipulate that specific part to separate from the core. Little by little, the item in his hands reached the length of a Moon needle. Yet, the forging was not complete. The toxic smoke continued to corrode the bone, forcing Noah to cut even more pieces from it. From the size of a needle to the one of a small shard. From a shard to a fingernail. From a fingernail to nothing. The item completely turned into dust, the forging had failed. However, Noah was excited. ''Finally, it didn''t explode! This is the right method to forge with my current materials, I just have to accept that I can''t create a complete weapon while I have a rank 3 body.'' What he was aiming for with those processes was to gather experience toward what would eventually be his main weapon. Yet, his body needed to match the rank of the other material and only the chameleon''s bone was not enough to create something sturdy. The Elemental forging method required patience and incessant experimentation, one could not obtain results in just a few months, especially once the materials'' level rose. ''I have one last refined bone, I need to at least have some slight success with that one. As for the other materials, I should just wait for my body to reach the heroic ranks.'' With the wealth obtained in his last mission, Noah had bought more rank 4 materials, mainly Undead chameleon''s bones. "No explosions today?" Ivor appeared on the edge of the door, warily watching the reinforced room. "I''ve tried Annette''s stabilization method and it had some results." Noah answered. The idea of cutting off the unstable parts was not his, it came from the accumulated knowledge in the inscription method that Ivor had passed him. It would be stupid for Noah not to use the previous experiences of the inscription masters of the Elemental forging method, he had access to all their notes after all. "Oh, that one. It surely works nicely but it inevitably lowers the power of the finished product. Yet, it''s the first step toward a complete creation." Noah''s interest was picked. "What do you mean by that?" He asked, those moments were the only occasions where Ivor could actually help him so he didn''t hold back any of his questions. "Well, even if you waste most of the materials, the remaining stable part would still be an inscribed item, a complete product. Annette worked with dangerous and wild substances, her solution was to create many small complete products and then forging them again in a bigger item. There are many problems involved with that method though, she could only attempt in it because she was quite wealthy and she had no problems refilling the wasted materials." Ivor explained, making Noah nod in understanding. ''Even if I don''t consider the enormous number of materials needed to successfully apply that method, there is the problem of doing another round of forging on an already inscribed item. Also, there is more expenditure of absorbed "Breath" and if the second forging is to fail, one would lose everything. It does manage to maintain the initial power though and maybe even increase it.'' Seeing that Noah was sorting his options, Ivor left the room and returned to his jars. He knew that in order to be successful in the Elemental forging method, a lot of solitary experimentation was required. Ivor sighed, taking out his knife and softly caressing it. ''For such a young man to have the will to forge, it means that he had gone through many hardships already. Is it wrong to feel blessed for having found such a cursed student?'' Meanwhile, Noah went to rest. His mind was fixed on not wasting his last refined bone, he wanted to make sure that his attempt was perfect! That day he didn''t train, all he did was reviewing the process in every little detail. At dawn, he opened the last sealed bucket and took out the dark-red material. His sea of consciousness was used by then in storing gaseous "Breath" in the second rank, the amount that remained in his mental sphere wasn''t enough to create the usual headache. The "Breath" was consumed, the small saber over his mental energy diminished in size until only a tiny amount of it remained to hoover there. A small sphere made of toxic smoke appeared in his left hand while his right one held steadily the beast''s bone. ''Begin!'' The incubating membrane enveloped the two materials and the smoke gathered around the bone. He had been through that process nineteen times already, his manipulation was smooth and rapid. Yet, as the two materials fused, the usual traces of instability appeared. Noah didn''t waste time and directly cut away every unstable part. The incubating membrane was mainly used to keep the inscription masters safe from dangers relative to the forging. However, Noah immediately removed it, laying the item on the floor and stretching one of his hands over it to better control the toxic smoke. The instabilities accumulated and Noah was forced to remove more and more pieces of the item. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Dark-red pebbles shot out in every part of the room and black smoke came out from the severed areas, making the inscriptions in the room flicker. Since there was less material to forge, Noah chose to diminish the quantity of toxic smoke in the forced fusion! Smoke continued to come out of the bone and small solid parts shot out everywhere, sometimes even scratching Noah''s skin in the process. Yet, the item on the floor became darker and darker, the two substances were successfully mixing! ''Just a little bit more!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he removed even more unstable pieces. In the end, the forging ended and a small black shard remained on the ground. It was only the size of a pinkie and extremely thin, it seemed frail beyond reason but it was solid! Noah picked it up and inspected it, a sense of danger was exuded from that little shard. ''Second rank, middle tier. To think that with just one rank 4 material it can already reach such power, the Demonic form spell is incredible! Pity, it''s only a one-use item.'' His creation was too thin, it couldn''t withstand the power that it could unleash. ''Nevertheless, this is only an initial prototype and I can now confirm that my spell can become the core of my weapons! Let''s see, I should call it Demonic Saber.'' At that moment though he remembered his conversation with Ivor when he had passed down his legacy. A slight smile appeared on Noah''s face as he decided in his mind. ''I guess I''ll call it Demonic Sword, that scrounger needs some recognition after all.'' Chapter 206: 206. Excited ''It''s a pity that I can''t really test it, it would be such a waste.'' Noah thought, placing the shard on the floor. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. As soon as he did that though, the inscriptions on the wall of the room began to flicker in a similar way to when the explosion occurred. ''What?'' Noah was confused and inspected his creation. A faint corrosion was happening on the wooden floor where the shard was placed, it seemed that just by being in contact with the inscribed item the effects of the toxic smoke would activate. Yet, the shard was losing its black color and some gray tones began to appear. Noah hastily took the shard back in his hands and heaved a sigh of relief seeing that the room returned to its normal state. ''That''s a bit more powerful than I expected.'' Noah thought, noticing the faint mark on the floor. ''I guess I can''t completely judge the amount of danger it exudes since the spell from which it was created is harmless to me. I believe this is my strongest attack now.'' In his Demonic form, he could match the attacks of a rank 2 cultivator in the liquid stage. However, that was quite common. Spells were stronger than martial arts, it was no wonder that he could fight on even ground with Abel. Yet, the shard had the power of the liquid stage without being powered by "Breath", Noah was rather optimistic about its strength. ''If I manage to make two sabers with the same process and use my martial art while wielding them, my normal attacks will hold the same power of a spell! Right, I should test that thing first.'' His mental energy was expended and the hand holding the shard began to emit black smoke. The inscriptions in the room flickered again to withstand the partial Demonic form but there was no reaction coming from the shard, it stood among the smoke without undergoing the slight corrosion. ''I knew it! If I create my weapons in this way, I would solve the issue with the Demonic form! I would have normal attacks that match spells in power and that can be further empowered with the spells themselves, I''m getting excited just by thinking about that.'' His current sabers were inscribed items in the second rank but they were focused on durability. However, the Demonic sword was completely offensive, just a little shard could create a reaction in the reinforced room, Noah found it impossible to imagine the full power of the complete weapon. Like Manuel could cast way more spells that he was capable of due to his weapon, Noah would eventually wield weapons able to mimic his strongest spell in power! ''Wait, can I keep it in the space-ring? I''m technically wearing it so the corrosion should not apply.'' Noah put the shard in his first ring and carefully inspected its interiors. The shard laid in the separate space without causing any reaction from it. Noah looked at it for a while before heaving another sigh of relief. ''If I was to create a sword that could not be kept in a space-ring, then I would have to create a sheath capable of holding it.'' Noah didn''t even want to think about that, just having some initial success in creating something with his toxic smoke had proven itself quite a challenge. If he had to further forge something where to put it, he couldn''t imagine the amount of experimentation that he had to go through. ''I guess that all I can do now is hasten the breakthrough of my body as much as I can, yet there aren''t many methods available for that.'' He had become tolerant to the Beast''s quintessence and the other drugs in that same field were either weaker or of a similar principle, simply cultivating would profit him more. ''Maybe if I was to use the Blood drain spell with the "Breath" blessing in my possession, I might be able to reduce the time needed to reach the peak of the third rank.'' The Forging of the Seven Hells had left him with seven acupoints capable of absorbing "Breath", his fast improvements were mostly due to that. Yet, even with such training speed, reaching the limits of the human ranks was not easy. The body required a lot of time to accumulate the "Breath" needed for the breakthrough and, since Noah''s nourishment method had special abilities attached to it, it required even more time. ''Cultivation requires time, there''s nothing I can do about that. I''ll just use my remaining time in this habitation to cultivate and then resort to the Blood drain to further speed my improvements.'' He set his schedule and immediately acted. Noah had still more than one month of paid rent which he exploited as much as he could. His growth in that place was stable due to the increased density of "Breath" and the "Breath" blessing. However, that came at the price of four thousand Credits per month, he didn''t have enough money to stay for two years in that place. Also, he had understood by then that purely relying on the high density of "Breath" was not the smartest choice. The centers of power of the humans needed time to adapt to their new strength and stressing them too much would ultimately lead to injuries. That''s why he didn''t focus only on the Yin body but diligently trained all his centers of power. In the end, his four months of rent expired and he was forced to leave the habitation. Of his centers of power, his sea of consciousness was the one that had improved the most. It couldn''t be helped though, he didn''t have limits linked to his age and his many vicissitudes had only reinforced his mental sphere. Also, he had two blood companions that constantly pressured the expansion of the sphere as well as the "Breath" that he had refilled since his last forging. His dantian had also enlarged but it was clear that a lot of time was needed for it to reach the liquid stage. His body was the same: its power had increased but there was still a long time before it could not be nourished anymore. Nevertheless, Noah still left the habitation and went toward the Hunter''s guild. Chapter 207: 207. Complaints Noah''s biggest issue in using the Blood drain spell to boost his body''s strength was that he could only use rank 3 magical beasts in the process. Rank 4 creatures gave more nourishment but he simply didn''t have the power to fight them. What happened with Abel was a fluke, his physical strength was in the third rank and he was also injured, making him the perfect target for Noah''s spells. However, magical beasts had a far stronger body than cultivators, Noah didn''t have the confidence to beat the latter let alone the beasts. ''I guess, I''ll be forced to strive for quantity over quality.'' Noah thought. He was inspecting the various boards listing the hunting zones in the Hunter''s guild. ''They are quite crowded, as expected.'' He sighed internally as he inspected the low-danger areas featuring large numbers of rank 3 beasts. ''Basically, all the hunters that can''t join parties hunting rank 4 creatures are here.'' There were a lot of names next to those zones, Noah guessed that all the cultivators having only a rank 3 body were there. There were only a few willing to enter areas inhabited by rank 4 creatures, life had way more value than money after all. ''Should I go again in a danger zone? I don''t see anything with the same favorable conditions though.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. What he meant for favorable conditions was that he could escape from the powerful beasts living there. ''I need a rank 4 body as soon as possible, I feel like most of the best resources are hidden behind that hurdle.'' A powerful body wasn''t only needed to match the powerful beasts'' might. Entering in the fourth rank meant that a cultivator could increase the level of its dantian more freely. Noah knew that his body was slightly holding back the improvements of his dantian. After all, his battle prowess was that of a rank 2 cultivator in the liquid stage due to the power of his Demonic form. Noah was sure that his full strength was enough to wound at least the weaker rank 4 beings. Yet, the liquid stage was generally the limit of a cultivator with a rank 3 body, therefore it was obvious to think that the body itself would slow down the improvements of the dantian. ''William had to obtain a rank 4 body-nourishing method before being able to advance to the third rank of the dantian and he was way older than me. I''m incredibly strong for my age but I need to be even stronger if I want to stop being a puppet.'' Balvan family, Thaddeus, and Thaddeus'' father could all use him as they wished. The reason was that he was too weak compared to such powers. ''Running away now can''t even benefit me that much. What if I escape in the wilderness and a rank 4 creature from which I can''t escape appears? I need to be able to protect myself, my next escape won''t be as safe as my previous one after all.'' When he had escaped from Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance ground, he was traveling toward the academy. If he was to leave the Utra nation though, he could meet unforeseen dangers. His wild dreams could end with just one unlucky encounter and Noah had already resolved himself to never bet on his luck again. ''Quantity it is. I just hope that the other hunters won''t get in my way like Doris did, there is a limit to how much I can kill without being discovered.'' He thought, signing his name under many different boards. If hunters began to disappear everywhere he went, that would undoubtedly raise some suspect. As for the strength of those weaker hunters, he was quite confident that he could beat any of them one versus one. Those hunters had at best a rank 3 body after all, which meant that their level had to be below the solid stage of the second rank of the dantian. Not only was Noah''s battle prowess in the liquid stage, but he was also quite confident in escaping due to Echo''s wings and the Warp spell. ''I should also drop the scrounger somewhere cheap.'' He thought, turning to exit the guild. Time passed quickly. Noah would return to the capital rarely since he was busy with his training. He would travel to many hunting zones, killing as many rank 3 magical beasts as he could with the Blood drain spell and storing the most valuables corpses in his space-rings. Since he had two hundred and fifty cubic meters of space, the number of corpses that he could carry increased, which allowed him to visit many hunting zones before he was forced to return to the Royal city. His days were spent in solitude in each low-danger area, training every night next to the piece of "Breath" blessing and using the Blood drain spell when hunting beasts. His body improved quickly and his finances did the same, yet rumors inevitably began to spread in the Hunter''s guild. That couldn''t be helped. In each hunting zone Noah''s name appeared, the number of magical beasts would drastically decrease. The weaker hunters in the guild were rank 2 cultivators as well but they couldn''t keep up with Noah''s hunting pace. His knowledge about the magical beasts was too deep, only experienced hunters could match it, and that allowed him to always be the first to find the most populated lairs in each area. Also, he could move freely in each environment thanks to Echo''s wings which quickened his search for the creatures. "I saw Vance''s name next to the Solitary Mountain, the price of the Winged mouse will diminish soon." "Don''t even tell me that. Two weeks ago, I was in Red Lake in the East of the country to hunt Singing ducks. When I arrived there, I didn''t find a single feather left. Only when I came back, I noticed Vance''s name in that area." "That kid from the academy is too daring! I had to sleep outside of the capital for an entire month because I didn''t manage to hunt a single rank 3 beast! I say we should coalize and force him to slow down his killing." The hunters in the main hall of the guild complained to each other in front of a jug of wine. Their job became less remunerative since Noah focused on hunting. "He is doing everything by the rules, we can''t really do anything to him." An old hunter said to those seated next to him. "He killed five hundred rank 3 magical beasts in five months! I don''t even have the strength to travel in each of those hunting zones in that period of time! He must be restricted to rank 4 creatures!" Chapter 208: 208. Talk "But you can join the hunts for rank 4 creatures only after you obtain a rank 4 body. Otherwise, you will just die to one of their casual strikes." Another hunter argued. A rank 4 body was the minimum requirement to face a rank 4 creature. It couldn''t be helped, humans had far weaker bodies compared to magical beasts, trying to hunt them with a rank 3 body would mean seeking death. "I''m not saying that he has to hunt them but that he must join the hunting group for them! He can just be appointed to gathering intel while the others will fight the beasts." The cultivators on that table fell in thought after those words. What the hunter said made sense, Noah would just be accompanying the hunting group while getting the increased pay without the need to fight. No one would refuse free Credits, especially if they came from rank 4 beasts since their value was far higher than any rank 3 creature. The hunters didn''t know that Noah was killing that much because he wanted to exploit the strengthening of the Blood drain spell as much as he could. Then, one of the hunters broke the silence and spoke in a soft voice. "This can be done, but we must ask for Kurt''s permission first." Meanwhile, Noah was cultivating in a cave on Silent Mountain. It was still day so he couldn''t train in the Yin body, yet the energy accumulated by his spell was still slightly boosting his strength. After a few minutes, he opened his eyes and exhaled a disappointed sigh. ''Even with all my killing, my improvements are not so noticeable, rank 3 beasts are simply too weak.'' In those five months, he had tried to speed the advancements of his body as much as he could but he only managed to gain a few weeks of training. ''At this pace, I will reach the peak of the third rank in a bit less than a year and a half, that''s too slow.'' If normal cultivators were to hear his thought, they would feel the urge to slap him. He was only eighteen and a half but his centers of power were at an unbelievable level! His sea of consciousness was in the second rank and was enlarging at a way faster pace than normal cultivators. With the Kesier rune, the "Breath" inside it, and his two blood companions, the training speed of that center of power was incredible! His dantian was enlarging but still remained in the gaseous stage of the second rank, as it improved, the restriction that his body imposed became more obvious. His body was in the third rank in the upper tier but it still needed some time to reach the peak of the rank. Normal cultivators could barely match the rank of his body at that age while the rank of his dantian was an incredible feat reserved for geniuses. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. As for his sea of consciousness, no one in the history of that world had ever achieved the second rank in such a short time. Noah knew that his mental sphere was his biggest advantage compared to the other cultivators of that world, even if just for what concerned cultivators in the human rank. As his rank increased, he would face more cultivators in the heroic rank that had had all the time they needed to train the sea of consciousness. After all, balance was needed for a smooth increase in power. The lifespan of cultivators depended on their bodies and dantian. Once the body reached the fourth rank, living for a couple of centuries was not a problem. Of course, reaching the fourth rank of the dantian gave much more vitality and power, yet that was an extremely hard feat. Not only was its training slower, but the cultivators also had to overcome the Heaven Tribulation which was considered the hardest of the three. However, that was still far in the future so Noah didn''t worry about it. All his thoughts were focused on increasing the strength of his body as fast as he could so to finally take a peek at the power in the heroic ranks. ''Sadly, there isn''t much more that I can do. I should just go back to the guild and empty my space-rings. At least my Credits are increasing with all these hunts.'' He had killed more than five hundred rank 3 magical beasts in those five months. Since the average price of each of those creatures was around thirty Credits, he had accumulated more than fifteen thousand Credits! Also, he wasn''t spending much in rents since he was most of the time outside the capital. ''At least the rules concerning low-danger areas are laxer, I can do whatever I want and no one can complain.'' He thought, standing up to return to the Royal city, after Doris'' matter, he had carefully memorized the rules. Nevertheless, as he returned to the guild a few days later, he discovered that he was quite wrong. Noah went through the main door of the guild uncaringly, he had become used to the stares in his direction in the last months. Yet, that time, Kurt stood up from one of the tables and blocked his path. ''Does he want to test me again?'' Noah though with a bit of uncertainty. "We need to talk." Kurt said, indicating a free seat on a table crowded with hunters. ''What did I do this time?'' "Can I sell the corpses of the magical beasts first? I don''t want their value to diminish, some of them are already rotting." Noah said in an honest tone. The weaker hunters on the table next to him gnashed with their teeth after hearing those words, some of them directly gulped their entire jugs to suppress the irritation that they felt. It was impossible for Noah to not notice those reactions and he looked with a confused gaze toward Kurt as if asking for some explanation. Kurt sighed and massaged his temples before answering to that gaze. "Go and sell the beasts but come here right after. There is something that we need to discuss." "Did I do something wrong?" Noah asked. Kurt scratched the back of his head before giving a short answer. "No, you simply hunt too much." Chapter 209: 209. Refusals In the main hall of the Hunter''s guild, a dozen cultivators were sitting around Noah. Some of them were shouting and pointing at him, others were angrily drinking from their jugs, it didn''t seem that the conversation was peaceful. "No, I won''t stop. No, I don''t care if you can''t gain Credits due to my behavior. If you can''t match my hunting speed, you should just consider changing your profession. Is this clear enough for you?" Noah said calmly. He had sold the magical beasts'' corpses and then joined the other hunters on their table. Yet, as soon as the conversation started, he was asked to slow his killing of rank 3 magical beasts. It was obvious that there had been a lot of complaints after his initial refusal for the conversation to reach that point. "Impudent! We have families here in the capital! We have maintained ourselves for decades hunting magical beasts! I won''t accept that a new hunter, that gained his entry with the help of the Royals, will ruin my job!" Many hunters nodded in approval at the words of one of the oldest cultivators among them. However, Noah just shrugged his shoulders and continued to speak calmly. "The rules are with me, you can''t do anything to force me to stop. Also, if a newly arrived cultivator can do better than a hunter with years of experience, then you should really consider trying out another job." His words were sharp and inevitably increased the anger of the other hunters. "Don''t you dare speak to me like that, I''m your senior! If you don''t want to do it with the nice ways, that I will just have to s-" The cultivator''s phrase was interrupted, or to say it better, he couldn''t force the words out of his mouth. As soon as the trace of a threat appeared in his words, Noah released his cold pressure and fixed his gaze on the hunter that had just spoken. Fear was the only thing that the hunter could feel at that moment. Noah''s blue eyes were fixed on him and a cold atmosphere was created around him. "You will what? Why do you think that I hunt faster than you all? Don''t tell me that you are so stupid to actually think that you can beat me." Gulps resounded from the throats of the weaker hunters, they had to admit that they were quite scared of the young man in front of them. "Let''s all calm down. Avery, remember that you are asking a favor not ordering someone around. Vance, please avoid threatening your fellow hunters, they are only trying to do their job after all." Kurt spoke, joining the conversation. He had been silent for the whole time, hoping that things could be solved between the weaker hunters but he realized that the argument would only escalate if it was left as it was. "Vance, why don''t you leave some hunting areas to your colleagues? If you continue like this, only danger zones will have rank 3 magical beasts left." Noah shrugged his shoulders again and replied to him. "So? That''s not my problem. As a member of the guild, I can hunt in low-danger zones freely. These are the rules, if you want me to change my methods, you must first change the rules." A wave of irritation went through Kurt after he heard those words. Noah knew that he was in the right so he would just use the word "rules" every time he could. He knew that he was being unreasonable but he couldn''t care less. "What if the hunters were to give you a share of their gains? That way you wouldn''t suffer a loss and would have to spend less time hunting." Kurt said, suppressing his anger to speak in a kind way to Noah. "No, I need the beasts, I have my use for them." Another refusal came out of Noah''s mouth. He didn''t care about Credits, his behavior was only aimed to speed up the improvements of his body. Kurt was smiling but his expression froze after hearing those words. He thought that everything could be solved by paying him but when he understood that Noah''s targets were actually the beasts, he lost any hope in convincing him to drop his behavior. "Vance, what do you think of joining the hunts for rank 4 creatures?" The hunters were silenced by that question. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. If Noah was to join the group of the stronger cultivators, all their problems would be solved! "No, I like to be alive." However, Noah refused again. There were no reasons for him to go into such dangerous missions. Also, he needed to use the Blood drain spell on the beasts when they were still alive and possibly without anyone noticing it. "What if you were to take care only of the gathering intelligence part? Your knowledge about magical beasts should be among the best in the guild since you have been instructed in the academy." Noah still shook his head. "I need the bodies and they must be alive. Also, I need to be alone when I do my stuff." Kurt felt that a headache was coming. The biggest problem was that Noah had not broken any rule. His was one of the rare situations when a cultivator was too strong for rank 3 magical beasts but still not powerful enough for rank 4 ones. When such individuals appeared, the guild would just pay their rent for a period of time and wait for them to join the hunts for rank 4 magical beasts. Yet, Noah''s situation was different. ''He is purposely searching for magical beasts, the reason should be linked to his cultivation technique.'' Kurt thought. There were many cultivation techniques in that world, some quite straightforward while others quite peculiar. It wasn''t difficult to understand that Noah''s behavior was linked to his training, after all, that was the only possible reason if they excluded money. Kurt seated silently for a long time. He was the one leading the hunts for rank 4 magical beasts, that''s why he was considered some sort of leader by his fellow hunters. After a few minutes of stares in his direction, he opened his mouth to ask a simple question. "Are dying beasts good for you?" Chapter 210: 210. Knowledge In a grassland near Elbas city called Mammoth Plain, seven cultivators walked at a slow pace, warily inspecting their surroundings. Those plains were a danger zone named after the type of magical beasts that mainly inhabited it. They were, of course, elephant-type creatures. "Kurt, remind me why we are bringing this kid with us" One of the cultivators asked Kurt who was walking in the vanguard position. "Newton, stop complaining. We need to show him that we can safely kill a rank 4 beast or he won''t stop hunting rank 3 creatures. I know that you don''t care about the weaker hunters'' situation but they have harassed me to no end because of Vance." Newton snorted and gave a scolding gaze to the young man at the end of the group. That man was, of course, Noah. After the discussion in the guild, he had reached an agreement with Kurt. Noah would join the group hunting rank 4 creatures and gather information about the beasts without the need to join their fight. Yet, he will receive the same share of profits from the corpses of the beasts and will also inflict the finishing blow once the fight was over, also, he added two more conditions. The first one was that no one was allowed to watch him as he killed the creature, the Blood drain spell would expose his aptitude after all. The other one was that he had to first see with his own eyes how the hunting group worked to be sure that he could be safe even in that environment. He would never entrust his life to someone that he didn''t know so he wanted to be sure of their capabilities first. Kurt didn''t mind the conditions and accepted, ultimately leading to the situation where they were. The Mammoth Plain was a danger zone fairly close to the capital, which meant that it had undergone many cleaning operations. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The magical beasts in the fourth rank were few and scarce, making that area one of the safest danger zones. Also, elephant-types magical beasts usually had poor reproductive abilities which strongly limited the number of beasts in each pack. That''s why, even if they had been walking in the yellow grassland for more than a day, they didn''t meet any creature with rank superior to the first. ''They all have a rank 4 body and a dantian at least in the liquid stage of the second rank.'' Noah judged. The cultivators in front of him were among the strongest hunters in the guild. Nevertheless, with the exception of Kurt, all of them had a second profession. Some of them were city soldiers or enrolled in the Royal army, others were personal guards of wealthy nobles, they all had another job that fully valued their strength. After all, at their level, they could become captain of the guards of some noble family, yet they chose to remain in the Royal city due to the illimited opportunities that it offered. Their bodies were the proof that the restrictions over the techniques in the Royal city were far laxer than in any other noble mansion where someone had to accumulate years of loyal services just to obtain a rank 4 nourishing method. As for their dantian, the liquid stage of the second rank was generally considered the minimum strength required to hurt rank 4 creatures which, coupled with their number, allowed them to successfully hunt rank 4 magical beasts. ''Kurt should be the strongest since his body is incredibly tough. Newton and the two sisters, Ada and Ella, have a common rank 4 body but their dantian should be in the solid stage of the second rank. As for Hazel and Vic, they too have a common rank 4 body but their dantian is weaker, probably in the liquid stage.'' Noah summarized in his mind. Judging the strength of those around him had become a habit by then. ''I can fight Hazel or Vic if I use the Demonic form but I don''t have the slightest confidence in winning. Maybe, if I catch them by surprise and use the Demonic sword, I might be able to severely injure them.'' He was comparing himself to the weakest of that group. His Demonic form could increase his battle prowess by one stage. If he was to use that form with the shard that he had created, he could unleash one attack having the power of the solid stage! ''That''s too na?ve though. I don''t know the actual power of the shard, I''m just sure that it''s in the middle tier of the second rank. Also, all of them should have some spells so their actual battle prowess is hard to predict.'' Martial arts were weaker than spells, they were generally considered as an imitation of spells after all. That''s why it wasn''t rare for a cultivator to have a battle prowess superior to the level of their dantian, one simply needed a strong offensive spell to achieve that feat. "So, you were a student at the academy, right? Let''s see if listening to the explanations of some professors can beat actual experience. What have you discovered about our target from the traces on the terrain?" Ada spoke to Noah. She was originally the one appointed to gather clues about the beasts but, since Noah had joined their group, she felt like her position was challenged. Noah was forced to interrupt the mental evaluation of his companions and began to sort his thoughts to answer Ada. "We are following the tracks of a pack of Shrinking elephants with around fifteen beasts of rank varying between the second and the third. There is only one rank 4 specimen with them which also explains why Kurt chose this area to show me your strength." The hunters stopped their tracks and stared at Noah with wide eyes. They were quite surprised about how detailed his explanation was and could not help but look at him in a new light. "How can you be sure of it?" Ada continued. She knew that there was only one magical beast in the fourth rank but that information came from a report of one of the scouts in the capital of which Noah wasn''t aware! Noah pointed to a small hole on the terrain below the yellow grass. "Rank 4 Shrinking elephants have the habit of reducing their size as much as they can when they travel with their pack. However, they can''t reduce their weight. A smaller surface with the same weight will create deeper traces on the ground." Chapter 211: 211. Trumpeting Recognizing the danger before it was too late was one of the key aspects of survival. Hunters generally relied on reports and on their senses to understand if an area was too dangerous or if a pack had rank 4 magical beasts among them. That''s why many of them just ignored the study of traces or weren''t adept in that field, the senses of a cultivator were generally enough to recognize beings of such might. Yet, having more information could only be considered an advantage, no matter how small it was. "This is indeed surprising, I had to hunt in this area for a month before becoming able to recognize the rank of those beasts by their footprints. The academy is worthy of its fame." Ada praised before continuing with her questions. "And, what do you think will it be the best approach against them?" Noah''s answer came immediately. "In their reduced size, they are too dangerous because they can maintain the same strength behind each attack while removing the weakness of their huge frame. The only way to make them return to their normal shape is to kill each weaker beast in their pack. They will then instinctively feel the need to attract other similar magical beasts and would return to their original form to do it. Yet, that means that someone has to deal with the rank 4 elephant at full strength while the others vanquish the rest of the pack." The other hunters nodded at his explanation, that was precisely the method that they intended to use. Kurt stepped on and proudly patted his chest. "You have the necessary knowledge to be of use. Now, let''s find the pack so that we can reassure you of our strength." The hunters resumed their march in the grassland. There were no trees, only short bushes, so their field of view was particularly clear. Ada became more friendly with Noah once she understood that he could give a second opinion to her guesses and they often exchanged thoughts on the magical beasts'' topic as they followed the tracks left by the pack. Then, in about half a day of walk, they finally met their target. At a few hundred meters in the distance, fourteen gray elephants calmly walked over the plain. The biggest of them was about two meters tall while some of them were so short that the grass almost hid them. "The big one is the weakest of the pack, the rank 4 should be hidden in the grass thanks to its small size." Ada nodded at Noah''s words and softly patted his shoulder. "You stay here, we will take care of them." Noah nodded and could not help but feel a bit of excitement growing inside of him. He was about to see cultivators actively fight a rank 4 creature! Until then, he had always been forced to run away when he met one of them and the only time he had seen one of them die was inside Twilboia Cliff. Also, if they managed to win, he could use the Blood drain spell to inflict the finishing blow! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''I bet that the nourishment from a rank 4 beasts will help me a lot in shortening the time required for my breakthrough! The wind mage''s blood had been enough to heal all my injuries and still increase my strength and he was only a human!'' The bodies of the magical beasts were far stronger than the human''s ones, the nourishment that they could give had to be undoubtedly higher. That was the main reason why Noah accepted Kurt''s offer. After all, his killing spree of rank 3 creatures was caused by his need for nourishment. If he could obtain it from rank 4 creatures without being endangered, then he would gladly stop hunting the weaker beasts. "Let''s go." Kurt gave the order and six figures shot out at high speed toward the pack. There were fourteen visible beasts to kill in order to make the rank 4 beast return to its normal size. Time was key. In just a few seconds, the hunters arrived on the pack and launched attacks that had a wide area of destruction. Kurt wielded a big hammer that slammed on the terrain and created a shockwave that made three elephants directly explode! Ada and Ella created two fire snakes that reduced to ashes five elephants in a few instants. Newton rotated his two meters long metal stick that slammed precisely on the heads of three other elephants, making them explode due to the impact. Hazel threw eight black needles that accelerated mid-air and pierced two beasts in the middle of their eyes, killing them on the spot. Vic swung his sword and severed the head of the last visible beast, the pack was vanquished in just one move of the hunters. However, Noah wasn''t surprised in the slightest. He could accomplish something similar alone with his rank 3 body, how could six cultivators with rank 4 bodies be any weaker? ''The real battle starts now.'' The last elephant was less than thirty centimeters tall and was hidden under the yellow grass of the plain. Its feet were partially inside the terrain, it seemed that the surface of the ground wasn''t able to sustain its weight. As the last member of its pack was killed, it felt the urge to create a new one. Yet, its size didn''t allow for it to be noticed so it instinctively chose to return to its normal size. It raised its trunk to the sky and trumpeted angrily! The sound was too strong and created a shockwave that sent back the hunters around it. Meanwhile, the body of the beast enlarged. From thirty centimeters to one meter. From one meter to two meters. It stopped only when it reached a height of six meters! Its true form was revealed and it stood like a small boulder in the middle of the plain. ''Rank 4 Shrinking elephant! Its tusks are almost indestructible for cultivators in the human ranks and it can release sound attacks with its trunk! It is slow but its charges are almost unstoppable due to the size of its body and its skin is hard, giving it one of the best defenses among magical beasts. Can they really kill it?'' Noah thought, reviewing the information about that creature in his mind. Kurt and the others had by then recovered from the shockwave and encircled the beast. The battle was about to begin! Chapter 212: 212. Kneeling Six cultivators encircled the huge beast. The sound attack that the elephant had unleashed was only able to push them back and could not cause any injury. From his position at a few hundreds of meters away from the battle, Noah could guess the might of that attack. ''My eardrums would have exploded if I was there and the specialty of the Shrinking elephants is their strong body, the sound attacks are just a casual move. A rank 4 body is the minimum requirement to walk on this world.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. After that realization, his eagerness to increase his strength was even more powerful. ''I wonder how will they deal with it. Exhaustion?'' Since the hunters were only rank 2 cultivators, they didn''t have attacks powerful enough to kill the beast in a few blows, a prolonged fight was obvious. Once he had those thoughts though, the battle began. Kurt jumped at the elephant and slammed his hammer on the head of the beast. He was fast and the frame of the creature didn''t allow it to avoid the blow, the hammer landed on its head and created a loud shockwave that resounded through the plain. The elephant seemed to slightly suffer from the attack since it lowered its head due to the force of the impact, yet its eyes never closed, they remained fixed on the burly man that dared to challenge it in a physical fight. It trumpeted again and forcefully swung its trunk toward Kurt. The trunk was fast and heavy, the skin over it was as hard as steel, that body part was one of the best materials to create inscribed whips! Kurt could not avoid the attack from his mid-air position and was hit on his ribs. The power behind the blow was immense, it flung Kurt at tens of meters of distance, slamming him on the ground where he created a pit with the impact. Kurt''s attack could only make the beast bulge a little while the elephant could thrash away the cultivator with just one strike! The difference in strength was incredible! As soon as Kurt was sent flying, attacks rained on the elephant, the other hunters weren''t there just for show. Two fire snakes coiled around the front legs of the beast, scorching the skin on them and hindering its movements. Newton took Kurt''s position and dealt with the head of the beast, repeatedly slamming his stick on it to prevent it from attacking. Hazel and Vic managed the rear side, furiously attacking the junctures of the elephant with piercing blows that cut its skin and made it bleed. Under the full offensive of five cultivators, the rank 4 creature was forced to stay still and deal with the attackers. It swung its head madly, using its tusks and trunk to pressure Newton. However, Newton was experienced and showed an incredible dexterity when he swung his weapon. His stick seemed to release explosions every time it clashed with the beast''s body, slowing the elephant in its struggles to escape the encirclement. Yet, he alone wasn''t enough to hold the beast still, he was slowly being pushed back after each clash. At that moment, Kurt rose from the pit that he had created. There was a big bruise on his torso and traces of blood were present on the sides of his mouth, yet his eyes shone with the fire of passion, he seemed really excited to fight such a strong beast. ''Don''t tell me that he is also a maniac?'' That detail couldn''t escape Noah''s observation, he was carefully inspecting everything that was happening in front of him after all. Kurt shot toward the creature, forty meters were crossed in an instant and he jumped again when he was close enough with the elephant. His hammer found again the head of the beast but there was no retaliation from its side at that time. Under the joint assault of all six of them, the rank 4 beast could no longer attack and was forced in a passive state, continuously suffering injuries over time. It couldn''t be helped, the hunters were using their stronger methods and a good teamwork to deal with each side of the elephant. Kurt and Newton managed the front side, unleashing strong blows empowered with their respective spells. The two sisters, Ada and Ella, were restricting its movements, using their spells to continuously burn the legs of the beast. Hazel and Vic were weaker than the others, but Hazel could easily pierce its skin with her weapons and her spells allowed her attacks to stab deeply in the beast''s flesh. Vic struggled to inflict some serious damage but he never slowed his offensive, even if he could not be as incisive as his companions, he did his best to hinder the beast''s retreat. Little by little, wounds accumulated on the body of the elephant, it seemed that it wouldn''t take long for the battle to end. Nevertheless, all living beings had an innate survival instinct. The Shrinking elephant knew that if it remained in that situation, it would ultimately die. It decided that it had to escape. "It''s going to charge!" Ada shouted seeing that the elephant was gathering its strength on its legs. An even stronger cry sounded in the plain, signaling the will to survive of the beast. The ground trembled and the hunters had to momentarily stop their offensive to endure the sound attack. In that moment of silence, the elephant charged ahead, its heavy steps shook the terrain and created deep holes in the ground. Yet, Newton and Kurt were still in front of it, they had to be removed if the beast wanted to escape. Newton and Kurt were in that position not only because their abilities were suited for close combat but also because they were the strongest of the six! Newton slammed on the terrain as the beast became closer The ground morphed and small golems rose from the ground to slow down the charge of the elephant. As the elephant destroyed them in its advance, the golems exploded and released a torrent of sharp rocks on the beast, further injuring its flesh. Kurt jumped again and his hammer shone as it slammed for the third time on the beast''s head. That last strike finally stopped the charge, the beast could not withstand that blow and crashed on the ground, kneeling in front of the hunters! Chapter 213: 213. Unorthodox Another wave of attacks crashed on the Shrinking elephant once it was on the ground, when dealing with a rank 4 creature, it was better not to take any chance. The magical beast was laying on the ground, its skin was torn everywhere and its gray flesh sprouted blood on the terrain. Newton and Kurt hit repeatedly its head for a while before they stopped seeing that life was abandoning it. "Vance, it''s safe now!" Kurt shouted seeing that the elephant was about to die. Noah didn''t hesitate and ran at full speed toward the battlefield. He had come prepared: he was wearing a black robe that featured long and large sleeves that completely hid his hands. That allowed him to perform the Blood drain spell as he ran without being noticed by the others in his group. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Turn." Noah ordered once he arrived next to Kurt. Snorts could be heard coming from some of the hunters, yet, under Kurt''s admonishing gaze, they all turned and left Noah alone with the beast. Only when he was sure that each of them went to gather the bodies of the other beasts did Noah stabbed his already morphed claws into the beast''s flesh. One hand went for the uncovered flesh while the other tried to pierce the remaining skin of the beast. However, the second hand didn''t succeed in overcoming the natural defense of the beast and Noah was forced to stab it in another uncovered spot. ''The Blood drain spell heavily depends on the strength of my body. It seems that my physical strength is still not enough to hurt rank 4 beasts.'' He thought before being amazed by the immense quantity of vitality that entered his body. ''What the¡­'' The demonic claws began to absorb the blood of the beast as soon as they came in contact with its flesh. Noah was prepared for that, yet he couldn''t help but be surprised when he realized the amount of power contained in just a single beast. He had used his spell on a cultivator with a rank 4 body after all! Even if Abel''s blood could almost instantly heal his injuries and still have power left to empower his body, it was still far away from what he was feeling now. ''This is incredible!'' His claws absorbed blood nonstop, accumulating the energy that it contained on Noah''s back, right below his acupoints. He had by then become used to the spell, he had killed more than five hundred rank 3 magical beasts with it after all! ''Just this surpasses the "Breath" given by fifty rank 3 magical beasts and it''s still going!'' Life slowly abandoned the Shrinking elephant so Noah focused more on the spell to accelerate the absorption process. Yet, in less than a minute, the beast exhaled its last breath and died. At that point, the blood lost all its vitality and began devoid of nourishment, forcing an unwilling Noah to stop his spell. A rank 4 magical beast had died right in front of him but his mind couldn''t be bothered with that thought. He was still internally calculating the amount of nourishment that he had obtained using rank 3 beasts as a unit of measure. ''Two hundred rank 3 magical beasts in just one hunt¡­ In a few days, I have obtained the same results of two months of slaughter.'' The "Breath" that he had just absorbed had to be refined through his body-nourishing method to be used but just its sheer quantity was enough to make Noah gasp in surprise! Magical beasts could absorb the "Breath" of any element to increase their strength while cultivators had to use the one required by their nourishing method or they would harm themselves. ''This is way faster than what I did in the past months, obtaining a rank 4 body before I turn twenty has never been more feasible.'' The problem with hunting in low-danger zones was that the number of rank 3 magical beasts was low. Noah had to travel a lot to reach different hunting zone to accumulate all his killings, which was quite inefficient. Sadly, those zones had only a few dozen magical beasts, leading to even less rank 3 specimens, only danger zones had hundreds rank 3 creatures in them. "Hey, kid, are you done?" Newton asked from his position at some distance away, making Noah come back to reality. "Yes, you can take the body now." The hunters turned and were a bit surprised by the state of the corpse. Noah didn''t manage to absorb all its blood before it died but it was still in a dried state. "You know, a few centuries ago these demonic techniques were banished. Yet, the Royals discovered that it was easier to control their practitioners if they didn''t hunt down each of them." Hazel commented, linking the state of the corpse to an unorthodox cultivation technique. Unorthodox techniques were also called demonic techniques. Differently from the orthodox ones that used the natural "Breath" of the world to function and emphasized stability, the demonic ones worked through extreme exercises. Noah had practiced in one of them in his youth, namely the Forging of Seven Hells. They usually involved sacrifices and dangerous treatments but they also gave fast results. Seeing that Noah had absorbed part of the blood of the creature, Hazel could not help but guess that Noah cultivated in one of those techniques. "Your martial art should be the same, right? Those needles of yours seem more the art of an assassin rather than a hunter. Don''t worry though, my technique doesn''t function with human''s blood, that''s why the academy accepted me even after discovering it." Noah blatantly lied to cover his aptitude. An unorthodox technique would explain his fast improvements and also his relentless hunts, he didn''t mind giving some random information about it. As long as he obtained a rank 4 body while keeping his aptitude a secret, he would gladly create the fake story of a cultivation technique requiring beasts'' blood. "That''s right, you sure have good eyes for these things. I have to refine my weapons in quite a peculiar way to use my martial art. It''s a bother sometimes but the effects are good." Noah nodded at her words but his eyes fell again on the corpse of the elephant, he felt some eagerness toward his next hunt. "So, will you stop going into low-danger zones and join our hunting group?" Kurt asked, arriving next to him and putting the rank 4 magical beast in his space-ring. "As long as my conditions are respected, I don''t see why not." Chapter 214: 214. Illegitimate Rank 4 magical beasts'' bodies were valued thousands of Credits. Each of their body parts was a rank 4 material and the market of the Royal city could never have enough of them. The main reason was that those materials were rare: there weren''t many cultivators able to fight those beasts and, those that could, weren''t willing to spend their lives as hunters. Most of the supplies of rank 4 materials came from the cleaning operations of the Royal army but those missions were linked to the personal benefits of the Royals, they weren''t aimed to gather the materials needed for the various professions in the capital. Only the Hunter''s guild would accept to hunt specific magical beasts if the right price was added to the value of their targets. The Shrinking elephant, or more precisely its tusks and trunk, were needed by the guild of the inscription masters. They were the best materials for the creation of strong inscribed weapons that suited their characteristics, like spears and whips. Its bones were also sturdy and its skin tough, many inscribed items in the second or even third rank could be created with them. Noah later learned that the hunt for the pack of elephants had been given priority because the guild of the inscription masters had paid twenty thousand Credits in advance. Adding that sum to thirty-five thousand Credits, which was the value of the rank 4 specimen, that single expedition had been worth fifty-five thousand Credits! However, Noah didn''t care about his gains in the slightest, what he was interested in was when he could use the Blood drain spell again on a rank 4 beast. "First, we need to return to the capital and rest. Kurt needs time to heal and we have to carefully plan our next mission. With just the six of us, we can only handle two rank 4 magical beasts at the same time. Now that we have to make you inflict the finishing blow though, that number is halved." Ada answered Noah who questioned her about their next target. "Oh right, why did he charge alone at the beginning of the fight? Wasn''t it better to just fight the beast altogether from the start?" Ada made an embarrassed smile after listening to Noah''s words and thought for a bit before giving an answer. "Well, we have an unspoken rule in our group: if Kurt can endure it, we can kill it. I know that it seems stupid and reckless but Kurt''s body is really hard to pierce. If a magical beast can heavily injure him with just one attack then we don''t have any chance of defeating it." Noah''s eyes widened after hearing the reason behind that reckless action. ''How did they managed to survive till now?'' He couldn''t help but have that doubt. "I heard that Kurt''s body-nourishing technique allows him to become stronger as he takes damage, that''s why he always takes one hit from the beasts." Vic joined the conversation and spoke in a soft voice. ''Increase in power based on the damage taken? With that requirement, the effects should be particularly good.'' Noah had somewhat tested Kurt''s natural defenses and had to admit that it definitely wasn''t a common body-nourishing technique. Yet, if it had that other ability too, the technique would be considered among the best ones that weren''t restricted to an element. "How did he obtain something like that? Is there a place where one can buy techniques on that level?" Noah asked, if there was some specific place in the Royal city where he could inspect new techniques, he would gladly visit it. "This guy¡­" Newton began to speak while patting Kurt''s shoulder. "Is an illegitimate Royal child. His dad gives him cultivation resources and even wants to marry him to some noble lady but he only cares about fighting magical beasts. He doesn''t even take us to drink with all the money that he has." Kurt shook his head and sighed loudly. "I told you that this matter had to be a secret. You''ve only managed to learn about it because I was drunk at that time and you had already told it to the whole group. Will you put a banner in front of the guild next time?" Newton laughed and spoke in a happy voice. "Come on, we have to take care of the kid until he becomes useful in hunting rank 4 creatures, right? That''s a lot of time, it''s better to just be open about everything." Ella joined the conversation and pointed at Newton while showing a sly smile to Noah. "You know, when Newton is hunting, he becomes very irritable but he relaxes as soon as he is returning to the capital. Oh, be careful in the guild when you sit with him, he can turn any good man into a drunkard." "Hey, don''t tell these lies just because I got Kurt drunk once! It took all my talent on that occasion." "See, you''re not even denying it!" The two hunters started bickering and a smile appeared on the others in their group. ''Are all cultivators like this?'' Noah again asked that question to himself. ''Wait, am I like that too?'' After a bit, he simply put that thought in the back of his mind and joined his group in their return to the capital. The hunt had succeeded, he had to take his share of money and had to absorb the "Breath" of the magical beast. ''Though, a body able to become stronger as it takes damage seems nice. In theory, my Yin body should have a similar strength if not higher. It has both the restriction to one element and a special ability after all.'' He thought as they marched, he was quite eager to understand the feeling of having a center of power in the heroic ranks. They reached the capital after a few days and Noah was forced to join a celebratory toast in the main hall of the guild. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Apparently, that was a tradition of Kurt''s hunting group after each successful hunt, Newton would personally use part of his share to buy strong wine fit for their powerful bodies. Needless to say, Noah could only take one sip from it before feeling some dizziness assaulting him. In the end, they separated after deciding to meet one week from then to discuss their next mission. Chapter 215: 215. Value Noah''s life became quite engaging. He would still maintain his usual training routine most of the time but, at specific intervals, his presence was requested in Kurt''s hunting group to organize and plan their next mission. They would usually hunt twice a month and only in danger zones where they were sure that the number of rank 4 magical beasts was not too high. Noah was a burden for them after all, they couldn''t risk being ganged up by several strong creatures. That''s why their focus was on the lone packs in specific areas, they had to be sure that nothing unexpected could happen. It had to be said though that Noah wasn''t completely useless. The group of hunters soon discovered that, during the planning phase, his insights on the behavior of the magical beasts were extremely valuable, so much that Ada would often ask for his opinion. There was a time when they had to face two packs of Hellish hounds both led by a rank 4 magical beast. Noah suggested for the two sisters with the fire aptitude to create a pyre and let the magical beasts fight themselves for it. Hellish hounds were innately attracted by fire since it was their nourishment and the one created by spells was a delicacy in their eyes. Noah knew that, even in the presence of humans, the hounds would have prioritized the fire and fought the opposing pack for it. That had allowed the hunting group to kill two rank 4 magical beasts instead of retreating and abandoning the hunt. Another time, they had difficulties tracking a rank 4 Furred worm that was nearing a low-danger area, endangering that environment. Noah suggested creating a bait with a pack of ant-type magical beasts which was the favorite meal of that creature. Pointless to say that the bait worked perfectly and the Furred worm couldn''t resist the temptation of that meal, exposing itself to the hunters that ably vanquished it. The quantity of information that he had learned in the magical beasts'' course of the academy was incredible and he also was really interested in that topic. Noah didn''t know why he liked studying so much about magical beasts, maybe the dragon in his childhood had left a deep impression on him or maybe the fact that his first kill was a magical beast influenced his psyche. Anyway, his value was acknowledged and his group began to rely more on him. Noah didn''t mind helping them out. On one hand, a smooth hunt would ensure his safety and prevent any mishap from happening. On the other one, he needed those rank 4 magical beasts to speed up the growth of his body. Every time he used the Blood drain spell on a dying beast of that rank, he would gain days worth of training! Also, with each successful hunt, his Credits would increase and he would gain access to better discounts over items deriving from magical beasts. The speed at which his body improved increased, his money increased, and his stash of rank 4 materials did the same. Everything about the situation was completely beneficial to him, Noah had to just give some pointers when they planned their hunts and he would gain part of the profits. It must be said though that his situation was quite peculiar. The Hunters'' guild had to choose between letting Noah roam free in low-danger zones and harm the work of all the weaker hunters or forcefully bring him in dangerous missions where his life was on the line. In order to maintain a peaceful environment inside the guild, they had to give some free rewards to Noah or else he would have continued to hunt rank 3 magical beasts. Like that, time passed, and the number of rank 4 creatures on which Noah used his spell increased, with their joint work, Kurt''s group managed to complete two hunts per month. It was impossible to hide Noah''s improvements during that period of time. His skin became whiter and his aura colder, it seemed that he was going to transform into a piece of ice. Only Noah knew that the cold aura exuded from his body was caused by the type of "Breath" of the darkness element that he was absorbing. "Vance, today the wine it''s on you! That damned pig broke my stick!" Newton exclaimed. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Kurt''s hunting group was in a forest near the border of the Utra country. They had just vanquished a pack of Iron-tusks boars and the rank 4 specimen had destroyed Newton''s weapon in the process, thus being named "pig" by him. One year had passed since the events with the Shrinking elephant and the hunting group had successfully killed twenty-seven rank 4 creatures in that period of time. Of course, Noah had used the Blood drain spell on each of them. Noah''s gaze was lost, he was deep in thought and didn''t hear Newton''s words. He was carefully inspecting his body with his mental energy, quantifying the "Breath" that he had just absorbed and calculating how much nourishment it could give. "Vance, are you alright?" The others in his group noticed his unusual behavior and Kurt gave voice to their worries. Noah came back to reality and saw that the other six hunters were staring at him with confused gazes. "I think I will have to skip the next mission. It seems that I need to stabilize my gains for a while before I can use again my cultivation technique. Don''t worry though, it''s nothing too serious. I should be fine in one month." The hunters nodded at his words. Unorthodox techniques were dangerous, they needed to be trained carefully and the cultivator had to stop at the first sign of instability or he could irremediably hurt himself. "Sure, take your time. We will just go hunt slightly bigger packs in the meantime, my body was getting rusty with all this safety first after all." Kurt said with a laugh and patted Noah''s head before turning on the path back to the Royal city. Noah didn''t even notice that gesture since his focus had gone back on his body. ''This "Breath" and a couple of nights of training should bring me to the peak of the third rank! Finally, after one year and a half of time spent hunting, I can attempt on the breakthrough to the heroic ranks!'' He masked his excitement with his usual cold expression and then went after the others in his group, it was finally time for his body to reach the fourth rank. Chapter 216: 216. Peak Noah returned to his habitation inside the Royal city. That new house was closer to the Royal Mansion compared to the one that he had rented previously when he had to experiment in the Elemental forging method. Since he didn''t need a reinforced room, Noah could afford a house with a higher concentration of "Breath" at a lower price than the previous one. It was wrong to call it a house though, it was only a large room that he and Ivor shared quietly at the price of two thousand Credits per month. His weekly income had increased since he joined Kurt''s hunting group so Noah didn''t mind spending a bit more to have that density of "Breath". That allowed him to make up for the time wasted traveling with his normal training schedule. Inside, there was Ivor waiting for him. Lately, he had begun to sleep more, Noah guessed that the damage on his sea of consciousness was slowly increasing its effects on his daily life. "Ivor." Noah called and patiently waited for the ruined cultivator to wake up. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "What is it?" Ivor asked after a bit as he stretched his hand toward one of the jars around him. "How was your Pain Tribulation?" Noah knew that Ivor had a rank 3 dantian so it was obvious that his body had been through the Pain Tribulation. "Mhh¡­" Ivor seemed to make a lot of effort to remember that moment of his life and he would lift his jar from time to time as the reviewed his memories. "Painful." "¡­" Ivor''s answer left Noah speechless. ''I guess he is only useful when my doubts concern the Elemental forging method.'' Noah thought, taking out a few thousand Credits from his space-ring. "I need some time alone, these should suffice for the rent of a cheap habitation and your wine for about a month." Ivor took the Credits and moved toward the exit door. As he was about to unlock it though, he turned and said something with a warm smile on his face. "I remember my Master''s words back then when I was about to go through it. He said "Be sure that your entire body is filled with "Breath" before you attempt the breakthrough". Apart from those words, I remember only the pain of the process." Noah nodded to him and watched as he left the room. ''If it''s just about pain, I believe that it will go quite smoothly.'' Noah thought, taking out the "Breath" blessing from his space-ring and placing it on the floor. The density of "Breath" in the room instantly surpassed that of the best house in the academy. ''First, I need to reach the peak.'' The information about the breakthrough to the fourth rank of the body was already deeply impressed in his memory. Generally speaking, the process was the same for each cultivator with some slight differences due to the different body-nourishing methods. A cultivator needed to reach the peak of the third rank, then he had to fill the entirety of his body with "Breath". Once those two requirements were met, he had to activate his nourishing method to start the reconstruction. ''Many cultivators lose themselves in the pain, some of them die in the process. Yet, the Pain Tribulation is still considered the easiest to pass. After all, its requirements are easy to meet and it''s quite common for a cultivator on that level to have a strong will, capable of enduring that terrible pain. It''s quite funny that most of those that die in that Tribulation are nobles or wealthy cultivators.'' To withstand pain, one must have a strong will. Nobles rarely found themselves in dangerous situations and their lofty lifestyle didn''t allow them to build a strong personality. That''s why, through history, nobles had the highest mortality rate in the Pain Tribulation. Noah sat on the floor of the room and focused on his back. It was still day so he could not cultivate in the Yin body, yet he still had to absorb the "Breath" of the rank 4 Iron-tusks boar that his hunting group had killed. The energy on his back circulated through his body and reached his dantian where a selection process happened. The "Breath" of the darkness element was separated and redirected inside his skeletal system which emitted a cold aura that slowly nourished the body. The rest of the "Breath" was simply dispersed in the air. "Fuuuuu" Noah exhaled loudly after the process was complete. By then, he had become used to using the Blood drain spell to speed up his improvements, yet the quantity of nourishment that came from rank 4 magical beasts always surprised him. ''If I was a magical beast, I could just eat anything that contains "Breath" to strengthen my body, without the need for specific techniques. I have to admit that I quite envy them. Well, at least the potential that humans have due to their three centers of power is far higher.'' From Noah''s point of view, the cultivation process of the magical beasts was simply too easy if it was compared to that of the humans. Nevertheless, when a human had all three centers of power in the heroic ranks, the power that he held was enormous. ''Not yet, I still need a couple of days before I reach the peak.'' Noah calmly waited for the night to come before starting to cultivate in the Yin body. He wasn''t going to cultivate both his dantian and body at the same time, in that important moment, he wanted to be sure that all his focus was on the breakthrough. The first night passed uneventfully with seven vortexes constantly absorbing "Breath" from the environment and accumulating it below the acupoints. That cold "Breath" was then rendered harmless with one refinement of his dantian and redirected to his bones. Noah rested for the whole day, waking up immediately upon the sunset. Just a few hours after his second night of cultivation, he felt that his bones could not receive any more "Breath" and each time Noah tried to pour more in them, they would just redirect it to other parts of his body. "Finally, the peak of the third rank." Chapter 217: 217. Breakthrough Peak of the third rank of the body at the age of nineteen and a half! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. That was an incredible feat! Most of it though was due to the Forging of the Seven Hells in which Noah had trained in his childhood. Unorthodox techniques had a faster pace of training but required for the cultivator to undergo risky procedures. The Forging of the Seven Hells had endangered Noah''s life many times, it was no wonder that he could reach the peak of the third rank at such a young age. ''Now, I need to store "Breath" through my whole body.'' A lot of energy was required for the reconstruction of the body and, of course, the best source of energy of that world was the marvelous "Breath". Noah resumed his cultivation, he had to be sure that his body was filled with "Breath" before he attempted in the reconstruction. One week passed uneventfully, with Noah focusing each night concentrating on the Yin body and using the rest of the day to sleep. Rest was necessary during that process, the body needed time to mix with the "Breath" and the latter had to uniformly nourish each of its components. It was only when the seventh night ended that Noah could not store any more "Breath". ''It is time.'' Noah undressed and sat naked on the wooden floor. The reconstruction process was long and painful, it was similar to the hibernation of the magical beasts when they increased their rank, with the only difference being that humans didn''t need to create an incubating membrane during it. ''The first step toward the heroic ranks, the first step toward complete freedom!'' Noah''s will rose and he wasted no more time, activating the next step of his nourishing method. The bones in his body had accumulated so much "Breath" that they autonomously radiated a cold halo, they were the part focused by the Yin body after all. Yet, as Noah willed, they broke and released waves of energy through his whole body. CRACK! "GHHHHH!" Noah suppressed a loud cry as the pain invaded him. The process had started, stopping it at that moment would endanger the cultivator''s life or inflict incurable injuries. Nevertheless, the idea of stopping the process had never crossed Noah''s mind. The "Breath" contained in his bones ran free through his body, breaking everything that it met. The first to be affected were his organs which were pierced and cut in many places as the waves of energy crossed them. Then, it was time for his circulatory system to be affected. His blood vessels exploded, forming large bruises under his white shin. Noah was already laying on the ground, convulsing like crazy. Once his bones had shattered, he could not sustain his sitting position anymore. After that, it was time for his flesh. The waves of energy ravaged the flesh and ripped off the muscles, anything that stood in their way was destroyed! It wasn''t a casual process though. The "Breath" would only destroy the body parts unfit for the new form that Noah was assuming. Like the dantian boiled away most of its impure "Breath" to reach a higher purity when it increased in rank, so did the body. Flesh was a mortal material, "Breath" was the true source of energy. All those impure body parts had to be expelled to form a purer body, able to successfully store "Breath" of a higher quality. The dantian needed those impurities to improve its composition but the body didn''t. It had to be said though that the impurities of the dantian were still "Breath" while the ones of the body were the body parts, devoid of any value. Of course, that process was extremely painful. Noah felt that his body was being punctured and cut everywhere. His internal composition was being shaken by an unrestrainable power, he felt like each organ under his flesh was being mixed together to form a disgusting human soup! Then, it was time to expel the useless parts. The skin of the living beings was the body part that had the most contact with the external world, which meant that it was almost completely filled with impurities. Noah''s figure laid on the floor directly exploded! The entirety of his skin was ripped off, leaving only a bloody human figure in the room. The deadly part had begun! Noah''s consciousness was still focused, the pain that he had felt until that moment didn''t make him faint or lose concentration. The Yin body activated and a huge black vortex enveloped his sorry figure. The "Breath" that he had accumulated was still inside him, searching for other useless body parts to eject. Yet, after a few rounds of inspections, it couldn''t find any of them and began to solidify. Noah was at the center of the black vortex, he was filled with "Breath" and more of it was gathered by the suction force of his nourishing method. The "Breath" began to solidify, mixing with the remaining body parts and reconstructing the missing ones. The skeletal system formed, it was gray with dark shades all over it. Then it was the time for the organs and the circulatory system. The organs seemed to shine under the daylight and the blood vessels had a thicker form while being half-transparent. His flesh and muscles recomposed, they were sturdier and denser, it didn''t seem that they were made of simple flesh. His skinless figure solidified and started the healing phase. Noah''s skin grew, it was white and smooth, devoid of any follicle, not even a simple imperfection was present on it. Two black tattoos appeared on his chest, a bat with two pairs of wings and a panther, and they roamed freely on the newly formed body. At last, a black membrane was created around Noah''s heart. As the vortex continued to absorb "Breath", a black liquid began to fill that membrane, immersing Noah''s heart in that cold substance. The vortex rotated for a few more minutes, fixing the absorbed "Breath" on each part of Noah''s body and securing its sturdiness. Then the vortex dispersed, leaving a naked Noah on the floor, surrounded by the filth that had been expelled in that process. Noah felt a huge amount of energy filling him but his mental sphere was too tired from all the pain that he had to endure while maintaining control on his body-nourishing technique. He could only have one last thought before falling asleep on the spot. ''Rank 4 body!'' Chapter 218: 218. Drop It took Noah three days to wake up. Not only his mind had been heavily stressed during the breakthrough but his body also needed time to stabilize. It was a completely new body after all, it wasn''t just one with fewer impurities. ''That was gory.'' Noah thought, looking at the remains of his old body all around him. ''I even have some pieces of skin in my hair, I should take a bath before inspecting my new body.'' As he stood up though, he began to notice some of the new aspects of his center of power. ''Wow, I feel so light! And what''s all this energy that runs through me?'' His body was made of flesh and "Breath". The latter was almost immaterial, it was no wonder that the weight of his body had diminished. ''Everything in my body has mixed with the "Breath", which is a form of energy. It''s obvious that I would feel so energetic.'' Then, his hand instinctively went toward his chest. His heartbeat was muffled due to the membrane that enveloped that organ but he couldn''t find any problem with its functioning. ''The liquid around my heart should be liquid "Breath" of the darkness element. It seems that, in order to activate the ability of my new body, I have to inject that "Breath" in my circulatory system.'' When a body reached the fourth rank, the "Breath" inside it would reach the liquid stage and give far more power to the user. ''I''m quite eager to test it but I should first clean everything and let my center of power stabilize.'' Noah took a long bath to remove all the remains of his old body from himself. Then, he gathered all the filth on the floor in one big bucket and used the black smoke to erase every trace of it. Only the smell of blood remained in the room but, given enough time, even that would disappear. ''I feel so free.'' Noah judged, inspecting his body. He was still naked, carefully observing every part of his skin. There were no apparent changes in his external aspect, his skin was slightly purer and his muscles were more defined but, apart from those, he looked as when he was still in the third rank. ''The real changes are in the insides.'' Noah took out an inscribed weapon from his space-ring. It was Fabian''s white sword, its power was in the lower tier of the first rank. Noah put strength on his grip and the sword directly broke in half! ''I can definitely survive the attack of a rank 4 beast now. Oh, it has been more than a week since I''ve last eaten and yet I don''t feel any hunger. It seems like I''m really distancing myself from the mortal world.'' The breakthrough had lasted approximately three days, most of that time was expended in the reconstruction of the body. A rank 3 body could survive starvation for a long time but that didn''t prevent it from feeling hunger. Yet, with his new body, Noah didn''t feel anything similar to hunger or thirst, he felt like he had just woken up after a satisfying meal. ''Heroic ranks are so different and this isn''t even the full power of my body!'' Not only was Noah''s body still in the lower tier, but he also had an ability that empowered it! The problem with the tier though was not solvable. After the breakthrough, the body would slowly reach the peak of the lower tier as his dantian improved, yet, to reach higher tiers or ranks, he would need a rank 5 body-nourishing technique. ''Rank 5 is simply too far away, I should just focus on my other two centers of power that are still in the second rank. Right, the restrictions on my dantian should be gone.'' It was still day but the Dark vortex cultivation technique had not the same restriction of the Yin body, cultivating during the day would just be slower. Noah sat on the now clean floor and created a vortex between his hands that were joint on his waist. The vortex absorbed "Breath" of the darkness element and poured it freely inside the dantian that, to Noah surprise, showed some signs of expansion after just a few hours! ''Amazing! The restrictions are completely gone and it actually seems that the process is smoother! I shouldn''t feel any hindrance till the solid stage of the third rank now.'' Noah happily shouted in his mind as he interrupted his cultivation. His body had just formed, he would rather let it stabilize for a few days before resuming a complete training schedule. ''Now, I should be able to completely refine the Undead chameleon bones.'' Noah took out more than thirty bones accompanied by the same number of empty buckets. During the last year, the Credits in his possession had increased so much that he could freely buy rank 4 materials without suffering any losses. Also, since he was hunting rank 4 magical beasts, the discounts on those items had risen, allowing him to purchase even more materials. He didn''t do that only to always have available materials at hand but also to be prepared for his big escape. A market rich of such a variety of materials was rare in that world, in the whole Utra nation, only the Royal city had it! Noah didn''t want to find himself in a situation where he lacked so many materials that he had to personally hunt each of the magical beasts from which they came from. Noah put one of the buckets below his stretched arm and casually slashed with his white saber that had just appeared in his hand. CLANG! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The saber hit his wrist but only a metallic sound resounded, there was no wound on it. "¡­" ''I forgot that I can''t hurt myself so casually anymore.'' Noah thought after being speechless for an instant. He pressed the blade of the saber on his wrist and strongly pulled. He used the real strength of his body at that moment, so it was obvious that a quite deep cut appeared on his skin. However, after only a single drop of blood fell on the bucket, the cut healed, leaving no trace of the previous wound. "¡­" Chapter 219: 219. Drunk ''Just stay open!'' Noah shouted in his mind, giving another strong thrust with his saber. A drop of blood fell on the bucket below his stretched arm. The blood had filled only half of the bucket but Noah had to cut his wrist for the whole day to achieve that result. As usual, the wound healed right after that drop fell. ''Dammit!'' Noah lost his patience and directly made a long vertical cut starting from his shoulder and ending on his palm. The wound was deep and many lines of blood flowed out of it. However, after the bucket was filled by only another eighth of its volume, the cut healed and the blood stopped flowing. ''This will take a while.'' Noah realized as he sighed in helplessness. If he made those large cuts, the filling speed was somewhat acceptable. Noah spent the whole night to fill thirty-two buckets with his own blood and then proceeded to immerse in each of them one chameleon bone before finally sealing them and putting them back in his space-ring. ''This is over, now I should just quietly rest and let my body stabilize.'' Days passed, which Noah spent slowly resuming his normal pace of training. He soon discovered that he didn''t really have to worry that much about the stability of his body. Even if just created, a rank 4 body was still a center of power in the heroic ranks! Noah almost didn''t feel any need for food or water in that period and even spending entire nights cultivating in the Dark vortex technique produced basically no stress at all on his dantian. There was also the fact that he didn''t cultivate anymore in the Yin body. His body had reached the fourth rank, the technique was complete, the "Breath" that he stored in the membrane around his heart would naturally be refilled once expended. Ivor came back precisely after one month. "What happened to you!?" He exclaimed as soon as he passed through the entrance door and stared at the young man sitting on the floor. "What do you mean?" Noah asked, he really couldn''t find any difference with his usual appearance. "Contain your damned aura already! You know that my sea of consciousness can''t sustain much pressure!" "¡­" ''Don''t tell me, the cold halo released from my body has increased even more?'' Noah pondered, applying a layer of mental energy around his body to hide his presence. "Better?" "Yes, thanks! You can''t be alone for one month that you already forget that you have an ill roommate! By the way, did you just have another breakthrough?" "Not yet, I was just too focused and I''ve influenced my surroundings." Noah lied while shaking his head. He had finally obtained his rank 4 body, his big escape was nearing, he couldn''t let people know that his power had risen again. ''Right now, the powers I have that the Royals aren''t aware of are the shard of Demonic sword and my body in the heroic ranks. There is also the Warp spell that I''ve purposely avoided using so they shouldn''t be aware of my proficiency with it. The last two should be enough to take them by surprise and allow me to escape, now I just need the right moment and a better knowledge of the world outside the Utra country.'' Noah had a vague understanding of the various countries that composed the continent he was in, yet that was far from enough to secure a smooth escape. He was completely unaware of the political situations in the other nations, which was what made him doubtful about his destination. ''I think it''s time to go back on scamming soldiers.'' He decided in his mind as a cold smile appeared on his face. Noah resumed the hunts with Kurt''s group. He was eager to test his new strength but, in the end, he decided to lay low and pretend that he had still a rank 3 body. He didn''t do that only to hide his actual battle prowess and to continue in his accumulation of material, he did that to appear the weakest of the group. Most people would talk in a more unrestrained manner to those that considered inferior to them, Noah knew that fairly well. He used that fact as a way to gather precious information. Kurt''s group had the tradition to gather in the main hall of the guild to drink after each successful hunt and that moment was precisely what Noah was aiming for. He began to drink more in those situations, that wine was made precisely for cultivators, that meant that it could make them drunk. Since Noah was pretending to have a rank 3 body, he could act as if he had gotten drunk after a few jugs and "innocently" ask for sensitive information to the others in his group. Only Kurt was only a hunter after all, the other five hunters had all other jobs outside the guild, many of them in the Royal army. As soldiers, it was impossible for them not to know about the political situation of their opponents on the borders of the country. "But, I mean *hic*, this noble system is so restrictive. It is impossible for all the other nations to have the same." A "drunk" Noah exclaimed loudly, waving his empty jug toward the servants waiting near the walls of the hall. "Haha! Vance is drunk again! I told you that I can turn everyone in a drunkard!" "Newton, don''t feel proud about that, he is not even twenty and is already trying to match your amount of wine. You really have a bad influence on people." "Hmph, and what does age even matter! We might all die in our next hunt because of some unexpected beast appearing out of nowhere. The way I see it, be extra careful when there is the possibility to die and be extra drunk when there isn''t!" Newton and Ella bickered as usual on the table while wine continued to be poured on their jugs. "There are different political systems throughout our continent. I know that there is a nation where the power is divided through many independent organizations called "sects". They are like a bigger version of the academy but without any restrictions on the bloodline." Ada answered Noah''s question. Newton''s eyes lit up hearing her words and joined that conversation. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "I heard about that too. What was its name, right! Papral nation! I heard that the cultivators there live in caves where they isolate themselves for entire years!" Chapter 220: 220. Continen "In my opinion, they are just a bunch of savages. What''s the point of using a cave when you can have a house!" Vic joined the conversation, expressing his complaints. "Those "savages" belong to one of the three most powerful nations in our continent. It wouldn''t be wise to underestimate them." Hazel said to him. "*hic* is there a ranking for the nations?" Noah asked, feigning some hiccups. "Yes, you can say that our continent is ruled by three large nations. Our Utra nation is ranked second or third and it occupies the southern side of the landmass, that''s why the capital is situated to the north, there is only sea over the southern borders. On the opposite side of the continent, there is the Papral nation which is ranked second or third as well. Their strength matches that of our country but they are too far away from us so there has never been any war." ''So, Utra nation on the south and Papral nation on the north.'' "What about the central area? *hic*." Noah had almost forgotten that he was pretending to be drunk and hiccupped only when his question was voiced. That time, it was Ada that gave the answer. "At the center of the continent, there is the Shandal Empire, the strongest nation on our landmass. They are a military nation built on strength, where even a farmer can have access to rank 3 body nourishing techniques. If it wasn''t for the joint resistance of the Utra and Papral nation, they would have already conquered the whole continent." "What *hic* about the other *hic* countries?" "They are either underlings of these three nations or weak allies. The Shandal Empire usually uses the people of the countries that it conquers as slaves, it has an economy heavily reliant on war. Oh, there are some uninhabited zones where the magical beasts have wiped out the humans, but they are scarcer than the inhabited ones." Their conversation continued for the whole night before they decided to go back to their respective habitations. Noah pretended to stagger a bit as he returned to his place only to resume his normal expression when he entered his room. ''This is quite troublesome.'' He thought, dispersing the "Breath" accumulated by his last usage of the Blood drain spell in the air. His Yin body was complete, he could not annex external energy anymore, he could only wait for his dantian to slowly propel the body toward the peak of the lower tier. As for the alcohol in his blood, the basic regenerative abilities of his new body were enough to dispel it as soon as Noah drank it. The main quality of his body-nourishing method was regeneration after all, how could booze affect him in the long term? "Is that good wine that I smell?" Ivor woke up due to the smell that lingered around Noah. "What do you know of this continent except for the three big nations?" Noah ignored him and drew a simple figure on the floor of the room with the tip of his saber. It was just a big oval with three marks on it: two at its vertexes and one at its center. "I''m pretty sure that our continent is not that linear." "Come on, old man. Tell me something useful." "Mh, let''s see." Ivor took out his knife and drew a second figure around the oval. "This should approximately be the actual coastline of our continent, I remember it from when I studied in my mansion." Noah fixed that image in his head and nodded. "It is quite big, the three big nations occupy only half of its territory. The other half is divided between weaker countries, wastelands, and big danger zones. What do you want to know precisely?" Ivor asked, lifting his head to look at his student and drinking from one of his jars. "Anything that you can remember regarding geography and political situations of each area." Noah didn''t raise his head and continued to inspect the map. ''Going into big danger zones would surely be the best solution. The problem is that the magical beasts in there managed to kill all the humans for a reason, I won''t be surprised if rank 5 creatures occupied it.'' Due to his studies of magical beasts, Noah vaguely knew about the layout of the continent. Part of that topic was about the location of such beasts, it wasn''t strange that he had learnt about some specific environments. Yet, he really didn''t have enough strength to establish himself there, the danger was too high. As for the other two big nations, they were to be avoided too. He wouldn''t be surprised if both of them tried to exploit him like the Royals were doing. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''I need somewhere messy, where there isn''t a fixed government and its hard to gather information.'' Ivor began to describe the fragmented information that he could remember. What he said mostly concerned peculiar places where rare magical beasts were discovered and he marked them on the simple map. Little by little, the number of marks increased. However, that was just circumstantial knowledge in Noah''s mind, he still couldn''t find a safe place where to develop. Then, Ivor finally said something that interested him. "All around the three big nations, there are destroyed countries. The Nerere country is one of them but its destruction was caused by something that I''m unaware of. Especially in the territories between the Papral nation and the Shandal Empire, there are a lot of areas where cultivators can build their own little tribes and strive for survival. As you can imagine though, the strength of those tribes is not that high otherwise they would be annexed in the nations near them." Noah fell deep in thought after those words. ''Territories without any fixed ruler, that seem perfect. However, how far are those? How do I reach them? How can I cross the Shandal Empire unnoticed?'' Noah shook his head, punching the map on the floor to erase any trace of it. ''I don''t even know my actual battle prowess yet. I should think of a way to test it.'' Chapter 221: 221. Bare Dungeon Noah was inside the Hunters'' guild, carefully inspecting the boards describing the various hunting areas. ''I can go almost anywhere now but I should still find something that doesn''t attract too much attention.'' What he was looking for was a danger zone with a low number of rank 4 magical beasts. He wanted to fight a rank 4 creature alone in order to find out his actual strength! ''I need to choose one that I can justify easily. My name has become too known inside the guild, the fact that I''m entering a danger zone alone won''t go unnoticed.'' His mental energy swept through the various boards until he found something that could meet his requirements. ''Excavating worms activity discovered in the Bare Dungeon, only one rank 4 specimen confirmed with more than a hundred rank 3 beasts in the lower areas. This might work.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The Bare Dungeon was the prison of the previous Royal family. After the Elbas family took the throne, that structure was abandoned and the magical beasts had slowly turned it into their lair. However, the concentration of "Breath" there was quite low so it took more than two thousand years for a rank 4 creature to be born from the dominant type of magical beasts in there. As for why Noah considered that area, it was due to the magical beasts that lived there. Excavating worms had a long and sturdy body, with three circular rows of sharp teeth as their mouths. They weren''t among the strongest magical beasts, actually, their battle prowess was low due to their simple attack patterns, they could only rely on their bodies and they had no peculiar ability. Also, the value of their bodies was particularly low. Only their teeth were somewhat valuable but, other than for those, they basically provided no useful material. Yet, they had one quality that could be used as an excuse by Noah: their bodies had the highest amount of blood among the magical beasts. ''Kurt and the others will just think that I want to occupy the time between the hunts with them in unpopular hunting zones to maximize my growth. Rank 3 Excavating worms are only worth fifteen Credits each, no hunter would be willing to go there with the possibility of meeting a rank 4 creature.'' Even if the worms were relatively weak, the Bare Dungeon remained a danger zone due to the rank 4 specimen in there. If hunters wanted to go in danger zones to gather a higher number of rank 3 corpses, they would choose an area where the beasts had a higher value like Noah did with Mellow Forest. Indeed, there were no hunters signed for that area. ''Excavating worms is it!'' Noah decided, placing his mark next to the name "Bare Dungeon". Meanwhile, inside the alchemy division of the academy. Daniel was controlling the temperature of the cauldron in front of him with his eyes closed. The flame under it was created by a special technique that used the "Breath" of the cultivator as fuel in order to give more control to the alchemic process. Daniel had always been talented in that technique due to his element but he had to work hard to reach that kind of proficiency. In the eyes of his followers, he had always been the perfect cultivator. His family was wealthy and among the most powerful in the country, capable of providing to him any kind of cultivation resource or technique, nurturing a cultivator of the light element required an exorbitant sum after all. His manners were polite and sophisticated, he was loved in any noble circle, and many young heirs had already sworn their loyalty to him during his time in the academy. His talent was also exceptional. Not only did he have one of the rarest aptitudes, but his centers of power were also at an amazing level for his age. He was only twenty-three but his dantian was reaching the peak of the gaseous stage of the second rank! His sea of consciousness had recently broken through the second rank, making him one of the youngest rank 2 mages in the Utra nation. Also, he had a rank 4 body! Since his future strength was ensured, the Udye family was heavily investing in him, providing him the best resources to increase his training speed. His aptitude also made him one of the most promising alchemists of the nation, further increasing his fame. However, his family was quite against his studies in the alchemy faculty of the academy. The first reason was that cultivators ultimately relied on strength, spending time in a profession that was not battle-related was against the policy of most noble families, especially if the one to do it was the main heir. The second one was that the faculty was inside the academy, which was a structure of the Royal family. Since the Cause was using Daniel as the main reason to kindle the fire of rebellion in the country, the Udye family was against his usage of structures so linked to the Royal family. Yet, every youth was a man of his own. Even with all the pressure that his family was putting on him, Daniel still went to train his alchemic skills in the academy. Daniel controlled the flame silently, lowering or increasing the temperature of the cauldron as he followed the procedure that the seniors in the faculty had taught him. In about one hour, he stopped providing "Breath" and the flame was extinguished. Daniel sighed and excitedly opened the cauldron, lifting the lid with one hand. A huge amount of white smoke came out of the cauldron, yet, when it dispersed, there was nothing inside it, it seemed that the refinement had failed. ''It seems that I still can''t concoct rank 2 pills in the high tier, I have a long way to go.'' Pills and potions were ranked in the same way as inscribed items, the rank of the dantian was the most detailed expression of power after all. As he stared disappointedly at the empty cauldron though, a young attendant appeared behind him. "Lord Daniel, a mission has been assigned to you." One of Daniel''s eyebrows arched and he turned, asking in a surprised tone. "What''s that about?" The attendant bowed and replied to him. "I''m sorry my Lord, I could only understand that you will be sent to the Bare Dungeon." Chapter 222: 222. Potion Daniel stood with his hands behind his back in front of three elderly cultivators. They were in a dark room, with the three elders inspecting a big cauldron that stood between them and Daniel. "Elders, did you request for me?" Daniel asked in his usual polite tone, his head was slightly bowed as he spoke. "Yes. We need you to go to the Bare Dungeon and collect as many Excavating worms as you can. We will reward you and anyone you want to bring along of course." One of the elders spoke without moving his gaze from the cauldron. "If I may ask, can''t we just give this mission to the Hunters'' guild? It seems inappropriate for an alchemist to hunt magical beasts." Daniel asked, making a bow to emphasize his respect for the three cultivators. "Daniel, what is the main ingredient for the majority of the alchemic products?" Another elder questioned him. Daniel''s answer came immediately. "Magical beasts'' blood! However, we should have plenty of that stashed." "That is correct. Magical beasts'' blood is the base on which most of our products are created and yes, we do have enough for of it stashed for our normal activities. Yet, we are attempting in something quite far from the ordinary." The elder tapped the cauldron in front of him and showed an excited smile to the young man. The inscriptions on the cauldron flickered and released some of their power, making Daniel take a few steps back to withstand the wave of energy radiated from the item. That cauldron wasn''t a common inscribed item! "What are you going to concoct with it?" Daniel asked in astonishment. Such powerful items were usually used to create pills that had a rank above the third! For a pill or a potion to be in the fourth rank, it meant that it could affect cultivators in that same rank! Products that could accelerate the cultivation were extremely valuable, especially if they were effective in the heroic ranks. "Hehe, interested? We managed to find the recipe for a rank 5 potion and, of course, we are eager to try it out." Rank 5 potion! A medicine that was effective on rank 5 cultivators! Even cultivation techniques were rare at that level, Daniel couldn''t even imagine the value of a rank 5 medicine. "Now that you know what we are dealing with, you must understand the number of resources involved in the process. We can''t just stop all the activities of the alchemy division for our experiments so we need to gather more resources. Sadly, the value of the Excavating worms is low in the market of the capital so no hunter would accept this mission unless we pay a hefty sum. Yet, in order to gather all the materials described in the recipe we have already spent a lot of Credits, we can''t afford the services of that guild. The only option is to send one of us there." One elder explained their situation. Daniel slowly recovered from the shock and put a pensive expression. "I don''t need Credits." He said after a while. "Hehe, we know. We also know that your position is quite difficult due to the recent events between the Royal dynasty and the noble families. That''s why your reward will be the possibility to watch us concoct the rank 5 potion." Daniel''s eyes widened and an internal struggle was born inside him. On one side, there was his ambition in the alchemy field: having the possibility to watch experienced alchemists work will greatly increase his understanding of certain procedures. Also, what they were going to concoct was a rank 5 item! How many times could someone experience such a sight? On the other one, there was his loyalty toward his family. Daniel knew that the alchemy division of the academy was a structure of the Royal family, if the elders were to succeed in the procedure, the item would go to the Royals. ''That is still fine since I can''t really stop them. Yet, if I was to personally help them gather the needed materials, what will my family think?'' Daniel thought. ''Maybe this is also a test from the Royals, they want to show me their goodwill in case I was to work for them and they also want to assess my loyalty toward the Cause.'' He was struggling to make a choice. ''Dammit, it''s a rank 5 item! How many decades will pass till I will be able to watch a similar event?'' The truth was that Daniel really liked being an alchemist. The idea of taking various ingredients, mixing them together, and creating something miraculous had always intrigued him. That''s why he disobeyed his family''s orders and joined the alchemy division to learn that mystical art, he couldn''t just play the good heir in front of something that he liked so much. After a few seconds spent in doubt, he opened his mouth to ask a simple question. "Can I bring whoever I want with me?" . . . A week passed. A man dressed in a black robe arrived at the bottom of a solitary mountain where a small passage could be seen. ''This should be the place. It''s so strange, even from here the density of "Breath" is already below the average.'' That man was, of course, Noah that had just reached his destination. ''I guess the previous Royal family wanted to keep their criminals in a place where they could not cultivate. I don''t understand why the Elbas family would let go of such a peculiar place though.'' Noah inspected his surroundings but he couldn''t find anything unusual. ''It should be something in this mountain or even at the bottom of the dungeon, maybe it''s due to some strange mineral like the "Breath" blessing.'' He judged before putting those thoughts in the back of his mind. He had come there for one reason, he wanted to test the limits of his newly obtained body! Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''I can''t express my full potential if I don''t know what I''m capable of! Also, with my "Breath" blessing, I don''t have to fear exhaustion due to the absence of "Breath".'' Thinking that, Noah entered the cavity at the base of the mountain. Chapter 223: 223. Mine Ancient was the perfect adjective to describe the state in which the dungeon was. As soon as Noah entered the cavity at the base of the mountain, he was met with a dusty and decrepit sight. ''It doesn''t seem that the magical beasts have reached the surface yet. They should be on the lower layers.'' Noah thought, inspecting the ground floor of the Bare Dungeon. It was a large cave with only a few rusty cells still resisting the passage of time. The wooden furniture had long dissipated in the past two thousand years, leaving only some random items made of iron or similar in the wide room. Noah didn''t find anything valuable there so he decided to continue his trip toward the lower levels. The place was dark and any type of artificial light had stopped working a long time ago, yet, for mages like Noah, darkness wasn''t a hindrance at all. At the end of the room, Noah found a passage leading downward which he crossed without hesitation. ''The "Breath" is diminishing.'' He noted in his mind as he descended in the first layer. Another big room unfolded itself in front of Noah, however, that one had many more cells than the one on the surface. ''Here should be where they kept low-level criminals. It''s strange though, the walls seem stable even after so many years which means that the previous Royal family had done a really impressive work when they created this place. Why abandon it?'' He didn''t think that the Elbas family would abandon such a good structure without a valid reason. ''Maybe they wanted to converge the power on the capital, they want to create an army with criminals after all. Yet, it does still seem quite a waste.'' Doubs assaulted his mind but he could only repress them. Many important matters were handled by cultivators in the heroic ranks, common human cultivators could not even imagine the number of secrets kept by them. Noah had learnt some of them due to his peculiar situation but they were only the tip of the iceberg, who knew how many secret matters had happened in two thousand years of rule. There were three almost identical rooms in that layer, with each of them having a passage that went deeper in the ground. ''Since I''m looking for magical beasts, I should follow the higher density of "Breath".'' Noah had come there to test his new strength, he couldn''t bother with the secrets of that place. Also, if even the current Royal family had abandoned it, that meant that any kind of useful item had already been plundered. Noah descended for some time. He had passed more than four layers already but he still had to find any magical beast. ''How deep is this place exactly? There is barely any "Breath" left in the air, this is definitely not a place were magical beasts would choose to live.'' Magical beasts fed on "Breath", of course they would set their lairs in an environment with a high density of it. ''Excavating worms live underground, creating tunnels and underground lairs. Even if they are weak compared to other creatures, they still need an incredible amount of "Breath" to reach the fourth rank. I thought that with two thousand years of accumulation, that could be possible but the concentration of "Breath" is far lower than what I expected. How exactly did they manage to survive?'' After reviewing all the information that he knew about that type of creature, Noah neared one of the walls of the room and strongly punched it. The rock was hard but a few shards still broke under the power behind Noah''s attack. ''The only nourishment that they could have was the same terrain that composes this dungeon.'' Noah thought, picking up one of the small pebbles that fell from the wall and inspecting it carefully. The rock was brown and didn''t seem to have anything special with it. Noah then used a small part of the "Breath" in his dantian and passed it over the rock. The "Breath" didn''t damage the rock and harmlessly dispersed in the air, yet the quantity in the air didn''t match the one used by Noah. Part of the "Breath" had disappeared without leaving any trace. ''Don''t tell me, this is a mine of Obsidian Credits!'' The Credits were the currency used by cultivators, they had value in their eyes because they contained "Breath". Yet, they came in two forms. The first one was in their rocky state when they were still absorbing "Breath" into their core. The second one was in their crystal state, in which they transformed after enough "Breath" was absorbed and that was then used by the cultivators as a currency. ''I understand, they are letting this mineral develop in order to mine it when it reaches the crystal form. The worms ate the terrain to create the lair and developed thanks to the "Breath" in it. Though, there should be more than a single rank 4 specimen then.'' Noah looked at the rock in his hand for a few more seconds before throwing it back on the floor while shaking his head. ''Abandoned my ass! I bet that the Royals come here every few decades to clean the area and disperse the "Breath" of the magical beasts back into the environment to accelerate the creation of Credits. Well, at least now I''m reassured: as long as I''m careful, there shouldn''t be hidden dangers.'' The "Breath" that he had just used and dispersed in the air reached the walls of the underground room. At that moment, some slight tremors began to run through the dungeon as if something was crawling under it. ''Ohh? They are quite sensitive.'' Noah wasn''t surprised by that reaction and prepared himself for the imminent assault. ''Three, four¡­. Not even ten of them, I''m still far from the lair.'' Noah counted in his mind as he analyzed the vibrations in the soil and used his mental energy to cover the entire room. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Then, the terrain broke and a four meters long and one meter thick worm came out of it. The worm was in the third rank, it had red-brown skin and three circular rows of teeth as its mouth. It didn''t seem to have eyes but it still jumped precisely at the standing Noah. ''Finally.'' However, he didn''t budge nor did he take out his sabers. As the worm arrived at his position, Noah''s hand shot and sealed itself around the worm''s mouth, strongly squeezing it. A rank 3 beast was blocked by a single hand! Chapter 224: 224. Strong The rank 3 Excavating worm struggled to escape Noah''s grip but to no avail. The hand was sturdy, its fingers strong, the flesh of the beast could not withstand the pressure that they applied on it. The worm screeched as blood began to flow from its oral cavity but there was nothing it could do, it was against a rank 4 body after all! Noah silently watched as his hands closed into a fist, turning the beast''s head in meat paste. A rank 3 beast was killed by a single move without the use of spells or techniques! ''This¡­'' A cold smile appeared on Noah''s face as he evaluated the power that his body held. However, his thoughts were interrupted since two more worms came out of the terrain and jumped at him. Noah activated the Shadow steps spell and dashed toward one of the beasts. A small black circle appeared under his sole but it was shattered by the raw power behind Noah''s movement, it didn''t give any further acceleration. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. A rank 0 spell could not increase his speed now that he had a rank 4 body! Yet, Noah had never sprinted faster in his life! He reached the worm while it was still mid-air and directly threw a punch to its mouth. Noah''s fist clashed with the rows of teeth of the beast, shattering them and piercing its body from the inside, the teeth were only able to lightly cut his skin. Then, the other beast reached him but Noah simply gave it a strong blow with the elbow of his free arm. The elbow smashed on the worm''s head and tore everything in its path, teeth and blood flew out in every direction as the beast was sent flying toward one end of the underground room. Noah then turned toward the beast stuck on his arm and punched it, smashing its head and killing it with that blow. Three rank 3 magical beasts killed in four moves using only the sheer power of his body! ''This is what I worked so hard for.'' He thought, looking at the corpse on the ground. The remaining five worms came out of the ground and warily encircled Noah. Their intelligence was low but they still understood when an opponent was too strong for them. Sadly, their hunger was unbearable. They had to feed on the terrain to sustain themselves, the only other living beings that they could eat were the specimens in their same pack, a human being was an irreplaceable prey in their sights. However, Noah wouldn''t just wait for them to attack. He directly jumped toward one of them, his speed was incredible, he arrived in front of one of the worms in an instant and delivered a strong kick in the middle of its body. The worm screeched as his skin was pierced, yet it survived. It had to be said though that Noah did that on purpose. He knew that the weak point of those types of magical beasts was their head, where their mouths were, yet he wanted to test the amount of damage he could inflict if he focused a non-vital part. The outcome made him quite satisfied: he couldn''t instantly kill the beast but its body had been almost severed in half by a casual kick. The other worms took his assault as a signal to begin their attack, they jumped at Noah from four different directions with their mouths drooling saliva that traced transparent lines in the air. Noah stomped with his foot over the head of the beast under him and moved. His fists shot toward two beasts while his knee crashed with another one, as for the last worm, he had better plans for it so he dodged its attack. Four more rank 3 magical beasts had died in just a few instants. ''Finally, I have some power.'' He couldn''t stop smiling seeing the dead beasts on the ground. Those were rank 3 magical beast! ''I went from killing my first one thanks to the element of surprise created by the Kesier rune, to being able to kill them without any technique. This power is what I''ve desired for so long, the power of the heroic ranks.'' Noah turned toward the remaining beast. The worm was scared stiff and tried to dig an escape route on the terrain but Noah focused his mental energy on it. The beast could not move anymore, Noah''s pressure was too heavy for it to resist. ''I''ve still some use for you, I should probably try that. A few drops of "Breath" should be enough to give me an idea of its power.'' The membrane around his heart tightened and a few drops of the "Breath" contained in it were inserted in his circulatory system. Noah immediately felt a violent energy surging from within himself and watched as his blood vessels turned black, becoming visible from under his skin. Noah seemed to have pulsing black worms all over his skin as his circulatory system was shown to the beast. The few scratches that he had just received from his clashes with the worms'' teeth healed immediately but Noah hadn''t used the ability of the Yin body to mend his wounds. Noah charged at the immobilized beast and delivered his strongest fist to its body, making the whole creature explode due to the might of the impact. Blood flew in every part of the room, leaving only Noah and his excited smile in it. Eight magical beasts in the third rank had been physically overwhelmed by a human, that left him particularly happy about his recent breakthrough. ''I guess they are just ants in my eyes now.'' Noah concluded in his mind as he watched his veins return to their normal state. ''Those drops of "Breath" were a bit overkill, one would have been enough. At least, it seems that the ability of my body is not that hard to control, I just need to use the energy before my blood vessels explode.'' Noah had seen a rank 4 body when he fought on Twilboia Cliff. Yet, Kevin''s transformation seemed harder to control and needed a casting time while Noah''s empowerment was almost immediate and the only danger was the buildup of internal pressure his body. ''If I had met the wind mage with my current strength, maybe I wouldn''t have needed for the representative of the Royal family to inflict such a heavy injury to defeat him. I guess I''m quite strong now.'' Chapter 225: 225. Party Noah gathered all the corpses in his space-ring. He had used only his body to fight them so he was in his peak form, only a few drops of "Breath" in the membrane around his heart were lost. ''The liquid "Breath" in my body should be refilled autonomously by my dantian over time, there is no need to stop just yet.'' He resumed his exploration toward the lower layers with his head full of thoughts about his recent fight. ''The Shadow steps spell is useless in battle now that my body is in the heroic ranks, it can help me only during my flight. Also, my running speed is now higher than my flying one, my blood companions are falling behind my improvements.'' Echo and Shadow were created from rank 3 magical beasts, their power was fixed, they could not overcome the limits of the human ranks no matter how much Noah''s centers of power increased in power. ''Should I attempt creating a companion from a rank 4 creature? Can I even do that?'' Noah evaluated that idea but then he shook his head. ''I''m not even sure if I can kill one of them, let alone subduing it in my sea of consciousness. I should wait for my mental sphere to reach the third rank to be safe, one mistake in the taming process and I might end up like Ivor. If things really become too dangerous, Echo and Shadow should still provide some help while I''m in the Demonic form.'' When he reached the end of the passage that he was crossing, he found twenty Excavating worms waiting for him at the entrance of the layer. ''I guess I should see how much power of my martial art I can express now.'' Noah though, smiling coldly as two white sabers appeared in his hands and jumping straight in the center of the group of beasts. Meanwhile, a luxurious carriage stopped right in front of the entrance of the Bare Dungeon. It had a rank 2 Mountain bull tied to its reins and a series of inscriptions on all its sides. The door of the carriage opened and four young men and a young woman calmly exited it and inspected the environment around them. "This should be the place, it''s quite hard to be mistaken with such a low density of "Breath" in the air." One of the men spoke and then turned toward the man at the back of their group. He was wearing a white robe adorned with golden inscriptions that seemed to have defensive proprieties. He had short silver hair and a slight but warm smile on his face. "Yes, Milo, this is definitely the place." That man was Daniel who had just arrived at the Bare Dungeon with his party. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Milo lowered his head in sign of respect and hid a smile behind that gesture. Daniel then continued to speak. "I want to use this moment before we enter the mountain to thank you all again for joining my mission. I know that you are busy with your lives and that the task from the alchemy division was quite sudden so I want to be sure that you understand how much I appreciate your company. Thank you, friends." Daniel''s words were warm and well-spoken, it was clear that he was used to conversing with other nobles. "We aren''t worthy, my Lord. I chose to follow you the moment my eyes first saw your figure. I don''t care if my family is against the Cause, once I become patriarch, I will offer you the full support of my family." The woman spoke in a stern tone but she could not hide some traces of blushing from appearing on her face. "I and the Udye family will never forget your vow, Phoebe." Daniel answered her words and lightly caressed her face, making her blush even more. "Phoebe is right, we are all with you. My Orgoo family and your Udye family has been allies for centuries, the Royals can''t divide such long-lasting friendship." If Noah was there, he would recognize the man that had just spoken. He was Troy Orgoo, one of the youths that had passed the entrance test in Ebonrest city with him. "Mh. Our force is not weak, three of us have a rank 4 body and we are all equipped with inscribed robes in the second rank. Even if we met with the rank 4 specimen, I have full confidence that we can escape. Who knows, we might even attempt to kill it!" Daniel cheered everyone''s morale with his words and moved toward the entrance of the dungeon, followed by the other four cultivators. "Lord Daniel, ehm, what do you know about this place? Why is the "Breath" so scarce here?" The man that had been silent till that moment was Manuel, the student that Noah had defeated to obtain his last accommodation in the academy. "I requested some reports from my family. Apparently, this whole mountain will become a mine of Obsidian Credits one day so the Elbas family has emptied its contents to accelerate the creation of the mine. They come here every few decades to prevent the creation of a threatening pack of magical beasts though, so it''s not completely abandoned." Daniel explained in a plain tone but the other in his group shot dissatisfied gazes to Manuel. They all knew what had happened in the academy. He lost in a fight against someone without a noble background, making the nobles lose face in front of the other students and also injuring himself. The injury slowed his cultivation speed and left a trauma on his personality, ultimately leading him to still have a rank 3 body. It was obvious that his name was usually mocked among the circle of nobles due to that event. "And, when was the last time that the Royals cleaned up this place?" Manuel was unmoved by those stares and continued to ask questions. "It should have been almost fifteen years ago, there should be a large number of rank 3 worms in there." Chapter 226: 226. Holes Of Daniel''s group, only three of them had a rank 4 body. One was, of course, Daniel, while the other two were Milo and Phoebe. However, with the exception of Daniel, all of them had their mental sphere still in the first rank, even though some of them were extremely close to the breakthrough. It couldn''t be helped, the sea of consciousness was the hardest center of power to train: not only it required a long amount of time and a painful training, but it also needed for the mental sphere of the cultivator to be thick and sturdy. Such requirements could not be met by such young cultivators, especially if their social status was lofty and comfortable. Sufferings and hardships were required to harden the mental sphere, things that nobles of wealthy families rarely encountered. They had access to a large number of pills and potions that targeted that center of power but their effects could not match real-life adversities. Only Daniel, who lived under the constant pressure of being the focal point of the Cause, could achieve a rank 2 sea of consciousness by the age of twenty-three. Being made of rank 1 mages though didn''t mean that the party was weak. They were still rank 2 cultivators equipped with protective items in the second rank. They all had a rank 4 martial art and inscribed weapons that suited their combat style, underestimating them would be a mistake. The five nobles crossed the entrance of the dungeon and immediately noticed something. "Someone is here!" Milo exclaimed, giving voice to the thoughts of his companions. There were clear signs of Noah''s passage on the dusty floor, it hadn''t even passed half a day since his arrival after all. "Someone from the Royal family?" Phoebe asked but Daniel shook his head. "Unlikely. The footprints belong to a single person and the Royal army always sends at least five men on each mission. It can only be a hunter or some lone cultivator looking for hiding." Milo snorted when he heard those words. "Lone cultivators¡­ This name is too nice to describe what they really are: criminals!" In a political system like that of the Utra nation, a lone cultivator was almost always a criminal or a fugitive. Techniques and spells were held by the nobles after all, it was impossible to accomplish something in the cultivation journey without having any relationship with them. "So, what do we do about this?" Troy asked timidly, turning his gaze to Daniel. "If he is a lone cultivator, we will question him and decide if he needs to be apprehended. If he is a hunter, we will try to buy the corpses of the worms that he has killed." Daniel answered casually, as if what he was saying was the most obvious thing in the world. The others in the party nodded at Daniel''s upright decision. In their situation, anyone could have easily decided to take advantage of the unlucky fellow and make some gains out of him. They outnumbered him and that location was quite remote, no one would find clues of a battle if they were thorough in covering them. Yet, Daniel didn''t even consider that possibility, improving even more his image in front of his party. Such behavior was the complete opposite of the cultivator that was in the lower layers, smilingly killing magical beasts. Noah waved his sabers with impeccable dexterity, in only a few minutes, the last beast was killed, leaving more than thirty corpses laid on the ground. ''I''m getting closer but I still have to see any rank 1 or 2 worms. Are they in the center of the pack being fed to stronger beings?'' Noah thought about the possible options while he gathered the corpses. ''It should be like with the Albino snake, just for a different reason. The environment doesn''t have enough "Breath" so they resort to cannibalism, the terrain can''t match a living being after all.'' He moved toward a deeper area, raising his attention to the peak. ''I''ve killed more than fifty rank 3 beasts, if this is still far from the pack, then the report must have been quite old.'' He was certain by then that the Royal family was periodically cleaning the dungeon. Magical beasts weren''t as smart as humans but they weren''t completely idiotic either: if the situation didn''t force them, they would have already changed the location of their lair, especially with a rank 4 specimen leading them. The fact that the pack still occupied that area was the confirmation that the beasts were purposely being kept there. ''All these efforts just to create a source of money, being the head of a country seems really annoying.'' Noah sighed internally thinking about how much time the Elbas family had invested in that place. When he arrived in the lower layer though, the sight changed drastically. It was still a detention room, with cells scattered randomly on the ground. Yet, the walls were full of holes, signing the passage of a high number of magical beasts. Also, the cells had biting signs on them and were vividly consumed, it seemed that something had sucked off the metal from each bar. ''Were these cells inscribed items?'' Noah guessed, nearing one of the cells to inspect it more carefully. ''Mh, they have eaten the inscriptions on them, I wonder how populous the pack is. Excavating worms are known for their high reproduction rate, I wouldn''t be surprised if the Elbas family had purposely planted those beasts here for this reason.'' More magical beasts meant more "Breath" dispersed in the environment when the cleaning operations happened. That method sacrificed the final amount of Credits obtained but accelerated their creation. ''I don''t really know how much does it take for a Credit to form but two thousand years had passed already, the fact that I didn''t find a single crystal means that I''m still at some distance from the core.'' Then, a sound forced him to stop his thoughts. Each hole in the walls began to emit a crawling noise that echoed through the entire underground room. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''I can''t really guess how many there will be like this, I hope they don''t destroy the place.'' Noah wielded his sabers and prepared himself for the imminent assault. At that moment, more than fifty worm''s heads came out from the cavities around him. Chapter 227: 227. Bloodline inheritance Fifty or so Excavating worms came out of the tunnels in the walls. Noah waved his sabers without hesitation, sending tens of wind slashes flying in every direction. Blood and heads fell down from the holes before the worms could even exit them completely. In just one attack, more than fifteen worms had been killed! Having a rank 4 body not only improved all his attacks but also removed the limit that he had on his martial art. The Three forms of the Ashura was a rank 4 martial art, logically speaking, it had to match the might of a rank 4 magical beast! However, Noah''s centers of power were too weak, they could not allow him to express the true power of those forms. Yet, now that he had a rank 4 body, some of that power could be unleashed. Noah seemed to have six arms that relentlessly slashed the air, four of them though were still ethereal and could only express part of their true strength. ''My martial art is almost mastered!'' Noah thought as he jumped left and right to finish off the beasts that had encircled him. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Rank 3 creatures had never been a problem for Noah, yet that was thanks to the incredible power of his Demonic form. With a rank 4 body though, he could kill as many as he wished without tiring himself too much. Endurance had always been one of Noah''s weaknesses since his battle prowess came from the Demonic form spell which expended a huge amount of mental energy, yet, with his body in the heroic ranks, he could show the results of his constant training. Martial arts were weaker than spells after all, they did not have the same destructive power but they consumed far less energy. Also, they depended on the ability of the cultivator. Noah, that had fought for more than ten years with a saber in his hands, could finally show the difference in his ability! Fifty rank 3 bests weren''t a threat for him, in ten minutes, they were easily killed. ''Once my mind and dantian reach the third rank, I can aim for the complete mastery of my art.'' He concluded in his mind, forcefully slashing with his weapons to remove the blood on them. ''This makes about one hundred worms in the third rank, they know my position by now.'' Noah neared one of the tunnels but he could not see its end. After inspecting a few more tunnels and gathering the corpses, he became certain of one thing. ''Here is where the lair begins.'' It was at that moment though that something unexpected happened. The floor of the underground room began to tremble and a loud crawling noise resounded in the area. ''Is this an ambush?'' Noah was surprised but still calm. He came in the dungeon to test his strength against a rank 4 magical beast, defeating waves of rank 3 creatures wasn''t a big issue. However, no worm arrived. The floor continued to tremble until deep cracks appeared on the terrain before it finally broke completely. The ground crumbled, showing tens of worms that were eating the terrain below, creating tunnels that disrupted the stability of the entire structure. ''The fuck is that?'' Noah''s concerns weren''t aimed at the broken floor nor at the astute trap of the magical beasts but rather at the environment that became visible below him. Hundreds of tunnels went in every direction in the terrain, it resembled the structure of a hive with many bigger tunnels that divided every section. Also, in its deeper part, a pale halo shone, illuminating the intricate underground structure in which the beasts transformed the lower layers of the Bare Dungeon. Echo''s wings tore Noah''s clothes and began to flap at his will and small black circles appeared under his soles from time to time, keeping him in the air while he inspected the situation. ''This isn''t the usual layout of a worm''s lair. The magical beasts have precisely dug passages over the years and created this. Did they inspire themselves to the previous structure of the dungeon? But that would require a higher intelligence than what they are capable of, unless¡­'' Noah remained at the same altitude over the huge numbers of tunnels and caves at a hundred meters below him. All he could see were some random worm appearing and continuing in its excavation, it seemed that the beasts had given up on him when they saw that he could fly. ''Bloodline inheritance!'' That assumption echoed in his mind, creating waves of shock that assaulted Noah. ''This is incredible! It makes sense though, this is the perfect environment for the birth of a rank 4 creature with that quality.'' A bit of greed was exuded from Noah''s eyes as he stared at the illuminated bottom of the lair. ''I have to kill it, I can''t let go of this chance.'' A beast with a bloodline inheritance was a magical beast that had developed its sea of consciousness. The sea of consciousness was, after all, the representation of the thoughts of a living being. Beasts acted on instinct, they had not proper thoughts, leading them to have a vague imitation of the humans'' mental sphere that could not be trained, they were even unaware of having it. However, nature always found a way. They were beings that relied on their bodies for everything, their blood contained their will even if it was so weak that it could be disregarded. Yet, in the proper situation, that will could be empowered and passed down to their descendants or to those that ate them. Little by little, that blood would accumulate and create a proper center of power, giving to a specimen a higher intelligence. ''Two thousand years of periodic extermination, forced to eat their own kind to survive, hating the humans that always left some of them alive. That hate has grown and accumulated over the years, carried by the blood of each beast in the pack until a rank 4 creature was born with a sea of consciousness that contained the hate of tens of thousands beasts. That hate is the inheritance passed down by the previous generations of these creatures, which ultimately gave birth to an intelligent magical beast, a miracle.'' Noah''s expression broke into a smile. ''A miracle that I can eat.'' Chapter 228: 228. Hate The Excavating worms had been moved from their previous lair and planted in that barren environment. Then, their numbers had been periodically reduced to prevent them from escaping from the dungeon, forcing them to resort to cannibalism or to eat terrain. The blood of the beasts from two thousand years ago might have been lost, diluted during that huge amount of time, but the will that it carried remained. It was enough for one beast to start to hate, tainting its body with a firm but weak emotion, for a chain reaction to be generated. That beast died but its blood was shared among the beast that ate it, awakening a similar will on them. The same happened to those beasts that continued to spread that contaminated blood. Then, the cleaning operation would arrive, reducing their numbers and concentrating once again that emotion in fewer specimens, while being slightly increased in might. Like that, years passed and that cycle repeated itself. An entire pack that shared the same emotion continued to thrive and be destroyed, increasing the power held by its will. Until, one day, the miracle happened. A peculiar rank 4 creature was born, carrying an unusual concentration of contaminated blood. That blood had the accumulated hatred of tens of thousands beasts, it became so powerful that the normal body of the magical beast could not contain it, leading to the awakening and developing of its sea of consciousness. Because of that, it was called bloodline inheritance. ''At least, I know for a fact that the Royals aren''t aware of this.'' Noah thought, standing mid-air with his eyes fixed on the deepest part of the lair. As for why he was convinced of that, it was because the sea of consciousness of a magical beast that obtained a bloodline inheritance was considered among the best nutrients for the mental sphere of a cultivator. A beast''s mental sphere was still inferior to a human''s one, which allowed a cultivator to freely absorb it! ''Is this considered luck or bad luck?'' Noah couldn''t help but have second thoughts. On one hand, a beast with a bloodline inheritance was an extremely rare event, impossible to predict. A pack of magical beasts had to be contained for thousands of years, hoping that one of their specimens would give birth to a strong will and pass it down. Also, there were no available methods to test if such will was created, which ultimately led the cultivators to abandon every experiment on that field. It was completely casual after all, it was impossible to create an environment that had a high chance of success in giving birth to such a beast. If one added the amount of time needed too, it was easy to consider any experiment in that field not worth the effort. On the other hand, such a beast was smart. It could learn from the environment, it could plan ambushes, it could define the layout of its lair to better suit its needs. Also, it could use its pack to perform complex formations, overall it was a powerful foe. ''This mission has suddenly become far more dangerous than I expected.'' Noah was conflicted. ''If I let go of this chance, I will surely lose the bloodline inheritance, I don''t believe that the Royals will miss it once they see the layout of the lair.'' The sea of consciousness of the creature would give a huge boost to his mental sphere and also increase his understanding of the magical beasts. ''Yet, I wasn''t sure that I could kill it before I discovered its quality, now my chances have reduced even more.'' Minutes passed, with Noah calmly considering his possibilities. ''Fuck it, the Excavating worm has one of the lowest battle capabilities among the magical beasts and my spells are suited to fight large numbers of enemies. I have tons of potions and a "Breath" blessing, I''m more than prepared for this fight. Even if I can''t defeat it and the pack tries to cut my escape route, I can just use the Demonic sword to create a way for me.'' Once he decided, he slowly descended toward the nearest cave, rousing the worms in the tunnels that gathered in front of him. ''Let''s see if your will is stronger than mine.'' Meanwhile, in the upper layers of the dungeon. Daniel and his group were warily inspecting their surroundings. The tremors that made one of the lower floors crumble had surprised them and it had momentarily stopped their descent. "Milo, what do you think?" Daniel broke the silence. Milo raised his gaze and shook his head. "Something was destroyed in the lower layers but I can''t deduce anything else. The "Breath" in the terrain hinders even the investigative technique of the scouts of the Elbas family. What should we do?" Daniel looked at the ground below him for a while before nodding to the others with him. "It''s either the lone cultivator fighting or the beasts creating a mess. Either way, we should proceed downward to find the Excavating worms." The other four nodded and waited for him to point to a direction. Daniel had a large and detailed map in his hands, it was the complete blueprint of the Bare Dungeon. After a quick inspection, he pointed toward one of the passages. "Even if on that one the concentration of "Breath" is higher, this passage leads to the lower layers faster. With our strength, fighting a few hundred rank 3 magical beasts is not a problem so we should descend quickly." The cultivators didn''t have any objection and went directly for the passage pointed by their leader. Milo was in the front, he had specific techniques to investigate the environment, he could even surpass the perception of a rank 2 mage when he used them. The group moved fast, they easily crossed a few empty rooms, getting closer and closer to the lair. Then, they were met with the same scene that Noah had encountered. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. It was a room with more than a hundred holes in the walls, with a constant crawling noise coming from them. Chapter 229: 229. Separation "They are coming!" Milo shouted and prepared for the assault of the magical beasts. The others in his group did the same and set themselves up in a circular formation that covered every angle. Daniel wielded a silver sword, Milo had two daggers, Phoebe held a spear with both her hands, and Troy and Manuel were ready with their swords pointed toward the walls. "They should be only rank 3 beasts, no need to waste mental energy on them." Daniel loudly ordered and the others nodded in approval, their strength was way superior to that of those weak creatures. Three of them had a rank 4 body after all, using spells would be overkill. The worms slowly came out of the tunnels and inspected the situation. In the eyes of those simple beasts, the five humans in a circle in front of them were simply too scary. They exuded a strong battle intent and they were working together, they would rather go after the solitary human in the deeper parts of their lair. However, their leader had given specific orders so they jumped at them after a short moment of hesitation. The result of that fight was quite predictable. Sixty or so magical beasts in the third rank tried to encircle the cultivators but were vanquished in a few minutes due to the immense difference in power. Daniel gracefully waved his sword which emitted sharp shining lights that cut the creatures as soon as they came in contact with them. Milo inflicted precise wounds on every worm that came too close to the formation, killing each of them in one blow. Phoebe used wide attacks, fully expressing the power of her long weapon, and preventing most of the creatures from coming close to them. Troy and Manuel were slightly less impactful but still killed a few worms. It wasn''t that they were weak but rather that their three companions were much stronger than them. When everything was over, Daniel moved to collect the corpses with a satisfied gaze. His space-rings were already equipped with items that gathered the blood of the worms so the collection part was fast and smooth. ''I should collect three to four hundred of these to be sure. These ambushes are quite useful.'' He thought before being brought back to reality by a strong earthquake. The room began to tremble just like it had happened to Noah. "Milo?" Daniel shot an inquisitive look to Milo but he could only shrug his shoulders in answer, he was confused about that situation too. Then, cracks began to fill the floor of the room and big pieces of the terrain fell in the empty space downward, creating dark pits in the ground. In the end, the ground broke and revealed the hive-like structure of the lower layers. The five nobles didn''t have any method to fly or to slow their descent. When they lost their footholds, they fell straight into the nest, separating themselves during the fall when they managed to reach for a cave. Meanwhile, Noah was running at high speed, killing as many worms as he could. His tactic was simple: kill all the weaker beasts and have a one versus one against the rank 4 creature. ''Intelligence is useless if you don''t have the necessary strength to use it!'' Those were his thoughts. The fact that the rank 4 Excavating worm had a Bloodline inheritance and had awakened its sea of consciousness didn''t directly increase its battle prowess. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Intelligence required means to be scary, it was almost useless if it didn''t have ways to be applied. That''s why, Noah decided to vanquish its army before facing it, without the possibility of setting encirclements and formations, the threat of its intelligence would be greatly reduced. However, the exploration of the lair revealed itself quite challenging. Most of the tunnels were vertical and required the usage of his wings to effectively explore them. Also, the worms could freely dig their way away from the battle, escaping Noah''s chase and reorganizing in another area. ''This is annoying, I''ve only managed to kill around thirty worms since I entered the lair, they always escape when I kill too many of them. The way in which they escape is suspicious too, it seems that they are trying to lure me somewhere.'' Noah was chasing every trace of life that he found as he had planned, yet, when dealing with a beast with a Bloodline inheritance, he could not act in the same way he did with normal magical beasts. He had to be wary of the plots and traps of his opponent, he couldn''t just jump at every worm he saw. ''If I end up in a closed space with hundreds of magical beasts in the third rank and the leader, I might be in trouble.'' Then, a tremor ran through the underground area which made Noah stop his advance and jump in the air, warily inspecting the terrain as his wings kept him flying. ''Mh? Did it come from above?'' A sound shifted his attention toward the upper parts of the lair. As he watched, two figures fell from one of the passages, doing their best to slow down their speed. One of them was a woman wielding a spear that continuously tried to stab on the walls to create a handhold. However, her efforts were vain since she could not exert much strength as she fell and her weapon always failed to stick in the wall. The other one was a man with a sword that Noah found familiar. He was panicking, looking at how the floor was nearing him. Then, the woman gave up on stopping her fall and used the spear to launch herself toward the man. Once she reached him, she grabbed him and prepared herself for the landing. THUD! A loud thud resounded in the area as the two cultivators hit the ground and created a cloud of smoke. Noah was surprised and calmly went back on the terrain without moving his gaze from those two cultivators. When the smoke vanished, he was able to see that the woman was squatting with a pained expression as she held the man safely in her arms. Chapter 230: 230. Wrong A rank 4 body was extremely strong, inhuman even. However, falling for a few hundred meters and landing while holding a person was too much even for those that had it. Phoebe felt as if her legs were going to break. Yet, they held on and she also managed to save Manuel who was still in her arms. "Get off, I need to sit." Phoebe said, waiting for Manuel to realize that he had been saved. "Thank you so much! You saved my life, please take this." Manuel took out a potion from his space-ring and handed it to Phoebe who accepted it without saying a word. She then sat on the ground stretched her legs to speed up their recovery. The injury wasn''t bad but it still required a few days of rest to completely heal. ''What are they doing here? I thought that this danger zone wouldn''t attract anyone. Wait, isn''t that Manuel?'' Noah thought, looking at them. He had retracted his wings out of habit, in case the two cultivators were hostile and tried to attack him. After all, his ability to fly was extremely useful, he would rather hide it when he met with strangers. His presence though couldn''t be hidden and the two nobles soon noticed that someone was staring at them. Phoebe raised her gaze and looked toward him with a surprised expression. What she saw was a young man with long combed dark hair and a pair of piercing blue eyes. His clothes were tight and black and a cold aura was spread all around him. ''He is wary of us.'' She concluded and began to speak. "I am Phoebe, from the Ramgett family. I''ve come here with-" However, her words were interrupted by a loud yell shouted by his companion. "VANCE!!!" Manuel had turned and had recognized Noah. At that moment, all the accumulated anger that he had felt after their match exploded and he jumped straight at Noah. Sparks accumulated on his sword as he ran at full speed toward the man in front of him, uncaring of the fact that his specialty was the long-range combat. His anger had taken control of his body and all he could think of was to kill the man that ruined his cultivation journey. However, Noah wasn''t the same man that he had fought in the academy. As soon as he saw traces of hostility, Noah attacked. His speed was way higher than Manuel''s one, allowing him to reach his position when Manuel was still mid-air. That burst of speed surprised Manuel but there was nothing that he could do about it. He could only watch as Noah''s saber slashed his waist and used his other hand to grab his throat. THUD! Noah roughly slammed Manuel on the ground an pointed a saber to his head, his foot pressed on his throat to hold him still. Then, another saber appeared in his free hand which he pointed toward Phoebe. "Why are you here?" Manuel''s robe denied all the damage of his weapon. Also, he had decided to hold back. After he recognized Manuel and Phoebe gave some explanation, he was sure that there were more people in their group. Their status had to be quite high too since those two cultivators were noble. So, he decided to not instantly kill Manuel and probe them. "Are you Vance from the academy?" Phoebe asked in a surprised voice but Noah only pressed harder on Manuel''s throat as an answer. Phoebe understood the meaning behind his actions and hurriedly resumed her explanation. "Wait! I am an heir of the Ramgett family and he is the heir of the Gousho family. We joined Lord Daniel in his mission to collect Excavating worms but we fell here after the floor of the Bare Dungeon crumbed." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah remained impassible but his thoughts raced like crazy. ''Daniel? What need does he have for the worms? Also, why did he bring these nobles with him? Couldn''t he just use the guards of his family?'' Doubts assaulted his mind but then he focused back on the situation in front of him. "How many are with him?" Phoebe listened to his words and became slightly irritated. "Can you stop threatening us? We are nobles! You need to give us some respect!" She had never been treated so rudely in her entire life! She was aware of some rumors that concerned Vance but she had never been too interested in them. She was older than him after all, she wouldn''t care about a nameless genius when she had the true genius of her generation on her side. However, Noah didn''t care for status and simply stabbed Manuel on the shoulder with the weapon aimed at his head. The robe could not stop the strength applied by Noah and easily pierced the inscribed item. Manuel''s shout was suppressed by the foot on his throat but a few rough words could still be discerned. "You¡­ruined¡­my¡­life." Manuel struggled those words out of him but Noah simply stabbed his other shoulder without moving his gaze from Phoebe. "We are five, we split up during the fall." Phoebe said after seeing the cruel reaction that her words had caused. "Why do you need the worms?" Noah continued with his questions. "I don''t know, it was a mission of the alchemy division of the academy." ''Do they need some material? Why though, the worms are only useful for their blood.'' Noah was confused but he stopped trying to guess the intention of the alchemy division, he wasn''t an alchemist after all. ''What should I do with these two?'' His pressing concerns were the two cultivators with him. Noah lifted his gaze toward the upper parts of the lair and focused all his mental energy to inspect the area. Echo helped too, scanning a large area around him. Yet, its ability was heavily restricted in that environment, Noah didn''t discover anything useful. "Tell me, if you were me, what would you do now?" Noah spoke casually. Phoebe was a bit surprised and timidly gave an honest answer. "Let Manuel go and help us escape the dungeon. Manuel has attacked you first but you used him to threaten me so you will have to answer for that." "Wrong." Noah said, crushing Manuel''s neck with his foot. Chapter 231: 231. Special Phoebe saw blood coming out of Manuel''s mouth. She saw how the anger in his eyes slowly turned into astonishment before vanishing altogether. The light in his eyes disappeared as life left the noble, Manuel died right in front of her eyes. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?" Phoebe screamed. She could have never imagined that a student from the academy would kill the heir of a noble family! Noble families were the most powerful organizations after the Royal family after all, who would want to antagonize himself with them? However, Noah wasn''t a common cultivator. When Manuel attacked, he had already decided to kill both of them. First, he had come there to test himself, there was no better opponent than an injured cultivator with a rank 4 body. Second, those two were isolated from the rest of their group. Once Noah saw that nobody else was coming, he decided that it was better to take care of that unexpected threat. Third, he knew that his rank 4 body had been exposed, the woman in front of him simply didn''t realize it just yet. Lastly, he needed a bait for the Excavating worms. If large quantities of "Breath" were to be expended in that room, many magical beasts would be attracted, preventing Noah from walking into a trap. "I killed him." Noah plainly answered, inspecting Manuel''s body to gather all his belongings. "Do you understand what have you done? The Gousho family will never let you off the hook, they will make you pay and no amount of protection can save you!" Noah picked a space-ring and Manuel''s weapon and turned toward the woman still sitting on the ground. "You really don''t understand the kind of situation you are in, do you?" Noah shook his head after he said those words and slowly neared her. After that phrase, something clicked inside Phoebe''s head and her eyes widened in understanding. She remembered that Vance was younger than Manuel and yet he managed to defeat him just by using his brute force. ''That shouldn''t be possible, unless¡­'' Her thoughts raced until she finally reached a conclusion that surprised her even more. "You have a rank 4 body. But how? You are too young." Noah nodded but never stopped nearing her. "See, when you are blessed with wealth and power, you usually forget that you aren''t so special. You can even be a Royal but, in this place, rules can''t protect you." Then, Noah began to run at full speed toward her. Phoebe was surprised and forced herself to stand up, wielding her spear to block the incoming attack. However, her injury was heavily hindering her movements, she was far from her peak strength. ''I can win this, he is the strongest student of his generation but I''ve cultivated for three years more than him, he can''t be that powerful.'' Yet, her beliefs were shattered after their first clash. Noah immediately used the first form of the Ashura, creating twenty ethereal sabers that attacked Phoebe from every direction. She was surprised once again and hurriedly rotated her spear to block the incoming attacks. The spear vibrated at an unusual rhythm, slowing Noah''s attacks when they became too close to it and reducing their might. Most of Noah''s attacks were blocked by that defensive from but some of them managed to slip through her defense. The sabers slashed her robe, which blocked many of them, allowing only two cuts to appear on it. Yet, when the attacks surpassed the defense of the robe, they were unable to injure Phoebe. Noah felt as if he had hit a hard rocky wall and he was unable to break it. ''This is annoying, her defense is tight and I can''t waste much time.'' Noah saw that his attacks were ineffective and decided to use the ability of his body. The membrane around his heart tightened and poured in his circulatory system the liquid "Breath" that it contained. Phoebe had used her best defensive methods to block the attacks and was amazed to discover that the man in front of her still managed to touch her skin. ''I have the best defense of my generation but he can break it!'' Then, she saw how Noah''s veins turned black and began to pulse at an even rhythm. More attacks came in her direction after that and she had no time to think about that sudden change. Her spear rotated again, emitting the same vibrations as before. Yet, that time her technique wasn''t able to completely block the attacks and she was slowly pushed back by the relentless assault. It had to be said that she was injured, she could not exert her full strength since her legs were wounded. Also, Noah had stopped trying to find weak points in her techniques and began to focus on her weapon while using the full power of his body. Phoebe was continuously pushed back. Her legs hurt and her hands slowly became sore and numb, she could not last much longer if she limited herself to defend. ''What should I do? I can''t properly attack in my current state and this Vance isn''t showing any signs of getting tired. I should stall as much as I can and wait for Lord Daniel to arrive.'' She decided in her mind and focused all her energy on defending as much as she could. The vibrations created with her martial art increased and began to affect a larger area in front of her. Even Noah''s movements started to be affected by those vibrations, yet he had already reached another conclusion in his mind. His attacks began to emit a black smoke that accumulated all around Phoebe. ''A spell? But I''m using a rank 4 martial art with a rank 4 body and a defensive inscribed item in the second rank! Is he getting anxious?'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. A trace of hope appeared in her eyes which was immediately shattered when she saw the effects that the spell had on the battle. The smoke destroyed the vibrations that she was creating, allowing Noah''s attack to freely clash on the spear and pierce her defense. Chapter 232: 232. Monster ''What is that!? A rank 1 spell can''t break my defenses so quickly!'' Phoebe was terrified. Noah''s attacks were directly clashing with her spear, transmitting the entirety of their power to her. She took large steps back, enduring the pain that her movements caused. Yet, the black smoke began to affect her robe, slowly consuming it and reducing its power. Also, Noah never stopped pressing her, no matter how much she retreated, he was always in front of her. Then, her back hit the wall of the underground room, preventing her from retreating. Noah''s assault became even more violent at that moment. Phoebe struggled to block the attacks but, without the effect of her martial art, she could not defend as well as before. Many cuts appeared on her robe and wounds began to accumulate on her body, Noah had finally managed to make her bleed! Also, the black smoke accumulated around her figure, continuously consuming her robe and skin. ''Will I die here?'' She couldn''t see any way out of that situation and ultimately began to consider that option. ''What can I do? What can I do?'' She began to panic, committing some mistakes in the execution of her forms which were promptly exploited by Noah. Two of his attacks stabbed her on the waist, putting an end to her struggles for survival. "Why? I didn''t deserve this." Phoebe''s soft voice resounded in the room as she lost her strength and let go of her weapon. Noah''s eyes became dark after hearing her words but he didn''t stop his offensive and stabbed her chest to inflict a fatal wound. Her skin was hard and rough, it resembled a rock, yet it couldn''t stop Noah''s blows when he used his full strength. Life left Phoebe right in front of Noah''s eyes. Another noble had died because of him. Noah didn''t waste time and gathered her belongings, hurriedly taking her body to where he had left Manuel''s one. Then, he covered the area with the black smoke and waited for every trace of them to disappear. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''Next, the battlefield.'' Noah used the toxic smoke to erase every trace of the battle from the underground room, destroying the bloodied terrain and covering the traces of cuts from the walls. ''This should do.'' Noah thought after another inspection of the room. He took out a couple of potions and directly drank them. The battle had revealed itself quite challenging and Noah wanted to return at his peak form as fast as he could before the wave of worms arrived. ''She was strong, without my spell, it would have taken a lot to defeat her.'' Noah judged in his mind as he sat on the ground to rest. Then, her last words resounded in his head and made him fall deep in thought. ''How many of those that die really deserve it?'' Noah remembered all the experiences of both his lives. ''In my previous world, poor people were exploited till they died of hunger. Wars were everywhere and the powerful men were only concerned about their personal gains, the weaklings were always discarded.'' ''Here is the same with the exception that a single man can become a powerful entity, so powerful that rules and ethics have to bow to him. That''s why the means for power are controlled so strictly and the nobles manage to always accumulate more power over time. Good and evil are human''s ideas after all, they are not absolute in their meaning.'' That was a conclusion that he had already reached in his previous life. However, in his previous world, humans could not escape those rules. They were bound to the meaning that the few powerful men decided, they were forced to work to buy their freedom, they were puppets in the scary monster that society was. Noah had lost any attachment to life there, he only wanted to spend the rest of his life in solitude, doing the few things that he liked at his own terms. In that new world though, humans could rise in the sky and destroy mountains, they could become gods and reach for the stars with just their thoughts. Noah had finally found something that surpassed any rule or ethic, something above the vague meaning of good and evil, something that made him want to live again. Yet, humans acted always in the same way. His cultivation journey was obstructed by his status and by those that wanted to control him, in the eyes of the nobles, he was just a pawn that had to be restricted and used. ''Tell me, my disciple, what can you do against a faster, stronger opponent that you can''t outsmart?'' William''s words from his first training session resounded in his mind. Noah had understood the meaning behind that teaching long ago. The world was unfair. Giving up on your ambition was the key to survival if you didn''t have a lofty status. ''Is that even life? A life of compromises can only lead to a life of regrets. Death does not scare me, what I''m afraid of is living another pitiful life and abandoning the very reason that keeps me alive. I simply can''t do that.'' Noah had already reached that conclusion long ago but Phoebe''s words had reminded him of those old doubts. A crawling sound sounded in the room, it seemed that the magical beasts had arrived just as Noah had predicted. Noah sighed and stood up, he knew that he could not rest anymore. ''There is another answer to his question.'' He smiled a little thinking about his Master back in Balvan mansion. ''If my opponent is faster than me, I will lay a trap and prevent him from escaping; if my opponent is stronger than me, I will escape his grasp until he is exhausted; if my opponent is smarter than me, I will sever his limbs and render him unable to take any action; if he is all three of them...'' A hundred or so magical beasts came out of the tunnels of the room. That time, there weren''t only rank 3 magical beasts but even their weaker versions. ''If he is all three of them, I will become a monster and do all it takes to defeat him.'' Chapter 233: 233. Rescue In the underground room, puddles of blood were everywhere on the ground. Noah was sitting among them, quietly cultivating to aid his recovery. He had just vanquished the assault of the Excavating worms and had used again some of his potions to refill his centers of powers. ''There were rank 1 and 2 specimens this time. I''m getting closer to the leader.'' He thought. The last ambush featured weaker beasts, which meant that the number of rank 3 specimens had been drastically reduced. ''Maybe this is another trap though, I don''t really know how cautions I have to be against something with a Bloodline inheritance.'' The knowledge about that rare case was limited, something like that had happened only a few times for it to be successfully studied. ''I should dump part of the corpses somewhere, I don''t really have any use for them. Also, I have four space-rings to inspect. I should probably go deeper in the lair before doing that.'' He had fought twice in that underground room, the traces of battle had become too evident. He wasn''t afraid of the other cultivators in Daniel''s group, if he met them, he would simply kill them or lie. Yet, he was sure that the pack of worms was planning another assault. ''I don''t know if the rank 4 creature thinks as a beast or as a human. It''s obviously trying to probe me but I don''t know if its plan is to exhaust me or something else. I should probably spend a day or two hidden in a small cave to recover with my potions, using the "Breath" blessing now would be too dangerous.'' He had initially thought that the "Breath" blessing was his biggest advantage in that environment but he had to reconsider that idea. He didn''t expect for other cultivators to arrive, using that mineral would expose his position to them and facilitate their regroup. ''The worms aren''t a problem but I don''t think I can win against two cultivators as strong as that woman, especially if Daniel is one of them.'' The battle against Phoebe made him realize that his real advantage was still his Demonic form. His technique was slightly superior to hers but he couldn''t achieve a fast victory with just his martial art. He was dealing with nobles older than him after all, they were powerful and well equipped. ''I need to save my mental energy and the liquid "Breath" in my body for the fight against the rank 4 beast. I''ve already spent too much of the latter.'' The mental energy recovered while the cultivator rested, it wasn''t affected by the external environment. However, the liquid "Breath" in his body depended on his dantian which was struggling to refill itself in the dungeon. Luckily for Noah, he had a large accumulation of potion and pills which could help in any situation. ''Let''s find that cave and rest.'' He thought, enveloping his figure with mental energy and moving toward a deeper part of the lair. Meanwhile, a young man was running at high speed in one of the tunnels. He was in a pitiful state: his robe was torn and broken, he was sweating profusely, and some open wound still dripped blood on the ground as he ran. About forty rank 3 worms were behind him, they were faster than the cultivator, the dungeon was their territory after all. ''Fuck! If only Lord Daniel or Milo were here! Damned beasts, why are they so accurate in their ambushes?!?'' That man was Troy who had been separated from the rest of his group. He had been lucky, he had managed to enter one of the tunnels as soon as the floor broke, suffering only some minor injury. Yet, all his stronger companions had fallen deeper in the lair, leaving him alone in the upper parts of the dungeon. Initially, he had thought about finding a way out and call for help, yet the magical beasts never allowed him to do so. They began to assault him, never allowing him to rest or recover, forcing him to dive deeper into the lair to escape their attacks. After almost half a day of continuous fights, Troy was exhausted. His protective robe had been destroyed, his centers of power were almost empty, and his body alone wasn''t enough to deal with those beasts. Ten or so worms appeared right in front of him, blocking his path. ''Dammit!'' He cursed in his mind and stretched his hand toward the beasts. A fox made of fire came out of his arm and jumped toward the worms, engulfing their figures in a raging fire that destroyed them immediately. Troy jumped through the curtains of flames and continued his escape, yet his complexion had worsened even more. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''That was my last spell, I need to find somewhere safe to recover or I will die.'' Troy knew that without the aid of his spells, he would be overwhelmed by the high number of beasts in the pack. Then, the wall on his side broke and tens of rank 3 worms fell right over his figure. Troy didn''t have time to dodge and was submerged by the tide of magical beasts. ''Is this the end?'' He thought as the worms began to bite his body and tear his flesh. However, at that moment, wind slashes ran through the room and severed the heads of many worms, killing them on the spot. Another cultivator appeared, jumping directly in the middle of the group of beasts and sending even more attacks on them. He wielded two knives that he waved without hesitation, inflicting fatal wounds on each beast. He walked unmatched among the worms, those rank 3 creatures couldn''t even touch him. "Milo!" Troy smiled happily seeing that one of his companions had arrived in his help and struggled to defeat the worms that were still attempting to eat him. Milo arrived in his position and killed the beasts on him before turning and sending tens of wind slashes on the remaining beasts. In just a few minutes, those forty or so magical beasts had been killed and Troy had been saved. Chapter 234: 234. Vance "Milo, thank you so much!" Troy struggled to stand up and bowed to his companion as a sign of gratitude. Milo smiled and shook his head while handing a pill to him. "This will help to heal your wounds. Focus on recovering while I gather the bodies of these worms, we will move as soon as you are better." Troy took the pill and sat back on the ground. Milo had a rank 4 body and was older than him, he wouldn''t object to anything he said. A few hours passed in which the two nobles quietly cultivated to refill their centers of power. "Time to go, I''m worried about the others." Milo ordered and Troy followed without complaints. "This place is strange, I never knew magical beasts could set so many traps in such a short amount of time." Troy said, describing the events that led him to that situation. "It is indeed strange. I was only attacked once and then I didn''t find any trace of the magical beasts. They must have been focusing you the whole time since they understood that you are one of the weakest of our group. Luckily, I noticed your spell with my investigative technique, otherwise I would still be wandering aimlessly in one of the tunnels." Troy lowered his head listening to those words, he couldn''t help but feel useless. Milo put a hand over his shoulder and smiled warmly to him. "You did well. You are still young but your character is already this strong, I''m sure you''ll become a powerful cultivator in the future. If Manuel was in your place, he wouldn''t have lasted this much." Troy nodded at that praise and lifted his head. "What do we do now?" Milo smiled again and pointed toward the deeper part of the lair. "Lord Daniel has surely gone for the core of the lair. I believe that if we follow the movements of the beasts, we will find him." "What about Phoebe and Manuel?" "Phoebe is not a problem, she is strong, she can take care of any number of rank 3 beasts. As for Manuel¡­" Milo''s eyes became cold as he spoke. "If he dies here, his uselessness will be finally shown to the world." Troy''s expression became complex after hearing those words. "What is it?" Milo noticed that change in his companion and asked that. "Milo, I know that you don''t really like him due to the events in the academy-" "Damn right! He bragged so much about matching Daniel''s cultivation speed and then he lost to a brat with common origins. He disgraced the whole noble society with his actions." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Milo snorted, interrupting Troy''s phrase. "I was there, Milo. I was in his class. That guy, Vance, he is a ruthless man. If the Professors didn''t intervene during the fight, Manuel would have died there." "What are you trying to say?" "I saw him fight every week, Milo. He is honestly the strongest fighter I''ve ever seen, it was as if he was born with a saber in his hands." Troy was in the Grayshade class with Noah and June and the real-battle course was one of the most attended ones. The students there had seen Noah''s ability with his weapons, that''s why they had never suspected about him having cheated in the entrance test. "Stronger than Daniel?" Milo''s eyebrows arched as he asked that question. Yet, Troy immediately shook his head. "No, no. He is even younger than me, he can''t match Lord Daniel''s centers of power. I''m just saying, you shouldn''t be so hard on Manuel. In that battle, he did his best but Vance has been simply too strong. Also, I think he was even holding back." "Holding back?" At that moment, Milo was really surprised. He despised Manuel for his defeat against a commoner but he had never imagined that the difference in power would have been so large. "Yes. You probably don''t know but it seems that no one is aware of his aptitude. He simply uses his martial art and his puppet every time. I don''t believe that, in three years in the academy, he didn''t buy a single spell for his element." Milo fell deep in thought. He knew some rumors about Noah but they were mostly linked to his battle with Manuel. Also, Noah was from a younger generation, the heirs of the noble families wouldn''t be so interested in someone that young. "What kind of cultivator is he?" Milo broke the silence to ask that question. "Aloof, a true loner. He didn''t speak much and he often isolated himself in his lodgings. He seemed to care only about his cultivation and he didn''t seem to care about girls until he started to live together with his sparring partner. I have to say that they make a scary couple." Milo ignored the last part of Troy''s explanation and focused on one particular aspect. "Do you think that it would be worth investing in him?" Troy was slightly surprised by that question but then he understood what his companion meant. "Yes, I don''t see him becoming weak all of sudden and he would need someone that finances him. I believe we should try to rope him, he will be a huge asset in the Cause." Milo nodded before turning his gaze toward on side of the tunnel. "I will consult with Lord Daniel about this, now we should deal with the worms." As soon as he finished his phrase, many holes appeared in the rocky wall and fifty or so worms came out of them. There were few rank 3 beasts at that time, with the majority of them being in the second rank. "It seems that we are getting close!" Milo shouted. Meanwhile, in another part of the lair. Daniel walked calmly in one of the tunnels. A white orb was on his shoulder which illuminated the area. Daniel didn''t need that light to see but the orb was useful to attract the worms and detect their movements from behind the walls. ''What is this?'' He thought, stopping when he arrived in a large area full of dark-red puddles. Chapter 235: 235. Differences ''Someone has fought here and then proceeded deeper into the lair.'' Daniel concluded in his mind after inspecting the underground room. He did a quick inspection with his mental energy but he didn''t find any trace of life. ''Was this the work of the lone cultivator? Or did one of my group clear this area as he continued in the exploration?'' He couldn''t be sure of either possibility, the only method to find an answer was to explore the lair. ''I should gather this blood first, it will be useful after a few rounds of purification.'' Daniel went over each puddle and gathered the blood that made them into one big bowl. After the puddles were emptied, he performed a technique and stretched his hands over the dark-red liquid inside the bowl. His hands shone and emitted a specific radiation that heated all the impurities inside the blood of the magical beasts. Gray smoke came out from the bowl and the blood slowly lost its dark shades, turning vivid red. ''Now this can be used.'' Daniel thought, stopping the technique and putting the bowl inside his space-ring. The technique he had just used wasn''t difficult but it required a long time to completely purify a material, a few hours had to pass for Daniel to complete the process. His eyes then swept the various tunnels leading downward. There were many of them, some bigger than others, yet they all had some sort of glowing halo at their ends. ''That light should come from the Obsidian Credits that have already formed, I can''t estimate their actual value from here. Well, even if the Elbas family doesn''t openly say it, they are their proprieties.'' Daniel not only had a wide knowledge about most of the cultivation topic, but he was also adept at politics and social behaviors. The Udye family was a large-size noble family, Daniel had received the best teachings since he became able to speak. Also, when his aptitude was discovered, his family didn''t hesitate to invest most of its wealth to invite private teachers to further enhance his knowledge. An heir born with one of the rarest aptitudes was a joyful event, any noble family wouldn''t mind contracting heavy debts to nurture such a promising cultivator. After all, how many humans could enter the cultivation world? Only soldiers and nobles were given access to methods that enabled them to cultivate, the others could just dream about becoming cultivators. However, the soldiers weren''t trusted, a cultivator with a rare element but without noble blood was seen as a threat that had to be controlled. When the coincidences piled up and a noble with a rare element was born, the family to whom he belonged would invest a large amount of wealth to ensure his future success. That''s why Daniel managed to link the pale halo to the fully formed Credits when Noah didn''t. Their life had simply been too different. Daniel was blessed with wealth and a rare aptitude, his family had imposed its strict teaching on him, which had given him a great amount of knowledge on every aspect of the world. Noah, on the opposite, had a low status and his rare aptitude had always been seen as a threat. Also, his personality was quite extreme, which made him disregard even the common knowledge of that world to focus completely on the topics he was interested on. Aside from fighting and cultivating, his studies only concerned the magical beasts, it was no wonder that he couldn''t link that halo to the fully formed Credits. ''The larger tunnels won''t restrict my movements and will allow me to detect any threat before it''s too late. I should also take it slowly, this is a danger zone after all.'' Daniel decided in his mind and carefully walked toward the largest cave, not knowing that, inside one of the other narrow passages, Noah was silently doing his best to refill his centers of powers. Noah''s reasoning had been different in the selection of the tunnel. ''A larger area will just facilitate the ambushes of the worms. The leader of the pack has a Bloodline inheritance, it knows how the humans act, there is a high chance that the large passages are watched.'' Those had been his thoughts when he decided to hide in that narrow cavity. And, because of that, Noah and Daniel didn''t meet at that moment. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Time passed slowly. Three of the cultivators in the Bare Dungeon did their best to reach the deepest part of the lair, yet they moved slowly, wary of the attacks of the worms. Only Noah stood completely still in that period. His potions were slowly showing their effects and he was steadily returning to his peak form. It had to pass a day and a half for Noah to interrupt his cultivation and continue in his exploration. ''These walls are a hindrance, I can''t understand if there have been new attacks on Daniel''s group while I was recovering.'' Noah thought as he stood up and turned toward the pale halo in the distance. ''I don''t even know if they have surpassed my position or if they are still behind me. There are three cultivators left and one of them is Daniel, the situation doesn''t look good.'' Noah''s plan was to slowly kill all the weaker beasts in the pack to have a one versus one against the rank 4 leader. However, that strategy couldn''t be applied anymore since he discovered the presence of Daniel''s group. Not only the magical beasts would be spread inside the lair because of them, but he also didn''t know what their reactions would be once he was discovered. ''The best-case scenario is that I find the rank 4 creature, manage to kill it, and run away without being found out; the worst one is that I can''t kill the leader, they find me, and they blame me for the deaths of their companions. We might end up cooperating if the situation requires it but I need to link Phoebe and Manuel to the beasts.'' Noah thought for a while before finding a plan that suited him. ''I need to find the leader first.'' Chapter 236: 236. Evidence Killing a rank 4 magical beasts all by himself was a hard task. Noah''s dantian was still in the gaseous stage, it couldn''t inflict heavy damages on creatures in the fourth rank and the "Breath" inside it wasn''t enough to completely exhaust the beast. Yet, Noah had the Demonic form spell which dealt damage over time and increased his physical capabilities. That, added to the ability of his Yin body, gave him some sort of confidence in his battle prowess. Also, the fact that the Excavating worms were generally considered weak beasts further raised his hopes. However, Daniel''s group had changed the situation. Noah couldn''t use his large stash of potions or his "Breath" blessing to engage in a protracted battle with the leader, he would just attract the attention of the other cultivators in the lair. That''s why he decided that he had to be the first to meet the rank 4 worm. ''I need to accurately determine the strength of the leader and plant some evidence near it. Luckily, I have everything I need for that.'' If his strength wasn''t enough to kill the worm, he needed to cooperate with the other three cultivators, Noah wouldn''t just give up the Bloodline inheritance because the situation didn''t favor him. Noah began to run. Echo''s head came out from the back of his neck to better inspect the area behind him and it used its scanning ability continuously, sending vague images of the area to Noah. Noah also raised his concentration to the peak, he couldn''t allow being caught unprepared in that situation. He was fast, he crossed tunnels in a few seconds and directly flew down the vertical ones that he found. His advance was much faster than the other cultivators in the other parts of the lair. ''The halo is becoming clearer.'' His target was, of course, the pale light coming from the bottom of those caves. The light became stronger until he could finally understand what caused it. Noah was in a narrow tunnel when he noticed a shiny crystal emitting the same light that came from the deeper parts of the lair. ''That''s an Obsidian Credit! Of course! The halo must be radiated by a large accumulation of fully formed Credits!'' Noah realized and didn''t hesitate to dig out the crystal from the wall. It wasn''t circular like the currency used by the cultivators, its shape was uneven and sharp, yet it was still a Credit! ''This should be enough to create two hundred Credits, I believe that its value is a bit lower though since it has to be shaped correctly.'' Noah continued in his march and dug out each crystal that he found. He knew that those minerals belonged to the Royal family but he simply couldn''t care less. ''If they really wanted me to refrain from taking them, I''m sure that Thaddeus would have told me that.'' His relationship with the Royal family had always been complex and it was founded on benefits. Noah believed that since no one prohibited him from taking the Credits, he could freely gather them. As he went deeper, the tunnels began to lose their rocky composition and turned into proper passages made of shiny crystals. ''This is quite a sight.'' Noah thought as he stabbed his hands in the walls, digging out entire chunks of Credits. He didn''t have effective methods to gather all that wealth so he simply took handfuls of crystals whenever he had the chance. He also didn''t want to slow his advance, that''s why he limited himself to those random chunks. The tunnel led downward and Noah jumped over, smoothly landing in a large shiny area with the help of his wings. ''Is this the center of the lair?'' The room was almost transparent since it was entirely made of Credits, which allowed Noah to see the layout of the lair even from behind the walls. ''There aren''t any more tunnels leading downward, it seems that I''ve reached the deepest area.'' CRUNCH CRUNCH A low noise arrived at Noah''s ears which made him turn abruptly toward one side of the room. There, he saw a giant Excavating worm calmly eating the crystals of the room. The Obsidian Credits were a hard mineral but they didn''t seem to hider the worm''s meal in the slightest. ''Found you.'' Noah smiled at that sight. The worm finally noticed something and interrupted its meal to turn toward the unexpected presence. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. When it realized that it was a human, it released a low screech and straightened its body, using its lower body to stand vertically in the room. Only then Noah could make out its exact features. ''Six meters long and one and a half meters thick. Its skin is completely red, probably due to the large number of Credits eaten over the years, and it is strangely silent, which should be caused by its intelligence. This is definitely the rank 4 specimen.'' The leader of the pack stood still, quietly observing the cultivator in front of it. ''Is it studying me? I bet it''s surprised that I managed to arrive here without being noticed by the pack.'' Noah had hidden his presence for more than a day, forcing the weaker beasts to focus the other three cultivators. Then, he ran at full speed toward the bottom of the lair, the pack simply didn''t have time to notice him. ''I should make my move now.'' Noah slowly waved his hand and took out hundreds of items from his space-rings. The corpses of the worms that he had accumulated since he entered in the Bare Dungeon were casually laid on the transparent ground, tainting its brilliance with the remaining blood in them. Also, Noah took out Phoebe''s spear and Manuel''s sword and threw them in two opposite sides of the room. The weapons rolled casually on the ground, showing their dented shapes under the light of the terrain. Of course, Noah had created some fake marks on those weapons in order to fool future investigations. From those dents, it wasn''t clear if the two cultivators had fought against a human or a magical beast. The leader became enraged and released a loud cry that resounded through all the room and echoed in the various passages. The battle had started. Chapter 237: 237. Metal spring ''Its cry is different from the other worms.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah judged in his mind as he saw the rank 4 creature jumping on him. Two sabers appeared in his hands as he prepared himself for the imminent collision. ''There seem to be some emotions behind it.'' After that last thought, Noah shut his mind and focused completely on the battle. The Excavating worms didn''t have any special attack or peculiar ability, they only relied on their bodies to fight. Their strongest part was the mouth where the circular rows of teeth were, that''s why they usually pounced directly on their prey. The worm in front of Noah wasn''t an exception, it performed a jump of over twenty meters before hitting the exact spot where Noah was. Noah stood still, enduring the might of the beast without the usage of martial arts or spells. THUD! The power of the leader was too much for him to handle and he was flung away, slamming on the crystalline wall. Noah felt pain in his arms and even his back seemed to have suffered some slight injury. However, his expression was one of joy and excitement. ''I can fight it!'' Until that moment, he still had his doubts about the actual strength of his body. No matter how many rank 3 beasts he had fought, he still wasn''t completely confident in his abilities. Yet, after successfully surviving the attack of a rank 4 creature and suffering only some minor injury, he was finally able to assess his strength. He could finally battle a beast in the heroic ranks, that thought made him incredibly thrilled. Noah landed on the ground and unfolded his wings. The injury on his back had already begun to heal and it wasn''t a hindrance to the battle, he was ready to fight back! Noah shot toward the worm, executing the First form of the Ashura at full strength. In the eyes of the beast, the human became immediately more dangerous! More than twenty ethereal sabers were created around him which assaulted the worm without hesitation. The sabers slashed the worm all over its body, leaving superficial wounds whenever they managed to hit it. Yet, the worm didn''t retreat nor did it instantly attack, it waited patiently, fixing its gaze on the human at the center of the storm of blades. Then, it suddenly attacked! The worm was using its superior body to endure Noah''s attacks and kill him! ''Fuck!'' Noah cursed in his mind and redirected most of the ethereal sabers in front of him to slow the leader''s offensive. Wounds appeared everywhere near the worm''s mouth who continued in its attack, hitting Noah''s true blades. THUD! Noah was once again flung away by the impressive strength of the rank 4 creature. ''It didn''t panic and waited for the right moment to exploit the weakness of the First form, impressive.'' Noah analyzed in his mind. The First form of the Ashura was able to multiply his attacks even if in a slightly weaker version, yet they were useless if they couldn''t manage to heavily hurt the enemy. The opponent could simply jump straight in the middle of the blades and focus the cultivator that created them. ''I never thought that it could discover the weak point so quickly, a beast with a Bloodline inheritance sure is scary.'' The rank 4 creature waited for Noah to attack again, it stood still among the corpses of the beasts in its pack, warily inspecting him. ''It doesn''t even have the usual recklessness of the other magical beasts, I bet that it''s waiting for its remaining pack to arrive, the battle cry from before must have had that meaning.'' Noah was a bit hesitant. The strength of the leader was fearsome but he had yet to reveal his strongest attacks. However, if he exhausted his energy and didn''t manage to kill it before the weaker beasts arrived, the situation would become dangerous. ''What a careful worm you are.'' Noah mocked the beast in his mind as he assaulted it again. That time, the leader didn''t wait for the sabers to multiply and stab its body, it retracted its upper body inside itself and then it shot at an incredible speed toward Noah. ''Has it imitated a metal spring!?'' Noah felt an intense sense of danger coming from the nearing beast which made him resolutely activate the ability of his body. His veins bulged and turned black, momentarily empowering its physical abilities. The leader was too fast, it clashed with Noah''s sabers before he could even activate the First form of the Ashura, only his two pairs of ethereal arms aided his material weapons in defending from the beast''s attacks. THUUUD! Noah felt an unstoppable strength crashing on his arms and throwing him away. He crashed on the walls for the third time, digging into the crystalline surface until the power of the attack was dissipated. Noah felt his bones cracking while part of the skin on his back had been torn, the leader had managed to inflict some serious damage at that time. However, the liquid "Breath" in his veins was already aiding his recovery, fixing the small cracks on his bones and repairing the torn muscles. ''This thing has invented a technique!'' Inside Noah''s mind, there were no traces of wavering due to the pain but only amazement due to what he had witnessed. ''This beast has actually managed to exploit the proprieties of its body to create an attack that surpasses its limits!'' The body of the Excavating worms was soft, it could be compressed and stretched easily, that''s why it didn''t have much value as a material for the creation of weapons. Yet, the creature with the Bloodline inheritance had managed to use that quality to increase the power of its assaults. Compressing itself before pouncing an enemy largely increased the power behind its attack, just like a metal spring. ''Such a weak type of beast can achieve something like this with a bit of intelligence. The bodies of the magical beasts are indeed on another level.'' Noah finally gave up on trying to fight the leader without using any spell and prepared himself to exit the cavity that his last impact with the wall had created. However, at that moment, a voice sounded above him. "Vance, is that you?" Chapter 238: 238. Together Turning back time a little. Troy and Milo were nearing the crystalline part of the lair. However, their journey wasn''t nearly as peaceful as Noah''s. They had been ambushed many times by swarms of Excavating worms, yet the number of rank 3 specimens seemed to decrease every time. "I believe that the pack is becoming short of strong magical beasts." Milo said with a satisfied smile as he collected the corpses of the beasts around him. "Which means that we are getting closer to the leader." Troy added. The Bare Dungeon was publicly a danger zone, everyone knew that a rank 4 creature was laying somewhere. "Yes, we are. The fully formed Credits are taking the place of the non-formed ones, the central part of the lair starts now." Milo spoke with a bit of hesitation in his voice. The threat of a rank 4 magical beast was not to be underestimated. Milo had a rank 4 body but his dantian was only in the gaseous stage while Troy had a rank 3 body, he was completely useless against a beast in the heroic ranks. "Do we advance?" Troy''s question was on point. They had to decide if it was worth exploring further, they wouldn''t want to risk their lives for a mission of the alchemy department. "The question is: will you follow me?" A voice sounded from behind them which made them turn abruptly. However, when they saw the golden hair of the young man and his warm smile, they smiled happily and cheered loudly. "Daniel! You are safe!" Milo exclaimed, hugging Daniel happily. Troy was a bit taken aback by that affectionate gesture but he decided to limit himself to a bow and a greeting. "Lord Daniel, I''m glad to see that you are fine." Daniel chuckled and freed himself from Milo''s embrace while stopping Troy''s bow. "No need for such formalities. You have risked your life for the sake of my mission, there is no need to add "Lord" to my name." Troy raised his head before bowing again, he really couldn''t muster the will to drop such basic formalities. Milo laughed and patted his lowered head. "Troy, you have always seen Daniel as a lofty character but, in reality, he is quite simple. He just likes to cultivate and hang out with friends, so you can just address him as Daniel when we are in private." "You know that I will probably be the leader leading the Cause in the future?" "That''s why I need to make fun of you right now! I won''t have the chance in the future." Troy watched with wide eyes the playful exchange of words of the two nobles and the tension accumulated in the few days spent in the dungeon lessened a bit. "Any sign of Phoebe and Manuel?" However, they were still in a danger zone, they didn''t have much time to waste. Milo shook his head at Daniel''s question and the mood of the three cultivators turned sour. "I will go deeper to find some clues about them. You can just find a way back and call for help, I don''t want to endanger you more than I''ve already done." Milo shook his head again and laid his knives on his shoulders. "I won''t let you go alone against a rank 4 beast, if something has happened to Phoebe, we will make it pay." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Daniel nodded and turned toward Troy. As he was about to open his mouth though, Troy spoke with a resolute voice. "D-Daniel! I can take care of the remains of the pack while you deal with the leader! You are far stronger than me but you will still need help against a rank 4 beast." Daniel saw the unshakable determination in his eyes and sighed before showing a warm smile to his two companions. "Then it''s set, let''s save our friends." They moved quickly, passing tunnels over tunnels until they arrived at the part of the lair completely made of crystalline Credits. Then, a loud cry echoed in the passage, which made them stop abruptly in place. "What was that?" "Someone must be fighting the leader! We should hurry!" Daniel answered Troy''s question and took the vanguard position in his march toward the bottom of the lair. Thuds and crashes echoed in the tunnel as they moved, telling the story of a battle happening right below them. Then, they saw the deepest area. It was a large underground room made of transparent crystals. Tens of worm''s corpses were laid on the ground and a massive red worm stood proudly at the center of the room, staring at a fixed point on a wall in front of it. The three cultivators followed the worm''s line of sight and saw that, in one of the cavities below them, a cultivator was kneeling with his guard raised. The tunnels were all transparent in that area, it wasn''t hard to discern the cultivator''s features from behind a wall. He had long black hair tied together in a casual manner, he was dressed in a tight black robe with its upper part torn in many spots and wielded firmly two white sabers that he pointed straight at the worm in front of him. Troy couldn''t help but link that figure to his fellow student and he instinctively spoke to him. "Vance, is that you?" Noah turned his head and looked at the three cultivators standing in a tunnel above him. ''They have finally arrived, I was about to go all out.'' He didn''t speak but simply stared at them for a short moment before turning his attention back on the rank 4 creature. He didn''t want to suffer from a surprise attack of the worm after all. "Daniel, look there." However, Milo''s attention was caught by something else. He pointed toward a spear and a sword lying among the corpses of the magical beasts in order for Daniel to see them. Daniel recognized those weapons and turned abruptly toward Noah. "What happened here?" His voice had a tinge of anger in it as he asked that question. Noah simply shrugged his shoulders and replied in a plain voice. "Don''t know, everything was like this when I arrived." Chapter 239: 239. Ligh There were a few seconds of silence in the underground room. The rank 4 worm was in the middle of the room, warily watching the four humans in front of it. Noah had his eyes on the beast, he was doing his best to recover from the previous injuries, expending the liquid "Breath" in his body to do so. Daniel, Milo, and Troy alternated their gazes between the worm and the weapons on the ground, they seemed to be struggling internally about what to do next. "What are you doing here?" Daniel broke the silence to ask Noah a question. "I am a hunter, I hunt. What about you all?" "I have a mission from the academy. Why is it not attacking?" "It''s probably waiting for the whole pack to converge here instead of fighting when outnumbered. This beast is quite smart." Noah didn''t mind revealing some partial pieces of information. ''The less they think about it, the more they will consider it as a smart beast rather than one with a Bloodline inheritance.'' Noah was being as careful as he could about that quality. However, he was overthinking. The appearance of a Bloodline inheritance was an event so unusual that most cultivators wouldn''t even consider it, many didn''t even know about the existence of something like that. Also, Daniel''s group was too focused on their dead companions to evaluate the intelligence of the beast. Crawling sounds began to resound in the area which made the cultivators turn their heads to find the source of that noise. Many Excavating worms in the human ranks could be seen nearing their position from every direction, the walls were transparent after all, it wasn''t hard to notice hundreds of magical beasts coming to them. ''Will they run away or will they fight?'' Noah was waiting for their reaction to decide his next move. He wasn''t afraid of the swarm of magical beasts, they were weak after all, only a small part of them was in the third rank. However, the rank 4 worm has revealed itself quite challenging, Noah didn''t have the slightest confidence in killing it, and that without adding the hindrance of the weaker beasts. Noah had chosen to fight it because of its supposedly weak battle prowess but the reality was different. ''I need their help to kill it, I just need to wait for the right opportunity in order to have some claims on its body.'' "Vance, can you fight?" Daniel spoke again to Noah. "Yes, but I need some time to recover." Noah answered as his eyes shone with a cold light, everything seemed to work as he had planned. Also, due to the situation, it seemed that Daniel''s group still hadn''t realized that he had clashed with a rank 4 creature and was still alive. ''I will probably be forced to reveal the power of my body though. I don''t know Daniel''s actual strength but it can''t be that far from mine and Troy surely doesn''t have a rank 4 body. I guess it will be up to the other noble to make up for the difference in power. Yet, I don''t know if that will be enough.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah had seen many rank 4 beasts die thanks to his hunting group. They were fearsome creatures, having a seemingly endless endurance. It took careful planning and the joint efforts of six cultivators with a rank 4 body to safely kill one, while they were short both in numbers and strength in that situation. Daniel nodded to his companions and jumped in the area where the leader was, Milo and Troy followed behind. "Milo and I will fight the leader. Troy, you take care of the pack until Vance can come in your aid. Our power is not much but the Excavating worms are weak, we might have a chance to avenge our friends if we fight together." Daniel ordered and wielded his sword, Milo stood at his side and put himself in guard. Troy gulped and turned himself to face the incoming pack of worms, his seniors needed to focus completely on their battle, he had to prevent any beast from interfering with them. The leader stood still, its pack was arriving and the superficial wounds that Noah inflicted had healed by then, it was back at full power. Also, all the intruders had gathered in one place, it was the perfect moment to use the full power of its pack. Then, the battle began. Milo slashed the air with his knives, creating fast and precise wind slashes that flew directly on the head of the leader. ''That''s the rank 4 Nails of the Kamaitachi!'' Noah recognized the martial art from his safe position, he was staring attentively at the battle to decide if they had any chance of defeating the beast. Daniel executed some complex forms with his sword which shone with a white light that created sharp lines in the air. He then stopped and slashed one last time to launch those lines toward the leader. Transparent wind slashes and white lines crashed on the body of the rank 4 worm, inflicting many superficial wounds through all its body. The damage they were capable of matched Noah''s one. "I need to use my spells if we really want to kill it." Daniel said. Milo was still a rank 1 mage, his spells could only match the might of his martial art or being slightly weaker, it wasn''t worth wasting mental energy for them. Milo understood the meaning behind his words and went in the vanguard position, launching even more wind slashes toward the leader. However, the rank 4 worm was done waiting. Once it tested the power of its opponents, he compressed its body like a metal spring and shot toward them at an incredible speed. Milo''s eyes widened seeing his attacks being destroyed by the worm''s assault as it jumped in his direction. Yet, as the two were about to clash, a ball made of white light appeared between them. The ball then exploded, releasing a shockwave that sent back the worm for a few meters and created many deep but small wounds all over its body. Milo, on the contrary, was unharmed and turned himself to look at the cultivator behind him. Daniel smiled at him as he ate a pill to hasten the production of his mental energy. Chapter 240: 240. Silhouette The effects of the spell Daniel had just used were amazing. Not only was it able to stop the leader''s charge, but it was also able to inflict some real damage to it. ''Not as destructive as my Demonic form but it is able to distinguish allies from foes and it doesn''t seem to consume nearly as much mental energy, really a spell worthy of the light element. Also, Daniel has become a rank 2 mage, he sure is the leader of his generation.'' Noah judged from his position inside the wall. ''Yet, not even ten of them are enough to take down the leader.'' The rank 4 worm recovered immediately from the impact and pounced again the two nobles. That time though, it aimed for Daniel. Daniel didn''t hesitate and launched another white ball which stopped again the charge of the leader with its explosion. "I''ll refill my mental energy with my pills, let''s attack it while it''s busy recovering from the blasts!" Daniel ordered, creating many white lines that crashed on the rank 4 worm. Milo did the same, launching more wind slashes on the beast. The leader of the Excavating worms suffered more injuries and tried again to charge toward the cultivators but another ball of light sent it back, unable to react to the other series of attacks that crashed on its body. The morale of the two nobles rose as they continued to use that tactic, yet, after more than six spells were used, the weakness of that strategy was shown to them. The leader was covered in injuries but they were mostly superficial and shallow, not one of those created with their martial arts had ever surpassed the layer of muscles under its skin. Only Daniel''s spell was somewhat able to leave some lasting wounds but even those were simply small cuts compared to the surface of the beast''s body. It was clear that they had to change strategy. Daniel had traces of sweat on his forehead but he didn''t hesitate to use a different spell after the eighth ball of light exploded. He closed his eyes and a pale light enveloped his figure. The light became denser, hiding his features and almost blinding everyone in the room. Then, the light separated from his body, creating a shining silhouette that stood still in front of him. "I can only use this one after accumulating the sunrays for an entire day. I''m afraid we might consider escaping if even this spell doesn''t work." "What should I do?" Milo asked after launching another series of attack toward the leader. "Stab your weapons in the light, it will empower your knives but you''ll be forced to fight in close combat to see its effects. I''ll handle the rest." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Milo nodded and immersed his knives in the silhouette of light before shooting toward the recovering worm. The leader had understood that something had changed so it used that time to focus on healing. It didn''t need to personally deal with the two cultivators, it only had to use the superiority of its body to slowly exhaust them. Also, its pack had arrived by then. Hundreds of Excavating worms in the human ranks came out of the various tunnels of the room. They directly pounced at every human they saw, their orders were clear. Worms began to rain in the underground room, momentarily halting Milo and Daniel''s assault. Troy knew that it was his time to act. He created two foxes made of fire that ran on the ceiling of the room, spreading their destructiveness on the exit of each tunnel. Tens of worms died in one instant, the spells of a rank 1 mage were more than enough to handle those weak beasts. However, more worms kept coming, and the fire-foxes were slowly consumed to handle them. Troy had already a potion in his hands which he gulped before creating two more foxes. ''This spell is strong! The foxes can be moved at will and they will keep burning everything in their path until they exhaust the fire. I believe that''s one of the strongest spells of the fire element!'' Noah''s judgment wasn''t that far off from the truth. Troy''s spell was powerful, his family had expended a large sum of money to purchase it from the academy. The only problem was that Troy''s sea of consciousness was still in the first rank: not only couldn''t it handle a protracted usage of that spell but even the effects of the spell itself were limited to the human ranks. However, Daniel and Milo were reassured seeing their companion taking care of the pack and resumed their assault on the leader. The shallow injuries that they had previously inflicted on it had already healed in that short break, only the small ones caused by Daniel''s spells were still visible on its body. Milo jumped on the leader, his knives shone with a white light. The rank 4 creature compressed itself and pounced Daniel, uncaring of the other human that was coming at him. However, Milo''s attack revealed itself quite more dangerous than it had expected. Milo performed fast movements, his weapons almost disappeared as he slashed the body of the leader. His martial art emphasized speed and precision after all, his attacks were extremely fast! The knives stabbed the worm''s skin and pierced its muscles, stopping only when they touched its bones. Also, the light on the knives dispersed inside its body, burning everything in its path before being consumed. The leader released a loud screech but it could not stop its momentum, clashing with the white silhouette that Daniel had promptly moved in front of him. Daniel''s spell held on, it blocked the worm''s charge and burned the flesh that touched it, making the worm release another loud cry. Then, Daniel slashed with his sword. His weapon passed through the silhouette and covered itself in the light before inflicting a deep cut on the leader. The rank 4 creature was forced to retreat, the power of Daniel''s new spell had surpassed all its expectations and it needed to plan another approach. It was at that moment that it noticed that the light inside the silhouette had dimmed greatly. Chapter 241: 241. Enough The silhouette of light was an extremely powerful spell that required the accumulation of sunrays to be used. It was very ductile, useful both in attack and defense. However, the more its light was used, the faster it would be expended. The spell had blocked one attack from the rank 4 creature and empowered two attacks of the nobles, a large quantity of light had already been expended. ''Not even that would be enough.'' Noah understood the endurance of a rank 4 magical beast better than anyone in the room. ''Those injuries would have at least hindered its movements if it was a beast with limbs. Yet, it''s a worm-type creature, a few deep wounds aren''t enough to take it down.'' The leader of the worms was hesitant. It was trying to find the weak point of the strategy of the nobles to decide its next move but all it could think of was to slowly exhaust the cultivators until some of them committed a mistake. It was at that moment though that a cry for help resounded in the room. "They are too many, I can''t stop all of them!" Troy shouted, gasping for air as he swung his sword to kill the beasts that were surrounding him. Seven of his foxes made of fire had been exhausted and his potions could not keep up with the expenditure of mental energy, all he could do was resort to his martial art to slow the advance of the pack. The beasts around him were not strong, most of them were in the first or second rank, however, they amounted to more than one thousand, they were slowly overwhelming Troy with their sheer numbers. That was exactly the situation that Noah was trying to avoid by hunting the weaker beasts before he discovered that Daniel''s group was in the dungeon. A thousand mosquitos could take down a bear, there was no reason why those worms couldn''t do the same. The rank 4 leader found the opportunity that it was waiting for and pounced toward Troy, forcing Daniel to interrupt its charge again with the silhouette of light. BOOOM! Another loud crash resounded but, that time, the leader was ready for the impact and held its terrain, continuing to push on the silhouette and enduring the pain caused by the burning light. "It''s trying to reach Troy! Milo, we must take it down!" Daniel shouted but Milo was a bit hesitant. He watched as the light of Daniel''s spell dimmed every time the leader pushed with more strength, he knew that it wouldn''t take much for the spell to fade. "We should run." Milo spoke in a soft voice but Daniel heard it clearly and stopped in place. He gave another look at the battlefield, understanding Milo''s point of view. He had used his strongest spells and had cooperated with Milo but all they managed to obtain were a few deep cuts on the leader''s body, they would need at least twenty of them to really hope killing it. Yet, time was not on their side. Troy was being overwhelmed by the weaker beasts and more worms kept on coming from the tunnels, the entire underground area would be filled with magical beasts soon. ''If we escape now, we can make a way through the weak worms and aim for the surface, hoping that our speed is faster than the leader. However, if we keep on fighting, our escape routes will be closed and Troy would be endangered. What should we do? I have a spell that I''m sure will allow us to win but it takes a lot to prepare¡­'' Many thoughts ran through his mind but he couldn''t decide which one was the best solution. ''If I let this go, my status will be heavily impacted, two heirs have died because of me after all. What should we do? If only Milo could buy me some time...'' Then, realization dawned on him and he turned his head toward the cultivator that was quietly resting inside a cavity on the wall. ''There was only the rank 4 beast when we arrived, that would mean that his injuries were caused by a fight with it! He has a rank 4 body!'' Daniel stared at Noah in amazement. ''He has finally realized it.'' Noah smiled at that gaze but his thoughts were elsewhere. ''We can''t kill it If that''s the best they can do. I should better escape now.'' Daniel continued to stare at him and was even more surprised when he found out that he could not clearly feel his presence! ''Is his sea of consciousness on my same level? Is it stronger?'' Daniel couldn''t believe what he was seeing but the situation forced him to take action. "Vance, can you work with Milo and keep the leader occupied for one part of incense?" The nobles were confused, they didn''t understand why Daniel would ask Noah to face a rank 4 creature for one entire minute. However, Daniel continued to speak. "I have a spell that I''m sure will sever its body in half but I need sixty breaths of time to prepare it. Will you help me?" Noah stared at Daniel with uncertainty. ''Is he serious? A spell in the second rank that can kill a beast in the heroic ranks?'' He didn''t know if he could believe such a claim. ''It might be possible, one minute of preparation is a long time. Yet, it could be said the same about holding the leader back, I can''t do it with just my martial art.'' The leader kept pressing the blockage made of light and Troy did his best to kill the worms around him but he was slowly losing his ground, the clock was ticking. ''How badly do I want the Bloodline inheritance?'' Noah had to decide between an immediate improvement of his mental sphere and revealing his strength. ''This might also be the best situation for that¡­I guess I''ve had enough of hiding.'' "I want the head of the rank 4." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah spoke, jumping off the cavity and landing on the crystalline ground. Chapter 242: 242. Fusion "What does he mean by that? What is happening?" Milo was confused by the exchange of words between Daniel and Noah. The weaker beasts had arrived in his position and he was swinging his knives to fend them off but he still had the time to ask that question. "Deal." Daniel didn''t bother answering Milo but limited himself to give his approval to Noah. Noah nodded and jumped toward Troy unleashing the full power of the First form of the Ashura. A large part of his liquid "Breath" had been expended but his body had completely recovered thanks to that. Twenty ethereal sabers swept the battlefield, sometimes launching wind slashes, sometimes directly beheading the worms. In a few seconds, Troy''s encirclement was broken, Noah had successfully cleared the area around him. "Go back there and focus on protecting Daniel, I''ll take it from here." Troy and Milo were stupefied by the speed in which Noah killed all the beasts and Troy instinctively felt that he had to follow his orders. Daniel nodded at Noah and followed Troy to the back of the underground area, only Noah and Milo remained on the battlefield. "You go there too." "What!?" Milo, Daniel, and Troy asked at the same time. "I can''t really fight with other people but if you really want to stay, you do that at your own risk." Noah plainly answered and took off his upper clothes, he was ready to go all out! Echo and Shadow came out of his body and stared fiercely at the rank 4 worm that was still trying to break the blockage of light. Then, Noah''s veins bulged and became black which made them completely visible from over his white skin. Lastly, black smoke came out of his figure and slowly covered his entire body, spreading itself to his two blood companions. Milo''s pupils constricted due to the sense of danger that he felt coming from Noah and he instinctively retreated where Troy and Daniel were staying. The three nobles watched with an incredulous expression as Noah transformed into a fiend. The Demonic form had been activated. Daniel was the first to understand what was happening due to the repulsive emotions that he felt watching the execution of that spell. "It can''t be, his aptitude is darkness!" He couldn''t help but give voice to his thoughts. Troy and Milo''s eyes widened even more and finally realized the source of that dangerous feeling. Vance, the strongest student of the academy of his generation, was a cultivator of the darkness element with centers of power that matched Daniel''s ones! "That, how? He is too young!" Troy said with unwillingness. He was one year older than Noah but he had been in his same class for more than two years. He could accept that Noah was a battle genius and that his talent in the martial arts was unparalleled among his peers. Yet, he really couldn''t understand how he improved so fast! The centers of power required time and resources, he had plenty of them as a noble! However, all his efforts and status paled compared to the young man in front of him. Noah turned toward the three nobles and spoke in the usual guttural voice that he had when he entered the complete Demonic form. "Sixty breaths, not one more." Milo and Troy gulped at that scene but Daniel resolutely nodded and sat on the ground, he was going to focus completely on the preparations of his final spell. More worms rained from the ceiling and tried to attack the four cultivators. Nevertheless, Milo and Troy were enough to block their assault, As for those that aimed for Noah, they were consumed as soon as they came in contact with the black smoke. A screech resounded in the underground area which made Noah focus on his opponent, the leader of the worms had finally destroyed Daniel''s spell! ''It''s not weakened by its recent injuries, this will be tough.'' Noah judged seeing the leader inspecting him. ''I really hope that Daniel''s spell can kill it, I''d hate to have gone to such length only to lose the Bloodline inheritance. I''ll have to rely on the shard in the worst-case scenario.'' His mind was set so he didn''t hesitate to jump on the beast. Twenty fuming ethereal sabers were created in the air around him as he charged and his two blood companions followed closely on his sides. The leader of the worms recognized that technique and used the previous tactic to break it. The beast shot like a bullet in the air and crashed on Noah''s body, uncaring of the blades that landed on its body. However, this time, Noah''s attacks were empowered by his spell and the black smoke that they released was extremely corrosive. The sabers pierced its skin and stabbed themselves deeply between its muscles where they released even more smoke from inside its body. Noah was flung away due to the impact but the rank 4 creature was forced to stop its charge to fight back the smoke that was corroding its insides. Meanwhile, Echo and Shadow assaulted it to prevent it from attacking and recovering. Echo was unable to inflict any damage and could only increase the quantity of smoke around the leader but Shadow''s fangs managed to pierce its skin! ''Fusing the Elemental forging method with the Body-inscription spell was indeed the right choice!'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah was satisfied by Shadow''s battle prowess and he struggled to stand up. The last clash had destroyed the protective membrane of his spell and even dislocated his shoulder, the sheer power of the leader was incredible. CRACK! Noah adjusted his shoulder and relied on the healing proprieties of his body to fix it, in a few seconds, he was back at full strength and the smoke reformed around the uncovered part. ''I can''t endure this kind of damage for one entire minute.'' He thought, slowly approaching the leader that was continuously destroying his blood companions only to see them immediately reform. Noah waved his sabers. Those movements seemed slow, they created some slight distortions in the air where they passed. Then, his weapons began to treble, increasing the distortions around them. Noah felt an incredible pressure weighing on his arms and shoulders but his body was strong enough to endure it. The leader was enraged, it turned its attention toward Noah and pounced at him again. Noah''s six arms combined together, joining the six sabers to form a single one. As the worm was about to clash with him, Noah performed a downward vertical slash that precisely hit the head of the worm. To the surprise of everyone in the room, Noah and the worm were both sent back by a few meters. ''Second form of the Ashura: Fusion.'' Chapter 243: 243. Struggles If the First form of the Ashura multiplied Noah''s attacks and allowed him to fight when outnumbered, the Second form condensed those ethereal sabers into his six arms, vastly increasing their power. As for why Noah couldn''t use it until that moment, it was because his body simply could not withstand that much power. There were more than twenty ethereal sabers after all, a rank 3 body could not endure the pressure created when they were concentrated in six arms. ''It still hurts a bit but the liquid "Breath" in my body will keep me going.'' Noah was pushing his body to its limits in order to perform that technique and fight on the same level as the leader. Also, the physical empowerment of the Demonic form allowed him to match the blows of a rank 4 beast, even if just those of a weak one. ''Even with my full power, I can only match it for a short amount of time. I can''t resist that many clashes, my body won''t last that much.'' The rank 4 Excavating worm had suffered many injuries by then but it didn''t seem to be affected in the slightest. On the contrary, Noah felt his mental energy and "Breath" depleting at high speed. ''It can''t be helped, I''m still too weak.'' Yet, once he had that thought, he charged again at the leader. Noah''s fighting style had always been extremely aggressive, he would rely on defending only if the situation didn''t permit any other approach and he would gladly suffer some wounds if that allowed him to hurt his opponent more. That situation wasn''t any different, actually, defending would only make him suffer more injuries. ''I need to force it on the defensive.'' Echo and Shadow never stopped attacking the worm, they bit and scratched to no end, trying to slow for even a second its movements. Then, Noah arrived, slashing with six weapons that carried so much power that the air around them curved and distorted. Six attacks landed on the worm, each one from a different angle. Noah''s sabers cut everything in their path, stopping only after they reached the internal organs of the beast. The leader stood in place, enduring the impact and attacking with its head toward Noah. ''It can even use that technique with only half its body!'' Noah felt a hammer slamming on his head and throwing him back, chasing on a wall behind him. ''Dammit!'' Noah rose from the crystalline debris that fell from his crash on the wall, the protection of the Demonic form in his upper body had been broken, showing the blood that flowed from his mouth and nose. His breathing was hindered and a whistling noise resounded in his ears but he could not buy time to heal his injuries, the leader of the worms had charged in his direction. Noah hastily focused to reform the protection of the Demonic form and again used his six sabers to perform a single vertical slash. He and the leader were again sent back two opposite directions. ''I can only fight like this, this form makes me too slow.'' The weakness of the Second form of the Ashura was the pressure imposed on the cultivator. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Having so much power concentrated on him made Noah''s body stiff and clunky. That weakness would be fixed once his body became stronger but, at that moment, he could only endure powerlessly the counterattacks of the beast. Also, that form was the only attack that could restrain the worm, Noah really didn''t have any other choice in that situation. The two blood companions never left the beast''s side and assaulted it to no end while Noah charged at it every time he was flung away, seemingly uncaring of the injuries that kept accumulating on his body. From the perspective of the two nobles, Noah''s fighting style was simply too reckless! Milo and Troy watched as Noah jumped on the beast, dealt a few blows, and was sent back by its attack, only to stop the next charge of the worm with his stronger slash. That course of actions repeated itself more than ten times right in front of their eyes, they couldn''t even imagine the kind of pain he was enduring to stand up after every clash. They were busy killing the endless wave of weak worms that were coming at them but they could still watch Noah''s battle. Milo had a rank 4 body and Troy was strong for his age, they had no problem handling a few hundred beasts in the first and second rank. "Amazing." Troy couldn''t help but praise as he watched Noah standing up for the fifteenth time after the leader''s attack. "Focus!" Milo ordered, they were protecting Daniel that was sitting behind them with his eyes closed, they couldn''t allow his concentration to be broken. Noah''s battle prowess was amazing but he alone wasn''t enough to kill a rank 4 creature, Daniel''s spell was needed to get them out of that situation as winners. ''Five more seconds!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he charged again toward the worm. His body was screaming in pain, his arms hurt, his ribs were cracked, and his nose had been broken at least twice, but he pressed on. Even the leader of the worms had begun to suffer from the continuous clashes, its body was filled with deep cuts and vivid red blood flowed incessantly from them, its offensive had also slowed. As it saw the fiend attacking, it pounced only to be stopped by a sharp slash. Noah had finally managed to hold his ground against the leader! His sabers slid against the rows of teeth, incapable of inflicting any damage. However, the black smoke consumed the leader''s skin, allowing his blood companions to stab their fangs on its uncovered flesh. ''Soon I''ll be able to take you down all by myself.'' Noah said in his mind. Then, the minute passed and Noah retreated by a few large steps. It was at that moment that Daniel opened his eyes and pointed his hand toward the leader of the beasts. Chapter 244: 244. Talk Daniel''s hand shone with a blinding light, it created colorful wonders inside that crystalline area. The light then converged in his forefinger, gathering its might in one single point. Next, it shot out. A beam of white light was launched, it was fast, so fast that the leader of the beasts couldn''t even understand that Daniel was attacking it. The beam pierced the rank 4 creature''s body and came out from its backside, burning the wall at the end of the underground room. The leader screeched, it tried to curl up to defend from that powerful spell but to no avail, Daniel''s spell severed everything in its path. Then, Daniel moved his hand, it manipulated the beam to slowly trace a line on the beast''s body. Noah was astonished as he watched the leader of the worms slowly being cut in two. ''This spell is way stronger than my Demonic form, no wonder it took a whole minute to cast it.'' The rank 4 Excavating worm was powerless, it couldn''t avoid the spell nor protect itself, it cried to no end as his body was divided horizontally. ''Amazing.'' Noah was the nearest person to the beast, he praised in his mind as the effect of the spell unfolded. A straight line was drawn on the body of the leader, its long form was cut in half, making it fall powerlessly on the ground. The leader struggled to stand up but half of its body was gone, its efforts only made it lose more blood. The weaker beasts cried, they stopped their assault on the nobles and returned to the tunnels, they wouldn''t dare to fight humans that were able to kill their leader. ''Is it over?'' Noah neared the upper body of the worm, he wanted to inspect its head to look for the Bloodline inheritance. However, at that moment, the worm jumped from its lying position, it bit on Noah''s shoulder and rolled its remaining body around him to prevent his escape. ''This fucking bastard! Just die already!'' Noah was still in his Demonic form but his movements were hindered, he could not perform his martial art. Also, the leader seemed set on eating him, it didn''t care about the damage that it was suffering due to the black smoke. Noah felt his blood being sucked by the beast''s bite, he understood that the leader was using its remaining strength in a desperate attempt for survival. ''Dammit!'' Noah didn''t hesitate, a black shard appeared in his free hand and he injected "Breath" in it. Then, he launched the shard toward an opening of the worm''s mouth. That shard was his strongest attack, the inscribed item that he created after many attempts and tens of wasted materials, it was the first success in the creation of the Demonic sword. The shard entered the beast''s body and exploded, it wasn''t used in the execution of a martial art so it didn''t have the power to cut the beast''s flesh. Yet, the power that it held was incredible. The explosion destroyed the leader''s internal organs and created a cloud of black smoke right inside it. That smoke was different from the one created with Noah''s spell, it wasn''t as wild and untamed, it focused all its destructiveness in a single spot, inflicting way more damage. The leader tried to endure the internal pain but it had suffered too many injuries. Its body was severed in two, its skin was consumed and scorched, and its internal organs were wounded due to the constant damage that they suffered. It was with unwillingness that life abandoned its body, making it release its grip on Noah''s shoulder and fall on the terrain. The leader of the worms had finally died! ''Damned worm, you better have what I need.'' Noah dispersed his spell and cut the worm''s head from the rest of its body. Once the beast was dead, most of its defenses were lowered, allowing Noah to easily cut it. Then, he inspected the head with his mental energy and stabbed his hand on the bleeding side to better analyze its insides. It was only when he found a small solid crystal that he heaved a sigh of relief and put the head in his space-ring. ''It was indeed a Bloodline inheritance, I was not wrong.'' Until that moment, he still held some doubts about the existence of that miraculous item. It couldn''t be helped, the sea of consciousness of a magical beast was too rare and it was really hard to discover, Noah could only be certain of its existence after he saw it. ''Now, I should tell a good story.'' Noah turned toward the nobles. Daniel seemed exhausted, his complexion was pale and large eyebags had appeared under his eyes, he seemed completely drained. Troy was in a similar situation, he had fought magical beasts nonstop with his weak body, he had reached his limit long ago and was only supporting himself with the help of his pills. Milo was far better compared to those two. He had fought for a long time too but he had never suffered any injury and he had only used his martial art, his centers of power were relatively full. Then, Noah inspected himself. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He was full of wounds and his insides needed some time to recover. Also, his centers of power were almost empty. The liquid "Breath" inside his body was depleted, his dantian was empty, and only a sliver of mental energy remained inside his sea of consciousness. ''I need to recover before going out of here.'' He was exhausted and beaten but the situation forced him to act. Noah took an item from his space-rings. It was his "Breath" blessing, it instantly increased the concentration of "Breath" inside the underground room and it surprised the three nobles. "You are indeed full of surprises." Daniel commented as he gulped some potions. Noah sat right over the big mineral and drank a potion to aid his recovery before opening his mouth to speak. "Let''s talk." Chapter 245: 245. Leash Inside the deeper part of the lair below the Bare Dungeon. Three nobles sat on the crystalline ground, staring at a young man that was silently cultivating on top of a "Breath" blessing. The room had been swept clean by the three nobles, the corpses of the worms had been gathered in Daniel''s rings and the weapons of the other two nobles had been retrieved and carefully stored. Then, the three of them sat in front of Noah, waiting for him to speak. However, Noah didn''t seem to really care, he was doing his best to refill his centers of power and heal his injuries, the nobles were losing their patience. "How did you manage to grow up so fast? You don''t have any noble background so you couldn''t have that many resources." Troy was the first to break the silence, he was the most unwilling of the three to accept Noah''s strength. It couldn''t be helped though, Troy had been in his same class in the academy and, in just a few short years, the gap between them had enlarged by a lot. Noah''s centers of power were on Daniel''s level after all, such a feat was unbelievable for a man that wasn''t even twenty years old. Noah opened his eyes and replied to him without interrupting his cultivation. "The Royals have discovered my aptitude in the entrance test in Shelfan Mountain, I''ve been working with them since then." He didn''t hide his cooperation with the Elbas family but he didn''t explain further, secrets like the Royal inheritance or Samuel''s assassination had to remain hidden. The black vortex between his hands constantly absorbed "Breath", refilling his dantian which slowly nurtured his body and added liquid "Breath" in the membrane around his heart. "Were you here because of the Royals'' orders?" Milo joined the conversation. "No, I just wanted to test my strength. Yet, these beasts had laid many traps in their lair, I ended up falling for one which directly brought me here." Noah continued to answer, creating a story that could satisfy the nobles. "Why did you injure Manuel''s sea of consciousness back then?" At that time, Daniel asked his question. "Manuel had already lost the battle when he resorted to a spell aimed to kill me. Thaddeus purposely waited on interrupting the match to test my real strength so I acted. He should consider himself lucky, if it wasn''t for the rules of the academy, I would have killed him already." Killing intent was radiated from Noah''s figure as he spoke those words. Those events had really angered him, they were one of the main reasons why he was hasting the preparations for his big escape. "That''s a lie! Manuel was strong and upright while you only used your puppet during that fight. I know that something strange had happened inside the thunderstorm!" Troy replied to him. He was a bit scared by the thick coldness that Noah was exuding but the presence of his companions gave him enough confidence to speak openly. "My mental sphere was already in the second rank by that time, do you really think that I needed to cheat in order to win?" Noah''s statement made the three nobles gasp in surprise. The battle had happened almost two years before, which meant that Noah had become a rank 2 mage by the age of eighteen! A monster! An unparalleled genius! Their thoughts couldn''t be calmed in a short amount of time, Noah was the youngest rank 2 mage that had ever existed in the cultivation history! Noah didn''t mind waiting for them to accept the situation, he was cultivating after all, his real intentions were to buy enough time for him to recover. "You must have gained a lot from your cooperation with the Royals, their missions aren''t always that ethical though." Daniel spoke, seemingly hiding a different meaning behind his words. "I did some bad stuff if that''s what you''re asking, I''m not really ashamed of my actions. I needed resources and they were willing to pay, that''s it." "So, would you sell yourself to them just to continue cultivating?" Troy was still heated. Noah''s last revelation had surprised him even more, he had finally understood that he had never been Noah''s equal. "Yes." Noah didn''t explain further but his eyes seemed to be enveloped by a dark light. The nobles watched as his aura became colder, he resembled a beast encircled by enemies. ''Does he see the entire world as his enemy?'' Daniel had that thought seeing Noah''s reaction. ''Alone. He is completely alone in a world that wants to make use of him. He hid his element for so long and secretly worked with the Royal family through all this time only to reach my level. Admirable.'' Daniel praised in his mind. He had realized long ago his privileged position. Not only his family was one of the most powerful among the noble families, but he had also been nurtured as the main heir since his aptitude was discovered. The reason why he had so many spells of the light element was that his family had spent an exorbitant sum of money to purchase them, sometimes they have had to deal with other countries to purchase them. Yet, a man younger than him who had no support whatsoever managed to reach his level. ''I wonder to what length he had to push his moral compass to obtain such strength.'' Talent had only a small influence on the improvements of a cultivator. Resources and hard work were the means by which someone could become strong. "So, what do you want to talk about?" Daniel had internally recognized him as his equal, it was time to hear his intentions. Noah turned his gaze toward him before speaking. "The Royals speak quite openly about some of their political struggles. I know about the Cause and how the noble families want to use you as a flag for their revolution." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "And?" Daniel''s eyebrow arched as Noah compared him to a flag. "The Royals have been trying to tighten their leash on me for quite some time already and I don''t have the strength to escape their control. Yet, there is a power that is planning to depose them and that could give me the freedom that I want. I want to join the Cause." Chapter 246: 246. Time "What!?" Troy and Milo expressed their surprise at the same time but Daniel simply continued to stare a Noah in the eyes. "Why would we even accept you? We know nothing about you and I''m sure that your record isn''t clean either! Why would the noble families even accept you?" Troy continued to express his enmity toward Noah. "My aptitude and, well, I''m the most promising cultivator that has ever existed." Noah answered plainly. He was the only one that really knew his own strength and he knew that his achievements were unmatched. "Such gall! The most promising cultivator is right in front of you an-" Milo began to speak but Daniel raised his hand to interrupt him. "Enough, he is right. His centers of power are on my same level even though he is way younger than me. Don''t let your status blind your judgment." Daniel had a broader point of view compared to his fellow nobles. His family had pressed him to study the art of politics since his aptitude was discovered, he knew the value that a cultivator like Noah could have in the Cause. Also, if he really managed to bring on his side such a promising man, his status would rise by a lot and more families would be willing to join the Cause. ''A cultivator of the light element and one of the darkness element fighting side by side against the domain of the Royal family. I bet that most of those undecided families will immediately join our ranks if this news was spread.'' He could see the bigger picture and project it in the years to come, Noah was a valuable asset that could convince the public opinion to side with him. "I believe that you want something though, you clearly know your value." Daniel''s words surprised the other two nobles but they didn''t dare to complain. If Daniel wasn''t against it, there was nothing that they could do about it. "Resources, techniques, spells, and time." Noah didn''t hide his intentions and basically asked for everything he could think about. "Spells are off the table. My family has already indebted itself to nurture me, it can''t support another cultivator with a rare element. Resources are not a problem and techniques can be purchased with the joint support of the other nobles. What did you mean by time?" Noah nodded and fell silent for a bit, pretending to be struggling to find an answer. "The Royals control me, they would rather kill me that seeing me join their enemies. I need time to prepare and I want to set a meeting with the one leading the Cause. I believe that would be your patriarch, right?" Daniel nodded and waited for Noah to continue speaking. "I need two months of time in which my aptitude must remain hidden, the Royals will apprehend me as soon as I''m discovered. Also, I need a safe place where to meet your patriarch. The Royals have cultivators in the heroic ranks making plans for me, I need the protection of someone with a similar strength to effectively switch side." Daniel put a hand under his chin and fell deep in thought. Noah''s requests were reasonable, he knew the spying network that the Royals had throughout the country, he was sure that they would act as soon as they heard rumors about treason. ''Yet, Dad will be hesitant in openly accept him, he will probably think of this as a trap that the Royals have set to catch him. I have my doubts too.'' "I¡­ don''t trust you." Daniel hesitated a bit before saying those words. His position forced him to be careful, his status couldn''t be affected by his poor judgment. Yet, two heirs had died in his mission, no matter how pained he was about that loss, he had to think of a way to make up in front of the other nobles. Also, Noah was right, his cultivation speed was unmatched, bringing him on his side would be an incredible feat. "You can set the time and place. Honestly, I don''t really care who comes at the meeting as long as he has the strength to protect me. I just need those two months to handle some personal stuff." Noah took a step back in the negotiation. The truth was that he really couldn''t care less about the meeting, he only needed two months of anonymity. Daniel thought for a long time before nodding to him. "Deal. Let''s meet two months from now on the mountain path near Vonduhr. The nobles have claimed that place after a certain event so the Royals can''t really control it." Noah smiled and closed his eyes again to focus on his recovery. The three nobles did the same, they were exhausted too and Noah''s mineral allowed them to spare their precious potions. It took an entire day for Noah to recover. He hadn''t moved from his position for the whole time and his veins would become black from time to time to aid the healing of his body. "I will go first, I believe that you should be fine." Daniel nodded. He had completely exhausted his mental energy and was in need of sleep, he needed more time to heal. "See you in two months." Noah smiled at those words and took back the "Breath" blessing in his space-ring before climbing out of the room. "Do you trust him?" Milo asked as soon as Noah went away, he wanted to understand Daniel''s true intentions. "Not really but we know his secret, he has to keep our mouths shut in some ways. Anyway, we will decide what to do after the meeting." Meanwhile, Noah was running as fast as he could toward the exit of the dungeon. His wings were unfolded and helped him in the vertical tunnels and, in less than one hour, he managed to return to where the floor had crumbled. ''Two months of time! I need to use every second!'' Noah didn''t stop and continued to climb until he reached the exit leading to the surface. The light of the sun illuminated his features and he stopped in place as he crossed the exit. His gaze turned south. He knew that in that direction, after many forests, mountain ranges, and plains, there was a mansion in the middle of a grassland. He clearly remembered its features, the defensive wall, the buildings of the outer circle, his old lodgings. Then, a smug face appeared in his vision. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. It had a blindfold on its left eye and looked at him with disgust and arrogance. ''My hatred will bring me back there eventually but I''m still too weak and the leash around my neck is becoming too tight.'' He sighed, suppressing his killing intent and turning his gaze north. Then, black flames enveloped his figure, making him disappear in less than a second. Chapter 247: 247. Meeting Two months passed quietly in the Utra country. The events in the Bare Dungeon weren''t a rare sight in that world, cultivators would often test their luck or skills in danger zones only to die because of some unexpected situation. Also, three nobles had witnessed the weapons of their companions laid among hundreds of magical beasts'' corpses, their testimony was enough to prevent any investigation. The lives of Manuel Gousho and Phoebe Ramgett had been lost in a fight against a rank 4 creature, their families could only blame their recklessness. Yet, another piece of information had reached the ears of a few large-size noble families. These families were among the wealthiest ones in the entire nation and were also the ones leading the movement called Cause. It was due to their lofty position that they could think about opposing the rulers of the nation, planning a long-term revolution by using the bright star that was Daniel. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. This piece of information was about another bright star, possibly even brighter than Daniel, but that was in the grasp of the Royal family. "Young Master, are you sure that this Vance won''t use you to improve his position with the Royals?" A female cultivator with her face hidden by a veil asked Daniel that was right next to her. They were near Vonduhr, on the mountain path where the battle between the Muwlos family and the criminals hired by the Royals had been. "He is alone, Octavia, a lone cultivator forced to accept any kind of offer to obtain resources. The Royals might treat him well because of his aptitude but there is a limit to how much they can give without forcing him to join their ranks. Instead, father is willing to offer him a noble status once the revolution is over. He will be able to set his own family and be one of the closest allies to the next rulers of the country." Daniel answered with confidence. He had discussed the situation with his father, the patriarch of the Udye family, and they had reached that conclusion. They would offer Noah resources and techniques as long as he fought with them and they would promise not to hinder his personal freedom. The last part was a point that Daniel strongly insisted on. He had understood some of Noah''s character, he was a lone wolf, completely focused on his personal power. People like him would just stab you in the back if you tried to control them, it was better to give them a generous offer and refrain from forcing his hand. "What if he has no interest in being a noble?" Octavia raised another doubt. She was Daniel''s personal guard for the meeting and also the cultivator in the heroic ranks that Noah had requested. "Being a noble means having the resources to gather spells and techniques. That is exactly what he wants and becoming a noble is the option that will preserve his independence without becoming anyone''s servant. He will accept." Octavia became silent after those words and moved her gaze on his surroundings. The mountain path had been reconstructed and a two-story tall pagoda had been built on its side. The Muwlos family wanted to remember their fallen soldiers and their promising heir so they built that monument in their honor. Also, some soldiers had been stationed there, it could be said the influence of the nobles on the city of Vorduhr had largely increased after that battle. However, Octavia didn''t see anything worthy of praise. In her mind, those soldiers had died under the assault of criminals and lone cultivators, the same status of Daniel''s guest, she really couldn''t bring herself to trust such a character. "You could have let us doing some investigations at least, I don''t like not knowing my opponent." She complained, interrupting her silence. "He is not your opponent and you know that the network of the Royals is incredible, they would become suspicious if my family suddenly looked for records about a cultivator of the darkness element." Octavia sighed, she knew Daniel''s character, he was set on bringing Noah to his side. "Young Master, you are a good person, you always try to see the best in people. Yet, you must understand that there are monsters out there, beings without any care for rules and ethics, beings that will never be subjected to any society. The world is big and our political system is just one of the many of this continent, you won''t be able to see the bigger picture if our customs blind your eyes." Daniel lowered his head before raising it wearing a determined expression. "If he tries something funny, we''ll just kill him. It is better to remove him than leave him to grow with the Royals, I''m honestly a bit scared of his potential." Octavia nodded hearing that, she felt glad that Daniel was slowly abandoning his righteous character when it came to matters involving his family. Hours passed and the morning became afternoon, yet there was still no trace of Noah. "He''s late." Octavia was running out of patience but Daniel was still confident. "We didn''t set a specific hour, I''ll wait till dawn if needed." Yet, the afternoon became night and Noah had yet to appear. "I don''t think he will come." "Then why would he set this meeting? Trust me, he will come." Then, the night became morning, the appointed day had passed but Noah didn''t deign them of his presence. "Why? I was sure he was telling the truth about the Royals so why didn''t he come to our side?" Daniel had lost hope by then and was clueless about what to do next. His position had been endangered due to the loss of two heirs in his recent mission but, if he managed to recruit Noah, those losses would be forgotten. "Maybe he was discovered by the Royals and killed." Octavia gave him another idea. "That''s unlikely, he doesn''t seem the type of person that would just get caught. Well, I don''t know what his intentions were but I know what our next move will be." Daniel sighed as he continued to speak. "Let''s reveal his aptitude, I really want to know where the Royals found such a genius." Chapter 248: 248. Rumors A rumor began to spread in the nation. Vance, the strongest student of the academy of his generation, was secretively a cultivator of the darkness element. Also, he had kept his aptitude a secret thanks to the help of the Royal family with whom he worked to obtain resources and techniques. The rumor spread in every direction, surprising everyone that had met him and the Udye family even provided a drawing of his facial features, they were basically aiming to destroy his anonymity. As for why they did such a thing, there were many reasons. The first one was to uncover his actual identity, the Utra nation was built using the noble families as its foundation, it was almost impossible to become a cultivator without the approval of a noble family. That meant that there had to be some records about the birth of a cultivator of the darkness element somewhere, he couldn''t have just appeared out of anywhere and have the strength to pass the entrance test of the academy. Another reason was to uncover some of his businesses with the Royals, if they kept his aptitude as a secret, it meant that the missions in which he was involved had to be socially unacceptable. The last one was to remove that pawn from the clutches of the Royals, a simple rumor could hinder the plans that they had for such a cultivator. It didn''t take much for this rumor to reach the ears of Evan Balvan, the second son of the patriarch of the Balvan family. He was in charge of the economic aspect of the family, it was in his duties to be informed of the changes inside the nation that could affect his investments so he was the first to obtain that information. Of course, he immediately suspected something and activated his network to gather more information. The rumors piled up, as more people spoke about Noah, his stories would be distorted and modified, making him appear like an unfathomable character. However, Evan couldn''t care less about the rumors, his attention was completely focused on a large sheet with a male face drawn on it. This man was young, he had long black hair and icy-blue eyes. His facial features were delicate but they didn''t exude any warmth, there was only coldness radiated from his expression. ''It''s him!'' Evan was surprised beyond reason. The investigation in the Shosti''s inheritance ground had brought no results for almost five years, he was beginning to lose any hope in finding his daughter and son. ''Noah Balvan is alive! He must know what has happened there!'' Those were his first thoughts as he hurriedly stood up from his desk and ran toward the lodgings of his big brother. "Adrian! Big brother! Look at this!" Evan was quite fat but he ran faster than he had ever done in his life at that moment. A door opened, revealing a burly cultivator with black hair and a stern expression. "What is it?" That man was Adrian Balvan, Thomas'' firstborn, he was in charge of the personal army of the Balvan family and handled all the missions outside the mansion. "Look at this!" Evan couldn''t mask his excitement as he handed Noah''s picture to him. "Who is this? A cultivator of the darkness element? Wait, do you think that the bastard survived the events in the separate dimension?" Adrian had never seen Noah''s face so he could only make that connection due to his element. "I don''t know but this man is definitely him! He will surely know what has happened there!" Adrian fell deep in thought for a few seconds before speaking with a dark expression. "We can''t be sure. Let''s confirm his identity with little brother first." Evan''s expression became dark too but he nodded immediately. A few minutes later, they arrived in front of a luxurious room, the stench of booze could be sniffed even outside it. "Rhys, we need to talk." Adrian spoke but no answers came from the room. "It''s about Noah, your son. We believe that he is alive." Evan added. Some noise could immediately be heard from the other side of the room and, in a few seconds, the door opened to reveal a shabby middle-aged man with a patch on his left eye. "What did you say?" Adrian and Evan ignored the stench coming from the room and handed him Noah''s picture. Rhys watched incredulously at the sheet, even if Noah had grown since the last time that he saw it, his features were extremely similar to Lily, he recognized him immediately. "It''s him! He is alive! Where is he? What has happened to Fabian?" Rhys seemed revitalized once some clues about his lost son appeared. "We don''t know. Apparently, he had been in the Royal academy all this time, he is considered one of the strongest youths of his generation." Evan spoke but Rhys had already started moving toward his father''s lodgings. "I don''t care! If that bastard has something to do with my son disappearance, I will personally tear his limbs one by one." Adrian shook his head but Evan''s eyes became cold at that though. He still hadn''t considered that possibility, thinking that his son and daughter might have died because of Noah made him even more determined in finding him. The three arrived in the main hall of the inner circle and reached for a door at the end of that room. "Father, Noah has reappeared, the Elbas family had him." "Let me see." Thomas materialized himself right next to Evan and took Noah''s picture from his hands. Evan seemed used to that behavior and wasn''t surprised by Thomas'' sudden appearance. "It is indeed him. Tell me everything you know." Evan didn''t hesitate and began to report all the rumors that he heard about him. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Adrian''s eyes widened as he listened to that while Rhys gritted his teeth with more strength every time another heroic deed was told. Noah had broken the record of the entrance test of the academy, he had been the strongest student of his generation, he had secretly worked with the Royal family, and these stories were only the official ones. "I understand, it seems that I have to make a trip to the Royal city." Thomas spoke once Evan had ended his explanation. "Wait, father, let me come!" Rhys begged Thomas but the latter answered with a cold gaze. "This genius could have been part of our family if you could have handled your lust! Go back in your quarters until I return. Adrian, you are in charge while I''m gone." Adrian bowed and Thomas disappeared right in front of their eyes. Chapter 249: 249. Vultures A man shot through the sky of the Utra continent, dividing the clouds that he encountered. That man was Thomas Balvan, Noah''s grandfather, who was flying on top of a transparent circular platform made of air at high speed in the direction of the Capital. That platform was a spell of the wind element, even though Thomas could naturally fly, he preferred to arrive at the Royal city as fast as he could. The matter concerning the concealment of his grandson had great importance in his mind, it could be said that the future of his family depended on it. After all, a noble family was founded on strong cultivators and resources and the Balvan family has lost both of them in the separate dimension. They lost three heirs, twenty among the most promising soldiers of the new generation, and the resources that they carried. Also, if they really were dead, all the resources invested in them would have been for naught, gravely endangering the future prospects of the family. Yet, since Noah was alive, there was a chance that the other cultivators were alive too. ''That kid has the answers, I must find him!'' Those were Thomas'' thoughts as he hurried toward the Capital. He surpassed large forests and vast plains until he could finally see the shape of the huge defensive wall of the Capital. That travel took him less than two weeks, crossing the country for a cultivator in the heroic ranks was not a big issue. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Thomas reached the top of the defensive walls and spoke in a soft voice, seemingly to no one. "I am Thomas Balvan, patriarch of the Balvan family, I request an audience with the Royal dynasty." His manners were polite and he even bowed as he spoke those words. However, nothing happened no matter how much Thomas waited. ''Do they want to wait until the storm quiets down? Hmph!'' Thomas retreated slightly and focused his "Breath" on his vocal cords. "Noah Balvan! I know that you are disguised as Vance of the academy! Come here and greet your patriarch!" His voice reverberated from his position mid-air through all the Royal city. The defensive walls trembled and a transparent membrane that enveloped the skies of the city did the same. Apparently, the walls were only one of the defensive formations of the Capital, there was another one that covered the entire upper part of it. However, Thomas'' voice was not an attack, it wasn''t blocked by the membrane, and his voice was able to spread throughout the city. Gasps and surprised shouts could be heard among the citizen, many of them were cultivators after all, the news of a cultivator of the darkness element was known even there along with all the rumors that it carried. "Vance is a noble? But I believed that he was a commoner!" "Balvan family? I''ve never heard of it." "It''s a medium-size noble family. They were quite wealthy for their status until a tragedy hit them a few years ago. I don''t know the specifics though." "Wait! If Vance belongs to a noble family, does that mean that he escaped? The first cultivator of the darkness element to appear after such a long time is a criminal?" Voices rang everywhere inside the streets of the city as the cultivators began to wonder how many secrets a twenty years old man could hold. Another rumor was added to the pile: Vance, the student of the academy, was secretly Noah Balvan, a noble. That realization inevitably led to a conclusion: The Royal family had helped his concealment! It wasn''t a secret that the Royals worked to bring promising heirs on their side but purposely hiding a possible criminal was a completely different matter! Once the citizen understood that the Royals could use criminals for their means, their image of them was greatly affected. As for the voice that spread through the city, they didn''t bother thinking too much about it. The patriarch of a medium-size noble family was generally a cultivator of the heroic ranks, they knew that his power had to be unfathomable. Thomas waited with a complacent smile right over the defensive walls, he didn''t dare to take a step inside the formation without the permission of the Elbas family. Nevertheless, the transparent membrane soon opened, showing Thaddeus'' father standing in the air behind it. "Thomas, there was no need to create such a mess." His expression was dark and his brows were furrowed, they stressed his displeasure toward Thomas'' actions. "Thomas Balvan greets His Majesty Cecil!" Thomas performed a formal greeting and waited for a reaction from Cecil. "You can''t just come here and do whatever you want, your family has no special privileges, you must use the official ways to get in contact with us." Cecil didn''t give him permission to stand so Thomas remained in his bowing position. "I beg to disagree Cecil. This matter involves the future of his family, you will surely forgive his lack of manners." A voice sounded behind Thomas as a cultivator with long silver hair and a loose white robe appeared in the air. The cultivator then slightly bowed, performing a simple greeting. "Ian Udye greets His Majesty." That man was Daniel''s father, the patriarch of the Udye family, one of the wealthiest men in the entire country. "What are you doing here Ian?" Cecil was surprised by his presence, that event was too coincidental. "He is looking for answers, Your Majesty. All of us are." A female cultivator appeared right next to Ian, her facial features resembled Phoebe''s ones, she was clearly her mother. "I would like to know if my daughter met a criminal in her mission, a criminal that you disguised as a student." "Meredith is right, I also would like to know if this so-called student had something to do with the events near Vonduhr." A third cultivator appeared mid-hair, he had long golden hair and he very much resembled Samuel. ''Fred Muwlos is here too. I bet that these vultures have waited all this time nearby, they knew that someone like Thomas would appear.'' Cecil''s eyes became cold at that thought but he still smiled on the surface, signaling to the four cultivators to follow him inside the city. "My son is in the Capital, follow me if you want to hear what he has to say." Chapter 250: 250. Disappeared Turning time back a little. Thaddeus was in a dark underground room which had inscriptions that deflected the probing of external mental energy. He was standing in the middle of the room and a woman kneeled in front of him. "So, what''s the matter, Hazel? Why did you want to see me so suddenly?" Thaddeus spoke to her in an annoyed tone. The woman in front of him was Hazel, the huntress in Kurt''s group! "Vance has gone to the Bare Dungeon all by himself. I didn''t know what to do so I came here looking for your orders." She replied with her head lowered. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "He is probably looking to increase even more the boost of the Blood drain spell, that kid really can''t contain himself. I think his body must be near the Pain Tribulation." Hazel listened to his words and her mind was filled with shock, she couldn''t help but raise her head to ask more questions. "Is he reaching a rank 4 body already? But he isn''t even twenty! He would be on my level after that breakthrough, I don''t know if I''ll be able to handle him if he tries to rebel then." Apparently, Thaddeus had ordered her to keep an eye on Noah and, if the situation required it, to suppress him. "Don''t worry, I''m not certain about that either. I''ll involve Newton in the operation too just to be safe. You can go now, remember to inform me as soon as he comes back." Hazel lowered her head again before standing up and leaving the room, leaving Thaddeus there deep in thought. ''He is growing even faster than I imagined. It seems that I''ll have to have another talk with him about the Royal Inheritance as soon as he is back in the city.'' His eyes shone with greed as a golden rune appeared in front of him and made him disappear in an instant. The events inside the Bare Dungeon unfolded themselves and became public knowledge, Thaddeus had a more detailed version of them of course. ''The surviving rank 4 creature from the last cleaning operation is dead, Daniel and Vance sure make a fearsome duo. However, Noah has yet to return to the Capital, he is probably undergoing the Pain Tribulation. Such talent, such will, the Royal family has to bring him on its side.'' However, weeks passed but there still was no trace of Noah. ''Is he dead? Impossible! He survived the Forging of the Seven Hells nourishing method in his youth, passing the Pain Tribulation should be easy to him.'' Worries kept accumulating in Thaddeus'' mind, he was considering sending an investigative troop in the dungeon to discover more about his position. ''No, two heirs have died there, our soldiers would be too eye-catching. He is probably taking it slow to become accustomed to his new body.'' Like that, more weeks passed, inevitably reaching the day after the scheduled meeting between Noah and Daniel. Thaddeus was a bit anxious, his control over Noah was strong inside the Capital and when he was with Kurt''s hunting group. However, there was only so much he could do when he went hunting alone, he couldn''t just place a cultivator in the heroic ranks as a personal guard of a man with a rank 2 dantian. Also, if discovered, it would only worsen the already precarious relationship that he had with Noah, he had to give him some space. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty! You have to see this!" A servant hurriedly ran in the room where he was resting, holding a sheet in her hands. "What?" Thaddeus felt annoyed but still took the sheet, his servants were well trained, they wouldn''t dare to enter unannounced in the room where he was staying if the situation wasn''t serious. The sheet depictured Noah and there were some lines of text below it that described the known information about him. Thaddeus stared at the sheet with wide eyes and hurriedly took out a token from his space-ring. "Father, we have a problem." . . . Back to the present, Cecil escorted the four nobles toward the Royal Mansion. Thaddeus was waiting for them right in front of the main entrance and he bowed at the sight of so many powerful cultivators. "Thaddeus Elbas greets the nobles." Thaddeus'' position was lower than his father, he was only a professor in the academy on the surface after all. "Cecil, why did you bring us here?" Ian spoke with a tinge of arrogance in his voice. He knew that those events were the perfect opportunity to bring more noble families on the Cause''s side so he didn''t hesitate to openly show his aversion toward the Royals. "My son is the one in charge of the matter of the academy, he can explain the events linked to Vance better than me." "His name is Noah Balvan, son of Rhys Balvan and a concubine." Thomas spoke. The three nobles next to him were slightly surprised by that information but hid their reactions. They were using Thomas to discredit the Royal family after all, they needed to appear as stern as possible. "Vance, no, Noah has hidden his identity well, not even our network could discover such a thing. I believe he has fooled everyone." Thaddeus spoke with sincerity, his acting abilities were surely incredible. "Do you really want us to believe that you didn''t know his true identity? Would you rather pass as incompetent than speak the truth?" Fred spoke, his words were filled with a subtle killing intent. He had lost his son in the battle near Vonduhr, he was aware that the Royals were using criminals for their needs and he couldn''t help but wonder if Noah had something to do with it. "Fred, remember that you are speaking to the rulers of the nation and that you are next to our Mansion, I would watch my words if I was you." Killing intent began to radiate from Cecil, he couldn''t allow being openly offended by those nobles. "Cecil, we came here for the truth. Please, tell us where this Vance is." Meredith spoke, trying to pacify the situation. Cecil''s expression became ugly and he turned toward Thaddeus. The other cultivators did the same and they expectantly waited for him to speak. It was with hesitation that Thaddeus opened his mouth to say three words. "He has disappeared." Chapter 251: 251. Investigation Those three words silenced the nobles, only Cecil was aware of the situation. The truth was that after Noah''s element was revealed, they had actively investigated his whereabouts without being able to find any clue. Noah seemed to have disappeared! "He hasn''t returned to his rented habitation and his academy and hunter tokens can''t pinpoint his location. They are either in a space-ring or broken." Thaddeus added with his head lowered, he really wasn''t prepared for such a situation to happen. He had given Noah plenty of resources and kept his identity as a secret, he really couldn''t understand his actions. Generally speaking, his terms were the best ones that a cultivator could hope to find in that nation, the was really no one willing to give away that much to a lone cultivator. "Hmph, how would we know if you are telling the truth? Let''s say that you really didn''t know about his real identity, how can we be sure that you are not hiding him now that this information is widely known?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Ian pressed on, he wouldn''t let go of that chance so soon. At that time, Cecil stepped on. "Our family division had a meeting about that. We have decided to let any willing noble join the investigation of the Royal dynasty." The nobles were surprised by that statement. Allowing the noble families to join an official investigation of the Royals had a great importance on many sides. Not only could they prove their innocence in front of witnesses, they could also satisfy the need for information of the nobles. Ian, Fred, and Meredith weren''t that happy about those terms but Thomas was ecstatic! "If that''s the case, I''m willing to follow the Royal dynasty in the search of my grandson." He said, performing a deep bow. It couldn''t be helped, Thomas was only the patriarch of a medium-size noble family, his power alone couldn''t make the Royals budge, he was more than happy to accept those terms. His goal was to uncover the whereabouts of all his lost heirs, he had more to lose than anyone. Cecil nodded to Thomas and waved a hand in the direction of a specific quarter inside the Capital. "Then, Lord Balvan, I believe you''ll be interested in what his Master has to say about him." His phrase piqued the attention of the other nobles who silently followed the two Royals toward Noah''s previous habitation. They arrived at a relatively simple building but that featured a high density of "Breath", in Thomas'' eyes that place was already extremely luxurious. Cecil took out a token from his space-ring and he used it to open a certain flat. The flat was composed of a single large room where a shabby cultivator was sleeping. "I must warn you, this man has a cracked sea of consciousness, the only information he is able to store is that concerning his inscription method." Cecil warned the nobles and entered the room, lightly tapping on Ivor''s shoulder to wake him up. It took a while for Ivor''s eyes to open and to gain clarity, it really seemed that his mind was reaching its limits. "You again?" Those were the first words that came out of his mouth, it seemed that the Royals had already questioned him. "Would you mind telling what you said to me a few days ago to these Lords?" Cecil''s manners were polite, he even took out a jar of wine and handed it to him. "What did we talk about a few days ago?" Ivor took the jar and began to drink, expressing his confusion about the topic. "Your student, Vance. Tell us everything you know." Thaddeus said. "Mh¡­" Ivor took a long time to sort his thoughts. "He is a talented kid, one of the most prominent in the Elemental forging method. Honestly, his life must have been tragic for him to have such a strong mental sphere." Ivor''s words made the cultivators in the room turn toward Thomas who could only sigh helplessly. He knew that Noah''s life hadn''t been easy but he was only a bastard, there was no reason to give him any special privileges. Also, as soon as his aptitude was discovered, his mother had killed herself to stop being a burden to her son, Thomas could only curse to how fast those events had occurred. "Yes, his life wasn''t easy. Do you know where he is now?" Thomas changed the focus of the conversation. "No idea, he just comes and goes as he wishes, he never tells me where or why. Oh, now I understand. You have lost him." Ivor was shaking his head when realization dawned upon him and he couldn''t help but break in a sonorous laugh. "Hahaha! That kid is the most talented mage in the history of this country and you actually managed to lose him! What a joke!" Ivor continued to laugh but was forced to stop due to the waves of pain that his mind sent to him. Thaddeus neared him to speak in a soft voice. "Your student has abandoned you here. Don''t you want to find him and ask him why?" However, Ivor only laughed more to those words. "Haha! Who cares about me! I''m just a wasted cultivator and I''ve already passed all my knowledge to him. It''s actually comforting knowing that he is willing to abandon the people close to him, you will never find someone with that character! I can be ensured of the survival of my method now." Ivor''s words made the expressions of the cultivators in that room turn dark. "Can''t we simply inspect his sea of consciousness?" Fred asked to those around him but Cecil shook his head. "His mental sphere is almost completely cracked, we would just destroy it as soon as we try to examine it." Silence fell in the room, they really didn''t know how to approach Ivor. It was at that moment that Ian snorted and turned his attention toward Cecil. "He is clearly hindering the investigation of the Royal family, what will you do about it?" Cecil understood the meaning behind his words and focused his mental energy on Ivor''s mind. That action took only an instant but Ivor''s mind couldn''t withstand the pressure radiated from Cecil and broke, making Ivor''s consciousness vanish in the world. The light in Ivor''s eyes vanished and he fell back on the sofa where he was sitting, spilling the wine in the jar everywhere. Ivor was dead. "Was he your only lead?" Thomas asked plainly, the death of a cultivator wasn''t really a big deal. Thaddeus answered him with his gaze still fixed on Ivor''s corpse. "No. We will go to the Shosti''s inheritance ground next." Chapter 252: 252. June In the domain of the Shosti family, there was a separate dimension created by a powerful cultivator. The information about that cultivator had been mostly lost due to the passage of time, the only things known were his title and the cultivation level that he had at that time. There was another piece of information that could be determined about that dimension: even though it gave rewards to anyone worthy, the true legacy was reserved for one single heir. No one knew that the inheritance had been claimed some time ago by a young woman with a wild attitude. Inside the inheritance ground, in the third layer of the separate dimension. June swung her spear surrounded by hordes of magical beasts. Those beasts were each of a different type and they seemed to have an ethereal body, they were clearly a creation of the dimension. June pierced a mole''s head, then she kicked toward a snake that was coming from behind her. Each of her strikes killed a beast in one attack and they were all beasts in the peak of the third rank! After seeing that the number of beasts didn''t diminish no matter how many of them she killed, June stabbed her spear on the ground, injecting all her mental energy into it. The spear released countless sparks on the fake terrain which then exploded all around her, creating a thunderstorm that destroyed the encirclement of the magical beasts. June supported herself on the weapon, she was gasping for air and her complexion was pale, that last spell had exhausted her. "You have finally become used to your new body but your sea of consciousness is still too weak, it can''t express the true power of my spells." Eccentric Thunder was in the air above her, he had carefully watched the battle of his heir. "That''s all thanks to Master Eccentric, my body would still be in the third rank if it wasn''t for your amazing refinement method." June bowed to the old cultivator hoovering in the air. "The refinement method was only the last part of the process. What was amazing was your determination and the formation that I have personally created. You are quite lucky, I was only able to create the True Thunder body refinement method when I became a rank 5 cultivator. You are so young and yet you already have a rank 4 body, I have to say that I envy you a little." June smiled at her Master''s words and bowed again. She had really improved a lot since she became Eccentric Thunder''s heir. Not only all the wealth of the separate dimension had become hers, but she had also gained access to tens of spells and techniques of the thunder element, improving her battle prowess by a large margin. Also, Eccentric Thunder had used a method to forcefully bring her body in the fourth rank, giving her a body that could enhance the power of everything that used the thunder element as its core. ''My Master was really a monster, he has personally created a formation able to emulate the Pain Tribulation so to immediately refine a rank 4 body. I wonder how powerful he was back then.'' She really couldn''t be happier. She had a ridiculous amount of wealth, techniques, spells, and even a personal Master that guided her training and helped her in the breakthroughs, her future had never been brighter. ''And all of this is because of him.'' June''s mood turned sour as she thought about Noah. The separate dimension stored all the information about the various trials, she had watched Noah''s battle in the second layer many times and she had also witnessed his rebellion against his family on the first layer. ''I thought I had it hard. My family simply forced me to become strong while you fought against the suppression of your entire family and still managed to become stronger than me. Your will is simply in a different realm.'' Eccentric Thunder noticed the change in her mood and landed on the ground right in front of her. "Still thinking about him?" He knew what bothered his disciple. They had been together for more than one year after all, he had learned all about June. "Yes, sometimes I wonder about how dark my prospects were before I arrived here. This inheritance gave me the means to easily become a rank 4 cultivator in the future and has given me far more than the Royals could have ever allowed. All of this is thanks to him." Eccentric patted her shoulder and smiled at her. He was happy to have found such a talented and honest disciple, he was really thankful to Noah. "That kid is probably doing something unreasonable or conning some old man for a few pieces of gold, you don''t have to worry about him. Actually, you should focus on yourself, we both know that you won''t surpass him easily." June nodded, her mood had slightly improved thanks to her Master''s words. She was about to turn and resume her training when Eccentric stopped her and handed a large metallic hat to her. "Wear it." "¡­" Eccentric smiled to her but June only looked at the hat with aversion. "Master, I hate hats." "I don''t care, wear it." "¡­" They stared at each other for a long time before June gave up and finally took the hat. The truth was that Eccentric''s hat was an inscribed item specific for cultivators of the thunder element. Yet, June really hated to wear it while she fought. Not only it hindered her vision but it was also hard to keep on her head during a fight. However, Eccentric Thunder had never accepted to inscribe a different item for her and she was forced to learn how to fight wearing that heavy thing. "Master, listen. I know that hats are great and everything, but can''t you just inscribe something different? I don''t know, I personally like-" She interrupted her phrase because she noticed that Eccentric''s figure was staring at the ceiling with his brows furrowed. "What is it?" Eccentric stared at the ceiling for a long time when an earthquake ran through the entire layer. "Master!?" June didn''t know what was happening a called for her Master. Eccentric ultimately moved his gaze away from the sky and turned it toward June. He sighed and hundreds of orange runes gathered around him and June. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "It seems that someone is forcing the entrance of the dimension and they actually have the power to do so. I have waited so much for a worthy heir to appear and Heaven only gives me a bit more than a year with her. Damned luck." Eccentric shook his head and gestured for the runes to envelop June. "I''m sorry, our time together is over. I''ll transfer everything valuable inside your storage devices and send you as far away from the invaders. Be safe my disciple." The runes shone in a blinding orange light, making June disappear on the spot. Chapter 253: 253. Images Over the entrance of the inheritance ground, the known one near Mossgrove city. Eight cultivators stood in the air, carefully watching as one of them sent brown runes on the terrain below. Five of them were from different noble families while three of them came from the Royal dynasty. The nobles were Ian Udye, Fred Muwlos, Meredith Ramgett, Thomas Balvan, and Kent Shosti, the latter had joined the group since the investigation involved his family''s domain. The Royals were Cecil, Thaddeus, and the woman that was forcefully opening the inheritance ground. A rain of brown runes came out of her stretched hands and she kept her eyes closed to focus on the task, the cultivators around here watched in reverence as the process continued. Her status seemed to be superior even to Cecil since he stood with his head lowered on her side. After a few hours, a gap opened on the terrain which showed the seemingly endless green plain of the separate dimension. The woman then opened her eyes and sighed. "The entrance is open and most of the defensive measures have been destroyed, there is only a will inside." The other seven cultivators bowed toward her and Cecil personally expressed his gratitude. "Lady Edna, your might incredible, such a powerful inheritance ground couldn''t last a few hours in front of you." Lady Edna snorted at those words. "Most of the work was done by the time that has passed since its creation. Eccentric Thunder was a monster with a rank 6 dantian, he specialized both in runes and formations, I could have never obtained this result with my power alone if thousands of years hadn''t passed." She uncaringly replied before continuing with her explanation. "Remember, even if it has only a small part of its former power, this is still a separate dimension of a mighty expert. Don''t try to go all out at once, just slowly exhaust its reserves. I will go now, I''ve lost way too much time in sorting your mess." Lady Edna vanished from her spot but the cultivators there still performed a respectful bow. The truth was that Cecil had specifically requested for her help to enter the inheritance ground, he simply didn''t have the power to force its entrance. "I''ll lead the way." Kent took the vanguard position, it was his family''s domain after all, he couldn''t let anyone guiding him inside the inheritance ground that they have guarded for hundreds of years. The group of seven entered the pit and found themselves in a green plain with an orange sky. Even though they were all cultivators in the heroic ranks, they were still surprised by the width of such creation. Standing on the plain, there was an old cultivator that wore an extremely large hat and a luxurious orange robe. Eccentric Thunder had appeared as soon as the cultivators entered his dimension! "You must be senior Eccentric''s will, it is an honor to finally meet you after so many years." Kent bowed toward Eccentric''s figure but the others in his group didn''t follow his example, they didn''t have any special relationship with him while the Shosti family had built its wealth on that separate dimension. Eccentric snorted and opened his mouth to speak. "It is fun seeing some intruders speaking of honor, have you come for the resources of my dimension? Ha! I will destroy them before handing them to you." The runes that composed the dimension began to flicker and emitted an ominous noise, it seemed that Eccentric was ready to detonate the entire dimension. It was at that moment that Thomas flew in front of Kent and bowed toward eccentric, pleading him in a loud voice. "Lord Eccentric Thunder please wait! We have come to investigate a matter concerning the opening of the inheritance ground five years ago. The entire group of cultivators from my family has vanished and there is no trace of it! I wonder if you could tell us what has happened back then." Eccentric fell deep in thought. He knew exactly to what event he was referring to but he was somewhat conflicted about showing it. ''That kid is not my disciple but he still provided me with an heir. I also have to buy some time for June to safely escape the area of the dimension. I''m sorry kid, my disciple has the priority.'' Eccentric sighed, even as a will he still maintained his human gestures. "I can provide that but you have to close the dimension afterward, I''m still looking for an heir." "Deal." Cecil answered immediately and Eccentric sighed again before making an ample gesture with his right arm. The runes on the terrain shone and some faint images appeared. They pictured a group of soldiers in red armor that was silently encircling a suffering youth with his eyes closed. That was the moment when Noah had just come out of the second layer and was enduring the transmission of the Demonic form spell! The imagine then moved and showed to the cultivators the battle that followed that event. There was also the sound of their voices, Thomas couldn''t help but knit his brows hearing Noah''s conversation with Lena. Then, Noah used the Demonic form for the first time and completely overwhelmed the heirs of the Balvan family, taking all the corpses in his space-ring and leaving in a certain direction. A moment of silence followed the end of the images, the cultivators were still surprised by what they had seen. Not only the complete Demonic form was clearly powerful but also its wielder couldn''t be underestimated. After all, Noah was only fifteen during that battle and he was already extremely proficient in combat, some of the nobles couldn''t help but internally shake their heads seeing such a talent being forced to rebel against his own family. "I hope you would forgive my frankness, Lord Thomas." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Meredith spoke, turning her head toward the patriarch of the Balvan family before continuing her phrase. "How could you not suspect him from the beginning? He is clearly one of the strongest youths of the country." Thomas showed a complex expression at that question and coughed a couple of times before he was able to give an answer. "I didn''t even know that he had a space-ring." Chapter 254: 254. Detonation The truth was that Noah had always been careful in showing his strength and, also thanks to William''s help, he had been able to hide some of his strongest abilities. His most important trump card at that time had been the Body-inscription spell, it was the ability that had allowed him to triumph in the inheritance ground and obtain the Demonic form spell. Then, there was his space-ring, stolen from the members of the Gray Shadows, which he had ultimately substituted with a better one. In the end, he had hidden the incredible pace at which his sea of consciousness improved, hiding his status as a mage thanks to William''s assistance. What had simply been a bastard with some skills in Thomas'' eyes was, in truth, a beast that had hidden his sharpest fangs. "I have really underestimated him." Thomas concluded, shaking his head. He had found his answers, the heirs and soldiers were dead and all their resources had been plundered by Noah, there was really nothing else that he could hope for. "So, are you saying that this demon has been a student of the academy? Do you simply allow anyone inside?" However, Fred wasn''t happy with the results of the investigation and expressed his complaints. Thaddeus opened his mouth to answer him. "The entrance test values the battle prowess and he has performed far better than anyone in his generation. The Royal family is not to blame for being willing to nurture such a talent." "What now? Do you have any other lead?" Meredith joined the conversation and sided with Fred. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Thaddeus shook his head at that question, he really didn''t know where Noah could have gone. Silence fell again in the group of cultivators, they were slowly accepting the worst option. It was Thomas the one that gave voice to their thoughts. "I bet that he has left the country already. This is my fault, that kid was raised without any loyalty toward his family or nation, he is only interested in his personal power." Cecil neared Thomas and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don''t worry, we are at fault too. We will emit an arrest warrant and his picture will be affixed everywhere in the Capital. If he dares to show his face, we will surely catch him." His voice was firm which gave some confidence to the other nobles. Fred and Meredith nodded, they had lost their heirs after all, what they wanted the most was to find the main suspect for their son and daughter''s demise. Ian was a bit regretful but he could only accept that outcome. The Royals had already lost enough face with that matter and he could not prove that they were aware of Noah''s real identity, he had to accept that small victory. The only one completely uncaring about the matter was Kent. His worries concerned the inheritance ground from which his family gained most of its wealth, knowing that it had been damaged made him fear about the future prospects of his family. It was with hesitation that he spoke to the group. "Should we leave? I don''t see any reason to protract our stay." Thaddeus smiled and pointed at the terrain. "We have a complete inheritance ground in front of us, I say that we see what it contains. Don''t worry, the Royal family won''t take anything and you will share the profits equally." The cultivators became immediately interested. That was a separate dimension created by a mighty rank 6 cultivator, it would surely contain something that interested them. However, Eccentric Thunder was ready for that turn of event. The runes that composed the dimension began to tremble as soon as Thaddeus spoke. Then, they began to explode one by one, creating a chain reaction that detonated bigger pieces of the dimension. "What? How can this place still hold so much power?" Cecil was surprised and began to retreat, the other cultivators that came with him did the same. Eccentric didn''t answer, he was using the last reserves of "Breath" to destroy the entire dimension. ''They can''t know that someone has taken the inheritance. It''s time to vanish for the sake of my heir.'' He was only a will after all and his mission had been completed, he would gladly use his remaining power to erase the traces of June''s passage. Explosions rang everywhere, space itself began to curve due to the power expelled by the orange runes. Little by little, the entire inheritance ground began to crack and transform in smoke. Eccentric Thunder''s figure slowly transformed into smoke, as soon as it vanished, the three layers of the dimension exploded completely. Pillars of orange fire shot out in the sky in the spots where the entrances to the dimension were. There were nine entrances in total but they were replaced by nine fiery pillars. June turned due to the commotion that was happening behind her. She was in a murky swamp, at tens of kilometers from the Shosti''s domain. ''Master destroyed the separate dimension, it seems that the invaders were strong.'' She had learned all the defensive protocols of that place, she could immediately link the orange pillars to the destruction of the dimension. ''All of Master''s wealth is with me and he even left me some of his lessons in the form of runes, he was already prepared for a similar situation. I should just go back to the mansion, I have a lot to study.'' She walked in the direction of the Ballor mansion, unaware that, upon her arrival, she would learn a lot more about the man that gave the inheritance to her. Noah soon became publicly a criminal, the information about his past was revealed as it did his deeds. The Balvan family actively cooperated with the Royal family to create a complete profile of Noah. In just a few days after the destruction of Eccentric'' inheritance ground, Noah became widely known throughout the nation. His picture was affixed near the criminals'' board of the Capital and a bounty was set. However, no one was able to find him and many began to think that he had completely abandoned the nation. Chapter 255: 255. Running A shadow ran near the western side of the continent. It was fast, it shot through the plains without hesitation, only looking at was in front of it. That shadow was, of course, Noah. He was clad in a tight black robe with a hood that covered his face and he was speeding in a straight line along the coastline, he was using it as his landmark. ''Two months have passed by now, I bet that the information about my element has become public already.'' Noah knew that the noble families would retort in some way to his absence to the meeting, he had already considered the worst possible outcome and he couldn''t care less. ''Even if they label me as a criminal and start a man-hunt, I am already outside their reach.'' In the two months after the events of in the Bare Dungeon, Noah did everything he could to cover his tracks and escape the Utra nation. He had destroyed his hunter and academy''s tokens for fear of being tracked down by the Royals, he really didn''t want to bet on Ivor''s words. Then, he had inspected Phoebe and Manuel''s space-rings, gaining a large number of resources and potions before destroying the rings too. Lastly, he had cut his hair short, he didn''t think that a simple haircut would hide his identity in front of other cultivators but he believed that it could slow down the investigations. As for his escape plan, it was quite simple. The Bare Dungeon was already near the border of the nation, it was at only one week of travel from the Royal city after all, reaching the border took him no time. Noah had chosen to move to the westernmost part of the country though before abandoning the nation and he had his reasons for that. The first one was that he had no idea about the actual layout of the other countries, he could only use the coastline to be sure of his path. The second one was that the western side of the country was the one with fewer cultivators! At the center of the border, there was the Royal city and, on the eastern side, there was the academy. Those two structures gathered the majority of cultivators of that part of the country, the others would just reside in their mansions and would generally avoid the areas populated by commoners. However, Noah preferred to hide his presence even in front of those commoners. During his travel, he had encountered many small or large villages that had only a few weak cultivators in them. Those were the moments when he would use the Warp spell. Noah had always held back in using that spell during his battles. The main reason was that he wanted to hide his actual proficiency with it but there was more to it. The Warp spell was hard to perform, it required a great deal of concentration and mental energy and required for the user to see or to sense the place where he would teleport. Also, it needed some time to cast it, its efficiency in battle completely depended on the situation. Yet, one big advantage was that it left no traces of the user. Noah had used that spell as soon as he came out of the Bare Dungeon to make any possible spy of the Royals lose track of him. Then, he had proceeded in using it every time he found some human''s settlement, that was the best approach to prevent anyone from noticing him. The distance crossed by one teleportation could only cover a few kilometers at best but it was enough to surpass those villages. Another time when his spell had been required was when he had reached the border of the nation. Noah was sure that there was a formation in place there so he had used the Warp spell repeatedly to cross it. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. That formation mostly prevented outsiders from entering the country, it hadn''t been created for the opposite situation but Noah still had chosen to use his spell, he really didn''t want to notify the Royals of his escape after all. The rest of his escape was spent running. Two months spent running had allowed him to cross thousands of kilometers and, thanks to his rank 4 body, he had only needed to rest a few times to recover. ''Another village.'' Noah saw another human''s settlement in the distance. It didn''t seem the kind of place that could be inhabited by cultivators but he still decided to resort to the Warp spell. Noah focused his mental energy on the other side of the village and activated the spell, being immediately enveloped by a black fire only to reappear at a few kilometers in the distance. Yet, as soon as he reappeared, he found two fishermen staring at him with wide eyes. ''Fuck, my mental sphere still can''t give me a perfect perception when it comes to long distances.'' Noah uncovered his hood and smiled at the two commoners, all while performing a bow. "Do you know which country is this?" The two fishermen had seen that man coming out of the black smoke and were even more surprised when they saw how young it was. "Th-this is Athor country, My Lord" Noah nodded and continued to smile. "Do you happen to know which countries are their allies?" The fishermen thought for a while before shaking their heads. "We are simple commoners, My Lord, we don''t really understand the stuff about cultivation." ''It seems that I still can''t stop.'' Noah released two strands of black smoke that enveloped the fishermen and performed another Warp further in the distance. The partial Demonic form devoured those commoners in an instant, leaving no trace of them. ''I still don''t know if I left the area of influence of the Utra nation!'' However, Noah didn''t care at all about those two, he had decided to kill them as soon as they saw the black flames. That world was a dangerous one. One day you could meet a dragon and die under its might, in another one you could meet a man escaping from his country that was ready to do anything to cover his tracks. ''Luck can determine life and death, only personal power can cut the strings that control your fate.'' It was with that thought that Noah continued to speed in the distance, uncaring the beauty of the crystalline sea on his left. Chapter 256: 256. Slyfall More time passed. Noah had never stopped in his escape, he would only rest when his body reached its limits only to run again as soon as he recovered. The continued use of the Warp spell and the relentless march were beginning to affect his psyche but he didn''t dare to stop. The Royals had cultivators in the heroic ranks at their disposal and Noah wouldn''t bet on their negligence for his escape. ''If only I could stop overusing the Warp spell. Never mind, it''s too dangerous.'' Noah was using his potions to refill as much mental energy as he could to support his spell. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The constant stress and efforts prevented for his mind to be at ease and slowed the pace at which his mental sphere produced energy, he had to resort to his stash of medicines to continue running. Also, he could avoid using the Warp spell if he stopped crossing inhabited areas but he would risk entering in danger zones that way. ''It is clear that I still can''t kill a rank 4 magical beast alone and I have already used the shard of the Demonic sword. I am at my weakest right now.'' Since he didn''t know the actual layout of the continent, he could only cross inhabited areas because he was sure of their safety. Humans could never develop in a danger zone, only special structures inhabited by cultivators could survive there. Like that, his journey continued. He crossed plains and mountains, small forests and lakes, always keeping the sea to his left side. He had seen the sea in his previous life already, that sight was not enough to make him stop in wonder. ''How big is this damned continent! I would have crossed half of my previous world now.'' The speed that he was capable of with his rank 4 body was incredible but it still didn''t seem enough to reach the domain of the Shandal Empire. ''Once I reach the area of influence of the Empire, I will be momentarily safe.'' That was the first stop planned in Noah''s mind. He had a lot to do. There was the Bloodline Inheritance that still needed to be absorbed, Noah had momentarily sealed the head of the rank 4 worm in a barrel filled with the blood of the weaker worms that had been in his space-rings. However, that was only a momentary solution, he could not completely stop the deterioration of the head. Also, he had to forge his Demonic swords, his battle prowess was too low for him to be safe in a foreign country. Then, he wanted to resume a normal pace of training and gather information about his whereabouts, he couldn''t continue to run blindly in a straight line. As for why he had chosen the Shandal Empire as his first stop, it was because it was the strongest nation in the continent! ''Ideally, since I''m on the coastline, I should arrive in one of the countries subjugated by the Empire, I should be quite safe there.'' He didn''t dare to directly enter the Empire, he just wanted to lay low in one of the countries around it. It was only on his fourth month of travel that he encountered some changes in the environment. Noah found himself in front of an endless mountain range that seemed to cut the continent in two. ''These don''t seem normal mountains, they seem the work of a formation master.'' Noah carefully neared the mountain range and felt an ominous sensation coming from them. ''It''s either a formation or a danger zone, I can''t simply cross it in both cases.'' He thought about the issue for a moment before two pairs of wings came out of his back. Then, he flew in the direction of the sea to see if that sensation vanished. There, he was surprised to see a large and seemingly bustling city right between the sea and the mountain range. ''What? How wasn''t I able to sense it? Is it because of the formation?'' Noah was amazed by its concealment and could only address that ability to the formation. ''It doesn''t seem possible to sneak inside the next country, I should just see if I can pay them.'' Noah landed in an empty spot on the sandy beach and calmly walked toward the main gate of the city. That city had a simple defensive wall that surrounded it and many inscriptions could be seen on its surface. ''It should be more dangerous than it looks. I bet that it''s one of the cores of the formation.'' Formations needed a constant supply of "Breath" to work and that city seemed to provide some of it. "Welcome to the independent city of Slyfall, I need your identification token and one thousand Credits to let you enter." A soldier in a rusty armor blocked him right in front of the gate. Noah didn''t answer but looked around to see if there was someone else observing him. Yet, it seemed that the soldier was the only guard appointed for that spot. "Who does this city serve?" Noah asked in a plain tone. The soldier seemed used to that question and showed a wide smile at his words. "We serve everyone! The city is placed right between the areas of influence of two great nations so we can''t really take sides. I have to say that we are more inclined toward the Empire though." Noah nodded, he had guessed much already. ''To be part of the formation, this city must have the protection of a strong party. Their independence is just a fa?ade for the gathering of information.'' "What if I gave you ten thousand Credits? Would that be enough to buy your silence?" The soldier smiled again but shook his head. "You must be a noble on the run, I have seen many of your kind. However, I still need to give you a token to allow your entrance, I can''t just create a fak-" "Thirty thousand and an Earth pill, you want to break through the solid stage, right?" Noah raised his offer. He had already noticed that the soldier was rank 1 cultivator at the peak of the liquid stage, the only thing that could hold him back from attempting the breakthrough was the lack of resources. The soldier finally stopped smiling and looked at Noah with a bit of wariness in his eyes. The hooded man in front of him had to be way stronger than him to discern so accurately his level. It took the soldier just a few seconds for him to smile again and taking a token from his space-ring. "Welcome to Slyfall, Mister Adam." Chapter 257: 257. Inheritance The city of Slyfall was a simple one. It wasn''t luxurious or clean, it only featured a large market, a few hostels, and many taverns. ''This really resembles one of the pirates'' hideouts of my previous world, I kind of like it.'' The streets were filled with drunkards and women with revealing clothes, what surprised Noah even more was that most of them were cultivators! ''It seems that I ended up in the gathering point of the criminals of both nations, I should go on my way as soon as I finish my most pressing matters.'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah had his hood lowered, the soldier had advised him not to wear it inside the city and he had finally understood why. ''Everyone here should have quite a record, they won''t like someone unwilling to show his face. A hood would just attract trouble.'' He went looking for the best hostel that he could find and he rented a room for the exorbitant price of one hundred Credits per night. Noah didn''t care much about that price, he was in a seemingly lawless city after all, they could set any price they wanted. Also, the one chosen by Noah was one of the best hostels in the city, he needed the right structure for what he was going to do. ''I can''t just absorb the Bloodline Inheritance anywhere, I need a safe and silent space to focus completely on it.'' The records about the Bloodline Inheritance were scarce, Noah only knew how to absorb it and its effects. Yet, what he knew for sure was that the head of the rank 4 worm was deteriorating and he needed to hurry in absorbing its sea of consciousness before it became ruined. Noah immediately went to his room and closed the door behind him. The room was simple but wide, it had a large bed and one couch with a mat laid on the floor. Also, the density of "Breath" wasn''t bad either, Noah guessed that all the expensive habitations had a way to increase its concentration. ''This will do, I don''t think it will take more than two weeks.'' Noah had paid the rent for three weeks already, he needed that amount of time to return to his peak form and undergo the absorption. Four months of constant march weighed on his physical condition, he couldn''t just straight up cultivate again, he needed to rest. Noah went directly to sleep, the fatigue of the travel forced him to rest for more than half a day before his mind could be considered recovered. ''According to the records, I will undergo the life of the beasts while I absorb it.'' Noah ate a satisfying meal before sitting cross-legged on the mat on the floor. Then, he took out the barrel where he had sealed the head of the rank 4 worm and he opened it. A pungent smell immediately enveloped the room, four months were really too much even for a rank 4 material. Noah stabbed his hand in the severed part of the head and took out a small dark-red crystal from it. That was the solidified sea of consciousness of the magical beast, the Bloodline Inheritance that he had worked so hard to obtain. ''To think that this small thing is one of the best medicines for the mental sphere of a cultivator¡­ My mind should be able to handle it, right?'' What worried Noah the most was the capability of his mind. A Bloodline Inheritance essentially contained all the experiences of the magical beast and of its predecessors. It could come in many forms, depending on how much time had passed from its creation. Of course, the more a beast with a sea of consciousness lived, the more its mind would be valuable. The sea of consciousness of a magical beast was essentially a worse version of the humans'' one, it contained only raw thoughts and strong emotions, it couldn''t really be used for the casting of spells and similar. However, that was exactly why the cultivators could absorb it! Their thoughts were denser, their emotions more diversified, they basically had a more complex mind. Yet, if a beast had lived for too long, its mind could equal the might of the heroic ranks, making it impossible for cultivators in the human ranks to absorb it. ''It shouldn''t have been more than twenty years, I don''t believe that the Royals would have let it live if they had recognized the Inheritance.'' Noah didn''t know it but the last cleansing performed by the Royals had happened only fifteen years ago, his mind could completely cope with the absorption process. The crystal seemed frail, its surface was rough and uneven, it was really far away from a perfected sea of consciousness. Noah exhaled loudly and then neared the crystal to the middle of his eyebrows. The crystal crossed his skin and trespassed his skull, passing unhindered by Noah''s brain to reach for his sea of consciousness. As soon as it entered Noah''s mental sphere, its borders broke and the mental energy contained inside was poured in Noah''s mind. It was at that moment that he lost control of his body and began to dream. Cultivators scarcely dreamt, as their minds improved, they would be more aware of their surroundings in their sleep. Yet, Noah completely lost control of himself as his mind started to absorb the thoughts of the beast. In the dream, Noah opened his eyes only to see a dark underground place. He ran through tunnels and cavities by instinct, his mind was only led by one basic feeling: Hunger! Noah had never felt so hungry before, it seemed something compulsory, an instinct that he could not suppress. He followed the trail of the "Breath", he knew that it came from a living being. However, when he arrived in the place where the "Breath" was exuded, he found himself in front of a hundred of worm''s corpses. Those were his companions, his pack, he was momentarily stunned by that sight. Then, a human appeared in the air, his facial features were unclear but Noah clearly recognized the golden color of his armor. The cultivator simply waved his hand, creating a dense layer of air that completely stomped Noah, reducing him in a meat paste. It was at that moment that Noah died, the exact moment when hate appeared in his mind. Chapter 258: 258. Dream Noah died but his will remained. It wasn''t a conscious will, only a sliver of the strong emotion that he had felt when he died. His body was left on the ground to feed other worms, Noah felt as if his conscience was spread among other beings. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The hunger returned. It was an instinct too strong to suppress, Noah had to eat or he would go crazy! Yet, that place didn''t have that much "Breath" to begin with, only the terrain offered some kind of nourishment. Noah ate the terrain without hesitation, his mind was divided between ten or so worms but his experiences were the same. All he did for years was excavating and eating terrain, without ever managing to satisfy his hunger. Then, that feeling became even stronger. Noah couldn''t control himself, he went looking for his companions. When he found another magical beast, he pounced at it without hesitation! He fought, using his body to perform simple attacks. The surprise effect didn''t allow his opponent to defend, he was able to kill it in a few attacks. Then, he ate it. The feeling of having his hunger pleased was incomparable, he felt full, almost complete in some ways. Yet, that moment of pleasure left him unguarded. Other worms had watched that act of cannibalism and didn''t hesitate to follow his example, they pounced at Noah from different angles, killing him in a few seconds. Noah died again, but his will spread to those that had eaten him. Those same events repeated themselves for many years. It was a simple life, guided only by his instincts. Then, the humans invaded his lair again. The worms lost themselves at the sight of such an appealing prey but they couldn''t match their power. They could only jump at them while the humans simply waved their hands to kill tens of them at the same time. Many of the worms carrying Noah''s will died, increasing his hatred toward those powerful humans. The corpses of the beasts became the nourishment for the new pack, spreading Noah''s hatred in each surviving worm. He was now inside each beast of the pack but they still had a different will, he couldn''t control them. Another life of cannibalism began, Noah found himself dying and eating at the same time. That feeling seemed natural, he lived to satisfy his hunger after all, there was no ethic in the world of the magical beasts. Yet, the humans would always come to kill him. That cycle repeated itself many times, Noah felt his will becoming stronger and denser after every death. Like that, his thoughts became more complex. At first, it was only simple hatred, he hated those that had killed him so many times. Then, he began to feel envious of them. They moved their bodies in a strange way to obtain amazing effects and Noah wondered if he could do the same. He began to actively feel his body. It was soft but resilient, he wondered if he could use it to imitate the humans. Yet, he was too weak and his conscience was still too spread, his thoughts only lasted for a few days before disappearing completely. He spent hundreds of years like that. Dying, eating, thinking, he felt the death of each worm, he felt the hunger of each worm. Then, a change happened. The humans began to feel threatened by them and decided to leave only a few beasts after their cleansing. Those few remaining beasts fought themselves for the privilege of eating their dead companions, leaving only one of them alive. Noah''s will was finally concentrated in a single beast again. The feeling was amazing, he had a clear mind and he could finally think before following his instincts. That allowed him to survive more easily, it allowed him to actively choose when to develop his pack and when to resort to cannibalism, it finally allowed him to actively use his body to imitate the humans. Then, Noah saw himself. He watched the entire fight against Daniel and his group from the point of view of the rank 4 creature. Noah held on, his body was filled with injuries but he still performed the technique that he had spent years to create. Yet, those efforts were in vain, he ultimately died again at the hands of the humans. His will remained but it didn''t spread to other beasts, it was held captive in a barrel inside his lifeless head. Then Noah saw himself picking the Bloodline Inheritance and nearing it to his forehead, he felt himself disappearing, fusing with the mind of the human. It was at that moment that Noah woke up and his consciousness returned to his human body. He released an inhumane screech before thrashing himself around while holding his head, he felt as if his mental sphere was going to explode! It took him a while to calm down, his mind was still sore, he couldn''t asses its actual improvements. However, he could focus again on the room and watch what he had done while he was dreaming. The room was almost destroyed, Noah could see as every piece of furniture had been broken and bitten. There were bite marks everywhere! Noah inspected his mouth and found many pieces of wood between his teeth. ''Don''t tell me that I have actually eaten part of the room.'' Noah inspected his body but found nothing wrong with it, even if he had eaten something strange, there were no apparent consequences. ''That was so strange, I have completely lost myself in the experiences of the worms. What a pitiful life they have.'' Noah clearly remembered every sensation of when he was a worm. Yet, as a human, he couldn''t imagine being completely driven by his instincts, his mind was simply too complex. ''That hunger¡­ Is that what every magical beast feels? No wonder they are so aggressive, they literally need to eat or they would go mad.'' Noah could only have those few considerations before deciding that he was too tired. The process of absorbing the Bloodline Inheritance had exhausted him, he needed to recover to assess his actual gains. He went to sleep on the remaining part of the bed, hoping to have dreamless sleep. Chapter 259: 259. Map When Noah woke up, he could clearly feel the benefits of the Bloodline Inheritance. His mind was clearer, his thoughts faster, his mental sphere firm. Every advancement of the sea of consciousness would actively increase the capabilities of a cultivator''s mind: not only did it make him smarter, it also enlarged his point of view, allowing him to consider more possibilities that he thought impossible before. Of course, what Noah immediately noticed was the increased size of his mental sphere. ''I''ve gained two to three years of training, the records about the Bloodline Inheritance were right, it really is the best item for the training of the mind.'' Absorbing the sea of consciousness of a magical beast directly increased the mental capabilities of a cultivator, there were really no other potions or pills that could achieve something like that. However, such a sudden enlargement could lead to an injury or worse, Noah had relied once again on the advantage of his sturdy mind to absorb that inheritance. ''I should stop applying pressure on my mental sphere for a while to let it stabilize, I''m not resuming my training schedule just yet after all.'' Noah decided and focused on the gaseous "Breath" contained in his mind. He immersed it in the crystalline sea inside his sphere, that water was the representation of his thoughts and will, he was going to refine that "Breath". However, he didn''t leave that energy inside the sea for long, he took it out as soon as he became able to control it. Then, he simply dispersed that "Breath" in the air. His mind had to always endure a constant internal pressure due to his blood companions and the "Breath" needed for the Elemental forging method, Noah had decided to remove one of those things to ease it. ''Without the "Breath" inside my mind, I basically feel no pressure at all.'' His normal state had been one on the verge of a splitting headache for the last two years, he had to admit that having a completely relaxed mind was a good feeling. ''I''ll stay like this for a few weeks then I''ll increase the quantity of "Breath" stored, I need to become a rank 3 mage as soon as possible.'' Of course, peace and relax were the last things that Noah wanted. His dantian was improving at a fast pace since he obtained a rank 4 body but, even if it reached the liquid stage, the actual advantages would be limited. Noah guessed that, if he reached the liquid stage of the second rank of the dantian, he would finally be able to kill a rank 4 beast all by himself. ''That would still require me to go all out but my attacks will surely inflict more damage. Yet, the third rank of the mind would put me on a completely different level.'' Since he was reborn in that world, Noah''s biggest advantage had always been his more developed mind. Then, Noah began to rely more on it because his most powerful spell depended on his mind. ''Performing the Demonic form spell with a rank 3 sea of consciousness would increase my battle prowess far more than when reaching the liquid stage. It is a completely different rank after all, it can''t be compared to a more concentrated "Breath".'' Noah knew that both those breakthroughs were still quite far in the future, yet he couldn''t help but be expectant toward them. ''I should cultivate for a few days and then be on my way, I neither trust that soldier nor anyone in this city, I need to reach some real independent country. Also, I might have an idea about a new technique.'' Noah did exactly as he planned. He cultivated for a few days in order to revitalize his centers of power and return to his peak form. The high density of "Breath" of the room coupled with his piece of "Breath" blessing created an environment that surpassed even the best training rooms of wealthy nobles, his dantian was refilled in no time and Noah was even able to improve it by a bit. ''At least my body is autonomously reaching the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank, my lack of body-nourishing methods isn''t a pressing matter just yet.'' After he had recovered, he left the room in a hurry, it was best to disappear before the poor state of the habitation was discovered. Noah went for the market of the city, he needed to find information about the actual layout of the continent, he couldn''t just blindly follow the coastline like he had done for the past for months. The journey from that place would be somewhat more dangerous than before, he was now marching toward a powerful nation instead of running away from it. Noah wanted to avoid meeting soldiers of the empire at all costs, all he wanted to do was to lay low for a few years in some messy country in order to work on himself. Yet, detailed maps were hard to find in that environment. Most of them simply showed the form of the continent, they didn''t have any detail on them with the exception of a few big cities. "Don''t you have one with political borders and danger zones?" Noah asked a merchant that was proudly showing his maps to him. "Are you kidding? That stuff belongs to rulers and powerful organizations, if I had something that precious, I wouldn''t have to set a shop in the middle of the street!" The merchant''s answer made Noah frown. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''In the Capital, all the shops had access to high-quality items. Things are really different in the small cities.'' "Can''t you at least tell me where I can find one of them?" Noah insisted, he was really in need of a detailed map. "Yeah! Knock on the Lord''s mansion and ask for one! Stop botheri-" The merchant''s phrase was interrupted by Noah unleashing his cold pressure and nearing his face. "Look, I don''t want trouble. Tell me where I can find the map and I''ll reward you. Let''s do this the nice way." Noah smiled to the merchant but the latter couldn''t feel any good intentions coming from that expression. He then understood that Noah was being serious and he lowered his head to hide his mouth from the people in the street. "The Broken Cup has an underground chamber with stolen items. They should be quite precious so that is the only place that could have what you are looking for." Chapter 260: 260. Gillian ''Underground chamber with stolen items? I can already smell the trouble from here.'' Noah fell deep in thought after learning that information. ''Those items must come from wealthy cultivators, there is nothing that prevents them from stealing them again from me after my purchase.'' Noah was aware that the best way to maximize profits was to rob your customers, those that seemed weak at least. ''I am alone and lost, I would be their perfect target. Dammit!'' Noah threw a few thousand Credits to the merchant before opening his mouth to speak. "Where is this place and how do I enter that room?" . . . A few minutes later, Noah found himself in front of a simple-looking tavern. It had a wooden tag that depicted a broken cup, Noah knew that he had arrived at the right place. The tavern was small, it only had two floors filled with wooden tables on which men and women happily drank. The main hall was messy and the sound of cheers and shouts could be heard coming from each group of people. ''So many cultivators, they don''t seem particularly strong though.'' Noah crossed the main hall and reached for the reception desk, yet, he was soon interrupted by a few women with revealing clothes. "Hey handsome, why don''t you buy us a drink?" Three young women approached him, they immediately tried to lean on him or to grab his arms. However, they soon stopped in place, petrified by the cold gaze that Noah showed them. He then continued to walk toward the desk as if nothing had happened, uncaring of the mocking that followed his actions. "Hmph, I hate men that don''t know how to have some fun!" "He doesn''t deserve us! His thing must have some kind of malfunction anyway." "That''s right, only eunuchs are able to turn us down!" Yet, seeing that their words had no effect on him, they soon stopped, searching for another man to exploit. "What can I do for you?" A waitress spoke to Noah as soon as he reached the desk. Noah didn''t answer, he took a small bag from his space-ring and handed it to her. The waitress was confused, she inspected the bag only to find that contained five thousand Credits. It was at that moment that Noah spoke. "I need to meet with Miss Gillian, I have some business with her." The waitress stood in place for a while before hiding the bag inside her robe. "Wait here, someone will come for you." She then filled a jug with wine and handed it to him before hurrying somewhere. Noah inspected the wine and slowly tasted it, its quality was far worse than the one he usually had in the Capital but he still drank it, he wanted to show his goodwill to anyone that was observing him. It was only when he emptied his jug that another waitress reached for him and spoke with her head lowered. "Miss Gillian is waiting for you, follow me." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Noah followed the waitress in a deeper part of the hall where they entered a small corridor that had many doors on its sides. The waitress then went to one of them and pressed on some specific points of the door, activating some kind of inscriptions that kept it locked. The door opened, showing a dark staircase that led toward an underground area. "Miss Gillian is down there, I can''t escort you anymore." Noah nodded and carefully went down the stairs, enveloping his figure in a layer of mental energy and focusing his senses. At the bottom of the stairs, Noah could see a wide table that radiated a soft light. A middle-aged woman was supporting herself on that table, she had long brown hair and was smoking from a long pipe, filling the room with a strange scent. ''That smoke should have relaxing proprieties, it''s not strong enough to affect me though.'' "So young and yet so lonely, I wonder what course of events led you here in this forgotten city." Gillian spoke, laying her pipe on the table and crossing her legs as he sat on it. That gesture was slow but firm, Noah couldn''t help but think that it had a more profound meaning. "Your mind is also quite strong, there aren''t many men that can look at me and still be so stern, it seems that the scent of the Pink Rose has no effect on you." Gillian continued to assess Noah, she was quite surprised to see someone with a strong mind at such a young age. Noah bowed and didn''t waste time in further greetings. "I''ve been told that you might have something I need." "Who told you that?" "Someone." Silence enveloped the room but Gillian nodded at his answer. "Young, handsome, and righteous, are you sure that you don''t want to entertain me for a while before we start doing business?" Noah bowed again but shook his head. "I''m tempted but I''m in a hurry, I''m sure that anyone would be willing to please you after I''m gone." Noah gently refused her offer while still complimenting her, surprising Gillian even more. "So, you even know your way with words. Tell me, what brings you here?" "I''m looking for a map of the continent, a detailed one. It should feature the political borders and the known danger zones at least." Gillian fell deep in thought before tapping a few times on the table behind her. The light of the table flickered a few times before three items appeared on it. They were three simple-looking scrolls but Noah could immediately notice that they were inscribed items. "I have three items that meet your requirements, their prices indicate how many details there are on them. The cheaper one is twenty thousand Credits, the most expensive one is fifty thousand Credits." ''As expected, they are way overpriced. Luckily, money isn''t really a problem for now.'' Noah neared the table but the scrolls immediately disappeared and Gillian released a soft laugh. "I don''t do business with men that I don''t trust." She left the table and neared Noah with those same slow movements as before. "And I don''t trust men than don''t have time to please a woman." She then placed a hand on his waist and used his other one to slowly caress his face. Noah watched the scene unfolding and sighed internally before opening his mouth to speak. "Is this really necessary?" Gillian laughed again and nodded. "If you want the map, you need to earn my trust." Chapter 261: 261. Charming Demon Sec Noah came out of the Broken Cup in a hurry. His hair was messy and disheveled and his robe was untidy and open in many spots. Yet, Noah didn''t seem to care and ran directly from the gate leading to the countries of the empire. ''That damned woman will cause me troubles for sure!'' It was with those thoughts in mind that he hurried for the gate, it was time to leave Slyfall! Meanwhile, back in the underground room of the tavern. Gillian was still laying naked on a bed, pensively looking at fifty thousand Credits that were in front of her. "Was he to your liking, Matriarch?" A waitress neared the bed, handing Gillian a clean robe and her pipe. "Well, yes, he was less inexperienced than I thought. Yet, he kept on interrupting the positions required for my technique, he maintained his awareness of me even while we were at it." The waitress opened her eyes in disbelief and covered her mouth with one hand. "Matriarch, don''t tell me, did he discover our secret technique?" Gillian shook her head and took the pipe from the bed. "No, the diagrams of the Charming Demon Sect are long lost, the orthodox sects of the Papral nations have made sure of it when we were forced to escape. He must have simply felt the danger coming from our positions." The waitress heaved a sigh of relief. "Then, what should we do about him?" Gillian took a long drag from her pipe and stared absentmindedly at the walls of the underground room for a while. "I didn''t manage to absorb any of his yang during our intercourse but he was still tainted with the scent of the Pink Rose, tracking him shouldn''t be a problem." She fell silent again, taking her time to slowly smoke. "Go after him and retrieve the item, he should also have a considerable number of Credits due to how detached he was with his purchase." The waitress bowed and turned to follow her orders but Gillian continued to speak. "Oh, try to capture him. He has such a strong body for his age, I''m sure he can survive our cultivation method for many years." The waitress bowed again and disappeared in the darkness of the room, leaving Gillian alone on her bed. . . . Noah left the city of Slyfall, a few thousand Credits had to be spent to bribe the soldier appointed for that gate but that wasn''t a problem for Noah. He didn''t really care if the investigations of the Royals would ultimately reach that city, he was sure that they couldn''t operate so openly in another area of influence. ''I have finally managed to escape the domain of the Utra nation, there should be only nations affiliated with the Shandal Empire from now on.'' Noah had finally escaped the area of influence of the Elbas family! However, there was no happiness or relief in his expression. ''That damned woman, she has actually tried to use me for a demonic technique! Having sex with her is a thing but being part of her cultivation technique? She can just keep dreaming.'' Gillian was quite beautiful, he didn''t mind her request too much. Yet, he had already noticed that something was wrong with her gestures but he didn''t pay much attention to it while they were conversing. However, after they had laid in bed, she had started performing strange positions which alerted Noah''s senses. ''I couldn''t even enjoy it because I had to change position every time to interrupt her¡­ The map is the real deal at least.'' He had bought the most expensive item of the three and he was pleasantly surprised by its quality. The map depicted the entire continent and highlighted all the known danger zones. Also, it had the geopolitical division of each country and one could use his mental energy to inspect what information the map held. The information mostly regarded their alliances and other general aspects but the owner of the map could add more details if he wanted. The only flaw of the map was that it didn''t show any detail of the three big nations, there were basically three large empty spots on the picture of the continent. However, that was far more than enough for Noah. ''With this, I can stop running blindly in other countries and can actively choose a route. The only problem is, will Gillian let me go?'' Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The reason why he left in such a hurry was that he wasn''t sure about Gillian''s reaction. He had done his best to please her without endangering himself but that didn''t mean that he was out of troubles. ''Killing her wasn''t an option, I can''t just fight her in her own home and hope to escape the city afterward. Also, the maps were locked by the inscriptions on the tables, I needed her to be willing to hand them to me.'' Noah reviewed the events of the previous night before shaking his head. ''I did everything I could, now it''s up to her. Well, if she really decides to rob me, I will just kill them all.'' Noah didn''t think that Gillian would personally come to rob him, her position seemed quite important in that secret market, she couldn''t just leave it. ''She seemed strong but I should have hidden my power quite well, there is a high chance that she will underestimate me.'' Noah had, after all, the aspect of a young man, most of the people that met him wouldn''t believe about the rank of his centers of power. ''It is better if I don''t make many stops though, I should get away from here first.'' The city of Slyfall was quite isolated from the society and the mountain range repelled strong magical beasts, preventing danger zones to form. Basically, the area around the city was quite deserted. ''Dammit, they have come already.'' Noah felt ten presences in the distance that had their focus on him. ''I should let them follow me for a while, they might have reinforcements in the city, I''ll just wait till I reach that mountain to kill them.'' Noah''s eyes shone with a cold light as he continued to run with his usual hurried pace toward a mountain in the distance. Chapter 262: 262. Ambush The mountain right after Slyfall didn''t have a name but it was signed in Noah''s map as a danger zone. ''It says that there is a pack of Loud eagles, they are strong in sound attacks but they usually prefer long-distance combat, I won''t find them at the base of the mountain.'' Once he knew the type of magical beasts that occupied the mountain, Noah was immediately able to decide which was the safest place where to fight the cultivators behind him. ''They are picking up speed, it seems that they don''t want to fight too far away from the city.'' Noah smiled under his hood and accelerated. The ten cultivators following him were surprised by that gesture. Noah was going quite fast already but that speed was still in the human ranks. However, Noah''s new pace completely surpassed that limit! "He has a rank 4 body!" One of the cultivators whispered. "And he was able to perceive us, let''s hurry!" Two female voices sounded in the group following Noah, they had just realized that they had underestimated Noah. Yet, they needed to retrieve the map, they couldn''t just go back and reorganize. ''I''ve revealed the power of my body but they are still after me, they must have some confidence.'' Noah continued to run toward the mountain, those behind him weren''t able to catch up but they also weren''t losing ground, their speed was the same. However, Noah could sense the usage of "Breath" behind him. ''Some of them are using spells to keep up, it seems that not all of them have a rank 4 body.'' That realization reassured Noah. His trump card was the Demonic form spell and it was almost impossible to resist it with only a rank 3 body, it was enough for Noah to touch them and they would vanish. ''I can''t be that na?ve, they will surely use their number against me. I should avoid being encircled if possible.'' He was far away from his usual environment, he didn''t know which techniques they used nor how organized they were. ''The forms used by Gillian weren''t orthodox, it''s safe to assume that her followers would use something peculiar too.'' There were many ways to fight in that world and Noah only knew a small part of them. The academy had taught him well but the world was too big, it was impossible to learn every single technique, especially the unorthodox ones. The mountain neared and soon occupied all of Noah''s field of view. ''I should first make them lose track of me.'' As he had that thought, his figure was enveloped in black flames, disappearing completely from the sight of his followers. "What!? A teleportation spell?" "Calm down, he couldn''t have gone far and we can still track his position thanks to the scent of the Pink Rose." The cultivators stopped their march and gathered in a circle. They stood in silence, they were using a specific technique to follow that peculiar scent. "He is on the mountain." "Yes, but he stopped at its base?" "Is he trying to ambush us?" "No, he probably thinks that his last spell made use lose track of him. Come on, let''s go." They spoke for a bit before deciding to resume their chase. Meanwhile, Noah had appeared to one of the branches of the trees at the base of the mountain. His attention was completely focused on his followers and Echo was using its innate ability to help Noah''s perception. ''They are coming right at me, this isn''t just luck. It must be Gillian''s fault.'' Noah covered his figure with many layers of mental energy and proceeded to carefully inspect his body, he had been cautious the previous night but the actions of the cultivators behind him had aroused his suspicion. However, even after he analyzed his body inch by inch, he couldn''t find anything out of the ordinary. ''I guess I''ll have to ask them.'' Noah dug a hole in the tree and hid inside it, he was preparing his ambush! The ten cultivators reached the base of the mountain. They had a clear idea of where Noah was but they couldn''t pinpoint his exact position. They were following a scent after all, there was a margin of error. Yet, they still reached the area where he was hiding, they simply had to search and they would find him. "Let''s divide into five groups and search, we will meet at the center of this area." The group of ten formed five groups of two people and continued their search for Noah. They were all relatively close, if something happened to one group, they could immediately help them. RUSTLE RUSTLE One group of two sensed some movement behind a series of bushes and carefully neared them. They slowly approached the area only to find that a plain-looking black panther was there, tossing around a large bat with its maws. "They were just magical beasts." "Mh, what a peculiar scene though, you don''t see these types of beasts in this mountain every day." The two women exchanged a few words and turned to continue their search but, to their surprise, the two beasts stopped fighting and jumped on them. "Hmph, merely rank 3 beasts, learn your place." One of the women snorted and attacked with a whip that had suddenly appeared in her hands. The whip tore the panther''s chest and severed the bat''s head, making the woman relax at that sight. However, the beasts still moved after being mortally wounded and reached the two cultivators, stabbing their remaining fangs on them. "Fucking beasts!" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. The two tried to react but they soon understood that something was wrong. The beasts had a long fuming line that connected them to something at the top of a tree. Then, black smoke began to envelop the two beasts, spreading to the women that they were holding still. Screams resounded at the base of the mountain, turning the attention of the other eight cultivators in their direction. What they saw was gruesome. A fuming bat and a fuming panther were biting with all their might their two companions and black smoke continued to envelop their figures, consuming their skin and flesh. They were too engrossed by that sight that they were one step too late in noticing that black flames had appeared behind two of them. Chapter 263: 263. Warp ''Second Form of the Ashura!'' Noah immediately used his strongest attack. The ten cultivators had their features covered in black hooded robes, he couldn''t distinguish them with only his eyes. However, if he relied on his senses, he could understand which one of them was the strongest. They were his first targets. Using his blood companions to create a diversion and executing the Warp spell to catch by surprise the strongest cultivators, that was his simple but effective plan. His six arms joined together to slash at the incredulous cultivator. His heart pumped liquid "Breath" throughout his body and his white sabers released black smoke, he was using his most powerful moves without hesitation. The cultivator below him could just watch as the air above her distorted and a vertical cut severed her in two. "Surround him!" An order resounded from the assailants but Noah didn''t allow them to take the initiative. Black flames enveloped his figure again and he reappeared behind one of the remaining powerful cultivators. One clean diagonal swing with his joint sabers severed the hooded figure in half, of the ten cultivators, only six of them were still alive. Noah was using the Warp spell with extreme precision, appearing right in the blind spot of each enemy. Also, that spell made up for the weakness of the Second Form of the Ashura, even though his attacks were slowed by the pressure on his arms, the surprise effect didn''t allow his enemies to dodge. Noah warped again. The remaining cultivators anxiously turned, they tried to intercept Noah''s sneak attack. However, Noah didn''t teleport behind any of them but in front of two of the weakest ones. ''First Form!'' His sabers multiplied mid-air and slashed at the two helpless cultivators. Ten fuming attacks crashed on them, their bodies were only in the third rank, they were powerless against Noah''s offensive. Then, Noah sensed a strong fluctuation in the area around him and hastily deployed his wings to shoot in the air. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. BOOM! Two fireballs and two columns made of ice converged on the terrain below him, creating a deep hole on the ground. ''I lost the initiative.'' Noah cursed in his mind as he watched the remaining four cultivators standing around him on the terrain. They began to execute strange forms that affected the environment around Noah. Inscriptions shot from their bodies and created deep signs on the terrain that then converged in the form of shining bullets toward Noah. BOOM! Another explosion resounded on the mountain. Noah couldn''t avoid that attack and was hit by the joint technique of his enemies, his flying speed was only in the human ranks after all, and he didn''t have enough time to warp away. "Is he dead?" "Don''t know, cultivators of the darkness element have strange spells." "Didn''t the Matriarch ask to bring him back alive?" "Are you saying that you have the ability to capture him alive?" The four cultivators spoke between themselves as they watched the gray cloud in the air that was created by their last attack. ''Quite peculiar, not only were they all women, but they can also perform these joint techniques.'' Noah thought inside the cloud as his fuming armor reformed. He had activated the Demonic form spell at the last moment and managed to avoid any fatal injury, yet, that last attack had still managed to break the protection of his spell, arousing Noah''s interest. The women on the ground watched with wide eyes as the gray cloud darkened. Black smoke covered the air around them and they gasped at the sight of what became visible after a while. It was a black humanoid figure, with two short horns and a small tail. It wielded two fuming sabers and its skin was uneven and moving, it didn''t have a solid state. Noah didn''t hesitate, it launched a rain of fuming wind slashes toward the ground, disrupting the position of his enemies and forcing them to retreat. However, his attacks were too deadly and two of them had a rank 3 body, even though they dodged Noah''s slashes they were still hit by the toxic smoke. Screams resounded in the black cloud that was being created on the ground, the last two cultivators knew that it was time to retreat. Yet, one of them was hindered by a black panther that had suddenly appeared in front of her. She immediately used her strongest spell to open a path. Countless ice shards formed right in front of her and then shot toward the panther, destroying Shadow''s body repeatedly. However, Shadow wasn''t a living being, its body reformed after each destruction and continued to interrupt the woman''s escape. "Damned beas-!" Her phase was interrupted since Noah appeared right behind her and severed her head. The last of the group was running at a high speed back to the city of Slyfall. She didn''t have time to care about the cries behind her, she could only do her best to keep her life. Nevertheless, black flames appeared in front of her from which a young man with a cold gaze came out. She wanted to speak but the man directly slashed at her, his sabers bent the air and neatly severed her legs. The woman began to fall but Noah grabbed her head and threw her back toward the mountain. She was smashed on the ground, her head felt dizzy but the pain coming from her severed limbs kept her aware of her surroundings. Noah slowly walked toward her. His complexion was slightly pale, he had used the Warp spell for a total of five times and he had also transformed in the Demonic form, his mental energy had mostly depleted. Yet, he had managed to win the battle virtually unharmed and he had finally used all his abilities. ''It seems that I still can''t use the Demonic form and Warp at the same time, they consume way too much mental energy and using them together would just increase that consumption.'' He had deactivated the black smoke before warping, he wanted for the teleportation to be as precise as possible. Noah arrived in front of the woman and squatted toward her, uncovering her face in the process. The beautiful face of a young woman was shown to him, yet, that sight wasn''t enough to melt his cold gaze. "I''ll be honest, I will never let you live. Why don''t you simply answer my questions so I can avoid torturing you?" Chapter 264: 264. Torture "I''ll never betray the Matriarch!" The woman gritted her teeth and spoke with a firm voice. Noah sighed and grabbed her hair as he walked back on the battlefield. The woman screamed and cried but Noah was unmoved, he simply returned at the base of the mountain and left her on the ground. Then, he went looking for the remains of the other nine cultivators but he wasn''t able to find much: he had fought using the partial Demonic form for the whole time, the toxic smoke had devoured most of their bodies. They had one space-ring each but they only contained their weapons, there weren''t any potions or wealth inside them. ''It seems that they were afraid of being recognized. I understand the absence of Credits but bringing no medications is quite foolish.'' Noah shook his head and gathered the weapons in his space-rings before destroying those of his enemies and clearing every remaining trace of their battle. Only he and the surviving woman remained. "I understand that you don''t want to reveal your identity but I''m still interested in your techniques. How are you able to perform inscriptions by just moving in that strange way?" That last spell was able to break Noah''s defenses, he had to admit that he was quite surprised by its power. However, the woman didn''t answer and turned her head away from Noah. "You spoke of a Matriarch, are you referring to Gillian?" The woman''s breathing stopped for a moment before resuming at a normal pace. "Let''s see if I have understood correctly. Gillian asks each man that comes to purchase from her secret market to spend the night with her. Yet, that''s just a way to perform an unorthodox technique, I believe that''s a cultivation technique of some sort." The woman''s eyes widened but Noah continued with his speech. "Also, her followers are all women who are able to perform even stranger techniques, I can''t help but think that she is in charge of some organization." Noah had his head raised as he spoke those words, he was trying to link every detail that he remembered. "Then, she doesn''t even allow her followers to bring potions or pills in their missions. For someone that has spent his life hiding, I can recognize those that do the same." "You have no proofs." The woman finally spoke. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. "Nor do I care. The way I see it, if a man is so weak that he can''t suppress his arousal, he deserves to die at Gillian''s hands. I just want the theory behind your joint attack, I can''t neglect the knowledge of the other countries in the cultivation field." The woman listened to his words and gulped, suppressing the pain coming from her missing limbs. "The technique originates in the area of influence of the Utra country-" Noah wielded a saber and severed one of her arms. "That''s a lie and I''ve never asked for its origins, you just want me to think that you have given up." The woman cried in pain as another of her limbs was cut away. She had a rank 4 body, her vitality was extremely high but that wasn''t an advantage in that situation. A high vitality meant that she would be able to resist for a longer time under Noah''s torture and he didn''t seem to have any restraint in doing it. "It''s a martial art! It is extremely similar to a spell in power since there are more people performing it. That''s all I know!" ''So, they just use quantity to make up for the lack of quality. Martial arts are weaker than spells but, if enough people perform them in harmony, they can match their power. It seems too easy.'' Noah fell deep in thought, his mind tried to remember every detail of that attack. ''Those were clearly inscriptions but their creation was too fast.'' "It''s a formation, right? You use your bodies as the cores of the formation and use a martial art to power it, creating a devastating effect." The woman nodded at his words, she was quite surprised that he could understand so soon how it worked. "Is there a version that can be performed by a single person?" "No, they are battle formation especially created for groups of people." "Oh, right, how could you pinpoint my location?" "The scent of the Pink Rose of the underground room is all over you, we have a technique that can trace it. It will naturally disappear in a week." Noah nodded at her and stabbed his saber on her heart. Black smoke came out of his weapon that quickly devoured every trace of her. ''I guess that the other nations have managed to create formations that can be deployed almost immediately, that increases the power of their weaker cultivators by a large margin.'' Noah checked his condition and decided to resume his march for a few days before finding a place to rest. ''I shouldn''t underestimate weaker cultivators from now on, there are simply too many techniques that I''m unaware of. The safest approach would be to increase the level of my centers of power but that would slow my travel by a lot.'' Noah picked the map and unfolded it. ''The countries under the Empire''s influence occupy almost half of the continent and I want to reach the opposite border in order to feel completely safe.'' Noah searched on the map for a country that fitted his needs. He needed to find a place between the Shandal Empire and the Papral nation where he could develop, what he needed was time to raise his strength. ''War zone.'' Noah read those words while he inspected the countries on the opposite border with his mental energy. ''Efrana, war zone. Only place where the defensive formation of the Empire has fallen. Constant battle between the Empire and the Papral nation. Mercenaries set their tribes there to have a better chance of being hired.'' The information on the map ended there but they were enough for Noah. ''It took me four months to arrive here and I have basically never stopped. The distance between this place and the nation of Efrana is even longer and I surely don''t want to arrive there tired and exhausted. I''ve decided, I''ll take my time to reach Efrana and then accumulate wealth as a mercenary, my centers of power should improve quite a bit before I arrive there.'' Chapter 265: 265. Martial ar Noah was in a cave at quite a distance from Slyfall. Two weeks have passed since he had been chased and he had used that time to increase his distance from the city. Then, he had chosen to rest. The scent of the Pink Rose had vanished by then and he needed to recover from the battle. The cultivators under Gillian had a dantian between the solid stage of the first rank and the gaseous stage of the second one, adding the fact that some of them had a rank 4 body, they were basically on Noah''s level. However, Noah had a rank 2 sea of consciousness that had further improved after the Bloodline Inheritance. Also, he had ambushed them, making full use of all his techniques and spells, expressing his experience in combat to the best. ''It definitely feels good to use all my power, hiding my strength for so long was becoming too annoying.'' Noah heaved a sigh as he thought of that. In the Utra nation, revealing his element would have alerted the Balvan family. There, however, he could simply fight how he wanted. Information would take a while to reach the ears of the Royals and they didn''t have the same influence on that side of the formation. ''I should still try to leave as few witnesses as possible, I don''t want another big organization taking interest in me.'' He had virtually suffered no injuries in the fight but his centers of power were still heavily stressed, four months of constant travel were still weighing on him. Also, Shadow''s figure in his sea of consciousness was full of cracks, the last spell from that cultivator had surpassed the limits of what it was able to endure. ''Rank 3 beasts are too weak but the will of a rank 4 creature is too strong, I''m quite sure that I can''t contain it. It seems that I found another weakness of this spell.'' The Body-inscription spell was his first spell and was what had allowed him to surpass the other contestants in Eccentric''s inheritance ground, it could be said that, if he had not fallen inside Twilboia Cliff, he would still be struggling to escape the grasp of the Balvan family. That''s why Noah valued that spell a lot, not only could it allow him to ably fight when outnumbered, but it was also what gave him the ability to fly. However, those strong points were slowly being outclassed by his other powerful abilities. The First Form of the Ashura was way more effective than a rank 3 beast and his running speed had long surpassed his flying one. ''Should I create another blood companion? To what end? Even if I forge it, it still won''t be able to surpass the limits of the human ranks, my spells or martial arts would still be the better choice in every situation.'' Noah refused that idea. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''The main weakness of the spell is its requirements, the other one is its uselessness in these middle ranks.'' Having a rank 3 beast against cultivators in the first rank or with a rank 3 body was useful but it became pointless against stronger enemies. Yet, to have a rank 4 creature as a blood companion, a cultivator needed to have at least a sea of consciousness in the third rank, meaning that he couldn''t really use the spell for two entire ranks. ''I should focus on what can increase my battle prowess quickly, namely the Demonic sword and the new technique.'' Noah inspected his space-rings. There were thirty-two buckets that contained the Undead chameleon''s bones immersed in his own blood, their refinement had long ended but Noah didn''t have time to resume his experiments. ''I have a basic outline of the sword in my mind but that will require another series of experiments and a long period of time, it''s best if I focus on that after I near the center of the continent.'' The Elemental forging method required long procedures and many mistakes to succeed. Noah had managed to create a shard of his finished product but that was only the simple version of his sword: something created only with two materials wouldn''t be sturdy enough to last. That''s why he decided to leave that matter for when he was in a safer place. ''Then, I''m left with this.'' Two scrolls appeared in front of him, they contained the diagrams of his two rank 0 spells. ''Blind wasn''t that useful. As my power increases, the number of enemies that rely only on their eyes diminishes, not even magical beasts do that anymore.'' Noah had bought that spell to increase the variety of his attacks but his power had increased too quickly and he was also forced to hide his element for the whole time, he really never needed to use the Blind spell. ''I can''t even imagine to use it for what I want to do, I''ll just store it for now.'' One scroll returned to his space-ring, leaving only one of them in front of Noah. ''Shadow step spell, rank 0. It was useful to complete my ability to fly and it has increased my battle prowess while I still had a rank 3 body. Its diagram is extremely simple since its power is limited, yet, it''s really a pity to not be able to use such a useful ability.'' Noah''s idea for a new technique was precisely about that spell. He knew the importance of abilities that improved the mobility of a cultivator, his last fight using the Warp spell was a proof of the advantage that they could give. ''Martial arts are an imitation of spells, which means that I could theoretically turn this diagram in the forms of a martial art. Also, since my centers of power are on a superior level, I should be able to set its strength to a level that can be useful to me.'' Noah''s eyes shone with excitement as he studied line by line each part of the diagram of the spell. ''Also, if I manage to succeed, I might also be able to mix some of the effects of the Warp spell in it. That would create an incredible martial art focused on agility!'' Chapter 266: 266. Study The process of the creation of a martial art from the diagram of a spell wasn''t an easy one. The first phase consisted in the identification of what effects each line of the diagram produced. Then, a cultivator had to reproduce those lines with his body to obtain a similar effect. The issue was that a spell was generated with a mixture of mental energy and "Breath", those two energies could be manipulated easily, it wasn''t hard to follow the rhythm of a diagram with those. A martial art, however, needed for the body to execute that rhythm while following the lines of the diagram, it was impossible for a material figure to have the same maneuverability of an immaterial matter. That was why martial arts were generally weaker than spells, the body would not keep up with the rhythm of the diagram and would produce weaker effects. Also, the fact that the Shadow step was a rank 0 spell, its diagram was extremely simple, it wasn''t created to produce strong effects. ''Body, dantian, mind are the three centers of power on which a cultivator relies.'' Noah had his eyes closed, he was still in the same cave but the density of "Breath" was far higher than before. He had taken out his "Breath" blessing and resumed his cultivation as he pondered over the creation of his technique. ''Spells are created from mental energy and "Breath", their complex diagrams and those two energies are what make them the strongest weapons of a cultivator.'' The knowledge learned in the academy stormed his mind, he wanted to consider all his options. ''Martial arts only use the "Breath" and the body, the lack of another type of energy is what eventually determines their inferior power. Also, a body can''t execute complex diagrams, leading to simplified imitations of the spells.'' The Three Forms of the Ashura depleted a large amount of Noah''s mental energy because he required an insane amount of concentration to perform it. The mental energy was the representation of his thoughts after all, the more complex an action was, the more thoughts would be expended. ''Simply speaking, I would just obtain a martial art in the second or first rank if I just try to imitate the diagram of the Shadow step. That won''t do, I need it to be in the third rank if I want it to have some utility.'' Noah was sitting cross-legged on the bare ground, his hands were joint according to the Dark vortex cultivation technique. ''Yet, my body alone is in the fourth rank, creating a rank 3 martial art might be useless too.'' The Shadow step spell could not withstand the power of his body, it was normal that Noah wondered if a rank 3 martial art would do the same. ''There is only one way to approach it: I will identify the lines of the diagram that produce the propulsions of the black circles and remove everything else. Then, I have to balance that simple effect on the strength of my centers of power.'' The more he thought about that idea, the more he felt as if it was the best course of action. ''The complete martial art should produce a sudden acceleration, yet, its weakness will be the need for a foothold to perform it.'' The black circles allowed Noah to stand on them before having the propulsion and he wanted to completely remove their creation from his martial art, meaning that he would need a foothold to perform it. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. ''Picking the simplest of the effects and then reconstructing it using my body as the foundation, it will take a lot of trials and practice.'' Noah sighed in his mind and interrupted his cultivation, his dantian had completely recovered by then and his body was at its peak form, there was no reason to delay the creation of his technique. The diagram of the Shadow step spell was in front of him, Noah had observed it from time to time when he interrupted his cultivation. However, he was now actively studying it, trying to discern the effects that each of its lines produced. ''That won''t do. Not only my inscription method is different from the "attunement", but diagrams are meant to be performed as a whole, I can only test the effects of each line.'' It was after that thought that his study began. Noah would use small amounts of mental energy to trace the diagram in his mind. Yet, he would always interrupt it after some effects started to appear. Half of a dark circle appeared under his sole but he forcibly interrupted its creation, making it vanish in the air. The small line in his mind vanished and the mental energy accumulated there exploded, making his mental sphere tremble from the impact. The shacking didn''t last much but it was enough to make Noah frown. ''Forcibly interrupting a spell isn''t really a safe process. Luckily, I''m working with a rank 0 spell, the energy accumulated in its diagram isn''t that dangerous.'' That was one of the risks involved in the creation of techniques. If, for example, Noah wanted to study part of the diagram of the Warp spell that way, he would incur in severe repercussions to his mental sphere. Creating a technique wasn''t easy. Noah studied the diagram for days. He traced longer and longer lines in his sea of consciousness, he needed to identify the part where the propulsion effect was added in the diagram. That process was slow, not only Noah had to constantly interrupt the spell, but he also had to test the half-formed circles to see if he had reached the part that he was interested in. His mental sphere trembled unceasingly in those days and Noah had to spend many hours resting to prevent the creation of any long-term damages. However, in the end, he had successfully managed to isolate the part of the diagram that added the propulsion to the black circles. ''Finally, now it''s time for the testing phase.'' Chapter 267: 267. Repetition Noah resumed his march toward the nation of Efrana. His centers of power had recovered and he had decided the route to take, staying near the border of the Empire would only increase the chance of being found by the Royals. The road toward Efrana was long, Noah needed to cross many nations and danger zones of which he only had a few information. However, that was far better than his initial situation. ''This country is basically deserted, there are only some sparse danger zones, yet, I should find more human settlements in the next one.'' Noah reviewed the information on the map in his mind as he proceeded to walk in a strange rhythm. He would take short steps, then he would suddenly accelerate, then he would stomp his feet repeatedly. If anyone watched his actions, they would label him as a mad man. Nevertheless, Noah was actually training! He had isolated the lines of the diagram of the Shadow step spell that produced the propulsion effect of the black circles and he was currently trying to recreate those lines with his body. What he knew about the creation of techniques were only the theories and the records of previous cultivators that had succeeded in it, there wasn''t a set method for that. Every new technique was extremely personal to the cultivator that created it, it reflected his attitude during the creation process and his preferences, there wasn''t an established method for that procedure. Yet, it was recognized that there were three main stages: isolation, experimentation, and perfection. The isolation stage indicated the part when the cultivator decided and identified the effects that his technique had to have, it was called that way because most cultivators isolated certain parts of a diagram like Noah had done. The experimentation stage consisted of attempts in the reproduction of those effects. Many trials were needed when creating the forms of a technique, Noah was currently in that stage, trying to find the movements that produced a propulsion similar to the Shadow step spell. In the end, the creation of a technique entered the perfection stage. Once the wanted effects were successfully isolated and reproduced, what was left to do was perfecting those forms so that they could have the intended power. Only after all those stages had been completed, a technique could be considered finished. Noah had yet to find the right movements. He would attempt in every kind of different move that he felt imitated the lines that he had isolated, however, he still couldn''t achieve any results. His body was partially made of "Breath", he didn''t need to use the one in his dantian in that process, once his movement met the required rhythm, the propulsion would be produced. That''s how his days were spent. Noah had previously decided to alternate two days of march to three days of rest and cultivation, he didn''t want to neglect his training because of his travel. Personal power was the most important thing in his mind, that wouldn''t change based on where he was. He spent his time traveling walking in that strange manner, limping and jumping around to synchronize his movements with the chosen lines of the diagram. The other days were spent in caves or inside trees, making full use of his "Breath" blessing to obtain the best results from his cultivation technique. His dantian steadily improved in that period and his mental sphere did the same, Noah could already feel that a breakthrough was nearing. Three weeks had to pass for a change to appear. Noah was still running in that strange manner, he was moving slowly, his training had a huge impact on his traveling speed. Then, he pressed twice on the terrain, using just enough strength to continue moving forward, and the effect that he was expecting so much finally showed itself. Noah felt a slight propulsion when his foot touched the ground for the second time. He immediately stopped and focused all his attention on his left leg. TAP TAP Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. He tried again to make the same exact action but he didn''t manage to match the previous rhythm. However, Noah tried again and again, he had finally found the right movement, he couldn''t allow his body to forget that sensation. Forty-one was the number of times that Noah repeated that movement before he was able to produce that effect again. ''Again!'' Noah didn''t stop, he had to automatize that form before he continued to move. The number of failed attempts between one successful form and another shortened. It went from forty-one to thirty, from thirty to twelve, from twelve to four. It was only at that moment that Noah stopped using his left leg and began to train with his right one. Failed attempts piled on but Noah was becoming more and more used to that form. When he managed to complete the right movement every four attempts even with his right leg, Noah returned to use the left one. The day became night and the sun soon rose again in the sky. Noah hadn''t moved from his position for an entire day. Two deep holes had been created on the terrain due to the constant repetition of that gesture, Noah''s legs were buried in them but he didn''t seem to care. There was only the form of his new martial art in his mind! When the sun disappeared again on the horizon and the night enveloped the world, Noah stopped his training. He forcefully kicked his legs free and sat on the ground, his hand went autonomously under his chin as he fell deep in thought. ''I can now execute this form without making mistakes, the easy part is over.'' His body was basically still at its peak condition, he didn''t use much strength while he memorized that move. ''The problem now is that I have to increase the overall power of this move, it can barely match a weak rank 1 martial art in this stage. I should first learn to perform it with my body and "Breath" at the same time though, I''ll think about increasing its power later.'' Chapter 268: 268. Chains Noah''s march became a bit faster. Adding the "Breath" to his move wasn''t a hard task, he had only to match his body''s movements with it. However, the results were already starting to satisfy him. Noah ran at a normal pace but his speed suddenly increased every time he pressed twice on the ground with the move that he had memorized. ''This is the right feeling! I''m still far away from surpassing the acceleration that I can obtain by simply using the full power of my body though.'' He had a rank 4 body, a martial art that weak couldn''t give him any real advantage. ''This is one of the issues with using the diagram of a rank 0 spell, if I limit myself to the simple imitation, I can only obtain a somewhat similar power.'' Noah had no use for a martial art with the power of a rank 0 spell, he needed something that could match the Three Forms of the Ashura for it to be useful. ''Well, if I had tried to work with more complex diagrams, I would still be in the isolation stage.'' Noah''s fast results were mostly due to the simplicity of the spell that he was imitating, his hard work and dedication only helped in shortening the process. ''The form is basically set, now I have to see how far I can go with it and then apply some modifications.'' Reaching the limits of what the imitation of the spell could produce and then modifying it to raise its power, Noah knew what he had to do. His journey continued quietly. Noah spent his days doing what he liked the most, the feeling of having his centers of power becoming stronger after each session of cultivation was extremely appreciated by him. The four months of escape didn''t allow him to train at all, they were a huge blow on his morale considering his addiction to cultivation. Yet, he had finally gone back on track and he had no imminent limit. He had even absorbed again "Breath" in his sea of consciousness, that gaseous energy stood like a black cloud over the sea in his mental sphere, generating an incredible internal pressure. Like that, his mind enlarged even during the days spent marching, he was really making a complete use of his time. A whole month had to pass before he reached the next country. The scenery was about the same, forests and small hills covered the landscape but the atmosphere felt way tenser to Noah. ''This country is inhabited and there is a high percentage of cultivators!'' Noah couldn''t help but become warier of his surroundings. He didn''t really think that he could meet many people stronger than him, he was entering a country far away from the center of the Empire after all, there could only be that many powerful cultivators. ''Soprad nation, an underling of the Empire, I wonder how it is structured.'' The map told Noah those few information and he was quite eager to discover the differences between the peripheral countries in the area of influence of the Utra nation and of the Empire. ''It is said that the Empire gives to everyone a rank 3 body-nourishing method, I wonder how they manage to maintain control over the masses if that''s true.'' The nobles in the Utra nation kept control over the population by restricting the access to techniques and spells, there could never be a revolution of the commoners there since they simply didn''t have the means to cultivate. Commoners saw cultivators as superior beings, they wouldn''t ever think about rebelling. Noah advanced, his pace was quite slow since he was still experimenting in his martial art. During the last month, he had increased the amount of strength and "Breath" used when he performed his technique and he had obtained some satisfying results. The martial art had reached the power of the second rank, Noah was using more power of his centers of power as he used it, it was obvious that its effect became stronger with it. Yet, he felt that he had reached a certain limit. No matter how more strength or "Breath" he put in the technique, the effects didn''t increase. Instead, they would completely disappear, meaning that the execution of the martial art had failed. Noah knew that the lines that he had isolated from the diagram of the Shadow step spell had reached their limits, they simply couldn''t express more power in that form. What he had to do now was to make a modification to those lines in order to surpass the limits of the original spell. However, he really didn''t know how to do it. ''The creation of spells requires diagrams which are a composition of different lines in a certain order. Those lines are generally a form of inscription, cultivators study a natural event and reproduce it in the form of diagrams. That''s quite a disadvantage for me.'' To recognize and translate an event in the form of inscription, one had to be proficient in the "attunement" method. Noah''s inscription method, however, was completely unrelated to Heaven and Earth, it was his will that set the meaning. ''I don''t have any other spell from which I can isolate lines that express effects useful to me¡­ Well, I have them but it''s too dangerous to break up their diagrams with my current level. The only thing I can do is to create completely new lines but my inscription method works in a different way¡­'' The "attunement" method was the best option for the creation of new spells and techniques, practitioners of that method could literally hear the meaning of the "Breath" after all. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. However, that method was precluded to Noah, he couldn''t create diagrams with the help of the world. ''Either I find a way or I drop this idea until my sea of consciousness reaches the heroic ranks.'' He had never stopped moving while he had his mental discussion and he had arrived near a human''s settlement. The scene that unfolded in front of him was quite far away from his expectations. It was a small encampment, with a hundred or so tents. Yet, most of the people there had metal collars around their necks, linked together by large chains that were fixed on the ground. Chapter 269: 269. Slaves ''Are they prisoners?'' That was Noah''s first thought. He could recognize the strength of their bodies, they were all between the second and third rank, yet they seemed malnourished and exhausted, they resembled commoners while they moved. ''What are they excavating?'' All those people wearing metal collars were digging holes on the ground with their bare hands, some of them were covered in blood, Noah couldn''t imagine how much work they had to do to injure their hands with the terrain. The chains linked to the collars didn''t allow them much freedom, they were fixed on the ground, forcing those prisoners to work in a circular area based on the chains'' length. Noah didn''t find anything wrong with learning more about the situation, he had escaped precisely in order to stop hiding, he felt no need to avoid that encampment. A layer of mental energy enveloped his figure as he moved forward toward the tents. Noah soon discovered that the one in front of him wasn''t the only camp, many more of them entered his field of view as he gazed toward the sea in the distance. ''The area there is quite crowded, is it because of the sea?'' The camps were more populated along the coastline while the ones more inland had had only a few hundreds of people, it was normal for Noah to think that the sea was the cause. He walked casually toward one of the chained people and waved his hand to greet him. "What are you excavating?" Noah asked the first man in sight. The man had his head lowered and completely ignored Noah, he was only focused on digging the terrain. ''Is he ignoring me or is the chain that forces him to work?'' Noah arched one of his eyebrows as the saw that the man didn''t answer. His gaze eventually went on the collar and then on the chain. Inscriptions could be seen on both those items, their brilliance flickered under the daylight, they seemed to be applying some unknown effect to the chained man. He was about to ask another question when a rough voice sounded from one of the biggest tents. "Hey, you! Don''t talk to the slave!" ''Mh? Slave?'' Noah first gave another look at the chained man and then he turned toward the voice. A half-naked burly man who was still halfway through the entrance of the tent was looking at him in an angered manner. "Who are you? These mining fields belong to the Empire!" ''Mining fields?'' Noah''s eyes shone with a cold light as soon as he understood that there was something valuable there. He performed a bow to the burly man and wore a wide smile before speaking. "I wasn''t aware of that, I''m just a traveler with very little knowledge of this country and it is my first time seeing an actual slave. I hope you can forgive this misunderstanding." Noah''s words slightly eased the man''s temperament but he was still somewhat wary of him. "You better get going, you can''t disturb slaves when they are working, we have a schedule to keep up with." The man snorted and folded his arms around his chest, his muscles became more evident that way. ''I can''t understand his level but I don''t feel any danger either, he should be as strong as me.'' Noah took out a jar of Ivor''s wine from his space-ring, after his prolonged habitation with him, Noah had become used to stashing some for himself. When he opened the lid, the scent of strong wine filled the area. Noah took a slight sip from the jar but his attention never left the man, he was wondering if such a good wine could attract his attention. Luckily for him, the man was immediately interested in Noah''s jar, his eyes followed its movements in Noah''s hand. It couldn''t be helped, Ivor''s wine was of the best quality and extremely expensive, Noah was sure that a cultivator in such a remote location couldn''t have access to something so precious. "Hey, where did you get that? It''s my first time smelling something so delicious." "Oh, it''s nothing much. Wine is a passion of mine and I like to keep a reserve of the most delicious ones." Noah lied casually, he waited for an invitation from the man as he continued to drink from the jar. However, the invitation never came, the man simply limited himself to stare at the jar while licking his lips. ''Why doesn''t he just ask for it?'' "Would you like to taste it?" Noah became tired of waiting and took the initiative. The man''s eyes lit up at that question and he happily moved the curtain of his tent in a welcoming gesture. "Yes, please! You can come inside if you don''t mind." Noah nodded and entered the tent, the man stood still on the entrance, waiting for him to cross it. ''So, that''s how the life on the borders of the Empire is spent.'' Noah suppressed a surprised gasp as the scene inside the tent unfolded itself. There wasn''t much, only a small table, a few chairs, and a large bed. However, on the bed, there were two naked women with a collar on their necks. Also, the tent seemed to have some kind of inscriptions on its surface, Noah guessed that they were meant to suppress the noise. ''Slavery doesn''t cover only the working field then.'' "I''m sorry for them, I wasn''t expecting visits. I will send them away immediately." The man clapped his hands and ordered the women to leave the tent, they didn''t even dress as they went outside. "Are all slaves cultivators?" Noah asked loudly as soon as the women left the tent, they were cultivators too. "Well, yes. Mortals die too easily, they aren''t worth their price in the long-run." Noah nodded in understanding while he moved toward one of the chairs and placing his jar on the table in front of him. "I''ve heard that the defeated countries provided slaves to the Shandal Empire but I have greatly underestimated their quantity. Did you win many wars?" Noah wanted to gather information about the Empire, he had planned to spend a long time in its area of influence after all. "Hmph! Almost every country in the central area of the continent has surrendered to the might of the Empire, if it wasn''t for the Utra nation and the Papral nation, we would have conquered the whole landmass already." Chapter 270: 270. God There was pride in the man''s words when he spoke about the Empire. ''I guess I should avoid telling him that I come from the Utra nation.'' Noah carefully observed the expressions of the man, he wanted to discover as much as he could about the central countries, he had to take advantage of him when he could. "Oh? Are they that powerful?" Noah asked, taking out two cups from his space-ring and filling them with Ivor''s wine. "Hmph, each one of them alone can''t match the Empire. The only problem is that they both have to suppress the Empire or they will be conquered, their geographical position makes them allies against us." The man snorted again as he sat on the opposite chair and took the cup, immediately drinking from it. "Good wine!" He exclaimed after taking a small sip and then he resumed his drinking with enthusiasm. "It''s just something that I picked up randomly." Noah rejected the compliment before speaking again in a casual manner. "How is it possible though? I''ve never seen such a concentration of cultivators and this is just a peripheral country! I think that the Empire has enough manpower to take down both the Utra nation and the Papral nation." The man wore a prideful smile after Noah''s comment, he seemed really attached to his country. "Well, the truth is that we have far more cultivators in the human ranks than any other country but those in the heroic ranks are about the same. We people of the Empire like to boast around and act mighty but the cultivators of the other countries aren''t weaker than us." He admitted, placing the empty cup on the table. "Is that the reason why you didn''t ask for my wine as soon as I opened it?" Noah filled both cups again with a smile on his face, he was obtaining some decent information already. "Haha! People from the Empire never ask for anything, they earn it! Anyway, my name is Ross, I''m in charge of this encampment." "Adam." A moment of silence followed their presentation, they simply sat on their chairs, enjoying the flavor of the wine. "What are you mining here? I can''t imagine what precious mineral requires so many slaves." Ross looked at Noah in disbelief. "Is this really your first time here?" Noah nodded and waited for the man''s answer. "Well, it''s quite widespread as information. All men and women of the Empire have access to a rank 3 body-nourishing method. This method requires a particular terrain called Vostum that can be found only near the sea. All the commoners in the Empire need it to cultivate so the Empire handles the mining operations to make a gain out of it." ''They create the demand and then set a monopoly, gaining an endless stream of wealth and increasing the number of cultivators at the same time. Smart, really smart.'' "What about cultivation techniques and spells? Are they that accessible too?" Noah asked with interest, if the conditions were good, he would gladly change his route and head for the Empire. However, Ross immediately shook his head at that question. "You must either perform a meritorious service or work for some higher-up in the army to obtain those. Why do you think I''ll be living in a tent surrounded by slaves if not for the payment?" "Will you obtain a technique for this?" Noah asked, receiving a wide smile as an answer. "That''s right. I and the soldiers in the other encampments will join a high-ranking troop after our job is done. That will give us access to rank 3 cultivation techniques and rank 2 spells, truly a fortune!" ''Rank 3 cultivation techniques so easily? I bet that these high-ranking troops are similar to the noble families in the Utra country, just more loyal to the head of the country.'' Then, Noah remembered one particular piece of information in Ross''s last sentence. "Soldiers? Is there someone like you in each of the camps here?" Ross nodded. "Yes, the law imposes a soldier every one hundred slaves. There have been cases of revolt in the past, that number is necessary to suppress them before they start." ''So, I''m not alone with him, there are more soldiers here and I can suppose that they are all on my level. Well, there wasn''t anything valuable anyway, I have no need for a material useful for rank 3 body-nourishing methods.'' Noah refused the idea of creating a mess in that place and simply continued to converse with Ross. Their topics covered mostly the political situation of the Empire, how it was structured and its actual strength. Simply speaking, the cultivators of the Empire valued strength over everything, their whole hierarchic system was based on it. Basically every citizen was a soldier but his mansions depended on his personal power. They could be allocated in mines to handle slaves, as farmers in the fields, or even as servants. The most powerful of them could become full-time soldiers and join specific troops led by a captain. ''I have to admit that I''m starting to like this country. They have no care for your birth and they only look at your strength, well, you still need to be born in the Empire to obtain these privileges.'' There was only one thing that Noah wasn''t sure of. "How can the Empire suppress so many cultivators? I mean, there has to be someone in charge, right? How can he or she handle so many powerful people and prevent a revolution?" Ivor''s wine had relaxed both Noah and Ross, they were speaking in a more friendly manner since the jar was almost empty by then. "Why would someone revolt? The Empire strongly pushes cultivators to become more powerful and to take down their superiors, we are not bound by some anachronistic law." "Yet, that still can''t prevent weaker cultivators from organizing and jointly attacking the stronger powers." Ross listened to Noah''s words and nodded at them. However, his gaze was then filled with reverence as he opened his mouth to speak. "No one will revolt because there is a God leading the Empire." Chapter 271: 271. Path A God! That simple word caused waves of shock in Noah''s mind. ''He must be referring to a cultivator in the divine ranks! Yet, how couldn''t the Empire conquer the continent if they have such a strong leader?'' The divine ranks were a world on their own, Noah couldn''t even imagine the actual might of someone on that level. That''s why he found suspicious that there were still free countries in the continent, nothing should be able to match a God after all. ''Unless, both the Utra nation and the Papral nation have a similar power.'' Noah knew that the stronger cultivators of each nation would abandon the mortal world and focus exclusively on cultivation. It couldn''t be helped, cultivating required more time as one''s level increased, Noah had been in the gaseous stage of the second rank of the dantian for two years and a half by then and he was still in the middle of the human ranks! ''How many monsters are living outside of people''s sight? How many Gods there are in this world?'' He didn''t notice it but his gaze was being filled by the flames of ambition as he kept thinking of that. "We are proud of our country and proud of our leader, rebellions are for rats and criminals. Why would someone choose to act like a rat? The Empire is waiting eagerly for another God to be born, it pushes us to our limits and provides resources to anyone willing to work with it, it''s a fair request!" Ross continued to speak but Noah had completely lost interest in their conversation. "I should probably go, my family is waiting for me." Noah stood up, placing a new jar on the table. Ross was confused at first but, seeing that Noah was willing to leave another jar of that wine as a sign of goodwill, he didn''t bother asking much. Noah left the tent in a hurry, he had a strange feeling that was making him uneasy. ''Gods, actual Gods! Cultivation opens the path to godhood!'' He knew that humans could reach incredible levels but that was the first time he heard about someone that powerful. Gods in his previous world came from religions and cults, he had never believed in any of them. Yet, here people could watch them and dream of reaching their levels. Ambition, anxiety, restlessness, those emotions mixed together and led Noah outside of the encampment, back on the large forest on its other side. He had not lied to Ross, his family was waiting for him, he was sure of that. However, he knew that he was just an ant compared to Thomas Balvan, he couldn''t even defeat William with his current power. Noah ran in the forest, his feet released shockwaves every time they touched the ground. Yet, those propulsions didn''t make Noah any faster, his body was too strong for such a weak technique to have any effect. He stopped in the end and found an empty cave where he could resume his cultivation. ''I need to succeed with this martial art.'' He had reached that conclusion along the way, too many things depended on his ability to create techniques. ''The path toward the heroic ranks is blocked, organizations detain cultivation techniques and they give them away in exchange for personal freedom. I can''t end up in another system that tries to use me, I want to be independent!'' Even if the Empire''s requirements were vaguely loose, Noah still couldn''t accept them. He sat on the ground, his gaze swept his legs as he thought of a way to solve the problem with his martial art. ''Inscription methods are what have allowed cultivators throughout history to create spells and techniques, at least for the majority of them. However, the Elemental forging method doesn''t take inspiration from the "Breath" of Heaven and Earth but relies of the will of the cultivator to power up its effects.'' Noah knew that he had to find a way to create his own techniques, he would soon reach the limits of his current ones, his body was already at that point. ''The Body-inscription spell wasn''t created with the "attunement" method, I''m sure of that. It uses the power stored in the beasts and the "Breath" of the cultivator to create an animated puppet, the body is just a vessel that powers it.'' He felt that he was about to find the solution that he was waiting for. ''Basically, it takes power from its materials while the cultivator depletes "Breath" and mental energy to control it.'' Noah''s eyes were still on his legs. ''My body is a rank 4 material, it has less power than a beast''s body but it''s still incredibly strong.'' The "Breath" blessing was taken out of his space-ring and laid on the terrain, Noah needed the perfect environment for his training. ''The meaning behind the lines that I''ve isolated is weak, it can''t express much power, I''m basically trying to force a toy car to run as fast as an actual car just because I''m giving more power to it.'' No matter how strong the power source was, a toy car could never surpass an actual car, it would just explode, unable to withstand that much pressure. In the same way, the lines of a diagram from a rank 0 spell couldn''t express much power, the moment their limits were surpassed, they would simply stop working. ''My inscription method requires good materials but also a strong will. My will can be imposed on the world and produce the effects that I want without imitating the behavior of the "Breath". If I want those lines to surpass their limits, I have to add my will in them.'' Noah closed his eyes, he had become used to refine the "Breath" in his sea of consciousness by then but he had only worked with his meaning of sharpness. However, he needed something different at that moment, something explosive! The "Breath" in his mental sphere entered the crystalline sea while Noah focused completely on finding a new will to refine it with. Chapter 272: 272. Emotions While Noah was busy traveling and training, the Utra nation had been filled with rumors about him. The first cultivator of the darkness element that had appeared in decades was, in reality, the bastard son of a medium-size noble family. His crimes became widely known and many linked tragic events to his person. Doris'' disappearance was one of them, cultivators couldn''t think that she had vanished because of personal matters anymore after they had learnt that Noah had been in her same hunting area. Phoebe and Manuel''s death were the same, a second investigation on their weapons revealed some conflicting clues about the cause of their deaths. Yet, while the most powerful nobles viewed his figure as a stain on their authority, the weaker cultivators thought of him with some reverence. Noah was a man that had defied his status to became stronger, he had hidden among the most powerful organizations in the country and was now on the run. ''My dear disciple, I''ve really failed you.'' William was in the outer circle of the Balvan mansion. His mood was sour as he looked at a picture portraying some of the most dangerous criminals of the nation. It was needless to say that Noah was among them. ''You have really grown, not even those lofty heirs in the academy were your match, it seems that the whole world has underestimated you.'' His eyes showed some affection as he remembered scenes from the past. ''You were just a smart kid in a difficult situation back then, how could you end in such trouble?'' He sighed. He knew that Noah had grand ambitions but he had never thought that they would lead him to become a man wanted by the whole nation. ''Please, be safe wherever you are and, if you can, abandon the hate that links you to this family. Abandon all of us and only look at the road in front of you, we are lost causes anyway.'' Sandford and Mark neared him and sat on his table. "Vice-captain, that kid is crafty, I honestly pity the next organization that will welcome him." "My brother is right, he has managed to escape from the Royal family, the Balvans will never find him." They tried to lift William''s morale a bit, they had fought together with Noah after all, they had more feelings for him than for their masters. "You guys¡­ Do you know that I can have you hanged because of these words?" William smiled and teased the brothers who laughed back. "You should be happier, the kid is safe and well and is becoming stronger every day that he is on the run. Old men like us can only watch as the new generations take over the world." Mark commented but then he took a glance toward his brother. Sandford nodded and wore a stern expression. "William, the family wants to go to the Ballor mansion and have a meeting with their heir. Noah has lived together with her for quite some time so the Lords want to ask her some questions." William''s brow arched at those words. "Did my disciple finally manage to think about something that is not cultivation?" Sanford showed a proud smile. "It seems that my teachings had some effects on him. *Sniff* They grow so quickly, one day you are hunting rebels with them, the next one they make noble girls fall in love with them. Such a good kid¡­" Mark suppressed a laugh at Sanford''s act and William couldn''t help but release a happy sigh as he shook his head. The last period had been a tense one for him considering his relationship with Noah, but Sandy and Mark had always supported him, easing some of that tension. "So, they want me to go to the mansion?" Sandy and Mark nodded at the same time. "You know him better than anyone in the mansion, they want you to hear the girl''s story to see if you can understand where he went." William snorted at those words. "Hmph! I''ve betrayed him once, I won''t do it again. However, I suppose I should see this woman, she needs my approval if she wants to be with my disciple!" Mark and Sandy couldn''t suppress their laughter anymore, they understood William''s intentions, he was simply eager to know more about Noah. . . . Some days later, in the central part of the Ballor mansion. June was silently cultivating. She was in a dark underground room covered with inscriptions and a shining orange rune was in front of her. "I''ve created countless techniques but only a few of them could be considered actual masterpieces. You lack the talent for runes but you are quite good with formations. Remember, Heaven and Earth is petty but also fair, every road can lead to the same result, you just have to find out how." Eccentric Thunder''s voice resounded in the room, the rune in front of June carried some of his teachings. "Runes, formations, inscriptions, each one of those methods can be used for the creation of new techniques. You have a big advantage since you have my whole inheritance but you can''t slack off on your study of formations, the day will come when you''ll be forced to create something by yourself." "The first thing will be something to replace your damned hat!" June shouted at the rune but there was no response. The rune carried only registered teachings, there wasn''t any will in them. She sighed looking at the inanimate rune, it wasn''t her first time hearing that explanation but she still couldn''t force herself to spend hours in the study of formations. The constant stream of rumors about Noah made her wander in the memories that she had with him. Their first battle on the air-ship, the events in the Royal Inheritance, their cohabitation spent stealing Ivor''s wine. However, Ivor was now dead and Noah was a criminal, her happy memories had been turned in constant guilt. ''You hid so much but still decided to trust me with Eccentric''s inheritance. I acted so grumpily and spoiled and yet you have never asked for anything.'' She clearly remembered Noah, she remembered how his cold gaze stared at the world with indifference. ''Vance, where are you?'' She missed him, Noah was basically her first friend and he had given her an incredible opportunity, asking only to not use it against himself in return. ''In the end, you couldn''t even trust me.'' Noah''s last words made her feel regretful, she wished to do more for him but he had vanished and she had no idea when he would come back. "June, the envoy from the Balvan family has arrived." June came back to reality after that communication and she immediately stood up, trying to suppress the anger that she felt. Chapter 273: 273. Regre A table filled with delicacies was placed right in the middle of one of the most luxurious rooms of the Ballor mansion. The table divided the cultivators in the room according to their families. June, her father, and the Patriarch of the Ballor family were on one side while William, Rhys, and Adrian were on the other one. "Lord Otis, I want to express my appreciation for allowing us to meet the heir of your family today." Adrian spoke in a polite manner to the Patriarch of the Ballor family. Otis was an elderly man with short silver hair and a long white beard, he waved his hand at Adrian''s words with a wide smile on his face. "This is just a small matter, we are happy to help the Balvan family." The Ballor family was just a small-size noble family, even if they were in a different domain, they had still to respect a more powerful family. "I''ve already spoken to my daughter, she has agreed to answer all your questions." June''s father joined the conversation, expressing his good intentions toward that meeting. June didn''t speak, she simply stared at Rhys with cold eyes. "Thank you, Lord Max, we just want to ask a few questions to your daughter. Specifically, we would like to know what kind of relationship did she have with Noah." Five heads turned toward June who simply continued to stare at Rhys. Max pressed his hands on her shoulder and spoke to her in a soft voice. "June, they have asked their question." June nodded. "I know, I was just confused." "Confused by what exactly?" Rhys asked that question, he had become quite impatient under her gaze. "You know, when they told me that you had driven out a genius like Vance, I imagined that you were some kind of powerful asset. It seems that I was wrong." June plainly answered. She was really surprised that Noah''s father was only an ordinary cultivator, her mocking though was purely out of anger. "How dare you!?" Rhys stood up from his seat and was about to slap her when William grabbed his arm. "My Lord, she has a rank 4 body, you will only hurt yourself." Rhys'' pupils constricted as he stared at the young woman in front of him and he coughed loudly before sitting again. "I''m sorry for her temperament, it''s my fault if she came out this wild." Max performed a slight bow but he was unable to hide the proud smile that had appeared on his face. The truth was that the Balvan family could bully them but they couldn''t touch June at all. Not only was she a former student of the academy, but she was also actively working for the Royal family, her position was too high. Otis Ballor had simply approved the meeting to silence any rumor concerning June''s relationship with Noah. "It''s fine, you too please forgive my brother''s temper. You can imagine how this situation is affecting his mental health." Adrian spoke. He didn''t care about June''s words, they were true after all, he just wanted to obtain any valuable information. "So, were you in a romantic relationship with him?" He asked. June lowered her gaze, that question reminded her of the one that Noah asked her back in the academy. "No, we were just fighting partners." "But you have lived together with him for quite some time, right?" "Yes." "I wonder if you have learned anything from your cohabitation with him." Adrian led the conversation right to the part he was interested in. June lowered her gaze again, her mind reviewed the memories that she had of Noah. "No, he has always been extremely careful, he has never revealed anything about himself." Otis coughed lightly to join the conversation. "June, he is a criminal, try to remember something at least." However, his words only triggered June''s anger again. "What something? All I knew of him was that his name was Vance and that he was stronger than me. He has never spoken about himself, he has never asked anything to anyone, he has basically spent three years cultivating like a madman!" William lowered his head at those words, they perfectly described the youth that he remembered. "So, you don''t know where he went?" June shook his head at Adrian''s question. "No, he didn''t trust me either." Silence enveloped the room, the cultivators from the Balvan family understood that they had just wasted their time. William wanted to speak but his position didn''t allow him to do so, he was just there to try to understand any hidden message in June''s words. ''You forsake even this girl''s affection¡­My disciple, I''m really sorry.'' He couldn''t help but blame himself for Noah''s trust issues, his position had always been complicated in the mansion, he had never had the ability to actively help him. June, on the other hand, was just venting her anger. She had joined the meeting to learn more about Noah but she had been clearly disappointed. Her anger didn''t come from the men in front of her but had birthed from Noah''s last words. ''If you ever try to use that power to harm me, I will forsake all the good moments that we had together and kill you without hesitation.'' She clearly remembered those words spoken while she was receiving the inheritance. ''In the end, you couldn''t trust me.'' Her anger came from that single moment. Noah had nothing, no one to rely on, no one looking after him. He was carrying the burden of Eccentric''s inheritance and he had to give it to someone. He had chosen June but he had done so because of the situation. That realization had hurt June and she was still carrying that sorrow. Her hands tightened in a fist every time she thought about that moment, that last interaction with Noah. ''I bothered you so much about your true self¡­ I was really an idiot. The next time I see you, I''ll make sure that you understand my position toward you.'' With that resolution in her mind, June stood up from the table and left the meeting, going back to cultivate. Chapter 274: 274. Meaning Meanwhile, Noah stood up from his cross-legged position. His eyes were focused, his mind had never been sharper. He pressed twice on the terrain, applying basically no strength at all, and his foot released a shockwave that resounded throughout the cave. ''Rank 3.'' His gaze was shining, he stared at the results of his refinement with excitement. ''I finally understand how I will create techniques with my inscription method.'' Noah had refined the "Breath" in his sea of consciousness fixing his mind on the image of a plane setting off. He needed explosivity, he needed acceleration, the planes of his previous world were the only thing that matched those qualities. ''Imposing my will on the world of Heaven and Earth, this is my path.'' He had refined that "Breath" and he had used it to power the martial art, creating an effect that matched a rank 3 martial art. Using that "Breath" for his techniques gave him a strange feeling, he wasn''t using his dantian after all, he felt as if his body was breaking some kind of natural rule. ''My mind is a world of its own.'' Noah heard a humming sound as he had that realization, his mind was resonating with him. ''I can''t produce "Breath" but I can give it a meaning. My techniques were never meant to follow the will of Heaven and Earth.'' A few lines of the diagram of a rank 0 spell couldn''t be used to create a rank 3 martial art. However, Noah had just done that. ''Steal the "Breath", refine it according to your own will, use it to break the limits of this world. The "Breath" is life, the "Breath" is everything.'' The wonders possible thanks to that kind of energy were limitless, Noah couldn''t help but be surprised every time he thought about it. ''This energy can create matter! It is the very foundation of the world, its true origin. Heaven and Earth produce it to fill their world but I can steal it for my personal reasons.'' His gaze went on his low waist, he was figurately staring at his dantian. ''That energy doesn''t belong to me.'' Then, his attention went to his back, where his acupoints were. ''Neither that energy belongs to me.'' His focus returned to his mind, the real personal place of every cultivator. ''This is my personal world.'' Succeeding in breaking the limits of the diagram had enlarged his point of view, he had finally understood how to create techniques with his inscription method! ''My mind can only contain so much "Breath", I need my dantian to steal that too.'' He was making a plan for his future. ''I''ve refined the "Breath" in my sea of consciousness and used it for my martial art, the effects have greatly surpassed my expectations.'' A rank 3 martial art had birthed from a rank 0 spell, which was theoretically impossible. However, if "Breath" containing a specific meaning was used, those effects could be obtained. ''Heaven and Earth fill their "Breath" with a neutral meaning, it doesn''t have any specific usage. Yet, when I set its meaning to one single effect, it helps in surpassing the limits of the world.'' Heaven and Earth were impartial and fair. Their "Breath" could be absorbed and used by all living beings. Yet, that energy was simply a form of fuel, it couldn''t be used to surpass certain limits. Nevertheless, Noah was adept in the Elemental forging method. That method required him to impose his will on the "Breath" to create wonders, his own meaning could shape that energy according to what he was going to do, vastly increasing its effectiveness. That was exactly what he had done with his martial art. ''The only problem is that I have a limit on the number of times in which I can perform it, the "Breath" in my mind will eventually be expended.'' The sea of consciousness wasn''t meant to store "Breath", its capabilities were limited in that field. That meant that Noah could only use his martial art for a set number of times before the refined "Breath" was completely depleted. ''In the future, I need to create a cultivation technique that allows me to store stolen "Breath" in my dantian, I can''t neglect this kind of usage.'' If his dantian became able to absorb and store the "Breath" stolen from Heaven and Earth, he would solve the issue of its limited quantity. ''Right now, my centers of power are still weak, I can only perform a martial art with the power of the third rank. When my mind improves, I''ll be able to imprint a stronger will on the "Breath", obtaining an even more powerful result. Damn, the applications of my inscription method could be endless!'' Noah was excited beyond reason, he had finally found his personal way of making techniques! He still had to improve his centers of power and he wasn''t completely sure of how to apply that method in every field of cultivation but he had discovered his path at least! ''The black smoke of the Demonic form could be controlled if I generated it with refined "Breath"¡­ The answer was right in front of me but I couldn''t see it.'' Noah pressed again on the ground, his foot released shockwaves every time he imbued them with the "Breath" in his mental sphere. He performed that movement many times, always expending that refined energy. The black cloud over the sea in his mind was consumed quickly, it had only allowed ten usages of Noah''s martial art. ''Only ten times, that''s not bad. It is only in the third rank, my body alone can match this acceleration. Well, it seems that any new progress can wait for my mind to reach the third rank.'' The third Keiser rune came out of Noah''s space-ring, he was set on speeding the arrival of his breakthrough. ''I wonder, if I was to refine all the "Breath" in my dantian and use it to enter my Demonic form, how strong will I be?'' Chapter 275: 275. Hun One year quietly passed by. Noah didn''t have any enemies in that part of the continent so his travel had been extremely peaceful. Also, most of his time had been spent in seclusion, improving his centers of power as much as he could. The countries in the area of influence of the Empire that he had crossed worked in the same way as the Soprad nation: they were filled with slaves forced to work for the mining of Vostum. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had always stayed near the western coastline and that material was what allowed the commoners of the Empire to cultivate, its demand on the market couldn''t be met by just using one country. Noah had chosen to avoid the other encampments that he found along the way, he had learnt everything he could from Ross, there was no point in meeting other soldiers and risking to incur in troubles. That kind of travel allowed him to focus cultivation and, due to his dedication, some breakthroughs had finally arrived. The first one concerned his body, his dantian had nourished it for a long time, making it reach the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank. His body had then stopped improving, if Noah wanted to continue training it, he would need a rank 5 body-nourishment method. The second one concerned his dantian. More than three years had passed since he became a rank 2 cultivator and more than one year had been spent while having a rank 4 body. With the "Breath" blessing maintaining a high density of "Breath" everywhere he cultivated and his rigid routine, Noah had reached the liquid stage of the second rank of the dantian. What surprised him in that breakthrough was that he had not needed to use the Earth pill or any other resources to help in that process, his mind had improved too much after the Bloodline inheritance, his mental energy was enough to force the compression. As for what concerned his mind, after the breakthrough of his dantian, he had been able to store liquid "Breath" in his it, further increasing the internal pressure on his sphere and improving the effects of his martial art. Though, the power of the art remained in the third rank, Noah knew that the issue was on the power of his will. ''Soon my mind will reach the third rank, that''s when I will actively resume my forgings.'' Noah was in a cavity that he had dug in a tree, he was using that moment of rest to return to his peak condition. He had understood by then that the power behind the will that he could impose on the "Breath" depended on the power of his mind. Even if his emotion was strong, the level of his sea of consciousness still prevented him to create extremely impactful wills, lowering the power of his creations as a consequence. He would use liquid "Breath" in his forging after all, he wasn''t sure that he could control the process as well as when he used the gaseous one. ''My Yin body is finally complete, it won''t become stronger unless I find a new nourishing method; my dantian has enlarged since it entered the liquid stage, my reserves of "Breath" are enough for a prolonged fight; my mind is nearing the limits of the second rank, the constant internal pressure and the Bloodline inheritance will make me reach the third rank quite soon. There is no point in avoiding danger zones anymore.'' The reason why he had crossed inhabited countries in the first part of his journey was that he still had no confidence in entering danger zones with his level. The fight with the leader of the worms in the Bare Dungeon had made quite clear that he was still too weak to face rank 4 magical beasts alone. However, his dantian had finally reached the liquid stage of the second rank! That was one of the basic requirements to defeat a rank 4 creature. Of course, Noah wanted to test his actual prowess. The tree where he was resting was at the borders of a danger zone called Leston forest. That area was the fastest way toward his destination, avoiding it would mean wasting months of travel. Also, Noah couldn''t find any reason to avoid it: danger zones usually didn''t have human settlements and were harder to investigate, his tracks could be covered more easily. He was still on the run after all, crossing inhabited countries would only leave a trail of his passage, Noah didn''t believe for one second that his short hair could cover his identity. ''The map says that the forest has a few packs of wolf-type magical beasts and that some of them are led by a rank 4 creature. It isn''t exactly the safest place where to test my current power but it will have to do.'' Wolves couldn''t fly and they only had slow long-range attacks, Noah had nothing to fear from them. What he was worried about was that the map gave him no information about the other magical beasts in the area, Noah knew only the name of the forest and that it had strong wolves in it. ''Fighting strong beings improves the sturdiness of my mental sphere and I need to be sure that my power is enough to kill a rank 4 creature. Too many things will change once my mind enters the third rank, I need to know that I can defeat it.'' Noah had put most of his plans for the future in hold, waiting for his mental sphere to have the breakthrough. Simply speaking, he had three projects for the future. The first one was to bring the power of his martial art in the fourth rank and his mind was too weak to do so. The second one was the creation of the Demonic sword, having a rank 3 sea of consciousness would allow him to better control the process and to insert a stronger will, it was worth delaying its creation since he was relatively safe now. The third one was the creation of a blood companion from a rank 4 magical beast, Noah had decided to play it safe and to wait for his mind to reach the third rank before attempting in that feat. ''It''s time.'' The sun disappeared on the horizon, leaving its place to the night. Noah exited the cavity he was in and calmly jumped on one of the branches in front of him, he was going to hunt! Chapter 276: 276. Wolves The forest was dark and filled with tall trees, the night was the perfect cover for a cultivator like Noah. He didn''t think that the rank 4 creatures would have difficulties in the darkness but he wanted to be in a situation where he could escape whenever he wanted, hunting at night gave him that possibility. Noah was jumping from branch to branch, looking for a pack of wolves that met his requirements. He wanted to choose the weaker type of wolves and he wanted to study the terrain before fighting it, he wouldn''t just barge in a pack of magical beasts without studying the environment. ''There is movement in that direction.'' Echo heard something moving at a few hundred meters from Noah''s position, which made him change his course. Forty or so Thunder wolves sat quietly in that area, Noah could discern their type by just giving a quick look at the beasts. ''They are quite problematic, the joint attack of the Thunder wolves is strong and, with the leader there, I''m afraid I''ll be forced to escape before I have a chance of vanquishing the pack.'' Thunder wolves could make joint attacks, the population of their pack was part of their strength. ''I better find something easier to deal with.'' Noah could choose to slowly kill all the beasts in front of him but that would create a commotion in the forest, a protracted fight could only attract other magical beasts. In another part of the forest, Noah found a pack of Four-eyed wolves. ''They are far weaker than the Thunder ones but I don''t know if my mental sphere can withstand so many mind attacks. I should probably look for something else.'' Hours passed, Noah explored all the forest and found more than six packs of wolves. ''Six rank 4 wolves, this danger zone is quite populated.'' Noah was at the top of a tree, silently staring at a group of thirty or so beasts below him. They were Three-headed wolves, their specialty was close-combat since they relied mostly on their bodies. The leader of the pack was a rank 4 wolf five meters tall and its three heads exhaled a nauseous smell that could slow the mental faculties of its prey. ''They are the best target. As the weaker type of wolves in the forest, they have been isolated in this remote area, I should be able to act as I want here.'' Two white sabers appeared in his hands and a layer of mental energy covered his figure. Then black flames covered his body, making him disappear on the spot. The wolves were silently sitting on the ground. The leader was at the center of the pack while all the weaker beasts were all around it for protection. Life in the forest was rather peaceful for them, there wasn''t much food in that area but they could at least avoid fights with the other packs. Then, all of sudden, black flames appeared right over the head of the leader. Noah came out of the flames and slashed immediately below him. Thirty fuming slashes cut the air and crashed in a circular area all around the leader, killing all the weaker beasts in the impact. A circle made of black smoke isolated the leader from the rest of its pack, the weaker beasts couldn''t pass through the smoke or else they would die in a few instants. Noah was alone with the rank 4 creature! He didn''t hesitate, the membrane around his heart poured "Breath" in his circulatory system and an armor made of black smoke covered his figure, transforming him in a fiend. Full power right from the beginning of the fight! The leader was still surprised by the sudden event and couldn''t block the descending slash that Noah immediately performed. Six sabers became one and crashed on one of the heads of the wolf. Noah was using the Second Form of the Ashura together with the full power of his body and his strongest spell, coupled with the surprise effect, his assault was unstoppable. The slash pierced the central head and stabbed Noah''s sabers deep into the wolf''s skull where they released a torrent of black smoke. The wolf cried loudly and used its frontal paws together with its other two heads to fend off Noah. Two pairs of wings came out of his back and his legs kicked the air to distance himself from the wolf''s attack. However, he couldn''t match the speed of the leader, its fangs managed to land on Noah''s body. Noah was flung away, the sheer strength of a rank 4 beast was incredible but the protection of the Demonic form and the regeneration ability of his body prevented any serious wound. In that short exchange, the wolf had lost one of its heads while Noah was still at its peak condition! ''My attacks are effective! I can kill it!'' Noah shot toward the leader and the beast did the same, its specialty was close-combat after all, it would never refuse to fight in that field. However, Noah suddenly halted his charge and dispersed the Demonic form, revealing his face filled with bulging black veins. ''Warp!'' Black flames covered him right before the leader arrived in his position. It was still confused by Noah''s disappearance when it felt a piercing pain on its right head. Noah had teleported again over it and transformed back in his fiendish form, inflicting another severe injury to the beast. ''Two heads are down, what will you do next?'' Noah stopped his assault and waited for a reaction from the leader. The wolf had two of its heads hanging lifelessly from their necks, only its remaining one was staring at Noah with venomous anger. ''It has stopped mindlessly charging, it''s waiting for its pack to arrive. Well, I can''t allow it.'' Noah jumped ahead, creating more than ten ethereal sabers around him. The leader looked in disdain at the First Form of the Ashura and used its paws and teeth to fend off most of Noah''s attacks. The effects of the First Form were less evident, Noah''s attacks could only pierce the leader''s skin and inflict some slight damage, they weren''t attacks focused on power after all. Yet, since he had managed to destroy two heads before the close combat began, he held an incredible advantage. Chapter 277: 277. Movemen The rank 4 Three-headed wolf was slow in its reaction time, losing two of its heads had greatly impacted its mental capabilities. That''s why, even though it could potentially match Noah''s offensive, it was pushed back toward the edge of the circle of smoke. Noah''s offensive was relentless. Twenty fuming sabers danced around him and continuously crashed on the wolf''s body, the number of superficial injuries piled up, further weakening the beast. Then, the wolf made a mistake. It tried to move its weight on its frontal legs to pounce Noah but it wasn''t able to realize that those legs had suffered an incredible amount of damage already! Those limbs bent, unable to sustain the weight of the wolf, and left a long opening in the beast''s defense. Noah didn''t waste that opportunity, the ethereal sabers around him disappeared and converged in his six arms as he lunged toward the remaining head. Six sabers became one, curving the air where they passed, and swiftly pierced the last head of the rank 4 creature. The Three-headed wolves were different from the Excavating worms, they had a stronger body but they also had a clear weak point. That weak point was precisely their head. Noah had managed to destroy two of them due to the surprise effect of the Warp spell and the last one by exploiting the advantage previously created, his battle had been precise and without mistakes. It was with a smile on his face that Noah watched as the wolf fell lifelessly on the ground, he had finally killed his first rank 4 creature all by himself! ''I depleted too much mental energy, I should retreat.'' Noah hurriedly took the body of the leader in his space-ring and warped away after dispersing his Demonic form. That fighting style comported a heavy burden to his mind, entering and dispersing the Demonic form consumed far more energy than simply fighting in that state. Also, using the Warp spell as soon as the spell was turned off further increased that depletion. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had to use all his power when fighting a rank 4 beast, he couldn''t hold back at all. Yet, he now knew that his strength matched rank 4 creatures! ''I think that I''m still a bit weaker than the average beasts, I''ve killed this wolf because I managed to use my most powerful attack on its weak points twice.'' The advantage of using movement techniques to fight was evident, destroying two heads while the wolf couldn''t react was what allowed him to use the First Form in the last part of the battle. ''My Second Form is now completely able to inflict real damages while my First Form still struggles to surpass the natural defenses of the beasts. It''s fine, this was somewhat expected.'' Noah analyzed his battle from the top of a tree. His eyes casually observed as the pack of wolves below him erupted in a chaotic fight now that their leader was dead. Magical beasts in the human ranks were generally stupid, they only acted by instinct. ''They are fighting for the position of leader, what a ruthless world.'' The rank 4 creature died not even a minute ago but the remaining beasts of the pack were already fighting for its position. ''If I manage to complete my martial art, I would be able to fight without dispersing the Demonic form. Fighting like this is really tiring and it won''t work well when I''m outnumbered, I leave too many openings in my defense while I warp.'' It had become a habit for Noah to analyze his battles in order to improve his fighting style. He had a clear idea of his weaknesses and his most evident one was the lack of a suitable movement technique. His flight was one of his stronger abilities while he still had a rank 3 body but it had become useless once the had the breakthrough, he needed something that could substitute that. The Warp spell was the best option at that moment, however, that spell had many weaknesses. It required a large amount of concentration and mental energy to be activated, Noah couldn''t use it efficiently while he was in the Demonic form. Also, it wasn''t immediate, there was a casting time which could become a fatal weakness in a fight against more than one enemy. Lastly, it couldn''t be paired effectively with his martial art, it could only be used to catch the opponent by surprise a couple of times. ''The martial art that I have designed would perfectly combine with the Three Forms of the Ashura and would increase my battle prowess by a lot. It''s a pity that my sea of consciousness still needs some time¡­'' The propulsion designed by Noah would have the weakness of being limited to ground usage but it would have far more advantages. It would be highly maneuverable, allowing Noah to perform any kind of movement he wanted. Also, it would expend far less energy since it was a martial art and not a spell, allowing Noah to use it without dispersing his Demonic form. ''Well, I can''t force any breakthrough, I''m already stupidly strong for my age.'' Noah''s most monstrous advancement concerned his mental sphere. He was only a bit more than twenty-one but he was already thinking about reaching the third rank, that thought was simply madness for the cultivators of that world. However, Noah had always relied on that advantage since his rebirth, even pushing the limits of that center of power in the process. Generally speaking, geniuses would become rank 3 mages around the age of thirty, they simply didn''t have the means to further improve their training speed. Mental spheres were quite fragile, they were hard to temper and even harder to enlarge, cultivators usually spent years to reinforce its walls. ''It should still take a year or two to breakthrough. Well, I might shorten that time by filling my head with "Breath" but that would leave me defenseless in this foreign environment. It''s safer to just take it slow and steady.'' Chapter 278: 278. Trap Noah didn''t leave Leston forest in a hurry. He had tested his new battle prowess so he could take his time to slowly march toward the new country. ''Odrea nation, there is basically no information about this country in my map.'' Noah''s map usually had some data but, when he swept that nation with his mental energy, he could only see the words "strong soldiers". ''It shouldn''t be another nation forced to slavery¡­ I must be careful.'' The edge of the forest was clear, Noah couldn''t see any danger in the mountainous landscape that followed that danger zone. ''I don''t see anything wrong either, is it a wasteland?'' Noah couldn''t see anything out of the ordinary from the borders of the Odrea nation. He enveloped his figure with a layer of mental energy and exited the forest, his attention was raised to the peak and even Echo helped with its innate ability. ''It seems deserted.'' At that moment though, a humming sound resounded from the border of the nation and a series of runes lit up on the terrain. ''I couldn''t perceive it, dammit!'' Noah hastily tried to warp back in the forest but he soon discovered that he could not focus his mental energy outside of the formation, teleporting was impossible! He immediately decided to run but he found that an invisible layer was blocking the path toward the forest. ''This formation traps everyone inside!'' Noah wielded his sabers, he was ready to unleash his most powerful attack on the barrier that prevented his escape when Echo perceived many figures moving in his direction. ''Dammit!'' Noah gave up on trying to force the formation and shot toward one of the mountain peaks in the distance, if he could not escape, he would just continue on his way! "Stop right there!" A voice sounded from his side but Noah didn''t even turn to look at its origin, he simply activated the Warp spell to make them lose his tracks. Noah reappeared at a few kilometers in the distance and continued to run for his life. He didn''t know those cultivators nor did he know their alliances. What he knew was that he wouldn''t allow them to capture and interrogate him! ''A formation that I can''t perceive, their defenses must be incredible!'' His thoughts collided non-stop inside his mind, he was analyzing the situation as fast as he could. ''Are they at war with the Empire? Are they from the Empire? Dammit, dammit!'' Noah felt even more figures nearing him, they were coming from different directions, they wanted to encircle him. ''How do they know my position? Don''t tell me that the formation has marked me!'' He didn''t know much about formations but he guessed that it had something to do with the quick catching up of his followers. ''Come then!'' Noah warped again and managed to escape the encirclement. Yet, when he resumed his escape, he found out that even more cultivators were coming from him. ''I don''t have enough mental energy to escape this country while continuously using the Warp spell and I''m not even sure that the formation on the other side will let me leave.'' Noah stooped himself, if he couldn''t escape, he would fight! A potion appeared in his hand and he hastily drank it, he was trying to refill as much mental energy as he could before the cultivators reached him. "You surely ran fast." A voice sounded from behind him. Twenty or so cultivators appeared all around him, Noah found himself surrounded. ''They all have a rank 4 body and I can''t understand the power of some of them. I can''t win.'' That realization forced Noah to abandon his plan of fighting his way out. "Who are you? Are you a spy of the Empire?" The same man spoke again. ''So, they are enemies of the Empire.'' Noah smiled internally, he was beginning to understand their wariness. "I''m just an outsider that was passing through. I didn''t expect to find such surveillance in a seemingly desolate nation." Noah plainly answered, his expression showed no emotions. "That''s for us to decide, do you have any proof?" Noah took out the token acquired in Slyfall city, the name "Adam" could be clearly seen on it. "I come from the area of influence of the Utra nation, I have crossed the border through Slyfall city. This is my proof." Silence enveloped the area. Noah''s words made sense, it was unlikely for someone to enter that city unless they came from a different nation. "So, why did you run when you were found out?" Noah shrugged his shoulders before answering. "I don''t have any information about this country, as soon as I saw the runes lighting up, I thought I had fallen into the trap of some bandits. Actually, I''m still not sure of who you are." Noah was exaggerating, no bandit would place that kind of formation just to rob some passer-by. "What bandits!? We are proud soldiers of the Odrea nation and you just sneaked in our country like a little rat! The martial law allows us to cut your toes for that!" "Lucy, enough, he is just probing us." A woman couldn''t stand Noah''s mocking and revealed some of their information but she was soon stopped by the man that had been asking questions till then. "Well, you are soldiers and I''m just trying to reach the northern border of the area of influence of the Empire. We don''t have any business with each other." Noah expressed his intentions and waited for the man''s answer. "I can''t allow that, your story doesn''t prove that you are not a spy. Men, seal his centers of power and apprehend him." Five cultivators nodded and neared Noah but they were forced to stop due to a wave of killing intent that exploded from his figure. Noah was staring with cold eyes at the five cultivators, his pressure was completely unleashed and his figure began to release black smoke. "You try to seal anything and I''ll gladly die to take down half of you with me!" Chapter 279: 279. Lord ''My centers of power are my life, I''d rather die than allow you to seal them!'' Those were Noah''s thoughts after he heard the man''s order. Noah had based his reason to live on cultivation, his whole second life had been focused on that. Hearing that his centers of power could be sealed had triggered a wave of unparalleled anger in him, he had dropped any kind of pretense at that threat. The cultivators nearing him had all a dantian in the solid stage of the second rank but they stopped their tracks at the sight of the black smoke. They felt danger from it, they couldn''t help but take the threat seriously. Also, Noah''s declaration was backed by his chilling pressure, it was with a stern expression that they watched the young man wielding a pair of sabers and getting ready to fight. "What is your name?" The man in charge spoke again, Noah''s seriousness actually made him take a step back. "Adam." Noah understood that something had changed and answered him. "I mean your real name." Noah''s eyes sharpened at that request. He hadn''t revealed his real identity in a long time but that situation was really dangerous. The cultivators encircling him were at least in the liquid stage of the second rank, he knew that he would probably die if they began to attack him. "I''m Noah Balvan, I''m a criminal from the Utra nation." Noah revealed his most hidden information. Noah and the man stared at each other for a while. The man knew that Noah was being serious. The black smoke coming out of him gave him a dangerous feeling but he had the advantage in numbers, he knew that he could kill or capture him. However, was it worth it? A man willing to die only to inflict more damage was the most dangerous one, he didn''t really want to lose any soldier for a simple capture. "Come with me, I''ll take you to the Lord as a guest." Those words caused a lot of surprised gazed in the cultivators around Noah. ''Lord? Is he someone in the heroic ranks?'' Noah hesitated, he couldn''t really match a cultivator that powerful but he couldn''t even win against those around him, he didn''t have that many options. The man understood his worries and spoke to ease them. "The strongest cultivators of this country are in the third rank of the dantian, if you decide to die, you can do that fighting them. I said that you will be treated as a guest so you can be assured that we won''t imprison you, you have my word." Silence fell again in the area, Noah wouldn''t believe the man''s word so easily. "I believe that you will die while killing half of us, please believe me when I say that you''ll be safe." The man spoke again to reassure Noah. The truth was that Noah didn''t have the slightest amount of confidence in surviving the joint assault of the cultivators around him, his anger came from the threat at his centers of power. "I''ll believe you, for now." Noah retracted the partial Demonic form and hid his aura, a peaceful solution was the best outcome from that situation. The other cultivators were surprised but they didn''t dare to disobey the orders of that man, they simply lowered their heads and escorted Noah toward one of the mountain peaks of that nation. Noah followed the man while he analyzed the environment, he couldn''t see anything out of the ordinary with both his sight and mental energy. "Where are we going?" "You couldn''t perceive the formation around the country so you won''t be able to see our home unless you enter its borders. Oh, my name is Logan, please restrain your threats in front of the Lord." Noah didn''t answer to that explanation and simply continued to follow Logan. After they passed a certain height of a mountain, the environment changed, revealing the true form of the mountain peak. There was a small city on the summit of the mountain, it was covered in snow and inscriptions but it seemed bustling with people. ''Don''t tell me that this entire nation is amassed in one city¡­'' Noah had seen the capital of the Utra nation, the city in front of him paled in comparison. However, he clearly felt that it was quite populated, he wondered about the number of cultivators inside it. The gates of the city opened at Logan''s sight, the building inside it unfolded themselves in front of Noah. ''Small, just a fraction of the capital.'' Noah wasn''t moved by the tall structures after the defensive walls and continued to move, warily observing his surroundings. There was a castle at the center of the city, Noah guessed that the so-called Lord lived there. "The Lord might be inexperienced but we have sworn to protect her, watch your tongue when you speak with her." Noah shrugged his shoulders at Logan''s request and continued to follow him. They crossed ample halls and luxurious stairs until they arrived to the tallest point of the castle. Noah found himself sitting in a wide room, the cultivators from before were still surrounding him and they even seemed to be more wary of his actions. ''They must really care about this Lord.'' Noah sighed, he only wanted to continue in his travel but the recent events forced him to arrive right at the center of Odrea nation. ''Well, I''ll just kill as many as I can if they try something funny, I''m not scared of death.'' He had already died once and the Forging of the Seven Hells had forced him to become used to that feeling. Then, Noah''s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of doors opening. A gate at the bottom of the hall opened, revealing a young girl sided by two old cultivators. They both had a long beard and a bald head, they seemed far stronger than the cultivators that surrounded Noah. ''Are they in the third rank?'' Noah couldn''t understand their level so he moved his attention to the young girl. She wasn''t even eighteen, her long red hair was combed around a golden crown and her features were delicate, Noah couldn''t help but think that she was quite cute. She sat on a throne placed right in front of him and opened her mouth to speak. "My men told me that a cultivator of the darkness element has invaded our country, is that true?" Chapter 280: 280. Spell Noah''s element was exposed as soon as the meeting began. The cultivators around him released surprised gasps but Logan kept his stern expression. ''I bet that it was him that discovered it.'' Noah sighed, he understood that he had been granted a meeting because of his peculiarity. "I''m not an invader, I was just passing by." He uncaringly answered the girl, he had really done nothing wrong that time. "Anyone that trespass our borders is an invader, we are at war." The girl firmly answered, she seemed used to her position. ''Why did they put such a weakling in charge?'' Noah could clearly discern her level. She had a rank 2 body, a rank 1 dantian, and a rank 1 sea of consciousness, she was just a weakling in his eyes. "War? I can only see cultivators in the human ranks, you are not in the position to be at war with the Empire." The Shandal Empire had a God as a commander, such a weak country couldn''t call itself a worthy enemy. Noah''s words caused enraged gazes to be shot at him, the cultivators around him completely disapproved his stance. "Our ancestor died to limit the invading forces to the human ranks, we are one of the few countries that still oppose the Empire." The girl proudly declared. ''Limit to the human ranks? Is that even possible?'' Noah was confused. The sheer power of the Empire was enough to submit any other country that he had seen, he couldn''t understand how such a weak nation could survive thanks to the sacrifice of a cultivator. "I understand your confusion. Our ancestor was a mighty rank 6 cultivator that imbued the formation around the country with his own life. Not even the God of the Empire can break it." The girl''s eyes were filled with pride as she told that story, the two cultivators on her sides lowered their heads as soon as the ancestor was named. However, Noah saw things differently. "So, he basically created a large prison for you all to live in, right?" He could accept that a rank 6 cultivator could create wonders, Eccentric Thunder had built a seemingly endless world after all. Yet, he didn''t see anything worthy of praise, the actions of that mighty ancestor were only a temporary measure against the Empire. Formations, runes, and inscriptions suffered from the passage of time, nothing was eternal. The God of the Empire had just to wait for the defensive formation to lose some power before that country would be conquered. "How dare you!" The girl stood from her throne and pointed a hand at Noah. "The ancestor sacrificed everything to keep his offspring alive. I have his blood in my veins, I won''t allow anyone to taint his name! Men!" The girl ordered and the cultivators around her neared Noah without hesitation. However, Noah released his pressure again and his figure started to be surrounded by black smoke. His eyes shone with a cold light as he answered the girl. "I made myself clear already, try to imprison me and I''ll use my life to kill as many of you as I can." Noah had dropped any kind of pretense already, he was using his own life as a threat. There was no hate between them after all, he didn''t believe that they would sacrifice themselves just to kill a simple nobody. "I really don''t care about your situation but all I see is a weak girl leading a bunch of prisoners. The sacrifice of your ancestor means nothing to me." Noah continued to speak, he made his stance clear to everyone in the hall. The powerful cultivators next to her became incredibly enraged after Noah''s mocking and shot toward him at an unimaginable speed. "Stop." However, the girl softly ordered and the two men blocked their attacks just in time. Noah casually watched at the two fists that were standing in front of his face and turned his attention toward the girl. "So, what do you even want from me? I just want to go on my way, I really don''t have any business with the Empire and your war." The cultivators retracted their fists and returned to their position next to the young girl. She sighed and began to explain the situation of her country. "Even if the formation blocks any cultivator that has a rank 4 dantian or above, the Empire still sends soldiers to fight us. We would appreciate your help in the war." ''It was about my element after all.'' Any organization that Noah had met wanted to exploit his superior battle prowess. He was a cultivator of the darkness element after all, anyone would want him as an asset. "I''m just a rank 2 cultivator, I can''t influence your war that much. Also, I don''t have a reason to help you." If the war was limited to the human ranks, then cultivators in the third rank were the strongest assets. Noah was strong for his level but he still paled in front of cultivators with a stronger dantian, he chose to follow Logan because he couldn''t defeat his group after all. "We need all the help that we can get and¡­" The girl spoke, hesitating a bit toward the end of her sentence. "We have a spell of the darkness element in our inventory." Noah''s eyes lit up at those words. Spells of his element were rare, it was Heaven and Earth''s way to balance the power of the rare aptitudes. ''Even the academy didn''t have that many spells of my element, most of them were just rank 0 or 1.'' Noah was enticed by that opportunity, he would gladly enlarge the number of spells in his possession. "Rank?" He asked, he wanted to be sure that the spell matched his standards. "Up to the fourth rank." The girl promptly answered, she seemed well aware of the resources of her country. ''Fourth rank! It will be useful even in the heroic ranks and having its diagram as a reference will help me in my future creations!'' "Deal, give me the spell and I''ll join your war for some time." Chapter 281: 281. Kindness Spells of the darkness element were extremely rare and they were hard to copy. Noah couldn''t refuse the chance of obtaining one that could be used till the fourth rank, that offer was simply too appealing! After all, the spells that he could use at that time were the Demonic form and Warp, all his other spells were too weak or unfit for his combat style. Simply speaking, he needed to have a larger variety of attacks. "Hmph, you should accumulate some merit first instead of requesting immediately for the spell." The girl snorted at Noah''s proposal, she couldn''t just give away a precious scroll to someone she couldn''t trust. However, Noah wore a shameless smile at that rebuke as he replied. "You control the formation around the country, right? That means that I can''t leave without your approval anyway. Just give me the spell and release me after I''ve accumulated enough merits." The girl put a pensive expression at that explanation. Noah''s words made sense, he would have left already if he had the chance, the only thing forcing him to stay was the defensive formation of her ancestor. Yet, he was just a prisoner at that moment, he would need incentives to become a soldier. "I don''t know if you''ll really fight for us, I don''t trust you." Those were the words that came out of her mouth after she thought about the situation. Noah shrugged his shoulders and spread his arms in an uncaring gesture. "That''s your problem, you need to pay the right price if you want to use me. Also, having another spell would increase my battle prowess, meaning that I would be a stronger soldier under your command." He had nothing to lose. He had already threatened those soldiers with his own life, there was nothing that could make him back off. Silence fell on the hall, even the other cultivators felt that Noah''s words were true. They fought because of their attachment to the country after all, their reward was the peace that they achieved with their blood and sweat. Noah, however, was an outsider, he had no attachment to their land, he accepted to fight with them only to gain some benefits. "You outsiders are really impossible¡­ Deal, Logan will go with you and explain our situation." She then turned to Logan. "Set the conditions for his release and give him one of the rooms at the borders of the city, I believe that he won''t complain about the state of those habitations." She then waved her hands and dismissed everyone except for her two protectors. Noah stood up and followed Logan in a relaxed manner, he didn''t look like a prisoner at all. When everyone had left, the girl heaved a long sigh and punched the armchair of her throne in anger. "Lisa, you can''t keep on trusting outsiders." One of the men next to her spoke in a soft manner. "And what should I do? He is right! This whole country is a prison and we don''t have any chance of escaping it! We need help from outside!" Lisa angrily replied, Noah''s words had unsettled her. "My lady, you can''t expect an outsider to go against the Empire just because of a few cultivation resources." The other man spoke, they seemed to be more than simply guards for her. "The constant siege of the Empire keeps on weakening us and there is nothing that we can do about that. Our war can only end in two ways: our country gets conquered and we became slaves or an external force helps us win." Lisa had both her hands on her forehead, the crown there felt heavier with each passing day. "Are you willing to deplete all our reserves because of your bets on promising outsiders?" Lisa sighed again at those words. "I''m willing to do far more than that if that means saving my people." Meanwhile, Noah was following Logan toward the borders of the city. Logan was narrating the story of his country in detail, he wanted to give a clear picture to Noah. "Our ancestor used his life to empower the formation, preventing any cultivator with a dantian in the heroic ranks or above to enter the country. Yet, that was only the beginning of our problems¡­" "The Empire has a seemingly limitless number of cultivators in the human ranks, our little country couldn''t match the assault of tens of thousands of soldiers, we were forced to make a further deal with the Empire to ensure our survival." "We gave up all our cultivation techniques, resources, and Kesier runes with a rank over the third to limit the assault of the Empire. We hindered our own cultivation journey to create a fair battlefield between our two nations." "However, we had overestimated the loyalty of our stronger soldiers." "Without the resources to continue cultivating, most of our cultivators in the heroic ranks chose to leave the country to join the Empire, those that chose to stay have slowly died over time. It was only a few decades ago that our last soldier in the heroic ranks died of old age." Noah listened to the story with an expressionless face, he was beginning to understand why that country didn''t have any strong cultivator. "What about creating techniques?" Noah couldn''t help but ask, that really seemed their only option. However, Logan shook his head. "Our knowledge has never been that great in that field. When the ancestor died and the other strong cultivators left, every information we had about inscriptions and formations was lost. We are stuck in the human ranks forever." Noah nodded in understanding. The Utra nation had the academy and a central power that had accumulated knowledge for two thousand years, the Royals had invested a lot in the creation of inscription masters. Yet, even the powerful noble families struggled to create techniques, it was no wonder that the Odrea nation suffered from a similar problem. "Then, why exactly are you giving away scrolls to outsiders?" Noah could guess that there was something wrong, Lisa had accepted his conditions too quickly. "Lady Lisa strongly believes that our only hope is in promising outsiders. You are not the first that she has tried to bring on our side and I''m sure won''t be the last. She is basically hoping that someone will repay her kindness in the future." Chapter 282: 282. Delusional ''Repay her kindness? Is she delusional!?'' Noah understood that their situation was complex. They were reclused in their country, unable to reach the outside world for help. The Empire was all around them, preventing any external help. Also, they didn''t have the means to become stronger, they could only watch as their forces slowly decreased in number against the endless assault of the Empire. Their only hope was in the lone cultivators that crossed their borders by accident. ''What can a single cultivator even do? The Empire has a damned God as its leader!'' Noah understood them but he still thought that their approach was incredibly stupid. ''Lisa is hoping that a lone cultivator would take pity on her and help them from outside the country¡­ This is simply reckless.'' Who would want the enmity of a God? Who would sacrifice his prospects to save a country with which he had no ties? The answer was simple: no one! "She must be really desperate to hope that criminals would become heroes." Noah couldn''t help but say those words out loud. "The Empire watches attentively anyone that comes out of our borders, we can''t ask for outside help nor gather cultivation techniques. We will either slowly vanish under its assault or convert someone to our cause." Logan explained. "So what? You give away spells and resources to anyone that seems promising?" Logan nodded at Noah''s question. "It''s still better than doing nothing." Their conversation ended with that line, Noah limited himself to follow Logan after that. They reached the borders of the city, the amount of "Breath" in the air was so little that Noah wondered how could someone still reach the third rank of the dantian there. "This is your habitation, you will be staying here for the time being. There is a battle every month, we will summon you in two weeks to explain how our battles are fought." Logan spoke, pointing his hand toward a small and smelly flat. "No, I will join the battle after that, I need time to prepare and to learn that new spell." Noah immediately refused Logan''s order, two weeks were simply too short for what he had in mind. "As you wish. This token contains some basic information about the city and you can use it to contact me. We will review the conditions for your release in a month and a half then." Logan sighed and handed a token to Noah before leaving. Noah was finally alone again. ''What would I do if I was in their situation?'' Noah absentmindedly entered the flat, it was dirty and there was no sign of inscriptions, it was just a simple room. ''Surrounded by enemies led by a God, without any resource or technique to become stronger, watching my people continuously dying in an endless war.'' He could understand how desperate Lisa was, he could imagine why she ultimately chose to hope in outsiders. ''She simply had no choice. Well, I would probably try to escape but I don''t have any attachment to this country or to any of these people. I also don''t have any confidence in escaping their interrogation after I go out of here. What a messy situation.'' He didn''t mind fighting for resources, his plan was to become a mercenary all along. What he was worried about were the consequences that his fights in that country would produce once he left it. ''Well, it''s still too early to think about that, I should focus on increasing my battle prowess right now.'' The prospect of a war had changed Noah''s priorities. He wanted to wait for his sea of consciousness to reach the third rank before attempting in some of his experiments but he needed to increase his battle capabilities as much as he could before the battle began. The only thing he could think of was the creation of the Demonic sword. ''My previous experiments ended with a shard with the power in the middle tier of the second rank. I have now liquid "Breath" in my dantian and my mind has also improved, considering that I would add more rank 4 materials to the forging, I should be able to create something in the peak of the second rank.'' Noah accurately analyzed the material in his possession, he knew that a finished and stable product created in that way could match the power of a peak rank 2 cultivator. ''I won''t be able to fight cultivators in the third rank but, with that weapon and my spells, I should have no problem against those in the solid stage of the second rank.'' Noah didn''t waste time, he sat on the dirty floor and took out one of the sealed buckets from his space-ring, together with other materials. ''Undead chameleon bone to prevent the smoke of my spell from destroying the other materials; scales of the Blind pangolin for the sturdiness; spikes of the Rabid hedgehog for further sharpness and to fix the empty spots. Three rank 4 materials coming from magical beasts of the darkness element and I have enough of them for about thirty attempts. I had decided the basic layout of the sword long ago, now I just have to become used to the interactions between these materials.'' Noah had spent a long time training in the Elemental forging method and had accumulated a large number of materials during his year with Kurt''s hunting group. ''Using these materials before I become a rank 3 mage is a pity but I don''t have any choice, I can''t go to a war unprepared.'' Noah sighed at the sight of his precious materials but resolved himself to use them, he could just buy more of them at some point in the future, his life was far more important. Then, a loud knock resounded from the door of his room. Noah opened it and found a soldier with an old scroll in his hands. "You better be worth the Lord''s trust." The soldier handed the scroll to Noah and left the area. ''They really don''t like me.'' Noah shook his head internally and took a glance at the scroll in his hands. The words "Mental tremor" were clearly written at its top. Chapter 283: 283. Room ''Mental tremor spell, up to rank 4, limited to the darkness element. Focus your mental energy into a shockwave to destabilize or destroy the opponent''s mind. The shockwave shoots from the eyes so an excessive use will stress that organ.'' ''This can be extremely useful in battles against humans, I don''t know its effectiveness against magical beasts though.'' As soon as he read the effects of the spell, Noah could already identify its strong points and weaknesses. ''It should be pretty effective against cultivators with a weaker sea of consciousness than mine while it should at least disorient those that are on my level. Its strongest quality is that it''s hard to defend against mental attacks while its weakness it''s the necessity of looking at my enemy''s head. Overall, it should be a pretty reliable spell.'' Noah was satisfied with the spell, he wasn''t expecting less from something limited to the darkness element. ''I should learn this first before resuming my forging, I don''t know how much damage I will cause after all.'' Noah looked at the frail-looking room that was his habitation in apprehension. ''It''s a miracle if it will last one explosion.'' He knew the consequences of a failure in the forging process and, at that time, the energy infused in his items would be far greater compared to his previous experiments. ''I guess they will give me a reinforced room after this one blows up.'' Noah put those thoughts in the back of his mind and focused on learning the new spell. He had only one month and a half of time to prepare for the war, he couldn''t waste time thinking about the consequences of his inscriptions. A week passed before he was able to completely memorize the diagram of the Mental tremor spell, his mental sphere had greatly enlarged after all, that diagram didn''t pose that much of a challenge. Noah tested the spell immediately, a large quantity of mental energy was expended as the diagram was formed in his mind. Then, the walls of his mental sphere began to tremble and emitted a humming sound that was redirected toward Noah''s eyes. There was a simple-looking vase in front of him which Noah had put there as a target. His vision blurred for an instant before it returned to its normal state, Noah felt his eyes burning for a few seconds before the regenerative proprieties of his body acted to heal any damage. ''That hurt! The aftermath on my eyes is strong too! Well, my body should be able to negate any negative effect in its empowered form.'' The empowered form was simply the moment when the liquid "Breath" around his heart was injected in his circulatory system. His injuries would heal much faster in that state, it was obvious to think that the negative effects of the spell would be greatly reduced in that form. Noah massaged his temples before inspecting the vase that had endured his mental attack. There were slight cracks all over its figure, Noah couldn''t help but nod in satisfaction at that sight. ''An attack with mental energy was able to affect the material world to this extent, I can''t wait to test its power to a real cultivator.'' He was really excited about that new attack which seemed not to hinder in the slightest his fighting style. ''The matter with the spell is set, now it''s time to forge.'' . . . One day after Noah memorized his new spell, Logan was hurriedly walking toward the outskirts of the city. He had received a report not long ago from one of the soldiers stationed there, the report spoke about some kind of explosion. ''That''s the area where the new guy was placed, I hope he didn''t cause some trouble already.'' Logan thought, picturing the young-looking man with cold eyes in his mind. However, Logan''s hopes were soon shattered. Soldiers encircled the area around Noah''s habitation with a stern expression, they were warily looking toward the man sitting cross-legged at the center of the floor of his room. As for why they could watch him from their position, it was because there wasn''t any wall blocking their line of sight. "What the fuck has happened!?" Logan shouted toward one of the soldiers. "S-sir, we are not really sure. We heard an explosion so we came here immediately but all we could see was a black cloud that consumed everything in its path. Luckily, it has dispersed now, I don''t think that the other buildings would still be standing otherwise." The soldier''s gaze didn''t leave Noah for even one instant, he was afraid that he would cause another mess if he was left unwatched. "Adam, right? Care to explain?" Logan moved his attention toward Noah and addressed him with angry words. "Oh, good morning to you too. Well, simply speaking, it seems that I''ve misjudged the sturdiness of my room. I believe that a reinforced one would fit me better." Noah couldn''t hide his excitement as he spoke. He had clearly failed a forging but the energy released by the explosion eve surpassed his prediction! The explosion directly blew up the walls of the room and it took all his concentration to control the black cloud that was created after that. ''I can''t wait to concentrate all this power in a sword! My power would increase by an entire stage!'' Logan watched incredulously the young man requesting for a better room with a smile on his face. ''Is he crazy? He has just destroyed a house!'' Then, his attention moved toward Noah''s clothes. They were torn in many parts and there was some red stain on his burned sleeves, the explosion wasn''t completely harmless to him. "Are you sure you won''t kill yourself? A reinforced room would contain the explosion, you would have to endure most of its power." Noah immediately stood up and bowed, he was aware of the dangers involved with the Elemental forging method, there wasn''t any reason to refuse the offer. "Very well, we have some empty chambers for you, I just have to notify the Lord about it." Logan spoke and was about to turn when Noah interrupted him. "Ehm, I suggest you give me something that can handle rank 3 cultivators, I believe that those made for rank 2 cultivators won''t last an entire month." Chapter 284: 284. Blades A month slowly passed. Noah was successfully moved to a reinforced room, the cultivators in the Odrea country couldn''t perform inscriptions so their inscribed rooms were mostly empty. The only occupied rooms were the ones with a higher density of "Breath" but Noah had no use for them. Explosions rang out continuously in Noah''s new habitation, the people there became used to that noise after some time. Yet, the explosions suddenly stopped right a week before the next battle with the Empire. Logan had placed a few soldiers next to Noah''s room to keep an eye on him and they promptly reported that change of behavior, he couldn''t help but worry at that silent conduct. However, more days passed in silence, the date of the battle was nearing and Noah had still to exit the room. ''I should take a look.'' Logan thought two days before the battle. He had seen Noah''s state after he blew up his previous flat, there was the possibility that he had died in his experiments. Yet, the scene that welcomed him as soon as he entered Noah''s room was quite far from his expectations. Logan directly opened the door, he didn''t knock nor did he announce himself, he was Noah''s captain after all, he could act freely there. What he saw was Noah seriously staring at a black saber. Its shape was uneven and it was quite thick, it didn''t even have a handle. Nevertheless, it had a sharp side and the amount of danger that it radiated made even Logan hesitate at that moment. "Tell me, do you have the confidence of blocking an attack with this?" Noah spoke without moving his gaze from the sword, he was fervently inspecting every detail of his creation. "No." Logan honestly answered. He was a cultivator in the solid stage of the second rank of the dantian, his sheer power was one step above Noah. However, at the sight of that weapon, even his confidence wavered. It couldn''t be helped, the sword radiated an ominous aura, its thick body exuded a sharp feeling that was completely inconsistent with its form. ''What is that thing?'' Together with that sharpness, Logan also felt an innate destructiveness, that weapon seemed created with the sole purpose of destroying everything in its path! "Good." Noah plainly answered and stored the sword in his space-ring. He didn''t move though, he stood still with his mind focused on the device that was keeping the blade. ''It doesn''t affect the ring, I can store it.'' Noah heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that the floor of the separate dimension was unaffected by the destructiveness of the sword. "What is it?" He asked, he could finally focus on the soldier. "The battle is in two days, we need to prepare." Logan replied and Noah nodded at those words. "I need another day and then I''ll join you." Noah was emitting a sharp aura as he spoke, his mind was still affected by the recent forging. "Alright, meet me in the central building." Logan gulped before saying those words, the atmosphere in that room was too tense for him to act normally. He immediately exited the room after that, he didn''t want to stay in that situation for even a second more. ''Well, that was an honest judgment,'' Noah smiled, his recent creation put him in a good mood, he was extremely happy to have finally created something that powerful. ''Twenty-five of my Undead chameleon bones have been wasted but the twenty-sixth has granted me a battle prowess in the peak of the second rank of the dantian. Let''s make it twenty-seven and I''m ready.'' Noah resumed his forging. He had always fought with a saber in each hand, he couldn''t create just one Demonic sword. The second blade was created in half a day and it was a more perfected product than the first one. Its body was less thick than the other sword and its shape seemed more fit for battle. Noah wielded the other sword and took a deep breath before exercising with his new weapons. The inscribed blades were heavier than his previous sabers and each of their attacks released a destructive aura that made the inscriptions in the room flicker to no end. Then, Noah directly performed the Second Form of the Ashura while entering the partial Demonic form. Six fuming sabers became one as he slashed vertically on the wall of the room. The inscriptions of the room shone with blinding light to prevent any damage on the wall and they ultimately won against Noah''s destructive blow. Yet, a small dent still appeared on the wall, the defensive inscriptions couldn''t completely block that attack. ''This room was meant for rank 3 cultivators and my most powerful attack can barely scratch its surface. My battle prowess is at the peak of the second rank, that''s the best I can obtain for now.'' Noah had decided to forge the Demonic swords before reaching the third rank of the sea of consciousness because he wanted to have some kind of insurance during the war. He was simply too weak, he would just be stomped by rank 3 cultivators. However, having finally created his weapons put him at the peak of the second rank, giving him some confidence in the imminent battle. ''The conditions for my release will most likely concern the number of killings that I do in the battles, these weapons should catch a few cultivators by surprise.'' He had finally used the Elemental forging method to improve his strength, he felt as if his constant effort had ultimately been repaid. ''These are prototypes, there is large room for improvements but I should still wait to become a rank 3 mage before attempting in other forgings. Right now, I should be happy that I finally have weapons unaffected by my Demonic form.'' The black smoke from before didn''t affect the blades at all, they actually resonated with his spell, increasing the amount of smoke. ''I actually can''t wait to test them in battle, I wonder what Ivor would say at their sight.'' It was in that mood that he went to rest, he wanted to be at his peak condition before the war. Chapter 285: 285. Valley Noah went to the central building of the city at dawn. Logan was waiting for him with a small troop of soldiers, their expressions were stern and focused, even the atmosphere predicted a bloody day. "Follow me." Logan spoke as soon as he arrived and led him toward the borders of the country. They crossed what seemed a main road toward the eastern border, Noah guessed that it was once used to link the Empire and the Odrea nation. Then, the road ended in a gorge sided by two tall mountains. There was no grass nor vegetation on the terrain of the valley, just a lifeless brown ground with shades of red in its color. "This is where we fought for the last hundreds of years, it is the weakest point of the formation and also the battlefield decided in our agreement with the Empire." Logan explained. Noah looked at the environment with apprehension, the valley allowed only frontal attacks, it wasn''t a place where one could perform intricate battle plans. ''Hundreds of years of battles have started to change the color of the terrain. The battle will be messier than I thought.'' "How does it work?" Noah asked after he had a general idea of the battlefield. "We gather here every month, one thousand soldiers for each side. The rules limit the number of rank 3 cultivators to fifty and rank 2 cultivators in the solid stage to two hundred, the other spots are freely occupied by anyone below that level." ''So, I''m basically cannon fodder, forging the Demonic swords was a good idea.'' Noah nodded at Logan''s explanation and continued with his questions. "When does the battle start?" "Midday and continues till the sun sets. Then we stop fighting and reorganize for the next month." "What are the conditions for my release?" "Kill one hundred cultivators in the solid stage of the second rank and you are free." Noah halted his questions at those words and turned his gaze to Logan. His expression was firm, it was clear that there wasn''t room for negotiations. ''For how much do they want to keep me here? Do they expect that living here for some years will eventually make me sympathize with their cause?'' Noah could guess their intentions. He was simply a cultivator in the liquid stage of the second rank and furthermore he had had his breakthrough only recently. Using cultivators in the solid stage as a requirement would force him to stay in that nation for three years at least! That was because he would need to have another breakthrough before he could confidently face those strong enemies, he would be forced to fight against soldiers with power similar to his before he could effectively target the stronger ones. ''They are underestimating me.'' However, his actual battle prowess was far higher than their calculation. Noah had the Demonic form spell as well as the Mental tremor spell, those two attacks relied on the power of his sea of consciousness that was highly atypical for his level. ''I can''t directly charge in the ranks of the cultivators in the solid stage but I should be able to sneak out some kill from now and then.'' He wasn''t expecting to complete the task directly in one battle but he could guess that it would take him far less than they expected. "Alright." Noah ultimately answered. "You will recognize the level of the enemies by the colors of their robes. Black is for cultivators in the third rank, red for those in the solid stage of the second rank, and blue for everyone else. We have prepared a blue outfit for you, wear it before the battle." A soldier took out a blue robe from a space-ring and handed it to Noah. Noah directly undressed in front of the soldiers and donned the new clothes, they were tight, exactly as he liked. ''They must have chosen them after my usual outfit, they are really trying to please me.'' He sighed as he stored his black robe in his space-ring but then he noticed that Logan''s troop was staring at him. "What?" Logan coughed lightly before pointing to one small boulder in the distance. "You could have changed there, there are women here." Noah then noticed that the female soldiers had their heads lowered and some signs of blushing could be recognized on their cheeks. ''Aren''t we about to fight a war? How can they think about anything else?'' Noah didn''t understand them but he was a special case. Not only the topic of romance was always outclassed by his training, but he also had never been careful about those gestures. He had simply chosen to change there because it was the fastest action, he couldn''t bother with the feelings of those that were watching. Truth to be said, his body was extremely fit and his white skin coupled with his cold aura gave him a harmonious but untouchable figure, the women there couldn''t help but be attracted by him. "Can I cover my face, right? I have my enemies too after all." Yet, Noah''s mind was completely focused on the imminent battle. He had never had a second of peace in his second life, everything had always been about life or death, his eyes could only see the path to power. "Yes, you can." Logan answered and Noah took out a black hood from his space-ring. After wearing it so that his facial features were covered, he sat cross-legged on the ground to meditate. Logan sighed and set a battle plan with his troop as he waited for the other soldiers to arrive. Little by little, more people arrived in the valley. Most of them wore blue clothes while a few of them had red robes, only every now and then a cultivator dressing black would appear. On the other side of the valley, a similar scene was unfolding. Soldiers from the Empire were amassing on that part, it didn''t take much for them to create a troop made of one thousand soldiers. The battle was about to begin. Chapter 286: 286. Training ground One thousand soldiers for each side, they were staring at each other with animosity and stern expressions. Yet, there were differences in their attitudes. The soldiers from the Odrea nation were solemn and focused, they were fighting for their country after all, they were the line of defense that protected their loved ones. Those from the Empire, instead, had a more relaxed attitude. They were worried about the imminent battle but they didn''t seem that interested in its outcome, also, they seemed far more inexperienced. ''These are just new troops of the Empire while we have experienced soldiers on this side, what a joke.'' Noah understood the meaning behind that battle. "So, you exchanged your future to become a training ground?" He couldn''t help but ask that question to Logan. "We do what we must to survive." His answer was cold, he didn''t appreciate Noah''s mocking. ''They are just using your determination to train new soldiers though, I bet that they give away rewards based on their performance.'' Noah had seen a similar situation both in his mansion and in the academy. ''The battle in this country is just a mission for them, they will receive rewards based on their performance and some privilege for their participation. The determination of the two sides is on a completely different level.'' One fought for their country, the other fought for benefits, it was obvious who would prevail. Yet, the objective of the Empire wasn''t to win but to train new soldiers while slowly weakening the Odrea nation. ''No wonder they survived for such a long time, the Empire hasn''t a better use for them.'' They had given away their techniques, forever sealing their path toward higher levels, and they were also providing a training ground for new soldiers, what would the Empire gain more from conquering them? ''They are no different from the slaves mining Vostum, they are simply used in a different way.'' Noah sighed, he was beginning to understand the amount of desperation that they had felt through the years. "Adam, you will join the blue troops on the left side. We usually fight according to our colors so you should only face cultivators on your level." Logan reassured Noah while explaining his battle tactic. "You know, I don''t fight well when I''m surrounded by allies, my strength will be affected." Noah complained but Logan simply snorted at those words. "That''s your problem, you are part of our country now. Kill as many as you can while protecting those around you, these are your orders." Then, he pointed toward the left side of the valley, he was ordering Noah to take his position. He didn''t waste time and went where Logan had pointed, he was soon surrounded by soldiers wearing blue robes, the army was slowly taking the position. Meanwhile, at the top of one of the mountain peaks. Lisa followed by her two protectors was coldly looking at a man on the other side of the formation. "Lady Lisa, you are becoming more beautiful with each passing day." The man bowed toward her as he spoke those words. "Hmph, keep your crap for yourself, Seth, I''m here just to watch the battle." One of her protectors took a chair from his space-ring and placed it on the ground. Lisa calmly sat on it and focused her gaze on the valley below, her eyes seemed to linger on a blue figure with a black hood that covered his face. That sight saddened her for a second before she wore again a cold expression. "I see that you have a new outsider in your ranks. What did you give him to make him fight? A martial art? A spell? Or, maybe, yourself?" Seth mocked from the other side of the formation, causing the anger of the two protectors. "Watch your mouth trash of the Empire! Lady Lisa is as pure as the day she was born." That answer made Seth smile, he enjoyed those kinds of interactions. "And what can you even do? The moment you step outside the formation, you will die." There was only the defensive formation protecting the Odrea nation from the unmatched power of the Empire, the protector couldn''t cross it just to teach a lesson to Seth. Ultimately, the protector snorted and shut his mouth. "Lisa, you are losing about fifty soldiers each month, I believe that it won''t even take a decade before you''ll run out of them." Seth continued speaking, uncaring of the cold gazes of the protectors. "You know, I''m the appointed captain for the missions on the Odrea country, I might purposely select weak soldiers if you manage to please me." Seth had a lecherous smile on his face, he was basically offering easier battles in exchange for Lisa''s body. "You lose far more soldiers every time." Lisa didn''t move her gaze from the valley as she answered, it was almost midday, the battle was about to begin. "And the Empire is thankful for that. Your help in taking away the trash from our ranks is really appreciated." Seth bowed again, there was some truth behind his mocking words. The battles against the Odrea country were used as a form of training for their new troops. The Empire was able to skim the ranks of the soldiers, reducing their numbers and obtaining experienced cultivators under their domain. Weak soldiers were a burden after all, even for a big country like the Empire. However, by skimming them in a war, they managed to keep a high standard for their cultivators. Strength was everything, the Empire had no need for cultivators with a weak battle prowess. Seth then raised his head and looked toward the sun before quickly lowering it again. "It''s beginning." Down in the valley, Noah was in the vanguard position among other soldiers. The red and black troops were behind them, they were the first line of attack. A cultivator with a black robe was in front of them, carefully inspecting the position of the sun. He then raised his hand, the atmosphere in the army immediately became tenser. Then, he lowered it in a fast motion, loudly shouting to the soldiers behind him. "To battle!" Chapter 287: 287. First wave The battle began. One thousand soldiers charged against one thousand soldiers, both sides neared each other at high speed. The side from the Empire had robes with an emblem depicting a winged tiger on their chest area, it wasn''t hard to recognize them. However, Noah didn''t focus on the wave of blue soldiers that was about to crash on him, his attention was on the red troops right behind them. ''First wave of spells.'' Noah warily thought. Spells were the strongest weapons of cultivators, it was obvious that they would be used in that battle. However, spells usually had a wide range of destruction, they would most likely hurt your allies in that situation. That''s why the moment before the clash of the two armies was the only moment when they could be freely used. Multicolored lights shone from both sides, the cultivators of both armies cast their long-range magical attacks against the nearing soldiers. Water bullets, fireballs, beasts of any form and color, icy shards, flashes of lightning, golems, and much more, were created and launched from both sides. The troops from the Odrea nation were organized, they efficiently divided defensive and offensive spells between themselves. Those from the Empire, instead, cared more about their personal safety, casting far more defensive spells than needed. An earth-shaking explosion resounded in the valley due to the impact of that uncountable number of spells. The earth shook and the terrain shattered under that amount of energy, the joint attacks of two thousand cultivators were too much for that valley to handle. However, the runes of the formation aided the terrain, making it barely able to withstand the tremors. Screams and shouts could be heard from both sides, no matter how trained soldiers could be, there were always flaws in their defenses. Some soldiers directly died, unable to defend from the incoming spells, others were injured due to the shockwaves created after their defenses clashed with the offensive blows, casualties were already mounting. "Your side always wins in this exchange, my men care too much about their safety to accurately react to those kinds of attacks." Seth loudly judged from his position at the top of the mountain, he shook his head at his soldiers'' performance. Lisa, though, was used to that scene and was paying attention to the only unusual person in her army. She clearly saw that whenever a spell came close to the cultivator with a black hood on his head, a black light would shine which completely destroyed the attack. ''He is not using spells to defend against spells¡­ Bold.'' Noah was running toward the incoming soldiers while judging carefully the might of the spells shooting in his direction. ''They are mostly created by rank 1 mages, only a few of them are from rank 2 ones. My swords are enough to destroy them.'' The power of his new inscribed items could be already seen. Noah had only expended a small quantity of "Breath" because his sabers were able to completely consume the enemy''s attacks. When Noah injected "Breath" in the Demonic swords, their true power would be revealed. A threatening sharpness coupled by the destructiveness of the black smoke was radiated as soon as "Breath" circulated in those weapons, the incoming spells were swiftly divided in two only to be devoured by the toxic smoke that was automatically released. Simply speaking, Noah came out untouched from the first wave of attacks! He would always store his sabers after he had used them to defend, they were simply too dangerous to be in the open among his allies, he had to limit their usage in that situation. The opposing army became closer. Both sides were running toward each other, an earth-shaking clash at the center of the valley was inevitable. The soldiers from both nations had formations and battle plans to perform but Noah couldn''t care less about them. He was weakened when he was among his allies, his real power could only be shown when he was surrounded by enemies. Just as the two sides were about to clash, Noah activated his new spell. His mental sphere hummed and redirected those vibrations toward his eyes. His vision blurred for an instant but Noah forced his gaze to stay on the soldier right in front of him. It was a man in a blue robe, he had a rank 4 body and a dantian that matched Noah''s one. Yet, his mental sphere was only in the first rank, it was simply too weak compared to Noah''s level. The shockwave hit him. It wasn''t something material or visible, just an inaudible tremor that hit his mental sphere. That tremor though was dense, it ran through the air like a beam made of mental energy that directly pierced the cultivator''s mind, creating a hole in the frontal part of his mental sphere. However, the power of the shockwave didn''t disperse, it continued unhindered its march across the mind of the cultivator, creating another hole on the sphere and exiting from its back. The shockwave then hit the soldier behind him and destabilized his balance, forcing him to halt his march. As for the first soldier, his eyes lost their light as life abandoned him, he fell lifelessly on the ground without even being able to react. One spell to kill a soldier and destabilize the one right behind him! ''Amazing!'' Noah was elated by the power of the Mental tremor spell, its effects completely matched his expectations. ''Simple mental waves can crack a mental sphere but it takes time and a great amount of concentration to do so, I had to endure the thunderstorm when I fought Manuel because of that. This kind of condensed beam, however, is far more effective and takes way less time to prepare.'' The death of the soldier left an opening in the vanguard line of the Empire. Noah suppressed the burning sensation on his eyes and shot at full speed right in that opening, he wanted to cut through the enemy''s ranks all by himself! Chapter 288: 288. Red Noah jumped right between the enemy''s army. The soldiers behind him crashed on the opposing side, attacking with their strongest blows or defending against the enemy''s offensive. The second clash produced more casualties, many soldiers of the Empire were caught unprepared by the momentum of the battle, they were simply too inexperienced to efficiently use their power in that situation. After the first clash, though, the situation stabilized. The soldiers formed small groups where personal or group battles were fought, killing a cultivator was hard, victory couldn''t be achieved unless there was a big difference in numbers or strength. The survival instinct of the soldiers from the Empire kicked in, the second line of their army did better than the second one, they managed to block the offensive of the Odrea army, stalling the advance of the army. The battles in the vanguard position were messy and merciless, one mistake could cause death or a fatal injury. The soldiers of the Odrea nation were relentless in their assault, they had been in that situation too many times, their cooperation and experience slowly made them win the small battles on the first line of the battlefield, the cultivators of the Empire were slowly pushed back. Noah, however, was already among the enemy''s ranks. He had immediately killed the soldier previously destabilized with his spell and then continued to swing his black sabers inside the army of the Empire. The First Form of the Ashura coupled with the Demonic swords showed its full potential in that situation. The fuming ethereal sabers fend off any enemy that tried to approach him from his sides while his two real weapons cut unhindered anything that stood on their path. Those soldiers weren''t wealthy, their cultivation level came from the generosity of the Empire toward its citizens. So, they weren''t equipped with defensive items or inscribed weapons, only a small part of them had inscribed items in the second rank. Yet, Noah''s weapons were at the peak of the second rank! They had been created with the sole purpose of cutting everything in their path, Noah''s mind was imagining a saber dividing the sky when he imbued his will on the "Breath". Their sharpness coupled with the destructiveness of the Demonic form spell made them able to easily sever anything weaker than them! Swords, spears, shields, knives, all kinds of weapons were used by the soldiers to block his offensive and all of them were cleanly cut without any exclusion. Noah''s blades destroyed common and inscribed items as if they were cutting through butter, always ending on the astonished soldiers afterward. A war was a messy place. The soldiers didn''t have time to actively change their fighting method, especially considering their inexperience. That''s why Noah''s offensive continued to take lives without anyone able to stop him. Those soldiers were either in the gaseous or liquid stage of the second rank of the dantian, their power was already barely enough to match Noah. Considering the confused situation in the battle and their inexperience, they were completely unable to stop Noah. Yet, not everyone was unaware of his actions. Seth, Lisa, and her two protectors could clearly see how the hooded man ran in a straight line among the army of the Empire, disturbing their formation from the inside. "What is that? Did you hide a cultivator in the solid stage below a blue robe?" Seth angrily asked, he was ready to suffer some losses but the number of dead soldiers was increasing at an incredible ratio, a situation like that had never happened before. "You know that I can''t do that. Our agreement is clear, I can''t use this kind of tricks or my dantian would explode." Lisa coldly answered. The agreement with the Empire was strict, the battles had to be fair and straightforward, both sides couldn''t use any kind of ploy or trick. Seth''s eyes sharpened, Noah''s figure was continuing in his killing spree, no one among the blue soldiers was able to stop him. A token appeared in his hands and he softly spoke at it, he was communicating some special order to the troops below. "The outsider you trapped this time has some talent, it''s a pity that your nation managed to rope him in before the Empire could." He loudly announced as his eyes shone with a cold light. On the battlefield, Noah was still running in a straight line. The First Form was used to defend from the attacks coming at him from other directions while his two sabers continued to claim many victims. That kind of fighting style allowed him to fight for a long time without expending that much energy. He was only using his martial art and the partial Demonic form after all, he could totally bear that expenditure of mental energy and "Breath" at his level. That was also due to the fact that he was using those means only to defend, his real offensive power came from his blades that consumed virtually no energy. Then, something changed around him. The blue soldiers began to back off and a red figure could be seen running at full speed through their ranks. ''There you are.'' Noah smiled behind his hood at that sight. ''They have finally sent a cultivator in the solid stage to stop me.'' He knew that he was creating far too damage in the army of the Empire, they had to stop him. Contrary to everyone''s expectations, Noah didn''t run away at the sight of that red robe but, instead, he jumped right at it! A loud snort could be heard from the red cultivator, he felt that he was being underestimated by that simple blue soldier. A difference in stage meant more powerful attacks and the ability to fight for a longer time, it was hard to overcome that hurdle. However, Noah jumped at him without hesitation! ''Mental tremor!'' His vision blurred for less than an instant and a mental beam shot toward the red cultivator. His opponent had a rank 2 mental sphere and an inscribed weapon, he was clearly stronger than him. Yet, Noah''s spell was able to destabilize him for a few seconds, making him unable to infuse his "Breath" in the weapon. Noah''s vein bulged and turned black, he had activated the power of his body and converged all his ethereal sabers in a single slash. Under the incredulous gaze of the soldiers of the Empire, Noah''s attack cut right in the middle of the red cultivator''s weapon before it severed his head. Chapter 289: 289. Escalation Gasps, astonished expressions, surprised shouts, those were the reactions of the soldiers of the Empire after witnessing Noah''s actions. They have seen how a cultivator in the liquid stage had successfully barged into the enemy lines and killed tens of blue cultivators before beheading the red one that had come to stop him. Defeating a cultivator in a higher stage but in the same rank was not an impossible feat, many geniuses in the past had succeeded in such an act. However, Noah''s actions were smooth and fast, the red cultivator wasn''t even able to attack before he was killed. They had no doubt that Noah was in the liquid stage, they knew about the terms of the agreement between the Odrea nation and the Empire after all. That meant that his amount of "Breath" was limited, they could surely overwhelm him with their sheer number. Yet, Noah''s actions made one thing clear: taking him down would come at a heavy price! That''s why no one wanted to make the first move. The soldiers of the Empire simply stared at Noah collecting the corpse of the red cultivator as they encircled him. They were waiting for the moment in which he resumed his offensive, their focus was reaching the peak as they stared at the hooded figure. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t charge at them. Instead, he began to run in the direction of the Odrea army. His Demonic swords were unsheathed and the First Form of the Ashura was performed as he made his way back to the allies'' ranks. ''Is he running away?'' That was the first thought of the soldiers around him, they couldn''t help but be slightly relieved by that course of events. "What are you doing!? Chase him!" A loud shout resounded right behind them. Two cultivators with red robes were running at full speed toward the escaping Noah, their eyes were filled with anger as they crossed undisturbed the crowd of blue soldiers. Everything became clear in the soldiers'' mind, the Empire had decided to double its efforts in taking down the hooded cultivator. The soldiers began to chase Noah but he was already far away in the distance, no one dared to stand in front of him after seeing his battle prowess, they simply limited themselves to attack his sides. Yet, the smartest of them had realized something from that turn of events. ''He has escaped before we could perceive the arrival of the red soldiers, what exactly is the level of his sea of consciousness?'' Noah was in the liquid stage after all, it was normal to think that his mental sphere must have just crossed the threshold for the second rank. The reality though was different, Noah had begun to escape right before the reinforcement came, his timing was too perfect to consider it a coincidence. Meanwhile, Noah was returning at high speed toward his allies. The soldiers of the Empire didn''t dare to block his path, he basically never used his inscribed sabers while returning to the Odrea army. The area where the battle was held came into his field of view, the valley didn''t allow for all those soldiers to fight each other at the same time, the battles were limited to where the two armies clashed. ''It should involve red and black cultivators as the night approaches.'' Noah knew that blue cultivators were only cannon fodder, just those few cultivators in the third rank were enough to vanquish all of them. ''I should just lay low till the end of the battle, I don''t believe that the Empire would leave another red soldier unguarded.'' He had done enough in that battle, he didn''t want to expose himself too much for a nation that had basically imprisoned him. ''Let them fight their war, I only need to collect red cultivators.'' Noah saw an opening in one of the battles in the front line and hastily jumped toward it. One of the soldiers of the Empire had his head severed from behind his back as Noah passed him and returned inside the allied army. That small battle was then won by the soldiers of the Odrea country, they were more experienced after all, that small advantage given by Noah had allowed them to inflict fatal damages on all their opponents. The soldiers that watched his retreat looked at him in disdain, they weren''t aware of his feats behind the enemy lines so they simply thought that he wanted to find a safe position where to hide. Yet, they were focused on the war, they didn''t have time to care about one deserting soldier. From his safe position, Noah could calmly recover his mental energy and pay attention to the continuation of the battle. The soldiers of the Odrea nation had the advantage from the beginning, they slowly pushed back the army of the Empire. Time passed and the number of battles won by their side rose, the casualties on the side of the Empire increased at a fast pace. The Odrea army would substitute the wounded and exhausted soldiers even during their battles, they were doing their best to limit the deaths as much as they could. The Empire, however, was using that situation to skim their ranks, they would simply let the soldiers in the front die before sending reinforcements. "The numbers are completely on your favor this time. You lost only around twenty soldiers while we have suffered losses for more than one hundred and fifty cultivators. I think it''s time for the red ones to join the battle." Seth spoke and whispered some words on his token. The one hundred and ninety-nine red soldiers of the Empire immediately joined the front lines, their actions were fast, they were ready to move a long time ago. However, before they could reach the defenseless blue cultivators of the Odrea nation, the red cultivators of that side had already moved to intercept them, Lisa wasn''t taken by surprise by Seth''s quick decision. The battles escalated, every fight had blue and red cultivators fighting together from that moment on, the waves of energy released in each of those fights made even Noah wary. Chapter 290: 290. Brother Everything became messier. The battles began to spread through the entirety of the two armies. They were slowly crashing on each other, the front line had fallen as soon as the red cultivators joined the war. Cultivators in the liquid stage weren''t much of a threat for those in the solid one but they could still overwhelm them with their numbers. The first clash had left the Empire outnumbered after all, even with the help of those in the solid stage, its army was still forced on the defensive. Yet, the casualties had stopped increasing so rapidly. The red cultivators had become the main power in each battle while the blue ones were just providing support, the difference in strength between the two sides wasn''t that overwhelming. Noah could run freely on the battlefield in that situation. The soldiers were engaged in their personal or group battles, their focus was on the opponents in front of them, they couldn''t be distracted for even a second. That''s why Noah resumed in his killing. He would reach for the most one-sided battles and help to deliver the finishing blow on the blue soldiers of the Empire. The layers of mental energy around his figure allowed him to appear behind their backs almost unnoticed, most cultivators wouldn''t even understand what had hit them even as they died. ''This is similar to the battle against Orson. I''m surrounded by cultivators stronger than me and the energy released from their battles is enough to blow me away. Yet, if I plan it carefully, I can decide the outcome of some of them.'' Killing one blue cultivator could break the balance in each battle and create the chance for a fast victory. It wouldn''t cause the death of the red soldiers but it would surely increase the casualties among the blue robes. Also, due to that diminished obstruction, the red soldiers on his side would have an easier time defeating their opponents. Ants were small and inoffensive but a million of them could take down a tiger. The same went for the cultivators in the liquid stage joining the battles of the red ones. Their power was not a match for those in the solid stage but their attacks could still wound their bodies. One attack from a red cultivator could kill anyone with a blue robe but they were still forced to defend against the joint offensive of those in the liquid stage, especially if they were backed by red cultivators too. Eliminating the pawns to leave the knights unguarded, that was a really common battle tactic. "Found you!" However, Noah''s actions couldn''t remain unnoticed for too long. Noah turned toward the voice that had just shouted those words only to find a red cultivator sending icy shards at him. ''Fuck!'' The chaos inside the battlefield had covered the tracks of that enemy even from a careful person like Noah. Yet, he wasn''t that close, Noah was able to promptly react to that spell. Twenty fuming slashes shot from his inscribed weapons, the slashes multiplied mid-air and the black smoke resonated with the sabers, tracing black lines in the air as they reached for the crystalline shards. An explosion rang out, the shards were destroyed and exploded in every direction, stabbing themselves on the soldiers around the area of impact. Also, a black cloud formed there, creating a dead zone that consumed any unfortunate cultivator that came in contact with the smoke. ''This madman actually used a spell in such a crowded area!'' Noah didn''t care about the damages that his attack caused on his allies, he had to defend himself after all, he had no other way to block that spell. However, the determination of the red cultivator had surprised him. ''Is he tasked to take me down?'' Noah couldn''t help but think that he had become some sort of target in the eyes of the Empire. "Typical of the Empire, you don''t care about your soldiers at all!" Another voice sounded in the area and a red cultivator from the Odrea nation jumped right in front of Noah in a protective manner. "You have no honor, you actually chased down a weaker cultivator! Let me teach you a lesson!" The cultivator that came in Noah''s defense was one of the female cultivators in Logan''s troop, Noah vaguely remembered her face. "Hmph! Weak my ass. That devil has unleashed mayhem in our ranks and even killed my brother who was a fellow red robe! Heaven itself wants me to take revenge!" The woman was surprised by the man''s words and turned to look at the outsider behind her. Noah''s actions weren''t seen by many, he was behind the enemy lines after all, there weren''t any witnesses from the Odrea nation. However, when she turned, she noticed that the hooded figure had disappeared. "AHGH!" A pained cry came out from the red cultivator in front of her which forced her to turn again. Then, she saw a scene that she would never forget. The man in the solid stage was holding his head with a pained expression, his brows were knitted as if he was suffering from a powerful headache. A blue figure immediately appeared behind him. His hood flapped due to the fast movements of the young man, revealing his cold bloodshot eyes firmly staring at the man''s neck. A black light flashed and the man''s head was severed, everything had happened so fast that she almost didn''t realize that a cultivator in the solid stage had just died in front of her. Noah stored the corpse in the space-ring and nodded at the woman that had come in his help, she was able to see how the black veins filling his face slowly faded as he put his hood back on his head. She then understood what had happened. Noah had used the moment of distraction that she had created to kill the red cultivator. There was no hesitation in Noah''s actions, he had recognized that chance and grasped it, obtaining the best possible outcome. His cold eyes resembled those of a magical beast pouncing at its prey, there wasn''t any superfluous emotion in them, only a sharp determination was exuded. She felt a chilling sensation on her back as she looked at his lonely figure going back on the battlefield to look for more prey. Chapter 291: 291. Black robes Noah continued to kill as many blue cultivators as he could as the battle kept going. They were the easiest targets on the battlefield, he couldn''t find isolated red cultivators anymore. Yet, that didn''t discourage Noah, he kept on lowering the number of blue robes to force an opening in the red ones'' defenses. Time passed. The battles between cultivators could last a lot, they had great reserves of energy and strong bodies, victory couldn''t be decided in just a few minutes. That''s why, as the hours passed, Noah found fewer and fewer targets to kill. His actions had finally aroused the wariness of the Empire, they had begun to fight in an extremely careful way. ''They are not leaving me any opening. Should I just join a battle?'' The army of the Odrea nation had completely overwhelmed the Empire by then, only the red cultivators and a few hundred blue ones were left on the battlefield. ''I don''t really want to¡­ I don''t fight well with allies and I don''t want to end up in a fight with two or more red robes.'' His new spell needed eye contact to work, Noah could only hit one cultivator with each activation. If he was to fight against two or more cultivators in the solid stage, Noah''s only option would be to escape, he simply wasn''t strong enough for that kind of battle. ''This is getting boring, I could be training right now¡­'' Noah scratched his head, no one was coming at him and he didn''t want to join any battle, he found himself with nothing to do on the battlefield. However, an event forced him to focus again. From the bottom of both armies, right when the sun was about to fall into the horizon, the cultivators with black robes took a step forward! ''Are they going to fight?'' Noah''s eyes shone with interest at that sight. Cultivators in the third rank were on a completely different level, he couldn''t even hope to touch them. ''Their battle should be interesting!'' It was with that thought in mind that Noah moved toward the sidelines of the battlefield to find a safe spot where to look at their battle. Black robes walked slowly from both sides toward the center of the valley, the cultivators engaged in battles interrupted their fights at the sight of their passage. Some of them directly walked right between them, uncaring of the attacks that were about to be launched. Yet, the cultivators from both sides would just stop when they passed, they wouldn''t dare to break their concentration and incur in their wrath. Their gazes were fixed on the nearing opponents, fifty rank 3 cultivators against fifty rank 3 cultivators, Noah was expectant toward that battle. It couldn''t be helped, he had some sort of reverence toward power, he wanted to know more about the upper stages of cultivation. After all, the only warrior on that level that he fought was William and he was just training him. The gazes of all the soldiers moved toward the black robes, they maintained their attention on the enemies near them but they still wanted to take a look at that battle. Then, the clash happened. Just as they arrived at one hundred meters of distance from each other, the rank 3 cultivators of both sides jumped ahead. A loud explosion resounded in the valley, the clash of those two sides created shockwaves that made the ground tremble and crack. The cultivators that were too close to their battle were swept away due to the might of the impact, the amount of "Breath" released by their attacks was simply too much to withstand. ''Amazing.'' Noah judged in his mind as he stared at the battle. The weapons of the soldiers in the third rank were all inscribed, a normal weapon could not handle the energy that they released as they fought. Martial arts were performed with extreme precision, each of their forms produced incredible effects that reverberated through the entire valley. Air slashes, afterimages, piercing strikes, Noah could recognize each of those forms but the power behind them elevated those movements toward a higher realm, something he couldn''t still hope to reach. The black cultivators were fighting one versus one battles, they were in the same number after all and no one of the bystanders could interfere in their fights. The other soldiers slowly resumed their battles, they couldn''t just stand there, they still had their personal reasons to fight. Only Noah could somewhat watch the battle of the rank 3 cultivators in its entirety, the soldiers of the Empire avoided him while those from the Odrea nation held the advantage already, there was really nothing that he needed to do. He stood on the sidelines, his back was on the rocky wall of the mountain and his gaze was fixed at the center of the battlefield where the battle at the apex of the human ranks was held. ''I can''t even distinguish in which stage they are, they simply seem too strong in my eyes.'' Noah carefully analyzed each of their movements, both sides were experienced, it was almost impossible to reach the third rank while being unskilled. ''They are not using spells either, their battle is just for show.'' Noah was a bit disappointed by that but he could understand the reason behind that choice. Cultivators in the third rank were the most powerful asset in the war between the Odrea nation and the Empire, their value surpassed any number of blue and red cultivators. Also, they were extremely valuable outside of that limited environment, Noah remembered how lofty their positions were in the Utra nation. The war continued for another hour keeping that rhythm when the sun ultimately disappeared and the darkness enveloped the valley. The soldiers immediately stopped fighting, they were scared that another attack would break the rules of the agreement between the two countries and produce some repercussions so they just stopped altogether. The battle was over, it was time to gather the dead and reorganize for the next month! Chapter 292: 292. Inscription master The soldiers dispersed quickly, they returned to their respective sides and regrouped around their commanders. The Odrea nation had clearly won but there wasn''t any happiness in its soldiers'' expressions, they knew that that victory didn''t amount to much. Each of their loss was permanent while the Empire could refill its ranks with an incessant stream of cultivators, they were just surviving after all. "Another brilliant victory from your side, you lost only forty blue robes and a couple of red ones." Seth announced as he turned toward Lisa and bowed. "I believe that we will see each other again in one month." He left as soon as he said those words, climbing down the mountain from outside the formation. Lisa had a sour expression, her mind was already planning the substitutes for each of the deceased. "Rejoice, My Lady, we have never killed so many of them. That outsider surely knows his way in battles." One of her protectors tried to raise her morale and slightly managed to do so. Lisa nodded at his words, Noah''s actions had indeed helped in shifting the scales of balance in their favor. "Those swords of his¡­ You didn''t mention them when he was captured." Noah''s weapons had surprised even the soldiers of the Empire, it was impossible for Lisa to overlook them. "I will ask Logan again but I think that he simply didn''t use them in the chase. He was probably keeping them as his trump card." The protector spoke again but Lisa shook her head. "He would have surely tried to escape using those swords if he had them before the chase. He didn''t come to the last battle because he needed time to prepare¡­ I believe that he has just created them." Lisa''s words made the eyes of the protector widen in surprise. "Are you saying that he is an inscription master? But there were no visible inscriptions on the blades!" The protector understood the meaning behind her words and replied in an astonished manner. Inscription masters were far more valuable than simple cultivators, especially in a country that had sold all its precious cultivation methods to the Empire. "Grandpa Luke, you are the one that taught me that the world is big and the ways of cultivation are endless. Our ancestor was an expert in formations, our knowledge is limited to that field and it has mostly disappeared after his death, we can''t presume that the world stood still after that." Lisa''s words were right. Cultivators would always test new methods for their training, the academy itself was one of the best areas of research of that world. Schools would improve as time moved onward, the old techniques would become unsuitable when compared to the new methods. "You might be right. Do you want me to summon him?" Luke asked after considering her words but Lisa shook her head. "That guy is slippery, he fooled the entire army of the Empire with his blue robe, he would just lie if we force him. I need to speak to him privately." . . . Noah returned to his reinforced room. The corpses of the two red cultivators didn''t have much on them and their space-rings were about the same. The only valuable thing was a reagent for the third rank of the dantian that Noah carefully stored for future usage but the other loot included only an inscribed weapon and a few thousand Credits. ''What''s even the point of accumulating wealth if I can''t use it?'' Noah cursed in his mind at the sight of his belongings. He had many inscribed weapons for the total value of forty to fifty thousand Credits, a seemingly endless stash of curative potions and pills, four Earth pills, and one hundred and fifty thousand Credits in their crystal form, he was considerably rich for his status. Yet, he had no use for most of those items. The inscribed weapons could only be sold, his Demonic swords were far more powerful than them. The potion and pills were only useful in battle, Noah was always careful to have a large amount of them but their number only continued to increase after every battle! The Earth pills were completely useless at his level, he had forced the breakthrough on the liquid stage by just using his mental energy after all, their effects could be neglected. As for his money, there wasn''t a market that had something valuable in the Odrea nation, he had no reason to spend them. ''Maybe I should stop taking the inscribed weapons, I really don''t see a reason to do it.'' Weapons in the second rank could be valued ten thousand Credits or more but the ones collected by Noah were either dented or almost destroyed, their actual value was far lower than that. ''Well, I still have a lot of storage space left, I''m basically only using one of my four space-rings.'' Noah tossed the problem of his useless items in the back of his mind, he had more pressing matters to attend. He took his black sabers out in the open and laid them on his crossed legs, he wanted to inspect their state after the battle. ''Basically no dents, they have never been stopped after all, they literally cut through anything.'' He was especially satisfied with the performance of his new weapons, they completely stood up to his expectations. ''The color seems to have faded a bit though, is the black smoke inside them diminishing due to their usage?'' Those inscribed items were far from perfect, Noah was aware of that. The moment they met a weapon that could match their power, their internal stability would be tested. However, Noah left the improvements for another time in the future, he didn''t have the power and the materials to create a better version of the Demonic sword anyway. ''I should focus on cultivation from now on, that''s one of the advantages of being stuck here at least.'' Just as he thought that, however, a loud knock resounded from the door of his room. Noah didn''t have time to stand up that the door was opened, revealing Lisa and Luke on the entrance. "What''s the point of knocking if then you just open it?" Noah loudly complained, storing the black sabers back in his space-ring. That action wasn''t missed by Lisa who smiled radiantly at that sight. "You want us to call you Adam but your real name is Noah. Tell me, why didn''t you tell us that you could perform inscriptions?" Chapter 293: 293. Mausoleum ''They noticed.'' Noah thought in his mind as his gaze sharpened. The Elemental forging method was quite atypical as an inscription method, it was a dying school after all. Yet, Lisa managed to recognize it, Noah couldn''t help but think that she had paid attention to his performance during the war. "I''m no master, I just know some tricks." Noah answered with vague words, he wasn''t exactly lying though. His ability in creating inscribed weapons derived from his constant experimentation, he had used the complete knowledge of the previous masters of that method and many efforts to succeed in creating his second stable product, he was far away from the title of "master". Also, the real reason why he had managed to forge something stable in such a small amount of time was that his mental sphere had improved a lot after absorbing the Bloodline Inheritance, he could control the forging process with far more precision. The level of the sea of consciousness of a cultivator was the biggest limit to a practitioner of the Elemental forging method, however, in Noah''s case, it was actually an advantage. His mental sphere was stronger than his dantian, which allowed him to freely absorb "Breath" from it, shortening the absorption process by a lot. He could also have an easier time manipulating the materials since the energies involved would always be on a lower level than his mind. He had realized long ago that the weakness of his inscription method was mitigated in his case. "Weapons that can destroy spells in the second rank are interesting tricks. Can you mass-produce them?" "No." Noah immediately answered Lisa''s question. Not only the forging process was hard and took a long time, but the materials required for the creation of the Demonic swords were quite rare too. Also, he was the only one that could wield them due to the proprieties of the black smoke inside them. "Then, can you create just a few of them for our elite soldiers?" "No." Noah refused once again Lisa''s request. Lisa was becoming impatient at the sight of the young man uncaringly closing his eyes to start cultivating. "Remember that you are our prisoner!" Noah snorted at those words. "It''s precisely because I''m a prisoner that I can do whatever I want. You wanted me to put some efforts into the monthly game that you call war and, for that, you''ve given me a spell. Now you want me to mass-produce inscribed weapons when you don''t even know if I''m able to satisfy that request. Why don''t you just let go of this land and escape with your people? What''s even the point of struggling so much when your hopes are in random outsiders?" He was quite angered. Since his birth in this world, Noah had always been the prisoner of some organization. The Balvan family, the Royal dynasty, and, ultimately, the Odrea country. Every time he took a step toward freedom, he would always find someone able to entrap him, that cycle was starting to annoy him. That''s why he spoke with such sharp words. What was a country after all? Was it the ground in a certain area of a continent? Was it the people that composed it? Noah had never cared for such divisions, everything was a creation of the humans after all. You could take a piece of land and divide it into two different countries, but that piece of land would still be one in the eyes of an outsider. Borders and similar ideas were meaningless in Noah''s mind even before his rebirth and his second life didn''t change his thoughts. "How dare you!? The Lord is always thinking about our well-being, she has never stopped caring for us! She is so young and yet she is giving her everything for the country of our ancestor! How can someone like you understand such feelings?" Luke couldn''t withstand Noah''s attitude any longer and exploded in a loud reprimand. However, Lisa had begun to understand Noah''s character. ''He is lawless, without any bond in the world. He is living only for himself, lying and cheating on each of his steps, such a lonely life.'' She thought and she couldn''t help to pity him a bit. She was able to endure the situation of the country thanks to the constant support of its citizens, she cared for them and they did the same. Noah, instead, was alone. The world itself was his biggest enemy due to his rare aptitude and exceptional talent, he had no one to rely on and he had to make the best out of each situation. "Come with me." Lisa broke the silence and began to walk toward the main building of the city. Luke and Noah were confused but they still followed her, it was needless to say that Noah was quite wary of the old man at his side. ''Where are we going?'' Lisa led him back to the main hall of the castle in the center of the city. The room was deserted, only Noah, Luke, and Lisa were inside it. "Our country once was the overlord of the western side of the central part of the continent, our borders reached the mountain range that divides the two areas of influence on the southern side and the mystical fog right before the Papral nation on the northern side." Lisa spoke with a reverent tone, that was the apex of her country after all, she was extremely proud of its past. "Yet, we had a mortal enemy, our neighbor, the Shandal Empire." She reached the back of the room and pressed her hand on the wall, filling a gap in a formation that was placed there. Luke''s eyes widened in surprise and he was about to speak but Lisa promptly shook her head, stopping him from acting. "Our ancestor lost the race for the divine ranks against the God of the Empire and I believe that you are aware of how things developed after that." The wall opened, revealing a rocky downward passage covered with inscriptions. "Cultivators in the heroic ranks need far more "Breath" than you can imagine, an entire country could be sucked dry by a rank 6 existence. That''s why they need to create special environments to continue cultivating." Noah was beginning to understand the meaning behind her words and his gaze started to inspect the end on the passage with interest. "Welcome to our ancestor''s training cave, we call it Mausoleum." Chapter 294: 294. Crown A wave of dense "Breath" came out from the bottom of the passage and swept over Noah and the other two cultivators. ''Mausoleum? Is this some sort of inscribed room?'' Noah had lived in habitations with an enhanced density of "Breath", the capital of the Utra nation was filled with such buildings. However, they were always tuned for cultivators in the human ranks, the most valuable ones were in the center of the city, near the Royal Mansion. Generally speaking, a higher density of "Breath" quickened the cultivation speed but only in certain quantities. Each rank of the dantian had a different purity of "Breath", cultivators in the first rank couldn''t just absorb the "Breath" in rooms made for rank 3 cultivators, their dantian simply couldn''t endure such a training speed. That''s why it was always better to have a slow but constant training rather than a fast and immediate one, putting too much stress on that organ would just produce injuries. Yet, the "Breath" in the passage was barely enough for cultivators in the second rank, Noah didn''t understand how a mighty rank 6 existence could be satisfied with just that. Lisa understood his confusion and continued her explanation. "The formation around the country is powered by the "Breath" inside it, our ancestor used his whole essence as its core in order to surpass the limits of the heroic ranks. The defensive formation will always be his masterpiece and the proof that he was worthy of reaching the divine ranks, he simply needed more time." Then, she pointed at the various inscriptions on the walls. "This formation, however, was used to create his training chamber. It gathers the "Breath" from the underground and it''s linked to the sea where the density of "Breath" is generally higher. Not only did it prevent the creation of danger zones but it also gave hope to his successors." The inscriptions on the wall formed intricate diagrams, they even ended up in runes that flickered with a pale white light. ''Such a majestic work, it should be on par with Eccentric Thunder''s dimension.'' The records about these mighty existences were taught in the academy, Noah was aware that Eccentric Thunder had been at the peak of the heroic ranks in his prime. ''He created his inheritance right before undergoing the Heaven Tribulation for the divine ranks, this ancestor should have had a similar thought when he created this environment.'' "The Mausoleum has six layers, each one of them is specific for a rank of the dantian. This is just the first one, cultivators in the first rank are currently training here, please don''t disturb them." At the end of the passage, a wide shining room unfolded in front of Noah''s eyes. The underground room was filled with mats and many youths could be seen quietly cultivating on them. They were a bit more than fifteen years old but their concentration surprised even Noah. ''At least a thousand of them, these kids should be the new generation of the nation. There is already someone in the liquid stage between them.'' Noah had to admit that such a feat surprised him. ''The pressure radiated from the inscriptions also affects the mental sphere, the ancestor really thought about everything.'' The light in the room was generated by the formation. Lines and runes shone with a pale white light that covered the entirety of the room, exuding a halo that pressed on the mental sphere of the cultivators, increasing its sturdiness. Lisa never stopped walking and reached for a passage at the end of the room. As soon as she entered the passage though, her brows knitted together as if she was suffering from some sort of mental attack. Luke sighed and promptly enveloped her with a layer of mental energy, mitigating the pressure in the passage. ''Oh? Even the weight of the formation increases as we descend.'' Noah barely noticed the increased pressure, his mind was too stable to be affected by that. Yet, Lisa was only a rank 1 mage, her mental sphere could not endure that environment. "In the second layer, cultivators in the second rank are training." Noah had understood by then the layout of the Mausoleum, it was simple but efficient, it helped both the dantian and the sea of consciousness, truly an excellent training ground. "So, you lasted until now because of this place. Your higher experience in combat coupled with a faster cultivation speed was barely enough to keep you alive." Noah commented as he inspected the luminous lines of the corridor, he really couldn''t understand the meaning behind those inscriptions. "Hmph, the Empire thinks that our soldiers will be depleted in ten years. We can last at least for another century with this place." Lisa snorted as she thought about Seth''s words and explained the situation to Noah. "How isn''t it aware of this place? I thought that the deal forced you to give up all the cultivation methods in the heroic ranks. This place is useful till the sixth rank, right?" Noah expressed his confusion, he wouldn''t believe that the Empire didn''t mention such an amazing place in the requirements of the agreement. "This formation can''t be moved so it''s protected by the formation on the borders of the country. Also, it can''t be considered a cultivation method, we can''t surpass the human ranks without techniques after all. I believe that the God and a few higher-ups of the Empire are aware of this place, but the common soldiers should be in the dark. They probably hid this information to give hope to their troops." ''It seems more like a loophole in the agreement rather than an explanation but, well, it''s not really my business.'' "Why did you show me this place?" Noah moved the topic back to his situation as they reached the second layer. The room there was a bit smaller than the previous one but there were still a few hundreds of cultivators training there, Noah could recognize a few of them from the battle on the valley. "Inscribe for us and I will allow you to train here. Of course, if you could make cultivation techniques to break through the heroic ranks, I would be even willing to give you my crown." Chapter 295: 295. Regre Noah''s gaze inevitably went on the golden crown on Lisa''s head. That ornament was a symbol of power, of rule over a country and its citizens. ''Becoming the king of the Odrea nation, marry one of their women, have children, defy the Empire¡­ I''ve read too many stories like that.'' The hero joins the suppressed country and saves the day against the terrible and awful enemy that only wants more power, giving his everything for the greater good of his subjects. ''Yet, I''m the terrible and awful enemy only interested in power here.'' In a world where humans could become deities, power surpassed any ethics. ''My mother was a good woman, she was abused and was ultimately forced to kill herself because she was weak; June was only a kid when her family started to train her like a beast. Countries, laws, they have no value¡­'' His mind then recalled the dream in the test of the attitude at the academy. Noah clearly remembered his feelings at the sight of countless human figures kneeling toward him while he was sitting on the throne. He felt nothing. Only the brilliant stars in the distant sky could move him, his ambition continuously sharpened with the passage of time, becoming a pure will that dictated his every move. He had one regret though. Lily, the woman that had suffered in his place to give him enough time to become independent, the woman that was happy to see her son choosing cultivation over her. The suffused moans coming from her room still resounded in Noah''s mind and each of her bruises was a weight over his heart, it was only thanks to his innate detachment that he was able to suppress his killing intent when he was in the inner circle of the Balvan mansion. ''I have no interest in that crown.'' He sighed as he reached that conclusion in his mind. ''Well, there is also a problem with my inscription method, I can''t really live up to their standards.'' Noah organized his thoughts before giving an answer to Lisa. "My inscription method can only produce darkness-type inscribed items. Maybe, in the future, I will be able to avoid this limitation, but my experience is simply too little right now." He was a man of two worlds, he was quite sure that, as his ability improved, he would be able to modify the forging process to better suit his necessities. Yet, the method always stressed to use an element matching your aptitude, not only absorbing "Breath" of another element required a completely different process, but also its manipulation would be harder. The aptitude was innate, Noah would find manipulating "Breath" of another element more difficult. "Cultivation techniques are the same, my level is too low to even create something for me and they are further limited by my element. Both your requests are simply outside the range of my abilities." Noah''s explanation made Lisa wear a disappointed expression. Of all the outsiders that have come to her country, Noah was the only one that could perform inscriptions, that art was taught only by top-tier organizations and similar. "Can''t you just teach your inscription method to us? You don''t seem the kind of person bound by honor if the price meets your standards." Lisa directly asked for the complete method, in her mind, that was the only solution. However, Noah shook his head. "My method is flawed, I believe that it will kill your country before the Empire breaks through the formation." Noah was being honest. Among all the practitioners of the Elemental forging method, he was the only one having it quite easy. He could skip the long absorption processes because he was taking "Breath" directly from his dantian and his mental sphere was always stronger than the purity of that "Breath", allowing him to easily suppress it. Yet, how many cultivators had the sea of consciousness on a higher level than the dantian? Noah couldn''t think of anyone, he was the only known person that had that quality. "Is it that dangerous? My men aren''t afraid of death! I believe that we will ultimately succeed!" Lisa didn''t give up, the biggest opportunity of her life had just appeared, she couldn''t just let it go. Noah moved his gaze toward Luke and wore a bitter smile before speaking. "Will you ever store "Breath" in your sea of consciousness?" Luke snorted and laughed in response. Yet, seeing the bitter smile that continued to stay on Noah''s expression, his laugh stopped, transforming in disbelief. "A-are you serious? That''s madness!" Noah simply shrugged his shoulders before replying in a soft voice. "It''s just the only method I could learn, nothing much." Lisa''s gaze moved between Luke and Noah with a confused expression. She wasn''t that knowledgeable about the topic of cultivation, she could not understand what they were talking about. Luke noticed her behavior and sighed as he put a hand over her shoulder. "My Lady, it''s not doable. He is right, most of us would die." His words seemed to have more weight on her mind since she ultimately gave up at the thought of obtaining an inscription method. "I can create consumable weapons though. Their power will depend on the materials and on their elements but they should be quite useful for the blue soldiers." Noah said. He had already trained with materials that were of a conflicting element, the power of the items created in that way would be lower but they could still be useful in the monthly battles. Some light returned to Lisa''s eyes as she heard those words, the casualties each month were mostly blue soldiers, increasing their battle prowess would surely have positive effects in the long-run. "That would be enough! What do you need to start? How much time? How many weapons can you deliver for the battle in thirty days?" A storm of question hit Noah. It couldn''t be helped, Lisa handled all the matters concerning the country, she needed as much information as she could to accurately plan the next battle. Noah, however, had just begun to imagine the blueprint of that disposable weapon. Seeing that she was impatient for answers, he could only investigate about their reserves. "Do you have bodies of magical beasts stored somewhere?" Chapter 296: 296. Variety "That... we have tons of them in our inventory. They are usually used by our blacksmiths to forge weapons but, since the number of our soldiers continued to decline, we have more than we need." "Do you have rank 4 magical beasts among them?" Noah''s request surprised Lisa but she still nodded. Rank 4 corpses were hard to process and it would be a waste to use them to create simple weapons, they had basically been untouched since the death of the ancestor. "Good, I need to inspect them. My method requires precious materials, I need a certain combination of body-parts to create something effective." Rank 3 materials were too frail, they could barely handle Noah''s "Breath" and mental energy. Also, using rank 4 beasts would almost ensure the power of the inscribed item, it will be in the second rank by simply using only one of those materials. "We will bring you to the inventory tomorrow. You should rest now, I believe that you are still tired from the war." Lisa spoke in a concerned tone. The battle had ended only a few hours ago, Noah could still feel its weight all over his body. However, he shook his head at those words. "I cultivate at night." It was with those words that he exited the passage and entered the second layer. He walked calmly in the bright room, the pressure radiated from the formation was still not enough to halt his advance. The pressure increased as he moved toward the end of the underground chamber, Noah guessed that the ancestor had planned that when he created that training ground. ''The end of the second layer should be for those nearing the third rank of the dantian, yet, my mental sphere should be able to endure the pressure.'' The density of the "Breath" slightly increased as he moved forward, Noah found its concentration acceptable as he reached the end of the room. ''The pressure on my mind is also quite strong, I should cultivate here from the time being.'' The piece of "Breath" blessing came out from his space-ring and Noah calmly sat on it. His back was on the wall and his body faced the passage for the first layer where Luke and Lisa were staring at him with incredulous expressions. Even some of the soldiers in the room had opened their eyes to look at the young man calmly cultivating over the square blue crystal, the density of "Breath" had increased because of that, it was impossible to overlook such a change. "How can his sea of consciousness be so stable? And where did he find such a precious mineral?" Lisa watched Noah closing his eyes and cultivate, he seemed unmoved by the radiation of the formation. "He is indeed full of surprises." Luke said before taking Lisa away from the Mausoleum. . . . Noah cultivated for the entirety of the night. He stopped as soon as the quantity of "Breath" absorbed by the black vortex began to diminish, signaling the arrival of the day. Even in that room and with the "Breath" blessing, the density of "Breath" wasn''t enough to avoid the limitation of his cultivation technique. ''I wish I had that big boulder found in the sixth layer of the Royal Inheritance, I would reach the solid stage in no time with that!'' He then remembered his nature and smiled bitterly as he took back the mineral below him and walked outside of the Mausoleum. ''I think it''s for the best that I don''t have it, I can''t really control myself when it comes to training.'' He returned to his room and took out the Kesier rune, he wouldn''t neglect his mental sphere just because of his fatigue. ''The pressure of the Mausoleum should further increase the sturdiness of my mind, it will be beneficial in the long-run but it would just slow my training speed if I was to memorize the rune there.'' The Kesier rune enlarged his mental sphere, training in an environment that pressed on it was detrimental. That''s why Noah exited the Mausoleum under the unwilling gazes of the soldiers, the density of "Breath" had immediately decreased as soon as he stored his mineral. The whole morning was spent like that, Noah had basically never stopped training after the battle of the previous day. It was precisely when he stored the rune and prepared himself to rest that the door of the room opened and a soldier became visible behind it. "The Lord has summoned you." Noah sighed and made a fast calculation in his mind. "Tell her to wait one time and two quarter hours, I need to rest." Noah was basically asking for three hours of sleep. The soldier was surprised by his manners but he ultimately acknowledged his words, Lisa had been extremely precise in her orders. His performance in the war and his ability in performing inscriptions increased his importance in the eyes of the other soldiers. Coupled with the fact that he was able to cultivate at the end of the second layer, Noah''s image in their minds had become far loftier. The soldier simply closed the door and waited outside, Noah fell asleep as soon as he laid on the mat. Three hours were enough for his mental sphere to be completely refilled, he was nearing the third rank after all. The fatigue also quickly vanished, he had a rank 4 body, its regenerative proprieties and endurance were inhumane. When he woke up, he hastily bathed before following the soldier. They went toward the outskirts of the city where Lisa and her two protectors were calmly waiting for Noah. They didn''t seem annoyed by the delay of his arrival, the reports had clearly stated that Noah had spent the whole night cultivating. "We have a formation around the inventory to diminish the rate at which the materials deteriorate, please follow me." Lisa spoke, before leading him in a simple-looking building outside of the range of the inhabited buildings. ''How many corpses can this structure even store?'' Noah had his doubts but they were soon solved as soon as he entered the building. Inside, thousands of magical beasts'' bodies were casually laid on the terrain. The space inside the structure was far bigger than the one he had imagined from outside it, Noah couldn''t help but think of it as a separate dimension. "Will this number do?" Lisa honestly asked, she really didn''t know the number of materials required for inscriptions. "Yes, this will definitely do." Noah answered, his eyes shone at the sight of such a variety of magical beasts. Chapter 297: 297. Instability "I will begin to work immediately, do you have a reinforced room nearby?" Noah felt restless, he had never had access to so many materials, his mind was being inspired by simply looking at them. "No, we never really needed one near the inventory. I can order someone to bring them to you, just give me a list." Noah nodded as he neared some of the corpses to check their conditions. They were visibly old but the most important parts were still somewhat usable, he just had to remove the rotten portions during the forging. "I will need a complete register of these bodies, the rank and their state should also be added to their information." "That''s not a problem. The formation keeps tracks of those characteristics already, we just need to make a written copy for you to inspect." Lisa easily agreed to Noah''s demands. "Then, I''ll go back to my room, I have to prepare." Noah returned to his reinforced room. The prospect of undergoing such an intensive session of forging had put him in a good mood. He gladly welcomed that free training that Lisa had offered him, his ability in the method would only benefit from that. Also, since the Elemental forging method was his only real chance in creating techniques of higher ranks, he didn''t mind strengthening his foundation in it. ''I wonder how I should proceed¡­'' Noah began to think about the item that he was going to create to arm the soldiers as he absorbed "Breath" in his sea of consciousness. A long forging session was about to start, he needed a large amount of harmless "Breath" before the materials arrived. The first item that appeared in his mind was the Moon needle. He was already experienced with its form and it was also extremely easy to create, its usage was quite straightforward too. ''I should try that first.'' The list of the corpses arrived, Noah was quite satisfied with the accumulation of the country throughout the years. ''The fact that they didn''t have any usage for them is actually in my favor, I can freely choose any combination of materials that I want.'' Noah selected many materials, the majority of them were in the fourth rank. They arrived shortly after he gave the list to the soldier outside his room, all the corpses that he had requested were inside a space-ring, he immediately began to take the pieces that he needed from each of them. Then, he set his schedule. The night was reserved for the Dark vortex technique but the high density of "Breath" forced Noah to reduce the time spent cultivating to prevent too much stress from accumulating on the dantian. That created a window of time where he could rest, moving the training with the Kesier rune to the afternoon right before he went to the Mausoleum. The mornings, the moment of the day where he was at his peak, were used for his experiments. Noah immediately attempted in the creation of a second prototype of the Moon needle, he was using materials of various elements before moving on those of the darkness one. He would gladly request for those of the darkness element as an additional reward for his services if he managed to create items with materials useless to him. He didn''t think that he could simply steal them, there had to be at least a few knowledgeable cultivators paying attention to him. The first round of experiments begun, his will was skillfully imbued in the "Breath" inside his mind, the liquid black lake over the sea became a sharp saber without errors. Yet, he wasn''t used to those new materials, coupled with the different elements, his first tests turned to be explosive failures. BOOOOM! An explosion resounded inside his reinforced room. Only a few days had passed since his deal with Lisa and his cultivation was greatly benefitting from the new environment. However, his experiments weren''t going that well. The conflicting elements was a bigger problem than he had predicted, there seemed to be a fixed failure rate due to that. ''Mh, even if I ultimately find the right composition, I would lose twenty percent of the materials in the forging process. These explosions though aren''t affected by that.'' The power released by the destabilization of the internal composition of the items was equal to the full power that he injected in them, it didn''t diminish due to the conflicting element. Then, he was hit by a realization! ''Why can''t I simply create exploding items? They would be just as the grenades of my previous world!'' That idea seemed so doable that Noah immediately stopped the experiments on the improved Moon needles to begin with that new item. ''The instability between the materials won''t be a disadvantage anymore, I can use it as the actual weapon.'' He called for the soldier outside his room and gave him another list of materials, he was impatient beyond reason. ''The difficulty should be in forging something highly unstable but that can maintain that status until "Breath" is injected in it.'' The "Breath" had to be the trigger for the explosion but he had also to consider the delay needed for a cultivator to throw it. His experiments resumed as soon as the new corpses arrived, Noah seemed especially captivated by the thought of applying the knowledge of his previous world in this one. A month passed in which explosions continuously reverberated in the room, their might was so scary that Luke was forced to personally visit him to be sure of his safety. Yet, when he entered the room, he saw Noah with disheveled hair and a ragged and burned robe. He held a simple-looking brown sphere that had spikes all over its body. "What?" Noah impatiently asked, his days were so full that he barely had any time to eat. "The monthly battle is tomorrow, I was wondering if you had succeeded in your task." Noah was surprised by that statement, the cycle of training and forging made him lose track of the passage of time. He straightened what remained of his robe and handed the sphere to Luke. "This is called Instability, it''s the prototype of the weapon that I will create for your soldiers. Be careful though, I still have to tune the delay before the explosion." Chapter 298: 298. Demonstration Instability was an inscribed item created from two rank 4 magical beasts. The core of the item was obtained by the skin of a Magmatic whale, it was a really hard material that could contain large quantities of energy. The skin was processed in the form of a sphere that was then coated with the spikes of a Brown hedgehog. Both materials came from rank 4 creatures and had different elements: the whale was a fire-type beast while the hedgehog was of the earth element. The item formed in that way was highly unstable, Noah had to use the Magmatic whale as its core just to force it to maintain its spherical form. As for the will imbued in the "Breath" inside it, Noah quickly found a suitable one. The sharpness of the saber that cut the sky wasn''t a good match and the propulsion of a plane setting off was the same, Noah had to imagine something different for the Instability. Luckily for him, his previous world didn''t lack images and movies portraying explosions, Noah had just to think at the most powerful one and then increase its might inside his mind. The result of that mental journey was a supernova destroying every planet in its reach. "How does it work?" Luke inspected with great interest the spiked sphere in his hands, he couldn''t help but feel the large quantity of "Breath" contained inside it. "You inject "Breath" inside it and then you throw it. An explosion with the power of the liquid stage of the second rank will occur, creating damages in the area of the impact. The spikes around it will be shot together with the explosion and, since they come from a rank 4 beast, they are potentially able to hurt even red cultivators." Luke listened to Noah''s explanation with wide eyes. From what he understood, the item in his hands had the power of a spell with the only disadvantage being that it could only be used once. Luke''s eyes began to be filled with eagerness as he stared at that simple-looking sphere. "As I said already, the delay before the explosion must be tuned before it can be used in battle, you don''t want that thing to explode in your hands, right?" Noah guessed the meaning behind Luke''s gaze and promptly warned him, he had been injured more than once as he experimented with the Instability. "When will it be ready for the monthly battles?" Luke gave the sphere back to Noah as he asked that question. The power inside the item was the proof that Noah could really inscribe weapons, his tone immediately became more respectful. "I should have a few prototypes for the testing phase next month, I need to change its composition to optimize your resources and I want to reduce the variabilities to the minimum to make it more reliable. This one should be the most powerful in its category, do you want to see how it works?" Noah raised the spiked sphere in the air and smiled toward Luke, he was also quite eager to test its power. The theory was all there but he had to limit its tests during the past month, it wasn''t exactly safe to activate a grenade in a closed environment. "Sure! Any empty area is fine, right?" . . . One hour later, Noah, Luke, Lisa, her other protector, and Logan, stood in an empty mountain right over a slope. The Odrea nation was filled with mountains and its population was concentrated in the main city, it wasn''t hard to find a place that met Noah''s requirements. "This is a highly unstable item, its internal composition has a delicate balance that can be disrupted even by a small quantity of "Breath". In my inscription method, such an item would often be labeled as a failure, yet, I managed to momentarily halt the destabilization to use its explosion as the intended effect." Noah explained the composition of the sphere to the other cultivators, he wanted to be sure that they understood how dangerous the Instability was. "There are three conflicting elements inside it: fire for the Magmatic whale, earth for the Brown hedgehog, and darkness because of my "Breath". Its full power will be released only if one of these three elements triggers the explosion, a fourth element would just weaken its effects." "Breath" had to be injected inside the item to activate it, Noah was basically saying that its full potential could be achieved only if the cultivator using it had one of those three elements. "My finished product will have a set delay based on the amount of "Breath" that you inject in it but now I will just show its power." Noah''s explanation ended and he looked toward the two protectors. Luke nodded and pressed his fellow guardian with his gaze. The latter snorted and created a layer made of blue water in front of the group. That was a protective spell powered by the power of a rank 3 mage, it was the best form of protection that Lisa could think of. "Thank you, Grandpa Leo." Lisa thanked him before turning her gaze toward Noah. "Hmph, I still believe that it''s a waste to use two rank 4 materials to create a disposable item that can''t even reach the third rank." Leo expressed his disagreement with Noah''s forging. "I agree, I will use the next month to replace the skin of the whale, I believe that I can obtain a similar power even with its rank 3 version." Noah spoke, approving Leo''s complaint. Then, he injected "Breath" in the sphere before throwing it over the defensive layer of water. He didn''t follow the trail of the instability with his eyes but hurriedly crouched behind the layer, he wanted to be sure of his safety. The sphere wasn''t able to fly that far away, Noah had injected too much "Breath", accelerating the internal destabilization. BOOOM! An explosion rang in the sky, the Instability exploded right next to the water wall. Yet, the power of the liquid stage couldn''t even make the spell of a rank 3 mage tremble, the cultivators behind it could clearly make out the power behind the blast. However, the spikes came immediately after. They were fuming due to the high temperatures released from the blast and they shot in every direction. Tens of heated spikes crashed on the layer of water created by Leo, stabbing themselves inside it. Chapter 299: 299. Second battle The cultivators on the desolate mountain stared with wide eyes at the spikes stabbed in the layer of water. "I wanted to replace the spikes with a rank 3 material too but I don''t think that something on that level would survive the explosion. Also, it will lower the actual damage that its capable of so I need to stick with it." Noah explained, standing up from his crouching position and carefully inspecting the damages on Leo''s spell. The spikes didn''t manage to break through it but they still did some damage, Noah concluded that they were the most powerful aspect of the Instability. Leo watched his spell with a complex expression. Noah''s weapon was almost useless against rank 3 cultivators but it seemed to be quite effective against those in the second rank. The casualties in the monthly battles were always red or blue cultivators, increasing their battle prowess would sharply lower that number. "You said that you could create something similar with just a single rank 4 material?" Leo asked. "Yes, it should be doable. The power of the explosion originates from my "Breath" after all, I just need to find a quantity that can be sustained by a rank 3 material and I will be ready to perfect it." Noah''s answer was honest, he wouldn''t lie about that. The Odrea nation was providing him an endless stream of materials for his experiments, his ability in the Elemental forging method was greatly benefitting from that, he didn''t want to stop. "So, what do you think?" Lisa asked Leo. He was the cultivator appointed to control Noah''s expenditure of precious materials, he had the last word on his experiments. "If a single rank 4 material can save our soldiers'' lives, I don''t see why I should prohibit its usage." Leo recognized the power behind Noah''s weapon and ultimately approved his creation. "Then, it''s settled. I will start the new rounds of inscriptions after the battle, I should be able to provide some prototypes for the battle next month." Noah concluded, moving to return to his room. "You don''t have to fight if you are tired. We can handle the battle ourselves." Lisa spoke with a bit of hesitation, the value of Noah''s life has increased by a lot after the performance of his creation. However, Noah simply shrugged his shoulders. "I have still ninety-eight red robes to kill, how would I reach the required number if I don''t fight?" He left after saying that, he seemed completely uncaring toward tomorrow''s battle. "My Lady, strong personalities are usually the most independent ones, I don''t think we will be able to make him join our cause." Luke spoke with a soft voice as he watched Noah''s figure disappearing in the distance. She calmly answered, there was wisdom in her eyes as she replied to her protector. "There is still time. The Empire isn''t stupid, they can''t allow for so many red robes to die at the hands of a blue one." . . . Lisa was right. The next day, Noah went to the valley where the war was fought and joined the blue troops like he did the other time. Yet, he didn''t recklessly charge inside the enemy lines at that time, such a surprise effect could be used only once. He simply limited himself to kill as many blue cultivators as he could, calmly waiting for the red ones to join the battle. However, he soon discovered that he couldn''t find a single cultivator in the solid stage alone. They were always in pairs, it seemed that the Empire had given strict orders to them. ''Damn, I will be forced to wait till I have another breakthrough if things continue like this.'' Noah moved his attention back on the blue cultivators, if the Empire didn''t want to give him an opening, he would create it! However, he found out that even the blue soldiers had become wary of his presence. Every time he neared a battle, the soldiers of the Empire would shout warnings to raise their attention. "The hooded devil is coming here!" "Watch your backs, he is hiding somewhere!" "Oh no! The hooded devil took Samir! Regroup around the commander!" They seemed to have precise battle formations to counter his fighting tactic. Even if Noah managed to kill some of the isolated blue soldiers, they wouldn''t abandon the formation. Instead, they would group around a pair of red soldiers in a defensive manner, Noah felt that it was impossible to near them while remaining unnoticed. ''I guess I''ve gained a battle title.'' Noah sighed at that sight and simply wandered around the battlefield, casually taking the lives of the weaker or isolated soldiers. Then, as the night neared, the black cultivators entered the battlefield and began to fight at its center. Noah found a safe position where to watch their battle, even though he couldn''t understand their actual power, he was still inspired by their show of strength. The battle then ended, the Odrea nation had clearly won again but their casualties were larger than the previous month. Noah had managed to tilt the scales in their favor last time but he couldn''t affect this battle, he felt that the Empire was too wary of his actions. ''It seems that I can only place my hopes in the forging, I will remain here for quite some time.'' That realization didn''t discourage Noah. The formation around the country blocked most of the probing of the outside forces and the environment inside it was quite beneficial for Noah''s cultivation. ''I should use my time here to solidify my foundation in the Elemental forging method. My mental sphere will be the first to have the breakthrough, I will wait for that before doing a scene.'' It was with those thoughts that he went for the Mausoleum, it was nighttime, it was time to train his dantian. ''I have just reached the liquid stage, it will take some time even with this density. Oh well, nothing I can do about it.'' He calmed his mind and sat on top of his "Breath" blessing carefully placed at the end of the second layer of the Mausoleum. Chapter 300: 300. Finished produc Noah had created a working prototype, now it was time to perfect it. The first challenge was to use a weaker core for the Instability, the reserves of the Odrea nation were incredible but even those couldn''t sustain the mass production of disposable items. The outer layer of the inscribed item was made from the spikes of a rank 4 creature, the rest of its body remained untouched. Instead, the core needed the skin of the Magmatic whale which was its most precious part, the rest of the corpse would become almost worthless after it was skinned. That''s why Noah wanted to use its rank 3 version, the proprieties of the skin were the same, only its durability was affected. Noah managed to recreate the Instability using the rank 3 material after a week of tests, he had ultimately decided to diminish the "Breath" contained in the sphere to solve the issue. The item forged in that way came out as a weaker version of the first prototype but the depletion of the materials became far more sustainable. After all, it was obvious for the inventory to have more beasts in the human ranks, there were simply more of them in the wild. Also, some of them could even be hunted in the nation. The formation prevented the creation of danger zones but magical beasts in the human ranks still appeared, it was impossible to completely halt their birth. ''Theoretically speaking, the outer layer can be formed from any kind of spiked beast, I would only need a few days to become used to the new composition.'' Noah judged, analyzing the new Instability in his hands. The issue with rank 4 materials was that they were fewer in number, there was a limit to how many of them the inventory held. Yet, since Noah simply needed sharp and resistant materials, he could freely replace the spikes of the Brown hedgehog with any other beast with similar proprieties. ''Now, I need to tune the delay before the explosion. Ideally, it should go from a minimum of one instant to a maximum of twenty seconds.'' The second challenge consisted of setting the internal structure in a way that could make it possible for a cultivator to control the speed of its destabilization. The "Breath" was the trigger for the explosion but the quantity injected in the item had to decide the speed of the internal destabilization: a small amount of "Breath" for a delayed explosion and a large amount for a quick one. That wasn''t hard to accomplish. Noah had already more than one month of experience with that type of item and, since its composition had been weakened, he discovered that it had become easier to manipulate its structure. Only one last challenge remained. ''The main quality of every disposable item is the uniformity between each of its copies. The Instabilities have to work all in the same way and with the same requirements¡­ I can only surpass this hurdle with constant practice.'' Each creation couldn''t be exactly the same as the previous one, Noah was only a human, not a machine. Yet, he was also a cultivator, his mind had long surpassed the limits of a simple human, he could work with far greater precision. That''s why he didn''t give up and reduced the differences between each product to the minimum until, during the last week, he managed to produce a batch of fourteen Instabilities that were almost identical. ''Next month, I should be able to start the mass production. Now I just have to test them in a real battle.'' His eyes shone with a cold light at the sight of his finished products. They were still brown and covered with spikes but their size was smaller than the first prototype, they were just slightly bigger than a man''s fist. ''Power in the middle tier of the second stage, their explosion shouldn''t be able to injure a prepared red cultivator but they should do some damage if they catch him by surprise. Also, the explosion is not meant to kill but to shoot the spikes.'' He didn''t lose track of the passage of time that month, he was aware that the battle was held in the following day. Luke arrived in the afternoon, he wanted to warn Noah about the incoming battle and was relieved to see his robe being intact as he entered the room. "I suppose that this month went better than the previous one." He smiled seeing that Noah was getting ready to rest, which meant that he had not forgotten about the battle. "I have a finished product, I will personally test it tomorrow. If everything works as intended, I will start to arm your soldiers." Noah explained. The forging had been perfected, he had reached the limits of what the closed-door testing could show, only a real battle could expose any eventual flaw in his creation. "Oh? Will you show us another amazing performance?" Noah smiled at that question and his aura was enveloped by a chilling battle intent as he answered. "They won''t even know what hit them." . . . The next day, the soldiers gathered again in the valley after the main road of the Odrea country. "Beware, the hooded devil is joining the battlefield!" Logan mocked Noah as he wore his hood and entered the ranks of the blue soldiers. ''Well, I wonder what they will call me after today.'' Noah sighed, he couldn''t control the titles that his enemies gave to him but he didn''t care much about them either. A title was simply the proof that his performance had put him on a higher level compared to the other blue soldiers, it meant that his battle prowess deserved some sort of recognition. The line of blue soldiers was deployed and the battle began. The exchange of long-distance spells occurred again, the battles in the valley always started with those attacks. Then, just as the vanguard of both armies was about to clash, Noah jumped ahead and made his way between the enemy lines. He was barging in the enemy''s army alone for the second time! Chapter 301: 301. Bombs The soldiers of the Empire were prepared for that eventuality. They opened a path for Noah and focused on defending against the ethereal sabers that surrounded him, they didn''t have any way to block his real weapons. ''They learnt quickly.'' Noah judged as he entered the enemy''s army, he smiled seeing their reaction. ''The more focus they put on me, the less there will be on their feet.'' He ran for a few meters and, when he was sure that he was at quite some distance from the soldiers of the Odrea nation, he injected "Breath" in one of his Instabilities and dropped it on the ground. That movement was smooth, it was covered by the storm of attacks that surrounded him and wasn''t noticed by the soldiers around him. The small grenade was successfully armed and left in their lines. ''Twenty seconds, I should be able to plant a few more.'' He was the maker of those inscribed weapons, he knew exactly how delayed the explosion would be with each quantity of "Breath". He continued in his charge. Most of the soldiers were able to withstand Noah''s offensive but some of them were still injured by the First Form, that martial art was still in the fourth rank, some blue soldiers simply couldn''t block it. Then, when the timer in his mind hit five seconds, he dropped another Instability on the ground. The quantity of "Breath" injected in it was small, it corresponded to the maximum possible delay that the bomb was capable of. Another five seconds passed and Noah planted another bomb with the same programming. ''Ten seconds!'' Five seconds later, another Instability was dropped. There were four bombs on the terrain, right under the feet of the soldiers of the Empire. ''They came rather quickly this time.'' Noah''s killing intent rose as he saw two red figures coming in his direction. ''Four seconds for these two.'' Noah quickly calculated the needed quantity of "Breath" before injecting it into two Instabilities and dropping them on the ground. Then, he turned toward the Odrea army and began to make his way back to his allies! The blue soldiers in front of him opened a path while the red soldiers behind him continued in their chase, however, Noah''s attention was on the countdown in his mind. ''Two¡­ One¡­ Zero!'' BOOOM! Precisely twenty seconds after he planted the first Instability, an explosion resounded near the first line of battle. The blast was powerful, it directly flung away any blue soldier that was in a three meters radius from its epicenter. Those soldiers were just in the liquid stage, that blast had their same power, their natural defenses weren''t enough to protect them from the explosion. Soldiers flew in the air, their legs had been destroyed due to the explosion while those closer to the blast had been directly killed! Burned corpses and severed limbs flew everywhere, one simple Instability had reaped a few victims already. Then, the spikes came. The soldiers were still surprised by the sudden explosion that they didn''t have time to protect themselves from the incoming fuming needles. Their bodies were stabbed without mistake, all the cultivators that had survived or avoided the explosion were hit by that sharp rank 4 material. Ten or so blue soldiers fell on the ground, their bodies were covered in spikes and their faces showed their surprised expressions, they still couldn''t understand how they had died! One Instability killed more than fifteen rank 2 cultivators in the liquid stage! The red soldiers chasing Noah were surprised by the sudden blast and moved their attention toward the vanguard of the army. Yet, in that moment of distraction, the two Instabilities under their feet exploded! Noah had precisely planned for them to detonate shortly after the first Instability and had left them on the red cultivators'' path, he knew that a blast out of nowhere would distract them for an instant. That planning paid off. The red soldiers were still running when their bodies were swept by a hot wave of energy. Their robes and hair were burned in an instant and their legs were blown away during that process. They found themselves in the air, the burning sensation completely covered the pain from the countless injuries that the spikes stabbed in their bodies had created, everything had happened too quickly, they couldn''t even understand why life was abandoning them. Yet, they died anyway, their bodies weren''t any different from those of the blue soldiers, they were only slightly more resilient. ''Being underestimated sure has its advantages.'' A cold aura was radiated from Noah''s figure as he inspected the results of his creations. ''Those two Instabilities have killed two red cultivators and nineteen blue ones, the first grenade should have produced a similar result.'' Then, another explosion occurred. The soldiers on the frontline were still recovering from the first blast when they were hit by a second one. BOOOM! ''Two more to go.'' BOOOM! BOOOM! Noah carefully listened to those noises, he wanted to be sure that the weapons had worked as intended. Most importantly, he wanted to be sure that they had exploded exactly as he had planned, the delay had to be perfect in order for those weapons to be reliable. Nevertheless, the Instabilities worked perfectly. The morale of the soldiers of the Odrea nation skyrocketed when they saw Noah safely returning in their ranks, they had greatly benefitted from the commotion created by his weapons, the army of the Empire was in a state of complete chaos after all. All the soldiers were too scared that another explosion would occur that they forgot about the enemies in front of them. The result of that chaos was a total victory. The blue soldiers of the Odrea country completely overwhelmed those of the Empire, the red cultivators were forced to step in the battle to limit the casualties on their side but they still couldn''t stop the unrestrainable wave of cultivators coming at them. A hidden threat was scarier than a visible one, the army of the Empire couldn''t focus on the enemies in front of them at all for fear that a bomb was under their feet. Chapter 302: 302. Onslaugh The third battle in which Noah participated was even more one-sided than the first one. The number of blue soldiers dying in the Empire''s side was too high to count, the red cultivators had to step in to stop the slaughter. Yet, they had lost too many cultivators, even those in the solid stage were being overwhelmed by the sheer number of the soldiers of the Odrea nation. "What the fuck were those explosions!?" Seth shouted from his position at the top of the mountain. He had seen how even the most experienced blue soldiers had died under the might of Noah''s weapons, he really didn''t know how he would explain those losses to his superiors. Lisa maintained and expressionless face as she watched the battle, she was doing her best to suppress a radiant smile from appearing on her face. Leo and Luke did the same but they were far more surprised than her. They clearly understood the power behind each of those weapons, they couldn''t help but applaud Noah in their minds. "That kid totally deserves the title of "devil"." Leo spoke in a soft voice, he wanted to maintain that conversation away from Seth. "The weapons themselves are not that powerful, a defensive spell would block most of their effects. Yet, he actually gathered the attention on himself to mask his real intentions¡­ What a scary kid." Luke replied in that same tone, he was aware of Noah''s character but he would have never thought that he would use himself as the bait to test his weapons. The two protectors didn''t ask for Lisa''s opinion, she was busy pretending that everything was going according to her plan. "So, do you think they are worth the expenditure of a rank 4 material?" Luke asked Leo, the latter was the one controlling Noah''s expenditure of magical beasts'' corpses, he had the last word on that matter. "If they can produce this result every time, then yes, they are definitely worth it. We don''t have a better use for them anyway." Leo gave his approval. The Odrea country had lost all their inscription methods as well as their knowledge in runes and formations. Their only usage of the magical beasts'' bodies was for the creation of good weapons but rank 3 creatures were enough for that. Using rank 4 materials for an inscribed item that could damage red cultivators was completely acceptable. "The only problem is that the Empire won''t simply watch as we slaughter their troops. We are used as a training ground after all, there is a limit to how many soldiers it''s willing to lose." The battle in the valley continued. The red cultivators of the Empire were continuously pushed back, they couldn''t do much about the wave of soldiers launching attacks at them. Yet, they held on. Battles between cultivators could last for hours, the solid "Breath" in their dantian allowed them to fight for protracted times without ever being expended. They focused on defending, they just had to stall the battle till the night arrived. Noah ran freely on the battlefield, the defense of the red cultivators was tight but there were still some of them that were forced to abandon the formation to recover. Of course, he wouldn''t waste such opportunities. The Mental tremor spell was cast as soon as he found an isolated red soldier, his mind kept track of each assassination that he managed to accomplish. ''Eight!" That number was the total amount of red soldiers that he had killed in the three battles. Two were killed during the first one, two in this one due to the Instabilities, and the other four after the onslaught started. ''Surprise effects really suit me the most. Yet, I don''t think it will be this easy next month.'' His thoughts were already on the next battle. Noah knew that the Empire would proactively create battle formations to counter his tactics, there wasn''t much that he could do about it. ''I should be fine next month, they won''t expect the other blue soldiers to be armed with my weapons. However, what about the following one? What about the one after that?'' Unless he was able to continuously surprise his enemies, he would be forced to wait for his breakthrough before reaching the set number of kills for his release. ''I have tons of materials and all the time I need. What is lacking is my ability in the Elemental forging method but that can be fixed by constant exercise¡­ I should use my time here to increase my ability as much as I can, I need to diversify my creations!'' The only solution that he found was to be unpredictable. Defending from one unusual weapon was easy, one had just to understand how it worked and plan accordingly. Yet, what about defending from two of them at the same time? What about three? Noah had the knowledge of two words, there were many things that this one had yet to experience. The only thing stopping him was his inexperience in the inscription field and his limited knowledge of weapons. He had only fought using his sabers after all, he knew nothing about the other types of weapons. ''If I was to arm the soldiers with two to three different weapons, they would be able to diversify their offensive according to the type of defense that the Empire is setting¡­ I can already imagine my next prototype.'' Noah smiled under his hood as he looked for any other isolated red cultivator. Yet, they had become too wary of him, no one else dared to leave the defensive battle formation. The few surviving blue soldiers of the Empire did their best to support the red cultivators but they weren''t that effective due to their low number. The losses on the side of the Empire were huge that day, almost all the blue cultivators had died and many red ones did the same. When the black soldiers stepped inside the battlefield, they were surrounded by hundreds of corpses that tainted the valley with countless red puddles. The cause of that scene could be found in a hooded cultivator safely watching the battles at the peak of the human ranks. Chapter 303: 303. Arming The third battle ended, confirming the spectacular victory of the Odrea nation. Almost all the blue soldiers of the Empire had been killed and many red ones had suffered the same fate, the Empire had never experienced such huge losses. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had disrupted their formation and instilled the fear for the Instabilities in their minds, the soldiers simply couldn''t focus on the battle after that. "That was amazing! When will you arm us with those weapons?" Logan excitedly asked as he saw Noah exiting the valley. "I should have around fifty Instabilities ready for the next battle. You saw their effects, I''ll leave the battle tactic to you." The Instabilities were powerful but they needed to be used in the proper way to produce satisfying results. Noah had studied battle formations in the academy but he had always fought alone, he had little experience in that field. Instead, Logan was the appointed captain of the blue soldiers, his cultivation level and experience made him the perfect man for the creation of a battle tactic that involved the inscribed weapons. "That many!? Does the inventory even have that many rank 4 materials?" Logan''s worries were understandable. He had no knowledge about the inscription field but he knew some of the specifics of Noah''s creations, he was aware of the expenditure of precious materials. "One Brown hedgehog in the fourth rank has enough spikes for ten Instabilities. The inventory has enough bodies for two hundred more bombs, I''ll swap to another material after that." Noah explained the situation to him, giving Logan a detailed picture could only benefit the next battles. "Just one thing, you''ll need to practice a bit before using the Instabilities. I can use them skillfully because I''m the one that has created them but you need to be careful, I don''t want to be blamed if one of them explodes in your hands." Logan nodded at those words. "Give us some instruction and leave it to me, I''ll handle my soldiers." After Logan reassured him, Noah went to the Mausoleum and resumed his cycle of training and forging. He was really using his time in the best possible way. His cultivation was steadily increasing, his mind was becoming stronger, and he was also accumulating useful experience in the Elemental forging method. The continuous absorption and usage of the "Breath" in his mental sphere further increased the expansion speed of his sea of consciousness, he had never trained his mind so efficiently. One month passed quickly. Noah successfully delivered fifty Instabilities to Logan and explained many times the connection between the quantity of "Breath" injected and the delay of the explosion. He didn''t really know how Logan intended to use them so he wanted to be sure that some careless soldier wasn''t going to set them off next to him. The power of the Instabilities was great, Noah would have to enter the complete Demonic form to protect himself from them. The truth was that he had managed to forge more than just fifty bombs, he could only create two Instabilities per day at the beginning of the month but, towards its end, he had increased the production to three per day. That surplus was added to his secret stash, he didn''t really care if Leo noticed it, he needed them for his personal protection. The day of the battle came and he went to the now-familiar valley early in the morning. Logan was already there, together with some of his most trusted soldiers. Noah recognized some of their faces, he had fought side by side with them after all, he couldn''t help but memorize some of them. ''They are all in the liquid stage.'' Their power matched his own but they looked at Noah with reverent expressions as he neared their group. They had witnessed his battle prowess, anyone able to kill a red cultivator while still being in the liquid stage would be considered a genius. Then, they discovered that such a genius could also perform inscriptions and was willing to arm them, the level of admiration that they felt toward Noah couldn''t be expressed by simple words. "Are these the cultivators that will use my weapons?" Noah asked as he reached Logan, he wanted to understand the battle tactic that he had decided to perform before he made his own. "Yes, they have the best control over the "Breath" among the blue soldiers and they all are of the fire or earth element, they won''t waste your efforts." Logan proudly replied, he had chosen each one of them according to Noah''s instructions, they really were the best he could find. "So, how will you fight?" Noah nodded before asking what really interested him. "We will launch them right after the exchange of spells, I suggest you don''t barge into the enemy''s army this time." ''Not that I wanted to.'' Noah thought. He knew that the Empire had its eyes on him, he had created too much havoc in two of the three battles that he had fought. ''I will die if they manage to encircle me with red cultivators, I should just lay low for a while.'' Laying low didn''t mean that he would stop attempting on the lives of the red soldiers but that he would stop attracting so much attention on himself. ''The Odrea nation can take the fight head-on, I will just be on the sidelines reaping the benefits.'' The battle started a few hours later. Spells were launched right after midday, they were the attack with which each battle began. It couldn''t be helped, spells had a wide area of effect, they would most likely hurt the allies if they were launched after the two armies collided. Yet, that time, some blue soldiers from the Odrea nation stopped their charge to throw spiked spheres toward the opposing army. Noah saw that scene and immediately slowed his assault, he wasn''t sure of those soldiers'' ability so he decided to wait for the detonations before reaching the army of the Empire. Chapter 304: 304. Sly Forty or so spiked spheres rained on the charging army of the Empire. The soldiers had never seen those items, Noah had secretly dropped them on the ground the last time, they didn''t know what to expect from those spherical things. Yet, that was still a war. The Empire had to completely refill the ranks of the blue soldiers after the last battle, it had warned the new troops about the unusual battle tactics of the hooded cultivator. So, they slowed their charge and raised their weapons toward the incoming Instabilities, they prepared themselves against that attack. The bombs detonated mid-air, right over the troops of the Empire. They were too far away to actually damage any of them with the blast but the spikes were successfully released on the army. However, the soldiers didn''t passively endure that attack. As soon as the explosions resounded in the battlefield, they deployed their defensive measures in order to counter the incoming spikes. Spells and martial arts were performed to fend off the power of the Instabilities, the army completely stopped its charge to defend against the inscribed weapons. Some of them still died but the majority managed to block the destructive effects of the bombs. It was at that moment though that a second wave of spells was launched by the army of the Odrea nation. Logan wasn''t stupid, he knew that the Empire would warn its soldiers about Noah''s creations, he couldn''t just hope to take them by surprise a second time. That''s why he decided to use the Instabilities as a decoy! Generally speaking, spells could only be blocked by other spells, they were the most powerful weapons of a cultivator after all. There were a few exceptions. A rank 4 martial art could easily block a rank 1 spell if the centers of power of the cultivator performing it were at a decent level. The same went for inscribed items: Noah''s Demonic swords were an example of that case. However, the soldiers of the Empire didn''t have powerful inscribed weapons nor centers of power strong enough to block the incoming wave of spells. It was a slaughter. The first line of the army of the Empire was swept by the torrent of magical abilities, they had just used their protective measures against the Instabilities, they were basically defenseless after that. The damage didn''t stop on the first line, it reached even the depths of the opposing army. Hundreds of spells created havoc, they could finally show their might instead of being blocked by a similar force. ''Who would have thought that Logan was such a sly commander¡­'' Noah completely approved that battle tactic, it perfectly exploited the weakness created by the Instabilities. Burned corpses, frozen limbs, severed heads, the scene after the spells was filled by the remains of those blue cultivators. Hundreds had died, more than half of the army of the Empire was destroyed in a few seconds. That outcome was even more astonishing than the previous battle, the two armies had still to clash but the victor had already been set. Then, the army of the Odrea nation resumed its charge. The remaining blue cultivators on the other side saw the seemingly endless tide of enemies and became disheartened, there were simply too many of them, they couldn''t hope to survive with that difference in number. Also, their battle formation had been wrecked, their inexperience didn''t allow them to adapt to that sudden change in the battlefield. Huge losses were suffered as soon as the army crashed on them, the cultivators of the Odrea nation were unrestrained in their slaughter. They knew that the Empire wasn''t actually suffering that much but they still had to vent years of abuses, the soldiers in front of them were the only ones where they could redirect such feelings. Noah, instead, didn''t have any enmity with the Empire. He limited himself to kill anyone in his reach but his attention was on the red cultivators, they were the requirement for his release after all. As for which side was right or wrong, he couldn''t care less. He would have done the same if it was the Empire holding him captive, he was willing to fight as long as he gained something out of it. He had long lost count of how many men had died because of him. He remembered his first one though. Balor, the fat guard that trapped him with the rank 3 Ironclad spider back when he was still in the outer circle of the Balvan mansion. He had the appearance of a kid back then but an old guard was still willing to kill him because of a petty reason. It was then that he understood that the world was merciless and that, in order to survive, he had to be even more merciless. That decision accompanied him through countless battlefields, ultimately ending in that valley surrounded by mutilated corpses. He didn''t hate the Empire nor had any grievances with it. Yet, he was willing to kill as many of its soldiers to obtain what he wanted. ''The pile of bodies that I''ve created managed to bring me in the second rank, I wonder how big I need to make it to become a god.'' His thoughts wandered as he severed the head of an isolated red cultivator, the battle was progressing way faster than the other ones, the sudden loss of the blue soldiers had forced the more powerful ones to join the battle. The events then unfolded in the same way as the battle in the previous month. The remaining blue cultivators of the Empire worked together with the red ones to defend against the relentless assault of the Odrea country. Noah jumped from battle to battle to kill the isolated cultivators, managing to slay a few red ones in the process. Hours passed and the night came. The black soldiers did the usual show of power, Noah had become used to watch them from the side of the valley. ''Today was quite profitable, my kill count of cultivators in the solid stage reached fifteen. It''s going better than I had predicted.'' It was with those thoughts in mind that the night came, decreeing the end of Noah''s fourth battle. Chapter 305: 305. Cruel The troops returned to the city on the mountain peak, Lisa had issued a celebration to honor that overwhelming victory. The soldiers would drink to their fullest and take a break from the constant battles that they were forced to fight. The mental state was an important factor for a cultivator''s battle prowess, exhausted soldiers would perform poorly on the battlefield after all. Noah, however, wasn''t in the mood for parties, his mind wandered between the many possibilities that the Elemental forging method offered. Also, he didn''t share the same feelings of the soldiers, the Odrea nation wasn''t his home after all. That''s why he went in the Mausoleum, nighttime was the best moment to use his cultivation technique and the battle in the day had been quite easy, he had no reason to skip his training. The second layer of the Mausoleum was empty, Noah quietly cultivated at its bottom on top of his "Breath" blessing. Cultivating had become a habit by then, he could easily concentrate on other matters while the vortex between his hands absorbed "Breath". His thoughts were on the possible items that he could forge, the Instabilities were useful but they had a great weakness: they could not be used next to allies. ''The explosion is not enough by itself, I can''t remove the spikes from the structure. Also, I have no control over the direction of the spikes, the whole point of the Instabilities is to exploit the natural destabilization of forged weapons¡­ There should be a way to apply the same theory on items that can be used after the armies have clashed.'' To do that he needed to think of a way to reduce the area of effect of the weapon without reducing its power. ''Precision over destruction, lethality over sheer power, the blueprint of the Moon needle might actually work.'' The main problem of his inscription method was that the items created in that way would need a cultivator of the darkness element to express their full power. That''s why Noah chose to create disposable weapons, the issue with the conflicting elements was solved in that way. Yet, another problem appeared due to that: the precious materials were expended too quickly. ''I will wait for the Empire to develop a countermeasure to the Instabilities and then forge something else, I should create a weapon only after I''ve discovered the weaknesses of their battle formation.'' Noah simply concluded that it was better to see how the Empire reacted next month rather than blindly create a new weapon. ''A bit more than one hundred Instabilities and all the spikes of the rank 4 Brown hedgehogs in the inventory will be depleted, I should use the Steeled corals next.'' Noah was already planning the new rank 4 material to use for his Instabilities when a person entered the second layer of the Mausoleum. Noah noticed the newcomer and slightly opened his eyes. He recognized the cultivator, she was the red soldier that had protected him during his first battle, one of Logan''s personal troops. She casually walked inside the room and neared Noah, the smell of wine and sweat immediately filled the air, Noah guessed that she had just come out of the party. The battle had just ended, the soldiers didn''t care about their smell enough to wash before the celebration, both she and Noah had still some red stains on them. Noah didn''t mind her and simply closed his eyes again to resume his brainstorming, that place was usually crowded after all. Yet, she didn''t sit on a mat to cultivate and neared Noah''s position while wearing a smile. "You should relax too." She spoke in a soft voice, stopping at a few steps from Noah, she didn''t want to forcefully stop his cultivation. "Did Lisa send you?" Noah, however, was already guessing that the encounter was a scheme to bound him to the nation. The woman was, after all, attractive. She looked in her thirties, her body was slender and fit, and her black curly hair perfectly matched her dark skin. "Our only obligation is toward the monthly battles, the Lord would never control what we do in our free time. This nation is already a prison, if even our actions were to be restricted, we would feel like prisoners rather than soldiers." She calmly answered while sitting right next to the mineral, she would eye Noah from time to time as she stared at the passage leading to the first layer. "I knew I would find you here, I''ve never seen someone so dedicated to his training. The other soldiers would have enjoyed your presence to the celebration though." "I don''t belong to this nation, I''m just being paid to fight." Noah honestly replied, there was no reason to lie. "Yet, the other blue soldiers look at you with admiration, they respect you." "They would just fear me if I was their enemy." Another quick exchange of phrases resounded in the room, Noah was just replying honestly to her. "Then we can consider ourselves lucky that the mighty hooded devil was captured by the formation, I really don''t know what we would do if your weapons were to be used against us." She laughed at that statement, she didn''t seem to mind that he had no attachment to the Odrea nation. "Why did you come looking for me?" Noah sighed, the conversation wasn''t bothering him but he was still wondering about the actual reason behind her presence there. "I figured that this was the only time where I could have a conversation with you alone. I was born here, everything I know about the outside world concerns the Empire, seeing an outsider like you awakened my curiosity." Noah arched one of his eyebrows as he gazed at the woman below him. She was smiling and was looking at him with eager eyes. "You¡­ Do you want to know about the outside world?" She nodded at that question and continued to stare Noah, she seemed really interested in his knowledge. Noah lowered his gaze, reviewing all the information that he knew about the various countries before opening his mouth to speak a few simple words. "The world is cruel." Chapter 306: 306. Nina Noah wasn''t exactly what was called a sociable person. His only real interest was his personal power which generally occupied all his thoughts. Yet, that didn''t mean that he was completely detached from the usual human emotions, he still felt them but he had far more important things to do. The truth was that he pitied the woman a bit. ''Born in a prison, forced to fight for her country, life here mustn''t be easy.'' He understood her situation because he had lived a similar one too. ''She also reminds me of June, their appearance is totally different though.'' Seeing her battle outfit and her spontaneous answers, Noah couldn''t help but think about that wild girl with whom he had shared his life in the academy. Her image unconsciously appeared in his mind, her long silver hair casually laying on her white skin were a memory that gave him some peaceful sensations. There were really a few persons in his second life that he could trust and June was one of them, well, he was sure that she had no ill intentions toward him at least. Yet, recalling her also reminded him of the reason why he was in that situation and he couldn''t help but make that statement. "Cruel?" She asked, she wanted a more detailed explanation. Noah didn''t mind speaking to her, his cultivation wasn''t hindered by that action and he felt that interaction quite pleasant. Being always alone was a habit of his but that didn''t mean that he couldn''t enjoy a normal conversation. "The powerful exploits the weak to become even more powerful. The Utra nation is ruled by nobles who detain the cultivation methods of the country, commoners are treated like beasts or turned into loyal soldiers, no one can escape that fate." Noah spoke calmly, he knew exactly how the noble families managed that nation. "But you did it, right?" She asked but Noah simply shook his head. "I just exchanged one prison with a bigger one, freedom seems to always escape my grasp." Balvan mansion, the Royal family, the Odrea nation, everywhere he went, he would always end up in the same situation. "Well, rejoice! We are all prisoners here!" She laughed again, trying to lift Noah''s morale a bit before she resumed her stare on the upward passage. "My name is Nina in case you were wondering." "Adam." Noah plainly replied. "I was sure it was Noah¡­ You might not remember it but I was there the day you were captured." Nina said in a playful tone. "Call me whatever you want, it''s not like you can spread this information to my enemies." "Oh my, you even have enemies, maybe you should really be a prisoner." That last line made Noah chuckle, he couldn''t help but agree with her. "You can even laugh! Can you do that again in front of the other soldiers? No one would believe me otherwise¡­" Nina playfully mocked Noah, making him enjoy her company even more. They spoke for a long time, Nina basically told him her whole life, she seemed really happy to have found someone that didn''t know her. The whole nation was concentrated in one city after all, they all knew each other and the monthly battles further deepened their relationships. Then, Noah interrupted his cultivation and jumped off the "Breath" blessing, carefully taking it back in his space-ring. "It''s time for me to go, I need to rest. Just know that I''ve appreciated your company." Noah slightly smiled as he spoke those words but Nina snorted. "You never stopped cultivating. Tell me the truth, you would have kicked me out if I was to hinder your training, right?" Noah coughed a little and turned toward the passage for the first layer, he didn''t really want to answer her question. "Hey." Nina reached him and grabbed his arm before continuing to speak. "Do you mind if I come with you?" She blushed a little as she said those words, it was quite obvious what she meant. Noah didn''t hide his surprise at which Nina promptly explained. "Death can reach each one of us every month, we have abandoned those restraints a long time ago. Also, our population is constantly declining, certain activities are strongly encouraged." She spoke without releasing her grasp on his arm, her hand trembled slightly during her explanation. "I have no intention of having a child and I will eventually leave this nation. I believe that one of your fellow soldiers can be a better match." Noah refused her, he really didn''t want to become a father. "But I like you." Nina''s answer was so blunt that even Noah was surprised. She then neared her face to his and timidly kissed him on his lips before whispering a simple plead to his ear. "Please, I don''t want to be alone tonight." At that moment, Noah gave up. He had no reason to refuse. His days were carefully planned, he had time for activities that weren''t training or forging. Also, cultivators had great control over their bodies, there wasn''t any chance for her to get pregnant. Ultimately, Noah simply wanted her. She was beautiful and funny, Noah had initially refused because he was wary of any hidden meaning behind her actions but she was simply doing that for herself. The monthly battles placed a heavy burden on each of the soldiers of the Odrea nation, they needed ways to vent that pressure. Nina wanted Noah and simply went for him, resorting to a blunt request when she saw that he didn''t make any move. Noah spent what remained of the night in her room with her and fell asleep with her head laying on his chest. When he woke up in the morning, he carefully moved her away to resume his forgings. Even if he had indulged in those happy moments, he didn''t forget his duties. Nina woke up after noticing the missing body below her. "You really never rest, do you?" "Remember that I''m doing this for your nation." Nina complained but Noah''s answer was ready, she couldn''t reply in any way. She sighed and dressed herself before crouching next the cross-legged Noah and kissing him on his cheek. "Can I come here tomorrow too?" She asked with the same timid tone of the previous night. Noah placed the materials for the Instabilities on the floor and opened his mouth to say a single word. "Yes." Chapter 307: 307. Powerlessness Noah''s days became slightly different. He would still forge in the morning, memorize the Kesier rune in the afternoon, and cultivate during the night, yet, when he went back to his room, Nina would follow him and remain with him till morning. That relationship was quite casual, they were just relieving each other''s stress after all. However, Noah appreciated her company. Being always on the edge would ultimately lead to a breaking point, Noah wasn''t aware of how much he needed to relax until he eventually did that. He found his mind clearer after he began to take those mental breaks which made him further enjoy the nights spent with Nina. She, on the other hand, simply wanted to spend time with him. Noah soon learned that the soldiers of the Odrea nation would often engage in those kinds of relationships, the monthly battles were a constant attempt on their lives so they simply wanted to make the best out of time between them. "Did you become faster?" Nina asked Noah as she watched him forging the Instabilities. She would remain in his room sometimes and stare at him in wonder as he created weapons out of magical beasts'' bodies. Inscriptions were a practice reserved only to a few cultivators, most of them didn''t even know that there were different schools in that field. "Yes, I can make four of them every day now." Noah''s ability increased as he continued to forge, he had become used to the form of the Instabilities, reducing the time needed for their creation. "How many will you deliver to the army? Your secret stash should have reached twenty bombs already." She had noticed that Noah kept some of his creations for himself but she didn''t care much, if Leo agreed to that behavior, she had no right to interfere. "Most of them, I just keep one every now and then. I''m alone after all, I don''t need that many of them." Noah spoke the truth but he wasn''t being completely honest about his reasons. The Instabilities were powerful but they were also heavily limited. They had a wide area of destruction, meaning that Noah couldn''t use them in a one versus one battle. Also, he was nearing a breakthrough, those weapons would become unsuitable for his power after that. He was just storing a few bombs for unexpected situations, it was always good to be prepared for any event. "Do you simply like to train or there is a hidden reason for that?" Nina would probe Noah from time to time, she knew that he had many secrets but she still couldn''t figure out how he became so diligent in his cultivation. Noah placed one bomb in his space-ring and took out more materials from the one belonging to the Odrea nation, the one carrying all his requested beasts. Meanwhile, he thought about Nina''s question and the memories of both his lives came to his mind. He clearly remembered the powerlessness that he felt when his previous life reached a dead end, he was just a normal man that couldn''t have success in the modern society and didn''t feel any attachment to it. Then, he was reborn only to be stuck in the same situation. Bastard son of a noble family, forced to witness the abuses endured by the only person that loved him and surrounded by what he initially thought were superhumans. Yet, this world offered him a chance to obtain power. His situation wasn''t good but he gave his everything only to take the few steps that ultimately brought him to his current level. The constant training, the unflinching willpower, the endless schemes and plans that barely got him through his misadventures, everything piled up till that point. "Once you know how powerless you can be, it''s hard to see anything different from the road to power." That was a simple reason but it was enough for Noah. Nina seemed satisfied with that answer, she could understand his feelings when he said those words. She was born in a prison after all, her life was spent under the shadow of the Empire, she knew powerlessness too well. It was with a bitter expression that she replied to him. "The next battle is in one week, I wonder how the Empire will react." . . . One week later, the two armies faced again each other in the valley. The same thing as the previous month happened, only on a larger scale. Noah had provided more than one hundred Instabilities that time, their joint power could rival the wave of spells of the blue cultivators. The Empire didn''t come up with many countermeasures in one month, it simply decided to split the defensive spells into two parts: the first one to defend from the spells and the second one to defend from the Instabilities. That tactic, however, had many flaws with the most important being the fact that there were fewer cultivators performing spells each time. The Odrea nation had two powerful long-distance attack methods after all while the Empire only had one, it had to divide its troops to prevent one of those methods from devastating its army. It was obvious that a weaker defense would create more victims but the Empire was still willing to pay that price to maintain a sort of balance in the battle. Only around two hundred blue soldiers of the Empire died during the launch of spells and Instabilities that time, those were still huge losses but they were somewhat acceptable. That outcome forced Noah to focus the blue soldiers for the entirety of the battle, no red cultivator dared to expose himself to his sneak attacks. ''They have indeed learned¡­ I can''t force an opening in their formation with this little difference in numbers.'' Noah thought, aimlessly wandering on the battlefield. The tactic of the Empire revealed itself successful, the battle ended with only a bit more than three hundred casualties on the Empire''s side and a few dozens in the Odrea''s one. His disappointment though didn''t last much thanks to a joyous Nina happily following him after he came out of the Mausoleum. Chapter 308: 308. Hidden blas ''To think that I would prefer straightforward women despite the twisted personality that I have¡­'' Noah found himself thinking about his relationship with Nina as their nights together continued. ''Maybe it''s precisely because of how I am that I prefer them.'' He didn''t trust people nor did they give him reasons to do so. Yet, with people like June or Nina, he could relax knowing that they wouldn''t try to scheme behind his back. ''Well, when things are like this, they are easy¡­ I don''t know how it would go in an actual relationship.'' His rapport with Nina was purely physical, there wasn''t any affection between them. ''I guess I''ll think about it when I''ll feel something for someone.'' Noah put those thoughts in the back of his mind as he continued with his routine. The Empire was slowly building countermeasures for his creations and the spikes of the rank 4 Brown hedgehogs were exhausted by then, it was time to change materials. "You shouldn''t remain here in the morning from now on, I need a few days to stabilize the new structure." Noah said to Nina in the morning when the rank 4 Steeled corals arrived to his room. "Why is that? Some secret technique of yours?" She crouched behind him as she said those words, Noah could feel Nina''s warm body laid on his back. "No, my weapons simply tend to explode in this phase. I know when I need to protect myself but I fear that you might be taken by surprise." Noah was the maker of the Instabilities, he knew exactly when the destabilization escaped his control and he had to throw them away. Because of that, he could defend himself with impeccable timing but any other cultivator would risk being one second too late and suffer some injuries. "Do you realize that I''m stronger than you?" "Are you saying that you''ll be fine if one of these were to explode inside the room?" Noah smiled as he took one of the Instabilities from his space-ring and raised it over his shoulder, right next to Nina''s face. Nina stared at the spiked sphere for a while before sighing and hugging Noah from behind. "Ok, I''ll leave you alone for a few days, but you make up for them now." Noah released a small laugh and shook his head before placing the Instability on the floor and turning, pushing Nina on the mat. . . . Explosions resounded again from Noah''s room but they stooped after a few days. Noah''s ability in creating Instabilities had increased by a large margin, he could easily modify their structure in order to adapt it to the new material. The newly created weapon was dark-gray due to the new spikes that made its outer layer and they were also slightly heavier. "Do they work in the same way as the previous ones?" Logan asked Noah after the latter had delivered the new batch of Instabilities. "Yes, nothing has changed in the inside. I will reduce the production a bit to work on another weapon now, I will give another list of materials to your soldiers later." Noah answered. He didn''t really need to create a different weapon but he had become so skilled in channeling the innate destabilization of his creations that he couldn''t help but have many inspirations for new items. "Oh? I''ll leave you be then." . . . Another battle occurred. The Empire was still struggling against the Instabilities of the Odrea nation but it was slowly reducing its losses. That battlefield was a simple training ground after all, there was a limit to the resources that it was willing to invest. In the end, the Odrea nation was skimming its soldiers as planned, the Empire simply wanted to reduce the casualties. That''s why it began to use red soldiers during the first exchange of long-distance attacks. It didn''t use random red cultivators though, simply being in the solid stage of the second rank wasn''t that helpful in that situation. Instead, it sent those who had a strong mental sphere, almost at the peak of the second rank. Those soldiers could be considered prodigies of their generation, it was rare to have such a powerful sea of consciousness before reaching the third rank of the dantian. The result was that the defensive spells cast by them, together with those of the other blue soldiers, were able to further reduce the damages inflicted on their army. Another battle went by, the two armies seemed to have returned to the kind of balance that they had before Noah''s weapons, it was needless to say that Noah couldn''t add any other red soldier to his kill count. Noah spent the following month testing a new weapon while providing a fewer number of Instabilities, their power had been heavily countered in just two months, it was time to create something else. The result of that month of experiments was an improved version of the Moon needle. Its core was formed by rank 4 Cloud eagles'' bones but its insides were filled by rank 3 Fire snakes'' flesh. ''This should be far more useful in battle.'' The improved Moon needle solved the issue of the friendly fire, it could be used after the two armies clashed and there was virtually no possibility of accidentally hurting an ally. ''Hidden blast should be a good name. Its full power can be expressed only when used by darkness, fire, or wind cultivators¡­ I should test its effects in the next battle.'' When the other battle arrived, Noah calmly waited for the two armies to clash before joining one of the group combats. The battlefield had returned to the state it was when he first arrived to the nation, the soldiers of the Empire were simply more focused on the defense. ''It seems that they have received a better training, it should be because of me.'' Noah judged as he neared one battle. Eight blue cultivators and four red ones were fighting each other. That combat was obviously one-sided, the soldiers of the Odrea nation had far better teamwork while those of the Empire were simply focusing on their defense. Then, a simple looking gray needle shot through the air toward one of the red soldiers of the Empire. The cultivator snorted at its sight and dodged it easily, doing no unnecessary movements. However, just as the needle passed next his right shoulder, it exploded. Chapter 309: 309. Purpose The explosion wasn''t that strong, just as powerful as the Instabilities. The needle exploded right next to the red cultivator''s shoulder, creating a blast with the power of rank 2 cultivator in the liquid stage. The soldier had a rank 4 body, the power behind the explosion was enough to pierce his natural defenses. However, just as his skin was burnt and his flesh was destroyed, he released the "Breath" inside his dantian in a protective manner. That raw "Breath" wasn''t enough to completely block the blast but it still offered some sort of protection due to its intrinsic power. The explosion destroyed his robe and engulfed his body, yet, he barely managed to survive, the soldiers there could see how his charred body came out of the cloud of dark smoke created after the needle detonated. "Who dares to-" He cursed loudly but his words were interrupted by a black saber that severed his head, Noah wasn''t the type to waste such a precious chance. The remaining soldiers of the Empire were still stunned by the even that they understood what had happened only after Noah''s hooded figure entered their field of view. ''Hooded devil!'' That thought was shared among them. Noah was, after all, renown in that battlefield, his actions had created far too chaos in the previous battles. And here he was, ready to make a scene again. "Retreaaaa-" One of the blue soldiers of the Empire tried to warn his allies but that action only gave enough time for the cultivators of the Odrea nation to reach him. They were far more experienced after all, even if Noah''s appearance had surprised them, they managed to recover far quicker than their enemies. Noah, however, completely disregarded the weaker soldiers around him and focused his gaze on the other red cultivator. A mental shockwave shot from his eyes which directly pierced the mental sphere of his opponent, making him fall on his knees as he screamed in pain. Months had passed since Noah was granted access to the Mausoleum, his centers of power had steadily improved and his sea of consciousness was nearing the limits of the second rank. The difference in power between his mind and that of his opponent was too big, the red cultivator couldn''t withstand Noah''s Mental tremor at all. It was with quick steps that Noah neared the kneeling cultivator and cut his head off, the Demonic sword severed his neck without any obstruction. The power of a single Hidden blast made him kill two cultivators in the solid stage, bringing his kill count to seventeen. However, there was no happiness in Noah''s expression. His allies were rejoicing at the sight of his feat but they were immediately scolded by his loud words. "Kill any witnesses! We can''t give the Empire intel about the new weapon!" Noah''s words awakened them from their astonishment, they immediately understood that the sooner the Empire knew about any new weapon, the sooner it will create countermeasures. The soldiers around him quickly raised their heads and swept the battlefield with their gazes as they looked for the blue soldiers that had escaped when Noah appeared. The cultivators of the Odrea country shot in three different directions, Noah could see how three powerless blue soldiers of the Empire were killed in a few instants. ''Damned idiots!'' Noah cursed in his mind but was relieved seeing all the witnesses dying, the Hidden blast that he had just used was the first of its kind, he didn''t want its details to be revealed so soon. ''At least the test went well.'' He nodded internally at the power of his new creation. ''The actual damage that it''s capable of can''t be compared to the Instabilities but it can be used in far more situations. Also, it expends fewer materials.'' The Hidden blasts were the size of a finger, the Cloud eagle''s bones were simply used to contain the concentrated flesh of the Fire snakes that he filled with his "Breath", their structure was really simple. The only problem was that he still wasn''t used to their forging, he would need some time to become used to the process like had done with the Instabilities. ''It''s not that strong singularly and it can deal some damage only if the opponent isn''t aware of its dangerousness¡­ Ideally, each soldier should have five to ten of them¡­ If I exclude the black cultivators, I would need to create between five thousand and ten thousand needles¡­'' Noah brainstormed as he wandered in the battlefield. There wasn''t much else that he could do, his surprise effect had been used, there weren''t other situations where he could kill red cultivators. ''Five thousand is too much, the inventory simply doesn''t have that many materials. Also, how much time would I have to spend forging? It took me more than two months to surpass two hundred Instabilities, I don''t plan to stay here for much longer.'' Noah didn''t forget his real purpose. He needed cultivation techniques and methods to continue in his pursuit of power which the Odrea nation could not offer. That country had sold its future for the chance to survive, the only thing that could save it was someone offering help from outside. Also, he was still escaping, the formation around the nation prevented any external investigation but his traces still led there. ''I don''t know how far the Royals can reach, this is Empire''s territory in the end, yet, I don''t see them giving up on me just because of that.'' The Empire had a God at its lead, it was safe to assume that the Royals had a similar power or they wouldn''t be in the top three countries of the continent. Noah didn''t know if they had methods to freely chase him or if they had simply given up on his capture, waiting for him to appear in neutral territory. ''I can consider the Empire as my protector for now but it won''t be the same after I come out of the formation, I should think of a plan before continuing my journey.'' Chapter 310: 310. Joke Noah was just a passerby before all the events in the Odrea country, the Empire didn''t have any reason to target him. Now, however, he was the Hooded devil, he was the reason behind thousands of casualties in the ranks of its army, Noah couldn''t just hope that they will forget about his deeds. ''I guess that I''m back at planning escapes, why do I always end up in these situations?'' Noah sighed internally as he went to the side of the battlefield to prepare for the fight of the black cultivators. . . . Months passed without much changing. Noah would simply stick to his schedule and grow stronger each day as he investigated for an escape route. Nina gladly passed information to him, she knew that he was set on leaving so she felt unnecessary to hinder his plans. The truth was that leaving was easy, Noah had just to cross the formation and he would be back in the wilderness. However, the Empire strictly guarded the borders, it would investigate anyone leaving the country. His forging though led to positive results in the monthly battles. The Hidden blasts offered the soldiers another type of offensive, one that could be used after the two armies had clashed. The soldiers of the Empire found themselves burnt to death or heavily injured without even knowing what hit them, a couple of months had to pass before they identified the cause of those explosions. Even after that though, there wasn''t much they could do about it. Those blasts had the power of the liquid stage of the second rank, they weren''t any different from the spells of the blue cultivators. Their strong points were their immediate effects and their size: The Hidden blasts didn''t need time to be cast and their size allowed them to easily slip between the defenses of the soldiers. The soldiers of the Empire would often raise their weapons to defend against their enemies only to find a needle in front of them. It was needless to say that another period of overwhelming victories occurred. Noah saw his kill count steadily increasing, his centers of power becoming stronger, and his forging ability improving, he felt his whole self being sharpened in that environment. The Empire couldn''t come up with many countermeasures, the Instabilities increased the power of the long-distance attacks while the Hidden blasts performed extremely good in the group fights, its only option was to give its soldiers a better training focused on defense. Then, the inevitable happened. Noah had been in the Odrea country for almost two years, he was twenty-three by then when the breakthrough happened. He was in his room with Nina, diligently memorizing the third Kesier rune while she read a book. Really few cultivators could dedicate their entire life to their training, it was normal for the others to occupy their days with things they liked. However, Nina hurriedly closed her book as she saw Noah dropping the sheet in his hands and crouching on the floor while holding his head. "What happened? Did you hurt yourself?" Her worries weren''t misplaced. She had seen how Noah never stopped training, incidents during cultivation could happen if the centers of power were too stressed. Yet, what was happening was the exact opposite of that. Noah''s mental sphere trembled violently, it sent waves of pain that forced Noah to shut his eyes to resist them. Then, there was an unparalleled clarity. The tremors stopped, allowing Noah to finally open his eyes and evaluate the changes. His eyes shone with a blue light as he moved away Nina''s embrace and looked at the world in wonder. The room was still the same but Noah could see every detail in it. His focus went on the inscriptions that reinforced it and, even though he still couldn''t understand their meaning, he could vaguely make out their purpose. It was similar to a feeling, Noah could sense what those inscriptions were meant to do. As his focus increased though, he seemed to see some sort of invisible layer that prevented him from looking more in depth, as if the world itself was stopping him from uncovering its secrets. ''The world itself is a prison, what a joke.'' He understood the meaning behind that layer, it represented the limits of the human ranks, it hid the world that only entities could see. Yet, he laughed at its sight. It was a loud laugh, Noah seemed unable to contain himself. ''My mind has reached you, Master.'' The master he thought of was William, the one that had introduced him to the cultivation world, one of the two persons that had protected him as he grew. Twenty-three years, rank 3 sea of consciousness! Monsters would hide in front of that achievement. "Are you ok?" Nina was somewhat relieved seeing that he wasn''t hurt but she still couldn''t understand his behavior. Noah moved his gaze on her, his mind was exuding a boundless ambition, the sight of the invisible layer had triggered his deepest emotion. Nina felt danger. Noah''s mind waves radiated a suffocating pressure, she instinctively retreated to a corner of the room but her mental sphere was still affected by his gaze. Noah shut his eyes and turned his head, his focus went inside his sea of consciousness as he tried to contain its power. The third Kesier rune stood proudly over his half-transparent figure, the black roots of the Demonic form spell had entangled around it as the rune completely formed. Stillness, no waves could be seen in the sea that represented his thoughts, the crystalline water seemed somewhat heavier. ''As I increase the rank of my mind, my thoughts become stronger. I should be able to affect the material world when I reach the fourth rank.'' Then, he tried something that he had stalled for too much time. The non-refined "Breath" over his sea was immersed in the water, Noah''s will was immediately injected in it, his ambition powered the image of a figure jumping from the ground and reaching the sky in one leap. The "Breath" was refined in no time and Noah immediately redirected it toward his right leg with which he stomped twice on the floor. A shockwave resounded in the room, Noah lost control of his leg which propelled him in the air, making him smash on the ceiling. Chapter 311: 311. Warmth THUD! A loud thud resounded in the reinforced room as Noah fell from the ceiling and landed on the floor. "Are you ok?" Nina was still speechless in a corner, she had long abandoned the idea of understanding his behavior. ''My will is finally able to push my martial art into the realm of the heroic ranks!'' Noah, however, was completely ignoring her. The breakthrough of his mind had opened him countless possibilities, he just had to understand the limits of his will. ''This is amazing! My mental energy is not limited to the spells, infusing it in the forging process will increase the effects of my creations by a large margin!'' Every superior rank would increase the power of the center of power by a lot, it was needless to say how much the power of his creations would increase if Noah was to forge with his improved will. A stronger will would produce stronger effects, the "Breath" infused by his own meaning was able to push a rank 3 martial art to the fourth rank, it was obvious that the same would apply to his creations. Then, he felt two hands blocking his shoulders. Noah found a pissed Nina watching him closely and holding him still, she was using her real strength, Noah wasn''t able to escape from her grasp. "Stop ignoring me!" She pouted as she pushed Noah toward the wall. "If this is some form of injury, you need to calm down before the damage spreads." Her words were sincere, Noah could see her concern from her expression. He smiled at that sight and unconsciously caressed her cheek, his pale hand made a stark contrast with her dark smooth skin as he reassured her. "Don''t worry, I''ve simply become a rank 3 mage and got too excited, I''m fine." His words though had the opposite effect. "Ra-rank 3 mage?" Nina muttered those words with an astonished expression and Noah nodded to answer. "B-but, you are not even thirty!" He shrugged his shoulders as a reply. Nina released her grasp and raised her hand to hold the one caressing her face. "What kind of monster are you¡­" She then laid her body on his and together they sat on the floor with Noah caringly holding her between his arms. "Does this mean that you''ll leave?" She asked in a soft voice while snuggling her head right below his jaw, Noah could feel her words reverberating through his throat. "It won''t be now but, yes, I''ll leave soon." Noah didn''t lie to her, he had been clear about his intentions since the beginning of their relationship. "I''ll miss you." She said, adjusting her position in his embrace. Noah looked at the beautiful woman in his arms and he couldn''t help but smile at her sight. They have been together for more than one year, even if their relationship had started as a simple method to relieve their stress, they unavoidably began to feel some affection toward each other. "You could come with me." Noah said those words even if he knew that they were wrong. He had managed to escape from his many pursuers because he was always alone, he could easily warp away to make them lose his tracks. Being with someone, however, would slow his march and hinder his journey, Noah knew that being alone was for the best. Yet, he felt some unwillingness in abandoning the peaceful feelings that Nina gave him, that''s why he spoke those words. "You could remain here." Nina replied to him using a similar proposal. She was a soldier, she had defended her country for years and endured the battles against the Empire since the moment she became a rank 2 cultivator. Her country was everything to her, she was willing to die for it even if that meant delaying the inevitable, that was her pride. Noah had his ambition but so did she, their goals simply required for them to separate. Noah didn''t answer her, he limited himself to caressing her curly hair. She did the same, her hand found its way inside his robe where it could caress Noah''s chest. They stood in silence, their eyes were shut as they enjoyed each other''s warmth, a sensation that they were so used to feel but that now seemed ready to vanish forever as soon as they released themselves. "Noah." Nina broke the silence, calling Noah with his real name and raising her head to stare at the young man capable of wonders. "Yes?" He turned his head toward her, her sensual figure was covered by the brightness of her brown eyes. "Let''s just make the best out of the time that we have left, let''s leave the sorrow for when you are gone." She was smiling as she spoke, Noah couldn''t help but lower his head to kiss her in response. She accepted his kiss and replied with one of her own, the two of them then laid themselves on the floor, uncaring of the fact that there was no mat, to continue with their soft effusions. . . . A couple of days had to pass before they managed to release each other, they didn''t leave the room at all during that time. Then, Noah was seen exiting the reinforced room with a determined expression, the aura around him seemed to exude a dense seriousness. Noah went directly for the central building of the city where a cultivator in the third rank blocked the entrance. "Call Lisa, I need a meeting." Noah didn''t waste time and directly went to the point, the soldier nodded at his words and entered the building to convey his words. Noah''s status had become far loftier in the past months. All the soldiers looked at him with gratitude and respect, he was sharing their same fate after all and his creations helped them in the monthly battles, they considered him as some sort of benefactor. That''s why the rank 3 guard didn''t ask any question, he simply contacted Lisa through his methods. Just a few minutes had to pass before Noah was bought in the main hall of the building where Lisa, Leo, Luke, and Logan were waiting for him. "What is it? We were planning the next battle tactic." Lisa explained as soon as he entered the hall. Noah crossed his arms over his chest before speaking in a stern tone. "I''m here to talk about my last battle." Chapter 312: 312. Parting gifts "Last battle?" Noah''s words made the four cultivators raise their heads in his direction. "What do you mean by that?" Lisa asked. She had kept track of his battle records and knew that his kill count had still to reach half of the agreed number so she was surprised by his statement. Lisa and Logan couldn''t find anything different when they watched him but Leo and Luke had surprised expression as they inspected him. Noah''s cultivation level was completely exposed to their sight when he first arrived in the country but now it was cloudy, they couldn''t make out the limits of his power. The reason for that was that he had enveloped himself with a layer of mental energy, which could somewhat block the protectors'' probing now that his mind had reached the third rank. "You¡­ What has happened to you?" Leo couldn''t hold his curiosity back and directly gave voice to what he had in mind. Lisa and Logan turned toward him but they realized that something was wrong when they saw that even Luke seemed interested in Noah''s answer. "I''ve become a rank 3 mage." Noah nonchalantly said. The eyes of the four cultivators widened at that statement, even Leo and Luke with their usual demeanor as elders couldn''t suppress their surprise. "It''s no big deal, with the Mausoleum strengthening my mental sphere and my mass production of inscribed items, I''m surprised it has even taken this long." Noah uncaringly replied to those gazes and neared the table that they encircled, a map depicting the valley at the border of the country was placed there, he could make out the formation of the army from the disposition of the pawns over it. "I have an offer to make and, in my opinion, it would be far more beneficial than simply killing one hundred red soldiers. Do I have your attention?" His words were somewhat able to bring them back from their stupor but they still eyed Noah with strange gazes. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had the aspect of a young man, that image didn''t match the one of a mage at the peak of the human ranks at all! "Speak." Lisa was the first to react. Her cultivation level was too low, she didn''t know the hardships that a cultivator had to go through to reach the third rank of the sea of consciousness so she simply labeled Noah as a genius in her mind. Noah sighed before beginning his speech. "Our first meeting was quite traumatic, I entered your country and was captured. Initially, I was pissed about that but now I understand that you are just doing everything in your power to survive." He still remembered his first meeting with Logan, when his centers of power had been threatened. The truth was that Noah had overreacted: The Odrea country didn''t have any ill intention, they just wanted his intel about the outside world and his battle prowess. Other than that, there wasn''t much to expect from a random outsider. "Your situation is tragic but you were still willing to pay me for my services on the battlefield. Then, you saw that I could perform inscriptions and you gave me access to your inventory, allowing me to keep some of my creations. All in all, I can say that I''ve been treated quite well." The Odrea country had simply treated him like one of its soldiers, it has just forced him to share the fate of its citizens. Differently from the Balvan mansion and the Royal dynasty, the Odrea country was a prison were everyone was a prisoner, Noah could relate with its soldiers since he had experienced their lives for more than one year. "That''s why, instead of limiting myself to the killing of one hundred cultivators in the solid stage, I''ve decided to make a new deal." Noah sighed again, he had thought about this plan as he searched for an escape route and that was the best option. "This deal comprises two gifts on my part and one on yours, I''d like to start with your part." "You want us to help you with your escape. The Empire is on our borders and you can''t safely leave without our help. This can be done, what do you offer?" Lisa interrupted him, she could clearly understand Noah''s difficulties, they were the same that forced her citizens inside the formation. Noah sighed for the third time, Lisa was inexperienced when it came to cultivation but her political skills had already surpassed Noah''s, he wasn''t her match in that field. "My first parting gift will be turning all your materials in the inventory into weapons for future usage. I should be able to create a few thousand Instabilities and Hidden blasts with the remaining beasts that fit their structure which would give your nation a few years of stability. Mind you, the power of these new weapons would be higher since my mind is in the third rank now." Lisa listened to his words and nodded, she liked that idea. She turned toward Leo and saw that he also nodded after a loud sigh. He handled the inventory after all, losing so many materials over disposable weapon was a heavy blow on the reserves of the country. However, they didn''t have a better use for them, exchanging them for years of overwhelming victories was a good trade due to their unique situation. "So, you want to avoid the battlefield to concentrate on your inscriptions, I understand, I believe that you already have an idea of how many months you will need. What about your second parting gift?" Lisa pressed Noah to continue. His improved mind had an increased thinking speed and could perform some tasks of the Elemental forging method in far less time, Noah had already a vague idea of the time needed to use all the materials that fit his criteria. Noah wore a stern expression as he pointed toward the map depicting the valley. "I will give you a battle where all the soldiers of the Empire, except those in the third rank, will die." Chapter 313: 313. Preparations Noah exited the main building of the city to return to his room, an agreement had been reached, now it was time to prepare. ''The capabilities of my mind have been vastly improved, forging that many items is not a problem. I even have more free time.'' The third Kesier rune had formed in his mind, he didn''t have the fourth one so his afternoons were now free. That didn''t mean that he would stop training his mental sphere though, the Kesier runes were the safest and fastest method that the humans had developed but it wasn''t the only one. Noah had already decided to store even larger quantities of "Breath" in his sea of consciousness to make up for the lack of Kesier runes, his two blood companions radiated virtually no pressure but the "Breath" was still able to affect his sphere. ''Once I find a rank 4 magical beast of the darkness element, the expansion of my sphere should pick up some speed. Well, at least I have a way to continue training.'' Noah couldn''t bear slowing the growth of his mind. Since he was reborn, his sea of consciousness had been his biggest advantage, he didn''t want to let go of the center of power that made him a "monster". The training of the mind consisted in enlarging its sphere, all he had to do was to find ways to increase the internal pressure to obtain a similar effect. The "Breath" could cover for part of it but Noah still felt that it was too slow, that''s why he had finally made up his mind about having a blood companion in the heroic ranks. The problem was that the Odrea country didn''t have any danger zone, he had to wait for his escape before searching for a rank 4 beast of the darkness element. As for how he was going to spend his remaining time inside the nation, he had already made a schedule. His nights would continue in the Mausoleum, his dantian was still in the liquid stage, such unbalance between his centers of power was not a good thing, his "Breath" wouldn''t be able to keep up with the power of his spells. The Demonic form spell was part of his plan, he needed to increase his reserves of "Breath" or he would deplete them with one simple activation. Spells required two types of energy, "Breath" and mental energy. Since Noah was now a rank 3 mage, his Demonic form would reflect that rank. However, his dantian was still in the liquid stage, the "Breath" inside it was barely enough to fuel such a powerful spell. The solid stage was still out of his reach so he could only focus on increasing his reserves of liquid "Breath" before his last battle. When he returned to his room, Nina welcomed him with a warm hug. "How did it go?" "Lisa agreed, I will focus on transforming all the suitable beasts'' corpses into weapons before my last battle. I should start immediately, I''m quite eager to test the limits of this new power." Noah had many things to test with his new sea of consciousness. He had to tune his martial art to his needs, he had verified its strength but he still needed to integrate it with his battle style which required some time. Also, he still had to see how his breakthrough affected his forging! Imbuing his will inside the "Breath" had taken him less than a minute and that was just the refining part! Manipulating the structure of the materials was a hard task but he was now far stronger than before, he could easily inscribe at a higher speed. "I know you, once you start training, there is nothing that can stop you. Just be sure to leave some time for me." Nina said with a pissed expression. Noah smiled, Nina wanted to make the best out of their remaining time but he needed time to prepare, what he had in mind required a lot of preparation. That''s why he made sure to satisfy her first before starting with his session of forging. The material had yet to arrive after all, he could spend time caring about the woman that relieved his nights for more than a year. The materials arrived in a few hours, Nina left him alone as soon as a soldier delivered the goods. Noah began to work immediately, he was eager to test his new power. "Breath" was imbued with his will as he held the materials for the Instabilities in his hands, a black membrane was created in a few seconds, Noah was already able to perform those two tasks at the same time. The materials began to fuse as soon as the "Breath" invaded their structure, their form slowly changed under Noah''s control, a blue sphere was created and the gray spikes were carefully layered around its shape. In less than an hour, an Instability was created. Noah smiled at its sight, the power that it held far surpassed his previous creations, it was a disposable weapon with the power of the solid stage! ''This is amazing! At this pace, I will be able to create more than ten weapons per day!'' He was amazed by his forging speed, the benefits of a rank 3 sea of consciousness were already showing themselves. Then, he began to forge a Hidden blast. Its creation took even less time, its form was simpler after all, he didn''t even need to focus during the forging. A needle with a threatening amount of "Breath" concentrated in its little shape was created, Noah could already see that its power had surpassed each of its previous Hidden blasts. Less than an hour had passed but two items had been forged, that speed left Noah speechless! ''This will take even less than I thought! Forging, training, I only need three months to be ready for my plan.'' It was with those thoughts that he resumed his forging, he seemed possessed by the new power that he held! Chapter 314: 314. Last charge Four months passed before Noah returned to the battlefield. During that time, he had become used to his new power and carefully explored its limits. As it turned out, he could store far more "Breath" than he had initially thought before his headache returned, his mind firmly opposed any internal pressure before Noah could force it to enlarge. The third rank was the peak of the human ranks after all, Noah was basically one step away from becoming an inhuman entity. His forging speed continued to rise in that period, Leo had seen how the magical beast''s corpses in the inventory quickly transformed into weapons for the army. Also, Noah trained his martial art in the meantime. Nina was the perfect sparring partner, she was stronger than him in a fight without spells, Noah could accurately tell how effective his form was in a real battle thanks to that. His dantian was nearing the limits of the liquid stage, the weapons had been forged, and his martial art had been implemented in his fighting style, he had no reason to delay his departure. The Empire strictly guarded the borders of the Odrea country so he couldn''t just leave, he had to resort to a scheme to continue in his journey. That''s why, after three months of absence, the Hooded devil reappeared in the valley at the borders of the formation. The army of the Empire didn''t have it easy during his absence, the soldiers of the Odrea country had used the weapons previously created by Noah to maintain their supremacy on the battlefield, the Empire was barely able to contain its losses. The Instabilities and the Hidden blasts provided too much support to their fights, the Empire couldn''t come up with any cheap countermeasure. The Odrea country was, after all, a training ground, there was a limit to how much the Empire was willing to invest to skim its soldiers. That''s why blue cultivators continued to die in high number, they could only improve their defensive methods as they fought. Yet, the sight of the blue figure with its face covered by a black hood gave them an ominous feeling, they could already predict that something would be different that time. "Remember the plan, don''t get near me when my part starts." Noah gave the last warning to Logan before joining the ranks of the blue soldiers. Even with his rank 3 sea of consciousness, he was still in the liquid stage of the second rank, he wasn''t breaking any rule in wearing that color. Logan sighed at that sight. He knew all the specifics of the plan, Noah was ready to take a big risk to ensure his escape, his mind replayed the scenes of his capture as he stared at the hooded figure disappearing in the sea of blue robes. ''Not even love could stop him, there was no way to make him stay since the beginning.'' He was aware of his relationship with Nina. He had initially been happy to learn that Noah was slowly integrating himself with the nation but he had misjudged his determination. ''He can only see the path to power.'' That realization was the last thought that he had about Noah before redirecting his attention to the red troops around him, they had a vital role in the incoming battle. "Is everyone ready?" He asked in a soft voice to the man next to him. "Yes, fifty soldiers are armed with the new Instabilities and Hidden blasts, we had never carried this much firepower in a single battle." Logan nodded at his reply. "Good, let''s give them a taste of our new strength." The soldiers around him smiled at his words. The years spent fighting had rooted the seeds of hate deep into their very essence, there was nothing that they enjoyed more than slaughtering the pawns of the Empire. "I can''t wait." The soldier next to Logan gave voice to those words before joining the battle formation. Then, the sun reached its highest point in the sky, signaling the beginning of the battle. Spells and Instabilities were launched as soon as the two armies began to move. The soldiers of the Empire were used by then at that sight, the red cultivators in their ranks used their strongest defensive spells to stop most of the power of that offensive, they were doing their best to limit the losses between the blue soldiers. However, some of them still died. It couldn''t be helped, those two waves of attack were too much to handle with just their spells, only the help of the black cultivators could prevent those losses. Yet, they were focused on the opponents with a power similar to theirs, they couldn''t waste their energy to protect the weaklings in the army. The armies then clashed, the vanguards of both sides merged together to form a messy line of battle were the cultivators in the liquid stage could obtain some fast kills, blood began to sprout in every direction. Then, a scene that the soldiers of Empire had not seen in a while played itself right under their gazes. Noah, the Hooded devil that had brought chaos in the valley many times, was forcing his way in the enemy army again! His black sabers took the lives of many surprised soldiers, most of them had only heard stories about his weapons after all, they didn''t manage to move away like their training ordered. A straight line of corpses and maimed bodies was created, Noah didn''t seem like he was going to stop any time soon. Yet, even though most of the blue soldiers were new recruits, the red ones weren''t. They were generally more experienced than the blue ones and most of them had seen Noah''s feats in the past, they reacted immediately at the sight of his actions. Ten red robes left their ranks and ran toward the hooded figure that was unleashing precise attacks right in the middle of their army. They soon reached him, encircling him and blocking his escape route. They were set on killing that nuisance once for all! ''Just as planned.'' However, Noah had expected a similar situation and smiled under his hood seeing that his prediction was accurate. He didn''t wait for them to make the first move, his figure immediately began to emit black smoke that quickly transformed him into a horned fiend. Chapter 315: 315. Sprin A black cloud was quickly formed around Noah, his fiendish appearance had changed again after the roots in his sea of consciousness entangled themselves on the third Kesier rune. The horns and the tail of the Demonic form had grown and Noah''s fingers had become sharp pointy fangs, the spell now made him look like a real demon rather than a human figure with a gaseous armor. The "Breath" in his dantian depleted quickly, the liquid "Breath" wasn''t enough to sustain a spell with the power of the third rank so Noah''s reserves diminished at a fast pace, hurrying him to end the battle as fast as he could. The ten red cultivators stopped their tracks at the sight of the black smoke, the amount of danger that they felt coming from it surpassed that of his black sabers, they had no confidence in safely crossing it. That''s why, after a brief pause, they all began to cast their spells. The soldiers of the Empire had created a large empty area around Noah, they didn''t want to get caught in his battle with the red troops. That''s why the cultivators in the solid stage didn''t hesitate to launch spells, the area was empty after all, they wouldn''t hurt their allies with those destructive attacks. Ice shards, fireballs, and beasts of various elements shot toward Noah at high speed, he watched how those spells cut the air, aiming to crash on his exposed figure. ''Even if my Demonic form is in the third rank now, defending from so many spells will just deplete more of my "Breath", it''s not worth it.'' The spells seemed to slow their pace as soon as he began to think, the thinking speed of a rank 3 sea of consciousness gave him the feeling that the world around him was slowing down as he pondered on his next step. ''It''s time to use my martial art.'' Noah concluded in his mind and pressed twice on the terrain while bending his body in a half crouched position. A shock-wave resounded on the battlefield, the ground under Noah''s foot cracked and a deep mark was dug in it. As for Noah, his leap surpassed the maximum speed that his body was able to reach, making him dodge all the spells at once! BOOOM! The spells of the red cultivators converged in his previous position, creating a loud explosion that sent destructive shockwaves in every direction. Those were the most powerful attacks of cultivators in the solid stage of the second rank after all, their power couldn''t be underestimated. Yet, Noah dodged them quite easily, the effectiveness of a martial art that focused on movement could be already seen! ''I have only thirty more of these sprints, I need to use them well.'' Noah thought as he redirected his gaze toward one of the red soldiers around him. His martial art used refined "Breath" to function, Noah had used the same procedure of the Elemental forging method to surpass the limits that the diagram of a rank 0 spell had. That meant that Noah had to store some "Breath" already imbued with his will in his sea of consciousness to perform his martial art in battle. His mental sphere had enlarged after the breakthrough but it still couldn''t even get close to the storage capabilities of a dantian, the amount of refined "Breath" that Noah could keep with him all the time was limited. Of course, before this battle, he had refined all the "Breath" inside his mind to be ready to use his martial art as much as he could. The result was that he was able to perform thirty-one sprints that surpassed the maximum speed of his body, they weren''t many but it was the best that Noah could accomplish with his current level. He would need for his dantian to have some breakthroughs before he could further upgrade his martial art. A mental beam shot from Noah''s eyes toward the head of one of the red soldiers. Noah felt an intense burning sensation on his eyes, the power of the Mental tremor spell had increased due to his breakthrough, meaning that the aftereffects on his body would be greater. His veins bulged and turned black under the armor of smoke, the liquid "Breath" inside the membrane around his heart was injected in his circulatory system to aid the recovery of his body, the burning sensation on his eyes stopped almost immediately. As for the unlucky red cultivator, he bore the full power of the mental beam. His mental sphere tried to oppose the shockwave that made its way into his mind but its defenses were broken as soon as the beam touched the sphere. A deep crack formed where the beam landed, a hole was dug inside the soldier''s mind as he still stared in surprise at the shining blue eyes that were fixed on him. Then, the beam invaded his mind and crashed on the other side of the sphere, dispersing its power as soon as it touched the internal border of the sphere. A tremor reverberated throughout the mind of the soldier which deepened the cracks that the beam had created. In a few instants, his mental sphere completely crumbled, dispersing the soldier''s thoughts in the material world. A cultivator in the solid stage died in one attack! ''The Mental tremor fits my current level more, it basically only uses mental energy, allowing me to avoid the issue with my weak "Breath".'' Noah judged while he moved his gaze toward the other soldiers. They looked in fear at the fiend that had killed one of their companions with one simple look but they still launched another wave of spells. Noah performed again his martial art, shooting toward two red soldiers close to each other. A trail of black smoke was left in the air as Noah neared the cultivators, the corrosive cloud was slowly filling all the empty area in the Empire''s army and was threatening to reach the blue soldiers. A spear and a hammer appeared in Noah''s path, the weapons of the two red soldiers were inscribed items, Noah could see that their power wasn''t low. Yet, he didn''t stop. Six arms converged into two to perform two horizontal swings, the black sabers bent the air as they cut toward the soldiers. Everyone on the scene could see how the attacks of the fiendish figure cut the inscribed weapons in a half before severing the heads of both soldiers. Chapter 316: 316. Bai A spell powered by the power of a rank 3 sea of consciousness; Inscribed weapons with the power at the peak of the second rank; The Second Form of the Ashura performed after the sudden acceleration of another rank 4 martial art. Noah''s offensive was making use of his most powerful abilities to produce incredible results! The two red soldiers were astonished seeing that their weapons were cut without even being able to slow Noah''s offensive, they watched at the black sabers reached their necks to sever their heads in one powerful slash! Just a few seconds had passed since the Empire tried to encircle Noah but three cultivators in the solid stage had already died! ''My martial art is somewhat able to fix the issue with the Second Form, sparring with Nina was indeed useful.'' Noah was satisfied with his performance, his ample preparations were paying off in the battlefield. The sight of three red soldiers dying so easily made the surviving ones reach one simple conclusion. ''We can''t stop him!'' That realization shook their minds. Ten red cultivators weren''t able to restrain a single blue one, that scene didn''t seem real, events like that happened only in legends and were performed by widely known geniuses. Yet, their eyes weren''t lying to them. In the valley at the borders of the Odrea country, in one of the training grounds of the Empire, a hooded cultivator, seemingly appeared out of nowhere, was defying their deep-rooted beliefs about the hierarchy of power. Though, being unable to kill him didn''t mean that Noah couldn''t be defeated. The soldiers of the Empire were quick in their decision to retreat, they knew that they had to change their battle tactic. Noah saw the seven red figures returning to the ranks of the red soldiers and cast another Mental tremor. The mental beam chased one soldier and crashed on his mental sphere, killing him on the spot. Then, he dispersed his Demonic form and hastily ate one pill from his space-ring, he needed to refill his reserves of "Breath", that short battle had depleted far too much of the energy contained in his dantian. ''I need to reach the solid stage as soon as I can. Damn, being too powerful can also be an issue.'' Noah cursed in his mind as he chewed another pill, his dantian was slowly refilled by the generic "Breath" contained in those drugs. Pills and potion couldn''t replace the actual energies of the centers of power, they were only a temporary solution to a shortage of "Breath" and mental energy. ''Now, I should create some more chaos before the second wave of red cultivators arrives.'' Noah smiled under his hood and resumed his killing inside the army of the Empire. The blue soldiers were scared, they had seen how not even the joint effort of the red robes was able to stop Noah, they began to retreat as soon as he focused on them. A black cloud created a dead zone and a black hood was working hard to do the same, the blue cultivators could only focus on defending, hoping to clash with the ethereal sabers of the First Form rather than with the two real ones. Meanwhile, the army of the Odrea country was greatly profiting from Noah''s performance. The ranks of the Empire were a mess due to the threat inside its army so the Odrea nation could exploit that situation to their advantage. The vanguard of the Empire had long since fallen and the second line of battle had never fully formed: The joint efforts of the Odrea army and Noah disrupted their battle formation, giving them an easy battle. Soldiers with blue robes continuously fell on the ground, the casualties were uncountable that day and not even an hour had passed! Then, the second wave of red cultivators reached Noah. More than thirty red figures surrounded Noah from every direction, they seemed ready to die only to kill him. ''Here they are.'' Noah''s eyes shone with a cold light as he probed the surrounding area with his mental energy, a smile appeared on his face seeing that everyone was in position. The red soldiers didn''t speak, they directly cast spells that created wonders in the air as their mental energy mixed with their "Breath" to launch those destructive abilities. The spells were almost ready, that time there was no way out for Noah, the red soldiers had carefully covered all the area around him. Yet, right when the spells were about to be launched, more than twenty Instabilities arrived in the air over Noah''s battle. The red soldiers were surprised, they were inside their army after all, only Noah was supposed to be there. What they didn''t realize was that a few red cultivators of the Odrea army had taken advantage of the chaos in the battlefield to sneak inside the enemy army to support Noah! The Instabilities exploded, they were the new weapons created after Noah became a rank 3 mage, their blasts were far stronger than their previous version. Spikes shot in every direction, the red soldiers of the Empire were defenseless, they could only watch the hooded figure being enveloped by black flames and disappearing before the spikes reached him. In their dying moments, they realized that Noah was only the bait for this trap. A big cloud of gray smoke was created on that part of the battlefield while black flames appeared in another one, Noah came out of them unscathed and ready to unleash another wave of destruction. The army of the Empire had already lost too much, casualties in the blue ranks were a common sight, they could be refilled easily. Yet, the red ones were elites at the peak of the second rank, they were far more important than those pawns. Due to Noah''s trap, thirty red soldiers had died, coupled with the four that he had killed to create that situation, Noah''s achievements had surpassed all his previous battles. There were only two hundred red soldiers in each army after all, Noah had basically removed one quarter of their power. ''The easy part is done, they will focus on defense now. It''s time to use the new Hidden blasts.'' Noah thought as he continued to slaughter blue soldiers, he knew that the battle was still far from over. Chapter 317: 317. Assassination The soldiers of the Empire retreated in a defensive formation, their ranks tightened at the sight of the advancing Odrea army. Noah''s ploy had caused too many casualties in just a short amount of time, the sun was still high in the sky, the prospect of a prolonged battle couldn''t help but worry the army of the Empire. Defending was the best tactic in that type of situation, the monthly battles had a time limit after all, the Empire had to simply focus on defending till night if the situation became too one-sided. Yet, at that time, the soldiers of the Empire found themselves outnumbered in just an hour, they already knew that most of them won''t be able to survive. The Odrea army didn''t waste time, it launched another wave of spells and Instabilities before clashing on their enemies, Noah''s weapon further diminished their numbers, creating openings where his allies could strike. Noah, on the other hand, was simply using his First Form to pressure some blue cultivator. He wanted to preserve as much "Breath" as he could, his plan protracted far after that battle. Explosions rang out, the soldiers of the Odrea country were armed with the Hidden blasts and they didn''t hesitate to use them, their enemies would often defend against an attack only to discover that a needle had slipped between them. That was the battle tactic that the Odrea country had used in the past battles, the Hidden blasts were too small and sneaky, they could easily pierce the defenses of the Empire and cause great damage in its formation. Also, even if some soldiers noticed them and tried to stop their course, they would just explode, giving an opportunity to their opponents to strike. Little by little, the army of the Empire was being reduced to a small troop. It couldn''t be helped, the defending side usually held the advantage but Noah had caused too many deaths, they were too outnumbered to effectively defend against the relentless offensive. Noah''s new weapons had some role too in that outcome. The new Hidden blasts caused more violent explosions, the red soldiers were usually able to survive the blasts of their previous version but the new ones could kill them on the spot! A Mental tremor shot from Noah''s eyes which was followed by a precisely timed wind slash. A red cultivator in front of Noah lost his mental capabilities for one instant, allowing the slash to hit his neck. The slash wasn''t able to completely sever the head but it was enough to kill the soldier, Noah watched with cold eyes as the man unsuccessfully tried to stop the bleeding with his hands before life abandoned him. ''Eighteen¡­ Damn, even by reducing the power of the Mental tremor, my mental energy is still depleting at high speed.'' Noah was doing his best to preserve some energy for after the battle, he knew that the next days would be crucial for his plan. His gaze swept the battlefield, the Odrea nation was still pressing the remaining soldiers of the Empire, Noah could see one hundred red cultivators and a few dozen blue ones being assaulted by more than nine hundred cultivators, he knew that the Empire wouldn''t be able to hold much longer. ''This should be their worst defeat¡­ Refilling the ranks of the red soldiers will take a while and this training ground will become scarier, the Odrea nation should have it easy for a few months.'' He sighed at the sight of the countless corpses that filled the valley. ''I could have been one of them, being a pawn of a powerful force is too dangerous.'' Noah knew that he had had some chances to join powerful organizations during his life. Yet, joining them would limit his actions and, most important, would put a limit to his growth. No ruler would want a pawn stronger than him, in a society founded on power, the head of an organization had to be revered. Noah knew that he couldn''t put a hold to his ambition. He needed the power to kill his father but that desire was just dictated by his anger and guilt, it wasn''t what fueled his determination. His gaze went on the black troops standing at some distance from the battle, they had solemn expressions but they didn''t seem to be that interested in the outcome. ''Are they that detached from the mortal world? I guess I''m also like them.'' Noah found that, as his power grew, he couldn''t look at those weaker than him in the same way. He had tasted the power of his new mental sphere, just one thought could unleash a spell capable of killing any blue cultivator on the battlefield. ''Weaklings die too easily, it''s becoming harder to see them as persons¡­'' Noah knew that his mindset had never been completely normal. His innate detachment had accompanied him since his previous life and the difference in power that was created through his hard work only empowered that quality, taking lives had become part of his natural responses to difficult situations. If someone blocks your way, kill him; if someone hurts you, kill him; if someone tries to control you, kill him. ''I wonder how many lives they have taken to reach that level¡­'' His gaze still lingered on the black troops when he noticed that something was amiss. ''Wait, there are forty-nine of them, where is the last one?'' Then, his mind sent him a warning, Noah felt a dangerous sensation coming from above him. "You have caused enough trouble." An aged voice resounded in his ears, the cultivator had spoken in a calm but resolute manner. ''Shit!'' Noah didn''t even raise his head, he deployed the Demonic form spell and contracted the membrane around his heart to inject liquid "Breath" into his body. His figure quickly changed, it morphed into a fiendish form that launched an upward vertical slash in the direction of the voice. He was directly using the Second Form of the Ashura in the Demonic form and with his two black sabers, that was the strongest attack that he was capable of! As soon as the attack was launched, it met with a spear made of compressed air. Chapter 318: 318. Brutal The spear made of air was already above him, if Noah hadn''t reacted that quickly, he would have been hit by it already. Yet, he had managed to react just in time, using his most powerful attack to stop the incoming spell. A shockwave occurred over his head, the clash of those two attacks sent him flying, Noah was able to recover his balance only after he rolled on the ground for a dozen meters. Only then he could raise his head to stare at the elderly black cultivator that had tried to assassinate him. He had white hair and a short black beard, thick black eyebrows and shining green eyes, Noah could clearly feel that he was far stronger than him. ''Rank 3 mage, rank 3 dantian in the gaseous stage, he is too strong for me!'' His mind was able to identify the power of the assassin, he internally heaved a sigh of relief seeing that he had been barely able to block his spell. The shockwave had pierced his attack and destroyed the armor of black smoke, a long wound could be seen on Noah torso which poured blood over his blue robe. His Demonic form spell had the power of the third rank but it was still fueled by liquid "Breath" in the second one, it couldn''t express its full power. The man in the air, however, was a rank 3 cultivator, his centers of power allowed him to express the true strength of his level. ''Wind element, he is probably using a spell to fly.'' Noah judged quickly, he could see that the man was standing mid-air on a seemingly invisible platform. "So you really are a rank 3 mage, what a sight." The man spoke, his voice resounded in the battlefield, suppressing all the soldiers around him. Yet, Noah had already stopped listening to him. His Demonic form was restored and the liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system worked at full speed to heal the wound on his torso, only a few seconds had passed but the blood had already stopped flowing from it. The black smoke radiated by his spell inevitably reached the soldiers of the Odrea country around him, some of them died on the spot at the touch of the corrosive smoke. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t dare to face a rank 3 cultivator without using his strongest spell. His life was more important after all, he didn''t care if he was blamed for the friendly fire afterward. The black cultivator raised a hand to prepare another spell but Noah had already acted! Dozens Hidden blasts shot toward the black soldier as Noah stomped twice on the terrain to activate his martial art. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Explosions rang out one after another, enveloping the assassin in a gray cloud. Noah didn''t dare to stop his offensive, he retreated, launching fuming wind slashes toward the cloud, the gray smoke was slowly devoured by the black one as his attacks piled up. Then, a gale swept the area, dispersing the dark cloud and revealing the unharmed black soldier. His expression though had changed from a relaxed one to a stern one. He had been tasked with the assassination of the hooded cultivator but his sneak attack had failed, his position was noticed by his target just as he had launched his attack. Then, he watched as Noah unleashed that firepower without hesitation, the sight of his allies dying didn''t even slow his retreat. ''What a brutal opponent.'' He couldn''t help but have that thought. Noah could easily deactivate the Demonic form and stop endangering his allies but he prioritized his safety, uncaringly causing casualties among the army of the Odrea nation. "Stop running!" The black soldier cursed loudly and created another spear which he aimed toward the escaping Noah. Yet, as he was about to launch it, another aged voice resounded in the battlefield. "Do you have no shame? A mighty rank 3 cultivator sent to assassinate a blue one, the Empire has really fell to its lowest." One of the black cultivators of the Odrea country appeared in front of the assassin. It was an elderly woman with gray hair and a hunched back, she also stood on an invisible platform in order to float in the air. Noah heaved a sigh of relief and dispersed his Demonic form, the Odrea nation had finally reacted to that threat. His gaze went on the trail of death that he had left as he escaped, bodies and corroded limbs could be seen on the path that he had taken. ''A bit more than thirty casualties, this spell is really uncontrollable¡­'' The sight of his dead allies didn''t stop him, Noah waved his hand toward the black cultivators in the air as he returned toward the battle between the two armies. "You little rascal!" The black cultivator from the Empire was angered by that gesture and wanted to pounce him but was blocked by the elderly woman that forced him in a one versus one fight. The attempted assassination of the Empire was a signal for the black soldiers, they joined the battle even if there was still some time before the sunset. The black cultivators from both sides engaged in a spectacular battle but Noah wasn''t in the mood to watch them. He had luckily survived the assassination but that dangerous feeling was still lingering on his mind, he had to vent it somewhere. The soldiers of the Odrea nation opened a way for him to join the vanguard, they shot reverent gazes as he passed through their ranks and some of them even bowed. It couldn''t be helped, a blue cultivator had survived the sneak attack of a black one, that feat was something that even legends struggled to tell. As for the allies that he had killed, they didn''t seem to blame him. Noah had warned them many times to stay away from him when he went all out and the number of lives that had been saved thanks to his weapons far surpassed the deaths that he had caused. It was with a suffocating killing intent that he rejoined the battle, his sabers bent the air as he jumped toward the remaining soldiers of the Empire. Chapter 319: 319. Hope Attacks and explosions resounded in the valley at the border of the formation. The now less than one hundred soldiers of the Empire did their best to survive the wave made of more than nine hundred soldiers, the Odrea nation was giving its all to annihilate what remained of the enemy. Behind them, the black cultivators from both sides were facing each other in a violent battle. Since there was still some time before the sunset, their battle was causing some injury on both sides, those mighty rank 3 cultivators weren''t just buying time that day. Like that, the last minutes passed and the night took over the day. It was with a bitter expression that Seth watched below him only to see that less than sixty soldiers had survived and that fifty of them where those in the third rank! Seven red soldiers and one blue one were heaving sighs of relief seeing that the army of the Odrea country, their gazes would often linger on a hooded cultivator that radiated a cold killing intent. Noah had been spectacular in that battle. First, he had set up a trap to kill the many red cultivators that had tried to surround him, tilting the scales of the battle in favor of the Odrea nation from the beginning of the fight. That had allowed his allies to make use of the numerical advantage to pressure the defensive formation created after the first clash. Then, he had been ambushed by a cultivator in the third rank, a being at the peak of the human ranks, but he survived in a spectacular way and even mocked him as he rejoined the battle. Then, he had waved his sabers like a madman, killing as many soldiers as he could, only to reach that situation. The casualties that the Empire suffered that day were too many, more than nine hundred soldiers had died and those deaths weren''t limited to the blue robes. Seth felt a headache rising from the bottom of his mind, he really didn''t know how he would explain his superiors that almost all the red cultivators had died due to a ploy of what was considered a training ground. "I don''t think we''ll see each other anytime soon." Seth sighed and turned his head toward the young girl on the other side of the formation. Lisa was sitting with her two protectors, Leo and Luke, at the top of the mountain. After hearing Seth''s words, her mood turned sour, there was another person that she wasn''t going to see for a long time, maybe forever. ''Why do you have to leave? Just when you gave us hope¡­'' Seth saw that Lisa wasn''t paying attention to his behavior and crossed his arms over his chest as he continued to talk. "That outsider, the hooded devil, are you willing to sell him to the Empire? I believe that, after today''s performance, the Empire would stop at nothing to recruit him." That offer wasn''t surprising. Seth was the man handling the training ground called Odrea country, his job was to skim the new recruits so that the Empire could maintain a high standard when it came to its soldiers. However, Noah happened, which he obviously reported to his superiors. The Empire was aware of his battle prowess and was also almost sure that he could inscribe items, even if all they did was explode. Such a person had created a lot of troubles in the last two years, so many that the Empire had ultimately decided to assassinate him. Yet, he survived the assassination attempt, showing that the Empire had greatly underestimated his actual strength. Seth knew that surviving the surprise attack of a rank 3 cultivator while being in the liquid stage of the second rank was an incredible feat, something that could only happen once every thousand years. ''If we can''t kill him, we will simply buy him.'' That thought summarized the behavior of the Empire. It was the strongest nation in the entire continent, their whole country was founded on war and on the slaves that it produced. It would try to suppress any enemy before trying to make deals with them, that was how domineering a country with a God could be! However, Lisa only chuckled at his offer. "You stripped us of our future, of our freedom, and now you want to strip us of our hope? What could you even offer anyway?" Traces of anger could be heard in her tone, the hatred that she had toward the Empire couldn''t be expressed by simple words. "We could set up a peace treaty. What do you think of three years without battles? We would simply come in the valley and drink wine or tea in that period." The agreement with the Empire forced both nations in a fair battle, it didn''t specifically force them to fight. That''s why Seth could offer a break from the monthly struggle as part of a deal. "You know, sometimes I wonder if we should have just died that day hundreds of years in the past instead of becoming your training dummy. What a spectacular sight our last struggle would have been¡­" Lisa dreamed, she imagined a world where the Odrea nation had long been destroyed and she wasn''t forced to see her citizens slowly die with each passing month. She sighed before shooting a pitiful gaze toward Seth and opening her mouth to speak. "I can''t change the decisions of our ancestors but I surely can determine what kind of people we will be as we survive. We are proud soldiers of the Odrea nation, our fate is in the hands of the random outsiders that enter our borders, selling them away would be as if we have given up on hope. Also, what makes you think that I can control him?" Lisa concluded her speech and stood up from her chair before pointing below her, toward the end of the valley. Both armies had still to return to their respective sides when Noah sprinted in the direction of the Empire! Seth watched with wide eyes as Noah took a step outside of the borders of the Odrea nation! Chapter 320: 320. Pretense The remaining soldiers of the Empire couldn''t believe the scene that was unfolding in front of them. The hooded devil who had created mayhem in the last two years in the monthly battles was running away from the valley! That wasn''t all, he was sprinting toward the center of the continent! The formation at the border of the Odrea country didn''t stop him, he simply stepped outside of it as if nothing was there at all! "It was nice to meet you all!" Noah shouted behind him while waving his hand in goodbye before he resumed his escape. Seth watched the scene from above the mountain and hurriedly grabbed a token from his space-ring. "What the hell are you doing!? Chase and capture him!" His loud orders resounded on the mountain peak, Lisa and her two protectors couldn''t help but smirk at that sight. "You seem quite anxious, I bet that you didn''t see this coming." Lisa mocked him, further fueling his anxiety. "Black troops hurry! The other soldiers will just die if they chase him!" Seth was well aware of Noah''s strength, that last battle had proven that he couldn''t be captured by using simple red troops, rank 3 cultivators were necessary for that job. The black cultivators were a bit stupefied by the sudden turn of events that they didn''t react to Seth''s orders that quickly, not all of them at least. One black cultivator, the elderly man that had tried to assassinate Noah, shot in his direction as soon as Seth''s voice resounded from his token. He wasn''t flying, he ran on the ground while using a spell to push his speed to its limits. Winds blew from behind him, they propelled him forward toward the escaping blue robe. ''I won''t let you go this time!'' Those were his thoughts, shame still lingered in his mind. He was a mighty rank 3 cultivator, a being at the peak of the human ranks, the task of assassinating a blue robe was a shameful record in his life. Yet, not only he had failed in it, but he had also watched how Noah mocked him while he returned to the battlefield. Such disrespect had angered him to no end which, coupled with his shame, gave birth to hateful emotions toward Noah. That''s why he was set on reaching him. ''If I was to use too much strength and kill him, the Empire won''t be able to blame me, right?'' His intentions differed from Seth''s orders, his reputation had suffered too much for him to simply capture Noah, he was set on killing him! Yet, right when he was about to reach him, Noah''s figure was enveloped in black flames which made him disappear in less than a second. The battlefield was silent, Noah was nowhere to be seen. "Go forward! That''s a teleportation spell, you idiots! He couldn''t have gone that far!" Seth''s orders resounded again, they awakened the soldiers of the Empire from their astonishment. The black soldiers didn''t hesitate at that time, they went outside the formation and began their search for the hooded devil. "Was this your plan? You purposely left the formation open because you knew that he was going to escape?" Seth turned to look at Lisa, his expression radiated unparalleled anger, he knew that something like that couldn''t have happened without Lisa''s help. "I''m simply performing my part of the agreement, I can open the formation whenever I want." Lisa snorted and turned to leave with her two protectors, leaving an anxious Seth alone on the mountain peak. "Fuck!" He cursed loudly before hurrying toward the valley, he was going to search for Noah. . . . A few seconds earlier, right after Noah performed the Warp spell. Black flames appeared behind a hill near the valley, revealing a blue cultivator wearing a black hood. "Did everything go as planned?" A female voice sounded in that place, Nina''s figure could be seen nearing the hooded man with a warm smile. "Yes, they think that I went in the depth of the country, this pretense should buy me some time." Noah took away his hood and undressed himself, he was doing everything as fast as he could, he knew that he couldn''t fool the Empire for too long. The truth was that Noah didn''t warp forward but behind! He went back into the Odrea country! "You look tired, are you sure that you don''t want to rest first?" Nina asked with a concerned expression. Noah was paler than usual and traces of sweat were still on his forehead. Large eye-bags could be seen under his eyes and his breath was a bit ragged, he didn''t seem in the best condition to travel. "They sent a black robe to assassinate me, I have depleted a bit more "Breath" than predicted to protect myself. Don''t worry though, I''m used to long escapes." Noah briefly explained the situation while smiling at the woman that was expressing her worry. In just a few seconds, he wore a tight black robe and neared Nina, taking her in his arms. He gave her a warm kiss, Noah could taste the salty flavor of the tears that had started to flow from her eyes. Noah made a bitter smile as he separated from her and wiped away her tears with his thumb as he caressed her face one last time. "Don''t let your bed become cold, ok?" Noah said. "The same goes for you, don''t push any good woman away like you tried to do with me." Nina gave him the same advice, they smiled at each other for a few seconds before Noah sighed and turned, whispering his last words to her. "Goodbye Nina." His whisper was answered by soft words. "Goodbye¡­ Noah." Nina used his real name as she watched the black figure running toward the western border of the nation, a cold aura enveloped it as if a switch had been turned on, which returned Noah to his previous attitude when he was alone against the world. She stared at his figure disappearing in the distance, his short black hair fluttered in the wind as he reached for the coastline. Chapter 321: 321. Archipelago Noah''s spectacular performance had one sole purpose: gathering all the attention on him and increasing his value in the eyes of the Empire. As for why he had done that, it was to instill some urgency in the soldiers on the battlefield. Anxious persons would commit mistakes and that was what Noah wanted. He had to create the image of the genius running away from the battlefield, forcing the other soldiers to chase him immediately, the Warp spell played an important role in the matter. Since his teleportation spell made him completely disappear, leaving no traces of his passage, he could deceive the soldiers, making them believe that he had gone toward the depth of the continent. Noah''s plan worked, the remaining cultivators of the Empire quickly moved to chase him, he guessed that it would take them a few days to realize that they had been fooled. ''One week and there is still no trace of land. Well, my speed is quite low.'' Noah was flying over the sea, his two pairs of black wings paired with the occasional usage of the Shadow step spell allowed him to travel even with the absence of a foothold. The only problem with his flying ability was that his speed was far lower than what his body was capable of: That ability used a rank 3 magical beast and a rank 0 spell to work, it was obvious that it couldn''t match the power of a rank 4 body. ''If only I could make a movement-type martial art that can be used mid-air¡­ That would be too troublesome, it''s best to wait for a rank 4 flying creature of the darkness element.'' Noah''s martial art needed him to stomp twice on the ground to work, he couldn''t pair it to his flight. Yet, a flying rank 4 magical beast would solve the problem concerning his weak wings. ''I might even surpass the power of my body like that. Magical beasts have a stronger body after all, having their wings would surely add my ability to fly to my combat style.'' Noah didn''t want to give up on his wings. The ability to fly was usually restricted to cultivators in the heroic ranks or to specific spells, having it before that threshold was an advantage that Noah wasn''t ready to abandon. ''Well, I don''t think I''ll find a suitable creature anytime soon, the environment of the sea doesn''t fit the darkness element.'' When Noah escaped, he didn''t follow the coastline. The Empire was simply too powerful and he was deep in its territory, the few days that he had over his pursuers wouldn''t be enough to make him reach the Efrana nation safely, he needed to change his route. Noah stared in the distance, only the blue sea was visible on the horizon. Behind him, the sight of the continent had long disappeared, he was quite far away already. ''Where the hell is this Coral archipelago!?'' Noah cursed in his mind as he continued to fly forward, he required rest and his reserves of "Breath" had never been refilled after the last battle in the valley, he needed to find a place where to recover. As for the Coral archipelago, that was Noah''s new direction. If he couldn''t reach the Efrana nation directly, he would just take the long road across the sea, the archipelago was his first stop in that path. ''I really didn''t want to go there though.'' Noah''s mood became sour at the thought of going to that place. Generally speaking, there were many gray zones in the continent, places that had no rulers. Most of them were danger zones, only super forces like the Empire or the Utra nation could transform them into research grounds and even they only chose those that suited their needs. Apart from the danger zones, there were places that were ruled by more than one powerful nation. The Efrana country was one of them, its geographical position put it between the influence of two great nations, making it a seemingly lawless zone where mercenary troops and tribes could develop. The Coral archipelago was the same, the only difference was that it was under the influence of all three big nations, which is why Noah had excluded it when he obtained the map. ''More than two years have passed, are they still looking for me?'' The thought of returning to a territory occupied by the Royals worried him but he couldn''t find a better solution. The Coral archipelago was far away from the main territories of the three big nations, information about the continent was scarcer. ''It seems some kind of colony from the description of the map, I don''t know much though. I should go for the part controlled by the Papral nation as soon as I reach my destination.'' Noah''s new escape route was quite articulate. He had first thought that he could travel in a straight line toward the Efrana nation but the events in the Odrea country had piqued the interest of the Empire, it wasn''t safe to travel between its territories anymore. So, Noah created an alternative path. He would fly toward the Coral archipelago, enter the territories under the influence of the Papral nation, and find a way toward the northern part of the continent. He wanted to enter the Papral nation! Then, from there, he would head south toward the Efrana nation where he would continue to develop. Noah''s intentions for his escape were quite simple: He wanted time to develop without being controlled by powerful forces and wanted to gather resources where he could. Being a mercenary would have helped in his search for techniques and spells but he had realized that many countries could produce unexpected benefits, just like it had happened with the Odrea country. Simply speaking, Noah was worried about the possibility of being discovered by the Utra nation but he was also eager to see with his eyes how the cultivators of the other countries lived and trained, he couldn''t wait to see what possibilities the archipelago offered! Chapter 322: 322. Clich茅 The entirety of the sea was considered a danger zone. The density of "Breath" in it was generally higher due to the lesser concentration of living beings. The sea was simply too vast, even if it had numerically more living beings that absorbed the "Breath", its width made up for it. Noah was still flying, the endless crystalline water prevented him from understanding how far he had traveled, only his mind was useful to keep track of his advance. ''More than one month, no land in sight.'' Noah sighed as he took a pill from his space-ring and ate it, the constant flight was slowly eroding his reserves of energy, only his pills and potions allowed him to continue in his travel. Another week had to pass before Noah spotted one small island that stood alone in the immensity of the sea. Noah didn''t waste time, he dove directly toward its sandy terrain and landed violently, a small cloud made of yellow sand rose in the air due to the impact. Noah didn''t even wait for the cloud to disperse, he directly laid on the terrain and closed his eyes. More than one month of travel without any sleep and right after a taxing battle had left him without energy, he fell asleep immediately, the blinding sunlight couldn''t win against his exhaustion. He woke up when the night arrived, the feeling of having his mental sphere refilled was refreshing after such a long period of travel, he was able to assess his condition more clearly. ''My mind and my body have recovered, I will halt my training for a few days just to be sure. My dantian needs to be refilled though.'' Noah took the "Breath" blessing from his space-ring and placed it on the terrain before jumping on it and activating his cultivation technique. His dantian seemed to rejoice at that act, it greedily absorbed the dense "Breath" of the darkness element that the black vortex redirected toward it. Potions and pills couldn''t replace the "Breath" absorbed through a cultivation technique, they were only a momentary solution. However, Noah had abused them for more than a month, he felt as if his dantian had been malnourished till that moment. ''Finally, I can relax a bit now.'' Minutes passed, the feeling of having his reserves slowly refilled improved his mood, Noah felt that it wouldn''t take much for him to return to his peak form. Then, a tremor ran through the island, forcing Noah to open his eyes to inspect the situation. The sand dispersed in the sea as the tremor continued and a huge form could be seen rising from the water and appearing on the surface. It was a reptilian head, it was seven meters large and four thick, it turned to look straight at the human figure over what Noah realized was its shell. ''Rank 4 Sea turtle, this is so clich¨¦¡­'' Noah cursed in his mind at the sight of the magical beast that was hungrily staring at the piece of "Breath" blessing below him. Sea turtles would often wander over the surface of the sea, waiting for a nourishing prey to appear. Noah was always covered by his layers of mental energy, his presence was hidden from beings with a weaker sea of consciousness, that''s why the turtle didn''t react to his arrival. However, the "Breath" blessing had increased the density of "Breath" right over its shell, awakening the beast from its slumber. "Be good and nothing will happen." Noah warned the turtle, releasing his cold killing intent in the area. He had felt what was like to be a magical beast, the Bloodline inheritance made him experience the mindset of those powerful creatures. Their behavior was dictated by their hunger, that feeling was so strong that it ruled their every action. Yet, there was one instinct that could put a hold even on their hunger: The survival instinct! Noah tried to convey his power to the beast through his mind waves, he hoped that the turtle would give up on the mineral below him. The Sea turtle was, after all, his foothold, he didn''t want to fight with it. However, Noah''s luck wasn''t that good. The turtle had saliva coming out of its maws, it seemed that it had starved for quite some time already and the sight of Noah''s power couldn''t stop it from pouncing at him. ''Dammit!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he took back the "Breath" blessing in his space-ring and warped away from that location, the head of the beast landed there just one instant later. The Sea turtle had attacked! Noah reappeared in the air over the beast and performed a descending slash with his two black sabers. His weapons fused and traced a black line in the air as they stabbed themselves on the turtle''s neck. An enraged roar resounded in the area, Noah''s attack had pierced the natural defenses of the creature and it inflicted a deep wound on its neck. Yet, the beast was alive and its head shot again toward the human figure that was still standing over it. Noah warped again, slashing again on its blind spot as he reappeared. Warp, attack, warp, attack, that type of battle tactic was quite exhausting but Noah didn''t mind it, he would rather try to keep the shell intact than enter the complete Demonic form and consume the first foothold that he found in more than a month of travel. In the end, the turtle lost too much blood and died, more than twelve wounds could be seen on its lifeless neck. ''That was easy.'' Noah judged as he placed again the "Breath" blessing on the shell and resumed his cultivation, the blood that had tainted the remaining sand didn''t bother him at all. ''Luckily, it does still float, I should refill my dantian as fast as I can before this place becomes too crowded¡­'' His attention went on the blood that had dispersed in the sea, he knew that the body of the turtle would soon be noticed by other beasts. ''I might as well refill my reserves of materials since I''m at it.'' Chapter 323: 323. Sea The blood dispersed in the sea during the battle with the Sea turtle would attract other magical beasts, Noah was sure of it. ''It''s a pity that the Blood drain spell is only up to the second rank, killing rank 4 beasts is quite easy now.'' The Blood drain spell had helped Noah in shortening the amount of time required for his body to reach the third rank, he held in high regard the mechanism behind such spell. ''Transforming the blood of an enemy into nourishment for my own body, that sound precisely like a magical beast. It''s a pity, I can''t use it since my level is too high and I don''t even have a body-nourishing method to absorb the energy gathered in that way.'' The Yin body was a rank 4 body-nourishing method, it had brought Noah to the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank but now it couldn''t be used anymore. The Yin body was formed, Noah needed a stronger nourishing method if he wanted to resume training his body. ''It''s not really a problem right now, being in the fourth rank gives enough space for my other centers of power to grow, it doesn''t apply any limitation yet.'' Noah thought about his previous nourishing methods, he knew that obtaining something in the fifth rank wouldn''t be easy, creating a technique from nothing seemed more doable. After all, who held methods and techniques in the fifth rank? Only the biggest powerhouses of each nation could hope to see such rare scrolls. Also, cultivators in the heroic ranks would start to detach themselves from the human species, they would become entities with their individualities. ''I don''t even know if it''s worth training in a rank 5 method, creating a technique that fits myself would be perfect, but¡­'' But Noah didn''t have much experience in the training of the body. The Forging of the Seven Hells didn''t need for Noah to cultivate and the Yin body had already reconstructed his body, Noah was left with no ideas on how to improve. ''I''ll think about it when the limitations return, my dantian is still in the second rank and I don''t have a rank 3 cultivation technique either. Creating one for it should be easier though, I have already a few ideas.'' Noah had diligently cultivated till that moment, automatizing that procedure as much as he could, it was normal that he felt more experienced in cultivation techniques. ''Here they come.'' His mental energy detected something approaching from the distance, interrupting his thoughts. ''A pack of Toxic blowfishes, they are basically worthless for me.'' Noah stood up from the "Breath" blessing and deployed his wings to fly toward the incoming magical beasts. The blowfishes were only in the second or third rank, they were the first to notice the corpse of the Sea turtle and they immediately began to swim toward it. The body of a rank 4 creature held an unimaginable amount of "Breath", it was an irresistible meal for those weak beasts. However, they were of no use for Noah. He simply limited himself to fly toward the pack and launch a few fuming wind slashes. The black smoke devoured the area of the sea where the beasts were swimming, vanquishing the pack in a few instants. ''Rank 3 beasts are just ants when I use spells.'' That realization made Noah sigh as he returned to the shell to cultivate. He was a rank 3 mage now, the power of his spells was deadly even for rank 4 creatures, those in the human ranks simply couldn''t hope to survive. Not even a drop of blood remained in the area where he attacked, the black smoke had even consumed the water where the blowfishes were swimming. A few minutes later, a pack of Giant seaworms arrived. Their strongest specimens were in the third rank again so Noah destroyed the whole pack without leaving any trace, he didn''t want the area to become too crowded after all. ''Finally, something strong.'' About an hour later, a pack of Razor-head dolphins neared the corpse of the Sea turtle. Those beasts were white and had a sharp vertical fin that grew from the top of their head, it was a hard material used to forge weapons of the water element. Also, the pack had a rank 4 dolphin at its lead. Noah didn''t waste time, he directly flew in the air and launched another series of fuming wind slash. The pack was destroyed almost immediately, with only the leader surviving. Noah was about to dive toward it in a descending lounge when the beast dove deep into the water, escaping from his reach. ''I guess it wasn''t that hungry.'' Noah shook his head at that sight and returned to the shell. The smoke released by his wind slashes had hurt the rank 4 creature, dispersing some of its blood in the sea, creating an even bigger bait for the beasts of the sea. ''At this pace, I might refill my dantian without gathering any material, maybe this area isn''t that populated.'' The rank 4 dolphin had escaped because it realized the difference in power between it and Noah, its hunger wasn''t that pressing so it had smartly decided to escape. ''The sea is just as it was described in the academy, huge and filled with threats.'' Noah concluded in his mind. The magical beasts'' course in the academy had taught him the differences between the land and the sea. The sea had more magical beasts but was also incredibly huge, the strongest creatures were on its depths, silently absorbing the "Breath" in their solitary slumber. ''I wonder if there is something on the level of the Albino snake right below me¡­ I still have to uncover the secrets behind the high density of "Breath" in Twilboia cliff too.'' Noah dreamed of the time when he could just barge into that cliff and kill the giant snake that had almost killed him when he still didn''t have a dantian. ''I''ll be sure to snore on your dead body, damned snake.'' He was forced to interrupt his fantasy since his mental energy sensed three rank 4 creatures swimming at high speed toward him. Chapter 324: 324. Sailors ''Three Hammerhead sharks, all in the fourth rank, no pack.'' Noah judged the situation from his position over the shell. ''One of them seems stronger than the others, this might be troublesome.'' Noah was a rank 3 mage but his techniques and spells weren''t that effective in that environment. The Mental tremor spell was extremely useful against cultivators but magical beasts didn''t have a sea of consciousness, the spell could make them stagger at best. The complete Demonic form was effective but it was too powerful for him to safely use it on the shell of the turtle, it would surely damage his foothold as he fought. ''My dantian is halfway refilled, I don''t know if it''s worth to fight this time.'' Noah took back the "Breath" blessing and stared at the incoming sharks with a pensive expression. ''Is the leader in the middle tier?'' The strongest shark was two meters longer than the other two beasts, it seemed far stronger than them. The fourth rank had tiers too, Noah had fought only beasts that were in the lower one alone and didn''t know the actual battle prowess of the stronger ones. ''I would love to fight it if we were on the ground but here it doesn''t feel like the right thing to do.'' He was still escaping after all, he could completely relax only after he reached the Coral archipelago. ''I''ll take the weakest one with me and then resume my travel.'' Noah quickly decided and deployed his wings as he took the twelve meters large shell into his space-ring. Then, he warped. The three sharks seemed enraged by the sudden disappearance of the Sea turtle and began to swim circularly to see if they could pick some remaining traces of its corpse. A black figure appeared over them at that moment, its two pairs of wings coupled with its fiendish form created the image of a demon descending on the surface of the sea. ''Demonic form! Second Form of the Ashura!'' Noah slashed with his most powerful attack at one of the weaker sharks, severing its hammerhead in one neat blow. His hands moved quickly, the head of the beast was immediately stored in his space-ring and he was about to fly away when a dangerous feeling hit his mind. Noah warped away, turning his head to look at what had caused that sensation. A blade made of water cut where he was previously flying and continued to cross the sea for a few meters, Noah knew that the power behind that attack would have broken through the defenses of his spell. His gaze went on the biggest shark, its eyes radiated anger as it redirected its attention to the black figure hovering in the distance. ''That beast reacted faster than I thought¡­ The fourth rank is indeed vast.'' Magical beasts were similar to humans, they had different power levels according to their species and the tier they were in. The leader of the sharks was stronger than its followers but Noah didn''t imagine that it could react as soon as he attacked. ''The Sea turtle and the head of the shark should be enough to make some quick trade in the archipelago, I should just resume my travel.'' It was with those thoughts that he turned and flew toward the direction pointed in his map. Behind him, the two sharks noticed that Noah was leaving and began to eat the drowning corpse of their companion. . . . Another month passed. Noah had flown for the entire time without taking resting. That time, however, his situation wasn''t that bad: He had rested over the shell of the Sea turtle and his flight depleted only a small portion of his "Breath", his complexion was far better than before. ''Traces of life.'' His mental energy sensed some lifeform in the distance, that was the first change in his travel after he left the shell of the turtle. Noah carefully changed his direction and flew toward those lifeforms. Little by little, the shape of a ship became visible in the distance, Noah could see how its veils and hull had inscriptions all over their bodies. ''Humans!'' Noah neared the ship, the sailors on it were mostly cultivators in the first rank and they stared with wide eyes at his figure slowly descending on the main deck. "Is there a captain?" Noah asked in a loud voice, his manners were quite overbearing and resolute and his aura radiated part of his coldness. "Who is asking!?" A fat man with black curly hair came out from one of the lodgings below the deck, he was shirtless and held a golden cup as he walked on the deck. Noah performed a simple bow before raising his head to speak some simple lies. "I''m Zach, I come from the Shandal Empire and I''m on a journey to hone my skills. I wanted to reach the Coral archipelago with the help of my puppet but it seems that I''ve lost track of the right path. I wonder if you could help me." Noah''s attitude was straightforward and domineering, just like a soldier of the Empire. Impersonating someone else had never been a problem for Noah, especially after living in the Odrea country for so long. "My ship will return there in two weeks but we first have to finish our fishing route. Also, no one stays for free on my ship, I might give you a room if you help my sailors!" The captain laughed as he spoke those words, he didn''t seem to have much respect for his fake status. ''Are things different here? Maybe the society here has developed in ways that I''m unaware of.'' Noah took a few thousand Credits from his space-ring and handed them to the captain. "Are these enough for your trouble?" The captain looked at the crystals with wide eyes, the cup in his hand almost fell on the floor due to his astonishment. "Y-yes yes, for sure, my Lord!" That sudden change of attitude was unexpected, Noah couldn''t help but think that he had misjudged the financial situation of those sailors. Chapter 325: 325. Hive The captain of the inscribed ship happily took the Credits and welcomed Noah in his quarters. His attitude drastically changed after Noah paid him, he became more hospitable and he tried his best to satisfy Noah''s needs. A small table was filled with the best food and wine that the ship had to offer, Noah found himself having dinner alone with the captain, only a few servants were in the room apart from the two of them. Of course, Noah used that chance to gather as much information as he could about the Coral archipelago. The name of the captain was Cody, he was a former cultivator in the Papral nation who was exiled in the archipelago due to some minor crime. According to his words, the political situation in the Coral archipelago was quite far from Noah''s expectations. Each powerful nation had sent their representatives to colonize some of the islands that made the archipelago a long time ago but they all had different criteria for the selections of their envoy. The Utra nation had sent professors of the academy escorted by royal soldiers to set up a branch of the academy. Their job was to gather resources that would be sent back to the main country for research or cultivation purposes. The environment of the archipelago was completely different from the one of the continent, some materials could only be found there. The Shandal Empire didn''t have a specific reason to colonize the islands, it simply did that because the other two big nations were doing it. That''s why it sent old and retired soldiers, their professions varied from the slave trade to anything they could get their hands on, leading to a disorganized control over the territory. The Papral nation, instead, had a strict code of conduct. Its cultivators emphasized balance and diligence, leading to a large number of minor crimes. Simply speaking, the Papral nation used the Coral archipelago as a prison without bars, it would just send troublesome cultivators there and leave them be. Yet, that was the situation of a long time ago. Time had passed since the archipelago was colonized and the different factions slowly merged to form a more uniform political situation. It couldn''t be helped, every human had its own ambitions, being far away from the landmass gave them a lot of freedom. Little by little, the citizens of the archipelago began to feel like an independent country, forcing the rulers on the continent to enforce a stricter control over their envoys. Each one of the three big nation sent some trusted representatives to take control of their respective factions, restoring the barriers between the countries. However, once an idea was created, it was almost impossible to destroy it. Whispers about independence still resounded in the islands, the rumors spoke about an underground organization that secretly interfered with the powers sent by the continent. "What''s the name of this organization?" Noah became extremely interested once the conversation with Cody reached that point. Noah was a criminal in the Utra nation, the Royals had a complete profile of his strength. Also, he was wanted in the Empire, even if it wasn''t aware of his facial features, it still knew his abilities. ''I had initially thought that I would be joining some minor organization controlled by the Papral nation. Yet, between another big country and an underground society, I obviously prefer the latter.'' Noah knew himself, there was a high chance that he would become an enemy of the Papral nation too if he was to become too close to it. Yet, an underground organization was perfect for his plans. ''Its members must be constantly hiding from the ruling powers, meaning that I can be as secretive as I want. Also, it might have a way to smuggle people back in the continent without alerting the big nations.'' Noah didn''t forget his purpose. He needed to reach a country where he could gather resources and develop, the Efrana nation was the best choice according to the information that he had. However, he wasn''t so delusional to think that he could simply fly toward the Papral nation and then walk to Efrana, the events in the Odrea nation had clearly proven that feat impossible. That''s why he had decided to join some organization that could lead him back to the continent while he was still flying over the sea. Yet, realizing that a secret society existed had opened a more suitable path to him. "My Lord, I''m just a simple sailor, how would I know matters related to those powerful forces?" Cody didn''t answer his question, he lowered his gaze on the golden cup full of wine and began to eat again. ''That''s a lie.'' Noah was sure of that fact. He had lived in a place that had secret organizations, the citizens there simply called them gangs. He knew that the name of those gangs was well known in the minds of the common citizens, a name could inculcate more fear, it created a real threat. Noah showed some displeasure, he silently sipped from his cup, keeping his gaze on the fat man in front of him. Little by little, he showed more of his aura, Cody''s habitation became colder as time passed. Cody was a rank 2 cultivator in the gaseous stage with a rank 4 body, he wasn''t weak for the average level of the cultivators in the human ranks. However, in front of Noah''s rank 3 sea of consciousness, he could only lower his head, his face began to exude cold drops of sweat that fell on the plates below him. After a few minutes, Cody couldn''t handle the silence anymore and sighed while placing down his cutlery. "My Lord, you have to promise that you will never tell that I''ve revealed this information to you." Cody seemed extremely serious as he spoke those words, Noah couldn''t help but be slightly surprised by that. ''It''s just a name, why is he so worried?'' Those thoughts didn''t prevent him from nodding at Cody to accept his condition. Cody lowered his head and used one hand to prevent the sound of his words to disperse in the room before he finally whispered a name. "The organization is called Hive." Chapter 326: 326. Destination "My Lord, you might want to know that this name is taboo in the archipelago, the powers there have been sent precisely to stop any rumors about a possible independence. I''ve seen good people imprisoned and interrogated only because they were aware of this name." Cody added shortly after, his serious expression never left his face. ''It makes sense¡­ I guess I''ll see how the grave the situation is once I arrive, I don''t really want trouble.'' If the situation of the Hive was too serious, Noah would simply go back to his original plan and join a legal organization. It didn''t make much difference to him which faction he joined as long as he succeeded in his plan. "Thank you for your honesty, it seems that I''ve troubled you." Noah changed the subject of their conversation while wearing a smile, Cody couldn''t help but sigh in relief seeing that he didn''t probe further. That dinner ended shortly after, Cody gave Noah one of the best cabins on the ship and made sure that he had everything he needed before leaving him alone. ''Damned big nations, they have their influence everywhere.'' Noah felt a bit frustrated. He only wanted to cultivate in peace and to have access to techniques but those things seemed always locked behind powers with whom he could not interfere. ''The Royals want to enlarge their family, the Empire wants more soldiers, I wonder what the Papral nation asks its cultivators.'' Noah had seen how two of the three big countries handled lone and promising cultivators and their ways conflicted with Noah''s interests. He didn''t mind joining a powerful organization as long as he could maintain his personal freedom and his growth wasn''t hindered. Yet, in that world, that seemed too much to ask. ''Controlling power, securing your position through power, everything here is about power.'' Hindering the cultivation journey of your subjects was the best way to maintain your ruling position, no one would be able to take your crown from you if no one was strong enough to do so. ''I''m not sure about the inner circle of the Empire, that God must have had some kind of privileged position to be able to cultivate till that level. I wonder if the Royals have a God too.'' Noah''s understanding of that world was limited to his level, he only knew about the matters handled by humans, the situations above his level were a topic that he was completely unaware of. ''The Papral nation doesn''t seem so bad though, the sects willingly cooperate for the greater good of the nation before handling their internal conflicts. Well, that''s what Cody says.'' Cody came from the Papral nation so he knew more about its political situation. Also, he had been exiled, forcing him to make a living as a sailor. That gave birth to negative emotions toward his nation which made it easier for Noah to gather information. Cody''s crime consisted in the illegal purchase of female slaves from the Empire, that simple crime was enough to exile him in the archipelago where he could only rent a fishing ship with the little finances that he had. His crew was rented too. However, since his sailors were quite weak, he could fish rank 3 magical beasts at best, barely meeting his monthly expenses. ''Balance and diligence, a code of conduct¡­ There shouldn''t be anyone more diligent than me but the other requirements are quite vague.'' Noah''s thoughts wandered through the many information that he had gathered that day before he decided to rest, he had still to sleep after he left the shell of the Sea turtle so his centers of power needed another round of recovery. Yet, he had finally found a safe foothold, the two weeks required to reach the Coral archipelago were more than enough to return to his peak form and even improve a little. Noah barely came out of his cabin in those days. Cody tried to give as much information as he could about the archipelago hoping to make some quick gain but Noah didn''t hand him any more Credits. Little by little, Cody stopped inviting him to dinner and limited himself to send food to his cabin. Noah preferred that treatment since it left him with more time to train and to plan his next move. His sea of consciousness was enlarging due to the "Breath" stored in it, it wasn''t as fast as with the Kesier rune but it was still better than not training at all. His dantian had completely recovered and was quickly nearing the limits of the liquid stage, the breakthrough to the solid stage was nearing even faster than Noah had predicted. His body and mind were at a higher level after all, they were increasing the speed at which his dantian grew in order to restore some kind of balance between his centers of power. The rest of his days was used to train in the Elemental forging method. He had left the Odrea nation in a hurry and he knew that a long escape would have followed that event. That''s why he didn''t bring any of the materials in the inventory with him. They were already old and partially decomposed, only the formation of the inventory could slow their decay. It would have been fine to take them if Noah was to have time to forge during his escape but the flight over the sea would have just wasted those precious materials. To put it simply, he lacked the materials needed to improve the Demonic swords or to attempt in any other creation. His training consisted of creating stronger wills to imbue in the "Breath", his ability had risen a lot due to the mass productions of disposable weapons but he knew that he could do better. After all, when he was forging weapons for himself, Noah wouldn''t aim to create self-destructive items, he wanted durable and stable creations. Also, using his mind as much as he could was another form of training for the sea of consciousness which Noah gladly accepted. It was in the silence of the cabin, with the occasional noise of the sailors in the background, that the ship completed its route, successfully returning to a port in the Coral archipelago. Chapter 327: 327. Matrix A purple sight welcomed Noah as soon as he climbed to the main deck. A dazzling purple halo illuminated the air, giving a peculiar shade to the environment. ''This should be the Coral halo that Cody mentioned, it is indeed striking.'' The archipelago was formed on top of the exoskeleton of an immense pack of magical beasts, the Purple corals, which naturally created a sturdy purple shell as a form of protection. The pack had long died but the exoskeleton created by its specimens remained. As time passed, terrain began to accumulate on top of that huge exoskeleton, ultimately becoming the foundation of the archipelago. The magical beasts had died but their shells still radiated a purple light, illuminating the sea around it with a bright purple halo. "You''ll become used to it, it''s barely noticeable on the ground." Cody spoke some last words to Noah before he began to shout orders to his sailors, he had to unload the contents of the ship to sell his goods, that was his profession after all. Noah understood the meaning behind his words and jumped off the ship without even saying goodbye, his eyes curiously wandered on the scenery of the port. According to the information previously learned from Cody, this port was on one of the islands controlled by the faction from the Papral nation. It was one of the poorest and smallest islands though, its only purpose was the trade of the goods that had to be sold in the richer markets in the internal parts of the archipelago. Cody''s shipment wasn''t that precious, rank 3 creatures could be found anywhere in the sea, the market of the archipelago was full of those resources. That''s why their prices were low, beasts of the water, wind, and light element were quite common there, those in the human ranks at least. ''I should find a way toward the important markets, I don''t think that this place has what I need.'' Noah could feel the precarious situation of the island from the scenery on the port. Barracks and simple-looking wooden habitations were sparsely built on the terrain, sailors with their top exposed or wearing loose robes could be seen running everywhere near the many ships that filled the port. They were weak, mostly rank 1 cultivators, those in the second rank were either captains of their ships or managers that handled the situation in the port. As Noah walked away from the shore toward the center of the island, the purple halo diminished, leaving only a shade of its color that the terrain couldn''t block. The scenery didn''t change much as he entered the deepest parts of the island, only a few better-looking buildings attracted his attention at times. ''This should be an area for the commoners of the archipelago, I can spot a few non-cultivators between its inhabitants.'' The sea was a danger zone, preventing any commoner from sailing from the continent toward those islands. Also, the archipelago was a land colonized by cultivators, it was obvious that its citizens would have access to rank 1 cultivation techniques at least. When Noah reached the other side of the island, he could clearly witness the vastity of the archipelago. Hundreds of islands surrounded by a purple halo unfolded themselves in front of his eyes, they had different shapes and dimension but they all seemed inhabited by a large number of cultivators. ''I wonder how they protect themselves from the waves of magical beasts, I didn''t see any soldier here.'' Noah pondered about the new environment when the sight of a cultivator wearing an eye-catching yellow robe stopped his train on thoughts. It was an old woman with white hair combed in a simple bun, her face carried the marks of her age and she stood silently with her eyes closed next to a small formation. Noah neared the woman, his gaze swept the formation many times as he tried to understand its purpose. ''It should be something related to the movement field but I can''t understand its specifics.'' His rank 3 sea of consciousness made it possible for him to read the purpose behind the symbols on the ground but its true meaning was still obscure, only inscription masters of the attunement method would be able to understand that aspect of the formation. "This must be your first time here, welcome to island two hundred and six." The elderly woman opened her eyes and spoke to Noah when he became too close. ''Did they give a number to each island?'' "I''m trying to reach a market able to satisfy my needs, could you please help me with this matter?" Noah bowed as he said those words, suppressing his curiosity for when he reached a better place. The woman smiled and pointed the formation while giving a brief explanation. "This formation can transport you to a bigger island controlled by our country. I suggest you take this teleportation matrix for island one hundred and seventy where you can find another formation for the market on island one hundred and thirty-two. This may seem confusing at the beginning but our transport network is envied even by the continent, you just have to become used to it." Noah nodded and moved his gaze toward one of the islands in the distance. There were only a few kilometers of water between the two, flying there wouldn''t be hard. "What prevents me from simply swimming to travel through the islands?" The woman didn''t seem bothered by Noah''s question, she seemed used to solve the doubts of the newcomers. "The Purple coral is a precious material that can''t be found on the continent and it''s also a natural deterrent against the assault of magical beasts. Many cultivators have tried to bring a piece of the coral back on the continent in the past so the authorities here have jointly decided to forbid the traversing of the sea. You can move between the islands only through the teleportation matrix of the various factions." Chapter 328: 328. Stick with yellow ''That seems expensive.'' Noah nodded at the woman''s words and moved his gaze back on the formation. Teleporting wasn''t cheap, the Warp spell expended a lot of his "Breath" so Noah guessed that a decent sum was needed to use that service. "How much would it cost to take the route that you suggested?" Noah wasn''t short of money, he could be considered quite rich for his status. "Five hundred Credits to reach island one hundred and seventy and seven hundred from there to reach island one hundred and thirty-two. The prices are set based on the distance between the teleportation matrixes and the importance of the destination." ''That''s not as bad as I thought, I guess they still want to give some chances to the people in the poorer islands.'' The price set on the matrixes was a clear barrier to the citizens of the archipelago. The poorest ones would decide to remain on the peripheral islands and continue working there instead of moving to the inner parts, looking for a better occupation. Noah could already guess that there was a connection between the richer islands and the level of their inhabitants. ''I wonder how much they gain with this system, the organizations behind the matrixes should be filthy rich!'' Owning the monopoly over a basic service was always extremely remunerative, Noah was starting to understand the reason behind the flashy yellow robe of the woman. "I''ll take the route that you suggested." Noah handed five hundred Credits to her and stepped on the formation, calmly waiting for her to power it. The woman stored three hundred Credits in her space-ring and placed the remaining two hundred on the borders of the formation. The symbols and lines on the ground lit up as soon as the crystals touched their borders and began to envelop Noah in a soft white light. "One hundred and seventy." The woman spoke to the formation, completely activating it as the destination was set. Noah felt a slight pressure on his mental sphere when the scenery changed drastically right in front of his eyes. The barracks disappeared, replaced by many one or two-story buildings orderly built on the ground. Next to him, many other matrixes could be seen inscribed on the terrain, Noah counted fifteen of them from his position. A stream of cultivators walked calmly on the streets, they wandered between the many shops that filled the scenery. "Hey, don''t just stand there, we need to use the matrix!" Noah''s train of thoughts was interrupted by the rough voice of a bald man dressed in an eye-catching yellow robe similar to the one that the elderly woman was wearing. Only then he realized that there was a line of cultivators near the matrixes, anxiously waiting for their turn. Noah stepped off the formation and left the crowd in front of them, he wanted to analyze the situation before going to the market. ''They should belong to different organizations, there seem to be three of them in total. I suppose there is one for each faction.'' He could see that there were two other types of cultivators that handled the formations, they wore azure and white robes that were of a similar quality of the yellow ones. ''They sure don''t try to hide their wealth, I guess those matrixes lead to islands belonging to the Utra nation and the Empire. Well, I''ll stick with yellow.'' Noah appointed that discovery in his mind and began to walk through the streets of the city that expanded itself on the island. ''This should be some kind of residential area where cultivators of any faction can live. The division between the big countries should be limited to the many businesses that fill the archipelago.'' The city was mostly composed of habitations available for rent, banners with any kind of writing and price could be seen fixed on top of some building. Some of them had symbols of a faction next to the prices while others explicitly prevented to cultivators of different countries from renting the houses, the majority of them though were open to everyone. ''The shops here cover only a small part of the market, there is nothing that catches my attention.'' Island one hundred and seventy only had shops that were useless to Noah. They were mostly taverns or restaurants, with a few stores specialized in refined clothes that had some inscription on them. Seeing that he couldn''t find anything worthy of his time, Noah returned to the shore where the matrixes were placed. "Destination?" The bald man with a yellow robe smiled seeing that he had returned to the matrix of his faction, his clients were divided between the other two organizations after all. "I heard that there is a market on island one hundred and thirty-two, is that true?" The man nodded before giving a quick explanation. "Yes, that market is a neutral area, the merchants from each faction place their stands there. It''s seven hundred Credits for the transport." Noah had the money already in his hands when the man confirmed the elderly woman''s words. The same process happened, Noah stepped on the matrix and the man used some of his Credits to activate it. The scenery changed again, the buildings disappeared only to be replaced by fancy shops that had large banners on their front. There seemed to be even more people on that island, crowds could be seen staring with greedy eyes at the items inside some of the stores while the wealthiest ones were casually walking along what looked like soldiers. ''So, there are soldiers in the archipelago, I was starting to doubt about their existence.'' Island one hundred and seventy didn''t have any guard, the only cultivators that seemed to have any kind of authority were those that handled the teleportation matrixes. There though, Noah saw how some cultivator was escorted by groups of stern-looking guards. The people that saw them coming would just move away from their path and stare at them in envy. ''Stick with yellow and avoid those guys, I shouldn''t expose myself before having a clear picture of the archipelago.'' It was with those thoughts that he left the matrix, walking toward a store that had a flashy map as its banner. Chapter 329: 329. Underground world The store seemed quite wealthy from the outside and Noah could confirm that sensation as soon as he entered it. "Welcome." A middle-aged woman raised her head at the sound of the main door opening but she quickly lost interest when she saw Noah''s figure. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had just come out from a long journey and only rested on Cody''s ship, there was some dirt all over his body and he smelled due to the sweat that had accumulated over the flight. To put it simply, he didn''t look like someone that could afford the items in the store. ''She must think that I''m some kind of poor customer that entered just out of curiosity. I can''t blame her.'' Noah understood the meaning behind her actions and agreed with her judgment, he really needed a bath. Yet, that didn''t stop him, he limited himself to look through the many shelves to see if he could find what he needed. The store was only a one-story building, the items that it sold were all in exposition with their prices written next to their descriptions. ''Oh? They even sell information.'' Noah was surprised to see that some shelves were empty but a price was still attached to it. Their tags indicated a certain topic or organization of the archipelago and there were even tiers to how detailed that information was. Of course, the price increased according to the number of details requested. ''I bet that there is a lot going on in secret, no one can accumulate all this information without having connections with the underground world.'' Noah concluded in his mind as he continued to inspect the items. Maps and information of any kind appeared in his eyes but he was still unsatisfied, everything seemed too generic and there wasn''t anything that offered a complete overview of the archipelago. In the end, he gave up and neared the desk where the woman was after releasing a loud sigh. "Could you please help me with my request?" Noah performed a polite bow before asking that question. The woman raised her head again and stared at Noah for a while before nodding. "I need a detailed map of the archipelago. The map must feature information about the matrixes'' network and the political situation of each island. It would be perfect if it also described the role of each island." Noah casually spoke those words but the woman opened her eyes in surprise. Apart from the intel about the organizations, the maps were the main business of the shop and Noah was basically asking for their best product! "I don''t know if you can afford something like that." The woman didn''t refuse him right away but she politely questioned Noah''s financial situation. "Name a price." Noah didn''t mind it, he simply replied to her in his usual aloof attitude. "Fifteen thousand Credits." Noah waved his hand and that sum appeared on the desk right over the sheets that she was reading. The sight of the pile of crystals surprised the woman who immediately stood up and bowed toward Noah. "Every request of our customer shall be granted!" The drastic change of attitude made Noah roll his eyes but he remained silent, he would have done the same if he was in her situation. The woman bent under the desk and seemed to activate some kind of inscription since a pale light illuminated the floor for a few instants. When she stood up, an azure scroll was in her hands which she handed to Noah. "This is the most updated map of the archipelago of our store. You can modify the information through your mental energy if it becomes outdated or you can come here and we will update it for you." Noah unfolded the scroll and swept it with his mental energy. A blueprint of the archipelago appeared inside his sea of consciousness, information about each of its islands revealed itself as soon as Noah focused on them. The information included the faction that controlled them, their purpose, and the matrixes placed there together with the route needed to reach them. As he willed, the teleportation network illuminated itself on the blueprint, Noah could clearly understand the many connections between each formation. "Does it satisfy you?" The woman asked when she saw that Noah closed the scroll to store it in his space-ring. "Yes but I wonder if you could do something else for me." The woman smiled at his words before being stunned by the sudden drop in the temperature of the store. Noah was staring at her with a cold expression, his eyes shone with a bright blue light as he used his mental energy to express his seriousness. "How much does it cost to stop the information about my purchase from going into your records?" A store that sold information would surely record Noah''s arrival, he didn''t want to expose himself so easily. The woman gulped, the gaze fixed on her was limiting the activity of her mind, her mental sphere was restricted under the pressure of who she had initially thought was a beggar. "Three thousand Credits and the store will forget that you even entered." She didn''t falter, her words were steady, she seemed trained for that kind of situation. Noah nodded and retracted his aura, covering himself again in layers of mental energy before taking out the requested sum. The woman took the money and smiled, her expression was different though: The warmth from before was gone, replaced by a stern and cold attitude. "I hope that the store has satisfied you, feel free to use it whenever you need." Noah gave one last look at the woman before leaving the building, his mind replayed the events in the shop as he moved toward a matrix. ''She was trained to handle matters of the underground world! It seems that I''ve misjudged the situation of the archipelago, I wouldn''t be surprised if all the stores had connections with the Hive. The continent has sent representatives after the situation in the islands was going out of hand, which means that most of its former inhabitants were all willing to become independent already! I don''t know if I can use this to my advantage though.'' Chapter 330: 330. Flowing river sec Noah took a matrix that led to one of the residential islands belonging to the Papral nation. The map purchased in the store was very detailed, Noah had just to think and the islands on the blueprint inside his mind that satisfied his needs would illuminate themselves. It took less than an instant for him to pick an island and decide a route, the prices for the teleportation corresponded to those indicated by the map which made Noah even more satisfied with his purchase. As for why he left the market area without inspecting other stores, it was because the woman''s attitude had raised his wariness about the archipelago. ''I don''t know how much of the archipelago the Hive controls but it doesn''t feel like the representatives of the continent have done much progress in suppressing it... I can''t move freely if I don''t have confidence in my strength.'' Wandering in unknown territories was something that Noah had done many times already. However, he had never been in a place where the political situation was so vague. ''Why there isn''t any soldier patrolling the islands? What is the actual role of the representatives of the continent? What is the role of the Hive? How much control does it have over the many organizations?'' Doubts filled Noah''s mind, there were too many questions that he couldn''t answer. ''Since I can''t find answers, I''ll just focus on increasing my strength before making a move.'' That was Noah''s solution. His dantian was already nearing the solid stage, it wouldn''t take much for the breakthrough to arrive. Being in the solid stage would place Noah at the peak of the second rank, making him virtually unbeatable by other rank 2 cultivators thanks to his rank 3 sea of consciousness. Noah left the formation as soon as the scenery changed, the many tall buildings were the sign of a place built for habitation purposes. He hurriedly crossed the streets of the city, this island was smaller than island one hundred and thirty-two, it had fewer buildings but they featured better rooms. A banner then attracted his attention. ''Three hundred Credits per week, open to everyone, average density for rank 2 cultivators. This one will do.'' Noah knocked on the main door of the building and a middle-aged man wearing luxurious clothes welcomed him. They quickly found an agreement, Noah simply handed three thousand Credits to him and left for his room. The density of "Breath" was quite low for his needs but the "Breath" blessing stored in his space-ring made up for it. ''This is simply too useful, I bet that the Royals will cough blood if they knew that my cultivation is going smoothly thanks to them.'' Noah couldn''t help but smile when he felt the density of "Breath" in the room increase as soon as his mineral was placed on the floor. Cultivators had two big obstacles in their pursuit of power: techniques and resources! Techniques were the basic requirement to cultivate but the training speed was dictated by the resources in your possession! If Noah didn''t have the "Breath" blessing with him, his progress would have been far slower, a normal environment could satisfy only rank 1 cultivators after all. ''I wonder when this stone will become useless to me. I should still be fine during the solid stage but I don''t know about the third rank. Well, I still don''t have a cultivation technique for that so there is no point in worrying now.'' Noah suppressed his thoughts and closed his eyes to focus on his cultivation, he had planned to leave the room only after his dantian entered and stabilized itself in the solid stage. . . . Two months passed quickly. Noah was used to training diligently so he never felt the need to go out of his room during that period. His body and mind were on a higher rank so his dantian had improved quickly, the breakthrough that Noah was waiting for arrived only one month and a half after he secluded himself. His dantian had reached its limits, signaling that it was time to change the state of the "Breath" inside it. The shining black liquid inside his dantian was compressed under the pressure of his mental energy, Noah saw how the walls of his dantian couldn''t fight against the steady control that he had on the process. In just a few hours, the entirety of the liquid "Breath" was turned into a small black crystal, Noah had easily entered into the solid stage, the last stage of the second rank! The other two weeks were spent enlarging his reserves of solid "Breath", the "Breath" blessing had begun to struggle to provide the necessary density but Noah didn''t have a better solution at that moment, he was simply glad that he could cultivate at a decent speed. He still had two weeks left before his rent expired but he had yet to decide what to do in the archipelago. Noah found himself inspecting the map of the archipelago many times, looking for opportunities that suited him. However, the months spent in seclusion had made most of the events described in the map outdated. ''It seems that I have to return to the store.'' Noah left the room and used the matrixes needed to return to island one hundred and thirty-two. ''Now that I think about it, this store doesn''t even have a name, no wonder it''s so shady.'' The same woman from the last time greeted him with a wide smile, the place was empty again so he could speak freely. Another five hundred Credits were expended to update the map, Noah couldn''t help but think that his finances were shortening far quicker than he had planned. Yet, that purchase wasn''t fruitless. An event that attracted his attention appeared in one of the islands controlled by the Papral nation. ''Entrance tests of the Flowing river sect, two days from now on island eighty-six. This seems interesting!'' The chance that Noah was waiting for had finally arrived! Chapter 331: 331. Mental seed Two days later, on the morning of island eighty-six. A large pavilion was placed in a remote location, outside the city of the island, near the shore. The purple light radiated by the exoskeleton of the coral gave a mesmerizing appearance to the scenery and lines of youths could be seen waiting for their chance to enter the building. ''There are mostly kids who have just grown a dantian but there is some experienced cultivator. I wonder if the sect will leave a few spots for people like me.'' Noah thought as he waited in line for his turn to enter the pavilion. That building was the place where the first test of the Flowing river sect would occur, the rumors of the crowd around him spoke about some kind of examination that would identify the attitude of the applicants. ''My attitude shouldn''t be a problem, I don''t think that someone more diligent than me exists. The only problem is my past, I don''t know if they will accept me once they make some investigation.'' Noah could clearly hear the many voices of the youths in line and was already pondering about the events that would follow the entrance test. It couldn''t be helped, Noah was confident in his ability, it was impossible to find another cultivator that matched his achievements at such a young age. Noah wasn''t even twenty-four but he was already a rank 3 mage and a rank 2 cultivator in the solid stage! His body had also entered in the heroic ranks a long time ago, such feats were unthinkable when considering his age. ''The Flowing river sect in the archipelago is just a branch of the sect in the continent, it''s the perfect opportunity to reach the Papral nation.'' Noah had bought information about the sect as soon as he learned about the entrance test, it was needless to say that it had cost him quite a sum. Knowledge was precious, specific information about certain organizations would be pricier than maps. Yet, using that service had confirmed Noah''s hopes, leading him to participate in the entrance test. The line moved quickly, twenty persons would enter the pavilion each time and exit it in ten minutes. Considering that there were only a few hundred applicants, Noah''s turn came quite soon. The green curtains of the pavilion opened, allowing Noah and nineteen youths inside. Noah was the oldest of the group, the others were all rank 1 cultivators in the gaseous stage, basically newbies of the cultivation journey. "This is just the first skimming of the entrance test, we will test your personality and judge if you are a suitable cultivator for our sect." An elderly man spoke in a calm tone from the other side of the pavilion. He had a long white beard and white hair combed in a simple bun. His robe was azure and simple, there wasn''t any type of embroidery on it. Two middle-aged cultivators stood by his side, a man and a woman who dressed in a similar robe, they seriously stared at the batch of applicants that had crossed the curtains. ''They are all rank 3 cultivators but the old one seems stronger.'' Noah judged quickly before lowering his head, he didn''t want to attract their attention that soon. "We will give you a Mental seed, it''s a peculiar type of plant that feeds on mental waves. All you need to do is put it between your eyebrows and let it feed on your thoughts. The plant will flourish in a shape that reflects your attitude, we will then judge it and decide if you can have access to the second test." The elderly cultivator continued his explanation and waved his sleeve as soon as it finished. Twenty white seeds flew in the air and landed in twenty different spots over a large mat. "Take position and begin!" The woman next to him gave the order, the applicants didn''t waste time and chose a random seed as they sat on the mat. ''What an interesting plant, the world is really variegated.'' Noah inspected the seed as he sat in a cross-legged position. He couldn''t find anything strange with the seed, it actually seemed lifeless at his inspection. Then, he neared it to his face and a small change occurred. The seed began to emit a suction force that tried to affect his mental sphere. Of course, it was just a seed, even someone that had still to become a rank 1 mage could oppose that suction force, yet, Noah was still surprised by that behavior. ''It sensed my mind! Maybe I should have studied plants too back in the academy.'' The test of his attitude in the Royal academy had given him only average results in alchemy, making him ignore the course about the magical plants of the world. Noah then stopped wasting time and placed the seed between his eyebrows. He didn''t resist the suction force, the seed was only so big, those few strands of mental energy that it began to absorb could be refilled in just a few seconds by his mental sphere. In a few minutes, the seed sprouted, Noah felt that a kind of connection had been created between him and the plant, attaching it to his skin as it continued to grow. Red branches slowly formed, followed by what seemed a black bud. The growth continued until the plant reached its limits and the seed detached itself from Noah''s face and fell on the mat. Only then did Noah open his eyes to stare at the result of the process. He saw a tangle of red branches covered in thorns, they seemed to have been covered in fresh blood for how similar their colors were. In the middle of that tangle, a black rose had flourished, its exact shape was hidden by the darkness of its color, the light inside the pavilion wasn''t able to completely illuminate it. Noah inspected it and thought that it was extremely beautiful but a halo of sadness seemed to surround its entire form. Chapter 332: 332. Red armor, black hear Noah stared at his plant for some time before raising his head to inspect the other applicants. They had their eyes closed, their plants were still growing in various shapes and there wasn''t any similarity between the twenty of them. ''Mine has grown quickly because my mental waves are stronger than theirs, I wonder what kind of judgment I will receive.'' Noah had realized that the characteristics of his plant were outside of his understanding, he didn''t know if he had succeeded in the test. More minutes passed and the plants of the other applicants slowly completed their growth and separated themselves from their faces, the youths had tired expressions, that process wasn''t easy to withstand with their weak minds. The three cultivators of the Flowing river sect began to inspect the plants as soon as the last seed fell on the mat, they would nod or shake their heads while giving a brief explanation to each applicant. "The branches are too soft, you lack determination." "This bud isn''t fully flourished, you are still too immature." "Your plant lacks shine, you are too average." "Straight and sturdy, you have passed!" Most of the comments from the three cultivators were negative, it was obvious that only a minority of the applicants would reach the second stage of the entrance test. Then, Noah''s turn came. The old cultivator was his examiner and he abruptly stopped his tracks when his gaze met Noah''s plant. "A bloodied armor and a black heart." He mumbled those words after a few rounds of inspection, they were spoken softly, Noah could only hear them because of his powerful mind. The cultivator then raised his head to look at Noah, his mental energy tried to probe his cultivation level but he couldn''t make out the exact power of the young man in front of him. It was needless to say that he was extremely surprised by that event. Noah had the appearance of an eighteen years old man, his aging had stopped since his body and dantian had improved too quickly, it would resume only if he remained at that level for many years. Yet, that young-looking man was able to hide part of his power from the probing of a rank 3 cultivator, such a feat was generally considered impossible for a rank 2 cultivator. "You are too used on being alone, your branches are strong and sturdy but they reject anyone that comes close to you. Your heart is dark, it was born in the darkness of your armor, it has severed any need for light and can only feed on more darkness." The elder sighed before putting Noah''s plant in his space-ring and shaking his head. "I can see that you are a rare talent by the shine of your plant but I know that you will never manage to become part of the sect. I''m sorry, we can''t accept you." Noah was a bit surprised by the long explanation. He knew that the test would have revealed his personality but he didn''t think that it would be so accurate! Also, that final judgment had stated that he had failed the entrance test, the sect wasn''t willing to accept someone like him. ''I guess there is nothing I can do about it, this is just how I am.'' Noah sighed before standing up and bowing to the elder. The latter nodded at that gesture and watched as Noah neared the curtains of the pavilion to exit the test area. "Will you remain in the archipelago for the time being?" He asked that question before Noah crossed the curtains. "Maybe." Noah gave that vague answer and left the area. He had bet on the Flowing river sect to return to the continent but he had failed in the first test, he needed to reorganize his thoughts and find another opportunity that could lead to the same result. ''I should just cultivate for a few days before going back to island one hundred and thirty-two. I still have to explore the market and maybe something new will appear after I update the map.'' It was with those thoughts that he left the crowded area and walked toward the matrixes to return to his rented room. Meanwhile, the entrance test of the Flowing river sect continued and ended in about an hour. Only a few applicants had succeeded and they were given instructions about the second phase of the test before being dismissed. "Good work today, we found some promising youths. Rest now, I have some matters to attend." The old cultivator instructed his two followers and left the area, calmly walking toward the city at the center of the island. At some point, he entered a simple-looking tavern that had a horn as its banner. He crossed the hall and sat on the table at the bottom of the tavern, the other cultivators there moved their gazes away when they sensed a trace of his cultivation level. A waitress brought him a jug of wine and he took small sips from it as he waited in silence. "Dwight, I hope the selections of your sect went well." A hooded figure sat in front of him after saying those words. "Roy, I told you many times to start speaking only after you''ve sat. The governors are looking for you people like crazy these days, island one hundred and sixty has been hit hard by the last investigation." Dwight complained but Roy didn''t seem to care, he simply released a small laugh before replying to him. "So, did you find anything interesting?" "Only the usual, naive kids with some talent and a strong sense of justice, you know what my sect looks for in a cultivator. Yet, I might have found a candidate for your Chasing demon sect." Roy released a surprised sound at those words and gave a space-ring to Dwight, waiting for him to continue speaking. Dwight inspected the contents of the ring and nodded in satisfaction before taking out an item from his storage device. Noah''s plant appeared on the desk of the tavern and Roy didn''t hesitate to inspect it with great interest. Chapter 333: 333. Decoy Noah was unaware of the conversation between Dwight and Roy, he didn''t know that an organization had already become interested in him. He didn''t have another plan, the map of the archipelago had other interesting opportunities but they were all handled by the factions of the Utra nation and the Shandal Empire, he didn''t want to expose himself to them. Since there was nothing he could do at the moment, he chose to explore the market on island one hundred and thirty-two. He planned to cultivate and sell his useless items while periodically checking the map store, he was sure that another opportunity would arrive if he waited long enough. The island had various stores, they covered most of the cultivation''s fields. Inscribed items, magical beasts'' corpses, techniques and spells, potions and pills, every kind of resource useful in the cultivation journey could be found there. However, for someone like Noah who had lived in the capital of the Utra nation, the variety of goods was lacking. The inscribed items were mostly in the first rank, those in the second one were considered masterpieces and sold at exorbitant prices, Noah didn''t want to waste money in something unnecessary; The magical beasts'' corpses were somewhat satisfying but those in the heroic ranks and in a good state came from the archipelago, Noah could only find rotten and decomposed corpses when he looked for creatures of the darkness element; The techniques and spells were in the second rank at best while martial arts and body-nourishing methods only reached the third one, they were also heavily overpriced, Noah found himself unable to purchase anything that could interest him; As for potion and pills, Noah limited himself to the purchase of a few reagents for the breakthrough of his dantian, there was a chance of failure in the process so it was better to have more than one of them. The rest of his trip to the market was spent selling his useless items and sorting his space-rings. Noah didn''t want to concentrate all his wealth in one ring but he also didn''t want to have too many of them. When his trip was over, he had only two rings who had two hundred cubic meters of space each. Inside of them, his weapons, scrolls, items, and materials were orderly organized according to their purpose. ''I got rid of all the useless drugs, materials, and weapons, only those that could link my identity to Noah Balvan are still in my rings. I''ve managed to gain a few thousand Credits today but my finances will just decrease if I continue to travel through the islands and purchase information without any kind of income.'' Noah thought as he moved to the now-familiar map store. Using the matrixes and purchasing information was expensive, even after selling all his useless items, Noah''s finances only amounted to one hundred and twenty thousand Credits. ''I guess I can''t help it, I''ll just have to find an occupation if I become too short on money.'' He had already thought of using his capabilities as a hunter and inscription master to make a living but he preferred to leave that option for last: Those two professions would inevitably expose something about himself, he would rather join an organization and use it as a cover. The usual greetings of the middle-aged woman welcomed him as soon as he stepped in the store, Noah simply nodded before inspecting the shelves. He was just passing by, only a few days had passed since he updated the map, there was no point in doing it again so soon. Yet, a tag on an empty shelf attracted his attention, making him stop in place. The empty shelves held information about different topics and the one in front of Noah had a familiar name written on its tag. ''Hooded devil.'' Noah read the tag in his mind while keeping an expressionless face. Two thousand Credits then appeared in his hand and he carefully laid them inside the shelf without retracting his arm. The crystals disappeared and the shelf lit up, a stream of information ran from his hand to his mind in a few instants. Noah had paid for the most detailed report, he would pay any price to know how far the investigation about him had gone. ''The Hooded devil, a cultivator that has joined the Odrea nation in its battles against the Shandal Empire. Darkness element, cultivation level unclear. Witnesses have confirmed that he has survived the ambush of a rank 3 cultivator and that he can perform inscriptions. Possible identity: Noah Balvan, criminal of the Utra nation. The Elbas family has issued an arrest warrant and some of his abilities match those of the Hooded devil. Further information about Noah Balvan is to be found in the Utra nation. Current location: Odrea nation.'' As the pieces of information entered his mind, Noah was first surprised by how fast a connection with his real identity had been made. Yet, toward the end of it, he became confused. ''Current location? What does it mean?'' "How outdated are these reports?" He immediately asked the woman as he retracted his arm. "These have come yesterday, they shouldn''t be more than one month old." The woman replied with an interested expression but Noah just nodded at her answer and left the building to return to his habitation. ''Don''t tell me that they are still covering me!'' That was the only explanation that he could come up with. His escape plan only needed for the Odrea country to open the formation so that he could pretend to escape toward the depth of the continent, he didn''t ask for anything more. Nina''s face appeared in his mind, followed by those of the cultivators with whom he had shared two years of his life. ''Those guys, this wasn''t necessary.'' He could imagine what they had done. Placing a blue soldier with a black hood in a monthly battle that followed Noah''s departure would have been enough to fool the Empire, the decoy didn''t have to fight after all, its figure would be enough to give Noah more time to escape. Chapter 334: 334. Gratitude Noah could understand what the Odrea nation had done but he couldn''t figure out why. ''Do they expect me to help them in the future? Yet, they couldn''t possibly know that I would have had access to this information.'' His mind was confused, knowing that the Odrea nation was protecting him made him feel strange. ''Are they simply doing this out of goodwill?'' That possibility left him even more confused. He was used to people trying to exploit him but pure kindness was something that he had experienced too few times in his second life. ''If it really is kindness, what would I do?'' Going back to the Odrea nation, fight together with it, managing to free it from the clutches of the Empire, those were the things that a righteous person would do. Yet, the Empire had a God, good and evil didn''t matter in front of such an entity. It''s not that Noah didn''t want to help that country, he had been treated well there and those pieces of information had given birth to a tinge of gratitude toward it. However, the reality of things was that he was only a rank 2 cultivator on the run, he couldn''t do anything even if he wanted to. Once again, the feeling of being powerless assaulted him before Noah dispersed it with a renewed determination. ''If I ever am to reach the divine ranks, I will surely pay back this favor.'' His mother, William, and now the Odrea country, those that had become close to Noah did their best to give him more time to develop and he had still done nothing to repay them. He had simply continued to escape as he pursued power, without ever getting rid of the powerlessness that he felt. ''One day...'' He sighed as he put those thoughts in the back of his mind. Those matters were still far away from his reach, he was only a rank 2 cultivator after all. The shape of the building where his habitation was appeared in his sight, an urge to cultivate made him accelerate his steps as he walked toward the main door. However, when the token needed to open that door appeared in his hand, a voice resounded from behind him. "Are you Zach, the one that has taken part in the entrance test of the Flowing river sect?" Noah turned only to see a simple looking man that stared at him with a stern face. "Who is asking?" He asked. Noah wasn''t in a good mood, the recent discovery had put some pressure on him and he wanted to improve his strength in the shortest amount of time. "A friend was captivated by your performance in the entrance test, he would like to meet you." The man answered. ''Performance in the test? Is he talking about my personality?'' Noah had failed the first test, the one with the Mental seed, so he didn''t understand how someone could have taken interest in him nor how it did gain access to that information. Seeing that Noah was hesitant, the man continued to speak. "You wanted to enter a sect, right? This friend can make it happen, he is in a sect too." Noah stared at the man for a while before nodding and gesturing to lead the way. ''He is just a rank 2 cultivator, not really a threat.'' The reason why he was so confident was that the man in front of him was clearly weaker than him, he could just escape if the situation became too dangerous. Also, he didn''t have anything planned, he was just waiting for some opportunity to appear. ''He knows my name and the fact that I wanted to join the Flowing river sect... It''s still early to jump to conclusions but there is a high chance that he has connections with the Hive.'' The entrance test had happened only a few days ago and Noah didn''t give his name during it, it wasn''t required. That meant that the organization behind the man was either aware of all the new arrivals in the archipelago or had investigated about Noah in the days after the test. It was obvious that the first organization that came to his mind was the Hive. Noah followed the man for a few minutes until he stopped in front of a poor-looking tavern. "I can''t go further. You need to enter alone if you want to meet my friend." The man spoke those last words before turning and leaving the small street where they were. "How will I recognize it?" Noah asked but the man didn''t turn, in a few seconds, he left his line of sight, disappearing behind a corner. ''The chances of the Hive being behind this have suddenly increased.'' He thought as he opened the door of the tavern and crossed its entrance. Noah had been interested in that secret organization since he heard about it, there was no reason for him to refuse that chance. The tavern was dark and most of the cultivators inside it were either drunk or sonorously sleeping on their respective tables. The smell of strong wine and puke filled the dusty room but Noah didn''t mind it too much, his attention was focused on the search of the friend mentioned by the man from before. A soft light came from one of the tables at the end of the room. The source of the light was a peculiar plant with bright red branches that were filled with sharp thorns. The branches entangled themselves around a dark core, the insides of the tangle of branches were too dark for anyone to make out the actual shape of what they contained. Noah recognized the plant that he had created during the entrance test and understood how that organization became aware of his existence. ''The Flowing river sect has connections with the underground world! Well, maybe it''s the opposite.'' A hooded figure stared attentively at the plant, some of its facial features were revealed by the soft light of the branches but Noah couldn''t understand if it was a man or a woman. He decisively walked toward that table and sat in front of the cultivator, his eyes tried to probe its cultivation level but to no avail. Silence followed at that moment, Noah wasn''t going to be the first to speak. Then, the figure opened its mouth to speak, its voice seemed to belong to a middle-aged man with a healthy constitution. "Don''t you find it beautiful?" Chapter 335: 335. Honorary disciple Noah didn''t answer the hooded man''s question. His gaze was fixed on his figure, he was trying to understand his cultivation level but he could only pick up some clues. ''I know that he isn''t in the heroic ranks but I can''t define his actual power. His mind is stronger than mine.'' That conclusion was enough to make him realize that he was dealing with some sort of important figure. ''Rank 3 cultivator, either in the liquid or solid stage. He is far stronger than me.'' The previous conclusion led to this one. Noah knew that he was a special case, the possibility of a cultivator having a sea of consciousness stronger than its dantian was an extremely rare event. That''s why he could safely assume that, since the man in front of him had a mind stronger than his, then his dantian must have been at a far greater level. A rank 3 mage with a rank 3 dantian at that level could be considered at the peak of the human ranks, thus someone important. "Joining an orthodox sect with this personality of yours won''t be easy, those old fogies use the Mental seeds as the first test from before I was born." The man spoke again. "You know, they are actually more permissive back in the continent. Well, they go easy on the young and immature ones at least." Noah continued to listen, the man seemed to speak with no reserves and would often touch or test some parts of Noah''s plant. "Look at this, there are so many branches! This means that your nature is basically defined and there is no hope of shaping it. I''m afraid that even the sects in the continent would refuse you." The man shook his head after those words, he was probably trying to emphasize his expression but the hood that covered his face made that gesture pointless. ''Is he trying to say that he is from the Papral nation?'' Noah wondered. His mind had been unaffected by his speech, he was only focused on understanding the meaning behind his words. "You are lucky though, I might just know a sect that won''t care about this and will probably treat it as a positive quality." "Which sect?" Noah finally interrupted the man to ask that question. "So you do speak! Wonderful, I was afraid you might have been mute. As for which sect I''m talking about, that would be mine." The man''s voice turned grave toward the end of the phrase, he seemed to have stopped joking around. "You came looking for me just because of my personality?" Noah asked. He could understand that every organization needed henchmen and that his personality seemed to be suitable for that role, yet, he couldn''t help but wonder if that single requirement was enough to earn a private meeting. ''Maybe they gather all the members in this way and I''m not a special case.'' That possibility hit Noah''s mind. If his assumption was right, he was in front of an organization of the underground world, private meetings would be the best way to ensure the secrecy of its recruitment. "Yes and no. We have many cells laid around the archipelago and we don''t lack pawns that have no relevance in its political network. Your personality fits the requirements to enter our organization but it also tells me that you could do well in another role." The man continued to explain calmly, he didn''t seem to care that he was giving that much information to Noah. "What role is that?" Noah asked with interest, joining an organization was part of his plan since he arrived in the archipelago, it would spare him a lot of money and time entering one in that way. As for the issue concerning the legality of said organization, he couldn''t care less. The man didn''t immediately answer, he first grabbed some branches with both his hands and separated them from the tangle, the thorns of the plant couldn''t hurt him, they had grown feeding on mental energy after all, they could be considered sturdy only in relation to similar plants. He then inserted his hand in the dark core and picked up the black rose at its center. Noah could see how, even when out in the open, the edges of the rose were blurry, the light didn''t seem to be able to completely illuminate it. "This is your core, you can see how it can''t merge with the world illuminated by the sun. To use its full potential, you must immerse it in the thickest darkness." The man spoke again and he reinserted the rose back in the tangle, using his sleeves to prevent any light from entering its insides. The rose disappeared right in front of Noah''s eyes, he couldn''t see it anymore, it seemed as if it had really merged with the darkness. "The role." Noah reminded him of his question. It would be a lie to say that he didn''t have some kind of enlightenment from the man''s speech but he was still able to put it on hold until the meeting was finished. He wouldn''t allow himself to be distracted in front of such a mysterious man. The hooded figure released a small laugh before taking away the hood from his head. Strands of long gray hair were laid on his shoulders as his facial features were revealed. He was a middle-aged man, he was extremely thin and his edges were sharp due to the lack of fat under his skin. However, what attracted Noah''s interest the most was his shining red eyes. His skin tensed as he opened his mouth, Noah could see the tremble of his throat as he began to speak. "I''m Roy, I handle the recruitment of my Chasing demon sect and one of my sources has shown me your case. I could just find you a job as a henchman but I think that your talent would be wasted in that way. That''s why I came to offer you the position of honorary disciple, would you like to hear more about it?" Roy smiled toward the end of its phrase, his smiling expression was quite scary due to his features but Noah could feel the good intentions behind his proposal. Chapter 336: 336. Oath "Do you always recruit disciples in this way?" Even though he could feel the good-will behind Roy''s words, Noah still had too many doubts. "It has happened previously, I simply can''t contain myself when I find someone interesting." Roy continued to smile as he answered Noah. "I have too many questions, I can''t just give you an answer right away." Noah expressed his concerns but Roy didn''t seem discouraged, he simply nodded and began to speak again. "The Chasing demon sect was one of the unorthodox sects of the Papral nation, we have been expelled a few hundred years ago due to an edict of the Council and forced to set ourselves here. Oh, in case you were wondering, we are one of the branches of the Hive, the leading underground organization of the archipelago." Noah''s eyes widened after that statement. ''Is this man for real? Did he just tell me such secretive information right away?'' According to Cody''s words, the word Hive was a taboo, anything related to it would unleash the full power of the representatives of the continent. Yet, in that poor-looking tavern, Noah had made contact with such a wanted organization. ''Is he so sure that I will join the sect? Maybe, he has the confidence of capturing me in case I wanted to escape.'' Noah''s thoughts inevitably reached that conclusion. In Roy''s eyes, he was only a talented cultivator with a peculiar personality, his identity of Noah Balvan and Hooded devil was kept hidden by the Odrea country. ''They don''t know my actual power and this gives me a chance to escape. Yet, I don''t think I''ll find a better chance.'' Now that he knew that he could escape, Noah began to evaluate the position of honorary disciple. "What would I gain from joining your sect? Which limitations would I have? What kind of role would I play in the organization?" Noah stormed Roy with questions, since the latter was so open in his answers, he would first solve his doubts before making his decision. "Well, you would gain resources in relation to your merits; The limitations are quite obvious, you are not to betray the sect and you must swear to serve it. In return, we will swear to treat you properly; as for the role, my sect mainly handles the assassinations of certain troublesome individuals from the continent." ''Assassinations, that might actually fit me.'' Noah thought after Roy gave another series of honest answers. Noah had the Mental tremor spell and the Warp spell, silently killing someone and escape wouldn''t be a problem. "What about my freedom? I won''t accept a deal that limits my growth." That was Noah''s biggest concern. He had always been forced to escape from any organization that had taken interest in him because they would have ultimately forced him to stop his cultivation, they cared more about maintaining their hierarchy than nurturing worthy members. Roy shrugged his shoulders at that question. "We are an unorthodox sect, all our members are hotheads with lofty ambitions. I won''t deny that there are internal struggles for the important positions but the sect itself won''t intervene on those matters. It will be up to you and the other disciples to handle them." Noah listened attentively, he still wasn''t satisfied with that answer. "So, can you assure me that the sect won''t hinder my growth in any way?" Roy nodded at that question. "The sect is built upon the strength of its members, you will fall if you are weak and you will climb if you are powerful, that''s an iron rule in the world of unorthodox cultivators. This part is actually mentioned in the oath that we will swear together." The last insurance cleared Noah of any doubt. He knew far too well the limits of lone cultivators. He had long stopped training his body and he was enlarging his mental sphere with his methods, those were the restrictions applied on those that lacked techniques. Simply speaking, everyone needed a backer in the cultivation world. "I agree to become an honorary disciple, I would just like to inspect the contents of the oath beforehand." Noah couldn''t find anything wrong with Roy''s conditions so he ultimately agreed to join the Chasing demon sect. Roy took out a tablet from his space-ring, it was old and many intricate inscriptions could be seen over its surface. "Touch it and you will know the rules." Noah didn''t hesitate, his hand went on the tablet and a stream of information entered his mind. ''Protect the sect, serve the sect, bring glory on the sect, and swear on your name... That might be a problem.'' At the requirement of using his real name, Noah hesitated a bit. Then, he saw that Roy had taken out a seal with a horned head depicted on its surface. "This is an inscribed item, it allows me to swear on account of the whole sect." Roy explained when he saw Noah''s confused expression. He then pressed the seal on the tablet and spoke solemn words. "The Chasing demon sect welcomes you as a member and promises to protect and nurture you, may the dantian of those that betray you explode. In the name of Roy red-eyes, appointed elder of the human matters." ''To think that he would swear before me.'' Noah smiled internally at that sight but maintained a solemn expression on the outside. Both his hands went on the tablet as he began to chant the required words for the agreement. "I swear to protect and serve the Chasing demon sect and to bring glory to its name. If I ever was to betray it, my dantian will explode. In the name of Noah Balvan, bastard of the Balvan family." Roy''s eyes widened when he heard that name but it was too late, the tablet shone and two black marks shot out of it. One mark went on the sigil, which brightened up for a few seconds before returning to its normal state. The other one went on Noah''s arm, where it transformed into a tattoo similar to the horned head on the sigil. From that moment on, Noah was a disciple of the Chasing demon sect! Chapter 337: 337. Headquarters Roy was speechless, Noah''s name still resounded in his mind as he continued to stare at the young man in front of him. Noah''s actions weren''t enough for a cultivator in the heroic ranks to take notice of him but those in the human ranks that handled the various reports from the continent knew him far too well. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had created a lot of ruckus with his escape from the Utra nation, having a criminal on the run was a stain on the reputation of the Elbas family, which was the face of the country. After his escape, information about Noah''s features and abilities became widely spread but the Royals had tried to keep that knowledge inside their area of influence. The three big nations of the continents were publicly enemies after all, it would have been impossible for the Royals to seek the cooperation of the Empire just to capture a criminal in the human ranks. Yet, the events in the Odrea country had caused some leaks. The Shandal Empire became interested in the inscription master that hid inside the formation and started its investigation. Then, during Noah''s last monthly battle, when he revealed his abilities, a connection between the Hooded devil and Noah Balvan was made, causing the investigations to reach the informants inside the Utra nation. In just a few months, Noah''s abilities became known to anyone willing to pay for them, only his facial features remained a knowledge exclusive to the Utra nation. Roy, as a member of the underground world of the archipelago and as an elder handling the matters in the human ranks, had to be aware of such information. That''s why Noah''s name surprised him, the reports clearly said that he was still in the Odrea nation, fighting in the monthly battles against the Empire. "Are you that Noah Balvan? The criminal of the Utra nation?" Noah was inspecting the tattoo created after the oath when Roy asked that question. "Even if I was, you can''t divulge this information now, am I right?" Noah said without raising his gaze from his arm. "That is right." Roy answered helplessly. "And you can''t inform the other interested parties, like the legal organizations and the Hive, that I''m not in the Odrea nation, right?" "As a disciple of the Chasing demon sect, your identity is protected." Roy answered again Noah''s question. Only then did Noah raise his gaze to nod toward the red-eyed man, he showed a shameless smile as he confirmed his suggestion. "Yes, I am that Noah Balvan." Roy stared at Noah for a while before sighing and massaging his temples and he continued to sit. Noah calmly waited for him to recover, he didn''t trick anyone this time, the other party simply lacked the necessary information to determine his real identity. ''The cover of the Odrea country is revealing itself more beneficial than I thought.'' Those thoughts hit Noah''s mind as he stared at Roy. He didn''t know if the Chasing demon sect would have approached him if they had suspected his identity but he was sure that the meeting would have had a different atmosphere in that case. His gratitude toward the Odrea country increased again before he was forced to put those thoughts in the back of his mind since Roy finally interrupted his silence. "HAHAHA! To think that we were forming a team to hunt you down after you came out of the defensive formation. Come, come! We need to go to the headquarters and stop the mission." Roy had exploded in a loud laugh before he said those words, he then stood up and gestured to Noah to follow him. ''Well, that was unexpected.'' Noah was surprised by Roy''s reaction but he didn''t mind it too much, cultivators had peculiar personalities, he had learnt it a long time ago. He stood up and followed Roy, they went toward one corner of the tavern where the latter placed a few hundred Credits on the floor. A formation lit up as soon as the crystals touched the floor, symbols and runes seemed to appear out of nowhere as they created a complex diagram that encircled Noah and Roy. "Did you manage to set up teleportation matrixes under the representatives of the continent''s nose?" Noah asked. He didn''t sense the formation until it was activated but, when it did, he understood the purpose of its diagram. "Hmph, we were on the archipelago long before the representatives arrived. We are the one that set the teleportation network, the continent has just taken control of the matrixes that we couldn''t hide." Roy snorted as he explained the situation to Noah. The light radiated from the formation reached its peak and Noah felt an incredible pressure on his mental sphere. He was forced to close his eyes during the process to defend against the force pressing on his mind. The teleportation lasted only a few seconds, when Noah opened his eyes, a purple world appeared in front of him. The color was similar to the halo on the shores of each island but that place was an underground location, the sky was covered by a metallic purple ceiling. ''Where is this place?'' Noah wondered. He was sure that he was still in the Coral archipelago, the purple halo was the proof that he was somewhere near the exoskeleton of the dead pack of magical beasts. Yet, what he saw gave him no further hints, he could only understand that he was somewhere under the level of the sea. "Let''s go, we need to reach the central area of the sect. This zone is reserved for the caves of the elders." Roy spoke to him and began to walk in a certain direction, Noah didn''t dare to remain behind and followed him as he continued to inspect the environment. ''The density of "Breath" here is far higher than that in my rented room. I wonder where is this place, I have never seen anything similar in my map.'' Since his map and his gaze couldn''t make him understand his location, Noah simply decided to ask. "Where is this place?" Roy didn''t seem surprised by his question and gave a quick answer as he continued to walk. "These are the insides of the exoskeleton of the Purple corals." Chapter 338: 338. Elder Iris ''The insides of the exoskeleton!?'' Noah shouted in his mind when he registered Roy''s words. The Coral archipelago was formed on top of the exoskeleton, it made it a safe location for humans since the purple radiance prevented the attacks of the many magical beasts of the sea. He would have never thought that the headquarters of the Chasing demon sects were built inside such a precious material. ''That''s why the purple halo is so intense and the density of "Breath" is so high. There is nothing that blocks the radiance and the absence of other lifeforms maintains the concentration of the "Breath" at high levels. I wonder how they managed to keep this location hidden to the representatives of the continent.'' Noah pondered as he continued to walk, he was now sure that his sect had to be quite important for it to maintain control over such a privileged location. "How did you hide this place from the continent?" In the end, Noah couldn''t contain his curiosity and simply asked the man that seemed not to care about the information that he gave him. "We didn''t completely hide it. Before the continent became anxious about the possibility of the archipelago becoming independent, the excavations of the insides of the exoskeleton spanned for the entirety of its body. When the representative came, we were forced to make ninety percent of the tunnels collapse, we would rather destroy this place than hand it to the continent. Of course, we managed to save some areas and hide them behind the collapse." ''Quite ruthless, I like it.'' Noah approved that action, a victory was profitable only if the winner could plunder the resources left by the defeated, it was just a waste of money otherwise. Roy and Noah left the large residential area and entered one of the many tunnels that filled its edges, Noah would often touch the metallic purple walls to try to understand the level of the material. ''It''s far stronger than a simple rank 4 material, I don''t think I can even make a dent on it. The Purple corals should have died when they were in the fifth rank or above.'' Noah thought as he wondered how the sect had managed to dig those tunnels, piercing a rank 5 material wasn''t easy, a cultivator in the heroic ranks was needed to create passages in that place. Roy noticed his interest in the exoskeleton and became curious, ultimately probing the young man behind him. "Are you interested in magical beasts?" Noah returned to reality when he heard that question, he stayed silent for a while before deciding to speak honestly. "As a matter of fact, it''s my specialization. I was wondering about the level of the corals, they should have been in the fifth rank or above when they died but I can''t be more precise, my cultivation level prevents me from investigating further." Roy released a surprised gasp at Noah''s explanation. The reports about Noah Balvan mentioned that he was knowledgeable in the field of the magical beasts but the exact value of that information wasn''t set since it depended on the social environment from which it was taken. For example, any cultivator would appear as the most knowledgeable human in the world in the eyes of a commoner. Like that, the fact that the reports about Noah mentioned that he was educated about magical beasts didn''t mean much since that information was paired with his young age, there was a limit to how experienced a twenty-three years old cultivator could be. Yet, Noah had received the best education of the Utra nation, his mind was strong and allowed him to memorize many pieces of information, and the Bloodline inheritance had left him with a peculiar instinct that further improved his understanding when it came to matters related to magical beasts. "Our experts think that the Purple corals have died during the hibernation for the breakthrough to the sixth rank, they have misjudged the amount of "Breath" needed for the evolution of their body apparently." Roy explained, the exoskeleton had been studied for hundreds of years by then, those details could be easily obtained by an elder of an underground organization. "Oh, I was really inaccurate." Noah nodded at his explanation and moved his gaze back on the metallic material, no matter how much he looked, he wasn''t able to reach a similar conclusion. ''My level is too low, I still can''t be accurate when the heroic ranks are concerned.'' He sighed internally as he moved his gaze toward the end of the tunnel, another large area could be seen there. Roy had paid attention to Noah''s reactions, he saw how he seemed disappointed by his wrong judgment. ''Is he really unsatisfied? He has managed to pinpoint the rank of the coral in a few minutes but he isn''t proud of it?'' Roy wondered in his mind, the young man behind him was indeed unusual. The tunnel then ended and the two of them entered the large underground room that followed it. "Let me do the talk now and don''t mind too much what she says." Roy warned Noah before he stopped to a seemingly normal location and lightly knocked on the purple ground. "Reporting to Elder Iris, we need to modify the mission about Noah Balvan." The floor trembled after his words were spoken and the terrain transformed into the entrance of a cave. Roy wore a solemn expression and entered it, gesturing to Noah to follow him. The cave was simple, with not much furniture, a middle-aged woman with white hair could be seen sitting on the floor surrounded by sheets. "What''s the matter, Roy? I thought that you were ready to send some disciples on the continent to ambush the kid when he went out of the Odrea nation. Our contacts with the Utra nation are willing to pay a large sum for his head." Elder Iris spoke without raising her head, her voice sounded aged, it didn''t match her appearance. "Something happened, there is no need to send the team. Noah Balvan is here by my side." Roy''s answer made Elder Iris raise her head, Noah felt naked under her probing gaze. ''Heroic ranks!'' Noah''s mind gave that warning but there was nothing he could do, he couldn''t even struggle in front of such a power. "Good, he is worth even more alive. Take care of it and make sure that our contacts receive him." Elder Iris performed a slight smile when she spoke but her expression froze when the tattoo of a horned head appeared on her hand and began to shine. Noah''s tattoo did the same, it moved on the back of its hand and began to shine with a similar light. It was with furrowed brows that Elder Iris began to stare Roy, her irritation was easily discerned by her expression. Chapter 339: 339. Twelve Demons Noah stared at the shining tattoo on the back of his hand, it had moved autonomously which led him to shot a questioning look toward Roy. Roy lowered his head and answered his gaze in a soft voice. "It has simply sensed the ill intentions of another member of the sect, it''s like a warning. Don''t worry though, you can keep it hidden somewhere under your skin with your mental energy." Noah nodded at his explanation and his focus moved on the tattoo, his mental energy entered the image of the horned head and forced it to hide under his skin, even its radiance disappeared once Noah chose to cover it. "Roy?" An irritated voice resounded in the cave, Roy staggered when Elder Iris reminded him of her presence. "W-well, he is a talented cultivator, I guessed that it was better to have him as a disciple instead of wasting resources to capture him." Roy gave a quick lie but his tone betrayed him, it was obvious that he felt guilty about the matter. "You enrolled him without even asking his name, am I right?" Elder Iris saw right through his lie, she sighed when she saw that Roy lowered his head in embarrassment. "You are too reckless, we are a secret organization, we need to be careful whenever we make a move." She shook her head as she reprimanded Roy, she seemed to have already given up on the matter. "Well, he is part of our sect now, put him to work. And you¡­" Elder Iris interrupted her words to point a hand toward Noah. "You are never to reveal your name in public and, if you ever get caught, you need to erase every connection with the sect, Roy can tell you our story if you are interested. Also, try not to cause any mess, we are powerful in the archipelago but we need to maintain the image of a suppressed organization so that we can fool the continent." She gave those obvious orders at which Noah politely bowed, she was a cultivator in the heroic ranks and an elder of his sect, he needed to behave properly. Elder Iris seemed satisfied by his gesture and waved her hand to dismiss the two of them, her gaze went back on the sheets around her as soon as she did that. Roy patted Noah''s shoulder and signaled him to exit the cave, the floor closed behind them when they returned to the surface of the underground area. "Uff, this is settled. My mother might seem strict but she really cares about the members of the sect, that''s one of the reasons why she oversees these matters. You don''t have to worry about possible injustices." ''Mother!?'' Roy''s words stunned Noah. ''Elder Iris is actually Roy''s mother? They seem to have the same age! Maybe that''s why Roy can act so freely in the archipelago.'' Noah pondered about that but he ultimately put those thoughts in the back of his mind, such information didn''t affect him after all. "What did she mean by our story? Weren''t you simply exiled by the Papral nation?" Noah decided to ask about the story of the Chasing demon sect, he was now an honorary disciple, it wouldn''t hurt to know more about its past. "Mh, yes, that''s the short version. Let''s move toward the next area, I''ll explain as we walk." Roy picked a direction and began to walk, Noah followed closely behind as he memorized the path that they were taking. "I''ve already told you about the Council and the exile of the unorthodox sects but you don''t know the specifics about these events." Roy paused a bit as he sorted his thoughts before speaking again. "The Council is the organization in control of the Papral nation, it''s formed by the patriarchs of each orthodox sect and it handles the topics that concern the entirety of the country. Each sect is independent but it has a duty toward the nation, that''s why the Council is needed to create a joint front against the other powerful countries." ''The Utra nation has the Royal family and the nobles helping them; The Empire has its God and the entirety of its population as its army; The political situation of the Papral nation is similar to the Utra nation but its central power is composed of the strongest cultivators of each sect. Now I have a general understanding of the three big nations.'' Noah sorted those pieces of information in his mind as he listened to Roy, he had always been a lone cultivator so he valued a lot that kind of knowledge. "However, this only covers the orthodox sects. Back in the days, there were twelve unorthodox sects that thrived in the nation and that managed to repel the attacks of the Council thanks to the twelve Demons." "Demons?" Noah couldn''t help but voice his confusion when Roy''s story reached that point. He made a slight smile as he nodded toward Noah before he resumed to speak. "Demon is just a word with which the orthodox sects label anyone that opposes their rule. The unorthodox sects on the Papral nation have taken pride in that appellation and have created the twelve demon sects, giving to their strongest cultivator the title of Demon!" ''The power of these twelve Demons must have been incredible for them to defend against the leading organization of the country.'' Noah''s thoughts reached that conclusion as he became even more interested in the story. Roy sighed, a trace of sadness appeared in his face. "Yet, no matter how prideful they were, unorthodox cultivators would always prioritize profits. The Ravaging demon sect betrayed the alliance and the Council managed to inflict heavy damages to the other demon sects, forcing them to escape. The Charming Demon and the Devouring Demon died that day and the eleven demon sects dispersed in the continent. Our sect managed to reach the archipelago where we slowly rebuilt our ranks under the leadership of the Chasing Demon but we lost contact with most of the other unorthodox sects. They are probably hiding like us, waiting for the moment when they are strong enough to strike back." Chapter 340: 340. First mission "So, you want to return to the Papral nation one day." Noah spoke when he saw that Roy''s story ended. Roy shook his head as a bitter smile appeared on his face. "We still have our Demon but we are alone and far away from our home. Dreams are beautiful but often unachievable, we would need to conquer the archipelago before thinking about defeating the Council." Roy replied, even if he usually acted by instinct and seemingly without thinking, he knew the difference in power between a single sect and the entirety of a big nation too well. The two continued to walk for a few minutes in silence, Noah had no other questions, he was just eager to see where they were going. Then, they reached what seemed to be a building dug inside the purple walls of the exoskeleton, it was four-story tall and its entrance was made of a simple but large passage. "We work in a similar way to other organizations, you complete missions to obtain merit points that you can exchange for resources. As an honorary disciple, your first mission will grant you anything you want in the human ranks. What do you need right now?" "Rank 3 cultivation technique of the darkness element." Noah answered immediately, he knew exactly what he needed the most. His body was at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank, only a rank 5 body nourishing method could increase its level. His mind was in the third rank and he lacked the fourth Kesier rune but the solid "Breath" inside his sea of consciousness was constantly enlarging his sphere, the rune wasn''t his priority. His dantian, instead, had just entered the solid stage of the second rank, his cultivation technique was also in the second rank which meant that it could only allow him to reach the beginning of the third rank, Noah would be forced to stop cultivating after that. ''I can reach the peak of the second rank and use the reagent to become a rank 3 cultivator but then my reserves would be shallow, William had advised me to never advance unless I have a cultivation technique suitable for that rank.'' William''s teachings still remained in his mind after all those years. Noah had received a better education in the academy and deepened his understanding about the cultivation journey but William had been his first Master, he trusted his words more than those of his professors. "That is not a problem. You can come here after you complete your first mission and request for it. Your tattoo works like a token, it will register your achievements and merit points. Come, I''ll show you how to use it." Roy spoke and led Noah into the building. The ground floor was a large room filled with youths wearing black robes that inspected a large pillar placed at its center. At the end of the room, a desk that had a simple diagram on its surface was dug inside the wall. The students saw Roy and stopped their activities to politely bow to him, Noah could see how the pillar had many tablets affixed on it. ''Those should be the missions for the disciples in the first rank, they are more than I expected.'' Noah thought as he stared at the around eighty youth bowing toward the man next to him. "Keep going." Roy ordered with a nod and moved toward the stairs placed next to the desk, Noah felt envious gazes shot on his back as he followed him. ''It seems that Roy is quite important. Well, his mother is an elder in the heroic ranks after all.'' Noah didn''t mind the stares and continued to inspect his surroundings, the building was dug inside the exoskeleton which made him further wonder about the actual strength of the Chasing demon sect. ''To excavate so precisely a quasi-rank 6 material means that the sect has a cultivator with a similar power. Was it the so-called Demon? Was it an elder?'' The world in the heroic ranks was still a mystery in Noah''s mind but that didn''t stop him from speculating about the actual power of his sect. The first floor was identical to the ground one, just slightly smaller. Thirty or so cultivators noticed their arrival and bowed toward Roy while keeping their focus on Noah. "The ground floor is for rank 1 cultivators, the first one for those in the second rank, the second one for the third rank, and the third one is limited to those in the heroic ranks. I''ll pick a mission for you this time, I''ll properly introduce all the features of the sect after you complete it." Roy waved his hand to dismiss the bows as he spoke to Noah, the cultivators in the room created a path toward the pillar as Roy neared it. He picked a tablet rather quickly and he turned to hand it to Noah while pointing at it. "Touch it with your horned face." Noah didn''t hesitate and followed his instructions. He easily manipulated the tattoo under his skin and moved it to his palm as he touched the tablet. A stream of information entered his mind, Noah understood the contents of the mission in just a few instants. ''Assassination of a soldier living on island one hundred and fifty-eight, rank 2 cultivator, escorted by guards of the Utra nation.'' The face of the soldier appeared in his mind as well as the escape routes in the area. ''This is quite detailed, it even explains the reason for the assassination.'' Apparently, Noah''s target had once been a spy of the Hive. Then, he double-crossed them and sold information to the representatives of the continent. Undergrounds organizations gave a lot of importance to how they were perceived, they couldn''t allow anyone to trick them and live, the citizens had to be aware of the consequences for the betrayal. Noah nodded after reading the contents of the mission, it seemed quite straightforward and also easy, killing a rank 2 cultivator wasn''t hard with his current level. Only one doubt remained in his mind since that part wasn''t specified in the tablet. "Can I kill the guards too?" Chapter 341: 341. Assassin Bert was a soldier belonging to the faction of the Utra nation in the archipelago. He had a family but working as a guard in island one hundred and sixty didn''t pay him much, he struggled to provide cultivation resources to his children. That''s why he become an informer of the Hive when the chance came, that underground organization gave him generous bribes for his services. Yet, the representatives of the continent were trying their best to suppress any organization that still aimed for the independence of the archipelago. Of course, they wouldn''t go easy on those that worked for the Hive. Bert was careless and his identity as an informer was discovered, he was forced to make a deal to save his family, it was either that or months of torture. ''It didn''t play out so bad, the continent has sent capable cultivators after all.'' Those were his thoughts when he gazed at the guards protecting him. There were five guards, all in the peak of the second rank, their stern auras clearly showed how experienced they were. "When will I be able to see my family?" Bert spoke to the guards. He was at the top of a building on island one hundred and fifty-eight, that habitation was the safe location where he was forced to stay after he double-crossed the Hive. "Soon. The Lords have to eradicate the roots of the separatists in the various islands before it will be safe to leave. We are doing this for your protection Bert, the Hive isn''t known for its mercy." The leader of the guards answered him, Bert knew that his words were on point but he still missed his family, he couldn''t help but become anxious about its situation as the days passed. ''I wouldn''t be in this mess if I wasn''t so weak, the captains in charge of each island make a lot of money, nurturing my children wouldn''t be a problem at that point.'' Bert was just a simple soldier. He was a native of the archipelago and he had managed to become a soldier only thanks to the help of his father who was at the service of some noble. Time passed though. His father died of old age and he had to sell most of his techniques to help his family with the various hurdles of the cultivation journey, the prices in the archipelago were high and he could barely afford the resources useful to him after saving for a long time, he needed to find a way to increase his earnings. However, becoming a captain was hard: They were mostly rank 3 cultivators, the legal factions wanted a cultivator at the peak of the human ranks to handle the human matters. Bert was busy dividing his little income between the various members of his family so he couldn''t hope to enter in the third rank any time soon, he was still in the liquid stage of the second rank after all. ''The Hive paid me a lot but I was found out¡­ Oh well, at least my family is safe now.'' Five guards at the peak of the second rank, a habitation at the top of a building owned by the representatives of the continent, a protective formation that blocked any teleportation ability, there was really nothing to worry about. "Chill Bert, the Hive would need to send a rank 3 cultivator to assassinate you but you are just a minor character, it''s not worth exposing such a resource for this matter." The leader of the guards tried to reassure Bert when he saw his anxious expression. He spoke the truth, only a large team or a rank 3 cultivator could surpass their defensive measures. Yet, a large team would be too evident and a rank 3 cultivator would be overkill, he was quite sure that the Hive would just let go of this matter after some time. Then, a loud knock resounded from the entrance door, the rhythm of the knocks was peculiar, it seemed some kind of code. "Finally, these guys are always late! Captain, you should say a thing or two to the guards of the other shift." One of the guards complained as he stood up and went to the entrance door. "Identify yourself!" He stopped in front of the door before shouting those words. "Blue whale." An answer came from the other side of the door, those words didn''t make sense but the guard seemed satisfied by that reply. As a safe location, precautions were needed. The building owned by the representatives was the first one, the defensive formation the second one, the knocking and the verbal code the third, the guards inside the habitation were the last form of defense. The soldier opened the door but his smile froze when he saw the dark figure covered in blood that waited for him on the other side. He hurriedly tried to seal the habitation again as the defensive protocol ordered but the dark figure was faster, it had already cast a spell when the soldier became visible. A shockwave hit the soldier''s mind, his mental sphere crumbled under the pressure of that mental attack and he fell lifelessly on the floor, leaving the entrance door open. The dark figure then became visible to the other cultivators in the room, its features were covered by the large hooded robe that it wore. The leader of the guards was the first to react, he jumped toward the assassin with all his might. Yet, before he could reach it, the assassin waved his hand and five spherical items were launched in his direction. Then, the assassin half-closed the door, hiding behind it. Five explosions resounded in the room, the entrance door trembled due to the shockwave generated after the blasts. It then opened the door again to stare at the results of its attack. The room was filled with fuming spikes and the cultivators inside were the same, their charred corpses had been stabbed by hundreds of spikes, they couldn''t hope to survive to the Instabilities in that small environment. Chapter 342: 342. Dantians opening The assassin was, of course, Noah. He entered the room and released some black smoke from his hands. The partial Demonic form consumed everything, in just a few seconds, every trace of his presence was destroyed, even the holes on the walls created by the spikes of the Instabilities were removed. He then wielded a white saber and wrote the word "Hive" on the wall, that was a message for the representatives of the continent and a warning for all the informants that tried to double-cross the organization in the future. Then, he left in a hurry. He went for the second floor of the building and entered a simple-looking room, the sound of hurried steps resounded in the building as he closed the door behind him. A few hundreds of Credits appeared in his hands and he hastily placed them on the floor, a large diagram lit up as soon as he did that. Shouts and orders could be heard on the superior floors but Noah didn''t care, he entered in the diagram and a strong pressure was applied on his sea of consciousness while the world in front of him transformed. In just a few seconds, the room disappeared and a purple wall took its place. "How did it go?" Roy was standing right beside the teleportation matrix, he spoke as soon as he saw Noah''s figure. "The betrayer and seven guards are dead, I even left the message as requested by the mission." Roy nodded when he heard Noah''s report and smiled proudly before speaking again. "So, what do you think about our connections with the legal factions?" Noah lowered his hood as he reviewed the events of the mission. As it turned out, that safe location wasn''t as safe as the representatives of the continent thought. The Hive had spies everywhere, years of undisturbed rule allowed it to plant moles in every facility of the archipelago. A teleportation matrix had been inscribed during the construction of that building, the Hive knew that the representatives wanted to use it as a safe location so it had instructed some of its members to create the diagram. Also, it was even aware of the codes needed to pass the security measures of the guards! Noah had only to use the matrix placed in the headquarters of the Chasing demon sect, kill the two patrolling guards on the lower floors, and assassinate the cultivators in the protected room, it was virtually impossible to make any mistake thanks to the deep preparation of the Hive. ''The Hive really is the leading underground organization. It seems that its roots are spread all around the archipelago, I wonder what kind of influence they have on the legal factions.'' "You have corrupted soldiers everywhere, matrixes placed right in their homes, what can even stop you from conquering the archipelago?" Noah asked as he stored the large robe in his space-ring, only a tight suit remained on his body. Roy shook his head at Noah''s question and patted his shoulder as he gestured to follow him. "Even if it''s a bit annoying at times, we are freer if we make the continent think that we are being suppressed. If we really where to take over the archipelago, we would have to face the full power of the continent and we can''t hope to win in the long-run. It''s better to accumulate for the time being until we are strong enough to defend ourselves." ''They are using the representatives of the continent to protect themselves from the continent. It''s no wonder that they prefer this situation, they can control the whole archipelago under the fa?ade of the suppressed organization.'' Noah understood the meaning behind Roy''s explanation but he had spent too much of his life hiding, he couldn''t say that he liked the Hive''s approach. "How strong is the Chasing demon sect inside the Hive? Are we in the top five positions at least?" Once he had assessed the power of the Hive, Noah wanted to understand how influent his sect was in that organization. "Top three I''d say, just our Demon alone is enough to shake the very foundations of the archipelago after all." Roy gave his usual honest answer, there was pride in his eyes when he mentioned the Chasing Demon. Noah was silenced by that statement, he was glad that he didn''t join one of the weak branches of the Hive, he wanted to have access to as many resources as possible. The two of them reached the building where the missions were affixed and they directly went for the first floor. "Use your horned face to activate the formation and use your thoughts to browse through the various items, you should find what you are looking for." Noah followed Roy''s instructions and placed his palm at the center of the formation on the surface of the desk, the tattoo appeared on his hand and reacted to the formation, sending information to Noah''s mind. A list of techniques, resources, and spells useful for rank 2 cultivators appeared in his mind, Noah had only to will it and the many items would be sorted according to his needs. Under the envious gazes of the other disciples in the room, Noah quickly found what he was looking for. ''Rank 3 cultivation techniques of the darkness element! Finally! I have used the one given to me by Eccentric Thunder for all this time, damned Utra country and its restrictions.'' Noah cursed in his mind as he read the descriptions of the techniques. ''Five of them. Two of them are generic cultivation techniques with no restrictions to the aptitude of the cultivator, I can just discard them, they would only slow my training speed.'' Two names disappeared from the list in his mind, leaving only three techniques. ''One is the improved version of my Dark vortex technique, it is an orthodox technique and I should become used to it quite quickly. The other two are the unorthodox ones.'' As an unorthodox sect, the Chasing demon sect obviously had unorthodox cultivation methods that could provide a quicker training speed. Of course, those methods were accompanied by heavy requirements and by dangerous practices, that''s why they were labeled as unorthodox. ''This one seems the fastest one, Bone marrow draining technique, it needs the bones of magical beasts and cultivators of the darkness element to be used but its effects should be amazing with such harsh requirements. However, where would I even find those bones while I''m here?'' Noah discarded that technique too, his attention went on the last name on the list. ''Dantian''s opening.'' Chapter 343: 343. Sec ''Dantian''s opening, rank 3 cultivation technique, restricted to cultivators of the darkness element. The practitioner must pierce its low waist and dantian to create a connection between that center of power and the outside world. Then, it can use any rank 2 cultivation technique to cultivate as if it was in the third rank. This practice puts the dantian under heavy stress so it''s advised to take long periods of rest between each cultivation session.'' Noah read the description of the technique and became interested. ''It should be like the Three Form of the Ashura, it improves your preexisting technique, bringing it to the next rank. Yet, piercing my dantian seems dangerous.'' The centers of power were powerful but also frail. They could contain a large amount of energy but they will need a lot of time to recover if they took some damage. Noah clearly remembered how annoying it was to heal his mental sphere when he first created a Blood companion, he couldn''t help but hesitate a bit when he saw the contents of that unorthodox technique. ''The improved version of the Dark vortex technique is the best choice if I''m looking for stability, the Bone marrow draining and the Dantian''s opening are faster but also dangerous. Also, I don''t have a way to stockpile beasts of the darkness element while I''m in the Coral archipelago so I''m left with two options.'' His mind considered the two cultivation techniques, Noah had simply to choose which one was the best for him. ''The main quality of my Yin body is the healing speed, I should be able to limit the aftereffects of the Dantian''s opening with the liquid "Breath" around my heart¡­'' The more he thought, the more he became interested in the unorthodox technique. It couldn''t be helped, any cultivator would prefer a higher training speed over an average one, anyone would love to improve its strength as fast as it could. Yet, there were always huge risks together with those advantages, Heaven and Earth were fair, they wouldn''t just give away something more powerful for free. ''I''m a criminal, a lone cultivator, a devil, unorthodox techniques suit me the most.'' Noah reached his conclusion. He valued his training speed over his safety and he was used to practicing unusual techniques. The Forging of the Seven Hells, the Elemental forging method, the Body-inscription spell, those were all techniques that didn''t belong to the orthodox world but that had helped him surpassing the limits of his social status. He willed and the formation under his palm shone for a while before an old scroll appeared at its center. Noah stored the scroll in his space-ring and nodded toward Roy, that latter patted his shoulder when he recognized the technique that he had chosen. "Indeed, a true demon, be careful though, I''d hate to see you injured when you just become a disciple of the sect. Now, follow me, I''ll explain the remaining aspects of this place." Roy took Noah to walk through the whole sect, it took them an entire day to complete their tour. Noah could see how the Chasing demon sect had many structures, it resembled a smaller version of the academy. There were the residential areas in the external parts of the headquarters, they were divided by the rank of the disciples living there and had a density of "Breath" that matched their level. Next to each residential area, there were the teleportation matrixes that were connected with the various islands, their position allowed the disciples to react quickly when an unexpected situation appeared on the surface. The internal parts of the sect contained the caves of the elders in the heroic ranks together with the various facilities. The Chasing demon sect had a building where anyone could buy information about the surface, an inventory where precious materials were stored, the building containing the various missions, a research area, and some training areas that offered a better environment compared to the caves. What surprised Noah the most was that all those services didn''t accept Credits as payment but only merit points. ''I guess this method forces everyone to actually work for the sect instead of just relying on their wealth.'' Noah approved that administration, it made the sect more efficient and removed the privileges that a rich person would have, forcing everyone to complete missions if they wanted to have access to the many resources. Also, the missions themselves weren''t only assassinations. The killing of certain troublesome individuals was the main occupation of the sect but the actual assassination missions were few compared to the other ones. Most of them concerned the gathering of information about certain topics, or the spying of some building, or even the bribing of some cultivator with an important position in a legal organization. That, coupled with the merit point system, increased the knowledge and the influence of the sect over the archipelago with each passing day. Knowledge to exploit the plans of the representatives of the continent, bribes and threats to make use of their structures and organizations, assassinations to remove the difficult individuals, these were the things that the disciples ended up doing to accumulate points. There were other peculiar missions that required long undercover operations or trips to the continent but Roy explained that those types of works were mostly handled by the other branches of the Hive. The center of the sect was entirely dedicated to the Chasing Demon, it was its private area, no one was allowed to enter it. In the end, the tour ended and Roy accompanied Noah toward his cave. "The sect doesn''t force you to complete missions but you should do at least one of them every few months, I don''t want to have my mother bugging me because of you." Roy gave those last words to Noah before he left the residential area, Noah remained alone in front of the entrance of his cave. The horned face appeared on his palm and the entrance opened, the purple walls moved to make a path for him. After he entered, the cave sealed itself, leaving him immersed in the purple halo of the single room that was his new habitation. Chapter 344: 344. Burning ''It''s quite simple but the density of "Breath" is not bad.'' Noah judged as he took the "Breath" blessing from his space-ring and placed it at the center of the cave. ''Now, let''s see this new technique.'' He was eager to test the effects of his new cultivation technique, it had been too long since he upgraded the training of his dantian. He sat over the blue mineral and the scroll describing the Dantian''s opening technique appeared in his hands, Noah carefully studied it as he understood its contents. ''It doesn''t seem too difficult, the only problem is the time needed for the dantian to recover after each training session.'' The Dantian''s opening required for Noah to create a link between his dantian and the outside world in order to increase the quantity of "Breath" absorbed during the usage of the Dark vortex technique. Also, he needed to slightly modify his rank 2 technique to welcome the new practice, the vortex had to have the dantian as its center instead of his hands, which meant that his skin would create some sort of obstruction. ''To sum it up, the larger the cut on my waist, the less obstruction the vortex will have. It is quite gory but I wasn''t expecting anything less from an unorthodox technique.'' Hurt yourself to obtain greater advantages, Noah knew that kind of practice too well. ''Well, I should just try it out.'' He had memorized the technique and the "Breath" in the cave was so dense that the time in the outside world wouldn''t impact his cultivation that much, he couldn''t find a reason to delay his training. A black saber appeared in his hand, Noah carefully pointed it at his low waist as he focused all his attention to the regenerative proprieties of his body. Since he became a rank 3 mage, he was able to momentarily halt the innate healing of his Yin body, his control over his whole form had greatly improved when his sea of consciousness reached the last stage of the human ranks. Then, he stabbed his abdomen, the sight of his own skin being cut didn''t even make him blink, the Body-inscription spell had made him too used to that scene. The saber pierced deeply until it reached a small organ that had a shining surface. ''The technique says that even a small hole is enough, I shouldn''t take unnecessary risks.'' Noah reviewed the contents of the scroll one last time before he decisively put strength on the saber, the point of his weapon touched the surface of his dantian and pierced it easily. Noah felt a burning pain coming from his waist, its intensity was similar to when he damaged his mental sphere. He took his time, he stood still in that position until he became used to the painful sensation, only then did he dare to move his saber again. He retracted his weapon slowly, the small hole on the surface of his dantian began to release "Breath", it naturally returned to the outside world without the restrictions of that center of power. Noah acted quickly but not rashly, he traced a long line on his abdomen with his weapon, enlarging the wound. Then, he directly stored the saber and joined his hands over his wound, his thumbs and middle fingers were inserted in the wound as he created the usual dark vortex. Since his fingers were joint inside his flesh, the center of the vortex shifted and neared his dantian that was still releasing the "Breath" stored inside it. At that moment, a great suction force was generated. As soon as the center of the vortex met the dantian, its rotation speed increased drastically! Large amounts of dense "Breath" of the darkness element were captured by the suction force and redirected directly inside the dantian through the hole on its surface. Pain, incredible pain! Noah furrowed his brows and gritted his teeth as the "Breath" entered his dantian and enlarged his form. Yet, the hole on its surface was also affected by that process, Noah felt as if his waist was being torn apart by a burning blade as the hole stretched together with the rest of the organ. However, Noah didn''t stop. He had never seen his dantian improving so quickly, he didn''t want to stop so soon. A few hours passed in that way, Noah had his eyes closed and every pore of his body released cold sweat as he endured the painful practice. Then, his dantian began to show signs of instability as the hole on it became too large, forcing Noah to disperse the vortex and to stop his training. The vortex disappeared and "Breath" started to leave his dantian again but Noah was prepared for that situation. The membrane around his heart compressed itself, sending liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system. Also, his mental energy enveloped his dantian, greatly slowing the speed at which the "Breath" returned to the outside world. About half an hour had to pass before Noah was able to stabilize the condition of his body, the wound on his waist had healed almost immediately but his dantian had needed half of the liquid "Breath" inside the membrane to close the hole. Only then Noah could relax and he slowly laid on the floor of the cave as he assessed his gains. ''This is at least ten times faster than the Dark vortex cultivation technique! However, my dantian needs a few days to completely recover before I''m able to cultivate again. All in all, I say that it''s about five to six times faster.'' Noah calculated in his mind as he began to plan another training schedule that could accommodate his new cultivation technique. ''I should be able to do the Dantian''s opening twice per week but I should limit myself to one for the time being, I would rather take things slowly with such a dangerous practice.'' His mind was in the third rank so maintaining his concentration while enduring the burning sensation didn''t deplete all his mental energy, he was still able to think normally. ''I guess I should practice in the creation of strong wills for now, I don''t have the materials to resume my forging and I don''t really need any new weapon. I should just focus on becoming used to this new practice for now.'' In the purple halo of his room, Noah closed his eyes as his mind used his ambition to form strong and dense wills. Chapter 345: 345. Issue Noah spent the following weeks in his cave. There was no immediate need to complete another mission since he had succeeded in one assassination, which was considered the most important kind of mission. He needed time to become used to his new cultivation technique but he also wanted to explore other aspects of his abilities. He could cultivate only once per week and his sea of consciousness was enlarging autonomously due to the solid "Breath" inside it so he found himself with a lot of free time. However, Noah wasn''t the type of cultivator that would just laze around or rest because his centers of power were already improving, he quickly found something else that could fill his days. Noah had no materials to practice in the Elemental forging method but he could improve the meaning that he injected in the "Breath" before inscribing an item. The power of his creations depended on the level of the materials used and on the strength of the will that he managed to inject, he knew that there was a large room for improvement in the latter. That''s why he would often create a will and inject it inside a portion of the "Breath" inside his mental sphere, he would then evaluate the result only to disperse that "Breath" shortly after. This type of training allowed him to slowly increase his ability in giving a meaning to his "Breath" so to have better effects when he later used it to forge items. Other than that, he also began to study the diagrams in his possession, the form of his martial arts and the lines of his spells contained the meaning of Heaven and Earth, he wanted to see if he could make some progress in the creation of techniques. However, studying diagrams was a slow and painful process, Noah was often forced to stop due to the aftereffects that hit his mental sphere as he isolated the various lines. ''I don''t know why, but this feels wrong.'' He reached that conclusion after another line exploded in his mind, forcing him to stop studying. The scroll describing the Blood drain spell was put back inside the space-ring as Noah laid on a mat to think about that matter. He had decided to study the diagram of the Blood drain spell, he was a rank 3 mage now, he was barely able to endure the isolation of the lines of a rank 2 spell. Also, the Blood drain spell was the spell that interested him the most: Not only did it match Noah''s Demonic form, but it also contained part of the secrets behind the evolution process of the magical beasts! Noah wanted to resume training his body but he knew that obtaining a rank 5 body-nourishing method anytime soon was simply impossible, the only other option was to create a nourishing method himself. Yet, he continued to have the feeling that something was wrong with his approach. ''This is the standard procedure, every cultivator begins with the isolation of the lines of the diagrams. Then, when they are more skilled, they can attempt to create diagrams from their sheer understanding of the nature of the "Breath". I am limited by my inscription method, Heaven and Earth will never allow me to hear the "Breath" but I''ve managed to surpass that hurdle.'' Noah had created a martial art. Its foundation came from the rank 0 Shadow step spell but Noah added "Breath" containing his will to obtain effects that matched a rank 4 martial art. ''This approach though limits myself to copying preexisting diagrams, I will never be able to create something from scratch this way. Also, I can only obtain simple effects while having limited uses of my Shadow sprint.'' Shadow sprint was the name that he gave to his martial art. The Shadow sprint and the Three Forms of the Ashura were on the same level but they were worlds apart when it came to their complexity. The Shadow sprint could only do one thing: Create a propulsion force that greatly increased the speed of the cultivator. The Three Forms of the Ashura, instead, had various effects. Not only it improved a preexisting martial art, but it also created four additional arms and weapons! Then, there were the Three Forms, its complexity was simply on another level. ''Ivor''s legacy doesn''t even mention this issue, the previous practitioners of the Elemental forging method have only focused on inscribed items.'' Noah thought that but he knew that the truth was slightly different. The previous practitioners of his inscription method could only focus on inscribed items because they died or injured themselves before they could attempt in the creation of techniques. The Elemental forging method was dangerous, Noah was the last known practitioner after all. ''I believe that I''m in uncharted territory here.'' Noah sighed as he pondered about the issue. To create a technique or a spell, one needed to understand the meaning behind the behavior of the "Breath" and reproduce it in the form of gestures or diagrams. Yet, Noah was one of the individuals that could not hear the meaning of the "Breath", he was forced to use weaker or unorthodox inscription methods to overcome that hurdle. ''The Elemental forging method steals "Breath" from Heaven and Earth and uses the will of the practitioner to set a meaning to it. Then, it fuses that "Breath" with various materials to create weapons that carry the practitioner''s meaning.'' Noah reviewed the details of his inscription method to find the reason behind his odd feeling. ''Following this concept, I should not use the lines of the diagrams created with the attunement method or similar practices. The logical procedure would be to create diagrams that carry my meaning, but that would be as if I was creating a different language that only I know how to speak. Also, this new language would need the backing of a strong power in order to have the same value as the one of Heaven and Earth.'' Noah continued to consider that new idea, no matter how impossible it looked, that seemed the real usage of his inscription method for the creation of techniques. Chapter 346: 346. Shy ''That would need a will powerful enough to create strong effects all by itself.'' Noah continued to think about the issue of creating techniques with his inscription method. The Shadow sprint was a martial art that used both preexisting diagrams and personal meaning, each one of those elements alone wasn''t enough to reach the level of the fourth rank. Yet, Noah''s conclusion was to use only the personal meaning! ''This isn''t just a matter of strong wills, I would need for my sea of consciousness to dictate meanings that can match those of Heaven and Earth, this seems delusional.'' The "Breath" of Heaven and Earth carried their meaning which had no form. Cultivators that created techniques and spells were able to write that meaning in the form of diagrams or inscriptions so that they could produce the wanted effects. However, Noah was thinking about creating something completely from scratch, using his mind as the entity that generated such meanings. ''This is impossible, at least in my current state. I''m still a human, these are matters handled by entities or Gods, I can''t hope to do something so amazing with my rank 3 sea of consciousness. I guess it''s enough to have reached this conclusion for now.'' Noah ended his brainstorming and decided to put that issue in hold until his mind became stronger. He then gave up on studying the diagrams of his spells, there was no need to waste time and risk his mental sphere if he was going to use another method in the future, he could just resume the isolation of the lines of the diagrams later on if he needed to do so. His days became empty again, Noah would randomly practice in his martial arts as he waited to become used to his new cultivation technique. A total of three months passed, Noah had never exited his cave in that period but he had succeeded in his objective. He had become quite skilled in the Dantian''s opening and he had ultimately decided to practice it only three times every two weeks. The truth was that he could easily cultivate with that technique twice per week but he decided to go easy on his dantian: Not only the constant stress could be harmful, but it would also force Noah to stay locked in his cave for the whole time. His dantian needed time to completely recover after each cultivation session and cultivating too often would put Noah in a state of constant healing. Noah hadn''t forgotten his position, he was a disciple of the Chasing demon sect and he was wanted by at least one big nation, he wanted to be ready to fight at any moment. Three Dantian''s openings in two weeks were the perfect compromise between a fast cultivation speed and a stable battle prowess. The matter with his new cultivation technique was settled so he decided to exit his cave to complete some mission, Roy had warned him not to push the patience of Elder Iris after all. The residential area for the cultivators in the second rank was quite far from the building containing the missions of the sect. The disciples that weren''t cultivating or busy in some mission would use the central space of the area to entertain themselves and engage in discussions accompanied by good food and drinks. When Noah exited his cave, he was surprised to see a large table with fifteen or so cultivators happily sitting around it. ''So, they really gather here, I guess they prefer not to use the taverns on the surface too much.'' Roy had told him that, even if they had control of the archipelago, the representatives of the continent would still strike hard whenever they discovered traces of the Hive. That''s why it was safer to spend time in the sect rather than on the surface, there was no reason to risk being exposed just to have a drink under the sunlight. The disciples on the table were silenced at the sight of Noah''s cave opening, they were aware that a new disciple had joined their ranks but they had only seen him in the building with the missions, he had isolated himself right after he completed his assassination. ''There are even rank 1 cultivators, they should be outer disciples waiting to obtain access to the resources of the sect.'' Noah thought as he gazed at the group at the center of the residential area. The strongest cultivator in the group was in the solid stage of the second rank but Noah had a rank 3 sea of consciousness, it was impossible for those disciples to stop his inspection. Traces of envy and even arrogance could be seen on their expressions as they looked at Noah, it was obvious that they felt superior to that newcomer. ''I guess I should try a bit harder this time, I am their fellow disciple after all.'' Noah didn''t care about their gazes, he could understand the reason behind their pride. He had joined the sect because Roy had taken interest in his personality while most of the other disciples had to either pass a test or had some connection with the elders, Noah seemed privileged in their eyes. Yet, he didn''t want trouble as soon as he entered the sect and he also didn''t want to isolate himself as usual so he thought about interacting with them a little. His gaze was still on the disciples when he nodded before turning to leave in the direction of the mission''s building. "¡­" The cultivators on the table sat speechless at that gesture and stared at his figure disappearing in the distance with wide eyes. Normally speaking, a newcomer would pay its respects to the more experienced disciples and try to establish a peaceful relationship. However, Noah had isolated himself for three months as soon as he completed his mission and, when he had finally come out of his seclusion, he just nodded. "What''s wrong with this guy?" "Maybe he is shy." "Shy? He stood still for five entire breaths before nodding!" "I think that provoking him isn''t the best approach." "Do you think that we should invite him? Since when the older disciples have to take the first step?" "We should still try to befriend him before the other factions do, he seems strong, we should try to make him join our team." Chapter 347: 347. Sea snakes tears Noah was unaware of the conversation of the disciples in the residential area but he didn''t care much about it. He had always been a loner, with few exceptions when it came to people that managed to become important in his life. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting. Yet, Lily was dead, William served the Balvan family, June was in the Utra country, and he had left Nina to search for better cultivation resources, the few relationships that he managed to build seemed to always conflict with his ambition. ''Cultivation is a long and lonely journey, even the heirs of the large-size noble family will eventually exhaust the support that their family can give them.'' Those words resounded in Noah''s mind as he went for the mission''s building. The image of the disciples happily feasting in the residential area was still on his mind, he could clearly see how the majority of them were still unaware of the true nature of the cultivation world. It couldn''t be helped, Noah had really seen too much, his many misadventures only empowered his natural cold demeanor. ''I guess there is no need to rush, I will just focus on accumulating merit points, I will eventually learn to know someone. I am a member of the sect after all, I will spend a lot of time here.'' Noah had always been used to exploit the various organizations that he came in contact with. However, at that time, he was a proper disciple, he needed to work for the greater good of the sect. ''I would have completely avoided joining any organization if cultivation resources weren''t so hard to obtain. Well, the Chasing demon sect has offered me good conditions in the end.'' He was satisfied with his current status. The sect, as an underground organization, provided cover to his identity and it didn''t hinder his progress in any way. The only thing that Noah had to give in return was some mission every few months which didn''t bother him at all. The mission''s building appeared in his eyes and he went directly for the first floor, where cultivators in the second rank were. The usual envious gazes were shot at him but Noah didn''t even look at the others in the room as he pressed his palm on the formation on the surface of the desk. The list of resources suitable for the rank of his dantian appeared in his mind and he calmly sorted out those that were useful to him. Earth pills and, their improved version, Yellow-Earth pills helped the dantian in the breakthroughs between the three stages of a rank but Noah''s mental sphere was too strong, he didn''t need any external help. Curative and situational potions and pills were also useless, Noah had stashed far more of those medicines than needed, he wouldn''t waste merit points for them. There were rank 4 martial arts but their prices were exorbitant, Noah guessed that he had to spend months doing assassination missions only to gather the necessary points for one of them. The spells listed on that floor were in the second rank at best, they couldn''t increase Noah''s battle prowess since he was already a rank 3 mage, using them would probably limit his power instead. ''I should wait for when I gain access to the next floor for the expensive purchases, now I should just stabilize my situation.'' He willed and a list of pills and potions remained in his mind. ''These should all have beneficial effects on the dantian, it''s better to have them and pair them with my new cultivation technique.'' The Dantian''s opening put his center of power under heavy stress. It couldn''t be helped, unorthodox techniques were famous for their fast results but they were also known for their unusual and dangerous practices. The Forging of the Seven Hells had allowed Noah to obtain a rank 3 body without the help of a dantian but he had to risk his life every time he underwent the procedures. In the same way, the Dantian''s opening increased the speed at which his dantian improved because it directly poured "Breath" in its insides and it exploited the suction force of the preexisting cultivation technique to further increase the enlarging speed. However, the price to pay was a wounded dantian. Noah had chosen that technique over the improved Dark vortex because he preferred a fast cultivation over a safe and steady one and because he was confident in the healing capabilities of his body. Yet, he couldn''t help but worry about the long-term repercussions that his center of power might eventually suffer. That''s why Noah was looking for resources that specifically targeted the dantian. ''Heaven pill, Purple seaweed potion, Heat-refining pill¡­ The sect sure has a good variety for even if doesn''t match the academy.'' Noah read the descriptions of the many items and ultimately went for the most expensive ones, he wouldn''t be stingy when it came to his centers of power. ''Sea snake''s tears, this is the most expensive potion in the field. It says that it has great curative effects on the dantian and that it also helps in strengthening its walls. It should be perfect.'' Noah memorized the price and moved toward the pillar where the missions were affixed. ''I should avoid those that require the gathering of information, they are the longest and the less remunerative ones. I should aim for those that concern threats and bribes and do the assassination ones on if necessary.'' Noah didn''t want to gather too much attention to himself. He was always careful whenever he made a move but the assassination missions were the most valued ones in the sect, which meant that they had more repercussions on the archipelago. Noah didn''t want to become the target of some legal organization or end up in a trap. Under the gaze of the other disciples, he registered for five missions that needed for him to threaten certain cultivators that had positions that the Hive could exploit. Then he moved toward the matrixes that would teleport him on the island where his first target was. Chapter 348: 348. Daughter On island one hundred and ninety-one, in a dark tavern illuminated only by the few candles sparsely placed in the hall. An anxious middle-aged soldier was conversing with a hooded figure as they sat on a table in the back of the room. "Please, you must understand! The captain is looking for moles like he has never done before! After the assassination on island one hundred and fifty-eight, every legal faction is keeping its attention on all of us! I can''t give you the reports about the shipments of the next month." The soldier pleaded the hooded figure, he looked pitiful and even scared when he said those words. The hooded figure was, of course, Noah. That was the last of his missions, it had taken him an entire day to complete the other four and he was now doing his best to convince the soldier in front of him to sell the information about the provisions that the continent sent to its representatives in the archipelago. Noah released a bit of his aura, the soldier was only a rank 1 mage, he immediately stopped speaking when he felt the cold pressure enveloping him. "P-please, I, I really can''t." However, the soldier continued to refuse even after that. ''The other four gave up as soon as they sensed the difference in power¡­ It seems that I have to use another approach.'' Noah thought, deciding to change tactic. He took a small sip from his jug and put a hand on the side of his head in a pensive gesture. "Bill, right? You have a daughter named Cora if I''m not wrong." Bill''s expression froze after he heard Noah''s words, his hands began to tremble as he sat silently, waiting for the hooded man to continue. "You have always been happy to work with us, our cooperation allowed her to obtain a rank 1 cultivation technique and a rank 2 martial art. She should be in the liquid stage by now, am I right?" Bill didn''t move, Noah''s words resounded in his mind and he was incapable to provide any answer. However, Noah wanted him to understand the situation he was in. Even more of his aura was released as he repeated his words in a slow but calm manner. "Am I right?" Bill was awakened by that question and timidly nodded, cold sweat traced shining lines on his face as it fell on the wooden table. Noah sighed and shook his head, he purposely accentuated those gestures before he resumed to speak. "They grow up so quickly and the expenses for the techniques can only increase as their level rises. I wonder what she will do when her dad disappears¡­ We might find a job for her so that she can continue to cultivate but this really isn''t something I suggest, I don''t like to see promising kids ruined by lecherous old men." Noah spoke slowly, he wanted to make sure that Bill understood the meaning behind his threat. Bill suppressed an angered shout as he lowered his head. "You Hive are evil, using my child like this¡­" He spoke softly but Noah could clearly hear what he said. Yet, he didn''t care much, he knew that the soldier was right after all. Noah had never used the name of the Chasing demon sect during his missions, it was always the Hive that was mentioned. As an underground organization, the less it was revealed to the public the more mysterious and powerful it would appear. Most normal citizens weren''t even aware that there were different factions, they just labeled any criminal organization of the archipelago as Hive. Noah silently waited for the man to decide, his cold pressure never left his target. Then, Bill sighed and took a scroll from the sleeves of his robe and handed it to Noah. Noah opened it and nodded before storing it inside his space-ring while handing a few thousand Credits to Bill. "See? It was easy, let''s not make it so difficult next time." Noah spoke as he stood up and patted Bill''s shoulder. Then, he simply left the tavern, Bill''s voice ordering more wine reached his ears as he returned to the streets. ''I''m finally done for today.'' Noah internally sighed as he moved toward the deeper and poorer parts of the island. There, he entered an almost-broken wooden cabin where he placed a few hundred Credits on the floor. A matrix appeared behind his feet and the pressure of the teleportation hit his mind, in a few seconds, he had returned to the now-familiar purple environment. He was near the residential area of the disciples in the first rank of the dantian and some of them were silently cleaning the matrixes placed on the purple ground. They noticed Noah''s presence and immediately stood up to perform a polite bow. They were youths in the gaseous stage, they were the outer disciples of the sect who would act as servants until their cultivation reached the liquid stage. Noah nodded at them and moved toward the mission''s building, the missions of that day would provide him with three hundred merit points, they were enough to buy a bottle of Sea snake''s tears. He quickly reached the first floor of the mission''s building and went for the desk, the tattoo on his hand appeared to interact with the formation and confirm the outcome of the missions, the items that he had obtained that day were laid on the formation and disappeared during the process. Behind him, on the pillar, the missions completed by Noah disappeared and new tablets replaced those empty spaces. In a few seconds, a bottle containing an azure and dense liquid together with a few thousand Credits appeared on the desk and Noah promptly stored those items inside his space-ring. The Credits expended for the activation of the matrixes and for the bribes during the missions were refunded by the sect, it would be unproductive to ask for the disciples to pay with their own money after all. Noah didn''t need to pick other missions so he simply returned to his residential area, he was eager to test the effect of the potion. Yet, as he returned to his cave, he saw that five disciples were waiting right in front of its entrance. Chapter 349: 349. Chit-chats A circular table was placed at the center of the residential area of the cultivators in the second rank. Noah was sitting on a simple chair together with the five disciples that were waiting in front of his cave, they had invited him to join them for a talk and he didn''t have a reason to refuse. Noah strived for a peaceful environment where to cultivate, as a member of the sect, it seemed right to at least maintain friendly relationships with the other disciples. Yet, as the minutes passed, he started to become impatient. "Zach, right? Have a taste of this wine, I personally bought it on island forty-nine." "Why don''t you tell us more about yourself? I bet that your story must be amazing!" "You sure are good looking! We should go together to the brothels on island ninety-nine, I bet that they will give us a discount if you were to come with us!" The conversations of the disciples differed a lot from what Noah had expected. ''Did they invite me just to have a drink? Where are the prideful stares from before?'' Noah thought as he kept shaking his head every time someone asked him a question, he simply continued to take sips from his cup, waiting for the conversation to reach the important topics. However, it seemed that their chit-chats had no end. "The Chasing demon sect has really a shortage of female cultivators, we are forced to go on the surface every once in a while or we will go crazy!" "The best wine is found in the islands number twenty and below but this one isn''t bad at all!" "Where do you come from? Are you a native of the archipelago? Did you come here from the continent?" ''Are these the normal conversations that cultivators have? Damn, I miss June''s surprise attacks, they were easier to endure.'' Noah sighed as he remembered the silver-haired wild girl that only wanted to surpass him. ''She might have surpassed my cultivation level already thanks to the inheritance¡­ Oh well, I have wasted a lot of time escaping after all.'' His mind began to wander as he reviewed the events in the Utra country, the words of the disciples around him became a soft background noise as he lost himself in his memories. ''I wonder what happened to Ivor¡­ Now that I think about it, he was the person closest to me in the eyes of the Royals.'' Ivor was only interested in passing down his inscription method, his mind had been on the verge of falling apart for a long time, only his obsession allowed him to endure the waves of pain that his cracked mental sphere constantly radiated. ''He is either dead or imprisoned.'' That was the obvious conclusion that Noah reached. He knew that investigations about his background had been made after his disappearance, he was entangled in too many obscure matters after all, the Royals wouldn''t just let him go. However, Noah didn''t feel bad about him. There was a tacit understanding between him and Ivor, the latter knew that Noah had many secrets and that he would eventually leave so he did his best to pass down his knowledge. Noah, instead, knew that Ivor''s life was hanging on a frail thread, only a soft blow was enough to take it away. ''He would have approved my actions, his inscription method is alive and I''m planning to surpass all my predecessors. I should have left more wine though.'' "Zach? Zach! Are you listening?" Noah''s thoughts were interrupted by those words, he returned to reality only to find out that the five disciples were staring at him with displeased gazes. "No, I wasn''t. Listen, why don''t you just get to the point? I am busy." He couldn''t endure the chit-chats any longer and just gave voice to his thoughts. The disciples were surprised by his rash words but they quickly recovered and wore stern expressions, the friendly smiles from before disappeared in less than an instant. ''That''s more like it.'' Noah liked that behavior more, even if it was slightly threatening, it was honest. "New disciples usually pay their respects to their seniors." The strongest of the group spoke, his peak rank two cultivation level was radiated together with his words. "Seniority is a matter of strength and no one on this table is stronger than me." Noah arrogantly replied. His dantian might have been weaker than that of the disciple but he was a rank 3 mage! That difference in power could surpass any larger reserve of energy. The disciple didn''t like Noah''s words and his eyes sharpened as he spoke to him in a calm voice. "Oh, would you like to prove it? I, Perry Seaborn, challenge the new honorary disciple to a battle! Do you have the guts to accept the challenge?" Perry''s words made the other four disciples gasp in surprise as they moved their gazes toward Noah, eagerly waiting for his answer. However, Noah directly refused. "No." It was a simple word but the atmosphere created by Perry''s heroic challenge was disrupted with it. ''It was a waste of time.'' Noah internally shook his head as he stood up and moved to return to his cave. "Wait! Don''t you have any honor? First, you claim yourself as the strongest among us and then you refuse my challenge?" Noah turned his head only to see that even Perry had stood up and was pointing his hand toward him. Noah simply shrugged his shoulders at that reprimand as he explained his intentions. "What''s the point of fighting? Why would I fight only to prove my strength? Pride is for the orthodox sects, we fight for benefits." The disciples listened to Noah''s words and their eyes widened in understanding, they couldn''t help but think that his mindset was that of a proper demon! A tinge of shame appeared on Perry''s face as he listened to his words, Noah was right, they were assassins and criminals, what kind of honor would they even have? "The winner gets a three thousand merit points from the loser, is that ok with you?" Perry changed tactic which worked as he hoped. Noah became immediately interested in that offer and turned completely to face the man at the peak of the second rank. "I accept your challenge then." Chapter 350: 350. Battle The Chasing demon sect was filled by excited rumors in the following days. Perry, the strongest disciple in the residential area of the rank 2 cultivators, had challenged Noah, the new honorary disciple of the sect. The rumors, as per their nature, didn''t tell the exact events that led Perry to issue the challenge. "I heard that Zach was so disrespectful that he refused to even look at Perry!" "No. I heard that Senior Perry was forced to challenge Zach because he wouldn''t accept his honest pointers." "I actually heard that Zach refused Perry''s challenge until he offered him merit points. I even heard that Zach accused Perry of being more suitable for the orthodox sects." ''Words run faster than light, how did I even end in this situation.'' Noah thought as he heard the many voices coming from the stages around him. He was in one of the training areas of the sect, the purple terrain was filled by inscriptions and many seats were placed all around the battle area. Only seventy percent of the seats were filled, the audience was mostly made of rank 1 and 2 cultivators with only a few rank 3 disciples that had connections with Perry. Of course, Noah was unaware of Perry''s title as the strongest disciple in the second rank and didn''t also know about his connections with the rank 3 cultivators that were on the stages. Perry was on the other side of the arena, his tight gray robe coupled with his burly body gave him a heroic aura, a few women in the audience found themselves unable to move their gazes away from him. Noah, on the other hand, seemed incredibly plain. He wore his usual black suit and his short but messy hair conflicted with his cold expression. Also, his body was slender rather than bulgy and he was shorter than Perry, if looks could decide the outcome of a battle, Noah would have lost already. However, some spectators didn''t have the same thoughts as the rest of the audience. Noah didn''t radiate any kind of aura, not even a whiff of his cultivation level could be discerned by the inspections of the cultivators in the second rank. Those in the third rank, instead, stared at him with surprised expressions and even with traces of interest, they seemed to have picked up some clues about Noah''s power. Roy walked from behind Noah and neared his mouth to his ear as he whispered a few words. "The rules of the sect are laxer when it comes to official challenges but try to go easy on him, he is a promising disciple." After those warnings, Roy moved toward the stages, bows were performed by the cultivators that he passed by. ''As I suspected, he knows about my unusual situation.'' Noah thought. He knew that Roy was stronger than him so there was a high chance that he had understood his power. Also, he had made Noah stop on the first floor of the mission''s building, meaning that he knew that he was still a rank 2 cultivator. ''Even Elder Iris has laid her eyes on me, it was impossible to hide this information after all.'' The information Noah was thinking about was, of course, his rank 3 sea of consciousness! He had initially hoped to hide that quality until he became rank 3 cultivator but he had met cultivators far stronger than him as soon as he entered the sect, he simply couldn''t hide his power from them. However, Noah soon accepted that outcome, he was a proper member of the sect, the information about his power could only be divulged to other disciples but never to outsiders. ''Let''s see, how should I approach this?'' Noa began to think about the imminent battle. He was completely confident in his capability to defeat Perry but he had to limit himself in the battle. That wasn''t a fight to the death after all, it was only a simple spar to decide who was the stronger between the two of them. ''The Demonic form is an absolute no, it''s better to not use the Demonic swords either. The Mental tremor is another no, Perry''s sea of consciousness would just shatter under that spell. Warp and martial arts then.'' Noah set the fighting style in his mind and begun to walk toward Perry. The audience was silenced by that gesture and they raised their concentration, waiting for the battle to begin. Perry didn''t waste time, as soon as he saw Noah''s near him, he did the same, wielding a short sword as he jumped at the man in front of him. Two white sabers appeared in Noah''s hands and four additional arms materialized as he prepared himself for the imminent clash. Then, the six sabers met the short sword. Noah found himself forced to use three weapons to defend from the explosive power behind the sword, it seemed that Perry''s body had the strength of a giant as he slashed vertically. However, even if he was sent back, Noah managed to defend and his other sabers were able to land on Perry''s body. The first clash ended quickly, Noah was pushed back for a few meters but he was unharmed. Perry, instead, remained still in his position as he stared at the three cuts on his robe. The skin behind the robe showed some light wounds, a few drops of blood came out of them before the regenerative proprieties of his body healed them. ''Strange. His body is clearly oriented toward strength and defense but he uses such an unsuitable weapon, maybe his martial art will be different.'' Noah analyzed the clash and found something amiss in Perry''s fighting style. "Shall we get serious?" Perry asked with a smile but Noah only answered with a shrug of his shoulders. Perry then charged again, his massive body resembled a horned bull pouncing at Noah as he stretched the short sword right in front of him. The tip of the sword began to shine with a brown light and his body accelerated, releasing a gray smoke due to the friction force with the air. Staring at the incoming horned fuming figure, Noah knew that he had to dodge. Chapter 351: 351. Purple golems Time seemed to slow down as Noah began to analyze Perry''s attack. ''I don''t sense mental energy so it''s a martial art but I can''t figure out its element. It''s a fast and strong move, I can''t block it even with the Second Form.'' Noah concluded, Perry gained speed as it continued to charge toward him. His martial arts had always focused on speed and precision, his attacks couldn''t match a rank 4 martial art that focused on sheer power. Perry became closer, Noah could feel how the temperature in the area rose due to his seemingly unstoppable charge. Then, when Perry''s horn was about to hit Noah, a shockwave resounded on the battlefield. Noah activated the Shadow sprint, after he could store solid "Breath" in his mental sphere, the number of usages of his martial art that he was capable of increased drastically, he had more than sixty sprints available at that moment! The sudden increase in speed made Noah disappear right in front of Perry''s eyes, the latter was unable to stop himself, he crashed on the defensive layer that covered the battlefield, making the inscriptions on it flicker to no end. Perry turned to stare at his opponent, a long cut had appeared on his robe but there was no blood coming out of it, only a white mark was present on his skin. ''His defense also increases when he performs that move, this might be annoying.'' Noah analyzed again. He had slashed Perry''s side when he evaded his attack but the outcome was disappointing, he didn''t manage to inflict any damage. "You are not using the full power of your martial art!" Perry angrily complained. "Why would I? I can just continue to dodge until you are exhausted, your martial art suffers against fast opponents." Noah covered his lies with his analysis of Perry''s moves. It was true that the weakness of his martial art was its scarce maneuverability but Noah''s usages of the Shadow sprint were limited. ''At this rate, I will deplete the "Breath" in my mind before I manage to pierce his defenses.'' Noah was trying to contain himself. Not only that battle was a friendly spar and gravely injuring someone was something to avoid, but Noah was also heavily restricted. He knew that, in order to win, he had to surprise Perry with his strongest move when he was defenseless. Luckily for him, he was a rank 3 mage. His mind was so strong that he could easily ponder about the battle and create tactics as he fought, he had discovered the weakness of Perry''s attack after just one move after all. "It seems that you are underestimating me!" Perry shouted in anger as he resumed his charging form with his small sword stretched in front of him. Noah watched the bull-like shape coming at him again and dodged at the last second thanks to his martial art, he slashed toward one of the natural weak points of the human body that time. His white sabers cut the skin on the frontal part of Perry''s elbow, he was satisfied to see that a few red lines had appeared on his weapons. However, just when he was about to turn to watch Perry land on the defensive layer, a sense of danger hit his mind. Perry performed another technique, his charge suddenly did a V-shaped turn and aimed toward Noah''s new position. The audience gasped when they saw that Noah was taken by surprise, in their minds, it was impossible for him to avoid that attack from such a short distance. BOOM! A loud sound resounded in the area. Perry crashed on the defensive layer again, no sign of Noah could be seen in front of him or on the ground. "I have to admit, I didn''t think it was possible to make such a sharp turn with your speed and frame. Tell me the truth, that move pushes your body to the limit so you can''t use it often, right?" Noah''s voice resounded in the arena but Perry couldn''t find him anywhere. Yet, when he looked toward the audience, he saw that they were staring at a point mid-air. Only then did he raise his head and found his opponent. Noah had a calm expression as two pairs of wings behind his back flapped rhythmically, his feet would kick the air from time to time to activate the Shadow step spell that kept him flying. Perry didn''t answer Noah''s question, his eyes sharpened when he realized that his opponent could fly. Generally speaking, only cultivators in the heroic ranks or specific spells of rank 3 cultivators could allow someone to fight in the air. That''s why most martial arts and spells in the lower ranks had flying opponents as a weakness, they simply weren''t created to face such enemies. That was one of the reasons why Noah didn''t let go of Echo to create a new blood companion with his inscription method, he valued his ability to fly more than any other little increase in strength. "You don''t have a way to hit me up here, do you? Do you want to give up?" Noah nonchalantly asked, he only wanted the merit points so that he could return to his cave to cultivate, that battle was a complete waste of time in his mind. However, Perry snorted at his proposal and placed the sharp side of his sword on the palm of his hand. Then, he retracted it with a fast gesture. Noah became interested, he sensed that mental energy was being used, Perry was finally using a spell! Drops of blood fell on the ground, his palm bleed from the cut created during the previous gesture. ''It doesn''t heal like the other injuries. Also, I feel that some sort of connection has been created between his palm and the ground.'' Noah analyzed everything, nothing could escape the probing of his mind. The ground began to shake, small boulders started to come out of the terrain which morphed as they reached the surface. Purple humanoid figures about one meter tall appeared on the surface and began to surround Perry, in just a few seconds, more than twenty golems were formed. Chapter 352: 352. Caring ''Earth element!'' At the sight of the purple golems, Noah understood Perry''s aptitude. ''The terrain here comes from the surface, it''s not part of the exoskeleton of the Purple corals.'' Perry''s spell made Noah realize that the battlefield was created on top of the exoskeleton and wasn''t a part of it. ''It makes sense, the sect probably wanted to create a fair environment where its disciples could challenge themselves.'' The environment could affect a cultivator''s battle prowess. Fighting underwater would be detrimental for cultivators of the fire element while it would favor those with a water aptitude. In the same way, a cultivator of the earth element would have heavy restrictions if it could not control the terrain around him. The exoskeleton of the Purple coral was a quasi-rank 6 material while Perry was only a rank 2 mage, it was impossible for him to affect it. The golems around Perry began to move, they created a trampoline with their arms which pushed the golems that jumped on it in the air. Noah saw how three golems flew in the air toward him, their movements were clunky, giving them a funny aura. However, there was nothing funny in the power that they held. Noah felt a dangerous sensation coming from the golems that were nearing him, they were slow but they seemed heavy, facing them wasn''t the smart approach. That''s why he simply dodged, they couldn''t fly after all, they had no way to follow Noah as he flew toward another part of the battlefield. Yet, just as he dodged the first jumping golem, it detonated, creating a shockwave so loud that even Noah''s balance was affected. Noah didn''t have time to adjust his position when two other explosions happened. BOOM BOOM! The audience was protected by the protective layer but the weaker disciples on the stages had to cover their ears to protect themselves from the loud sound. Noah''s balance was in chaos, he couldn''t control his wings anymore and he could only use the Shadow step spell to land safely on the ground. Perry didn''t let go of that chance, he charged as soon as he discerned Noah''s landing spot. Yet, when Perry was about to hit him, twenty ethereal sabers surrounded Noah''s figure, they slashed recklessly at Perry, covering his body with injures as Noah dodged again. Perry crashed on the defensive layer, his eyes showed his surprise as he turned to look at Noah. He saw how black veins had appeared on the white skin of his opponent and a cold aura was radiated from his figure. First Form of the Ashura! Liquid "Breath" inside his body! Two of Noah''s abilities were revealed, it seemed that Perry''s spell had finally forced Noah to use part of his real power. ''My rank 3 mental sphere can''t defend against such a powerful spell by itself, it''s time to end this.'' Noah thought about the situation and didn''t hesitate to become serious. Perry was a peak rank 2 cultivator after all, his spells expressed the full power of his level. On the other hand, Noah was only using his martial arts and relying on his superior battle experience to fight him, without using proper defensive methods, he couldn''t defend against the formless shockwaves that the explosions of his puppets created. Spells could only be blocked by other spells or by techniques on a higher level. Noah knew that his Demonic form would have been enough to annihilate the purple golems and block Perry''s spell once for all but he would probably kill his opponent in the process. ''If I can''t defend, I''ll simply attack.'' Those were Noah''s thoughts as he charged toward Perry. The latter wasn''t surprised, more blood fell from his palm which generated more golems as it came in contact with the ground. At the same time, the golems that he had left behind ran toward him, Noah found himself encircled by more than thirty golems before he could even reach Perry. However, he knew that they couldn''t explode. He was too close to Perry, the shockwave would hurt both of them, the golems were there only as a form of obstruction. The First Form of the Ashura was performed, more than twenty ethereal sabers attacked the golems around Noah, opening a path toward his opponent. Perry focused on generating more golems, his face paled as more blood was poured on the ground. ''He wants to see who will last longer!'' Noah understood Perry''s intentions. ''This spell is probably his strongest attack, I just need to beat it and the battle will be over.'' Noah''s intentions were clear, he wanted to destroy all the golems in front of him and reach Perry. However, no matter how much he cut those puppets, they didn''t stop moving, even those cut in half would still crawl toward him to hinder his advance. Little by little, Noah was forced back. It was the first time that he was losing due to the numerical disadvantage, his martial arts had always been perfect for those situations but they were still martial arts, they couldn''t match the spell of a rank 2 mage. When Noah was forced to retreat at ten meters of distance from Perry, three of the smallest golems jumped recklessly on him and began to radiate a dangerous aura. ''They are going to explode!'' Noah knew that Perry was using that chance to inflict the final blow. ''How caring of him, he is making sure that I won''t die.'' There were bigger golems around him but only the smallest and maimed ones had jumped on him, it was obvious that the power behind their explosions would be lower. ''I guess I''ll just show him that he never had a chance from the beginning then.'' Black flames surrounded his body as soon as the first golem exploded. Then, the other two followed. An even louder shockwave resounded in the area, the protective layer flickered under the aftereffects of Perry''s spell. A purple cloud was generated in the middle of the encirclement, looking at it, Perry was sure that Noah didn''t manage to use one of his sudden acceleration. Yet, just as he was about to relax, black flames appeared next to him. One thick saber curved the air as it slashed vertically toward his face, the killing intent behind the weapon was so dense that he found himself unable to move, he could only watch as the blade continued in his upward path. The tip of the saber seemed to miss him, only a small cut appeared on the point of his nose, a drop of blood fell on the ground as the flames disappeared and Noah''s unharmed figure became visible. Chapter 353: 353. Factions Perry was speechless. Noah stood still, his gaze was fixed on him and the pressure that his mind was capable of was completely unfolded. Perry couldn''t move, his mind worked at full speed to analyze the recent events but he didn''t find any mistake in his battle tactic. The only possible conclusion was that Noah had always been holding back. ''He didn''t even use an offensive spell, actually, he only used one spell from the beginning of the battle.'' Those were his thoughts as he slowly understood the situation. He knew that the attack from earlier didn''t miss by chance, Noah had purposely held back and retracted his sabers at the last second, Perry couldn''t help but feel beaten under every aspect. Noah''s cold gaze coupled with his suffocating aura was a clear message, Perry knew that he would receive mercy only once in that fight. His legs lost strength and he fell on his knees, realizing that he could have just died if Noah didn''t hold back made him lose any will to fight. "I¡­ I surrender." Those soft words reawakened the silent audience, they had been holding their breath since the three golems in the encirclement exploded. Then, they too understood. Those in the second and first rank couldn''t sense the pressure that Noah was radiating but one thing was clear in their minds: Noah had won, he was the strongest rank 2 cultivator of the sect! Cheers and loud comments could be heard, Noah was a disciple of the sect after all, the other members were happy to see that the power of the Chasing demon sect had increased once more. Noah stretched his hand toward Perry, a horned face appeared on his palm as he waited for the latter''s reaction. Perry understood the meaning behind his gesture, his hand reached Noah''s one and the two tattoos interacted with each other. Three thousand merit points were transferred to Noah, he nodded at Perry when the transaction was over and pulled his arm to help him stand up. Perry had still traces of confusion on his face but a tinge of respect had appeared, he was by no means weak but he had been outclassed in every aspect by the new honorary disciple. "The sect is lucky to have you." He performed a polite bow as he said those words, Noah shook his head as he patted his shoulder to console him. "Don''t be too hard on yourself. You are definitely strong for your level, you simply never had a chance to beat me." Noah was a rank 3 mage, just one of his offensive spells would have been enough to destroy Perry. Perry seemed to understand something, he was a rank 2 mage nearing the peak of the rank after all, being suppressed by a mage on his same level was impossible. ''Unless¡­ Unless he is a rank 3 mage!'' That realization hit his mind and caused waves of shock. No matter how impossible it sounded, that was the only conclusion that Perry could come up with. Noah had always been able to react and to analyze each one of Perry''s attack and that last burst of killing intent didn''t belong to the world of the rank 2 mages. His mind was in chaos as he stared at the honorary disciple that had already turned around to leave, Perry suddenly felt glad that he didn''t provoke him more than that. ''This is settled, now I can finally test the effects of the Sea snake''s tears.'' Noah thought as he walked outside of the arena but he stopped for a few seconds when he felt that a few powerful gazes were trying to probe him. He turned his head and saw that the rank 3 cultivators in the audience had incredulous expressions as they watched him, they were either amazed by Noah''s peculiarity or surprised that he had noticed their gazes. ''Oh well, this is a safe environment, they would have found out about my mental sphere anyway at some point.'' Noah covered his figure in layers of mental energy and left the area to return to his cave, his methods couldn''t completely prevent the rank 3 cultivators from understanding his level but they could at least confuse the results of their probing. Roy appeared in front of him as he entered one of the purple tunnels, he had a satisfied expression as he nodded at Noah. "You did well, the other disciples will respect you from now on." Noah shrugged his shoulders at that remark. "If respect allows me to cultivate in peace, then it is welcome." Roy sighed at that answer and followed Noah as he continued to return to his cave. "The other factions have taken interest in you, my next days will be filled by meetings with the other rank 3 cultivators because of you." Roy''s comment made Noah slow his pace, he knew that there were factions inside the sect but he wasn''t clear about their areas of interest. "Can''t I just join your faction?" He asked. Roy was honest and seemed ready to solve any of his doubts, if Noah could choose, he would rather pick him as his captain. However, Roy shook his head at that question. "I handle the recruitment and supervise the human matters inside the sect while answering directly to my mother. Also, I''m forbidden from creating a faction: I have the backing of a cultivator in the heroic ranks after all, how could the other factions compete with mine if I were to form one?" Noah listened to his words and understood a few things. The first one was that every faction had a rank 3 cultivator in charge, those in the heroic ranks couldn''t influence or help in human matters. The second one was that he would be forced to join a faction at some point, Noah knew that the missions in the building were just the most basic occupations inside the sect, the real gains had to be where the powerful cultivators were. "Could you tell me more about the factions?" Chapter 354: 354. Meeting Noah was in his cave, a deep wound was on his waist as he cultivated the Dantian''s opening technique. "Breath" of the darkness element was attracted inside the dark vortex, entering his dantian and enlarging its form. That was the second time that week that he cultivated, only three days had passed since his last training session. After a few hours, he stopped, injecting the liquid "Breath" in the membrane around his heart inside his circulatory system to heal his injuries. In about ten minutes, all his wounds were healed. Then, he took a bottle containing a dense azure liquid from his space-ring and drank half of its contents. A cold sensation filled his low waist, Noah focused his mental energy on that spot to inspect the effects of the potion. His dantian, which seemed perfectly healthy before, showed signs of further healing. The scars created after Noah''s unorthodox cultivation technique slowly disappeared and the walls of the organ seemed to assume a metallic nature under the nourishment of the potion. After half an hour, the cold sensation disappeared and Noah heaved a sigh of relief. ''This potion is indeed perfect for my situation, my dantian feels stronger already.'' Noah thought as he retracted the mental energy from his body. That was the third time that he used the Sea snake''s tears and he could clearly feel the positive effects that it had on his center of power. Not even two weeks had passed since his battle with Perry and had exited his cave only once in that period. The reason for that was because he wanted to spend his merit points to purchase more potions. ''Each bottle is enough for two treatments. This is my second bottle and half of its contents are gone, considering that I still have nine bottles left, I can cultivate peacefully for nine weeks and a half.'' With the help of the potion, Noah resolved himself to perform the Dantian''s opening twice per week, meaning that he would expend one bottle of the Sea snake''s tears each week. ''A bit more than two months, I will be forced to complete more missions after that.'' After testing the effects of the potion, Noah didn''t dare to cultivate without it. Unorthodox techniques were dangerous, Noah had been forced to train in the Forging of the Seven Hells in the past because the Balvan family didn''t give him any other option. Yet, this time, he was training in a dangerous technique by his own will. Since his cultivation speed was already fast, he would rather train safely now that he found a method to reduce the aftereffects of his technique. Also, he had nothing to do in the days between each training session, he could easily use that time to gather merit points. ''Roy should be almost over with the meetings, I wonder if the various leaders will agree to my request.'' The last time that he spoke with Roy, Noah had asked information about the various factions. Yet, Roy could only give him a general overview of their fields of interest, he wasn''t aware of the actual benefits that each faction enjoyed. He was only a supervisor after all, he had to make sure that there weren''t major conflicts inside the sect while recruiting new members, he wouldn''t investigate the factions as long as they did their job. The Chasing demon sect had the Chasing Demon as its leader, that alone was enough to suppress any thought that could harm the sect. It must be said that there were methods to safely break the restrictions applied by the oaths, a strong power and peculiar practices were needed but it was possible. Heaven and Earth were fair, if methods to bind people existed, then methods to free them had to exist too. For the members of the underground organizations, gaining access to those methods wasn''t hard. Both the Hive and the representatives of the continent had them, their interrogations would always be fruitless if the oaths were unbreakable. Yet, with such a mysterious and fearsome leader, every disciple of the Chasing demon sect was proud of its status, they belonged to one of the strongest organizations of the archipelago after all. Since Noah couldn''t discover much about the factions, he had ultimately asked Roy to set up a meeting with the various leaders or their representatives, he would rather be the one to decide which side he picked. Another week passed but no traces of Roy could be found. Noah didn''t mind it, he limited himself to cultivate during that period, his dantian was progressing incredibly quickly, Noah guessed that he would reach the peak of the second rank in less than three years. Then, a buzz hit his mind, Noah stopped practicing his martial art as he picked an inscribed item from his space-ring. That item had the form of a notebook, it had been given to him by Roy after their last conversation. Noah opened the notebook to the first page, the name "Roy" could be seen written on it and Noah probed it with his mental energy when he saw that it was shining. ''The meeting is tonight, in the residential area of the cultivators in the third rank. I''ll be there as a mediator.'' Roy''s words resounded in his mental sphere. The notebook was a simple inscribed item that could store the mental imprint of a mage, it created a connection between another item of the same kind and allowed for two cultivators to send messages even when they were far apart. Of course, the communication distance depended on the level of the mage and on the quality of the item, Noah''s notebook was only in the first rank, it barely covered the surface of the sect. Noah closed the notebook and prepared himself, the sect was underground but it wasn''t hard to understand what time it was for a cultivator, especially for someone with a rigid schedule like Noah. A few hours later, he came out of his cave. A few disciples were sitting on the ground and happily conversing but they stood up and performed a polite bow when they saw the entrance of Noah''s cave opening. "Zach, would you like to join us?" One of the strongest disciples tried to invite him but Noah shook his head. "I''m sorry, I have an important matter to handle. Let''s do it another time." Noah''s answer was plain but it satisfied the disciple who simply watched him entering one of the purple tunnels to leave the residential area. Chapter 355: 355. Clarifications The residential area of the rank 3 cultivators was placed near the center of the sect, the matrixes in that area led to the islands that were more important to the sect or toward those that were more valued by the representatives of the continent. Rank 3 cultivators were the most powerful asset in the human ranks, of course they would be assigned in the areas connected to the high-value zones. Noah had only gone once in that area when Roy accompanied him on the tour of the sect. The density of the "Breath" there was far higher, it even surpassed that of Noah''s cave when his "Breath" blessing was placed on the ground. ''I bet that the concentration of "Breath" inside the caves surpasses even that generated by the big boulder that I found in the Royal Inheritance¡­ If only I could train here.'' Noah''s mind wandered as he thought about that. That area was specifically created for cultivators in the third rank, their dantian was stronger, they could withstand such density. Noah had personally tested the aftereffects of cultivating in an area unsuitable for his cultivation level: he had to take a long period of rest after the events in the Royal Inheritance and his dantian was so stressed that his breakthrough to the second rank had been delayed because of that. ''Now that I think about it, I''ve really been reckless at that time. If I hadn''t shared that "Breath" between my body and dantian, I might have had harsher repercussions.'' Noah thought as he reviewed those past events. ''Well, I was still in the same nation of the Balvan family, I needed to become stronger as fast as I could. Now I''m doing the same but at least I''m learning to control myself.'' Noah desired power over everything, his entire life was built on that pure pursuit. That''s why he found it hard to control himself whenever a chance to accelerate his growth appeared, methods to quickly improve the cultivation level were everyone''s dream and Noah wasn''t an exception, he yearned for those even more than other cultivators. Yet, as time passed, he learned that there weren''t shortcuts when it came to the cultivation journey. Heaven and Earth were fair, they would always place a price next to such methods. Even if Noah was to obtain a cave in the residential area of the cultivators in the third rank, he would probably avoid cultivating there, he won''t use it as a stable training spot at least. A stable growth was always the best option, unorthodox techniques pushed their practitioners to the limit already, anything that surpassed them would only create more harm than good. Noah spotted Roy as soon as he entered the residential area, he waved his hand, gesturing to near him. An open cave was behind him, Noah could sense that there were other people inside it but he couldn''t understand their cultivation level. ''Rank 3 mages.'' He immediately reached that conclusion, the only beings that could hide from his investigation were mages with a stronger mental sphere than his and he didn''t believe that cultivators in the heroic ranks would be interested in him. Roy entered the cave when Noah reached him, he waited for him to enter before closing the entrance. The outside light was blocked but the same purple halo illuminated the insides of the cave, Noah could clearly make out the contents of the large room that filled the main hall. The cave was large and had many rooms, it was far more luxurious than Noah''s one. A few beds and a large table were placed on the ground, six cultivators could be seen sitting around the table and they began to inspect Noah as soon as he became visible. Noah didn''t falter under those powerful gazes, his mental waves fought the probing of the external forces, managing to hide some of his power. The cultivators'' eyes widened before they nodded enthusiastically, their interest rose when they saw that Noah could really defend against their minds. Roy pointed a chair and Noah followed his silent order, he sat there, on the opposite side of the other cultivators. Then, Roy sat between him and the others, he was acting as a mediator, his position on the table was a sign of that status. "Let''s start with a few clarifications." Roy began to speak as a few servants bought wine and food, he continued only after they left. "This is my cave, we are on neutral ground so your status can''t be used to suppress the representatives of the other factions." He eyed the other cultivators before he pointed at Noah. "Zach is a cultivator in the solid stage of the second rank but also a rank 3 mage. This achievement alone speaks for his talent so obtaining him will surely add a rank 3 cultivator to the ranks of your faction in the future." Noah listened to Roy''s words and analyzed them as he gazed at the reactions of the representatives. ''They were willing to set up a meeting only because they were sure that I will enter the third rank of the dantian, I don''t believe that they would go through this process with every member of their faction.'' The biggest obstacle in the breakthroughs between ranks was the control that a cultivator had on the process. To succeed, the cultivator had to contain the impurities expelled by the solid "Breath" and use them to improve its dantian, a great amount of concentration was needed. If the dantian didn''t manage to improve its qualitative form because too many impurities escaped its walls, then the breakthrough would fail, heavily injuring the cultivator in the process. However, Noah''s mind was far stronger than his dantian, there was virtually no chance that he would fail in the breakthrough. That''s why the envoys and Roy were so sure that he would enter the third rank in the future and that it was better to make him join a faction now rather than then. "Zach, however, isn''t his real name. His real identity is that of Noah Balvan, I''m sure that some of you are already aware of that name." Roy suddenly revealed that information, Noah could feel six surprised gazes staring at him with even more intensity than before. Chapter 356: 356. Introductions Information about Noah had been on the archipelago for a few months by then. The Chasing demon sect, as an underground organization, was aware of the reports sent by the continent. Criminals and traitors could be used in many ways by the Hive, it was normal to have at least a general overview of those individuals. "I''m sorry but it seems that my faction can''t take him, he is too renown." One of the representatives on the other side of the table spoke. "I know, Holly, but I believe you will still be interested in which faction he joins." Roy replied to her and she nodded in answer before moving her gaze back on Noah. "My faction handles the gathering of information throughout the archipelago. Our members are usually asked to join legal organizations to pass information to us. I believe you can understand why I can''t use you." Holly briefly explained her situation, Noah could only nod in understanding at that. ''I can''t really become a spy, not only I won''t like to go undercover, my identity would be at risk in those missions.'' Noah concluded in his mind. He was still a fugitive, preventing his identity from being exposed was still on top of his list, he felt glad that Holly had refused him before he could do it. He was facing influent cultivators of the sect after all, he had to make sure that none of them would feel offended by his decision. "Let''s start with the introductions then." Roy stood up as he said those words, he waved his hand toward each cultivator while describing its identity. "Holly is the leader of the faction in charge of the investigations, the intel of the sect comes from her hard work and impeccable management. Most of our missions are possible only thanks to the reports that she provides." "Byron''s faction handles the basic needs of the sect. He makes sure that every disciple has access to food and basic services. We would be forced to eat on the surface if it wasn''t for his excellent work." "Joel is the envoy sent by Edgar, the leader of the faction that handles the defenses of the sect. His faction is the first line of defense of the sect and the one suppressing any possible threat on the surface, if we managed to survive for all this time is also thanks to their amazing services." "Marcia is the head of the inventory. Her faction handles the many items that our missions provide and makes sure that our disciples are well equipped. The merit points'' system was her creation which helped in bringing the sect to a new height!" "Linus is the envoy sent by Kate, the leader of the faction that handles the inscribed items and manages the teleportation matrixes. Everyone in her faction studies formations or inscriptions and it''s pointless to express the importance of her services." "Seth is the envoy sent by Bruce, the leader of the faction that handles the raids on the resources that the continent sends to its representatives here. His faction makes sure that our sect doesn''t lack cultivation resources or techniques, allowing us to continue to nurture promising disciples." The last of the cultivators was introduced and Roy sat again, taking short sips from the cup in front of him as waited for Noah''s reaction. Noah, on the other hand, was still sorting the information just obtained, his mind worked at full speed to decide which faction was better for his situation. ''Holly, Byron, and Marcia''s factions are definitely a no. Holly needs cultivators with a clean record to turn into spies while Byron''s work is just boring. As for Marcia, her faction seems to be quite remunerative but I don''t want to be stuck in the inventory for long periods.'' Noah discarded three factions immediately, he wanted to join a group that could value his strongest qualities. ''Edgar''s faction is interesting, the defense of the sect would surely earn the respect of the other disciples and would make my battle prowess shine. Yet, do I even want respect?'' Defending the sect was a noble job but Noah wanted to find methods to become stronger, the remaining two factions seemed a better match for him. "Could I know more about Kate and Bruce''s factions?" Noah''s words caused the appearance of displeased looks on the representatives of the other three factions, only Holly remained impassive as she memorized the events in the meeting. It must be said that Kate and Bruce didn''t come personally but had sent envoys, Byron and Marcia in the specific didn''t like being discarded without even having the chance to speak. However, when they felt Roy''s stern gaze on them, they soon calmed down. What angered them was Noah''s lack of consideration rather than the actual loss of a future rank 3 cultivator, they felt as if their factions weren''t equally valued by the man in front of them. Linus and Seth smiled, they were happy that Noah had taken interest in them and gladly explained more about their work. "Kate is a genius when it comes to formations, she makes sure that our connections with the surface remain hidden to the continent''s investigations. The member of our factions can study under her or under other inscription masters. Also, they have free access to the research facilities of the sect where precious materials and peculiar environments are provided." Linus was the first to speak, he had a calm demeanor as he described his faction. ''My ability in the Elemental forging method would further improve if I was to join them. Yet, I can''t use normal inscription methods, those masters wouldn''t be able to teach me much.'' Noah sorted the information in his mind, evaluating the pros and cons. "We are thieves. We raid the precious shipments that arrive from the continent or attack the secret inventories that the legal organizations set up on the islands. Our work is not exactly safe but we are the ones who provide the cultivation resources to the sect, which means that we are allowed to keep a few of them for ourselves." Seth spoke and Noah''s eyes lit up. Chapter 357: 357. Idiots Noah was immediately interested in Bruce''s faction. Raiding inventories and stealing the cultivation resources belonging to the representatives of the continent was, by itself, a double victory. On one hand, the Chasing demon sect would grow stronger thanks to the new resources. On the other, the legal organizations in the archipelago would be weakened since they would find it hard to nurture their members. After all, the most important requirements to advance in the cultivation journey were resources and techniques, being able to steal them from your enemy could be considered the best possible option. "Does your faction assign merit points with each successful mission?" Noah asked Seth, it was clear that he was more oriented in choosing his faction. "Of course, we might be attacking our enemy but we are still doing it for the sect''s interest, any valuable deed is rewarded with merit points." Seth answered with a smile on his face, he had understood that Noah had been captivated by his previous words. ''Kate might help in improving my ability in the Elemental forging method but that''s something that will happen anyway as I continue forging. Instead, resources and techniques are irreplaceable, I don''t think I''ll find a better opportunity than this.'' Noah quickly cleared the last bit of indecision in his mind and stood up when he reached a conclusion. He performed a polite bow toward Seth as he spoke a few words. "It would be my honor to join Bruce''s faction." Displeased looks appeared on the other four cultivators, only Holly seemed disinterested. Seth stood up and laughed as he walked on the other side of the table to straighten Noah. "No need to be so formal, my faction is quite open-minded about ranks and cultivation level. Come, I''ll lead you to your captain, he will explain more about our work." Seth began to lead Noah outside of Roy''s cave. Noah turned his gaze toward Roy but the latter only nodded with a slight smile, he was trying to reassure Noah with that gesture. The entrance of the cave opened and Seth hurriedly pushed Noah outside it, the sound of the wall closing again after they left could be heard behind their backs. "Why such a hurry?" Noah couldn''t help but ask that question seeing that Seth wouldn''t let go of his shoulder. Seth showed an awkward smile but he didn''t stop dragging Noah along the way. "You know, cultivators can be petty and our faction has a bad reputation, I didn''t want you to question your decision." "Bad reputation?" Noah couldn''t understand Seth''s words, the sect was an underground organization after all, it was obvious that bad rumors were spread about it. "Well, we are the chaotic group of the sect, we recklessly chase resources and there have been occasions where Edgar''s faction was forced to intervene due to some misunderstanding." "Misunderstanding?" Noah continued to question Seth''s words, he didn''t like where that conversation was going. "Look, there was a time when we received a report about a safe house on island seventy-one. The report didn''t come from Holly''s faction but we were quite sure about its source. When we barged inside the house, we discovered that the "resources" were instead female slaves intended for the harem of one of the representatives of the continent. We were angry and disappointed so we indulged in that temporary pleasure. You should have seen the faces of the soldiers when they found our whole team naked the following morning." "Wha-" Noah didn''t have time to question him that he resumed speaking about the misadventures of his faction. "Another time, we raided a ship that was supposed to have some slices of miraculous meat. We managed to take all of it but we missed the cooking recipe and sold it to Byron''s faction. All the disciples below the second rank weren''t able to exit their caves for two entire weeks at that time." "Wai-" "Oh! There was a time when a batch of rank 3 inscribed weapons arrived in the archipelago. We immediately raided the building that contained it but we didn''t gather enough information and we found ourselves against an entire troop made of rank 3 cultivators. The sect was forced to hide for a few months after that matter." ''I understand! They are mindless idiots!'' Noah gave up on trying to question Seth for fear to discover more misadventures. ''It seems that I need to be careful about my captain too.'' Seth continued to speak as he dragged Noah through the passages between each area. Apparently, there was also a time when they ended up in a trap and unleashed destruction upon that island to ensure their escape. Noah''s mood became gloomy as the number of misadventures piled up, he couldn''t help but reconsider his previous decision. Seth led Noah to a peculiar training area where a few dozens of disciples were sitting on the ground. They sat in small circles and each group seemed focused on a different activity. "Hey, you cheated! No "Breath" allowed when gambling!" "Who are you to accuse me of cheating!?" "I''m your father! I took pity on your mother long ago and gave her my heroic essence!" "What did you say about my mother!?" BOOM BOOM! A series of attacks were launched after that brief bickering, the two disciples arguing seemed drunk or under the effect of some medicine. "You bunch of worthless scoundrels, can''t you see that your vice-leader has arrived?" Seth shouted and his voice filled the large training area. Only then did the disciples notice that Seth had arrived and that he wasn''t alone. Their eyes lit up when they saw Noah, some of them immediately stood up and wore the widest smiles that Noah had ever seen. "Oh, mighty vice-leader, who is he? Is he a new recruit?" "Why don''t you leave him with us? We will surely give him a tour of our exalted quarters." "Yes, yes. We will take good care of him." The chaotic behavior from earlier disappeared in an instant only to be replaced by a peaceful and trustworthy one. Seth sighed at that sight and turned his head to warn Noah. "Never trust any of them unless you are in a mission, I wouldn''t dare to shake their hands when we are in the sect." Chapter 358: 358. Alison Noah stared at the expression of the disciples in front of him and couldn''t help but feel that they were somewhat familiar. ''Don''t tell me that I had that face when I scammed the guards in Balvan mansion?'' Complaints resounded in the area as soon as Noah had those thoughts. "Come on, vice-leader, we have talked about this! You agreed to warn the new members only after they had a game of card!" "Or dice!" "Or a spar with extremely favorable conditions for us!" The disciples turned toward the one that spoke for last. "What!? We have already lost him, I''m allowed to crack some joke at this point." Noah stared at the disciples'' interactions with wide eyes, he cursed his greed when he saw the situation of that faction. ''If I have to speak the truth though, they all seem quite strong.'' Noah analyzed. Under that messy behavior, Noah could clearly sense that each one of them had a powerful aura. It wasn''t a matter of cultivation level, the students in the area were either in the first or second rank, it was more about the battle experience. ''They all seem experienced warriors, maybe their many misadventures have tempered their character.'' Every cultivator had unusual peculiarities in its personality. Noah was addicted to cultivating, June was a battle maniac, Roy didn''t seem able to lie, these qualities were only enhanced as the level of the cultivator increased. That''s why he didn''t feel too strange that the disciples in Bruce''s faction were like that. They were thieves after all, their missions were dangerous, it was normal for them to relax as much as they could when they were inside the sect. "Shut up, he is a special case. Is Alison in her usual spot?" As soon as Seth said those words, the disciples were silenced and only the bravest among them managed to nod to answer his question. "Come, I''ll take you to your captain." Seth grabbed Noah''s shoulder again and dragged him across the training area, the disciples that they crossed shot pitiful gazes at him as they watched him disappear in the distance. "Poor guy, he has just joined our faction only to be sent in that hag''s clutches." "We couldn''t even take one Credit from him, what a waste." "Hey, who wants to play cards?" Noah listened to those whispers and moved his attention away when heard that they had resumed in their gambling activities. "Is this Alison that bad?" He asked Seth. "No, she actually is one of the strongest captains in our ranks." "Then, why were the other disciples speaking as if I was going to die?" "¡­" Seth was speechless for a moment, he had momentarily forgotten that Noah was a rank 3 mage and that he could clearly hear the whispers of the disciples behind him. "Let''s say that you should be careful. She is the oldest among the rank 3 cultivators in the faction but her cultivation technique allows her to appear to us in the form that we like the most." "I still don''t see what''s so bad about it." Noah complained when he saw that Seth didn''t explain further. "I hope you won''t see her bad side, just don''t trust your eyes, too many good disciples have been traumatized." Seth led Noah toward the end of that training area where a series of caves could be seen. "Does your faction live here? Why don''t they use the residential areas?" Noah saw that the area was inhabited, there were many mats and pillows on the ground along the road. "Well, the disciples here have tried to scam those belonging to other factions or caused some mess. Edgar''s faction forces them to live here because they disturb the environment of the sect." ''This is basically exile!'' Noah was astonished. He had joined Bruce''s faction because of the evident advantages but he had only seen the bad traits of its members until now. They arrived in front of an open cave, an awful smell was exuded by it which seemed able to affect the purple halo radiated by the exoskeleton of the coral. "Alison, I have a new member for your team." Silence reined after Seth spoke, he and Noah stood firmly in front of the entrance, waiting for any reaction. "MHHHH! Seth, my date yesterday went pretty bad, I want to be alone." A loud grunt followed by words spoken in a guttural tone came out of the dark cave. "This new member is good-looking." Seth replied and shook his head to reassure Noah, yet, his hand forced him to stay still with even more strength than before. Noises resounded in the cave and a gracious figure came out of it after a few minutes. It was a woman with dark skin and silver hair, Noah couldn''t help but think that her facial features resembled June in some way. "Oh my, he is indeed good." The woman spoke with a young voice, the guttural one from before was nowhere to be found. ''So that''s what he meant with a form that we like the most.'' Noah thought, repressing any kind of self-analysis about his tastes, Alison''s figure seemed a mixture between Nina and June''s features after all. He didn''t have time to analyze himself because his mind sent warnings about Alison, Noah felt as if he was in danger even at that distance. He forced himself to bow at her but his focus never wavered, he really couldn''t understand the cause of that unsettling feeling. "He is so formal! I like a guy that knows his manners, why don''t you come inside and tell your story to aunt Alison?" Seth let go of Noah''s shoulder and began to retreat. "I''ll leave you two be then, welcome to our faction Zach, I hope you enjoy your stay." Noah wanted to shoot a cold gaze at Seth but Alison began to near him, increasing the dangerous feeling in his mind. "I refuse, I need to return to my cave." "Oh, don''t be so shy. I''m your captain now, I''m more than happy to share my bed with you." Alison replied to Noah''s refusal, she continued to get close to him as she spoke. She stretched her hand toward him and the dangerous sensation reached its peak, Noah sensed some sort of invisible gas nearing him at fast speed. He instinctively activated his Demonic form, black smoke came out of his figure and devoured the incoming threat before dispersing in the air. A change occurred after that. Noah''s spell seemed to counter the illusion created by Alison, her appearance changed right before his eyes, revealing an elderly woman whose skin was filled with pulsating pimples. Chapter 359: 359. Leader Noah''s Demonic form seemed to have opposed the hallucinations that Alison''s gas caused. Noah became able to clearly see her true form as well as the cause of her strange power. The pulsating pimples all over her skin seemed ready to explode but there were small pores on them from where the strange gas came out. Noah could see how the entire area around her figure was covered in the secretions of her pimples, he had been previously affected because he had breathed them. Yet, when he had activated the partial Demonic form, the previous effects were dispelled, allowing Noah to see what was really happening. Noah''s eyes darted between the many pimples and the invisible gas that caused the dangerous feeling in his mind, he couldn''t help but retreat at that sight. Alison noticed the changes in Noah''s gaze, she stared at him in confusion before understanding what was going on. "You, you can see me!" She loudly exclaimed and traces of anger began to appear on her expression. Seth was already far behind but he sighed when he heard her words, a small notebook appeared in his hands and he used his mental energy to send a message to one of the mental imprints on it. Noah didn''t understand that turn of event, he simply continued to retreat at the sight of the extremely repulsing old woman nearing him. "No one can see my true form! Come here! Let me affect you!" Alison continued to shout but Noah had no intention of ever coming close to her again. ''What the hell is even happening!? Why is my tattoo not reacting to this threat? And what kind of cultivation technique is that? It seems to work alongside her body but it also uses mental energy to create the hallucinogenic gas.'' Noah inspected Alison''s peculiar state and was surprised to see that her technique seemed to use all three of her centers of power. ''It is quite interesting.'' When he understood that her cultivation technique seemed to form a connection between her centers of power, Noah became extremely interested. However, he had to put those thoughts in the back of his mind since Alison jumped on him using the full power that her body was capable of. Noah activated the Shadow sprint, a shockwave was generated after he stomped his foot twice, creating a sudden acceleration that made him dodge Alison''s charge. "Don''t run! I just want to fix your sight!" "What fix! Keep that damned gas away from me!" Noah replied to Alison''s complaints as he kept retreating. Alison didn''t give up though, she continued to pursue Noah with all her strength but he always managed to dodge with impeccable timing. From time to time, Noah''s vision would become affected again by the hallucinogenic proprieties of her gas but he would promptly create strands of black smote to fight it. Like that, they returned in the central zone of the training area where the other members of Bruce''s faction were uncaringly gambling and drinking. Noah landed in the middle of a group of disciples, crashing a rolling dice that those in the group were staring with hopeful expressions. "Noooo! You destroyed the dice!" "It was definitely even!" "What are you saying? I swear on my mother that it was going to be odd!" "Do you want to hear the story of your mother again?" The disciples began to bicker but they soon redirected their anger toward Noah who was uncaringly continuing to escape. "Hey, newbie! Come back here!" "The price for disrupting a round is to pay back all its participants!" "Yes! And my mother was a good woman!" However, they were soon surprised to see that another figure appeared between them. Their attention was immediately attracted by her figure, Alison''s gas made her appear as the most beautiful person according to each of their tastes. ''It affects even women! What a powerful ability.'' Noah analyzed the situation behind him as he continued to retreat. He saw that even the women seemed affected, the invisible gas entered their lungs and caused their vision to change. "You are all so cute but aunt Alison has something to do first, I''ll play with you later." Alison spoke to the disciples around her but her polite words only awakened the strongest of them. "Wait, it''s captain Alison!" "Run! Run while you are still able to think!" "Josh block her for a while! You have already become immune to her mind control" "No way! I don''t want to get close to her ever again!" ''Immunity?'' Noah listened to the disciples'' words and began to think about the recent events. ''Maybe, the tattoo didn''t work before because Alison''s ability isn''t harmful. It just affects the mind of a cultivator but Alison herself doesn''t have bad intentions.'' Noah turned to watch how Alison had started to bicker with the disciples around her, she really seemed to hate anyone who knew about her true form. ''No, someone with that body shouldn''t get close to anyone, the sect should make a special oath just for her.'' Noah looked at the pulsating pimples and had those thoughts, he really felt bad about that Josh. Then, an immense pressure appeared behind him, he felt as if all his centers of power were being suppressed by that suffocating atmosphere. He turned his head with difficulty only to see that giant man was behind him. "Are you the cause of this mess?" The man spoke and his words made Noah''s mental sphere tremble, it was with extreme difficulty that he regained control of his body to back away from him. Yet, a hand appeared on his shoulder as he tried to escape, Noah felt completely powerless in that situation. "Leader, it''s not his fault. Alison was already in a bad mood and he managed to dispel her hallucination, I couldn''t control the following events." Seth appeared next to the giant man, his stature paled when he was next to the more than two meters tall Leader. "Oh, did he fight Alison''s gas so soon? Is he the new member of my faction?" Chapter 360: 360. Bruce ''My faction!?'' Noah listened to those words and understood the identity of the man that was keeping him still. ''Is he Bruce?'' "I told you that he was a special case but you were busy with your stupid rumors. We were lucky that you arrived before he changed idea about our faction." Seth rebuked Bruce, he seemed really annoyed by his behavior. Bruce made an awkward laugh while scratching the side of his head. "The source this time seemed accurate, it''s a pity that he was just a drunkard looking for booze¡­" Seth shook his head and pointed toward the mess at the center of the training area. "Could you at least handle this situation?" Only then did Bruce remember that Alison was still chasing the other disciples and he nodded as he lifted Noah with both hands to hand him to Seth. "Keep him here until I come back, we can''t give him to the other factions." Seth grabbed Noah and placed him on the ground, his expression showed tinges of shame as he tidied Noah''s clothes. "I''m so sorry, the leader is an idiot but he is really reliable in battle. He can''t control his power very well so he rarely interacts with rank 2 cultivators, I believe you can understand why." Noah listened to Seth''s words and his cold gaze was slightly eased, the recent events had put him in a complete battle mindset and Bruce''s suppression had almost made him decide to change faction. "ALISON!" A loud shout resounded in the training area, the disciples that were escaping from Alison felt as if their heads were going to explode while those in the first rank directly fainted. Alison stopped her tracks, she turned slowly, a wide smile was on her face as she faced Bruce''s arrival. "Leader! This is all a misunderstanding! I wanted to, ehm, know the new member but he was so impolite, I had to teach him a lesson!" Alison lied but Bruce''s stern gaze forced her to retreat. "Please Leader. I''m just a young woman stuck in this horrible body, don''t I deserve to find love too?" Alison pleaded but Bruce''s gaze was unmoving. "What did I say about getting too close rank 2 cultivators? The last time you brought someone to your cave it took us two months to make him forget that trauma." A few disciples patted Josh''s shoulders when they heard Bruce speak, a few tears could be seen running down Josh''s face as he remembered those events. "But, but!" "No buts, go back in your cave, today''s events made you lose the new member." Alison tried to complain but Bruce had already turned, she could only stomp her foot in irritation as she went back to her cave. "Bring the injured to Byron and undo this mess." Bruce ordered and Seth bowed, he immediately picked his notebook and began to send messages to some of his contacts. "You, come with me." Bruce''s words made Noah''s sea of consciousness tremble, he closed his eyes to resist that pressure before following him. They crossed the entirety of the training area before reaching its deepest parts, Noah was surprised to see that the density of "Breath" in there was so high that drops of liquid "Breath" could be seen on the purple walls. ''This is indeed worthy to be the habitation of a rank 3 expert.'' An entrance appeared on the purple walls, a large cave made of only a single room unfolded in front of Noah''s eyes. "Come, sit, let''s talk." Bruce spoke, creating again the intense pressure on Noah''s mind. "Ehm, Leader, could you please control your mental waves when you speak?" Noah couldn''t hold back anymore, the series of events that had happened since he joined the faction had really pushed his patience to its limits. Bruce turned and seemed to remember something, he closed his eyes and knitted his brows, he seemed really focused on what he was doing. "Is this better?" He spoke again, Noah could still feel a bit of pressure on his mind but it was way more bearable than before, he nodded at him when the pressure disappeared. "Good. I''m sorry for everything that has happened since you arrived. Seth usually handles these things well but he can''t control Alison''s mood, more and more members are leaving her group to join other captains lately." ''That''s quite obvious.'' Noah could clearly understand the behavior of those disciples, not even an hour had passed and he wanted to leave her group too. "Also, as you saw, we are a bunch of messy people when we are inside the sect. Our faction does the riskiest work inside the sect but this is what allows us to have the best rewards, it''s normal for our members to have extreme personalities." Noah nodded at his words, the behavior of the disciples had surprised him but it wasn''t that different from those of the guards in Balvan mansion. The more a work puts you closer to death, the more extreme your activities will be when you need to relax, that''s how it worked in most cases. "As for me, I find it hard to control myself so I usually don''t go near the areas where the weak disciples are. I''m almost at the peak of the third rank, I fear that I might kill one of them if I''m careless." Noah continued to nod, he had personally endured Bruce''s power. ''A rank 2 mage wouldn''t be able to talk with him for more than a minute before suffering an injury, I could continue to listen to him only because my mind is in the third rank.'' "So, what now? Just to be clear, I''ll never join Alison''s group." Noah spoke, he expressed his thoughts without holding back. "She isn''t that bad, her cultivation technique can''t really harm anyone, it just renders those affected by the gas more benevolent toward her. You will soon develop an immunity toward it but I advise you to allow your vision to be affected at least, you don''t want to see that body every day after all." Bruce explained but Noah''s expression remained cold, he was set on not joining her group. Bruce sighed before he continued to speak. "Seth is busy with the management of the faction and the other captains are either on missions or have enough members in their teams. It seems that you will be joining me, young man." Chapter 361: 361. Sec Bruce was more than two meters tall, he had short black hair, thick and messy eyebrows, and a large nose. He appeared extremely wild but Noah could see that his mind endured the weight of his faction, he wasn''t a mindless idiot. ''Peak of the third rank, no wonder he is wary about being near weaker disciples.'' Noah had faced two rank 3 cultivators in his life. The first one was the black robe in the valley in Odrea nation while the second one was Alison. However, the black robe was just in the lower tier of the third rank, Noah with his just obtained rank 3 sea of consciousness was able to fight back his pressure. As for Alison, she wasn''t using her real power or her tattoo would have interfered with her chase. Yet, Bruce had a dantian in the solid stage and a mental sphere nearing the heroic ranks, coupled with the fact that he found it hard to hold back, it made his sole presence a threat for the weak disciples. ''Not being able to hold back at his level means that even his words are backed with the full power of his cultivation level and mental energy, the suppression was so strong because I was extremely close too.'' Noah analyzed Bruce''s power, he would be his captain from that moment onward after all. The mental sphere applied pressure depending on its width. Being in the third rank didn''t mean having the same power, the larger the sphere the more pressure it could generate. Noah could be considered a newbie of the third rank while Bruce was at its peak, the difference between their seas of consciousness was simply too vast. ''His words could be considered fully powered attacks due to his peculiarity, I wonder how strong he actually is when he uses spells and techniques.'' "Breath" and mental energy were energies, they could be used in their raw form. Yet, to express their true power, they had to be channeled in martial arts and spells, Noah couldn''t help but be amazed at Bruce''s power since just his raw power was enough to suppress him. "Joining you, what does it imply?" Noah asked, he was happy that he could stay in the faction while avoiding Alison. "Let me explain the hierarchy of the faction first." Bruce answered as he took a blank sheet and a stick from his space-ring. "Rank 1 and rank 2 cultivators are pawns, they can only be ordered around. They are all assigned to captains that will send them into missions according to their cultivation level." Bruce drew small dots at the bottom of the sheet, they represented the pawns he was speaking about. "Rank 3 cultivators are all captains, they can form their own teams and pursue treasures on their own when they find a source that is reliable enough in their eyes. My faction has more than twenty rank 3 cultivators, we are quite powerful in the sect." ''More than twenty? If there is the same number of rank 3 experts even in the other faction, then just the human division of the sect has more than one hundred cultivators at the peak of the human ranks!'' Noah was amazed at those numbers, he felt extremely glad that he had joined the sect. "Seth is above the captains, his words have the same weight as mine when I''m not around, be sure to trust him and don''t let the events of today affect you, he is really reliable." Bruce vouched for Seth but Noah only nodded, trust was something that had to be earned, especially in his case. "I''m at the Leader of the faction, we can''t have the backing of the monsters in the heroic ranks because it will affect the human matters too much so I''m the biggest power that you will meet while you are here." Bruce continued to draw small dots on the sheet, some of them were bigger according to the level of the cultivators he was speaking about. Then he made a big circle around those dots while drawing other circles of the same width around it. "These are the six factions in the Chasing demon sect but not all its members want to join a faction, many of them only want to cultivate in peace and not aim for the precious resources of the inventory." Bruce drew many dots outside of the circles, the whole sheet was filled with dots by then. "What is this?" Bruce picked the sheet from the ground and pointed at it, Noah understood what he wanted to hear. "The sect." He answered and Bruce nodded at his words. "Exactly, the factions might work in different areas of interest and might have some minor conflict between each other but we are all members of the same sect, the good of the sect will always come before our personal interests." The sheet then caught fire, blue flames burned in Bruce''s hand as he fixed his gaze on Noah. "Always remember: if the sect falls, you fall with it; if the sect shines, you shine with it. Also, don''t ever forget that we are just humans, the elders in the heroic ranks might appear absent but they are always watching us, they hope to see more of us joining their ranks where the real matters between cultivators unfold." The sheet was completely burned by the blue flames, not even its ashes remained in Bruce''s hand. "As for now, the sect has more than two thousand cultivators between the first and second rank, more than a two hundred in the third rank, and, for what I was able to understand, at least ten in the heroic ranks. I hope to join them soon but I still lack a proper cultivation technique that allows me to continue training after the tribulations, that''s why I''m slowing down my improvements." Bruce sighed when he finished speaking, techniques in the heroic ranks seemed hard to find even for a cultivator in a large sect like him. "Now, let''s talk about your situation." Chapter 362: 362. Delusions Noah listened with interest, Bruce was finally going to speak about him. "You are quite strange, rank 3 mage while being a cultivator in the second rank, truly strange." Bruce loudly pondered as he stared Noah, he found it hard to believe that someone like him existed. "You would be generally used as a pawn until you reach the third rank but you can be considered already halfway in that level, consider that there are rank 3 cultivators that are still rank 2 mages." Noah nodded. He was aware that his situation was peculiar, a mental sphere so strong at his age was something unheard of in that world. "I''ve decided. You can''t be a captain but you can still be the second in command in the team where I send you. How does it sound?" Bruce smiled but Noah was confused. "Didn''t you say that I was joining your team?" He replied but Bruce shook his head while suppressing a short laugh. "No, no. I''m the Leader of the faction, I don''t join missions unless they concern resources extremely important for me or the sect. Yet, I have five captains that work directly under me and I consider their teams as if they were mine. I usually send them to raid the places mentioned in the many rumors that I hear on the surface. I won''t lie to you, they often come back empty-handed." ''So, not only will I not work with him, but I will also be sent to chase rumors that are most-likely false!'' Noah''s irritation began to grow, he had just relaxed knowing that he wouldn''t have to work with Alison when he discovered this. "I will let you choose to which raid take part though, you can see for yourself which reports seem truer." Three sheets appeared in his hands and he handed them to Noah. Noah heaved a sigh of relief at that turn of events, if he had to be sent to chase rumors, he could at least decide those that seemed more accurate. ''A batch of precious magical beasts'' body parts is going to be sent to the Utra nation from the archipelago. Rumors says that a rank 5 material will be on the ship but there will be only one rank 3 cultivator escorting it.'' ''This seems quite unreal, a rank 5 material protected only by one powerful soldier? Impossible.'' Noah discarded the first report in his mind and began to read the next one. ''Batches of rank 4 potions and pills will be sent by the Papral nation and will arrive in the archipelago in two days. Rumors say that there won''t be guards at all.'' ''This is even more unreal. First of all, where would someone find a batch of such precious drugs? Second, how could they not put guards to such a precious cargo?'' Another sheet was discarded, leaving Noah with only one. ''Rumors about an Inheritance ground below the Great whirlpool next to the archipelago.'' ''What!? This is even more impossible! For how long has the archipelago being inhabited? How many experts have investigated its terrain? It''s impossible that an inheritance ground has never been discovered until now!'' Noah placed the third sheet on the ground and raised his head to stare at Bruce. ''Now I understand, he is the Leader of all these idiots!'' He cursed his greed again, the feeling of wanting to change faction returned at those thoughts. "Why would you even go after these? They are clearly fake rumors!" He decided to give voice to his thoughts, he really couldn''t understand how a mighty existence at the peak of the third rank could be that blind. "Yes, they are but what if they were real? We would obtain rank 4 drugs, or a rank 5 material, or we could also be the first to enter an inheritance ground!" Bruce answered, his eyes shone when he thought about all those impossible resources. ''He is not an idiot, he is an optimistic one.'' Noah sighed, his luck has never been too good so he was used to always consider the worst possible outcome in any situation. Bruce was the opposite, he knew that those rumors were probably fake but he wanted to test them anyway, hoping for one of them to be real. "Can''t I just go after real resources? I work better alone anyway, you just have to point out the places that I have to raid." Noah didn''t want to give up on the resources because he was busy chasing his Leader''s dreams, he would rather work alone as he had always done. "You will gain a thousand merit points together with a bonus for each valuable resource that you bring back if you join one of those missions. I will never force the members of my faction to go after my delusions without giving them a good reward." At those words, Noah''s eyes lit up. ''A thousand merit points for a simple raid? Bonuses according to the resources brought back? It means that I can decide whether keeping anything interesting or exchanging it for merit points! This doesn''t sound too bad with these conditions.'' Noah pondered about the matter. ''I think I can go after more reliable sources if I insist but I would only gain a few merit points and low-level resources, I''m not considering that I would further share those resources between the other members of my team. With these missions, instead, at least the part concerning the merit points is covered, I can just accumulate them and buy something in the inventory afterward, I won''t need for the missions to be profitable in that case.'' Noah had to choose between a slow but steady accumulation of resources and a most-likely fruitless mission but that gave an incredible amount of merit points. ''Now I understand why the members of this faction are so extreme, I''m no different from them after all.'' Noah smiled as he thought of that, his gaze went of the sheets on the floor and he picked one of them. "I think I will go after the rank 5 material. I don''t believe that the ship will have it but there should be at least a few rank 4 magical beasts'' corpses for it to be guarded by a soldier in the third rank." Chapter 363: 363. Clive The reason why Noah chose to go after the rank 5 material was simple: It was the only report that seemed somewhat believable! ''I don''t actually believe that there will be a rank 5 material but maybe there will be enough rank 4 ones to make a good profit.'' Those were his thoughts as he walked back to his cave. Bruce sent him away after he had decided his mission, Noah had only to await further orders in the meantime. ''The batch of rank 4 medicines is too unreal, not only are they extremely hard to craft, but it is also impossible for such a valuable shipment to be unguarded.'' Noah thought about the second report, in his mind, the rumor was either fake or a trap purposely set by the Papral nation. ''As for the Inheritance ground, that''s simply impossible.'' Noah didn''t know too much about Inheritance grounds but he had been in two of them. They were usually created by powerful beings in the heroic ranks, it would be extremely unlikely for them to remain hidden in environments filled with experts. The archipelago had been inhabited for centuries after all, many cultivators in the heroic rank had already investigated its surface and even its exoskeleton, something so valuable like an Inheritance ground wouldn''t have escaped their eyes. ''Bruce said that the ship will sail in two days, I have time for another Dantian''s opening, then I will focus on returning to my peak form.'' Noah did exactly what he thought. Another cultivation session was completed that night and, with the help of the Sea snake''s tears and the liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system, he was completely healed in less than twenty-four hours. A buzzing sound resounded in his mental sphere in the night of the second day, Noah picked his notebook and nodded internally when he heard the message carried by Bruce''s mental imprint. He dressed in his usual tight black robe and his hood was momentarily laying on his shoulder, he didn''t need to cover his identity inside the sect after all. His mental energy swept the contents of his space-rings one last time, his Instabilities and Hidden blasts were there as well as his pairs of black and white sabers, he couldn''t have been more ready. Then, he left his cave and went in the direction of the residential area of the rank 3 cultivators. When he arrived there, he found that some disciples were gathered around a cave. Noah recognized some of their faces from the training area used to exile the troublesome members of his faction so he neared them without hesitation. ''All in the second rank and their behavior is quite surprising, it seems that Seth was right.'' The disciples in front of the cave had stern expressions and their gazes revealed their dense battle intent, they were ready to fight to the death if needed! The disciples noticed Noah and opened a path for him, some of them even bowed at his sight. It couldn''t be helped, not all the members of the sect had seen his battle against Perry but rumors about his strength had already spread around the sect. Perry had gone all out during that battle but Noah had managed to defeat him with only one spell, that feat alone put him far beyond the normal rank 2 cultivators. "Is this the captain''s cave?" Noah asked as he turned his gaze toward one of the disciples that had bowed. "Yes, captain Clive always waits for all the members of his team to gather before opening the entrance and brief us about the plan." The disciple politely answered and a slight smile appeared on his face when he saw that Noah nodded to him. Clive was one of the captains directly under Bruce, he was one of the five unfortunate rank 3 cultivators that chased Bruce''s delusions. He was the one appointed with the raid of the ship belonging to the Utra nation so he would be Noah''s captain for that mission. Minutes passed and more disciples arrived in front of the cave, Noah counted twenty-five rank 2 cultivators when the entrance of Clive''s habitation opened. A slightly fat man appeared in his vision, he had long white hair combed in an intricate ponytail and long gray braids as his beard. "Come in, the briefing won''t take much." Clive spoke, he waited for all the disciples to enter before closing the entrance. Yet, as the crowd passed next to him, he stretched his hand to stop Noah from reaching the depth of the cave. "Captain?" Noah asked in confusion, he stared at Clive, waiting for an answer. However, Clive was silent, he simply stared at Noah with a gaze that revealed his steadily increasing surprise. Noah could feel that the mental energy of his captain was trying to inspect him but he seemed far weaker than the other rank 3 cultivators when it came to the sea of consciousness, Noah could completely protect himself this time. ''Our mental spheres should be on the same level, I can''t understand much either.'' Noah thought as he tried to analyze Clive, he seemed in the gaseous stage of the third rank but he couldn''t understand anything more. "Amazing. When the leader told me about you, I thought he was joking. It seems that you really are a rank 3 mage, how did you do it?" Clive honestly asked, it seemed that the matter was really important to him. "Hard work and lucky encounters, I think you know that there aren''t shortcuts when it comes to cultivation." Noah lied. His biggest advantage was that his mind as a transmigrator had been already stable since his youth, leading him to have no restrictions when he trained at that young age. That advantage, however, was now gone. He had reached the third rank faster than anyone in history but everyone at his age had a completely formed mind, his hard-work coupled with his mature mind had only allowed him to have a higher starting point. Chapter 364: 364. Roles Noah wanted to keep his identity as a transmigrator a secret. First of all, he had no way to explain it, he was unaware of the reason why he was granted a second life and was transported in this world. Second, he didn''t know how those around him would react at such information. He didn''t know if they would believe it but he wanted to avoid becoming the guinea pig of some powerful existence, it was better to address his fast improvements to the lucky encounters. ''If he really insists, I will just reveal the matters about the Bloodline Inheritance, that should explain part of my power at least.'' Noah thought as he waited for Clive to answer. His gaze was lowered and he seemed deep in thought but he soon recovered himself while sighing loudly. "Good for you, I thought you had some kind of technique that could speed up the process. I''ve always been slow with the Kesier runes and my cultivation technique occupies a lot of my free time¡­ Well, nothing I can do, I''ll just have to work harder." Clive accepted the outcome of that conversation quite easily, Noah was actually surprised that he didn''t probe further. ''Maybe he has a low tolerance when it comes to pain.'' Noah concluded in his mind. Enlarging the mental sphere was a slow and painful process, it was no wonder that many cultivators would keep its training for last. "Right, how do I obtain the fourth Kesier rune? I don''t feel good when I''m unable to train." Noah lied as he asked about the next rune. He was still enlarging his mind thanks to the "Breath" inside his sea of consciousness but that pace was slow, it couldn''t compare to the number one training method. "Mh, you can request for it but its price is quite high. You can find it on the second floor of the missions'' building but it''s one of the most expensive items. Even though it can only be used in the human ranks it is still considered a resource in the heroic ranks so it will cost you a lot." Clive explained as he went toward a table where the other disciples were gathered. ''So it was like this, no wonder I couldn''t find it on the first floor.'' Noah was a rank 2 cultivator, he had never climbed to the higher floor because the missions for rank 3 cultivators were simply too difficult for him. His spells powered by his mental sphere allowed him to fight on the same ground with weak rank 3 cultivators but his reserves of energy couldn''t sustain that power for a long time, they would always be depleted before his enemies. ''I guess I have to accumulate merit points. Joining a faction was the right choice, this is the fastest way to obtain what I need.'' Noah thought as he followed Clive to the table, a large map was laid on it, it depicted a specific island of the archipelago. "Our target is on a dock on island eighty-nine, we don''t know its route nor the crew on it, we actually aren''t even sure about the items that it contains but the Leader heard a rumor about a rank 5 material so he ordered for a raid." Clive began to explain, he didn''t even try to cover Bruce''s na?ve mindset as he summarized the situation. "Since we don''t know its route, we can only attack it when its docked. We have a teleportation matrix near its position but it''s not near enough, we will be discovered for sure." A series of awkward smiles and helpless sighs unfolded in the cave, the disciples seemed used to those kinds of events. "We do the usual stuff: We run in the direction of the ship as soon as we teleport, we raid it fast, and then we separate to reach these three escape points. Once you are back in the sect, gather in the training area of our faction to assess the gains. Don''t hold back, kill everyone that blocks our way, there aren''t many soldiers there but more will definitely come after we create such commotion." Clive''s plan was simple, a normal hit and run situation, the key of the plan was the speed at which it had to be executed. "Zach, what role do you want?" Clive then raised his head toward Noah, his team was already used to work together but Noah was a new member, he needed a precise role to blend in. "I''m awful at fighting together with other persons, I might unconsciously harm them if I''m forced to go all out." Noah answered honestly, he wanted the mission to succeed and he didn''t want to harm his fellow disciples, he was a member of the sect after all. Clive thought for a while before finding a solution to that problem. "You will be in the rearguard then, your role is to ensure that all your fellow disciples have enough time to escape after the raid. You could also be a runner but it would be a waste of your battle prowess." Noah showed a confused expression at Clive''s words. ''Rearguard? Does it mean that I won''t go near the resources? Also, what kind of role is the "runner"?'' Clive noticed Noah''s expression and proceeded to solve his doubts. "If you are worried about the resources, don''t. Every team has strict rules, all the items stolen will be taken out when we reach the training area so to better divide them. We can also trade our belongings to take more of them if we are really interested but I''ll explain better later. You just have to swear on your horned face that you won''t keep stolen items hidden from your team for now, every raiding team does that before a mission." Noah looked at the other disciples and they nodded to him, he was glad that his role didn''t influence the number of resources that he would obtain. "As for the roles, I''m the vanguard, I''ll charge ahead and probe the situation since I''m the strongest in the team. The runners are the fastest among us, their role is to sweep the ship clean and then run away with the loot. The others are soldiers, they have to keep the guards busy until the runners have stolen everything. Is everything clear?" Chapter 365: 365. Raid Noah accepted. His role was quite dangerous but it allowed him to avoid the raiding and join the battle only when everything was over. The ship belonged to the Utra nation after all, Noah was afraid that something unexpected might reveal his identity. The matter about the oath was solved easily, the disciples had just to stretch their hands with the horned tattoo on them and form a circle while swearing not to steal anything from the gains of the mission. The tattoos resonated between each other and an agreement was formed, Noah couldn''t help but feel amazed at how useful they were. The cultivation world was harsh and merciless, one couldn''t trust anyone. Yet, with the help of the seal of the sect, its members could freely trust each other and focus everything they had on their missions. "Everyone has been assigned with a role, there won''t be any break once we teleport. If you have something to add before the mission, do it now." Clive spoke but no one in the cave seemed to have anything to say. "Perfect, see you later on in the training area and good luck!" Clive didn''t waste time in inspirational speeches and directly moved to exit his cave. Twenty-six cultivators followed him, some of them had already covered their faces with hoods or masks. Noah was one of them, his hood though couldn''t cover the cold aura that he naturally radiated due to his sharp focus. However, that didn''t seem to affect the other disciples. Their minds were completely focused on the incoming mission, their dense battle intent showed their incredible concentration. The group followed Clive toward the matrixes next to the residential area, twenty-seven people stepped on one of the biggest diagrams and waited for Clive to act. He took out many Credits, dozens of crystals with the value of more than ten thousand Credits were placed on the formation, powering the teleportation. The scenery changed right in front of their eyes, the purple underground area was replaced by tall buildings illuminated by the bright halo radiated from the coastline. Clive and Noah were the first to recover from the pressure of the teleportation, Clive swept the area with his eyes before identifying the target and pointing toward its direction. The other disciples had recovered by then, they immediately went after Clive who had already jumped toward the ship that he had pointed before. Noah waited for everyone to surpass him before chasing after them, his job was to make sure that nothing interfered with their escape, it would be better if the guards didn''t see him at all. Twenty-seven figures with their facial features hidden ran at full speed toward one of the many ships that occupied the dock. "Identify yourselves!" A couple of guards appeared when they reached the dock, they wore the golden colors proper of the Elbas family but they were only rank 2 cultivators, they could only retreat when they saw that the group from the Chasing demon sect had no intention to stop. Clive sprinted, his superior cultivation level was revealed as he reached the two guards in an instant, they didn''t even have the time to scream since an extremely thin line severed their bodies in two, killing them on the spot. ''Weaponless martial art, peculiar.'' Noah judged in his mind as he analyzed Clive''s attack. Clive didn''t use mental energy but only "Breath", being in the third rank allowed him to kill two rank 2 cultivators with just one form of his martial art. ''They are just ants in his eyes¡­ The peak of the human ranks seems amazing!'' Noah couldn''t wait to reach that level, only being in the gaseous stage of the third rank made any cultivator virtually unbeatable by those in the second rank, the difference in power was far greater than the one between the first and the second rank. Yet, he was forced to repress his thoughts since Clive made a turn and directed himself toward the ship that matched his report. The other disciples followed, they jumped on the ship when they saw that Clive had done that. Noah waited below it, his mental energy was fixed on the ship but he didn''t sense any strong presence, Clive seemed the strongest aboard. The sound of battles filled the night, the soldiers stationed on the ship tried to fight back the assault of the Chasing demon sect but they had been caught by surprise and they were outnumbered, even without directly looking at it, Noah could predict the outcome of the battle. Minutes passed, the noise caused by the battles on the ship never stopped. Explosions would resonate from time to time, they were the sign that spells were being used to fight. Then, a hooded figure jumped off the ship and nodded at Noah before running in a seemingly random direction. After that, more hooded cultivators jumped off the ship, they all went in different directions without even taking a look at Noah. Noah counted the cultivators in his mind, he focused on the main deck when the number reached twenty-six. He waited calmly, it didn''t take much for a soldier to appear in his sight. ''Mental tremor!'' A shockwave shot from his eyes and pierced the unfortunate soldier''s mind. He was only a rank 2 mage and not even that strong, his sea of consciousness broke immediately after Noah''s spell. He fell lifelessly from the ship, his hands were severed by a neat slash before he landed next to Noah, there was no trace of life in his surprised eyes. Noah stored the white sabers just used in his space-ring and kept the severed hands inside his robe, the was no point in leaving the soldier''s space-rings there after all. Another guard became visible on the main deck, he stared with an astonished expression at the corpse of his colleague and he wanted to retreat when he noticed Noah. However, he was too slow! Another mental attack was cast by Noah which successfully hit the second soldier, killing him on the spot. Its corpse though remained on the ship, Noah couldn''t pillage it. Chapter 366: 366. Disappointmen ''This should be enough.'' Noah could sense that other soldiers were still alive on the ship but none of them seemed willing to show their face. ''My last attack should have scared them, time to go.'' About a minute had passed since the last member of his raiding team had left, there was no reason to wait any further. Noah turned and began to run in the direction of one of the escape points. "The dock is under attack!" "It''s the Hive!" "Converge on the coast!" The shouts of the reinforcements of the legal organizations could be heard in the area, they increased Noah''s determination in leaving as soon as he could. Shockwaves were created under his feet, he used the Shadow sprint many times to reach the farther escape point marked on Clive''s map. The soldiers were able to follow Noah''s tracks due to the noise that he caused with the activation of his martial art but he was fast and had started to escape at the right moment, he reached the matrix before they could point out his exact position. The teleportation matrix was in a dark alley behind a seemingly luxurious building, Noah didn''t hesitate in placing a few hundred Credits on the ground to activate it. In a few seconds, he was back in the familiar underground area. ''It''s over, that went extremely well.'' Noah heaved a sigh of relief at the sight of the purple walls, he could relax now that he was back in the sect. He lowered his hood and picked a direction, the rendezvous point was in the training area where the problematic disciples of his faction were forced to stay. It didn''t take long before he reached that area, most disciples were sleeping in corners near the walls but a small group could be seen in the distance, forming a circle as they sat on the ground. Noah recognized the members of his team and neared them, there was an empty spot next to Clive that Noah guessed he had purposely kept for him. ''I guess hierarchy is really valued here.'' Noah was the second in command in Clive''s group so he could sit next to him. Clive opened his eyes when Noah sat, he smiled when he saw him taking two bloody hands from his robe and throwing them at the center of the group. "What now?" Noah asked, he didn''t know how they intended to share their profits nor what they actually gained from the mission. "We place all the loot at the center and divide it. You can request an item as long as it doesn''t surpass the value of your share. Yet, if you want it even if it surpasses your share, you can add Credits or other items to the center to make up for it." Clive answered, he seemed used to that kind of practice. "What if two of us want the same item?" Noah questioned, it wasn''t unusual for something valuable to be desired by more people. "You find an agreement, those not interested won''t interfere." Noah nodded at Clive''s words and stood up to take back the bloody hands from the center of the group. Then, he took the rings on their fingers and inspected their contents before emptying them and placing everything back at the center. The soldier didn''t have much, only about twenty thousand Credits, a few potions, and a scroll containing the third Kesier rune. "We can cover the expenses for the matrixes with this, great!" Clive exclaimed when he saw the rune, the third one was quite widespread but its value was still high. The Kesier runes were the most common and effective training method for the sea of consciousness after all, every organization needed as many copies as it could. Also, the missions of the factions didn''t count as proper services for the sect, the missions'' building would refund the Credits expended for the matrixes only if the sect greatly benefitted from those missions. Clive then took a few rings from his robe, he had fought on the ship and managed to loot some of his victims too, the contents of the storage devices were soon exposed to the rest of the team. ''More Credits and potions, one inscribed weapon in the first rank, one in the second one, and a rank 1 cultivation technique, not bad.'' Noah thought as he watched the loot. Clive seemed to have killed more soldiers but his loot had the same value of Noah''s one. Then, it was the turn of the other disciples, Credits and potions piled in the center of their group as the rings of the dead soldiers were emptied, scrolls containing runes or low-level technique rarely appeared. Lastly, the runners emptied their rings. They were the ones appointed to steal the contents of the ship, ideally, most of the gains of the mission would come from them. Yet, everyone was soon disappointed when they saw that their loot consisted mostly of rank 3 magical beasts'' corpses, with only a couple of body parts belonging to rank 4 creatures. "Rumors are only rumors after all, there wasn''t even the rank 3 cultivator mentioned in the report¡­" Clive sighed as he said those words, if they subtracted the cost for the activation of the matrixes, the share for each disciple would barely reach a thousand Credits of value. "Anyone interested in anything?" Clive asked but no one seemed interested in those items. ''The body parts of the rank 4 creatures aren''t bad but there are too few of them and not even one complete body, I''d rather have merits points at this point.'' Noah analyzed the loot and decided that it was better to begin to save for the fourth Kesier rune instead of having materials that were only vaguely useful to him. "Good, I will send everything to Marcia''s faction except for the Credits. We will first subtract those expended in the teleportation and then equally divide the remaining sum." No one objected to Clive''s conclusion, in a few minutes, the Credits were equally divided between the group. "We are done for now, go back to your caves. I will notify you when the Leader hears another unreal rumor." Small laughs resounded in the training area, the raiding group divided itself and its members returned to their respective habitations to rest. Chapter 367: 367. Sarah Noah''s life became peaceful for a while. There weren''t other missions that required his presence and he would rather wait for Bruce''s ones rather than pick those in the missions'' building. The number of merit points awarded by doing services for his faction surpassed by a large margin those given by the sect in the normal mission, Noah thought that it was better to wait for another unrealistic rumor to reach Bruce''s ears rather than threaten soldiers for an entire day. Yet, the Dantian''s opening occupied only two days per week and his mental sphere enlarged autonomously so Noah found himself with far more free time than needed. He wasn''t used to that, he would always try to make the most out of his days but his centers of power were already improving and there was a limit to how much he could improve in imbuing his meaning inside the "Breath", he would need to forge to see if the effects reflected his intended meaning. However, he had no materials nor did he want to purchase them, he was saving for the fourth Kesier rune and he would rather use his merit points to purchase spells or martial arts rather than use them to accumulate resources that he could hunt by himself. That''s why he started to join the gambling sessions of the disciples of his faction in the training area. He was a rank 3 mage, his advantage against the other disciples was simply too great so he would often win. "Even." Noah spoke for last when the dice under a cup placed upside-down on the ground stopped rolling. "Damn, I bet odd! Zach, I hate this rule that you have to be the last to speak." "Shut up, it is impossible to play otherwise, everyone would just pick what he has chosen!" One of the disciples that had picked even rebuked the other cultivator. Since Noah''s mental sphere was so powerful, he could predict with almost certainty the outcome of the dice by the sounds it made while rolling. It only took Noah a few games to become used to that practice, he had become almost unbeatable after that. ''These guys, it''s not so hard, they could easily learn how to do it too.'' Noah sighed in his mind when he saw that the disciples around him had started another discussion. He didn''t know when, but he had become quite used to that sight. A few weeks had already passed after his mission with Clive''s team and he had spent most of that time in the training area. After all, the disciples were betting Credits, Noah didn''t mind taking them. The disciples had initially been happy that he had joined their gambling group but they soon discovered that their finances could only diminish when Noah was around, complaints began to accumulate and specific rules for Noah were created because of that. "I think we need to add another disadvantage to Zach, making him pay more doesn''t really affect him." One of the disciples suggested that and the others immediately agreed with him. "You know that you can just hear the sound of the dice? You are all rank 2 mages, you can do something this simple." Noah complained, he didn''t mind the additional rules for his presence but he couldn''t help but worry about the stupidity of his fellow disciples. "We know, we know. Yet, if we ever learn to do that, we would find ourselves unable to enjoy gambling anymore, we would have to find another game." One of the disciples answered and Noah could only shrug his shoulders at those words. They were spending time in that way only to ease their stress, the few hundred Credits that they lost couldn''t compare with the loss of their hobby. Noah didn''t complain anymore, he was happy as long as his Credits increased. "I think I found it! Zach, turn around and cover your ears, let''s see if this works." The other disciples seemed to agree with that idea so Noah simply turned and put the palm of his hands over his ears. That made basically no difference in his mind, his mental waves were enough to make him understand everything that was going on behind his back. ''They are either too drunk to realize that this won''t make any difference or they simply don''t care. Oh well, their loss.'' The sound of a dice hitting the surface of the cup as it rolled could be clearly heard by him, Noah deduced the result of that round already. ''The batch of rank 4 pills and potions was found to be a false rumor too, David''s group came back empty-handed.'' Noah thought as he waited for the dice to stop rolling. David was another rank 3 cultivator that, like Clive, worked directly under Bruce. Everyone in the faction seemed to know about Bruce''s character, they would always compare the rumors that they were sent to investigate with the truth of the matter. ''Right now, David''s team has been the most unfortunate, they have only found a bunch of food and low-quality wine, there wasn''t a single resource on that ship.'' One rumor led to supplies while another led to a few rank 4 materials, the member of the thieves'' faction had, of course, placed a bet on whoever had the best gains. However, the last team had yet to return so a winner hadn''t been decided. "Odd." Noah spoke when he heard that everyone behind him had placed their bets. "Oh, come on!" "Zach, why did you even learn to do something like that, it ruins all the fun!" "I think I''m done for today, I''ve lost too much." The Credits at stake were divided between the winners and Noah filled a few cups with his stash of Ivor''s vine before the disciples could stand up. "Ohhh! Zach''s wine is back! It has been five days since I tasted it." "I don''t have much of it left, enjoy this few cups for now." Noah answered to the excited praises of the others around him before his attention was attracted by the sudden appearance of a bloodied figure at the entrance of the training area. The other cultivators turned in the direction of his gaze and were surprised to see the figure covered in blood that was limping toward them. "That''s Sarah!" One of the disciples exclaimed and Noah identified the woman covered in blood as the captain of the team sent to investigate the Inheritance ground. Chapter 368: 368. Control Sarah seemed gravely injured. She was barely able to walk but she kept going, keeping her gaze fixed toward the depth of the training area. "Bru..ce. Need¡­ Bruce." Her soft words could only be heard by Noah as she continued to limp in his direction. Noah acted almost instinctively, he activated the warp spell and teleported right next to her where he supported her with his body. He was the cultivator with the highest status in the training area at that moment, it was normal for him to be the first to react at that scene. Sarah fell on him, her strength left her as soon as she had Noah''s support but she managed to make one last plead before fainting. "Bring me to Bruce." Silence reigned in the training area, Noah inspected her body only to discover that her injuries were quite severe, even her dantian seemed to be wounded. A notebook appeared in his hands, he quickly found Seth''s mental imprint and sent a message before lifting Sarah with both his hands. "Inform Roy, I''ll bring her to the Leader." Noah ordered before walking toward the end of the training area, he didn''t even look at the other disciples as he sped toward Bruce''s cave. It took him only a few minutes to arrive in the area where drops of "Breath" accumulated on the surface of the purple walls, he could have arrived faster but he was worried that his speed would worsen Sarah''s injuries. He kicked on the entrance of Bruce''s cave a few times, interrupting a cultivator during its training could be dangerous but that seemed an emergency. "Who-!" A loud shout resounded from the cave, Bruce interrupted it in time when his mental energy swept the two people outside. The entrance opened, Bruce saw how Noah had his eyes closed and his brows knitted, he had protected Sarah from the Leader''s shout but that left his mental sphere unguarded, his sea of consciousness was still trembling when Bruce came out of his cave. "You really need to learn how to control yourself, she would have never been able to withstand your pressure in her condition." Noah complained as he slowly opened his eyes, Bruce''s words alone weren''t enough to wound him but they still generated waves of pain when he didn''t protect his mind. Bruce, however, was speechless. His gaze was fixed on Sarah and a conflicted expression appeared on his face. He raised his hand toward her but then he retracted it and pointed toward his bed inside the cave, he seemed scared even to talk in that situation. ''Is he scared that he would hurt her due to his lack of control?'' Noah saw that Bruce was doing his best to control himself, his eyes couldn''t leave Sarah but his mind forced his body to stay away. Noah hurriedly brought Sarah inside the cave, he laid her on the bed and inspected her condition again. Her body seemed on the verge of falling apart, most of her bones were broken and many of her organs were injured, even her dantian seemed damaged. "What happened?" Bruce spoke, his words were softer than water, Noah was surprised to discover that no pressure at all was exuded by them. "I don''t know, she appeared in the training area like this, she was only able to say your name before fainting." Noah summarized the previous events. Bruce nodded and neared her, he stretched his left hand toward her face while his right one clenched itself on his left arm, the grip was so tight that almost no blood was able to reach the extremities of the left hand. Yet, he was able to safely caress her face like this, Noah understood by the affection radiated by that gesture that their relationship wasn''t a simple Leader-captain one. "Do you want me to leave?" Noah asked, he wondered if Bruce wanted to stay alone with her. "No, I need to push myself to the limit to control myself, if something happens, I''m afraid that I won''t be able to touch her." Bruce said while shaking his head and retracting his hand. Sarah''s condition wasn''t stable, if anything happened, Bruce would only harm her with his scarce control. "You did good, it seems that you aren''t as bad as the reports say." Bruce spoke as he took a notebook from his space-ring, messages were sent to many mental imprints as he browsed through its pages. Noah didn''t answer. He knew that he wasn''t a good person, he had realized that long ago. Yet, that didn''t mean that he couldn''t feel affection for someone or that he didn''t know which was the "good" action. His life had always been on the edge of a knife, one mistake and he would have lost everything, he was used to destroying everything that opposed him. Also, every organization in the past had always tried to exploit him, it was only in the Odrea country with Nina''s affection that he was able to relax a little. However, he was still an outsider in the Odrea country, he had never blended in too much. The situation with the Chasing demon sect, though, was entirely different. He was a proper disciple and most of its members were cultivators with an attitude similar to his. Noah was still far away from feeling that he belonged to the sect but he had a clear image of his role in his mind. He knew that he was going to be a captain sooner or later, even though he was a lone wolf, he had to do his best not to isolate himself. "I just did what seemed right." In the end, Noah''s answered truthfully. Bruce nodded and didn''t speak again, the two of them stood silently with their gazes fixed on the wounded woman on the bed. Then, Bruce opened the door of his room, Noah turned to see that Seth and Byron were hurriedly running toward the cave. "Damn, where did you send her? It seems that a mountain has fallen on her!" Byron yelled before taking a piece of glass from his space-ring, he carefully inspected her body through it, he kept on shaking his head as he did so. Chapter 369: 369. Awake Minutes passed. Byron would mumble at times when he reached a particularly wounded part of Sarah''s body and he lingered a lot when he arrived at her low-waist. Bruce''s gaze never left Sarah, his concern could be seen from his anxious expression. Seth and Noah stood motionless, Seth had his eyes on Byron, he inspected his movements as if trying to learn something while Noah would often take a peek to the expressions of those in the cave. Then, Byron stored the lens in his space-ring and heaved a sigh as he lifted his head toward Bruce. "How bad is she?" Bruce''s worry immediately increased when he saw that gesture, his words carried all the pressure that his mental sphere was capable of, he had completely forgotten to contain himself in that situation. Luckily for Sarah, Seth was ready to act. Layers of mental energy were condensed around her body, Seth managed to protect her from Bruce''s involuntary attack. "Calm down, she will survive." Byron snorted before saying those words, it seemed that Bruce''s incapability of controlling himself irritated him. "Her body can be easily healed now that she is in the sect, the only problem is her dantian." Byron continued with his diagnosis, he looked again at her low-waist before speaking again. "She has stressed her center of power too much and she was probably already injured when she did so. There isn''t much that I can do about that, only time will tell us if the injury is permanent." Noah listened to his words and understood, Sarah''s cultivation journey was probably over! Cultivators had a long life but the injuries on the centers of power took a long time to heal. Also, the older someone was, the harder it was to improve. An elderly man would find it hard to even reach the second rank of the dantian, Noah didn''t know Sarah''s actual age but he guessed that if her injury was severe, it might even take decades for it to heal. "I understand, thanks, Byron. Leave the dantian part to me, just focus on stabilizing her condition." Bruce remembered to hold back that time. "I need to undress her to apply the potion." Byron spoke and Bruce turned his gaze toward Seth and Noah, the meaning behind that gesture was quite obvious. Seth and Noah bowed before turning to leave, the entrance of the cave opened and closed in a few seconds. Seth heaved a sigh when they were outside, he started to massage his temples as he fell deep in thought. Noah, on the other hand, was interested in what had happened to Sarah. ''What did they find under the Great whirlpool? Sarah is a rank 3 cultivator, normal magical beasts wouldn''t be able to hurt her that badly.'' The Great whirlpool was a location drawn on his map of the Coral archipelago but Noah had never taken interest in it. The whirlpool was a danger zone where many magical beasts were gathered but that wasn''t its most dangerous feature. The sea in that zone was rough, there were marine currents so strong that even cultivators with a rank 4 body would have trouble to oppose, only marine magical beasts with their innate swimming ability could inhabit that place. ''Yet, she must have been prepared for the exploration, it''s hard to believe that she wasn''t ready for the marine currents.'' Sarah was a captain, she had a team. Noah didn''t mention it because, seeing the situation in which she ended up, he was already guessing the worst possible outcome. ''If it wasn''t the magical beasts nor the naturally dangerous environment, then what caused her injuries?'' The rumor she was sent to investigate spoke of an Inheritance ground but Noah was still doubtful about that. Too many experts had lived in the archipelago through the years, the Great whirlpool had already been explored long ago and had been labeled as a simple danger zone. ''Was it a trap? Rumors must come from somewhere after all, maybe some enemy of the sect was aware of Bruce''s personality and decided to leak a false rumor on purpose.'' Noah reached that conclusion in his mind, that seemed the most plausible explanation. "Is it that bad?" A familiar voice reached Noah''s ears, he raised his head only to see that Roy had arrived at the end of the training area. Noah didn''t answer but Seth nodded, he briefly explained the situation to him, without omitting the part about the contents of the rumor. "So it was like this¡­" Roy sighed when Seth finished explaining. "Holly said that her sources knew nothing about a trap, this matter is unrelated to the legal factions." Seth continued to explain, his statement denied Noah''s hypothesis, only one option remained in his mind. "Was it really an Inheritance ground? How is that possible?" Noah expressed his amazement, he really couldn''t understand how something like that had remained hidden for so long. "We don''t know for sure, it''s better to wait for Sarah to wake up and listen to her report." Seth''s words were on point, it was useless to make conjectures when they had a living witness with them. Noah nodded and sat on the ground, he didn''t know how long it would take for Sarah to wake up but he wanted to hear her report. After all, a possible Inheritance ground was an amazing chance! Noah had been in two of them but he had never been able to obtain the complete inheritance of those separate dimensions. Eccentric Thunder wanted an heir with a thunder aptitude, even if Noah had gained a lot from him, that still couldn''t compare to the complete inheritance! As for the Royal Inheritance, his power had been too low back then and most of his gains would have gone to the Elbas family anyway. ''I bet that June is extremely rich now¡­ Damn, I''m so envious.'' Just when he was about to fall deep in his memories, the entrance of the cave opened. Inside, Bruce could be seen laid on the bed next to Sarah. She smiled bitterly as she allowed the big man to keep her in his embrace. Byron stood up, he was sweating a was a bit pale but he still gestured to those outside to near him. "Come in, I bet that you want to listen to her story." Chapter 370: 370. Separate dimension Roy, Seth, and Noah entered the cave, its entrance closed behind their backs as they reached the bed where Sarah and Bruce were laying. "You must be the new member of our faction, thank you for bringing me to Bruce and for defending me from his recklessness." Sarah thanked Noah, her voice was soft and weak but her condition seemed somewhat stable at least. Noah performed a slight bow, he didn''t feel like he had done anything special. "What happened under the Great whirlpool? Where are the other members of your team?" Roy asked, Sarah''s expression turned sour when her team was mentioned. "They are dead, I was the only one able to survive in that mess." Seth sighed while Bruce softly caressed her hair, they knew how many disciples her team had, they couldn''t help but feel bad about their losses. "Tell us everything, I''ll directly report the matter to my mother afterward." Roy spoke again, his status as the son of an elder in the heroic ranks was the highest in the cave. Also, many rank 2 cultivators had been lost, that matter concerned the entirety of the Chasing demon sect, it wasn''t the time to care about the different factions. "Yes, give me one moment to sort my thoughts." Sarah answered before falling deep in thought, Noah took out one jar of Ivor''s wine and handed it to her. She smiled when she saw that and her smile only increased after she took a slight sip. Ivor''s wine had great numbing proprieties, it helped Sarah in calming her messy mind. "Thank you." She thanked Noah again after handing back the jar, Noah carefully stored it back in his space-ring as he waited for her report. "We reached the Great whirlpool two weeks ago, it was nighttime but we still decided to traverse its currents. The route we followed was the safest one, many of the cultivators in my team had a water aptitude so it was quite easy to reach its depth." Sarah began to explain the events in the whirlpool, everyone in the cave was silent, focused on her story. "The information about the direction of the currents is renown, I even had a map that depicted their behavior according to the time, it was impossible for us to lose ourselves inside them." Sarah took out a small scroll as proof of her words, Seth picked it and nodded when he saw its contents. The scroll was then passed to the other in the cave, Noah could see that the intricate patterns of the marine currents were clearly reported on the map when the scroll arrived at him. ''This map even states the strength of each current, it is as I suspected, the archipelago has been investigated deeply throughout the years.'' The scroll only confirmed Noah''s suspicion, too many experts had explored the contents of the archipelago, something unexpected couldn''t happen. Yet, something unexpected had happened which made him even more confused. "The depths of the whirlpool are often its calmest part, we had expected to find a large number of magical beasts there but we only found another marine current." "That''s impossible, the behavior of the whirlpool has been studied for generations, those that hunt magical beasts in that area have never reported of a marine current there." Roy spoke but Sarah could only reveal a bitter expression before continuing to speak. "That''s what I thought too, I''ve informed myself before going inside it and that sight surprised me. Yet, this marine current was soft, it wasn''t dangerous at all so I chose to explore it." Sarah''s speech was reaching its crucial point, no one dared to speak at that moment. "The water in the current was warm, we even thought about dispersing the protective layer around our team and swim through it, we would have never expected for the situation to become so dangerous." Sarah gave voice to her memories, her expression could only become more bitter when she remembered the thoughts that she had back then. "We continued to walk on the warm current, the water was so dense that we didn''t even need additional spells to help us in the process. However, at some random point, we began to fall." She stopped speaking to cough a few times, Bruce promptly gave her some water so that she could continue her story. "There wasn''t any indication nor change in the "Breath" around us, we simply lost our foothold when we reached a certain depth. The water disappeared as we fell and a large underwater structure appeared in our sight, it seemed a maze of some sort but I can''t say more because we never entered it." ''Is she telling us that the water suddenly disappeared as they went deeper? This is impossible, unless¡­'' Noah''s mind sorted Sarah''s words at full speed, there seemed to be only one explanation to those events. ''Separate dimension!'' That thought hit all the cultivators in the room, their eyes widened when they reached that conclusion but they didn''t dare to give voice to their surprise since Sarah''s story wasn''t over. "We found ourselves on a dark-brown passage, it was forty meters large and it was connected directly the structure at its end. There was only the dark sea on the other side and even the ceiling depicted the current that we were traversing before. At once, I knew that I was in a separate dimension." Sarah raised her hand when she saw that Roy was going to ask something. "I have no idea why no one was able to find it before, it is as if it has appeared out of nowhere." Roy suppressed his question after hearing Sarah''s words, he knew that she wasn''t aware of the reason behind the changes in the whirlpool but he found himself unable to contain his curiosity. "There didn''t seem to be a way out of that place so we decided to walk toward the structure at the end of the passage. Everything seemed quite ordinary for a while, with the exception that the space seemed stretched. It took us one week to near the structure but it was at that moment that we were attacked." "Attacked by who?" Bruce couldn''t suppress himself anymore when he heard of an attacker and asked the woman in his embrace that question. "By dragons." Chapter 371: 371. Creator ''Dragons!'' One word was able to create shock and amazement. Noah''s interest in magical beasts had begun with a dragon, it could be said that even his cultivation journey had started because of it. That''s why, during his studies, he had focused on that kind for a long time. Dragons were considered as the strongest magical beast, they had powerful bodies and their scales were able to provide one of the best natural defenses. Also, their innate ability could match some of the weaker spells of the humans, dragons were able to empower and manipulate their fire easily, Noah clearly remembered how the dragon in his childhood created a spear made of flames after its attack was launched. Yet, since they were the strongest magical beast, they had some natural restriction. They weren''t able to reproduce as fast as the other magical beasts nor could they affect the environment to favor the birth of more dragons, it took centuries for a pack of dragons to be created. "They came from below the passage, thirty magical beasts in the fourth rank, we had nowhere to go, I saw how my team was slowly destroyed by their assault." Sarah continued her story, sorrow and regret could be seen on her face when she reached that point. "I endured as much as I could, I tried to break through their blockage but it was pointless. I used my secret art to breach the walls of the separate dimension and went for the nearest matrix after the last member of my team died, I wasn''t able to save them." Tears fell from her face when her report ended, Bruce did his best to console her but the gravity of the situation could be understood by his expression. Sarah was a rank 3 cultivator after all! Rank 4 magical beasts could only run away in front of her. Yet, when faced with dozens of dragons, even someone as strong as her was forced to escape. "Which kind of dragons?" Roy asked, he wanted to give a complete report to his mother. "I don''t know. They had blue scales and large bodies, our attacks seemed to slide over their scales when they reached them." Sarah''s description was quite shallow but Noah was able to pick those clues and transform them into a deduction. "Sea dragons, they have a great defense and their innate ability renders them almost immune to any type of attack. Were you attacked by sound waves?" Noah spoke, his words made Sarah widen her eyes. "Y-yes, how did you know?" Noah only nodded at her answer, his mind sorted all the information he knew about that particular kind of dragons. ''About ten meters large on average, extremely good defense due to the protective layer over their scales. They can accumulate the power of the attacks that land on their bodies in a strong roar which can instantly kill cultivators in the second rank. No wonder Sarah''s team was defeated, thirty Sea dragons can''t be matched by rank 2 cultivators.'' Noah had his head lowered as he thought but the other cultivators couldn''t help but move their gazes on him after his answer. "Are you an expert in the magical beasts'' field?" Seth asked, he was the first to accept the situation. "It is my subject of specialization." Noah answered quickly, his knowledge about magical beasts wasn''t exactly a secret after all. "What do you think about it?" Roy''s question followed, he wanted to know Noah''s opinion before reporting to his mother. "They are among the strongest creatures when it comes to defense. The best approach would be to kill them in one blow but it is impossible with thirty of them. A team of rank 2 cultivators can''t break through unless you send a small army to fight them." Noah''s deduction was accurate. Rank 2 cultivators would only empower their roars with their attacks, the only method to avoid that outcome was to kill all of them in a short time. Yet, due to their defense, it was hard for rank 2 cultivators to kill them in one blow, only a team in the third rank would be able to vanquish them without suffering losses. ''This matter is out of my reach, I''m too weak.'' Noah could judge that he wouldn''t be able to affect the outcome of the battle with his cultivation level. He knew that he could kill a couple of them if he went all out but he had no hope of succeeding against thirty of them. "Did you manage to kill some of them?" Roy asked Sarah, his question was on point, entering the structure at the end of the bridge would be easier if there were fewer dragons to defend it. "Of course, but more dragons would come after a few parts of incense to replace the dead, it seemed quite orderly now that I think about it." Sarah spoke, her words carried a deeper meaning but she wasn''t able to realize it due to her situation. ''A separate dimension, dragons that protect the entrance of a structure, dead being replaced after a few minutes¡­ This sounds too methodical to be a wild environment.'' Everyone in the room had the same thoughts as Noah, their minds reached a similar conclusion after that last piece of information. ''Inheritance ground!'' "What?" Sarah couldn''t understand their silence, they had fallen deep in thought all of sudden and their expressions only showed excitement. "If the dead dragons are exchanged with new ones, then they were placed there for a reason. If there is a reason, then there is a creator. You have probably discovered an inheritance ground." Bruce explained the situation and Sarah''s eyes widened when she realized that. She had been too focused on surviving, that was the first moment of peace after the events in the whirlpool so she still didn''t think about that. "I will inform Elder Iris, this matter is too important for it to be handled by cultivators in the human ranks. This Inheritance must belong to the sect!" Roy announced as he went toward the exit of the cave, Bruce immediately opened the entrance at that sight. Chapter 372: 372. Secret arts The Chasing demon sect was swept by a huge commotion after that day. Sarah''s team had been killed after they discovered a separate dimension in the depth of the Great whirlpool, rumors filled the sect, they spoke about dragons and the possible rewards behind that trial. Yet, they didn''t act. No mission concerned that place and the higher-ups of the sect were strangely silent about that matter. Noah had returned to his cave, no matter how interested he was about the separate dimension, his cultivation level was too low for its exploration. A whole team of rank 2 cultivators had been killed even though a rank 3 cultivator was with them, Noah simply had no chances of surviving in the passage. However, there was something unrelated to the separate dimension that had interested him. ''Sarah has spoken about a secret art, what is that?'' That detail didn''t escape Noah''s ears. ''She managed to breach the walls of the separate dimension with her secret art but I''ve never heard of something like that.'' Noah thought as he sat in his cave. The academy had given him a top-tier instruction about the cultivation field but its teachings covered the orthodox methods for the most part, the unorthodox and old practices weren''t taught to its students. A notebook appeared in Noah''s hand, he sent a message to Roy to question him about that matter. ''Secret arts are special forms that push the centers of power of a cultivator over their limits, they usually cause grave injuries when executed but they are reliable in deadly situations.'' Roy''s answer arrived quickly, his always-honest attitude solved Noah''s question in a few hours. ''Something to use when everything else fails then, I should learn one of them.'' Noah thought as he reviewed that information. He had had always liked to increase his battle prowess but the lack of spells for his element was a factor that became more influent as his power grew. After all, Noah had only three spells that could accompany him through the entirety of his cultivation journey and one of them was a movement-type spell. Cultivators with a different aptitude had a larger variety of spells at their disposal while Noah only had four of them that were useful at his level. ''Being of the darkness element is a blessing but also a curse, the advantage that my mental sphere gives me will eventually become useless, I need more fighting methods.'' Noah knew that he was extremely strong for his age and level, no rank 2 cultivator could match him. Yet, those in the heroic ranks had usually lived for a long time, even centuries, their accumulation was enough to make Noah''s advantage pale. He had relied on the Demonic form spell till that moment after all but he knew that he would eventually face strong foes that had many spells at their disposal. The rarest the aptitude, the harder it was to create techniques and spells, darkness and light element cultivators could maintain their superiority only if they had enough spells to counter the other elements. That''s why he was so interested in the so-called secret arts, Noah could only benefit from adding another attack to his arsenal. ''I can''t interfere with the separate dimension for now, I''m too weak. Yet, I can''t only cultivate for the time being, I need to expand my combat style in order to be ready for any unexpected situation.'' Noah knew that he couldn''t help with the matters that concerned the Great whirlpool, being a rank 3 cultivator seemed the minimum requirement to survive there. Yet, that didn''t mean that he was giving up on it. The exploration of a separate dimension could take decades, Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance ground had stayed in its place for hundreds of years after all. The same went for the Royal Inheritance, Noah didn''t know how deep it was but he was sure that the Elbas family would have some trouble reaching its end because of the restrictions applied to it. ''Cultivate, gather information, increase my attack methods, I need to be ready.'' Noah set a plan in his mind, a black saber appeared in his hands, he was going to perform another Dantian''s opening. Meanwhile, at some distance from the Coral archipelago. A hooded figure hovered in the air, it seemed to walk on the air as it neared the large vortex in the middle of the sea. The vortex was more than two kilometers large, its suction force was able to attract and bind even beings with a rank 4 body. The figure looked at the whirlpool for a while before diving right at its center. The water of the sea seemed to willingly avoid the figure, an invisible membrane made of mental energy created a cover for the cultivator''s body. The hood of the cultivator flapped, the speed at which it was descending was too high, the hood ultimately slid, revealing the face that it was hiding. The hooded figure exploring the depth of the whirlpool was, in fact, Elder Iris! The currents of the vortex reached even the depths of the sea, Elder Iris had to immerse herself for many kilometers before escaping them. She was now in the place where Sarah said to have found the warm current. Her gaze swept the area, the water seemed to freeze under the pressure of her mental energy. However, she couldn''t find any trace of the current nor of the separate dimension. She immediately thought that Sarah had lied to her son but she quickly suppressed that suspicion, Sarah had been a captain in the sect for many years, she had no reason to lie. ''It''s either an event happening only at a specific time or¡­'' Elder Iris began to ponder about the situation, she investigated the area with even more attention. ''Or it''s something limited to those in the human ranks.'' Those two possibilities lingered in her mind, she didn''t know which one was true. Nevertheless, she had come there as soon as Roy reported Sarah''s story, she needed to discover as much information as she could before the separate dimension was found by the other organizations in the archipelago. Chapter 373: 373. Exploration Elder Iris'' eyes sharpened, tens of blades made of compressed air were shot from her body in every direction. The depths of the sea shook, raging currents were created due to her attack. As the water around her trembled, Elder Iris carefully observed the changes in the environment. Everything seemed perfectly normal except for a small area that flickered softly, radiating the colors of the rainbow as the wind blades crossed it. Elder Iris didn''t miss that detail, she moved near the area, using the full power of her mind to inspect it. Yet, she found nothing strange, the colors had disappeared as soon as the blades had vanished. Another attack was launched, she focused on that area at that time. The colors of the rainbow reappeared, Elder Iris seemed able to see some sort of passage among those soft lights. Her hand went on the passage but nothing happened, the hand just crossed the lights as if nothing was there at all. ''This should be the warm current that Sarah found. It seems to be some kind of passage between two dimensions.'' Elder Iris was experienced and knowledgeable like the majority of the cultivators in the heroic ranks, she was immediately able to deduce the proprieties of that invisible warm current. ''Why is it invisible though? Are there conditions to meet?'' Inheritance grounds usually had strict rules according to their creator''s intentions, the reason behind their creation would usually concern the passing down of a legacy of some sort. Cultivators had long lives but they also died, most of them didn''t want to disappear or be forgotten due to the passage of time, they wanted for their hard work and techniques to be picked up by the future generations. Yet, they would be picky about their potential heirs. Inheritance grounds usually targeted cultivators in the human ranks, not only were they those that needed powerful techniques the most, but they were also easier to shape. Cultivators in the heroic ranks were already pursuing their individuality, becoming separate existences that had their own training methods. Those in the human ranks, instead, were still humans, they could still change the training methods to better adapt to those contained in the legacy of an Inheritance ground. That''s why most legacies left behind by powerful cultivators had the restriction that only those in the human ranks could have access to the trials inside the separate dimension. Nevertheless, just because a door was sealed by conditions didn''t imply that there was no other way to open it. Elder Iris focused, she stretched her hands in the direction of the invisible current. The water in front of her began to rotate, a small vortex appeared between her hands. Then, the vortex increased in power, it enlarged and begun to affect more water. The same radiance reappeared, the warm current wasn''t able to conceal itself under the assault of a cultivator in the heroic ranks. The currents above her head were affected too, Iris'' vortex was so powerful that everything in a five hundred meters radius was attracted by it. Raging waves were created on the surface, the shape of the Great whirlpool was affected due to the powerful spell that was cast in its depths. The form of the warm current was completely revealed under her attack, its radiance couldn''t cover its shape anymore. Yet, that was all Elder Iris could obtain. No matter how powerful her spell was, the warm current wouldn''t become real, she could only make it visible. She kept the vortex active for half an hour before she gave up on forcing the entrance of the separate dimension and dispersing her spell. "Iris, what is happening here?" A hooded figure appeared behind her, the water around him wasn''t able to suppress his words. Elder Iris had created quite a mess after all, her spell couldn''t go unnoticed by the other powerful entities in the archipelago. "Marcus." Elder Iris greeted him but her eyes were still fixed on the area where the invisible current was. "Do you see anything here?" She pointed toward the area, Marcus followed the direction of her hand but he was only able to see the dark waters of the depths of the sea. "I need to call a meeting with the higher-ups of all the organizations of the Hive, there is an Inheritance ground here." . . . Days passed in the archipelago, the atmosphere inside the Chasing demon sect was tense due to the recent events. Noah did his best to gather as much information as he could, he sent many messages to Roy but he had only managed to learn that a meeting between the higher-ups of the Hive was being held. "Why do they even involve the Hive? We could have kept the separate dimension all for ourselves!" Those words were heard often in the training area where the thieves'' faction was, even disciples of the other faction would come there to investigate the matters about the dimension. Sarah was the one that had discovered it after all, it was normal for the others to think that her faction was the most informed one. "Thirty dragons in the fourth rank and that right at the entrance of the dimension. We might be able to take down the dimension by ourselves but the strength of the sect will be greatly affected in the process." Noah answered the disciple, he was calmly waiting for the meeting to end, he had never left the training area in those days. "He is right. We have the power to explore it by ourselves but that would mean that we will endure all the losses during the process. Let all the Hive join, we might lose some resource this way but we will also suffer less." David added weight to Noah''s words. The disciple was still dubious after Noah had spoken but he was immediately convinced when David agreed with him. He was one of the captains after all, his words had great importance in the sect. Then, a buzz sounded in Noah''s mind and he picked the notebook from his space-ring, the captains in the area did the same, they had been contacted too. ''The dimension is restricted to the human ranks, even the joint power of the higher-ups of the Hive wasn''t able to force its entrance. Elder Iris requests for rank 3 cultivators to form teams and begin the exploration, missions will be affixed on the second floor of the missions'' building starting tomorrow.'' Roy''s voice resounded in Noah and the captains'' heads, the exploration of the separate dimension had officially started! Chapter 374: 374. Rewards ''The first trial of the separate dimension was surpassed, the reward was thirty intact rank 4 dragon corpses.'' ''The labyrinth at the end of the bridge leads to different trials, the reports from the survivors of the other organizations speak of peak rank 4 dragons in each of them.'' ''A team managed to break through the labyrinth, the sole survivor has gained five dragon''s eggs as a reward.'' ''The third trial is still inside the labyrinth, reports speak about an endurance test.'' ''The third test is inflicting heavy losses to every organization, the exploration will be halted momentarily for the teams to reorganize.'' ''The third test was completed today, four rank 3 cultivation techniques and six rank 4 martial arts were rewarded to those that had completed it.'' Reports arrived endlessly in the Chasing demon sect, the disciples read them with vivid interest while they went on with their lives. The underground organizations were managing to hide the information about the separate dimension from the legal ones but the representatives from the continent soon understood that something was going on. It couldn''t be helped, the Hive had always strictly controlled the archipelago but its grip on the islands was weakening. That was caused by the large number of powerful cultivators employed in the exploration of the Inheritance ground, some matters on the surface were neglected to focus on the dimension. Yet, instead of being happy about that, the legal organizations became suspicious. Soon, they used their methods to make a deal with the Hive, joining the exploration of the dimension. A truce was made, the rewards of the Inheritance ground were too appealing to lose them over the control of the archipelago, the greed of the legal factions won against the orders of the continent. As a matter of fact, the continent was unaware of the dimension, the legal factions were stalling on providing that information to make the most out of it. After all, if the continent was involved, they would lose all the rights over the resources contained in the dimension, they would rather gain as much as they could before the information was spread. That intention was shared by the Hive which used all its methods to contain the information in the archipelago. A long period of peace followed, the powerful cultivators in the organizations were too busy with the Inheritance ground to handle the petty matters of the surface, only the weaker rank 3 cultivators were left to oversee them. The leadership for the matters of the surface was also appointed to some cultivators in the second rank, with most rank 3 cultivators in the dimension, they became the most powerful asset in the human ranks. There were some exceptions though. Bruce and Seth had avoided joining the exploration of the Inheritance ground, Bruce cared too much about Sarah''s condition, he didn''t want to leave her alone while she was injured, and Seth was too busy managing the matters on the surface with the lack of manpower. Roy was the same as Seth, he had to make sure that the manpower sent in the Inheritance ground didn''t affect the position of the sect in the archipelago, losing its grip on the islands was too easy now that their most powerful human assets were away. As for Noah, even though he couldn''t join the exploration of the separate dimension because his cultivation level was too low, he still greatly benefitted from that situation. The lack of manpower forced the sect to be more generous with the rewards to its missions, the disciples would complete more and more missions with each passing day, attracted by the huge sum of merit points rewarded with each one of them. Noah, as the strongest cultivator in the second rank, was considered of equal importance with the weak rank 3 cultivators left behind. He had access to the most important and rewarding missions, he could even lead a team at some point. "Captain, will you join the exploration of the dimension once you reach the third rank?" One disciple asked as soon as Noah and his team appeared on the matrixes inside the sect. "That''s the plan." Noah answered, he lowered his hood and undressed his bloodied robe as he jumped off the matrix. The last mission required for him to stop the sailing of a ship belonging to the Shandal Empire. Those loyal to the continent in that organization wanted to smuggle some of the resources gained in the Inheritance ground to gain favor in the eyes of the Empire so Noah was tasked to stop it and steal its contents. Of course, a huge battle occurred but Noah''s team was more numerous and he was in the first line, the soldiers on the ship had no chance to survive. "How I envy you. When the separate dimension was discovered more than two years ago, I thought I had found my chance to improve quickly. It was disappointing to know that only those in the third rank had a chance to survive." The disciple spoke again as he too undressed. More than two years had passed since the exploration of the Inheritance ground began, the reports about the many trials had never stopped reaching the sect. ''Just a month ago, a rank 4 cultivation technique was rewarded to those that had surpassed the seventh trial¡­ Dammit, I hope they don''t exhaust all the rewards before I enter it.'' Noah thought as he reviewed the last report about the separate dimension in his mind. The rewards for each trial had always been resources, techniques, or spells in the third rank but the appearance of a rank 4 cultivation technique had rekindled the greed of the various organizations. "Go to rest, I''ll call you if I need your help in another mission." Noah dismissed disciples under him and moved toward the missions'' building, ignoring the bows that the disciples were politely performing. When Noah reached the building, he went directly to the second floor. The room was almost empty, all the rank 3 cultivators were either in the separate dimension or handling the most relevant matters in the islands, the missions on that floor piled up since there weren''t enough cultivators that could complete them. Noah went for the desk, his tattoo interacted with the formation and an egg the size of a man''s head was placed there. The egg was the item that the legal organization was trying to smuggle, it was one of the dragon''s eggs rewarded in the second trial of the separate dimension. The egg disappeared from the desk and a huge number of merit points were given to Noah, that number though saw a sharp decrease once he made his purchase. A small scroll appeared on the desk, Noah opened it only to see that an intricate rune was depicted on it, his mind immediately began to enlarge at that sight. ''Finally, now I can fully focus on reaching the peak of the solid stage!'' Chapter 375: 375. Third rank The Chasing demon sect had constantly been provided with reports about the Inheritance ground, its rewards to each trial were like a magnet that attracted all the ambitious cultivators that were nearing the third rank of the dantian. There were many like Noah who were in the solid stage of the second rank, the previous strongest rank 2 cultivator, Perry, was an example of that. Yet, they would rather take the slow but steady approach when it came to the breakthrough to the third rank, an injury during that process could be fatal to the cultivation journey of a cultivator and it could even take its life away. However, that approach changed when more and more rumors about the possible gains behind the trials of the separate dimension became public. A high number of disciples that were in the solid stage begun to isolate themselves in their caves, trying to concentrate solely on reaching the peak of the second rank. In the more than two years that had passed since the separate dimension was discovered, many rank 2 cultivators had successfully stepped on the peak of the human ranks. Of course, there was a high number of casualties due to that reckless approach but the sect couldn''t care less about it, rank 2 cultivators could be nurtured easily while one in the third rank was a powerful asset, almost any number of casualties was worth increasing their numbers. Noah was aiming for the same thing but his approach was quite different. The Dantian''s opening gave him a lot of free time, only three days each week were used for that practice if the procedures and the resting time were summed. That''s why he could focus on the accumulation of merit points in those years, the generous rewards of the sect and the lack of manpower allowed him to reach the needed sum for the fourth Kesier rune even if he only did missions suited for rank 2 cultivators. As for the secret arts, he had momentarily put their study in the back of his mind. After all, the level of his centers of power had the priority and the Inheritance ground had items and techniques that vastly surpassed the value of a secret art, the right choice was to hasten his entrance in the dimension. With the fourth Kesier rune in his possession, Noah could finally seclude himself inside his cave with the intention of coming out of it as a rank 3 cultivator. That breakthrough arrived even earlier than Noah had expected. Noah didn''t have clear methods of comparison, rank 3 cultivators always appeared like middle-aged people between their thirties or forties so he couldn''t really know how fast he was improving. Yet, he knew that it generally took three years to reach the peak of each stage of the second rank, and a bit more when it came to the solid stage. Noah had entered the second rank when he was eighteen, a feat possible only thanks to the early formation of his dantian which gave him a head start. Now, after a bit more than eight years of methodic training and constant battles, he was finally stepping in the apex of the human ranks! It didn''t take much for his dantian to reach the peak of the solid stage, he was using an unorthodox technique paired with an extremely good potion that could remove its aftereffects and the "Breath" blessing that created an ideal training environment. Also, his body had been at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank for such a long time and his mind had been in the third rank for three years already, the superior level of his centers of power pushed the improvement speed of his dantian at an even higher level! He was still a few months away from being twenty-seven but his dantian was already unable to enlarge anymore. ''The Sea snake''s tears is indeed a good potion, I didn''t even need to rest to relieve the stress of my dantian.'' Noah thought as he inspected his low waist. His dantian had reached its maximum expansion and capacity, shining black crystals were amassed in its insides. A bottle containing a shining dense liquid appeared in his hand, that was the reagent needed for the breakthrough in the third rank, Noah had prepared a few bottles of it already. The contents of the bottle were quickly drunk by Noah, he was virtually at his peak form, there was no reason to hesitate. The temperature of his low waist rose immediately as the "Breath" inside his dantian began to heat up. The black crystals liquefied and then evaporated as the impurities in them were expelled from their composition. The impurities shot at high speed toward the walls of the dantian, they seemed to be unobstructed and ready to return to the outside world. Yet, there was a wall around the dantian. The wall was impenetrable, no matter how fast or dense the impurities were, they couldn''t even dent that invisible and cold wall. The impurities could only slowly fuse with the walls of the dantian, giving it a shining and metallic appearance, it seemed far sturdier than before. Noah carefully overviewed the process as he used his mental energy to create the blockage that contained the impurities, he had to admit that he had overestimated the difficulty of the process. It couldn''t be helped, his mind was far stronger than his dantian, the pressure that it was capable of was enough to force the impurities to fuse with the latter. ''I wonder if I can avoid the reagents the next time, I should be able to purify the "Breath" without any external help.'' Noah had that thought as he watched how the situation in his low waist stabilized, his dantian was smaller than before but it was far sturdier. Inside, a strand of a brilliant black gas was easily contained by his improved center of power, Noah couldn''t help but marvel when he sensed the amount of power contained in that little quantity of "Breath". ''Rank 3 cultivator, gaseous stage.'' A smile appeared on his face when he had that thought, his centers of power were now a match of William, the man that had introduced him to the cultivation world! Chapter 376: 376. Choice Some emotions couldn''t be expressed with simple words. When Noah realized that he had stepped in the last rank of the human ranks, the memories of his journey reemerged in his mind like an unstoppable tide. The life as a bastard of the Balvan family, William''s training, the near-dead experiences in Twilboia Cliff, the death of his loving mother, the escape from Eccentric Thunder''s dimension, the academy, the escape from the control of the Royal family, his journey alone in the continent, the Odrea nation, and, ultimately, the Coral archipelago. Nineteen years ago, he was only a transmigrated kid trying to scam soldiers to learn what seemed superpowers in his eyes. Now, he was a dreaded cultivator who had just stepped on the peak of the human ranks, all his pain, all his hard work, all his suffering, the powerful feeling that his dantian radiated made it seem completely worth it. ''This is just the beginning.'' Noah thought as he drank a bottle containing the nurturing Sea snake''s tears. Now, he could be considered a king among the cultivators in the human rank, a true elite. Yet, he knew far too well that he was just an ant when it came to the entirety of the cultivation world. Powerful entities could be found everywhere, being an elite among tens of thousands of ants was nowhere near his true objective. He unconsciously raised his head, the purple ceiling of his cave filled his view but Noah''s eyes seemed to pierce that material to gaze at the starry sky. He felt the light of the stars shining on his face, there was nothing but the ceiling of his cave above him but Noah''s eyes reflected the stars that he had once seen in the attitude test of the academy. ''One day.'' It was with that last thought that he lowered his gaze and returned to reality. . . . Noah spent the next month stabilizing his cultivation level, he had just entered the third rank after all, his reserves of "Breath" were still lacking. Luckily for him, the training area where his faction gathered featured many spots where the density of "Breath" suited his new level. The disciples in his faction stared with wide eyes at Noah placing his "Breath" blessing near Bruce''s cave and cultivating completely in the open. At once they knew, another disciple had become a captain! That sight wasn''t uncommon during the last few years, many disciples had unexpectedly reached the third rank to join the exploration of the separate dimension. One day, Bruce came out of his cave and caught Noah performing the Dantian''s opening right next to the entrance of his habitation. Bruce calmly waited for a few hours for Noah to finish the procedure before he dared to speak, he didn''t want to risk interrupting him during that dangerous practice. "Why don''t you get a cave of your own?" Noah opened his eyes, the liquid "Breath" in his body entered his circulatory system to heal his injuries and a couple of bottles of Sea snake''s tears were gulped in an instant by him, his dantian was of a higher quality now, it needed better potions. Yet, he didn''t have time to accumulate more merit points, he could only use more bottles of the potion that he already had. "The residential area of the rank 3 cultivators is crowded nowadays and the environment here is top tier." Noah answered in his usual plain tone, he couldn''t care at all if the other disciples saw him hurting himself. "Will you enter the separate dimension?" Bruce asked, he reached that conclusion after he confirmed Noah''s level with his mental energy. "Yes. Also, I would like for you to form a team that I can join." Noah''s words surprised Bruce, he had never seen him asking for something similar before. Yet, it made sense. Bruce was the leader of the thieves'' faction, his sheer power made him unable to live near rank 2 cultivators, his actual battle prowess had to be incredible. However, a bitter expression appeared on his face and his gaze went on the bed inside his cave where a woman was resting. A warm smile replaced the previous expression as he shook his head. "I''m sorry, I have more important matters to attend." Bruce refused Noah''s proposal with a few words and was about to return to his cave when Noah spoke again. "Will you give up to the heroic ranks?" Bruce''s eyes widened, his gaze went back on the young-looking man sitting on the blue mineral. He understood his determination, that''s why he tried to teach him something. "There will come a day when you will have to choose between love and power. Living for hundreds of years alone isn''t something that everyone wants." Bruce''s words came from his experience, he was basically saying that he was going to accompany Sarah through the entirety of her journey. Yet, when Noah''s opened his eyes, the image of Lily appeared in his view. Her loving smile, her worry for him, her life spent only to give him more time to cultivate, and, in the end, her last selfless act to prevent Rhys from using her to hurt him. His eyes became cold as he answered Bruce. "I''ve already chosen." Silence reigned in the area, Bruce stared at Noah and, even if he found it hard to believe in his words, his aura seemed to convince him a little. "Good luck in there, be sure to be fully prepared." After that, he went back inside his cave and sealed its entrance, leaving Noah alone on the outside. A notebook appeared in his hands and two messages were sent, it was time to make the necessary preparations. ''The reports about the Inheritance ground are open to the public but why would you request for so many rank 4 materials?'' ''David''s team is getting ready to enter the separate dimension again, you can join them if you want.'' Roy and Seth''s voices resounded in his head as they replied to his requests, Noah quickly sent other messages to justify his demands and organize the next days. Two weeks later, he entered the separate dimension under the Great whirlpool. Chapter 377: 377. Tokens A group of twenty cultivators dove into the depths of the Great whirlpool. Their auras were suppressed but their fiery battle intent couldn''t be covered by layers of mental energy or by the clothes covering their faces. "A token is given each three trials, we can use it to escape the dimension and it can''t be accumulated. We used ours in the eighth trial so we have to start the exploration from the beginning." The hooded man in the vanguard position spoke to the figure next to him. The man speaking was David, he was reviewing the known information about the separate dimension with the cultivator that had just joined his team. Of course, that cultivator was Noah. He had gathered a huge amount of information in the two weeks before this day, he wanted to be prepared for the exploration after all. Also, his preparations didn''t stop to the simple knowledge of the separate dimension, Roy had lent him a large number of rank 4 materials which were immediately turned into weapons by him. Indebting himself with the sect wasn''t an issue, a quick pact and the promise that he will repay them were enough for Noah to obtain those needed materials. ''The separate dimension gives a chance to leave only after three trials have been completed but it''s weaker in its first area, Sarah''s full power was barely enough to make her leave.'' Noah reviewed that information in his mind, he had known about it for quite some time now, reports about the Inheritance ground could be found everywhere in the sect. ''Whenever you leave, you are forced to start the exploration from the beginning and surpass the trials again even though you won''t receive any reward.'' Noah knew about that and could also understand what it implied. The first notable thing was that the highest number of casualties would be found in the first three trials, the cultivators of each group would just use their token to escape a difficult situation after that point. The second one was that the dragons in the dimension were not real life-forms, it was impossible to provide the thousands of dragons needed for so many trials, especially considering the scarce fertility of that kind of magical beasts. The third one was that the Inheritance was meant to be extremely difficult to obtain. ''Completing previous trials without obtaining any rewards, forced to stay in the dimension for a long amount of time to recover from each battle, the entity that set all of this up was quite ruthless.'' Eccentric Thunder''s Inheritance targeted cultivators under twenty years old and the Royal Inheritance had a gradual increase in its difficulty, they were easier to approach. This one, instead, seemed made only for cultivators at the peak of the human ranks and the many casualties that had happened in the more than two years since it was discovered clearly showed its difficulty. "The maximum number of cultivators allowed for each team is twenty. One of us didn''t activate its token in time and died in the eighth trial last time, that''s how your spot came to be." David continued to explain, it was clear that he wanted to warn Noah about the dangers of the dimension. It couldn''t be helped, Noah was just a newly advanced rank 3 cultivator in his eyes, he didn''t completely trust his strength. Yet, in the years since the start of the exploration, every organization of the archipelago had suffered heavy losses, their assets in the human ranks saw a sharp decrease in their numbers. The exploration teams were forced to recruit the newly advanced rank 3 cultivators due to a lack of manpower. It was a good thing that every organization was taking part in the exploration, the balance in the archipelago would have been long broken otherwise. "I''ll be fine, I can just stay in the back and provide information about the type of magical beast that we are fighting if the trials become too hard. Speaking of which, do you know how many real magical beasts are in there?" Noah asked about what really interested him. Dragons were an excellent material, he could use their scales if he was to find some kind of the darkness element to create Demonic swords in the third rank. Also, he wanted to create another Blood companion, he couldn''t think about any other magical beast that suited that role more than dragons. ''Finding some darkness-type dragon would be perfect but I can accept even those of a different element. I won''t be able to use its ability and its power would be at the bottom of the fourth rank but it''s still better than having a spell that I can''t use.'' Noah was already planning to replace his Blood companions in the separate dimension, it was hard to find such strong magical beasts after all. Also, he had a powerful spell that he couldn''t use due to its current power, upgrading his Blood companions would boost his battle prowess by a large margin. "I don''t know, they are really lifelike." David ended their conversation with that plain answer. The group followed the direction of the marine currents, they easily arrived at the bottom of the Great whirlpool were the warm current was. Any cultivator could use its "Breath" to repel the water around it, underwater explorations were extremely easy when it came to rank 3 cultivators. ''To think that such a thing is invisible to those in the heroic ranks¡­ I wonder how strong the creator of this dimension was.'' Noah''s mind wandered as his team entered the current, in a few minutes, the environment around them changed and a large bridge connected with a labyrinthic structure appeared in their eyes. ''No trace of the purple halo of the exoskeleton here, this dimension can even fend off that color.'' The Great whirlpool was at some distance from the archipelago but the purple halo still reached its borders. Yet, inside the dimension, there was no trace of that. The bridge seemed suspended on the void, only the dark waters of the depths of the sea could be discerned after an attentive investigation to the walls of the dimension. David led the way across the bridge, reaching the gate of the labyrinth in about ten minutes. Then, Noah could see with his own eyes the thirty blue dragons ten meters long charging at him from below the bridge. Chapter 378: 378. First trial The Sea dragons had four huge legs and a pair of large wings, their bodies were huge and had a large belly, they almost seemed fat to an inexperienced eye. Yet, Noah knew, that feature was only a sign of their great defense. ''Extremely lifelike, they could almost fool me.'' Noah stared at the incoming dragons with interest, they weren''t like the magical beasts in Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance, they seemed made of flesh and bones as if they were real. However, Noah''s instinct told him that they were a creation of the dimension. After he absorbed the Bloodline Inheritance, Noah''s instincts regarding the field of the magical beasts had become extremely keen, it was as if part of the thoughts of the Excavating worm had fused with his mind. David''s team was ready for the battle, they had long instructed Noah about the battle formation that he needed to execute. Ten cultivators stepped in the vanguard position, "Breath" and mental energy were expended as many defensive spells were launched. Water walls, vortexes, huge golems, those protections were laid between David''s team and the dragons. The cultivators there were familiar with the separate dimension, they didn''t deploy any defensive spell that could hurt the dragons, their innate ability was troublesome to deal with. Sea dragons could accumulate the attacks that landed on their bodies into sound waves extremely hard to defend against, it was better to kill each one of them in one strike to avoid their innate ability. The dragons clashed with the cultivators'' defenses, their huge bodies bent the spells but they weren''t able to break through them. They were only rank 4 creatures after all, it didn''t matter that they were considered as the strongest magical beast, they were still against rank 3 cultivators. The remaining ten cultivators jumped as soon as the dragons'' assault was blocked, Noah was among them. They were the cultivators that had to kill the dragons, Noah might have been a newly advanced rank 3 cultivator but his status as a rank 3 mage made him perfect for that role. After all, not every rank 3 cultivator had a rank 3 mental sphere, someone in David''s group was still a rank 2 mage. Noah shot in the air with David at his side, the plan dictated that groups made of two cultivators had to instantly kill one dragon and continue like that until all the dragons were killed. Noah was paired with David, David wanted to make sure of his power since he was the new member. Of course, Noah didn''t disappoint him. Noah''s arms multiplied as he shot in the air, he resembled a humanoid creature wielding three pair of sabers as he prepared his attack. The sabers curved the air as they fused into one and lunged right at the nearest dragon. The dragon was still in the process of stopping itself during the clash with the soft water wall when a dark saber pierced its left eye, diving deep into its skull. On the other side, David swung his greatsword with great dexterity, severing the dragon''s head in half. The dragon didn''t even have time to release a dying cry, it simply vanished into nothingness, some kind of inscriptions could be seen appearing on its body as it turned into invisible air. ''They are indeed different from Eccentric Thunder''s one, the creator of the dimension must have used a different inscription method.'' Noah judged after the dragon vanished, he tried to understand something from the inscription but they were far too complex for his level. David nodded at his side, he was pleased to see that Noah would be able to face the dragon even by himself. Yet, the method that they were using was safer, that''s why he quickly swept the battlefield with his mental energy and shouted an order before resuming in his assault. "One part of incense!" David''s order signaled that they only had one minute before more dragons arrived, they had to clear the trial before that or they would be forced to start the battle from the beginning. However, everyone was familiar with that restriction. The cultivators in each attacking group didn''t waste time, as soon as the dragon in front of them disappeared, they moved toward the next one. David and Noah weren''t an exception, they ran at full speed on the battlefield, targeting the dragons near them. Five dragons would die with each assault while the ten cultivators not joining the attacks continued to deploy defensive methods to stop their charge. ''They would have already escaped if they were real living beings, it seems that they were programmed to recklessly attack until every cultivator is dead.'' Noah judged as another dragon vanished in front of his eyes, it was already his fourth kill, the number of dragons was reduced to ten in less than forty seconds. ''It is quite easy, rank 4 magical beasts on this level can''t match this many rank 3 cultivators.'' A rank 2 cultivator, when it entered the liquid stage, became able to hurt a rank 4 magical beast. When it entered the solid stage, it became able to gravely hurt it and even killing it alone in some cases. When it entered the third rank, however, it became able to completely overwhelm rank 4 creatures in the lower tier. The beasts in the separate dimension were dragons, the widely accepted strongest magical beast, and there were even thirty of them. Yet, they had the power of the lower tier, twenty rank 3 cultivators with good teamwork could vanquish them easily. And that was exactly what happened. David and Noah inflicted a deadly blow to their sixth dragon, they were extremely fast in their killings so they had time to assist other groups. After that dragon vanished, the bridge hummed, radiating a soft light that converged in the air in front of David''s group. A token appeared after the light dissipated, it had a labyrinth depicted on its front, David immediately took it as he gestured to those in his team to follow him. The team reached the walls of the structure at the end of the bridge, only then they heaved a sigh of relief and sat on the floor to rest, the first trial had been successfully passed! Chapter 379: 379. Teams David''s team sat in front of the entrance of the labyrinth to rest. The attackers of the team weren''t that tired, they had only attacked about five times each, their cultivation level could sustain that expenditure of "Breath" easily. Yet, those appointed to the defense were worse off. They had to constantly activate their defensive spells against the reckless assault of thirty rank 4 dragons, even if their dantians still had some reserves, the expenditure of mental energy wasn''t little. Also, the first three trials were the most dangerous ones, teams couldn''t exit the separate dimension without surpassing the third test and obtaining the token needed for their escape. That''s why it was better to recover after each trial, facing a test without being at peak form was simply too reckless. "You did good, we might even pass the eighth trial this time." David complimented Noah, he was completely satisfied by his performance. ''It will take a while for us to reach that point, the rewards of the eighth trial will probably be gone by that time.'' Noah thought in his mind. The separate dimension gave rewards only to the first team that surpassed a trial, all the other groups had to fight and risk their lives for nothing unless they managed to become the first to pass the still unbeaten tests. That meant that David''s team would obtain nothing until it passed the eighth trial and only if they were the first to pass it! However, teams of various organizations were already inside the separate dimension, it was unlikely for David''s team to reach the eighth trial and pass it before the groups that were already inside. ''Our team isn''t even the best that the sect could offer, there are three teams stronger than us at least.'' The Chasing demon sect had more than two hundred cultivators in the third rank, it could form many exploration teams. Even if there had been many casualties and many cultivators had chosen to remain in the sect, there was still a large number of captains willing to attempt in the exploration. Currently, the Chasing demon sect had five teams actively exploring the Inheritance ground. Joel''s team was considered the strongest, it featured many peak rank 3 cultivators that were attracted by the rank 4 techniques contained in the separate dimension. Also, Joel was Edgar''s right-hand man, his faction was in charge of the army of the sect, he felt that it was in his duties to secure as many resources as possible for the sect. Alison''s team came right after Joel''s one when it came to battle prowess, the thieves'' faction was specialized in raids, it was normal that its most powerful cultivators would group up to raid the seemingly richest place in the archipelago. Roy''s team was the third, he didn''t join the exploration but the heroic cultivators in the sect had still assigned him to form a team made of the cultivators that didn''t belong to any faction, the higher-ups couldn''t allow for cultivators that didn''t perform any service to the sect to simply watch from the sidelines. Truth to be told, the team formed in that way wasn''t weak, the cultivation level of each of its members was high, the only thing they lacked was battle experience due to the large periods of seclusion that they had spent to cultivate. Under David''s team, there was a group formed by the newly advanced rank 3 cultivators. Many of them didn''t have any affiliation to the factions but they still wanted to gather battle experience and, maybe, some glory from the exploration of the dimension, it was needless to say that they weren''t performing well but their careful attitude led them to suffer no losses. All in all, half of the most powerful assets in the human ranks of the sect were engaged with the exploration of the Inheritance ground, if the casualties were to be summed, the power that the sect had on the archipelago was more than halved. Yet, every organization had the same behavior, more than half of their assets were deployed in the separate dimension, leaving the balance of the archipelago untouched. The islands were only territories, the separate dimension contained resources so valuable that giving them up to focus on the archipelago didn''t seem worth at all! Another team appeared on the other side of the bridge while David''s group was resting. Noah''s attention went on them, only half of them were rank 3 cultivators, the others were only in the solid stage of the second rank. "Greed sure leads men to death." Noah loudly thought at their sight. "Just reckless people from some minor organization, they will regret this action." David sighed after he commented on Noah''s words, they both began to watch as the newly arrived team engaged in the first trial. Thirty blue dragons flew from below the bridge and charged at the new group, Noah was watching them from the other side that time, he couldn''t help but marvel again at their might. The new team seemed experienced but disorganized, they probably didn''t study detailed reports like those of the Chasing demon sect did, the backing of a powerful organization could be seen even from those details. They reacted quickly, the rank 2 cultivators focused on defending while those in the third rank attacked, it was a battle formation similar to that used by Noah and his team. The formation seemed to work in the beginning, the dragons were blocked and the rank 3 cultivators managed to kill a good number of them. Yet, the might of so many rank 4 creatures couldn''t be underestimated. The weaker between the rank 2 cultivators felt their mental energy being drained, not even thirty seconds had passed but their defensive spells broke, allowing the dragons to rampage on them. It was a slaughter, those in the second rank could only watch as the tide of rank 4 creatures swept them, attacks were launched but they had little effect. Instead, they only fueled the Sea dragons'' innate ability. Sound attacks began to resound on the bridge, killing even more cultivators. Then, thirty more seconds passed and more dragons came out from below the bridge to refill the ranks of the first trial, it was with a desperate expression that the cultivators stared at the again thirty beasts charging at them. Chapter 380: 380. Second trial The new team found itself cornered. Thirty dragons were still in front of them but they had already suffered heavy losses! Almost all the cultivators in the second rank had died after the defenses were breached and even some of those in the third rank couldn''t defend from the joint sound attacks of the dragons. ''This is the real difficulty of the trial. If you aren''t fast enough in the killings, the number of dragons will be refilled while you will just continue to weaken¡­ They are doomed.'' The team didn''t manage to block that dragon''s assault when it had twenty members, they couldn''t do so after the recent losses. The rank 3 cultivators tried to use their spells to defend, yet, since they had no one killing the dragons, they could only desperately watch as their reserves of "Breath" and mental energy were depleted. In about twenty minutes, all the members of the just arrived team were killed and the dragons simply flew somewhere below the bridge. "Weaklings should just leave this dimension to the powerful organizations, they don''t have a chance anyway." David spoke while shaking his head. ''Sometimes, weaklings simply don''t have a choice.'' Noah thought in his mind. He could relate to their situation, he had been a lone cultivator for most of his life after all. ''Yet, they were unprepared, they should have bought the necessary information at least.'' He immediately knew which had been their fatal weakness. Knowledge was power, especially in a place where the trials could be studied. ''If the rank 2 cultivators were the ones attacking, maybe, they would have survived.'' Noah concluded. The new team found its defenses breached too soon which gave enough time for the other dragons to arrive. "We should rest too, the path in the labyrinth is quite annoying." David spoke again and Noah nodded at his order, he cultivated for a few minutes before laying down to sleep. The Dantian''s opening technique didn''t require for the bloody procedure to be executed even when someone had to refill its dantian, the procedure was needed only when someone wanted to raise its level. Simply speaking, Noah could just create the usual vortex and move its center toward his dantian with his mental energy, it expended a bit of mental energy but it allowed him to refill his reserves without piercing his dantian. Of course, he couldn''t enlarge his dantian in that way, the procedure was needed to raise its level. David''s team rested for a half a day before resuming its exploration, everyone was at its peak form by then, there was no reason to waste more time. David used the token obtained in the first trial to open the entrance of the labyrinth, a heavy pressure could be immediately felt as soon as the huge door of the structure opened. Massive white walls filled the environment inside the structure, they radiated some sort of pressure that weighed on the mental spheres of the cultivators and prevented them from using their mental energy to inspect the area, they were forced to use their senses in that environment. Noah''s gaze went on the rank 2 mages in his group, they had paled a bit when the door opened but their mental spheres seemed sturdy enough to endure the pressure. ''David has chosen well.'' He nodded internally at that sight, David had given a lot of thoughts in the creation of his team. David went in the vanguard position and signaled to the others to follow him, the labyrinth had been explored many times by then, it was almost completely mapped. "We will follow the same route as last time to be sure that nothing unexpected happens." David explained to Noah as they moved across the large passages of the labyrinth. ''The second trial can be slightly easier depending on where you gain access to it. Well, it should be quite easy considering our team.'' Noah had studied all the reports that his sect was able to provide, he knew exactly what to expect in the road to the eighth trail. After many turns and a long march, David''s team reached a large square where a black monolith stood at its center. The monolith had many inscriptions on its surface and it also featured a small hole. David turned to look at the members of his team and they all nodded when their gazes crossed. Then, he inserted the token of the first trial in the hole, the white walls of the passages connected with the square sealed themselves and a huge figure materialized on top of the monolith. Noah''s eyes shone at that sight, he did his best to hide the greed that he felt toward that figure. That was because the figure on top of the monolith belonged to a peak rank 4 Bone dragon, a creature of the darkness element! ''If only it was a real magical beast¡­'' Noah complained in his mind as he retreated to set up the battle formation with his team. The Bone dragon was the same as the Sea dragons in the first trial, even if it was extremely lifelike, it was only a creation of the Inheritance ground. ''The Inheritance gave completely intact corpses as a reward, I wonder how many of them there will be at the end of the dimension.'' The Bone dragon wasn''t suited to become a Blood companion due to the absence of blood but its corpse would be the perfect core material for the creation of new Demonic swords! Noah couldn''t help but wonder if the Inheritance ground had corpses of that creature stored somewhere, waiting to become the reward of some trial. The battle began. A peak rank 4 creature was extremely powerful, its power surpassed that of the thirty dragons in the first trial. Yet, it was alone and it was against twenty rank 3 cultivators, adding the fact that the Bone dragon could only shoot piercing bone shards other than fight using its body, the battle quickly became one-sided. It was enough for twelve cultivators to focus all their spells on restraining the beast while the other eight relentlessly launched attacks, little by little, the Bone dragon became exhausted and the cracks on its bones became too large for it to suppress them. ''It''s good that it behaves like a living being, it would have been a problem if it had an endless reserve of energy.'' Noah thought when the Bone dragon crumbled on itself, the bones that made its body fell everywhere on the battlefield before vanishing in the air. The passages linked to the square opened and the token inside the monolith shone as it returned to David''s hands, the second trial had been easily passed! Chapter 381: 381. Comparisons Noah eyed the eight cultivators that had been appointed of attacking the Bone dragon. His role had been to focus on defending the team in the second trial, his status as a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage didn''t suit the attacking role, especially against a peak rank 4 creature. The eight attackers were the cultivators with the highest cultivation level in the group, a few of them were in the solid stage of the third rank while the others were at the peak of the liquid stage, Noah simply couldn''t compare to them unless he used the complete Demonic form. ''Such a difference in power, the heroic ranks are incredible.'' As always, Noah deeply analyzed his battle to learn as much as he could from his enemies or to discover flaws in his combat style. ''When entering the liquid stage of the second rank, a cultivator becomes able to wound rank 4 creatures but that only when considering beasts in the lower tier of the rank.'' The comparison between the power level of the magical beasts and the cultivators was clear in his mind, the academy had taught him quite a lot in that field. Generally speaking, a cultivator became able to safely face a rank 4 beast in the lower tier only when it entered the third rank. There were exceptions like Noah who could single-handedly kill rank 4 creatures when they were in the second rank but they were considered special cases. Also, their battles would always involve a large amount of risk, they were forced to go all out in those situations. After that tier, the difference in power between beasts and cultivators would increase, cultivators had their centers of power which made them naturally stronger than magical beasts but the latter were advancing inside the fourth rank, any breakthrough in the heroic ranks gave far more power than those in the human ones. ''A rank 4 beast in the middle tier can match a cultivator in the liquid stage of the third rank while it can only be safely killed by a group of said cultivators or by someone at the peak of the rank.'' A creature in the middle tier of the fourth rank was halfway through its journey in the first heroic rank, only exceptional cultivators in the liquid stage could face it alone. ''As for those at the peak of the rank, only heroic cultivators can face them without any danger.'' Noah stopped reviewing the situation after that conclusion. David''s team was formed by twenty rank 3 cultivators and four of them were in the solid stage. Resorting to slowly exhausting the peak rank 4 creature was an excellent choice because it fully expressed the power of the numerical advantage of the cultivators while keeping them safe. Peak rank 3 cultivators could hurt a peak rank 4 creature but that was it, it was as if a rank 2 cultivator in the liquid stage wanted to kill a rank 4 creature in the lower tier. Of course, these comparisons were made only considering the stage in which the dantian of the cultivators was, exceptions like Noah had a battle prowess that surpassed their level, allowing them to face strongest foes while being weaker. "Rest, the next test has taken many lives already." David ordered before taking a simple mat from his space-ring where he sat. He looked quite pale, being in the attacking group had depleted a large quantity of his energy, he needed at least a few hours to completely recover. ''The next trial is the endurance one, I wonder how the rank 2 mages here will handle it.'' Noah thought as he sat on the ground, he calmly focused on refilling his dantian as he looked toward the weaker mages. The third trial required for the cultivators to have a sturdy mental sphere, only rank 3 mages could hope to attempt in surpassing it. ''Well, David has more experience than me in this dimension, if he says nothing about the rank 2 mages then he must have his reasons.'' Noah''s conjecture was right. After they had recovered, David led his team through the deeper passages of the labyrinth that had become available after the second trial was passed, only to stop in front of a massive dark-gray metal door. Some sort of pressure seemed to come out of the door, the cultivators in the team couldn''t help but become stiff when they felt it. The rank 2 mages were worse off but David promptly took seven pills from his space-ring, handing them to the weak mages who immediately swallowed them. Their expressions relaxed after the pills became effective, Noah guessed that it was some sort of drug that protected the mental sphere or that could momentarily boost its power. ''Is it worth to risk an injury for a trial that doesn''t give rewards?'' Noah couldn''t help but internally shake his head at that sight. Drugs that improved a center of power for a short amount of time usually had severe backlashes or conditions to be met, Noah was fine with endangering his centers of power if that permanently increased his strength but he would never do it for a momentary effect. Yet, he ultimately put those thoughts in the back of his mind, everyone had different values after all. David raised the token in front of the door after he saw that everyone was ready, red flames came out of the door as soon as a fissure was created. On the other side, Noah could see a small room completely covered in flames, the shining red color illuminated his face and tried to affect his mental sphere. ''The effect is similar to the Sulfur domain but these flames seem far more harmful.'' Noah was aware of the contents of the third trial, he had read too many reports about it. That''s why he could instantly make a comparison with the azure flame in one of the training facilities of the academy, the red flames only seemed to release a sharper pressure than the blue ones. Noah gave another look at the rank 2 mages and relaxed when he saw that they seemed able to endure the pressure released by the room on fire. Then, David''s team entered the room, the massive metal door closed behind them when the last cultivator crossed the entrance. Chapter 382: 382. Burning room The red flames didn''t affect the body, their heat targeted only the mental sphere. David''s team was sitting on the burning floor, the flesh and clothes of the cultivators were unaffected by the fire but their expressions showed the struggle that they were going through to resist the pressure on their seas of consciousness. Noah, like the strongest in his group, was a bit better off. The speed at which his mental sphere enlarged had increased by a large margin after he bought the fourth Kesier rune, he had resumed training at a higher speed after he secluded himself for the breakthrough in the third rank. Those months coupled with the three years of training using the "Breath" in his mind put him in a better position compared to the other cultivators in his team, only David and the others in the solid stage of the third rank had a mental sphere that could compare to his. Also, the third trial didn''t target the level of the sea of consciousness but its sturdiness, Noah couldn''t have asked for a more suitable test. ''Worthy of the trial that has taken the higher number of lives, no wonder it has taken so much for the exploration teams to cross this point.'' Noah thought after he peeked at the situation of his companions. The third trial required for the cultivators to endure the heat of the flames for an entire day, many unprepared teams in the past had died inside it. Even though there were many possible roads inside the labyrinth, the third trial would always feature the same test, more than twenty-five rooms similar to that one had been discovered in the many explorations already and the organizations were sure that the labyrinth had more of them. Also, it was possible to escape the separate dimension only after passing that test, countless lives had been lost in the attempt to leave the Inheritance ground. The Chasing demon sect, though, was one of the leading organizations of the archipelago, their resources and information were unmatched. The sect learnt soon enough the contents of the third trial, the first team that passed the test belonged to one of the underground organizations and, even though it could continue in the exploration, it had decided to escape from the dimension to pass down the information about the test. That information saved many lives, those of the cultivators belonging to the underground organizations at least. The cultivators that had passed the information were heavily rewarded, the numbers of lives lost in the third trial had already reached a high number and their services allowed the Hive to preserve a lot of lives. After all, with the resources held by the underground organizations, even rank 2 mages became able to pass the test. Hours passed inside the burning room. The heat of the flames exerted a dense pressure on the mental spheres of the cultivators which attempted to corrode their walls. The heat could be fought using the mental energy inside the sea of consciousness but doing that would only tire the cultivators faster. The best approach was to rely on the sturdiness of the mental sphere to repel the corroding force and use the mental energy only when the walls seemed about to give in. The mental energy would remain around the sphere while the walls recovered and it would be dispersed when they were ready to defend again against the heat, that approach allowed the cultivators to spare a lot of the energy contained in their minds. Also, they could use drugs that applied a layer of protection around the sea of consciousness, easily allowing them to pass the trial. The production of those types of drugs had increased a lot in the last two years and the price of those medicines had skyrocketed, any weak mage that wanted to attempt in the exploration of the separate dimension had to purchase them. Noah didn''t bother buying any of those drugs, his mental sphere was strong and he already had a stash of pills that could help him surpass the test if an unexpected situation appeared. Yet, nothing out of the ordinary happened. Twenty-four hours passed and the flames retracted, the black surface of the room became visible to the exhausted cultivators of David''s team. David turned to inspect his team, they all had pale expressions and the weaker among them also had blood flowing out from their facial orifices, they seemed in deep need of rest. He was pleasantly surprised though when he saw that Noah was in his same situation, his eye bags and pale complexion couldn''t hide his fatigue but he was far better off than his companions. All in all, only Noah and the four cultivators in the solid stage could move without endangering the integrity of their mental sphere, the other fifteen needed to rest. Inscriptions lit up on the surface of the room, they gathered in front of David and a token appeared mid-air when the light vanished. David stored the token and the walls at the end of the room moved as soon as he did that, a passage was created which seemed to lead to deeper parts of the labyrinth. At the same time, more inscriptions lit up under the other cultivators, tokens began to appear in front of them, signaling the possibility to exit the separate dimension. "Everything went as planned till now, we are nearing the eighth trial quite quickly, good job everyone!" David tried to raise everyone''s morale before ordering them to rest when what seemed the peal of a bell resonated from a place far in the distance. The cultivators in the room could understand that the peal came from far away but they were able to hear it clearly, it was as if the dimension itself was trying to convey that sound to the cultivators inside it. At once, the expressions of the cultivators in the room turned ugly, they all knew what that sound meant, it had been heard only seven times before that moment. And now, it was heard for the eighth time. Noah''s eyes sharpened at that peal, the reports that he studied made him immediately understand what had happened even if it was his first time hearing that sound. ''The eighth trial has been passed.'' Chapter 383: 383. Decision Each peal signaled the passing of a trial and meant that its rewards had been given. David''s group didn''t know whose team had succeeded in the eighth trial but they were sure of one thing: Those rewards were now gone, they would have to pass the ninth trial to obtaining anything! The cultivators in the group became dejected, they had just passed the third trial and endured a great deal of pain just to discover that their exploration had become longer. It''s not that they didn''t have confidence in defeating the trials, they were a group formed by twenty rank 3 cultivators after all, they could deal with any threat that the separate dimension placed on their way. Yet, they had just returned to the Inheritance ground and they were fairly confident in succeeding in the eighth trial, finding out that surpassing it wouldn''t reward them was a heavy blow to their morale. David put a pensive expression when he heard the peal, his mind seemed to evaluate something as he sat in silence. Noah wasn''t particularly disappointed with the event, it was his first time entering the dimension so he hadn''t invested anything yet, his position was different from the others in his group who had already attempted in the eighth trial and were confident in their chances to surpass it. That''s why he was able to focus more on his surroundings and could partially guess what David was thinking. ''He is wondering if we should exit the dimension now.'' Noah could understand those thoughts because that approach was the safest one. The team could simply give up on this exploration, regroup in the sect, and wait for reports about the ninth trial before attempting on a new exploration. That would allow them to prepare for the new test without advancing blindly, it would give them a great advantage and reduce the risks that accompanied an unknown trial. The separate dimension blocked all types of communication with the outside world, powerful items were needed to send messages outside the inheritance ground but they would need a cultivator in the heroic ranks to activate them. Yet, said cultivators couldn''t enter the dimension, leaving only the teams that explored it as a source of information. ''With all the information that we have, it''s obvious that this separate dimension targets cultivators at the peak of the human ranks. Also, it allows us to form a fairly large team which further ease its difficulty, the real danger here is the unknown.'' Noah reviewed the known information about the Inheritance ground in his mind. Twenty rank 3 cultivators could easily handle the trials, even a lower number of warriors could manage to pass each of them. Yet, the real threats were the different scenarios of the tests. Generally speaking, only the second trial could have been faced without any preparation, any organized team would have quickly set up a battle formation and dealt with the peak rank 4 dragon. Yet, the first and third one were more complex, they required meticulous planning and certain drugs to be passed safely. ''The next trials also need a certain degree of preparation, but the teams have become variegated after more than two years of preparation. Our group is ready for any unexpected situation even if our battle prowess isn''t the best that the sect could offer.'' Noah continued to evaluate the situation. After eight trials, the teams from the more powerful organization had begun to modify their composition to cover the various types of difficulties of the separate dimension. It was normal to think that they could hope to pass the ninth test since they were ready to complete those that came before. ''However, being prepared for the new trial won''t assure the rewards. This same situation could happen due to the time wasted to gather information.'' Exploring the separate dimension wasn''t a fast process, especially if one wanted to pursue the safe approach. The time spent to reach the ninth trial from the beginning summed with that used to gather information and reorganize will amount to a few months, which was enough for another team to succeed in the ninth test. "Let''s keep going, David. The way I see it, now we are on equal ground with the strongest teams, we also have a chance." One of the solid stage cultivators spoke to David when he saw that the latter was still deep in his thoughts. "I agree. Every team is now equally unprepared, this works to our advantage since we have a team ready for any situation." Another solid stage cultivator spoke, she shared the view of the previous one. David sighed when he heard that, the truth was that he was of a similar opinion but he had to think about the entirety of his team, he couldn''t just base his decisions on the strongest cultivators. He turned toward the others behind him before opening his mouth to speak. "You all know that the eighth trial has been passed so it might seem as if all your efforts have been for nothing. Yet, this might work in our favor: We are already at a good point and the composition of our team can face many unexpected situations apart from being prepared for the next tests." David took a brief pause to make sure that the cultivators in his team evaluated his words carefully. "Continuing to explore now will involve a higher danger than you expected but it''s also our best chance to seize the rewards of the ninth test. I and the others in the solid stage need a rank 4 cultivation technique to prepare for the heroic ranks so we are willing to risk our lives but you still have time, I don''t want to force you in this journey." David continued, his words carried good intentions toward his fellow members of the sect, the expressions of many brightened up when they heard his caring tone. Noah wasn''t sure if David''s performance was an act of some sort or if he was really worried about the well-being of the members of his team but he decided to remain silent, he wanted to continue the exploration after all. It was with silent nods that David''s team decided to continue its journey in the separate dimension before it focused on recovering from the injuries of the recent test. Chapter 384: 384. Advance It took an entire week for David''s team to recover. Most of the injuries on the mental spheres of the weaker cultivators were already healed after three days but David wanted to make sure that everyone was at its peak form before resuming in the exploration. They would wander in the dark at some point, David couldn''t afford to lose any of his companions if he hoped to pass the ninth trial. Yet, he still chose to increase the speed at which they moved. The best way to spare time was to run through the passages of the labyrinth and to spend a few hours to recover in front of the next test. The layout of the labyrinth was almost completely mapped, it wasn''t a problem to diminish the time needed to reach each trial. The fourth trial was in a dark area of the labyrinth, no token was required for its activation, the cultivators simply had to step on a large dark square. Darkness couldn''t affect a cultivator''s sight, especially when they had a rank 4 body. However, the walls of the square seemed to affect the vision of the cultivators, coupled with the inability to use mental energy to scan their surroundings, it was as if they were deprived of that sense. Of course, David''s team was prepared for that. David took out orbs that emitted a bright light from his space-ring, the features of the dark square were immediately illuminated by the five orbs that levitated in the air after he put some "Breath" in them. That light allowed his team to see the Black dragons surrounding it and to avoid the incoming flame spears that had been launched. The difficulty of the fourth trial was in its scarce visibility but that was countered by David''s orbs, leaving the twenty or so dragons in the lower tier of the fourth rank in plain sight. David''s team quickly took care of the dragons, the test was fairly easy after the cultivators regained the ability to see. Some of them were still hit by the powerful attacks of the creatures, those spears were fast and had high piercing proprieties after all. The injuries were quite superficial though, everyone was relatively fine. ''To think that I would see again a Flame dragon and fight it, time surely has passed.'' Those thoughts hit Noah''s mind when he saw the last Flame dragon vanish right in front of his eyes. Flame dragons were the most common kind of dragons, their scales were black and they could change the shape of the flames that they created due to their innate ability. Yet, what made Noah so emotional was that the dragons he had just fought belonged to the same kind as the one that had attacked Balvan mansion in his childhood! Noah clearly remembered, he was just a newborn in his mother''s embrace when one of those magnificent beasts attacked. The void inside him was filled with an endless ambition that day, the image of Thomas'' back as he fought the dragon in the air was still engraved in his mind. Twenty-seven years had passed and he was now able to fight them, even an aloof character like Noah couldn''t help but feel something. "Are you ok?" David noticed that peculiar behavior when he saw that Noah was staring at the floor where the Flame dragon had disappeared. Noah simply nodded at that question and turned to join his resting companions, his cold gaze was hidden behind his hood. ''These were just bottom tier beasts, Thomas is a heroic cultivator, I''m still a child in his eyes.'' With that last thought, Noah suppressed again his emotions, he couldn''t allow himself to be distracted in that place. The fifth trial featured a floorless area, the aim of the test was to cross the void below them and reach the passage on the other side. Flying wasn''t a problem, David had personally chosen a rank 3 cultivator of the wind element with a spell that could carry all twenty of them. Yet, dragons would randomly peek from the cavities in the walls at the sides of the area and launch lightning bolts aimed at the cultivators flying at its center. A large number of lightning bolts were launched, nineteen cultivators did their best to fend off the incoming attacks in order to protect the wind mage. David''s group struggled a bit, lightning attacks had innate piercing proprieties and they were able to destroy everything on their path. It took the full effort of all nineteen cultivators to safely reach the other side, they found themselves exhausted and without any energy left but they had succeeded in passing the fifth trial! Some discord, though, began to appear on the expression of the weaker cultivators when they saw that Noah wasn''t as tired as the others. The other cultivators had long noticed that Noah wasn''t using spells, he simply relied on his martial art and on his inscribed sabers to fight. That wasn''t a problem when that behavior was enough to safely pass the trials but the fifth one had almost completely exhausted them, they were annoyed to see that he wasn''t doing his best to help them. ''Ignorance is a bliss¡­'' Noah thought as he avoided those angry gazes and focused on refilling his dantian. The truth was that he had informed David about the dangers involved when he used spells and the Mental tremor couldn''t affect magical beasts too much. ''As long as David is ok with that, the others won''t dare to complain.'' He didn''t care that the others thought that he was a dead weight, he knew that his moment would eventually come, he was doing his best to avoid injuring his companions after all. Then, it was time for the sixth trial. That test forced the cultivators in a harsh battle between the two kinds of dragons that they had met in the previous two tests. Forty or so Flame dragons and Flash dragons attacked David''s team in a wide area with some pits on the floor. The pits only showed the void below the labyrinth, falling inside them would probably lead to death. Also, a few rank 4 specimens in the middle tier were leading the dragons'' assault, it wasn''t a reckless charge like in the first trial. The battle was harsh, many cultivators were injured and a lot of energy was expended. Yet, David and the other three cultivators in the solid stage took care of the vanguard and slaughtered their way inside the enemy lines, beheading the dragons in charge of the battle formation. It took almost an hour but, in the end, David''s team succeeded in defeating all the dragons and passing the sixth trial. Chapter 385: 385. Voice More than one month had passed since Noah entered the Inheritance ground. David''s team needed to rest after each trial which wasn''t a simple matter of hours. The centers of power of the cultivators in the team needed time to be refilled and their mental spheres were under heavy pressure due to the walls of the labyrinth, they couldn''t just rush through the trials. Yet, the hurried feeling caused by the passing of the eighth trial from one of the exploration''s teams forced them to accelerate their pace, they wanted to be proper contenders for the rewards of the ninth test. The seventh trial put them against a horde composed of many kinds of dragons. David''s team was forced to fight its way across a large area of the labyrinth, the cultivators in the group had to change their battle tactic according to the kind of dragon they were facing, a fixed battle formation would only fall in front of the might of the different types of attacks coming at it. Yet, they managed to win even though some of them suffered heavy injuries. Resting and healing took them two weeks, some injuries were severe, it took time to heal them before they were ready for the eighth trial. Then, they moved toward what seemed the deepest part of the labyrinth, where the next test was held. Noah could personally witness the reason why the cultivator that occupied his position previously was slow in the activation of its token. The walls in the square of the eighth trial were black, they radiated a pressure so heavy that the mental processes of the cultivators inside it were affected. Noah found himself thinking at a slower pace as he fought against another peak rank 4 beast, the responses of his body were slow due to that peculiar environment, the claws of the Earth dragon managed to scratch his body many times before it died. Earth dragons had a powerful body and a seemingly endless resilience, their dark-yellow scales had an innate weakening effect toward the attacks that landed on them. David had to buy a large number of precious elixirs to boost the vitality of the cultivators in his group, even Noah who had a body that emphasized regeneration was forced to drink it. It couldn''t be helped, the Earth dragon was too strong and the pressure radiated from the walls slowed their movements, every team needed an external help if they hoped to succeed. Nevertheless, David''s team was already experienced with that trial, they were prepared to pass it at that time. In the end, the Earth dragon was killed but the cultivators had to deal with the aftereffects of the elixirs. Pale complexions and tired expressions could be seen in the square where the eighth trial was held, their bodies seemed devoid of any energy, it was obvious that a long period of rest was needed. ''We have finally reached a turning point!'' Noah felt extremely tired but he was still eager to approach the ninth test, that feeling was shared with his companions, they had just crossed the point where they had escaped during the last exploration, heated gazes could be seen under their ill bodies. It took them some weeks to dispel the aftereffects of the elixirs and recover from the trial, David made an inspirational speech before advancing in one of the passages connected with the square. "The pressure coming from the walls of the labyrinth is increasing and the trials are becoming harder to pass, I believe we have reached the last part of this separate dimension." David had a tired expression but his body had recovered, only a dense battle intent was radiated as he spoke. "I don''t know what we will face in the next trial nor where it is, yet, our team is ready for any situation, we just have to calmly analyze the environment before engaging in risky measures. Don''t hesitate to activate your token if you feel that your life is in danger." Those words were the last ones spoken after the eighth trial was passed, David''s group advanced silently through the dark walls that made the deepest part of the labyrinth. That structure was huge but they had spent more than two months inside it, they were fairly sure that the trials were coming to an end. ''I hope there won''t be another test faculty after this one, there is only so much that a cultivator in the human ranks can sustain.'' Noah evaluated in his mind, the separate dimension was accessible only by cultivators in the human ranks, it was obvious that its difficulty had to be tuned according to that restriction. Yet, the fact that teams were allowed made the harshness of the trials somewhat accessible even to weak cultivators, David''s team was an example of how even rank 2 mages could help in each trial. Then, as they marched through the various passages of the labyrinth, a big door appeared in their vision. Noah didn''t take part in the first explorations but David did, he knew that every trial that they came across counted as the next one. The labyrinth was huge and filled with test rooms, its deeper parts became accessible only after a test was passed. That indicated the difficulty of the trials, it had been already attempted to pass more low-level trials in one exploration but it was soon discovered that they weren''t summed, tests of a higher difficulty were needed to progress in the labyrinth. "Be ready for anything and good luck!" David spoke again before raising his token toward the door, a metallic sound resounded in the area before the door began to move. A dark room appeared in the cultivators'' view, it resembled the fourth trial due to the dark environment but the amount of danger radiated from its insides forced them to wear stern expression. David''s team was extremely excited, that was the ninth test after all, surpassing it would give them rewards! As the last cultivator in the team entered the dark area, the door closed behind their backs. David acted quickly, he took a few shining orbs from his space-ring and injected his "Breath" inside them to activate those items. The orbs illuminated the area, the floor of the room became visible, as well as the more than one hundred rank 4 dragons staring at them with hungry eyes. "Don''t fear the depths." An aged voice resounded in the room, David''s team could only be slightly surprised by that before their attention went back on the dragons, they had begun to move as soon as the phrase ended. Chapter 386: 386. Panic Panic! That was the first emotion that the cultivators felt. The more than one hundred dragons were coming at them, they were all of a different kind, they resembled a scaled tide ready to engulf them. Yet, David''s team was composed of experienced cultivators, they didn''t pass the test just thanks to their preparations. "Hold your ground!" David yelled as he cast a defensive spell, the cultivators behind him did the same, water walls, vortexes, lightning nets, and golems appeared between them and the dragons. That situation was different from the first trial, there weren''t only Sea dragons in the incoming tide, there was no point in trying not to hurt them during the defenses. However, there were more than one hundred rank 4 beasts, that number alone was enough to make even a heroic rank cultivator falter. The layer of spells was broken almost immediately, it couldn''t halt the dragons'' advance by even a second. Seeing the drooling maws of the nearing beasts, there was only one thought that remained in the cultivators'' minds. ''Retreat!'' The ninth trial seemed unreasonably hard, the cultivators could only form teams made of twenty persons, that difference in number alone made the trial impossible to pass! Tokens began to appear in the cultivators'' hands, they started to pour "Breath" in them to activate the escape mechanism. Noah wasn''t an exception, he took his token even before the rest of his team, his instincts as a lone cultivator kicked in as soon as he saw the tide of dragons reaching for him. Yet, to the surprise of everyone in the area, nothing happened. According to the reports, injecting even a small quantity of "Breath" in the tokes was enough to activate the teleportation ability inscribed in them, many cultivators that had escaped the Inheritance ground praised how quickly they were teleported outside thanks to said tokens. However, the tokens didn''t work which caused another wave of panic to sweep the cultivators. A dragon''s head was severed when it reached the panicked team but the beast following it managed to stab its fangs on one cultivator, ripping off its arm in the process. Another dragon died under the joint assault of the calmest cultivators but those behind it thrashed their bodies on the left side of the group, a trail of blood was left on the dark floor as three cultivators died in an instant. ''Fuck, calm down! There must be a way!'' Noah''s situation wasn''t that better. Black smoke came out of his figure which prevented the faster dragons to focus him, the amount of danger radiated from his figure was enough to make the beast prefer the others in his group. He couldn''t care less about the cultivators around him, his life was in danger, it wasn''t the time to hold himself back. There was nowhere to retreat, the door behind them had completely disappeared in the darkness after it closed, only a black wall could be seen behind their back. Also, Noah''s spell forced them to avoid being near him, he was managing to scare the dragons away but the same could be said for the cultivators in his team. ''Think, think! The creator of the Inheritance ground couldn''t have set this place up only to kill a bunch of cultivators in the human ranks!'' Noah''s mind worked at full speed to find a way out of that situation. The tokens didn''t work and the door that led back to the labyrinth had disappeared, there didn''t seem to be a way out of that trial. Then, Noah remembered the aged voice and the contents of its phrase when the door closed. ''Don''t fear the depths¡­ Does it want us to advance?'' Only darkness could be seen behind the huge tide of dragons, there wasn''t any insurance that advancing was the right move. Yet, there wasn''t any other option! He could defend from the dragons'' assault for some time if he was to enter the complete Demonic form but the energy contained inside his centers of power would only be quickly depleted. There was also no hope in killing all the dragons, they were simply too many, even twenty rank 3 cultivators could do nothing in that situation. Noah''s conclusion was shared by the remaining cultivators, they weren''t stupid after all, the only clue about that trial was the aged voice which resounded when they crossed the door. David and the three solid stage cultivators charged ahead, their spells created wonders as they slaughtered their way across the dragons'' tide. Noah followed them, he ran between the empty spaces left after their attacks and the black smoke exuded from his body made the dragons unwilling to come close to him. Of course, his spell also stopped any other cultivator from following him, the black gas left a trail which corroded anything that came in contact with it, Noah''s companions weren''t an exception. Under normal circumstances, Noah''s tattoo would stop him from harming his fellow disciples but his life was at risk, its restrictions were laxer when death was right behind the corner. The other cultivators were forced to open a way by themselves but the dragons were too numerous, Noah stopped paying attention to them when the first dying cry resounded behind him. However, even David''s group of strong cultivators began to face some problems, there were simply too many beasts, others would constantly block their path no matter how many were killed. ''These are real dragons!'' That realization hit Noah''s mind when he saw the corpses accumulating on the dark ground, the dangerous situation didn''t allow him to pay attention to that detail until now. Yet, he was forced to focus on his surroundings when he sensed that four dragons had disregarded the danger radiated from the black smoke coming out of his body and pounced at him. Those were all rank 4 beasts in the lower tier, Noah could kill them rather quickly but the situation didn''t allow him to waste time. The world seemed to slow down in his eyes, his sabers appeared in his hands and two pairs of additional arms were created on his torso. Even the sounds of the battle seemed to stop as he swung his blades, a swift but soft movement was performed as he put all his focus on that attack. Veins bulged and turned black, Noah seemed to push his body to its limit to perform that blow. ''Third Form: Void!'' Chapter 387: 387. Void Noah had obtained his rank 4 martial art when he entered the academy. Generally speaking, a rank 4 martial art was able to express the power of the heroic ranks when completely mastered. Yet, the body and the dantian of the cultivator performing it had to be at a decent level for it to express its full power. The Three Forms of the Ashura was composed of three powerful attacks and basic movements that added two pairs of additional arms on the cultivator''s torso. The First Form, endless assault, multiplied the cultivator''s attacks, making him able to fight when outnumbered. The Second Form, fusion, concentrated all the blades into one to perform a powerful but slow attack, it had been Noah''s strongest blow until a few months ago. When he entered the third rank, his centers of power had reached the level needed to perform the Third Form. ''Void'' Noah shouted in his mind as his concentration reached its peak. The black veins on his body bulged and pulsated to no end, his muscles stretched to their limits, it seemed as if his limbs were going to break due to the pressure applied on them because of that attack. Veins exploded as his arms completed the required gesture, he had memorized that form long ago but he had always been too weak to use it. In the slowed world reflected in Noah''s eyes, four shadows shot out from his sabers. Noah heaved a tired sigh as he resumed to run, the injuries caused by his body surpassing its limits healed in a few seconds thanks to the liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system. One of the four dragons that had attacked was in front of him but Noah simply marched toward it as if it had stopped being a threat. When Noah reached it, the dragon''s body divided in half, allowing him to run right in the middle of the two halves. The other three dragons were the same, they were still in the process of pouncing at him when their bodies were suddenly halved, their eyes radiated the surprise that they felt when they realized that they were dead. An unlockable attack that fused the ethereal aspect of the First Form and the power of the Second Form, the Third Form was the apex of Noah''s martial art. ''I should probably enter the complete Demonic form if I want to use this attack repeatedly, the pressure on my body is simply too much.'' Noah evaluated as he continued to run inside the dragons'' tide, more and more dragons were starting to disregard the dangerous feeling radiated from his black smoke and were turning their heads toward the hooded figure chasing after the four powerful humans in the lead. David and his group of solid stage cultivators were wreaking havoc at some distance from Noah, the dragons had tried to encircle them but they were too strong, just one of their spells was enough to repel six to seven dragons at the same time! Noah chased them, they were naturally creating an escape route for him and were the strongest in his team, he would have better chances to survive with them. Yet, at some point, they disappeared. ''Where did they go?'' Noah was confused, they were right in front of him for the whole time but now he couldn''t see them. Also, the dark area still maintained the features of the other parts of the labyrinth, the mental energy of the cultivators was suppressed and their sight was starting to be affected since they were leaving the place where the shining orbs were levitating, Noah had betted everything on following David and his group! ''Fuck!'' More smoke came out of his body as he cursed in his mind, his hooded figure was slowly replaced by a fiendish one that had horns and a tail. Noah was going all out! The tide of dragons turned to the remaining cultivators in the area, four of them had suddenly disappeared while many had already died, only about seven rank 3 cultivators remained in the dark area. Noah felt many hungry gazes staring at him, he was the one that had marched deeper in the darkness after all, he was surrounded by dragons! The dragons didn''t care about their well-being, there was only an endless hunger in their minds. They pounced through the black cloud formed by Noah''s spell, uncaring that their scales were being devoured by the smoke. Noah, on the other hand, was extremely calm. He had survived in hopeless situations already without being that strong, his mind was working at full speed to analyze the ninth trial and to find a way out of that place. ''David and the others have disappeared after they reached that point, maybe the depths are right there.'' The only real clue about the test was the aged voice that had resounded after the door closed behind their backs, Noah believed that to be the vital information about the trial. ''I can warp near there and run but it doesn''t hurt to make a short stop before.'' Noah''s eyes sharpened as he swept the battlefield, he inspected every dragon that entered his field of view. Then, when a few dragons managed to surpass the black smoke and near him, black flames enveloped his body, making him disappear in an instant. A fiendish figure reappeared in another part of the battlefield, the dragons there roared when they discovered the unwanted guest but there was nothing they could do, they found themselves severed in half before they were even able to finish their battle cry. Only one of them had its head severed, which then immediately disappeared along with the rest of its body. Then, black flames covered again the fiendish figure, making him disappear from that place. Noah reappeared where David and his group had disappeared, the dragons there had already marched toward the remaining humans in the area, they didn''t expect for someone to suddenly appear behind their backs. Yet, Noah didn''t exploit that surprise effect, his attention was on his surroundings, he was trying to find clues about David''s disappearance. Countless roars resounded as attacks were launched against him, the dragons felt challenged when Noah had appeared behind them. Then, Noah noticed that the floor ended at some point and that only the endless darkness of the depths of the separate dimension remained. The attacks were almost about to reach him when he gathered his determination and jumped off what seemed a cliff, his figure disappeared in the void below the ninth trial. Chapter 388: 388. Seabed Noah descended slowly. Two pairs of wings flapped behind his back and small black circles appeared under his feet as he balanced himself to fly. Endless darkness surrounded him, Noah wasn''t able to see anything, he only knew that he was descending. ''No trace of dragons behind me, it seems that they were restricted to the area above.'' Noah thought as he inspected his surroundings, his mental energy was suppressed and his eyes couldn''t help him, he could only rely on his instincts. ''This place should be an area below the labyrinth¡­ Wait, don''t tell me that we could have just jumped off the bridge and skip the trials!'' That realization hit Noah''s mind as he continued to descend. The darkness below the labyrinth was a common sight in the trials, many of them featured pits connected to that area. ''This is so strange. Why the ninth trial forced us to escape? Why did the other tests emphasize teamwork? What is the damned aim of the creator of this separate dimension?'' There was only confusion in his mind. The dimension seemed to test the teamwork of a group under many different situations, it didn''t make sense to just put an impossible trial at the end. Humans had reasons behind their action, one wouldn''t create a separate dimension just to play with some human cultivators. ''At least I hope so.'' Noah suppressed his question when he reached that point, he couldn''t understand every human being, maybe the creator of the dimension was just a sadist watching the trials with a cup of wine in his hands. Noah continued to descend, he guessed that he had already fallen for a few kilometers but there had yet to be a change in the environment. It was only after another couple of kilometers that a sandy ground appeared in his view. The sand shone with soft azure light, illuminating the environment at the bottom of the void. ''This resembles the seabed, how strange.'' Noah didn''t understand his situation nor the place where he was. His escape token didn''t work, he was separated by his teammates and he didn''t even know if he had passed the ninth trial, there had been no peal after all. Yet, he was happy that he had finally found a foothold, there were things he needed to do before he resumed in his exploration. Noah landed on the sand and inspected his surroundings, there seemed to be nothing except for a few rocky constructions in the distance. ''Just normal sand.'' Noah concluded after he inspected the terrain, he decided to find a place to rest before nearing the rocky constructions. A small hill appeared in his view, there seemed to be a cave of some sort on its surface which Noah didn''t hesitate to explore. He had used all his strongest attacks together, the Demonic form and the Warp spell expended a lot of mental energy and the Third Form pushed his body to its limits, even the liquid "Breath" in the membrane around his heart had to be refilled. However, when he entered the cave, he was surprised to find a chained dragon surrounded by inscriptions. The dragon seemed to be sleeping but there was a detail that surprised Noah even more: It was a Sea dragon identical to those on the bridge! ''What does this mean?'' Noah neared the creature with caution, the inscriptions seemed focused on restraining it but there were other effects that Noah couldn''t understand. ''They seem to scan it but for what reason?'' The dragon woke up when he sensed the new presence in his prison, his hungry eyes stared at Noah but it didn''t seem willing to fight. ''It''s the first time that I see a beast so docile.'' There were carriages carried by magical beasts but they were suppressed by inscribed chains or similar. The dragon, instead, seemed to have completely given up on escaping, even its instinct as a magical beast was destroyed. ''For how long were you here?'' Noah couldn''t imagine the amount of time it spent chained like that, it wasn''t malnourished after all, it had simply given up. Then, he just walked to the bottom of the cave, the dragon was restrained and Noah had no intention of interfering with inscriptions that he didn''t understand, it was simply better to rest and to prepare for the incoming exploration. His eyes shone when he inspected the contents of his space-ring, a headless dragon was laying in an empty area, its blood flowed on the floor, tainting some of the items in the distance. Noah quickly took out the corpse and placed a large barrel under its neck, then, he proceeded in gathering the blood spilled on the floor inside his space-ring. It was at that time that he noticed a small old scroll in a corner. ''That isn''t mine.'' Noah always kept the space inside his rings quite organized, he wanted to be always ready for battle after all. That''s why he could immediately see that the scroll wasn''t something that belonged to him. The shock he felt when he took it and unfolded it couldn''t be expressed by simple words. That was because the scroll depicted the diagram of a spell up to the fifth rank! ''When? What!?'' Noah was even more confused, that spell had appeared out of nowhere directly inside his space-ring and without him even noticing! ''Don''t tell me, this is the reward of the ninth trial! Why there wasn''t any peal then?'' Even more doubts assailed his mind but he faced them with renewed happiness. The spell was of the wind element but its sheer value would allow him to exchange it for basically anything in the human ranks, he could also hope to obtain something in the heroic ranks from the sect. ''Amazing! I believe that the dimension has given something of equal value to all the cultivators that have passed the ninth trial. The creator must be filthy rich!'' Noah''s determination in reaching the end of the dimension increased, there seemed to be simply too much wealth inside it! His eyes went on the dragon''s corpse which was slowly filling the bucket with its blood, as he willed, the bat and panther half-transparent figures inside his mental sphere crumbled, leaving no traces of their existence. Chapter 389: 389. Imagination Noah undressed his upper clothes to allow the blood of the previous Blood companions to be expelled. The tattoos slowly vanished as the black blood abandoned Noah''s body, only the deep cuts that made the pictures of the beasts remained for a few seconds before the healing proprieties of his body closed the wounds, leaving no traces of them. Echo and Shadow were completely dead! Shadow hadn''t been of much use to Noah since his power was too high when he created it but Echo had played an important role in his adventures, it had stayed with him since he escaped Eccentric Thunder''s Inheritance ground. Yet, power came before everything, Noah didn''t think twice to destroy its figure inside his mental sphere, he had to make space for a new beast. A white saber appeared in his hands and he proceeded to stab the chest of the dragon to rip off its heart, Noah didn''t use the Demonic swords because he was afraid that their innate corrosive proprieties would damage the core of the beast. As for the dragon, what Noah had killed and successfully stored was an Abyssal dragon. It was a kind of dragon that relied mostly on its body to fight and that had an innately strong defense due to the sturdy scales all over its body. It was also quite big for its kind, nine meters long and a muscular body with a pair of wings and four huge legs, it was slow but its frame made up for that weakness. Abyssal dragons would usually live in dark places where their vision was obstructed, that''s why their defenses were so good: They had to protect themselves against beings able to see in those environments. There were strongest kinds of dragons among the tide in the ninth trial but that was the only one of the darkness element that Noah had managed to find. Also, it had large wings and was at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank, Noah wouldn''t be too picky when he found such a good match for his needs. ''I''m not used to creating wills that enhance defense but it would be a waste to imbue it with other meanings.'' Noah thought as he held the dragon''s heart in one hand while he drew a few sketches on the sandy terrain. He was a rank 3 mage, it took him only a few attempts to draw a figure of the dragon that met the standards required by the Body-inscription spell. Then, he closed his eyes to focus on the world inside his mental sphere. Noah dispersed the solid "Breath" stored for the activation of the Shadow Sprint, his sea of consciousness seemed extremely empty, only the three Kesier runes and the non-refined solid "Breath" remained together with his half-transparent figure. ''Defense, defense.'' He repeated that word in his mind, sorting through the various memories that could help him in creating a strong will. His first thought led him back inside the Royal Inheritance where he fought the rank 4 Cloud eagle, his level was too low at the time, his sabers couldn''t even scratch the surface of its skin. ''Too shallow.'' Noah immediately disregarded that memory, the level of the beast was simply too high, it wasn''t a matter of good defense. It took a while but Noah eventually found a method to create the meaning that he needed. His imagination played one of its first creations, a saber that flew undisputed in the skies, cutting through everything on its path. Then, the saber changed its route and went upward, trying to reach for the space outside the world. Yet, it was met with a seemingly endless wall that covered the entirety of the planet. The wall seemed to have metallic proprieties and it was formed by countless black scales placed on top of each other. No matter how many times the saber tried to pierce it, it wasn''t able to even dent the first scale that it met. Noah interrupted his dream at that moment and imbued those emotions in the solid "Breath" inside his mind. The chunks of black crystals were immersed in the sea below them and came out in the form of a dense scaled shield. The shield radiated the helplessness created due to its impenetrability, Noah had a cold expression when he looked at it. That was because he had used the feelings that he felt toward the restrictions that the world applied on lone cultivators, no matter how strong one became, there would always be stronger powers ready to suppress it. The strongest of all was Heaven and Earth which was represented by the wall around the planet in Noah''s imagination. ''Such a good result from something that I hate so much, it seems that all my training in the creation of wills wasn''t useless.'' Noah felt a deep hatred for any restriction that the world tried to apply to him. He used that strong emotion to create a fantasy that reflected how he felt in his most helpless moments. He felt like that saber, alone in the vastity of the sky, trying to break through an impenetrable wall. His mood was about to turn sour but then he remembered where he was and what he was attempting to do. ''I can finally use this spell again.'' Noah quickly imbued the "Breath" just refined in the blood contained in the barrel and the heart in his hand. Then, he proceeded to draw the figure of the Abyssal dragon on his chest and ate its heart when he was done. The new tattoo seemed to become alive as its temperature rose but Noah had already closed his eyes, his complete focus was on the huge half-transparent figure of the dragon inside his sea of consciousness. Noah was a bit surprised by its frame. ''It''s at least three times bigger than my previous companions, I guess I can''t compare the wills of rank 3 creatures with rank 4 ones.'' He concluded as he quickly acted to suppress the beast. The three Kesier runes hummed and the connection created between Noah and the dragon thanks to the Elemental forging method further restrained its movements. Two ethereal sabers appeared in his hands, Noah directly flew toward the restrained beast to suppress it. The battle was long, the dragon didn''t have a chance to win inside Noah''s sea of consciousness but it still fought with all it had, its pride as a rank 4 beast wasn''t something to underestimate. Yet, its figure eventually crumbled, falling on the sea below it and reappearing near the center of the sphere. The rank 4 dragon had been successfully tamed! Chapter 390: 390. Scum Noah waited for his form to return to its peak before exiting the cave where he rested. He had refilled his mental sphere with "Breath" already refined for the usage of his martial art and the Sea dragon restrained inside the cave wasn''t of any use to him, he simply cleaned the place before leaving. The internal pressure caused by his new Blood companion was powerful but Noah was able to endure it, he simply had to disperse the useless "Breath" inside his mind to avoid incurring in the familiar headache. He didn''t know which route would lead him to the end of the Inheritance ground nor how far it was but staying in one place was pointless: The escape token didn''t work, he could only hope to exit the dimension by exploring further. ''Those rocky buildings are the only change in the environment, they should have some clue about this place.'' Noah began to walk toward the structures that he saw in the distance, his mental energy was still restricted but his vision wasn''t, the azure light radiated by the sand allowed him to use the senses of his body to their full potential. Along the road, Noah found other hills with caves on their surface. He was surprised to discover that there was a living dragon caged in each cave, their kinds matched those in the trials, Noah was beginning to understand the reason behind the inscriptions around their cages. ''They should be used to create the fake dragons in the labyrinth. If this hypothesis is true, then the creator of the dimension was an expert in formations and also an inscription master. This world is filled with monsters.'' Noah concluded in his mind. According to his idea, the creator of the dimension was able to cage a large number of different dragons, create a system that kept them alive, and also set up a network that copied their forms on the building above him. ''Hypothetically speaking, this expert would be able to create an endless number of fake dragons by copying the features of an imprisoned one¡­ This is too unreal, how many restrictions would be applied to a technique like that?'' Heaven and Earth were fair, a technique that could endlessly create copies of restrained dragons seemed simply too strong! ''Who is this person? Eccentric Thunder was a monster but his dimension only had rank 3 beasts at best, this place is on a completely different level.'' Noah knew that the answers to his many doubts could only be found at the end of the Inheritance ground, that''s why he only quickly examined each cave that he found before continuing with his exploration. It was only after a few hours of exploration that he found other humans. Noah stopped his tracks, there were two rank 3 cultivators, a man and a woman, in front of him. Their facial features were out in the open and their robes had the emblem of the Empire sewed on them. ''Legal organizations!'' Noah was still wearing his hood as he had that thought, he was part of the Chasing demon sect after all, his organization was still illegal on the surface. The two cultivators also noticed Noah, they turned to look at him, showing displeased expressions when they saw his clothes. "Unorthodox scum." The man exclaimed as he spat on the ground to further show his disgust toward the members of the Hive. ''Of course the first people I met would be unfriendly, it would be strange otherwise.'' Noah cursed his bad luck and continued on his way, he would rather preserve his energies in that dangerous environment. "Hey you, where are you going?" The woman spoke but Noah ignored her, his gaze was fixed on the structures in the distance. "Hmph!" A loud snort resounded in the area as the woman vanished from her spot and reappeared in front of Noah, what seemed half-transparent wings were on her back as she landed in front of him. ''A movement-type spell, this might be troublesome.'' Noah evaluated as part of his attention went on the man who ran to place himself behind him, Noah found himself surrounded in a few seconds. "Lister carefully, there is no grudge between each other so just give us the rewards of the ninth trial and we will let you go." "If you don''t¡­" The man behind Noah released his pressure as he continued the woman''s words. ''Right, the rewards.'' Noah''s eyes shone as he remembered that detail, he had been too focused on the exploration and on the creation of the new Blood companion that he had totally forgotten that each of the cultivators he encountered in that place would have the rewards of the ninth trial with them. ''I''ve been too focused on finding the end of the dimension that I didn''t consider the other gains available here¡­ I''ve become too soft.'' Noah suppressed his laugh as he focused on his enemies, they were two rank 3 cultivators in the gaseous stage, both rank 3 mages. Yet, their mental spheres were weaker than Noah''s, he could make out most of their strength with a simple inspection. "I might be a bit rusty at this." Noah spoke before a shockwave resounded when he stomped the ground twice, in an instant, he appeared in front of the woman with his sabers aimed to her head. The two of them were rank 3 cultivators, they couldn''t be taken by surprise that easily. The woman reacted quickly, a dense layer made of air appeared in front of her, ready to block Noah''s assault. At the same time, the man shot in his direction, fire came out of his hammer as he directed its trajectory toward Noah''s head. Everything seemed to happen slowly in their eyes but not even a second had passed since Noah attacked. Noah''s black sabers clashed with the spell, they weren''t able to pierce the wall made of air but the woman didn''t show a happy expression, her eyes sharpened when she saw that Noah didn''t even use his martial art in that attack! "Greg-" She tried to warn the man about the possible trap but it was too late, Greg was already too close to Noah to stop his descending blow. It was at that moment that Noah''s clothes were torn apart and the sharp fangs of a dragon stabbed themselves on Greg''s waist, stopping his attack and injuring him. Chapter 391: 391. Chase Noah''s new Blood companion was a rank 4 beast at the peak of the lower tier, it was fully capable of injuring rank 3 cultivators with its body alone. Also, one of the strongest features of the Body-inscription spell was the speed at which the Blood companion was released by the cultivator''s body, it was really easy to be caught by surprise if the opponent wasn''t aware of that ability. Greg saw the enormous reptilian head trying to crush his body, the gaseous "Breath" inside his dantian and the liquid one inside his body were depleted at a fast pace as he tried to block the dragon''s fangs. Then, his mental energy was expended and a huge ape made of flames appeared behind his back. The fire ape wielded a pair of hammers that it didn''t hesitate to smash on the dragon''s head. A loud impact resounded in the area, the hammers crashed on the companion''s head, breaking a few scales in the process. However, to Greg''s surprise, the dragon had still more than half of its head intact and, even worse, the missing parts destroyed in the attacks were already reforming! Greg was a mighty rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage, he had fought many rank 4 beasts in his life and had survived the trials in the separate dimension, he knew exactly the power behind his spells. Yet, a spell that should have destroyed any rank 4 beast''s head and even take a big chunk of its neck with it wasn''t able to do much against that black dragon! Abyssal dragons were specialized in defense but those scales seemed to surpass the actual level of the beast, putting its power directly in the middle tier of the fourth rank! Greg''s surprised gaze went on the hooded figure in front of him but he soon discovered that he had disappeared, only some tongues of black flames were still lingering in front of the shield deployed by his teammate. The woman seemed to stare at him, yet, she wasn''t looking at his figure but at a place behind him. That was because Noah had warped right behind Greg and was already attacking him with his most powerful attack! Noah''s veins turned black and black smoke came out of his six sabers as he performed a slash so fast that even those with a rank 4 body would find hard to follow with their eyes. Greg''s survival instincts kicked in, the fire ape placed itself in a protective stance to block the incoming attack only to be severed by the six invisible slashes that reached it. Noah''s attack didn''t stop there, it reached Greg''s back and inflicted six deep wounds on it, cutting through a spell had greatly reduced its power. Greg was about to cast another spell when a fuming head covered his upper body, he could only see the gaseous insides of the dragon before the corrosive smoke exuded by its figure attacked his skin. Muffled screams resounded from inside the dragon''s body, its fuming fangs closed on Greg''s already injured waist, severing his body in half and leaving his lifeless legs on the azure sand. The woman watched the scene with wide eyes, everything had happened too quickly, one mistake was all it took for the hooded figure to kill her companion, Greg was defeated after only three attacks! Screams continued to sound from the dragon''s body, the vitality of a rank 3 cultivator was incredible but his injuries were too severe, only half of his body remained after all. Noah landed on the dragon''s head, the dragon then softly lowered its neck to allow him a comfortable descent on the ground. Noah stepped off the dragon slowly, he seemed to take his time and he didn''t even deign the woman of his attention. Then, the screams ended and Noah raised his hand toward the dragon''s mouth. The beast opened its maws and three half corroded rings fell directly in Noah''s hands which he quickly stored inside his pants. The woman watched the scene and she quickly made up her mind: She had to escape! It wasn''t a matter of strength, she was quite sure that she was a match for the hooded man. Yet, she was outnumbered and he had killed her companion, a battle against him, while she was still in the Inheritance ground, wasn''t the best option. "We will meet again!" She shouted before the wings behind her back flapped and made her disappear from that place, Noah saw how she was running in the distance, toward the rocky structures. Black flames covered his figure, he wasn''t going to give up on a free reward! Noah reappeared on a spot in front of the escaping woman, her eyes widened when she saw the dragon coming out of his body and charging at her with all its might. She quickly changed direction, cutting diagonally as she tried to use the maneuverability of her spell to her advantage. It was at that moment, though, that shockwaves resounded in the area, she turned only to see that Noah was repeatedly using his martial art to chase her. She sighed in relief when she saw that Noah was slower than her, he was using a martial art after all, it couldn''t compare to the speed produced by a spell. Yet, she suddenly felt as if her mental sphere was going to break, she was forced to stop her escape to focus on stabilizing her sea of consciousness. The walls of her mind trembled to no end, it took her a while to stabilize her condition. That time was enough for Noah to reach her position and to perform the Third Form together with the partial Demonic form. The woman reacted quickly, her complexion was pale due to the mental energy expended to defend against the Mental tremor spell but her life was in danger! Twenty or so needles were launched from her hands, they clashed with Noah''s attacks. Noah''s slashes were fast but the needles weren''t any slower, they pierced each other, expending some of their power. Six deep cuts appeared on the woman''s torso, her robe was soon tainted by the blood flowing out of her wounds. Noah wasn''t better off, a few needles surpassed his defenses and were about to stab his body when a scaled tail enveloped his figure. The woman saw the tail and was reminded of the dragon that accompanied the hooded man but it was too late, darkness filled her vision as a reptilian head closed itself around her head from behind her back. The last image she saw was the fuming fangs of the dragon stabbing her neck, ripping off her head from her shoulders. Chapter 392: 392. Exchanges The headless woman''s body fell lifelessly on the ground, a bit of sand was raised in the process. Noah quickly inspected her body, taking the storage devices that he found in the process before releasing some smoke from his hand to remove any trace of the battle. Greg''s lower body was somewhere behind him, Noah didn''t have time to clean the battlefield since he had to chase the woman but he also couldn''t bother to go back to do so. His priority now was to find a place where to rest before resuming in his exploration, more enemies could approach him any time. He stored the space-rings together with Greg''s ones and was about to search for one of the many hills placed along the way when he felt four pairs of eyes on him. He quickly turned toward the source of the stares, his Blood companion was still out in the open so it was pointless to hide it at that moment. Yet, Noah quickly relaxed when he saw four familiar figures staring at him in the distance. "Zach, is that you?" David''s voice resounded in the sandy area, Noah waved his hand toward him before greeting him in a plain tone. "Captain, I knew you were down here." . . . Sometime later, in a cave where a peak rank 4 Bone dragon was restrained. Noah, David, and the other three solid stage cultivators from the Chasing demon sect were speaking as they looked at a simple drawing on the ground. The drawing depicted the known area below the ninth trial, the five cultivators had put together the events they went through after they flew through the darkness between the labyrinth and the seabed. A dragon was quietly guarding the entrance of the cave, its tail was connected to Noah''s naked back as he stared at the map. "We took care of a group of survivors that we found along the way, they were strong but injured, their fall didn''t go too well apparently." David explained with a smile on his face, the cultivators in the cave had undressed the clothes that covered their faces, they were in a relatively safe area now. "Ehm, Zach? What exactly is that? Some sort of puppet?" Cora, one of the two females in their group, asked while pointing toward the dragon. "Sort of. It''s thanks to it that I managed to survive the assault of those two cultivators from the Empire, I think I will call it Heilong." Noah vaguely answered, he wanted to make them understand that his Blood companion was strong while still hiding its real power. David''s group had found Noah due to the chaos created as he fought, they were aware of some of the details of his battle and he didn''t find any reason to hide his strength. Also, he had seen how David and the other three had uncaringly abandoned the other members of his group, he wanted to appear somewhat valuable in their eyes. "No wonder, no wonder. Let me tell you, defeating two rank 3 cultivators is a really impressive feat for someone who has just reached the gaseous stage, you have my respect." Helga commented on Noah''s explanation, her words seemed honest. "Well, why don''t we place the loot in the middle and divide it according to our needs? We all belong to the thieves'' faction after all." Nate, the other man in the solid stage, proposed. However, Noah shook his head as he revealed a smirk. "No way. You have a total of seven rewards from the ninth trial divided between the four of you while I have three of them on my person alone, dividing them would be as if I was giving away one of them." Nate''s smile froze after Noah''s answer, he thought he could trick him using the faction as an excuse but Noah had immediately seen through his fa?ade. "Nate, give up, let''s just exchange them." David continued to smile as he patted Nate''s shoulder, the latter could only cough a few times as he nodded wearing an awkward smile. "Then, I guess it''s up to me to start. I have a water spell and a lightning spell, both of them up to the fifth rank. Helga, do you want the lightning one?" Nate spoke, explaining the spells in his possession. David''s aptitude was fire, Nate and Cora''s one was wind, and Helga was of the lightning element. "You know I received a spell of the earth element from the ninth trial. It doesn''t match your element and its value it''s also lower, what do you really want?" Helga spoke, expressing her doubts. The lightning element was rarer than the earth one, it was normal for spells of the former to be more expensive. "I wouldn''t mind losing a few thousand Credits if you were to put some nice words to that apprentice of yours. She thinks I''m some kind of scoundrel that wastes his time in the brothels on the surface." "But that''s exactly who you are!" Cora complained when she heard Nate''s request, she shook her head when she understood that Nate was willing to lose tens of thousands of Credits over a woman. "Deal." However, Helga didn''t hesitate to accept Nate''s offer, a scroll appeared in her hands which she quickly handed to him. Nate revealed a happy expression and did the same, the exchange was completed. "Do you have anything related to the darkness element?" That time, it was Noah the one who spoke. David sighed, he knew about Noah''s aptitude, but the other three were extremely surprised. They were mighty rank 3 cultivators, they couldn''t care less about the matters between weaker cultivators. That''s why they weren''t aware of his battle against Perry nor of its specifics. "I have a spell of the darkness element, its power is up to the fifth rank. I thought I was the lucky one when I found it in the ring of those from the Papral nation but, apparently, this luck is yours to take." Cora spoke, her eyes were sharp as she stared Noah. Chapter 393: 393. Resuming the exploration "I have a spell of the wind element, one of the fire element, and one of the water element, all three of them up to the fifth rank. Just choose which one you want." Noah answered plainly, he wasn''t aware of Cora''s aptitude but he still chose to reveal his belongings. He had already inspected the belongings of the two cultivators of the Shandal Empire that he had killed, he found those two spells along with a huge amount of resources. Those two cultivators were both in the third rank, their belongings didn''t stop to potions and pills needed to pass the trials, Noah had also found a huge number of Credits, some techniques and spells, and even a few inscribed weapons. He could have been considered rich before but now his finances and resources had tripled! Of course, the spells, techniques, and weapons had to be sold since he had no use for them but Noah was still considering if it would be better to just exchange them for merit points once he went back to the sect. He was still stuck in the Inheritance ground after all, there was no point in planning his action for when he went back already. "That won''t do." However, Cora shook her head as she refused Noah''s offer. "Darkness and light are the rarest elements, just by giving the spell in my possession to the sect, I would almost obtain enough merit points to purchase two spells of the wind element of similar power. You need to make a better offer if you want my spell." Cora''s reply made Noah fall deep in thought. He was aware of the rarity of his element, the prices for techniques and spells that suited him could only increase as his level rose. ''Her words make sense, why would she accept a random spell of her element when she can just pick one up from the missions'' building? Well, I don''t know if the third floor has something so powerful but there should be ways to have access to heroic-level spells.'' Noah''s attention went on the insides of his space-rings, he analyzed the spells rewarded in the ninth trial and he tried to evaluate their power. Spells could be strong or weak, battle-related or not, these qualities influenced their values and prices in the market. Noah didn''t have a meter of comparison with spells of an element different from his but one thing was clear: The spells in his possession that came from the separate dimension were all battle-related and seemed quite powerful! ''This means that there is a high chance that the darkness spell in Cora''s rings is also powerful and useful in battle.'' After a few minutes of silence, Noah opened his mouth to make another offer. "I''ll give you the wind and water element, you won''t find a better offer in the archipelago." "Why not the fire one instead of the water one?" Cora didn''t seem moved by Noah''s generous offer and promptly asked to change the contents of the second spell. Yet, Noah only smiled at that question. "David has a fire aptitude, I''ll gain more from giving the fire one to him rather than to you. Mind you, this is my last offer, I can just purchase your spell once we go back in the sect but you would have lost the favorable price that I''m making." Noah gave her an ultimatum, he wouldn''t just give up on free money after all. Noah had fought with David and he was also his captain, it was normal for him to know about his aptitude. Cora stared Noah in the eyes and sighed when she saw that he didn''t seem to care about not obtaining the spell now. "Deal." She took out a long scroll from her space-ring and handed it to Noah, he, on the other hand, handed her the scrolls containing the wind and water spells. Noah didn''t even look at his new spell, he simply stored it before turning to look at David. "What do you offer for this?" He asked as he unfolded the scroll containing the fire spell to him. David wore a complex smile as he went through the contents of the scroll and sighed, taking out a folded scroll too. "I have only this earth spell up to the fifth rank to offer, the other one in my possession matches my element so I won''t give it away." "Deal." Noah didn''t hesitate to accept the exchange, spells of the earth element were more valuable than those of the fire one. The round of exchanges was concluded, everyone ended up with two spells except for Helga who had one and Cora who had three. Cora seemed the one who had the biggest gains but, in truth, it was David the one who had benefitted the most by those exchanges. He had obtained two spells that matched his element, it was a great advantage considering that they were still in the separate dimension. As for Cora''s remaining spell, she didn''t speak about it so the others didn''t ask, there was no point in probing her belongings if she had no intentions to trade them. The fact that they were still in the Inheritance ground also played an important role in making the cultivators in the cave willingly to trade their spells so easily. Each one of them could have pushed for better prices but their priority was to find a way out of the dimension, the best way to improve their chances was to increase their battle prowess as much as they could before resuming in the exploration. David and his group stayed inside the cave and in its surroundings for a couple of weeks, they spent that time learning their new spells and thinking of a way to add them to their battle styles. Noah did the same, his days though were spent mostly outside the cave where he also trained in flying with Heilong''s wings. Dragon''s wings were far more suited than bat''s wings for flight and Noah''s ability had increased a lot during the years when he relied on Echo. A bit more than two weeks passed before they decided to resume in their exploration, their destination was the rocky structures in the distance. Chapter 394: 394. Core David''s group had no more reasons to wait. They had learnt their new spells and they had also tested them in private, they were at peak form too, it was time to continue in the exploration. The azure sand illuminated the environment, the rocky structures in the distance were the only stark change in the scenery, they were the only element that seemed to contrast with the seabed and the many hills placed along the way. That''s why they became the only possible destination in the cultivators'' minds, they would just think of something else if even those structures led to a dead end. The group of five moved slowly, they didn''t talk much but they spent time exploring the caves on the surface of the hills that they passed. Every cave seemed to have a dragon restrained inside it, its kind and aspect always matched those in the trials of the labyrinth. Noah''s hypothesis seemed accurate, even the others in his team were amazed when they learnt about it. "No matter its restriction, a technique like that would be the best defense mechanism of every place." David commented when he heard Noah''s theory. His words were on point, the ability to endlessly replicate restrained magical beasts was amazing. After all, what if a mansion had the protection of an endless number of rank 4 creatures? Who would have the power needed to break its defenses? Also, how many losses would such invaders suffer during the process? "It would be wonderful if we could get our hands on the theory behind these formations, our sect would likely become undisputed on the archipelago thanks to them. We would also be able to lay those formations all around the islands and finally isolate ourselves from the continent!" David continued to evaluate the power behind that technique. The creator of the separate dimension was able to set up trials that took almost three years to be passed with the joint effort of the strongest organizations of the archipelago, using the theory behind that technique to defend against the control of the continent seemed the chance that the Hive had been waiting for centuries! Yet, his enthusiasm was suppressed shortly after, David knew nothing about inscription methods and he wasn''t sure if Noah''s theory was correct, he could only focus on the dimension for now. The others were the same, they weren''t knowledgeable in inscription methods nor did they have any interest in them, they would just pass down such a technique to the sect if they ever were to obtain it. The group''s march was usually silent, their senses were spread toward their surroundings, wary that other cultivators would discover them. Truth to be told, the five of them were eager to find small groups of survivors from the ninth test, anyone on the seabed would have the rewards of the trial, their instincts as thieves would kick in as soon as they found a defenseless prey. Yet, there seemed to be no more lone survivors there, they only met groups of cultivators that had a similar number of members. Those encounters had been quite tense, the two groups would just stare at each other for a long time, probing the power of their opponents. It was normal for any survivor on the seabed to have the same thoughts, who wouldn''t want more valuable spells after all? Noah heaved sighs of relief when he saw that the auras of the four solid stage cultivators in his team were able to prevent any battle from happening. He was only a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage, even though he was strong for his level and his battle prowess had recently increased by a lot, he would still have a tough time against liquid and solid stage cultivators. The teams met along the way were mostly made of such cultivators, Noah preferred to avoid a battle with such strong opponents. It wasn''t a matter of fear, Noah was aware that he was weaker than solid stage cultivators but he was confident in surviving their assault at least. The problem was in the reaction that his companions would have to a possible battle: He had seen how they acted in the ninth trial, Noah bet that he would be left behind without a second thought if the situation was to become too dire. Luckily for him, everyone seemed to prefer going on their way rather than engage in battles. "Seems as if all the small groups have been already taken care of. Only those with a strength similar to us remain." Helga commented when they crossed another team wearing clothes similar to theirs. They probably belonged to underground organizations like them but there didn''t seem to be any friendly feeling coming from their behavior. There seemed to be only one thing in the minds of those that had reached the seabed: Finding the end of the separate dimension! Almost all the groups there were moving toward the rocky structures, they all had a similar idea about the layout of the dimension. Soon, the features of the rocky buildings became clear. They seemed to be some sort of uneven portals that opened a path inside short mountain ranges. Each mountain range had a different portal but they were all linked to a huge mountain in the distance. David''s group inspected the structure, it seemed that to explore its insides, it was necessary to enter one of the portals. Groups of cultivators could be seen in the distance, a few of them crossed the entrance of the portals closest to them before they sealed themselves, it seemed that each passage could accommodate only one group. David and the others exchanged glances before nearing the portal closest to them. It was without any hesitation that they crossed its entrance, the rocks of the walls behind them spread to completely block their way back, they quickly understood that it was too late to turn back. Yet, that had never been their intention! Cautious gazes went toward the insides of the mountain range. An underground building unfolded in front of their eyes, pillars and straight walls made from the azure sand illuminated the way deeper in the mountain. Inscriptions filled the entirety of the surface of the building, their quantity was something that Noah had never seen in his whole life! The underground building seemed the core of the whole dimension! Chapter 395: 395. Arena The light coming from the inscriptions, coupled with the azure halo radiated by the sandy material of the building, illuminated the figures of the five cultivators in David''s group. There didn''t seem to be any immediate danger, the large corridor inside the mountain range was filled with an eerie silence, it appeared completely deserted. A series of glances were exchanged by the five cultivators as they silently decided to explore deeper, everything inside that place was telling them that the end of the Inheritance ground was near. Yet, a problem immediately occurred. "I feel watched." "Me too." "Same here." Helga''s feeling was shared by the others, the light coming from the inscriptions around them seemed to inspect their bodies and it even passed undisturbed inside their centers of power. Though, there wasn''t any harmful intention behind that light and messing up with the inscription of the separate dimension didn''t seem like a good idea so they just ignored that issue after some time. ''These inscriptions are similar to those restricting the dragons inside the hills, they seem far more complex though and I can''t shake off the sensation that we are looking at them from their insides.'' Noah thought as he continued to follow his teammates. He was the only one in the group who had some knowledge in the inscriptions'' field, he could understand more than his companions even if his inscription method diverged from most usual practices. ''I have a bad feeling about this¡­'' According to his theory, the purpose behind those inscriptions was to replicate the beings restrained inside them. Since there were now cultivators in their insides, there was a high chance that their next enemy would be a human! The illuminated corridor was straight and seemingly endless, David''s group carefully marched in its insides for more than a week before the first change occurred. Right between two tall pillars placed at the sides of the passage, the entrance of a large area became visible. "We should still be at some distance from the central mountain. Careful, this should be another trial." David warned as the five of them entered the large area and prepared themselves for a battle. The area was a large room with a wide formation on both floor and ceiling, it completely resembled a battle arena. Then, the sandy walls of the entrance behind them began to enlarge, not even a few seconds had passed but the way back to the corridor had been sealed! The cultivators weren''t scared nor disappointed, they were ready for the incoming battle but there were no enemies there. Their gazes went on the walls of the room, they felt confused since there seemed to be no way out of that place. Noah went to inspect the formations, they resembled those that filled the dimension but with a few more complex elements. In the end, he gave up on trying to understand their purpose, not only were formations different from his method, but those in the arena were also at a high level. "Nothing?" David asked when he saw Noah raising his gaze from the formations and he sighed when he saw that Noah shook his head to answer him. "What do we do now?" Nate asked David, it was clear to everyone that the latter was the leader of the group. "Let''s wait for a bit. We''ll try to force this place open if nothing happens." David spoke, ordering them to take the safe approach. Messing up with the inscriptions of a dimension that could remain hidden from the eyes of heroic cultivators wasn''t a good idea, David would keep that option only as a last resort. Another period of training occurred, Noah and the others resumed testing their new spells and adding them to their combat style. They were all rank 3 mages after all, learning the diagram of spells up to the fifth rank hadn''t been a taxing process. Yet, it always took time to become proficient with every new technique, Noah would always throw himself into a pack of magical beasts whenever he obtained a new technique. With the absence of magical beasts though, he could only visualize his improved fighting style in his mind for now. One thing that improved quickly though was his flying ability. Heilong''s wings were bigger and stronger than Echo''s ones, allowing him to fly at a higher speed and without the need of the Shadow step spell to remain in the air. Yet, they lacked maneuverability, an aspect that Noah could only compensate with experience and other techniques. ''I''ll think about improving my flight when I exit this damned place¡­ We have been stuck in this area for one month already!'' Noah thought as he softly landed on the ground, the wings behind his back retracted inside his naked back where the large tattoo of a dragon was. The other four in his group had long become used to his training routine and couldn''t help but be surprised when they saw the many uses that his Blood companion was capable of. "Maybe I should have asked for this puppet instead." Cora commented as she watched Noah reuniting with them, she believed that her gains in the exchange had been great but the young-looking man in front of him seemed to have things more valuable than powerful spells. "Limited to the darkness element, sorry." Noah shrugged his shoulders as he casually lied, the Body-inscription spell was one of his strongest abilities as well as his first spell, he wouldn''t give it to others so easily. The cultivators in David''s group weren''t tired, they were still in the Inheritance ground so they limited themselves when they trained. Noah wasn''t an exception, flying consumed virtually no energy and he only used his new spell three to four times each day. Their priority was to be ready for any kind of trial that the dimension placed in front of them, they didn''t know the reason behind that waiting but they didn''t dare to train till exhaustion in that situation. Then, before Noah could wear something to cover his upper body, the formations on the floor and the ceiling lit up. Light gathered at the center of the arena and human figures formed as the light slowly dissipated. In a few seconds, five cultivators appeared in front of them! Chapter 396: 396. Ice The cultivators that had just appeared didn''t look completely real, their features were covered with inscriptions and they all wore expressionless faces. David''s group immediately stood up, they had wielded their weapons as soon as the formations lit up. The inscribed cultivators wore the golden armors of the Royal army of the Utra nation, Noah and his group had spotted them along the way but they went on different paths and entered a different portal. "It seems that this technique can even copy cultivators." David judged as his eyes were filled with greed, the possibility of obtaining the copying technique from the separate dimension seemed to become more real with every new trial. ''I guess I was right.'' Noah thought as he inspected the inscribed cultivators, three of them were in the solid stage while two of them were in the liquid one, it was pointless to say that they were all in the third rank! Also, the mental waves that they radiated belonged to rank 3 mages, they couldn''t be underestimated. ''I wonder if a copy of ourselves has appeared in front of another group, that should be the purpose behind the inscriptions in the corridor after all.'' Noah guessed again, he felt a bit bothered to be used in that way especially considering that he had so many secrets. However, his thoughts were interrupted since the five inscribed cultivators recklessly charged at them. "One each, winners help those in need!" David gave simple orders as he shot toward a woman that seemed the strongest in the enemy team. The others in his group did the same with Nate and Noah charging toward the liquid stage cultivators. Explosions resounded in the arena as the battle began, spells and attacks were launched as soon as the two sides clashed. Noah was completely focused on the liquid stage inscribed man in front of him, spears made of ice shot in his direction as shockwaves resounded from under his feet. Noah managed to dodge the spell thanks to the speed generated from the Shadow sprint and immediately used his strongest attack. Time seemed to slow down in his eyes and black veins bulged all over his body as six fast slashes were launched. The Third Form of the Ashura fused the most powerful aspects of the other two Forms, it had the destructive power of the Second Form and the ethereal aspect of the First one. Noah was at about ten meters of distance from the inscribed man but six extremely fast slashes still cut through the air and managed to reach his enemy! However, he was against a liquid stage cultivator. The Third Form was fast and powerful, it could be said that it was a perfect attack method, yet, it was still only a martial art. A layer of ice covered the man''s chest and six deep marks appeared on it but the skin under that protection remained untouched! The Third Form had been blocked! ''I used the weakest version of the Third Form but I didn''t expect it to be blocked so easily.'' Noah evaluated in his mind but was forced to summon his Blood companion since his enemy had cast another barrage of ice spears at the moment when Noah''s attack was blocked. Heilong appeared in front of Noah, its huge scaled body completely covered Noah''s figure as it endured the enemy''s spell. The spears stabbed its body, the reinforced scales couldn''t stop such a powerful spell. Ice spread on Heilong''s body from where the spears were stabbed but Noah quickly controlled his companion and the frozen parts together with the spears where cut off from its body. Blood companions could immediately recreate their missing parts using the "Breath" of the cultivator linked to them but they couldn''t properly heal, they weren''t living beings after all. Noah had decided to cut away the damaged parts to accelerate the reconstruction of its body, he needed a defensive method against the piercing ability of those spears. ''Let''s try with three.'' Noah thought and the world in his eyes slowed again. Heilong was absorbed in his body and three fast slashes cut the air toward the inscribed man. The power behind the Third Form would increase according to how concentrated Noah''s attacks were. Its weaker version was when Noah used his six arms to attack, those arms contained the many ethereal copies of the First Form and could project his slashes in the distance thanks to that. The strongest was, of course, when Noah focused his everything in one slash: The First and Second form would be used to their peak at that moment, creating a seemingly unstoppable attack. Of course, such a move would put his body under heavy stress, Noah preferred to use its weaker version since he had other powerful abilities available. Three powerful slashes crashed on the layer of ice that the inscribed man had created as soon as he saw that an attack was nearing him. Deep marks appeared on the ice and white shards shot in every direction due to the collision. Yet, the man behind it was completely unharmed. ''This won''t do.'' The veins on Noah''s arms healed as Heilong appeared again to block the third barrage of ice spears, the man was always using the protection of the ice layer to cast more spells. Also, the number of spears was increasing, it seemed that the shards of his previous spells could be used to increase the power of his attacks. ''I don''t know if this will work against non-living beings but the dragons in the labyrinth were extremely lifelike, that should apply to cultivators too.'' Noah focused and his mental energy was expended. Three ghostly claws appeared in front of him which flew through Heilong''s body as they reached for the inscribed man. Another layer of ice appeared, the man used his reliable defensive spell to block the incoming attack. Yet, those claws were not material, they passed unobstructed through the ice shield and stabbed themselves in the man''s chest. No wound appeared on his flesh, the man didn''t seem to have suffered any kind of damage. However, a few drops of blood came out of his mouth and traced straight dark lines on his jaw as they fell on the floor, Noah''s eyes shone when he saw that his new spell was effective! Chapter 397: 397. Layers ''Ghostly claws spell, power up to the fifth rank, limited to the darkness element. The caster launches several ethereal claws that can pass through any kind of matter and inflict a limited amount of damage.'' The description of the spell ran through Noah''s mind as he saw the lines of blood coming out of the inscribed cultivator''s mouth. Noah''s new spell wasn''t spectacularly powerful but it was extremely troublesome to deal with. First of all, the claws were ethereal, they could pass through any kind of defense or material, specific methods were needed to defend against them but they were hard to find and consumed a large amount of mental energy. His Mental tremor spell was the same, both the mental shockwave and the ethereal claws were mainly made of mental energy, it was obvious that only a defensive method mainly composed of mental energy could block them. Also, the claws didn''t necessarily have a straight trajectory, Noah could control them at will and avoid eventual defenses that his enemies deployed. In that situation, the Ghostly claws were only slightly affected by the ice layer and maintained most of their power when they hit the internal organs of the cultivator. ''This spell is a proper long-range attack that I''ve always lacked. Its consumption is even quite low considering that it is a spell of the darkness element.'' Noah quickly evaluated the effects that his new spell had in an actual battle. Spells of the darkness element usually had explosive effects capable of great might, the Demonic form and the Mental tremor spells were a perfect example of that. Yet, the consumption of "Breath" and mental energy for the activation of such spells was extremely high, a sort of balance was enforced by the fairness of Heaven and Earth after all. The Ghostly claws, instead, lacked the usual power of the spells of the darkness element but they expended far less energy to be created. Also, their ethereal form made up for that lack of power, Noah could just focus on the sensible areas of his enemy when he attacked. That was exactly what had happened in the battle. Noah had launched his new spell which passed through Heilong and the ice layer, crashing on the internal organs of the inscribed man and inflicting some damage. ''Being able to attack while defending is nice but my opponent has deeper reserves of energy since he is in the liquid stage, the dimension made a perfectly lifelike copy of him, it''s safe to assume that even his dantian contains the proper amount of "Breath".'' The inscribed man''s battle style was quite straightforward: He would create the ice layer when attacked and use that moment to launch ice spears. Also, the ice shards that accumulated on the battlefield could be used to empower his spells which, coupled with his deeper reserves of "Breath", favored him in a long battle. Another round of spears crashed on Heilong''s body, the pain endured by the Blood companion was shared by Noah but his mind couldn''t be bothered by that, he was completely focused in finding a way to end that battle quickly. His attention went to his companions, Nate was suppressing his opponent but the other three seemed on a stalemate, their power seemed evenly matched. ''Nate will likely defeat the liquid stage in front of him and help the others but I don''t know if we will be given time to rest after this battle, it''s better to let them preserve their strength.'' Noah thought that he could just passively defend and wait for his teammates to help him but he didn''t know what kind of trials they will face deeper in the mountain range. The strongest assets in his team were the solid stage cultivators, it was better to let them preserve their energy. Also, he wanted to see if he could really defeat a liquid stage cultivator on his own. ''Complete Demonic form is a no, I''ll just risk disrupting the other battles. The partial one has to be enough.'' Noah decided his approach and waited for the barrage of spears to end. That was already the inscribed man''s fifth attack, more than thirty sharp spears were created and launched toward the black dragon defending the human with its body. When the last of the spears hit Heilong''s body, Noah absorbed the intact part of his puppet and shot in a straight line toward the inscribed man. Shockwaves resounded under his feet as he sprinted at full speed, it didn''t take him even an instant to cross the ten meters dividing him and his enemy. The man watched Noah raising his sabers to attack but his expressionless face didn''t even flicker, he simply waved his sleeve, shattering the layer of ice in front of him. Noah hadn''t expected such a move but his reaction time wasn''t slow, Heilong''s body engulfed his figure as soon as he saw the sharp white shards nearing him. Some cuts appeared on his body, Heilong had blocked most of the attack but some shard still managed to hit him. Also, ice began to spread from his wounds, Noah felt a piercing cold sensation that tried to affect his movements. Black smoke immediately came out of his body, the Demonic form destroyed anything except for its user, the ice soon stopped spreading and was quickly devoured by Noah''s corrosive smoke. The liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system was expended at a fast pace to heal his injuries, the ability of his Yin body kept Noah battle-ready in any situation! ''Fuck!'' Noah cursed in his mind when he saw that another defensive layer of ice was forming right between him and the inscribed man, according to his calculation, his sabers wouldn''t be able to reach him before the shield was formed. Heilong roared as it bit downward, another layer of ice appeared right over the man''s skin, preventing the dragon''s fangs from stabbing deeper, only some superficial wounds had been inflicted. Meanwhile, the ice-shield continued to form, it began to envelop Heilong''s figure and even Noah felt a cold sensation trying to affect his mind. Noah''s face appeared at the bottom of his companion''s throat, his eyes were bloodshot as a mental beam was shot from them. The Mental tremor spell successfully hit the sea of consciousness of the inscribed man, his sphere trembled violently as it tried to defend against the piercing force that was making its way on its walls. The man''s focus was finally disrupted and the two layers of ice crumbled as he stopped providing mental energy and "Breath" to them, Noah had finally broken through his defenses! Chapter 398: 398. Victory The inscribed man was expressionless, his face didn''t change even when his mental sphere trembled violently. Ice shards fell everywhere, his body became completely exposed and Heilong''s fangs finally managed to dig deep into his flesh. Black smoke came out of its fangs, the defenseless flesh and muscles of the cultivator could only be consumed under the assault of Noah''s corrosive spell. Noah, on the other hand, was about to directly attack his opponent when the latter''s mental sphere stopped trembling and he recovered his focus. A torrent of water engulfed the man, Heilong and Noah were flung away by the explosive power of the spell. ''Another defensive method!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he controlled Heilong''s wings to stop himself mid-air, his gaze was fixed on the inscribed man as he quickly landed on the floor, ready to assault him again. However, he was surprised to see that all the ice-shards on the battlefield were gathering around the man, surrounding him and forming a big block of ice in his position. ''What kind of spell is that?'' Noah tried to guess the effect of the spell but he could only sense that a large amount of "Breath" and mental energy were being converged in the inscribed man''s position. It took only a few seconds for Noah to decide his next move, large amounts of mental energy and "Breath" were expended as more than ten Ghostly claws were created. The claws flew through the air, entering the block of ice and looking for the man''s body. Noah shared part of the sensations of the claws, that sharing wasn''t as accurate as with his Blood companion but it was better than blindly attacking the spell nonetheless. The ice composing the big slab was white, sight couldn''t reach its insides. Also, the arena had the same proprieties of the walls of the labyrinth, mental energy couldn''t be relied on. That''s why Noah immediately used the Ghostly claws spell, he didn''t know the purpose behind the man''s spell but, from the amount of energy gathering around him, he knew that he didn''t want to face its effects. Ethereal claws entered the block of ice and searched for the internal organs of the inscribed man, the chunk was about six meters large, a grown man didn''t have many places where to hide inside it. Soon, the claws hit something soft, Noah''s eyes sharpened when he felt that vague sensation and commanded the remaining claws to attack that position. Then, he summoned even more claws and launched them in that position, ice shards and ethereal claws converged on the chunk of ice at high speed. Noah didn''t stop, he continuously activated his spell, it was only when more than forty claws had been created that he started to feel some kind of tiredness. His mental energy was nearing depletion! Yet, when the thirty-eighth claw stabbed itself on the soft spot inside the chunk of ice, a change occurred. Cracks began to appear on the white surface of the block and the shards flying in the air stopped their tracks and fell on the floor, shattering in hundreds of small fragments. The cracks on the block enlarged, large pieces of ice separated from its body and fell on the ground, shattering in the process. White chunks continued to fall on the floor, the spell of the inscribed man was dismantling itself and it had also stopped absorbing energy. Then, the pale face of Noah''s opponent appeared among the ice, a large amount of blood had come out of his mouth, eyes, and ears, it had formed red frozen stains on the white world inside the spell. His eyes were still open but, to Noah''s relief, his figure soon vanished and the ice all around the battlefield evaporated into nothingness. Noah''s opponent had been defeated! Noah heaved a tired sigh as he sat on the floor, his hood had flown away after the torrent of water appeared, allowing him to rub a hand on his short hair as he supported himself in the process. Heilong was by his side, it supported Noah with his scaled body and coiled himself around him in a protective manner. Noah felt exhausted, he hadn''t used much "Breath" nor his most powerful spell but most of his mental energy had been depleted in the continuous activation of the Ghostly claws spell. ''Maybe I could have obtained better results if I had covered the area with the corrosive smoke but that would have affected the other battles.'' Noah, as usual, pondered about the recent battle. He was satisfied with the power of his new spell, it was an attack method that he lacked after all. Also, he was extremely happy when he realized that his battle prowess was on par with liquid stage cultivators! His opponent hadn''t been weak, he had used four different spells that were even connected! ''Heilong has also played an important role, I don''t know if I could have endured so many spears with the protection of the Demonic form.'' Noah patted the dragon''s body as he thought of that before standing up to inspect the other battles. The fights of his teammates had evolved as he had predicted. Nate had killed the liquid stage cultivator in front of him and went to help the others. He, Helga, and Cora were successfully suppressing their two opponents in the solid stage. On another corner of the arena, David was surrounded by an army of beasts made of flames. The temperature in that place was so high that Noah could feel warm waves reaching his face and dispersing some of the innate coldness of his body. Also, David was wielding a flaming bow. His opponent was cornered, fire-beasts recklessly assaulted her, exploding and dispersing scorching flames whenever they were destroyed. Meanwhile, David shot fire-arrows from his bow, aiming for the defenseless spots on the body of the inscribed woman. ''David usually uses a greatsword, I''m surprised that he can handle a bow so well¡­ Those two should be his new spells, powerful indeed.'' Noah judged from his position and decided to focus on recovering his energies when he saw that the outcome of the other battles was pretty much decided. Chapter 399: 399. Five corridors David continued to assault his opponent, his corner of the arena was soon filled with flames due to the reckless assault of his flame-beasts. Then, a flame-arrow hit the inscribed woman''s head, finally ending the battle. David had won before the other three solid stage cultivators in his team! He then dispersed his spells and turned his head toward the other areas of the battlefield. His gaze lingered shortly on the battle of his three companions before moving toward Noah. Noah stared him back, he was paying attention to the battlefield too as he sat cross-legged on top of Heilong to refill his dantian, he could see the traces of surprise in his captain''s eyes as he looked at him. ''No wonder he is our captain.'' Noah thought before David nodded, Noah''s performance in the separate dimension had surpassed all his expectations, that gesture was his way to formally recognize his power. He then sat too, there was no reason to help the other three, they were just using their numerical advantage to slowly exhaust their enemies, it was a safe approach in a situation that didn''t require them to go all out. It took about twenty minutes for the remaining two inscribed cultivators to deplete their reserves of energies and being killed by the joint assault of the three solid stage cultivators, their figures quickly vanished as fatal wounds were inflicted on their bodies. All the enemies had been defeated! The formations in the area lit up as soon as the last inscribed cultivator vanished, the sandy walls on the opposite side from where David''s group came from moved, creating a passage that led deeper into the mountain range. "Good work everyone, let''s rest now." David ordered before closing his eyes to focus on his recovery, the others did the same without adding a word. An entire day passed, the five cultivators sat silently and then slept to quicken their recovery. Then, they formed a circle right in front of the corridor that had just opened. "There were no rewards this time, this should be a good sign." Cora spoke as she scratched her space-ring, the absence of rewards after such a tough battle was disappointing but that could only be explained by the fact that they were getting closer to the end of the dimension. "It''s probably a method to preserve resources. The ninth trial gave spells to anyone surviving the fall through the void, it means that the creator isn''t sure that we will survive the next tests." Noah added. He had been in two different Inheritance grounds already and met with a creator. There was always some kind of purpose behind the creation of a separate dimension, it wouldn''t make sense to spend a large deal of effort and resources otherwise. "It is strange though. The trials in the labyrinth had specific requirements while all of that was thrown away after the ninth test¡­ I wonder what the creator was thinking when he set all of this up." Nate gave voice to everyone''s doubts. His complaints were on point, it seemed as if the trials had purposely skimmed the cultivators in each team to allow only the most complete ones to reach the seabed. "No point thinking about that now, we will ask the creator once we reach the end." David spoke as he stood up. The others in his group understood the meaning behind his actions, they were going to continue in the exploration! The other part of the corridor was identical to the first part, tall pillars and inscriptions filled the large azure passage. The light of the inscriptions continued to scan the cultivators and their centers of power, Noah guessed that even the next test would feature humans. ''I hope that the copy of our team has killed its opponents, it would be a problem if my powers were to be exposed.'' Noah thought as he imagined his copy recklessly entering the complete Demonic form to fight the other cultivators in the mountain ranges. ''It shouldn''t be a problem if the copy was sent against the real version of our opponents, we were stronger than them after all, but I can''t be sure of that.'' The march through the corridor gave him a lot of time to think, he couldn''t help but feel worried about his identity being revealed. ''Well, I''m not on my own right now, I have the backing of one of the most powerful organizations in the archipelago¡­ Everything should be fine.'' Noah suppressed those thoughts as he continued to walk with his team, he was still in the Inheritance ground after all, his biggest problem was surviving the trials. It took even more than last time for a change in the scenery to appear. After about one and a half weeks of travel, David''s group saw how the corridor divided itself into five different passages. Hesitation could be seen in David''s eyes as he inspected the passages, no matter how much he probed, he couldn''t find any difference between them. "Let''s go to the central one." David spoke, leading his group into the central passage. The familiar corridor appeared but, that time, it took only one day for a change in the scenery to occur. The five cultivators were surprised to see that the same five passages had reappeared in front of them! "Were we teleported back?" Helga asked but none of her companions could give her an answer, they were as confused as her. David took an orb from his space-ring and activated it before leading his teammates into the leftmost passage. The scenery was the same and, after exactly one day of travel, the same passages appeared and a shining orb was hovering in the air in front of them. It was clear now that they were stuck in a sort of loop! "Let''s try all of them before evaluating other possibilities." David ordered as he led his team through the rightmost passage. The same event occurred, they reached again the five branches of the corridor after marching for one day. No one spoke that time, the group went directly for the remaining corridors only to find out that they always bought them back at their entrances. The felt confused, they had wasted five days already in that spot but they had no idea how to advance. Then, Noah had an idea when he thought about Nate''s words. "The creator allowed us to face the trials with teams but the trials slowly forced us to separate. We fought five cultivators in the previous test but we know that there are more and less numerous teams. Also, their power was similar to ours but we know that there are more and less powerful teams. Five passages, five cultivators¡­" Noah''s eyes shone with understanding as his gaze went on the entrances in front of him, he was beginning to understand the reason behind the Inheritance ground''s layout. Chapter 400: 400. Copy First, there were the impossible trials in the labyrinth, a single rank 3 cultivator, no matter how strong it was, couldn''t face them alone. Second, the trials had specific requirements, be it flight, teamwork, or ability to fight in the darkness, the tests could be passed only by teams that were prepared for every situation. Then, it was time for the ninth trial, where only those with the best survival instincts would survive. Also, those cultivators had to have methods to slow their descent to survive the fall toward the seabed. In the end, there was the journey toward the mountain ranges, where one had to survive against enemy ambushes and fight to protect its rewards. Once inside the corridors, an opposing team that matched your level would appear. ''And now the corridor divides itself into five branches, which is precisely the same number of cultivators in our team. This can''t be a coincidence.'' Noah''s thoughts brought him to that conclusion. ''The creator was probably looking for certain types of cultivators, teams that could fight in a group but that won''t panic when divided, teams that could fly and also fight in the darkness, teams stronger than their competitors and¡­'' His thoughts stopped at that point and his gaze sharpened as he looked at the five passages, he knew that the other requirement would be clear after the trial hidden behind them. ''Still, the creator could have just set different trials if he was looking for a small group of people, it would have been easier than capturing so many different dragons!'' Even if Noah felt that he had understood part of the creator''s intentions, there was still a lot that he didn''t comprehend. "Are you suggesting for each of us to enter a different corridor?" David asked as he turned his head toward the entrances too, Noah''s theory made sense. "Yes, the number of corridors matches ours, this can''t be a coincidence in a place that can teleport us back at will." Noah answered, he didn''t give voice to all his thoughts but focused on those that concerned the current issue. Time could be another requirement after all, he didn''t want to waste more of it discussing his theories about the creator''s intentions. "I guess it''s time to disband the team, I hope to meet all of you on the other side." Nate exclaimed as he moved toward the rightmost passage, it was clear that he was leaving the central one to David. Noah shrugged his shoulders and went to the leftmost one, he then turned to wait for everyone to take their position. David neared the central entrance and Helga and Cora took those at his sides, everyone turned to David as they waited for him to give the order. "Good luck." David didn''t shout nor instructed, he simply said those words in a soft tone before turning and crossing the entrance behind him. At that gesture, the others entered their respective corridors. Noah found himself in the same passage that he had already crossed five times in the previous days. However, the light radiated from the inscriptions had stopped investigating his centers of power and was only illuminating the environment. ''I was right.'' That change proved that Noah''s idea was on point, all he had to do now was reaching the area where the next test would be held. ''What will it be now? A single cultivator from an enemy team? One of my team?'' Noah''s thoughts ran wildly inside his mind, he was quite sure that the next trial would feature a human opponent, he simply wasn''t sure about its power. It took him about two days to reach the end of the corridor where a dark-looking area appeared in his view. The sandy walls closed behind him as he crossed the end of the passage, Noah warily watched his surroundings as he waited for his opponent to appear. There was a formation at the center of the area and its lines lit up a few seconds after the arena was sealed. The light gathered to form a human figure, it had a medium stature and a peculiar cold aura was radiated from it. Also, it wielded a pair of black sabers which Noah recognized immediately. ''The cultivation level isn''t a requirement then.'' Noah could be sure of that because the opponent in front of him was a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage with centers of power at the exact level as his. The trial featured a fight against a copy of yourself! Noah calmly walked ahead, he undressed his upper body and stored his hood as he wielded his Demonic swords. The copy did the same, Noah felt as if he was watching a mirror, white skin, delicate facial features, short black hair, the copy was identical to him. Also, on the bare chest of the copy, the tattoo of a dragon could be seen staring fiercely at the incoming Noah. ''To think that I could test my own power!'' Noah''s battle intent surged, he was finally alone and was facing an opponent that he knew was strong enough to be a threat to his life. Black smoke came out of his body, Noah''s figure vanished only to be replaced by a horned fiend. The copy did the same, Noah soon found himself facing a fiend covered with inscriptions. Demonic form against Demonic form! ''Let''s see if I can defeat the spell that has allowed me to reach this stage!'' Shockwaves resounded under his feet as he shot in the direction of his copy. The copy stood still, the smoke exuded from his figure created a black cloud that was almost about to hide his features. When Noah was at less than five meters of distance from his opponent, a fuming Heilong came out of his chest and pounced his copy. However, an identical fuming Heilong came out of the copy''s chest and clashed with Noah''s Blood companion. The two dragons clashed and the smoke from the two Demonic forms began to devour each other. Time seemed to slow down in Noah''s eyes as the veins on his arms exploded due to the pressure that they were enduring. His sabers became one and the most powerful attack that his martial art was capable of was performed. An extremely quick fuming slash was released from his weapons, its ethereal proprieties traced a sharp line along its trajectory that was about to cut in half everything in the twenty meters area in front of him. Yet, the Third Form met an attack that had its same proprieties and its same power, the copy had executed the Third form too! Two sharp lines clashed, the air seemed to shatter under the power generated by that confrontation. Chapter 401: 401. Flaw The clash of the two Third Forms generated an explosion between Noah and his copy, they were both flung back by the power released in the blast. Meanwhile, Heilong and its copy had also separated, they returned to their masters as they prepared themselves to charge again. Noah wore a stern expression behind the armor of smoke, his eyes carefully analyzed his opponents as he tried to plan his next approach. ''My copy is virtually unharmed and Heilong''s one has just a few scratches, I need to find an opening before I deplete my reserves.'' The Demonic form was extremely powerful, Noah had yet to find someone on his level that was able to fight it. However, when matched with his copy, every little advantage mattered. Noah was about to charge again when he noticed that his Blood companion had recovered before the opponent''s one. ''What is happening?'' Yet, his thoughts were interrupted since he saw his copy being covered in black flames. Noah''s pupils shrunk as he hastily turned, slashing in a certain point behind his back. Black flames appeared in that position and an attack of identical might clashed with his slash, the copy had warped behind him and used the Third Form, even its battle style matched Noah''s one. The two dragons came out in the open again, they protected their respective masters as they entangled themselves in a violent battle. Shockwaves resounded under Noah''s feet as he charged toward his copy, another piercing line tried to vertically sever the world in front of him but it could only clash against a similar attack. BOOM BOOM! Explosions resounded in the arena as the Third Forms of the Ashura continued to meet each other mid-air. Noah attacked madly, he was doing his best to expose his own flaws. Yet, that wasn''t easy. Noah had always pursued power, his battle style had been perfected through his constant training and hundreds of battles, it could be said that there weren''t actual flaws in his technique. However, as the battle continued, it was clear that Noah was gaining the upper hand which didn''t make sense considering that his copy seemed to match his every move. Another clash between the two martial arts occurred, Noah tried to understand the reason behind his advantage but his thoughts were soon forced to a stop when he felt a piercing pain to his heart. A few drops of blood came out of his mouth but the liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system quickly healed the light injury on that organ. Noah knew his abilities better than anyone else, he immediately understood what had happened. ''It hid a few Ghostly claws behind the Third Form!'' Noah had obtained that spell only a short time ago and he had only tested it once in battle, it was obvious that he hadn''t explored all the possibilities that his new attack method offered. Yet, his copy had used it in a way that he still hadn''t tested and it seemed even more skillful than him in that aspect! ''Don''t tell me, my copy can express the full potential of my abilities even if I''m still unable to do so!'' That thought worried Noah but it also confused him: If his copy could coordinate its abilities better than him, why was he gaining the upper hand? Black flames covered the copy and Noah quickly recalled Heilong as he shot in the air. Black flames appeared behind his previous position but a fuming dragon soon came out of them as the copy realized that a simple-looking needle had been thrown toward it. BOOM! Another explosion resounded, Heilong''s copy endured the might of Noah''s Hidden blast, its scales were shattered but they soon regenerated. Noah carefully observed from his position in the air, his eyes analyzed every detail of the battlefield as he tried to understand what he had missed until now. Then, a smirk appeared on his fiendish form, he had finally understood the flaw in the copying technique! ''Heilong''s copy has the same power of my Blood companion but its defense is only at the peak of the lower tier; my copy has never used the Shadow sprint but only relied on the Warp spell as a movement method; my corrosive smoke is slightly more abundant than its, its sabers might be black but they don''t contain any corrosive ability.'' All those little details became obvious once he watched the battlefield from above, the weakness of the copying technique became even more obvious when he used one of his new Hidden blasts to attack the copy. ''The effects of the Elemental forging method can''t be copied!'' Noah''s eyes shone when he realized that, the battle had suddenly become extremely easy! Noah dove toward his copy, once he knew about its weakness, he had no more reason to act cautiously. The fiendish copy raised its sabers and was about to perform the Third Form when it saw five spiked spheres falling toward it. Heilong''s copy immediately covered its features, the spheres exploded when they reached the borders of its cloud of smoke. BOOOOOM! A loud blast made the whole arena tremble, Noah was using the Instabilities that he had prepared before joining David''s team, which meant that he had used rank 3 "Breath" in the gaseous stage during the forging! His newly forged Instabilities and Hidden Blasts were rank 3 inscribed items at the peak of the lower tier! The scene in the arena was quite peculiar, there were two black clouds, one high in the air and one on the floor, a third gray cloud was between them. A dragon was at the center of the black clouds, both Noah and his copy were relying on the protection of their Blood companions to defend against the fuming spikes released by the Instabilities. Heilong''s defense had reached the middle tier of the fourth rank thanks to Noah''s forging but that of its copy was still in the lower tier, the amount of damage it took from the spikes vastly surpassed that of Noah''s Blood companion. That forced the copy to deplete more "Breath" to reform it. Chapter 402: 402. Divine Demon Noah recklessly dove between the barrage of fuming spikes, his Blood companion took less damage than the opponent''s one, he couldn''t care less about his reserves if the enemy''s expended more of them! Also, he wanted to find a chance to clash directly with the copy''s weapons. When using the Third Form while in the Demonic form, the increased sharpness and corrosion of the Demonic swords could almost be neglected because they didn''t directly touch the opponent. However, if Noah managed to force a direct clash, he was sure that the capabilities of his sabers would cut his copy in half! The copy''s sabers were strangely at the peak of the second rank like his, yet, they didn''t seem to carry the same corrosion nor his same meaning, they were just good inscribed weapons. ''The technique has probably tried to compensate for what it wasn''t able to replicate¡­ Well, this battle is mine anyway.'' Endless coldness was radiated as his focus sharpened, Noah was ready to take the approach that would end the battle in the quickest way. Heilong flew through the barrage of spikes and crashed on its copy, the latter was already heavily damaged by the Instabilities and its body further broke under the weight of the Blood companion. Noah couldn''t find an opening in the copy''s defense so he simply threw more Instabilities. The two Blood companions were entangled as they fought while protecting their masters inside their bodies. The Instabilities exploded, their blasts together with the spikes they released injured the dragons. Yet, while Heilong was still able to fight due to the low number of injuries that it suffered, its copy was beginning to have difficulties in its reconstruction. Heilong assaulted recklessly, its copy was able to endure its attacks but the damages suffered from the spikes forced it in a passive position. Meanwhile, Noah threw even more Instabilities and Hidden blasts toward the copy of the dragon. Also, ten ethereal claws came out Heilong''s body and entered its copy, they quickly found Noah''s copy and attacked its internal organs. Noah was going all out to force an opening in his opponent''s defense! Whenever Heilong''s copy was about to reform, Noah would throw more bombs. Ethereal claws would follow the explosions, a barrage of attacks filled the area where the two dragons were fighting. Heilong had started to break apart, the corrosion from the opponent''s Demonic form, the clash with a companion of similar strength, and the spikes of the Instabilities had ultimately started to affect even its superior defense. However, since it was in that condition, its copy was in a far worse state. The dragon''s body was in pieces, Noah was almost able to see the fiendish figure of his copy inside it. Hidden blasts were launched together with ethereal claws inside the fissures of the enemy dragon, Heilong stabbed its head in those fissures as soon as the needles exploded. A hole was created in the copy of the dragon, Noah''s copy was out in the open, enduring the damage that the Ghostly claws caused. Noah came out of Heilong''s head as he ordered it to keep the hole open, his sabers became one and the air around it curved, the veins on his arms exploded as the Second Form was performed. The Second Form after he mastered his martial art was Noah''s strongest attack in close combat! The copy couldn''t do much, it raised its weapons as it mimicked Noah''s attack, two black sabers clashed inside Heilong''s copy. Just like Noah had predicted, the copy''s sabers couldn''t endure the sharpness and the corrosive abilities of the real Demonic swords. Noah''s attack cut through the enemy''s Second Form and reached its body, dividing its torso diagonally. The copy''s abilities seemed to freeze when that slash was completed, the smoke released by its Demonic form stopped moving and even its companion halted its reconstruction. Then, everything started to vanish into nothingness. Noah saw that and dispersed his spells, he had gone all out in that battle, the only reason why he didn''t suffer injuries was due to Heilong''s protection. Yet, once he had understood that the copying technique couldn''t reproduce the effects of the Elemental forging method, the battle had been completely one-sided. Using the Instabilities and Hidden blasts that he had prepared before joining David''s team, he has slowly destroyed the companion''s defenses. Then, he used the superior defense of Heilong to pave a way toward his copy, it was just a matter of making their sabers clash at that point. ''It didn''t hesitate in using the Demonic form though, I hope that those who have faced our team are dead.'' Noah sighed when he saw how uncaring his copy was in revealing its abilities, he couldn''t help but think again at the possibility of having his identity revealed. He was about to sit on the floor to recover when the light of the formation shone again. ''What now!? I''m almost exhausted!'' Noah had fought using the Demonic form for the entirety of the battle, it was the only method he had to defend against the enemy''s corrosive smoke. Also, he had used the Ghostly claws many times, together with both his martial arts and the expenditure of "Breath" needed to reconstruct Heilong, it could be said that he was almost empty of energies. No matter how he cursed in his mind though, he couldn''t stop the light from surrounding him and applying a familiar pressure on his mental sphere. ''I''m being teleported!'' Noah immediately recognized that pressure but there was nothing that he could do to oppose it. The scenery changed in front of his eyes, the dark-area transformed into a large hall filled with the light radiated by the azure sand. Twelve pillars stood straight at the sides of the hall, six per each side, Noah saw how one of them was broken. Void surrounded the hall, that place resembled some sort of isolated platform. A tall throne made of an azure mineral was placed at the end of the hall, a middle-aged man could be seen silently resting with his head supported by a hand. ''Who is he?'' Noah thought as soon as he managed to have a complete view of the hall. The mouth of the man moved and an aged voice resounded throughout the entirety of the hall. "I''m the Divine Demon, the creator of this dimension." Chapter 403: 403. Ancestor Noah''s eyes widened, not only did the man just answered his thoughts, but he had also used the word "divine". ''Is he a God?'' "My main body is, I''m just the will that he left before ascending in the Immortal lands." The man on the throne spoke again after Noah thought, he opened his eyes and straightened his posture after he finished his phrase. Noah felt naked under the man''s gaze, he felt as if his entire life could be simply read by that mighty being. A torrent of questions arose in his mind, be it his godhood, the Immortal lands, or the many doubts that he had about the separate dimension, his mind was filled with uncertainties. "Slow down, young one. The Inheritance is already yours, there is no point in being so anxious." Divine Demon spoke again and tapped his index on the armrest of his throne. Light came out from the void that surrounded the hall, it converged on the powerless Noah, entering his body and centers of power. Noah felt his mental sphere and dantian being refilled at an unimaginable speed, even the small cracks on Heilong''s half-transparent image inside his sea of consciousness were fixed. The membrane around his heart was refilled as well, it took only a few seconds for Noah to return at his peak form. Also, his centers of power seemed even more sturdy after the light dissipated, Noah felt as if his condition had slightly improved. "Don''t even bother to bow, I know how little those gestures mean to you. Mh, Elemental forging method, what a reckless inscription method, no wonder it has almost vanished." Divine Demon continued to speak, it seemed to be sorting Noah''s knowledge as he casually commented it. Noah didn''t feel good to have his mind read so easily, he suppressed the irritation growing inside him and masked it with his usual cold aura as he waited for that mighty being to finish playing with him. ''He calls himself "Demon", does he have some connection with my sect?'' "Exactly, the Inheritance would have opened only when one of the twelve demon sects reached the Coral archipelago and was strong enough to use it. Well, eleven right now." Divine Demon answered Noah''s thoughts again as he moved his gaze toward the broken pillar, traces of anger appeared in his eyes but they were soon suppressed as he focused back on Noah. ''Strong enough? Is it because of me that the sect met the standard required by the dimension?'' That time, Noah''s thoughts were answered by a loud laugh. Divine Demon laughed and shook his head before he finally decided to reply to Noah''s thoughts. "Don''t think too highly of yourself. You are surely amazing for your level but you are just a mortal, the dimension opened because the Chasing Demon has recently reached the sixth rank, I guess that you weaklings weren''t aware of that." Those words reverberated throughout the hall, Noah was speechless when he heard them. ''The Chasing Demon, my patriarch, reached the sixth rank?'' Noah''s mind was a mess, the sixth rank was one step away from godhood after all! "Hmph, don''t be so surprised, that kid had the right attitude for cultivation and he also had my guidance, he should have reached this level long ago" Divine Demon snorted and continued his explanation before Noah could even think about anything. "As you have already guessed, I''m the ancestor of the demon sects of the Papral nation. I and the God who created the orthodox sects left the Mortal lands long ago but we made sure that our Inheritances would be accessible by our descendants." ''How exactly is this place accessible? All the organizations in the archipelago are attempting to obtain the Inheritance.'' "Spare me your sarcasm, young one, I''m actually disappointed that it took someone like you to make a demon sect succeed. Your fellow disciples are a bunch of demons just in name, they have long lost their instincts as unorthodox cultivators due to the lofty lifestyle that they make here. Truth to be told, only a lone cultivator like you reflects the characteristics that I''m looking for in an heir." Noah was now used to the fact that his thoughts were directly answered, he even gave up on trying to cover them and he couldn''t just stop thinking. "I know nothing about formations." Noah spoke for the first time, the meaning behind his words was quite obvious, he was referring to the copying technique of the dimension: Even if he was to obtain it, he wouldn''t know how to use it. Also, a lot of work was needed to place the various formations: Noah recognized the power behind that technique but he would rather have something that increased his personal power. "I think that you have misunderstood my intentions regarding this dimension." Divine Demon spoke and stood up from his throne. He had long black hair and was dressed in a seemingly luxurious robe, he stretched his hand in front of him and images began to appear in his palm. "Teamwork, ambition, a various set of abilities, survivability, those were all the characteristics needed to pass the tests in the labyrinth." The images in his hands depicted the nine trials that Noah had faced, he didn''t dare to move his eyes from the being''s hand. "Yet, all of these are useless if you can''t fight other cultivators, hence the tenth trial." The images fused into one that replayed the battle of David''s group, everything that had happened inside the mountain range had been registered. "However, even that would be useless if one wasn''t able to take a path different from the one chosen by Heaven and Earth." The images changed again, Noah''s battle against his copy played out, the fight between the two fiends seemed spectacular when seen from outside. "My copying technique is the maximum expression of the Attunement inscription method, it can''t reproduce things in the divine ranks nor creations that aren''t under the rule of Heaven and Earth. Tell me, young one, why was it so easy for you to defeat your copy?" Divine Demon asked and Noah''s eyes were filled with understanding. Chapter 404: 404. True path Noah knew the answer to his question but he felt that he was still missing the main detail behind that reason. ''The Elemental forging method is strong but it is just another inscription method¡­'' Divine Demon didn''t speak at that time, he calmly waited for Noah to finish his mind process. ''Maximum expression of the Attunement method he says¡­ The theory behind that method is to understand and copy the meanings contained in the "Breath" so it can''t emulate the meanings set by cultivators. Wait, did he mean that the Attunement method can''t go past the heroic ranks?'' Noah raised his gaze when he reached that point in his thinking, he looked Divine Demon in the eyes, waiting for further explanations. "That''s not exactly correct. The method isn''t flawed in its form but Heaven and Earth would never let anyone hear ways to reach the divine ranks. In my long life, only one being was able to reach godhood with a cultivation technique created with such a method. You have heard of him, I''m talking about the God of the Shandal Empire." Divine Demon revealed with a smile, the surprise felt by Noah had long surpassed what his face was able to hide, his mouth was open in amazement when that information entered his mind. "So, there is a way around it!" Noah exclaimed but his phrase was met by a loud snort. "What''s the point of reaching godhood if the path ahead is blocked? Will you ever be satisfied in forever being the weakest God?" Some pressure was released by the mighty being''s will as he spoke, Noah could only honestly shake his head in answer, he knew that he would never pursue a flawed training method like that. "The Attunement method leads to a dead-end, it is how Heaven and Earth forbid the paths to true divinity. Only an entity who has created its personal road can hope to reach the realms after the seventh rank!" Divine Demon lifted his head toward the sky, his hair fluttered as a dense aura was exuded from his body. Ambition! Pure ambition! His figure reflected in Noah''s eyes seemed to take the place of one of the stars in his imaginary sky, Noah suddenly realized that he was looking at the will of one of the stars that he wanted to reach. "Please, teach me." Noah bowed as he said those words, the emotion behind that gestures were real, he was asking for the guidance of a God after all! "Sure, but let me ask you something first. Why do you think you are here while the others that have managed to defeat their copies are still in the mountain range?" That piece of information was revealed to the unknowing Noah, he was speechless when he heard that. ''So, I wasn''t the first.'' Divine Demon pointed his hand toward Noah as he answered his thoughts. "You weren''t the first, nor the strongest. The reason why I''ve chosen you is that you are the only one who has created a technique. The Shadow sprint martial art was your ticket to this place." Noah''s eyes widened but he chose to remain silent, there was too much that he didn''t understand. "Currently, you have three spells that can accompany you through the entirety of your journey: The Demonic form which bases most of its power on the Kesier runes inside your mind; The Body-inscription spell which needs a magical beast of a matching rank; The Warp spell which needs for your mental energy to see the place where you want to teleport. As you can see, all spells without a rank have restrictions, it is hard to create something that can last till the divine ranks." Divine Demon took a step forward, he walked on the air as he closed toward Noah. "However, you were able to modify a rank 0 spell and transform it into a rank 4 martial art through your inscription method. This proves that you can walk the path to godhood." The middle-aged man landed in front of Noah and pointed a finger toward his mind as he spoke. "The sea of consciousness is easy, the Kesier runes already are a sort of defiance against Heaven and Earth but keeping the "Breath" inside it works too." His finger then pointed at his low-waist, where the dantian was. "Dark vortex cultivation technique enhanced with the Dantian''s opening. I suggest you create a personal technique before breaking through the heroic ranks to maximize your individuality." In the end, he placed his hand on Noah''s shoulder. "Sadly, your body is already in the heroic ranks but it''s not too late. Always remember that you must pursue individuality, your Yin body is not your body, it''s just a training method invented by someone in the past, it will never suit you as well as something you create." Divine Demon let go of Noah and crossed his arms as he stood in front of him. "The difference in power between the cultivators in the heroic ranks is found in the amount of individuality that they can express through their cultivation techniques and spells. Ideally speaking, a cultivator able to enter the heroic ranks with all its centers of power thanks to techniques of its creation will be the strongest heroic cultivator ever, but I know that such a feat is almost impossible. Yet, your situation is just one step away from that." Noah finally understood. The academy had already taught him that cultivation techniques of different sources won''t produce the best results but he had never thought that there would also be a sensible difference in power if one pursued that method. "Your patriarch chose to go on his way and created a cultivation technique only after he reached the fifth rank. He was already a messy entity at that point, his centers of power couldn''t express his true essence which is why his cultivation was slowed." "Are you implying that I should stop searching for cultivation techniques and body-nourishing methods in the heroic ranks and create them myself? How? My level is simply too low!" Noah complained, he would have already created them if he had the needed ability. Divine Demon smiled when he heard those words, he knew that Noah had finally understood the true path. "It''s time to receive your Inheritance then." Noah was stunned when he heard those words, he could only watch as Divine Demon raised his hand again and placed a finger between Noah''s eyebrows. An incredible pain hit his mind as inscriptions appeared on the walls of his mental sphere. Chapter 405: 405. Inheritance The lines of the inscriptions dug the walls of Noah''s mental sphere as they fused with it. Noah wanted to fall on the floor and hold his head but Divine Demon''s finger kept him standing, it was as if his forehead was stuck to him. Noah endured the pain, it wasn''t the first time that a spell was directly transferred to his mind but the process seemed slightly different from the last time: What was being passed wasn''t a diagram but some sort of formation that directly attached itself to his mental sphere. The inscriptions enlarged, filling even the part of the sphere hid by Noah''s mental energy, it took a while but the entirety of his mind ended up filled by those shining lines. Divine Demon retracted his finger and Noah fell on the floor, his eyes were closed as he tried his best to stabilize that center of power. Then, light came from the void once again, it entered Noah''s head and helped him heal his sore mind. The walls of his sphere healed, the small cracks and holes caused by the inscriptions were mended, Noah''s half-transparent figure opened its eyes only to see that the environment inside his sea of consciousness was filled by the light radiated by the inscriptions on its walls. "What did you do to me?" Noah struggled to give voice to his worries. His mind had always been his real advantage in this life, he was extremely careful when it came to it. "I gave you a way to create techniques and methods. Try to insert your mental energy into the inscriptions." Divine Demon spoke and Noah sat cross-legged on the floor before following his instructions. A small amount of mental energy rose from his sea and entered the inscriptions on the walls. The inscriptions shone with a blinding light and the mental energy was consumed but nothing else seemed to happen. ''What is happening?'' ''The light seems to have some kind of smoothing effect on my thinking but that''s it, I don''t feel anything else.'' ''Did I just become the slave of a deity?'' ''Is this guy a real God?'' ''The God of the Shandal Empire is stuck at the bottom of the seventh rank, maybe that''s why it didn''t leave the Mortal lands.'' ''What are the Mortal lands anyway? What about the Immortal ones then?'' ''I wonder if I ended up in some mess.'' ''Now that I think about it, each pillar in this room should correspond to the twelve demon sects, the broken one should be the Ravaging demon sect.'' ''Wait, why isn''t this old geezer answering my thoughts anymore?'' It was only when his thoughts reached that point that Noah raised his head to stare at the smiling will. A drop of sweat was running down Noah''s forehead, yet, in Noah''s eyes, its falling speed was incomparably slow! "Does it enhance my thinking faculties?" Noah found the answer to his question quickly, his mind was working at an unimaginable speed after all, the answer appeared almost naturally in his mind. "That''s just one of the many usages. This technique is something I made to create my rank 5 cultivation technique. Of course, I''ve already given you the version that I perfected after becoming a God, it will be a huge help in analyzing and creating techniques and spells." Analyzing and creating! Divine Demon''s words meant that Noah could use the inscriptions on the walls of his mental sphere to study the diagrams of his spells! A sort of eagerness filled Noah, he wanted to test the limits of this new technique as soon as possible. "Calm down, we aren''t over yet. You are my heir now but I wish for most of the wealth that I''ve left behind to go to your sect. You can keep the Credits, the resources you need, and anything related to the darkness element of course, but leave everything else to the sect. Also¡­" Divine Demons stopped speaking for a moment as he raised his hand and an old book materialized seemingly out of thin air. "The copying technique is recorded here. My inscribing method is something that I''ve personally created, it fuses the attunement method with the study of formations but this technique can''t go beyond the heroic ranks. I reckon your sect will need it if it wants to take control of the archipelago." Noah was about to take the book when its form disappeared, a black ring replaced it in the palm of Divine Demon''s hands. "This ring contains everything left in the dimension, you can keep it but remember to share the items that you don''t need with the sect." Divine Demon handed the ring to Noah and then disappeared from his spot, only to reappear on the throne at the end of the hall. "My main body is still alive somewhere in the Immortal lands, I can feel it. Look for me when you ascend, I''m sure he will want to see your progress." The hall began to tremble, cracks formed on the floor and pieces of the pillars detached from their surfaces before falling into the void. "Remember, only true individuality can reach godhood, the rank of a center of power means nothing if it doesn''t carry the will of its cultivator. Keep using the runes and the "Breath" to improve your mind, replace your Yin body with something that reflects yourself, and create a cultivation technique that doesn''t follow the paths laid by Heaven and Earth. The world doesn''t want you to become a God that''s why all its paths lead to dead-ends. Avoid them, destroy them! Become an entity that Heaven and Earth can''t imitate nor suppress!" The hall began to crumble, only the azure throne remained intact as Divine Demon''s will spoke. "Oh, right. When you have time, kill that ungrateful kid who has betrayed the unorthodox sects." After those last words, Noah''s vision turned dark. A heavy pressure was applied to his mental sphere, Noah couldn''t help but faint after he failed to oppose it. Divine Demon''s words resounded in his mind as he slept, the information about the path to godhood, the individuality, and the limits applied by Heaven and Earth rumbled as he tried to wake up. When his eyes opened, he found himself in a purple environment, with David and the rest of his team angrily arguing with someone. Chapter 406: 406. Shore Noah inspected his surroundings. He was on a shore, sand illuminated by the purple halo radiated from the sea was all over him. ''This is an island of the Coral archipelago.'' He immediately understood where he was, the events inside the azure hall were still vivid inside his mind but the change of the scenery was too sudden, he was almost inclined to believe that he had dreamt his meeting with Divine Demon. Yet, two things negated that thought: The first one was the inscriptions on the walls of his mental sphere, the second one was the ring tightly held in his left hand. ''I wonder why he didn''t speak about my first life, maybe he wasn''t able to see it.'' That was his first thought when he accepted that his meeting with the creator of the dimension had been real. He hadn''t been able to hide his thoughts during that encounter but there was something that he had been able to suppress thanks to all his efforts: The fact that he came from another world. ''I don''t know if it was thanks to me that this information wasn''t revealed or if it was due to some other reason¡­ Well, who cares, I have far more important issues to consider right now.'' Noah couldn''t bother to think about past events when the road in front of him had just become steeper. ''According to Divine Demon''s words, using techniques and nourishing methods created by other cultivators will ultimately hurt my individuality other than lower the power that I''ll eventually obtain. Also, he said that the path toward godhood will be harder if I don''t purse my essence.'' Noah summarized the core of Divine Demon''s teachings in his mind. He knew that techniques and methods created by others would become less effective as his level rose but he had never considered the fact that they could endanger his future prospects, that information made the inventory of the sect far less appealing in his eyes. "We didn''t obtain the Inheritance, I won''t say more." David''s voice resounded in the area, Noah was forced to return to reality when he heard it. Noah had long noticed that his teammates weren''t wearing their hoods, their facial features were exposed to the sight of the other cultivators on the shore. As for the others, Noah recognized some of them from the seabed in the Inheritance ground. "How could we trust the words of the unorthodox scum! Put your belongings out in the open for inspection, I suppose it won''t be a problem if you didn''t obtain the Inheritance!" A man wearing the colors of the Papral nation spoke to David, he exuded a righteous aura but some traces of greed could be seen in his eyes. Noah wasn''t an idiot, the situation on the shore became clear in his eyes. When he received the Inheritance, every cultivator in the dimension was kicked out and sent on this island. Luckily for him, his status as heir wasn''t exposed so the cultivators from the various organizations could only ask to inspect the rings belonging to the others. Of course, two factions were immediately formed, dividing the shore between legal and illegal organizations. To Noah''s surprise, his side had fewer cultivators even though the underground organizations dominated in the archipelago. ''Divine Demon was right, these unorthodox cultivators are demons only in name.'' "What happened?" Noah asked while wearing a confused expression, it took all his concentration to suppress the sighs that the current situation caused inside him. "Oh, you are awake! Nothing much, the separate dimension kicked us out before disappearing completely. The cultivators that you see here are those that were still alive when the dimension closed." Helga answered him, she hadn''t noticed that Noah had awakened but her brows arched when she inspected his body. Noah''s upper body was naked so it could be seen that he wasn''t injured. Meanwhile, almost everyone on the shore had still open wounds or pale complexions, only Noah had benefitted from the healing light of the azure hall. Helga was about to give voice to her doubts when she felt a piercing cold gaze landing on her, she raised her head only to see that Noah had a threatening look on him. Helga was a cultivator in the solid stage, there was very little that Noah could do against her. Yet, she understood the meaning behind his gesture and kept her mouth shut, that wasn''t the time to ask questions. "Don''t think that you can act as you wish, remember that your rule on the archipelago is just a fa?ade." David answered the man from the legal organization, his words were sharp and many cultivators in the latter''s group almost exploded due to the anger they felt. The domain of the underground organizations was something that everyone knew but that no one dared to speak of, pride was something important for orthodox cultivators after all. However, since they had decided to act in such an overbearing way, David had decided to speak openly, he was threatening them not to go too far. "I wasn''t aware that demons were blind. Can''t you see? We are far more than you." The man spoke again, he hinted that a battle would occur if they didn''t ask as he requested. "Stop speaking nonsense, everyone must return to their organizations. This is an order." A voice filled the area as a middle-aged man wearing a white robe appeared in the sky. "The same goes for you, return to your headquarters." Another voice resounded, the group from the Chasing demon sect recognized it as they raised their gazes on the sky. Elder Iris was standing in the air, her white hair fluttered in the wind as she stared at the other heroic cultivator hovering over the legal faction. Noah heaved a sigh of relief, he couldn''t bother being surprised by the appearance of a heroic cultivator after he interacted with the will of a God. The cultivators on the shore separated, each group returned on their respective organization to report about the events in the dimension. David''s group was the same, they followed Elder Iris as they moved toward one of the teleportation matrixes hidden on that island. Chapter 407: 407. Awkward As Elder Iris led the way toward one of the matrixes connected with the insides of the exoskeleton, the group of cultivators behind her became more numerous. The Chasing Demon sect had sent a total of five teams in the separate dimension and, from their survivors, it was clear that its losses had been huge. Joel walked slowly, all the members of his team were nowhere to be seen and their state could be understood from his discouraged expression. Alison was right behind Elder Iris, she and two cultivators were the only survivors of her team, her stern mood showed how much she had suffered in the dimension. David''s team was in the middle, five of its members had survived which was an incredible feat considering that only the non-affiliated newly advanced rank 3 cultivators surpassed that number, the latter hadn''t even reached the seabed but that had allowed for more of them to survive. As for the team created by Roy, none of its members could be seen on the shore, they had probably died due to their poor battle experience. All in all, only twenty-six cultivators survived the exploration, the assets in the human rank of the Chasing demon sect had suffered heavy losses! "Elder Iris, I-" "We will speak once we return to the headquarters, there are too many prying eyes on the surface." Joel tried to speak but Elder Iris promptly stopped him. She had taken a risk in exposing herself in the open but she needed to salvage as much as she could, the balance of power will tilt toward the organization that had obtained the Inheritance after all. Noah remained silent, Helga''s curious gaze would fall on him from time to time but he simply ignored it. His mind was still a mess, he had always thought that it would have been enough to simply obtain stronger techniques to pursue power, he had never considered that his approach would eventually endanger his future progresses. The powerful group slowly walked through the streets of the island, it was as if Elder Iris was purposely showing their path to anyone spying on her. When she reached a certain building, she exhaled and a warm breeze swept the twenty-six cultivators behind her. The cultivators were surprised but there wasn''t much that they could do, the breeze ruffled their hair and made their torn robes flutter, seemingly without any additional effect. Yet, some almost invisible golden grains were carried away by the breeze, the cultivators looked at them in surprise, it took Elder Iris'' explanation for them to understand what the grains represented. "Hmph, did he think that he could spy on my sect so easily? He must be confident that the legal factions have obtained the Inheritance." Her words explained the current situation: Apparently, the survivors from the dimension had been unconsciously hit by an investigative method! Elder Iris continued on her way, she took many turns and she even released more of that breeze to cover her path. The group then reached another building and entered it, a matrix appeared on the floor when they stepped inside the main hall. The pressure of the teleportation arrived and the scenery changed, the shining purple walls of the exoskeleton appeared in the cultivators'' views, signaling that they had finally returned to the sect. Sighs of relief and tired curses resounded in the area, the cultivators finally dropped their stern looks and relaxed, they were safe there. Linus and a woman stood at the sides of the matrix, they began to trace lines on it and modify the formation as fast as they could, Noah understood that they were covering the tracks left by their passage. "We don''t know who obtained the Inheritance nor to which organization it belongs, yet, we won''t give up on our rule over the archipelago. War will probably occur, the scales of power between the Hive and the legal organizations will shift, this is no time for sorrow!" Elder Iris spoke, she was trying to lift the cultivators'' morale while explaining the events that will engulf the archipelago in the future. In her view, whichever organization obtained the Inheritance will have a sharp increase in power, the domain of the Hive and the Chasing demon sect will be endangered due to that. The scene on the shore was quite self-explaining, the cultivators from the underground organizations had suffered far more losses and there was a high chance that the Inheritance was with someone from the legal ones, it was normal for her to predict the arrival of a battle. ''This is awkward.'' Noah thought as he kept an expressionless face. Her speech and the rekindled will of his companions were quite pointless since he was the one who had obtained the Inheritance. "These events have to be a lesson: Never allow yourself to be weak! The weak dies while the strong survive, this is the rule of the world. Use this experience to pursue power with even more dedication, I won''t accept that the captains of my Chasing demon sec-" "Elder Iris, a word?" Noah interrupted Elder Iris'' speech and the gazes of the other cultivators went on him. Noah felt as if he had committed a huge crime due to the anger carried by those stares, his natural cold expression came out when under such pressure. "Did you think that my words are so pointless that you can freely interrupt them?" Elder Iris wasn''t an exception, she was quite tense due to the repercussion that will eventually hit the underground organizations in her prediction, she hadn''t expected for Noah to behave so improperly. "Divine Demon told me to leave everything that I don''t need to the sect. I intend to do so if the sect is willing to provide benefits of matching value." Noah completely disregarded her question and gave voice to his intentions, he had yet to inspect the contents of the black space-ring after all. "What do you mean? How do you know that name?" Elder Iris didn''t understand and expressed her confusion but Noah couldn''t be bothered to answer now. "I''ll go to my cave in the residential area for rank 2 cultivators. Just wait for me to sort out the items of the Inheritance, we can decide my benefits later." With those last words, Noah left the area, twenty-five cultivators in the third rank and one in the heroic ranks stared at his naked back with speechless expressions. Chapter 408: 408. Spirit automaton Noah hurriedly returned to his old cave. He wasn''t afraid that the other members of the sect would try to steal his belongings, the restrictions of the oath prevented that, yet, he was eager to inspect the contents of the Inheritance. The black space-ring contained the items left behind by a divine being after all, he couldn''t even begin to imagine the amount of wealth contained in it. The entrance of his cave opened, Noah didn''t change his habitation after he became a rank 3 cultivator because he was too focused on the separate dimension but now he could feel how lacking the density of "Breath" was for his current level. He casually sat on the ground and held the black-ring in his hands, there was no mental imprint on it, Noah could easily inspect its insides. The first thing he saw when his mental energy entered the ring was a sea of shining crystals. Credits! There were Obsidian Credits everywhere he looked. Noah was able to divert his gaze only after he realized that it would take too much to count them, they value had long surpassed ten million Credits when he decided to look away. Then, he was astonished by the width of the space inside the ring. ''This is simply too huge.'' Noah thought when he saw that the space inside the ring had the width of many kilometers. ''It seems that I won''t need my rings anymore, this one is definitely above the human ranks!'' The black-space ring was already an extremely valuable item, coupled with the incredible number of Credits contained inside it, Noah felt as if his efforts in the dimension had been worth it! Yet, that was only the beginning. Noah moved his gaze toward a few hills at the bottom of the area. He soon realized that the hills were just piles of items of different nature! Noah''s attention went to the most striking ones. He saw how countless dragon''s corpses were piled to form a small scaled mountain. All the corpses belonged to rank 4 creatures of different elements and each one of them was in a perfect state, it was as if those dragons had just died! ''How is this possible, Divine Demon''s time had to be even before the previous Royal dynasty, does this ring have improved storage capabilities?'' Noah quickly moved the Credits that surrounded the pile of corpses and he soon discovered that his hypothesis was right. There was a large formation around the corpses which was similar to the one surrounding the inventory in Odrea nation. Its purpose was clear, the formation kept the materials stored inside it in a perfect state! ''The value of this ring has just doubled.'' Noah noted that in his mind before inspecting the next pile of goods, he was just doing a quick overview of the resources obtained in the Inheritance, the sorting process would come only after he had a general idea of what he could find useful. There was a smaller hill right behind the beasts'' corpses. The pile that time was made of inscribed weapons of various types and rank, Noah found some blades that radiated an ominous feeling as his attention focused on them. Another formation that prevented the corrosion of the items in its insides was around the pile of weapons, Noah decided to stop guessing the value of the ring after he saw that. The next pile was filled with shining bottles and luxurious caskets, that hill contained a seemingly endless number of potions and pills, the power held by some of them even surpassed what Noah was able to sense. The last hill was composed of scrolls and books. Noah''s eyes shone when he saw it, it was clear that the accumulation of spells and techniques of Divine Demon was there. His mental energy went to the first scroll in his sight, he wanted to analyze its contents and start sorting the resources in the ring when inscriptions around the walls of the separate space lit up. ''What is happening!?'' Noah was about to retract his mental energy from the ring when the light of the inscriptions converged in the air and a young boy wearing a luxurious black robe appeared out of it. The boy had long black hair and icy-blue eyes, his facial features were delicate, almost womanly, he resembled a younger version of Noah. Noah was about to speak when the boy''s eyes shone and words resounded in the insides of the ring. "Recollecting last known orders." "New master: Noah Balvan, heir of the Divine Demon." A robotic voice echoed in the area, the boy''s eyes stopped shining when it ended. He then performed a polite bow before speaking in a more human tone. "Greetings to master, I''m the spirit automaton of the space-ring. My previous master, Divine Demon, has instructed me to help to handle this rank 6 storage device and has also left some guidelines on how to handle the resources inside." Noah heard the words and was a bit surprised but he soon calmed down. The ring was a rank 6 item, it was obvious that it would have special features. Also, considering how big the space inside it was and how many items were stored, it was understandable that its creator had set an automatic helper. "Did you copy my aspect or were you created like this?" Noah asked as he relaxed, his mental energy transmitted his words inside the separate space. "Spirit automatons usually imitate the aspect of their masters, though, I can modify it if you wish." The boy politely answered but Noah didn''t mind that aspect, he was just curious about the reason behind it. "How precise are your estimations of the items inside the ring?" Noah moved the topic to what interested him, the items contained in the Inheritance. "I don''t need to make an estimate, I know all the resources contained in the ring as well as their number, purpose, and name." The automaton answered in an emotionless tone, it wasn''t a will after all, it was more similar to a program. "Give me a complete report then, don''t be too specific though." "Processing." Noah ordered before the robotic voice of the automaton answered him. "The ring currently contains eighty million Credits, five hundred rank 4 dragon'' corpses of a various element, eight thousand four hundred thirty-three inscribed weapons of various rank, more than ten thousand potions and pills of various rank and usage, and about a thousand spells and techniques of various rank." Chapter 409: 409. Sorting Noah listened to those numbers and his mind began to evaluate the many possibilities that such an amount of wealth gave him. ''I bet I''m richer than a medium-size noble family right now.'' He smiled internally when he realized that. Yet, he knew that most of those items would be wasted in his hands, not only many resources required an element different from his, but he also had almost no use for the inscribed weapons. Noah knew that the Demonic swords were the most suitable weapons for him and he couldn''t use blades in the heroic ranks, his level simply didn''t allow that. "You spoke about some guidelines, what are they about?" Noah asked the spirit automaton as his mental energy took a human form, it was easier for him to inspect the items from inside the ring rather than taking them out one at the time. "First of all, there is a description of the four formations inside the ring, each one can almost stop the aging of specific items. As you can see, the formations must be used respectively for magical beasts, weapons, drugs, and scrolls or books. Placing an item in a formation that doesn''t suit its type won''t activate its effects. If you wish, you can just send everything causally in the ring and leave the division process to me." The boy spoke, pointing a formation whenever he mentioned its suitable type of item. "Also, Divine Demon left some messages, would you like to hear them?" "Sure." Noah was surprised by the boy''s statement but he was quite eager to listen again to Divine Demon. The automaton opened his mouth and his eyes shone, it seemed that he had entered the "robot" mode again. "Young one." Divine Demon''s voice resounded inside the ring, Noah''s complete attention went on his words. "I''m sorry that our meeting has been short, I had to preserve enough energies to destroy the separate dimension and to erase all my traces. Yet, you have my legacy now." A short moment of silence occurred before his voice sounded again. "The walls of your mental sphere now contain my Divine deduction technique, it is fueled by mental energy so it will give you better results once your rank as a mage increases. Oh, your version is limited to the seventh rank, you might want to upgrade it once you become a God." Noah suppressed the urge to smile, Divine Demon seemed sure that Noah would reach the divine ranks. "Just one thing. If I was to discover that you wasted my technique and trained in one of the cultivation techniques contained in my Inheritance, I will personally travel to the Moral lands and kill you. Be safe, young one." "¡­" Silence. A long silence followed those words. Noah stood still, the expression of his half-transparent figure inside the ring was still stuck in the suppressed smile from before. ''I guess I don''t have other choices now.'' "Oh, one last thing." Divine Demon''s voice sounded all of sudden, slightly startling Noah. "I have a message for that kid, your patriarch. Remember to tell the automaton when you meet him. Hmph, I have a thing or two to say about how he trains the members of his sect." After that, the boy''s eyes stopped shining and he closed his mouth, only then was Noah sure that no more messages were coming. "Anything else?" Noah asked the automaton hoping that the threats of the God were over. "Divine Demon advised giving most of the contents of his Inheritance to the sect. The Obsidian Credits are excluded of course." Noah nodded, he didn''t hate that idea. After all, only a small part of the Inheritance was useful to him. He didn''t need any of the inscribed weapons. He was just one cultivator, ten thousand drugs were simply too many for him. The techniques and spells of the darkness element were just a small fraction of the entirety of the pile, everything else could just go to the sect. As for the dragon''s corpses, he was quite tempted to keep all of them. Like everything else, only a few corpses belonged to creatures of the darkness element but, thanks to his bombs, Noah could easily transform the other dragons in disposable weapons. ''I can simply process their scales, fangs, and teeth to make the spikes for the Instabilities, I won''t even need to exchange them for spiked magical beasts.'' Noah ran the various possibilities in his mind but he ultimately decided to keep all the dragon''s corpses. Dragons were considered the strongest magical beast, Noah wasn''t willing to let go of any of those materials. ''I think I should start sorting everything out, I''ll leave the scrolls for last.'' As the thought about that, Noah, with the help of the spirit automaton, began to choose the items that he wanted to keep. . . . A few days passed, Noah''s mental energy had never exited the space-ring during that period. There were simply too many items to evaluate! The thought of selling any of the items in the ring has never crossed his mind, he saw Credits everywhere his gaze went, what was the point in obtaining more of them? The spirit automaton was an extremely useful helper, not only was he aware of the name and capabilities of every item inside the ring, but he was also able to advise Noah basing his judgment on his current level. Sorting the pile of weapons didn''t take much, Noah eventually chose to keep a few weapons that matched his element and that he could find useful in the future. He was keeping the white sabers for the same reason after all, being picky in front of all that wealth wasn''t exactly the smartest choice. With the pile of drugs, he had been far greedier. The space-ring contained resources till the fifth rank, Divine Demon had carried everything in the sixth rank or above with him in the Immortal lands. Yet, when it came to pills and potions, anything in the heroic ranks was enough to make Noah stupefied. Of course, they were only a small fraction compared to the entirety of the pile, yet, they were still miraculous items! Also, they were specific for each center of power: There were pills able to fix any injury on the mental sphere in a matter of seconds, potions able to regrow bones, even pills that contained "Breath" of various elements. Noah simply couldn''t let go of those drugs, they could save his life one day! However, he gave up to the majority of the low-level drugs, to those that didn''t suit him, and to those of which he had too many copies. Only the pile containing the spells and techniques was left. Chapter 410: 410. Spells "Hand me everything related to the darkness element and divide it according to their ranks." Noah ordered, the spirit automaton could manage the insides of the space-ring far faster than him, it was better to leave those matters to him. "Do you wish to create a separate block for those that don''t have element requirements?" "No, put everything together." The spirit automaton began to divide the pile of scrolls and books after Noah''s order, his eyes shone as he entered the "robot" mode. Noah watched him work, he had probed his capabilities as he inspected the other piles and was quite surprised by the amount of information that he held. As the spirit of a rank 6 inscribed item, the automaton contained a vast knowledge that allowed him to recognize almost every item that was being stored inside the ring. ''The ring itself is incredibly useful, just the four formations inside it are priceless. If I was to add the knowledge of the automaton, the price of this item would skyrocket!'' Noah thought as he waited for the spells and techniques to be sorted out, he was beginning to understand that the ring was one of the most important items of the Inheritance. The automaton soon finished his task, less than eighty scrolls and books had been taken out from the main pile. Noah wasn''t disappointed, he knew that the rarity of his element was a troublesome issue, one of the reasons why darkness and light cultivators were so few was due to that. ''I think it''s the first time I''m eager to read rank 0 spells.'' Eagerness was showed in Noah''s half-transparent figure as it neared the sorted items. According to Divine Demon, the Divine deduction technique allowed him to study the diagrams of the spells more easily, Noah wondered if he could create more rank 4 martial arts thanks to that. After all, martial arts were the foundation of the battle prowess of a cultivator, they didn''t deplete much energy and some of them had a power that matched spells! Spells were generally used as supportive methods or finishing blows, they expended a lot of mental energy and "Breath", preventing a cultivator from using them recklessly. Noah had currently mastered two rank 4 martial arts and their effects in battle were amazing. The Shadow sprint art could be performed far carelessly than Warp spell, making him extremely mobile without the need for huge expenditures of mental energy. If a spell couldn''t lead to a finishing blow, it was better to use its weaker but cheaper version. The majority of the items in the pile were rank 0 and 1 spells, techniques, and methods. Noah recognized some names that he saw back in the inventory of the academy, rank 0 diagrams were easier to copy after all, it was normal to have the same scrolls spread in the world. Blind, Shadow step, Void cover, Piercing darkness, Noah swept through those names quickly. There were some effects that he would gladly integrate into his battle style but he was too eager to reach the scrolls of a higher rank. Cultivation techniques and nourishing methods of such a low rank were simply worthless in his eyes, Noah had already decided to keep them only for research purposes. The spells were his main concern, their diagrams could be turned into martial arts with enough study and those up to the third rank and above were useful for his level. It was then time for those in the second rank, Death spire, Entangling darkness, and other spells that Noah had never heard of appeared in his eyes. Noah quickly read their effects and put them aside, that was not yet the time to start studying their diagrams. Only about twenty items remained in the pile that he had yet to inspect, most of them were rank 3 nourishing methods and cultivation techniques but there were some spells among them. ''Demon summoning seems strong, it''s a pity that it''s only up to the third rank, my Body-inscription spells is simply stronger right now.'' ''Dark ray seems good, it might be worth memorizing it.'' ''Dark cover increases my hiding abilities but only at night, it should be something worth learning.'' The rank 3 spells soon ended and it was time to step on those of a higher rank. Noah had three books in front of him, they contained two body-nourishing methods and a cultivation technique, all in the fourth rank. Noah held the cultivation technique in his hands, his eyes were glued to its contents, that was an item that he had searched for a long time, the key to become a heroic cultivator! There was a lot that he didn''t understand in its description, it seemed that he had to have access to rank 4 "Breath" before understanding some of the contents of the technique. ''It feels like another world. I wonder if I can create something like this.'' It took a while before he managed to let go of the book, he was only doing a general overview at that moment, he was just deciding what to keep of the Inheritance. Three scrolls remained from the almost eighty items, they contained two spells up to the fourth rank and one up to the fifth. ''Ethereal form, up to the fourth rank. It''s a defensive spell that allows me to become immaterial for a short time. It seems to consume a lot of energy though.'' ''Death area, up to the fourth rank. This is an area of effect spell that weakens the living beings in its insides. Really, really strong, but also high consumption.'' The high consumption of mental energy and "Breath" of the spells of the darkness element was something Noah was used to, the Ghostly claws were the only exception that he had found. ''Black hole, up to the fifth rank. Defensive method able to absorb any type of attack, allowing the cultivator to use the pure energy absorbed in an attack.'' At once, Noah knew that he had to memorize that spell. Chapter 411: 411. Pair "Give me the book containing the copying technique." Noah ordered when he finished inspecting all the darkness related books and scrolls. The spirit automaton didn''t hesitate, a big and old book rose from the pile of goods next to Noah and landed in his hands. Noah carefully swept through its pages, the copying technique created by Divine Demon defied common reason, it was able to create an endless stream of rank 4 creatures by restraining just a few of them, it was normal to be interested in such a power. However, he soon understood that he couldn''t even make out the meaning of the initial lines that described the technique. ''This can be considered a peak rank 6 technique, maybe even a quasi-rank 7 one. It doesn''t even match my areas of expertise.'' Noah sighed as he looked at its contents. There were written descriptions that he could read, they instructed about the restrictions and procedures to follow to place the many formations down before the technique could be activated. It was clear that the wealth of a single cultivator, no matter how rich it was, wasn''t enough to set it up. ''Heaven and Earth don''t allow me to pursue the Attunement method and I have no knowledge whatsoever about formations. Also, there are specific materials needed for the restriction of the magical beasts inside the formation, I don''t even know what some of these names mean.'' Noah didn''t want to give up on such a strong technique so soon but he knew that he wouldn''t be ever able to use it. The requirements for the usage of the technique were harsh, one needed to be experienced in the Attunement method, able to understand formations, able to capture and restrain magical beasts, and also have many exotic materials. Only a divine being could meet those standards, even cultivators in the heroic ranks would need the backing of an organization to perform the technique. ''I guess I can only give it to the sect along with everything that I don''t need. There is one problem though, what can I even ask in exchange?'' . . . During the days in which Noah was secluded inside his cave, a shocking piece of information was spread throughout the Coral archipelago. The information came from a team that had survived the trials inside the Inheritance ground, those cultivators came from an organization belonging to the Utra nation. The information spoke about a known criminal of the Utra nation whose identity was most likely linked to the outsider that had unleashed chaos on the battlefield of the Odrea nation. The criminal identified in that report was, of course, Noah Balvan. The cultivators of the Utra nation were the only one that had access to the drawing featuring his facial features so, when they met the copy of David''s team, they were able to identify Noah when his hood came off during the battle. Also, the spells used by his copy matched the reports about the Hooded devil in the Odrea country, that last piece of information was the confirmation needed to link the two identities. Noah would curse his bad luck if he was to know that his copy had appeared right in front of cultivators of the Utra nation, learning that the copy of David''s group had managed to kill most of them wouldn''t console him much. The information soon became renown, the social environment of the archipelago was different from that of the continent, keeping something hidden to the other organizations wasn''t possible. The Hive learnt about it and the Chasing demon sect wasn''t an exception. Many disciples and captains could be seen walking in front of Noah''s cave, curious about the real identity of the honorary disciple that they called Zach. Yet, there was something that prevented them from investigating further. Two figures sat on the purple ground in front of Noah''s cave. One was the renown Roy, the only cultivator in the human ranks that held the title of elder. The other was a woman with white hair whose cultivation level was hidden to the others. The rank 2 cultivators weren''t aware of her identity but all the captains trembled and bowed when they saw her. That was because the woman waiting for Noah to exit his cave was Elder Iris, Roy''s mother, and the manager of the human assets of the entire Chasing demon sect! The news about Noah obtaining the Inheritance contained in the separate dimension had been kept a secret from the sect but the presence of a heroic cultivator in the residential area for rank 2 cultivators raised many suspects. After all, cultivators weren''t stupid, especially considering that they were aware that Noah had survived the exploration of the dimension with David''s team. Also, according to David''s reports, his team had approached the last trial that many had escaped. In fact, there was something that his team had completely missed: The escape tokens could be used to forfeit the matches against the copies! It couldn''t be helped, David and the others were confident in their power, they had no reason to test again the tokens after they had failed to work in the ninth trial. Yet, that didn''t apply to all the teams in the dimension: Many cultivators relied on them when death was nearing in the tenth and eleventh trial and, to their surprise, the tokens had worked! They didn''t bring them outside the dimension though but only at the beginning of the mountain chain. Also, the tokens broke after that activation. That was one of the reasons why the legal organizations ended up with more survivors, they were used to be on the losing side in the archipelago, the careful attitude developed due to that helped them discover the detail that many cultivators belonging to the underground organizations had missed. Noah was unaware of all that stream of information that had enveloped the organizations of the archipelago and focused on sorting his space-ring. He wasn''t in a hurry, he could calmly memorize the new spells as he thought about what to ask in return for the items useless to him. It took him a month and a half to exit his cave and he was quite surprised to find the pair of mother and son waiting for him right in front of the entrance. Chapter 412: 412. Everything "You might want to listen to the recent developments in the archipelago before saying your conditions." Roy spoke before Noah could say anything, the latter gestured for the two elders to enter his cave. A few seconds later, the three of them were sitting on the ground at the center of the cave, the entrance was closed, sealing away any noise and the curious gazes of the onlookers. "What developments?" Noah went straight to the point, he had only learnt the spells that he knew he could find useful but there was far more to do. He wanted to study the many diagrams in his possession, he wanted to isolate the effects that he wanted to reproduce, he wanted to test the Divine deduction technique, and he wanted to take anything that he found useful from the inventory of the sect. Each one of those tasks would keep him busy for long periods, he simply wanted to solve all the immediate issues before slowly absorbing the Inheritance. "Your identity has been revealed, your copy appeared in front of cultivators of the Utra nation. Here, this is a summary that I''ve prepared for this meeting." Roy answered as he handed him a pile of sheets, Elder Iris silently sat on her knees with her eyes closed during that conversation. The sheets described the events in the archipelago that followed the disappearance of the separate dimension. They covered the discovery of Noah''s identity, its connection with the Hooded devil, the matter about the escape tokens, and even some final consideration personally added by Roy. ''No one is aware of who obtained the Inheritance and, even though my identity was revealed, the legal organizations only know that I belong to the Hive, they don''t know to which branch I belong.'' The situation was far better than what Roy had hinted, the Hive controlled the archipelago after all, Noah barely felt the need to hide for the time being. As someone who had remained hidden and had escaped for all his life, Noah could remain perfectly calm when he learnt that information. "The sect is willing to offer you protection from the continent in exchange for the contents of the Inheritance. You can keep anything that you find useful for your cultivation of course." Roy said with a smile but Noah''s next words made his expression freeze. "I believe that the sect is bad at telling jokes." Noah had always been overbearing, he simply rarely had the chance to be in a position of power. "Don''t think that the oath can keep you safe. We might not be able to take your life since you are a member of the sect but there are many ways to seize the Inheritance without causing a backlash from our horned faces. Remember your position and let''s have a peaceful transaction." Elder Iris spoke without opening her eyes, Noah felt some that some sort of pressure accompanied her words but he had been prepared for a similar situation. In the month and a half in which he had isolated himself, he didn''t just sort the contents inside the ring and learnt some spells. He had also thoroughly questioned the spirit automaton to learn about the many features that the space-ring offered. The ring was a rank 6 inscribed item after all, its functions weren''t limited only to a large space and a vast knowledge! Noah''s "Breath" entered the black ring on his finger and an ethereal figure slowly materialized next to him. The figure had the aspect of a young boy with long black hair, he was the spirit automaton of the ring! "Tell them what I can do in case the sect becomes hostile." Noah ordered as he filled a cup with the wine contained in his space-ring and coldly observed the reaction on his two guests'' faces. "Yes, Master!" The automaton answered before his eyes shone and he explained in a robotic voice. "Master can freely decide to destroy all the items inside the ring, he can also just destroy one item at the time to show his leverage." Elder Iris opened her eyes at those words, she inspected the spirit automaton with interest, she wanted to understand if he was speaking the truth. "As a last resort, Master can decide to use the Credits inside the ring to activate the self-destruction mechanism. The power behind the blast generated in this way will match the attack of a rank 6 cultivator since the ring is a peak rank 6 inscribed item. According to my calculations, the entirety of the Chasing demon sect would be wiped out in the explosion." Roy almost puked blood when he heard those words and began to stare at Noah''s ring in fear. Elder Iris furrowed her brows, she had a better idea of the power held by rank 6 cultivators and was quite doubtful about the automaton words. However, she was only a rank 4 cultivator, she would die even if the self-destruction of the ring matched only cultivators in the fifth rank. "Would you rather die than accept unfavorable terms?" She spoke, her brows relaxed when she realized that the blast would take Noah''s life too. Noah shrugged his shoulders and emptied his cup before explaining. "The Chasing demon sect treated me well but humans tend to lose their reason when wealth is involved. Also, I''m dealing with entities about the Inheritance of a God, I need to put my life as a mortal on the line if I want to negotiate on equal ground." Noah''s uncaring attitude stuck Roy''s deeply, he had never seen someone using its own life as a bargaining chip. "What do you want?" Elder Iris spoke. She had far more experience, she could instantly understand that Noah wasn''t playing around. Truth to be told, she was ready to give away as many resources as needed to obtain the Inheritance, she had just tried to exploit Noah''s peculiar situation to her advantage. Needless to say, that approach only worsened the atmosphere in the cave. Noah smirked before revealing the price that, in his opinion, matched the contents of the Inheritance. "Simple, I want everything." Chapter 413: 413. Meeting An unsightly expression appeared on Elder Iris'' face, she wasn''t clear about Noah''s intentions so she simply waited for him to explain further. "What do I mean by everything is simple: I''ll be granted the ability to purchase anything I want from the inventory for free, to freely use any training facility of the sect, and, if needed, to request for the help of heroic ranks cultivator when I''m in peril. Of course, my requests can only be applied for matters and resources up to the fifth rank, just like the items in the Inheritance." Noah exposed one piece of information about his wealth to show how valuable the Inheritance was, it was clear from Elder Iris'' struggling expression that his words were effective. Roy had long since lost any will to speak, Noah was negotiating with resources that even his privileged position couldn''t grant him, it was better to leave the matter to his mother. Yet, he couldn''t help but feel some tinges of admiration when looking at the young man uncaringly sitting in front of him. The will of most cultivators in the human ranks would just break when dealing with an entity in the heroic ranks but Noah wasn''t even sweating under his mother''s gaze. ''Such a cold-blooded attitude, to think that he could have ended up in a legal organization.'' Roy heaved a sigh of relief as he thought of that, he felt glad that such a spectacular cultivator was on his side. On the other hand, Elder Iris felt conflicted. She knew that she had no leverage on Noah. The man in front of her had no relationships to exploit and his position didn''t have any weaknesses. You either accept my conditions or I make everything blow up! There wasn''t much room for negotiation after that ultimatum. "I don''t have the authority to accept your requests." In the end, Elder Iris sighed as she revealed the truth. She was just a rank 4 cultivator after all. She was an unparalleled existence in the eyes of the human cultivators but her power didn''t allow her to have much influence on the heroic matters. "I kind of expected that." Noah revealed too, he knew that he couldn''t ask for the complete support of the heroic assets to a single elder. It was with a bit of hesitation that he decided to give voice to his next words. "Please, bring me to the Chasing Demon, Divine Demon has also left a message for him." . . . If a cultivator in the human ranks was ever to ask for a meeting with the patriarch of the Chasing demon sect, it would become the biggest joke in the entire sect, it might even be punished due to its lack of respect. The Chasing Demon was a legendary figure after all, one of the pillars of the defeated unorthodox sects of the Papral nation. Yet, when the legacy of a God was involved, exceptional measures had to be taken. It took a few hours for the higher-ups of the sect to be notified of Noah''s requests, the news that he had obtained the Inheritance had been hidden from the human assets but all the elders had been informed about it. Also, most elders had interrupted their cultivation due to the closure of the separate dimension, like Elder Iris, they saw war looming over the archipelago. The elders had a long discussion through their inscribed communication items, some of them wanted to directly punish Noah for asking something so disrespectful but they soon calmed down when they heard that Divine Demon had left a message for their patriarch. Moreover, that message was detained by Noah, they didn''t want to indirectly hurt the Chasing Demon by preventing the meeting from happening. After the matter had been decided, Noah was brought by Elder Iris in the center of the sect, where the patriarch''s personal training ground was. The route didn''t follow the usual passages, Elder Iris needed to unlock many secret and underground tunnels with her authority to reach the place where they were standing. Noah stood still as he tried to contain his amazement at the sight that had unfolded in front of him. The last underground passage ended in a vast underground area. The area was so large that it could match the width of the entire sect with its size. Noah was at the entrance of a shining purple environment, it would resemble one of the plains near Balvan mansion if it wasn''t for the fact that the ground was made of barren crystals. Also, a short mountain stood at its center, its peak seemed to have been cut off since a perfectly horizontal space could be seen at its summit. "The patriarch has accepted to see you but I can''t go further, you must walk to the summit alone." Elder Iris spoke, her eyes looked at the summit of the mountain contained in the large underground area with reverence, her complete devotion could be seen in her expression. On the other hand, Noah was interested in the environment: That was the training area of an entity in the sixth rank, he wanted to learn as many secrets as he could! However, he soon discovered that he couldn''t feel anything, there didn''t seem to be even the slight trace of "Breath" in the plain. "Go, don''t let the patriarch wait." Elder Iris gave those last words and retreated, leaving Noah alone at the end of the passage. ''I hope I didn''t bite off more than I can chew this time.'' Noah thought as he carefully stepped on the purple plain. He had the vague suspicion that only the Chasing Demon could grant his requests but he still felt anxious at the thought of meeting him. Part of his mental energy was ready inside the space-ring, he maintained his connection with the item to be ready to threaten any existence that wanted to exploit him. However, he wasn''t completely sure that his methods would work against a rank 6 existence. The path toward the mountain was barren, nothing but the purple light of the exoskeleton was in sight. It took him only about half an hour to reach the base of the mountain where he finally felt something different from the complete desolation of the plain. The mental sphere of a cultivator was extremely sensitive to dangers and Noah had also absorbed the Bloodline Inheritance, further improving that ability. When he looked at the plain summit, there was only one sensation that he felt: Powerlessness. A feeling that, no matter what he did or what schemes he tried, gave him the certainty that they would fail. It was while enduring that pressure that Noah gulped and began to climb the mountain. Chapter 414: 414. Chasing Demon Noah climbed the side of the mountain quite quickly, its steepness was easily overcome by his rank 4 body. Another quarter of an hour went by before he could reach the summit, Noah ended his climb with a jump, softly landing on the plain peak. A series of inscriptions entered his field of view, lines covered the surface of the summit, forming an intricate formation that seemed to have peculiar runes in its core spots. The surface of the plain on the summit of the mountain had the width of almost a kilometer, a formation that could cover its entire surface was surely the work of an expert! A human figure sat at the center of the formation, his back was turned toward Noah and he could see the many scars that filled his bulging muscles from his position. Noah didn''t dare to take a step forward, he performed a polite bow and remained in that position, waiting for the patriarch''s permission to enter his training area. Minutes passed but nothing happened, the human figure sat silently, it didn''t even seem to be breathing. All of sudden, shining lines began to cover the ceiling of the underground area, they resembled white veins that expanded over the purple mineral as they converged toward the mountain. Then, when the lines reached the area above the mountain, shining drops began to fall from the ceiling. The drops contained small crystals and they precisely landed on the runes laid around on the formation. The runes began to shine, some sort of mechanism was activated which made the entirety of the formation take life, illuminating the surface of the summit. Noah watched everything with wide eyes, he still couldn''t feel anything but he recognized the material that made the drops: It was "Breath"! Yet, it also seemed different from the "Breath" that he usually absorbed, it wasn''t just a matter of purity, it was as if its composition had been altered, bringing it to a higher state. The lines of the formation slowly illuminated as drops continued to fall on the runes, they reached for Chasing Demon as the light spread. When they reached his body, Chasing Demon forcefully inhaled. All the light on the formation was sucked as he inhaled, it entered his body in less than an instant, leaving only the purple halo as a form of illumination. Then, Chasing Demon exhaled, a shining gas came out of his mouth which then was absorbed by the ground, disappearing almost instantly. Noah observed everything with great interest, he hadn''t been able to understand the absorption process of the rank 4 cultivation technique in the Inheritance but what had witnessed was slowly solving his doubts. ''The "Breath" in the heroic rank isn''t only purer, it has a completely different composition!'' Yet, even if he had understood that, he was still unaware of the method to extract and absorb it. "Did you gain some enlightenment?" An aged voice spoke, those words seemed to weight as they reached Noah''s ears. "Yes, but I still don''t understand how to gain access to such "Breath". Does it have a different source? Or is the cultivation technique that alters its composition?" Noah answered, his eagerness to expand his knowledge about the heroic ranks had made him abandon any pretense of politeness. "Both." Chasing Demon spoke again as he stretched his hand to point at the formation and then at the ceiling. "The veins on the ceiling attract "Breath" of extreme purity from the sea, making it fall on the runes of the formation which carry my will. They then subdue the "Breath", condense it, and direct it to my body. This is the cultivation technique that I created to reach the sixth rank." Noah took a glance at the formation before raising his head to stare at the ceiling. Chasing Demon didn''t explain why the "Breath" absorbed by the veins was different but they were invisible now, only the purple mineral could be seen by Noah''s eyes. "It seems that you are smart, lone cultivators usually are quick learner after all." The patriarch stood up as he gave those praises, he turned to face Noah and slowly walked toward him. Noah could see his face now, he had short brown hair, piercing red eyes, sharp features, and slim eyebrows. His upper body was covered in scars but his skin seemed to glow, giving an otherworldly appearance to his figure. "What heroic cultivators absorb isn''t the "Breath" commonly found in the air but that inside the matter of the world. In other words, we steal the "Breath" contained inside the matter." Noah''s mind rumbled, many ideas popped inside it as he analyzed the patriarch''s words. He first thought about the atoms, particles that were common knowledge in his previous world seemed to be unknown on this one. Yet, it seemed that the "Breath" the patriarch was referring to was contained in an atomic environment. ''Maybe, the physic of my previous world can''t be applied in this case. This world has been modified by the "Breath", this energy is too miraculous, it doesn''t seem to match with anything I''ve seen in my first life.'' Since science couldn''t solve his doubts, Noah decided to ask the entity in front of him. "How do I see it? How do I manage to absorb it? Why would it need to be subdued?" Noah stormed the patriarch with questions, he had completely disregarded his situation when a chance to better understand the road in front of him appeared. "Seeing it''s hard, only rank 4 mages or above can look at the essence contained in the matter. Absorbing it''s easy, you just need a cultivation technique with a suction force strong enough to affect the internal composition of the matter of this world. As for the subduing part¡­" Chasing Demon freely explained, he didn''t seem to mind Noah''s curiosity as he neared him. "The "Breath" contained inside the matter carries a purer will, it carries the laws imposed by Heaven and Earth, only a stronger will can force it to stay in a dantian and be used for a different purpose. This is also the reason why cultivation techniques personally created have better effects: They reflect more of your will, preventing from less "Breath" to escape your clutches." Chapter 415: 415. Agreed The world that only heroic mages could see, the laws of Heaven and Earth, the will that the cultivation techniques must carry. All those pieces of information entered Noah''s mind, adding fragments to the puzzle that was the heroic ranks for him. "Stealing the "Breath" that carries the laws, won''t it interfere with the matter?" Chasing Demon was freely explaining those subjects to Noah and he even wore a faint smile as he did so, Noah didn''t want to let go of that opportunity. Knowledge was what he lacked the most at the moment, the academy had given him a solid foundation but the matters of the heroic ranks had always been too vague, there wasn''t much that he could learn about them. That''s why the pointers of a rank 6 experts outclassed any other priority he had before going to that meeting. "Of course, that''s the reason why all the divine beings eventually leave for the Immortal lands, this world would become a wasteland or worse if Gods started to cultivate here." Noah fell deep in thought, it was as if a door leading to a bigger and more amazing world had been opened by the patriarch''s words. "Now, let me hear my Master''s voice again." Chasing Demon asked as he stepped outside the formation and sat in front of Noah, a childish smile appeared on his face when he mentioned Divine Demon. "Patriarch, I would like to hear my requests fir-" "I agree to all of them." "¡­" Noah had returned to reality when the message of Divine Demon was mentioned and wanted to set the matter concerning his conditions first but the patriarch immediately agreed, leaving him momentarily speechless. "But, you don''t even know what I''m asking!" Noah complained, the patriarch''s attitude didn''t match with his idea of a cultivator in charge of a sect. "All the resources and techniques up to the fifth rank inside the inventory will be yours to take freely. I also authorize you to use all the training facilities of the sect without the need for merit points and the sect will provide help whenever a danger that surpasses the human ranks befalls on you. Now, the message." Noah was once again speechless, all his requests had been accepted so easily! "Come on, these are just resources, they are there to nurture promising cultivators anyway and you have already met those standards by obtaining my Master''s approval. Don''t make me repeat my orders a third time." After those words, Noah gave up on trying to understand his patriarch and simply sat in front of him while using his mental energy to summon the automaton. The ethereal boy was already informed about his orders and his eyes lit up as soon as he appeared in the open. "Rufus." Divine Demon''s voice came out from the open mouth of the automaton, Chasing Demon''s eyes widened when he heard that name. "I know that you''ve chosen to train a rank 5 cultivation technique to kill that traitor, mining your path to godhood for the sake of vengeance wasn''t your smartest choice." Chasing Demon snorted when he heard those words but a bitter smile appeared on his face, his eyes seemed to wander between the memories contained in his mind. "Well, you have always been the most short-sighted and emotional of my disciples after all, you are being true to your nature at least." Noah shifted his gaze when he heard that, he didn''t want to look at his patriarch when he was rebuked. "You''ve reached the sixth rank though, it means that you''ve finally managed to fuse your runes with my formations, maybe you still have hopes in becoming a God¡­ Anyway, what I''m concerned about is how you handle your sect!" "Back in my days, I would throw all those useless disciples that entered my dimension into a pack of dragons and allowed them to live only if they brought enough heads back! What kind of lofty life are they having here? Luckily for you, my dimension has killed all the useless ones, you can nurture better demons now." Noah''s expression froze, hearing the more than seventy rank 3 cultivators died in the dimension being labeled as useless was something that he hadn''t expected. He began to see his patriarch under a new light, his status as a disciple of the Divine Demon meant that he had to be extraordinary even among his peers! "I think war is always the best way to forge the character of the young ones. Just use the conquest of the archipelago as mean to nurture better human assets while you go around gathering the materials needed for my technique, you should have obtained it by now." Chasing Demon shot an inquisitor look toward Noah and he didn''t hesitate to take out the book containing the copying technique and hand it to him. The patriarch''s eyes widened when he saw the book and he held it with great care as he began to inspect its contents. "Oh, right. The kid is promising, use him in the war, I don''t want him to isolate himself to cultivate like those orthodox bunch, battle prowess must come before the cultivation level in the mind of a demon. Anyway, I hope to see you in the Immortal lands, I still need to punish you for your recklessness. Luckily, there are dragons here too." The recorded voice ended and the spirit automaton closed his eyes before Noah made him return inside the ring. Chasing Demon had an awkward smile on his face, his Master seemed to have given birth to conflicting emotions inside him. Then, he simply focused on the book in his hands, his fingers traced the lines of the formations described on the pages as if he was trying to understand their meaning. "He is really a genius, this technique would be considered a masterpiece even if it was limited to the human ranks." The patriarch spoke without raising his gaze from the book, he seemed completely immersed in its pages. "Ehm, what should I do now?" Noah asked, he didn''t give much weight on Divine Demon''s words, he had just obtained unlimited access to the inventory and wanted to take anything darkness related before going in seclusion, there was still a lot that he needed to test. "Well, you heard him, didn''t you? You are going to war." Chapter 416: 416. Demon Prince Noah returned to the underground corridor where Elder Iris had left him. He had discussed with the patriarch for some time but, in the end, he was forced to accept his orders. ''I must lead the human assets to war while he prepares the copying spell, he wants to take complete control over the archipelago. However, how am I even supposed to command the other captains? I''m still in the gaseous stage.'' Elder Iris entered his field of view as he evaluated that issue. Noah knew that he was strong, he had defeated a rank 3 cultivator in the liquid stage after all. Yet, the sect had many solid stage cultivators, it was pointless to mention the leaders of each faction at that point. Elder Iris had an old notebook in her hands, her furrowed brows showed her disappointment toward the message that she had received. "What is it?" Noah asked when he saw that her gaze went on him and remained still, he felt uncomfortable under the inspection of an elder. "Nothing, Lord Prince." "Wha-" Noah wanted to ask about the title she used when the walls of the exoskeleton trembled and the patriarch''s voice resounded through the entirety of the sect. "Orders for all the cultivators in the human ranks: The Chasing Demon sect is going to war! We are taking over the entire archipelago. You have six months to prepare, the battle will start after that." Some cheers could be heard coming from the residential areas, the sect had always been one of the strongest organizations of the Hive but its members were forced to hide to give the appearance that the legal organizations were in control. Those restraints weighed on the minds of the disciples, what was the point of being strong if they were then forced underground? Also, most of them were extremely loyal to the sect and could relate with its history, they had longed for the moment when they could take over all the islands and rule out in the open. "All the cultivators in the second and third rank will be forced to take part in the war, any deserter will be considered useless and disposed of." The eyes of the weak and secluded cultivators widened when they heard those words, the patriarch didn''t give them any choice on the matter. "Though, every war needs a general. I hereby give the title of Demon Prince to Noah Balvan, the cultivator that has successfully retrieved the Inheritance of our ancestor. He will lead you to battle, follow his orders as if they were mine." That was the moment when Noah''s eyes widened too, not only did the patriarch use his real name, but he had also given him a title! The walls of the exoskeleton stopped trembling and Noah''s horned face shone for a few seconds, he realized that some permissions had been granted to his oath. "What does my title do?" However, Noah had always been a lone cultivator, he knew almost nothing concerning the titles in a sect. Elder Iris was still looking at him, she didn''t seem surprised by the news, it seemed that she had been informed before the patriarch''s speech. "Being the Demon Prince means that you''ll most likely become the next Chasing Demon, it''s needless to say that this title isn''t given easily." "I meant its applications." Noah couldn''t be bothered by the meaning behind his new status, he only wanted to know what it implied. "You have now the authority to punish or restrain your fellow disciples, as well as injuring them. You are still forbidden to kill them however, such decisions can only be ordered by us elders." Elder Iris'' words echoed in his mind. ''It gives me some leverage on the other captains at least, it should be enough to make them follow my orders.'' "Let''s go to the inventory, I need to empty my ring and retrieve some items." Elder Iris nodded at that order, she led Noah outside the patriarch''s habitation and through the passages connected to where all the wealth of the sect was stored. Marcia was waiting for their arrival on an area were the light radiated by the exoskeleton was less powerful, that sight was quite unusual for the environment of the sect. "Elder, Prince." Marcia bowed to both of them, she was the captain in charge of the faction handling the inventory but she still performed that polite gesture to Noah. "Open it." Elder Iris ordered, Marcia touched the wall behind her in specific spots before a formation lit up and the purple minerals moved, revealing a descending dark path. The three of them went in the passage, many inscriptions could be seen on its walls which illuminated that dark path. A large basin was at the end of the corridor, items of a various kind could be seen orderly stored there and surrounded by an intricate formation. "You can leave the items here, I''ll take care of putting them inside the formation according to the order needed." Marcia spoke and Noah didn''t waste time. All the items that he had decided to give to the sect were taken out in an orderly way with the help of the spirit automaton, the Credits, the precious drugs, the dragon'' corpses, a few weapons, all the scrolls related to the darkness element, and a copy of the fifth Kesier rune remained inside the ring. Noah inspected its contents, the wealth inside the ring remained incredible even after taking out all the useless items. ''If I was an ordinary cultivator or even one without lofty ambitions, the road to the fifth rank would be extremely simple with even a fraction of these items.'' Resources formed a pile in front of him while he was deep in thought, even Elder Iris was surprised when she became aware of the quality of some of those items. There were rank 5 weapons, drugs, and techniques after all! Elder Iris was still in the fourth rank, she couldn''t help but be attracted by some of them. Marcia, on the other hand, was completely amazed, her jaw hanged open as her eyes darted between the items of the Inheritance. However, Noah couldn''t be bothered to wait for their stupor to fade and directly asked for the things he needed. "I need all the darkness spells, cultivation techniques, and arts of the inventory. I will probably give them back soon but I would still like to inspect them." Chapter 417: 417. Conflic Noah quickly obtained what he had requested, Marcia didn''t avert her eyes from the pile of goods even when he left. He had finally obtained all he needed to go in seclusion and properly absorb the Inheritance, it was a pity that he had to start a war in six months. ''This timing is probably what Chasing Demon needs to learn the copying spell. Well, maybe he has increased it a little to give me more time to prepare.'' Noah explored the possibility that the patriarch had been somewhat kind to him as he walked alone through the corridors of the sect. He wasn''t going to return to his cave in the residential area for rank 2 cultivators nor was he going in the residential area for those in the third rank. He wasn''t even going to the training ground where his faction was, Noah needed a quiet place where to study his many spells, the disciples in the thieves'' faction were simply too noisy. Where he was heading to was another training ground. The Chasing Demon sect was large, it had many facilities that could help the cultivation of its disciples. Yet, they were accessible only to those willing to use merit points, Noah had saved for the fourth Kesier rune back then, he couldn''t afford those places. That was, of course, different now. Noah could freely use all the facilities of the sect, it took him just a few questions sent through his inscribed notebook to Roy to choose the area that suited him the most. The path to the training area forced him to cross some of the crowded areas of the sect, Noah felt many gazes on him as he uncaringly walked on the purple ground. Not many disciples knew Noah, he was quite famous among those in the second rank due to his battle with Perry but most of the captains had never seen him. Yet, the whispers that followed his passage soon informed everyone about his features, he was supposed to lead the human assets to war after all, recognizing him was somewhat required. "You are just a newly advanced rank 3 cultivator, don''t act so haughty." Of course, the matter of him being appointed as Demon Prince by the patriarch wasn''t something that had been happily accepted by everyone. Noah turned his head toward the cultivator that had spoken. He recognized Joel, the only survivor of the team sent by the defense faction. Joel had a dark expression when Noah looked at him, he spat on the ground and snorted when he saw that Noah continued his cold stare. ''He is right but I can''t appear weak.'' Noah sighed internally as he neared Joel, the latter was surprised to see that he had chosen to answer to his provocation. No words came out of his mouth, a black dragon suddenly tore Noah''s upper clothes and threw itself at Joel. There was no warning nor hesitation, Noah had directly attacked! Heilong pounced Joel but the latter was a solid stage cultivator, he snorted when he saw that the dragon only had the power of the lower tier. A sword appeared in his hands, its tip traced lines in the air as Joel waved it, the lines then clashed on Heilong, digging deep wounds on its scales. Generally speaking, small fights were allowed inside the sect as long as the cultivators contained themselves. That''s why Joel was surprised to discover that his tattoo burst with a menacing light and attacked his internal organs as soon as his attack hit Heilong. A mouthful of blood came out from his mouth, destabilizing him and preventing him from further battling against the dragon that had already regenerated. Heilong pushed Joel on the ground, its open mouth hung over his head like a guillotine ready to take his life. The bodies of the cultivators were far weaker than those of the magical beasts, any rank 4 creature was able to inflict a deadly blow to a rank 3 cultivator. Joel was confused, he had only reacted to Noah''s attack, he was completely on the right side in that situation. Yet, the tattoo had reacted to his actions while it didn''t mind Noah''s behavior, the latter stared coldly at the cultivator on the ground, no one could understand his thoughts from his expression. The truth was that Noah''s position as Demon Prince gave him special permissions and authority over the other cultivators, it didn''t allow for anyone in the sect to attack him. Heilong senses were shared with his, he suffered its same pain. Joel''s attack hurt Noah, triggering a reaction on his tattoo. The area where they were was near the residential area for rank 3 cultivators, the commotion generated by the fight had attracted the attention of many disciples and captains. A small crowd formed around Noah and Joel, the cultivators encircled the two of them, interested in what was happening. Noah sensed about fifty cultivators in the third rank around him, that number amounted to a bit less than half of all the rank 3 cultivators in the entirety of the sect. The separate dimension had hit hard the human assets of the sect, there were more than two hundred rank 3 cultivators before the dimension opened but now only a bit more than a hundred remained. Also, many of them were newly advanced cultivators that, just like Noah, had focused on their cultivation level to enter the dimension. ''I think I should make some sort of speech.'' Noah sighed internally as he thought of that, he was completely disinterested in having a social life but the patriarch had cornered him, giving him the position of a general. "Listen, I don''t like my status more than you do, I just wanted to cultivate in peace." Heilong returned inside his body as he spoke, even Joel paid attention to his words at that moment. "Yet, it is true that I was the one able to obtain the Inheritance. The will of our ancestor, Divine Demon, has personally expressed his disappointment toward our power and the patriarch agrees with his view. The incoming war won''t only establish our domain over the archipelago, but it will also forge your attitude, making you all more similar to the demons that should fill an unorthodox sect." Noah spoke the truth, many of those that had survived inside the Inheritance lowered their gazes in shame, after all, Noah had succeeded where they had failed and he was only in the gaseous stage! "Rest, analyze your battle style, improve as much as you can, a high cultivation level is useless if you can''t express its power! In six months, weakness won''t be tolerated!" Noah ended his speech and sent a series of cold gazes to the cultivators around him. Then, he simply left, the crowd created a path for him when he moved toward the training area that he had chosen. Chapter 418: 418. Pi Noah sat on top of his "Breath" blessing at the bottom of a bright but narrow area. He was at the bottom of what seemed a pit, he had to use Heilong''s wings to safely reach that place and he couldn''t lay down since there wasn''t enough space for him to stretch. Yet, that was the training area that he had chosen. The pit was in one of the deepest parts of the exoskeleton, in what was supposed to be the leg of the dead beast. Being so close to the sea and at such a depth created an environment rich of "Breath", its density surpassed that of Bruce''s cave when the "Breath" blessing was out in the open. Also, the purple light radiated by the walls was almost blinding, the mental sphere of a cultivator would be under heavy pressure in that place. That training area was also used as a special punishment for certain cultivators, being at the bottom of a deep pit, unable to lay down, and under the constant assault of the purple light could break most cultivators'' morale on the long run. However, that place met all of Noah''s requirements. The density of "Breath" there would be amazing even for solid stage cultivators, it reached the limits of what rank 3 cultivators were able to absorb without suffering injuries. The pressure applied by the light forced the mental sphere to oppose it, such a constant effort would increase the sturdiness of its walls, allowing for longer training sessions that used the Kesier rune. Also, that area was completely isolated, disciples would rarely venture at the top of the pit, it was impossible to be disturbed at its bottom. Noah opened his mouth and exhaled a mouthful of a multicolored gas. The gas then dispersed in the air and Noah relaxed, supporting his head on the wall behind him. ''He said not to make the breakthrough in the heroic ranks with a technique created by someone else but he has never said that I can''t use it before that.'' Noah wore a faint smile as he thought that, the feeling of improving his training speed had always put him in a good mood. The reason behind that improvement was the new cultivation technique that he was using. ''As expected from a rank 4 cultivation technique, its efficiency surpasses any rank 3 technique, no matter if unorthodox or not.'' A book appeared in his hands after that conclusion, Noah swept through its pages but a disappointed expression appeared on his face when he reached a certain point. The book in his hands contained the description of the rank 4 cultivation technique Dark convergence! Noah had ultimately decided to use it to replace his Dantian''s opening, Dark convergence was simply a better technique. Cultivating faster and without the need to injure the dantian, Noah would be a fool if he decided to keep using the unorthodox technique. ''I should be fine if I use it till my breakthrough in the solid stage, I hope Divine Demon didn''t expect me to stop cultivating until I created a technique.'' Noah decided and put the book away, he wanted to see if he managed to understand the part related to the heroic ranks after practicing it but he obtained no results. The part related to the human ranks was quite simple, Noah had to form a rotating sphere around his dantian with his "Breath" which would attract the "Breath" in the environment. That energy would be filtered by the sphere so that only the "Breath" of the darkness element could enter, all the leftover had to be expelled through his mouth. A scroll appeared in his hands after he put the book away, a bit of eagerness could be seen in his eyes when he studied its contents. The scroll contained the diagram of the rank 0 spell Shadow steps, a spell that he had already analyzed in the past to create his martial art. Yet, Noah wanted to see if he could learn more from it thanks to the Divine deduction technique. As for why his first thought concerned the Shadow steps spell, it was because Noah wanted to increase his battle prowess as much as he could before the war. To do that, he had to remove the limitations of his martial art and become able to perform it while flying. Noah now had a rank 4 creature as a Blood companion, Heilong''s wings were powerful, the speed at which he flew had surpassed his running speed thanks to them. Magical beasts had stronger bodies compared to cultivators, the power contained in Heilong''s wings far surpassed that of Noah''s legs. However, if Noah was to improve the Shadow sprint art and use it while flying, his speed in the air would skyrocket! Noah began to trace the lines of the diagram with his eyes, last time he had only focused on isolating the propulsion effect contained in the circles that appeared under his feet, but now he wanted to completely understand the spell. After all, he was only a rank 2 mage when he first attempted to study the diagram and he didn''t have the technique of a God! The lines of the diagram began to appear over the sea in his sea of consciousness but Noah''s half-transparent figure quickly moved them toward the inscriptions on the walls. The inscriptions sucked the lines right away and mental energy was consumed to activate its capabilities. A stream of information entered Noah''s mind, Noah felt as if he was able to understand the creator''s intentions when he drew the diagram. Also, the meaning behind those lines became clear, Noah felt the urge to start over the testing of his martial art. However, while he was focused on that incredible state, his mental energy continued to be depleted until it eventually reached a critical quantity, awakening Noah from his deductions. ''This fairness of Heaven and Earth sure is annoying.'' Noah cursed when he saw the pitiful state of the sea inside his mind, about sixty percent of it had been expended while he analyzed the diagram. ''It takes almost all my mental energy to study the diagram of a rank 0 spell but there are no dangerous repercussions and it''s an extremely quick procedure. I don''t lack drugs to refill my sphere and I can always ask for more of them from the sect¡­ Six months, I must become able to defeat solid stage cultivators in six months.'' It was with that determination that Noah took a potion from his ring and gulped its contents before resuming his training. Chapter 419: 419. Preparations In the six months that followed, the political situation of the archipelago was particularly tense. Generally speaking, retrieving an Inheritance from such a dangerous dimension would boost the power of any organization by a few levels. After all, the Chasing Demon had recently broken through the sixth rank, it was normal to think that beings at that level weren''t many in the archipelago considering that his sect was one of the strongest in the Hive. The Inheritance contained spells and resources up to the fifth rank, the power of any organization would instantly reach the apex of the archipelago after obtaining it. Yet, the dimension had closed and no consequences occurred. What was even stranger was that no exotic or powerful item had appeared in the markets of the islands in that period, excluding the possibility that a weak organization had succeeded in the trials. That calm, coupled with the fact that every organization has suffered huge losses for what concerned their human assets, led to a tense atmosphere. Noah was still cultivating in the pit, he had climbed on the surface of the training area only when he needed to test some of his deductions. A mental message arrived on his inscribed notebook, Noah listened to its contents before standing up and storing his "Breath" blessing. He knew that the time to attack had come! Heilong''s wings appeared behind his back, they supported Noah as he climbed where he could completely unfold his wings and fly back to the surface. "I hope your seclusion gave good results, Prince." Roy greeted him with a bow when he saw the winged figure coming out in the open and landing in front of him, Noah simply nodded at that gesture before speaking. "Did the elders already make a battle plan?" "Yes, the information is here." Roy handed Noah a simple-looking scroll but that caused a reaction in his horned face. Noah controlled his tattoo and made it touch the surface of the sheet, a series of information entered his mind as the connection was maintained. Even though Noah had been appointed to lead the human assets to war, he didn''t have the authority nor the knowledge to make battle plans. The truth was that Noah was simply following orders, human cultivators were just pawns in the eyes of those in the heroic ranks, the real battles would be fought in a realm where he couldn''t interfere. Yet, human cultivators reflected the power of an organization, winning the battle in the human ranks would show which organization had the best foundation. As for the battle in the heroic ranks, the Chasing Demon sect had a mighty rank 6 cultivator, Noah didn''t think that their heroic assets were lacking compared to the other organizations. "Inform everyone, we will attack in three days." Noah ordered as he stored the sheet, Roy wanted to question him about that delay but stopped himself when he realized the state Noah was in. Pale skin, large eye bags, a seemingly ill complexion, Noah appeared completely exhausted and drained of any energy. Even his weight had been affected, his soft facial features had become sharp due to how caved his cheeks were. "As you order. In three days, I''ll gather everyone in front of the cave that has been specifically prepared for you in the residential area for rank 3 cultivators. Do you want me to send Byron or some outer disciple to attend you? Your hair has grown quite a bit." Roy commented when he saw Noah''s aspect but the latter shook his head as he moved toward his cave before adding something. "They already know that I''m here, there is no point in changing my aspect anymore. I''ll keep my hair long, that''s how I like them." . . . Noah''s reappearance created a wave of rumors that engulfed the sect again. His return simply meant one thing: Battle was near! Yet, some concern rose due to Noah''s aspect, he didn''t appear as someone ready to lead his troops. Nevertheless, six months ago Noah had clearly expressed his stance. He was following the orders of the patriarch who had been inspired by his master, no cultivator dared to defy Noah''s position when they learnt that. Three days passed quickly, Noah focused his everything in returning to his peak form, he had really gone all out in those six months. He had cultivated and trained his mental sphere without break, using the many drugs in his ring to keep those centers of power healthy. He had activated the Divine deduction technique at least once a day, relying on potions to make up for the consumption of mental energy. He had also tested his deductions from time to time, that training schedule had inevitably affected his aspect, especially considering that he had barely eaten or slept during that period. Two days were spent to return to his normal aspect, long periods of sleep and a large amount of nutrient food did the trick. It had to be said that Byron didn''t let go of that food happily but Noah''s contributions to the sect had far surpassed what merit points could evaluate, he was simply forced to prepare the best meals that he was capable of. The last day of rest was spent analyzing the reports of the events occurred in his six months of seclusion. The situation in the archipelago seemed to be in a sort of stalemate, every organization was wary of the others, all the different forces seemed to be bombs ready to explode. After all, they could only be sure that they didn''t obtain the Inheritance, anyone else could just be lying. Also, the dimension had closed, the focus of the organizations went back on the islands and, since everyone had been somewhat weakened, there seemed to be a lack of manpower everywhere. Noah came out of his cave before the sunset of the third day, Roy wore an inscribed black robe as he stood in front of a hundred or so rank 3 cultivators. Those cultivators were the full power of the human assets of the sect, all the captains were forced to gather there due to the orders of the elders. The elder''s battle plan was clear but Noah had to divide the captains according to their power and assign specific tasks, it was needless to say that the plan forced Noah to take care of the most valuable parts. "Make way, form a circle! I''ll give a task to each one of you. Complete it or die trying! In one week, all the peripheral islands of the Coral archipelago must carry the banner of the Chasing Demon sect!" It was with that speech that Noah entered the crowd of captains and began to explain the battle plan. Chapter 420: 420. Siege On one of the peripheral islands of the archipelago, about two hundred cultivators were sitting on the floor of a large hall inside a seemingly ruined building. Peripheral islands were generally the poorest in the archipelago, only weak and poor cultivators inhabited them and their quality of life could be even worse than that of commoners. Yet, that island had some luxurious buildings on its surface, it was clear that some powerful organization had set an important facility there. To be more specific, that island was a dock used by the Shandal Empire as its main connection with the continent, it was needless to say that it was far better protected than the other peripheral islands. Noah sat in the middle of the crowd of cultivators with a map in front of him. There were about fifteen rank 3 cultivators around him while the others in the crowd were all in the second rank. Between the many groups formed for the assault on the islands, that one was the strongest. Of course, that implied that their task was more dangerous. Noah''s role was clear, he had to lead the human assets, one way to do that was to take care of the most troublesome issues. "We will encircle the building and focus our spells on its surface, the protective formation should break after a few rounds of attacks." Noah explained the plan to the other captains, they would lead part of the rank 2 cultivators in their respective tasks. "The defensive formation will give enough time for the soldiers on the island to gather in our position, that''s your signal." Noah pointed at three captains. They were tasked with the destruction of the teleportation matrixes, isolating the island was needed to prevent the arrival of reinforcements. "We have far more rank 2 cultivators than them. Your role is to overwhelm them with your numbers and salvage as many resources as you can before they manage to destroy them. I and the other captains will take care of their rank 3 assets." Noah finished his explanation. The plan was rather straightforward, there was no need for complex battle formations, it was a simple full-power offensive. Yet, that was possible only because the other teams would take care of the islands belonging to the Shandal Empire and connected with this one, the organizations on the archipelago didn''t have the power to defend so many areas at the same time. "Uncover your faces, we are done hiding underground or behind the Hive. We will take this island in the name of the Chasing Demon sect." Noah spoke again and lowered his hood, his delicate facial features had returned to their normal state after three days of complete rest and his cold attitude was completely reflected by his icy eyes. Black hair fell on his face, his aspect was slowly returning to the one that he used to have in the Utra nation. The other cultivators were slightly inspired by his words, being powerful but unable to use that power had weighted on their minds for a long time. Also, they had to always be careful when venturing on the surface, the legal organizations wouldn''t let go of a member of the Hive when they found it. Noah stood up, his gaze went on a fissure on the wall, he could see the sun slowly disappearing on the horizon. "It''s time, focus and try not to die." The crowd stood up and followed Noah outside the building. Three rank 3 cultivators separated from the group and went in the direction of the teleportation matrixes on the island, they would wait until the soldiers defending them left their position to help in the siege of the central buildings before destroying the formations. Meanwhile, Noah ran toward the luxurious buildings followed by the remaining disciples. Two rank 3 cultivators in the solid stage stood at his sides, they were the strongest warriors in his team and had the additional role of protecting Noah in case of danger. Two hundred cultivators running in the direction of the core facilities of the island wasn''t something that went unnoticed. Shouts and alarms immediately filled the island but no soldier dared to approach the disciples of the Chasing Demon sect as they reached for the formation, there were simply too many of them! Noah raised his hand as his targets became closer in his view, "Breath" and mental energy were expended as a black ray shot from his index and landed on the surface of the building. The lines of a formation lit up where the ray landed, they flickered as they tried to block the piercing spell, revealing part of their form. There were runes with a floral shape in certain areas of the formation, they radiated the energy that fueled the defensive formation. "Focus the flowers, attack!" Noah ordered as soon as the formation stopped shining, his Dark ray spell had been successfully blocked but a minute fuming mark had appeared on the surface of the building anyway. The cultivators behind him didn''t hesitate, they launched their most precise attacks, focusing the runes that had been revealed previously. A torrent of shining attacks shot from the cultivators, it was as if a messy rainbow had been created due to the many colors carried by those strikes. The runes flickered to no end, their light dimmed when the energy needed to repel the attacks was expended. "Again!" Noah''s voice sounded a second time, another series of attacks was launched and landed on the runes. The flowers on the formation began to lose their petals, that was the sign that the reserves of energy contained in the runes were reaching a critical state. Also, some cracks began to appear on their surface, it didn''t seem as if the formation would be able to hold much longer. "Again!" Another order, another series of attacks. That time, the cultivators successfully managed to destroy five of the runes that formed the core of that side of the formation. The shining lines that surrounded them slowly lost their light and began to fall apart, the precious materials used for their creation fell from the surface of the building and broke when they landed on the ground. The formation had been breached! Yet, that took some time, enough for the soldiers on the island to gather in that position and surround Noah''s group. About thirty rank 2 cultivators came out of the buildings and another thirty gathered there, leaving their position on the island. About seven rank 3 cultivators came out in the open with only one of them in the solid stage. "Prince, leave her to me." One of the solid stage cultivators next to Noah said, pointing toward the woman in the solid stage. However, Noah shook his head and took a step forward. "No, I''ll handle her." Chapter 421: 421. Black hole Noah had never been in charge of a team, he had always been forced to rely on himself. Yet, he knew which was the most important quality that a leader had to have: Strength! The battle plan had been prepared by the elder of the sect, he didn''t have a say in that matter. The information about the defensive formation had been provided by Holly and her faction, its destruction wasn''t something that could be added to his merits. However, if he wanted the other captains to follow his every order, he needed to show that he was worthy of the title of Demon Prince! As for why he cared about that, it was because he needed the complete support of the sect. Noah''s identity had been revealed and he had already given away part of the Inheritance, he had obtained incredible benefits thanks to that but he didn''t know for how long the sect would permit such an overbearing behavior. Even the patriarch with his easygoing attitude could suddenly decide that he wasn''t worth the many resources that he expended. After all, Noah was a criminal in the Utra nation and a troublemaker in the Shandal Empire, the only reason why heroic cultivators weren''t after him was that he was still in the human ranks. Yet, if he managed to maintain the complete support of the sect through his feats, he would have the backing of a rank 6 existence! That alone would scare away many of his pursuers, after all, who would want the enmity of the Chasing Demon in exchange for a single human cultivator? Also, Noah didn''t hate the idea of taking control of the archipelago, that place would become a safe nation where he could make steady progress without fearing unexpected ambushes. The solid stage cultivator was a bit surprised by his words but Noah suddenly disappeared from his view. ''Such speed!'' Those were the thoughts of the solid stage cultivator as wind swept his hair, his gaze unconsciously went in the direction where Noah had gone. Noah was in the air, a pair of large black wings flapped on his back and his legs casually kicked the air, creating circular shockwaves under his feet. What surprised the cultivator the most was that Noah accelerated every time he kicked, small dark spheres appeared under his feet whenever his legs were about to stretch completely. Most of Shadow steps, a small part of Blind, about half of Dark empowerment, and the last part of Forced harmonization, the diagrams of four different rank 0 spells had been analyzed by Noah who had taken the lines he was interested in and recomposed to create an improved version of the Shadow sprint! During six months of seclusion, Noah had mostly focused on his centers of power but he didn''t forget to improve his combat abilities. The new Shadow sprint martial art didn''t need a foothold to be performed, the cloud created by the Blind spell would be condensed by the effect of Forced harmonization and imbued with the effects of the Shadow steps. Also, Dark empowerment simplified the movement that Noah needed to perform to obtain that result, replacing the previous form with a simple kick. Of course, Noah would have never obtained such a great result in that short amount of time without the Divine deduction technique. The inscriptions on the walls of his sphere not only analyzed the diagrams at an unimaginable speed, but they also gave him many inspirations on how to recompose the lines he was interested in. That method couldn''t be used to create new spells but Noah had managed to link those lines that had different sources with his body, obtaining a powerful martial art. He was still using the theory behind the Elemental forging method to activate its effects, the consumption of the "Breath" inside his sea of consciousness had increased but the improvements far overcame that flaw. After all, Noah flying speed was surpassing that of a rank 4 magical beast in the middle tier and it seemed to be increasing even! That speed though wasn''t entirely thanks to his martial art, his wings also played a big role. The wings of a rank 4 creature and a rank 4 martial art, it was as if a magical beast was using a real martial art! Noah arrived on top of the group of rank 3 cultivators of the Empire in no time, his mental energy was expended as lines appeared in the air around them and began to emit an ominous dark light. The seven cultivators felt as if their bodies were being weakened under the dark halo and quickly moved to leave the rectangle that had formed around them. However, when the cultivator in the solid stage was about to exit the area, a fuming ethereal slash dug a deep cut on the ground in front of her, blocking her path. She turned her head to look at the winged man in the air, his cold gaze was fixed on her, it was clear that she was his target. Meanwhile, a battle exploded around her, the rank 3 cultivator from the Chasing Demon sect attacked the six that had escaped Noah''s Death area spell while those in the second rank overwhelmed the soldiers on their level. The outcome of the battle was basically decided, the soldiers of the Empire didn''t have a chance to win unless some backup arrived from the other islands. The only option was to stall for time! "Hmph, you are only in the gaseous stage, know your place!" The woman snorted when she saw Noah''s level, she felt that her enemy had underestimated her. A phoenix made of yellow flames formed in front of her and flew in the air, trying to reach for the winged man. Noah felt the terrifying power behind that spell, he knew that Heilong would be destroyed a few times before it could block it. Yet, using his Blood companion had never been his intention. A black dot appeared in front of him, his image behind the dot began to curve due to the suction force exuded by the spell. Then, the dot enlarged. It first reached the size of a fist, then that of a human head. It stopped growing only after it became as big as a man''s chest. The light around the now sphere curved and was sucked inside, only Noah seemed immune to its suction force. The phoenix couldn''t maintain its trajectory, its flames were slowly absorbed by the Black hole spell before its entire body disappeared in the darkness of the sphere. Chapter 422: 422. Fighting a solid stage As the woman''s spell was absorbed by the sphere, its entire composition was destroyed and turned into pure energy. Noah felt a mixture of "Breath" and mental energy entering his body, the Black hole spell allowed him to momentarily store those energies. Yet, even in that pure form, those energies didn''t belong to him. Noah felt as if his body was going to explode while he resisted the urge to dispel the energies in the air, he had a far better use for them. The world in his eyes slowed as he performed an extremely fast slash with all his sabers fused into one. The veins on his arms exploded, the muscles under his skin were torn, and he also felt as if his bones were cracking, the woman was in the solid stage after all, his body at the apex of the lower tier was barely able to handle the energy that her spell contained. Yet, black veins quickly filled Noah''s entire body, they empowered his condition and increased his recovery by a large margin, some of the wounds caused by the execution of the Third Form healed while he was still completing that gesture. The woman felt a dangerous sensation coming from the winged man, her instincts told her that she had to avoid that attack! However, the Death area spell affected her condition and even her thinking speed, she realized what was happening one second too late. After all, she had been surprised since her spell had been blocked, it took her some time to realize that her own power was being used to power the enemy''s attack. A fuming mark appeared on the ground, black smoke came out from it, devouring everything in the area. ''As expected from a solid stage cultivator, they aren''t easy to surprise.'' Noah thought when he saw that a wall of yellow flames had appeared before his attack could reach the cultivator. The flames detonated when they clashed with the Third Form, dissipating a large amount of its power. The woman''s figure became visible after the flames dissipated, part of her robe had been burned during the explosion and deep wound was on her shoulder. However, the smoke released by the mark and from her wound was restricted by tongues of yellow flames, it seemed that the woman was able to fight the corrosive effects of the Demonic form! Her attitude though wasn''t as arrogant as before. She inspected the gaseous stage cultivator in the air with wary eyes, only then did she realize that there were two aspects of him able to threaten her life. The first one was his mental sphere, it was unusually strong for his cultivation level, she felt as if the enemy was a stronger mage than her. The second one was the pair of real sabers wielded in two of his six arms. They looked rather simple, with no handle nor inscriptions, they seemed just sharp black slabs. Yet, she could feel that they matched her level. ''Rank 3 inscribed weapons in the upper tier! He even has two of them!'' The woman realized that when she inspected those blades, they didn''t look like inscribed items but the power they held was unmistakable. Those were the new Demonic swords that Noah had forged during his six months of seclusion! It took the help of the sect to purchase their core material, the Undead chameleon bones, they had to use their contacts in the continent to obtain it. Yet, every other material used in the forging came from the dragon''s corpses of the darkness element contained in the Inheritance. Also, Noah had used the peak rank 4 corpses which made up for the gaseous "Breath" used in the forging, allowing his blades to reach the upper tier of the third rank anyway. Of course, forging while using materials so powerful would be hard considering Noah''s level, yet, he managed to reduce the number of failures thanks to the Divine deduction technique. Noah had relied on the technique to enhance his thinking speed and find the mistakes in the forging, as well as solutions to them. It had taken him only six forgings before he was able to create his new weapons, that feat alone showed how useful Divine Demon''s technique was. Noah saw that the woman had no intention of attacking and decided to dive toward her, his descending speed was incredible due to the continued usage of his martial art. The solid stage cultivator wasn''t slow in her reaction though, she had already prepared a spell in advance since her mental faculties were affected in that area. Four flaming spears appeared in the air in front of her and she wielded an inscribed hammer as she waited for Noah to dodge her spell. Noah saw the spears shooting in his direction but he didn''t dodge, Heilong came out of his body and stood in the spell''s trajectory. Its body was pierced, its improved defensive proprieties could do nothing against a spell powered by solid "Breath", the spears pieced its scales and came out from the other side of its body. The woman prepared herself, she waited for Noah to came out from the dragon''s back. Yet, she felt a sudden dangerous sensation from behind her. She instinctively swung her hammer in that position only to see that black flames had appeared behind her back and that Noah was almost done performing his attack. ''Even inside the Death area, she was able to react¡­ Impressive.'' Noah praised the woman internally, he knew that fighting a cultivator in the solid stage would be hard but, even with all his methods, he had only been able to hurt her once. Noah saw the hammer closing with his face, he knew that her attack would arrive before his but he still kept going. When the hammer was about to hit him, his entire body became ethereal and passed through her attack. Even his weapons became ethereal, Noah easily passed through her body as he continued in his way. The woman was surprised but she still pressed on, she waved her hammer to follow Noah''s figure, waiting for the moment when he could be hit again. However, right when she was turning, she felt a grip on her heart, as if a hand was squeezing that organ. Her attack was interrupted as blood came out of her mouth, she could only watch as Noah returned real and stared at her with bloodshot eyes. Chapter 423: 423. Losses The woman felt a piercing shockwave crashing on her mental sphere, she was able to resist the mental attack only after a small crack on the wall of her sea of consciousness was created. She had also closed her eyes while she resisted the Mental tremor spell, a fuming slash was in front of her when she opened them. In that fraction of an instant before Noah''s attack hit her, the woman let go of every restraint and exploded with her full power. A phoenix began to form in the trajectory of the slash and she used the hammer in her hands to perform a quick but powerful attack. Noah''s slash cut through the half-formed phoenix, the spell wasn''t completed yet so it was destroyed quite easily. However, the yellow flames that made its body consumed part of the power contained in the attack. Then, the slash clashed with the hammer, the woman lost her balance due to the Death area around her and was flung away, landing on the ground at a few meters of distance. The woman left the Death area in that last clash but she wasn''t able to savor that moment since she realized that the inscriptions on her weapon had been broken, it was only a normal hammer now. Also, she felt an external force squeezing her heart, blood flowed out of her mouth as her organ was injured again. Her situation was quite bad: Her mental sphere had a crack, his heart was slightly injured, and the wound on her shoulder had never fully healed. She was outside the Death area though, she could use her full power now! The woman quickly stood up, she stared at the winged man with a venomous gaze as she prepared herself to counterattack. "I would lay down that broken weapon if I was you." A voice sounded next to her and she turned only to see a man in the solid stage looking at her with a curious gaze. Only then did she realize that the battles around her had ended, her mental energy swept the battlefield, the pain coming from the crack on her sphere didn''t prevent her from realizing that she was the only soldier of the Empire left alive. The Chasing Demon sect had killed everyone while she was busy fighting Noah! Twelve rank 3 cultivators surrounded her, a bitter smile appeared on her face when she understood that no reinforcements had arrived. "Capture her and bring her to the sect, she might have valuable information. I expect a report with our losses in an hour." Noah ordered before turning toward the raided building and leaving the battlefield under everyone''s gaze. The rank 2 cultivators directly bowed at his passage, they had watched his battle and felt deep admiration even if they didn''t completely understand the difference in the cultivation level between him and the woman. The cultivators in the third rank were different, they knew that Noah was only in the gaseous stage and they were aware of the difference in power between each stage. They watched Noah with interest, he didn''t defeat the woman but he had been able to keep her busy for a few minutes. That gave the chance to the other captains to quickly defeat the rank 3 soldiers. Also, the woman was the strongest of them, using a gaseous stage cultivator to isolate her was an incredible accomplishment. Many of them had never seen Noah before the events concerning the Demon Prince and were doubtful about his actual power. However, when they saw that he was able to fight solid stage cultivators while being in the gaseous stage, most of those doubts were solved. Noah was still weak but it was clear how promising he was! Meanwhile, Noah quickly walked through the corridors of the raided building, looking for a place where to rest. The truth was that his cold appearance was only a fa?ade, he felt incredibly tired due to the battle that he had just fought. After all, he had used the Death area for the entire duration of the battle, Warp, Ghostly claws, Black hole, Dark ray, Mental tremor, Ethereal form, and the partial Demonic form! All those spells were used while fighting a solid stage cultivator and performing his two rank 4 martial arts, it was obvious that his condition wasn''t optimal. Yet, he didn''t want the others to see him in his moments of weakness, he wanted to build the image of a prodigy leading the army of demons, he couldn''t appear tired in front of them. ''Even with all my methods, I was still unable to kill her.'' Noah thought as he entered a room and sat on the floor. There was the corpse of one of the rank 2 soldiers of the Empire in the room but Noah didn''t mind it, he just wanted to refill his dantian in peace for the time being. As for his mental sphere, he chose not to use his many potions, their best usage was when he performed the Divine deduction technique so he would rather let his mental energy refill normally after the battle. An hour passed quickly and the two cultivators in the solid stage in his team appeared at the entrance of the room where he was cultivating. They had restrained the woman from the Empire and learnt about her injuries, traces of respect could be seen in their eyes as they stared Noah. "Speak." Noah ordered without opening his eyes nor interrupting his cultivation. "We lost fifteen rank 2 cultivators and a captain is heavily wounded. However, we''ve managed to retrieve all the resources contained here before they were able to destroy it. Also, all the teleportation matrixes have been destroyed, only those of our sect remain on the island." One of the solid stage cultivators spoke, Noah couldn''t help but shake his head when he heard the report. ''How did they even manage to die? They were two hundred against sixty! Divine Demon was right, the sect has too many useless disciples.'' "What about the other islands?" "All the other teams have completed their missions and isolated the islands, their losses aren''t heavy either." Noah nodded at that report and gestured for the cultivators to leave. ''Six more days to go, six more solid stage cultivators to face.'' In the solitude of the conquered structure, Noah pondered about his next moves. Chapter 424: 424. Plan The first part of the elders'' plan was simple: The human assets of the sect had to isolate the peripheral islands of the archipelago by destroying the teleportation matrixes on their surface and by defeating the forces belonging to the other organizations. Without the matrixes, the only route available toward those islands would be the sea but that matter was left to the cultivators in the heroic ranks to handle. After all, swimming was already prohibited, the other organizations could only ask for the help of the continent. Yet, the continent was far away while the Chasing Demon sect had been abrupt with its attack, help wouldn''t be able to arrive in time. Nine islands fell on the hands of the Chasing Demon sect during the first day of battle, the organizations belonging to the Empire suffered heavy losses in the process as almost thirty rank 3 cultivators had been killed. "Today we will target the peripheral islands controlled by the legal organizations of the Papral nation. They have deployed more troops after yesterday''s attack so don''t expect the battle to be as easy." Noah spoke to his fellow captains in the residential area for rank 3 cultivators in the sect. He was assigning the various tasks to each captain and forming the teams to send to each island. Of course, most of those assignments had already been planned by the elders, there wasn''t much decision making in his choices. One thing he noticed though was that the captains had begun to look at him with strange gazes. The news of his battle against the solid stage woman wasn''t spread to the other organizations but the members of his sect had been informed about that rather quickly, it only took a day for the captains to be aware of his feat. Some of them were still doubtful, matching a solid stage cultivator with gaseous "Breath" seemed completely impossible in their view. Yet, they were starting to believe that Noah didn''t retrieve the Inheritance out of luck, the young-looking man surrounded by a cold aura had some talent at least. Of course, having talent and being willingly accepted as a leader were two different things, it would take time before Noah was able to thoroughly convince them that he was worthy of his title. That, on the other hand, didn''t bother Noah too much. He had already decided to show his battle prowess in the fights, that was all he could do at the moment. Also, he was one of the few captains that was aware of the reason behind their focus on the peripheral islands. Those who had reached the seabed in the separate dimension had some suspects but only Noah was certain about their purpose: They had to empty those territories of enemy troops to prepare the archipelago for the copying technique! The battle of the second day was far harsher. Most of the peripheral islands of the archipelago were worthless, they were used as docks by the many rank 1 cultivators that worked as sailors or simple merchants. Yet, there were a few of them which had valuables structures for each organization. Noah was tasked once again to lead the biggest group in one of those important islands, thirty rank 3 cultivators and more than three hundred disciples in the second rank were with him that time. The reason behind such a force was that the organizations in the other islands had become wary of any possible attack after the branches of the Empire were destroyed, they had gathered their troops on the islands with valuable structures, leaving completely defenseless the other useless ones. Their target that day was a deposit where precious materials were stored, that organization of the Papral nation gathered the resources aimed for the wealthy markets, the deposit contained all the resources that had yet to be sorted out. The defensive formation fell rather quickly, the Chasing Demon sect had its roots on the Papral nation after all, it was experienced about those kinds of formations. However, Noah''s group soon found about twenty cultivators in the third rank waiting for them, the number of solders in the second rank reached one hundred and fifty. Noah once again charged toward the strongest in the enemy group, a cultivator in the solid stage with water aptitude fought him with everything he had but Noah''s defense seemed impenetrable. The Black hole spell protected him from any attack that he couldn''t dodge or that was too powerful, allowing him to counterattack using the energy absorbed. The Ethereal form spell saved him from any close-range attack, the cultivator''s sword had never been able to touch his body for the entire duration of the battle. Also, ethereal claws were constantly hidden inside his attacks, they slowly wounded the cultivator while Noah tried to force an opening in his defense. The internal wounds of the cultivator began to accumulate and he didn''t have a large variety of attacks methods, Noah''s flying speed was enough to render most of his offensive useless. Then, another series of Ghostly claws were hidden behind his Third Form, the surface of the water shield of the cultivator wavered as he spat a mouthful of blood, giving Noah enough time to near him. A shockwave was sent by his eyes and landed on the mental sphere of the cultivator, the water shield completely collapsed at that point and Noah cut with his sabers toward him. The cultivator managed to recover at the last second but he was weaker than the woman from the previous day, Noah''s fuming slash managed to pierce the reformed water shield and land of the cultivator. Its trajectory though was slightly affected by the man''s spell, Noah''s Third Form was only able to hit his elbow, cleanly severing his arm on that point. The solid stage cultivator became furious at the sight of his severed arm being consumed by the black smoke exuded by Noah''s attack, he was about to charge at Noah when three solid stage cultivators surrounded him. Only then did he realize that the battle around him was over, his side had lost and he was the only survivor. "Kill him, we don''t need to investigate him." Noah ordered and turned to leave, the curses of the man behind him reached his ears but he couldn''t be bothered by them, his complete concentration was on his balance, he was so drained that he was barely able to walk! Chapter 425: 425. Reasons Why was Noah able to fight solid stage cultivators even if his dantian was still in the gaseous stage? There were many reasons. The most influential ones were his aptitude and the level of his mental sphere. Noah had always been advantaged when it came to the sea of consciousness, the level of his mind didn''t match at all the normal level that gaseous stage cultivators would have, many of them were still rank 2 mages after all. Also, his element expressed more power than the others, the huge depletion of mental energy and "Breath" was a normal consequence to those more powerful effects. Then, there was the variety of spells that he had and the rank 3 Demonic swords in the upper tier. Noah had profited greatly from the Inheritance, especially when it came to his defensive methods: Heilong, the Ethereal form spell, and the Black hole spell were amazing defensive methods that Noah could apply for any different threat, it could be even said that his defense had no flaws now! In the end, there was his improved martial art with his flying ability. Heilong was a rank 4 magical beast, its wings were strong enough to make the huge body of a dragon fly! When they were coupled with a martial art in the fourth rank and with a relatively light body, the speed that Noah was capable of even surpassed that of magical beasts in the same rank. All these factors allowed him to explode with a burst of power that could match solid stage cultivators for a short time! His large variety of spells allowed him to fight safely in every situation and to find a flaw in his opponent''s defense. His martial art allowed him to avoid most of his opponent''s attacks when he was in the air, making him also able to escape at will. His new weapons gave him the ability to execute attacks that almost reached the solid stage, making them a threat even for solid stage cultivators. Of course, that explosive power couldn''t be supported for a long time by his centers of power. His mental sphere wasn''t that of a problem, its level was high for a cultivator in the third rank and Noah smartly used spells that mostly required mental energy for their execution to exploit his advantage. Yet, the "Breath" stored in his dantian simply wasn''t enough to fuel all his spells. The mental sphere set the power of his spells, leading to huge consumptions of "Breath" since his dantian was on a lower level. That''s why, even if his many methods allowed him to obtain some sort of initial advantage against solid stage cultivators, he wasn''t able to sustain those fights till their end. ''I went a bit over my limits today... Well, nothing I could do, the organization from the Papral nation was prepared.'' Noah thought as he found an empty room in the raided deposit and sat on the floor. A simple looking potion appeared in his hands and he directly drank its contents, the potion was quite precious but it was the least precious one in Noah''s ring. The drug increased the quantity of mental energy produced for a short time, Noah needed it to start refilling his dantian immediately. ''Being in the gaseous stage is a bother but I''ve just reached this stage, I won''t be surprised if I was to face the Earth Tribulation before entering the solid stage.'' The amazing sensation of having the fatigue of his mind slowly swept away by the potion gave Noah time to think about his future prospects. ''I might have a clearer picture of the heroic ranks after I become able to see the world behind the layer around the human ranks, I wonder if I should just wait for the breakthrough.'' Noah had made no progress in the creation of a cultivation technique. It was true that its creation hadn''t been his focus in the six months of seclusion before the war, Noah had used the Divine deduction technique only to improve his martial art and to reduce the number of mistakes in the forging of his new weapons. Yet, it was also true that he didn''t have many ideas about it, the cultivation technique from the Inheritance and the one that he found in the inventory of the sect gave him a general idea but he still didn''t know how he could affect the "Breath" contained in the matter. As for what concerned a body-nourishing method, Noah was even more lost. Methods that improved the body were very different from each other, they didn''t need just better "Breath" but also some specific application that would ultimately modify the nature of his body. For example, Noah had the chance to choose between two rank 4 body-nourishing methods when he was in the academy: The Way of the phantom, which produced effects similar to his current Ethereal form spell, and the Yin body. He had ultimately chosen the Yin body because he preferred to improve his survivability but the differences between those two methods were clear. Even the two rank 4 methods that he found in the Inheritance and the one retrieved from the inventory followed that behavior, they used the "Breath" absorbed through the nourishing method to modify the body in specific and different ways, they weren''t limited to a simple enlargement or improvement like with the other two centers of power. Also, Noah didn''t want to limit himself to create a method that just improved his body, he wanted something that gave him additional effects like his Yin body. The additional effects were the sign of a top tier nourishing method after all, Noah wouldn''t accept mediocrity when it came to his creations. "Prince, I have the report of today''s battle." One of the solid stage cultivators in his group appeared at the entrance of the room where he was cultivating, Noah gestured him to speak without opening his eyes. "We lost a total of forty rank 2 disciples while five of the captains are injured, some of them even heavily. I don''t think we will be able to take over so many islands in only one week if we continue like this, even our mighty sect can''t face so many organizations at the same time." The solid stage cultivator spoke politely, there was even some insecurity when he gave voice to his doubts about the current battle plan. Noah opened his eyes and decided to reveal some information to appease those doubts. "Don''t worry, the other underground organizations will join us from tomorrow onward." Chapter 426: 426. Orders The underground organizations were the true rulers of the archipelago and they were simply labeled as Hive by the legal organizations. Yet, the Hive had many branches as well as a hierarchy. The Chasing Demon sect was already one of the strongest branches of the Hive before the Chasing Demon had his breakthrough, it could be easily considered the strongest one now that it had a rank 6 entity leading it. The other ones though weren''t weak, especially when the human assets were compared. The underground organizations had suffered heavier losses than the legal ones in the separate dimension but they could be still considered stronger than them, their heroic assets and the cultivators in the second rank had been unaffected by the trials after all. Noah wasn''t aware of the reasons that led the elders of his sect toward the creation of the battle plan but he knew that they had considered the other underground organizations in it. On the third day, Noah led again his team to battle. He had to secure the islands with a valuable geographical position that day, these islands didn''t belong to just one organization but their control was shared between the three powerful nations of the continent. Of course, Noah had been tasked to take care of the most important one. Yet, even if Noah expected for more than twenty rank 3 cultivators to be in its defense, his group only featured five captains and a few dozens of disciples. "Are you sure about this? My hallucinogenic abilities can''t affect that many of them." Alison asked as she followed Noah through the narrow streets between the poor-looking buildings, she was aware of the number of soldiers stationed on that island and she couldn''t help but have some doubts about the plan. Noah didn''t turn toward her, the smoke of the Demonic form countered the hallucinogenic gas released by Alison''s body so he was able to see her real form, he would rather avoid looking at her unless it was necessary. He didn''t need to answer though since a group formed by thirty rank 3 cultivators and more than one hundred rank 2 cultivators appeared in their sight when they reached a small square. The cultivators wore gray robes and had proud expressions, Noah couldn''t help but accept the fact that they really came from the central part of the continent. They were the members of another underground organization called "Resistance", it was formed by cultivators that had managed to escape from countries conquered by the Shandal Empire in its unceasing expansion. The Resistance aimed to destroy the Empire and to free all their enslaved companions but the presence of a God, no matter how weak it was compared to other beings in the divine ranks, was enough to put a stop to that dream. The countries near the Empire had benefitted from how freely techniques and nourishing methods were handed by the Empire, giving birth to many strong cultivators. Yet, they had still been unable to defend themselves when they were attacked, the majority of the cultivators that had survived the war were enslaved but some of them had managed to escape in the archipelago, forming one of the branches of the Hive. The Resistance was quite strong in the archipelago, it was considered a match of the Chasing Demon sect in terms of power. Of course, that was before the Chasing Demon reached the sixth rank but this news seemed to be known only to few people. One of the members of the Resistance stood up and neared Noah''s group, he was an elderly man with white long hair and a long beard of the same color but that had its ends tied together with a red ribbon. He directed his gaze toward Alison and bowed slightly before speaking. "I''m Willis, I''m the leader here. I wanted to make sure of a few things before helping your sect in the conquest." Alison smiled when the man gave her attentions but she quickly returned to reality and coughed before pointing at Noah with her gaze. Willis was confused, he had gone to the cultivator with the highest level in the team but she had actually indicated the weakest one instead of answering! "Are you already thinking about retreating? I didn''t expect that from someone trying to dethrone a God." Noah shook his head as he spoke, his inscribed notebook appeared in his hands and he swept through its pages, preparing himself to send a mental message. Willis didn''t like Noah''s tone but he had orders too, he politely bowed toward Noah before explaining the meaning behind his previous words. "No one spoke about retreat. I just wanted to make sure that your sect will keep its part of the deal." Noah shot an uncaring gaze toward Willis before continuing on his way, he spoke as he surpassed him, waving his notebook in the process. "What''s the point of asking? We in the human ranks have no part in these decisions. I have orders and so do you, I will simply contact another organization if yours isn''t willing to help in the conquest of the archipelago." The others from the Chasing Demon sect began to follow Noah as soon as he moved but Willis stood still, slowly processing his words. Noah was right, he had orders by the higher-ups of the Rebellion, his questions were simply the personal doubts of a curious and cautious man. Yet, he didn''t expect such a resolute behavior from a cultivator in the gaseous stage, he was beginning to understand that Noah wasn''t in charge because of some sort of social status. That was further proved after he followed Noah with his group and fought the battle near the teleportation matrixes of the island, the legal organizations had understood by then that those formations were being targeted. The soldiers were set on protecting them but they didn''t expect Noah to suddenly warp inside their formation and launch a barrage of Instabilities before hiding inside Heilong''s body and warp away. The chaos of the battle didn''t allow them to keep track of every cultivator and they didn''t expect someone in the gaseous stage to have that amount of firepower. However, that ended up being a fatal mistake! Without the matrixes, the soldiers from the legal organizations couldn''t be provided with reinforces and were crushed by the joint force of two underground organizations. The battles on the other islands were a success too, the third day ended with another series of peripheral islands falling on the hands of the Chasing Demon sect. Also, differently from the previous days, Noah''s feats began to spread. Chapter 427: 427. Castle When conquering and isolating an island, rumors would be kept inside the Chasing Demon sect, they couldn''t reach the other organizations. Yet, the sect had received the help of the Resistance on the third day, it was impossible to contain some of the most amazing matters a secret. One of those was the fact that the Chasing Demon sect controlled and had isolated more than thirty peripheral islands by then, that matter wasn''t a huge blow to the main branches of the legal organizations but it would surely affect them in the long-run. The other one concerned Noah. A rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage able to fight against solid stage cultivators wasn''t a small matter, some of the witnesses to his battles still suspected that he couldn''t maintain that power for too long but that didn''t decrease the value of such a feat! Also, Noah seemed in charge in the eyes of the cultivators belonging to the Resistance, that alone was already enough to raise his status. It didn''t take much for those pieces of information to spread to the other underground organizations, completely freeing the archipelago from the continent''s control was something that the Hive had always hoped for but never had the strength to pursue. However, the Chasing Demon sect had taken the first step and even managed to be successful in those initial days of battle, many began to suspect that the Inheritance had fallen in its hands. That led to many other branches of the Hive to come out in the open and join the fight, the precise terms of the alliance between those underground organizations were negotiated by the elders, the assets in the human ranks simply saw more and more cultivators helping them as the battle continued. Days passed quickly, the circle of siege and rest didn''t give much free time to the cultivators but any successful battle provided incredible gains. It wasn''t just a matter of territory, a vast stream of resources was successfully stolen from the legal organizations and divided between the branches of the Hive that had taken part in those battles. Of course, the Chasing Demon sect took the biggest share since they had started that war. The battle on the seventh day ended, more than eighty rank 3 cultivators together with an army of cultivators in the second rank successfully conquered an inscribed castle that was created for defense purposes. The battle had been harsh, the formations on the surface of the castle were intricate and the structure contained deep reserves of Credits, making it able to sustain the siege for a long time. Yet, that huge number of strong cultivators, coupled with the joint pieces of information shared by the organization from which they came from, was enough to take the defenses of the castle down. After the defenses went down, it was just a matter of overwhelming the few soldiers inside with their numbers, it was a simple and quick onslaught. Many casualties occurred on the unorthodox organizations'' side though, especially when considering the rank 2 cultivators that had been used as cannon fodder. Noah read the reports as he sat on the battlefield surrounded by his troops, he didn''t provide much help that day since the only way to take down the castle was through sheer power so he didn''t need to hide and rest. ''Almost two hundred rank 2 cultivators lost and even one in the third rank has died, we definitely need to reorganize after today.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the losses suffered from his sect. The battle against the inscribed castle had been the harsher one so far, many rank 3 cultivators had died under the counterattacks of the defensive formation or due to the attacks launched by the soldiers in its insides. All in all, the Chasing Demon sect had suffered more losses than the other underground organizations: The sect had fought for seven days straight, deploying its human assets in many different islands to maximize the conquest speed. Yet, that approach wasn''t fruitless. The sect now controlled more than fifty islands and had pillaged the valuable resources contained in them. That type of control wasn''t the hidden one that it was used to have, it was a proper rule over the islands, the captains stationed there were quite thrilled to openly rule on the surface. ''Together with the other underground organizations, the Hive now controls more than ninety peripheral islands, we can completely isolate the archipelago now. The legal organizations shouldn''t attack too soon, their cautious nature will make them wait for the reinforcements from the continent which should give enough time for part of the copying technique to be set.'' Noah reviewed the situation in his mind. He knew more details about the reasons behind the battle plan and knew why his next orders were to defend the conquered islands. ''I guess I can resume training for a period now. The sect wants me to stay on the surface and defend this castle once they set another defensive formation, I''ll ask to prepare a suitable training room inside it then.'' Noah planned his next moves and was quite eager to go back in seclusion, he still had the strongest spells to analyze and he wanted to spend some time deducing cultivation techniques with the Divine deduction technique. He quickly sent mental messages to Kate, the leader of the formations'' faction, in which he illustrated the precise standards that his new training area must have. Many gazes were shot in his direction, Noah was still on the battlefield after all, the forces belonging to other underground organizations paid a lot of attention to the sect that had started the war. Of course, that attention was ultimately redirected toward Noah since he was the one leading the troops of the sect. His identity had long been linked to that of Noah Balvan, he had fought for four days together with other organizations after all, it wasn''t hard to link him to the criminal of the Utra nation when his aptitude was revealed. Also, his exceptional battle prowess was something that further publicized his name, almost every member of the Hive was aware that Noah Balvan was in charge of the human assets of the Chasing Demon sect. ''I wonder who the Utra nation will send from the continent, I wouldn''t be surprised if they learnt about me and were to use this information to their advantage.'' Noah worried as he stood up and led his troops inside the castle which was going to be his home for a while. Chapter 428: 428. Battle prowess Noah''s worries weren''t groundless. His identity and some of his abilities had been revealed to the other underground organizations, it could be said that the information about him was mainstream by now. It couldn''t be helped, he was in charge of the human assets of the organization that had started the attack on the archipelago, it was impossible to remain unknown. Yet, Noah wouldn''t worry too much if that information was contained among the underground organization but he had little hope about that. Not all the branches of the Hive had joined his sect in the war, many still wanted to maintain peace and continue to slowly increase their power by doing secret deals with the legal organizations. Because information was a valuable currency, Noah felt quite sure that the legal organizations were already aware of him. ''Even if the Utra nation was to send stronger reinforcements because of our personal grudges, there isn''t much that I can do. Becoming stronger is always my only available path.'' Noah thought as he deduced inside his training room in the inscribed castle. The Chasing Demon sect had quickly built an area that met his standards, Noah was actually surprised to discover that it had taken it so little to create something similar to the training area where he had secluded himself in the six months before the beginning of the war. The density of "Breath" and the pressure on his mental sphere didn''t match it of course, but Noah was still satisfied with the result. As for his worries, Noah didn''t think that the Empire would invest too much in his capture. After all, he was only a troublemaker that had hindered the events in their training ground for a few years, the Empire had its wars to take care of, it wouldn''t chase Noah till the archipelago just for that. Yet, his ties with the Utra nation were far more personal. Noah was sure that the Balvan family would never let him go, he had undermined its future prospects by killing three heirs and vanquishing some promising soldiers, he was sure that he was on top of its wanted list. However, due to the system applied in the Utra nation, noble families rarely had soldiers in the heroic ranks, all the resources and techniques on that level were available only for nobles and trustworthy subjects. That''s why Noah didn''t fear his family, he was simply too far away, the Balvan family would just further weaken its position if it was to send powerful soldiers after him. What worried him was the Elbas family. Noah didn''t directly hurt it, it could be said that he had a worse relationship with the Empire in that sense. Yet, he was aware of too many secrets. The Royal Inheritance, the creation of a secret army made of criminals, these pieces of information could single-handedly start a war between the families loyal to the Royals and those loyal to the Cause. Also, Noah had escaped their control, that feat was a stain on Thaddeus'' honor. That''s why he was quite sure that there would be stronger reinforcements from the Utra nation. ''Well, I have to defend this position anyway, I can''t go anywhere else for now.'' Noah sighed as he thought about that before drinking a potion to refill his mental energy. The Divine deduction technique allowed Noah to save hours of thinking, even days, it was an enormous help in analyzing diagrams and mistakes in his forgings. Yet, it needed huge quantities of mental energy to be activated, Noah constantly requested potions and used his stash of drugs to keep using it. His deductions at that time concerned his battle prowess and how to increase it quickly. The Shadow sprint art seemed to have reached its limits, fusing four rank 0 spells was the best that Noah could think of with his current level, he would need to use diagrams of stronger spells or have access to more powerful energies if he wanted to further improve it. The Three Forms of the Ashura was the same, Noah had mastered it but he wasn''t able to modify it without creating flaws in those already perfected forms. His deductions led him to two options at that point. The first one was to master a secret art but Noah soon discarded it. Secret arts could make a cultivator able to push a center of power over its limits but Noah''s strongest point had always been the sea of consciousness and his large variety of spells already expressed enough power in his opinion, he was able to fight solid stage cultivators thanks to that after all. The second one was to create another martial art. Yet, that option led to another problem: What would this new martial art even do? Shadow sprint, Warp, and Heilong covered Noah''s movement, they were perfect for any situation and Noah could freely choose the one to use according to his opponent. His many spells, his Demonic swords, the Three Forms of the Ashura, and his explosive creations covered Noah''s offensive, he wasn''t that deadly against solid stage cultivators but that was caused by his low cultivation level, he had far too many attack methods. His defense was almost impenetrable with the Black hole spell, the Ethereal form spell, and Heilong, adding some other method would just conflict with the previous ones. These analyses and deductions were made in a single afternoon where Noah pondered about ways to further improve his battle prowess. The only conclusion he could reach was nothing! ''Maybe I''m just too greedy for wanting to push my battle prowess even more without improving my centers of power, it might be possible that I''ve reached the maximum strength that a gaseous stage cultivator is capable of.'' That thought lingered for a while in Noah''s mind, he sighed when he decided to give up in finding quick ways to become stronger, only the slow ones seemed to be left. ''I can either study rank 1 diagrams and try to extrapolate the effects that I need or begin the work on my cultivation techniques and nourishing methods.'' All those processes that Noah had thought of would take him a long time and days of deductions, meaning that Noah wouldn''t be able to become stronger than he was in the short term. ''I don''t see the point on studying diagrams, I can''t have better offensive and defensive methods than those that I already have. I have less experience in body-nourishing methods so it would take longer to create something worthy to be trained. I guess I don''t have other choices, I need to start the experimentation for my cultivation technique.'' As he decided, his eyes went on the "Breath" blessing under him, his cold gaze shown some uncertainty as he stared at the blue mineral. Chapter 429: 429. Cultivation technique Noah had some sort of inspiration after his continue deductions and a week of battles. He was aware that his inscription method wasn''t suited for the creation of diagrams and techniques but it was amazing at creating items. He didn''t know yet how he would solve that issue in the future, spells needed diagrams after all, he wasn''t ready to give up on their creations. Yet, he knew that, for now, if he wanted to create a cultivation technique, he had to forge an item. The inspiration came after his repeated use of the Black hole spell in battle, that spell was able to absorb enemy''s attacks, destroy them, and direct the energy contained in them in the body of the cultivator who could use it in its next attack. ''A black hole is an unthinkable amount of mass concentrated in a small space, it is even able to curve the light due to its immense gravity¡­ That might be the right path to follow to create a cultivation technique.'' Noah reviewed the little information that he remembered about a black hole in his mind, he felt strange to realize that his cultivation techniques had a similar aspect to that astronomical object. The rank 2 Dark vortex technique created a black vortex that totally resembled a black hole and the rank 4 Dark convergence created a sphere around his dantian with even more resemblance. ''It should be something mine though and not a modified copy, the Elemental forging method is the only path.'' Noah''s deductions ultimately led him to the "Breath" blessing, that miraculous mineral was able to attract "Breath" but it didn''t have any absorbing capabilities. ''I might not need any other material, I don''t think there is something that matches my needs after all. The "Breath" blessing could be the core of the item that will allow me to cultivate in the heroic ranks!'' An item that worked as a cultivation technique, that was Noah''s solution. ''I would need to add an absorption ability and limit it to the darkness element but that''s not the main issue. The real problem is that the item would need to be in the heroic ranks.'' To absorb "Breath" suitable for the heroic ranks, an item in the heroic ranks was needed, that was only logical. ''How big the mineral must be though? Even the boulder in the Royal Inheritance was only suitable for the human ranks! Yet, the bigger it is, the stronger its suction force will be once I compress it.'' Noah''s idea was quite simple. He needed to find a "Breath" blessing big enough to affect the "Breath" inside the matter, compress it, and add a function that allowed it to absorb "Breath" of the darkness element through the Elemental forging method. Ideally, the item created in that way would have an extremely small size and absorb "Breath" of the darkness element continuously, Noah would just have to insert the item in the dantian to cultivate autonomously all the time. However, there were many problems linked to that project. First of all, he wasn''t able to create rank 4 inscribed items yet, his new Demonic swords had barely reached the upper tier of the third rank and most of that was thanks to his experience in their structure and the quality of the dragon'' corpses in the Inheritance. Second, that continuous training would put his dantian under heavy stress. There was also the issue of the Credits needed to purchase enough minerals with which test the technique but Noah didn''t feel as if it would be a problem. He had eighty million Credits and the complete support of his sect, he couldn''t think of something that he couldn''t buy. Yet, before requesting for the minerals, he had to make sure that he could modify them to match his needs. A white saber appeared in his hands, Noah swiftly slashed at the "Breath" blessing under him and cut away a small corner of the cube. Then his mental sphere quickly imbued the unrefined gaseous "Breath" inside it with a meaning that Noah had created without much thinking. Following the procedures of the Elemental forging method, Noah controlled the now refined "Breath" and fused it with the severed corner of the mineral. Noah tried to modify the mineral according to the Dark convergence technique but hoping to limit its effects to the darkness element. It was needless to say that his first attempt failed, the small piece of "Breath" blessing crumbled when Noah tried to modify its internal composition. ''I guess I can only deduce and try again later, I can''t hope to succeed so soon after all.'' Thinking that, Noah used again the Divine deduction technique to evaluate the many approaches to his new creation. Time passed slowly on the archipelago. The underground organization had suddenly revealed themselves on the surface and conquered all the peripheral islands, the legal organizations felt surrounded in the internal islands where their headquarters were. They didn''t have the power to break through the blockage, the legal organizations there were under the orders of the continent after all, there was a limit to how much they could cooperate. Also, they had no reason to force the blockage, they had already notified their nations on the continent, they just had to wait for reinforcements to arrive. The Coral archipelago was at some distance from the continent, a couple of months were needed to traverse the sea. The closest big nation was the Shandal Empire but the many wars fought on the countries near it delayed the dispatch of reinforcements. The Papral nation and the Utra nation were a bit more far away and they too had some reserves about the matters in the archipelago. The situation on the continents wasn''t exactly easy, the balance of the three big nations had to be kept, none of them wanted to be the first to send reinforcements. Nevertheless, unaware to most noble families, a ship still sailed from the shores of the Utra nation on the direction of the archipelago. On the main deck of the inscribed ship, two young-looking cultivators, a man and a woman, could be seen staring in the distance. If Noah was there, he would be able to recognize both of them. The man was Errol, the tall youth that had been part of Noah''s team during the exploration of the Royal Inheritance. The woman was Ruth Eeggi, the red-haired girl that Thaddeus had picked as his disciple. Chapter 430: 430. Criminals "What do you feel?" Errol asked Ruth, she had always had an exceptionally keen perception of the meaning behind the "Breath" in the air. That gave her the ability to predict some dangers and even to understand part of their nature, as well as making her extremely talented in the Attunement method. "I feel as if a wall has been raised around the archipelago. The sea is dangerous, the islands are the same, I think Master has overestimated our power." Ruth spoke as her pupils shrank when she looked at the horizon, in the direction of the Coral archipelago. Thaddeus had instructed for her and Errol to lead the reinforcements sent to aid the branch of the academy on the archipelago but they were far weaker than the rest of their group. Errol and Ruth were simple rank 2 cultivators and only Errol had reached the solid stage, Ruth was still in the liquid one due to her focus on the study of the Attunement method. "We have fifty rank 3 cultivators who are forced to follow our orders, do you really think that we won''t be able to restore a connection with the continent with this force?" Errol doubted Ruth''s words, he was aware that the battle happening on the archipelago was above their level but Thaddeus had sent a small army of cultivators at the peak of the human ranks to accompany them. Also, their mission only required them to reclaim one island and restore the teleportation matrixes, Errol felt that their power was far more than enough for that task. It must be said that the political situation on the archipelago wasn''t clear to the people of the continent, most of them believed that the legal organizations were in charge, just as the Hive wanted. "Hmph, we have fifty criminals who are forced by Master''s bindings to follow our orders, they''ll flee as soon as the battle becomes harsh." Ruth snorted and replied Errol. The fifty cultivators that made their force were criminals turned into troops by Thaddeus'' branch of the Royal family, just like those sent in the assassination of Samuel Muwlos. Errol didn''t answer her, he knew that she was right but he still thought that they would be able to complete their task. An image appeared in his mind then, it depicted a young man with long black hair and a cold gaze. His expression turned to one of sorrow when he thought about the man with whom he had surpassed the trials in the Royal Inheritance. Noah''s identity had been revealed years ago, the information about his crimes was common knowledge in the Utra nation. Also, some of his feats in his escape had reached the nation, it was when Thaddeus became aware that Noah was a member of the Hive that he decided to send that ship. "D-do you think that everything we heard about him is true?" Errol spoke and Ruth immediately understood who he was referring to. There was another reason behind reclaiming a peripheral island which was gathering information about Noah! "Vance, no, Noah is a criminal. He has betrayed his family, his master, and the Royal dynasty, our orders are to capture and not kill just because we have to make sure that he didn''t share the information about the Royal Inheritance with anyone." Ruth spoke with a cold tone. She was aware of the Royal Inheritance, she was Thaddeus'' personal disciple after all and her family had greatly benefitted from her position. Errol sighed when he heard those words, he had always been softer than his fellow students, he was what was generally considered a good person. "How many years have passed? You and June have moved your respective families near Elbas city and obtained important positions, I''ve become a captain in the Royal army, Daniel is in charge of a section of the alchemy facility, and Vance¡­" Errol stopped speaking, suppressing his memories, he longed for the time when they were simple students, away from all these political struggles. "Oh, right. You were supposed to convince June to join us, what happened?" He asked when he remembered that detail. Ruth answered after lowering her gaze and reviewing the conversation that she had with that wild woman in her mind. "She said that she liked to be alive." . . . Noah continued to cultivate in his training room inside the inscribed castle. His attempts to modify the "Breath" blessing had always ended in failures, the mineral persisted on breaking apart no matter how many times he deduced his mistakes with Divine Demon''s technique. Yet, his centers of power were improving steadily at least. Cultivating with a rank 4 cultivation technique and training with the Kesier rune in an environment extremely suited for both mind and dantian made his seclusion quite profitable. Noah would never diminish his cultivation speed for the sake of his experiments, he knew that the centers of power were the foundation of the strength of a cultivator. That''s why Noah wasn''t able to defeat solid stage cultivators but just match their power for a short amount of time, his dantian simply couldn''t sustain such harsh battles for long periods. Also, he didn''t feel hurried about creating a cultivation technique. Noah knew that his mind would most likely reach the fourth rank before his dantian neared the solid stage, he could redirect the majority of his focus on the creation of techniques and nourishing-methods after that breakthrough. The Divine deduction technique consumed mental energy, a higher quality of mental energy would produce better results. Apart from Divine Demon''s technique, a rank 4 sea of consciousness would improve his mental capabilities in ways that Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine. Those were the heroic ranks after all, Noah was certain that once he reached that level, creating a technique would be far easier. Months passed on the archipelago, the battles had suddenly ceased, leaving the legal organizations in a tense mood. They couldn''t understand why the Hive would stop its campaign after taking control of the least valuable islands in the archipelago, the underground organizations couldn''t have possibly ruled in secret for so many years only to reveal themselves to momentarily isolate the archipelago. They knew it could only be a momentary conquest because they had the support of the continent, the latter couldn''t just let the entire archipelago be isolated for too much time. It was a few months after Noah was stationed on the surface that he received a mental message from Roy. The message spoke simple words but the orders behind them were clear, Noah was the leader of the human assets after all. "My mother discovered a ship coming from the Utra nation, it will reach island two hundred and seven in a couple of weeks and it seems to have a decent number of rank 3 cultivators. You can take care of the battle plan." Chapter 431: 431. Monster Roy''s message contained detailed information about the force inside the ship. The Chasing Demon sect was busy setting the copying technique around the archipelago, it was obvious that they would have heroic rank cultivators investigating its borders. With the human assets occupying the peripheral islands and the heroic ones protecting them from any threat that surpassed their level, the Chasing Demon could completely focus on the technique left by his master. At least, that was what Noah could deduce. He wasn''t exactly aware of those matters, he had just supposed that those events were taking place while he defended the islands. After all, he couldn''t ask for confirmation from the elders but the battle plan seemed perfect for what he had guessed. The fact that Elder Iris or someone else in the heroic ranks was watching over the borders of the archipelago was another confirmation to Noah''s hypothesis, the sect was securing the borders before moving toward the internal islands. ''Fifty cultivators in the third rank, I would need to ask the other underground organizations'' help if I want to contain the losses of the sect.'' Noah thought as he pondered about the incoming battle but there was one detail that didn''t fit the power contained in the ship ''What''s the point of having two rank 2 cultivators among so many powerful troops?'' The elder of the sect that had spotted the ship didn''t describe the facial features of the invaders, only their cultivation level. However, Noah knew how the Utra nation acted, the noble families were unwilling to see their power diminish, those powerful soldiers had to come from the human assets of the Royal dynasty. ''Judging from my current experience, I''d say that the entirety of the Royal family has at least six hundred rank 3 cultivators between the Royal army and the Royals, probably more. Taking the entirety of the archipelago isn''t a problem if they were to use their full strength but this can be said for the other two big nations too.'' Noah thought. He had only been a lone rank 2 cultivator with no experience when he was in the Utra nation, he couldn''t understand the power that each noble family held. Yet, after seeing so many organizations and countries, he could understand many things that concerned the human matters. In his opinion, the Chasing Demon sect''s power surpassed that of a large-size noble family of the Utra nation, his sect had been one of the strongest organizations in the archipelago for many years, long periods of peace and the constant accumulation of resources given by its position made it grow in ways that the nobles families couldn''t hope to do. Nevertheless, the Elbas family was the ruler of a powerful nation, the Royals had accumulated wealth from an entire country for two thousand years, they had to be at least three times stronger than Noah''s sect. That strength though had to be used to maintain control over the Utra nation, it couldn''t be used for overseas campaigns recklessly. Also, those two rank 2 cultivators were suspicious, they didn''t make any sense among those troops. ''If this force is what I think it is, then there is a better approach to their invasion¡­'' As he thought of that, Noah sent a detailed mental message through his inscribed notebook. Two weeks passed quickly. On island two hundred and seven, an inscribed ship arrived and fifty-two figures quickly jumped on the shore. The sight was quite peculiar, two rank 2 cultivators were wearing golden clothes and were followed by fifty hooded rank 3 cultivators. Errol and Ruth inspected the area before turning toward the cultivators behind them. They immediately understood the meaning behind that gesture and a few of them left the group to inspect the seemingly desolate islands with their stronger minds. Island two hundred and seven was one of the poorest islands of the archipelago, only a couple of rank 3 cultivators would be deployed there in its defense during normal times. Of course, they would be accompanied by a decent number of rank 2 cultivators but, at that moment, the group from the Utra nation could barely sense any trace of life. Then, faint steps resounded in the distance, the group from the Utra nation turned in that direction only to see a rank 3 cultivator with cold eyes walking toward them. At once, Ruth and Errol''s eyes widened in surprise. They knew that Noah was in the archipelago but the details about his cultivation level were conflicting. Once his identity as the Hooded devil had been confirmed, they were sure that he had to be at least in the liquid stage of the second rank. Yet, what had appeared in front of them was a cultivator in the third rank. "Twenty-eight years, rank 3 cultivator, he is still a monster." Errol commented softly when he saw Noah''s nearing his group, he couldn''t help but think loudly when he realized how much he had grown. His surprise though would even increase if he was to know that Noah had been at that level for one year already! "I see that Thaddeus didn''t give up to the idea of forming a secret army, I don''t see the point of sending you two along though." Noah spoke, his uncaring tone didn''t match the dangerous situation. Ruth wasn''t overwhelmed by feelings like Errol, she could immediately understand that something was wrong. She wasn''t surprised that the Hive was aware of their arrival, she had never hoped to reach the islands unnoticed but the underground organizations of the archipelago had never dared to oppose the troops of the continent for fear of the repercussions of the big nations. Yet, their main target had appeared in front of them alone, it was obvious that there was some kind of trap waiting for them. "Vance, come back with us. You know too much, we are the last warning before the Royal family sends heroic ranks cultivators after you. You can''t hope to escape them." Errol spoke, it was clear from his tone that he still cared about the companion with whom he had cleared the trials in the Royal Inheritance, his position in the Royal army was mostly due to what Noah had managed to save in there. "You are not the last but the first warning, the truth is that the Royals weren''t aware of my position until now. Also, my name is Noah, I thought you would be aware of that by now." Noah shrugged his shoulders as he answered, the threat of cultivators in the heroic ranks going after him didn''t seem to bother him at all. "Then, Noah Balvan, are you ready to be captured and brought back home to answer for your crimes?" Ruth took a step forward as she spoke those words, her hand was raised, ready to give the signal to the troops behind her to attack. Chapter 432: 432. Elder Noah stared Ruth, she was only a na?ve kid when he saved her in the entrance test. Now, she was threatening him with a force that surpassed the human assets of the weaker organizations in the archipelago, he couldn''t help but sigh when he realized how much time had passed. However, his gaze didn''t linger on her for too long, it quickly went on the hooded criminals behind her. "Tell me, would you like to be freed?" Noah''s words resounded on the shore, confused expressions appeared on the criminals. Noah couldn''t see their faces but he knew that his words caused the desired effect. After all, he was once like them, a criminal forced to do the dirty work for the Royal family to obtain cultivation resources. Yet, he also knew that their situation was different from his, Noah didn''t swear any oath back then due to the Royal Inheritance but those cultivators were most likely bound by some restriction. There would be no reason to send two rank 2 cultivators to lead them otherwise, Noah was sure that they had sealed a pact with the Royals. "What are you even saying? Do you think that someone like you would be able to break Master''s oath?" Ruth spoke, confirming Noah''s hypothesis as her eyes sharpened. That situation was simply too strange, she didn''t have a good feeling about it. Noah had come alone, there had to be some sort of trap laid somewhere! Though, she would have never expected the trap to come from the sky. The air suddenly seemed to freeze, the waves crashing on the shore seemed to soften their assault on the land. A figure descended at a slow pace from the sky. It was impossible to miss the arrival of that cultivator, the world itself seemed wary of its presence! Ruth and her group stared at the man descending from the sky in fear, his piercing green eyes were fixed on them as his long gray hair fluttered in the wind. He wore a simple black robe with large sleeves, the cultivator had the aspect of a middle-aged man but his skin radiated a light of its own. The man''s gaze then went on the young-looking man bowing in his direction, Noah had promptly made that polite gesture to welcome the heroic rank cultivator. "Your request is feasible, their oaths weren''t made to resist against heroic ranks cultivator." Noah didn''t raise his head, he just limited himself to speak a few words. "Please, Elder." The elder was expressionless, it was as if he was going out for a walk instead of facing fifty rank 3 cultivators. He took an orb from his space-ring and injected his "Breath" inside it. The orb began to shine, its light illuminated Ruth''s group, making golden runes appear on the bodies of the criminals. The runes flickered, they seemed to suffer under the orb''s light but there wasn''t much that they could do. The runes slowly began to break apart, turning into golden dust that was then swept away by the wind. The process wasn''t painless for the criminals. They either fell on the ground or puked blood as the light destroyed every trace of the oaths that they had with the Royal family, their destruction naturally caused a backlash to happen in their bodies. The light thoroughly erased the oaths before the orb stopped shining and the elder stored it back in his ring. "Many thanks, Elder." Noah had his head still lowered as he spoke, he had never raised it for the whole process. He had asked for the help of a heroic rank cultivator from his sect to deal with that matter but he didn''t know how well his request was received. He didn''t know if the elder was pissed because he had been asked to deal with a human matter, he would rather play it safe until he was gone. The elder though didn''t seem to mind him at all, he simply left after Noah spoke, disappearing in the sky after he took a single step. Only then did Noah raise his head, he sighed internally when he understood that his plan had succeeded. His gaze went back on the group from the Utra nation, Ruth and Errol had scared expression as they watched the hooded figures behind them on the ground and injured. Removing an oath was a dangerous procedure, it was normal for them to have suffered some relatively heavy injury. "Move." Ruth heard Noah''s voice behind her back, she turned only to see a pair of icy eyes fixed on her at a short distance. Her cultivation level was too low, she could only lower her head and make a path when Noah ordered her. Noah neared the group of criminals and made a speech when he was sure that each one of them was listening. "I removed the oaths binding you to the Royal family, you are now free to act as you want." Noah felt a series of gazes landing on him, he knew that he was being probed by the criminals. "Yet, you are still wanted. I know that all of you are aware of the struggles of lone cultivators, the backing of a powerful organization is necessary to reach the heroic ranks, talent alone can''t open that path." The gazes stopped probing his power and softened a bit, the criminals were starting to understand the meaning behind Noah''s words. "You probably know me, I was once used like you to do the dirty work for the Royals because I lacked the resources needed to pursue power. Now, though, I can ask for the help of heroic cultivators from my organization. I don''t want to kill nor force you, your power is valuable for my organization at this point in time. Join me and I promise that your growth will never be hindered." Noah stopped speaking and waited for their reaction. He wasn''t scared that they would attack him, they had just seen an elder helping him with some human matters after all. Also, his words were on point. In the Utra nation, most cultivators in the human ranks knew Noah, especially those that lacked a noble bloodline. Noah was a bastard who had managed to escape the restrictions not only of his family but also of the leaders of the nation! Such a character was admired by those that suffered from the same fate, they wanted to be like him and simply escape where their talent wouldn''t be restricted. They would have never imagined that Noah Balvan would be the one offering them that chance. Noah was clearly a rank 3 cultivator, he couldn''t have possibly been restricted during his cultivation journey to reach that level so soon. Little by little, the criminals gathered their strength and stood up, one by one, they began to bow toward Noah. Chapter 433: 433. Threa Noah watched the scene with cold eyes, seeing fifty rank 3 cultivators bowing toward him didn''t give him any happiness or joy, he was simply glad that his plan had succeeded. ''I guess they recognized the importance of having a sturdier foundation¡­'' Noah thought but he wasn''t referring to the criminals in front of him, his mind was on the elders of his sect. ''When a heroic rank cultivator joins the battlefield, all the human assets become powerless. Such a difference of power, and to think that there are even elites among them.'' Fifty rank 3 cultivators were enough to deal a huge blow to the sect''s foundation, especially after being weakened by the separate dimension and pursuing the conquest of the archipelago. Yet, as soon as an elder arrived, those fifty cultivators were dealt with in the best possible way: By making them switch faction! Noah believed that, if the current situation of the sect wasn''t so frail, the elders would have never accepted his request. However, due to the lack of manpower and the campaign, they had ultimately agreed to help him. After all, the elders were busy controlling the perimeter of the archipelago, they had to leave the human matters to Noah. Also, the criminals from the Utra nation were different from the captains of the sect. They had high battle prowess due to their status but they lacked the resources and technique to fully express their potential, that was the curse of the lone cultivators. Adding their numbers to the sect would boost its power by a large margin and create a more stable foundation, they would also alleviate the losses suffered in the dimension. ''Maybe, the elders were willing to help me out because I didn''t request them to fight.'' Noah evaluated that possibility too. Heroic ranks cultivators had their pride, they wouldn''t easily be ordered around and used as pawns. Asking them to deal with the invaders would have been simply too unrespectful but Noah had only requested them to deal with the oaths, he wasn''t in danger after all, his terms with Chasing Demon didn''t cover that situation. As for the elites among those in the heroic ranks, Noah was referring to those that had already created their cultivation techniques. Seeing how powerful the elder was made him even more determined to embark on his own path before reaching the fourth rank, he wouldn''t willingly choose a road that led to weaker results! An inscribed notebook appeared in his hands, Noah sent a simple message to Roy before speaking to the bowing crowd. "And elder is waiting for you on the other side of the island, he will take care of your recruitment. I''ll deal with these two." The criminals raised their heads and felt a bit hesitant when they heard the word "elder", they couldn''t possibly know that Noah was speaking of a human cultivator. Yet, they quickly accepted those orders and left the shore, uncaring of Ruth''s loud pleads. "Where do you think you''re going?" "The Royal dynasty won''t let you go!" "I''ll forget what has happened if you come back now!" Ruth''s desperate pleads couldn''t affect the criminals and she helplessly watched as they left the shore. They had just been freed from the control of the Royals and were offered an opportunity that even the renown criminal Noah Balvan had accepted, there was no chance that they would go back to the Utra nation now. Errol was silent, he had lost any hope after the elder showed himself and was simply waiting for Noah to decide his fate. He and Ruth were only rank 2 cultivators while Noah was in the third rank and had the backing of an entire organization, they were completely in his grasp. "Normally, I would just kill both of you, I don''t really like to see entitled cultivators whose only merit comes from their birthright. You are just a waste of cultivation resources." Noah spoke coldly, his gaze was on Ruth, she had been nurtured because of her talent in the attunement method but she didn''t accumulate any other merit. Errol was different, he had fought side by side with Noah in the Royal Inheritance, Noah knew that he was more similar to him than to other nobles. "Yet, I have a message for Thaddeus and the Royals in general." Errol saw hope for the first time when Noah gave voice to those words, he had hope to escape from that situation alive! "Who do you think you are? What can you possibly say to Mast-" Ruth began to complain, she had less real-life experience than Errol and she had never suffered such a loss before, her mental state didn''t allow her to understand that she was completely powerless in that situation. Her words, though, were interrupted by Noah''s slap, blood came out of her mouth as a few teeth flew away. Then, Noah walked toward her and grabbed her hair, raising her in the air as his mental sphere suppressed her mind. "You must tell the Royals that if they ever were to come after me, not only the Shandal Empire, but all the nations near the Nerere country would be notified about the Royal Inheritance." Ruth''s expression froze when she heard that, the information about the Royal Inheritance was exactly the reason behind their mission. Yet, Noah directly used that information to his advantage, threatening to disclose it to all the enemies of the Utra nation. Noah saw that change in her expression and nodded internally, he knew that they would take him seriously from now on. He had already informed his sect about the Royal Inheritance when he requested for the help of the elders, the Chasing Demon sect was too busy with the conquest of the archipelago and too far away from the Nerere country to be interested in the Inheritance. Noah threw Ruth on the ground near the ship and stretched his hands as if waiting for something before speaking again. "Give me all your belongings, they are wasted on you anyway. Oh, I saw that your robes are inscribed items, I''ll take them too." Ruth wanted to complain but Noah''s gaze seemed to dig holes in her mental sphere as he looked at her, her instincts told her to do as he said. She accepted that the situation was real only when she saw that Errol lowered his head and slowly began to undress his robe. Chapter 434: 434. Face Noah watched the two naked figures jumping back on the inscribed ship before turning his gaze away. He had their space-rings and robes in one hand, all he had to do was hope that his threat would be able to buy him some time. Noah knew that the Royals would never let him go, the information that he held could change their public image, making many noble families join the Cause instead of supporting them. Also, the matter about the Royal Inheritance could very well bring a war on them: Maybe the other countries under their influence wouldn''t dare to challenge them for the Inheritance but the Empire wouldn''t let go of such a profitable opportunity. The Inheritance most likely contained the complete accumulation of the previous Royal family, the Inheritance ground was set up before it was dethroned after all, there was no reason to hold back some resources as Divine Demon had done. The wealth contained there might surpass that retrieved by Noah, the Elbas family obviously wanted to keep that information a secret. The current Royal family worked like any other organization, it had factions and sides, they didn''t always have a unified opinion when it came to these matters. That''s why Noah was quite confident that his threat would leave him off the hook for some time, it would take a bit before the Royals decided on how to handle him. Noah went for the other side of the islands, where he had sent the criminals before. He soon found Roy and the group of fifty rank 3 cultivators, some smirks appeared on their now uncovered faces when they saw the robes in his hands. "Prince! This will be a huge boost to our power, we have almost completely recovered from the losses in the separate dimension!" Roy excitedly spoke when he noticed Noah, the latter simply nodded as he dropped Ruth and Errol''s belongings next to him. Heated gazes were fixed on him, the criminals couldn''t help but admire Noah even more when they learnt about his position in the sect. "How did you know that they would switch side? Well, convincing the elders to help you on this matter is already an amazing feat!" Roy continued to talk, he couldn''t contain himself when he saw the human assets of the sect suddenly becoming stronger. "Criminals understand each other. Be sure to deploy them in the valuable islands after you''re done with the introductions." Noah plainly explained before leaving for the teleportation matrix that would bring him back to the island where he was appointed. After obtaining the Inheritance, the sect had set a series of special missions linked to the merits accumulated in the war. In that way, the cultivators with the highest battle prowess would grow even stronger while the weak ones would be forced to focus on their power if they wanted to obtain those benefits. That method was commonly seen in organizations engaged in a war, it was a way to motivate the captains and disciples while rewarding those worthy. Of course, the new reward system didn''t concern Noah, he could simply ask for anything he wanted from the inventory. The news of the ship from the Utra nation being defeated quickly spread on the continent. It was clear for the three big nations that the Hive had stopped hiding now and was actively opposing the domain of the continent. The specifics of the failed invasion were kept hidden by the Royals, they had only lost criminals after all, their forces out in the open hadn''t been affected so it was easy to mask that invasion as a simple probing mission. Face was something that they needed to maintain due to their peculiar status, they couldn''t show signs of weakness to the Empire and the noble families affiliated with the Cause. Yet, learning that the Hive was openly opposing the continent forced the three big nations to take action, they could turn a blind eye as long as the legal organizations sent valuable resources back in the continent but they couldn''t tolerate someone directly opposing their rule. Ships containing threatening forces sailed from the continent in the direction of the Coral archipelago, rumors said that even a few heroic cultivators were among them. Noah didn''t care about those in the heroic ranks, they were left to handle to the elders of his sect and the heroic assets of the other underground organizations. However, some preparations had to be made for the incoming tide of rank 3 cultivators coming to reconquer the peripheral islands. What bothered Noah the most was that he didn''t know when the copying technique would be completed, all he could do was hold the ground until the Chasing Demon completed that task. Once the copying technique was completed, the archipelago would become impenetrable by forces below the heroic ranks, leaving only the internal islands left before the Hive could announce its rule to the world. ''Almost all the underground organizations are siding with us now, we should be able to defend the islands for a few months at least. I wonder if that''s enough¡­'' Noah thought as he cultivated inside the castle, where his training area was. He had never stopped cultivating, the ships would take a few months to arrive anyway, that period wasn''t enough for Noah to drastically improve his strength but it could still improve his foundation. Also, his mind was improving quickly, the continuous execution of the Divine deduction technique forced his sea of consciousness to work at full speed, further increasing his training speed. It was a pity though that his deductions didn''t manage to produce any satisfying result yet, the "Breath" blessing on which Noah usually sat was slowly seeing its size being reduced. Noah didn''t mind losing his "Breath" blessing if that gave him a rank 4 cultivation technique, his piece of the mineral would have become useless soon anyway. Yet, he was somewhat worried that his mineral wouldn''t be enough for him to create something, he began to wonder if he should request for more "Breath" blessing from the sect or simply wait for his mind to reach the heroic ranks. Nevertheless, the war impended, forcing him to focus on more reliable sources of improvement rather than on his experiments. In a bit more than two months, the ships of the continent reached the Coral archipelago. Chapter 435: 435. Invasion Noah read the reports sent by Roy and frowned. The ships coming from the continent were numerous, the elders controlling the perimeter of the archipelago were able to spot more than fifty of them! What was worse was that they weren''t able to tell the exact force contained inside them, it was obvious that the continent had sent even heroic cultivators who were able to block the investigative methods of the elders. ''The heroic cultivators aren''t my problem but there are fifty ships, I can expect more than two thousand cultivators to crash on our islands. Also, I can''t ignore the cultivators from the legal organizations in the internal islands¡­'' Noah thought as he reviewed what he knew about the current situation. Capturing the peripheral islands had been easy but managing to maintain control over them was hard, especially since the continent had decided to send real reinforcements. The underground organizations were surrounded, they would have to defend two sides while the enemies just had to charge ahead, they were clearly in a disadvantageous position. Generally speaking, the best course of action for a battle tactic would have been to capture the central islands and slowly expand, it would be impossible to isolate the underground organizations since they had way too many contacts in each island. Yet, even that tactic would ultimately fail since the continent could simply overwhelm the archipelago with their higher numbers. The Utra and Papral nation would find it harder to gather the necessary troops for the task because the threat of the Empire required for most of their power to remain inside the nation. Also, their political system didn''t allow them to accumulate that many assets, the powerful cultivators of both nations were divided between the many sects and noble families, the Royals and the Council couldn''t force them to hand too many assets. The Shandal Empire though was different. The Empire was a constantly expanding nation that founded its economy on wars and slaves. With a God in its lead, the Empire could gather all its soldiers under one banner and handle them as it wanted. The reason why the Empire was the strongest force on the continent wasn''t just because of the God but also due to its cohesive power. ''I wonder which methods do the other two nations have to deal with the God of the Empire, maybe the God has some kind of weakness due to its peculiar situation.'' Noah couldn''t help but think about Divine Demon''s words and the continent in its entirety. He knew that if he was a divine being set on conquering the continent, he would just wreak havoc everywhere, uncaring of the level of his enemies. Yet, cultivators rarely fought against those on a different rank, especially when considering human and heroic cultivators. Unless there was some personal matter or someone directly offended them, heroic cultivators wouldn''t care about the human world. Their gazes were fixed on the sky, at the ranks above theirs, they didn''t have time to waste minding the ants that human cultivators were in their eyes. It was also a matter of face but the main reason why heroic cultivators or above let the human cultivators handle the human matters was that they represented the foundation of any organization! Strong human assets would produce more cultivators in the heroic ranks who could eventually become Gods. The only way to forge human cultivators was through battles and struggles, they would never survive the Tribulations if they didn''t have the right amount of determination and will. Those reasons only worked for the organizations though, lone cultivators could act however they wanted and don''t care about things like pride. Noah was the Demon Prince of the Chasing Demon sect but, inside, he was still the lone cultivator that was ready to do anything to obtain more resources, he didn''t blink at the thought of using an elder to deal with the criminals from the Utra nation after all. A message arrived through his inscribed notebook, it explained the plan created by the elders for the incoming invasion. According to their words, the copying technique had been almost completely set up, Noah only needed to maintain control over the islands and the battle would eventually be won. What made him heave a sigh of relief was that the plan involved all the underground organizations of the archipelago, it seemed that some kind of agreement had been made between the various branches of the Hive. A united front was stronger than many sparse ones, the Hive was finally fighting together against the forces of the continent! Noah didn''t waste time, he had his orders and the ships were nearing the shores, many preparations had to be made. The pages of his inscribed notebook turned continuously, Noah sent a series of mental messages as he exited his training area. The plan of the elders involved formations, traps, and even the usage of many rank 1 cultivators as cannon fodder. All of that had to be set in one week! Noah sent orders to anyone involved with the plan and began to help with the preparations, the peripheral islands seemed to burst with life as all the organizations occupying them began to work on the defenses for the incoming attack. Noah willingly began to forge new Instabilities and Hidden blasts to add on the traps, he worked at close contact with Kate to set as many explosive formations as possible. Kate was the leader of the faction handling the teleportation matrixes, she was immediately able to modify some of the defensive formations she knew to work together with Noah''s disposable weapons. The week passed quickly. On the morning of the eighth day, an eerie silence filled the purple shores of the peripheral islands. Many ships could be seen docking on them, the fleet divided itself into three groups, each of them representing a big nation. These three groups of ships neared three different valuable islands, they would leave the less important ones to the forces of the legal organization. Then, groups of cultivators of various strength jumped off the ships, landing on the shores illuminated by the purple light. The invaders were wary of their surroundings, the fact that they couldn''t see anyone in sight was the clear sign that there was a trap somewhere. As if answering their thoughts, shining lines appeared on the sandy terrain as soon as the troops took the first step, they were unable to react since an explosion immediately followed the activation of the formation, engulfing them with a series of fuming spikes. Chapter 436: 436. Charge Dozens of rank 2 cultivators died in an instant, explosions resounded on the various battlefields that the continent had chosen to invade. The torrent of fuming spikes pierced the defenses of the rank 2 cultivators used as cannon fodder, they could do nothing against Noah''s improved weapons. A series of attacks followed the explosions, the cultivators of the underground organizations ambushed the soldiers of the continent in that defenseless moment. Noah was on an island attacked by the forces of the Empire. The Shandal Empire had been the one to send more troops so it was Noah''s duty as Demon Prince to intercept them. ''We only have about eighty rank 3 cultivators here, I need to focus on reducing the number of those in the second rank so that we can overwhelm them.'' Noah stared at the battlefield from his hiding spot on top of a building. It was morning so he couldn''t use the Dark cover spell but the layer of mental energy around his figure managed to keep him hidden even from the inspections of the rank 3 cultivators still on the ships. There were simply too many cultivators hiding on the buildings near the shore, it would be hard to spot Noah since he had yet to make his move. More cultivators jumped off the ships, defending was easier than attacking, the Empire had long since predicted that the first assault would fail. The second group of soldiers had a few rank 3 cultivators in their ranks, they advanced surrounded by the weaker soldiers as a form of protection from the traps. It took only another series of steps before another formation lit up under their feet. At that time, the soldiers of the Empire were prepared. A blast occurred and many fuming spikes filled the battlefield, however, a large dome made of water covered the entirety of the invaders, preventing the spikes from reaching them. Only the cultivators hit by the blast were injured or killed, the spikes didn''t manage to take any life. ''They have come prepared.'' Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw how fast the soldiers countered the traps that he and Kate had prepared, that defensive spell perfectly countered the Instabilities hidden by Kate''s formations! ''They know I''m here.'' That realization forced Noah to change the battle plan, his notebook appeared and he sent orders to the various captains. Noah was the Hooded devil, his creations had taken many lives on the battlefield in Odrea nation. Also, the separate dimension had revealed his position, it was normal to expect that the invaders had prepared countermeasures to his weapons, especially someone like the Empire that had personally tasted their power. The captains followed Noah''s orders and launched another series of spells toward the incoming group, they were prepared to the eventuality that the traps wouldn''t work so their reaction was almost immediate. The water dome appeared again to cover the troops on the ground, that time though it couldn''t defend against the spells of so many cultivators and ultimately crumbled under their assault, allowing the attacks to land on the soldiers. The rank 3 soldiers were able to retreat in time but those in the second rank were annihilated by the more than one hundred spells launched toward them, they had no hope to survive. The rank 3 soldiers retreated on the ship to reorganize, they were only meant to probe the defensive measures that the Hive had deployed, those losses were totally acceptable. Minutes of silence passed in the tense atmosphere on the island, the hidden forces of the Hive were waiting for their enemies to make a move. After all, they aimed to buy as much time as possible, even though most of them didn''t know why. Then, hundreds of soldiers jumped off the many ships docked on the shore. Noah recognized almost one hundred rank 3 cultivators and about six hundred soldiers in the second rank, that army could almost match the entirety of the human assets of the Chasing Demon sect and they were only a fraction of the full power of the Empire! That sight was discouraging, the army completely filled the shore, becoming the only visible thing on the horizon. "Let''s bait them." Noah ordered through his notebook, he expected nothing less from the number one country of the continent and didn''t hesitate in switching battle tactic. A series of spells was launched once again by the forces of the Hive but they didn''t manage to break through the defenses of the rank 3 cultivators. Meanwhile, they counterattacked with spells on their own, fireballs, bullets of various elements, and thunderbolts shot in the direction of the cultivators in hiding. Attacking had revealed part of their position and it was simply impossible to defend against that sheer number of spells, many rank 2 cultivators in hiding died under that counterattack. "Again." Noah had a cold expression as he spoke, ordering them to attack was basically asking them to reveal their position. However, he couldn''t care less and those under him didn''t dare to oppose his orders. Another exchange of long-range attacks occurred, the soldiers of the Empire managed to defend and counterattack again, killing dozens of rank 2 cultivators in the process. "Again." Seeing that the soldiers didn''t dare to advance yet, Noah could only order to attack. The same thing happened, the soldiers defended and killed many cultivators in the second rank in the process, the Hive had lost almost one hundred cultivators already! Then, Noah went silent, he waited for the Empire''s reaction to those small victories. The soldiers of the Empire didn''t waste much time, they decided to advance when they saw that no more attacks came. Formations lit up on their passage but the Instabilities linked to them weren''t able to inflict many damages, those rank 3 soldiers were simply too prepared for Noah''s weapons. However, when they reached a certain point, they felt as if a weight had been added to their bodies. The lines of a formation appeared on their bodies, which seemed some kind of restrictive trap that affected their movements. Noah saw that they had fallen for Kate''s trap and stood up, his orders resounded in the minds of the captains hiding on the island. "Charge." Chapter 437: 437. Old foe Kate was extremely talented in the formations'' field. She was a solid stage cultivator in the third rank who had spent most of her life studying the formations that the sect managed to save in its escape from the Papral nation, she could be considered an expert in the field. She and Noah had worked together to set traps throughout the most valuable islands but Noah had only provided the Instabilities and explained how they worked, everything else had been handled by Kate. The first formations would act as a trigger for the Instabilities, the "Breath" contained in the Credits that powered the formations would be used to trigger the explosion of the disposable weapons, but that wasn''t their only purpose. The explosions would disperse the materials that composed the formations in the battlefield, said materials would then attach themselves to the unaware invaders and could be used by other mechanisms. The materials resembled dust which the invaders couldn''t bother to clean from their clothes in that tense situation, they didn''t expect for said dust to be used to restrain them. The lines of a formation shone on the soldiers'' bodies, they resonated with the area, lighting up other formations on the ground. All of sudden, a large area was filled with shining lines, affecting the cultivators that had been tainted by the dust with effects similar to Noah''s Death area spell. The soldiers from the Empire felt their movements being affected, they anxiously turned toward their leaders, hoping for orders or solutions to that troublesome situation. Yet, the cultivators of the Hive arrived before they could decide anything. A series of spells followed by the appearance of the hiding cultivators forced the soldiers of the Empire to put the matter about the formation on hold and focus on defending. Noah analyzed the battlefield, his forces were less numerous than the enemies but, with the help of the formation, that advantage was affected, almost bringing the two armies on the same power. His mind deduced at high speed, he wanted to take the course of action that would affect the battle the most. ''It''s useless to keep the strongest of them busy in this situation, there are simply too many of them.'' The tactic used during the conquest of the islands wouldn''t have the same effects with armies so big and being another rank 3 cultivator fighting among the crowd wouldn''t affect the outcome of the battle that much. Also, there was a high chance to hurt those on his side unless he decided to not use the Demonic form. ''I should just take care of the ants.'' After he thought of that, Noah jumped from the building in a spot filled by rank 2 soldiers, a black dragon was next to him when he landed. Twenty ethereal sabers were created around him, the First Form was performed in the middle of the enemy''s army. Usually, rank 3 cultivators wouldn''t lower themselves to take care of those in the second rank but Noah didn''t care for honor and pride, he only cared about victory. His sabers released a black corrosive smoke as they slashed at the powerless rank 2 cultivators around him. Those soldiers did their best, they deployed defensive spells, martial arts, and even some protective inscribed items. Yet, against Noah''s First Form backed by his gaseous "Breath", his Demonic swords, and the partial Demonic form, those defensive measures were pierced as if they were paper. Soldiers immediately died under Noah''s offensive, Heilong trashed its body on the crowd, uncaring of the attacks that landed on its scales. Noah swung his sabers relentlessly, no one could escape nor defend against his attacks. Casualties mounted on the Empire''s side, not even a minute had passed but Noah had already killed more than fifty rank 2 cultivators, the power of the third rank couldn''t be underestimated. Then, Noah felt a dangerous sensation coming from above him, he instinctively retracted Heilong and deployed it in that position to block the incoming attack. Heilong was hit by a spear made of compressed air, its scales were pierced but they managed to deviate the spell, allowing Noah to simply sidestep it to dodge it. His eyes went in the sky, he saw an old cultivator with long white hair and a short black bear, Noah was able to recognize him, he was the rank 3 cultivator that had tried to assassinate him on the battlefield in Odrea nation! Yet, his cultivation level wasn''t in the gaseous stage anymore, what was standing in the air was a rank 3 cultivator in the liquid stage! "We have a matter to settle, Hooded devil." There was no arrogance in his tone, only a pure battle intent was radiated by his words. Noah looked at him with cold eyes, the soldiers around him didn''t dare to attack him, they simply retreated as they shot grateful gazes at the man in the air. Heilong silently entered Noah''s body and a pair of wings appeared behind his naked back. The wings flapped, Noah slowly rose into the air, his gaze never left the elderly man. He couldn''t continue to slaughter the weak soldiers if a rank 3 cultivator attacked him, it was better to take care of the biggest threat first. "I''ve reached the liquid stage in these years while you directly reached the third rank, I don''t feel that much shame anymore seeing how talented you are." The man spoke when Noah reached his height, Noah guessed that he was speaking about the assassination attempt in the past. The battle continued below them, cultivators that could fight in the air before the heroic ranks were rare and they usually had some restriction that accompanied that ability. The man in front of Noah was standing on a platform made of air, it was a spell of the wind element that allowed him to move in the sky but that was different from flying. Two spears appeared on the man''s hands, they were the spell that the man usually used to fight but Noah was sure that he had some kind of hidden ace. However, he wasn''t the same cultivator that he had tried to assassinate in the past, he was the heir of Divine Demon, as well as the Demon Prince of the Chasing Demon sect. His legs kicked the air, a shockwave resounded under his feet when they hit the black cloud that propelled his speed. The man saw Noah''s sudden acceleration and prepared himself for the imminent clash. Chapter 438: 438. Improvements Noah was too fast, the man couldn''t find a chance to throw his spears since Noah reached his position in an instant. The Third Form was executed, six sabers became one and slashed at the man with a downward vertical attack. Danger! The man was a rank 3 mage, he instinctively knew that he would die if he let that attack hit him. He crossed his spears above his head in a defensive gesture before Noah''s extremely fast saber clashed with them. Surprise appeared in the man''s eyes when he saw that Noah''s attack was cutting its way through his spears, those weapons were created by a spell after all, he couldn''t believe that a simple martial art was able to pierce them. His eyes shone with resolve as he controlled one of his spears and made it detonate, Noah was flung back due to the explosion but the man suddenly realized that something was amiss: The spell that he was using as a foothold was breaking apart, the ethereal capabilities of the Third Form had cut the platform in two and the black smoke released by the attack had further destabilized its composition. Noah didn''t target the liquid stage cultivator but his foothold! The man began to fall, a sort of layer of air enveloped his figure, preventing from the black smoke to reach his skin. Noah managed to stop himself only after a dozen meters, his body had been covered by Heilong to resist the explosion but some blood could be seen coming out from his mouth and ears, Heilong''s defense wasn''t able to completely block the shockwaves created. Yet, the liquid "Breath" was already inside his circulatory system, those wounds were healing at high speed while Noah focused on the falling man. ''He wasn''t injured by the explosion, is it because of that protective layer?'' Instants were perceived like minutes by Noah, his mental energy entered the inscriptions on the walls of his sphere and improved his analyzing abilities through the Divine deduction technique. Not even a second passed but Noah had already evaluated many different possibilities and found the most likely one. ''Wind can''t damage that layer but my attacks can, otherwise he wouldn''t have bothered to defend. I just need to press on then.'' Noah kicked the air when he reached that conclusion, he directly flew toward the falling cultivator while raising a finger in his direction. A black ray shot from his finger and landed on the defenseless liquid stage man, the latter was focusing on activating his flying spell again and couldn''t block that fast attack. The Dark ray spell had good piercing capabilities, it penetrated the layer of wind that surrounded the man and stabbed his skin. Its power and speed though were depleted to surpass that defensive spell, Noah''s attack wasn''t able to inflict much damage since the man was able to avoid a fatal damage rotating his body to make the ray hit the right side of his waist, only a superficial cut appeared on his skin. Then, he threw his other spear toward the nearing winged man. Noah completely disregarded the spell and accelerated, his body became ethereal when the spear reached him, allowing him to safely cross the spell without changing direction. The man''s eyes widened at that sight and focused even more on restoring his flying spell, he couldn''t face Noah in the air without it. A small platform formed under his feet just before Noah reached him, the man didn''t have time to create more spears and was forced to detonate the layer of air around his figure to stop Noah''s attack. The layer had the liquid stage cultivator as its center, its explosion created shockwaves all around him, it left him defenseless but it prevented anyone from attacking him. Yet, Noah wasn''t anyone. Noah knew that he had to press on, the lower level of his dantian didn''t allow him to take the slow and safe path. Also, he didn''t want to give the man enough time to restore his defenses, that was the perfect moment to inflict a fatal blow. The Ethereal form spell couldn''t be cast repeatedly, the body needed a short amount of time to stabilize itself after each usage of the spell. Thus, Noah resorted to his Blood companion. A fuming Heilong appeared and enveloped Noah''s figure as it charged through the shockwaves created in the detonation of the defensive layer. The scales of its body were shattered but the black smoke exuded by its figure was able to reduce part of the pressure applied by the explosion. Noah felt as if his body was going to break inside that dangerous area, he was sure that he wouldn''t be able to withstand those shockwaves without the help of his companion. Yet, the regenerative capabilities of his body continuously healed him and Heilong''s protection prevented any fatal attack from landing on Noah. The liquid stage man felt hopeless when he saw the almost destroyed dragon crossing the threatening area created by the detonation of his defensive spell and pouncing at him with its maws open. The man had just recovered his foothold, he wanted to cast again the defensive layer before Noah arrived but the latter didn''t give him that chance. The man''s battle intent surged, since the opponent didn''t give him time to prepare his defenses, he would simply attack! Air compressed around him as three spears slowly formed, the man was doing his best to repel the incoming dragon. However, he suddenly felt a series of hands clenching around his heart, blood came out of his mouth as his concentration broke, the almost formed spears dispersed the air they were accumulating back in the world as they disappeared completely. A human figure quickly came out of the dragon''s body when the spear disappeared, Noah had blood coming out of his mouth and ears but his eyes were colder than ever as he stared the defenseless man. What followed happened in less than a second. Heilong bit the man''s torso and Noah slashed horizontally at his waist, the liquid stage cultivator was cut into two halves and the black smoke exuded by Heilong''s interiors consumed the traces of life left in his upper body. The battle lasted only for a few exchanges but Noah had never been in a passive position for the whole time! Not even a year had passed since the events in the separate dimension but Noah was already able to face liquid stage cultivators and kill them without exhausting himself! Chapter 439: 439. First victory A normal cultivator, even one in the third rank, would have only that many spells at its disposal. That was something that varied according to the cultivator''s origin and status but it was generally rare for any cultivator to have more than four spells that matched its level. The man in the liquid stage that had just died had used three different spells which covered offense, movement, and defense, it could be said that his set of abilities was good for someone without any lofty status. Yet, Noah had completely overwhelmed him using his many methods and a bit of recklessness. Five different spells, two rank 4 martial arts and a little help from the Divine deduction technique allowed him to force a flaw in the man''s defense, which he then exploited sacrificing his body. Noah would gladly suffer a few wounds if that allowed him to inflict a fatal blow to his enemies, he had chosen the Yin body as a body-nourishing method in the past for that reason too, it matched his combat style too well. ''He didn''t use a martial art either, I wonder why so many cultivators think that they can overpower me with their spells.'' Noah thought as he turned his gaze on the battlefield below him. The cultivators with whom he had fought lately didn''t resort to martial arts during the battle, they only relied on their spells to fight. Noah guessed that they used their most powerful methods to deal with him since he was a troublesome opponent but he still thought that there was something else. ''Maybe it''s related to their level, spells are simply stronger than martial arts, wasting "Breath" in the latter might appear useless when they are rank 3 mages.'' There was also another possibility. Noah had never given up on his martial arts because his darkness element made them a bit stronger than the others and because his abilities paired perfectly with them. The Elemental forging method allowed him to create extremely threatening weapons and the partial Demonic form empowered all his attacks, using a martial art allowed Noah to have a relentless offensive that didn''t deplete much energy. For someone with a darkness aptitude, finding ways to preserve "Breath" and mental energy was a must. The battlefield was chaotic, the troops of the Empire were weakened by Kate''s formation but they were more than the cultivators of the Hive, they managed to hold their ground even in that unfavorable situation. Casualties mounted on both sides, it was clear that the archipelago would be greatly weakened after that first battle. Noah decided to resume his slaughter of rank 2 cultivators, he only needed to use the First Form and Heilong to deal with them, he could keep fighting them even if he had just killed a cultivator in the liquid stage. As soon as Noah dove back into the battlefield, some pressure was relieved from the rank 2 cultivators on his side. That allowed them to help those in the third rank, they might be far weaker but they could still force the rank 3 soldiers in a passive position if they joined their forces. A mosquito was clearly weaker than a dragon but a million of them might be able to pierce its scales. The same could be applied to cultivators, no rank 2 cultivator was able to defeat someone in the third rank but hundreds of them could force the soldiers in the third rank to focus on defense. Little by little, the soldiers of the Empire began to be pushed back as more and more rank 2 cultivators could freely focus them. Noah continued his solitary slaughter, the soldiers in the second rank did their best to escape but casualties were inevitable against someone in the third rank. The losses of the Empire increased, the number of soldiers slowly matched the cultivators of the Hive until they became even less than them. "Retreat!" An order was shouted from the group of rank 3 soldiers. "Retreat!" "Retreat!" Other soldiers echoed that order, the troops of the Empire quickly left the battlefield to return to their safe position on the inscribed ships. The cultivators of the Hive did their best to kill as many retreating soldiers as possible and managed to further diminish their numbers before they reached the ships, the battle on that island ended with a victory for the forces of the underground organizations. The cultivators didn''t dare to chase the soldiers on the ships, the territorial advantage was what led them to victory, they wouldn''t risk assaulting the ships and give that advantage to their enemies. "Regroup, help the wounded, restore the traps! There is nothing to celebrate, this is just one battle! Bring me a report with the situation of the other islands!" Noah''s orders resounded on the shore, suppressing the victorious cries of the cultivators around him. The battle had been harsh and they had suffered many losses, there was no point on celebrating since the invaders were still docked on their shores. ''We forced them to retreat on the first battle, we might be able to make them return to the continent in the second or third one. We won''t be able to survive another wave of reinforcements.'' Noah was expressionless as he inspected the losses on his side. He knew that, with the territorial advantage, the Hive might be able to defend against that first wave of reinforcements. However, it would come out of the war extremely weakened, it wouldn''t have any chance against another attack from the continent. The joint power of the underground organizations could match the Royals or the Council in the past but the trials of the Inheritance ground and the conquest of the peripheral islands had almost halved their forces, putting them far below the central powers of those countries. A report was quickly delivered in Noah''s hands, it described the outcome of that battle and the situation on the other islands. ''More than one hundred rank 2 cultivators and about twenty-five in the third rank died on this island while the enemy has lost far more than us.'' Noah read through the contents of the sheets in his hands before sending mental messages through his notebook, there were still ongoing battles on some of the other islands, Noah was going to send reinforcements to seal the outcome of those fights. Chapter 440: 440. Reorganizing The underground organizations managed to survive the battles during the first day and successfully defended the peripheral islands. Reorganizing the troops though was a problem, the three islands where the forces of the continent had attacked had seen harsh battles with a high number of casualties on both sides, but the biggest issue came from the other battlefields. The Hive controlled about ninety islands, that number was needed to completely isolate the archipelago, not even an island could be lost or the setting of the copying technique would be hindered. The cultivators on those other islands had to face the assault of the legal organizations, the Hive had far more human assets than them but they also had more enemies to face. Considering that about two hundred and fifty rank 3 cultivators had to be deployed to face the forces of the continent, there weren''t many powerful troops available for the other islands. Yet, with the many traps laid by the joint forces of the Hive and the cautious nature of the legal organizations, those islands were successfully defended. The continent and the legal organizations had no idea that the Chasing Demon sect had gained access to the copying technique, they were even unaware that a technique that defied common sense as that one existed! That''s why they would rather take the slow and safe approach than going for a full power offensive, the Hive had fewer troops and couldn''t hope in reinforcements, the continent thought that it could slowly drain the Hive''s forces and eventually wait for more reinforcements if it was still unable to reclaim the captured islands. Noah stared with cold eyes at the ships at some distance from the shore, the atmosphere on the island was tense, especially after the elders'' orders. A week had passed since the last battle, the human assets of the Hive had worked at full speed to reorganize themselves and fix or deploy traps and formations, they didn''t know when the next attack would come so it was better to be ready at any time. ''We are left with less than forty rank 3 cultivators to defend this side, the next battle will leave us powerless.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the remaining forces on the island that he was appointed to defend. Many cultivators in the third rank had died in the first wave of attacks, leaving many islands in a defenseless situation. Cultivators had to be deployed there to cover those battlefields but the Hive was already using all its human assets, it could only relocate the cultivators deployed in the three important battlefields to refill the ranks of the other islands. Of course, that relocation weakened the forces that had to face the troops of the continent, forcing the various underground organizations to take drastic measures to improve their battle prowess. Noah turned his head toward the hundreds of stiff youths in the distance behind him, they were rank 1 cultivators who had a rank 1 sea of consciousness, the Hive had decided to deploy even its weakest assets to slightly boost the defenses on the islands. Also, the Chasing Demon sect had willingly revealed the large number of inscribed weapons that Noah had retrieved from the separate dimension. Noah didn''t know what kind of agreement the elders of the various branches of the Hive had reached, but he could see that most cultivators wielded brand new inscribed weapons, it didn''t seem to matter from which organization they came from. ''Hoping that an army of well-equipped ants might bring us to victory is a bit too desperate, I guess the copying technique is nearing completion at least.'' That was the only reason that Noah could think of when he saw the weapons that he had left in the inventory being freely wielded by cultivators belonging to different organizations. ''War and corpses are the foundation of a country, the Hive will experience a rebirth if it survives this tribulation.'' Noah closed his eyes as he sighed internally, he remembered the struggles that he had endured when he was a simple rank 1 cultivator, he knew the feeling of being powerless against the decisions of those controlling you. That''s why securing the archipelago was so important in his mind, the world was filled by monsters and amazing beings, there was a limit to how much one could escape their gaze. ''Not for love, nor respect, nor honor, nor belonging. I must fight this battle for myself, to lay my foundation toward higher ranks.'' Noah steeled his determination with that reminder. It wasn''t that he didn''t like the Chasing Demon sect, he had progressed incredibly quickly in its environment and he was also able to retrieve the Inheritance of Divine Demon thanks to it. Yet, Noah had always put his personal power above everything, pursuing strength had been the strongest drive of his second life, he would think about the well-being of his sect only after he had secured his position. Another week passed, an eerie silence filled the peripheral islands of the archipelago as the forces of the Hive waited for the next assault of the continent and the legal organizations, only Noah felt glad of each second that passed without signs of attacks. Then, a buzzing sound reached his mind, a message saying that the ships near the shore were closing in resounded inside his mental sphere. Noah didn''t cultivate in those days, he wanted to be at his peak form before the battle. He had sat still in a cross-legged position with his eyes closed, he used that time to sharpen his thoughts as much as he could and decide which role would he play in the next battle. The ships reached the purple shore and Noah opened his eyes before standing up and sending orders through his notebook. "Attack the ships." Noah''s order echoed in the minds of the cultivators in the island, a torrent of multicolored lights shot from the ground and landed on the docked ships. The inscriptions on the hulls lit up and shone with a silver color, forming large silver layers around the ships. The spells of the cultivators of the Hive could only land on those protective layers, the silver light radiated by those shields repelled the attacks uncaringly of how numerous they were. ''Pointless, as expected.'' Noah thought as he ordered to stop the long-distance assault and wait for the frontal clash, the second battle for the control of the archipelago had started. Chapter 441: 441. Homework The troops of the Empire jumped off the ships, safely landing on the parts of the shore covered by the silver shields. The Empire didn''t send troops to probe the situation at that time, the entirety of the reinforcements jumped off the ships at the same time and prepared themselves for the imminent battle. There were still about fifty rank 3 cultivators on the Empire''s side, Noah''s group had managed to inflict heavy losses during the last battle, bringing the forces of both sides on a similar number. Yet, part of Noah''s group had been sent to refill the ranks on the other islands, making the accomplishments obtained in the previous battle almost pointless from their perspective. Sharing the weight of the trials that the world put on their way was one of the reasons why humans gathered together to form organizations, Noah understood the elders'' choice. His gaze was fixed on the shore as the troops of the Empire began to advance. Some traps soon detonated, fuming spikes filled the area but those aiming for the soldiers were repelled by a series of water domes, the last battle didn''t remove the rank 3 mages specialized in defense from the enemy forces. Also, a seemingly soft breeze blew between the soldiers. ''They did their homework in these two weeks.'' Noah sighed internally when he noticed the breeze, he realized that the soldiers had come up with a way to counter Kate''s formation. The breeze prevented the materials of the formation from accumulating on the bodies of the soldiers, Kate''s weakening formation could be almost neglected without that requirement. It couldn''t be helped, formations were powerful and could turn the tides of a battle if they caught someone by surprise. Yet, they could also be countered, even with simple methods most of the time. The stronger the formation, the harsher the requirements for its activation will be, everything had a weakness after all. The soldiers of the Empire soon reached the area where Kate''s formation was laid. Shining lines appeared on the terrain but they didn''t seem to affect the soldiers in any way, only the weaker rank 2 cultivators paled a bit when the light swept their bodies but they quickly recovered, the Hive''s defenses couldn''t hinder their advance. At that sight, Noah decided to act. A frontal clash would inevitably cause heavy losses on his side, the Empire could choose to retreat to contain its losses but the forces of the Hive didn''t have that choice, they had to hold the control of those islands! Noah warped in the air above the enemy''s troops, his spell was noticed only by the strongest cultivators in the third rank but even they didn''t have time to react to what was happening above their heads. Noah came out of the black flames, Heilong''s wings were spread behind his back as they kept him in the air. He had a hand stretched toward the troops below him, a black ring could be seen on that hand. Then, many inscribed items began to appear in front of his hand and fall on the troops. Noah injected his "Breath" in every item that appeared, what he was using was his personal stash of Instabilities and Hidden blasts, he even used those in the second rank that he had kept since his battles in Odrea nation! Noah would always keep some of his disposable weapons for himself even when they were needed for defending the sect but, at that time, he was releasing all that accumulated firepower on the troops of the Empire! More than a hundred spiked spheres and needles feel from the sky, the rank 3 cultivators on the ground didn''t let that sight scare them, they quickly deployed the defensive spells used before. Noah flew higher in the sky, he didn''t want to be too close to the blast and he also wanted to hide the sight of him drinking a potion from the battlefield. The contents of the potion quickly entered his body, improving the production of mental energy as he kept his attention focused on the events below him. He felt as if his mind had been split into a hundred different pieces, each one moving in a different direction. Those pieces surpassed a dense wall and were weakened but they managed to find their targets anyway. "Attack!" Noah ordered when he knew that his plan had succeeded. The truth was that Noah had hidden a Ghostly claw inside each of his disposable weapons! He had never created that many Ghostly claws at the same time, his mental energy had been depleted in the process but what had been harder was controlling each different spell! That''s why he had escaped in the sky to use his drugs, he needed a safe place where to refill his mental energy while controlling the ethereal claws. His targets were the rank 3 cultivators in the army of the Empire, especially those deploying the defensive spells. The ethereal claws squeezed the hearts of the rank 3 cultivators, they had been unable to notice them between the many explosions that resounded on the other side of their defensive spells. Their concentration wavered slightly, some spikes and needles managed to pass through the cracks created after that lack of focus. Also, a torrent of spells crashed on the troops of the Empire at that moment, further worsening the stability of the defensive spells deployed by the soldiers. Some of Noah''s weapons, as well as some attacks, managed to pass the defenses of the soldiers and land on them, cries and explosions could be heard from inside the water domes but the exact effects couldn''t be seen yet. Noah didn''t wait for the soldiers to reorganize inside the domes, he directly ordered those under him to charge toward the invaders. A tide of cultivators wielding brand new inscribed weapons assaulted the water domes, it took only a few series of attacks before the defensive spells were broken, revealing the disorganized state of the troops behind them. Noah''s weapons and the few spells that had managed to breach those defenses had killed many rank 2 cultivators and wounded a few in the third rank but the forces of the Empire were still stronger than those of the Hive. Noah dove into the battlefield, he couldn''t let go of that moment of weakness created by using all his stash of disposable weapons. However, when he was about to reach a defenseless rank 3 cultivator, a thunderbolt and a fireball flew in his direction. Noah''s body quickly turned ethereal, the spells passed through him but were unable to inflict any damage. Yet, he couldn''t stop his descending momentum while using the Ethereal form spell, his figure returned material only when he was about to land on the ground. Sand rose in the air as Heilong''s wings flapped to make Noah land safely but his focus immediately went on two rank 3 soldiers that neared him wielding their weapons. Chapter 442: 442. Magical beasts Two rank 3 cultivators in the gaseous stage neared Noah as soon as he landed in the battlefield, Heilong came out in the open when he felt that incoming threat. ''Do they think numbers are enough to overwhelm me?'' Noah wondered when he saw that those two soldiers had their gazes fixed on him, they had probably been appointed to take care of him after his feats in the last battle. A sword and a greatsword were in their hands, those cultivators were relying on their martial arts due to the poor level of their mental spheres. They were rank 3 mages but the level of their seas of consciousness wasn''t even close to Noah''s one. It couldn''t be helped, reaching the third rank of the mind while being in the gaseous stage was already a great feat, Noah was probably the only exception in that world. Yet, when facing Noah, the poor level of their minds was a fatal weakness. Heilong pounced in the direction of the cultivator wielding the greatsword, he was the one who had launched the fireball, his aptitude could be countered by the Blood companion for some time. Noah, instead, turned to face the lightning cultivator, his bloodshot eyes released a mental shockwave aimed for his mind, the spell successfully landed on his enemy and cracks appeared everywhere on the walls of his sphere. The lightning cultivator dropped his weapon, his hands went on his head as if trying to suppress the pain he was experiencing. Then, his experience made him reach for a potion inside his space-ring but his connection with the storage device was interrupted since another piercing mental beam hit his mind. His mental sphere was already on the verge of falling apart after being hit by the Mental tremor spell and couldn''t endure another attack, the walls of the sphere shattered and the sea that was the thoughts of the cultivator dispersed in the world. The lightning cultivator''s eyes became devoid of any trace of life as he fell on the ground, one gaseous stage cultivator had been killed so easily! The Mental tremor spell was incredibly strong, only a mind that matched Noah''s one or a defensive method against mental waves could stop it. Of course, its weakness was that Noah had to see where the enemy''s head was to aim the mental beam, but it was easy to catch by surprise unaware cultivators. The half-destroyed body of his Blood companion fell behind him, Noah turned toward the fire cultivator whose greatsword was surrounded by blue flames. Heilong quickly reconstructed expending Noah''s "Breath" and charged again, Noah followed it performing six slashes with the Third Form of the Ashura. The fire cultivator was assaulted by two sides, one had a seemingly undying dragon that exuded a corrosive black smoke while the other had a rank 3 cultivator that slashed madly in his direction, the fire radiated by his weapon was barely able to fend off the black smoke that was beginning to surround him, he was pushed back after every clash. His weapon seemed to work as a catalyst for his spell, the fire cultivator used the blue fire that surrounded his greatsword to create fireballs and dogs made of flames but his methods were useless against Noah and his Blood companion. Heilong spread its wings every time a spell was aimed for Noah while he focused completely on forcing a flaw in the soldier''s defense. Noah could have used his spells to end that battle quickly but he preferred to preserve his mental energy in case a stronger soldier appeared, he was still in the middle of the battlefield after all. Also, he was completely confident against that gaseous stage soldier, there was no chance that he would lose with Heilong at his side, with the Demonic swords, and with the higher level of his mental sphere. Noah''s Third Form cut through everything that managed to cross Heilong''s wings, the blue flames that made the soldier''s spells were completely unable to touch Noah due to the black smoke released by his attacks. Heilong then stomped its frontal legs on the soldier''s lower body, hindering his movements and creating an opening that Noah exploited cutting the soldier''s head off. The death of the other assailant gave Noah time to analyze the battlefield. Many rank 1 cultivators died in each passing second, the Hive had deployed them to buy more time but they were simply too weak for a battle on that level. The rank 2 cultivators on his side weren''t much better off, the casualties among them mounted after every clash. The situation of those in the third rank was the same, they didn''t die as often as the weaker ones but they were still suppressed due to the higher number of soldiers of the Empire. Noah decided once again to focus the soldier in the second rank to apply more pressure on the stronger soldiers but a liquid stage cultivator appeared in front of him before he could perform the First Form. The liquid stage soldier was a woman of the earth element, a thick sandy armor covered almost the entirety of her body, leaving uncovered only her joints. That spell didn''t seem to hinder her movements too much due to the openings on the joints and the abundant mental energy contained in the armor countered Noah''s Mental tremor and Ghostly claws, she seemed to have come prepared to fight Noah. Noah slowly rose in the air, Heilong''s wings flapped behind his back as he floated at a short distance from the ground. He had to use his full power against cultivators in the liquid stage and one of his strongest methods was his flying speed, Noah wouldn''t choose to fight on the ground. However, before he could launch himself in a furious offensive, an earthquake shook the ground below him and put a momentary stop to the battle. Noah was in the air so his senses weren''t affected by the earthquake, he could clearly sense that the tremors weren''t limited to that island but spread on the islands nearby. Then, the tremors abruptly stopped, the cultivators were about to resume their battle after a short moment of silence but their attention was drawn on the shore where a pack of rank 4 magical beasts had suddenly appeared. Chapter 443: 443. Tentacles A pack of rank 4 Giant octopuses appeared on the shore where the cultivators of the Hive and the soldiers of the Empire were fighting. Something was off with those magical beasts though, the level of those beasts seemed to be exactly the same, they were all in the middle tier of the fourth rank. All the rank 3 cultivators that had been in the separate dimension and that were on the battlefield felt some similarities with the dragons of the trials, the soldiers of the Empire had only read some reports after all. Yet, everyone knew that such a sight was rare on the Coral archipelago. The exoskeleton of the Purple corals scared away the magical beasts in the sea, keeping the islands safe from the invasion of those creatures. However, their eyes weren''t lying to them, magical beasts were really coming from the sea and crawling on the purple shore. ''We won.'' Noah was the first to realize that the copying technique had been completed and that there was no point in fighting further. "Retreat to the back of the island!" He immediately gave the order and warped away while the other cultivators were still busy staring at the peculiar scene. His order awakened the cultivators of the Hive who retreated without hesitation, some of them began to understand what was happening and could barely contain the excitement that they felt. The soldiers of the Empire though were clueless, they stood still on the battlefield, unsure of what to do next. The pack of Giant octopuses had more than thirty rank 4 creatures in the middle tier, taking care of them would require their full concentration and the Empire couldn''t do that while being on the ground controlled by the Hive. Yet, the magical beasts stood between them and their ships, even retreating wouldn''t be easy since they would have to pass between the powerful creatures. As for chasing the escaping cultivators, that option was gone in that moment of hesitation. The cultivators of the Hive were already far away, the soldiers could catch up with the slow rank 1 cultivators but they had no interest in them, they were just cannon fodder after all. "Return to the ships!" In the end, the soldier in charge gave that order and the army coming from the Empire decided to retreat through the path occupied by magical beasts. That situation was extremely unusual, they knew that they would suffer some losses along the way but retreating and reorganizing seemed the best option at that moment. The army of the Empire charged toward their ships, it resembled a tide ready to sweep the octopuses as it moved toward the sea. However, most of the soldiers were in the second rank, only about fifty of them were rank 3 cultivators, the strength of both sides was more similar than what appeared. The Giant octopuses were a kind of magical beasts that lived in the depths of the sea, generally ten meters tall and with long tentacles, they rarely appeared on the surface. The sunlight though didn''t affect their view, their natural environment was something that matched some of their other qualities. They had a powerful body that was also particularly soft, that quality was something that allowed them to be virtually unaffected by the heavy pressure in the depths of the sea. Also, they could swim at an unexpectedly fast speed, that quality though didn''t apply on the ground. The Giant octopuses were extremely slow on the ground, the pack had barely crossed three meters when the army of the Empire reached them. The soldiers focused their firepower at the center of the pack, they couldn''t avoid them since they were still too close to their ships so they simply chose to force the blockage. The pack of magical beasts was hit by the torrent of attacks launched by the soldiers, the attacks focused the specimens at the center of the pack and directly annihilated them, opening a path where the soldiers could pass. The Giant octopuses were slow on the ground but their tentacles could only benefit from the absence of the pressure of the sea. As soon as the army entered the ranks of the beasts to reach for the ships, a series of noises that resembled whips cracking filled the area. The tentacles of the octopuses shot at an incredible speed and created shockwaves wherever they landed. The cultivators hit by the tentacles were directly torn in many pieces, even the defensive spells of those in the third rank couldn''t endure such powerful attacks for a long time. Yet, the army was in full retreat, no one stopped its escape to care about the soldiers hit by the beasts. The inscribed ships appeared in the sight of the soldiers as soon as they crossed the pack of magical beasts. Happy expressions could be seen appearing on their faces, those ships were their headquarters after all and the inscriptions on them offered a great defense, they would be safe once they climbed on their main deck. Those expressions suddenly froze though since a tentacle six meters large appeared from the sea and coiled itself around the nearest ship. The inscriptions on the ship lit up, the silver shield was deployed again and opposed the squeeze of the giant tentacle. However, right in front of the incredulous eyes of everyone on the island, the circular protective layer that surrounded the ship cracked under the squeeze of the tentacle. The shield then completely broke, allowing the tentacle to coil again on the ship, it took only a few seconds for the ship to be directly torn in two pieces under the attack of that huge magical beast. Even Noah who was staring at the scene from the distance was amazed. ''That''s a rank 5 magical beast! Divine Demon said that the limit of the copying technique was the heroic ranks but I didn''t expect Chasing Demon to be able to capture a rank 5 creature!'' His thoughts led him to believe that his patriarch had captured and bound a rank 5 magical beast alive! He didn''t know much about the copying technique but he was aware that the specimen that had to be copied had to be in a specific environment filled by formations and inscriptions. ''The patriarch is indeed a rank 6 existence.'' Noah sighed internally when he realized the amount of power held by such a powerful cultivator, he sat on the ground to enjoy the battle when he accepted that there was nothing else that he needed to do. Chapter 444: 444. Powerful creature The soldiers of the Empire saw their hope to escape that dangerous situation vanish in a few instants. What had appeared in front of them was a rank 5 magical beast, even their powerful ships could do nothing against that entity. Meanwhile, the Giant octopuses behind them began to catch up, their tentacles cracked in the air as if they were whips as they resumed to attack the soldiers. Cultivators started to die again, the assault of magical beasts in the middle tier of the fourth rank wasn''t something that rank 2 cultivators could handle and those in the third rank were busy defending themselves to mind anyone else. The truth was that there was still a glimmer of hope in their minds, something that they knew would be able to face the mighty creature in the sea. "Enough." A voice filled the island, the air seemed to stop, the Giant octopuses on the ground shook, only the huge tentacle wrapped in the remains of the ship was unaffected. A middle-aged man wearing a plain expression appeared in the air and walked toward the pack of magical beasts. He had short black hair, no beard, and a pair of dark eyes, he slowly waved his hand in a horizontal motion and, all of sudden, the ground shook again. The terrain under the Giant octopuses began to tremble, a series of snakes made of sand rose from the ground and tangled themselves around the creatures. The octopuses tried to use the soft capabilities of their bodies to escape the bindings but more and more snakes rose from the ground as time passed, at least one hundred of them were created in less than a minute. Then, the snakes began to retreat in the ground, carrying the bound magical beasts with them, the pack of Giant octopuses was slowly buried alive, leaving no traces of the beasts. The soldiers of the Empire began to cheer while unsightly expressions appeared on the faces of the cultivators of the Hive, only Noah remained calm at the sight of a heroic cultivator defeating the pack of rank 4 creatures. He had seen the power of a rank 5 magical beast and he knew that even a patriarch of a medium-size noble family hadn''t been able to defeat it, he didn''t know the specifics about their power but he was sure that it wouldn''t be easy to defeat the mighty creature on the sea. The huge tentacle didn''t seem bothered by the appearance of the heroic cultivator and simply went for another ship, coiling itself around it. "Know your place, beast." The heroic cultivator appeared in the trajectory of the tentacle and stretched a hand to block it. The tentacle was huge, it didn''t seem possible for someone that small to be able to block it. Yet, when his hand touched the limb of the rank 5 creature, the tentacle stopped. A proud expression appeared on the face of the heroic cultivator and the cheers of the soldiers on the shore further improved his mood. However, his expression suddenly froze when he heard a deep cry coming from the bottom of the sea. Waves rose at a short distance from the shore, it seemed as if the sea had resonated with the cry of the rank 5 creature and was conveying its anger! The soldiers retreated when they saw the tall waves reaching for the shore, their expressions became worried when they raised their heads to the sky and saw that their savior was slowly being pushed back by the tentacle of the beast! The man in the heroic ranks stopped playing around and decided to become serious. Hundreds of snakes made of sand rose from the shore and reached for the tentacle that was pushing him back. The snakes coiled themselves around the tentacle, some of them directly broke under the pressure that it applied but the man simply created more of them. Little by little, more than a hundred snakes bound the tentacle and stopped its advance, the heroic soldier heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that he had completely blocked the limb of the powerful creature. Just as he was about to retract his hand though, two more huge tentacles rose at high speed from the sea and directly slammed on him! The heroic cultivator couldn''t react in time, the newly arrived tentacles were too fast, it seemed impossible to reach that speed due to their size. Nevertheless, the heroic cultivator was hit by both limbs and was sent flying in the distance, the sand snakes around the third tentacle broke after that. The soldiers on the shore felt as if their legs had lost all their strength, most of them fell powerlessly on the ground when they saw their last hope vanish in the distance. The three tentacles then went for a ship each, the silver shields slowly crumbled as the beast focused the inscribed ships. ''As expected, he wasn''t enough to deal with the creature, he must have been just in the fourth rank.'' Noah judged from his safe position on the other side of the island. The power of those in the heroic ranks was a mystery to him but he knew that beasts in the fifth rank weren''t something that could be faced easily. ''Maybe one needs to be at the peak of the fourth rank to beat them¡­ I don''t really know the difference though.'' The reason why he was so focused on trying to understand the cultivation level of the heroic soldier was linked to his personal vengeance. The Balvan family had one heroic cultivator that he was sure of but he still didn''t know his actual level. Noah was set on avenging his mother but he wouldn''t do so by sacrificing his life, he wanted to be sure that he could deal with the entirety of his family before planning an assault to Balvan mansion. Then, his thoughts were interrupted since another figure appeared in the air. It was another man with long gray hair and a short gray beard, the heroic cultivator from before was unconscious in his grasp, he simply let him hang from his hand as he carried him by his robe. His gaze wasn''t on the rank 5 creature nor the soldiers below him, he seemed to stare at some place in the distance with a stern expression. Then, he spoke and his voice filled the archipelago. "The Empire is ready to talk." Chapter 445: 445. Negotiation The attacks of the rank 5 creature stopped after the newly appeared heroic cultivator spoke, its tentacles vanished in the air in a few seconds. "The Council is ready to talk!" Another voice filled the archipelago, it belonged to a woman and seemed to come from the direction where the ships of the Papral nation were docked. ''They are trying to preserve troops, the war has reached the point where human cultivators can''t affect it anymore.'' Noah sighed internally as he realized what was happening. The cultivators in the heroic ranks from each faction had tasted the power of the copying spell and were expressing their willingness to negotiate, it was useless to waste all their human assets against those magical beasts. "The Elbas family is ready to talk." At last, even the heroic cultivator from the Utra nation gave up on fighting the powerful tentacles coming from the sea and decided to resort to negotiation. Silence filled the archipelago, all the battles on the peripheral islands had long stopped since the appearance of the magical beasts, all the cultivators on them were waiting for the answer of the powerful beings ruling the underground organizations. Then, a tall cultivator with a burly body filled with scars, red eyes, and brown eyes appeared in the air above the battlefields. Noah could recognize him, he was the Chasing Demon! "Let''s talk then." A faint smile was on his face as he answered the heroic cultivators from the other factions and gestured to follow him, four figures disappeared in a few seconds. In a purple underground area, on the horizontal peak that was the mountain where Chasing Demon trained, four cultivators sat on a table outside the formation on the ground. If Noah was there, he would notice that the area around the underground mountain was now filled by the shining lines of a huge formation, Chasing Demon had used his training area as part of the core of the copying technique. Chasing Demon sat on one side of the table, he seemed completely relaxed as he took long sips from the cup in front of him, the piercing gazes of his three guests didn''t bother him at all. The three guests were the heroic cultivators sent by the three big nations to escort the ships, there were actually more of them with the ships but only the strongest of each faction had joined that negotiation. They were one man and two women, all three of them in the fifth rank of the dantian, their gazes tried to probe the power of Chasing Demon but, to their surprise, they weren''t able to understand his level. The two women from the Papral and Utra nation seemed somewhat anxious but the cultivator from the Empire was managing to keep his calm, realizing that the man in front of him was in the sixth rank didn''t seem to affect him in the slightest. It was due to that mental tranquility that he was the first to speak and to open the negotiations. "I''ve already notified the continent that the Coral archipelago has a rank 6 existence defending it now, I, Gray Fury, have been granted the permission to seal an accord. The Shandal Empire is willing to offer five hundred years of peace and favorable exchanges of resources for the technique used to restrain and put to use rank 5 magical beasts." His words were spoken proudly, he seemed completely sure that his offer would be accepted. Chasing Demon acted as if he didn''t speak and simply continued to drink his wine as he stared at a vague point in the distance. "I''ve also notified the Council and been granted permission to represent the Papral nation in this negotiation. The Council is willing to reinstate the Chasing Demon sect as an orthodox sect and help it in its control over the archipelago. All your benefits can be further discussed once the exact value of the archipelago is decided." The woman from the Papral nation spoke, she had long brown hair and shining green eyes, she didn''t look more than forty years old since not even a wrinkle could be seen in her beautiful face. "Anthea, you were only a mortal when the demon sects were chased out of the continent, don''t speak about things that you can''t understand." Chasing Demon answered the woman from the Papral nation without looking at her, his stance clearly expressed that he wasn''t interested in her offer. It was then time for the heroic cultivator from the Utra nation to make her proposal. "I''m Lady Edna, the Elbas family congratulates the Chasing Demon for reaching the sixth rank and hopes to seal a deal that can benefit both organizations. The Royal dynasty is willing to recognize the Coral archipelago as an independent nation as long as the stream of resources for the researches of the Royal academy isn''t interrupted." Lady Edna spoke slowly, there seemed to be something bothering her mind but she ultimately chose to leave that matter for later. She was the heroic cultivator that had helped Thaddeus and Cecil in opening Eccentric Thunder''s Inheritance ground, she had the usual golden hair of the Elbas bloodline and green eyes, her position in the Royal family was also quite high. The offers of the three big nations of the continent had been presented, it was up to Chasing Demon now to speak. Chasing Demon moved his gaze on the table, his eyes lingered on the almost empty cup in his hand for a while before he decided himself to speak. "You can stop pretending, we all know that you won''t pursue a full offensive on the archipelago, you simply fear each other too much." Unsightly expressions appeared on the representatives of the continent when they heard his words. "The Empire alone is enough to deplete all your reserves of energy and reclaim the archipelago under its banner." Gray Fury complained when he felt the honor of his country being attacked. "Yes, but doing that will pave the path for a collaboration between the other two big nations. Your three areas of influence are bound to clash at some point, are you really sure that your country wants to be weakened so much before that?" As he said those words, Chasing Demon raised his eyes and stared at Gray Fury who had lowered his head to hide his expression in front of that mighty existence. A tense atmosphere was created as soon as the patriarch of the Chasing demon sect decided to express his thoughts. Chapter 446: 446. Cheers Chasing Demon''s words were on point. It was clear that the copying technique was extremely powerful but that it also expended large quantities of Credits or other items containing "Breath" to work. Reproducing the might of a rank 5 magical beasts wasn''t a cheap task, it was clear that the reserves of the underground organizations would be drained in a prolonged war. Yet, as long as those reserves existed, the Coral archipelago was virtually unbreachable. Also, the only way to deplete those reserves was to force the activation of the copying technique, meaning that the armies from the continent would have to fight a seemingly endless tide of magical beasts in the meantime. The underground organizations wouldn''t have a chance to defend the islands for much time if the three big countries decided to keep working together but the archipelago wasn''t exactly their main focus. The situation on the continent was tense, the Empire continued to expand while the Papral and Utra nation did their best to secure the borders of their areas of influence, a battle between them was bound to happen at some point and the trigger for that war might as well be the losses suffered while they fought against the beasts created with the copying technique. After all, the Coral archipelago wasn''t as valuable as the entirety of a big nation, the resources accumulated in thousands of years during their domain were simply too many to be neglected. Conquering the archipelago wasn''t worth exposing a flaw in their defense, the generous offers from before were just a way to quickly stop the battles and save as many assets as possible without losing the connection with the islands. Yet, Chasing Demon knew the power of the underground organizations too well. Without considering the copying technique, the assets that the continent would have to sacrifice to take the archipelago back would still be too many. He was a rank 6 existence after all, how many heroic cultivators would die by his hands before the threat of the Hive would be extinguished? When adding the other heroic assets and the copying technique, the war for the archipelago became simply not worth its cost in the eyes of the three big nations of the continent. "What does Chasing Demon propose as a solution then?" Gray Fury asked, he was representing the strongest nation in the continent, his status didn''t allow him to appear weak in front of the other envoys. "Leave. Get out and don''t come back." Chasing Demon''s words resounded in the silence of the underground area, it took a while for the heroic cultivators from the continent to fully accept the meaning behind his words. Angry and irritated expressions appeared on their faces but they didn''t dare to be disrespectful in front of him, even their joint power wouldn''t be able to stop the offensive of a rank 6 existence. "C-could you explain yourself better?" It took all of Anthea''s concentration to suppress her anger and speak politely, that wasn''t the right time to let her emotions take over her. Chasing Demon seemed not to care at all about the situation, it was as if he was playing a game where he had nothing to lose. He took his time, a jug appeared which floated in the air and autonomously filled the cup in his hands. Then he took a few sips before putting the jug away and finally deign his guests of an answer. "You have two choices." He stretched the index and middle finger of his hand to give more importance to his words. "You can abandon the archipelago. I can guarantee that all the cultivators belonging to your countries will be able to safely leave the internal islands, I will keep some of the resources in those islands of course and even become your trading partner for the exchange of valuable resources. Yet, the Coral archipelago would become an independent nation ruled by the Hive from that moment on." Chasing Demon lowered one of his fingers, leaving only his index stretched in front of the other heroic cultivators. "Or we can keep fighting. The war will continue until one of you betrays the others and starts a battle on the continent. You will then put a hold on the campaign on the islands and focus on the continent to stabilize the situation there, leaving the control of the archipelago still in my hands." He lowered his index when he finished explaining those options, then, he stretched his hand in a welcoming gesture before speaking again. "The choice is yours, I know that the Hive will keep the archipelago either way, it''s just a matter of how many resources will be wasted at this point." His speech ended, leaving the three heroic cultivators from the continent speechless. The choices that Chasing Demon had given them were simply outside of what they could decide, they had to contact the continent before answering. Chasing Demon was aware of that, he waved his hand as a sign that they could go and contact their superiors, he kept drinking his wine as his guests stood up and went in separate areas to use their communication methods. Chasing Demon knew that as soon as one big nation decided to abandon the archipelago, the other two would be forced to follow its example. After all, they couldn''t endure the expenses of a war while one of their enemies continued to grow, they couldn''t expose such a fatal flaw. It took almost an entire day before the meeting ended. Noah and the other cultivators on what had been the battlefields were silently waiting for the orders of their heroic assets. The soldiers from the continent didn''t dare to go back on their ships, they warily waited on the shore, hoping to never see those giant tentacles again. Then, Chasing Demon with the three envoys appeared in the air at the center of the archipelago. "All the citizens of the Empire must pack their things and near the peripheral islands, the Shandal Empire is officially abandoning any claim over the archipelago." "Cultivators of the Papral nation, leave for the peripheral islands, you are going home." "The section of the Royal academy on the Coral archipelago will be dismantled today. Gather all the valuable researches and materials and go on the peripheral islands, you have been relocated." The words spoken by the three heroic cultivators from the continent resounded throughout the entirety of the archipelago. What could be heard after them were the cheers of the cultivators belonging to the underground organizations. Chapter 447: 447. Reques Noah stood up as the cheers of the cultivators of the Hive filled the archipelago. The war was over, the continent was retrieving its assets from the islands, there was nothing else to do. ''I guess fighting a technique that can copy rank 5 magical beasts and rank 6 existence is too much even for the continent. Well, things would be different if the continent had a united front.'' Noah could understand the frail balance between the three big nations of the continent, he had traveled a lot after all, it wasn''t hard to guess the complications that would occur once the continent decided to press on with its invasion. His gaze went on the sky, where Chasing Demon stood proudly behind the three heroic cultivators that were overseeing their respective factions. Then, Lady Edna moved her gaze away from the ground and turned to face Chasing Demon. Chasing Demon was slightly surprised by her behavior, they had already reached an agreement concerning the trades of resources and other areas, he didn''t think that there would be other aspects to discuss. "Mighty Chasing Demon, the Elbas family would like to discuss something else in private." Lady Edna bowed politely as she issued that request, Chasing Demon simply waved his hand to isolate the area with his "Breath", the other two heroic cultivators at a short distance weren''t able to hear nor sense anything even though they could clearly see them. Lady Edna decided to speak since Chasing Demon didn''t seem willing to do so. "You must know that a criminal of the Utra nation is among the ranks of your sect. The Royal dynasty is willing to pay a hefty sum and promise a long-lasting peaceful relationship as long as this individual is handed to them." It wasn''t hard to understand the identity behind the criminal that she had spoken of, Noah was quite famous after all. Fear! Lady Edna had just finished speaking but she suddenly felt a wave of fear enveloping her body. She hadn''t felt in that way since she reached the fifth rank of the dantian, there weren''t many beings in the world able to able to threaten her, especially considering her position as part of the Royal family. She raised her head only to see a pair of red eyes fixed on her, the pressure they radiated was so suffocating that she felt the air being drained from her lungs. "Are you threatening the Demon Prince of my sect?" Chasing Demon spoke slowly and softly but his words caused tremors in Lady Edna''s sphere as they reached her. She, on the other hand, was completely surprised. Noah Balvan was only a rank 3 cultivator in her eyes, he was a troublemaker and a cunning individual but she had never valued him that much. She wouldn''t even mind such a small character if he didn''t know about the Royal inheritance and the secret army, after all, how could a mighty existence like her bother about a single human cultivator? Yet, removing Noah was something that had to be done as a form of insurance, he was too reckless and wasn''t bound to any rule to be left free to wander carrying valuable secrets. Lady Edna thought to use the newly sealed agreement to deal with the matter but she had underestimated the importance that Noah had in the Chasing Demon sect and, specifically, to the Chasing Demon. He was the reason behind that war, the reason behind the victory of the underground organizations, how could Lady Edna know that everything had started when he retrieved the Inheritance? Also, Chasing Demon would at least hear the price that the Royals were willing to offer under normal circumstances. However, the Inheritance belonged to Divine Demon, his divine master. Chasing Demon had been able to hear his master''s pointers again thanks to Noah, which was something that he valued immensely, and Noah had also received his praises. The acknowledgment of his master meant too much in his mind, that was the reason why he had immediately shown his irritation at Lady Edna''s request. "Forgive me for my impudence, I''ll immediately take my leave!" Lady Edna bowed when she understood that she had made a mistake, Chasing Demon maintained his pressure for a while before retracting it and dispersing the "Breath" that surrounded the two of them. Lady Edna breathed roughly as she bowed again and left in the direction of her faction, she wanted to go back to the continent as soon as possible! The other two heroic cultivators had been a bit suspicious when the barrier of "Breath" had been deployed but they heaved sighs of relief when they saw the poor state in which Lady Edna left, they were sure that the secret negotiation had failed. Chasing Demon remained in the air, his gaze went on the ground toward one particular cultivator that was looking in his direction. Noah saw that his patriarch seemed to look in his direction but he couldn''t be sure due to the long distance, he also didn''t feel any kind of pressure coming from it. ''His feet can barely leave the ground but he still keeps his eyes on the sky.'' A smirk appeared on Chasing Demon''s face as he thought about Noah. Even after such a battle, he was still observing the beings in the heroic ranks instead of resting, there seemed to be nothing more interesting in his mind. Chasing Demon then moved his gaze, he knew that it would take a while for the underground organizations to return to their previous heights but the survivors to those battles would become the foundation from which new generations of strong cultivators will grow. The Hive now had a vast assortment of cultivation techniques, nourishing methods, and spells. Valuable resources were bound to reach the archipelago due to the monopoly that the Hive had over specific resources, the agreements previously reached with the other heroic cultivators ensured that the Coral archipelago would benefit from each trade. The heroic assets had also been untouched, limiting the losses to the cultivators in the human ranks. The copying technique had to be laid even in the internal islands but the perimeter of the archipelago was secured, Chasing Demon had all the time needed to complete its defensive measures. All in all, the Coral archipelago was bound to see its power grow now that it was an independent nation, it simply needed time to solidify its foundation. Chapter 448: 448. Mansion It was only a matter of days before the legal forces of the archipelago completely abandoned the islands, carrying their belongings and part of their resources with them. The reinforcements from the continent had suffered many losses, the ships on the peripheral islands that had survived the attacks of the rank 5 creature were enough to carry all the cultivators to their respective nations. As a place mostly filled by cultivators, the archipelago had many rank 1 cultivators who had been born on those islands and didn''t join any organization during their lives, they remained in their birthplace since the ships from the continent didn''t have enough room for them. The underground organizations gladly took them in, what they needed the most other than time was to refill their human assets, they couldn''t waste all those citizens now that they could rule out in the open. A long meeting also happened between the heroic cultivators of the various branches of the Hive, there was the need to choose a political system that satisfied all the organizations left in the archipelago, or that could at least appease the strongest ones. In the end, it was agreed to set up something that used features of both Papral nation and Utra nation. The Chasing Demon sect would be the overall ruler of the Coral archipelago, the other organization couldn''t even begin to argue on that point since the sect had a rank 6 existence at its disposal and the control over the copying technique. Also, the sect had been the one to start the war and to lead the Hive to victory, it had even used the contents of the Inheritance retrieved by Noah to limit the casualties. The victory was indeed its merit, the other organizations simply couldn''t argue on that point and willingly accepted the Chasing Demon sect as their ruler. The remaining branches of the Hive were then appointed to certain economic aspects of the archipelago: The stronger organizations obtained the more remunerative jobs while the weaker were left to take care of the hunts in the sea nearby. The strong would obtain ways to become stronger while the weak could only eat the scraps, that was an iron rule of the world. Agreements were also sealed to ensure a swift collaboration between the many branches, matters like the defense of the islands and the negotiations with the continent couldn''t be handled only by the Chasing Demon sect. A group formed by the strongest heroic cultivators of each organization was created, its purpose was similar to the Council of the Papral nation, the group had to handle all the problems that concerned the Coral archipelago as a whole. Also, the organizations wouldn''t be considered anymore as separate entities but would unite themselves under the name "Hive", it was just like the Royals who had branches of their family taking care of different matters concerning nation but without a bloodline linking them. The organizations had different ideals and customs but a united front was stronger than many separate ones, the continent had peacefully negotiated the terms of its loss but that didn''t prevent the creation of grudges, the archipelago needed a strong front against such a powerful enemy. Yet, only time would eventually truly transform those different organizations and fuse them into one, those arrangements were just a way to increase the merging speed. Everyone seemed busy in those days. Be it the various dispositions of the Hive after the meeting of the heroic cultivators ended, the laying of the copying technique in the internal island, the creation of better defenses on the peripheral islands, the recruitment and allocation of new cultivators, the creation of a joint merit system with missions and rewards, and the relocation of some important faculties from the hiding spots previously used during the rule of the legal organizations, everyone, no matter its rank, had something to do. Everyone except Noah. He had retrieved the Inheritance that had given hope to the underground organizations to conquer the archipelago, shared his gains with his sect, and led the human assets in the harshest battlefields, all of that while being only a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage! Everywhere he went, cultivators in the human ranks would perform polite bows and respectful smiles, it must be said that his status as Demon Prince hadn''t been removed even though the Chasing Demon sect didn''t officially exist anymore. His habitation had been moved again, his lofty status gave him access to the luxurious internal islands were the central powers of the legal organizations had once ruled. Most of the resources held in those islands had been brought back to the continent when the ships left the archipelago but the relocation of the resources inside the exoskeleton of the Purple corals allowed the construction of a large quarter containing many useful features and that belonged only to him. Noah had mostly wandered aimlessly in the islands, overseeing the works of the other cultivators as he waited for the construction of his quarters to be over. Then, when the construction was over, he had simply used the teleportation matrixes to reach island nineteen, where his new habitation was. He intended to finally go in seclusion and focus on his cultivation, the matters of the war had forced him to focus mostly on improving his battle prowess in the shortest period possible after all, he had just begun the experimentations on the procedures that required more time. The pressure of the teleportation vanished and Noah found himself on a small purple island where a large mansion could be seen at its center. The mansion was about a quarter of Balvan mansion but, knowing that it belonged exclusively to him, Noah felt incredibly amazed. "Do you like it? It initially belonged to a noble of some sort but it has now been renovated and improved to meet your standards, Prince." A familiar voice entered Noah''s ears, those words carried heavy mental waves as they reached for Noah''s sea of consciousness. However, they were unable to affect the walls of his sphere, Noah had improved too much since the first meeting with the leader of the thieves'' faction. Bruce had waited for him at the exit of the teleportation matrix, a wide smile was on his face as he performed a bow. Chapter 449: 449. Seclusion Noah was aware of many small details concerning the cultivators under him, especially those from the Chasing Demon sect, he was the Demon Prince after all. Bruce had given up to reaching the heroic ranks when he discovered that Sarah would probably be unable to keep cultivating, he didn''t want to see the woman he loved die of old age as he strived for power. Yet, a solution to her condition had appeared when Noah divided the potions retrieved in the Inheritance with the sect. Divine Demon had left resources till the fifth rank, fixing the dantian of a rank 3 cultivator was easy once gained access to one of those powerful drugs. The drugs were, of course, purchasable only through merit points, the underground organizations were at war, the sect had to spur its cultivators to accumulate battle merits to obtain them. Bruce didn''t let go of that chance, he wanted to heal Sarah and he also didn''t want to give up to the heroic ranks, he fought like a madman in the first line of defense against the Papral nation and successfully accumulated enough merit points to purchase a rank 4 curative drug. In the end, Sarah was healed and they could continue their cultivation journey together. That outcome left Bruce with a deep feeling of gratitude toward Noah, he didn''t hesitate to apply for the position of guard of island nineteen when he became aware that Noah was being stationed there, he felt the need to repay him in some way. Noah was aware that Bruce was now part of his personal guards, there were some small buildings all around the mansion where the guards could cultivate and rest so they wouldn''t need to live where Noah was. "Show me around." Noah nodded as he said that, he didn''t understand the need for guards when the copying formation protected the archipelago but he guessed that those kinds of traditions were hard to forget. Bruce wasn''t exactly polite and well-mannered but he smiled for the whole tour as he accompanied Noah inside his quarters. The mansion featured a large garden that surrounded the entirety of the central building, precious fruits and flowers could be seen growing there, their scent was useful to appease the mind of a cultivator. The central building featured many rooms with different purposes: There was a reinforced room where Noah could continue his experiments, one with a high density of "Breath", one that radiated a pressure useful to train the mental sphere, and many others. Noah couldn''t find anything wrong with the internal layout of the mansion, there seemed to be an area useful for each of his needs. A series of rank 1 cultivators could also be seen in certain areas working as servants. They were the citizens of the archipelago who didn''t join any faction before the war and who had now been enrolled as outer disciples by the Hive. Everything seemed so perfect that Noah felt eager to seclude himself as soon as he entered the mansion. He had still too much of the Inheritance to assimilate and he had many doubts about which path he will take after the human ranks, the deductions concerning cultivation techniques and body-nourishing methods took a long time and were unable to give immediate results. Also, his centers of power needed to improve, especially his dantian which was still in the gaseous stage. A notebook appeared in his hands, Noah sent a series of messages toward Roy and whoever was put in charge of the inventory after the underground organizations were fused. His request was simple, he needed pieces of "Breath" blessing to experiment with, he hadn''t given up to the idea of creating a cultivation technique by forging an item. ''I need some kind of inspiration before attempting to create a nourishing method, I can''t just blindly deduce, I would be just wasting mental energy in that way. My focus right now must be on my centers of power and my cultivation technique, I know that I''m on the right path.'' Noah had analyzed his capabilities in depth before choosing to experiment with the "Breath" blessings, he was almost certain that he would be able to create a cultivation technique with enough experimentation. As for his body, he would just wait until his mind reached the fourth rank, it would be useless to spend time and mental energy in deducing from nothing. Having a mind in the heroic ranks would also give him some insurance in forging items in the fourth rank, Ivor had managed to do it while being a human cultivator but he wasn''t sure that he could do the same. It had to be said that such an item would require even some sort of testing, meaning that there was the possibility that he had to forge more of them. Then, there was the issue with the restraint that the body applied to the growth of the dantian. Noah''s body had been stuck at the lower tier of the fourth rank, it was able to contain a dantian in the liquid stage of the third rank and even in the solid stage but some sort of limitations were bound to appear through the last part of his journey in the human ranks. "I''ll enter a long period of seclusion, I won''t come out for social events or anything similar, make sure to disturb me only if it''s something that you can''t handle by yourself." Noah gave those orders before entering in the area with a high density of "Breath" and sealing the door behind him, Bruce simply nodded in approval when he heard that. The matters of the Coral archipelago spread through the entirety of the continent, it didn''t happen often that a nation was able to escape the control of the three big nations and claim its independence. Those events clearly showed that the three big nations had a fatal weakness: Themselves! The continent was too big while they were too weak, they couldn''t maintain control over all the nations in their areas of influence with the threat of the other big nations. The period of peace that had filled the continent until that moment was broken, many conquered or sieged countries decided to rebel themselves and attempt to claim independence just as the Coral archipelago did. Meanwhile, the newly born nation belonging to the Hive grew far away from the struggles of the mainland, making the best out of the years of peace that followed the conquest of the islands. Chapter 450: 450. Four years Years passed in which the Coral archipelago developed at a high speed. The biggest issue in the cultivation journey was the lack of resources and the Hive had now the merged inventory of all its branches at its disposal, spells, nourishing methods, and cultivation techniques were more than abundant. That, coupled with a relatively lax merit system, allowed the newly enrolled cultivators and the previous members of the underground organizations to improve at a high speed, there were enough missions to satisfy the demand of merit points of the small population left on the archipelago. The number of cultivators couldn''t grow in such a short period but their quality increased sharply, even heroic cultivators saw their power grow thanks to the resources retrieved in the Inheritance. Noah had never exited his quarters during that period of development. The position of Demon Prince wasn''t linked to any specific task, it became more similar to an honorable status after the underground organizations merged, leaving Noah free from any duty but able to ask for every kind of resource from the inventory. His mansion featured training areas specific for each center of power and he didn''t lack resources, it was impossible for his power to remain the same in that prolonged period of seclusion. Four years had to pass before he felt forced to come out of his mansion, there was an issue that couldn''t be solved by Roy or anyone else handling the human matters. The issue didn''t concern his cultivation, the training of his centers of power had never been so smooth. In those four years, his sea of consciousness had neared the peak of the third rank, Noah guessed that it wouldn''t take much before he underwent the Earth Tribulation. After all, Noah had become a rank 3 mage when he was only twenty-three, it wasn''t a surprise that he managed to near the fourth rank now that he was thirty-two. Noah had never slacked off, his relentless training allowed him to shorten the amount of time needed to reach the breakthroughs and the backing of the Hive further benefitted him, that training speed was definitely expected. His dantian had also improved. Noah was using a rank 4 cultivation technique to cultivate and an area that would be envied even by the wealthiest rank 3 cultivators, his dantian easily entered the liquid stage during his seclusion. Yet, it was at that point that the issue appeared. Noah didn''t want to use the rank 4 cultivation technique to cultivate until the peak of the third rank, he wanted to avoid using it even in the solid stage. That''s why he dedicated a lot of time of his seclusion to the deduction of his cultivation technique. He had a general idea about how it was supposed to work but the task seemed far harder than what he had predicted. It wasn''t that he didn''t achieve some initial success, he had managed to modify pieces of "Breath" blessing to make them attract only "Breath" of the darkness element and he had even been able to add a suction force through his will. However, the quantity of "Breath" blessing lost in the process was enormous, the mineral obtained from the Royal family was long gone and he had relied on his sect to have a constant stream of that resource for his experiments. Also, as his successes increased, he had attempted to raise the level of the modified pieces of "Breath" blessing by increasing the mass of the mineral that he was going to condense, he needed for the item to be in the fourth rank after all. That led to an even higher expenditure of resources which ultimately couldn''t be supported anymore by the sect alone and needed the collaboration of the entirety of the Hive. Of course, Noah didn''t immediately attempt to forge an item in the heroic ranks by using "Breath" blessing, he had first experimented with the Demonic swords since he was more practiced with their blueprints. Yet, even with his improved centers of power and the precious resources from both his ring and the inventory, his creations weren''t able to overcome the human ranks. He had created another pair of Demonic swords which were nearing the peak of the third rank but that was his limit, nothing he did seemed to push their level higher. At that point, he had simply resumed with his forging of the "Breath" blessings since they had a clearer path to the heroic ranks in his opinion, they simply needed more mass to be compressed. Noah exited his quarters and appeared in the garden that surrounded his mansion, Bruce had obviously been notified by him and was waiting for his arrival outside the garden. Bruce was slightly surprised when he saw Noah for the first time after the events during the war. Noah was over thirty years old but his appearance was still the same youthful one, his features didn''t change at all during his seclusion. That meant that his level had improved so fast that his lifespan wasn''t affected, cultivators would simply stop aging if they constantly improved. The only thing that changed was his hair which now reached the ground, Noah didn''t bother to cut it during his seclusion. Yet, Bruce''s surprise wasn''t caused by his appearance but by the aura that surrounded him. Mages would radiate a peculiar aura as the level of their mind increased, their thoughts carried power after all, the world around them was bound to be affected by their mental state. Noah wasn''t an exception, he radiated a cold aura that matched his aloof personality but it seemed that some kind of sharpness had been added to it. After sensing that aura, Bruce knew that Noah''s mind had reached his level. ''I''ve halted my cultivation to wait for Sarah to catch up with my level but this is simply unreal.'' Those were Bruce''s thoughts as he tried to probe Noah''s level, his heavy mental waves weren''t able to pass the sharp halo that surrounded the youthful man in front of him. "Set a meeting with Elder Iris, I have some matters that I need to discuss with an elder." Bruce nodded when he heard Noah''s orders but an awkward smile appeared on his face as he took an inscribed notebook from his space-ring. "Prince, I think you want to dress up a bit before that." It was only after Bruce spoke that Noah realized the ragged state in which his clothes were, he was basically naked with only a few pieces of burned pants still on his waist. Chapter 451: 451. Last step During his seclusion, Noah had experimented a lot. The failures with his forgings sometime exploded, ruining Noah''s robe in the process. Noah didn''t care about his ragged clothes while he was in seclusion, his mind was completely focused on his training but, now that he had to meet an elder, he had to appear somewhat presentable. He was the Demon Prince after all, he couldn''t reappear after four years in that poor aspect. "I think I''ll call an outer disciple before going out." Noah said as he sighed under Bruce''s approving gaze. The servants inside Noah''s mansion quickly took care of his aspect. They prepared a hot bath filled with many delicate perfumes to remove four years of accumulated sweat and dirt. Then, they cut his hair a bit and combed them in a seemingly noble manner, it was pointless to say how bored Noah was through the whole process. A luxurious robe had also been prepared, it was black and tight just like Noah liked but faint tentacles of a purple color were draped around its sleeves, giving those clothes some aristocratic feeling. The rank 5 magical beast that had appeared during the war became some sort of worshipped creature in the eyes of the weaker cultivators of the archipelago, many symbols and clothes featuring its images could be seen everywhere in the islands. ''Peace surely make the weaklings lose focus, if only they knew that this creature is being held captive somewhere under the exoskeleton¡­'' Noah sighed internally as he noticed how the archipelago had changed during his seclusion, he guessed that the low-level cultivators were unaware of the reasons behind the victory of the underground organizations. However, none of that concerned Noah. He quickly went for a teleportation matrix after his beauty treatment was completed, the servants and the other guards that saw him walk toward the shore of his small island wore respectful expressions as they bowed at his passage. The light of the teleportation engulfed his figure and the scenery in front of his eyes changed, the sky was replaced by a familiar purple ceiling. He was back inside the exoskeleton, where the headquarters of the Chasing Demon sect once were. The heroic cultivators of the Hive rarely cultivated on the surface, the "Breath" they needed to advance was found inside the matter of the world and carried the laws that Heaven and Earth had set for its functioning, they couldn''t risk destroying the islands that they had conquered after many struggles. Noah went back inside the exoskeleton precisely to meet a heroic cultivator, namely Elder Iris. She had handled the human matters of the Chasing Demon sect before and was still doing the same now that all the organizations named themselves as Hive. Her habitation was also the same, Noah had no trouble going back to the underground cave, hidden under the purple terrain. "Demon Prince, I wonder what is the reasons behind the request of this meeting." Elder Iris was seated, as usual, at the center of the cave as she spoke without opening her eyes. Noah couldn''t help but notice that her power seemed to have increased but he wasn''t sure by how much, what he felt was mostly a sensation after all. "I need even more "Breath" blessings, my last requests had been ignored so I decided to ask for them personally." Noah went right to the point. He had obtained good results with his experimentations, he could have already created a rank 3 cultivation technique if he wanted. Yet, he would rather wait until his technique reached the fourth rank before starting to cultivate with it, his current training method was in the fourth rank after all, Noah wouldn''t ever purposely slow his cultivation speed. However, he could only attempt to condense more mass as he tried to push the rank of his cultivation technique upward, meaning that every failure would waste enormous quantities of "Breath" blessings. "Your expenses already match those of some heroic cultivators, Prince. Please understand that we can''t slow the growth of the archipelago because of a single human cultivator." Noah snorted seeing that Elder Iris had no intention of accepting his requests. "Hmph, I''ve also helped more than any heroic cultivator, the archipelago wouldn''t be in this state if it wasn''t for me." Noah spoke, he wasn''t going to give up now that he was so close. Elder Iris opened her eyes and stared Noah, she heaved a loud sigh when she looked at his determined expression. "Prince, you are going to experience your Earth tribulation soon, which is an absurd feat for someone of your age. Are you sure you aren''t pushing yourself too much? Creating a cultivation technique takes time, even Chasing Demon was able to do it only after he reached the fifth rank." Elder Iris was aware of many of Noah''s capabilities. She was a heroic cultivator, her eyes could see right through his centers of power and she could understand what Noah was attempting to create. Her words made Noah go silent, there was some truth behind them. "I don''t know the specifics behind what you are trying to do but you must remember that the straight path isn''t always the shortest one. Maybe the path that you''ve chosen is wrong and it has a fatal flaw that you are still unable to see, or maybe you lack the experience needed to take a step forward. Remember that there is always a limit to how much one can improve in seclusion." She spoke again, her pointers were spoken honestly, she seemed to really care about Noah''s growth. Noah stood silently as he reviewed Elder Iris'' words. He knew that she was right, there seemed to be something that he couldn''t do no matter how much he deduced or experimented. That was the forging of an item in the heroic ranks. ''Ivor managed to forge it while being a human cultivator, his love was so strong that he even forgot about cultivation to focus on the Elemental forging method.'' He lowered his head as he continued to think about the matter. ''I''m different. My will carries my ambition which is strictly linked with my centers of power. I can''t sacrifice one thing just to obtain another. Maybe, that''s what I''m lacking.'' His cultivation technique would enter the perfection phase once he managed to push his creations in the heroic ranks but there seemed to be something stopping him from taking that last step. "I wish to see the missions available right now." Noah spoke and his words surprised Elder Iris. Chapter 452: 452. Efrana Noah was sure of one thing: A strong will could only be born and shaped through hardships! The will of a cultivator was the most important ingredient in the Elemental forging method which meant that Noah''s will was weaker than Ivor''s. He could accept that, Ivor had been willing to throw away his life in exchange for a way to reclaim his lover while Noah wasn''t willing to go that far. He would do anything for power but he wasn''t willing to sacrifice his life for it, power was useless if he wasn''t alive after all. ''I can either wait for my mind to reach the fourth rank or actively seek more experience. Well, I can do both of them at the same time.'' Those were his thoughts when he asked Elder Iris for the available missions. Gathering experience and merit point would benefit both him and the Hive, that seemed the best options since he didn''t seem to be able to improve his training speed more than that. It didn''t take much for Elder Iris to complete her task, she quickly gathered information through her methods and handed a small shining orb to Noah. Noah took it and inspected its contents with his mental energy, a series of information appeared in his mind which listed all the available missions that the Hive had issued. The less important ones concerned the hunts on the peripheral islands while the most important ones mostly implied the continent in some way. Escorting valuable shipments back and forth from the continent, becoming envoys to set favorable trade connections, infiltrating specific nations to set escape paths for their rebels, the most rewarding missions were also the most dangerous ones of course. It was at that point that Noah noticed a familiar name that he had stopped thinking of for a long time. ''Creating a tribe in Efrana nation to use as a foothold on the continent¡­ Is this a coincidence?'' Efrana nation had been Noah''s target after he escaped from the Utra nation. Then, the matter with Odrea nation forced him to travel to the Coral archipelago where he joined the Chasing Demon sect and ultimately fought with it for the independence of the islands. He was just a lone rank 2 cultivator back then and he only wanted a safe place where to cultivate, he felt somewhat strange when he realized that he wanted to abandon what he had searched for such a long time. ''To think that peace might be the very reason why I''m unable to take this last step¡­ I guess I won''t have anyone else to blame for my troubles this time.'' Noah sighed internally when he thought about those matters. The truth was that he wasn''t willing to sacrifice his life to obtain a stronger will but he was more than willing to risk it for that. If peace weakened him, he would simply run away from it. If hardships were the method to become stronger, he would simply jump toward them. "I wish to join the mission in Efrana nation, I believe there is no one more fit than me to lead the creation of a tribe." Noah spoke as he handed the shining orb back to Elder Iris, she, on the other hand, seemed quite conflicted about his request. "We can''t protect you on the continent, not as well as here at least." She gave voice to her complaints as she stored the orb back in her ring. "The nobles of the Utra nation would be the strongest cultivators of the continent if power could be born in a prison. Instead, a nation constantly at war takes two big nations to be contained. Protection might be what is slowing me down." Noah answered her, he uncaringly spoke about putting himself in danger on purpose. Noah knew that he would become strong even if he decided to stay in the archipelago. However, he was attempting to create his own path, something that even heroic cultivators found difficult. He couldn''t take the safe path when attempting to do something that difficult, he needed to further forge his will under the hardships that the world put on his way. It was when she realized how determined Noah was on pursuing that path that Elder Iris gave up on making him change idea. "I''ll arrange everything then. Remember, the main focus of the mission is to create a stable foothold and not to join the battles on that front. This is a long-term plan that would eventually lead us back to the Papral nation but we can''t hurry these kinds of things too much, we must look quite harmless or the agreements reached when we won the war won''t offer much protection. One elder will oversee your group, it will be your connection with the archipelago so you won''t lack your usual stream of resources." "What about my mansion?" Noah asked after listening to Elder Iris'' arrangements. "We can handle its transport or you can do the same if you have enough space in your storage device. It was built for you after all, you can do whatever you like with it." Noah nodded, he wasn''t willing to abandon such a good training area because of his reckless intentions. He then left Elder Iris to her matters, she had to organize the group and to choose an elder for the mission, Noah thought that it was better to leave her alone at that point. A few days had to pass before he was contacted, the group had been formed and the elder appointed to oversee the mission was a heroic cultivator that belonged to the branch of the Hive once called "Resistance". Apparently, he had volunteered when he heard that an elder was being sent to the continent. The members of the Resistance had ties with the Shandal Empire, this elder wanted to use the mission to recruit more rebels and send them to the archipelago. Of course, Noah knew about that only because his status was quite peculiar and it could be said that he agreed with that behavior. The Coral archipelago had become the perfect land where lone cultivators, criminals, and rebels could escape, the only problem was that it was hard to reach, especially in secret. Setting specific transport areas for those kinds of cultivators would be beneficial for the human assets of the Hive, the idea of the elder was quickly accepted and authorized by the central power of the archipelago. Like that, a group of less than a hundred cultivators sailed from the peripheral islands of the archipelago, their destination was the continent! Chapter 453: 453. Expedition A ship silently moved on the sea between the archipelago and the continent. The ship was an inscribed item, the formations on its surface offered protection and even some kind of hiding since an eerie fog surrounded its shape. Noah and his group sat silently on the main deck, they weren''t exactly hiding but it was better to reach the continent unnoticed. Rebellions and claims of independence were happening everywhere on the continent and the three big nations were having a rough time suppressing all those countries unwilling to remain under their areas of influence. The cause behind those events was the conquest of the Coral archipelago, it was safe to assume that the forces of the three big nations would be more than willing to attack a ship belonging to the Hive. Of course, that should be prevented by the agreements negotiated four years before but there were many ways to cover the identity of the assailants, one of those was to leave no survivors. That''s why the troops of the Hive would rather stay silent during their voyage and leave the protection of the ship to the elder overseeing them. Their destination was the border between the area of influence of the Shandal Empire and that of the Papral nation, right next to the mystical fog that divided them. Noah had access to the records of the Hive, the information about the fog was something that he had studied while he waited for Elder Iris to form the group for the mission. According to the records, the mystical fog on the border of the area of influence of the Papral nation was a danger zone that seemed to be artificially created by some powerful being in the past. Yet, just like the mountain range on the border of the area of influence of the Utra nation, it had an area where cultivators in the human ranks could safely cross it. The mountain range had the city of Slyfall while the mystical fog had the Efrana nation. No one knew if those two areas were left open for some reason but they eventually became the only connection between the areas of influence of two big nations. One of them became a corrupted city where everyone could be bribed while the other became a battlefield where mercenary set up tribes in order to prosper. The ship took a bit more than two months to reach the shores of the continent, the fog around it seemed to match the mystical one that had appeared on the border and that divided the continent into two different areas. The small gray cloud around the ship fused with the danger zone when it reached the sandy coast, allowing for Noah and his group to jump on the ground completely unnoticed. The ship then disappeared behind them, the elder hiding in the air had stored it inside his space-ring. Noah gestured to the group to move, they were going to reach Efrana nation on foot. The gray fog on their left seemed to affect their senses, it was able to make anyone in the human ranks lost their orientation. However, the elder in the air would promptly send indications to Noah to make him adjust the direction in which he was marching, it was impossible to take the wrong path with a heroic cultivator guiding his steps. The group moved quite fast, there were at least seventy rank 2 cultivators and about twenty in the third rank but each one of them had a rank 4 body, eliminating the need to rest at short intervals. Their march was virtually uneventful, they were on the borders of a danger zone after all, magical beasts and humans would avoid that area. It took a few months and a relatively tiring journey but the group successfully managed to reach the center of the continent without encountering any danger. It must be said that Noah was so used to that kind of travel that he could observe the Kesier rune as he walked, it was enough to use Heilong senses to keep track of where he was going. That behavior earned even more the respect of the members of his group, some of them had only heard stories about the Demon Prince of the Chasing Demon sect but almost everyone had heard the rumor that he was the one to retrieve Divine Demon''s inheritance. No official news had been released about the matter but everyone was quite sure about that fact, it wouldn''t be possible to explain all the privileges that Noah had otherwise. Noah, on the other hand, didn''t care about the respect of those around him, his mind was only focused on the hindrances that stood in front of his path to power. His Earth Tribulation drew closer with each passing day, his sea of consciousness continuously enlarged due to the liquid "Breath" inside his mind, adding the Kesier rune to his training was just a way to further hasten the breakthrough at that point. "Proceed east for about an hour and you will enter its borders." Noah listened to the mental message through his inscribed notebook and gestured to the group to follow him in the pointed direction. The group followed Noah''s orders and, in a bit more than an hour, the gray fog around them dispersed, allowing them to see the environment of their destination. It seemed a wasteland, grass grew sparsely on the red ground which had dark shades. No matter how much Noah looked at it, he couldn''t help but find similarities with the color of the terrain and that of the human blood. ''This should be a phenomenon similar to that of Arolyac forest, the blood of powerful beings has tainted the terrain, forever changing its color. It should be different though, Arolyac forest became red due to the death of a powerful magical beast but here the color changed due to the death of many human cultivators. This truly is a war zone.'' Noah thought as he moved his gaze in the distance. A series of small mountains could be seen on the horizon but, apart from some small tree, he couldn''t see any trace of life. The Efrana nation appeared almost completely barren at first sight. Chapter 454: 454. Encampmen The environment changed a bit as Noah''s group entered its borders, leaving the mystical fog behind them. More trees began to appear, they had barren shapes with sharp branches and they also radiated some kind of threatening aura. Noah had gathered information about the Efrana nation before joining the mission, he knew that those plants were called Blood trees since their nutrient was the blood inside the terrain. Every living being in this world fed on "Breath", they simply absorbed it from different sources. Humans absorbed it from the environment while magical beasts could also absorb it from what they ate. Plants were in the middle, they mostly absorbed it from the terrain or the air but some rare species could also actively seek prey to hunt. The Blood trees belonged to the first kind, their nourishment came from the terrain and, since the blood absorbed mostly came from cultivators, they developed a strong and sturdy form. The wood obtained by the Blood trees was a good material for the creation of inscribed weapons but it wasn''t that precious, the entirety of the Efrana nation would be pillaged otherwise. The group from the archipelago could also notice some poor-looking encampments in the distance, they didn''t seem to contain powerful cultivators. "Let''s take a look. The strongest tribes should be at the center of the nation so we should be able to easily annex these." Noah ordered, the general layout of the Efrana nation was clear in his mind. Creating a foothold in a nation constantly at war wasn''t a problem, the issue was in creating a lasting one. The battles between the Shandal Empire and the Papral nation had a great impact on the tribes living in Efrana, it could be said that only a few of them could manage to remain in a position of power for many years. That was because both big nations preferred to hire them before going into battle, the mercenaries of the tribes were used as cannon fodder, leading to a high number of casualties. Also, those few tribes that managed to grow stronger even in such a disadvantageous environment were ultimately annexed by one of the two big nations, simple mercenaries would never refuse that chance and both big nations wouldn''t let go of experienced troops. That behavior led to a constant exchange of the tribes in power, one battle was enough to make those tribes disappear. The group quickly moved toward the nearest encampment, the situation of the cultivators there wasn''t good, there were many wounded with blood tainting their bandages, it seemed as if a battle had recently happened. "You are late, the Crow-head tribe has already taken all our food and women, only our lives are left but they aren''t worth much either." An elderly man spoke as he saw Noah''s group near the encampment. He was missing an eye and his right arm had been recently cut off from his shoulders, there was still blood flowing out of the small patch that he had used to cover it. Noah looked around him, there wasn''t any woman just as the old man said and most of the cultivators there were wounded. The strongest cultivators were in the second rank but there were even mortals wearing poor-looking armors in some areas. "Why did you choose this place to set an encampment? The mystical fog is still quite close, it might reach this place and affect you all." Noah asked, he couldn''t care less about their situation, he was only interested in the safety of that area. Only then did the old man realize that Noah''s group wasn''t a mercenary tribe, their robes were intact and their power was incredible, only the tribes at the center of the nation could have that appearance but they had no reason to be in that place. "W-we had no choice. Most tribes wouldn''t venture here, we thought we would be safe." The old man answered and Noah nodded, that place seemed the area where they would attract less attention. He waved his hand and a huge mansion appeared behind him, the cultivators of the encampment released surprised cries when they saw the big structure appearing right in front of them. "Treat their injuries and gather information about the nearby tribes, I''ll speak with the elder to set up our defenses." Noah ordered to the cultivators behind him, they quickly entered the encampment and used their drugs to heal the cultivators in the poorest state. "Kate, you will start to work on the teleportation matrixes as soon as the defenses are set. Many mercenaries will be willing to join the Hive as soon as the rumor about our presence here spreads, we can''t risk being discovered before the defenses are ready." Kate nodded when Noah spoke to her, she had joined the mission since she was the most experienced human cultivator in the formation field, her role was to create a connection between the Efrana nation and the Coral archipelago. The cultivators in the encampment were surprised but they accepted the help of the group from the archipelago without opposing any resistance, their condition was so bad that they would cling to any hope. The Hive needed more cultivator, the war from more than four years ago had reduced the population of the archipelago by a lot. A new wave of human assets was needed as soon as possible, the Hive couldn''t just wait for the citizens to naturally procreate. That''s why many missions aimed to set up teleportation matrixes in specific points of the continent. There were many neutral nations like Efrana scattered throughout the continent, the Hive intended to create small footholds in each one of them. The Hive was protected by the agreement reached by Chasing Demon, the three big nations wouldn''t decide to destroy those footholds unless some of them were inside their area of influence. Yet, some form of defense was still needed to scare away cultivators that were secretly under their command, the elder accompanying Noah had such a role. ''It will take a while for Kate to create a link with the archipelago but I can leave the recruitment part to the other captains, there is no reason for me to appear in public.'' The elder was going to take care of the defenses, Kate of the teleportation matrixes, and the captains of the recruitment of more manpower, only time would tell if that foothold would give the expected advantages. ''I guess I can seclude myself for now.'' It was after he was sure that nothing was left uncovered that Noah entered his mansion, something was telling him that his Earth Tribulation would arrive soon. Chapter 455: 455. Meeting Earth Time passed slowly in the encampment near the borders of the Efrana nation. The elder overseeing the situation had used the inscriptions on the ship to create a gray cloud that covered Noah''s mansion and some of the tents set up around it, it seemed as if that area was still part of the mystical fog from the distance. Kate and some of the cultivators that studied formations worked to set up the teleportation matrixes in a room inside Noah''s mansion, his quarters already had some sort of defensive measures which made them the safest place where to set a connection with the archipelago. The other cultivators from the Hive were busy patrolling the area or investigating its surroundings, they had to come in contact with the other tribes and probe their power, the mission of the group was to recruit more manpower after all. Meanwhile, Noah was in seclusion, focusing on his centers of power. Leaving the safety of the Coral archipelago had already affected his mental state, Noah knew that he could be targeted for many reasons even with the defenses around him. The news that an armed envoy had been set on Efrana nation would eventually reach the three big nations which could either decide to act or not. The independence of the Coral archipelago had ignited many revolts across the continent, the big nations could very well think to attack the cause of the issue rather than its repercussions. The Utra nation could decide to attack them because of Noah, the Shandal Empire because it was the closest to them, and the Papral nation because of its ties with the Chasing Demon sect, many reasons could justify an assault. That outcome was unlikely to happen due to the agreements sealed between the big nations and the Hive but that situation was still able to bring Noah back to the mental state that he had when he was just a lone cultivator. Noah had always been driven by his pure ambition but there was another feeling that forced him to improve: The need to become stronger in order to survive! The world was dangerous and only strong cultivators could claim to have their fate in their hands, luck couldn''t affect those that held inhumane power. Noah was still at some distance from that goal and the peaceful environment of the archipelago made him train only due to his ambition and not because he needed to. As soon as he entered his quarters inside Efrana nation, that need returned and his training speed improved. He had decided to put a hold to the creation of his cultivation technique until he obtained some sort of inspiration concerning the item that he was going to forge, the "Breath" blessings continued to be sent to him through the elder though. Teleporting inanimate items was easy, Noah knew that the Hive wouldn''t stop providing him with the resources needed for his experiments so he just needed to find the proper place where to store them. The solution was quickly found, Noah had just to ask the spirit automaton of his space-ring which confirmed that he could store the "Breath" blessings inside the formation that was once filled by inscribed weapons. The formation wouldn''t slow their aging since they were a different kind of items but the minerals didn''t need that feature, Noah wasn''t going to keep them there for centuries after all! What he really needed was to isolate their ability to attract "Breath" since it could affect the other items inside the ring, that problem had never occurred with his previous piece of mineral since it was too small but the quantity that he had now had started to worry him. However, all four formations inside the rank 6 ring had that feature so Noah could safely store the blue minerals in the almost empty one. The matters inside his ring were taken care of and all the cultivators in his group had a specific role to follow, Noah could focus on his centers of power and, in particular, on his mind while everyone was busy with something. His eyes seemed glued to the fourth Kesier rune during his seclusion, no trace of fear for the incoming Tribulation could be seen on his expression, his gaze only radiated the endless expectations that he had toward the fourth rank of the sea of consciousness. The Pain Tribulation made him able to fight rank 4 magical beasts and had sharply increased his power, allowing his dantian to grow till the third rank. Noah expected far more than that from the breakthrough of his mind, his superior battle prowess had always been linked to that center of power after all. It was during a seemingly normal night that the fourth rune inside his mental sphere neared completion. Noah abruptly stopped looking at the sheet inside his hands and folded it, there were a few things that he needed to prepare before taking the last step toward the Earth Tribulation. First of all, Noah drank one of his potions, the walls of his mental sphere were enveloped in a series of dark layers from its insides due to the effects of the drugs. A battle inside his mind was bound to happen, Noah wanted to take all the precautions needed before approaching it. Then, he filled his mind with as much refined "Breath" as possible, a black lake with the form of a saber floated over the sea that was his thoughts. Noah had already fought with a copy of himself, he knew that everything that expressed his individuality was the key to win in the incoming trial. At last, he waited for his mental energy to be refilled before unfolding the sheet containing the fourth Kesier rune and looking at it again. Not even ten minutes had to pass before the walls of his sphere began to tremble, releasing a humming sound in the process. Noah had already closed his eyes, he suppressed the pain caused by the tremors of his mind and focused on his half-transparent figure that floated at the center of his sphere. The sea below it churned, a whirlpool formed right below Noah''s ethereal figure. Then, from the crystalline water that was his thoughts, a figure rose in the air which kept its eyes fixed on Noah. The figure was identical to Noah, its only difference was that it was completely azure like the water that had formed it. Noah stood up and floated in the space above his sea as he prepared himself to fight but the following events put a stop to his battle intent. The figure opened its mouth after Noah stood up and an androgynous voice resounded inside his sphere. "Hello, my child, son of another world." Chapter 456: 456. Lives The androgynous voice resounded inside the mental sphere. At once Noah knew that Heaven and Earth were aware of his transmigration. "Don''t be surprised, my child. We are the world itself, we were there when you reached us as just a powerless soul, waiting to be dismantled." The figure made by Noah''s sea continued to speak, revealing the secrets behind his birth. ''It keeps referring to itself as "we", does it mean that Heaven and Earth are two different entities? Is it even safe to call them entities? Also, why does it speaks? I''ve never read about an Earth Tribulation where the copy speaks.'' Noah reviewed the information he knew about the Tribulations when that unusual situation happened. It must be said that he had studied a lot of records concerning such crucial points of the cultivation journey, the academy and the records of the Hive made him completely prepared for them. The Pain Tribulation tested the will of a cultivator, the reconstruction of the body was some sort of reward that Heaven and Earth gave to those able to pass it but it was generally considered the easiest one. The Earth Tribulation tested the mind and its individuality, a cultivator had to be able to surpass its copy to claim the right to continue walking in the cultivation journey. The Heaven Tribulation tested the entirety of the cultivator, be its strength or defense. All three of them were an expression of Heaven and Earth''s will, they were referred by past cultivators as the limits that the world set for the humans and that only truly exceptional existences could cross those thresholds to fully enter the heroic ranks. Yet, what interested Noah more than the reason why Heaven and Earth were speaking to him during his Tribulation was another thing. "Why did I keep my memories?" Noah asked through his half-transparent figure. From what he had understood, his soul was meant to be dismantled, possibly meaning that his consciousness was meant to disappear. However, that didn''t happen, leading Noah to keep his memories and his personality, which ultimately made him become a cultivation addict since he was still a kid. "Because you were empty." The figure answered before explaining further. "You had no valuable skills, no valuable knowledge, not even the will to live, there was no reason to dismantle you to create a different soul. You lacked the qualities that a cultivator must have so we simply placed you next to a loving mother in a wealthy family. We didn''t expect you to abandon a peaceful life and sacrifice everything for the vain search for power, that was our miscalculation." After those words, Noah seemed to freeze. The memories of his childhood surged as if they were an unstoppable tide. He had always been aware that he had sacrificed Lily to pursue power, or rather, he didn''t want to escape with her before he reached a certain level but he simply hadn''t been fast enough. Yet, his situation now seemed to be part of the arrangements of Heaven and Earth. Rhys wouldn''t have paid Lily too much attention if Noah didn''t begin to cultivate. Rhys wouldn''t have started beating her if Noah didn''t progress faster than his son and daughter. Rhys wouldn''t have killed her if Noah wasn''t of the darkness element. All those events were linked to Noah''s cultivation but he had always thought that it was just bad luck to have a father like Rhys, he had no reason to suspect anything else after all! However, now it appeared that everything was linked to his transmigration and the memories of his first life. "In our plans, you would have had a happy life as a mortal. You were going to become a counselor, your mother would have accompanied you for half of your life and she would have been able to see your descendants become accepted as true heirs of the Balvan family. Instead, you became an abomination that actively opposes our will and that brings death wherever it passes." Small spheres made of Noah''s mental energy rose from the sea as the figure spoke. They depicted the events that it was describing, Noah was able to see the life imagined by Heaven and Earth through those images. He saw his mother''s face showing a proud expression as he held a scroll in his hands, Li Neregnes, his old teacher, stood next to him as he patted his shoulder. Then, he saw his mother again. She seemed older as she held the hand of a pregnant woman that was going through labor, Noah was in a corner of the room in the image showed by the azure sphere. Then, there was a funeral. In the image, Noah cried as he looked at a tomb while a beautiful woman held his hand and two children clung to his robe, the sphere seemed to depict Lily''s funeral. The last one depicted an old Noah wearing a proud smile as he looked toward two women that strongly resembled Lily in their features. Thomas Balvan was giving them some sort of reward and, according to their expressions, it didn''t seem worthless. More spheres rose from the sea, they depicted Noah''s second life and his struggles during his journey. They floated next to the spheres with the images of the life that Heaven and Earth had planned for him, the contrast between those two lives could make anyone think twice about choosing which path take. The mental energy expended to create those spheres escaped Noah''s control and go on the figure''s side, it was clear that those events were part of the Earth Tribulation. Noah appeared stunned but, in reality, he looked at those images with deep interest. He wanted to memorize what he had sacrificed to forge his determination before his anger exploded. When he had enough of that imaginary life, he raised a hand toward the Kesier runes at the center of his sphere. The runes released a humming sound at his command but the snort from the figure, followed by its loud words, stopped that noise from echoing further. "I am Earth! I have given birth to the Kesier species before you were even born! Did you really think that they would affect me?" It was at that point that Noah decided to reclaim control of his mental energy, the anger that he had suppressed to fully listen to Earth''s words burst out, making the spheres depicting Noah''s lives explode. Chapter 457: 457. Wills Noah didn''t care about many things, it could be said that there were only a few things that mattered in his mind. Cultivation was in the first place, there was nothing that he valued more than his personal power. Yet, through his life in search of methods to cultivate, he started to care about a few people. The most important one was his mother, Lily, the woman that had given up on everything just to give him more time to grow, sacrificing herself to free him from the bindings of the Balvan family. Now, after his conversation with Earth, it seemed as if Lily''s suffering and Noah''s hardships had been part of Heaven and Earth''s arrangements. Noah''s anger exploded, the feelings that he kept sealed as he waited to become strong enough to take his revenge on his father came out at that moment. Earth had been slowly taking control of Noah''s mental energy before but now the entirety of the mental sphere resonated with him. Heilong''s ethereal figure shot toward Earth, its maws opened as it roared toward the azure figure. "Pointless." Earth spoke as it stretched a hand toward the head of the beast, Heilong''s charge was stopped by that simple gesture! "I gave birth to every living being of this world, did you think that modifying it a bit would make it escape my control?" The mental energy that had accumulated on the spheres and that had dispersed back on the sea rose once again and circled the azure figure after it spoke. Then, it enveloped Heilong, the mental energy under Earth''s control began to enter the dragon''s body as if trying to seize control over the ethereal form of the beast. It was at that moment that Noah''s will inside Heilong began to fight back, waves of pain reached Noah due to the shared senses with his blood companion as Heaven and Earth''s will and his fought inside the dragon. Second of silence passed inside the sphere as both wills fought without being able to overcome the other. The figure''s brows knitted when it saw that it couldn''t take control of the creature, the hand that was holding the dragon arched, stabbing its fingers inside its head and pouring more mental energy inside its form. What followed that gesture was an explosion. Heilong''s ethereal figure exploded only to reform back at the center of the mental sphere. Countless cracks could be seen on its body, Noah knew from the pain that he was experiencing that his blood companion''s injuries were severe, it would take a while to heal them. Yet, its sacrifice wasn''t in vain, he had now confirmed that his will could be used to fight Earth! "Such a determination in defying our will, everything you touch seems to become our enemy." Earth spoke again as it watched the hand that it had used to fend off Heilong. The azure color radiated from that limb had become softer after part of the mental energy that made the figure was used, it was clear that there was a set limit to its power. Noah stretched a hand, the refined liquid "Breath" inside his mind shot toward him and took the shape of two black sabers. An intense sharpness was radiated by those ethereal weapons, Noah''s meaning was completely exuded by their auras. Earth did the same, part of the remaining mental energy under its control gathered in its hands and took the form of two azure sabers, it was time for a frontal clash! Noah and Heaven and Earth''s wills fought to take control of the sea under their feet but there wasn''t a clear winner: Heaven and Earth''s will was stronger but Noah decisively detonated the mental energy that started to escape his control every time, leaving no fuel for Earth to use. Then, Noah flew at high speed in the direction of the azure figure. Many slashes were launched in less than a second, Noah expressed the complete mastery of the Three Forms of the Ashura as he attacked Earth. The other, though, didn''t show any flaw as it attacked Noah''s back using his same martial art. Black and azure sabers clashed against each other as the series of attacks continued, shockwaves were created after each clash which propagated toward the walls of the mental sphere. Yet, they were unable to do any damage since the dark protective layers negated any form of attack from reaching the walls. Noah had prepared himself and was even quite experienced in fights inside the mental sphere, he knew that his mind could suffer severe injuries if he didn''t take any precautions. The light radiated by the azure figure became less intense as more mental energy was expended to match Noah''s attacks. On the other hand, Noah''s sabers managed to maintain their glow even after more than fifty exchanges had happened! It wasn''t a difference in the power of their wills, Noah''s sabers were formed by "Breath" under his control, they were more durable than Earth''s ones since they weren''t made only by mental energy. Noah pressed in his offensive without a break, Earth was slowly put into a passive position as more of the mental energy under its control was expended. Then, one of Noah''s weapons managed to pierce the azure saber that had appeared to block it and landed on the azure figure, directly stabbing the center of its forehead. The sharpness contained in the black saber spread, creating cracks in the now pale figure that simply stopped its attacks and watched Noah with a gaze full of arrogance and contempt. "We will meet again if you manage to survive Heaven and the heroic ranks, we will see then if your soul can reach godhood." Earth spoke one last time before its body shattered in many pieces and those shards of mental energy returned to the sea which was now devoid of Heaven and Earth''s will. A rumble filled the insides of the mental sphere after Earth was defeated, the dark layers protecting the walls were torn apart as Noah''s sea of consciousness enlarged by many sizes. The mental sphere seemed to cross some sort of barrier as it expanded, only to stop a few seconds after that invisible layer pierced. It was at that moment that Noah opened his material eyes and the room around him trembled. The pressure applied on his mind by the room seemed to retract as Noah''s consciousness expanded, he was soon able to sense the entirety of the mansion and even the areas inside the mystical fog behind him. Also, faint traces of the "Breath" inside the matter could be sensed by his mind, Noah saw how that "Breath" contained some sort of purer will that what he normally found in the "Breath". Then, while he was still in the process of becoming used to his new power, he was enlightened. The enlightenment though wasn''t about the creation of his cultivation technique, it concerned the other center of power that had been stuck for so many years. Noah finally knew what he had to do to improve his body. Chapter 458: 458. Abomination The enlightenment didn''t come from the world around him or from the new power that his mind held, it had actually arrived when he reviewed Earth''s words. A smile appeared on his face as the idea took form, his mental energy was quickly expended to fuel the Divine deduction technique but more brilliant water was created from the bottom of his sphere after that expenditure. Noah was now a rank 4 mage, his sea of consciousness would produce a better and stronger mental energy. Noah controlled the new mental energy and made it enter the inscriptions on the walls of his sphere, his thoughts ran at an unimaginable speed as he analyzed the specifics of his idea. ''You called me an abomination, you will have no words for me after my body-nourishing method is complete.'' His consciousness reached for a place above the mansion as he thought that. There, he found another strong consciousness that seemed to pay attention to the area, Noah felt its surprise when his thoughts connected with it. "Who!? Wait. Is that you, Prince? How is this possible?" The thoughts of the consciousness were clearly heard by Noah while he was still inside the mansion. "Elder, you were once a citizen of the central part of the continent, right?" Noah spoke through his mind, he knew that the elder sent to accompany his group was somewhere above his mansion so it was easy for him to find him. "Yes, but that was a long time ago. Most importantly, how did you manage to find me?" The elder''s thoughts resounded inside Noah''s sphere but Noah completely ignored his question as he spoke again. "Elder, I have a request." . . . It took some time before Noah became used to his new power. The walls of his room trembled every time Noah''s gaze swept them, the pressure radiated by his new mental energy was able to affect the material world, Noah feared that he would inadvertently kill some of the cultivators of his group if he came out of the mansion before learning to control himself. Meanwhile, he was amazed by the new world that he was able to see: Every material that made his mansion exuded "Breath" but their internal composition contained a different kind of energy. The "Breath" inside the matter wasn''t only purer and denser, it also carried a thick will that gave it specific roles. Noah wasn''t able to understand the meaning behind that will, he could only pick some random details but he was sure of one thing: That will carried the laws that Heaven and Earth had set! Noah knew that to affect such a "Breath" he had to use a stronger will, meaning that his hope to create a rank 4 cultivation technique while he was only a human mage was simply a vain dream or a project that would have taken him decades to complete. Now he was a rank 4 mage, he could decide to resume his experimentations for his cultivation technique but the enlightenment birthed after his Earth Tribulation was a matter too pressing to postpone. That was because it concerned a body-nourishing method! The body of a cultivator was its foundation, the growth of both mind and dantian would be hindered if the body wasn''t able to contain them. The sea of consciousness pressed less on the body than the dantian but Noah was already in the liquid stage of the third rank, some sort of limitation was bound to appear before his Heaven Tribulation. That''s why he decided to work on his nourishing method first. Also, the idea that he had was simply so amazing that couldn''t contain himself. In a seemingly desolate area near the mystical fog but far away from the Hive''s encampment, a hooded Noah calmly waited in front of a huge caravan. Runes could be seen on the sides of the many carriages that made the caravan, he knew that they were meant to restrain whoever was inside them. A fat man exited from the first carriage and neared Noah with a wide smile on his face. "My lord, this is the first time that I''ve traveled so far to complete a sale! Our common friend said that you were willing to purchase slaves in large numbers, I hope he was speaking the truth." The fat man immediately went to the core of the matter when he spoke. The man was a cultivator in the third rank and also a slave trader that Noah had contacted through the elder of his group. "I need cultivators with a rank 3 body, at least a hundred of them." Noah gave voice to his needs without caring for the merchant''s words. The man''s eyes lit up when he heard the number of slaves requested by Noah, he joined his hands on his waist as he bent toward him to whisper something. "You have come to the right person. I have the best women in the continent, all trained to serve their masters without complaints and with a body strong enough to serve even the most powerful cultivators without breaking." The merchant spoke wearing a lecherous expression, Noah moved his eyes back on the caravan as he expressed his requirements more clearly. "Gender doesn''t matter. All I ask is for cultivators with a rank 3 body that have a high tolerance to pain." . . . Near the Hive''s encampment, a few kilometers deeper in the mystical fog. Noah oversaw the cultivators of his group as they dug an underground structure. One hundred cultivators stood behind him, they had inscribed chains around their neck and wrists and all of them had a rank 3 body, they were the slaves that Noah had purchased from the merchant. "I''ve gathered the magical beasts that you have requested, Prince. They are all in the third rank but their elements aren''t that various since the mystical fog doesn''t offer that variety of creatures." The elder spoke through his consciousness to Noah, the latter had tasked him to capture as many rank 3 creatures as he could while he was busy purchasing the slaves. "Thank you, Elder, you can cage them inside my underground quarters when the work is completed. Also, I have to ask you to make this entire area soundproof, I don''t want my experiments to attract unwanted attention." Noah''s answered through his mind, his eyes radiated a chilling coldness as he prepared himself to forge an abomination. Chapter 459: 459. Ingredients The construction of Noah''s underground facility didn''t take much, the workers were cultivators in the second and third rank after all, digging and soundproofing the structure was easy for beings of such power. The structure had four separate areas, one for the slaves, one for the magical beasts, a reinforced one for the experiments, and one where Noah could rest or cultivate. Noah entered the structure followed by the slaves that he had recently purchased and ordered to everyone else to leave, there had to be no witnesses to his experiments. "I''ve gathered the "Breath" that you asked for, Prince. The cultivators in the liquid stage of the third rank here are only of the fire, water, and wind element but there should be a larger variety once the link between your mansion and the archipelago is completed." Kate spoke as she handed a space-ring to Noah, she bowed before leaving him alone in the just built facility. Noah inspected the contents of the ring, he could see that its insides were filled shining crystals similar to the Obsidian Credits but that had three different colors. ''I have all the ingredients now, I can finally start.'' Noah thought as he wore the ring and led the slaves toward the deepest part of the underground structure. The cries of the magical beasts chained in another area filled the structure but Noah completely ignored them, his mind reviewed the idea behind his body-nourishing method one last time before he started to work on its creation. The humans of that world had a mortal enemy, or, to say it better, a constant threat, namely the magical beasts. Those creatures were powerful beings that seemed able to form packs in no time and that were always driven by their endless hunger, cultivators had to constantly clear the areas around their cities and domains to prevent the commoners and the weaker cultivators from being attacked. What was worse was that magical beasts had a clear path toward power, they didn''t have any requirement for element or source to increase their level, they could just absorb "Breath" from anything containing it and make it theirs. The reason for that was unknown. Cultivators had studied magical beasts since they first came in contact with them, they tried to learn how they could grow stronger without any limitation for their element, they researched how they could just eat anything that contained "Breath" to raise their level. Yet, no one could ever recreate that quality. Many techniques, methods, and drugs were inspired by the training method of the magical beasts but they were only imitations that couldn''t match the original, no one till this day had ever been successful in that feat. Noah wasn''t an exception. He could be considered an expert when it came to magical beasts, his interest in those creatures had been born when the dragon attacked his mansion when he was just a child and it had never faded. However, even with the teaching of the academy and after absorbing the Bloodline inheritance, he was clueless about the peculiar training process of those creatures. He knew what magical beasts felt, the Bloodline inheritance made him experience the lives of the Excavating worms and even left him part of their instincts but he was still unable to find the answer to the question that had afflicted cultivators through all their history. Yet, he didn''t need to understand how magical beasts worked to create his nourishing method. "I will set free whoever survives free and provide it with the necessary resources to exact its revenge, just do your best." Noah lied as he spoke to the slaves chained on the area that was reserved for them, he wanted to be sure that they would do anything in their power to keep themselves alive. His experiments would be affected if the slaves decided to give up on life due to the pain that they were going to suffer, Noah gave them hope to make sure that they would try their best to endure the procedure before starting. A sheet appeared in his hands, it described the aptitude of the slaves as well as the level of their centers of power and training, everything had been listed in an orderly way by the slave trader. ''I should start with someone of the fire aptitude, I have more "Breath" and magical beasts of that element after all.'' Noah decided and randomly picked a slave of the fire element from the ones that he had purchased. He was a man wearing ragged clothes and with a body filled with scars, it was clear that he had suffered a lot before becoming a slave and being sold to Noah. Noah led him to the central room of the underground structure where he tied him to the wall. Then, he picked one of the red crystals from the ring that Kate gave him, the liquid "Breath" contained inside it was of the fire element and came from one of the rank 3 cultivators of his group. Noah neared the crystal to his head, his half-transparent figure inside his sea of consciousness reached for the walls of the sphere and stretched its ethereal hands to the outside world to create a connection where the liquid "Breath" could pass. Little by little, the "Breath" of the fire element entered Noah''s mental sphere through his half-transparent figure and was attacked by his mental sphere. Noah was a rank 4 mage, removing the will of Heaven and Earth from that "Breath" was an easy task, he was simply too strong for it. In a matter of minutes, Noah successfully stored "Breath" of a different element inside his mental sphere! In that way, he could potentially forge items for cultivators of another element but his intentions were different at that moment. Refining it was even easier, Noah casually filled the "Breath" with a will that carried his ambition, the red "Breath" became a formless lake that seemed ready to explode after that. ''This definitely isn''t the right meaning with which fill the "Breath" but I''ll fix this issue later on.'' Noah thought as he stood up and went to pick a magical beast of the fire element from the area nearby. The creature was a Fire wolf in the third rank, the cage containing it was an inscribed item that the elder had specifically requested from the archipelago, the lines on its surface were created after Divine Demon''s copying technique. Noah''s powerful consciousness focused on the mind of the beast, the wolf felt as if an earthquake was happening inside its mind before its eyes lost any trace of life, it took only a thought for Noah to kill the beast! Noah carried the corpse of the beast back where the slave was chained and laid it right next to the man. "Endure now." He spoke one last time before he put one hand on both the man and the corpse. Then, he controlled the red "Breath" inside his mind to fill the corpse, the corpse of the beast seemed to liquefy as it entered the man''s body. Chapter 460: 460. Solution Humans generally envied the easy path to power that magical beasts had. It couldn''t be helped, magical beasts didn''t need techniques nor needed to pay attention to their element, that was one of the reasons why it was impossible to completely exterminate them, they seemed to be privileged beings in the cultivation journey. Noah wasn''t an exception, he envied those creatures like every other human did. Cultivating without the need of a technique was the dream of every cultivator, they wouldn''t need the support of organizations to increase their power if something like that was possible. Yet, no one had ever managed to completely imitate the cultivation method of the magical beasts. Noah had never thought of himself as someone with an incredible talent of far smarter than anyone else, his power came from hard work, amazing determination, and sacrifice, he was only able to make those decisions at a young age. However, there was something that he had suspected since he heard about the attempts to imitate those creatures. This world had beings able to fly, gods, Immortal lands, it wasn''t bound to mortal limits like his previous one. Also, cultivators had appeared a long time ago so it was safe to assume that experimentations on the magical beasts had been attempted for a long period. If those mighty cultivators of the past hadn''t been able to find a solution to the issue, then there simply wasn''t a solution. Humans couldn''t imitate magical beasts, that path led to a dead-end, that cultivation method was limited to those creatures. That''s why Noah thought that, if imitating a magical beast was impossible, the only option left was to become a magical beast. The Elemental forging method could fuse two material into one, modifying it and giving it a meaning through the refined "Breath" of the cultivator performing the inscription. Noah used the Divine deduction technique to better analyze his inspiration, he then chose to use the body of a human as the core material and the body of the magical beasts as the material that had to be fused. There were many issues with his idea though. First of all, he needed a large number of cultivators and magical beasts to proceed with his experiments, he needed humans willingly to endure the pain of the procedure to obtain reliable data. Then, there was a problem that concerned his element. Darkness cultivators were hard to find and so were magical beasts of the same element, the Elemental forging method used a "Breath" that matched the cultivator performing it, meaning that Noah would have been forced to experiment only on beings of the darkness element. Also, his mansion couldn''t hold that many beasts and slaves, he needed a place where he could experiment without being interrupted and without judging eyes, what he was going to do wasn''t exactly ethical after all. Yet, with the backing of the Hive, all those issues had been solved in a short amount of time. The underground facility had been quickly built, it was quite bare but Noah didn''t need any luxurious furniture in there. The slaves had been obtained with the help of the elder, Noah was filthy rich right now, his wealth had been barely affected by that purchase. The magical beasts had been captured by the elder in his group, the mystical fog was a danger zone, its insides were filled by those creatures. Then, for what concerned the "Breath" of a different element, he had asked the cultivators in the liquid stage of the third rank in his group to fill almost empty versions of Obsidian Credits with it. According to Noah''s idea, succeeding in fusing the body of a magical beast with that of a human wouldn''t increase its level, it would just completely change the nature of that body. That''s why he needed for their level to be the same, every little difference could create a destructive chain reaction that would ultimately make the experiment fail. As for why he asked only for the "Breath" of the cultivators in the liquid stage, it was because they were on his same cultivation level. The purpose of the experiments was to create a reliable procedure that Noah would eventually apply to himself. When that time came, Noah would still be a liquid stage cultivator in the third rank since he had decided to not approach the solid stage until he created a cultivation technique. Noah couldn''t risk miscalculating something due to a difference in the power of the "Breath" so he limited his request to those in the liquid stage. Capturing the magical beasts alive was also another form of precaution, Noah could kill them with his mind right before the experiment started so that he could be sure that the quality of the corpse wasn''t affected in any way. There was only one big detail that Noah wasn''t sure of. Fusing the bodies of a human and of a magical beast would surely create a powerful finished product but he couldn''t be certain that the cultivator would then have access to the cultivation method of the magical beasts. However, the only way to solve that doubt was to succeed in his experiments. Screams resounded in the underground area. Noah kept his hands sealed on the screaming slave and the liquefying corpse of the beast. His piercing gaze memorized all the events that happened since he began to fuse those two bodies. ''Skin with skin, muscles with muscles, organs with organs, I''ll focus on the containment later.'' Noah decided as the skin of the beast slowly entered the man''s body. The man screamed to no end as that external material fused with his skin, forever changing its capabilities. Gray fur started to grow on the slave, the first signs of mutation had appeared but Noah didn''t seem to mind them. He was focused on seeing if the procedure was doable, he had time to perfect it later on. After the skin, it was time for the muscles. The man shook when the muscles of the Fire wolf liquefied and entered his muscles, his temperature also rose due to the peculiar body of the magical beast. ''Its abilities are being passed down!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he saw that the man''s muscles were gaining some of the abilities of the Fire wolf. Yet, before all the muscular system of the man was filled with that of the magical beast, a gray smoke started to come out of the slave. Chapter 461: 461. Failures The temperature of the new muscles of the slave rose at a high speed, the skin above them wasn''t able to sustain such heat and began to burn, emitting gray smoke in the process. Noah knew that he did some mistake at that point and that it was too late now for the slave. That''s why he didn''t stop merging the two bodies, he wanted to gather as much experience as he could before the slave died and the experiment failed. The fusion of the muscular system was completed and Noah''s focus went on the skeletal system. The bones of the magical beast began to liquefy and enter the body of the slave, cracking sounds resounded as the bones of the man were modified due to the Elemental forging method. The slave had never stopped screaming since the experiment began, his body was being modified while he was wide awake, it was as if he was experiencing a Pain Tribulation at that moment. Then, before Noah could even fuse half of the skeletal systems, the skin of the man was completely burnt and the slave died. Noah''s first experiment was a failure. That was to be expected, Noah couldn''t hope to obtain some result so soon, especially when attempting in something that no one had been able to do. His mental energy quickly entered the shining lines on the walls of his sea of consciousness, the Divine deduction technique helped him to quickly find the reason behind that failure. ''The fusion of the skins wasn''t good enough, the capabilities of the skin of the magical beast weren''t passed down due to that. Well, it''s better to say that such a lax fusion couldn''t express its qualities.'' The skin of the slave didn''t obtain the qualities of the magical beast so it wasn''t able to endure the burning muscles under it, leading to the death of the slave. ''It seems that I can''t disregard a good amalgamation even in the early stages of the fusion or there could be deadly repercussions. My will is also a bit off but it doesn''t seem to cause a failure just yet. At least now I know that the abilities of the creature can be passed down, a perfect hybrid should be able to carry the capabilities of both worlds.'' It took only one experiment for Noah to be able to pick so many details, the Divine deduction technique coupled with the mental energy produced by a rank 4 sea of consciousness was already showing its power. ''I need to take it slowly, I must be sure that the skins have completely fused before passing on the muscles. The same must be done for bones and organs, meaning that the procedure will take longer than I had predicted.'' Noah had initially thought that he could just fuse everything and then make it take the form of a human body but that approach wasn''t possible. The body of the cultivator would begin to mutate as soon as the fusion reached a certain point, meaning that the abilities of the magical beast would appear during the procedure. Noah then took one of his white sabers and opened the corpse of the slave, he was basically performing an autopsy. He couldn''t leave any detail behind when performing such an invasive experiment, he had to actually see the changes happening inside the human body. The bones of the slave had many cracks, that was expected since Noah had just started to modify them. Yet, the muscles of the man had gray hair growing from them, it seemed that part of the skin of the beast had been mixed with them during the fusion. Both problems had been caused by Noah''s lack of control but it could also be said that he couldn''t help it. He was a rank 4 mage, his consciousness was so strong that Noah''s control neared perfection. However, near perfection didn''t seem to be enough. ''I still have some "Breath" of the fire element left in my mind, I''ll try again with a Fire wolf and with a fire cultivator.'' Noah thought when he had finished analyzing the first experiment. He was attempting something unheard of with an unreliable inscription method and a liquid "Breath" that didn''t match his element. Being imprecise was something that he couldn''t avoid at his first attempt, he needed to become familiar with the procedure to minimize the lack of control, he needed experience in the procedure, and he had to find the other hindrances that waited for him as he went deeper in the experimentation. Noah quickly cleaned the room using the black smoke of the Demonic form spell, nothing remained of the dead slave and the maimed corpse of the magical beast, he didn''t want anyone to know what he was doing after all. Another slave was taken from its area and brought to the central room of the underground structure by Noah, he quickly chained it to the wall and went to kill another Fire wolf. This time, Noah knew that he would probably fail. The slave was a woman while the magical beast was a male, Noah was quite sure that genders would affect the fusion but he wanted to test it to gather more information. With the remaining refined red "Breath" inside his mind and by placing his hands on both slave and beast, Noah started his second experiment. As expected, the two bodies showed signs of rejection since their skin began to fuse. Piece of flesh directly exploded as the skin of the magical beast was fused, Noah tried his best to contain the rejection but he ultimately failed, another experiment turned out to be a skinless corpse. ''I can''t mix genders which means that obtaining precise resources will be slightly more troublesome but there should be no problem after the connection with the archipelago is set, I will have a wider variety of both magical beasts and liquid "Breath" at my disposal at that point.'' Noah thought as he cleaned the area again. As a rank 4 mage, he was still far away from reaching his limit, even with the constant usage of the Divine deduction technique. Chapter 462: 462. Behaviour Screams resounded non-stop in the underground structure. Noah experimented almost without break, that was the first time that he was actually testing the limits of his new mental sphere and the results made him incredibly satisfied. The sea inside his mind seemed endless, he felt as if the only thing that could lower its quantity was the Divine deduction technique. Yet, even in that case, the mental energy depleted was quickly refilled, his mind simply produced it at an incredible speed. ''This is really on another level, no wonder there is such a difference between the heroic and the human ranks.'' Noah vaguely thought as he used the smoke of his Demonic form spell to clean the experimentation area. By then, he had attempted to fuse the body of a magical beast with that of a human sixty-four times and he had always failed. During that period, Noah had rested only once, even the continuous usage of the Elemental forging method couldn''t tire that powerful mind too soon. ''I should be the first rank 4 mage in the history of the Elemental forging method, I don''t think anyone has survived to this level.'' Noah guessed as he took another slave from the other area. The Elemental forging method had basically disappeared and Noah had all the records about its past practitioners. None of them had survived until the fourth rank, all of them had died or were permanently injured due to the backlash that accompanied the inscription method. Noah was the only exception. His early advantage had given him a sturdy mind since birth, his mental sphere had only enlarged faster thanks to the Elemental forging method, he had long stopped feeling pain because he stored "Breath" inside his sea of consciousness. Sixty-four failures, coupled with the constant use of the Divine deduction technique, gave him a lot of insights for what concerned his experiments. He had tested many approaches, initiating the fusion from different tissues. He had initiated the fusion on the skin, on the internal organs, on the muscles, and on the bones, he had even varied the order in which the fusion progressed and stopped it mid-way. The result was that, no matter how hard he tried, starting with the skin and then slowly approaching the interiors was the most stable form of fusion. Noah had been ultimately forced to slow down the fusion to make the affected tissue stabilize to prevent rejections when he started to fuse the more internal tissues. That led to an even longer and painful procedure that most slaves weren''t able to endure but it also provided better results. During his last experiments, Noah had been successfully able to fuse skin, muscles, and bones, the only problem remained the internal organs that seemed to always suffer from some sort of rejection. It was only when the sixty-fourth slave died that Noah understood that he was missing something, the failure in the fusion wasn''t his fault anymore at that point. ''The only variable that I didn''t calculate is the compatibility on a behavioral level.'' Noah thought as he went back to his area to deduce. Gender, aptitude, cultivation level, Noah had already made sure that those fields matched when choosing a slave and a magical beast. Yet, it seemed that the fusion would always encounter some form of rejection when he started to affect the most internal parts of the human body. That led Noah to think that he had to find a slave and a magical beast that matched on a deeper level, meaning that even their personality had to be similar. ''This is quite troublesome, magical beasts don''t really have a personality and I''m working with slaves that had been trained to serve a master, any trace of their real behavior might be already gone forever.'' Another hurdle appeared in front of Noah. Bt then, he had become used to the procedure, he had just to tune those details to succeed. ''For the magical beasts, I can only use my instinct to classify their behavior in human terms. As for the slaves, I guess I can only ask them.'' Noah sighed when he reached that conclusion, human interactions had never been his strong point after all. The next day, Noah went into the underground area where the slaves were kept. The area seemed larger now that only thirty-six slaves remained, Noah carefully examined each one of them before deciding who approach first. The slaves had gazes devoid of life, the screams of their companions and the cries of the chained beasts didn''t affect their mood in the slightest. Noah couldn''t help but curse at that sight: Those slaves seemed to be well-trained but, for what concerned his situation, that quality was actually a disadvantage. "What can you tell me about yourself?" "What do you like the most?" "Describe yourself with a few qualities." "Do you think of yourself as an aggressive person?" Noah asked those questions as he interrogated the slaves, he wanted to create a complete profile of their personality before resuming with the experiments. Luckily for him, the inscribed chains binding the slaves forced them to answer Noah''s questions honestly. Even if their personality had been suppressed or almost broken by their training, Noah was still able to pick up some clues and to create a general profile for each slave, he had just to match each one of them with a corresponding beast now. Noah knew that each species of magical beasts had a different behavior: Some species were more aggressive, others were more reckless, others were canny, many qualities could distinguish them. For example, Fire wolves liked to form large groups but they were quite disorganized and reckless in their behavior. On the contrary, Lightning wolves formed less numerous packs but had better teamwork and could even combine their attacks. The way Noah saw it, Fire wolves would be a better match for na?ve and insecure cultivators while the Lightning ones were more similar to humans with a noble status and good training. It was considering those small details that Noah decided the next slave and magical beast to fuse and resumed his experiments. Chapter 463: 463. Lightning Noah was left with only thirty-six slaves before he decided to take a different approach but only twenty of them could be matched with the magical beasts chained in the underground structure. That number further diminished as Noah continued with his experiments. It took a few attempts before he could tune his instincts, more slaves died when the fusion reached the internal organs, but, ultimately, he managed to achieve some small success. Noah''s concentration was at its peak as he controlled the fusion between an elderly man and a Fog hawk, refined liquid "Breath" of the wind element continued to be depleted as the organs of the slaves were modified. That was the twelfth time that he had reached that point, three slaves had died before his instincts became able to match the perfect magical beast for each cultivator but he had finally reached the final part of the fusion. The eleven slaves before that had either died due to the pain or to some form of rejection that Noah was still unable to suppress. Yet, after sacrificing seventy-eight slaves, Noah seemed to have finally mastered the procedure! Almost nothing remained of the corpse of the magical beast, only part of its organs remained solid. Noah couldn''t just fuse them together, he had to modify them one by one and wait for the fusion to stabilize before moving to the next one. He had started with the organs that were less vital to the beast and that didn''t express its capabilities with much intensity, Noah had learnt long ago that he had to be sure that the body could handle the abilities of the beast before he proceeded in passing them to the cultivator. The most important organs of the Fog hawk were its eyes, they were able to clearly see through an environment filled with fog or smoke and could also recognize where the "Breath" was thicker in those locations. Fog hawks could innately use those spots to burst with a sudden acceleration that could catch any prey by surprise. Noah didn''t know how much of that ability would be passed down on the slave, most of that knowledge could only be tested once a hybrid was forged, he was focused only on creating the procedure right now. However, for how things were proceeding, it seemed that he was going to discover it soon. The internal organs of the magical beast liquefied one by one, Noah carefully fused them with those of the elderly man and contained the rejection before using the refined liquid "Breath" to liquefy another organ. Little by little, the fusion between the slave and the beast was being completed. There was something that he hadn''t noticed though and that even the elder of his group couldn''t sense due to the proprieties of the mystical fog that surrounded the underground structure where he was working. As the fusion proceeded, black clouds began to form on the sky right above Noah''s facility. Lightning cracked inside them, the aura radiated from their shape carried an ominous feeling which seemed to target the red ground below them. Noah was unaware of that event and continued to focus on the fusion. The hearts fused, the lungs did the same, even the brains were successfully mixed, Noah took a deep breath as he moved his gaze on the eyes of the elderly man. The slave seemed to have lost consciousness as the internal organs survived the Elemental forging method, it was as if his body shut down to become used to its changes. Noah memorized those details but he didn''t think much about it, there would be time to analyze the procedure with the Divine deduction technique after the first hybrid was forged. The eyes of the Fog hawk liquefied under the influence of the "Breath" of the wind element, nothing was left of the beast, Noah could place his other hand on the cultivator now that it was free. The liquefied eyes entered the cultivator''s ones and began to modify their structure, blood came out of the shut eyelids as the unnecessary parts were expelled under Noah''s control. Excitement rose inside Noah as he saw that the fusion was almost completed, he just needed to mix the last bits of the beast and wait for that organ to stabilize before he could start studying the capabilities of his creation. However, just as the eyes of both beings were about to fuse completely, a bolt of lightning fell from the black clouds in the sky and landed on the ground above the underground structure, piercing it with its might. Noah felt a sudden dangerous feeling coming from above him, he instinctively retreated when his consciousness calculated the trajectory of the attack, dethatching both his hands from the almost complete hybrid. The bolt of lightning missed him but landed precisely on the elderly man who was just about to open his eyes. An explosion resounded in the underground area where Noah performed his experiments, Noah expanded his consciousness as much as he could to understand what had happened. The first thing he noticed was that the slave was dead, the lightning had centered his head, dividing his body in two and carbonizing those two halves, only a few burned pieces of flesh remained on the floor. Then, he noticed the black clouds on the sky, they seemed focused on the area where Noah was and dispersed shortly after the slave was killed. Noah stared at the sky through the hole created by the lightning bolt with a pensive gaze but his thoughts were soon interrupted by the arrival of a powerful consciousness that neared him at full speed. "Prince! Are you ok? Don''t tell me that you failed the Heaven Tribulation!" The voice of the elder of his group resounded in the underground structure, the meaning behind his words slightly startled Noah. "I''m fine, Elder Ian. Why would you think about the Tribulation though?" Noah answered when an elderly man wearing a purple robe with red tentacles embroidered on its sleeves appeared next to him, he had long white hair and his eyes showed the relief he felt when he saw that Noah was fine. After hearing his question though, his gaze returned serious and he raised his eyes toward the hole created by the lightning bolt before answering. "That was the lightning that Heaven and Earth use during the Heaven Tribulation." Chapter 464: 464. Flags ''Lightning of the Heaven Tribulation!'' Noah understood something when he heard the answer of the elder. "Elder Ian, are you really sure about this?" Noah asked once again before making any supposition. Elder Ian nodded without moving his gaze from the hole on the ceiling and gave more information about that event. "Black clouds carrying the wrath of Heaven and Earth unleash lightning of great might to destroy the cultivator that aims to reach the heroic ranks. I remember those bolts of lightning too well to be mistaken." Elder Ian was a heroic cultivator, meaning that he had survived the Heaven Tribulation to reach that level. "You weren''t attempting to reach the fourth rank of the dantian, right?" Elder Ian asked as he moved his gaze on Noah. He was aware that Noah was a peculiar existence but he also knew some details about the level of his dantian. After all, he had fought as a gaseous stage cultivator in the war for the independence of the archipelago, it was impossible that Noah had reached the peak of the solid stage in those years. Also, before his Earth Tribulation, his cultivation level was completely exposed to the elders of the Hive, he simply didn''t have the power to hide it. That''s why Elder Ian was quite sure that he hadn''t approached the Heaven Tribulation and that the lightning bolt must have been caused by something else. "No, I was busy with something and all of sudden the lightning came." Noah answered without revealing much, the gaze of the elder went on the remains of the slave after he heard those words. "I don''t know what you are doing here but it seems that Heaven and Earth don''t like it. I suggest you stop or take the necessary precautions before continuing, the next time the lightning bolt might aim at you." Elder Ian spoke without probing Noah''s affairs. Every cultivator had its secrets, especially someone like Noah who was periodically provided with an incredible amount of resources. The elders of the Hive had long guessed that he was attempting in creating a cultivation technique or a nourishing method, many of them were doing the same after all. It was custom among cultivators to never probe someone else''s techniques or researches, they were strictly linked to the power of a cultivator and knowing exactly how they worked could reveal eventual weaknesses. Also, Noah was the Demon Prince, his position was quite important and he had shown many times that he was worthy of it, it was simply better to not create any enmity with him. Noah was silent. The words of the elder had given him enough clues to understand what was going on. ''It seems that the last hurdle in the creation of a hybrid is Heaven itself¡­I need to ask for the help of the Hive once again.'' Noah immediately decided to rely on his organization when his thoughts reached that point, he simply couldn''t solve that problem by himself. "How long will it take for the connection with the archipelago to be completed?" Noah asked as soon as he set his mind, he needed for the teleportation matrix to work before he started the next phase of his experiments. "Kate is almost done, it won''t take more than a week before this encampment becomes able to transport living beings." Elder Ian answered and Noah nodded in satisfaction, he had enough time to prepare his next steps. Noah didn''t spend time in the underground facility in the following days, it was clear that Heaven and Earth didn''t want to see the birth of a hybrid so he needed to make the right arrangements before continuing to forge. He met with the slave trader again in those days, only fifty slaves with a rank 3 body were purchased that time, Noah was quite sure that they would be enough. Also, Noah had requested for the less trained ones that time, he needed slaves that had still traces of their personality to match them with a proper magical beast, he couldn''t risk purchasing someone who was already devoid of any will. The slaves would be forced to do anything Noah said anyway, he had learnt long ago that he could just order them to do their best instead of giving them false hopes, the first method turned out to be more effective during his experiments. Then, Noah made a list of the magical beasts that he needed and notified the Hive about his request. Magical beasts were hard to subdue but Noah had only asked for creatures in the third rank, one heroic cultivator was enough to complete his task. The listed beasts perfectly matched the personality of the newly bought slaves and that of those still chained inside his underground facility. The connection with the archipelago was about to be set up, Noah wasn''t limited anymore to the fauna of the mystical fog. In the end, he requested liquid "Breath" in the third rank of various elements, that was the fuel for his Elemental forging method after all. The preparations were completed one day before the teleportation matrix was completed, the Efrana nation and the Coral archipelago were finally connected after that! A group of cultivators came out of Noah''s mansion that day, they were the new troops that the Hive had decided to send to the encampment but they were only rank 2 cultivators, only their captain was in the third rank. That manpower was needed to recruit more tribes and to further enlarge the area covered by the encampment, the main intention of the Hive was to increase the power of its human assets in the end. The captain though carried the resources requested by Noah, as well as a rank 4 inscribed item! Noah inspected the contents of the rings before nodding in satisfaction and sending the captain away, everyone had a role in the encampment so he didn''t need to handle it, he could completely focus on his experiments. Yet, he still needed the help of the elder to use the rank 4 item. "Please, Elder." Noah bowed as he handed a set of eight small flags covered in runes to Elder Ian. The latter simply took them and injected his "Breath" inside them before stabbing the flags on the ground in the area where Noah''s underground facility was. The flags lit up when all of them were on the ground and the runes on their surface slowly flew in the air before landing on the area demarcated by the flags. Chapter 465: 465. Hunger The runes of the flags covered the ground above Noah''s underground facility, they formed some sort of pale shield that enveloped the entirety of the area above the structure. That was the effect of the defensive item that Noah had requested, the flags were a rank 4 inscribed item meant to protect cultivators during their Heaven Tribulation, it was pointless to say how valuable it was. "This isn''t the most powerful protective method of the Hive but it should be enough for your needs. Anyway, I''ll keep an eye on the sky from now on." Elder Ian spoke when the protection was set, he wanted to reassure Noah that his facility was safe now. Noah bowed toward the elder as a sign of gratitude and entered the underground structure, he was simply too eager to study the capabilities of the hybrid to waste more time. He had the new batch of slaves, the liquid "Breath" needed to activate the Elemental forging method, and a few magical beasts were still caged inside his facility, he could immediately resume his experiments without needing to wait for the Hive to send the magical beasts that he had requested. Those creatures would be sent soon anyway, he could just exhaust his resources in the meantime. Noah immediately resumed his experiments, he had seen that the elderly man killed by the lightning bolt had almost opened his eyes when Heaven struck, he knew that the procedure that he had mastered was flawless. A slave of the fire element and another Fire wolf were taken and brought to the experimentation area, Fire wolves were abundant in the mystical fog, it was normal for Noah to have many of them caged. The personality of the slave also matched the species of wolf perfectly according to Noah''s instincts, he was sure that the fusion would be a success at that time. Noah killed the beast with his consciousness and performed the Elemental forging method, the red refined "Breath" inside his mind was expended as the tissues of the beast liquefied. Noah had repeated and analyzed that procedure too many times, his execution was perfect and his control didn''t waver for even an instant. The screams of the slave couldn''t reach his ears, Noah complete attention was on stabilizing the merging tissues. The skins soon fused and Noah waited a few minutes before moving to the muscular system. The muscles fused, heat started to be radiated by them as soon as the capabilities of the beast were passed down. Each species of magical beasts had different abilities which originated from different sources, meaning that Noah had to slightly modify his approach depending on what creature he was using. Fire wolves had two crucial parts that expressed their abilities: Their lungs and their muscular system. Their lungs produced a special gas that could be ignited by the heat of the muscles, creating flames that could be launched from their maws. The issue with those qualities was that the interiors of the slave''s body were still human while the muscles had already become hybrid parts. The interiors of the slave would be burned if they weren''t modified as soon as possible but Noah was aware of that. His studies and experience made him knowledgeable about the important parts of each species of magical beasts, he could decide how to approach the procedure before it even started. Noah didn''t wait for the muscles to stabilize, time was key in that particular fusion. The bones of the beast immediately liquefied and were merged at high speed with those of the slave, cracks appeared everywhere on the skeletal system of the cultivators due to the external substance that was modifying it. Noah hurried that step to prevent the heat radiated from the muscles from injuring the interiors of the slaves, the bones soon fused and Noah waited for a short time before he focused on the internal organs. He was just making sure that they wouldn''t fall apart before the two bodies were fused completely, that hurried approach would leave the hybrid injured but he couldn''t care less about it, he just needed to be sure that the slave would keep its life. The internal organs were modified one by one, Noah left the lungs for last and part of his consciousness went on the sky as he proceeded to take that last step. Black clouds had formed again in the sky above the underground structure, they seemed to appear every time the fusion reached the last steps. ''I hope the protective item works as intended.'' Noah thought as he proceeded to fuse the lungs of the Fire wolf, the procedure was completed, he had just to stabilize muscles, bones, and internal organs and the forging would be completed! While Noah focused on stabilizing his creation, the black clouds in the sky released a lightning bolt aimed for the ground above Noah''s facility. A thick orange bolt fell at high speed from the sky and was about to land on the terrain but the runes that covered that area lit up and the shield formed by them shone with a soft light. The lightning bolt crashed on the shield but it was unable to pierce it, only a bit of gray smoke came out from the spot where it had landed. Noah observed the scene with his mind and heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that the shield could oppose that attack. More lightning bolts were released by the black clouds, they illuminated the mystical fog as the crashed on the terrain but the runes kept on protecting the area under them. Meanwhile, Noah controlled the rejections happening inside the slave''s body. It took a while but, eventually, the muscles stabilized, the bones solidified even if some cracks remained on their surface, and the organs started harmonizing with the rest of the body. Noah watched with a heated gaze as the body of the middle-aged man on whom he had experimented took life and started functioning in a normal way. ''It''s done!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind, lightning bolts had continuously fallen from the sky and they didn''t seem to stop even after the slave opened his eyes and spoke a few soft words. "What¡­ is¡­ this¡­ hunger?" Chapter 466: 466. Feeding The slave spoke, the chains holding him still shook when he tried to examine his body. Noah had his eyes glued on him, he tried to pick up as many details as he could before studying him more in-depth. "Should I take care of the clouds?" A voice reached his consciousness while he was busy watching the first hybrid, Noah moved his attention to the sky where the black clouds were still releasing lightning bolts aimed for the underground structure. "Please, Elder." Noah answered the voice through his mind and resumed observing the chained man, the slave had started to struggle when he realized that something about him had changed. Meanwhile, Elder Ian flew in the sky in the direction of the clouds and waved his hand. A blizzard was born next to the clouds, snow and shards of ice attacked the area filled by Heaven and Earth''s will. The elder''s spell soon destroyed the black clouds and made them disperse in the air, the lightning bolts finally stopped crashing on the shield created by the runes of the flags. Noah nodded in satisfaction when he sensed that scene, he knew a bit about the Heaven Tribulation but now he had seen how it should be dealt with. Generally speaking, Heaven Tribulations had a fixed amount of power, a cultivator reaching for the fourth rank of the dantian could either endure the lightning bolts until the "Breath" contained in the black clouds was depleted or directly destroy the clouds. Of course, destroying them required a great power, only heroic cultivators could have the confidence needed to deal with them. Clinking sounds resounded next to Noah as the slave continued to struggle, it seemed that he was instinctively irritated by the chains restraining him. "How do you feel?" Noah asked, that was the first time that he saw a slave trying to break free, even the less trained ones that he had recently purchased didn''t try to escape the inscribed chains. "Hungry! I am HUNGRY! What have you done to me!? This need is driving me crazy!" The slave spoke, small tongues of flame came out of his mouth as he raised his voice, it seemed that the abilities passed down by the beast had been triggered by his mental state. ''His mental state isn''t completely stable but that it''s probably caused by the low level of his sea of consciousness. Yet, the abilities of the Fire wolf had been passed down and they don''t seem to conflict with the new body.'' Noah''s eyes shone when he saw that the hybrid worked as intended, he was now sure that a cultivator could obtain the body of a magical beast while keeping its other centers of power! "Here, eat this." Noah spoke as took out a handful of Obsidian Credits and handed them to the slave, the bloodshot eyes of the latter glued themselves to the shining crystals when Noah left them on the floor in front of him. The slave hesitated for a few seconds but, in the end, he picked the crystals and put them inside his mouth. Crunching sounds resounded in the area, Noah stared at what looked a human eating Credits for nourishment. The teeth of the slave seemed able to munch the crystals, it took only an instant for him to completely eat them. "More!" The slave shouted after gulping the crystals but Noah wasn''t listening to him, his focus was on the body of the cultivator and on the "Breath" contained inside the Credits that he had just eaten. Obsidian Credits generally had "Breath" of various elements inside them, they weren''t limited to just one. Yet, when that "Breath" dispersed inside the hybrid, his body was slightly strengthened. The increase in power was minimal, Noah wouldn''t have noticed it if his attention wasn''t completely focused on the slave. "Wait a moment, I''ll be right back." Noah spoke as he stood up and went to pick another Fire wolf from where the magical beasts were caged. He killed the wolf before laying its corpse in front of the hybrid, at that point he simply waited for the latter''s reaction. The slave seemed to struggle at first, Noah guessed that his human part was still unsure about the capabilities of his new body. After all, cultivators didn''t eat magical beast, only those with a rank 4 body could eat the low-level ones after the "Breath" contained in their bodies was dispersed. Cultivators didn''t have ways to absorb the "Breath" inside those creatures, specific techniques that needed it existed but humans generally didn''t have a use for it, leaving only the stiff and hard meat which wasn''t that tasty. Then, the magical beast''s instincts kicked in and the slave grabbed the corpse in front of him and directly bit it! The fur on the corpse of the wolf didn''t stop the slave from eating it, pieces of skin were torn apart and munched by his teeth under Noah''s attentive gaze. It took a while but, eventually, only the bones of the Fire wolf remained, the slave had tried to eat them but he hadn''t been able to break them while chained. The "Breath" contained in the corpse of the magical beast was absorbed by the hybrid and boosted the power of his body by a little bit, the growth wasn''t minimal like before but it was still too little to matter. ''It seems that the body of a hybrid needs more "Breath" compared to that of a magical beast, its power should also be greater though.'' Noah thought as he calculated the amount of "Breath" that the slave would need to reach the next tier of the third rank, he was only in the middle tier now. According to Noah''s deduction, fusing a human and a magical beast would create something stronger than both of them, at least for what concerned the body. The consequence for that would be the need for higher quantities of "Breath" to reach the breakthroughs, meaning that each hybrid would grow slower than other magical beasts. ''The results of the fusion are amazing for now, I can''t wait to test the actual power of the hybrid and its limits. However, I need to be sure that it can feed on anything first.'' Noah thought, his cold gaze went on the area where the other slaves were kept. Chapter 467: 467. Mental instability Noah completed testing the feeding capabilities of the hybrid, the results left him completely satisfied. The body of the hybrid acted as if it was a proper magical beast, it could eat anything and absorb the "Breath" from any source without minding its element. Also, the dantian of a cultivator generally contained more "Breath" than the body of a magical beast, the hybrid soon abandoned his hesitation when he discovered that humans could satisfy his hunger for longer periods. The body of the hybrid could become stronger by naturally absorbing "Breath" from the environment and by feeding on other living beings, Noah had succeeded where the cultivators of the past had failed, he had managed to create a procedure that perfectly copied the training method of the magical beasts. Now, it was time to test its power. Noah undid the bindings that tied the slave to the wall, only the inscribed chains around his wrists and neck remained on his body. The hybrid trembled when Noah''s gaze went on him, his instincts told him to run away and hide when Noah''s consciousness enveloped his body. Yet, the following orders forced him to act. "Attack me." Noah ordered. The inscriptions on the chains lit up when Noah''s order resounded in the area, they were the inscribed item that made any slave follow the orders of its master but, in that situation, it seemed as if the hybrid could somewhat resist their effects. However, even as a hybrid, he was only a rank 1 cultivator, he couldn''t do anything against the power of the inscribed item restricting him. The hybrid pounced Noah, flames came out of his mouth as he launched himself toward him. Also, he was growling, it seemed that his magical beast''s side was completely revealed when he attacked. To Noah though, that charge and even those flames were nothing more than child''s play. The slave tried to wave his hand to attack Noah, his fingers were stretched and resembled the claws of a beast as they tried to cut Noah. Yet, Noah''s hand shot and grabbed the hybrid''s wrist to stop him. Noah felt the power behind that attack, the physical strength of the slave had long surpassed that of a human and was in the realm of the magical beasts. Noah had a rank 4 body, he could easily stop the blow of a rank 3 beast with his bare hands but the hybrid''s strength seemed to surpass all the rank 3 creatures that he had met in his life. ''He is indeed stronger than the magical beast that had been fused with him, my hypothesis was correct.'' Noah evaluated as he pressed a hand on the slave''s mouth to stop him from spurting flames before ordering him to stop. He had confirmed his physical capabilities but humans had three centers of power, he needed to be sure that the superior aspect of the cultivators wasn''t affected by the fusion. The slave that he had turned into a hybrid though had never had access to any spell, he was a rank 1 mage but his status before becoming a slave couldn''t provide him those precious scrolls. Of course, requesting for a low-level spell of the fire element was just a small matter for Noah, it didn''t take even an hour before two scrolls were sent from the archipelago to the encampment. "Memorize them." Noah handed the scrolls to the slave and went back to his personal area to deduce, he had to be sure that the hybrid kept his qualities as a human before continuing with his experiments. The scrolls contained a rank 0 and a rank 1 spell of the fire element, Noah had to wait a day before the hybrid was able to memorize them. Then, he retrieved the scrolls and ordered him to perform the spells. The hybrid executed the order, the rank 0 spell covered his hands with a layer of flames while the rank 1 one created a fireball that could fly for a few meters. Nothing seemed off if not for the fact that casting the spells consumed less mental energy and "Breath" then what Noah had initially predicted. Also, their power was a bit stronger than usual. ''It seems that being a hybrid somewhat affects your spells, it''s as if his aptitude has increased after merging with a magical beast.'' Noah quickly found the reason behind those differences, magical beasts had innate abilities and some of them concerned their elements. In that case, Fire wolves were innately able to sprout fire from their maws, that ability increased the power of anything fire-related when matched with the centers of power of a cultivator. That discovery made Noah even happier about his creation, he had only intended to create a body-nourishing method at the beginning but now it seemed that his experiments directly improved the natural status of a human. The body and the innate abilities of a magical beast fused with the sea of consciousness and the dantian of a human, it was as if Noah had found a way to remove the weaknesses of his species without any repercussion. Truth to be told, some negative effects had shown themselves while he tested the abilities of the hybrid. The slave showed signs of mental instability from time to time, it was as if his human side and his beast side were fighting inside his brain to take control of his actions. Noah had already thought a lot about that issue and there wasn''t a solution. Two different existences had been fused, some conflict was bound to remain especially when considering the psychological side. The way he saw it, there were only two ways to avoid that problem. The first one was to have a strong mental sphere, suppressing the beast''s instincts wouldn''t be a problem with that. The second one was to find a better match for the human personality. In the second case, the instincts of the beast would completely merge with the human''s ones, forming a harmonized personality that could express the best of both worlds. ''This problem shouldn''t affect me since I plan to respect both requirements, I already have the fifth Kesier rune and I don''t plan on choosing my magical beast lightly. Now I just need to test if I can further improve this creation before moving the testing phase to cultivators with a rank 4 body.'' Noah thought when he summarized all the information that he had discovered about his creation, the moment when he would finally perform the procedure on himself was nearing. Chapter 468: 468. Last phase The magical beasts that he had listed were sent from the Coral archipelago and arrived in Efrana nation through the teleportation matrix inside Noah''s mansion. Meanwhile, Noah had continued testing the limits of the hybrid and of the procedure itself. There were things that he had to be sure of before entering the last part of his experiments, when he would start fusing beings with a rank 4 body. First of all, he had to be sure that the hybrid created from a human and a magical beast was the best he could forge, he didn''t know if he could add further enhancements to that already amazing being. Noah tried to fuse the hybrid with another magical beast of the same aptitude, a Fire fox that, in his opinion, matched the new personality of the slave. The experiment though ended up in the death of the hybrid, Noah wasn''t even able to fuse the skins of the two beings before uncontrollable mutations happened inside the slave''s body, killing him in a few minutes. The loss of his first creation didn''t demoralize him, he still had his batch of slaves and the newly arrived magical beasts that he had personally selected. Noah began to create other hybrids that he then tried to fuse with other magical beasts. There was still a chance that the procedure would fail and Noah needed to remove that chance before approaching the last steps of his experiments. Also, he wanted to learn how to create the most perfect version of a hybrid before performing the procedure on himself. Bolts of lightning fell non-stop on the ground above Noah''s facility, the other cultivators in his group watched with wary gazes at the shining lights that illuminated the depth of the mystical fog behind Noah''s mansion. The encampment was going well, the cultivators of the Hive were successfully recruiting the members of the nearby tribes and sending them back in the archipelago to increase its manpower, their mission was going smoothly. It must be said that they were still in on the borders of the Efrana nation, the powerful tribes had yet to notice their doings. Yet, even if they became aware of the presence of the Hive, they wouldn''t care that much. Efrana nation was already under the influence of two big nations, adding another weak force to it environment won''t affect the behavior of the tribes at all. However, rumors began to spread in the encampment due to Noah''s actions. He was the Demon Prince after all, anything he did would catch the attention of his fellow cultivators. The rumors concerned the ominous aura that surrounded his underground facility, the cultivators stationed there saw how slaves and magical beasts were sent there but none of them ever came back. Also, the bolts of lightning that fell from the sky didn''t improve the image of that area. Cultivators weren''t stupid, they were aware that some sort of nefarious act was happening inside the structure that they had built but all they could do was watch it from the distance. Noah''s image didn''t benefit by those events, the respect that had accompanied his title soon turned into wariness when the rumors reached the archipelago. Of course, Noah couldn''t care less about his public image, his sole and only objective was to become stronger, he wouldn''t mind being labeled as a monster if he managed to obtain the power that he desired. Noah came out of his underground structure almost a month after the teleportation matrix inside his mansion had been set. The reason why he left it was that all the slaves and the magical beasts inside had died during his experiments. Noah had never intended to let any of them survive, he needed to gather as much data as he could before moving to the final phase. The last experiments on the hybrids had given him a lot of insights on the procedure and made him completely used to it. He had managed to perfect the procedure, Noah was now able to create hybrids with a rank 3 body without any chance of failure. Also, he was certain that the hybrids kept the capabilities of both humans and magical beasts, their centers of power didn''t conflict in any way. There were some issues with particular beasts and some troublesome body parts like wings and tails. Noah wanted the hybrid to have a human body without any mutation of the sort, meaning that wings and similar didn''t have a place on it. The issues were solved by simply merging those parts with the skin, muscles, and bones of the human, it was pointless to create something stronger than both humans and magical beast if then it kept some weak spots that hadn''t been fused. As for why he wanted for the hybrids to maintain the shape of a human, it was due to both psychological and physical factors. The psychology of the hybrid would be heavily affected if its body was to change appearance all of sudden and it would be harder to have human thoughts if it saw itself as a monster. Also, the body of the hybrid would suffer from some sort of rejection since most of its body would be created by the fusion of a human and a magical beast while its wings, or similar troublesome body parts, would just belong to the magical beasts'' world. Because of that, Noah had deduced that the procedure was only possible if the hybrids maintained a human''s shape. Another discovery was that, no matter how he tried, a hybrid couldn''t be fused anymore with other magical beasts, one human and one magical beast seemed the limit that a single body could contain. Wary gazes fell on Noah as he returned to his mansion to prepare for the next and last phase of the experimentations, the cultivators from the Hive still bowed at his passage but they immediately whispered between themselves after he was gone. Yet, Noah was a rank 4 mage, he could hear all the voices that filled the encampment. ''I guess I''m no different from the Mad doctor now, it seems that I really can''t walk on the orthodox path.'' Noah thought as he ignored the whispers of his fellow cultivators and entered his mansion. His inscribed notebook appeared in his hands and his consciousness went on the sky where Elder Ian was. What he needed now were slaves with a rank 4 body and rank 4 magical beasts, those weren''t resources that he could ask lightly, he needed to personally contact the Coral archipelago. Chapter 469: 469. Issue ''For the procedure to succeed, the human and the magical beast must have the same aptitude, gender, and cultivation level. Also, the personality of the human and the behavior of the species of the magical beast must match or rejections would appear while fusing the internal organs.'' Noah summarized all the data that he had gathered during his experimentations in his mind as he prepared his requests for the archipelago. ''The hybrid forged in this way can''t have body parts originating only from one of the two species, everything must be fused to obtain a harmonized body with the shape of a human. Also, one body can only contain one human and one magical beast, the hybrid can''t be further empowered in any way.'' Those details were sorted inside his mind, the data came from the experiments that he had performed after the creation of his first hybrid. ''A hybrid would maintain the best capabilities of both worlds, meaning that it can have a body slightly more powerful than a magical beast while keeping a dantian and a mental sphere. Also, depending on the magical beast used in the Elemental forging method, the aptitude of the hybrid can benefit from the fusion, meaning that attacks related to its element will obtain some benefits. The only downside is the conflicting mental state of the hybrid, something that should be avoidable with a strong mental sphere or a creature more fitting for the human.'' One hundred and fifty slaves with a rank 3 body, almost two hundred rank 3 magical beasts, and liquid "Breath" of the third rank of various elements, those were the resources that Noah had expended to reach his current level of expertise in the procedure. All the slaves and the magical beasts had died during the experiments but Noah could now claim to have the confidence in beginning the last part of the experimentation: Fusing a rank 4 magical beast and a cultivator with a rank 4 body! Noah knew that the reason behind his fast progress in the creation of his body-nourishing method was mostly due to the Divine deduction technique, his mind was extremely powerful now that he was a rank 4 mage but the technique obtained by Divine Demon was able to further improve its capabilities. Noah didn''t dare to imagine how long it would have taken to obtain the same results without that powerful technique, he guessed that he would have needed at least three times those resources to achieve the same. However, there was a problem that he didn''t encounter while experimenting with cultivators with a rank 3 body and that he knew he would find when he moved on those with a rank 4 body. The body of a cultivator would be almost entirely reconstructed by the "Breath" during the Pain Tribulation, meaning that it would carry traces of Heaven and Earth''s will. That will would surely oppose the fusion, the black clouds that had appeared in the sky every time a hybrid was created made Noah sure that the procedure won''t be smooth with humans with such a body. Magical beasts were different, they underwent the Pain Tribulation during their breakthrough to the fourth rank but the "Breath" used to reconstruct the body had been previously stored through their training method, it could be said that, differently from humans, their body wasn''t a type of reward. Also, the body of the magical beasts would be liquefied under the influence of Noah''s "Breath", meaning that any trace of Heaven and Earth''s will that still remained inside it would be suppressed and destroyed by Noah''s will. The issue was then limited to the human side. ''I have a few ideas on how to deal with Heaven and Earth''s will but I need to test them before undergoing the procedure myself.'' Noah thought as he contacted the slave trader and set up a meeting after expressing his requirements, he knew that the purchase at that time won''t be cheap. He was spending those days inside his mansion training with the fifth Kesier rune and deducing with the Divine deduction technique, it was normal for him to have already thought of some ways to solve the issue. The first one was to forcibly remove the parts of the rank 4 body that had been affected by Heaven and Earth''s will. That approach would maim the cultivator and endanger its life but it would prevent any conflict from happening during the fusion. Yet, it would also remove any capability that the body had, almost bringing its power back to the third rank. Also, those missing parts would eventually lead to a weaker hybrid once the fusion was completed which was something that Noah wanted to avoid. The other approach would see Noah forging the human body before attempting to fuse it with the magical beast. The procedure would then have two rounds of forging, meaning that there would be a higher failure rate and that the final power of the hybrid could be affected. Both approaches didn''t seem ideal but Noah had to actively test them before finding new inspirations, there was a limit to how much he could deduce without reliable data. The day of the meeting arrived and Noah negotiated with the same slave trader the purchase of cultivators with a rank 4 body at the peak of the lower tier. The value of those slaves was far higher than the others since they had a center of power in the heroic ranks, Noah saw three of his millions vanish to purchase only twenty cultivators. Yet, Credits had never mattered to Noah, he was only interested in what they were able to buy. After returning to the encampment, Noah led the slaves to his underground structure and questioned them about their personality. When their profile was completed, Noah requested a series of rank 4 magical beasts that matched their personality. Rank 4 creatures weren''t easy to capture alive, even some rank 4 cultivator would find that task difficult. Luckily for Noah though, he only needed beasts at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank, he was trying to reproduce conditions that were similar to his situation, the next step to his experiments would be his fusion after all, it was time to tune the procedure around his level. Also, Chasing Demon had captured a lot of magical beasts while he set the copying technique all over the archipelago so the Hive was quite experienced with that practice. It took almost two weeks but, in the end, twenty caged magical beasts were teleported in the encampment in Efrana nation, together with the liquid "Breath" requested by Noah. Chapter 470: 470. First will Problems appeared even before that Noah could start experimenting. Rank 4 magical beasts were powerful, Noah couldn''t casually kill them as he did with those in the third rank. It took a bit of thinking to find the method that would leave their bodies as intact as possible. The Mental tremor spell was simply too strong now that Noah had a rank 4 sea of consciousness, his mind could affect the material world, the shockwave shot from his eyes would just reduce the beasts'' brain into a pulp. Noah had to find a subtler method to kill them, something that wouldn''t waste that precious material. In the end, he decided to use the Death area spell and the Ghostly claws spell. Both spells had been empowered after Noah triumphed in the Earth Tribulation, those that once worked as supportive attacks now were threatening tools in Noah''s hands. The Death area would weaken the body of a beast to its utmost while the ethereal claws would attack the weak spots inside its body, all those small injuries would eventually cause the death of the creature due to its weakened state. That process was long but left the body of the beast virtually intact, Noah didn''t mind that effort as long as he obtained what he needed. Then, there was an issue with the power of the magical beasts. Noah was experimenting with rank 4 creatures, their bodies were far stronger than what he was used to even if they were only at the peak of the lower tier, he had to become used to that stronger material before he could express his mastery in the procedure. A rank 4 mental sphere wasn''t only a number though. Noah wasted only two magical beasts before he felt confident in resuming forging hybrids, a request to refill those two missing spots was sent to the archipelago as soon as he decided to experiment again. At last, what he had expected to happen, happened. The fusion between a cultivator with a rank 4 body and a rank 4 magical beast failed since the very start, the skin of the slave rejected the external material as soon as it came in contact with it. Also, when Noah tried to force the fusion, the skin of the cultivator would directly explode or self-destruct rather than allow the combination with a magical beast. The will of Heaven and Earth was clearly against the birth of a hybrid, it would rather destroy the body in which it was contained than see it turn into an abomination. Noah had wisely chosen to take it slowly because he had predicted such an event, that approach allowed him to stop the fusion in time and to save the slave from certain death, leaving it only in an injured state. Yet, the problem remained and he could only keep testing to find a solution. The two methods that he had hypothesized were only raw theories that would produce weaker hybrids, they would still be at least as strong as magical beasts but Noah didn''t want to settle for that before he had tried everything, he was planning to create a nourishing method that would accompany him through the entirety of his cultivation journey after all. Also, those methods increased the failure rate of the fusion, they weren''t reliable solutions. ''It''s an issue created by a will, it''s obvious that only a will can solve it. Yet, this will only make the procedure harder to perform.'' Noah sighed as he looked at the chained woman that was resting to heal her injuries. She was the first slave with a rank 4 body that Noah had chosen for his experiments, her skin and muscles had suffered a heavy damage due to the self-destructive mechanism of Heaven and Earth''s will. ''If I completely remove the will with my consciousness, the laws that make her body function will stop working, meaning that she won''t survive unless the fusion is completed.'' Noah continued to think. His idea was to use a strong will to remove that inside the slave''s body. However, since a rank 4 body was mostly composed of "Breath" carrying Heaven and Earth''s will, Noah would be actively affecting the laws inside the matter. Without the laws dictating how the matter should work, the body would just fall apart, meaning that the part affected by Heaven and Earth''s will would simply stop working. ''All these problems only because I have a rank 4 body, I guess there is nothing I can do about it.'' Noah cursed in his mind. Fusing bodies in the fourth rank was simply too troublesome, there doesn''t seem to be a way to make the procedure safe. ''Risking my life to become stronger, this doesn''t seem to change no matter how my power grows.'' Ultimately, Noah gave up on searching for other solutions and focused on creating a will able to deal with Heaven and Earth. His mind reviewed the events of his Earth Tribulation, Earth''s gaze full of contempt appeared when he closed his eyes. Then, Earth''s face morphed, it transformed into Rhys appearance but the same gaze remained, Noah felt as if he was just an ant in their eyes. Everything had started because he was so worthless that Heaven and Earth couldn''t even bother to dismantle his soul, Rhys acted so freely because Noah wasn''t even worthy of being considered. The feeling of being just a puppet moved by strings that he couldn''t break enveloped him, Noah felt powerless, it was as if something stronger than him affected his fate. Yet, a bright fire burned inside him which allowed him to endure all those hardships. That fire represented his endless ambition which fueled many other emotions that ultimately made Noah''s personality. One of those emotions was his hatred. Noah''s hatred was a dark fire ready to burn everything that it touched, it was the sum of the emotions that he felt toward anyone that tried to control or manipulate him. Inside his mental sphere, a figure rose from the sea. The figure had Noah''s aspect but it was black and its surface undulated as if it was made of fiery flames. Also, a destructive aura was radiated by the figure, the mental energy that Noah had gathered for its creation carried only his most negative and destructive emotions. The figure expressed Noah''s hatred and it was his first will. Chapter 471: 471. Harmony Rank 4 mages had a mental energy that could affect the material world. Also, they were able to create wills that carried part of their thoughts. Eccentric Thunder, Divine Demon, Noah had met the wills of those powerful cultivators but he had never been able to create one of his own. Yet, after being in the fourth rank of the sea of consciousness for a few months, he had managed to do it. Noah''s black figure was formed by the condensed thoughts that carried his hatred toward anyone and anything that tried to control and exploit him. Rhys, the Royals, Heaven and Earth, the hatred that targeted them was condensed in a form made of mental energy that Noah could use for his needs. Of course, Noah was still far away from creating a will that could think, he couldn''t be compared to Eccentric Thunder or Divine Demon after all. ''This should be enough.'' Noah thought as he pressed a finger on his forehead and slowly detached it in a pulling motion. Noah''s black figure was pulled by his finger and appeared in the material world, it was only the size of a man''s fist and it floated in the air but its eyes quickly went on Noah''s body. The figure analyzed Noah''s body with a gaze full of hatred, it seemed ready to pounce him but Noah''s words stopped its tracks. "Not me, not yet." Noah spoke while pointing at the woman chained on the wall. His will turned its head to the slave and revealed a menacing smile before diving directly into her body. The slave shivered, she was awakened by the changes happening inside her body but she couldn''t understand what was going on. It was as if an external force was devouring something inside her without causing her any pain, actually, she felt even lighter as time passed. Noah analyzed the work of his will, part of it was consumed every time a piece of Heaven and Earth''s will was destroyed. Yet, the "Breath" inside her body that was left without a will soon stopped working properly, Noah could see how her tissues began to die after his will swept them. ''Almost ninety percent of the rank 4 body of a cultivator is reconstructed after the Pain Tribulation but my will was only able to clean seventy percent of it. Well, I can still use her to practice.'' Noah thought after his will inside the slave''s body was depleted, it didn''t manage to complete its task since a bit of Heaven and Earth''s will still remained inside the woman but Noah didn''t expect much from his first attempt. His hands quickly went on the woman and the magical beast''s corpse next to her, he was going to perform the fusion even if he was sure that it would fail, he couldn''t just waste her without gathering any experience. The remaining skin of the beast liquefied and fused with the wounded one of the slave, there was no rejection that time, the two beings were forged together as if they were beings in the third ranks. ''The laws contained in the body of the beast are enough to stabilize the forged body!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he saw that the skin of the woman stopped dying after it was fused with that of the beast. He was worried that, by removing Heaven and Earth''s will from the body of the slave, he would need to create something in its place. Yet, the laws contained in the body of the beast would simply take its place after the fusion, making the dying tissues work again. The bits of Heaven and Earth''s will inside the beast''s body were removed while Noah liquefied it through his refined "Breath", making it the perfect glue that kept the slave''s body working. Noah hurried the fusion as much as he could, he needed to fuse the dying tissues of the woman before they fell apart, something that would unavoidably lead to a failure in the procedure. Thanks to his training and mastery, Noah succeeded in fusing the dying tissues with the magical beast, even if he had to leave some unstable spots. However, he then met the parts of her body that his will wasn''t able to clean and the self-destruction happened again. The slave died at that point, there was nothing that Noah could have done to prevent it. Yet, he now knew that he had found the right method, he had just to master it! ''I need to create a stronger will and I need to harmonize the capabilities of the rank 4 bodies so that the hybrid won''t suffer from rejections. Once I''ve completed these steps, it would be my turn.'' Noah thought as he quickly cleaned the area and went to pick another slave, his gaze showed the eagerness that he felt as he approached the end of his experiments. Humans with a rank 4 body had special characteristics depending on their body-nourishing method. Noah had a black membrane around his heart which contained liquid "Breath" that he could inject in his circulatory system, that feature was specific for the Yin body method in which he had trained. Some of the slaves had similar features, rank 4 body-nourishing methods increased in value if they added those special qualities to a cultivator, it was normal for the slaves to have chosen to train in them if they had the chance. Yet, they were a hindrance toward the creation of a harmonious hybrid, they were the opposite of the tails and wings of the magical beasts, something that belonged only to the human world. Noah didn''t want to remove those abilities from the slaves before fusing them with a magical beast, he wanted for the hybrids to keep them, he was striving for perfection after all. The only way to succeed though was through his experiments. In less than a month, the other nineteen slaves died and Noah was forced to purchase more of them, as well as requesting more magical beasts from the Coral archipelago. Chapter 472: 472. Archives Noah continued his experiments in his underground facility which soon began to be sieged again by a barrage of bolts of lightning launched by the black clouds in the sky. Elder Ian continuously destroyed them but more clouds gathered in less than half a day, even he started to wonder about what kind of act was angering Heaven so much. Yet, Noah spoke to him only when he needed more resources, he had bought almost one hundred slaves with a rank 4 body and requested for the same number of rank 4 creatures by then. That high number of purchases eventually caught the attention of the stronger forces in the area, it didn''t take much before the Empire discovered the encampment that the Hive had set. Cultivators with a rank 4 body usually had a rank 2 dantian, it was normal for the big nations to keep track of those trades, especially when they happened in their area of influence. Once that information reached one big nation, it quickly spread through the entirety of the continent. However, none of the big nations acted, they had their own problems and attacking an encampment in a neutral nation wouldn''t give them any benefits. On the other hand, all the nations and cultivators looking for a way out of the control of the three big nations saw the encampment as a sign of hope, some of them even started to make preparations to migrate there. Of course, the Hive had set other encampments throughout the continent but none of them was as eye-catching as the one in Efrana nation. The reason behind such visibility was Noah and his purchases. One day though, the black clouds didn''t form again after Elder Ian destroyed them. Silence reigned in that area inside the mystical fog, it seemed as if everything happening inside the underground structure had suddenly stopped. Noah was sitting in the experimentation area, some traces of the corrosive black smoke still lingered in the air before they dispersed in the air. He was alone, the entirety of his facility was empty, no traces of slaves or magical beasts could be found and even the wall in front of him didn''t have anyone chained on it. Normally, once emptied his resources, Noah would request more of them but that didn''t happen. He sat still with his eyes closed, it seemed that his mind was engrossed in something so important that he didn''t care about planning his next move. ''How would I describe myself?'' Noah thought. No one could answer that question for him, no one had never become close to him enough to understand the depths of his personality. ''I''m ambitious but that''s a given, I need to focus on the small nuances that define myself.'' His ambition was something that defined his entire self but that also gave birth to all his different traits. ''I''m cold and aloof, arrogant, selfish, cynical, overbearing, and ruthless, this should cover what can be considered as bad traits. Yet, many magical beasts behave in those ways.'' Noah knew himself deeply, the Elemental forging method had forced him to understand what drove his life, it was normal for him to have a clear understanding of himself. ''I''m hardworking to the point of sacrificing myself without minding it too much, I''m focused and determined, and I''m strong.'' Those thoughts concerned what he considered his good sides but Noah didn''t stop his brainstorming there. ''I have been a lone cultivator, a prisoner, a criminal, a soldier. I''m a bastard that has managed to rise to power but that it''s still unable to exact its vengeance. I''m something that wasn''t supposed to exist.'' His analysis even concerned his past, the events that had turned a twenty years old transmigrator with no care for life into a cultivator ready to sacrifice everything to obtain more power. ''My personality definitely resembles a snake-type magical beast but I don''t want to settle for something that isn''t the best. It seems that I need to do some research.'' Noah opened his eyes after his thoughts reached that point. He knew magical beasts very well, it was his field of specialization after all. That''s why he knew that his personality wasn''t fit for a dragon, those creatures were prideful and shining, they didn''t match Noah''s uncaring and reserved attitude at all. Also, almost all the magical beasts would form packs to increase their power, hierarchy was something deeply instilled in their nature. Noah, instead, was a loner and he was one due to his choices, that aspect of him didn''t seem to find a match in the world of the magical beasts. A message was sent to Elder Ian who then redirected it to the Coral archipelago. Noah''s request that time concerned the archives of the Hive and even specific researches that had to be purchased in other countries. For the first time after graduating from the academy, Noah felt the need to study magical beasts more deeply. A pile of books and scrolls were soon sent to Noah''s underground structure. The topics listed on their pages focused on dragon-types and snake-types magical beasts which were Noah''s main target, he hoped to find a species that had the characteristics that he was interested in, no matter how rare it was. The amount of information that the Hive could gain access to was immense, more and more books were sent to Noah''s underground facility as he continued to be immersed in his studies. The world was vast, filled with strange and peculiar creatures, Noah learned names of magical beasts that existed only in legends but which existence had never been confirmed. Then, he found something that seemed to perfectly fit him. ''Cursed dragon, a wingless species of dragon-type magical beasts of the darkness element. It is said that this particular species of dragons has been punished by the world because its flames surpassed the boundaries set by Heaven and Earth, the latter removed its wings and reduced its reproductive capacity, bringing balance among the strongest kind of magical beasts. Cursed dragons couldn''t compete with other species of dragons after having lost the ability to fly and were exiled in the depths of the Granite Abyss. It is unclear if this species is still alive since its specimens have not been seen for many years.'' Chapter 473: 473. Granite Abyss Mutations, the passage of time, or even the simple evolution process filled the world with unusual and rare species of magical beasts. Nothing stood still, magical beasts evolved and changed as time passed, some species were extinct while others seemed to appear out of nowhere. Noah read that small piece of information about the Cursed dragons and knew that he had found his target but he still needed to learn more about it. Another request was sent to the archipelago, Noah demanded any sort of information about Cursed dragons and specified that he was ready to purchase it with his Credits if needed. The Hive was put in a troublesome situation, magical beasts weren''t its area of specialization and, even if it was a powerful organization, their archives couldn''t compare to those of the three big nations. Yet, that hindrance didn''t stop it from obtaining more information. The Coral archipelago had sealed peaceful agreements with the three big nations, negotiations could be set quite easily. Noah had to wait a few weeks and spend another million but, in the end, another series of small books and old scrolls were sent to his underground structure. ''The Utra nation surely is far ahead in these fields compared to the Shandal Empire and the Papral nation.'' Noah thought as he began to study those reports. Those pieces of information all came from the Utra nation, the Elbas family had pushed the studies of anything related to the "Breath" toward new horizons, the academy was its pride and most important accomplishment. In that safe environment, the best minds of the entire nation could research and create wonders but, to do so, they needed a solid foundation that covered all the areas concerning the cultivation journey. That''s why the Royals held many forgotten data and unorthodox researches in their archives, they were needed to push the discoveries of the researchers of the academy. ''Cursed dragons were said to have the peculiar ability to divert part of the "Breath" normally used for their growth toward the strengthening of their flames.'' ''Millenia ago, a species of dragons had flames so strong that Heaven and Earth were forced to act to restore balance among their kind. Such species was then maimed and its original name was forgotten, we simply call them "Cursed" because of their history.'' ''The Granite abyss is a pale brown canyon where many species of dragons live. The food chain is quite strict, the creatures near to its surface are the strongest while its depths hide the weaker ones. Yet, it is said that a particular kind of wingless dragons rules its darkest parts.'' ''Cursed dragons have developed an indifferent behavior once lost most of their reproductive capacity, their instincts had probably told them that there was no point in forming packs when their reproduction was almost impossible.'' Noah read all those pieces of information and sorted them inside his mind. Many reports didn''t strictly mention the Cursed dragons but only hinted about them. Also, many scrolls only contained hypothesis that hadn''t been verified, Noah was searching for a species that had disappeared from the surface of the world for a long time after all. ''Dragons with a grudge with Heaven and Earth, they saw their incredible capabilities being suppressed by a stronger power. They don''t form packs, they hide from the fauna on the surface. Defeated, exiled, maimed¡­ I''ve made my mind.'' Noah stored all the scrolls and books in his space-ring and stood up, he couldn''t wait anymore, he had been able to contain his eagerness while he tuned the procedure but, now that everything was ready, he couldn''t waste even a second. He had seen the power held by the hybrids with a rank 4 body, he had even feared that some of them would have been able to break free from their chains at some point. It must be said that the enslaving chains were a technology limited to the Empire, those inscribed items were specifically created for each slave to increase their binding power, rumors said that one of their core materials was the blood of the cultivator that they restricted, breaking them wasn''t an easy task at all. That discovery made Noah even more determined in pursuing that path, his resolution increased depending on the power that he was chasing. ''Now, where is this Granite Abyss?'' . . . The Granite Abyss was a danger zone near the mountain chain that divided the areas of influence of the Utra nation and the Shandal Empire. It was located on the eastern side of the continent but not near the coastline, a thick forest filled its surface and hid the long cavity that was the entrance to the canyon, many inattentive beasts or cultivators would just fall in it if they didn''t pay attention to their steps. Noah stood at the edge of the canyon, the trees behind him hid the magical beasts that didn''t dare to near that place while he gazed at the depths of the gorge. The gap on the ground was long but narrow, the sunlight could only illuminate a few hundred meters of the gorge, leaving its depths in constant darkness. Roars and occasional lights could be sensed coming from the profundities of the Granite Abyss, Noah''s eyes weren''t able to see their sources but he could clearly hear them due to his sea of consciousness. A talisman was held tightly in Noah''s hand, its purple light was hidden inside Noah''s grasp. Noah was alone as he made his mind one last time. ''It seems that the Hive is really investing in me, Chasing Demon has personally created this inscribed item when he heard that I had to reach this place.'' Noah thought as he gazed the talisman in his hand before storing it inside his ring. Due to the peculiar location of the Granite Abyss, the Hive was unable to send an elder to investigate the existence of the Cursed dragons and to capture a specimen at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank. That place was inside the area of influence of the Empire after all, a heroic cultivator from another nation couldn''t randomly appear there even if it was only a danger zone. Yet, Noah couldn''t give up on his body-nourishing method just because of politics and decided to make the journey alone. Chapter 474: 474. Nests The journey to arrive at the Granite Abyss had been quite troublesome. Efrana nation was in the opposite part of the continent, Noah had to use the teleportation matrix inside his mansion to return to the Coral archipelago and then use another matrix there to reach the closest encampment to his destination. The Hive had set a total of four encampments throughout the continent, three of them were in the area of influence of the Empire while one of them was in the Papral nation. It had been impossible for the Hive to pass unnoticed in the area of influence of the Utra nation, the Elbas family was too afraid that the information about the Royal Inheritance would reach enemy forces now that Noah had a foothold so the western coastline and the city of Slyfall had been put under strict surveillance. Then, Noah had to move on foot alongside the mountain chain that divided the two big nations to lower his chances of being discovered and leave its perimeter only when he neared the forest around the Granite Abyss. Noah''s experiments had exposed the encampment in Efrana nation but the other three were still hidden, the Hive couldn''t use its cultivators to escort him due to the risk of revealing itself. Also, he couldn''t even bring his mansion with him, the priority of the Hive was to recruit cultivators and the encampment in Efrana nation would remain in place only for a short time since it had been exposed, the archipelago had sealed peaceful relationships with the three big nation but it couldn''t steal their resources out in the open, not for too long at least. Yet, leaving his mansion behind didn''t mean that Noah had been left barehanded. Noah had the flags filled with protective runes with him, Elder Iris had personally filled them with her "Breath" so that he could simply lay them on the ground and they would activate. Also, there was the talisman created by Chasing Demon. He had met Chasing Demon again when he returned to the archipelago, he didn''t explain the details behind his experiments but he had said that the journey concerned the creation of his technique. Chasing Demon didn''t hesitate to make the necessary preparations after he heard that and he created the talisman while giving him unclear explanations to its functions. ''He only said to break it if I''m about to die, I wonder what it does.'' Noah thought as a pair of wings spread behind his back and he jumped off the cliff, flying toward the depths of the Granite Abyss. His consciousness enveloped his descending figure, the layers of mental energy had kept him hidden from the magical beasts during his voyage, allowing him to reach his destination without being attacked by those creatures. Noah intended to do the same as he explored the Abyss but he soon noticed that something was off about that place. ''It''s strange, this darkness is unnatural.'' The sunlight could only illuminate the initial part of the canyon but Noah had a rank 4 body and a rank 4 mental sphere, seeing in the darkness wasn''t a problem for someone with those centers of power. Yet, as he descended in the darkness, he realized that his sight was restricted to a distance of a few dozens of meters. ''It''s as if any trace of light has been forcibly removed¡­'' Noah thought as he slowed his descent. Being unable to rely on his eyes wasn''t really a problem, his mind was far better on that field. However, Noah couldn''t help but wonder about the cause behind such a peculiar phenomenon. His thoughts were soon interrupted though since a series of presences began to near and encircle him. ''It seems that, in this narrow environment, my mental energy isn''t enough to hide my presence. Well, maybe they are simply too used to living in the darkness.'' Noah stopped his descent when he felt that those presences continued to near him, his mind could already identify their species and their rank. ''Five rank 4 Abyssal dragons, four in the lower tier and one in the middle tier. I guess it''s time to see how strong I am right now.'' A cold aura surrounded Noah as his consciousness fixed itself on the five dragons that had encircled him. Then, part of his mental energy and "Breath" was depleted and a barrage of ethereal claws appeared in the air around him. The Ghostly claws spell began to show its real power now that Noah had become a rank 4 mage, more than three hundred claws materialized around him and shot toward the five huge figures. The dragons couldn''t even react, the ethereal claws crossed their scales and reached for their organs in less than a second, their hearts directly exploded under the assault of Noah''s spell. Dying cries filled the gorge as the wings of the Abyssal dragons stopped their motions and their corpses fell lifelessly in the darkness below them. Five magical beasts in the fourth rank couldn''t even make Noah wield his sabers, his power was half-way toward that of a complete heroic cultivator by then, the spells that used mostly mental energy were his most powerful weapon. The Granite Abyss seemed to take life when the five corpses fell, dragons came out of their nests to try to seize the falling magical beasts. Tongues of flames, roars, and battle cries filled the gorge as more and more dragons appeared and began to fight for the five dead creatures. Noah studied the scene for a short time before he decided to resume his descent. He didn''t care about those dragons, his target was somewhere at the bottom of the canyon if the reports were right and if that species had managed to survive until that day. Also, there were more than one hundred dragons in the fourth rank engaged in battle, Noah didn''t want to go all out to clear the passage, he would rather sneak past them while they were busy fighting. Heilong''s wings flapped behind his back as he crossed the crowd of powerful beasts fighting each other, some dragons would notice and attack him as he descended but Noah simply released another series of ethereal claws to take care of those foolish creatures. Just like that, Noah crossed the battlefield and flew deeper into the darkness, his mind was already able to find traces of the bottom of the Granite Abyss. Chapter 475: 475. White ligh Noah encountered more dragons as he dove deeper into the Granite Abyss. They were mostly rank 4 creatures with a few beasts in the third rank appearing after he reached a certain depth, taking care of them wasn''t a problem. Yet, Noah had a wary expression as he continued to descend, there was something completely off about that environment. It wasn''t something that concerned the species of beasts in there, Abyssal dragons, Void dragons, Black dragons, all those species were described in the reports about the Granite Abyss that he had studied before going there. What didn''t make sense was the light. It wasn''t just the illumination inside the gorge, the darkness that filled that place was unnatural, it was able to affect Noah''s eyes which was something extremely strange. Even the tongues of flames released by the dragons that Noah had met along his way seemed paler, it was as if they missed part of their color. Noah didn''t think too much about that, the world he lived in was strange, the "Breath" had given birth to creatures and environments with capabilities that defied logic, he couldn''t find an explanation to everything. Also, he had a target, he didn''t come there to explore the canyon. Yet, he couldn''t help but pay more attention to his surroundings, his consciousness expanded till its limit to give Noah a clear understanding of what was around him. Eventually, he sensed that the bottom was right below him and he didn''t hesitate to land on it. Heilong''s wings folded themselves behind his back but remained out in the open, Noah wanted to be ready for any situation in that strange place. The Granite Abyss was narrow but long, its sides were filled with cavities of various width that were used by the many dragons as nests, Noah guessed that those cavities had been created by the same dragons that inhabited them. Yet, the rocky walls at the bottom where almost smooth, no dents or holes could be found on their surface, it was as if something had flattened them. ''Not even fifty meters large, I wonder if this species of dragons really lives in this narrow place.'' Noah thought as he investigated the area. The Granite Abyss stretched for many kilometers but its width wasn''t that great, especially at its bottom. ''I wonder why dragons would choose this place as their nest¡­'' Noah wondered as he began to walk forward, the path behind him continued only for a few hundred meters according to the cavity on the surface, he would just explore it later if he didn''t find anything on the other side. The bottom of the canyon seemed deserted but the peculiarity of that place was enhanced at its deepest point, Noah couldn''t see anything at all, it was as if he had gone completely blind. He walked for a few hundred meters without encountering any changes, everything around him was silent, the only thing that could be heard was the cries of the dragons in the cavities above him. Then, a sudden danger was sensed by his consciousness. Noah was a rank 4 mage, there were a few things that could make him fear for his life in a normal danger zone. However, his mental sphere wasn''t lying to him, Noah knew that he had to avoid what was coming for him at all cost. The danger closed in at an incredible speed, Noah saw a white light on the road in front of him becoming closer and closer. The bottom of the canyon lit up, Noah was about to be engulfed by the white light when his figure became ethereal. A wave of pain filled his body when the light submerged him and filled the area where he had come from. Noah had used the Ethereal form spell while being a rank 4 mage, there was almost nothing in that rank that could have hurt him through his spell. ''Rank 5!'' Noah immediately understood the power of the creature that had launched the attack, he quickly decided that the Granite Abyss was too dangerous and that he needed to escape. The wave of light vanished, the attack had stopped and Noah returned material a few seconds after that, he spat a mouthful of blood as black veins covered his skin and Heilong''s wings unfolded behind his back, ready to take him out of that place. Yet, right before he activated his martial art and shot in the air, the cries of the dragons above him resounded in unison. Noah was forced to stop his actions, the wave of light released by the rank 5 creature still lingered in the environment, giving him the ability to see what was happening above him. All the dragons in the upper parts of the canyon were peeking from their cavities and looking somewhere at the bottom of the gorge. Then, tongues of flames shot from them and landed somewhere at a few kilometers in front of Noah. The light radiated by the flames made Noah able to clearly see the scene, he saw how the attacks of the dragons landed on a huge figure in the distance. The figure was fifteen meters long and stood still on its four huge legs, the barrage of flames didn''t seem able to hurt it but it was enough to keep it locked in its position. Black scales covered its body which seemed to affect the light radiated by the flames that landed on them, softening their colors as they neared them. The huge reptilian head of the creature was lowered as it endured the attacks, Noah''s eyes went on its back where he noticed the absence of wings. The rank 5 creature resembled a dragon in every aspect except for the absence of wings. White flames burned on the surface of the walls next to Noah, he realized in that moment of peace that the wave of light that had engulfed him was, in fact, fire! Also, Noah could sense that "Breath" of the darkness element fueled those white flames, that was the last detail that he needed to confirm the idea that had formed in his mind when he saw the wingless reptile. ''Rank 5 Cursed dragon!'' Chapter 476: 476. Prey Noah seemed petrified as he stared at the mighty beast being suppressed by the barrage of flames of the dragons in the upper part of the Granite Abyss. The attacks of more than one hundred rank 4 creatures kept the Cursed dragon still, unable to move and react. Noah focused on the scene while the liquid "Breath" in his circulatory system healed the internal injuries caused by the white flames of the dragon, he began to understand the situation as he analyzed what was happening in front of him. ''The Cursed dragon is malnourished and old, it can''t express its full power. Also, it can''t fly, the other dragons can simply attack it from time to time until it ultimately dies.'' Noah could finally understand why that many powerful dragons had chosen to set their nests there. A rank 5 magical beast was a being that contained an unimaginable amount of "Breath", even a dying specimen in that rank would be the most desired meal of any rank 4 creature. ''They are waiting for the moment when it dies, I bet this place will fall into chaos once that happens.'' Noah could clearly imagine the scenes following the rank 5 dragon''s death. The creatures in the upper parts of the canyon would engage in a fierce battle for the chance to eat its corpse, the winner would see its power increase by many levels after all. The barrage of flames continued for a while and it stopped only when the rank 5 dragon fell on the ground, exhausted by the incessant attacks. The Cursed dragon seemed to fall in some sort of slumber when it fell, the other dragons stopped releasing flames only when the first snore resounded in the area. Then, a peculiar thing happened. The light that still lingered in the area dimmed as if absorbed by something. It didn''t happen immediately, Noah saw his vision grew darker every time the Cursed dragon breathed. ''The records said that Cursed dragons could use part of the absorbed "Breath" to increase the power of their flames, I didn''t expect it to be the "Breath" contained in the light.'' Noah thought as his vision turned completely dark. A place where not even cultivators with a rank 4 body could see and white flames, it didn''t take even an instant for Noah to make that connection. ''A creature of the darkness element that uses light to empower its flames, how amazing this species was when it had wings?'' Noah was amazed. Magical beasts could absorb "Breath" of any element but the ability of the Cursed dragons surpassed anything that he could imagine. After all, light was everywhere in the world, which meant that the growth of their flames virtually had no limits! ''Dammit, now I desire it even more.'' Noah cursed in his mind as he took a pill from his space-ring and directly ate it. The injuries suffered while he was in the ethereal form began to heal at a faster speed due to the effects of the pill, Noah could stop using the liquid "Breath" inside the membrane around his heart at that point. The ability of his body would have been enough to heal his injuries but Noah wanted to be ready to go all out! He had confirmed the existence of the Cursed dragons and he had been amazed by their powers, now he only needed to find a specimen that matched the rank of his body. ''I should confirm something first.'' Noah thought as Heilong''s wings flapped softly and lifted him in the air. Noah flew slowly, he didn''t want to make any unnecessary sound as he reached an area above the rank 5 creature. Then, he expanded his consciousness and analyzed the ground around it. ''The terrain in a one hundred meters area around it is completely burned, it seems that the dragons above don''t allow it to move even. Perfect!'' Noah had to analyze the ground before he could have any hope to find a rank 4 Cursed dragon. According to the status of the ground around the rank 5 creature, the dragons in the upper parts of the Granite Abyss seemed to suppress it every time it moved. They had reacted before when the beast attacked Noah and it seemed that they did the same whenever it moved. No other traces of burned terrain could be found outside that area, meaning that the dragon had been forced to stay in that position for a long time! The reason why Noah was so happy about that discovery was simple: If the dragon couldn''t move, then it couldn''t hunt! Since it couldn''t hunt, there was the chance that weaker creatures of its same species were still around at the bottom of the canyon! Noah didn''t waste time after that discovery, he didn''t know when the rank 5 dragon would wake up and launch another wave of those threatening white flames, he didn''t want to remain in that place for longer than necessary. He directly flew past the sleeping dragon while keeping his consciousness focused on the ground, he was almost certain that he wouldn''t find another creature as powerful as that one but he hoped that there would be at least some weaker than it. Soon, his eyes lit up when his consciousness sensed that other lifeforms were either sleeping or hiding in some cavities that had begun to appear. They were weak, only in the second or third rank, Noah couldn''t count more than twenty of them. Yet, they were all big wingless reptiles that seemed smaller versions of the rank 5 creature being kept still a few hundred meters behind. ''There must be at least one! I''d rather not feed a dragon in the third rank until it reaches the heroic ranks.'' Noah continued in his search until, eventually, he found what he was looking for. Two wingless dragons roared at each other as they came out of their cavities, it seemed that the events with the rank 5 creature had awakened them. Noah sensed their power, they were both in the fourth rank, one near the peak of the lower tier and one at the beginning of the middle tier, their scales were filled with dents and scars, it seemed that it wasn''t the first time that they fought. ''Why would it attack something stronger?'' Noah wondered before he understood the situation: The specimen near the peak of the lower tier was a male while the other was a female, the former was probably attacking it to force itself on the other. ''This place has driven you crazy enough.'' Noah thought as he dove toward the two dragons, hundred ethereal claws materialized around him and shot toward the middle tier specimen, killing it in an instant. There were less than thirty specimens left of the Cursed dragon species and Noah had just killed one of them! Then, Noah landed in front of the other rank 4 dragon while storing the one that he had just killed, he couldn''t help but wear a cold smile as he looked at his prey. Chapter 477: 477. Restoring Noah focused on the rank 4 dragon in the lower tier, his consciousness enveloped its body and thoroughly analyzed it. ''It''s wounded, malnourished, and its mental state isn''t exactly optimal. Also, its rank is a bit off from what I need, it seems that I need to adjust it a bit before killing it.'' Noah thought as the Cursed dragon angrily roared toward him, it seemed really disappointed to have lost the chance to satisfy its sexual urges. Yet, Noah''s focus was on the insides of his space-ring where the spirit automaton was preparing a series of potions and pills under Noah''s orders. ''First, let''s fix those scales.'' Noah''s eyes shone as the wings behind his back spread and a shockwave was released under his feet, the dragon pounced at him only to discover that he had completely disappeared. Then, the dragon felt a burning sensation coming from its back, a dense substance was being spread on its body which seemed to affect the state of its scales. The burning sensation came from the regenerative proprieties of its body which had been momentarily enhanced by the dense substance, the scales and the scars all over the body of the dragon began to heal at a fast pace, it took only a few minutes for it to be completely fixed. ''Now, malnourishment and rank.'' Noah thought as he floated in the air above the unaware dragon and analyzed its body. He couldn''t use the Cursed dragon for the fusion just yet, he needed to bring it to an optimal state before it could become a material that reached his standards. Noah dove toward the dragon, a pill was in his hands as he fixed his focus on the mouth of the creature. The dragon was confused, it was used to live in the darkness but even its sight was affected there, it could only understand Noah''s position due to his smell and presence which weren''t that reliable. That allowed Noah to suddenly appear in front of it and throw the pill directly inside its mouth, the pill immediately melted when it touched the saliva of the dragon, releasing many nourishing substances that were absorbed by its body. The dragon felt a surge of strength starting from its mouth and filling its body, its atrophied muscles began to swell under the effects of Noah''s pill, the dragon was slowly returning to its peak form! Noah knew that it would have been impossible to find a specimen that matched his standards even before he decided to explore the Granite Abyss, he considered himself lucky enough that the Cursed dragon species was still alive after all. That''s why he had sorted the necessary resources for the task before reaching the canyon, the knowledge of the spirit automaton of his ring had been of incredible help when he selected the drugs that would have had the best effects on magical beasts. Of course, Noah was using rank 4 drugs. It took a while for the dragon to reach its peak state, Noah had returned in his position above it while the body of the beast absorbed the nutrients. ''After its state is fixed, its mind should resume working properly.'' Noah thought as he waited for the dragon''s next move. The beast had its head lowered, Noah guessed that it was probably bathing in the feeling of returning to its peak after who knows how much time. Then, it abruptly raised its head and released a gray ray made of flames that aimed for Noah! Noah was a bit surprised by that sudden action but he soon became relieved. Heilong''s wings swung right before Noah turned ethereal and was enveloped by the gray flames, he didn''t feel any pain at that time which allowed him to focus solely on the nature of the attack. ''It seems that its flames aren''t at the same level as the rank 5 creature, there isn''t enough light for both of them. Yet, it has recovered its mental state at least.'' Noah thought as the attack ended and he returned material, interrupting his falling motion. The Cursed dragon had immediately attacked Noah as soon as its strength was restored, it seemed that its senses were now able to pinpoint his position. Yet, when it understood that its attack didn''t have any effect, it began to retreat, it had realized that its enemy was too strong. Noah dove again in its direction as he heaved a sigh of relief, the beast had recovered its survival instincts after its body had been restored. ''One leg should be enough.'' Noah evaluated as the huge leg of a rank 4 dragon at the peak of the middle tier appeared in his hands, he then threw it on the escaping dragon''s path before flying higher in the air. The Cursed dragon stopped its tracks when that appealing food appeared in front of it, it quickly analyzed its surrounding before seizing the leg with its fangs and retreating in its cavity. Then, Noah waited. His consciousness never left the insides of the cavity, he saw how the Cursed dragon ate the body parts that came from his stash of dragon''s corpses and absorbed the "Breath" that it contained. As that "Breath" was absorbed, the power of the dragon increased, reaching the peak of the lower tier. It was at that point that Noah landed on the bottom of the gorge and entered the cavity where his prey was eating. Part of the leg had yet to be eaten but the dragon couldn''t focus on it, its gaze went on the small intruder that was slowly walking toward it. ''Who knows for how long it has lived in this place¡­ Well, its species is done for anyway.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the cavity. It wasn''t even fifteen meters wide, the Cursed dragon could barely fit inside it. The dragon was about to roar at him but a sudden feeling of weakness enveloped its body as four black lines formed a rectangle around its figure. The Cursed dragon felt as if it was about to faint due to the effects of Noah''s spell but it couldn''t even move before a series of sharp claws stabbed specific spots inside its body. It had just recovered its strength and even reached the peak of the tier but it couldn''t do anything against the human that was walking toward it. It died quickly, Noah had become too used to kill rank 4 beasts with the Ghostly claws spell during his experiments, not even a drop of blood was spilled on the ground as he stored its corpse inside his space-ring. Chapter 478: 478. Death The spirit automaton automatically moved the corpse of the Cursed dragon inside the formation that stored magical beasts. Meanwhile, Noah exited the cavity and looked above him, toward the surface. His consciousness reached for the edges of the Granite Abyss and black flames enveloped him after he found a place where to teleport, he was back next to the forest one second later. ''My mental energy will refill shortly but my dantian needs a bit of time, I can dissect the female Cursed dragon in the meantime.'' Noah thought as he randomly chose a spot a bit away from the entrance of the canyon and ordered Heilong to dig a small cave. The Blood companion didn''t waste time, it came out in the open as soon as Noah undressed his upper clothes, his robe had two holes sewed on the back since it had been specifically made for Noah and his wings. The physical power of a rank 4 creature was incredible, a cave was quickly dug in the terrain and Noah retracted Heilong as he placed eight small flags on the ground to cover the area where his cave was. The runes on the flags lit up and covered the terrain delimited by them, a shield formed in less than a second, Noah nodded in satisfaction when he saw that he could finally obtain the body-nourishing method that he had worked so hard to create. ''After almost half a year, I''ve finally reached this point.'' Noah thought as he crossed the shield and entered the cave. He had experimented on so many humans and magical beasts, consumed an unimaginable amount of mental energy, and constantly used the Divine deduction technique only to reach that point. Yet, there was one last thing that he had to do. The body of the middle tier Cursed dragon was laid on the terrain of the cave, Noah quickly wielded a white saber and opened its corpse in two. He had to understand the most important parts of that almost extinct species of dragon, that part was vital to the success of the procedure. It didn''t take much though for Noah to find what he was looking for. Dragons were similar between each other, all those species that could emit flames mainly relied on two organs: Their lungs! Cursed dragons were the same, the female specimen that Noah was analyzing had two shining gray lungs, their color was similar to the flames of the lower tier specimen, they only seemed to be a bit whiter. ''It seems that it has absorbed more light than my prey. Well, I''m ready now.'' Noah thought as he sat on the ground to cultivate and stored the open corpse of the creature, "Breath" was absorbed and refined by his mind as he filled his dantian. There was no better meaning than his ambition for the "Breath" to utilize in the fusion, Noah only added a tinge of his hatred to improve the removal of Heaven and Earth''s will from the beast. Also, the negative thoughts carrying his hatred were condensed, a black figure identical to Noah soon rose from the sea inside his mental sphere. Then, Noah continued to cultivate until his dantian was full, his sea of consciousness refilled autonomously during that process. When everything was ready, Noah completely undressed and took out the corpse of the Cursed dragon at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank from his space-ring. He took a deep breath before laying himself on top of the corpse, he needed to maintain physical contact with the beast during the fusion, his hands would surely lose their grip once the pain started. Noah pressed a finger on his forehead and took out the will carrying his hatred, it was as big as his chest, he had improved a lot in the creation of wills from his first time. "It''s finally my time, go ahead." Noah spoke to his will, the latter dove inside his body and began to destroy every trace of Heaven and Earth''s will from his tissues, Noah felt himself becoming lighter as the process continued. ''Now the fusion.'' His will was consumed, Noah felt that his tissues were already beginning to die, there was no turning back at that point. The refined "Breath" inside his sea of consciousness went on the corpse of the dragon below him and began to liquefy its scaled skin, then, Noah controlled it to enter his body. A wave of pain filled the entirety of his body, Noah felt that external substance forcibly making its way inside his skin, modifying it and fusing with it. However, Noah was someone who had trained in the Forging of the Seven Hells method and who had survived the Pain Tribulation. Also, differently from the cultivators on whom he had practiced the procedure, he was a rank 4 mage, his control and endurance had long surpassed what the word human could include. Noah fought against time as he endured the fusion, more and more of his tissues died as he tried to speed up the process. The skin finished fusing soon, Heilong''s tattoo wasn''t affected since it wasn''t part of Noah''s body to begin with. The muscles fused shortly after, Noah endured the pain as his figure fell inside the crumbling corpse of the dragon. The bones fused, Noah felt his skeletal system cracking and reforming every time part of the bones of the magical beast liquefied and mixed with his. Then, it was time for the internal organs. The procedure had never been so smooth, Noah was using his body and his "Breath", he felt an innate sense of familiarity when handling materials of the darkness element. Almost all the organs fused, only his heart and lungs remained untouched by the fusion. Thunders began to resound outside of his cave but Noah couldn''t hear them, his everything was focused on those last steps. Noah was laying on top of the heart and lungs of the dragons but, soon, the heart melted and entered his body. The substance carrying his "Breath" reached for his heart and surrounded the black membrane around it. The membrane retracted due to the effects of the fusion, it mixed with Noah''s heart which then was modified by the substance coming from the beast, forming a sturdy and black heart. Then, the lungs of the dragons melted. Noah''s body touched the terrain as the last organs of the beasts entered his body and modified Noah''s last untouched tissues, a pair of gray lungs were formed due to the procedure. Thunders continued to crack in the area outside his cave, bolts of lightning continuously crashed on the shield created by the eight flags but were unable to break through it. Noah''s body began to stabilize, the will contained inside the body of the beast filled the empty spots left by Noah''s will. Noah felt his mind becoming dark, the harmonization was completed but his body was starting to shut down. Its functions slowed down until they completely stopped, Noah''s heart stopped beating and he stopped breathing. Chapter 479: 479. Roar The black clouds above Noah''s cave halted their attack when Noah''s body shut down, their ominous aura though continued to remain fixed on the underground area where Noah seemed to have died. He laid lifelessly on the red ground, the blood of the magical beast had tainted the terrain as its body parts were being fused with Noah, even his body had been covered by that scarlet liquid as he sunk inside the melting corpse of the beast. Everything remained still, the black clouds in the sky were waiting to see if Noah had really died! Noah had been extremely methodical as he perfected the procedure. The rank 4 bodies of the cultivators often had some peculiarities that distinguished them between each other, the same procedure couldn''t be applied to everyone. As Noah continued with his experiments, Noah had become used to harmonizing the various qualities of those bodies, he had planned the way to keep the membrane around his heart even before researching the Cursed dragons. Yet, there was one aspect that all the hybrids forged with rank 4 magical beasts had: They needed a reboot! Removing Heaven and Earth''s will and filling those empty spots with the one contained in the body of the beasts was an invasive maneuver, it wasn''t enough to just fuse them, the body needed to stabilize and shut down before it could live again. Thump Thump A heartbeat resounded in the silence of the cave, sparks filled the surface of the black clouds as they prepared themselves to resume their attacks. The "Breath" around Noah''s body began to converge toward his figure, it seemed that some sort of natural force was attracting it. Thump Thump Another heartbeat echoed in the underground area, the "Breath" near Noah entered his body, filling it with life and completing the harmonization of its tissues. Thump Thump What followed the third heartbeat was a loud roar. Noah opened his eyes and roared, that cry came from the deepest parts of his mind, it was the instinctive act of a newborn being! Then, he inhaled, his lungs filled themselves with air but "Breath" was also absorbed during that simple gesture. Noah could clearly feel how the "Breath" that entered his body was dismantled and reduced to its most basic form, it became a simple form of pure energy that didn''t belong to any element! That energy was then absorbed by his body, nourishing and strengthening it. ''So, that''s how they do it. The bodies of the magical beasts naturally destroy the "Breath" to absorb the purer form of energy that such destruction creates. They have never been able to feed on "Breath" of a different element, their nourishment is the pure energy contained in it!'' Noah understood the training process of the magical beasts only when he felt it happening inside his body, the more basic but purer energy that they absorbed was something that even mages in the heroic ranks couldn''t see! ''Maybe, only gods have the means to look for this type of energy, I know for sure that I couldn''t have done it with my rank 4 sea of consciousness.'' Noah thought as he continued to bathe in the feeling of having his body growing stronger while breathing, it was something so amazing that he couldn''t think of anything else. ''It''s so strange though. Magical beasts have this innate ability since birth, even those in the first rank can do it, it''s as if they are the natural predators of the "Breath".'' Every living being of that world absorbed "Breath" to become stronger. Noah wasn''t sure about how magical plants worked but he knew that cultivators were limited to the "Breath" of their aptitude. Magical beasts, instead, could reach for the energy inside the "Breath" of any element since their birth, he didn''t think that Heaven and Earth would have left such troublesome beings alive if they had the chance. ''Maybe, it''s something that has to do with their fairness, they need a natural enemy to be nigh-omniscient entities.'' It was only after Noah reached that point with his thoughts that he heard the lightning storm happening above his cave. The black clouds in the sky had resumed their assault when Noah released his cry, an immense hatred rose from the bottom of Noah''s mind and filled the entirety of his body. Noah quickly stood up and was about to launch himself outside the protective shield when he abruptly stopped his tracks and closed his eyes. His focus went on the insides of his mental sphere where dark-red water was spreading inside his crystalline sea. The dark-red water represented the thoughts and instincts of the Cursed dragon with which he had fused, his normal mental state seemed to be affected as more of his sea was being tainted by the spreading dark-red water. However, the mind of a beast couldn''t compare to that of a human, especially that of a rank 4 mage. Noah used his mental energy to surround the dark-red water, the thoughts of the beast were soon contained in a small area. ''I need them.'' Noah knew that he wouldn''t be able to properly use his new body without the instincts of the dragon, he needed them to become a perfect hybrid. That''s why, instead of destroying that water, he slowly assimilated it inside his sea. The color of his sea slightly changed as it fused with the thoughts of the beast, shades of red appeared on the azure water which continued to be crystalline even after the two minds became one. Noah regained complete control even if he knew that some traits of the dragon''s behavior now were part of his personality. He began to feel everything more clearly, his senses sharpened as both body and mind harmonized. The incredible hatred toward the presence of Heaven and Earth''s will was surpassed only by the endless hunger that he felt, it was a sensation so strong that he understood why the hybrids that he had previously created seemed to go insane. However, his powerful mind was enough to make him maintain his calm. Noah opened his eyes again, the same cold aura was radiated by them but his ice-blue irises were now cut in half by vertical pupils, his eyes were those of a dragon. ''I''ll take care of my hunger later, I need to disperse those clouds first.'' Noah thought as he stepped toward the exit of his cave, a pair of black sabers appeared in his hands as a low growl was emitted by his throat. As soon as he stepped outside the shield created by the inscribed flags, a lightning bolt fell toward him. Noah didn''t hesitate, he swung his sabers to perform the Second Form of the Ashura and destroy the incoming bolt of lightning. Yet, even though his execution was perfect and his "Breath" was depleted, no effects followed his gesture, the saber simply slashed the air before the lightning bolt hit it. Chapter 480: 480. Flames The Demonic sword hit by the lightning bolt shattered, the power released by the black clouds was meant to stop peak rank 3 cultivators from reaching the heroic ranks, Noah''s inscribed item couldn''t resist that attack even if it was at the peak of the third rank. Yet, the corrosive smoke contained in Noah''s weapon was enough to deplete part of the lightning''s power, only a small portion of its strength remained when it reached Noah''s body. Noah endured the scorching sensation that filled his right arm as he was flung back in the distance, he managed to stop himself only after he had clashed in a few trees. ''I''m an idiot.'' Noah smiled as his black heart pumped more blood inside his circulatory system, the black membrane of the Yin body had become one with his organ, he could now utilize all the liquid "Breath" inside his body to empower his regenerative capabilities. ''I didn''t think that the body of a hybrid would become so strong that martial arts meant for humans would become unusable.'' The reason why he had been unable to use his martial art was simple: He couldn''t use the physical strength needed to execute those forms. It wasn''t that he lacked control, his body was simply so strong that he couldn''t force it to return to human standards! During his experiments, Noah had tested that the hybrids were able to use their dantians and to perform spells, he was too engrossed in the procedure to consider other aspects, there weren''t problems with the centers of power after all. The forms of a martial art were tuned on the physical strength of the humans, magical beasts couldn''t use them even if they had a humanoid shape. Simply speaking, Noah couldn''t use the strength of a human even if he wanted to! Another lightning bolt shot from the sky in his direction, Noah saw the attack coming and closed his eyes to focus on his lungs. He took a deep breath, the colors in the area around him dimmed as "Breath" converged inside his body. Then, right before the lightning could reach him, a wave of gray flames clashed with it. Noah felt his throat heating up as he released flames from his mouth, his instincts knew too well how to launch that attack, he was a hybrid after all! The lightning bolt slowed its advance, its piercing power was slowly making its way among the gray flames but black flames covered Noah''s figure before it could reach him. Noah reappeared in the air, a pair of large wings were spread on his back, he kicked the air a couple of times before nodding in satisfaction. The black clouds above him released another lightning bolt but a shockwave spread under Noah''s feet before it could reach him, making him disappear from his position in less than an instant. The Shadow sprint martial art was something that Noah had personally created, he could tune it quite freely and perform it even with his new body. Of course, his new physical power made the martial art stronger which inevitably increased the consumption of refined "Breath" inside his mind, his liquid "Breath" was simply too weak compared to his new form. Noah zigzagged in the air, dodging all the lightning bolts coming for him as he closed with the black clouds, his cold reptilian eyes radiated the immense hatred that he felt when looking at them. Truth to be told, he could have just safely waited for the power contained in the clouds to be depleted inside his cave. Yet, he wanted to test his new power to quickly increase the familiarity with his new body and he wanted to gather experience in that kind of battle, he was facing some sort of Heaven Tribulation after all, he needed to understand how threatening it was since he would face it again before becoming a rank 4 cultivator. Also, the instincts of the Cursed dragon species that were now part of him told him to defy that suppression and to destroy anything related to Heaven and Earth, Noah decided to let those feeling envelop him since he had already decided to fight the black clouds. He had never felt so good while flying, he sensed that every part of his body cheered whenever he controlled Heilong''s wings to fly higher. The cursed species was once again in the sky, wielding the power needed to defy the entities that had once removed its wings! Noah became closer to the black clouds every time he dodged a lightning bolt, it didn''t take much before he was directly below them. He couldn''t use any offensive martial art and he knew only one spell able to target the area of a hundred meters that the clouds covered. Noah felt the "Breath" inside his dantian being rapidly depleted as his figure began to emit an ominous black smoke, it took only a matter of seconds before his human appearance turned into the one of a fiend. A long tail stretched from the bottom of his back and two curved horns had appeared on the sides of his forehead, the black armor made of smoke made its appearance for the first time after Noah had become a rank 4 mage. Noah had always avoided using the complete Demonic form due to its high consumption of "Breath" and mental energy, that feature could only be worsened after Noah utilized it with his sea of consciousness in the heroic ranks. However, he needed his strongest attack at that moment. The light in the area around him dimmed as he took a deep breath, a crack appeared on the smoke over his mouth as he made that gesture. His lungs seemed to become whiter as the light in the environment was absorbed, gray flames soon formed inside them and shot outside when those organs contracted. Noah released a wave of gray flames which were soon surrounded by the black smoke of the Demonic form. Those flames were part of him, his spell only empowered them. The black clouds released another series of lightning bolts, Noah''s flames had been unable to fend them off previously but the corrosive smoke around them was now paving a way toward the clouds, destroying everything on their path. The bolts of lightning were consumed by Noah''s spell, his attack soon reached the black clouds where it released its destructive power. The pillar of gray light pierced the clouds while carrying the corrosive smoke with it, the power accumulated by Heaven and Earth began to disperse as the composition of the clouds was destroyed. Noah''s flames pierced their form while his spell consumed them from the inside, Noah''s full power offensive could match the attack of a heroic cultivator! Noah dispersed the black smoke around him as he saw the black clouds vanishing, he couldn''t help but raise his head and roar when he understood that he had won. Chapter 481: 481. Middle tier The clouds that had been formed by Heaven and Earth dispersed, releasing the "Breath" that they contained in the air. Noah took a deep breath, the dense energy still lingering in the air converged in his position and entered his body to become its nourishment. The "Breath" contained by the clouds was meant to deal with cultivators aiming to reach the fourth rank of the dantian, it held a power fit for that level of strength. When it entered his body, it was dismantled and turned into pure energy that Noah naturally absorbed, he felt the liquid "Breath" inside his body being refilled before he underwent some changes. His skin thickened, it had absorbed the capabilities of the scales of the Cursed dragon becoming extremely hard, the lightning bolt form before had barely scratched it after all. His muscles bulged before compressing, their density increased by a whole level when the process was over. His bones experienced the same procedure, they became sturdier and denser, it was as if their quality had reached a superior level. Even his internal organs underwent a similar enhancement, especially the lungs and heart which also became slightly bigger. Noah had closed his eyes to analyze the changes of his body, that was a feeling that he hadn''t experienced for a very long time. ''Rank 4 body in the middle tier!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when the process was over. He had been at the peak of the lower tier for more than ten years by then, seeing his level raise again made him feel completely satisfied. That was because his body-nourishing method was working flawlessly and he knew that it would accompany him for the entirety of his cultivation journey! Noah roared at the sky when the breakthrough was over, the power filling his body and his victory over Heaven and Earth made him reach new levels of happiness. His dragon part had waited for this moment for too long, the hatred that was rooted in its bloodline was finally appeased, part of it at least. An even stronger hunger followed the breakthrough though. Noah turned his head in the direction of the Granite Abyss, his reptilian eyes seemed to make out the shapes of the many dragons inhabiting that danger zone. Yet, he forced himself to calm down as he gulped the saliva that his mouth was producing. ''I''ve created a mess here, I can''t remain any longer.'' Noah thought as he wore a tight robe and turned to fly in the direction of the Hive''s encampment. The main advantage of being a hybrid was the human mind ruling that powerful body. Obtaining the power of a magical beast would be useless if the cultivator then acted like one, reasoning and planning had to come before instincts and hunger. Also, even though Noah had obtained an incredibly powerful body, he had lost one of his main fighting methods. The Three Forms of the Ashura was the martial art that had accompanied him since he had joined the academy but, now, he was simply unable to perform it. His body was too strong, it couldn''t use the little physical energy needed for that martial art, Noah guessed that he would meet the same problem even with other martial arts meant for humans. ''My list of stuff to create is increasing: There is the cultivation technique, an offensive martial art, and Demonic swords fit for my new body. Also, I should start finding ways to create spells, I''m continuously losing fighting methods since my power is increasing too quickly.'' Noah thought as he flew at full speed in the direction of the encampment. There were two big issues in the cultivation journey. The first one was the absence of techniques and methods, those in the fifth rank were already incredibly rare, it could be even said that those in the sixth rank were basically non-existent. The second one concerned martial arts and spells. One could be a mighty heroic cultivator but its battle prowess wouldn''t be able to express its power if it didn''t have arts and spells that matched its rank. The same applied to Noah. He had become a rank 4 mage a short time ago, the spells up to the third rank that he had learnt became almost useless at that point, leaving him with few offensive methods that could express his true power. Now, he had even lost his martial art, limiting his offense to the Demonic form spell, the Ghostly claws spell, the Death area spell, and the Mental tremor spell. That offense was still extremely good, especially considering his newly obtained flames, yet, Noah didn''t want to see his battle prowess lower as his level increased. Martial arts and spells suffered from a fate similar to methods and techniques, they would become rarer as their rank increased, especially those with offensive power. ''My expertise with the saber should allow me to quickly create a new martial art tuned around my body but my priority must be the cultivation technique, I can''t be always dragged down by my dantian.'' Noah thought as he ate a small pill that contained "Breath" of the darkness element to refill his dantian. His last attack against the black clouds had almost depleted the entirety of the liquid "Breath" inside his dantian, leaving that center of power basically empty. It couldn''t be helped, he had used his strongest spell while setting its power in the heroic ranks, simple rank 3 "Breath" couldn''t fuel such an attack for more than a few instants. Luckily for him though, he now had something that other cultivators didn''t have: A powerful body! Noah knew that his physical strength could be used as a deadly weapon and his flames were an excellent offensive method since the liquid "Breath" inside his body was refilled autonomously. A small piece of the female Cursed dragon''s skin appeared in his hands before Noah directly threw it inside his mouth, his teeth easily munched the scaled skin, they had fused with the fangs of a dragon after all. Just like that, Noah continued to fly toward the encampment of the Hive inside the area of influence of the Shandal Empire, eating the body parts of the magical beasts inside his space-ring from time to time. Chapter 482: 482. Evan Noah''s worries weren''t groundless. The three big nations weren''t powerful just in name: They controlled almost the entirety of the continent and had the highest share of heroic cultivators. Also, their areas of influence featured spies or soldiers, especially in those dire times. After the Coral archipelago obtained its independence, many other nations had begun to strive for the same goal, the only weakness of the big nations had been revealed after all. That forced the hand of the big nations, they redirected part of their power to suppress and manage the revolts happening everywhere in their domains. Of course, special attention was given to anything concerning the Hive. That organization was backed by a rank 6 existence and was formed by the joint power of forces that had freely ruled on the islands for many years, it could be said that the Hive was the strongest organization of the continent after the three big nation. Also, their peculiar geographical position and the copying technique made those islands virtually unbreachable, having such solid defenses would surely lead to a stable growth. That''s why the three big nations had silently decided to focus on their attempts to create footholds on the continent. The only weakness that the archipelago had was the need for connections with the mainland to secure a constant stream of cultivation resources, their encampments in specific nations were somewhat expected. The big nations knew that it would have been impossible to send spies to the archipelago, every recruit would be forced to swear an oath of some sort before being teleported there. Yet, that didn''t prevent those spies from sending reports before officially joining the Hive. It was enough to mask them as cultivators who had barely managed to escape from an area of influence to make them the perfect target of the Hive which desperately needed manpower. Just like that, by sacrificing weak cultivators, the three big nations managed to receive a decent stream of information concerning the encampments of the Hive. Of course, the Hive had expected that something like that would happen but it wasn''t too interested in it as long as it continued to increase its human assets, even a spy was just another pawn in its grasp after it swore an oath. What it didn''t expect was that such an approach would have ultimately put Noah in danger. In the Utra nation, inside a dark basement that seemed to be used as a prison, a few hours after Noah had left the encampment near the mountain chain to reach the Granite Abyss. A middle-aged man sat on the floor, runes shone over his skin, they affected the area around him with their brilliance and absorbed "Breath" from the matter that surrounded his figure. The floor and the walls around him seemed to age as he cultivated, that process clearly showed that he was a cultivator in the heroic ranks. Then, footsteps resounded in the basement, Thaddeus Elbas appeared from the stairs connected to the upper floors. He was wearing his usual smile but traces of coldness could be seen in his eyes as he began to speak. "Evan, are you enjoying the new horizons that the Royal family has opened for you?" Evan opened his eyes and interrupted his cultivation to knell toward Thaddeus, his tone was polite as he replied to him. "I will be eternally grateful for this chance, Your Majesty." Thaddeus nodded seeing his reaction and took a small sheet from his sleeve before unfolding it in front of the kneeling man. "Do you know what this is?" Evan raised his head when he heard those words, his sea of consciousness began to enlarge as soon as his eyes looked at the rune drawn on the sheet. "The fourth Kesier rune! Your Maj-" However, before he could finish his phrase, Thaddeus folded the sheet and put it back inside his sleeve. "I have a mission for you, complete it and the rune will be yours. You will be finally able to become a true heroic cultivator with it." Evan kneeled again at Thaddeus''s words and replied to him while keeping his head lowered. "Anything His Majesty asks." Thaddeus stared at him for some time at that point before taking a scroll from his space-ring. The scroll depicted a young Noah and a series of information was written under it. "This criminal can''t be left alive one instant longer, who knows how many problems will he cause if not. Even my disciple has suffered by his hands, her resolve to cultivate seems to have crumbled after their meeting." Thaddeus spoke as he heaved a sigh, he seemed to really care about Ruth''s mental state. "This criminal has left Afria nation and is moving alongside the mountain chain that divides our area of influence with that of the Empire toward the eastern coastline. We don''t know his destination but he must return to the Afria nation if he wants to head back to the Coral archipelago. Ambush him there." As he spoke those words, Thaddeus left the scroll containing Noah''s information and left the basement. Only then did Evan raise his head to study the scroll, his eyes radiated a dark light as he looked at Noah''s face. . . . Noah was unaware that the Royal had prepared a trap for him while he was busy fusing with the Cursed dragon, he was focusing on returning to the encampment in Afria nation so that he could begin to fix his battle prowess. His centers of power had returned to their peak form: His mind had quickly recovered after battling with the black clouds and he had eaten pieces of the magical beasts inside his ring from time to time, his body was only growing stronger thanks to that. The only issue was with his dantian. Noah was cultivating as he flew but part of the "Breath" absorbed was being redirected to his mental sphere. He needed it to utilize the Shadow sprint martial art which was his best movement method in battle, he couldn''t allow himself to be powerless after having caused such a mess. The journey back to the encampment seemed to be smooth but, when the borders of the Afria nation appeared in his field of view, a sudden dangerous feeling hit his consciousness. Hundreds of brown arrows were sensed by his consciousness, at once Noah knew that someone was attacking him. Chapter 483: 483. Arrows The arrows flew toward Noah from many directions, they tried to encircle him and to cut away any path of retreat. Yet, Noah was in the air, he could move more freely than simple arrows. A shockwave spread under his feet as he shot higher in the sky, removing himself from the trajectory of the attack. However, right before the arrows were about to converge and crash in his previous position, they made a sharp change of direction, following Noah in his escaping route. ''This is a martial art mixed with a spell!'' Noah realized as the torrent of arrows reached from below him at a high speed. It took him only a few seconds to understand the nature of the attack, the arrows had been shot while performing a martial art but their trajectory was controlled through a spell. Also, the fact that his sea of consciousness labeled them as a potential danger made him sure of another detail. ''Their power surpasses the human ranks!'' A sudden ambush and a mighty power, Noah''s confusion mounted as he stared at the incoming arrows. Yet, some irritation rose inside him, his mind was calm but his instincts were screaming. He was a dragon that had just reclaimed his rightful place in the sky and defeated the Tribulation sent by Heaven and Earth, how could someone dare to attempt to take him down? Noah''s consciousness spread as his body turned ethereal, the arrows pierced him before exploding inside his incorporeal figure. A series of explosions filled the sky, hundreds of arrows reached for Noah and self-destructed when he entered in their range, Noah waited patiently inside the smoke created by the blast as he analyzed that attack. ''Their weight seems off, I can feel some pressure even when using the Ethereal form spell but they can''t hurt me like this, not with my new body.'' The rank 5 Cursed dragon had been able to injure him through his ethereal form but this attack was weaker and his body had simply improved too much since then. Meanwhile, his consciousness searched for traces of his attacker, his heavy mental waves swept the area around and below him as they tried to find the cultivator responsible for the ambush. ''Found you.'' Noah''s reptilian eyes shone with a cold light when his consciousness found a cultivator hiding in the trees below him. The mental energy of the cultivator used to conceal his presence couldn''t do anything against Noah''s investigatory capabilities, his power was completely revealed to him ''Rank 4 body in the upper tier, rank 4 dantian in the gaseous stage, earth aptitude, and rank 3 mental sphere¡­ He doesn''t seem a lone cultivator.'' Noah''s attention went on the runes that covered his body and that acted as a magnet for the "Breath" around him, such a cultivation technique seemed too complex to be the creation of a cultivator on that level. Also, the ambush had happened right before he reached the encampment in Afria nation, the timing was too perfect for it to be the act of an individual without any backing. ''I should be able to safely reach the encampment but I don''t really want to let go of this chance to fight a heroic cultivator. I''m even quite hungry.'' Noah thought as he waited to return material, many possibilities were played in his mind in those seconds. The encampment of the Hive had an elder guarding it, Noah would be safe once reached its perimeter. Yet, that would only delay the issue and not solve it, he wanted to deal a blow to the force that had sent that cultivator. Even his instincts were screaming to kill the offender and ravage his body, one shouldn''t attack a dragon without being certain of killing it after all! Noah returned material inside the smoke released by the explosions of the arrows and focused on a position behind the ambusher before his body was covered in black flames. Evan had read the file that listed Noah''s abilities, the scroll containing his information had been updated after the battles on the islands, Noah''s profile was quite complete and detailed. That''s why Evan directly turned as soon as he sensed a fluctuation on the "Breath" behind him, his hands moved inhumanely fast as they nocked and released tens of brown arrows in the inscribed bow that he wielded toward the black flames that had appeared mid-air. ''He has been informed about my abilities.'' Noah realized that when he saw that the assassin had been able to exploit the weakness of the Warp spell as soon as he had used it. A black sphere formed in front of Noah as he came out of the black flames, the "Breath" and mental energy contained in the arrows were absorbed by the Black hole spell, turning those powerful items in simple metal sticks. Also, the "Breath" that had been redirected to Noah''s body was dismantled and absorbed by him, Noah felt that the energy of a heroic cultivator nourished his body better than the magical beasts inside his space-ring. The arrows then crashed on him as he came out of the black flames, metal sounds resounded as the pointy tips of the arrows broke when they came in contact with Noah''s skin, they were unable to even leave a mark on it. "Who sent you?" Noah asked as red veins spread over the sclera of his eyes. Evan had been momentarily surprised by the defensive power of his body, he knew the power and the constitution of his arrows and was left completely stunned when he saw that they broke without even denting Noah''s skin. Yet, when he saw the red veins around Noah''s vertical pupils, he awakened from his stupor and shot another arrow with his bow. The arrow exploded as soon as it left the bow, dense "Breath" and mental energy were released, affecting the trajectory of the Mental tremor spell than Noah had launched. Evan retreated behind a tree to safely prepare more arrow but a sudden sense of danger made him jump away from that spot. He turned his head only to see that Noah had chased behind him and kicked the tree, directly eradicating it from the ground and breaking its trunk in half. Chapter 484: 484. Dantian A strength that surpassed the realm of the magical beasts was contained in a small body, Noah''s physical power was simply immense! Evan felt fear for the first time since the fight had begun. He was a mighty heroic cultivator while his target was only in the third rank and the liquid stage even, the assassination should have been smooth and easy. Yet, Noah had sensed his attack far before it was able to reach him and had found his hiding position in an instant. Also, his reaction time was incredible, it didn''t matter how many arrows Evan shot, Noah was always able to counter them and gain the initiative in the battle. Noah''s abilities had been described in detail in the scroll that Thaddeus had given him, Evan knew that his target was a genius when the sea of consciousness was concerned. That''s why, even though he was extremely stupefied and slightly doubtful, he understood the fact that Noah''s mind had surpassed the human ranks. That discovery made him unable to realize the power held by Noah''s body, he had the aspect of a human after all, his mental sphere was a center of power far more threatening. On the other hand, Noah felt troubled. He was using his full power to defend against the offensive of a heroic cultivator, holding back only on the abilities that would reveal his dragon side. The power held by the arrows shot by the assailant was simply too high, he was using a martial art fueled by rank 4 "Breath" after all, Noah had to use the power of his mental sphere to match it. Yet, doing that took a heavy toll on his dantian which could only provide liquid "Breath", Noah felt his reserves depleting after the usage of a few spells. Martial arts were weaker than spells but they also depleted less "Breath" and mental energy, that was one of the reasons why Noah had continued to use them even if he had more powerful methods. ''I need to rely on my body.'' Noah thought as his eyes sharpened, a shockwave expanded under his feet as he shot toward the escaping cultivator. Evan didn''t hesitate to release more arrows when he saw that Noah was set on chasing him, his hands nocked and released them at an incredible speed, Noah soon found more than thirty threatening darts aiming at him. However, he was done testing his enemy''s power, he needed to end the battle quickly and retreat in the safety of the encampment. Heilong came out of his body and clashed with the arrows, the weapons exploded when they came in contact with the blood companion, shattering its body in thousands of pieces, even the defenses of a rank 4 middle tier creature couldn''t do anything against the attack of a rank 4 cultivator. Heilong''s half-transparent figure inside Noah''s mind was covered in cracks due to the attack that it had just endured, Noah suppressed the waves of pain released inside his mental sphere as he stomped the ground to sprint once again toward Evan. Noah managed to reach Evan less than an instant after the latter shot another arrow, Noah saw the sharp arrowhead aiming for his heart as he was at less than a meter of distance from the cultivator. It was at that point that Noah released a wave of gray flames. The flames weren''t enough to stop the flight of the arrow but they covered a wider area and their power depleted part of the arrow''s strength. Evan was surprised by that sudden attack but he quickly manipulated the terrain below him to create a think and sturdy defensive wall. Yet, while he was busy defending from the flames, he felt a series of claws piercing his body and tearing his internal organs. At the same time, Noah dodged the incoming arrow and kicked the wall that had barely managed to stop his flames, Evan wasn''t able to make the arrow detonate since the Ghostly claws spell had broken his focus. The wall was a defensive spell cast by a rank 3 mage, it had been able to momentarily stop Noah''s flames but it couldn''t endure the power behind Noah''s body. Pieces of terrain shot in every direction as Noah destroyed the wall and swung his hand toward the cultivator hiding behind it, his stretched fingers resembled the claws of a beast as they reached for Evan''s chest. Evan was unable to do anything, he could only place his inscribed bow in the trajectory of Noah''s hand. However, the bow was only a peak rank 3 weapon, it immediately broke under Noah''s physical power, unable to even slow down the threatening hand that aimed for him. Then, Noah''s blow hit Evan on his chest. Evan had a rank 4 body in the upper tier but his rib cage was pierced as if it was butter, Noah''s hand stabbed his chest and came out from the back of the incredulous cultivator. Noah then retracted his hand until he was able to squeeze Evan''s heart with his grip, his cold reptilian eyes released a primordial pressure as he spoke to the man. "Who sent you?" Noah tightened his grip as he asked that question, blood came out of Evan''s mouth when his vital organ was being held hostage. Nevertheless, he didn''t answer, he simply closed his eyes as he focused on his dantian. Noah felt that something was becoming unstable inside the low-waist of the assailant, his free hand stabbed him in that place only to retract it immediately after while carrying something in its grasp. Evan continued to cough blood as his gaze went on Noah''s hand, a minute but shining sphere stood in his bloodied palm among other pieces of internal organs. Noah revealed a smirk as he ate the shining sphere, a seemingly endless amount of "Breath" filled him before his body automatically turned it into its nourishment. Noah felt the power of his body increase once again, all his tissues became stronger and denser as he solidified his power inside the middle tier. "You lost your dantian and I have your heart, tell me who you serve with so much zeal to make you willing to self-destruct." Noah asked for the third time but Evan simply smiled before closing his eyes, it was clear that he had no intention to answer. Noah looked at that gesture and sighed internally before closing the hand inside the cultivator''s chest, Evan''s heart was reduced to a pulp, finally ending his life. Chapter 485: 485. Blood Evan died without revealing anything, the only clues about his origin were the runes on his skin. Noah looked at the corpse below him, the two holes on his body soon stopped spurting blood, he couldn''t help but feel satisfied as he analyzed them. ''A mighty heroic cultivator has died by my hand, I''m more than halfway into that realm.'' Noah thought as he reviewed the battle in his mind. The assassin had a rank 4 body in the upper tier, Noah guessed that its ability was connected to the fast movement of his hands. Yet, even if the rank of Evan''s body was higher, it couldn''t compare to Noah''s one. Also, Evan was limited in his attack methods. His rank 4 dantian made his martial art extremely threatening but his spells were lacking, they had only been able to repel Noah''s flames while being unable to withstand his physical strength. However, it was mainly thanks to his body that Noah had been able to defeat him, the liquid "Breath" inside his dantian simply didn''t allow him to slowly destroy his defenses which had been prepared according to his most dangerous attacks. ''The Mental tremor spell and the Ghostly claws spells are awesome but they can be countered if a cultivator has made enough preparation, I was only able to hit him with the ethereal claws when I hid them inside my flames.'' Analyzing his battles had always made Noah able to see the weaknesses of his battle style and, right now, his most troublesome flaw was the lack of a powerful "Breath" to fuel his abilities. While Noah was immersed in his thoughts, a powerful consciousness swept his position. Noah felt it and recognized it, he turned in its direction while performing a bow and speaking through his mind. "Greetings, Elder Amber, I''m sorry for this mess." Elder Amber was the heroic cultivator stationed by the Hive in the encampment in Afria nation, Noah had already spoken with her when he had teleported from the archipelago. "I sensed a huge discharge of rank 4 "Breath" but I didn''t know it was you the one battling with it, I would have come sooner otherwise." Elder Amber descended from the sky as she answered Noah, she wore a long blue robe with golden tentacles embroidered on its sleeves, that color matched her long golden hair that slowly fluttered in the wind. Noah simply shook his head as he accepted her explanation. "Your main concern is to keep the encampment safe, there was no need to expose your presence for this small matter." Noah words made Elder Amber''s eyebrow arc, she stared at the reptilian eyes of the man in front of her with an expressionless face for a while before she gave voice to her thoughts. "Defeating a heroic cultivator, even if not a complete one, definitely isn''t a small matter. The power of your mind is stupefying as always, Prince, and it seems that the resources of the Hive have finally managed to produce results, the Patriarch was right in trusting in your potential." Elder Amber analyzed Noah''s body as she spoke, she felt some sort of primordial danger being radiated by him. Noah understood that the Elder had realized something when he felt her gaze all over his body but he didn''t do anything to hide it, he simply felt no reason to do so. Rather than hiding his power, Noah was mostly interested in finding out who had sent the assassin. "Elder, do you recognize these runes?" Noah spoke as he pointed at the skin of the maimed corpse next to him. "These runes should belong to some cultivation technique created in the Royal academy but I''m not completely sure. Also, they might have been used on purpose to mask the origin of the cultivator¡­ Prince, who would be willing to send a heroic cultivator to kill you?" Elder Amber spoke, confirming part of Noah''s suspects. The assassin had Noah''s profile, he knew about the encampment, and had a rank 4 dantian, only a big nation could have the means to prepare such an ambush. Among the big nations, the only one that hated and feared Noah to the point of using someone in the heroic ranks was the Utra nation. "Probably the Elbas family, they must be really scared about losing the Royal Inheritance." Noah spoke without restraints, the elders of the Hive were aware of the Royal Inheritance after all. Elder Amber nodded, she had a similar opinion about the matter. "Do you mind if I take the corpse? I might not be able to obtain anything but I''m sure that the Patriarch can force them to pay us." Noah turned his head toward the corpse when he heard those words. He had already eaten the most nourishing part of the cultivator and the runes on his body had stopped working when Evan died. Also, the body of a cultivator contained far less "Breath" than a magical beast on its same rank, Noah decided that it was more important as a bargaining chip rather than as a quick meal. Noah''s mental waves enveloped the finger of the assassin where his space-ring was and lifted the storage device in the air, making it land directly in Noah''s grasp. Then, he gestured to the elder to take the corpse, Evan''s body disappeared as soon as Elder Amber waved her hand. "We can''t isolate ourselves but we can''t even create a stable foothold on the continent. The encampments will remain operational for a few more months before we will be forced to retreat, only time will tell if the Coral archipelago can aim to become the fourth big nation." Elder Amber sighed as she spoke those words, she seemed to treat Noah as her equal as she rose in the air and waited for him to follow her. "I''m currently unable to fly, Elder, the battle has injured my puppet." Elder Amber nodded when she heard Noah''s words and simply flew above him as he moved on foot back to the encampment. Just before reaching the encampment though, Elder Amber turned her head and pointed at Noah''s face. "Clean the blood from your face before meeting the human assets at least." Only then did Noah realize that traces of blood were still on his mouth from when he ate Evan''s dantian. Chapter 486: 486. Hunger The news that Noah had been able to defeat a cultivator with a rank 4 dantian was kept a secret among the elders of the Hive, they didn''t want the forces of the continent to learn more about their power after all. Of course, the Elbas family was aware that their assassin had died, even though it didn''t know the exact details behind his death. Evan was a soldier that had been nurtured till the heroic ranks, his value inside the ranks of the Royals was high, he was meant to lead the army of criminals one day. Yet, he died in an insignificant nation, fighting a cultivator in the human ranks. Also, Chasing Demon began to contact them in secret, asking for explanations and, eventually, compensations. The Elbas family simply rejected any affiliation with the assassin and even offered to send an expert to examine the runes on Evan''s body, there didn''t seem to be hope in extorting a better deal with the Utra nation. However, the branch of the Royal family that handled the creation of a secret army clearly understood one thing: Noah Balvan could only be killed by complete heroic cultivators! The Royals didn''t believe that Noah had defeated the assassin by himself, he was only a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage during the battle for the independence of the archipelago after all. Yet, the truth was that one of their promising heroic assets had died, implying that Noah was most likely heavily protected. That forced the Elbas family to completely give up on killing Noah for the time being, all the heroic cultivator in the Utra nation were either part of the Royals or of the noble families, deploying those forces would be a public breach in the treaties signed after the Hive won the war, the Elbas family simply couldn''t do that. The first big nation that broke those treaties would create the excuse needed for the cooperation between the other two big nations which would be further aided by the Hive, it was simply too dangerous to act in that way. Meanwhile, Noah had returned to the Coral archipelago. The encampment in Efrana nation had been disbanded and his mansion had been brought back on island nineteen where he was currently resting. Noah knew that the force that had sent the assassin was now aware that he could fight cultivators with a rank 4 dantian or that he had some sort of protection that had allowed him to survive, meaning that the next assassin would probably be a complete heroic cultivator. He didn''t have the power to fight a being with that power, he had been able to deal with a martial art fueled by rank 4 "Breath" but he would have had just died against a cultivator that could also match the power of his spells. That''s why he had decided to temporarily return to the archipelago to focus on his battle prowess and to find a solution to his precarious situation. Evan''s space-ring didn''t contain much, only a few drugs and a seemingly endless stash of arrows, everything inside was useless to Noah. Heilong''s half-transparent figure inside his mind was rapidly healing thanks to the nourishment of the dense mental energy below it, it wouldn''t take long before it returned to its peak form. Noah finally had time to properly test the growth of his new body: He had reached the middle tier after absorbing the "Breath" contained in the black clouds but Evan''s dantian hadn''t been able to make him reach another tier, it had only solidified his position in the middle tier. Also, even the small pieces of the magical beasts'' corpses inside his space-ring didn''t seem to increase his power that much, Noah soon began to evaluate the amount of nourishment that each resource gave him according to its rank. ''Magical beasts have a stronger body than cultivators but they also need more "Breath" to grow. It must be considered that I''m a hybrid, meaning that I would need an even higher amount of "Breath" since my power surpasses both races¡­ I''d say that only the dantians of heroic cultivators and magical beasts of a higher tier can significantly make me improve. There is to consider the lifespan of the magical beasts too, age is an important aspect in their world.'' Noah could randomly eat anything containing "Breath" like a magical beast but he knew that such behavior would eventually put him in some trouble. That''s why he decided that, unless he was completely sure that no one was watching, he would only eat what would give him a substantial nourishment. As for his hunger, he had a better use for it. Becoming a hybrid made him realize that he lacked something vital in the creation of an item through the Elemental forging method: A proper will! His ambition had been enough to fuse him with a magical beast but the forging of a rank 4 item required something more specific, something that truly expressed the purpose of his creation. Noah didn''t consider his body as his first inscribed item in the fourth rank, its level was the consequence of the material that he had used. That''s why, in his mind, he still thought that he hadn''t been able to cross the human ranks with his forging ability. The creation of his martial art could wait, it would be useless to create an offensive method that could be only fueled with liquid "Breath". After all, martial arts needed a balance between the physical strength and the "Breath" used while performing the forms of the art, the consumption of the Shadow sprint martial art had increased due to the power of his body. His dantian was barely able to fuel a few spells and one martial art, adding other offensive methods wouldn''t solve the core of the issue, Noah needed to create a cultivation method and become a complete heroic cultivator! The "Breath" blessings had continued to accumulate inside his space-ring, Noah had had enough resources to experiment in that field again for a long time. What he had lacked was a meaning to imbue his creations with. His endless hunger gave him the idea that he needed. Magical beasts were always hungry, they would go crazy when starving or in front of an appealing resource. Such endless hunger, such desire to devour anything that contained "Breath", such implacable greed, there was no better meaning to add to an item meant to absorb "Breath". Chapter 487: 487. Cracks There was one aspect of his body on which Noah could focus while resuming the experiments for the creation of a cultivation technique: His flames! Cursed dragons could endlessly empower their flames by absorbing the "Breath" contained in the light around them, that ability was now in Noah''s hands, meaning that he had to take care of their growth. He soon discovered though that it took time to improve the state of his lungs, their color remained gray even if he had begun absorbing the light in the room where he was experimenting, it would take a large amount of "Breath" for his flames to reach the power that the rank 5 dragon in the Granite Abyss had. On the other hand, his experiments were managing to produce some results. His endless hunger was the perfect meaning to refine his "Breath" with, the condensed "Breath" blessings that he forged resembled a thick black vortex able to continuously attract and absorb the "Breath" of the darkness element from the environment, even though they still weren''t able to cross the human ranks. Of course, solving an issue only created more problems for Noah. The forged "Breath" blessings continuously absorbed "Breath", their power rose as the process kept going since they could only contain it inside their composition. There was once a time when Noah had to forcibly destroy his creation because its power started to affect the "Breath" inside the matter, it was threatening to become an uncontrollable rank 4 inscribed item! ''This won''t do, I need something stable, I can''t put inside my dantian an actual Black hole!'' Those were Noah''s thoughts as he struggled with that issue. He knew that he would be able to create something in the heroic ranks soon since his expertise was increasing but that would be useless if he didn''t find a way to control it. After all, if his cultivation technique went out of control while being inside his dantian, he would most likely lose that center of power forever! There was one aspect of his creations that left him happily surprised though. The compressed "Breath" blessings were created through the Elemental forging method, his will dictated their functioning. That will naturally conflicted with that of Heaven and Earth, the latter was removed during the absorption process, leaving only non-refined "Breath" inside the inscribed items. That discovery left Noah completely surprised, perfecting his cultivation technique would give him access to an almost endless stash of non-refined "Breath" after all which he could use for his martial arts and spells! While Noah was secluded inside his mansion, busy with his experiments, a peculiar event attracted the attention of the high-level cultivators of the continent. At many kilometers from the southwestern coastline, a faint crack appeared in the sky. The crack was almost unnoticeable if not for the fact that an extremely pure "Breath" came out of it, it seemed as if the crack was connected to a place where the "Breath" was far more abundant. Before the crack could be thoroughly investigated though, it expanded, becoming longer and splitting in many directions. The area covered by the fissure enlarged day by day, it didn''t take much before the powerhouses of the concerned nations decided to act, ignoring the political situation of the continent. In the sky, in a spot above the clouds. Three figures stared at the spreading cracks that had created something similar to a spider''s web in the azure sky. They were the powerhouses of the Utra nation, of the Shandal Empire, and of the Hive. Chasing Demon stared at the other two powerful cultivators next to him, they were both rank 6 cultivators but their power couldn''t be compared to his, he had just reached the sixth rank after all. "Seniors, I wonder if you''ve ever witnessed a similar event." Chasing Demon politely spoke to the other two cultivators, he was completely aware that he was inferior to them. The other two existences were a man and a woman, they didn''t move their gazes away from the cracks as they sorted their thoughts. The woman wore a simple red robe with the large emblem of the Empire sewed on its back, her brown hair and shining green eyes gave her a youthful appearance but the depths contained in her gaze carried the experiences of thousands of years of struggles. The man had silver hair and golden eyes, he had the appearance of a middle-aged man and traces of arrogance were radiated by his expression. A golden crown was on his head and a large golden robe with large sleeves gave him a noble demeanor as he inspected the sky, looking for clues. Those three powerful existences had chosen to investigate the matter since the fissure threatened to reach the sky above the continent, where their nations and areas of influence were, which was the reason why the powerhouse of the Papral nation was absent. Then, the man wearing the crown moved his gaze away from the sky and turned toward the woman on his right before speaking in a plain tone. "My Elbas family is relatively new, our records don''t concern events that have happened more than three thousand years ago. I wonder if God''s Left Hand can provide us with a detailed explanation." The woman''s eyes sharpened when she heard her name, she gave a quick look to the smug face of the crowned man next to her before inspecting the sky again while speaking a few words. "The Almighty is aware of this event, King Elbas. This matter concerns the Immortal Lands and it''s something that we can''t affect that much, our role is to prevent the cracks from reaching the continent." Chasing Demon listened to their dialogue in silence, those cultivators were speaking about gods and affecting the sky, he didn''t even know how to join that conversation. It was at that point that shards began to separate from the cracks and fall toward the sea below it, a rain of shining azure crystals soon filled the air in front of the three powerhouses. Chapter 488: 488. Fallen The sky was shattering, the azure crystals falling into the sea radiated dense "Breath" that soon filled the area before they dispersed in the water below. The three powerhouses didn''t have time to seize those crystals because an even more incredible event followed the shattering of the sky. The many fissures in the sky widened and connected, forming an uneven rectangular area where the shards kept falling. Then, the surface of the sky completely broke and an immense boulder fell from that huge hole. The three powerhouses saw the event but felt powerless to stop it, the boulder had a width slightly smaller than the continent, even their mighty power wasn''t enough to stop the descent of that huge landmass. "Almighty!" God''s Left Hand shouted as she turned her gaze to look at a place somewhere at the center of the Shandal Empire. Meanwhile, Chasing Demon and King Elbas simply retreated as they stared at the falling boulder in disbelief. It looked as if an immense mountain was falling from the sky, its lower surface soon began to heat up as it gained speed. What once started as a simple fissure had now turned into a meteorite threatening to extinguish all the lifeforms of the continent! It was at that point that a blue light filled the surface of the sea below the falling mountain. Water rose in the air and turned into ice pillars that launched themselves toward the boulder, white columns formed and clashed against its burning surface. The size of the columns was incredible, they were as large as an entire nation and stabbed their sharp tips on the falling boulder, slowly affecting its speed. A reverent gaze appeared on God''s Left Hand as she turned and kneeled toward the territories of the Empire while still being mid-air, she knew that her god had decided to help them. More and more ice pillars rose in the air, the level of the sea lowered as its water was used to fuel that divine spell, it was as if a white mountain had decided to fight the falling azure one to protect the lifeforms of the continent! The boulder began to slow down when the entirety of the ice mountain crashed on it, ice-shards and azure shards flew in every direction as the two immense objects fought each other. That event released shockwaves that reached the southwestern coastline of the continent and, of course, the coral archipelago, all the cultivators in the heroic ranks and even some in the human ranks felt that disturbance in the "Breath". Many powerful existences left their habitation and appeared in the open to witness that colossal event, disbelief was written in their faces when their eyes landed on the white and azure mountains fighting each other. Noah wasn''t an exception, his sea of consciousness and his beast''s instincts had begun to scream as soon as the sky was pierced, he quickly left his mansion and flew high in the air to understand what was happening. Then, he saw it. The azure sky had a hole in it from which a shining aura was released, it seemed as if an amazing world was hidden behind it. The boulder almost as big as the continent was continuing in its descent, an azure halo was radiated from its surface, it seemed completely made of a material similar to the "Breath" blessings. In the end, he saw the white mountain from which pillars continued to rise to stop the advance of the falling continent, its body was pierced as the motion of the latter kept going, it was as if it was trying to envelop that unknown mountain. The cultivators of the continent held their breaths as they watched the white pillars slowing the fall of the azure mountain until they eventually stopped it completely, an azure continent stood motionlessly over a seemingly endless white plain, a new landmass had appeared where there once was only water. Yet, the shockwaves radiated by that clash affected the state of the sea below, huge waves rose on its surface and spread in every direction around the new continent. Chasing Demon, King Elbas, and God''s Left Hand awakened from their stupor and disappeared from their position only to reappear on the coastline of their respective countries. Chasing Demon closed his eyes before many immense walls rose from the seabed next to the islands and faced the incoming tsunami. The power contained in the waves and their height was great but Chasing Demon was a rank 6 existence and the last line of defense against that natural calamity. More and more walls rose from the sea and even the tentacles of powerful beasts appeared to repel the huge waves. Similar scenes played themselves along the southwestern coastline, the powerhouses of the big nations appeared in the air and used their methods to defend the continent from the calamity. It took some time but, in the end, the sea calmed down, returning to a peaceful state. The defensive spells used to defend the continent broke or dispersed in the air, revealing once again the changed scenery on the horizon. Only the powerhouses kept their eyes on the hole in the sky, they were worried that another continent or something scarier would fall from it. Yet, to their surprise, the sky simply began to reform. An azure brilliance shone on the edges of the hole, reforming the surface of the sky and quickly filling the vast cavity that connected the Mortal Lands to what seemed a higher plane. Noah''s disbelief had long surpassed what he was able to contain and his mouth hung open on his jaw as he stared at the new continent in the sea. His gaze then found Chasing Demon who was staring with a serious expression in his same direction. Noah flew toward the Patriarch of the Hive and many elders did the same, Chasing Demon was the only one in the Coral archipelago who could know more about the event. There were less than thirty cultivators behind the Patriarch of the Hive as they waited for his explanation. Chasing Demon sighed before he turned toward the crowd and spoke a few soft words. "It seems that a piece of the Immortal Lands has fallen in the Mortal ones." Chapter 489: 489. Colonization Chasing Demon spoke, leaving everyone around him too amazed to answer. Noah wasn''t an exception, he replayed the patriarch''s words in his mind, trying to give them some sense. ''A piece of the Immortal Lands has fallen? That thing is almost as big as our continent, this is a damned world-level threat!'' Noah had never cared that much about the geography of the world but he had inevitably learnt a few things as he lived there. The continent where the three big nations ruled was the largest landmass of the planet, some groups of islands and smaller lands were sparsely situated on the surface of the sea which covered most of the planet. All in all, Noah knew that this planet was bigger than his previous one but there wasn''t the same variety of places where to live, the biggest share of the human population lived in one of the areas of influence of the forces of continent. Also, since it had never been conquered in its entirety by a single force, the continent remained nameless, no organization could ever claim the right to name it. The continent, the other smaller landmasses, the islands, and the sea were labeled as Mortal Lands. They were "mortal" due to the beings that inhabited them and to the "Breath" found there, it wasn''t an environment fit for deities. As for the Immortal Lands, Noah only knew that they were somewhere above the sky but the information about them was restricted to peak heroic cultivator who had started researching about their ascension, he simply didn''t have the power needed to gain access to that intelligence. "Patriarch, how can parts of the Immortal Lands fall?" One of the elders around Chasing Demon asked, interrupting Noah''s thoughts and raising the interest of the cultivators in the air. Their curiosity was understandable, the new continent had once been part of the Immortal Lands, a place that only deities could reach! That was supposedly the final destination of the cultivation journey, it was normal for those heroic cultivators to want to learn more about it. Of course, the only entity of the Hive who could know something about it was Chasing Demon. A pensive expression appeared on Chasing Demon''s sharp face, he turned his gaze back on the azure landmass placed over the stratum of ice and sorted his thoughts before explaining what he knew. "I remember something that my master, Divine Demon, said about the Immortal Lands." A moment of silence followed those words, Chasing Demon''s expression seemed to soften when he mentioned his master. "The lands above the sky are richer of "Breath", capable of sustaining the cultivation process of many divine lifeforms. Yet, they aren''t eternal, even the dense "Breath" contained in those places will eventually be depleted if too many deities affect it." Noah and the elders next to him listened to his words with utmost attention, that was probably the first real information about the Immortal Lands after all! "When an area in the Immortal Lands loses too much "Breath", it will separate and fall into the Mortal Lands since it can''t meet the required standards of that higher plane. This is all I know and it''s even a supposition, I can''t be sure of the actual reason behind this event." Chasing Demon fell silent after he provided his explanation, his gaze probed the new land with interest and even some eagerness, countless possibilities were evaluated in his mind in those short seconds. "Does it mean that there might be divine beings there?" At that time, it was Noah''s turn to speak. He had been fascinated by Chasing Demon''s explanation and stunned by the spell that had blocked the meteorite but there was something that bothered him since he had discovered that the new continent had come from the Immortal Lands. The gazes of the elders went on him, some of them realized the meaning behind his words and turned toward the patriarch as they waited for an answer. According to Noah''s reasoning, the Immortal Lands were inhabited by divine beings, meaning that there could be a divine-level threat inside the new continent. "It is very unlikely, nothing ever comes back from the Immortal Lands unless its level isn''t fit for them anymore, Heaven and Earth closely handle them after all. I suggest we wait a few days just to be sure before planning our next move." Chasing Demon answered, reassuring the cultivators around him. ''There might not be an actual god there but there might be resources of a similar level too, magical beasts and cultivators will do anything in their power to seize them. It seems that the equilibrium of the continent will shift once again.'' Noah thought as he fixed his eyes on the horizon, the new continent gave him a strange sensation, his beast''s instincts told him that danger was hidden in that azure environment. Yet, where there was danger, there were also potential gains! "Patriarch, when you said next move, did you mean what I''m thinking?" Another elder expressed his concerns but traces of greed could be seen in its eyes, its intentions could be clearly understood by the others. A new land coming from a higher plane, an environment probably at the peak of the heroic ranks. That meant the possibility of finding resources and lifeforms in the heroic ranks, secrets about the Immortal Lands, leftovers of the divine beings that had walked on that area, there could be literally anything there. Most importantly, if the new continent was found to be more valuable than the old one, the areas of influence of the three big nations would just lose importance since a better goal would be placed in front of those three dominant forces. The goal would be the colonization of that better land! Chasing Demon nodded and revealed a smile as he turned toward that elder. "Yes, we will leave the first exploration to the three big nations of the continent, they can face the dangers hidden there for us. Meanwhile, we will decide if it''s better to join the colonization of the new land or if it''s time to finally strike our continent." Chapter 490: 490. Limits Chasing Demon''s words resounded in the sky above the islands, expectant gazes appeared on the faces of the elders when they realized the number of gains that this chance could bring. Heroic cultivators were constantly looking for techniques and spells that could increase their power and, maybe, enlighten them on the creation of methods to improve their cultivation level. Cultivation techniques and body-nourishing methods in the sixth rank were basically non-existent and carried limitations since they had been created by other cultivators, even the sixth Kesier rune was considered an extremely rare resource. Without methods to increase their ranks, the cultivation of those mighty cultivators would stagnate, only a small percentage of them was somewhat skilled in inscription methods and even those struggled to create techniques. Those old monsters viewed the new continent as the answer that they needed to advance in their cultivation journey, that land came directly from a place where deities lived after all! Of course, Noah had similar feelings but he was rather conflicted about them. He knew that either colonizing the new land or creating a foothold in the old one would greatly benefit the Hive as an organization and the cultivators in it. Yet, there was a problem that he couldn''t avoid no matter which approaches the Hive decided to take. The problem concerned his personal power. Both creating a foothold and colonizing the new continent required power in the heroic ranks, he was on his way toward that realm but reaching it didn''t mean being on the same level of the other heroic cultivators. He wasn''t even thirty-three while the other heroic cultivators had lived for decades, even centuries, he knew that all his battle experience would be worthless in front of those entities. ''Even if I become a complete heroic cultivator, I can''t match those that have accumulated experience and tuned their battle prowess for years, I would just be the weakest of the bunch.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the heated gazes of the elders around him. That situation seemed similar to when Divine Demon''s inheritance was discovered but, in reality, it was completely different. In the human ranks, Noah could fully exploit his constant training, his battle experience, and his aptitude to overwhelm his enemies, most of them lacked fighting methods and had spent way too much time in seclusion anyway. Instead, the heroic ranks were filled by monsters who had lived for many lifespans and had accumulated fighting methods through their long lives, Noah would only be a talented kid in their eyes. ''How can I join this fight? How can I make my power match theirs in a short amount of time?'' Noah thought deeply on the matter while remaining in the air, the elders slowly began to fly back to their habitation, probably to prepare themselves for the imminent chaos. ''I can''t.'' That conclusion hit Noah''s mind as the group dispersed. The heroic ranks were on a completely different level, there wasn''t a quick way to obtain a battle prowess that matched those old monsters even with all the methods and advantages that Noah had. "Don''t afflict yourself too much, the speed of your growth is already something unheard of, don''t try to enter this world if you don''t have the power to affect it." Chasing Demon spoke as he turned and patted Noah''s shoulder before leaving that place too, he had clearly understood what Noah was thinking and had decided to warn him. The elders still there nodded toward Noah as they returned toward the islands, they already considered Noah as their equal but the truth was stronger than feelings, he simply didn''t have the power to affect the imminent clash. Only Noah remained in the air with his gaze still fixed on the new continent, his dense mental energy continuously fueled the Divine deduction technique as he tried to think of a way to sharply increase his power. Ideas rose and crumbled inside his mind, Noah was rich and talented but there was a set limit to how much he could do at the moment. Anything that he could think of was simply reckless or too dangerous and it mainly concerned his body since it was the only real advantage that he would have over other heroic cultivators. Then, an idea took form and, no matter how he analyzed it, it didn''t crumble but only became denser and more concrete. ''Secret arts push one center of power to its limits to achieve a temporary but huge boost of power, the center of power in question though would end up heavily injured and could even be completely wasted.'' Noah reviewed the definition of the secret arts that he had studied after Sarah''s events, he had always been interested in those offensive methods but he had chosen not to learn them because they were too dangerous. Yet, there was one of his centers of power that had drastically changed: His body! ''I''m a hybrid now, what is considered as limits in the secret arts can''t be applied to my body, I''m not bound by the same limitations.'' Magical beasts'' bodies were far stronger than the humans'' ones and hybrids surpassed both species in that field! ''Secret arts that push a body to its limits shouldn''t have any drawback on me since my body is simply on another level. Also, I could couple my new martial art with this temporary boost of power to obtain amazing results.'' Martial arts used body and "Breath" as their foundation, meaning that their effect would be stronger if their foundation was more powerful. Yet, what if someone was to perform a martial art while using a secret art that empowered its body? Noah knew the answer to that question: Larger quantities of "Breath" would be expended to match the improved power of the body but more powerful effects would be produced too. ''This might actually push a martial art in the realm of the spells and even surpass them if the cultivator wields a powerful inscribed weapon. This can work! I just need to solve the issue with my dantian first!'' Once he reached that conclusion, Noah turned and flew back to his mansion to complete his cultivation technique. Chapter 491: 491. Ring Noah had initially decided to take the slow approach and to perfect his cultivation technique by forging an inscribed item in the fourth rank that he would then put inside his dantian. Yet, there were too many problems to solve in that approach, the first of them was that Noah was still unable to forge a rank 4 item. Also, the items that he had managed to forge grew without restraint, their form absorbed "Breath" that further fueled the vortex that they generated, something that unstable couldn''t be put inside a center of power. It was only after the new continent fell from the sky and he felt the urge to match the other heroic cultivators that he understood that the blueprint for the Black hole cultivation technique was wrong and that he had to modify it. ''If I render the condensed "Breath" blessing able to absorb "Breath", then it will even absorb that in my dantian once I put it inside it, there is no fix to this issue. The "black hole" can''t be a sphere, it must be a hole.'' Noah thought as he took out a huge chunk of the "Breath" blessings inside his space-ring and placed it inside the garden of his mansion, the chunk was more than ten meters tall, none of his rooms would be able to contain it. The liquid "Breath" inside his mind was immersed in the sea only to come out as a black whirlpool that threatened to absorb anything in its reach, Noah''s hunger had refined that "Breath" to give it the meaning that he needed. ''The hole must have the dantian as its center so that the absorbed "Breath" can be gathered inside it, the suction force must also be strong enough or the walls of the dantian would simply repel the energy.'' Noah pressed a hand on the big chunk of "Breath" blessing and injected his refined "Breath" inside it, altering its internal composition. Noah had experimented a lot in that procedure already so he knew that the chunk of "Breath" blessing would only become a peak rank 3 item when the forging was completed. Yet, that was his goal. Creating an inscribed item that could make him cultivate both in the human and in the heroic ranks was something too ambitious, it was better to forge different items according to his cultivation level. That approach was more expensive since he would waste "Breath" blessings only to cultivate till the peak of the human ranks but Noah didn''t care, he needed to improve as fast as he could if he wanted to hope to enter the oncoming battle and seize some benefits. ''A ring instead of a sphere, flexible instead of fixed.'' Noah repeated those words inside his mind as he modified the internal composition of the chunk of "Breath" blessing. The uneven crystal began to compress under Noah''s control, the more than ten meters tall azure mineral became smaller and smaller as time passed. Noah stood still, all his focus was on the restricting mineral. The azure halo that had filled the garden quickly darkened, the condensing "Breath" blessing began to lose its ability to attract "Breath" of all the elements and only made the one of the darkness element converge, that type of modification was something that Noah had learnt to do even before going in the Efrana nation. His experience with the Elemental forging method and with the procedure allowed Noah to safely apply some modifications to the condensing process. Also, since the item was only in the human ranks, Noah had full confidence in completing the forging without making any mistake. The mineral became smaller, it soon reached the shape of a person only to further compress, Noah was forced to hold it in his hands at some point. In the end, the huge chunk of "Breath" blessing became a minute black ring that forced "Breath" of the darkness element to converge in its center. Noah analyzed the ring in his hands, he sensed how "Breath" with the purity of the third rank accumulated at its center without ever stopping. Then, Noah took a black saber from his space-ring and cut the skin and muscles in the frontal part of his low-waist. He was used to that practice since he had trained in the Dantian''s opening in the past, yet, he had no intention to hurt his dantian at that time. It took almost all his strength to open a wound that reached his center of power but, in the end, Noah managed to do it without hurting his other internal organs. Noah inserted the black ring inside his low-waist and placed it around his dantian, he put it away from its center so that it wouldn''t hinder the enlargement of the dantian. Then, Noah retracted his bloodied hand and the wound healed immediately after. His focus went on his dantian as he analyzed the effect of his creation: "Breath" was attracted by the ring and redirected at its center where one side of his dantian was, the "Breath" passed the walls of his organ and began to accumulate on its own, it was as if Noah was cultivating at that moment. Of course, there were issues that Noah had already predicted. The item that he had just forged was at the peak of the third rank, meaning that it absorbed "Breath" suitable for a cultivator at the peak of the solid stage. Meanwhile, Noah was only in the liquid stage, the dark liquid inside his dantian accumulated at a fast pace, forcing the walls of his center of power to enlarge at a high speed. Also, he couldn''t turn off the suction capabilities of the ring, Noah would have to manually remove it if he wanted to interrupt his cultivation. ''I will keep this prototype on until the breakthrough to the solid stage and until the peak of the third rank, my drugs should reduce the stress caused by the continuous enlargement of the dantian. Now, I should start setting the blueprint for its heroic version and I should also focus on my battle prowess.'' Noah thought as he cleaned the blood from his low-waist and prepared to seclude himself again. However, it was at that point that a familiar threat was sensed by his consciousness, making him raise his gaze toward the sky. Thunders cracked as black clouds began to cover the azure sky, Noah was confused when he saw that a Heaven Tribulation was forming over island nineteen. Chapter 492: 492. Heaven Tribulation ''It''s not aiming for me.'' Noah realized when he sensed the aura of the clouds, their target was somewhere outside of his mansion. Heilong''s wings unfolded behind his back and carried him high in the air, his Blood companion had virtually recovered its peak form, it needed only a few more days under the nourishment of Noah''s mental energy to be completely fixed. Noah''s consciousness enveloped his small island and soon found the reason behind the black clouds. In a certain place next to the shore, a burly cultivator was sitting cross-legged on the sand illuminated by the purple halo of the exoskeleton. Noah immediately recognized the cultivator, he was Bruce, the rank 3 cultivator that had once been the leader of the thieves'' faction of the Chasing demon sect and that had been at the peak of the solid stage for many years. ''He is attempting to become a rank 4 cultivator!'' It wasn''t hard for Noah to understand what was going on. Bruce had been at the peak of the third rank for many years, only the lack of techniques and Sarah''s injury had forced him to stop cultivating, it wasn''t a surprise that he could approach the Tribulation after those issues had been solved. ''He has probably saved merit points in those years to buy a cultivation technique in the fourth rank, he should have a fire aptitude so that purchase mustn''t have been that expensive. I wonder if he has made enough preparations.'' Noah thought as he flew near Bruce, he wanted to see if he could absorb the "Breath" released by the black clouds once they were destroyed. Of course, if the situation needed it, he would destroy the cloud himself. "Prince, let him be, the Tribulation would only switch target if you were to help him. Also, he needs to pass it by himself or his potential could be threatened." Elder Iris'' voice resounded behind him while he was trying to near Bruce, Noah turned to perform a slight bow toward the elder that had appeared in the air before deciding to limit himself to watch the events. "Potential?" Noah asked, he had already experienced a similar event but he didn''t understand the meaning behind the elder''s words. Elder Iris didn''t move her gaze away from Bruce as she began to explain. "You can overcome the Heaven Tribulation by destroying the black clouds or by waiting for their power to be depleted. However, in the second approach, your dantian wouldn''t receive any nourishment from them, coming out generally weaker than the dantians of the cultivators who have defeated them." Noah listened to her words and inspected the black clouds again, they covered a larger area compared to what Noah had witnessed when he became a hybrid but the power they contained seemed somewhat lower, they seemed tuned around peak rank 3 cultivators. ''These clouds are different from the ones that I''ve experienced¡­ Those that have appeared against me only wanted to destroy while these seem to carry a deeper meaning.'' During the breakthrough between ranks, the dantian of a cultivator would be nourished by the impurities released by the boiling "Breath". Yet, apparently, the dantian needed additional nourishment when reaching the heroic ranks, such nourishment came from the black clouds sent by Heaven. ''I wonder if the reason why the God of the Empire is stuck here is that he has failed during the Heaven Tribulation for the seventh rank.'' Noah found the answer that he was looking for and let his mind wander. Meanwhile, the first lightning bolts began to be launched toward the shore where Bruce was sitting. A series of thick lightning bolts fell on the ground, a huge cloud of smoke and sand rose in the air as the attack crashed on Bruce. However, a wave of blue flames soon filled the area and engulfed the smoke around him. Bruce''s figure reappeared in the open, his body was covered by a layer of blue flames that acted as a form of protection and that could be used to fuel his spells, Noah couldn''t help but find some similarities between that form and his Demonic form spell. More lightning bolts fell toward Bruce, the latter wielded a huge hammer which took fire when it entered his grasp. Bruce swung the hammer toward the incoming bolts, his muscles bulged as he aimed his heavy inscribed weapon toward Heaven''s attack. The lightning bolts and the hammer clashed, Bruce was flung back due to the impact but his protective layer of flames managed to prevent any injury, leaving him unharmed. On the other hand, blue flames spread over the bodies of the flashes of lightning, shattering them and reaching for the clouds where they were created. A blue fire took place in the sky, part of the black clouds'' power was consumed as the fire burned before it was extinguished under a series of sparks. Bruce had stood up in the meantime and a huge ape made of blue flames had appeared next to him. Noah felt the power behind that spell, he was now certain that Bruce was at the peak of the third rank with both mind and dantian! The ape launched itself in the air and flew toward the black clouds, Bruce limited himself to create more apes since he couldn''t fly and his martial art couldn''t reach that place in the sky. Explosions resounded in the air as lightning bolts pierced the apes which released flames in every direction as they were destroyed, some of the bolts even reached for Bruce on the ground as they destroyed his spells. Bruce didn''t seem surprised, he swung his hammer with incredible dexterity as he intercepted the lightning bolts that were aiming for him, leaving his defense to the layer of fire around him. More apes appeared next to him and flew in the air, tongues of flames began to accumulate in the air between him and the clouds. ''He is preparing his final attack!'' Noah could clearly understand Bruce''s tactic since he was observing the battle from a safe distance and since his mental sphere could sense that Bruce had still some connection with the flames that lingered in the air. Apes made of flames continued to be destroyed and Bruce continued to fend off the lightning bolts that reached for him, the defensive layer around him thinned every time it endured one of Heaven''s attacks. Then, when the defensive spell was about to be broken, Bruce raised his hands toward the sky and controlled the many tongues of flames in the air to converge on the position of the black clouds. A loud explosion occurred and the sky above island nineteen was swept by a blinding blue halo. Chapter 493: 493. Suffocating The black clouds dispersed in many directions as the blue flames exploded in their position, a dense "Breath" was left in their place which condensed and reached for Bruce on the ground. Bruce closed his eyes while the "Breath" of Heaven and Earth nourished his dantian, his pale complexion slowly recovered its color during the process. Then, he joined his hands over his low-waist and a small blue flame formed between them. The flames still lingering on the ground and the sky started to tilt in Bruce''s direction, their form began to waver and crumble under the suction force of his cultivation technique. The flame between Bruce''s hands became brighter as the "Breath" that carried the laws of the flames was absorbed and, after a while, it entered his body in the spot where his dantian was. Bruce''s skin blushed when the "Breath" in the fourth rank entered his body, he opened his eyes and carefully placed a foot in the air while wearing an expectant expression. Bruce''s foot seemed to have found some sort of foothold in the air, a smile appeared on his face as he pressed forward with his other leg, he soon found himself walking in the air. Bruce was flying! The reason why heroic cultivators could fly without the help of a spell was that their rank 4 "Breath" was so dense that they could simply step on it! ''He will probably stabilize his condition and attempt in the Earth Tribulation, the Hive has gained another heroic cultivator. I bet that similar events will happen everywhere on the continent, I can''t fall behind.'' Noah thought as he gave one last look at Bruce and turned back to his mansion. His cultivation technique was only in the third rank but was meant to directly absorb solid "Breath", he knew that his time inside the liquid stage will be short. Also, it absorbed "Breath" of the darkness element without ever stopping, Noah would have to manually remove the ring around his dantian to stop cultivating. However, that wasn''t his intention. ''I have been in the liquid stage for almost two years, it would take another two of them to reach the solid stage under normal circumstances but nothing is normal about me. My other centers of power will boost the growth of my dantian and my current cultivation technique is something that I''ve personally created, its suction force should be superior to the rank 4 one that I was using previously. Also, it allows me to cultivate without break, this will put my dantian under enormous stress but I can keep it healthy with Divine Demon''s drugs, I''ll remove the device only if I see that my dantian can''t keep up with its growing speed even with the drugs.'' Noah entered the largest training area inside his mansion, that area was meant for the practice of martial arts and had inscriptions on its walls to reinforce them. ''One year for the solid stage, three to four years for the peak of the third rank. In four years, I need to create a rank 4 cultivation technique, an offensive martial art that suits my level and skills, and find a secret art that can be used by hybrids, I would need to create that too otherwise. I need to also train with the fifth Kesier rune, eat to nourish my body, and improve the power of my flames¡­ It''s time to stop playing around with human cultivators and join the world of the entities.'' As soon as he set his schedule, Noah began to start working on it, his eagerness to explore the new world forced him to begin another period of seclusion. . . . While the Hive chose to remain temporary passive to the fall of a piece of the Immortal Lands, the other big nations didn''t. They were the rulers of the continent after all, no other organization had the power to start the exploration of the new land. Preparations were quickly made, small groups of cultivators were assembled and equipped with the necessary inscribed items needed for the quest, even the Papral nation, which was the most distant big nation from the new land, began to form teams to send in the new continent. Suppressing the revolts on their areas of influence became a secondary goal, exploring and colonizing the piece of Immortal Lands became their priority! Ships sailed from the western coast of the continent, the Utra nation even employed some of their flying ships to reach the new land faster. The cultivators sent were all elites in the third rank, the number of heroic cultivators sent by each powerful force was unclear but their presence was obvious. The new continent came from a plane inhabited by deities, there was a high chance that rank 5 and 6 lifeforms had survived the fall to the Mortal Lands and were still walking on its terrain. The first nation to reach the new land was the Utra nation, the speed its air-ships couldn''t be matched by simple inscribed ships, fifty soldiers at the peak of the third rank landed on the azure terrain that stood over the layer of ice. The environment there was filled with "Breath" directly radiated by the ground, it was as if the terrain was made of a mineral similar to the Obsidian Crystals but had abilities akin to the "Breath" blessings: The ground contained and released "Breath" that was then confined in the area above it, it didn''t disperse in the world outside the piece of Immortal Lands. Also, such density of "Breath" felt almost suffocating for those troops in the human ranks, they felt as if their bodies were weighed down by some sort of invisible pressure that affected their correct functioning. Their minds felt heavier and even breathing was harder there, it was clear that they were simply too weak to explore that place. The layer of ice under the ground had many magical beasts'' corpses inside it, the God''s spell had used the water of the sea as fuel after all, many lifeforms had died as the sea turned into pillars of ice that crashed on the meteorite. Yet, even in that unknown and hostile environment, the soldiers of the Utra nation began to work to set up the first encampment on the new continent. Chapter 494: 494. Exploration Rank 3 cultivators hadn''t been sent to explore the new continent, their role was to set up and protect the encampments from the forces of the other big nations. The environment of the piece of Immortal Lands was simply too hostile toward human cultivator, only those in the heroic rank could hope to explore it. The soldiers of the Utra nation quickly set up a series of tents and a protective formation around their perimeter, they soon discovered that formations didn''t need Credits to fuel them because they could directly use the "Breath" in the terrain to work. That discovery accelerated the plans of the Elbas family, establishing formations without the need for Credits would facilitate the creation of teleportation matrixes which would greatly improve the stability of their camps. While the rank 3 soldiers were busy creating the needed formation and finishing their tasks, the heroic cultivators that had accompanied those troops began to explore the new land. The forces of the other big nations were still on their way in the sea, the Utra nation couldn''t waste the advantage obtained thanks to their air-ships. Three cultivators flew in the air above the azure ground, their gazes were on the horizon where mountains and plains were filled by strange and powerful plants. Those three cultivators were the heroic assets that the Elbas family had sent with the first batch of soldiers and were specialized in fields that would be useful for the exploration. Of course, all three of them were complete heroic cultivators. "Every plant here is at least a rank 3 material, I won''t be surprised if we were to find extinct species or even hostile magical plants." A tall bald man wearing a loose golden robe spoke, his face didn''t have any trace of hair, even his eyebrows were missing. That man was Lord Delbert, he was one of the researchers of the academy and was specialized in magical plants. "I can''t sense any magical beast here, it seems that the fall has killed most of the creatures that inhabited the coastline. What a pity, such a waste¡­" Another man spoke as he swept the area where their troops had landed with his consciousness. If Noah was there, he would recognize him: He was Professor Roy, the professor of the magical beasts'' course in the academy. Professor Roy was a short man with curly black hair and a long white beard, his eyebrows were gray and so long that they were able to hide his dark eyes. "Caution first, gods have walked on this land, we can''t expect it to be too simple." The other heroic cultivator spoke, trying to suppress the excitement of its companions. Her name was Lady Eth, she, just like Thaddeus, had studied the space-runes of the Elbas family and had become quite skillful in using them. She had long golden hair and blue eyes, she also looked quite young and her role was pretty obvious: She had to create an escape route in case the exploration became too dangerous. Those three powerful entities were rank 4 cultivators after all, losing even one of them would greatly affect the power of the Royals and endanger their position as overlords of the southern side of the continent. "Lady Eth, as the only one among us who has the Elbas bloodline, you should be the one to guide us." Lord Delbert spoke, his manners were polite as he gestured to Lady Eth to take the lead. Lady Eth turned toward Roy with a questioning gaze, she wanted to understand if he approved that decision. "I''m fine with anything as long as we take the needed time to analyze the fauna of this land." Professor Roy answered without moving his gaze from the terrain, he seemed worried that some magical beasts would escape his search if he didn''t pay attention. "Let''s move on then." Lady Eth nodded as she took the vanguard position and flew deeper into the continent, the other two heroic cultivators followed closely behind her. Their journey was quite uneventful, no flying creatures could be seen there, Professor Roy loudly guessed that they had flown away before the land fell into the Mortal Lands, managing to remain in the Immortal ones. The "Breath" radiated from the ground though became even thicker as they went deeper into the continent, it seemed that the azure ground created some sort of greenhouse effect that incremented the density of the "Breath" toward the center of the new land. However, that density couldn''t affect those heroic cultivators. They absorbed the "Breath" inside the matter which contained the laws of Heaven and Earth, the "Breath" in the air wasn''t able to apply any pressure on those existences. "This is a forest of rank 4 magical plants. They are Silver-yellow woods which are a carnivorous species of trees, it seems that all the forest has died during the fall though." Lord Delbert spoke as he pointed at a series of leafless trees on the ground. Their trunks were silver and their branches resembled sharp shining fangs, they were supposed to have yellow leaves but it seemed that the fall from the Immortal Lands had destroyed all of them, killing the trees in the process. "Are you sure there are dead?" Lady Eth asked. Lord Delbert put a pensive expression and nodded after sweeping the forest a few times with his consciousness before adding a few details. "Their trunks are dead but their roots are still absorbing nourishment from the ground. This species is extinct on the continent but some specimens can still be found in some small islands ruled by magical beasts. However, their vitality has never been tested in-depth, especially when paired with such an extraordinary terrain. We can seize a few trunks and see what happens." Lady Eth nodded at his explanation and gestured to her two companions to follow her on the ground. The forest of Silver-yellow woods was made of more than three hundred rank 4 magical plants, their value was extremely high and the heroic cultivator of the Utra nation would rather be the ones to seize them instead of leaving them to other nations. Lord Delbert wielded a sharp sickle that he carefully swung toward the base of each branch before moving to the trunk of the tree. Professor Roy and Lady Eth guarded him as he focused on the plants, he was the only one among them who knew how to precisely store that material without ruining it after all. However, just as Lord Delbert had predicted, the Silver-yellow woods reacted in an unusual way. The azure terrain began to crack as the roots of the magical trees rose from the ground and tried to stab the three cultivators that were plundering the forest. More than one hundred sharp roots converged in the position of the heroic cultivators, that was the attack of more than thirty magical plants in the fourth rank! Yet, a torrent of red flames scorched the terrain from where the roots were coming out, annihilating that attack with one spell. Chapter 495: 495. Hostile "Thank you, Professor Roy." Lady Eth spoke as she gazed at the short man who had waved his hand to cast the spell. The attack of those magical plants was fended off with a single spell, they didn''t even have a chance to reach the three heroic cultivators. "Lord Delbert, it would be nice if you quickened your pace." Roy spoke toward the cultivator wielding the sickle, he didn''t want to remain in the attack range of those plants. "Plants aren''t like beasts, they need precise motions to be handled and seized, I won''t risk ruining this precious material." However, Lord Delbert didn''t change his pace and continued to slowly sever the branches and trunks of the Silver-yellow wood. Roy snorted as he stood side to side with Lady Eth to protect him, he didn''t care about magical plants at all but he would have the same behavior if he was studying magical beasts so he simply shut up and focused on the azure terrain. The Silver-yellow woods were a carnivorous magical plant, they defended themselves when they saw their trunks being seized. More roots rose from the ground and tried to reach the cultivators but another wave of flames incinerated the terrain from which they were coming out, there was nothing that those plants could do to defend themselves against those mighty entities. Lord Delbert continued to seize the materials and store them inside his space-ring, more than fifty trees had already been severed from their roots by that time. It was at that point that an earthquake swept the area and created a fissure that divided the forest into two. Lord Delbert stopped cutting the trees and focused on the depths of the fissure, a blinding silver radiance was radiated from the azure halo below him. It took him less than an instant to understand what was going on, he quickly warned his companions as that realization hit him. "Lady Eth, we must escape, now!" Delbert didn''t use words to communicate but he used his consciousness instead which was a quicker method to transmit information. Lady Eth didn''t hesitate and threw a series of runes toward the two cultivators before the golden runes on her white robe shone, the three of them disappeared from their position and reappeared somewhere high in the sky. Right after they teleported away, a thick root thirty meters wide rose at high speed from the fissure and cut the air where the cultivators once where. An ominous aura was radiated by the root which continued to rise in the sky, becoming something similar to the silver trunks of the Silver-yellow woods. "What is happening?" Lady Eth asked as she watched the scene, the aura radiated by that root made even her tremble. Lord Delbert sighed before he explained the matter to his companions. "I thought the trunks and branches of the trees had died due to the fall, I was wrong. The Silver-yellow woods in this forest have gathered all their "Breath" in their roots and joined it together to create a seed from which they could live again. We are witnessing the birth of a rank 5 Silver-yellow wood." Silver branches came out of the thick root which seemed to have become the trunk of the newborn magical plant, the "Breath" in the terrain was absorbed by the plant to fuel its growth. The branches continued to grow for hundreds of meters until sharp twigs came out of them and the first yellow leaves began to appear. It took about twenty minutes for the process to be completed, a giant tree stood where there once was the forest of Silver-yellow woods, its yellow leaves filled its upper body with a blinding radiance. The three heroic cultivators patiently watched the scene and Lord Delbert even drew the event happening in front of him on a small notebook that he had taken from his space-ring, it didn''t happen often to see the birth of a rank 5 magical plants after all. "It seems that this path is blocked, should we explore the northern side?" Lady Eth asked her two companions, their power could allow them to surpass the rank 5 magical plant but they could simply continue exploring the new land somewhere else, they were only the first batch of cultivators from the Utra nation. The other two cultivators nodded, continuing in that direction wasn''t worth the risk, there had to be other paths toward the deeper parts of the new continent. Also, their job was to secure as many resources as they could before the other forces of the continent arrived, dealing with a rank 5 existence wasn''t the best use of their time. As for why Lady Eth had chosen the northern side, it was because the other big nations would most likely land there, meaning that they would be negating them some resources if they were to explore those areas first. Unluckily for them, similar events happened whenever they went. The three heroic cultivators found a pack of Silent hyenas, the pack was made by more than forty specimens in the fourth rank. Professor Roy immediately went to analyze those magical beasts, he wanted to understand which kind of mutation that species had experienced after living on the Immortal Lands, but, while he was dissecting one of their specimens, a shockwave filled the area where the heroic cultivators were. A rank 5 Silent hyena shot toward them at high speed, it was only thanks to Lady Eth that they managed to escape the assault of that magical beast unharmed. Then, they found a large swamp that spread for many kilometers. At that time, they didn''t even have the chance to near the smelly area of the swamp before toxic fumes shot in their direction. The environment of the swamp seemed filled by so many poisonous beings that even the fumes released by the magical plants and beasts in the fourth rank were enough to make the three heroic cultivators hesitate. Also, it was clear that stronger beings hid in the depths of the swamp. Of course, they managed to seize some resources every time but their gains didn''t amount to much. Then, the forces of the Empire reached the new continent, followed by those of the Papral nation. Chapter 496: 496. Stele The newly arrived forces didn''t clash with those of the Utra nation, the other big nations had sent explorative parties too, only a few heroic cultivators had accompanied the human assets. Also, since even cultivators at the peak of the third rank were restricted by the environment of the new continent, the human assets could only manage the construction of the encampments and their formations, only heroic cultivators had the power to survive the exploration. The piece of Immortal Lands was inhabited by extremely powerful beings, the heroic cultivators sent by the Elbas family had confirmed two rank 5 beings and hundreds of rank 4 in just a few days of exploration. The heroic cultivators of the Shandal Empire and Papral nation experienced the same events, the new continent seemed a massive danger zone where rank 5 beings could be found everywhere. And that was only the external part of the continent. The "Breath" released by the azure ground became denser the more one reached for the center of the new land, those heroic cultivators were almost sure that rank 6 beings would be found once they ventured for its depths. Yet, that was to be expected. The Immortal Lands were the place where gods lived, the almost complete absence of beings in the human ranks had been predicted even before forming the exploration parties. However, the simple resources obtainable from powerful beasts or plants wasn''t enough to push the three big nations to deploy their strongest forces to colonize the new continent, those materials could be found in any danger zone even if in less quantity after all, they needed far more than that. The environment of the new continent was amazing for heroic cultivators, its foundation was sturdy and filled with "Breath" which made it the perfect place where they could absorb "Breath" that carried laws concerning their elements, the matter of the new land wouldn''t crumble as easily as that of the other territories of the Mortal Lands. Nevertheless, even that wasn''t enough to start a colonization. Heroic cultivators could simply choose specific places in the piece of Immortal Lands where to set up caves or training areas, leaving the remaining parts of the continent untouched. What they were looking for was something connected to the divine realms! The exploration continued, the forces of the three big nations silently decided to divide the areas to explore, there was no need to fight over them since they had yet to find something worth fighting for. Only ten cultivators had been sent by the three big nations, the Empire had sent four of them while both the Utra nation and the Papral nation limited themselves to three, the higher number of heroic assets was a clear power move to show who really ruled over the Mortal Lands. Danger zones filled the surface of the new continent, the poisonous swamp, the rank 5 Silver-yellow wood, the bushland ruled by the Silent hyenas were only those discovered by the forces of the Utra nation. Similar areas were discovered as the exploration continued, there was a thick forest filled with rank 4 Giant apes where the existence of two rank 5 beasts had been confirmed, there was a large area filled with small rivers where thousands of rank 4 Swarming piranha lived, their sheer number was enough to scare away most cultivators in the heroic ranks. There was a wasteland where rank 4 Steeled tumbleweeds hunted for any living being that contained blood, a huge mountain where packs of rank 4 wolves of different species each lead by a rank 5 creature continuously fought each other for more land. It was as if the new continent was a system of danger zones where rank 5 beings thrived! The exploration though didn''t cause any victims. Heroic cultivators had the innate ability to fly while the flying beings of the piece of Immortal Lands had remained in the higher plane when the continent fell, there was virtually no entity that could threaten the lives of the heroic assets of the three big nations. Yet, even though weeks passed, no signs of traces left by divine beings were found. Then, something peculiar happened. Void Hand was flying alone above the wasteland filled by Steeled tumbleweeds, that area seemed one of the few spots where rank 5 beings were absent. He was one of the heroic cultivators sent by the Empire, it was custom in that nation to give battle titles to their heroic cultivators according to their abilities, Void Hand was named after his weaponless martial art which made him able to stop spells with his bare hands. He had an average stature, short black hair and thick eyebrows of the same shade, the absence of beard revealed his pointy chin. The truth was that his martial art was something that he had personally created after entering the heroic ranks, his water aptitude made him well versed in defensive measures and he had managed to fuse some of his old spells with the forms of the martial arts that he was studying. However, there was a problem that afflicted him. He had become a heroic cultivator when he was already quite old and cultivating with a technique created by someone else didn''t increase his power fast enough to compensate for the passage of time. Simply speaking, his lifespan was about to reach its end. Void Hand had chosen to explore the new continent hoping to find something that would increase his level or prolong his life and he was the most eager of his group to find traces of divinities. That was the reason why he was flying alone while his three companions had decided to return to the encampment to rest, finding anything useful for his cultivation was literally vital for him. He flew past the wasteland only to find a large lake next to a barren mountain. No magical beasts or plants inhabited that place, Void Hand took a mental note of that place since it seemed to be the perfect area where heroic cultivators could safely cultivate. Yet, it was at that point that he noticed a stele in the distance that radiated some kind of ancient aura. Void Hand neared it with caution but his attention was soon captivated by the signs graven on the monument. The signs seemed a form of writing that he couldn''t read, yet, there seemed to be a profound meaning contained in them. Void Hand stared at the stele and slowly landed on the ground, he didn''t blink his eyes even once as he sat cross-legged on the azure terrain and kept his gaze on the signs as if it was glued to them. Chapter 497: 497. Water Void Hand didn''t return to the encampment of the Shandal Empire for many days, the other three heroic cultivators of his faction began to worry about his safety until they ultimately chose to look for him. They knew in which direction he had gone after all, it was normal to be equipped with tracking devices when exploring an unknown and dangerous land. Three figures flew in the air above the wasteland in the direction of the barren mountain in the distance, they were aware that Void Hand was somewhere near the lake that they could see past that area. They found him sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of a tall stele which had signs orderly written on its surface, an ancient aura was radiated by the monument but they couldn''t sense anything else. However, when they saw Void Hand''s face, they realized that something was wrong. Void Hand was utterly pale, his hair and eyebrows, which had once been black, had become of a gray shade, it seemed as if his lifespan was being consumed as he stared at the stele. Also, lines of blood fell from his bloodshot eyes, it was as if he was crying red tears. It was clear that whatever he was experiencing had gone out of his control. The others of his faction didn''t hesitate, they used their joint consciousnesses to restrain Void Hand''s mental energy to a small area and used their restrictive spells to immobilize him. A whip made of flames coiled around his body, six small snakes rose from the terrain and blocked his limbs, a large sphere made of compressed air surrounded his body and lifted him in the air, Void Hand found himself bound and transported away from the stele. However, he only realized what was happening after his eyes could no longer see the signs on the stele. Void Hand entered a frenzied state when he couldn''t see the signs anymore, he tried to break free from his bindings with his physical strength but his body couldn''t oppose the power of those spells. Then, he redirected his anger toward the three cultivators that were carrying him away, he tried to cast spells but his consciousness had been limited to a small area around him, he couldn''t make his attack reach them. "Void Hand, it''s us, wake up!" One of the heroic cultivators spoke, hoping that his companion would recover his mental state without the need for stronger measures. Void Hand gave the cultivator an angry look until, eventually, he seemed to recognize his companion and he slowly calmed down. Confusion was clearly shown in his gaze as he inspected his surroundings, it was as if he had no memories of the moments spent in front of the stele. "What happened?" The same cultivator spoke when he saw that his companion had returned to reality. He was the man who had created the sphere around Void Hand, his name was Spirit Stride due to his signature movement spell and he was also the leader of the group of heroic cultivators that the Empire had sent. "Water¡­ water can be anything but it can''t be void. Haha! I was wrong! So wrong! The path of the void hand leads to a dead-end, water must be something to grow stronger!" Void Hand exclaimed after recognizing Spirit Stride, he looked ecstatic as he moved his gaze to his palms. The other three heroic cultivators remained silent as they watched the scene, they weren''t sure if their companion had had some kind of breakthrough or if he had just gone mad. His next words only increased their confusion. "Spirit Stride, please, attack me with your wind blades, I must test something." Void Hand tried to perform a bow as he spoke but he was still bound by the spells so he could only make a goofy gesture. Another moment of silence followed his request, Spirit Stride didn''t know what to do. Yet, he trusted his companion and he was a citizen of the Empire, he would never reject the request of a fellow cultivator, especially if it concerned his power. Also, attacking Void Hand was the perfect way to test his mental state. Spirit Stride nodded to his companions who dispersed their spells after he did the same, Void Hand was freed and he straightened his posture in the air as he waited for the leader to attack. Spirit Stride stretched his index and middle finger and swung his hand many times as if he was wielding a blade. Dozens of sharp blades were created in the air and shot at a high speed toward Void Hand who still had an ecstatic expression. The latter raised his hand which shone with a blue light before a dark glow sparkled at the center of his palm. That move was his Void hand, the martial art from which his name had come from. The wind blades crashed on his hand but their forms dissipated when they came in contact with the dark glow, Void Hand''s defensive technique was indeed amazing. However, after all the wind blades had been absorbed by the palm, a series of identical blue slashes shot out of it, aiming for the amazed Spirit Stride. That attack was basically identical to his, the only difference was the "Breath" of the water element that had been used to create the blades. Spirit Stride easily dodged the attack, he had used only a fraction of his power to attack his companion after all, and shot a confused gaze toward Void Hand before turning to look at the stele. "Did you gain enlightenment from those signs? I can feel that they radiate an ancient aura but I don''t sense anything else." Spirit Stride asked and looked at the other two heroic cultivators to be sure that he wasn''t the only one that could only sense that. Void Hand kept on smiling as he answered according to what he had understood about the monument. "I think a powerful being of the water element has taken notes there a long time in the past. I felt part of his understanding of that element being passed down to me, I fear that the price to pay for such gains is your lifespan though." It was after those words that the four cultivators from the Empire silently understood that they had finally found traces of divine beings. Chapter 498: 498. Divine The matter about the stele was kept a secret by the forces of the Empire but their behavior clearly showed that they had found something valuable. Another two heroic cultivators were sent by the Empire to the new continent, the forces of the Utra nation and Papral nation were immediately able to guess that something interesting was happening when they saw the reinforcements reach the enemy camp. Of course, all three forces were keeping an eye on each other, the arrival of two heroic cultivators wasn''t something that could be missed. Yet, there was something that the forces of the Utra nation and Papral nation couldn''t possibly discover at that time: The two new heroic cultivators that had reached the new nation both had a water aptitude! The Shandal Empire wanted to test if the stele could enlighten every cultivator with a water aptitude or if there were other conditions for that! The only thing that the heroic cultivators from the other forces could see though was that both cultivators had ventured somewhere after the wasteland containing Steeled tumbleweeds and came back visibly aged but with fervent gazes. Making a heroic cultivator age wasn''t a simple matter, those entities could live for centuries after all, it was clear that what was happening beyond the wasteland definitely wasn''t simple. The other two forces set up a secret meeting, the Utra nation and the Papral nation had to know what the Empire had found, they couldn''t let it became stronger than it already was. However, the forces of the Papral nation backed from the secret meeting just one day before it was meant to happen without providing any explanation to the heroic cultivators sent by the Elbas family. Elder Eve was one of the three heroic cultivators sent by the Council of the Papral nation, she was exploring the areas past the huge mountain where the packs of wolves continuously fought each other a few days before the appointed meeting with the forces of the Utra nation when she found something peculiar. The huge mountain was connected to a series of other smaller peaks, creating a mountain chain that expanded diagonally on the continent and that occupied part of its northern side. Elder Eve was simply exploring those mountain peaks as her two companions negotiated with the heroic cultivators sent by the Elbas family, her dark eyes swept the area below her, trying to find a place where there weren''t that many magical beasts. It was at that moment that she noticed a deep fissure on one of the shorter mountains. Her white hair fluttered in the wind as she neared the fissure, the form of the crack on the rocky side of the mountain was simply too even to be something that had formed naturally. An ancient aura was radiated from the fissure, Elder Eve felt as if thousands of sharp blades were piercing her consciousness as she continued to analyze it. It was only when her mental energy was almost depleted that she moved her gaze away from the mountain and contacted her companions. The other two elders from the Council took less than a day to reach her and were equally amazed by her discovery. "It seems as if a mighty expert was practicing its swordplay as it flew through these mountains. We might understand the true meaning behind its forms if we meditate here¡­ Forget the meeting with the Utra nation, we must inform the mainland of this discovery." Elder Lorna spoke, she was the leader of the heroic assets sent by the Papral nation and it was her role to decide regarding the matters of the new continent. The forces of the Utra nation saw how, some weeks after the secret meeting was canceled, reinforcements coming from the Papral nation landed on the shores of the new continent, carrying three heroic cultivators with them. Both the Shandal Empire and the Papral nation now had six rank 4 cultivators flying on the new land, only the Utra nation had still three of them who were trying to figure out the reason behind the behavior of the other two big nations. However, they soon discovered something too. Lord Delbert was exploring the lands on the southern side of the continent since the northern ones had been occupied by the forces of the other two big nations. Professor Roy was analyzing the Silent hyenas, kidnapping a rank 4 specimen every time he dove in the bushland that they occupied, while Lady Eth was trying to set up meetings with the heroic cultivators of the other nations without any success, Lord Delbert simply decided to look for peculiar plants that didn''t exist on the Mortal Lands. As he flew past the rank 5 Silver-yellow wood though, he found a dark gorge hidden under many rank 4 Spiked roots. The gorge radiated an ancient aura and the density of the "Breath" in the area increased the deeper one went in the gorge. Yet, soft growls could be heard coming from the darkness of the canyon, Lord Delbert felt a chill running down his spine every time one of those sounds reached his ears. It was clear that the canyon was inhabited by powerful beasts! Lord Delbert quickly notified his two companions who reached him in less than a day. Professor Roy had a heated gaze as he stared at the depths of the gorge, his hands trembled when he heard the growls of the beasts hidden in the darkness but his excitement was clearly shown by his expression. "What do you think, Professor Roy?" Lady Eth asked after a while, she was more interested in the utility of that place rather than to the living beings that inhabited it. Roy scratched the side of his head as he sorted his thoughts, he soon formulated a hypothesis that he explained to his companions. "This place is surely inhabited by rank 6 creatures but I don''t understand why they won''t come out in the open, they can basically rule the coast after all. I think this is either a dungeon or a training area created by a divine being a long time ago and it should be worth exploring it." Professor Roy finished his explanation and turned toward Lady Eth to see her reaction but he was surprised to find her communicating through an inscribed item. The truth was that she had decided to contact the mainland when she understood that they had probably found traces of divine entities. Chapter 499: 499. Sparks All three big nations found traces of divine entities which made one thing clear: It was worth investing resources to colonize the new continent! Yet, that matter was troublesome and had to be handled carefully. The new continent was filled with beings in the heroic ranks while creating cities or even simple living areas required periodic cleaning operations to control the population of the threats around them. Also, the first operation would be the most difficult one since it would require a complete cleanse of certain areas, meaning facing the magical plants or beasts inhabiting it when they were at their strongest. There were other matters to consider. The new continent had once been part of the Immortal Lands, even the experts exploring it didn''t know if the reproduction of the powerful beings inhabiting it would follow normal patterns. There was the issue of the "Breath" in the environment too, cultivators at the peak of the human ranks were barely able to breathe there, it would be impossible to create footholds where the human assets of the nations of the continent could live unless something was done about it. However, none of those issues would be solved unless the three big nations started to send enough heroic cultivators for the task. The three big nations began to plan their next moves, even rank 5 cultivators were sent to better explore the new land and to assess how valuable those traces of divine beings were. The gorge found by the Utra nation, the cut on the mountain chain found by the Papral nation, the stele found by the Shandal Empire, those three spots became the focus of the heroic assets of the rulers of the continent. Soon, more traces left by divine beings were found as the exploration continued. The Utra nation found a giant footprint on an area with muddy terrain, soft tremors were released by it which created some sort of defensive field around it. It was soon hypothesized that a divine magical beast had walked on that terrain and left traces of its innate understanding of the earth element in that footprint, cultivators with the same aptitude were sent from the continent to meditate there and test if they could gain some enlightenment. The Shandal Empire found a forest where shining fruits grew, their brilliance was able to momentarily improve the mental capabilities of the heroic cultivators that had found them, it was unclear how effective they would be once eaten. The Papral nation found a stele similar to that found by the Empire, the signs on it concerned the water element again but it seemed that the divine being that had written them was focusing on a different aspect at that time. Of course, all these events happened over time and took even more heroic cultivators away from the continent. The nations that had started rebelling after the independence of the Coral archipelago could finally feel the pressure applied on them being slightly lifted. That chance wasn''t ignored by the Hive which was constantly looking for more manpower: The encampments on the continent had all been disbanded long ago but the matters concerning the new continent gave it the chance to gather troops again. After all, the only way that an organization had to increase the power of its heroic assets was to nurture promising human cultivators. The Hive had less than forty complete heroic cultivators in total, its power was extremely lacking in that aspect compared to the three big nations. Yet, they had some sort of advantage. Except for the Empire which had a central power able to control the entirety of its cultivators, the Utra nation and the Papral nation could only gain access to a percentage of the entirety of their heroic assets. That was caused by their political system, the noble families held a large percentage of the heroic assets in the Utra nation and the same went for the sects in the Papral nation, the Royals and the Council couldn''t deploy powerful cultivators as easily as the Empire, not without giving away part of their profits at least. That inevitably led the Council and the Elbas family to give up to part of their control over their areas of influence to match the Empire in its exploration of the new continent, opening many paths were the Hive could infiltrate. New encampments were created, the Hive decided to directly affect the nations under the control of the Utra nation and Papral nation that time without even trying to hide its operations that much. Of course, the Hive could move so freely on the old continent because it was completely forsaking any claim on the new land, at least for the time being. Like that, time passed. The Hive continued to recruit human cultivators from the nations that sought freedom while the three big nations kept exploring and investing resources on the new land to find other leftovers of divine beings and to make some areas livable by their human assets. Also, their heroic assets were making incredible gains there, many cultivators were enlightened or found the resources that they needed to continue in their respective experiments. Simply speaking, the human assets of the Hive became stronger while the three big nations increased the power of their heroic ones. The latter was obviously benefiting more but there wasn''t much that the Hive could do, it could only wait until it was strong enough to claim a piece of the new land. Every organization seemed to have entered a frenzied state and each one of them was managing to avoid useless battles, it was pointless to fight in front of such an abundance of resources, the war for the most resourceful territories would come after the entire continent had been explored. Signs of trouble though appeared on island nineteen of the Coral archipelago. Almost four years had passed since the piece of Immortal Lands had fallen in the Mortal ones. The exploration and colonization of the new continent were continuing and its deepest parts had yet to be reached but some information began to leak outside of the three factions studying it. The environment of the archipelago had also changed, more defenses had been built and even the structures on its poorest islands had been completely improved. Also, its population had doubled since the war with the continent, cultivators filled the streets of the cities on each island. Yet, a peculiar and scary event attracted the gazes of all the human and heroic cultivators of the archipelago. Black clouds gathered in the air above island nineteen, thick sparks filled their surface which spanned for hundreds of meters, they obscured the entirety of the island with their shape. The island that had suffered from a Heaven Tribulation just a few years ago saw the same event happening again. Chapter 500: 500. Tribulation The black clouds of the Heaven Tribulation loomed once again over island nineteen, the target of their ominous aura was a big mansion placed at the center of the island. The human cultivators guarding the mansion felt the power contained in the clouds and trembled, some of them were rank 3 cultivators but even they didn''t feel confident against that threat. "I anticipated something dangerous but this even surpasses my expectations, I wonder if the Prince will need our help." Elder Iris spoke while flying under the layer of black clouds that had obscured the sun, two men stood in the air next to her, their gazes continuously moved between the sky and Noah''s mansion. "This is completely above the human ranks. Their power seems tuned for cultivators that are only one step away from the heroic ranks but they are still too large even in that case." Roy spoke to continue his mother''s words. Thanks to his privileged position, Roy had quickly obtained a rank 4 cultivation technique and survived his Heaven Tribulation while Noah was in seclusion. Also, his mother had even provided him with many inscribed items at the peak of the third rank to help him pass the trial, his battle prowess couldn''t be compared to Bruce''s one since he had spent most of his time inside the Chasing demon sect handling the human matters and avoiding the battlefield. However, he wasn''t a complete heroic cultivator since his mind was still in the third rank and he had yet to face the Earth Tribulation. Elder Iris knew her son, she had advised him that it was better to slow down the growth of his sea of consciousness to improve its sturdiness, Roy would have surely failed the Earth Tribulation as he was now. "Hmph, the Prince has obtained Divine Demon''s recognition when he was only a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage and has been attacked by Heaven and Earth''s clouds already when he was in Efrana nation. I bet we are in for a show." Bruce snorted as he replied to the words of the mother and son''s pair next to him. The three of them had flown in the air as soon as the cloud began to form and had no doubt that they were aiming for the Demon Prince who had been in seclusion since the piece of Immortal Lands had fallen. Tales about his achievements had spread long ago, especially among the ranks of the elders. They knew that Noah had caused Heaven''s reaction with his experiments and that he had defeated a cultivator with a rank 4 dantian already. Yet, they couldn''t help but worry when they saw the size of his Heaven Tribulation, it was simply too big even for someone who was a rank 4 mage while still being a human cultivator! "Why isn''t he coming out?" Roy asked when he saw that Noah wasn''t exiting his mansion to face the Tribulation, he began to worry about Noah''s state, he hadn''t seen him for four years after all. Elder Iris'' eyes sharpened too at that sight, only Bruce remained completely confident in him. Bruce had seen him joining his faction when he was only a rank 2 cultivator and had witnessed his rise to power inside the sect, even his lover had been healed thanks to him, there was nothing that could make his faith in him waver. The black clouds stopped forming, only the purple light of the exoskeleton illuminated the environment of the island. The human cultivators had run away by then, the lights of the teleportation matrixes on the island had continuously lit the shores as they escaped from the imminent danger. Then, a thick lightning bolt fell from the clouds and aimed for Noah''s mansion. The bolt though couldn''t hit the mansion since a black line came out of its roof and cut through Heaven''s attack, reaching for the black clouds where it opened a long fissure in their gaseous bodies. The sunlight came out of the fissure and illuminated the mansion, its roof was falling apart since the attack had been launched from inside it, a winged human figure could be seen flying in the air past the falling rubbles. ''Dammit, I totally forgot that I had my cultivation technique still active. Well, the forging was successful at least.'' Noah thought as he carefully held a minute ring inside the palm of his right hand, his peak rank 3 Demonic sword was steadily wielded in his left one. His gaze went on the sky, the size of the black clouds didn''t surprise him but his consciousness analyzed them as if he was looking for something specific. ''They are mostly made of the same "Breath" that has tried to kill me during my fusion but there is the nourishing one that I must absorb after passing the Tribulation too. Heaven and Earth didn''t play any trick or maybe they simply couldn''t.'' He was worried that Heaven and Earth would simply negate him access to the "Breath" needed to nourish the dantian after it entered the fourth rank, limiting the potential of Noah''s center of power in that way. However, Noah could feel the same deep meaning that he had sensed during Bruce''s Tribulation, meaning that the "Breath" that he needed to absorb was somewhere among the destructive one. ''It seems that even the omniscient Heaven and Earth must play by the rules, they can only bend them a little. They are almost pitiful.'' Noah laughed inside his mind when he realized that. The way he saw it, it was pointless to be as powerful as Heaven and Earth if then he couldn''t directly take the life of an ant because of his own restrictions. His dragon''s instincts screamed as he saw the sparks gathering inside the black clouds, an even stronger lightning bolt was about to be launched in his direction. Noah closed his eyes as he pointed the clouds with his saber, he slowly exhaled as he focused on his body. His circulatory system began to accelerate its working speed, his metabolism reached a monstrous speed as the nourishments contained inside his body were consumed. Even his muscles seemed affected by that process, Noah''s skin caved in as his muscles condensed due to the pressure that they were under. The "Breath" absorbed by the ring around his dantian was directly redirected on his left arm, black smoke began to come out of his saber as Noah gathered the energy needed for the execution of his martial art. Then, just when a massive lightning bolt was about to fall on him, Noah swung his arm and cracks appeared in the air where his weapon passed. Chapter 501: 501. One slash Magical beasts had bodies that were leagues above those of the humans, their only weakness was that their owners didn''t know how to express their full potential. Noah had obtained an even stronger power by fusing himself with a beast, his martial arts would become far more powerful since they were performed with such a monstrous strength, the only drawback was the higher consumption of "Breath" since it had to be tuned around the physical strength of the body. However, using a martial art while wielding the strength of a beast wasn''t the best that Noah could do. During his seclusion, Noah had thought deeply about his situation and evaluated the possibilities that his centers of power could offer, he was about to enter a world filled with monsters that had lived for centuries after all, he had to have something that could match such enormous experience. He found the answer he was looking for in the secret arts. Secret arts could push a center of power to its limits to give the cultivator performing it a temporary wave of power, allowing it to surpass what its rank made possible. Such power wasn''t free though, the center of power would be heavily injured after withstanding that stressful procedure, the fairness of Heaven and Earth required that drawback. Yet, Noah was different. The "Breath" inside Noah''s dantian boiled as it tried to reach a higher stage, there was only so much of it that he could use during the Tribulation. However, to fuel his martial art while using a secret art, Noah needed large amounts of "Breath", his calculations told him that his dantian would be emptied if he was to use the energy that it contained. Completely emptying his dantian while facing the Heaven Tribulation though would endanger his future prospects since his organ would lack part of the nourishments given by the impurities that were released, Noah simply couldn''t use it. That''s why he decided to rely on the ring around his dantian that worked as a rank 3 cultivation technique. "Breath" of the darkness element was continuously gathered by his inscribed item and was redirected to his arm, cracks began to appear on the ring around his dantian as the process continued, even a peak rank 3 item couldn''t sustain the energy needed for that attack. Noah''s left arm resembled an insatiable beast that continuously devoured "Breath" to perform that simple gesture, Noah barely had the time to imbue part of his will in it before it was consumed. Noah made a basic slash with his saber but the amount of energy contained inside it was so high that even his peak rank 3 weapon began to crack under such pressure! The air on the trail of the Demonic sword shattered, cracks spread like a spider web from the horizontal line that Noah had traced. Then, toward the end of the slash, the black saber completely shattered, leaving only a small shard inside Noah''s palm. The fissure in the sky quickly closed itself, leaving a weaponless Noah flying in the air under the black clouds, it seemed as if his attack didn''t have any effect. However, the eyes of the elders watching the scene had widened during the process and their gazes immediately went on the clouds after the black saber broke. A massive lightning bolt was about to be released before Noah''s attack but its thick orange body seemed to have stopped moving after the slash was performed. Even the black clouds had stopped their motion, the sparks on their surface had frozen, it was as if time had stopped in the area of the sky that they occupied. Then, a chasm appeared along their bodies which divided the immense Heaven Tribulation in two. Also, black smoke began to corrode the dark clouds, further enlarging the fissure that Noah had created with his martial art. "Breath" was released by the clouds and was redirected toward Noah, he felt his dantian being nourished by an external force as the boiling rank 3 "Breath" inside it slowly became a shining black gas. The ring around his organ couldn''t withstand the pressure anymore and shattered, the minute black shards fell inside his body which quickly absorbed them to turn them into nourishment. The Heaver Tribulation had been defeated with only one attack! ''This rank 4 "Breath" still contains Heaven and Earth''s will, I don''t need it.'' Noah thought as he analyzed his dantian, the "Breath" in the fourth rank that had just formed after the entirety of his solid "Breath" had boiled was cast out and dispersed in the air. Then, Noah opened his right hand, an even smaller black ring was in his palm which had a dense black whirlpool rotating in its center. Noah pointed the remaining shard of his Demonic sword toward his low-waist and pierced it, stopping only when the shard stabbed his dantian, creating a small hole in it. Noah retracted the shard and inserted the minute ring inside his body, he placed it inside the wound of his dantian, creating something similar to a tunnel that connected the outside world with the insides his center of power. The whirlpool at the center of the ring immediately began to send rank 4 "Breath" of the darkness element in the insides of his dantian, the area around him seemed to become brighter as the "Breath" carrying the laws of the darkness element contained inside the matter was absorbed. The will of Heaven and Earth contained in that "Breath" was destroyed as Noah''s new cultivation technique absorbed it, the greed radiated by the inscribed item didn''t leave any trace of it. Noah felt a wave of energy filling him, a power beyond anything that he had ever felt seemed contained in those few strands of shining gas that were slowly enlarging his dantian. Yet, as the pressure inside that organ increased, part of the gaseous "Breath" was about to come out from the opening where his cultivation technique had been placed. It was at that point that a half-transparent Noah sat cross-legged in front of the opening, Noah had created a will to stop his "Breath" from leaking out! The black clouds in the air dispersed under the amazed gaze of the elders, the Tribulation had been passed, signing Noah''s entrance in the heroic ranks. Chapter 502: 502. Dragons claw Those four years of seclusion had given Noah incredible gains. First of all, his sea of consciousness had continued to enlarge, the fifth Kesier rune, the "Breath" inside it, and the relentless activation of the Divine deduction technique had pushed that center of power deeper inside the fourth rank. His body had also improved, Noah had often eaten pieces of rank 4 magical beasts during his seclusion to placate his hunger and raise his rank, his body had almost reached the peak of the middle tier by then. Yet, the biggest breakthroughs concerned his Elemental forging method and his martial art. While his rank 3 cultivation technique autonomously raised the level of his dantian, Noah had focused on creating the cultivation technique that he would use once reached the fourth rank and the offensive martial art that he lacked since he had become a hybrid. The Divine deduction technique and his expertise with the sabers made the task concerning the offensive martial art rather easy, it wasn''t the first one that he created after all. The only issue that he had had during the testing phase was that his "Breath" would be always depleted after only one execution of his forms, his liquid "Breath" simply couldn''t fuel a martial art performed with his powerful body. Things changed once he entered the solid stage though, Noah became able to test his forms more often, quickening the creation of his martial art. In the end, he created only one simple form, the most common of the attacks of the sword wielders, a slash. Of course, that form wasn''t as simple as it looked. Noah had taken inspiration from the Nails of the Kamaitachi and from the Three Forms of the Ashura to create his personal attack, something simple but that suited every situation. The power of that slash could be found in his incredible physical strength and in the sharpness that the "Breath" consumed during its execution carried, Noah was obviously using the "Breath" that he refined inside his mind to activate it, just like with his Shadow sprint martial art. The real power of that attack though could only be seen when its execution was coupled with a secret art. Noah hadn''t chosen that simple form casually, that slash was the result of countless tests performed while he activated his secret art. The secret art that Noah had chosen forcibly quickened his metabolism, consuming the nourishments that his body contained to surpass its limits for a few seconds. It was needless to say that such an increased physical strength had to be matched with a similar amount of "Breath" when performing a martial art, which forced Noah to create a simple form rather than an intricate one. He knew that, once his expertise with his martial art increased, he would create new forms but he was happy to have at least that for the time being. The creation of a rank 4 cultivation technique took longer instead. During his last weeks of seclusion, Noah had to stop all his other training and experiments to focus on forging his first rank 4 item and to finally bring his expertise in the Elemental forging method in the heroic ranks. Noah had to dig deep inside his dragon''s instincts to thoroughly understand the hunger of the magical beasts and create a meaning that suited his needs. What came out from the fusion between his ambition and the endless hunger of the beasts was an insatiable greed. There was something that he had neglected as he forged though, he didn''t remove the ring around his dantian even after he had reached the peak of the solid stage. As it turned out, the suction force of his rank 3 cultivation technique was so strong that the solid "Breath" inside his dantian began to boil without the need for a reagent, suddenly causing the Heaven Tribulation. Noah had been ending his forging at that moment, he had even resolved himself to stop the first lightning bolts with his body if the situation needed it. Luckily for him, he had managed to finish his first rank 4 item before the first lightning bolt struck, allowing him to use his martial art to defend against it. Noah had closed his eyes after the Tribulation ended, he immersed himself in the feeling of having all his centers of power in the heroic ranks as he checked that his rank 4 cultivation technique worked as intended. "Breath" of the darkness element continuously entered his dantian through the opening where the black ring was, the whirlpool at its center made the "Breath" converge in the insides of his center of power, the process slightly enlarged his dantian as it continued. His half-transparent figure floated in front of the opening, his will had been specifically made to prevent any leaks and to quickly imbue a meaning that Noah needed in the "Breath", Noah could even stop storing "Breath" inside his mental sphere now if he wanted. ''The Black hole cultivation technique is working perfectly, I''ve even solved the issue about the limited usages of the Shadow sprint martial art with it. All my centers of power don''t have a slight trace of Heaven and Earth''s will now.'' Noah thought as he opened his eyes and took a deep breath, the area around him darkened as he did that. ''I feel different.'' He felt lighter after all the traces of Heaven and Earth''s will had left his body but he also felt that something deeper about him had changed completely. ''I am my own entity now." Noah felt the need to roar at the sky after he thought that but he restrained himself from doing so since he felt three presences nearing him. Noah turned only to see Elder Iris, Roy, and Bruce flying toward him, they were wearing concerned expressions as they analyzed his body. "It will go back to normal in a few hours, this is just a temporary drawback." Noah explained when he understood that they were worried about the state in which his body was after the usage of his secret art. The truth was that he only needed to eat something for it to return to its peak, Noah didn''t even consider it a drawback in his mind. "This is good, I thought you had hurt yourself to improve your cultivation speed." Roy spoke as he breathed a sigh of relief, he was really worried that he had suffered some injury. "It seems that even the matter concerning your cultivation technique is set, I believe the Hive can stop providing you "Breath" blessings." Elder Iris spoke as she moved her gaze on Noah''s bloodied low-waist, she was curious about Noah''s creation but she knew that every cultivator had its secrets, some matters simply couldn''t be probed. "What was that attack? Did you learn a rank 5 martial art? What is it called?" Bruce asked, he had mistakenly taken Noah''s attack for a rank 5 martial art. Noah didn''t correct him and thought for a few seconds about a name for his martial art before answering him. "Dragon''s claw." Chapter 503: 503. Situation The three elders didn''t probe Noah''s powers any further, they simply accepted the fact that he had safely entered the world of the heroic cultivators. The Hive had gained another elder, its heroic assets were slowly increasing in number as its foundation became sturdier. "How is the situation in the piece of Immortal Lands? What about the continent?" Noah asked, he had to completely focus on himself during his seclusion which forced him to neglect any information concerning the outside world. Yet, now that he had reached the heroic ranks, he needed a detailed picture of the current political situation to decide his next move and which preparations he needed to make. Elder Iris had expected that question and quickly threw a small shining orb to Noah who directly scanned it with his mental energy. Countless reports entered Noah''s mind as he scanned the orb, he soon learnt how the situation on the continent and the new land had evolved while he was in seclusion. ''The Coral archipelago has grown well, this was somewhat expected considering its geographical position. The areas of influence of the Utra nation and Papral nation have been successfully infiltrated in the past years, most of our new manpower comes from there. Even the Empire has given up many territories to focus on the new land, we could directly build the fourth big nation if we had more heroic assets.'' Noah thought as he read through the information that concerned the continent. Since the Hive had only focused on the old land, the details that concerned the forces of the three big nations were quite specific and, in some cases, they even listed the power behind the defensive measures of some richer areas. ''The Elbas family didn''t let go of its claims over the Nerere country, even the limitless prospects on the piece of Immortal Lands aren''t enough to make it lower its defenses around the Royal Inheritance. They are asking for the help of the noble families rather than letting go of the legacy of the previous Royals¡­'' Of course, Noah immediately looked for the information concerning the Royal Inheritance only to remain disappointed by it. During those four years, the Elbas family had felt forced to ask for the help of the heroic assets of the noble families in its country to match the Empire in its exploration of the new continent and to maintain control over their most richer areas at the same time. The Council did the same, heroic cultivators from the sects of the Papral nation had been sent to the new land to help in its exploration. Only the Shandal Empire had complete control over its heroic assets, the other two nations had central powers with great authority but they couldn''t control the heroic cultivators of the organizations under them that freely. They needed to give up part of their gains if they wanted their help but that was the only method at their disposal to match the Empire. Noah would have rather had the Elbas family and the Council withstanding the expenses of the exploration all by themselves so that some of their richer areas would have been left unprotected but they had chosen to divide their gains rather than exposing their resources. After all, giving up part of their rebels had already greatly benefitted the Hive, Noah was just disappointed that he couldn''t personally take something that could further benefit his situation. ''There is only the new continent then.'' Noah thought as he started reading the information concerning the new land. He knew that, now that he was a complete heroic cultivator, his cultivation journey would be harsher. Heroic cultivators directly affected the "Breath" inside the matter, their training was something that interfered with the world itself, it wasn''t the simple absorption process happening in the human ranks. Noah could feel it, he felt the deeper meaning contained in the "Breath" absorbed by his rank 4 cultivation technique entering his dantian and dissolving as Heaven and Earth''s will was removed. He knew that there was something else to that energy but that feeling was still too vague for him to understand exactly what it was, he could only wait to go deeper into the fourth rank before he could have a clearer picture. ''The information about the new land is quite vague. The Hive is aware that all three big nations have found traces of divine beings but it doesn''t know anything specific. The entirety of the eastern shore and a large part of the northern one are slowly being colonized but it appears that the center of the continent is still unexplored¡­ I wonder if my beast''s instincts could help there.'' Noah realized how little the Hive knew about the piece of Immortal Lands after scanning the orb. The Hive had completely disregarded any claim on it to focus on the old continent after all, Noah knew that it was the right move considering its situation. "We can prepare a training area soon if you want, there are dark areas at the bottom of the sea where you should find plenty of "Breath" of your element." Roy spoke as he saw that Noah had finished reading the information inside the orb. However, Noah shook his head at his words and handed the orb back to Elder Iris as he asked something. "When will the Hive reach for the new continent?" The three elders were silenced by his words but Bruce soon released a laugh and Elder Iris'' mouth curved into a smile. "We have studied a safe route for the southwestern shore, we should be able to send a few elders without any of the three big nations noticing them. Also, the elders would be on the opposite side of the forces of the continent, meaning that they would land on completely unexplored areas. The only problem is that they might be stuck there due to the distance with that area, you would have to wait for the creation of a teleportation matrix to have an escape route." Elder Iris spoke as she continued to smile, Noah shrugged his shoulders as he spoke a few words before turning to fly back to the remains of his mansion. "I want in." Chapter 504: 504. Arm Noah returned to his ruined mansion to prepare for his next move. There were no paths that would make him gain any profit on the continent, only the piece of Immortal Lands could bring benefits to his personal power. ''I need to stabilize my position inside the fourth rank, it should take a few weeks before my dantian becomes ready for a battle.'' Noah thought as he sat in one of the intact training areas. He knew that Elder Iris would contact him once the Hive decided that it was time to explore the new continent, he didn''t know exactly when that would happen but he guessed it wouldn''t take more than half a year. The three big nations had freely explored the new continent for four years already, their heroic assets had made incredible gains in that period, the Hive could just settle for human cultivators while that happened. Noah''s attention went on his will floating in front of his dantian. Mental energy entered his half-transparent figure, giving it enough power to affect the black ring inside his wounded center of power. The rotation whirlpool inside the ring slowed down, its absorption speed was lowered thanks to the will placed in front of it before returning to a normal speed as soon as Noah willed it. ''All the tests have been made, the rank 4 Black hole cultivation technique should function until the peak of the solid stage of the fourth rank, I just need to constantly refill the mental energy needed to fuel my will to control it. Now, I only lack a proper weapon.'' His last peak rank 3 Demonic sword had broken to perform the Dragon''s claw while he was using the secret art, it was safe to assume that normal rank 3 inscribed items wouldn''t be able to withstand its power either. ''I need to forge another item in the heroic ranks, I guess it''s time I match Ivor''s achievements.'' Noah had never forgotten the first time he had seen Ivor''s knife and he had always known that his ability in the Elemental forging method was inferior to his. Ivor had been able to forge a rank 4 item while he was still in the human ranks while Noah had needed to reach the absolute peak of the third rank and be a rank 4 mage to do the same, their wills were simply on two different levels. Ivor was ready to sacrifice his life to complete the forging while Noah couldn''t want something like that, their intentions couldn''t carry the same power. Noah sighed as he stared at his right arm before requesting for a series of materials from the Hive. ''There can only be one core material¡­'' Noah thought as he undressed his upper body and Heilong came out in the open. Then, he inserted his right arm inside his companion''s mouth and he ordered it to bite his limb off. Heilong''s fangs weren''t enough to sever his arm right away and Noah didn''t have any other weapon at his disposal, he could only pull back his shoulder with all his strength to help his Blood companion. It took a while but, in the end, Noah managed to cut the entirety of his right arm away. Blood fell from his maimed shoulder but Noah suppressed the pain as he sorted the drugs contained inside his space-ring, a pill radiating a powerful energy quickly appeared in his remaining palm which he didn''t hesitate to eat. A surge of energy filled his body as the drug melted, the energy seemed alive as it searched for wounds inside Noah. Noah controlled the energy to stay away from his dantian, he didn''t want for the medicine to mistakenly close the opening needed for his cultivation technique, and redirected its focus on his right shoulder. Warmth filled his maimed shoulder, his severed limb slowly showed signs of growing back! ''I need more energy.'' Noah thought as he inspected the effects of the drug. He had used one of the best rank 4 curative pills that he had but its effects were intended to work on humans, drugs like that weren''t created for hybrids. The corpse of a rank 4 dragon in the middle tier appeared in the open and Noah began to take small bites out of it, the "Breath" contained in the magical beast entered his body and was turned into nourishment that it freely absorbed. Part of that nourishment healed the after-effects of the secret art, Noah''s muscles began to bulge and return to their normal state, Noah quickly returned to his normal aspect thanks to that meal. The rest of the nourishment was redirected to his right shoulder, the healing capabilities of his body and the powerful drug that he had just used would make his entire arm regrow in a day according to his calculation. ''The materials that I''ve requested should arrive soon and my arm should be enough to create a pair of sabers. I should treat them better this time though, I can''t waste useful pills every time a Demonic sword breaks.'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes to focus on his dantian and, specifically, to the "Breath" that it was storing. He immersed himself in the study of that "Breath", his dragon''s instinct saw it only as food but he knew that it hid some kind of deeper meaning. . . . Time passed in the Coral archipelago. The news of Noah''s breakthrough and his request to join the team meant to explore the piece of Immortal Lands quickly spread through the heroic ranks of the Hive. It must be said that there weren''t many elders willing to embark in such a dangerous mission, many of them would rather take the safe approach and try to openly create some sort of city on the continent, they didn''t feel there was any reason to mess with the colonization of the three big nations. However, the Hive had never intended to interfere with the three factions on the new continent, its plans concerned the opposite shore that they were exploring. The only problem with that approach was the distance with the archipelago but that issue could be solved once a teleportation matrix was set, it would be only a matter of protecting such formation at that point. It took four months after Noah''s Tribulation to create an explorative team made of five elders, they were all complete heroic cultivators in the fourth rank and, of course, Noah was one of them. Chapter 505: 505. Meaning Five heroic cultivators set off from the Coral archipelago and began to fly west. They flew high in the air, far away from the azure sea, and they didn''t speak, they were doing their best to be as silent as possible. Even their mental waves were retracted, they only used their eyes to analyze their surroundings, they didn''t want to risk being discovered by enemy forces as they tried to reach the new continent. Noah ran in the air, dense layers of dark "Breath" formed under his feet as he stepped on them, he didn''t need to use Heilong''s wings to fly anymore and he was faster that way since his body was stronger than his Blood companion. Three elders ran next to him while a fourth one was in the lead, they were the team that the Hive had sent to explore the new land and, of course, each one of them had different areas of specialization that suited the task. Elder Hope was the leader of the group and was the only rank 4 cultivator in the liquid stage among them, she had a wind aptitude and most of her abilities were focused on movement and espionage, she was the scout of the team who was also tasked to create an escape route in dangerous situations. Elder Duke was an old rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage, he was bald but a long white beard grew from his jaw. He had a water aptitude and was specialized in defensive measures which even included some simple formations. Elder Laurel was the expert in magical plants and vegetation even though she had a fire aptitude that generally conflicted with that field. She was also in possession of abilities with a large area of effect that could help the group when it was surrounded, making her presence quite important in the team. Elder Morgan was the expert in formation, her role was to create the teleportation matrix that could allow them to safely return to the archipelago but she also had good defensive measures due to her water aptitude, she and Elder Duke would take care of the defense of the team together once reached the new land. It was needless to say that the expert in the magical beasts'' field was Noah. ''They are all quite old, it seems that they are desperate to find something that makes their cultivation level improve.'' Noah thought as he gazed at his companions. They all had gray and white hair, either short or long, their power was only reflected by their shining eyes as they focused on their surroundings. The lifespan of a cultivator would eventually be depleted unless it continuously raised its level but that matter wasn''t that simple once reached the heroic ranks. Noah guessed that the elders that had volunteered for the task were cultivators that needed to find some kind of inspiration or guide that the old continent couldn''t offer to continue cultivating in the heroic ranks, there weren''t many cultivators who had been able to create their personal training methods like him. Actually, to be precise, it could be said that an existence like him was a first in that world. After all, Noah had become a complete heroic cultivator at the age of thirty-seven and even by creating his personal techniques and methods, that feat was something that even his companions found hard to believe! "Five months in the fourth rank and you are already at this level, the difference between our cultivation techniques is really vast." Elder Laurel whispered to Noah as she flew next to him. Those were the first words that had been spoken after the group had set off, they had been flying in a straight line for a month already. "I was just lucky, anyone would achieve the same if it was to obtain the inheritance of a God." Noah answered in a soft voice while shrugging his shoulders, he didn''t really want to speak too much before they reached a safe area. "No one becomes a heroic cultivator before turning forty thanks to its luck, you should have more confidence in yourself. I heard that you have created your cultivation technique as soon as you entered the fourth rank, did you gain some insights about the darkness element already?" Elder Laurel spoke again and her question made Noah interested in her words. "Insights of the darkness element?" Noah asked. He had realized that there was a deeper meaning hidden in the "Breath" that he absorbed but he had yet to figure out what it was and if it was useful to his cultivation. Hearing a cultivator that had been in the heroic ranks for far longer than him speaking about it claimed a large part of his attention. Elder Laurel slightly smiled at his question and released a short sigh before making a short explanation. "Heroic cultivators pursue their individuality but through energies that don''t belong to them. These energies carry general meanings depending on the element they belong but a cultivator must understand the meanings that match its individuality if it doesn''t want to see its improvements slowing down. You are already a step ahead of most cultivators since you shouldn''t find any hindrances in the fourth rank thanks to your cultivation technique." Noah carefully memorized her words and replayed them in his head. The records concerning heroic cultivators were scarce, especially those concerning their insights before the creation of techniques and methods. ''I was right in guessing that the heroic ranks won''t be just a matter of absorbing "Breath" anymore¡­ Yet, looking for the meaning carried by the darkness element seems a bit too philosophical for my tastes.'' Noah thought as he continued to fly, only the clouds could be seen around him but his reptilian eyes could clearly see the sea at some kilometers below him. "Could you be more specific?" In the end, Noah simply asked her for a more detailed explanation. Elder Laurel put a pensive expression before shaking her head while revealing a helpless smile. "If I knew something more specific, I would have already advanced to the liquid stage." Her eyes went on Elder Hope who was in the lead, she winked at Noah as she gestured him to ask her. Chapter 506: 506. Insights Elder Hope began to slow down after she felt the two pairs of gazes fixed on her, she then turned only to say one word before continuing to fly at full speed. "Later." Elder Laurel wore an excited gaze when she understood that she was about to receive an explanation from their leader and even the other two elders nodded at her while wearing smiles. "Was this a plan of some sort?" Noah asked when he realized that all the elders were paying attention to his conversation, he couldn''t help but feel that he had been used in some way. "Sorry, Prince, you are the most promising cultivator of the Hive, no one in our organization will ever deny you an explanation that could benefit your power. We just thought that it would be better if such an explanation happened where we can listen." Elder Laurel spoke and Noah understood that the three elders had planned to use him to obtain pointers from a heroic cultivator in the liquid stage. ''Well, that was unexpected.'' Noah thought as he put the matter in the back of his mind, he didn''t really care how the others used him as long as he gained something out of it, he just forced himself to remember that the people around him weren''t only more experienced but had also lived for far longer than him, his first life didn''t give him any advantage over the wisdom of his companions. The group moved for a few more days until Elder Hope stopped again a did a quick inspection of their surroundings before speaking to the rest of them. "We have surpassed the northern shore, we need to go south for another month before we can safely reach our destination." The Hive''s target was the southwestern shore, the territories on the opposite side of the three big nations'' encampments. To put it simply, they were flying over the sea around the piece of Immortal Lands, moving around the new continent to avoid the territories already under the control of the forces of the continent. "Now, I''ll try to solve some of your doubts about the heroic ranks but remember that I''m only one step ahead of you, it''s more than likely that the Prince will surpass me in no time since he has already created his cultivation technique." Elder Hope spoke again and a series of heated gazes went on her after her words, the elders almost stopped breathing as they waited for her explanation. Noah wasn''t an exception, his eyes focused on the leader of his group, he was interested in what she had to say. "In the human ranks, a cultivator simply absorbs "Breath" to elevate its power, ultimately reaching the heroic ranks when it is considered an independent entity, a sort of unique being." Elder Hope began her explanation from the beginning of the cultivation journey, Elder Laurel nodded at her words, she seemed the most interested of the group. "Once becoming an entity, the cultivator must enhance its individuality. To put it simply, it has to pave its personal path toward the higher ranks or it won''t have the power to absorb the "Breath" that carries the laws of Heaven and Earth." Noah nodded in his mind at those words, Chasing Demon had given him a similar explanation during their first encounter and even Divine Demon had hinted that. "This can be achieved in two different ways in the early stages of the heroic ranks but, toward the more advanced ranks, succeeding in both of those ways will be required to improve. You can either understand the laws of your element that suit you or create a cultivation technique." ''So, I can''t only improve the Black hole cultivation technique, I will even need some sort of understanding of the darkness element as my rank grows.'' Noah quickly sorted that information in his mind and looked at his companions, disappointed looks could be seen on their faces. "Prince, I must say that you are exceptional." Elder Hope interrupted Noah''s thoughts with her words and continued to speak. "Most heroic cultivators rely on techniques created by others to improve but cultivating in that way will eventually taint your individuality and endanger your future prospects, this is the main reason why many elders have chosen to remain in the gaseous stage rather than taking the easy path. Yet, you are already walking on your personal path, I believe you won''t require any kind of insight about your element to reach the fifth rank. Of course, I advise you to start studying your element as soon as possible." Elder Hope then pointed at herself before revealing something about her cultivation. "I have yet to create a cultivation technique but my understanding of the wind element allowed me to reach the liquid stage rather quickly even though I''m using a technique created by someone else. I can only say that my individuality matches the laws of the wind element that concern the sound." Silence fell on the group of cultivators standing in the air, Noah quickly analyzed the leader''s words before asking his question. "Your understanding of the element improves your cultivation speed but your individuality will eventually be tainted if you keep using a technique created by someone else. I guess the same goes for the opposite approach, am I right?" Elder Hope smiled before nodding and asking a rhetorical question. "How can you bend the laws to your will if you don''t know their meaning?" Mental energy entered the inscriptions on the walls of Noah''s mental sphere and fueled the Divine deduction technique, Noah was trying to ask the questions that would give him the best understanding of the matter. Then, he asked a question that had bothered him since he first spoke with a citizen of the Empire. "What is a God?" The elders around him were surprised by that question but Elder Hope revealed a surprised expression as her gaze went to the sky above the clouds. "I''ve pondered a lot about this too. A peak heroic cultivator should express its individuality through the laws that suit it and express their power through its cultivation technique, meaning that a God must be a being made of its own laws." Noah raised his eyes at the sky too after her words, the reflection of the stars that he had seen in the academy reappeared in his eyes as his mind wandered. "What is there after godhood?" Noah asked again, even the other elders raised their gazes on the sky above the clouds at that moment. Elder Hope thought for a while before expressing her opinion. "I guess Heaven and Earth." Chapter 507: 507. Sandworms Noah and the elders stared at the sky above the clouds in silence for a while before returning to reality and lowering their faces, their minds had wandered enough, they were only halfway through their journey after all. "There isn''t much that can be taught at this point, every cultivator is different and the path toward the higher ranks can only be paved by yourself. This is the miraculous yet solitary life that every being looking for power must walk. Let''s resume our journey now." Elder Hope spoke those last words before flying south, Noah and the elders quickly followed behind her, no one spoke after that. Another month passed, the group sent by the Hive continuously flew through the clouds as it reached for the southwestern coast of the piece of Immortal Lands. The endless sea was below them for the whole time, they were making sure to never go too close to the new land even though they had long crossed the areas where the encampments of the three big nations were. Then, at some point, Elder Hope stopped herself and signaled to the elders behind her to do the same. Noah and the others waited for their leader to use her methods to scan the surroundings, Elder Hope made a hand-gesture next to her ears and closed her eyes as her consciousness expanded. It didn''t take much before Elder Hope nodded and retracted her consciousness before pointing toward the east and flying in that direction. Noah and the others followed, the group flew for a few more days before it could finally spot land. Noah saw the endless layer of ice that held the azure land in its embrace, his consciousness sensed the density of the "Breath" in the environment above the land and was amazed by it, he now knew that the reports were right when they said that the piece of Immortal Lands could be barely inhabited by human cultivators. ''How do they even plan on fixing this issue? The three big nations are strong but even they can''t modify this environment that much.'' Noah thought as he neared the new continent with his group, his eyes and mind analyzed everything that entered in their range. A wide desert expanded over the azure land in the area that they were nearing, the azure halo of the continent was almost completely blocked by the thickness of the yellow sand that filled the surface. The area seemed deserted, no trace of life could be seen or sensed by the cultivators of the Hive. Yet, Noah''s instincts told him that something had noticed their arrival and was keeping its attention on them. "What do you think?" Elder Hope asked as she turned toward Noah and Elder Laurel, they were the experts in the magical beasts and plants'' fields of the group after all. "The temperature and this environment aren''t suitable for most magical plants but the sand is too thick and the "Breath" released by the land below it interferes with my mental waves." Elder Laurel spoke while keeping her gaze on the ground, she couldn''t find any trace of life but that didn''t mean that there weren''t any threats. "There is something beneath the surface." Noah warned his companions and their gazes went on the yellow sand where he was watching. However, they couldn''t see anything at all, they even started to doubt Noah since nothing happened as time passed. On the other hand, Noah was one hundred percent sure that something was lying in wait for them. ''You leave me no choice.'' Noah snorted in his mind as he flew downward, toward the ground. A low growl was released from his mouth, Noah was using his dragon''s side to challenge whatever was hiding under the surface. The others in his team didn''t understand what was happening nor why the Demon Prince was making such lifelike beast''s cries but they still followed him. Faint tremors began to fill the desert and screeching noises started to come out of the yellow sand, it seemed that Noah had managed to cause some sort of reaction with his growl. "They are coming." Noah warned in a soft voice and kicked the air to fly higher in the sky and retreat, the elders quickly followed his example and retreated. Holes formed in the sand as soon as Noah escaped, thirty meters long yellow worms came out them and tried to pounce the air where the heroic cultivators were previously. "Armored sandworms, all in the fourth rank. They have thick skins but they can''t do much except for jumping at us, we can slowly kill them and seize their corpses, they are somewhat valuable." Noah explained as he pointed at the more than twenty rank 4 magical beasts that had come out of the sand, respectful gazes were shot in his direction before the elders focused on the creatures. The elders had initially doubted his abilities when they saw that nothing was happening but the recent event had completely confirmed Noah''s capabilities. "I wasn''t aware that a cultivator could imitate the cries of a magical beast to incite a reaction in them." Elder Duke spoke from his safe position in the air, they weren''t in a hurry to take care of the sandworms after all. "It''s just an unorthodox technique that I''ve learnt in the Royal academy, it''s not that reliable though." Noah lied to the elder as he wielded a pair of white sabers. Those weren''t his new Demonic swords but only a pair of peak rank 3 inscribed weapons that had enhanced sturdiness and sharpness. Noah wouldn''t dare to reveal his full strength right away, he was in an unexplored continent filled with threats, it was better to keep most of his abilities hidden. Also, he didn''t really need to use most of his power to handle those beasts. "The academy sure seems an amazing place." Elder Duke commented as he wielded a whip, that answer was enough for him. Even the other elders wielded their weapons and prepared to fight against the pack of sandworms before Elder Hope gave the order and they dove again toward the ground. Chapter 508: 508. Huge The Armored sandworms weren''t a strong species of magical beasts. They surely were one of the strongest kinds of worm-type creatures but their enemies were heroic cultivators, there was nothing they could do against them. Noah casually swung his sabers as he flew between the pouncing sandworms, sharp black lines appeared in the air whenever he performed a slash, his attacks seemed able to cut through anything that stood on their trajectory. Elder Hope swung a small knife that had holes on its surface, a threatening aura was radiated by that weapon, Noah immediately noticed that it was a rank 4 inscribed item. The knife released strange sharp sounds as it moved through the air, small wind blades took form every time one of those sounds echoed and reached for the weakest parts of the sandworms. Elder Duke controlled an azure sphere that floated in front of his chest and that fueled most of his attacks, water bullets and torrents shot from his spell toward the creatures next to him. Elder Laurel nimbly avoided the beasts and circled them until enough of them had gathered in one spot before creating a huge fireball above her figure and launching it toward the sandworms, a huge explosion occurred every time she cast her spell. Elder Morgan wielded an inscribed spear that tainted the creatures with the lines of a formation every time she stabbed their skin, that weapon also was an inscribed item in the fourth rank and the shining lines that infected the sandworms spread on their bodies as if fueled by their vitality. ''Her martial art is so interesting.'' Noah couldn''t help but feel interested in Elder Morgan attacks, inflicting one wound seemed the only requirement to infect the beasts with those spreading inscriptions which continuously weakened their bodies, it was as if the inscribed spear carried a poison of some sort. The pack of Armored sandworms had no chance against the power of five heroic cultivators, most of those beasts were only in the lower tier of the fourth rank and could barely survive a few attacks before falling lifelessly on the yellow sand. "Seize the corpses quickly, the rulers of this area will come soon." Noah warned his companions as he stored the corpses next to him inside his space-ring, the spirit automaton autonomously put them inside the formation with the other dragon''s corpses. He knew that, in such an amazing environment, finding only twenty or so rank 4 magical beasts was impossible, there had to be more creatures in the surrounding areas. Also, the sandworms had to be at the bottom of the food chain there since their power mostly was in the lower tier, meaning that the rulers of the desert wouldn''t be happy to discover that someone was stealing their food. Part of that knowledge came from his studies but Noah was aware that the fusion had enlarged his point of view, he could now think like a magical beast and even communicate with them in a sort of primal way, he simply understood them far better now. That was the reason why he was sure that more powerful creatures would arrive in their position. The confirmation to his hypothesis came almost immediately, dunes formed in the sand below them as if something was crawling under the surface and searching for something. The heads of huge sandworms came out in the open but stood still, they didn''t pounce the cultivators from the Hive, they limited themselves to spread their circular mouths where a series of sharp fangs could be seen coming out of their internal skin. Then, they released a sharp cry that echoed through the vast desert. "We must go." Noah spoke as he flew high in the air, he didn''t even pick the corpses that were at some distance from his position as he retreated in the sky. The elders in his group were a bit surprised by his actions but they decided to follow him anyway, the Demon Prince of the Hive had yet to be wrong about something that concerned magical beasts. Noah didn''t stop flying even after he had reached a height of a few hundred meters, his feet continuously kicked the air as he went higher. He stopped only when he was at more than a kilometer from the ground, his companions quickly reached him and began to stare at the ground with curious gazes. "I think we could have picked the remaining corpses, the new sandworms are only in the middle tier after all." Elder Morgan complained a bit but her expression suddenly froze when she saw that an immense dune was growing at the center of the desert. The dune continued to rise in the air, slowly reaching a height of two hundred meters until the sand began to fall back on the ground and the mighty being under it was revealed. It was another worm-type magical beast, it was yellow and a series of small pores could be seen on its skin. The beast was immense, it was more than three hundred meters long and almost fifty meters large, its size was simply incredible. "Rank 5 Giant sandworm, it''s hiding skills are amazing, I wouldn''t have sensed it if it wasn''t for the weaker beasts. This specimen seems to be in the upper tier but I can''t be too sure about it." Noah explained to his companions as he stared at the huge sandworm. The cries that the rank 4 Giant sandworms had released after the Armored ones had been killed were some sort of call for their leader, Noah had understood the meaning behind the cries thanks to his beast''s part and had immediately decided to escape because of that. "I guess this isn''t a good area where to set the teleportation matrix." Noah spoke in a casual tone as he turned toward the elders next to him, their eyes had widened after the rank 5 beast appeared and Elder Morgan repeatedly nodded after she heard his words. She couldn''t help but imagine what would have happened if she had stayed for only a bit longer on the ground, the images that her mind played sent shivers down her spine. "We will rely on your expertise to find the right location, Prince." Elder Hope spoke while performing a slight bow, the recent events had increased the amount of respect that she felt for Noah so much that she didn''t mind bowing to him even though she was the leader of the group. Chapter 509: 509. Tigers The heroic cultivators of the Hive resumed the exploration of the piece of Immortal Lands after the presence of the rank 5 Giant sandworms made the desert impossible to inhabit. The group needed to find a safe place where to set the teleportation matrix, they didn''t have any way to return to the Coral archipelago at the moment, creating that connection was their priority. They went north, along the coastline, the desert expanded for a few kilometers before being replaced with small rivers that favored the birth of some vegetation. The group soon discovered though that the rivers were inhabited by packs of rank 4 Poisonous frogs that had tainted that environment with their toxic saliva, altering many of the magical plants there. Elder Laurel''s eagerness to study those plants was clearly shown by her expression but Elder Hope didn''t stop flying, there would be plenty of time to study the lifeforms living there after the teleportation matrix was set. A thick forest followed the area with rivers, small trees with large crowns occupied the environment, their white leaves gave an eerie atmosphere to the area. "These are White woods, they are magical plants that release toxins in the air to kill any living beings that enter their range. They then let the corpses nourish the terrain from which they take their nourishment. This place can work!" Elder Laurel spoke but a series of confused gazes were shot in her direction. Even Noah felt confused, she had just said that the air around them was toxic, how could that area be suitable for the creation of a foothold? Yet, he didn''t feel any threat coming from those trees, even his dragon''s instincts didn''t sense anything. "The toxins of the White woods become more powerful when the trees are starving or when they are attacked, the air is virtually clean now since the terrain is rich of nourishments. This area is perfect as long as we don''t affect the vegetation." Elder Laurel explained. The terrain of the piece of Immortal Lands was filled with "Breath", the amount of nourishment that it provided was more than enough for those White woods, they simply didn''t need to hunt thanks to that. "This will do then. Elder Duke, Elder Morgan, begin the preparations for the teleportation matrix. Elder Laurel will assist you to be sure that your work doesn''t affect the magical plants here. I and the Prince will explore the surrounding areas." Elder Hope ordered and flew higher in the sky, Noah followed her while the other three elders went on the ground, immersing themselves in the white forest. "Pick a direction." Elder Hope spoke to Noah when he reached her, his consciousness spread in the surrounding area and his reptilian eyes analyzed the environment far in the distance but he couldn''t find anything peculiar. "East." In the end, Noah simply chose the direction that would bring him deeper into the continent. "Good, I''ll go back on the desert and explore the southern coast, let''s meet here in five days." Elder Hope ordered and began to fly south to return to the desert where they had met the rank 5 Giant sandworm. Noah sighed internally when he saw that the leader trusted his abilities to the point of leaving him exploring alone, his knowledge about the magical beasts'' field earned him that recognition. ''Feels good to be finally alone¡­'' Noah took a deep breath and the air around him darkened after that gesture. His gaze went toward the depths of the continent, he knew that the three big nations had most likely found traces of divine beings on that land, the Hive couldn''t confirm it but the behavior of those forces made it almost a certainty. Also, now that he was alone, he could use his full strength. Noah kicked the air under his feet and a shockwave resounded in the area, his figure disappeared in an instant only to reappear in the sky after the forest of White woods. A plain expanded after the forest, azure bushes grew from the terrain. The bushes seemed to contain an incredible amount of "Breath" so Noah did a quick inspection of the area before diving in the plain. Roars resounded in the plain as soon as his presence was noticed, a pack of rank 4 Saber-toothed tigers exited its lair and charged toward his descending figure. Noah felt his dragon''s part rejoice when he saw that magical beasts dared to fight him while he was in the air, a smile appeared on his face and a challenging roar came out of his mouth as he continued to descend toward the azure bushes. Noah''s roar scared most of the tigers which slowed down their charge, their legs trembled when they felt the might of the creature behind that cry. Yet, another roar resounded in the plain and a rank 4 Saber-toothed tiger in the upper tier appeared in the open and fixed its gaze on Noah who had just landed on the azure ground. Noah heard the tiger''s cry and knew that his challenge had been accepted. The upper part of his robe was stored inside his space-ring as Noah walked on the plain, nearing what seemed the leader of the pack, the creature walked past the weaker tigers of its pack as it prepared itself to charge at Noah. ''I''m near the peak of the middle tier while this tiger is in the upper tier¡­ I don''t feel threatened at all.'' Noah thought as he continued to walk toward the leader, he felt completely confident in fighting that beast alone. However, Noah had no intention of using his human centers of power, he wanted to face the beast with his body alone! The tiger charged Noah, the ground trembled every time the leader increased its speed but, to Noah, it seemed simply too slow. He patiently waited for the tiger to reach him, the beast jumped just before arriving in his position and spread its maws as it fell toward him. It was at that point that Noah''s arms shot upward and reached for the two curved canines of the beast, his hands squeezed the fangs as he tried to stop the charge of the beast with his sheer strength! Of course, being in the upper tier put that creature at the peak of the fourth rank, its physical strength wasn''t something that could be stopped easily. Noah held still as he felt the overwhelming power pushing him back, the terrain under his legs crumbled, creating holes in the ground as he tried to stop the charge. Noah was pushed back for dozens of meters but his hands never left the fangs, two large trails were dug on the ground by his legs as he tried to stop himself. It took almost one hundred meters for the power behind the charge of the beast to be depleted, Noah could finally raise his head after his foothold became stable, he revealed a smile at the angry tiger that had its fangs still stuck in his hands. Chapter 510: 510. Azure bushes The rank 4 Saber-toothed tiger in the upper tier released angry roars as it struggled to free itself from Noah''s clutches. On the other hand, Noah tried his best to break those sharp fangs but to no avail, he wasn''t able to crack them even with his full strength. The other weaker tigers neared the battle when they saw that Noah and their leader had reached a stalemate, Noah knew that he had to act soon or he would be forced to retreat in the air. His skin caved in as the nourishments inside his body were consumed at a high speed, his muscles condensed as the secret art was activated. Noah felt a surge of power filling his body, his fingers finally managed to stab the fangs after the activation of the secret art, countless cracks spread over curved fangs of the beast as the strength behind Noah''s grip increased. Then, the fangs fell apart and the tiger released a shriek. The leader was furious, its fangs had just been broken, it turned its head to stare at the invader only to be swept by a wave of pale-gray flames. The power behind Noah''s flames had increased since his fusion, they had yet to reach the power of those of the rank 5 Cursed dragon in the Granite Abyss but they were a powerful attack nonetheless! The leader of the pack endured the flames, almost all its fur was burnt along with part of its outer skin but its muscles and internal organs remained unharmed. The tiger tried to roar in anger but a punch fell on its nose and broke part of the skull behind it, Noah had directly charged and punched the beast! Noah jumped and landed on the back of the creature, the beast felt dizzy after the last blow and couldn''t react, Noah could safely reach its back and cross his arms around its neck. The tiger began to struggle as soon as Noah tightened his grip around his neck, cracking sounds resounded as its bones broke under the power of Noah''s body. Then, one last crack resounded and the tiger died, falling lifelessly on the ground. A skeletal figure jumped off the huge beast, Noah felt a bit weak as the effects of the secret art dispersed and his metabolism returned to a normal speed. ''I can defeat it with my secret art but I would probably need to reach the peak of the middle tier before challenging a beast in the upper tier without it.'' Noah evaluated in his mind as he tore part of the leader''s skin and put it in his mouth, munching sounds resounded in the area as Noah began to eat the defeated beast. The stares of the weaker tigers moved between Noah and the corpse of their leader, Noah could feel the greed behind those intense gazes. However, that was his prey. Noah turned to look at the other tigers, he knew what they were thinking, they were trying to understand if they could defeat Noah now that he had been weakened by the fight. A low growl came out of his mouth, Noah sat on the corpse of the tiger and tore another piece of his skin as he continued to stare at the pack. The tigers hesitated, they had lost their leader and returned to a disorganized state, none of them wanted to be the first to charge at the human. Noah continued to eat the tiger under him. His body slowly returned to its normal state as the corpse was consumed, its power even rose slightly after eating that powerful creature. Saliva fell from the fangs of the tigers, anyone would be able to understand how hungry they were. Yet, they didn''t move, they simply watched as only bones remained of the corpse of their leader. Then, Noah stood up and walked toward the azure bushes, leaving the remains of the tiger behind him. The tigers waited for Noah to be enough far away before charging toward the bones of their leader, a battle occurred behind Noah but he couldn''t care less, his eyes were fixed on the azure bushes. ''The upper tier tiger has appeared only after I went after these plants, they must have been its personal food.'' Noah inspected those shining plants, he crouched next to them and even smelled them while his consciousness searched for any threat. He didn''t sense any danger coming from them so he simply put one leaf inside his mouth to try it. The leaf was disgusting, Noah was almost about to spit it when the "Breath" contained inside it entered his body and he could clearly feel its quantity. ''I wondered why something that radiates so much energy has remained untouched among so many beasts!'' Noah thought as he guessed why the azure bushes hadn''t already been eaten by the pack of Saber-toothed tigers. ''I bet that this awful taste is the defensive mechanism of this magical plant, the leader of the tigers could only force itself to eat a bit of it from time to time. Well, I need to wait for Elder Laurel''s opinion to be completely sure.'' Noah stood up and tore many bushes before storing them inside his space-ring, he would bring samples to his group and eat the rest of them if Elder Laurel confirmed their harmlessness. ''This area can be colonized with the help of a few heroic cultivators, there doesn''t seem to be any rank 5 creature here.'' Noah flew in the air as he noted that place in his mind. He knew that the Hive would ultimately choose to create a stable foothold there just as the other three big nations were doing, there were simply too many resources and the archipelago was already four years late in the exploration, the Hive needed to act quickly if it wanted to seize as many benefits as possible. Noah''s eyes and consciousness swept the areas surrounding the azure plain: A mountain range became visible far away toward the east, part of the poisonous rivers and traces of the desert could be seen south, and nothing changed to north, the plain seemed to extend far away in that direction. ''I''ll travel till the mountain range before reuniting with the others, I should find a few powerful creatures that can raise the rank of my body.'' As he thought of that, Noah flew east toward the mountains in the distance. Chapter 511: 511. Azure Credits Noah flew across the azure plain and picked more of those azure bushes before reaching the mountain chain in the distance. However, his consciousness and instincts detected an immense danger hiding inside those mountains, Noah felt forced to retreat before even entering the air above that environment. The danger he felt surpassed that radiated by the rank 5 Giant sandworm, he didn''t identify the cause of that threat but he knew that it had to be something of a higher rank. That realization dispersed the satisfaction that he had felt after defeating a rank 4 magical beast in the upper tier with his bare hands, the wild and unruly aura that had accompanied him since he became a hybrid vanished only to be replaced by his usual sharp coldness. ''It''s only when you reach a certain height that you realize how high the sky really is.'' Noah thought as he released a loud sigh. The mountains were still in front of him but he didn''t dare to fly over them, all his struggles and accumulated power were nothing when they were put against something so strong. ''The path is long and my ambition is limitless, I will reach those ranks as long as I don''t die.'' Noah closed his eyes as he said those words in his mind. He had never thought that he was better than those around him, he had always believed that he had achieved his current power through his dedication and hard work, something that anyone could have. Yet, as time passed, he had surpassed all the cultivators that had been a match for him or that had been far stronger than him. William, Daniel, Kevin, June, Nina, the black robes in Odrea nation, Roy, they had all been surpassed by Noah''s growing speed for one reason or another. That slowly gave Noah some sort of confidence, he knew that he would continue to grow stronger as long as he remained alive. ''The sky is filled with monsters and I''ve just entered their world. I don''t know how the elders managed to live for so long without improving their ranks.'' Noah opened his eyes and turned as he thought about that, Elder Laurel and the others had remained in the gaseous stage of the fourth rank for decades, maybe even centuries, their situation was something that a workaholic person like Noah hoped to never understand. ''The meaning of the darkness element¡­ The meaning of the darkness element¡­'' Noah repeated those words in his mind as he flew over the azure plain, he could only think about increasing his power after sensing the threat hidden in the mountain range. His attention was on the shining black gas that entered his dantian through the black ring, his mental energy continuously fueled the Divine deduction technique as he studied the laws that the absorbed "Breath" carried. Meanwhile, a white saber was in his hand. Noah casually slashed toward the ground, aiming for the rank 4 Saber-toothed tigers that ran on the plain. His mind would improve with the fifth Kesier rune and his dantian was continuously enlarging, he could only ponder on the laws of the darkness element and eat to increase his power. Noah dove on the ground every time a tiger died and calmly ate it before returning in the air and swinging his saber again, he felt his body slowly becoming stronger as he devoured those powerful beasts. Five days passed quickly, Noah and Elder Hope reunited in the air over the forest of White woods. "What happened to you?" Elder Hope asked when she saw the state Noah was in, his long black hair was disheveled and dirty, the upper part of his robe was missing and its lower part was torn in many spots, and traces of blood could be seen everywhere from his hands to his face. Also, a cold aura surrounded him, Noah resembled a wild beast that had just come out of a harsh battle and that was ready to jump straight into another one. "The mountain range toward the east is too dangerous for us but the azure plain can be colonized, we can begin clearing the area immediately if the others are done with the teleportation matrix." Noah didn''t answer her question as he summarized the last five days, he directly flew on the ground toward his three companions after speaking those words. Elder Hope watched his back for a few seconds before following him, she had the faint feeling that his power had increased in that short period. Also, his mindset seemed to have changed, there was some sort of determination that had been absent during the journey through the sea. The three elders tasked with the creation of the teleportation matrix were completely focused on the terrain as they traced shining lines on the ground, Elder Morgan had her eyes closed as her fingers dug the terrain and Elder Duke oversaw her work, only Elder Laurel glanced at the trees around her from time to time. "How was your trip?" Elder Laurel asked when she saw the two figures carefully flying across the white crowns of the magical plants, Noah took a few branches of the azure bushes from his space-ring and threw them at her as he landed on the ground. Elder Laurel''s eyes lit up when she saw the plant, she immediately began to analyze it and murmur in a soft voice as if she was speaking to herself. "These are Azure Credits, in their raw form at least. They are called after the Obsidian Credits since their capabilities are similar, they are basically containers of "Breath". The continent doesn''t have many of these, a complete bush could be worth tens if not hundreds of Credits depending on how many leaves it has!" Noah pointed toward the azure plain after hearing Elder Laurel''s words and wore an expressionless face as he spoke to her. "The plain after this forest has a large number of these plants growing on its surface. I guess we found something similar to a mine of Obsidian Credits then." Elder Laurel nodded and gave the branches back to Noah, her gaze went of Elder Hope as she silently waited for her report. Elder Hope waited a few seconds before speaking words that left the group speechless. "I think I''ve found traces left by divine beings." Chapter 512: 512. Connection Elder Hope, Noah, and Elder Duke immediately set off after the former revealed that information, Elder Morgan and Elder Laurel were enough to take care of the teleportation matrix. The three heroic cultivators flew at a high speed toward the southern coast as Elder Hope led the way toward her discovery. They crossed the area inhabited by Poisonous frogs and flew around the domain of the rank 5 Giant sandworm, a large area filled with lava appeared in front of their eyes as soon as the desert was crossed. Red rivers dug canals across a rocky wasteland, they stretched themselves till the southern coast where the lava fell into the sea, even its heat though couldn''t melt the ice formed by the spell of the God of the Empire. Elder Hope led her two companions toward what she said was the source of that lava, the group flew over the rivers, reaching a red lake that radiated an unbearable heat. Noah found hard looking at the lake for too long, even his hybrid body couldn''t withstand the hot waves that were radiated by the lava inside it. It was needless to say that the state of his two companions was worse than his as they floated over the lake. "Do you have any suggestions?" Elder Hope asked as she looked at Noah, she had reason to believe that such heat could only be caused by magical beasts in the divine ranks. As he looked at lava, Noah knew that she was right! An irrepressible hunger filled Noah as he forced his eyes to analyze the lake, his mouth autonomously produced saliva as his dragon''s side gave him the confirmation that something extremely nourishing was hidden under the lake. It took a while for Noah to calm himself down, he felt as the Saber-toothed tigers did when they watched the corpse of their leader being eaten by him, he knew that the corpse of a powerful magical beast was there but he didn''t have the power to reach it. "There definitely something strong down there, I can''t be sure about its rank but I know that it''s dead. It''s probably the corpse of some body parts of a mighty creature and I''d say that there is a high chance that it''s something near the divine ranks seeing how it''s affecting the environment." Noah gave voice to his thoughts as he evaluated the area, the lake was just one of the repercussions that the presence of such a powerful being had caused. "We need heroic cultivators of the fire element and Chasing Demon, he might be the only one able to explore the depths of the lake." Elder Duke spoke as he retreated higher in the sky, he couldn''t endure the heat in the air above the lake anymore. Elder Hope and Noah followed him, even they were reaching their limits, they would have had to use the "Breath" inside their dantians to remain there. Elder Hope and Elder Duke began to discuss the matter, most of their plans couldn''t be carried out before the connection with the Coral archipelago was created but they still evaluated as many approaches as they could. Noah, however, was completely silent, his mind was still on the lake below him. ''I wonder how much my body would improve if I could take even a small bite from that corpse.'' That was his constant thought. Eating magical beasts of a lower rank didn''t increase his power by much and even those on a higher level only slightly boosted his strength. A hybrid needed more "Breath" to advance compared to normal magical beasts and even time took part in that process, Noah could only fulfill his hunger and wait for his body to completely assimilate those nutrients to improve. Yet, things would surely be different if a divine beast was to be his meal! Noah was almost sure that he wouldn''t need to wait if he had such a nourishing flesh, he knew that his body would most likely immediately reach the fifth rank with just one bite! "What do you think about that, Prince?" Elder Hope''s voice brought Noah back to reality, he found the stares of his two companions on him as they waited for some sort of answer. "We should secure the azure plain, that area is the best place to colonize and create a foothold. As for the lake¡­" Noah took one last look at the lava below him before releasing a loud sigh and continuing his phrase. "We can''t affect this zone with our power, there is no point in wasting time over something that we can''t touch." Noah''s words were harsh but also true. Elder Hope nodded and gestured to the group to return to the forest of White woods, there was nothing that they could do about that place for now. As they returned to the forest, Elder Duke went back on the ground to help the other two elders while Elder Hope and Noah flew toward the azure plain. They began killing the Saber-toothed tigers, the remaining specimens were in the middle tier at best, the two of them could easily kill dozens of them each in one day. Days went by in that way. The group was doing its best to be efficient with its time there, they had to make up for the four years of advantage that the three big nations had on the Hive. The population of Saber-toothed tigers diminished as time passed, Noah made sure to always store the corpses inside his space-ring, his storage device was the best of the group after all, the value of the magical beasts could be easily preserved thanks to that. Of course, the sudden decrease in the number of tigers opened up the way to other magical beasts that had been cast out in the past. Weak Poisonous frogs tried to expand their territory and bear-type magical beasts began to descend from the mountain range and invade the azure plain. The fauna in the plain seemed to be refilled each day, almost undoing Noah and Elder Hope''s efforts. Yet, after a few weeks went by like that, the teleportation matrix was completed and the connection with the Coral archipelago was created! Chapter 513: 513. Elder Austin The Hive barely had forty heroic cultivators in the entirety of their ranks. There was a limit to how much support the Coral archipelago could give to the group exploring the new continent, its situation wasn''t as stable as that of three big nations. Defending its territory and trying to create footholds in the old continent was already requiring most of its assets, it couldn''t just expose itself and risk to lose the stability that it had finally gained. After all, even the Papral nation and Utra nation had been forced to ask for the help of the sects and noble families to preserve their richest territories while continuing the exploration of the new land, the Hive simply couldn''t match them. Also, colonizing the new continent was a real challenge: The atmosphere there prevented any human cultivator from inhabiting that land and the three big nations were extremely secretive about the methods that they were using for that task. Due to all those reasons, the Hive was only able to send three heroic cultivators through the teleportation matrix in the forest of White woods. Elder Laurel carefully inspected the area under the white crows of the magical plants as the lights of the teleportation illuminated the forest, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the White woods didn''t feel threatened by those waves of energy. Three figures became visible at the center of the formation when its lights faded, two men a woman appeared and revealed surprised expressions when they felt the density of the "Breath" in the air. "Elder Austin, I wasn''t aware the Patriarch was going to send you." Elder Hope bowed toward the cultivator with the aspect of a middle-aged man. Noah and the others had gathered there to greet the reinforcements sent by the Hive but they were all surprised when they saw the three newcomers. Two of them looked old just like Noah''s companions and were both in the gaseous stage of the fourth rank. However, Elder Austin was different, he had scarlet hair, no beard, and a pair of shining green eyes but, most importantly, he was a heroic cultivator in the fifth rank! "I''ve decided to come as soon as you discovered traces of divine beings linked to the fire element, Elder Jason and Elder Pansy have decided to follow me for the same reason." Elder Austin spoke as he explained the reason behind his presence there. He was one of the few rank 5 cultivators of the Hive after all, his status was lower only to that of Chasing Demon! ''They all have a fire aptitude, I wonder how much they will improve thanks to the red lake.'' Noah thought as he kept his eyes on the rank 5 elder, he clearly felt that the latter was stronger than him but he wasn''t able to discern his exact power. He felt that his mental waves melted as soon as they reached for Elder Austin, even his sea of consciousness was inferior to such a mighty cultivator. Elder Austin noticed Noah''s attempts to probe his power and turned his gaze toward him while revealing a smile. Noah simply retracted his consciousness and bowed at that gesture, he knew that trying to probe him had been impolite but he hadn''t been able to hold himself back when he had understood that the elder was a rank 5 cultivator. "Laurel, Jason, Pansy, you three will come with me and cultivate next to the lava lake, the rest of you will focus on protecting the teleportation matrix and exploring more territories. The Hive has yet to discover how the three big nations are attempting to colonize this land so it''s pointless to waste time in it, it''s better to use your power to search for more traces of divine beings." Elder Austin ordered before flying in the sky, followed by three elders. He had obviously become the leader of the group as soon as he stepped in the new continent and decided for the heroic cultivators with a fire aptitude to focus on the lava lake, they were the only ones who could gain some benefits from it. "I can remain here and protect the formation, Elder Laurel has taught me how to handle the White woods, there shouldn''t be any problem." Elder Morgan spoke to the remaining three cultivators on the ground. "I will come back often and remain in the areas nearby, you can take care of the territories more in the distance." Elder Duke said as he nodded to Elder Morgan, his eyes often went on the formation on the ground, he seemed extremely interested in it. Elder Hope turned to look at Noah, it was clear that she was waiting for his words before deciding what to do. "I think I''ll explore the west coast now, it''s impossible to colonize the plain without the support of the Hive and the center of the continent seems too dangerous for my current level. I could still gather resources from the plain while you take care of the southern coast though, unless you have a better plan." Noah spoke, explaining the approach that he wanted to pursue. Elder Hope thought for a while before nodding and adding a few words. "The center of the continent is indeed too dangerous to us, it''s better to remain on the coastline. Well, good luck, everyone is on its own now." Elder Hope flew away after those words and Noah did the same after nodding to the two elders that had decided to supervise the teleportation matrix. ''Eight heroic cultivators, one in the fifth rank, one in the liquid stage of the fourth rank, and six in the gaseous stage, our forces here are shallow but it''s the best that the Hive can do at the moment. Four elders are busy with the lava lake since it matches their element while two cultivators will oversee the formation, leaving only me and Elder Hope to the exploration. I should use this chance to reach the upper tier¡­'' Noah thought as he turned toward north a flew past the forest of White woods, his consciousness eagerly searched for powerful magical beasts as he analyzed the environment below him. Chapter 514: 514. Mistake The period after the reinforcements from the Coral archipelago came was quite messy for Noah. He flew north, along the western coastline and past the forest of White woods in his solitary exploration of the new continent. The fact that the lava lake didn''t suit his element and that the corpse hidden under its surface was out of his reach didn''t discourage him, he actually felt quite calm at that moment. The reason behind that sensation was that he was alone. Noah had always preferred to be alone, even before transmigrating, there was some sort of silent freedom when he was left on his own. That feeling had only increased through his second life, he felt as if he could truly be himself only when he was alone after all the escapes and pretenses that he had been forced to perform as he pursued his goal. His fusion with the Cursed dragon further accentuated that preference, the egoism of the magical beasts was part of him now and he knew that the procedure had forever altered his mental state. His mind wandered as he flew over a seemingly empty lake that had appeared after the forest of White woods, his mental energy continuously fueled the Divine deduction technique as he pondered about himself. He had gained some insights after he attempted to probe Elder Austin, the mental waves of the rank 5 cultivator resembled a scorching defensive layer that melted any energy that tried to pass it, it was as if Elder Austin''s mind was made of fire itself! That realization made Noah understand something: The entirety of a cultivator would change after it began to understand the laws of its element! Of course, that was mostly a hypothesis in Noah''s mind, he couldn''t be certain of that after just a brief interaction with Elder Austin. Yet, he had to start somewhere and that was the only clue that he had managed to pick up about the understanding of the laws of one element. ''Before searching for an external meaning, I should thoroughly understand the depths of my individuality. I don''t have to understand all the laws of the darkness element but only those that suit myself and that I can make mine. Everything must start with me.'' Noah thought as he slowly descended toward the surface of the lake. The water in the lake was murky, only the azure radiance released from the ground made him able to see part of its depths. That radiance though seemed to diminish every time Noah breathed, his lungs continuously absorbed the "Breath" contained in the light around him, creating a dark halo that followed him everywhere he went. ''A being that feeds on light to empower its darkness.'' Those words entered Noah''s mind before he analyzed the depths of the lake with his consciousness. The way Noah saw it, he needed to reach a deeper enlightenment about himself before he could understand the laws of the darkness element that matched his individuality. He had already done something similar when he had chosen the magical beast to fuse with his body but he had become something completely different after the fusion. Also, he was now a complete heroic cultivator, the standards of the human ranks weren''t enough to define him anymore. A tentacle came out from the surface of the lake and tried to pierce Noah with its sharp tip but his hand shot toward the slippery limb of the beast and stopped its attach before it could reach his skin. Noah''s hand squeezed the large purple tentacle and held it still, its tip resembled a sharp hook that was as large as Noah''s chest. ''I don''t know this species of octopus-type magical beasts, it can hide its presence due to its ink but it also has a powerful body which doesn''t really suit its former capability. Well, it''s only in the middle tier anyway.'' Noah increased the strength behind his squeeze until the skin of the beast was torn into pieces, a hole appeared on the tentacle where there once was Noah''s hand. The water of the lake became darker, Noah knew that the octopus hiding in the lake was trying to hide its presence with its ink before attempting in a surprise attack. ''A being that uses darkness as a cover for its lethal attacks.'' Noah thought as he stared at the scene, his mental energy was continuously depleted to keep the Divine deduction technique active, Noah felt as if he had entered a peculiar mental state that allowed him to see part of himself in the environment that surrounded him. Ten tentacles shot from the dark lake and converged in Noah''s position, he didn''t even look at them as a pair of white sabers appeared in his hands and slashed toward them. Black lines appeared in the trajectory of the tentacles and directly severed them from the main body, Noah casually picked one of the severed limbs of the beast and bit it, his eyes never left the dark water of the lake during that gesture. ''A being that feeds on others to grow stronger, the hated union between two species.'' His mind continued to play his deepest thoughts, he sensed that he was understanding something about himself when his status as a hybrid was mentioned. Countless bubbles appeared on the surface of the lake, filling Noah''s mind with a dangerous feeling. Black flames covered his figure, making him disappear from his position just before a massive hook pierced the air there, creating a shockwave that made the water of the lake fall into chaos. Noah reappeared far away in the air, his eyes stared at what seemed the tentacle of a rank 5 magical beast before going back on the lake where the tall waves were dispersing the ink that had previously tainted the water. ''A being that Heaven and Earth wanted to destroy, a being that Heaven and Earth couldn''t be bothered to dismantle.'' More than half of his mental energy had been depleted since he had activated the Divine deduction technique, it seemed that the peculiar mental state that he had reached required more fuel to be maintained. Yet, he felt that he had obtained some sort of realization, something that he believed could be his starting point. ''I am a mistake.'' Chapter 515: 515. Laws Noah repeated the word "mistake" in his mind as he tried to link that realization to his element and his cultivation. ''A mistake that strives for power. The sole fact that I''m alive is an act of defiance against Heaven and Earth but my defiance is not what drives my life, it''s just a consequence of my pursuit for power.'' Noah didn''t choose to defy the rules of Heaven and Earth and to train in unorthodox methods because he preferred that path, he had been forced by the many dire situations of his life to walk on that road. His status as bastard had forced him to train in the Forging of the Seven Hells to obtain a rank 3 body, his family would have never given him an orthodox body-nourishing method due to his father''s obstruction. He had learnt the Elemental forging method because that was the only inscription method that he could train in, he needed to learn it or he would have had to rely on techniques created by others to raise his level. He had fused himself with a magical beast because that was the only inspiration that he had obtained regarding body-nourishing methods, he had to wait to pass his Earth Tribulation to reach that enlightenment. The reason behind all those choices had been his pursuit of power, he had always had the chance to stop training or to slow down his growth after all. Yet, his ambition led him to his current path, making him become a being ready to do anything to increase his strength. ''The mistake was starting cultivating, Heaven and Earth wanted me to remain as a commoner and live inside the family, they didn''t predict my ambition¡­'' Earth itself had given that information to Noah, he was sure that his reasoning was on point. ''Yet, how do I link these qualities to my element?'' His understanding of the darkness element was still poor, he had just started studying the laws contained in the "Breath" that he absorbed after all. However, his peculiar mental state and his knowledge about himself made him understand a few things. ''Darkness is everywhere, just like light. It fills the world, it can envelop everything and devour it. Nothing can stop it and everyone feels it at some point, I''ve felt it many times in my near-death experiences.'' Noah remembered the darkness that was about to invade his mind every time he was about to die and even that when he had actually died. ''Darkness isn''t simply the absence of light, it exists and thrives, just like me.'' Noah reviewed the scenes that he had seen in the Granite Abyss. The environment there had been deeply affected by the rank 5 Cursed dragon, even his rank 4 body wasn''t able to see anything there. ''A darkness that feeds on light to become void, a cultivator that shouldn''t exist but that continues its pursuit of power, void that exists...'' Noah came out of his peculiar mental state after he thought that, his mental energy stopped fueling the Divine deduction technique as soon as he realized that something had changed about his dantian. It wasn''t something that concerned his Black hole cultivation technique, the whirlpool continued absorbing "Breath" as usual and his will in front of it didn''t affect it in the slightest. Yet, Noah felt as if his dantian was enlarging a bit faster, it was as if it didn''t oppose its enlargement as strongly as before. Also, part of the laws that the "Breath" carried weren''t destroyed anymore by his cultivation technique but were instead nourishing his dantian. That nourishment was minimal, Noah was barely able to notice it. Yet, he felt as if something deeper about him had changed again, as if he was slowly beginning to tune with laws of the darkness element that suited him. ''These laws¡­ I don''t know what they represent but they don''t have a connection with Heaven and Earth anymore after they nourish my dantian. I guess they are feeding my individuality.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the process, the fact that his center of power was improving faster without the help of his cultivation technique felt amazing, he didn''t even know that something like that was possible. ''It seems that I''ve taken the first real step on my personal path. This might be the reason behind the Tribulations, heroic cultivators steal Heaven and Earth''s laws to improve after all.'' The deeper understanding of his status as a heroic cultivator made Noah realize why Heaven and Earth didn''t want to see the birth of such powerful beings, everything made more sense now in his mind. A plain filled with thick vegetation followed the lake inhabited by the species of octopuses, Noah slowly flew back on the ground as he prepared himself to explore it. Remaining in the new continent was a must in his opinion, its environment was simply too perfect for his rank, he knew that he would require the Hive''s help to create a training area that matched that place. Also, there was the slight chance that he could find traces left by divine beings that matched his element, Noah couldn''t let go of that opportunity, no matter how slim it was. After all, cultivators of the light and darkness element were extremely rare and, even when one of them managed to enter the cultivation journey, it would be forced to bear the incredible costs that the techniques and methods of its element carried. Most of them didn''t even go after the fourth rank, the hindrances that afflicted all heroic cultivators were even harsher for those with a rare aptitude, leaving the creation of techniques and spells as the only alternative available. However, only a small percentage of the cultivators could learn inscription methods and even fewer of them could succeed in that task, Noah knew that the chances of finding something left by a divine cultivator of the darkness element were nearly zero. Yet, he could still find remains of magical beasts of the same element and even simple corpses of powerful beings that he could eat, the only thing that he could hope for was that his power would be enough to seize those benefits. Noah walked on the ground as he continued his solitary exploration, a dark halo followed him as the light around him kept on being absorbed by his body. Chapter 516: 516. Encounter Noah''s centers of power steadily improved as his exploration continued. He trained with the Kesier rune often, he would stare at the sheet containing it for hours when he decided that it was time to take a break. His dantian benefitted from the environment and his recent enlightenment concerning the laws of the darkness element, Noah actually had to slow down the absorption speed of his cultivation technique from time to time to give to his center of power a period of rest. He couldn''t use his drugs to keep it healthy, he simply had too few potions and pills that could be used on a rank 4 dantian, he knew that it was better to keep them for unexpected and dangerous situations. The center of power that benefitted the most from the new environment though was his body. The high density of "Breath" in the air gave it a constant stream of nourishments and Noah had never stopped killing and eating the magical beasts that he found along the way, that type of regimen wasn''t something that he could afford in the old continent, there simply weren''t that many rank 4 magical beasts in one place. The plain that followed the lake inhabited by the octopus-type magical beasts was filled by rank 4 Lightning rabbits. Noah was often forced to escape in the air since the rabbits were simply too many, they threatened to encircle him every time he killed a few of them. Lightning rabbits didn''t have powerful bodies but they could launch lightning bolts to attack and could momentarily boost their speed by gathering sparks on their legs. Those qualities made them quite annoying to fight, especially due to their numerous population, Noah could easily endure a few lightning bolts but even he would die if he was hit by hundreds of them. The plain though didn''t have anything interesting, Noah spent many days there only to improve his body as fast as he could, feeding on so many rank 4 creatures pushed him toward the limits of the middle tier even though he had yet to completely absorb all those nourishments. However, he eventually went past the plain to continue his exploration of the western coastline, his main targets were the traces left by divine beings and the corpses of powerful beasts after all. A grassland filled with short hills appeared in his sight as he walked in the sky, a yellowish moss covered the entirety of the grassland, giving it an eerie aspect. ''This moss should be a magical plant of some sort, it seems that the entirety of this area is occupied by this species.'' Noah thought as he descended on the ground, he wanted to inspect that life form and even pick a few samples for Elder Laurel to analyze. Yet, just when he was only at one meter away from the terrain, the moss moved, creating something similar to a claw that stretched toward Noah and tried to surround him. Noah kicked the air and a shockwave expanded from under his feet, the quick activation of the Shadow sprint martial art brought him high in the sky in less than an instant. ''Countless rank 4 magical plants working together under the lead of few in the fifth rank, I bet that the entire grassland can work as a single organism.'' Noah thought as he watched the moss returning to the ground, he was amazed to discover that even his dragon''s instincts hadn''t been able to make him sense that threat. ''Another uninhabitable area, the Immortal Lands are really on another level, we can explore this continent so safely only due to the absence of flying beings.'' Escaping in the air was the safest choice most of the time due to the peculiar fauna of the new land, exploring it would be a far harsher challenge if flying magical beasts were present. ''Also, most of these creatures can hide their presence even from my instincts! All these lifeforms are simply too dangerous and this is only the coastline!'' The density of "Breath" increased as one went deeper into the continent, almost confirming the presence of stronger creatures there. ''I wonder what wonders can be found up there.'' Noah sighed as he looked at the sky. The Immortal Lands seemed dangerous to explore even to rank 5 cultivators, only peak heroic cultivators or divine beings could have the confidence to brazenly uncover its secrets. Mountains began to appear after the grassland, Noah chose to fly past that area since the moss didn''t allow the presence of any other living being, it was simply pointless to spend more time there. The environment on the mountains seemed somewhat dangerous: Many snake-type magical beasts lived under the trees on their surface and Noah was almost certain that a few rank 5 creatures were hidden near their bases. Noah approached the new area slowly. He first killed as many magical beasts as he could and stored the bodies of those that he wasn''t eating, clearing a small area in the process. Then, he dug a cave on the side of a mountain so that he could train in peace, he needed a safe environment where he could stare at the fifth Kesier rune until most of his mental energy was depleted. He decided to remain in those mountains for a while, the snake-type magical beasts were powerful but also extremely nourishing, they were the best food for his body. Also, there were many hidden areas between the mountains, exploring all of them would take time since he had to be careful of the rank 5 creatures that he knew where hidden somewhere. However, something that he didn''t expect happened. Noah had spent a few weeks between those mountains by then, he was casually exploring an area where two packs of snakes were fighting over the corpse of a strong specimen when his consciousness sensed that another consciousness had entered its range. Noah raised his eyes to the sky where he saw that a woman wearing a yellow robe was staring at him wearing a surprised expression, she looked at him for a while before her consciousness conveyed a mental message to Noah. "Who are you?" Chapter 517: 517. Chase The forces of the three big nations had explored the new continent for more than four years by then and had also kept most of the reports concerning the new land for themselves. That was the main reason why the Hive had chosen to fly directly to the southwestern coast, which was the farthest area from the old continent and the zone that the three big nations had yet to reach. However, four years was a long period and the three big nations had deployed an incredible number of heroic assets on the piece of Immortal Lands. Also, the three factions were temporarily avoiding battles between each other, focusing solely on the exploration of that rich land and on seizing as many resources as they could. It was needless to say that the pace at which the new continent was explored only increased through the years, especially on the areas near the coastlines since they were safer than those at the center of the land. ''Is she exploring this area alone?'' Noah questioned inside his mind as he inspected the woman that had appeared in the sky. The mountains where Noah had lived for a while were still at some distance from the northern coastline, it was unlikely that one of the three big nations had created a settlement near there. Noah knew that there was a high chance that the heroic cultivator that had appeared was alone, searching for anything that could benefit her cultivation just like him. "I''m not going to ask again." The woman spoke again and revealed part of her aura, Noah remained silent as he stared at her with a cold gaze and analyzed her centers of power. ''Rank 4 body in the upper tier, rank 4 sea of consciousness that matches mine, rank 4 dantian at the peak of the gaseous stage¡­ Also, she doesn''t recognize me.'' Noah thought as he remained silent. He knew that his name had spread through the old continent but many heroic cultivators were still unaware of him. After all, he had been only a human cultivator back then and only the Elbas family could have some interest in someone so weak, there was no reason for the heroic cultivators of the other big nation to investigate him. "So you''ve chos-" "I''m Lord Cody of the Voydol family, I wasn''t aware that the Papral nation had already claimed this territory. I will take my leave now." Noah interrupted the woman''s phrase with a lie and turned to leave in the direction of the grassland, he didn''t even wait for the reaction of the cultivator above him as flew away from those mountains. According to the small pieces of information that the Hive had managed to gather through the years, Noah knew that the woman probably came from the areas occupied by the Papral nation. He also knew that the Elbas family had requested for the help of the noble families, the other factions couldn''t possibly know all the heroic cultivators from the Utra nation that were on the new continent, they were mostly avoiding each other after all. Noah''s guess seemed on point since the woman didn''t chase after him, she simply floated in the air as she stared at Noah''s back. Yet, just as he was about to reach the grassland, a pair of fiery wings appeared on the woman''s back who began to fly at high speed toward him! ''Dammit.'' Noah cursed in his mind as he continued to escape, an inscribed notebook appeared in his hand which he used to send a mental message to his companions. "I''ve been found!" Noah was simply warning the other heroic cultivators of the Hive, he knew that they couldn''t reach him anytime soon and that they would probably hesitate in sending reinforcements. After all, the fact that the Hive was exploring the new continent was a secret, the other three big nations would probably use that information to inflict a harsh blow to the archipelago if they knew that it had divided its forces. "The pacts signed two years ago leave seventy percent of the western coast to the Council, which means that you are either a criminal or someone from a different organization!" The woman shortened her distance with Noah as she shouted those words, the spell that she was using made her far faster than him. Noah kept his attention behind him, his consciousness carefully analyzed the area behind the woman as if he was waiting for someone else to appear. However, no one appeared, it seemed that the woman was really on her own in that area. ''I wasn''t aware that the three big nations had formally divided the territories of the new continent. This is a huge problem, the coastlines aren''t as safe as we believe.'' Noah continued to fly as he stored his inscribed notebook back in his space-ring, he didn''t have time to listen to his companion''s answers. ''I might be able to defeat her if she is alone.'' Traces of battle intent began to grow inside Noah''s mind but he forcibly suppressed them, he didn''t want to reveal any clue about his next move to the woman behind him. The heroic cultivator on his back continued to chase him, she was soon close enough to target him with her spells. Seven fireballs appeared around her figure, they began to launch fire bullets toward the escaping Noah but they didn''t seem to aim to his vital organs. Noah kicked the air and a shockwave spread under his feet, his figure seemed to disappear due to his sudden acceleration, the activation of the Shadow sprint martial art made him dodge all the incoming bullets. The woman''s eyes sharpened, her opponent was doing his best to hide his abilities as he escaped, she didn''t manage to discover anything with that simple spell. Countless fireballs appeared around her figure, they quickly became spears that shot through the air and reached for the escaping Noah. Noah felt hundreds of fire spears reaching for him and kicked the air again, the Shadow sprint martial art brought him far away in the distance but the enemy''s spell seemed locked onto him and continued to chase him at a high speed. Noah waited as he focused, the spears reached for him once again and hid his figure from the woman''s line of sight. It was at that moment that black flames covered him, right before the woman''s spell crashed in his position and released a shockwave that made even the ground below tremble. Chapter 518: 518. Harmony Noah didn''t want to fight. He was in an unknown territory that the three big nations had explored for more than four years, there were simply too many variables that he couldn''t possibly be aware of. Yet, the woman from the Papral nation didn''t want to let him go, she chased and attacked him through the western coastline. Noah''s companions were far away, it would take them at least one day of full-speed flight to reach him, and that was only in Elder Duke and Elder Morgan''s case. The others were over the lava lake on the southern coast, and there was no way that Elder Austin and the others with a fire aptitude could come in his aid anytime soon. Noah was left with two options: Either use all his abilities to escape the pursuit or fight! The issue with the first option was that he would most likely reveal his identity and, consequently, the involvement of the Hive in the exploration of the new continent. He didn''t believe that the three big nations would attack the Coral archipelago because of its actions. Still, the Hive would inevitably be forced to abandon the piece of Immortal Lands, which was something that Noah wanted to avoid at all costs. That and the fact that the woman seemed to be alone pushed Noah toward his second option: Go all out and fight! The fire spears converged and exploded in Noah''s position right after his figure was enveloped in black flames, the shockwave released by that spell made the whole area tremble. Black flames appeared in the sky above the woman, Noah had decided to teleport at a few hundred meters from his enemy to launch his attack. His skin caved in as he swung his left arm, a black saber shattered the air in its path while radiating an ominous aura that sent chills down the heroic cultivator''s spine. The rank 4 Demonic sword made its first appearance in battle! The woman was a heroic cultivator that had reached the peak of the gaseous stage of the fourth rank. She was one of the many old cultivators that had chosen to explore the new continent looking for ways to improve her rank, and she had an incredible amount of battle experience. She immediately knew that Noah''s attack couldn''t be blocked easily, she would need to use most of her defensive methods to stop it. Hundreds of fire spears appeared between her and Noah and formed a thick wall, a giant eagle made of flames appeared at the center of the wall and covered that spot with its folded wings, a pale sheet came out from her space-ring and created a circular protective layer around her figure, she had even chosen to use disposable inscribed items to protect herself. The air reformed as soon as Noah completed his slash, and a wide fissure appeared on the defensive methods of the woman. The fire eagle was severed in two, and even the wall of spears was split in half, a corrosive black smoke appeared on the borders of the fissure and continued to consume the spells as it spread through their surfaces. The circular defensive layer managed to endure the remaining power carried by Noah''s attack, only some faint traces of his black smoke had reached the layer, but the woman''s "Breath" quickly dispersed them. Noah''s attack wasn''t even able to touch her. Noah quickly stuffed a piece of one of the magical beasts stored inside his space-ring in his mouth, he needed to maintain his body in a healthy state since he knew that he would need to use the secret art many other times. ''She perfectly evaluated the power behind my attack and activated the suitable countermeasures¡­ This will be hard.'' Noah thought as he stuffed another piece of a magical beast inside his mouth, his mind tried to find the best way to deal with such a powerful enemy. Of course, the woman didn''t wait for Noah to find a solution. "Who are you? Which organization has managed to keep a heroic cultivator of the darkness element hidden?" She asked as she raised her hands on the sky, she had understood Noah''s aptitude, but it seemed that she didn''t manage to link him to the Demon Prince of the Coral archipelago. Noah was only thirty-seven after all, no one would think that someone that young had been able to cross the human ranks in that short period. The barrage of flame spears appeared again, and an inscribed item in the fourth rank appeared in her hands. The item seemed a simple piece of wood, but a blue flame burned on its tip, it resembled some sort of inscribed torch. The torch began to affect the spears around her, blue flames covered the tips of the spears, which increased the dangerous aura that they radiated. ''Amazing.'' That was the only word that Noah could use to describe the scene. He was fighting a heroic cultivator that had trained herself for decades, if not centuries, her spells, her weapons, her instincts had reached a harmony that Noah couldn''t possibly achieve since had been forced to bend his fighting style to the techniques and spells in his possession. The spears shot in his direction and he waited until all of them were about to converge in his position before performing the Shadow sprint martial art while activating the secret art. Noah reached an insane speed when his martial art was matched with his secret art, the woman was able to find his figure only after his burst of speed ended. Noah had neared her with his last sprint, he was wielding two black sabers at that time, he had decided to wield even his second rank 4 Demonic sword. Two slashes shattered the air in front of him as he attacked the woman, she didn''t have the time to be surprised by the appearance of a second rank 4 inscribed weapon in the hands of her opponent since she felt once again that a threatening attack was reaching for her. She focused, a large amount of mental energy and "Breath" were injected inside her torch as she called upon the connection between her weapon and the flame spears in the distance. Noah had dodged the spears with his martial art, but they hadn''t exploded that time, only a few of them had broken when they converged in his position. Yet, when the energies fueled the torch, the flames that made the hundreds of spears in the distance disappeared, only to reappear in the form of an expanding blue sphere that had the woman at its center. Two fissures appeared on the expanding sphere made of blue flames, they pierced its surface and released a corrosive black smoke that threatened to fill its insides. However, the blue sphere detonated at that moment, releasing a shockwave that expanded outward and that flung Noah away from the woman. Chapter 519: 519. Harsh battle An intense heat enveloped Noah as he was thrown in the distance, he felt that even his skin couldn''t oppose the power behind the woman''s spell. ''I need to enter in melee range.'' Noah thought as he created dense layers of "Breath" under his feet to stop his momentum, he managed to stop himself only when he was at more than a hundred meters away from his enemy. He was in a pitiful state, most of his robe had been burned, and his skin was charred in many spots, even the lightning bolt that had hit him near the Granite Abyss hadn''t been able to inflict so much damage. The woman didn''t wait for Noah to recover, she created hundreds of fire spears again which she empowered with her inscribed torch before launching them toward him. Noah saw how the barrage of spears was reaching for him once again, his mind became incredibly calm once he accepted that he had to sacrifice something if he wanted to win that battle. Noah threw many pieces of magical beasts in his mouth before kicking the air to activate his Shadow sprint martial art, the healing capabilities of his body were momentarily weakened due to the activation of the secret art, the burned skin didn''t heal while he dodged the incoming spears. The woman seemed to have understood Noah''s goal, it was clear that Noah wanted to get close to her to unleash one of those threatening slashes when her defenses were at their lowest. That''s why she summoned the giant fire eagle once again and manipulated it to aid the spears in Noah''s chase. Noah felt surrounded: The fire spears chased behind him, and the eagle defended the area around his enemy, there didn''t seem to be a way to near the woman. Also, Noah was wary of the defensive blue sphere that had already defeated his offense once, he didn''t know if the woman was able to use that ability again. ''I just need to touch her!'' Noah steeled his determination as he shot toward the eagle, blue flames filled its body when the woman understood that Noah was aiming for it. Noah performed two vertical slashes with his weapons, two fissures appeared on the body of the eagle, severing it in three parts. Also, Noah''s attacks continued to fly toward the woman, two black lines became visible after part of their power was dispersed to pierce the fire eagle. The woman saw the black lines and focused on her inscribed torch, the dispersing flames that made her eagle were absorbed by her weapon and created the same expanding blue sphere from before. The fire spears remained intact since she had used the flames that made the eagle to create the defensive sphere, they were still flying toward Noah from behind his back. The blue color filled the air around Noah, he found himself between the expanding sphere and the hundreds of spears, only the Warp spell could make him escape that situation. However, Noah had no intention to escape. The two black lines crashed on the sphere, releasing a black smoke that managed to pierce its surface, creating small holes in that powerful spell. Noah''s mental energy was depleted as hundreds of ethereal claws formed around him and shot toward those holes, reaching for the insides of the body of the woman and tearing everything in their path. The woman seemed to have realized something after the Ghostly claws spell hit her, but she was forced to put a stop to her thoughts since Noah kicked the air again and reappeared in front of one of the holes in her defensive spell. His eyes released a mental shockwave, a mental beam reached for the woman and threatened to crack her sea of consciousness with its might! However, the woman knew the nature of that attack and immediately acted to counter it. Her consciousness focused in the area in front of her mental sphere and dense layers made of flames appeared in the trajectory of Noah''s mental beam, Noah could feel how those defenses depleted a large quantity of the power carried by his spell before it managed to hit the heroic cultivator. The Mental tremor spell hit the woman''s sea of consciousness, the walls of her mental sphere shook as they endured Noah''s attack. Noah saw that the holes on the surface the blue sphere enlarged when the woman''s focus wavered, Heilong came out in the open and enveloped Noah as he launched himself through the blue flames. Noah felt Heilong cries of pain, and cracks appeared on its ethereal figure inside his mind as he used his blood companion to cross the defensive sphere of his enemy. Yet, the woman managed to make the sphere detonate while she endured the tremors that filled the walls of her mind. Noah saw the detonation of the defensive spell and turned ethereal, part of Heilong''s body was destroyed before it could hide inside his skin, but most of it managed to escape the deadly heat released by that attack. The Ethereal form spell allowed Noah to remain in his enemy''s range, he calmly waited for his body to return material before kicking the air and appearing right in front of her. The fire spears were still aiming at him from behind his back, but Noah had been too fast in the execution of his spells before sprinting again with his martial art, they didn''t have any chance to reach him. Noah performed a downward vertical slash with his left arm, the air cracked right above the woman''s head before the saber''s trajectory reached for her head. It was at that point that red lines shone on the yellow robe of the heroic cultivator from the Papral nation, a seemingly impenetrable layer covered the woman''s skin, blocking Noah''s attack before falling apart. The defensive capabilities of her robe gave her the time needed to stabilize her sea of consciousness and envelop her body with the blue flames contained in her inscribed torch, the heat that had previously burned Noah''s skin enveloped his body once again. It was at that moment that Noah activated his most powerful spell, black smoke rose from his skin and morphed him into a fiendish figure. Chapter 520: 520. Trap Noah had always known that the Demonic form spell was his strongest asset. However, there were many ways to counter the incredible power that his spell carried, especially when he was against experienced heroic cultivators. His enemies could just stall for time and wait for his "Breath" or mental energy to be depleted, its excessive consumption of energies balanced the higher power of the complete Demonic form, Noah would always end up exhausted before his enemies if he weren''t able to defeat them quickly. Also, the Demonic form spell was his signature move, his identity would be easily discovered if he was to activate the armor made of corrosive black smoke. Once an experienced heroic cultivator learnt his identity, it would activate the necessary countermeasures, leaving his powerful body as his only hidden ability. That was the reason why Noah hadn''t activated his most powerful spell before being right in front of the woman from the Papral nation, he needed for his enemy to understand his identity only when it was too late for her to exploit the weaknesses of his spell. Truth to be told, the woman had suspected Noah''s identity since he had used the Ghostly claws spell, but the fiendish form that had appeared in front of her gave her the last confirmation that she needed. "Noah Balvan, the reports said that you were a promising human cultivator, I know now that they had underestimated you." The woman''s voice resounded from behind the blue flames, her spell and Noah''s black smoke fought each other in the air as they tried to overwhelm each other. Noah saw how his black smoke was pushed back by the combination of the woman''s spell with her inscribed torch, she seemed to be able to drain all the fire still lingering in the sky to fuel her attack. The spears behind Noah vanished as their flames were being drained to fight the Demonic form, the blue fire slowly burned the black cloud around Noah. ''I can''t beat her.'' Noah realized when he saw that even his most powerful attack wasn''t enough to defeat that heroic cultivator. ''Yet, I don''t have to directly kill her to win.'' Noah thought as he raised his right arm in the sky. The pressure radiated by the blue flames hindered his movements, Noah knew that he wouldn''t be able to perform his martial art in that situation. However, he had already decided to leave the killing to something else. Noah stored his weapons as he lowered his right arm, his hand closed into a fist as it ran through the sea of flames to reach the woman. The black smoke around his arm was burned as Noah punched through her defensive spell, that punch carried all the physical strength that his body was capable of. A hybrid''s body near the peak of the middle tier of the fourth rank, a secret art that brought the capabilities of such a body to its limits, and the Demonic form spell that further increased Noah''s strength, there were very few beings in the fourth rank that could match such sheer power. Noah felt the skin around his knuckles burn, the protection of the black armor had dispersed in that point, and the blue flames were consuming more of it as his fist continued to descend. Then, Noah''s fist connected with the woman''s shoulder. He had initially aimed for her head, but the obstruction of the blue flames had altered the trajectory of his attack, making it land on her left shoulder. The heroic cultivator from the Papral nation had been initially confident against that attack, she believed that her defensive spell would deplete most of its power. Yet, that confidence fell apart when she felt the power that assaulted her body. Her shoulder directly exploded due to the impact, and the left side of her chest was torn apart by the might of Noah''s physical strength, only part of her waist kept her linked to her lower body. Other than that, she felt an immense force pushing her downward, her fiery figure was thrown toward the grassland where she crashed, creating a deep hole in the terrain under the yellowish moss. She was still alive even when half of her torso had been reduced into bits, her survival instincts made her reach for the drugs inside her space-ring to stabilize her injuries, but she didn''t expect the moss on the grassland to move and cover the remains of her body. The moss engulfed her in its embrace, and she struggled as she felt her body being slowly eaten by those numerous magical plants. Traces of flames began to reappear around her body, but, at that moment, she felt a stabbing pain coming from the remains of her low-waist. The connection with her dantian was severed after her low-waist had been ravaged, she didn''t have any method to escape that dangerous situation without her rank 4 "Breath", she could only use her fading consciousness to see what was happening above her. She saw the moss in the area around her quickly converging in the pit and a human figure staring the scene at a few meters in the air above her. Before darkness enveloped her mind, she understood that she had fallen for Noah''s trap. Noah watched the yellowish moss devouring the remains of the woman''s body and left only after he sensed her death. Blood stained the corners of his mouth as he flew toward the forest of White woods, he had dived toward the grassland as soon as the woman crashed into it to retrieve her dantian before retreating at full speed and eating it, he couldn''t let go of her center of power. ''It''s a pity that I couldn''t retrieve her space-ring¡­ Well, I should be happy to be alive.'' Noah thought as he flew back to the teleportation matrix of his organization, his consciousness analyzed his body to assess the damages that he had suffered during the battle. ''Forty percent of my skin is burned, and the muscles on my right arm are mostly gone. Also, I need some time to completely recover from the continuous usage of my secret art, I''ve never felt so weak after becoming a hybrid. I''ve reached the peak of the middle tier at least.'' The dantian of the heroic cultivator had pushed his body toward the peak of the middle tier, but the other nourishments were focusing the wounds that filled both his muscles and skin. Noah took a large piece of one of the magical beasts inside his space-ring and began to eat it, he needed to recover as fast as possible and break through the upper tier since there was a high chance that more battles on that level were waiting for him. Chapter 521: 521. Priority Noah''s body had reached the peak of the middle tier after he ate the woman''s dantian, he only needed to accumulate enough nourishments now to reach the upper tier. Yet, he needed to heal it before he could start accumulating "Breath", his injuries weren''t that severe, but they still needed some care. His mind went through the battle that he had just fought as he flew back to the teleportation matrix, his analysis of that fight left him utterly disappointed in his battle prowess. ''I would be dead if she understood my identity faster.'' Noah thought as he reviewed the woman''s abilities. He knew that he wouldn''t have had a chance if the heroic cultivator had been prepared for him. The woman could have just used her spears and eagle to keep him away, she only had to focus on her defense to win the battle harmlessly. ''I can''t rely on the surprise effect every time, my secret art allows me to make up for my lack of spells, but it doesn''t give me a win condition, I can only match experienced heroic cultivators with it.'' Noah only had three offensive spells, and two of them were mental attacks, he was extremely lacking in that field. ''Heilong is too weak for my current level, and I need to find a way to create spells with the Elemental forging method. Other than that, I can only wait for my centers of power to improve.'' Heilong was just a magical beast in the lower tier that had been empowered by Noah''s meaning, it couldn''t match the attacks of heroic cultivators. ''It would be nice if I had a pair of peak rank 4 Blood companions, my mind can surely handle them, and I can further boost their power with the Elemental forging method¡­ I might actually cover part of my weaknesses with them.'' Noah quickly found a solution to his first problem. ''I don''t really need Blood companions to fly anymore, I can choose magical beasts for their best traits and empower them so that they can be useful in battles against heroic cultivators.'' His dragon''s side didn''t like the idea of losing its wings again, but Noah didn''t care much, he couldn''t be bothered to keep an ability useless to him. ''As for the spells, I don''t even know where to start.'' Noah sighed as he thought that before putting the issue in the back of his mind. He couldn''t force his inspiration, using the Divine deduction technique often was the best that he could do now that he had no ideas. Noah continued to fly for a few days before a familiar figure appeared in his line of sight. "What the hell happened?" Elder Hope asked when she saw Noah''s pitiful state. He was extremely skinny, and his skin was still burned in some spots, especially on his right arm. Also, only a few strands of what once was his robe covered his body, even part of his hair had been burned during the battle. "The three big nations have sealed pacts to divide the coastlines between themselves, I believe that the southern coast might belong to the Utra nation." Noah spoke, uncaring of the elder''s gaze on his body, there were problems more immediate than his aspect. Elder Hope was stunned by his words and quickly contacted Elder Austin and the other elders with a fire aptitude, the lava lake wasn''t as safe as they believed. "Did someone chase you? You said that you had been found." Elder Hope asked, her inscribed notebook was still in her hands. "The cultivator that found me is dead, and no one else was with her." Elder Hope''s eyes widened when she heard his words. The Demon Prince of the Hive, who had just reached the fourth rank, was already able to battle against other heroic cultivators! "Are you sure? Did you really kill her?" Noah shrugged his shoulders at that question, the taste of the woman''s dantian still lingered in his mouth, he didn''t need any other proof about her death. "Did she send a distress call? Did she contact anyone during the fight? Where did you hide her corpse? What about her belongings?" Elder Hope stormed Noah with questions, but he simply shook his head as he continued to fly toward the forest of White woods. "Her corpse is well hidden, and her space-ring is there too. I can''t be sure about anything else." Noah briefly described the environment in the grassland to reassure Elder Hope, she heaved a sigh of relief when she heard the specifics about the woman''s death. "No one is coming for us, so I don''t think she managed to warn anyone. Yet, I''m sure that the situation will become tense, even the three big nations can''t take the loss of a heroic cultivator lightly." Elder Hope concluded as she increased her flying speed, Noah followed her as he continuously ate pieces of magical beasts to recover. The duo returned in the forest of White woods, where Elder Morgan and Elder Duke were waiting for them. "We must accelerate the creation of defensive measures, there is a high chance that a battle is looming upon us. Abandoning this formation must be treated as the last resort." Elder Hope ordered the two elders who were protecting the teleportation matrix. She knew the value of the new continent, she didn''t want to retreat so quickly. "I''ve already contacted Elder Laurel, she is on her way back here. Link the defensive measures with the White woods, I want to take at least a few heroic cultivators down in case we are forced to leave this place." Elder Morgan and Elder Duke repeatedly nodded at her words and began to prepare the materials needed for the creation of a defensive formation. "What about Elder Austin?" Noah asked when he saw that Elder Hope didn''t mention him. Elder Hope revealed a complicated expression before answering Noah. "He said that his understanding of the fire element is improving at an incredible speed and that he is nearing a breakthrough. He asks for reinforcements, but he has specified that the teleportation matrix is the top priority." Noah understood the meaning behind her words and nodded before shooting in the air in the direction of the southern coast. Chapter 522: 522. Hire Elder Hope was specialized in the gathering of information, and she was the perfect person to guard the teleportation matrix. Elder Duke and Elder Morgan were the experts in the formation''s field, and they were the only ones who could deploy defensive measures around the connection with the Coral archipelago. Elder Laurel was an expert in the magical plants'' field, and she was the only one that could give insights on how to use the capabilities of the White woods to the group''s advantage. Elder Austin, Elder Jason, and Elder Pansy were busy cultivating next to the lava lake, and they were unwilling to abandon that area, they requested reinforcements as a consequence of that unwillingness. The only heroic cultivator available for that role was Noah. ''I understand their eagerness to cultivate there, but the situation isn''t that favorable, the safest option would be to temporary retreat next to the teleportation matrix and slowly enlarge the area under our control.'' Noah thought as he flew toward the southern coast, his mouth continuously chewed pieces of magical beasts to nourish his body. A few weeks had passed since he left the forest of White woods, Noah didn''t hurry toward the lava lake, his priority was to heal his body. His complexion had mostly recovered after he continuously fed himself, only some bruises were left on his right hand, but they would take less than a day to heal. After that, he could finally begin to accumulate the "Breath" necessary for the breakthrough in the upper tier, Noah knew that his body would improve by a large margin after it stepped inside the last tier of the fourth rank. He hadn''t needed to accumulate "Breath" for the breakthrough in the middle tier, his body had been at the peak of the lower tier for many years after all, it had already gathered enough nourishments. Noah increased his flying speed after even his right hand healed, he had no reason to hesitate anymore, and he didn''t want to risk enraging the leader of his group. He wore a simple black robe as he reached for the lava lake, the embroidery on the clothes of the Hive could reveal his identity, he would rather avoid that possibility. Noah flew past the desert inhabited by the rank 5 Giant sandworm and reached the rocky wasteland filled with red rivers, he soon found three familiar figures floating cross-legged above the red lake. "You took your time." Elder Austin spoke as he opened his eyes and straightened his position before turning toward Noah. Noah simply performed a slight bow before turning his gaze toward the east, he was almost sure that the forces of the Utra nation were exploring the areas in that direction. "The news has already spread, Elder Cheryl of the Fiery will sect died due to the attack of a dangerous magical plant. The forces of the Council have been able to recover only her space-ring, everything else about her has vanished." Elder Austin spoke in a calm tone as he continued to stare him, Noah felt the scorching gaze of the leader of his group fixed on him. "Did they discover us?" Noah asked, turning himself to face the leader. Elder Austin sighed before revealing a smile and retracting the heat radiated by his gaze. "No, but the situation is still quite messy. The Council doesn''t believe that Elder Cheryl has died due to her inattention and puts the blame on the other two big nations. On the other hand, the Elbas family denies any involvement in the matter, and the Empire simply doesn''t answer to the Papral nation, it seems that you have ruined the peace that lasted for more than four years." Elder Austin spoke while keeping his smile, he seemed quite amused by that turn of events. "How is the Hive aware of these details?" Noah asked when he understood that something was off about Elder Austin''s statement. The three big nations had always been quite secretive about the matters concerning the new continent, it didn''t make sense for the Hive to suddenly own all those reports. Elder Austin released a loud laugh when he heard those words before complimenting Noah. "You indeed deserve the title of Demon Prince! It''s not even a year since you became a heroic cultivator, but you are already going around killing old monsters who have lived for centuries! Good, good!" Elder Austin threw a small shining orb at Noah when he finished speaking, Noah''s mental waves scanned the item as soon as he caught it. Noah couldn''t help but wear a surprised expression when he read the contents of the orb, he raised his gaze toward the leader as if asking if what he was reading was true. The information contained in the orb explained in detail the events that followed the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands from the Council''s point of view. Anything regarding the traces left by divine beings had been omitted, but Noah could clearly understand how the territories of the new continent had been divided through the years with those reports. "How did we obtain something like this?" Noah directly asked, the source of that information had to be trustworthy for Elder Austin to be so sure about the contents of the orb. "Why do you ask? Only the Papral nation can have such detailed information." Noah was surprised once again after he heard the leader''s words, there was no reason for the Council to hand those reports. Then, an absurd possibility formed in his mind. "Don''t tell me, they want to cooperate!" Elder Austin nodded when he saw that Noah had understood the situation and began to explain the matter in detail. "Yes, well, not exactly cooperation. The political situation on the new continent is tense, one misstep might cause a war, and the defeated would be forced to leave these lands. The Council doesn''t know which faction killed Elder Cheryl, but it doesn''t want to be the only big nation to suffer casualties. To put it simply, they want to hire us to attack the other factions." Chapter 523: 523. Alibi Many nations had tried to rebel against the influence of the three big nations, but the Hive was the only organization that had managed to claim real independence. The borders of the Coral archipelago were protected by the copying technique retrieved in Divine Demon''s separate dimension, and a rank 6 existence ruled those islands, the three big nations couldn''t affect that domain without suffering losses. The Hive could develop away from the clutches of those forces, improving and solidifying its foundation, becoming something similar to a fourth influent power in the old continent. Yet, the road to becoming the fourth big nation was still long, especially since the Hive was lacking in heroic assets, the only way to improve in that field was to nurture large numbers of human cultivators after all. Heroic cultivators were so crucial in an organization that the Papral nation was ready to hire the Hive to make the other factions suffer some losses, the Council didn''t want to be the only power weakened by the exploration of the new land. "We can''t become the disposable weapon of the Papral nation." Noah said after Elder Austin explained the situation. The Council''s offer was extremely appealing, and he was sure that the reports about the new continent weren''t the only rewards that the Hive could obtain from it. However, messing with the big nations wasn''t something that could be done easily, the Hive simply didn''t have the power to endure possible aftermaths. "True, but we can''t continue exploring this land in secret either. All the coasts will eventually fall under the control of the three big nations, which will force us to return to the archipelago. We need the support of the Papral nation to remain here openly." Elder Austin spoke, and Noah couldn''t help but think that his words made sense. The Hive had found only three areas from which it could gain some profits: The forest of White woods, the azure plain, and the wasteland filled with rivers of lava. The desert with the sandworms and the grassland with the yellowish moss were quite barren and could only offer a stream of magical beasts and plants, and there wasn''t much that could be gained from them. The lake inhabited by the particular species of octopuses and the rivers occupied by the Poisonous frogs could hide something interesting, but exploring those areas was a difficult task, those missions would require a team of fully prepared heroic cultivators to be completed. The mountainous landscape seemed interesting, but Noah had been forced to interrupt his exploration due to the appearance of Elder Cheryl, it would be impossible to return there after the forces of the Council had been alerted. Those were the areas that the Hive had been able to explore in that short period and with that little manpower. The main issue, though, was that the Hive needed time to obtain benefits from those zones. The azure plain needed to be freed from the magical beasts so that the azure bushes growing there could be plundered and transformed into a stable source of income. The forest of White woods needed to be deeply studied before those magical plants could be used as a defensive measure, Elder Laurel alone wasn''t enough for the task since she could barely affect the strongest trees. The lava lake had to be transformed into a proper cultivation area for elders with a fire aptitude, and even the source of its heat had to be seized, which was something that only Chasing Demon could be able to do. All in all, the Hive needed time and the permission to remain in the new continent, things that only one of the three big nations could provide. "I understand your concerns, but the archipelago can''t let go of this chance. Our home is safe, and the possible gains outclass the possible losses, we just have to pay attention." Elder Austin spoke again when he saw that Noah was lost in his thoughts. ''Paying attention isn''t really enough, but he should have some sort of plan since he looks so confident.'' Noah returned to reality when he heard the leader''s words and temporarily suppressed his doubts about that task to question him. "What do you have in mind?" Elder Austin revealed a smile when he saw that Noah had agreed to the mission and walked next to him as he pointed toward the eastern coast. "We will form a small team lead by a rank 5 elder specialized in ambushes. The team will continue exploring the southern coast until it finds traces of the heroic cultivators of the Utra nation, only to take them by surprise and retreat." Elder Austin''s index traced red lines on the air, a small version of the continent was soon drawn in front of Noah. "Anonymity is key, the Elbas family must think that the assassins come from one of the other two factions to force it to act against them. We will decide the next move after we understand how the Utra nation answers to our provocation." Noah nodded at those words. The presence of a rank 5 heroic cultivator specialized in ambushes would facilitate the task, especially if their targets were in the fourth rank. "The threat of assassins running freely on the continent will force the three factions to slow down their exploration, giving us more time to stabilize our gains. I believe the Hive has already prepared an alibi in case its implication is questioned." Noah continued the leader''s speech, and the task became more doable the more he analyzed it in his mind. Elder Austin nodded before explaining as he dispersed the flames still lingering in the air. "Of course. The Hive will openly invade one of the nations in the area of influence of the Empire. We will use that war to train the new human assets and to pretend to be too busy to mind the new continent, it is a win-win situation." Noah couldn''t help but think about Odrea nation when he heard that the Hive wanted to train human cultivators through a war, but his mind quickly went back on the main topic as it gave voice to a request. "I want the corpses of the cultivators that we kill." Chapter 524: 524. Elder Julia In the forest of White woods, on the terrain under the white crowns of the trees. The light of the teleportation matrix shone, revealing a short figure that wore a simple white robe. Elder Hope kowtowed when the figure was revealed, her forehead touched the ground as respectful words came out of her mouth. "Welcome to the new continent, Master!" Noah and the other cultivators of Hive were all there, they were welcoming the new rank 5 cultivator that had come in their aid from the archipelago. "Welcome to the Immortal Lands, Julia! With you here, only a handful of us remains in the Coral archipelago!" Elder Austin exclaimed as he greeted the middle-aged woman that came out of the teleportation matrix. Noah''s gaze was on her, she had long gray hair and gray eyes, her gaze didn''t shine like that of most cultivators, something that Noah found quite peculiar. ''It''s so strange, it''s as if she isn''t here at all.'' Noah thought as he inspected Elder Julia. He could clearly make out her appearance, but his consciousness found it hard to analyze her, his mental waves just went through her as if she was made of air. Elder Julia shot an expressionless look at Noah before focusing on the kneeling Elder Hope, and warmth appeared on her face when she looked at her disciple. "Don''t worry about the Prince, he did the same with me." Elder Austin spoke as he flew in the air, Elder Julia followed him, and together they disappeared in the sky over the white crowns of the magical plants. Only then did the others breathe a sigh of relief, being next to two rank 5 existences had made them quite tense. "You should be more respectful toward your seniors." Elder Hope stood up and spoke to Noah, it was clear that she didn''t appreciate the probing of her master. "Sorry, it''s a bad habit of mine." Noah plainly answered as he sat on the ground and began to stare the fifth Kesier rune. The truth was that Noah didn''t really care about seniority or similar, he simply knew that those powerful beings wouldn''t punish him due to his privileged position. Heroic cultivators in the fifth rank had a superior understanding of the laws carried by their element compared to Noah, and he couldn''t let go of the possibility to gain some inspiration from them. ''Elder Julia resembles thin air, my consciousness was completely unable to sense her. Amazing.'' Noah thought as he continued to train with the Kesier rune, every existence in the fifth rank was always able to leave a deep impression on him. ''The Hive should only have seven or eight cultivators in the fifth rank in total and, now, two of them are here. The forces of each relevant organization on the old continent are slowly being drawn here, attracted by opportunities that the Mortal Lands can''t offer.'' Mental energy was expended to fuel the Divine deduction technique, it was needless to say that Noah''s sea of consciousness emptied itself at high speed since he was also staring at the rune at that moment. ''I''m the mistake that keeps on living, the void that exists, but where am I going?'' Noah would often ponder about himself and then about the laws of the darkness element with the help of the Divine deduction technique, he knew that he would need that kind of understanding sooner or later. ''Power is my purpose and goal because power stands above everything. Power to rise in the sky so that I can obtain an even stronger power, an endless journey, just like a saber that uses the hindrances on its path to reach higher levels of sharpness.'' Noah felt as if his understanding increasing slightly, but he didn''t notice any improvement in his absorption of "Breath". ''It seems that I need to link the understanding about myself with that of the laws of the darkness element for my dantian to obtain some benefits.'' He felt no disappointment in that realization, he knew that it would take time to advance in that field, even with the help of the technique created by Divine Demon. Noah was different from the other rank 4 cultivators, he already had his personal cultivation technique, meaning that he wouldn''t encounter any hindrance in the path to the fifth rank. Elder Julia and Elder Austin descended from the sky and landed on the ground a few minutes later, it seemed that their conversation had ended and that they were ready to inform the rest of the group about it. "Elder Julia will cover some of you with her abilities, allowing you to take by surprise the explorers that you find one the road. Yet, she refuses to attack anyone who isn''t on her level." Elder Austin spoke, he seemed quite disappointed in that outcome. "Hmph, juniors should fight juniors. They won''t reach our level if we solve all their problems." Elder Julia snorted as she replied to Elder Austin''s words, her expression showed how determined she was in her decision. ''That''s actually perfect.'' Noah thought when he understood that he could benefit from that situation. Personally joining the battles not only would allow him to gather dantians more quickly, but it would also give him insights on how to improve his battle prowess. His experience in battles in the heroic ranks was lacking after all, he knew that he needed to improve his battle style, but he wasn''t sure about what he needed to prioritize. Also, he agreed with Elder Julia''s reasoning, there was no point in having your centers of power in the fourth rank if you didn''t know how to use them properly. The team tasked for the ambushes was quickly created, Noah, Hope, Jason, and Pansy would fly along the southern coastline looking for cultivators coming from the Utra nation. Elder Julia would be with them, hiding their presence and ready to intervene in case a powerful existence appeared. Laurel, Morgan, and Duke would remain in the forest of White woods and work on building defensive measures while Elder Austin would resume his cultivation above the lava lake. In less than a day, six figures shot in the air and flew toward the southern coast, ready to perform their roles. Chapter 525: 525. Ambush Four figures flew past the rocky wasteland filled with rivers of lava, they flew east, along the southern coastline. Vegetation began to appear as the group from the Hive crossed the explored areas, their gazes though didn''t linger too much on the environment, their consciousnesses were searching for other targets. ''They can''t sense us, Elder Julia''s methods are amazing! Well, she is a rank 5 cultivator after all.'' Noah thought as he flew alongside his companions. Packs of Ape-types magical beasts had appeared on the terrain below them, but they didn''t seem to notice the presence of the cultivators in the sky, even a rank 5 specimen that had appeared seemed completely unable to sense them. Elder Julia was escorting them during that mission and was using her methods to hide their presence, Noah knew that she was somewhere near them, but he couldn''t even sense a faint trace of her aura. They would still be spotted if they entered the field of view of one of those creatures, but their auras were wholly concealed, sneaking on them wouldn''t be a problem at all. Of course, their mission didn''t concern the magical beasts, but the heroic cultivators of the Utra nation, ambushing the latter would obviously be a bit harder. Small trees and magical beasts filled the area after the rocky wasteland, lifeforms began to appear often as the group put some distance from the lava lake. They flew slowly and took many breaks, Elder Hope was tasked to inspect their surroundings, and her investigative methods took time. Yet, no one complained, their priority was to maintain their anonymity, they couldn''t risk being spotted by an enemy before they had completed their preparations. Days passed, the group continued to fly along the southern coast without encountering any sign of the forces of the Utra nation, it seemed that those areas had yet to be explored by humans. However, after three weeks of careful exploration, Elder Hope finally found a trace. "Someone is flying at one day of travel ahead of us. I don''t hear anyone else, we should have found another lone explorer." Elder Hope spoke as she removed her hands from her ears, she had used the same investigative method from when they were traveling above the sea around the new continent. Noah and the others nodded at her words before descending on the terrain, Elder Julia''s methods hid their presence but not their bodies, they still needed to hide to ambush the explorer. The group carefully walked across the land, avoiding any pack of magical beasts that appeared on their path, they didn''t want to reveal their position by battling with those creatures. It took a bit more than a day for the cultivators of the Hive to locate the position of the explorer, but, in the end, they saw the lonely figure flying in the air and analyzing the environment below it. The cultivator was an old man with a long white beard and no hair, he was at the peak of the gaseous stage of the fourth rank, but it seemed that time had negatively affected his power. He radiated a soft aura, but his consciousness seemed fragile, his mental waves could analyze the ground below him only for a few seconds before they dispersed. "He is going to die in a few years anyway, this kill barely counts as an achievement." Elder Pansy spoke when she saw the state of the cultivator, her evaluation was on point, the explorer would only be able to live for a few years unless he increased his power. Of course, Noah didn''t care about how honorable his actions were. He completely ignored Elder Pansy''s words as his gaze went on the emblem on the robe worn by explorer, he recognized that symbol. "Shosti family." Noah murmured when he recognized the origin of the explorer, his companions could clearly hear his words and shot questioning gazes in his direction. "Large-size noble family of the Utra country." Noah explained in a few words, and his companions nodded when they understood that they had found a suitable target. Each one of them quickly prepared for the ambush. Noah wielded his Demonic swords, Elder Hope took out her peculiar knife, Elder Pansy laid a long iron stick on her shoulders, and Elder Jason tightened his grip on his sword, they were ready to attack. The heroic cultivator from the Shosti family continued to fly, he was unaware that four assassins were hiding under the trees below him, waiting for him to reach a specific spot in the sky. Then, all of a sudden, four black lines appeared around him and formed a shining rectangle that encircled him. He felt weak when the light of the spell hit him, it took a good amount of his concentration to repel the weakening effects that were assaulting his body. A blue light shone from his body, which seemed to improve his complexion temporarily, he quickly moved to escape the area of the rectangle when a sharp sound reached his ears and destabilized his concentration. The heroic cultivator from the Shosti family lost the foothold under his left leg when his concentration was broken, he was about to cast another spell when more than thirty fireballs shot from the terrain and crashed on him. A loud explosion occurred, and a gray cloud formed in the sky, a fuming figure came out of the smoke and loudly coughed as it tried to straighten its position. The heroic cultivator had survived, but most of his robe had been burned, and even his beard didn''t survive the attack, anger could be clearly seen on his expression as he shouted to the ground below. "Who dares!?" His question though wasn''t answered by words but by the appearance of black flames from behind his back. The cultivator from the Shosti family sensed that threat and turned to block the attack. A small blue shield appeared in his right hand, and a harpoon was wielded in his left one, he raised his shield to defend from the assault but his eyes widened when he saw the face of his assassin. Long black hair, shining icy-blue eyes, and soft edges, he knew that youthful aspect too well to be mistaken. "Noah Balvan! How?" Noah''s sabers clashed with the shield as he spoke those words, he wasn''t able to pierce it without the activation of his secret art, but cracks still appeared on its surface due to the immense strength behind Noah''s slash. The noble was about to speak again, but a sharp pain on his back forced him to suppress his surprise and use all his focus to try to survive that situation, desperation began to fill his mind when he saw that a stick and a sword were aiming for his head. Chapter 526: 526. Pointers The cultivator from the Shosti family released his most powerful defensive spell when he saw those two dangerous attacks, a torrent of water engulfed his figure and stopped the advance of both stick and sword. Noah didn''t wait for the torrent to disperse, his eyes released a mental beam, and a hundred ethereal claws shot toward his enemy, he used his mental attacks to pierce the cultivator''s defense. His Death area spell was still active, and the heroic cultivator was already injured, he didn''t manage to keep the torrent of water active when Noah''s mental attacks landed on his mind and internal organs. The water dispersed and fell on the ground below, the cultivator wasn''t even able to make it detonate to repel his assailants, leaving him defenseless between the three assassins. Jason and Patsy attacked once again with their weapons, flames covered the surface of both stick and sword as they reached for the old cultivator''s body. The man from the Shosti family was about to raise his harpoon and shield to block the attacks, but a series of wind blades stabbed his back again, stopping his attempt to defend. The fiery stick landed on the cultivator''s shoulder, releasing a shockwave that cracked the bones in that area and spread flames that burned his skin and muscles. The sword stabbed his abdomen, burning a large part of his internal organs. The noble was about to die, life was abandoning his body, it would be just a matter of seconds before the flames burned the entirety of its figure. Yet, at that point, a black saber slashed his low-waist horizontally, severing his lower body from the rest of his abdomen. Noah quickly stored the lower body of the cultivator and sent precise orders to the spirit automaton of his space-ring, he relied on his rank 6 inscribed item to preserve the dantian of the noble. A surprised expression never left the face of the noble, he remained shocked even in his death. Elder Hope appeared from his hiding spot when the noble died, she wanted to enjoy that victory with her companions. However, the voice of her master resounded in the area and suppressed her excitement. "You are lucky that I''m here." Elder Julia appeared next to the group and raised her hand, where a dense sphere of mental energy was restrained. The sphere played the images of the noble''s battle and showed the faces of Noah, Jason, and Pansy in detail. "You have been too slow and have given too much space to your enemy, allowing him to send a distress call to his allies. Luckily for the Hive, I''ve intercepted it." Elder Julia explained the situation as she shattered the sphere with her grip, the noble''s mental energy dispersed in the air, vanishing in the world. "You three." Elder Julia pointed at Jason, Pansy, and Hope as she continued to speak. "You have spent too much time in seclusion, your techniques are good, but you have forgotten how powerful heroic cultivators are. You must use your consciousnesses to restrain your enemies and your strongest attacks to end the battles quickly, don''t rely on your martial arts if they aren''t as effective as the Prince''s." Elder Julia gave pointers about the battle, her status as a rank 5 cultivator allowed her to see any flaws in the three elders'' combat style. "As for you, Prince." Elder Julia turned to Noah as the focus of the conversation went on him. "You must also learn to use your consciousness better, but your biggest flaw is the simplicity of your attacks. There is no point in having a powerful offensive if it can be countered easily. Well, you have been in the fourth rank for less than a year, your battle prowess is already amazing considering that short period. Just remember my words when you are about to create or purchase a technique or spell." Noah performed a simple bow when he heard those words. He knew that Elder Julia was right, he had reached a similar conclusion some time ago. The problem with his consciousness was that his enemies either matched or surpassed its level, making his mental energy unable to affect his enemies without the usage of his mental spells. As for his offensive, his martial art needed to be simple so that he could perform it while activating the secret art, he could add more complex forms only after his expertise increased. It was pointless to speak about his spells, he had yet to learn how to create them. ''The fastest way to improve my battle prowess is through Blood companions.'' Noah thought once again about that solution, his mind began to explore the best pair of magical beasts that could help him improve his combat style. Elder Julia waved her hand after she finished giving pointers, the upper part of the noble''s corpse was in Jason''s hands, but it was soon cut in countless pieces by the elder''s spell. The pieces fell in the ground below, Jason didn''t even go after the falling space-ring when he saw that Elder Julia shook her head toward him. "Leave it here, we need for the forces of the Utra nation to find the remains of its corpse. Also, his assassination would resemble Elder Cheryl''s, which might push the Elbas family to attack the Empire. We should return to the teleportation matrix now and wait for the reaction of the Royals and noble families." Elder Julia explained once again before disappearing from the group''s sight. Noah directly began to fly toward the western coast, he had decided to use this waiting period to create the Blood companions that he needed, and, to do so, he needed to return to the old continent. The environment of the new continent was richer of rank 4 magical beasts, but he needed specific creatures, beings that he wasn''t sure could be found on the new land. The rest of the group quickly followed him, their minds were still playing Elder Julia''s advice while they chased behind him. They were so immersed in their thoughts that they didn''t notice that a bloodied shining sphere appeared in Noah''s hands and was quickly eaten by him. Chapter 527: 527. Hun Noah knew his weaknesses better than anyone else, he was the only one that knew the full extent of his power after all. His body was accumulating "Breath" for the breakthrough in the upper tier, that process required an incredible amount of energy, even the noble''s dantian wasn''t able to start the transformation. It had to be said though that even his body couldn''t absorb all the "Breath" contained in what he ate, part of it was lost when it became nourishment. Magical beasts were powerful and had a simple cultivation journey, but even they weren''t perfect, they would have already conquered the Mortal Lands if they could just absorb all the "Breath" that their prey contained. Yet, Noah was sure that his breakthrough would arrive soon since he was accumulating an insane amount of nourishments in the new continent. His dantian and mind were improving quite fast too, his sea of consciousness had always been his most significant advantage, and his dantian greatly benefitted from the Black hole cultivation technique and his understanding of the laws of the darkness element. The only problem was his battle prowess. His offense was simply lacking, he had grown so fast that most of the scrolls obtained in Divine Demon''s inheritance had already become unusable. He was able to fight toe to toe with other heroic cultivators only thanks to his body, but that approach had too many flaws, he couldn''t rely on it for too long. Once its power was discovered, the heroic cultivators fighting Noah would do anything in their power to stop him from entering melee combat, leaving him with no methods to defeat his opponents. However, his martial arts couldn''t be improved at the moment, and he had yet to invent a method to create spells, he could only use Blood companions to enhance his battle prowess. Noah used the teleportation matrix in the forest of White woods to return to the old continent, the formation brought him back directly in the Coral archipelago. He didn''t have much time since the Utra nation would soon discover the death of the noble from the Shosti family and react, he needed to be there to benefit from that situation. Of course, Noah had already decided which magical beasts he needed. His expertise in the magical beasts'' field continued to grow as he kept exploring new areas, and his dragon''s instincts allowed him to evaluate his candidates better. Noah didn''t stop on the archipelago and directly took another teleportation matrix, the Hive had set up many footholds throughout the continent, it was easy to find a formation that could bring him near the danger zones where his targets lived. He first went near the territories of the Shandal Empire, in a grassland filled with rabbit-type magical beasts. He didn''t have a various offensive, so he needed a sneaky and fast Blood companion that could fill the openings left by his martial art, something that could be deadly if one overlooked it. What Noah believed was the perfect creature for that role was the Night falcon. Noah knew that the wings of a Night falcon wouldn''t improve his flying speed, falcons rarely surpassed one meter of height in that world. Yet, he needed it for its speed and aerial maneuverability, its sharp beak and claws were deadly weapons when matched with its incredible speed. Also, Night falcons could merge with the darkness to increase their speed, Noah was almost sure that they could use the blackness of the Demonic form to their advantage. Noah found baiting a peak rank 4 Night falcon out quite problematic, he had to gather a high number of rabbit''s corpses to make one of them descend from the sky. At that point, a well-aimed slash, empowered by his secret art and while the falcon was stunned by his ethereal claws, was enough to take it down. Noah quickly performed the procedure needed for the creation of a Blood companion and left the area, reaching for the teleportation matrix that would take him back to the archipelago. The will of a peak rank 4 creature weighed on his mind, but he could easily withstand that pressure, only another beast on that level could make his mental sphere feel something. Of course, Noah wouldn''t stop at one Blood companion since he had more room inside his sea of consciousness. ''Considering that I have to remove Heilong, I have more than enough space for another peak rank 4 creature.'' Noah thought as he went for another teleportation matrix as soon as he returned to the archipelago. His destination at that time was a waterfall in the territories in the area of influence of the Papral nation. The environment near the waterfall was a danger zone inhabited by a peculiar species of turtle-type magical beasts. This species was called Dark turtles due to the color of their shells, and the specimens could add defensive layers over their already sturdy shells. Now that Noah had decided to remove Heilong from his mind, he needed another defensive method that didn''t deplete much energy, something reliable that he could use even hundreds of times in battle without becoming exhausted. Finding a peak rank 4 Dark turtle was easier than baiting out the falcon, but its killing took far more time. Noah found himself having to deal with a numerous pack of Dark turtles, which had many specimens in the fourth rank. His mental attacks were deflected by the defensive layers that appeared over the shells of the creatures, forcing him to rely on his secret art to kill those beasts. In the end, he killed the entire pack and performed the procedure described by the Body-inscription spell with the peak rank 4 specimen after making some room inside his mind. Heilong''s ethereal figure inside his mind shattered and fell on the sea below, the blood that made the tattoo on Noah''s skin left his body as he killed his companion. In a bit more than a week, Noah had successfully killed two peak rank 4 magical beasts of the darkness element and transformed them into his Blood companions, empowering their abilities with the Elemental forging method. After the tattoo of the Dark turtle began to move on his chest, Noah knew that it was time to return to the new continent. Chapter 528: 528. Dark blas The situation in the new continent had evolved in the short period in which Noah had left. The forces of the Utra nation noticed the disappearance of the heroic cultivator from the Shosti family and managed to trace his space-ring, confirming the death of the noble. The news further shook the foundations of the peaceful behavior of the three big nations in the new land, it seemed evident to them that one of those forces had begun attacking the others. Yet, it must be said that each one of those powers had different ideas on the identity of the assailants. The Papral nation believed that either the Empire or the Utra nation had struck first, it was aware that the Hive had carried the latest assassination, but it didn''t know for sure who killed Elder Cheryl. The Elbas family believed that the Empire was behind those attacks since it was the only nation that had yet to suffer any loss. Also, the Empire was the only nation that had the power to fight both the Utra nation and Papral nation for the control of the new continent. The Shandal Empire, instead, was clueless about the recent events, its heroic cultivators tried to set up meetings with the other two forces, but they were rejected every time, it was clear that it was the main suspect. All in all, the political situation became tense, it seemed that even the slightest spark could ignite a war for the control of those territories. There were even internal problems in the ranks of the Papral nation and the Utra nation. The Council and the Elbas family had been forced to request for the help of the sects and noble families to match the exploration speed of the forces of the Empire. Their forces were fragmented, they didn''t follow the orders of the central powers that strictly, leading to the creation of small alliances that explored different areas on their own. That behavior could be seen more often after the assassinations, distrust toward the Council and Elbas family was in the minds of the heroic cultivators coming from the sects and noble families. The power of those two big nations became even more fragmented because of that, forcing the Council and the Royals to create a common enemy that could unite their ranks once again. The only available enemy in the new continent was, of course, the Shandal Empire. Meanwhile, the cultivators of the Hive waited for the right moment to act again. They safely remained in the territories that they had discovered, either cultivating next to the lava lake or improving the defenses around the teleportation matrix. The three big nations weren''t aware of their presence there, not even the Papral nation could guess that they had already created a reasonably stable encampment. Reports continuously arrived in Elder Austin''s hands, the Papral nation respected its side of the deal by keeping the Hive informed about the political and geographical situation of the piece of Immortal Lands. "They are going to tear each other apart, it should be a nice show." Elder Jason spoke when Elder Austin informed the rest of the group about the current situation. They were next to the lava lake, only Elder Duke, Elder Morgan, and Elder Laurel were absent, they had remained in the forest of White woods to handle the defenses around the formation. "The issue is: Can we benefit from this situation? I know that we might manage to take a share of these lands, but I wonder if we could just inflict more damage to the three big nations." Elder Hope spoke when she heard Jason''s words, her thoughts matched Noah''s for what concerned that situation. Noah was there too. He had been tasked to patrol the areas around the lava lake as soon as he returned to the new continent, and had gathered with his companions since Elder Austin was going to share the information obtained from the Papral nation. He had gladly accepted his new task, that role allowed him to hunt freely and to keep accumulating the nourishments needed for the breakthrough, he was sure that it wouldn''t take much for his transformation to occur. ''I wonder who will strike first, they should all envy some of the resources belonging to the others by now, four years of peace are too much for them.'' Noah thought as he prepared himself to return in the wild, there was nothing left to do there anyway. "Prince, wait a moment." Elder Austin called him before he could leave the lava lake. Noah turned only to see that Elder Austin was handing him a simple space-ring. Elder Austin''s laugh answered his questioning gaze before he added a few words to explain that gesture. "The death of the noble has put the Elbas family in a difficult position. Between the Cause growing stronger in the old continent and the distrust on this one, the Royals desperately need allies. The Patriarch has managed to exploit this situation to end the matter about your attempted assassination near Afria nation, he said that you would like it." Noah''s eyes lit up when he heard those words, he quickly took the ring and inspected its insides with his mental energy. The ring contained only an old scroll, but Noah''s eagerness to read its contents increased when he saw it. Noah descended on the ground at some distance from the lava lake and found a safe spot where he could inspect the scroll, the contents of the ring were emptied as soon as he found it. ''To think that the Elbas family would actually help in solving the issue with my battle prowess.'' Noah thought when he realized that the scroll contained a rank 4 spell of the darkness element! ''Dark blast, it''s a spell that accumulates a large amount of "Breath" and mental energy into a black form before launching it to destroy a wide area. The amount of energies accumulated will affect the power of the spell, meaning that I can even empty my centers of power to make it as destructive as possible. It should be useful.'' Noah read the spell before taking a look at its diagram, he was going to memorize it immediately! Chapter 529: 529. Chance Weeks passed on the piece of Immortal Lands, and the political situation between the three big nations only became tenser in that period. Meanwhile, the cultivators from the Hive kept observing the situation as they continued to solidify their position in the new lands. The defenses around the teleportation matrix kept accumulating, Elder Laurel even began to use the White woods as a form of protection. Those that weren''t busy with the formation, instead, kept doing their best to increase their power and to accumulate resources in the explored areas. Elder Hope took care of pillaging the azure plain, a consistent stream of Azure Credits reached the Coral archipelago and improved the financial situation of the Hive. The lava lake benefitted the cultivators with a fire aptitude, their understanding of the laws carried by the "Breath" of the fire element improved daily. Elder Julia was nowhere to be seen, she only appeared when Elder Austin shared the information sent by the Papral nation. Noah continued to hunt magical beasts, he needed to become accustomed to his new Blood companions and spell, but he mostly kept fighting to accumulate the necessary nourishments for the breakthrough. At some point though, he felt that his hunger had disappeared, only to be replaced by a faint drowsiness. ''Finally.'' Noah thought as he dug a cave in the terrain, his instincts knew exactly what was happening. The hunger of the magical beasts disappeared only when their form reached the maximum amount of "Breath" that they could store, that feeling would reappear once their body evolved. Noah sat cross-legged inside his cave as he immersed himself in his drowsiness, he felt a warm sensation enveloping his body as he entered in some sort of trance. His tissues became denser, and his bones sturdier, even his internal organs were empowered in that process so that they could fuel the higher power that his body was reaching. The transformation that time took longer, Noah felt that the changes inside his body stabilized only after half a day. Yet, when he opened his eyes, he was greeted by an incredible confidence in his physical strength, as well as an even stronger hunger. ''The aggression of the magical beasts increases with their rank, it seems that their hunger causes their behavior.'' Noah thought as he stood up and prepared himself to resume his hunt. He needed to stabilize his condition and tune his martial arts to his new strength, he had yet to discover what his body was capable of now. It had taken him about five years to reach the upper tier, that achievement was something often seen in the human world, but it was rare than ever in the magical beasts'' environment. Magical beasts rarely had the chance to eat creatures on their same or higher level, and it was almost impossible for them to have access to the dantians of rank 4 cultivators. They usually took decades to accumulate the nourishments needed to evolve, their main food was the weaker magical beasts in their packs after all. However, Noah was a cultivator, his battle prowess allowed him to feed on creatures that surpassed the power of his body. The harsher requirements of his body were easily satisfied with his hunts and assassinations, allowing him to reach the upper tier of the fourth rank in just five years. ''I wonder how much it will take to reach the fifth rank, I will probably have to hibernate at that point.'' Noah smirked when thought about that. His breakthrough to the middle tier had been quite human while that to the upper tier already matched the evolution process of the magical beasts, his existence was slowly attuning with his hybrid status. Noah enjoyed the feeling of having all three of his centers of power improve steadily, he hadn''t grown this fast since his period in the Royal academy. The lack of a rank 5 body-nourishing method had stopped his progress in that field for a long time, Noah had to become a heroic cultivator before he could see all his centers of power improve together. Noah spent the next days becoming used to his new body, it didn''t take much to tune his martial arts to his new strength, but he still felt amazed by the new power that he could express. He was a hybrid in the upper tier now, the last stage of the fourth rank, he could tear magical beasts in the middle tier apart with his bare hands. It was needless to say how much his power increased when he used the secret art. That peaceful situation though changed when the next update from the Papral nation arrived. Six figures gathered in the air above the lava lake, they encircled Elder Austin as they waited for him to share the reports that he had just received. Astonished gazes were shot in Noah''s direction, his companions immediately noticed his breakthrough. Also, some kind of cold, savage aura surrounded him, his time spent in the wilderness affected his mental state and, consequently, the aura that he radiated. Yet, before anyone could compliment him or ask questions, Elder Austin spoke, claiming the attention of the group. "The Council and Elbas family have reached an agreement, they will attack the territories controlled by the Shandal Empire to unite the forces under them and appease their disappointment. Our time has come." Elder Austin wore a smile as he spoke, the situation that the Hive was waiting for had finally arrived, that was their chance to attack the areas controlled by the three big nations! "Who is our target?" Elder Jason asked, he seemed the most eager of the group. The answer to his question didn''t come from Elder Austin but Noah. "We will attack the Elbas family, of course." Elder Austin nodded as he looked at him, the Demon Prince of the Hive matched all the standards that the most promising cultivator of an organization must have. "Prepare yourselves, we will attack as soon as the three big nations are locked in a battle." Elder Austin spoke before dismissing the group, battle intent shone in his eyes as he disappeared from his position to make his preparations. Chapter 530: 530. Snow The Utra nation was the only force that the Hive could target. The Papral nation knew about the existence of a fourth force on the new continent, and the Shandal Empire was about to be attacked by two big countries, targeting the Elbas family was the only option that the cultivators from the Hive had. Also, the southern coast was connected with the territories under the control of the Royals, the Hive had to weaken them if it wanted to maintain control over the lava lake. The lava lake was the most crucial territory discovered by the Hive, it was a place that contained traces left by divine beings after all, nothing could match the value of that place. Two weeks passed after Elder Austin shared the information concerning the attack on the Empire, the Papral nation didn''t contact the Hive in that period. Then, on the morning of the fourteenth day, the inscribed notebooks of the rank 4 cultivators of the Hive notified them that they had to gather in the area where the noble of the Shosti family had died. Seven heroic cultivators gathered over the land inhabited by species of ape-types magical beasts, with the five rank 4 cultivators standing behind the two elders in the fifth rank. Only Elder Duke and Elder Morgan were absent, they had to defend the teleportation matrix while the rest of the group tried to benefit from the battle between the three big nations. "We kill everyone on our path and explore the territories on the other side of the southern coast. They will probably notice that someone else is scheming behind their back, but we won''t be the first suspects if we leave no survivors. You will take care of the cultivators in the fourth rank, leave the stronger ones to us. Good luck." Elder Austin spoke a few words before disappearing right in front of the other elders. Elder Julia waved her hand before doing the same. A peculiar gale swept the five cultivators, the wind seemed to affect their consciousnesses, Elder Julia was covering their presences once again. A series of nods were exchanged between the five of them before they began to fly east, they moved carefully, wary of any possible threat that could appear in front of them. The environment below them changed as they advanced along the southern coast, even the temperature diminished as a tall snowy mountain appeared in their fields of view. The mountain radiated a dangerous aura, it seemed that something powerful ruled that territory. "It''s a magical beast, we can fly past it." Noah spoke to his companions through his consciousness. His instincts clearly told him that the powerful creature inhabiting the snowy mountain was a magical beast, he had felt some sort of primordial fear when he entered its range. Yet, it was pointless to explore it now since it didn''t seem to contain something that belonged to the divine ranks, the group could just investigate it on its way back to the lava lake. The cultivators from the Hive flew around the mountain, avoiding becoming too close to its sides. Snow fell on that area, the coldness radiated by those snowflakes seemed able to affect even rank 4 cultivators since Noah''s companions shivered from time to time. Only Noah was unaffected by that environment, his body burned more "Breath" to fend off that coldness, but it didn''t suffer any damage. ''I might be able to block some of the weakest attacks of a heroic cultivator with my body alone now, I should have more confidence in my status as a hybrid.'' Noah thought when he saw that his body didn''t suffer the slightest damage in that place. Not even a month had passed since his breakthrough in the upper tier, Noah hadn''t been able to test the limits of his new strength in that short amount of time. He didn''t find the chance to engage in a fierce battle against some powerful creature due to the tuning of his martial arts, the learning of his new spell, and his two new Blood companions. Also, he knew that a battle was coming, he couldn''t risk ruining his form due to his testing. Yet, he knew the power of peak rank 4 magical beasts quite well, and he knew that he was supposedly stronger than them since he was a hybrid, which gave him a general grasp of his limits. The group crossed the mountain only to see that the snow didn''t stop falling even as they reached the eastern coast, a vast white plain expanded in their view and connected the two coastlines with the layer of ice under the azure ground. It was at that point though that Elder Hope signaled to the group to stop and performed her investigative methods. Cold winds blew on the faces of the heroic cultivator of the Hive, Noah could vaguely understand their power from the number of tremors that swept their bodies. "There are two cultivators at some distance from here, one of them seems to be in the liquid stage." Elder Hope spoke as she turned to see the reaction of her companions, she saw how some of them showed signs of uncertainty. "How strong are you compared to other rank 4 cultivators in the liquid stage?" Noah asked when he saw that no one wanted to formulate a battle plan. Elder Hope thought for a while before answering with a simple word. "Average." Noah nodded at her answer and turned to look at Elder Jason. Noah had observed each one of them as they flew past the cold environment, Jason had been the one who had shivered less during the flight. "Jason and I will take care of the cultivator in the gaseous stage, you three can focus the other. Whoever wins first will help the others." Noah''s plan was simple, he was going to team up with the strongest of his group and quickly end the life of the weaker enemy. Elder Hope was in the liquid stage, so she was needed against the stronger one. "We attack from the sky then." Elder Hope spoke after she agreed with Noah, the group flew higher in the sky as they used the clouds above them to hide their bodies. Chapter 531: 531. Royal The Utra nation had been forced to allow the heroic cultivators from the noble families in the new continent to match the exploration speed of the Shandal Empire. Of course, that permission didn''t extend to all the noble families. With the Cause threatening to start a civil war, the Elbas family tried to appease the strongest families that wanted to dethrone it, while also giving benefits to those loyal to the Royals. It was needless to say that only large-size noble families had been allowed on the piece of Immortal Lands. It wasn''t only a matter of benefits and loyalty, medium and small-size noble families simply didn''t have the power to send heroic cultivators away from their territories. Also, large-size families were more influential, having the loyalty on one of them meant having control over all the weaker families under it. "I understand that this land is full of riches, but I''ve lost my son, nothing can replace him." A middle-aged man with long golden hair spoke as he flew over the snowy plain. "Lord Muwlos, your son died by the hands of criminals, there is nothing that links the Vondhur''s incident with my family." A woman flew next to him and replied to his assumption. "Hmph, the Elbas family has many branches, you might be guilty without even knowing it." Lord Muwlos answered the woman''s words. The two heroic cultivators flying over the white plain were Fred Muwlos and Lois Elbas, with the noble being in the liquid stage and the Royal in the gaseous one. "Fred, we have been friends for over three decades. The Elbas family has already given your family free access to the academy for the next century, and you are here, exploring part of the Immortal Lands. Today''s attack will even bring us many goods¡­ Just let go of this grudge, Samuel carried your blood, but he was only a human cultivator." Lois spoke, and Fred heaved a helpless sigh when he heard those words. "Almost twenty years have passed, but I still can''t forget him. I guess it might be time to make another heir, any chances that our families can become one?" Fred asked, shooting a warm gaze toward Lois. She understood the meaning behind his words, a marriage between the two of them would unite the Muwlos family with the Royals, increasing the power of the rulers of the Utra nation. Lois placed a hand over Fred''s forearm and slightly pulled his robe before answering in a soft voice. "We must wait for my father''s approval, he is still mad at you for collaborating with the Udye family." Fred revealed a smile and took Lois in his embrace before lowering his head to kiss her. It was at that point though that a shadow crashed on Lois'' head, activating the defensive layer of her robe that was soon shattered by the power behind that attack. Fred immediately understood that something was wrong, that attack was completely hidden, he hadn''t been able to sense it at all. Also, the blow that shattered the defenses of Lois'' robe had released a small cloud made by a threatening black smoke, which was slowly consuming Lois'' head. Fred acted quickly, his hands took fire and neared the black cloud, burning the corrosive smoke while leaving Lois unharmed. The cloud was soon destroyed, and an injured Lois was revealed. The attack had taken her by surprise, but her robe had prevented the worst outcome, the skin on her head had been torn apart in some spots, but she was okay. "Who!?" Fred released an angry cry as he raised his gaze to the sky, looking for the assailants. What he saw though were hundreds of wind blades falling toward him at high speed. Fred didn''t hesitate, he pushed Lois away and covered his body in flames to protect himself from the attack. Meanwhile, a black trail fell from the clouds in the sky and reached for Lois, but she was ready at that time. She raised her arm toward the black trail, and a lightning bolt shot out of her hand, aiming for the tip of the trail. The lightning bolt was extremely fast, but, apparently, the being creating the black mark in the sky was even faster. The trail curved and dodged Lois'' spell, its speed increased even more as it reached for her. Lois didn''t have time to cast another spell and could only take an item from her space-ring and place it in the trajectory of the attack coming for her. A large inscribed shield appeared in the air above her, and cracks formed on its surface when the trail crashed on it. Lois was about to prepare another attack when she saw that a fiery blade was reaching for her from under her. Black smoke spread above her from where the trail had been blocked, and a sword was under her, she felt entirely trapped by those two attacks. Another item came out from her space-ring, it was a talisman that immediately created a defensive sphere around her figure and that repelled Jason''s sword, pushing him back for a dozen meters. A notebook appeared in Lois'' hands, but she immediately stored it when she saw that her mental message was stopped and destroyed by the joint work of two consciousness, it was clear that her assailants were trying to isolate her. "I wonder who is the fool that dares to attack the Royal family!" Lois shouted as sparks gathered on the surface of her body before gathering at the center of her chest, her veins bulged, and white smoke came out of her skin when that technique was activated. Elder Jason saw the figure of the fuming woman slowly walking toward him. Her steps released threatening sparks in the air under her feet and the defensive sphere was still around her, Jason couldn''t help but feel fear when he looked at her but his mood improved when he saw that a dark figure appeared behind the Royal. Chapter 532: 532. Red Noah appeared behind Lois Elbas, his cold reptilian eyes were fixed on her neck as he slashed with both his Demonic swords. His skin caved in as his sabers shattered the air in their trajectory, a dense, dangerous feeling filled Lois when she felt the power behind that attack. At once, she knew that not even her most potent defensive spell would be able to block Noah''s slashes. Seven talismans appeared in the air in front of her, they created defensive spheres that surrounded her figure and fused with that already around her. Then, a small orange orb came out of her chest and fused with the defenses around her, sparks appeared on the surface of the spheres right before the air cracked by Noah''s weapons reformed. What followed that clash was a loud explosion. Lois had emptied her reserves of defensive talismans to block Noah''s attack and even empowered them with her technique, but the sphere around her still shattered under the incredible power behind Noah''s martial art. The shards of the sphere released sparks in the air, creating loud explosions as the "Breath" and mental energy that they contained dispersed in the sky. Noah saw the sparks nearing him and stretched his arm in front of him. A giant tortoise shell appeared in front of him, and a series of black layers formed in front of it. The layers broke when they crashed with the sparks, but more of them immediately took their place, the shards of the defensive sphere weren''t even able to touch the shell. Lois'' pale figure was revealed when the explosions ended, she seemed exhausted, it took all her concentration to activate so many talismans at the same time. Also, there was a wound at the center of her chest, she had forcefully expelled the orange orb from her body after all, that act had left some injuries. "I am Lois Elbas, name a price, and I''ll be sure to pay it if you let me go." Lois spoke as she turned toward Noah, she felt more threatened by him, which made her think that he was the leader of the assailants. ''She is a Royal! That explains why she has so many protective items.'' Noah thought when he heard her words, but he didn''t stop his offensive. The turtle returned inside his body, and he deactivated his martial art before waving his hand toward her. Lois didn''t understand what was happening, but then she felt a piercing pain on her chest, blood came out of her mouth as she lowered her head to stare at that spot. She saw how a hole as large as two fists had appeared where her heart was, her eyes widened while she used her remaining forces to raise her gaze once again to stare at the man donning a black robe. She saw the black trail once again, it reached Noah''s forearm before halting the release of black smoke from its tip, she was only able to see a winged form entering Noah''s robe before her vision went dark. Lois Elbas died, the Hive had just killed a member of the Royal family! Noah quickly reached for Lois corpse and stored it after cutting away the finger wearing the space-ring, it would be up to Elder Austin and Elder Julia to decide what to do with that storage item. "Did we really kill a Royal?" Elder Jason asked as he neared Noah with a worried expression. Noah stared at Jason for a brief moment before he understood what he was feeling. Jason was a heroic cultivator who had lived in the Coral archipelago for most of his life. As a member of a dominant organization, he had never had to fear stronger powers, he could act freely without caring about the consequences of his actions. Instead, Noah had lived an opposite life, he had always been a mere ant in a world filled by monsters that tried to control and exploit him. He didn''t hesitate for even a second before inflicting the final blow to Lois, he was so used to have stronger powers after him that he didn''t even consider the possibility of letting her live. A tinge of admiration appeared inside Jason when he saw how calm Noah was, he couldn''t help but accept the fact that he had earned the title of Demon Prince. "LOIS!!" A rough cry sounded in the area a few instants after the Royal died, Jason and Noah turned in its direction only to see Fred Muwlos staring at them. Fred''s condition was poor, most of his robe had been burned, and many deep wounds filled his body, it seemed that Elder Hope''s ambush was going well. Fred briefly looked at Jason before fixing his gaze on Noah, his eyes widened, and he released another loud cry when he understood who he was. "NOAH BALVAN!" Fred shouted, and large flames enveloped his body, pushing the three elders around him back for a few meters. Then, he shot in Noah''s direction at an incredible speed, Noah was sure that he wouldn''t be able to match that acceleration even while using his Shadow sprint! Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw the figure reaching for him, the threatening flames around the noble''s figure surpassed the power of the liquid stage and entered that of the solid stage! ''He used a secret art!'' Noah immediately realized that when he felt the power behind Fred''s flames, it seemed that the noble was so desperate that he had decided to waste his dantian only to launch an incredible offensive against him. Noah kicked the air as he activated his secret art once again, his figure disappeared right before Fred could reach him. Yet, to Noah''s surprise, Fred''s eyes were able to follow his movements even when he used the Shadow sprint coupled with the secret art! Fred gathered the flames around his body on his right palm before throwing them toward Noah, a shining red orb flew at high speed toward him. ''I can''t escape!'' Noah thought when he saw that the orb was even faster than Fred, his martial art wouldn''t be able to shake it off, and he didn''t have enough time to use the Warp spell. He could only defend. A Black turtle appeared out in the open and enveloped Noah with its vast body, its shell pointed toward the incoming orb as countless defensive layers appeared over it. A black sphere formed in front of the layers, Noah activated the Black hole spell to deplete part of the power contained in Fred''s attack. At last, Noah became ethereal, even his Ethereal form spell was activated as he tried to survive that powerful spell. Then, the orb clashed with Noah''s defensive methods, and the sky became red in that area. Chapter 533: 533. Wounds An explosion filled the air where Noah had deployed his defenses with flames, making the sky become red due to the width of the blast. Noah felt a surge of power filling his body before he started to be affected by the heat radiated by Fred''s attack. The Black hole spell absorbed part of the "Breath" contained in the attack before being overwhelmed by the heat, the defensive layers in front of the tortoise shell broke as the flames advanced. More layers were created under Noah''s control, but they weren''t able to keep up with the advance of the heat, the flames soon reached the black shell and filled its surface with cracks. Noah''s Blood companion screamed in pain as its shell was broken, the flames burned its body, and cracks appeared over its half-transparent figure in Noah''s sea of consciousness as the creature endured the attack. Then, Fred''s attack reached Noah''s ethereal form hidden inside the Blood companion. Noah felt a burning sensation filling his body and injuring him through his Ethereal form spell. The power behind Fred''s attack even surpassed that of the flames of the rank 5 Cursed dragon in the Granite Abyss, Noah felt his internal organs boil under the incredible heat radiated by that attack. Yet, after a few seconds, the flames dispersed, the sky returned to its natural azure color, and Noah''s figure appeared out in the open. White smoke came out of Noah''s body, burned patches of skin could be seen everywhere under his tattered robe, and smoke even came out from his mouth as he breathed, it was as if something inside him was still burning. ''That bastard!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he directed the energy absorbed by the Black hole spell toward his injuries, he also ate a piece of a magical beast''s corpse from his space-ring to increase the healing speed. The power behind Fred''s attack was similar to a spell cast by a solid stage cultivator, it was far more potent than the casual attack of a weakened rank 5 magical beasts. Yet, Noah had improved too much since his trip to the Granite abyss, especially for what concerned his body. ''Zac absorbed a lot of damage and my spells did a lot of work too. Yet, my body endured a lot of power and survived with just these injuries, great!'' Noah happily thought when he evaluated his injuries. His condition wasn''t optimal, but only the wounds on his internal organs would take a few weeks to heal, the charred skin would be completely fixed in a matter of hours. What left him satisfied was that his spells, together with Zac and his powerful body, made him able to endure the attack of a solid stage cultivator! As for Zac, that was the name that he had given to the peak rank 4 Dark turtle that he had transformed in his Blood companion. "How?" Fred spoke in a soft voice when he realized that Noah had survived. His mood was further worsened by the fact that Noah seemed mostly fine, the attack that had cost him his dantian wasn''t even able to leave a lasting injury. A sharp pain spread from his back, Fred lowered his head only to see that a wind blade had created a large fissure on his chest. He felt his mind growing dark as he raised his gaze once again toward Noah, he could only have one last thought before life abandoned his body. ''He was just a bit stronger than Samuel back then.'' Then, his lifeless body began to fall from the sky, but Elder Laurel quickly grabbed it, she knew that Noah stored the corpses of the heroic cultivators that they killed. "Are you ok?" Elder Hope appeared in the air next to Noah and asked, she seemed really concerned about his condition. "Yes, let me see his corpse." Noah plainly answered as he neared Elder Laurel, a disappointed expression appeared on his face when his consciousness analyzed Fred''s low waist. ''His dantian is wasted, there is nothing left in there, and even its tissues have been drained. Damned nobles.'' Noah cursed in his mind as he gestured to Laurel to keep the corpse, he had no use for it. "How did you survive that attack? I''m quite sure that its power had reached the solid stage." Elder Jason asked as he flew toward him, the rest of the group gathered around Noah too, their expressions showed how amazed they were after witnessing that accomplishment. "My defense is good." Noah casually answered before adding something else. "And my element is darkness." Noah''s words reminded the other cultivators of his aptitude. He was supposedly the weaker of the group due to his inexperience, but he still had one of the rarest aptitudes, his spells and attacks would naturally be more powerful compared to those of the other elements. Of course, that answer alone didn''t solve the doubts of the cultivators, not all of them at least. They were experienced heroic cultivators who had lived for far longer than Noah and had accumulated way more experience, they knew that aptitude alone couldn''t fill the gaps between the gaseous and solid stage. They were sure that Noah hid some sort of secret, but they decided not to probe further, every cultivator had its secrets after all, it wasn''t polite to investigate them. "Can you continue the mission?" Elder Hope asked when she saw that everyone had given up on probing Noah''s power. "Yes, but it would be better if I rested for a bit." Hope''s nodded to reply to Noah''s answer, she gestured to the group to surveil the area while she accompanied Noah to the snowy ground. "I''ll contact the elders and make them handle the space-rings of the cultivators, they should have been sentries placed at the borders of the territories controlled by the Utra nation. Recover as much as you can while I reorganize the group." Elder Hope spoke those words before flying back in the sky, Noah stared at her figure for a while before taking Lois'' dantian and quickly eating it. Chapter 534: 534. Primordial ice ''Zac''s defense is good, it will take a bit to heal completely, but I should be already able to use it in a day or so.'' Noah analyzed the previous battle as he rested on the snowy ground. The Dark turtle''s ethereal figure had been gravely injured to defend against Fred''s attack but, since it was a Blood companion, Noah''s mental energy could quickly heal it. ''Havok was useful too, its speed is incredible, and it''s lethal when it attacks unprotected areas. It can also merge with my robe since its black, and hide inside the partial Demonic form as it flies.'' Noah''s attention went on the other half-transparent figure inside his sea of consciousness as he thought that. Havok lazily floated over the sea inside his sphere, it was the peak rank 4 Night falcon that Noah had turned into a Blood companion. Havok was also the cause behind the black trail, Noah needed to use the partial Demonic form to make it fly freely outside his body, but that only made its attacks incredibly dangerous! Night falcons could merge with the darkness to increase their speed, the black smoke radiated by its body when Noah activated his spell was the perfect conduit for that ability. Also, due to the peculiar capabilities of that species, Havok could directly merge with his robe since he always wore black, it didn''t need to tear it to appear in the open. The same went for Zac, Noah could just make it come out from his hands if he wasn''t in a hurry, he had to keep his sleeves folded up to his elbow to keep his robe intact though. ''Yet, reaching the upper tier just before approaching this mission has been crucial, I would be in a far worse shape right now otherwise.'' Noah thought as the nourishments coming from Lois'' dantian reached his internal organs and mended them. Noah knew that he would have been forced to abandon the mission if his body was still in the middle tier, he would have simply suffered too many injuries in that situation. ''This endurance, this resilience, I can almost fight at my full power if I stop the healing process. I should refrain from using the secret art though, the injuries on my internal organs might worsen otherwise.'' Noah couldn''t express how satisfied he was about his hybrid body, there were simply too many advantages to his status, and he only had to endure the dragon''s instincts as a drawback! It must be said though that, as his body improved, those instincts became more intense. It wasn''t only his hunger that increased, even his aggression and pride became stronger as his body grew. Noah was able to act in his usual way because his mental sphere continued to improve alongside his body, he managed to control himself and remain calm under any situation because of that. Yet, those instincts were part of him, he was partially a dragon after all, he had just to make sure that his human side was always stronger. In time, everything about him would harmonize, Noah strongly believed that the process would continue as he chased after his individuality inside the heroic ranks. ''I wonder what I''ll become.'' Noah let his mind wander as his mental energy healed Zac''s half-transparent figure, and the "Breath" inside his body stabilized the injuries on his internal organs and skin. Almost a day passed, Noah didn''t move from his position for the entirety of that period. Snow accumulated on his body, but the coldness radiated by the snowflakes wasn''t able to affect it. Instead, it seemed that that coldness somewhat weakened the heat that still scorched his insides, Noah felt as if his injuries healed at a faster pace in that environment. "Prince, it''s time." At some point, a voice resounded next to him. Noah opened his eyes and saw that Elder Hope was standing in the air right above him, he sighed as he stood up and followed her where the rest of the group was. "You are quite lucky. This type of snow is called Primordial Ice, it is a material rarely found in the old continent, and it is useful for the training of certain body-nourishing methods of the water element. I believe it is also beneficial for your injuries since they come from a fire attack." Elder Hope explained as they flew, Noah slightly nodded as he changed into another black robe, throwing his burned one inside his space-ring. "What do the elders say?" Noah asked when he reached the rest of the group. "The Elbas family has yet to realize Lois'' death, it would immediately interrupt the attack on the Shandal Empire otherwise. We can advance freely for now." Noah nodded when he heard Elder Hope''s answer before continuing with his questions. "What about their space-rings?" "Lois Elbas'' space-ring can''t be touched, it seems to be protected by a power that neither Elder Austin nor Elder Julia can affect. The noble''s one is in their hands though, they already said that we would be rewarded according to the wealth inside it." Elder Hope said as she pointed toward the north. They had reached the end of the southern coast, the only path forward was alongside the eastern coastline. From that point onward, they would actively travel across the lands conquered by the Elbas family, there were bound to be encampments and similar on their way. There was a high chance though that they wouldn''t meet other heroic cultivators too soon, the Elbas family was attacking the Empire after all, it could only leave so many sentinels on their borders. Considering that two of them had already been killed, it was likely that they would only meet human cultivators for a while. "Oh, right. Why did the noble resort to a secret art just to attempt to kill you? He had a chance to escape with that burst of power." Elder Jason asked, he had clearly seen that Fred had decided to give his everything to kill Noah. Fred''s face appeared inside Noah''s mind, but he wasn''t able to recognize him, even his robe had been burned so he couldn''t understand from which family he came from. ''I guess I have too many enemies in the Utra nation.'' "I don''t know." Noah plainly answered as he thought that. The group began to fly, and a land filled with Spiked roots appeared in the distance after the snowy plain. Chapter 535: 535. Gorge The group flew past the snowy plain and entered a land filled with rank 4 Spiked roots. Elder Laurel seemed fascinated by those magical plants, but she forced herself to remain focused on the mission, that wasn''t the time to study the flora of the piece of Immortal Lands. The Spiked roots though began to diminish as they advanced, large patches of burned terrain could be seen from time to time as they went deeper into the eastern coast. Then, a tall obelisk appeared in their field of view. The group stopped when it saw the colossal structure, that sharp change in the environment surprised the cultivators who immediately halted their flight to analyze the area. The obelisk seemed to absorb the "Breath" in the air, Noah and the others were immediately able to notice that particular feature due to the lower density of "Breath" around them. Their consciousnesses expanded to inspect the environment at the bottom of the structure, some gasps resounded in the group of elders when they saw that a small city had been built around the base of the huge pillar. "They found a way to colonize these territories in less than five years, the Hive pales in comparison to the three big nations." Elder Hope couldn''t help but give voice to those words when she saw the city. What was even more surprising was that its inhabitants were human cultivators! ''There are even cultivators in the second rank, the Elbas family has created the perfect cultivation ground for its human assets.'' Noah thought while his consciousness probed the city. The obelisk reduced the density of "Breath", making the area around its base an ideal environment where human cultivators could train. ''The traces left by divine beings for the heroic assets and the cities for the human ones, Elder Hope is right, the Hive is still far behind.'' Noah agreed with Hope''s evaluation, but he had always known that the three big nations were simply too powerful. He couldn''t be sure about the Papral nation and the Empire, but he had gained a clear understanding of the heroic assets of the Utra nation. ''The Elbas family alone is stronger than the entirety of the Hive. Then, there are all the heroic cultivators of each noble family¡­ I would say that there are around two hundred heroic cultivators in the ranks of the Utra nation. I wonder how many of them are on Chasing Demon''s level.'' Noah knew that the real power of every organization could be found in its strongest members. The number of ants at your disposal didn''t matter if the enemy had a dragon, the cultivation world gave more importance to single but unmatched entities rather than to many pawns. Of course, rank 4 cultivators weren''t ants, but the power held by a single rank 6 existence was too great, which was one of the reasons why the Coral archipelago managed to become independent as soon as it obtained a chance. "What do we do?" Elder Pansy asked when she saw that the group continued to remain still, she didn''t like to remain out in the open for such a long period. "Can''t we just destroy the city? Losing these humans won''t affect the Utra nation too much, but this obelisk seems expensive, it should be a harsh blow to endure even for a big nation." Elder Jason suggested, but the others hesitated to pursue that approach. "Destroying the obelisk will force to a stop the attack of the Elbas family on the Empire. We want to inflict as many losses as possible while also exploring their territories and remaining anonymous. These humans might become a threat only in the distant future, but our focus must stay on the present now." Noah expressed his opinion on the situation. Taking down the structure would be the right approach if the Hive wanted to conquer that area, but that wasn''t possible with its current strength. On the contrary, reducing the heroic assets of the Utra nation would give more room to the forces of the archipelago, allowing them to maintain control over the lands on the other side of the southern coast and the western coast. "We don''t even know if there are defenses around it. I don''t think the Elbas family expected an attack, but building something so important without protections it''s simply reckless." Elder Hope added, expressing her agreement with Noah''s vision. Silence enveloped the group for a while before everyone agreed to avoid the city and keep ambushing the heroic cultivators on their path. Noah and the others flew around the area occupied by the obelisk, and Spiked roots reappeared as soon as they left the range of the city, it seemed that the Royals had decided to clean only that zone. They lowered their flying speed since they had officially entered the territories controlled by a big nation, it wouldn''t be surprising to meet heroic cultivators plundering and studying the materials there. Then, Noah felt his instincts tremble when a dark gorge appeared on the ground at a few kilometers in front of him. The gorge didn''t escape the eyes of his companions, the terrain around it had been cleaned after Lord Delbert discovered that place, the Spiked roots hiding the canyon had been eradicated in the years that had passed. "Such an ancient aura!" Elder Jason gave voice to his thoughts as he stared at the gorge, his companions thought something similar when their eyes fell on that place. Only Noah had something different in mind. Low growls resounded from the bottom of the gorge, their roars carried anger, pain, and even some helplessness. ''They are trapped. Mighty beings trapped in the darkness by the hands of a higher power.'' His mind began to wander as he used his dragon side to understand the meaning behind those growls. ''A hunger that has lasted for centuries, and only the screams echoed in the darkness as their companion. A yearning for the light that knows no limits, a desire for freedom that will never be suppressed.'' Chapter 536: 536. Destroyer The growls of the magical beasts inside the gorge made Noah experience their feelings, he stopped his flight as he immersed himself in those sensations. He knew them too well. The yearning for freedom, something that he had fought so much to obtain, but that was still threatened by the many enemies that he had made along his path. He knew what it meant to be the best of your kind but still unable to escape the grasp of beings far stronger than you, he had felt that helplessness often in his life. To put it simply, he empathized with the beasts trapped inside that place. ''Yet, I don''t yearn for the light, my path can only lead me deeper in the darkness.'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes, the only thing that his mind could perceive were the growls of the beasts. ''You were just following your nature, someone or something else has forced you to suffer because of its needs.'' A tinge of anger formed inside Noah, both his human and dragon side could sympathize with that situation. The Cursed dragon species had been deprived of its reproductive capacity and wings, confined in a cage that it couldn''t escape, forced to see its heritage dwindle over time. Noah had been treated as a prisoner for most of his life, his efforts had always been seen as a feature to exploit rather than as something to nourish. ''They made a mistake too.'' Noah realized when his reasoning reached that point. The Balvan family, the Elbas family, Daniel, the soldiers of the Empire, even the orthodox organizations in the Coral archipelago, they all made the mistake of underestimating him. They all thought to be in control of the small human cultivator that was Noah Balvan. ''It''s as if my essence spreads to whatever comes in contact with me, a mistake that generates mistakes wherever it goes.'' The others in Noah''s group managed to notice that something was wrong with him when they raised their gazes from the gorge, some of them were about to speak, but Elder Hope promptly stopped them with a gesture. ''When something that shouldn''t exist affects the world, chaos is born.'' Traces of a smile appeared on Noah''s face, he couldn''t help but feel a sense of satisfaction when he reviewed the positive influence that he had through his life. The guard without a future found a worthy disciple to nurture; The solitary girl who had lost faith in her family was entrusted of a power that even middle-size noble families didn''t have; The ruined cultivator who spent his days fighting his endless pain obtained an heir that could fulfill his dreams; A nation on the verge of collapse left a grain of hope in his hands; An organization that hid under the surface was finally able to rise to power and claim its independence; An almost extinct species flew once again in the sky and shouted its anger toward Heaven and Earth. ''I am the first one, the human destined to be a commoner, but that ended up as a monster to defy his fate. Why would I despair if darkness surrounds me?'' His aptitude had caused most of Noah''s problems, his element was his curse but also the reason why he managed to shine so brightly among his peers. ''If darkness surrounds me, I will just turn it into my darkness! My essence is devoid of Heaven and Earth''s will, I don''t have to abide by their laws!'' Noah''s aura changed slightly right under his companion''s gazes, the coldness and savagery that he exuded diminished in intensity, it was as if a dark veil began to cover his existence. ''Chaos spreads whenever I take a step, what I touch leaves the predetermined fate chosen by Heaven and Earth. My darkness won''t bind nor hide, it will create paths where there is only void instead! Because a mistake can live and void can exist, and it will affect the world around it.'' Something inside Noah changed when he reached that point in his thoughts. ''Spending so much time taking lives makes you forget about those that you give. In the same way, focusing too much on destruction makes you forget that you can create, even if you have been creating things all along.'' Noah opened his eyes after those thoughts, he felt the eyes of the elders fixed on him, but he didn''t care, he had to give another look at the dark gorge. Growls resounded unceasingly from the depths of the canyon, Noah could almost see himself being forever trapped in a similar place by the hands of a power that he couldn''t match. He knew that he could have ended in the same way and that such a chance still existed, but that was the very reason why he had managed to gain some understanding from their situation. ''I''ll trail the paths that have been taken from you. If darkness has been made to blind and destroy, I''ll be a darkness that illuminates and creates. Your desperation won''t be wasted.'' Noah felt a bit of gratitude toward those beasts even if he knew that they were just following their instincts, their growls were never meant for the enlightenment of a cultivator. Yet, Noah wasn''t a simple cultivator, he was a hybrid who could relate with their situation. The understanding that he had just obtained didn''t only concern the laws of the darkness element, it even explored the depths of his individuality. He had always thought to be only a destroyer, someone that kept on severing what appeared in front of him to advance. He had always neglected what remained intact after his passage, he had never managed to see what he created, the paths that he forged. "Prince?" Elder Hope probed when she saw that Noah heaved a sigh and moved his gaze away from the gorge. "What is it?" Noah asked, his voice was calm as his eyes crossed Hope''s, it was as if he was unaware that he had just stopped flying in the enemy territory for a while. She felt as if she was staring at an abyss, his mental energy concealed the proprieties of his aura, but everything about him was visible. ''Darkness that doesn''t act like darkness.'' Elder Hope thought before shaking her head and resuming her flight, the other elders shot a quick look at Noah before following her. Noah didn''t have anything else to do in that place and followed her too. His mind though wasn''t on the environment under him, but it studied the basis behind the creation of spells instead. Chapter 537: 537. Runes Spells needed mental energy and "Breath" as their fuel. The "Breath" was the power source, while the mental energy had to trace the diagrams needed for the activation of a spell. A complex system of lines made a diagram, each line carried a specific meaning that produced the desired effect once they were linked together. To put it simply, a spell was a set of lines that carried different meanings, and that was fueled by mental energy and "Breath". Noah had been able to understand those meanings in the past and reproduce those that interested him through his body, creating a martial art which produced similar effects. Yet, he had never been able to create a spell, he didn''t know where to start on that field. His Elemental forging methods needed materials and wills while the diagrams needed to copy the natural language of the "Breath" in the world, something that he couldn''t hear nor read. He had always thought that he couldn''t create spells since he didn''t know how to forge a diagram, but the new enlightenment proved him wrong. ''Diagrams are just conduits that force the "Breath" to work in specific ways, they act as laws, they just set a meaning.'' Noah thought as he followed his group past the dark gorge, their slow flight gave him all the time that he needed to ponder about that issue. ''Of course, they aren''t just one meaning but a set of them that can create amazing effects once combined. They are even more complex than the will that handles my cultivation technique.'' Noah''s attention briefly went on his low-waist, where his small half-transparent figure floated in front of dantian. Noah had to continually refill the reserves of mental energy of his will to keep it active. Still, its role was relatively simple, it just regulated the absorption speed of his rank 4 cultivation technique. The new enlightenment had improved his growth once again, more laws of the darkness element fused with his dantian, favoring the absorption of "Breath". That forced Noah to slow down his cultivation through his will. His dantian enlarged continuously, Noah had to limit his cultivation technique if he wanted to preserve the health of its center of power. Yet, even if he forcefully slowed down the absorption of "Breath", the speed at which his dantian enlarged continued to grow. It couldn''t be helped, the nourishment of the laws of the darkness element improved the status of his center of power, increasing what it was able to endure. Because of that, Noah''s cultivation speed continued to increase even though he restricted his cultivation technique. ''I need to create a complex will if I want to create a spell. Such a will should express the effects that I wish for once I fill it with my "Breath". It is doable.'' Noah had finally understood why he couldn''t forge a spell through his inscription method: Because it was the wrong approach! The Elemental forging method imbued meanings in items, transforming them in the process. Instead, spells needed understanding, cultivators could either copy the work of Heaven and Earth or invent something equally complicated. Of course, that wasn''t something that Noah could do right now, he needed time and a safe environment where to test those ideas, and the enemy territory didn''t meet those requirements at all. Days passed without encountering any heroic cultivator, even the elders would take weeks to cross those territories at that speed. Then, two huge shapes took form on the horizon. The first one was another obelisk identical to the one in the middle of the plain filled with Spiked roots, a city had been built at its base too, it seemed that the Royals had invested a lot in the colonization of the piece of Immortal lands. The other one was a giant tree with a thick silver trunk and a vast yellow crown. The tree stood at some distance from the obelisk, and a forest made of smaller trees of its same species expanded from its base. The sight was quite peculiar, humans and magical plants had created two similar environments so close to each other. "These are Silver-yellow woods, and that one is a rank 5 specimen! Careful, they are a carnivorous species of magical plants." Elder Laurel spoke as soon as she recognized those trees. ''The obelisk must scare the rank 5 plant, I don''t see why it didn''t expand the forest otherwise.'' Noah thought while he analyzed the scenery, the city and the forest were quite close, but there wasn''t any sign of battle on the terrain between them. "What should we do? This is already the second city, and the assault on the Empire must be almost over by now, I think we should just destroy an obelisk and retreat." Elder Jason expressed the same idea as before. The group was deep in the enemy territory, and weeks had passed since the mission started, something was bound to happen at that point. Yet, Elder Austin didn''t contact them, it seemed that even the Papral nation wasn''t sending information to him. ''Killing human cultivators feels so useless, but advancing even more can only cut our path to retreat, we must be halfway through the eastern coast after all.'' Noah analyzed in his mind. He felt conflicted about the current situation, the lack of reports from the Papral nation didn''t make the situation clear, he couldn''t decide which one was the best approach. Then, as if answering their doubts, a blue light shone in the distant north, far away from their position. The light was so bright that the group from the Hive could clearly see it, it was as if a pillar of light had enveloped the territories in the distance. The sound of an explosion followed, and a shockwave chased after the sound. The ground trembled, and the air shattered, even the robes of the cultivators in Noah''s group fluttered when the shockwave reached the air around them. The pillar of light released so much power that even Noah and the others could feel part of its effects. "Don''t tell me, the light comes from the territories of the Empire!" Elder Hope shouted as her mouth opened in surprise, she couldn''t imagine how a shockwave could travel for almost half of the eastern coast! The group was so shocked that it didn''t notice that runes lit up on top of the obelisk. Chapter 538: 538. Rats The shockwave continued to spread through the sky of the eastern coast, Noah''s group could only feel its weakened effects. Yet, that made them able to imagine the insanely powerful force that had caused that phenomenon. "What is happening?" Elder Pansy asked in a loud voice, her words struggled to reach her companions through the trembling air. No one answered her question, the rest of the group was in the same situation after all, the only clue they had was the blue pillar that still shone in the distance. Elder Hope picked her inscribed notebook and tried to contact Elder Austin and Elder Julia. Yet, the obelisk in front of them began to shine at that point, runes spread from its tip, and created a brilliant halo that attracted the gazes of her group. It was evident to everyone that the halo resembled that of a teleportation matrix. "Run!" Noah shouted through his consciousness, his dragon instincts sensed the imminent danger before his mind could, he was sure that something powerful was coming. Yet, just as he turned to escape, a barrage of brown runes appeared in front of him and spread to surround even his companions. ''Fuck!'' Noah cursed in his mind as a pair of black sabers appeared in his hands, and his skin began to cave in. The injuries on his internal organs had healed during his flight, there was no danger in activating the secret art. The air shattered as he slashed with his sabers, two fuming black lines appeared on the barrage of runes and tried to force the blockade. However, the runes simply endured the attack, not even a crack appeared on their surface. A series of wind blades crashed on the area attacked by Noah, Elder Hope followed Noah''s example and tried to force the blockade with her attacks. The rest of the group did the same, a huge fireball, a fiery slash, and a torrent of flames focused the spot already attacked by Noah. Nevertheless, even the joint attacks of four heroic cultivators were unable to pierce the encirclement of the brown runes. "Who would you be?" A female voice resounded above them, the halo radiated by the obelisk dispersed, revealing a dozen figures that were staring at them. ''Rank 5 cultivator!'' Noah realized when he sensed the power of the woman in the lead. She had golden hair and green eyes, and she wore a charred golden robe that was barely able to cover her body. The torn parts of her robe revealed patches of burned skin and a series of deep wounds, it seemed that she had just come out of a battle. The rest of her group was in a similar situation, wounds filled the bodies of the cultivators, some of them even missed a limb or two. ''They must have teleported back here after the blue pillar appeared, this obelisk was their escape route.'' Noah quickly understood what was happening. The cultivators above him were the forces sent by the Utra nation to attack the Empire who had just returned from the battlefield. ''This is bad, there is nothing we can do against her runes.'' Noah evaluated as he searched for an item inside his space-ring. He had two methods to destroy the blockade of a rank 5 cultivator. The first one was the detonation of his rank 6 storage item, but the blast would surely kill him so he could only use its power as a threat. The second one was the talisman that Chasing Demon had given him before his journey to the Granite abyss. The brown runes affected his consciousness, Noah couldn''t use the Warp spell, the talisman was his only way out of that situation unless the elders intervened. "You must be Lady Edna, the reports don''t do justice to your beauty." Elder Austin''s voice resounded in the area, and a series of fireball descended from the sky and fell on the barrage of brown runes. The fireballs seemed to have liquid capabilities since they clashed with the runes and began to drip over the surface of the blockade. The runes quickly melted under those flames, Noah and the rest of his group were soon freed from the encirclement. However, they didn''t immediately escape, they waited for Elder Austin''s instructions before deciding their next move. After all, they couldn''t escape from a rank 5 cultivator even if they wanted. "I''ve never heard of you though, it seems that the Elbas family must improve its investigations on the rats that plunder empty homes." Lady Edna answered as she raised her gaze to the sky, her eyes sharpened when she realized that she couldn''t pinpoint the elder''s location. Meanwhile, the cultivators behind her began to shot stares at Noah''s group, whispers resounded between them when their eyes fell on Noah. Then, one of them neared Lady Edna and politely whispered something in her ear. Lady Edna''s brows knitted together when she heard those words, her gaze went on Noah for an instant before returning to the sky. "What is the Hive doing here? Are you working together with the Council?" Lady Edna asked. She had immediately linked the presence of the Hive with the betrayal of the Papral nation, the latter was the only force that could have leaked the information about the attack on the Empire after all. "Questions, questions. Why don''t we test each other for a bit? I''ve always wanted to see for myself what a Royal can really do." Elder Austin''s voice sounded again, and his figure appeared from the clouds in the sky. Tongues of flames floated around his figure, they resembled red rivers ready to explode outward. His shining green eyes radiated pure confidence, the morale of Noah''s group rose as soon as they sensed his aura. "Hold on as much as you can, Elder Julia is preparing a way back to the southern coast." Elder Austin''s voice resounded in the mental spheres of the cultivators of the Hive, he sent a mental message through his methods before shooting toward Lady Edna. Lady Edna snorted when she saw his figure reaching for her, countless runes appeared in the air next to her as she prepared herself for the imminent clash, two rank 5 cultivators were about to fight! Chapter 539: 539. Battle The tongues of flames surrounding Elder Austin shot forward, clashing with the flying brown runes that Lady Edna used as her protection. The impact between the two attacks created a shockwave that flung away the cultivators of both nations, rank 4 entities couldn''t even remain near that battle! Noah was flung back too, but he managed to keep his eyes on the fight as he tried to stop himself, he saw how the runes melted as soon as they came in contact with the elder''s flames. ''They resemble rivers of lava.'' Noah couldn''t help but think that when he saw Elder Austin''s attack, he was almost sure that part of that battle prowess came from the enlightenment obtained next to the lava lake. More clashes happened mid-air, the two rank 5 cultivators exchanged attacks at an incredible speed, creating shockwaves with their every move. The sky around them shattered, large cracks formed in the air only to close shortly after, it seemed that the "Breath" in that area struggled to keep up with the destructive force behind those two beings. Even the obelisk in the distance began to tremble, the buildings in the city at its base started to crumble when the shockwaves swept them, and panic spread among the human cultivators living there. It was pure chaos. The battle between such powerful cultivators had instantly altered the environment, it was as if a danger zone had appeared out of nowhere. Only the heroic cultivators on the scene could somewhat endure the sight of the battle, but those of the Utra nation saw their injuries worsening under that pressure. "Go after them!" Lady Edna shouted while she redirected her complete focus on her battle. More runes formed around her and the ethereal image of a tall tree appeared behind her back. The ethereal tree resembled the rank 5 Silver-yellow wood, its sharp half-transparent branches linked themselves to the runes, which began to shine with a brighter light. That spell was effective since Lady Edna''s runes stopped melting under Elder Austin''s flames and began to push him back in the sky, it seemed that she wanted to drag him away from the obelisk. Meanwhile, the remaining eleven cultivators of the Utra nation shot after the elders of the Hive. There were two rank 4 cultivators in the liquid stage and nine in the gaseous stage in the group of the Utra nation. However, they were all wounded, some of them even badly. The cultivators of the Hive saw multiple figures approaching them, it didn''t take much before each one of them was surrounded. Elder Hope found the two liquid stage cultivators at her sides, and even the other elders found themselves with two opponents on their level. Yet, Noah discovered that a special treatment had been reserved for him. ''So, this is how they want to play it.'' Noah thought as his consciousness retracted and focused on the enemies around him. Three cultivators in the gaseous stage had encircled him, it seemed that he was some kind of important target in their mind. "I remember you as a young kid with a deep interest in magical beasts, I can barely believe my eyes when I see you flying on my same level." One of the cultivators around him spoke, he was a short man with curly hair and a long beard. Noah recognized him, he was Professor Roy, the man who held the magical beasts'' course in the academy. Noah didn''t answer him, his reptilian eyes analyzed his three opponents, and his consciousness entirely focused on the imminent battle, he knew that words were useless at that point. ''They have yet to mend their injuries, they can''t express their full power in their condition.'' Noah thought as he took note of the wounds of his enemies, he saw a glimpse of hope when he realized that their conditions were quite poor. Professor Roy was missing an arm and blood flowed from his right leg, it seemed that a grave injury was still healing on that spot; The old man on Noah''s side had more than half of his body burned, and crusts fell from his body as new skin formed to replace the damaged one: The woman on his other side was covered in cuts, her robe had long since turned red due to all the blood that had flowed out of her wounds. ''I might win if I go all out, I won''t be able to hide any of my abilities though.'' Noah thought as he stopped limiting his cultivation technique and lifted a hand to his side. A torrent of "Breath" entered his dantian as soon as his will stopped hindering its absorption, but part of that energy was immediately depleted to fuel the activation of a spell. Mental energy was also depleted as a diagram formed over the sea inside his mind, an uneven black sphere formed at the center of his palm and enlarged as more energies were poured inside it. Noah directly used the Dark blast spell at the beginning of the fight! "You won''t even speak to your professor, maybe you are the demon described in the reports spread throughout the nation." Professor Roy sighed and nodded to his companions before waving his remaining arm, the two cultivators next to Noah did the same as they prepared their attacks. Flames, ice spears, and columns of water shot toward Noah from three different sides, the cultivators encircling him had cast their spells without hesitation. Zac came out in the open and surrounded Noah with its huge body, defensive layers appeared over its shell right before the spells crashed on it. ''Why would I even hide them though?'' Noah pondered as he felt the spells of the cultivators from the Utra nation destroying the defensive layers and crashing on Zac''s shell. Noah had obviously improved the natural capabilities of his Blood companions with the elemental forging method. Zac''s defense and Havoc''s speed had been enhanced past their limits, those two peak rank 4 magical beasts had turned into beings that were almost as strong as quasi-rank 5 specimens, at least for what concerned those abilities. Zac''s shell endured the attacks and gave Noah time to answer his question. Then, a roar resounded from inside the companion''s body. Chapter 540: 540. All ou Noah had hidden for all his life. It didn''t matter where he went, there was always something stronger than him that he had to fear and escape. He had only been able to reveal himself inside the safety of the Chasing demon sect, and he had nothing to fear after the Coral archipelago claimed its independence, the copying spell simply defended him from any possible threat. Yet, he couldn''t remain inside the borders of the archipelago forever, he needed to gather experiences to improve. Also, relying on the Hive for protection wasn''t much different from hiding. However, as his journey through the piece of Immortal Lands continued, Noah began to explore the depths of his individuality and find pride in his exceptional achievements. He was the youngest rank 4 mage in the history of that world, no one could even come closer to his record; He had reached the fourth rank of the dantian with a cultivation technique that he had personally created, only the most nourished and talented cultivators could attempt in something like that, and almost all of them would still fail; He had fused with a magical beast, solving one of the most significant weaknesses of the cultivators and succeeding in discovering the secrets behind that race, that achievement alone was incredible. ''Why would I even hide!'' Noah screamed inside his mind, but only a roar came out of his mouth. He wasn''t a lone human cultivator without backing anymore, he was a heroic existence that strived for the realms high in the sky! ''Who cares if they find out that I reached the heroic ranks? Who cares if they discover that I can launch flames from my mouth?'' Black smoke came began to come out of Zac''s body, its defensive capabilities immediately increased when the Demonic form spell was activated. The three cultivators from the Utra nation took a step back when they saw the smoke. The power behind their spells had partially depleted to pierce Zac''s defense, but the arrival of the black smoke further stalled their advance. The roar didn''t scare them, they were aware that Noah used magical beasts as puppets, but Professor Roy felt that something was off with that cry, it seemed completely different but also extremely similar to that of a dragon-type magical beast. ''Who cares if they hear me roar!'' Noah shouted in his mind before activating his secret art and kicking the air under his feet. Zac''s body broke to let Noah''s out, the Blood companion was soon reabsorbed in his body, and the spells of his enemies flew in the distance now that their target was gone. What came out of the Dark turtle though wasn''t a human, it was a fiendish figure with a pair of horns and a tail! Noah didn''t hesitate to enter the complete Demonic form against three heroic cultivators! He wielded two black sabers, and an uneven sphere floated next to him, the Dark blast spell had never stopped gathering energies while Noah was inside his Blood companion. Noah directly threw his spell toward the three cultivators, the sphere had reached a radius of two meters by then, that width was enough for his purposes. The cultivators from the Utra nation retreated once again when they saw the uneven sphere coming for them, a dangerous sensation was radiated by its shape, and a threatening black smoke surrounded its surface as it reached for them. The cultivators didn''t remain passive in front of Noah''s offensive, three walls made of ice, water, and flames surrounded the Dark blast spell and tried to contain its might. Meanwhile, they also targeted Noah with their attacks. Two huge fiery snakes and a hundred starfishes made of water appeared in the sky and shot toward Noah. Also, countless ice shards joined the charge of the starfishes and aimed for the fuming fiend above them, Noah found himself surrounded by three different attacks once again. Noah didn''t seem to care about the incoming spells, he quickly detonated the uneven sphere before diving directly toward the three cultivators! An explosion resounded in the area, and cracks appeared on the surfaces of the three walls when the blast and the black smoke reached them. Yet, the joint power of three defensive spells managed to stop Noah''s attack completely. It was at that point though that the cultivators from the Utra nation noticed that something was wrong. Their vision and consciousness had flickered for an instant when the spell exploded but, when they focused again on the battlefield, Noah had completely disappeared. Then, all three of them felt claws tearing through their internal organs. Blood came out of the mouths of the cultivators, they quickly understood that Noah had smuggled hundreds of those ethereal claws inside the Dark blast spell to catch them by surprise. Professor Roy didn''t even have the time to curse since a shockwave hit his mental sphere, his mind went blank while he tried to stabilize the tremors that filled the walls of his sea of consciousness. Noah was over him, he had used the detonation of his spell to activate the full power of the Shadow sprint martial art and make his enemies lose track of him. Then, he had targeted the cultivator that knew him better, he had decided not to hide anymore, but giving a chance to your enemies to learn all your abilities was simply stupid. The one who could pick some clues about his status as a hybrid was Professor Roy, so he had to be taken care of first. Noah performed two slashes as he descended toward Professor Roy''s head, the air shattered as two fuming lines vertically cut the sky. Roy was clueless about the imminent threat, his mind was still trembling under the effects of the Mental tremor spell, his complete focus was on the walls of his mental sphere. Yet, a barrage of ice shards and starfishes appeared in his protection, the other two cultivators had promptly redirected their spells to defend their powerless companion. Two fuming fissures appeared on the defensive barrage, countless starfishes were destroyed, and ice fell in every direction as the spells tried to block Noah''s attack. In the end, Noah''s slashes didn''t reach Roy, their power was depleted at a few meters from his head, only some traces of the corrosive smoke remained in the air between them. Roy''s companions heaved a sigh of relief when they saw that he was safe, they were about to launch themselves toward Noah when they saw that a black trail dove at high speed toward the Professor. Chapter 541: 541. Flaming figure The cultivators of the Utra nation were all injured, they couldn''t express their full power. At the same time, Noah had never been more powerful. The enlightenments had slightly improved all the abilities that used the darkness element, and his whole essence brimmed with confidence, he knew exactly how strong he was. Havok flew at an incredible speed through the fissures created by his slashes, the corrosive smoke still lingering in the air further improved its speed when it dove through it. Roy''s companion couldn''t do anything, Havok was too fast, and their spells had already been pierced, they could only watch as the black trail engulfed Roy''s head and brought his lifeless body back to Noah. Noah quickly cut away the parts of Roy''s body that were being eroded by the black smoke and stored the rest, there would be time to eat his dantian after the battle was over. Noah''s dantian didn''t lack "Breath", his cultivation technique refilled it at full speed, he could battle for a while without caring about it. Only his mental energy diminished at a fast pace, using so many spells at the same time placed a heavy toll on his mind. However, Noah had been a rank 4 mage for almost five years by then, he could easily keep using his full power for a while. For the first time in his life, he could take part in extended battles! "What have you done!" The man at his side shouted as he charged toward Noah. They had just survived the siege on the Shandal Empire only to find themselves in another battle. They outnumbered their enemies, but their injuries were quite severe, and their centers of power didn''t have many reserves, their situation wasn''t good. Yet, they would have never expected that one of them could die so soon. Noah saw the man coming for him, and his sabers traced a cross in the air when he slashed them. The man was prepared for his attack, and countless starfishes appeared the trajectory of the slashes as he flew toward the fiendish figure. A fissure with the shape of a cross appeared in the barrage of starfishes, and black smoke lingered on its borders. Still, the spell successfully blocked Noah''s attack once again, giving an opportunity to the cultivator. The man stretched his hand as he flew toward Noah, the water that made the starfishes gathered on his arm and transformed it into a threatening reptilian claw. Zac came out to intercept the man''s spell, the azure claw pierced its defensive layers and shell, but part of its power had been expended in the process, allowing Noah to block it with his sabers. The Demonic swords were rank 4 items created with his flesh, and his body wielded the might of a hybrid that used a secret technique. His weapons managed to remain intact after the clash, and his physical strength allowed him to stay still, the man couldn''t help but think that he had clashed with an immovable mountain. The black smoke surrounding Noah began to affect the azure claw, the armor of water was slowly being pierced by the corrosive capabilities of Noah''s spell. Yet, at that moment, Noah sensed a threat coming from behind him. His consciousness saw the woman wielding two icy swords diving toward him, a layer of ice covered the surface of her skin. Still, its snowy color was tainted by the blood flowing out of her many injuries, it seemed that utilizing that spell further worsened her wounds. Noah couldn''t move his sabers, they had to remain in their position to block the man''s spell, so he simply turned his head toward the woman, and a crack appeared on the armor of smoke. Noah''s head turned in an inhuman way, his neck seemed incredibly flexible, but the woman didn''t have time to be surprised about that feature. The crack in the armor of smoke revealed Noah''s open mouth, the woman was only able to see a pale-gray light before flames engulfed her entire body. The man next to him gasped in surprise, his companion had attacked from his blind spot, but Noah had still been able to counterattack! Then, he felt an incredible force pushing him backward, Noah''s head resumed its normal position and turned toward the man as he launched another wave of flames. The man promptly used the water still lingering in the battlefield to protect himself, an azure shield appeared between him and the flames, but the black smoke surrounding them threatened to pierce his defensive measure. Since he knew that he couldn''t defend, he simply let Noah''s physical strength flung him back in the distance. Noah finally had a moment of peace after that exchange. The remaining cultivators were attacking uncaring of their injuries, he couldn''t exploit any opening like he did with Professor Roy. After all, they were still two rank 4 cultivators with deep battle experience, it was impossible to quickly kill one of them without the element of surprise. Also, he was continually using his Demonic form, he didn''t know how much mental energy and "Breath" his enemies had left, but his mind continued to be emptied as he kept fighting. ''I can''t disperse the Demonic form, but my dantian is doing well without the restrictions on my cultivation technique, I should only pay attention to my mind and body.'' Noah thought in that brief moment of peace. His mind was still somewhat ok, but he had used the secret art since the beginning of the battle, he felt hungry beyond reason at that moment. Noah knew that he could just eat Roy''s dantian to fill his body with nourishments, but the dantians of the cultivators were the meal that made his body improve the most, he didn''t want to waste it just to keep fighting. Of course, he wouldn''t hesitate to do so if the situation required it, but he could still hold on. Noah gave a few orders to the spirit automaton inside his space-ring while he kept his attention on the two enemies in the distance. The man was relatively fine, the battle had stopped the regeneration of his burned skin, but he didn''t suffer any other injury during the clashes. On the other hand, the woman''s face was ashen. Noah''s flames had destroyed her weakened layer of ice, and the cuts on her body enlarged in the impact, she seemed on the verge of collapsing due to her exhaustion. Meanwhile, the spirit automaton sent pieces of the corpses of the strongest creatures stored inside Noah''s ring, Noah quickly stuffed them inside his mouth before the smoke around him could affect them. ''They are communicating.'' Noah realized that when he saw that his two enemies were using part of their consciousnesses for other matters, he guessed that they were preparing a plan of some sort. He turned toward the woman and was about to charge at her to interrupt their preparations, but a loud explosion filled the clouds above them with flames, illuminating the area with a vivid red color. Then, a flaming figure fell from the sky. Chapter 542: 542. Meeting Noah turned his gaze toward the falling burning figure, even the other cultivators of both nations interrupted their battles after the explosion resounded the area. The flames that surrounded the falling figure were thick, it wasn''t clear who was enduring that scorching attack. Yet, everyone in the area knew that it had fallen from the battlefield of the two rank 5 cultivators. Seconds of silence passed as if they were years, the outcome of the battle between the two powerhouses would make their fights pointless, not even all of them together could rival a rank 5 existence. No one dared to near the falling figure, the flames around it were too powerful, and they were concerned about its identity, they would rather avoid attempting to save the wrong cultivator. The figure continued to fall until it crashed on the ground, there were still a few rank 4 Spiked roots on that spot, but the flames instantly burned them. The flames lasted for a few minutes before they dispersed on the terrain, revealing a fainted woman covered in half-transparent runes. The outcome of the battle became clear to everyone, Lady Edna had been defeated by Elder Austin! ''She is alive.'' Noah''s eyes sharpened when he thought that. The runes around her body seemed some natural form of protection that had prevented the flames from affecting her skin, but their power had largely depleted during the fall. ''The dantian of a rank 5 cultivator! If I manage to eat it¡­" Noah''s hunger began to fill his mind when he realized that he had a chance to seize Lady Edna''s center of power. His fuming foot slowly turned in her direction, power began to accumulate on his legs while he prepared to sprint toward the ground. His focus rose as he inspected his surroundings, everyone''s attention was on the fainted Lady Edna, no one was watching him. Yet, it was at that point that Elder Julia appeared in the middle of the battlefield. Everyone''s attention went on her, and the cultivators of the Utra nation began to take steps back when they saw that another rank 5 entity had appeared. However, her next words surprised both groups. "Let''s go, we are done here." Elder Julia''s words resounded in the area and stupefied both groups. Elder Austin had just defeated Lady Edna, and now even Julia had appeared, they clearly had the upper hand, why would they retreat? "The higher-ups are having a meeting, they called a truce until an agreement is reached." Elder Julia explained before slowly flying toward the southern coast. . . . A few hours before, while the siege on the territories colonized by the Empire was still happening. A large table made of marble floated high in the sky over the sea between the new and old continent. Four seats floated next to the sides of the table, and a middle-aged man sat on one of them, calmly sipping what seemed tea from a cup. The man had short black hair, dark eyes, and a short beard, and his expression was incredibly calm as he waited for the other three guests to join him. Minutes passed in which he didn''t move from his position, he simply took short sips from his cup from time to time. Then, a man appeared and neared the table without taking a seat. "I must warn you, if this is some kind of trap, I''m more than willing to make the entire archipelago detonate. I reckon half of the Empire will be destroyed in the shockwave." The man who had just appeared and spoken was Chasing Demon, the patriarch of the Hive. "Do not fear, young one, the Almighty just wants to find an agreement." The man answered without raising his gaze from his cup. Chasing Demon inspected him for a while before sighing a sitting in his opposite direction, caution lingered on his eyes as he watched his surroundings. More time passed, and another figure appeared. It was a man who wore a golden crown, and a golden robe, surprise mixed with arrogance were exuded by his expression when he saw the two men sitting next to the floating table. "Why is the closest man to god summoning me? Is the Empire so scared about the attack on its territories?" The newly arrived cultivator was King Elbas, the ruler of the Utra nation. "King Elbas, please, just call me God''s Right Hand and sit. We are just missing a guest for the meeting to being." God''s Right Hand spoke while pointing to the seat to his left. King Elbas didn''t move and simply turned his gaze toward Chasing Demon before speaking once again. "Why is he here? Our three nations are enough to colonize the piece of Immortal Lands." "Because greed has won over one of you, we need a fourth power to secure the coasts peacefully, or we will never make it to the center of the new lands." A female voice resounded in the air which answered King Elbas'' question, a beautiful middle-aged woman appeared immediately after and sat on the remaining seat. "Thank you for joining this meeting, Great Elder Diana." God''s Right Hand spoke and turned toward King Elbas, the other rank 6 existences on the table did the same and waited for the ruler of the Utra nation to sit on the table. King Elbas hesitated for a while before heaving a sigh and sitting in front of Grand Elder Diana, her shining blue eyes watched him through the whole process before turning toward the envoy of the Empire. "First of all, I''d like to ask for a truce for the duration of this meeting, no killings on the new lands while we are here." God''s Right Hand spoke, and his words made both King Elbas and Grand Elder Diana complain. "You can''t ask for something like that when your territories are under siege." "I agree with King Elbas, the Empire has no right to stop the attack, we can have the meeting after the battle ends." God''s Right Hand revealed a calm smile before answering those complaints. "Very well, we''ll talk after the battle ends." It was at that point that an explosion resounded from below them, and a blue pillar appeared in the new land. The cultivators around the table were quite surprised by the power behind the blast, but they were rank 6 existences, such an explosion couldn''t affect them. King Elbas and Grand Elder Diana immediately picked their inscribed notebooks and remained in silence as they listened to the reports of the troops on that battlefield. It took a while, but, in the end, both of them sent one last message through their items before turning toward God''s Right Hand and speaking a single word at the same time. "Truce." The three rank 6 cultivators then turned toward Chasing Demon who simply shrugged his shoulders before repeating that word. "Truce." Chapter 543: 543. Almighty The rank 6 cultivators of the four nations were aware of the events that had disturbed the peace in the piece of Immortal Lands in the last period. A heroic cultivator of the Papral nation had been killed, and her death kindled the battle intent of the three big countries, ultimately leading to the attack on the territories of the Empire. The specifics about Elder Cheryl''s death were still unclear though, a culprit had yet to be found, which forced the interested nation to consider everyone else as their enemy. Of course, there was someone among the four powerhouses that knew everything about that messy situation. Chasing Demon did his best to appear clueless about the political situation of the new continent. The fact that God''s Right Hand had contacted him meant that the Hive could gain something from that meeting, he couldn''t waste that chance. "First of all, I would like to say that every faction has lost something, so we can skip the part where we ask for compensation. Do we all agree on this point?" God''s Right Hand''s calm voice resounded in the air, the clouds above him seemed to stop when his words traveled through the sky. Yet, the power carried by his voice wasn''t able to affect the existences in front of him, and King Elbas immediately snorted before pointing at Chasing Demon to deny his statement. "Every faction except for the Coral archipelago! Actually, I would really like to know why the Hive was in my territories." Chasing Demon listened to King Elbas'' words and shrugged his shoulders once again before answering with an expressionless face. "An external force has just hired my men, my organization can''t sustain the expenses of two different wars, we just wanted to make some quick gains while also weakening you all." King Elbas'' eyes sharpened when he heard those words. Chasing Demon''s lie had been flawless, and he had also avoided hiding the real intentions behind the attack. It must be said that they were all aware that the Hive was attacking the old continent, thousands of cultivators had landed on the shores of a weak territory in the area of influence of the Empire and had begun to submit its inhabitant. Chasing Demon''s alibi was perfect, but he felt like adding something to his statement. "We are not greedy, we will just wait for the inevitable war between your three factions before claiming the southwestern coast. The Hive has experience in stealing nations after all." Chasing Demon opened a flask full of wine as soon as he finished speaking and began to drink in silence, his performance was over, now he only had to listen to the real rulers of the Mortal Lands before deciding how to exploit the meeting to his advantage. King Elbas wanted to retort, but he knew that Chasing Demon was right, even one of the three big nations didn''t have the power to stop a fourth organization from taking over part of a completely new continent. Of course, he and the other three rank 6 entities would be furious to know that the Hive had explored the piece of Immortal Lands for months by then, but they were far from suspecting something like that. "I agree, just go straight to the point." In the end, King Elbas spoke those words while turning toward God''s Right Hand. "Same here, just reveal the reason behind this meeting." Grand Elder Diana agreed and turned toward the envoy of the Empire too. Chasing Demon simply nodded when he saw that God''s Right Hand was waiting for his answer. "Very well." God''s Right Hand revealed a smile after those words and waved his hand over the table. An image appeared over its surface, the other three cultivators quickly realized that the picture illustrated the known territories of the new continent. Chasing Demon''s eyes immediately went on the southwestern coast and sighed internally when he saw that those areas were dark, only the vague shape of its borders was drawn. The same went for the northwestern and southeastern coasts, those areas were dark, only the coastlines had been depicted. However, the territories on the northeastern coast were depicted in detail. God''s Right Hand had revealed the layout of those territories, leaving apart only the traces left by divine beings that the Empire had discovered! "What does this mean?" Great Elder Diana asked while she memorized the information revealed by the picture, even the other two powerhouses wondered about the meaning behind that action. "We all know that there are traces left by divine beings on the new continent and that the density of "Breath" in the environment increases as we explore its depths. Yet, we have all limited our explorations to the coastlines because we are aware that only rank 6 existences can explore the center of the continent!" God''s Right Hand spoke, revealing an essential piece of information that Chasing Demon promptly noted in his mind. Silence fell on the meeting, both King Elbas and Great Elder Diana were aware of that truth, but they didn''t speak about it. The inland territories were simply too dangerous, and too many powerful beings inhabited them, even rank 6 cultivators couldn''t explore them that easily, not alone at least. After all, the new continent had once been an environment that only divine beings could explore, it wasn''t a surprise that it hid dangers that even peak heroic cultivators feared. "What are you suggesting?" King Elbas asked. His tone was far more polite compared to before, it seemed that the topic deeply interested him. "I say that we can stop caring about the coastlines and make an alliance to explore the most dangerous areas, we can resume killing each other after the entirety of the continent is mapped." God''s Right Hand answered and pointed at the map before adding something. "There is no point in wasting assets with so many resources at hand, and we can''t continue to hold ourselves back just because we belong to different factions. Let the weaklings fight over the coastlines while we explore the rank 6 danger zones together, we are all aiming to the Immortal Lands after all." God''s Right Hand explained further. The rulers of the three big nations had to remain in their domains as a last line of defense, even Chasing Demon needed to stay in the archipelago to operate the copying technique. Yet, the envoy of the Empire was suggesting to drop those enmities to finally explore those dangerous areas. "And whose word can we trust to form this alliance?" Chasing Demon spoke at that time. As the weakest organization, the Hive would be the first to be attacked if its strongest power was to suddenly disappear. God''s Right Hand took a shining token from his storage device and answered while wearing a reverent gaze. "The Almighty''s, of course!" Chapter 544: 544. Pac The token shone with a soft light but radiated an ancient aura, King Elbas, Great Elder Diana, and Chasing Demon could immediately realize that the power contained in the inscribed item surpassed their realm. "A pact?" Great Elder Diana asked. That kind of item was often seen in the cultivator world, many pacts and agreements were sealed through tokens or sigils. Of course, a token able to force four rank 6 existences to follow an agreement had to be in the divine ranks. "Yes, reveal the details of the territories that you''ve conquered, and you will join God''s Left Hand and me in the exploration of the depths of the new continent. There must be a reason why these territories have fallen from the Immortal Lands, the cause is either on the other side of the sky or at the center of the new continent." God''s Right Hand ended his explanation with those words, the Shandal Empire was basically offering the help of two rank 6 cultivators to explore the depths of the new continent! It was needless to say that such an offer was incredibly enticing for the three guests, the chance to explore areas that could benefit them despite their high rank was something that they would rather not miss. King Elbas was the first to act, he touched the shining token and browsed the conditions of the agreement in his mind before waving his hand toward the map. Names and lines of demarcation began to appear on the southeastern coast, the dark areas were replaced by detailed drawings that depicted the environment on those territories. Then, he touched the token again, and a shining rune appeared on the back of his hand, the ruler of the Utra nation had immediately agreed to the alliance! Great Elder Diana did the same, she checked the terms of the agreement and waved her hand before sealing the alliance. The territories on the northwestern coast of the map obtained names and details, only the traces left by divine beings weren''t mentioned on the map. The three of them then turned toward Chasing Demon who wore a solemn expression. He knew that he was the weakest of them and that his organization paled compared to those of the forces sealing the agreement. Yet, obtaining something that could benefit him despite his rank couldn''t be missed, it was possible that nothing else in the entirety of the Mortal Lands could offer him such a chance. His hesitation was soon replaced by determination, and he reached for the token, accepting the terms of the alliance that the item contained. The four major forces of the Mortal Lands had sealed the contract created by the God of the Empire! Each of those powerful entities had a nation that relied on them for protection and guidance, but they were still cultivators, the weight of their organizations couldn''t hinder their path to power. Families, sects, soldiers, and nations were notions that belonged to the human world, there was no place for them in the solitary life of those that strived for the stars. Of course, Chasing Demon didn''t add the information that he knew about the southwestern coast to the map, those areas remained dark. The light of the token flickered when the alliance was sealed, and the item rose in the air before shooting in the distance, toward the territories of the Empire. No one asked about its destination, it was clear that the token was returning to the only being that could control it. "Now, we just have a few matters to settle." God''s Right Hand stood up as he resumed to speak. "The alliance divides the four corners of the new continent between our countries, but there are many territories that have yet to be claimed under a banner, especially for what concerns the southwestern coast." Chasing Demon''s expression didn''t flicker when he heard those words, he knew that the time to obtain official claims over the new lands had arrived. "It''s not fair to divide the coastlines into four equal parts, the Hive didn''t bear the expenses of the colonization in these last five years so it can''t gain such rich and vast territory for free. Our nations need a chance to conquer some of them without too much bloodshed." The alliance aimed to preserve the current strength of those four nations to focus on the complete colonization of the new continent, it would be pointless to start a war right after sealing the pact. "I might have an idea that should satisfy all the interested parts." God''s Right Hand said before revealing his thoughts to those that were now his companions. . . . Back on the piece of Immortal Lands, on the eastern coast. Elder Julia flew at high speed toward the southern coast, followed by the rank 4 cultivators of the Hive. They had left the territories controlled by the Utra nation in a hurry after the truce had been called, and, until then, they had been unable to learn more about that matter from Elder Julia. At some point though, a figure descended from the clouds and joined Elder Julia in her flight. The figure was Elder Austin, the rank 4 cultivators behind him were immediately able to recognize him. Also, they were able to notice that his complexion was quite pale and that brown runes seemed glued to specific spots of his body. "Damned Edna, she was able to retaliate even in her injured state, her status as inscription master can''t be underestimated." Elder Austin cursed loudly, and his words resounded in the space behind him, Noah and his companions could clearly hear them. Then, right when the snowy plain became somewhat visible in the distance, the inscribed notebooks of all the members of the group received a mental message at the same time. The message seemed extremely important since dense mental waves were contained in it, and there was only one being in the entirety of the Hive whose mind could produce that energy. The cultivators quickly listened to the message, Chasing Demon''s voice resounded in their seas of consciousness and summarized the events that concerned the meeting between the rank 6 existences. The last phrase of his message though made them so surprised that they all halted their flight to watch the expressions of their companions. Only Noah''s head remained lowered on the inscribed notebook, Chasing Demon''s last phrase echoed in his mind and filled him with eagerness. ''The three big nations won''t leave the southwestern coast to the Hive for free, but bloodsheds must be avoided per the terms of the alliance, so one versus one battles have been issued to decide the owners of those territories.'' Chapter 545: 545. Endurance One versus one battles to claim the ownership of a territory, that was the condition placed over the conquest of the southwestern coast. Specifics about the battles and the agreements were sent alongside Chasing Demon''s message, Elder Austin was particularly annoyed when he read that the Hive would only obtain the desert without fighting since it was situated at the exact corner of their coast. Powerful sandworms inhabited the desert, and one rank 5 specimen had even been confirmed, it was virtually useless as an asset. Another aspect of the agreement was that the territories on the coastlines could only feature battles between rank 4 cultivators, while rank 5 cultivators had to fight for the areas more inland. Simply speaking, Elder Austin couldn''t fight for the ownership of the lava lake, he could only join the battle for the azure plain or similar territories that had yet to be explored. ''The lava lake and the forest of White woods must be maintained, but it wouldn''t be bad to win all the battles.'' Noah thought as he reviewed the outline of the new continent in his mind. The lava lake contained traces left by divine beings, it was the most valuable territory explored by them and had to belong to the Hive. The Coral archipelago had more than doubled its human assets in the last years, but it lacked methods to nourish its heroic cultivators, the lava lake could provide that service, for what concerned those with a fire aptitude at least. As for the forest of White woods, the Hive had already set a teleportation matrix and many defenses there, it had to keep ownership over that land, or its efforts would be wasted. Also, the fact that it had already infiltrated the new continent would be revealed if the forest passed on the enemy''s hands, something like that had to be prevented at all costs. Elder Austin turned toward the rank 4 cultivators behind him, his eyes moved between the elders with a fire aptitude, it was clear that he was choosing who would fight for the lava lake. The group obviously noticed his actions, Elder Jason, Elder Pansy, and Elder Laurel wore a solemn expression when they understood that they were being evaluated. Elder Austin''s expression became resolute, and he was about to speak, but a voice interrupted him and claimed the attention of the group. "I''ll fight for the lava lake, my endurance surpasses the benefits obtained by the fire element." Noah said as he fixed his gaze on Elder Austin. The battles for the territories had to be fought in the sky above them, meaning that the fight for the lava lake would happen above it. Noah didn''t think that he could last more than a rank 5 cultivator in that environment, but he was more than sure that he surpassed all rank 4 cultivators in that field. After all, he was a rank 4 hybrid in the upper tier, no human on his same level could match his endurance. The three elders of the fire element were about to complain, but a heatwave swept them and interrupted their actions. The heat engulfed Noah too, flames had appeared around Elder Austin, which were slowly nearing the four of them. The elder had simply decided to test them! The three cultivators with a fire aptitude revealed a determined expression as they closed their eyes to focus. Being chosen for that battle was a great honor, and Elder Austin would probably reward anyone that managed to keep his training area, having the favor of a rank 5 cultivator was something quite valuable. On the other hand, Noah simply stared at the incoming flames. He had continuously eaten during the flight, and he had even managed to eat Professor Roy''s dantian as the group left the territories of the Utra nation, his body was at its peak form and had also improved slightly. The sight of the flames didn''t force him to turn his gaze away, his icy reptilian eyes weren''t bothered by their brilliance. After all, his were the eyes of a dragon, flames were part of his bloodline now. Elder Austin''s flames neared the four cultivators, increasing the heat that surrounded them. The four of them began to sweat, and traces of struggle could be seen on the three elders with the fire aptitude. It wasn''t only a matter of enlightenment, the power behind the flames was too strong, they felt as if all the liquids inside their bodies were boiling due to the high temperature. Noah was sweating and experiencing their same sensations, but they didn''t have such a harsh impact on him. His body expended nourishments at a fast pace to oppose the heat, but their depletion was far lower than the "Breath" contained in the bodies of the three elders. His body was simply too strong, it needed less energy to do the same work. Also, Noah absorbed part of the "Breath" contained in the radiance of the flames with every breath, he felt his lungs improving when that energy nourished those organs. One by one, the elders began to crouch and retreat, unable to sustain the heat of the flames anymore. The first one to give up was Elder Laurel, quickly followed by Elder Pansy. Only Elder Jason struggled to remain in his position, but his determination was broken when he opened his eyes to stare at the contender next to him. He saw Noah coldly staring at the flames while his long black hair fluttered due to the heat waves that they released. He recognized the emotion hid by his reptilian eyes: There was eagerness, battle intent, and ambition. Elder Jason tried to look at the flames to see the emotions that their sight would bring to him. He felt awe, respect, and a deep reverence for the being able to create such a wonder. In that short exchange of gazes that Noah didn''t notice, he understood what he lacked as a cultivator, and something deep inside him changed. Elder Jason closed his eyes once again and spread his arms while stopping opposing the pressure radiated by the flames. His body was immediately pushed back, and the heat burned part of his skin, but a smile soon appeared on his face. Elder Austin dispersed his flames at that moment, Noah had won the competition by a large margin, he was clearly the perfect cultivator for the battle in the harsh environment above the lava lake. He and Elder Julia turned without saying a word and resumed their flight toward the southern coast, the rest of the group quickly followed them in silence. Noah ignored the gazes that went on him and was about to resume his flight when Elder Jason arrived next to him and bowed before following the group. Noah guessed that he was just being respectful and put the matter in the back of his mind as he chased after his companions, he didn''t notice that Elder Jason''s eyes were now carrying an ambition quite similar to his. Chapter 546: 546. News The news of the alliance sealed between the powerhouses of the four nations quickly spread in the old continent. Peace had been reached once again on the new continent, that period would last until the rank 6 existences of the countries returned from the depths of the piece of Immortal Lands, and the entirety of its surface was mapped. The details concerning the battles for the ownership of the territories of the southwestern coast were also leaked, many cultivators were excited about that opportunity, and the organizations behind them didn''t hesitate to organize fitting events. The one versus one battles were an excellent opportunity to select promising heroic cultivator to nurture, the Utra nation and the Papral nation quickly organized tournaments to choose the contenders that would fight the elders of the Hive. Also, powerful envoys reached the southwestern coast to analyze the territories, both nations had to know the battlefields to select the best candidates. As for the Shandal Empire, the pact prevented it from joining the battles on the southwestern coast, which was one of the reasons why the other rank 6 cultivators accepted to seal it so quickly. The Utra nation would attempt to claim the territories on the southern coast while the Papral nation had to fight for those on the northern coast, that division had only geographical reasons, it would be hard to control a land on the other side of the continent after all. Another piece of information though spread as quickly as those concerning the alliance: Noah Balvan had killed Professor Roy of the academy! Through the years, Noah''s name had become quite renowned. He was a criminal of the Utra nation who had escaped both his family and the Royals, gaining whatever he could from both of them; He was the Hooded Devil of the Odrea nation, his explosive inscribed items had been a pain to deal with even after he left that country, the losses suffered by the Empire because of him were uncountable; He led the human assets of the Chasing Demon sect in the war for the independence of the Coral archipelago, helping in making it become a country that aimed for the title of fourth big nation. Also, many believed that he had been the one to obtain the inheritance in the separate dimension under the Great whirlpool, his status as Demon Prince of the Hive was taken as a proof of that achievement. Yet, the fact that he had killed a heroic cultivator could only mean that he was a heroic cultivator himself, and a complete one too! That news shook many cultivators forced to halt their growth due to their status, Noah had fulfilled their secret dream to escape the shackles of servitude and to rise to the realm of the heroic cultivators. What was even more surprising was that Noah wasn''t even forty! "We lost the youngest heroic cultivator in history over a mortal woman." Thomas Balvan said after reading the report in his hands. He was inside the main hall of the Balvan mansion, and his sons had their heads lowered as they stood around him. The main hall of the mansion seemed far more luxurious compared to the past, many ornaments filled its walls, and even the concentration of "Breath" inside it was considerably higher. Thomas Balvan looked at his youngest son before sighing in disappointment and reading the report again. Reading that his bastard grandson had reached the heroic ranks so soon made him feel incredibly old, his over two hundred years of life began to weigh on his mind when he realized how much his family has lost. Truth to be told, the Elbas family had granted countless benefits to the members of the Balvan family after Noah''s identity was exposed. What should have been a slow decline became instead a stable growth thanks to the help of the Royals. New heirs were nurtured with the first-rate techniques of the academy, the future of the Balvan family was bound to be great with the support of the rulers of the nation. Yet, nothing could compare to the value of the youngest heroic cultivator in history who also had one of the rarest aptitudes. "Father, I''ll go to the new continent." Adrian Balvan, the oldest son, spoke as he raised his head. He had taken care of the new generations of the family and acted as the patriarch since Thomas spent most of its time in seclusion. Also, he was the only other heroic cultivator in the entirety of the family. Thomas stared at his firstborn for a while before asking something. "Do you want to fight him?" Adrian nodded and lowered his head again as a form of respect. "Go but return alive at all costs, the Royals won''t cover for the losses caused by Noah this time." Thomas accepted Adrian''s request while adding a warning. "Do you think he can beat me?" Adrian asked. He was nearing one hundred years of age, he didn''t feel good when his father hinted that he could die when meeting someone sixty years younger. "I don''t know, that guy keeps on breaking records! Heck, I wasn''t even able to fly properly after I entered the heroic ranks, but he is already fighting against old monsters, I don''t know what to expect!" Thomas dismissed his sons with those last words, his mind was too messy to be bothered with those political matters. Similar scenes could be seen in the mansions of the noble families whose heirs had encountered Noah or suffered by his hands, and the same was applied for the branch of the Royal family that handled the creation of a secret army of criminals. A young-looking woman with long and wild silver hair sat on the roof of a mansion situated near the capital of the Utra nation. A golden spear was laid next to her as she read a report in her hands, her fingers trembled slightly when she understood the contents of those words. Max Ballor was behind her, his expression was solemn, but traces of concern appeared in his eyes when he looked at his daughter. He was incredibly proud of her. June had single-handedly raised the status of the Ballor family to a medium-size noble family and had provided it the support of the Elbas family. The family had to relocate to fulfill the role assigned by the Royals, but the benefits obtained through that job vastly outclassed the expenses. Yet, June had long stopped seeing him as a father, and she was even colder with the rest of the family, she only used them as tools to obtain materials and techniques that she needed. "Father." June spoke after she read the report a few times. "You are only a human cultivator, you can''t affect his life." Max gave voice to those words, he knew exactly what his daughter was thinking at that moment. However, June completely ignored his statement and gave him an order. "The colonized areas on the new continent are the best training ground for human cultivators. Contact the Royal family, I want to go there." Chapter 547: 547. Wild Noah was obviously unaware of the events happening in the old continent, but he could imagine most of them. It wasn''t hard to guess that the two big nations would bring their most talented heroic cultivators to the southwestern coast to join the battles and that everyone now knew his status. Yet, there was very little that he could do about that, he had decided to stop hiding after all. He was a heroic cultivator chasing after his individuality now, he couldn''t walk that path afraid of being seen. ''Defensive inscribed items aren''t allowed, and a cultivator can only have inscribed weapons at its same rank or lower. Also, both contenders can surrender and give the territory to the opponent''s faction. I guess they really want to preserve the heroic assets of each nation.'' Noah reviewed the conditions of the one versus one battles in his mind as the group returned to the forest of White woods. He felt satisfied with most of them, the ability to use defensive items would just favor the more prosperous nations, for example. However, he didn''t really like that his opponents could just walk away, it didn''t happen so often to have the chance to decrease the enemy power while also obtaining dantians for his body. The group quickly landed on the ground under the white crowns of the magical plants, more than a month had passed since the pact had been sealed. Elder Laurel assured them that the envoys from the old continent wouldn''t be able to sense the teleportation matrix, but Elder Julia still wanted to add a few covers through her methods. It wasn''t clear when the battles would occur, the rank 6 existences didn''t set a specific date, it was up to the three interested nations to come up with a time. ''How can I improve in this period?'' Noah asked himself when he saw his companions starting their preparations. Elder Austin disappeared after a quick exchange of words with Elder Julia while the others sat on separate areas of the forest to cultivate. ''I''ve just discovered a way to create spells, but I would need countless tests to find the right method, I need to create something as complex as the laws set by Heaven and Earth after all.'' Noah had found a way to create spells after he was enlightened by the beasts trapped inside the dark gorge, but that method required time and a lot of mental energy to fuel the Divine deduction technique. It wouldn''t be wise to focus on it with the impending battles, experiments were for moments of peace, there would be time to create wills after the Hive acquired an official position in the new continent. Noah stood still next to the teleportation matrix as he pondered about the matter. ''Improving my body is obvious, but I wish there were something more that I could do.'' Noah analyzed any possibility inside his mind, but he had reached the point where he could become stronger only through methods that required a lot of time. His dantian and mind were far away from a breakthrough, there was no point in stressing his centers of power more than that only to improve slightly faster. The creations of spells and the understanding of the laws of the darkness element would take even longer, and he had no control over those matters, he could only test and meditate until he obtained some results. ''Body and martial art then. I guess I can spare some time to begin testing with the wills.'' Since there was nothing that he could do to increase his battle prowess abruptly, he would just continue training in his usual way. Noah flew in the air and went for the azure plain. That area featured many rank 4 magical beasts and had countless Azure Credits growing there, it was the place where his body would grow the most. The contenders were forbidden from intentionally destroying the territories below them during the battles, but the agreement didn''t consider the fact that the Hive was already there. Noah could feed on the magical beasts and plants of the azure plain freely, he only had to pay attention to the envoys sent by the continent to inspect the southwestern coast. Also, there was something that he wanted to try. The cries of the creatures trapped in the dark gorge had enlightened him, which meant that his dragon side could be one of the sources from which gaining understanding of the laws of the darkness element. Noah wanted to immerse himself in the wild life of the piece of Immortal Lands, he wished to attune his peculiar existence with his mindset, further exploring his individuality in that way. His Demonic swords appeared in his hands, and he undressed the upper part of his robe, he had become so used to fight with his torso uncovered that he felt more comfortable in that outfit. Days had to pass for the blue plain to appear in his view, Noah directly landed next to a pack of rank 4 tiger-type magical beasts when he reached it. His mind was calm, and mental energy fueled the Divine deduction technique as he slowly walked toward the tigers. The beasts began to roar as soon as they noticed his closing figure, they felt as if another creature was challenging them for their territory. ''With every step, chaos spreads.'' Noah repeated those words in his mind while the pack quickly surrounded him. Only part of his focus was on the imminent battle, most of it was reviewing the emotions felt when he heard the growls of the creatures trapped in the gorge. ''Heaven and Earth lose control over the things that I touch, my existence carries their mistake, and I spread it to the world.'' The tigers began to pounce at him, but Noah slashed with his sabers and kicked away those that his weapons couldn''t reach. The entirety of the body of a magical beast was a weapon, Noah had yet to adapt that asset to his fighting style completely. ''What I destroy becomes mine, I add it to the foundation of my power. I steal the raw materials from Heaven and Earth to build my own world.'' The tigers either died or were heavily injured in the clash, those mere rank 4 magical beasts in the lower and middle tier couldn''t compete with a hybrid in the upper one. ''Yet, stealing isn''t the last step, my apex must be creating those same raw materials from nothing.'' Chapter 548: 548. Illusion Noah''s mind wandered as he fought the pack of rank 4 tigers. His existence affected the world, and he could transform the energies around him in part of his power, but that was only a form of theft. Cultivators absorbed the "Breath" in the world, but most of them didn''t remove Heaven and Earth''s will from it, even heroic cultivators still kept the laws of their element created by the world. Yet, creating something from raw materials that already existed in the environment wasn''t enough, his path had to bring him to a status similar to Heaven and Earth. To put it simply, Noah felt that he needed to reach a state where his existence could create something similar to the "Breath". After all, he knew that Heaven and Earth were intelligent beings, he couldn''t possibly imagine the power that they held, but it was evident to everyone that they could create the marvelous energy that filled the world. Of course, Noah was only dreaming for now. His path was clearer than before, but he didn''t have the power to imagine its end, he could only keep on gaining insights that would eventually lead him to the absorption of other laws of the darkness element. Understanding the laws that suited your individuality and growing until you become your own law, that was what Noah knew about the path to godhood! ''All starts by yourself.'' Noah closed his eyes to better experience the sensations running through his body. The bodies of the magical beasts that made the pack of tigers were lying lifelessly around him, he had killed all of them while his mind wandered. He could clearly feel the destructive power contained in his body, its hunger, its pride. Everything about his beast side seemed made to destroy the world created by Heaven and Earth, he felt as he was some sort of enemy of the "Breath". However, there was also creation. He created black lines every time he waved his sabers, and his lungs were able to turn pure energy into flames. Noah used the energy stolen from Heaven and Earth to fuel his attacks, and his body and mind to control them. ''The "Breath" is the fuel, but the mind sets the blueprint that will eventually determine the final effect. My body is just an organic blueprint with very specific behaviors.'' Noah thought as he stored the corpses of the beasts and let the spirit automaton of his ring handle them. He needed to store as many rank 4 creatures as he could to be prepared for any eventuality, they were his main food and also the most common nourishment for his body, he didn''t expect to obtain many dantians in the imminent future. ''The more I attune myself with my dragon side, the more I find ways to improve my combat style. I still think too much as a human when I fight, I need to use my legs and even my teeth if necessary.'' Noah knew his weaknesses better than anyone else because he was the only one who knew the full extent of his power. ''I guess I can spend this period to fix this issue and gather enough resources, I should also plunder as many as those azure bushes as I can.'' After he thought that, Noah went deeper into the plain, searching for another pack to fight. Time passed in the new continent. Ships continuously landed on its shores, carrying many ambitious human cultivators. The alliance between the four nations had delineated the borders of the dominions of the three big countries and brought peace once again, only the manpower needed for the complete colonization was lacking. Even the envoys tasked to analyze the territories of the southwestern coast arrived, Elder Julia politely escorted them through those areas while pointing out the details that the Hive had discovered in that period. Of course, her actions were only another performance meant to solidify the lie about their arrival, her methods were more than enough to cover the traces left by her group during the past months. It was needless to say that the envoys ignored most of the territories after they reached the lava lake, the Elbas family felt fortunate when it learnt that traces left by divine beings were situated in a land that they could obtain. Noah had been forced to stop his wild lifestyle while the envoys analyzed those lands, he couldn''t show them that he was plundering anything that contained "Breath" in the azure plain. The last weeks harmed his aspect, but he felt more confident than ever in his abilities after the prolonged period spent exploring the depths of his dragon side. Experiencing the simple life of a magical beast had been quite refreshing, he did nothing but battle, eat, and train all day, without anything else bothering him. His body improved steadily, but his other centers of power benefitted from that lifestyle too. His mind was always under pressure due to the constant battles and the threats that the areas around the plain hid, and his dantian was nourished by the laws of the darkness element whenever he gained some insights about his path. He had even resumed forging weapons in his spare time, he had way more rank 4 materials that he needed, and he didn''t want his ability in the Elemental forging method to become rusty. That led him to accumulate a few disposable weapons again, he couldn''t create stable items with materials of different elements, but he had succeeded in making them reach the fourth rank nonetheless. He didn''t think that he could use them to win a battle against a heroic cultivator, but they could be useful if another situation like that next to the obelisk happened again. In the end, the envoys returned to their respective nations, and he could resume his wild lifestyle. ''I must say that I enjoy battles more since I became a hybrid, I even feel more in general.'' Noah thought as he laid on the ground of the azure plain. He had decided to rest that day, the stars in the sky were particularly shining at night, so he had chosen to let his mind wander as he stared at them. ''To think that I would become more human by fusing myself with a magical beast, or maybe it''s just this freedom that makes me express my true self.'' He analyzed himself as the light of the stars was reflected in his reptilian eyes. Only rank 4 beasts inhabited the plain, Noah was basically the strongest creature in that area. He was experiencing what being at the peak of an environment meant, it was as if he had reached his lifelong goal in that zone. ''Yet, monsters that I can''t even approach live right next to me, and the stars still shine over me.'' Noah didn''t know how much time he had spent in the plain, he had long lost track of it, but he knew that he was only living in an illusion of his dream. Then, a voice resounded in the air. "Prince, it''s time." Chapter 549: 549. Solid stage The Utra nation and the Papral nation were ready. The tournaments on the old continent had ended, and the contenders for the territories of the southwestern coast had been chosen, it was time for the one versus one battles. The Hive couldn''t know it, but the three big nations had issued events even in the settlements in the new continent, friendly fights would happen between the promising cultivators inhabiting the cities built in those lands. Of course, those battles were just an appetizer for the main event. Large crystals had been placed throughout the cities on the piece of Immortal Lands, they reflected images featuring the territories where the fights between heroic cultivators would happen. Crowds of human cultivators filled the streets next to the crystals and to the stages that would feature the battles between human cultivators, the three big nations treated that even as a festivity. The atmosphere was completely different in the group from the Coral archipelago. Noah had reunited with the rest of his group only to be greeted by the tense air that surrounded his companions. Elder Jason had notified and accompanied him in the area above the desert inhabited by the sandworms where the rest of the group was waiting, they couldn''t use the forest of White woods with so many eyes on them after all. Noah saw some new faces when he reached them, the Hive had made its selections too, bringing a few elders in the new continent to fight the battles. ''It''s finally time.'' Noah thought when he sensed the anxiety in the air, even those mighty existences would become nervous when the future of the Hive was at stake. Also, their performance in the battles would influence their reputation and possibly affect the future behavior of the Hive toward them. "Prince, you can''t fight with those clothes." Elder Austin spoke to him as soon as he noticed his arrival. Noah had lived as a magical beast for months before that event, he would be mistaken for a beggar if a powerful aura didn''t surround his figure. He was about to change into one of the robes that he kept inside his space-ring when Elder Austin threw some clothes to him and added a few words as soon as he caught them. "Wear this, you will be fighting as the Demon Prince of the Hive today." His words were simple, but they carried a deeper meaning. The incoming battle would put the future of the Hive at stake, but it wasn''t only a matter that concerned the conquest of resources that were beneficial to heroic cultivators. The elders knew that the battles would be seen in the cities of the new continent, and possibly even in those of the old continent, performing well could inspire many exploited and restricted human cultivators, making them migrate in the Coral archipelago. "My battles don''t really inspire though." Noah said as he undressed and wore the new clothes. The Hive had prepared for him a luxurious robe that matched his preferences, it was tight and could be easily opened to reveal his upper body. Blue tentacles were embroidered on his sleeves, and a series of purple dots decorated his back. The tentacles were the symbol of the independence of the Coral archipelago, and the purple dots represented the islands were the Hive thrived, everyone would understand his origin when he wore that robe. It was clear that the elders wanted their Prince to appear majestic, but Noah''s fighting style was far away from that description, especially after his period of isolation in the wilderness. "Don''t worry, the Utra nation is going all out to conquest the lava lake anyway, we are confident only in keeping the forest of White woods." Elder Austin heaved a helpless sigh after he spoke those words, and he handed a report to Noah before flying toward the azure plain. The report contained the information discovered by the Hive in the last period, such as the contenders that they would have to face and some of their abilities. Noah''s eyes sharpened when he read that a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage would be fighting for the lava lake. ''They are going all out for the traces left by divine beings. Well, I couldn''t have expected anything less.'' Noah thought before reading the rest of the report. Elder Laurel would handle the battle for the forest of White woods, she had studied that environment so much that she was now able to cause the increase of toxicity in the air with her abilities, that fight wouldn''t be a problem. Elder Austin would be fighting for the azure plain and face a certain Elder Doyle from the Papral nation. Noah felt gazes fixing on him for a short time before going away, and he felt the concern that those stares carried, it was clear that his companions were worried about his well-being. ''Solid stage¡­ I can endure a few attacks, but I can''t beat it, not under normal circumstances at least.'' He knew that he had improved, but that didn''t allow him to fight against cultivators on higher stages, he barely had the confidence to face a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage after all. Yet, he didn''t really have to beat his opponent, he only needed to endure the heat radiated by the lava lake for more time than the contender. ''This solid stage cultivator should be in the early phases of the stage, or it would need a rank 5 body to contain its center of power. I can totally use the environment to my advantage or just escape until it is exhausted. I can do this.'' Noah''s battle intent rose as he thought that. He had already endured an attack fueled by a power similar to the solid stage of the fourth rank, and he had improved since that time. He had never been more confident in his abilities. Elder Julia neared Noah at that point and lowered her head to speak a few soft words. "The Utra nation wants the battle for the lava lake to be the first, it''s your turn." Noah nodded at those words and simply turned toward the east before flying in that direction, his focus reached its limits as he approached the fight. Chapter 550: 550. Fire Noah didn''t meet anyone during his flight, his senses perceived the presence of the sandworms in the desert under him, but no cultivators appeared on his road. Then, when the environment began to change and the temperature began to rise, he saw a figure in the distance. The figure was at many kilometers away from his position, Noah was only able to see a dark dot in the sky, but he knew that it was his opponent. The rocky wasteland spread in front of him, he had reached the area of the battle, but he stood still, just as his opponent was doing. Noah felt the hunger inside him increase as soon as he sensed the aura of the lava lake, part of him wanted to dive through the threatening red rivers just to have a chance to eat the source of that power. Yet, he was also incredibly calm. His period spent in the wilderness made him attune entirely with his body, there were no more human and dragon side, there was just him. ''It''s not even charging at me, it doesn''t know that its chances to win decrease with every second.'' Noah smiled inside his mind when he saw that the figure remained at the opposite border of the wasteland. However, he kept a stern expression, he wanted to give the impression that he was putting his life on the line. ''Power brings confidence and delusions, only the light of the stars can keep us in check.'' Noah thought as he took a step forward, the temperature around him immediately increased as he neared the areas with lava. His thoughts concerned the period spent in the azure plain when he was at the peak of the food chain. He remembered that confidence, the feeling of being unrivaled in his kingdom. ''I bet it feels in the same way.'' The figure in the distance noticed his movement and began to walk too, Noah was slowly able to recognize the outline of what appeared to be a forty years old man. ''He looks young.'' Noah noted in his mind when he was able to see the facial features of his opponent. A cultivator would stop aging as long as its power continued to grow, it was clear that the man in front of him had found very few hindrances in his cultivation journey. Noah and his opponent continued to walk toward one another slowly, it took hours before they could reach a distance where their words could be heard. Then, they both stopped at the same time. ''He clearly has a fire aptitude, the "Breath" around him can merge with the heat in the air, blocking most of the negative effect on his body. Yet, something still reaches him.'' Noah analyzed his opponent, and the latter did the same. He saw how Noah wasn''t countering the heat as well as him, the "Breath" around his body was fighting the environment instead of blending with it. It was evident that the second method consumed more "Breath", but it managed to leave the body virtually unaffected. "Junior, I don''t want to bully you. I''m Amos Lochster, and I respect you." Amos greeted Noah with polite words, but his behavior just made him smile even more in his mind. ''He is not a member of the Elbas family!'' Noah understood when he heard his name. A Royal would have just pounced at him due to all the accumulated grudges, but the man in front of him was a noble who had said that he respected him! ''I don''t really like to resort to tricks now, but he is in the solid stage, there isn''t much that I can do.'' Noah saw a chance to exploit the situation after he heard those words. The fact that he was using "Breath" to fend off the heat was just an act, he could just rely on his body and on the energy that it contained to survive in that environment. "The tales of your journey have filled the country in the last months, I must say that I''m impressed by your determination." Amos continued to speak after a short moment of silence. "You are talented, maybe more than me. Don''t waste your life over a territory that doesn''t even match your aptitude and don''t force me to attack someone far weaker than me. Just give up, your time to shine will eventually come, I''m sure of it." Amos resembled a caring senior as he advised Noah, it almost looked as he cared about him. Noah stared at him in silence, his expression didn''t waver at all during his speech, Amos could clearly feel those reptilian pupils fixed on him. Yet, the pressure that they radiated wasn''t enough to make him tremble, he only felt as if a magical beast was looking at him. Then, Noah turned his gaze toward the ground, in the direction of the lava lake. Amos followed his line of sight and stared at the lake too, some eagerness could be seen in his eyes when the light radiated by the lava filled them. "It''s beautiful, isn''t it?" Amos asked, but it seemed that he was speaking to himself. However, Noah answered at that time. "Yes, let''s take a closer look." His words surprised Amos, but he didn''t have time to reply since Noah had already begun to descend toward the red lake. He was confused by that gesture at first, but he soon descended together with Noah. He thought that Noah wanted to take one last look to a trace left by divine beings or that he wanted to admire such spectacle with a senior, he couldn''t possibly imagine that everything was just a plan to weaken his body. Noah stopped when he was at a few kilometers from the surface, the heat at that altitude threatened to burn his clothes, but he didn''t really care, he was just glad that Amos was following him. "Better?" Amos asked when he reached him. They stood side by side, watching the dense lava that filled the huge basin under them. "Talk to me about the fire element." Noah said after a few minutes of silence. Amos turned to look at Noah, he saw how the protection of the "Breath" around him was slowly thinning, it wouldn''t take much before Noah''s body was exposed to the heat. Meanwhile, his body was enduring a small part of those temperatures, but he depleted far less "Breath" and he was in the solid stage, his reserves were virtually infinite compared to Noah''s. "Well, fire can be an explosive force but also a gradual destroyer, it can affect the matter but it can also mend it. My flame burns inside me, and it will keep burning as long as I remain true to myself." Noah nodded, but his eyes never left the lake under him. His focus though was on the body of his opponent, he noted how even a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage was starting to being affected at that altitude. "I don''t really understand, let''s go deeper." Noah said before descending even more under Amos'' astonishment. Chapter 551: 551. Fool Noah descended through the heatwaves radiated from the lava lake. The "Breath" around him was consumed at high speed to protect his body, but all of that was just an act to bait Amos. Noah knew that he had no chance to win against a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage, he had just begun battling those in the gaseous stage after all. Yet, he had an advantage that many couldn''t even begin to suspect: His body. "Junior, I understand your eagerness, but there is no point in your actions. Fire can''t enlighten darkness, no matter how brightly it burns." Amos sighed after speaking those words, he felt that Noah was simply acting like an excited junior. "Flames burn inside me too, they might be fueled by the darkness element, but they are still flames." Noah replied to his comment. His answer was honest, he had often seen his ambition as a bright fire that drove him through his life. Amos'' eyebrow arched when he heard those words, he immediately understood that Noah had already gained some insights about the laws of his element, and his admiration for him couldn''t help but increase at that moment. "Haha! You are really amazing! How much has it been since you entered the heroic ranks?" Amos became excited and quickly neared Noah to descend with him, he felt as if he could gain some insights from that conversation. "All the elements are similar and also extremely different. They can''t be found on their own, they are always combined. The world is just the result of that union." Noah revealed part of the insights obtained in his period of isolation in the azure plain. He couldn''t lie to a heroic cultivator that had reached the solid stage while keeping a youthful aspect, he had to give voice to his real thoughts if he wanted to obtain his attention. "Look at this lake, isn''t it made by liquid flames? Fire can flow like water, it can be subtle like wind, it can be sturdy like earth, it can pierce like lightning, it can shine like light, and it can engulf like darkness. Why shouldn''t I be able to understand darkness through it then?" Amos was stupefied when he heard those words. He didn''t create his own cultivation technique, his breakthroughs had come only from his understanding of his individuality. That led him to be extremely confident in his path, he had already defined himself after all, he only had to dive through the laws of the fire element now. Yet, Noah appeared incredibly vast in his eyes. His existence seemed to encompass many fields while still being limited to one person, the depths that he reached seemed unfathomable. The truth was that Noah''s mentality was simply broader than that of a human since he belonged to a completely different species, he was able to have those thoughts because his body could absorb every type of "Breath" and transform it in its power. What Amos didn''t realize though was that, as they descended, even his protection began to waver. However, he was too engrossed in that conversation that he didn''t bother too much about it. Also, he knew that Noah''s "Breath" would be depleted before his, there was no reason to worry about the outcome of that battle in his mind. "The world is a silent teacher, it gives you all the answers, but you can read them only when your mind is ready to accept them. Junio-, no, Noah Balvan, I thank you for broadening my eyes." Amos honestly thanked Noah, but the latter ignored him and continued to descend, the edges of his new robe began to burn due to the temperatures around him. Then, when Noah noticed the first drop of sweat running down Amos'' forehead, he stopped. "I''m amazed you can last so much, you must be nearing the peak of the gaseous stage to have such deep reserves." Amos commented, but he couldn''t know that Noah was refilling part of the depleted "Breath" through his cultivation technique at that moment, he had even removed his limitation to increase the absorption speed. "Do you mind going deeper? I am enjoying this conversation, and I want to memorize the feeling of being near a divinity." Noah lied as he turned toward Amos. His words were polite, and even a bit of eagerness was reflected in his gaze, Amos couldn''t find any reason to deny to such a talented cultivator the chance to admire the lake one last time. "Sure, let''s exchange insights until you are exhausted, I feel that this experience can benefit both of us." Amos agreed to his request, and they both resumed their descent. They soon reached a distance of a few hundred meters from the lava lake, the temperature at that point became almost unbearable and, no matter how much "Breath" both of them used to protect their bodies, the heat still affected them. Noah''s robe began to burn, and even Amos'' clothes took fire, it was as if the lake forced everything over it to become ash. Noah was sweating profusely, but so did Amos, it seemed that both of them couldn''t last much in that area. "This is the limit for those with a rank 4 body, even our clothes can''t survive in this air." Amos commented as the last bit of his robe became ash, his gaze went on Noah who was equally naked. "What do you think about Heaven and Earth?" Noah asked, his aspect didn''t give him the slightest concern. Amos sighed when he saw that Noah still wanted to converse, he decided to answer only when he saw that the "Breath" around him had vanished entirely. "They are everything, they are balance, they are fairness. They encompass every existence and are part of everything in this world. Only gods can somewhat imitate their status by separating themselves from their laws. Yet, I think they are innately good since they give their energy to every living being." Noah fell silent when he heard those words. He had never been able to understand the mindset of someone that trusted Heaven and Earth, he had been their enemy since he started cultivating after all. However, he felt that he could finally understand what the privileged cultivators thought about them. That realization made him laugh. Noah managed to hold himself back for several minutes, but, in the end, he couldn''t help but explode in a loud laugh. Amos'' body was nearing its limits, his "Breath" wasn''t able to stop the heat at all at that altitude. Yet, when he heard the man next to him laughing, he noticed that something was wrong. Noah had long stopped using "Breath" to protect his body, burned patches of skin could be seen everywhere on his figure. Nevertheless, when he laughed, he seemed still full of energy, it was as if those burns didn''t affect his complexion at all. Then, Noah decided to stop pretending and reveal what he knew about Heaven and Earth to keep him a bit more at that height. "You are a fool." Chapter 552: 552. Enemy "Balance? Fairness? Innately good!?" Noah shouted to the confused Amos. Noah had only been able to hold his laugh back because he needed to weaken Amos'' body further. Yet, when he saw that his skin had begun to burn too, he simply stopped pretending. "Heaven and Earth are just powerful entities bound by their same rules, they would wipe out any cultivator, magical plant, and magical beast if they could. Why do you think there are Tribulations? Why do you think magical beasts can absorb any type of "Breath"? Heaven and Earth have set a balance that they can''t escape!" Noah revealed what he had understood after living as a hybrid for many years. Of course, that was only a hypothesis, but Noah felt that it was quite close to the truth. Why magical beasts could absorb any type of "Breath"? Why did he feel like an enemy of that marvelous energy? Why did Heaven fear the union between a human and a beast so much? Noah believed that the fairness of Heaven and Earth caused all of that. "They do not bless us, we are their natural enemy! Our only role is to bring balance to their omnipotence!" Noah revealed everything that he thought about the world. Amos was stunned, he had never considered similar ideas, he had always believed that the "Breath" was a gift and that the Tribulations were some sort of a test. It took a while before he felt like speaking, he wanted to hear more about those ideas. After all, Noah was an existence that viewed most living beings as enemies of the world, he had never seen such a peculiar individuality. "How can you be sure of that?" Noah shrugged his shoulders when he heard those words, and he revealed a simple smile as he answered him. "I''m not, only gods can have a clear idea of the nature of Heaven and Earth." Amos came back to reality after Noah''s answer, he had noticed that something was wrong, but the latter''s revelation had made him ignore that aspect. Yet, now that he focused again, he saw that something strange was happening on Noah''s body. The patches of burned skin quickly healed, and "Breath" began to circulate again around it. He had only pretended that his dantian was empty, the truth was that he had simply stopped using it to defend his body. The same went for his injuries, Noah had allowed his skin to be burned, but he was far away from reaching his physical limits. He was a hybrid in the upper tier after all, his natural defenses against those heatwaves were on a whole different level compared to a human body. Also, the air around him was darker, Noah had continuously absorbed the light radiated by the lava lake to lower its power. "What is happening? How can your body be fine after all this time and without protection?" Amos asked. He didn''t retreat when Noah dropped the act, he didn''t feel any fear for his life even when he revealed his wild aura. However, he was still stupefied by his healthy complexion. Amos was using solid "Breath" to protect his body, but the heat still managed to affect him. Noah, instead, had stopped relying on his gaseous "Breath" for protection for some time already, but it seemed that he didn''t suffer any injury! That outcome should have been impossible since both of them had a rank 4 body in the upper tier, Amos simply couldn''t understand what was going on! Yet, Noah was done talking. His attacks couldn''t hurt Amos, but he was confident in prolonging the battle until the latter''s body reached its limits. Noah''s skin caved in, and a pair of sabers appeared in his hands as he slashed toward him. The air in the trajectory of his weapons shattered, but Amos promptly raised his hand to block the attack. Two black lines appeared right next to the noble, but thin flames prevented them from nearing him, a simple wave of his hand had been able to block Noah''s martial art empowered by the secret art. ''He really is on another level.'' Noah thought before kicking the air under his feet and shooting in the sky. The previous attack was just a distraction, Noah needed that short instant to retreat from that area. "Do you really want me to kill you?" Amos asked before he realized that Noah had left a trail of spiked spheres and needles in his retreat. Noah had created those rank 4 disposable weapons for unforeseen situations, he had never expected to use them so soon. A series of blasts filled the area right over the lava lake, the power contained in those weapons made the rocky wasteland below tremble, but not even a ripple appeared on the surface of the lake. Noah reappeared high in the sky, his reptilian eyes analyzed the gray clouds formed after the explosions, but a layer of black smoke soon covered them. He didn''t hesitate to activate the complete Demonic form when battling a solid stage cultivator! Then, he sensed a danger that surpassed even that felt when he faced Fred''s last attack. A black sphere appeared in front of him, and Zac covered his body while his figure became ethereal. Right after Noah deployed his defensive measures, a torrent of flames engulfed Zac''s fuming figure. Noah felt the Black hole spell shattering after it absorbed a huge amount of energies, he felt the flames destroying the defensive layers in front of Zac''s shell, and he endured the pain of his Blood companion when the attack pierced its body to reach him. The torrent of flames continued for a few seconds before dispersing and revealing Noah''s charred figure. Most of his skin had been burned to withstand the attack, but his internal organs had been unaffected at that time, his body had clearly improved since his battle with Fred. Also, the Demonic form spell had provided another layer of protection, further weakening the attack of a true solid stage cultivator. The torrent of flames had dispersed the gray clouds, revealing an equally burned Amos that couldn''t hide his surprise when he saw that Noah was alive. He was about to launch another attack when he saw that Noah was once again creating his defenses, the latter felt confident in surviving at least three of those spells. However, Amos didn''t have all that time. His skin was completely burned, the heat had begun to affect his muscles, and his internal organs would quickly follow them. Wasting time to launch another attack would injure him, and launching a third one would inflict him lasting wounds, Noah had perfectly calculated how much Amos'' body could endure. Also, the damage had spread so much that even retreating high in the sky won''t solve the issue, Amos had to retreat and heal if he wanted to prevent further injuries. Amos simply had to choose how far he was willing to go to win. Those seconds of hesitation further sealed the outcome of the match. In the silence of the rocky wasteland, a phrase resounded in the air. "I surrender." Chapter 553: 553. Changed The human cultivators watching from the cities on the new continent couldn''t hear the conversation between Noah and Amos. They only saw them slowly diving toward the lava lake, exchanging words for many minutes, and ultimately clashing. They clearly saw Noah being overwhelmed by Amos'' attack, but they also saw both of them halting the battle after the first clash. The crowds held their breath when they realized that both heroic cultivators were leaving the sky over the rocky wasteland, those human cultivators were unable to understand the outcome of the battle from those few exchanges. Yet, an aged voice soon resounded in the cities, carrying a message that made those cultivators explode in loud shouts. "The Hive has claimed the territory containing the lava lake!" The masses soon understood the meaning behind that message: Noah Balvan had won against a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage! Of course, those cultivators weren''t stupid, they had watched the battle after all. They saw that Noah couldn''t even hurt Amos, it was impossible for someone in the gaseous stage to hurt him. It was clear that the Demon Prince of the Hive had outsmarted his opponent. However, that was an incredible achievement already! Noah had triumphed in a hopeless battle! No one cared that Amos was stronger, what mattered was the loss of a territory containing traces left by divine beings! "Miss, I don''t know how you did that, but I''m a man of my word. Your wins are here." An old man handed a space-ring to a young-looking girl that was quietly staring at the images radiated by the crystals. June took the ring and continued to stare at the now empty lava lake, countless thoughts and emotions filled her while she reviewed the match in her mind. "Miss, tomorrow''s battle will see two rank 5 cultivators. I was wondering if you wanted to place another bet." The old man asked, but June shook her head before adding a few words. "I''ll pass, I was only confident in this one." Then, she turned to leave, she wanted to return to her habitation to calm herself down. She didn''t lie to the man, she was sure that Noah would have won. Her confidence came from what she had understood about Noah in their short cohabitation. She knew that Noah did everything for a reason, he was the most focused and driven man that she had ever met in her life. The sole fact that he had joined the battle meant that he was confident of winning, the Noah she knew would never waste time in a hopeless fight, he would rather train than lose precious hours. ''He has changed.'' June couldn''t help but have that thought. She couldn''t see that aloof attitude anymore when she watched his battle, she only saw a man brimming with cold confidence, an entity able to make a plan to beat someone far stronger than him. ''I guess you have finally obtained the power to reveal yourself.'' Her mind reviewed her life inside Noah''s habitation in the academy. She saw a young man continually avoiding the crowds even when he had the power to lead them, she saw a man hiding so much that even his breath had become part of his lies. Then, she compared those images to the man reflected in the crystals. ''At least, your core is still the same, your ambition didn''t change. You have just stopped hiding.'' Traces of a smile appeared on her face when she thought that, she felt somewhat glad to have learnt more about him. June had only been able to see his true face when he threatened her after she received Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance, and she felt happy to learn more about his real character. ''I expected you to reach for the sky before all of us, but that happened too soon¡­ I spent a lot of time solidifying the position of my family inside the Utra nation and studying Master''s formations, but now I''m ready, I can aim for the peak of the third rank and prepare for the Tribulations.'' Those thoughts filled June''s mind while she made her way through the crowd, she felt finally ready to approach the last step of the human ranks. . . . Meanwhile, Noah had quickly returned to the desert inhabited by sandworms. His skin had almost completely healed since he didn''t hesitate to eat pieces of magical beasts during his flight, and his clash with Amos didn''t injure him gravely, he would be fine in a matter of hours. The atmosphere in the group of the Hive was completely different from before, Noah saw broad smiles shooting in his direction as soon as he neared his companions, he could sense how happy the other elders were about the outcome of his battle. "How did you even pull that off!" Elder Jason shouted as he neared him with the other rank 4 cultivators. He held another luxurious robe in his hands that he quickly handed to Noah, the latter had just changed into one of his old ones during his flight. "Elder Austin had already given up on the lava lake! You must know that the Hive only has a cultivator in the liquid stage with a fire aptitude, all the others are either in the gaseous stage or have a rank 5 body! Luckily for us, the Demon Prince has taken care of it!" Elder Jason couldn''t contain his excitement, and the other fire cultivators were in a similar state. Noah had saved the best training area available for the elders with a fire aptitude, their gratitude was somewhat expected. ''That''s why he didn''t contact me when he discovered that my opponent would have been in the solid stage, there was simply no point in replacing me.'' Noah thought when he heard Elder Jason''s words. Rank 4 cultivators in the solid stage would need a rank 5 body to contain all that power, Amos was an exception that the Utra nation had managed to find in its numerous assets. The Hive though had around fifty heroic cultivators, and none of them could match Amos'' power and also respect the terms of the pact. "I''ve already notified Austin about your victory, he said that he will go all out to claim the azure plain since you are so attached to it." Elder Julia spoke after appearing above Noah, a proud smile was on her usually stern face. "When is he fighting?" Noah asked Elder Julia, he didn''t want to miss the chance to witness a battle between two rank 5 cultivators, which was one of the reasons why he hurried on his way back. "In a few hours. We have prepared suitable stages to watch it, Elder Jason will escort you there when you want. Anyway, I wanted to say that the Hive won''t forget your service." Elder Julia answered before disappearing again in the air, she had to prepare for her battle too. Chapter 554: 554. Battles Elder Austin''s battle against Elder Doyle of the Papral nation for the ownership of the azure plain began a few hours after Noah returned to the desert. Both rank 5 cultivators didn''t hesitate to launch attacks as soon as they entered the battlefield. Elder Austin shot toward his enemy with flames surrounding his figures, his opponent used a similar tactic and covered his body with an armor made of water before pouncing the incoming elder. The result of that clash was an explosion that dispersed the clouds in the sky above them. Both cultivators were flung away in the distance after the impact only to resume their offensive with long-range attacks. Elder Austin created tens of flaming snakes that flew toward the contender while Elder Doyle summoned hundreds of blue carps which shot water bullets. The fire snakes'' bodies were pierced by the bullets and exploded before they could reach the barrage of carps, the blast destroyed part of Elder Doyle''s spell, but many carps managed to remain intact and pressed on with their offensive. Elder Austin cast more flames that fused with those still lingering in the air to form a massive burning figure, a nine-headed hydra appeared in front of the elder from the Coral archipelago and blocked the incoming bullets. The reptilian heads then spread their mouths and aimed for Elder Doyle''s figure hidden behind the barrage of carps, they launched nine flaming pillars that pierced his spell and crashed on the seemingly defenseless elder. At that point, a blinding light dispersed the smoke created by the pillars of flames only to reveal a blue sphere that surrounded an unharmed Elder Doyle. Then, the elder from the Papral nation flew toward the remaining carps and absorbed the water that made them in his defensive sphere. The sphere began to grow as more carps were absorbed, and its shape also morphed until it became a colossal dragon whose size matched the flaming hydra. The two creatures began to fight, they released shockwaves that made the azure ground under them tremble after every clash. The spells were equally matched, they continued to fight until they depleted all the energies that fueled them without managing to win over their opponent. As the spell dispersed, Elder Austin and Elder Doyle resumed their offensive through other methods. Spears, columns, arrows, bullets, and magical beasts of both elements appeared and clashed between each other, the elders seemed equally matched both in raw power and in the proficiency in their spells. Yet, the battle couldn''t continue endlessly. Elder Doyle decided to use one of his strongest spells when he felt that the time was right. A massive whirlpool appeared in front of him and began to rotate, pulling everything toward its center. The spell affected even the environment of the plain, magical beasts and plants rose in the air unable to counter the suction force of the massive blue whirlpool. Even Elder Austin felt himself being pulled by the spell, the flames that made his attacks and those around him escaped his control and reached for the center of the whirlpool as he tried to retreat. However, nothing seemed able to escape such suction force. Elder Austin felt forced to use the same attack that had defeated Lady Edna to destroy the enemy''s spell, and he raised his hands to the sky to cast his trump card. The sky turned red after his mental energy and "Breath" fused with it, and red clouds gathered under Elder Austin command. Then, flames began to rain down from the clouds. Countless drops made of flames fell on the battlefield, the whirlpool was initially able to absorb them, but its surface started to shatter after a while. Also, Elder Austin controlled those flaming drops and turned them into some of his attacks. The whirlpool was soon assaulted by a series of flaming snakes and fire spears, and it ultimately broke under Elder Austin''s endless offensive. Elder Doyle showed a surprised expression as he raised his gaze to the sky. The red clouds were still releasing flames that fueled his opponent''s attacks, it was as if Elder Austin had created an unending source of fire for his spells. "I surrender." Only Elder Austin heard those words, but everyone spectating the battle understood the outcome of the fight when the red clouds vanished, and the sky returned to its natural color. Elder Austin had dispersed his spell, meaning that he had no reason to keep it active anymore! The Hive had claimed another territory! Noah had watched the entirety of the battle from a crystal that the Hive had bought explicitly in the old continent. The other elders were there too, their amazement could be clearly understood by their expressions. Noah felt astonished too, the battle between those two rank 5 cultivators was simply on another level, rank 4 cultivators could die if even one of those shockwaves hit them after all! ''They didn''t use martial arts, it seems that cultivators tend to abandon attacks that rely on their bodies as they grow.'' That was Noah''s first thoughts when the fight ended. Martial arts relied on body and dantian to activate their effects, and the body of a human simply couldn''t express that much power. The main role of the body as a center of power was to contain the dantian and the sea of consciousness, that was true for cultivators at least. Spells would have a far superior effect since they relied on the dantian and the mental sphere, their power would just leave martial arts far behind as a cultivator grew stronger. ''I guess I will be an exception in this aspect, my martial art can match spells when I use the secret art, my body can match my other centers of power when I push it to its limits.'' Noah thought as he reviewed the rest of the battle in his mind. Cheers resounded in the sky over the desert inhabited by sandworms, the elders of the Hive felt as if they had won already. After all, the richest areas had already fallen in their hands, the rest of the territories of the southwestern coast required a lot of work and resources to be fully explored and turned in sources of income. A day passed by, and another battle followed. The Utra nation fought for the area with the snowy mountain right after the plain filled with Primordial ice. The Hive sent Elder Mona in battle, she was one of the elders that had reached the new continent after the pact was sealed, and she was a rank 4 cultivator in the liquid stage with a water aptitude. Yet, Elder Mona lost, the Utra nation had decided to deploy Amos Lochster once again, who overwhelmed her and secured the territory. Chapter 555: 555. Emblem One versus one battles continued to happen in the following days. The remaining territories on the southwestern coast didn''t appeal the two big nations that much, so they simply sent heroic cultivators that wanted to make a name for themselves. Elder Laurel fought for the forest of White woods against an elder of the Papral nation. She exchanged many rounds of offense and defense against her enemy, proving herself weaker after every clash. Yet, just when her energies were about to deplete, the White woods under the battlefield suddenly released toxic substances in the air, which filled the area where the two elders were fighting. Of course, that phenomenon had been triggered by Elder Laurel, she had spent months attuning the defensive measures around the teleportation matrix with the forest after all, she could easily control them in the air. Her opponent wasn''t prepared for that event and was forced to surrender since Elder Laurel seemed unaffected by those toxic gasses. The contender couldn''t possibly know that the elder from the Coral archipelago had specially requested for a spell that she knew would have blocked the toxins of the White woods. The Hive could breathe a sigh of relief after the forest was secured, all the proofs of its unofficial invasion were under the white crowns of those magical plants, and they would be forever hidden now that the archipelago owned the territory. The Hive then lost the battles for the mountains inhabited by snake-type magical beasts and for the grassland filled by the yellow moss. Those territories were situated next to the domain of the Papral nation, the Council didn''t want to see its borders being affected too much by the pact, so they used their best contenders in those battles. On the other hand, the Hive didn''t really want those territories. Its assets were far less numerous compared to those of the big nations, obtaining more lands that it could defend would end up being a disadvantage in the long run. Elder Jason performed exceptionally well in the battle for the lake inhabited by octopus-type magical beasts, his flames seemed fueled by some sort of indomitable will as they crashed on his opponent, ultimately forcing the latter to surrender. The Papral nation then sent a newly advanced heroic cultivator for the territory with the poisonous rivers. That land was too far away from its domains, it wasn''t worth owning it due to geographical reasons, it was better to use it as a training ground for a new heroic asset. The fights for the territories on the western coast ended like that, the Hive would control everything from the desert to the lake inhabited by the octopus-type magical beasts and leave the remaining coastline to the Papral nation. Only two territories had yet to be claimed on the southwestern coast: the area inhabited by ape-type magical beasts after the lava lake and the beginning of the mountain chain after the azure plain. Those two areas were virtually worthless, the mountain chain was inhabited by beings so strong that only Chasing Demon or other rank 6 existences could face, and the other only had some valueless magical plants. The aftereffects of the pact sealed by the rank 6 existences of the four nations seemed about to end, Noah was already planning his next move when something unexpected happened. Elder Hope went to fight for the territory after the lava lake, she knew that her opponent would either be Amos Lochster or a heroic cultivator that the Royals wanted to train. Yet, what appeared in front of her was a man wearing an emblem that she recognized. Elder Hope had rarely left the Coral archipelago in her life, and she had never studied the many noble families that filled the Utra nation. She was able to recognize that emblem because it usually appeared in the reports concerning the Demon Prince of the Hive that came from the Utra nation! "Lord Balvan, I presume." Elder Hope spoke when Adrian Balvan neared the borders of the lava lake to talk to her. "I''m flattered, I would have never thought that the Hive would be aware of my family''s emblem." Adrian performed a bow as he spoke those words, he didn''t seem intentioned to fight her at all. "The Hive would obviously gather information concerning the possible enemies of its Demon Prince, your family is almost on top of the list." Elder Hope replied coldly, her stern gaze inspected the burly heroic cultivator in the gaseous stage that had neared her so boldly. Noah had gained the respect of the elders of the Hive after winning the lava lake, Elder Hope''s behavior was simply a reflection of that. "I''ve asked for a special permission to the Elbas family to fight for this land, the Royals are aware that this territory is useless, but they would have still sent Lord Lochster only to take it from you. My actions have given you hope to conquer it, but I will only fight against my nephew, Lord Lochster will take my place if someone else appears." Adrian explained the situation to Elder Hope, who maintained a cold gaze. The Hive could obtain that territory only if Noah were to fight, Amos would claim it under the Utra nation''s banner otherwise. Elder Hope remained silent, she didn''t answer him, and she remained on the edges of the area above the rocky wasteland as she continued to stare at Adrian. "Your answer? Will you contact him?" Adrian became impatient as time passed and couldn''t help but speak those words. He had traveled a long way and asked for a favor to the Elbas family only to have that chance to fight Noah, he didn''t want to think that all of that was for nothing. "I won''t contact him." Elder Hope ultimately answered. Adrian showed a surprised expression, but the elder''s next words relieved him a bit. "The Prince is already on his way." . . . In the sky over the desert, just before Adrian Balvan neared Elder Hope. The elders of the Hive were watching the incoming battle through a crystal. Noah was there too, his mind wandered from time to time as he analyzed the fights of his companions, his eagerness to resume his training was almost uncontainable after all the inspirations obtained in the last days. Yet, when Adrian became visible in the crystal and the emblem was reflected in those images, he instinctively kicked the air under his feet to shot in the direction of Elder Hope''s battle. The elders around him were surprised by that sudden action, Noah had abruptly used a martial art after all. However, when they saw Adrian''s emblem too, they picked their inscribed notebooks to inform Elder Hope about the Prince''s gesture. Chapter 556: 556. Ear Noah didn''t recognize Adrian, he had barely interacted with the higher-ups of his family after all. Yet, he was sure that the cultivator who was facing Elder Hope carried the Balvan bloodline. He knew far too well how the noble families handled their cultivation resources, a medium-size noble family would have never given the means to reach the heroic ranks to someone without blood ties. Noah flew at high speed toward the area inhabited by ape-type magical beasts, he was sure that Adrian had appeared on the new continent for a reason which most likely concerned him. The Elbas family would never give the privilege to fight for the territories to a medium-size noble family, there were no benefits in promoting such small powers. Also, he knew that the elders in the desert would inform Elder Hope about his departure, he wasn''t worried at all that Adrian would leave before he arrived there. Three days had to pass before Noah was able to see the two figures waiting for him in the air and an hour for him to reach Elder Hope. "Hello, nephew. We have never met, I''m Adrian Balvan." Adrian introduced himself as soon as Noah arrived, but the latter simply inspected him with his cold reptilian eyes. Adrian did the same, but he couldn''t sense anything particular from Noah''s aura, it was as if he contained all his emotions. "We can give up on this territory, the Hive has already obtained enough on the western coast. Just a word from you and I will-" Elder Hope began to speak, but Noah placed a hand over her shoulder and interrupted her phrase. Noah wasn''t applying any strength, but Elder Hope still felt as if a mountain was threatening to crush her shoulder, she couldn''t help but wonder how a cultivator in the gaseous stage could give her those sensations. "I''ll handle this, don''t worry." Noah calmly spoke before retracting his hand and crossing the border of the battlefield. Adrian showed a satisfied expression when he saw his gesture and retreated to give space to Noah. Elder Hope stood still, she didn''t return to the desert, she remained over the rocky wasteland with her eyes fixed on Adrian. She didn''t know if Adrian''s presence there was some sort of trap of the Elbas family, so she chose to remain to watch the battle and to intervene in case Noah was about to lose his life. Of course, that action would make the Hive lose the match, but she couldn''t care less about that territory, she only wanted to do everything in her power to preserve the life of the most promising heroic asset of the Coral archipelago. "You resemble her, it seems like yesterday that Rhys brought a commoner back to the mansion. Father was so mad at him, but he had always spoiled Rhys, my little brother has never understood that his actions could have consequences. Well, he learnt that after Fabian''s death." A slight smile appeared on Adrian''s face as he spoke those words. Noah couldn''t understand what his uncle''s intentions were, but he didn''t care about them, he limited himself to listen to him only to see if he could gather more information about his family. "I''m different though. Father has raised me to become the next patriarch of the Balvan family, I won''t mourn the deaths of a few heirs that couldn''t even overcome a bastard who has trained without any support. Yet, I must thank you. Your betrayal forced the Royals to compensate the family, our foundation has never been so stable, I believe we will have a third heroic cultivator in the next sixty or so years." Adrian continued to speak, but he soon lost interest in interacting with Noah since the latter didn''t show any reaction. Not even the slightest trace of emotion appeared in Noah''s aura, he resembled almost devoid of them as he continued to stare Adrian. "My presence today is just a whim of mine, I wanted to see with my eyes if your betrayal was a fortunate event or if the family has lost as much as the reports say." Adrian retreated even more after he gave voice to those words, his robe was torn apart as his muscles bulged, and his skin turned yellow. Also, a seemingly metallic defensive layer appeared over his figure. In a few seconds, Adrian had transformed from a burly middle-aged man into a four meters tall giant with silver skin. Noah watched the transformation in silence, he had no intention of stopping him. Yet, when he saw that Adrian seemed to wait for him, he decided to speak. "Are you done?" Adrian listened to the emotionless tone of his nephew and laughed, but a wild aura soon swept him and forced him to focus on his opponent. Noah''s mental energy began to release cold and wild mental waves, Adrian felt as if thousands of incorporeal blades were crashing on his giant body. Also, he felt the deep hatred contained in them. Noah had always held his hatred back. It didn''t matter how much he improved, he couldn''t just barge in the Utra nation and go after his family, he knew that he didn''t have the power to defeat Thomas Balvan. He wanted to avenge his mother but he couldn''t throw away his life to attempt in his revenge, there was no point in killing Rhys if he had to die afterward. That forced him to contain the hatred for his family as he continued to grow stronger, he knew that one day he would face them again, but he had to pursue the power that he wanted first. However, now that Adrian had willingly appeared in front of him, those feelings exploded. Adrian felt as if he was facing a wild magical beast, he had never seen a cultivator radiating such a savage aura. Black smoke came out of Noah''s body as he took a step toward his uncle, he immediately activated the complete Demonic form as he slowly neared his opponent. A fuming sphere appeared next to him, Noah''s centers of power fueled the Dark blast spells as he wielded his sabers. Adrian couldn''t see it due to the armor of smoke, but Noah''s skin was caving in, he had activated the secret art before sprinting toward his enemy. Noah reappeared in front of Adrian in an instant, his Demonic swords were already tracing two vertical lines as they descended toward the giant figure. Adrian''s skin released a humming sound that slowed Noah''s offensive. Two black lines crashed on him, but only a few cracks appeared on his body, his defensive spell had managed to stop his nephew''s martial art! Yet, just as Adrian was about to counterattack, Noah''s head shot toward his face. Adrian felt a stabbing pain coming from the left side of his face, and he hurriedly decided to retreat. His skin rereleased a humming sound, slowing Noah''s chase and giving him time to understand what had happened. When he raised his gaze again to stare at the fiendish figure, he saw that its fuming maws were slowly consuming a silver ear. Chapter 557: 557. Brawl Adrian had used the ability of his body-nourishing method to empower his muscles and skin, and had activated a defensive spell that had transformed him into a silver giant. Also, his new form allowed him to release that humming sound, which was another defensive spell. It wasn''t surprising that he had been able to block Noah''s martial art with all those defensive methods. Yet, right when he was about to counterattack, Noah had surprised him, biting off his left ear with a quick movement. Adrian couldn''t use the humming sound in time, and the ears of a human were one of its most frail parts, his silver skin couldn''t oppose the power behind Noah''s maws. Adrian couldn''t understand how his Silver body spell had been pierced so quickly, he could only blame Noah''s Demonic form for that. He couldn''t possibly imagine that Noah''s physical strength was enough for that feat after all. However, the Silver body spell wasn''t his limit. Adrian focused and his muscles bulged even more, his size increased, and his skin darkened while he transformed once again. The silver giant became black as he reached a height of six meters, it seemed that Adrian specialized in spells that applied defensive and offensive measures on his body. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t feel any fear when he watched the transformation. Why would he hesitate when his opponent wanted to have a melee battle? Noah roared as he kicked the air under his feet to activate the Shadow sprint martial art. His pride as a hybrid screamed inside him, a human dared to challenge him in a battle of bodies, he felt as if he had been offended by that gesture. Adrian saw the fiendish figure suddenly appearing in front of him and crossed his arms to protect his chest, two black lines crashed on his skin but were only able to create small cracks. Adrian''s new transformation made him able to withstand Noah''s martial art without using the humming sound! The humming sound resounded once again, and Noah felt his movements hindered by dense vibrations that spread rhythmically in the air. Adrian used his spell to create an opening in Noah''s defense and followed it by quickly punching with his crossed arms, Noah saw two massive fists reaching for his face as he tried to oppose the restrictions around him. Since he couldn''t break the slowing spell and defend against the fists at the same time, he decided to attack. Adrian only saw a blinding pale-gray light engulfing his figure before he felt his arms hitting something that resembled a mountain. Noah had used his flames to weaken his uncle''s attack and summoned Zac to endure the remaining power behind the fists. Zac''s defensive layers and shell were pierced, but the fists only had so much remaining power when they hit Noah''s chest, the latter could easily withstand them without moving by an inch. Flames and a corrosive black smoke lingered on Adrian''s body, but they were only able to scratch the surface of his skin, his defensive methods were exceptional. Yet, while he was still trying to understand how much damage did Noah suffer, he felt something similar to a hammer crashing on his stomach. Noah had delivered a powerful kick after he blocked his uncle''s attack, but he didn''t manage to inflict much damage, Adrian''s defenses were able to block his martial art after all. It became clear to both of them that their fight would be a battle of endurance. Noah and Adrian continued to exchange attacks between each other, almost completely ignoring the damages that reached their bodies. Shockwaves spread after every clash, the battle between those two heroic cultivators seemed to have turned into a clash between magical beasts! The human cultivators that watched the fight couldn''t help but realize how scary the heroic ranks could be. They viewed heroic cultivators as haughty and distant figures, forever detached from the mortal world. Yet, right in front of their eyes, those entities had turned into monstrous figures that fought using teeth and fists! Noah relentlessly attacked, he slashed, kicked, and bit whenever he could, leaving the defense to his Blood companion. Also, a black trail often came out of his fiendish form and quickly dove toward Adrian, only to disappear inside the black smoke immediately after. Adrian, on the other hand, boldly punched Noah as the humming sound often resounded in the air. As time passed, white marks and cracks covered the entirety of his dark skin, and he knew that his Black body transformation spell wouldn''t be able to sustain his nephew''s relentless offensive much longer. However, he didn''t understand Noah''s state since the black smoke covered his features. He knew that he had landed many blows on his body, but he didn''t know if Noah was injured. He could only continue to punch madly, he was using two spells to empower his body, the effects of his body-nourishing method, and the humming sound, he didn''t believe that he would lose that battle. Another wave of white flames engulfed his figure, and a corrosive black smoke followed them, further worsening the state of his skin. When his vision regained the focus on his opponent though, he saw that a massive, uneven sphere had appeared between him and Noah. Noah had activated the Dark blast spell at the beginning of the battle and had continued to fuel it throughout its duration, the amount of mental energy and "Breath" contained in that fuming sphere made Adrian shiver. Adrian was about to activate the slowing spell once again, but the sphere suddenly exploded, engulfing both him and Noah in its blast. Before Adrian was forced to close his eyes to endure the might of the blast, he saw that the fiendish figure right in front of him wear a vicious smile. The blast destroyed Adrian''s black skin and torn his muscles, he felt the walls of his sea of consciousness tremble when his defensive spell was forcibly broken. His Silver body spell though was still active and managed to endure the remaining power behind the blast. Adrian was about to open his eyes when he felt hundreds of ethereal hands tearing his insides and two long wounds appearing on his torso. Chapter 558: 558. Threa Noah knew that the Dark blast spell wouldn''t do enough damage if Adrian managed to use the humming sound again, so he had to make it detonate when his uncle wasn''t ready. The only way to do so though was to make it explode right after a clash, meaning that he wouldn''t be able to escape its area of effect. However, why would he care about his own attack when he didn''t fear the spells of solid stage cultivators? Noah had hidden the enlarging sphere behind his figure during the battle, waiting for it to become threatening enough. Then, when almost half of the "Breath" in his dantian and of the mental energy inside his mind was poured inside the spell, he decided to make it detonate. Zac enveloped his figure as his body became ethereal, Noah couldn''t use the Black hole spell to absorb his own energies, but those defensive methods were more than enough to block the blast. As soon as the explosion ended, Noah returned material and shot toward his uncle while launching hundreds of ethereal claws and slashing with his sabers. Adrian had returned to his silver form and couldn''t fully block Noah''s attacks without using the humming sound, the ethereal claws damaged his internal organs, and two long wounds appeared on his chest. For the first time since the beginning of the battle, Adrian feared for his life. Noah''s power didn''t make sense in his mind. Adrian knew that empowering his body with two spells, using the ability of his body-nourishing method, and further defending it with another spell placed his power almost at the peak of the gaseous stage. Every cultivator specialized in a field, and his was close combat, there were very few humans on his same level that could break his defenses before he managed to catch them. Yet, Noah''s body seemed as powerful as his, even stronger actually, but without using any strengthening spell. Only his Demonic form spell seemed to affect his body, but that alone couldn''t match all Adrian''s methods. That led to a situation where Noah could use all his spells and martial arts to attack Adrian while still matching his physical strength, it was evident that he had an advantage against him. Truth to be told, Adrian wasn''t weak, his defenses and resistance were something that very few cultivators on his level could destroy. Yet, against someone able to press him with an endless offensive and a variety of attacks, he could only passively defend until all his spells were broken. And that was precisely what had happened. Adrian stared at the fiendish figure reaching for him, he knew that he wouldn''t be able to stop his nephew even with his humming sound in that form. He only had one way to keep his life. "I surrender." Elder Hope heaved a sigh of relief when she heard the words spoken by Adrian, that vicious battle had finally ended, and the Hive had managed to claim another territory. Yet, she was surprised to see that Noah didn''t stop his charge. Noah arrived right in front of Adrian and stored one of his sabers to stretch his fuming hand and grab his uncle''s throat. Adrian felt an immense strength preventing him from breathing, he could only stare at icy-blue eyes hidden behind the armor of smoke while Noah chocked him. He saw the deep hatred radiated by them and understood that Noah wouldn''t think twice to trade the territory under him for his life. Noah continued to tighten his grasp, and the black smoke around him kept on consuming Adrian''s silver skin, the latter knew that only death waited for him at that point. However, a golden light shone next to them, and three figures appeared immediately after. Noah heard a familiar voice speaking a few words directed at him right after he sensed the three cultivators. "Stop, Noah Balvan, this act doesn''t respect the pact sealed by the rulers of our nations!" Noah didn''t need to turn to understand the identity of the man behind that voice. "Thaddeus Elbas, do you think rules can bind me?" A deep voice came out of the fiendish figure, Noah answered Thaddeus without releasing his grasp from his uncle''s throat. Another figure appeared near Noah, Elder Hope had immediately entered the battlefield when she saw that three heroic cultivators had teleported next to him. Thaddeus revealed an ugly expression when he heard those words, but he managed to remain calm as he threatened the entirety of the Hive. "If the Hive doesn''t respect the pact, the Royal family won''t respect it either. Take his life, and you will obtain a war." Elder Hope''s expression became cold when she heard Thaddeus'' threat, and she turned her gaze toward Noah. She couldn''t really stop him, Adrian''s throat was already in his hands, Noah could just crush it before anyone could intervene. Everything was up to him. Noah closed his eyes for an instant, but countless thoughts surged in his mind in that brief moment. He knew that he wouldn''t obtain another chance to kill Adrian anytime soon, he had been able to reach for him only because his uncle wanted to fight after all. Yet, killing him would provoke a war against the Utra nation, something that the Hive couldn''t endure. The territories just claimed would become battlefields, and he knew that the Hive would lose. Losing those territories would force the Hive back in its previous situation, with promising heroic assets but without the adequate resources to nurture them. Without powerful heroic cultivators, the Hive wouldn''t be able to expand its influence on the old continent and would be forever contained by the three big nations. If the Hive weren''t influential, Noah''s position as Demon Prince would be affected, and he wouldn''t be able to obtain resources for his cultivation. Without resources, his path toward the higher ranks would be hindered. ''When will I be able to snap his neck without fearing the consequences of my action?'' Noah sighed internally as he thought that. Then, he released his grasp and dispersed his armor of smoke, revealing his skinny figure out in the open. Adrian coughed for a while as he retreated, he had come too close to death at that time, he didn''t want to remain on the new continent any further. "The Royal family can''t tolerate such actions, we ask the Hive for compensations!" Thaddeus continued to speak when he saw that Adrian was safe. The meaning behind his words was clear, he wanted to extort something from the Hive. Yet, Noah''s answer forced the royal to drop that act. "The pact wasn''t broken, you can complain about my behavior to Chasing Demon when he returns. In the meantime, go away from my land." Thaddeus saw the pair of reptilian eyes fixing on him when those words resounded in the area, he felt as if Noah would just charge at him if he insisted on that matter. In the end, he simply left, followed by the two elders that had teleported with him and with a wounded Adrian. Chapter 559: 559. Images "You made the right decision, Prince. Vengeance can be attained at any point, but there are only so many chances to increase your power. The Hive now has a stable foothold on the new continent, and its power will increase sharply. I''m sure you will lead our armies against your family one day." Elder Hope said as she and Noah flew back to the forest of White woods. She was trying to console him, but there was truth in her words. Noah was the Demon Prince of the Hive, his status wasn''t devoid of authority, he would be able to lead an attack against his family given the right circumstances. On the other hand, Noah was aware that he had acted for his best interest, but his mood was still sour. Coming so close to a form of revenge only to be stopped by the politics between two nations, that event was a harsh blow to a man that believed that power could overwhelm everything. "I guess I''m still too weak." Elder Hope could only hear a murmur since Noah had spoken too softly. "Prince?" She asked when she saw that Noah''s gaze seemed to wander on the horizon. "I believed destruction had to come before creation, but how could I destroy if I don''t create a power that allows me to do that? Everything is a cycle, nothing ever stays still. The origin of everything should be Heaven and Earth, but can they be its end too?" Noah gave voice to his thoughts under Elder Hope''s confused gaze. She could only understand part of the meaning behind his words, but she felt the helplessness carried by his tone. Her eyes went on the horizon too, she let Noah''s emotion invade her before she managed to answer. "Heaven and Earth are the world itself. Cultivators claim to defy them, but they improve through their energy. We might think that we are ascending into the sky as our rank rises, but we are only exchanging one cycle for another." Elder Hope spoke with his same helpless tone. Questions about Heaven and Earth, about the meaning behind the cultivation journey, and the true essence of the "Breath" had lingered on the cultivators'' minds since the first human learned to absorb "Breath" in its dantian. Elder Hope was a heroic cultivator that had reached the liquid stage through her understanding of the laws of the wind element, her thoughts had reached a similar topic many times while she tried to gain insights. "What about gods? What''s the point of becoming a law outside of Heaven and Earth''s grasp if you are just entering one of their cycles?" Noah asked, but his question wasn''t directed to the elder next to him, he seemed to be asking that to himself. "That I don''t know, Prince. I''m walking the cultivation road just like you are, and the answers that we find will obviously be different. After all, every heroic cultivator is pursuing its individuality, there can''t be a universal answer nor a general path." Elder Hope showed her wisdom through her words, it became clear to Noah that she had earned the level of her dantian. "Paths and roads built on a world that belongs to something else. Heaven and Earth can keep it¡­" Noah spoke but continued the rest of the phrase only inside his mind. ''I want the stars.'' Both of them spent the rest of the flight back to the forest in silence, they let their minds wander as they flew through the land that had fallen from the sky. When they landed on the terrain under the white crowns, they discovered that the area around the teleportation matrix had become far more crowded in those few days. Elder Julia had fought for the beginning of the mountain chain after the azure plain while Noah was flying to fight Adrian. Their return sealed the end of the one versus one battles, which meant that the Hive could finally start to use the entirety of its assets to colonize the new continent. "The hot-head is back." Elder Julia commented when she saw Noah, but Elder Austin''s loud laugh interrupted her from speaking further. "Come on, Julia, everything turned out for the best in the end. Also, the Prince is not even forty, he still needs to vent from time to time!" Elder Austin couldn''t stop smiling while he said those words, he was simply too happy that Noah had won the lava lake to mind that he had almost caused a war against the Utra nation. "Hmph, he is the Demon Prince, he can''t show any weakness! And what is your problem with your clothes? How can you be the emblem of the Hive if you end up naked after every battle?" Elder Julia complained and pointed at Noah''s torn robe. Adrian had managed to land many attacks on his body during the fight, and the armor of smoke was pierced many times, meaning that the robe under it had to endure those fists. Of course, simple clothes would just shatter under the attacks of a heroic cultivator. Noah was once again almost naked, his upper clothes were completely gone, and only tatters covered the rest of his body. What had once been a luxurious robe had turned in nothing more than a few rags. Noah could only shrug his shoulders at her words. Clothes had always hindered his combat style due to his Blood companions which were one of the reasons why he had never purchased an inscribed robe and relied on his body-inscription spell to defend himself. Also, now that his combat style had acquired features belonging to a magical beast, his clothes ended up suffering even more. "I''ll pay more attention from now on." Noah gave voice to those words since Elder Julia didn''t seem to want to let go of that matter. Elder Austin continued to smile at her side, he seemed really amused by Julia''s reprimand, or maybe he was just too happy to care about it. In the end, Elder Julia heaved a helpless sigh and gestured to Elder Jason to bring Noah new clothes before pointing at a table that had been placed next to the formation. "The Hive is now officially in possess of eight territories in the new continent, but it has only so many heroic assets. With the Patriarch gone, it''s up to us to make these lands habitable by human cultivators. Also, many elders have to remain in the Coral archipelago and the conquered nation in the area of influence of the Empire. I believe you all understand what this implies." The elders gathered around the table, which had a map of the southwestern coast laid on its surface. Yet, when Noah tried to near it, he was stopped by Elder Austin, who handed him a crystal before adding a few words. "This contains the images of Elder Julia''s battle, put them to good use." Chapter 560: 560. Harmony Elder Julia explained her plan on how to handle the newly obtained territories. The Hive could only send around twenty rank 4 cultivators in the new continent but, for what concerned those in the fifth rank, Elder Austin and Elder Julia had to be enough. The Hive only had a handful of rank 5 cultivators, and having two of them in the piece of Immortal Lands was already its limit. One elder at that level was needed to control the copying technique, and another one had to defend the conquered nation in the area of influence of the Empire. The remaining one had to remain in the Coral archipelago too, in case something happened to the elder managing the copying formation. Dividing its power between those three areas wasn''t something that the Hive would do during normal circumstances. Still, the pact sealed by the rulers of the four nations gave it some insurance, it would be up to Chasing Demon to decide how to handle the situation once he returned. The main focus of Elder Julia''s explanation was to create areas inhabitable by human cultivators. Hordes of rebels, criminals, or simply suppressed soldiers were migrating to the Coral archipelago, and the elders expected that number to increase after the recent events. The one versus one battles had proven that the Hive was strong, but it was extremely lacking in assets. Yet, to those human cultivators, a nation that was rising to power was better than a place where they couldn''t grow. However, the islands of the archipelago could contain only so many people, and the Hive needed to establish stable sources of income if it wanted to nourish them. The solution to both issues could be found in the new continent. The piece of Immortal Lands was almost as vast as the old continent, and each one of its lands could be used as the perfect training ground for rank 3 cultivators. The problems started there though. Territories so vast would have countless magical beasts, and the concentration of "Breath" in the air there was so high that human cultivators risked suffocating due to its pressure. Cities in the old continent needed a large amount of "Breath" blessings to increase the density of "Breath" artificially, and to create appropriate training areas. Instead, those in the new continent needed to decrease the density, or human cultivators wouldn''t be able to inhabit them. Yet, clearing some areas from the magical beasts would only increase the density of "Breath" since there would be fewer living beings absorbing it. The Hive had to clear one area while building something that absorbed the "Breath" in the air at the same time! That project required a lot of manpower and an item similar to the obelisks used by the Utra nation, which the Hive currently didn''t have. "The other higher-ups and I will work on creating a copy of the obelisks, you all focus on lowering the population of magical beasts in the azure plain and the land after the lava lake." Those were Elder Julia''s last words before she dismissed the group. The territories that she had mentioned were the easiest to colonize, all the others had environmental conditions that would require a lot of effort to modify, it wasn''t worth focusing them right now. As for the rocky wasteland with the lava lake, the elders couldn''t do much about it. The heat there scared away any lifeform, only heroic cultivators could stay there for short periods and even at some distance. Also, affecting the environment might cause unwanted effects that they couldn''t control, there were traces left by divine beings there after all. Noah didn''t linger in the forest and immediately set off for the azure plain, his body was fine, he could begin to work immediately. Of course, he would first watch Elder Julia''s battle and deeply analyze all the fights that had happened in the last days. Noah dug a cave in the azure terrain as soon as he reached the plain and began to review the battles right after he watched the images contained in the crystal that Elder Austin had given him. His battle prowess satisfied him, he knew that he was doing the best he could with the spells and techniques in his possession. Yet, it was clear that something was missing, something that he had begun to notice since a long time ago. ''My attacks lack synergy.'' That thought hit Noah''s mind after he analyzed his power. Many cultivators, especially on his level, were able to use spells to fuel other spells or to gather the remains of their attacks to create new ones. Noah knew that he couldn''t hope to obtain such a harmonious set of attacks in a short period, those heroic cultivators had had decades to search for the spells that they needed the most and for those that could be matched with the diagrams already in their possession. Noah, instead, wasn''t even forty and had simply used anything that he obtained to fight, he had never specifically searched for scrolls or similar. There was another important detail in that issue: His element! Scrolls containing spells and techniques of the darkness element were extremely rare, even Divine Demon''s inheritance only had two of them up to the fifth rank. Also, their effects covered many fields. They could go from mental attacks to a corrosive smoke, from a defensive orb that could absorb energies to a spell that could directly turn his body ethereal. The only two spells that Noah had been able to harmonize were the Demonic form and the Body-inscription spell, but the other heroic cultivators could synchronize almost all of their attacks! Even Adrian could fuse three spells to become a massive giant that slowed his opponents. ''I''ve been able to match these entities thanks to my body and the secret art, but I can''t only rely on it. My enemies will soon understand that I''m lethal in close combat if they haven''t done it already.'' Many human and heroic cultivators had watched Noah''s battles, he was sure that his enemies would analyze his power just like he was doing. After all, he wasn''t a criminal in the human ranks anymore, he was the Demon Prince of the Hive, the three big nations would be stupid not to create a profile that evaluated his abilities. ''Also, if I''m able to harmonize my spells, I would obtain a perfect offensive, matching both those that focus on long-range attacks and those that prefer close combat. I guess it''s time to test the limits of the Divine deduction technique.'' As soon as he thought that, Noah reached for a scroll inside his space-ring and unfolded it on the ground in front of him. Mental energy was redirected to the inscriptions on the walls of his mental sphere as his eyes stared at the diagram of the Warp spell. Chapter 561: 561. Lines The Warp spell was one of the three diagrams in Noah''s possession that he could use for the entirety of his cultivation journey. Yet, Noah found it hard to use it efficiently as his power grew. The issue wasn''t with the power of the spell, but with its effects. The smoke of the Demonic form became more threatening each time he memorized a Kesier rune, and the Body-inscription spell''s power was linked to the magical beasts turned into Blood companions. Those spells were clearly battle oriented, and Noah could always put them to good use in any of his fights. However, the Warp spell had effects not strictly related to combat. The spell was useful to travel long distances and to make lose track of any pursuer, but it had unfavorable conditions to its activation that made it quite predictable in battle. The teleportation required time and the cultivators on Noah''s level were able to react to that sudden tremor in the air, he couldn''t use it to take his enemies by surprise anymore. Yet, the Warp spell didn''t have limits, Noah could use it through the entirety of his journey, so he decided to use the Divine deduction technique on its diagram first. He had other ideas on how to create, modify, or even fuse spells, he could clearly imagine the Black hole spell and the Dark blast spell being combined into one, for example. However, now that he had time, he wanted to focus on creating something that would last, and that wouldn''t have to be discarded due to his growth. The lines of the extremely complex diagram formed over the sea inside his mind before being redirected in the inscriptions over its walls. Noah experienced part of the feelings of the creator of the diagram, as well as the deep meanings that those lines contained. ''These lines¡­ Their power is linked to the mental waves of a sea of consciousness, they are meant to teleport a cultivator till the limits of its consciousness. The diagram is a teleportation matrix without set destination nor origin, a perfect machine that can bring anywhere as long as enough energy is poured inside it.'' Noah began to understand the meaning behind those lines. The Divine deduction technique allowed him to analyze diagrams at high speed, that feature was one of its main abilities after all. Noah intended to completely understand the diagram so that he could reproduce and modify it through his wills, turning it into his personal spell, which effects could be altered according to his needs. ''The black flames aren''t a portal, they act as a container for my body, which gets expelled once they reappear in their destination. Since the body is contained inside the flames, the teleportation won''t deplete as much energy as it should. Amazing, the creator of the Warp spell has found a way to reduce the interference with the space to make the consumption of mental energy and "Breath" somewhat affordable.'' Learning more about the mighty entity behind that diagram made Noah marvel. ''Yet, the entirety of the body and the teleportation seem fixed effects.'' Noah stopped using the Divine deduction technique as he thought that. More than half of his mental energy had been depleted to understand those few things, and he didn''t even know how much time had passed in the outside. It couldn''t be helped, he was trying to understand a spell that had no limits to its power, he couldn''t expect to learn everything about it with only one round of the Divine deduction technique. Noah needed time to thoroughly understand the lines of the diagram, time to learn how and why they were connected in that shape, and time to reproduce them in the form of wills. Only after all those processes were completed, he could start to modify it according to his needs. Of course, what he needed was to turn that movement-oriented spell into something that he could rely on in battle and hopefully increase his battle prowess. ''I might obtain black flames able to teleport only my attacks if I can remove those two fixed effects. At that point, I would be able to synchronize three spells and a martial art, creating an offensive that isn''t affected by distances.'' The attacks in Noah''s mind were the Warp spell, the Demonic form spell, the Body-inscription spell, and his Dragon''s claw. ''It wouldn''t even stop there. Theoretically speaking, even my other spells could be directly teleported next to my enemies, and I might add a form to my martial art¡­ All of this can only happen if I manage to modify this masterpiece though.'' Noah knew that there was no point in dreaming when he had yet to take the first step toward his goal. However, he had all the time that he wanted now. The Hive was still trying to create items able to lower the density of "Breath" in the territories of the new continent, and he knew that hunting magical beasts before that was pointless. Other creatures would simply migrate to take the place of the killed ones, he and Elder Hope had already seen that happen after all. Also, he was the Demon Prince, and he had just claimed a territory containing traces left by divine beings under the Hive''s banner. His achievements were impossible to evaluate, and not even a rank 5 cultivator could dictate his next actions so casually. To put it simply, he didn''t really need to help his companions with the colonization of the southwestern coast. ''I''ve done more than enough for the Coral archipelago, I need to focus on my power now. The other elders can handle the pointless clearing of these areas, I''ll just remain here to train.'' There was something that Noah was sure of. The new continent came from the Immortal Lands, which meant that rank 4 cultivators could only affect it so much. He didn''t know how the Utra nation had built those obelisks, but he was sure that the work of many rank 5 cultivators was behind it, meaning that the elders on his level wouldn''t be able to modify the environment in the plain and the area after the lava lake. ''I''ll just wait to be contacted by the higher-ups. Until then, there is only me.'' Chapter 562: 562. Help The situation in the old continent evolved precisely as the elders had predicted. The images of the one versus one battles had been registered and copied in crystals so that anyone with enough Credits could purchase them, it was needless to say that many wealthy forces soon acquired them. It didn''t happen that often to be able to witness a battle between heroic cultivators, especially between those in the fifth rank, the value of those images was extremely high for cultivators able to gain some inspiration from them. Also, they could be useful data of the heroic assets of the enemy forces, especially for those of the Hive. The Coral archipelago had to use its heroic cultivators in the fights. In contrast, the Council and the Elbas family had sent cultivators belonging to the sects and the noble families in the battles. Of course, that didn''t apply to the rank 5 cultivators who had faced Elder Julia and Elder Austin, they were representatives of the Council and the Elbas family, they had to show their power after all. June obviously purchased them and gave a lot of importance to the battle between Noah and Adrian, but many other forces in the Utra continent paid special attention to Noah''s battle prowess too. The Udye family, the Balvan family, and other noble families whose heirs had met Noah in their life were interested in seeing the growth of the criminal that had managed to escape the grasp of the Royal family. Those noble families had even prevented the soldiers under them from watching his battle, but that restriction only increased Noah''s fame among the ranks of the exploited and suppressed cultivators. After all, all the citizens of the settlements in the new continent and those in the bigger cities of the old one had watched the fights unfolding during the event, tales of the fiendish figure destroying the defenses of the black giant filled the rumors among those that lacked a noble bloodline. The number of cultivators rebelling or simply abandoning their countries to join the Hive increased, the islands of the Coral archipelago saw their population rise sharply in the months after the battles. It took a bit more than three months for Adrian to return to the Balvan mansion. When he reached the main hall to report to his father, he found Thomas attentively watching the images of his battle radiated by a crystal. "You lost an ear." Thomas commented as soon as he sensed Adrian''s arrival. Adrian lowered his head but didn''t answer. Noah had won fairly, the proof to that was right in front of his eyes, there was nothing to add to his father''s comment. "Do you want something to fix it?" Thomas asked after a long moment of silence. "It''s just an ear, it''s not worth wasting a precious potion for it." Adrian plainly refused Thomas'' offer. He had a rank 4 body, meaning that only potions in the fourth rank could affect it. "Good. Scars are important to a warrior, they remind him of his mistakes. Tell me, why did you lose?" Adrian listened to those words and raised his head to watch his battle from a different perspective. He saw his giant fists piercing the armor of smoke and landing on Noah''s body, but he also saw that they had almost no effect. "I honestly don''t know. The bast-, Noah seems to be training in a peculiar body-nourishing method that gives him a strength and a resistance far superior to my Black body transformation. Still, I couldn''t understand if there were spells involved." Thomas nodded when he heard those words and used his mental energy to make the crystal display the images that pictured Noah when he dispersed the Demonic form. "Everything under Heaven and Earth follows their balance, fairness is enforced on every living being, and the same applies to techniques and spells. Noah''s physical prowess must come with a cost, his body seemed extremely frail when the battle ended, meaning that endurance might be his weakness." Adrian neared his father after he heard those words. He had noticed something similar as he pondered about the battle on his way back to the mansion. Yet, when he was there, even Noah''s skinny figure seemed to contain an immense strength. Little did they know that they were completely off track. Noah''s body was something that even Heaven had tried to destroy, the only physical drawback was his endless hunger. "He manages to hide secrets even with the eyes of the three big nations on him¡­ I must say that we never had a chance to contain him, not after he saw his mother being abused for so many years." Adrian heaved a helpless sigh before speaking those words. He had accepted Noah''s strength and had recognized him as an exceptional existence in his mind, he was just trying to console his father by giving voice to his thoughts. "I know, no one could have predicted his talent nor that he would be so biased against us due to his mother. The youngest heroic cultivator in history had to be the son of a commoner, what luck." Thomas shook his head after he replied to Adrian, he felt really helpless about that matter. Lily was just a commoner, she would have never received a good treatment even if Noah''s talent was accepted sooner. After all, how could anyone hinder the action of a noble just because a human cultivator seemed promising? The road to the heroic ranks was harsh, and only a small percentage of the human cultivators could obtain all the resources and experiences needed to survive the Tribulations. Also, they even had to destroy the black clouds during the Heaven Tribulation, or their future progress would be affected since their dantians would lack vital nourishments. "Did you consider that matter?" Adrian asked with a serious gaze as he turned toward his father. "What? Are you speaking about me approaching the fifth rank? I don''t know if I can survive the breakthrough due to my old age, but I might be able to reach it with the help of the Elbas family¡­" Chapter 563: 563. Training grounds The rank 5 cultivators of the Hive spent the months after the one versus one battles trying to find a way to fix the issue about the density of the "Breath" in the new continent. They knew the method used by the Utra nation, but they were unaware of the specifics of the obelisks, they could only learn their most apparent features when they explored the eastern coast. The Papral nation would never reveal its methods to an enemy force, and the Shandal Empire had been silent since the two big countries attacked its territories, the Hive was on its own on that matter. Also, the Coral archipelago lacked experts in many sectors, only a few inscription masters specialized in formations could be found on its islands. It soon became clear to those rank 5 existences that they could only use formations to solve the issue. Yet, deciding on a method was different from finding a solution, the elders still had to find something that could absorb or drain enough "Breath" from the environment to make the lands of the new continent habitable by human cultivators. The only formation in their possession that could drain so much energy was, of course, the copying technique. It didn''t take much for the elders to understand that the copying technique had to be used to solve that issue, the only problem was that Chasing Demon was away at that moment and he couldn''t lay the technique on the new continent. Some months and many tests had to pass before they could create the blueprint for something that seemed viable. The other rank 4 elders received a mental message that explained the plan of the higher-ups at that point, even Noah had to admit that their move was quite smart despite the Hive lacking the assets of the other big nations. To put it simply, the elders wanted to set up formations able to send "Breath" to the copying technique in the Coral archipelago. Of course, since the Hive didn''t have a method to accumulate that energy endlessly, the copying formation had to be continuously put to use to deplete it. Yet, the Hive couldn''t summon the copies of rank 5 beings just to deplete that energy, it would simply be a waste. So, the elders decided to create training grounds for the human cultivators in the archipelago and make them face many copies of rank 4 creatures. The population in the islands had sharply increased in the last years, and that growth didn''t seem to slow down. That led to a situation where the Hive was filled by many human cultivators or even commoners who lacked proper training or battle experience. Those cultivators could just be used as cannon fodder in their current state, but they could become valuable resources once gained enough experience, some of them might even aim for the heroic ranks one day. The Hive had a population with a high percentage of cultivators, similar to that of the Shandal Empire, meaning that it could copy the big nation in the methods that it used to sort it. The Empire used its endless expansion campaign to train, sort, and promote soldiers, creating a ranking system where anyone could become the leader of a small legion made by simple soldiers. The Hive wanted to imitate that system, but it lacked the power to engage in so many wars. So, it decided to use the copying technique as the method to train, sort, and evaluate its cultivators. The mental message didn''t just convey that information, it also requested the help of the rank 4 cultivators. ''I should go, this is quite important. I''ve even completely understood the diagram of the Warp spell, I''ve reached the limit of what can be achieved in seclusion.'' Noah thought as he stood up and exited the cave that he had created in the azure plain. He didn''t know how many months had passed, but he had finally analyzed all the lines of the Warp spell and understood how they interacted between themselves, it was time to bring the process to the next phase. ''I need to reproduce the diagram using my wills as the language. Succeeding in this procedure will allow me to modify it and will also give me experience in the creation of spells. I don''t know how much it will take though.'' Noah sighed as he flew toward the forest of White woods. The elders had decided that the border between the two lands would be the area where the formations had to be placed. That position wasn''t casual, the formations needed to be near the teleportation matrix so that the latter could be used to set the destination of the absorbed "Breath". Noah''s mind wandered as he fueled the Divine deduction technique with his mental energy. He knew far too well that he could approach the translation of the diagram only in one way: Through countless tests! Yet, he had Divine Demon''s legacy, and translating was easier than creating from nothing, he was confident that he would succeed, it was only a matter of time. When he reached the border, he found that many of the elders on his level were already there and floated silently around Elder Austin and Elder Julia. Noah reached the group and waited for everyone to arrive, it didn''t take much before all the heroic cultivators that the Hive had deployed on the new continent gathered there. "This will be the area where we will build the devices, you must fend off any magical beast or plant that tries to near this part of the plain until the constructions and its defenses are completed." Elder Julia ordered and began to assign specific spots to each elder, and she even requested for Elder Morgan, Elder Laurel, and Elder Duke''s help. Linking the devices meant to absorb the "Breath" in the area to the teleportation matrix wasn''t an easy task, especially when the White woods could just increase the toxicity of the forest when they felt threatened. Even those rank 5 cultivators needed the help of experts in specific fields, and those three elders suited their needs. Then, she just dismissed everyone else, and Noah could begin to fly toward his assigned area. Chapter 564: 564. Time Noah didn''t mind the new assignment. He was used to training while he fought magical beasts, defending an area didn''t hinder the translation of the diagram at all. ''Thoughts for lines, wills for diagrams. Imitate the meaning of each line and link them to form a will that respects the effects of the spell. It''s just a matter of testing.'' Noah''s mind was focused entirely on the Warp spell while he casually slashed toward a rank 4 Saber-toothed tiger, his attack severed the creature in two even if he wasn''t using the secret art. Weeks had passed already since Elder Julia gave her orders, but the constructions of the devices seemed still in progress. However, Noah didn''t expect anything different. He knew that the devices had to be extraordinarily complex, and linking them to the teleportation matrix in the forest would take even more time, they couldn''t be ready so soon. ''I''m losing track of time more often¡­ I guess my concept of time is gradually adapting to the higher form of life that I''ve reached.'' Noah thought as he neared the maimed corpse of the tiger and calmly ripped off one of its legs before storing the rest in his space-ring. His hunger continued to increase as his body grew inside the upper tier of the fourth rank, and he felt that his mindset was constantly distancing itself from the notions that he used to have when he was only a human cultivator. He couldn''t help but notice that he was becoming indifferent to the passage of time, months could go by while he analyzed diagrams or created techniques, but he would barely notice them. ''Heroic cultivators are higher existences, but this doesn''t only concern the power that they hold, it also involves their mentality.'' Noah suddenly felt so distant from the feeling that he used to have when he was younger. He remembered the anxiety, the optimization of his training schedules, his constant efforts in trying so much to reach the next breakthrough. Now, instead, he felt calm. His eagerness and efforts were still there, but they had evolved into more mature feelings, into something fit for the higher entity that he had become. ''Maybe I feel in this way only because I know that I''m doing everything I can to improve already.'' That conclusion made sense in his mind. His body was improving at high speed, his dantian never stopped enlarging, and his mind could only benefit from the constant usage of the Divine deduction spell. The growth of all his centers of power wasn''t hindered in the slightest, and that made Noah feel delighted. Training his body and dantian almost took him no effort due to his cultivation technique and hybrid status, and he could just stare at the fifth Kesier rune whenever he ended one of his activities. ''I wonder how many years will it take for the next breakthrough. Five? Ten? Twenty?'' Noah didn''t know what the average time needed for the breakthroughs in the heroic ranks was, they mostly depended on the cultivator after all. Also, the pieces of information about other heroic cultivators were rare, especially when they involved their age. Cultivators would simply stop aging as long as their rank increased, Noah still appeared as a twenty years old man due to his fast growth, for example. ''These periods don''t feel that long though. I''m still eager to reach the next rank or stage, but I feel as if five years could pass in an instant if I just close my eyes.'' Noah''s mind wandered as he finished eating the limb of the tiger, only a few patches of blood remained on the corners of his mouth after the meal. ''Maybe I should just compress the corpses of some magical beasts in the upper tier in the form of small pills. Some of its nourishments would be lost in the process, but it would be far more comfortable to eat in battle. I need to find an alchemist.'' Noah thought when he inspected the huge pile of magical beasts'' corpses inside his space-ring. He preferred to eat them in the normal way since he had inherited the dragon''s tastes, but the amount of nourishment that he could obtain while he was fighting was limited. Yet, if he compressed an entire corpse into a small form, he could avoid munching pieces of magical beasts in battle and simply eat one of those pills when he was reaching his limits. Noah immediately contacted Elder Austin and expressed his needs, but he didn''t hope to receive an answer anytime soon, the elders in the fifth rank were quite busy after all. ''Oh, it''s done,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he sensed that a will rose from the sea inside his mental sphere. The inscriptions on the walls of his mind stopped shining, signaling that Noah had deactivated the Divine deduction technique, and the will slowly flew outside of the sea of consciousness only to appear in the outside world. ''This is the eighth already, I should have fixed all the issues concerning the harmonization of the meanings inside it.'' Noah evaluated in his mind before pouring "Breath" inside his half-transparent figure that floated right in front of his face. The will shone with a dark light as soon as the "Breath" fueled the meanings that it contained, and black flames began to appear over its surface. Noah intensely stared at the changes in the will, he saw how the flames quickly absorbed its ethereal figure before disappearing together with the dark light. Black flames reappeared at a few meters of distance, but nothing came out of it even after they dispersed in the air. Noah heaved a helpless sigh when he saw that, he knew that he had failed in the translation of the diagram once again. ''I really can''t seem to get this teleportation right. Well, I''m gaining experience in creating spells through wills at least.'' Noah thought before sitting on the ground and taking out the fifth Kesier rune from his space-ring. His consciousness didn''t sense any creature in the area that he was defending, and a lot of his mental energy had been expended to create that will, it was better to use the remaining one to improve his sea of consciousness. Once his mental energy was almost depleted, he simply waited for it to reform before activating the Divine deduction technique to analyze his mistakes. After he found some mistakes, he still relied on the Divine deduction technique to find solutions. In the end, he began the creation of another will without ever deactivating Divine Demon''s technique. Noah had specifically chosen that order in his experiments so that his mind would always be slightly better when he approached the creation of the following will. Of course, during all those procedures, he would still pay attention to his area and kill the magical beasts that tried to enter it, he couldn''t let anything affect the work of the elders on the border behind him. Chapter 565: 565. Basins Weeks continued to pass in which Noah became faster in solving the mistakes that kept on appearing in his wills. Countless experiments and constant analysis were bound to give results, Noah found himself completing the creation of each will in a matter of days during the last period. After all, he was just translating a diagram in his personal language, he wasn''t creating something from nothing. At some point though, he received another mental message from Elder Julia, who pressed him to return to the border between the forest and the azure plain. Noah didn''t hesitate and flew toward the forest of White woods as soon as the message ended. On his way back, he noticed that even the other rank 4 cultivators in the plain had been summoned, Noah saw a small group of powerful entities forming around him as he returned to the appointed location. The Hive had deployed less than twenty heroic cultivators on the piece of Immortal Lands, that number didn''t seem high, but it represented almost half of the entirety of the heroic assets of the archipelago. The elders that had joined the group on the new continent were either on the gaseous or liquid stage, the most powerful ones in the fourth rank were still in the archipelago to monitor the situation. Large basins became visible when the group reached the border of the plain. The basins were hundreds of meters large and less than a hundred meters deep, and Noah couldn''t help but sense a certain familiarity when he saw the terrain that made the surface of the vast holes. Then, the answer to that sensation came from the memories that he had inherited from the Excavating worm. ''This is the same terrain of the Bare Dungeon! It will transform into Obsidian Credits if enough "Breath" is poured inside it!'' Noah thought when he reviewed the images of the Bloodline inheritance. "You are all here, good, we can start then." Elder Julia appeared over the basins as her words resounded in the air, Elder Austin and the three experts in formations and magical plants were behind her and remained silent as she kept on speaking. "There are ten basins along this border, and they are all linked to the teleportation matrix inside the forest. Formations also cover their surface, and we have already deployed many defenses in the surrounding area. These devices and the defenses will become self-sufficient once enough "Breath" is gathered inside them, but we expect that magical beasts will try to storm this area once they sense the activation." The elders released amazed gasps when they heard her words and shot gazes to the basins that covered the border. The meaning behind Elder Julia''s explanation was clear, they needed to defend the devices until their activation was completed. "Choose a basin and defend it, Elder Austin will intervene if the number of magical beasts is too high or if something in the fifth rank appears. Go, and remember that the Hive might go bankrupt if you fail." The elders showed stern expressions when they heard the last phrase and immediately picked a basin to defend, Noah took the central one and found Elder Jason standing proudly next to him. No more words were spoken, silence reigned over the area as everyone focused on defending against the incoming tide of creatures. Elder Julia nodded when she saw the resolve pictured on the elders'' faces and landed on the spot before the basins to pour "Breath" in what seemed one of the cores of the formation. Lines lit up under her and spread in the area, it didn''t take much before their brilliance covered all the basins. Lines also spread toward the forest, a sort of humming sound resounded from the white crowns of the magical plants as the formation under them activated. Noah was the first one to sense that something was changing in the air around him. His mind was susceptible to the variations in the "Breath", he was a hybrid after all, that feature was part of his instincts. He sensed that the "Breath" around him was moving toward the basins as if attracted by the terrain that made their surface, its density in the air immediately decreased as the process continued. The terrain in the basins began to shine along with the lines of the formations around them, crystals began to appear at their bases as the "Breath" gathered there. ''I think I understand now.'' Noah thought when he stared at the shining holes. ''The formations enhance the innate absorbing capabilities of that terrain, forcing it to accumulate enough "Breath" to transform into Obsidian Credits. Yet, I believe that this is just part of the mechanism.'' Noah continued to stare at the basins with interest. His inscription method was somewhat limited compared to the formations field, he wouldn''t give up on the chance to observe how it worked. The surface of the basins soon completely transformed into Obsidian Credits, but the absorption of "Breath" didn''t stop. Shining drops began to appear over the crystals, they accumulated at high speed and soon became shining water that kept on filling those vast holes. The basins transformed into shining lakes right under Noah''s amazed gaze. At that point, he understood the reason why Elder Julia was so concerned about the magical beasts'' attack. His hunger seemed to explode when he stared at that shimmering water, he felt the urge to dive in it and claim that area as his. Then, roars reached his ears. Noah turned only to see that smoke filled the horizon, and he instinctively wielded his sabers when he understood the cause behind that event. Heavy footsteps soon resounded in the area, the ground trembled as if unable to endure the charge of so many magical beasts. ''More than a hundred of them, all in the fourth rank.'' Noah''s eyes sharpened when he evaluated the power behind the incoming tide, and he didn''t hesitate to cast the Dark blast spell to begin the accumulation of energies as soon as possible. His companions imitated his actions, they also prepared their attacks and defenses when they realized the event that they had set off. After all, they were less than twenty, and that was only the first tide formed by the magical beasts closest to their position, there were bound to be more of them as the "Breath" kept on gathering behind them. Yet, two huge fiery snakes flew over the elders'' heads and crashed on the incoming tide, unleashing deadly flames that burned to death most of those beasts. The rank 4 cultivators raised their heads to the sky only to see that Elder Austin was floating in the air above them and that a rare seriousness could be seen in his expression. "The first one is free, you can handle the next." Chapter 566: 566. Dome The elders shot grateful gazes toward Elder Austin, but Noah and a few others could understand the reason behind his action. Rank 4 magical beasts weren''t threatening for those lofty entities, the problem was their sheer number. Dealing with more than a hundred magical beasts at the same time with ten basins to defend and less than twenty rank 4 cultivators was quite problematic. Noah knew that those creatures would recklessly pounce the lakes made of "Breath", he was tempted to do the same after all. The amount of "Breath" contained in all the basins could be compared to that inside the bodies of many rank 5 creatures. The most appealing part though was that so much energy was harmless! Anyone with enough power could just reach out and drink the shining water accumulated on the formations, the only threat in the area was the cultivators defending it. Noah didn''t know the specifics behind the formations, but Elder Julia seemed quite serious when she explained the plan, so he could guess that they had to prevent anything from interfering with the basins. ''The situation must be quite delicate for Elder Austin to intervene, it seems that not even a magical beast must be allowed to pass.'' Noah thought while he focused on the horizon. He felt hungry beyond any limit, but his mind didn''t falter and remained focused on the task. Other packs of magical beasts appeared in the distance, they completely disregarded the charred corpses of the creatures of the first tide and charged at high speed toward the shining lakes. Yet, there were only fifty or so creatures at that time, with only a handful of them in the upper tier. They were mostly Saber-toothed tigers, but even a few ape-type magical beasts could be seen among those packs. The elders didn''t wait to see if Elder Austin would intervene again, those of them having long-range attacks at their disposal began their offensive. Bullets, spears, and slashes of various elements crashed on the sparse group of beasts, killing almost all of them in the impact. However, a few of them managed to survive and continued their reckless charge, even those that had only been injured struggled to keep advancing. Noah slashed without hesitation when those creatures entered in his range, and his companions did the same, the beasts were soon defeated, and no problems occurred. More magical beasts appeared on the horizon, all the creatures on the plain and those that inhabited the lands nearby felt instinctively attracted by the basins and migrated as soon as they sensed them. Yet, now that the closest creatures to the border had died, only sparse packs and solitary powerful beasts neared the elders in the air. Noah and the others unleashed another wave of attacks and vanquished those creatures, but more beasts appeared once again in the distance. Hours passed with the rank 4 cultivators of the Hive continuously dealing with the seemingly endless magical beasts that tried to reach for the shining lakes behind them. Even the creatures that inhabited the nearby territories made their way through the plain and pounced the elders. Noah saw the Poisonous frogs that inhabited the area with the toxic rivers, the Giant sandworms from the desert, and even the octopuses living in the lake next to the forest of White woods. Nothing seemed able to stop the hunger of those creatures, but the elders didn''t falter and continued to launch attacks to fend off the beasts. Eventually, an entire day passed, but magical beasts kept on coming. Noah stared at the lakes behind him while he launched a few slashes toward a rank 4 Giant sandworm. The lines of the formations kept on spreading on the terrain under him, the shining lakes fueled them and redirected the "Breath" toward the defenses previously deployed by Elder Julia and the others. ''This should be almost over.'' Noah thought when he saw that the lines of the formation were surpassing their position and encircling an area that spread in front of him, he knew that the process was almost over. Then, a sandstorm filled the sky in the south. Noah felt a huge threat coming from that direction and knew that the only being that could cause it was the rank 5 sandworm that ruled over the desert. The massive figure of the rank 5 Giant sandworm appeared in the distance, it resembled a small mountain that crawled toward the azure plain and destroyed everything in its path. Elder Austin shot toward it without speaking any word, he knew that it was up to him to handle the situation. A fiery hydra appeared in the air and clashed toward the beast, shockwaves spread through the plain and cracked the ground around the battle between the two massive figures. Elder Austin showed his perfect control over the spell as he kept the Giant sandworm away from the area filled by the formations. Pillars of flames and screeches filled the battlefield in the southern side of the plain, Noah did his best to keep part of his focus on the two rank 5 beings, but most of it was still on the creatures that kept on charging toward the shining lakes. Even the appearance of a rank 5 magical beasts didn''t stop their charge, their hunger had completely taken over their minds. Yet, at some point, a change finally happened in the formations. A thick shining line appeared on the terrain in front of the elders and separated the forest and the area with the basins from the rest of the azure plain. The line encircled an area a few thousand kilometers wide before projecting its light in the air, an ethereal wall formed and covered part of the sky, creating something similar to an invisible dome. The dome covered the shining lakes and part of the forest of White woods in its range, and the group from the Hive could immediately notice its effects. The magical beasts still lingering near the blockade stopped their charge and showed confused expressions when they looked toward the forest, it was as if they had lost their target. Even the rank 5 sandworm stopped attacking, Elder Austin patiently waited for its reaction before making his next move. Then, the Giant sandworm suddenly left and returned to the desert, and the magical beasts near the dome began to fight each other for the corpses lingering in the area. It took Elder Julia''s voice to awaken the elders from their amazement. "Clean this mess and recover the corpses, the formation and its defenses are finally complete. Now, the Hive can colonize the piece of Immortal Lands." Chapter 567: 567. Growth The dome created by the formations didn''t just have the ability to hide the shining lakes. Elder Julia took her time to explain the features of the formations after the battlefield was cleaned, and the corpses of the magical beasts were stored. The basins were an extremely efficient device that became self-sufficient once they were activated entirely. The formations activated the innate capabilities of the terrain that made the surface of the basins and initiated the accumulation of "Breath", which was then stored in the form of shining water. Yet, the accumulation didn''t stop when the basins were full. Elder Julia and the other experts had made many tests and calculations to find a balance between the expenditure of "Breath" and its accumulation so that the basins could function continuously without incurring in an overflow. Even the copying technique though wouldn''t be enough to deplete that considerable amount of "Breath" and bring balance to the device, not by copying rank 4 magical beasts at least. The Hive couldn''t possibly copy rank 5 magical beasts just to expend energy, it would be a complete waste. So, the elders decided to link other formations with different purposes to the basins. Those formations would gather their power to create the ethereal dome that covered the shimmering lakes, and that delimited an area habitable by human cultivators. The dome could stop the senses of the magical beasts and plants and even the consciousnesses of weaker cultivators, but it also featured many defensive mechanisms. According to Elder Julia''s estimation, the dome would be able to defend against the attacks of rank 5 cultivators and even send part of their power back, it was basically a sturdy shield. Of course, the cultivators of the Hive could easily cross the shield, but rank 5 elders could take control of it in dangerous situations and prevent access to anyone. ''This is indeed fit for human cultivators. I guess this area will become crowded quite soon.'' Noah thought when he analyzed the density of "Breath" inside the dome. He could clearly sense that the area would be perfect for cultivators in the third rank, the only issue was the lack of buildings where to live. ''Well, I would have trained here anyway back then, I still do.'' Noah smiled internally when he saw the vast azure plain and turned his gaze toward the shining lakes in the distance. He could still feel his hunger screaming to reach them and drink their water, but Elder Julia had emphasized many times that the basins didn''t have to be affected in the slightest. Apparently, even the tiniest change in the balance between the absorbed and depleted "Breath" could cause a chain reaction that would make the formations around them fall apart. Noah could only give up on the shining water after he understood that aspect of the devices, and he turned to leave in the direction of the lava lake. He couldn''t concentrate with the hunger assailing his mind, and he needed to focus on completing the translation of the diagram of the Warp spell, he desperately wanted to improve his battle prowess after all. His task in the azure plain was over, and Elder Julia didn''t mention him when she assigned other missions, meaning that he could focus on himself for now. It was evident in his mind that the Hive had just begun its exponential growth since it had finally covered all the areas where it was lacking. Human cultivators kept on migrating toward the archipelago, filling the Hive with manpower and promising soldiers. Many training areas had also been created in the archipelago thanks to the shining lakes, the Hive was now forced to create copies of rank 4 magical beasts to balance the absorption of "Breath" and could train all those inexperienced assets that reached its shores. The Hive had also taken control over the southwestern coast of the piece of Immortal Lands, gaining lands that heroic cultivators could use to train and meditate. Some of those lands would eventually become sources of income, the elders mentioned by Elder Julia were tasked to analyze and write down the growth of Azure Credits so that she could decide the quantity to reap. The cultivators with a fire aptitude had even gained a land containing traces left by divine beings, it wouldn''t be surprising if many experts with that element were to appear in the next years. In the end, with the ethereal dome, the Hive had obtained an area habitable by human cultivators. Not only the colonization could finally start due to that achievement, but the issue of the overcrowded islands would be solved once cities were built in that safe area. Noah could imagine that the scenery inside the dome would drastically change in the next months, but he didn''t really care, he was too distant from the matters that concerned human cultivators now. That was why he decided to simply go away and leave those matters to Elder Julia, there was too much to do about his personal power. Noah flew toward the lava lake, but he didn''t stop there, his destination was the area inhabited by ape-type magical beasts after the rocky wasteland. He knew that the next target of the Hive would be that land, it couldn''t be satisfied with just a few thousand kilometers of habitable terrain. So, he thought that he could begin to lower the population of magical beasts while he trained, he needed to feed his body after all. ''The next step of the Hive will be the colonization of this area. Yet, it''s pointless to create other basins now since a balance has already been reached. We must wait for Chasing Demon to return so that he can lay the copying technique on the new continent and on the territory in our possession in the area of influence of the Empire. Only then the Hive will be able to create more training areas and more basins.'' Noah summarized in his mind while he landed among the sparse vegetation of that area. The inscriptions on the walls of his sea of consciousness activated and consumed mental energy to assemble meanings in an intricate layout, he had resumed the translation of the diagram of the Warp spell without hesitation. Chapter 568: 568. Group Noah didn''t choose that location just because it would be the Hive''s next target. The lava lake was nearby, he could just go there whenever he felt like meditating. He didn''t have a fire aptitude, but the lake contained traces left by divine beings, they could still help him gain some insights. Noah didn''t know how much time passed after he went into the new territory. Weeks would pass without him even noticing, it was as if his mind couldn''t perceive them in the same way as before. Only the translation of the diagram of the Warp spell occupied his thoughts, his battles against the ape-type magical beasts were something that he did by instinct. The fauna in that land though was different from that of the azure plain. Part of the mountain chain that stretched toward the center of the new continent and the snowy mountain were quite close, which meant that strong creatures could randomly appear in that seemingly safe territory. That would force an ordinary cultivator to be constantly wary of its surroundings, but Noah was different, he could just rely on his instincts to understand the safety of the area around him. The translation went well most of the time, but there always seemed to be something that stopped his wills from working. Even when he felt that the translation was completed, the spell didn''t work as intended, it was clear that something was missing. His wills would produce the black flames and begin the teleportation, but they always came out damaged and broken. ''It''s as if the world itself doesn''t want it to work.'' Noah thought when another of his wills failed to execute the teleportation. He could see how the "Breath" in the air resisted the effects of his wills and affected the teleportation, he couldn''t help but feel that Heaven and Earth didn''t want him to succeed. ''This should have some similarities to when I created hybrids, which means that I have to force the effects that I want on the world.'' Noah realized that when he pondered over the matter. Heaven had been against the birth of a hybrid, so it could also be against spells that had a foreign origin. ''I see, it has always been impossible to translate the language of Heaven and Earth completely. I''ve always needed to modify it to make it work in a world that doesn''t follow my laws.'' The problem was simple: The diagram of the Warp spell used the laws of Heaven and Earth to work, but Noah was a being wholly separated from them. His creations would obviously face some sort of resistance when they tried to apply their effects on the world of Heaven and Earth, there was a reason why Noah couldn''t understand their language after all. ''That''s why it took me so much to create a cultivation technique, I was able to forge the Black hole technique only when I imbued it with my hunger. The same goes for my sabers and my body, I could forge them only when I''ve managed to imbue a strong will in them.'' The situation became clearer inside Noah''s mind. Why was it so hard to create personal techniques, methods, and spells? Why wasn''t every cultivator creating its own path? Noah had always believed that it was just a matter of complexity, his achievements could be linked to the Divine deduction technique or his initial advantage with the sea of consciousness after all. Yet, that last realization led him to believe that there was a deeper issue to the matter. ''To create something able to show its effects on the world, a cultivator must have a will able to force its way through the "Breath" under Heaven and Earth''s domain. So, I need to modify my wills before they can work outside my mind.'' As soon as he found the cause of his problem, he began to work on a solution. Noah continued to spend his time testing wills and fighting the magical beasts in the area after the rocky wasteland. He would also occasionally meditate near the lava lake, he didn''t stop exploring the depths of his individuality because he was busy with another matter. He would always find Elder Austin next to the lake, and even the other elders with a fire aptitude could be often seen near the area. The faces of his companions were quite relaxed, the Hive was at peace after all, and was experiencing a period of stable and unhindered growth. Their job now was to raise their power and become even more valuable assets, any other expansion project had to wait for Chasing Demon''s return. Noah found it hard to contact Elder Austin and Elder Julia in that period. Not only was his mind mostly occupied by thoughts about the Warp spell, but even those elders were busy with their matters. Elder Austin seemed glued to the lava lake and didn''t interact with anyone. At the same time, Elder Julia managed the habitable area in the azure plain and oversaw the construction of the city there. Also, she added layers of defenses around the dome and made sure that the shining lakes worked as intended. Human cultivators from the Coral archipelago had even begun to migrate to the new continent to make room for the other human assets reaching for the islands. Of course, only rank 3 cultivators with an excellent battle prowess would be allowed to travel to the new continent, the Hive used the relocation as a form of reward. All those events occurred without problems, every nation was focusing on itself since the pact between the rank 6 beings enforced peace. Yet, something was bound to happen as the Hive grew stronger. It happened on a seemingly random day, Noah was casually eating the arm of an ape-type magical beast while he laid on the branch of a tree when he sensed a few strong presences coming from the snowy mountain. He first thought that they were magical beasts attempting to invade that territory, but he soon found out that those presences were, in fact, cultivators. Noah flew in the air to understand the identity of those invaders, but a surprised expression appeared on his face when he saw that there were even human cultivators in that group. There was some sort of barrier that surrounded the group and allowed those human cultivators to breathe. Noah''s gaze went to the head of the group to try to understand its origin. He saw a slender young-looking man with short silver hair in the lead, followed by a tall, middle-aged man that resembled him and by a cultivator that had its face hidden. Human cultivators followed behind the three of them, they weren''t really walking but merely being transported inside the barrier. Then, Noah was surprised once again when he saw the emblem embroidered on the robes of those cultivators, he could clearly recognize the symbol of the Udye family when he saw it. Chapter 569: 569. Meeting Noah recognized the young-looking man and the emblem embroidered on the group''s robes. ''Daniel Udye.'' That name appeared in his mind as he kept on watching the group from above. ''This isn''t an invasion, it''s an envoy.'' Noah picked his inscribed notebook when he realized that and sent a simple mental message to the two rank 5 elders in charge of those territories. "We have guests." There was no reason to say anything else because he would greet them himself. Noah began his descent toward the group, but he stopped midway when he remembered that he had lived like a beast for the last period. ''This is an official meeting, I should at least try to appear presentable.'' Noah threw away the torn robe that he was wearing as he thought that and used his mental waves to clean his body. The thick mental waves of a rank 4 mage were able to affect the material world, all the dirt that had accumulated on Noah in the last period was removed from him. ''I''m not exactly clean, but I won''t resemble a magical beast, at least.'' Noah sighed as he took a clean robe from his space-ring and quickly wore it, he really wasn''t prepared for that event. Then, he continued his descent. The group suddenly stopped moving, and the human cultivators in it shot confused gazes to the three figures in their lead before a dark shape entered their field of view. ''Three heroic cultivators, well, almost three.'' Noah thought when he reached the group. ''The middle-aged man should be Daniel''s father, and he is in the solid stage of the fourth rank. The woman with her face covered is in the liquid stage, but she doesn''t seem part of the family. Daniel is in the gaseous stage of the fourth rank, but¡­'' Noah had stopped in the air right above the group to analyze its power, his gaze moved between the three figures in the heroic ranks and lingered for some moments on Daniel. ''He isn''t a rank 4 mage yet, he isn''t a complete heroic cultivator.'' Noah didn''t know how he felt when he understood Daniel''s level. He clearly remembered that his power matched Daniel''s back in the Bare Dungeon, but many things had changed in those years. Daniel, instead, felt an overwhelming sense of defeat. He was older than Noah and had the full support of one of the strongest large-size noble families. Yet, his achievements paled in front of the young-looking cultivator floating above his head. "This territory belongs to the Hive, you have trespassed our borders. Do you mind explaining the purpose of your journey?" In the end, Noah gave voice to those words. He didn''t care much about the past, he had simply used Daniel and his connection to the Cause to escape the Utra nation back then. Yet, the two of them had never been in any form of friendly relationship. Noah only needed him to gain time for his escape, and Daniel''s purposes were linked to the Cause, he needed a cultivator with a darkness aptitude to raise his status inside his family. "Greetings, Demon Prince, I am Ian Udye, I believe that you and my son Daniel know each other. We have traveled a long distance for the chance to be received by the higher-ups of the Hive. Would you mind showing us the way?" Ian spoke polite words, but Noah''s gaze didn''t falter, he continued to radiate a cold pressure as he stared at the group. "Yes, I do mind. Purpose of your journey?" Noah repeated his question. He knew the power behind his status far too well. The force in front of him belonged to a large-size noble family, and it couldn''t compare to the power of the entirety of the Hive. He could act as overbearing as he wanted, and he felt that approach to be the best one. That was a delicate period for the Hive, troubles had to be avoided at all costs to ensure its growth. Daniel opened his mouth and was about to speak, but the woman next to him placed a hand over his shoulder to stop him. She was Octavia, Daniel''s personal guard, and she couldn''t let him do something so stupid like being impolite to one of the most important figures of an enemy force. On the other hand, Ian kept his calm and continued to speak politely to Noah. "We only want to have a friendly meeting. The four nations have sealed a pact, but most of the smaller powers have been ignored in that agreement. We believe that both the Udye family and the Hive can benefit from cooperation." Noah remained expressionless, but he knew that Ian had made a good point. The Utra nation was considered the most advanced country when it came to inscribed items and other fields of the cultivation area. Its political system and the academy allowed the birth of many experts every year, and innovative devices were produced along with them. The air-ships were just one of the most striking creations, but the Elbas family didn''t limit itself to the promotion of inscribed items. Alchemy, formations, runes, inscriptions, diagrams, forms, the Utra nation was advanced in all those fields! "It''s ok, Prince, they have contacted us beforehand." A voice resounded behind Noah, and he was suddenly able to sense that Elder Julia had appeared behind him while he was thinking. "I guess you can handle them, Elder Julia." Noah nodded at her after he spoke those words and was about to return to the ground below when he felt her hand over his shoulder. Then, he felt a mental message reaching his consciousness. "I need you to lead them to the azure plain and show the actual strength of the Hive. We need to make them understand how powerful we are to obtain a better deal." Elder Julia''s words resounded in his mind, but Noah promptly complained through another mental message directed to her consciousness. "Can''t Jason do it? I''m in the middle of something, and I''m not exactly polite with nobles." However, his words did not affect Elder Julia, who quickly sealed the matter with her next phrase. "You are the pride of the Hive, you are the only one who can show how capable we are. Also, weren''t you looking for an alchemist? The best ones are in the Utra nation and Papral nation, but I don''t think that the latter would contact us for the time being. We must settle for a noble family!" Noah could only sigh when he heard those words and watched Elder Julia disappearing right in front of his eyes. Ian and Octavia could clearly understand that Elder Julia was a cultivator in the fifth rank, and they were stupefied when they saw Noah calmly conversing with her through his mind. They quickly realized that Noah''s position was even higher than they expected. Yet, Noah was quite annoyed by that matter and ignored the gazes on him as he gave voice to a few words. "Let''s go, we will take the long route." Chapter 570: 570. Banque Noah led the group from the Udye family across the southwestern coast. Ian had to lift the barrier around them high in the sky when the flew over the lava lake, the heat in the area would just seep through it and kill all the human cultivators in an instant. Elder Austin interrupted his cultivation when he saw Noah and rose in the sky to speak a few words to him. Apparently, he was the one who had the idea of using a noble family to obtain the advanced devices of the Utra nation. The sects of the Papral nation couldn''t seal a pact with the Hive, its patriarch was the leader of one of the eleven unorthodox sects that had been exiled in the past after all. The Council and the Elbas family were too busy with their territories in the new continent to care about a small force like the Hive, so only the noble families were left as an option. The best choice among them was obviously the Udye family. Not only was it one of the most potent large-size noble families, but it also was one of the reasons behind the Cause. The Elbas family would neglect noble families that sided with the Cause and give part of the resources obtained in the new continent only to the loyal ones. That led to a situation where the families siding with the Cause were forced to look for external help so that their power wouldn''t stagnate. ''They could have just told me. Well, the Udye family is perfect, and it''s already here, I might as well end this matter as fast as I can and continue to create wills.'' Noah sighed inside his mind as he thought that. He had never liked being interrupted when he was in the middle of his training, but his position brought duties along with benefits. He was quite annoyed, and that feeling was further fueled by Daniel''s gaze, which was fixed on his back. Noah flew without turning his back, he didn''t care if Ian was forced to move the barrier to avoid the heatwaves, he couldn''t be bothered to adapt to his problems. They soon reached the desert, and Noah purposely flew over the area where the rank 5 sandworm rested. Some of the human cultivators inside the barrier directly fainted when they heard the creature''s screech, but they were too high in the sky, the sandworm wasn''t able to reach them. Noah led the group over the land filled by poisonous rivers only to reach for the forest of White woods where he turned toward the east. The ethereal dome was hidden entirely even to his eyes, Noah could only see the vast azure plain stretching as soon as the forest ended. It was at that point that Elder Julia appeared again and waved her hand to perform a spell. Winds blew over the surface of the barrier that covered the group from the Udye family, and a thick layer of compressed air soon surrounded it. The layer blocked the vision of the cultivators inside it and was also able to contain the consciousnesses of the two rank 4 mages in the group. Elder Julia then waved her hand again, and the oval layer descended toward the plain before disappearing when it crossed an invisible barrier. Noah understood that they had entered inside the area habitable by human cultivators, but his mind was on something that didn''t concern the meeting. "Can I return to my training now?" Noah asked Elder Julia, but the latter simply shook her head before speaking a few words. "No, the Hive needs you at the meeting, you represent the new generations after all! Remember to change yourself before the banquet." ''Banquet?'' Noah was surprised by the turn of events and was about to ask more about that matter, but Elder Julia just vanished once again. He could only heave a loud sigh before diving toward the ground. His vision changed when he crossed the barrier of the invisible dome. Tall buildings appeared in his view, a small city had been built in that area in those months. Also, he could see small groups of rank 3 cultivators walking through the street, he couldn''t help but realize how the human assets of the Hive had grown in the past years. Noah looked in the distance, toward the area with the shining lakes, but he was only able to see that a tall defensive wall had been erected in front of them. ''A lot has changed while I trained, the life of the mortals seems so fast.'' He thought when he saw how his old home had been transformed into something entirely different. It didn''t take much for him to find where he was supposed to go, he only needed to follow the presences of the heroic cultivators under the dome. Noah landed on top of a large building that stood at the center of the city and found Elder Duke waiting for him. Elder Duke notified him that a bath and new robes had been prepared on the floors below, so Noah didn''t find any reason to waste time. The way he saw it, the sooner the banquet began, the sooner it would end. Not even an hour later, he found himself in a large hall that featured many long tables. Delicacies and fine wines filled the surface of the tables, and both human and heroic cultivators were seated next to them. Of course, the order of the seats followed the rank of the cultivators. Elder Julia, Noah, and Elder Duke sat on one side and faced Ian, Octavia, and Daniel. In contrast, the other human cultivators sat at some distance from that group of powerful entities. Noah ate in silence and enjoyed the excellent wine that was served on the table, but Daniel kept his eyes on him for the whole time. Meanwhile, Elder Duke entertained the guests with a long speech about the features of the piece of Immortal Lands, he seemed the appointed mediator for that meeting. The banquet ended after a few hours in which Noah never stopped eating and drinking. The Hive was serving cooked magical beasts'' meat after all, he preferred it raw, but he wouldn''t waste such a nourishing meal just for his tastes. Then, the human cultivators left the room, and large sofas and praying mats replaced the tables. Even the remaining food was taken away with a gesture of Elder Julia''s hand, and only the wine remained between them. "You are free to begin with your requests, did you find something interesting in our territories?" Elder Duke spoke as he turned toward Ian. Elder Julia was a rank 5 cultivator, she was there only as a show of power, and Noah simply didn''t care, he only wanted to finish the translation of the Warp spell. "There is something that I wanted to ask before proceeding with the meeting." Daniel spoke, surprising Elder Duke who thought that it would have been Ian the one to lead their side of the conversation. "Noah Balvan, did you kill Phoebe and Manuel back in the Bare Dungeon?" Chapter 571: 571. Debate Noah was silently sipping his wine when he heard that question. Daniel''s words surprised him, he didn''t expect to be questioned about matters that had happened almost twenty years ago. "Yes." In the end, he answered honestly. He had decided to stop hiding, denying his deeds would only go against his individuality. "Why?" Daniel asked, and his eyes sharpened. He didn''t expect Noah to reveal the truth so quickly, killing heirs of large-size noble families wasn''t a small matter after all. "They were in my way, so I killed them." A simple answer came out of Noah''s mouth. He was being honest, he had never hesitated in killing whoever stood in his path, and he had never felt guilty about it. Power stood above notions of good and evil in his mind, and being weak would always put you on the wrong side. Daniel couldn''t bear the sight of Noah speaking about the death of his companions so casually, anger filled his mind and took control of his next words. "Is there really nothing that matters to you? Does life have no value in your mind? Are you really the monster described in the reports!?" Daniel shouted as he gave voice to those words, and a series of gazes went on Noah. That was a discussion between heroic cultivators, every trait of someone''s personality could show something about its individuality. Noah felt the stares on him and the emotions behind them. There was anger, curiosity, surprise, and also anticipation. However, Noah felt only annoyed by that situation. His training had been interrupted by political obligations, the same obligations that had forced him to let Adrian go. It was as if the world tried to remind him that he wasn''t strong enough to ignore all those matters that had no value in his mind. Noah placed the cup that he was holding on the ground and fixed his reptilian eyes on Daniel before speaking in a tone that resembled a growl. "Who do you think you are?" At that moment, Daniel could clearly feel the immense difference in their power. He felt those vertical pupils piercing his skin and reaching for his internal organs, it was as if his life was completely exposed to Noah. Also, sweat ran down his forehead since he had to focus on fending off the pressure radiated by Noah''s stare. "I could kill you with one thought, how can you have any right to accuse me?" Noah continued to speak, venting part of the anger that he felt toward that society that kept on interrupting his growth. "Do you think you are my equal just because we share a rare element? You are delusional!" Ian seemed about to interrupt the conversation, but he suddenly felt an enormous pressure stopping his movements, he could only turn his head toward the origin of that feeling. "The Demon Prince of the Hive is speaking." Elder Julia murmured those words, and Ian understood that he couldn''t intervene. It was Daniel''s fault after all, he shouldn''t have provoked a heroic cultivator while being only a rank 3 mage. "You nobles are all the same. Your families give you power, techniques, resources, and a lofty status, but you always forget that all of that isn''t part of your strength. My eyes can only see a void man who has deluded himself into believing that his borrowed power belongs to him! You are nothing without your family." Noah''s words were sharper than swords, they stabbed Daniel''s pride and continued to injure his belief. "Y-you are the same! What would be of you without the Hive behind your back? You would still be running for your life, doing the dirty work for some organization to obtain some quick gains before hitting the road again!" Daniel had to use all his concentration to stutter those words, he wasn''t ready to accept Noah''s view as the truth. Then, to his surprise, he felt the pressure that was pressing on his mind disappear. He raised a confused gaze toward Noah only to see that a slight smile had appeared on his face. "I see, your birthright made you blind." Noah''s words resounded in the hall, and Daniel felt chills running down his spine. "You have misunderstood, I didn''t reach this rank because the Hive has my back. Instead, it is the Hive that wouldn''t be here if I hadn''t appeared." Shocking words came out of his mouth, and Elder Julia''s nod further surprised the guests. Noah was speaking the truth. Divine Demon''s inheritance would have fallen in the hands of an orthodox organization if it wasn''t for him. The Coral archipelago would have never claimed its independence without the copying technique, not so easily at least. Without independence, there would be no Hive. One of the underground organizations of the archipelago became the strongest country after the three big nations, and that fantastic growth was connected to Noah''s appearance. Noah had dispersed his pressure because he had realized that he was already too far away from Daniel. He was a dragon, and Daniel was just a promising noble, why would he even care about his words? Daniel was speechless, he couldn''t believe that a rank 5 cultivator had actually agreed with Noah''s statement. In his mind, something like that was simply impossible! After all, Noah was only a rank 2 cultivator when he reached the archipelago, how could his arrival influence its growth? However, his amazement was interrupted since Noah began to speak again. "You are right about the murder of those two nobles, my actions were evil and ruthless." Noah wasn''t lying, he clearly remembered the events in the Bare Dungeon. His decision to kill Phoebe and Manuel came from the need to lower the threats in Daniel''s group so that he could exploit that situation more easily. "However, being right doesn''t give you any power. Only power can give you power, and you simply don''t have it." Noah raised his hand and stretched his index to point at Daniel when he finished that phrase. His eyes began to exude a suffocating pressure again, but Daniel felt that it was somewhat different from before. There was cold anger before, but now Noah''s pressure was calm and seemingly inevitable. Daniel didn''t feel that he was the target of that pressure, but he still realized that it could be destroyed in an instant. That made him feel worse than before because he understood that Noah could kill him without even focusing on him. Noah''s words resounded once again in the hall while his mind experienced all those emotions. "Answer me. Who would save you if I was to attack now? Would it be your power or your family?" Chapter 572: 572. Corpses Daniel couldn''t find the strength to answer Noah. What demoralized him even more was that he couldn''t turn that question toward Noah. He had watched his battle against Amos, he knew that Noah could defend against the attack of a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage, not even his father could kill him in one strike. Daniel could only lower his head. His mind was a mess, he was beginning to question the very reason why he had come there. He had always known that Noah was strong, his battle against Adrian had proved that. Yet, he believed that he could still be Noah''s match sooner or later, or at least a worthy rival. After all, he was only forty, but his dantian was already in the fourth rank. That achievement made him a genius in the cultivation world, but Noah was even above that title. His belief was incredibly distant from the truth. Daniel suddenly began to feel unworthy of seating among complete heroic cultivators. Noah''s words resounded in his mind, he realized that he was sitting there due to his position inside the Udye family and not thanks to his personal power. Everything that Noah had said was true. ''I might have helped him.'' Noah thought as he moved his gaze toward Ian while picking his cup from the mat. He knew that shattering someone''s belief could lead to two very different results: The person could either fall apart, unable to stand up anymore, or use that experience to solidify its individuality. ''It seems that I can''t help but spread my influence when I don''t hide. Maybe, the chaos that I radiate will eventually destabilize Heaven and Earth. Is this akin to plant seeds fueled by my intrinsic mistake? Is this a form of creation?'' Noah''s mind wandered while he analyzed the influences that his individuality had on the world around him. ''An individuality absorbs laws to become a law with no connections to Heaven and Earth. Are these effects part of the law that I will become?'' The banquet became far more enjoyable now that Noah had managed to enter a meditative state. The other cultivators on the couches couldn''t see that event, but Elder Julia''s eyes sparkled for an instant when she saw his expression. Octavia was too focused on Daniel''s mental state to care about her surroundings, and Ian had an unsightly expression on his face. That discussion had proved that the Hive had the best prodigy, Daniel wasn''t even close to Noah''s level nor mindset. "I think we can start the negotiations." Elder Duke stepped in to disperse that awkward atmosphere, the Hive had yet to seal a pact with the Udye family after all. However, Noah''s performance had set the foundation for a good deal, it was now evident that the Hive completely overpowered those nobles. Elder Duke and Ian began to discuss the details of a possible agreement. They first listed the resources that interested them. Elder Duke explained how everything that didn''t concern the formations field could be useful to the Hive, and Ian expressed his interest in the soil of the azure plain. Their conversation then became more specific, involving even manuals for certain inscription methods and magical plants. The Hive wanted to nurture experts and become self-sufficient, but it lacked the basics in many fields. Its only way to create something similar to the academy was to purchase tomes and scrolls that taught those methods. The Udye family, instead, was interested in increasing its wealth. The White woods and the Azure Credits could become a reliable source of income if the nobles managed to make those plants grow in the old continent. Obtaining those magical plants was a way out of the monopoly of the Elbas family over the resources of the new continent, which would allow the nobles loyal to the Cause to grow stronger without the help of the Royals. Noah had even the time to express his request. Ian found the task of condensing an entire rank 4 magical beast in the upper tier into a small pill quite peculiar, but he didn''t dare to express his opinion about the matter. Instead, it was Daniel the one who answered Noah. "The process won''t result in the same amount of "Breath", some of that energy will be lost when compressing something so big." Noah turned his head toward Daniel, he couldn''t help but be surprised when he heard him speak. ''I did help him.'' Noah thought when he looked at him. Daniel looked pale, but there seemed to be a peculiar light in his eyes, it was as if he was in the process of realizing something important. "That''s fine too." Noah shortly answered. "Before you accept, you must know that I''m the best in my family when it comes to alchemy. Are you sure that you want to give the task to me?" The meaning behind his question was clear. As an alchemist, it would be easy for Daniel to taint the pills with toxic substances or similar. However, Noah''s answer left him completely stunned. "Well, there would be no point in this deal if you are willing to spoil the only power that belongs solely to you just to hurt me. I don''t trust you, but I don''t have many choices, I never had." Noah''s answer stunned Daniel. There was recognition in his words, something that Daniel didn''t expect to receive after their previous conversation. The banquet ended after Noah''s words, all the other details had already been discussed previously, and it was only a matter to create an oath now. Elder Julia and the others left the room, but Noah remained in the hall to think. The flavor of the wine brought back happy memories. It reminded him of his cohabitation with June, of Ivor, and his life in the academy. It reminded him of the period when he was simply Vance, a member of the hunters'' guild. "Thank you for your pointers, I feel as if I was living in an illusion until now." Daniel''s voice resounded in the hall, but Noah didn''t turn, he had obviously noticed his arrival. "There is just one question that you have yet to answer, and I will be thankful if you did. Are you really the monster described in the reports?" Daniel''s words entered Noah''s mind, and his peaceful memories immediately disappeared. Images of countless corpses began to fill his thoughts, all the people that he had killed to reach his current rank appeared in front of him before falling under his feet. The many battles that he had fought, the experiments for the creation of the hybrids, Noah was aware of all the lives that he had taken. Noah saw himself standing on a massive pile of corpses, they resembled a hill built only to bring him closer to the stars in the sky. "I''m worse than that." Daniel bowed and left the hall when he heard that answer, leaving Noah alone with his thoughts. Chapter 573: 573. Cup Noah felt no sadness in that realization. He had never given much importance to life in both his lives, but that didn''t make him unable to care for other people. Even a monster could love, even he could feel affection. Lily, William, June, Ivor, and Nina had managed to claim a bit of space in a mind filled only with thoughts that concerned the cultivation field. ''What importance can love have if you don''t have the power to hold it?'' Noah asked himself. Lily had died when Noah was just a helpless rank 1 cultivator, and she had lived most of her last years in a violent man''s grasp only to protect him. William had been able to help Noah only from the shadows, and he had to point him toward the academy to fuel his dreams. Noah had to leave June due to his peculiar situation. He liked to be around her, but the leash of the Royals was becoming too tight, he had to leave the academy and her to improve freely. The situation with Ivor was a bit different. Ivor had ruined his mental sphere to create something that could make him reclaim his lover, and Noah had completely abandoned him when he left the country. Yet, Noah didn''t believe that he felt any grievance, the latter had succeeded in his dream after all, he had found an heir for the Elemental forging method. Nina, instead, was the closest thing to a lover that Noah had found in his second life. They had shared happy years, but Noah''s ambition couldn''t be tamed. Remaining in the Odrea nation wasn''t something that he could do, he would have never reached the heroic ranks in that environment. ''A life spent being the training dummy of the Shandal Empire, with only a bit of warmth at night to keep my morale intact¡­ It would have been a nice life, but I want more.'' Noah''s eyes shone when he thought that. The events of his Earth Tribulation reappeared in his mind, and he felt as if he could see Earth watching him with its gaze full of contempt. ''Heaven and Earth''s plan was to make me live as a commoner, but I decided to cultivate.'' The brilliance of his eyes became stronger as he kept on reviewing the moments when he defied the world. ''The language of the "Breath" has always been hidden from me, but I learnt the Elemental forging method and created a path that I could tread.'' A slight smile appeared on his face as his realizations took form. ''One of the three big nations was after me, but I''ve managed to escape and thrive to the point that they have to respect me.'' He had already realized that flaw in the world, but it became more evident as he kept on growing stronger. ''Heaven and Earth are bound by the same fairness that they enforce. They can''t break their own rules, which means that there will always be a path available for me as long as I have the will to walk it.'' The inscriptions on the walls of his mental sphere began to consume mental energy at that point, Noah had activated the Divine deduction technique to resume the creation of his wills. "Was the banquet successful?" Elder Julia''s voice resounded in the hall. Noah suddenly turned his head toward the entrance, only to see the elder smiling at him. Noah was a bit surprised by her appearance and tried to give a polite answer. "I guess it was. The Hive will greatly benefit from the items from the Utra nation, and it only has to give up on a few magical plants in exchange." He was speaking the truth, the Hive really didn''t lose anything in that deal. The environment on the piece of Immortal Lands was simply fantastic, magical beasts and plants would be born at an incredible rate. The Hive could just give up on a few specimens to obtain long-lasting benefits, it could be said that Elder Duke had done a remarkable job in the meeting! However, Elder Julia shook her head at that answer and moved to sit on the couch in front of Noah. When she sat, she spoke again while pointing her finger toward her forehead. "I meant successful here." Noah''s eyes widened when he heard those words, it was as if Elder Julia knew about his recent realizations. "How?" In the end, he managed to ask that. Elder Julia''s smile widened when she saw Noah''s stupefied expression and lifted one of the jars in the back of the hall with her mental waves. The jar floated only to land between the two of them, and Elder Julia didn''t hesitate to immerse her cup in it. She answered only when she lifted the cup from the jar full of wine. "Elder Austin has told me that you were traveling toward the lava lake more frequently in the last period, we easily figured out that you were having problems with your training. The arrival of the Udye family was quite lucky though, it gave us the chance to force you to take a break." Elder Julia''s words reached Noah, but his eyes were fixed on the cup. The wine inside it was overflowing, and red drops fell from the entirety of its surface. However, Elder Julia didn''t seem to mind that her hand was getting dirty and continued to hold the cup right above the jar. "One way to fill this cup to its limits is to immerse it in a larger container. Doing that will ensure that I''ve taken the best out of this cup." Noah''s gaze went on Elder Julia at that point, he felt that she was trying to teach him something with that gesture. "Yet, I have to get my hand dirty to achieve this result. It is a small sacrifice to obtain the best out of this cup. Also, I have to wait for its surface to dry up before drinking the wine since I don''t want to sacrifice my robe too." Noah interrupted the Divine deduction technique at that point, he wanted for the entirety of his focus to be on the rank 5 existence. "Of course, there are other ways that would lead me to the same result or the same amount of wine, but this is surely the fastest one." Then, the surface of the cup dried up, and Elder Julia could finally drink from it. After she emptied it, she revealed the meaning behind that metaphor. "The jar is the world, the wine its laws, and the cup is your mind. The stains are just the sacrifices that you have made." Chapter 574: 574. Fun Noah fell silent when he heard that revelation, but the thoughts inside his mind were churning violently. Elder Julia''s metaphor could be interpreted in many ways or, rather, it could express the many available approaches to a cultivator''s training. ''You can surely fill the cup without getting dirty, but you would only be able to drink less wine in that way. A steady growth without sacrifices.'' That was the normal method, what the majority of the cultivators did. ''You can drink directly from the jar, but the entirety of your body would be tainted, and most of the wine would fall on the floor. A reckless method, suitable only for helpless situations.'' Elder Julia remained silent, she didn''t want to interrupt Noah. ''You can ask for someone''s help to fill your cup or use a smaller container, but the flavor of the wine would be affected due to those steps. After all, the best container is the jar, which represents the world. That is the approach of the nobles.'' Then, he understood what method he was using. ''I would just get my robe''s dirty and waste part of the wine only to drink it sooner. In that way, something always escapes my grasp even though I''m making great sacrifices.'' Noah''s eyes began to shine when he thought that, and Elder Julia understood that it was her moment to speak again. "Prince, in my long life, I''ve never seen someone like you. You are extremely driven and incredibly hardworking, I don''t think I''ve ever seen you taking a break." Elder Julia heaved a sigh after she spoke those words before continuing to give him pointers. "Heroic cultivators have fewer physical limits, but that doesn''t imply that they don''t need to rest. You keep on sacrificing yourself to walk on the faster road, but you risk to waste most of the wine in the jar only to drink less than half of it." "But, the jar is bottomless." Noah said when he heard those words. No matter how much he drank, the wine wouldn''t be depleted. The world would always have more laws for him to absorb, the metaphor wasn''t a perfect representation of reality. "Yes, but you have limits, every cultivator has. Also, you risk being too drunk to fully taste the wine if you keep on drinking it at that speed. There is nothing wrong with choosing a path filled with stains, but it is pointless if you can''t enjoy the wine when you drink it. You must learn to enjoy every sip, Prince." Noah felt that he understood what she meant. Elder Julia had taken the fastest approach without getting her robe dirty, all she needed to do was to wait for the cup to dry up. ''Does she mean that my mind must become used to the changes before refilling it?'' He only thought that question since Elder Julia began to speak again. "Prince, you forget yourself when you focus too much on the world, and you ignore the world when you focus only on yourself. In your case, you lose the beauty of the details when you focus only on the bigger picture." ''The beauty of the details.'' Noah repeated those words in his mind. Elder Julia was right, he had been able to accept the positive effects that he had on the people around him only recently after all. "As cultivators, our lives are very long, commoners would even call us in the heroic ranks immortals! However, we are living beings too, and no living being can keep doing something that it doesn''t enjoy for centuries. Tell me, Prince, do you like cultivating?" That question surprised Noah. He had never lingered too much on that aspect of his training. He would cultivate because nothing really mattered if he didn''t have power. His choice had always been between a worthless life and one that could mean something. Noah answered after a long moment of silence. "I think I like it. Not strictly training, but the power that results from it." He loved the feeling of his centers of power growing stronger with each passing day. He loved the freedom that his power brought. Also, after becoming a hybrid, he had begun to enjoy fighting more. He had begun to love when his training gave him the power to overwhelm his opponents. "Enjoy that feeling, Prince. Cultivating is a journey, not a sacrifice. Learn to appreciate what you have achieved before turning your gaze toward what you want. Once you''ve done it, you''ll be truly able to use your current power to affect the world." Elder Julia concluded her speech with those words, and she showed a smile before leaving the hall. Noah left his cup on the mat and closed his eyes to think. The Divine deduction technique activated again, and the creation of a will resumed. Yet, there seemed to be some slight modifications from before. A smile appeared on Noah''s face as a feeling enveloped his body and filled him with a dense ecstasy. He was bathing himself in the emotions that he had felt when he won his first battle as a hybrid, when he fought against Heaven for the first time. He remembered the joy that he felt in that act of defiance when a transmigrator and a cursed species had finally managed to claim their first victory against such an oppressive ruler. ''I don''t care about rules, but I like breaking theirs. Heaven and Earth might suppress my creations, but they would only hear me laugh when I forge a different path.'' Noah felt as if he had found something that he lacked since the beginning of his second life. ''I''m not a machine, I am a hybrid! I''ve already forged my rightful place in this world when I defeated the Tribulations, I''ve already proven that Heaven and Earth can''t suppress me!'' Mental energy gathered under the surface of the sea inside Noah''s mind as the light of the inscriptions on its walls illuminated the ethereal area. A will quickly formed and rose from the sea only to appear next to Noah''s half-transparent figure. The will had Noah''s shape, but its body was made of black flames. Also, an arrogant smirk was on its face as it floated outside of the mental sphere to land on Noah''s hand. Noah injected his "Breath" inside the will and the flames that made its body flickered before disappearing from his palm. The black flames reappeared on the couch in front of him, and they soon took the same shape as before, even if some of them had been depleted. The will though continued to smirk and directed its gaze to the sky, it was as if it was challenging the world to stop it. Noah stood up at that point and reinserted the will inside his mind. The translation was completed, he had finally made the Warp spell his. However, he didn''t immediately leave. He stood there with his cold reptilian eyes fixed on the ceiling of the hall. Then, a thought hit his calm mind. ''I understand this feeling now. Defying Heaven and Earth is fun!'' Chapter 575: 575. Peace The translation of the diagram of the Warp spell had finally been completed! Noah had wholly understood the spell and translated it in his own language, it could be said that the spell now belonged to him. Yet, that was only half of the process that Noah had in mind. The Warp spell was still flawed and unsuitable for battle, Noah needed to modify part of its effects to add it to his arsenal. Of course, that would take time and a lot of tests, but Noah didn''t feel any hurry. He had actually chosen to remain in the hall after the success of the will, he wanted to enjoy the wine and reminisce for that night. One night didn''t seem enough though, and there was still wine in that room, so Noah decided to stay there for a few more days. There wasn''t anyone in the Hive that could force him to leave, and he needed those moments to attune his realizations with his individuality. He felt as if something inside of him had reborn. However, to his surprise, it was his human side that had benefitted from the recent events. He had acted as a machine for most of his life and focused only on his goal, but there was far more in the world. There weren''t sides inside his mind anymore, there was just him, but he could still feel that part of him had drastically changed. Other heroic cultivators would enter the hall and sit on the other couches to enjoy a few moments of peace, that place seemed renowned between them. ''I might come here again from time to time.'' Noah thought as he flew away from the room after nodding to the other existences on there. Learning to enjoy peace would take time too, Noah guessed that he would finish the modifications on the wills before that. Yet, he felt no hurry. The cultivation journey was long, probably endless, and most of it had to be traveled alone. ''Right now, no one is after me, and the four nations are at peace. My ambition and the hatred toward my father will always push me to improve though, especially the former. I feel that I have to find a sort of balance.'' Noah thought as he flew back to the area after the lava lake. He wouldn''t take breaks at all if he had to be true to his individuality, he was hardworking to the extreme after all. However, he had to learn to enjoy his achievements, which was needed to fully make those improvements part of him. ''It''s almost funny how I keep on forgetting to slow down, but there is always someone ready to remind me of resting.'' A complicated smile appeared on his face when he had those thoughts. He remembered how that had often happened in the past, even if the reasons behind it were different. Lily, June, William, and Nina did that as an expression of their affection, while Ivor and the Hive had personal reasons. Yet, he didn''t mind either of those reasons. ''Power can be the source of those behaviors. Ivor saw me as a promising heir while the Hive wants to nourish the youngest heroic cultivator in history. I obviously understand them since I''m someone who pursues power with the entirety of his focus.'' He couldn''t find issues in Elder Julia''s reasons, he actually felt that they were quite reasonable. The way he saw it, the world was founded on power, and everything originated from it. It was reasonable to protect someone that could wield it. Noah immersed himself again in the wilderness of the area before the snowy mountain as soon as he returned there. He didn''t even take a look at the lava lake during his flight. He felt as if he had obtained too many insights for now, and he wanted to slowly absorb them before trying to improve even more. After all, his centers of power were already growing at an incredible speed, even Elder Julia would be amazed by the enlarging speed of his dantian. Of course, Noah was oblivious to that since he had never compared himself to other heroic cultivators, and there weren''t set standards for their growth. Peaceful times went by in the piece of Immortal Lands. Every faction was busy with something, there were too many resources to plunder and too many constructions to build. Also, there were areas that had yet to be fully explored due to their dangerous environment, the Hive still had to take a real look to the toxic rivers next to the White woods after all. The other big nations were far ahead in the exploration and colonization. Still, the recent pact had shuffled some of their territories and forced them to use their manpower to relocate essential structures. All four forces in the new continent shared the issues connected to the population of the human cultivators though. Every rank 3 cultivator with wealth and ambition would want to travel to those fantastic territories, and even those in the second rank wished to obtain some benefits from them. Most of those cultivators were either nobles, disciples of some important sect, or high-ranked soldiers in the army of the Shandal Empire, of which the old continent was full. Many new habitable areas had to be built to welcome such a large number of travelers, and there was even the need to create specific places that could accommodate the weaker cultivators. The situation reached a point where the habitations for rank 2 cultivators cost up to ten times the price for those in the third rank! It was simply too expensive to force those territories to reach a density of "Breath" suitable for weak cultivators, and the three big nations couldn''t give them away for free. Only the Empire was somewhat laxer on that issue due to its sturdy political system, but problems appeared anyway due to its higher number of human cultivators. The Hive, instead, eagerly waited for Chasing Demon''s return. The Hive was becoming stronger with each passing day, but that growth would skyrocket if its patriarch were to return. Chasing Demon was the only one who could lay the copying technique on those new lands, and that was the only method that the Hive had to forcibly lower the density of "Breath" in the environment. Yet, no trace of the rank 6 existences of the four nations appeared, no matter how many months passed. Chapter 576: 576. Heavens spark Quiet months passed in the piece of the Immortal Lands. Those months then became years, but the heroic existences inhabiting the new continent barely noticed that passage of time. Black clouds though often appeared on the sky above it, and the crackling of thunders followed them every time. Many rank 3 cultivators had been stuck on the last step before the heroic ranks, but the new environment and the help from strong organizations allowed them to cross it. Something had become apparent to the three big nations when they realized how sharply the Hive had grown: The independence of the Coral archipelago could be the first of many successful revolutions! Their internal issues had been exposed, and the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands further worsened their political situation. A new land meant new hopes! Of course, the rebelling forces didn''t aim for the new continent, the environment there was simply too harsh for organizations that barely had heroic assets. However, the focus of the three big nations in those territories gave them a lot of freedom in the old continent. Many forces saw that situation as a chance to finally escape from the influence of those oppressing rules. The three big nations were obviously aware that their behavior would cause such consequences, but there wasn''t much that they could do. Even the most powerful countries of the Mortal Lands would find themselves short on assets when a new continent appeared so suddenly. It became clear that they lacked the manpower to control such a large surface and so many different organizations. So, they decided to slightly ease their grip on the techniques and methods in their possession. Loyal soldiers were given a chance to obtain the means to reach the heroic ranks at the price of harsh oaths, and even the costs for the resources useful in the heroic ranks plummeted. The Shandal Empire handled things a bit differently, but the Council and the Elbas family favored the birth of heroic cultivators as long as they accepted their conditions. The territories of the new continent would often witness the bolts of lightning of the Heaven Tribulation due to all those human cultivators that had finally obtained a chance to break through the heroic ranks. After all, the number of hopeless and suppressed cultivators far surpassed that of those that could have access to cultivation techniques in the fourth rank. Also, those cultivators would often have sturdier mindsets due to the lives that they were forced to live, which helped in making their breakthroughs easier. Giving the means to advance to so many cultivators was a risky move, but the three big nations couldn''t find any other solution to their issue in the short run. They could only create the harshest oaths and tune them around the power of a rank 5 existence so to preserve some form of control. Those events didn''t only benefit the cultivators close to the leading powers of each big country though. Many noble families and sects who had been unable to nourish some of their promising heirs and disciples could finally afford heroic resources and increase their power. The heroic cultivators born among those organizations would have no bindings and could possibly go against the leading force of their country one day. However, the Council and the Elbas family took that as a calculated risk, it was impossible to increase their manpower so quickly without risking anything after all. June was one of the few cultivators that didn''t benefit from that situation, but that still managed to overcome her Heaven Tribulation in that period. June gasped for air in a remote area of the eastern coast that was close to one of the obelisks built by the Royals. Sparks still lingered on the ground around her, and black clouds filled the sky above her figure. However, the clouds were slowly dispersing, and the sparks seemed to gather under her feet only to be absorbed by her body. White smoke came out of her charred orange robe, and a metallic hat fell on the terrain when she moved. The hat shattered when it fell on the ground, that inscribed item had simply endured too much during the tribulation. Yet, June hid an ecstatic expression under the wild silver hair that fallen over her face after her hat fell. ''I managed to follow Master''s instructions, I''ve defeated the Tribulation and captured a Heaven''s spark!'' June thought while she waited for her dantian to fully absorb the nutrients released when she defeated the black clouds. Her breath slowly returned to a normal pace, and she felt a wave of power surging inside her body when the whiff of rank 4 gaseous "Breath" inside her dantian stabilized. It was only at that point that she felt confident in raising her arms and stare at the material that she held in her grasp. There was a thick orange spark inside her hands that released crackling sounds whenever it touched her skin. However, her skin didn''t seem affected by the shocks that hit it, the lightning simply dispersed inside her body without causing any damage. ''With this, I have the material needed to continue the nourishing of my body. Master said that he had probably lost against the rank 7 Tribulation because his True Thunder body wasn''t perfect. Yet, with this spark, I can complete the method that he had been able to create only in the fifth rank!'' June couldn''t contain her eagerness to absorb that spark when she thought that. Eccentric Thunder had created the True Thunder body refining method only when he was already in the fifth rank, meaning that he couldn''t obtain a Heaven''s spark during his Tribulation. ''After I absorb it, I''ll link my body to my dantian and create the Perfect circuit described in his teachings. However, that can only work as a foundation to my power, Master has stressed many times that I need to add formations that I create to the circuit or my individuality won''t be expressed. I need to become a rank 4 to create and add formations that can affect my current body though.'' June carefully stored the orange spark in a particular container that she had previously prepared before depositing it inside her space-ring. She was too tired now and absorbing something that was strictly related to Heaven was a dangerous procedure, she would have the confidence in doing that only when her mind reached the fourth rank. ''I should face the Earth Tribulation in a few months. I can subdue the Heaven''s spark once my mind is in the heroic ranks, and I will finally be able to pursue the laws of the lightning element when even my sea of consciousness joins the Perfect circuit!'' The face of a young-looking man appeared in her mind at that point. The prospect of becoming a complete heroic cultivator made her think about the man that had given her the means to reach that level. Her ecstatic expression became a complicated smile, and a bit of longing filled the question that appeared in her mind. ''Where are you, Noah?'' Chapter 577: 577. Over June returned to the city next to the bushland inhabited by Silent hyenas. The Elbas family had built one of the obelisks there after clearing the area from the magical beasts. That territory was the northernmost land in possession of the Utra nation. Cheers welcomed June when she returned to the branch of her family that had been established there. Max, her father, was there as well as some envoys of the Elbas family. The Royals were obviously aware that she had set off to fight the Heaven Tribulation, and they had even offered their help in that matter. However, June insisted on undergoing the Tribulation alone, and neither her father nor the Elbas family had been able to win over her stubbornness. June felt no happiness when she saw those heroic cultivators smiling at her. Her eyes became cold at that sight, she couldn''t help but understand what Noah had been through when he was still in the Utra nation. ''I guess they have a leash on me too, the only way to escape their control is to abandon my family.'' June thought as she bowed to those existences and entered the mansion behind them. Max and the two heroic cultivators from the Royal family were used to her behavior by then, their smiles remained on their faces as they began to discuss the future of their cooperation. The Ballor family was deeply connected to the Elbas family, June''s achievements in the old continent had provided it a prestigious position. Her family had long become a medium-size noble family and was going to become a large-size if the Royals kept on supporting it. Of course, the Ballors would need a rank 5 cultivator in their ranks first, but June seemed the perfect target for their hopes. Also, there was a high chance that the Ballor family would just fuse with the Elbas family. After all, June was a great talent and even quite beautiful, many Royals wouldn''t wait to marry her and absorb the Ballor family in their ranks. Truth to be told, June had already received similar proposals, but she had always rejected them with the excuse of being too focused on cultivating. "You know, your family isn''t as bad as you think, especially your father. He doesn''t mind managing all the boring work of the family as long as you can cultivate in peace. I''ve never seen a heroic cultivator so dedicated to his daughter." Those words resounded in one of the halls of the mansion, and June could immediately recognize their source. "Shut up, Errol. My father''s situation is hopeless, he passed the Heaven Tribulation only thanks to the Patriarch''s help. The power of our dantians isn''t so different, and I''ve just advanced!" June snorted and angrily answered the tall man seated in that hall. Max didn''t destroy the black clouds of his Tribulation back then, and his dantian didn''t obtain the necessary nourishments for its growth. That greatly hindered Max''s cultivation, which, coupled with the already poor situation of the Ballor family, forced him to stop cultivating completely. The Royals had tried to make up for that lack of nourishments with precious pills, but there weren''t many drugs that could emulate something created through Heaven''s power. To put it simply, Max Ballor''s dantian had barely made any progress since it entered the fourth rank. "That doesn''t mean that he doesn''t care about you." Errol replied while taking a couple of cups from his space-ring and filling them with some tea. "You had to see him before the academy, don''t speak about things that you don''t know." June sighed after she gave voice to those words and sat on one of the couches in the hall while picking a cup. The treatment that her family had reserved her after her aptitude was confirmed still afflicted her mind, and she had yet to find a reason to forgive it. ''I don''t really want to forgive though, I know you wouldn''t.'' Noah''s face appeared in her mind when she thought that. June would often think about Noah when she met difficult situations. ''What would Noah do against this enemy?'' ''How would he face this situation?'' Those questions often appeared in her mind when she was forced to handle the pressure of both the Royals and her family. After all, she yearned for power just like him, her reasons and her notion of power were just a bit different from his. June wanted to imitate Noah, but that wasn''t strange for a citizen of the Utra nation. Noah had basically become a legend among the suppressed cultivators and the smaller noble families since he had succeeded in their hidden dreams without anyone''s help. His deeds had become a source of inspiration for many that didn''t want to be limited by their social status. However, June felt something deeper together with admiration, but she mostly suppressed those emotions. Noah''s name was almost a taboo among the ranks of the Elbas family, and his recent victory over Amos Lochster further worsened his image in the Royals'' eyes. "Why are you here? What do the Royals want this time?" In the end, June asked. The Elbas family was aware of her friendly relationship with Errol and knew that he was the best person to deal with her wild character. Errol revealed a helpless smile and handed a scroll to June. June quickly sorted through its contents, and she revealed her arched eyebrows when she lowered it. "This event is scheduled for a year from now, you might reach the heroic ranks by then. Why would I bother doing it?" June asked as she analyzed Errol. He was in the third rank and was even nearing its peak, it would only take a couple of months for him to be ready for the Heaven Tribulation. Also, due to his peculiar position, Errol would surely receive the help of the Royals, meaning that there shouldn''t be any issue in his breakthrough. However, Errol shook his head at that question and revealed something that deeply surprised June. "June, I''m not like you and, well, Vance. I don''t want to improve only to enter a larger battlefield, I''m sick of seeing blood. I want to have a family, and I want to see my children grow up far away from these political schemes. You lose something important when you live for too long, and I don''t want to reach that point. My cultivation journey is over." Chapter 578: 578. Kneeling Errol then pointed at the scroll still in June''s hands and continued to speak. "The Elbas family is aware that you''ll be a complete heroic cultivator soon, and it wants to show that there are promising talents that choose to remain in their ranks. Come on, June, it''s just an exchange meeting, we have done worse in the Royal Inheritance." June''s eyes sharpened when she heard those words. The Elbas family had obviously continued the exploration of the tower in the Nerere country in those years. June and Errol had kept on clearing floors with the help of other cultivators that the Royals were able to find, but their progress was slow. There was a limit to how much they could grow in those years, and the lower stages of the Royal Inheritance had begun to feature high numbers of rank 4 magical beasts. It was needless to say that the exploration had been put in hold until heroics cultivators without links to the Elbas family and the Cause appeared in the Utra nation. However, June''s reaction didn''t originate from the memories of those tests. What concerned her was the awareness of the Royals about the state of her centers of power! It wasn''t an issue to know about her dantian or body, they were quite tricky to hide after all. Yet, the sea of consciousness of a cultivator was its most personal space, but the level of June''s mind was still easily understood by the Royals. "I swear, some of your expressions start to resemble his." Errol laughed a bit when he spoke those words, but his expression soon became severe. "June, you need to stop comparing yourself to him. He might be incredible when it comes to cultivation, but he leaves behind a trail of corpses wherever he goes. Look at Ruth, for example. Her will has shattered after our mission in the archipelago, and she claims that even her gift has been affected by that encounter. Don''t follow the footsteps of a monster unless you want to turn into one." Errol advised June, and she knew that he was speaking the truth. Yet, she couldn''t control her feelings in that matter, Noah had simply helped her too much. ''I took your hand, and my world changed, you freed me with one gesture. How can I accept the happiness around me when it comes from cultivators that want to kill you?'' June lowered her eyes when she thought that. The Royals and her family filled her with glory and benefits, but all of that felt rotten when it came from their hands. "Sometimes, a cup of wine is worth more than all the luxurious banquets of this world." June murmured those words and continued to speak before Errol could ask about their meaning. "I accept the mission, just tell the Elbas family to send the specifics about the exchange in a few months. I need to stabilize my condition and focus on my mental sphere before meeting the heroic cultivators of other nations." . . . The peace on the piece of Immortal Lands continued even in the following months. Nothing really changed in that period, only the cost of the resources suitable for heroic cultivators continued to plummet. That event was uncontrollable, there were simply too many precious materials on the new continent. Also, the three big nations continued to favor the birth of heroic cultivators, which further lowered the prices of rank 4 cultivation techniques and body-nourishing methods. The only resources that saw an increase in their price were the spells. The population of heroic cultivators was increasing sharply, which increased the need for diagrams that could be used at that level. After all, a heroic cultivator without a suitable set of spells couldn''t express the power contained in its centers of power. Of course, that situation wasn''t completely casual. The central powers of each big nation knew that favoring the birth of heroic cultivators was a risky move, but they could somewhat control their power if they didn''t make spells accessible. Controlling the power of those under them was a necessary act to remain in power, they couldn''t risk becoming the cause of a successful revolution after all. Yet, the high prices around the spells didn''t bring only positive effects. As large organizations, the leading powers of the three big nations were involved in many purchases. However, it wasn''t worth purchasing diagrams in that period, they would simply suffer heavy losses just for spells with power up to the fourth rank. That''s why they decided to organize an exchange meeting. What surprised the Royals though was that both the Council and the Empire were willing to invite the Hive to the meeting, which forced them to accept that decision. The news soon reached Elder Julia, who gave the role to inform the Demon Prince to Elder Jason. No one could represent the Hive better than Noah, the thought of sending someone else didn''t even cross her mind. Elder Jason gladly accepted the job and flew toward the territory before the snowy mountain, where he knew that Noah was training. The environment there was barren as usual. Sparse magical plants could be seen from time to time, but the packs of ape-type magical beasts were relatively abundant. Elder Jason found Noah in one of the areas near the lava lake, and he almost didn''t believe his eyes when he saw the scene playing in front of him. He saw Noah with his usual torn robe standing in front of a rank 4 Fire-eating ape in the lower tier. However, to his surprise, the creature wasn''t trying to attack Noah nor to escape from him. He could clearly see the fear in the beast''s eyes, but the latter didn''t dare to move, it was as if Noah''s eyes were keeping it still. "Jason, what is it?" Noah asked without even turning his head, he was too focused on the behavior of the ape to turn his gaze. "P-prince, Elder Julia has a mission for you. There is a meeting organized by the three big nations and the Hive has been in-" "I''ll go." Noah suddenly interrupted Elder Jason''s explanation before releasing a low grow directed to the beast in front of him. The Fire-eating ape struggled a bit, but, in the end, it lowered its head and pressed its arms on the terrain. Elder Jason couldn''t help but feel that the creature was kneeling toward Noah. Then, Noah simply nodded and pressed his foot on the lowered head of the beast. The beast didn''t even try to react, it let Noah kill it without fighting back at all. "Jason, the report." Noah spoke again when he saw that Elder Jason was still floating in the air with his gaze fixed on the corpse of the creature. His amazement though was interrupted by Noah''s words, and he hurriedly handed him the report contained in his space-ring. Noah quickly read through its contents, and a slight smile appeared on his face after he stored the sheet. "This is perfect, I was getting bored of this place!" Noah exclaimed and walked past the stunned Jason as if nothing strange had happened. Chapter 579: 579. Probing Elder Jason didn''t turn, he kept his eyes on the corpse of the magical beast. The scene that he had just witnessed simply didn''t make sense! Magical beasts had innate aggression that couldn''t be tamed, they could just be subjugated under the rule of a stronger being of a similar species. Those features were further enhanced as the creatures'' rank rose, rank 4 magical beasts could be barely controlled even by the leaders of each pack. Of course, even those mindless beings could understand the difference in power when they saw it. Every living being had an innate sense of danger, and magical beasts were the best in that field. Yet, his eyes didn''t lie to him, he knew exactly what he saw. He saw a rank 4 magical beast offering its life to Noah without struggling, it was as if Noah''s pressure had suppressed even its survival instinct. That was theoretically impossible, only creatures of a similar species and on a higher rank could subjugate lower beings so thoroughly. However, Noah was a human, and his centers of power were still in the fourth rank. "Are you coming?" Noah''s voice resounded in the air, and Elder Jason felt a pair of reptilian eyes landing on his back. He could immediately sense from that stare that Noah''s aura had changed into something sharper and denser. It wasn''t surprising that a cultivator''s aura changed as it explored the depths of its individuality. The heroic ranks were meant to solidify the essence of each cultivator, it was evident that a change in their mindset would affect the aura that surrounded them. After all, the "aura" was just the energy innately radiated by the mental energy contained in the sea of consciousness. Yet, Noah''s aura seemed to change way too often. It had first started as a cold and sharp halo only to become a violent membrane that surrounded his body. Also, Elder Jason could even feel some sort of pride inside it. Those sensations came from his instincts, Noah''s aura wasn''t clear in the end. He seemed to radiate far too many things at once, but, at the same time, it was as if everything simply came out from the dark halo that followed him. "How did you do it?" Elder Jason asked when he turned toward him. He didn''t want to probe the powers of another cultivator of the Hive, especially of the Demon Prince. Yet, the ability to tame magical beasts in the fourth rank wasn''t something that could be overlooked. The copying technique had allowed the Coral archipelago to become independent, showing how useful those creatures could be. So, the possibility of building an army of real magical beasts wasn''t something that he could ignore just to be polite. "Oh, that." Noah didn''t seem surprised by that question, but he still hesitated a bit to answer. He wanted to be true to his individuality, which meant that he couldn''t just make up a lie to cover himself. At the same time, he couldn''t just reveal that he had fused himself with a magical beast, which gave him access to powers that simple humans could never wield. "I think it''s clear that my body-nourishing method imitates magical beasts in many ways." Noah said in a plain tone. Cultivators weren''t stupid, especially those in the heroic ranks. Anyone would notice that something was off about his body, he had revealed his flames and his physical strength against Adrian after all. Also, it was easy to make a connection with the magical beasts'' world. Noah was an expert when it came to those beings, anyone would be inclined to think that he had taken inspiration from those powerful creatures when he created a body-nourishing method. Of course, all of them believed that such a powerful body would have some sort of equally strong backlash due to the rules of Heaven and Earth. "My body releases a peculiar scent, which becomes stronger as my rank grows. This scent makes most magical beasts think that I''m one of them rather than a human." Noah said when he saw that Elder Jason''s attention was on him. His words weren''t exactly lies, he was really exuding the scent of a magical beast. Yet, that was because he was a real magical beast or, rather, because he was also a real magical beast! "I''ve been working on a language that could be understood by those creatures in the last period. I guessed that I could talk to them since they recognized me as one of their kind. What you''ve witnessed is me succeeding for the first time in that language." That was another half-truth. Noah had never needed to create a language, he already knew it. However, he had to live in the wilderness as a magical beast for an extended period before becoming able to use that ability. His body alone wasn''t enough to make those creatures accept him in that world, the aura around him also had to change to make that possible. In the end, he had succeeded. His growls could carry commands that the beasts submitted to him had to follow, and he guessed that he could expand that ability to other fields. He wasn''t lying when he said that Jason had witnessed his first success, the ape in the lower tier was the first specimen that he had completely submitted to his rule. Yet, that was only the simplest way to use that ability. Noah could clearly imagine him becoming able to create packs as he continued to train or just build a system similar to that of the rank 5 Albino snake in Twilboia Cliff. "That''s amazing!" Noah was surprised to see Elder Jason exclaim that when he was done with his explanation. "Prince, you''ve managed to make use of a feature of your body to control magical beasts! The implication that this achievement could have are endless! We must tell Elder Julia, she will surely know how to bett-" "No." Noah interrupted Elder Jason''s phrase. "I can just give orders that magical beasts can understand, but it''s the power behind the orders that affects their decision to follow them. I don''t mind doing missions, but I won''t focus on an unreliable ability just because it can be beneficial to the Hive. Be sure to say this when you report to Elder Julia." Noah explained before flying away in the direction of the forest of White woods. Elder Jason hesitated a bit, but he decided to follow him in the end. He couldn''t really give orders to him, and Noah''s words also made sense. Noah was a member of the Hive, but he was also a cultivator striving for the higher ranks. No one could ask him to stop focusing on his cultivation only to train in something that could benefit the Hive. A bit of guilt filled Jason, which made him transmit some thoughts to Noah''s consciousness. "I''ve spoken too much, Prince. You have done so much for the Hive already, but I actually asked you to sacrifice your training to do even more. My apologies." Chapter 580: 580. Maturity Noah felt a bit relieved when he heard that message. He didn''t really mind that the news of him submitting a magical beast spread inside the Hive. After all, the original exploration team had seen him communicating with the sandworms inside the desert, it wasn''t a secret that he could speak with those creatures. Yet, he didn''t want the rank 5 elders to become interested in that ability. There was a chance that both his training and freedom would be affected, which was why he had decided to make his stance clear with Elder Jason. His words seemed to have the wanted effect since Elder Jason had immediately offered his excuses on the matter. ''Not hiding is one thing, but revealing all my secrets is something that I still need to avoid. There are too many eyes on me right now, and I can''t expose my uniqueness until I have confidence in dealing with higher-ups of the other nations. Well, I managed to complete the modifications on the Warp spell, at least.'' Noah thought as he continued to fly toward the forest of White woods. Those years of isolation had greatly benefitted him, and it wasn''t something that concerned only his centers of power. He had completed the modifications required on the Warp spell and added its improved effects on his combat style. That achievement gave him a lot of confidence in his battle prowess since he had finally removed one of his most evident weaknesses. That confidence though also brought something else. Noah had learnt to fight like a magical beast and to behave like one, but there was something that he had never been interested in learning. That was the ability to control other magical beasts. He had always relied on himself in his second life, using someone else''s power had never been his priority. Yet, when that confidence arrived, he instinctively felt that he was ready to rule. Noah believed that feeling to be something that magical beasts naturally felt when they reached a certain maturity, but it was something strange to experience nonetheless. Of course, he didn''t give all the credit to his confidence. He was sure that his conversation with Elder Julia had influenced the arrival of that ability, it was as if his mindset had changed enough to allow the arrival of such power. As for what concerned his centers of power, they improved at an unbelievable speed for the standards of the heroic ranks. They were still in the same stages and tiers, but Noah felt that he was completely different from when he had just broken through. Yet, he also felt that he needed to gather more experiences if he wanted to quicken the arrival of his enlightenments, which was why he had immediately accepted the mission. ''I guess I''m still growing, both as a human and as a magical beast.'' Noah couldn''t help but have those thoughts when he sensed Elder Jason behind him. Back then, he would have just lied or attacked whenever someone tried to probe him. Now instead, he had explained part of his abilities without minding it too much. ''Well, I did think about killing him for a moment.'' Noah smiled internally when he thought that. He had instinctively thought about killing Jason when the latter spoke about Elder Julia, but he had immediately suppressed that idea. He didn''t need to hide anymore, his path led him out in the open where he could affect the world with blinding darkness. Elder Jason eventually accelerated to reach Noah, he was anxious that his outburst from before had angered the Prince. However, Noah simply took the report that he had previously stored and began to ask about the specifics of the mission. "I understand that this is an exchange and the reason behind it. However, why does it require only one cultivator for each faction? And why is it in the territories of the Papral nation?" Noah asked Jason while pointing at the report in his hands. "It''s a matter of glory and pride, Prince. The three big nations and the Hive will send their most promising heroic cultivators to the meeting as a sign that they can carry the responsibilities of the organizations behind them. You will probably meet cultivators that will be assigned to important positions in the future." Elder Jason explained without even trying to hide the meaning behind his words. Noah was the Demon Prince, that alone meant that the Hive expected a lot from him. However, the big nations had fragmented political environments, so the identity of those representatives couldn''t be understood easily. "As for the location, that was up to the three big nations. It''s not bad at all though, the territory is on the western coast, so your safety should be assured." Elder Jason continued to explain, but Noah didn''t really like that situation. Four rank 4 cultivators from different factions would meet in a territory unknown to three of them, and all of them would carry a high number of precious diagrams. Noah could clearly predict that the atmosphere in the meeting would be tense. "I need a list of the diagrams to prioritize. I guess those of the fire element are a must, and I will surely go all out to obtain those of the darkness element, but I need more information about the requirements of the Hive." Noah said as he stored the report again. The Hive would obviously need spells for cultivators with a fire aptitude in the imminent future. The lava lake was the perfect training area for cultivators with that element, it wasn''t hard to predict that the Hive would see their number increase in the following years. Also, he didn''t hide the fact that he would prioritize the spells of the darkness element since it was in his interest to obtain them. Yet, he wanted to know what the Hive needed the most to complete his mission. "I will contact Elder Julia, I''m sure that she has already prepared a list that will help you." Noah nodded when he heard Jason''s answer. The meeting was at a few months from then, there was time to prepare for the worst. ''It doesn''t look like a trap, and it should also be impossible to plan one due to the pact sealed by the rank 6 existences. However, even if I''m overthinking, I should still forge a few explosive devices as a contingency plan.'' Noah thought and spent the rest of the flight in silence, thinking about what he could do to be prepared for unexpected situations. Chapter 581: 581. Natural paradise The day of the meeting neared quickly. Noah began to fly on his own along the western coast a few weeks before the set date. He was directed toward the land after the mountains filled by snake-type magical beasts, which basically was on the other half of the coast. The rules of the exchange meeting allowed the presence of escorts as long as they stopped in the territories before the set location. However, the domain of the Hive was already relatively close to that area, and the heroic cultivators from the Coral archipelago were too busy with their matters. Elder Julia simply couldn''t provide him with an escort. However, she still gave Noah a few protective items that would keep him alive until one of the rank 5 existences came in his help. Of course, no one believed that something would happen in the meeting, not even Noah. Yet, it was a habit of his to be always prepared for everything. Also, he had begun to feel a strange sensation in the past weeks, he felt as if a storm was about to crash on the piece of Immortal Lands. ''My dragon''s instincts cause this feeling, but it doesn''t seem to originate from the areas ahead. It is as if a natural disaster is going to storm the new continent.'' Noah thought when he left the domain of the Hive and entered the territories of the Papral nation. He could somewhat understand that the feeling didn''t originate from cultivators, but a natural disaster seemed equally unlikely. ''The only beings able to affect the environment on such a large scale should live at the center of the new continent, but there are the rank 6 existences there¡­'' Noah couldn''t shake off that feeling from his mind. Also, he had noticed how even the magical beasts and plants under him seemed to share his sensations. The yellowish moss under him seemed denser toward the coast and scarcer in the areas more inland. Even the lake inhabited by the octopus-type magical beasts that he had previously passed was completely dark, meaning that the magical beasts living there had activated their defensive measures. ''Well, there isn''t much that I can do against something so powerful, I can only leave it to the rank 6 existences.'' In the end, Noah decided to suppress that feeling. There was no point in worrying about something that he couldn''t control and that he wasn''t sure would happen, it was better to focus on the impending mission. The absence of an escort didn''t bother Noah. He was going to meet the talents of the other big countries, which meant that he would most likely be the strongest among them. He had left behind him the status of a newly advanced heroic cultivator some time ago, his dantian was now deep inside the gaseous stage of the heroic ranks. Almost four years had gone by since he passed the Heaven Tribulation, but he felt as if he was still at some distance from the peak of the stage. However, he wasn''t too worried about that. The heroic ranks were too different from the human''s, he couldn''t expect to experience breakthroughs every three or four years. Yet, he was confident that he was growing quite fast. His individuality continued to solidify, and he was using a cultivation technique that he had personally created! Theoretically speaking, he wouldn''t even need to explore his individuality to improve since his cultivation technique already expressed part of himself. That was one of the advantages of creating techniques and methods, it was assured that Noah''s journey toward the fifth rank would almost be without hindrances. Of course, Noah didn''t want to rely only on his technique and desired to improve as fast as he could, which is why he focused so much on his individuality in the last period. Noah eventually crossed the area with the yellowish moss and entered the land inhabited by snakes. The mountains in that place showed signs of battles, Noah could imagine that they had been thoroughly explored after his clash with Elder Cheryl. The magical beasts in that area behaved in the same way as those previously seen by Noah. The rank 4 snakes seemed unwilling to remain close to the central territories of the continent and amassed themselves along the coastline. That amassment obviously generated battles between the many packs, but Noah wasn''t interested in that event and simply continued to fly toward the next territory. A few days had to pass before a huge waterfall appeared in his eyes. The waterfall was incredibly tall, it originated from one of the highest mountain peaks at the end of the area and poured in the rocky environment below. The water of the waterfall was shining, it illuminated the land on the other side of the mountain peak and created a small river that filled that area with life. The water seemed to have peculiar capabilities, it released a scent able to relax even Noah''s mind. Also, trees with a thick crown grew from the rocky terrain and gave to the environment many shades of green. ''I bet that many would treat this place as a natural paradise.'' Noah couldn''t help but have those thoughts when the entirety of that new territory appeared in his view. Yet, he was soon forced to divert his gaze from it since he sensed a faint presence approaching him from a distance. "The Demon Prince of the Hive is indeed amazing, even my Master struggles to notice me since I''ve entered the heroic ranks." A female voice resounded in the area, and Noah turned to take a look at the woman that had come to receive him. Brown hair, shining green eyes, slim eyebrows, a small nose, and a radiant smile appeared in Noah''s vision. The woman had a slender waist, a quite ample bosom, and wore a luxurious white robe that enhanced the entirety of her harmonious body. The sense of purity exuded by her robe and smile created a deep contrast with the sensuality of her figure. Noah was sure that he had never seen a woman more beautiful than her. "This place is amazing, isn''t it? The waterfall brings life to the hard rocks that make the terrain and peace to the magical beasts that inhabit it, my nation is doing its best not to taint the environment." The woman continued to speak, but Noah didn''t move his gaze from her. He wasn''t mesmerized by her beauty. Instead, he was interested in the aura that she radiated. The woman was surrounded by a sort of peaceful membrane that managed to stop his mental waves completely. It wasn''t a matter of power, her mind was clearly weaker than Noah''s. Yet, her mental waves seemed to have exceptional defensive capabilities, which made Noah unable to analyze her strength thoroughly. ''She is weaker than me, I''m sure of that. Yet, I feel that she would be quite troublesome to face.'' Noah thought before the woman performed a slight bow and decided to reveal her identity. "I''m Faith Vigny of the Quiet Lake sect and the envoy sent by the Council." Chapter 582: 582. Ready Noah nodded at Faith before lowering his gaze toward the natural paradise. He was quite interested in the water poured by the waterfall, it didn''t happen often to find something that could appease the innate aggression of the magical beasts. Faith had spoken the truth, the insect-type magical beasts that filled the environment seemed to peacefully cohabitate, which was something that Noah had never seen in his life. ''This can be a training area with equal value to the lava lake even if it lacks traces left by divine beings. I believe it might force any cultivator in a meditative state in a matter of hours!'' Noah thought while he analyzed that territory, but he was soon forced to stop since Faith continued to stare him with growing intensity. "What is it?" Noah asked. Faith wasn''t trying to probe his centers of power, so he couldn''t understand the reasons behind her action. "My apologies, you are the first man that can divert his gaze from me so soon. I was just surprised, I guess that the Demon Prince is amazing even in fields outside of cultivation." Noah shot a confused expression toward Faith before shaking his head. He could imagine the torments that such a beautiful woman had to endure through her cultivation journey, the world wasn''t exactly a good place after all. ''Her beauty might have been the very reason why she focused on cultivating.'' Noah was aware that Faith was a rare talent, her youthful appearance was the proof that she had met few hindrances on her path toward the heroic ranks. Yet, there was a limit to how much Noah cared about her situation, he was simply analyzing her to understand her individuality better after all. He remembered Jason''s words, he knew that the cultivators on that meeting would probably become someone important in the future, which was why he was using that chance to learn about them. Noah didn''t know if they would become his enemies in the future, but it didn''t hurt to be prepared for that eventuality. "Faith, don''t mind the eunuch, any man that can''t appreciate your beauty shouldn''t be worthy of your thoughts." A manly voice resounded in the area. Noah turned to look at the huge figure that had appeared in the distance. The man that had spoken was extremely burly and was more than two meters tall. He wore a sleeveless red robe that revealed the thick black hair on his arms. Long and unruly black hair fluttered in the wind as he neared Faith, and traces of a growing beard filled his chin. ''Did he just shave to impress Faith?'' Noah couldn''t help but think that when he saw the burly man kissing Faith''s hand as a form of greeting. "Did he bother you in any way? You know the voices about him, he isn''t called Demon only due to his title." The man asked Faith while wearing a concerned expression, he seemed really worried about her well-being. "Andrew, you can drop with your act. I''ve already said that I won''t accept a man that can only think about war." Faith retracted her hand, and a bit of coldness began to fill her figure. Noah stared at the event with interest, it seemed as if Faith''s peaceful aura had instantly solidified into something sturdy. "I also think a lot about you!" Andrew complained, but Faith simply heaved a sigh and distanced herself from him. "I apologize for his rude words. He is Andrew, also called Eager Titan, and he is the envoy from the Shandal Empire." Faith revealed the man''s identity to Noah, but the latter simply nodded and continued to analyze the environment under him. Andrew seemed far weaker than Faith. Noah felt that he could completely overwhelm him if a battle were to happen. Andrew, though, didn''t like Faith''s kindness toward Noah and began to radiate a dense battle intent as he stared him. ''No one should ever challenge a dragon unless it is confident in defeating it.'' Noah thought as he turned his head to reply to Andrew''s stare. The envoy from the Empire was clearly challenging him, and he wasn''t even slightly inclined to ignore him. Not only was that meeting a matter of glory and pride, but Noah couldn''t let anyone challenge him so bluntly and just ignore it. Andrew was a bit surprised to see the same person who was ignoring Faith''s beauty was immediately reacting to his challenge. However, he was the Eager Titan of the Empire, he couldn''t just show any weakness against the representative of such a small nation. The two of them kept on staring at each other, and the atmosphere between them became tense. Then, Noah broke the silence with a few words. "I''m ready when you are." Both Andrew and Faith could see the pure confidence radiated by Noah''s figure when he spoke. Noah was basically asking Andrew to attack first, and he did so without the slight trace of worry. Andrew felt as if he was just an ant in Noah''s eyes. "You think that, just because you have defeated your worthless uncle, you know the power of melee specialists?" Andrew''s aura surged as he gave voice to those words. His muscles bulged, and his hair fluttered as mental energy and "Breath" were exuded from his body. "Faith, do you have anything against this battle?" Andrew asked without moving his gaze away from Noah. Faith sighed before answering. "Do what you want, but I''ll kill both of you if you ruin the harmony of this place." Faith didn''t exude any battle intent, but her words carried a chilling pressure, it was clear that the territory was more important than her guests in her mind. Then, right when Andrew was about to charge Noah, a fourth figure appeared in the area. Noah and Faith turned toward the new presence, and Andrew dispersed his aura when he noticed the action of the two of them. A young-looking woman with wild silver hair appeared in their view. A golden spear filled with orange inscriptions was in her hands, and her eyes radiated a bright orange glow. ''The color of her eyes has changed.'' Noah couldn''t help but notice that difference, and June had similar thoughts about his pupils. June had completely ignored the other two envoys when she realized that Noah was there, and Noah found it difficult to divert his gaze too. More than twenty years had passed since their last talk, but their aspect had barely changed. However, they could both notice the few and small differences that had appeared in those decades. Chapter 583: 583. Scen ''The scars on her arms have disappeared, and she seems less wild than before. Her hair is still the same though.'' ''He is a bit taller, and his features aren''t as soft as before. Even his aura is different, but his gaze still radiates the same coldness. What''s with his hair though? Did he always like it long?'' Noah and June had those thoughts while they stared at each other. Twenty years had passed, but they could still see the wild girl and the aloof boy behind their powerful status. June tried her best to keep an expressionless face, but Noah noticed the slight tremor of her eyelids. Also, he sensed that their prolonged exchange of stares was attracting the attention of the other two cultivators in the area. ''She might be an enemy now. I don''t know how the Elbas family has treated her due to her relationship with me, so I should just avoid revealing anything. I guess I would like to catch up.'' Noah diverted his gaze and turned when he thought that. His last words to June had been a threat, and she had been under the rule of the Royals for twenty years. He didn''t know how she felt about him or what the Royals and her family had done to her in those years. He didn''t even know how she had described their relationship to the Elbas family, the Royals might even believe that he was her worst enemy. ''Friendship and love are complex matters. Instead, fighting and killing are quite straightforward.'' Noah thought when his gaze went back on Andrew. He felt somewhat irritated to see his actions being restricted once again by the politics of the forces behind the envoys. He couldn''t have an honest chat with an old friend since he didn''t know what restrictions had been placed on her. He couldn''t even ask if she still considered him a friend since he would risk breaking her pretense inside the Utra nation. That irritation was something that Noah was becoming familiar with, the reminder that he couldn''t ignore rules that he didn''t care about annoyed him to no end. Luckily for him, he had already found someone that could help him venting that feeling. Andrew could clearly understand that Noah wanted to return to the previous situation, and he didn''t hesitate to unleash his aura again. ''He is protecting me.'' June thought when she saw Noah turning without saying a word. She could somewhat understand what Noah was thinking at that moment. ''He doesn''t know if he can trust me, but he still chose the approach that won''t cause me any problem.'' That realization annoyed her too, but part of her felt glad that Noah hadn''t changed into someone that she couldn''t recognize. ''It''s up to me then.'' June thought before flying toward Noah. She didn''t even mind Andrew, she knew that Noah wouldn''t face him if he weren''t confident of winning. Yet, there was something that she had to tell him, and she had to make sure that the other two cultivators wouldn''t understand the meaning behind her action. The battle was interrupted once again by June since she quickly arrived next to Noah. Noah showed a curious expression when he turned, but June''s words made his eyebrows arc in surprise. "Demon Prince, I''m ashamed that a fellow student of the academy has betrayed my nation and committed uncountable crimes. Yet, I must admit that your achievements deserve my respect." Then, June stretched her right arm toward him. "I respect you. Take my hand if you feel the same about my achievements." Noah felt that the corners of his mouth were curving into a smile when he heard those words. However, he suppressed that instinctive gesture and focused on June''s eyes. He could see her determination reflected by the orange halo in her irises, but he also noticed a trace of fear. ''She has actually used my words from twenty years ago¡­'' Noah thought while he maintained an expressionless face. He had already decided to take her hand, but he still waited to do it. June had gone to such lengths to express her feelings, he couldn''t ruin her effort because he was eager to do the same. Noah noticed how the fear radiated by her eyes became stronger, but he continued to wait. Yet, when he saw the first trace of sorrow appearing on her gaze, he raised his arm to grasp her hand. The sorrow and fear that had accumulated inside June in those instants were dispersed as soon as she felt Noah''s warm hand touching her palm. What only appeared as a normal handshake to Andrew and Faith hid deep meanings that only Noah and June could understand. Noah felt glad too that his relationship with June hadn''t changed through the years, but he soon sensed something strange. June''s body emanated a strange scent that gave birth to a wave of primordial anger inside his body, it was as if he instinctively hated that aroma. June let go of Noah''s hand and neared the other two envoys to greet them. Noah noticed the relief and happiness hidden behind her expression, but he was too focused on that scent to appreciate her emotions. ''This smells like a Heaven Tribulation! Don''t tell me¡­ That Eccentric Thunder was really a madman.'' Noah thought when he recognized her scent. He could easily make a connection inside his mind between June''s centers of power and the Heaven Tribulation. After all, he had given her the inheritance, and the Heaven Tribulation consisted of lightning bolts, it wasn''t hard to link the two to the aroma so hated by his instincts. ''Now, I want to ask her more about the technique, method, or whatever she used to obtain such an interesting feature. It might be beneficial to my individuality!'' Noah''s gaze unconsciously went on June''s back as he tried to understand which of her centers of power carried Heaven''s scent. June was simply greetings the envoys when he sensed the reptilian pupils trying to analyze her. Noah''s mind was stronger than her, she had basically just become a rank 4 mage after all. There wasn''t much that she could hide to his probing, and she didn''t really mind that Noah was staring at her. Yet, Noah''s mental waves carried his interest, which June could clearly feel when they landed on her body. Of course, she felt a bit uncomfortable. Noah was so interested in her technique that he didn''t take into consideration the misunderstandings that his gaze could create. At that point, June turned and moved to the side to symbolize that the exchange meeting could begin. Noah saw June shooting an admonishing glance toward him, but he also noticed that her cheeks had reddened since their handshake. Noah''s eyes widened when he understood that she was blushing, and he quickly retracted his mental waves. ''I''ll explain this when we find a moment to talk.'' Noah thought as he turned and imitated June''s actions, moving to the side to show that he was ready to negotiate. Chapter 584: 584. Fear The image of June''s blush appeared in Noah''s mind and caused a feeling that he had yet to experience since he became a magical beast. ''Am I aroused?'' Noah couldn''t help but think that when he sensed what that feeling caused inside his body. Of course, feeling something and letting it affect his body were two very different things. Cultivators had incredible control of their bodies, especially those in the heroic ranks. Noah easily prevented any effect of that sensation from appearing on his body, but that event still made his mind wander a bit. ''So much for a species of magical beasts with limited fertility! Damned Cursed dragons, how can your arousal be almost as intense as your hunger?'' Noah cursed in his mind while he kept on suppressing that feeling. He wasn''t surprised about his sexual interest in June, he had always known that he liked her character and that she was quite beautiful. Yet, he didn''t expect that the sexual drive of a magical beast could match its hunger! ''She even smells like a Heaven Tribulation, she should be the last person able to give birth to these sensations¡­ I guess a beast it''s still a beast in the end, no matter how powerful it is.'' Noah gave up on trying to suppress that feeling when he thought that and simply limited himself to control the reactions of his body. His sexual drive was just like his hunger, something deeply rooted in instincts that were now part of him. His hunger couldn''t be suppressed, so the same had to be true for the former. Andrew and Faith took their place too, and the four envoys became the corners of an imaginary square that floated in the air. Andrew still stared at Noah with an intense battle intent, but Noah''s mind was too messy for him to care about him. ''I hope this drive will go away at some point or I will need to take care of it once I return on the southwestern coast.'' Noah thought while shining lines appeared under the feet of the envoys and traced a shining square in the air. The instructions for that exchange meetings were quite clear, none of the envoys was surprised to see those lines appearing seemingly out of nowhere. The Papral nation had prepared the area beforehand and created an environment where the envoys could trust each other''s words. Taking a position to form a square would activate an area where the cultivators inside it couldn''t lie nor taint the truth. Of course, the trigger for that technique was Faith, but the same restrictions would bound her after the square was completed. The three big nations didn''t trust each other, especially when it came to the most important resource of that period. The same obviously went for the Hive. There was the need for an even ground where cheats and tricks were impossible to actuate, which was something that the Papral nation found quite easy to create. After all, oaths and devices with similar purposes were something that every nation had. The cultivation world was cruel, and trust was rarely found among forces with a different origin, it wasn''t surprising that the oaths'' field was so advanced in each country. The shining lines under the envoys'' feet spread, creating a luminous platform that radiated a peculiar yellowish light. Noah felt his mind being affected by that light, but he didn''t mind it too much. The fact that the cultivators inside the square couldn''t lie didn''t mean that they were required to answer every question. Remaining silent was an option, so there was no risk of exposing valuable information to the enemies. The exchange meeting begun immediately after the square was completed. Faith suggested simple rules which everyone accepted without complaining. To put it simply, the value of a diagram had to be decided according to three factors: Its effect, its element, and its limit. The last two factors were easy to evaluate. The rarity of an element set the base value of a diagram, and the limits to its power defined by how much its importance had to be raised. For example, a spell of the thunder element up to the fourth rank would be worth less than a diagram of the fire element that could be used till the sixth rank. The first factor was harder to define by precise boundaries and had to be discussed for each specific case. For example, diagrams like the Warp spell would be less valuable since their effects were hard to apply in battle. Of course, some spells weren''t battle-related but were still extremely valuable. Noah saw a spell of the water element that was potentially able to entirely reconstruct a body as long as the sea of consciousness and dantian of the cultivator were intact. Its cost in terms of "Breath" and mental energy was obviously huge, and only rank 6 mages could safely use it. Yet, it was still a fantastic spell obtained by Faith at the price of five diagrams of the earth element with limits to the fifth rank. Noah focused on obtaining the diagrams of the elements that Elder Julia had requested. The Hive''s main interests were the spells of the fire element, followed by water and wind. It was needless to say that Noah had informed Elder Julia about his intention of obtaining as many diagrams of the darkness element that he could. Elder Julia didn''t oppose him, but Noah soon discovered that he was bound to be disappointed since no diagrams of the darkness element were mentioned during the meeting. ''This is too coincidental, and some of them are trading spells of the light element¡­ They did this on purpose.'' Noah immediately suspected that, but there wasn''t much that he could do. The only method that the other nations had to slow down his improvements was to keep the resources that could help him for themselves, Noah couldn''t force those countries to sell them after all. The lack of spells of the darkness element though didn''t bother him too much. He was approaching the next step in his cultivation journey, he knew that he would create his own diagrams given enough time. What bothered him was the constant need to suppress his arousal. Noah tried not to look at June during the meeting, but their eyes were bound to meet when they traded. Every time that happened, Noah had to enforce his control on his body again. That was quite easy for Noah, but it was also a constant reminder of that feeling. However, at some point, that drive suddenly disappeared. A subtle tremor ran through the terrain below them, and the magical beasts inhabiting that area stopped moving. The envoys didn''t sense that tremor, but Noah felt the same sensations of the magical beasts below. He instinctively turned to look toward the center of the new continent, but he could only see the beginning of the mountain chain in the distance. Yet, another sensation took the place of his arousal, something that even surpassed his hunger. He felt fear. Chapter 585: 585. Cry The world slowed down in Noah''s eyes. The living beings in the area seemed to be holding their breath, and that behavior wasn''t limited to the magical beasts. Even the magical plants there stopped absorbing nutrients, and the air seemed to freeze as if waiting for the catastrophe to unfold. Of course, the world appeared utterly normal to the other envoys. Only Noah could feel those sensations since they originated from the instincts inherited by the Cursed dragon species. His strange behavior was quickly noticed by the other three heroic cultivators who began to stare in the same direction. However, they could only see the beginning of the mountain chain that stretched toward the center of the continent. They couldn''t sense anything out of the ordinary even with their rank 4 seas of consciousness. Yet, June was able to recognize Noah''s expression. She had seen him doing something similar when they were exploring the seventh layer of the Royal Inheritance, just before the rank 4 Cloud eagle''s attack from the sky. Her survival instincts kicked in, and her awareness reached its peak, but she still couldn''t sense anything from that direction. As time passed and nothing happened, she began to think that she had misinterpreted Noah''s gesture. "What are you staring at, Prince?" Andrew asked while adding a mocking tone when he said the word "Prince". He found it funny that the "demon" who had escaped from the Utra nation would just become distracted during such an important meeting. On the other hand, Noah barely noticed that the Eager Titan had spoken to him. Fear spread through his body, he felt that the sensation that had accompanied him in the last weeks was becoming more intense with each passing second. Then, when the intensity of that sensation reached its peak, he understood what was about to happen. "Close your ears and retract your consciousnesses!" Noah shouted before gathering all his mental energy inside his mental sphere and blocking his ears with his hands. The instincts of a magical beast, coupled with the heroic mind of an expert in the beasts'' field, made Noah able to predict the imminent catastrophe. Of course, he didn''t care enough about Faith and Andrew to help them, he would actually prefer for them to die since they belonged to enemy organizations. Yet, June was among them, and he didn''t want her to be unprepared. A mental message sent by his consciousness would have reached her sooner without revealing its contents to the other two envoys, but Faith and Andrew would have noticed his action. Noah couldn''t evaluate the power behind the imminent catastrophe, but the two envoys would suspect that June was on his side if they survived after seeing him personally warning her. Warning everyone would avoid creating any suspect while still alerting her, which was the best outcome that Noah could hope for in that sudden situation. June didn''t hesitate and followed his orders, she simply trusted him too much to do otherwise. Noah''s words confused Faith, but the solemnity radiated by his expression made her took his warning seriously. After all, Noah''s achievements were well known by anyone in a position of power. Faith knew that the Demon Prince of the Hive had managed to escape from organizations ruled by heroic cultivators, had traveled for half of the old continent, and helped in the war for the independence of the Coral archipelago. She didn''t trust him, but she trusted his survival instincts. Faith closed her ears and retracted most of her consciousness inside her mind. However, she left part of her mental energy around her figure in case Noah''s act was part of a trap. It was needless to say that Andrew didn''t follow any of Noah''s orders. "What are you even saying!? Faith, why are you listening to him? This Prince is surely planning something. I think it''s time to cont-" Andrew began to speak, but he couldn''t continue the rest of his phrase since a deafening cry resounded from the center of the continent. The piece of Immortal Lands shook when the soundwaves spread through the entirety of its surface. The ground split, mountains fell apart, and cracks appeared in the sky as soon as the cry crossed those areas. It wasn''t a matter of shockwaves or just an attack that used the sound to inflict damage, the cry was simply so loud that even the environment of the new continent could only crumble in front of it. The cry affected even the sea around the continent. Giant shards of ice separated themselves from the land under the azure continent, even the spell that had stopped the fall of those territories from the sky suffered some damage in that situation. Noah couldn''t move nor inspect his surroundings. The air around him seemed stiff, it was as if it had become solid under the pressure that accompanied the cry. His mental sphere trembled to no end, but the entirety of his consciousness was working to keep it intact. His internal organs couldn''t oppose those vibrations, he felt blood reaching for his mouth from inside his body. Yet, he didn''t dare to spit it. He was sealing all his orifices in the best way he could, he even shut his eyes to protect them. However, injuries were inevitable in that situation. He felt a warm liquid spreading on his palms, which made him understand that his eardrums had collapsed under those vibrations. He felt tears running down his eyes, only to realize immediately after that those tears were instead lines of blood. Blood kept on accumulating on his mouth as his internal organs kept on being torn, and he felt the foothold created with his "Breath" shattering every time he lost his focus. In the end, the sound dispersed, and the tremors stopped. Noah tried to open his eyes, but his vision was foggy, it seemed that they had been damaged while he endured that attack. He couldn''t hear anything too, even his sense of touch felt off when he waved his arms. Of course, Noah wasn''t in the dark. His consciousness left his mental sphere as soon as its walls stabilized and analyzed the situation around him. The other envoys seemed to be still struggling with the after-effects of the piercing cry, and Noah could see that they were far worse off compared to him. Two pills appeared in his hands, and he quickly put them inside his mouth. A warm sensation filled his body, and a massive amount of nutrients began to focus the injuries on his internal organs with their healing capabilities. Noah didn''t hesitate to gulp one of the rank 4 healing pills from Divine Demon''s inheritance, and one of the compressed rank 4 magical beasts in the upper tier that the Udye family had sent in the last period. Little by little, his vision and hearing came back, which made Noah able to analyze the devastation that the cry had brought to the piece of Immortal Lands. Chapter 586: 586. Crisis Noah analyzed his surroundings while he waited for his body to return to a decent state. ''June seems fine, Eccentric Thunder''s technique and methods must be amazing. Her centers of power are working together to disperse the remaining tremors that are still affecting her, she shouldn''t have suffered any lasting injury.'' A glance to June was enough to make him understand her state. She was utterly defenseless now, her mental waves were all inside her mind, there was nothing that could stop Noah''s probing at that moment. ''Faith''s mental sphere is still trembling, but she appears quite calm. I wonder what kind of individuality does she have to have such firmness.'' Noah saw how Faith was using her focus to stabilize her mind without revealing any struggle in her expression, it seemed that her mental waves had some peculiar capabilities. ''The idiot, instead, is lucky to have a sea of consciousness still.'' Noah thought when he turned toward Andrew. The latter''s mental sphere had endured the entirety of the cry without defenses on its insides, and the mental energy that was around him had dispersed when the tremors arrived. Noah could see that cracks had appeared on the walls of Andrew''s sphere, his mind was able to remain in one piece only thanks to the protective membrane that had enveloped him when the attack reached him. Of course, Noah didn''t even need to analyze their bodies to understand their state. Noah was a hybrid, but he had suffered a lot of injuries when the tremors swept him anyway. The envoys though were only humans, many of their bones had cracked, and some of their internal organs had completely stopped functioning. Blood came out from every part of their skin, their robes had been thoroughly drenched in those few seconds. ''I could easily kill the two of them now. However, this crisis has just begun.'' Noah''s mind was working at full speed while he analyzed the situation. He picked up clues from everything that he could see or sense and quickly compared them with his vast knowledge of the magical beasts'' field. He had been able to predict the arrival of the deafening cry mostly due to his instincts, but he couldn''t know what would follow that event without understanding the situation first. The natural paradise under him had mostly fallen apart. The small lakes had disappeared since deep gorges had appeared after the earthquake, and the magical beasts that had survived had left in a hurry toward the areas over the sea. The waterfall was still standing, but the mountain behind it had seen many boulders falling from its surface. ''A cry able to reach the western coast and possibly the entirety of the new continent; a power that can affect this sturdy terrain at such distance; the rank 6 existences exploring the central areas; a piece of the Immortal Lands falling into the Mortal ones¡­'' The data inside Noah''s mind seemed to point toward a simple deduction: rank 7 magical beast! ''No, I would be dead in that case.'' Noah quickly discarded that hypothesis. He had seen the power of a god, the ruler of the Shandal Empire had been able to stop a meteorite that would have probably killed most of the lifeforms on the Mortal Lands. Rank 7 magical beasts would obviously be less potent than cultivators on the same rank, but that didn''t mean that they were weak! Andrew had managed to keep his life without preparing any defense beforehand, which meant that heroic cultivators could protect themselves against that power. ''Also, the Immortal Lands should have gods continuously absorbing their "Breath", it''s unlikely that a single being can cause its fall. Well, I hope it, at least.'' Noah thought while he stared at the hordes of magical beasts migrating toward the coastlines. Roars and cries resounded everywhere in the continent, the magical beasts in every territory didn''t hesitate to run away from the central areas as soon as the tremors stopped. Those creatures abandoned their packs to distance themselves from the origin of the deafening cry, they didn''t even fight when they crossed each other''s paths. The entire fauna of the central territories was migrating toward the coasts and unleashed chaos along its path. Noah remained in the air, and his gaze went toward the beginning of the mountain chain after he understood what was happening around him. However, the cause behind that event was still unclear, he didn''t have the confidence of evaluating events that were so far away from his rank. "W-what happened?" Faith''s voice resounded in the area. She had finally managed to stabilize her condition, and she directly asked that question after gulping a few pills. June opened her eyes a few seconds later and did the same, their complexion seemed to improve slightly after the drugs had taken their effect. Of course, their bodies were far from fine, they could only see and hear thanks to their consciousness. Noah didn''t answer, he was as clueless as them in that situation, he was just waiting to see what other events would follow that cry. There was no point in escaping, the tremors would reach him even if he flew over the sea. Also, he now knew the entity of the attack, he could just deploy one of the most suitable defensive measures that Elder Julia had given him before the meeting. Andrew was still doing his best to control the damages on his centers of power, but Noah didn''t care about him. He had chosen not to kill him simply because he didn''t know what to expect from now on, there was a chance that he could use Andrew''s life to his advantage. Noah wasn''t wrong to expect some consequences, but what followed made the fear that had dispersed after the cry reappear. Thousands of figures rose at high speed in the air, carrying clouds of dust and terrain in their trail. They had a pair of large feathered wings attached on their backs and a skeletal humanoid body. A pair of curved horns grew from their temples, and long claws spread from what could be considered their arms. However, what made Noah really scared was that those creatures could fly! The new continent was relatively safe due to the absence of flying magical beasts, but the appearance of those humanoid beasts completely changed the situation. What was worse was that many of them were in the fifth rank, with a handful of them in the sixth rank, and the rest in the fourth. The winged beasts released cries that echoed the loud one that had previously filled the continent. The creatures under him stopped roaring when they heard those cries, it seemed that they feared the new presences that had filled the sky over the piece of Immortal Lands. It was at that point that Noah understood the meaning of their roars and repeated them in human words inside his mind. ''Gather food.'' Chapter 587: 587. Wai ''Black feathered wings, gray skeletal bodies, and curved horns¡­ I don''t recognize them.'' Noah tried to link the identity of those creatures to the bestiary inside his mind, but he couldn''t find any match. The fauna and flora of the Immortal Lands were radically different from those of the Mortal ones, it wasn''t surprising that Noah couldn''t recognize those magical beasts. ''They must have been dormant deep underground. Earth element? I can''t be sure. Yet, it''s certain that they are the pack of the being that has released the cry from before.'' Noah''s mind worked at full speed to find ways out of that situation. Understand the threat, study the environment, and choose the safest path, Noah was going through those processes in a matter of instants. He had even activated the Divine deduction technique to improve his thinking speed, he wasn''t holding anything back in front of such a threat. ''The leader of the pack should be at the peak of the sixth rank or even be half-step inside the divine ranks. A handful of rank 6 creatures as captains, a hundred of rank 5 beasts as soldiers, and thousands of rank 4 pawns, we might be forced to abandon this place.'' The width and power of the pack of winged beasts could match any of the three big nations, it could even be considered superior. Only the Shandal Empire with its god could overpower such a force since it appeared that the pack lacked a divine being. ''I can''t affect this situation, I can only try to survive until I reach Elder Julia and Elder Austin.'' Noah realized that almost immediately, the pack of winged beasts was simply too numerous and powerful, he could only escape. His gaze went on the other envoys, and some coldness filled his reptilian pupils while his mind made plans about them. ''Andrew can''t run away on its own, he can be a good bait. These are the territories of the Papral nation, so Faith should know escape routes toward safe areas. June can use her status to find protection under the Council, but my situation is a bit different.'' Noah cursed inside his mind when he understood his options. He would just follow Faith toward one of the safe areas of the Papral nation if he was a normal envoy and leave to the force behind him to reward the Council. However, he was the Demon Prince of the Hive, the most promising new talent of the Mortal Lands. His value would be incredible in the eyes of any force, especially since he belonged to the weakest country among the important ones. Also, he was Divine Demon''s heir, and the Papral nation was the home of the Ravaging Demon, the traitor of the twelve demon sects. Noah didn''t know how much Ravaging Demon knew about him, but he couldn''t take any change against a being that was at least in the fifth rank. Calm filled his mind when he understood that he couldn''t seek political asylum inside the territories of the Papral nation. Hundreds of thoughts had surged inside of Noah''s mental sphere since its walls had stopped trembling, but only a few instants had passed in the outside world. Dust and debris were still falling from the winged beasts'' bodies, it was as if the Divine deduction technique was hastening the passage of time inside Noah''s mind. ''It would take me less than a week to return to the forest of White woods if I use the secret technique, the Shadow sprint, and the Warp spell. I must go now!'' Noah thought and turned toward the south to prepare himself for the fastest escape that he was capable of. He didn''t care about Faith at all, and June was far safer than him in that situation since she could rely on the Council and on the escorts that had accompanied her through the travel. However, he was alone, he could only rely on himself for his survival. Yet, a sudden sense of danger filled his mind. Noah felt helpless when he saw that winged beasts rose in the sky from the territories along the western coast, it seemed that they took a bit more to awaken due to the distance from the rest of the pack. Only a few instants had passed from when the deafening cry filled the new continent, but that time was enough to fill the sky above its territory with winged figures! Noah saw how hundreds of rank 4 magical beasts appeared in the escape route that he had just set, and they were even accompanied by a multitude of beings in the third rank of the same species! ''This land was the damned hunting area of these beasts!'' Noah quickly understood the situation and realized that he couldn''t fly back to the territories of the Hive. He could cross the sea of rank 4 magical beasts, but they would inevitably slow down his journey and gain enough time for the rank 5 beings in the distance. The safest path had suddenly become the most dangerous. ''By foot then!'' Noah directly switched approach and dived toward the ground. Faith and June were still recovering, but their consciousnesses made them able to see their surroundings. They could see that Noah was charging toward the ground, and they instinctively decided to follow him. After all, it was thanks to him that their centers of power were still intact. Of course, Andrew was completely unaware of the events that were sweeping the new continent and remained in the air. The pack of winged beasts began to move after they were done echoing the orders of the leader, and each specimen shot toward the first lifeform in its line of sight. Every magical beast or plant that couldn''t fly had instantly become a prey. The tide of migrating magical beasts appeared in Noah''s eyes, but he didn''t fear them. They were too scared, their only focus was to escape that situation. Such an innate fear had been able to suppress their aggression, which made the ground the safest place where to hide for the moment. Noah didn''t slow down his descent and crashed on the ground, creating a large hole in the terrain that flung away the weaker beasts that were escaping on that spot. Noah punched the terrain as he kept on diving underground, he was basically creating a large cave where he could reorganize. The sky was the territory of the winged beasts now, and the surface was their hunting area, only the underground could provide him with some safety. Noah punched and kicked, shattering any sturdy rock that appeared as he dug deeper. He stopped only when he saw that the sunlight couldn''t reach his position anymore. "Now what?" Faith''s voice resounded in the underground area, and Noah turned to stare at the two women that had followed him underground. The azure light radiated from the terrain illuminated their bloodied figures, it was clear that their bodies had yet to reach a stable state. "Now, we wait." Noah said as he crossed June and Faith to destroy the entrance to the underground area. Chapter 588: 588. Stuck "Wait? How can we just remain here during this crisis!? My people are probably dying out there! I can''t let these beasts take over the territories of my nation!" Faith loudly complained, but a wave of coldness immediately surrounded her figure. She felt Noah''s reptilian eyes fixing on her and exuding a chilling killing intent. Then, soft words that resembled a growl resounded in the underground area. "An army of powerful magical beasts has suddenly appeared on the continent, and you thought that it would be wise to raise your voice against the man that saved you. I will personally bring you back to the surface if you keep on threatening to reveal my position." Noah warned Faith as he tried to suppress his killing intent. Attempting to kill her now would just reveal his position, and he needed her contacts on the surface to keep track of the advance of the pack. Faith shut her mouth at that point. Noah was right, she wouldn''t be there if it weren''t for his warning. Also, losing her calm was out of her character. "Sorry, I guess I don''t have much experience in these kinds of crises." Faith apologized using a soft voice before sitting on the ground to calm herself down. She was a rare talent in the Papral nation, but no one could compare to Noah when it came to survival, especially when it was about magical beasts. "Andrew?" Faith asked while picking her inscribed notebook from her space-ring. "Dead or worse." Noah gave a plain answer before sitting on the ground too. His body was stable, but there were many injuries on his internal organs that had to be taken care of, he guessed that he would need a week to return to his peak. "Worse?" Faith asked, but Noah didn''t answer. He didn''t have certainties, there were only hypotheses inside his mind. "What are those things? How could our forces miss something like that?" June questioned Noah when she sat too. She knew that he was an expert in the magical beasts'' field, he was the only one among them that could reveal something useful. "I don''t really know, there is no record of those creatures even in the archives of the academy. They probably are a species exclusive to the Immortal Lands, or some sort of mutation that has happened due to the high density of "Breath" up there." Noah revealed his thoughts when June asked for them. "I''m still unclear about many aspects of this situation, but it seems that the entire pack had gone dormant before or during the fall of this continent, only to awaken when the leader released its cry." Noah explained the things that he was certain of. Magical beasts could go dormant in certain situations. For example, they would hibernate during their breakthroughs to a higher rank or when the environment lacked the necessary nourishments. Of course, that action wasn''t completely safe, there was the risk that a dormant creature wouldn''t wake up anymore since the nutrients inside its body were consumed during its sleep. Only a rare species like the Undead chameleon could use that ability at will and without risks. However, that was their only way to survive at times. "What''s the plan?" June asked without even bothering to hide her trust toward Noah. Faith noticed that interaction, it seemed that they were almost used to working together. Yet, she also knew that they had been students of the academy during the same period. She had never studied the specific behind their relationship, but she could easily guess that they weren''t simple classmates. "Wait, for now. The appearance of the pack would modify the food chain, and I can predict its behavior only when the fauna reaches some kind of stability. In the meantime, we must rely on your escort and on Faith''s forces to obtain reports about the situation on the surface." Noah sighed when he finished explaining. There was a limit to how much he could do even with his instincts and with the Divine deduction technique. The fauna on the surface was chaotic now, it was impossible to predict it. Yet, he was sure that the strongest beasts would take care of the central areas once the situation stabilized, meaning that only rank 4 beasts would patrol the coastlines. "I agree to help both of you, but you must stop hiding things. What did you mean by worse?" Faith asked while waving her inscribed notebook. Coldness appeared once again in Noah''s eyes, but he forced himself to suppress that feeling. ''I need the eyes of the Papral nation on the surface.'' That thought made him sigh internally, but revealing his hypothesis wasn''t really a bother. "A magical beast that has just come out from the state of dormant would require a large amount of food to restore its body, and cultivators are more nourishing when they are alive. I believe you can understand where this is going." Faith''s eyebrows arched when she heard Noah''s answer. That gesture caused her pain since her eyes were still recovering, but that realization made her completely ignore that sensation. There was a high chance that Andrew had been captured and brought at the center of the continent alive! After all, cultivators kept most of their "Breath" inside their dantians, their bodies were almost worthless for the magical beasts. ''It''s just a matter of how smart these beasts are and what abilities do they possess.'' Noah kept that thought for him. He knew that the leader of the pack was relatively smart, forcing rank 6 creatures to gather food that they couldn''t eat wasn''t a small matter. Faith remained silent for a while, but she soon decided to maintain her side of the deal. She sent mental messages to the force behind her, and even June did the same. Instead, Noah simply waited for the Hive to send a report. There were around twenty heroic cultivators from the Coral archipelago in the new continent, and they were probably all busy handling the crisis. He was sure that they would notify him once they managed to retreat to a safe position. Faith and June didn''t have much luck, none of their messages were answered, which left them entirely in the dark about the situation on the surface. However, there wasn''t much that they could do, they could only wait for their answers before deciding on their next move. Hours passed in the silence of the underground area, with occasional cries resounding from the terrain above them. Noah saw how June''s body was slowly recovering, she seemed almost able to open her eyes after that break. Faith couldn''t help but continue picking some clues about their relationship. She didn''t know if it was the way Noah answered June or just the way she looked at him, but she didn''t seem to treat him as a criminal of her nation. In the end, Faith decided to break the silence and directly ask since she realized that they would probably be stuck in that area for a while. "Say, did you have feelings for him before Noah turned out to be a criminal?" Chapter 589: 589. Individuality Faith''s soft words ran through the underground area. June kept an expressionless face while Noah simply ignored the question. He knew that it was easy to mask expressions and hints during a formal meeting. Still, anything could reveal the truth behind his relationship with June in that relatively safe situation. He knew that because he had spent most of his life hiding and pretending. "Vance was the strongest student in the academy, and I was only his sparring partner. Noah Balvan, instead, is a traitor and a criminal, I have nothing but battle intent for him." June answered without putting any emotion in her words. She wasn''t exactly lying. Her relationship with Noah had begun to evolve through their cohabitation, but he left before it could solidify into something more than friendship. Noah had given her a future and good memories that had accompanied her through the years, but they had never even labeled themselves as friends. "He is an amazing rival that I will surpass one day." June said, and the honesty behind her words could be clearly felt by the other two envoys next to her. Faith stretched her legs and laid her back on the azure terrain when she heard that answer. Her mind seemed to wander for a moment, it was as if she was choosing her next question. "You know, I''ve spent my whole life surrounded by old cultivators that focused only on my centers of power and men that could only see my beauty. One side claimed that feelings were a hindrance on my cultivation journey, while the other said that their lives were worthless without my love. I guess I''m fairly interested in the topic, but maybe I''ve asked the wrong person." Faith summarized her life while turning her face toward Noah. The meaning behind her words was clear, she thought that it was Noah the one with feelings for June. "You do realize that you two are alive simply because you can provide me with intel useful to my escape? The continent is in complete chaos, no one would blame me for your deaths." Noah gave a cold answer while continuing to focus on his body. "Yes, but you can''t continue to punch through the ground until the path above is clear, and you can''t fight me for the same reason. Also, June''s envoys might be already dead, you need the Council to return to the Hive." Faith answered while waving her inscribed notebook. A sly smile was on her face, she knew that she was the most valuable person among the three. "Beauty is useless if you don''t have power, why would I care about a pretty face?" Noah sighed before giving voice to those words. He was being honest, beauty has never clouded his judgment nor affected his behavior. Even his arousal from before hadn''t been triggered when he saw Faith, it was as if that instinct was linked to the emotions contained in his mind. "So, you do find June pretty, but you''ve barely laid your eyes on me. There must be something deeper then." Faith continued to speak while keeping her sly smile on her face. "Why are you doing this? A powerful pack of magical beasts has just invaded the continent, but you seem more interested in annoying us." June gave voice to those words, she was clearly irritated by that situation. She had barely been able to express his position to Noah just to be stuck with a woman that kept on asking about their relationship. ''Maybe, what annoys me the most is that I don''t even know how to describe it.'' June thought when silence fell in the underground area. Both she and Noah were around forty years old, but they had known each other for less than three years and cohabitated for even less. She had spent those twenty years fighting and training, surrounded by people that she didn''t trust and that she didn''t care about. Instead, Noah had traveled far and wide and claimed a position of power that he would have avoided back then. ''Maybe, the fact that he has stopped hiding isn''t the only thing that has changed about him.'' June couldn''t help but reach that point in her thoughts. "I need to know if it''s worth experiencing feelings, I can''t express peace and calm if I''m clueless about that matter. I need it for my individuality." Faith explained the reason behind her interest, and silence fell once again inside that underground room. The individuality of each cultivator was vital for cultivating through the heroic ranks, and it wasn''t just a matter of learning the depths of their personality. A cultivator''s individuality would eventually become a personal law in the divine ranks, meaning that everyone needed to express it other than understanding it. A partial understanding would obviously lead to a partial expression, Faith had simply recognized that her mindset lacked something and was working to fill those gaps. The old cultivators that trained her couldn''t help in those matters, and her followers were mostly interested in her aspect. However, June and Noah came from different nations, they didn''t have any obligation toward her. Also, they seemed to share something more profound than simple rivalry, which led her to use that chance to learn more about a world that she couldn''t explore under the watchful eye of the Council. ''The best talent of the Papral nation lacks experiences in normal human interactions. Well, I can''t say that I''m different. I guess we are still growing, we have just begun our journey through the heroic ranks after all.'' Noah thought when he heard her explanation. The envoys were all in the gaseous stage of the fourth rank. They could be labeled as the best talents of their nations, but they also were cultivators who had just begun to explore their individualities. Their path wasn''t set since they had just taken a few steps on it, not even Noah could claim to know where his enlightenment would lead him. "The Royal academy is a place filled with nobles and every sort of talent, but I guess you already knew that." June broke the silence and claimed Faith''s attention. "I knew that I would have had to make up for the lack of resources with my hard work when I enrolled. So, I kept on fighting and training. It was at that point that I met him." June didn''t turn toward Noah, but it was clear that she was talking about him. "This guy rarely spoke, and you would always find him in some corner, focusing on his centers of power. His focus on his cultivation could only be labeled as addiction." Memories of his life inside the academy appeared in Noah''s mind as June kept on speaking. ''You know, I really admired him. He was the best of the best without anyone''s support, his power came only from himself. It was clear that he hid something, but I didn''t care back then, I just wanted to be like him." An honest smile appeared on June''s face when she reached that point in her story. Chapter 590: 590. Hostage "Yet, he left, and the truth behind his identity was spread through the old continent. The person that I admired so much turned out to be a criminal who only cared about power and was ready to forsake everything else." June''s smile disappeared when she spoke those words. Noah didn''t reveal any expression and June lowered her head in the silence that followed, only Faith continued to move her gaze between the two of them. June seemed to have revealed her true feelings, but the end of her speech was somewhat hurried. However, there was a limit to how many clues Faith could pick up. June''s words were close to the truth after all, her lies were hidden under the feelings that she had really felt. "Is she speaking the truth? Are you nothing but an addict ready to sacrifice anything just to improve?" Faith asked when she realized that June wasn''t going to speak anymore. The temperature inside the underground area seemed to drop when Noah opened his mouth to speak. "Yes. I devour what I need and destroy what opposes me. Everything I do is for my benefit." Noah''s answer made Faith''s expression become cold. "I have to say, I expected more from the famous Demon Prince." Faith shook her head after she spoke those words. It was clear that she couldn''t learn anything else from them, especially after Noah claimed to be precisely as the reports said. Noah didn''t mind her comment, he was that type of person after all. He knew that he was slowly accepting other things inside his mind, but that process was still ongoing. The way he saw it, caring about something was pointless if he didn''t have the power to hold it. No one spoke after that last exchange of words, the three envoys simply focused on their centers of powers. Little by little, June and Faith managed to open their eyes, but bloody veins still lingered on those organs. The deafening cry had hurt them deeply, even Noah''s internal organs needed some time to recover. Minutes became hours, and hours eventually became days. The three cultivators hidden underground focused on their recovery and rarely spoke, only Faith broke the silence from time to time to question June about random matters. "What kind of family do you have?" "Will you have children in the future?" "What do you think about the Elbas family?" "What do you think about my nation?" "Will you get married at some point?" "Is orange your favorite color?" Those questions came out of Faith''s mouth from time to time, she seemed interested in learning more about June. June gave short answers without ever revealing too much about herself. Her mind was too messy to care about bonding with the envoy of an enemy nation. The sound of battles resounded continuously above them, but she could only think about the man that was stuck with him. She had finally met Noah after twenty years of work under the Elbas family only to be forced to keep some distance from him. Noah had similar thoughts about her, but they weren''t his main concern. His instincts screamed to no end due to the battlefield above him, and they had yet to receive any news from the four forces on the new continent. ''Maybe, the sudden appearance of the pack has temporally disabled the communications between the inscribed notebooks.'' Noah couldn''t help but reach that conclusion. A sudden increase in the "Breath" radiated on the surface could affect the mental messages sent by those inscribed items. After all, he had seen Elder Julia blocking one mental message, it was probable that those winged beasts could do something similar since there were rank 6 existences among them. However, on their sixth day spent hiding, a loud explosion resounded right above them. The ceiling of the underground room began to fall as an earthquake shook its foundation. Cavities began to appear on the ceiling, and the sunlight illuminated the area. Noah wielded his sabers, and the other two envoys did the same, they were ready to fight for their lives. Yet, human figures became visible as the cavities enlarged to form a large fissure that connected the underground area to the surface. "Elder Clara!" Faith exclaimed when she recognized one of the figures on the surface and shot in the air to meet the elder. Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw the golden colors of the Elbas family on the robes of some of those figures, he immediately realized that the group wasn''t formed only by the forces of the Papral nation. June shot a worried gaze toward Noah before flying to greet the forces of the Royals. Noah didn''t move, he analyzed the situation above him and waited to see the behavior that those heroic cultivators had toward him. ''They are injured and covered in blood, it seems that they have fought a lot to reach this position.'' Noah thought when his gaze swept the figures. "Where is the Eager Titan? What happened?" A loud voice soon resounded among the group on the surface. Three heroic cultivators dressing robes with the emblem of the Shandal Empire anxiously swept the underground area before focusing on Noah. "What have you done to him, demon? We know that his space-ring is still in the area!" The three cultivators immediately blamed Noah for Andrew''s disappearance. ''This group must be formed by the escorts of the envoys. This is bad, I had planned to use their intel and escape before meeting them, but now¡­'' Hundreds of thoughts rose inside Noah''s mind as he tried to find a way out of that situation. "Wait, he has sav-" "Silence, Lady Vigny, this is a matter between the Empire and the Demon Prince." Faith tried to explain the situation, but one of the cultivators belonging from the Utra nation interrupted her phrase. It was clear that the forces of the Elbas family wanted to use that chance to take Noah with him, they were even willing to let the Empire take him in custody. ''I can''t let them take me to their territories, I don''t know what they will do to me or what price the Hive will have to pay for my release. Well, Chasing Demon will find a way to justify my actions.'' Noah thought while his arm shot in front of him. Black flames appeared in front of him, and his arm directly pieced them. Yet, nothing came out from the other side of the flames. The cultivators above him were surprised, but they were all in the fourth rank, they weren''t fast enough to stop Noah''s actions. Black flames appeared behind June, and Noah''s hand came out of them to grab the collar of her robe. Then, Noah directly pulled and threw the powerless June toward him. June suddenly felt her waist being held by a firm but careful arm, and a cold sensation spread from her throat when a black saber neared it. In less than an instant, Noah had thrown her inside his arms and trapped her. Then, she heard his cold voice. "Take one step forward, and she dies." Chapter 591: 591. Ac June had been taken hostage under the gazes of ten heroic cultivators in the fourth rank! Everything had happened in less than an instant, and Noah''s actions had been noticed only when it was too late to do anything about them. Of course, Noah''s decision to use June instead of Faith wasn''t random. Faith would have undoubtedly struggled to break free from Noah''s grasp, but there was a high chance that June would just play along with his act. Luckily for him, June was able to read the situation and pretended to be unable to do anything to escape from him. "Release Lady Ballor at once! These actions can only worsen your situation! You mus-" One of the heroic cultivators from the Utra nation began to speak, but he suddenly stopped when he saw that a drop of blood fell from June''s throat. Noah had only neared his Demonic sword to her neck, but a cut had already appeared, the sharpness of his saber was simply incredible. The two sides had reached a stalemate, but the situation of the escorts was far worse than Noah''s. Roars and cries resounded from the surface, it was clear that the environment of the new continent had yet to stabilize. That fact made the escorts anxious, there was a limit to how much they could stay in that open position. "It''s thanks to him that we are still alive! Andrew ignored his warnings and was swept by the power of the cry. He wasn''t in the condition to follow us." Faith was finally able to explain the situation to the newly arrived heroic cultivators, and ugly expressions appeared on the faces of the escorts from the Empire. Even the three cultivators from the Utra nation knitted their eyebrows. They wanted to take advantage of the situation to ask compensations from the Hive and even interrogate Noah, but he had reacted too quickly and was actually on the right side of the matter! The roars of the beasts became more intense, Noah guessed that it wouldn''t take much before the winged beasts stormed the area. "Threw away anything that the Royal family can use to trace your position." Noah murmured those words to June''s ear, and she removed a golden ring from her finger. Noah tugged June when the ring began to fall to the ground, it had to appear that he was forcing her to do that after all. The meaning behind his order was clear, Noah wanted to use June as insurance for his escape. The roars became even more intense and forced the escorts from the Utra nation to take a decision. "You better return her alive, or the Hive will pay!" The leader of the three cultivators from the Elbas family shouted before leaving the area, and the other escorts did the same. June''s family had yet to fuse with the Elbas family, she was a promising asset, but there was a limit to how much those escorts were willing to risk for her. Also, they could always blame Noah afterward if something was to happen to her. The Papral nation had retrieved its envoy, and there was no reason for the forces of the Empire to linger there any further, so they simply left. Faith shot one last gaze to the two envoys in the underground area before turning to follow the forces of her nation. She didn''t seem to believe Noah completely, but that wasn''t the right situation to learn about other''s relationships. Noah waited for the cultivators to disappear from his sight before forcefully kicking the ground. The floor of the underground area crumbled and its ceiling began to fall apart, it would be a matter of seconds before that room was submerged by azure debris. Noah continued to use his kicks to open a path that would lead him further downward. He didn''t trust any of those heroic cultivators, and his position had been revealed, he had to go deeper if he wanted to make humans and beasts lose track of him. June remained silent in his arms. Noah had long removed the saber from her throat and had stored his weapons to use his now free hand to help in the excavation. Of course, using his martial art would facilitate the excavation, but Noah didn''t dare to release "Breath" since he was trying to hide. ''He is doing his best not to hurt me, I''m barely noticing that he is carrying me.'' June thought while Noah used his physical strength to reach deeper parts of the piece of Immortal Lands. She could clearly feel that just a bit of his strength was enough to divide her body in half. However, Noah was holding her with incredible control, he had even managed to avoid reopening the injuries that had healed during the previous day. ''Playing the damsel in distress is annoying though. I guess I can let it slip this time.'' June''s wild character was still there, she really hated the part that Noah had forced her to play. Yet, her performance was helping Noah, and she felt that she owed him too much to ruin his plan. Also, she didn''t exactly hate to be held with such care by him, she even felt that she could relax for the first time since the detonation of Eccentric Thunder''s separate dimension. Noah continued to dig, even the rocky terrain that would generally take spells to break crumbled in front of his attacks. He stopped only when he reached a depth of a few dozens of kilometers since the ground under him had become too hard to break even with his body. Noah began to excavate toward the south at that point, he intended to create a tunnel that would bring him directly under the territories of the Hive. He didn''t know what kind of fauna the underground of the new continent would have, but he was sure that it would be safer than its surface, especially during that crisis. Noah''s excavation continued for a few hours before he decided to stop and to make the tunnel behind him crumble. He didn''t believe that the heroic cultivators would follow him till there, but he didn''t want to leave a tunnel behind him. Then, he released his hold on June and let her feet touch the ground. "Thanks for sticking with my act, I can''t allow myself to be a political prisoner." Noah spoke as soon as he let June go, but a golden flash suddenly appeared in his vision. Noah''s hand shot and grabbed the flash, which turned out to be the inscribed spear that June was wielding when she reached the meeting. June held the other side of the spear, and Noah could sense her irritation hidden behind her expression. "Sorry, I guess I could have released you sooner." Noah apologized while continuing to keep the tip of the spear still. ''I guess some things never chang-'' Noah continued to speak, but his phrase was interrupted since June let go of the spear and jumped toward him. His eyes widened when he saw June suddenly hugging him. Chapter 592: 592. Commoner Noah felt June''s arms suddenly squeezing his torso. It was needless to say that he didn''t expect something like that, especially not right after her attack. Heaven''s scent filled his nose and incited the hatred hidden in his instincts. However, June''s warmth spread through his body and suppressed that feeling. A complicated expression appeared on Noah''s face when he lowered his gaze toward the woman hugging him. It was as if he could sense how lonely she had been during those twenty years, after the only person that she trusted had abandoned her. Noah''s hands moved. His right arm went around her back to return the hug while his left hand went on her head to caress her hair. ''She feels so small.'' Noah couldn''t help but have that thought. A mighty heroic cultivator, one of the best talents of the Utra nation, was in his arms, holding him tightly. "I''m sorry, I knew nothing back then." Noah felt her words reverberate on his chest, June had spoken without releasing the hug. A slight tremble went through her arms when she spoke, it seemed that she was really concerned about that matter. "It''s fine, I wasn''t exactly fair with you too." Noah replied and slightly separated himself from June. His left hand went on her chin and lifted it to expose her throat. The wound made by the Demonic sword had healed, but a faint scar was still there. Also, the drops of blood spilled when he had threatened the escorts were still on her skin. Noah used his thumb to wipe away those red spots from her neck, he wanted to understand the exact amount of damage that he had caused. However, that situation was a bit too much to take for June. They were still hugging, and Noah had his head lowered to inspect her wound. She could feel how careful Noah was when he cleaned those red spots, and she was barely able to suppress the blush that his actions were causing. She didn''t hate that situation, but she wanted to catch up before reaching that point again once the relationship between them became clear. That''s why she pushed Noah away and stored the spear that had fallen on the ground when he had begun to caress her. "What now?" June asked before sitting on the ground and supporting herself to the walls of the underground area. Noah didn''t answer immediately, there were thoughts in his mind that he had to sort before he could be sure of what he wanted to do. ''Is this disappointment?'' Noah asked himself when he saw June distancing herself. ''Even my arousal is back. Maybe, this sensation is triggered by my emotions since I''m a hybrid.'' Elder Julia''s words resounded in his mind at that moment. He wasn''t the Vance of the academy anymore, nor the Hooded Devil. He felt no need to suppress his desires. ''I want her, it''s clear. Yet, she is different from Nina, and I don''t think I want that kind of relationship when it comes to her.'' Those thoughts surged inside Noah''s mind, but his body had already started moving. He was escaping from a difficult situation with one of the few people that he cared about, while an army of powerful magical beasts was invading the whole continent. There was enough tension around him, there was no point in holding back in that already dangerous situation. ''Enjoy the moment.'' Noah repeated Elder Julia''s words inside his mind as he sat next to June. A familiar jar appeared in his hands, and June couldn''t help but reveal a smirk when she recognized it. "Do you still keep Ivor''s wine? Do you know that it does not affect rank 4 mages?" June''s laugh accompanied those words, but her smile faded when she remembered what had happened to Ivor. "You know, many things have changed after your departure." June lowered her head when she gave voice to those words. Noah poured the wine inside two cups and handed one of them to June. "Tell me about it." Noah said while poking June''s shoulder to make her grab the cup. "Only if you tell me about your life. No lies this time." June replied, and Noah was able to sense some hesitation behind her words. He could tell that she was still a bit hesitant about that situation, it was impossible to prepare for that sudden turn of events. Yet, Noah had made his mind about her and didn''t hesitate to agree to her terms. "Deal, no lies." Only when she heard those words did June pick the cup and began to speak about the events that had happened after his departure. Noah learned about Ivor''s death, about the detonation of Eccentric Thunder''s separate dimension. He learned about the progress of June and her group in the exploration of the Royal Inheritance, about the effects that the Cause was having on the nation and the rule of the Elbas family. Then, June spoke about her family, about how its situation had evolved. Also, she even mentioned the many marriage proposals that she had received during that period. Her voice trembled a bit when she spoke about that topic, and she shot glances at Noah when she described the Royals that had sent those proposals. Of course, Noah didn''t show any reaction but limited himself to listen quietly. June wasn''t his woman or anything, he felt no jealousy when he learnt about the kind of interest that the Royals had in her. ''Her family can be a good asset, and she is talented other than beautiful. I don''t see the Elbas family choosing a better candidate to add to its ranks.'' Noah thought as he refilled the cups. His stash of wine was basically empty even if they only had drunk one jar, only a couple of them remained inside his space-ring. June spoke about how she ended up in the new continent after she learnt that Noah had become a heroic cultivator. The awkwardness between them had mostly vanished in those minutes, June felt relaxed even when she mentioned that she had often thought about him. "Then, you used me to escape from a different situation, and I had to play the role of the scared woman kidnapped by the ruthless Demon Prince of the Hive. I''ll forgive you only if your story doesn''t disappoint me." June smirked when she said those words, and Noah could already imagine that she would keep on using her abduction as an excuse in the future. However, he didn''t mind it, he actually felt glad that she was smiling so often once again. "I guess I should start from my escape through the area of influence of the Shandal Empire. Well, I knew that the western side was les-" "No, I want your full story, you don''t get to keep the matters of your family for yourself." June interrupted Noah with her words, and he could only sigh before focusing on the first memory that he had of his second life. "My mother was a commoner¡­" Chapter 593: 593. Memories Noah didn''t limit himself to speak about his life, he even told June about the mindset that he had when he went through certain events. He talked about how his addiction to cultivation started when he saw Thomas Balvan defeating the dragon that had attacked Balvan mansion, and revealed that his interest in the magical beasts'' field had probably begun that day. He told her about Lily, about how he had chosen to cultivate instead of attempting to escape with her, and how that decision had ultimately led to her death. He spoke about William, about the first time that he had taken a human life, about his encounter with a rank 5 creature when his dantian had yet to form. June had long stopped drinking her wine, Noah''s adventures were simply too incredible. A noble family that tried to suppress him, his mother punished in his place, Balor''s betrayal, Rhys'' ploy, she could barely believe that a kid less than fifteen years old had survived all of that. Then, his story arrived at his life in the academy. Noah told her that Thaddeus had instantly understood his real identity, but wanted to use him to do the dirty work of the Royals. He spoke about his dream during the test of his attitude, about the stars in the black sky, about his ambition. "I dreamt about an endless battle back then. Powerful enemies kept on coming, and I would spend hours to defeat them. Yet, even stronger enemies appeared after every victory. You want to reach for the sky, but I strive for an endless battlefield. We are similar but also completely different." June revealed the contents of her dream, and Noah couldn''t help but comment on that. "Like a true battle maniac. A pity that you''ve met someone that you''ll never beat." Noah revealed a smile when he gave voice to those words, bickering with June was as fun as he remembered. "The Demon Prince has kidnapped a noblewoman to escape, I wonder what your followers in the academy would think about it¡­" June smirked when she reminded him about the girls that had started to call him "dark prince" after his battle with Manuel. Noah''s story then reached the point of his departure. "Part of me wanted to remain in the academy, but-" "But you had too much on stake, and you will never forsake your ambition for friendship or, well, other things. I get it." June interrupted Noah when he tried to apologize for his sudden departure, but she wasn''t able to express herself completely. They had just returned to the status of friends, she didn''t know how her relationship with Noah would evolve. Yet, Noah had already made his mind on that topic and didn''t miss her hesitation. His story continued after that. Noah told her about the hunters'' guild, the events of the Bare Dungeon, the city of Slyfall, Odrea nation, the Coral archipelago, his enrollment in an underground organization, Divine Demon''s inheritance, and the exploration of the new continent. Of course, Noah didn''t reveal the specifics behind his centers of power, but he hinted something, and June didn''t mind him keeping those things a secret. Also, he kept hidden the contents of the inheritance and the behavior of the Hive in the new continent. They both knew that there was a slim chance that their relationship would be revealed, and they had both agreed not to disclose anything that the Utra nation could use against the other. Noah even spoke about the matriarch of the Charming demon sect and Nina. Honesty was everything with June, she would never accept him if he kept on hiding his true self. June didn''t seem to mind his past women too much, she was inexperienced in that field, but she wasn''t a young girl anymore. She understood that they didn''t have any kind of relationship in that period, so there was no reason to feel jealous. She was obviously a bit annoyed, but Noah was right next to her now, and he was doing what he hadn''t been able to do twenty years ago. "I guess we both went through a lot." Noah ended his story while leaving his cup on the ground. "Hmph! I kept on fighting in the Royal Inheritance and managing the western border, while you went around messing with the big nations. You even had the time to stay with other women." June complained, but Noah didn''t waste that chance to point out something. "Other? Do you mind being more specific?" June blushed when she heard those words and stood up to distance herself from Noah''s sly smile. Noah sighed before standing up too. He had lowered his barriers, but June was still resisting her feelings. "You know, I wouldn''t be able to talk to you like this if it wasn''t for those other women. It''s also thanks to Nina that I can see myself with another person." Noah spoke while pulling June''s robe. June let Noah hug her from behind but kept her head lowered, she had yet to get used to that type of physical contact. "You became close to me because you needed to find an heir for Eccentric Thunder back then. Isn''t this the same, but for different reasons?" June asked. Noah had told her that his body-nourishing method made him similar to a magical beast. He had skipped the fusion part, but he had explained to her that she gave birth to sensations that he found hard to control. "I''m fairly sure that I feel this way because it''s you. Yet, the decision is yours. I will understand if you refuse me." Noah answered, he was being as honest as he could in that situation. There was nothing else that he could do, he had revealed his feelings, now it was up to June. June raised her head and stared at Noah that was hugging her from behind. Noah could see the hesitation and fear hidden behind her eyes, but there was some determination in the words that followed that gaze. "It''s hard for me to remain alone if you keep on creating good memories." She then turned and put her arms behind Noah''s neck. Noah found himself surprised by her actions once again when he realized that June had closed her eyes and was reaching for his lips. Noah didn''t think anymore at that point, he was already immersed in a long kiss before he could feel his mind again. June lowered her gaze when the kiss ended, but her arms were still clinging on Noah''s neck, she was choosing her next words very carefully. "I don''t want to live in regret again, so let''s create amazing memories this time." She wore a warm smile when she spoke, and Noah could only limit himself enough to nod before diving toward her lips again. Chapter 594: 594. Travel "No other women after I leave." "It might be hard, but I can do that." June elbowed Noah''s ribs when she heard his answer, but she soon forgot about it when she felt his hand caressing her hair. They were laid on the terrain of the underground room, and the azure light radiated by the rocky ground of the new continent illuminated their naked bodies. June was using Noah''s shoulder as a pillow and had her left arm stretched on his torso, ready to hit him whenever he pretended not to take her seriously. She had understood by then that she was unable to wound Noah with her physical strength, so she simply used her full power to poke him. Of course, she didn''t do that to hurt him but to simply hear the laugh that he made afterward. "And no death. Try not to die while you do something crazy like overthrowing a country or mocking the rulers of one of the three big nations." June spoke again while changing her position to lay her head over Noah''s chest. They both knew that June couldn''t remain in the Hive if they managed to return to the territories under its control. No excuses could justify her change of factions, and the Elbas family could just use that chance to declare war to the Hive. Also, June had her dreams too. She still wanted to become the matriarch of her family and use the help of the Royals to obtain resources, she couldn''t just abandon the position that she had gained in twenty years of work. Noah could understand her decision better than anyone. They weren''t strong enough to have a relationship out in the open. Noah was the greatest humiliation in the history of the Elbas family, and June was one of the talents that it was nourishing, the consequences of their relationship could involve the forces behind them and endanger their lives. "The same goes for you, no death. I want to meet you again." Noah expressed his feelings without any shame, and June revealed a warm smile when she heard those words. "I guess I can have other men since you didn''t say anything about that." June couldn''t suppress her laugh when she felt Noah''s body becoming tense for a moment after she said that. She turned her face to meet a pair of reptilian eyes that stared at her while radiating incredible greed. "June, don''t joke about that. Magical beasts are possessive creatures, you shouldn''t push their limits." Noah was serious when he said that. He had felt a wave of anger filling his body when he heard that joke, he believed that even his hunger couldn''t reach the intensity of that feeling. ''The instincts of the Cursed dragons must have been slightly modified since I''m a hybrid, they have become more human.'' Noah thought that when he analyzed his anger, but June suddenly kissed him and made him leave the matter for the moment. They had remained in that area for a week already, doing nothing but talk, joke, and sleep together. It had been June''s first time a week ago, and her body was still injured, but she quickly became used to that practice. She was a heroic cultivator after all, a mighty being like her couldn''t possibly have issues during sex. On the other side, Noah found the matter a bit more troublesome. It was his first time with his new body, and he never seemed to have enough. Yet, he had to hold back to let June rest, there was the risk of reopening her injuries if he pushed her limits more than that. Of course, he didn''t mind holding back since he was able to enjoy that precious time with June. "Stop using your similarities with those creatures to justify your actions. You are you, you can be jealous even if your body-nourishing method didn''t imitate magical beasts." June spoke when their lips separated. Noah found himself agreeing with her every time. He had spent years attuning to his magical beast''s side when he trained in the wilderness but, now, he felt that he was doing the same with his human''s one. He had realized that there was something that he lacked since his conversation with Elder Julia, and June was helping him on that part by just being with him. ''These peaceful feelings are indeed nice, but¡­'' Noah thought before his gaze went toward the southern wall of the underground room. He knew that they were still in the middle of an invasion, and the lack of information didn''t really help their situation. ''I don''t mind punching a tunnel for thousands of kilometers, and we should be deep enough to avoid being noticed from the surface. Yet, I don''t know the fauna and flora of the underground world. I guess we can only be cautious.'' Noah sighed when he thought that. The underground world of the piece of Immortal Land was unexplored, the pack of winged beasts wouldn''t have taken the forces of the four nations by surprise otherwise. Yet, the surface was too dangerous, and he was still in the territories of the Papral nation according to his calculations, he couldn''t just reappear after only a week. His act of kidnapping June could be treated as something for his survival only if Chasing Demon was the one to interact with the forces of the Utra nation. The Elbas family would just force its truth on the matter if Noah were to meet the Royals by himself. "Already thinking of leaving me?" June''s voice resounded in the area, she had noticed that Noah was analyzing the southern wall. A smile appeared on Noah''s face, and he straightened his position while lifting June in his lap. June would simply allow him to move her, she limited herself to find the most comfortable position over Noah. After a week spent in that way, she had begun to learn even Noah''s small habits. She knew that he would speak a few words to her ear, kiss her neck, and then carefully lay her on the ground to continue from there. "I told you that we would have waited for your body to recover before moving. Also, you can stay in the territories of the Hive for a while, the Royals can wait." June closed her eyes when she heard those words, and she felt even happier when she felt Noah''s lips on her neck. Predicting his behavior made her feel closer to him, she felt as if the distance between the two of them kept on shortening with every second that they spent together. Three more weeks had to pass before June returned to her peak. Noah gave her some of his spare robes since hers were filled with her blood. Then, after one month spent in that room, Noah and June began their travel toward the territories of the Hive. Chapter 595: 595. Underground Noah took down the hard, rocky terrain of the underground area with his bare hands. June followed closely behind him, she wielded her spear tightly in her hands, ready to stab anything unusual that came out during their advance. Of course, Noah had told her not to intervene unless the situation became really dangerous. He didn''t want the two of them to release "Breath" in that unknown area, which would only reveal their position to any being inhabiting the underground. Also, he could take care of any beast and plant below the fifth rank with his body alone, he was a hybrid in the upper tier of the fourth rank after all. June agreed to his terms, but she still preferred to have her weapons next to her. Noah used his consciousness to keep track of his direction. Their advance was slow, and they had to take breaks every few weeks, but they didn''t meet anything out of the ordinary in the first part of their travel. June and Noah did their best to enjoy those breaks, sometimes they even stopped for a few days in the same area. However, they always resumed their journey in the end. Many scenarios appeared inside Noah''s mind while he continued to excavate. He could predict the behavior of the magical beasts better than anyone else, but there were too many uncertainties in that situation and a lot of things that he couldn''t be sure of. The appearance of a new ruler in the magical beasts'' system was a revolutionary event, especially when those new rulers could cover an area as large as the new continent. The environment would be modified entirely, and those changes would affect both the surface and the underground. ''Those winged beasts have come from the ground, which means that we are in their old domain now. There is a chance that another pack has claimed this now empty area since more than two months have passed.'' Noah thought while continuing to punch through the rocky wall. An exchange between domains was inevitable since the winged beasts had appeared. Different creatures would choose to hide underground now that the surface was a hunting area, it was just a matter of what depths they were able to reach. Noah knew that most creatures wouldn''t be able to arrive in his position. He was an anomaly in the magical beasts'' world, he could use his instincts to improve the already amazing capabilities of his mind. However, magical beasts didn''t have that freedom, their instincts simply ruled their actions. He knew that the octopus-type creatures that inhabited the murky lake would never attempt to dive underground, it was simply against their nature. So, he was reasonably sure that he and June could only meet certain species at that depth. ''The insect-type creatures in the natural paradise were a possibility, but we are almost under the mountain area, they aren''t a threat; The snakes inhabiting the mountains could try to excavate, but they shouldn''t be able to reach our depth; the octopuses, Poisonous frogs, and Saber-toothed tigers are not a threat; The sandworms though¡­'' Noah reviewed the species of magical beasts that inhabited the western coastline and found that only the sandworms living in the desert could completely migrate underground. ''Yet, they are on the other side of the coastline, there is a high chance that we won''t even reach their new territory.'' Noah concluded in his mind, leaving only the magical plants and the beasts that had migrated during the invasion as a variable. "We should almost be on the other side of the waterfall." Noah warned June who took a battle position. Noah pierced the walls in front of him for some time and sighed in relief when he saw that nothing out of the ordinary was happening. The way he saw it, it would be perfect if he could just create a tunnel without disturbing anyone''s environment. Fighting in that situation would only bring trouble to them. Yet, something did change at some point. Noah punched a wall but was surprised to discover that there wasn''t ground anymore on the other side of that spot. He nodded toward June to signal that the situation would be different from that point onward and tore down the remains of the rocks that blocked the passage. The wall crumbled and revealed an ample open space filled with gray objects hanging from the ceiling. Dense and transparent drops of a smelly liquid fell from those objects and reached the terrain far below, it was clear that they had been broken only recently. Noah was immediately able to understand the purpose of those objects. "The winged beasts have instinctively created these sacs when they have gone dormant. They are quite evolved." Noah whispered so that his words would vanish after reaching June. "How do we proceed?" June asked. She was leaving all the decision making to Noah, she knew that her survival instinct couldn''t match his. "Let''s maintain this altitude. There might be snake-type magical beasts at the bottom of this area, and it''s better if I keep on having rocks that I can break in front of me. Wasting time to find the proper altitude again might be fatal." Noah explained and took the first step inside the large underground area. "Breath" appeared under his feet as soon as he stepped on the air, but he tried to keep its quantity to the minimum possible. June did the same as she followed behind him. The depths of the area appeared in their field of view, Noah could clearly see that the floor of that place was at a few kilometers under him. ''Only a rank 5 beast could excavate it. Was it one of the winged beasts? Or did the pack simply choose this preexisting place as the area where to go dormant?'' Questions filled Noah''s mind. There were too many variables, and he couldn''t create a fixed picture, he could just keep on adding everything that he noticed to his hypotheses. Their journey was uneventful for the first hours. They could finally pick up some speed since Noah wasn''t busy excavating, but they still didn''t hurry their pace. Noah was sure that the snakes inhabiting the mountains on the surface would have used the paths created by the winged beasts to escape. After all, he was in the area where they were sleeping, meaning that their flight toward the surface had left open passages through the azure rocks. Noah was rarely wrong when it came to the magical beasts'' field. "You got this, right?" "Of course." June asked when she sensed that a huge figure was falling from the ceiling of the underground area. Noah was soon able to make out the shape of a snake that had opened its maws when it saw the two humans walking on the space under it. Yet, when it was about to reach June, a sharp hand ripped off its upper maw and its brain with it. Chapter 596: 596. Analysis The snake that had fallen from the ceiling was a simple rank 4 magical beast in the lower tier, Noah only had to arch his fingers and deliver a clean sweep to tear its body apart. June stored the corpse of the creature as soon as it died, and she didn''t even bother to dodge the blood that had fallen on her during the process. Noah couldn''t help but stare at her when that happened. Her face stained with the blood of the beast that he had killed, coupled with her swift gestures, created an extremely captivating picture in his mind. "I recognize that stare." June revealed a smile when she said that, and she grabbed Noah''s collar before reaching for his mouth to kiss him. They had been in a relationship only for a few months, but they were already able to understand what was in each other''s minds without speaking. "Later." June murmured that word when their lips separated. "I know, I know. I was just imprinting this image in my mind." Noah answered before turning to continue moving toward the south. Those interactions had often happened during the past weeks, they would just stop at specific points in their travel to express the feelings that some of their gestures caused. That open area was different from the tunnel though, they couldn''t just stop whenever they wanted. Yet, Noah didn''t mind using a few seconds to enjoy the sight of his partner. He felt as if a sort of limit had been removed after some of his feelings had fulfilled, something that ultimately benefitted his individuality. The absorption speed of his cultivation technique had increased since he had decided to fulfill his desire even if it wasn''t strictly connected to his cultivation journey. It wasn''t a matter of insights or laws, his individuality had simply expanded. That behavior was obviously limited to June, his core was still the same. However, he had accepted that he cared about her. As someone that had been driven by purposes strictly linked with death, Noah found in June something that inspired life. After all, Noah''s goal in that life was to be true to his ambition, something that was followed only by his desire to avenge his mother. Yet, there was a third goal now, and that featured June. Of course, that goal was still unclear, but it was a start. ''Creation needs destruction, and the same goes for the opposite. My ambition and vengeance will undoubtedly lead me to a path filled with death, but I can also see life now.'' Noah thought while walking in the azure environment filled with gray sacs. ''It is impossible to create if I only pursue death¡­ The answers always seem so close when you find them.'' Noah smiled internally when he felt his individuality slowly solidifying. Snakes kept on falling from time to time from the ceiling. Those magical beasts were using the paths created by the winged beasts to migrate since they couldn''t oppose their invasion. Noah killed those beasts without hesitation, and June promptly stored them inside her space-ring to avoid creating any noise. The tunnels on the ceiling were narrow since the winged beasts were only two to three meters tall, meaning that most of the strongest snakes on the surface didn''t fit inside them. That led to a situation where only beasts in the lower or middle tier managed to reach the underground area. Taking care of such weak and sparse rank 4 beasts wasn''t a problem for June and Noah, they could easily handle them while remaining silent. Snake-type creatures weren''t the only beasts that fell from those tunnels though. Every magical beast would attempt to defend its domain, especially if some time had passed since the deafening cry of the invading force. The fauna on the surface had begun to fight back since it couldn''t escape from the invasion, and Noah guessed that even the cultivators of the four forces were doing their part. Blood flowed through the tunnels on the surface and fell in the area where June and Noah were walking. Also, sometimes, the figures that fell from above them belonged to the winged beasts. Noah didn''t let go of that chance, he stored each of those creatures inside his device so that he could study them. The winged beasts that fell from the tunnels were all dead, they would never retreat on their own since their leader had ordered them to gather food. Noah dissected and analyzed those creatures as their advance continued. What arrived in the underground area were mostly body parts and not intact corpses, but Noah did his best to discover as much as he could from them anyway. The spirit automaton also helped in analyzing their structure. The automaton was the manager of a rank 6 inscribed item, there were countless pieces of information listed inside it. Also, its analytical skills surpassed even Noah who was an expert in that field and a hybrid, he simply couldn''t compare to such a strong item. Of course, the automaton was only able to point out features without managing to indicate their exact purposes, most of its data concerned inscribed items after all. Yet, that was enough for Noah since he could use his expertise to fill the gaps that the automaton wasn''t able to explain. ''The wings are only useful to their flight. They provide average maneuverability and high speed, but don''t add any special ability.'' Noah summarized in his mind when he thought to have a clear picture of those beasts. ''Their claws are simply long and pointy fingers, no special abilities there either. They can use them to dig through the terrain easily, and they are their main weapons in melee combat.'' Noah then focused on their horns, which were the most interesting aspect of those beasts. ''Horns curved downward, useless in physical combat. Yet, they seem to radiate soft mental waves that don''t belong to them. Telepathy? Are all of them like this? Is the leader the only one commanding them?'' Noah finally understood why those beasts had been dormant while the cultivators of the four nations explored the surface. Generally speaking, a dormant beast could be awakened quite easily, any external input would reactivate its organism. Yet, they kept on sleeping during the fall from the Immortal Lands and through many years on the Mortal ones, which meant that they could be awakened only under certain circumstances. Now that Noah knew that they were controlled, he became sure that they had been awakened due to the leader or other existences inside the pack. ''There are too many of them, so I guess that the leader only controls the other rank 6 creatures inside its pack. They then control a certain number of rank 5 beasts that are in charge of those in the fourth rank. A pack linked by tight strings, formed by winged beasts of the earth element. How unusual.'' Chapter 597: 597. Lake Noah was aware that those horns also had other purposes, but it seemed that their primary ability was to control weaker beings of the same species. ''They have the same purpose as our inscribed notebooks then. No wonder our communication devices can''t pass information anymore, there are too many interferences.'' Noah completed the profile of those creatures through the travel in the underground area. He and June had been able to cross many kilometers in a couple of weeks since Noah didn''t need to create a passage there, they could pretty much guess that they would soon reach the area under the yellowish moss. Noah told his discoveries to June, and they discussed the weaknesses of that species along the road. It soon became clear that it was pointless to exterminate the weaker beings, that approach would just give enough time to the strongest creatures to return to their peak. That approach would leave thousands of magical beasts without leaders, which meant that they would probably go rampage on the new continent. Yet, that outcome was far better than the others. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine what would happen if the rank 6 specimens of the pack and its leader were allowed to return to their peak, only the joint effort of the rank 6 cultivators in the Mortal Lands would be able to stop them. "They can''t be so stupid, right? They have to realize this." Noah gave voice to that question even if he already knew the answer. The cultivators on the surface would be mostly busy defending the territories of their nations, focusing on limiting the losses on their territories rather than attacking the leaders of the pack. Also, the political tension between the four countries would prevent the creation of a joint front unless the situation became too critical. Noah could already see hundreds of rank 4 magical beasts dying to feed the rank 6 winged beasts in their pack and succeeding in restoring their power. He released a sigh when his mind portrayed that vision, and he turned to speak to the woman behind him. "June, we nee-" Noah wasn''t able to finish his phrase since June suddenly put her index on his lips and laid her head on his chest. "I know, we need to warn them. Humans can''t lose the piece of Immortal Lands, or our future prospects will be endangered. It''s fine, let''s hurry back to the Hive, we will take our time once we get there." June finished Noah''s sentence, and he couldn''t help but caress her hair when she saw her hugging him. Losing the new continent would hinder their path toward the higher ranks and would leave the pack of winged beasts free to thrive. Killing hundreds or even thousands of rank 4 specimens was useless since they were treated like puppets, and the powerful beings in the pack controlled most of their actions. The leaders could easily refill their ranks, they could just force them to procreate and feed them with corpses that were useless to them. Reaching the fourth rank for a magical beast was a slow and harsh process unless it had access to a large amount of nourishment. Noah had been able to reach the upper tier in a bit more than four years since his battle prowess allowed him to hunt powerful beasts after all. The same could happen for the weakest creatures in the pack of winged beasts, the leaders would just force their growth and refill the number of pawns in their grasp. The four nations would just have to face an endless army at that point while the rank 6 beasts kept on recovering their power. That outcome had to be avoided at all costs. The leaders of the four nations had to be warned as soon as possible, even if it meant sacrificing part of their intimate time. "Let''s quicken the pace then." Noah said when June released her hug. "Are you so eager to warn them, or do you just want to bring me to your quarters?" June smirked when she saw Noah''s solemn expression, and he felt no shame in giving an honest answer. "The second, of course. I would even let this continent crumble if it didn''t affect my cultivation." June happily followed Noah after she heard his words, she simply liked his honesty too much. The two of them eventually reached the end of that vast underground area, and azure rocks appeared once again in front of them. Noah resumed to punch a way through the terrain, and their consciousness told them that they had reached the area under the plain filled with the yellowish moss. Smaller open areas featuring the same gray sacs appeared from time to time during their travel. The awakening of the winged beasts there had created tunnels linked to the plain, which the moss didn''t hesitate to fill. Noah and June found themselves forced to change direction every time they met one of those areas due to the threatening power behind those magical plants. Yet, their sharp minds and Noah''s senses where enough to avoid any danger, those hindrances only slowed down their advance. It had to be said that they still took breaks once every few weeks. Noah''s stamina was almost limitless, but his hunger couldn''t be appeased so easily. Also, they had just decided to hurry, meaning that Noah didn''t stop excavating for entire weeks. That forced Noah to take breaks to eat, something that gave to the couple time to satisfy their desires for intimacy. June was initially surprised to see Noah eat entire corpses of rank 4 beasts, but she soon became used to that. Her body had been reconstructed by a formation after all, she was in no position to judge other body-nourishing methods. Also, that practice was one of the things that allowed Noah to express his incredible physical strength, the same strength that was allowing them to cross the new continent without encountering any deadly danger. Eating the raw meat of a magical beast was a reasonable requirement, she would even envy him if she didn''t already have a body that perfectly suited her aptitude. Crossing the area under the plain filled with yellowish moss took a bit more than a month since they had been forced to change route many times. Yet, they managed to safely reach the next area without having to release any "Breath". It was at that point that the environment changed. Noah destroyed the wall in front of him, and another vast area appeared in front of the duo. Nevertheless, sunlight reached those depths, and the couple was immediately able to notice that murky water occupied the bottom of that area. The ceiling there was nonexistent, which meant that the lake inhabited by the octopuses had simply fallen underground when the winged beasts flew back on the surface. Chapter 598: 598. Nutrients "Trouble?" "Trouble." Noah answered June''s question and took one of the magical beasts'' corpses inside his space-ring. It wasn''t anything too precious, just a rank 4 tiger in the lower tier. Yet, Noah threw it toward the underground lake as if it was something worthless. The corpse fell into the lake and created ripples on its surface. Noah remembered that a rank 5 octopus inhabited its water, but he didn''t know if the winged beasts had taken care of it. To his disappointment, a huge tentacle rose from the lake and wrapped itself around the corpse. The tiger seemed just a small animal compared to the size of the tentacle, and Noah could hear its bones cracking right before it was pulled under the surface. June''s eyes sharpened at that sight, it became clear that they couldn''t cross that area. ''Going forward is out of the question, and the same goes for reaching the surface. There is an entire territory to cross to reach the forest of White woods, and we don''t know if the winged beasts control it.'' Noah analyzed his options in his mind. He knew that the Hive would probably focus on defending its most valuable assets, meaning that it would forsake certain areas. ''The lava lake should be safe since the traces left by divine beings would scare away most creatures. I believe the Hive is focusing on the forest and the azure plain right now.'' It wasn''t hard to reach that conclusion, Noah had a good understanding of the value of those areas after all. ''Reaching the coastline and flying over the sea is too dangerous. Most of the fauna of the continent have migrated there, I wouldn''t be surprised if those areas have become a messy battlefield in these months.'' Noah thought before turning toward east. He didn''t want to dig toward the central areas, but there didn''t seem to be any other option. He had to choose between a deadly danger, two paths that would most likely feature an even more potent threat, and the unknown. ''We have been lucky until now, we didn''t find any underground pack since these areas were the home of the winged beasts. The central territories though¡­'' Noah had seen how rank 5 winged beasts had come out from the central areas of the continent, he would avoid going there if he had the chance. However, walking around the lake to resurface on the border of the azure plain seemed the only feasible option. June had remained silent while Noah thought, she knew that only his survival instinct and expertise in the magical beasts'' field could bring them to safety. So, she simply waited for him to make a decision. In the end, Noah retreated for a few hundred meters and began to punch the eastern wall of the tunnel. He still had Chasing Demon''s talisman, and there was virtually no creature in the fourth rank that could hurt him, he had no reason to hesitate. June noticed his stern expression and limited herself to follow him closely, ready to provide him with the assistance that he needed. The light radiated by the azure ground became softer as the duo neared the terrain under the azure plain. Noah didn''t know much about magical plants, but he could link the growth of the Azure Credits to that phenomenon. The bushes that grew on the plain contained an incredible amount of "Breath", which meant that they had to take it somewhere. That somewhere was most likely the terrain under them. Noah and June''s surroundings kept on becoming darker and darker, but a faint radiance still lingered around them. Then, they ended up in another large chamber that featured the same gray sacs that they had seen in the last period. However, to their surprise, those sacs were bigger than the others, and some of them weren''t broken! The duo could see the faint figures of the winged beasts inside the intact sacs! "Why aren''t they awake?" June murmured after they retreated in the tunnel. Noah had told her that those creatures were probably sensitive to the mental waves, so it was safer to use their voice in their presence. "Something must have happened during their sleep. I wonder if that event is connected with the Azure Credits, maybe those plants have found a way to steal nutrients from the dormant winged beasts." Noah answered, but he was mostly speaking to himself. Magical plants were living creatures, they could adapt to survive and grow just like any other existence. ''This can be the reason why the azure bushes proliferate on the surface. I don''t think it''s a matter of roots though.'' Noah analyzed the situation in his mind, but he couldn''t find any certainty. Magical plants weren''t his specialization, he barely knew how they were supposed to function. He couldn''t possibly know that the Azure Credits had affected the ground under them to increase its absorption of "Breath" so that they could feed on it. The "Breath" in the air was limited, but many magical beasts were sleeping in sacs connected to the terrain. The ground then subtly absorbed the "Breath" contained in their dormant bodies and slowly weakened them. The bodies of those creatures deteriorated at a faster pace because of that and made them unable to wake up even when the leader of their pack issued its orders. Noah only understood that the winged beasts had continued to sleep through the echoed orders of the rank 6 creatures, which meant that they probably were unable to react to external inputs. ''Yet, would they wake up if a living being was to come close to them?'' That was the gravest doubt inside Noah''s mind. "Let''s move quietly. We will immediately resurface if anything moves, so be ready." Noah took a decision and moved again toward the underground area under the azure plain. June followed closely behind him, ready to cling on him if the need to resurface arrived. The duo took small steps on the air among those large gray sacs, they could both understand that some of them still contained rank 5 creatures. The atmosphere was tense, but both of them managed to keep their calm. They were experienced warriors, anxiety wasn''t enough to make them commit a mistake. Yet, something peculiar happened while they flew in that area. The azure radiance of the ceiling suddenly became more intense, and soft cries began to resound from the sacs that still contained winged beasts. Noah could see how the liquid inside the sacs thinned during the process, and he could feel the pain that those cries carried. ''They are the nutrients for the terrain!'' Noah understood part of the situation at that point, but his mind froze when a series of piercing gazes fell on his back. Those dormant beasts would become conscious for a few instants when the ground fed on their bodies, but they would usually sleep again when the process was over. However, there were two preys in their vision now. Chapter 599: 599. Mental attacks The hunger of a magical beast was the feeling that drove most of its life. The winged creatures that had remained in their sacs after the leader''s orders were simply too weak to reach the surface. Also, due to the peculiar features of their species, they couldn''t feed on the other specimens of the pack unless the leaders allowed it. So, they had been forced to remain in their dormant state for all that time, awakening only when the ground absorbed part of the nutrients contained in their bodies. Yet, when they saw something that they could eat right in front of their eyes, their hunger exploded. Low growls began to resound in the underground area as the winged beasts tried to use their feeble forces to come out of their dormant state and break the membrane around them. Of course, most of them didn''t have any remaining power in their limbs, they couldn''t even point their claws toward the internal surface of the sacs. However, there were a few exceptions. Some of the rank 4 creatures at the peak of the upper tier had enough strength left to pierce the membranes, but they could only fall toward the bottom of the area when their foothold was broken. They couldn''t even spread their wings, let alone flying and hunting two heroic cultivators. The same didn''t apply to the rank 5 beings though. Their bodies weren''t strong enough to fly to the surface, but they could still launch a few attacks after they pierced the sacs. Noah felt a sudden sense of danger filling the air around him, it was as if a subtle vibration had invaded the atmosphere and was reaching for him and June. ''As expected, mental attacks!'' Noah quickly retracted his consciousness and activated the secret art to prepare for the incoming shockwave. June did the same with her mental waves. Noah had shared his understanding of the winged beasts with her, she was more than ready to defend against that attack. Of course, even the joint force of those attacks couldn''t match the real power of a healthy rank 5 creature. Years of weakening had anthropized the capabilities of the horns of the two rank 5 beasts that had managed to free themselves from the sacs. Their joint attack was enough to cross the power of the fourth rank, but it wasn''t able to completely reach the fifth rank. It could barely be considered a quasi-rank 5 attack. Noah didn''t close his eyes and stared at the two humanoid beings at the bottom of the underground area. Their horns released soft vibrations that made the walls of his sea of consciousness tremble, and it seemed that their ability was connected with their line of sight. The vibrations spread randomly but gathered in his position after a few instants, increasing in intensity as they accumulated in the air around him. ''I can''t fight them yet.'' Noah gave up on the idea of exploiting their weakened state and decided to retreat. The tremors that filled his mental sphere became more intense as time passed, the soft vibrations around him were slowly becoming sharp needless that tried to shatter his mind. He was sure that he would only last for twenty seconds in that situation, which meant that he had to escape from the range of their attack before that. Noah quickly turned and took June in his harms before shooting toward the ceiling. June was doing her best to fend off the mental vibrations, but her mind was far weaker than Noah''s, she was already reaching her limits. She barely noticed that Noah was flying at high speed toward the surface, not even the shockwaves released under his feet were enough to break her concentration. Noah flew in a straight line toward the surface while using his martial art and secret art. He didn''t even bother to change his direction to fly toward one of the tunnels previously created by the winged beasts that had woken up a few months ago, he simply headbutted the azure terrain of the ceiling. The power of a rank 4 hybrid in the upper tier that used a secret art was incredible, not even peak rank 4 beasts could match his physical strength in that state. The rocky terrain above him shattered, and cracks spread whenever he kicked the air to sprint again. The ceiling of the underground area under him became unstable, and large boulders began to fall from it. Noah had utterly given up on sneaking back in the territories of the Hive and was betting everything in one full-speed escape. He didn''t have other options, the dormant beasts had been awakened, and they could use their mental capabilities, their position had been discovered. Noah was sure that an army of winged beasts would soon converge there, so he decided to face them on the surface where he would have more room to escape. Also, they were under the azure plain, which meant that the forces of the Hive had to be nearby. As minutes passed, June managed to stabilize her mental sphere and open her eyes. The sight of Noah using his head to excavate a tunnel toward the surface seemed incredibly reckless, but the warmth spread by the arms around her waist made her ignore that detail. She felt happy to be with him in that dangerous situation. The duo had long escaped from the range of the mental attack and was reaching the surface at high speed, only a few hundreds of meters separated them from the plain. Then, they came out in the open again, creating a trail of terrain and debris as they kept on rising in the sky. They had finally resurfaced after months spent underground! The azure terrain of the plain filled Noah''s vision, and he could immediately understand how intense the battles on the surface had been. Countless corpses, body parts, and red puddles filled the plain, it seemed that thousands of magical beasts had died only in that territory. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t even have the time to think about gathering those spoils since hundreds of winged figures gathered in his position and filled the sky around him and June. The winged figures kept on accumulating, Noah could see that the number of rank 4 creatures almost reached one thousand! There were even thousands of rank 3 beasts among them, it seemed that the forced reproduction that Noah had predicted had already begun. The scene was quite disheartening, an army of humanoid, winged beasts encircled two heroic cultivators in the gaseous stage. No rank 4 creature could match a rank 4 cultivator, but there were simply too many of them. Also, they could fuse their metal attacks, making that species extremely threatening when its packs were so populated. The winged beasts didn''t hesitate, they began to release soft vibrations from their horns that gathered in the air around June and Noah. Chapter 600: 600. Pride Noah and June felt the walls of their mental spheres tremble again. Thousands of magical beasts were fusing their attacks into few dense vibrations, it was needless to say that they surpassed the might of the two weakened rank 5 creatures from before. June felt forced to close her eyes again to focus on her sea of consciousness. Her mind had just stabilized only to be targeted by an even stronger attack, she felt as if cracks would form on its walls in a matter of seconds. On the other side, Noah could resist the vibrations for the moment, but his situation was equally ugly. Charging at the army around him wouldn''t solve the issue, the mental attack wouldn''t stop even if he killed hundreds of them in the short period in which his mind could hold. He was about to take out Chasing Demon''s talisman when a strange feeling appeared inside him. Thousands of magical beasts were sieging him and June, but they weren''t particularly strong if taken singularly. There were beasts in the upper tier, but they were little more than flies in his eyes due to his battle prowess. They could only overcome him because of the difference in numbers. ''Do I need to use the talisman against mere pawns?'' Noah thought as that feeling grew in intensity. He knew that the rank 3 and 4 winged creatures were simply following orders echoed through their horns, they were nothing more than pawns used by the rank 6 beasts of the pack to gather food. However, he was a hybrid in the upper tier, the only one of his kind. His species had the potential to stand above any other magical beast, but the leaders of the winged beasts didn''t even send a rank 5 creature to deal with him, they only sent pawns after him. It was as if his enemies thought that he would be just a weak and defenseless human. It was as if those creatures were purposely mocking his pride. Anger surged inside Noah at that moment. He knew that his power couldn''t save him in that situation, but he still felt the need to express his superiority toward the army around him. Of course, he didn''t express it through his words. Noah lifted his head and roared, backing his cry with all the pride that his status as a hybrid contained. Flames came out of his mouth and accompanied his roar, Noah created a pillar of pale-gray flames that landed on the army around him. He wasn''t really attacking them, he was just making a point. They could siege him and overpower him, but he had to be treated with the respect owed to a beast that had no equals in the fourth rank! A dark halo surrounded the bright flames as they landed on the army, it seemed as if the light in the environment was their natural enemy. Noah knew that his ability had improved, but it still couldn''t reach the power of the rank 5 Cursed dragon inside the Granite abyss. Also, he wasn''t really analyzing his attack at that moment, his focus was on transmitting his emotions through his roar. The pale pillar crashed on the winged beasts and disrupted their ranks, forcing many of them to interrupt their attack to retreat. It was needless to say that the creatures in the third rank died as soon as the flames neared them, while the weaker ones in the fourth rank suffered substantial injuries if they survived them. Noah turned to spread his flames toward all his enemies, making sure to avoid June in the process. The air around him softened after a while, it seemed that Noah''s action had momentarily interrupted the joint mental attack with his roar. The winged beasts around him took a few steps back at that point. Noah had killed countless rank 3 creatures with that attack and injured many of those in the fourth rank, but the power of the army didn''t change by much. His flames weren''t dense, he had spread them to focus a large area, meaning that part of their power had been dispersed in the process. However, he could see in their eyes that they now had the right mindset. He could sense their fear, their hesitation in facing something that had the power to be their leader. ''I feel better now.'' Noah thought after he vented his anger. A helpless smile appeared on his face when he saw that the army was preparing another joint mental attack, he knew that he had to rely on his items from that point onward. Elder Julia had given him many protective items before the meeting with the other envoys, but stalling wasn''t the best approach in that situation. More magical beasts would simply gather there, there was no point in gaining time. It would be better to destroy that army and charge toward the forest of White woods, he was quite sure that he would be able to reach it before another army formed. June had just managed to stabilize her mind and open her eyes when she felt Noah pulling her toward him. She was about to question him about the situation around them when she saw a talisman that radiated a purple light held tightly in his left hand. "I don''t know what this thing does, but it should take care of these beasts. Stay close just in case." Noah''s soft voice reached her ears, and she didn''t hesitate to wrap her arms around his torso. The talisman radiated a powerful aura, it seemed that an immense power was contained in that small inscribed item. Noah wrapped his right arm around June''s shoulders and prepared himself to crush the talisman. However, at that point, a rough voice resounded above him and dispersed the vibrations that had begun to accumulate again around them. "Why would you use my talisman when I''m here?" Noah recognized that voice and immediately turned to stare at the powerful figure that had just appeared above them. He saw a burly man with sharp features and red eyes staring at him with a satisfied smile. Chasing Demon had appeared in the sky over the azure plain! Chapter 601: 601. Order Noah saw the patriarch of the Hive and relaxed. Chasing Demon had arrived, there was nothing that could threaten the duo now. Noah released June, who stared at the powerful figure in the sky in awe. She had never seen a rank 6 existence, and she could barely understand that the man above them was on that level. After all, her eyes were only able to sense the immense power contained inside him but couldn''t define it nor evaluate it. Even Noah was able to understand the rank of certain powerful beings only when they were magical beasts, he had learnt about Chasing Demon''s level due to Divine Demon in the end. The army of winged beasts tried to resume their offensive, Chasing Demon''s arrival didn''t make them stop their attempts to gather food. "Hmph, mindless creatures." Chasing Demon snorted a softly tapped the air with the tip of his right foot. A sharp shockwave spread from his foot and reached from the army around June and Noah. Those hundreds of rank 4 magical beasts showed some confusion when that tremor swept them, they felt as if their bodies had begun to destabilize on their own! Then, they began to detonate. One by one, the almost one thousand creatures in the fourth rank that were sieging June and Noah exploded, leaving nothing but puddles of blood behind. Red drops rained on the azure plain and tainted its surface, creating small rivers that the ground would take time to absorb. June was mesmerized by the event, but Noah''s mind was focused on the behavior of the winged beasts. ''They changed approach when I roared, but they simply ignored Chasing Demon. Maybe there is a limit to the orders that they can execute.'' Noah tried to immerse himself in the peculiar mindset of that species. ''The rank 4 pawns should be controlled by the creatures in the fifth rank, meaning that their orders are tuned around the power of their captains. They can deploy simple battle tactics and modify them according to their prey, but only inside the limits of their leaders.'' Noah noticed that small detail. According to his hypothesis, the army had changed approach against him because they had received orders that featured the possibility of hunting rank 5 creatures. However, against something in the sixth rank, they simply continued to attack as if it wasn''t there. ''Removing their freedom makes them more efficient but suppresses their instincts. This detail can be exploited.'' Noah was already formulating a battle plan against the leaders of the pack, but Chasing Demon was more interested in the silver-haired woman next to him, and June felt uncomfortable under his gaze. Chasing Demon had clearly seen Noah taking her in his embrace, but she was the envoy of the Utra nation according to the recent reports. "The Demon Prince is safe! Prepare a banquet and apprehend the envoy!" Elder Julia''s voice resounded in the area, and her figure appeared next to Chasing Demon. Elder Jason and Elder Hope arrived in that territory too and flew toward the duo, but a chilling pressure soon enveloped their figures. They stopped when they saw Noah flying toward them, wearing a gaze that radiated a violent coldness. June followed closely behind him, she had to rely on Noah in that situation to clarify her status. "Prepare some quarters. We will share them, and she will be treated as a guest. This is an order." The elders'' eyes widened when they heard Noah''s words. They felt surprised, but that feeling didn''t originate from the strange relationship that Noah shared with June. Instead, they felt amazed to see Noah openly using his status as Demon Prince to give orders! Even Elder Julia felt surprised when she witnessed that event. Noah had always used his status only to obtain cultivation resources or other items that could be useful to himself. He had completed missions, but never for his own choice or for a sense of belonging to the Hive. The elders respected him as a cultivator, but the Demon Prince was supposed to be more than that, it was a title given to someone that would eventually become the leader of a demon sect after all. Yet, in that situation, he was using his position to command others, it was as if he had begun to accept the entirety of his status. Elder Jason and Elder Hope ended up in an awkward situation though. There were Elder Julia''s orders on one side, and the Demon Prince''s on the other. Who had the highest authority between a rank 5 elder and the most promising heroic cultivator in the Mortal Lands? Luckily for them, Chasing Demon interrupted that awkward silence with a laugh and loud words. "Haha! Well, you have heard the Prince. Prepare some quarters and accompany the envoy there, I will have a talk with the Prince in the meantime." . . . About an hour later, inside one of the few intact buildings of the city in the invisible dome. Noah, Chasing Demon, Elder Austin, and Elder Julia sat on the sides of a small table. Wine and delicacies were laid on its surface, but no one seemed interested in enjoying them at that moment. Noah felt the eyes of those three powerful existences on him, it was clear that they wanted some kind of explanation about the recent months. "The Elbas family has annoyed me for months about its envoy, but a certain Faith Vigny kept on claiming that you were forced to take a hostage and that both the Empire and the Utra nation were biased against you. It turns out that there is something else too." Chasing Demon spoke, and a slight smile kept on appearing on his face, he couldn''t help but find that situation quite hilarious. The Elbas family was accusing Noah, the Council was defending him, and the Empire had simply gone silent. Also, it seemed that Noah and June were quite close, which made the situation even more interesting in Chasing Demon''s mind. "Faith is right, I took June hostage to avoid being captured by the other forces." Noah gave an honest answer. It seemed that Faith''s version of the story was being used by the Council to undermine the Elbas family, the Papral nation could only benefit from the troubles of the other big countries. "What about your relationship with her?" Chasing Demon''s eyebrow arched when he asked that, and the focus of the two rank 5 elders intensified at that moment. "We are together." Noah''s plain answer triggered the reactions of the other three cultivators in the room. Chasing Demon laughed, Elder Austin sighed and massaged his temples, while Elder Julia simply shook her head before revealing a smile. She felt that her previous discussion with Noah had somewhat influenced that outcome, but she couldn''t complain about that since Noah was showing clear improvements. Then, Chasing Demon spoke, changing the topic of the discussion. "Let''s not talk about the envoy, the Prince said that he had a pressing matter to expose to us." Chapter 602: 602. Intelligen "Yes. I believe that you have started to study these winged beasts in this period. What did you discover?" Noah asked. He wanted to have a complete view of the current situation before exposing his plan. However, the situation was bound to be worse than he expected. The three powerful beings shook their heads, and Elder Austin even stood up to lay the complete corpse of a rank 4 winged beast on the floor. Noah''s eyes widened when he saw it, he had only been able to study the features of that species through body parts after all. "The cry from months ago shook the very foundation of the continent. We managed to stabilize the situation when the Patriarch returned, but we can barely defend our territories. We don''t have much time to study these creatures." Noah nodded when he heard Elder Austin''s explanation, the situation matched the prediction in his mind. A few months weren''t enough to stabilize the domains of the organizations, even the fauna had yet to stabilize after all. Yet, it was clear that limiting their efforts on defense wasn''t the right approach. The number of winged beasts was increasing at high speed, even with the cultivators and beasts defending their domain. ''The leaders are forcing the birth and growth of the pawns. This gives us more time but also stabilizes their position on the new continent.'' Noah thought as he crouched to analyze the complete corpse. Forcing the growth of weaker beings would undoubtedly slow down the recovery of the rank 6 creatures in the pack, but it would give them more assets. ''They are smart, they know that investing in stabilizing their hunting areas would hasten their recovery.'' Noah''s eyes sharpened at that moment. The winged creature occupied his vision, it would resemble some sort of tall angel of his previous world if it wasn''t for specific differences. The long and sharp claws and the dark wings were its most striking features, but its real capabilities could be found in the mental waves radiated by its curved horns. "I believe you''ve realized by now that they mostly use organized attacks to exploit their mental abilities." Noah began to speak to the higher-ups in the room. Both elders nodded, and Chasing Demon put a hand under his chin to express his interest in the matter. "However, their most powerful skill is hidden under their organization." Noah pointed at the horns when he gave voice to that phrase. "Their organization isn''t part of their species but something that derives from their leader! These horns can echo the orders of the powerful beings of the pack and make all the weak beasts nothing more than cannon fodder! The leaders are sacrificing them to gain enough time for their recovery!" Noah''s words slightly startled the powerful cultivators in the room. Magical beasts were renowned for their lack of control and intelligence, it was hard to imagine that such beings could form organized packs and even have ranks among them. That behavior could very well resemble that of humans! Yet, the world was vast, and it gave birth to many peculiar existences. Magical beasts able to formulate complex orders were extremely rare, but their existence had already been proven many times in the past. The most striking example was the Kesier species, a race of humanoid magical beasts that had been exterminated to develop the best training method for the mental sphere. Of course, intelligent beasts would have a higher chance of awakening their defective sea of consciousness, but that event was strictly related to their rank. It was different from the creation of a Bloodline Inheritance. A Bloodline Inheritance contained the accumulated emotions of a species passed down for millennia and could be used to expand the mental sphere of a cultivator. However, a beast that had awakened its mind would only be able to formulate complex thoughts, and humans couldn''t use its defective sea of consciousness. The thoughts of a beast were different from those of a cultivator, but their emotions were quite similar, which led to the ability to absorb Bloodline Inheritances. Noah had read reports that concerned the appearance of intelligent beasts in the past, but the pieces of information that involved the heroic ranks or above were scarce and extremely valuable. He could only rely on his instincts and expertise to formulate hypotheses that could match the current crisis. "Patriarch." Noah then directed his speech to Chasing Demon, he was the only one that could confirm his ideas. "You and the other rank 6 existences have awakened the leader of the pack, am I right?" "Yes." Chasing Demon didn''t hesitate to answer, but he didn''t dwell on the details. "What did it do when it woke up and found that powerful existences were surrounding it?" Noah continued to ask, he needed to know the first instinct of the leader to complete the image inside his mind. "It released the cry that has shaken the continent and made the mountains around its chrysalis crumble. We wanted to follow it, but the rest of the pack appeared, and we decided to focus on our respective territories." Noah nodded at that point. The leader had understood its situation and decided to retreat to focus on its recovery. Then, when it saw that no one was hunting for it, it began to enlarge its pack and stabilize its control over the new continent. "How many rank 6 creatures are there in the pack?" "Seven if we count the leader." Chasing Demon answered Noah''s question, he had begun to understand what he wanted from him. ''Seven rank 6 beasts would need a lot of food, and they can''t go after the creatures in the sixth rank in the danger zones, they are simply too weak now. They would need a stable source of food for the next years to recover completely, which puts them at their weakest now.'' Noah summarized everything in his mind, he finally had the information that he needed. "Is the pact between the four nations still active?" "Yes." Chasing Demon answered again, but his eyes sharpened at that point, he had understood what Noah wanted. "Patriarch, you must destroy the leaders as soon as possible. These beasts are intelligent and organized, they would just keep on increasing their numbers if we let this situation continue. We might lose the piece of Immortal Lands if we give them enough time to recover." Noah explained the situation as better as he could, it was up to Chasing Demon, and the other rank 6 existences now. "Why would the powerhouses of the other nations believe a rank 4 cultivator?" Chasing Demon asked, but Noah shook his head. "They must believe that this discovery comes from someone else. Actually, I would like it if you kept my arrival a secret." "And why is that?" Elder Julia asked when she heard Noah''s words. In her eyes, that was the perfect occasion to improve Noah''s status. However, Noah had his reasons. "Because I can avoid sending June away if the Royals think that I''m still underground." Chapter 603: 603. Time Noah''s answer stunned the three cultivators for a moment. They knew that Noah wasn''t interested in glory or similar, but his reasons were purely egotistical! "You want me to create a united front with the other powerhouses and hunt the rank 6 beasts while also lying about your status so that you can spend more time with your woman?" Chasing Demon summarized the situation with that question. "Precisely." Noah wore a serious expression when he answered that. He knew that he couldn''t have any vital role in that battle, there was no point in him joining the battlefield only to keep the rank 4 creatures at bay. That crisis was simply out of his league, and he didn''t see anything wrong in enjoying his remaining time with June while the higher-ups did the dirty work. Chasing Demon couldn''t help but explode in a loud laugh when he heard Noah''s answer. Noah had been nothing more than a rank 2 cultivator when he joined the Chasing demon sect, but now he was informing the higher-ups of the Hive about the dangers linked to the current crisis. "Haha! It took you forty years to learn to desire something outside the cultivation journey, but you are already willing to use your Patriarch for your needs. I acknowledge your desire, a demon must enjoy its freedom after all!" Chasing Demon spoke before turning toward Elder Julia to give voice to some orders. "Contact God''s Right Hand. Tell him that the Hive accepts the conditions of the Empire and would like to set a meeting to announce its discoveries." Elder Julia bowed and disappeared as soon as she heard those words. Chasing Demon then turned again toward Noah. "We need to have a long talk about your woman when this is over." Noah saw the patriarch of the Hive disappearing after he spoke those words. Only Elder Austin remained in the room, and he began to eat the delicacies on the table as if nothing had happened. However, Noah was confused by the recent turn of events. "What did the Patriarch mean with accepting the conditions of the Empire?" Noah asked, and Elder Austin took a sip from his cup before answering him. "The higher-ups of the Empire have already tried to create a united front to kill the rank 6 creatures among the winged beasts. Of course, their reasons weren''t as detailed as yours, they simply wanted to take down the quasi-rank 7 leader before it returned to its peak." Noah''s eyes widened when he heard his words. ''The deafening cry really belonged to something that is half-step into the divine ranks, no wonder the Empire is so concerned about its existence.'' Noah thought, but Elder Austin wasn''t over with his explanation. "Your report is very appreciated though. The Utra nation is the only force that has discovered something about these creatures, and the Elbas family keeps on refusing to collaborate with the excuse of being more valuable than the other factions. The Patriarch will probably spread this information and put every force on the same level." Noah sighed internally when he learnt that. He could imagine the value that information had during that crisis, it wasn''t surprising that the Royals wanted to benefit from the efforts that they had put in their researches. However, Noah had reached similar results with his expertise and inscribed space-ring, taking away the monopoly over those pieces of information. "Elder Jason is waiting in front of your new quarters, he will inform you about our losses and progresses. The envoy of the Utra nation is also there, she has been treated with care." Elder Austin spoke while focusing on the banquet in front of him, he didn''t even turn when Noah bowed and left. Noah came out of the building, and the sight of the wrecked city appeared once again in his eyes. The deafening cry of the quasi-rank 7 winged beasts had destroyed most of the buildings and killed the vast majority of the human assets inhabiting them. The protective dome had defended the shining lakes, but it couldn''t protect the frail centers of power of the human cultivators. ''A mere cry has killed the best rank 3 assets of the Coral archipelago, and the same should have happened in the territories of the other nations¡­ Humans are less than ants in this environment.'' Noah''s mind became cold when he thought that. The world was always the same, one calamity would just end your life if you weren''t strong enough to oppose it. Noah quickly found Elder Jason with his consciousness. He was sitting cross-legged in front of a three-story mansion that seemed to have been built recently. He stood up and handed him a scroll when he saw Noah''s descending toward the mansion. Then, he simply flew away. Noah began to read the contents of the scroll as he entered the mansion. The scroll listed the events that had followed the deafening cry, describing everything in great detail. ''Elder Pansy, Elder Emil, and Elder Dorian have died during the cry. Almost all the human assets have died too, and those that survived are either crippled or completely ruined. The city was almost destroyed, but the shining lakes are fine, this area is still inhabitable by human cultivators.'' The Hive''s losses weren''t that severe, but the death of three heroic cultivators was somewhat disheartening. Those elders had been stuck in the gaseous stage for decades, if not centuries, only to come to the new continent and die during the crisis. Their hope to advance had become the reason behind their death. ''Chasing Demon has begun to deploy the copying technique on these territories though, the Hive will soon obtain larger training areas and create more inhabitable domes. Not bad in the end, I guess the Hive benefitted from having fewer valuable territories.'' Noah''s mind continued to stay on the scroll until he noticed the young-looking woman casually sleeping on one of the couches in the main hall of the mansion. She was still wearing his robe, and her eyes opened as soon as she noticed the new presence in the room. A warm smile appeared in Noah''s view, and part of the coldness that had invaded his mind dispersed at that sight. ''Life and death can coexist in the world, warmth and coldness can do the same in my mind. Feelings, mindsets, and laws can express the same power, the only difference is in the sharpness of the blade that radiates them.'' Noah thought when he felt the two different emotions in his mind. The world filled his being with death and coldness, but June made him feel life and warmth. "How did it go?" June asked when Noah lay down behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I''ve taken away the advantageous position of your nation, but they won''t know that it was my doing." June turned to face him at that answer and neared Noah''s face to murmur soft words. "So, do we have time?" "Yes, we have time." Noah kissed her after his answer, his role in that crisis was over. Chapter 604: 604. Offensive Meetings filled with complaints and quarrels occupied the schedules of the higher-ups of the forces that shared the piece of Immortal Lands. The Shandal Empire wanted to create a united front and disperse the threat of the winged beasts in one powerful offensive, but the other three countries couldn''t allow it to lead the attack. The Empire was the strongest organization in the Mortal Lands, its assets would secure the largest share of gains if the other nations let them lead the assault. The Elbas family wanted to exploit its discoveries and obtain advantageous agreements before joining the united front. The Utra nation had lost a lot of assets between the assault on the territories of the Empire, the ambushes of the Hive, and the loud cry. Its desire to make up for those losses was understandable, as well as its intention to limit the gains of the Empire. The Council shared that intention. The Papral nation couldn''t provide anything special to the united front, but it still pressed for an equal distribution of the profits. That offer saw many enemies: The Empire would deploy more rank 6 assets, and the Elbas family had useful knowledge, they couldn''t just neglect those advantages when sealing an agreement. The Hive had remained silent during that period. The Coral archipelago was aware that its power wasn''t enough to influence the meeting, but Noah''s return and his discoveries gave it some leverage. The Empire and the Elbas family had formed a sort of privileged side in the matter since they were the forces that could provide more advantages so the front. So, Chasing Demon decided to cooperate with the Council to balance the sides and seal an agreement that could avoid benefitting few countries in particular. The Hive knew that it wasn''t a match for the three big nations, they could only aim for an equal share of the profits even with Noah''s information at hand. The Royals found their advantage being taken away in a matter of days, and they felt forced to abandon their privileged position in the deal. The Empire was then put against three forces that pressed for an equal share of the profits and could only give up to their requests. The pack of winged beasts grew stronger with each passing week, and the Empire didn''t have the power to defeat six rank 6 beings and one quasi-rank 7 creature alone, even in their weakened state. Hesitating on forming a united front would only increase the losses during the offensive, which would render worthless any privilege that the Empire could obtain from the agreement. Of course, just one word from the god of the Empire would have affected that impasse and silenced the other three countries. However, the leader of the Empire couldn''t be bothered with such trivial matters and wholly ignored the meeting. In the end, the weeks spent quarreling and negotiating gave birth to an agreement that divided the central territories and the resources found during the assault equally. Only the ownership of the corpse of the quasi-rank 7 creature was left out of that agreement since the four nations decided to give it to the cultivator that managed to kill it. It was pointless to say that Chasing Demon had already given up on that corpse, but he was quite satisfied with those terms. He would be the weakest rank 6 cultivator in the united front, but the organization behind him would still obtain the same resources as the others. Also, the ownership of the leader of the pack would create conflicts between the assets of the other nations, and he was more than happy to avoid them. The four nations began to prepare at that point. The Utra nation received resources to finance the creation of inscribed items that could counter the mental capabilities of the winged beasts, and the Empire prepared the plan with the help of the other powerhouses. The leaders of the pack would surely use as many rank 5 creatures as possible to stop the cultivators'' offensive and resort to any plan that their intelligent minds could formulate. The cultivators couldn''t possibly fear the strategies of those beasts, but their ability to use their numbers to create powerful attacks was troublesome. Yet, the Utra nation was the most advanced country of the Mortal Lands when it came to the inscriptions'' field. The Royals redirected all the experts in their ranks to the creations of items that could temporarily interrupt the capabilities of the horns of the winged beasts. Even an army of thousands rank 5 creatures would just appear as a bunch of ants in the eyes of rank 6 beings if their ability to cooperate were taken away. It took a few months to create and perfect items that could disrupt the mental waves of the rank 6 winged beasts, and the offensive of the four nations could finally begin at that point. Chasing Demon, Great Elder Diana, King Elbas, God''s Right Hand, and Gods'' Left Hand gathered in the sky above the new continent and dived toward the mountain chain that occupied its central territories. No one else could join their offensive, even peak rank 5 cultivators would be swept away in a battle that featured so many rank 6 existences. The atmosphere in the group was tense, but they were confident in their abilities and their preparation. Mental tremors began to accumulate around them as soon as they entered the domain of the winged beasts. Their presence was immediately noticed by those creatures, which unleashed all the defensive measures that they had prepared in the months after their awakening. Of course, such defensive measures were just basic plans that made use of the high number of specimens in the pack. The cultivators could sense that hundreds of rank 5 magical beasts were fusing their mental attacks to create tremors that could affect their minds. Those powerful creatures were hiding underground and using the mountain chain to cover their tracks, the powerhouses of the four countries couldn''t pinpoint their location in that situation. However, they had prepared for that eventuality. King Elbas took a massive horn from his storage device and began to blew it. That was a rank 6 inscribed item created with the horns of the rank 5 winged beasts hunted in the previous months and tuned so that it could transmit a cultivator''s mental waves. A silent vibration came out from the horn and spread through the mountain chain. The mental tremors of the winged beasts dispersed when the soft shockwave invaded the domain of the pack. Also, the mental waves contained in the horns of the creatures hidden underground scattered when the inaudible sound of the inscribed item swept them. The defensive measure of the pack was easily countered, and the cultivators in the air could finally deploy their offensive. Chapter 605: 605. Horns Chasing Demon waved his hand and large fissures appeared on the surface of the mountain chain under the group. God''s Right Hand raised his arm and dark clouds accumulated in the sky above him. The clouds released thick drops that shone with a dark purple color and fell in the cracks created by Chasing Demon. The insides of the mountains and the underground structure under them were soon submerged by the purple rain. Even the surface of those territories was affected by the offensive of those rank 6 cultivators. Dark-purple rivers formed in the valleys between the mountains and earthquakes filled the land even after Chasing Demon''s spell was over. Great Elder Diana snapped her fingers, and vast orange sparks gathered over specific fissures of the mountains. The sparks released lightning bolts on the terrain and used the purple water as a conduit for their destructive force. The ground began to cave in as the underground structure of the area was destabilized. Vast canyons and fissures spread through the central territories of the new continent. The mountain chain crumbled, and the underground lair of the winged beasts was submerged by debris and dark-purple water. God''s Right Hand rain contained poisonous capabilities that affected every living being that came in contact with it. Smelly fumes began to come out from the crumbled environment, which signaled that the water had finally reached some life form. Angry roars began to resound from under the land, and hundreds of figures soon pierced the ground to appear in the air under the group of cultivators. Hundreds of rank 5 winged beasts appeared and surrounded the group of cultivators, but the powerhouses of the forces of the continent didn''t even look at them. Their focus was on the six rank 6 beasts that had emerged only to stay at some distance from them. No trace of the quasi-rank 7 could be seen, but it was clear that the cultivators had forced the pack to reveal its full power. King Elbas tore one of his silver hair and let fly in the in the wind. The hair took fire as it fell toward the ground, and the small tongues of flames on its surface expanded during the fall. That single hair became a fiery winged snake that kept on enlarging. The rank 5 winged beasts had just begun to reorganize and were ready to launch another joint mental attack when the fiery snake shot toward them and crashed on their formation. A sea of flames spread whenever the winged snake moved, the hundreds of rank 5 creatures were soon turned into ashes by the powerful spell of the powerhouse of the Utra nation. Such a powerful army was destroyed in one attack. The six rank 6 beasts felt the need to retreat at that point. They were still weak, most of the resources accumulated in the last period had been directed to the strengthening of the pack. Yet, a dense mental wave reached their horns and forced them to charge at the five entities that were threatening the life of their leader. A harsh battle began at that point. Magical beasts had only one center of power, but it required an immense amount of "Breath" to improve. A rank 6 beast''s body was almost indestructible and was capable of a physical might that could leave any cultivator in awe. Even the winged beasts that were specialized in mental attacks could tear apart the frail bodies of cultivators with a simple wave of their claws. After all, a cultivator''s body was mainly meant to contain the sea of consciousness and dantian, any other feature was something that originated from the nourishing method. However, those added features could only be considered as poor imitations of the real capabilities of a magical beast''s body. The exponential increase of power of the bodies of the beasts though was shared by the cultivators when it came to their other centers of power. A rank 6 dantian and a rank 6 mental sphere could give birth to wonders that the simple physical strength couldn''t hope to match. The six rank 6 beasts tried to charge at the group of cultivators, but a barrage of spells blocked their advance and gravely injured their bodies. There was nothing that those weakened creatures could do against the might of the powerhouses of the human world. The winged beasts then tried another approach. They encircled the group and remained at some distance to release a joint mental attack. Cracks appeared on the surface of the long horn that had floated next to King Elbas until that moment, such powerful tremors were even affecting the composition of that powerful inscribed item. The same could be said for the mental spheres of the cultivators there. The primary ability of the winged beasts was their mental attack, and facing the joint effort of six creatures on their level could create troubles even for their powerful minds. However, four more long horns appeared next to the cultivators who immediately blew them. Those four items were in the fifth rank, even the Utra nation couldn''t produce more than one rank 6 inscribed item in a few months, Yet, their power, coupled with the horn next to King Elbas, was able to disrupt the joint attack of the beasts and give a break to the mental spheres of the cultivators. That break was immediately exploited by the powerhouses who focused their spells on two of the six creatures around them. Those two powerful beasts couldn''t oppose that attack and saw their bodies being reduced into pieces. Generally speaking, a rank 6 beast had no chance against a rank 6 cultivator. Nevertheless, that crisis featured six creatures that could perfectly fuse their attacks against five cultivators that were still wary of the quasi-rank 7 leader hiding underground. It would be reckless to go all out from the beginning, especially since their enemy was an intelligent species. The safe approach would lead to the best outcome, so the cultivators simply limited themselves to destroy their enemies slowly. The leader of the pack didn''t have the same thoughts though. The quasi-rank 7 creature came out of its hideout as soon as it saw some of its strongest soldiers die, and released a loud cry that shook the entirety of the continent once again. The cultivators there weren''t affected by the cry, but the inscribed horns floating in front of them shattered under the might of that roar. The remaining rank 6 beasts showed signs of struggle, but they couldn''t oppose their leader''s orders and retreated to gather around it. The quasi-rank 7 being innately radiated mental vibrations that spread in the air around it. Those vibrations were so dense that even the rank 6 cultivators on the scene found it hard to keep their focus on it. Only God''s Right Hand, King Elbas, and Great Elder Diana managed to keep their eyes on the creature. The leader didn''t care about the humans on the scene and gave a simple order to the four beasts around it. To the powerhouse''s surprise, the four rank 6 creatures tore their curved horns and offered them to their leader. Chapter 606: 606. Disheartening The quasi-rank 7 creature took the horns of the remaining four rank 6 beasts and threw them inside its mouth. Its maws spread to allow the eight curved horns inside its oral cavity, and munching sounds followed that gesture. The rank 6 creatures bled from their temples and began to falter. The loss of the most crucial part of their bodies left them completely drained and significantly weakened their status. However, the leader had already stopped caring about them. Any expert in the magical beasts'' field would understand the intention of the leader seeing that scene. The winged creatures were an intelligent species that could communicate through long distances and execute complex orders, but they were still magical beasts. The leader had realized that it was pointless to have a pack at that point, its very life was in danger after all. So, it promptly decided to sacrifice its strongest underlings to hasten its recovery. The rank 6 cultivators launched attacks to interrupt the actions of the leader, but the four hornless beasts charged at the spells to use their bodies as a shield. The beasts died, and the remaining power of the spells reached for the quasi-rank 7 creature that was finishing its meal. A loud explosion resounded when the attacks of the five powerhouses converged on the leader of the pack. The air shattered, and the surface of the ground under blast was leveled. Cracks spread till the depths of the continent, those fissures even reached the icy plain that bore the weight of the piece of Immortal Lands. A battle at the peak of the heroic ranks was unfolding in those territories, the environment there was bound to be forever modified after such event. Minutes had to pass before the cracks that had appeared on the sky reformed, and the air in that spot stabilized. A dark cloud formed in the area where the spells had crashed, but the cultivators weren''t able to confirm the death of the quasi-rank 7 creature. The dense vibrations that surrounded it had dispersed after their attacks, but none of them believed that a being half step into the divine ranks could be killed so easily. Their belief turned to be on point. A deafening cry resounded from the center of the dark cloud and dispersed the smoke in less than an instant. The cultivators felt the walls of their mental spheres tremble, the intensity of the vibrations that accompanied that cry was many times stronger than before. However, they could still make out the new details that had appeared on the body of the leader. Its wings were spread behind its back and shone with a dark light, its horns had stretched and enlarged, and a dark shade had been added to its now burly body. The might of the vibrations that it innately radiated had also increased, Chasing Demon and God''s Left Hand felt as if their minds were going crumble in its presence. Even the other three rank 6 cultivators weren''t that better off. Great Elder Diana and King Elbas struggled to fend off the pressure that tried to crush their minds, and only God''s Right Hand felt able to fight in that condition. The situation was grave, the quasi-rank 7 creature had regained most of its power and was overwhelming the cultivators without even needing to move! That half step into the divine ranks put the leader of the pack in a completely different league. Yet, a cold sensation enveloped the area, and God''s Right Hand felt relieved when he recognized that feeling. The world froze right in front of those mighty experts, only their minds continued to observe their surroundings. They saw how a shining figure slowly descended from the sky and stopped in front of the leader of the pack. Its features were hidden by the blue light that surrounded it, but the powerhouses could understand that there was a human behind that halo. Of course, they immediately understood its identity. There was only one existence that could stop the movements of five rank 6 cultivators and one quasi-rank 7 beast at the same time in the entirety of the Mortal Lands: The god of the Shandal Empire! Then, an ancient male voice resounded in the area. "Entities on this level should never appear in the Mortal Lands, Heaven and Earth are becoming sloppy." The god of the Empire didn''t speak, but his thoughts became words that spread in that motionless world as soon as they rose inside his mind. "You did good, I believe that at least two of you will reach the Immortal Lands one day. I''ll take this creature with me now." More words resounded in the area, and a blinding blue light followed them. The world took life after the light dissipated, and the five powerhouses discovered that they could move again. The two rank 6 cultivators from the Empire wore worshipping expression after the appearance of their leader, but the other three powerhouses felt somewhat disheartened. The quasi-rank 7 creature was on a completely different level, and the god of the Empire was even farther away, their pride as beings at the peak of the heroic ranks felt worthless in that situation. The god''s thoughts also resounded in their minds, they wouldn''t take anything said by a rank 7 existence lightly. The cultivators in the area glanced at each other with interest, they wondered about the identity of the two cultivators that the god had mentioned. However, countless cries suddenly filled the continent and forced them to focus on putting an end to the crisis. The thousands of winged beasts that were still alive on those lands felt their freedom returning after all their leaders had been defeated, and didn''t hesitate to appease the instincts that they had been forced to suppress for so long. The remains of the pack began to madly hunt the beasts of the other species that still filled those lands. Most of the fauna of the new continent had migrated toward the coastlines when the invasion started, meaning that the attacks of the winged beasts would be focused in those areas. Yet, the four nations had established their settlements on the coasts too, and that sudden assault could inflict another wave of losses in their assets. The humans had to face one last battle to declare the end of the winged beasts'' crisis. Chapter 607: 607. Exploi The weaker cultivators couldn''t possibly watch the battle between the existences at the peak of the heroic ranks. Not even peak rank 5 cultivators could survive the shockwaves released in that battle, meaning that all the heroic assets of the four countries had remained in their territories while the powerhouses fought. Those assets knew that their leader had engaged a fight against the rulers of the pack of winged beasts, they would have noticed the battle even if no one warned them. Flashes of multicolored lights had filled the sky above the center of the continent, and earthquakes had spread till the coastline for the whole duration of that battle, it was impossible to miss them. However, those heroic cultivators had been warned because they were aware that the remaining specimens of the pack would submit to their instincts once their leaders were defeated. Any expert in the magical beasts'' field could predict that outcome and identify the new target of those now wild creatures. The four nations weren''t surprised when they saw the wave of winged figures assaulting the beasts that had migrated toward the coastlines in the past months, and their heroic cultivators immediately acted to put an end to that crisis. Battles happened everywhere along the coastlines, the cultivators of the four countries had long decided to remove every trace of that species from the Mortal Lands. Intelligent magical beasts were too dangerous, the humans couldn''t risk letting any of them survive for fear that a similar crisis could happen again at some point in the future. Also, the remaining winged beasts had just been freed from the control of their leaders, meaning that they would take a while to control their instincts. The heroic assets on the piece of Immortal Lands couldn''t waste that chance, they had to exterminate that species before their specimens understood that escaping was their only path to survival. Noah was sitting on top of one of the tallest buildings inside the invisible dome when the reckless assault of the winged beasts started. He had stayed there since Chasing Demon left to join the other powerhouses, and June had been by his side the whole time. He knew that he couldn''t witness the fight of the powerhouses, but he still wanted to stare at the flashes of light in the distance to experience a trace of the power held by those rank 6 entities. June felt in the same way. Newly advanced rank 4 cultivators needed to experience the world hidden behind the heroic ranks to get used to their new state, and June wasn''t an exception. However, when she saw the incoming tide of winged beasts, she heaved a sigh and lay on Noah''s lap. There was a mix of concern and helplessness in her expression when she looked at Noah''s eager gaze. "I''ll be fine, you know that I can''t miss this chance." Noah said when he lowered his eyes to stare at the concerned lover on his lap. June knew that the remaining winged beasts would attack the coastlines thanks to Noah, but he had also revealed to her that he had a plan to exploit that situation. The plan was quite reckless and would most likely reveal Noah''s return to the Hive, but she could understand how appealing that situation was for someone with such a peculiar body-nourishing method. "The feelings that we have for each other can''t hinder our path to power if we want to preserve them. Go and be sure to come back, but don''t forget that you owe me a spar." June said before closing her eyes when she saw Noah''s lips reaching for her. The duo exchanged a long kiss uncaring of the cries of the winged beasts that invaded the environment outside the invisible dome. "Don''t keep me waiting." June murmured when their lips separated and revealed a smirk when she left Noah''s embrace to enter the building under them. Noah followed her figure with his eyes. He couldn''t help but feel a sense of satisfaction when he looked at her, there was a particular understanding between the two of them that he couldn''t express with simple words. ''I tell her that I''m probably going to reveal my status to the other nations and she asks for a spar in exchange. I guess only a battle maniac can make me feel like this.'' Noah smiled when he thought that, but his expression became cold when he turned his attention toward the chaos that had enveloped the territories around the invisible dome in those short minutes. The dome had protected June and Noah from the two cries of the quasi-rank 7 leader, but it didn''t hinder their vision of the outside world. All the heroic assets of the Hive had left that protected area when the remaining winged beasts began to attack, their mission was to exterminate that species after all. However, Noah didn''t immediately join the battles on those territories, he had his own agenda about that matter. Battles that featured rank 5 beasts didn''t occur so often, especially not with the same intensity as those happening in that situation. The death of the leaders had unleashed the remaining specimens of the pack of winged beasts on the fauna that filled the coastlines, and the heroic assets of the four nations were tasked to join that battlefield. Noah knew that countless corpses and body parts would accumulate on that rare occasion, and he couldn''t just waste that chance to assist his companions. The powerhouses of the four nations would soon return to the territories of their organizations and put an end to that reckless assault anyway, meaning that Noah''s help wouldn''t affect the outcome of the battles that much. Yet, the situation could become extremely beneficial to him if he managed to retrieve pieces of powerful creatures while his companions fought. ''I might be able to reach the fifth rank in one go.'' Noah thought when he stood up. His hunger had exploded when he sensed the many dead magical beasts that were filling the surface of the territories near the dome, but he decided to wait. He could hunt rank 4 creatures by himself, but there was a high chance to seize rank 5 body parts in that situation! Then, he sensed a mighty cry of pain coming from the north, and he knew that his moment had arrived. Black flames surrounded his figure, and he disappeared from the roof of the building to teleport on the battlefield. Chapter 608: 608. Plundering A harsh battle was unfolding in the sky over the territory that was once occupied by the lake inhabited by octopuses. The ground under the lake had crumbled when the winged beasts woke up from their slumber and resurfaced, but the creatures that inhabited it had survived the fall. That area had become something similar to a large fishing area for the remaining winged beasts though. The octopuses of the lake were trapped in a deep canyon and couldn''t escape the attacks of the more than a hundred creatures that assaulted them. Even the rank 5 specimen couldn''t do much about the situation since there were two rank 5 winged beasts that were attempting to hunt it. Most of the strongest winged creatures had died in the battle between the rank 6 existences, but some of them still flew in the sky over the piece of Immortal Lands. Rank 5 creatures couldn''t be bothered to go after rank 4 beasts when there were beings on their level that they could hunt, their hunger simply led them toward the prey that would provide the most fulfilling meal. However, the winged beasts had lost their ability to cooperate when their leaders died. The remaining rank 5 specimens didn''t have the power to suppress the awakened instincts of the many rank 4 beasts under them, and couldn''t organize them in battle formations. Heaven and Earth were fair, the winged beasts had the incredible ability to fuse their attacks, but that was balanced by a physical strength that was below the average of the other magical creatures. The weakness of that species was exposed entirely now that their cooperation was gone, but they could still fly, something that gave them a good advantage over the fauna of the new continent. The two rank 5 winged creatures fought the rank 5 octopus together, but their teamwork was lacking, and their bodies weren''t a match for their opponent. On the other hand, the octopus was huge, and its tentacles weren''t able to hit the nimble, humanoid figures that were sieging it. The winged beasts used their claws to inflict deep wounds every time they dodged a tentacle, they were trying to exhaust the creature hiding in the water under them before fishing it out of its lair. The intelligence of that species could be clearly seen in that situation. Generally speaking, magical beasts would just run away when they saw that their opponent overpowered them. Yet, those winged creatures could see a path toward victory and were even resorting to a natural form of cooperation to succeed. Thick blue drops of blood fell into the lake every time the sharp claws of the attackers pierced the tentacles of the ruler of that area. The color of the lake began to change as the rank 5 octopus, and the other weaker specimens of its pack kept on getting injured, the murky water was slowly turning dark-blue. The battle in that area was so intense that none of the beasts there noticed that black flames had begun to appear at some point. The black flames would form whenever a corpse, body part, or drop of blood fell toward the lake, and they would vanish as soon as those materials pierced their surface. Of course, those materials would disappear together with the black flames. The beasts on the battlefield could notice that something was off only when the two rank 5 creatures managed to sever one of the tentacles of the rank 5 octopus. The winged beasts immediately dived toward the falling tentacle, and even the other creatures in the area interrupted their battles to go after such a nourishing meal. However, black flames suddenly appeared under the huge tentacle and made it disappear in less than a second. Angry roars resounded from the large canyon at that point, the beasts could only be furious when they saw their meal disappearing right in front of their eyes. Yet, they were soon forced to escape since the rank 5 octopus recklessly slammed its remaining tentacles on the sides of the canyons to attempt to kill the creatures that had dared to injure it. Noah stared at the scene from above the canyon and decided that it was time to change the hunting area. He had already gained a lot from that place. The Warp spell had become far more ductile after his modifications. The black flames weren''t limited anymore to his body but could teleport his attacks and random items now. Noah didn''t mean to use the Warp spell to steal precious materials when he modified its diagram, but that messy battlefield was simply too perfect for his new ability! Noah had teleported everything that he could use to improve his body next to him with his spell and carefully stored it inside his space-ring without anyone noticing. Of course, the expenditure of "Breath" and mental energy was incredible when he teleported something so far away from him and on that level, but Noah felt that it was completely worth it. After all, he had gained the body part of a rank 5 beast and a large amount of its blood! Noah had obviously seized the bodies of the rank 4 winged beasts and octopuses that had died, but those gains paled compared to something that came from a rank 5 creature. He didn''t stop there though. Such a vast battlefield would appear only once in a while, and he was sure that the new continent would return to a peaceful state after that crisis. So, he had to make the most out of those fights, even if that meant exposing his presence to external forces and shortening his time with June. Noah completely disregarded the battles between rank 4 creatures and went after the fights that featured rank 5 beings. Even a drop of blood from those powerful creatures was worth the risk in Noah''s view. His plan led him toward the mountain chain next to the azure plain where he saw a giant ape-type magical beast crushing a rank 5 winged creature with its massive arms. Noah couldn''t get too close since he didn''t have any confidence in escaping the ape if it noticed him, but he still managed to seize a large amount of blood and a few broken claws from the corpse of the defeated creature. Then, he continued his march toward the areas that gave birth to waves of fear inside him. Noah didn''t dare to fly in that situation, he preferred to run across the land to better hide among the fauna of the new continent. After all, the other magical beasts recognized him as a being of their world, and the cultivators fighting in the sky would find it hard to notice him in that chaotic environment. Like that, Noah''s march continued unhindered even when he entered the territories under the control of the Papral nation. Chapter 609: 609. Tricked Noah had chosen to move toward north simply because he sensed more energetic shockwaves coming from that direction, he didn''t care about the political situation of those territories at all. Few rank 5 specimens remained in the pack of winged beasts, but all of them were busy fighting against beings on their same level. The mountain chain at the center of the continent was still inhabited by powerful creatures that didn''t migrate in the last months, and Noah was able to always obtain something from their battles against the reckless remains of the pack. He mainly seized blood, but he managed to steal small body parts at times. Of course, he never ventured too deep inside the continent. There were even rank 6 beings there that the pack of winged beasts had chosen to avoid until its leaders returned to their peak. Noah didn''t dare to invade their domains. Stealing from rank 5 beings busy in battles from a safe distance was one thing, but he couldn''t even begin to imagine the feats that beasts at the peak of the heroic ranks were capable of. After all, all his gains would become useless if he died there. Noah continued to sprint through the lands, chasing after any exciting battle that his instincts or consciousness were able to sense. However, his advance was soon forced to a stop since he encountered a group of rank 4 cultivators that looked familiar. Almost two weeks had passed since the remains of the pack of winged beasts had launched their offensive on the coastlines, and Noah had used that time to plunder more than ten battlefields that featured rank 5 beasts. The powerhouses of the four nations didn''t seem interested in intervening so soon in that battle, and Noah guessed that they were limiting themselves to observe the behavior of their underlings in those days. He didn''t mind that choice since it gave him more time to run freely through the territories near the western coast, and his march ultimately brought him in the mountains inhabited by snake-type magical beasts where he encountered cultivators of the Papral nation. Noah recognized Faith and the escorts that had appeared when they were hiding underground, but his presence wasn''t revealed to that group. He was on the ground, hiding among countless battles between rank 4 beasts, while they were in the sky, hunting down every winged beast that they found. Noah could just turn around and leave, but a massive figure suddenly appeared in the distance and slammed its body on the surface of one of the mountains. The figure belonged to a big rank 5 snake that was crushing the small body of a rank 5 winged beast with its physical strength. The winged beast was almost dead, but the snake didn''t seem satisfied and continued to slam its body on the mountain where its enemy was. Noah directly shot toward those two creatures at that point. He knew that he could steal that body, and those rank 4 cultivators didn''t scare him. Also, he could already think about a few excuses to justify his presence there, so he didn''t hesitate to act. The rank 5 snake repeatedly clashed with the surface of the mountain until the body of the rank 5 winged beast was reduced to a pulp. Only then the snake seemed satisfied and spread its maws to eat the remains of its enemy in one bite. It didn''t notice though that black flames appeared in that spot and teleported away even the drops of blood that had tainted the terrain. The snake delivered its bite anyway, but it roared in anger when only the rocky terrain of the mountain entered its mouth. However, no matter how angry it was, it couldn''t understand where its prey had gone. Noah stored the broken corpse of the winged creature as soon as it came out from the black flames that had appeared next to him and began to escape at high speed in the air. He had sensed that the group from the Papral nation had noticed his presence when he used his spell, so he purposely rose in the sky to let them follow him. "Noah Balvan, is that you?" "Demon Prince, you can''t steal in the territories of the Papral nation!" "Noah Balvan, is the Hive not afraid of the power of the Council?" Faith and the other cultivators in her group gave voice to those questions as they chased after Noah. Noah revealed a cold expression when he turned toward the five rank 4 cultivators behind him and released a loud snort before adding a few words. "Hmph! I''ve saved the life of your envoy, and you thanked me by letting the Empire and Utra nation blaming me for the death of the Eager Titan! Now, after I''ve spent months underground, you even accuse me of being a thief! Just report this matter to my Patriarch, he''ll love to hear about the shamelessness of the cultivators of the Papral nation." Black flames surrounded Noah''s figure after he spoke those words, and the five cultivators from the Papral nation couldn''t find any reason to stop his teleportation. Noah had spoken the truth after all, Faith''s escorts had really ignored everything else when they managed to retrieve their envoy. "Wait, where is June Ballor then?" Faith asked when she realized that something was wrong. "Maybe he left her underground." "But he was flying just now." One of the cultivators said, but Faith was immediately able to find a flaw in that explanation. The more they thought about that matter, the more they realized that the Demon Prince had probably tricked them. "Do you want to send a formal complaint to the Patriarch of the Hive?" Another cultivator asked, but Faith shook her head. "He would just ask for compensation for the events concerning the end of the meeting. Also, we couldn''t have seized that corpse anyway, let''s just forget about this matter." The cultivators in Faith''s escort agreed to her words and resumed hunting the remaining rank 4 winged beasts in the area. Meanwhile, Noah had reappeared over the plain inhabited by the yellowish moss and had begun to fly toward the forest of White woods. He had gained far more than enough in that situation, he was quite confident that his body could reach the fifth rank with all those materials. So, he simply hurried back toward the territories of the Hive. The forces of the Council had seen him, so the news about his return would soon reach the Shandal Empire and Elbas family. The Royals would surely begin to bother Chasing Demon about June at that point, which would ultimately force him to send her back to her nation. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t regret exposing himself to obtain an almost complete rank 5 corpse. That period with June had been one of the happiest in his life, but Noah knew that it was something temporary. ''Only power can allow me to ignore political bindings and fulfill my desires without fearing for the consequences.'' Noah thought as he increased his flying speed, he knew that June was eagerly waiting for the promised spar. Chapter 610: 610. Love The situation on the coastlines didn''t take much to stabilize. The heroic assets of the four countries fought bravely to exterminate the remains of the pack of winged beasts. They aimed to remove any trace of that species from the Mortal Lands, the cultivators couldn''t allow intelligent creatures to survive. Groups of rank 4 cultivators took care of the rank 3 and 4 winged beasts while those in the fifth rank were left to the higher-ups to handle. The powerhouses of the four nations surveilled the trend of the battles for a few weeks before intervening. They couldn''t do all the work, the assets under them had to gain experience in handling crises like that. The aim of rank 6 cultivators was to leave the Mortal Lands and reach the plane of the deities, meaning that they would eventually leave their organizations behind. So, they had to be sure that their organizations would have what they need to remain in power. Their lifetime''s efforts in the Mortal Lands couldn''t go to waste because of their departure, and their inheritances alone wouldn''t ensure the well-being of their underlings. Only knowledgeable warriors could keep a country in power after the departure of their leaders, and, to do that, they needed experience in facing any kind of threat. The crisis ended when the powerhouses intervened. The five rank 6 cultivators of the four nations swept the piece of Immortal Lands and killed all the winged beasts that had survived the attack of their underlings. The species that had made the new continent tremble for months met its extinction. The war ended with the death of the last specimen of the pack of winged creatures, and the four countries could finally evaluate their gains and losses. Countless human assets and structures had been lost in those months, but the spoils of war brought thousands of valuable materials back to the inventories of the four nations. Their assets had been weakened, and their growth delayed, but time would eventually make up for those losses. More promising cultivators would appear in the years after the crisis and would benefit from the resources obtained in the war. Some of them would reach the heroic ranks and take the place of the dead heroic cultivators. The surviving assets would become stronger due to the experience gained during the crisis, creating a generation of warriors forged through the flames of war. Of course, it would take decades for those events to happen, the four nations had yet to stabilize their territories now. The fauna had migrated toward coastlines, leaving only strong creatures in the central territories. The center of the continent had seen the battle of beings at the peak of the heroic ranks though. Its environment had changed forever, and it would take time for those lands to stabilize and to give birth to lifeforms again. Mutations were bound to appear in those areas due to the influence of such powerful existences, but that was another event that would only happen in the future. The focus of the heroic assets was to restore their sources of income and evaluate if the invasion had modified some environments in ways that they could exploit. The Hive was happy to discover that the toxicity of the area next to the forest had diminished by a large margin due to the migration of many packs of magical beasts. Many precious materials hidden among the poisonous creatures and rivers could finally be plundered, making that land another source of income for the Coral archipelago. The Azure plain though suffered a lot during that period, and its terrain had been tainted with the blood of countless powerful creatures. It would take time for its ground to absorb all those nutrients and gave birth to Azure Credits again. However, the purity of those magical plants couldn''t be assessed so soon, there was a high chance that all those contaminations would affect the purity of the Azure Credits. Noah mostly ignored those events. He was an expert in the magical beasts'' field, and his insights in the matter were kept in high regard by the other elders. Yet, the fauna was too chaotic in that period, he could only make a list of the scenarios that were most likely to happen. His obligations toward the Hive ended there, and he simply focused on making the best out of his remaining time with June. June obtained her sparring session with Noah, but their level was far too different. June had just become a complete heroic cultivator, but Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance and inscribed items gave her a sturdy foundation on which she could build a suitable combat style. However, Noah had faced and overcome those issues when she was still in the human ranks, no amount of backing could make up for his achievements. After all, Noah could defend against the attacks of solid stage cultivators, there was nothing that June could do to pierce his defenses. The battle was completely one-sided, Noah simply walked through the lightning storm unleashed by June, nothing she did was able to dent his powerful defensive methods. When Noah reached her, he lifted her large and metallic inscribed hat and caressed her face while kissing her forehead. He couldn''t attack her, his physical strength was too threatening for the frail body of the cultivators. Yet, that gesture was enough to put an end to her offensive. The difference between their power was evident at that point. "I will definitely reach you one day." June said when the battle was over. She was a bit annoyed by how easily Noah had defeated her, but she didn''t want to waste the precious time that she had with him. Noah had told her that the forces of the Papral nation had spotted him. The news of his return would undoubtedly reach the Elbas family then, and both of them expected the Royals to knock at the Hive''s doors soon. "You must, or I''ll leave you behind." Noah smiled when he answered. June noticed the trace of helplessness contained in his tone, but she understood him. Noah''s ambition would drive him toward the higher ranks of the cultivation world, she had no doubts that he would leave for the Immortal Lands one day. She couldn''t affect that behavior, and she didn''t want to do that either. The man that had given her a future was the most determined and driven cultivator in the entirety of the Mortal Lands, she would never attempt to change the qualities that made him so exceptional. June laid her head on Noah''s chest and murmured words that resembled a vow of some sort. "I love you, Noah Balvan. No matter how far you''ll go, you will always be able to find me chasing you. Yet, I promise you that I''ll surpass you one day." Noah felt June squeezing his robe when she said that, and he couldn''t help but hug her to convey his feelings too. "I love you, June Ballor. My life won''t be the same after your departure, but I know that this feeling won''t fade. Be sure to reach me wherever I''ll go." Chapter 611: 611. Charming Few words were enough to express the feelings between June and Noah. June knew that she was still weak, but her individuality would eventually lead her toward higher battlefields. Noah knew that his ambition would bring him toward higher forms of existence, meaning that he would leave behind anyone that couldn''t keep up with him. Yet, their feelings were mutual, the months spent together had given birth to love, even though they both knew that their separation was unavoidable. So, they could only promise to become strong enough to stand on the same ground one day, no matter how high it was. "The great Demon Prince can use the word love, I''m stunned." "A noble woman loving a criminal, the Ballor family must be a cradle of traitors." June and Noah mocked each other, but their expressions changed when their eyes met. They felt that they had reached a deeper level of intimacy with those promises, it was as if they had suddenly become closer. Desire appeared on their faces and filled their minds at that moment, and they quickly decided to fulfill that sensation. June and Noah remained in those quarters for the following period, without even interacting with the outside world. Chasing Demon tried his best to stall the requests of the Royals, but there was a limit to how much he could hide June''s presence inside the territories of the Hive. However, he still gained as much time as he could, and the couple managed to spend two and a half peaceful months together thanks to his efforts. The Elbas family wasn''t too worried about the information in June''s possession. The most crucial piece of knowledge in her mind was the Royal Inheritance, and the Hive was already aware of that. Yet, imprisoning the envoy of one of the three big nations could be considered as an insult to its honor, so the Elbas family had to pressure Chasing Demon. In the end, Noah received a message from Elder Julia that stated the need for June to return to her nation. June didn''t show any sadness when Noah conveyed that message to her, she simply smiled and kissed Noah before leaving the habitation. They had prepared themselves for their separation in the last period, they had already said all the words that needed to be said. A smile and a kiss were more than enough to say goodbye. June flew outside the invisible dome and the heroic cultivators of the Utra nation that were waiting outside heaved sigh of relief when they saw her usual cold expression. The escorts immediately gave voice to apologies and excuses to justify how much it had taken them to force the Hive to release her, but June simply snorted at them. Those heroic cultivators could only guess that she was incredibly angry at their incompetence, but they felt helpless about that situation. After all, they did their best during the negotiations for her release, but Chasing Demon''s stubbornness had been hard to overcome. Of course, June barely minded them. She limited herself to snort because her mind could only play the images between her first and last kiss with Noah whenever she tried to think. Meanwhile, Noah was lying on one of the couches inside his quarters. He didn''t know how his instincts would react at the sight of her going away, so he simply remained in that room during her departure. June''s scent entered his nose, and he immersed himself in the feelings that he had felt when he was with her. He knew that he had enough nutrients to reach the fifth rank inside his space-ring, and he was also aware that he could modify other diagrams in his possession to improve his battle prowess. Yet, he wanted to use that moment to fix his memories with her in his mind. He knew that he would abandon himself to his ambition as soon as he stood up, he had never felt so eager to improve in his life. So, he decided to imprint those feelings in his mind, he wanted to be sure that June''s warmth wouldn''t fade when he immersed himself again in his training. Noah wasn''t afraid that he would forget about her, June had already left a permanent mark on his existence. However, he needed to remember the life and warmth that she represented clearly, he needed that for his individuality. "You have a good taste for women, I give you that." Chasing Demon''s voice resounded in the room, and Noah turned only to see that the Patriarch of the Hive had appeared on one of the couches in front of him. "Does it hurt to see her going away?" Chasing Demon asked and threw a sealed jug toward Noah. Noah removed the seal, and the aroma of strong wine filled the room. "Cultivation is a solitary journey. I treasured our time together, but I won''t mourn in the period that we''ll spend away from each other." Noah answered and took a long sip from the jug. He really believed in those words, it was pointless to mourn if he could use that time to improve. The jug then escaped his grasp and returned in Chasing Demon''s hands. Noah didn''t feel anything, but it was evident that the Patriarch had used his mental waves to take the wine. "Good, good. I was afraid you would do something reckless like waging war against the Elbas family and bringing the Hive down with you. I would understand, I''ve done the same in the past." Chasing Demon said and drank from the jug whenever he finished a phrase. Noah knew a bit about Chasing Demon''s history, but he had never been too interested in it. He knew that Chasing Demon was one of the twelve disciples of Divine Demon and that he had resorted to cultivation techniques created by others to reach the fifth rank back then. His choice had been motivated by his desire for vengeance against Ravaging Demon, the betrayer who had joined the orthodox sects of the Papral nation to exile the demon sects. Noah also knew that his vengeance had failed. "You know, I''ve had a similar relationship in the past. She was Divine Demon''s disciple too, but she wasn''t as pure as that June Ballor. You could say that she treated men as materials." Chasing Demon began to speak, and Noah didn''t mind learning more about his past. Also, the Patriarch continued to pass him that amazing wine, listening to him seemed the least he could do in that situation. "Yet, I didn''t mind it. I had never seen someone as charming as her in my life, so I purposely let her steal my yang just to be with her. I''ve almost died a few times, but I won her heart in the end. We didn''t get to spend much time together though since the Council killed her and Devouring Demon during the betrayal of the Ravaging demon sect." Chapter 612: 612. Demon sects "Do you love her?" "Yes." Chasing Demon asked after a brief silence, and Noah immediately gave an honest answer. Noah didn''t know why the Patriarch of the Hive was so interested in his relationship, but he didn''t mind telling him the truth. It was thanks to his backing that Noah could do whatever he wanted inside the Hive. The Hive had even borne the cost of the resources depleted for the creation of his cultivation technique and nourishing method, there was no reason why Noah shouldn''t trust him with the truth. "Love can elevate a man and destroy another. Tell me, would you forsake your power for her?" Chasing Demon gave voice to that question, and Noah could finally understand the reason behind their conversation. ''He worries about the Hive. It''s understandable, I am his successor according to my title.'' Noah thought when he heard that answer. He was the Demon Prince, that status put him somewhere above the rank 4 cultivators and below the Patriarch. The Hive placed many expectations on him and his growth, and it would obviously worry when he claimed to be in a relationship with a noble of an enemy nation. However, Noah had found his answer about that question long ago, and his position didn''t change through the years, it had only broadened. "Patriarch, you have misunderstood me." Noah began to answer and used his mental energy to lift the jug that Chasing Demon had laid on the floor and bring it in his grasp. "My search for power is something that defines my individuality. I can''t choose to forsake it because it''s part of what I am." Noah drank a mouthful of wine after those words and continued to speak when he felt the warmth caused by that liquid spreading through his body. "Also, I wouldn''t abandon it even if I had the choice. I can accept my desires only because I''ve gained enough power, I can love only because I''ve become confident enough in my strength. After all, it''s pointless to have such deep feelings if you can''t survive the cry of the powerful beings that you can meet in your journey." Chasing Demon''s eyebrows arched in surprise when he heard those words. He had always known that Noah''s determination surpassed any common sense, but his last phrase made him understand how pure and unbound his ambition was. His worries about the future of the Hive were dispersed after that single sentence, he was sure now that Noah would never abandon his pursuit of power. "Haha! No wonder my Master has chosen you! Wonderful! Now, tell me more about this woman of yours. Nothing lifts my morale like amazing wine, accompanied by a good story." Chasing Demon exploded in a laugh and took back the jug while asking for more details about Noah''s relationship. Noah understood that there was something that bothered the Patriarch, so he revealed some funny anecdotes of his past experiences with June. Of course, he didn''t reveal anything too intimate, or that could bring trouble to June, but Chasing Demon didn''t seem to mind his partial exposition. Chasing Demon interrupted Noah with stories of his own too. He spoke of Divine Demon''s domineering character, of the life of the demon sects back in the Papral nation. He also mentioned the peculiar techniques that his lover, Charming Demon, taught to her disciples. "Strange forms during sexual intercourses to absorb the yang inside the body of a cultivator? I might have encountered something similar in my life." Noah interrupted Chasing Demon with that question. The description of the techniques of the Charming demon sect resembled the forms used by Gillian, the middle-aged woman that had forced Noah to sleep with her in the city of Slyfall. Noah described those positions, and Chasing Demon couldn''t help but recognize them. "It appears that you have found the remains of the Charming demon sect during your escape. The demon sects have lost track of each other after the Council exiled us, but maybe it''s time to reunite them under one banner." Chasing Demon put a pensive expression when he said that. The demon sects of the Papral nation had spread through the old continent after their exile, and they had covered their traces to escape from their pursuers. The Chasing demon sect had ended in the Coral archipelago and thrived as an underground organization, but the other sects weren''t so lucky. For example, the Charming demon sect had lost its matriarch, and its survivors had been forced to hide in the small city of Slyfall, Noah wasn''t even sure that they had heroic assets. However, now that the Coral archipelago had become independent and that its growth was unstoppable, Chasing Demon was considering the idea of reuniting the demon sects under the banner of the Hive. "I found your next mission. You will become an envoy of the Hive and explore the old continent looking for clues of the demon sects. Only you can do this, the other nations will only accept the Demon Prince as a guest." In the end, Chasing Demon gave that order when he decided on the matter. Nevertheless, Noah had more pressing matters at hand. "I can do that, but I need a few years." Noah answered without revealing what he had in mind. He liked the idea of traveling, those new experiences would surely benefit his individuality. Yet, he had to take care of a few things first. He had just begun to modify diagrams, which was the first step toward the creation of entirely new spells. The many available modifications could improve his battle prowess given enough time, and he couldn''t prioritize a mission over his personal power. Also, he had just obtained the body parts and blood of magical beasts in the fifth rank! Eating and digesting them would take time, but he was sure that he would begin the breakthrough toward the fifth rank once he absorbed those resources. He couldn''t neglect the improvements that bringing his body in the fifth rank would provide, that breakthrough was something that would give him the power to fight any rank 4 cultivator that he met after all! "There is no hurry, there is still a lot of work to do here. I need to lay the copying formation on the territories under our control and create new training areas habitable by human cultivators. The Coral archipelago is becoming too small for the Hive, we need to transfer our headquarters to the new continent." Chasing Demon said. He didn''t want to hinder Noah''s growth, and the matter of finding and gathering the demon sects wasn''t a priority. Noah and Chasing Demon continued to drink for some more time and kept on exchanging funny anecdotes about their lives when they were still in the human ranks. Then, when Chasing Demon was about to leave, he placed a long scroll on the floor while adding a few words. "This is the description of the battle against the leaders of the pack. I''ve also added a few personal considerations. Take it as a sign of gratitude for lifting my mood." Chapter 613: 613. Ants Chasing Demon left at that point, and Noah didn''t hesitate to reach for the scroll on the floor. The scroll contained the description of a battle between rank 6 cultivators and a quasi-rank 7 creature, he simply couldn''t control himself from diving into its contents. Noah soon understood that Chasing Demon didn''t just add a few considerations to the description of the battle. The Patriarch had taken time to write down the thoughts and emotions that had surged inside his mind when he watched the other powerhouses'' attacks, and he tried to link them to what he knew about their individuality. ''God''s Right Hand acts as a natural calamity, he is detached and oppressing. I can only describe him as the Tribulation that follows the god of the Empire''s orders.'' ''God''s Left Hand is similar to him. Her winds carry the power of a natural calamity, but there is deep worship inside them. I can''t help but take her as another Tribulation of her leader.'' ''Great Elder Diana is calm and precise. Her lightning has the power to pierce the piece of Immortal Lands from side to side, but she can restrain it with her impeccable control. Her handling of such chaotic energy makes her more threatening that any calamity.'' ''King Elbas is arrogant, but real achievements back that feeling. His pride overflows from every fiber of his body, and he uses himself to fuel his flames. It''s as if he knows that there is no better fuel than himself.'' ''The god of the Empire is so powerful that even time bends to his will.'' Noah finished reading his considerations and couldn''t help but stare at the last phrase, the one concerning the rank 7 cultivator. The scroll made him understand the cause behind Chasing Demon''s sour mood, but it also gave him many exciting insights into the individualities of the powerhouses. Of course, there was nothing that could be understood from his description of the god, it was clear that even Chasing Demon didn''t have the power to evaluate such a powerful entity. ''Cultivators at the peak of the heroic ranks couldn''t do anything against a quasi-rank 7 beast. They couldn''t even begin to quantify the power held by beings that have taken a step toward the divine.'' Noah felt calm even if messy thoughts kept on surging inside his mind. He read the contents of the scrolls many times and made sure to store it inside his space-ring when he felt satisfied. The value of the contents of the scroll was immense, any heroic cultivator would be willing to pay a fortune only to take a peek at the world at the peak of the heroic ranks. However, Noah had no intention to sell it. His status as a rank 4 cultivator didn''t allow him to understand the depth of Chasing Demon''s considerations, his level was simply too low to imagine the battle between such strong beings. Yet, there was a chance that he could gain some insights from it once he became more powerful. Also, he didn''t lack financial assets and resources right now, he couldn''t find any reason to sell that valuable scroll. ''Heroic cultivators are completely different existences compared to those in the human ranks. Those differences enlarge as their power grows and culminates in the divine ranks. Why is someone able to stop the time of the most powerful existences in the Mortal Lands still here? Why is his nation even waging wars?'' Noah''s thoughts led to many questions, especially when they concerned the god of the Shandal Empire. There didn''t seem to be any apparent reason for his actions, he simply appeared and left whenever he wanted. Of course, Chasing Demon had recorded the god''s words in the scroll too, but they didn''t make much sense to Noah. He was only an existence at the beginning of the heroic ranks, the thought that his still unclear individuality could have caused Heaven and Earth''s sloppiness never crossed his mind. Cultivators on his level were considered powerful, but they could barely affect the laws that ruled the world. ''My next breakthrough will put me one step closer to them though.'' Noah''s eyes shone with the flames of his ambition when he thought that. Monster, gods, and overlords stood above him, the sole pressure of their existence was enough to make billions of ants tremble. However, they had been ants too back then, their current power was the result of centuries and millennia of efforts. Noah knew that there was a limit to how much the backing of a powerful organization could help once reached the heroic ranks. Cultivators on that level needed to walk their personal journey, and no amount of nurturing could help them improve. On the contrary, those that had relied on the organizations behind them to reach the fourth rank would find it difficult to make any progress because they would lack the mindset to explore the depths of their individuality. ''Those who rely too much on their organizations forget about themselves, only true individuality can give birth to laws that can''t be contained by Heaven and Earth.'' Noah thought and took out a large barrel from his space-ring. That barrel was a rank 4 inscribed item that he had found inside Divine Demon''s inheritance and decided to keep. The Body-inscription spell required the blood of the magical beasts that Noah wanted to turn into Blood companions to function. The blood of a magical beast obviously radiated part of its power, which meant that normal items couldn''t contain it if it came from a powerful creature. Ordinary items had been fine for peak rank 4 beasts, but Noah didn''t plan to remain a rank 4 mage forever. So, he had decided to keep that inscribed barrel to be prepared for when his mind became able to subdue rank 5 beasts. Noah opened the barrel, and a dense, dark liquid appeared in his view. The sight of that liquid made his hunger skyrocket, no rank 4 beast could control itself when put in front of materials that came from rank 5 beasts after all. ''The blood should be the easiest to digest. The body parts and the complete body will have to wait until I completely absorb the contents of this barrel.'' Noah thought as he cupped his hands to take a small sip of the rank 5 blood contained inside the inscribed barrel, he was ready to push his body toward the next stage! Chapter 614: 614. Digesting Eating a rank 5 beast while having a rank 4 body wasn''t an easy task. Magical beasts had only one center of power, which meant all their accumulated "Breath" would be redirected to reinforce it. That led to a situation where beasts on a lower rank couldn''t even wound those on a higher one. Rank 5 beasts couldn''t control dozens of rank 4 creatures if the latter had a chance to defeat them, the food chain of the magical beasts would be quite chaotic otherwise. Yet, that didn''t mean that they couldn''t eat them. The corpses of the magical beasts would begin to release the "Breath" contained inside them in the outside world after their death, which weakened the structure of their bodies and allowed weaker creatures to wound them. However, there was still the issue of their digestion at that point. A rank 4 body couldn''t possibly have the power to destroy and absorb a rank 5 beast, even one that had begun to weaken. Any body part that a weaker beast managed to bite off would need to stay inside its stomach for a while before it was fully absorbed, meaning that eating the entirety of a stronger beast couldn''t happen in a matter of days. Noah faced the same problems when he began to eat the materials that he had managed to steal from the battlefields during the last assault of the winged beasts. He had it a bit better compared to ordinary beasts on his level due to his hybrid status, but he still met difficulties in digesting those rank 5 resources. The blood remained in his stomach for days, and there was nothing that he could do to hasten the absorbing process, nothing worth doing at least. He could use the secret technique to boost the power of his body momentarily, but part of the nutrients contained in those materials would be wasted to refill the expenditure of the technique. The amount of absorbed "Breath" would still surpass the depleted one, but Noah was aiming for a complete absorption since there were some variables that he couldn''t evaluate. He wasn''t a magical beast, he was a hybrid born through the fusion of a dragon and a cultivator who had trained in one of the best methods available to humans. Dragons were considered as the powerful kind of creatures in the magical beasts'' world, and their power was balanced by higher requirements when it came to the amount of "Breath" needed for each breakthrough. Yet, those requirements could only become harsher when they were coupled with the features inherited from the Yin body. Noah knew that he couldn''t calculate the requirements of his body through normal standards, so he simply stole as much as he could. The blood came from various rank 5 beasts, but the body parts mainly originated from the winged creatures which didn''t focus on their bodies. However, he was quite confident in reaching the breakthrough with all that blood, body parts, and one almost entire corpse. It took a bit more than a month for Noah to empty the inscribed barrel and completely digest the blood that it contained. Noah felt drowsy when that process was over, he felt as if he needed to sleep to allow that new power to modify his body thoroughly. Of course, Noah followed that instinct. He was a peculiar case in the magical beasts'' world, meaning that the growth of his body could take strange paths or deviate from what was generally considered normal for those creatures. Also, he was unique, the first and only of his species. There was nothing in the collective knowledge of the four nations that could give him some kind of foresight about his breakthroughs, Noah was walking on entirely uncharted territory. Yet, magical beasts generally had powerful survival instincts, and Noah could only rely on them as he made his way toward the peak of the fourth rank. Noah slept for a few weeks only to awaken due to the splitting hunger that was assailing his mind. He felt that his body had improved by a lot, but he didn''t linger on useless tests since his meal had just begun. His next targets were the broken claws of the winged beasts and the tentacle of the rank 5 octopus. It was needless to say that eating them was even more troublesome. The claws weren''t that big of a problem since they were already broken, but it took him some time to divide the tentacle into small pieces so that he could gulp them without chewing them. His teeth didn''t have the power to tear such powerful skin apart, and Noah had kept those body parts inside his space-ring, so they hadn''t been weakened by the passage of time. Noah had to wait until the full power of his martial art became able to pierce those materials, and there was nothing that he could do about the "Breath" lost in the process. It took him some months, but, in the end, he managed to consume even those body parts. Noah felt the drowsiness invading him again, and he slept only to wake up a whole month later at the peak of the upper tier. His body brimmed with power, he felt the strength of a being at the peak of the fourth rank filling every fiber of his body. Nevertheless, he wasn''t done yet. He had purposely left the most nourishing meal for last since he knew that magical beasts needed a large amount of "Breath" during a breakthrough to the next rank. That process was similar to an evolution rather than a simple strengthening, and Noah had to be sure to have enough energy to succeed in it. The almost complete body of the rank 5 beasts appeared on the floor, and Noah immediately began to eat it. That corpse had been reduced to a pulp by the rank 5 snake, which greatly helped Noah in that process. Small bites and long digesting periods filled his schedule in those months. His body had improved enough to quicken the absorption of those materials, but he still needed a few months to digest that corpse completely. Noah felt that his body was ready to explode when his stash of rank 5 materials was over. His hunger had long disappeared, and incredible drowsiness filled his mind. His eyelids felt heavy, but Noah struggled to remain awake since his instincts told him that the mansion wasn''t the right place where to hibernate. Noah left the invisible dome in a hurry without even minding the greetings of the elders that he met on his path. His instincts led him to the eastern border of the territory containing the lava lake, and Noah didn''t hesitate to dig a deep cave when he reached that spot. The underground area glowed with a red color there, but Noah barely noticed it and fell in deep sleep after sealing the entrance to that cave. He didn''t even notice that some of the "Breath" contained inside his body came out in the open and created a dark membrane that surrounded his sleeping figure. Chapter 615: 615. Dreams Noah''s thoughts were strange and messy during that period. He knew that he was sleeping inside a dark chrysalis created by part of the accumulated "Breath" inside his body and that all his tissues were undergoing substantial modifications. However, his mind kept on becoming dark from time to time, and he had no control over its behavior. ''The hibernation doesn''t work well with the other centers of power, but I feel that my body is autonomously trying to reach a higher form of harmony.'' Noah thought during one of his conscious moments. Those modifications were painless, he could only feel a warm sensation that spread through his skin before reaching for his interiors. His dantian kept on improving during that period, he couldn''t stop his cultivation technique after all. Yet, he couldn''t train his mental sphere in that state, he could barely remain conscious after all. Noah experienced strange visions whenever his mind became dark. They resembled dreams that made him feel intense emotions, and the clarity of those images was linked to the feelings that they carried. Noah saw a large pack of dragons flying under him. Dozens of powerful beasts flew unhindered in the sky and browsed the land under them as they looked for some prey. Noah felt pride in knowing that those dragons were following his commands, he knew that he had tamed each one of them even if he couldn''t remember how or when he did that. He saw his roars being echoed by the specimens in his pack, he saw how they released pale-gray pillars of flame in his honor. That dream ended at some point, and Noah saw those images vanish from his mind. However, the pride that they carried flowed in his mind and became part of him. Other dreams occupied his thoughts during his period of hibernation. Noah saw the dragons of his pack fighting against an enemy species of dragons for the control of a mountain peak that he didn''t recognize. Red and pale-gray flames filled his vision, the battle between the two packs was messy and merciless. Yet, he didn''t move. He felt the quiet arrogance that originated from his awareness of being a member of the most potent species of dragons, he felt the unbound confidence in the power of his flames. The leader of the enemy pack eventually appeared, and Noah attacked without hesitation. His reptilian maws spread and released a pillar of white flames that clashed with the red ones of his opponent, and something inside him told him that he had won that conflict. The images of the battle vanished at that point, and Noah could feel that arrogance becoming part of him. ''Maybe, the Cursed dragon species would have had a chance of giving birth to a Bloodline Inheritance if its fertility wasn''t reduced so much.'' Noah thought during one of his conscious moments. He had understood what he was experiencing, he had lost his mind in similar dreams in the past after all. It was evident that Heaven and Earth had given birth to powerful emotions when they punished the Cursed dragon species. Still, the reduced reproductive capacity had prevented the appearance of a Bloodline Inheritance. Those intense emotions had to be passed down to many specimens and then reunited in a single individual for something so rare to appear. That process needed to be repeated through the years, or the intensity of the emotions carried by the species wouldn''t reach the required density. Of course, that was simply impossible due to the poor state of the Cursed dragons. The population of that species had declined since Heaven and Earth punished it, and the strong emotions that their bloodline carried didn''t have the chance to become denser. Nevertheless, Noah had fused with one of the remaining specimens and was experiencing those emotions during his breakthrough. Absorbing those feelings wasn''t improving his sea of consciousness, it was only making him experience the events that had been forever imprinted in the bloodline of that species. Noah began to dream again, and he could immediately understand that the next images carried the most intense emotions of the bloodline of the Cursed dragons. A dark sky appeared in his vision, and the crackling of thunders resounded everywhere around him. Hundreds of huge black dragons released pillars of snow-white flames that reached for the sky and pierced the barrage of black clouds that were obscuring the sunlight. A large part of the clouds dispersed after those attacks, but they seemed to cover the entirety of the sky, Noah wasn''t able to see their end! Also, lightning bolts kept on being released from their surface. Noah saw the underlings that had accompanied him through many battles being pierced by the powerful attacks of the massive Heaven Tribulation. The scales of those dragons couldn''t do anything against Heaven''s might, the specimens of that mighty pack could only fall lifelessly on the ground below every time a lightning bolt hit them. At that point, Noah felt fear for the first time in his life. He was a dragon, the kind of magical beast that dominated the food chain. His potential was limitless, his flames kept on reaching new levels of power, and they had even just surpassed the limits of the heroic ranks. Yet, the world intervened when that happened, and all his arrogance and pride were put against something that he couldn''t overcome. Battle intent surged inside him, and he didn''t hesitate to unleash the new power that he had just obtained. The world became dark when he spread his maws, any form of light around him disappeared when he launched the flames that had no equals in the heroic ranks. More than half of the black clouds had vanished when the light returned in that area, but the remaining ones focused their lightning bolts on him. Noah felt his body being pierced, his bones shatter, and his internal organs explode when the sparks spread through him. Life began to abandon him, but he remained conscious enough to witness the fate of the surviving specimens of his pack. He saw how the lightning bolts crashed on his underlings, shattering their wings and gravely injuring their interiors. He saw how the remains of his pack fell uncontrollably toward the ground, he saw their desperation when they understood that the sky had been taken away from them. It was then that boundless anger filled his dying body. He felt angry that he had lost, but he also felt upset that the black clouds had chosen to punish his kind rather than exterminate it. The images vanished at that point, and Noah opened his real eyes. That anger still filled his body, and he raised his head toward the sky to vent his feelings. A roar resounded in the underground area, and a pillar of white flames soon came out of his mouth and pierced the terrain above him. Any magical beast that heard that cry was immediately able to realize that a new rank 5 creature had appeared in that territory. Chapter 616: 616. Awareness The magical beasts and cultivators near that area couldn''t possibly miss that event. Noah''s flames pierced the ground and shot toward the sky, creating a white pillar that tried to reach for the clouds above. That act was instinctive, Noah was basically announcing to the creatures near him that he had succeeded in reaching the fifth rank! His overwhelming anger vanished at some point, and Noah dispersed his flames to focus on his new status. The first change that he noticed concerned his mindset. The water inside his sea of consciousness had become brownish after the breakthrough and the absorption of the intense emotions contained inside the bloodline of the Cursed dragons. The nature of his thoughts had been thoroughly modified, they weren''t azure like those of the humans nor red like those contained in a Bloodline Inheritance. His whole existence had changed during his period of hibernation, and even his other centers of power couldn''t escape the modifications that his status as a hybrid brought. He belonged to a different species, it was evident that his centers of power would differ from both humans and magical beasts. However, his fusion had happened only some years ago, and his transformations in that period weren''t as radical as his last one. Yet, now that his body had reached the fifth rank, his existence could fully step on the path that only a hybrid could tread. ''What happened to my dantian?'' Noah thought when his focus went on his other center of power. The structure of his dantian had become denser after the breakthrough, it resembled a shiny metallic sphere that couldn''t be compared to the frail human''s organs. Nevertheless, Noah''s surprise didn''t originate from the new sturdiness of his dantian, but from its size! The Black hole cultivation technique had never stopped absorbing "Breath" during his hibernation, and Noah couldn''t restrain it in that period since his mind was often wandering in the memories of the Cursed dragons. So, his cultivation technique had worked at full speed while he was inside the chrysalis. Noah had gained a lot of insights in his years on the new continent, and his dantian had absorbed many laws contained in the "Breath" of the darkness element as he deepened his understanding of his individuality. That increased the speed at which his dantian enlarged, it was as if that organ improved on its own whenever a law fused with its structure. However, his dantian seemed at least three times bigger than before. ''How much time did I spend inside the chrysalis?'' Noah thought at that point. He could somewhat calculate the length of his hibernation using the absorption speed of his cultivation technique as a base, but he could already guess that it wasn''t a matter of months! That realization didn''t bother him too much though, the concept of time inside his mind had long detached itself from the human''s standards. Then, Noah analyzed his figure as a whole. His appearance didn''t change that much, his muscles were more defined, but he wasn''t burly, his body still exuded a certain harmony even if the physical strength contained inside it shouldn''t make it possible. His skin appeared firmer, it was as if it had obtained certain metallic proprieties. His hair went through some changes too, his straight black hair had become wilder and a bit messy. ''June would surely make fun of it once she sees me.'' Noah smiled when he thought about his lover, but his expression instinctively turned cold when he sensed that a powerful figure was using its senses to analyze the area above him. Noah relaxed when he recognized that presence, but the responsiveness of his new body still amazed him. The mental waves that were analyzing the area belonged to Elder Austin, and Noah knew that he shouldn''t be able to sense them unless the elder wanted. However, his body sensed them before they even reached him, it was as if his natural awareness of any potential danger had increased exponentially! Noah used his mental energy to remove the dirt from his body, but he didn''t change robe. There were still traces of blood on it from his meals inside the mansion, but Noah wasn''t in a hurry to change into new clothes since he knew that he would destroy them soon. Elder Austin saw Noah''s figure rising in the air from the hole created by the pillar of white flames and was about to greet him, but his powerful mind was immediately able to notice that something was off. The elder could see that Noah''s body had reached the fifth rank, but the amount of danger that his figure exuded was utterly off the scale. Noah seemed more similar to a rank 5 cultivator in his eyes rather than to someone who had simply obtained a rank 5 body. "Elder Austin, I can see that the lava lake has benefitted you greatly." Noah said as he greeted the elder. The latter was surprised once again, Noah had been able to recognize the improvements of a rank 5 cultivator after all! "Prince, your body is indeed peculiar." Elder Austin commented, but there wasn''t any malice in his voice. Noah''s body-nourishing technique seemed to hide wonders, but no one could fathom the price that he had to pay for that power. Of course, Noah''s body didn''t really have drawbacks, he simply belonged to a different species. Also, the fusion had been possible only due to his peculiar inscription method and the Divine deduction technique, and it had still taken a large number of human lives to be perfected. The only aspects that could be considered drawbacks were his hunger, the unstable mindset, and the higher requirements in terms of "Breath" to improve. "Is it four years or five? I lost track of time when I was in seclusion." Noah asked, and Elder Austin answered after requesting something through his inscribed notebook. "Three years and seven months to be precise. The territories under our control have changed a lot with the presence of the Patriarch. I''m asking for a complete report right now." Elder Austin said and handed Noah a small scroll after a few seconds. "Elder Jason would be eager to host a banquet to honor your return, and I believe that even the other elders would benefit from seeing how much the Demon Prince is growing." Noah shrugged his shoulders at Elder Austin''s offer. He didn''t mind showing his new status to the other elders if that helped them in their cultivation, but there were more pressing matters in his mind right now. "Give me a month, and I''ll return to the dome. I need some time alone." Noah answered and left after exchanging a few more words with the elder. His body was brimming with power, and he had been conscious for only a few minutes, he needed to experience his new strength to attune those improvements with himself. Luckily for him, the piece of Immortal Lands had many rank 5 creatures that could help him with that. Chapter 617: 617. Colonization Noah flew toward the west while browsing through the contents of Elder Austin''s scroll. The Hive had greatly expanded its influence on the territories of the new continent thanks to Chasing Demon''s presence. The Patriarch of the Hive had made some needed changes to the southwestern coast in the almost four years that Noah had spent inside the chrysalis. The forest of White woods didn''t need any form of protection. Still, the habitable area in Azure plain was too small to accommodate the human population of the crowded Coral archipelago. So, he deployed the copying technique in specific and valuable areas to create more invisible domes where human cultivators could live. More shining lakes appeared on the border between the forest and the plain, and similar scenes could be seen in the territory inhabited by octopuses and in the poisonous area next to the desert. Massive hunts had begun as soon as the threat of the winged beasts was dispelled, and the heroic assets of the Hive could finally start colonizing. The pack of octopuses had mostly vanished after the last assault of the winged beasts, even its rank 5 specimen had died. That event was exploited by the Hive that killed the remaining rank 4 creatures in the area and allowed the creation of new habitable regions protected by the copying formation. Something similar had happened in the land filled by poisonous rivers. The migration of the fauna had affected that territory. It dispelled most of the toxicity that made that land too dangerous to explore, which opened the path for a partial colonization. Four years weren''t enough to take complete control of the southwestern coast, but Chasing Demon and the other elders achieved something quite remarkable in that period. The Hive now had three large invisible domes that human cultivators could inhabit next to the three borders of the forest of White woods. The copying formation covered the area under the domes and that around them to offer protection and create training areas that the human cultivators were forced to use. The shining lakes needed a certain equilibrium between the depleted and absorbed "Breath" to function, which meant that the copying technique had to activate often to meet those requirements. The Hive created a system of rewarding missions aimed to solve that issue, which urged the human cultivators that established themselves on the new continent to make use of the copying technique. The missions were mandatory training sessions against the copied beasts that Chasing Demon had trapped somewhere under the surface of those areas, and the promising human assets greatly benefitted from them. The Hive aimed to forge any new cultivator that joined it through countless battles and was executing that task quite well. The Coral archipelago had slowly become a transitory training area for the human cultivators that joined the Hive. It began to be treated as some sort of academy that rewarded those who showed a decent battle prowess with the chance of traveling in the new continent. Even rank 2 cultivators began to fill the cities under the invisible domes, the Hive was moving its headquarters in the continent that would grant it the best benefits. After all, the archipelago was surrounded by the areas of influence of the three big nations, there was a limit to how much the Hive could expand in the old continent. However, the new continent was almost as vast as the old one, but it didn''t feature the same limitations. ''The next dome should be built in the desert to connect all the territories on the western coast under our control. Yet, that area isn''t that valuable, the elders might choose to colonize the territory before the snowy mountain to protect the border with the Utra nation better.'' Noah thought as he flew over the rocky wasteland. His target lived in the desert, and he wanted to experience the heat radiated by the lava lake with his new body alongside the journey. The heatwaves that reached his height were almost negligible, Noah realized that he would even forget about them if he didn''t pay attention. Other sensations though returned as he familiarized with his body. His hunger increased with every passing second, Noah felt that his mind instinctively focused on any lifeform that appeared in his view. Noah sensed Elder Jason''s presence under him, he could guess that the elder was cultivating next to one of the red rivers. Information about the elder''s position, scent, and even power level appeared in his mind, it was as if his body was autonomously studying the details of possible prey. ''I should focus on my sea of consciousness from now on. The intensity of my instincts has increased far more than expected, I can''t risk losing control.'' Noah decided after suppressing the thought of eating Elder Jason. The harmony between his centers of power had been broken with the sudden breakthrough of his body. His dantian had improved a lot during his hibernation, but his mind had almost remained at the same level. After all, he didn''t need to store "Breath" inside his mental sphere anymore since the will in front of his dantian could directly provide the necessary meanings, and there was a limit to how much pressure Zac and Havoc''s figures could generate. ''Well, my dantian cultivates on its own, and I can''t even imagine how much "Breath" my body needs to improve at this level. So, I can stress my mind as much as I want from now on. The problem is that the fifth rank of the sea of consciousness seems still far away.'' Noah couldn''t help but sigh when he thought that. The heroic ranks were incredibly vast, it could take decades just to make the smallest of the improvements. He had been able to evolve his body so quickly only because he trained in the magical beasts'' method and could make use of the superior power of the cultivators to hunt the most nourishing prey. However, his mind and dantian couldn''t take any shortcut. Actually, it could be even said that Noah was treading the fastest path to the higher ranks already! His dantian improved through a cultivation technique that he had personally created, and he could join the memorization of the Kesier runes with the internal pressure of the body-inscription spell and inscription method. He was even gaining insights about his individuality, and his period with June had further deepened his understanding of himself. Yet, he knew that the road to the next stages and ranks was still long, especially for what concerned his mind. ''Expressing the power of the laws would need something deeper than the simple mental energy. Maybe, the sea of consciousness can open the path to wield your soul¡­'' Noah''s mind wandered as he reached for the desert, he could set his plans for the future only after he understood how strong he was. Chapter 618: 618. Clash Noah reached the desert while his mind was still busy analyzing his future prospects. There was a lot that he didn''t know about the higher levels inside the heroic ranks, but there was also a limit to how much he could discover due to his current power. Most of his thoughts originated from the feelings that his new body gave him. The secrets behind the higher ranks were hidden inside that center of power, so he could only learn by studying it. After all, magical beasts reached higher forms of existence only by improving their bodies, and Noah had just done it. That made him believe that he could learn something about the path ahead of his other centers of power if he understood more about his new level. Noah focused once the yellow sand appeared in his view, and he could immediately notice how that environment had changed since the winged beasts'' crisis hit the new continent. Cracks had spread through the surface of the desert, forming deep fissures that revealed the azure underground world of the piece of Immortal Lands. The bright color of the sand mixed with those azure halos created an eerie and silent view. Noah''s body autonomously picked up clues from the environment and sent them to his mind. Those clues gave Noah a quite detailed knowledge about the status of the sandworms that inhabited that area. ''They have noticed me.'' Noah thought as he descended toward the surface. He could smell the fear radiated by the weaker sandworms, but it seemed that his presence alone wasn''t enough to trigger a reaction in the rank 5 specimen. Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw that his sparring partner was late, and he released a wave of white flames in a straight line on the ground under him. His flames broke the surface of the desert and seeped into the underground lair where those creatures were hiding. Cries of pain resounded in the area, but Noah roared to restore the silence and to convey a straightforward message. "Come out!" The rank 4 sandworms in the area couldn''t possibly understand that Noah''s challenge was aimed at the ruler of the desert and began to resurface. Noah watched as dozens rank 4 beasts appeared in his view, and he couldn''t help but feel some disdain. Those creatures had followed his orders so quickly even if they already had a leader, it seemed that they were nothing more than bags of meat for the ruler of the desert. ''I wonder if you will come out if I start to deplete your stash of food.'' Noah didn''t hesitate when he had those thoughts, he directly shot toward the nearest sandworm and ripped its body in half with his bare hands. A rank 4 Giant sandworm could reach a length of forty meters, but Noah divided its vast body in two with a simple gesture. The other sandworms trebled when they saw that scene, but they didn''t dare to move, they were too scared that any sudden action might provoke the powerful creature that had descended on the desert. The raw meat of the creature didn''t appease his hunger, and he could barely feel any increase in his power when his body absorbed the "Breath" contained in that specimen. ''I wonder how the Albino snake could be satisfied with such weak creatures. Maybe, I''ve never truly learnt to settle for the "Breath" in the environment.'' Noah''s mind began to wander, but his thoughts were soon interrupted by the arrival in the area of a creature that he knew was stronger than him. The ground trembled as an immense dune rose in the air and reached a height of two hundred meters. Rivers of sand fell from the dune, and the shape of a rank 5 Giant sandworm was soon revealed to his eyes. The creature was as big as he remembered, but he could see that grave injuries and white scars had appeared on its colossal body since their last encounter. ''So, it was still recovering from the attack of the winged beasts. Maybe it was hibernating to hasten the process, but a direct threat to its stash of food has forced it to awaken.'' Noah quickly understood the situation, but he couldn''t dawdle too much in that situation since the rank 5 sandworm directly pounced at him. The rank 4 beasts retreated when they saw their leader shooting toward the small human, they didn''t have any confidence in surviving if they remained next to the battle between two rank 5 beings. The body of the sandworm filled Noah''s vision, but he didn''t retreat, he simply activated his secret art and waited. The secret art that made Noah''s skin cave in and consumed his muscles when he still had a rank 4 body didn''t affect his appearance at all at that moment. His body was filled with so many nutrients that even the activation of a secret art couldn''t affect the state of his muscles. Then, when the large mouth of the sandworm was upon him, Noah delivered a punch. ''I can''t win.'' Noah was immediately able to understand that when his knuckles touched the smooth skin of the beast. The sandworm was simply too strong, while Noah was only a newly advanced rank 5 hybrid. His potential was far superior, but even the usage of his secret art couldn''t make him match the power of a rank 5 beast in the upper tier. The fact that the sandworm was injured couldn''t influence that fact. Cracking sounds resounded from his arm, and he felt that the rest of his body would crumble if he didn''t do something in the next quarter of instant. Noah quickly kicked the air between him and the sandworm to perform the Shadow sprint martial art. He had yet to tune his martial arts to his new strength, but they were his creations, he could somewhat understand the amount of "Breath" needed to balance his new power. A loud shockwave resounded in the area, and Noah lost control of his body for a few seconds as his figure shot backward. His body dug a long trail on the terrain as the propulsion of his martial art brought him away from the desert and back to the rocky wasteland. Noah sensed that a large part of the "Breath" inside his dantian had been depleted to perform that sprint, but the sense of satisfaction that he felt made him completely neglect that thought for the moment. A clash with a rank 5 creature in the upper tier had barely injured his right arm, and he had even been fast enough to escape at the last instant! He could now clash against beings that even rank 4 cultivators in the solid stage would avoid! Noah sat cross-legged when he managed to stop his body and completely disregarded the heat radiated by the walls of the deep trail that he had created. He wanted to feel his power, he wanted to test his limits, and he wanted to apply what he learnt to his other centers of power. However, he suddenly felt that three powerful presences were staring at him. Chapter 619: 619. King The three presences were faint, Noah couldn''t pinpoint their exact location. Yet, he knew that they were observing him. His new body was extremely sensitive to any potential threat and any source of nourishment. Also, that feature was coupled with the powerful mind of a rank 4 mage. His ability to perceive the lifeforms around him was something that a simple cultivator couldn''t have, it was part of his hybrid''s instincts. However, he had to admit that he had been able to notice them so soon because he was familiar with the aura that was masking those cultivators. "What is it, Elder Julia?" Noah said without opening his eyes. His mind was still immersed in the images of the clash with the rank 5 Giant sandworm. He was trying to put into words the level of existence that he had reached so that he could apply those feelings to his individuality. ''Battle intent, pride, ambition, recklessness, these emotions are quite obvious. I need to go deeper.'' Noah thought, but there weren''t human words that could explain his new status. Magical beasts were rather simple beings, they were driven by instincts and few intense feelings that their bloodline carried. The same went for him. His hybrid status didn''t give him any advantage on that matter since only his body had reached that level, it was as if his mind couldn''t wholly understand the fifth rank. ''I feel I have become a king among exceptional soldiers.'' Those were the best words that Noah could find at that moment. Human cultivators were nothing more than ants or pawns for someone in the heroic ranks. A creature in the fourth rank would be an exceptional soldier, a hero among heroes. Yet, an existence in the fifth rank expressed more than pure power. There was some sort of authority hidden inside his new rank, it was as if he had just reached a state where he could begin to influence the world around him. ''I wonder if I can use this feeling in the Elemental forging method or when I create wills. Maybe, I can bend the laws of the darkness element to my will if I manage to wield this feeling.'' Noah thought, uncaring of the three figures that had appeared in the air next to him. "My apologies, I believed you had gone crazy when you went after a rank 5 beast." Elder Julia answered Noah''s question, but a surprised expression lingered on her face. She had used her methods to hide herself and the other rank 5 elders next to her, but Noah had been able to notice their presence. She wasn''t using her full power, of course, but no one in the fourth rank should have been able to spot them. That lead to a simple conclusion: Noah''s awareness had crossed the limits of the fourth rank! "I told you that the Prince was fine. You should have learnt by now that he has a peculiar way of testing himself." Elder Austin commented on the situation and released a laugh when he understood that Noah had improved far more than he imagined. "You could block the attacks of a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage four years ago. Now, you can survive a frontal clash against a rank 5 beast. It''s an honor to finally meet you, Demon Prince." The third rank 5 cultivator in the area spoke, and Noah interrupted his mental processes to inspect him. "This is Elder Justin, he has just reached the southwestern coast and wanted to meet you." Elder Julia announced the newly arrived elder, and Noah stood up to perform a polite bow. Elder Justin was a burly middle-aged man with long black hair and dark eyes. His eyebrows were thick, and a well-kept black beard could be seen on his chin. "No need to be so polite, you don''t need to behave in that way with the higher-ups. Manners are meant to inspire respect in the troops, but a captain should act according to his nature when he is among other captains." Elder Justin spoke profound words, and Noah couldn''t help but reevaluate the newly arrived elder. His individuality reflected a peculiar firmness, Noah felt that he was staring at an immovable mountain rather than at a human. "The Hive needs more assets here due to the recent expansion of our influence on the southwestern coast. There will be a rank 5 cultivator stationed under each invisible dome from now on, and the Patriarch will manage everything from under the forest of White woods. The Coral archipelago and the territory in the old continent under our control will be treated recruitment areas as we keep on expanding here." Elder Julia explained the situation to Noah. She was aware that Elder Austin had provided him a summary of the events that happened in the previous years, but Noah''s status required a more in-depth understanding. Noah nodded at that explanation. He completely agreed with the Hive''s decision to move its headquarters on the new continent. It was impossible to expand in the old landmass, the three big nations simply wouldn''t allow it. Yet, the piece of Immortal Lands was equally divided between the four countries, and there were too many sources of income hidden in its territories. "One month is too short, I need more time to stabilize my centers of power. I''ll contact you when I''m ready." Noah spoke at that point. He had promised Elder Austin that he would have returned to one of the invisible domes in one month, but it was clear that he needed more time. His new body was giving him insights that concerned the higher ranks, and his instincts were all over the place. He needed time to tune his abilities to his new power and to understand what he had become. "There is no hurry, Prince. Anyway, we took the liberty to begin the research of the demon sects. We found many clues about some of them, but you would need to investigate personally to confirm their reliability." Elder Julia spoke again and handed a small shining orb to Noah. The latter simply stored it, he didn''t want to focus on his next task before he stabilized his situation. The three elders disappeared from his sight at that point and left Noah alone in the rocky wasteland. Noah sat again on the ground to resume his evaluations. He could feel that the bones and muscles on his right arm had a few injuries, but they would take less than a month to heal. ''My real problem is that I can''t use my hybrid''s advantage to exploit the power of my new body. One usage of the full power of the Shadow sprint martial art has almost halved the "Breath" inside my dantian. I''m simply too strong.'' Noah thought as he activated the Divine deduction technique. He had the faint feeling that his martial arts needed more than a few modifications to be used with his new body. Chapter 620: 620. Schedule Martial arts needed forms executed by the body and "Breath" to produce their effects. Ordinary cultivators would begin to abandon them to focus on spells since the power expressed by their bodies couldn''t match that of their other centers of power. However, Noah was different, and his recent breakthrough had further enhanced his uniqueness. Only the dantian of a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage could endure the expenditure of "Breath" needed to match the physical strength of a rank 5 magical beasts. It was needless to say that Noah was capable of performing his martial arts only a few times if he used the full power of his body. ''Even my secret art isn''t suitable anymore. It can barely affect my body, and it can''t increase my strength by too much. I always end up in these situations because I completely disregard the harmony between the centers of power when I train.'' Noah thought as he pondered over his issues. It wasn''t the first time that one of his centers of power grew so much that he couldn''t express its full potential due to the lower level of his other ones. That had mostly happened with his mind in the past. The lack of a suitable fuel due to the weakness of his dantian had often prevented him from using the real strength of his spells. Of course, Noah knew that his dantian was already enlarging incredibly fast, the issue was with his mind and body. The advantage given by his transmigration and his transformation into a hybrid had made those centers of power reach a growth speed that was entirely off the scale. Noah was already considered a genius for the achievements that concerned his dantian, but his mind and body were in a completely different league! ''I might just wait for my mind and dantian to improve and fight like a magical beast for the time being, but it''s such a waste. I should create at least a couple of finishing moves that reflect the advantages of my species.'' The way Noah saw it, the situation was quite simple. His body could express the power of a rank 5 beast, but his other centers of power were somewhat toward the upper tier of the gaseous stage. Fighting as a magical beast would make him match rank 4 cultivators in the solid stage while relying on his human abilities would put him among the best gaseous stage cultivators. ''Forging rank 5 Demonic swords is also out of the question. I don''t have any confidence in being able to hurt myself, let alone molding my body in the form of a saber.'' Issues piled up inside Noah''s mind. There didn''t seem to be any solution other than wait for his centers of power to grow. The heroic cultivators that had lived for centuries to reach a point where they could survive a frontal clash against a rank 5 magical beast would puke blood if they knew what was going on inside Noah''s mind. After all, he wasn''t even fifty years old, but he could already join battles at the peak of the fourth rank! However, Noah''s ambition knew no limits, and his eagerness to obtain more power only increased as his hunger grew. The Divine deduction technique gave Noah a broader perspective and made him analyze his issues far faster. It didn''t take much before he decided on how to proceed in the imminent future. ''I must tune my martial arts to the minimum physical strength that I''m capable of and do the same for my full potential. I don''t think I would be using my martial arts that often even after that, but I would have some limited amount of attacks that make use of my body at least.'' The matter of the martial arts couldn''t be handled differently, Noah had to settle for few but powerful attacks until his "Breath" became able to match his body. ''I need to translate all the diagrams of my spells, and I shouldn''t limit that process to those up to the fourth and fifth rank. Even those up to the third rank have the potential to be useful while I''m a rank 4 mage with the necessary modifications.'' Having a stronger type of offensive didn''t strictly mean that Noah had to always rely on it. Magical beasts were weaker than cultivators after all, there was a limit to how much Noah could do by fighting like one of them. So, he decided to improve his other abilities too. That process had to be executed at some point anyway, and he didn''t have any pressing matter to handle at that moment. ''I need to replace the will inside the Black hole cultivation technique. My dantian is far sturdier after my breakthrough and should be able to handle my newly found greed for power.'' His cultivation technique was forged using his greed as meaning for the "Breath", but that feeling has increased in intensity after he reached the fifth rank, opening a path for improvements. ''My mind must grow to better handle my new instincts, but that shouldn''t be a problem. Translating the diagrams of my other spells, forging an improved rank 4 cultivation technique, and training with the Kesier rune should be enough to restore some harmony between my centers of power.'' Noah had always considered his mind as the most significant advantage in his second life, his unbelievable achievements had the absurd power of his sea of consciousness as part of their foundation. ''Lastly, I need a new secret art. My current one can''t make use of all the "Breath" inside my body, and I can''t just let it go to waste. I need to find or forge something that can further enhance the most potent weapon in my arsenal.'' Noah''s planning ended after that thought. His current secret art targeted rank 4 bodies and was tuned for humans, which was the reason why he could just keep it active for prolonged periods. However, his current body was too strong and contained too many nourishments, even the pills created by the Udye family couldn''t satisfy him anymore. The growth of that center of power was exponential since it followed the evolution process of the magical beasts, meaning that even rank 5 secret arts would probably be unsuitable for his current level. Yet, Noah believed that he could create something appropriate for his unique case. Secret arts were generally considered as the simplest arts since they involved only one center of power and were mainly meant to push it to its limits. There was no harmony involved, it was a pure burst of power at the cost of the stability of the center of power. Noah was confident in creating something like that, he had begun to modify diagrams after all! The Divine deduction technique kept on depleting mental energy as he began to follow his schedule, the heroic assets in the domes would have to wait a while for the official return of the Demon Prince. Chapter 621: 621. Help Noah began to improve his abilities and techniques according to the schedule that he had just established. He didn''t hide nor create a cave to go through those processes, the rocky wasteland with the lava lake was silent and devoid of any living being, it was perfect for his needs. The surface of the wasteland was too hot for most rank 4 cultivators, and the rank 5 elders wouldn''t spy on him out of respect for his status. Also, he wanted to stay in the open to let his lungs freely absorb the light around him. The power of his body backed his flames, they had instantly become one of his powerful attacks after the breakthrough. So, he wanted to nourish them by being in one of the most illuminated areas under the control of the Hive. Modifying his martial arts was quite easy, he was their maker after all. He just needed to perform a few tests to find the best balance between his physical strength and a somewhat sustainable expenditure of "Breath". The testing for his all-out attacks took a bit more since his dantian kept on being emptied after a few executions, but Noah managed to tune that aspect quite soon too. The translation of the diagrams in his possession could only proceed slowly, but Noah wasn''t in a hurry to complete it. He took the translation as additional training for his mind that he could perform whenever his dantian was empty, and his training session with the fifth Kesier rune was over. His mind resumed its steady enlargement, and Noah even began to store "Breath" inside his mental sphere again to accelerate its growth further. His cultivation technique autonomously removed Heaven and Earth''s will from the absorbed "Breath", and the will that managed the technique could give a meaning to that energy without making it enter Noah''s mind. Noah didn''t need to store "Breath" inside his mind unless he needed it to perform a forging, but he wanted to accelerate the growth of that center of power. His instincts were too intense, and his rank 4 sea of consciousness wasn''t able to adequately handle them. Also, his mind was the key to understand the kind of existence that he had become with his rank 5 body, which was something that could benefit him in his entirety. Creating an improved version of his cultivation technique was quite easy too. Noah had mastered the blueprint of the item that he used to cultivate a long time ago, and the appearance of the new continent had lowered the price of the "Breath" blessings by a lot. After all, the three big nations didn''t need to increase the density of "Breath" in the air anymore since their habitable lands on the piece of Immortal Lands were already the best training areas for human cultivators. The Hive purchased and provided to Noah the necessary materials for the creation of a second black ring that could handle his improved greed for power, and Noah succeeded in forging the item at his first attempt. The inscribed ring turned out to be a rank 4 item in the middle tier, something which even Noah found surprising. However, everything could be explained by the intensity of the hunger that his new body had. The biggest issue with his new cultivation technique was that he could barely hurt himself, let alone pierce his low-waist to reach his dantian. Nothing in his arsenal could help him in that matter, so Noah felt forced to ask for help. "Are you really sure?" Elder Austin asked while wearing a stupefied gaze. Noah had asked for a meeting and reached his quarters situated under the invisible dome in the area with the poisonous rivers. However, as soon as he arrived, he asked the elder to pierce his low-waist and create a wound that connected his skin with his dantian. "Yes, just make a hole here." Noah answered while pointing at the spot directly over his dantian. Elder Austin didn''t know what to do, but, in the end, he simply gave up and followed Noah''s orders. Flames appeared around the elder, and a small sphere fell from them to land on his palm. The shape of that sphere changed inside the elder''s palm and became a shining needle that began to float in the air. "Are you really, really sure?" Elder Austin asked again, but Noah simply undressed the upper part of his robe and exposed his bare low-waist. The elder could only sigh at that sight and launch the needle toward the center of power of the most promising cultivator of his organization. However, to his surprise, the needle was only able to dent Noah''s skin, and not even a drop of blood came out of it. "Elder, could you use a bit more power? You know, my body-nourishing method is quite peculiar." Noah asked when he saw that the attack wasn''t able to hurt him. He could understand that Elder Austin was trying his best to contain his power, but he needed to replace the black ring inside the wall of his dantian. On the other hand, Elder Austin was utterly astonished. He was concerned about Noah''s well-being, but he still intended to do as he asked. The power behind his attack surely wasn''t enough to reach Noah''s dantian in one go, but he would have never expected to leave him completely unharmed. "I''ll put more power." Elder Austin said at some point and quickly created another red needle from his flames. The needle managed to pierce Noah''s skin at that time, but it wasn''t able to cross the barrage of dense muscles under it. Also, when the needle vanished, Noah''s skin healed in a matter of seconds. "Ehm, maybe not just a bit." Noah revealed a helpless smile when he said that and Elder Austin simply gave up on trying to evaluate the power contained in his body. Yet, he didn''t recklessly charge his needles with more "Breath" and mental energy, he didn''t want to risk injuring Noah''s center of power after all. It took him four more attempts to finally complete Noah''s task and create a wound that exposed his dantian. Noah quickly exchanged the cultivation techniques and threw his old ring inside his mouth as soon as it appeared out in the open. The ring would just keep on accumulating "Breath" without a dantian next to it, which would turn it into an explosive item with the power of the fourth rank. Noah didn''t have any use for it, so he simply ate it instead of destroying it. Storing it wasn''t a possibility either since he would need to empty one of the formations inside his space-ring, and it was pointless to do that for a useless item. "Do you need anything else? Do you want some potion for the wound?" Elder Austin asked after Noah was done with the replacement. However, Noah hadn''t contacted the elder just for his power, there were some questions that he needed to ask too. "Elder Austin." Noah began to speak in a polite tone. "Is the sea of consciousness connected with the soul?" Chapter 622: 622. Explanation Elder Austin was a bit surprised by that sudden question, but he soon understood that Noah was simply having doubts about his centers of power. It was normal to linger on certain questions since the heroic ranks differed on a deep level from the human ones, it wasn''t just an absorption of energies anymore. "The word soul hasn''t been used to indicate the minds of the cultivators for a while. In the past, the sea of consciousness was called soul world, but the experts were forced to abandon that nomenclature since it was too limited." Elder Austin began to explain as he sat on the rocky terrain of his quarters. Noah had won the lava lake, preserving the elder''s training area, but the latter had yet to give him a substantial reward. It couldn''t be helped, the situation on the new continent was too messy, and they were both busy with their training. Then, the crisis arrived and postponed that trivial matter. However, Noah was actively asking for his help now, and Elder Austin felt that he had to do anything in his power to provide him with the best guidance that he was capable of. "All living beings have a soul, which is just a messy mixture of instincts and thoughts that have yet to be defined. Your soul is the expression of what your mind contains, so you should be able to understand that the word "soul" can''t express the real might of that center of power." Noah sat in front of the elder at that point, he wanted to give him his utmost attention. "Cultivators improve their mental spheres in their journey, and that center of power eventually defines the nature of their existence. I might say that your soul is violent and cold, Prince, but that evaluation won''t express the entirety of your individuality, which is why the terminology eventually changed." Noah repeatedly nodded as the elder explained. In the end, soul and mind were just words, the cultivators had just chosen the most general one to express the same feature. "I will give you a demonstration of my individuality and how it should affect the centers of power of a cultivator." Elder Austin said at that point. His guidance couldn''t just stop at the history of the nomenclature of a center of power, he wanted to do more for the Demon Prince. Flames surrounded his figure once again, they flowed around his body in an orderly manner. Noah saw how the violence of that element was suppressed to the point where the flames had assumed liquid features, they resembled red rivers that flowed in the air. "I''ve reached the fifth rank with cultivation techniques created by others, my current level is the result of my understanding of the laws of the fire element. My individuality didn''t allow me to rely on such a wild element, so I''ve always pursued techniques that gave me high control over my flames. I believe you can understand why I value the lava lake so much now." Noah nodded at the elder''s words. Powerful flames that flowed in an orderly way, the lava lake clearly matched Elder Austin''s individuality. "The new insights that the lake gave me expanded my individuality, which eventually affected my other centers of power. The flames created with the "Breath" inside my dantian are slowly turning into magma because my mind expresses the features of a volcano ready to explode. My body is the hard terrain that contains these unstable energies." Elder Austin pointed at his low-waist, head, and heart in succession as he explained the nature of his centers of power. Noah felt that he could really see him now, the elder was a quiet mountain ready to explode and release rivers of lava whenever he wanted. However, there was one point in his explanation that he didn''t completely understand. "Did your individuality modify the nature of the "Breath" inside your dantian?" Noah asked. According to the elder''s words, his "Breath" took that fiery but liquid form because of his individuality. Yet, Noah had never gone through similar changes during his enlightenments, only the aura naturally released by his mind had been affected. "Prince, you are still young, and your amazing battle prowess isn''t linked to the depths of your individuality. Rank 4 cultivators have just begun to fuse their individuality with their centers of power, the aura that you radiate changes often after all." Elder Austin smiled when he said those words. He knew that Noah had improved a lot since his Heaven Tribulation, but those improvements weren''t that substantial in his eyes. Noah was still in the gaseous stage, and the growth of his dantian was mostly related to the cultivation technique that he had personally created. "Am I still that far away?" Noah asked, and his helplessness could be clearly understood from his tone. "The exact opposite. I''d say that you are improving far faster than any other rank 4 cultivator in history, how many do you think have managed to create a rank 4 cultivation technique in the human ranks? No one! It is possible to reach similar results with the backing of a powerful existence, but you are still far ahead of anyone else. Yet, that''s not thanks to your understanding of the darkness element." Elder Austin explained the situation as clearly as he could. The creation of a personal cultivation technique allowed Noah to improve extremely fast, even if his understanding was lacking. Ordinary newly advanced rank 4 cultivators would take decades to reach the level of his dantian. "Prince, it took me one hundred years to cross the entirety of the fourth rank and reach the fifth. I''ve pondered over the meaning of fire and explored the depths of my individuality for decades only to reach my level. I understand your eagerness, but the heroic ranks are too vast. You can''t hope to become a god in a few years and not even in a few decades." Elder Austin stood up at that point. He had explained his individuality to Noah and showed the capabilities of his centers of power, there was nothing else that he could do to guide him. The cultivation journey was lonely and personal, and imitating someone else could only bring small benefits. Noah had to ponder over his issue and solve it on his own, everything had to start from inside him. "Prince, your individuality seems incredibly vast and ambitious. I see sharp blades, a cold death, violent energy, a burning ambition, a magical beast, and a cultivator whenever I look at you. Yet, you must go deeper, you must link all those features together and let them influence your other centers of power. Don''t force it though, enlightenments can''t be controlled, they are something that you will naturally gain when you are ready." Elder Austin concluded his explanation with that phrase and left his underground quarters, leaving a pensive Noah still sitting on the rocky terrain. Chapter 623: 623. Forging Noah''s mind was quite messy when he left Elder Austin''s quarters. The elder''s explanation had cleared many of his doubts, but there wasn''t much that he could do with his new understanding of the higher ranks. He was still in the gaseous stage, and the "Breath" inside his dantian didn''t show any sign of being affected by his individuality, meaning that his essence was still too murky. ''I can''t force the arrival of enlightenments, but I can choose the environment where to meditate.'' Noah thought as he flew toward the lava lake. He had yet to modify his secret art, but the conversation with the elder had given him new ideas on how to use his centers of power better. ''Brute force is useful, but can a simple secret art express the full potential of my body?'' Noah knew the answer to that question. His secret art had been instrumental in overwhelming his opponents in melee combat and in making his martial arts reach the power of the spells. However, his body was now far stronger than before, and a regular secret art couldn''t use all the nutrients contained inside it. Also, consuming those nutrients would lead to the need to refill them, which was a troublesome issue. Noah''s body was in the fifth rank, and only other rank 5 magical beasts could appease his hunger and make him grow. The pills created by the Udye family could make up for the after-effects of his current secret art, but what would happen if Noah managed to improve it? Noah knew the answer to that question too. ''A secret art suitable for my body would surely push my physical strength to amazing levels, but I don''t know if I can sustain the expenditure of food needed to cancel its after-effects. I need to find a better way to use the energy inside my body.'' Noah concluded in his mind. He couldn''t use rank 5 body parts just to make up for the damages that a secret art would cause on his body, it was simply not worth it! Yet, every fiber of his body contained an incredible amount of energy, which was simply wasted if it was used only to obtain physical strength. ''I wonder if I can modify a secret art to use the energy that it releases to fuel spells and martial arts.'' Noah''s idea was quite simple. He wanted to redirect the energy released during the activation of his secret art to make up for his weak centers of power instead of using it to improve his physical strength. He didn''t need more strength, he was barely able to use his martial arts in his current state. What he needed was more "Breath". ''Improving my secret art can only give me expenditures that I can''t sustain. Instead, if I modify my current one, I can gain access to the energy stored in my body.'' The more he thought about that, the more he realized that it was possible. After all, his body was already doing that whenever he launched his flames, he just needed to make it use his dantian and mind instead of his lungs. ''The centers of power would eventually be modified and connected due to the individuality of a cultivator. I can force something similar through the power of my body!'' Of course, Noah didn''t hesitate to pursue that idea as soon as he found it more reliable than his previous plan. ''June linked her centers of power together through the Perfect circuit, but I know nothing about formations, I can only achieve something similar with the Elemental forging method.'' Noah thought as he pondered over that matter. He had many conversations with June about individuality and cultivation techniques, so he knew something about Eccentric Thunder''s training methods. However, he had to do something in line with himself, and that could only be forged with his inscription method. ''An inscribed item that gathers and stores the energy released during the activation of my secret art, but that can be connected to my centers of power. It should have similar features to the Black hole cultivation technique, but it can''t carry the same greed. It should work as the black membrane that I had with my Yin body, a warm reserve of energy that I can use when my dantian is empty.'' The Divine deduction technique was active and provided Noah with countless ideas on how to proceed. Noah quickly sorted through those ideas and found the best approach to his issue. It was clear that only his body could be used as a material, anything else would just conflict with his other centers of power. ''The energy contained in my body can only be stored by something equally powerful. Blood it is.'' Noah decided that his core material had to be his blood. A series of experiments followed that decision. Hurting himself was a troublesome issue, but he could force himself to spit a bit of blood if he wanted. That blood was then molded to assume the form of clots to increase its storage capabilities. As for the meaning, Noah used something similar to his greed. The images of June''s departure appeared in his mind as the gaseous "Breath" of his dantian was immersed in the sea inside his mind. Violent emotions originated from those images, but there was also a firm determination. A determination to wait, a commitment to endure until he obtained enough strength. That determination was what had allowed Noah to hold himself back from stopping June, and was the only meaning that an organ forged to contain a massive amount of power could have. Noah encountered some difficulties in his experiments, but he quickly found solutions to each one of them with the help of the Divine deduction technique. Also, the core material was his blood, he had an innate understanding of it that couldn''t be expressed by the simple expertise. In the end, he succeeded in creating a stable inscribed item. A satisfied smile appeared on Noah''s face when he stared at the shining orb under him. The orb glowed with a dark-red light, and its form trembled slightly whenever the "Breath" inside it moved. Its walls weren''t stable, Noah had purposely kept the liquid capabilities of his blood in his final product. The item acted as a dantian, it could store a certain amount of "Breath" and release it when needed. However, its form wasn''t fixed, Noah could control it to make it separate in many small spheres and join them back together once they had gathered enough energy. ''I need to improve the amount of "Breath" that it''s capable of storing and test it inside my body. My search for the remains of the other demon sects will start after I''ve completed this phase.'' Noah thought as he picked the sphere under him and ate it, he was almost ready to travel again! Chapter 624: 624. Liquid dantian Noah spent almost one year to reap the benefits that his new body could offer. He had stayed on the hot and rocky wasteland around the lava lake for most of that period, he didn''t know any other place that could be so illuminated and silent. That period of seclusion was needed to become used to his new strength and to bring the necessary improvements to his techniques. He would need to travel a lot and venture in enemy territories to complete his next mission, he wouldn''t dare to approach that task unprepared. One year after the breakthrough of his body, he felt that he had completed such preparations. His martial arts and cultivation technique had been improved, and he had translated the diagrams of some of the spells that he was interested in modifying or that were valuable to his combat style. The Mental tremor spell and the Ghostly claws spell were a must in his view. They were his only mental attacks, and he felt the need to prioritize such a reliable offensive method. Also, he had translated the Black hole spell and the Dark blast spell due to their high utility and apparent compatibility. Noah could already imagine how the energy absorbed by his defensive spell could fuel the other one, they even had similar shapes! However, he had decided to leave the translation of the Ethereal form spell and the Death area spell for the future. The first spell couldn''t be used right now due to the power of his new body, he simply couldn''t force it to turn ethereal since that diagram was made for humans. Noah was still unsure what to do about it, his best defense was his skin after all. On the other hand, the Death area spell was simply too weak. Its effects were somewhat useful in specific situations, but they were too easy to counter. Noah wouldn''t translate it unless he thought about some modifications that could make it useful. In the end, he had even forged an item that could exploit the power of his body in ways that a secret art couldn''t. His dantian had absorbed "Breath" autonomously, and his mind had been under extreme pressure through all that period due to his many projects. His centers of power had improved steadily, especially his sea of consciousness. That gave Noah some confidence in managing his intense instincts, he was sure that he could safely return to the human society. Also, his centers of power would eventually catch up with his body. The energy needed by a rank 5 hybrid to advance was simply absurd, Noah barely felt anything when he ate peak rank 4 beasts. ''Let''s try it one last time.'' Noah thought as he stood up from his spot in the rocky wasteland. His focus went on the clot that lingered on the surface of his heart, it resembled a small jelly sphere that could move according to his will. The clot divided itself into many small strands that spread through his body and reached for his muscles. Noah activated his usual secret technique when all the strands reached their set positions. His muscles began to release energy as the nutrients inside them were consumed, and the strands next to them quickly absorbed it. The dark-red strands began to shine as "Breath" accumulated inside them, the power behind that energy could match the "Breath" of a rank 4 cultivator near the peak of the solid stage. Then, when Noah felt that the strands were reaching their limits, he stopped the secret art and gathered those shining threads back on his heart. The dark-red clot was now shining, and Noah couldn''t help but nod in satisfaction at that sight. ''The Liquid dantian works as intended, I just need to eat a few rank 4 magical beasts'' corpses to make up for the energy lost to fill it. I''m ready to leave now.'' Noah thought and set off in the direction of the invisible domes. Liquid dantian was the name that he had given to his new inscribed item after he perfected its functioning. Noah would be able to use the "Breath" that made his rank 5 body thanks to the Liquid dantian, and fueling his attacks with that energy could push them far beyond the limits of his other centers of power. "The Patriarch is busy deploying the copying technique in the area before the snowy plain. You would have to settle for my goodbyes." Elder Julia appeared in the air and said that when she noticed Noah flying over the dome in the Azure plain. "I need something that confirms that I don''t have mean intentions, my fame would just make them treat me as a threat." Noah said after performing a bow toward the rank 5 elder that had appeared next to him. He would use the teleportation matrix in the forest of White woods to return to the old continent, but he first needed something that prevented the three big nations from attacking him. After all, he wasn''t exactly a peaceful cultivator, the three big nations would never allow his presence inside their domains unless Chasing Demon vouched for him. The pact that enforced peace on the new continent had long stopped being in function, the four countries were maintaining a peaceful behavior simply because it was more profitable to act in that way. However, the old continent was different, few territories could be crossed without entering one of the areas of influence of the three big nations. "The Patriarch has given me this diplomatic token before going on the southern coast, you can use it to explain your task to the enemy forces." Elder Julia threw a token depicting a giant, purple octopus that protected a series of islands with its tentacles. Peaceful emotions and the word "Recruiter" appeared in his mind when he swept the token with his mental energy, it was clear that it was an inscribed item. "Remember that your task is to find and gather the demon sects that had been exiled from the Papral nation, not to start a war over them. Don''t cause too much trouble and try to wear something that isn''t burned or torn." Elder Julia added when Noah took the token, and she handed him a series of sleeveless but luxurious robes that had the emblem of the Hive embroidered on their back. Noah stored everything in his space-ring and left for the teleportation matrix in the forest after performing another bow toward the elder. The truth was that he was quite eager to travel, he wanted to see the old continent with his new eyes. Also, the political situation in the new continent was too suffocating, Noah couldn''t act as he wanted due to the severe repercussions that his actions could have on the Hive. He couldn''t pursue his individuality in that state, not with so many social chains binding him. ''My first target must be the city of Slyfall, it''s the only certain information in my possession after all.'' Noah thought as he descended through the white crowns and the forest and landed on the teleportation matrix. Chapter 625: 625. Sea Noah reappeared in one of the central islands of the Coral archipelago after the teleportation. Many years had passed since his last time in that area, and he could see how the growth of the Hive had modified the entirety of the archipelago. Luxurious and tall buildings could be seen everywhere, even on the outer islands. Some of the larger islands had been emptied to create training spots that made use of the copying technique, but the scenery as a whole began to resemble that of Elbas city. The Hive was striving to become the fourth big nation, it was evident that the territories under its domain would see improvements as its growth continued. Elder Bruce and Elder Roy quickly came to greet him when the news of the arrival of the Demon Prince spread through the archipelago. Noah noticed how both of them had managed to improve slightly, especially Bruce, but their advance couldn''t be compared to Noah''s. Roy had become a rank 4 mage in those years, claiming his spot among the complete heroic cultivators. However, his dantian hadn''t grown that much, the absorption speed of cultivation techniques created by others had substantial limitations on that aspect. Bruce seemed to have gained some insights about his element, but he struggled to show any real breakthrough too. "Prince. Noah." Bruce neared Noah and began to speak in a soft voice so that Elder Roy wouldn''t hear him. To put it simply, Bruce wanted Noah''s advice on a particular matter. Bruce wanted to move to the new continent to cultivate next to the famous lava lake, but Sarah was struggling to make the preparations required for the breakthrough to the fourth rank. He was simply worried that the piece of Immortal Lands would be too dangerous for Sarah since she was still a human cultivator. Noah gave him a brief description of the current situation on the other continent. As for advice and similar, only Bruce and Sarah could decide if the journey was worth the risk. Both of them would surely benefit from the environment of the new continent, but that area was dangerous in ways that they couldn''t even imagine. Bruce bowed toward Noah after his explanation and handed him a detailed map of the old continent that had been prepared for his mission. The map had been updated recently, it featured the changes in the political borders that had occurred in the continent after the three big nations decided to focus their assets on the new landmass. ''The areas of influence of the three big countries are receding, they are releasing their grip on the peripheral lands. However, the Hive is the same, all the encampments that it had on the old continent have been disbanded during the conquest of the Lutren nation.'' Noah summarized in his mind as he analyzed the map. The Lutren nation was the country in the area of influence of the Empire that the Hive had conquered while its heroic assets were busy ambushing the forces of the Utra nation. That country was quite barren and valueless, but it gave the Hive more land in the area of the old continent. The Hive used that country as a gathering spot for all the criminals, traitors, and soldiers that wanted to join its forces. It led them to the archipelago only after a thorough analysis of their profile. However, Chasing Demon couldn''t bother to deploy the copying technique in that nation, that land wasn''t worth the precious materials expended in the process. Noah flew away at that point, he had no reason to linger on the archipelago any more than that. Also, he desired to reach places where political limitations couldn''t control his actions. His individuality would only suffer if he were forced to continue to hold himself back, he felt the need to experience again the freedom that he had when he was still on the run. That feeling though couldn''t appear so soon since Noah reached a familiar nation as he flew toward the western coastline of the new continent. Noah saw the borders of Odrea nation, the poor country forced to live inside the protective formation of its patriarch. More than twenty years had passed, but Noah still remembered the period spent there. He remembered how Nina had been able to make him accept peaceful feelings, and he remembered how his ability in the Elemental forging method had improved a lot there. Also, he still used the Mental tremor spell that he had obtained there. ''Twenty years aren''t a lot for my current status, I feel that I could spend them sleeping when my belly is full. However, human cultivators don''t have the same mindset.'' Noah thought as the memories of his life in that country appeared in his mind. He didn''t know if any of the cultivators that he had met was still alive, nor what consequences his weapons had caused after his departure. Yet, there were too many political limitations around that country. Odrea nation was a training area of the Empire, and its deceased patriarch had a peculiar relationship with the god of the attacking force. Noah would like to annex that nation to the Hive and explore the depths of the Mausoleum, but he couldn''t risk incurring in the wrath of a rank 7 existence. He wouldn''t do it for June with his current power, there was no chance that he would do it for a nation that had initially thought of exploiting him. ''I''ve conquered the river only to meet the endless sea. The heroic ranks are a world full of monsters, and I''ve just managed to take one significant step toward the higher powers.'' Noah didn''t feel any hurry, he knew that the power of his body could make him match entities that had cultivated for centuries more than him. He had just entered the sea, but he wasn''t a lost fish. Noah then turned toward the south. The mountain chain that divided the areas of influence of the Shandal Empire and the Utra nation could be vaguely seen in the distance. Still, Noah was interested in the small city that thrived along the western coastline. ''I know that I should recruit the remains of the Charming demon sect, but they have tried to use and kill me, I can''t go too easy on them. I hope that Gillian is alive.'' Noah smiled when he thought about those past events and began to fly along the western coastline in the direction of the city of Slyfall. Chapter 626: 626. Gillian Noah flew across the western coastline for a few weeks before reaching his destination. The vast mountain chain that divided the two big nations appeared in his view, but Noah''s attention was on the small city that stood on the coast. The city of Slyfall hadn''t changed in those years, it still appeared as a pirate''s hideout, with simple buildings and dirty streets. His presence though didn''t go unnoticed since a figure neared Noah as soon as he flew over it. Noah saw a middle-aged man flying toward him. His robe didn''t carry any emblem, but his well-kept aspect showed that he was somewhat remarkable in that city. Also, he was a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage, it would be impossible to reach that level while living in that city unless he had some sort of control over its resources. "My Lord, I''m Drew, the son of the governor of this city. It''s been such a long time since someone of your rank visited us, please join me in-" Drew stopped speaking when he took a good look at Noah''s face. The city of Slyfall gathered information from both Utra nation and Empire, Noah''s wanted poster couldn''t possibly have escaped the sight of the force that ruled it. Drew''s social skills weren''t bad, he had dealt with criminals and traitors for all his life in Slyfall. However, Noah''s cold gaze froze his mind and made him unable to show his skills in entertaining influential guests. Noah felt hunger rising inside him. Drew was weaker than him, he had probably advanced to the heroic ranks in the last two decades, which put him below Noah''s level. ''Slyfall claims to be an independent city, but it enjoys the backing of certain powerful factions of both Elbas family and Empire. The so-called governor has probably been planted here from one of the two sides.'' Noah suppressed his hunger when he thought that. There would be time to act as he wanted, but doing it right next to the Utra nation wasn''t the smartest choice. Also, killing a rank 4 cultivator wasn''t exactly a small matter, especially one who was possibly controlled by two big nations. Their battle would inevitably affect the city below them, and Noah believed that such a den of criminals would have been already destroyed if the two big nations didn''t benefit from it. Noah turned his gaze toward the city at that point while taking out the diplomatic token that the Hive had prepared for him. The word "Recruiter" appeared inside Drew''s mind when his mental energy swept the token, and he could finally breathe a sigh of relief when he understood that Noah wasn''t there to create chaos. "L-lord Balvan, the city of Slyfall has many entertaining activities suitable for your status. Please, follow-" "Is the Broken Cup still selling stolen items?" Drew managed to show his social skills when that oppressing gaze left his figure, but Noah suddenly interrupted him to question him about a simple tavern. "Ehm, I would never allow such a treacherous business in my city! I can assure you that I would personally take down anything-" Drew began to speak again, but Noah put an end to his phase with another intense stare. Drew felt as if a powerful beast was observing him and evaluating which parts of his body were tastier, Noah was making him feel as if he was a common prey. It didn''t take him much to realize that it was pointless to pretend in front of the famous Demon Prince. "Yes, the tavern still hosts an underground market. I can set up a meeting with Gillian, the manager of the market if the Lord wants." Drew explained everything without holding even Gillian''s name back, but Noah declined his offer with a few words. "No need, she is an old friend." The Broken Cup was still the same. Drunk men and women still filled its insides, and the waitresses handled the occasional small fights on the floors. It was a typical day for those rank 1 cultivators and commoners, no significant business happened in that city after all. However, the tavern suddenly began to tremble, and the sunlight began to illuminate its interiors to their surprise. Those men and women raised their gaze only to discover that the roof of the tavern had disappeared and that not even a small debris had fallen over them. A young-looking cultivator was floating above the now open ceiling, but those simple drunkards couldn''t understand the depths of his cultivation level. "Out." Noah said just one word, but all the commoners and weak cultivators left the tavern after it. Only the waitresses remained inside the tavern, and their faces clearly showed the fear that they felt when they looked at the heroic cultivator above them. ''This formation can fend off my mental waves, quite impressive. Yet, I can smell the presence of a few people in the underground chamber.'' Noah thought before diving toward the underground area. The lines of the protective formation appeared and flickered when Noah touched the floor, but they weren''t able to hinder his motion at all. Noah simply pierced the floor and landed in the underground room where he found a naked Gillian sitting over a tied man. The man wasn''t entirely conscious, it seemed that something was being drained from him as Gillian kept on moving over him. "I knew you would return. Can you let me finish before killing me? I would like to enjoy myself one last time." Gillian began to speak without turning. Noah could finally make out her level: she was a rank 3 cultivator in the solid stage with a rank 3 mind and a rank 4 body in the middle tier. Also, he was able to sense that there were other chained men hidden inside that chamber, but they were little more than corpses. It seemed that even a small touch could make them crumble into pieces. ''She has realized who I am even if her mind can''t see me, it should be the work of the formation.'' Noah thought before applying a bit of pressure on all the men in the room. The mental spheres of those men exploded under that pressure, they died in less than an instant as soon as Noah willed it. "Cold as usual. Go ahead, kill me. My organization has survived battles on a level that you can''t even conceive, the fact that you have reached the heroic ranks won''t scare me." Gillian turned when Noah killed those men, and her naked body was wholly revealed to him. Gillian was quite beautiful, but her body seemed surrounded by a peculiar halo that made her figure extremely captivating. Of course, Noah wasn''t affected in the slightest. "The battle you are talking about is that between Ravaging Demon, Charming Demon, and Devouring Demon? I would like to hear more about it." Noah spoke, and Gillian couldn''t help but show an amazed expression, she was beginning to understand that Noah wasn''t there to kill her. Chapter 627: 627. Exile "So, the Chasing demon sect has thrived in the Coral archipelago. No wonder Chasing Demon wants to reunite the other demon sects, they owned half of the Papral nation in the past. However¡­" Gillian said after Noah gave her a brief explanation of the situation. It wasn''t a secret that Chasing Demon was the Patriarch of the Hive, but the human cultivators of the world weren''t aware of the matters that concerned the heroic ranks. Even someone living in a city built to gather information couldn''t know about them, it was possible that Slyfall''s governor wasn''t aware of it too. "They are weak and scattered now. Yet, the Hive will grow, and the demon sects can return to their past glory under its banner. Also, the remaining techniques and diagrams in each of them might give birth to new unorthodox techniques. We are natural allies, just migrate to the archipelago, and the Hive will handle the rest." Noah concluded her phrase. He knew that it would be hard to find any surviving heroic cultivator in the remains of the demon sects, most of them didn''t end up in a territory where they could contain their losses after all. Yet, the techniques and diagrams of those sects could be instrumental if coupled with Chasing Demon''s knowledge and Divine Demon''s inheritance. Improving the teachings available to the human cultivators would give birth to more powerful heroic assets, reuniting the demon sects was simply an investment to stabilize the foundation of the Hive further. Also, Noah guessed that Chasing Demon was a bit emotional about that topic. "We will obviously migrate, no one would refuse such a selfless backing. I don''t know how to reach the archipelago though, we don''t have any-" "I''ll escort you. There will be ships waiting for you after a few months of travel, I just need you to tell me everything that you know about the exile of the demon sects." Noah interrupted her phrase once again. All her worries seemed pointless in his mind. After all, he was there, it would take a powerful heroic cultivator to hinder his path, and no nation was willing to offend the Hive over a few human cultivators. However, he needed to gather as much information as he could before choosing his next target. Elder Julia and the other elders had collected every information that they could find while Noah was inside the chrysalis, but, even then, most of that knowledge was dated. Noah was sure about the Charming demon sect because he had personally encountered it, but there were only rumors about the others. "As you wish, Demon Prince." Gillian showed a captivating smile as she sat on the bed behind her and began to explain everything she knew without even covering herself. The clash between the orthodox and unorthodox sects of the Papral nation had happened around a thousand years ago, a few centuries after the two rank 6 existences of that country became gods and ascended in the Immortal Lands. The highest powers left in the country at that time were rank 5 cultivators, but there was some sort of balance in the assets of both orthodox and unorthodox sects. However, Ravaging Demon was a rank 5 cultivator, and his betrayal shifted the balance of those two sides in favor of the orthodox sects. That, together with the intel provided by Ravaging Demon, led the demon sects to their exile. "Charming Demon and Devouring Demon fought against the forces of the Council to let the other demon sects escape. Charming Demon died, and the entirety of the Devouring demon sect was destroyed, you can take it off your list. A rank 4 cultivator succeeded Charming Demon and managed to bring the remains of my sect here. Yet, she had been injured in the battle, and she was only able to survive for a few decades before passing the leadership of the sect to a human cultivator." Gillian explained as she tried to tempt Noah, but he simply ignored her gestures. ''So, Great Elder Diana must have reached the sixth rank in the last millennia. I wonder what is Ravaging Demon''s rank.'' Noah thought as all those pieces of information entered his mind. The history of that world had never interested him when he was a human cultivator. However, he was in a realm where cultivators could easily live for centuries, there was a high chance that he would meet some of the famous names that had left a mark in the history of the Mortal Lands. "There has never been another Charming Demon after that point, no one managed to reach the heroic ranks. Most of our techniques had been lost in the escape, and we were refugees, no organization would sell anything to us. Yet, we endured and passed down our story. As the previous Matriarch used to say: Hope for fools, anger for demons." Gillian then ended her explanation by pointing out the direction taken by the other demon sects during the escape. Of course, those pieces of information were one thousand years old and had been passed down through six matriarchs, there was a limit to how accurate they were. Yet, Noah still collected them and sorted them with the clues gathered by the rank 5 elders of the Hive. He was already set on his next destination, but he had to escort the remains of the Charming demon sect to the ships of the archipelago before moving again. Gillian seemed a bit disappointed that Noah wasn''t giving any kind of attention to her body, but she didn''t dare to push him. Noah was simply on another level right now, she didn''t have any power over him. In the end, she gave up on tempting him and ordered the members of her sect to pack up and prepare to migrate. Meanwhile, Noah flew back in the sky and sent a mental message to the Hive. He could reach the appointed location in less than a week, but the remains of the Charming demon sect were mostly rank 1 and 2 cultivators, only Gillian was in the third rank. They would need to walk along the coastline for a couple of months before reaching the spot with the ships of the Hive. Drew observed the scene with a curious gaze. He didn''t care about the destruction of the tavern. Still, Gillian and her sect paid a substantial amount of taxes due to the nature of her organization. Seeing the waitresses packing up their belongings made him understand that he would lose that income from now on. A bit of anger surged inside him, and he was about to complain when two vertical pupils landed on his body. Drew felt an innate fear under that gaze, all his anger was dispersed and replaced by an intense survival instinct. He could only slowly turn his head to face the young-looking cultivator that was sending hidden threats through his eyes to say a few words. "Enjoy your travel!" Chapter 628: 628. Challenge Noah and the remains of the Charming demon sect left the city of Slyfall in less than a day. The group of disciples and Gillian walked at a steady pace along the western coastline while Noah flew over them. The ships of the Hive would wait for them in a specific spot at a couple of months of travel, but Noah was confident in shortening that journey by a few weeks. The route was planned according to the danger zones in front of them, Gillian and her group would generally avoid them if they were alone. Yet, with Noah overseeing the situation, rank 4 danger zones could be treaded safely. Just one glance from him was enough to clear the path from rank 3 and 4 magical beasts, they would run away in fear of the powerful creature that was approaching their territory. They didn''t encounter problems connected with the human society either. Gillian''s group was mostly made of alluring women that had trained in the methods of the Charming demon sect. Still, the sight of the young figure floating above them in a cross-legged position scared away any potential assailant. Also, the inhabited areas along that coastline were mostly filled with slaves that gathered Vostum, the terrain needed for the most common body-nourishing method of the Shandal Empire. The soldiers managing those mining camps could only lower their heads whenever they noticed Noah''s flying figure, it wasn''t worth risking to offend a powerful cultivator only to pursue their lust for the women in the group. Even the big nations mainly ignored the event. The news that Noah had returned in the old continent quickly spread through the higher-ups of the three countries, but they didn''t mind his presence too much. Noah was just recruiting human cultivators from independent areas, they couldn''t care less about it. Also, they were somewhat glad that Noah wasn''t spending all his time cultivating. His potential was too scary, they would rather see him doing missions than training. Of course, the assumption that Noah wasn''t training was utterly wrong. That slow and peaceful travel gave him all the time that he needed to focus on his centers of power. His dantian was improving on its own, and his body kept on absorbing the "Breath" in the air when Noah didn''t feed him. So, he focused entirely on his mental sphere. He diligently trained with the fifth Kesier rune and activated the Divine deduction technique to ponder about the diagrams that he had recently translated. He spent the rest of his time letting his mind wander through the depths of his individuality and their connections with the darkness element. The freedom that he was experiencing lifted his mood, and he sensed that his dantian was slowly benefitting from that situation. However, there was one thought that had bugged him since his breakthrough. ''My cultivation technique works as intended, and my attacks didn''t show any change. My mindset feels slightly different, intense emotions and incredible alertness are just a few of those small changes. Yet, there doesn''t seem to be anything too substantial. Maybe, I''m overthinking it.'' Noah thought as he escorted the group. He couldn''t just ignore that his mental energy had become brown, but there didn''t seem to be any consequence to that change. ''Maybe, its features will appear once my individuality starts to affect my centers of power. The greed inside the black ring pushed it to the middle tier after all.'' Noah continued to ponder over the matter, but he couldn''t find a satisfying explanation. He felt different, but he felt normal at the same time. The travel was uneventful, so Noah managed to enter a meditative state for its whole duration, he only had to give a cold look at the beasts on his path from time to time. ''I explore the meaning of the darkness as I walk under the light. Chaos spreads whenever I take a step, but a simple gesture can reassemble the world in a different shape.'' Elder Austin''s words often appeared in his mind as he explored his individuality. ''The elder is a volcano ready to explode, but I should be more similar to King Elbas. My bloodline carries unyielding pride and anger, but they do not rule me. They are just fuel for my ambition.'' There was one thing clear in Noah''s mind: He wasn''t a magical beast. He could act like them and even imitate their combat style, but he remained a hybrid. ''A being of two worlds that strives for the stars. My birthright doesn''t exist in this world, so it''s on me to establish it. My same life is the expression of my individuality.'' An individuality didn''t necessarily mean actions to be pursued. The sole fact that Noah was improving was an expression of himself. ''Simple defiance is just a childish act that originates from my anger. Stealing from Heaven and Earth to give a new shape to those materials is more mature, but it''s still far from reaching a level that can match their might.'' In the end, the group from the Charming demon sect reached the appointed spot and excitedly entered the ships waiting on the shores. Noah sensed a series of alluring gazes being shot in his direction, it seemed that both Gillian and her disciples were interested in him. However, they were just humans in Noah''s mind, he could break them with a thought. They couldn''t have any value in his mind, they were too weak to occupy his thoughts. ''The creation must affect the very foundation of the "Breath". It''s not about understanding the laws of the darkness element, I must create my own darkness!'' Noah thought as the ships left the shores and went toward the Coral archipelago. The Charming demon sect would soon reach the Hive and become part of its ranks, it would be up to the elders now to analyze their techniques and see if they are somewhat valuable. The Devouring demon sect had been wholly destroyed according to Gillian''s story, so he had to look for eight more demon sects. Noah didn''t have any more certainties in his possession, there were only some clues in the information obtained from the elders and Gillian. However, he didn''t mind that situation, he could freely explore as he tried to gain insights about his element. ''The closest clues would lead me inside the Empire. There is a rumor that a group of cultivators used to practice unorthodox and complex techniques before the Empire enslaved them.'' The unorthodox techniques described in those clues seemed too intricate to belong to a weak force, there was a high chance that they came from one of the exiled demon sects. Noah decided to investigate that matter, and was about to fly toward the territories of the Empire when his ears picked the echo of a low growl. The growl came from a forest near him, it was one of the danger zones that divided the many encampments of the Empire. The growl wasn''t directed at him, the creature in the forest was simply challenging anyone in the area. Of course, Noah turned to fly toward the forest. Chapter 629: 629. Ox Noah slowly descended toward the forest near him. That danger zone was called Ox Woodland due to the ox-type magical beasts that inhabited that place. The oxen living there preferred to remain inside the borders of the vast woodland instead of invading the encampments of the Shandal Empire, its clearing operations were mainly limited to its peripheral areas. Noah had seen it when he was escaping from the Utra nation, but the map in his possession at the time labeled it as a quite dangerous area, so he didn''t enter it. However, the challenge of the beast had attracted his attention, and he didn''t hesitate to answer. The crowns of the trees of those woods were quite large, but their trunks were slim, which left many open spaces between them. Noah was quickly able to spot his challenger once he flew through the crowns of the trees. He saw an eleven meters long and six meters tall ox staring at him and following his descending figure. The ox had thick brown hair that covered the entirety of its body, four huge black horns, and was surrounded by dozens of corpses of beasts in the fourth rank. ''It has eaten them in the last months, they should have been part of its pack.'' Noah thought as he stopped his descent and hovered in the air at some distance from his challenger. ''Rank 5 Hairy ox in the lower tier. Earth element, can use its hair to launch long-range attacks and limit its prey''s movement. It seems that its hunger has suddenly exploded, which led it to eat its whole pack.'' The information about the species of that creature immediately appeared inside Noah''s mind, but he was mainly interested in the sudden outburst of its hunger. The Ox Woodland didn''t have a dense concentration of "Breath", it was barely suitable to sustain rank 4 creatures. However, many living beings inhabited it. ''The leading pack has probably made up for the lack of "Breath" in the air by hunting often. The birth of a rank 5 creature in this area is an incredible event, but it''s clear that it has already reached the limit of what it can endure.'' Noah became aware of the events that had led to that situation in a few seconds. A pack of rank 4 Hairy oxen had ruled the forest and hunted as many creatures as it could. Then, one of those specimens had managed to reach the fifth rank, but that danger zone couldn''t satisfy its hunger anymore. The hunts became more frequent, but that couldn''t appease the mighty starving being, which began to eat the members of its pack. That process had probably worsened during the last years, leading to a situation where all its pack was dead and only weaker beings inhabited the forest. The rank 5 ox could only begin to look outside the forest for more nourishing prey. ''This was its last attempt, it would have left the forest afterward.'' Noah summarized when the situation became clear in his mind. The rank 5 beast would have just tried its fortune outside the forest if no one answered its challenge, something that would have surely required the intervention of the higher-ups of the Empire to stop. However, Noah was in the area and had decided to answer it. Battle intent surged inside him as he studied the beast. The ox was more advanced than him inside the lower tier of the fifth rank, but its species was far inferior to his! ''It''s time to test my abilities fully.'' Noah smiled when he thought that and released a roar. The ox understood the meaning behind his cry and released one of its own. The hair around its body stood up and stretched to an unbelievable distance to reach for the figure in the sky. Noah saw the strands of hair reaching for him and released a pillar of flames. The white fire burned the hair and spread its flames until the ox that began to cry in pain. The hair around its body fluttered to dissipate the flames, but the smell of burned skin began to fill the air during that process. Noah''s attack had been able to hurt a rank 5 beast! However, Noah wasn''t done. He charged at the ox while it was busy defending against the flames and delivered a kick on its forehead. The ox was kicked backward for a few meters, but it managed to tangle part of its hair on Noah''s right foot during the clash. Noah suddenly felt an incredible force pulling him toward the sharp horns of his opponent. Zac appeared in front of him right before he crashed on the horns and managed to hinder the pulling force as its body was pierced. Noah felt a stabbing pain coming from his torso, he could feel that the four horns of the ox had stabbed his abdomen and pierced his skin. Yet, his muscles had stopped the horns from reaching for his internal organs. The ox was slightly surprised by that outcome, it had used one of its strongest attacks against such a small figure, but it had only managed to inflict minor wounds! Noah smiled at that sight and released another wave of white flames toward the huge figure in front of him. A torrent of flames engulfed the ox, and most of its hair was burned in a second. Large patches of charred skin could be seen among its burning figure, the ox was powerless to defend against the power behind Noah''s attack. Nevertheless, the fact that it couldn''t defend didn''t mean that it couldn''t do anything about that situation. Tens of thousands of sharp hair came out of its charred skin and shot toward Noah. Those new strands of hair seemed to carry metallic properties and managed to endure the white flames as they reached for the opponent. Noah''s instincts screamed at that sight, he knew that he needed to dodge that attack. His hand shot toward the right eye of the ox as he kicked the air under his feet to activate the Shadow sprint martial art. A large amount of the "Breath" contained inside his dantian was depleted to match the physical power expressed by that form. Still, the propulsion of his martial art made him suddenly disappear from his position and reappear at a few kilometers in the air. The wounds on his abdomen had enlarged in the process, but Noah completely disregarded them. The attack of the beast landed on the terrain since its target was gone. Large cracks spread on the ground of the forest for a few hundred meters, and earthquakes began to fill that once quiet environment. A battle between two rank 5 creatures would inevitably cause profound changes in any area. The ox though released angry cries when it discovered that its right eye had disappeared. Noah stored the bloody eye in his palm inside his space-ring and controlled the Liquid dantian over his heart to release its energy. That last clash made him decide to go all out. Chapter 630: 630. Reptilian ''I''m stronger and tougher than it, but my experience in these kinds of battles is lacking.'' Noah thought as black smoke surrounded his figure. The rank 5 Hairy ox precisely knew how strong it was and how to express the maximum potential of its body. Instead, that was Noah''s first real battle with his new body. ''I''m able to hurt it, and my flames can inflict some damage. I should be able to win in an extended battle, but I can''t waste this chance.'' Noah''s species was superior, but he was much more than a simple magical beast. The energy stored inside the Liquid dantian fused with large amounts of mental energy to activate the complete Demonic form. Noah suddenly noticed that the fiendish figure created by the spell had changed after the breakthrough of his body. His claws had shortened, but his horns and tail had stretched. Even the part of the black armor that covered his face had changed: What was supposed to be his helmet had now assumed a shape that faintly resembled a dragon''s head. ''It has affected something after all.'' Noah thought when he realized that his Demonic form had changed. He didn''t activate that spell in the period following his breakthrough because he was too busy tuning his other abilities. Still, it was now evident that his mental energy didn''t change only in color. However, he couldn''t overthink at that moment, his reserves of energies would rapidly deplete when he used the Liquid dantian. The ox under him didn''t seem to care about his transformation and launched another multitude of hair toward him. The hair covered the few kilometers that separated the two rank 5 beings in a few instants, but that time was enough for Noah to act. Noah kicked the air under his feet again, and another large amount of the "Breath" inside his dantian vanished to fuel the Shadow sprint. The ox noticed that the dark draconic figure had reappeared next to it only when it was too late to do anything about it. Noah had wielded his sabers during the sprint and used the Dragon''s claw martial art to deliver two horizontal slashes at the huge beast. A large share of the energy inside the Liquid dantian was depleted to fuel the offensive martial art, but the slashes produced in that way had a power that could match a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage! The ox couldn''t block the attack, and two long wounds appeared on its body. Blood began to fall from the wounds, Noah had been able to pierce its skin and even part of its muscles! ''It''s still too slight. I guess these are the limits of a rank 4 cultivator.'' Noah thought as he stored his sabers and launched a wave of white flames. The advantage of using human attacks was clear, his incredible power would be more precise and threatening in that way. However, Noah couldn''t use attacks on that level repeatedly, and those slight injuries didn''t seem worth the effort. He could obtain a similar result by using his bare hands, which didn''t have the same limitations. Of course, it would take many attacks to inflict the same damage, and the battle would become more dangerous because of that. ''My limited martial art is wasted if I can''t inflict deadly wounds with it, I should just use it in specific situations.'' Noah quickly decided as he pounced toward the beast covered in white flames. The ox was doing its best to use its natural capabilities, but Noah had too many and different offensive approaches, he could just adapt his combat style to his opponent. Noah dived through the flames and delivered a powerful punch on the head of the beast before arching the fingers of his other hand and stabbing them in its open wounds. The beast struggled to impale Noah with its horns, but he promptly grabbed one of them and put strength on both his arms. The ox felt its body being lifted from the ground before being violently slammed back on it. The terrain shattered at that point, its stability had been already affected by the previous attack of the creature and couldn''t endure that last mighty clash. Noah and the ox began to fall as the ground opened, and Noah exploited that chance to bite the creature on its neck. The ox roared in pain when it felt that another part of its body had been taken away, and hundreds of thousands of sharp hair came out from its skin at that point. Noah felt forced to retreat once again, he simply couldn''t defend from that attack. A trail of dust and debris formed as Noah escaped from the cracks where the rank 5 creature was falling. Black smoke filled that gap in the terrain and further destabilized its underground area since Noah had kept the Demonic form active for the entirety of the clash. Yet, the smoke seemed to have the same effect as his flames, it could only damage the skin of the beast. ''It''s not coming out.'' Noah thought when he saw that the Hairy ox wasn''t climbing back on the surface, but a sudden dangerous sensation forced him to sprint away once again. Strands of hair pierced the terrain under him and began to follow his escaping figure, it seemed that the beast wanted to use the natural protection of the ground for hunting Noah down. Nevertheless, the fact that he couldn''t see the creature didn''t mean that he couldn''t attack it. Noah activated the Dark blast spell and wielded his sabers again. Black flames appeared in the trajectory of his Demonic sword as he slashed the air seemingly toward random directions. Rumbles filled the underground area, and black smoke began to come out from the cracks on the terrain as Noah warped his attacks in the ox''s position. His mind could sense it, so he could target it. The hair stopped chasing him at some point, but Noah wasn''t done yet. The Dark blast spell had reached a considerable size in those short moments, and Noah didn''t hesitate to teleport that unstable sphere in the beast''s position. Also, he launched another series of slashes across the black flames and even added a wave of his flames. Earthquakes spread in the area as explosions resounded from under the ground. The trees of the Woodland were either shattered or flung away by the shockwaves released by the blasts happening underground. Even the surface couldn''t hold any more at some point. A hole a few hundreds of meters large appeared as the terrain completely crumbled, and the sunlight once again illuminated the bloody figure of the rank 5 ox. Its body was burned and full of wounds, and many of those cuts had even pierced its sturdy layer of muscles. A large piece of its neck had been bitten off, and its remaining hair had lost its shine. The creature couldn''t do anything when black flames appeared next to it, and a black reptilian figure pounced at its neck with its maws open. Chapter 631: 631. Drawback Noah''s bit the ox''s neck when he came out of the Warp spell. The rank 5 magical beast was too injured to react and couldn''t avoid that sudden attack. Its neck had already lost a chunk of flesh, and that last bite tore another strand of skin and muscles. Then, Noah waved his sabers upward. The head of the Hairy ox fell on the ground after those slashes, and its body prostrated as life abandoned it. Noah couldn''t help but roar at the sky at that point. Killing his first rank 5 creature filled his being with pride, it was as if that battle had sealed his entrance in the fifth rank! ''My dantian and Liquid dantian are basically empty, and even my remaining mental energy isn''t enough to keep the Divine deduction technique active for long. Fighting a rank 5 beast is expensive.'' Noah thought as he sat on the ground and began to eat the corpse of his prey. The feeling of having his first satisfying meal since he entered the fifth rank didn''t stop him from analyzing the battle. He could finally understand where he stood compared to other cultivators, fighting the ox had forced him to use all his assets after all. ''My defense is clearly in the fifth rank, but my offensive is somewhere in the solid stage of the fourth rank. My physical strength is in the fifth rank too, but I don''t believe that my enemies will ever let me get close to them.'' Noah summarized as he munched the sturdy meat of the ox. Anything that made use only of his body was on the same level of rank 5 beasts in the lower tier, but his other attacks could only reach the power of a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage. Of course, that was possible only thanks to his Liquid dantian. Noah''s new inscribed item gathered the energy released by his body during the activation of the secret art. That energy was the basic form of the "Breath", it was the pure substance in which the "Breath" was transformed once his body absorbed it. That energy, coupled with his physical might or mental energy, gave birth to martial arts and spells that could match a solid stage cultivator. ''I guess rank 4 cultivators in the solid stage can be a match for rank 5 beasts in the lower tier, which means that I can''t beat rank 5 cultivators unless I reach the middle tier or improve my other centers of power.'' Noah quickly established a list of the power levels between cultivators and magical beasts. He couldn''t be sure about those details before because his level was simply too low to evaluate such powerful existences. However, after the breakthrough, he could finally begin to understand the differences between the fourth and fifth rank when it came to beasts and humans. ''Using defensive arts and spells is useless in my current state, my body alone would match their power. I should focus all my energies on my offensive and leave my protection to my natural defenses.'' Noah concluded when his analysis was over. A rank 5 beast in the lower tier could be compared to a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage, which meant that the spells fueled by his Liquid dantian could only match his natural defenses. So, it was better to use his small reserves of energy to improve his offensive since he wouldn''t have many chances to touch his opponents in the future. The images of his battle against Adrian had spread through the big nations, only fools would let someone like Noah get close to them after seeing them. ''Flames, Dragon''s claw martial art, and spells for my offensive, with the last two being fueled by my Liquid dantian.'' ''Shadow sprint martial art fueled by my dantian for a burst of speed that can take even liquid stage cultivators by surprise, and fueled by the Liquid dantian to match those in the solid stage.'' ''Skin and muscles for my defense, it''s pointless to waste my "Breath" to use defensive spells that can only match my body.'' Noah set those points in his mind, that was the best way to use his centers of power in his view. The corpse of the ox soon disappeared from the ground, only a few red spots remained on the terrain after Noah was done with his meal. The four wounds on his abdomen had already stopped bleeding and were beginning to heal. The regenerative capabilities of the Yin body had been passed down when Noah fused himself with a Cursed dragon, and they had obviously been enhanced after the breakthrough. Injuries that would take weeks or months to heal would be fixed in days or weeks due to the regenerative proprieties spread through his body by his black heart. ''I need a few weeks to heal completely, but I can start to move in a week or so already. Being a hybrid is awesome, but the issue of the "Breath" required for the breakthrough is quite problematic.'' Noah thought as he activated the secret art to refill his Liquid dantian. His body required far more "Breath" to improve compared to the other magical beasts, but Noah had never considered it an issue since his higher battle prowess would allow him to hunt powerful creatures safely. However, the ox that he had just eaten didn''t make him improve by much. Noah felt as if its nourishment was akin to that provided by peak rank 4 creatures when he was still in the fourth rank. That realization made Noah understand that he would probably need a hundred or so rank 5 magical beasts to reach the middle tier! After all, he had eaten countless rank 4 creatures and even a few dantians to reach the upper tier when he still had a rank 4 body, and his requirements in terms of energy had only increased after the breakthrough. ''Where am I even going to find a hundred rank 5 creatures that I can kill?'' Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine the struggles that he would have to go through to find one hundred rank 5 creatures. ''The Albino snake sure is patient, it would need tens of thousands rank 4 snakes in the lower tier to improve. How many years would it take?'' The images of the valley in Twilboia Cliff reappeared in his mind when he understood that reaching the sixth rank would take centuries. The issue was that there weren''t enough powerful magical beasts in the entirety of the Mortal Lands according to his prospects! ''What would happen in the sixth rank? How many rank 6 beasts are even around? Ten? Twenty? They are not enough to make me advance!'' It was at that point that Noah understood why magical beasts were innately inclined to assault the encampments and cities of the humans. That understanding made him aware of one basic necessity that he had to fulfill if he wanted to avoid spending millennia absorbing the "Breath" in the environment. ''I need to eat dantians.'' Chapter 632: 632. Icy Cascade ''Improving my other centers of power will allow me to hunt stronger creatures. Hunting stronger beings will make my body improve faster. It''s a cycle that will abruptly stop in the sixth rank due to the absence of powerful prey, but there isn''t much that I can do about that.'' Noah thought as the needs of his body became evident in his mind. The drawbacks of being a hybrid were beginning to appear, but Noah didn''t feel any regret in learning them. Being able to face rank 5 beasts as a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage was enough to make Noah disregard all the hindrances that waited for him in the future. After all, that feat was shocking! Noah would never purposely choose a weaker body-nourishing method because it had easier requirements, he would never forsake the powers that made him superior to the other cultivators. ''I can only solve one problem at the time, and, right now, my most pressing issue is the weakness of my other centers of power. I can express a battle prowess that matches solid stage cultivators for a limited period, I can only rely on my body after both my dantian and Liquid dantian are emptied.'' Worrying about matters so far in the future was pointless, Noah''s focus had to be on his solving the weaknesses of his current state. His mind was improving steadily, and his Liquid dantian somewhat compensated for his lack of a suitable "Breath", but the core of the issue remained. The gaseous "Breath" was too weak for the standards of his body! ''Creating darkness that belongs only to me. Is it doable? I have yet to create spells, how can I possibly create an element?'' Noah asked himself as he waited for his body to recover. His individuality seemed to push him to a state where he could match or imitate Heaven and Earth. However, he lacked the primary energy needed to create a world, he wasn''t able to exude something similar to the "Breath". ''That should be my path though. Otherwise, I can just wait for my individuality to start affecting the "Breath" inside my dantian and work from there. I wonder what I will become.'' The new shape of his Demonic form made it clear that his mental energy could affect his spells, but that wasn''t an expression of his individuality, it was only the natural consequence of his bloodline. He wasn''t a human, so it made sense that his centers of power underwent some changes. Even his dantian was far sturdy than before, Noah had long stopped restraining his cultivation technique when he understood that no amount of stress seemed to affect that organ. ''Almost nine years have passed since my Heaven Tribulation, the breakthrough to the liquid stage should be fairly close.'' Noah let his mind wander after that thought. He didn''t mind waiting a few weeks to heal his body completely, he didn''t need to hurry in his search after all. The demon sects had been exiled a thousand years ago, delaying his mission for a bit wouldn''t affect the status of their remains. Noah left the Ox Woodland when his body and centers of power returned to their peak and flew toward the territories of the Shandal Empire. The clues gathered by the elders pointed him deep inside the area of influence of the most powerful nation in the Mortal Lands, he wouldn''t dare to approach it when wounded. Noah slowly flew above the countless camps of slaves that filled the areas around the Empire. The area of influence of that nation was mostly made by defeated nations that had been enslaved and forced to work under its rule. Chinking sounds continuously resounded from the areas under him as hundreds of slaves excavated the terrain to gather the Vostum needed to sustain the incredible number of cultivators of the Empire. Noah noticed how the density of "Breath" in the environment kept on diminishing as he ventured deeper into the domain of the Empire. ''Human cultivators generally can''t affect the environment, but the Empire has so many of them that the "Breath" is becoming scarce. This is the price to pay for being at the top of the Mortal Lands.'' Noah thought as he flew past those camps. The soldiers in charge of those encampments were only human cultivators, they couldn''t notice his presence unless he wished for it to happen. He was still outside of the actual territory of the enemy nation, but his awareness was at its peak nonetheless. Then, he sensed that someone worthy of his attention was finally coming to greet him. A heroic cultivator wearing the red robes of the Empire appeared in Noah''s vision, and he simply waited in the air for the former to reach him. "I''m Icy Cascade of the Western Force of the Wardens. It is my job to keep the western border of the Empire safe, so you can understand my surprise in seeing the Demon Prince of the Hive flying in this region." The heroic cultivator that greeted Noah was a tall woman with short black hair and a scar that diagonally marked her face. She wore a stern expression, but traces of fear could be seen in her dark eyes. It was clear that Noah''s presence there was unexpected and that she wasn''t comfortable in front of him. Icy Cascade was a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage with a rank 4 body in the upper tier. Also, she was an experienced warrior, she had earned her prestigious position in the Wardens through war merits. However, Noah gave birth to an intense fear inside her, the natural aura that surrounded his body made her feel like a simple prey. Noah took out his token when he heard her words, and Icy Cascade slightly relaxed when she understood that he didn''t have malicious intentions. "The higher-ups of our nations have fought together during the crisis of the winged beasts, and you have tried to help Eager Titan. The Empire will respect Chasing Demon''s will and your good intentions." Icy Cascade said while performing a welcoming gesture. The agreement that enforced peace between the four nations had worn off after the crisis, but no force wanted to start another conflict too soon. Also, Noah''s situation was quite peculiar due to the wrongdoings of the escorts of the Empire in the natural paradise on the western coast of the new continent. Icy Cascade didn''t mind treating him as a guest due to that event and Chasing Demon''s vouch, especially since Noah''s intentions could set the foundations for favorable trades. Noah went straight to the point when the two of them began to fly together deeper into that region. Icy Cascade needed to send a few mental messages before she could pinpoint the location of the slaves that he had mentioned. Of course, she wasn''t doing that for free, there was a tacit understanding between Noah and her that her services would require a cost when the matter was over. Chapter 633: 633. Slaves Icy Cascade led Noah toward the slave camps in the southern area around the Empire when she managed to discover something. The conditions of the slaves improved as they neared the borders of the big nation and even their tasks began to change. There were still half-naked chained men and women digging the terrain, but there were also many of them who dressed plain clothes and managed large farms. Icy Cascade explained how the actual citizens of the Empire were mostly soldiers whose role was to fight and defend certain areas. Yet, cultivators were still humans, and they had basic needs that had to be satisfied. The Utra nation and Papral nation left those jobs to the commoners and encouraged them through the noble families and sects. The Hive was a bit different since its territories didn''t grant much space to reserve to the production of basic needs. Most of the products required for the sustain of its human cultivators were imported from the other nations or fished by its weakest citizens in the sea around the archipelago. The Empire, instead, used the slaves. Vast farmlands began to appear as Noah, and the woman from the Wardens flew toward the southern border of the nation. The number of slaves that filled those lands made Noah wonder about the number of wars that the strongest nation of the Mortal Lands had fought and won. Also, all those slaves were cultivators of different ranks! Noah was even able to spot some chained rank 3 cultivator every now and then. ''Beings at the peak of the human ranks forced to work as farmers or miners. What a strange view.'' The cruel fate of those cultivators created conflicting sceneries. Humans that had strived to become aloof existences were forced to stare at the ground for the rest of their life because of their defeat. "This way. The slaves that match your description are stationed in a mine of Hoslite, one of the main materials used in the creation of the inscribed chains." Icy Cascade said as she pointed toward a dark gray mountain chain in the distance. The rocky terrain visible on the surface of the mountain reflected its metallic features, but what caught Noah''s attention was the state of the slaves working there. Chained men and women in an evident malnourished condition used rudimentary pickaxes to break the hard terrain of the dark-gray mountain. Then, they gathered the debris accumulated in the process and carried them in a structure ruled by cultivators wearing the robes of the Empire. "Why are they treated so differently from the others?" Noah asked when he saw the difference in their condition compared to the slaves working in the farms. "The records about them aren''t complete, you are asking about matters that happened centuries ago after all. It should be some kind of punishment toward the bloodlines that filled this region before the Empire conquered them." Icy Cascade explained without showing a slight trace of emotion. The descendants of the families that inhabited that independent region were still punished for something that not even their rulers remembered. That cruelty made Noah curious about the nature of their guilt, but he didn''t care enough to ask. His mission was clear, and he was too close to an enemy nation, he would rather confirm the clues in his possession and return to independent lands. "How can you ensure their survival?" Noah asked. There was one thing that concerned the slaves'' matter that he didn''t understand: Why did they even keep on living? Cultivators generally had strong personalities and wills, they could settle for poor conditions to survive, but what he saw was a bit too much. ''Living in chain only to see your progeny bound by your same shackles, what''s even the point in being alive?'' Those were Noah''s thoughts about the matter. The way he saw it, being alive was pointless if you couldn''t pursue power, and the hoping that someone would restore your freedom was simply a delusional thought. They were slaves of the Empire, the most potent force in the entirety of the Mortal Lands, who would ever be willing to go against its will just to free them? "Our inscribed chains are our masterpiece. I''m not an inscription master, but I know that those items have peculiar effects on the mental spheres once bound to an owner. I can''t be too specific though. I''m sure you''ll understand." Noah nodded when he heard Icy Cascade''s explanation. It seemed that the chains didn''t only restrain the actions and freedom of the slaves, but even their mindsets. ''They probably can''t kill themselves nor stop procreating. They are nothing more than livestock forced to work until they fall apart.'' That realization appeared in Noah''s mind for less than an instant before disappearing. The world was cruel, he had always known that. That feature was enhanced in a world were humans could strive for powers that elevated their status and separated them from their mortality. The only way to escape any cruel outcome was to have enough power to oppose those events. "I need to question them, possibly alone. It would also be appreciated if you removed the chains for that period." Noah said, but Icy Cascade promptly shook her head. "I can make you analyze them, but you can''t stop their work. Our economy has a tight schedule, one delay might result in a loss of tens of thousands of Credits. As for removing the chains, that''s simply impossible. They aren''t made to be removed." Icy Cascade was extremely serious when she said that, and Noah could only agree with her for the moment. He neared the group of slaves digging the surface of the mountain and began to analyze them with his mental waves. The slaves didn''t even notice his presence, but he instantly obtained a complete understanding of their cultivation level. That allowed him to notice that one of the chained men had a body that exuded a peculiar firmness, it was as if he was naturally stronger than his peers. A technique didn''t cause that feature, it seemed something intrinsic to his bloodline. "I wish to question him." Noah spoke as he pointed toward that peculiar slave, but Icy Cascade shook her head once again. "Our productive system nears perfection. We can''t inter-" "You! What is the value of the resources mined in this camp each day?" Noah interrupted Icy Cascade''s words to question one of the soldiers stationed in the structure that gathered the resource mined in the mountain. The soldiers were only human cultivators, they instinctively lowered their heads when Noah moved his gaze on them, and they felt forced to answer him due to the pressure that it carried. "A-a few thousand Credits, sir." Noah nodded at that point and took out one hundred thousand Credits from his space-ring. The shining crystals created a small pile when they fell on the ground, but the soldiers couldn''t even begin to count them since another question reached their ears. "This should be enough to cover the work of one slave, right?" Chapter 634: 634. Descendan ''The Enduring demon sect was said to have techniques that directly affected the bloodlines of its members.'' Noah thought as he neared the slave with a peculiar body. Icy Cascade didn''t even try to stop him, those Credits were more than enough to cover for the work of one cultivator. Noah could guess that the cultivator from the Wardens was rising issues on purpose, but he didn''t care if the Empire wanted to use that chance to rip him off. Money was useless in his mind, and he was rich anyway, he could casually throw even a few millions of Credits without blinking. The slave didn''t even notice his presence, he just kept on breaking the surface of the dark-gray mountain with the pickaxe in his grasp. Noah applied a bit of pressure with his mental sphere, and the man became confused for a moment. Yet, it immediately resumed its work when his mind stabilized. ''Rank 3 body, rank 2 dantian, and rank 1 sea of consciousness¡­ The Empire even forces them to cultivate.'' Noah thought as his mental waves probed the state of the slave''s mind. The latter''s mental sphere couldn''t do anything against his inspection, the difference in the power of their minds was simply immense. Noah could read his thoughts as if they were words on an open book, but that only confirmed his suspects. The insides of the slave''s mind were murky, his sea didn''t radiate any form of light, and a black smoke occupied the rest of his sphere. His half-transparent figure was full of cracks that resembled a tight array of chains that covered the entirety of his ethereal body. ''This man is broken to the core, he can''t give me any answer. The chains of the Empire are indeed scary.'' "How much for him?" Noah said after having those thoughts. He couldn''t obtain an answer, but that didn''t mean that Chasing Demon couldn''t either. "No slave can leave the working area alive. The Empire has a wide choice of purchasable cultivators, but these ones are not for-" Icy Cascade began to speak, but a sudden pressure generated by Noah''s mental energy forced her to stop. The man in front of him collapsed on the ground, and the shining lines on the surface of his chains turned dark as life abandoned his body. "He is dead now. How much?" Noah asked again as he turned toward the heroic cultivator standing in the air behind him. The soldiers in the structure near them could only hold their breath when they saw that scene. They couldn''t understand who was stronger between Noah and Icy Cascade, but they were sure that their lives would be in danger if a battle were to happen there. After all, Noah was doing whatever he wanted without caring about the rules of that area. However, they were only human cultivators, and they knew that beings in the heroic ranks had values that they couldn''t even begin to comprehend. Icy Cascade stared at the corpse of the slave for a while. Noah was correct in thinking that she wanted to exploit his presence, but his actions were too direct, and he didn''t show any interest in money. He was just taking the shortest approach toward his target, raising the intensity of his forcefulness at each new problem. Icy Cascade felt the cold, vertical pupils on her body as she inspected the dead slave. Sweat began to fall from her forehead as that stall continued. She had to admit that she didn''t know how far the Demon Prince of the Hive was willing to go to obtain what he wanted. Noah was famous for enraging forces far more potent than him, but a direct attack there would cause substantial repercussions on the organization behind him. However, Icy Cascade didn''t know if he cared about that. The real issue with the unorthodox organizations was that they didn''t act according to the common sense of the orthodox ones. After all, the Hive had been launching an assassination campaign against the Utra nation while the territories of the Empire were under attack! The three big nations weren''t even aware of its presence in the new continent at that time! How could she predict the behavior of someone who had spent his life defying higher powers? She couldn''t, and she didn''t want to risk her life to learn more about it. "O-one million for the corpse, but you can''t take the chains." In the end, she forced herself to stutter those words. Noah waved his hand, and a big pile of shining crystals appeared on the terrain next to him. Heroic cultivators wouldn''t see that sum as spectacular, but the soldiers in the distance froze when they saw all that wealth. They couldn''t help but think that those entities in the heroic ranks lived in a completely different world. Then, Noah went for the corpse and tore the chain around the neck of the slave with a swift gesture. The hard alloy of that inscribed item was powerless against his physical strength. It didn''t even bend, it only fell apart. Noah stored the corpse of the slave and turned to leave at that point. He had obtained what he wanted, it would be up to the elders to see if they could find the technique that had caused the slight modifications in the man''s bloodline. ''They might be able to reverse engineer the techniques or methods used on his bloodline in the past. The Enduring demon sect might be restored if those techniques turn out to belong to that organization.'' Noah thought as he began to fly back toward the western coast, but he decided to leave a few words before his departure. "I might have other tasks that concern the territories of the Shandal Empire in the future. I will personally inform the Patriarch of the hospitality provided by the Wardens." The group from the Empire could only stare as his figure disappeared in the distance after those words. The human soldiers heaved a sigh of relief when they saw Noah leaving, but Icy Cascade remained somewhat worried. She couldn''t understand if Noah was threatening her, or just trying to be polite. Either way, it was clear that he would return, he wouldn''t have just warned her otherwise. Noah simply flew back to the Lutren nation after that meeting. There was a teleportation matrix connected with the Coral archipelago there, and Noah didn''t mind wasting a few weeks to deliver the corpse of the possible descendant of the Enduring demon sect. He was taking the slowest approach to the task on purpose, he was enjoying the freedom that his new mission had given him after all. The long flights could be used to translate diagrams, train, and meditate on his individuality, the task didn''t hinder his growth in any way. ''The clues concerning the Morphing demon sect lead to the Utra nation, but I don''t see the Royals welcoming me as the Empire has done. I should focus on the central area of the old continent for now.'' Noah thought as he resumed his journey, the next clues pointed toward the mystical fog. Chapter 635: 635. Information The demon sects had escaped from the Papral nation, so it was reasonable to think that most of them had set new homes near its borders. Noah flew toward the nation of Efrana and began to interrogate any tribe that he found. Efrana nation was the first independent country after the mystical fog, there was a high chance that some exiled demon sect had decided to establish itself there in the past. The power of the tribes that inhabited that land was low, even the strongest ones would only have one heroic cultivator in their ranks. It couldn''t be helped, the Empire and the Council would just recruit any tribe that had managed to give birth to heroic cultivators in that miserable condition. After all, the tribes there were continuously used as cannon fodder, cultivators that could survive the wars between two big nations and become stronger at the same time were highly valued. Noah didn''t need to pay anyone there, his cultivation level and the threat of the organization behind him were enough to obtain all the answers that he needed. The pieces of information obtained by the tribes were fragmented, even the older tribes there only had knowledge passed down by the previous rulers of the central areas. Sometimes Noah had to explore the nearby territories to follow the leads created by the information gathered. It was needless to say that the process took a while, Noah had to fly back and forth along the border of the Papral nation to uncover the events that had happened in the last thousand years. Noah flew from the Efrana nation to the danger zones that surrounded it. He explored the danger zones to then reach for the encampments of the Empire, where he was received by other heroic cultivators that belonged to the Wardens. It took a bit of Credits and insights, but, in the end, he obtained a general understanding of the fate of four demon sects. ''The Bleeding demon sect and the Thieving demon sect had been powerful tribes in Efrana nation in the past. It seemed that they wanted to build a nation back then, but the joint influence of the Council and Empire had forced them to give up on that dream. Those big nations should have recruited them after that since the records state their sudden disappearance.'' Noah thought as he hovered in the sky over Efrana nation. That knowledge had been mostly gathered from the stronger tribes, and the rumors passed down by the older ones. There was bound to be some inaccuracy, but there was a limit to how much Noah could do about that. Reaching that conclusion was already far more than enough. ''The Severing demon sect had passed through Efrana nation too, but it didn''t stop here. It marched toward the eastern coast and clashed with the Empire. The sect lost the battle, and its members were enslaved. It possible that some of their descendants are still around in some slave camps, but I can''t recognize them.'' The Severing demon sect was specialized in unorthodox martial arts, it didn''t focus on the bloodline of its members like the Enduring demon sect. Noah couldn''t distinguish its descendants from the other slaves without such apparent features, so he had simply thanked the envoy from the Wardens with a few thousand Credits and left the camp where his clues had led him. ''The Suffering demon sect had gone toward the western coast in its escape. It followed the path of the Chasing demon sect, but its tracks stop in the Scarlet mountain chain.'' The Scarlet mountain chain was a rank 5 danger zone inhabited by eagle-type and hawk-type magical beasts. The area was quite chaotic, Noah had only been able to do a quick search before two rank 5 magical beasts in the middle tier noticed his presence. However, that made him almost sure that the demon sect had been destroyed when it entered that area. The Suffering demon sect didn''t have a rank 5 cultivators before the exile, its survival in a rank 5 danger zone was nearly impossible. ''The Morphing demon sect or its remains should be in the Utra nation, and I can''t return there yet. That leaves me with the Flying demon sect and the Dreaming demon sect.'' Noah''s list only had two demon sects left. Yet, no matter how much Noah had searched and investigated, he didn''t find any trace of them. That could lead only to three possibilities. The first one was that they had been destroyed before leaving the Papral nation. The second one was that the information about them had vanished during the last thousand years. That scenario though saw them destroyed in some danger zone or enslaved by the Empire. Clues about them would surely appear in the case of their survival, only thorough destruction could erase their traces in that way. The third and only possibility that Noah could affect saw both demon sects inhabiting the mystical fog. ''There are bound to be rank 5 creatures inside the fog, but my natural awareness should be enough to keep me safe. Also, there shouldn''t be any other area in the old continent so full of powerful magical beasts. I might benefit from its exploration.'' Noah thought as he turned his gaze toward the north. The mystical fog divided the border between the Papral nation and the Empire, and it became thinner only in the Efrana nation. He knew that mighty beings had artificially created both the mystical fog and the mountain chain on the other side of the continent, but the purpose behind their existence still escaped his mind. Those creations were simply too old, even older than the Empire. Only the god in the Mortal Lands could know something about them, but even that wasn''t certain. Noah thought for a while before deciding to explore the mystical fog. Benefits usually accompanied risks, and Noah was enjoying that period of exploration too much to put a stop to it so soon. Also, Noah felt that his dantian was nearing the long-awaited breakthrough, and he would gladly accelerate its arrival by acting according to his desires. He had even translated the diagrams of the Dark ray spell, and Dark cover spell that he had abandoned since he became a rank 4 mage. It was time to make some modifications since reaching the liquid stage would grant him deeper reserves of "Breath". Those modifications would need many tests, and only a danger zone featured enough threats to keep his mind sharp and focused on the task. Noah stopped hesitating when he made his mind and sent a mental message to inform the Hive about his decision. Then, he flew toward the north, and his figure disappeared as he entered the thick, gray fog. Chapter 636: 636. Hun The mystical fog was confirmed to be at least a rank 5 danger zone, but Noah believed that there had to be at least one rank 6 creature in that vast and unexplored area. Magical beasts would naturally thrive in the absence of cultivators, especially in a vast territory that hadn''t been the target of cleaning operations for who knows how long. Also, the mystical fog seemed to be undergoing a slow but steady expansion, which was a clear sign that the fauna inside it was prospering. Noah flew through the fog at an average pace. The environment obstructed his vision, but his powerful mind was enough to fend off the effects that the fog generally had on weaker mental spheres. His natural awareness further enhanced the investigative capabilities of his sea of consciousness, there was no risk that he would lose himself or fail to notice a threat. Packs of magical beasts led by rank 3 creatures appeared now and then, but Noah completely disregarded their presence. He was in peripheral areas that some tribes and even travelers looking for quick gains would explore from time to time. Information about the two lost demon sects would have appeared if they had established their new homes there. Noah was sure that he had to go deeper to find something that could reveal more about their fate. Of course, that would happen only if the demon sects had acted according to the third scenario that Noah had visualized. Flashes of dark light randomly appeared around Noah as he kept on flying, they were the effects caused by the failures of his tests. He wasn''t only venturing in the mystical fog and paying attention to his surroundings, part of his focus was on the wills created after the translation of the six diagrams. He had chosen to make modifications to the Dark ray and Dark cover spell first since their power was only up to the third rank, which meant that their diagrams were far more straightforward than those of the other spells in his possession. His efforts were focused on the Dark ray spell right now since it was the simpler of the two. The spell created a black ray made of mental energy and "Breath", only martial arts could be more straightforward in their effects compared to that attack. That gave Noah enough confidence in completing the modifications in a short amount of time, and succeeding in the task would give him the confirmation that he could raise the level of specific diagrams. After all, it was just a matter of finding the right harmony between the two energies and expanding the intrinsic limits of the original diagram. Packs led by rank 4 beasts began to appear as Noah reached deeper parts of the mystical fog, but he ignored them too. He would rather spend his time training his mental sphere and modifying spells than wasting it over creatures that couldn''t increase his power nor satisfy his hunger. That approach changed when he began to sense the presence of rank 5 beasts. The mystical fog was a peculiar environment that featured a quite variegated fauna. However, there was a species of creatures that could be considered in charge of that danger zone. ''Fog demons are a rare kind of insect-type magical beast that can use the fog around them to assume various shapes. They are considered far below the average in terms of power compared to other species since they can only manipulate the fog and not create it, but they are extremely dangerous in this area.'' Noah reviewed the information about the rulers of that danger zone in his mind as soon as he sensed the first rank 5 creature. The appearance of such a powerful beast signaled Noah''s entrance in the deepest area of the mystical fog, but also the arrival of worthy prey. Noah immediately stopped his tests and changed direction to fly toward the powerful presence in the distance. His consciousness was soon able to see a tall hyena roaring at a pack of smaller ones. The tall hyena''s body wasn''t solid, but it carried properties similar to Noah''s Demonic form. ''I''ve read that they could imitate other species and impersonate them, but it''s still amazing to witness it. I guess the right environment can put one of the weakest species at the top of the food chain.'' Noah thought as he flew right above the transformed rank 5 Fog demon while making sure that the beast didn''t notice him. The beast seemed able to sense that something was off, but it couldn''t be able to pinpoint the cause of that feeling. Also, controlling magical beasts of a different species was a tiring task, most of its control had to be on those rank 4 hyenas. Noah had no intention of fighting the beast on even ground. He had already tested his strength against the Hairy ox, he was only hunting to feed himself now. The Fog demon under him was a rank 5 magical beast in the lower tier, and it had clear weaknesses that could be exploited with enough preparation. Noah began to charge the Dark blast spell with the energy contained inside his Liquid dantian and waited for the attack to absorb enough power to break the thick layer of fog that surrounded the real body of the Fog demon. Noah simply threw the massive, uneven sphere toward the ground when he felt that the spell had reached the required energy. The Fog demon noticed the attack at that point, but it was too late. The spell crashed on the pack and released an explosion that even dispersed part of the fog in the area. The hyenas in the fourth rank and below turned into dust as soon as the blast engulfed their bodies, while the Fog demon only lost the condensed fog around its shape in the explosion. A one-meter long ant was revealed after the fog around it was dispersed, and Noah could finally lay his gaze on the real body of that creature. Of course, he was already aware of its physical features, and he didn''t hesitate to exploit the favorable condition that he had created. Noah dived toward the terrain while using the Shadow sprint martial art fueled by the Liquid dantian. His sudden acceleration made him reach such a high speed that even his mind found it hard to keep track of his movements. Yet, he didn''t need to see where he was going since he had already set the trajectory beforehand. A shockwave spread in the area as Noah crashed on the defenseless body of the Fog demon. The ground crumbled, and fissures filled the terrain around the spot where the two rank 5 creatures had clashed. Noah was so fast that the ground was able to stop his descent only after he had dug it for hundreds of meters. When he stopped, the lifeless body of the rank 5 ant was under him. The power behind the impact had reduced it to a pulp. Chapter 637: 637. Thorough The bodies of the Fog demons were fairly weak, but their ability to manipulate the fog around them was somewhat threatening. The form that they assumed would work as a defensive layer that could launch various attacks at the same time. Also, they could replenish the expended fog rather quickly if the environment around them had enough of it. Of course, they would be at their weakest when their gaseous armor was destroyed. Knowledge was power only if a cultivator had the strength to make use of it, and Noah met those standards. The charged Dark blast spell dispersed the armor of the creature, and his sudden dive exploited the instants in which the beast was defenseless. The Shadow sprint martial art, fueled with the energy inside his Liquid dantian, made him reach an incredible speed. The Fog demon could only feel a mountain falling over its small body before it was reduced to a pulp. Noah gathered the remains of the corpse of the ant and flew back in the air. The ruckus that he had created would surely attract other powerful beings nearby, and he didn''t want to give those creatures any advantage over him. He had been able to kill a rank 5 beast so quickly because of his preparations and knowledge, but the battle would have been different if the creature had noticed his presence. The Fog demon would have relentlessly attacked Noah while refilling the depleted fog, leaving him no openings to exploit. The gaseous armor had to be dispersed in one powerful attack, or the outcome of the battle would depend on their endurance. Noah ate the corpse in a few bites, and he couldn''t help but sigh in dissatisfaction when he felt the amount of nourishment that it provided. ''As expected from such weak species of magical beasts, half of the Hairy ox body would have satisfied me more.'' Noah evaluated when he felt the energy contained in the rank 5 creature being absorbed by his body. The size of a magical beast''s body wasn''t a reliable indicator of the "Breath" contained inside it, but the Fog demons were weak other than small. That meal was surely above the standards of the fourth rank, but it was still barely able to satisfy him. ''I guess I should strive for quantity in this environment. I can''t waste this chance.'' It didn''t happen that often to find rank 5 magical beasts that could be easily hunted, and Noah wasn''t going to be picky because they weren''t as nourishing as the Hairy ox. Noah resumed his flight inside the deepest areas of the mystical fog. Unfortunately for him, he was only able to find another solitary rank 5 ant in the lower tier before packs led by Fog demons in the same rank but in the middle tier began to appear. Noah hunted the creature in the lower tier before being forced to raise his height to avoid the natural awareness of those stronger beings. The central areas of the mystical fog were the lairs of the real rulers of that danger zone, Noah wouldn''t be surprised if creatures in the upper tier began to appear. His guess was on point, but nothing above the fifth rank appeared, and the thickness of the fog slowly diminished as he advanced. The faint shape of the sun could be seen again from under the layer of gray gas. Noah took that sign as a warning. The dispersion of the mystical fog only meant that he had almost reached the other side of the danger zone. There would be the Papral nation on that side, and Noah didn''t want to enter its domain. Ravaging Demon was part of the Council for what Noah knew, and he wouldn''t be safe in that country with a natural enemy in such a high position. ''I flew in a straight line through the mystical fog, but I didn''t find any trace of the Flying demon sect and Dreaming demon sect. I should explore this danger zone from the west to the east now.'' Noah decided when he saw that the previous approach didn''t uncover anything. He would simply give up and return to the new continent if even that exploration didn''t bring any result. After all, he had tracked down all the demon sects that had survived after the exile and brought those that he could recognize back to the Hive. The others had been either recruited by the three big nations or enslaved in a war. Noah had done everything in his power, but the one thousand years that had passed since the exile created hurdles that even his power couldn''t overcome. A second exploration began, the only difference was that Noah wanted to sweep the danger zone from coast to coast at that time. He started from the west coast and began to move toward the east, making sure to explore both the outer and central areas inside the fog. That approach took far longer, but it was thorough and would give Noah some level of certainties. Noah didn''t mind using his time in that way. He was still training, and the random appearance of rank 5 beasts in the lower tier allowed him to improve the level of his body. It was as if he was a new creature ready to destabilize the food chain of that environment. The fauna there had stagnated for centuries, Noah wouldn''t be surprised if the Fog demons had forgotten the feeling of being the prey. Noah went through the entirety of the mystical fog between the western coast and the Efrana nation, hunting three more rank 5 ants in the process. However, he didn''t find anything that uncovered some clues about the two demon sects'' disappearance. The fog became scarce when he flew in the sky over Efrana nation, but it soon filled his vision again when he crossed its borders. The environment on that side of the danger zone was similar to that near the western coast. There was still a variegated fauna, and Fog demons were ruling its central areas, but Noah was able to notice that the fog there was somewhat thicker. ''The real danger is here then.'' Noah thought as he flew toward the eastern coast. A few rank 5 Fog demons appeared, but those in the lower tier seemed to always move in groups of two. It was as if there was some sort of innate organization between their ranks. The cause behind that organization soon became clear since Noah sensed the faint presence of a threatening being in the distance. ''There was a creature in the sixth rank after all.'' Noah stopped his tracks at that point. The mystical fog was confirmed to be a rank 6 danger zone now, Noah had to take additional measures to ensure his safety. ''I''ll return here after I apply modifications on the Dark cover spell.'' Noah flew toward a danger zone outside of the mystical fog when he thought that. He needed a safe environment where to test his wills. Chapter 638: 638. Hidden The Dark cover spell made use of the natural darkness of the night to cover the figure of the cultivator casting it. Noah had never relied on it because of that restriction and the limit to the power of its diagram. However, the appearance of a rank 6 creature in the area that he needed to explore made him reevaluate his priorities. The modifications on the Dark ray spell had been almost completed, but Noah didn''t need it right now. He could always pick up from where he had left in the future. Yet, now he needed something that could allow him to fly unnoticed through the mystical fog. Of course, he knew that a normal spell wouldn''t be able to deceive the natural awareness of a rank 6 beast, but the conditions in that danger zone were quite favorable to him. The fog naturally affected the perception of the living beings living inside it, and the Fog demons weren''t an exception. Also, the senses of the specimens of that species would be further limited when the gaseous armor surrounded their real bodies. The Fog demons were able to thrive in the mystical fog, but they were still a weak species, any expert in the magical beasts'' field would be able to exploit their weaknesses. Noah already had a few ideas on how to modify the Dark cover spell. He had completed the translation of its diagram during his travel, but he couldn''t rely on something that could only be activated during nighttime. Luckily for him, the Cursed dragons naturally absorbed the light in the environment to nourish their lungs. That feature created a constant dark halo around their bodies, and Noah wasn''t an exception. ''Instead of the darkness of the night, I need to make use of the darkness created when I absorb the light around me.'' That was Noah''s idea regarding the modifications needed to improve the Dark cover spell. Noah reached the Scarlet mountain chain and chose one of the seemingly empty mountain peaks as his training area. Chasing Demon''s task didn''t have a time limit, and he didn''t mind focusing on his spells for a while now that he found a situation that required them. The first step in the modification was to alter the structure of the will created when Noah translated the diagram. The tricky part was that the original spell made use of the natural abundance of the darkness element during the night to fuel its effects. Noah could keep that feature, but he also wanted to create a way to make use of the spell during the day, which meant finding a different source of darkness. The natural dark halo that surrounded him wasn''t enough to match the night, but Noah could make up for that with the "Breath" inside his dantian. That approach would make the final product a bit more expensive for what concerned the energies needed to activate it, but it would be worth it if it made Noah able to take by surprise cultivators on his same level during the day. The next hurdle was the expansion of its limits. Noah needed to spend a lot of time finding the right method to push the power of that translated diagram so that it could become useful in the fourth rank. He couldn''t just stretch the meanings contained in his will, and he also needed to reestablish the previous harmony once he improved its power. The difficulty of that task though couldn''t match that of the translation and modification of the Warp spell. Every diagram was simple compared to a spell that could accompany a cultivator through the entirety of its journey. It took Noah a little less than four months to complete the modifications to the Dark cover spell and perfect its harmony. A dark but void human shape hovered over the sea inside his mind when the process was over. That was the new form that his spell had taken after all the improvements. ''This should allow me to fly through the eastern part of the mystical fog without alerting its rulers.'' Noah evaluated when he analyzed the will and decided that it was time to resume his exploration. He returned in the danger zone that divided the areas of influence of the two big nations, in the spot where he had first sensed the rank 6 creature. That oppressing presence was still there when he returned there, it seemed that the creature didn''t move at all during those months. Noah quickly fueled the will inside his mind with the energy contained inside his Liquid dantian and mental energy. Part of the will was consumed during that process, but a dark layer slowly formed over Noah''s skin and covered the entirety of his body due to its effects. The dark layer was formed by the darkness that his body naturally created and the "Breath" in his dantian. However, the spell was fueled by his mental energy and Liquid dantian. That allowed Noah to push the power of the spell to the solid stage without emptying his dantian. The layer perfectly adhered to his body, Noah was barely able to notice it. Yet, he could feel that his presence was somewhat faint and that his figure radiated an even darker halo. He wasn''t invisible, but a cultivator would only able to see a black spot in broad daylight. ''The effects are similar to Elder Julia''s hiding methods. I should still avoid entering the line of sight of the beasts and cultivators if I want to surprise them. However, I can go completely unnoticed in environments similar to this.'' Noah nodded when he thought that. The new Dark cover spell turned out to be a situational ability even with all those modifications, but Noah was satisfied with it. Perfect abilities didn''t exist, cultivators could only have a set of skills that could give them an advantage in every situation. Noah resumed the exploration of the eastern side of the mystical fog after he activated the spell. He still increased his height when he flew over the area where the rank 6 creature was staying. There was a limit to how much a spell could do against such a powerful being after all. The exploration continued peacefully, and Noah even found the chance to kill another rank 5 Fog demon in the lower tier at some point. The Dark cover spell lasted for a few hours, so Noah was forced to reactivate it whenever its effects began to wear off. Nevertheless, that wasn''t an issue, those hours were more than enough to refill his centers of power. Noah began to think that even the eastern side of the mystical fog didn''t contain any clues of the two demon sects since he was about to reach the east coast of the old continent. However, it was at that point that he noticed strange lines on a random spot on the ground. The lines didn''t shine, but they were part of some sort of formation, and Noah didn''t hesitate to analyze them. Chapter 639: 639. Dark-blue sky Noah dived toward the terrain as soon as he made sure that the area was safe. The lines stretched for a while, they created a large formation that covered an area a few hundred meters large. Noah knew that such a formation could be considered big according to usual standards, but he didn''t have much knowledge about that field. He had seen many teleportation matrixes and the shining lines of the copying formation in Chasing Demon''s old training area, but he had never studied that inscription method. Yet, June had given him a brief explanation. Generally speaking, formations worked as large diagrams that only required "Breath" to function once set. Their effects originated from the precious materials and meanings that the formation master put inside the lines when the formation was created. Inscriptions added meanings and effects to certain items through the same process, but the will used was far denser compared to other inscription methods. Runes were condensed meanings that took specific forms, and that could produce the intended effects only when a large number of them were used. Instead, formations used faint meanings, precious materials, and vast arrays to work. Those were the three leading schools when it came to inscriptions, and all three of them had variegated branches. The Elemental forging method was a branch of the first category that used incredibly strong wills to fuse precious materials and make them surpass their natural limits. June''s Perfect circuit was a branch of the third category that used her centers of power as cores and her body as a precious material. Countless branches had appeared through history, but only so many of them had managed to survive the discoveries and achievements that happened through the years. For example, Divine Demon''s inscription method was a branch that made use of both Attunement method and formations and could be considered quite innovative even in the current era. Of course, Noah knew only the general description of each category, but he had never studied them since the Elemental forging method was a perfect match for his peculiar situation. He had only learnt from June that formations required a long period of study due to the nature of the materials and lines used to create them. Each material would express a different effect depending on the meaning applied and the form of the lines. Formation masters could only learn to predict those effects by testing every material in different ways and adding that knowledge to their studies, it was a vast field filled with long periods of collection of data. June was better off compared to most students of the formations'' filed since she inherited Eccentric Thunder''s accumulated knowledge in the matter. Yet, she would have to perform those tests once her path led her in areas that Eccentric Thunder didn''t explore. ''The materials used to trace these lines appear quite consumed. How old is this formation?'' Noah thought as he analyzed the lines of the array inside the mystical fog. The lines of the formation were still intact, and no trace of erosion could be seen on its surface. However, the materials inside them were old and rotten, Noah could even smell traces of mold from it. ''I can recognize some similarity with the teleportation matrixes that I''ve seen, but there are also a lot of differences. I wonder if it works.'' Noah could only compare that array to the others that he had encountered through his life, but there was a limit to how much he could understand. ''A teleportation matrix would explain the complete lack of clues concerning the Flying demon sect and Dreaming demons sect. Might as well try it.'' Noah took a few hundred Credits from his space-ring and threw them inside the formation. The formation autonomously absorbed the "Breath" contained inside those shining crystals, and some light began to be radiated by its lines. However, the light soon vanished, and the Credits turned into dust when the "Breath" inside them was depleted. ''It works, but the energy wasn''t enough to activate it.'' Noah thought as he observed the process. It was needless to say that the formation interested him. It was something that had remained hidden in the depths of a danger zone for who knows how long, that array wasn''t mentioned even when he studied the records concerning the mystical fog. Noah flew again in the air and decided to finish his exploration of the danger zone. He would focus on the formation only after he made sure that no clues about the two demon sects could be found inside the fog. The exploration turned out to be fruitless, he didn''t even find other rank 5 creatures in the lower tier to hunt. He didn''t expect to find traces left by the demon sects after discovering the formation, but he still wanted to finish his exploration. The mystical fog seemed suitable to become his hunting area in the future, and he wanted to have a clear understanding of it before focusing on other matters. In the end, he returned to the spot where he found the array after sending a few mental messages with his inscribed notebook. The messages had been sent to the rank 5 elders of the Hive, but even their knowledge carried no trace of that array. ''This formation might be as old as the mystical fog, even Chasing Demon knew nothing about it.'' Noah guessed when he heard the elders'' answers. Ordinary cultivators had no reason to explore the mystical fog, and those in the heroic ranks wouldn''t venture in an area that couldn''t provide them any benefit. Not all danger zones could be turned into sources of income, the desert on the southwestern coast was an example of that. Also, the mystical fog was easily crossable in the Efrana nation, there was no need to venture through its deepest parts to reach the opposite area of influence. ''Let''s see where it goes.'' Noah began to throw Credits inside the formation as soon as he took that decision. The array absorbed the "Breath" inside the Credits, and its lines began to shine as more and more energy filled their surface. The power radiated by the lines soon surpassed the human ranks and reached for the heroic ones, but the formation kept on absorbing "Breath" nonetheless. Noah continued to throw Credits until all the lines began to exude a white light, and their functioning appeared to have reached some sort of harmony. The formation was active and stable. Noah didn''t dare to step inside it blindly and summoned Havok to test it. The Night falcon came out of Noah''s sleeveless arm and left a trail of corrosive black smoke as it flew inside the light. The formation flickered at that point, and Noah lost control of his Blood companion. Havok''s body was destroyed when that control was severed, but it soon reformed over his shoulder as if nothing had happened. Noah kept his eyes closed as he focused on the foggy images that his Blood companion had shared with his mind during the teleportation. A vast, dark-blue sky had filled Havoc''s vision for an instant. Chapter 640: 640. Roofs The images shared by Havok were confused and cloudy. It couldn''t be helped, the connection with the Blood companion was able to hold on only for less than an instant after the teleportation. Yet, Noah was able to make out the color and the nature of the sky in that short moment. ''It seems quite large.'' Noah thought as he opened his eyes to stare at the formation. The light radiated by the lines dispersed when the accumulated energy was depleted, and the array returned to its previous state. However, it seemed that its activation had restored some shine to the old materials inside the lines. Even the smell of mold had mostly gone away. ''A formation that restores itself through the "Breath" that fuels it? Quite spectacular.'' That discovery amazed Noah. Everything in the world had to face the inevitable erosion generated by the passage of time. It was something natural and impossible to stop, time couldn''t be halted, not even in the heroic ranks. So, a formation capable of restoring itself when activated was a piece of art, it surely was the work of a mighty expert! ''June''s expertise might improve if she studied it. Well, I''ll remember to mention it the next time we met.'' Noah began to throw Credits inside the array again as he put those thoughts in the back of his mind. He wasn''t interested in the formations'' field, and that old masterpiece couldn''t give him any benefit. He simply wanted to know where the teleportation would bring him. Havok flew from his shoulder to land inside the formation when it was fully activated. Confused images appeared in Noah''s mind once again, but he didn''t analyze them just yet. He continued to throw Credits inside the array to keep it active while his Blood companion''s body reconstructed next to him. Then, he sent Havok inside the shining lines again. Havok kept on being destroyed every time the formation teleported it. Still, Noah completely disregarded the pain that the process caused and continued to use the Blood companion to gather information. The process was quite expensive, Noah was forced to waste thousands of Credits for each activation of the array. However, he preferred that approach. Blindly using an unknown teleportation matrix that was too dangerous, Noah wouldn''t dare to step inside it without inspecting the environment on the other side first. Noah had to send Havok inside the formation dozens of times before obtaining a somewhat clear picture of the scenery on the other side of the array. He had been forced to waste a bit less than two million Credits to reach that result, and even Havok''s ethereal figure had been wounded after that cycle of destruction and reconstruction. Nevertheless, he now had enough information to formulate a few possible hypotheses. ''It doesn''t lead anywhere. It''s the entrance to an extremely realistic separate dimension!'' The first thing that he discovered was that the formation wasn''t a teleportation matrix, but a door! ''It''s something similar to Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance ground, only more stable. I would have easily confused it with the real world if I hadn''t performed so many inspections.'' Noah could understand it from the lack of visible runes in the sky and ground. The sky was dark-blue, which seemed to shine on its own, and the ground was a vast prairie covered in dark-green grass. The detail that made him understand that it was a separate dimension though was the presence of two red moons almost hidden on two opposite sides of the horizon. ''The red moons illuminated lands in the distance, and even Havok''s sight couldn''t evaluate how far away they were. This separate dimension is vast, maybe vaster than Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance ground.'' Noah continued to sort the information in his mind. The idea that the array led to another world had crossed his mind for a second, but he quickly discarded it. Noah came from a different world, so he knew that there could be other Mortal Lands out there. Yet, he didn''t believe that a few thousand Credits were enough to perform that kind of teleportation, which ultimately led him to the conclusion that the area was a separate dimension. The second important thing that he managed to discover was that the density of "Breath" in that dimension was extremely low. ''Who would bother to build such a large area without tuning the "Breath" inside it according to its needs? That seems unlikely. I''m more inclined to believe that some powerful being inside it has absorbed it.'' That conclusion felt obvious inside his mind. Creating a separate dimension took an incredible amount of time, money, and efforts, no one would create something so grand without perfecting a vital detail such as the density of "Breath" inside it. The cause of the scarcity of that energy had to find its origin in external forces, which could either be human cultivators, magical plants, and magical beasts. Noah waited for a few hours to pass before resuming his gathering of information. He mainly focused on observing the movements of the red moons and the lands that they illuminated. The moons moved slowly, but the light that they radiated made Noah able to understand a few details of the areas in the distance. There seemed to be mostly prairies, with some small hills now and then. Also, he wasn''t able to see even one life form except for the dark-green grass. The separate dimension appeared utterly desolate. Yet, during the second day next to the old formation, Havok managed to capture the images of what seemed roofs. ''Cultivators!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when his Blood companion shared the sight of the roofs reflecting the red light of the moons. ''There can''t be many strong creatures due to the scarcity of "Breath", and there might even be something interesting hidden inside!'' Noah quickly sent mental messages to the elders at that point. He was aware that the two demon sects had probably used the formation during the escape and that there had to be a reason why they didn''t come out for all those years. Yet, he was eager to explore that new land, it was straightforward but intense curiosity! The dimension didn''t even appear too dangerous for his level. After all, he had flown over a rank 6 Fog demon just recently, what would he even fear if he was careful? The elders agreed with his hypotheses and left the matter of the exploration to him. They knew that the Demon Prince had to be left free to follow his individuality, they would never hinder his path on purpose. Also, Noah was more than skilled in surviving in unknown environments. There was no one more suitable than him to explore a forgotten separate dimension. Noah simply waited until Havok''s ethereal figure healed before activating the old formation and stepping inside it. The light radiated by the lines flickered, and his figure was nowhere to be seen after that radiance dispersed. Chapter 641: 641. Castles Noah felt some pressure being applied to his mental sphere as the formation led him inside the separate dimension. A long time had passed since a similar pressure was able to affect his mind, but he could easily endure it. That pressure vanished at some point, and Noah directly cast the Dark cover spell before even opening his eyes. He was almost sure that the separate dimension wasn''t too dangerous for him, but he didn''t mind being careful. A dark layer covered his figure as he flew higher in the sky to take a better look at the environment with his real eyes. Vast prairies spread for kilometers in all directions, and small hills appeared from time to time on the horizon. The two red moons stood up in the sky, they seemed about to overlap in a matter of hours. No star could be seen in the sky, and its dark-blue color radiated a soft light that filled the entirety of the separate dimension with an eerie and obscure feeling. The "Breath" was as scarce just as Havok had sensed, Noah guessed that cultivators wouldn''t be even able to reach the second rank in that environment. Yet, his dantian wasn''t affected by that issue. Heroic cultivators absorbed the "Breath" inside the matter, the energy that carried a trace of the laws of their element. They would be able to train their dantians as long as there was matter. Only his body seemed to complain about that density since it still absorbed the "Breath" in the air. However, Noah''s stash of corpses of rank 4 magical beasts was so large that it would take decades to deplete it. There wasn''t any living being in the area, the only form of life seemed to be the dark-green grass that grew from the terrain. ''Is it even a lifeform?'' Noah questioned himself about the grass as he flew toward the ground. His doubt turned out to be on point. The grass turned into "Breath" of various elements when Noah took a handful of it from the ground and squeezed it in his palm. That was the last confirmation that he needed for what concerned the nature of that environment, he was now entirely sure that he was inside a separate dimension. That discovery further increased his amazement. The sky and ground were incredibly lifelike, it was as if someone had directly moved a real environment in that realm. That method had been used in the Royal Inheritance and was already spectacular in many ways. Yet, that dimension perfectly recreated a real world without even showing the slight ripple on its fabric. ''Same school as Eccentric Thunder, but far better executed.'' Noah concluded in his mind before returning in the air to analyze his surroundings. His gaze swept the areas far in the distance and stopped when he saw the shapes of the roofs that he had noticed through Havok''s eyes. He began to fly toward that sign of human life without dispersing his hiding spell. He wasn''t sure that he would find cultivators, and he couldn''t be certain that they would be friendly. So, he kept the Dark cover spell active in case he needed to perform a surprise attack. Noah flew for an entire day through that motionless scenery. The wind didn''t blow in the separated dimension, and the only event that could make anyone keep track of the time was the movement of the moons. Noah didn''t find problems regarding that feature, his mind couldn''t be affected so easily. Two massive castles appeared in his view at some point. They were tall buildings that didn''t reflect the modern architecture found in the structures of the Utra nation and Coral archipelago, and both of them exuded an ancient aura. It soon became apparent that those castles belonged to a different era. Their aura didn''t surprise Noah, that feature was in line with the age of the formation after all. Yet, he couldn''t help but stop his advance when he noticed that other small habitations surrounded by large yards covered the prairie around the castles. The habitations were nothing more than one-story houses, but what surprised Noah was that he could sense traces of life coming from inside them! Noah wanted to investigate further, but one of the castles suddenly radiated a wave of subtle energy that reached for him. ''Have I been discovered?'' Noah was amazed when he saw those mental waves coming for him, but he quickly flew higher in the air to dodge them. The mental waves didn''t react to his movement, they simply continued to move forward and dispersed in the air at a few hundred meters from his position. ''They don''t seem to be controlled by a heroic cultivator. Maybe it''s some kind of automatic feature of the castles.'' Noah''s interest toward those buildings rose at that point, but the same could be said for his awareness. There were traces of life and inscribed items in a separate dimension that had remained hidden inside the mystical fog for more than a thousand years. There couldn''t be anything simple behind them. Noah slowly neared the houses again and used his mental energy to analyze their insides. Humans slept inside them, and Noah guessed that he had arrived during what they considered night time. However, he was soon able to notice that something was off. ''There isn''t any lifeform around here. How can they even survive?'' The grass was made of "Breath", and those humans were mostly commoners, only a few of them were cultivators in the first rank. Yet, humans couldn''t survive without nourishments even when they reached the heroic ranks, so Noah couldn''t understand how could those rank 1 cultivators be alive in such a barren land. "You out there, stop hiding. I''m too old to play hide and seek." Those words suddenly resounded from the same castle that had sent the mental waves. The words weren''t spoken by a voice but conveyed through the consciousness of the being inside the structure. The only existence in the area who had a consciousness strong enough to hear them was Noah, so it was clear that they were directed to him. ''He doesn''t know my precise position, but he is aware that someone has entered the range of the castles. He should be in the fifth rank.'' Noah evaluated in his mind. A male voice carried those mental words, and the cultivator behind them had managed to notice something even when Noah was using the Dark cover spell fueled by the energy inside his Liquid dantian. The cultivator in the castle could only be an existence in the fifth rank to notice someone hidden behind a spell with the power of a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage. "Who are you?" Noah used his consciousness to ask that question. His mental waves carried his words as they reached for the castles. A long moment of silence followed his question, and Noah calmly waited in the air while keeping the energy inside his Liquid dantian ready to fuel the Shadow sprint martial art. Then, an answer came. "I am Flying Demon." Chapter 642: 642. Needles The words conveyed through the consciousness of the existence inside the castle carried intense tinges of pride. However, Noah had survived in his long journeys as a lone cultivator because he didn''t leave anything to chance. He was only able to make out the power of the entity inside the castle, but he didn''t know anything about his real intentions or situation. To put it simply, he didn''t trust him. The consciousnesses of the two heroic cultivators didn''t send other messages. Noah remained silent as he observed the reactions of the man inside the castle, and the latter waited for some sort of answer that never arrived. In the end, the rank 5 cultivator put an end to that silence. "Who are you, silent one?" "The Demon Prince of the Chasing demon sect." "Huh!?" Flying Demon couldn''t help but gave a real voice to his surprise when he heard Noah''s answer. His gasp resounded in the area and startled the commoners and rank 1 cultivators living around the castle. Those men and women came out of their habitations wearing confused expressions. However, they soon kowtowed toward the castles and began to chant what seemed to be a prayer. "Praised be the ancient one, for his blood is prosperity." "Praised be the ancient one, for his blood is hope." "Praised be the ancient one, for his blood is life." The kowtowed men and women repeated those lines in unison. Noah didn''t let any detail of that scene escape his eyes and ears. He saw how those humans appeared used to that procedure, they had an innate synergy that couldn''t be achieved in a matter of months. The prayer though didn''t have any hidden effects, it was a simple ritual that those people were used to perform. Of course, Noah didn''t ignore the meaning behind the words of the prayer. ''Blood of the ancient one¡­ Is he feeding them with his blood to make them survive in this wasteland?'' Noah instantly linked the two clues in his mind. Heroic cultivators were existences far above those in the human ranks, an incredible amount of power filled their entire beings. ''It should be possible, at least theoretically. The blood of a rank 5 cultivator would need to go through many processes and purifications to provide the nourishments that humans need to survive, but it should be possible.'' Noah had even activated the Divine deduction technique to analyze every aspect of that situation in the shortest period. After all, there was a rank 5 cultivator in front of him. Nothing had to be left to chance when against such a powerful existence. The prayer lasted for a few hours, but, when those men and women saw no reactions from the castle, they returned to their habitations to rest. Noah had remained silent for the whole time, he didn''t mind waiting to learn more about that situation. Yet, he decided to ask a few questions with his consciousness when the crowd under him dispersed. "Did you keep these people alive with your blood?" He wasn''t worried that his consciousness would be tracked if he kept on releasing mental waves. The Dark cover spell hid the entirety of his presence, and Flying Demon hadn''t been able to pinpoint his location. That shouldn''t happen against someone in the fifth rank, but Noah guessed that there had to be some restrictions on that powerful existence. Otherwise, why would he just talk instead of coming out to face him? "Yes." "Why? It would be a miracle if one of them reached the second rank." Noah questioned Flying Demon again as soon as the latter answered. "Because they are the future of the Flying demon sect and Dreaming demon sect. Tell me, how is Rufus? He was only at the peak of the fourth rank back then, but he as an heir now." Flying Demon''s words surprised Noah. He had heard Chasing Demon''s real name only when he listened to Divine Demon''s message. Those words made him start to believe the entity inside the castle, but he still didn''t move when he answered. "Chasing Demon has reached the sixth rank and has tasked me to gather the remains of the demon sects. Our organization is called Hive and would be more than willing to offer protection and support to beings of your caliber." Flying Demon consciousness flickered when Noah''s words reached him, and he went silent for a while before resuming to talk. "Did he avenge Charming Demon?" "No, not yet." "What about the other demon sects?" "Only ghosts and human cultivators remain, you are the first heroic cultivator that I found during my task." Flying Demon hesitated a bit before replying to that statement. "I am a ghost too, Demon Prince of the Chasing demon sect. Come inside, let''s talk face to face." Noah heard that offer but didn''t move. He would never go inside the lair of a rank 5 cultivator that he didn''t trust, that act went against all his survival instincts. Flying Demon didn''t take much to understand Noah''s personality, he had been one of the leaders of the unorthodox organizations of the Papral nation after all. "You don''t trust me, do you?" "No." Noah answered the cultivator''s question without showing any hesitation. He knew fear, he had experienced the feeling of being powerless against an entity far more potent than him. That was why he couldn''t take the first step toward Flying Demon, he would never risk putting himself in one of those helpless situations. "My Master would like you." Flying Demon said, and an earthquake filled the area when that phrase ended. The humans came out of their habitation again to pray, but Noah''s attention was on the castle. The large rocks that made the castle began to float and separate from the main structure, creating a large opening on the surface of the building. Then, a large wooden throne came out from that opening and flew in the sky above those structures. Noah saw a skeletal man with disheveled white hair and a long white beard sitting on the floating throne. Countless needles were stabbed on his half-naked, pale body, which seemed not to have even a trace of muscle tissue left. Inscriptions covered the surface of those needles, and small drops of blood accumulated on their tips. Noah couldn''t help but think that such a mighty cultivator was nothing more than a half-dead man. "Don''t look down on me. My body is drained, and my dantian is a mess, but I can still do wonders with my sea of consciousness. Follow me now, junior, you have to pay your greetings to Dreaming Demon." Flying Demon used his rough voice to say those words, and Noah was somewhat able to understand how weakened that rank 5 cultivator was. His cultivation level wasn''t low, Noah guessed that he was on par with Elder Julia, who seemed to be the strongest among the elders. Yet, he was so weakened that a simple attack could make his body crumble. Noah decided to follow him at that point. Chapter 643: 643. Darkness Noah decided to follow Flying Demon when he understood how weakened he was. He didn''t have the confidence in beating him with his power, but he still had items that could protect him and Chasing Demon''s talisman. Flying Demon couldn''t kill him in one attack even if he wanted to, his body alone would be enough to prevent that outcome. The duo flew toward the other castle where the same event from before happened. The large rocks that made the surface of that structure began to float and opened a passage to the insides of that inscribed habitation. Flying Demon directly flew through that passage, but Noah inspected that area for a bit before deciding to follow him inside. A large hall illuminated by the soft light radiated by a few candles could be seen on the other side of the opening, and a few inscriptions covered the floor of that area. Noah couldn''t sense any threat coming from those inscriptions since they were mostly meant to protect something placed at the center of the hall. His instincts didn''t sense any threat, so he decided to follow the elder seated on the wooden throne. The hall didn''t have anything peculiar except for a large bed placed in its center and surrounded by defensive inscriptions. A woman was sleeping on the bed, and Noah was surprised to realize that she was another rank 5 cultivator. "I must warn you." Flying Demon stopped his tracks and began to speak when Noah laid his eyes on the woman. "Try anything funny, and I will use all my remaining power to destroy every trace of your existence." Killing intent accompanied Flying Demon''s words, and Noah felt the fear that it generated inside him. Noah could sense that the ruined elder still had enough power to launch one last full-powered attack and that he was more than willing to use it to protect the sleeping woman. "Is she Dreaming Demon?" Noah asked without showing any reaction to that loud threat. "Yes, and she is the only reason why our sects have survived during the exile." Flying Demon answered before continuing to float toward the bed. The defensive inscriptions around Dreaming Demon stopped shining when he flew over them, and Noah understood that the elder was opening a path for him. Noah silently followed him at that point, and Dreaming Demon''s features became more evident when he reached a spot right above her. She was a beautiful middle-aged woman with extraordinarily long and straight black hair. A pure skin, her small nose, and a pair of slim eyebrows gave her face a harmonious appearance, but it was evident that her sleep wasn''t natural. She would breathe only every few minutes, and a minimal amount of "Breath" and mental energy dispersed in the air every time that happened. ''She is constantly weakening in this state. I''m surprised that she is still in the fifth rank.'' Noah thought when he analyzed her cultivation level. Dreaming Demon seemed a bit stronger than Elder Julia even after who knows how many years in that state. "How?" Noah asked that simple question, but Flying Demon understood that he wanted a complete explanation of the situation. "Our sects have been chased out of the Papral nation during Ravaging Demon''s betrayal, but I guess you are already aware of that." Noah didn''t answer and let Flying Demon explain. After all, he was already a rank 5 cultivator during the exile, his story would be far more detailed compared to the other sources that Noah had questioned. "Master and Divine Elder Tabitha left their inheritances in the Mortal Lands when they ascended. Master was a demon to his very core, and he wanted the cultivators of demon sects to find and prove themselves worthy of his heritage. Yet, the orthodox sects'' focus is on their organizations as a whole rather than on the personal power of their members." Noah agreed with those words. Orthodox organizations generally had weaker human assets due to the kind of nurturing that they provided to their members. However, they made up for that weakness with the higher number of cultivators under their domain. Also, that nurturing didn''t prevent the appearance of exceptional individuals. Orthodox organizations could give birth to powerful heroic assets since cultivators could obtain a strong individuality even in a peaceful environment, it was simply rarer. "The Ravaging demon sect secretly joined the Council and obtained part of Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance in exchange for information about the demon sects and their leaders. Ravaging Demon reached the fifth rank in that period, and the Council prepared specific countermeasures for each of us. Our defeat was unavoidable." Noah didn''t show any reaction, but he could somewhat understand Ravaging Demon. He had found an opportunity to reach the fifth rank and sacrificed all his allies to claim it. That act required a lot of determination and planning, especially with the threat of a divine being in the Immortal Lands. The truth was that Noah had already considered exploiting the weakened state of those two rank 5 elders to obtain their dantians, but the task didn''t seem feasible. Also, a large part of him thought that it wasn''t worth it. Adding two rank 5 elders to the ranks of the Hive would directly improve his situation, and he didn''t necessarily need those nourishments. Noah didn''t believe that to be the best approach, even if those two dantians were to push his body in the middle tier. After all, he could obtain the same results while hunting magical beasts, but nothing could compare to increasing the number of rank 5 heroic assets of the Hive. "Dreaming Demon is a genius and a pioneer in her field. Her techniques allow her to interfere with the Heaven and Earth''s will in the world and divine specific aspects or even future events. She managed to divine this separate dimension with her abilities, but the effort has forced her in this state." Noah couldn''t help but think about Ruth when he heard those words. Yet, he knew that Dreaming Demons'' feats were far more amazing since she was forcing Heaven and Earth to reveal something. "She said that every other path would lead to our destruction, but there was hope for our survival inside this dimension. I still remember her words from a thousand years ago." A warm smile formed on Flying Demon''s skeletal face at that point, and Noah''s eyes widened when his words resounded inside the hall. "I can see the Council crushing us and the Shandal Empire enslaving us at the end of each of those roads. Yet, it seems that even Heaven and Earth can''t predict what would happen if we enter the formation. There is only darkness on the other side, and darkness is our only hope." Chapter 644: 644. Exi Dreaming Demon had been able to foresee the destruction of the two demon sects, but she couldn''t see what would have happened if they entered the separate dimension. "So, you trusted her words and stayed in this dimension for a thousand years. Why didn''t you just leave? Why did you even consume your body to feed those weaklings?" Noah asked. He couldn''t understand why such a mighty existence would force himself to remain in that place over a divination. "You learn to trust your lover with your life after you spend decades with her." Flying Demon''s answer was short, but it explained the reason behind his complete trust in her predictions. "Why the feeding then? And why didn''t you just leave with her after so many centuries?" Noah continued to ask questions, that situation simply didn''t make sense in his mind. Flying Demon released a weak sigh and flew away from the hall to return in the outside world when he heard Noah''s words. Noah followed him and was confused when he saw the elder stopping in the air above the castles and staring at the two moons in the sky. "Invading Heaven and Earth''s will has a cost, even for rank 5 existences. Dreaming Demon can use her power to pay it, but she can''t recover with her own energies. It''s as if the world curses her when she performs her divinations." Flying Demon then slowly lifted a finger, and strange energy began to gather in the air above the houses where the commoners and rank 1 cultivators lived. "Her energy can only be replenished by cultivators that train in her same methods. I spent these years passing down her techniques to the same humans that I kept alive." The energy condensed and flew toward the castle where Dreaming Demon was sleeping. Noah followed it with his gaze and activated the Divine deduction technique to analyze it. The energy seemed some sort of mental energy, only far thinner. Yet, it was clear that it came from the minds of the sleeping rank 1 cultivators inside the houses. "Her energy has been replenished during all those years, but she still won''t wake up. I think her consciousness has atrophied after sleeping for so many centuries." Flying Demon appeared on the verge of falling apart when he said those words, the condition of his lover hurt him deeply. However, Noah still had some doubts. "Why didn''t you just take her outside?" Noah asked. He could guess that most of the resources of the demon sects had been lost during the escape, and they didn''t have pills or potions that could improve their situation. Yet, there was a whole world outside of that dimension that had them! "Exiting this separate dimension is not easy. This place is as large as the continent. It would be hard to find the exit." "You had one thousand years to explore it." Noah commented on Flying Demon''s excuse. His answer didn''t make sense, he was a rank 5 cultivator after all! It would take him less than a decade to explore the entirety of the dimension and find the teleportation matrix that linked that place to the outside world. Also, since the scenery there was always the same, it would take even less to find the exit. "Demon Prince of the Chasing Demon sect, my words alone can''t explain the dangers of this place. Wait two days, and you will have your answers." Flying Demon returned inside his castle at that point, leaving a confused Noah in the air. Yet, two days were nothing for a heroic cultivator, and Noah simply spent them letting his mind ponder about the situation and his individuality. He had already decided that he would simply leave those two elders to their fate and hand the matter to the Hive once he resurfaced. Exploring a separate dimension as large as the old continent was quite appealing, and Noah wouldn''t waste that chance to be in the company of two ruined cultivators. However, when two days passed, something strange happened inside the dimension. The moons suddenly stopped their motion, and "Breath" began to come out from their surface. The moons were just a creation of the dimension, but Noah recognized the "Breath" that came out from the moon closest to his position since it was identical to that found inside the mystical fog! The "Breath" though didn''t reach the terrain but accumulated in the sky where it condensed into black clouds. Orange sparks filled the surface of the clouds that covered the entirety of the central area of the dimension. The memories of the Cursed dragons appeared inside Noah''s mind at that sight. The scene was remarkably similar to what he had seen in his dreams. However, the might of that Heaven Tribulation didn''t match that in his dreams. The black clouds began to release lightning bolts that crashed on the ground and destroyed large chunks of the endless prairie. Nevertheless, the dimension depleted the "Breath" inside its fabric to quickly reform that terrain. A cycle of destruction and reconstruction followed the arrival of the black clouds, and Noah analyzed everything with the utmost attention. The barrage of lightning was as large as the area of influence of the empire, it occupied one-third of the dimension, separating it into two safe zones and a dangerous one. The Tribulation lasted until all the "Breath" inside the clouds was depleted and dispersed immediately after. Noah noticed how the "Breath" in the air had slightly diminished after that process. It was evident that the separate dimension had used its reserves of energy to fix the damages caused by the lightning bolts. "What have you discovered in these years?" Noah asked without moving his gaze from the horizon, but Flying Demon knew that the question was directed to him. He flew outside of his castle again at that point and reached Noah, who was standing in the air above it. "There is a similar Tribulation every week, and the power of the lightning bolts in the central areas reaches the sixth rank. This side of the dimension doesn''t have the exit, and I''ve only managed to explore less than half of the central area before being injured by the Tribulation. We are trapped." Flying Demon''s words entered Noah''s mind, but he wasn''t affected by the helplessness that they carried. The Tribulation was scary, but there were ways to escape from that situation. ''I can create an exit through sheer power, but I think that Flying Demon has already tried it. Wait for the "Breath" inside the dimension to be depleted? That would take too much time. Yet, I might be able to cross it with the help of the two elders.'' Noah began to analyze his possibilities, but Flying Demon interrupted his thoughts with a few words. "Darkness is our only hope¡­ Demon Prince, your element is darkness, right?" Chapter 645: 645. Hope It wasn''t hard to understand the aptitude of heroic cultivators. Their figures naturally exuded an aura in line with their element, and a short inspection was enough to understand the aptitude of those powerful entities. Noah had a dark halo continually surrounding him, and Flying Demon could immediately guess his element due to that feature. "The future is a mystery filled with uncertainties. I don''t want the weight of your hope." Noah replied to Flying Demon. Even Heaven and Earth had failed to predict his future, there was no chance that a rank 5 cultivator could succeed where they had failed. Instead, her divination proved something else. ''She hadn''t been able to predict the events inside this separate dimension, but she could see the destruction of the two demon sects on the other paths. This place should have something similar to my innate mistake. It is a world that doesn''t belong to Heaven and Earth.'' Noah began to formulate hypotheses, but he soon turned toward Flying Demon. The broken rank 5 cultivator had remained in that place for a thousand years, his understanding of the dimension had to be profound. "Tell me everything you''ve discovered over the years. I can''t carry your hope, but I might be able to grant it." Noah said, and Flying Demon took a long look at the young-looking cultivator next to him. Intense green eyes could be seen under his half-closed eyelids, there was life hidden under that skeletal body. His body was on the verge of falling apart, and his dantian had been injured when he explored the central areas of the dimension, but his sea of consciousness was fine. There wasn''t much that could be hidden from a rank 5 mage, especially since Noah''s mind was still in the fourth rank. However, Flying Demon felt that he couldn''t grasp the entirety of Noah''s being, it was as if he had a violent form of protection that naturally covered his figure. The rank 5 elder didn''t know if he could trust Noah and couldn''t understand it from his inspection. Yet, he could realize in an instant that the Demon Prince of the Chasing demon sect was amazing. That realization made him begin to speak. The separate dimension cut off any form of communication with the outside world. That was a feature often seen in similar places, but the presence of the Heaven Tribulation showed that there was some connection with the landmass above. "In my long years spent here, I''ve concluded that the creator of this dimension wanted to replicate the Mortal Lands. I don''t know the reasons behind that gesture nor what the creator wanted to obtain with it. Still, I know that Heaven and Earth didn''t like it." Flying Demon explained the conclusions that he had reached in the past centuries, and Noah attentively listened to him. "This dimension is as large as the continent, but it wasn''t created in only one process. Its borders aren''t stable nor fixed, which I believe isn''t random. The creator has probably slowly enlarged it through the years and aimed to cover the entirety of the Mortal Lands with it." Noah could only nod at those words. He didn''t know much about separate dimensions, so he could only trust the words of the elders. Of course, the idea that someone had attempted to replicate the Mortal Lands surpassed any definition of defiance. After all, that was a feat worthy of a god! "This is only my supposition. Still, I think that the mountain chain on the south and the mystical fog in the north have been placed by Heaven and Earth to seep their "Breath" and cause the Tribulations. The energy passes through the moons every week and only when they are precisely under those danger zones. The moons might be Heaven and Earth''s creations too." ''It would make sense. Heaven and Earth have tried to stop my fusion, and the same would apply to this place.'' Noah thought when he heard those words. He felt that there was something more about that dimension, but Flying Demon''s explanation seemed to cover most of its nature. "I''ve tried to create an exit, but all my efforts only pushed the limits of the dimension backward, stretching it in the process. I''ve tried to contact the outside world by flying toward the moons during the gathering of "Breath", but nothing manages to reach the other side. Yet, this dimension has almost reached its limits, it would only take a few more centuries before Heaven and Earth manage to destroy it." Noah shot a cold gaze toward Flying Demon at that point. He wasn''t willing to wait centuries in that wasteland, the stillness of that world would hinder his progress. ''Chasing Demon has surpassed Flying Demon because he was outside, gathering experiences. I can''t remain here. Also, waiting for Heaven and Earth to save me is something that I refuse to do with every fiber of my being.'' Those thoughts rose inside Noah''s mind and awakened his anger toward those mighty entities. ''Heaven and Earth have punished me for not following their script and have cursed my species, how could I even wait for their help?'' The Divine deduction technique activated, and Noah quickly evaluated all his possibilities. He didn''t care that there was a safe way out, he wanted to cross the hindrance created by Heaven and Earth! After all, that drive was part of his individuality, submitting to their help would just break his ambition. "Bring me back in front of Dreaming Demon." Noah said while suppressing a growl. His words carried a weight that Flying Demon didn''t fail to notice. They were orders. The elder was a bit hesitant, but he agreed to his request when he saw the sheer resolution radiated by the Demon Prince. The violent halo seemed to have stabilized a bit, it was as if it had found a specific focus. The duo returned inside the castle where Dreaming Demon slept, and Noah poured "Breath" inside his space-ring to materialize the spirit automaton in the outside world. "What are you trying to do?" Flying Demon exclaimed when he saw that Noah wanted to do something to his sleeping lover, but Noah''s answer gave birth to an unstoppable wave of hope inside him. "Let me be clear, whatever happens from now on, you owe me." Flying Demon couldn''t understand how a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage could generate so much pressure, but he nodded nonetheless. Noah let the spirit automaton scan Dreaming Demon''s condition at that point and listened to its analysis inside his mind. "You''d better pay me back." Noah said with a sigh as he took out something from his space-ring. A simple-looking transparent bottle that seemed to have nothing in its insides appeared in his grasp. However, the aura of a rank 5 drug spread in the hall as soon as it appeared in the open. Chapter 646: 646. Decisions Divine Demon''s inheritance had given Noah a large stash of potions and pills that targeted the three centers of power. However, Divine Demon had kept everything in the sixth rank and above with him when he ascended, leaving only the resources up to the fifth rank in his inheritance. Yet, the resources in the heroic ranks were limited, Noah only had a few pills and potions in the fourth rank. As for those in the fifth rank, he only had three of them, one for each center of power. Noah treasured them, they could act as lifesavers in situations that would inevitably lead to his death. Nevertheless, he had decided to take one of them out in the separate dimension hidden under the mystical fog. Noah didn''t accept to remain trapped for centuries in that poor environment, but he didn''t delude himself into thinking that he could survive the Tribulations by himself. He needed the help of the two rank 5 existences that had once been the leaders of the unorthodox sects of the Papral nation. His space-ring was a rank 6 inscribed item, and its spirit automaton could evaluate a countless number of resources, as well as how effective they could be in certain situations. Noah had summoned it to analyze Dreaming Demon''s condition, and its diagnosis dictated that only a rank 5 medicine that targeted the sea of consciousness could fix her issue. ''This could save my life one day, but I would be forced to stay in this place for centuries if I don''t use it. It''s just a matter of staying true to my individuality. Resources are just a tool on the path toward power.'' Noah suppressed the remaining traces of hesitation inside him and opened the bottle while turning it upside down. The bottle seemed empty, but both Noah and Flying Demon could sense that a warm and invisible substance fell on Dreaming Demon and enveloped her sea of consciousness. Flying Demon gasped at that sight but forced himself to remain silent. It was as if he was worried that the slight sound might affect the process. On the other side, Noah completely focused. Awakening Dreaming Demon was a risk, he didn''t know her personality nor her actual power. He didn''t even know if her abilities worked in that place! However, the separate dimension was too large, and searching for the exit through the barrage of lightning wasn''t possible. He needed her skills to discover the location of the exit. Dreaming Demon''s eyelids twitched as the invisible substance healed her anthropized mental sphere, and a soft moan resounded in the hall. Flying Demon''s tired eyes had widened when he heard her voice again after such a long time, and his whole body trembled when he saw his lover opening her eyes. Tears fell from his eyes and cracked the skin under them as they traced wet lines across his face. His body was so weak that even pure tears of joy wounded it, but he didn''t seem to care. His gaze was fixed on the woman that was slowly straightening herself and analyzing her surroundings with a confused gaze. Dreaming Demon''s eyes first noticed Noah staring at her with a cold gaze, but they then landed on the skeletal elder seated on the floating throne. Her confusion seemed to increase when she saw Flying Demon, but she didn''t move her gaze from him. Clarity slowly returned to her expression, but it was soon replaced by sorrow. "Arthur, what have you done?" Dreaming Demon spoke, and her broken voice anticipated the arrival of her tears. Yet, Flying Demon''s mouth formed an ugly smile as he gave an honest answer. "Everything I needed to do to keep you alive." The sides of Flying Demon''s mouth cracked when he smiled, his body wasn''t even able to endure such a natural expression of happiness. Dreaming Demon stretched her hand toward her lover, but she quickly retracted it. She was too worried that her simple touch would be enough to make Flying Demon''s body crumble. The duo stared at each other in silence, and their expressions radiated countless emotions. Noah closed his eyes for a moment when he saw the scene of their reunion, and two pills had appeared in his hands when he reopened them. "Heal, catch up, make up for the time lost. We''ll face the Tribulations when you are ready." The two pills were rank 4 drugs that targeted the body and dantian, and Noah threw them on the large bed as he said those words. Then, he flew away from the castle and left the two lovers alone. He had given the two rank 5 elders everything they needed to recover, but he couldn''t do anything about their individuality. Dreaming Demon had only slept for that period, but Flying Demon had sacrificed his body for a thousand years. That process was bound to leave lasting cracks in his personality, and it would be up to him to face and solve them. ''They''ll heal faster in each other''s arms. I can''t do anything else for them. Also, I need to focus on myself.'' Noah thought as he flew toward a random area in the prairie at some distance from the castles and landed on its fake terrain. Giving orders to rank 5 existences, using his stash of potions to heal them, and his resolution to face the Tribulations instead of waiting weren''t only decisions taken due to that situation. They were expressions of his individuality and his growth as a cultivator. He would have never given up on such precious drugs when he was only a lone cultivator, and he would have never chosen to take the dangerous path when a safe one was available. Those decisions showed what he was slowly becoming as he explored his depths, and as he absorbed the laws of the darkness element. His bloodline gave him the pride of a leader, which allowed him to see benefits that empowering his organization could bring. His unwillingness to be suppressed and his anger toward Heaven and Earth led him to challenge the Tribulations, even if his power didn''t seem able to defeat them. Those decisions ultimately affected his mindset that reflected its insights on his dantian. Noah had instinctively flown in that empty area since his body had noticed the changes inside his dantian before his mind could. Gaseous "Breath" kept on accumulating inside his dantian, and a large amount of the laws that the darkness element carried began to fuse with its walls. Noah felt the absorption speed of his cultivation technique increase before stopping all of a sudden. The muscles on his low waist churned and squeezed his dantian, which began to contract. The gaseous "Breath" inside his center of power condensed and started to transform. Little by little, the black shining cloud inside Noah''s dantian became a slim black drop that radiated a sharp pressure. Chapter 647: 647. Spreading sharpness Rank 4 dantian in the liquid stage! Noah had finally reached the next stage after almost ten years of continuous cultivation! ''The time required for each breakthrough can only increase as my rank rises. I can only accept the fact that I''m moving forward as fast as I can.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the drop of liquid "Breath" inside his dantian. His center of power had condensed the "Breath" on its own. The pressure generated by the muscles in his low waist had been enough to imitate the effects of a reagent. Noah''s mental energy had changed, so it was understandable that his dantian had gone through some modifications too. The sturdiness of its walls was just one of its new features, and the lack of hindrances during a breakthrough seemed to be another one of them. However, Noah was too interested in the nature of his new "Breath" to ponder about those features. The black drop inside his center of power shone with a constant dark light, but its shape and the aura that it radiated made it appear different from the usual "Breath". The drop was slim and sharp, and it could be easily mistaken for a metal shard if it wasn''t for its liquid features. Noah calmly waited for his cultivation technique to absorb more "Breath" so that he could inspect its nature better. His dantian didn''t try to stabilize, it directly began to enlarge after the breakthrough. Noah didn''t stop that process since his organ didn''t show any signs of instability, he was actually interested in seeing if there even were limits to how much stress it could endure. "Breath" accumulated inside his center of power, but it didn''t follow the usual behavior that the energy on that stage should have. Generally speaking, the liquid "Breath" would form some sort of lake that filled the entirety of the dantian and pushed its walls to expand. Yet, Noah could only see how the drop didn''t take a spherical form and only grew in size. ''A metal shard is slowly turning into a saber.'' That conclusion didn''t surprise him. Noah had wielded sabers since the early stages of the childhood of his second life. Also, he didn''t abandon the martial arts due to a series of events, leading him to be one of the few heroic cultivators that still fought while wielding weapons. After all, heroic cultivators would need inscribed weapons able to endure their might if they wanted to use martial arts that matched their level. Rank 4 inscribed weapons could still be found quite easily if those existences had good backing, but those in the fifth rank were on a completely different level. It took a rank 5 cultivator to handle rank 5 materials, and there weren''t many beings on that level and with the required skill that would create weapons for others. Only the Utra nation was somewhat advanced in that field due to its consistent investments in the inscriptions'' fields, but even that big nation would have to face the expenses of such precious materials. However, Noah''s inscription method was peculiar, and his core material was his body. The losses linked to a failure in the creation of an inscribed weapon would be more limited compared to those of other inscription masters. Noah had wielded sabers for most of his life even if he added his previous life to the sum, and it wasn''t a surprise that his individuality would take a similar form. ''I wonder what other effects does it have.'' Noah thought as he controlled his liquid "Breath" move at the center of his palm. The sharp drop appeared on his open hand and began to radiate its innate aura when it came in contact with the outside world. Violent and slim waves spread from the floating drop and affected the fabric of the separate dimension. Noah saw how the air around the drop began to destabilize under that aura. The destabilization continued until the air fell apart and turned into primary energy similar to that in his Liquid dantian. Noah continued to watch that process and activated the Divine deduction technique to analyze the details that his normal awareness might miss. ''The separate dimension is made of "Breath", and the destruction of its structure would obviously release that energy. However, the aura radiated by the drop acts as the absorption process of my body, it directly turns everything in its most basic form.'' The analysis led Noah to that conclusion. His liquid "Breath" had taken the shape of a saber and radiated a spreading sharpness. Still, it seemed that the violence of the magical beasts had affected the natural behavior that a blade was supposed to have. Noah inhaled and forcefully absorbed the primary energy created by the drop. Most of that energy seeped in his body and fused with it, but some of it even entered the dark whirlpool in his dantian. The energy didn''t increase its size though, it fused with its walls and disappeared without leaving any trace. It was at that point that understanding dawned upon Noah. ''I''m a sword that cuts through the world of Heaven and Earth. My very existence radiates their flaws, which I naturally spread as I keep on living. Also, what I affect can become mine if I want!'' The breakthrough to the liquid stage gave Noah a clear view of his existence. ''My first meaning in the Elemental forging method was a sword, that is my shape. A sword that destroys to obtain the basic energy to create, and that, one day, would be strong enough to exude its own basic energy.'' Noah stood up at that point. He felt as if his mind had just been able to fuse the two worlds that his hybrid status represented. ''A sword for the humans and voracity for the magical beasts. Together, they make a weapon that innately destabilizes the world to open a path for creations outside of Heaven and Earth''s grasp.'' Noah looked at his right arm, but he quickly suppressed the idea of forging a rank 5 Demonic sword. His breakthrough gave him a more abundant energy pool, but it didn''t raise his battle prowess since the latter originated from his Liquid dantian. Yet, it showed him where all his accumulated experiences had led him, the form that he had taken after all his adventures. There was a newfound clarity in his mind, and Noah enjoyed it for a few instants before deciding to begin his preparations. The Tribulation at the center of the separate dimension was extremely dangerous, and he would have to face many of them before reaching the opposite area. Noah had initially planned to focus on his offensive spells since his body provided an exceptional form of defense already. Still, the situation required him to further improve in that aspect. So, he decided to begin the modifications to the Black hole spell''s translated diagram. Chapter 648: 648. Visitor The effects radiated by his liquid "Breath" would spread to his techniques and spells when Noah used it as its fuel. He noticed that when he began to test the modifications that he made on the will representing the diagram of the Black hole spell. The dark sphere would autonomously absorb part of the "Breath" in the air around it since the sharpness radiated by its form destroyed it. Of course, those effects were still barely noticeable. Noah''s individuality had just begun to affect his centers of power, that was only his second step toward the higher levels of the heroic ranks. However, it was enough to set a direction. The effects of his liquid "Breath" weren''t carried by the energy stored inside his Liquid dantian, but Noah could guess how they would become a core aspect of his battle prowess in the future. Tuning his abilities to his individuality was necessary if he wanted to wield the full power that his entity was able to express. Yet, that was something that could only happen when his dantian reached the solid stage and matched the energy stored inside the Liquid dantian. Noah spent weeks alone in that empty spot of the separate dimension to test the modifications on the Black hole spell. He intended to fuse its diagram with that of the Dark blast spell to create an attack that could use the energy absorbed while defending to fuel a powerful offensive. He was even trying to add a lasting effect to that attack to suit the dangerous situation that he chose to face better. Flying through a barrage of powerful lightning bolts would surely exhaust his reserves of energy. Still, that issue could be somewhat mitigated if he managed to use the power of the Tribulation to his advantage. Nevertheless, the diagram of the Black hole spell could express a power up to the fifth rank. Modifying and perfecting it wasn''t something that could be done in a matter of weeks. The two rank 5 elders didn''t show themselves in that period, but Noah wasn''t worried that they wouldn''t agree to his decision. He had seen how fond Flying Demon was of Dreaming Demon, and Noah had managed to give her back to him. Dreaming Demon seemed to share the same deep feeling, so Noah was sure that they would feel compelled to follow his lead. They were rank 5 cultivators, their individuality was formed, and they couldn''t just forsake it. Their feelings were real, so they had to follow them, or the foundation on which their power was built would shake. A few more weeks had to pass before Noah had a visitor. Dreaming Demon left the castle and flew toward the young-looking heroic cultivator that was creating dark spheres in the air around him. There was some respect in her expression when she reached for Noah, and also evident traces of gratitude. "Demon Prince of the Chasing demon sect, words can''t express how grateful Flying Demon and I are for your help." Dreaming Demon said as she performed a deep bow when she landed behind Noah. She didn''t straighten her posture even after a few minutes had passed, and she seemed willing to maintain her bow until he said otherwise. On the other hand, Noah didn''t give much importance to those formalities. The feelings conveyed through her words were enough for him, what mattered next was her skill. "It''s Hive now, the Chasing demon sect doesn''t exist anymore. The sect has fused with the other underground organizations of the Coral archipelago after claiming its independence and became the fourth force in the Mortal Lands." Noah said as he turned and gestured to the elder to abandon that polite bow. "Chasing Demon, the Patriarch, ordered me to look for the remains of the demon sects, which ultimately led me here. The power of the Hive would increase by a lot if you elders were to join it." Noah briefly explained while hinting that he wanted to recruit the two Demons. Adding two rank 5 cultivators to the Hive would make its power skyrocket, especially if those two entities were the Demons that had once ruled half of the Papral nation. Generally speaking, their potential was similar to Chasing Demon''s, they could very well strive for the sixth rank if they managed to recover from their injuries. "No need to worry. Chasing Demon is a friend, and we own our lives to the Hive. I''ve already discussed the matter with Flying Demon. We''ll follow you through the lightning storm and pay you back if we survive." Noah nodded when he heard Dreaming Demon''s words, that was precisely what he wanted to hear. "Flying Demon said that you divined this place with your abilities. I need you to discover the location of the exit, and I need you to be as precise as possible. Can you do it?" Dreaming Demon closed her eyes after Noah''s question and spread her consciousness on the area around her. Her mental waves stretched far beyond the capabilities of Noah''s mind, the power of a rank 5 mage was on a completely different level. Her mental waves though seemed different from the normal ones. They were thin and almost imperceptible, they gently seeped into the structure of the separate dimension and disappeared inside its matter. Even Dreaming Demon''s consciousness became thinner during the process, Noah couldn''t help but think that her mind was leaving her body. Then, she suddenly retracted all her mental waves inside her sea of consciousness and reopened her eyes. Her gaze slowly regained some focus, but some drowsiness could be seen in her expression when she returned completely conscious. "This dimension is frail. I can easily investigate it." Dreaming Demon said when she analyzed the information carried by the retracted mental waves, but she felt the need to explain further when she saw that Noah''s expression remained stern. "I can fuse my consciousness with the world around me for a brief period. Heaven and Earth are nigh-omniscient, I can see through their eyes when I fuse with the outside world and take glances at the future. However, this dimension is outside of their domain. I can only look into it when I''m inside it." Her explanation was quite detailed, and Noah had to suppress his amazement when he heard it. Dreaming Demon didn''t have the ability to divine future events, that feature was a consequence of the fusion of her consciousness with Heaven and Earth! ''No wonder she kept on sleeping even after one thousand years, I can''t imagine the kind of drawbacks that such an ability has.'' Noah thought as he gave voice to another question. "Did you find the exit?" Dreaming Demon shook her head while giving a simple answer. "My mental sphere has yet to recover completely. I will only risk falling asleep again if I investigate further. I need some time, and Flying Demon needs it too." "There is no hurry, and time is all we have right now. Focus on returning to your peak. We can prepare later." Noah said after her reply, and she performed a bow before leaving to return to the castles. Chapter 649: 649. Recovery The injuries of the two rank 5 cultivators were severe. They couldn''t heal in a matter of weeks. Dreaming Demon had been asleep for a thousand years, and her sea of consciousness had become extremely fragile in that period. Noah''s rank 5 potion had been able to awaken her and restore some of her abilities, but she still needed some time. On the other hand, Flying Demon''s situation was far worse. He had used his body to feed the commoners and rank 1 cultivators to accumulate the energy needed for Dreaming Demon''s awakening, reaching a point where even his tears could break his skin. Also, his dantian had been wounded during his exploration of the central areas of the dimension. Most of the assets of the demon sects had been lost during the exile, and he didn''t have drugs that could solve his injury. He would have been healed by now if he had just rested, but he needed to keep on weakening his body for Dreaming Demon''s sake. That constant weakening had stopped the natural healing of his dantian and further worsened his situation. That would have ultimately led to his death, but Flying Demon didn''t care about it as long as he managed to keep his lover alive. The rank 4 pills that Noah had given him weren''t enough to fix his center of power, but they would be enough to make the healing process start again. Noah learnt about the details concerning their state since Dreaming Demon kept on visiting him every few weeks. She seemed set on keeping him updated about their conditions, and Noah took those chances to inform her about the events that had happened while their sects were trapped inside the separate dimension. Dreaming Demon did the same and shared specific details about the exile from the Papral nation that only someone who had seen it with its own eyes could know. It turned out that the twelve demon sects were quite close before the exile and shared most of their discoveries. That behavior was to be expected since their leaders were all disciples of Divine Demon, which was also why Ravaging Demon''s betrayal managed to produce such a drastic outcome. Yet, that was the reason why Flying Demon knew the techniques of the Bleeding demon sect and could turn his body into nourishment for the commoners and rank 1 cultivators. The technique to gather the special energy to make Dreaming Demon''s recover was included in that too. Their conversations even uncovered the reasons why Noah owned such powerful drugs. "So, Master''s inheritance is what ultimately led to the independence of the Coral archipelago. No wonder Chasing Demon gave you the title of Demon Prince when you were only a human cultivator. He was the most respectful of us toward Master." Dreaming Demon commented when Noah told her about the events under the Great Whirlpool. Of course, Noah kept the matter concerning the Divine deduction technique a secret, not even June knew about it. It couldn''t be helped, the presence of a divine technique in the Mortal Lands was something that could turn the entire world against him. Noah believed that even his incredible body-nourishing technique wouldn''t cause the same chaos as the inscriptions on the walls of his mental sphere. After all, the creations and modifications of his techniques, methods, and spells went smoothly because of the Divine deduction technique! No other cultivator could match his number of successes in such a short time and with his same cultivation level. One technique made him able to develop his current battle prowess, every heroic cultivator in the world would kill to obtain it. Then, during his fourth month inside the separate dimension, Noah saw that Dreaming Demon had come to visit him with her lover. Noah had become used to the sight of the Tribulations by then, and he had seen how they happened exactly every week just as Flying Demon had explained. However, he was still surprised when he saw how the drugs and the period of rest had benefitted the rank 5 elder. Flying Demon was standing on his own feet as he walked on the prairie. Dreaming Demon was next to him, ready to help if a complication or a sudden worsening of his condition was to happen. Flying Demon''s body still appeared skinny and fragile, but a rosy color had begun to fill his pale skin. A few strands of muscles had grown back, and he had cut his long beard. His long hair showed some tinge of blackness, and he managed to keep his eyelids open without looking drowsy. He was clearly recovering at a fast pace. "I must say, you hide wonders in that space-ring. Master''s drugs are one thing, but the magical beasts'' corpses¡­ How many of them do you even have? Do they all come from that new continent?" Flying Demon asked with a smile on his face. Noah had provided some of the corpses inside his space-ring to feed the elders and replace the source of blood for the commoners. The fact that Flying Demon had managed to survive without eating anything for one thousand years didn''t mean that he didn''t need to do it. He had simply pushed himself over his limits for his lover, which was probably the reason why he had managed to remain sane despite the helpless situation. "Yes, you will see it once we come out of this place. The Hive has moved its headquarters there since the old continent doesn''t have room for a fourth force. How much until you both return to your peak?" Noah said when the two elders arrived behind him. He had been lost in his training and tests during those months, and he used his stash of rank 4 magical beasts to appease his hunger. The few months spent in that way had passed in less than an instant in his mind. He barely noticed them. Yet, he still wanted to have a clear idea about that situation. Waiting even a few years wasn''t an issue, but a clear schedule might make him decide to focus on certain spells rather than on others. Also, the nature of his "Breath" had given him ideas for a second form of his Dragon''s claw martial art. So, he wanted to understand how much it would take to begin the crossing. "Dreaming Demon is almost back to her peak. She just needs to gather the energy from the sleeping commoners and cultivators for a few more weeks. I might need a few years though." Flying Demon answered, and Noah simply nodded at the duo. The elder had just confirmed his suspects, and Noah didn''t hesitate to decide that he would improve all his skills in that period. Chapter 650: 650. Plan Waiting for both elders to return to their peak took some years, and Noah didn''t mind it. He had just reached the liquid stage, and there wouldn''t be other breakthroughs anytime soon. That left him with a lot of free time to dedicate to his abilities. Noah had many spells in his possession, but only a few of them were suitable to be modified. The diagram of the Demonic form spread on the Kesier runes that floated over the sea inside his mind, and Noah didn''t even try to translate it. That spell was connected with the Kesier runes, which brought the level of difficulty of the diagram on a higher level and a different inscription field. Noah didn''t know much about runes and formations, his expertise only covered the wills. The body-inscription spell had the same issue. It used many teachings belonging to the formations'' field to work, which he couldn''t modify. On the other hand, the Ethereal form spell was simply incompatible with his new body. The amount of energy that it would require to turn his body ethereal would surpass what he was able to provide even if he modified the spell. That high cost in terms of energies made the diagram unworthy of being translated, its effects didn''t match its requirements. As for the Death area spell, Noah just gave up on it. That ability didn''t suit his fighting style, and its effects were only average, there was no point in wasting time over something that he wouldn''t use. However, he modified the rest of his spells during those years and even added a second form to his Dragon''s claw martial art. He was ready to face the Tribulations after four years spent in the separate dimension. He was set on starting the crossing as soon as the elders finished their preparations. Flying Demon had recovered in those years. His hair had wholly returned to their original black color as his body kept on improving. His dantian had healed too in that period. The elder had reached the state in which he was before the exile of the demon sects. Dreaming Demon was even better off. Her sea of consciousness had returned to her peak, and her cultivation level had improved as she waited for her lover to recover. She had even used her ability to discover the location of the exit, which turned out to be right under the mountain chain that divided the areas of influence of the Empire and the Utra nation. Flying Demon''s deductions seemed to be on point. It was probable that the mountain chain and the mystical fog had been created by Heaven and Earth to invade the separate dimension with their will. As for the commoners and the rank 1 cultivators, Dreaming Demon decided to kill them after the energy expended for her last divination had been replenished. The elders and Noah were set on crossing an area that saw Tribulations happening every week. The power of the barrage of lightning next to their area resembled that of a rank 4 Heaven Tribulation. Still, its might reached the sixth rank in the central zones. Those humans couldn''t survive the crossing, and the three heroic cultivators didn''t have methods to carry them alongside their journey. Also, they would starve to death without Flying Demon performing the techniques of the Bleeding demon sect on his body or the magical beasts'' corpses. Leaving them there without any form of food would just lead to ugly situations, so Dreaming Demon decided to kill them as soon as they had fulfilled their role. The only issue at that point was that the elders didn''t leave the castles for months after they had completely recovered. Noah didn''t mind it at the beginning, but the environment of the separate dimension could only offer a constant stillness that couldn''t benefit his individuality in any way. He had often pondered about the destructive nature of the Tribulations since his liquid "Breath" radiated similar effects. Still, even that majestic sight became annoying to look at after so many years. Noah wanted to leave, he wanted to travel and immerse himself in some wild environment. Also, he wanted to forge. His individuality spread destruction and left behind basic energy similar to that accumulated inside his Liquid dantian. Noah wanted to make use of that energy to implement a form of creation in his individuality, something that could eventually bring him to forge his own darkness element. That project was ambitious and was probably impossible to complete at his current level. However, Noah believed that to be his path, and there could only be benefits in starting to tread it as soon as possible. Yet, the sound of soft moans reached his ears when he decided to fly to the castles to see what the elders were up to. ''I guess they couldn''t catch up properly when they were still injured. Well, I can''t blame them after I did the same with June.'' Noah sighed when he thought that, and returned to his spot in the prairie. He could just fight his boredom by increasing the amount of time spent pondering about his individuality and training, he would have done the same in the outside world after all. The elders decided to come out of the castles after a few months, and both of them wore stern expressions as they reached for Noah. "We have stored the castles and sorted everything. We are ready." Noah nodded we he heard Flying Demon''s words and ignored the traces of satisfaction hidden behind their expressions as he explained his plan. The Tribulations happened every week, and they had to cross an area as vast as the area of influence of the Empire. The elders were rank 5 cultivators, and Noah could rely on the Shadow sprint martial art to somewhat match their speed, which meant that they could reach the other side in less than two months. Less than two months meant six or seven Tribulations, depending on how fast they actually were. The lightning bolts in the fourth rank didn''t scare the group, and those in the fifth rank could be endured with their power and Noah''s stash of protective items. However, the Tribulations that reached the power of the sixth rank had to be avoided if they wanted to survive. "It''s clear that we have to face some Tribulations, but we can choose which one we have to endure." Noah began to explain, and the elders added their opinions to the plan. The final strategy saw the group facing two rank 4 Tribulations and four rank 5 Tribulations to reach the other side where the exit was. The journey wouldn''t be easy, but it was better than facing the lightning bolts with the power of the sixth rank. When everything was set, the three of them flew toward the borders of the safe area and waited for the next Tribulation to arrive. Their sprint would begin as soon as the weekly barrage of lightning bolts ended. Chapter 651: 651. Crossing The weekly Tribulation was on time, just like all the previous ones before it. Noah, Flying Demon, and Dreaming Demon stood one the last available safe spot of the prairie as they stared at the incoming barrage of lightning. "Breath" came out from the two red moons and black clouds formed in the dark-blue sky between them. Then, lightning bolts began to fall on the ground. The surface of the separate dimension was frail, the Tribulation destroyed the fake terrain and created deep holes whenever a bolt of lightning crashed on the prairie. The separate dimension immediately provided "Breath" to reconstruct the destroyed parts, and further exhausted its reserves of energy. The cycle of destruction and reconstruction continued for the entirety of the Tribulation. The three heroic cultivators wore stern expressions as they stared at the devastation that Heaven and Earth were able to unleash in a world that was supposed to be outside of their domain. They knew that they would have to sprint as soon as the black clouds dispersed, the strategy to reach the other side of the dimension alive was clear in their minds. Yet, they couldn''t help but admire the organized offensive that Heaven and Earth were capable of launching. Such precise but wild lightning bolts could inspire anyone with an individuality linked to destructive effects. However, their sole sight made Flying Demon sick, and Noah had an innate disdain toward those lightning bolts. The scene was too similar to that during his breakthrough when he saw the defeat of the Cursed dragon species. As for Dreaming Demon, her individuality simply didn''t match that violent force. The black clouds began to disperse after half an hour, and the Tribulation slowly ended, revealing the destroyed environment that was quickly reforming. The gazes of the three heroic cultivators didn''t linger on the scene but focused as soon as the last cloud vanished. Then, they sprinted. Shockwaves spread from Noah''s feet whenever he kicked the ground under him, and cracks appeared on the prairie on the trail of the two flying elders. The three of them had decided to fly as close as the ground as possible so that they would have more time to react to the Tribulation when they would be forced to face it. That wasn''t their highest speed, but that pace was also part of their strategy. They didn''t want to risk reaching the areas where the lightning bolts reached a power that matched the fifth rank, and they wouldn''t purposely raise the difficulty of the crossing. That pace would allow them to reach the spot where the Tribulation had a power similar to the peak of the fourth rank in precisely one week. The precision of Heaven and Earth''s attack could be used to their advantage, and it would be stupid to charge in without a plan. Luckily for them, Flying Demon had explored the central parts of the dimension in the past thousand years and could provide precise details that greatly helped in the planning of their strategy. One week passed quickly, and the group never stopped their flight in those days. Noah was using his liquid "Breath" to fuel the Shadow sprint martial art, which made that speed somewhat sustainable. He knew that he would have to rely on his Liquid dantian once they reached the deeper parts of the dimension, and he had already prepared the pills needed to refill his body with nourishments for that moment. The elders would still be faster than him even when he used the full power of his Shadow sprint, but they had already decided that they would stick together. The elders would take care of the first and fourth rank 5 Tribulation, while Noah would use his defensive items to defend against the second and third ones. According to their calculations, they would be able to cross the area with rank 6 lightning bolts between the second and third rank 5 Tribulations in a bit less than one week, meaning that they could wholly avoid it. Yet, that also meant that they had to face two Tribulations near the peak of the fifth rank. Not even the joint power of the elders and Noah could defend against them, which is why they decided to rely on the defensive items that Elder Julia had given to him before the exchange meeting. The moons aligned with the danger zones that divided the areas of influence of the three big nations and "Breath" began to seep inside the separate dimension. The black clouds gathered as usual, and lightning bolts began to fall on the terrain, filling the entirety of the central territories of the dimension. Noah and the elders landed on the terrain at that point and began to walk. They were mighty existences in the heroic ranks, but they wouldn''t have any chance to rest when the Tribulations'' power reached the fifth rank. So, they decided to make the best out of the lightning bolts with power in the middle tier of the fourth rank falling over them. Orange flashes enveloped their figures and filled the scenery. Noah and the elders were almost blinded by the countless flashes that occupied their view. The Tribulation didn''t give any space to the darkness, it continuously released lightning bolts on the prairie. Noah felt hammers crashing on his head and shoulders every time a flash of lightning hit him. However, his skin alone was enough to block them, and he didn''t need to deploy any defensive measure. His dantian began to refill its stash of liquid "Breath" as he walked through the lightning storm. That would be the last rest before entering the area with the rank 5 Tribulations according to their plan, and he didn''t dare to waste even one second of it. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon walked next to him, and they both showed surprised expressions when they saw Noah enduring the might of the lightning bolts with his bare body as if they were nothing. His robe had shattered in that situation, which gave the elders the chance to see that he wasn''t suffering the slight injury. The Tribulation wasn''t even enough to leave white marks on his skin! The elders were using part of their powerful mental energy to create a barrier that fended off the lightning bolts coming for them, something below the fifth rank couldn''t force them to focus. However, Noah had taken that lack of concern to the next level. Both elders were curious about his body-nourishing method, but they saw how focused he was in refilling his centers of power and decided to leave their questions for when they resurfaced. Half an hour passed in which the rank 4 Tribulation didn''t even manage to scratch the trio. Then, Noah and the elders sprinted again when the black clouds dispersed. Their next challenge would be a rank 5 Tribulation with power in the lower tier. Chapter 652: 652. Unique Another week passed quickly, and the trio spent that time flying almost at full speed toward the other side of the separate dimension. The scenery didn''t change at all during their journey. The prairie looked the same no matter how much they advanced, and the starless sky didn''t give them any sign of their progress. The only aspects of the dimension that moved were the two moons. They simply moved in a straight line in perpetual motion, illuminating with their red light the environment under them. ''It''s as if Heaven and Earth are keeping track of this place.'' Noah couldn''t help but think that when he saw the black clouds gathering again above him. The moons radiated a steady pressure that he had been able to notice only when he entered the areas targeted by the Tribulations. He felt an innate hatred against them, which led him to think that Flying Demon''s hypothesis was on point. The moons had probably been planted in the dimension by Heaven and Earth. Their power had been able to seep through a space that didn''t belong to their domain. ''How far is their power able to reach?'' Noah suppressed that question when he heard that the crackling of the thunders had begun to resound above him. The elders flying next to him wore a stern expression. It would be up to them to protect the group from that Tribulation, but it wasn''t its power the cause behind their focus. The Tribulation would have a power that matched the lower tier of the fifth rank, and those two rank 5 existences were more than enough to handle it. However, they would have to keep on sprinting through their duration. That had been decided when they created their plan. That was the best way to reduce the number of Tribulations to face while also avoiding those in the sixth rank. Both elders hadn''t fought nor used their real abilities for one thousand years, and they would obviously be quite rusty when using them. Yet, they were still rank 5 entities. They could make up for that issue with their focus. Lightning bolts began to fall from the clouds, and Noah could immediately tell that his body alone wouldn''t be able to face them. Also, he wasn''t entirely sure that his defensive spells would be able to counter them for that long. A rank 4 battle prowess in the solid stage would be barely enough to fight a couple of those rank 5 bolts in the lower tier, and Noah could raise that number by a bit due to his body. Nevertheless, he was sure that he wouldn''t be able to last for the whole Tribulation, not if he only relied on his abilities at least. An ethereal sphere suddenly surrounded the trio, and several layers made of thick ice appeared above their heads when the Tribulation began. Noah inspected the defensive measures deployed by the elders as he kept fueling his martial art with the liquid "Breath" inside his dantian. Flying Demon''s methods were quite straightforward, and he simply created a hundred white layers that floated in the air and followed the group. Instead, Dreaming Demons'' ethereal sphere seemed to carry a profound meaning. Noah felt that the energy radiated by the sphere was affecting the world around it as they moved and spread its meanings into the very structure of the dimension. ''Is she trying to mask our presence?'' Noah guessed as part of his focus went on the ethereal sphere. That defensive measure spread peaceful feelings to its surroundings while carrying the distinctive mark of Heaven and Earth''s will! It was as if she was trying to tell the Tribulation that Noah and the others weren''t its enemies. The barrage of lightning began to fall and clashed with the layers of ice. White shards fell everywhere as the relentless offensive of the black clouds shattered the surface of Flying Demon''s defensive spell. However, there were one hundred layers, and the Tribulation took about twenty seconds to pierce just one of them. That defensive measure would last until the black clouds depleted their energy if the group remained in that spot. Yet, they were advancing at high speed, which made them encounter stronger lightning bolts as they reached for the central areas. The layers began to last less and less, to the point where the black clouds managed to destroy one of them in five seconds. The trio was nearing the areas where the lightning bolts had a power similar to the middle tier of the fifth rank. That wasn''t a pressing issue since more than twenty minutes had already passed by then, and there was still Dreaming Demon''s sphere as a last form of protection. Orange flashes shone above them when the Flying Demon''s defenses were destroyed, but no lightning bolt crashed on them after that event. The energy radiated by the ethereal sphere seeped inside the bolts when they were about to reach for the group and made them explode before they could crash on the ground. The Tribulation thought of the trio as friends thanks to Dreaming Demon''s methods and stopped its offensive before it could hurt them! Noah didn''t even try to hide his amazement when he saw the effects of the ethereal sphere. He knew that such methods would conflict with his individuality, but that didn''t prevent him from appreciating such an expert. Dreaming Demon''s individuality was peculiar even in a stage where every heroic cultivator chased after their personal laws. Of course, Noah didn''t stop his flight to give voice to his amazement. There would be time to discuss each other''s individualities once they returned to the southwestern coast of the new continent. The Tribulation ended after thirty minutes passed, and the black clouds dispersed to reveal the dark-blue sky. The group had easily survived that danger, but that was to be expected. The real threats were the two rank 5 Tribulations in the upper tier that they would have to face in the next two weeks. The trio didn''t speak as it neared the center of the dimension. The air around them was tense, and their auras became sharp as they focused their minds on the imminent struggle. They would be forced to stop right before the lightning bolts reached the peak of the fifth rank and manage to have enough energy left to cross the entirety of the area that saw rank 6 Tribulations in a week. Then, they would have to survive another Tribulation at the peak of the fifth rank. Their journey would be over after that point since the following threats could be handled easily. Another week passed, and black clouds appeared once again in the sky. Noah began to take out talismans from his space-ring, and the elders deployed their defensive measures once again. Flying Demon had been injured before reaching that point in the past. So, even him was surprised when the trio noticed that something was taking form in the distance. The arrival of the Tribulation triggered a mechanism of the separate dimension, which revealed a tall and luxurious palace at some kilometers from them. Chapter 653: 653. Palace The palace was tall and stood right in the middle of the areas that were targeted by the rank 6 Tribulations. Shining inscriptions covered its surface and gave it a luxurious and grand aura. Half of the structure was hidden behind a square defensive wall that had statues of mighty magical beasts on the top of its corners. Noah didn''t have time to analyze those beasts since his view turned orange, signaling the beginning of the barrage of lightning. The trio''s focus went on the defensive measures of the elders. The one hundred layers of ice were pierced in less than ninety seconds, and explosions began to resound above the ethereal sphere. The lightning bolts released their power in the air above the group, but they kept on reaching closer for them as the effects of Dreaming Demon''s method began to fade. Not even three minutes had passed, but the defenses of the two rank 5 cultivators were already falling apart! The power of a Tribulation at the peak of the fifth rank was incredible, and the elders alone had little confidence in managing to defend against it with their joint power. Their defenses were effective, but there was a limit to how many of them they could create before depleting the energy inside their centers of power. After all, the Tribulation wouldn''t stop for even a second during those thirty minutes while cultivators needed at least a few instants to cast a spell. Those instants would be fatal in that situation. Yet, Noah''s inscribed items would show their usefulness at that point. Noah waited until the explosions of the lightning bolts became too close to them before activating one of his talismans. The talisman created a giant gray vortex above the trio as soon as Noah shattered it. The talismans that Elder Julia had provided him could defend against attacks in the fifth rank and didn''t need "Breath" to be activated. They were some sort of vessels that contained a specific spell that would be released once the items were broken, which made them quite handy to protect weaker cultivators. They were mostly given to promising cultivators in the human ranks or heirs of some powerful family, but there were a few exceptions in the heroic ranks. Noah had stored them since the exchange meeting with the envoys of the four nations and could finally put them to use to counter the great Tribulation. The vortex rotated as it destroyed every lightning bolt that fell on its surface, and that tried to reach for the heroic cultivators under it. The elders immediately prepared their defensive methods again and waited for the vortex to fall apart to deploy them. Noah''s stash of talismans wasn''t limitless, and the group had to face another Tribulation at the peak of the fifth rank after that. Conserving as many defensive items as possible was mandatory, Noah only had five of them after all. The vortex lasted for almost three minutes before being pierced by the relentless rain of lightning bolts. Still, three hundred layers of ice suddenly appeared in its position and continued to defend the group. The power of a talisman would depend on the might of the cultivator that cast the spell. Of course, cultivators would store their most potent spells inside it since they weren''t in a battle. On the contrary, the two Demons had to preserve their energies to last for the entirety of the Tribulation and sprint when it was over. They couldn''t deploy defenses that would leave them drained once created. Doing that would only force them to stop their advance. That was why the vortex lasted more than their spells. Yet, their approach changed after the first talisman was used. Flying Demon used more "Breath" and mental energy to fuel his spell and increased the number of layers. He knew that Dreaming Demon would take over once his defenses were broken and that Noah would use another talisman after her. That gave him the confidence in being able to recover in time to cast other spells without exhausting himself too much. The three heroic cultivators were taking turns to take care of the barrage of lightning. The approach that they had planned before starting their journey worked since Noah only had to use three talismans to reach the last stages of the Tribulation. The black clouds would disperse after Flying Demon took care of what was left of their power. The fact that Noah only had two talismans left wasn''t a miscalculation. Their strategy saw them flying through the next rank 5 Tribulation, meaning that its power would keep on diminishing as they advanced. After all, they would have crossed the center of the dimension at that point. However, the appearance of the palace occupied part of their minds as they defended. Noah and the elders took glances at that structure whenever they had a few instants to spare. They simply couldn''t help themselves. The palace in the distance stood its ground against the rank 6 Tribulation. The fake terrain around it shattered before those mighty lightning bolts managed to land on it, but not even a crack appeared on the surface of that building. There was some sort of shields around the palace that managed to block the lightning storm completely! It was clear that the building hid something with the power of the sixth rank. The Tribulation ended, and the black clouds began to disperse. Noah and the elders would have to sprint in a straight line toward the southern side of the dimension according to their plan. Yet, all three of them began to fly toward the disappearing palace. There were no words, no mental messages, no decisions, they simply flew toward the palace as soon as the lightning storm ended. Their strategy saw them using their full speed to cross the area where the Tribulation reached the sixth rank of power, but there was something even more potent than that at the center of the dimension! How could Noah and two Demons give up on the chance to explore it? Also, their calculations told them that they could still reach the territories with the rank 5 Tribulations even if they took that slight detour. After all, they had chosen to endure peak rank 5 lightning bolts to be sure that they would have enough time, nothing about their strategy was random. Noah fueled the Shadow sprint martial art with his Liquid dantian, and the elders increased their flying speed through their methods. The palace disappeared in a few minutes, but the trio didn''t slow down its advance at that sight. They were set on uncovering the secrets of that mysterious place. Chapter 654: 654. Chained attacks The vast prairie spread in front of the flying trio, and no trace of the mighty palace could be seen anywhere. However, Noah and the elders didn''t diminish their flying speed for even an instant. They were going all out to reach the spot where it had disappeared. Time was the key to their survival, and that detour was bound to waste a bit of it. Yet, risks were usually accompanied by benefits, and anything that could survive a rank 6 Tribulation would obviously be valuable. The group took three days to reach the spot where the palace had appeared, but both their eyes and mental energy couldn''t see anything in the area. There wasn''t even the slight detail on the prairie that suggested that a vast structure was hidden somewhere in that fake land. Nothing happened even when they flew right over the exact area that the palace was occupying during the Tribulation. The group couldn''t slow down, or they would risk being still in the zone targeted by the rank 6 lighting bolts when four more days passed. Greed could lead men to their destruction, and those three heroic cultivators were aware of that. Nevertheless, they were also experienced warriors that had survived through many unexpected situations. Noah had the honed instincts of a lone cultivator, and Divine Demon had personally trained the elders. Their minds ran through every possibility, and Noah even activated the Divine deduction technique to evaluate the little information gathered during the lightning storm. The trio had only seen a palace appearing and defending against the Tribulation before disappearing without leaving any trace. There wasn''t much to work with, and many different events could trigger that scene. Of course, Noah and the others didn''t have time to test all their hypotheses, so they went for the most direct approach. Their eyes suddenly focused when they were about to fly past the area previously occupied by the palace. Noah launched a wave of white flames that shattered the fake terrain and spread cracks through the prairie. Flying Demon summoned thirty-three blue spheres that floated behind his back and released water bullets on both ground and sky. Dreaming Demon closed her eyes, and her consciousness sent soft mental waves that seeped inside the structure of the dimension. Her mental waves destabilized the ground and air of the dimension, and some of them even took the shape of lightning bolts as they unleashed their destructive power. They had all reached the same conclusion in those short instants: Attack! That was the action that would waste less time, and that would test one of the options in their minds. The building became visible and material during the Tribulations, which meant that a threat could trigger its appearance. That spot of the prairie completely fell apart under the assault of the group. Cracks spread even in the air above it due to the shockwaves released by the attacks of the trio. Noah and the elders didn''t know which of their attacks triggered the wanted effects, but their eyes shone when the palace began to reappear! Its figure though started to disappear as soon as the dimension began to reconstruct. The trio immediately launched another series of attacks, but it didn''t care about their nature at that time. Dreaming Demon waved her hands, and four massive tornados formed, destroying vast areas with their incredible suction force. Flying Demon created clouds that released sharp white blades that froze the environment in their trajectory before exploding when they reached the ground. The ice then spread through the shattered prairie and gave birth to shining blue flowers that fed on the "Breath" contained inside the separate dimension. Noah slashed with his Demonic swords and continued to launch flames. The three of them were launching some of their most potent attacks since it was clear that the destruction unleashed previously wasn''t enough to materialize the palace completely. They had silently decided to go all out when they saw a glimpse of the mighty structure. The second offensive made the palace reappear, and its shape seemed about to become entirely material, but it eventually started to fade again. It was needless to say that Noah and the elders attacked again at that sight. Even the third offensive wasn''t enough to make the structure materialize, but the trio had chained a series of spells and martial arts at that time. That created lasting destructive effects that continued to shatter the fabric of the dimension even while the palace formed. Then, they suddenly felt that the density of "Breath" around them had risen to levels that surpassed even those found in the new continent! Their consciousnesses could sense that the world around them had drastically changed. After all, they had launched attacks while hovering in the air right over the palace. They were already inside its perimeter. Some wariness appeared on their expressions when the building began to fade again, and they prepared themselves to sprint toward the south in case even that last attempt turned out to be a failure. Their series of attacks made them lose more than ten minutes, which was almost over the limits that their strategy had set. However, a strange sensation surrounded their bodies and began to make them disappear alongside the palace! A pressure similar to that caused by a teleportation matrix weighed on their minds and forced them to close their senses. The palace was around them when their consciousnesses spread again in the world, but the environment around the structure had changed. They were still inside the separate dimension, the prairie, the moons, and the starless sky were there. Yet, their colors were different. The fake grass had turned yellow, and the sky shone with a bright azure light. The two moons had lost their red shades and were completely black, and it was as if their light couldn''t reach the insides of the palace. Noah and the elders released sighs of relief at the sight of that scene. It was clear that they had managed to enter another layer of the separate dimension. Nevertheless, their entrance inside that place triggered reactions that they couldn''t hope to predict. The statues of the four magical beasts standing top of the corners of the defensive wall took life and descended from their pedestals. Then, they shot in the direction of Noah''s group and surrounded it. Noah was immediately able to notice that those beasts weren''t real living beings, but the danger that they radiated made him instinctively grab Chasing Demon''s talisman. Those creatures were constructs with power that matched the sixth rank! Chapter 655: 655. Stall Noah held Chasing Demon''s talisman in his grasp as the four statues encircled him and the elders. He wasn''t sure if someone inside the palace controlled them or if theirs was a natural reaction triggered by the presence of unwanted guests inside the defensive walls. However, he was sure that they weren''t living beings. ''A white tiger, a green dragon, a red phoenix, and a black turtle, all of them exuding the power of the sixth rank. Yet, the size of these statues doesn''t reflect that of the species that they want to represent.'' Noah thought as he studied the puppets. Those statues were all seven meters tall, a stature that any dragon and most tigers would surpass once reached that level. The lines that covered their bodies shone with a blinding light and radiated a suffocating pressure, but they didn''t charge at the group of heroic cultivators. They simply limited themselves to surround Noah and the elders and stare them with their lifeless eyes. That stall continued for a while. Noah''s group didn''t dare to move since even the slight action could trigger unwanted reactions, and the beasts didn''t take a step further either. It was as if their job was only to contain any external threat. "Are they waiting for orders?" Flying Demon transmitted through his consciousness to the other members of his group. The three of them were close and with their front facing the beasts. Their consciousnesses touched each other, and they could transmit mental messages in the triangle created with their backs without leaking even the slight ripple. "Probably. I don''t see why they stopped otherwise." Noah answered through the same method used by the elder. The statues weren''t doing anything, so that was a good time to make the point of the situation. "Trying to escape is too dangerous, we have to follow the rules of this place." Dreaming Demon added after a short moment of silence. Separate dimensions usually contained inheritances and trials, which forced every contender to behave in a certain way. They didn''t know if the palace was meant to deliver an inheritance, but that situation didn''t allow them to do much. The threat of those statues was too high, just one of them was enough to take care of the three heroic cultivators. Even Noah didn''t have any confidence in escaping from that encirclement with Chasing Demon''s talisman. Also, they couldn''t just escape. They had lost too much time, and they couldn''t reach the areas targeted by the rank 5 Tribulations before the next lightning storm anymore. Their only options were to go all out and face the rank 6 lightning bolts in four days, or wait and see if those statues hid a deeper purpose. Possible death was better than certain death, so they decided to wait. The minutes became hours, and the hours eventually turned into days. The Demons and Noah remained still in the air, and the four statues around them did the same. Nothing moved inside the palace, and the three heroic cultivators did their best to breathe only when they needed it. "There is the chance that there are mechanisms active only during the Tribulations." Dreaming Demon transmitted at some point, and her companions agreed with her guess. The statue and the ethereal properties of the castle worked as autonomous defensive mechanisms. Still, there had to be some sort of intelligent being or spirit automaton controlling the entirety of the structure. Yet, it was possible that such automaton would activate only during the Tribulations and go dormant in the days between them. "We should prepare an escape plan if nothing changes. Do you have anything that can work against these constructs?" Noah asked, and Flying Demon immediately replied without trying to hide his sarcasm. "Haha, yes! I''ll take out the secret item that I''ve decided to save during the last one thousand years! Demon Prince, these are rank 6 puppets, we are dead if they start to move." Flying Demon''s words were on point. He would have already left that place if he had something that could oppose forces in the sixth rank. "I might be able to affect the fabric of this layer if I go all out. I would fall asleep again though, and that only in the scenario in which these things don''t notice my actions." Dreaming Demon spoke, and Flying Demon''s consciousness couldn''t help but tremble slightly when he heard those mental messages. The thought of seeing his lover suffering from the backlash of her techniques again stirred his emotions. However, he immediately calmed down. The situation was entirely different now. They already knew the position of the exit, and the Hive was the fourth force in the Mortal Lands. Waking her up would be effortless if they managed to reach the southwestern coast of the new continent. The only issue would be in surviving the rank 5 Tribulations while also defending the sleeping elder. "Demon Prince, do you have something that can buy enough time for our escape?" Flying Demon asked when he accepted that momentarily sacrificing his lover was the only approach that could create a way out of that situation. "Maybe." Noah limited himself to transmit that word, and the conversation ended after that. They were just evaluating ideas, and they weren''t even sure that they would survive the next lightning storm. More days passed, and the Tribulation arrived on time as usual. Black clouds gathered in the sky, and orange lightning bolts began to fall toward the prairie. The color of the Tribulation didn''t change even from inside the palace. Noah and the elders felt relieved when they saw that the shield around the structure easily fended off the rank 6 lightning storm, and let their mind wander at that sight. They were right under a calamity with the power at the peak of the sixth rank, and they could observe it in its entirety from a safe position. Most heroic cultivators wouldn''t have the chance to witness such a sight until they reached a similar rank. They didn''t think. They just admired the stage that every cultivator in the Mortal Land dreamed of reaching. "I''ve stared at these bolts of lightning more than three hundred thousand times, but I''ve never become bored with them." A firm voice suddenly resounded in the area, and the three heroic cultivators'' gazes immediately turned toward its source. They saw that the ethereal figure of a middle-aged man had appeared out of nowhere right next to the encirclement of the four statues. The man wore a luxurious green robe and carried a couple of thick tomes under his armpit. "Return to your pedestals." The man ordered, and the beasts flew back to the four corners of the defensive wall. Noah and the elders could finally relax when they saw that and waited for the automaton to explain further before saying anything. The ethereal man didn''t wait for them to act and performed a polite greeting gesture while adding a few words. "Welcome to the house of the Divine Architect." Chapter 656: 656. Programming The ethereal man''s words confirmed one of the silent hypotheses of the trio. The palace was the creation of an existence that had reached the divine ranks! The title "Divine" wasn''t something that was given randomly, and spirit automatons wouldn''t use it so casually. Also, the palace could defend against rank 6 lightning bolts, there weren''t many existences that could build something capable of that feat. Noah and the elders bowed to answer the polite gesture of the ethereal man. They were still a bit tense, the automaton was capable of controlling four rank 6 puppets after all. Yet, his courtesy made them slightly relax. "Please, come inside. It has been too long since I had guests." The ethereal man waved his hand to point at one of the tall, wooden doors that stood at the base of the structure. Noah and Flying Demon immediately began to descend toward the entrance, but Dreaming Demon decided to near the automaton while wearing a smile that radiated friendly feelings. "How should we call you?" Dreaming Demon asked, and her question left even the automaton surprised. However, he soon showed a smile of his own before answering her. "I''m Automaton number thirty-seven, but you can just call me Thirty-seven." Thirty-seven''s mood seemed to have improved by a lot after Dreaming Demon gave him that unexpected attention, and Flying Demon couldn''t help but glance at Noah while wearing a smug expression. Noah simply ignored him and continued to descent. He didn''t know that automatons could replicate human emotions so vividly, the spirit of his space-ring was more similar to a program after all. ''I guess there can be pride in having the love of an amazing woman.'' June''s face appeared in Noah''s mind when he thought that. She didn''t have Dreaming Demon''s grace, and she would never take the peaceful approach when she could obtain the same results through a battle. However, Noah loved her straightforwardness, and he liked the fact that he didn''t have to watch his back in her presence. Noah suppressed the thoughts about his lover when he saw Thirty-seven appearing right in front of the door that he had pointed. The door opened when he touched it, and a long corridor was revealed to the descending trio. Inscriptions covered every surface of the corridor, they spread on the walls, floor, and ceiling, creating a brilliant and luxurious area. It was clear that the creator of the palace had even considered the aesthetic aspect of the inscriptions during their construction. "Master hadn''t planned to build this dimension, it was a job commissioned by a fellow divine cultivator. Yet, I can say in all honesty that this place is one of her most impressive achievements." Thirty-seven began to speak as he led the heroic cultivators through the long corridor. The trio listened to him, but their minds wandered as they inspected the environment around them. Noah wasn''t interested in the grandness of the palace, he mostly cared about the resources that it contained. ''Three hundred thousand Tribulation should correspond to almost six thousand years¡­ The world was different when this palace was built.'' Noah guessed the age of the structure by using Thirty-seven''s words, but that realization didn''t bring any benefits. The demon sects had almost disappeared in one thousand years, and they used to be in charge of half of the Papral nation. There was almost no chance that events that happened even farther in the past could affect his situation or the Hive. "I must say, I''m surprised by how stubborn Heaven and Earth are. Their anger toward Master''s creations is endless." Thirty-seven continued to praise Divine Architect without ever giving voice to the details concerning her creations. "What did she create in the past?" Dreaming Demon tried to ask at some point, but Thirty-seven''s figure flickered for a second at that question. "Forgive me. I can''t reveal anything that might uncover secrets behind Master''s past and current feats. You obtained the right to learn about the Mortal Palace because you''ve managed to enter in its perimeter, but my freedom stops there." Thirty-seven explained when his form stabilized. He was a spirit automaton, and he had to act according to his programming. Divine Architect wanted to keep the matters about her feats a secret, and Noah could completely understand her. Her opponents would have a chance to study her individuality and develop countermeasures that exploited her weaknesses if they were to learn more about her. Leaving no traces about their achievements was something that heroic cultivators were used to doing, the slight disadvantage could decide their defeat in a fight. For example, Noah''s enemies would never approach him in a melee battle after his fight against Adrian. That intel about his battle prowess had spread through the heroic assets of the organizations in the Mortal Lands, and everyone knew that his body was unnaturally strong since then. He had forever lost the chance of surprising his enemies with his physical strength. Of course, that was also normal in the cultivation world. Heroic cultivators had to strive for a variegated combat style if they wanted to have enough confidence in any situation. "Can we obtain this palace then?" Flying Demon questioned the automaton when he heard his words. Thirty-seven had clearly said that they had obtained some rights over the building, but Noah''s group didn''t know how far those rights went. Obtaining an item able to fend off rank 6 Tribulations could make any organization reach the peak of the Mortal Lands, Flying Demon''s interest was more than justified. However, Thirty-seven shook his head as he answered the elder. "No. Master''s creations will autonomously self-destruct once their energy is depleted on when anyone tries to seize them. Her creations can shift the balance between the powerful organizations outside of this dimension, and Master couldn''t risk them blaming their defeats on her." Disappointed expressions appeared on the faces of the group, but they didn''t lose their hope and continued to question the automaton. "Are there resources useful for our ranks?" "No, anything with "Breath" has been devolved to keep the dimension intact." "Techniques of some sort?" "No, Divine Architect always kept everything on her person. She always said that even the simplest diagram could give her the inspiration needed to create an inscribed item in the divine ranks." "What can we gain from this palace?" Noah decided to directly ask that when he saw that the questions of the elders always met negative answers. The corridor had ended by then, leading the group in a large hall that featured the same inscriptions on all its surfaces. The hall featured a circular staircase that led to higher parts of the building and many passages connected to other corridors. Yet, the most eye-catching aspect of that area was a massive sculpture in the middle of the staircase made by large floating spheres. "You will obtain all the delicacies safely stored in the palace, knowledge about the Mortal and Immortal Lands, and me." Thirty-seven answered Noah''s question when the group entered the room, and eager expressions appeared on the trio''s faces. Chapter 657: 657. Sculpture Knowledge about the Mortal and Immortal Lands! Noah and the elders'' focus immediately went on that part. The history of the Mortal Lands didn''t interest them, but any heroic cultivator would pay a fortune to learn more about the Immortal ones! It couldn''t be helped, that was the ultimate goal in the cultivators'' journey. "The vast assortment of delicacies is enough to feed a nation for a decade, and the knowledge stored inside the palace covers four thousand years. It starts somewhere ten thousand years ago and ends right before Master''s ascension six thousand years ago." Thirty-seven explained further when he saw that his guests were interested. ''No resources, techniques, or items. Yet, obtaining that kind of knowledge can be incredibly helpful, and the elders would surely hand some of their methods to the Hive anyway. Also, there is this automaton.'' Noah summarized the gains obtained in that journey in his mind. Thirty-seven was the spirit automaton of a rank 6 item, and his usefulness couldn''t possibly be limited to his management skills. Noah knew that well, even his ring''s automaton could perform tasks that surpassed his level. "What can you do? I guess your expertise must cover formations, inscriptions, and runes." Noah asked Thirty-seven to obtain a clear idea of his value. The spirit automaton of his space-ring could catalog a countless number of resources and identify which one of them would be the most useful in specific situations. Instead, Thirty-seven''s abilities had to be in line with Divine Architect''s area of expertise since she had created him to handle the palace. "Exactly. Divine Architect has authorized me to help my new masters with my vast expertise in all the inscriptions'' fields. I can only pass down the method to build this dimension though. Master was very careful in maintaining her monopoly over her creations." Thirty-seven explained, and the trio didn''t know how to react to his words. The help of a rank 6 automaton was terrific, but learning how to create a separate dimension couldn''t bring that many benefits. After all, those places were mainly built by powerful beings to pass down inheritances. The Hive was at its prime, and Chasing Demon was far away from the divine ranks, a separate dimension wouldn''t be that useful in their case. Thirty-seven didn''t fail to notice their slight disappointment and began to list the benefits of the dimension as he led the group on the staircase. "There is nothing safer than a separate dimension! You can store wealth and use its insides to perform dangerous experiments in an environment that bends to your will!" Thirty-seven seemed really heated when he explained those points, but the trio wasn''t interested. Building a separate dimension required an immense amount of wealth and work, and it could only become a secret area of some sort. The Hive couldn''t divert so much man-power and resources during that period since it would only slow down its growth. Noah began to focus on the staircase and the sculpture at its center when he lost interest in the automaton''s words. The steps were transparent, they had been built with an alloy that resembled glass, but that was far sturdier. ''It is as if Divine Architect wanted to be sure that the staircase wouldn''t hinder the sight of the sculpture.'' Noah thought as his gaze moved toward the floating spheres above him. The sphere slowly rotated as they remained in their spots, but there was a bigger one that stayed still. The group continued to climb the transparent steps, and the automation continued to argue with the elders, but Noah''s mind had begun to wander. The spheres became more detailed as the group neared them, and Noah''s eyes widened when he noticed a few details on one of them. That sphere was mostly azure, but there were a few brown spots of various shapes on its surface. The issue was that their shapes seemed to match the continents in the Mortal Lands perfectly! "You humans are all the same, always thinking about benefits. Do you want resources? With this dimension, you can reac-" "Thirty-seven, is that our world?" Noah''s question interrupted Thirty-seven''s words, and the elders immediately followed his gaze to stare at the sculpture. The automaton suppressed his anger with a snort and wore a proud expression when he saw the amazed faces of the heroic cultivators. More details appeared on the spheres as the group kept on climbing, and Noah began to notice other smaller brown marks on their surfaces. His focus was on the sphere that seemed to depict his word. He saw how accurate it was in representing the continents and the small islands on the vast sea. His surprise further increased when he saw the piece of Immortal Lands depicted on it. "Explain." Noah said that simple word at that point. The automaton wanted to gloat a bit, but his eagerness to show off Divine Architect''s creation took over that feeling. "The sculpture is an attempt to represent the Mortal and Immortal Lands that Master has been able to see with one of her creations. Of course, this world is the most detailed." Silence fell on the group when the automaton spoke. The heroic cultivators analyzed the sculpture with a newfound interest, and there was some disbelief in their expressions. That disbelief originated by the fact that the sculpture represented multiple Mortal Lands! ''The five small spheres should all be Mortal Lands, which means that the bigger one depicts the Immortal ones.'' Noah quickly moved his focus on the bigger sphere at the center of the sculpture. He already knew that other worlds existed out there, so it took him less than his companions to recover from that realization. The bigger sphere was white, and it only featured one small black dot on its surface. "Even Master''s masterpieces couldn''t allow her to learn much about the higher plane, which was why she had ultimately decided to ascend. Yet, she had been asked to build this dimension right before that." Thirty-seven radiated an intense pride as he revealed events that happened far in the past. "The job was incredibly ambitious. She would have to create a copy of the Mortal Lands with the hope that a higher plane would naturally form because of it. Yet, Heaven and Earth intervened and stopped the expansion of this place." Anger appeared on the automaton''s expression when his story reached that point. However, his next words made the heroic cultivators focus on him again. "Creating Mortal Lands while under Heaven and Earth''s domain is impossible. Yet, one of the amazing features of this dimension is that its exits must be built from inside it. I believe you can understand how useful it can be." Chapter 658: 658. Library Each of Thirty-seven''s revelations surprised Noah and the elders to no end. First of all, there was Divine Architect''s attempt to represent the Mortal and Immortal Lands through a sculpture. That attempt had ultimately failed, but she still achieved something spectacular in discovering other Mortal Lands that seemed connected to a single higher plane. That discovery was useless for most heroic cultivators. Still, some experts would surely decide to spend centuries to explore further the nature of the other worlds and their connection to the Immortal Lands. Also, many peak heroic cultivators that were approaching the divine ranks would pay a fortune to learn more about the layout of the universe. Then, there was the attempt to build a world outside of Heaven and Earth''s domain to give birth to a new higher plane. Noah and the elders couldn''t even begin to imagine who had the time and assets to commission such an unrealistic and ambitious work. They didn''t even know if a higher plane could form naturally due to the appearance of a lower one! In the end, there were the properties of the separate dimension revealed by Thirty-seven''s words. The possibility of creating an exit directly from inside the dimension meant that they could reach enemy lands without revealing their position. The trio didn''t know how exactly that worked, but the thought of building the dimension suddenly became interesting. What if they could just appear inside one of the deposits of the Royal academy and disappear without leaving any trace? What if they could appear behind the enemy''s defenses and take by surprise an entire camp? The applications to that feature were endless, especially for a nation built by the fusion of unorthodox sects and underground organizations. ''I wonder if my previous world is somewhere far outside of those Mortal Lands.'' Noah thought as his mind sorted all the new information acquired. He knew that his previous world couldn''t be classified as a Mortal Land, the absence of miraculous energies like the "Breath" put it far below the required standards. Yet, he couldn''t help but imagine it being somewhere far away from Heaven and Earth''s domain. ''Maybe, Heaven and Earth will expand and annex my previous world, blessing it with their "Breath".'' Noah suppressed his thoughts after that. The "Breath" was a blessing, just like the ability to cultivate. However, he knew that Heaven and Earth were sentient entities and that their actions had to carry their hidden reasons. It was clear that they strived for power and control, but heroic cultivators couldn''t possibly understand their methods and exact intentions. "Can we use the exits to return inside the dimension?" Flying Demon asked at some point. Noah and Dreaming Demon could understand the meaning behind his question and decided to remain silent. Flying Demon had spent one thousand years trapped inside the dimension, and he had to know if there was an easier way out of that place. An affirmative answer would mean that his long sufferings would have been for nothing, but his mind needed to know nonetheless. He simply needed some sort of closure to put behind him all those years and move onward. "Their functioning is set during their creation. Each door can work as an entrance, exit, or both. You just have to decide it during their construction." "What about those inside this dimension? What are they meant for?" Flying Demon gave voice to another question as soon as Thirty-seven explanation ended. "Master knew about Heaven and Earth''s possessiveness, so she limited the number of doors as much as she could. The door on the north can only work as an entrance, while that on the south can only function as an exit." Dreaming Demon reached for Flying Demon''s hand when Thirty-seven''s words resounded in the hall. That explanation cleared the elder''s last doubts about his actions. He now knew that he had done everything he could in those one thousand years. Thirty-seven didn''t even seem to notice the elders had begun to ignore him and were focused on each other. Noah ignored them too since he didn''t want to interrupt those expressions of affection. His focus was on the top floor that was slowly being revealed as the group reached the end of the staircase. Massive bookcases filled with countless tomes and scrolls appeared in his view as he stepped on the last transparent step of the circular staircase. The top floor of the palace turned out to be a massive library! Also, Noah was immediately able to notice that a tall item could be seen at the end of the library. The item resembled a telescope that radiated an eerie aura that reached the sixth rank. "Master has used the Space-lens to gaze at the worlds outside of these Mortal Lands, but the item was forever damaged when she turned it toward the Immortal Lands." Thirty-seven said as he stared at the huge telescope. Noah and the elders felt some eagerness to test it, but they quickly suppressed those feelings. A rank 6 inscribed item had been damaged by a single glance at the Immortal Lands. They couldn''t even begin to imagine what that sight would do to their mental spheres. Thirty-seven waved his ethereal hands, and a series of couches and praying mats materialized between the bookcases. "Please, feel free to rest and browse through this knowledge as much as you want, I''ll quickly transfer food and wine too. This palace can only last for four hundred years though, so be sure to leave before that." The automaton disappeared after he said those words, and the cultivators shot smirks at each other now that they were alone again. They were safe and had even obtained part of the legacy of a divine being! Their decisive actions during the crossing had been rewarded by a vast knowledge and a rank 6 spirit automaton specialized in the inscriptions'' fields. Also, they were right in the middle of the territories targeted by the rank 6 Tribulations, which meant that they wouldn''t have to face the peak rank 5 lightning bolts when they resumed their crossing. Flying from that point for a week would make them directly reach the areas with rank 5 lightning bolts that had power in the middle tier. Their travel toward the exit had just become far more manageable. "I have no intention of staying here for four hundred years." Flying Demon announced with a laugh as he lay on one of the couches. "It''s a pity though. These amazing items would self-destruct after our departure. Divine Architect was really careful." Dreaming Demon said as she sat next to her lain lover. "Let''s rest, recover, and enjoy ourselves for a while. I''m too interested in these books to leave so soon." Noah said as he neared the bookcases to inspect the scrolls and tomes on them. The two Demons nodded at his words and used their mental waves to inspect the bookcases too. It was needless to say that all three of them immediately looked for the knowledge concerning the Immortal Lands. Chapter 659: 659. Relax Thirty-seven reappeared in the library shortly after while bringing the delicacies that he had promised. A series of long tables floated inside the large room and softly landed in front of the couches where the three heroic cultivators were seated. Noah and the elders had easily found tomes and scrolls that discussed theories and clues about the Immortal Lands while the automation was away. The contents of those books had immediately claimed their interest, and they barely noticed that food and sweet wine had been placed in front of them. Even Noah, who usually didn''t care about historical records, was immersed in that knowledge. It couldn''t be helped, even the slight hint that concerned the Immortal Lands was a unique treasure for heroic cultivators. Beings that strived for the divine would pay a fortune to learn more about it. It was a simple but innate drive. Thirty-seven remained silent when he saw that scene. He considered himself already part of their assets, and he wouldn''t do anything that could break their concentration. Flying Demon was the first to notice the food, and he put aside the scrolls in his hands to dive toward those delicacies. The elder hadn''t seen food for centuries, and its sole sight was enough to make him drool. Dreaming Demon followed his example, but her gestures were more refined as she reached for one of the plates. On the other hand, Noah ignored the food in front of him and limited himself to fill one cup with that sweet wine without moving his gaze away from the tome in his hands. He was reading about the studies of a certain Caleb Pettders, a talented noble of the Utra nation that had lived more than six thousand years ago. Caleb had been a rank 6 cultivator and the pride of the royal family previously ruling that nation. However, he ended up ruining his mental sphere when he asked Divine Architect for a favor. According to the tome, the news that Divine Architect had built a telescope capable of taking glimpses of the Immortal Lands was known by most of the powerhouses living in the old continent. That feat had been discovered when she moved the Space-lens in the separate dimension. It was needless to say that the item immediately had become the center of the interests of the powerhouses of that time. Rank 5 and 6 cultivators searched for her for years, but only Caleb managed to find her with the help of his family''s resources. Divine Architect and Caleb had made a deal at that point, which saw the Pettders family swearing not to blame Divine Architect for any unwanted consequence. After all, Divine Architect had yet to become divine by that time, and the threat of the ruling family of the Utra nation could still scare her. In the end, Caleb managed to see the Immortal Lands through the Space-lens, and their sight almost shattered his mental sphere. The wealth of his family couldn''t help him, rank 6 drugs were unobtainable, and no powerhouse would ever be willing to sell them. The Pettders family could only see its power vanish as other nobles took over its domain. Caleb had decided to write a book during those events to try to stop the decline of his family. Still, the loss of their rank 6 existence had affected it too much by then. Also, Caleb wasn''t sane after the blow on his sea of consciousness, and his words didn''t make much sense. Noah had been able to learn about his story only because the tome in his hands gave a brief introduction before transcribing Caleb''s words. The concepts written by Caleb were messy, they didn''t make any sense. Noah had to read the entire book many times and analyze his words through the Divine deduction technique to sort out what could be real and what was only the result of Caleb''s madness. ''The words "blinding light" are reoccurring and fit the Divine Architect''s representation of the Immortal Lands. He even often mentions that he "saw feelings and watched sounds" when he stared at the higher plane.'' Those lines of thought were the summary of an entire book. ''No wonder he couldn''t save his family, his book couldn''t be worth much in this state. Seeing feelings and watching sounds is an interesting line though, it might refer to the laws radiated by divine beings.'' Noah took a few sips from his cup as he thought that. Expressing a law could be done only when a cultivator became law, but there had to be similar features in the heroic ranks. ''I know that expressing the individuality should be one of the last steps in the heroic ranks, and I can already learn part of the laws that I''m absorbing due to my cultivation technique. Yet, there isn''t much to gain from this book.'' Noah left the tome on the table and swept the bookcases with his mental energy. He didn''t expect to find many certainties about the Immortal Lands even in that vast library, but small clues and hints were all that heroic cultivators could desire. The difference between the Mortal Lands and a higher plane was too vast, and even a rank 6 existence couldn''t bear its sight. ''The Space-lens was forgotten after the powerhouses understood that it was too dangerous. I guess only Divine Architect knew how to use it properly.'' Noah thought as he took a glance at the massive telescope at the center of the room. He would be lying if he said that he wasn''t curious about that fantastic item. Thirty-seven had warned them that it had been damaged, but the records confirmed that it had been used at least twice to stare at the Immortal Lands. There was some missing clue that only Divine Architect could know, and Noah wouldn''t try his fortune with something so dangerous. Weeks passed inside the palace, and Tribulation never failed to arrive on time. Noah and the Demons relaxed inside the comfortable, safe area at the top of the palace. They even began to question Thirty-seven about some of the books contained in the library. The automaton had read all those tomes and scrolls in the thousands of years spent alone in the dimension and claimed to be able to rewrite them. Yet, the group still decided that it was better to bring them back to the Hive when they felt like leaving. Some of those scrolls were originals that still carried the intents of their powerful authors, and their value couldn''t be compared to regular copies. The library offered a vast knowledge and safety, but Flying Demon was eager to return to the outside world, and the others in his group had similar feelings. So, they simply stored all the food, wine, and books inside Noah''s space-ring and waited for the arrival of the next Tribulation. They had already decided that they would run in a straight line toward the exit once the next lightning storm ended. Chapter 660: 660. Aptitudes The weekly Tribulation arrived on time and unleashed its usual destruction. Noah and the elders stared at the majestic sight of the rank 6 lightning bolts crashing on the shield of the palace from above the defensive wall. They wouldn''t have a chance to witness a similar scene from a safe position anymore after that day, so their complete focus was on that great calamity. Anything with the power of the sixth rank was worthy of respect, even if it came from Heaven and Earth. That was the last step of the heroic ranks, the ultimate target of all the heroic cultivators living in the Mortal Lands. The lightning storm began to disperse after thirty minutes, and the group prepared itself to sprint toward the south, in the direction of the exit. Then, the trio jumped off the defensive wall and began to fly at full speed when the last black cloud in the sky vanished. They had one week before the next Tribulation, and that amount of time was enough to make them reach the areas targeted by rank 5 lighting bolts in the middle tier. They could avoid the lightning storm with power at the peak of the fifth rank since their starting point was farther in the dimension compared to the checkpoint in their original strategy. There would still be three Tribulations in the next part of their travel, but two of them would be in the fourth rank since they had set off from the palace. The light radiated by a pendant on Dreaming Demon''s neck flickered when the group left the perimeter of the palace. Loud ruckus began to resound from the structure behind them, but the group didn''t dare to stop to analyze the event. Thirty-seven had activated the self-destruct measures of the palace since he was leaving the structure with the trio. That action couldn''t be avoided since the spirit automaton had been programmed in that way by Divine Architect. Noah and the others didn''t have the power to modify his programming without causing any unwanted reaction, so they simply gave up on the thought of keeping Divine Architect''s creations. Instead, they flew at an even higher speed to escape the rage of the blast. Luckily for them, Thirty-seven had left the shield of the palace active to contain the explosion. Earthquakes and shockwaves spread from the palace to the areas around it, but the shield managed to block most of its destructive effects. Part of the prairie and the space above it still shattered, but those mighty events didn''t manage to reach the three heroic cultivators that were already far in the distance. It was needless to say that they felt helpless about that outcome. A palace able to defend against rank 6 attacks and a damaged telescope able to gaze at the worlds outside of the Mortal Lands were items than any organization would do anything to obtain. Yet, Divine Architect was too careful and powerful, Noah and the others could just accept the fact that they couldn''t affect that outcome. A week passed quickly, and Noah felt forced to eat many of the pills created by the Udye family to refill his Liquid dantian to help the elders with the Tribulation. That rank 5 Tribulation had the power of the middle tier. It couldn''t be handled carelessly even if the group had already faced something stronger. Noah and the elders repeated the same cyclic deployment of defensive measures, with Noah using one of his talismans and flames to aid the Demons during their breaks. Of course, his flames couldn''t possibly oppose those lightning bolts, but they could help in gaining a few precious seconds so that he wouldn''t have to use another talisman. The crossing was over in his mind, and his focus had to be in saving useful resources now. The exploration of the separate dimension was bound to bring incredible benefits to the Hive, but Noah had to pay for them with his wealth. After all, the Hive would gain two rank 5 cultivators, a rank 6 automaton expert in all kinds of inscriptions, and an immense knowledge concerning the history of the continent. Also, there were the techniques and methods that Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon had kept in their minds since their exile. Instead, Noah had only seen his Credits, pills, potions, and talismans diminish to obtain all of that. He didn''t mind the rank 4 drugs too much, but the loss of the rank 5 potion and the four talismans weighed on his mind. They were lifesavers challenging to obtain, especially the potion. ''I guess I did gain something.'' Noah thought when the Tribulation was over, and the group resumed its flight toward the southern area of the dimension. ''I think I would have taken longer to reach the liquid stage if I didn''t decide to sacrifice the immediate gains. Also, I''ve upgraded all my spells in a safe space in this period. I will be on a completely different level once I return to the southwestern coast of the new continent.'' Noah believed that he would have achieved similar results even if he wasn''t trapped in the dimension. Still, he couldn''t deny the fact that meeting the elders had helped his individuality. ''They better find a way to repay me. Taking a look at all the techniques and methods inside their minds is the very least that they can do.'' Noah had already decided to directly ask for the knowledge of the demon sects when the group reunited with the Hive. The unorthodox techniques of those sects were fascinating, and Noah couldn''t wait to improve his combat style. He had been using the same spells and arts for years by then, and he had even improved all of them recently. Yet, they were random spells that didn''t suit his individuality, only the second form of his martial art, and some of the modified diagrams carried traces of it. ''The weakness of the rarest elements¡­'' That thought appeared in Noah''s mind when he reviewed his offensive. Darkness and light aptitude cultivators were generally more potent than their peers, but they had to overcome the lack of proper diagrams and arts that could express their power. That issue was further enhanced in the heroic ranks since cultivators would need to strive to their individuality at those stages. However, Noah couldn''t fully express his individuality without fitting attacks. His battle style had been honed and perfected through many battles, but he still fought while using any spell that he could find. ''It''s impossible to find a set of spells for my element that also fit my individuality. I can only slowly create them as I keep absorbing laws.'' Noah put the matter in the back of his mind at that point. He had already taken the second step inside the heroic ranks, and the Divine deduction technique helped him in matters that afflicted ordinary cultivators. There was nothing that he could do to improve faster. The group faced the two rank 4 Tribulations in the following weeks and crossed them without any problem. Then, Noah and the elders reached for the exit. Chapter 661: 661. Return There was a zone devoid of life inside the mountain chain that divided the areas of influence of the Elbas family and the Shandal Empire. That feature was quite peculiar in a rank 5 danger zone, especially since some heroic cultivators believed that it hid a rank 6 existence inside its perimeter. An area devoid of life in a lair of powerful magical beasts was unusual, but the mountain chain was treated in a similar way to the mystical fog. It was a danger zone that could be easily crossed on the western coast through the city of Slyfall, so there was no point in venturing through its dangerous territory. Yet, the terrain of that particular spot began to show traces of activity for the first time in millennia at some point. Shining lines appeared on the ground and spread through a few hundreds of meters vast area, creating an array that illuminated the surface of the mountains around it. The light radiated by the large formation increased until it became a blinding halo, only to vanish shortly after. Noah, Flying Demon, and Dreaming Demon''s figures had appeared on the ground when the blinding light of the array vanished. The shining lines under them slowly stopped shining and began to disappear. Also, some of them even showed slight cracks in their shapes. The trio knew that the detonation of the palace had started a chain reaction that would slowly shatter the fabric of the separate dimension in the next months. Those cracks were just one of the after-effects of that event. The truth was that only Noah and Dreaming Demon had noticed those details since Flying Demon was wholly captivated by the sight of the starry sky. It was nighttime when they came out of the separate dimension, and the elder had stared at the dark-blue starless sky for a thousand years in solitude. Seeing a different environment after so much time gave birth to many emotions inside him, he could finally sense that his hardships were over. Flying Demon stared at the sky for a while and closed his eyes to calm his mind when he felt satisfied. Noah and Dreaming Demon remained silent by his side. They were set on giving him all the time that he needed. Then, he began to speak without opening his eyes. "Demon Prince, I want to make one thing clear." Noah turned toward the elder when he heard those words. "I know that my lover didn''t predict your arrival, but you still saved both of us. A few lifetimes might not be enough to repay this debt, and my assets can''t even begin to cover it. Yet, I can promise you our eternal gratitude. Our powers will be at your disposal whenever you desire." Flying Demon opened his eyes when he finished speaking and began to fly in the sky to take a better look at the world. Dreaming Demon shot a warm smile toward Noah before following her lover in the sky. They had been away for one thousand years, their eagerness to see how the world had changed was understandable. ''I wonder if he would still speak in that way if he knew that I thought about eating both of them.'' Noah shook his head as he suppressed that thought. Buzzing sounds began to resound inside his sea of consciousness as his inscribed notebook received the mental messages that had accumulated while he was inside the dimension. Noah had disappeared for less than five years, and the elders of the Hive knew that the exploration of a separate dimension could take far more. Yet, they still sent a few messages to question him about his status and to update him about the main progress of the Hive. Noah read through the contents of those messages as he flew toward the elders that had begun to stare toward the west with wide eyes. They had learnt about the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands from Noah, but the sight of the new landmass in the distance still made their imagination wander. "Prepare a welcome banquet. We have guests." Noah limited himself to send that mental message to the Hive when he saw the expressions of the two Demons. Only time and willpower would heal the injuries that their individualities carried, and seeing how the Hive was flourishing under the rule of their old friend might help in that matter. "This way. We can directly fly to the Coral archipelago and take a teleportation matrix there." Noah said as he flew past the elders toward the archipelago. Staring at the new continent from a distance couldn''t be compared to the feeling of flying over its sky, he knew that too well. The elders returned to reality when they heard his words and began to follow him while taking glances of the territories around them. Everything felt new to them, and they couldn''t help but take short breaks whenever they found something interesting. Their flying speed turned out to be rather slow due to their curiosity, but Noah didn''t mind waiting a bit to appease them. After all, his mission was over, and there was only a long period of meditation in front of him. Then, a familiar figure greeted them when they reached the sky above the city of Slyfall. "It''s so good to see you again, Lord Balvan. Would you make use of the services that my city can offer to you and your esteemed friends this time?" Drew, the son of the governor of the city of Slyfall, gave voice to those words while performing a bow to greet the three heroic cultivators. Noah felt quite surprised that Drew was bold enough to speak to two rank 5 cultivators, but his amazement further increased when he saw Thirty-seven materializing next to them. Thirty-seven didn''t say a word as he shot toward Drew and began to study his inscribed robe. The automaton was captivated by those inscriptions, and he would exclaim random phrases as he traced those shining lines with his ethereal fingers. "The inscriptions'' field has made a lot of progress in these years." "Oh! I see Zave''s teachings inside this line." "Why is the inscription master doing such shabby works?" Drew stood still as the automation evaluated the inscriptions on his robe, but traces of annoyance appeared on his face when he saw that Thirty-seven didn''t seem willing to stop anytime soon. "My Lords, could you please make him stop?" Drew asked, but the trio only revealed stern expressions. Noah and the elders were Thirty-seven''s Masters, but the automaton was an intelligent rank 6 automaton. He had a will of his own, which made him difficult to control with their power. "Why don''t you give him your robe? He seems captivated by its fabric." Dreaming Demon asked at some point, and the friendly feelings radiated by her smile forced Drew to obey her request. Flying Demon showed a smug smile at that sight while Noah turned to leave toward the archipelago. Drew was able to recover only after even the elders had left, which was when he realized that the trio had robbed him. Chapter 662: 662. Ineptitude "The inscription''s field has made a lot of progress in the past six thousand years. It''s such a pity that the same can''t be said for the inscription masters." Thirty-seven kept on evaluating Drew''s robe as the group flew toward the Coral archipelago. He wouldn''t remain silent nor return inside the pendant on Dreaming Demon''s neck even when she asked him nicely, so the group had to hear his endless comments for the whole duration of their travel. "Look! That animal has wasted such an amazing use of Zave''s teachings! How can they even sell such a failure!" Thirty-seven exclaimed while trying to find some common ground with the members of his group. However, Noah and the elders had no idea what he was talking about. Noah''s inscription method was atypical and very personal. It could be considered a branch of the inscriptions, but it also worked in a completely different way. Flying Demon had only a general understanding of the various schools and could use simple methods of all of them. Yet, he wasn''t an expert in any of them. He had just learnt how they worked since some of the techniques of the demon sects required them. Dreaming Demon also trained in a very personal method. She wasn''t able to perform inscriptions, but her peculiar mental waves worked in a similar way to the meanings contained in the runes. Her methods were exceptional in their uniqueness, and she could only be labeled as a pioneer of a school since she was already able to create spells. The flight became a bit awkward because of that. Noah simply ignored Thirty-seven, while Flying Demon limited himself to nod every time the automaton turned toward him. Only Dreaming Demon showed gentle smiles when Thirty-seven mentioned her. Still, the twitches on the corners of her mouth revealed how even her patience was reaching its limits. Thirty-seven didn''t seem to mind their reactions and continued to complain as if it was completely normal. His theses used arguments of experts that had lived even ten thousand years in the past! ''He can''t speak about Divine Architect, but he doesn''t have the same limitations when it comes to other cultivators and schools. I wonder if he is stable enough to hold classes for both heroic and human cultivators.'' Noah thought as he listened to the vast knowledge of the automaton. The Hive lacked experts in the inscriptions'' fields. Even the purchase of books and scrolls that contained some teachings could only give birth to a limited number of new inscription masters. The type of instruction that the Hive could provide was below the average of the three big nations, which was something that couldn''t be solved in a short amount of time. The Utra nation was the most advanced country in the inscriptions'' fields because the Royal academy instructed human cultivators since they were still in the first rank. However, the Elbas family had invested a lot in the academy. The Royals had even accepted that their enemies could benefit from the subjects taught there to increase their experts. The other big nations used less capable methods to provide that kind of instruction to promising cultivators, but they still needed to invest a lot in that field to reach that point. Instead, the Hive had just begun to pave its path toward the level of power of the three big nations. Its human assets were steadily increasing, and the training grounds gave them real combat experience. That training was bound to show its results in the future, especially if it gave birth to more heroic cultivators. Yet, inscriptions were critical too. Heroic cultivators would need them at some point to create personal techniques or spells, and it would be almost impossible for them to reach the sixth rank otherwise. The beings in the sixth rank were the expression of the real power of an organization, so it was normal for each country to create favorable conditions for their birth. The lack of proper teachers in the Hive could be solved if Thirty-seven proved himself able to educate both human and heroic cultivators. The first classes could give birth to a series of inscription masters that could consequently hold courses of their own. The Hive would need to purchase a large number of precious materials required by the students in those fields, but there wasn''t a better period to do so. The prices for the cultivation resources were at their lowest since the appearance of the new continent, and they were still struggling to stabilize. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon ultimately accelerated since Thirty-seven''s presence was becoming unbearable, and the group managed to reach the Coral archipelago in less than three weeks. Elder Roy welcomed them when they reached the islands, but he couldn''t recognize the two rank 5 cultivators next to the Demon Prince. He limited himself to follow Noah''s orders and allow them to reach the teleportation matrix leading to the new continent. The group reappeared under the white crowns of the forest of White Woods, where the central array had been built. Noah and the elders had finally reached the headquarters of the Hive! The elders showed amazed expressions when they sensed the high density of "Breath" in the area, but they didn''t leave the perimeter of the formation. There were many defensive layers around them, and only Noah was authorized to cross them without causing any adverse reactions. However, there was someone in their group that couldn''t help but complain when he saw the shining lines on the ground. "What is this atrocity!?" Thirty-seven shouted those words as he came out of the pendant on Dreaming Demon''s neck to take a better look at the formations around them. "What is this level of ineptitude!? The power output is completely off the scale for the tasks executed by this array. These animals have just piled one formation over another without even caring to restore some harmony!" Thirty-seven shouted as he floated from one core of the formation toward another. Elder Julia saw the entire scene since she had decided to greet Noah when the cultivators in the archipelago informed her that he was with two rank 5 entities. She was standing outside of the formations, and her eyes would follow the automaton as she evaluated every mistake that he pointed out. She had helped to set the defenses in that area, and she had even linked the energy gathered in the shining lakes to those lines. So, those comments seemed directed toward her. Noah noticed her furrowed brows and was about to explain the situation, but an oppressing aura suddenly covered the area and forced the automaton to stay still. Elder Julia and Noah were immediately able to recognize that aura. Still, Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon took a while before linking those sensations to their memories from one thousand years ago. However, they showed broad smiles when they realized who was the owner of that aura. Their gazes then went for the white crowns where they saw an amazed Chasing Demon flying toward them. Chapter 663: 663. Masterpiece "These... Lines... Bad... Inscriptions!" Thirty-seven struggled to complain even under Chasing Demon''s suppression. However, the three Demons didn''t mind his words. They didn''t see each other since the exile of the demon sects, and they weren''t even sure about their survival. Chasing Demon had lived hidden in the exoskeleton of the Purple corals, afflicted by anger and vengeful thoughts. The Chasing demon sect had thrived in the islands of the archipelago, but it didn''t have the power to peek at the lands ruled by the three big nations in those years. The Patriarch of the Hive couldn''t look for the remains of his companions even when the Coral archipelago became independent. The Hive was simply too weak. Years spent in regret and sorrow had honed his individuality, leading him to create a cultivation technique and reach the sixth rank even if part of his potential had been wasted. Instead, the other two elders had stayed in the separate dimension for the whole time. Dreaming Demon had it easy because of her sleep, but Flying Demon had to live in solitude, feeding his body to commoners with the hope of awakening his lover. Yet, those Demons were now standing under the same forest, and simple words couldn''t describe the emotions that filled their minds at that moment. The automaton continued to struggle under Chasing Demon''s pressure. He didn''t seem to care that his very form was in danger, he only wanted to point out the mistakes in the formations around him. On the other hand, Elder Julia couldn''t understand the actions of the Patriarch. Chasing Demon left his underground training area when he needed to deploy the copying technique, but he spent the rest of the time cultivating. He was the powerhouse of the Hive after all, and his eyes gazed for the lands above the sky. However, he was currently out in the open, and he wore an incredulous expression that radiated traces of warmth and happiness. Elder Julia instinctively turned toward Noah at that point. She wanted to understand what was happening, but she stopped creating her mental message when she noticed that Noah had reached the liquid stage. There didn''t seem to be a limit to how much a simple scene could surprise her. "Arthur, Tisha, how is this possible?" Chasing Demon said as he landed on top of the shining lines right in front of Noah''s group. Dreaming Demon limited herself to smile while Flying Demon released a laugh before adding a few words. "Haha, we were just taking a break when your Demon Prince arrived and begged us to join the Hive." Noah snorted when he heard the elder and replied with a few mocking lines of his own. "I was just passing by and decided to bring these fossils with me." Chasing Demon was able to notice Noah''s new cultivation level only after he spoke, but his focus didn''t leave the two rank 5 elders even at that point. He had tasked Noah to look for the demon sects, but he was expecting him to return with a few human cultivators and a couple of forgotten techniques. Finding the Charming demon sect and the slave carrying the bloodline of the Enduring demon sect was already a massive achievement in his mind. However, returning with two rank 5 Demons couldn''t possibly have a fixed value. After all, the Hive only had five rank 5 cultivators, but that number had instantly increased to seven! Generally speaking, an organization would have to wait centuries to see the birth of just one of those powerful individuals. The path toward the higher ranks became longer in the heroic ranks, and it wasn''t strange for rank 4 cultivators to remain stuck on their level for centuries. Also, that stagnation would affect their potential. Rank 4 cultivators who had remained on the same stage for centuries had little hope to reach the higher ranks. Their dantians would become unsuitable for the absorption of laws due to the stagnation. Only a constant improvement could make full use of the potential of a cultivator. It must be said that the two Demons weren''t even newly advanced rank 5 cultivators. They were experienced warriors who had once been in charge of the unorthodox sects of the Papral nation. Their battle prowess and knowledge were on par, if not superior, to the strongest rank 5 elders of the Hive. They were elites among beings in the fifth rank. "Never¡­ Pile¡­ Formations¡­ Always¡­ Harmony!" Thirty-seven continued to complain, and his words were finally able to ruin the joyous reunion. Chasing Demon shot an angry gaze toward the automaton who didn''t even seem to notice it. The ethereal man was set on pointing out mistakes, it was as if his programming ordered that behavior. "Is he useful?" Chasing Demon asked while pointing at the automaton, and the trio slowly nodded. "Yes, sadly." Flying Demon even added that line as he began to stare at the suppressed automaton that was crouched on the terrain. Thirty-seven was slowly crawling along the shining lines to inspect their forms better and find other complaints. Nothing else seemed to interest him. However, he revealed a curious when Chasing Demon directed his words to him. "Spirit, do you want to see the formations of our Master?" Thirty-seven stooped complaining at that point and repeatedly nodded toward the Patriarch of the Hive. He could see how Chasing Demon was a rank 6 entity, so he could quickly deduce that his master had to be even stronger than him. Thirty-seven shot a glance at the pendant on Dreaming Demon''s neck, and she threw it toward Chasing Demon without the slightest hesitation. The automaton was simply too annoying, and she couldn''t wait to give it to someone else. "Follow me." Chasing Demon said as he grabbed the pendant and flew toward a spot inside the forest of White woods. The automaton was forced to follow him due to the distancing pendant, and the trio didn''t hesitate to fly after him. Elder Julia was still a bit confused about the whole situation, but she decided to follow the Patriarch nonetheless. She was the elder in charge of the southwestern coast when Chasing Demon was busy cultivating, so it was in her duty to be always informed about everything. Chasing Demon flew past the western coast and dived toward the layer of ice under the new continent. His presence triggered some reactions in the azure rocks right above the layer of ice, and a path opened when he neared them. The group followed Chasing Demon through the passage at the bottom of the piece of Immortal Lands, and sped through the azure tunnel filled by inscriptions. The growls of magical beasts began to resound in the area, and that made Noah understand where they were going. Chasing Demon stopped when he reached a large underground room filled with shining lines that spread toward many tunnels. The spirit automaton had been silent for the whole duration of the flight. Still, he couldn''t help but give voice to a word when the array appeared in his view. "Masterpiece." Chapter 664: 664. Coerce Thirty-seven couldn''t contain his excitement when he saw one of the core areas of the copying technique. "Breaking the limits of the Attunement method! Amazing! Amazing!" The automaton repeated himself as he began to study the shining lines under him. Even Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon felt surprised in front of that scene. It was clear that Chasing Demon was the only one in the entirety of the Hive capable of building something so intricate and powerful, but that still surpassed the limits of his cultivation level. The growls of powerful beasts echoed through the azure walls of the underground room, and Noah''s body instinctively analyzed them. Noah felt a series of information reaching his mind in a matter of seconds, and he gained a general idea of the kind of creatures trapped behind those tunnels. ''Chasing Demon has been busy in these years.'' Noah thought when he understood that the Patriarch of the Hive had captured more than two hundred different specimens! That feat was even more surprising since Noah could sense the presence of ten magical beasts in the fifth rank, as well as a familiar one. There was a familiar screech coming from the tunnels on the south. Noah could recognize that screech since it belonged to the rank 5 Giant sandworm that ruled over the desert. The defenses of the Hive would be extremely sturdy with so many and variegated beasts to copy, but that realization brought a bit of worry on his mind. ''The number of rank 5 specimens dwindles as the colonization advances. I''ll be forced to travel a lot in the future. I might even have to explore the depths of the sea.'' Noah evaluated when he understood that the available prey on the new continent were diminishing. Yet, that thought didn''t dishearten him. His body was already strong, and his instincts were so intense that his rank 4 sea of consciousness found them hard to control. Also, the drawback of his body-nourishing method would become a real issue only when he reached the higher tiers of the fifth rank. He could still feed on peak rank 4 creatures and weak rank 5 beasts at the moment, it was pointless to worry about beings that he couldn''t hunt. ''My focus right now must be on my other centers of power. I need harmony, and I need to deepen my individuality.'' Noah put that matter aside at that point and focused again on the group around him. Elder Julia was silently floating in the back of the group, and the Demons remained silent as they stared at the excited automaton. The three of them didn''t know where to start with their story. The bad memories that accompanied the past events didn''t help in that matter. Then, Dreaming Demon broke the silence. "Rufus." The cultivators in the area turned toward her when they saw that she was beginning to speak. Of course, Thirty-seven kept on studying the formation and wholly ignored the humans above him. "You were one of the weakest among Master''s disciples, but you stand at the very top of the heroic ranks now. Also, you have been able to wield Master''s teachings and make them yours. I''m honored to have been your companion in the past." Dreaming Demon bowed when she finished her phrase, and Flying Demon imitated her gesture. The feelings behind her voice were honest, and she really meant what she said. Chasing Demon had managed to survive the exile of the demon sects and reach the sixth rank without anyone''s backing. There was some luck involved with his feat, but that wasn''t enough to reduce the greatness of his achievement. Chasing Demon went from being the weakest disciple of Divine Demon to the leader of the fourth force in the Mortal Lands! "Friends, please, straighten yourselves and tell me your story. We will drink for days once these matters are settled." Chasing Demon replied as he waved his hand to break their bow. The two elders could only reveal helpless smiles when they saw that their junior was now able to affect their movements with his mental energy. Yet, that discovery only made them more willing to help him and the Hive. The Demons began to speak at that point. Their story started from the exile and went through the events in the separate dimension. Flying Demon didn''t mention many details, but Dreaming Demon made sure to add them every time her lover tried to hide something. She didn''t do that to put shame on her lover, she only wanted Chasing Demon to have a complete understanding of the situation. Also, she wanted him to know how much did Noah sacrifice to help the two of them. They didn''t have resources in their possession, just some techniques that the other Demons had shared with them. Only Chasing Demon had the assets to reward the Demon Prince appropriately. Elder Julia remained silent on the side as the three Demons caught up, but it was evident that she was extremely interested in their stories. The events in the separate dimension mentioned a divine being, and there were three disciples of another divine entity right in front of her. Her eagerness to learn more about those lofty cultivators was understandable, and that feeling even increased when Flying Demon mentioned the gains obtained in the palace. No one cared about the delicacies and wine, they would only be able to reduce the usual expenses of the Hive slightly. Yet, the vast knowledge stored inside Noah''s ring and the automation expert in many inscriptions'' fields were precious. They could probably solve one of the most significant weaknesses of the Hive and make it improve in all the aspects that an organization had to have. The issue was that the automaton didn''t seem intentioned to follow anyone''s orders. Chasing Demon finished listening to the story of his companions and turned his gaze toward the ethereal man studying the shining lines at the bottom of the area. Thirty-seven''s only interest was the inscriptions and all the schools connected to them. So, it was clear in Chasing Demon''s mind that he could only be coerced in aiding the Hive through those methods. "You, Thirty-seven. Would you be willing to pass down your knowledge to the members of my organization? You could create inscription masters able to meet your standards in that way." Chasing Demon tried to persuade the automaton, but the latter simply ignored him. Thirty-seven had eyes and ears only for matters that interested him, threats and kind words couldn''t stop. His personality was even more stubborn since he was an automaton, he didn''t have values that would usually force a human to compromise. Then, Chasing Demon decided to use his most valuable asset to grant a proper teacher to the Hive. "Thirty-seven, I''ll make you take a look at the original lines of this technique if you manage to educate inscription masters." The automaton halted his actions when he heard the Patriarch''s words and raised his head toward the mighty existence in the air. Everyone in the room could guess from his expression that the Hive had obtained another expert. Chapter 665: 665. Bored god The three Demons left once Chasing Demons persuaded Thirty-seven to help the Hive. They wanted some time alone to speak about private matters, and no one could force them to attend social events until they decided otherwise. Thirty-seven went with them since he was linked to the pendant, and Noah explained Elder Julia that he would spend some time sorting the knowledge retrieved in the palace before giving it to the Hive. Elder Julia simply spread the news of Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon''s arrival to the other heroic cultivators after everyone left. The Hive had just gained two rank 5 elders, its power as a whole had drastically increased with that single event. Also, she wanted the other elders to know that the merit for that accomplishment had to be assigned to Noah. The morale of the assets had to be taken into consideration when managing such a powerful organization, and giving to the weaker cultivators someone to strive for could be a strong motivation. After all, Noah had barely lived for half a century, but his feats already outclassed cultivators that had been in the fourth rank for decades! His fame could only grow after that information became public domain, but he didn''t care much about it. Others could worship or look up to him if that helped them, but he couldn''t be affected by their behavior. ''This is the trap hidden behind the safety of the organizations.'' Noah thought as he sat on one of the couches of his mansion. The elders that he had met when he flew toward the invisible dome in the azure plain revealed heated gazes when they noticed his cultivation level. Most of them had been in the gaseous stage of the fourth rank for decades, and some even for centuries. Their potential dwindled with every year that they spent without making any progress, and the sight of Noah having surpassed their level could only give birth to deep respect. However, Noah didn''t feel happy when he noticed those emotions. Instead, their situation made him ponder about the reasons behind their stagnation. ''Most of them have reached the fourth rank while their organizations still hid under the surface of the archipelago. There were no hindrances on their paths, and the legal factions didn''t dare to oppose them. A life with no struggles can''t forge an individuality.'' Noah picked one of the tomes inside his space-ring as he let his mind wander in those thoughts. Isolating to cultivate was an approach that worked in the human ranks, but that could end ruining a cultivator''s potential in the heroic ones. Gaining insights on the laws of an element was a slow and random procedure that required in-depth knowledge of a cultivator''s individuality. Yet, organizations provided resources and a safe space, which ultimately hurt the drives of a cultivator. Someone that relied on an organization too much would eventually become used to that practice and stop pursuing a power that belonged only to himself. Noah knew that far too well, that was the reason why the nobles in the Utra nation usually failed to pass the Pain Tribulation. ''Being in an organization is needed because most techniques and methods could only be found there. Still, one should always be careful not to become a simple pawn that carries a banner.'' Noah put that matter in the back of his mind when he began to focus on the tome. He couldn''t affect the behavior of the elders stuck in the gaseous stage, but he didn''t mind that Elder Julia was using him to rekindle their ambition. Improving the power of the Hive could only benefit him, that was the reason why he had decided to help the Demons in the end. The tome he was reading was one of those containing information about the Immortal Lands, according to Thirty-seven. The tome though didn''t reveal anything unusual, and it mostly contained theories made by powerful beings. Noah quickly took another book at that point. The automation had sorted the tomes and scrolls in the palace, and Noah had ordered the spirit of his ring to keep them tidy. He intended to read through everything that could give him a clearer picture of the higher plane before providing that knowledge to the Hive. There wasn''t any hidden meaning behind that action, he simply wanted to read it before focusing on other matters. Most of the knowledge regarding the Immortal Lands was like that. There were only clues, or confused thoughts written down by cultivators that had discovered something at the cost of their sanity. ''Those that managed to learn something important have most likely kept the information for themselves. Something that could reveal part of the path for the divine ranks can''t be made public so easily.'' Noah concluded once he finished reading a scroll. He had already read a dozen tomes and scrolls by then, but he only found small details and a large number of theories. Most of the cultivators that had suffered a backlash from pushing their consciousnesses near the higher plane described a blinding light and visible emotions. It was as if the scenery of the Immortal Lands couldn''t be grasped entirely by the sea of consciousness of beings in the heroic ranks. Also, there were many mentions about material wills, sounds, and emotions that could only be linked to the presence of divine beings. Yet, all of that was predictable. Those cultivators had just confirmed some of the many hypotheses formulated throughout the years. However, many studies claimed to prove some of those theories too, without the need for actual proofs from the higher plane. ''The Immortal Lands are expanding, and this cultivator even claims that Heaven and Earth are annexing more worlds to their domain. I know that they are sentient entities, but does that mean that they have a goal?'' Noah couldn''t help but wonder about that aspect of the world. Earth had spoken during his Tribulation, and Heaven had tried to interrupt his experiments with the fusion between species. Nevertheless, enforcing rules was different from pursuing a goal. The first action could even be executed by wills or automaton, while the second required a drive and an ambition. Then, Noah found a piece of peculiar information as he continued to browse through the knowledge retrieved from the palace. It wasn''t something that regarded the Immortal Lands, Noah was still reading the introduction to that historical period when he noticed that something was off. ''The following pages describe Master Linus'' theories, a cultivator born after the fall of the Shandal Empire.'' Noah read that line, and his interest immediately rose. ''This book should speak about matters that happened nine thousand years ago! What did it mean with the "fall of the Shandal Empire"?'' Noah thought as his curiosity mounted. He momentarily discarded the tomes that spoke about the Immortal Lands to look for the historical ones. His search ended when he read the title of one of the oldest tomes in his possession. ''Rise and fall of the Empires of the bored god.'' Chapter 666: 666. Banque The book was written by a nameless rank 5 cultivator that had witnessed the fall of the Shandal Empire that happened nine thousand years ago. The god of the Empire had granted a title to that cultivator when it reached the heroic ranks, but the latter forsook its name when it lost faith in the almighty ruler of its nation. ''I''ve seen the death of countless comrades that had fought with me in the endless wars ordered by our mighty ruler. I''ve seen an entity with the power to destroy any mortal throne disappearing when his people needed him. Understanding dawned upon me after those sights, but my mind was still too devoted to the Almighty to recognize his flaws.'' Noah read through the contents of the books with intense interest. The cultivators of the Empire worshipped their god, and the same seemed to have happened in the past described by the nameless author. Yet, that entity had turned into a heretic when it saw that the god didn''t intervene to save its country. ''I''ve spent years struggling to forget the divine light radiated by my leader, and decades researching the past to appease my doubts. In the end, I found the truth about the Empire and the hobby of its leader.'' Noah could sense the contempt that the author felt toward the god of the Empire through its words. The nameless cultivator didn''t only lose its faith, it even filled that void with hatred. ''Records have been hard to find, but there were always one or two reports hidden in the knowledge of the other two big nations. I suspect that the god left them around to add some variables to his endless game.'' Then, the book revealed the meaning behind its title. ''I''ve looked for records even twenty thousand years old to discover that multiple Shandal Empires had reached the apex of the Mortal Lands through those years. All of them had thrived under the Almighty''s divine light, and all of them had fallen under his indifference.'' Noah had been completely captivated by those lines by then. The nameless cultivator claimed that the god of the Empire had been in the Mortal Lands for more than thirty thousand years! Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine what it felt to remain stuck at the same level for centuries. So, he couldn''t possibly comprehend the mindset of someone who had been blocked at the first step of the divine ranks for millennia. The god had been trapped for thousands of years in a world that he can rule easily, without any interest or input. ''The word boredom is too weak to describe his feelings.'' Noah thought before diving again in the contents of the book. ''The Almighty builds an Empire a few millennia after the fall of the previous one and vanishes whenever one of his underlings ascends in the Immortal Lands. I didn''t manage to understand why nor what is his purpose. Yet, I''m sure that we are nothing but pawns in his game.'' The book ended with those lines. Noah had ignored all the details on how the nameless cultivator managed to gather such old information and directly skipped to its final consideration. It would be up to the Hive to sort through all the knowledge inside his space-ring and summarize it. After all, most of those data were dated more than ten thousand years, and there would be no available gain in the current era. ''Is the god trying to exploit the ascension of his underlings for personal interests? Still, building nations just to kill time seems a bit of a stretch.'' Noah couldn''t believe that such a powerful existence had surrendered himself to his fate. Cultivators had strong personalities, especially those that had managed to reach the peak of the heroic ranks. The god of the Empire had to have a plan, something that could only be executed in the long life of a divine entity. Of course, Noah had also considered the idea that Divine Architect''s client was, in fact, the god of the Empire. There was no one else whose authority and assets were able to affect another divine being. ''Maybe, he is doing all of this to reach the higher plane.'' That seemed the only reasonable explanation to the god''s actions. Noah soon put that matter in the back of his mind to continue his study of the tomes and scrolls related to the Immortal Lands. The nameless cultivator had explored exciting ideas, but there wasn''t much that he could do with that information at the moment. He couldn''t affect matters that concerned peak heroic cultivators and gods. Yet, he could prepare himself to exploit the situations that they created. There was bound to be a war once one of the two rank 6 cultivators of the Empire ascended if the nameless cultivator was right. The Empire would lose the backing of its god and one of its powerhouses, bringing its power directly under the other two big nations. The Elbas family and the Council would undoubtedly exploit that moment of weakness since they had been suppressed for so many years by the strongest country in the Mortal Land. However, there was another variable in that era: The Hive. ''I can only make sure that I''m strong enough to join the plundering when those events happen.'' Noah concluded in his mind as new information about the Immortal Lands entered his view. There wasn''t anything sure in any of those tomes and scrolls. One couldn''t obtain a real knowledge of the higher plane by looking at it from the Mortal Lands. Yet, there were a few details that concerned the other lower words around the higher plane. First of all, the experts in that field were sure about the presence of magical beasts in all the known worlds. Every plane inside Heaven and Earth''s domain was enveloped in their "Breath", which led to similar life cycles in every environment. Also, some even stated the presence of cultivators. ''I guess life has evolved in the same way as here. I wonder if this is another hidden rule set by Heaven and Earth.'' Random considerations appeared inside Noah''s mind every time he finished reading one book. He was sweeping through that mountain of scrolls and tomes without taking any rest. He knew what he needed to do at that point in his cultivation journey, so he wanted to improve his foundation as much as he could before diving into his training. Then, a mental message reached his inscribed notebook while he was still busy reading. The message came directly from Elder Julia and stated the beginning of the banquet to welcome the new rank 5 elders. Noah was almost tempted to finish reading everything before attending, but the last part of Elder Julia''s message convinced him to arrive on time. ''The rank 5 elders will discuss their individualities, and the Patriarch will give pointers whenever he sees fit.'' Chapter 667: 667. Divinity The heroic assets of the Hive gathered in a vast underground area adorned with luxurious drapes that featured a giant octopus protecting a series of islands. That area was part of Chasing Demon''s quarters, but he gladly used it to hold the banquet to honor his long-lost companions. Every rank 4 cultivator stationed on the new continent attended to that event, and all the rank 5 elders were compelled to join it due to the promise of Chasing Demon''s pointers. Individualities were a very personal matter, but countless mistakes and deviations could lead to a weaker expression of them. The teachings of a rank 6 existence could broaden the vision of those beings that were already paving their paths and uncover eventual flaws in their enlightenments. Discovering a misinterpretation of some insights while being in the fifth rank could be a vital factor in their journey. After all, the dantians of the heroic cultivators absorbed laws according to their individualities. Those in the fifth rank still had time to fix eventual flaws and deviate from their original path. Yet, their road would be set once they advanced further in that rank. Their dantians would progress only if they followed their previous path at that point, and their hope to reach the divine ranks would vanish if their understanding turned out to be flawed. The path toward the divine was full of hindrances, and even one misstep could ruin your prospects. Cultivators had to keep on improving if they wanted to avoid the stagnation of their centers of power, but they also needed to be sure that they were on the right road. Noah joined the event on time, and he even dressed up for the occasion. Elder Julia didn''t hide her surprise when she saw that he wasn''t wearing his usual ragged robes, but she understood that something about him had changed after the events in the separate dimension. It wasn''t only a matter of cultivation level. There was a sort of acceptance inside him that had started to manifest since he brought June back to the Hive. Noah was slowly turning into a leader. Of course, she couldn''t possibly know that everything had started after his body reached the fifth rank. Ruling over weaker beings was an instinctive behavior in the magical beasts'' world, even if those creatures mostly did that to expand their hunting area. Those instincts became more human when they appeared in Noah due to his hybrid status, leading him to act as a leader even when he pursued his benefits. Being part of an organization without affecting his individuality, that was one aspect of his cultivation journey that he was slowly exploring. There was a long, rectangular table at the center of the underground hall, and many comfortable chairs had been laid around it. The heroic cultivators of the Hive were seated according to their importance and power inside their organization. The elders stuck in the gaseous stage of the fourth rank sat on the side farther away from Chasing Demon. The rank 5 elders were near the Patriarch, and the two Demons sat on his sides since the banquet was in their honor. Thirty-seven was nowhere to be seen, and Noah couldn''t even find the pendant that contained him on the necks of the elders. ''I wonder how is Chasing Demon keeping him busy.'' Noah thought before noticing that Flying Demon was glancing at him while rhythmically tapping his fingers on the table. The table was empty, no trace of food or wine could be seen on its surface. Noah had initially believed that the elders would fill the table once everyone arrived, but Flying Demon''s gesture hinted to something else. Noah didn''t fail to understand the meaning behind his glances and waved his hand while giving a few orders to the spirit automaton of his space-ring. Part of the delicacies and wine retrieved inside the Mortal Palace came out of his storage device and softly landed on the long table in an orderly manner. The elders showed smiles at that sight, and Elder Austin pointed at a seat next to him when Noah turned his gaze toward him. Noah was still a rank 4 cultivator, and there a few were elders in the solid stage seated near those in the fifth rank. Yet, the title of Demon Prince gave him a privileged position, which made him worthy of being right next to the most powerful assets of the Hive. The banquet began as soon as Noah sat, and the elders started to converse while enjoying the contents of the plates peacefully. Most of them didn''t eat much and focused on the wine, but Flying Demon devoured everything in his grasp. Heroic cultivators didn''t need to eat that much, the "Breath" that they absorbed already provided some sort of nourishment. However, Flying Demon ate as if his life depended on it. The other rank 5 elders ignored his behavior, and Chasing Demon mostly laughed at that sight. Yet, some of the weaker rank 4 cultivators began to imitate him, as if copying the actions of someone on a higher level could grant them some benefits. Noah mostly listened to the conversations of the rank 5 elders during the banquet. They discussed the current situation of the Hive, the available paths to improve its positive trend, and the benefits that the automaton could provide to both human and heroic cultivators. Thirty-seven''s knowledge was precious. He could single-handedly groom a generation of inscription masters and further improve the foundation of the Hive. His only issue was that most of his knowledge was dated and didn''t cover the discoveries of the last six thousand years. Nevertheless, only the Elbas family could claim to be the most advanced organization in that field, and the automaton''s knowledge was more than enough for the current state of the Hive. Also, the elders could still choose to purchase studies to improve the automaton. Still, they had to test how effective he was first before deciding to invest in him. Silence fell in the underground area at some point, and the eager gazes of the more than twenty rank 4 cultivators went on the powerful elders sitting on the other side of the table. It was clear that they were waiting for them to discuss their individualities since they weren''t even trying to hide their eagerness to hear them. "I guess I''ll start." Elder Austin said and stood up when he saw that the situation was becoming too awkward. "I''m a volcano ready to unleash my destructive force. I build power inside my sturdy foundation and release it in one huge burst of power. My fire is lava, and my mind is the trigger!" Elder Austin announced while turning toward Chasing Demon. His explanation wasn''t detailed, but he purposely released his aura to give a taste of his individuality to the presents. The expressions of the rank 4 cultivators became even more eager at that point, but Chasing Demon claimed their focus with one question. "Can a volcano strive for divinity?" Chapter 668: 668. Pointers Chasing Demon''s question was simple, but it hid a profound meaning that the rank 5 cultivators didn''t fail to notice. Even Noah managed to pick up some clues, but he waited for him to explain before pondering about the matter further. "My fire shall burn the limits of the heroic ranks." Elder Austin answered after a moment of silence. The rank 4 elders nodded and exchanged gazes between themselves, but some of those in the fifth rank didn''t seem to agree. However, no one spoke. Even the strongest rank 5 elder couldn''t give pointers about someone''s else individuality. Only Chasing Demon could have a clear picture of the higher ranks. "Your fire might be as powerful as lava, but that alone can''t represent a volcano." Chasing Demon said when the focus of the presents returned to him. "The matters concerning individualities are extremely personal. Yet, I can tell that your lava won''t be able to touch the divine even if you bring its power to the peak of the heroic ranks." Elder Austin revealed a confused expression when he heard Chasing Demon''s words and didn''t hesitate to ask for clarifications. "Why?" "The features of your fire are an imitation of something already existing in the world. However, your individuality is real. I can see the volcano." Chasing Demon answered, but his explanation didn''t satisfy the elder who continued to ask for more. "What should I do then?" "Follow your individuality. Gain inspiration from the world without becoming its imitation. The power of a volcano isn''t in its burning blood, but in its blast!" Elder Austin''s eyes widened at that point, and he remained still for a while as the pointers of the Patriarch seeped inside him. Noah noticed how the aura of the elder flickered and became slightly murky as understanding dawned upon him. ''A change in the individuality can affect a mighty existence in the fifth rank so thoroughly. Only a firm belief in your path can make you cross the hindrances of the cultivation journey without damaging your foundation.'' Noah concluded in his mind as he reviewed the exchange of words. The individualities of the cultivators would begin to affect their centers of power as their rank rose, which meant that most of their battle prowess would depend on it. Extreme confidence in the path taken was one of the main requirements for heroic cultivators that wanted to improve, but they still had to be careful not to delude themselves. Noah had just taken the second step on his path, but that banquet was already teaching him the common mistakes to avoid. Elder Austin bowed toward Chasing Demon before sitting back on his chair and lowering his gaze. There was no trace of shame in his expression. Instead, the elders could notice his eagerness to explore the possibilities that the Patriarch had opened for him. A short moment of silence followed that gesture, and the rank 5 cultivators decided to resume speaking only when they saw that Elder Austin had raised his head again. The next elder that stood up was Elder Justin, and he used even fewer words to express his individuality. "I''m an immovable boulder. Catastrophes shall fall, and the world might change, but I''ll remain the same forever!" Everyone in the hall could see elder Justin''s firmness, but Chasing Demon had pointers for him too. "How can you advance if you can''t move?" Elder Justin listened to his words and bowed before sitting back on his seat. He didn''t seem surprised by the Patriarch''s doubts. It was as if he knew about that flaw in his individuality already. Chasing Demon couldn''t help but nod at that behavior, and Noah didn''t fail to notice that gesture. ''I guess discovering the path alone is better than letting others clear it for you.'' Noah thought as he memorized that detail in his mind. Taking the best out of any situation had always been part of his behavior. Also, that event was meant to help heroic assets. His focus was devoted entirely to learning as much as he could about the path ahead of him. Elder Julia stood up next, and everyone in the hall was surprised when the Patriarch didn''t add anything to her words. "I''m the air that fills your lungs. I''m the wind of the world." Her aura was barely noticeable, but Noah could sense the incredible power hidden inside her figure. ''Bold.'' Noah could only think that when he heard the exposition of her individuality. He had seen her battle during the one versus one fights, but her opponent had already decided to forsake that useless territory. She didn''t reveal much now either, but Noah could understand the intense drive behind her belief because it was similar to his ambition. ''Maybe, individualities need to be something grand enough to reach the divine ranks. Something too weak won''t bring you past the sixth rank even if it suits you perfectly.'' That was another information that Noah added to his understanding of the heroic ranks. The only clue that he had about that assumption was Chasing Demon''s silence, but that had to be enough for the moment. He was aware that the Patriarch was holding back his pointers on purpose because providing every answer would just have adverse effects on the elders. Also, Chasing Demon wasn''t omniscient. He could broaden the elders'' perspective, but he couldn''t tell them what laws they had to pursue. The rank 5 cultivators turned toward the two Demons seated next to the Patriarch at that point. Flying Demon revealed a helpless smile at their gazes and shook his head. Only his lover, Noah, and Chasing Demon could understand what was afflicting him. The one thousand years spent alone in the separate dimension had disrupted his foundation, and there weren''t any certainties that he could recover. On the other hand, Dreaming Demon decided to stand and give a few words to the crowd. "My thoughts can stop the wind and destroy worlds. My desires are laws, and my mind is the god spreading them." Surprised gasps resounded in the underground area when the elders saw that Dreaming Demon was already considering herself as a deity. ''The will of a disciple of Divine Demon. She must be so strong because her individuality is already gazing at the divine. She is the strongest rank 5 cultivator in the Hive.'' Noah continued with his evaluations as the banquet kept going, but he soon noticed a series of eyes landing on his figure. The heroic cultivators on the table had waited for their amazement to cool down before turning toward the Demon Prince seated right next to the rank 5 elders. The situation became even more evident when Noah saw Chasing Demon nodding toward him. ''I have nothing to hide.'' Noah thought before standing up and wielding one of his rank 4 Demonic swords. He had to admit that he was interested in the Patriarch''s opinion regarding his individuality. Chapter 669: 669. Titles Noah kept his weapon stretched in front of him as he poured liquid "Breath" inside it. The Demonic sword radiated an innate sharpness due to the meaning imbued during the forging. Also, it carried the destructive properties of the corrosive smoke since it was one of its core materials. Yet, the aura radiated by its shape became violent when "Breath" entered in its form. The sharpness carried by the blade began to affect the air around it, shattering its matter and returning it to a basic form of energy. The destruction spread and even threatened to reach the elders around Noah. However, he quickly stored the Demonic sword back inside his space-ring and turned toward Chasing Demon to hear his opinion. The rank 4 cultivators on the back of the table showed amazed expressions at that sight. After all, Noah was only a rank 4 cultivator in the liquid stage, but his individuality had already begun to affect his "Breath"! He could achieve that feat only because he had created his cultivation technique, which was already an expression of his individuality. Nevertheless, that didn''t stop the rank 4 elders from glancing at him with newfound respect. Even those in the solid stage showed a sincere interest, the fact that the Demon Prince had a lower cultivation level didn''t bother them at all after that sight. Most of their focus was on the destruction unleashed by his "Breath" and on the threatening aura that it carried. It was violent but also sharp. It was as if he had found a way to focus a chaotic force into thousands of small blades. On the other hand, the rank 5 elders quickly ignored the destructive aspect of his "Breath" and focused on the energy released after the matter fell apart. Such primary energy seemed incredibly pliable, and many applications in the inscriptions'' fields could make use of it. Of course, they couldn''t link it to the magical beasts'' world. Only Noah could know that there were similarities between that energy and the nutrients inside his body due to his hybrid status. The rank 5 elders could see that there was something else inside Noah''s individuality, but they didn''t probe further since the Prince had limited himself to that demonstration. "A focused chaos, spreading destruction. Very interesting and ambitious! Maybe, too ambitious." Chasing Demon began to comment, and the focus of the elders immediately went on him. "Individualities need to reflect a pure form of yourself, without being tainted by imitations and external inputs. Yet, they also need to be powerful enough to reach the higher stages of the cultivation journey. Beware of that ambition though, it might be too vast for a single cultivator to handle." The Patriarch of the Hive purposely gave general pointers at that point. He didn''t want to affect Noah in the slightest for fear of weakening his foundation, but he still wanted to explain how individualities usually worked. Noah performed a bow at his words before sitting back on his seat. His mind was already going through Chasing Demon''s teachings, which further added to what he was learning about the higher ranks. ''There is a correlation with the might of the individuality and its potential. There is a need for a strong personality to become a law, but something too strong might be unable to be contained. Would I need to tune my ambition down?'' That question rose inside Noah''s mind for the first time in his second life. The thought that his ambition could become his limit seemed impossible, but Chasing Demon''s words were clear. However, Noah lingered on that doubt only for a few instants before steeling his resolution again. ''This is what I am. I''ll face my doom with everything I have if my ambition turns out to be too grand. Also, human limits don''t apply to me.'' Noah dispersed his doubts with those thoughts. His ambition was the sole reason why he managed to travel that far in the cultivation journey. It was the foundation of the meanings in the Elemental forging method and the fire that fueled all his other emotions. It wasn''t something that he could tune down, and he surely wouldn''t do it due to some sort of requirements. He would become more than a single cultivator if his individuality couldn''t be contained, he already was more than a human in the end. The banquet continued for a bit more after that last exposition. There weren''t many occasions to gather all the heroic assets of the Hive in the new continent in one place, and the elders just took their time to discuss what they had learnt. Many toasts were made to honor the Demons, and some of them even included Noah. The Hive had gained a lot thanks to his efforts, and the elders could only be thankful to have such a prepared and talented cultivator in their ranks. Then, Chasing Demon called off the banquet, and the elders began to disperse to return to their duties. Most rank 4 cultivators were simply busy clearing the areas around the domes from the presence of the magical beast, but some of them had more specific tasks. There was the management of those territories to take into consideration, and there was an equilibrium to maintain to keep them as sources of income. The azure plain had finally resumed giving birth to Azure Credits, even if in an impure form. The poisonous land had become the source of strange and dangerous materials in the last years, and most of them were sold to the Utra nation. The Elbas family was the only force ready to invest in newfound materials to experiment on them. It was that behavior that placed them at the top of the inscriptions'' fields after all. Some projects concerned the other lands too, but Thirty-seven''s arrival put a hold on them. His help in the inscriptions'' fields could bring the Hive''s formations to a new level, and that had immediately become the main priority of the rank 5 elders. Improving the domes and the shining lakes was paramount if they wanted to exploit the "Breath" in the environment to its fullest, and the automaton could help in that aspect. Noah was one of the last to stand up from the table. His mind was focused on searching for insights concerning the darkness element, and the good wine in front of him could only make this mental sphere calmer. Yet, the three Demons approached him when all the other heroic cultivators had left the underground hall. "Noah Balvan, the scourge of the Utra nation and hope of all the rebels of the Mortal Lands, come with us!" Flying Demon said while performing wide gestures with his hands. Noah wasn''t sure if he was mocking him, or just showing his appreciation toward his famous past. However, he knew that the elder''s character wasn''t bad, that was just his normal behavior. As he stood up and followed the trio though, Dreaming Demon asked him a question that hinted something interesting. "Do you know the meaning behind our titles?" Chapter 670: 670. Devastation The title "Divine Demon" carried a distinct meaning, but Noah had never questioned himself about that of the other twelve Demons. Every organization had its customs, and the unorthodox sects of the Papral nation took pride in being labeled as "demons". Noah had never given much importance to the matter since their titles didn''t seem to mean anything. Only Dreaming Demon acted somewhat in line with her name. Yet, her question stated that there was something else. The Demons didn''t speak anymore after that question, and Noah simply followed them as he waited for an explanation. There was some expectation inside him though. The heroic assets of the Hive were all busy during that period, and they wouldn''t waste time on something that wasn''t important. Of course, Noah had immediately thought about possible rewards. The four of them walked through the azure corridors to reach another large underground area. There were many shining lines on the surface of that rocky terrain, and Noah was able to notice some similarities with those seen during his first encounter with Chasing Demon. That was the personal training area of the Patriarch of the Hive! Noah saw the refined figure of the automaton inside that area. Thirty-seven seemed focused entirely on analyzing the vast array while his long, ethereal hair remained fixed on his back. He didn''t notice the arrival of the four heroic cultivators, his whole being seemed immersed in the study of those shining lines. "I''ve tasked him to improve all the formations of the Hive, starting from my training area. He will have access to one page of Master''s technique with each possible improvement or flaws that he finds." Chasing Demon said as he led the group toward one side of the room. The Demons showed traces of worry in their expression, and confusion appeared on Noah''s face when those words resounded in the hall. They didn''t care about the well-being of the automaton, but they didn''t understand how Chasing Demon could let someone modify his cultivation technique so easily. The Patriarch didn''t fail to notice those expressions and quickly explained further. "I''ll just make him point out flaws and describe possible approaches on how to solve them. Yet, I will use my methods to improve it. Don''t worry. My individuality has always been open to the teachings of divine beings." The two Demons could only nod at his explanation, but a strange light appeared in Noah''s eyes when he understood that he might have a use for the automaton too. ''I''m still not sure if I can achieve what I want with my methods, I''ve yet to begin the testing phase for the next step of my individuality. However, Thirty-seven could help in pointing out paths that my limited knowledge ignores.'' Noah thought as he sat on the ground, forming a circle with the elders around him. His original plan was to create a darkness element that was only his, but that idea was still in the early stages. He had discovered that his individuality created primary energy that he could absorb or use, meaning that he had the core material for that project. However, he had yet to seclude himself to begin his experiments. He didn''t have any free time between the crossing through the lightning storm, the knowledge of the palace, and the social events of the Hive. However, now he was sure that Thirty-seven might help him. "Master gave us our titles after we became heroic cultivators. These titles reflect our battle style, techniques, or behavior, and they aren''t just random names." Dreaming Demon began to speak when the four of them were all seated in a circle. "Master didn''t fail to notice the peculiar properties of my mental energy back then, nor its drawbacks. My name is self-explaining, and I''m sorry to say that I can''t teach this ability. It''s something that only belongs to me." The elder turned toward her lover after her words, and Flying Demon continued quickly continued her story. "My name comes from my ability to fly even when I was in the human ranks, which is quite peculiar for someone with a water aptitude." Noah listened to the elder and turned toward Chasing Demon when he saw that his story was over. He still believed that there was a real reason behind that discussion, such powerful entities wouldn''t have called him just to reveal funny anecdotes. Chasing Demon though didn''t speak, and the two Demons smirked at that sight. "Master named him in that way because he chased after Charming Demon." Flying Demon whispered that as he bent toward Noah and Chasing Demon limited himself to snort when his story was revealed. Noah couldn''t help but reveal a slight smile when he learnt that. The powerhouse of the Hive, a mighty rank 6 existence, was called Chasing Demon due to his love for a fellow disciple. Chasing Demon let the trio smile for a while before coughing a few times to restore some seriousness. Then, his expression turned stern before beginning to speak. "Noah, your execution of the mission has been spectacular. You''ve retrieved the rests of both Charming and Enduring demon sect, while also bringing back my lost friends. There is nothing that the Hive won''t do for you at this point." Chasing Demon''s tone was solemn as he officially listed his feats. "Yet, there isn''t much that the Hive can do at your stage. The world knows that you''re a rare talent, and the three big nations won''t sell any darkness spell to us. We can only give you part of the sect''s knowledge, hoping that it can inspire you in creating your methods." The Patriarch took a few scrolls from his space-ring at that point. "These are some of the techniques of the demon sects. We have worked in the last period to transcribe them, and I''ve even had to contact an external inscription master to put into lines those that we had memorized." Noah quickly took the scrolls and began to analyze them. The descriptions on the sides explained the origin and the usage of those spells and techniques. They even mentioned the pieces of information lost during their transcription. There was the body-nourishing method of the Enduring demon sect retrieved from the corpse of the slave, the techniques of the Charming demon sect, and even the runes of the Bleeding demon sect. However, what caught Noah''s attention the most was a spell created by the traitor. "Are you sure you want me to have this?" Noah asked when he saw that the spell came from the Ravaging demon sect. "Spells and techniques are tools, and I can''t deny that one from you. Also, your individuality should match it." Chasing Demon answered without showing any trace of anger, and that was enough for Noah, who read the basic description of the spell again. ''Devastation that generates power.'' Chapter 671: 671. Limi The scroll in Noah''s hands described how Ravaging Demon had obtained his title due to that spell. The spell had to be used together with other abilities. It was fueled by the destruction that the user had previously unleashed on the environment around him. ''This is similar to my individuality but also quite different.'' Noah thought as he browsed through the contents of the scroll. The spell used the destruction previously accumulated to launch a potent attack. However, Noah destroyed to obtain the primary energy to create. One created an endless offensive while the other was a perpetual cycle. Also, Noah had yet to decide what he would create. His idea was to forge his darkness, but only countless tests could reveal if that idea were doable. There were a couple of issues with Ravaging Demon''s spell too. First of all, the diagram wasn''t complete. The expert hired by Chasing Demon had only been able to copy part of it, and those lines couldn''t even work in that form. Then, there was a problem with its element. Ravaging Demon had a fire aptitude, and the lines of that spell would produce the intended effects only when "Breath" of the fire element was used to fuel them. Generally speaking, cultivators could use the abilities of different elements, but their effects would be far weaker. Sometimes they wouldn''t even work due to the contrast between the lines and the different elements. Their diagrams couldn''t even be copied or translated for a different element since they were created for a specific aptitude. That left Noah empty-handed for the moment. However, the helplessness about his situation didn''t appear in his expression. Instead, the Demons could see that he was itching to test all the ideas that he had in his mind. "Your mission is completed, and your new quarters have already been built. Just go, we''ll keep you updated on the matters concerning the outside world." Chasing Demon said with a smile, and Noah didn''t hesitate to stand up. He didn''t hunt for almost five years, and he had only accumulated knowledge and inspirations since his return from the separate dimension. He couldn''t wait anymore. He wanted to start paving his road toward the higher ranks! All his abilities had been improved, and his individuality had even influenced his "Breath". Now, it was time to resume the advance that had been momentarily stopped by that series of social events. . . . The period of peace on the new continent continued, and no significant battles happened in the old landmass either. The four forces of the Mortal Lands had too much to do, and a lot of time, they could only benefit from the absence of external threats and wars, especially after the crisis of the winged beasts. The four nations further expanded their domains on the piece of Immortal Lands, and they reached the point where only the central areas were still untouched. The battle between the existences at the peak of the heroic ranks had thoroughly modified those lands. The environment was still stabilizing. The terrain had absorbed the toxic water and stopped shaking, but forms of life had yet to appear. The four forces were mainly ignoring those zones since they were useless in that stage. Magical beasts would migrate there at some point, and some lifeforms would naturally appear due to all the energy contained in those lands. Many experts even hoped for mutations and similar consequences to happen. The piece of Immortal Lands was full of "Breath" and rank 6 existences had unleashed attacks fueled by their individualities in their battle. Mutations were to be expected, and there could even be an entirely new species of magical plants and beasts in a few centuries! That period of peace even benefitted the cultivation world in its entirety. Many commoners would obtain the chance to start cultivating since all the forces suffered from a lack of manpower. The areas habitable by human cultivators enlarged to make room for those new arrivals, and that increase in the population helped in keeping the density of "Breath" in check. The new continent was in the Mortal Lands after all, and it was bound to reach the usual energy standards of a lower plane slowly. That wouldn''t happen even in centuries, but the constant absorption of the "Breath" in the air would ultimately turn the piece of Immortal Lands in a simple landmass. Of course, the four nations didn''t care about that event, nor did they try to behave in a controlled manner. Obtaining as many benefits as possible in the shortest amount of time was always the best approach if the consequences of that act would only hit them thousands of years in the future. Organizations in the Mortal Lands remained in power only for a few millennia on average, why would they care about the issues that the future rulers would face? Even the mighty Shandal Empire fell and rose every once in a while, and the same happened to the forces of the other two nations. For example, King Elbas could ruin his centers of power as he pursued his individuality or simply manage to reach the divine ranks. That would leave the Elbas family without its powerhouse, which would inevitably start its decline. Noah knew that too well, especially after he had browsed through part of the knowledge of the Mortal Palace. He had immediately reached for his new quarters after the Demons had given him what was left of the demon sects. His new habitation had turned out to be an underground area built under the new invisible dome created in the territory between the snowy mountain and the lava lake. Chasing Demon had directly left that land and all the human cultivators living inside the dome under his control. Of course, Noah didn''t use his time to manage the city inside his dome but left everything to Elder Jason, who had volunteered to join him in that area. The same went for Bruce and his lover Sarah who had moved to the new continent when Noah was still inside the separate dimension. The forces of the Hive were slowly dividing themselves between the four domes, but many expected a fifth one to appear in the desert in the following years. Meanwhile, Noah had simply secluded himself in his underground quarters. His activities covered his usual training and some meditation about his individuality. Yet, he spent most of his time experimenting with the primary energy that his "Breath" created when it destroyed the matter around it. He intended to use that energy as his core material for any sort of forging. After all, magical beasts did the same with their bodies, so Noah knew that it was possible to create something with that energy. However, he still failed in reaching any form of success even when one year had passed since his first attempt. Doubts began to mount in the solitude of his quarters as failures piled up on each other, and a question couldn''t help but appear in his mind at some point. ''Is this a limit of my inscription method?'' Chapter 672: 672. Laws Noah began to question himself about the potential of the Elemental forging method during his seclusion. His assumption was a bit hurried since he had only spent one year on his experiments after all. Yet, those doubts couldn''t help but appear when he saw that he didn''t make any progress in his project. He knew that creating a personal version of the darkness element was an ambitious plan, which was probably above what his expertise and power could handle. However, making no progress at all opened the possibility that he was using the wrong approach on the matter. Noah silently stared at the primary energy generated whenever he released part of his liquid "Breath". Wills and thick mental waves came out of his sea of consciousness and tried to change the nature of that energy. Nevertheless, that primary energy was too slim and couldn''t carry meanings. Noah''s efforts just pushed it farther away until it dispersed in the environment. Then, Noah released some of his Liquid "Breath" again, and his half-transparent figure neared the walls of his mental sphere to absorb the primary energy created in the process. Noah almost didn''t feel any pressure when that energy entered his mind, but he was used to that feature by then. The energy entered the sea, but nothing had changed in its structure when it resurfaced. ''One year has passed, but I can''t even take the first step. Meanings aren''t enough. I need laws.'' Noah thought as he dispersed that energy back in the environment. He had repeated those processes for one year, but he still failed in imbuing his will inside that material. He had tried everything, from creating a solution of Liquid "Breath" and primary energy, to fuse the new material with various items directly. The outcome was always the same: He couldn''t control that energy, he could only absorb it. That had never happened to him during his past forgings. There would be different outcomes of slight signs of progress with his past creations, even when he created his cultivation technique. He would progressively find flaws and fix them until the final product became somewhat stable. That wasn''t happening with the primary energy. Noah felt as if he was hitting a wall every time he attempted to bend that material to his will. He felt as if he was using usual blacksmithing tools to modify atoms! That outcome led him to evaluate two hypotheses. The first one saw his mental sphere unable to use wills that could affect the primary energy. Simple wills and meanings could change the structure of the "Breath", but it seemed that only laws could give a shape to that primordial power. That led him to accept that his sea of consciousness was still too weak. However, he didn''t give up on using that energy so connected with his individuality, which made him work on his second hypothesis. ''The Elemental forging method has limits like every inscription method. It might not be suitable for this practice, or it might just be imperfect at its core. I need to talk with the automaton.'' Noah concluded in his mind and immediately left his underground quarters while sending a series of mental messages. The elders quickly set a meeting with Thirty-seven, who had been extremely busy in the last year. The Hive had used the automaton to review their formations and improve them thoroughly. Thirty-seven did a fantastic job in that task, and the Hive invested a lot of resources to apply all the enhancements proposed by him. Also, the Hive had even purchased many studies in the inscriptions'' fields to improve the knowledge of the automation. After all, Thirty-seven had stopped learning six thousand years ago, and the cultivation world had advanced in that period. The Hive couldn''t allow him to remain in that state since the future of its inscription masters depended on him. So, Thirty-seven obtained many tomes and scrolls and instantly became one of the most knowledgeable existence about inscriptions in the entirety of the Mortal Lands. Some elders even believed that there wasn''t a single being in possession of so much information, but that only organizations could match his knowledge! Noah reached for the desert after the lava lake and landed on the ground when he saw the ethereal man. The automaton held a tome open in his right hand and drew with a long, black stick on the yellow sand of the desert. He seemed focused on some kind of project, but he didn''t fail to notice Noah''s arrival. "Make it quick. Your Patriarch has promised me a lost script of the Lesser demon sect if I manage to help you!" Thirty-seven said when Noah landed next to him. ''Lesser demon sect? Is Chasing Demon scamming him now?'' Noah suppressed that thought as he took a pile of books from his space-ring. The books were old and still carried traces of Ivor''s awful smell, but the automaton didn''t care about it and quickly browsed through their contents. Those old pages contained all the studies of the Elemental forging method that Noah still carried with him since Ivor passed down his teachings. However, it had been a long time since Noah used them as a reference. No other cultivator that he knew of had reached his cultivation level while using that inscription method, so Noah couldn''t find anything helpful anymore in that knowledge. Thirty-seven read the more than twenty books in less than a minute, and took about forty seconds to sort out the information contained inside them, He was a rank 6 automaton programmed for inscriptions. His learning capabilities would scare even rank 6 cultivators when it came to his field of expertise. "So, what do you want?" Thirty-seven asked as he handed back Ivor''s books. "Do you think that it''s flawed?" Noah asked while storing back everything in his space-ring. The automaton snorted at his question, but his answer left Noah quite surprised. "Of course! This method is vague in so many aspects, but I think it''s some kind of requirement in this case. The inscriptions would be extremely personal after all. You can''t have a set discipline for that." Noah attentively listened to his words. He was expecting the automaton to list an endless number of flaws and possible improvements, but what happened was precisely the opposite. ''The Elemental forging method must remain flawed, or it wouldn''t be suitable for the various meanings of the cultivators. It makes sense, but it doesn''t solve my issue.'' Noah wielded his saber as he thought that and released part of his "Breath" to create the primary energy that he had tried to modify in the last year. "I want to use this energy, but my wills don''t affect it in the slightest." The automation understood what Noah wanted after those words, but his intentions made him laugh. Noah didn''t mind that reaction since he knew that his project was ambitious, even if his mind was reaching the upper stages of the fourth rank. Yet, Thirty-seven confirmed his hypothesis with his next words. "That''s the realm of the gods. You need laws." Chapter 673: 673. Will-consuming runes Noah already knew that, but learning that the issue wasn''t with his inscription method only led him to ask another question. "Isn''t there some way to modify this energy?" Noah was already making use of it through his Liquid dantian, and his body naturally absorbed it. There had to be ways that didn''t only treat it as a source of power, a way to use it as the material to build something outside of Heaven and Earth''s domain. However, Thirty-seven didn''t give Noah any hope. "No. You would have to reconstruct the matter and force it to work in a certain pattern. Only laws can set those rules, and that''s not something that you can do with your current level." Noah fell silent when he heard those words. He wasn''t so delusional to believe that he could prove the automaton wrong. The latter was pure knowledge, and he could only accept his opinion. Nevertheless, Noah wasn''t ready to give up yet. ''Creation has many forms. I''ll simply take another path until I''m able to forge my darkness.'' Noah thought as Ravaging Demon''s spell appeared in his mind. That ability was too in line with his individuality to neglect it due to the differences in the element. Noah could already spread destruction and release energy with it, and he only needed a method to turn that power in an attack. The Elemental forging method had already proven itself unsuitable in that aspect, and his wills couldn''t cover a vast area. He needed something else, and the automaton was the only one who could give him a broad explanation of his possibilities. "Let''s say that I would like to use this energy before it disperses in the environment. What are my options?" Noah asked, and Thirty-seven closed his eyes for a second before reopening them and giving an answer. "There are more than eleven thousand approaches that cover inscriptions, runes, and formations. Do you want to hear more about them?" Noah immediately shook his head and decided to be more specific with his next question. "I need something that allows me to use it during a battle, without long casting periods. Also, it would be ideal if it was similar to my current inscription method." Thirty-seven took a bit more to answer at that time, but it didn''t fail to provide some options. "I know two inscription methods and a school of runes that might please you. Would you like to hear more about them?" Noah nodded, and the automaton began his explanation, describing in great detail the features of the three schools. The two inscription methods didn''t interest Noah that much. The first one used small formations fueled with strong wills that could be quickly deployed if a cultivator had previously prepared them. Yet, Noah knew the difficulty of becoming a formation master thanks to June, and the thought of spending decades in expanding his knowledge of the needed materials didn''t interest him. Also, he would need to prepare the formations before every battle, expending a large number of precious materials every time. That didn''t suit his combat style at all since Noah mainly pursued sheer power that had no limitations. The second method applied the theories behind the Attunement method, which forced part of the world around him to affect the energy inside a set area. However, Noah couldn''t understand Heaven and Earth''s words even if he wanted to, so he quickly discarded that option too. Instead, the school of runes was quite interesting. The cultivator would have to create runes with a specific form and a set meaning, which could be fueled with "Breath" to unleash their effects. The issue with that school was that its runes were far bigger than those used in the current era. "Back then, inscriptions were something that only exceptional cultivators could learn. There were plenty of methods that made use of their powerful wills, which created elites among them. Yet, that approach has been abandoned in the last millennia. Anyone with some Credits can receive a decent education now." Thirty-seven complained as he began to write on a large and blank tome the teachings of the school of runes that Noah had chosen. Noah eagerly waited for the automaton to finish and left as soon as he handed the tome. Learning a new inscription method would take years, but Noah wasn''t in a hurry, and he already had an exceptional foundation when it came to wills. Also, he had the Divine deduction technique, which would further shorten the time required to learn that old method. Noah''s schedule changed when he returned to his underground quarters. The training of his centers of power continued as usual, but he replaced his experiments with the study of the new inscription method. The method was called "Will-consuming runes", and, as its name suggested, required the consumption of small parts of a cultivator''s will to function. Of course, Noah couldn''t directly approach that step. He had to learn the basics first. The automaton had been exemplary in his transcription. He had divided the teachings between the various steps that a student had to master before reaching the level of an expert. Noah had first to learn to create simple runes that executed basic tasks like slightly raising the temperature in a small area, or gathering cold air. Then, he had to create runes that could reinforce small objects or increase some of their other properties. The difficulty of the tasks steadily increased, and Noah could only approach the next step when he could succeed in the previous one while respecting its minimum standards. Giving a set form to his mental energy and imbuing it with meanings was easy for Noah, but the Will-consuming runes were strict in their requirements. Noah had to strive for purity rather than intensity when it came to his meanings and then sever them from his mind to mold them in the form of runes. That act wasn''t painful, but Noah felt emptied every time he proceeded to sever those parts from his mind. He felt as if he was forever losing part of him, which was a sensation that weighed on his determination to improve. That made him understand why cultivators had eventually opted for more general inscription methods. The void that he felt every time he created a rune could be enough to destroy the ambition of ordinary cultivators. ''No wonder there were elites in the past. Only elites could persevere in these paths.'' Noah thought as his ambition filled his entire being and dispersed the void that had spread inside him after the creation of his last rune. Almost three years had passed since his meeting with Thirty-seven, and Noah had spent that time to master the basics of the Will-consuming runes. That inscription method turned out to be far harder than the Elemental forging method, but Noah managed to reach that level of expertise far quickly nonetheless. Wills were something that he had trained for years, and that method only required a different application and a lot of practice. ''Now, I can create my runes and set the foundation for my first spell!'' Chapter 674: 674. Runes Noah did everything for a reason, and that reason was his power most of the time. Learning a new inscription method had required a lot of time and effort, but Noah didn''t mind it as long as it brought improvements to his battle prowess. Also, he didn''t neglect his training in those years. His dantian kept on improving as usual, and his body slowly advanced deeper in the lower tier of the fifth rank. He limited himself to hunt the peak rank 4 magical beasts nearby in that period since his whole focus was devoted to learning the Will-consuming runes. After all, he had always focused on the quickest path to power. The only issue was that even the quickest path would take him years in the heroic ranks. As for his mind, it was slowly approaching the last stages of the fourth rank. The last steps of that center of power would be the longest since it was reaching a completely different level, but Noah believed that the breakthrough would arrive in a matter of years. The amount of stress that his mental sphere endured every day was incredible, just the continuous usage of the Divine deduction technique was enough to make him improve faster than his peers. Then, there was his training with his new inscription method and the Blood companions, as well as his past modifications to his spells. All of that, coupled with the fifth Kesier rune, gave to his sphere an incredible enlarging speed that couldn''t be matched even by the best geniuses of the cultivation world. Also, Noah felt that his mind had begun to enlarge faster after the breakthrough to the liquid stage. ''My centers of power improve faster as my existence reaches a newfound harmony. There is a subtle connection between mind, dantian, and body that intensifies as my entity strives for an individuality. A law can only be complete if all its components are divine.'' Noah thought as his usual session of meditation ended. He would often spend some time pondering about himself and on what he was going to become. There was something that most cultivators couldn''t do at his level: Studying the individuality retroactively! Heroic cultivators had to gain a lot of insights before their individuality began to influence their centers of power. Still, Noah could already saw those features due to his cultivation technique. So, it became part of his schedule meditating while analyzing his liquid "Breath". His focus went on Thirty-seven''s tome when a considerable part of his mental energy filled his sphere again. He had mastered the basics of the Will-consuming runes, and now it was time to make his debut as an inscription master in that field. ''The first step as a master is to create a personal rune. The shape and purity of your meaning will determine its power.'' Noah read through the instructions in the book again. He had already studied the entirety of the tome many times, but he still chose to follow the various steps cautiously. Performing inscriptions wasn''t a safe procedure, Noah knew that far too well. The Elemental forging method was hazardous even among the dangerous methods, but that didn''t mean that the other schools were safe. For example, the Will-consuming runes took away part of his will to work. Noah had to wait for his ambition to refill those missing parts after every training session to avoid complications. Yet, his rune had to carry his ambition. It would be pointless to create something that didn''t make use of his most powerful drive. ''The book advises to use something general for my first rune, but I know exactly what I want. I''m not a na?ve disciple, I''ve never been one.'' Determination surged inside Noah as he moved his focus on his half-transparent figure. His vast, brown sea of mental energy appeared in his view, and Noah decisively stabbed his hands inside his ethereal shape. ''The first one is greed to absorb every form of energy.'' Noah thought as he forcefully pulled with his left arm. What appeared to be a stomach came out of his ethereal figure, and Noah suddenly felt his hunger vanish at that moment. He had severed the innate hunger of the magical beasts, and that will didn''t exist inside him anymore. Then, he pulled with his right arm, and part of his heart came out of his figure. Part of his ambition vanished at that point, but Noah quickly squeezed both ethereal organs and turned them into a cloud of shining brown dust. The dust slowly took the shape of a saber, and even its color started to darken as Noah''s meanings affected its structure. However, Noah threw it away from his mental sphere when he saw that it didn''t turn pitch black. ''It needs to be purer.'' Noah thought as he opened his real eyes. His complexion had slightly paled, but even that dangerous practice wasn''t enough to affect him that much. The creation of the first personal rune was meant for newly advanced heroic cultivators after all, that level of difficulty wasn''t enough to threaten him. Yet, he still felt devoid of any will after the process. He wasn''t hungry, and he didn''t want to cultivate, he just wanted to lie down and sleep. The drawback of severing part of himself was evident. Nevertheless, his hunger soon returned, and the fire of his ambition began to fill his body once again. Those feelings couldn''t just vanish. His species would always be hungry, and his ambition was limitless, they only needed some time to stabilize after the procedure. It had to be said that Noah was trying to create something suitable for his level since he had no use for anything weaker than his current assets. Noah spent three days to recover before trying to create the rune again. The result still didn''t satisfy him, so he simply discarded the rune and waited to recover for three more days. Noah repeated that process a few times until he obtained the level of power that he desired. ''This will be my first spell.'' Noah thought as he focused on the black rune inside his sea of consciousness. The rune had the shape of a saber that floated above the Kesier runes. Then, the saber came out of his mental sphere and ran through his skin to appear on his left palm. Noah poured some of his "Breath" inside the rune, and a series of small, saber-shaped runes came out of it. The small sabers didn''t have much power, and they were only able to spread some of the destructive force radiated by Noah''s "Breath". Yet, they absorbed the energy around them, as well as the primordial one created by Noah''s individuality. To be precise, it seemed that they preferred that primary energy rather than the "Breath" in the environment. Noah smiled at that sight, and a line of thought couldn''t help but appear in his mind. ''The world becomes my blade.'' Chapter 675: 675. Training dummy Noah had been finally able to create his first spell after so many years spent in the fourth rank! He had pondered about that matter since he created his first version of the Shadow sprint martial art when he was a human cultivator. Still, now he had a spell that was only his, and that acted entirely in line with his individuality. ''It has taken me years of specialization in wills, countless experiences with the Elemental forging method, inspiration from Ravaging Demon''s attack, and another inscription method. Yet, I have a second asset in my arsenal that reflects my existence now.'' Noah thought as he stored the rune back inside his mental sphere. The Dragon''s claw martial art and his new spell were pure creations that didn''t copy any diagram or existing technique. They were attacks that expressed Noah''s individuality and, as such, would produce stronger effects compared to his other abilities. Of course, that still depended on their potential, but that was a general rule in the cultivation world. Also, Noah''s new spell didn''t have the same limitations of his martial art. Noah needed to use the energy inside his Liquid dantian to have a battle prowess that matched rank 4 cultivators in the solid stage, but his spell didn''t require it! He could just use his liquid "Breath" to lay the runes in the environment and let them absorb the primary energy released after a battle. ''It might be a little tricky to use its full power at my current level, but I can see it becoming my most potent attack when the harmony between my centers of power is restored.'' Noah could already see the flaws in his new ability. Only his liquid "Breath" carried the destructive properties of his individuality. Instead, the energy contained in his Liquid dantian was just a canalization of the nourishments released by his body during the activation of his secret art. One radiated his individuality, while the other was his most potent fuel at the moment. Noah flew away from his underground quarters while his mind was deep in thought. ''Only the rank 5 elders of the Hive know that my battle prowess reaches the solid stage, and I bet that they aren''t even sure about it. I can use my cultivation level as an advantage and rely on the "Breath" that carries my individuality in my next battles. There is no point in revealing my real power so soon.'' Plans and schemes piled up in his mind as he looked for a worthy opponent in the lands nearby. He didn''t have a real battle since the events in the separate dimension. There were too many improvements that had to be done, and the four nations were even at peace. Yet, Noah had improved all his techniques and even created new ones in those nine years. His species wasn''t suitable for long periods of meditation, especially when his battle prowess had improved so much. He needed to fight to know where he stood, and he needed to prove his power to the world at times. His hunger and ambition were slowly filling his body again, and his mental energy nourished the saber-shaped rune inside his sea of consciousness as his search continued. The expansion of the human forces drove many packs of beasts away, but the snowy mountain was a rank 6 danger zone. There were bound to be magical beasts in the fifth rank near it, and Noah was looking for something stronger than a newly advanced creature. However, he still had to venture through the central areas of the piece of Immortal Lands to find a suitable adversary. Noah stopped flying when he noticed a rank 5 Brawny ape at the peak of the lower tier, followed by a series of rank 4 specimens. The pack was exploring the central areas since many years had passed after the battle of the rank 6 existences. The innate survival instincts of those beasts told them that those territories had become stable enough to allow their survival. Nevertheless, their leader roared when it sensed a powerful presence staring at it from the sky. Noah didn''t try to hide as he approached the pack. He wanted to test his abilities and not just feed himself. He wasn''t there as a hunter but as a challenger! The rank 5 ape roared again, and the weaker specimens around it retreated when they sensed that a battle was about to unfold. Noah had a clear advantage since he could fly, but something at the peak of the lower tier was the perfect training dummy. ''I wonder if I can hurt it with my liquid "Breath".'' Noah revealed an excited smile as he thought that. His Demonic swords appeared in his hands, and a destructive force began to spread from their sharp edges as "Breath" entered in their form. Their shapes began to exude a black smoke that further enhanced the destruction around them, and the Brawny ape fell silent at that sight. Noah released a destabilizing aura that spread in the air around his figure, and the beast could immediately sense how dangerous it was. However, it wouldn''t reject a challenge by a weaker being. The ape released a roar and stomped the ground with its four limbs to perform a long jump. Noah saw a nine meters large boulder coming at him at high speed and quickly dodged while slashing with his sabers. The pressure generated by the jumping ape was enough to push Noah backward when it passed next to him, but he managed to hit the beast during his evasive maneuver. The ape landed on the terrain at a few hundreds of meters in the distance, and whiffs of black smoke lingered on its fur. Nevertheless, the smoke only managed to destroy part of its hair, and Noah''s attack had just left white marks on its burly chest. ''As expected, it''s not enough. Let''s try with the second form then.'' Noah thought as he poured a substantial amount of liquid "Breath" in his next slash. His saber seemed to vibrate as they shattered the air in their trajectory to release two black lines that shot toward the ape. The beast crossed its arms to defend against the incoming attack, and only white marks appeared on its skin when the two slashes landed on it. The creature lowered its arms and was about to perform another long jump when it sensed that something was off. Its attention went on the white marks on its arms, and an angry expression appeared on its face when it saw that cracks appeared on the skin around them. It couldn''t understand what was happening, but it knew that the cause behind that damage was the small figure in the sky. Noah simply smiled at that sight. The cuts on the ape''s arm weren''t deep, but he had still managed to hurt a rank 5 beast with an ability fueled by liquid "Breath". ''The power of the individuality.'' Noah thought as he slashed again, there was still a lot to test against that creature. Chapter 676: 676. Lifeform A peculiar event happened in the central areas of the piece of Immortal Lands, while Noah was busy testing himself. The ground there had been destroyed to its core after the battle of between the rank 6 existences. Still, it had also absorbed many substances that carried an incredible amount of energy. There were the various attacks of the cultivators, the pieces of the inscribed horns created by the Royals, and even some remains of the winged beasts. The terrain of the Immortal Lands hid spectacular properties that couldn''t be found in the Mortal Lands, and one of them was its resilience. The energy coming from various sources had deeply modified the fabric of those areas, and the "Breath" contained inside it accelerated the birth of life forms. Many experts of the four forces were keeping track of the central lands of the new continent through various methods, and they could only be amazed at the sight of a purple stem quickly growing there. They didn''t expect something to be born so soon, but they could only be excited to learn that their calculations were wrong. The stem appeared fragile, but it still rose toward the sky until it reached a height of a meter. Leaves began to grow from the sides of its stem, and a black flower bloomed in a matter of second. The methods of the experts couldn''t send that much information back to their observation points, but they could still register the power that the new lifeform released when it bloomed. To the surprise of the experts, the flower was a rank 5 lifeform since its birth. Chaos spread in the quarters of those experts at that point, who immediately notified their organizations and prepared themselves to fly toward the central areas to seize the flower. However, they saw how the flower withered a few instants after it released its aura. The rank 5 magical plant became dust that dispersed in the wind in a matter of seconds, and the excitement of the experts could only vanish at that sight. Yet, it was soon rekindled since another purple stem pierced the rocky ground and began to grow in a nearby spot. The experts quickly requested for specific inscribed items at that point. They needed something that could stop the withering process before moving toward the central areas. Nevertheless, the second flower bloomed and died in the time in which the organizations provided their experts with the requested items. Those cultivators didn''t hesitate anymore. They directly flew out of their observation points to reach for the zone that was giving birth to that new lifeform. There was one force though that didn''t react as soon as the other three nations. The Hive had been too busy absorbing the gains retrieved in the separate dimension that it didn''t leave many available experts on their observation points. To be precise, there was only Elder Laurel there. Her quarters contained crystals that transmitted the images of the central lands, but she was able to notice that fantastic event only during the withering of the second flower. She immediately sent a series of mental messages at that sight, but the Hive was already late compared to the other organizations. So, Elder Julia spread the news as soon as Elder Laurel informed her, and every heroic cultivator in the Hive received the order to inspect that event. Of course, she didn''t need to mention that they had to seize the flowers if they had the chance. Meanwhile, Noah was still fighting against the Brawny ape. The corrosive smoke released by his abilities had wholly consumed the beast''s fur, and the second form of his martial art had filled its skin with bloody cracks. However, the ape didn''t suffer any grave injury even when he resorted to his spells. ''My normal abilities can''t hurt a rank 5 beast when I fuel them with liquid "Breath". Only those that carry my individuality can somewhat cross the limits of the stage.'' Noah judged as he let his cultivation technique refill his dantian. He was taking it slow, giving himself time to make an in-depth evaluation of his battle prowess when he didn''t use the Liquid dantian. After all, that magical beast couldn''t fly and had no ranged attacks, it couldn''t be a threat if he remained in the sky. It turned out that only the second form of his martial art was able to injure the creature, and that even his modified spells couldn''t pierce its thick skin. ''I might be able to face a newly advanced creature, but I can''t hurt something at the peak of the lower tier. Well, that was to be expected. It''s time to end this.'' Noah lifted his left index while he still wielded his weapon and pointed at the ape on the ground. Countless saber-shaped runes came out of his finger and spread in the destroyed environment around the ape. Noah''s previous attacks had created a high concentration of primary energy since they were fueled by his liquid "Breath". That energy filled the battlefield, and the greed contained in his runes absorbed it in a matter of instants. The runes also absorbed the "Breath" in the air, but they seemed to prefer the primary energy. They had been created through the hunger of the magical beasts, so it was only reasonable for them to prefer that nourishment. The saber-shaped runes began to radiate a threatening sharpness as the power contained inside them increased. The rank 5 Brawny ape stared at those small, black dots around it in disdain, but its expression changed as their power kept on increasing. The runes could only match the weak spell of a liquid stage cultivator when they spread in the environment, but they soon reached the peak of the stage as primary energy entered in their form. Then, their power continued to grow even when they reached a level that matched solid stage cultivators! The primary energy in the environment was depleted when the saber-shaped runes began to radiate an aura that only peak rank 4 cultivators could have. The ape roared and swung its arms on the black dots around it, but Noah quickly controlled them to turn toward the beast. Controlling so many runes weighed on his mind, but he forced them to launch a relentless assault on the creature nonetheless. The sea of saber-shaped runes threw itself toward the raging ape and pierced its skin effortlessly. The attacks of the runes even gave birth to more basic energy that they didn''t fail to absorb. That ensured that they wouldn''t expend their power in just one assault and that Noah could use them until he had enough mental energy. The ape could only cry in pain as every spot of its body was pierced from side to side. Noah''s eyes shone when he saw the might of his spell, but a buzzing sound suddenly resounded inside his mental sphere. Elder Julia''s voice echoed in his mind, and Noah decided to deliver the final blow to the beast when he heard the contents of her message. Chapter 677: 677. Stalemate "A new lifeform has appeared in the central territories of the continent. All the heroic assets must make it their priority!" Elder Julia''s order kept on echoing inside Noah''s sphere as he controlled the tide of saber-shaped runes to pierce the vital organs of the Brawny ape. It was needless to say that the news surprised him too. Noah was an expert in the magical beasts'' field, but he didn''t know much about magical plants. However, he knew that it would typically take decades, if not more, before a terrain swept by such a calamity could give birth to lifeforms again. Of course, he immediately linked that unusual event to the spectacular properties of the terrain coming from a higher plane. ''We still know so little. Dammit!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he shot toward the corpse of the ape. His last spell had consumed a lot of his mental energy, and his dantian didn''t have much "Breath" left. However, his Liquid dantian was still full, which meant that his real battle prowess hadn''t been affected. ''Don''t tell me that they plan to start a war over a flower.'' Worry mounted inside Noah as he stored the corpse of the ape after tearing a few pieces of it. He could benefit from battles due to his hybrid status, but the Hive wasn''t ready to face the three big nations. ''I can only fly there and hope that the situation wouldn''t reach a critical point.'' Noah shot toward the central areas when he thought that and without forgetting to activate the Dark cover spell. There were bound to be cultivators from the other nations directed toward his same destination, so he would use all his methods to prepare for unexpected situations. Elder Julia continued to send mental messages with the specifics about the new species of magical plant as well as its position. The black flowers kept on growing and withering at specific intervals, and Elder Laurel had already seen seven of them dying through her crystal by the time everyone was warned. Also, it seemed that every new specimen was more potent than the previous one! "The flowers are reaching the peak of the lower tier. Elder Laurel suggests that the structure of their species is still stabilizing." Elder Julia passed down information whenever Elder Laurel discovered something new. Noah limited himself to fly at full speed toward the appointed spot while keeping a low altitude. The elder had warned all the heroic assets that the Hive had been late in notifying them, so Noah knew that he wouldn''t be the first to arrive. He was closer than the other elders because he had ventured through the central areas to hunt, but that couldn''t give him an advantage over the enemy forces. After all, he knew that Elder Austin was already flying toward the location of the flowers too! The matter had already escalated to a point where rank 5 cultivators had been deployed, so Noah had no confidence in arriving before anyone else. A tense air filled the sky above the central territories, and Noah could feel that stiffness increasing as days passed, and he neared his destination. Also, his body soon became able to sense the energy released by the blooming of the black flowers once he neared them. Yet, he could feel that there were other presences too. ''Four rank 5 cultivators in front of me and another one behind.'' Noah thought as he stopped his flight to wait for the incoming elder. Elder Austin managed to sense Noah''s faint presence when he flew above him, and he lowered his altitude to join him. Both Noah and the elder wore their robes in an untidy manner, a sign that they had both hurried when Elder Julia informed them. However, the elder couldn''t help but sigh in relief when he saw that Noah''s clothes were intact, at least. "Let''s go. This matter is troublesome." Elder Austin said before adding something at the sight of Noah''s questioning gaze. "The flowers are growing in our territories. Well, in what is supposed to be our domain." Noah''s eyes widened at that point, but he didn''t stop following the elder. The central areas hadn''t been divided in the one versus one battle because the deal saw the powerhouses exploring them before everything else. However, the winged beasts'' crisis happened, and the division of those territories was neglected since the battle had made them useless. Yet, that issue had become a priority now that a powerful lifeform had started to grow on its own. Elder Austin and Noah quickly flew until they saw a series of figures hovering in the air and staring at the ground under them. Noah recognized some of the figures. He saw Thaddeus Elbas floating behind Lady Edna and another rank 5 cultivator wearing the golden robes of the Royal family. He saw Elder Doyle, the rank 5 cultivator from the Council that Elder Austin had defeated in the battle for the azure plain. Then, he saw a rank 5 slender man wearing robes with the emblem of the Empire. The cultivators on the scene limited themselves to glance at the new arrivals before focusing back on the terrain. Another purple stem was growing from the cracked ground, and the heroic cultivators showed expectant gazes as they waited to see the level of power that the species had reached. The black flower bloomed in a few seconds and released an aura that matched the middle tier of the fifth rank. The magical plant had crossed the boundaries of the lower tier! However, even that new level of power didn''t seem stable enough for the specimen, which withered in a few instants. Lady Edna''s finger instinctively trembled at that sight, but the gazes of the cultivators around her didn''t fail to notice that slight movement and focused on her. Lady Edna saw three heroic cultivators, and Noah patiently waiting to see if she was going to act. Of course, she didn''t move and simply waited for the flower to wither. The first one to act would receive the focus of the other three nations, that was the natural consequence of that stalemate. Yet, a sudden battle would just create another wave of chaos in that area, which would most likely disrupt the fragile equilibrium reached by that terrain. A modification in that equilibrium could stop the growth of those flowers, which was the outcome that everyone was trying to avoid. So, their focus went on Elder Austin when it became clear that Lady Edna wasn''t going to act. Elder Austin understood the meaning behind their stares, and he backed his voice with his pride as he announced something. "This land can only be assigned to the Hive, you all know that. Nevertheless, the Patriarch is benevolent and is willing to share this resource for the right compensation." Chapter 678: 678. Ac "These territories don''t belong to anyone. You can''t put a price over something that you don''t own." "I''d rather fight you again than pay for resources that have yet to have an owner." Lady Edna and Elder Doyle immediately complained, but they didn''t dare to unleash their aura. Instead, the slender cultivator from the Empire and the rank 5 cultivator in front of Thaddeus didn''t speak. Lady Edna and Elder Doyle had both been defeated by Elder Austin in the past, so their reactions were somewhat understandable. However, the other two rank 5 existences didn''t have any emotion affecting their judgment and could evaluate the situation clearly. The priority of the four forces was to obtain the new lifeform, and all of them knew that the Hive was the only nation that could have some claims there. It was merely a geographical matter. The Hive was closer, so it would have obtained that land if the nations had divided the continent according to the current domain. Yet, there was a chance to exploit the lack of set borders, and the three big nations couldn''t just miss it. ''We can''t obtain the flower, but we can make something out of it due to the proximity to our domain. We can just set a training area nearby and indirectly disrupt the equilibrium of this spot. We can safely affect this land even if we don''t control it.'' Noah couldn''t help but approve Elder Austin''s actions when he summarized the situation in his mind. The Hive could just build something near there and influence that terrain while remaining inside its domain. That would be entirely in its rights, and the other nations couldn''t even contest it since the central territories didn''t have an owner. ''We are far away, but a couple of rank 5 elders could do the trick if they put some effort. This is a lucky event that we can''t exploit in its fullest due to our weakness.'' Some annoyance appeared inside Noah when he thought that, but he quickly suppressed it. The matter would be easily solved if the Empire was in the Hive''s place, and even the Royals or the Council would find some excuses to keep that terrain. However, the Hive was weak and could be bullied if the three big nations were set on working together. Another flower bloomed and withered during the long silence that had dawned on the group. More heroic cultivators from each faction could be seen arriving in the distance. It was clear that the sky was about to become crowded. Nevertheless, no one answered to Elder Austin''s offer. ''They want to see the stable specimen before deciding how far they are willing to go.'' Noah quickly understood what was in the minds of the other entities and shot a glance toward the elder next to him. The duo from the Hive exchanged a few mental messages before agreeing on their next move. "Well, no one seems to like these flowers." Noah exclaimed at some point, and Elder Austin didn''t fail to follow his act. "Indeed! Hear my words of wisdom, Prince. These plants are definitely a threat! I mean, black flowers? They surely are something bad." Noah repeatedly nodded at his words as he wielded one of his sabers and prepared himself to slash toward the ground. Panic appeared on the faces of the heroic cultivators, except for the Empire''s envoy, who kept his calm. "Wait! You have no right to affect the flora!" "The Council agrees with the Elbas family. This is a clear threat!" Noah stopped the descent of his weapon and heaved a helpless sigh at Lady Edna and Elder Doyle''s words. "Elder, they are right. I guess we can only return and watch the Patriarch''s demonstration for the time being. We should be close enough to see how this situation unfolds too." Elder Austin showed a broad smile when Noah spoke and warmly patted his shoulder as he turned to leave. Noah followed him and ignored the angry gazes that Thaddeus was shooting at him. It was at that point that the rank 5 cultivator of the Empire spoke. "Elders, are you really set on destroy this marvelous discovery?" The duo from the Hive turned at his words, and Elder Austin gave him a serious answer. "The Hive doesn''t need it, but it won''t simply ignore this matter. We are demons, and we''d rather destroy it than gaining nothing from something that should belong to us." Noah''s expression became cold when Elder Austin signaled the end of the act with his answer. The core of the matter was to set an agreement before the lifeform found a balance. Otherwise, the three forces would get an idea of its actual value. Instead, forcing their hands now would give birth to an auction and prevent everyone from doing something reckless. Noah replied to Thaddeus'' stare with one of his own at that point. The latter was a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage, but Noah clearly remembered him being at the peak of the liquid stage when he interrupted his battle. ''He isn''t a useless noble then.'' Noah thought as he moved his gaze toward the rank 5 cultivator in front of him. That Royal was moving his gaze between Noah and Elder Austin, but Noah could sense that he suppressed some emotions whenever it went on him. Noah''s mind played the images of the battle near Vondhur when a heroic cultivator descended from the sky to stop him from seizing the resources contained in Samuel''s ring. Noah''s mental energy wasn''t able to sense him back then, but he knew from their conversation that he was Thaddeus'' father! Cecil was only a rank 4 cultivator when Noah escaped from the Utra nation, but he had managed to reach the fifth rank in those years. Of course, he was weaker than Lady Edna, but that feat already spoke for his talent. Lady Edna, Elder Doyle, and the man from the Empire began to send a few mental messages back to their organizations after a few seconds of silence. Meanwhile, the figures in the distance reached their respective groups. They were mostly rank 4 cultivators, and Noah could even recognize Faith among the group from the Papral nation. She was still in the gaseous stage, but her cultivation had improved since she was nearing the peak of that stage. Faith shot a curious glance at Noah when she noticed him, but she quickly suppressed her eagerness to talk with him. The situation was too troublesome to question Noah about how his relationship with June had evolved in the months spent underground. Then, the man from the Empire gave voice to a question directed toward Elder Austin. "What is the Hive proposing?" The elder had already decided how to handle the situation and didn''t hesitate to announce it. "Auction with three contenders." Chapter 679: 679. Auction The Empire quickly agreed to the Hive''s proposal, and the other two nations felt forced to join the auction at that point. There was nothing that they could do once two of the four forces had found an agreement, they could just go along with their decision. That wasn''t the worst outcome in their mind. Bullying the Hive was just an act to eliminate one contender, but they couldn''t do anything if it decided to destroy that magical plant. Contending that resource between themselves wasn''t ideal either, but it was better than losing it because they pushed the matter too far. Elder Austin had to settle a few details through his inscribed notebook, but the other elders of the Hive quickly came up with a few guidelines. Black flowers kept on blooming and withering as the sky above that spot became crowded. Most heroic cultivators were curious about the new magical plant, but some of them were even interested in the outcome of the auction. Every victory was a show of power when the nations at the peak of the Mortal Lands were involved. Even the simple act of grouping up for such an event could be linked to the same reasons. Those forces were simply showing the might of their heroic assets and how quickly they could gather a large number of them. The group from the Hive paled in comparison to the other three since only seven rank 4 cultivators arrived in the area. Instead, the other three groups could already count more than twenty rank 4 cultivators each and that without considering the existences in the fifth rank that had reinforced the envoys. However, that sight didn''t discourage Elder Austin nor Noah. They had always known that the Hive was weaker, which was the precise reason why they weren''t attempting to keep the magical plants for themselves. Then, Elder Justin''s arrival and words eased the tension that was accumulating on their side. "It took us a while to tune the oath since Thirty-seven kept on complaining." Noah rolled his eyes when the automaton was mentioned, but Elder Austin directly took his arrival to announce the beginning of the auction. "The Hive is willing to accept payments of any kind. It would be up to Elder Justin to decide which of you has the lead. Of course, we will provide the rank 5 oath needed to collaborate." Elder Justin stepped forward and revealed a white tablet filled with inscriptions to the other groups. Anyone could read the requirements and terms of the oath since they only had to use their mental energy to inspect it. Generally speaking, every major organization had to have similar inscribed items in-store, or they wouldn''t be able to collaborate with other forces. Yet, creating something that could subjugate rank 6 entities wasn''t easy. Only the power of the god of the Empire could ensure that those powerhouses wouldn''t be able to break the oath on their own. The Hive though didn''t have such backing, and it could only limit itself to use Chasing Demon as a warranty over rank 5 cultivators. Nevertheless, an oath on that level was more than enough for that situation since rank 6 existences weren''t involved and didn''t have any intention to do so. The rank 5 cultivators stepped forward almost immediately when they read that the winner of the auction would obtain the monopoly over the magical plant. ''Ruthless.'' Noah commented in his mind when he read the contents of the oath. The Hive was ready to lose any claim over that resource forever, only to force the three enemy faction to fight over them! "I, Sharp Trunk, swear." "I, Elder Doyle, swear." "I, Lady Edna, swear." "I, Elder Justin, swear." The four rank 5 existences from the four nations swore as they touched the white tablet, and their names appeared on its surface after that. The pact was sealed, the Hive had already ensured its safety at that point. Yet, Elder Justin suddenly set a starting price. "I''d say bids can start from one million Credits." No one was surprised by that number. After all, the deal saw a monopoly over a rank 5 resource. The price quickly rose though, and it took only a few exchanges to make it reach fifty million Credits. "The Elbas family is leading." Elder Justin announced after Lady Edna''s offer. The Royals were used to invest a lot in unknown materials and similar, and they would never let go of a species born after the battle of rank 6 existences. A short moment of silence followed that offer, but the auction was quickly rekindled when a flower at the peak of the middle tier grew right under them. "Fifty million Credits and three spells up to the fifth rank. The Empire will include one of the darkness element." Sharp Trunk said, and the offers of the other envoys began to include additional resources too. Elder Doyle began to add techniques and spells too, but Lady Edna started to use the studies of the academy as a currency. Elder Justin shot a helpless glance toward Noah before announcing once again that the Elbas family was in the lead. What the Hive needed the most at the moment were the recent discoveries of the inscriptions'' fields, and the three envoys didn''t miss that detail. Elder Justin had chosen inscription methods over techniques and spells, so they had to push their bids on that aspect. Even Elder Austin took a glance at Noah, but the latter simply shook his head. He knew how useful Thirty-seven was, and it was pointless to compare the value of a single heroic cultivator to the future of the Hive as a whole. He was the youngest heroic cultivator in history and probably that with the highest potential, but he still couldn''t match the possibility of having experts in various inscriptions'' fields. Also, he had seen the power that the abilities that carried his individuality were capable of unleashing. Creating was better than obtaining something already existing, especially in his case. He would rather gain inspiration from a wide variety of techniques than beg the Hive to prioritize him. That approach was more in line with his individuality, and it would allow him to improve in both his inscription methods. It might even lead him to fuse them one day! Sacrificing the future of the Hive for something that he didn''t strictly need wasn''t worth it. The three envoys began to add inscription methods to their offers, but the Elbas family always managed to keep the lead even if most of the methods mentioned weren''t up to date. The flower withered during those offers, and Elder Justin was about to end the auction when another purple stem grew and gave birth to a black flower in the upper tier. Elder Austin could only smile when he saw that the three nations gave voice to another series of offers. The bids had already reached a point where the Hive could ignore the loss of a rank 5 material. Chapter 680: 680. Preparations The cycle of bids and silence continued for a while. The bids resumed every time a new flower bloomed and released a higher power than before. That magical plant seemed incredibly frail, but there was an innate resilience in its species since stems kept on growing even after so many flowers had withered. Its struggles to find a stable form that could live for more than a few seconds were commendable, and they even inspired some of the weaker cultivators on the scene that were still discovering their individuality. However, that sight began to trouble the elders of the Hive that had understood the entirety of the situation. ''Will it ever stop increasing its power? Can it make it to the sixth rank?'' Noah thought as he stared at the flowers blooming and withering periodically. The continuous bidding could only benefit the Hive, but it would be a problem if the magical plant failed to find a balance right in the middle of the auction and stopped growing. Elder Justin had to declare a winner before that to benefit from the situation. As for the possibility of the magical plant reaching the sixth rank, the Hive couldn''t really prepare a plan for that. That event would involve the rank 6 powerhouses, which would render the pact useless since it was limited to rank 5 existences. The fact that the flowers had already a power in the upper tier of the fifth rank was a clear sign to Elder Justin that pushed him to accelerate the end of the auction. "Ten more rounds, and I''ll decide a winner." Elder Justin announced, and the three envoys didn''t fail to understand the meaning behind his words. However, they had already foreseen that outcome and accepted the risks when they signed the pact. There was the monopoly over a rank 5 resource at stake, and risking something was the least that those nations could do. The bidding rounds continued until the tenth, where the cultivators of the three big nations stopped making offers on their own. The number of Credits had reached one hundred million, and both the Papral nation and the Empire had added techniques and spells to their bids. The Obsidian Credits had lost a lot of value since the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands, so the three envoys had long stopped using them to try to win the auction. Instead, they had begun to use inscription methods as a currency since the Hive was clearly interested in them. Yet, they couldn''t match the bids of the Elbas family, which kept on adding inscription methods every time the other nations increased their offers. So, they could only use techniques and spells to make up for them. Elder Justin exchanged a few mental messages with the elders back in the headquarters and quickly chose a winner after hearing their opinion. "The Elbas family wins!" The elder''s announcement didn''t surprise the cultivators on the scene, but there wasn''t much that they could do. No organization in the Mortal Lands could match the accumulation of inscription methods of the Elbas family, and the latter didn''t even have to bid their most recent discoveries! Nevertheless, they still had to bid methods that had been used in the last centuries, which made them second only to the new teachings created in the academy. That was more than enough to bring Thirty-seven up to date, especially since most of those methods couldn''t be purchased with Credits. Lady Edna happily neared Elder Justin, who laid the white tablet in front of her. The Elbas family didn''t lose much in the trade. Giving away so many Credits wasn''t a problem for a big nation, and the inscription methods were copies other than old schools in the eyes of the Royals. The way Lady Edna saw it, they weren''t giving up on anything to gain the monopoly over the black flowers. Elder Justin and Lady Edna discussed for a bit to settle the details behind the transport of the resources, but the white tablet had already given a few guidelines. The Royals would have a month to send the promised goods, and they couldn''t taint the methods with false information. Any breach in the pact would ruin one of Lady Edna''s centers of power other than make the Elbas family untrustworthy. Of course, the Elbas family intended to respect the pact even if the flowers didn''t stabilize since they had a face to keep. The matter was settled, but none of the heroic cultivators on the scene left the area. Everyone wanted to see what level of power the flowers would reach and if the Royals had made the right choice in investing that considerable sum. Flowers had kept on blooming and withering for the whole duration of the auction. There didn''t seem to be a limit to the power of that species even though the terrain gave birth to only one specimen each time. Cecil, Thaddeus, and the other cultivators of the Utra nation didn''t limit themselves to watch the bloom and withering of flowers after they won the auction. That material was rightfully theirs now, so they could interact with it as they wanted. Cecil neared the ground while covering his figure with a peculiar cape that stopped the natural leaking of his aura. Then, he took a transparent and rectangular box filled with inscriptions from his space-ring. Thaddeus and a few rank 4 cultivators flew behind him while deploying the same inscribed items. A purple stem came out of the ground a few seconds after they finished their preparations, and Cecil''s tried his best to hold back his mental waves from affecting its growth. The stem rose in the air and gave birth to the usual black flower in the upper tier of the fifth rank. That specimen began to wither too, but Cecil quickly plucked it and stored the plant inside the transparent box. Cecil sealed the box by moving his finger on one of the shining lines on its surface, and the withering process stopped when the item separated the flower from the outside world. The cultivators behind him did the same as they used the inscribed items to gather the dusty remains of the plant that were dispersing in the air. Their actions were smooth and precise, and the other groups could see the amount of experience that the Elbas family had in handling unknown materials. Cecil and the others stored their boxes and took more of them from their space-ring. Their preparation was exceptional, especially since they had gathered all those items before the death of the third specimen! The cultivators from the Elbas family continued to pick the flowers as soon as they began to wither, and the power of the magical plant soon reached the peak of the fifth rank. Expectation mounted inside all the cultivators on the scene when the peak rank 5 flower died, and another purple stem quickly grew from that same spot. A few words couldn''t describe the emotions that they felt when they sensed the flower radiating an aura in the sixth rank. Chapter 681: 681. Tool The new magical plant had crossed the boundaries of the fifth rank and had bloomed with the power of the sixth rank! The heroic cultivators of the Hive could only show ugly expressions at that sight, while those from the Utra nation could barely contain their excitement. The cost of the monopoly over that resource was already affordable for the Elbas family when the flowers were in the fifth rank, but that became incomparably low when something in the sixth rank was concerned. Everyone stared at the black flower on the terrain with expectant gazes. They wanted to see if the plant was going to wither again and repeat the cycle of life and death. However, the magical plant didn''t show any sign of withering, and it even began to feed on the "Breath" contained in the terrain. The new species had found its stable form. The plant still looked frail and harmless, but the space around it bent as it absorbed the nutrients from the environment. The species was beginning to reveal its features after it found its stability, and that could only give birth to another wave of marvel inside the minds of the heroic assets on the scene. Cecil and Lady Edna exchanged a glance before moving toward the flower. The oath bound rank 5 heroic cultivators, but the matter would be different if the powerhouses of the other organizations were to interfere. The Elbas family knew that it had to act fast if it wanted to secure that precious material. Cecil didn''t even look at the cultivators around him after he found a silent understanding with Lady Edna. He directly plucked the flower from the base of its stem and stored it inside the transparent box in his grasp. Elder Austin and the rank 5 cultivators from the other forces notified their headquarters about the situation, but there wasn''t much that they could do at the moment. Their rank 6 powerhouses would have to reach the scene and forcefully break the oath before the situation could be affected. That would require time, and the Elbas family was already in possession of the material! Of course, the matter would be different if that terrain turned out to be an endless source of rank 6 plants. The groups from the four nations stared at the terrain while revealing mixed emotions. The birth of a second rank 6 flower could force the powerhouses to intervene, which would most likely cause a war or some sort of organized battle. Cecil gave his space-ring to Lady Edna, who immediately left the area to return to the Utra nation, but no one else flew away from there. The eyes of some cultivators followed the departing rank 5 existence, but they didn''t move for fear of triggering the backlash of the oath. Everyone stood still, waiting to see if the ground gave birth to another magical plant. However, no more purple stems came out of the terrain. The heroic cultivators waited in silence, but they began to leave when nothing happened even after a few days passed. The crowd began to disperse, and the assets from the Empire and Papral nation didn''t fail to shoot a few glances at the groups from the Hive and Utra nation. The Council and the Empire didn''t lose nor gain anything, which was more than fine considering that the Royals had won only one small flower. On the other hand, the Hive had sold a precious resource at an incredibly low price. "The Elbas family wishes to analyze the terrain without interruption." Cecil said when a week had passed, but no more flowers had grown from the ground. "The Hive refuses. You have rights over the magical plant, but the owner of the terrain has yet to be decided." Elder Justin promptly answered. That outcome wasn''t ideal, but he could only rejoice when he saw that the species had probably gone extinct after its sudden appearance. Also, he couldn''t let the Elbas family study the terrain. There was a chance that the Royals could restore the previous equilibrium with their advanced methods and force the flowers to grow again. The Hive couldn''t risk that, not for the previous price at least. "One billion Credits." Cecil announced, but Elder Justin snorted before refusing his offer. "Credits are useless. The Hive will accept only something that can match the value of a rank 6 material." The tables had turned in the central areas of the continent. The Royals didn''t know if the ground could be forced to give birth to more black flowers, but the Hive was now sure that it had the potential to create something in the sixth rank. Elder Justin had to force the auction to an end before for fear that the species couldn''t find a stable form, but everything was different now. He would gladly hold another auction and continue it endlessly. Nevertheless, none of the envoys on the scene had the authority to offer resources that could match something with the power of the sixth rank. Cecil quickly gave up on the idea of securing that terrain, and he limited himself to wait for the possible birth of another plant. Elder Justin, Elder Doyle, and Sharp Trunk did the same and remained still as the heroic cultivators behind them returned to their respective nations. Elder Austin began to move back to the territories of the Hive too, and Noah followed him while shooting one last glance toward the departing Thaddeus. "What happens now?" Noah asked when he and Elder Austin were at some distance from the other heroic cultivators. The situation seemed helpless in his eyes. The Hive had simply suffered a loss even if it gained a large number of resources. "Our methods are still rusty, and we would have sold the plant anyway. It''s a pity though. We could have pushed the biddings far farther." Elder Austin sighed after saying those words. The Hive had yet to groom inscription masters. It had barely reinforced its existing formations after all. "For how long would we have to take these unfavorable trades due to our weakness?" Noah asked, but his question wasn''t directed toward the elder. He kept on becoming stronger, and the Hive did the same. However, no amount of improvement seemed to be enough to match the power of the big nations. Noah knew that their achievements were already incredible, especially since not even thirty years had passed from the battle for the independence of the archipelago. Yet, he still felt eager to do more, and that immovable political environment was almost suffocating for him. "Prince, you are still young. Commoners might see their world changing in a matter of months, but the matters on our level can last for centuries." Elder Austin answered, and he didn''t fail to notice the traces of annoyance exuded by Noah''s expression. "Yet." Noah''s attention went on the elder when he heard that word. Elder Austin revealed a smirk when he saw his reaction and didn''t hesitate to explain more. "We are demons, and you have retrieved the perfect tool for thieves." Chapter 682: 682. Mole Understanding dawned upon Noah when he heard those words, but Elder Austin didn''t explain further. The latter simply turned to fly toward the desert when he was sure that the other heroic cultivators from the Hive had all taken different directions to return to their duties. Noah followed the elder with interest. He had a vague idea of what the Hive was planning, but he still wanted to see it with his eyes before making any suggestion. Elder Austin dived toward the yellow sand when Thirty-seven''s figure appeared in his field of view. The automaton had his usual appearance, but Noah could see that he had expended a lot of the energy contained in his form. His long hair was still immobile behind his back, and he traced deep lines on the sand with the long stick in his grasp. However, his figure was far more ethereal compared to when he was in the palace, which signaled that his reserves of energy had reached a critical condition. "The Patriarch told you to recharge yourself inside the pendant every week. Don''t you dare to die on us because of your addiction!" Elder Austin scolded the automaton, but the latter released a weak snort without stopping to trace lines on the sand. Noah and the elder could see that Thirty-seven was extremely focused, but his form kept on losing part of its shine with every gesture that he made. Automatons were something remarkably similar to normal lifeforms, and, as such, they needed nourishments to keep on living. The spirit of Noah''s ring acted as a simple program and didn''t consume much energy, meaning that the power contained in the inscriptions of the item was enough to fuel it. Yet, Thirty-seven was far more complex, and the fact that he had a personality already made him more expensive to keep active. Also, it seemed that he was inscribing something, even if the surface of the desert didn''t reveal anything. Elder Austin quickly picked an item from his space-ring, and the aura of a rank 6 energy suddenly spread in the area. Noah was a bit surprised when he analyzed the shining crystal held in the elder''s grasp, but that emotion vanished when he understood the nature of the substance contained in the item. The crystal shone with a blinding brown light radiated by the dense gas inside it that carried Chasing Demon''s aura. ''It makes sense. Only Chasing Demon''s "Breath" can fuel a rank 6 automaton.'' Noah thought as Elder Austin laid the crystal on the surface of Thirty-seven''s uncaring figure. The automaton absorbed Chasing Demon''s "Breath", and his figure recovered its previous shine in no time. Thirty-seven even quickened his pace after that wave of energy filled his structure, but Elder Austin still sent a series of messages through his inscribed notebook at that sight. Noah remained silent, and he patiently waited for the elder to explain the matter thoroughly. A few lines began to shine on the sand at some point. Their light traced specific forms that became a small array when the lines connected. Then, Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon appeared over that formation when its light dispersed. "The communications work as intended, there was almost no interference in your message." Flying Demon exclaimed when he saw Elder Austin, and he limited himself to show a broad smile when he noticed Noah. "Enlarging it is far more difficult than we thought though. It might take a year to reach the eastern coast." Dreaming Demon added, and she didn''t fail to show a smile at Noah too. "I never thought you two would be so eager to return in a separate dimension." Noah said at their sight. He had understood by then what the Hive was trying to do, and he could already feel the eagerness to join that project mounting inside him. "Kid, Julia told us what you did with that woman of yours. Don''t tell me that you can''t understand the actions of this poor, old man." Flying Demon answered while winking at Noah, and Dreaming Demon ignored the gesture of her lover as she reached for the automaton. Thirty-seven stooped working when he saw the pendant on Dreaming Demon''s neck, and he suddenly disappeared as he entered it. Chasing Demon''s energy wasn''t enough to stabilize him, he needed to spend a set amount of time inside the pendant to return to his peak. "So, who is our target?" Noah asked when silence fell in the area. He had understood that the automaton was recreating Divine Architect''s separate dimension, and he could already guess what the Hive intended to do with it. The Hive was the fusion of a series of unorthodox sects and underground organizations, so it was evident that it would be more inclined to resort to illegal methods to improve its position. A separate dimension that could lead anywhere was the perfect tool to steal precious resources and make sudden attacks. Cultivators that labeled themselves as demons had to put such a tool to use. "We have always aimed to hit the Elbas family. Their researches are too useful, and they have accumulated too many grievances with the other big nations in the last years. The matter with the magical plant can only benefit our plan further." Elder Austin explained, but Noah found a few flaws in his exposition. The separate dimension was incredible, and the target was also the best among the available ones. Yet, the Hive still needed precise coordinates to understand where to set the exits. The heroic assets couldn''t blindly jump out of the dimension and seize everything in their reach. That would be unfruitful other than incredibly dangerous. Elder Austin handed a folded sheet to Noah when he noticed that the latter was still doubtful about the matter. Noah quickly unfolded the sheet only to discover that it contained details concerning the trades between the Hive and the Udye family. However, the elder''s smile made him understand that there was more to it. Noah began to inspect the sheet with his mental sphere, and a strange, shining cube materialized inside his sea of consciousness at that point. Havok and Zac''s ethereal figures shot toward the cube and tried to open it but to no avail. Noah deployed his half-transparent figure too, but even the work of the three beings couldn''t break the surface of that shining shape. "Prince, it''s pointless. The powerhouse of the Udye family has encrypted the secret message with his methods." Noah gave up on forcing the cube when he heard Elder Austin''s words. Ian Udye was the Patriarch of the Udye family, but he wasn''t its strongest cultivator. The nobles were used to hide their most powerful assets and leave the management of their family to weaker cultivators. The secret message made the Hive understand that the Udye family had a rank 5 cultivator in their ranks. "What does it say?" Noa asked, and Elder Austin didn''t fail to increase his excitement with his answer. "It''s an invitation to help them with the Cause received when you were inside the separate dimension. Prince, we have a mole in the Utra nation." Chapter 683: 683. Tunnel A mole inside the Utra nation! ''The target of the Hive isn''t a territory in the new continent, but those in the old one!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as he stored the sheet, and the cube vanished. There was something that he had to do in the old continent, something that he had postponed for years because his power didn''t allow him to act freely. His aura suddenly became sharper when he began to think about his father, but Elder Austin promptly reminded him of something that he already knew. "Prince, this strategy might make you fulfill your vengeance, but it''s still something that can''t happen soon. We need to let the Hive grow while destabilizing the Utra nation at the same time." Noah nodded when he heard those words, but it took him some time to appease his anger. The Balvan family was only a medium-size noble family, meaning that it shouldn''t have rank 5 cultivators in its ranks. Even most large-size noble families didn''t have such powerful entities in their ranks due to the strict control that the Royals had over the resources of the country. Of course, there were exceptions in every organization, and the Udye family was a clear example of that. Also, Noah knew from both June and the battle against his uncle that the Elbas family was aiding the Balvan family to compensate for hiding him. Yet, he didn''t know how far the Royals could push the already stagnated assets of his family. ''Thomas should have stayed at the same stage for a hundred years, his centers of power shouldn''t have much potential left. However, the Royals know that the Balvans are my target, I wouldn''t be surprised if they provided them with some countermeasures.'' Noah thought as Elder Austin gestured him to follow the two Demons. He didn''t care if more heroic cultivators appeared in his family. The only hindrances that could worry him were his grandfather and eventual inscribed items. The Demons led him in the same point where the array had appeared, and Dreaming Demon lightly tapped the pendant on her neck when they entered its area. The shining lines of the formation reappeared on the sandy terrain at that point, and a blinding halo surrounded the three figures as the teleportation activated. Noah didn''t need to close his eyes at that time, and he could see the desert being replaced by a barren plain. The environment was different from the separate dimension under the mystical fog. The ground was brown, without any shape that imitated a lifeform, and the sky was pitch black. Also, Noah could see the end of the plain from his position. The dimension stretched only for a few kilometers, and its width could be matched even by a few space-rings. "Chasing Demon is far away from Divine Architect''s level. We are lucky that the automaton can leave a trace and a few simple meanings so that Rufus can inscribe directly over them." Flying Demon said with a severe tone, and Noah could only nod at his words. The fact that Thirty-seven could ease Chasing Demon''s work was already an incredible feat. Divine Architect had created an automaton capable of producing simple meanings, and that alone said a lot about her level of expertise. ''I wonder how far away Thirty-seven is from a human.'' Noah lingered on that thought for a few seconds as he inspected the dimension. There was void all around the plain, and Noah could even sense that the ground wasn''t that deep. The sky was limited too, and it only reached a height of a few hundreds of meters. Also, there seemed to be invisible walls right before the void that blocked his advance. "It''s a tunnel rather than a dimension." Noah said when he finished exploring the entirety of the place. "Yes. Thirty-seven said that this form was better for our purposes. He is even creating a formation on the surface to hide this dimension from Heaven and Earth." Dreaming Demon explained, but Flying Demon quickly specified a few aspects of the matter. "Well, not creating. He is only setting the blueprint thanks to Rufus'' "Breath". Chasing Demon still has to retrace every line and replace the meanings inside them. It''s a bit annoying for him, but it''s the best approach to avoid mistakes." Noah listened to their words, but he was more interested in another aspect of the dimension. "When will it be ready?" He asked as he turned toward the two Demons. The couple showed awkward smiles at his question, and they silently decided that it was better to show him the functioning of that tunnel. Flying Demon moved toward one of the invisible walls and created a series of white shards that crashed on it. Noah saw how the shards couldn''t pierce the wall, but a slight tremor spread on the ground after the impact. Then, the brown wasteland stretched toward the void in the spot right under Flying Demon. "Thirty-seven can''t tell us how Divine Architect forced the enlargement of the dimension, but he did explain a few methods. However, the most precise at our disposal is the brute force." Dreaming Demon said to explain the events that followed her lover''s actions. "So, the dimension is ready, but we need to enlarge it to make it useful." Noah gave voice to his summary and landed on the eastern border of the wasteland to test its sturdiness. Tremors spread through the terrain again as Noah punched the invisible wall. His attack didn''t match Flying Demon''s power, but it still enlarged the dimension toward the east. ''How much would it take to reach the Balvan mansion like this?'' Noah thought while trying to make a few calculations, but he could already know that they wouldn''t be precise. "Your body can make the Enduring demon sect die again of envy. Speaking of which, were the scrolls useful? I''m sorry that most of them couldn''t be transcribed completely." Flying Demon asked, but Noah limited himself to nod. The Demons already knew that he found Ravaging Demon''s technique interesting, but he didn''t find it necessary to tell them that his first spell had taken inspiration from it. As for the other scrolls, they couldn''t help him even after he learnt a second inscription method. "We are waiting for Thirty-seven and Chasing Demon to complete the formation on the surface. Then, we will begin to stretch this dimension until it reaches the old continent." Dreaming Demon began to speak, and her eyes revealed a cold expression when she gave voice to her next words. "We''ll use this time to recover further and maybe even improve. So, be sure to call us when you intend to charge toward your family. Watching your back during your vengeance is the least that we can do to repay you." Chapter 684: 684. Doubts The two Demons began to reveal cold expressions after those words. They were grateful to Noah, and the latter was even starting to consider them as a friend. However, they were also demons. Their coldness was proper of entities that had advanced through the blood of their enemies. Noah had never underestimated them, but he had also never seen that side of them before. That discovery didn''t scare him though. Instead, he was relieved to see that they were somewhat similar to him. Cultivators would face struggles and harsh battles throughout their lives, but only a few of them would develop a similar attitude. "I''ll surely notify you." Noah said while showing a cold expression of his own. Divine Demon had personally trained the Demons. They reflected what Noah had learnt on his own during his life before the archipelago. Chasing Demon was powerful and couldn''t bond with someone at the bottom of the heroic ranks, but Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon were different. Noah might not have realized it, but the three of them were past the relationship that simple companions could have. "Don''t laze around too much. It has been too long since I battled against a cultivator." Noah said before gesturing that he wanted to leave. The two Demons revealed smirks at his words, and Dreaming Demon tapped her pendant. A shining array appeared on the black ceiling of the separate dimension, and Noah returned in the desert as soon as he touched it. Elder Austin was still waiting for him on the yellow sand, but his focus seemed to be elsewhere. "The Royals might complete studying the black flower before the tunnel is set." Noah claimed the attention of the elder with those words, but the latter shook his head when he returned to reality. "That''s even better. The Elbas family would be forced to recognize that the old continent has exhausted its potential at that point. We want them not to care about the Utra nation, Prince." Noah could only agree with the explanation of the elder. The three big nations had managed to create wonders during the thousands of years of their rule, but the old continent had its limits. He had seen how the territories deep inside the area of influence of the Empire had a scarce density of "Breath", and he knew that lands with similar features could be found inside the other nations. The Mortal Lands were full of "Breath", but there was a limit to how many powerful beings they could sustain. Environments would be drained and reduced to wastelands as powerful organizations enlarged. That would limit the number of valuable lands and cause wars. The wars would kill cultivators and release the "Breath" back in the environment, bringing back the cycle to its starting point. Yet, the arrival of the new continent had pushed that cycle further and had momentarily delayed the unavoidable war for precious resources. ''What if the Royals abandon the old continent and our help gives birth to a fifth force?'' Noah thought at that point. The Hive had been able to claim its independence because the three nations didn''t care about the archipelago. The same could happen if the Royals were to migrate completely, and the Cause was left free to conquer the Utra nation. A land was useless on its own, and names even more so. ''The Elbas family might even gain the friendship of nobles loyal to the Cause. Winning to obtain a barren land isn''t that enticing.'' Noah reviewed the possible outcomes in his mind, but the influence of the Hive in the political situation there only lead to beneficial results. The Hive could hinder the Royals from gaining support by destroying the weaker families loyal to them. That would both weaken their power on the old continent and impede the enlargement of the Elbas family during its migration. ''Helping a weak country to hurt a strong one, I wonder if we''ll ever regret it.'' That doubt didn''t bother Noah too much. It would be impossible to be feared in the Mortal Lands without an existence at the peak of the heroic ranks, and the Cause lacked it. Those nobles would be harmless for more than centuries and would most likely be exploited by other bigger forces. However, the Hive couldn''t care less since it was only interested in benefitting from the situation. Instead, there was another doubt that Noah didn''t manage to suppress since he discovered that the Hive was building a separate dimension. "Notify me when we are ready. I want to join the raids." Noah said as he set off to return to his quarters. There were still a lot of available improvements with both his inscription methods, and the prospect of a battle made him choose to hone his current abilities as much as he could. Nevertheless, his mind wasn''t on his skills as he flew back to his dome. There was something that he had chosen not to think about when he discovered the information about the god of the Empire. That something concerned the relationship between the Odrea nation and the most powerful organization of the Mortal Lands! ''The Empire rises and falls, but what happens to the Odrea nation when its enemy vanishes? There are so many inaccuracies in the historical records.'' Noah didn''t spend time pondering about that issue back then because he didn''t have a way to reach the Mausoleum without alerting the forces of the Empire. There was no point in thinking about something that he couldn''t obtain, especially when he was busy with so many projects. However, those thoughts forced their way through his mind when he learnt about the separate dimension. ''A rank 6 cultivator shouldn''t be able to create a formation able to fend off a god even by sacrificing his life. There is something off here, and I''m starting to believe that the Mausoleum hides far more than I thought.'' Noah could only find uncertainties when he pondered about the matter. The history of the Odrea nation was passed down by human cultivators who couldn''t completely understand the higher ranks. There was the possibility that all their pride was built on a lie. ''The Mausoleum has six layers, or that''s what Lisa said. I must be a rank 6 cultivator if I want to explore it completely and if her words reflect the truth. I should just prepare for the raids in the Utra nation for now.'' Noah put the matter in the back of his mind again at that point. The events of the Empire and the Odrea nation involved rank 6 existences and gods, and he only had information gathered by human cultivators. He was set on exploring the Mausoleum one day, but the project that concerned the Utra nation was too appealing for him at the moment. The benefits interested him, but he was more focused on the fact that his vengeance was nearing. Chapter 685: 685. Prey Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon focused on training and stretching the boundaries of the separate dimension as soon as Chasing Demon completed the array that Thirty-seven had designed. The yellow sand of the desert lost part of its shine after that project was completed, but no trace of the formation could be seen from its surface. The formation was meant to hide the separate dimension from Heaven and Earth, so it featured subtle lines that couldn''t be noticed from above the sand. Of course, that was only a precaution. The Hive wasn''t trying to copy the Mortal Lands. It just wanted to make a tunnel to ambush enemy forces. That structure wouldn''t cause the anger of Heaven and Earth, at least in theory. However, the Thirty-seven still suggested adding that layer of protection in case the world noticed some similarities with the dimension created by Divine Architect. The Hive set courses to educate the first batch of inscription masters now that the automaton was free, and a new series of missions appeared on the boards managing the human cultivators. There was a need to create hierarchies and different organizations among the human cultivators to push their potential further. The training with the copying technique improved their battle prowess, and the automaton would broaden their knowledge, but they needed to develop a drive. Only conflicts could give birth to determination and strong mindsets, and the Hive was doing its best to create a favorable environment for the appearance of heroic cultivators. Even the Empire had different platoons since that feature was needed to create some sort of friendly conflict among the weaker soldiers. Noah knew about those details because the elders kept on informing him while he was busy training. The dimension would take years to reach the old continent, so he could wholeheartedly focus on himself for the time being. His focus was on his inscription methods since they were the key to create techniques and spells that suited him perfectly. Also, reaching a high level of expertise in both of them would facilitate his creations once he became able to wield laws. The primary energy created with his "Breath" was his core material, and Noah did not doubt it. So, he would simply focus on solidifying his foundation until he reached the point where he could affect it. Of course, his ultimate goal was to fuse both the Elemental forging method and the Will-consuming runes to obtain an even stronger approach that used his meanings as its core. Yet, he could only immerse himself in endless tests to improve his expertise. Noah began to forge disposable items again in his free time. His centers of power had the priority during his seclusion, but he always managed to perform a few forgings and attempt to add runes to his creations. The first experiments turned out to be failures, and the sound of explosions filled his underground quarters in those moments. It had been a while since Noah''s creation exploded in that way, but he didn''t need to protect himself against them anymore. The first finished products arrived quite soon though. Noah didn''t manage to enhance the same feature of his creations with both his inscription methods, but he found a way to make them work together. His Instabilities had the same core, but Noah removed the spikes and replaced them with saber-shaped runes. The blast of the disposable item would create primary energy due to the "Breath" used during the forging, and the runes would absorb it as they shot in the distance. That reduced the number of materials needed for their creation to one and made the cost of the Instabilities far more sustainable. Noah only kept a few of them but gave most of his stable products to the Hive. He didn''t need them, and the Hive could provide them to its weaker heroic cultivators since the disposable items had the power in the middle tier of the fourth rank. Noah didn''t need to create another Will-consuming rune for now, and he couldn''t forge items that improved his battle prowess, so he limited himself to inscribe as much as he could. His stash of rank 4 beasts'' corpses was vast, and he didn''t have much use for them anyway. He could obtain as much peak rank 4 creatures as he wanted in the new continent, so he didn''t mind using the weaker ones to train. He also hunted a lot in that period, but the rank 5 beast that he could kill were hard to find. The colonization forced them to join bigger packs to survive, which created crowded rank 5 danger zones. As for the central areas of the continent, no activity was registered in that period. The experts formulated hypotheses, and the most approved saw the central lands converting all the excessive energy inside their terrain in the birth of a living being. That process seemed to be over after the birth of the rank 6 black flower, and nothing else appeared there. Packs of magical beasts had migrated there, but the terrain was still barren, and they could only feed on the higher density of "Breath". Noah''s body went deeper into the lower tier of the fifth rank in that period, but it didn''t obtain any notable increase in its power. Instead, it was his mind that showed incredible improvements. Noah''s sea of consciousness had already entered the last stages of the fourth rank before obtaining the Will-consuming runes method, and his constant efforts only pushed the enlargement of that center of power further. ''More than twenty years have passed since I became a rank 4 mage. I think it''s time to try it.'' Noah thought at some point during his seclusion. There was a flaw with his Body-inscription spell, which Noah couldn''t avoid: His Blood companions became relatively useless at some point! That flaw had been somewhat eased when Noah began to apply the teachings of the Elemental forging method to the spell, but the core issue remained. ''I can already kill beasts in the fifth rank, and my mind is in the last stages of the fourth rank. Havok and Zac aren''t bad, but do I really need them at this point?'' Noah thought and quickly accepted that his body alone performed far better than his two companions. ''There should be no issue with the taming part too, and I even have the saber-shaped rune now. Also, a rank 5 Blood companion will increase the internal pressure inside my mind.'' That last thought was enough to make Noah stand up and exit his quarters to look for suitable prey. Chapter 686: 686. Quick hun Magical beasts of the darkness element weren''t as rare as cultivators, but they weren''t easy to find either. Noah spent the weeks after he departed from the fourth dome exploring the territories under the domain of the Hive, but he didn''t find any creature that suited him. Of course, he hunted and ate the beasts in the fifth rank that he could kill, but there didn''t seem to be any species of the darkness element in the entirety of the southwestern coast. It must be said that the magical beasts didn''t have much space where to thrive after the Hive created and enlarged its four domes, and some of the strongest creatures had even been captured by Chasing Demon. Also, there was the rocky wasteland with the lava lake that further repelled living beings. The packs could only venture through the destroyed mountain chain or along the southern coast to find better environments. The fruitless travel only forced Noah to look elsewhere for suitable prey. He couldn''t go in the domains of the other nations, but there were areas in the old continent that he knew featured what he needed. His targets had to be limited to the areas of influence of the three nations, but he already had an idea of where to find suitable creatures. Noah flew toward the forest of White Woods and took the teleportation matrix to return to the Coral archipelago. Then, he flew toward alongside the mountain chain that divided the areas of influence of the Empire and the Utra nation to reach the Afria nation. Noah had made sure to stay away from the city of Slyfall to avoid meeting Drew for the third time, and he had even activated the Dark cover spell not to notify the Wardens of his presence. He wasn''t completing any political task at that time, so it was better if his return in the old continent remained unknown. The Afria nation used to have an encampment of the Hive. Still, everything had been removed even before the conquest of the Lutren nation. Yet, Noah''s target was more toward the eastern coastline, in the gorge called Granite Abyss. Noah didn''t dispel his cover when he reached the gorge and was pleased to notice that the light still couldn''t illuminate its depths. ''You didn''t die in these twenty years then.'' Noah thought as he dived through the darkness that filled the gorge. Rank 4 dragons of various tiers and species rested in the cavities along the rocky walls, but Noah released a low growl to warn them. That was a battle between rank 5 creatures, and those weak beasts were only allowed to watch it. The situation was quite troublesome since he was in enemy territory, and a fight between beings on that level was bound to create chaos. Noah had to kill the rank 5 Cursed dragon quickly before any expert from the Empire came to investigate that area. The growl spread through the walls of the canyon and awakened the weakened rank 5 dragon at its bottom that raised its head to search for the invader. However, it couldn''t sense anything out of the ordinary. Noah''s spell was fueled by the energy contained in his Liquid dantian, and the dragon couldn''t possibly sense him when he made use of his solid stage battle prowess. The dragon was about to release an angry roar when it didn''t find Noah, but two trails of black flames appeared next to its neck and teleported two fuming slashes. The rank 5 dragon was only in the lower tier, and Noah knew that well since he had managed to survive to its attack when he was only a rank 3 cultivator. Also, it was weakened, so Noah''s full-powered attacks managed to inflict deep wounds on its scaled neck. The Cursed dragon roared in pain and released a wave of white flames while tilting its head. The flames filled the bottom of the Granite Abyss and moved toward its upper parts, threatening to reach its entrance. However, a black sphere appeared on their path at some point and absorbed their destructive force inside its shape. Noah wasn''t using his liquid "Breath" to fuel his abilities, so he didn''t have access to the second form of his martial art and his new spell. However, all his other abilities were on a higher level when he used the energy inside his Liquid dantian! Noah''s Black hole''s spell absorbed the wave of flames and stored their energy inside its shape. The dragon didn''t accept that its flames could be beaten and continued to pour energy inside them. Yet, the dark sphere in front of Noah only became bigger. The dragon had to stop its offensive at some point, and Noah directly exploited that chance to teleport the spell above its figure. The dark sphere began to destabilize when it came out of the black flames, and exploded when it touched the body of the Cursed dragon. The condensed energy of the white flames, together with part of Noah''s energy, was released in less than an instant and enveloped the weakened rank 5 beast. Cracks appeared on the rocky walls, and some boulders began to fall toward the bottom of the canyon. The clash between two rank 5 creatures was bound to affect the environment drastically. Nevertheless, Noah had to be quick. He kicked the air and sprinted toward the dragon while the might of the blast was still injuring it. Then, he delivered four fast slashes on the wounded neck of the beast when he reached it. Even the sturdy scales of a dragon couldn''t endure Noah''s physical might, especially those belonging to a weakened creature. The dragon died as Noah severed its head, and he stored everything inside his space-ring before using the Warp spell to leave the canyon. His last attacks had shattered the terrain under the beast and caused an earthquake that destabilized the entire structure of the Granite Abyss. Big boulders began to fall and fill the bottom of the gorge. Yet, Noah had already reappeared in the forest on the surface and was flying at full speed through the trees. Noah flew south until he reached the mountain chain, where he dug a cave with his bare hands. His senses didn''t pick up any presence, so he was quite sure that no one had noticed and followed him. Noah made the entrance of the cave crumble and took out his two rank 4 Demonic swords when the darkness filled that underground area. The sabers appeared perfectly fine, but Noah was able to notice with his consciousness that minute cracks filled their insides. Those rank 4 items were reaching their limits since Noah kept on fighting creatures in the fifth rank. Also, Noah was simply too strong, and those inscribed weapons were barely able to endure his physical might. ''I need to become a rank 5 mage soon.'' Noah thought as he prepared the procedure for the creation of a Blood companion. He was far too used to that practice, and the only problem at that point was piercing his skin. Chapter 687: 687. Surprise Noah prepared the blood and the heart of the dragon for the procedure. A Cursed dragon wasn''t ideal to be a Blood companion, but Noah was mostly interested in increasing the pressure inside his sea of consciousness. He could just change companion later on, but his priority was his center of power now. Becoming a rank 5 mage would push his battle prowess further in the fifth rank, and it would give him access to more powerful tools to analyze his individuality. Also, it would indirectly improve the Divine deduction technique, which was his most vital asset in the creation of methods and spells. Sacrificing two peak rank 4 companions for that boost was worth it in his mind. Finding the perfect meaning for the blood and heart was easy since Noah could benefit only from one aspect of the Cursed dragon. It couldn''t fly, and its defense was average among the other species of dragons. Yet, its flames were powerful, and Noah still remembered the images of the battle against the immense Heaven Tribulation. ''Light disappears when I spread my maws. My flames are so blinding that they can appear only in the complete darkness.'' Noah thought as he immersed his "Breath" inside his mental energy to imbue that meaning. His sharp "Breath" transformed into blinding tongues of black flames when it resurfaced, and Noah didn''t hesitate to mix it with the materials needed for the spell. ''My "Breath" still carries a sharp and destructive force even after I imbued it with another meaning. These features aren''t rejecting each other, but the result is somewhat impure nonetheless.'' Noah analyzed as he evaluated the effects that his individuality had on the forging process. Creating pure meanings hadn''t been easy in the past, but he had always managed to isolate the specific aspect that he wanted to enhance. However, he didn''t manage to cut away his individuality at that time. ''This impurity doesn''t affect its actual power, but I wonder if there would be some conflict with other meanings. I should try to forge some defensive items just to test this aspect.'' Noah appointed that note in his mind as he proceeded with the procedure. The blood and heart of the dragon accepted Noah''s energy without any problem, so he only had to draw the dragon on his skin now. Noah''s expression became cold as he proceeded on destroying Zac and Havok''s figures while releasing a series of his saber-shaped runes. His mind wasn''t affected by the loss of his Blood companion in the slightest, so Noah could immediately approach the final stages of the spell. The runes in the air formed a peculiar picture under his control. The shape of a wingless dragon took form, and Noah began to release part of his "Breath" to accelerate the absorption of energy. The runes remained still in that layout as they absorbed the "Breath" and primary energy around them. Noah waited until their power reached the peak of the solid stage before undressing the upper part of his robe and placing his bare chest in front of the dragon''s drawing. He knew that his body would heal quickly and that his inscribed sabers would probably struggle to stab him deep enough. So, he had to use one of his most potent spells to create precise wounds where he could insert the dragon''s blood. Noah controlled the runes to crash on his chest when they reached the required power to hurt him. The spell stabbed his skin and pierced his muscles before being stopped by his bones. Noah ignored the pain and immersed one of his non-inscribed sabers inside the barrel that contained the dragon''s blood. Then, he retracted the array of runes and used the weapon to trace the wound that they had left on his body. Noah''s chest was a mess, but his muscles and skin soon began to heal as he traced his wounds with the bloody weapon. His calculations turned out to be correct since he managed to finish the drawing before his body healed. Noah ate the heart of the rank 5 Cursed dragon after that success, and he directly focused on his sea of consciousness at that point. The ethereal figure of the wingless dragon appeared inside his mind, and Noah could only reveal a smile when he felt the pressure that it generated. ''This is perfect. I might gain weeks of training with it.'' Noah thought as his complete focus went on taming the will of the dragon. The creature had an incredible pride, and Noah''s meanings couldn''t wholly restrain it. However, he was far too used to that kind of battles, and he had new assets inside his mental sphere that could help him defeat the struggling beast. His mental energy created wills that carried the effects of his translated spells, and his saber-shaped rune flew at high speed over the sea in his mind while piercing the ethereal dragon. The Kesier runes hummed, and Noah''s half-transparent figure used ethereal sabers to weaken the will of the beast further. Shockwaves spread through the walls of the sea of consciousness as the battle unfolded, and Noah felt barely able to remain conscious at specific points. That was the most potent enemy that his mental sphere had ever faced, and Noah was going all out to defeat it! The territorial advantage ultimately tilted the scales of the battle on Noah''s side. The dragon continued to lose energy while Noah could use all his methods to contain it and slowly wear it out. The beast didn''t even manage to touch the walls of his mind before Noah forced it to fall in the sea. He felt tired when the battle was over, but there was some satisfaction in inside him. The outcome of that battle proved that he could subdue rank 5 magical beasts, even if the lower tier were his current limit. ''The differences between the tiers tend to enlarge as the rank increases. I wonder when I''ll be able to hunt a rank 5 beast in the middle tier.'' Noah began to evaluate his battle prowess and the future ranks, but he was soon forced to suppress those thoughts since he noticed that something was off. The ethereal dragon had fallen in the sea, and Noah had sensed its destruction. Yet, no half-transparent figure appeared at the center of his sea of consciousness. Noah did a quick scan through his mental energy. He didn''t believe that something could escape his view in his personal world. However, a sudden tremor swept the entirety of his mental sphere and forced him to focus on its walls. Noah''s mind trembled, and it took a while before he was able to regain his focus. He immediately analyzed the state of his walls to see if something had happened to them, but surprise replaced his worry when he looked at them. The walls were perfectly fine, but he noticed that the size of his mental sphere had increased by a lot in those short seconds. Chapter 688: 688. Feature Noah reviewed the event that followed the defeat of the ethereal dragon in his mind. Something like that had never happened to him, but the sudden enlargement of his sea of consciousness had immediately claimed his complete focus. ''I would normally obtain this improvement in more than a week of training. What is happening?'' Noah questioned himself, but it soon became clear to him that the event was linked to the changes applied by his body to his centers of power. The brown sea under his half-transparent figure didn''t reveal anything, and its water radiated the same features that any mental energy would have. Yet, nothing else could be the cause of what had happened. ''Did my mental energy devour the will of the rank 5 Cursed dragon?'' That question was the only conclusion that Noah could reach at that point. After all, the black mark on his chest had disappeared, meaning that the Body-inscription spell had failed. ''My dantian processes the breakthrough on its own, and stress doesn''t seem to affect it. The credits to that can go to the innate adaptability of the magical beasts and their superior resistance. These features weren''t applied to my mind, but my mental energy should have still gained something from the magical beasts'' world.'' Noah summarized, but he knew that there was only one way to test that. A dark layer materialized and adhered to his skin as Noah activated the Dark cover spell before shooting out of the cave. The loss of his Blood companions didn''t affect his battle prowess that much, but he still wanted to return to the southwestern coast of the new continent to test his discovery. The journey back to the Coral archipelago was uneventful since Noah avoided the crowded areas and ignored the magical beasts that filled the mountain chain. Noah didn''t waste time in social events once reached the islands, and he directly took the teleportation matrix back to the forest of White Woods. Then, he went looking for any beast in the fourth rank as soon as he flew past the white crowns of the forest. Noah quickly found a rank 4 Saber-toothed tiger in the middle tier along the eastern border of the azure plain. He dived on it without hesitation, killing the beast and creating a deep cavity in the process. The corpse of the tiger was in a terrible state after Noah dragged it underground, but he had made sure to keep its heart intact. The preparations for the Body-inscription spell were completed in less than ten minutes, and Noah didn''t even bother to imbue a specific meaning to its core. The array of runes appeared again in front of him, and Noah carefully made it take the shape of the tiger before using it to wound his body. Noah completed the following requirements smoothly, and he focused on the insides of his mental sphere after. The ethereal figure of the tiger appeared above his sea, but one swing from the saber-shaped rune was enough to subdue it. Then, Noah focused on his brown mental energy and on the fragments of the tiger''s figure that were under the surface of his sea. To his surprise, his mental energy engulfed the fragments and made them disappear without leaving any trace. The walls of his mental sphere began to shake, but the tremors stopped in less than a second. Still, Noah could see that his sea of consciousness had improved once again when he regained his focus. His real eyes revealed a cold light when he turned his gaze toward the maimed corpse of the tiger, and he could barely contain the excitement caused by that discovery. ''My mental energy can devour beasts'' wills!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as he analyzed the possibilities that his new ability opened. The test with the tiger proved that his mental energy could devour the wills of magical beasts of different elements, and even their species didn''t seem to affect that feature. ''The Body-nourishing technique condenses a beasts'' will through its core to allow me to fight and submit it. Yet, my mental energy has gained the devouring properties of the magical beasts'' world. My body can improve through their flesh, and my mind can enlarge through their wills.'' Noah thought while being aware that he could be sure of those conclusions only after more tests. However, that was what he intended to do. The ability to improve the mental sphere by eating others'' wills was too powerful to be taken lightly, and he was sure that there had to be drawbacks of some sort. Yet, he could learn more about it only by experimenting. Noah spent the following weeks hunting magical beasts of various elements, species, and ranks. He would perform the procedure for the creation of a Blood companion on each prey to see if there were differences in the outcome, but his mental energy didn''t fail to absorb their figures every time. It soon became apparent that his initial conclusions were on point, his mental energy had obtained the devouring capabilities of the magical beasts'' world! Nevertheless, he became aware of the drawbacks of that ability too. The breakthrough of his body had made his dantian incredibly sturdy, but his sea of consciousness didn''t gain that feature. The sudden enlargements affected the stability of his mind, even if it was exceptionally firm for his level. ''I can''t abuse it. My mental sphere would just become too frail if I don''t let it rest. Yet, this is far better than relying on the passive pressure created by a Blood companion. I wonder if I can condense this ability into a training method for the mind. I even wonder if I can use it to feed on human wills.'' Countless ideas appeared in Noah''s mind once he became sure of the limits of that ability. He knew that obtaining the sixth Kesier rune would be a problem. Chasing Demon was bound to have it, but there were seven rank 5 mages in the Hive that needed that too. As for the matter concerning the human wills, Noah was quite confident in its feasibility. The Body-inscription spell could theoretically be used on every living being as long as they had blood and an edible core. However, the spell was only able to replicate the body of such beings, which made humans unsuitable for the procedure. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t intend to turn them into puppets but only wanted to feed on their wills. Noah also had to find a solution for his lack of Blood companions. He didn''t control that feature of his mental energy, and he wouldn''t be able to succeed in the procedure if he didn''t contain it. ''All these changes come from my rank 5 body, and I can only thoroughly understand them when my mind reaches the same rank.'' Noah thought that at that point and decided to put those issues in the back of his mind until he became a rank 5 mage. Chapter 689: 689. Complete Many nobles and wealthy cultivators used drugs to strengthen the structure of their seas of consciousness since their lofty lifestyles prevented it from happening naturally. Enduring and overcoming struggles were the best methods that cultivators had to improve the sturdiness of their mental spheres. Still, that usually conflicted with their habit of secluding themselves to focus on absorbing "Breath". That approach was only natural since the ranks of the mental spheres didn''t have stages or tiers, which didn''t allow them to express clear signs of their might unless they reached the next level. The body was usually the easiest to train, and the dantian would boost one''s battle prowess by a lot with every breakthrough. Cultivators would obviously focus them. Noah had always been different in that field due to the advantage provided by his transmigration. Yet, that advantage was bound to wear off as his rank increased, and discovering the new ability of his mental energy had made him reach that point. He had a method that allowed him to train his sea of consciousness extremely fast, but he would need to sacrifice its sturdiness to obtain the best out of it. Of course, Noah wasn''t willing to do that. The foundation of a center of power was more important than its level because it was part of its potential. Noah would only sacrifice it if his life depended on it, but there was no reason to do so in such a peaceful period. However, that didn''t mean that he was giving up on absorbing the wills of powerful magical beasts. Noah contacted the elders as soon as he finished his tests and requested a large number of drugs that strengthened mental spheres. The elders didn''t hesitate to accept his request, but he still had to wait a couple of weeks before they delivered the goods to him. The Hive had accepted to help the Udye family with the Cause, meaning that it could request for the best drugs that the Utra nation had to offer. Also, the Udye family would be forced to set a favorable price to the trade since it was in its best interest to help its ally. ''I wonder what Daniel would think if he knew that all these pills are for me.'' Noah revealed a smirk when he saw the massive pile of drugs amassed at the bottom of his underground quarters. The elders didn''t hesitate to purchase a large stash since they were used by then to Noah''s unrestrained behavior when it came to cultivation. That, coupled with the fact that he was the Demon Prince and with his achievements in the separate dimension, made the elder go all out with that purchase. After all, they knew that Noah would just give back the drugs that he didn''t need to the Hive, and those kinds of pills were always useful in the nurturing of both human and heroic cultivators. Noah didn''t hesitate to immerse himself again in his training when the drugs arrived. They were Inner-fire pills, and most of them were in the third rank, with only a few dozens in the fourth rank. Pills and potions in the third rank didn''t have much effect on centers of power in the heroic ranks, but Noah could obtain some small results making up with their quantity. Also, obtaining so many resources in the fourth rank wasn''t exactly easy, only so many noble families could have access to them. Noah began his cycle of reinforcement and enlargement of his sea of consciousness when everything arrived. The Inner-fire pills would create a burning sensation that increased the firmness of the walls of his sphere while devouring the wills of the magical beasts enlarged it. Repeating that cycle so often would eventually hurt his mind, but Noah didn''t go overboard at that time. He felt that the peak of the fourth rank was nearing far faster than before already, and he had a lot to work on with his two inscription methods. The cycle benefitted his body too since he hunted for the available rank 5 creatures in the lower tier whenever he found one. Of course, most of his focus was on his two inscription methods. He wanted to increase his expertise as much as he could in case the breakthrough provided him with some enlightenment. Ideas on how to forge runes appeared and vanished in his mind during that period of training, but they were just too vague for him to test anything. Then, the message that he had waited for almost two years after seeing the dimension arrived in his inscribed notebook. "We reached the western coast of the old continent." Flying Demon''s voice resounded in his mental sphere as he listened to the message. Noah couldn''t help but feel excited about that. The cooperation with the Cause was finally starting, and it was time to attack the nobles in their own home! Noah flew out of his quarters and reached for the desert at that point. Entering the separate dimension required a specific key, and Elder Julia didn''t hesitate to provide it to him. Then, it was only a matter of landing on the precise spot of the entrance. Noah could immediately notice how bigger the dimension was when he entered inside it for the first time in two years. Its width didn''t increase by much, but it stretched so far in the distance that Noah wasn''t able to see its end even in the stillness of that environment. Reaching the other side of that tunnel took some time, and Noah simply spent that period flying alone toward the Demons. Divine Architect created the dimension with the intent of copying the Mortal Lands, so space wasn''t stretched nor compressed inside there. The tunnel stretched from the western coast of the new continent to the west side of the old one, so Noah had to fly for months to reach its end. The figures of the two Demons appeared in the distance at some point, and Noah was pleasantly surprised to discover that they both seemed to have improved. Dreaming Demon''s aura emanated an innate pressure that affected the area around her, but it was Flying Demon the one who showed the most evident changes. The man''s aura seeped in the stillness around him and spread a chilling sensation that further enhanced the motionlessness of the dimension. "Noah, we almost are under the Udye mansion. You can start enlarging on that side to reach the Coral archipelago. Everything should be set in a few months!" Flying Demon exclaimed when he sensed Noah''s presence, and the latter turned toward the north when he heard his words. The Hive would create checkpoints inside the dimension to facilitate the transport of assets before starting with the assault on the noble families. However, all the preparations were almost complete. Chapter 690: 690. Chaotic group The mansion of the Udye family was one of the most massive structures in the entirety of the Utra nation. The mansion could be found at the center of Knightborn city, on the eastern areas of the nation, and many paved roads stretched from it. Those paths connected the Udye family to the other noble families under its domain, but they also led to specific strategic spots. The Elbas family left the large-size noble families in charge of cities inside their respective regions, but it exacted taxes every year. Those families would produce the necessities that kept the commoners and weak human cultivators alive while the Royals focused on the matters concerning the cultivation world. Of course, the large-size families would just task the weaker families under their domain to take care of those matters. They couldn''t just leave the Elbas family becoming stronger without trying to do the same, but the control of the Royals was among the strictest in the entirety of the Mortal Lands. They had spies everywhere, and they even offered beneficial agreements to anyone willing to serve them. However, ambitious underlings would always appear in every organization, especially when some of them had spectacular talent. The Udye family was the most powerful noble family, and it had one of the most promising talents in its ranks. Also, that talent was a cultivator with a light aptitude, which further enhanced his importance. That talent, his father, and the other heroic cultivators in the family were eagerly waiting in the garden of their mansion at that time. "We have been through this once already." "Octavia, please. This time is different. He will definitely come." A masked heroic cultivator and Daniel exchanged words as they took glances at the terrain of the garden. They had received a communication that day in which the Hive asked for the precise location of their mansion. Of course, the Udye family gave them the instructions and even offered to prepare a formation in a safe area inside Knightborn city. Yet, the elders of the Hive were set on arriving directly inside its mansion. The Udye family could only accept their terms at that point, which led to the current situation where its heroic assets were waiting for the arrival of their allies. "Daniel, I''m happy that he helped you, even if only indirectly. Yet, remember that we are just tools in their eyes. They aren''t helping us out of goodwill." Octavia warned Daniel again. "Octavia, I''m not a kid anymore. They''ll use us to weaken the Elbas family and raid some mansion, while we''ll use them to leave the Utra nation to the Cause. We''ll just submit to the Royals if the Hive tries to take this land from us." Daniel exuded a firm resolution when he said those words, and Octavia couldn''t help but accept that he had grown. She knew that Daniel had always been inclined to see the good in people, but that attitude was too na?ve, especially for someone in the heroic ranks. However, that aspect of him changed after meeting Noah in the new continent. Daniel had finally begun to focus on himself and stopped thinking like the leader of a revolution. His Earth Tribulation had gone smoothly thanks to his new mindset, and even his cultivation level had steadily improved at that point. Daniel was a complete heroic cultivator near the peak of the gaseous stage now, which was something worthy of respect for someone who didn''t create a cultivation technique. Yet, Octavia was still worried about the strange relationship that he had with Noah. The latter was a demon who kept on breaking records whenever he took a step forward, and she knew that Daniel respected that side of him. That respect could quickly become an inferiority complex able to affect his potential, and Octavia didn''t want to see that happen. Shining lines suddenly appeared on the surface of the garden while she had those thoughts. The heroic assets of the Udye family immediately focused on the array that was slowly appearing right inside their mansion! The elders of the Hive didn''t reveal anything except for the fact that they would appear there, and the nobles could only accept that they had some secret teleportation method. Yet, they still felt surprised when they saw that powerful figures came out from the ground without alerting the defensive measures placed all around their mansion and city. Ian Udye stepped on to greet the guests when the light of the teleportation disappeared, but he soon stopped his track when he noticed their power. There were four figures, and only three of them were cultivators. However, two of them were in the fifth rank, and the last one was Noah Balvan! The fourth lifeform was an ethereal middle-aged man that looked like a scholar. "I see! They really are far above the standards of this era!" "Shut up. We brought you along just for a quick look. You must return to the Hive when you are done." "Greetings. We will briefly discuss the strategy with the rank 5 existence and then be on our way. Please, don''t touch this formation, or we will end this cooperation." Thirty-seven, Flying Demon, and Dreaming Demon spoke as soon as they appeared in the open. Instead, Noah remained silent as he lifted his head to gaze at the sky. Countless emotions appeared inside him as he closed his eyes to immerse his senses in the environment. ''Almost forty years have passed.'' Noah thought as images of his life inside the Utra nation appeared in his mind, only to disperse due to the noise that his companions were creating. Thirty-seven had begun to fly around, uncaring that his form kept on losing energy due to his distance from the pendant. Flying Demon shouted at him as he tried to bring the automaton back inside the separate dimension. Dreaming Demon was completely ignoring the two of them as she tried to greet the incredulous nobles. The great allies coming from oversea were just a chaotic group. Of course, Ian quickly recovered from that sight. After all, their cultivation level didn''t lie. Those two rank 5 cultivators alone were more potent than the entirety of the heroic assets of the Udye family. It couldn''t be helped, the fragmented political system of the Utra nation didn''t allow the nobles to accumulate that much power on themselves. Having one rank 5 cultivator in their ranks was already the best that those organizations under the rule of the Royals could do. "Esteemed guests, we were waiting for you. Please, come to my chambers." An aged voice echoed through the mansion at some point, and the group from the Hive could immediately understand that it came from the rank 5 existence of the Udye family. Their expressions turned severe since it wasn''t wise underestimating someone so strong when in the middle of his territory. Yet, that voice also signaled the beginning of their invasion. Chapter 691: 691. Requiremen The two Demons worked together to send Thirty-seven back inside the separate dimension at that point. They couldn''t control the automaton, but the fact that it was losing energy, coupled with a few promises, convinced him to return to the Hive. Thirty-seven could travel through the dimension freely since he had set its structure, and he wasn''t affected by its length like ordinary cultivators. He could just travel from side to side in a matter of hours since he could directly fuse with its fabric. That greatly helped in setting exits in strategic points since Chasing Demon couldn''t just leave the headquarters of the Hive. Flying Demon had to learn how to create entrances and exits in the years spent inside the tunnel, but it didn''t take him much to achieve that with the help of the automaton. Yet, in the end, the Hive obtained a tunnel that connected the desert in the southwestern coast with the Coral archipelago and the Udye mansion. Noah and the two Demons followed Ian that led them in the private quarters of the powerhouse of his family. Daniel, Octavia, and two other heroic cultivators went with them and bowed when the aged figure of a rank 5 cultivator appeared in their view. Noah and the Demons performed polite gestures too when they saw an elderly man sitting in the middle of a hall illuminated by a multicolored light. The elderly man had long white hair and a long white beard, but he appeared refined and full of energy. The source of the multicolored light was a peculiar fire burning behind the cultivator. The color of the tongues of flames changed every second in a perpetual cycle. They would go from the brightest red color to the darkest blue shade, only to return red after passing through other colors. The trio from the Hive could immediately understand that the cultivator used that fire to gain enlightenment on the laws of the fire element. "The power of your family is surprising." Dreaming Demon said after the doors of those quarters closed behind her back. Noah couldn''t help but nod internally at that compliment. Noble families usually struggled to have heroic cultivators in their ranks, but the Udye family had five of them in the fourth rank and one in the fifth! ''This is surprising even for the strongest noble family. The other big nations are lucky that the power of the Utra nation is so fragmented.'' Noah thought as he updated his calculations concerning the assets of the other forces. The Hive had a bit more than sixty heroic cultivators after the growth experienced in the last years and the return of the two Demons. However, he knew that the big nations were bound to have a few hundred of them. The Papral nation and the Utra nation didn''t have a united front though, so that number didn''t reflect the actual power that the Council and the Royals could unleash. "Please, my family isn''t worthy of your compliments when it failed to achieve the same feats of the archipelago. I''m Amos Udye, and I officially welcome you to my family. May our plan benefit us both." Amos stood up to perform a bow after he said those words, and some of the nobles in the room showed complex expressions at that sight. Their family had asked the help of the Hive, which was renowned for being the house of traitors and criminals. Also, Amos had bowed toward Noah too, who was more than famous for his crimes against the nobility. The end justified the means, but some of those nobles weren''t happy to see what they considered criminals receive so much respect. Of course, Noah and the Demons simply ignored the reactions of the rank 4 cultivators and neared Amos. It didn''t matter what those nobles thought. They would still be stronger than them. "How is the situation? Do we have a target already?" Dreaming Demon asked when the trio reached Amos. She was the politest of the three and the most refined too, so she would obviously in charge of those negotiations. "Yes, we have prepared a detailed map." Amos waved his hand, and a table that had the map of the Utra nation drawn on its surface appeared among them. The other nobles neared the table, and the nine heroic cultivators in the room simply gathered around it, waiting for more explanations. "The Utra nation has twelve large-size families, thirty-three medium-size families, and fifty small-size families still inside its borders. The arrival of the new continent has deeply modified the previous political environment, and the Royals didn''t hesitate to exploit that event to their needs." The trio from the Hive nodded when Amos began to explain, but only Noah could understand how deeply the situation had changed there. ''There used to be far more noble families in the past. I bet that most of them have moved in the new continent or pledged loyalty to the Royals in these years.'' Noah thought, without moving his gaze from the map. His eyes wandered on the southern part of the nation, where the Balvan mansion was. Even the Demons were busy memorizing the map. The separate dimension required precise calculations to avoid mistakes in placing the exits, which was why the Hive had to wait for the Udye family before appearing in its mansion. "We should take out the small-size families still loyal to the Royals and then move to the medium-size ones." Flying Demon said at some point, and Amos could only nod at his words before pointing toward one of the small dots on the map. "This is the Carner family, and it only has one incomplete heroic cultivator in its ranks. We have already planned a safe road-" "No need, we just need to know the exact location." Flying Demon''s interrupted Amos''s phrase, and the latter showed an expressionless face at that gesture. It was clear that the Hive intended to use its methods during that battle and that it wanted to keep them a secret from the Cause. Yet, the Udye family couldn''t just open the doors of the Utra nation to an enemy nation. The Cause would just exchange one ruler for another at that point. To tell the truth, the Hive had no interest in that territory. It just wanted to plunder as many resources as it could, while also weakening one enemy. However, the Udye family couldn''t be sure of that, and it had to take as many precautions as it could in that matter. Amos remained silent for a while before giving voice to his conditions. "My family will provide all the information that you need, but you must take Daniel with you." "Impossible." Dreaming Demon quickly rejected Amos'' offer, but the latter took out a token that radiated the power of the fifth rank before adding a few words. "Bind him to an oath, but take him with you. The Cause won''t be on your side if you refuse even this small requirement." Chapter 692: 692. Experience ''They are scared.'' Noah thought when he saw that Amos was willing to use an oath in the fifth rank just to include Daniel in their team. Flying Demon shot a glance toward his lover, but Dreaming Demon just shook her head. The Hive couldn''t trust such an inscribed item so quickly, and it wasn''t ready to reveal the existence of the separate dimension to the world. The tunnel was the perfect tool to ambush enemies without leaving any trace, and the elders were sure that they could use it to take advantage of certain situations. Yet, they also needed the information of the Udye family to know the exact layout of the Utra nation. "We''ll need to inspect it." Dreaming Demon said after a short moment of silence. Both Amos and the group from the Hive were hesitant, but the latter didn''t strictly need to complete that task. On the other hand, the Cause would be powerless against the assets of the Elbas family without the help of the fourth force in the Mortal Lands. One side had to take a leap of faith, but the Hive didn''t need to be that side. In the end, Amos handed the token to Dreaming Demon, and she gave it to her lover, who returned to the garden. One of the nobles accompanied him, but Flying Demon simply disappeared inside the separate dimension, carrying the token with him. The other cultivators waited in silence for his return, but Noah and the elder knew that it would take at least half an hour for their companion to contact Thirty-seven and make him analyze the token. There were ways to break oaths, and the automaton had to make sure that there wasn''t a method prepared beforehand. Noah continued to study the map during that silence, and he completely ignored the curious glances that Daniel, Ian, and Octavia shot toward him. The fact that Noah had reached the liquid stage in those few years was just one of the many surprises that his figure hid. His body had reached the fifth rank, and there seemed to be an incredible amount of energy contained in it. Also, his mental sphere was far more potent than before, and even Amos was surprised to notice that it was nearing the peak of the fourth rank. All of that while Noah wasn''t even sixty. Daniel didn''t even try to probe Noah with his mental energy since the latter was surrounded by a sharp aura that threatened to destroy everything that came near him. That alone made him realize that Noah had increased the distance between them even further. ''Asking about the Balvan mansion is easy, but how do I learn more about the Ballor family without making them suspect anything?'' Noah thought as he pondered about that issue. Almost everyone in the world knew about his hatred toward his family, but only the elders were aware of his relationship with June. Noah wanted to keep it that way for now since they had both agreed on that part, but he still wanted to find a way to see her. However, the branch of the Ballor family was on the new continent, so he couldn''t be sure that the Udye family knew its exact position now. ''I wonder if I can use Daniel for that.'' Noah continued to think in silence until the doors of Amos'' training area opened again, and Flying Demon returned to the meeting. His simple nod was enough to confirm that the token was fine and that they could take Daniel with them. Of course, the Demons didn''t hold back in their conditions. Daniel would be able to talk about the results obtained, but the oath would force him to keep everything else a secret. The conditions covered the discussions that he heard during their missions too, meaning that Noah and the elders could even speak freely in his presence. Amos didn''t care about those strict conditions, and Daniel seemed quite eager to join the group. After all, the Udye family only needed to know that the Hive wasn''t planning something behind their backs. They would never dare to scheme against an organization that had a rank 6 existence in its lead. Amos revealed the coordinates of the Carner family when Daniel sealed the oath, and the four of them immediately returned to the separate dimension after that. "How did you obtain something like that?" Daniel asked when the insides of the tunnel appeared in his view. Noah and the Demons didn''t answer him and simply turned their gazes toward the ethereal man that was taking form on the brown ground. Thirty-seven already knew what he had to do. He flew toward the noble and began to analyze him thoroughly. Daniel was initially surprised by that sudden event, but the cold gazes of the three heroic cultivators next to him forced him to stay still. "He''s clear, and the oath will cover everything." Thirty-seven returned inside the fabric of the dimension after he said that, and Daniel could finally relax at those words. "I don''t understand why did they send you. This is not exactly a training mission." Flying Demon complained as soon as the automaton disappeared, but Noah quickly solved his doubt. "He has a light aptitude. He is the banner of the Cause." Daniel wanted to retort, but Dreaming Demon had even sharper comments about that matter. "I see. Your family hopes that you can start to resemble our Prince. Good luck with that." The two Demons were unaware of the details behind the Udye family. They only knew that it was the most powerful noble family outside of the control of the Royals. Yet, now they understood that there had to be some sort of relationship between Noah and Daniel. "I won''t become like him. I just need experience." Daniel answered, and Flying Demon could only shake his head at that reply. Daniel was older than Noah, but he had lived a comfortable life. His family had trained him well and provided him with everything he needed, but he was aware that he was lacking in many aspects. "Do what you want. However, you must make yourself useful since you joined our group. You''ll help the human assets in clearing the Carner mansion while I take care of the fake heroic cultivator." Noah ordered as he moved toward the north of the dimension. The Hive had the coordinates of the Carner family, but it still had to make the dimension reach the area under it, and Daniel couldn''t see them doing that. The oath prevented him from speaking about what he learnt there, but he could still use that knowledge to plan strategies in the future. So, he couldn''t learn how it worked. "Wait! I can help you. Why should I fight against human cultivators?" Daniel complained, but a pair of cold gazes landed on his figure when he questioned Noah''s orders. The Demons instinctively felt angry when they saw Daniel''s lack of respect, but Noah''s next words made them reveal a smirk and relax the pressure that they were radiating. "Because I say so." Chapter 693: 693. Raid Daniel could only obey Noah''s orders in that situation. His role was simply to report the Hive''s achievement to the Cause so that the latter''s forces would know that the Utra nation wouldn''t be taken away from them. As for the strategies and the methods, they were in the Hive''s hands. Flying Demon led Daniel through one of the branches of the tunnel, where he found a series of hooded human cultivators camping on the barren ground. They were the forces previously prepared by the Hive and teleported through the entrance placed in the Coral archipelago. Moving from the southwestern coast of the new continent to the old one would simply take too long, so the entrance on the islands was a strategic checkpoint. The Hive could just teleport its human assets in the archipelago and deploy them inside the separate dimension from there to shorten their travel. Yet, some elders were already building specific formations inside the dimension to solve that issue. They just didn''t have time to do it until then. Thirty-seven''s teachings were too valuable, especially for heroic cultivators that had never gained access to inscription methods. The Hive had chosen to prioritize its power rather than the layout of the dimension. Meanwhile, Noah and Dreaming demon focused on stretching the tunnel toward the coordinates provided by the Udye family. The process was slow, but they had become used to it by then. Also, Dreaming Demon had tuned some of her peculiar mental waves to exploit the weaknesses of the dimension in that period, which considerably quickened its enlargement. Daniel felt tremors spreading through the structure of the dimension while he was with the human assets, but he couldn''t understand what Noah and the elder were up to from his position. Two weeks had to pass before the group managed to reach their destination, and Noah directly contacted Flying Demon at that point. "Today''s mission is simple: Kill every cultivator, and seize every resource. Don''t leave anything behind, or you''ll be in the frontline in the next war." Noah gave voice to those orders when the human assets gathered in the spot right under the Carner family. Flying Demon was busy placing the door to the outside world, and Noah was using that time to instruct the troops about the task. The key was to kill anyone witnessing their arrival and to take care of the higher-ups of the family. The human assents under him showed resolute auras after his words. The Demon Prince would personally lead them into a mission. There wasn''t a higher honor in the minds of those rank 3 cultivators. Also, they were elites chosen due to their achievements in the training grounds in the new continent, so they had always known that a chance to show their prowess would come. "We are ready." Flying Demon said, and Noah nodded at him while landing on the newly built array. Daniel and the human assets followed him, and the light of the teleportation soon enveloped their figures. The coordinates provided by the Udye family were so accurate that Flying Demon managed to place the door right at the center of the Carner mansion. Nobles had a fair number of traditions that could be exploited, and one of them saw them placing their training rooms or halls right at the center of their mansions. The Patriarch of the Carner family was lazily training with the fourth Kesier rune inside his quarters when he saw shining lines appearing on the reinforced floor of the room. His surprise quickly turned into fear when he saw a group of twenty or so hooded figures appearing right above the array. Yet, he didn''t even have the time to muster his strength since a hand suddenly filled his field of view. Noah''s alertness was at its peak since he entered the formation, and Lord Carner''s presence didn''t escape his senses when he resurfaced. Instants were vital in a battle between heroic cultivators, but Lord Carner only had a rank 4 dantian in the gaseous stage. Also, his mind was in the third rank, which put him far behind Noah''s reaction time. Lord Carner didn''t even feel pain when the hand reached him, his vision simply went dark in less than an instant. He didn''t even feel that his head had been turned into a pulp. Daniel stared at Noah''s hooded figure with wide eyes. He hadn''t been able to follow Noah''s movements, but the latter had killed the strongest cultivator of a small-size noble family in the time that he took him to notice his action. However, the human cultivators around him began to move, and that forced him to suppress his amazement to join them in the raid. Screams and shouts echoed through the mansion as the troops from the Hive spread through its corridors and rooms. Noah didn''t move from the training area, but simply seized the dantian and the rings of the dead Patriarch and waited for everyone to regroup. He didn''t believe that the Elbas family would be able to blame the Hive since there wasn''t any proof of its movements, but Noah still wanted to avoid leaving traces of the darkness element when he could. ''I obtain the same amount of nourishment from peak rank 4 magical beasts. These nobles¡­'' Noah sighed when he felt the amount of energy absorbed by his body after he ate Lord Carner''s dantian. Small-size families were way too weak for his level, and the less powerful of them could even lack complete heroic cultivators. ''Taking them down with these preparations is simply too easy. However, things might become troublesome once we move to medium-size families.'' Noah thought as he stored the corpse of the Patriarch when he sensed that his troops were already regrouping in his position. There were exceptions in the political system of the Utra nation, and the Ballor family was an example of that. June''s family had two heroic cultivators even if it was considered a small-size family. That amount of power came from the fact that the Ballors had declined over time. They didn''t have the wealth to be considered a medium-size family, but they were still far more potent than the Carner family. The same was true for large-size families that had declined. The Hive would have to face nobles without enough wealth to reach a higher social status, but with enough assets that matched it. ''The Ballors live near the Capital, so I can''t discover their position from the outside world. Still, I might be able to do something for the Balvans. The only issue is that I don''t know how powerful the Shosti family is.'' Plans and schemes surged in Noah''s mind as the human assets and Daniel returned to the central area. Their black, hooded robes were covered in blood, and Noah was even able to notice that Daniel was wearing a sour expression under his hood. However, Noah ignored the matter and activated the array that brought them back inside the separate dimension. Chapter 694: 694. Indifference The two Demons waited for the group to leave the formation before launching attacks on the barren ground of the dimension. The shining lines just created fell apart under the might of two rank 5 cultivators, and any trace of the door disappeared on the outside word alongside them. Creating doors that worked both as entrances and exits required a series of precious materials. Still, the Hive was confident in covering those expenses with the resources plundered in the attack. Also, losing money wasn''t a problem for the Hive since the elders knew that they would start to make some real gains only when their assault started to target medium-size families. "They were powerless." Daniel whispered as he lowered his hood. It was clear that he didn''t like joining the human assets in the raid. Killing human cultivators while being in the heroic ranks was simply too easy, and having to do that had affected his morale. Leaders would often forget the cruelty of the slaughters among the pawns, and Daniel didn''t ever experience it before. The chaos of the battlefields was something that Daniel couldn''t possibly know due to his lofty status, but that wasn''t the most disturbing aspect of the raid in his mind. That battle had made him feel for the first time that a human life wasn''t so important. His thoughts were enough to kill the human assets of the Carner family, and his role had forced him to take care of any escaping soldier or cultivator. That experience affected his view of the world, and some parts of him began to understand the reason behind Noah''s past actions. Life was worthless unless there was enough power backing it. Daniel had taken a glance at that mindset, and he was finding it hard to understand how he felt about that. There was the Cause on one side, and what he believed was the behavior that a cultivator should have on the other. That contrast left him confused, but Noah didn''t care about his mental state enough to slow down their plans. "Let''s return to the Udye family and reorganize. You stay here and wait for further orders." Noah ordered, and the two Demons immediately followed him after the human assets gave their gains to the trio. Daniel took a while to notice that they were moving, but he chased after them when he saw that they were leaving him behind. Of course, Noah didn''t assign that role to Daniel on purpose. He simply wanted to remain alone when he seized the dantians of the heroic cultivators, but the Udye family wanted Daniel to witness the attacks. Killing the human cultivators was the only available role, so Noah had tasked him with that. The raids were supposed to be a real-life training for the troops of the Hive, but Daniel''s presence eased the already low difficulty of that task. However, even though Noah noticed that Daniel''s mind was going through some changes, he didn''t care enough to ponder about it. He didn''t care that his casual decision was forcing Daniel''s mindset to improve. The news of the assault on the Carner family soon reached the medium-size family that controlled it. The situation was strange since no trace of the assailants could be found around the mansion. All the cultivators present during the assault had simply been killed, and most of their resources had been seized. Also, Lord Carner couldn''t be found anywhere, and there were only traces of his blood left inside his training area. Worry mounted among the medium-size family''s ranks, which immediately notified the large-size family in that domain. There weren''t many forces that could attack and destroy a noble family without triggering the defenses of its mansion, nor that had the power to do so. Actually, there were only two powers that could do something like that in the Utra nation: The Royals and a stronger noble family! Those speculations led to the only known conflict in that nation, and the name "Cause" often appeared during those investigations. However, another small-size noble family saw its destruction just three weeks after the Carner family. That family wasn''t even in the same region of the Carners, but it experienced a similar raid, and the corpse of its Patriarch had disappeared too. One time could be an isolated incident, but twice in three weeks hinted to some sort of conspiracy. Yet, the Elbas family didn''t intervene even at that point and simply relegated the matter to the loyal large-size noble families still inside the Utra nation. Noah and the elders purposely held back their offensive for an entire month after their second attack, but they could only be pleased when they learnt that the Royals didn''t want to interfere. ''Elder Austin was right. They have already lost any interest in this land.'' Noah thought when the Udye family updated them about that matter. Destabilizing a nation was a slow matter that had to be approached carefully. Also, the Hive always had to make sure not to leave any trace. After all, the big nations couldn''t allow for an ability like the separate dimension to remain in the enemy''s hands. Nevertheless, Noah and the elders were set on continuing their raids as long as no one started to blame them. Ten more small-size families fell in the following months. Noah kept on taking care of the leaders in the heroic ranks, and Daniel continued to oversee the work of the human assets. There were times when the doors didn''t lead the group directly in the training areas of the patriarchs and matriarchs, but Noah''s awareness prevented any problem from appearing. He always had to face cultivators at the bottom of the fourth rank or that weren''t even complete heroic existences. They didn''t even have the time to react to the invasion, so there was very little that they could do when a hybrid in the fifth rank shot toward them during their surprise. The other families decided to take harsh countermeasures when the twelfth small-size noble family fell, and they couldn''t find any trace of the culprits. The remaining weak nobles were forced to move their mansions next to the medium-size families that controlled them, which gathered the heroic assets in the Utra nation. That put a stop to the Hive''s offensive since it couldn''t find easy targets anymore. "Why aren''t they acting? Don''t they care about their credibility?" "I don''t know, Prince. I think we are past the point where they can pretend not to care." "Which means that they are up to something." Noah, Dreaming Demon, and Flying Demon said as they reviewed the situation of the Utra nation inside the separate dimension. The fact that the Elbas family didn''t act was good for them, but the complete lack of reactions was starting to bother them. Then, Noah decided that it was time to take the raids to the next step at that point. "Let''s force their hands." The Demons showed cold smiles when Noah gave that order. They knew that their time had come. Chapter 695: 695. Royal Inheritance There was something that the other big nations couldn''t possibly know about the Elbas family, and that was the Royal Inheritance in the Nerere country. The Hive knew about it thanks to Noah, but it couldn''t affect that matter even as the fourth force in the Mortal Lands. The exact location of the inheritance had been kept a secret for all those years, which prevented the Hive from seizing it through the separate dimension. Yet, the Elbas family had never stopped trying to retrieve it even during the matters in the new continent. June had always been a core part of the exploration team, but she discovered that a new teammate had been added to her party after the winged beasts'' crisis. To her surprise, that new entry was her lover''s grandfather, Thomas Balvan! What was even more surprising was that his dantian had reached the fifth rank! He wasn''t a complete rank 5 cultivator though since his mind was still in the fourth rank. June immediately felt the need to warn Noah at that sight, but they had decided not to have any form of contact that could reveal the nature of their relationship before their separation. After all, they didn''t know how thoroughly the Royals would have investigated June, so it was better not to leave any trace. Thomas'' arrival quickened the exploration of the Royal Inheritance, and his might allowed the exploration group to reach its end in a few years. The party had been disbanded and rewarded accordingly when it delivered the reward of the inheritance to the Elbas family. Still, even the Elbas family ignored the nature of the item retrieved in the last layer of the tower. The Royals had directly brought the item in the new continent to study it since they were already moving part of their most valuable assets there. Those studies had also taken some years, and the Elbas family could uncover the nature of that item only some time after the events with the black flowers. What they discovered claimed even the attention of King Elbas, and the Royals could only disregard the fact that small-size noble families were being destroyed right under their nose at that point. There was a series of large structures built among the spiked roots on the eastern side of the new continent. A series of powerful formations prevented any unauthorized cultivator from entering that place, but most heroic assets under the Elbas family''s banner could access it nonetheless. That was the new academy that the Royals had completed after the crisis of the winged beast, and all its experts were loyal nobles. The arrival of the new continent had given to the Elbas family the chance to fix the issue of the fragmented power of the Utra nation. The Royals could simply place conditions to whoever wanted to migrate, which forced even some of the nobles loyal to the Cause to switch sides. It couldn''t be helped, the new continent opened the path to many possibilities, and it would obviously be the focus of any organization in the future. The old continent had been exploited for too long, while the piece of Immortal Lands still had an environment that vastly surpassed the standards of the Mortal Lands. There were a few areas inside the new academy though that only those carrying the blood of the Elbas family could reach. A series of rank 4 and 5 cultivators had gathered in one of those restricted areas a few months after Noah led the raid in the twelfth small-size family. All those cultivators had golden hair, but the brightness of their color changed depending on how pure their bloodline was. There were five cultivators with silver hair in front of that group, and all the Royals in the room were keeping their heads lowered toward the crowned man floating above them. "Repeat the outcome of the tests once again." King Elbas said, and one of the five silver-haired cultivators immediately stepped forward before listing a series of data. "Out of fifty rank 4 cultivators in the gaseous stage, twenty-five of them have reached the liquid stage after seven years of meditation inside the pool. The others died during the process, and the pool fed on their power to keep working." King Elbas didn''t show any reaction when he heard those words, but his gaze became more intense as he looked at the reward of the inheritance that had been moved at the bottom of that area. The item was a fuming pool that radiated an eerie aura, and that contained a murky, oily liquid. There wasn''t any inscription on it, which was why it had taken years to study it. "Drawbacks?" King Elbas asked, and the same silver-haired cultivator promptly gave him a detailed answer. "We can only make suggestions for now, but the dantians of all those cultivators were tainted during the prolonged immersion. There should be some potential lost in the process. Still, the breakthroughs aren''t affected by the stagnation of the center of power." "Limits to the effects?" "It should work on rank 5 cultivators, but we have yet to test it. We were thinking about blaming some of the large-size families in the old continent for the recent chaos, but we wanted your approval before proceeding." The silver-haired cultivator answered each of King Elbas'' questions without the slight trace of hesitation, but the latter fell silent at that point. No one in the room dared to speak while the leader of the Royal family thought. "Leave it. The Mortal Lands will need all the available assets in the next years. You all should prepare too. Political borders will soon lose their importance." The five silver-haired cultivators showed excited expressions when they heard those words, but the Royals behind them didn''t understand the meaning behind King Elbas'' words. King Elbas disappeared from that room at that point, and the heroic assets there relaxed when their Patriarch left. Their questioning gazes though went on the silver-haired cultivators since they were the only ones that could explain the plans of their leader. "King Elbas has worked on an ambitious project for a while by now. The appearance of the black flower might have finalized his research." Gasps and resounded in the room when one of the silver-haired cultivators explained the situation. Still, a mental message reached their inscribed notebooks at the same time before they could disperse. Another series of surprised gasps echoed through the air since the message stated that a medium-size noble family and the small-size ones near it had been destroyed. Chapter 696: 696. Peak "That wasn''t satisfying at all." Flying Demon exclaimed when he and Dreaming Demon reappeared on the teleportation matrix inside the separate dimension. Noah was training right next to the array, and he didn''t fail to notice that there was a third figure together with the two elders. Dreaming Demon was carrying an unconscious woman, and her robes revealed her identity as a noble. Also, the woman was a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage! "Noah, we plundered everything that we could, but most resources have been destroyed in the attack. Yet, we captured her. A heroic cultivator should be worth quite a lot." Flying Demon said as he smirked when he pointed at the fainted noble. However, Noah already had another plan for her. He didn''t limit himself to enlarge his sea of consciousness through the wills of the magical beasts because they were more effective, but because the political situation didn''t allow him to hunt heroic cultivators. Also, he wasn''t able to kill heroic cultivators without maiming their bodies. The patriarchs and matriarchs killed during the raids would lose too much blood after Noah''s attacks, which made unsuitable for the Body-inscription spell. Yet, the two Demons had managed to capture one of them alive! "The noble families must have understood by now that we can''t be stopped so easily. They should move in the next months." Dreaming Demon explained, but Noah had already stopped caring about the matters concerning the outside world. His mental sphere had almost reached the peak of the fourth rank, and that noble could push it through those last steps. It was needless to say that he simply requested her. "I''ll take her. She might be useful for my training." Noah said, and the elders showed interested expressions before handing the fainted noble to him. "My mental waves are forcing her to sleep. She won''t wake up even if you take her life." Dreaming Demon warned Noah before destroying the array and flying toward the rest of the group together with her lover. The last assault saw the forces of the Hive attacking a medium-size noble family surrounded by four small-size families that had moved to create a united front against the mysterious assailants. Their force amounted to five rank 4 cultivators who weren''t assets that Noah could take on stealthy and quickly. His current prowess made him able to fight them at the same time, but that alone wasn''t suitable for the strategy of the Hive. The assaults had to be quick and effective, and there was no room for long battles. So, only the two Demons had the power to kill the heroic assets while also meeting the requirements of the raids. Of course, their presence prevented the other troops from joining the battlefield since they would just die in the crossfire. Their performance had been incredible nonetheless, and they had managed to destroy those families while also seizing many resources. Noah moved toward one of the areas of the dimension that he usually used as a training spot. It wasn''t easy to find a private place since the dimension didn''t have anything in its environment that could block the view of the other cultivators. Yet, Noah had expanded the tunnel downward in that period to create a few small but secluded caves. The group from the Hive had been under the Utra nation for a year by then, and the tunnel had become far more intricate as the raids continued. Human cultivators could train in the open, but Noah and the elders needed a private space to handle their situations. Noah had his experiments, and the Demons needed some intimacy now and then, so private spaces were a necessity. Noah carefully tore the side of the noble''s neck as he began the preparation for the Body-inscription spell. That was his first time performing the spell to a human, but he didn''t intend to create a Blood companion. ''The will of a human should be far stronger than that of a magical beast!'' Noah thought as excitement mounted inside him. He had trained his mind like a madman in the last years, but the enlargement of his mental sphere kept on slowing down as it improved. The time required to take more steps increased as the peak of the rank drew near. However, Noah was confident in shortening the process by using that noble. Noah completed the preparations for the spell without imbuing any specific meanings in the blood and dantian of the woman. The heroic cultivator died in the process, but she had already lost her value in Noah''s mind. Saber-shaped runes came out of his hand and took a humanoid shape as they floated in the air. Noah added as many details as he could to the picture since he didn''t know the requirements of the spell when it came to humans. Then, he manipulated the runes to injure his chest when they reached a satisfying level of power. Noah quickly spread the noble''s blood in his wounds and ate her dantian before focusing on the insides of his mental sphere. The ethereal figure of the noble rose from the sea inside his mind, but she didn''t seem to have any trace of intelligence. Instead, she radiated a peculiar aura that Noah hadn''t been able to sense when she was sleeping. However, there was a limit to how much that detail interested him. Noah directly deployed all his offensive methods and submitted the noble''s ethereal figure that fell apart. He was able to tame rank 5 magical beasts, so the will of a rank 4 mage couldn''t resist him. Nevertheless, he had to admit that the battle wasn''t easy since the will managed to struggle even more than some rank 5 creatures. It didn''t have their power, but it was far denser. Noah''s brown mental energy devoured the woman''s will when it fell apart, and a tremor suddenly swept the entirety of his sphere. The walls of the sphere enlarged until they met some sort of invisible barrier that forced the expansion to a stop. Noah opened his material eyes at that point, and he was pleasantly surprised to discover that his mind had reached the peak of the fourth rank! ''Finally! It has taken me twenty-five years.'' Noah thought as he waited for his sea of consciousness to stabilize completely. ''Human wills are denser, which is only natural since they have a mental sphere. Yet, there was that strange aura.'' The noble''s aura was peculiar, and Noah couldn''t help but evaluate it when the procedure was over. However, he quickly put it in the back of his mind since everything would be more evident once he became a rank 5 mage. Chapter 697: 697. Breakthrough The best way to push his mind over the boundary of the fourth rank was the fifth Kesier rune. The Kesier runes were the best training method for the sea of consciousness, as well as the safest. Noah simply made sure that his mental sphere was stable before taking the sheet containing the fifth rune and starting his training session. The internal pressure inside his mind intensified as the details of the rune became more material, and the walls of the sphere struggled to cross the invisible barrier that blocked their expansion. Then, the fifth Kesier rune wholly materialized inside Noah''s sea of consciousness, and a stabbing pain forced him to close his consciousness to endure the tremors that its materialization caused. A humming sound echoed inside his mind and spread in the outside world through the mental waves that he unconsciously leaked during the process. The sound was soft and subtle, but there were two existences in the separate dimension that didn''t fail to hear it. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon were casually enjoying their well-deserved moments of intimacy in one of the caves built under the brown ground when they sensed that sound. They recognized that noise since it was something that their minds had experienced too in the past. It wasn''t hard to guess who had caused that echo, but they weren''t able to suppress their surprise anyway. Some eagerness rose inside them and forced them to interrupt their intercourse to move toward the source of that sound. They wanted to see the birth of the youngest rank 5 mage in history! The two Demons quickly wore some clothes and flew in the direction of Noah''s cave. The sound became more intense as they neared its source, and even the air around them started to be affected by the energy that Noah was unconsciously releasing. Small pieces of matter began to crumble and release a basic form of energy whenever his mental waves turned violent. Those events weren''t able to hinder the advance of the two Demons, but even Daniel would have to struggle to near Noah''s cave in that situation. The elders reached Noah''s cave in a matter of minutes, but the humming suddenly stopped when they arrived right above it. Then, they saw the ground around it crumbling as Noah''s standing figure rose in the air. Noah had still his eyes closed as he immersed himself in the sensations that his new state was able to feel. His consciousness seeped inside the fabric of the separate dimension and sent information back to his mind. He sensed the two rank 5 cultivators, and he could also recognize the emotions carried by their mental waves. He felt part of the meanings of their auras, as well as the power behind the existences causing them. Dreaming Demon''s aura was thin but also impenetrable since Noah lost control of his mental waves when they tried to reach for her figure. Instead, they froze and fell apart when they reached for Flying Demon''s figure. Also, part of that coldness spread toward Noah''s consciousness, which forced him to cut away those tainted mental waves. Those were the innate defensive measures of the Demon''s minds, which prevented any weaker being from investigating the nature of their centers of power. Noah stopped focusing on the world around him at that point and redirected his mental energy toward the inscriptions on his sea of consciousness. What he felt at that moment couldn''t be expressed by simple words. The inscriptions shone with a blinding light that enveloped the insides of Noah''s sphere with their halo. Countless ideas filled Noah''s thoughts, and most of them concerned his two inscription methods. Some thoughts concerned his cultivation technique and individuality too, and even new concepts on how to improve his spells appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Nevertheless, the most crucial feature of his new state was that his mental energy now carried characteristics of his individuality! Noah sensed how his mental waves could affect the matter around him and unleash destructive effects identical to those created with his liquid "Breath". Of course, the amount of destruction that his mental energy was capable of unleashing was inferior to that of his "Breath" since it was a weaker form of energy. Yet, the fact that even his other center of power had begun to radiate his individuality made him feel as if he was slowly becoming a different kind of existence. "Understanding the individuality, expressing the individuality, wielding the laws, and becoming a law." Dreaming Demon spoke while Noah was still focused on becoming used to his new state. Her words though claimed his attention and made him open his eyes for the first time after the breakthrough. Noah''s vertical pupils radiated a sharp pressure as they moved toward the elder, and the blue color of his irises shone due to the power wielded by his mind. The two elders weren''t affected by the pressure exuded by his gaze, but it was evident that Noah wasn''t in the condition to stay near human cultivators. "These are the four phases that cultivators have to cross as they strive for the divinity. Congratulations, Prince, you have just stepped in the second phase." Dreaming Demon explained, and Noah nodded at her words. He already had a vague understanding of the matters that concerned the heroic ranks, but he also knew that his path was somewhat different. His cultivation technique had allowed him to become aware of his individuality far sooner compared to other heroic cultivators, and his body carried properties that his new mind was still analyzing. Noah felt the pride hidden inside his figure and the ability to rule over weaker beings buried inside his bloodline. ''I have so much to do.'' Noah thought as he tried to condense his consciousness to prevent his natural pressure from leaking. "Let''s observe the reactions of the nobles for a while. I''m almost ready to make my move on the Balvan family, but I need to prepare for eventual countermeasures provided by the Royals. Also, I would need your help in the assault." Noah said as he landed on the reforming terrain. He sensed for the first time the trail of the "Breath" used to power the functioning of the separate dimension. Still, he didn''t linger too much on that detail since he needed to instruct the Demons before secluding himself to focus on his new power. "Ask Amos to investigate the current state of my family while I''m busy. We need to be ready for everything." Noah ordered, but he suddenly remembered something that concerned his training. "Right. Do you have the sixth Kesier rune at hand? I don''t want to wait for the Hive to send it here." The elders'' eyes widened when they heard that question, and they exchanged a confused glance at that point. Noah didn''t understand the reason behind that action, but Dreaming Demon quickly hinted something with her question. "Prince, how many sixth Kesier runes do you think there are in the Mortal Lands?" Chapter 698: 698. Scarcity Dreaming Demon''s question hinted something that Noah didn''t fail to understand. The sixth Kesier rune was a rank 6 item even if rank 5 mages used it. Its rarity was akin to rank 6 techniques and methods, which meant that there couldn''t possibly be many copies of it in the Mortal Lands. However, Chasing Demon was a complete rank 6 cultivator, so Noah was reasonably sure that he had it. "Ten?" Noah tried to answer, but Flying Demon''s snort made him understand that he was quite off from the truth. Dreaming Demon decided to explain. "Fourth Kesier runes are quite common in the world because there are many experts able to copy them. Yet there are less than a hundred copies of the fifth Kesier rune around, and maybe five of the sixth one." Noah couldn''t help but be surprised when he heard those words. Still, he was able to understand the reasoning behind that explanation. Every organization that wanted to strive for power wanted the fourth Kesier runes to nurture their human assets. So, they would just invest a lot of resources to purchase copies and build a vast stash of them. There weren''t many experts in the inscriptions'' fields able to copy an item in the fourth rank, but even that small number was enough to supply the most powerful organizations. Of course, that changed as the rank of the item rose. Only experts in the fifth rank specialized in that field could copy the fifth Kesier rune, and most of them were busy striving for the higher ranks. After all, why would they use their time to create training methods that only other cultivators could use? There had been the necessity to do that during the worldwide hunt of the Kesier species. Still, that had happened far in the past, and the organizations that had witnessed that event had long disappeared. Copying the Kesier runes was considered a lost art since they weren''t a necessity back then. However, many millennia had gone by, and the number of sheets in the world had inevitably decreased. Some cultivators would just carry them when they ascended in the higher plane, but most of them had simply been lost in the various danger zones or on some battlefields. That led to the current situation where the available Kesier runes weren''t enough to satisfy the high number of cultivators. "When did you obtain the fifth Kesier rune?" Noah asked the two Demons when he understood how harsh the situation was. "Rather quickly. After all, the demon sects were one of the ruling forces of the Papral nation back then. Yet, it still took me sixty years to become a rank 5 mage." Flying Demon answered before moving his gaze toward his lover. Dreaming Demon smiled before answering. "I had to work on my individuality for a while before focusing on my sea of consciousness. I reached the fifth rank in forty years, but I was already a rank 5 cultivator by then." Flying Demon showed a proud expression at her words, but Noah could only fall deep in thought at that point. He knew that cultivators trained their minds for last, which always put them decades behind the rank of their dantians. Yet, he had needed less than thirty years to reach that level! The reasons for that achievement were apparent in his mind. His cultivation technique was the most evident reason apart from the incredible sturdiness of his mind and his early advantage. Noah didn''t need to spend time focused on absorbing "Breath", which allowed him to focus solely on his mind. Also, he spent his days pushing his mental sphere to its limits even after he was done with the Kesier rune. The constant usage of the Divine deduction technique, his experiments with the inscription methods, the translation of his spells, and the devouring ability of his mental energy pushed his training speed to unseen limits. He was spending every second of his life enlarging his mind! Ordinary cultivators would divide their days between the training of their centers of power and would even neglect their minds, but Noah was the total opposite. "Sixty years, rank 5 mage. Prince, there are no words to describe this achievement." Dreaming Demon added when she saw that Noah had fallen silent. Noah simply ignored her compliment and brought the discussion back on the previous topic. "So, who has the sixth Kesier rune?" "Chasing Demon has managed to salvage the one in possession of the demon sects during the escape thanks to Charming Demon. However, the rank 5 mages of the Hive are already sharing it. They exchange turns every year." Flying Demon explained the helpless situation, but he decided to add something else when he saw Noah''s confused expression. "We are waiting for the previous cycle to be completed before claiming some rights over it. Meanwhile, we''ll keep on using our alternative methods." Noah''s morale could only turn sour when he heard those words. The Hive had seven rank 5 cultivators, and Noah would have to wait years for his turn even if some of them were still rank 4 mages. That was troublesome, especially for him, since his mind had always been a core part of his superior battle prowess. Also, his Demonic form spell used the Kesier runes. Learning about the state of the Mortal Lands though made him wonder about another aspect of that field that he had never considered before. Noah asked. "What about the seventh Kesier rune? How does a cultivator reach divinity without it?" The two Demons could only shake their heads at that question. The seventh Kesier rune was a divine item, which meant that it couldn''t exist in the Mortal Lands. The elders didn''t need to explain that detail since it was an obvious conclusion once learnt about the scarcity of those items. Silence fell in the area at that point. The joy felt for Noah''s breakthrough slowly turned into helplessness toward the lack of resources of the world. However, cultivators were resilient beings. The Kesier runes weren''t the only training method for the seas of consciousness, and Noah knew that too well. ''I might not reach the same enlargement speed given by the runes, but I can stay very close to it with my many methods. I''m not ready to give up to my advantage yet!'' Noah thought as the air around him fell apart as a natural reaction to the determination that his aura radiated. "Notify the Hive. I want my turn too. Meanwhile, our role remains the same: Destabilizing the Utra nation. Study the reaction of the nobles and prepare more tunnels for specific locations. We will attack the Balvan family next if the situation allows it." He ordered. The elders nodded when they heard him. They knew how important that matter was to him, so they were set on preparing the field for his vengeance. Meanwhile, Noah simply closed his eyes to focus on his body. His mind had finally started to understand the kind of entity that he had become when he came out of the chrysalis. Chapter 699: 699. Information Noah had known since coming out from the chrysalis that his body hid more than just raw strength. Magical beasts only had one center of power, which defined the kinds of existences that they were. The breakthrough had elevated Noah''s being, but he had been unable to understand how thorough that transformation was before. However, that changed when he became a rank 5 mage. Noah could feel how his new mind was now able to understand the many sensations that filled his body. Raw power was the most evident feature, but there were emotions hidden deep inside his bloodline and, in general, in the kind of lifeform that he was. The anger against Heaven and Earth and his desire to devour everything that could make him improve were feelings that he had always noticed. Yet, his pride seemed clearer now. There were natural features in the various species of magical beasts, and one of them was their ability to submit weaker beings. That skill reached a broader meaning when it appeared inside Noah. The simple ability to instill terror that magical beasts used became an intense pride when it manifested inside a hybrid. It became pride in his status and in the power that he was able to wield. Noah innately felt that he could use that emotion to control weaker creatures and create an obedient pack, but there was something else that occupied his thoughts at that moment. ''This pride is an expression of the natural laws and wills contained in the magical beasts'' bodies.'' Noah thought as his mental waves focused in a specific spot next to him to create primary energy. He had realized long ago that the magical beasts appeared to be some sort of natural enemy of Heaven and Earth. The matter that made their bodies didn''t contain Heaven and Earth''s will and worked according to laws that belonged only to their species. Noah had discovered that during his experiments with the slaves. The fusion wouldn''t have been possible if the beasts'' laws couldn''t replace Heaven and Earth''s since the hybrid''s body would have just fallen apart without something that dictated its functioning. Noah hadn''t been able to do much with that discovery back then, but his sea of consciousness was now able to radiate the innate feelings of his body. Noah focused his consciousness on the primary energy forming next to him. He set his mind on his pride as a powerful hybrid, and a thick aura began to surround his figure as he tuned to that feeling. The primary energy acted normally at the beginning, but it started to show strange behaviors as the intensity of his aura increased. It first slowed down its natural dispersion until it completely stopped to remain still right next to him. Noah wasn''t able to wield laws, but he could try to submit that energy with his hybrid''s pride! The intensity of his aura kept on growing, but the primary energy didn''t show other changes. It merely stood still as if something was containing it. Noah tried to force it to perform plain commands, but all his efforts didn''t bring any result. Preventing it from dispersing seemed the best that he could do without laws. ''I can work with this.'' Noah thought as a satisfied smile appeared on his face. The Divine deduction technique was filling his mind with ideas on how to improve his current abilities and create new ones. Also, it provided many inspirations that concerned his two inscription methods. ''Ambition, hunger, and now pride, the number of strong meanings at my disposal is increasing. I need to create a second rune, and I must improve my first one too.'' Noah thought. Countless possible improvements surged inside his mind, and he didn''t fail to understand why cultivators on his rank spent so much time in seclusion. It wasn''t just a matter of training and meditation on the laws of their elements. Every breakthrough opened the path to new approaches, and all the tests required to study them would take years, if not more. Noah had the Divine deduction technique, which shortened that process significantly, but he had to spend a lot of time too if he wanted to tread the possibilities revealed by his mind. Luckily for him, the raids on the noble families were momentarily on hold since the Demons had to study their reaction before deciding on their next move. One medium-size family and four small-size families had been destroyed even if the nobles had grouped to form stronger fronts. The remaining families in the Utra country would understand at that point that the assailants had peak rank 4 cultivators in their ranks at least. That was a power that most nobles couldn''t hope to oppose and that without considering the possibility that the assailants had rank 5 existences with them. Only the largest families could have access to a similar power, but even the Udye family couldn''t do anything if the two Demons were to appear inside its mansion suddenly. Helplessness and fear spread among the nobles after the last raid. All the families destroyed in the last year were loyal to the Royals, so the Cause became the main suspect. However, the Elbas family simply ignored the situation, which further worsened the position of those helpless families. Most of them felt forced to migrate to the new continent and seal new agreements with the Royals, while some of them decided to side with the Cause and remain in the Utra nation. The recent assaults forced all the nobles to take a side even if they were still under the banner of the Elbas family on the surface. The Hive had managed to reveal the weakness of a fragmented political system. Still, the Demons had to admit that the indifference of the Royals had played a significant role in their strategy. Of course, there were exceptions to that event. The Ballor family and the Royal academy, as well as other families deeply connected with the Royals, didn''t migrate nor change side. They already had branches on the new continent, so they didn''t need to move their assets. Also, their relationship with the Elbas family was the best insurance on their safety, which was one of the reasons why the Hive had focused on other targets. The Balvan family remained on the Utra nation too, and it seemed that its influence in the area around its mansion increased. To the surprised of the Demons though, the Udye family wasn''t able to gather precise information about its location. They couldn''t possibly know that the Elbas family planned to officially recognize the Balvan family as a large-size noble family after Thomas'' achievements in the Royal Inheritance. That plan though couldn''t be announced so easily since the matter of the Inheritance was a secret. So, the Royals secretly provided a large number of resources and support while the Balvans were busy expanding. Of course, that secrecy hindered the gathering of information that the Hive needed to prepare a battle strategy. Chapter 700: 700. Pack The Ballor family shared the same kind of secrecy of the Balvans, and the same applied for the nobles strictly connected with the Royals. The Elbas family usually annexed loyal families in their ranks through marriages and similar events, but some nobles liked to maintain their identity. The Ballor family wasn''t one of them, but June had no intention of marrying a Royal just for the sake of her family. On the other hand, the Balvan family simply didn''t trust the rulers of the country. Noah had been able to thrive because the Royals wanted to add him in its ranks, and no one believed that they had simply neglected to check his identity. Yet, they made up for that act with tons of benefits, and they had even helped Thomas in reaching the fifth rank. Their relationship was strange, but they were allies. Those details ultimately influenced the transformation that the Utra nation experienced after the raids. The smaller families slowly gathered near the large-size families, creating vast empty areas that were soon occupied by bold packs of magical beasts. The population divided itself into three crowded areas that were mostly inhabited by cultivators. The northern side of the country saw the families loyal to the Royals moving there to stay near the capital. The defenses there were the best in the nation, and gathering there was a clear sign of subservience. The eastern coast witnessed a similar event near the Udye family. Nobles loyal to the Cause or merely angry at the Elbas family for not handling that dangerous situation before had moved there to create a united front. The last crowded area appeared in the southern part of the country, where the domain of the Shosti family was. The families that had moved there didn''t want to choose a side even if they were inclined to remain loyal to the Royals. Yet, they had chosen the southern territories to remain somewhat independent. Nobles had their pride, and many of them wouldn''t give up on their names to obtain some benefits. Of course, that relocation wasn''t cheap, especially since most activities handled by commoners couldn''t just go with them. The economy of the Utra nation soon took a heavy blow, but the cultivators there didn''t feel it like the commoners. They found themselves without any protection against the tides of magical beasts that finally had the chance to explore those territories, which inevitably led to a high number of casualties. The nobles didn''t care about it. They only worried about the invisible threat that was destroying entire families without leaving any clue about its origin. They didn''t care if the economy of the country plummeted as long as they remained safe. Also, the Elbas family had long since moved its focus on the new continent, so the activities on the old one weren''t that remunerative in comparison. "I don''t see us reaching your family without being discovered, and Amos can''t find much. It seems that the Balvans didn''t reveal anything in their last years of cooperation with the Elbas family." Flying Demon said as he sat with Dreaming Demon right next to the entrance of Noah''s cave. A few months had passed since their raid on the medium-size family, and the forces of the Hive didn''t have an opportunity to attack the nobles in that period. "Noah, there are two large-size families there, and a total of thirteen weaker families. Also, the records about your family are too cryptic. There might be a lot hidden in those mansions." Flying Demon explained. Noah heard those words but remained with his eyes closed inside his cave while the Divine deduction technique consumed mental energy to analyze the situation better. ''The large-size families didn''t bring their full power here since they still have to defend their respective cities. The defenses of Mossgrove city are the only real issue.'' Noah thought as his mental energy created a representation of the southern area of the nation inside his mind. The Demons had given him many pieces of information, but there wasn''t anything accurate about the Balvan family in them. ''We can''t attack like this¡­ I need to see the mansion with my own eyes before planning a move.'' Noah thought. He could only accept that as he reviewed the situation from every possible angle. According to the Udye family, one of the two large-size families there had a hidden powerhouse in its ranks, which meant that the Demons might encounter some difficulty in taking care of them. Also, the sheer number of heroic cultivators in that area was a problem. Noah and the elders would be fine if they avoided the Shosti family''s defenses, but someone was bound to notice them when the destruction began. Noah couldn''t reveal the presence of the Hive to obtain his revenge. Sacrificing his backing and possibly causing a war against the Elbas family wasn''t what he wanted. His revenge was necessary in his mind, but everything would be pointless if he lost part of what was allowing him to cultivate in peace in those years. It was his power that had brought him so close to his revenge, and he was fully aware that he would just be less than an ant without it. ''I need a distraction to gain the exact layout of my family. I should be able to use the magical beasts now.'' Noah thought as he exited his cave and faced the sitting elders. They didn''t even try to hide their surprise when they saw him suddenly appearing in front of them. After all, only a few months had passed since Noah became a rank 5 mage. That period was enough to become used to his new stage, but it was too short to tune his new power to his abilities. They couldn''t understand why he wanted to leave so soon, especially at a point when they didn''t have a strategy. "I believe there are new danger zones in the empty areas, right?" Noah asked. The two Demons nodded, but they didn''t gather specific information about that field. Even the Udye family had limited itself to study the movements of the other nobles and discarded the migration of the magical beasts in that period. It couldn''t be helped, no one would think that a cultivator could use them, especially not while the Hive was in the middle of its raids. Yet, Noah wasn''t a no one, and he didn''t even know if he could consider himself as a simple cultivator anymore. "I''ll learn everything that I can from Amos. You stay ready to expand the dimension in the meantime." Noah said as he flew toward the array that connected the separate dimension with the Udye mansion. In his mind, he was already set on building his first pack. Chapter 701: 701. Recruiting Noah decided not to reveal his new power to the Udye family, but Daniel learnt about it when he saw him near the door right under his family mansion. The human troops of the Hive were with him, but their only orders were to remain still until Noah or the Demons decided otherwise. It was needless to say that Daniel couldn''t contain his amazement when he saw Noah, but the latter was too focused on his task to mind him. Noah ordered Daniel to gather as much information as he could about the changes in the environment happening in that period. The noble couldn''t warn his family about Noah''s breakthrough since he had learnt about it inside the dimension, and that would be a breach in his oath. So, Noah could obtain a clear idea of the fauna of the Utra nation without exposing himself. He knew that he couldn''t hide his center of power for long, but attacking his family while it was in the middle of two large-size noble families was dangerous. He had to take all the precautions that he could, especially since the Royals were helping the Balvans in many ways. Daniel continuously brought reports and pieces of information in the dimension, and Noah instructed the Demons to control the expansion of the tunnels. The Udye family had accepted that Daniel couldn''t join the raids since only rank 5 cultivators could affect the situation at that point. Also, Daniel didn''t really like killing human cultivators, so he didn''t mind being left with the human troops. Noah simply left that area when the elders reached his desired destination. "Why do you want to place a door in a danger zone, Noah? Are you sure about this?" Flying Demon asked when he sensed Noah''s arrival, and Dreaming Demon showed a confused expression as she turned toward him. They didn''t understand Noah''s intentions, but they had executed his orders nonetheless. "I have a way to observe the southern areas without revealing our position. Dreaming Demon, I''ll need your help when I''m done with my preparations." Noah answered while revealing a confident smile. Some experts in the magical beasts'' field could use the behavior of those creatures to their advantage, and Noah could take that action ever further. The understanding of his pride had brought the oppressive properties of his aura to a new level that gave him full confidence in controlling a large number of creatures. He just needed to lure them in a safe area and prepare. Finding the perfect spot where to gather a large pack of magical beasts wasn''t a problem for him. His expertise, coupled with the information provided by the Udye family, was enough to make him choose a territory that saw different faunas mixed. The elders didn''t question him anymore after his answer and Noah simply entered in the array that Flying Demon had just completed. Noah found himself at the base of a mountain when he resurfaced. The flora of the mountain fused with the short trees in the environment right after it. There was a small swamp in the woodland, and Noah could sense that a series of underground passages spread from under his position. That was the territory with the most varied environments in the Utra nation that didn''t feature human settlements anymore after the recent events. There was the big city of Mistcall nearby, which was ruled by the large-size Hambot family only a few months ago. The Hambot family though was loyal to the Cause and had moved near the Udye family since it was aware that it had something to do with the raids. Noah had calculated that detail in his decision. He could act as he wanted since there were no enemies in the area. Also, the remaining cultivators in the city took direct orders from the Hambot family, so he could be sure that they wouldn''t even investigate eventual strange events. Of course, the other families of the Cause weren''t aware that the Hive was helping them. They only knew that the Udye family had found a secret backer. They would suspect the Hive since they knew that the Udye family sealed favorable trades with it, but they would obviously remain silent on the matter. Noah closed his eyes and spread his powerful consciousness to gather the information that concerned the fauna in that area. His natural awareness had further improved when he became a rank 5 mage, and the lifeforms both underground and on the surface couldn''t escape it. ''Mostly rank 2 magical beasts, but there are some rank 4 specimens.'' Noah thought when his mind processed the pieces of information, and he quickly flew toward the most crowded zone that he found. The old continent had less powerful magical beast compared to the piece of Immortal Lands. Rank 5 creatures could be considered overlords, but they were scarce since most of the continent had been colonized for countless years. Only peculiar territories like the mystical fog and the depths of the sea could hide creatures in the sixth rank. When Noah reached the crowded area, he roared. His voice made the trees around him shake, and the terrain under him crack. His pride spread along with the mental waves released with his cry and reached the magical beasts in the various lairs around him. The weaker creatures directly fainted when the mental waves reached them, but the beasts that managed to remain conscious felt overwhelmed by his pride. Noah''s cry carried a simple order that every different species there could understand. "Come here!" Low growls resounded in the area as the beasts came out of their hidings and slowly gathered under him. Noah saw packs of wolf-type magical beasts coming out from the east, a series of ant-type creatures from the ground, and various species of monkeys from the west. Each of those creatures had their heads lowered as they neared Noah''s flying figure and waited to learn their fate. ''Do they really think that they can escape?'' Noah thought when he sensed that the two rank 4 creatures had begun to run away when they felt the roar of a rank 5 existence. "Stay here!" Noah ordered with another roar as he shot toward one of the escaping rank 4 beasts. His flying speed was far superior to the creature, and he simply landed in front of it when he reached it. The beast was a wolf-type creature that could only tremble in fear when Noah cracked the terrain during his landing. The wolf lowered its head and waited for its fate to be decided, but Noah simply grabbed it from its neck and carried it back to the other beasts. Then, he shot toward the escaping rank 4 Toxic monkey and did the same, throwing it back in the middle of the gathered creatures. Noah hovered above the tide of beasts of various species at that point and moved his gaze through the specimens that kept their heads lowered. ''They are too weak.'' Noah thought before taking one of the rank 4 corpses inside his ring and throwing it in the middle of the tide. Chapter 702: 702. Attack Noah knew that he could rule over weaker beings, but he had no experience in that field. So, he had to see how thoroughly he could control those beasts. There was a considerable difference between what he could say compared to what those creatures could understand. After all, magical beasts had limited thinking skills, especially those in the human ranks. ''They have gathered here because they fear my power, but I don''t know if they will die for me.'' Noah thought as he watched the tide of creatures under him fighting for the rank 4 corpse that he had thrown among them. ''Also, the rank 4 beings had tried to escape, and I can''t let that happen again.'' There were too many different species there, and the two rank 4 specimens weren''t enough to subdue all of them. It was needless to say that a fierce battle exploded as soon as the corpse reached the ground. The beasts launched themselves in a selfless assault as they tried to seize a piece of the nourishing material. They didn''t even consider the fact that most of them couldn''t tear apart the skin of the corpse since their hunger had completely taken over their minds. ''That won''t do. I won''t be able to cross Mossgrove city like this.'' Noah evaluated as the battle unfolded under him and decided to begin the honing of his leadership skills. Months passed, and the rank 4 danger zone near Mystcall city saw earthquakes and roars often spreading in its insides in that period. Noah needed time to learn what kind of orders the beasts under him would follow, and he even had to understand how well they would perform his task. Those skills would obviously take a while to master, but Noah didn''t mind it since he was busy tuning his abilities to his new power. His martial arts weren''t a problem since the sea of consciousness didn''t affect them, but he needed to improve his spells. His last translations and modifications could only make them reach the power of the fourth rank, which would waste the new mental energy that he could produce. Of course, he didn''t need to upgrade all of them now. Noah focused on the will of the Dark cover spell in that period since he needed it to discover the actual position of the Balvan mansion. Bringing its power on the fifth rank wasn''t an issue, but Noah still had to perfect it to reduce the consumption of "Breath" to the minimum. Even the energy contained inside his Liquid Dantian vanished quickly when he used it to fuel a spell with the power of the fifth rank, so he had to make sure that he could activate it at least five times before moving to the next step. Yet, there were some problems when it came to the actual effects that the will was able to produce after its improvements. Noah''s mental waves now carried traces of his individuality, which meant that they would conflict with abilities that didn''t reflect it. Covering his presence didn''t match his violent and sharp will, which ultimately affected the power of the improved spell. ''It still reaches the fifth rank in power, but I feel that it should be far more potent due to the amount of energy depleted in its activation.'' Noah thought as he stared at the dark silhouette hovering above the sea inside his mental sphere. The will radiated a subtle destruction that even its properties weren''t able to hide. That destruction wasn''t enough to make the spell useless, but it was bound to leave some sort of faint trace that stronger beings could notice during an investigation. ''My whole being strives toward specific abilities as my individuality starts to manifest. It''s a bit annoying to see the appearance of limitations. Still, the abilities that make use of my individuality are far stronger now.'' Noah could only give up on that matter as he thought that. He had spent a little more than seven months on that will, and he had realized by then that there was nothing that he could do to avoid that issue. After all, he was treading the path to become a law that didn''t exist in Heaven and Earth''s world. That required a certain level of specialization that had to match the kind of existence that he was. Noah believed that he would be able to solve that issue once he became able to create with the primary energy, but he could only accept that outcome for now. ''The spell is ready, and my leadership skills have reached the required standard. It''s time to call Dreaming Demon.'' Noah decided at that point, and his inscribed notebook suddenly appeared in his grasp. . . . The seven months without raids didn''t affect the new layout of the Utra nation. The noble families were still scared that something would happen to them if they left the crowded areas too soon. Also, that situation had finally forced them to pick a side, so the families on the southern side of the country were simply waiting for the Elbas family to intervene. The nobles in that area had gathered around the city of Mossgrove, which was ruled by the Shosti family. There were families there that Noah had met or heard of during his life in the Utra nation. There was the Voydol family that had moved there from Ebonrest city to join the Shosti family in the protection of the weaker nobles. There were the Merger family, the Lansay family, the Sawler family, and the Noorge family for what concerned the medium-size noble powers. Then, there was the Wilford family, together with other small-size noble forces that Noah didn''t know. Of course, there was also the Balvan family in that area, which had a far bigger mansion compared to the other medium-size families there. That detail didn''t escape the other nobles, but its relationship with the Royals wasn''t a secret. Everyone in the nation knew that the Balvans had let the youngest heroic cultivator in history escape. Noah was their greatest shame, but also the reason why the Elbas family provided so many resources to them. Even some large-size families would envy that favorable treatment, but there wasn''t much that they could do about that. The nobles spent a quiet life in that territory, and most of them used that strange period to lose themselves in the many attractions that Mossgrove city offered. However, that peace was suddenly broken one night since a series of cries resounded from the northern side of the Evergreen forest. The soldiers patrolling the areas near the city were surprised to hear that there seemed to be various species of beasts together in the same forest, but that was only the beginning. Hundreds of beasts of different ranks came out from the border of the forest and charged toward the city, and the series of mansions placed next to it. The soldiers could only give the alarm at that point. Their strength wasn''t even remotely enough to handle that catastrophe. Chapter 703: 703. Dragon Ordinary medium-size families usually had less than twenty rank 3 cultivators, and most of them were tasked with the protection of the nobles. The troops patrolling the surroundings of their mansions were mostly rank 1 cultivators that didn''t even have a rank 2 martial art, which placed them at the bottom of the cultivation world. Also, there were almost no soldiers that had access to spells even if they managed to reach the status of a rank 1 mage. The nobles controlled the entirety of the resources that concerned the cultivation world, and that aspect of the political system of the Utra nation didn''t change in the last years. The fall of the piece of Immortal Lands had improved the situation for some commoners and simple soldiers. However, they still had to swear ponderous oaths with the Elbas family before obtaining any benefit. That led to a situation where the troops deployed around Mossgrove city, and the various mansions were utterly helpless against the tide of hungry creatures. After all, there were three rank 4 beasts among the large pack made by different species! Those rank 1 cultivators didn''t even manage to reach the nearest city before the tide engulfed them. Cries of alarm began to resound in the mansions and inside Mossgrove city at that sight. It was evident that simple soldiers couldn''t deal with that sudden threat. There was a need for the elite troops in the inner circles of the nobles to handle that massive number of powerful creatures. There wasn''t any expert in the magical beasts'' field among those noble families, but every cultivator knew that such an event was incredibly rare. The habitable areas and the borders of the Evergreen forest often saw clearing operations reducing the population of magical beasts in those territories. Those operations didn''t stop after the raid began since it was pointless to trade one threat for another. So, the nobles in that area were completely surprised to see that those creatures had managed to form such a massive pack in secret. Also, they had never heard of a pack made by many different species! That went against every study of the magical beasts'' world, and the nobles obviously understood that there had to be hidden causes behind that event. Yet, their focus was on fighting back the tide now. A series of rank 2 cultivators, followed by few captains in the third rank, came out from the various mansions and charged toward the incoming beasts. The tall gates of Mossgrove city opened, and the small army of the Shosti family joined the other cultivators in their charge. Meanwhile, more cultivators came out of the various buildings and began to prepare a defensive front that made use of inscribed items. The tide of beasts was dangerous and had taken the nobles by surprise, but there were fifteen noble families there! That wasn''t a force that simple creatures could defeat, especially since the defenses of Mossgrove city had yet to appear. However, something strange happened right before the first frontal clash. The cultivators between the city and the tide of hungry creatures suddenly lost their focus for an instant, which made them unable to react when the beasts pounced at them. Those soldiers managed to regain their focus only when they were already between the maws of those creatures. The cultivators deploying the defenses found themselves unable to finish their task since the first batch of soldiers didn''t manage to slow down the advance of the assailants. The incoming tide forced them to retreat in the nearest mansion to rely on the defensive capabilities of those buildings. The nobles would rather use their soldiers than spend resources to activate the defenses of their buildings, especially in that period. However, the beasts were closing at high speed, and there wasn''t enough time to deploy other troops. Shining lines appeared on the defensive walls of Mossgrove city, and the mansions on the northern side of that area followed their example. Halos of various colors spread in the territories around them and illuminated the night with their soft lights. The beasts suffered injuries as soon as the multicolored light swept them. The weakest among them died in less than a second when the joint power of those defensive measures affected their bodies. Even the beasts in the third rank began to struggle to reach the walls filled by inscriptions, but some of them still managed to slam their bodies on the sturdy defensive walls. Only the three creatures in the fourth rank were somewhat able to resist the halos. Yet, a series of elite soldiers quickly came out of those buildings and began to fight them. The number of specimens inside the pack began to diminish at high speed, and the nobles even managed to avoid more casualties once they activated the powers of their habitations. The magical beasts began to retreat, but some of them tried to run through the open spaces between the mansions to look for something that could satisfy their hunger. Their orderly charge had turned into a wild battle for their survival, but it was evident that only a few of them would be able to return in the Evergreen forest alive. That strange event was coming to an end, and even the heroic cultivators inside the buildings had their attention on it. They had never seen magical beasts ignoring the differences in their species to work together in an orderly assault. It was something worthy of being noted in the historical records of that country, and that the Royal academy would surely want to study in-depth. Nevertheless, they didn''t notice that there were two powerful figures hidden in the clouds above Mossgrove city. Dreaming Demon had her eyes closed as her consciousness seeped in the world below her, and Noah wore an expressionless face as he stared at a mansion under him. His rank 5 mind was strong enough to suppress his instincts, and no trace of his hatred spread from his figure as he memorized the layout of the Balvan mansion. Both Noah and the elder were using their methods to conceal their presence, but the diversion created by the beasts was necessary to keep the hidden powerhouse''s attention away from the sky. They were confident in their concealing abilities, but it didn''t hurt to be careful, especially since they didn''t know the exact power of the rank 5 noble. "I memorized the layout of the defensive formations in the area. We can return in the separate dimension now." Dreaming Demon said as she opened her eyes and turned toward Noah. He nodded when he heard her words, but he didn''t move yet. The images of the dragon from his childhood appeared in his mind as he kept his gaze on the familiar mansion. ''A dragon ignited my ambition, and a dragon will take the life of those that tried to suppress it.'' Noah thought before moving his gaze away and turning to leave toward the nearest entrance to the dimension. The time for his revenge had come! Chapter 704: 704. Assaul The strategy to use the magical beasts as a diversion worked perfectly. Noah had been able to take a good look at the layout of the mansions around Mossgrove city while the heroic assets of the families were busy paying attention to the unusual event that he created. He had to add other beasts as he advanced toward that area, but that long process helped in honing his ability to use his pride. Also, Dreaming Demon had been able to learn about the defenses of those buildings! Noah knew that Dreaming Demon''s abilities were perfect to study one environment when inscriptions were involved, and she had even helped the tide of magical beasts during their charge. Her subtle mental waves couldn''t be noticed in that messy battlefield, and they forced the nobles to activate the defenses of their buildings, revealing everything to her consciousness. Noah and the Demons now had all the pieces of information required to plan the attack on the Balvan family. Yet, there was still one thing that held Noah back from attacking as soon as the elders stretched the separate dimension right under the Balvan mansion. ''I might ask the elders to go there, kill Rhys, and end this matter.'' Noah thought as he sat in one of his caves while holding his inscribed notebook. A few weeks had passed since he used the magical beasts to attack Mossgrove city, and the Demons had just notified him that the tunnel had been completed. He could choose to enter the Balvan mansion whenever he wanted. Flying Demon simply needed to create the entrance. ''I might let Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon destroy everything in their path and kill everyone in a matter of minutes.'' Noah thought. ''Any eventual defense provided by the Elbas family would fall in front of them.'' The images of his life inside the Balvan mansion appeared in his mind at that point. Noah knew that the situation inside his family couldn''t be simple. Information about the Balvans had stopped leaking for a while, and the support of the Royals only made the case more mysterious. There was bound to be something that he didn''t calculate inside the mansion, and Noah would need a bit of time to make the required preparations. Waiting when he had the chance to deliver the final blow wasn''t his style, but that matter concerned his family. ''No, it has to be me. It must be my blade that severs the fate chosen by Heaven and Earth. I can''t let anyone do this for me.'' Noah set his mind and proceeded to convey his decision to the elders. Then, he focused on improving his abilities, especially his offensive. He had to be fast and precise with his attack, and his real target was Rhys. The other members of his family could wait a bit longer, but he had to be sure that he killed his father before he died of old age. Modifying his Dark cover spell had taken seven months even with the new power of the Divine deduction technique, which meant that the time required for each improvement had increased again. That was normal since his level had risen again, but there was the lifespan of his father to consider. More than forty years had passed since he escaped from his family, and Rhys was already a middle-aged man back then. Human cultivators could live for a long time, but his father had never really trained. So, he had to kill him now if he wanted to be sure of obtaining his revenge. He wouldn''t mind it too much if something inside the mansion suddenly forced him to retreat as long as Rhys died in the process. However, he still spent almost two years in seclusion, even if he had decided to attack as soon as possible. He needed that time to improve the offensive methods that made use of his mental sphere, and he didn''t apply that enhancements to all his abilities. What he had achieved in those two years was the least amount of preparation that Noah found acceptable before charging toward his family. The layout of the Utra nation didn''t change much in that period, and the Demons made sure to attack any family that left one of the two crowded areas loyal to the Elbas family. That forced the nobles to maintain their current position, even if their anger toward the uncaring Royals grew since they kept on ignoring the matters of the old continent. The Udye family received many secret messages too, which opened the path to new potential allies inside the country. It could be said that the Hive had already completed his task of destabilizing the political power there, and that had only taken three years! "I''m ready." Noah conveyed those words through his inscribed notebook when he exited his cave for the first time in two years. Daniel had long returned to his family in that period, and even the human troops had gone back to the new continent a few months ago. Only Noah and the two Demons were left in that part of the separate dimension. Noah flew toward the end of the tunnel only to find Flying Demon carefully laying lines on the ceiling of the dimension with a black, inscribed stick. "The door is almost ready, Prince." Dreaming Demon said as she turned toward the incoming Noah. Her eyebrows arched when she sensed the cold sharpness that he radiated as he took slow steps toward them. She had never seen him like this. It was as if Noah''s entire being had become a blade focused only on his target. Dreaming Demon didn''t say anything, and she just prepared herself to provide as much assistance as possible once they reached the other side. Flying Demon soon finished the door, and he set his mind on the same state when he noticed the seriousness of Noah and his lover. "You focus on isolating the mansion and containing any external threat. I''ll call you if I need your help." Noah ordered before stepping on the array, and the elders nodded before covering their faces and following him. Noah covered his face too as the light of the teleportation enveloped their figures. Shining lines began to appear in one of the underground training areas that had been built in the last period. Adrian Balvan was silently training when the appearance of those inscriptions awakened him from his meditation. He stared at the lines in amazement for less than a second before spreading his consciousness to warn the other members of his family. Yet, his mind suddenly lost focus as three hooded figures materialized on top of the array. "I can give you half of a time." Dreaming Demon said through her consciousness. "The effects of my mental waves will begin to disperse afterward." The two Demons shot in the air at that point and reached for the upper parts of the mansion. Adrian regained his focus at that moment only to sense a primordial fear filling his entire being. Chapter 705: 705. Charge Noah and the Demons had covered their faces only as a form of protection against eventual recording devices hidden inside the Balvan mansion. That measure was necessary in case something went wrong in the attack, and the Elbas family intervened to blame Hive. There would be no proof without images, and the words of a medium-size noble family couldn''t match those of an organization backed by a rank 6 existence. Also, the Demons had disappeared for one thousand years, and they didn''t appear publicly yet. The noble families around the Balvan mansion wouldn''t be able to link those two rank 5 cultivators to the Hive even if they revealed their abilities. On the other hand, Noah''s abilities were quite famous by then, so his hood did very little in hiding his identity. However, his spells had drastically changed in the last years, which gave him some leverage in the case someone inside the mansion survived the attack. Adrian trembled when he felt Noah''s gaze focusing on him. He had sensed a similar fear before, but its intensity was utterly different from the past! Yet, he was still a heroic cultivator, and he didn''t hesitate to deploy his defensive spells when he felt threatened. Adrian''s size began to increase, and his skin started to change color, but that process seemed to take minutes in Noah''s vision. Their levels were too different now, and each of Adrian''s actions couldn''t escape Noah''s powerful consciousness. ''He couldn''t even reach the liquid stage in these years.'' Noah thought before a large amount of his mental energy condensed and came out of his sea of consciousness. His mental energy transformed when it came out of his eyes and took the shape of an ethereal saber that destroyed the matter in its trajectory. The saber seemed almost material due to the density of the mental energy that made it, and it was incredibly fast too. Adrian didn''t even manage to complete his first transformation before Noah''s spell pierced his head and released its destructive properties inside his sea of consciousness. Adrian could only feel a sharp pain coming from his mind before his consciousness became dark. Noah''s focus stayed on his uncle''s mental sphere to analyze the effects of his spell. The destruction released by the ethereal saber spread through the walls of Adrian''s mind after it pierced it, and they could only fall apart under such might. ''The Mental blade works as intended. I can finally use my mental spells again!'' Noah thought as he shot toward his dead uncle to seize his dantian before it dispersed the "Breath" inside it. He had been thorough with his modifications when he was in the separate dimension, and he had further enhanced the power of his spells in the two years spent preparing for the attack. Of course, Noah had chosen to focus on the spells that made use of his mental sphere before the attack. The Mental tremor spell used to release a condensed beam of mental energy in its original form, but it had become a dense saber after the many modifications. Noah knew that something in line with his individuality would produce more potent effects, so he had pushed his abilities on that path. Also, its power had been raised to the fifth rank, which made Noah decide to rename the spell "Mental saber". Noah quickly ate Adrian''s dantian and stored his corpse inside his space-ring. Then, he spread his consciousness to search for a specific presence. The layout of the inner ring of the mansion appeared inside his mind as his consciousness covered the area. Noah sensed many soldiers in the second rank, and even a few of them in the third rank. That high number of powerful soldiers was quite peculiar for a medium-size noble family, but Noah couldn''t be bothered by them. They were just ants in his eyes, and even a thousand rank 3 cultivators wouldn''t be able to stop his charge. Yet, his attention focused on an old human cultivator that wore an eye-patch on his left eye. Noah''s aura became violent when he recognized his father, and he directly pounced toward his direction. The walls of the underground chamber couldn''t block his charge, and even the floor of the inner circle crumbled as Noah advanced at full speed toward Rhys'' room. The entire central building of the mansion shook as Noah broke anything in his path toward his revenge. His movements were fast, but the other heroic cultivators in the area had all been alerted when Noah''s consciousness spread. Their instincts had told them to escape when they felt those dense mental waves, but a voice resounded through the entirety of the mansion when Noah was in the middle of his charge. "Block the invaders." Noah heard that voice even if walls and debris fell everywhere around him. The voice belonged to his grandfather, but the cultivation level that backed it made Noah''s eyes sharpen. ''Rank 5 cultivator!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind, but he didn''t stop his charge. Instead, shockwaves resounded from under his feet as he performed the Shadow sprint martial art. Noah was set on killing Rhys that day, even it that meant facing Thomas Balvan! Of course, he had already noticed that Thomas wasn''t a complete rank 5 cultivator. His reaction timing was too low, and he had sensed Noah only when the latter spread his consciousness. Otherwise, Thomas would have detected the appearance of the teleportation matrix in one of the underground rooms. The Shadow sprint made Noah reach an incredible speed, which brought him right before Rhys'' room in less than an instant. However, a mighty gale swept his body and flung him away just as he was about to charge through the last wall before his father. Noah felt an immense pressure landing on his body and attempting to reduce him to a pulp as the winds threw him directly in the outer ring of the mansion. His mental energy focused on keeping his face covered, and both his arms and legs worked to stop his momentum. Noah managed to stop right before the defensive walls of the mansion, where he straightened his position. The spell didn''t make him bleed, but he felt sore in multiple points. Also, the gale had killed many soldiers on its path as it carried Noah outside of the central building. Then, Noah sensed three heroic cultivators descending toward him. One of them was a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage that resembled Adrian, and Noah didn''t fail to recognize him as Keith Balvan. The only woman in the group resembled Lena Balvan, and she was an incomplete heroic cultivator that had a rank 4 dantian. The third presence belonged to Thomas Balvan, and Noah''s coldness reached its peak when he saw that he held a struggling William from his neck. Thomas revealed a smile when he saw that Noah hesitated to attack, and he lifted William higher in the air before announcing something. "A hood can''t deceive me, Noah Balvan! Move, and your Master dies." Chapter 706: 706. Smile Noah stared at the familiar man in Thomas'' grasp, and he couldn''t help but hesitate. William had aged a lot in the more than forty years after Noah''s escape, but that change wasn''t supposed to be so sharp since he was a rank 3 cultivator back then. Yet, Noah was able to notice that his dantian seemed damaged since it didn''t contain even the slightest trace of "Breath". The truth was that the Royals had thoroughly investigated every soldier in the outer circle of the Balvan family after they decided to support Thomas fully. The investigation revealed many crucial pieces of information that concerned Noah. The Balvans learnt how Noah became aware of the existence of the Royal academy from Sandy and Mark, and how he obtained the second Kesier rune from William. It was needless to say that the discovery had kindled the anger of the nobles who did their best to punish those betrayers, and even the innocent captain couldn''t escape that. William had received a special treatment though since he was one of the direct causes behind Noah''s quick improvements, which led him to that state. Noah recognized the facial features of the man that had introduced him to the cultivation world under the wrinkled skin and the dirty gray hair. He was missing an eye, and even one of his ears had been cut off. The skin on his wrists was torn and red, and only a prolonged time in chains could leave those marks on a rank 4 body. William took a while to understand why Thomas had taken him out of his cell. The hooded figure under him felt familiar, but he was too tired and old to link it to the disciple that he had trained such a long time ago. However, he started to understand something as Thomas'' words entered his ear. His tired eye went on the invader and the coldness that he radiated awakened memories that he had been forced to suppress for a long time. He began to remember about the hardworking disciple that he had trained so many years ago. He remembered his determination to strive for the higher ranks, as well as his resilience when he was forced to join the inner ring. Then, he couldn''t help but laugh when he connected those memories to the hooded figure under him. William''s laugh surprised all the heroic cultivators on the scene, but Noah felt complex emotions rising inside him when he heard it. He had already made his mind on that situation, but he wanted to stare at his Master for a few more seconds before acting. Nevertheless, William began to speak before he could do anything. "My disciple is the most driven and ruthless cultivator in the entire world. A ruined old man like me can''t block his path, and you are fools if you think that you can do it!" William kept on laughing when he finished his phrase, but he soon started coughing blood due to that effort. He was simply too old and ruined, and even that small action had brought him to his limit. Noah lowered his head at that sight. The Balvan family was using someone he cared about to limit his actions, something that his mother had chosen to prevent with her suicide. He felt a fit of raging anger inside him, struggling to come out, but his powerful mind managed to suppress it. He felt the unwillingness of severing his ties with his old Master, but he suppressed that feeling too. The chance to retreat was still there, and Noah was aware of that. He could just contact the elders that were busy somewhere around the mansion and retreat through the separate dimension. William would have a pitiful life, but he would be alive at least. Noah would just have to wait until he died of old age and then attack again. Nothing was stopping him from doing that. However, he had already decided to press on. ''This is my choice. I own it.'' Noah thought before raising his head again to stare at Thomas. He had gone through all the available paths in his mind, and there were a few of them that could even end up in William''s rescue. Yet, those paths would force him to restrain himself once again, which was something that he wasn''t willing to do. Nevertheless, he didn''t want to find justifications for his decision. He had needed that time to make sure that he wasn''t deluding himself with some excuse. He had decided to kill William to continue his revenge, to destroy one of the few people that he cared about to act freely. There wasn''t any emotion coming out of him when he stared at his enemies. His aura simply radiated a cold sharpness that became more intense with each passing second. Then, he spoke. "Thomas." Noah directed his words at his grandfather, and his voice resembled a roar rather than a human sound. Thomas Balvan kept his confident smirk when he heard that unfamiliar voice, but there was only seriousness inside him. His opponent was a rank 5 mage, while he only had a rank 4 mental sphere. They were extremely close in power, which was something that genuinely amazed him. After all, he was sure that the hooded man under him was his grandson and seeing that he had reached his level in sixty years of life only affected his morale. "What can you do against a faster, stronger opponent that you can''t outsmart?" Noah asked. Thomas showed a confused expression when he heard the second part of Noah''s phrase, but William''s eye widened at those words. Those were the exact words that he had used to question him during one of their first lessons, and he could only smile when he understood that his disciple still remembered them. Thomas didn''t notice the changes happening inside the man in his grasp, but he did nothing to interrupt Noah. He knew that gaining time was the best option for his family. He didn''t know why no one had answered his call for help, but he was confident that such methods couldn''t last long. Noah saw the smile on his Master''s face and felt sorrow, but he still proceeded in waving his hand and creating hundreds of ethereal sabers that floated next to him. Keith and the other fake heroic cultivator retreated when they sensed the power contained in those ethereal sabers, and even Thomas felt a dangerous sensation coming from them. The three of them were so focused on the spell that they didn''t hear William''s murmuring something that only Noah heard. "Giving up?" William gave the answer that he had given so many years ago, but Noah quickly corrected it. "You become a demonic sword able to sever the fate chosen by Heaven and Earth." Noah followed his words with another wave of his hand. The ethereal sabers shot toward the four figures in the air at that point, and Noah made sure to fix his gaze on his Master during the process. He saw how William''s smile didn''t fade even when the spell stabbed his internal organs. Chapter 707: 707. Fear The ability used by Noah at that moment was the modified version of the Ghostly claws spell. The diagram of that spell was able to reach a power in the fifth rank, so the modifications applied during his years inside the separate dimension were enough to make it suitable for his individuality. Noah had only reviewed it a bit during the period before the attack, but the spell was perfected already. The claws had become sabers at that point, which made Noah change its name into Ghostly sabers spell. The spell worked in the same way of its previous version, with the difference that its destructive power had wholly increased. Keith and the other fake heroic cultivator retreated at high speed when they saw the ethereal sabers reaching for them, but they were too slow. Cultivators at the bottom of the heroic ranks couldn''t match the speed and power of a spell in the fifth rank, especially one so hard to defend against. The inscriptions on their robes shone only to flicker when the tide of sabers seeped in their bodies and pierced their internal organs. Also, the saber released a spreading destruction when they reached their target. Keith and the woman paled as blood came out of their mouths. Their insides were a mess, and they couldn''t stop the spreading destruction even with their complete focus. They could only see how their consciousness began to fade before they lost control of their footholds and fell on the ground. Noah didn''t know if they had died, but the situation didn''t allow him to check it. His eyes were on the rank 5 cultivator that was using one of his defensive spells to fend off the incoming sabers. Thomas had directly used one of his most potent defensive spells when he sensed the amount of danger radiated by the ethereal sabers. Dense gales engulfed his figure and destroyed Noah''s attacks with their raging motion. Noah was backing the spell with the energy contained in his Liquid dantian, so he wasn''t holding back his offensive in the slightest. However, Thomas had access to the dense gaseous "Breath" of the fifth rank, which pushed the power of his spell to the peak of the fourth rank. Also, he was aware of Noah''s abilities, so he had chosen the method that countered them better. The gales were dense and contained a large amount of his mental energy, which managed to stop the advance of the sabers. Yet, that was still a spell with the power of the fourth rank, and there was a limit to how much it could resist against Noah''s attack. Thomas was soon forced to let go of William''s corpse to focus on defending himself. The wind began to rotate around Thomas as he wielded a big fan and started to wave it. An invisible whirlpool formed around him as he kept on condensing air with his fan, but Noah''s attention had moved on William''s falling corpse. His Master was smiling even after he died, but the destruction released by Noah''s spell was still consuming his body. A rank 4 body could only crumble in front of a rank 5 spell, and William didn''t even have much "Breath" left inside it. Noah saw how his Master turned into bloody dust during the fall, before becoming a simple red stain on the ground of the outer circle. His gaze lingered on the stain for a few seconds, and he didn''t even care that Thomas had completed his attack. He just wanted to fix those images in his mind. Of course, Thomas didn''t wait for his opponent to be ready and unleashed the winds that he had condensed around him. Those winds became a thick current that threatened to destroy everything in its path as it moved toward the hooded figure on the ground. Noah saw that scene in slow motion. His consciousness was too powerful, and he couldn''t be distracted even if he focused on something else. Yet, he didn''t move, and he let the thick current crash on his figure. Noah felt pain when the dense winds slammed him on the ground and pushed him downward, creating a deep hole in the terrain of the outer circle. Earthquakes spread from that point, and even the inscribed defensive walls nearby threatened to crumble under the might of a rank 5 cultivator''s attack. The entirety of the Balvan mansion began to shake, but Thomas didn''t fail to notice that the tremors seemed to stop right after the defensive walls abruptly. Some sort of energy was isolating the mansion and prevented the energy released inside it from spreading outside. Thomas'' eyes sharpened at that sight. He didn''t lack experience nor wits. He had only lacked wealth in his life. He had never been able to obtain a rank 5 cultivation technique before, which led him to stop his training at the peak of the solid stage. His dantian had stagnated for decades in that stage, and it had been able to survive the breakthrough only thanks to the expensive drugs provided by the Royal family. So, he knew that his grandson had some helpers that were managing the situation around the mansion. Nevertheless, he suddenly felt a stabbing pain coming from his heart. Thomas spit blood as his consciousness quickly focused on his internal organs. His mind noticed how a couple of ethereal sabers were running freely inside his body and tearing apart anything in their path. Anger rose inside him when he understood that Noah had used his dense winds as a pathway for his ethereal sabers! Thomas'' defense was good, and it even countered the ethereal properties of Noah''s spell. However, he had been defenseless when he used the winds around him to attack. Noah had used that chance to send a large number of sabers through the current, and only two of them survived the journey to land inside Thomas'' body. Thomas began to use his "Breath" to restrain the movements of the sabers inside him, but he could only make them deplete their power more quickly. Meanwhile, they continued to tear his internal organs apart and spread their destruction through his body. Also, Thomas knew that Noah was still alive! He had used the full power a rank 5 martial art, coupled with a rank 4 item and his rank 5 "Breath", but Noah was still able to control his spell after that blow! That attack was one of Thomas'' most potent offensives, and even a direct hit wasn''t able to take care of someone with a rank 4 dantian. Thomas began to feel fear, but the appearance of more than a hundred black sabers forced him to suppress that feeling to focus on the battle. Chapter 708: 708. Individualities Noah didn''t need to spend much time on the Ghostly sabers spell during the two years before the attack. So, he could focus on other abilities after completing the modifications on the Mental saber spell. Of course, he had prioritized the abilities that didn''t require much "Breath", and one of them was the Will-consuming rune. Noah had yet to create another personal rune, but he had used that time to improve the saber-shaped one that he had made in the past. His mind had become able to condense stronger emotions when it reached the fifth rank, which allowed him to create a stronger version of his first rune. Thomas saw hundreds of small, black sabers with power in the solid stage of the fourth rank filling the ground under him. The sabers began to absorb the "Breath" in the environment and even the primary energy that Noah''s spells had previously released with their destruction. Their power multiplied, and they seemed to near the peak of the fourth rank in just a matter of seconds. The density of the "Breath" in the area quickly plummeted as the runes absorbed it, but Thomas couldn''t focus on it since a series of ethereal sabers shot from the ground toward him. It was clear that Noah was planning something and that he didn''t want Thomas to interrupt his strategy. Thomas snorted and surrounded his figure with gales again while also waving his fan many times. His mind felt the strain of using powerful attacks and defenses at the same time, but the situation required him to push himself to his limits. Also, Noah was still nowhere to be seen. It was as if he had disappeared after the last attack flung him underground. The raging, dense air around Thomas fought against the incoming ethereal sabers while the winds released by his fan crashed on the array of black runes on the ground. He didn''t want to fall in a passive position against an opponent that used mental attacks. After all, he had already been injured due to one slight distraction. However, that approach lowered the might of both his attack and defensive method. Thomas was only a rank 4 mage, but he was using abilities fueled by "Breath" in the fifth rank. There was a limit to how well he could handle two of his strongest skills at the same time, especially since their power surpassed the capabilities of his mind. His mental energy depleted at high speed to control both abilities, but he managed to obtain some initial success with that approach. The black runes fell apart and released the energy that they had previously accumulated, and the ethereal sabers struggled to pierce the dense winds that surrounded him. Yet, that positive trend was bound to stop as the reserves of his sea of consciousness kept on diminishing. Thomas'' focus reached its peak as he poured more energy to destroy the runes on the ground, and he moved his attention to the Ghostly sabers only when the other threat was taken care of. The winds around him became more violent when the last saber-shaped rune fell apart since Thomas could use all his concentration on the mental attack after that. Nevertheless, he suddenly felt that an unstoppable force was tearing apart his defensive method. Noah had hidden underground and used his Dark cover spell to conceal his presence while his spells kept his grandfather busy. Thomas had been so focused on the various sabers that he didn''t notice that Noah had come out from the ground behind him and had directly charged at him. Thomas'' defensive method countered mental attacks, but it couldn''t do anything against Noah''s physical strength. The winds dispersed under the pressure released by Noah''s punch, and only then was Thomas able to feel the immense danger that Noah radiated. Something inside him told him that he would die if that punch landed on his body. Thomas'' aura suddenly changed when death became so close to him, and he decided to forsake his mansion to use his most potent ability at that point. Noah heard his grandfather murmuring a few words right before his fist connected with the center of his back. "The wind blows from within me." Noah''s knuckle touched Thomas'' back, but a dense wave of condensed air landed on his body and flung him back directly to the other side of the outer ring. His body had already been wounded in the last attack, but even his bones began to crack when that wind hit him. Noah quickly ate a large number of Daniel''s pills to fill his body with nourishments as he crashed on the opposite defensive walls and created deep cracks on its surface. Meanwhile, his consciousness remained fixed on his grandfather and the destruction that he was unleashing with his new ability. A series of tornadoes originated from Thomas'' low-waist and spread in every direction, destroying everything on their path. The buildings of his mansion fell apart under the might of those strong winds, and their suction force further wrecked the area around him. Thomas had suddenly become the center of a storm that didn''t care for allies or foes! However, his posture was off as he floated toward Noah, carrying his destructive winds with him. ''I broke his spine, but I didn''t expect his individuality.'' Noah thought as he stepped on the air. Thomas was gravely injured, but the power of his individuality had pushed his most suitable rank 4 spell through the boundaries of the fifth rank! On the other hand, Noah was holding back on some of his abilities to protect his identity. He still had the Demonic form and his sabers at his disposal, but he would instead use skills that the world had yet to see. ''A battle of individualities it is.'' Noah set his mind at that thought and deployed his saber-shaped runes in the environment once again. Then, he cast the Ghostly sabers spell on top of those runes. In the end, he released a large amount of his liquid "Breath" and spread his mental waves to quicken the creation of primary energy. "You dare pretending to be someone else even when I gave up on my family to fight you!?" Thomas shouted when he saw that Noah wasn''t willing to use any of his renowned abilities. His spell was too violent and had an area of effect so large that most of his mansion had been destroyed in a matter of seconds. Nothing could remain intact when a force that neared the power of the fifth rank appeared in the open. Of course, Thomas didn''t doubt about the assailant''s identity for even an instant. His instincts told him that the figure that did everything in its power to cover its face was his grandson, and he trusted them. Yet, the fact that Noah wasn''t willing to reveal himself even when he was going all-out angered him to no end. That anger though vanished when he sensed that the saber-shaped runes had reached a power in the fifth rank. Chapter 709: 709. Words Thomas had his back hunched as he stared at the threatening saber-shaped runes from the center of his storm. The slight contact with Noah''s fist had been enough to break his spine, which he managed to keep together only through his "Breath". Also, he had a rank 5 body, meaning that he couldn''t die so quickly. However, the Ghostly sabers spell had also damaged his internal organs. He needed to fix his back before he could start healing, but his opponent kept on standing even if he had hit him with two of his most potent attacks. Of course, Noah was far from okay. Thomas'' attacks weren''t sharp like his, so they found it hard to pierce his skin. Yet, their might had managed to tear his muscles apart and even fracture many of his bones. The resilience of Noah''s body though was on a completely different level. He was a rank 5 hybrid in the lower tier! It would take far more damage to make his body collapse or affect his actions. After all, Thomas wasn''t a complete rank 5 cultivator yet, and that greatly influenced the battle prowess that he could express. Noah suffered from the same issue, but his rank 5 mind gave him access to spells with that power. His reserves of "Breath" obviously depleted at a faster pace, but he had purposely focused on the skills that mainly relied on his mental energy before the battle. Also, he expressed part of his individuality with each of those abilities while Thomas did that only with his last raging storm. Thomas noticed how the power of the saber-shaped runes kept on rising even after they reached the fifth rank. There didn''t seem to be a limit to how much they could absorb, and Thomas knew that they were already deadly in that state. That discovery made him anxious to end the battle before they reached a power that he couldn''t hope to match. Thomas struggled to redirect the storm toward the hooded figure, but Noah promptly answered to that gesture by launching the Ghostly sabers. The ethereal sabers fell apart as they made their way through the raging winds, but some of them managed to reach for its center and stab Thomas. At the same time, the winds swept Noah, who felt an incredible pressure threatening to shatter his body. The ground under Noah''s feet crumbled as the storm raged in that spot, and he felt the pressure pushing him on the ground. Yet, Noah endured the pressure and redirected his gaze toward his grandfather. Thomas coughed blood as the Ghostly sabers seeped in his body and tore apart his internal organs. Still, the wind that originated from his low waist managed to prevent any deadly injury. However, he suddenly sensed a dangerous sensation coming from the intense stare of his opponent. Thomas saw a dense, half-transparent saber shooting toward his head at high speed, but there was nothing that he could do to avoid it in that state. The storm could only deplete part of its power. The saber landed on Thomas'' mental sphere, which began to tremble to no end as the destructive properties of Noah''s spell spread through its walls. The raging storm had managed to make the Mental saber unable to pierce Thomas'' sea of consciousness, but there was nothing that it could do about the properties of Noah''s individuality. Thomas'' concentration wavered, and the tornadoes originating from his low-waist became wild once again. Noah felt some of the pressure on him being lifted when his grandfather lost focus, and he didn''t hesitate to unleash his runes at that point. Controlling the saber-shaped runes now that they had reached a power in the fifth rank consumed a lot of his mental energy, but that consumption was completely sustainable for his level. The tide of black sabers shot through the violent storm and reached for the man in its center. The violence of the storm wasn''t affected by the momentary unfocused state of his grandfather. Its power was connected with Thomas'' individuality, and it wasn''t something that could be stopped once it was released. Noah felt the thickness of the winds as he used his complete focus to push the saber-shaped runes deeper into the storm. Their trajectory was a bit off when they reached Thomas, but they still managed to stab him in many spots. The runes severed his right arm, stabbed his left shoulder, pierced his legs, and created holes in his torso. More basic energy formed on the battlefield as the mighty black sabers radiated Noah''s individuality, and they kept on absorbing it to fuel themselves. Even the storm began to fall apart as Noah''s individuality destroyed the matter that made it. Large empty tunnels formed wherever the saber-shaped runes moved, and the destructive force lingering in those spaces spread through the storm, affecting its composition. Thomas became aware of his surroundings only when the runes had turned and were ready to deliver a second attack. The tide of sharp, black weapons filled his field of view, and something inside him told him that he wasn''t going to win that battle. His body was a mess, and his mental energy was almost completely depleted. Also, none of the families around his was coming to help him. His gaze moved away from the runes and went on the ground at that point. His mansion was wrecked, and every building had crumbled as the battle between him and Noah shook the area. Only the inscribed defensive walls were still standing, but long and deep cracks had filled their surface too. Thomas couldn''t sense any trace of life coming from the debris, and he suddenly felt just as the defensive walls. They were a ruined structure that protected wreckages just as he was a broken man that protected a family that no longer existed. All his efforts had been reduced to dust in one battle. "No, my family won''t disappear." Thomas murmured when the first rune stabbed his shoulder. Noah heard those words, but he didn''t stop his offensive and continued to control the black sabers even as his grandfather continued to speak. "One Balvan will remain in this world. He might change his name, his face, and even his blood, but he will always be Noah Balvan." More sabers reached for Thomas and pierced his body, but he didn''t care and shouted. "His glory shall be my glory because his name is my name. I declare him Patriarch of the Balvan family with my last breath. May he learn to own his name as he strives for the sky." Thomas couldn''t say anything else since the tide of runes destroyed his upper body after those last words. Chapter 710: 710. Destruction The windstorm dispersed when Noah destroyed his grandfather''s upper body. The saber-shaped runes fell apart and released their energy in the environment as he relaxed. Silence filled the area inside the scarred defensive walls, and Noah found himself alone in the middle of the wrecked mansion. His consciousness couldn''t sense any trace of life, and his eyes could only see the ruins of what had once been his home. Noah didn''t feel anything at that sight. He felt empty as he landed on the ground and tried to sprint toward the remains of Thomas'' corpse. Yet, he puked blood as soon as he took the first step. ''I''m injured.'' Noah thought before straightening his position to keep advancing toward his grandfather. His last exchanges with Thomas had been inside the windstorm, which had applied a threatening pressure on his body for its whole duration. Noah had endured that damage during the battle to press on with his offensive, but his wounded state became evident once he relaxed. Most of his bones had cracks, and his muscles had been torn apart in many spots. Those were injuries that he would take months to fix even with the improved healing properties of his body! However, he couldn''t stop and rest just yet. Noah slowly closed with the remains of Thomas'' corpse. He only found a pair of bloody legs attached to what was left of his waist, but that was enough for him. The windstorm had modified the trajectory of his saber-shaped runes, but Noah had been careful not to touch his most crucial part. Noah browsed through the insides of the corpse and found a shining orb that had already begun to disperse its dense energy. Thomas'' "Breath" resembled a raging storm as it seeped out of his dantian, which showed that Noah''s assumption about his individuality was on point. Noah directly ate the dantian and closed his eyes to assess the amount of nourishment that it provided him. His wounded body greedily attacked the shining orb and reduced it into primary energy that nourished all his tissues. Part of its energy went to the injured muscles and bones, but a large share of it simply fed his form as a whole. Noah felt a warm sensation filling his body, and he could immediately tell that no rank 5 beast in the lower tier could match that amount of energy. ''This should be equal to a bit more than ten rank 5 magical beasts.'' Noah thought before storing those remains and moving toward a specific point among the ruins. His consciousness covered the entirety of the space inside the defensive walls, so finding his target in that mess was quite easy. Noah slowly walked through the ruins until he reached a big boulder. A human figure appeared when Noah destroyed the block with a light push. The figure belonged to an old man who had a broken eyepatch on his left eye. The falling boulder had crushed his chest and his heart with it, but his face still carried his original features. ''The man that I''ve wanted to kill for so long wasn''t even able to survive the fall of a building.'' Noah didn''t feel anything when he thought that. Rhys'' corpse was right under him, but he didn''t feel any satisfaction. His punch had forced Thomas to go all out, which unleashed his windstorm. Nevertheless, that spell had a large area of effect, and the mansion could only crumble under its pressure. The cultivators inside it couldn''t oppose the pressure either, which forced them to remain still as the mansion fell apart. A battle between two cultivators that neared the fifth rank in power was bound to create repercussions that human cultivators weren''t able to endure. Noah had mainly used mental attacks, so the humans inside the mansion had been able to endure his offensive. However, Thomas'' attack had affected the entirety of the estate, which left the nobles and soldiers inside it with no hope to survive. ''In the end, Thomas killed his family, and I killed my Master. Life is silly at times.'' Noah sighed after those thoughts, and his mind began to wander. ''All this hatred toward someone so weak. What am I supposed to do with this feeling now?'' That question gave birth to a series of images that appeared and vanished inside his mind in a cycle. Lily''s face often appeared among those images, but they weren''t limited to her. Noah reviewed the entirety of his life inside the Balvan mansion in a matter of seconds, and he could only feel empty when he compared them to the scenery around him. Yet, his ambition soon began to fill that void. ''My hatred led me to defy the plan of Heaven and Earth.'' Noah''s aura released a tremor that spread in the matter around him when he thought that. ''All the sacrifices that I''ve made sharpened by form, but I still had to sever something that I cared about to fulfill my revenge.'' William''s face appeared in his vision at that point. Noah didn''t feel good about his death, but he still decided to own that sin. Deluding himself would only hurt his mindset, and he needed to have a clear idea of what he was. ''My pain, my sorrow, and my actions made me become a blade able to sever the fate chosen by Heaven and Earth. No trace of it remains in the world, and only their flaw keeps on living.'' He thought. The matter around him began to fall apart, and "Breath" of the darkness element began to gather around his figure as his mind kept wandering. Noah was too lost in his thoughts to care about it, but his dantian was forcing his cultivation technique to work at a faster pace! Succeeding in his revenge and accepting William''s killing allowed Noah to gain insights on the destructive part of his individuality. Those insights influenced the behavior of his dantian, which forced the Black hole cultivation technique to provide specific laws to its form. The whirlpool at the center of the ring seemed to expand as it strived to reach a vaster area where to gather "Breath". Flying Demon returned in the sky above the mansion at that point. His robe was torn in some spots, but his face was still covered, and he appeared unharmed. He was about to call for Noah when he noticed the peculiar state in which the Prince was. Flying Demon could see from his height how the ruins of the mansion turned into dust as the "Breath" of the darkness element inside their matter left them. All that "Breath" gathered around Noah before seeping in his low-waist that greedily absorbed everything. Flying Demon saw how Noah''s aura vanished for a second before spreading again in the environment with a newfound sharpness. Also, the fact that the aura radiated a power in the solid stage of the fourth rank didn''t escape his senses. Chapter 711: 711. Life Flying Demon remained silent as Noah went through his breakthrough. He had come to warn him that they didn''t have much time left, but the situation forced him to stop his actions. Noah was advancing to the solid stage, and that was a process that he didn''t dare to interrupt. The matter of the ruins of the mansion kept on crumbling as the "Breath" of the darkness element contained inside it reached for Noah''s dantian. The laws carried by that "Breath" nourished the fabric of Noah''s center of power and improved its structure. Enlightenments on the destructive part of his individuality dawned upon him as his dantian squeezed the liquid "Breath" inside it. The sharp form of his black energy condensed until it became a minute shard that radiated a blinding dark light. ''My destruction is complete.'' Noah thought when his dantian started to stabilize, and his cultivation technique stopped increasing its absorption speed. A wave of sharpness spread from his figure when he opened his eyes and further destabilized the remaining wreckage of the mansion. Dust accumulated around Noah as the broken walls and floors crumbled under the pressure of his "Breath", but Flying Demon couldn''t see any satisfaction in his eyes. His power had increased again, but he had to pay a heavy price for that. "Prince, we must go. Dreaming Demon''s cover won''t last for long, and my opponent has managed to escape." Flying Demon said as he landed next to Noah and waited for his answer. Dreaming Demon appeared in the sky too at that point, and she could only stop her tracks when she saw the situation on the ground. Her complete focus had been on blocking the signs of the battle from leaking outside the mansion, and that wasn''t a simple matter. That battlefield had seen the fight between two cultivators that neared the fifth rank, and she had to contain it while also modifying the scene viewed from the outside. The only existence that could notice her methods was the rank 5 noble in the area, but Flying Demon had kept it busy just as they had planned. So, she was a bit surprised when she saw the wreckage and Noah''s cultivation level. It was evident to both Demons that Noah''s revenge didn''t only affect his emotions and that he was still in the process of accepting his new state. Yet, they had to go since there were bound to be reinforcements on their way. ''Destruction is only half of my path, but my creation struggles to manifest. Death surrounds me, but there is also life on my path.'' Noah moved his gaze toward the elders near him when he thought that. They were pressing him to leave, but they didn''t dare to move before him. Then, June''s figure appeared in his mind. ''I''m a demon that strives for power, but I have people that I care about. This duality exists in the world, just like it exists in my individuality.'' Noah thought when the Demons showed happy smirks at his gaze. "Arthur, Tisha," Noah said, and the elders became severe when they heard him calling them with their real names for the first time. "These walls saw the birth of the people that have allowed me to cultivate. Both of them died because of me." The two Demons didn''t say anything when they heard those words. They had endured their share of tragedies too, and the events after the exile were just part of the hindrances that they had to overcome in their long life. On the other hand, Noah was young, and the power of his centers of power only made his age even more amazing. Yet, he still had to become used to how many things lost their value after spending centuries away from the struggles of the mortal world. "I will stop at nothing to reach the stars, but that doesn''t mean that I won''t treasure anything else. Let''s leave a piece of life in this place of death after we clean it." Noah ordered, and the Demons quickly began to plunder the battlefield after his order. They didn''t wholly understand Noah''s words, but they could guess what he meant in the last part. Flying Demon flew toward the center of the area and released a series of ice-shards when they were done with the plundering. A layer of ice formed on the terrain when the shards touched it, and the temperature in the area dropped as white flowers rose from the frozen ground. The remains of the mansion, the terrain, and even part of the defensive walls saw flowers made of ice growing from their surface and creating a pure scenery. Of course, the flowers weren''t alive, but they grew from the wreckage of a battle and expressed a sense of life in the process. Flying Demon didn''t know what Noah really meant with his words, but it was clear that two people important to him had died in the mansion. So, he created a grave. The messy "Breath" still lingering in the area froze when the flowers touched it, which erased almost every trace of the battle between Noah and Thomas. Dreaming Demon returned next to Noah when she had finished gathering the intact wealth among the wreckage and turned to stare at her lover''s work. "How many enemies do you have left?" She asked. "Quite a bunch, and they are all stronger than me," Noah answered. "Who is the strongest?" She asked again. Noah turned when he heard that question, and he revealed a weak smile before answering. "Heaven and Earth, of course." Then, he gave one last look at Flying Demon''s work before moving toward the teleportation matrix connected to the separate dimension. The two Demons quickly followed him, and the three of them destroyed the door as soon as they returned in the tunnel. Dreaming Demon removed her hood, which revealed her tired expression, and the other two in her group followed her example. Noah was a bit pale due to all the injuries that his body had suffered, and he felt the need to hibernate to quicken the healing process. Instead, Flying Demon appeared completely fine. His opponent had been weaker than him, and he had kept the higher ground during the entire duration of the battle. The noble had managed to escape though since Flying Demon couldn''t chase him past Mossgrove city. "I''ll probably isolate myself for a while. You can handle the matters in the Utra nation on your own." Noah said as he moved toward one of his caves while gulping a mouthful of blood that had climbed through his throat. "Do you want us to focus on something in particular?" Flying Demon asked when he saw Noah slowly walking away from them. "Try to discover something about the Ballor family, but never give away that you are interested in it," Noah answered before stopping and turning toward the two elders as he remembered to say something. "Right. Thank you for your help. My revenge would still be on hold if it weren''t for you." Chapter 712: 712. Res "Our lives would be on hold too if you hadn''t saved us. Rest, Prince. You have improved again without fully absorbing the gains given by your past breakthrough. Leave the Utra nation to us for now." Dreaming Demon said, and both elders revealed stern expressions at her words. Noah felt another wave of tiredness filling his body and decided to perform a slight bow before leaving to reach one of his caves. The battle against Thomas had injured him, but most of those wounds could have been avoided if he used all his abilities. Yet, he had to remain unknown, or at least avoid leaving irrefutable clues on the scene. The hood would protect him from eventual recording devices, but he still had to avoid using his signature moves. His body had paid the price to defeat an incomplete rank 5 cultivator while using only new abilities, but that amount of damage was something that he could endure. Noah spent the following months in a partial hibernation. He slept and woke up only to eat part of the nourishing resources inside his space-ring. The energy contained in Thomas'' dantian quickened the healing process, but the windstorm had even fractured his sturdy bones. That was something that would take a while to heal even with the healing properties inherited from the Yin body. However, Noah wasn''t in a hurry, and his mood was quite strange too. The Balvan family was no more, and the Utra nation didn''t have much appeal without it. It still contained a lot of resources due to all the noble families living there, but they didn''t interest Noah either. He didn''t need anything other than materials for his experiments, and the Hive would provide them with just a single request. ''My destruction is complete. My saber has severed the fate chosen by Heaven and Earth.'' Noah thought during his hibernation. ''But I''ll only leave nothing around me if I don''t start to create.'' His mind focused on his dantian from time to time, and the sharp crystal radiated the same kind of destructive force that had appeared when his "Breath" was in the liquid stage. That force had grown in intensity when his "Breath" reached the solid stage, and it had even begun to affect a deeper layer of the matter. His individuality turned the world of Heaven and Earth into primary energy that he could use, but he still lacked the means to build with it. ''Fusing the Will-consuming runes with the Elemental forging method is the first step toward creation.'' Noah thought as he ate another pill made from a peak rank 4 magical beast. ''I just need to heal before I can focus on harvesting all the gains of my breakthroughs.'' June''s face appeared in his vision as he began to think about the creative aspect of his individuality. She was an expression of life in his mind and someone that could push Noah''s drive to create further. ''I want to see her.'' Noah thought before falling asleep to continue his recovery. Time passed quietly in the area of the separate dimension under the Utra nation. The news of the destruction of the Balvan family didn''t take much to spread through the entirety of the country. It was already clear that the secret assailants had access to assets in the peak of the fourth rank, but the last raid revealed that they could unleash something in the fifth rank too. An entire medium-size family had been wiped out, and the assailants didn''t even care that its mansion was right next to two large-size noble families! No one was safe anymore, and the nobles could only redirect their gazes toward the two crowded areas that had yet to suffer any attack. The first one was on the northern border and used the threat of the Capital to scare away the hiding assailants. The second one saw the families loyal to the Cause grouped near the eastern side of the nation. The nobles in the southern area knew that they had to leave, but they had to decide which side to trust before that. The Elbas family didn''t intervene even after the destruction of the Balvans, and the loyal nobles were starting to become annoyed with that behavior. Their homes were being assaulted and raided, but their rulers didn''t even address the issue! On the other hand, the families loyal to the Cause didn''t suffer at all in that period. More and more nobles began to switch sides and choose to move toward the eastern areas of the nation. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon exploited that situation to attack nobles that were still set on following the Elbas family and were moving toward the northern border. Fear continued spread through the nation, which seemed to be held hostage by an invisible threat able to attack anyone. The Hive only benefited from that situation since the Demons kept on plundering large amounts of precious resources and creations that were unpurchaseable from outside the country. The wealth obtained from small and medium-size families didn''t amount to much in the Hive''s perspective. Only the completed items and inventions were valuable since Thirty-seven could reverse engineer them and expand the knowledge of the fourth force in the Mortal Lands. There were also a large number of scrolls and tomes that described techniques and spells which the Hive carefully stored and began to study as soon as those goods reached the new continent. The news of the destruction of the Balvan family eventually spread even outside of the Utra nation, and many eyes landed on the Hive as a consequence. All the world knew about Noah and his enmity with his family, but the inscribed items that had survived the attack didn''t reveal any incriminating evidence. Noah and the elders had been careful during that raid, and that behavior paid off since no one could even begin to blame the Hive. Noah woke up fully healed in that period, and he began to focus on his abilities rather than minding the political situation in the outside world. There was too much to do with his breakthrough, and too much to experiment on. Years inevitably passed as he focused on himself and the path ahead of him. He had achieved one of his lifelong goals, but there was still the ambition that pushed him to become stronger. Also, June was somewhere in the Mortal Lands, and he had a tunnel that could bring him wherever he wanted. Noah had never wanted to see her so badly, but he could guess that his eagerness originated from his individuality. His destruction was complete, but his existence strived for harmony, which could only be found in what inspired life in his case. The Demons were with him, but they were friends at most and couldn''t compare to his lover in terms of importance. Yet, Flying Demon sent him a message during his second year of seclusion. "We plan to attack the academy, and we need your knowledge, Prince." Chapter 713: 713. Oath The Royal academy of the Utra country used to be the place where countless studies and experts gathered to research on every aspect of the cultivation field. That facility and the Capital used to hold the highest number of inscribed items, techniques, and spells, but everything had changed after the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. The terrain of the new continent contained so much "Breath" that most formations didn''t need Obsidian Credits to work, and that was just the most basic benefit! The decision of the Royals to move was wholly justified, as well as that of using the southeastern coast of the new continent as their new headquarters. Yet, the Capital and the academy were still essential structures in the Utra nation, and they were bound to contain riches that the nobles couldn''t hope to match. The Demons would obviously decide to target them once the political environment of the nation allowed it. ''I didn''t manage to achieve much in this period, but learning more about that area of the country might eventually lead me to June.'' Noah thought when he listened to the elder''s message. ''Also, it''s the perfect period to raid those facilities.'' The Elbas family didn''t intervene in those years, and the forces of the Hive were sure that it was up to something. Yet, they didn''t care about the eventual repercussions that could hit the nobles once the Royals stepped in. The Hive was there to weaken one of the three big nations and to seize as many resources as it could. The well-being of the nobles didn''t even cross its mind. The elders had simply decided to exploit an opportunity that could only benefit them as long as the raids weren''t connected to the Hive. "I''m in," Noah replied through his inscribed notebook. "I just need to make some preparations and remove the oath." Every student of the academy had to swear an oath before joining its facilities, and Noah still carried that declared in the past. He knew the exact position of the Royal academy, but he couldn''t reveal it before removing the pact that he had sealed when he became a student. ''The Royals might have moved those facilities too, but we can just go there and see for ourselves. As long as they keep on ignoring us, we can keep on raiding.'' Noah thought before focusing his dense mental waves on his body. The oath sealed a long time ago had been unaffected by his fusion due to its ethereal properties, which meant that it was still somewhere inside his body. Oaths were usually sneaky and difficult to find, but the marble tablet in the academy was only a rank 4 item. Noah''s rank 5 mind could see it as long as it focused on any external presence. Mental waves spread through his skin, muscles, bones, and internal organs, and they vibrated according to his unique aura. His body began to vibrate together with his mental waves, but a couple of spots didn''t react. Those spots soon released two small runes that struggled to remain attached to the organs around his dantian. Those runes represented the oaths that he had taken in the past, and one of them linked him to the Hive, or rather, to the old Chasing demon sect. Instead, the other represented his oath with the academy, and it had to be removed if he wanted to reveal its position. Noah''s mental waves encircled the rune and began to release his destructive individuality. The rune struggled and tried to self-destruct while shooting toward his dantian, but a wave of sharp "Breath" came out of his center of power and aided his mental energy. Noah''s methods weren''t able to prevent the explosion, but most of the energy contained in the rune had been depleted before the blast. Small cuts and tremors spread in Noah''s low-waist, but his healing capabilities quickly kicked in to fix and contain the damage. ''Oaths are indeed annoying to deal with.'' Noah thought as he witnessed the wounds caused by the rune. His body was sturdy beyond any common sense, but its defensive properties didn''t activate during the blast. It was as if it had willingly accepted to be injured by that energy. That was one of the troubles of dealing with oaths. The acceptance of the cultivator when sealing a pact would prevent most defensive methods once the vow was broken, which was the threatening aspect of those inscribed items. Noah waited for his body to heal before sending a message to the elders with the exact coordinates of the Royal academy. Then, he turned his focus on his abilities again. The two years of seclusion had allowed him to improve his spells, but most of his old skills couldn''t express his individuality fully. The Dark blast spell could carry the destructive aspect of his existence, and the Black hole spell could contain his greed, but they didn''t reflect him even when fused into one attack. The same went for the Dark ray, the Dark cover, and the Warp spells, which were simply unsuitable for Noah''s sharp individuality. Only his mental attacks had been able to express some aspects of his existence due to their strict relation with his mental energy, but even they weren''t entirely his. ''The Dragon''s claw martial art and my rune are originals that reflect myself, and their power is far above my other abilities.'' Noah thought as he focused. ''This is the right path, but I need to deepen my creation to make full use of my individuality.'' Noah knew that the answer to his current issues was in his two inscription methods. The years spent in seclusion had allowed him to improve all his abilities, but he needed to make use of both inscription methods if he wanted to push his training to the next level. There was his cultivation technique to improve, and he had yet to find a way to fill the gaps left by the absence of the sixth Kesier rune. It would take years before his turn arrived, so he had to create a viable alternative training method. His weapons were also nearing their limits, and they wouldn''t keep up with him once he began to rely on his martial art again. However, his inscription methods appeared somewhat limited now that he had reached a higher level of understanding. Material items and condensed wills were powerful and useful tools, but Noah wanted only the best for his centers of power. That was the reason why he didn''t focus on his training methods as soon as the wounds suffered in the Balvan mansion healed. He had decided to tune his battle prowess to his new power before redirecting all his concentration in inventing the tool that would push all his creations to a new level. ''I need to fuse my inscription methods!'' Noah thought before activating the Divine deduction technique in the silence of his cave. Chapter 714: 714. Silver Noah''s plan was ambitious, but he needed to pursue it if he wanted to keep striving toward the higher ranks. The Elemental forging method had already shown its limitations in the past, and the studies of the Will-consuming runes reported similar issues. Even the most prominent inscription methods would have limits to its teachings since most cultivators would begin to focus solely on themselves after reaching a certain level. Mighty experts would lose interest in creating a school that others could study at some point. The path toward the divine ranks didn''t allow many deviations and required long periods of seclusion that cultivators couldn''t spend thinking about others. Only those who needed to stop their advance to deepen their understanding would spend time among other cultivators that had similar issues. Also, experts usually weren''t willing to share the discoveries that they had spent decades researching. It was up to the many organizations controlling and transcribing such schools because it was in their interest to nurture promising cultivators that could further improve their knowledge. Of course, every organization would just follow the will and needs of their leaders. The Elbas family strived to be unmatched when it came to the cultivation fields while also maintaining control over the talents of its nation. The Royal academy was the organization that the Royals had set for that task, and the world knew that it had already been a successful organization. As time passed, every organization would see a change in its layout or position, and the Royal academy wasn''t an exception. The new facility built on the new continent was far better than its previous version, but its requirements were far stricter. The Elbas family held complete control over the southeastern side of the piece of Immortal Lands, which allowed it to set any rule that it wanted. Defeating the previous Royal family had left it in control of a vast nation with a fragmented political system and full of different forces. The Elbas had made use of that environment to become stronger. Still, there was a limit to how much it could be achieved with so many traitors lying in wait. The Royals had to find compromises in their rule, but that hadn''t been necessary on the new continent. That land was empty, and they could grant access only to nobles that sealed pacts that benefitted them. It only made sense that they would move their focus away from the Utra nation at that point. Total control was better than ruling with compromises. The Royal academy in the Utra nation lost a lot of its former importance as the events concerning the new continent unfolded. The raids suffered by the country even affected its image in the nobles'' eyes since the Elbas family didn''t feel like a real ruler anymore. However, that didn''t affect the intention of the Hive to investigate its facilities. "Do you think there still is something inside it?" Flying Demon asked as it looked above him. The two Demons, Noah, Daniel, and the human troops of the Hive, had gathered right under the spot inside Arolyac forest where the academy was supposed to be. Daniel had a stricter oath compared to Noah since he had worked as an alchemist inside those facilities after his graduation. Amos couldn''t break it so he couldn''t provide his information to his group. Yet, he had decided to join the attack after listening to Noah''s plan, which meant that what he knew was on point. The oaths of the academy covered only the aspects concerning the spreading of its researches and secrets, but they didn''t consider the possibility of an outside force attacking it. After all, there was a rank 6 existence backing the organization ruling it. The Elbas family would rather leave that possibility open to bait out some rebels than creating harsher oaths that could scare away possible students. Also, the academy had some of the most advanced defensive methods in the entirety of the nation, which scared away any ill-intentioned force. Of course, such measures didn''t consider the separate dimension designed by Divine Architect. "Our silent noble is here, so there must be something valuable." Dreaming Demon said as she shot a glance at Daniel. "It doesn''t matter." Noah intervened in the discussion at that point. "We had to come here at some point anyway." The elders focused again at his words and covered their faces. The formation had already been set, and the group simply waited for Noah''s order before starting the operation. Only a month had passed since he revealed the coordinates of the academy, but the elders had managed to prepare everything in that short period. It was needless to say that Noah didn''t manage to achieve much in that time, but his battle prowess was at its peak nonetheless. He would need better methods to improve further, so he didn''t mind coming out of his seclusion to join the raid. Actually, he had requested to be informed about that matter. The noble families didn''t have techniques and spells of the darkness element useful to his level, but the deposit of the academy could still contain something valuable to him. "Let''s go," Noah said, and the group stepped on the teleportation matrix on the brown ground. The light of the array filled their vision for a second, and the polished buildings of the academy became visible when the halo disappeared. The insides of the academy didn''t change much in those years. There was still a long river that divided the facilities from the habitations of the students. Some new buildings had appeared, but Noah couldn''t notice any significant difference. Yet, everyone sensed something strange as soon as their mental waves spread in that environment. "There is no one here." Dreaming Demon transmitted through her consciousness to Noah and her lover. Noah immediately turned toward Daniel and noticed that his expression was as confused as theirs. Daniel couldn''t say much in that situation, but everyone could understand that something was off by just glancing at him. The human assets though didn''t have the same thinking speed and were set on following the orders of the Demon Prince without hesitating for even an instant. They left the array as soon as their minds stabilized, spreading toward the many buildings in the area. The heroic cultivators in the group limited themselves to observe to see if they triggered some defensive measure, and even Daniel stared at those human troops without taking a step further. His mind had become more experienced for what concerned those situations, and he had also accepted that he could use rank 3 cultivators as cannon fodder at his level. Nothing happened at the beginning, but a tremor filled the academy as soon as one of the human cultivators reached a building. The ceiling of the academy crumbled together with those tremors, and three silver-haired figures appeared in the sky when the outside world was revealed. "Haha, Second Prince was right. You rats had to attack this abandoned place soon." One of the figures said just before releasing a peak rank 5 aura. Chapter 715: 715. Golem "Second Prince is usually on point when it comes to thieves." One of the silver-haired cultivators said before spreading his aura too. The only woman in the group floating in the sky added something. "Second Prince and First Princess will be disappointed to know that their forces only amount to this much." Her aura spread too, and the group from the Hive was amazed to see that all of them were at the peak of the fifth rank. Three peak rank 5 cultivators had appeared after destroying the upper part of the hill hiding the academy! Their auras fell on the ground and enveloped the assailants, applying their pressure on them. Noah condensed his consciousness inside his mental sphere and relied on the intrinsic properties of his mental waves to defend against that pressure. Daniel and the elders did the same as the three peak rank 5 auras enveloped them. Dense mental waves filled with an intense feeling tried to seep through the walls of the cultivator''s seas of consciousness, but it was hard to affect mages on the same level with just thoughts and at that distance. Still, Daniel fainted in a few seconds, and the human cultivators spread through the area directly collapsed when they came in contact with that energy. They were rank 3 mages, so their minds could only collapse under the pressure released by the three silver-haired cultivators. ''We have to retreat!'' Noah thought as he focused on fending off the pressure. The destructive force released by his mental waves prevented the auras of the three Royals from touching his mind, but they were bound to understand his identity if they kept that up. Only one whiff of the darkness element would be enough to uncover him, and the Hive couldn''t deal with the consequences that such discovery would create. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon shared his same thoughts. There was nothing that they could do against such power. Dreaming Demon was the first to become used to the pressure, and she quickly used her key to reactivate the teleportation matrix. "Not so fast." The woman in the air said as she waved her hand to create a series of fiery boulders that started to fall toward the four invaders. Dreaming Demon was forced to interrupt her action to defend against the spell of the Royal. Flying Demon managed to focus when the boulders began to fall, and he quickly helped his lover when he sensed that threat. The air between the two groups became cold and white flowers started to bloom in the trajectory of the boulders. Dense mental waves also hindered the advance of the Royal''s spell, which lost a lot of power before reaching the flowers. Flying Demon''s spell fell apart and melted when the fiery boulders released their might on them, but another wave of Dreaming Demon''s mental energy managed to deplete their remaining power. The woman showed a surprised expression at that sight, but the words of her companions forced her to focus. "Second Princess, you went too easy on them!" One of the Royals said. "You''ll taint Father''s pride in this way. I''ll step in." The other cultivator added to the previous complaint. Second Princess snorted and was about to refuse their help when she noticed that Noah had managed to focus too and was trying to activate the matrix with his key. "Third Prince, First Prince, let''s end them together." She said at that point. "We''ll learn their identity through their corpses." The other two cultivators tore one of their silver hairs at her words and cast spells together with her. The group from the Hive saw the fiery boulders reappearing together with a giant snake made of fire and a series of flaming branches that spread downward. The spells were too fast, and even Noah could understand that the teleportation wouldn''t be quick enough to save them from the incoming attacks. His evaluation also considered the possibility in which the three of them used their most potent offense to slow down the spells of the Royals, but the outcome wouldn''t change. The attacks would reach them, and they would die under the might of those three peak rank 5 cultivators. Noah didn''t hesitate to grab and break Chasing Demon''s talisman when he realized that he had no other available option to survive. A wave of dense "Breath" spread in the environment as soon as he activated the talisman, and the terrain around the group began to move at high speed under its influence. The ground of the academy cracked, and large boulders started to gather in the air to form a huge shape. The spells of the Royals crashed on the floating terrain, but a quasi-rank 6 aura spread from that seemingly harmless earth at that moment and deflected the three attacks. Noah had to close his consciousness to focus on fending off the vibrations created by the clash above him, and Flying Demon was forced to do the same. Dreaming Demon wasn''t an exception, but she managed to recover faster than her companions to activate the key. The teleportation matrix shone and illuminated the dark area created by the shadow of the form that kept on gathering terrain above them. The Royals didn''t want to let go of the invaders and answered to the new threat with a series of spells, but the brown shape kept on growing in size and protecting the teleporting heroic cultivators under it. Even the terrain of the Arolyac forest was affected by the spell contained in Chasing Demon''s talisman and flew toward the colossal figure. The brown shape became more detailed as more materials gathered on it, and the Royals in the air could soon realize that they were against a giant golem with a quasi-rank 6 power. Their pride exploded at that point, and the three of them bit their fingers to use a few drops of their blood to cast their next abilities. The scene became messy when their flames fed on their blood to create wonders. The few buildings of the academy that had managed to survive to the appearance of the golem fell apart when the new spells crashed on the giant opponent. The shockwaves of that battle spread through Arolyac forest and reduced most of its trees to dust. The ground never stopped shaking when those three peak rank 5 cultivators fought the quasi-rank 6 being born from a talisman. The golem roared and waved its massive arms, but the Princes and Princess were high in the air and used that advantage to exhaust it slowly. Chasing Demon''s talisman didn''t have an endless source of energy, and the golem quickly depleted that fueling it to face the relentless assault. When its reserves of energy vanished, it fell apart. Giant boulders rained on the ruins of the Royal academy, but the three peak rank 5 cultivators were only interested in the area that the golem had protected with its life. They could only feel disappointed when they saw that there was no trace of the invaders there. Chapter 716: 716. Letters "They were waiting for us." Dreaming Demon said when the group reappeared in the separate dimension. Daniel was still unconscious on the brown ground, but the elders and Noah didn''t hesitate to destroy the teleportation matrix. Then, they reported that event back to the Hive. "What was that?" Flying Demon asked as he turned toward Noah. It was evident that he was hinting to the giant golem that had appeared in their defense, and he knew that both he and his lover didn''t have access to that kind of power. "Its power surprised me too," Noah said as he began to speak about the talisman. "Chasing Demon had given me that item when I was only a human cultivator." Flying Demon couldn''t help but release a laugh when he heard his words. The talisman contained a quasi-rank 6 spell, and not even the most promising human cultivators of the big nations had access to a similar item. After all, that talisman could save the lives of rank 5 cultivators! Who would be so selfless to give it to a human? "The Patriarch''s respect toward Master''s opinion is truly boundless." Dreaming Demon said while revealing a smile of her own. "You saved our lives once again." Flying Demon patted Noah''s shoulder without stopping his laugh. Then, he lifted the unconscious Daniel to lay him on his shoulder as he went for the southern part of the separate dimension. The raid had failed, and it was time to reorganize to decide if keeping attacking was worth the risk. The Hive now knew that the Elbas family had begun to intervene in the political situation of the Utra nation. The desolation of the Royal academy couldn''t be a case, and anyone would suspect that those peak rank 5 cultivators had just waited for the assailants to arrive. Their timing was too perfect, and they would have succeeded in seizing the group from the Hive if it wasn''t for Chasing Demon''s talisman. A being at the peak of the fifth rank was an existence that only powerhouses could command, and the Elbas family had managed to deploy three of them so easily! Noah was already re-evaluating the power of the big nations after witnessing that, and the elders were doing the same. The Hive was too weak compared to such forces. It merely happened to be the strongest organization after them. "What do you think we should do, Prince?" Flying Demon asked as the group walked toward the southern areas of the dimension. The Hive had lost part of its human elites in the last raid, but they could be easily refilled thanks to its current power. The real issue was the lack of available targets. The Demons had attacked every defenseless family that sided with the Royals while Noah was in seclusion, but the nobles had mostly found a safe position by then. The Cause had gathered many followers due to the indifference of the Elbas family, and part of its enemies had been destroyed. Yet, many families had managed to reach the Capital too, which limited the possibilities of the Hive. "What''s the situation of the other cities?" Noah asked after he analyzed the situation in his mind. The fact that all the nobles had moved in safe areas didn''t eliminate every valuable spot in the Utra nation. The big cities once ruled by the large-size families were still there, and there was a high chance that they still contained some sort of riches. Raiding the cities would only bring the Hive small benefits, but that was better than nothing. The Cause managed one crowded area, and the Royals defended the other, so there wasn''t much more than they could target. Flying Demon shrugged his shoulders and pointed at the noble that he was carrying. "We need to ask him when he wakes up." The group became silent at that point and simply returned on the array under the Udye family. Daniel woke up along the way, but his mental sphere seemed to have suffered some injury when the peak rank 5 auras swept it. It wasn''t in a critical condition, but its walls had nearly cracked during the sudden attack. His mind was quite frail at that moment, and he would have to spend a period of rest on restoring it to its original sturdiness. Noah and the elders instructed him to investigate the various cities of the nation before sending him back to his mansion, but their expressions became cold when he disappeared. "Do you think they have understood his identity?" Flying Demon suddenly asked. "We were all covered, and the exchange lasted only a few seconds." Dreaming Demon said. "But I can''t be sure about that." "It would be the Hive''s word against that of a Royal," Noah replied. "I''m actually worried about the secrecy of the separate dimension." The Demons glanced at Noah, but they quickly understood his worries. The separate dimension was a creation of Divine Architect, but it was still something in the heroic ranks. Most organizations didn''t even have the means to study it, let alone finding it. Yet, three higher-ups of the Royal family had seen them disappear without leaving any trace. The array on the outside world had been destroyed too, which was a feature that the Elbas family would surely be interested in learning. There was a considerable difference between noticing something that you didn''t know existed and searching for something that you aren''t able to sense. The Royals didn''t know how the invaders were able to raid without leaving any trace, but they could shrink the possibilities after witnessing their escape. Also, the invaders had access to a quasi-rank 6 spell. The rulers of a big nation couldn''t ignore such a threat anymore, and they were bound to start a thorough investigation as soon as possible. The large variety of studies of the Royals would focus teleportation matrix and would eventually lead to the conclusion that only a separate dimension could act in that way. As for how close to the truth those investigations would bring them, Noah and the elders could only make suppositions. "We might need to consider destroying the dimension in the worst possible outcome," Noah said to conclude that discussion. There wasn''t much that they could do without information, and the Hive had yet to give them directives. They could only go back to their caves and wait for the situation to evolve. It didn''t take much before something important happened right after the event with the Royal academy. The silver-haired cultivators of the Elbas family flew toward the headquarters of the other two big nations and Hive while carrying a golden letter in their hands. Two of them went toward the Empire, two met the Council, and one of them reached for the forest of White Woods. The Wardens, the rank 5 elders of the Hive, and the higher-ups of the Council intercepted them, but the silver-haired cultivators were only interested in delivering the letters. Each of those forces felt extremely surprised when it saw the words "Royal Invitation" written on the front of those golden sheets. Chapter 717: 717. Meeting The golden letters radiated a soft aura that surpassed the power of rank 5 cultivators. The forces of the other nations didn''t trust those silver-haired cultivators so easily, but their powerhouses soon intervened when they sensed King Elbas'' imprint in those letters. Chasing Demon, Great Elder Diana, and God''s Left Hand appeared in their respective areas and seized the folded sheets from the Royals'' hands. To their surprise, King Elbas'' aura came out from each word written on those sheets. The powerhouses could hear the rank 6 cultivator of the Utra nation speaking inside their minds as they browsed through the contents of the letters. Their expressions remained stern during the first part of his speech, but their seriousness could only fall apart when they heard his plan. The silver-haired cultivators had already left by the time the powerhouses'' gazes left the sheets, but they had never been interested in those rank 5 cultivators in the first place. Instead, the matter announced by King Elbas was so appealing that they directly returned to their training areas to ponder about the situation! Of course, God''s Left Hand passed the message to her superiors before discussing the contents of the letter with them. Confusion spread among the rank 5 cultivators that had witnessed that scene, but they could only wait for their leaders to notify them at that point. They had sensed an aura that surpassed their power when their powerhouses unfolded the letters, so they knew that the matter didn''t belong to their level. Noah and the Demons had spent the period during that event in their caves inside the separate dimension. They were still unclear about their next move, and the Hive was late in suggesting different strategies. The three of them though received an ambiguous message from Elder Julia, who briefly explained what had happened above the forest of White Woods. The trio could only feel surprised when they learnt about that, especially since those same silver-haired cultivators had appeared to stop their raid in the academy. The Elbas family was revealing its hidden assets, but only the powerhouses of the big nations could know more about the situation. The heroic assets of each major force eagerly waited for their leaders to reveal something, but nothing happened even after weeks passed. Yet, a message soon spread through the inscribed notebooks of the heroic assets of those three forces. "Four months from now, gather on the southern coast of the old continent." Chasing Demon''s voice resounded inside Noah''s mind when he listened to his message. Noah quickly contacted the Demons that were with him in the dimension, but they didn''t know anything either. They were worried that the impromptu gathering was a consequence of their raids, but Elder Julia soon sent another message that reassured them. "So, this isn''t limited to the Hive." Dreaming Demon said as she sipped from her cup. "Why are rank 4 cultivators involved in matters that concern existences at the peak of the heroic ranks?" Noah asked as he enjoyed some of the wine retrieved in the Mortal Palace. "I don''t know." Flying Demon replied. "The Elbas family hides too much for us to understand their plans." The three of them had gathered in Noah''s cave to discuss Elder Julia''s message, and to decide about their next move. The sudden order from Chasing Demon ended up making them decide to put an end to the raids since there seemed to be something going on inside the Elbas family. Also, the meeting was in the Utra nation, which meant that there would be more Royals inside its borders from now on. Yet, they had taken that chance to enjoy a break from their cultivation. Those last years had been tense, and the previous defeat was still weighing on their mind. "The Cause has no chance." Flying Demon said as he refilled his cup. "Those golden robes have at least three peak rank five cultivators. The nobles would lose even if King Elbas didn''t exist." "It''s about destabilizing," Noah replied. "The archipelago was the same in the past, and now the Hive strives to match the big nations. Even grains of sand pile up to form a mountain." The Demons noticed from his words that Noah was in an unusual mood. He would usually reply with sharp words that radiated a destructive aura, but his mind seemed to be elsewhere in that moment. They couldn''t possibly know it, but Noah was using the entirety of his focus to explore the aspects of his individuality that concerned his ability to create. Such a sudden change of focus was bound to modify his aura, but Noah needed to dig deeper into those parts of him to complete his understanding. His destruction became complete when he decided to kill William to sever his shackles, but he needed to explore a completely different part of himself at that point. His creation had always been behind his destruction in terms of insights. Yet, Noah needed it to step on the next stage of the heroic cultivators. The Demons didn''t understand his mindset and thought that his mood was linked to his revenge. The Elbas family had decided to use the southern part of the nation as the gathering point, and that area had witnessed Noah''s revenge just a few years ago. No matter how firm his mindset was, fulfilling his hatred after forty years was bound to affect him. "Did you feel it?" Flying Demon asked. "Is the void eating you from the inside?" Noah''s eyebrows arched when he heard that question, but he soon showed a slight smile when he understood what the Demon meant. "My ambition is boundless, and there is no void that it can''t fill," Noah answered. "And so is our anger against Ravaging Demon." Dreaming Demon said. "It''s a pity that we won''t see him at the gathering." Noah knew that Elder Julia had told the elders not to join the meeting in the Utra nation. The only person outside of the Hive that had seen the two Demons was Drew, and his position wasn''t so high. The Hive was confident that the big nations were unaware of the arrival of two new rank 5 cultivators, and it wanted to keep it that way. Also, the meeting mainly involved the powerhouses of the Mortal Lands. Gathering the heroic assets in one area was just a show of power that the other nations wouldn''t fail to execute. Noah knew that he would have to participate since his position was too crucial inside the Hive, but there was some worry inside him. There was a chance that the silver-haired cultivators had noticed the level of his centers of power when they stopped the raid. Noah was basically the only rank 5 mage with a rank 4 dantian in the Mortal Lands, so linking him to the secret assailants wouldn''t take much at that point. ''Well, the elders will just vouch for me.'' Noah thought as he put that issue in the back of his mind. ''Instead, I should focus on creating a new rune before the gathering.'' Chapter 718: 718. Door Four months passed quickly, and the Mortal Lands witnessed an incredible event in that period, which was bound to be written down in the historical records. Flying figures filled the sky above both old and new continents, forming powerful groups of heroic cultivators that moved toward the Utra nation. King Elbas'' choice of setting the meeting four months after delivering the golden letters wasn''t arbitrary. The heroic assets of the big nations and Hive needed time to organize and move toward that distant country. As for why the powerhouses had decided to accept King Elbas'' invitation, it was something that all the heroic cultivators still ignored. The sky above the southern coast of the old continent became crowded in the morning after the four months of preparations. Groups of heroic cultivators occupied the area that had seen the destruction of the Balvan family just a few years ago. Noah and a series of elders from the Hive stood on the western side of that region. They wore stern expressions when they saw that the other nations had mobilized far more assets. Yet, they were also confident since their leader stood proudly in front of them. The forces of the Empire occupied the eastern border of that region. Noah didn''t recognize any cultivator in that group, but the two rank 6 existences leading those troops were enough to make him suppress any thought about scanning them. The troops from the Council occupied the northern border, and Great Elder Diana was in their lead. Most of the heroic cultivators gathered there kept their eyes on the forces of the Elbas family that were silently floating above the southern border of the region. However, there were a few exceptions. Noah felt a few gazes coming in his direction, as well as some pointing at Chasing Demon. There was a peak rank 5 cultivator among the troops of the Council that stared at the Patriarch of the Hive with a confident smile. He was tall, quite burly, and had long red hair that flowed behind his back. The elder didn''t have any beard, and his facial features were rough. However, his dark eyes radiated an intense ambition when he stared at Chasing Demon from a distance. Noah sensed his Patriarch''s aura flicker for a second before returning to its natural dense state. ''He is Ravaging Demon.'' Noah understood when he noticed that detail. His focus though couldn''t go on him since there were a series of stares on him too. Many heroic cultivators had sensed the level of his centers of power. They were focusing their attention on the monster that had become a rank 5 mage before reaching the fifth rank of the dantian! The consciousness of those existences passed silent messages that further moved the attention of the many troops on him. Yet, Chasing Demon''s presence deterred them from using their minds to investigate the Demon Prince. Noah decided to ignore those attentions and focus on the real reason behind their presence there. The group from the Elbas family was crowded, and it had the highest number of heroic cultivators in that area. Noah saw the same three silver-haired cultivators that had appeared above the academy, watching him with smiling expressions, but his cold, reptilian eyes didn''t reveal any anxiety. Instead, he was more interested in the other troops in that group. There were two more silver-haired cultivators in the lead of that force, but Noah disregarded them to focus on the entities behind them. Cecil and Thaddeus were staring at him with ugly expressions. They handled the secret aspects of the Royal family and supporting the Balvan family had been their decision. Seeing how he continued to grow while also destroying everything that they built gave birth to intense anger and hatred in their minds, but the emotion radiated by their auras didn''t faze Noah. He didn''t even spend a second on their figures. His eyes had a different target. A woman with wild, silver hair was in the back of the Royal''s group, and her pupils trembled when Noah''s figure entered her vision. ''It has been too much.'' Noah thought as soon as he found June. His instincts exploded at that point and fused with his emotions when they reached for his mind. Human words couldn''t describe the intensity of the sensations that filled his body. Noah felt the need to fly through the crowd of powerful entities and take his lover away with him. He felt a deep craving for her soft skin, and for the sensations that her touch created inside him. The possessive instincts of a magical beast had turned into intense desires that even surpassed the hunger that accompanied his every breath. His urge to hold June didn''t originate only from one aspect of his bloodline, which made that sensation far more prominent than his other feelings. ''I miss her scent even if my body hates it.'' Noah thought while suppressing his urges. ''I need to find a way to see her more often.'' Their gazes met only for a second, but both of them forced themselves to divert their eyes to avoid leaving any clues about their relationship. Luckily for them, the existence that had organized that event appeared above the four groups and gave them something else to focus on. "I see that everyone is here." King Elbas spoke as he descended from the sky to join the group of his family. Three massive pillars floated behind him. Their size was similar to the structures in the new continent used to create habitable areas, but their shape and the inscriptions on their surface were utterly different. The heroic cultivators from the various groups had to focus on enduring King Elbas'' words, but their powerhouses expressed their doubts as soon as they saw him. "Enough with the mystery." Chasing Demon said. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn''t use this chance to kill that traitor." Great Elder Diana snorted and replied. "Arrogant but right. Speak, King Elbas." God''s Right Hand showed interest in the pillars, and God''s Left Hand limited herself to pressure the leader of the Royals to explain the contents of the golden letters. King Elbas showed an arrogant smile at their eagerness and used his mental energy to lay the pillars on the ground. He placed two of them vertically, and he put the third one horizontally above them. The inscriptions on the surface of those structures shone when King Elbas created some sort of giant door right in the middle of the southern area of the Utra nation. Then, he turned toward the three forces and spoke while making flashy gestures. "Most of you aren''t aware of this, but there are multiple Mortal Lands in the world¡­" Chapter 719: 719. Elbas King Elbas'' words surprised most cultivators on the scene and captivated the few of them that were aware of the existence of multiple Mortal Lands. The powerhouses didn''t reveal any emotion, but a few rank 5 cultivators couldn''t stop their expression from changing. The rest of them were mainly confused. Even human cultivators knew that a higher plane existed due to the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. Yet, the existence of other lower planes opened many possibilities and could broaden one''s mindset. King Elbas didn''t wait for everyone to understand his words and continued to speak. "The piece of Immortal Lands has brought incredible benefits, as well as threatening beings. Still, what would happen if we fought existences on our level?" The fabric of the three pillars began to merge as the inscriptions on their surface kept on shining. The air around the massive door bent and cracked under the might of the energy released by their blinding halo. The inscriptions spread on the terrain around the structure too, and formed an intricate pattern among the three glowing columns. The lines created formations on the ground that surrounded large and complex runes. The terrain began to fall apart as the formations started to absorb the "Breath" contained inside it, but the five silver-haired cultivators promptly threw a large number of Credits. The cores of the inscriptions stopped using the ground as their fuel when the crystals touched their surface, and the shining lines spread even further at that point. The formation spread until it reached the abandoned Mossgrove city, and it merely avoided it as it continued to cover the entirety of the region. The silver-haired cultivator continued to throw Credits in the middle of the shining lines to keep them active, but the inscriptions stabilized after they reached a certain width. Whatever that structure was, it was now ready to function. King Elbas took something from his space-ring at that point and lifted it in the air so that everyone could see the item in his grasp. The cultivators on the scene were immediately able to recognize the rank 6 black flower that had caused a considerable commotion just a few years in the ago. "Space isn''t an element that living beings can wield." King Elbas spoke to the crowd. "But it''s something that humans can affect through the right tools!" A series of runes appeared on the black petals when his dense "Breath" flowed inside the flower. King Elbas waited for the modified magical plant to be ready before throwing it in the middle of the door. The flower released its power when it came in contact with the shining lines inside the door, and a strange sound echoed in the air around it as the petals became dust. A loud tremor followed the sound, and a vertical crack appeared at the center of the now fused pillars. The crack spread until it connected the upper part of the door with the ground. The cultivators in the area could only see the darkness inside the crack, but a strange energy soon seeped out of that blackness. Gasps of surprise and amazed shouts resounded in the area when the cultivators from the three forces understood that the energy was, in fact, "Breath"! "The Elbas bloodline will give access to a different Mortal Land to this world!" King Elbas shouted as his pride spread in the environment. "May my name be indelible." The intensity of King Elbas'' aura increased as the amazement of the other cultivators on the scene reached him. That phenomenon wasn''t limited to him since even the silver-haired Royals saw the power of their individualities increase. Except for the powerhouses, there weren''t many existences there that could understand what was happening. Only the other members of the Elbas family, some high-ranked soldiers in the Empire''s side, and Noah could link that event to the peculiar individuality of the ruler of the Utra nation. ''He is the fuel of his abilities, and he has just achieved something incredible.'' Noah thought as he used his powerful mind to keep his eyes on the crowned rank 6 existence. He knew that such a mighty existence wasn''t opening a path to other Mortal Lands to benefit his world. King Elbas'' arrogance made him strive for the higher planes, but he needed to improve his bloodline to advance. The improvements that he looked for weren''t similar to Noah''s and the Enduring demon sect''s techniques but were proper feats that had to leave their mark in history. The descendants closest to him were also affected by that feat since they were worthy of carrying the name Elbas. The rank 6 cultivators around him felt the urge to stop the process that was clearly benefitting their rival, but the door that led to an entire world was too appealing. How many riches were hidden inside that Mortal Land? How many valuable resources could be found there? And, most importantly, would there be powerful enemies there? "Our joint elements have given birth to a magical plant able to wield space. I''ve reverse-engineered that process and reproduced it in the form of a portal." King Elbas said as he moved his gaze between the rank 6 existences. "The portal needs the five of us to work, and I can''t affect its functioning alone." King Elbas continued before concluding his explanation with a question. "Do we have an agreement?" The golden letters only revealed the Royal''s plan, but it didn''t mention anything about its details. Also, it didn''t cover the eventual agreements that had to be sealed once the portal was open. The powerhouses of the other nations only knew that King Elbas was inviting them to the opening of a new world. "The Empire will join your family in your quest." God''s Right Hand said as soon as the leader of the Utra nation had finished speaking. Noah couldn''t help but shoot a glance at the two rank 6 existences of the Empire before suppressing his thoughts. He knew some of the deeds of the god behind their organization, but his level didn''t allow him to understand his intentions fully. Divine beings had mindsets that mortals couldn''t hope to understand, and Noah didn''t want to investigate such strong existences with his current level. Yet, he knew the political situation of the new and old continent too well to fail to predict the reactions of the other powerhouses. "The Council will explore the new world with you." Great Elder Diana said a shortly after. Chasing Demon hesitated for a few seconds at that point. The situation of the Hive was different compared to the other big nations. It would benefit more from a long period of peace rather than from another war. Yet, it couldn''t let the enemy organizations gain a new source of income, and Chasing Demon would be forced to provide his energy anyway. "The Hive will join." He said in the end, and the powerhouses gathered at the center of the area to define the terms of their agreement. Chapter 720: 720. Teams The powerhouses spoke through their consciousnesses as they gathered at the center of the region. The cultivators around them couldn''t hear their mental discussion, but everyone could guess the topic of their conversation. There was a portal to another world right in front of their eyes. Anyone could understand that there had to be some sort of agreement before engaging in such an invasion. ''Where there is "Breath", there are magical creatures.'' Noah thought in those moments. ''The issue is whether there will be cultivators.'' Noah''s knowledge about Heaven and Earth covered topics that most cultivators couldn''t hope to learn. Earth had spoken to him when he became a rank 4 mage, and he was a hybrid. His point of view was vastly different from other humans, and he could sense details that other cultivators couldn''t possibly obtain. He had long since suspected that the magical beasts were some sort of natural enemy of the world. They were creatures that appeared to be necessary for the domain of Heaven and Earth. The other Mortal Land had "Breath", so it had to have those kinds of beings. ''I need to go there.'' Noah thought after evaluating his possibilities. He was deepening the understanding of his creation, and having access to an entirely new world could greatly benefit that aspect of his individuality. His aim was still to forge a darkness element that belonged only to him and use it as the foundation for his existence. Escaping Heaven and Earth''s control seemed the natural path that every cultivator had to pursue as they strived toward godhood. Yet, his journey further deviated from the typical route that powerful entities treaded. His mind came from another world, and his body was an abomination born from the fusion with a being that fed on the world''s energy. Instead, his dantian didn''t have any trace of Heaven and Earth''s will in its fabric, but it still contained energy that he didn''t create. ''I need to sever my ties with the "Breath" if I want all my centers of power to become independent.'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''Only a completely separate entity can match Heaven and Earth''s path.'' The powerhouses separated after some time and returned to their respective groups. Chasing Demon ordered to build some structures worthy of accommodating heroic cultivators on the western border of that region when he reached his underlings. He didn''t explain much, but it seemed that the portal already needed his energy to remain active. The same went for the other powerhouses, which would be forced to stay in that region now that the crack was open. "It will take some time before the passage becomes stable enough to endure our might." Chasing Demon said. "But human cultivators are too weak to survive the journey to the other side." His words hinted that someone between the fourth and fifth rank had to be in the first exploration team, but there seemed to be more issues linked with that task. "The god of the Empire won''t participate in this matter, so we don''t have an oath able to bind us rank 6 existences." Chasing Demon added. "And using rank 5 oaths to control all the heroic assets in the world is a waste." The elders revealed confusion and worry when they heard that. The invasion could work only if the assets of the four forces worked together, but that wouldn''t be possible without oaths. They would have to trust each other as they explored a new world, but how could something like that happen? The Empire was mostly neutral when it came to matters that involved the entirety of the Mortal Lands, but the Elbas family and the Council were different. Noah and the Royals carried grudges created through years of escapes and schemes, and the Papral nation was the home of the betrayer of the demon sects. Working together without the fear of eventual repercussions didn''t seem feasible even in front of the riches that an entire world could hold! "We can only form mixed teams so that we can keep an eye on each other." Chasing Demon concluded. "The first force that hurts the others would be immediately sieged by three nations." Chasing Demon neared the portal after explaining a few more details, and the other rank 6 cultivators did the same when they finished organizing their troops. The invasion couldn''t start so soon. Each nation needed to take care of many matters before redirecting most of its heroic assets in such an inviting mission. The Hive wasn''t an exception. Actually, it even had far more affairs to set before letting go of its troops. Different from the other organizations, the Hive was quite young, and it was right in the middle of its growth. Continuing to ride that positive trend would have been the best option if an event so amazing didn''t happen, especially now that Thirty-seven had begun holding inscription classes. However, Chasing Demon couldn''t let the other countries alone in a new world. After all, he didn''t do that when it came to the piece of Immortal Lands, and the situation was quite similar. The only difference was in the enemies that they would have to face. The two Mortal Lands would have similar levels in terms of power, but Noah''s world had just significantly increased its number of cultivators due to the fall of the new continent. Generally speaking, the population of cultivators would have already started to decline if the piece of Immortal Lands didn''t distract the four forces from the conflicts among them. It could be said that Noah''s world was already above the average level of a lower plane, and it was even improving continually! ''My second rune is complete, and it would eventually become the core material for the Elemental forging method.'' Noah thought when he saw the elders around him dispersing to perform the tasks assigned by Elder Julia. She didn''t give any order to Noah. She knew that he had just gone through two crucial breakthroughs, so she wanted to leave him alone as much as he could. Yet, she didn''t expect him to be the one nearing her to discuss something that didn''t concern his training. "Elder Julia," Noah said when he reached her. "When the teams are decided, try to make me and June end up in the same group." The elder''s eyes felt surprised, but a slight smile appeared on her face when she questioned him. "Isn''t it dangerous? You would have many eyes on you." "What''s the point of becoming stronger if you don''t pursue what you want?" Noah said. "There is a chance to be with her, and I won''t let it go away." Noah''s resolve didn''t escape Elder Julia''s gaze, but he followed his words with a question that she didn''t expect. "Right, what do you think will happen to the nobles?" Chapter 721: 721. Runes Noah''s question wasn''t out of context, and it didn''t strictly apply to the Elbas family. Both the Utra nation and the Papral nation had a fragmented political system. The raids of the Hive had further divided the forces of the Utra nation into two sides, but the nobles that had joined the Royals weren''t considered Royals themselves. The same was true for the Council and the many sects under its domain. Having such a divided power was one aspect that had prevented those countries from matching the Empire, and it was also a weakness that the exploration teams couldn''t have during the invasion. After all, their domains would remain exposed if most of their assets were to venture on the other side of the portal, and other organizations could just exploit that temporary weakness. The Hive and the Empire didn''t share that flaw, but the former still had to be wary of meeting a similar outcome. The small number of powerful assets was the unavoidable disadvantage of every new force. Chasing Demon couldn''t risk the current favorable position of his organization just to match the potential gains of the other nations. Yet, the return of the two Demons had given him some insurance. Though the issue remained, he could deploy at least ten heroic cultivators without weakening the defenses of the Hive too much. "That would be up to the Council and the Elbas family to decide." Elder Julia answered, but she understood that the Prince''s words hid a deeper meaning. "Do you have something in your mind?" "We can use the Cause," Noah said before turning to dive toward the ground. Creating a mixed team was necessary to force cooperation between the four forces, but it didn''t have more potential allies among them. Ideally, the exploration teams would see the four forces deploying the same number of heroic cultivators. Yet, the Hive would be in an advantageous position if some of the troops coming from the Utra nation were loyal to the Cause. After all, they were secret allies, and the nobles would have to cover for any eventual misconduct of the organization that was helping them claiming their independence. Of course, the Elbas family wouldn''t be so stupid to assign the exploration of a new world to disloyal troops. Still, there was a chance that they sent a few of them just to remove troublesome people from their nation, and Noah wanted to make sure that the Hive exploited that possibility. ''I need to prepare for the mission.'' Noah thought as he created a small cave when he reached the ground. There were issues that he couldn''t solve before for the time being. Forging rank 5 Demonic swords would be possible with the current level of his centers of power, but he needed to sacrifice an arm to use it as his core material. His body was incredible both in terms of power and healing properties, but growing an entire limb would require a lot of time, and Noah couldn''t use his rank 5 drug just to forge a saber. Those drugs were his lifesavers, and he wouldn''t use them for something that simply required more time to heal. Also, he had yet to fuse his two inscription methods. Expending so many valuable materials just to create something that he would abandon once he managed to fuse the Will-consuming runes with the Elemental forging method was just a waste. That was one of the problems that inscription masters had to face when they attempted to create items in the heroic ranks. The materials needed for each test were simply too valuable, and they were bound to meet many failures in their attempts. Noah couldn''t just cut one of his arms and hope that the forging would go well in that period, not when he learnt about the portal to the new world. ''First of all, I need to keep the expansion of my mind going.'' Noah thought as he pressed index on his right temple and retracted it slowly. A spherical rune came out of his sea of consciousness, and Noah suddenly felt the pressure inside his mind decreasing when it left his personal world. The sphere was dark, and it radiated an intense pride as it kept the energy contained inside it still. That was the second Will-consuming rune that Noah had created during the months before the opening of the portal. Different from his first rune that used his ambition and greed, the second one used his pride and hunger to function. Its effects were also different. The saber-shaped runes used his ambition to enhance the sharpness expressed in his individuality and his greed to absorb the primary energy created by his energy. Instead, the spherical rune still used his greed in the same way, but the pride that made it forced that energy to stay still inside it. That allowed Noah to contain what he intended to use as his core material for his future creations, other than resuming the enlargement of his mind. ''Its power is satisfying, but I still need to test its viability in the forgings.'' Noah thought as he inspected the rune. ''Yet, the pressure that it can apply on the walls of my mind is limited since this energy is less dense than the "Breath".'' Noah placed the rune back inside his mental sphere when he confirmed that it didn''t lose any energy during the period inside his mind. The internal pressure returned and weighed on his mental walls, but Noah barely noticed any difference with his usual state. The primary energy was fundamental compared to the complex structure of the "Breath". That made it harder to control, but also lighter in terms of weight for the training of his mind. Noah couldn''t accept to slow down his growth, but there wasn''t much that he could do with his current assets. ''I can only create more of them and fill my mental sphere. Yet, I should make a Blood companion first.'' Noah thought as he proceeded to send a series of messages through his inscribed notebook. He had ignored the issue concerning the peculiar capabilities of his mental energy in that period because he had focused on improving his offensive. Still, he would need to use his full power during the invasion. So, he needed the spell that had accompanied him since the beginning of his cultivation journey. Also, he wanted to match somewhat the expansion speed generated by a Kesier rune with his methods, even if he knew that it was impossible to achieve the same results. The elders on the southwestern coast answered quickly and provided him with an updated analysis of the fauna in both the old continent and the new one. Noah hadn''t contacted only them though, and his eyes lit up when he received an answer from the rank 6 automaton. Thirty-seven''s voice resounded in his mind. "The Kesier runes are an expression of pure mental power. They aren''t something that can be replicated easily, but I have thousands of researches in that field with me." Chapter 722: 722. Whales Noah had developed an interest in the Kesier runes since he discovered how scarce they were in the Mortal Lands. His ambition made him train continuously, but he had reached the point where he started to feel the limits of a lower plane. That was an issue that all the cultivators in the world had to face and overcome with their forces, and his position was even quite privileged since the Hive owned the sixth Kesier rune. However, he would have to share it with the other rank 5 mages, and that wasn''t enough for his standards. Luckily for him, Thirty-seven was knowledgeable in most inscription methods, and Divine Architect had included the records about the Kesier runes in his programming. "Send me those that have something in common with my inscription methods." Noah transmitted through his inscribed notebook to answer the automaton. He knew that his expertise wasn''t enough to replicate such a miraculous training method, but he wanted to attempt to make an effective imitation, at least. That wasn''t a project for the imminent future, but something that he had to study and use as inspiration slowly. After sending that message, he browsed through the reports gathered by the elders. Choosing a Blood companion would generally take an in-depth analysis of his battle prowess and his weaknesses, but Noah could only settle for something that he could use at that moment. There weren''t many creatures in the fifth rank that he could kill in the world, and that number further decreased when he added his element to the equation. ''I''m nearing the might of a complete rank 5 cultivator.'' Noah thought as he sorted the reports in his mind. ''But I have little confidence in dealing with something in the middle tier of the fifth rank.'' The growth of every being would be exponential as their rank increased. Noah had been able to injure and kill rank 5 beasts until then because his Liquid dantian allowed him to express a solid stage battle prowess. However, only complete rank 5 cultivators could handle creatures in the middle tier. Also, even they would avoid battling a beast that had access to such a powerful body and almost endless endurance. Noah had access to rank 5 spells now, but his reserves of energy didn''t change much. He would end up exhausted before a creature in the middle tier even with the Liquid dantian and rank 4 solid "Breath". The differences in rank were hard to overcome. His incredible body could fill parts of those gaps, but it reached its limits against something so powerful. ''Maybe I can kill something weak in the middle tier, but that would make the creature worthless as a Blood companion.'' Noah thought as he started to send another series of mental messages. The reports didn''t enlighten anything interesting, and all the beasts that had unusual abilities didn''t match his element. The lands under the domain of the Hive didn''t contain anything that could meet his already lowered standards. Yet, if the land didn''t have what he needed, he would just search for it in the sea! The sea wasn''t famous for its abundance of magical beasts with a darkness aptitude, but it was incredibly vast and occupied most of the Mortal Lands even after the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. Its depths could hide something that interested him. Of course, exploring the sea near the archipelago and the southwestern coast would take a while under normal circumstances. Still, Noah had two powerful helpers that didn''t mind helping him in that tedious task. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon weren''t busy in that period. The Hive had tasked them to create teleportation matrixes and doors inside the separate dimension to facilitate the deployment of troops. Still, they quickly returned to the southwestern coast when they received Noah''s message. The environment of the new continent had a fantastic density of "Breath", and it stood on top of ice created by the spell of a divine being. Magical beasts would gather there if they had the chance, which meant that the sea near the coastlines would see many different creatures that attempted to settle inside its area. The entirety of the sea was considered a danger zone, especially when its depths were taken into consideration. Dreaming Demon''s mental waves though allowed her and her lover to explore most areas without triggering any pack of powerful creatures that inhabited those zones. Noah''s request wasn''t complex. He only wanted them to find a creature in the lower tier of the fifth rank with a darkness aptitude, and that wouldn''t be useless once turned into a puppet. The Demons weren''t experts in the magical beasts'' field, but they could evaluate the power of a beast thanks to their powerful minds. Noah spent the weeks after his request creating more spherical runes that he filled with primary energy and stored in his mind and studying the data that Thirty-seven sent him. The powerhouses of the four nations were away in that period, and every organization was busy making plans to prepare for the invasion in the new world. The heroic assets weren''t in a hurry. Instead, they took their time to make the necessary arrangements and gather useful items that they could need in an unknown environment. Noah spent part of his days meditating on the fusion between his inscription methods too. Even his cultivation technique needed improvements, but his understanding of his individuality partially dictated its absorption speed. He felt that deepening his creation was the path to tread before approaching the forging of items on a higher rank, so he simply followed that instinct. Of course, he also began to test his ideas during the forging of some of his rank 4 disposable items. His initial designs saw the spherical runes being used as the core materials for the Elemental forging method. Still, the primary energy inside them kept on escaping the fusion with other items. Noah was beginning to evaluate the possibility of using a third rune created only through his pride to force the fusion when the Demons notified him that they had found something. The portal was in the Utra nation, so there were many branches of the separate dimension under those territories. Noah only had to reach the nearest door to the dimension and use a series of teleportation matrixes to return to the desert on the new continent. Then, he followed the instructions of the Demons and reached the area in the depths of the sea where they were waiting for him. "I believe you can sense them too here." Dreaming Demons transmitted through her consciousness when Noah neared them. His body had learnt about the beasts in the distance from a while, but he wanted to let his mind scan them before making a decision. ''Lazy whales.'' Noah thought when his mental waves swept the creatures in the distance. ''They can work.'' Chapter 723: 723. Precise The Lazy whales were a giant species of darkness magical beasts that used the depths of the sea as their hunting area. Their bodies were strong and suited their large sizes, but they didn''t excel in melee battles. Instead, their signature move was the powerful suction force generated by their lungs. That feature earned them the name "Lazy" since their hunting habits saw them laying at the bottom of the sea and relying on their innate ability to capture prey. ''There is a whole pack there with two specimens in the fifth rank.'' Noah thought as his mental waves spread through the sea. His mind could see how more than thirty giant figures rested on the sandy seabed with their mouths open. Most of them were creatures in the third rank, but there were five of them in the fourth rank together with the two rank 5 leaders. ''One in the middle tier, and one in the lower tier. Perfect.'' Noah thought as he retracted his consciousness. ''It might be troublesome nearing them though.'' Giant whirlpools formed from the open mouths of the Lazy whales and created dense currents able to trap any being that touched them. The currents would then drag those unfortunate creatures directly in their stomach. That innate ability was particularly potent at those depths since the whales could make use of the water to increase the density of their currents. Such a skill would inevitably be weaker in an environment without water, but Noah knew that he couldn''t find something perfect at his level. Magical beasts of the darkness element weren''t as rare as cultivators with that aptitude, but he needed specimens in the fifth rank. The Lazy whales were creatures that expressed their full power underwater, but even their weakened version was enough for him. Also, the strength of their massive bodies wasn''t affected by the environment, so he could use it with simple strategies. "Keep the middle tier creature busy while I take care of the other beast in the fifth rank," Noah said before shooting toward the pack of whales that were still unaware of the three powerful existences near them. The Demons didn''t hesitate to follow Noah and unleash some of their abilities toward the pack. Noah attacked too, slashing with his sabers toward the creature in the lower tier of the fifth rank. The area became messy as soon as the trio challenged the pack. The whales noticed the attacks only when it was too late to do anything about them. A series of ice shards swept them and gave birth to white flowers that spread their coldness on the environment. The water around them began to vibrate too, and those tremors affected the normal functioning of their bodies. Noah''s slashes landed on the creature in the lower tier, and the destruction carried by his individuality spread from the large cuts that they created on its body. The weaker specimens died in a few seconds under the might of two spells with the power of the fifth rank, but the two powerful beings endured them. Noah and the Demons saw the long whirlpools turning toward them as the two rank 5 beasts tilted their heads to redirect the suction force of their abilities on the assailants. A sudden pressure appeared around them as the currents engulfed their bodies, but they were ready for that eventuality. A small flower appeared on Flying Demon''s palm, and the water around him immediately froze when its coldness spread inside the whirlpool. Dreaming Demon closed her eyes, and the rotation of the currents slowed down under the influence of her mind. As for Noah, he simply roared and accompanied his cry with a torrent of white flames. Ice and flames reached for their open mouths, but the whales quickly closed them to stop their abilities and endure the attacks with their bodies. A layer of ice spread on the rostrum of the creature in the middle tier, and white flames burned the skin of the beasts in the lower tier. The skin above their mouths broke and fell apart, but their muscles were barely affected. Flighting underwater wasn''t a problem for heroic cultivators, and that environment wouldn''t weaken even their attacks. However, the Lazy whales were simply too big, and they would need abilities that had a large area of effect to suffer serious injuries. Their size, coupled with the overall power of contained in their bodies, made their species quite troublesome to hunt, even if it lacked a potent offensive method. "Let''s divide them now." Noah transmitted as he shot toward the beast in the lower tier while slashing with his weapons and laying the saber-shaped runes on the battlefield. The Demons followed his orders and diverted the attention of the whale in the middle tier on them. Shockwaves spread next to Noah as the battle between the three powerful existences unfolded at his side. Yet, he knew that the elders would handle the beast, so he focused only on his opponent. He had killed many rank 5 beasts by then, but the Lazy whales were particularly resilient and hard to take down without wasting most of their bodies. Also, Noah could express a rank 5 battle prowess, but his dantians wouldn''t last much if he used his full power. The abilities that required less "Breath" were mental attacks that didn''t work well on magical beasts, so he had to rely on his spell, flames, and martial art. After all, Noah wasn''t aiming to kill the creature, but to create a Blood companion, which required a bit of care. Noah slashed and spat flames toward the whale, but the latter only reactivated its innate ability. The offensive of the Lazy whales was limited, and they weren''t in the upper part of the food chain. They mostly hunted weaker beasts with their suction force, and that was enough to satisfy them due to their peaceful lifestyle. Yet, their size made them difficult to kill, which was why other predators only took pieces of their skins and muscles when they attacked them. Lazy whales in the fifth rank were more than seventy meters long and could easily endure wounds that would typically sever other creatures in two. However, Noah wasn''t there to satisfy his hunger. His figure darted everywhere around the body of the creature while releasing countless attacks. The water turned red as numerous injuries appeared on the defenseless beast and released blood in the environment, but Noah promptly stored it inside his space-ring and left it to its automaton. Meanwhile, the saber-shaped runes all around it kept on absorbing the primary energy that Noah was creating with his offensive. Noah decided to make use of the runes when they reached a power in the fifth rank, and they didn''t fail to pierce the thick layer of muscles that covered the internal organs of the beasts. It took a while, but the whale eventually died under Noah''s patient and precise offensive. His mind felt heavy after manipulating the runes for so long, but he managed to store the giant corpse of the whale without breaking its core nor losing its blood. Chapter 724: 724. Fusion ''These creatures aren''t so suitable as Blood companions.'' Noah thought as he stared at the massive corpse laid on a brown terrain. ''But they are natural shields, and I can improve their innate ability with my greed.'' He was inside the separate dimension, making the last preparations for the Body-inscription spell, and he couldn''t help but evaluate the prowess of the Lazy whales during the process. The trio had returned in the tunnel after Noah killed his target, and he had even asked the Demons to let the specimen in the middle tier go. Noah had long since learnt about the drawbacks that accompanied his hybrid status, and he wasn''t willing to lower the number of rank 5 magical beasts in the world just to see those nourishments sold. He was basically preserving the lives of the powerful creatures so that he could hunt them when he was strong enough to face them alone. Relying on his organization or allies to face enemy groups didn''t bother him, but he didn''t want to use them even to gather his food. It wasn''t only a matter of dragon instincts. Noah simply wanted his breakthroughs to carry an evident mark of his individuality. ''Let''s see if this works.'' Noah thought before focusing on the insides of his sea of consciousness. Solid "Breath" rose from his dantian and entered his mental sphere before he immersed it inside the brown sea. His greed invaded the "Breath" and gave to the sharp crystal a suction force similar to his saber-shaped rune. His "Breath" wasn''t something that could change form anymore. It was an energy that was evolving alongside his individuality. Noah would have to remove his individuality to make it change form like it used to do in the past, but he would never weaken it on purpose just to make it more pliable. ''Now, the rune.'' Noah thought as he focused on his ethereal figure. His half-transparent hands pierced his body and ripped off his stomach, but he didn''t smash it to turn it in the dust needed for the creation of a Will-consuming rune. Instead, he decided to forge it with the energy that he had just created. The ethereal stomach appeared in his palm, and Noah proceeded in imbuing the solid "Breath" that carried his greed inside it. The Elemental forging method usually required physical materials, but the meanings in both "Breath" and ethereal stomach were identical. The stomach was a raw expression of his hunger, which wasn''t refined through the Will-consuming runes method, and his "Breath" contained his greed at its peak intensity. After all, he used his ambition to bring his meanings to their peak when he prepared the energy to use in the forging. So, their intensity was bound to reach their limits. The ethereal stomach didn''t resist the fusion with the "Breath", and there wasn''t any kind of destabilization afterward. ''In the end.'' Noah thought while splitting the shard in his palm into two pieces. ''The infusion.'' One piece went for the blood of the whale that the spirit automaton of his ring had filtered when he gathered it from the water. The other went for its heart so that even the core of the beast would carry his meanings. That was Noah''s first success in fusing his two inscription methods. By applying the basics of the Will-consuming runes, Noah obtained a pure meaning that he could use as a material in the Elemental forging method. Of course, that procedure was far from optimal. Noah had to forge the raw rune and his imbued "Breath" before using the finished product with another material, which meant performing two rounds of forging with the same items. That would produce a weaker inscribed item, but Noah wasn''t interested in the power of the core and blood during the creation of a Blood companion. He only needed his meanings to be more intense, and those two rounds of forging gave him that result. Noah quickly completed the following requirements of the Body-inscription spell. His period spent hunting magical beasts to enlarge his mental sphere had made him extremely fast in creating Blood companions, and even his expertise in the mental battles had increased by a lot. The ethereal figure of the Lazy whale crumbled and fell on the brown sea after Noah defeated it, but he didn''t let his focus waver at that moment. His mental energy surrounded the minute pieces of the beast''s will and attempted to devour them. Still, Noah forcefully held back the capabilities of his mind to complete the Body-inscription spell. Holding back the properties of his mental waves turned out to be quite easy since he had just severed his hunger to make use of that meaning, but they still struggled to devour the pieces of beast''s will. It was as if that was their instinctive behavior. His mind though had reached the fifth rank, and that breakthrough brought a more profound control on his hybrid features. An ethereal whale soon appeared near the center of his sea of consciousness and lazily floated above the brown sea. Noah felt the internal pressure rising, but even the appearance of a rank 5 Blood companion couldn''t match the training speed of the Kesier runes. ''I can only store more primary energy inside my mind for the time being.'' Noah thought as he evaluated the limits of his mind. ''Anything more effective would have to wait for my expertise to increase.'' Noah stretched his arm, and the whale''s tattoo on his chest moved toward his palm. He willed, and the tattoo spread its mouth to use its innate ability. Noah felt the energy contained in his Liquid dantian depleting at high speed, but a powerful suction force appeared at the center of his palm and stretched for hundreds of meters. The structure of the separate dimension trembled, and cracks appeared on its surface as the pressure affected its stability. Small pieces of the dimension fell apart and flew toward Noah''s palm. His body then turned them into primary energy that was absorbed in a matter of seconds. ''This suction force is stronger compared to the innate ability of the specimen in the lower tier.'' Noah though while retracting his arm. The result of the procedure left him satisfied since the attack of his Blood companion surpassed the original power of the creature, and he had used it in the air! Lazy whales usually reached that might with their ability because they made use of the water in the environment. Still, obtaining more potent effects while being in the open clearly showed that fusing two inscription methods would lead to amazing results. However, that outcome only made Noah sigh. The creation of a Blood companion signaled the end of the methods that could increase his power in the short period. There was nothing else that could boost his battle prowess more before the exploration of the new world. ''I''ve reached the point where only long periods of meditations and enlightenments can help me.'' Noah concluded in his mind as he moved toward the door that would lead him back to the old continent. Chapter 725: 725. Eagerness Noah returned in the territory of the Utra nation with the portal and went in seclusion as he waited for the higher-ups to form exploration teams. His body was still a few dozens of rank 5 magical beasts away from reaching the middle tier, but his other centers of power were improving on their own. The Black hole cultivation technique kept on absorbing "Breath", and the many runes filled with primary energy inside his sea of consciousness pressed on its walls. There was also the Blood companion now, which brought the expansion of his mind to a decent speed. The absence of the sixth Kesier rune had forced him to train his mental sphere with alternative methods, and they were bound to have drawbacks when compared to the runes. His mind felt the constant pressure radiated by the ethereal whale and spherical runes while also enlarging at a lower speed. It couldn''t be helped. The absence of resources was a curse that afflicted every cultivator once reached higher ranks. Yet, there was something that Noah gained from that unorthodox training. The constant pain that afflicted his mind helped in hardening his walls and making them suitable for the intrinsic properties of his mental energy. Noah had to spend only some years in that state before his sea of consciousness allowed him to devour magical beasts'' wills again. In the meantime, he could only meditate, study, and perform tests. The Divine deduction technique aided all those processes, and Noah''s knowledge and expertise quickly rose as he wholeheartedly focused on his researches. His battle prowess couldn''t be improved further unless he widened the creation of his individuality. Yet, he lacked a method that matched the standards of his ambition. Being with June would probably help him in gaining insights in that field since she was an expression of life in his mind, but the politics of the Mortal Lands didn''t allow him to be with her. So, he could only focus on his researches while he waited for his journey on the other side of the portal to begin. Thirty-seven had given him the teachings of old and new schools that studied the Kesier runes and tried to replicate their miraculous effects. Of course, Noah had requested for studies in line with his inscription methods. He was an expert when it came to wills and intense meanings, and that was a feature that he had to exploit if he wanted to obtain some sort of success. However, he also knew that he needed a better inscription method to achieve something so difficult. His weeks spent in the solitude of his cave saw him meditating on his individuality for most of the time. Still, he forged and tried to find better ways to fuse his inscription methods too. The rest of his time went on the reports sent by the automaton that he simply studied and analyzed with the help of the Divine deduction technique. His power was slowly increasing, but such a low rate of improvement was something that Noah had never felt in his life. He had entered in one of the most tedious parts of the cultivation journey where he could only keep on studying and testing until some understanding appeared in his mind and allowed him to advance. Many cultivators could lose their path in the endless years spent in the solitude of their training areas, and their will to progress in the cultivation journey might falter after seeing no improvements. The anxiety originated from the fear of the stagnation of their centers of power, coupled with the impossibility to advance without enlightenment, broke many weak mindsets. Noah had it a bit easier compared to other cultivators since he had created his cultivation technique. His dantian would eventually reach the fifth rank, but its training speed depended on the understanding of his individuality. ''My destruction opens the path for my creation.'' Noah thought as he reviewed his life. ''Each of my steps has created a path that Heaven and Earth couldn''t see.'' Understanding his destruction had been relatively easy, but his creation was utterly lacking in that aspect. After all, Noah had lived as a lone cultivator for a large part of his life. He had destroyed everything on his path, and his effects only widened as his power increased. The destruction of his mansion and his family had completed that aspect of his individuality. Still, that wasn''t enough to express the entirety of his life. ''I have forged my path toward this rank. My creations accompany most of my accomplishments.'' Noah thought as images appeared in his mind. His Demonic swords had accompanied him since he learnt the Elemental forging method, and they were a core aspect of his battle prowess. Yet, the creation could be tracked back to Assea, his first Blood companion. ''I''ve turned dead beasts in puppets that have saved my life countless times.'' Noah seemed to understand something when he thought that. His memories then led him in the Odrea nation, where his expertise in the Elemental forging method spiked and allowed him to spread his creations to other cultivators. ''A crucial mistake that feeds on Heaven and Earth''s world, but that needs it to obtain materials. I need to forge my darkness before I can hope to match their creation, and that can only happen if I have better methods.'' Noah concluded his meditation at those thoughts. His reasoning always led him to the same conclusion: He lacked a core material that was only his! The primary energy was perfect for that task, but his pride only allowed him to contain it. He couldn''t bend it to his will, nor use it in his experiments unless he created a better inscription method. Noah was about to focus on his experiments when his inscribed notebook transmitted a message sent by Elder Julia. She was warning him that the higher-ups had finally concluded the division of the exploration teams. Noah''s eagerness exploded when he heard those words, and he quickly wore one of his good robes before flying out of his cave. The massive portal appeared in his view as soon as he resurfaced, but his eyes went on Elder Julia''s figure waiting for him with other cultivators of the Hive. Their expressions were stern, but Noah didn''t fail to notice the eagerness hidden behind their eyes. They were about to venture into different Mortal Lands! How could they not be excited about it? Even Noah could barely contain himself at that thought. A new world doubled the number of powerful beasts that he could hunt, other than giving him access to a completely different environment. His excitement though turned into coldness when he saw the cultivators gathered by the other three forces. Noah didn''t recognize the heroic assets of the Empire, but he was able to spot Faith''s enchanting figure among the elders of the Council. Also, when he turned his gaze toward the forces of the Elbas family, he could see both Thaddeus and June stepping forward. Chapter 726: 726. Tension "The portal can''t sustain the passage of too many powerful cultivators." Elder Julia explained as the groups gathered at the center of the region. "Each force can only send one rank 5 cultivator and ten cultivators in the fourth rank at the time." "Is there any restriction on the stage of the cultivators?" Noah asked. The possibility to form equal teams was intriguing, but the big nations could exploit the variety of their assets and deploy their best warriors. Instead, the Hive would have to restrain itself in that aspect to prioritize the defenses of its domains. "Six in the gaseous stage, three in the liquid stage, and one in the solid stage." Elder Julia replied. "The rank 5 cultivator must be in the gaseous stage too." Excited gasps resounded among the elders of the Hive after her words. Noah felt a series of gazes landing on him, but he ignored them even if he had understood the reason behind their excitement. According to Elder Julia''s words, the portal couldn''t endure too much power. That led the five powerhouses to calculate the best possible arrangements for the exploration teams. The portal applied limits to the four nations, but they still wanted to send the most powerful team on the other world. Their calculations ended up in those numbers, but they had naturally taken into consideration only the dantians of those assets. After all, the "Breath" was heavier than the mental energy when it came to influencing the material world. Yet, there was someone who ignored the common sense of the cultivation journey inside the Hive. ''Our faction will be the most potent in the exploration team.'' Noah thought as he neared the center of the region. He was a rank 5 mage, but he could fill one of the spots for the rank 4 cultivators in the troops deployed by his organization. That would give the Hive a significant influence once the team reached the other Mortal Lands since it would have two existences with a rank 5 battle prowess! "The Patriarch of the Balvan family will join us," Thaddeus said as he neared the gathering area followed by June and other rank 4 cultivators. He wore a proud smile as he said those words, and Noah recognized that expression. It was the same calm smile that he had worn after the entrance test of the academy when he exposed Noah''s true identity. Noah''s aura began to spread toward the group from the Elbas family at his words. He understood what he meant with that smile. Thaddeus was simply showing that he knew the truth behind the event inside the Balvan mansion. Every organization would suspect Noah for the events in the mansion, but none of them had the proofs needed to incriminate him. Secrecy had been a must during the raids, and the forces of the Hive had been cautious in hiding as much as they could. Noah had even used only new abilities too! Accusing him would just lead to endless discussions, and no force was interested in wasting time in processes that would barely benefit them. Thaddeus'' eyes sharpened when he sensed the dense mental waves reaching for him, but his worry soon vanished when his father intervened. Noah saw Cecil landing in the air next to his son and using his consciousness to disperse the destructive aura that was surrounding his group. "Do you want to start a war so soon, Lord Balvan?" Cecil asked, but another rank 5 cultivator landed on the scene and sided with Noah. "The Prince was just giving pointers to a weakling." Elder Austin said before turning and winking at Noah. The air suddenly became tense, but the arrival of the other two groups forced the cultivators on both sides to divert their focus. Noah made sure that June appeared in his vision as he turned his gaze toward the other forces. The Shandal Empire and the Council had reunited the required troops for the team, and they were staring at the two factions that were about to start a conflict. That was the whole point of creating mixed groups with troops from all four forces. Even if two of them had past grudges that could endanger the success of the mission, the other two factions could intervene and force them to cooperate! Noah recognized only Gray Fury on the side of the Empire. He was the rank 5 cultivator that had negotiated the terms for the independence of the archipelago with Chasing Demon. On the side of the Council, he recognized Faith among the cultivators in the liquid stage, and her Master, Elder Clara, as the solid stage cultivator. The troops of the Royals had Cecil as rank 5 cultivator, Thaddeus as the asset in the solid stage, June among those in the liquid stage, and other gold-robed cultivators that he didn''t recognize. ''I expected June to improve a lot in these years.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the cultivators on the scene. ''But that Faith isn''t normal. She reached the liquid stage before Daniel.'' The improvements in the heroic ranks without a personal cultivation technique were linked to the understanding of the individuality. Daniel was still immature when it came to his understanding due to his lofty lifestyle, but his breakthrough was drawing near after the experiences accumulated in the raids. Yet, Faith had surpassed him even when her life should have been similar to his. ''The heroic ranks divide the real talents with those who have obtained their power thanks to their status.'' Noah thought before focusing on his side. Elder Austin would accompany him in the mission, but there were other familiar faces behind him. Elder Jason stood proudly among the cultivators in the liquid stage, together with Elder Hope. He had managed to advance in the last period, proving that his centers of power still hid some potential. Other rank 5 cultivators floated above the four groups to witness the departure of the first exploration team, and all the assets on the scene were waiting for further directives. Then, a voice resounded in the air and filled the environment. "Those chosen for this journey, please land in front of the portal." The voice belonged to King Elbas, and the eleven cultivators from each faction hovered toward the ground at his words. They didn''t mind following the orders of an enemy powerhouse in that situation, so they all grouped right in front of the portal surrounded by shining lines. The fissure was still dark, but "Breath" kept on coming out from its insides. The air around the group of forty-four cultivators suddenly became tense when the mission became imminent, and they fixed their eyes on the fissure as they waited for orders. "Go and bring the pride of your Mortal Lands with you." King Elbas''s voice echoed again through the sky. "But remember: It was the Elbas family that gave you this chance." As soon as his phrase ended, the four rank 5 cultivators in the lead moved forward, and the troops behind followed them and entered in the fissure. Chapter 727: 727. Items The insides of the fissure didn''t contain any trace of light. There was only the complete darkness in front of the heroic assets, and even their mental waves couldn''t help them in that environment. Their mental waves simply dispersed when they tried to spread them through the darkness. The group of forty-four cultivators advanced slowly and let the four rank 5 existences take the lead. Their minds were powerful enough to inspect their surroundings without wasting too much mental energy, so it was their task to lead the troops on the other side. Noah inspected the environment too, but he could only feel disappointed when he sensed that there was nothing at all around him. They were in what seemed to be a tunnel without solid boundaries. The passage had the same shape of the vertical fissure in the portal, but its edges often mixed with the void outside of them. ''Are we in space?'' Noah thought when he lost control of his mental waves and condensed his consciousness inside his mind. Even rank 5 mages couldn''t study the area as they wished. They could only keep track of where they were going. ''No.'' Noah answered to himself. ''The tunnel itself is a dimension that connects two lower planes. Amazing.'' Even Noah had to recognize that King Elbas'' feat was exceptional as he ventured through the darkness. There was nothing in the records retrieved in the Mortal Palace about cultivators exploring other lower planes. There was a high chance that King Elbas had been the first to make that kind of journey possible. The records spoke about experts researching other worlds, but there was nothing that mentioned exploring them! As for why he had succeeded where many had failed, Noah had a few ideas already. ''A country that pushed the researches in the inscription field to their limits and a material born from the power of five rank 6 cultivators.'' Noah thought. ''Yet, only a true expert could make use of them to connect two worlds.'' There weren''t enough praises to describe King Elbas'' achievement, and they even increased as some features of the tunnel became evident. Noah felt as if he was being teleported every time he took a step forward. The dimension seemed to condense the space, which allowed the group to cross kilometers with each centimeter that they passed. Of course, there was a limit to how much Noah could understand with the short investigations that his mind was capable of. Yet, there were a few evident features that the passage revealed. The door didn''t teleport them directly in the new world. Instead, it led them inside an unstable passage that made them able to cross vast distances in a few steps! ''I wonder how many resources did the Elbas family invest in this project.'' Noah wondered before suppressing that thought when he noticed that the density of "Breath" around him had suddenly increased. A pale red light began to illuminate the passage, and another fissure appeared in front of the heroic assets as their advance continued. The cultivators in the exploration team couldn''t contain their emotions and increased their pace toward the end of the passage, and the rank 5 entities did the same. They were about to step into a different world. That small action was enough to make their names last for millennia! Noah felt excited too, but he didn''t care about glory. His interest was on the lifeforms that filled that plane, as well as the techniques and spells that it could contain if humans inhabited the lands ahead. The group quickly reached the red fissure and crossed its edges without any hesitation. A rocky environment appeared in their vision, and the source of that light turned out to be an underground river of magma that flowed right under them. The portal had connected them to a narrow underground area. The cultivators spread their consciousness to inspect the environment and sighed in relief when they sensed that there wasn''t any lifeform nearby. "Quick, stabilize the exit!" Cecil ordered, and the cultivators in his faction took out inscribed items that they activated and deployed around the fissure floating in the area. The members of the other factions fixed their gazes on the ten nobles and Royals to make sure that they didn''t try to scheme anything. A dense pressure fell on the cultivators from the Utra nation when the four rank 5 mages began to inspect their every movement. The other nations had barely managed to prepare their defenses before deploying their troops to join the mission, but the Elbas family was different. The silver-haired Royals knew about King Elbas'' plan, so they had focused on developing suitable items for the journey during the period before the opening of the portal. That gave a lot of power to the Royal''s faction during the exploration since its cultivators owned specific items that benefitted the entirety of the team. Yet, only the rank 5 cultivators chosen for the mission knew about that, and even Noah was in the dark. The cultivators from the Utra nation surrounded the fissure with glowing spheres and strange nails that seemed to stabilize its edges. Then, some of them took out a series of brown runes that surrounded the crack and created another layer of defense. Noah kept his eyes on June for most of that process, but he didn''t fail to inspect the other devices too. The purpose of those items became apparent after a few inspections, and the heroic cultivators from the other nations were pleasantly surprised to discover that the Royals had come extremely prepared. There were cloaking devices meant to hide the presence of the fissure, items that stabilized its structure, and even orbs intended for long-distance communications! Also, those inscribed items worked in perfect harmony with the edges of the passage, which showed how they had been built specifically for that task. Noah and Elder Austin glanced at each other before moving their focus back on the fissure. That short exchange of looks was enough to convey their amazement and helplessness about the distance between their organization and the Elbas family for what concerned the inscription fields. Cecil waited for each of those items to start working before speaking in a polite tone. "The Elbas family has provided the passage and all the required items for the mission. I''m sure the other nations won''t forget this." He then sent a series of folded sheets flying toward all the rank 4 cultivators of the other factions. Noah quickly browsed through the words written on the sheets only to see that short descriptions appeared in his mind at that act. The reports concerned the usage and function of each item set around the fissure. They even mentioned some specifics that involved the insides of the portal. ''They are playing fair.'' Noah thought as he stored the sheets and moved his gaze toward the ceiling of the underground area. The other cultivators noticed his action and moved their gazes there too. "Let''s resurface." Gray Fury said, and the team quietly followed his rising figure. Chapter 728: 728. Protec There wasn''t a single leader for the whole exploration team. It was impossible to find an agreement between the four nations on that topic. Yet, the four rank 5 cultivators had long since decided to be reasonable during the mission. They were in an unknown environment that had only one escape route, and that was obviously fragile. For once, the cultivators of the four forces would have to work for the greater good of their Mortal Lands instead of minding their benefits. It couldn''t be helped. Greed could lead to the failure of the mission, which could trap them in that unknown land until King Elbas managed to open another passage. Of course, death was a possible outcome too, and that led them to abandon previous grudges to focus on the exploration. The group of forty-four heroic cultivators silently dug an opening in the rocky ceiling and flew toward the outside world. The four rank 5 cultivators were in the lead, and Noah was right behind them. No one dared to complain about his position. Status didn''t matter in that place, and the vanguard would usually be the first to meet any potential danger. Everyone knew that Noah was the strongest among the rank 4 cultivators. That was something that no one could deny due to the power of his sea of consciousness! The group had to dig upward for a few kilometers before the rocky ceiling ended, and the sunlight filled the tunnel just created. Wary expressions appeared on the heroic assets as they came out in the open and inspected their surroundings. The scenery that unfolded in front of their eyes didn''t seem to belong to a different world. It was a dull wasteland, which saw some vegetation appearing only at a few kilometers in the distance. ''Not the safest environment where to have our only escape route.'' Noah thought when he noticed that the wasteland was, in truth, a volcano. There were cavities on its sides and traces of burned terrain near them, which carried the marks of past eruptions. The other cultivators didn''t fail to notice those details too, and the four leaders acted as soon as the environment turned out to be dangerous. Their priority was to protect the fissure, so they had to make sure that the volcano remained stable for the entire duration of their mission. The rank 5 existences had a brief discussion through their consciousnesses before they spread in the area and used their methods to prevent any sudden eruption. Elder Austin even glanced at Noah before diving toward the base of the volcano, and the latter simply nodded at that gesture. It was clear that he wanted him to manage the situation while they were busy, and Noah agreed without uttering any complaint. The other rank 4 cultivators focused on him when they realized that their leaders had silently left him in charge of the group. Noah''s figure stood proudly in front of them. His mental waves filled the area and swept them as he made sure that there wasn''t any threat. The symbol of the Coral archipelago occupied the back of his robe, and his long hair fluttered in the wind as he remained focused. The famous criminal that had surprised everyone with his achievement was now protecting them. It was needless to say that such sight gave birth to conflicting emotions inside those cultivators, especially those from the Utra nation. The Elbas family had worked to suppress Noah since he reached the academy, but he was still there, and he was stronger than all of them. "Don''t worry, Lady Ballor," One of the Royals said as he lowered his head to whisper to June. "We won''t let him kidnap you again." Noah feigned to ignore those words, but his attention inevitably went on the cultivator in the liquid stage that was wearing a golden robe next to June. He was handsome and had the usual features of the Elbas bloodline, with short golden hair and a pair of shining green eyes. Also, he seemed quite young, which showed his talent in the cultivation field. Of course, Noah was more interested in his relationship with June since he didn''t seem to mind nearing her. June tilted her head to avoid letting the Royal whisper in her ear and said. "Lix, I don''t need anyone''s protection." She then glanced at Noah''s back before focusing on the vegetation that spread after the volcano. "Lady Ballor, I would never mock your prowess." Lix continued. "But he is a demon. You shouldn''t underestimate him." Every cultivator heard their conversation, but most of them simply lowered their heads when they saw Lix brazenly speaking about Noah in that way. Noah felt the worry carried by June''s gaze when she glanced at his back and decided to let go of the matter, but his consciousness suddenly sensed something at that point. His aura sharpened as he focused on the threatening presence nearing their position from a distance, and that change caused a reaction in the cultivators behind him. Lix and the others in his faction wielded their inscribed weapons while the other cultivators around them retreated. They thought that Noah was about to attack due to Lix''s words, but his following action left them dumbfounded. Shockwaves spread from Noah''s feet as he shot in the sky, which seemed utterly empty. However, a dark figure soon became visible, and it reached a distance where rank 4 mages could sense its aura. The figure turned out to be a huge winged reptile when it crossed the barrage of clouds, which radiated the unmistakable aura of a rank 5 magical beast! Noah quickly appeared in its trajectory and kicked its mouth while carrying the momentum generated by the Shadow sprint martial art. The reptile was a beast in the lower tier of the fifth rank, so the cultivators hovering above the volcano released surprised gasps when they saw that Noah''s kick made it fly back behind the clouds. ''Rank 5 Flying snake!'' Noah thought as he shot after the beast. ''This species lost to the dragons in my world!'' Excitement rose inside him when he saw an extinct species making its appearance right at the beginning of their mission. The snake hissed in pain, but Noah reached its head before it could focus again and delivered a powerful punch. The creature felt a ridiculous pressure landing on its mouth and flinging it downward along with its entire body. The snake crossed the clouds once again, but its descent saw it landing on the vegetation outside of the volcano''s range at that time. Noah knew that his priority was to let the rank 5 cultivators stabilize the area, so he had pushed the beast away with his attacks. The beast hissed again and spread its feathered wings to stabilize his fall, but Noah was already on it, and he delivered another kick that pushed it even further away. The creature understood that it was time to change tactics and released a toxic substance from its fangs, which spread in the area and engulfed both its and Noah''s figures. Chapter 729: 729. Brawl Noah felt a dangerous sensation coming from the dark-green substance spewed by the snake as they fell from the sky. The toxic liquid enveloped their figures, and Noah diverted focus when he saw it reaching for his skin. ''Isn''t it a bit too powerful for its level?'' Noah thought before using his flames to fight back the dangerous poison. White fire spread in the sky and burned the liquid, which released a green gas that Noah dispersed with his mental waves. However, a confused expression appeared on his face as he turned toward the beast. ''Winged snakes mostly rely on their strong bodies and on their aerial maneuverability to fight.'' Noah reviewed that information in his mind. ''But this poison was almost able to match my flames.'' Noah felt that something was off, and that wasn''t a sensation born only from his knowledge in the magical beasts'' field. Even his instincts were telling him that the snake under him didn''t match the power of its species. Its poisonous attack wasn''t its main ability, but it was so powerful that Noah had to use his flames to defend against it. ''Is it a mutation?'' Noah began to question himself as he wielded his pair of black sabers. ''Or did I fail to guess its species?'' There were too many variables when Noah took into consideration the fact that he was in a different world. So, he simply decided to learn more about that creature after killing it! Of course, he was aware that he couldn''t use all his abilities in front of Thaddeus. His mocking words from before the mission had revealed that the Elbas family had learnt something from the battle inside the Balvan mansion. Noah wasn''t sure about how much had been recorded back then, but he wasn''t going to risk exposing the identity of the secret assailants of the Utra nation. Also, he didn''t need to use those spells to defeat the Winged snake. The beast spread its maws and shot toward Noah. Releasing the toxic liquid had stopped its opponent''s momentum, which allowed it to attack and stop defending. The snake though wasn''t able to close its mouth since two black slashes landed on its insides and created two deep cuts. A violent aura spread from those cuts and shattered more of the skin inside the mouth of the beast. The snake hissed to no end and failed to reach Noah, who had already landed on one of its wings. Since Noah''s dantian had reached the solid stage, the "Breath" contained inside it matched the power of the energy inside the Liquid Dantian. So, the first form of his martial art had become obsolete. There was no point in using a simple but powerful slash when he could do the same but add the innate destruction of his individuality to the attack. It was better to leave the energy inside the Liquid Dantian for the Shadow Sprint martial art since it didn''t carry his individuality to begin with. ''What are you hiding?'' Noah thought as he slashed again, aiming at the spot where the feathers met the scaled skin of the snake. His attack resulted in a clean cut that severed the left wing of the beast and destroyed part of the scales and feathers due to the aura that it carried. Noah quickly stored the wing in his space-ring before moving to the right one. The Flying snake launched another poisonous attack when it lost control of its flight, but Noah spewed white flames whenever that dark-greed liquid tried to reach his body. Also, he didn''t stop his martial art, and a pair of slashes landed precisely at the base of the right wing. The attack completely severed that body-part, and Noah found himself standing on the back of the falling snake after storing it in his ring too. The group of cultivators in the distance could only see what seemed him riding the forty meters long magical beast as it left a trail of red blood in the air. Noah appeared utterly calm, and his gaze even wandered in various spots of the creature. It was as if he was more interested in the anatomy of the beast rather than on the actual battle! It couldn''t be helped. Noah had fought so many rank 5 magical beasts by then that such fights didn''t pose him any threat. Also, the dragons in his world had defeated that species of snakes in the past, which showed their inferiority. However, the power behind its poison was off, and he was set on discovering the cause behind that feature. The snake couldn''t control its descent without wings and crashed on the sparse vegetation that filled the territory next to the volcano. Noah didn''t let go of that chance and released another series of attacks. Yet, the beast had nothing else to lose once it landed on the ground. A messy and violent brawl exploded in that area, with Noah and the snake exchanging blows. Both of them completely abandoned any defensive stand to focus everything on their offensive. Noah relied on his technique and raw strength to avoid any grave injury, and the beast used its huge body to try to overwhelm its opponent. Noah gained the advantage rather quickly, and only a few cuts appeared on his skin due to the shockwaves created by the clash with the powerful snake. He could avoid any kind of injury if he just flew above the maimed beast to benefit from its lack of wings, but there was a lot to gain from that physical fight. First of all, he would obtain a clear understanding of the actual prowess of the snake, which would lead him to evaluate the differences from the records studied in his world. Then, he could keep most of his abilities a secret, especially in front of such a variegated group of experts. Also, he simply liked fighting in that way. Expressing the power of his body was something that he couldn''t often do in battles against cultivators or when hunting beasts for specific reasons. That was one of the few times when he could just let go and have fun. The battle lasted for more than Noah had predicted. The snake kept on charging at him even when injuries filled its body. It seemed that no matter how much blood it lost, it would just straighten its position and pounce again. Nevertheless, it still lost its life after Noah kept on answering to its attacks with powerful slashes that carried his individuality. ''Most of its skin is gone, and the same goes for its muscles.'' Noah thought when he analyzed the corpse of the snake. ''This endurance is completely off the scale.'' More unusual features had become evident during the battle, and one of them was the insane tenacity despite the countless wounds on its body. Elder Austin''s voice resounded near him at that point. "Having fun already?" Noah didn''t turn but gave a simple answer. "We''ll see." Then, he slashed horizontally at the corpse to begin the dissection. Chapter 730: 730. Organ The Flying snake didn''t reveal anything out of the ordinary at the beginning. Its internal organs and bones matched the records studied by Noah in the past, and even its remaining muscles corresponded to them. Yet, every fiber of its body felt sturdier at his touch, and the amount of "Breath" that its complete form contained was above the standards of a rank 5 magical beast in the lower tier. ''Are beasts stronger in this world? Is this just a general rule?'' Noah thought as he continued with the dissection. Elder Austin and the other rank 5 cultivators reached his position and oversaw the procedure. Noah was an expert in that field, so there was no reason to stop the dissection. However, they still wanted to be there in case he missed something or ruined some body parts. Bones, organs, and strands of muscles disappeared as Noah stored them in his space-ring. The corpse of the snake lost part of its shine as its interiors left it. Noah noticed how the leaders of the team didn''t seem to mind his actions, so he simply kept on storing nourishments that he would eat later on. The dissection continued with Noah using his instincts and consciousness to find the reason behind the extraordinary power of that species. ''What is this?'' Noah thought when he severed a large chunk of muscles to reveal part of the interiors of the creature. A spherical organ appeared in his view, and Noah was utterly sure that there wasn''t supposed to be anything significant in that spot! He had simply followed the trail left by the energy that the beast had started to release after its death, which led him to find that peculiar structure. The organ radiated a soft light that flickered as it lost the energy contained in its insides. A tight array of blood vessels linked it to the rest of the corpse, and the tissues around it seemed to be even sturdier than the others. Noah stopped his actions when he saw the sphere, and the leaders hovering behind him focused on that organ as soon as it entered in their vision. "This is impossible!" Elder Estelle said when her consciousness enveloped the organ. She was a middle-aged woman with short brown hair and dark skin, and she was the rank 5 cultivator sent by the Council. She was knowledgeable in the fields that concerned magical beings, and her expertise didn''t stop at the magical beasts but covered even the magical plants. That allowed her to notice the similarities between that spherical organ with the dantians of the cultivators! Of course, Noah noticed that too, but his understanding of the matter was far more detailed. ''This isn''t a dantian.'' Noah thought as he neared the organ to let his body gather as much information as it could. ''It resembles a cheap version of my Liquid dantian.'' The spherical organ released primary energy identical to that stored inside his Liquid dantian, but it didn''t seem as perfect as his creation. Also, its main function appeared to be the nourishing of the snake''s body, as well as the empowering of its innate abilities. ''The presence of a Liquid dantian would explain the power behind its poison and its endurance.'' Noah thought as he stored his weapons and reached for the organ with his fingers. "Wait!" Cecil shouted when he understood Noah''s intentions. "Do not taint the corpse further!" Noah ignored his words and sealed his grasp around the organ before pulling his arm backward. The blood vessels around it broke, but Noah paid attention to preserve the structure of the organ with his gesture. Then, he turned toward the elders and showed the bloody sphere in his palm. "Magical beasts with a fake dantian," Noah said while moving his gaze toward Cecil. "Has the Elbas family ever heard of this?" The rank 5 cultivators landed on the ground and inspected the sphere, which released the last bits of primary energy contained inside its structure. The organ was nothing more than a dark-red ball at that point, but the absence of energy made the cultivators able to ascertain the thickness of its walls. It was just as Noah had said. It wasn''t a real dantian but rather a cheap version that couldn''t match the center of power of the humans. Yet, it even that fake had made the Flying snake surpass the limits of its species! Countless questions appeared in the leaders and Noah''s mind as they kept their eyes on the bloody ball. That feature was something that could make vain the accumulated knowledge of the magical beasts'' field. Also, some issues concerned the actual layout of the Immortal Lands. ''If the Immortal Lands is a huge plane connected to multiple Mortal Lands," Noah asked himself. ''Why didn''t we find this feature on any of the creatures inside the new continent?'' The heroic cultivators didn''t know much about the Immortal Lands, but Noah had seen the statue inside the Mortal Palace, and his world had explored a piece of them. He had formulated hypotheses that seemed somewhat on point, but that sudden discovery had already eliminated most of them. ''Is this limited to this lower plane?'' Noah thought before rejecting that idea. Magical beasts with a dantian would be naturally more potent than those without it, which meant that their chances to reach the higher plane would be higher. It was evident that such an empowered species would need more energy to reach the higher ranks, but that requirement wasn''t enough to stop their growth. ''They would be kings among beasts, even if their fertility turns out to be poor.'' Noah concluded in his mind. One of them would be far stronger than its peers, and it would soon take control of any environment with only weaker beasts as its enemies. Its rule would lead to the spreading of its bloodline, meaning that there were bound to be similar creatures in the higher plane. Yet, none of them had appeared in the piece of Immortal Lands fallen in his world. Of course, he had considered the possibility that such a feature was limited to the Flying snake species found in this lower plane. There was even the possibility that the fake dantian was something that the beasts of that world had developed only recently due to mutations. "We know too little," Noah said when he accepted that he couldn''t find an answer after analyzing only one specimen. Not even a day had passed since they had reached the new world, but their notions of the balance enforced by Heaven and Earth were already falling apart. "I agree." Elder Estelle said. "Let''s capture more creatures and study the plants too. We must understand how this plane works." The other rank 5 cultivators didn''t object to her words, and even Cecil simply returned to the group still flying over the volcano. As for Noah, he stored the corpse of the snake before following them back in what was now their base. Chapter 731: 731. Tests The rank 4 cultivators saw the five figures returning to them before receiving a series of orders. The leaders had stabilized the area, but that place still needed some improvements before they felt confident in abandoning it to proceed with the exploration. Defensive and cloaking formations were a must in those situations, and some cultivators would have to clear the surrounding territories before their factions felt safe in sending more assets in the new world. However, the rank 4 cultivators didn''t immediately begin to work on those improvements. Their gazes were fixed on Noah, who was casually floating in silence with his mind clearly elsewhere. They had just witnessed a cultivator in their rank winning a brawl against a magical beast in the fifth rank! The outcome of that battle showed that he was capable of a rank 5 battle prowess and that it wasn''t even the full extent of his power. Noah appeared completely fine, with only a few bruises on his knuckles and exposed chest due to the countless clashes with the snake. His robe had been torn during the battle, which left him in his usual half-naked state. The power showed before, and his current appearance was a magnet for the assets in the fourth rank that inspected him with stares that carried various emotions. There was fear, worship, envy, and some of the younger women in the group even felt sexual drive filling their bodies. Noah didn''t fail to notice those emotions. After all, rank 4 mages couldn''t hide much from his powerful consciousness. That led him to sense the annoyance carried by June''s gaze. She was trying to suppress that emotion, but seeing her lover''s prowess and noticing the blushing expressions of some female cultivators near her made it impossible to hide that feeling completely. Noah sighed and took out a new robe as well as a couple of Daniel''s pills from his space-ring. He couldn''t risk exposing his relationship with June, and he also had to pretend that his body-nourishing method had evident drawbacks. Of course, he didn''t go to a secluded place to change his clothes. That gesture would just create more suspicions. A series of snorts, gasps, and suppressed laughs resounded among the cultivators as they watched Noah''s changing himself. Yet, they quickly began to follow the orders of the leaders when they noticed their stern stares. "I''ll investigate the surrounding areas," Noah said before flying away, in the direction where the snake had arrived. Elder Estelle did the same, but she flew in the opposite direction. As for the other three rank 5 cultivators, they simply remained above the volcano to oversee the work of the troops. Noah flew above the clouds, and he soon sensed the presence of other living beings. A pack of Flying snakes appeared in his vision, but there weren''t any rank 5 specimens among them. ''They should be its underlings.'' Noah thought before shooting toward them while wielding his sabers again. Killing a few rank 4 beasts and a dozen creatures in the third rank didn''t take much, and Noah was able to obtain a large number of corpses in just a few minutes. He dissected them too only to discover that each of those specimens had a fake dantian in the same spot as the rank 5 snake. However, those organs appeared far weaker, and the difference in their level wasn''t enough to explain such inferior structures. Also, some of the fake dantians in the rank 3 specimens weren''t even fully formed. Noah felt another series of questions rising inside his mind, but he held himself back from making more hypotheses before inspecting other species. His next destination was the ground, in the midst of the sparse vegetation that encircled the volcano and spread in the distance. The search took a while, even with the enhanced senses of his body, but he ultimately found other species of magical beasts in that environment. They were generally small creatures with innate hiding abilities, and that could live underground if the situation required it. ''This should be one of the hunting areas of the pack of snakes.'' Noah thought as he killed and stored every beast that he found. That territory contained only creatures in the human ranks, which was what made Noah deduce that the dead snake in the fifth rank was the overlord of that area. So, his hunt went smoothly, and he was even able to capture some of those beasts alive. The first detail that he noticed was that he didn''t recognize some of those species, but he expected that since he was exploring a new world. However, his interest skyrocketed when he began to dissect and vivisect them. ''The Striped lemurs have the same fake dantians as the Flying snakes.'' Noah thought as he kept on studying one specimen after another. ''Yet, these rat-type magical beasts don''t have any trace of that organ.'' His investigation ultimately revealed that the species that had a fake dantian were fewer than those that didn''t. That feature didn''t seem connected to the kind of those beasts, nor their rank. It appeared completely random, which was something that made Noah unable to create a reliable scheme in his mind. Also, that feature was even hard to notice since the fake dantians were fused entirely with the bodies of the creatures and didn''t radiate any particular energy. The beasts with that organ were merely stronger than normal beings in every aspect. When Noah felt satisfied with the data gathered in that territory, he decided to rely on his body to try to uncover more details about those unusual beings. The fake dantian of the rank 5 snake appeared in his palm, and Noah bit a small piece of it to test if it would taste differently or just cause other reactions inside him. His body destroyed the minute chunk of flesh and turned it into primary energy that it absorbed in less than a second. The energy wasn''t any different from that inside his Liquid dantian. Yet, it seemed to have an intrinsic behavior that made it aim to nourish his dantian first. The energy reached his low-waist, but it went to feed other tissues when it saw that it couldn''t improve that center of power any further. ''What is happening in these Mortal Lands?'' Noah asked himself as he proceeded on eating other body parts of the snakes. Then, he began to eat pieces of the magical beasts that had a dantian too, only to switch to those without it when he felt satisfied with what he had learnt. The results of those tests left him completely speechless! The primary energy contained in the corpses of the unusual beasts always aimed for his dantian first when it entered his body. Instead, that coming from the normal creatures worked as usual and nourished his entire structure, without any preferences. ''It''s similar to a Bloodline Inheritance.'' Noah concluded at that point. ''But it works on the dantians. I wonder if it can make them grow out of nowhere though.'' Chapter 732: 732. Stunned It was clear that the cause of that mutation was something hidden in the bloodline of the beasts with a dantian. Yet, Noah couldn''t understand the limits of that substance so soon. The fact that the raw meat of those creatures carried nourishments that could improve his dantian was already amazing. He was sure that a massive hunt would begin if experts learnt how to extrapolate that property and turn it into a drug for ordinary cultivators. However, Noah had to find out how valuable that information was before deciding which factions could learn about it. ''Let''s see what happens.'' Noah thought before shooting toward another crowded area and capturing a rank 3 Golden rat after scanning it with his mind. Noah growled when he made sure that the beast didn''t have a dantian. The rat couldn''t do anything against his pressure, and it merely lowered its head as a sign of submission. Noah threw a chunk of flesh in front of the trembling beast and growled again to force it to eat the rank 3 material. The rat quickly finished its meal, and Noah kept his consciousness fixed on its body for the whole process. The beasts experienced the same events that he had observed inside his body, with the only difference that part of the nutrients gathered in the lower side of the creature. ''Only half of the nutrients fed its body.'' Noah summarized when everything was over. ''The rest is still amassed there.'' One meal wasn''t enough to produce lasting changes, but the experiment had already proved that his guess was on point. The primary energy contained inside the mutated beasts could affect normal creatures and initiate the creation of a fake dantian! Of course, Noah would have to perform more extended tests if he wanted to grasp the rules behind that process. Yet, even that small discovery made him feel happy that he had joined that mission. He had long since accepted that only laws could force the primary energy to work in a specific way, but he had an example of that right in front of him now. Nourishments that were supposed to feed all the tissues equally carried intrinsic behaviors instead. That was exactly what Noah was trying to do with his individuality and inscription methods. ''This is worth studying.'' Noah thought as he resumed with his tests. The troops on the volcano were busy creating defenses and formations for various purposes, so he wasn''t in a hurry to return. He could focus on that discovery as much as he wanted. Noah waited for a few hours without allowing the rank 3 Golden rat to move. The Divine Deduction technique consumed his mental energy as he continued to focus on the primary energy amassed inside the beast. He wanted to discover more about that innate behavior, but he couldn''t use the full extent of his consciousness, or the rat would simply die under the weight of his mental waves. Also, he noticed that its body began to slowly absorb the primary energy without creating anything in its place. Noah threw another chunk of meat at that point and kept on observing the changes inside the creature. The absorption proceeded in the same way as before. The energy gathered in the lower side of the rat had simply increased due to the addition of the new nourishments. Noah waited again and threw more food when its body began to affect the mass of primary energy. He repeated that process multiple times, and the first visible changes appeared only after an entire day spent in that way. Noah''s focused when he saw that part of the primary energy had turned material and had created what seemed to be the beginning of the fake dantian that the other creatures had. ''I knew it!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind and decided to stop feeding the rat at that point. The energy that didn''t solidify slowly nourished its body during the following hours until it was depleted. The rat didn''t show any evident change after all those procedures, but Noah could see that the piece of fake dantian was still there. That day spent testing the features carried by the unusual beasts had given him a basic knowledge about the fauna of that world. Noah could already predict how the food chain had evolved and what to expect by those creatures in different areas. ''Mutated beasts are less appealing as a meal since they don''t provide as much energy as the others. Not immediately, at least.'' Noah thought as he killed the rank 3 Golden rat and began to dissect its body. ''Also, they are generally stronger once they get a dantian.'' A dangerous prey and the delayed arrival of the nourishments made the specimens with a dantian more powerful and without any challenger. It was evident that they would rule most environments with those qualities. Their only weakness was the increased amount of "Breath" needed to improve, but that was only a sign of their superior power. ''Let''s see if I can learn something else.'' Noah thought and was about to resume his exploration when a message reached his mind through his inscribed notebook. The message came from Elder Austin, and it compelled him to return to the volcano as fast as he could. His exact words were: "You don''t want to miss this." Noah suppressed his eagerness to experiment to return to his group, but he only saw a few gaseous stage cultivators when he reached the volcano. They were guarding the area while the others were away, and they didn''t hesitate to point toward a direction when they saw his figure. Noah flew past the volcano and sensed a series of familiar auras after an hour of travel. When he reached them, he noticed that all the remaining rank 4 and 5 cultivators hovering in a circle around a human figure that he didn''t recognize. His confusion became amazement when he understood that his group was surrounding what seemed to be a cultivator native of that world! The human was a tall and brawny man who wore a scared expression as he stared at the powerful existences that had surrounded him. He only radiated the aura of a rank 2 cultivator, so the sole sight of more than thirty heroic entities was more than enough to scare him to death. However, Noah soon noticed that there was something strange with that human. His body seemed too strong for his level, and his mind radiated an aura that affected the "Breath" around him in a way that was hard to define without further analysis. Yet, the amount of danger that it exuded was lower compared to the rank 2 cultivators of Noah''s world. Noah was able to find the reason behind that lower amount of threat with a simple inspection of his mental energy, and what he discovered left him completely stunned. The man was identical to any other human of his world, but he lacked one of the three centers of power. He didn''t have a dantian. Chapter 733: 733. Slave ''This world keeps on surprising me.'' Noah thought as he studied the peculiar human surrounded by the heroic assets. The man looked as if he was about to faint under the innate pressure radiated by the group. Still, none of the cultivators on the scene cared about his well-being. There was something that they had yet to make clear about their mission. The four nations had deployed their assets to explore new Mortal Lands and find valuable resources, but they didn''t agree on what methods they would use to achieve that. They were invaders, but they had yet to decide how far they were willing to go. "Can you speak?" Gray Fury asked while trying to convey his questioning tone as much as he could. The rank 2 cultivator shook when he heard those words, but he didn''t answer. There was only fear in his eyes, and that feeling was stopping him from doing anything that wasn''t trembling. Silence filled the group at that moment. The man was unresponsive, and they didn''t even know if he could understand their words. Questioning him in that state was pointless and would just waste their time. "I have to ask everyone to leave me alone with this human." Gray Fury said. "I just need one time to make him speak." The leaders of the other factions obviously rejected that offer and began to express their complaints. "Any heroic cultivator could make him speak." Elder Austin said while shrugging his shoulders. "We have a lot of experience in torture in the Papral nation too." Elder Estelle said before revealing a cold smile. "The Elbas family has come prepared even for similar situations," Cecil concluded and pointed at his golden space-ring. Each faction had considered the possibility that humans habited those lands and had prepared something that could help them with the interrogations. The leaders couldn''t leave Gray Fury alone with such a valuable source of information. The monopoly over the knowledge concerning the political environment of the new world would give to the Shandal Empire complete control over the mission! Yet, the Empire was prepared in ways that not even the three rank 5 cultivators could imagine. "I''ll turn him into a slave and let everyone interrogate him." Gray Fury said to answer the complaints. "I just need to be alone to create the inscribed chains." There was another moment of silence after his words in which the leaders reconsidered his offer. Any type of torture or coercion would inevitably taint the words of the rank 2 cultivator, and that was something that every faction wanted to avoid. However, all those issues would be solved if they enslaved the native. "From what I know, cultivators don''t remember much after the Empire''s chains take away their freedom," Noah said, and the gazes of everyone on the scene went on him at that point. Noah had just joined a conversation among rank 5 cultivators, and he did that while criticizing the approach advised by Gray Fury! Nevertheless, Noah didn''t care about manners, especially in that critical mission. Also, he had already proven that his battle prowess reached the fifth rank, which further improved his status in the exploration team. Noah continued to speak when he saw that Gray Fury failed to answer him, "I''ve analyzed the mental spheres of your slaves. They are empty, broken, and barely able to formulate simple thoughts." His comment forced the other leaders to reconsider Gray Fury''s offer once again. The Empire held the monopoly over the inscribed chains, and the other nations could only learn something by purchasing slaves. Of course, the Council and the Elbas family had done that in the past, but they didn''t discover much. Also, the cultivators there weren''t specialized in that field, so they even lacked the basic knowledge that concerned those items. Instead, Noah had needed to question slaves when he was searching for the remains of the demon sects, and that made him aware of their miserable state. "I will create something slightly different and fitting for the situation." Gray Fury said after the second complaint. "You have my word that he won''t lose any of his memories." Noah could only turn toward Elder Austin at those words and leave the decision to the other leaders. He could point out flaws, but his status was still lower than the other rank 5 cultivators. The leaders began to speak through their consciousnesses, but they still decided to trust Gray Fury in the end. The possibility of learning without any effort was too appealing, and refusing his offer would just ruin future collaborations during the mission. Also, his idea was perfect if it worked as intended. Everyone except for Gray Fury left the area and waited for the two hours to pass. Then, they returned to the territory where they first found the native. What they saw when they arrived there pleased them. The rank 2 cultivator had a collar around his neck attached to chains filled by inscriptions, but his expression wasn''t dull like that often worn by the slaves. Instead, he appeared quite energetic as he spoke in a foreign language that didn''t exist in their world. "What did you ask him?" Cecil asked as he descended toward Gray Fury, who was attentively listening to the slave while sitting in a cross-legged position in front of him. "I just ordered him to speak." Gray Fury answered without moving his focus from the slave. The strongest cultivators simply sat around the chained man at that point and began to focus on his words. They needed to learn his language before they could start to question him, but that wasn''t so hard for beings with such powerful minds. Noah maintained part of his attention on the surrounding areas as he listened to the slave. Still, those territories had emptied after so many heroic existences had gathered there. An entire day had to pass before the cultivators grasped the basics of that foreign language and began to question the slave to improve in that field. Then, when they reached a decent level of mastery, the leaders started to interrogate him on crucial matters. The slave didn''t hesitate in his answers due to the inscribed chains, and the group quickly discovered more exciting features about that world. The first questions concerned his lack of a dantian, and, to the leaders'' surprise, the native didn''t need an explanation to know what that center of power was. It turned out that not all the humans of that world had only two centers of power. There were specific bloodlines that managed to give birth to humans with a dantian, but the slave only knew that such beings existed. According to his words, humans with three centers of power were considered akin to nobles and were given prominent positions in their society. Their world was different from Noah''s. The humans weren''t overlords there. They only controlled a third of those Mortal Lands, while the other territories were domains filled by magical beasts. ''It seems that bloodlines are a crucial aspect here.'' Noah concluded in his mind. Chapter 734: 734. Envoy Dantians appeared to be a privilege linked to certain bloodlines or nutrients in that world. Also, only a smaller percentage of the living beings had access to it. According to the slave, the humans with a dantian were rarer than the beasts with that feature. Yet, they were generally protected by the rest of the society since only they could lead the endless battle against those powerful creatures. The questions then moved to another interesting topic, which concerned the unusual features of his centers of power. Noah had labeled the slave as a rank 2 cultivator, but that evaluation came from the combined power radiated by his mind and body, which were both in the second rank. Also, they were quite strange, especially his mental sphere. The slave''s mental waves seemed to affect the "Breath" around him, but the effects were too faint for the heroic cultivators to study them. On the other hand, his body appeared extremely strong and was far above the standards seen in Noah''s world. The slave didn''t hold anything back and began to explain how his training methods worked and which effects they had on his centers of power. The leaders had to stop him often during his explanation because there were details that they couldn''t understand due to the differences between their worlds. There were even issues linked to his poor knowledge, which was to be expected due to his low level. Yet, the cultivators on the scene managed to learn a lot anyway. First of all, his body-nourishing method was similar to those used in Noah''s world, but its effects were different since he lacked a dantian. The slave''s body only needed to contain his mind, so it could divert most of its power to his physical prowess. Also, it seemed that the humans in those Mortal Lands had stronger bodies in general, but the chained man couldn''t give much information about that. There was a limit to how much he could know, especially when specific topics concerned the differences between the two worlds. After all, he had always considered his strength normal since everyone around him was the same. Only the cultivators from another world could notice the difference in power and investigate what kind of evolution process they had experienced. Another interesting detail was that the humans with three centers of power there didn''t suffer from a weaker body, but his knowledge in the field wasn''t reliable since he had never met one of them. His mind was quite different instead. The cultivators of that world used the Kesier runes too, but they added something similar to an inscription method along with their regular training. The inscription method seemed to follow some of the teachings of the Attunement method, but it also expressed part of their will. They basically learnt how to become one with the "Breath" around them to control it through their minds. It was needless to say that the part that concerned his mind surprised all the heroic assets that listened to his explanation. Using the "Breath" in the environment was something that the cultivators in Noah''s world didn''t know how to do, except for peculiar cases like Dreaming Demon. That ability allowed them to make up for the lack of their dantians, even if the strain on their minds was extremely high. Also, that skill resembled the innate ability carried by their individualities since it required one''s will to control the energy in the environment. "Let me see." Gray Fury ordered in the foreign language when the slave''s explanation reached that point. The chained man immediately stood up and performed some simple gestures with his body. Those movements resembled the forms of a martial art, and they appeared to be a requirement for the spell that he was casting. The slave''s mental energy followed his gestures and spread in the environment according to the forms executed. The "Breath" in the area began to follow the orders carried by his mental waves and gathered to form a fiery snake that encircled his body. ''A bit weak for a spell in the second rank.'' Noah thought when he sensed the power of that ability, and the cultivators around him had a similar evaluation. ''You can''t match the power of a dantian with just the energy around you.'' Noah concluded, but he suddenly realized something troublesome. If a cultivator without a dantian could create spells on that level with only his mind, how powerful would those with three centers of power be? The leaders and other quick-witted cultivators had similar doubts, and they exchanged silent glances between each other to convey their worry. The cultivators of that world had stronger bodies and minds that could bend the "Breath" around them according to their will. They could be considered inferior with two centers of power, but they would be far more potent than an average cultivator with three of them! ''We are more numerous, and they should have less rank 6 cultivators.'' Noah thought as he evaluated the worst possible outcome. ''Yet, all our troops are on the other side of the portal, and the powerhouses still can''t reach these lands.'' Asking the slave about the heroic assets of his world was pointless since he knew almost nothing about the higher existences. So, Noah and the others were left in the dark about the actual power of that world. "There shouldn''t be many of them," Gray Fury said, "The humans are on the losing side on this world." He was speaking about the rank 6 cultivators with three centers of power, but his words didn''t lift the morale of the other assets. ''The balance of Heaven and Earth.'' Noah thought as his mind began to wander. His world could be considered linear for what concerned the power level of humans and beasts. The cultivators just happened to be more powerful due to their innate qualities. However, those Mortal Lands had extremes that went from powerful magical beasts and humans to weaker cultivators. The balance remained. Heaven and Earth had simply applied it differently. "What''s our next move?" Elder Estelle asked. The way she saw it, the recent discoveries would force them to retreat or wait for more assets to reach that world. The situation was simply too dangerous, and even the mutated beasts were enough to make her reconsider their preparations. "I believe we should send an envoy," Cecil said. "They are on the losing side. I don''t see them refusing external help." The leaders agreed with his proposal, but another problem appeared at that point. Who would be willing to fly toward the closest big country and speak with those unknown forces? They were still foreigners, and they didn''t know what kind of reaction the rulers of the human society would have at their sight. Nevertheless, there was someone particularly interested in their techniques, especially in their ability to bend the "Breath" around them to their will. "I''ll go," Noah said. "But I won''t go alone, and I would need some sort of protection." Chapter 735: 735. Duron Bloodline Noah didn''t volunteer for the mission out of good-will. The cultivators of that world could control the "Breath" around them without needing a fitting individuality, and that was a power that he needed. Human cultivators could imitate the effects of the individualities with that inscription methods. That led Noah to believe that heroic cultivators would be able to imitate laws if they mastered it. At least, that was one of the possible applications that he could think of. Noah needed to find a way to control the primary energy created by his destruction, so even that method didn''t wholly fit his situation. Yet, he was confident that he could modify it with the Divine Deduction technique and pair it to his two inscription methods. Also, there was the innate behavior of the primary energy carried by the mutated beasts. Noah was sure that the cultivators of that world had researched those creatures in-depth since they were their main enemy. He couldn''t match centuries and millennia of studies even with his instincts and deduction technique. The fastest way to gather information was to ask directly to the inhabitants of those lands. As for the dangers linked to the mission, Noah was quite confident that the arrival of potential allies would be appreciated by the natives if handled well. The humans there were on the losing side of the war against the magical beasts, and Noah''s world could help them in their battles. Of course, that would be decided only later on. The priority was to establish a peaceful relationship to understand their actual power. Elder Austin shot a worried glance when he heard his words, and the other leaders did the same even if their expressions carried far different emotions. Noah wasn''t known for playing by the rules, and chaos often followed him wherever he went. So, he wasn''t the best candidate to be a political envoy, especially when there was a relationship with an entire world at stake. On the other hand, Noah''s growth speed was scary. The three big nations wouldn''t admit it, but they were wary of his fast improvements. He wasn''t even a century old, but he had already taken a step into the realm of the existences in the fifth rank. Also, his improvements didn''t seem to slow down in the slightest, no matter how his rank increased. Sending him as an envoy might finally stop his growth for a while and maybe even kill him. However, the other assets didn''t give the leaders enough time to decide if Noah was the best candidate. "I''ll go too," June said as her aura began to radiate a battle intent so dense that the air around her started to release sparks. ''She would be able to fool me too if I wasn''t part of her act.'' Noah thought while suppressing a smile from appearing on his face. ''Well, these feelings aren''t fake either.'' Lix was surprised by her sudden decision, but determination quickly filled his expression as he declared his intention to join the team. "I''ll follow Lady Ballor." The leaders felt the need to stop those hurried decisions. Still, the morale of their troops had been kindled, and it was too late to do anything about it. "I''m more suitable as an envoy," Faith said as she stepped forward. "They''ll need me if we want to prevent a war." June snorted when she heard her words, but Noah simply feigned ignorance. Faith''s character could be annoying in certain situations, but she wasn''t bad or mean. Also, she was speaking the truth. She was perfect as an envoy due to her exceptional beauty and calm aura. More rank 4 cultivators felt the need to join that mission when they saw so many famous names grouping together, and some of them even had intentions that didn''t concern the task. Many men in the group volunteered just to follow Faith, and some of the women did the same to stay with Noah. There were even some cultivators like Elder Austin who had come forward just to ensure the safety of talents of their factions. In the end, almost every rank 4 cultivator had expressed their intention to become an envoy. The leaders could only take control of the situation at that point, and they created a small team that made use of the forces of the four factions equally. Noah''s participation wasn''t even discussed. He was the strongest rank 4 cultivator, and a political meeting needed someone able to show the power of their world. Also, Noah''s expertise in the magical beasts'' field made him perfect for the role of the leader in that unknown land. June was selected too because her battle intent was hard to keep in check. Cecil and Thaddeus were worried that denying her that chance could give birth to grudges other than hurt her individuality. Yet, they still decided to send Lix since he was interested in the talent from the Ballor family. Faith had to go too, and her Master, Elder Clara, followed her in the task. Elder Jason wanted to go with Noah, but he had to leave his place to Elder Hope since she was better at investigating the environment. She was even more potent than him, so she could be more useful to Noah on the battlefield. As for the Shandal Empire, Gray Fury simply ordered two liquid stage cultivators to join the team. Each faction decided to send two cultivators to form a team with two rank 4 existences in the solid stage and six of them in the liquid stage. The Empire and the Elbas family had decided to keep their most potent assets in their ranks to have more influence on the headquarters in the new world. Instead, the Council felt forced to send their solid stage asset to protect their talent. However, the team was now completed. They only needed to retrieve the information concerning the layout of the human forces of that world from the slave. Then, they could begin their journey. The leaders dismissed most of the team at that point and sent them back on the volcano to complete the defenses. The envoys and some other assets remained there to continue the questioning. The slave resumed his explanations and drew a simple map based on his knowledge of the surrounding areas. There seemed to be a city at some distance from there. That city marked the beginning of the human territory and was also the home of that unfortunate slave who had just gone out to retrieve some herbs. Yet, Noah and the others weren''t interested in speaking to the rulers of a small city. They wanted a meeting with the nobles with three centers of power since they were the true leaders of the humans. "The six bloodlines rule six different regions." The slave said when Gray Fury pressed him to be more specific. "You will enter the territory directly under the control of the Duron Bloodline if you travel in that direction for five months." Chapter 736: 736. Mission The slave had spoken using his speed as a parameter, which meant that a group of heroic cultivators would be able to reach the domain of the Duron Bloodline in less than a month. As for any details about that region, he knew nothing about them. Traveling in that world was dangerous since magical beasts occupied most of its territories. The slave had barely left his city during his life, and that was his first time wandering so far away from the human domain. Noah and the others would be in the dark after crossing the areas around the city. However, that thought didn''t scare them. The truth was that their group was strong, especially when they considered the peculiar situation of the humans of that world. Noah didn''t believe that the natives would attack them without trying to create an alliance first. The terms of that alliance would depend on how desperate their situation was. Another series of questions followed those that concerned the layout of those Mortal Lands, but the slave''s knowledge had reached its limits. That was expected from a rank 2 cultivator. Still, reaching that point meant that the leaders had to decide on his fate. They would just kill him in a normal situation, but it would be a problem if the rulers of the natives became biased because of that act. Different worlds had different traditions, and every asset would be valued a lot in that one due to the power of the magical beasts. Also, Noah and the others couldn''t hide the fact that they had captured a cultivator. There wasn''t a way to justify their knowledge otherwise. "The chains," Noah spoke when silence spread in that area, "Can you remove them?" He knew that slaves couldn''t escape the chains alive, but Gray Fury seemed to have used a different kind of restraining items. Moreover, he didn''t believe that the leader of the Empire''s faction would condemn a cultivator without knowing his background. The slave had turned out to be a no one, but that world was still in a dire state, so it was better to be cautious about their action. "Yes." Gray Fury answered before questioning him. "Will you carry him along?" Noah nodded and left the area before he could ask them to leave. The others followed him and regrouped at some distance from the leader of the Empire''s faction to discuss some details. First of all, they had to be sure of their safety. Noah only had one rank 5 defensive talisman left since his journey inside the separate dimension, and that wasn''t enough for such a critical mission. Except for June, the wealth of the cultivators in his group was even worse than his in that aspect. Of course, she wouldn''t say that since the fact that she had retrieved Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance was a secret, and obtaining more defensive items from the Royals could only benefit her. The matter was quickly settled. The leaders had already deployed their cultivators, so protecting them was the least they could do. The second part of their discussion concerned the type of behavior that they would have upon reaching natives of particular importance. They could secretly communicate in their language, but that didn''t cover how they would approach the new force. Their primary objective was to understand their power so that the rank 6 existences could decide if a peaceful alliance was the best option, or if a war would bring them more benefits. That topic caused a lot of discussions, but, in the end, the leaders agreed that it was better to be respectful for the time being. They also allowed the envoys to reveal some of their techniques to make a collaboration appealing. The last issue concerned the roles of each envoy, but that matter was settled quickly. Noah would be the leader of the mission, while the others would simply help him with their knowledge in their respective fields. The rank 5 cultivators though added the condition that the eight of them would have to swear an oath before adventuring through the unknown lands. Noah knew that the Council and the Elbas family were mostly worried about him due to his history. Yet, he immediately accepted that condition since he had no intention to undermine the success of the mission. It was in his best interest to obtain those techniques, and June would be with him too! There was a high chance that he could seize some private time with her amid their political mission. After they made their mind on everything, the group waited for Gray Fury to return with the now free slave before flying back to the volcano. Formations and defenses began to appear on the surface of the underground area as Noah, and the others waited for their mainland to send the resources requested through the fissure. Gathering the items wasn''t a problem, but the mental messages took a while to traverse the void and reach the other Mortal Lands. Meanwhile, the envoys improved their language and reviewed their strategy, while also completing the preparations that concerned their personal power. The native was less talkative after he regained his freedom, but he still forced himself to solve any doubt that Noah and the others could have. Four rank 4 cultivators in the liquid stage crossed the fissure a week after the leaders sent their message. Each faction had sent one of them to carry the defensive items, and the oath requested. The envoys didn''t waste time anymore at that point. They left the volcano as soon as they swore that they wouldn''t betray their Mortal Lands, nor hurt any of their teammates. The native was with them too. One of the cultivators from the Empire carried him so that their flying speed wouldn''t be affected. Noah and the others flew toward the area pointed by the native while avoiding his hometown since they aimed to speak directly with the rulers of the human society. The first signs of civilization soon appeared below them. Long defensive walls stretched for kilometers and surrounded small towns. They marked a clear division between the two regions. There didn''t seem to be any being in the heroic ranks in those areas, but Noah felt an awful smell surrounding him and trying to affect his mental sphere. That sensation though wasn''t shared by his companions who didn''t even seem aware of that scent. ''It''s something that targets only magical beasts.'' Noah quickly concluded in his mind and released part of his mental waves to destroy every trace of that smell from around him. Those defenses weren''t weak, but Noah wasn''t only a magical beast. Countering them with the power of his mind was quite easy. The envoys flew for days, and the towns under them became bigger as they reached for the center of that region. Yet, Noah signaled to the group to stop when he sensed three rank 4 cultivators flying toward them. The atmosphere became tense when the three natives stopped right in front of the envoys. However, confusion soon appeared on their expression when they saw the three cultivators kneeling toward them. Chapter 737: 737. Trus The first interaction with the heroic cultivators of that world surprised the envoys, who simply analyzed the trio that had reached them in the sky. They quickly discovered that the three men didn''t have a dantian, but they still radiated an aura that only heroic cultivators could have. ''How do they even fly?'' Noah thought before moving his attention to their feet. The natives stood on platforms made of condensed "Breath", but that energy didn''t come from inside their bodies. They used their mental waves to force it to gather under them in that form. ''It doesn''t seem to stress their minds so much.'' Noah evaluated. ''Maybe the weight on their mental spheres is connected to their expertise in the inscription method.'' Noah had started to gather data about their techniques even in that peculiar situation. The three cultivators soon straightened themselves, but Faith steeped forward before they could say anything and gave voice to a request. "We wish to see a representative of the Duron Bloodline." Her sudden action saw the approval of the others in her group. It was clear that the cultivators with two centers of power held them in high regard, so it was wise to use that chance to hasten the meeting. Faith''s beauty had forced her to become experienced in handling political matters to avoid issues that could put her in dangerous situations or enrage famous characters inside and outside the Council. She had been able to understand how valuable her group was in the eyes of the natives and find the approach that exploited that before her companions. The natives were taken aback by her sudden request, and they revealed signs of struggle through their expressions as the pondered about the matter. "What is it?" Faith asked when she saw that the natives limited themselves to speak through their consciousnesses, and she even showed a bit of annoyance. The three of them stopped their mental discussion when they saw her expression, and one of them stepped forward to answer. "I don''t want to be disrespectful, but¡­" The native turned glanced at his companion, who simply nodded at him to give him some confidence, and the former finished his sentence with a question. "Who are you?" "We are explorers arrived from far away." Faith didn''t hesitate in her answer, but she didn''t reveal any detail. The matter of the different world was something that could be discussed only with cultivators of a specific knowledge. There was a high chance that the natives in front of them would just react poorly when they revealed the amazing feat that their world had been capable of. However, that answer wasn''t enough to satisfy the trio. It was clear that they were trying to be as respectful as they could, but there was an evident struggle inside them that forced them not to trust the envoys. "All the humans outside of our walls are either dead or exiled." The man said. "Does this mean that you are descendants of criminals?" The atmosphere became tense as soon as the native gave voice to that question. Noah and the others expected that lack of trust, but linking them to potential criminals so soon wasn''t something that they could have predicted. After all, humans with three centers of power were held in high regard in that world. So, no one considered the possibility that some of them had been exiled in the past. Even Faith felt that the situation had become too troublesome to handle with simple words, and she limited herself to stare at the trio that didn''t show any fear. The natives were against eight heroic cultivators with a dantian, but they didn''t hold back their questions and didn''t seem intentioned in letting them advance. ''The determination of warriors willing to die for their country.'' Noah thought as he heaved a loud sigh and stepped forward. He had seen those expressions in the past. Warriors determined to follow the customs, but also ready to fight and die if they sensed that something was off. He knew far too well that words couldn''t overcome such determination. Noah wielded one of his sabers, and the three men took a few steps back to prepare themselves for the imminent battle. However, they didn''t attack since his actions seemed to hide a deeper meaning. Noah''s action had been too slow for a being on his level, which meant that he wanted them to see it. Yet, they still had to prepare themselves in case they misjudged him. Noah raised his weapon upward and slashed toward the sky. His attack created a black line above their heads, which shattered the air with its sharpness and spread the innate destruction carried by his individuality. Noah pointed at the sky as he stored his weapon and said: "This is a martial art." The three natives and the envoys behind him stared at his figure with a mixture of confusion and disbelief. His companions didn''t understand why he would suddenly reveal his techniques in a situation that could quickly become a battlefield if he wasn''t careful. Instead, the natives were amazed to see that Noah didn''t use his mental energy, but he still managed to surpass the power of their most potent attack. Then, Noah raised his hand, and a few strands of a corrosive black smoke came out from his palm only to disperse shortly after. The smoke though exuded an aura so threatening that the three natives felt the need to take a few steps back. The power of a rank 5 spell fueled by solid "Breath" and mental waves in the fifth rank was incredible. Also, the Demonic Form spell had become even more destructive after both his "Breath" and mental waves began to carry his individuality. "This is a spell," Noah said when the last strand of smoke dispersed in the air. The envoys behind him could only remain silent after seeing the might that he was capable of if he used his sea of consciousness. They understood that. No matter their expertise was, Noah would always have the last word on every topic. The issue still remained though. The natives had seen that Noah was mighty, but they failed to understand the exact purpose of his actions. The same went for his companions, who simply waited for his next action. "In my world," Noah said. "Humans have conquered most of the habitable lands thanks to these attacks." The eyes of everyone on the scene widened at his words. Noah had casually revealed that he came from another world, but the envoys weren''t sure if the natives had truly understood him. Words could confuse, especially when they concerned the existence of multiple Mortal Lands. However, they had seen how his attacks were different from those that they were used to see. "Trust is important, so I''ve decided to take the first step," Noah said as he turned his head toward a seemingly empty spot behind the three natives. "Is this enough to make you take yours?" Chapter 738: 738. Kind Both the envoys and the natives turned toward the spot pointed by Noah''s eyes. There didn''t seem to be anything there, but they believed that there had to be a reason behind Noah''s actions. The truth was that even Noah didn''t plan for his demonstration to end in that way. He had intended to give a demonstration to the natives to gain their trust or arouse their interest, but something strange had happened after he showed his martial art. The awful smell that filled the habited territory had suddenly increased as if something had arrived next to them. However, Noah didn''t sense any aura, and even his instincts failed to detect any living being. Nevertheless, he trusted his body, and the fact that the smell came from a spot behind the natives made him almost sure that a powerful existence was observing them. It wasn''t hard to imagine that the humans of that world would have inscribed items that mostly targeted the magical beasts, so his guess wasn''t completely groundless either. A female voice suddenly resounded from that seemingly empty spot. "I''m surprised that someone on your level can sense me." Cracks appeared in the air behind the three natives after the voice filled the area, and the aura of a rank 5 cultivator enveloped the group of envoys as small pieces of the sky fell apart. It was as if a curtain made of glass had covered the actual scenery for the whole time! A middle-aged woman became visible as the azure shards fell toward the ground, and the envoys were immediately able to sense the difference in power between her and the other natives. At once, they knew that she had three centers of power! "Greetings, Lady Danielle!" The three men kneeled at her sight, and Noah didn''t hesitate to perform a polite bow that was imitated by the others in his group. Danielle had fair skin and long brown hair that created a wonderful contrast with her blue eyes. She was tall, but her stature didn''t prevent her figure from appearing graceful. She wore a tight robe that underlined her forms, but there were sturdy materials under the upper layer that revealed that her clothes were similar to an armor. Danielle didn''t even look at the three men kneeling in front of her. Her gaze went for the young-looking man who had been able to notice her under her cloaking spell. "What do you mean by in my world?" She asked, and Noah couldn''t help but reveal a cold smile. His words had caught her attention. Now it was just a matter of making her ignore the difference in their power to start a fair meeting. "We ventured through space to reach unknown lands. Our journey led us here, and your techniques caught our attention." Noah answered. He was being vague on purpose for what concerned their origin, but he didn''t hide the reason behind their mission. There was a rank 5 cultivator in front of them, and she was bound to be stronger than the average existences of their world. So, he decided to be honest when it came to what he wanted to obtain from their cooperation. Danielle didn''t show any emotion, and not even her aura flickered when she heard those words. However, she remained silent and kept her eyes on Noah. She couldn''t believe him so quickly, but those eight cultivators were an unusual sight for her world. They all had three centers of power, even if they weren''t connected to the same bloodline. Their accent was strange, and the techniques shown by Noah didn''t follow the common teachings of any region. She broke the silence to ask, "How did you come here?" But Noah limited himself to shake his head. There was no need for further explanations. It was clear that he had no intention to reveal that information. "I can''t believe you if I don''t see any proof," Danielle said at that point. "We are the proof." Noah immediately answered, and he pointed at the fainted rank 2 cultivators in his companion''s grasp before adding, "You can ask him when he wakes up." Danielle had noticed the human cultivator when she arrived, but she didn''t think much about him. Yet, Noah''s words made her able to link his presence to the knowledge of the foreigners in front of her. "Have you already hurt my people?" Danielle asked, and her aura began to radiate a suffocating pressure that affected the "Breath" in the area which closed around the envoys. It was as if that spot of the sky had become an extension of her mind in that instant, and Noah and the others were in the middle of her personal world. Noah''s interest in the techniques of that world could only increase at that sight, but he didn''t forget that the rank 5 native was attacking them. His companions were already struggling to keep their eyes open under what could be considered as a mental spell since it used both the "Breath" in the environment and Danielle''s mental energy. After all, they were only rank 4 mages. They couldn''t possibly endure a rank 5 spell even if it was only a weak one. Elder Clara was about to use one of her defensive items to protect Faith and the rest of the group when she heard a loud roar. The temperature rose as a column of white flames shot upward and severed the control that Danielle had on that area. It soon became clear to everyone that Noah had intervened! "Listen," Noah began to speak, but his tone was far colder than before. "We come in peace, and my men even protected your underling. Just give us a chance and-" He couldn''t finish his phrase since Danielle shot at him while trying to deliver a punch aimed for his face. ''This woman!'' Noah cursed in his mind as his right hand shot to grab her wrist, and a black saber appeared on his left one. Also, black smoke began to come out from his body as he activated the Demonic Form spell. Danielle was a complete rank 5 cultivator. He couldn''t hold back anything if he wanted to hope to match her. Surprise filled his mind when he blocked her punch. Her physical strength was entirely above that of ordinary cultivators, and it neared the realm of the magical beasts! Of course, that strength could only surprise Noah, but it couldn''t overcome him since their bodies were in the same tier. The corrosive smoke started to create a scaled armor around his body, and Noah even began to slash with his blade to fend off the powerful opponent. However, he stopped his offensive when he saw the pure amazement that had appeared on Danelle''s expression. "What is it?" Noah asked without releasing his grasp on her wrist. Even a powerful rank 5 cultivator would be doomed in a melee combat with him, and Noah wasn''t willing to let go of that advantage until he understood her intentions. A single tear fell from Danielle''s eyes as she muttered soft words, "I thought that Heaven and Earth had destroyed your kind." Chapter 739: 739. Bloodlines Noah was a fantastic liar, and he was great at hiding his emotions. His acting skills were incredible, even if he didn''t rely on them so often anymore. His path led him to express his individuality, and he couldn''t risk tainting it. Yet, he still needed to pretend when it came to June and some of his powers. He couldn''t just reveal all his secrets to his enemies. However, all that experience in feigning his emotions didn''t help him when he heard Danielle''s words. It wasn''t hard to understand what she meant, and Noah even believed that her punch had only been a test. She needed to assess his physical strength to be sure of her guess. ''Did this world use to have hybrids?'' Noah questioned himself, but there was a more pressing matter in front of him. Danielle''s words had been soft, but the cultivators behind him were rank 4 mages. Their consciousnesses couldn''t have missed hearing her, especially when she was attacking their leader! The fact that he was a hybrid was one of his biggest secrets, and he wasn''t ready to reveal it to the world. The Hive and the other factions could have picked up some clues about his body-nourishing method, but they were useless without actual confirmations. Also, the thought that he had fused himself with a magical beast was quite unbelievable, and that further hindered their ability to understand. "Humans haven''t been able to wield the beas-," Danielle began to speak, but Noah quickly interrupted her by raising his voice. "This conversation should be private!" Noah shouted, and both sides felt surprised when they heard him, especially his companions. Noah was always cold and calculative with his behavior. They had never seen him losing his cool. Their interest obviously spiked at that point, but Danielle didn''t fail to understand the meaning behind his sudden action and decided to protect his secret. "Follow me," Danielle said while moving her gaze toward her wrist still locked in Noah''s grasp. Noah nodded at her when he noticed that gesture, and he slowly released her while storing his saber and dispersing his spell. His eyes though didn''t leave the tall woman even when she turned to fly toward the center of the region. If someone were to look at Noah''s expression, they would believe that Noah had been captivated by Danielle''s beauty and was unable to stop looking at her. However, the truth was that his interest in the matter was so high that he could barely contain himself from asking the questions that were popping in his mind. Noah followed Danielle, and the other envoys did the same. The three natives limited themselves to escort the group while keeping some distance from it. No one talked. The envoys were still surprised by the sudden change of attitude of the rank 5 cultivator, while Noah was simply waiting to be alone with her. Of course, the envoys didn''t fail to link Noah''s body with that change. It was the only logical conclusion, but they didn''t really understand what they had discovered. Noah''s body was still a mystery in their minds, but it was a mystery that seemed extremely important in that world. Only June had a clearer picture of the situation since she knew that Noah shared many similarities with the magical beasts. Danielle led the group in one empty area that lacked any sign of civilization. However, when she waved her hand, a crack spread in the sky and revealed a tall castle hidden behind that cloaking spell. The envoys went through the fissure and found themselves in what appeared to be a transparent dome. The castle wasn''t the only building inside those glassy walls. There were many mansions laid around the perimeter of that huge structure, and a series of training grounds spread behind it. Also, Noah didn''t fail to notice that the awful smell had increased in intensity when he entered the dome. ''This should be one of the most protected places in the entire region.'' Noah thought. He had already begun to link the intensity of that scent with the defenses of an item or area. Its purpose was quite evident for someone who could recognize it. As for the three natives, they simply remained on the other side of the crack and watched as it quickly closed. Danielle led the group inside the castle, and a series of human cultivators with two centers of power welcomed their arrival with a military salute. She didn''t look at them and continued to speed through the large corridor unfolding in front of the envoys. Noah and the others didn''t even have time to inspect the environment for fear that she would disappear if they lost their focus. Danielle slowed down only when they reached a large hall, where other human cultivators welcomed her again and waited for further orders. It appeared that those weak soldiers guarded the entirety of the castle, and their status seemed to be higher compared to that of the rank 2 cultivator still carried by the Empire''s envoy. ''They should be some kind of Royal Guards, but they are just humans.'' Noah thought before losing interest in them. Danielle completely stopped when she reached the end of the hall and turned to look at Noah at that point. "The rest of you must remain here." She said. "The guards will bring you everything you ask." Then, she crossed the door at the end of the hall without waiting for their reaction. Noah quickly followed her even if he felt that the envoys were about to shout a series of complaints. However, they didn''t say anything when they saw that Noah had already left them. Also, they didn''t dare to break Danielle''s orders for fear of undermining the opportunity of a peaceful relationship with that world. Danielle brought Noah in the deepest parts of the castle, where a series of paintings depicted images of cultivators slaying giant beasts with their bare hands. Some of them even used abilities belonging to the magical beasts'' world! Yet, when he saw a painting depicting a human eating the raw meat of a giant snake, he felt the need to stop to admire it. "We weren''t always so weak," Danielle said when she noticed his behavior. "We used to treat those beasts as nothing more than food when the bloodline of our ancestor still existed in this world." Noah remained silent when he heard her. He knew that he was about to learn what made that world so strange. "Limitations often accompany power due to Heaven and Earth''s fairness, but we managed to keep that bloodline alive even with its poor fertility." Danielle continued while pointing at a painting that featured a series of naked men around a woman lain on a large bed. "Yet, they crossed a limit when they tried to give a dantian to every cultivator, and lightning storms filled the sky until all of them were reduced to dust." Chapter 740: 740. Harem "What about the six bloodlines ruling the human society," Noah said. "What is the difference between them and their ancestors?" Danielle didn''t mention anything concerning the actual power of the lost bloodline, nor in which way it was connected to his hybrid status. "The six families are the result of mixed blood. We have inherited part of their power, but we don''t carry any of the abilities of the magical beasts like they did." Danielle said, and Noah couldn''t help but ask more about that peculiar bloodline. It turned out that the balance of that world had initially been different from what he had imagined. The six families didn''t exist, and the only humans that had a dantian were a small group of people that were now called ancestors. According to Danielle''s words, the ancestors were very similar to hybrids. Their bodies could match the physical might of the magical beasts, and they could learn some of their abilities when they ate them. They were basically perfect beings, especially in a world where they didn''t lack nourishing creatures. Also, the fact that they had poor fertility wasn''t an issue since it was considered an honor to become their lover. Danielle told Noah how they used to have large harems with the only intention of enlarging their bloodline and improving the power of the humans as a whole. "Through the years, we discovered that women have a higher chance to pass down the three centers of power," Danielle said. "This feature is present even in the six bloodlines, so women are generally valued more here." Noah''s eyebrows arched when a thought popped in his mind, and Danielle revealed a smirk when she saw his expression. "In case you are wondering, I have a harem too. Every human with three centers of power has one, and we seclude ourselves in long mating sessions." Danielle revealed. "I have given birth to seven complete cultivators and dozens of incomplete ones." Noah couldn''t help but be surprised about her situation, and some respect appeared inside him when he understood how determined they were in keeping their bloodline alive. The data was disheartening, and the ancestors had it even worse. Their chances to give birth to a hybrid were even less, but they managed to create the six bloodlines in the process. "What happened?" Noah asked. Danielle wore a helpless expression before speaking. "We became too powerful. The balance was maintained at the beginning, but too many cultivators with three centers of power began to fill our ranks. It wasn''t fair to have the ancestors with that number of assets, so Heaven and Earth started to target them until all of them died." Noah finally understood at that point. That world had stronger magical beasts and weaker humans, but it also used to have a small number of extremely powerful cultivators that compensated those disadvantages. That was the balance decided by Heaven and Earth, but the humans had broken it with their commitment to making that powerful bloodline flourish. The humans would keep the weaker progeny, but they would lose their strongest assets, forever limiting their maximum power to the six bloodlines. Those were events that had happened millennia ago, and Danielle had learnt about them because the six bloodlines had kept records of the experiments and achievements of their past leaders. However, when he understood that, he realized what Danielle''s intentions were. The last painting on the large corridor depicted a Heaven Tribulation piercing a series of human figures, and a set of rooms appeared after that. There was a large bed in each of those rooms, and there were people in the middle of sexual intercourses in some of them. Noah was able to notice that there was at least one cultivator with three centers of power in the rooms that were occupied, and the intercourses weren''t limited to two people most of the time. They had orgies without even bothering to close the doors of their rooms! Noah had already begun to think of ways to politely decline Danielle without endangering his relationship with that world when a strange scent reached his nose and triggered his arousal. That sensation was so sudden that he didn''t even have time to understand where that scent had come from. Yet, it seemed that Danielle had planned that since she turned and revealed a strange smile. "I wasn''t sure if it would work. The records concerning our ancestors aren''t always clear." Danielle said as she placed a hand on Noah''s chest. Noah felt his instincts exploding at that soft touch, but his mind was strong enough to make him hold back from falling prey to his arousal. "With you," Danielle continued to speak as she slid her hand to reach for his lower body, "We might be able to restore the bloodline of the ancestors." Noah felt the hand sliding past his waist and reaching for his groin, but he took a step back when she was about to open his robe. "I have a woman," Noah said. "And my bloodline is the result of an experiment. It isn''t as pure as that of your ancestors." Noah had decided to reveal the truth to avoid the possibility of Danielle''s forcing him to lie with her. After all, she was a rank 5 cultivator who was even more potent than the cultivators of his world. Noah would have to go all out just to buy himself a few minutes before his inevitable loss. He could only tell her part of the secrets behind his body to remain faithful to June. Also, he had fused himself with a Cursed Dragon, a species that had already been punished for its power. His fertility was bound to be incredibly low, which would force him to try for years if he wanted to procreate. Danielle didn''t seem disappointed that Noah had rejected her. She actually appeared quite interested in the fact that he had created something able to match her ancestors by himself. "This experiment," Danielle said, "Can you reproduce it on other subjects?" Noah shook his head and said, "I would advise against it. The mortality rate is too high, and it causes Heaven and Earth''s anger. I''m afraid their reaction would be far worse if I were to perform it in this world." Danielle could only give up on that idea when she heard his words. The retribution of Heaven and Earth was something that she wanted to avoid at all costs. "I need to browse through the records and see if I can find something useful. In the meantime, you can all remain here. I''m still unclear about this matter concerning another world, but we can set the basics for cooperation." Danielle said and was about to leave when Noah had an idea. Maybe it was just his arousal clouding his judgment, but that was the perfect chance to obtain something that he had desired for a long time. "Danielle," Noah said, "Can you do me a favor? I need your help to have some intimacy with a woman in my group." Chapter 741: 741. Reunion Noah returned in the hall by himself, and the envoys couldn''t help but assault him with countless questions. The oath made them confident that he didn''t betray them, but they still wanted to know the reason behind that private meeting. Noah couldn''t hide much at that point. He began to explain how his body-nourishing method made him resemble the lost bloodline of the ancestors of that world. He even explained Danielle''s story and how they kept the six bloodlines alive. It was needless to say that the thought of having a harem interested some of the envoys. After all, all the humans in Noah''s world had three centers of power, meaning that each of them was a valuable resource there. Of course, Noah lied to them when it came to the features of his body. He said that Danielle had rejected him when she discovered that his abilities were the result of a technique and carried drawbacks. The envoys could only let the issue go even if Noah didn''t reveal any secret about his body. It was clear that he wasn''t willing to expose himself, and they simply accepted the positive result that the misunderstanding brought to their world. Only June knew that something was off. According to his explanation, Noah did resemble the ancestors, which meant that Danielle didn''t refuse him. However, she couldn''t give voice to her worries in that place. She could only try to pick up clues from Noah''s expression whenever their eyes met. She realized that Noah was distracted and that his usual sharpness didn''t appear in his aura. Seeing him in that state frustrated her, especially since she couldn''t reach for him and ask what was wrong. Yet, she could only lower her head and try to stop those emotions from appearing in her aura. One of the guards in the hall announced that they could spend a few days there while Danielle prepared herself for an official meeting, and the envoys didn''t hesitate to accept that offer. The guards even allowed a few of them to exit the dome to contact their headquarters! The news that they had been accepted by one of the ruling forces shook the rank 5 cultivators on the volcano. Everything was going smoothly, and establishing an alliance was a priority since they were still unaware of the actual power of the bloodlines. They would need to know their exact number of powerful assets before choosing a more violent approach, but they could settle for a simple exchange of resources until then. The fact that Noah''s peculiar body had influenced Danielle''s behavior surprised them too, but the report of the envoys made them believe that they had just been lucky. After all, Noah had been alone with Danielle for less than an hour. With the oath and that short amount of time, they felt inclined to believe him. The guards assigned luxurious rooms to each envoy and made sure to leave a device that they could use in case they needed something. Noah didn''t even glance at his companions before entering his room and closing the door behind him. The others simply followed his example and decided to spend that time either cultivating or enjoying the delicacies that the guards could bring. They couldn''t possibly know that Danielle had granted Noah a favor and was waiting for everyone to close their doors before appearing inside his room through a secret passage. "I thought you would have chosen the brown-haired woman," Danielle said as a passage appeared inside Noah''s room and revealed her figure, "Your status should grant you the best of the best." She was obviously speaking about Faith. Her beauty was something that had managed to surprise even a powerful rank 5 cultivator. "Beauty has nothing to do with my choice," Noah said as he began to follow Danielle through that secret passage. The walls of that area carried strange features that Noah could only describe as an unknown type of inscription. They blocked any sound or aura from leaking outside, and they even reinforced their structure as a whole. That world still hid a lot of surprises, and Noah had just started to learn about it. However, his mind couldn''t focus on those details at that moment. The peculiar scent that had triggered his arousal was still affecting his body. His mind had struggled to suppress those sensations since he had returned from the depths of the castle. That was the reason behind his lack of focus when he discussed with the envoys. His intense instincts made him unable to concentrate. Also, the fact that Danielle had agreed on helping him obtaining some intimacy with June didn''t help his distracted state. The duo walked for a few minutes through the dark passage until Danielle stopped and used her fingers to trace a few signs on the wall nearby. The wall became ethereal, and Noah could see a room identical to his on the other side. The female figure meditating on the bed though claimed the entirety of his attention. "I''ll pick you up before the meeting," Danielle said as she began to leave the area, "Remember that you owe me one." The wall started to return material when she left, and Noah didn''t even answer her to cross it in time. June suddenly sensed a foreign aura arriving in her room and threw her golden spear toward that unknown presence. Yet, her eyes widened when she saw her lover holding her weapon in his grasp and showing a warm smile. "How?" June asked as she slowly left the bed to take short steps toward Noah. She couldn''t believe what she was seeing. It was as if Noah had materialized directly in her room! "I''ve asked Danielle a favor. For your information, she was already willing to give me a harem." Noah said as his smile became an arrogant smirk. Nevertheless, June didn''t even mind his words and jumped toward him when she understood that he was really there. Noah suddenly found himself embracing June. One of his hands instinctively went for her messy hair, and he closed his eyes as he lost himself in the sensations that their reunion caused. He felt the warmth of her body filling him, and he sensed her the softness of her cheeks on his neck. Noah felt her lips on his shoulder, and her hands immersed in his hair. Even the smell of the Heaven Tribulation reached him, but the sensations that filled him at that moment completely overwhelmed that hateful scent. His arousal reached its peak at that point, and Noah felt that he would lose control of his actions if he remained in that position. The scent from before and the sensations caused by June were too intense when they attacked his mind together. "June," Noah said, "They used something, and my instincts are all over the place now. I might jump on you if I don''t calm down first." June turned her head and laid her lips on Noah''s ear. Then, she whispered words that made him stop holding back. "What are you waiting for?" Chapter 742: 742. Peace The effects of the drug used when Noah was with Danielle, and the natural arousal caused by June''s presence made him unable to stop any time soon. Luckily for him, the walls of those rooms were thick and prevented any kind of noise from leaking outside. The members of the bloodlines were used to have long mating sessions, so every room in the castle was perfect for that kind of activity. The long years spent away from each other vanished as they enjoyed themselves in that alien world. Their bodies instinctively remembered what it was like to be together and what their lover liked. "Now I can be sure that you didn''t let that woman tempt you," June said when Noah finally managed to calm himself and give her a break. His hand caressed her hair as she rested on his chest, just like she used to do back in his quarters. Looking at her gave birth to a calm and warm feeling that he had almost forgotten in the years spent training and fighting alone. Even his usually violent aura became more peaceful when June was in his arms. "She managed to tempt me," Noah said while revealing a warm smile, "I just didn''t want to lose you because of that." June was already preparing a punch when she heard the first part of his phase, but she ended up giving him a long kiss when he finished it. Noah had broken other records after their separation, but he was still the man that she loved, even if he was on a completely different level now. "These years without you were hard. That Lix is set in taking me as his bride. Luckily, he respects my achievements and lets me cultivate in peace." June said as she snuggled even closer to him. Noah felt a mixture of anger and arousal due to her words and gesture, but he decided not to address that issue. Their time was limited, and he didn''t want to spend it thinking about problems that he couldn''t fix. "We are getting stronger," Noah said, "We will reach a point where the organizations behind us won''t be able to affect our relationship." His words sounded like a promise in June''s mind, and she rejoiced a little when she heard them. Yet, she couldn''t help but feel a bit helpless when she remembered how strong Noah had become. Also, she was aware of the events that had created chaos in the Utra nation in the last years. She wouldn''t dare to ask Noah if the Hive was behind the attack on the nobles for fear that her knowledge could hurt him. Still, she was almost sure that he was behind the destruction of the Balvan family. Noah was achieving his goals at an unbelievable speed, while she was still stuck between the marriage proposals of the Elbas family. Also, her family was gaining a lot from her cooperation with the Royals, but she wasn''t completely free inside it. She felt caged most of the time, with only her desire to become stronger and see Noah keeping her company. "Hey," June asked with a bit of hesitation, "How do you feel about the events in the Utra nation?" Her question hid a more profound meaning, and Noah didn''t fail to understand that she was simply worried about his mental state. Noah sighed at that question. He had already thought a lot about the battle against his grandfather and the price paid for his revenge. "Back then, I would think of the noble families as unbeatable monsters that I had to avoid enraging at all costs," Noah said as his mind remembered the feelings that he had when he was just a new cultivator. "Now, they are just weaklings who are limited by the same status that made them powerful in my eyes." He concluded. The nobles were just underlings of the Elbas family, and the appearance of the new continent further worsened their position. Also, their lofty lifestyle often hindered their progress in the heroic ranks. Their nobility gave them an initial boost, but that was one of the causes behind their lack of powerful assets. "The only constant in my life is power and, well, my feelings for you," Noah concluded. He and June looked deep on each other eyes after his words. Every second felt too short since they knew that they would have to resume their act once the meeting began. "I won''t leave you alone. No matter where your ambition would lead you, I''ll be sure to be right behind you, until the day when I finally surpass you." June repeated her vow as she pressed her palm at the center of Noah''s chest. It was a natural act. June simply wanted to feel the slight change in his heartbeat whenever she touched him. "I''ll always leave that spot open for you," Noah repeated his vow too and reached for her hand without moving his gaze away from her eyes. His arousal would increase every time he reaffirmed his feelings for June. It was something deeply linked to his emotions. Something that he couldn''t control when he was with her. June recognized that gaze and the feelings that it carried. She couldn''t help but feel some eagerness when she understood Noah''s intentions. Then, they abandoned themselves to their desires, aiming to make the most out of their short time together once again. Days peacefully passed inside the castle, and Noah didn''t dare to leave June''s room for that period. They spent most of their time in bed, but they also cultivated and discussed their individualities. June''s individuality was slowly evolving into a spreading battle intent that affected the entirety of her centers of power and allowed her to surpass her limits as she kept on fighting. Of course, her understanding was still immature, and she had yet to gain insights on the innate defiance of her cultivation technique. She just knew that her existence was a perpetual cycle that would lead her toward more battles and stronger enemies. As for Noah, he explained his issue with the impossibility of modifying the primary energy without laws. June could immediately see how the techniques of the natives of that world seemed incredibly fitting for his problem. She even understood that Noah would have quickly gained their methods if he had just given up on his relationship with her. That realization made her feel so happy that she basically jumped on him and didn''t let him go for almost half a day. She knew that Noah needed her for his individuality, but she felt happy that her lover didn''t sacrifice her for the quickest path to power. Lix even tried to visit June in those days, but she always managed to send him away with the excuse of her training. Then, after eleven days spent in that way, the wall of her room became ethereal and revealed Danielle, who announced the beginning of the meeting. Chapter 743: 743. Power Danielle accompanied Noah back to his room before using the guards inside the castle to announce the beginning of the meeting. She had found something in her ancestors'' records that could make use of Noah''s peculiar body, but she wanted to wait for the meeting to end before negotiating with him in private. The guards led the envoys in another hall in a deeper part of the castle, and cultivators in the heroic ranks began to appear as they reached for those areas. The envoys quickly understood that Danielle was simply showing the power of her region, but they weren''t so impressed since all those cultivators had only two centers of power. Yet, they still saw more than forty of them, which made Noah and the others reevaluate the actual power of the humans of that world. There was one feature that they didn''t consider at the beginning, but that they felt forced to acknowledge when they saw all those heroic assets. Humans with only two centers of power would be weaker than ordinary cultivators, but they would also have an easier path toward the higher ranks. The absence of their dantian made their training far quicker since they could focus only on their bodies and minds. ''I wonder how strong they actually are.'' Noah thought as he inspected those powerful guards. The number of heroic assets of the Duron Bloodline could almost match the Hive, even if they were bound to be weaker. Yet, Noah and the others knew that they saw only what Danielle was willing to show them. They had yet to see other cultivators with three centers of power, and they didn''t believe for even a second that Danielle was the only one in the castle. Also, they could imagine how those carrying her same bloodline would receive the best treatment that the world had to offer. After all, they were the real power of the human society, as well as the only ones who could pass down the three centers of power. ''Six bloodlines fight the endless tide of magical beasts together. Our world should be stronger, but only when considering the entirety of its heroic assets.'' Noah thought as he sat around the large table placed at the center of that vast hall. Even if each bloodline were as strong as the Hive, they would still be inferior to his world in terms of heroic assets. However, the fact that they were united as a force made them threatening. Also, Noah didn''t know if they had rank 6 cultivators, and they were the assets that would determine the power of that world. The envoys sat on his sides, and Danielle took the seat on the opposite edge. Guards in the heroic ranks began to bring wine and other delicacies, but the envoys were too amazed to focus on them for now. They had never seen heroic cultivators being treated as servants. They were all humans without a dantian, but they were still powerful assets. However, their rank didn''t matter in that world, and the guards didn''t mind being used in that way. They simply worshiped the members of the bloodlines too much to complain or have grudges. A man entered the hall from a door behind Danielle and spoke, "So, they are the reason behind the recent mess." The man was tall, and his facial features resembled Danielle''s so much that the envoys immediately thought that they were twins. He had a pair of blue eyes and her same brown hair. He wore a loose green robe that exposed most of his chest, and his expression revealed some arrogance as he inspected the guests. What surprised Noah and the others the most though was the fact that he was a rank 5 cultivator with three centers of power too! Yet, the surprises weren''t over since a female figure followed the arrival of the man. The woman resembled a younger version of Danielle and carried the same traits of the Duron Bloodline. Also, she was a rank 4 cultivator with three centers of power. "Please welcome Florent, my brother, and Lorie, my daughter," Danielle said as the two cultivators sat on her sides. "They had to interrupt their mating sessions to join this meeting. I hope it will be worth it." Noah could smell the scent of other men and women on the newly arrived heroic cultivators, which made him confident that Danielle was telling the truth. ''Even her daughter¡­'' Noah thought before suppressing his wonder. He didn''t care about what they did to keep their bloodline alive. He only wanted to obtain their training methods and the knowledge concerning the magical beasts of that world. "Why are your bodies so weak?" Florent asked, but his eyes soon fixed on Noah. His mind tried to inspect the secrets hidden under his sturdy skin, but Noah''s destructive aura prevented him from discovering anything. Yet, he had the vague feeling that Noah''s body was even more potent than his! That didn''t make any sense since his center of power was in the middle tier, and he had trained in one of the best body-nourishing methods available in his family. His arrogance soon became curiosity, and he found himself glancing at his sister, who didn''t hesitate to solve his doubts. "They say that they come from another world," Danielle said, and both Florent and Lorie revealed amazed expressions. Florent couldn''t contain his curiosity anymore at that point and began to question them. "How many bloodlines are there in your world? They must be more than eight! Yet, why is he the only one that meets our standards?" He was obviously speaking about Noah since he could sense that he appeared extremely dangerous for a rank 4 cultivator. Noah didn''t want to answer too soon, but Danielle noticed his hesitation spoke. "You know about our history. Tell us yours before moving to other topics." There wasn''t much that Noah could do after she said that, so he simply explained some of the differences between their words. The three natives remained silent for the entirety of his speech, and they didn''t even stop him when they learnt about details that seemed incredible in their view. After all, Noah''s world resembled a paradise in their eyes. The humans controlled most of the landmasses, and each of them had three centers of power. Also, the magical beasts didn''t have a dantian, which made them inferior to cultivators on the same rank. Noah even spoke about the differences with their training methods, but he focused on the part that concerned the seas of consciousness. He was trying to bring the discussion on that topic to learn more about their methods, but Danielle interrupted him before he could ask anything. "We would like to perform a few tests," Danielle said, and the two heroic cultivators next to her nodded in approval. Noah and the others didn''t understand what she meant with her request, but Lorie quickly explained the meaning behind her mother''s words. "We would like to try mixing your bloodlines with ours." Chapter 744: 744. Blood Not even ten minutes had passed since the beginning of the meeting, but the representatives of the Duron Bloodline had already requested to add the cultivators from Noah''s world to their mating sessions. "We would only test the procedures with the highest chance of producing complete cultivators." Danielle continued to explain. "So, ten men from your world should be enough. Also, it would be better if they were all heroic cultivators." Noah and the others felt simply lost at their request. They had come there intending to exchange resources, and maybe even a few secrets concerning their training methods. However, they suddenly realized that the natives were more interested in sexual partners. ''They underestimate us.'' Noah thought. It wasn''t hard to understand what had gone through the natives'' minds after he explained how his world worked. The cultivators of that world had stronger bodies and peculiar training methods that enhanced the capabilities of their minds. Those features in the six bloodlines created cultivators that were generally stronger than those in Noah''s world. Danielle and the other members of her family believed that their only weakness was their lack of complete cultivators since they felt superior to their guests in any other aspect. Still, learning that all the humans in Noah''s world had three centers of power gave them hope in improving their chances of giving birth to complete cultivators. Their reasoning was simple. Using better materials could increase the quality of the final product. In the same way, the union between better cultivators could improve the quality of their offspring. In the worst case, they would still obtain complete cultivators, even if inferior to those carrying the features of their bloodline. Noah didn''t mind their offer as long as he could obtain the training methods in exchange. The only issue was that he didn''t have the authority to accept that request. "What would you offer in exchange?" Noah asked. It was pointless to contact the rank 5 cultivators in the volcano when they didn''t know if the Duron Bloodline was willing to give away something valuable. It was better to obtain a complete view of their world and their resources before leaving the decision to the leaders. "What do you want?" Danielle asked, and Noah didn''t hesitate to list everything that he had in mind. "Training methods for each center of power, inscription methods, the complete history of your world, and a list of the precious materials with their respective uses," Noah said. "Oh, I wish to see even all the researches of your ancestors. It doesn''t matter if they concern the humans or the magical beasts." Danielle and the other natives couldn''t possibly imagine that, when it came to negotiations, Noah didn''t hold back in the slightest. He had basically asked for anything that those Mortal Lands had to offer! Of course, complaints followed Noah''s request, but there was something that the envoys learnt among those loud discussions: The members of the Duron Bloodline didn''t know what the inscriptions were. They didn''t understand the topic even when Noah provided a few examples and mentioned their ability to control the "Breath" in the environment. According to their explanations, they simply added specific functions to suitable materials through their minds. That was the only form of inscription that they were capable of doing. It was a basic type of formation that used raw materials instead of lines. Danielle held back many details when she described their method, but the envoys soon lost interest in it. It was just a rudimentary form of inscription in their view, and it seemed to be heavily dependent on the precious materials used in the process. Their world had similar methods, but it also had others that completely surpassed the limits dictated by the materials. Noah was able to understand how limited the natives were better than others since his inscription methods covered both aspects of that field. The Elemental Forging method was somewhat similar to the inscriptions performed in that world, even if the latter didn''t use "Breath" imbued with meanings and didn''t fuse different materials. On the other hand, the Will-consuming runes didn''t need any items, but they still created terrific effects. The need for precious materials wasn''t connected to the power of the inscription method, which, instead, was a requirement there. ''I wonder how they create techniques then.'' Noah thought when he learnt that. "How do you call your ability to control the "Breath" around you?" Lix asked as he gathered notes that he would deliver to Cecil later. As a member of the force in the lead when it came to inscription methods, he was the first to understand that their initial hypothesis was wrong. "Hmph, we already revealed too much," Florent said. "You know our price. We will give anything you want afterward." The meeting ended with a stalemate where both factions were waiting for the opponents to take the first step. Noah simply nodded at his companions when he understood that it was pointless to continue their discussions. His gesture just signaled that it was time to contact the leaders and explain the situation. Elder Hope, Lix, Elder Clara, and one of the Empire''s envoys exited the dome to contact the rank 5 cultivators of their faction while the others returned to their rooms. Noah revealed a cold expression when the wall of his room became ethereal and showed the three natives with whom he had spoken just a few minutes before. The fact that two rank 5 cultivators had just appeared in his room didn''t scare him. He was expecting them to make a move. "We did find a way in which you can help us," Danielle said as the three of them crossed the wall and filled the room with their auras. The atmosphere became tense, but Noah didn''t show the slight trace of anxiety in his expression. His mind was focused on their actions and mental waves, ready to act in case they tried something strange. "For your information," Florent began to speak, "We will collaborate peacefully as long as you don''t cheat us with some unknown method." The corners of Noah''s mouth curved into a smile when he heard those words, but that expression didn''t radiate any positive feeling. There was only a sharp aura that prevented those powerful existences from understanding what he was thinking about. Lorie inevitably trembled at his aura, and even the rank 5 cultivators could only stop to underestimate him at that point. Noah seemed ready to go all out at any moment, and they couldn''t risk losing the only being similar to their ancestors because of their arrogance. "For your information," Noah said once he made sure that they weren''t underestimating him. "I will collaborate peacefully only if I''m satisfied with what you are offering." "Remember that you owe me one!" Danielle quickly said. Yet, Noah was even quicker with his reply. "Then, the first trade is free, but it will cover any future visit in my lover''s room." Danielle nodded, and Noah relaxed a bit before asking what they needed from him. "Your blood," Danielle answered. Chapter 745: 745. Knowledge Danielle''s request was surprisingly simple, but Noah didn''t dare to accept her terms without knowing how it would be used. "The Elite beasts can force a mutation in the normal ones and cause the creation of a dantian," Florent said. "Our ancestors have tried to imitate that process to find an alternative to the forced breeding." He didn''t reveal if that experiment had succeeded, and he held back from speaking about any detail concerning those records. Yet, those few words were enough to give Noah an idea of how they would use his blood. Noah felt a bit hesitant. His blood carried some secrets of his hybrid status, and it could be used as a material in the creation of specific inscribed items that targeted him. However, the Duron Bloodline didn''t know how to perform inscriptions, and the items used on the ancestors were effective on him too. The natives of that world were probably the less dangerous force when it came to using his blood to hurt him. His hesitation slowly became determination as he understood that he was out of options. He could only accept their offer or wait to obtain their training techniques and knowledge through the forces of his world. "My blood isn''t cheap," Noah said to test their reactions. He had already decided to sell his blood, but, at the same time, he wanted to start studying the researches of that world. "What more do you want?" Danielle asked. "We won''t give you resources in the first trade. I believe I have made myself clear." Noah shook his head and made another offer. "I''ll give you enough blood for two trades, but I want your studies and knowledge. You can cut away anything containing techniques and methods." Danielle''s unwillingness forced him to aim for the knowledge of that world rather than for its techniques for their first trade, at least. The trio didn''t want to agree to his request, but giving him some historical records wasn''t an issue. Also, his blood could contain the secrets behind the power of their ancestors, so they felt inclined to please him. "Deal," Danielle said, and the tension in the room suddenly vanished after that. They had finally set the terms for their secret cooperation. Now it was just a matter of exchanging the resources mentioned in their deal. "I''ll put a guard in the secret passage. He will lead you to your woman''s room whenever you want." Danielle said as she pointed at a spot on the wall. According to her explanation, he just needed to knock, and a guard would open the passage. As for the knowledge, he had to wait for them to return in their inventory and decide what they could give him. Then, Lorie traced a few lines on the wall to turn it ethereal, and a guard appeared on the other side. The guard held a large syringe in his grasp, and Noah couldn''t help but shake his head at that sight. ''They have come prepared.'' Noah thought. His interest increased though since he wasn''t sure that they could pierce his skin with that item. After all, the natives lacked real inscribed weapons, so the power of their tools couldn''t be too high. Yet, when he stretched his arm, and the guard placed the metallic tip of the syringe over his veins, he saw that the needle pierced his skin without any problem. It was as if his body had allowed the passage of that foreign material. Florent noticed his amazement and didn''t waste that chance to brag. "This is one of the few relics of our ancestors. Powerful beings have filled the needle with their curiosity for many years until they created something capable of piercing almost everything!" Danielle and Lorie shot an admonishing glance in his direction, which forced him to stop talking. Noah didn''t fail to memorize his words, and he had even activated the Divine Deduction technique to analyze them. ''He said filled, so they still use meanings when they perform their simple inscriptions.'' Noah thought as he watched his blood flowing into the syringe. ''Yet, taking years to make something like this is a bit too much.'' Noah wasn''t underestimating the value of the syringe. An item able to pierce any material because the curiosity that it carried lowered their natural defenses was something incredible. However, his world had produced a portal that connected two Mortal Lands. Their expertise in that field was simply on another league. The guard didn''t stop until an entire liter of Noah''s blood flowed in the syringe. Then, he pulled the item back and handed it to Danielle while performing a polite gesture. The trio stared at the dark-red liquid with intense gazes, but Noah didn''t have time to waste. "I''ll be in June''s room," Noah said while nodding at the guard, "Bring the knowledge directly there." The guard glanced at Danielle, who could only nod too. Noah had respected his side of the deal, so he could act as he pleased. The five of them left the room through the secret passage and separated when they reached June''s place. Noah crossed the ethereal wall, and June welcomed him with her usual affectionate gesture when she saw her lover reappearing. Yet, she couldn''t help but shoot a cold gaze at the four figures that were disappearing as the wall returned material. "Don''t worry." Noah said while caressing her hair, "We have a deal. They just wanted my blood." "Are you ok with that?" June asked as she took his hand and led him to her bed. Noah sighed, "Nothing I can do about that. Luckily for me, their knowledge in the inscription field is laughable. It would take them decades to turn my blood against me." Florent''s last words further confirmed that idea. Noah felt that they were mainly interested in what benefits his blood could bring, and there didn''t seem to be any scheme behind their actions. Noah began to eat some of Daniel''s pills when he reached the bed, and June sat next to him to resume her training. He felt incredibly hungry after the blood loss, but his body was already producing more of it thanks to its incredible healing properties. ''If only my bones healed so fast.'' Noah sighed as he thought that and crossed his legs to train too. His training in that period mainly consisted of activating the Divine Deduction technique to meditate about his individuality and stress his mind. His centers of power advanced on their own, and there wasn''t much that he could do to improve his situation without the sixth Kesier rune. Meditating right next to June though deepened his understanding of his creation. Noah felt that his mind managed to produce more ideas for what concerned the fusion of his inscription methods, and he even started to imagine new spells. Meanwhile, the leaders at the volcano sorted the information obtained in the reports and held a lengthy discussion focused on their cooperation with the natives. It was needless to say that they ultimately accepted the conditions of the Duron Bloodline. Chapter 746: 746. Trades The decision of the leaders wasn''t something that they had reached on their own. They had contacted the other world and explained the situation to the powerhouses before accepting the conditions of the Duron Bloodline. They quickly conveyed their decision to the envoys in the castle too, who didn''t hesitate to contact one of the guards and update them. It wasn''t hard to find ten heroic cultivators willing to spend a few years as sexual partners of the members of the Duran Bloodline. Still, the four factions assigned those ten spots to rank 4 cultivators that had been stuck in the gaseous stage for a while. Of course, Danielle and her family had to wait for a while before the promised partners reached their castle. The new assets had to cross the portal and wait for some of the envoys to pick them up and guide them through the region. It was mandatory to keep the location of the fissure a secret from the natives. So, they couldn''t use the guards inside the castle for that job. June felt compelled to be one of the escorts to avoid creating suspicions inside her faction. She was spending all her time secluded in her room, and some interested envoys had noticed her absence. It wasn''t only Lix. Even Faith tried to visit her with the excuse of exchanging pointers that concerned the higher ranks. Noah had to leave her room at times when the requests became too many, and he had to resume living in his place when June left to return to the volcano. However, he found himself quite busy even without his lover around. Danielle had respected her side of the deal and had provided him with historical books and researches of her world. Noah had begun to study those scripts with June when they first arrived, but he continued alone after the arrangements of the leaders. ''Most of their records have been lost during their retreat in these regions.'' Noah thought as he browsed through the tall pile of sheets, books, and scrolls that filled his room. A large part of those pages spoke about the short political issues that had afflicted the six bloodlines through the years. It was impossible to avoid internal strives in a united force that featured six isolated families. Still, those struggles had never seen the death of a member of the bloodlines. Noah would normally skip those parts to focus on actual researches, but he wanted to see if those pieces of history revealed some of the power of the bloodlines involved. It was needless to say that he didn''t find anything relevant. Danielle had probably removed those parts. The researches though covered exciting topics, and the names of the ancestors often appeared on those scripts. It wasn''t clear when or why the first ancestor appeared, but the human society of that world developed with them at its center. After all, they were the only beings capable of fending off the endless waves of mutated beasts. As for those powerful creatures, the natives called them "Elite beasts", and the ancestors had studied them for a long time during their rule. The ability to force the growth of a dantian, even if only a fake one, was incredible, and the incomplete cultivators desperately needed a form of power that didn''t depend on the environment. There was a need for an alternative to the forced breeding. Yet, even those mighty beings didn''t succeed in replicating the feature carried by the Elite beasts. The records became vague every time they concluded certain events or studies, and Noah could only curse when he didn''t find anything useful to his centers of power. The scripts weren''t completely useless though. Noah learnt that the bloodlines were specialized in building structures and items that carried peculiar features. That approach was possible only in an environment that contained many precious materials, which meant that the world was full of them. Another critical piece of information revealed the targets of their creations. The lack of severe internal strives limited their items to products that were effective against the magical beasts. That made the bloodlines extremely vulnerable to a human attack but made them quite safe inside the long defensive walls that surrounded the six regions. Danielle contacted Noah again while June was still away. She tried her best to mask her excitement, but Noah could immediately see that his blood had met her expectations since she asked for more of it. Also, she didn''t refuse any of his requests at that time. Noah happily gave away another liter of his blood and received in exchange the long-awaited training method for the mental spheres, along with other resources that he had requested. ''They are kind of crazy.'' Noah thought when he read the description of the training method. Due to their nigh-perfect existence, the ancestors could understand the nature of the "Breath" better than most cultivators. They were just like Noah, who could analyze it from the point of view of both humans and beasts. In their long rule and through the countless analysis, the ancestors had created a technique that allowed every cultivator to isolate the Heaven and Earth''s will in the environment. Then, the cultivators would have to store that will inside their minds to reproduce it with their mental energy! The copies would be imperfect, but the "Breath" in the environment would still follow their orders if they reached a certain level of similarity. The procedure though wasn''t over at that point. The cultivators would have to use the copied will to imbue the walls of their spheres so that their mental energy would gain those features as soon as it left the center of power. It was a slow and dangerous procedure, but the results were quite surprising. Of course, Danielle had given Noah their best method, while she would provide an incomplete one to the other envoys. There would be no point in Noah giving away his blood otherwise. He would just wait for the factions to handle the trades. The envoys that had gone to the volcano eventually returned to the castle, followed by ten male rank 4 cultivators in the gaseous stage. Danielle and Lorie didn''t hesitate to begin their mating sessions at their arrival, and Florent became the new representative of the Duron Bloodline in that period. Meanwhile, the envoys, the assets on the volcano, and the forces on the other side of the portal received the first wave of resources, techniques, and knowledge. They didn''t match what was available to Noah, but the many experts in his world were able to uncover and theorize things that he hadn''t been able to imagine. Also, Elder Estelle soon discovered the miraculous properties carried by the Elite beasts, and a series of alchemists reached the new world at that news. Little by little, more and stronger assets arrived in the new world, and they kept themselves busy as they waited for the first child belonging to both worlds to appear. Chapter 747: 747. Tes Both sides felt a mixture of hesitation and anxiety as the mating session continued. Yet, Noah''s world didn''t waste those precious months with so many new resources and techniques at hand. A series of experiments and researches began as more and more experts crossed the portal to reach the new world. The same door and the headquarters on the volcano saw many improvements in their structure too. After all, the cooperation with the Duron Bloodline had set the foundation for a peaceful colonization, and the forces in Noah''s world couldn''t let go of that chance. Those developments though didn''t involve only the explorers'' side. The Duron Bloodline had been mostly silent about the arrival of an alien force, but their political system made it impossible to hide that shocking event. The other bloodlines soon noticed the activities of Danielle''s family and began to show their interest in the matter. The possibility of improving their chances to give birth to complete cultivators was too appealing to ignore it. The Duron Bloodline quickly updated the other rulers on the recent events, and their castle suddenly became the main interest of all the human forces of that world. Florent informed Noah and the others that the other rulers had learnt about their arrival. Still, that event didn''t affect them since they continued to live peacefully inside the castle without anyone bothering them. It was evident that the bloodlines had handled the matter peacefully, but the envoys felt that they had to pass the news to their leaders anyway. It was paramount to prepare for any problem since they had yet to understand the actual power of those natives. Luckily for them, no issues appeared even as more months passed. It seemed that the forces of both worlds were simply waiting for the outcome of the mating session to decide on their next move. "They have updated the list once again," June said when she saw that Noah had interrupted his meditation. They had resumed their cohabitation when she returned from the volcano, and they had lived together since then. They spent most of their time training in the new methods provided by the Duron Bloodline, but they didn''t forget to enjoy themselves and share intimate moments. Of course, Noah had shared the resources obtained by selling his blood with June. He didn''t want her to train and study flawed or weaker versions just because she wasn''t a hybrid. "Let''s take a look then," Noah said as he neared June and inspected the item in her grasp with his mental energy. The assets on the volcano had begun to list every discovery in a special inscribed notebook that they had provided to some crucial members of each team. Even the forces in the other world could add information whenever they discovered something. It was a bit clunky to update the item inside the castle since the dome blocked the mental messages, but the envoys simply took turns to periodically exit it and convey the new list to their companions. A large number of names appeared in Noah''s sea of consciousness as his mind touched the special notebook. The names belonged to various materials, and detailed descriptions accompanied them. There were even signs next to the names recently updated to quicken the study of the list. ''They have already started to isolate the mutagen carried by the Elite beasts.'' Noah thought. ''It wouldn''t take long before they start testing new drugs.'' He was regularly checking the discoveries linked to the strange fauna of that world since his expertise covered that field too. The forces of his world were making incredible progress in those researches, and he couldn''t wait for them to obtain useful results. There was a limit to how much his knowledge could help in the creation of drugs. Also, he was busy managing his centers of power. His power would always have the priority in his mind. "You know that you have your notebook, right?" June smirked when she felt Noah''s arm wrapping around her waist. Noah kept on inspecting the list and ignored her words as he sat behind her and took her in his embrace. Those gestures had become natural by then as their cohabitation continued. The eagerness to make the most out of their time together had turned into a peaceful warmth that didn''t force either of them to interrupt their usual routine. June shook her head when she saw that Noah was still engrossed in the list and simply laid her back on his chest to find a comfortable position. "They created a nomenclature for the humans too," Noah said, and June nodded before closing her eyes to rest in her lover''s embrace. The appearance of different kinds of humans had forced their leaders to assign names that better defined them. The cultivators without a dantian became "Flawed humans", those in Noah''s world "humans", and the members of the bloodline earned the name of "Elite humans". As for the ancestors, the leaders could only assign them the title of "Perfect humans" due to the breathtaking information recorded in the history of that world. "How is the analysis going?" June asked without opening her eyes. Her question was meant for his advancements in the training method that aimed to copy Heaven and Earth''s will. She knew that Noah didn''t wholly trust the Duron Bloodline, especially when it came to such a dangerous technique. Also, both of them were existences that had clashed with Heaven and Earth due to their training methods. The consequences of condensing and absorbing that will inside their minds could be ugly, so they both decided that it was better to analyze the method first. Noah was a rank 5 mage, so he was the most suitable for that task. "The method isn''t dangerous by itself," Noah answered. "The issue is the material involved. Our minds would surely need to fight it." There was one significant problem with practicing the method after reaching the heroic ranks. Any cultivator at that level would have stepped on their path by then, which inevitably clashed with Heaven and Earth. Noah and June were in an even worse situation due to their techniques, which made them hesitate to approach the method without gathering data. Generally speaking, the natives of that world would start copying Heaven and Earth''s will since they became rank 1 mages. That allowed them to slowly modify the walls of their mental spheres without incurring in any kind of punishment from the world. By the time they reached the heroic ranks and began to pursue their individualities, they wouldn''t need to store the will inside their minds anymore. "So?" June asked again, and Noah couldn''t help but immerse his head in her wild hair before answering. "So, I''m going to test it," Noah said, and June opened her eyes to shoot a worried glance at him. However, she saw the determination radiated by her lover''s gaze and knew that she couldn''t stop him. She could only wish him good luck in the most affectionate way that she knew. Chapter 748: 748. Children Noah condensed part of his mental energy in the form of thick layers that would act as a filter to isolate the will of Heaven and Earth from the "Breath". Then, he activated the first part of the training method. His mental energy spread in the environment and attached itself to the "Breath" that it touched, only to be pulled back toward his mind when he retracted it. Human cultivators would have to use most of their mental energy just to drag a small amount of that "Breath". Instead, Noah could gather all the energy contained in the room since his consciousness was powerful enough. The layers of mental energy exited his mental sphere and surrounded its walls to create a filter for the incoming "Breath". Of course, he had built those layers in the specific way described in the method, and only after his analysis had led to the conclusion that those structures were harmless. The "Breath" struggled to cross the layers, but Noah''s consciousness continued to pull while making sure that the filters remained intact. It took a while, but, in the end, small particles reached the other side of the layers and used his half-transparent figure to cross the walls of his mental sphere. The insides of Noah''s sea of consciousness were quite crowded. There were the five Kesier runes, the Lazy whale''s figure, his saber-shaped rune, the wills for his spells, and a large number of spherical runes that contained primary energy. Noah needed them to keep enlarging his mental sphere, and he could consider himself satisfied with the result that he had reached. He was expecting the arrival of the Heaven and Earth''s will to increase the internal pressure in his mind further. Yet, when those particles entered his mind, he only felt a stream of confused information filling his thoughts. Noah felt momentarily lost as those foreign thoughts tried to take over his mind. It was as if the will were giving confused orders to the energy inside his mind! Yet, he was still a rank 5 mage who had stressed his mind beyond the conventional limits. His brown mental energy surged and isolated the wills that struggled to escape that encirclement. Nevertheless, they didn''t have any real power once they lost their grip on Noah''s energy. The situation inside his sphere stabilized in a matter of instants, and Noah could finally observe the true nature of the will once he reassembled those small particles together. It wasn''t exactly material, but it wasn''t ethereal either. The will was utterly invisible, and it seemed to lack any kind of fabric as it floated in the barrage of mental energy that isolated it. It was as if Noah''s mind couldn''t turn that substance into something that he could see with any of his senses. He could only perceive its peculiar aura. Noah felt a strange sensation whenever the aura tried to affect the functioning of his mental energy. His instincts told him that there was something profound hidden inside that aura, but he didn''t delude himself into thinking that he could uncover its secrets. After all, the will was nothing more than a series of messy and broken laws that he had forcefully taken away from the "Breath" around him. Of course, he had used the version of the method fitting for the level of his mind. He had created the filters with his mental energy, so the purity of the will was quite high. Something on that level would have taken control of any human mage''s mind. ''I still can''t grasp laws.'' Noah thought as he looked at the empty space where the will was. He had yet to express the entirety of his individuality with his centers of power, so the fact that he couldn''t see anything didn''t surprise him. Nevertheless, having the answers to his problems right in front of him made him feel restless. ''How do I reproduce something so pure though¡­'' Noah thought before activating the Divine Deduction technique. The only available approach was to perform countless tests just like he did when he translated the diagrams of his spells. The focus of the procedure though was in imitating the aura and not the actual laws isolated during the absorption. It was simply impossible for him to copy existing laws at his level, and succeeding in doing it could even hurt his individuality. His dantian had to absorb them as his understanding of his individuality naturally increased until he reached a point where he could wield them. Noah had just begun to analyze the aura when the will started to shake and consume its invisible fabric to corrupt the encirclement of mental energy. A battle for the control of the brown sea happened inside Noah''s mind, but he quickly regained complete control. Yet, when he focused again, he discovered that every trace of the will had vanished, consumed in its last attack. "How did it go?" June asked when she saw that Noah had regained his awareness of the outside world. "The will self-destructed before I could begin to study," Noah answered. "It''s not too dangerous, but it''s quite troublesome to contain." After those words, June and Noah started to actively train in the method and exchanging pointers as they kept on living together. Months inevitably passed, and the news that the forces of both worlds were waiting for ultimately arrived: the mating session had given birth to an offspring! The eyes of the members of the other five bloodlines landed on the castle as they waited for an official announcement. The natives of that world based their survival on the number of Elite humans in their ranks. Their society had focused the mating sessions for so many years that they had created specific techniques to improve the procedure. They could forcibly increase the fertility of certain existences for a short period, and they could even shorten the time required for a pregnancy. Also, they had learnt how to increase the chances of passing down their bloodline, even if that wasn''t always effective. Yet, when the official announcement came, even the cultivators of Noah''s world could understand how amazing that outcome was. Danielle, Lorie, and other female members of the Duron Bloodline had given birth to a total of thirty children, and one of them was an Elite Human! Nevertheless, that wasn''t the most surprising part. The six bloodlines were speechless to discover that the other twenty-nine children weren''t Flawed humans but were instead humans like the natives of Noah''s world! Of course, they had their methods to test that, and they had even been perfected through the years. Yet, they still performed them multiple times to be sure of that result. It seemed that the humans from Noah''s world could suppress the appearance of Flawed humans and that immediately became a priority of the six bloodlines. Natives reached the castle and requested the envoys to seal pacts and agreements, and even Noah wasn''t left alone after that discovery. The four factions on the volcano though had understood that the situation was escaping their control and decided to send their leaders forward. Chapter 749: 749. Family The tables had instantly turned. The humans had become the most valuable resource for the six bloodlines! The fact that humans could stop the appearance of Flawed humans was a game-changer for the assets of both worlds. Yet, the consequences of that discovery were still unclear. The rank 5 leaders of Noah''s side made their way toward the castle of the Duron Bloodline as soon as the news reached them. It was clear that the situation could become dangerous with one slight misstep. So, they wanted to be there to defuse any kind of problem. Even their arrival though wasn''t enough to calm the eagerness of the bloodlines who saw in the humans the hope to reconquer their world. However, they still maintained some form of courtesy in their manners out of respect for the power of a society able to open a passage toward other Mortal Lands. Noah and the others saw the representatives of the bloodlines contacting them and inviting them to long meetings. The Elite humans even organized multiple parties in their honor before the leaders arrived. It was evident that they wanted to tempt some of the envoys in the castle to join their mating sessions, and some of their attempts succeeded. Eight out of the ten cultivators in the gaseous stage had failed to resist the offers of the bloodlines and had secluded themselves to join a series of mating sessions. It was hard to refuse the chance to become kings, especially for cultivators who didn''t have many opportunities to reach the higher ranks. As for the other envoys, they managed to resist until the leaders arrived and took control of the negotiations. The threat of four rank 5 cultivators was too great even with many members of the six bloodlines gathered there. It basically showed that Noah''s world could deploy powerful assets whenever it wanted. Noah could finally relax when he saw the leaders interrupting the sixth party organized in their honor. He had it worse than his companions since the Elite humans were making use of their knowledge regarding the hybrids to tempt. Every party and meeting were filled with the peculiar scents that clouded his mind and awakened his instincts. Some of them even targeted humans, but most of the bloodlines'' focus was on him. He was more valuable than his companions since there was a small chance that he could further improve the outcomes of the mating sessions, even if he wasn''t a real ancestor. Yet, Danielle and the others didn''t want to end up on his wrong side and didn''t take back his privileges inside the castle. He still lived with June, and she felt compelled to take care of the unnatural state in which Noah was. Delicacies and strong wine filled the days before the leaders'' arrival, and Noah often regained complete control of his mental faculties only to find an exhausted June next to him. It was needless to say that having such a weakness annoyed him to no end, and the fact that June had to pay for it further aggravated his irritation. Hatred was slowly forming inside him, and he couldn''t allow for that to happen in his foggy state. He couldn''t snap in front of everyone, or the bloodlines would have an excuse to detain him. The arrival of the leaders finally gave him a break, but the secret meetings started at that point. Danielle, followed by representatives of the other bloodlines, would often appear in June''s room to offer resources and other benefits. They wanted Noah to join the mating sessions at all costs. However, he kept on refusing, and the Elite humans felt forced to take a step back with their requests. They began to ask for his semen, but June almost attacked them when she heard that request. That reaction surprised even Noah, who did his best to calm her down. Truth to be told, he didn''t care about his semen, but he felt forced to turn the offer down to honor his lover''s wish. The Elite humans had to take another step back at that point and began to ask for his blood again. Yet, Noah wasn''t interested in what they had to offer. He had already obtained the training method. Also, the assets on the volcano would match the researches of that world in a matter of years. They even discovered the mutagen carried by the Elite beasts, so he had nothing to gain from that secret cooperation. He just wanted to train in peace and deepen his relationship with June since it seemed that he had still a lot to discover about her. The six bloodlines felt forced to stop their offers at that point to find a solution to that issue. They lacked something that could interest Noah, but they were confident that there was something in their inventories that could do the job. "Why did you snap like that?" Noah asked June after the representative went away. She punched him on his torso, but she quickly dug her head in his robe after that. Noah felt confused, and that feeling turned into worry when he felt a wet sensation on his skin. June, the battle maniac ready to challenge him whenever she felt like it, was crying. "What is it?" Noah asked while enveloping her in his embrace. June quickly calmed down and lifted her head after drying her tears on his robe. She seemed utterly vulnerable in that state. "We both had bad luck with our families." June began to speak when her eyes met Noah''s. "I want ours to be different. I want us to be decent parents in the future, and I definitely don''t want those vixens to get their hands on your bloodline. That is my property." Noah felt speechless when he heard her. He had never considered the possibility of having a child since his mind could barely think about something different from his cultivation journey. However, June had been bothered continuously by marriage proposals, and mixing her blood with the Elbas family was something that even her family hoped to see. The idea of creating a family had bothered her for a while, but she would consider doing that only with Noah. Yet, seeing him caring so little about it had triggered all the accumulated grudges that she had managed to suppress until then. "It is your property," Noah said while touching her forehead with his. "Forgive me." Simple words couldn''t explain the warmth that he felt at that moment. Noah felt as if a new desire was forming inside him as he and June remained silent in that embrace. It was a desire to create something with her and for her. June shook her head and revealed a slight smile as she reached for his lips, but an earthquake suddenly filled the castle and created cracks on its walls. Then, a shout resounded from the cracks and spread in the many rooms habited by the envoys. "Don''t you dare to touch me again!" Chapter 750: 750. Scheme The shout came from one of the rooms next to June''s and belonged to Lix Elbas! Another tremor followed the shout and small cracks spread on the floor of June''s room too. It was evident that a battle was happening nearby, but that wasn''t Noah''s biggest worry. In his mind, he could only think about the fact that he was still in June''s room! Noah quickly went for the wall next to him and knocked, hoping that the guard was still in the secret passage. However, there was no response from the other side. Noah cursed in his mind and spread his consciousness at that point. The walls usually blocked the mental energy, but the cracks allowed him to reach the corridor with his mind. Then, black flames surrounded his figure and made him reappear outside of June''s room but at some distance from it. A pair of eyes landed on his figure when he came out of the Warp spell, and Noah turned only to see a confused Faith looking at him. She had become used to his messy appearance by then, but she didn''t understand why he had used a spell to reach the corridor. June came out of her room too, and Faith''s gaze turned on her. She saw how even June''s robe was quite untidy, but that wasn''t strange since the shout had been too sudden. However, when she added Noah''s peculiar usage of his spell and her messy aspect, she couldn''t help but think that they were connected in some way. Also, she was aware that the two of them had a past and had spent a long time together during the crisis. Heroic cultivators weren''t stupid, and both June and Noah knew that Faith had noticed that something was off. Yet, the situation was too chaotic, and Faith didn''t find the chance to question them since more cultivators came out of their rooms and focused their attention on Lix''s place. Another tremor swept the area, and Lix came out of his room in a hurry only to discover that the other envoys were looking at him. He was almost naked, and there was blood on his hands. Also, his mind seemed a mess since his mental energy spread randomly in every direction. It was as if he wasn''t in control of himself. "I-I didn''t mean to," Lix said in a broken tone, and his expression became even uglier when he noticed his bloodied hands. His reaction made the others confused. It was evident that something strange had happened in his room. "My bloodline gives you a home, and you repay it by killing a guard!" Lorie said as she came out of Lix''s room. She was completely naked, but the bloodied corpse of a Flawed human covered her front as she carried it in the corridor. The guard wasn''t a heroic cultivator, but that act was still troublesome to handle for the forces of Noah''s world. "It''s clear that something strange has happened." Cecil''s voice resounded in the corridor, and the four leaders soon appeared behind the envoys. "Indeed," Danielle''s voice spread in the corridor too, "And the Duron Bloodline will uncover the truth." The representatives of the six bloodlines arrived from the other side and stopped when they reached Lorie. There were three rank 5 cultivators in their group and eight more in the fourth rank. The tension began to build as both sides waited in silence for someone to make a move. ''They can only benefit from this chaos.'' Noah thought as he moved his gaze between Lix and the Elite humans. He didn''t like the Royal, but killing a guard while being inside the castle was too stupid even for the most spoiled noble. The six bloodlines had clearly planned that situation to gain some leverage on Noah''s forces. Sacrificing a Flawed human that wasn''t even in the heroic ranks was just a small price to pay to gain a political advantage over the foreign assets. After all, the possibility of stopping the appearance of Flawed humans was too appealing for them. They couldn''t just leave that decision in the hands of cultivators capable of opening portals toward another world. They would never have the upper hand against that kind of force. However, understanding the truth was pointless if there was no way to prove it. Just like Noah, with the attack at the Balvan family, the leaders were now in a situation where the only evident fact was that Lix had killed a guard. "We''ll interrogate him privately," Danielle said. "No, you won''t," Cecil replied. "We agree to collaborate, but we can''t let you handle this situation on your own." Elder Austin added. The eight cultivators in the gaseous stage who had chosen to join the mating sessions didn''t appear. So, the leaders were reasonably sure that they would lose Lix too if they let the bloodlines take him. That wasn''t a matter that could be handled if they focused on the differences between their factions. It was a situation that needed their full cooperation if they wanted to prevent giving the Elite humans the chance to restore their former power. "Enough with words," Florent said as he neared Lix to seize him. "Don''t you dare!" Cecil sprinted and appeared right in front of the Royal and stopped Florent''s arm from reaching him. "This is our home!" Lorie said as her aura spread in the environment, and "Breath" began to converge in her position. The others prepared themselves for the imminent battle too, and Noah didn''t hesitate to wield his sabers. He had noticed how the Elite humans glanced at him from time to time during their heated discussion, and that wasn''t a natural occurrence. There were four rank 5 cultivators in front of them, but they still moved their focus on him for brief moments. His instincts were telling him that he was in danger. The situation was too tense, and even the slightest misinterpretation of a gesture could set it off. Lorie let go of the guard''s corpse, and Cecil used his mental energy to disperse the "Breath" that had accumulated around her. Danielle didn''t like that and unfolded her consciousness in an attempt to suppress everyone in the corridor. Florent acted too, and he pulled to free his arm from Cecil''s grasp. Those small actions forced all the other cultivators on the scene to act. The Elite humans used their mental energy to take control of the "Breath" in the environment and create spells that targeted the foreigners. The leaders promptly used their methods to disperse those weak attacks. The shockwaves released from the actions of the rank 5 cultivators affected the beings in the fourth rank on the scene that deployed more spells to defend against those natural repercussions. The walls and floor of the corridor began to fall apart, even if both forces were trying their best to hold back. They both hoped to collaborate, and killing any of their crucial assets would forever hinder that outcome. Yet, dozens of Flawed humans in the fourth rank arrived in the corridor at that point. Chapter 751: 751. Surrender The arrival of the Flawed humans put the forces of Noah''s world in a complicated situation. It wasn''t a matter of sheer power. Noah''s side counted four rank 5 cultivators and a hybrid with a rank 5 sea of consciousness. Instead, the Elite human''s team had only three rank 5 cultivators. There was a significant difference in the number of assets in the fourth rank. Still, that didn''t matter too much when there were beings on a higher level involved. Yet, that difference in the number of assets was what was preventing the leaders from unleashing their full might. Power couldn''t be the answer in their situation. An offensive fueled by the whole might of their cultivation level would inevitably result in countless casualties, especially in that closed area. It would be different if the portal could already withstand existences in the sixth rank, but, unfortunately for them, it was hard to improve such a miraculous inscribed item. It soon became clear that the assets from Noah''s world had only two options in front of them: Fight and endanger their relationship with the natives or surrender and rely on the wits of the six bloodlines. Noah observed the changes in his leaders'' aura as his cold, reptilian eyes swept the corridor to analyze the situation. He saw how the cultivators meant to guide the weaker assets began to retract their consciousness and disperse their focus. Helplessness started to mount inside him, but that feeling soon vanished when he sensed that the representatives of the bloodlines shot another series of glances in his direction. His hybrid status was the most appealing resource in the Elite human''s eyes. He knew that the negotiations for his eventual release would succeed only when the bloodlines had obtained everything they wanted from his body. "We wish for peaceful cooperation." Cecil was the first to give voice to that apparent trend. The leaders were taking a step back, and Noah began to muster his focus as one of his biggest fears took form. "We will seize the rank 4 cultivators for the moment," Florent said. "We will treat them fairly as we set the foundation for a new deal." Hesitation and struggle appeared on the leaders'' expressions, but they kept their gazes fixed on the Elite humans even when their underlings shot questioning gazes at them. A tinge of shame appeared inside the rank 5 cultivators when they silently accepted that they couldn''t preserve peace without momentarily giving up their pride. They were sacrificing their envoys to make up for their weakness. In their minds, allowing the bloodlines to keep some of their rank 4 cultivators for a few months was a reasonable price to pay to avoid a war. After all, they would be forced to join mating sessions in the worst-case scenario, which wasn''t even close to being a form of torture. Also, the situation would change once the portal became able to endure the might of rank 6 beings. The table would turn once again at that point, and they would force the Elite humans to see them as their equals, or even more. Yet, such plans didn''t always work in the way they wanted, especially when they were unaware of certain secret transactions. Noah didn''t care about cooperating with that world. He was interested in many of its features, but he wasn''t willing to put his existence at risk because of his greed. He had already obtained the key to command the primary energy without the need for laws, so he considered his mission completed. His priority now was to avoid ending in the bloodlines'' grasp, and he didn''t mind jeopardizing the peaceful intentions of his leaders to reach that result. "I can''t end up in chains," Noah said to Elder Austin through his consciousness. The leader of his faction was initially confused by his sudden mental message, but the situation was impossible to stop now. Cecil nodded, and Danielle gestured to the Flawed humans to step forward and seize the envoys in the fourth rank. Noah''s companions could only sigh and let those foreign forces surround them and lead them toward deeper parts of the castle. They didn''t even resist since their leaders had willingly accepted that outcome. However, when five rank 4 Flawed humans were about to reach for Noah, a tremor spread in the entirety of the castle, and the sound of falling boulders filled the corridor. Everything had happened so quickly that even the rank 5 cultivators on the scene felt surprised to see that a large and dark body had appeared in the area. Its form was unclear, but it was so huge that the walls of the corridor had crumbled during its sudden appearance. Also, the surprise of the cultivators on both sides could only increase when they understood that the shape belonged to a massive magical beast. Their surprise then became disbelief when they recognized that it was a creature in the fifth rank! The cultivators of both worlds immediately attacked the beast, and the castle couldn''t help but crumble under the shockwaves released by the rank 5 cultivators. Of course, the weaker assets had retreated as soon as they noticed the power of the creature. They were still forced to focus on their seas of consciousness to endure the battle on the higher ranks, but the fight didn''t endanger their lives. Yet, the beast disappeared before all the attacks managed to land on its body, and revealed another astonishing detail: Its sudden appearance didn''t kill any of the Flawed humans nearby! The creature had simply pushed them back in a way that could even be described as gentle. Also, they had strong bodies, so they only suffered some minor injuries. Nevertheless, the disappearance of the massive creature revealed something that everyone on the scene had been to busy to notice: Noah had disappeared, and there was no trace of him anywhere. The Elite humans began to panic and shouted orders to their underlings. Still, Elder Austin arrived in front of them and deployed his consciousness, suppressing all the Flawed humans floating in the crumbled corridor. "What is the meaning of your actions?" Danielle asked as her eyes darted between the many cracks in the walls next to them. She was searching for Noah with both her sight and mental energy, but Elder Austin was obstructing her. "The Prince didn''t want to be in chains." Elder Austin answered, and the Elite humans couldn''t believe that he was risking their cooperation for that simple reason. Noah was a prodigy, but he was only a rank 4 cultivator. The representatives of the bloodlines couldn''t understand why Elder Austin was willing to go so far just to prevent his arrest. Nevertheless, Florent shouted something that forced Elder Austin to contain a laugh. "The two women have disappeared too!" Chapter 752: 752. Wilderness By the time the cultivators realized what had happened during the appearance of the massive beast, Noah had already exited the dome. Escaping the castle had been incredibly easy. Most of the forces in the heroic ranks had gathered in the corridor, and the materials that made its walls blocked the mental energy. Also, the corrosive smoke of his partial Demonic Form had allowed him to create a path through the walls and the dome with a few simple slashes. The weakness of that society was that it built everything to fend off magical beasts, but the offensive of a cultivator could pierce its defensive measures quite easily. Noah was even a peculiar being that could rely on all his centers of power to express his might. Of course, the awful smell that targeted the magical beasts still annoyed him, but he could destroy it quickly with his individuality. His feelings fueled his destruction, and the continuous exposure to the bloodlines'' scents had made him exceptionally mindful of their power. Yet, his survival instinct when it came to those smells had also improved in those months. He could now sense their arrival before they could even get near his body. Noah flew high in the sky as he exited the dome and activated the Dark Cover spell as he sped in the direction of the defensive walls of the region. He had no intention of returning to the volcano, not for the time being, at least. He had made sure that his Blood Companion didn''t kill anyone, but he didn''t know how the situation was evolving inside the castle. Nevertheless, it was better to ask for forgiveness in a safe place rather than being innocent but in chains. If he returned to the volcano, there was a chance that the leaders would force him to become a prisoner to make up for his sudden escape. However, he could altogether avoid any form of punishment if he just waited for his world to deploy more assets in those Mortal Lands. Meanwhile, he could just train in the wilderness outside the defensive walls, which he was sure wouldn''t have any trace of the six bloodlines. ''They can handle their political matters,'' Noah thought as he flew undisturbed in the sky, ''I''ll just focus on learning their training method and gathering powerful magical beasts.'' It wasn''t his first time alone, and he probably was the only existence in both worlds that could feel confident in surviving in wilderness ruled by Elite beasts. Most of the powerful assets of that world were either inside the castle or in the other regions, so he was reasonably sure that no one would be able to follow him. Yet, he felt incredibly surprised when he sensed that two presences had appeared behind him and were catching up with his position. Noah''s first instinct was to escape. Those existences were faster than him, which meant that their cultivation level had to be higher than his. However, his endurance was terrific, and he had countless methods that could help him reaching the lands outside of the human domain before they managed to catch him. His eyes widened though when he saw the figures that were reaching him. It wasn''t hard to recognize them. They belonged to two women that he knew far too well. One of them was his lover, while the other was the most beautiful woman that he had ever seen. June and Faith stopped right before him and continued to fly in a straight line while following his trajectory. Noah noticed how both of them held a cracked crystal in their grasp. Those were the rank 5 talismans that the leaders had given them before their mission, and their broken state explained how they had managed to catch up with Noah. Of course, Noah didn''t stop to chat in that situation, but his flying speed was higher than his followers. He was leaving them behind, which created an issue that he couldn''t ignore: They were leaving a trail that led straight to him! Also, they weren''t using any cloaking spell or device, which was telling every existence in the heroic ranks where he was. Then, June was right behind him, and he didn''t even want to think about what she would experience if she were captured after her escape. ''To think that Faith might work as an alibi.'' Noah thought before slowing down to let the two women catch up. Both of them opened their mouths to speak. They probably wanted to explain their action or give him some ideas on how to handle the situation. However, Noah had already decided, and he didn''t need to hear anything until he reached a safe place. Noah grabbed both women from their robes and covered them with his consciousness before kicking the air under his feet. He couldn''t hide June and Faith''s presence, but he could fly so fast that no one would be able to catch up with them due to his advantage. Shockwaves spread in the sky as the Shadow Sprint martial art pushed the three of them at a speed that shouldn''t be achievable by rank 4 cultivators. Faith and June couldn''t even muster the strength to complain under the pressure generated by Noah''s speed, and only his mental energy was preventing their bodies from being injured. Noah pierced the clouds as he flew in a straight line toward the defensive walls. The journey would typically take one month if he used his average speed, but he managed to exit the human domain in only two weeks thanks to the continuous activation of his martial art. Of course, he had to alternate between his dantian and Liquid Dantian to travel for so long without exhausting himself, and he even had to stop using the martial art from time to time. Yet, he managed to halve the time required to exit that region with that method. As for the two women that he carried along with him, he barely noticed their weight. Noah didn''t stop after he crossed the defensive walls and continued to use that method to travel deep into the beasts'' territory, trying to avoid any powerful creature that he sensed along the way. Faith began to struggle when she saw that Noah wasn''t going back to the volcano, but she quickly quieted down when she sensed the aura protecting her suddenly turning hostile. Then, after they flew in that way for another month, Noah decided that they had put enough distance with the bloodlines and landed in a forest filled by peculiar trees with large, blue leaves. Noah threw both women on the ground and wielded his sabers without hesitation. He had already considered the possibility of killing Faith along the way, but he felt forced to suppress that thought because June was with her too. Faith could act as a witness and report the fact that there wasn''t any secret relationship going on. After all, she had already defended Noah once. Nevertheless, he still had a fa?ade to maintain, even if he was glad that June hadn''t remained in the Elite human''s grasp. Chapter 753: 753. Experience June wore a cold expression when Noah neared her and Faith while wielding his sabers. She had to act as if she was anxious about the impending danger. However, Faith simply smiled before surprising both Noah and June with her words. "You are together, right?" Silence fell in the area at her words. Noah had already planned what he had to ask and how to handle their life in the wilderness. Still, all of that vanished at her question. Instead, he reacted by showing an even colder aura that enveloped her and threatened to shatter her mental sphere. Faith expected that kind of reaction and continued to smile while revealing a crystal and a notebook held tightly in her grasp. Both Noah and June recognized those items. The crystal was one of the rank 5 talismans given to their group before the mission in the castle, and the other was the object that listed the discoveries made by their factions. Her simple gesture hid the threat to reveal what she had just said to almost all the cultivators in the new world. Noah stopped his tracks when he understood her intentions. His mind worked at full speed to see if there was a way out of that situation, but he couldn''t find anything even when he activated the Divine Deduction technique. The talisman would defend her against his first attack, and the notebook was unique too. It was impossible to stop the information from reaching the other items of the same kind at his current level. "What exactly are you trying to achieve?" Noah asked without withdrawing his aura. He could understand that Faith had picked up some clues about his relationship with June, but her actions didn''t make any sense. There wasn''t much that she could obtain, even if he was to admit the truth. A stern expression replaced Faith''s smile, but she didn''t move her gaze away from Noah as she explained, "My peace is worthless without experience." "Just go and gather experience then," Noah replied, "Don''t threaten others over hunches." Noah didn''t reveal anything even in that situation, but he had to admit that Faith had cornered him. No matter what he said, she had the upper hand. "My doubts first appeared in the new continent, when I discovered that June wasn''t exactly a docile woman." Faith began to explain. "The reports about her character didn''t match her actions when you took her hostage," Faith said, "And the same applies to the recent escape." "She understands the difference in our power," Noah replied, "I can''t say the same for you." Faith''s smile reappeared when she heard that threat, but it seemed that she had more to say on the matter. "I thought that she was like me at the beginning." She said, "Continuously bothered by men that didn''t even try to understand her. I thought that she just wanted to cultivate in peace, but I''ve noticed something strange since we reached the castle." Noah''s expression didn''t reveal anything during her speech. Her words didn''t even create the slightest tremor in his aura. "She seemed happier." Faith concluded. Silence fell once again in the area as the stalemate continued. "So?" Noah said at some point. He had to admit that Faith''s clues were on point, but he still didn''t understand what her goal was. "I had initially thought that she was just happy to speak with me, but everything became obvious when I saw you two in the corridor," Faith''s smile became wider before her final question, "Why did you use a spell to come out of your room?" It was evident that she had made her mind about a matter that she had started to doubt since the crisis with the Winged beasts. Yet, Noah didn''t care about her hypotheses. He was only interested in what she was hoping to gain by revealing all of that. Noah dispersed his aura and stored his sabers at that point. Continuing to threaten her would just confirm her ideas. "Do what you want," Noah said, "Gossips can''t hurt my reputation, and the Royals already hate me." "Ok then." Faith said as she began to insert her mental energy in the inscribed notebook. Of course, Noah couldn''t just let her spread that information. He shot directly toward Faith with the fingers of his left hand arched to form something similar to a claw. Yet, he had to stop his tracks again when he saw that she had lifted the defensive talisman right in the trajectory of his attack. The oath that prevented internal battles had vanished since the mission inside the castle was over, but she had long since predicted his attack. "Understand this," Noah began to speak with a voice that resembled a growl, "It doesn''t matter what you hope to gain from this situation or how you plan to handle the consequences to your actions. It won''t end well for you." That was a pure and honest threat, and Noah didn''t mind exposing the truth with that gesture since Faith wasn''t giving him any other choice. In the worst case, he would just kill her and live in the wilderness with June until his power reached a satisfying level. However, Faith managed to surprise him once again with her words, "I just want to learn your story. In my mind, I still owe you since the events with the Winged beasts." Her aura conveyed her honesty, and Noah couldn''t help but retract his hand while taking a few steps back when he heard that. Faith had literally threatened the strongest cultivator of her generation to deepen her individuality, and she had done that without showing the slightest trace of fear. She was still far away from the determination showed by Noah and June through their lives, but both of them started to feel some respect for a cultivator willing to go so far to improve. Then, Noah felt June standing up and reaching for him. Her left hand went for his long hair, and she used the right one to move his head in the trajectory of her lips. The two of them exchanged a long kiss right in front of Faith, and the latter couldn''t help but reveal an excited smile at that sight. "She is quite nice, "June murmured when their lips separated, "And we can always kill her if she betrays us." Noah could only give up at that point, "Ok, but you''ll tell the story." June sat next to Faith and started to tell her how their relationship had begun. She even took a few jugs of wine from her space-ring to make that situation more enjoyable. Noah saw how June seemed happy to share an essential part of her life with Faith. Removing the secrecy from her relationship made her feel good. It was as if it had just become more real. Meanwhile, Noah limited himself to inspect the area. Those blue leaves were quite strange and seemed to have some kind of tranquilizing effect when he neared them. By the time June had finished her story, the three of them had received a message from the leaders of their factions. Chapter 754: 754. Friend The trio was surprised to discover that the leaders didn''t condemn their escape. Actually, they even praised the three of them for their bold move. The rank 5 cultivators weren''t happy to submit to a power that they considered inferior. So, seeing that three rank 4 cultivators had successfully defied the orders of the six bloodlines created a sense of satisfaction inside them. Of course, they had to wait for the situation inside the castle to stabilize before contacting the trio. The Elite humans were particularly mad, and the leaders had to deal with those angry cultivators for two entire weeks before concluding the negotiations. It wasn''t that they couldn''t contact Noah and the others before. They simply didn''t want to do that to protect the trio. June had been in the target of the Royals for decades, and Faith was commonly known as one of the most beautiful women of their world other than a talent. Their factions didn''t want to leave their safety in the hands of the Elite humans. They weren''t too worried about the mating sessions. They had learnt by then that the six bloodlines were mainly interested in the alien men since their women had a higher chance of passing down their improved features. Yet, the risk still existed, especially since both women didn''t lack beauty. Also, the leaders knew that something had gone wrong with Lix, and they would rather not see their cultivators being controlled through foreign drugs or similar. The rank 5 cultivators from Noah''s world managed to appease the anger of the Elite humans by offering other rank 4 cultivators for their mating sessions. With six bloodlines involved, the number of assets deployed in the new world would increase drastically. Still, the forces on the other side of the portal had already begun to take precautions against the foreign drugs. Also, the bloodlines felt forced to continue trading resources for those assets since they were now competing against each other to obtain the highest number of humans. Nevertheless, even that newfound agreement didn''t set free the rank 4 cultivators imprisoned after Lix''s action. It would take the arrival of a more potent asset to force the Elite human''s hands in that matter. Only Noah and June could understand how angry the bloodlines really were. Losing their hope to recreate their worshiped ancestor was a significant blow on their pride, and they weren''t hesitating to vent that feeling on their factions. In the end, they agreed to remain in the wilderness for now. In that way, the bloodlines wouldn''t have any leverage over them, and the leaders could keep some of their pride. "I never thought that the bane of the Elbas family could be so sweet with his lover." Faith said when they finished their conversation with the leaders. She was giggling, and her cheeks were slightly red. It was evident that she liked what June had told her. On the other hand, June simply shrugged her shoulders. She didn''t reveal too much, and she didn''t even describe their most intimate moments. Yet, she had told Faith some of the anecdotes that made her laugh too when she compared the cold youth that she had met in the academy to how Noah was in their own time. ''I guess she has a friend now,'' Noah thought as he heaved a helpless sigh, ''She can be considered normal at least.'' Noah compared Faith to the people that he viewed as friends. The cold expressions of Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon appeared in his mind, but he quickly suppressed those images when he tried to match them to Faith''s happy face. They simply belonged to two different worlds. "Let me be clear," Noah said while crouching in front of Faith, "I still think that it would be safer to kill you." Faith stopped giggling and replied, "Even if that meant removing the only friend that can keep your lover company while you are gone?" June stabbed her spear on the trunk behind Faith and spoke, "Do you think that I won''t be able to endure it?" Faith didn''t expect June''s sudden reaction, but a tinge of anger appeared in her expression before she gave voice to her feelings, "I''m saying that you shouldn''t!" Faith''s words left both Noah and June speechless. The two of them had lived among people that wanted to exploit them or had hidden intentions for so long that they failed to recognize when someone had good intentions. Of course, Faith had something to gain from too. She had always lacked normal relationships, and she needed them to build a stable foundation for her individuality. She needed to experience life outside the protection of the Council to understand if her path toward her peace and calmness was right. Yet, the same applied to June, even if her situation was worse than Faith. She was different from Noah, who had managed to find an organization where he could be himself. She still lived among the nobles and the Royals, where she had to pretend every day to be someone else. The years spent in solitude that she could escape only when Noah managed to find a path toward her weighed on her mind. That didn''t mean that June''s determination was fading or that she was about to give up on the offers of the Elbas family. Still, it was a situation that was far from ideal. Noah understood how Faith could reach her out in the open due to their favorable position. They might be able to set up meetings and sparring sessions where June wouldn''t have to pretend. He did not doubt that June would be able to endure on her own. However, just as Faith said, that didn''t mean that she should do it. Leaving Faith alive increased the risk of exposing his relationship with June slightly, but he was willing to take it if it benefitted his lover. Noah felt like heaving another tired sigh, but he suppressed it to ask a question. "So, did you gain something from our story?" "Your love is quite poetic," Faith said, "You both know that your journey won''t allow you to stay together until you reach the peak. Yet, you are unwilling to let go of your feelings, and you snatch these few periods together just to find small moments of peace." June''s story didn''t involve their individualities nor their vows, but Faith could understand how the political situation in the other world would force their relationship to evolve. "You have my complete support!" Faith exclaimed as she took both Noah''s and June''s hands in her grasp, "Just, be sure to give me some nice detail from time to time." Faith winked toward June when she said that, and Noah could just pretend not to see that gesture. Once they made their situation clear, the three of them began to explore the forest with Noah relying on his enhanced awareness to look for any danger. Nevertheless, it seemed that the calming properties of the leaves scared away many powerful magical beasts, which made the area quite safe and perfect to resume their training. Chapter 755: 755. Discoveries Noah, June, and Faith resumed their training in the method acquired from the Duron Bloodline. Faith improved faster than the couple since her existence didn''t commit any major crime against Heaven and Earth. However, even she met some issues along the way. She had overcome the three Tribulations, which was already an act of defiance even if they were rules of the world. She was on the path to becoming an entity outside of the Heaven and Earth''s domain, just like every heroic cultivator. So, the will absorbed with the training method self-destructed in her mental sphere too. It only lasted longer in that foreign environment. Yet, the three of them weren''t in a hurry, and they didn''t want to risk an injury because of their eagerness to wield that new power. The two worlds were momentarily at peace, and the trio was outside of the bloodlines'' domain. There wasn''t anything left to do other than wait for more troops to cross the portal. Deploying more troops though was a complicated matter, and the capacity of the portal wasn''t the only problem in that topic. King Elbas was doing his best to improve the passage as fast as he could, but there were political situations in the other world that the four forces couldn''t just ignore. Sending more cultivators in the new Mortal Lands would leave their borders undefended. That slowed down the creation of agreements concerning the number of assets to deploy. After all, the Hive had almost reached its limit after it sent more rank 4 assets in the mating sessions. Its forces consisted only of about seventy rank 4 cultivators and seven entities in the fifth rank. The width of its territory was almost half that of the three big nations, but those factions had far more available troops even with larger domains. The Hive was surely growing at an unbelievable speed. Still, it would take time to make it reach a point where it could feel confident in sending more heroic assets through the portal. The other nations didn''t want to see their defenses becoming weaker either, which ended up slowing down the arrivals of new troops further. Of course, Noah didn''t care about the political matters between the four factions, and June seemed to feel the same way. They were finally together in a place where they could train and love each other in the open. An unknown world was in front of them too, and they could explore it without restrictions. To put it simply, they weren''t so eager to go back to their factions. Faith seemed to share that feeling since she adapted to the new environment rather quickly. She would spend a large part of her time training, but she would ask June for a spar from time to time. Noah would watch their battles from time to time, but he found himself quite busy in that period. He often explored the areas around the forest to find powerful magical beasts to hunt, and he consumed a lot of time absorbing Heaven and Earth''s will since it kept on self-destructing when it entered his mind. The Divine Deduction technique helped him gathering information, but his improvements were still slow since he never managed to contain the will for long periods. He often spent intimate moments with June too. The two of them would just leave for deeper parts of the forest at random moments, and Faith would giggle every time she saw that happening. All in all, Noah and June had never experienced a happier period in their lives. The list containing the discoveries made by the assets on the volcano enlarged as the researches continued and the bloodlines provided more reports. Noah even added a few lines in that list as he kept on hunting and exploring. His discoveries were obviously linked to the fauna and layout of that world, and Noah didn''t feel like keeping them for himself since the mutagen inside the Elite beasts had already been found. It was better to give as many accurate reports as he could before the experts of the other factions reached the same conclusions. That would improve his value as an expert and allow the Hive to obtain discounts on eventual drugs and items that made use of his discoveries. His efforts helped in enlarging the map of the new world and in classifying the mutated species there. His experiments with the mutagen allowed him to find a peculiar radiation in the behavior of the primary energy that carried it. His continuous interaction with the random laws contained inside Heaven and Earth''s will had made him quite sensitive to their presence. That discovery allowed the experts in the volcano to replicate that radiation and create items able to detect Elite beasts. The cultivators wouldn''t have to test the strength of the creatures anymore to understand if they had a fake dantian. Also, Noah noticed an intense aggression in how the mutagen targeted his dantian and forced the growth of a similar organ in the ordinary beasts. Everything seemed to point toward the conclusion that the mutagen could solve the inborn issue of the Flawed humans. Still, the experiments of the ancestors had failed according to the records obtained from the Duron Bloodline. The experts from Noah''s world knew that, but they were far more advanced when it came to most aspects of the cultivation world. The natives were aware of the properties of many materials in their world, and they had spent centuries learning how to make them express their full potential. Yet, Noah''s world had various inscription methods that could be applied even in fields like alchemy, which didn''t strictly require them. The experts took note of the mutagen''s aggression too, but that behavior came from the laws inside it. There was a need for heroic cultivators on a far higher level to study it. Months passed like that, with the three of them contributing to the development of their world while still focusing on their power. The new mating sessions eventually gave birth to more children. No Elite humans appeared at that time, but there weren''t even Flawed humans in the more than forty newborns. The numbers though didn''t dishearten the bloodlines since they knew how small the chances actually were to produce humans like them. Nevertheless, it was now clear that they could completely overcome the biggest weakness of their society. They just needed time for the new generations to replace all the Flawed humans, which would eventually disappear as that trend continued. Even years passed eventually, and the trio began to venture deeper into the beasts'' territory since it was still dangerous to return to the volcano. Their goal was to find the remains of the past civilizations when the ancestors were still ruling those Mortal Lands. They hoped to gain more from the dead since the living didn''t want to disclose their secrets. Chapter 756: 756. Drawing The bloodlines had never disclosed the actual timeline of their society. They limited themselves to reveal the existence of the ancestors and that they had been forced to retreat when the Heaven Tribulation killed them. Noah and the others knew that those events had probably happened millennia in the past, but the structures of the natives were amazing in fending off magical beasts. There was a chance that they hid secrets that the Elite cultivators didn''t want to reveal and that they didn''t bother to retrieve during their escape. Of course, the trio didn''t have high hopes for that mission, but they felt like exploring the world after spending almost three years in the area with the blue forest. There wasn''t much left to discover and catalog in that territory, so they decided that it was time to move. Each of them had their reasons to explore too. Noah wanted to find more rank 5 magical beasts to hunt since his breakthrough to the middle tier was drawing near, and Faith wanted to experience the life of a lone cultivator without the protection of the Council. As for June, her centers of power were improving at high speed since she began to live in the wilderness. She could spend all the time that she wanted with her lover, and spar with Faith to fuel her battle intent. Also, she could reveal her real character in her daily life, which was something that she had never been able to do inside her family and with the Royals around her. Faith had benefitted from that environment too. Having a friend that she could treat as her equal made her experience feelings that she didn''t think existed. Even Noah''s presence had contributed to her improvements since he was the only man that didn''t seem affected by her beauty. He had eyes only for June, and his aura changed too when he was with her. The sharp coldness that usually surrounded him became a violent gale that didn''t radiate any dangerous sensation. Instead, it expressed a perpetual mutation. The truth behind Noah''s aura was linked to his individuality, but he didn''t completely understand the changes happening inside him either. He knew that he was happy. His family was dead, he was improving steadily, and he could spend his daily life with the woman that he loved. Yet, his current happiness was different from that felt whenever he had a breakthrough or managed to improve his power drastically. ''Destruction and creation, coldness and warmth,'' Noah thought as he walked in front of the two women in his group, ''My feelings take different shapes according to which part of my individuality fuels them.'' There was a duality inside him that his recent period spent with June had helped in enhancing. The quiet and peaceful happiness that he felt in those years was different from the avid and violent one felt when he was a lone cultivator. ''I''m a complex existence due to my hybrid status and my transmigration,'' Noah''s mind continued to wander, ''But I''m still one. These parts of me shouldn''t be separated so clearly.'' He was different from other heroic cultivators since he could study his individuality retroactively. However, that made him advance so quickly that he had disregarded the natural harmony that his existence should have. That was a common issue when it came to Noah, but it was a problem that he was slowly fixing as his understanding improved. "We should manage to snatch more years since our factions find an agreement only every six months," June said as she wrapped her arm around Noah''s waist and laid her head over his shoulder. "To think that we would have to thank the same political issues that keep us separated," Noah said as he embraced her too. Faith had become used to those scenes by then, but she giggled anyway when she saw the couple walking embraced in those unknown territories. "Unluckily, we have a third wheel," June said when she heard Faith''s laugh. "You have yet to pierce this third wheel''s defenses." Faith replied. "Hmph," June snorted, "We never go all out, and you barely attack. I wonder who would really win in that scenario." Her aura started to radiate battle intent as her mind imagined a deadly battle against her friend, but Faith quickly reached for her and pulled the sleeve of her free arm. "You are doing it again!" Faith exclaimed, "Are you sure that you want to spend your life with this maniac?" Her question was for Noah, who caressed June hair before answering in a dull tone. "She has stabbed my shoulder in one of our first meetings. Her nature has never been a secret to me or anyone." "I can''t imagine you being on her same level," Faith said as curiosity rose inside her. "I wasn''t," June said, "He was simply holding back to hide his spells." The memories of their battle in the air-ship made Noah and June feel warm when they saw how their relationship had evolved through the years. Yet, Noah suddenly noticed something and felt forced to escape June''s embrace to investigate the areas in front of them. Noah flew in the air and followed the dangerous sensation that his body had noticed. His consciousness expanded and focused in the territory ahead, where he discovered that a pack of White lions had created their lair next to a series of debris. Noah didn''t need any item to understand that the lions were Elite beasts, and he couldn''t help but smile when he sensed that their leader had a power in the lower tier of the fifth rank. Also, the debris hinted to something built by humans, even if there wasn''t much left in that area. The smell that fended off magical beasts had mostly vanished too, which was why the White lions could live so close to them. Noah warned Faith and June before launching himself against the rank 5 beast. The White lions weren''t weak. Their mane had abilities similar to Noah''s lungs since it absorbed the sunlight and used it to fuel powerful white beams. However, even those Elite beasts of the light element couldn''t do anything against Noah''s prowess, especially since his body had begun to near the limits of the lower tier. Noah stored everything in his space-ring when the battle was over, and he even gathered the debris to give them to the Hive when he returned to the volcano. As he expected, he didn''t find anything valuable among those old remains. Still, when the area was clear, he noticed a series of lines on the terrain that radiated a feeling that didn''t match the environment. Noah soon understood that the lines were, in fact, a drawing, and he shot in the sky to obtain a complete view. The images were a bit confused since a lot of lines had disappeared due to the passage of time. Nevertheless, he recognized a Flying snake with a human face among them. Chapter 757: 757. Change The drawing wasn''t exactly precise, but Noah couldn''t be mistaken about what he was seeing. The vegetation that had grown there through the years and the influence of the magical beasts had modified that environment, altering the original shape of those lines. Yet, some of them had survived the passage of time and the natural influences, leaving a few distinct images that anyone could see. Noah wasn''t satisfied with just that drawing. He dived back on the ground and began to uproot any plant in the area that featured those basic inscriptions. More lines appeared as he scanned the terrain. They carried a faint sense of durability, which had mostly faded since the ancestors had probably inscribed them a while back. Noah could see how they appeared to be part of a large drawing meant to remain hidden under the structure that had occupied that territory. ''Pieces of history covered by the natives with their buildings.'' Noah thought as the entirety of that ruined drawing unfolded in his vision. Of course, that was purely hypothetical. Noah couldn''t be sure about the origin of those lines, nor why the ruins of what appeared to be a castle covered them. Yet, they depicted mysterious images that had to mean something when coupled with the strangeness of that world. Noah managed to find more almost complete figures when he uncovered the entirety of the remaining lines. He found more drawings depicting strange hybrids that had physical features belonging to both the human and that beasts'' world. He saw a human shape with a fish''s head, a strange octopus that had arms instead of tentacles, and a creepy wolf that had three human skulls. ''This doesn''t make any sense.'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as he kept on floating above the drawing. He knew that the ancestors were hybrid-like beings, but those images hinted to something completely different. ''Such lifeforms can''t appear naturally,'' Noah thought, ''Or can they?'' Noah didn''t know what to believe anymore. The new Mortal Lands opened him to the possibilities that there were other types of humans and beasts and that species that resembled hybrids had appeared naturally. So, he didn''t have the confidence in assuming that such imperfect creatures couldn''t appear on their own. June and Faith arrived after they understood that something was wrong, and they felt his same amazement when they saw the drawings. "What do you think?" June asked as she turned to look at Noah. She could immediately find a connection between those images and Noah''s peculiar body since she knew about its features. Also, she had seen how the bloodlines desired him. There had to be a connection between their past, the hybrids, and Noah''s body-nourishing method. Still, her knowledge in the matter was too limited to make suppositions. Only Noah could know more about it since he was an expert in the magical beasts'' field, other than a peculiar existence similar to the ancestors. However, Noah could only shake his head at that question. He didn''t know what to think, but he knew that he had to discover more about the topic and that his efforts alone wouldn''t be enough to obtain answers quickly. Noah picked his special notebook and began to add his discoveries to the list. He even conveyed the entirety of the drawings on the ground. The cultivators of his world already knew about the ancestors'' features. He wasn''t risking anything by revealing that. Instead, informing the other experts might help him find answers. After all, that wasn''t a small matter. It was the proof that the six bloodlines were holding back part of their history. It was needless to say that Noah, June, and Faith received countless mental messages in the following minutes. The leaders and the various experts wanted to know everything about that discovery to better work with it. Noah gave a detailed explanation, and he even conveyed some of his considerations. He believed that those creatures were the result of the experiments with the mutagen carried by the Elite beasts. Yet, tests on Flawed humans wouldn''t become drawings hidden under large structures. The natives worshipped the ancestors and the Elite humans, which meant that every piece of art had to feature them. It was highly improbable that they would depict failed experiments through their inscriptions. ''Unless they aren''t failures.'' Noah thought as he stored his notebook. He had done everything in his power to inform the other assets of his world. Now, it would be up to them to discover something more. "What now?" Faith asked when even she finished reporting the situation to the higher-ups of her faction. June finished her report too and turned toward her lover to see what he would choose. Noah felt his curiosity reaching his limits as he faced the two women. "Let''s look for more ruins." Meanwhile, the truth uncovered by Noah had massive repercussions on the relationship between the two worlds. The four forces from Noah''s world had been honest, but the bloodlines had lied about their past. That made the four factions rethink whether to trust the resources that reached them. Also, Noah''s discovery made them agree that it was time to show their hand. Four rank 5 cultivators crossed the portal and arrived in the new world in the following months. They weren''t existences in the gaseous stage. They were either in the liquid or solid stage in the fifth rank! The four factions felt challenged when they discovered that the Elite humans had lied to them and decided to put aside their divergences to focus on showing their power. The arrival of those new assets forced the bloodlines to release the cultivators that they had held captive in that period, but some of them were still in the middle of the mating sessions. Nevertheless, the forces from Noah''s world felt that the Elite humans had broken their agreements, so they decided to show how serious they were. About three years after the arrival of the rank 5 reinforcements, the fissure under the volcano enlarged and destroyed part of the items that hid its presence. The ground shook, and the magma boiled during that event, but the cultivators guarding the passage didn''t act to stop those tremors. Instead, they wore stern expressions as they waited for the arrival of one of the most potent assets that their world had to offer. A woman with brown hair, shining green eyes, and a youthful appearance crossed the fissure and took a deep breath when she reached the other world. She spread her consciousness to analyze the area, and a series of scared cries resounded in the nearby territories as the beasts living there felt the immense danger carried by those mental waves. The cultivators waiting for her arrival bowed and shouted greetings toward the rank 6 existence that had joined their quest. "We welcome God''s Left Hand to the new world!" Chapter 758: 758. Whole The arrival of a rank 6 existence in the new world turned the negotiations in favor of the four factions. The six bloodlines couldn''t ignore the other world at that point. There were eight rank 5 cultivators and an entity in the sixth rank right next to their borders now. That power couldn''t defeat the entirety of the natives, but it could inflict heavy losses that they weren''t willing to suffer. God''s Left Hand forced the Elite humans to disband the mating sessions and return the assets that had remained in the castle during those years. Those rank 4 cultivators in the gaseous stage appeared extremely confused when they returned to the castle, and all of them seemed to have lost weight. The forces from Noah''s world didn''t ask for compensation since the bloodlines had continued to stick to the previous agreements and send resources when the mating sessions were still in place. Yet, they increased the price in terms of resources and knowledge when the negotiations resumed. Also, they made it clear that other lies would just force them to become hostile. The Elite humans could only agree to the new terms, but they took any research and piece of history away from their deals. They openly stated that they wouldn''t reveal anything about their past and their discoveries. They would rather give away more resources than stop lying. It was needless to say that the four factions didn''t like their answer. Still, the value of those materials and techniques was high, so they didn''t create problems for the behavior of the natives. After all, they were bound to reach even better conclusions by researching through their methods. Also, Noah''s group was taking care of the part concerning the history of the world. Noah, June, and Faith had continued exploring in those years, and they had looked for more structures that hid drawings. They had ventured deeper into the beasts'' territory, and they had even received the approval of their leaders since their mission was crucial in uncovering the essential secrets. Of course, their advance was quite slow since Noah didn''t want to neglect his training. Yet, they still managed to find other drawings even if they didn''t move as fast as the leaders wanted. There seemed to be the same kind of inscribed lines under every remain of a building in the wilderness. Another peculiar detail was that powerful creatures always occupied those areas. Noah''s group had to decide to avoid certain ruins because there were too many rank 5 beasts living in those areas. There were times where all they could do was flying above those destroyed structures and launch spells until the ground was empty enough to reveal the drawings. That approach though wasn''t always feasible since that world didn''t lack flying magical beasts. Nevertheless, they still managed to find many remains and drawings, and all of them depicted those half-human half-beast creatures. It was evident that those images were an important part of the natives'' past, but both Noah and the forces on the volcano couldn''t link them to the current status of the Elite humans. There was too much that they didn''t know, but they were doing their best to make up for that temporary ignorance. Almost seven years had passed since the four factions stepped on the new world, and their understanding and knowledge had already improved far beyond what they imagined. Just the training method for the mental spheres was worth the trip, but the cultivators from Noah''s world had obtained far more than that. They obtained countless spells created with different kinds of diagrams that suited the inscription method of that world. They amassed a huge pile of precious materials that they could redirect to all the cultivation fields. They learnt a more straightforward way to create cultivation techniques, even if the final product would ultimately be weaker if they used the methods of the Elite humans. Their somewhat peaceful relationship with the natives had made them obtain all of that in only seven years and without losing anything. The four forces just had to send their weakest troops in the heroic ranks in the mating sessions. Still, they had yet to discover a lot, especially for what concerned the bloodlines and the mutagen inside the Elite beasts. "I need to go in seclusion," Noah said as he turned toward June, "I don''t know how long it will take." The three of them were in a swamp filled with an intense aroma that seemed to increase the natural aggression of the magical beasts. They had found other ruins just a few days before, but that territory turned out to be a rank 5 danger zone that featured more than three creatures in the fifth rank. The group had to avoid that area since the beasts living there could fly, and there wasn''t a safe way to explore it without enraging those creatures. That led them to the swamp that they were currently exploring to look for other remains of the past civilizations. "Why is that?" June asked, but she couldn''t hide the tinge of happiness that she felt. Cultivators would usually seclude themselves when they were nearing a breakthrough, and seeing her lover becoming stronger made her feel relieved. Also, her battle intent fed on the strength of her rivals. Noah''s growth would incite her centers of power to improve faster. "It''s my body," Noah said, and June held back her curiosity at those words. She understood that he couldn''t reveal too many details about his body. The risk was too high, especially now that the four factions were trying to find the connection between the drawings and the power held by the Elite humans. Noah had never stopped hunting and nourishing his body during the exploration, and he had even reached the peak of the lower tier a while ago. Yet, he needed to fill his center of power with enough energy to trigger the breakthrough, and that had happened right in that swamp. "We should find a safer area though." Faith said, and both her companions nodded at her idea. The swamp wasn''t ideal, especially for Noah since he was affected by the scent in the air. Noah quickly led the group to a plain that only had rank 4 magical beasts on its surface. Then, he dug a cave in the terrain and secluded himself after exchanging a quick kiss with June. There was no chrysalis at that time. Noah simply abandoned himself at the drowsiness that had filled him since his body became ready to take a step forward. Strange images appeared in his mind as he slept. He saw some of the memories of the Cursed dragon species again, but there was something else mixed with them. He saw humans filling vials with their blood while a series of other humans kneeled in front of them. He saw half-human half-beast creatures roaring and screaming as chain prevented it from attacking the cheering crowd around them. In the end, right before waking up, he heard an aged voice murmuring something. "Perfection is unknown to humans. Only beasts can be whole." Chapter 759: 759. Warning Noah woke up, invaded by hunger so intense that he could barely think straight. However, the memories from his dreams still filled his mind and created amazement. ''I''ve missed something!'' He exclaimed in his mind as he took a bunch of Daniel''s pills and random magical beasts'' body parts and quickly stuffed them in his mouth. To his surprise though, those nutrients only appeased him for a few instants before his hunger filled him again. Noah roared in anger as he started to unload his stash of magical beasts'' corpses and devour them as they piled on the ground of his cave. There wasn''t any corpse in the fifth rank in his space-ring since he had used all of them to reach the middle tier. Yet, that large amount of nutrients in the fourth rank ultimately managed to satisfy him. His hunger was still there, but he could bear it in that intensity. ''There is something hidden in the mutagen!'' Noah thought as he activated the Divine Deduction technique to review everything that he had learnt since he came to that world. The images that he had seen in his dream didn''t come from the Cursed dragon species, nor a Bloodline Inheritance. Those were actual human memories! Yet, he hadn''t eaten a human''s dantian in a while, and he didn''t even rely on the properties of his mental energy after he became a rank 5 mage. The only meal that didn''t belong to his usual regimen was the Elite beasts. Nevertheless, those were magical beasts. It didn''t make any sense for them to carry human memories unless they weren''t just beasts. ''How much did they hide? Where do their lies stop?'' Noah cursed as he asked those questions in his mind. Why were there human memories hidden inside the mutagen carried by the Elite beasts? Were they once humans? Were they descendants of humans transformed into beasts? Or did they just eat someone that had seen those scenes? ''Did the Elite beasts even appear naturally?'' Noah thought as he began to suppress those doubts. He wasn''t even sure if the Elite humans had the answers to his questions. Most of their history might have been lost during their retreat. ''We can only advance further and explore more ruins.'' Noah concluded, but he realized that there was another issue connected to his discovery. He didn''t have a way to justify what he had found. He couldn''t assure the assets back on the volcano of the validity of his dreams without exposing his hybrid status. They would never believe him unless he revealed the features of his body-nourishing method, which was something that he obviously wouldn''t do. However, he had to give them some hints at least. Having other experts researching the Elite beasts while he explored the world would improve their chances to discover something, and Noah didn''t want to remain in the dark. "There might be something wrong with the Elite beasts, like some kind of toxin," Noah said through his special notebook, "This feature might be hidden in the laws that rule it." That message was all that Noah was willing to reveal. It wasn''t much, but he believed that creating doubts would force the experts to investigate the matter thoroughly, especially since he was quite respected in that field. Noah suddenly sensed a presence reaching for his cave, and he couldn''t help but smile when he recognized it. "You are awake!" June exclaimed as she broke the entrance and flew straight in his embrace. Noah felt his arousal filling him as soon as she reached him, but he suppressed that feeling when he saw that she had improved and her body had even reached the fifth rank. The memories during his breakthrough were so shocking that he didn''t have the time to check his centers of power before June arrived. The first thing he felt when he focused on his body was an immense quantity of raw power. He had reached the middle tier, which made that center of power far more potent than his spells. The physical strength hidden behind his almost impenetrable skin was so incredible that Noah feared that he could hurt June if he weren''t careful. His mind and dantian had improved too during his sleep, and he could guess by their enlargement of those centers of power that he had spent less than two years asleep. ''Harmony seems impossible for me.'' Noah sighed as he thought that. His body was advancing in the fifth rank when his dantian was still in the solid stage of the fourth rank! That difference in power though wasn''t really his fault. His mind and body were simply off the charts when it came to growing speed. His dantian grew at an incredible pace too, but it couldn''t compare to the other centers of power. One of them had a head start, while the other could rely on the superior prowess of the cultivators to obtain nutrients that would be impossible to get otherwise. Instead, his dantian only surpassed the realm of the geniuses, but it didn''t enter in the otherworldly one where his body and mind were when it came to growing speed. Also, it had only been a bit more than ten years since he reached the solid stage. Having a personal cultivation technique made him surpass any genius, but it couldn''t create miracles. Noah and June caught up, and she updated him on the situation in the human domain. No major event had happened while he was asleep, but it seemed that there was tension building up between the Elite humans and the cultivators of the four forces. The bloodlines had become more demanding in the last period, but God''s Left Hand always refused to negotiate again. She couldn''t care less if the Elite humans didn''t have enough assets in their mating sessions since her experts were already doing an excellent job. She didn''t need to send more troops in the clutches of those mysterious natives. "You do realize that I could hear your moans while I was fighting?" Faith said as she appeared in the cave too and joined their conversation. She had improved too, but she didn''t experience any breakthrough since she had advanced during their exploration already. Instead, she seemed to have achieved some success with the training method obtained in that world since her mental waves were somewhat strange. "What is the reason behind your message?" Faith asked at some point. "Call it a hunch," Noah said. "I feel that the mutagen inside the Elite beasts and the drawings under the ruins are connected." Faith accepted his explanation and didn''t mind that he was keeping something for himself. She couldn''t possibly know that the phrase that Noah had heard before waking up made him worry. His instincts had begun to convey a sort of bad feeling once Noah stabilized his new state, and he couldn''t pinpoint the actual origin of that sensation. ''What did they mean with perfection?'' Noah questioned himself once again when their discussion ended, and they resumed their training. ''If only beasts can be whole, where does that put me?'' Chapter 760: 760. Ruins Noah, June, and Faith resumed their exploration of the beasts'' territory after he woke up. Yet, the group took even longer breaks in that period to focus on other things. Some cultivators didn''t take Noah''s warning seriously, but most of them believed in his capabilities when it came to the magical beasts'' field. Most of the insights on the properties of the mutagen had come from him, and he had even been the first to discover the drawings of the half-human half-beast creatures. When the assets ignored his cold behavior and his inclination to create chaos, they were left with a particularly fantastic expert and an even more incredible cultivator. Of course, the members of the three enemy factions could see him in that positive light only because there was a natural truce among their forces in that world. Those cultivators who trusted Noah''s judgment began to look for the hidden properties of the mutagen actively. Still, it was evident to all of them that such capabilities were carried by the laws that ruled it. The laws were a topic that most heroic cultivators failed even to see until they reached the peak of the last stages of the heroic ranks. They first had to understand their individuality, then learn to express it, and, in the end, link it to laws that they could wield. Even experts in the fifth rank could barely begin to see the tools of the gods, and there were only eight of them in the new world. Also, the magical beasts and the primary energy that they carried wasn''t the field of expertise of most of them. Yet, the new world had given them something that could tune them with something linked to the laws. The natives'' training method for the mental sphere allowed the thoughts of the cultivators to copy Heaven and Earth''s will, making them more in line with the laws contained in the environment. That could enable them to understand laws slightly or feel what they were trying to express, at least. It was a stretch, but all the heroic assets felt that it was the only way to discover something that it would be impossible to learn at their level otherwise. A large part of the cultivators on the volcano began to focus on the training method wholeheartedly, and Noah''s group wasn''t an exception. Noah''s supposition and the possible connection with the bloodlines'' past made them shift their focus on something that they had decided to take it slowly for the time being. As for Noah, he had to face another problem together with his training. His body was now in the middle tier, which meant that it required a higher number of powerful nutrients to improve and appease his hunger. His hunts became more frequent, and he even began to refill his stash of corpses that he had almost emptied after his awakening. The training with the method proceeded slowly, but the first signs of success started to appear after so many years spent trying to reproduce Heaven and Earth''s will. The Divine Deduction technique partially allowed him to make up for the self-destructions of the wills, and he managed to memorize the aura radiated by those messy laws a few years after the breakthrough. It must be said that Faith had been faster than him in that field, but there wasn''t much that he could do about it. She was weaker than him, and her existence hadn''t openly clashed with Heaven and Earth yet. So, she had more time to understand the kind of aura that she had to copy. After that, they would have to create a copy of the will and then use it to modify the walls of their minds following the natives'' inscription method. June needed a few more years to memorize the aura of the will, but even she joined her companions in the following steps of the training method after that. In that period of training and hunting, the group kept on discovering more traces of the old reign of the Elite cultivators. Noah''s new state allowed them to explore areas that weren''t accessible before due to the power of beasts habiting them. They found more drawings and even more hints as they ventured deeper into the wilderness. Cleared images began to appear. They depicted scenes similar to what Noah had seen in his dreams, and they even added some details. Noah and the others saw humans handing vials to kneeled humans, and the hybrid-like creatures following those drawings. There were even some images that depicted humans and beasts holding their hands in a friendly manner! It was only when they were about to reach the farther regions from the human domain though that they started to see shocking things. The ruins became more and more frequent as they reached for the other side of the continent. It was as if entire cities had fallen there. However, there were always the drawings that Noah''s group had become familiar to see at the center of those ruins. It wasn''t hard to guess that the habitations of the previous rulers stood there back then. Yet, Noah and the others would have never expected for some of them not to be destroyed entirely. "This is the most intact one that we found." Faith said as she gazed toward a castle in the distance that had mostly fallen apart. Even if they were quite far away, they could sense part of the aura contained in the materials that made that structure. "Yes. It must have been the home for some powerful entity." June said. "Indeed," Noah added. "The materials are just on another level. They even manage to keep the magical beasts away after so many years. I guess that the Heaven Tribulation really happened then." The group advanced toward the broken castle after that quick exchange of lines. Noah was obviously in the lead, and he was even the only one that could sense the awful scent that the materials of the structure still radiated. Nevertheless, he had become so used to smell it by then that he didn''t even hesitate to enter the castle when he reached it. The entirety of the structure had black cracks on its outside that spread even on its insides. "There definitely was a Heaven Tribulation here," June said when she inspected those cracks. Noah instincts didn''t react to them, but June could be sure of that with just a few looks. She had used the Tribulation as part of her cultivation method, while Noah was merely sensitive to its energy. It wasn''t strange that she was the only one able to notice it. When the group reached the dungeon of the castle though, the cracks became far less appealing. A series of cells appeared in their view, and all of them had strange bones inside them. There were traces of dried blood even, but Noah''s eyes had already widened when he saw the shape of those skeletons. He could see that each cell used to contain beings that had both humans and beasts'' features. Chapter 761: 761. Bones Noah had seen those creatures vividly in his dreams, but Faith and June had only images that depicted them. Yet, when they faced the actual remains of those beings, they began to feel the same dread that had filled Noah since his breakthrough. There were clear signs of transformations in the remains of those creatures, and even cultivators that weren''t experts in that field could notice them. The bones had strange deformities and branches that didn''t follow any logic. It was as if something had gone out of control in the middle of the process. However, there were both human and beasts'' features. Noah could spot a human femur in the middle of bones that belonged to a flying creature. He saw an almost intact human skeleton that had a series of spikes growing from its elbows, knees, and temples. "What are these aberrations?" Faith asked, even if she knew the answer to that question. She simply felt like saying something to dispel the moody atmosphere that was filling the area. No one answered, but Noah took the initiative to open the cells to analyze the remains. He quickly destroyed the metal bars blocking his path since the passage of time had affected their structure greatly. June and Faith remained outside as Noah analyzed the bones. He swept them with his mental energy, smelled them, and even licked them to understand their features. Nevertheless, he didn''t dare to eat them for fear that they could cause a reaction in his body once ingested. He was simply playing it safe in case the substance that had produced the transformation still lingered inside those remains. Noah was immediately able to spot the presence of the mutagen inside the bones. Such a feature couldn''t escape his senses, especially after he had spent the last decade fighting Elite beasts. However, there seemed to be something else inside them. It was a sort of silent energy that gave him the feeling of matching the mutagen in some ways. ''In theory, these beings should carry the substance that forces the transformation,'' Noah thought, ''Which means that some of them had escaped in the wilderness and mixed with the fauna.'' His mind created simulations of possible environments and food chains as Noah added the data discovered in that place. ''We would have noticed these kinds of hybrids though,'' His reasoning continued, ''Which means that they are either extinct or have achieved a complete transformation.'' He still remembered the words heard in his dreams. The voice didn''t speak about hybrids but mentioned only humans and beasts. It was as if the humans wanted to pick a side instead of creating something in the middle of those worlds. The complete transformation would explain why he couldn''t notice the foreign memories when he ate the Elite beasts, while he could sense that different energy in the bones. It would mean that those creatures had mixed themselves in the fauna and procreated, covering the true nature of the mutagen in the process. Noah crushed a small part of the bones under him with his individuality to continue his analysis. White dust fell on the dirty cell as his mental waves broke the skeleton, but there was a release of primary energy too. Noah didn''t absorb that energy, but he simply limited himself to feel it with both his instincts and consciousness. He could sense the presence of two kinds of energies, and one of them was the mutagen of the Elite beasts. As for the other energy, Noah could only sense that it was ancient, almost primordial. He wouldn''t consider it powerful, but it was something that his body labeled as dangerous. ''The ancestors'' bloodline.'' Noah concluded in his mind. That was the only possible conclusion that he could reach according to what he knew of that world. The Elite humans didn''t cause that reaction in his body, and the energy radiated a sort of perfection that couldn''t possibly belong to the Flawed humans. There was only one kind left, and that was the bloodline of the ancestors. The primary energy soon dispersed in the air, but its two kinds didn''t manage to fuse until the end. Yet, they were actively trying to become one even as they vanished. ''At least two ingredients.'' Noah thought, ''The mutagen of the Elite beasts and something coming from the ancestors.'' After reaching that conclusion, Noah didn''t hesitate to send all his discoveries to the list featuring the researches of the four forces of his world. Of course, he conveyed only what he was able to justify and labeled as "possible" what he had learnt through his body. Also, he sent mental images of the peculiar skeleton so that every expert could see that such creatures had existed. It was needless to say that a storm of mental messages reached his inscribed notebook when he sent the picture, but Noah limited himself to repeat his analysis in the other cells. Then, when he had confirmed that all the skeletons carried the same energies and he had added their images to the list, he simply stored everything in his space-ring. "We will bring the bones when we finish the exploration of the continent." Faith said as she held her inscribed notebook, "We have almost mapped the entirety of the continent. It''s pointless to come back now." The leaders had contacted her and June when they saw that Noah wasn''t answering, but her reply was in line with the intentions of the group. They had just reached the part of the continent that contained actual rests of the previous civilization. They couldn''t go back now after spending more than a decade for that. Noah started to break the floor of the castle when he was done with his analysis. The terrain under the structure soon appeared in his view, and it had the same lines that he had seen many times in those years. June and Faith saw what he was doing and followed his example, breaking the floor to reveal the drawing hidden by the castle. The inscribed lines under that structure were far neater compared to the drawings that they had seen in the past. It seemed that the materials of the castle helped to fend off the effects of the passage of time. The images uncovered in the process didn''t differ too much from the others, but they were clearer and had far more details. The trio could see how there were even colors together with some lines, which gave to the drawings a completely new vibe. Some of the drawings though focused on the vials, and crowds worshipped them according to those images. Noah and the others listed the new series of drawings in the specific section inside the special notebook and stored the most intact materials of the castle for future study. Then, they made sure that there was nothing valuable inside that ruined building before exiting and resuming their exploration. Chapter 762: 762. Cities Noah, June, and Faith set their minds in completing the exploration of the continent before returning to the volcano. They had invested too much time in that mission to retreat now. Also, it seemed that they had reached the area that the natives inhabited in the past since ruins kept on filling those lands now ruled by magical beasts. The leaders felt forced to agree to their decision since they didn''t have power over them at that distance. Their initial orders had even been amid their eagerness to see the skeletons, so it wasn''t a problem to let go of the matter. The group spent the next period doing what they had become used to do in the new world, venturing through the wilderness and exploring every structure that they found. The feat obviously took time since the trio kept on training and taking many breaks along the journey and the fact that the number of ruins had increased further slowed down their advance. There were far more almost intact buildings as they neared the end of the continent since most of those structures had been built by materials that repelled magical beasts. The Tribulations had destroyed and broken many of them, but the creatures still couldn''t near them. The peculiarity of the inscriptions of that world was that the materials themselves obtained the properties desired by the cultivators. That led to a situation where they kept on functioning even in a broken state. Yet, even in the absence of magical beasts, Noah and the others had to check if they hid drawings under them. The situation reached the point where the three of them destroyed entire cities just to see if the ground had traces of the lost history of that world. It had to be said though that they were safe in those areas, at least. It was as if they had training areas as large as cities just for themselves. Their cultivation level and expertise in the training method inevitably improved as they spent their daily life wandering among the remains of such a mysterious lost civilization. In a few years, they had all reached the point where they could begin to create small copies of Heaven and Earth''s will. Of course, they didn''t copy the actual laws contained in the environment. They had just created small wills that radiated the same type of aura. No matter how small the wills were though, they still carried the authority to rule upon the "Breath" in the environment. ''Bones as always,'' Noah thought as he stored the skeleton inside a cell inside his space-ring, ''This task would be more rewarding if I could actually eat them.'' His mood had kept on worsening as he and his group found castles that contained remains of those hybrid-like creatures and swept them clean. They had found more than twenty castles by then, but not all of them had those strange skeletons. The cages in some of them had been broken. The creatures inside them had escaped in the wilderness and spread their bloodlines in the fauna. However, Noah and the others didn''t find a single half-human half-beast being in the wilderness, which probably meant that they had all died. Noah believed that they were considered failed experiments since the mutagen and the ancestors'' energy weren''t able to fuse. That lack of fixed state would weaken their actual prowess, making them easy food for the Elite beasts and explaining their absence in the current food chain. The castles that had remains though contained even the skeletons of beings at the peak of the fifth rank. The sole thought of having something so nourishing in his space-ring but too dangerous to eat made Noah nervous, especially since his stash of high-rank bones was quite large. He couldn''t wait to solve the mystery behind that world just to devour all his stash. Yet, he knew that the four forces had to take a share of it, and he also knew that such materials would be wasted as simple food. Nevertheless, being forced to hold back helped Noah to improve his control over his constant hunger. That was something that he had never really mastered since his prowess had always allowed him to hunt powerful creatures. Luckily for him, June also helped in keeping his instincts at ease during that period. She didn''t do anything special. She was simply there, which was enough to improve his mental state. "We have reached the end of the continent," June said, "But there is an island not far from the coastline. I say that we can go back after exploring it." Noah and Faith agreed with her without raising any complaints. There were only a few cities left to explore on the coastline, but the continent would be completely mapped after them. Of course, Noah''s group had avoided some danger zones along the way, and he had even sensed the presence of a rank 6 beast during the journey, which made them skip a region altogether. Yet, they had done a thorough job in the various areas once inhabited by humans, and that was more than enough. After all, they had uncovered most of the secrets of an entire continent filled with beasts in less than twenty years and without neglecting their training. June kissed Noah before she and Faith stood up. "We are going for a spar," June said while revealing an alluring smile, "Do you want to watch?" Noah felt tempted, but he shook his head before speaking. "I have something to test today. I''ll find you when I''m done. Try not to kill each other." Both June and Faith had changed in those long years in the wilderness. Their social restraint had fallen apart long ago since they didn''t have to answer to anyone, and their personalities had even developed traits that couldn''t bloom while living in their organizations. June had become more easygoing, and she didn''t hesitate to express her desire for Noah even when she was in front of Faith lately. On the other hand, Faith had simply matured, and her childish curiosity didn''t appear too often anymore. The two women left after cracking a few jokes between themselves, but Noah had already moved his focus on the insides of his mental sphere by then. There was a small brown sphere that radiated a profound aura near the walls of his sea of consciousness. It had floated there for a month already, but Noah couldn''t find even the slightest change in the properties of his walls. That was the copy of Heaven and Earth''s will, which was trying to modify his walls using the natives'' inscription method. The only problem was that it was too slow. Noah had left it there for a month just to test the actual power of that inscription method, but the result was utterly disappointing. There was no point even comparing it to the methods of his world. ''It''s time to modify my second rune.'' Noah sighed as he thought that and prepared himself to improve the training method. Chapter 763: 763. Intac There were a lot of flaws in the inscription methods of the natives. It was quite weak when compared to the schools taught in Noah''s world, and it was incredibly slow to apply. Cultivators had to imprint their wills in materials that suited specific requirements, but the complete product would just become a stronger version of the original item. That result wasn''t worth the time invested in the inscription at all. However, there was one good aspect of that weak method: It was delicate. It was almost impossible to lose the material during the inscription since the imprinting of the will was subtle and waited for the item to transform by itself rather than forcibly modifying it. Also, the cultivators would choose their materials with great care and use only those that matched their requirements. ''It won''t be as delicate,'' Noah thought as he removed all the spherical runes from his sea of consciousness, ''But that has never been my approach.'' His mind felt incredibly light once the spherical runes exited its walls and floated around his figure. It had been years since he felt such a neglectable internal pressure. Nevertheless, that wasn''t going to last for long. Noah moved his focus on his half-transparent figure and made it sever its stomach and lungs before shattering them into brown dust. Then, as he proceeded with the creations of the Will-consuming rune, he added the copy of Heaven and Earth''s will to the dust. Part of the dust eventually transformed into a black sphere that radiated pride, greed, and a profound aura that didn''t seem to carry any specific feature. Yet, when Noah saw it, he couldn''t help but feel satisfied with the result. ''It keeps the properties of the will. I can improve the training method.'' Noah thought as he took out the rune to fill it with primary energy. He already had his previous runes at his disposal, so he didn''t need to waste time in creating primary energy. He simply shattered one of the spherical runes floating around him and let his new creation take the energy that it once contained. Of course, his mind had improved in those years, so his new rune was slightly more potent than its previous version. Also, it now radiated the same aura of Heaven and Earth''s will, which had further increased its power. His second rune was a proper rank 5 container for primary energy, and he intended to use it to inscribe the walls of his mind quickly. Noah had to create a bit more primary energy to fill the new rune, but he quickly stored it back inside his mind when it was completed. Then, he placed it in a random spot next to the walls. The aura radiated by the rune touched the walls and remained in contact with them. Noah had basically automatized the inscription method of the natives with the Will-consuming runes! Yet, he didn''t want to automatize it. He wanted to improve it! Noah molded the remaining brown dust into multiple spherical runes and repeated the process of filling them with primary energy. Once he was done, he reinserted them in his sea of consciousness and placed them next to its walls. There were a dozen of spherical runes inscribing the walls of his mind when he had completed the improvements. The number of spheres was inferior compared to before, but that was the limit of his will. He needed to wait until his greed and pride came back before replacing all the old runes. He wasn''t in a hurry though, especially now that he knew that his idea worked. He believed that such an approach would shorten the time required to master the training method by a lot, while also keeping it safe for his mind. ''I should look for June.'' Noah thought as he forced himself to stand up to look for his lover. The after-effects of creating the Will-consuming runes were always harsh and made Noah quite moody, but he had learnt to handle them as his expertise increased. He would usually just lie down and rest, but he had discovered that June was able to ignite his greed, allowing him to recover faster. Also, he had told her that he would look for her. Noah found June lying among a series of ruins while wearing a satisfied expression. Her robe was a mess, but she wasn''t wounded in the slightest. "Did you win?" Noah asked as he lay next to her. "No, none of us ever wins," June answered as she turned and sat over Noah''s waist, "But it was fun." Then, she lowered her face to kiss Noah while her hands went under his robe to touch his naked chest. Noah felt his greed returning as June moved over him. His ambition was endless, but even that feeling couldn''t ignite his desire as quickly as his lover. The following weeks went on like that. Noah finished replacing all his spherical runes with those carrying his copy of Heaven and Earth''s will, and the rest of the group didn''t fail to keep itself busy. June and Faith would simply train and fight. It was as if the three of them weren''t even in a mission to uncover the secrets of those Mortal Lands. They resumed their exploration when everyone was ready and set off toward the remaining destroyed cities. The journey was quite uneventful, and they only managed to find three more castles that contained those strange skeletons. The others were empty and didn''t hold anything valuable. All of them though had drawings under them, which depicted the same images that they had seen in the last part of the continent. The vials often appeared, as well as pictures that hinted at the fusion between the two species. "There is only the island left," Faith said when they came out of the last castle, "I think that we have explored most of the lands that this world has to offer. As for the sea, we are too few to explore it." Noah and June nodded at her words. The sea usually had a more potent fauna, but that was true in their world since the humans ruled the surface. There was a chance that the sea wouldn''t be more dangerous there, but the three of them didn''t want to take any unnecessary risks. They had obtained what they wanted. The forces back in the human domain had a lot of clues about the secret history of the natives. They could almost reconstruct the entirety of their past. Their only doubts were whether the ancestors had really succeeded in turning themselves into beasts and if that was the reason behind the Heaven Tribulation. Noah, June, and Faith flew toward the island with reasonably relaxed moods. They had explored that world for years. They had done it for too long to feel anxious during the last part of their mission. However, they could immediately tell that something was wrong once they reached the island. There were the usual ruins on its surface, but, in the middle of them, there was a completely intact castle. Chapter 764: 764. Master The castle on the island wasn''t old, but there wasn''t even the slightest crack on its surface. There wasn''t also any black mark on it. It was as if the Heaven Tribulation didn''t attack that place at all. Yet, Noah and the others were sure that the lightning storm had fallen there due to the marks on the ruins. It seemed that the bolts of lightning had just avoided the castle on purpose. It was needless to say that the discovery surprised the three of them, but it also kindled their curiosity. That was the first time in almost fifteen years of exploration that they found an intact structure in the magical beasts'' domain. "I don''t sense any danger," Noah said as his consciousness spread in the environment. The island was small, so the aura radiated by the castle managed to cover its entire surface. There wasn''t even one magical beast there. The place was empty except for the ruins and the castle. "Let''s search for the other habitations first." Faith said, and her two companions agreed to her suggestion. They didn''t wholly trust the intact structure even if their senses weren''t able to pick any kind of danger. However, something that had been able to survive a Heaven Tribulation that had presumably destroyed all the ancestors couldn''t be simple. The ruins didn''t hide any surprise, and they had no drawings under their floors. They seemed to be the same kind of destroyed habitations seen in the various cities that they had explored. Only the castle remained at that point, and their mission would be over. "They are pressing us to enter," June said as she stored her inscribed notebook. The three of them had contacted their leaders when they discovered that unusual structure, and they felt curious too when they learnt about it. That place could contain remains not limited to bones and broken cells since it was still in one piece. Also, if it turned out to be that the castle could protect from the Heaven Tribulation, the leaders would just seize the entirety of the building and bring it to their world. "To think that they wanted us to come back just a few years ago." Faith said as she followed her words with a snort. The freedom that she had learnt to appreciate during that journey had made her see her higher-ups in a new light, and she didn''t entirely like their approach. There was so much that she had lost just because they didn''t want her to end up in dangerous situations, and she had begun to resent them for their actions. Her understanding of her individuality had improved by a lot in those years of exploration. Her peace had even started to change as she piled up experiences. She had understood that she was on the wrong path, but she had already set foot on a road that suited her more. Also, as the three of them started to master the training method, they could see the effects that their individualities had on the environment more clearly. Of course, that didn''t affect Noah too much since he could already study his individuality retroactively thanks to his cultivation technique. "Let''s go," Noah said after he had used his full focus to analyze the castle again. Both his mental energy and instincts were telling him that the structure was harmless, and he didn''t want to leave the chance to obtain something valuable to someone else. The metal door screeched when Noah opened it, and the smell of dust reached his nose when the air came from its insides. The place seemed abandoned, but the trio still waited before stepping inside. Noah expanded his consciousness, but he didn''t sense anything dangerous even when his mental waves spread inside the castle. That last confirmation was enough to make him cross the door and begin the exploration of the only intact structure in the magical beasts'' domain. Its layout was similar to the other castles that they had explored. There was a large hall that led to a series of staircases connected to the upper floors, and a few doors that led to the prisons. The trio directly went for the cells, but they returned empty-handed since all of them turned out to be vacant of skeletons. However, it didn''t seem as if someone had escaped from them since their metal bars were intact. When the three of them went on the upper floors though, they discovered that a large stash of books and scrolls had survived through the years inside bookcases made by a transparent material. They didn''t hesitate to inspect those tomes, and their amazement surged when they saw that they contained researches and records concerning the history of that world! "You could greet the master of the castle since you have interrupted his sleep." An aged, male voice suddenly spread through the floors, and a powerful aura accompanied those words. Noah instincts began to scream at that point. It was as if an immense danger had appeared out of nowhere in an area that wasn''t supposed to have anything. Also, he couldn''t fail to identify the power of the entity releasing that aura. It belonged to a rank 6 existence! Noah''s survival instincts kicked in, and he reviewed all his possible options in that situation. However, he soon accepted that there wasn''t anything that he could do against someone in the sixth rank. His mental energy was enough to kill him on the spot. Tricks, talismans, and distractions would only enrage him. Nevertheless, there was no threat in that voice. Actually, it seemed that the mighty being was happy about their presence there. Noah placed the tome in his hands back in the bookcase and moved toward the source of the aura. He would just do as the existence said since it was pointless to try anything else. June and Faith followed his example and walked right behind him. They wore expressionless faces, but it was clear that they were anxious about the imminent meeting. ''Did he cover his presence before we entered the castle?'' Noah questioned himself. It was the first time that his instincts didn''t manage to notice such a powerful presence. The only explanation was that the existence on the last floor of the castle had hidden on purpose. Reaching the last floor took only a few minutes, but Noah and the others felt as if hours had passed as they walked to meet the being waiting for them. A large, reinforced door appeared when they reached the top of the castle, and Noah didn''t hesitate to open it and take a look at its insides. His consciousness couldn''t help him there. The aura of the rank 6 being was so strong that his mental waves couldn''t give him any kind of information. What he saw though, confirmed every clue that they had found during their long exploration. A colossal snake appeared in his vision, and he could barely contain his excitement when he heard it speak with a human voice. "Don''t worry. It would be pointless to eat you all at my level." Chapter 765: 765. Story June and Faith felt amazed when they entered the large hall and saw the enormous magical beasts speaking with a human voice. The three of them had known for years that the ancestors were trying to turn themselves into beasts. Yet, gathering clues and facing a talking creature were two very different things! Furthermore, the creature was in the sixth rank! ''It''s a Flying snake, but I sense mental waves.'' Noah thought as he inspected the colossal beast. ''They have really succeeded.'' It was hard to suppress his amazement, and Noah felt eager to study that peculiar being just to understand how it worked. Its aura was too strong and blocked most of Noah''s inspections. He couldn''t even know if it had a dantian since its scent didn''t belong to anything that he had smelled before. Noah understood in those short instants that the snake was a unique existence that didn''t follow any of the fundamental rules that he had learnt through the years. The snake lifted its reptilian head and straightened its body, revealing a series of sturdy chains that kept it locked on the walls and floor of the hall. The chains radiated the same smell that fended off the magical beasts, but it was far more intense compared to that found in the other castles. They seemed able to bind the mighty creature in the room, but they also carried its same aura. It was as if they were part of the snake''s body. "It''s surprising to find something so similar to us and yet so different at the same time." The snake said as it fixed its reptilian eyes on Noah''s figure. Its head slowly neared him, but the chains didn''t allow it to cross even half of the hall. However, that seemed to be enough for the powerful beast which took a deep breath and waved its forked tongue. "You absorbed the body of a beast into your own and replaced the laws to escape Heaven and Earth''s control. Smart!" The snake said after it completed its inspection. "I believe it was a dragon. Ambitious." Noah''s reptilian pupils constricted when he heard the snake''s words. It had understood the theory behind his fusion in a matter of seconds! "Don''t be so surprised." The snake said while releasing what seemed a small laugh. "My people have researched how to mix various species since the birth of our kind. You should feel proud that you''ve obtained a satisfying result in a world without our diversity." The amazement of the three cultivators skyrocketed at those words. The creature had revealed that it was aware of the fact that they came from a different world! "How?" Noah asked, but his question wasn''t limited to its last revelation. Countless questions filled his mind. He wanted to know everything about the creature, its past, and the reason behind his current form. There was something that had bugged him since the dreams: He didn''t understand why a natural hybrid would transform itself into a complete beast. He had been quite forced to keep his human form in his case. Recreating the procedure for the fusion while using the corpse of the beast as the core material was challenging. He would need to find a way to transfer his dantian and his sea of consciousness into a species that didn''t have space for those centers of power. Instead, the opposite procedure didn''t have those hindrances. "I think it''s time we have a private conversation. Your two friends can browse my collection while we speak." The snake said, and a wave of thick mental waves pushed both June and Faith outside of the hall while also closing the large door. Noah''s eyes became cold when he saw that surge of power, but he forced himself to suppress his survival instincts. He was in the lair of a rank 6 existence. He was similar to a puppet in a god''s grasp right now. "The castles are all connected." The snake said. "I can speak to my descendants on the continent and see what they had been up to. You must understand my excitement to learn that other Mortal Lands had managed to create a dimensional portal and produce a hybrid so similar to our previous form." Noah neared the closest wall and tried to inspect it, but he didn''t notice anything out of the ordinary. Even the experts in the volcano had failed to see that property of the castles, so he wasn''t surprised that he couldn''t find anything. "You keep speaking of us. What are you? Are there others like you in the world?" Noah asked without holding back his doubts. The Flying snake seemed inclined to answer all his questions, and Noah felt curious beyond any limit. Also, the beast was restricted by chains that probably targeted its very existence, which seemed something really similar to the collars of the Empire. Noah was even starting to doubt that it could hurt him in that state, but he wasn''t willing to test it just yet. "I''m one of the ancestors, the last of my kind. For now, at least." The snake answered, but its explanation became vague when it reached the last part. "So, you were a perfect human before," Noah concluded before continuing to ask questions. "Why did you do it? According to the records, you were already a perfect species in your previous form." That was Noah''s most pressing doubt. He didn''t care how they transformed, but he wanted to understand the reason behind their decision to abandon the human form. The snake sighed, and Noah was able to avoid showing his surprise at that gesture only because it began to speak. "Our kind was almost perfect, but it didn''t lack its flaws. We could absorb the abilities of the magical beasts, but we would inherit some of their behavior in the process. That was the limit placed by Heaven and Earth over us." Noah nodded at those words. It made sense for such a perfect species to have limitations. After all, Heaven and Earth couldn''t allow for beings with limitless potential to exist. They would just break their fairness. The snake continued. "In time, we understood that those limits were harsher on humans. The magical beasts had some sort of natural protection against the rules of the world. We concluded that they were necessary for balancing Heaven and Earth''s power." Noah remained silent as he listened to the explanation that was entirely in line with the ideas that had filled him since he became a hybrid. "We thrived for a period. The transformation would trigger a Tribulation, but the lightning bolts targeted only the specimen undergoing the process. It wasn''t hard to protect it and increase our population of superior beings." The snake said, and its gaze lost some focus as its mind wandered through its memories. Then, it moved back to Noah as it concluded its story. "Yet, when we tried to apply the procedure to our weaker descendants, the world decided that we had gone too far and unleashed a Worldwide Heaven Tribulation." Chapter 766: 766. Chain reaction "What are you doing here alone then? Why the shackles? And what are the six bloodlines doing on the other side of the continent?" Noah kept on asking questions. He could understand that the humans of that world had found their hope to fix their flaws in the Elite beasts. Yet, there were missing critical points in the snake''s explanation. It didn''t tell him the purpose of making the bloodlines breed to increase the population, nor why they were hiding their history. He felt as if there was a more profound secret still hidden under that polite behavior. "I''ve designed this castle. Unlike my brothers and sisters, I was the only one that predicted the rage of Heaven and Earth." The snake said. "If you are wondering how it''s because I''ve been the last ancestor to transform. My form is the most perfect state achievable in the Mortal Lands." "And that lets you predict the arrival of the Tribulations?" Noah asked at that point. "I''m truly whole. There is a certain understanding of the world that you can obtain only from where I stand." The snake answered. Noah didn''t like that vague reply. It was hard to trust a huge, talking snake in the sixth rank when it wasn''t giving him real answers about the advantages of its species. After all, Noah''s hybrid status didn''t forsake any positive feature of the magical beasts'' world. His strength was above any creature, and both his other centers of power had benefitted from the fusion. He wanted answers on the actual benefits behind turning himself into a beast, and the simply improved understanding wasn''t enough to convince him about that path. "These shackles are also my creation." The snake continued since Noah had fallen silent. "After eating everyone inside the castle, I was afraid that I would fly outside to look for more food. Doing that would trigger the remains of the Worldwide Heaven Tribulation, and I can''t let it focus me alone." Noah began to have a bad feeling when he heard that, but the snake didn''t give him time to think since it continued with its explanation. "You must understand that the Tribulation hit just when we successfully transformed the first human that wasn''t an ancestor through my perfect procedure. There were just too few of us to survive." "What are the bloodlines doing then?" Noah asked again, but his instincts were telling him that the situation was becoming dangerous. However, he couldn''t really escape, so he simply decided to see where that conversation would lead him. "Well, the compound for the perfect transformation requires the mutagen of the Elite beasts and the ancestor''s blood in my body." The snake said. "Yet, I could only transform one human at the time in that way. As the bearer of my heritage, I had to find a way that could transform everyone at the same time to defeat the Tribulation together and reclaim the land." The rank 6 creature began to laugh at that point. Nevertheless, there was no happiness behind its voice. Noah could only sense deep and intense exhaustion accompanying those sounds. The snake continued. "So, I''ve invented a method to keep the transformation dormant until a worthy existence triggered it. I''ve let the bloodlines spread the compound, and they even sacrificed their weaker assets to infect the fauna of this world. Then, I hibernated, waiting for a worthy existence to appear." Noah''s vertical pupils constricted at those words. He had finally understood why his instincts didn''t manage to sense such a powerful existence. "Can''t you be the trigger?" Noah asked, but the snake slowly shook its head. "The only way to create a chain reaction is through the roar of a transforming beast carrying the ancestor''s bloodline." The snake said. "I was ready to wait until a spontaneous mutation appeared and gave birth to one of my kind, but the arrival of your forces made me reconsider that." Noah felt the need to retreat, but the snake''s consciousness suddenly enveloped him and forced him to remain still. Its aura carried a series of confused meanings that he wasn''t able to understand, but he felt some of them seeping through his skin. A warm sensation enveloped him. It was as if something had taken life inside him and was spreading its effect in his tissues. "I''ve seen your curiosity as you explored our past domains. I was sure that you would have reached this place on your own." The snake said with a deep voice. "Don''t worry. You will soon understand how perfect this form is, and so will your brothers and sisters." Noah felt the cells of his body escaping his control and transforming. He was aware of what was happening to him, but he didn''t have any power over that procedure. He knew that he had been infected. Any of the Elite beasts that he had eaten in the last years could have carried the compound, and he had no way to notice it. For once, Noah didn''t blame his weakness for ending up in that situation. He had been careful in the exploration and thorough in his investigations. There was nothing that he could have done to avoid that outcome. After all, even God''s Left Hand didn''t notice anything inside the mutagen. Those plots had always been outside of Noah''s power. That acceptance didn''t mean that he wasn''t angry that the snake was transforming him without his consent. Yet, he couldn''t help but being curious about that perfect state now that he couldn''t avoid the transformation. Noah felt an intense surge of energy filling his body and forcing him to transform. Then, a splitting pain enveloped him as cracks appeared on his skin, muscles, and bones. The energy inside his dantian became unstable as the compound began to affect his other centers of power, and even his mental energy started to tremble under its influence. His skin became darker and clear lines appeared to divide it in the form of scales. His muscles and bones enlarged as his size grew. It reached a point where Noah felt more comfortable standing on four legs rather than on two. Noah''s focus was on his mental sphere during the procedure. The transformation was applying immense pressure on its wall, and its insides were a mess. He wasn''t in a situation where he could keep track of the changes in his body. His mouth enlarged, and scales began to appear even on his face. Then, Noah felt an urge impossible to contain. Noah lifted his morphing head and released a cry toward the ceiling of the hall, which lit up and began to vibrate in tune with his roar. The castles on the rest of the continent lit up too and trembled in the same way, creating a copy of Noah''s roar in the process. The Flawed humans didn''t understand what was happening, but the echoes of Noah''s cry awakened the compound inside them. Only the Elite humans knew about that plan and accepted the transformation willingly. As more roars filled the continent though, dark clouds formed in the sky. Chapter 767: 767. Transformation Noah''s roar triggered the dormant compound that had infected most of the magical beasts and humans of that world. Yet, its effects didn''t stop there. A few cultivators from Noah''s world had used the mutagen in the Elite beasts to create drugs aimed to improve the walls of the dantians. Some of them had tested their creations on themselves and were inevitably infected by the compound. Then, as the castles echoed Noah''s cry and spread it through the world, even their bodies began to mutate. The world fell into chaos as the compound activated. Most humans began to transform into magical beasts, improving their natural state as living beings. The physical strength of the Elite humans improved as their existence strived to reach the beasts'' level, and dantians began to grow inside the Flawed humans as the transformation continued. The changes didn''t stop there since the compound affected even the fauna. Most creatures saw their fake dantians reaching a complete form under the influence of the compound, and some of them even developed real seas of consciousness as they strived for a perfect state. An entire world was evolving right under the ominous clouds that were filling the sky. June and Faith had gone to explore the inventory in the castle before the snake triggered the compound inside Noah. Still, they didn''t miss his roar and the shaking of the walls. However, when they reached the last floor and tried to force the door to the hall open, they realized that a thick layer of mental energy was preventing their intrusion. The two women could only give up when they saw that even their spells didn''t manage to pierce that barrier. The power of a being in the sixth rank was something that they couldn''t hope to match. Meanwhile, Noah continued to roar as the transformation continued. That act was instinctive. It was as if his body wanted to announce the evolution that it was undergoing. He used the entirety of his concentration to fend off the pressure generated by the transformation, and it took him a while before he managed to become aware of his situation again. His mind hadn''t stabilized yet, but he could sense the changes happening inside his body. He felt his size growing and his form morphing to assume the shape of a Cursed Dragon. ''This is disappointing.'' Noah thought as he studied those changes and kept his mind stable. The transformation wasn''t bringing him any benefit. The new features obtained by his body were something that he already had in its human form. Yet, he felt forced to rethink his initial statement when the transformation began to affect his other centers of power. His dantian was the first to be affected by the surge of energy originated by the compound. Its walls stiffened and contracted, destroying the black ring inside them and absorbing its shards as they closed the wound that had been there for years. Noah lost his cultivation technique, but his mental sphere began to radiate a peculiar tremor that carried his copy of aura of the Heaven and Earth''s will. His existence was craving for harmony as it strived for a perfect state, and it couldn''t allow such a difference between his centers of power. The "Breath" in the matter around him started to converge in his almost-draconic low-waist and turn into primary energy as it entered his dantian. The walls of the organ soon became unable to contain all that energy and began to enlarge, pushing Noah''s cultivation level toward the fifth rank. Noah was aware of the events happening in his dantian, but his mind was elsewhere. As soon as his mental sphere released that tremor, his focus wavered since a stream of information invaded him. The walls of his mind had been under the influence of the improved spherical runes for a while by then. Still, Noah didn''t intend to use that ability until the inscription was completed. However, his sea of consciousness had acted on its own during the transformation. It ordered the "Breath" in the matter around him to fill his dantian. In doing so though, Noah entered a peculiar mental state where he felt connected with the world. ''This should be the understanding that the snake has talked about.'' Noah thought as his mind wandered in that state. ''Amazing.'' What he was sensing couldn''t be described by simple words. It was as if his existence had suddenly become aware of its place in the world and could understand the rules set by Heaven and Earth. He had taken a peek in the world of the laws without needing for his level to be high enough. Pieces of information appeared in his mind, but they didn''t cause any internal pressure. Instead, Noah felt as if his sea of consciousness was being emptied while he remained in that state. He soon understood that the pieces of information weren''t flowing inside him. It was his mental energy that was reaching for the outside world and learning its rules. ''I see. Beasts aren''t just an enemy.'' Noah thought. ''They are the enemy chosen by Heaven and Earth to balance their power. They are an unstoppable force that can take the easiest path toward the higher ranks as long as there is a form of energy around them.'' Noah felt sure about that realization even if he couldn''t explain why. After all, he didn''t understand laws. His mind was only able to turn a few of them into thoughts that he could review. ''Becoming a hybrid and walking on the path of the magical beasts would make you the strongest enemy of the world according to its rules.'' Noah continued to ponder as his mind wandered in that peculiar state. ''Yet, that''s still part of Heaven and Earth''s system.'' Confusion and hesitation began to fill Noah once he thought that. The secrets of the world were right in front of him, and he didn''t like what he was seeing. Turning into a beast would force him to keep that state permanently, allowing him to become the lifeform that better countered the restrictions of the world. Yet, such perfect form didn''t need some of the core aspects of the usual cultivation methods. Noah felt his dantian enlarging at high speed as more and more primary energy seeped through its walls. The sharp crystal that was his solid "Breath" began to fade when surrounded by that foreign energy. It was as if the new state didn''t need an individuality to progress, so it was simply turning it into primary energy. ''A path where the answers of the world are right in front of you, but you are stuck in a state that allows you only to devour everything.'' Noah summarized in his mind what he had managed to understand in that peculiar state. Noah continued to think. ''It''s the easiest path to power, and losing my individuality won''t affect my actual prowess. Yet, I would become part of Heaven and Earth''s plan. The snake has underestimated my ambition.'' His now-scaled eyelids opened at that point, and he violently bit his front leg. Chapter 768: 768. Forging The rank 6 Flying snake had diverted its attention after Noah''s roar started the chain reaction through the Mortal Lands, but it turned when it saw Noah biting himself. The creature couldn''t help but reveal a smirk at that scene. "You can''t stop the transformation," The snake said, "Your whole existence is changing right now. Just accept your new state and fight the world with your brothers and sisters." After that, it diverted its attention again to focus his consciousness on the crackling sounds echoing outside. Meanwhile, Noah had activated the Divine Deduction technique as he bit his leg. The effort increased the pressure on his mind by a lot, but that wasn''t the moment to be careful. His future would be set if he didn''t act. Noah had almost completely turned into a huge Cursed dragon in the fifth rank, but he needed time to figure out a way to stop the transformation. So, he decided to slow it down for the time being. His sharp teeth pierced his scales and severed a large chunk of meat along with them. His idea was to hurt his body so that the compound would take more to make him reach the complete form. Luckily for him, his body was still unstable, and some of its protective properties had weakened during the transformation. Blood flowed from his wound and draconic mouth as he spat the pulp of meat and scales on the ground and turned to take a bite on his other leg. The pain had never managed to stop him, and he could only think about his prospects right now. ''If it''s a matter of existence,'' Noah thought, ''Then I just have to change it again.'' His mind was in the peculiar state where it could understand how the world worked, and the Divine Deduction technique allowed him to process those pieces of information at high speed. That was the perfect situation to obtain some kind of enlightenment. ''The fastest way to change my existence is to complete my individuality,'' Noah concluded, ''But I should be able to take my time as I plan how to do it.'' Noah didn''t want to waste the improvements that the transformation was applying on his dantian. Also, he didn''t want to risk ruining his individuality because he tried to save it in a hurry. He had to let his mind understand the best approach to escape from that situation while salvaging his gains and current power at the same time. Noah kept on biting pieces of his body off, and he used his growing claws to break scales that he couldn''t reach with his fangs. Blood and body-parts accumulated on the floor as he kept on mutilating himself to slow down the transformation. Enlightenment dawned upon him quite quickly. After all, the snake wasn''t addressing his form as perfect for no reason. The understanding that the transformation had given him access to wasn''t something that he could obtain through usual methods. However, peeking into that world was just a sort of enhanced survival instincts for those creatures. They needed it to counter their greatest enemy, but they didn''t have other uses to it since they didn''t need an individuality. Noah managed to understand even how those so-called perfect creatures worked during that process. Their dantians would obtain the ability of the magical beasts to absorb primary energy, but they would lose the capability to express personal laws. They were simply the perfect predators of Heaven and Earth''s world, and their state would allow them to feed on laws in the higher ranks. Nevertheless, Noah couldn''t be part of that system. He was an entity that lived outside of those rules. He didn''t want to be defined by his enemies. He was a mistake that shouldn''t exist. Giving up on that to find a place in the world would be akin to surrender himself to Heaven and Earth''s shackles. ''I know what I have to do,'' Noah thought, ''I can stall the transformation for a few more minutes.'' Noah kept on maiming himself as he kept his focus on his dantian. The primary energy converging in his center of power was pushing it toward the limits of the fourth rank. Yet, it was also eroding his sharp shard of "Breath", and his individuality with it. ''Almost there!'' Noah shouted in his mind as the walls of his dantian started to compress. The process squeezed the primary energy and "Breath", forcing them to reach a higher state as impurities left the gas and crystal and fused with the organ. The transformation had pushed his dantian to the fifth rank to restore harmony among his centers of power! His body began to stabilize at that point. The injuries started to heal as his existence was about to step forever in the realm of those perfect hybrids. His mental sphere sent orders to the primary energy inside his dantian. The gas began to turn into a form of rank 5 gaseous "Breath" that differed slightly from that generated by the crystal that carried his individuality. His new form was instinctively creating "Breath" of the darkness element from primary energy! Noah memorized that process and decided to act when he saw that even the rank 5 gaseous "Breath" carrying his individuality was about to become primary energy to undergo that transformation. His aura surged as he took complete control of his mental sphere. The blood and body-parts that had accumulated on the floor gathered in front of him, and Noah didn''t hesitate to add more materials to that bloody pulp. He opened his maws and spat his Liquid Dantian before focusing on the insides of his space-ring to take out a series of items. The ring had enlarged to fit his new size, but it didn''t create any problem when his mental waves controlled it. His Demonic Swords appeared in the open and landed on the bloody pulp, together with Instabilities that he had stored there as he trained his inscription methods. Then, he focused on the insides of his mind, and all his Will-consuming runes came out and landed on the pile of materials accumulating in front of him. In the end, he moved different energies inside his dantian and made them pass through his sea of consciousness before throwing them too in the pulp to start forging. Black smoke and a seemingly infinite ambition mixed with the pile of materials as Noah used the Elemental Forging method to fuse all the items that carried part of his individuality. Noah had never attempted to do such a difficult fusion, but his peculiar mental state was giving him some confidence that he would succeed. ''I''m not a destroyer, nor a creator,'' Noah thought as he took a deep breath, ''But a sword able to do both!'' A wave of white flames came out of his maws, and the primary energy that fueled it helped to finalize the fusion, forcing all the materials into a straightforward form. A black sword appeared when the flames dispersed, and a draconic cry came out of it as it took life. Chapter 769: 769. Claw Noah felt a heartbeat in his mind as strength began to leave his body. He was utterly drained, and his dantian was empty too. Another heartbeat echoed inside him, and his body started to revert to its human form at that sound. Forging the sword had completed his individuality and interrupted the transformation since his existence had stopped striving for that perfect state. The compound didn''t add something to his body. The shape of the Cursed Dragon had always been there, but Noah had purposely compressed it in a human form. The primary energy that had gathered inside him under the orders of his mental sphere had only focused his dantian since there was nothing else to improve. Yet, when his existence changed, his body naturally returned to its previous form, even if a few features remained. His skin had become rough, and he could notice a few sparse scales on him even if they weren''t black like those of the Cursed Dragon. His nails had become black and metallic. They would resemble claws if they were more prominent and pointy, but they had returned to their previous shape, fortunately. His size had changed too. He was at least ten centimeters taller than before. His soft hair had become more robust. It was still long and a bit wild, but it had assumed metallic properties that made it reflect part of the light that landed on it. Even though he had reverted to his human form, he wasn''t entirely the same since his body had pushed him toward the shape that better suited his newfound existence. "You threw away my gift to keep your precious individuality," The snake said as it looked at Noah, "I don''t know if I should feel disappointed or amazed. There are few beings that can stop the influence of my compound on their own." The snake turned its head away from the tired figure on the floor. It had lost interest in Noah now that he had chosen his side. After all, he had already triggered the chain reaction with his roar, so he wasn''t that valuable anymore. On the other hand, Noah completely ignored its words. The heartbeat inside his mind carried pure but intense desires that forced him to focus on its source. The source of those foreign sounds was his connection with his latest creation, the black sword that had released a cry at his birth. Noah had realized during his peculiar state that he had to create something able to carry the entirety of his individuality to express it in its fullest. That understanding had led him to forge a living being made by all his creations and iconic assets. The Will-consuming runes were an expression of his strongest emotions and carried enough primary energy to create spells in the fifth rank. His old sabers were the blueprints and the proof of his expertise in the Elemental Forging method, together with the Instabilities. His corrosive black smoke was the deadliest material in his possession, and the energies in his dantian were a pure expression of both his individuality and properties as a hybrid. The Liquid Dantian was a center of power and also a good source of energy. His flames then had to force everything together and stabilize his greatest creation so far: A lifeform! Noah had understood that only creating life could complete his individuality. The destructive aspect of his individuality had managed to sever the fate chosen by Heaven and Earth, so his creation had to give birth to something outside of their plans, another mistake, just like him. The sword was part of him, but it was also something separated from his existence. It was a pure materialization of his journey. The sword roared again since Noah wasn''t paying attention to it. It acted just like a child that cried to express its most basic needs. ''It''s probably a mess outside, and I''m in no condition to fight.'' Noah thought as he understood the needs of the sword. The snake didn''t like hearing that second cry. It didn''t want anyone to disturb its investigation of the Tribulation, especially in such a crucial situation. It turned to look at the sharp form laid on the floor in annoyance and began to focus its mental energy to crush it. However, the sword escaped before the pressure could hit it and flew toward Noah, who was still in the process of recovering from the transformation. "Interesting," The snake said, "What is it? The inscription methods of your world are indeed superior to ours." The rank 6 existence was interested in Noah''s creation, but he had never been talkative when he decided to fight. In his mind, words were useless when a situation reached a point where only one side could survive. Noah mustered his strength and grabbed the flying sword that released a happy cry when it came in contact with his skin. It was the innate happiness that any lifeform would feel at their first contact with their parents. Noah felt those intense emotions through his connection with the sword. They were the same being, but, at the same time, they were two different existences. He couldn''t focus on those emotions though since he wouldn''t have other chances to catch a being in the sixth rank by surprise if he didn''t act quickly. Noah swung the sword without putting too much energy in that gesture, but it understood his intentions and used its power to produce an attack. A black, draconic claw came out of its sharp edge and shot toward the ceiling of the large hall. The power behind the slash matched that of a spell in the fifth rank, and it even carried the corrosive properties of the partial Demonic Form. The snake felt amused when it saw that attack. It was evident that Noah was in a poor state, but it didn''t believe that his aim could be so off. Worry though appeared in its eyes when it understood that the claw had never aimed for its body. Instead, Noah had purposely targeted the part of the ceiling on the opposite side from its position. "No!" The snake shouted as its vertical pupils constricted, and its mental energy covered the entirety of the hall before focusing on that smoky claw. The attack lost part of its power under the pressure of those mental waves. Yet, there was a limit to how much that ethereal force could hinder the path of his corrosive offensive. The claw shrunk as part of the black smoke vanished to pierce the layer of mental energy, but an intense sharpness spread from its shape at that moment. The features carried by Noah''s attack were perfect to counter mental waves, but he was still against a being in the sixth rank. The entirety of the claw had disappeared before touching the ceiling, except for a tiny gaseous shard that crashed on the gray marble and created a small hole in it. The snake could only stare in fear as the "Breath" from the outside world seeped through the castle and raged at its presence. Chapter 770: 770. Changes The castles of the natives were exceptional when it came to fending off magical beasts, but their defenses were quite weak against cultivators. The materials used to build them had a few enhancements and some peculiar properties, but they were still just sturdy items. Even a small shard of Noah''s attack was enough to pierce its structure and create a hole where the "Breath" from the outside world could pass. It was needless to say that the will inside it wasn''t happy to see that it had missed one of the targets of its rage. "What have you done!?" The snake shouted, and Noah puked blood under the shockwave created by its voice. The simple gesture of a rank 6 entity was enough to wipe out his existence, but Noah had always known that. That was the reason why he had decided to create a worthy opponent before trying to escape. The snake was about to unleash its anger on Noah when a thick lightning bolt passed through the crack on the ceiling and landed on its huge, reptilian head. The clash pushed the rank 6 entity backward and released other shockwaves that further injured Noah. However, among all that pain, he had obtained a short moment of safety. Noah mustered all his remaining strength and punched the floor, cracking the hard marble and creating a hole that made him fall on a smaller room right under the hall. His priority was to escape the battlefield that saw a chained rank 6 existence resisting a Heaven Tribulation that he couldn''t even evaluate in terms of power. The snake was forced to divert its focus on the raging lightning storm that was making its way inside the castle. The barriers of mental energy around the hall vanished as it gathered its consciousness to face the mighty calamity, allowing June and Faith to become aware of the events unfolding on the other side of the large door. June shot toward the staircase when she noticed that Noah was on the lower floor and in a dire state. Faith followed her without hesitation since she didn''t want to stick around a battle involving that powerful existence. Noah was lying naked on the floor when June found him. The black sword shot in the air when it sensed her arrival, but Noah weakly patted its hilt to reassure it. The sword was incredibly protective toward Noah since it viewed him as his sole parent. Still, it lowered its sharp edge when its connection with Noah allowed it to feel the emotions caused by her arrival. "What happened?" June asked as she hurriedly put his arm over her shoulders to carry him outside of that room. Noah was utterly exhausted. The transformation and the forging had emptied his reserves of energy, and even his sea of consciousness was in a critical state. He was also injured. The only reason why he had managed to keep his life in the hall could be found in the peculiar chains that restricted the snake and didn''t allow it to express its full power. "Ground floor," Noah whispered, "As far as possible from the hall." June trusted Noah''s judgment too much not to follow his orders. She carried him back to the ground floor and placed him in a corner near the entrance of the castle. Faith had limited herself to follow them in silence. The sword had flown in front of the group as they returned near the entrance. It inspected the rooms and staircases in front of Noah to make sure that the path was clear. Then, when they reached the ground floor, and it felt Noah''s relaxing, it floated around June to inspect her. June was too worried about Noah''s state to mind the sword at that moment. She crouched in front of him and inspected with a confused gaze the changes in the body that she knew far too well. The first details that caught her eyes were the scales spread randomly through his skin. They were mostly isolated and could be easily mistaken as scars, but a few of them were unusually explicit. Her hand caressed his cheek, and she noticed how even his hair was different. It was still somewhat soft, but it resembled metal strings now. His nails had obtained similar metallic properties too, other than becoming black. Yet, the feature that surprised June the most was the fact that his dantian radiated the feeble aura of a rank 5 cultivator. Rather than being happy for him though, June felt sour. She knew Noah better than anyone else, and she was aware of the level of his centers of power. Noah''s dantian was supposed to be a decade away from that rank, but it had experienced the breakthrough in a matter of minutes. Such an incredible increase in power couldn''t come without a cost. Her heart clenched when she tried to imagine what her lover had to endure during his meeting with the rank 6 existence. Her attention then went on his injuries. Blood flowed from his mouth, eyes, and ears, but there didn''t seem to be anything too damaged, especially for him. He was just exhausted and in need of a long period of rest. Noah had been half-conscious while June inspected him, but some awareness returned as she kept on looking for injuries. A helpless but warm smile appeared on his face as he took her hand and pulled her closer. June didn''t resist and sat carefully on his lap. Her knees though were pointed firmly on the floor to put the least amount of weight on him. Of course, Noah would be barely affected by her weight, even in that weakened state. Yet, he understood from June''s stern expression that he couldn''t make her change idea on the matter. "What happened?" June asked again as her forehead touched his. "The snake is turning everyone into beasts," Noah said, "I had to become a different existence to change the path of the transformation. As you can see, it wasn''t completely human." June shook her head after his explanation and tilted her head to make their lips touch. Faith was mostly diverting her gaze since Noah was still naked, but the sword found the couple''s interaction quite interesting. It neared the sitting couple and hovered right in front of their faces as if it was entirely captivated by their kiss. "What is that?" June asked when she couldn''t ignore the sharp edge near her cheek anymore. "Something similar to the materialization of my individuality," Noah answered, "But it''s alive and a newborn." June didn''t even try to understand what he was saying. She nodded and turned her head to inspect the threatening flying sword that was most-likely stronger than her. The blade released an annoyed growl, and June didn''t hide her surprise, but Noah hastily took the corpse of a peak rank 4 beast without mutagen and laid it next to him. The sword happily roared and stabbed the corpse that started to dry up right in front of the trio. Chapter 771: 771. Inspection Tremors and loud sounds spread through the entirety of the castle as the group rested in the corner of the ground floor. The battle between the rank 6 snake and the Tribulation was unfolding above them, but there was nothing that they could do to affect its outcome. Noah''s state wasn''t ideal. He would often fall asleep only to wake up every time his survival instincts reacted to one of the shockwaves released above him. His body was still stabilizing, and he did his best to quicken the healing process by eating the corpses of the standard magical beasts in his stash. However, the emptiness of his dantian affected his recovery. The transformation had destroyed his cultivation technique and had forced his dantian to reach the fifth rank. Yet, he had used all the energy stored inside it to forge the black sword, leaving it empty. Also, Noah lacked a rank 5 cultivation technique, which left him powerless about the current state of his center of power. He couldn''t refill his dantian without a suitable cultivation technique. The recent events had forced him in a situation quite dire and usually avoided by cultivators. Nevertheless, he was a hybrid, so he wasn''t too worried about his battle prowess. The only real issue was that the three of them were stuck in the castle as long as the Tribulation kept raging. There was the possibility that the lightning bolts would ignore them, but none of them was willing to test their luck. They would rather wait for the calamity to be over before deciding on their next move. As for their companions back on the volcano, they couldn''t contact them since a mental message couldn''t reach the other side of the continent through the lightning storm. Noah woke up when another shockwave made the entire castle treble. He felt a lot better. His body had finally gained new stability after his past meals. He still felt somewhat weak due to the lack of "Breath" in his dantian. Yet, his injuries had mostly healed, and he wasn''t experiencing the after-effects of the transformation anymore. "It''s been a week," June said, "But the Heaven Tribulation doesn''t show any sign of stopping." Noah realized that he had been sleeping on June''s shoulder when she spoke. She was sitting right next to him, and an orange robe covered both of them as if it was a blanket. Faith was at a few meters from them, sitting with her eyes closed as she spread her consciousness to check the situation in the outside world. Instead, the black sword laid on Noah''s shoulder, with its tip pointing toward the staircase in front of them. "I think it likes me, "June said as her eyes went on the sword, "I can''t say the same for Faith though." "Of course, it likes you." Noah said while revealing a smile and straightening his position, "It''s connected with my mind. It feels part of my emotions." June couldn''t help but show her affection at those words, but the sword soon began to stare at them again, ruining the intimate mood that had taken over the couple. "Is this what it feels to have kids?" June asked, "I''m starting to reconsider my idea of family." Noah smirked at her joke and pulled her near his chest. One hand went on her hair while the other grabbed the sword and held it still in front of him. The blade cheered when Noah wielded it, but he intended to use his newfound clarity to inspect its actual structure. It had only one sharp edge, and it was almost double the size of his usual sabers. Its hilt was thin but not severe, and it didn''t have any guard between it and the blade. Also, it was straight, entirely black, and no one would understand that it was alive from just its aspect. Truth to be told, Noah didn''t really know what the sword was capable of. The peculiar state that he had reached while he was striving to become a perfect being had enlightened him, but it didn''t tell him what he was creating. The blade surely was the materialization of his individuality, but he didn''t know its abilities. Some evident features were coming from the materials used during the forging, but that was still a lifeform. There had to be more to it. The sword didn''t hide anything from Noah''s inspection. He just needed to will it, and the functioning of that peculiar lifeform became evident in his mind. ''I see,'' Noah thought, and the structure of the blade began to change. It became almost liquid, only to solidify when it divided itself into two parts and assumed the form of his usual Demonic Swords. ''This ability comes from the Liquid Dantian,'' Noah thought as he tested the pliability of the sword before making it regain its original shape. ''It is alive, but it doesn''t need air. It feeds only on primary energy. A sword-type magical beast, the first of its kind.'' Noah evaluated as he learned about its functioning. The entirety of the sword acted as a dantian and stored primary energy inside its fabric. Part of it was necessary to produce attacks, but its structure required some of it to improve. Body and dantian had basically fused in the sword, without losing the abilities of those centers of power. As for the sea of consciousness, the blade didn''t exactly have it. It didn''t have a mental sphere, but it could think and radiate intense mental waves that carried Noah''s pride, greed, and ambition. It was as if all its cells were an extension of Noah''s consciousness that didn''t weigh on his actual mind. Noah could understand though that the sword would be forever linked to his individuality, which meant that he needed to nourish it if he wanted to remain faithful to the path that he had chosen. ''I''ve more mouths to feed then.'' Noah thought, ''Well, my battle prowess would increase by a lot when I fight with it.'' Noah was now a rank 5 cultivator able to summon a rank 5 Blood Companion and wield a living weapon in the fifth rank. History wasn''t his field of expertise, but he was quite sure that no existence in his rank could claim to have his same foundation. Another shockwave spread from the top floor. The three of them, together with the sword, moved their attention to the source of those tremors. Even after a week, the snake was still fighting against the Tribulation. Yet, the intervals between each shockwave were becoming shorter. It was as if Heaven and Earth were slowly gaining the upper hand in the battle. "I wonder how it''s going outside," June said without leaving Noah''s chest. Faith shook her head at her words. She kept her consciousness outside of the castle, but the lightning storm didn''t allow her to understand much. The Tribulation had isolated them, and all they could do was to wait for everything to be over. Chapter 772: 772. Gains Noah did his best to recover the assets lost during the transformation and to understand the prowess of the sword as he waited for the Tribulation to end. His empty dantian limited his possibilities, but the were a few things that didn''t immediately require his "Breath". Noah recreated the Will-consuming runes used during the forging. The peculiar state reached during the transformation had allowed him to control the "Breath" in the environment, but he had yet to inscribe the walls of his mind entirely. Then, his focus went on his sword. The name Demonic Sword was too fitting for that new species, and even the blade seemed to like it. So, he simply called it like that before moving to its abilities. As a lifeform that resembled the magical beasts, the sword had a series of innate skills that made use of the properties of the precious materials mixed in its structure. It could release the corrosive smoke of the Demonic Form and use it to create dragon-like shapes during its offensive. Such attacks would radiate Noah''s sharpness and use the energy contained inside the blade. Yet, Noah could increase the might of those attacks by using his energy, martial arts, and spells. There wasn''t any form or rejection between him and the sword, and even their instincts matched. It was as if they were the same entity, just divided into two different bodies. Of course, Noah couldn''t perform many tests in that situation. He didn''t have "Breath", and he would rather avoid claiming the attention of Heaven and Earth during the Tribulation. After his injuries had healed and the tests were over, he felt the need to go through the thoughts experienced during transformation. His mind had gained access to a higher form of understanding since the perfect hybrids were supposed to be the most dangerous enemies of Heaven and Earth. He remembered the feeling of having the laws of the world displayed right in front of his eyes. They were deep and unfathomable, powers far more intricate than the individualities. Also, they were everywhere, even if in a messy and chaotic state most of the time. It was thanks to that understanding that he had managed to create the new Demonic Sword, but that hadn''t been the only exciting event. His body had begun to transform primary energy into "Breath" of the darkness element after the breakthrough of the dantian! The secrets behind that process had been the center of Noah''s mediations for years. After all, his initial idea on how to complete his individuality concerned the creation of a different kind of "Breath". Noah had memorized the process, and he didn''t hesitate to analyze it with the Divine Deduction technique once he had dealt with the other pressing matters. Many flaws and issues immediately appeared when he tried to reverse-engineer that procedure. The "Breath" instinctively created by his body was an imitation of the energy belonging to Heaven and Earth. It was slightly weaker than the original, and it was able to express its full power only when a hybrid of that kind used it. That couldn''t work for Noah. There was no point in creating a different version of the "Breath" of the darkness element if there was something stronger in the environment. Also, he needed to modify the procedure to make something perfect for his peculiar existence. ''With a slash, I destroy worlds.'' Noah thought, waving the Demonic Sword without putting any strength in that gesture. The sharp edge of the weapon cut the air and left a trail of primary energy at its passage. Noah''s destruction made the trail spread and create more primary energy. ''With another slash, I create worlds.'' Noah thought, cutting the air again. The primary energy accumulating in front of him entered in the sword that used it to create abstract forms made of corrosive black smoke. Noah felt that his control over the smoke was superior when he used the blade to cast it. It was as if his power overall was whole only when he worked together with the Demonic Sword. That discovery didn''t surprise him since the weapon was actually him but in the form of pure expression of his individuality. However, seeing that his connection with the blade gave him so many benefits, he began to modify his plans for his techniques. He had ideas that saw the Demonic Sword as the core part of his cultivation technique and some spells. Still, he would need to return to a safe environment and acquire other materials before testing all of that. Faith and June kept themselves busy as the Tribulation raged and shook the castle, together with the entire Mortal Lands. Faith spent most of her time cultivating and trying to understand what was happening on the other side of the gray marble that made the walls of the structure. Nevertheless, she was never able to gain a clear picture since the power of the lightning storm destroyed most of her mental waves. June cultivated too, but she had it better than Faith since Noah was with her. The two of them could spend their free time together and prepare in the eventuality that the rank 6 snake survived the Tribulation and unleashed its rage on them. Of course, their preparations weren''t battle-related. They simply used that time to have some intimate moments in case their lives were about to end. It was needless to say that the situation was quite strange since both Faith and the Demonic Sword didn''t exactly agree with that behavior. Yet, Faith understood their needs and did her best to close her senses whenever the couple reached a point that was too intimate for her to see. On the other hand, the sword was difficult to convince, and June would often end up arguing with it. Noah simply laughed when he saw his lover trying to explain the meaning of privacy to a flying blade that could only answer with roars. However, the two of them reached a sort of understanding at some point, even if the sword didn''t like it. The Tribulation lasted for an entire month, and an eerie silence fell on the world when the lightning storm vanished. The castle had stopped shaking a few days before, but Noah and the others didn''t dare to climb to the top floor until everything was over. Then, an entire day after the last lightning bolt, the three cultivators and sword stood up and moved toward the top of the structure. Noah felt relieved when his consciousness seeped through the hall and noticed a huge and motionless corpse, but he still crossed the entrance with the utmost attention. Luckily for him, the rank 6 snake wasn''t playing any tricks at that time. Its charred corpse lay on the floor without radiating the slightest trace of life. Noah noticed how countless holes filled its skin and that one of its wings was completely missing. He couldn''t feel excited though since the Tribulation had been thorough in that destruction. When Noah neared it and touched its skin, a large chunk of its meat fell apart and turned into dust. Chapter 773: 773. Determination Noah had hoped for a better outcome. The flesh of a rank 6 being was an incomparable treasure, even more to him. Every piece of its body could become part of rank 6 inscribed items, objects with a power that only cultivators at the peak of the heroic ranks could wield adequately. Yet, when the other parts of the snake''s charred corpse fell apart and turned into dust, he accepted the fact that he had already been lucky enough to survive that encounter. When he considered the fact that he had even gained a lot from that meeting, the fact that he couldn''t obtain the rank 6 body seemed reasonable. A large bucket appeared in his hands, and his mental energy spread in the room to gather all the dust accumulated on the floor. There wasn''t even an ounce of "Breath" in that material, but it still came from a rank 6 existence. It had to have some value in the hands of a suitable expert. The dust floated inside the bucket, and Noah sealed it before storing it inside his space-ring. He didn''t need to seal it since the formations inside his device were enough to prevent any form of spoiling. Yet, he was used to that practice due to the Body-inscription spell, so he simply executed it by instinct. Noah focused on the chains afterward. They seemed to have lost their power after the death of the rank 6 existence, but he picked and stored them anyway. He couldn''t leave them there. When he turned to leave though, he found June and Faith staring at him with a tinge of awe in their eyes. Noah''s confused look was enough to force an answer out of June. "You do realize that you''ve killed a being in the sixth rank?" Noah understood what she meant. The snake had managed to keep its shape even after the Tribulation erased every trace of energy from its body. The thought that Noah had caused the death of something so powerful had made both women realize how resourceful he was. "The Tribulation killed it." Noah said, dismissing the respect that they were giving him, "The retribution of Heaven and Earth is what caused its death." He meant those words. The three of them wouldn''t be alive now if it weren''t for the self-imposed chains restricting the snake. The truth was that relying on Heaven and Earth had left a bitter taste in his mouth. He wasn''t underestimating himself. He knew that few cultivators would have been able to revert the transformation in his situation. Gazing at the laws made him able to complete his individuality only because his accumulation in his inscribed method was high. He was worthy of his new rank. Yet, he couldn''t help but see the event from the opposite point of view too. The fact that his individuality was ready to step on a higher level had been a fluke. He had been smart in exploiting it, but he would be a dragon now if he didn''t have a different path to complete during the transformation. His plan would have failed otherwise. "Look at me in that way when I can kill existences on that level with my own hands," Noah said as he walked past the women and reached for the staircase. He had always known that he was just a puppet when higher entities were involved. After all, he couldn''t even see his lover freely since the forces behind them didn''t get along. Yet, completing his individuality had cleared most of his doubts when it came to the cultivation journey. There were crises that he couldn''t predict, and beings that he couldn''t control, but that wasn''t a good reason to feel annoyed or angry. Only his ambition to move forward mattered, together with the few things that his current power allowed him to care about. Everything else was outside of his grasp, and he wouldn''t let it affect him since he had no control over it. If he found a hindrance in his path to power, he would destroy it. If he lacked a road, he would create it. If his efforts ultimately led to death, he would accept it, knowing that he had lived just as he wanted. June and Faith knew that Noah had changed after his meeting with the snake. Still, his personality was just starting to show that. Of course, June had noticed some slight differences in his behavior during their intimate moments, but most changes had yet to show up. The three of them took all the scrolls and tomes contained in the castle and exited it through its main door. Heaven and Earth didn''t react when they were in the hall, so they were confident that the calamity was over and wouldn''t target them. A wasted world appeared in their sight. Countless trails of smoke filled the sky in the distance, and most of the flora on the coastline of the continent had become nothing more than dust. The island and the ruins on it were relatively intact since the Tribulation had focused its rage on the top floor of the castle, but a few black craters still filled its surface. The three of them tried to contact the assets of their respective forces, but they didn''t obtain an answer. Also, no mental messages had arrived after the lightning storm went away, which meant that every note left by their leaders had vanished together with the black clouds. They were alone and on the opposite side of the continent. They didn''t even know how the situation had evolved after the month spent inside the castle. "We can only reach the volcano," Noah said, and his companions nodded at his words. If those were their Mortal Lands, they could just wait for some of the higher-ups of their organizations to pick them up and escort them back to their headquarters. However, they didn''t know if the portal had survived the Tribulation nor if any of their companions were still alive. They didn''t even know if the other heroic assets had just abandoned them when the lightning bolts started to fall. So, they could only fly to the volcano and evaluate the situation by themselves. Only then would they be able to decide on their next move. Noah closed his eyes and spread dense mental waves that carried an intense pride. His mental energy obtained a peculiar aura when it crossed the walls of his mind, and the environment instinctively reacted to his thoughts. The "Breath" around Noah gathered under his feet and lifted him in the air. Performing such simple tasks even if the inscription of his walls wasn''t complete was easy, but he needed to become used to them. It felt strange for the "Breath" to follow his orders, but it felt natural at the same time. It was as if his mind was meant to impose laws on the energy around him. He just didn''t know it before that moment. The Demonic Sword, June, and Faith quickly reached him, and they didn''t hesitate to move in the direction of the volcano. Chapter 774: 774. Intelligence Noah flew through the sky, followed closely by his companions and sword. His hair didn''t flutter in the wind like it used to but remained quite still as if it was some kind of heavy mane. His focus was on the cracked and shattered ground under him, even if he had to use part of his attention controlling the "Breath" that was allowing him to fly. Using the "Breath" in the environment felt different. He was moving something that didn''t belong to him through his will. The sensation resembled that felt when he controlled magical beasts, but it came from something more profound than the pure fear of a more potent being. As for the environment under him, it was nothing like the island that they had just left. There were dark craters everywhere, with sparse burning trees appearing now and then. It was evident that the Tribulation had hit harder on the landmass, and it didn''t seem to have minded the casualties when it tried to wipe out any being carrying the compound. The continent appeared completely deserted even if only a few months had passed since the group saw it filled with magical beasts. That scene confirmed that the Tribulation had targeted even the creatures carrying the compound, but Noah was still unclear about the actual effect that it had on them. After all, they were already magical beasts. The answer to his doubts though came rather quickly, after only a few weeks flying straight toward the volcano. The absence of magical beasts on their path and their lack of need to explore the continent further allowed the group to cross many regions quickly. That brought the group deeper into the mainland, where they met the first trace of life since the beginning of their return. A pack of spider-like creatures appeared in their view. A wounded rank 5 Hairy Spider stood in front of a series of rank 3 and 4 specimens and waved its front legs as if it was trying to explain something. It was needless to say that such a scene was unusual even when it came to creatures that had given birth to a Bloodline Inheritance. The leader of the pack was performing gestures that weren''t battle-related. It was trying to communicate through something more intricate than its cries. Noah didn''t even wait for his companions to notice the unusual scene. He dived directly in the middle of the pack and fixed his reptilian eyes on the five meters tall leader. To his surprise, the spider didn''t immediately attack. Instead, it screeched a series of confused orders to its underlings, and Noah understood that it was telling them to stay still. The rank 5 spider was in the lower tier other than injured. Noah''s oppressing presence was enough to make it tremble in fear. However, Noah noticed that its eight eyes hid traces of intelligence as they stared at him. There was an innocent curiosity in the creature''s gaze, something that Noah had never seen in a magical beast when it didn''t concern a meal at least. The weaker specimens in its pack seemed to have similar intelligent gazes. They trembled in fear as they studied the human figure that had suddenly landed among them. ''I have to admit that the snake was a genius.'' Noah thought as he realized that those creatures had developed a perfect mental sphere. His consciousness enveloped the various beings around him, and he inspected the mental waves that they innately radiated. He sensed simple thoughts as if they were children that had suddenly woken up inside powerful spider bodies. The instincts that had ruled their lives felt somewhat obsolete now that they could formulate complex ideas, and everything about them appeared new. However, even their newfound intelligence couldn''t take over their instincts completely. Their aggression was something rooted deeply into their beings, and the snake''s action of chaining itself was a clear example of that. The rank 5 Hairy Spider released a battle cry that forced its underlings to pounce at Noah with everything they had. Meanwhile, it tried to dig a hole in the ground to escape from the inevitable anger of that powerful human. Noah felt amused when he saw that scene. The leader didn''t even test his strength before deciding to escape. In some ways, he could consider it smart. Noah sprinted through the barrage of legs and hairy bodies, destroying everything in its path. The sheer force released as he shot toward the leader was enough to shatter the blockade of those weaker beings. The rank 5 spider had almost disappeared underground when Noah reached it and pulled one of its legs to drag it outside of that hole. A series of sticky and poisonous webs shot in his direction, but a black flash consumed them before they could reach him. The Demonic Sword released a roar as it hung above the spider''s head. The blade had never left Noah''s side. It had merely laid on his back because it saw that he was interested in the improved abilities of those creatures. Yet, when actual attacks reached for him, it appeared in the open and revealed its might. "Easy," Noah said, "I need its head." The sword released an annoyed growl, but it didn''t dare to disobey Noah''s orders. It knew through its connection with him that studying the spider''s minds was necessary, so it simply hovered there. The rank 5 spider sent all its legs toward Noah, but cracking sounds echoed on the scene when they met Noah''s fist. Even after awakening its intelligence, a rank 5 creature in the lower tier couldn''t hope to match the prowess of a hybrid in the middle tier. Noah tore the spider apart limb by limb and studied his body in the process. There weren''t substantial differences in terms of physical strength, but his movements seemed smoother and fiercer. The spider inevitably died as Noah kept on creating cracks in its sturdy exoskeleton, and he tore open its head after its last cry. ''As expected,'' Noah thought when he saw that he didn''t find any trace of a Bloodline Inheritance. The mental sphere was ethereal in its structure, and the absence of a dark-red crystal confirmed that the compound made the infected beasts develop a sea of consciousness. Noah then inspected the corpse and cracked open its lower body. A shining organ full of primary energy appeared in his view, and he felt slightly surprised by its perfect state. The organ was a fake dantian, but it was remarkably similar to a real dantian in power. Noah stored the corpse and repeated the same inspection for the weaker specimens, without minding the few unharmed spiders that had already escaped far in the distance. Each one of them didn''t have a Bloodline Inheritance and featured a fully-formed fake dantians in their lower bodies. June and Faith waited for him to complete his analysis. After all, Noah was their greatest hope in reaching the volcano alive, and he needed that to understand what they were going to face once they reached the human domain. Chapter 775: 775. Reinforcements A few hours before the arrival of the Tribulation, the assets from the four forces were going on with their daily occupations as usual. Most cultivators were studying and listing the immense amount of new materials that the new Mortal Lands had to offer. There were far too many applications to those new substances when they met the various inscription methods that the experts had to offer. The formation field saw discoveries happening every year since the inscription method of the natives shared its focus on the natural properties of the materials. The improvements discoveries didn''t stop there. The appearance of new substances widened the inscription field as a whole, especially when it came to schools that could make use of the Elite beasts. A new brand of inscribed weapons appeared in those years, and the alchemists created new brands of drugs that helped the dantians of cultivators in many ways. It was needless to say that testing the effects of those creations was a crucial aspect of the procedures. Yet, the majority of the cultivators there valued Noah''s warnings and suppressed their eagerness to see if their discoveries could work on humans. Of course, some of them grew restless since Noah''s group didn''t find anything specific, and even the fear coming from those strange-looking skeletons began to vanish as the years passed. After all, they were dimensional explorers. They had to take some risks when foreign Mortal Lands were involved. That belief ultimately led them to their doom. It all began with a soft echo. Everyone living in the headquarters built around the volcano knew that Noah''s group had gone inside the last trace of civilization available on the other side of the continent. Their mission was quite crucial, and their discoveries had helped the four forces in many ways. All the cultivators living in the headquarters were partially grateful that the three of them were dealing with such a tedious and repetitive task. Nevertheless, that echo spread through the sky less than an hour after they reported that they were entering the last castle. The experts on the volcano didn''t mind it at first. They were outside of the human domain, and it wasn''t unusual for packs of powerful magical beasts to cross their position. Even creatures in the sixth rank would find it hard to break through the defenses of the underground encampment that surrounded the fissure. The cultivators there had deployed an insane number of protections there, and they even had the help of God''s Left Hand in that matter. In their minds, that world couldn''t threaten them once they were inside those protections. They would have never imagined that the danger would have appeared from the inside. As the echo became stronger, every cultivator that had joined the mating sessions or that had been tainted by the mutagen started to transform. Panic spread in the encampment. Almost twenty rank 4 cultivators had suddenly become magical beasts and were finding it hard to control their newfound instincts. Some of them said a few words before their roars suppressed the last bits of sanity that they had managed to muster before their hunger took control of their bodies. The assets of the four forces didn''t deploy their offensive at that scene. Their first idea was to contain their transformed companions and study the event before deciding on their fate. After all, even as perfect hybrids, they were still creatures in the fourth rank, and the encampment had eight rank 5 cultivators and a rank 6 existence. Those beasts weren''t a real threat. However, the Heaven Tribulation followed their transformation, and the insane defenses of the encampment struggled to keep up with the intensity of the lightning storm. The four factions were confident in exhausting the power of the Tribulation since God''s Left Hand was on the field. Yet, as days passed and the lightning bolts didn''t slow down their offensive for even a second, they began to rethink their initial approach. Was it worth to damage the integrity of defenses lain down over fifteen years for a bunch of heroic cultivators that had lost their sanity? The only real loss would be in the experts and individual cases, like Lix Elbas, who had the blood of a rank 6 existence even in his beast form. Lightning bolts of various power fell on the thick barrier that protected the volcano. Some of them would barely meet the standards of the heroic ranks, but a few sparse ones were able to make even God''s Left Hand Tremble. The situation was becoming too dangerous, and that wasn''t something limited to their area. God''s Left Hand''s resolution surged when she sensed that the lightning storm wasn''t limited to their territory and that more transformation had happened in the rest of the continent. Her choice became evident when she understood that the natives could directly attack them if they wasted their defenses to fend off the Tribulation. The communications with their world were slow due to the nature of the portal, and no amount of improvements could solve that issue. They simply couldn''t shorten the distance between the two worlds more than that. God''s Left Hand decided to kill the hybrid before the forces on the other side of the fissure were able to answer. The Tribulation stopped falling on the volcano when those creatures died, but she made the troops retreat nevertheless. They had to regroup in their world. The delay in the communications could be fatal in such a crisis. As for Noah''s group, they couldn''t contact them due to the lightning storm, and the thought of crossing the continent to pick them up was merely delusional. Also, the portal was still open, so they weren''t exactly leaving them behind. There was no way to help them anyway. The same went for the cultivators still in the natives'' domain. There was nothing that they could do for them. The assets returned to the homeworld with a single trip through the passage. The portal could withstand rank 6 existences now. Adding a few rank 4 and 5 cultivators could hardly be counted as a problem. There, the rank 6 existences held a meeting that assessed the unbelievable events of the other world. None of them cared about the loss of their rank 4 assets when they could lose an entire world filled with resources. Yet, they had to set specific terms before they proceeded with their next move. God''s Left Hand was the first to cross the portal again, and she brought a series of heroic assets along with her. Her role was to keep track of the Tribulation, and she didn''t hesitate to report it when the dark clouds vanished. She tried to send mental messages to the assets that they had left behind too, but she didn''t receive any response. It seemed that the "Breath" in the air was still too chaotic, which hindered the correct functioning of their inscribed notebooks. Then, about three weeks after she reported the end of the Tribulation, King Elbas and God''s Right Hand crossed the fissure and stepped on that alien world. Chapter 776: 776. Battles Noah''s group didn''t encounter many living beings as their journey continued. There were rare specimens that had luckily survived the lightning storm or that had smartly used the environment to protect themselves, but the continent appeared desolate nonetheless. However, they could begin to sense traces of life as they neared the human domain. The landmass of that world was somewhat circular, while those in their Mortal Lands were almost rectangular. That had slowed down their exploration, but it made their path back to the volcano quite short. Yet, they weren''t even halfway through it when a sudden shockwave spread far in the distance, from the territories under the control of the natives. Huge figures could be barely made out in the sky far from them, but they knew that only rank 6 existences were able to create such powerful after-effects in their battle. The communications were still down, but Noah could only think about two explanations for the event happening on the other end of the continent. The first one saw the rank 6 existences of the natives losing control of their transformation and fighting themselves, while the other one alluded to a battle between the powerhouses of the two worlds. Either way, the human domain had suddenly become a danger zone that they had to avoid if they wanted to keep their lives. Noah led June and Faith on a more peripheral path. They would lose days of travel through that path, but that outcome was better than risking exposing themselves to a battle at the peak of the heroic ranks. Their target was the fissure under the volcano. Noah''s group had already decided that those Mortal Lands were too dangerous for them right now. Ripples and cracks appeared in the sky as the battle unfolded. It seemed to go on forever, day and night, and the earth never stopped shaking in that period. "They aren''t giving this world a break," Faith said, annoyed by the constant tremors, "It''s crisis after crisis." June and Noah could share her annoyance, especially since they didn''t know if there was still a way back to their world. There was a chance that those Mortal Lands would be their new home for a while, but the three of them didn''t want to make plans for that eventuality just yet. Rather, the idea would be just to escape and find a safe spot where to wait for reinforcements. The battle in the human domain eventually ended, and the three cultivators didn''t even manage to take a look at the beings involved since they were still too far away. However, they were nearing the volcano with each passing day, and it would take them less than a few months to reach their destination. When they were almost there though, the tremors returned, but Noah was able to recognize the existences involved at that time. A vast and fiery snake flew above the natives'' domain and filled the sky with a torrent of flames able to cover entire regions. A massive tornado followed the snake, and dark clouds gathered above them, releasing what seemed to be purple rain. "Our forces are attacking the natives!" Noah said without stopping his flight. Faith didn''t know much about the powerhouses of their world, but June could recognize the fire of the Elbas family when she saw it. As for Noah, Chasing Demon had been detailed in his report after the crisis of the winged beasts, so he could even name the rank 6 existences involved. The three of them picked up speed. The three powerhouses had decided to fight above the enemy territory, which meant that the portal was still in function and needed to be protected! Two gigantic figures rose in the sky when the powerhouses threatened to destroy everything in their path. One of them was a massive turtle with a shell filled with spikes and buildings, while the other was a tall ape surrounded by white sparks. Of course, both beasts were in the sixth rank, and their presence gave off a feeling similar to that radiated by the rank 6 snake. The five existences didn''t start to attack each other. They simply stood there, staring at each other without dispersing their spells or auras. Noah and the others knew that they were speaking. They probably hoped to find a way out of that situation that didn''t involve a battle on their level. Nevertheless, the meeting went sideways rather quickly, and the roars of the two massive beasts shook the sky as the cultivators'' spells engulfed them. The world seemed about to end for the third time, but the five existences soon dragged the battle above the clouds, at a height where the natives'' domain wouldn''t be affected by the shockwaves. Loud sounds and roars accompanied the trio''s return to the volcano. The earth had stopped shaking since the powerhouses went to the sky, but the air kept on shattering, and the shockwaves were still somewhat suffocating. Yet, they managed to reach the volcano in one piece, and few incredulous figures shot out of the protective barrier to greet them. Elder Austin, Thaddeus, Cecil, and Elder Clara appeared right in front of the trio that landed on the ground at their sight. After more than fifteen years in the wilderness, the three of them had returned, putting a definitive end to their mission. Noah let the two women reunite with their factions first. There was no time to say goodbye to June due to the battles between the rank 6 existences. So, he wanted to at least gaze at her figure one last time since he didn''t know how long it would be before their reunion. Nevertheless, Faith suddenly turned and hugged him. "I''ll take care of her," Faith said, "Thank you for taking care of me out there." Then, she broke the embrace and ran after Elder Clara that was staring at her with an incredulous expression. June snorted when she saw that scene, but she limited herself to bow toward Cecil and Thaddeus. The two Royals informed her about Lix''s death, but they didn''t show any surprise when they saw no change in her expression. Instead, they released a helpless sigh and began to lead her inside the volcano. Noah watched her leave and turned toward Elder Austin, who was doing his best to suppress a grin from appearing on his expression. Noah didn''t even bother to try to explain his misunderstanding, but, as he took a step forward, a whiff of his aura reached the four cultivators that had greeted them. Elder Austin''s grin froze when he sensed it. Elder Clara moved her gaze away from her disciple to stare at Noah with a black expression. Cecil and Thaddeus suddenly turned to show disbelief and traces of fear. Noah didn''t pretend nor try to hide under the inspection of those cultivators. He kept on walking toward the volcano, with his hair reflecting the sunlight, and his sleeveless robe revealing few sparse scales on his arms. The Demonic Sword appeared too. He couldn''t hide it when his pride was overflowing. After all, he was the youngest rank 5 cultivator in history. Chapter 777: 777. Unfair It was impossible, or, at least, it should have been. Noah walked toward the volcano with an unwavering gaze. He didn''t have to explain anything, and there was no point in gloating in the surprise that his rank had caused. The others could see his whole existence. Primary energy would form naturally around him, and his body absorbed it every time he breathed. He didn''t hide it. He couldn''t just suppress himself at that level. The many emotions that ran through their expressions were all justified. Noah had barely crossed the eighty years'' mark, but he had already stepped on a level that countless cultivators failed to reach. Elder Austin didn''t know how to react. It was as if his brain had frozen in shock when he sensed Noah''s aura. The Elder had been considered a genius back when he was a rank 4 cultivator. Reaching the fifth rank in one hundred years wasn''t something that many existences could do. After all, some cultivators could spend centuries in the fourth rank as they immersed themselves in their individualities. Yet, Noah had done that in a bit more than forty years. Heck, he had gone all the way from being a commoner to a feared existence in the time that it took the Elder to go from the fourth to the fifth rank. Noah had already been called a monster, but there weren''t words to describe his latest achievement. The four cultivators that had greeted him didn''t fail to notice his scales and the peculiar features of his hair. It was clear that something had happened to him, and that seemed connected with the sudden transformations. However, here he was, still in his human form, with a rank 5 dantian and a flying sword that radiated a power similar to a rank 5 magical beast. "He''s one of them!" Thaddeus shouted in the midst of his disbelief. Elder Austin shot an angry gaze at the Royal, but Cecil intervened before him. He placed a hand over his son''s shoulder and shook his head. The meaning behind his gesture was clear: Thaddeus had to let it go. Whatever plan or scheme they had for the most famous criminal of the Utra nation, it was too late now. The truth was that Noah''s sight was disheartening for those cultivators. They didn''t lack resources, and they had trained for most of their lives too. They were even improving their power steadily. However, Noah''s growth was unreal. One day he was just a rank 2 cultivator that had managed to escape the control of powerful organizations; the other his power was enough to affect the political affairs of countries that had lasted for millennia. Noah didn''t mind that Elder Austin didn''t follow him as he went past the barrier around the volcano. Certain events were hard to digest and could break a cultivator''s will. He needed to stay alone for some time, and Noah wouldn''t complain about that. A crowd of cultivators appeared in his view when he dived toward the underground of the volcano. Red rivers shone on his face, and a series of inscribed tents filled the few areas without magma. Cultivators were flying above them, behind a few ethereal screens that depicted the natives'' cities. They immediately noticed Noah''s arrival, and the same disbelief that had struck the existences outside filled them too. Noah couldn''t possibly know it, but bets were going on among some of them. The stakes concerned his growth, which was a topic that those heroic entities were interested in discussing in their social circles. Many of them believed that Noah would reach the fifth rank after the one hundred years'' mark, and some of them even thought that he would hurt himself and remain stuck at the fourth rank since his growth was too insane. Nevertheless, all of them lost their bets. There was an apparent unwillingness in their expressions. Noah appeared simply unfair to them. However, pride soon appeared among some of them. Only then did Noah notice that most cultivators in the encampment came from the Hive and the Papral nation. There were even ten rank 5 cultivators belonging to those factions. Noah recognized Elder Justin and Elder Julia, but two more rank 5 cultivators were wearing the robes of the Hive next to them. They were the elders in charge of the Coral archipelago and the Lutren nation, and Noah only knew their names, but he couldn''t assign them to a face. ''This must have been a way to balance the presence of the powerhouses from the other nations.'' Noah thought. Sending so many rank 5 cultivators was something that the Hive would never do under normal circumstances. After all, the four of them and Elder Austin made all the rank 5 assets of the Hive. That was what the other forces believed at least. However, the Elbas family and the Shandal Empire had deployed their rank 6 existences. Even all those powerful troops could barely make up for their commitment. Noah neared the elders since they appeared to be too amazed to move and performed a quick bow to greet them. That gesture made them return to reality, and the two strangers didn''t hesitate to announce themselves. "I''m Colleen, and I run the Archipelago. It''s an honor to meet the Demon Prince." A woman with dark skin, long and crispy black hair, and unusual white eyes said. "Ingrid. I handle the Lutren nation." Another woman with fair skin, short brown hair, and a pair of shining red eyes said. Except for the two Demons, the rank 5 assets of the Hive were all there. As they finished their presentation, Elder Austin entered the underground area and joined them. Noah could see how even Cecil and the others had returned, and his eyes crossed June''s for a brief second before focusing again on the Elders. Once Elder Austin managed to let go of his sour feelings, he was all smiles every time he looked at Noah. After all, the Hive had now eight rank 5 cultivators, which was something that he was incredibly proud of. The others shared his happiness. It didn''t happen so often that someone reached their ranks, but they couldn''t find anyone more fitting than Noah. Also, he already had his dome in the new continent. The Hive had basically expected his breakthrough. "What''s the plan?" Noah asked at some point, "Do we just wait and see how the battle between the powerhouses unfolds?" He didn''t like that idea. As long as the natives remained free to act, there was a chance that the compound inside him could be triggered again, and he was quite sure that he couldn''t pull another miracle off. The forces of his world had to take control of the situation until they managed to reverse engineer the transformation and find ways to stop it. "You would be surprised, Prince," Elder Julia said as she revealed a confident smile. Elder Ingrid then finished her phrase. "We are going to war." Chapter 778: 778. Rumors It turned out that the four factions shared Noah''s worries too. The fact that their cultivators could suddenly transform in magical beasts wasn''t a threat that they were willing to leave alone. The elders gave Noah reports that described the improvements enforced in the encampment and the events during and after the Tribulation. Apparently, the first battle had been between the turtle and the ape. It seemed that the transformation carried a few unavoidable mental instabilities that took them some time to suppress. After all, they had to deal with the drives of a magical beast now, and Noah knew far too well how hard they could be. The casualties among the natives during that fight had been massive, but the two rank 6 hybrids eventually calmed themselves and retreated in their domain to manage the damage. However, the forces of Noah''s world didn''t fail to use that chance to analyze the prowess of those beings. It was evident that they had more rank 6 existences on their side, but beasts in the sixth rank were tough to kill, let alone intelligent creatures that could use spells. The powerhouses couldn''t just match their numbers. They had to overwhelm and destroy them thoroughly. That''s why the four factions had ultimately decided to send three powerhouses, with two of them being among the strongest existences that their world had to offer. Many vital assets of the other organizations had to cross the passage to balance the temporary weakness of their local enemies. Still, the Empire and the Elbas family had both deployed troops around the portal anyway. They couldn''t leave it in the hands of the other forces. After all, losing many rank 5 cultivators would be a harsh blow, but banishing three powerhouses was appealing too. Of course, those were all precautions. The truth was that an entire world was at stake, and the competition over a few pieces of land of the four forces appeared almost petty compared to what they could gain through the portal. Tremors would reach the underground encampment at times, but they were only faint echoes of the battle happening above the clouds. Both sides didn''t want to destroy the assets of the bloodlines, even if their reasons were completely different. The natives wanted to contain the damage to their population, especially after losing control the first time. Instead, the alien powerhouses wanted to annex their civilization and studies. That world far behind them in many aspects of the cultivation field, but it had achieved remarkable results when it came to alchemy, techniques, and buildings. To ensure that the invading forces managed to put their hands on those resources though, they had to fight on the ground too. Battling right under the fight between rank 6 existences wasn''t ideal, but they had to take risks if they wanted to seize enough rewards. Also, they had to keep the population of transformed cultivators in check, and that needed a personal touch that the aloof powerhouses couldn''t have. "Just to be clear," Elder Ingrid said, "You aren''t going to transform in the middle of the battlefield, right?" That question was directed at Noah since it was impossible to hide the magical beasts'' aspects of his body. Noah gazed at the middle-aged woman that was inspecting him with a bit of concern and noticed that even the other elders had similar doubts. It couldn''t be helped. He could do a lot of damage if he lost control near them. Elder Ingrid wasn''t polite in her manners. She was direct and didn''t care about Noah''s social status when she needed pieces of crucial information. Generally speaking, cultivators would avoid probing their peer''s powers and individualities. It was a custom respected by most people, especially those in the heroic ranks. Yet, Elder Ingrid uncaringly asked the question that her fellow elders were suppressing due to Noah''s status. "I will be fine. Also," Noah said as he picked the bucket containing the ashes of the snake from his space-ring, "These belong to a rank 6 creature. They don''t have any energy left, but Thirty-seven might have some use for them." The faces of the elders turned from worried to incredulous in less than an instant. The dust inside the bucket didn''t radiate any special aura, but they didn''t believe that Noah would lie about such a matter. "You should keep them," Elder Julia said while shooting an angry glance at Elder Ingrid. She didn''t like her attitude toward the Demon Prince, even if she understood her worries. As for Noah, he kind of liked Ingrid since her direct character reminded him of June. Also, they were on the same side, and they had to settle all their doubts before flying into a battle. "The plan is simple," Elder Justin said, "We kill everything that moves and start taking captives only when the situation calms down." Noah didn''t have any complaints about that strategy. His world would prefer to commit a genocide rather than risking other transformations inside its ranks, and he agreed with that view. The troops inside the encampment waited a few days for reinforcements to arrive. They were about to leave the volcano and the portal, so there had to be cultivators defending the area while they attacked the bloodlines, or what was left of them. Meanwhile, rumors spread among the troops. Even if a large part of the cultivators there came from the Hive, Noah''s sparse scales worried most of the heroic assets. That and the fact that Faith would often visit him even when he was alone in his tent didn''t turn the crowd in his favor. As for Faith, the years spent in the wilderness had made her lose any care for the rules of the Council. She could just justify her actions telling that she needed him for her individuality, and there would be little that her leaders could do at that point. Her position inside the Council was different from June''s. Faith was already part of that organization, and she was even a promising asset. Instead, June was a cultivator that the Royals had yet to fully acquire, and her relationship with Noah had been unclear since their days in the academy. Of course, Faith would visit June often too, even if that didn''t create the same number of rumors. The day of the battle eventually arrived, and most assets left the encampment to fly toward the natives'' domain. The reinforcement had delivered a series of disposable inscribed items useful to resist the shockwaves created by the rank 6 existences. Still, they would be useless if those powerhouses happened to be too close. It was just another form of precaution, and the assets there accepted it without complaining before setting off. There were more than sixty heroic cultivators in the raiding team, and twelve of them were in the fifth rank. A force like that would scare most organizations, but it was necessary when their plan saw them taking over a world. As they crossed the defensive wall though, they saw entire platoons of various magical beasts waiting for them in a defensive formation. Chapter 779: 779. War Everything became messy rather quickly. The natives were waiting for the alien forces to attack, and they had done their best to assemble an army to repel the invaders. However, even their mental state wasn''t in perfect condition, and the battle happening above them worsened their situation. It was impossible for humans that had always relied on their minds to become used to the intense instincts of the magical beasts in a matter of months. Actually, that aggression and hunger that they had developed would work against them until they fused both parts of their existence into one. Noah had to spend years in the wilderness, learning about his beast part, and it was only after his body reached the fifth rank that his centers of power obtained the benefits of his hybrid status. The natives couldn''t experience the same things due to the lack of time and the crises that they had to survive after their transformation. There was a limit to how much they could prepare in the months that had seen a Tribulation and two battles between rank 6 existences. The foreign forces shot toward the platoons as soon as they understood their power. There were ten rank 5 creatures in the army and numerous beasts in the fourth rank followed by a swarm of beings in the human ranks. An army with so many powerful assets would typically force the cultivators to reevaluate their plans. Still, they quickly noticed that the dantians of some of the hybrids in the fifth rank didn''t match the level of their other centers of power. Noah saw a huge rank 5 Three-headed Wolf in the middle tier radiating "Breath" belonging to the human ranks. He noticed a spider-type magical beast in the fifth rank exuding the unmistakable aura of a rank 4 cultivator. The same strange feature could be seen among the majority of those creatures. Most of them would have their bodies and minds at a level far higher than their dantians. ''There wasn''t enough primary energy to reach harmony!'' Noah thought as he shot forward with the other heroic assets. The transformation had forced the growth of a dantian inside the Flawed humans. Yet, there were simply too many of them in those small regions. Even the miraculous compound couldn''t create rank 1 dantians and push them forward until they reached the level of the other centers of power, not with a limited amount of energy at least. So, the natives didn''t match the invaders in terms of raw power, even if their number of rank 4 assets was quite incredible. As Noah''s group crossed the defensive walls, countless spells of various power reached for them. A loud explosion resounded in the sky, and a gray cloud filled the area, but, to the natives'' surprise, the more than sixty cultivators came out of it unharmed and counterattacked. The natives weren''t experienced in wars since the bloodlines rarely started battles. On the other hand, the assets of Noah''s world had gone through many conflicts. That was a crucial difference between their political systems. Noah himself had gone through a few wars, without counting the crisis of the winged beasts. Such experienced assets knew that the most dangerous point in a battle between heroic entities was the initial clash when countless attacks would pile up and become threatening even for powerful beings. So, they had a series of defensive talismans ready before they sighted the army of hybrids. The natives began to roar when they saw the human figures launching spells on their own and focusing the rank 5 specimens with them. Hundreds of weaker hybrids in the human ranks jumped forward at their orders and became meat shields that fell apart when the attacks landed on their bodies. Yet, their sacrifice allowed the creatures in the fourth rank to block the remaining power of the attacks. The first clash appeared to have ended with the invaders'' victory. However, the natives didn''t lose too much power in that exchange. However, a figure suddenly shot through the maimed corpses to land in the middle of the rank 4 hybrids. Panic spread in the rank of the beasts when they felt the innate fear caused by that foreign presence in their army. Generally speaking, no cultivator could fly close to the barrage of spells and cross them after they exploded. The shockwaves released at that moment weren''t something that a human body could endure. Yet, there weren''t only humans on the invaders'' side. Noah released a roar as he swung two short swords held tightly in his grasp. The Demonic Sword echoed his cry even in its divided form and created two huge dragon claws that pierced the scared hybrids around them. The fact that Noah could use his hybrids'' abilities better than the natives was an immense advantage in that battle. After all, every creature below the fifth rank would just be suppressed by his pride. Reaching a perfect form might have significantly improved the power of those Flawed humans, but they were nothing more than children who knew nothing about their strength in front of Noah. Fifteen rank 4 hybrids died in less than an instant. Noah had successfully created a breach in the enemies'' defenses, and his companions didn''t fail to exploit it. Another series of spells shot above him and landed on the core assets of the natives. The rank 5 hybrids roared, trying to force the weaker creatures to protect them, but Noah released a cry of his own and stopped their efforts. There were ten rank 5 beings giving orders from the other side, but none of them could be as convincing as Noah. The spells crashed on the leaders of the army, leaving many specimens injured but without killing anyone. Their bodies were too strong, and even the joint attacks of Noah''s group couldn''t kill any of them in one round. Nevertheless, Noah''s opening allowed them to inflict the first series of wounds on creatures that were quite hard to kill. The matter was even more troublesome when they took into consideration the hybrids born from the members of the bloodlines since their centers of power were in harmony. The rank 5 hybrids shot angry gazes at Noah. It seemed that part of their innate aggression was taking control over their mental faculties. Noah simply smiled at that scene. In his mind, he felt as if he was proving to the natives that their transformation wasn''t so unique and that he had been able to create something better on his own. His aura naturally reacted at those thoughts, and the hybrids could sense how he was taunting them. The hybrids lost their last trace of reason at that point and pounced toward Noah, without even remembering that they were able to use spells. Noah didn''t even move since eleven figures appeared above him and launched another series of spells on the reckless beasts and dispersed them. The elders from the Hive and Council were keeping their distance, but Noah waited for a brawl. Chapter 780: 780. Brawl Noah couldn''t fix the issue concerning his empty dantian any time soon. It had taken him eight years of experiments to create a cultivation technique that made use of his greed, but the path in front of him was bound to be far more complex. He couldn''t just reproduce his previous technique and add a stronger suction power. He needed something that reflected his individuality as a whole, and, to do that, he had to use his Demonic Sword. The process though could take years and an insane amount of precious resources. It wasn''t a problem to obtain both, especially for Noah, but he had to take care of the threat of the natives. Noah was sure that he wouldn''t be able to stop a second transformation. So, he had to join the war, even in his inconvenient state. There were aspects of his life that he had to protect personally, and there was nothing more personal than his individuality. However, his weakness remained and limited his power. He could express a battle prowess fitting of a rank 5 cultivator, but he would be among the weaker entities in that rank. Of course, he wouldn''t be at its bottom either. After all, he was already nearing that level when he was a rank 4 cultivator. Most of his spells were off the table because they required too much "Breath". That was an inevitable weakness of the darkness element. Their higher requirements in terms of energy made their more potent effects fair. There was his saber-shaped rune available, but Noah didn''t want to use it because there were too many eyes on him on the battlefield. He didn''t want to expose his involvement in the attack at the Balvan mansion. He could use a weaker version of his martial art by controlling the "Breath" in the environment though. His Demonic Sword would even improve its power and add its effects. Yet, he also had his body. Noah let go of his sword and shot toward the Three-headed Wolf. The Demonic Sword returned to its original form and followed Noah in its charge. The Elders above him had already chosen their targets, smartly using their higher numbers to take care of the strongest hybrids. However, Noah knew that he would be more effective if he took care of the weakest ones among them. The Three-headed Wolf was a rank 5 hybrid in the middle tier with a rank 5 mental sphere. However, its dantian was only in the human ranks, which meant that it was nothing more than a Flawed human with an improved body. Noah slammed on it, throwing a punch to its central head before following it with a sharp movement of his other hand. His fingers arched as if they were claws and dug five deep wounds on its upper body. Nevertheless, Noah was surprised to discover that the Wolf managed to endure those attacks without being flung back. It had never happened to him that a creature on his same level could match his physical strength. After all, he had fused with a dragon, the most potent species among the magical beasts. Yet, the transformation had produced similar results, bringing the natives to a level of physical might that surpassed the realm of the simple beasts. In that fraction of an instant in which Noah realized that the Wolf could endure his hits, he felt happy. It was strange. Noah and the Wolf were both hybrids, but they had chosen opposite paths. The Wolf had taken the path of the beasts, giving up its individuality to become the perfect enemy of Heaven and Earth, a being in tune with the laws and capable of building "Breath" from primary energy instinctively. Instead, Noah had taken the path of the humans, choosing to make his individuality flourish to escape Heaven and Earth''s system. They had countless features in common, but there were also a few crucial differences that made them completely different, and Noah wanted to prove that he was better. The Wolf seemed to regain some clarity after his blows, and the "Breath" around it started to gather to create a large eagle. Yet, "Breath" moved in Noah''s direction too and collected on his palm where the tattoo of a whale had suddenly appeared. A vortex formed at the center of his palm and affected the fiery eagle that began to lose its flames. They became primary energy when they came in contact with Noah''s aura, and his body absorbed it as if it was coordinating with the Blood Companion''s ability. The Wolf felt restrained too under that suction force and wanted to shoot into the air to escape that attack, but a sharp pain suddenly spread from its left head. The Demonic Sword didn''t stay still during that exchange and exploited that distraction to attack. Of course, the sword couldn''t pierce the head too deeply, but it managed to inflict an injury, which left Noah satisfied with its sharpness. The Wolf roared in anger before speaking human words in the natives'' language. "This is the body given by the ancestors!" Noah didn''t have time to mind its fanatism and spread his mouth to release a wave of white flames that engulfed the entirety of the Wolf and continued behind it. The Three-headed Wolf was strong, and it could endure Noah''s physical attacks, but it cried in pain when his flames burned its hair and burned its skin. Noah pressed on, expressing his full mastery as a hunter. It didn''t matter that the Wolf had a sea of consciousness. Its body had the shape of a magical beast, so its same weak spots. Noah kicked its huge ankles, punched the bottom of its necks, ordered the sword to deepen the cut on its left head, and launched white flames whenever it tried to retreat. The Wolf felt cornered even in that vast battlefield and summoned all its concentration to fly away. Yet, Noah used the ability of the Lazy Whale to hinder his movements until he managed to kick it back on the ground. The difference in their battle prowess was immense, but most of that came from the native''s inexperience with its new body. If it gave up on its instincts, it would not use spells. If it tried to fight as a cultivator, it would lose part of its coordination. It would have been a worthy opponent if it could mix both worlds into a single battle style, but Noah soon lost interest in an enemy that he could predict so easily. Its endurance though wasn''t something that it had to control, so the battle continued for a while. The Demonic Sword eventually managed to pierce the hard skull of its left head, and Noah used that moment of pain to stab his finger through the right eye socket of the central head. As he dug through its brain, he released a wave of flames on the remaining head. It took some more beating, but, in the end, the Wolf collapsed on the ground, without any trace of life left inside it. Chapter 781: 781. Mud Noah stored the corpse of the Three-headed Wolf and turned to analyze the battlefield. The other Elders were still fighting, doing their best to keep some distance between them and the other rank 5 hybrids. That was the best approach against that kind of enemy. Humans would just be shred apart if those mighty beings were to touch them. However, that led to prolonged battles that would ultimately favor the hybrids since their stamina was incredible. The higher number of cultivators though balanced that factor. Noah shot toward the rank 5 spider-type magical beast in the middle tier that had a rank 4 dantian. He didn''t recognize its species, but it seemed some kind of poisonous creature that relied heavily on ranged attacks. Its opponent was Elder Colleen, who assaulted it with a barrage of lightning bolts. Yet, her spells weren''t able to pierce the thick layer of mud that covered its exoskeleton. The spider endured the lightning bolts while spitting a series of fuming green spikes that the Elder kept on dodging. Elder Colleen appeared to have the upper hand in the battle since the hybrid had yet to hit her, but she was bound to exhaust herself before the creature if that trend continued. Having the advantage wasn''t enough in that situation. Noah landed directly over its lower body, stomping it on the ground where it created a crater. The spider was momentarily taken aback, but Noah didn''t hesitate. He arched his fingers and stabbed his hands in the layer of mud, ripping it off as he pulled his arms back to wield the Demonic Sword that had followed him loyally. "Breath" gathered around him as he divided the sword and slashed on the now exposed exoskeleton. Two black claws landed on the sturdy body of the spider and created cracks that spread even in the parts still covered by the layer of mud. The spider released a human cry of pain and turned to stare angrily at the human on its back. However, Elder Colleen didn''t waste the chance created by Noah and focused her lightning bolts into a thick orange arrow that chopped off one of the hybrid''s legs. The arrow then crashed on the ground and created an explosion that flung both the spider and Noah away. The blast didn''t harm them, and they landed at some distance from the empty area that had naturally formed once the two rank 5 existences had begun to fight. Noah found himself among rank 3 and 4 hybrids fighting against cultivators in the fourth rank, but his attention quickly went on Elder Colleen. He signaled her that she could take care of the other rank 5 creatures. He was enough to defeat the spider, especially after those last wounds. Elder Colleen didn''t hesitate to change the target. The spider was annoying to fight, but Noah''s brute strength ignored its defenses, so he was a better opponent for it. Also, she could help the other Elders if he managed to defeat the beast on his own. Noah moved his gaze back on the spider that had begun to attack him during the short exchange of gestures between him and the Elder. Fuming spikes reached for his position, but he promptly released a wave of flames that burned a few weaker hybrids on its trajectory. The flames burned the spikes too, but they didn''t have enough power left when they reached the spider. However, Noah had already charged and was nearing his opponent at high speed. The spider had lost one leg, and its lower body was cracked. It was evident that it couldn''t escape Noah even if he weren''t using the Shadow Sprint martial art. So, it decided to go all out with its offensive. An even thicker layer of mud covered its body, and Noah recognized that ability as a spell. It seemed that the spider''s sanity wasn''t completely gone, and it was able to rely on its capabilities as a cultivator. Then, it spat dozens of fuming spikes linked together by a series of sticky webs. Noah''s eyes sharpened at that sight. He was too far away, and using his flames would just put him in the same position as Elder Colleen. The lack of "Breath" in his dantian prevented him from using powerful ranged attacks, but he couldn''t just limit himself to block the creature''s offensive. So, he charged ahead, waving his swords to pierce the web in a frontal clash. Claws made of corrosive smoke and spreading a destructive force crashed on the spikes and web, but Noah didn''t wait to see the result of that clash and kept on charging ahead. His attacks destroyed a large part of the spider''s offensive, but something inevitably landed on his body and pierced his natural defenses. A spike stabbed his shoulder, and another cut him on the right side of his waist. A sticky substance landed on him and hindered his movements when it accumulated on his joints. Nevertheless, Noah disregarded the pain and leaped toward the spider that was preparing another attack, breaking the restrictions created by the remains of the web. The spider was about to spit more spikes when Noah''s knee slammed on its head. The layer of mud managed to protect it, but Noah followed his first attack with a series of punches. Meanwhile, his sword fused back together in the air and focused its injured lower body. Noah tore apart the defensive spell little by little. There was nothing that his nails couldn''t pierce, and his small frame made it hard for the hybrid to keep up with his relentless offensive. Once the thick layer of mud fell apart, it was the exoskeleton''s turn to endure Noah''s beating. The spider screeched in pain, sometimes using a beast''s voice, and sometimes using a human one. His sanity seemed even about to come back at some point since the terrain around them started to take the shape of tall golems that wanted to target Noah. However, it was too late by that time. Noah had already filled the exoskeleton with cracks and chopped off two more legs. His Demonic Sword had even finished piercing its lower body and was creating a mess of its internal organs. Only the incredible resilience inherited from the magical beasts'' world was keeping the hybrid alive, but Noah was finally ready to inflict the final blow. Once the cracks became large enough to cover more than half of its body, Noah launched his flames that seeped inside the spider and turned its already wounded organs into ashes. The battle was over, and Noah stored the broken remains of the beast before taking out the poisonous spike still stabbed in his left shoulder. The spike had released its toxic substance inside his body, but that single attack wasn''t enough to cause any real damage. Noah felt slightly sore on that point, but his healing properties had already limited the poison and were working to fix the affected tissues. Chapter 782: 782. Mantis In the time that had taken Noah to take care of the two rank 5 hybrids, the other battles on the same level were mostly over. The cultivators had relied on their higher numbers to overwhelm the creatures with barrages of spells. The innate defenses of the beasts had to give up at some point. The cultivators in the fourth rank were still fighting against the swarm of weaker hybrids. They had it worse since the bloodlines didn''t lack Flawed humans in the fourth rank, but the battle between the leaders of the armies usually decided the outcome of a war. Yet, until the leaders stepped on, those weaker assets would keep on fighting and do their part in the battle between two worlds. Elder Ingrid and a rank 5 cultivator of the Council that Noah didn''t recognize eventually joined the rest of the battlefield and put an end to the last struggles of the hybrids in a matter of minutes. The ruins of the city became silent at that point, with only sparse cries of pain breaking it from time to time. Craters and trails of smoke filled ground. The ruins of the city that had endured the Heaven Tribulation became small gray boulders after they saw the clash between so many heroic assets. Corpses of beasts of various species lay on the terrain among a few lifeless human bodies. There had been casualties on both sides, even if the natives had suffered a crushing defeat. Noah walked toward the other rank 5 Elders only to find them gathered around a tall rank 5 Silver Mantis that was still breathing. Injuries covered the creature, but its dantian radiated the unmistakable aura of a rank 5 cultivator. ''Harmony.'' Noah thought as he neared the group. The Mantis was panting, and its large eyes moved among the human figures that controlled it with stern expressions. It didn''t release any cry of pain. It only breathed, as if it was waiting for the attack that would put an end to its life. Noah caught a whiff of its scent, and his eyes became cold. He recognized that smell. It belonged to the first member of a bloodline that he had met in that world. "Danielle," Noah said as he stood side by side with the other rank 5 Elders. The Elders shot surprised glances toward him, but their eyes quickly returned to the beast. Their questions for Noah had to wait. The priority was to interrogate the creature, and it seemed that Noah was confident in making it speak. The Mantis'' eyes stopped moving and fixed on Noah. It felt a similar aura coming from that human figure, but its memories were foggy, and its mind struggled to create complex thoughts. "Danielle Duron," Noah repeated as he crouched in front of the creature. "You lost the battle, and you will lose this world." Noah saw the anger rising inside the Mantis, but he didn''t move. Magical beasts usually vented their emotions, but it was too injured even to move. That feeling could only remain inside its sea of consciousness and force it to find other ways to come out. A bit of clarity returned in its eyes, and a woman''s voice came out of its insect mouth. "Noah Balvan, we will never forgive you for the death of our ancestor." More questioning gazes landed on him when the Elders heard those words, but Noah didn''t falter. He was too invested in that crisis to care about the opinion of his companions. "How many assets do the bloodlines still have? Is there another army?" Noah hesitated a bit before giving voice to his last question. "Is it possible to trigger the transformation again?" Danielle snorted and lowered her mantis head. She seemed about to exhale her last breath, but the vitality of the magical beasts was keeping her alive and trying to mend her injuries. The Elders of the Papral nation were about to complain, but the rank 5 cultivators of the Hive promptly shot angry glances at them. The Demon Prince of the Hive was speaking. They had to let him finish out of respect for his status. "There are other natives still alive, and I''m certain that other hybrids didn''t hear your call when you gathered this army." Noah continued. "You simply have to choose between extinction and submission." Soft growls echoed through his throat as he said those words, and the Demonic Sword floating above him imitated those sounds. Danielle was stronger than Noah when it came to her centers of power, but she was too weak at that moment to reject the pressure that his pride was applying to her. After a visible struggle, her mouth opened again to speak slow human words. "Our ancestor taught us how to survive the Tribulation," Danielle said, "But our leaders couldn''t stand each other''s smell and unleashed destruction across the six regions. I''m afraid this was our strongest force." She lowered her gaze, and Noah could see some disappointment even if she didn''t have human features anymore. Truth to be told, he could understand her. Their inexperience had ruined the years spent preparing for that event in handling the instincts of the magical beasts. After all, their forces would be far more numerous and threatening if they had learnt to control themselves. The assets from Noah''s world would have been forced to retreat if their opponents had the same level of mastery as Noah. "The transformation." Noah reminded her of his last question. Danielle gave voice to a helpless laugh before answering. "Only an ancestor in the perfect form can trigger another transformation. Our leaders might be able to learn that skill in time, but we can''t create a chain reaction without you." "What does this mean!?" An Elder of the Council exclaimed when she heard that Noah was somewhat involved in that crisis. He recognized her. She was Anthea, the rank 5 cultivator that had intervened during the independence of the Coral Archipelago. "He is similar to our ancestors," Danielle said, trying to make a smirk with her mantis face, "His bloodline is fake, but it works as a global trigger when he transforms." The cultivators that managed to reach the heroic ranks were generally smart. It didn''t take much before they linked the crisis to Noah''s different physical features. "You," Anthea said as she pointed Noah, "This mess is your fault." Noah didn''t feel angry when she accused him so publicly. Instead, he revealed an uncaring smile and shrugged his shoulders before taking out the ashes of the rank 6 snake. "If you want to blame me for the actions of a being at the peak of the heroic ranks, go ahead," Noah said. "But I killed it. I think a few rank 4 cultivators are a good price to pay for a rank 6 hybrid." Danielle saw the bucket and began to shout. Her words became screeches as Noah handled the remains of the last ancestor as if they were a trophy. It was needless to say that no Elder dared to complain anymore after seeing that scene. Chapter 783: 783. Rain Noah couldn''t bother to keep his powers a secret anymore. He was a rank 5 cultivator now, even causing the death of a few assets in the fourth rank couldn''t affect his status too much. His status didn''t depend on the Hive or the title given by Chasing Demon anymore. He had become an elite among elites. Also, there was the matter concerning the death of the rank 6 snake. He had killed an enemy that only powerhouses could face, and an ancestor on top of that! The Elders let go of the matter for now. They had already decided that they would spread that information, but that wasn''t the time to focus on something that wasn''t the war. Elder Anthea took out a series of inscribed chains. Those items didn''t belong to the Shandal Empire. Instead, they were an imitation created by the Elbas family to restrain eventual captives. The troops of the Royals didn''t join the battle, but they still delivered useful tools for the assets of the other factions. The chains were just one of them, but there were even the disposable items meant to defend against the shockwaves released above the clouds. Tremors would reach the ground from time to time since Noah and the others were fighting under a battlefield that saw five rank 6 existences going all out. Their most basic attacks were enough to shatter the air and create shockwaves able to kill even beings in the fifth rank. Yet, the Elbas family had created a special ointment that would absorb those shockwaves once they reached for a cultivator''s skin. The tremors would slowly consume the lotion, but the Royals had provided enough of it to last for a few months. The Elders started to chain the hybrids and led them back to the volcano. The best way to contain them was to send them to the other world, where the real power of four factions was. Nevertheless, even a single rank 4 cultivator was enough for the task since the chains acted as a sort of oath, which prevented the hybrids from trying to escape. Noah and the others started to explore the ruins once the surviving hybrids left for the volcano together with a rank 4 Elder of the Papral nation. They soon discovered that the Tribulation didn''t target the castle of the Duron Bloodline, even if it was still in ruin due to the outburst of their leaders. The Elders stored the remains of the castle. They couldn''t let go of items able to make them invisible in the eyes of Heaven and Earth. Then, they rested for a while before pressing forward. There were still wild hybrids to take care of, and they didn''t wholly trust Danielle''s words, even if they were quite inclined to believe her. After all, her mental state was too frail to make up lies, and there wasn''t any reason to do so. Noah would gaze at the sky from time to time. He would apply the ointment whenever he felt that the shockwaves were about to affect him, and hunting down the remaining hybrids only quickened its consumption. There wasn''t much that he could do. The ointment wasn''t meant for battles. The Royals had initially created it for the human cultivators that wanted to explore the exposed areas of the new continent. Yet, it became useful in that situation, even if the Elbas family had to create a far denser version than the original product. Wild hybrids appeared as the group pressed forward. Most of them would be confused, but there were a few specimens that had been able to regain a part of their mental faculties in that period. Of course, only creatures in the heroic ranks showed some awareness. The hybrids in the human ranks needed far more time to become used to their new status. The Elders killed the hybrids in the human ranks and chained those in heroic ones. It must be said that they didn''t meet a single being in the fifth rank along the way, which made Noah wonder whether most of them had died during the outbursts. The group eventually moved toward the other regions. Danielle didn''t lie. Noah and the others didn''t find any big army waiting for them. The most threatening force in their way was a small pack led by the first wild rank 5 hybrid that they met outside of the army. Noah''s group became smaller as more and more assets left its ranks to bring back chained hybrids, but the Elders in the fifth rank were still there, so that wasn''t too much of a problem. Weeks went by, and the remaining regions slowly uncovered themselves in front of the thorough inspections of the invaders. There were bound to be hybrids that had ventured in the wilderness, but the Elders didn''t care enough to create another exploration team. They looted the castles along the way too, obtaining the secret history of the natives that the Elders still ignored. The years of researches piled up in secret chambers became prizes for the winning side of that battle. The troops eventually reached the coastline, where they found another small army with eight rank 5 hybrids trying to give orders to their restless underlings. It was needless to say that another major battle happened, but Noah''s side won again, suffering even fewer casualties than the previous time. At that point, the war against the natives was over, with the only variable being the fight still raging above the clouds. The five rank 6 beings had been battling for almost two months by then, but the assets on the ground couldn''t understand which side had the upper hand. Noah''s forces were confident in their powerhouses. After all, other than being more numerous, the rank 6 cultivators there were exceptional figures. King Elbas had single-handedly created the opportunity to travel to another world, and no one could imagine how many incredible items his expertise had allowed him to make. God''s Right Hand was the "closest man to God", which wasn''t a title given just because it caused awe in those hearing it. Many believed that he would be the next existence to reach the divine ranks and ascend to the Immortal lands. That alone spoke for his prowess. As for God''s Left Hand, she was still a follower of the only divine entity in Noah''s world, but her greatness was mostly obscured by her superior. The Elders began to bring the remaining hybrids back to the volcano, but they had to stop halfway through their return since thick drops of blood began to fall from the sky. Noah and the hybrids were the first to understand what those drops meant. They could sense the insane amount of primary energy contained in each of them. ''The battle is over.'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes. The drops hurt when they touched his skin. Even in that form, his body was too weak to eat something in the sixth rank. Chapter 784: 784. Ac It rained blood for a while, and some reckless hybrid tried to open its mouth to drink that potent liquid. Their bodies started to convulse as they tried to absorb the insane amount of primary energy contained inside it. The blood of a beast in the sixth rank was able to change an environment forever. Containing it inside a rank 4 or 5 body was merely impossible. The hybrids either puked or fell on the ground, shaking as if they had ingested the most potent toxin in the world. Blood started to come out of their bodies, and their size began to increase in strange ways as their muscles tried to contain that energy. Then, their tissues started to explode in an innate action of self-preservation to release the energy coming from the leaders of the natives back in the environment. Noah shook his head at that sight, and the Elders around him began to look for cover to avoid being hit by the rain. Noah had to join the Elders quite soon. The drops had started to hurt rather quickly to the point where some of them were about to pierce his sturdy skin. Yet, he still held on as much as he could. It didn''t happen to experience the might of a being in the last stage of the heroic ranks often, and Noah didn''t want to miss that chance since his body could handle it. The rain eventually stopped only to be replaced by the sight of a tall figure piercing the clouds and free-falling toward the ground at a few kilometers from their position. Noah recognized the ape, but he didn''t move to seize its corpse even if his hunger was screaming inside his mind. That wasn''t his loot, nor something that he could handle without the help of a powerhouse. The few remaining assets in the fourth rank cheered at that sight. One of the leaders of the natives was dead. Their victory was set in stone. When another huge figure fell from the sky though, even some of the Elders in the fifth rank cheered. Noah traced the fall of the turtle with his eyes. Seeing such mighty beings crashing lifelessly on the ground gave birth to an intense eagerness to join that realm. However, he tried to suppress his emotions when he saw three human figures slowly descending in the positions where the hybrids had fallen. Even if the assets in Noah''s group came from different organizations, they still decided to offer their respects to the powerhouses that had fought for the conquest of that world. The three rank 6 cultivators seemed aware that the heroic assets were coming in their direction. They waited for them as they studied the corpses of the hybrids. It was clear that the battle had been challenging. The three powerhouses were all sweating and had their robes partially torn apart. The two existences from the Shandal Empire were even injured, but the wounds were limited to small fractures and a few cuts. Only King Elbas stood unscathed in the air. His robe was even the most intact of the three. Noah couldn''t help but reveal a cold gaze at that scene. He knew that King Elbas'' individuality was connected to the pride in his bloodline. The intact robe, the lack of injuries, and his calm expression were all an act to create awe from Noah''s point of view. However, he had to admit that only an exceptional cultivator could pull that off when against two rank 6 hybrids. Even if he didn''t want to, he began to respect him. King Elbas'' achievements were incredible. The dimensional portal was already something unheard of, but his display of power in the crucial battle added even more favor to his image. Also, the Elbas family had provided useful items to the other factions without complaining too much nor charging them. "The Elbas bloodline is worthy of my respect." God''s Right Hand said to break the silence. King Elbas performed a slight bow toward the powerhouse, but his expression became serious as he replied. "Your title suits you. The previous one, not the submissive name that you are carrying." Both God''s Right Hand and God''s Left Hand suppressed their anger when they heard his mocking words. King Elbas wasn''t showing any respect for the God of the Empire. He wasn''t even restraining his voice in front of the weaker assets. He was openly announcing his disregard for the divine being in charge of the Empire. Noah couldn''t help but think about the book that described the past of the Shandal Empire retrieved from the Mortal Palace. He could sense the same defiance of the author in King Elbas'' words. ''I wouldn''t be surprised if he has even better historical records in his library.'' Noah thought as he stared at the reactions of the powerhouses with interest. King Elbas ruled the most advanced organization when it came to the arts connected to the cultivation field. That wasn''t something achievable only through talented experts. There was a need for a broad foundation that encompassed many schools of the past. Noah was sure that King Elbas knew about the strange habit of the God. The disappearance of a divine being wasn''t something that could be kept hidden from the investigations of entities on that level. Yet, Noah wondered about the reason behind that behavior, and he couldn''t help but think that King Elbas knew it. "And yet," God''s Left Hand said, "We are mere mortals in the Almighty''s eyes." King Elbas snorted, and he suddenly turned to leave after storing the ape in his space-ring. The two powerhouses of the Empire took the turtle and left too at that point, leaving the confused Elders on their own. Elder Austin shrugged his shoulders when Noah glanced at him. The behavior of the existences at the peak of the heroic ranks was somewhat unpredictable since no one could restrain them. They answered to no one. The group eventually left and reached the volcano after three uneventful weeks. The assets of the Empire and Royals were waiting for them there and raised cups full of intense wine in their honor. Noah though wasn''t in the mood to celebrate. The four factions were allies on that side of the portal. On the other, they were enemies ready to seize any chance as long as it gave them an advantage over the other organizations. Now that they lacked a common enemy, the past grudges and complex political relationships would return. It was just a matter of time before they clashed again to divide the resources of the new world. "Demon Prince, the Shandal Empire expresses its interest in your body-nourishing method." A rank 5 cultivator said as he neared Noah. "Nothing you have interests me," Noah said and left to pick a cup of wine from a long table placed next to a river of magma. However, he soon discovered that the envoy of the Empire was just the first of a long line of heroic assets eyeing him with eager expressions. Chapter 785: 785. Impossible Noah decided to ignore the celebrations when he understood that remaining in the encampment would only force him to refuse a countless number of complaints. He didn''t blame the other factions for being interested in his body-nourishing method, nor the Council for spreading the information about his peculiarity so soon. If there were a chance, every cultivator would choose to obtain the features of the magical beasts. After all, most techniques and methods tried to imitate those creatures because they had a more natural path toward the higher ranks. Also, their physical might was too insane to ignore it. Now that there was a chance right in front of their eyes, they couldn''t just let it go. Noah glanced at the other Elders of the Hive, but all of them were in the same situation. The assets of the other factions were engaged in polite discussions with them, but it was evident that their respect was only an act to cover their real intentions. The Hive was still the weakest of the four forces, but everyone was treating its assets with the utmost courtesy. Noah hastily took a cup from the table and left for one of the tents in the Hive''s side. He saw no point in remaining there. It was better to use his time meditating until the powerhouses decided how to handle the new world. There were six luxurious tents in that part of the encampment, and Noah saw that one of them had a large banner with the words "Demon Prince" written on it. Even if he had been in the wilderness during those years, the other Elders had prepared quarters suitable for his status. The tent was covered in inscriptions that isolated its insides from the outside world, and it seemed to have even a few defensive features. They weren''t too exceptional though. They only provided a necessary amount of protection and some privacy. Noah ignored a few cultivators that were calling his name and crossed the entrance of his quarters, sitting on the first mat that he found and taking out a few hybrid''s corpses from his space-ring. The leaders of the natives had died, meaning that there was no one able to trigger the transformation anymore. He could finally put to use all the corpses accumulated during the exploration of the continent. Of course, the thought that he could learn how to trigger the transformation had crossed his mind. Even as a fake, he was an ancestor in terms of bloodlines. Yet, he had far more pressing matters to handle, and he couldn''t find ways to exploit that skill to his benefits. So, he simply suppressed his curiosity and focused on his current problems. The Demonic Sword had remained by his side for the whole time, and it didn''t hesitate to stab one of the corpses. Noah began to eat too, but his gaze remained on his weapon as he studied its growth. The blade was a living being in the fifth rank, but its power didn''t increase so much in the last period, even if Noah had kept on feeding it. ''It should be a specimen in the lower tier, but it is capable of far more when I wield it.'' Noah thought. ''Maybe, its growth is linked to my dantian since it is an expression of my individuality.'' Noah knew that he had yet to discover the full potential of his creation. After all, he had forged the Demonic Sword during the peculiar mindset reached in the transformation. There was even the fact that the blade could theoretically learn new abilities since it was alive and connected with his sea of consciousness. Nevertheless, the blade was a newborn, and it was unaware of all its features. Even if Noah wanted to probe it, he would only obtain confused answers. However, he could focus on the evident issues, and one of them was that its growth didn''t reflect the amount of primary energy absorbed from the corpses. Noah had initially thought that its requirements in terms of nutrients were simply high, but he started to suspect that the reason behind its small improvements was his empty dantian. ''It would make sense.'' Noah thought before activating the Divine Deduction technique to review the moments when his body assembled primary energy to create an imitation of the "Breath". There was a limit to how much he could learn about that process without performing any test, but he lacked materials right now so he could just settle for that. The main issue with that procedure was that the "Breath" produced would be weaker than that found in the environment. Also, it wouldn''t reflect Noah''s individuality, which was something that he felt forced to express now that he was a rank 5 cultivator. Understanding the individuality, expressing it, wielding the laws, and becoming law were the stages that the cultivators in the heroic ranks had to go through in the path toward the divinity. Noah''s situation was peculiar since his cultivation techniques had given his features to his "Breath", but he needed to step on the next phase now. Countless ideas surged in his mind as he studied the issue, but a few figures soon gathered in front of his tent and waited for his permission to enter. Noah recognized the cultivators and used his consciousness to lower the defenses of the tent. Then, Elder Austin and Elder Julia crossed the entrance and performed a bow before sitting in front of him. "Prince," Elder Austin said, "They are quite restless." Noah didn''t need to question the Elder to understand who he was referring to. "They will be disappointed," Noah said, "It''s not something that can be taught. Also, I don''t really want to see cultivators like me in the enemy ranks." Having a monopoly over a resource was priceless. Noah was the only one who knew how to imitate the magical beasts and improve the bloodlines of the cultivators so that they could resemble the mighty ancestors of the natives. "Is there anything that you can give away?" Elder Julia said, "The Hive could gain a lot from these transactions." Noah thought for a while before coming up with the idea that could allow him to keep the specifics behind the fusion a secret while also accepting to discuss them. "I might point out mistakes in their procedures. I believe most of them are planning to resume the experimentations in that field." The Elders'' eyes lit up for a short second, but they quickly shook their heads. "Prince, we don''t want them to succeed too soon!" Elder Julia exclaimed. "Precisely. Let them fail for a while, at least." Elder Austin said, "The Elbas family has already started an in-depth analysis of the compound. It won''t take much before they learn how to force the improvements without the need for the transformation." Noah could understand their point, but he knew far more on the matter than them. Even if the Royals managed to create a drug from the compound able to enhance the bodies of the cultivators, they would only create imitations. "They won''t succeed because it''s impossible," Noah concluded. Chapter 786: 786. Meetings The Elders wanted to discuss the matter further, but Noah had already made his mind. Of course, their doubts didn''t concern Noah. Instead, they were worried that pointing out inevitable mistakes could put him in danger. However, Noah knew far too well how troublesome it was to obtain the advantages of a magical beast. Imitating wasn''t enough. Only a complete fusion could create a being similar to the ancestors of the natives. That was merely impossible for entities that had already started to discover their individuality. The personalities of the cultivators would become something more than unique at that point, making it impossible to find a suitable match for a fusion. Also, there was the issue of the instincts, which couldn''t be ignored. After all, that problem had been the reason why they had managed to defeat the natives rather easily. There wasn''t a solution to those problems. For example, Noah had been able to find a match with the Cursed Dragon because he could use his personality as a standard. Yet, he couldn''t find any species that suited his individuality. As for the instincts, only a powerful mind could control and wield them. There wasn''t a way around them. There were also problems concerning the inscription method to use and the various calculations to make before proceeding with the fusion. Noah had managed to complete the testing phase rather quickly due to the Divine Deduction technique. Instead, the other forces would have to sacrifice a lot of assets just to obtain acceptable results. The way Noah saw it, fusing with a magical beast once walking the path of the individuality was just impossible, which meant that no heroic asset would be able to obtain that power. The only method that he could think of was to trigger the transformation and then return to a human form. There would be other issues connected with that procedure, and the outcome would be a bit weaker than him, but there didn''t seem to be any other solution. The Elders left the tent after deciding with Noah how the trades would work. The three factions could only send one envoy at the time and have private discussions with him at a price that had to be agreed beforehand. Of course, the powerhouses weren''t allowed in the meetings. Only cultivators with a similar or lower level to Noah could be envoys. Noah resumed his meditation as he waited for the first envoy to arrive. It took a while for the organizations to prepare questions and set a price with the Elders. Many even expressed complaints about how the Hive wanted to handle the situation. Nevertheless, that was the power of a monopoly, and a few resources were a small investment if they helped to avoid issues in the upcoming experiments. A few days later, the Shandal Empire decided to send its envoy. Noah lowered the defenses of his tent only to find a tall man at the peak of the fourth rank crossing the entrance while failing to keep a proud expression. Even the citizens of the Empire felt lacking when in front of a monster like Noah. The idea of the Empire was quite crude. Its experts wanted to purify the compound and turn it into a core material for a body-nourishing method. Noah listed a series of issues after he thought about that approach for a while. The biggest problem was that the cultivators training in that method would remain human beings, which meant giving up to the devouring properties of the beasts. "You can''t hope to obtain huge results with a non-invasive approach. Also, the quantity of compound necessary in the fifth rank would be immense." Noah explained, trying not to reveal more than he should. The envoy left after his answer. It seemed that the Empire had paid a small price just to test if it was going in the right direction. Its experts would gather again now and request a meeting after they thought about something different. A week later, Noah found himself lowering the defenses of his tent for Faith. "I know. Even my superiors think that something is going on between us." Faith said as she sat on his same mat and revealed a playful smirk. Noah put that matter in the back of his mind and focused on Faith''s explanation. The Council wanted to use the hybrids as a material to create formations on the bodies of its cultivators. Such formations would grow alongside them and feed on magical beasts as if they were some sort of parasites giving strength to its hosts in exchange for food. Noah had to admit that the idea was interesting, even if it seemed impossible to accomplish due to various issues. However, he wasn''t an expert when it came to formations, so he simply listed the problems that the Council could encounter if it used that approach. First of all, a formation able to grow was akin to a living being, even if only in a form reliant on its host. Something like that was bound to have a will, and it could act against the cultivator in a desperate attempt for freedom. Also, it appeared unstable as a method. The Council would need to develop a second formation to contain the parasite and force it to work according to the host''s will. When considering the fact that the cultivators would still need a different body-nourishing method to improve, that approach seemed feasible only by a small number of elites. Faith left after his answers, and Noah had to wait a month before another envoy knocked at his tent. The Empire had sent someone again, but it had a more precise idea at that time. Its experts wanted to create organic inscribed items from the hybrids and transplant them in their cultivators. Noah felt shocked to hear that. He didn''t even know that such inscription methods existed. Yet, there was a problem with the rejection of foreign tissues. Also, the hybrids weren''t an infinite resource, which made that approach elitist. After that meeting, the Elbas family finally decided to send someone, and Noah stood up when he saw June crossing the entrance of his tent. "They said that you would just trick anyone belonging to the Royal family," June said. Noah sealed the tent, and June pushed him on one of the couches available there when she sensed that they were finally divided from the outside world. The two of them didn''t have the chance to say goodbye when they returned from their mission due to the battle between the rank 6 existences. Yet, they made sure to fix that in that fortuitous moment of intimacy. "Noah," June said as she turned to face her lover laying under her, "They want to use the Elemental Forging method. You knew that they would have made that connection." Noah nodded and couldn''t help but caress her cheek when he saw her worried expression. Then, he abided to the terms of the meeting by pointing out the flaw of that method. "It''s impossible to find suitable creatures for heroic cultivators." Chapter 787: 787. Energy The Elbas family knew about the Elemental Forging method, but it ignored its specifics. With Ivor dead, Noah was the only one in the entire world able to pass down those teachings. However, the Royals didn''t ask for the inscription method, which showed their confidence in being able to imitate it even if they lacked crucial pieces of information. Noah didn''t care if the Elbas family managed to reproduce the Elemental Forging method. The Royals could try and fail for as long as they wished since there wasn''t a way around the issue created by the individualities. Even if they succeeded in imitating Noah''s fusion, they wouldn''t be able to apply it to their current heroic assets. June continued to ask questions as the two of them laid on one of the couches inside the tent. The Royals didn''t come up with only one idea in that period. As the most advanced organization in the fields that concerned the cultivation journey, the Elbas family had many methods at its disposal and could explore various approaches. June asked Noah about processes that involved alchemy, runes, formations, inscriptions of various kinds, and even techniques that required specific spells. The number of experts among the Royals and their variety left Noah speechless, mainly since they covered even the ideas already discussed with the envoys of the other nations. Noah couldn''t give complete answers most of the time because he didn''t understand even the basics of the inscription methods or procedures involved. However, there were unavoidable issues that he could point out. If a method were too non-invasive, then it would create weaker versions of the hybrids. If the procedures led to the modification of the cultivator''s species, then the mental instabilities would appear. As for all the methods between those extremes, they shared the problems with both approaches. "You solved all of that by yourself," June said when her list of questions was over. She traced the scales on Noah''s chest with her fingers, but her gaze seemed to be elsewhere. She had always known that Noah was incredible, but she hadn''t been able to understand the value of his achievements until then. June imagined Noah alone in caves, performing countless tests on himself and magical beasts just to tune the procedure that would allow him to become stronger than his peers. She could even guess the kind of expression that he had when he decided that his human status wasn''t worth much if abandoning it would bring him more power. She still remembered his previous eyes when he still had human pupils. She remembered how his cold and detached gaze observed the world as if waiting for potential threats to appear from every corner. "There are times when I still can''t believe that you can look at me in this way," June said as she tilted her face to align her eyes with Noah''s. Noah was barely able to move his gaze away from her when they were in those intimate moments. Even his aura radiated the desire that he felt toward the lover lain on top of him. He understood June''s mood. Once that meeting ended, they would be forced to live apart for who knew how many years. It was time to say goodbye, but both of them found it hard to do after living together for such a long period. For certain aspects, the sudden separation after the mission had been ideal. Yet, it was hard to let go of each other now that no one was pressing them. "Hey." Noah broke the silence that had fallen inside the tent. "Do you have a secluded training area? Somewhere that only you have access to?" "Yes, but I will probably get a new one after we go back to our world." June said, "Why do you ask?" "I might be able to meet you if I know its exact location." Noah said, "It''s a bit risky though, so you need to make sure that no one is spying on you." June''s eyes lit up at his words. She had long guessed that the Hive had a method to sneak up troops in an enemy country, and the thought that Noah could use it to meet her had crossed her mind. However, the mission in the new world and the secret meetings planned with Danielle''s help had given them too much to worry about. They didn''t schedule their life after their return and focused only on enjoying those years together. Yet, as their separation drew near, she understood that there was a chance to avoid spending decades alone and that Noah wasn''t afraid to take it. June kissed Noah as her excitement rose, and she couldn''t help but mock him a bit to see his reaction. "Is this an official proposal? Do you need to see my parents and ask for my hand?" "Hmph." Noah snorted as he sat while keeping June on his lap, "And here I thought that your hand had been mine for quite a while." June lowered her voice at that point and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Of course, just like yours is mine since you kidnapped me." Then, they simply remained in that position, stealing a few intense kisses even though they knew that they had to end the meeting before the other forces started to suspect something. June left a few minutes after she and Noah settled the matter concerning her habitation. They decided that they would rely on Faith to exchange messages since she had proven herself to be trustworthy in the past years. That meeting had still lasted far longer than the others, but June didn''t even need to justify herself to the Royals when they saw that she had managed to obtain all the answers that she could. Of course, Noah had only pointed out apparent flaws in the methods that he recognized, but his judgment had a lot of value since he was the only real expert in that field. The Elders of the Hive then entered his tent and listed the resources obtained with Noah''s performance. The Council had mostly paid in territories, promising a large part of its share of the new world and even offering its help in protecting it. It added a few inscription methods created in the last years too since the Hive seemed interested in them. The Empire didn''t promise territories but offered a large number of techniques and spells without withholding those of the darkness element. As for the Royals, they had given the Elders a choice. The Hive had to decide between resources that could benefit the Hive as a whole and a research that seemed to suit the cultivators of the darkness element. "The Hive has already chosen to prioritize itself once. Now it''s time to nourish its greatest talent." Elder Julia said as she handed Noah a few books. ''Creation of higher forms of energy.'' Noah read the title of the first book, and his interest skyrocketed. Chapter 788: 788. Return ''Once reached certain heights, every cultivator would see their "Breath" change shape and power according to their individualities.'' Noah read through the contents of the books. ''These changes are a natural consequence of the separation of the cultivators from Heaven and Earth. Their existence would become something outside of their plan until they eventually become laws.'' The Elders had left Noah alone after they listed all the gains. He had a few spells to inspect, but the research given by the Elbas family was too appealing to focus on anything else at the moment. ''However, the "Breath" is both a miraculous energy and a shackle that keeps the cultivators bound to Heaven and Earth. A real individuality would ultimately affect even the internal composition of that energy and change it into something entirely personal, but there are ways to quicken that process.'' Noah''s kept on reading, and his interest could only increase at those words. The introduction of that research went through what was considered common knowledge among the existences in the higher ranks. The changes of the "Breath" and the separation from Heaven and Earth''s domain were events that anyone expressing their individuality could see. Yet, the tomes continued exploring various possibilities, especially the creation of a higher form of energy. ''The "Breath" can be used as a material to build incredible items. So, it is theoretically possible to use it to create even stronger energy capable of improving the prowess of any cultivator drastically.'' Noah read as he wondered who was the author of those tomes. There were detailed descriptions of the experiments and arrays tested by the expert that was pursuing those ideas. The writer had even noted down the peculiarities of the inscription method used and his mental state when he performed them. The first book turned out to list a series of failures, only to conclude with a revelation. ''The behavior of the "Breath" depends too much on its element. It''s impossible to create a unified method.'' Noah hastily took the second book and resumed his read. ''I''ve found basic requirements for the higher energy of each element. In my case, I need to create a material able to give birth to stronger flames during the combustion. I''m still unclear on what I will use, but it''s a start.'' The author then listed another series of experiments, but they mostly targeted the nature of the "Breath" of the fire element, which didn''t interest Noah. ''I''ve found something that could work. I''m the best expert in the entirety of the Utra nation, and even the suppression of the Royal family can''t put a stop to my improvements. I know now that there is no better fuel than myself.'' Noah''s eyes widened when he read those lines. The image of a man wearing a crown had appeared in his mind for a brief second. He was starting to suspect that the nameless author was, in fact, King Elbas! Notes filled the rest of the tome. They didn''t describe experiments, but they reported random thoughts and brief moments of inspiration that the author had decided to put down as he kept researching. The third and last book described the approach that a cultivator should have in the creation of higher energy according to each element. According to the author, there was a specific behavior to each element that the cultivators had to exploit. Fire needed materials to burn, water needed density, wind needed perpetual motion, earth needed a foundation, and lightning required friction. However, when it came to the light and darkness elements, the author couldn''t identify a specific behavior, which forced him to give up on creating a method for those elements. ''Theoretically speaking, cultivators with light and darkness aptitude should be able to create higher energy that fits their individualities in ways that the other elements can''t. The rarest elements don''t have a fixed state and can contain any kind of behavior. I wouldn''t be surprised if they could recreate the same matter of the world.'' Noah closed the last book at those lines. The research didn''t tell him how to create higher energy with his element, but it gave him an idea and the certainty that it was possible. Most of the time, those two factors were all the things that an expert needed to achieve what he wanted. ''Is this the reason behind King Elbas'' power?'' Noah questioned himself. ''What a monster.'' He couldn''t help but respect the powerhouse of the Royal family even more after that discovery. After all, he was a cultivator that had managed to create an entirely new branch of the cultivation journey! Of course, Noah couldn''t be sure that the author was King Elbas, but there were too many coincidences for him not to link the two of them. ''I''ve focused on the primary energy so much that I lingered on creating a stronger version of the "Breath" rather than outclassing it.'' Noah thought as he read the books once again. There were many aspects of the cultivation world that most humans ignored due to their species. One of them was the existence of the primary energy since it was something limited to the magical beasts'' world. Noah found himself in the same spot, even if in the opposite position. He had never considered the possibility that there were forms of energy more powerful than the "Breath" and that the cultivators could build them. ''The primary energy is like sand, while the particles of "Breath" are bricks.'' Noah thought as the Divine Deduction technique gave him a broader perspective. ''The higher energy would be a building in comparison. How much power would it generate?'' Noah itched to test that procedure himself, but he knew that his situation wasn''t ideal. He didn''t have a way to accumulate "Breath", let alone using it to build more complex and powerful energy. Yet, it was a path that reflected his individuality perfectly, and that would allow him to express his creation in ways that he had never thought before. Meanwhile, the other assets started to take down the encampment to move it on the surface. There was no need to hide anymore. It was time to expand in the new world that still hid a series of threats. The rank 4 cultivators could take care of the expansion though, and there was no need for that high number of stronger existences to remain there. Also, the Council and the Hive had left their borders exposed to make up for the presence of the powerhouses. Their assets wanted to return to their world. Noah felt the need to return to the new continent too since he needed an environment where he could obtain all the resources that he needed. The only advantage of the new world was the presence of stronger creatures, but he didn''t lack nutrients at the moment. Just like that, the majority of the powerful cultivators took turns to enter the fissure to return to their world. The invasion was officially over. Chapter 789: 789. Home After more than fifteen years spent in the other world, Noah finally crossed the dimensional passage to return to his homeland. The Utra nation had changed drastically in that period. Its vegetation had wilted, and various cracks had appeared on the now barren terrain around the big portal. The shining lines that surrounded the majestic inscribed item able to connect two Mortal Lands had drained that nation even if the four forces had never failed to provide energy to keep it in function. The portal required too much power to work, and the territories around it had to bear its incredible consumption. It wouldn''t be surprising if the entirety of the Utra nation became a wasteland in the decades to come. After all, it was clear that providing external energy to the portal wasn''t enough to make up for its adverse effects, and none of the four forces was inclined to shut it down. Sacrificing a nation for an entire world was a trade that anyone would make. ''Where are the noble families?'' Noah thought as he inspected the nearby areas with his consciousness. The only trace of life that he could sense came from the small encampments built by the four organizations all around that region. There didn''t seem to be anyone else on the southern side of the nation. Noah could immediately understand that the political situation had changed in those years, but he suppressed his curiosity for the moment. The Hive would surely update him once he returned to the new continent, and he had to prioritize his dantian before involving himself with the political struggles. More cultivators came out of the portal, but a sort of wariness replaced the excitement for their return. In that world, they weren''t a joint force anymore. On that side, they were enemies that belonged to organizations doing their best to gain an advantage on the others. Even Noah felt that change, especially when he saw June coming out of the dimensional passage. The shackles created by the political situation there were able to affect him even now that he was a complete rank 5 cultivator. However, he was nearing the point where he could start to ignore those restrictions. Faith came out of the portal too and neared him to convey a few words. "I''ll come to visit you, but I think I''ll see June first." Faith winked and turned toward the Elders of the Council, who had already started to gather in their encampment. Noah saw a few of them explicitly nodding in his direction when they saw him talking with Faith. It seemed that their suspected relationship had already received the approval of her higher-ups. The Elders of the Hive limited themselves to reveal polite smiles at the departing assets of the Council and Faith. They knew about Noah and June, but they didn''t know what had happened in the wilderness. So, they just played along and left everything in Noah''s hands. Also, the Council was Ravaging Demon''s home, which made that situation far more complex. It wasn''t something that the Elders could influence. It was a matter that only Noah and the three Demons could discuss. The Elders, Noah, and the rank 4 cultivators of the Hive eventually flew toward their encampment to reorganize before setting off for the Coral Archipelago. Other troops would use the portal to start a thorough colonization, but Noah already knew that he would return to the other world only when he needed to refill his stash of magical beasts'' corpses. ''I should be fine till the sixth rank with the new world and both seas.'' Noah thought as he saw a few rank 4 cultivators expressing their intention to join the colonization. ''That issue is partially solved at least.'' It must be said that Noah didn''t want to dive into the sea to look for suitable prey. The dark depths of that environment hid dangers that cultivators had always tried to avoid since there weren''t many benefits available. It was pointless to colonize areas that they couldn''t inhabit. The group quickly reached for the Archipelago and separated there since Elder Colleen and Elder Ingrid had to resume their roles. The other Elders, Noah, and most of the assets in the fourth rank took the teleportation matrix to return to the forest of White Woods. Chasing Demon welcomed them, and he led the Elders in his private quarters to celebrate their victory against the hybrids and Noah''s incredible advancements. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon joined that celebration too, and Noah didn''t hesitate to question them about the separate dimension. "On that topic," Flying Demon said as he drank the cup in his grasp in a single sip, "We had to take down the branches under the Utra nation. That portal was starting to affect the functioning of the dimension, and we feared that it could even reveal it." "What a waste," Noah said, "Well, there wasn''t much more to do there anyway." After the raids and accomplishing his vengeance, only the Capital and the Royal Academy remained as suitable targets. However, the Royals were controlling them, and their security had increased when King Elbas activated the portal. There was no point in resuming the raids, especially with a new world available. "What about the noble families? The Utra nation is slowly becoming unsuitable for cultivators." Noah asked, but the two Demons didn''t answer and hinted that he would soon learn about that. Noah eventually left while the other Elders were still busy celebrating. It wasn''t that he hadn''t enjoyed himself. Rather, the issue with his dantian was too pressing to spend time doing anything else. As he flew toward his dome, he prepared a list of materials that the Hive would later send to his underground quarters. When he reached his dome though, he noticed a mansion with a familiar banner standing out among the plain-looking buildings of the city. ''This is unexpected.'' Noah thought as he descended toward the mansion and spread his consciousness to speak with the rank 5 cultivator cultivating inside it. "What are you doing here?" Noah transmitted, and the mansion seemed to take life when the other rank 5 existence noticed his presence. After a short minute, a series of heroic cultivators came out of the building and bowed toward Noah as a form of respect, exclaiming something that left him even more surprised. "The Udye family greets the Demon Prince!" Noah was speechless as he moved his gaze between those familiar figures. He saw Daniel, Amos, and the other nobles in the heroic ranks, but he still couldn''t understand the reason behind their presence there. "An explanation would be appreciated," Noah said. Amos didn''t hesitate to straighten his position before making a summary of the past events. "The portal has wasted the Utra nation. The Elbas family has suppressed the general anger of the noble families by promising ways to improve the level of the heroic cultivators and by force. With our homeland turning into a wasteland right in front of our eyes, the majority of the nobles surrendered. The Cause is no more." Chapter 790: 790. Spells and reports A few lines were enough to make Noah understand that there had been some drastic changes during the years that he had spent in the other world. However, he had so much to do that he didn''t feel like conversing for the time being. He simply noted in his mind that Daniel had reached June and Faith''s level in that period before giving a few orders. "I want a detailed description of everything that has happened in the past years. Just send it to Jason or Bruce. They should be around somewhere." Then, he left for his underground quarters, and the nobles heaved a sigh of relief when they saw his figure disappearing. Yet, they soon realized that something had been off about that encounter. Noah''s dantian seemed to be in the fifth rank! Noah didn''t waste time. As soon as he returned to his habitation, he sent the list with the materials to Elder Julia and began to review the new spells of the darkness element just obtained. The Shandal Empire had used spells to pay for his advice on the hybrids'' matter, and, to his surprise, he found a few diagrams suitable for his aptitude. Also, raiding the castles had given the invaders access to the natives'' resources, which had some spells among them. However, only a few of them suited his individuality, and there were even less able to match the rank of his sea of consciousness. ''I guess these three are worth translating once I get my "Breath" back. I''ll keep the others for inspiration purposes.'' Noah thought as he laid a tome and two scrolls on the ground before storing the other spells that he had discarded. Two of those spells came from the Empire, while the Hive found the other in the other world. Among them, two could express a power up to the fifth rank while the other didn''t have limitations in terms of cultivation level. ''To think that the Empire would give me something like this.'' Noah thought when he gave a quick look to the spells without limitation. The name of the ability was Shadow Copy, and it allowed a cultivator to create something similar to a puppet that could imitate part of the caster''s attacks. It didn''t have limitations in ranks since the power of the copy derived from the amount of energy used during its creation. The only issue was that the copy would be quite weak, but Noah was confident in improving it with a few modifications. The spell coming from the other world was called Merging, and it was a movement-type ability. It wasn''t limited to the darkness element. The cultivators would need to partially fuse with the "Breath" of their aptitude to move faster for a short period. As for the last one, its name was Shadow Chains, and its primary purpose was to suppress and restrict living beings. The useful aspect of that spell was that the cultivator or beast wouldn''t be able to use their centers of power once the chains were in place. Noah started to memorize them since he had to wait for Elder Julia to deliver the resources needed for his experiments anyway. Yet, Elder Jason passed down a report from the Udye family at some point, along with some pieces of information gathered by the Elders that didn''t join the invasion. It turned out that a few crises had hit the Utra nation as soon as the exploration team ventured through the portal. The density of the "Breath" in the environment there had started to diminish, leading many magical beasts to migrate. The noble families found themselves assailed by waves of starving beasts. There were even rank 5 creatures among those packs, and one of them was the Albino Snake that Noah had met so many years ago. The nobles managed to protect themselves, but that was mostly because the beasts had no intention of remaining in the Utra nation. Their instincts were telling them that those regions wouldn''t be a suitable home anymore. The Elbas family then spread the rumor that it had a method to force breakthroughs in the heroic cultivators. Many nobles were skeptical about that matter. Still, there were too many heroic assets in their ranks with centers of power that had stagnated for centuries. Also, more nobles started to accept the Royals'' terms when they saw that the cultivators joining them were improving. Little by little, the noble families joined the Royals in the new continent, even if their status was completely subservient there. The constant suppression and the impossibility to seize fortuitous chances forced many nobles to give up, especially after their home was about to turn into a wasteland. At times, rebels had to accept the fact that they couldn''t win. The Elbas family had kept on growing stronger, and its Patriarch was a monster able to open passages leading to other Mortal Lands. No one would bet on its decline. A few noble families though refused to side with the Royals anyway and decided to switch organization. Yet, the Elbas family labeled most of them as traitors and hunted them down, turning them into prisoners or directly killing them. Only the families smart enough to deal with the Royals on a political field managed to change faction without deadly consequences. The Udye family was one of them, and it had to give up on most of its resources and wealth to become free to leave. Its connection with the Hive ultimately brought it on the southwestern coast, where Chasing Demon decided to add it to the Hive''s ranks, even if only in probation for now. After all, no one would trust someone who had already switched sides once. Truth to be told, the Hive desperately needed heroic assets to match the three big nations, but it wasn''t so helpless to blindly trust cultivators that had plotted a revolution for who knew how many years. Even with a few oaths, Chasing Demon still didn''t give Amos and his family a seat among the other Elders. Elder Jason''s report updated Noah on the general situation of the Hive. The years spent in peace had allowed it to make full use of its positive trend, which saw the overall number of powerful cultivators increasing. The Hive had more than seventy rank 4 cultivators now, and a few of them were even inscription masters in some of the schools taught by Thirty-seven! Chasing Demon had ordered the construction of academies too, one for each dome. They would start to operate once enough cultivators became inscription masters and could instruct the human assets on those fields. The resources requested by Noah eventually arrived, and he found his underground quarters filled by so many "Breath" blessings that he found it hard to find a place where to sit. Of course, that was the last of his problems, especially now that he was finally starting to create his rank 5 cultivation technique. Chapter 791: 791. First success Noah already had an idea on how to proceed for the creation of his new cultivation technique. He had memorized how his body had transformed the primary energy in "Breath" of the darkness element during the transformation. So, the general structure of the "Breath" had been in his mind for a while by then. However, he had to modify that structure since the resulting energy was weaker than the "Breath" in the environment and didn''t express his individuality, which was the main requirement at his level. His meditations after the transformation though had focused on that issue, so he could claim that he wasn''t approaching the testing phase blindly. The essential feature of a cultivation technique was its ability to gather energy from the environment. Noah had already managed to create that with the Black Hole technique, but he felt that merely improving his old ring wouldn''t be enough to express the entirety of his individuality. He needed something personal that encompassed all the various shades of his complicated existence, and nothing could fill that position better than his Demonic Sword. As a living weapon created due to the peculiar mental state reached during the transformation, the Demonic Sword carried many features that the perfect hybrids had. Its entire structure worked as a dantian and absorbed "Breath" from the environment, turning it into primary energy that became part of it. That was an ability belonging to the magical beasts'' world and, to be more precise, to the Elite beasts'' world since it involved an organ that acted as a dantian. However, the Demonic Sword was also an expression of Noah''s individuality, which carried all its features. Its aura would leave a trail of primary energy due to its destructive properties. Also, the fact that it was a living being represented the peak of Noah''s creation. Once chosen the Demonic Sword as the core for his new cultivation technique, Noah had to improve its ability to absorb the energy in the environment. The natural suction force of the blade wouldn''t be able to satisfy his dantian. That was the easy part. Noah had become more than experienced in creating a vortex that could gather "Breath" and primary energy, and he had already learnt how to modify the "Breath" blessings to focus only on the darkness element. Yet, he didn''t need to use that mineral to gather only one type of "Breath" now since it wouldn''t make any difference once the blade turned it into primary energy. Instead, he needed to tune the blue crystals with the Demonic Sword''s suction force. Noah didn''t waste too much time on that part. He had an innate understanding of the Demonic Sword, and its suction force was one of the few things that he could study thoroughly. The only issue concerned the amount of "Breath" blessings to use. After all, he aimed to forge a rank 5 inscribed item, which meant that each failure would cost him and the Hive quite a bit even with the prices lowered. There weren''t ways to avoid that problem though. Noah would eventually be forced to test the procedure conceived with the help of the Divine Deduction technique. There was even a problem connected to his empty dantian, which Noah solved it by spending a long time gathering small bits of "Breath" of the darkness element inside his mind through the ability gained from the natives'' inscription method. That was a slow and tedious process since the "Breath" needed to be at least at the peak of the fourth rank, or he couldn''t even hope for the forging to produce something in the fifth rank. Weeks passed in the silence of the underground quarters in which Noah did nothing but gather enough "Breath" to perform six rounds of forging. Undergoing a breakthrough between ranks without having a suitable cultivation technique was a mistake that he had been forced to commit, and now he was paying the price just to accumulate that energy at the peak of the fourth rank. The actual creation though went far better than he expected. In his idea, he would have to forge the "Breath" blessings into a ring to place on his Demonic Swords when he needed to increase its suction force. To do that, he imbued the "Breath" accumulated in his mind with his greed and the powder from his ethereal stomach. Then, he set his consciousness to radiate the same aura of the blade and used the modified walls of his mental sphere to disguise his thoughts as laws. Of course, Noah had yet to complete inscribing the walls of his mind, but the effect obtained surpassed his expectations nonetheless. The energy obtained after all those modifications seemed to be a perfect imitation of the Demonic Sword. It was as if it had always been part of the blade. When using that modified "Breath" in the forging, the "Breath" blessings would start to radiate an aura so similar to his weapon that the Demonic Sword often inspected the huge crystals condensing under Noah''s control. It took him four attempts to succeed in his task. He ultimately failed the first two forgings, and the third one only produced an item at the peak of the fourth rank. Nevertheless, at his fourth try and after the Hive had been forced to refill his stash of materials twice, he managed to create a complete rank 5 item. Noah didn''t hesitate to test it. The item appeared as an opaque crystal ring with dark shades that radiated a violent aura without really affecting its surroundings. Yet, when Noah inserted it in the hilt of the Demonic Sword, the innate suction force of the blade skyrocketed, and the "Breath" in the underground area gathered on it in an instant. The blade released a happy roar, but Noah saw how most of that energy lingered around it and didn''t manage to become part of its structure. It seemed that it wasn''t able to absorb it due to some external limitations. ''It won''t grow while my dantian remains in this state.'' Noah concluded at that sight and moved toward the next phase of his experimentation. Connecting the blade to his dantian wasn''t a problem. The two of them were almost the same existence. Noah believed that he wouldn''t even need to stab his low-waist at that point. However, the moment had come for him to face the steepest hindrance in the creation of his cultivation technique. He had to assemble the primary energy in a "Breath" that reflected his individuality. Noah dispersed the remaining "Breath" that he had painstakingly accumulated in his mind and created a few more spherical runes to accelerate the inscription of his walls. Then, he created another spherical rune that didn''t contain any trace of his copy of Heaven and Earth''s aura and started to focus his entire consciousness on it. Only laws could control the behavior of the primary energy, but Noah could just make his thoughts resemble them. Yet, that had to be enough since he needed to find the right method to assemble that primary energy to create a darkness that was only his. Chapter 792: 792. Second success Creating a new ring took less than a year, but now Noah had reached the difficult part of the testing phase. He needed to develop "Breath" from primary energy. Noah had memorized the process, but that didn''t mean that he could replicate it. His body had naturally reassembled the primary energy during the transformation, but he needed to use his mental energy to reproduce it now. Of course, Noah didn''t want to end up with that same kind of "Breath", but imitating the procedure that he had memorized would be a useful training and would improve his expertise in the natives'' inscription method. Noah spent endless months moving the primary energy contained in his spherical rune just to reach a level of precision that could allow him to approach the memorized procedure. His ability also increased as the walls of his mental sphere kept on changing under the aura radiated by the spherical runes near them. No one bothered him. The Elders were aware of his peculiar situation and didn''t dare to disturb him due to the difficulty of the task. Creating a rank 5 cultivation technique without having "Breath" in the dantian sounded almost as a joke. After all, most inscription methods relied on the "Breath" to work. However, if there was someone able to succeed in that task, it was Noah. The microscopic particles of primal energy were tough to control, but Noah''s expertise kept on growing, and he eventually managed to reproduce the "Breath" created during the transformation. It had taken him two years of constant efforts to reach that initial success. Noah inspected the rank 5 gaseous "Breath" of the darkness element hovering over his palm. Countless pieces of information accumulated in his mind as the Divine Deduction technique analyzed that energy and the procedure that had created it. He knew that the primary energy had perceived the orders conveyed by his consciousness as laws, which meant that he could somewhat avoid the issue that he wasn''t able to wield them yet. However, now that he had succeeded in recreating that "Breath", he had to invent a procedure that led to his darkness. The fact that he understood the general structure of the "Breath" though didn''t mean that he knew how to proceed. Modifying the procedure would require him to change the laws that he was imitating with his mental energy, which meant testing various structures blindly since he didn''t know the laws involved. He did have a direction though. His mental energy had to express the entirety of his individuality, and he could slowly take out the thoughts that would lead to a weaker or unstable "Breath". So, his relentless testing began. Noah had reached a level of expertise where he didn''t need the spherical rune anymore to gather primary energy. Yet, he used it nonetheless since it was his fastest method to accumulate energy in a quantity that could become "Breath" in the fifth rank. He spent his days eating, testing, and feeding his sword, without even bothering to stand up. He had entered the part of his cultivation journey where years could go by without him even noticing. Even with an empty dantian, he was a cultivator in the fifth rank. Chasing Demon had needed one thousand years to go from the peak of the fourth rank to the sixth. So, even if Noah had the fastest growth ever recorded in history, he would still require centuries to reach that level. Noah took a few minutes of break only on one occasion. Faith had come to visit him, justifying herself in front of the Council by saying that she wanted to set a series of trades with the Hive. The world had moved on since Noah secluded himself. The main focus of the four organizations had become the exchange of the materials retrieved in the new world, which also involved hybrids of magical beasts that had developed a sea of consciousness. Those beings were useful for multiple reasons. They could become guinea pigs in specific experiments or real assets that could increase the power of each faction. It was pointless to say how valuable a hybrid in the fifth rank was if it decided to help an organization willingly. Faith had mostly come to convey a message from June, but she also wanted to see how her friend was. When Elder Julia brought her to his underground quarters though, she almost didn''t recognize him. Noah''s appearance hadn''t changed. His robe was a bit messy, and there were traces of blood on the corners of his mouth, but he seemed the same cultivator from back then. Yet, his aura had changed entirely. An unfathomable severity surrounded him, and his consciousness became impossible to sense from time to time. It was as if his thoughts were wandering in realms that Faith couldn''t detect, and even Elder Julia revealed a stern expression whenever that happened. The Elder knew that Noah''s mind would reach for the laws on random moments of enlightenment, but he was still too weak to remain in that state for long. Faith was about to leave when she saw him in that state, but Noah suddenly spoke and stood up to near her. "I don''t know if it''s been a long time." The two of them only exchanged a couple of lines before Faith delivered a sealed letter that carried June''s aura. Noah couldn''t help but feel warm when he took the message. On the other hand, Faith had understood that Noah was extremely busy and left his quarters, opting to spend the rest of her trip there with the other heroic assets in the city above. Noah read the letter and sent a mental message to the two Demons. He didn''t know what they were up to, but he knew that he could rely on them, especially when it came to matters that involved his lover. Then, he returned in his previous position and sat cross-legged on the ground to resume his testing. Time passed, and Noah didn''t even bother to keep track of it. The only things that existed in his mind were his hunger and the energy that morphed on his palm. His mind would sometimes touch on the part of the understanding that he had reached during the transformation. Still, he would quickly lose access to it, keeping only some of the emotions that he had felt in those moments. Yet, at some point, his aura began to disperse the seriousness that it had radiated since Noah immersed himself in the experimentation. Noah held his breath for fear that the structure of the gas in his palm could be affected by that simple gesture. The gas seemed to move in an orderly way, but it kept on changing shape in perpetual motion. Each of its particles resembled the drops of water of a tide, with the only difference that they had the form of hiltless sabers. Looking at that "Breath", Noah knew that he had finally succeeded. Chapter 793: 793. Last success ''A darkness made of destructive swords able to take any form.'' Noah thought as he stared at the tiny cloud in his palm. ''Its power is on par with the "Breath" found in the environment, but it will be stronger when I use it to fuel my abilities.'' In the end, Noah''s "Breath" didn''t manage to surpass the power of Heaven and Earth''s, but matching it was already an incredible result. After all, his energy was perfect for his individuality and would give birth to more potent effects when paired with abilities with the same properties. As for surpassing Heaven and Earth''s standard, he had been forced to give up on that. There was simply too much that he didn''t understand when the laws were involved, and the continuous trial and error could only bring him so far. Yet, Noah didn''t feel disappointed with the result. He had finally created an energy that didn''t exist in the world. The tiny cloud was "Breath" made by him and for him. It was his darkness, something that he had meant to create since he started to uncover the depths of his individuality. Also, there was still King Elbas'' research, which Noah knew would allow him to surpass the world''s standards. ''No signs of Tribulation.'' Noah thought as his consciousness reached for the sky above the dome. ''I can begin the final phase immediately.'' Heaven and Earth appeared to be whimsical when it came to Tribulations that didn''t concern the breakthroughs in specific ranks. Noah had triggered it when he created hybrids, and something similar had happened with the ancestors of the other world. That would lead most cultivators to believe that mixing races was the cause behind those punishments, but Noah had the memories of the Cursed Dragon species too. He remembered the immense Tribulation that those creatures had to face. ''Maybe, they weren''t punished only because of their flames. It might be that the punishment came after the leader failed a Heaven Tribulation to advance to the divine ranks.'' Noah''s mind wandered a bit, but he quickly suppressed that thought. He didn''t have the power to understand how the world worked, so it was pointless to overthink specific issues. Heaven and Earth didn''t try to punish him for creating his darkness element, so he didn''t need to hesitate to finalize his cultivation technique. Noah now had managed to improve the suction force of the Demonic Sword and had found the right procedure to turn primary energy into "Breath". He lacked only a way to connect those two processes. Of course, Noah knew what he had to do. The hard part was behind him. Now he had just to apply what he had learnt and made in the past years to create his rank 5 cultivation technique. To do so, he needed a third Will-consuming rune. Noah absorbed the dark cloud in his sea of consciousness before immersing himself in a long session of meditation with the Divine Deduction technique. He required something slightly invasive to put an end to his long seclusion. A method soon took form inside his mind, and he didn''t hesitate to request other materials before starting to prepare everything he needed. The rank 5 "Breath" inside his mind went inside the brown sea and came out with the shape of the Demonic Sword. Noah had focused on his connection with his living weapon at that time. That would act as the bridge between his center of power and the blade. Then, he used his ethereal stomach and his mental energy to create dense dust able to imitate the procedure that he had just perfected. That would set the guidelines for the primary energy entering the rune. In the end, he imbued the "Breath" with the ethereal dust to create a program with enough power to force the primary energy to turn into his darkness. It was needless to say that Noah had to repeat those procedures a few times before he managed to obtain a satisfying result. Still, the years spent reassembling primary energy made those failures barely noticeable. Once he set the rules and the energy, he only needed a solid material for the Elemental Forging method. Since he had already tested its efficiency during the creation of the Liquid Dantian, his blood was the best material when it came to implanting something in his body. Noah slowly coughed blood that he accumulated on one of the special buckets that he used when he needed to create a Blood Companion. Then, he fused it with the modified "Breath" inside his mind to create a dark ink that radiated the power of the fifth rank. The forging succeeded at the first try. Noah''s expertise with those materials was simply too high for him to fail at that point. Elder Jason had delivered the material that he had requested while he was busy with those preparations. It was a dense liquid retrieved from the other world that exuded an awful smell. That was one of the weapons that the natives used to fend off the magical beasts, and it had the peculiar properties to weaken the bodies of those creatures temporarily. Noah undressed the upper part of his robe and smeared the liquid on his low-waist. He didn''t do that only once. The potion wasn''t completely effective since he wasn''t only a beast, so he had to spread it on his skin multiple times to weaken that spot. When his skin and muscles had weakened enough, he wielded the Demonic Sword and imbued its tip inside the inscribed ink. Noah had performed that procedure so many times that he didn''t even need to think about what he had to draw. The blade pierced his skin easily and cut his muscles after some struggles. Noah kept it pointed toward his dantian and began to draw a perfect representation of the base of the hilt of his sword. After drawing the rectangular outline though, he immersed the blade in the ink again and started to cut the insides of that shape with swift thrusts. The Demonic Sword didn''t like hurting Noah, but it remained silent and let him cut his own body because it knew that the procedure was crucial to him. In the end, Noah let his weapon go and waited for the skin and muscles of his low-waist to heal. The effects of the liquid worn off eventually and the healing properties of his body fixed the deep cuts, revealing a black, rectangular rune that had an intricate pattern drawn in its insides. Noah didn''t exactly understand what that pattern meant, but he knew that it was a physical representation of the procedure through which the primary energy became his "Breath". ''All the pieces are in place.'' Noah thought as he heaved a tired sigh. He wielded his blade again and inserted the opaque ring that he had stored inside his space-ring in its hilt. The suction force of the Demonic Sword skyrocketed, and Noah promptly laid the base of the weapon over the rune drawn on his low-waist. When the two of them touched, Noah felt his dantian enlarging again. Chapter 794: 794. Outside The opaque ring enhanced the innate suction force of the Demonic Sword, which was now able to absorb the "Breath" in the environment since it had gained an outlet. The "Breath" became primary energy as it entered the blade and gathered at its base, where the hilt touched with the rectangular rune. The primary energy entered the rune and transformed according to its rules, becoming a peculiar kind of "Breath" of the darkness element that shot toward Noah''s dantian, enlarging its walls as it filled it. Noah felt his body cheering as "Breath" filled his dantian in short instants and stated to apply pressure on its walls. A sensation of power spread through his cells as his centers of power began to work together after so much time. He was finally advancing in the fifth rank. He was finally able to express the full power of a complete rank 5 cultivator! His dantian didn''t oppose any resistance. It seemed to enlarge willingly as if it had waited for that moment to happen. Noah was temporarily lost in the wonderful sensation of seeing his power increase again, but he didn''t miss that peculiarity. ''I''ve accumulated a lot of understanding as I created my darkness.'' Noah thought before losing himself again in his cultivation. Creating his "Breath" was a clear expression of his individuality. The Demonic Sword was a fluke, but his darkness was something that he had built on his own. He was an inscription master able to create items in the fifth rank, and the same energy that flowed through his body was a clear statement of that. His mind was his world and contained the mental energy of a hybrid. His body was his creation, and it was able to match the might of the ancestors of the other world. His dantian contained "Breath" of the darkness element that he had built specifically for his individuality. There wasn''t the slightest trace of Heaven and Earth inside of him anymore. Noah had cut away even the last bits of their influence by replacing the innate structure of their "Breath" with one of his own. He was entirely outside of their system now. The mistake had thrived and reached a form that didn''t need to abide by the rules of the world anymore. A sense of freedom enveloped him. Noah felt different as his "Breath" nourished him and worked together with his other centers of power. It was a sensation similar to when he was about to become a perfect hybrid, but it wasn''t the same either. Noah spent days cultivating and stopped only when the enlargement of his dantian slowed down and reached what he thought to be its average growth speed. The understanding that he had accumulated during his experiments had become part of his power. If he wanted to improve his training speed further, he needed to express his individuality more or dive deeper into the laws. When Noah opened his eyes after that long session of training, the world felt different. Nothing had changed, and he wasn''t seeing nor understanding more than usual. Yet, he sensed some kind of distance from everything. It was as if he had become a stranger in the world where he had lived for many years. Noah dressed up and left his underground quarters at that point. He needed to experience the outside world after so much time spent in seclusion, and he wanted to contact Elder Julia for the sixth Kesier rune. During the mission to the other world and his seclusion, Noah didn''t make use of the rune. Taking it in that wild environment was simply too dangerous, and he didn''t have time to train in anything else while he was busy creating his cultivation technique. However, his alternative method and the continuous experimentation had kept the enlargement of his mind going. Also, now that he was free and in a safe environment, he could claim his turns with the rune and keep it for a few years. When he resurfaced though, he sensed two familiar presences at the top floor of one of the most luxurious buildings in the city under his dome. "Hasn''t the Hive built underground quarters for both of you?" Noah asked as he entered the floor and stared at the two Demons lazily reading books on a couch. "The reappearance of the Demon Prince!" Flying Demon said while making absurd gestures. "I was beginning to like this city." "I see that you solved your problem." Dreaming Demon said, eyeing Noah''s low-waist with a glance. "Here. You can keep it for four years." Dreaming Demon handed Noah a folded sheet, and he was surprised to see the sixth Kesier rune drawn inside it. "Four years?" Noah asked, even if he knew what that meant. "Yes, you''ve spent sixteen years in seclusion and won me a bet against Justin." Flying Demon said while putting down his book and raising a cup full of wine. "He now owes me a jar of liquor that he has stored for an entire century! Excellent job!" Noah stored the rune and ignored Flying Demon as he sat on the couch in front of the couple. He intended to continue training soon, but he needed to understand how the world had evolved in that period. However, Flying Demon suddenly lay down and gazed at the ceiling before asking a question. "So, what do you think about the laws? Elder Julia told us that you saw them." Noah was a bit taken aback, but his eyes soon wandered too as he tried to remember what he felt whenever his consciousness managed to reach that realm. "I don''t really know," Noah said. "They resemble soft emotions that hide an incredible complexity, but I can''t put it into words." "That''s because words can''t describe them." Dreaming Demon said while revealing an understanding smile. Noah knew that she was the strongest asset in the fifth rank in the Hive and that she probably interacted with the laws often. After all, being able to wield the laws was necessary for the sixth rank, which meant that she was surely learning how to do that. Dreaming Demon could see Noah''s interest in her understanding and tried to find the right words to give him some pieces of advice. "You will gradually find your way in that realm more often as the expression of your existence starts to interfere with the corresponding laws." "Are you already on a level where you can define the laws?" Noah asked. "You don''t define laws, Prince. They define the world and its behavior." Dreaming Demon corrected him. Noah''s mind wandered for a bit. He had to train and learn what had happened in those years, but he took a moment to appreciate how far he had gone. He still remembered how he carried his piece of "Breath" blessing around when he was just a human cultivator. Now, he discussed the laws that ruled the world with beings that were more than a thousand years old. "Right!" Flying Demon exclaimed as he straightened his position, "We have finished the passage, I just have to set the door." Chapter 795: 795. Summary The letter delivered by Faith contained the details about the location of June''s private training quarters. Upon learning that, Noah had asked the two Demons to enlarge the separate dimension while he was busy creating his cultivation technique. Of course, the Demons had completed the task long ago and were just waiting for him to come out of his seclusion to set the door. They didn''t dare to place it without him since the lines of the formation would appear even on the outer world, and that area was deep in the domain of the Elbas family. If June was to see two strangers randomly appearing from the floor of her quarters, she could trigger an alarm and turn the whole situation into a mess. "Could you set it now?" Noah asked, and both Demons revealed a sly smile before standing up and turning in the direction of the desert. The three of them flew for a while, but they didn''t hurry. Instead, they used that time to drink some more and update Noah about the current situation of the world. "Chasing Demon put the Udye family under oath, but he still doesn''t trust them." Flying Demon said. "Yet, that Daniel is good with alchemy and the other nobles are behaving while also trying to blend in. They were really desperate when they came here." "The other nations have mostly focused on increasing the number of cultivators in their ranks, experimenting with the hybrids, and analyzing the knowledge retrieved in the other world." Dreaming Demon said. "The Hive is the only organization avoiding to replicate their transformation, so we are a bit ahead of the other nations when it comes to sorting the new knowledge." Noah didn''t need to ask why the Hive didn''t approach the testing phase. Investing in such a revolutionary experiment would be expensive, and it would slow down the growth that it was experiencing. Also, the Hive already had the best expert in the field. He had just been unavailable for a few years. Noah knew that Chasing Demon or one of the Elders would soon contact him to speak about that matter. Yet, he wanted to set his private life straight before involving himself with political affairs again. The two Demons kept on summarizing the main event that happened while he was in seclusion as they flew toward the desert in the west. The fact that the Utra nation was becoming a wasteland due to the dimensional portal had pushed away even more assets from the old continent. The colonization of the new continent advanced as a consequence, and the destroyed central territories also saw the appearance of various structures belonging to all the major organizations. As the years passed, the central areas of the new continent were slowly giving birth to new forms of life, which eventually brought packs of magical beasts back in those regions. There had been no sighting of exceptional lifeforms like the black flowers, but the magical plant there were peculiar nonetheless. While the other nations behaved as usual though, the Elbas family found itself involved in unusual matters. Most of the Royals had disappeared entirely from the social environment, but that was quite understandable since they were busy studying the compound. However, the nobles that patrolled the borders of their domain or handled certain public events would often disappear, only to be replaced by other heroic cultivators. What was strange was that some of them wouldn''t reappear anymore, while those that did it would have a higher cultivation level. Noah was aware of the rumor that the Royals had a way to increase the power of the heroic cultivators forcefully, but he couldn''t even imagine how something like that was possible. The only one who might know more about the matter was June, and he had to admit that they didn''t talk much about the Elbas family when they were together in the new world. It couldn''t be helped. There was too much to do there, and they were finally together. Also, they always kept some pieces of information for themselves in case someone exposed their relationship and made use of their knowledge to hurt their partner. She had only questioned him about the raids in the Utra nation because she was worried about his mental state. As for the matters concerning the Royal Inheritance, she didn''t mention them because Noah had already taken care of his grandfather. "The colonization of the new world is going smoothly though," Flying Demon said. "It''s funny how political differences don''t seem to matter there. I guess problems will appear once the four organizations start to define the borders of their domain there too." The new world provided a continuous stream of new materials and perfect hybrids, filling the inventories of the four forces and allowing them to continue the experiments. Noah was surprised to discover that the Hive had managed to obtain a fair share of hybrids too. It seemed that the four forces were set on dividing the gains coming from the new world equally. His interest though was in the rank 5 hybrid that had joined the Hive. According to the Demons'' description, the creature was a mantis called Danielle Duron. ''One problem at the time.'' Noah thought before focusing on other pressing issues. He was sure that the Elders would start filling him with requests and missions once they realized that he had some free time again. The trio eventually reached the desert, and Noah saw a few structures built on the sandy terrain filled with blue cracks. The buildings were tall towers that formed some kind of array with their arrangement. They were encircling an area that he recognized as the entrance to the separate dimension. Thirty-seven was waiting for them on top of one of the towers and jumped down when they were about to reach him. "The towers work as a reserve of energy, and he is quite free in that area. Human cultivators can also live inside them, so the Hive is using this place as an academy for promising inscription masters." Dreaming Demon explained before the three of them crossed the towers and landed on the sandy ground between them. Flying Demon promptly used his key, and the ground lit up, bringing the three of them in the familiar environment of the separate dimension. Noah soon noticed that a series of teleportation matrix were now occupying that part of the tunnel, probably linking that spot on strategic places. The two Demons led Noah toward one of the formations, and they disappeared again once its light enveloped them. Noah found himself in another part of the dimension, together with the Demons and Thirty-seven, who began to place the door. The task took them only a few minutes, and the three of them opened a path to Noah, who didn''t hesitate to step on the shining lines. When his eyes became able to make out the new environment, they focused on a familiar woman that held a spear pointed in his direction. Chapter 796: 796. Together "It''s been a long time since you pointed that at me." Noah cracked a joke when he saw June''s familiar battle stance. However, June wasn''t in the mood for their usual routine of light bickering and dropped the spear as she threw herself at her lover. "You kept me waiting," June said before diving into Noah''s lips. The two of them exchanged a long kiss, and Noah couldn''t help but lift her from the floor as they continued to embrace. Noah felt her smile at that gesture. He knew that she liked it when he expressed his desire for her so openly. June eventually tilted her head to break their kiss and pointed toward a bed in the corner of her quarters. The two of them took their time to satisfy the emotions and urges accumulated in the past years. Then, they lay in the now messy bed in silence for a while before June left his arms and sat behind him. Noah casually rested on her lap and let her mess with his hair. June just wanted to comb it to make fun of him at the beginning, but its metallic properties didn''t make her task easy. "I''ve always been meaning to ask," June said as she tried to pull one strand of hair, "Is this a rank 5 material now? I might test it in some formations. Let me get my spear real quick." "Don''t spear my hair," Noah said, turning and pulling her by her leg so that she would slide right under him. June released a cute laugh as she let her lover pull her, but her mood changed when their eyes met, and she wrapped her arms around Noah''s neck almost instinctively. They could do that for days, just lying in bed or on a couch, exchanging a few jokes before falling prey to their desires once again. However, they both knew that they had to set a few things before relaxing and resuming their cohabitation. "You can use that formation to escape and come to the Hive if something happens," Noah said, without moving his eyes from hers. "We can stop holding back a bit now that we are stronger." The limits that they had decided to place on themselves to protect each other were slowly becoming pointless as their power increased. As a rank 5 cultivator, even if Noah created a political issue, the repercussions would be different since there weren''t many existences able to affect his position. Also, his figure was more than revered since he was the only real expert in the hybrids'' field. As for June, she had managed to reach the solid stage in those years, confirming her status as a genius. Reaching the last stage of the fourth rank in around fifty years was a fantastic achievement, and she had spent a long time developing her formations too. June nodded, and the two of them sat on the bed to discuss a few essential matters before deciding how they would live from now on. June kept her arms around Noah''s neck as she questioned him about the formation, and Noah explained some of the basics behind the separate dimension. Then, he began to ask her about the strange behavior of the Elbas family. "It should be connected to the pool retrieved from the Royal Inheritance." June said, "I can''t be completely sure though. The Royals have taken it away as soon as we cleared the tower." The truth was that Noah had partially given up on the Royal Inheritance by then. After all, it was impossible to snatch it from such a powerful organization even with the help of the separate dimension since he didn''t know its exact location. Also, the inheritance would have been under the Royals'' control for more than seventy years by then. Noah would be surprised if they didn''t manage to conquer it in all that time. They focused on other topics too, and they eventually started to discuss their cultivation techniques when June questioned him about the black drawings on his waist. "It''s part of the system that I created to cultivate," Noah explained as he called the Demonic Sword that had kept itself busy as the couple enjoyed their reunion. The sword cheered and reached for Noah, who inserted the opaque ring in its hilt and laid its base over the rune. "Breath" suddenly started to gather on his position and flow inside his dantian after the various transformations and reconstructions. Noah was openly showing his cultivation method because there was a chance that June might gain some kind of inspiration from watching it up close. She did understand something, but her judgment concerned the technical aspect of the technique. "You have managed to add the features of the magical beasts'' world to a technique that involves the dantian. You aren''t limited by your aptitude anymore, and even your energy seems different." Noah nodded at her words. He was actually surprised that she had been able to understand so much with just a quick look. ''I guess she knows me so well that she notices even the slightest change.'' Noah thought, but she interrupted his reasoning with a joke. "You need to cultivate like the rest of us now," June said as she placed her hand over the rune when Noah interrupted the cultivation technique. "Yes. The sword must remain in this form since my individuality has created it in this way." Noah explained. "Changing it while I cultivate would just taint the resulting energy. Also, I don''t see it standing there all the time." The Demonic Sword growled as if to agree with Noah''s words. It liked it when he wielded it, but being unable to fly on its own for days was still dull. Also, the pressure that it had to endure during the process wasn''t negligible. June then explained a few details behind her cultivation technique and her plans for her next breakthrough. She already had something in mind, even if the fifth rank was still at quite some distance. The two of them then began to discuss how they would manage to live together, and the safest option was to build something in the separate dimension so that June could just use the door without risking exposing Noah. The couple eventually went through the door, and Noah formally introduced June to the two Demons that had waited for his return next to the formation. As Flying Demon sized her up though, Noah spoke to the automaton that was in a corner with his eyes closed. "I need your help in setting a few devices so that we can know from here if June''s presence is requested." "Forget it," Thirty-seven said. "I''m too busy teaching those ignorant fools." Noah had expected his unwillingness and took a bucket from his space-ring. As he opened it, he wore a canny smile and tried to persuade him. "This is a rank 6 hybrid that has lost all its energy. This dust is useless for most experts. Yet, you might be the only one able to find a way to use it." Chapter 797: 797. Reckless men Thirty-seven couldn''t contain his interest at the sight of the large bucket. He removed the seal and inspected the compressed dust with his ethereal hands, murmuring incoherent words from time to time. Noah had spoken the truth. The ashes of the rank 6 snake didn''t contain even the slightest trace of "Breath". However, the automaton was knowledgeable in so many inscription methods that he might be able to find a purpose for that wasted material. Noah''s had to snap his fingers to reclaim the automaton''s attention, and the latter ultimately nodded to express his willingness to help with his issues. "I also need something to cover the formation on the other side," Noah said, "It''s better to be careful when dealing with the Royals." Thirty-seven disappeared as soon as Noah expressed his requests, bringing the bucket away with him. Noah didn''t mind that. He could just use those ashes to brag, which meant that they were useless in his hands. Flying Demon then neared Noah and lay his arm around his shoulders, whispering something to his ear. "You have inherited the Demons'' tastes in women, but mine is better." Noah didn''t mind his words. He knew the Demon''s character. He was just trying to have a talk between men with someone that he considered his friend. "Wait a thousand years, and we''ll see." Noah said with a smirk, "Also, June has a better taste in men." Flying Demon exploded in a laugh and patted Noah''s shoulder repeatedly. June and Dreaming Demon were able to hear their conversation, but they didn''t pay attention to them. Dreaming Demon was sizing her up with a stern expression as if deciding if she was worthy of her Master''s heir. On the other hand, June had just realized how protective those two rank 5 existences were when it came to Noah. June had always known that Noah''s status inside the Hive was incredibly high, but the other Elders had treated her as a guest during the winged beasts'' crisis. Instead, the two Demons seemed to have personal interests behind their protective behavior. It was clear that their relationship with Noah went beyond that shared with the members of the same organization. Noah didn''t like that but turned a blind eye to their behavior nonetheless. He wanted the two Demons to accept her, and he had total confidence in June. "Do you love him?" Dreaming Demon eventually asked. "Yes," June answered without any hesitation. "He will leave you behind. Are you aware of that?" Dreaming Demon pressed on, but June didn''t hesitate and answered positively once again. Noah glanced at Flying Demon when he saw that scene, but he simply shrugged his shoulder. There was nothing that he could do to stop his lover at that point. Yet, Dreaming Demon''s stern expression broke into a smile after June''s last answer, and she neared her to whisper a few gentle words. "You know, my Master asked me similar things when he learnt about my relationship. We have reckless men at hand, but they are the best if you ask me." Dreaming Demon winked at June when she finished her phrase and turned to face the lover that was staring at her with a dazed gaze. Simple words couldn''t describe the amount of suffering the Flying Demon had gone through just to keep her alive. Yet, every time he looked at her, he felt that it was completely worth it. It wasn''t rare for cultivators to have lovers, but it was hard for couples to last through the centuries spent cultivating. Even a simple difference in power could determine if two existences could be together. The two Demons were different though. Their relationship had survived so many crises that it was impossible to imagine the two of them breaking up at some point. June was momentarily puzzled by that interaction, but Noah promptly reached her to whisper a few words. "Don''t be Faith." June blushed and started bickering with Noah while the Demons were still immersed in their intense stare. Thirty-seven eventually returned, carrying a few things with him. He held a large carpet with one arm and had a series of precious items in the other. June recognized some of those items. Most formations that could reflect the power of the heroic ranks used them. "My students inscribed this for a project." Thirty-seven said, "It has good cloaking properties, and only a thorough inspection would reveal its status as an inscribed item since they used the natives'' method." Noah quickly took the carpet and used the door to return in June''s quarters. Then, after laying it over the shining lines of the floor, he activated the key again. The carpet didn''t influence the ability of the door, but it managed to cover its light while also blocking the power that it released. Noah could only show his approval when he reappeared in the separate dimension. As for the other issue, the solution was more technical. Thirty-seven couldn''t just study the functioning of June''s quarters and hack in its inscription. There was no point in pursuing such a troublesome approach. So, he drew some lines around the door and told Flying Demon to complete the formation. The ground of the dimension became transparent when he ended the array, revealing June''s quarters. Her quarters were upside-down in that image, but seeing them wasn''t the purpose of the formation. The new lines allowed the group to hear the sounds coming from the habitation even from the separate dimension, meaning that June could just leave her inscribed notebook there and use the door when a message arrived. June quickly went back in her quarters, left the notebook, and returned in the dimension wearing a wide smile. They had finally set everything. She could live with Noah without worrying about any repercussions now. Thirty-seven then left, and the Demons soon followed his example. "What exactly is that man?" June asked, questioning Noah about the automaton. She became interested in that lifeform after she saw how experienced he was when it came to formations, and that feeling only increased when Noah gave her a brief explanation. "He is like an encyclopedia for inscription methods." Noah started to send a series of mental messages after that, and the heroic assets of the Hive mobilized to complete his requests. Entire structures appeared on the teleportation matrix right under June''s habitation. Noah had requested rooms and various kinds to build a mansion right in that spot. The construction didn''t take much with him and June there. In a week, they built a large mansion that had features that matched some of the best habitations available in the Hive. It didn''t have protective formations all around its perimeter, but it had two large and reinforced training areas, other than various rooms meant for other uses. Just like that, their life together began. It wasn''t the best since they still couldn''t show their relationship out in the open, but it was better than spending decades away from each other and ignorant about the condition of their partner. Chapter 798: 798. Visi Noah and June''s life was uneventful for a couple of years. Their cohabitation went smoothly and without anyone disturbing them. The Elders of the Hive were busy with their matters, and the Elbas family was in a similar situation, which meant that Noah and June could enjoy their life as a couple in peace. Of course, their cultivation still occupied a large part of their time. Each session of training could last for days or even weeks since they were existences in the heroic ranks. They tried to spend as much time as they could together, but it often happened that they wouldn''t see each other for entire days, even if they lived in the same mansion. That fact though didn''t bother the couple. That was just how the life of the cultivators was: Filled with long periods of seclusion and even boring at times. The determination to keep training for years without obtaining any significant increase in power was one of the requirements for beings in the heroic ranks. After all, time could erode even the strongest wills, especially when they were forced to face a high number of failures before managing to succeed. It wasn''t a surprise that many cultivators eventually gave up when the many difficulties connected to the individualities became a vital part of that somewhat dull life. Yet, Noah was different. Struggles and battles had filled his life since his transmigration, forcing him always to improve if he wanted to keep his life. Also, his ambition was boundless, and his desire for power had only increased when he fused with a magical beast. As for June, her life had been less exciting compared to Noah''s, but she had to deal with her fair share of struggles due to the expectations of his family and the pressure of the Royals. Also, as a battle maniac, Noah''s fast growth encouraged her to work harder than the others. Between the various training though, Noah and June always managed to find some moment for themselves. Noah had mostly focused on his battle prowess when he didn''t train his centers of power. He had obtained new spells and discovered that his old ones didn''t work as he intended when he used his "Breath". It didn''t matter if he had modified them or not. The spells that suited his individuality would obtain stronger effects when fueled with his darkness, while the others would be weaker or even don''t work at all with that energy. That forced Noah to review his entire arsenal thoroughly. It didn''t bother him that some of his abilities had become unreliable. It was only natural that his battle style would specialize around his individuality as his rank increased. Yet, he had to make sure to know what worked and what he could salvage with the right adjustments. Noah had to put aside King Elbas'' research for the time being since his cultivation and revision of his arsenal left him without any free time. June didn''t approach the research either in that period. Noah had shared its contents with her and, even if she was interested, she judged that her understanding of the lightning element was too shallow to attempt in the creation of higher energy. Elder Julia''s arrival though interrupted their peaceful lives and reminded them that the outside world wouldn''t just stop placing issues in front of them because they were happy. Noah and June sat on a comfortable mat and faced the Elder that placed a few reports among them. The sheets mostly depicted images of half-human half-beast beings similar to those seen under the castles in the new world. "These are sightings coming from our outposts in the central regions." Elder Julia explained. "They are getting close." She didn''t specify which force was behind those experiments, which meant that she didn''t know their source. Noah could make a few guesses as he looked at the images. Those failed hybrids seemed the result of a flawed transformation, and only the Elbas family could have been able to find a way to replicate it so soon. After all, he knew that the Shandal Empire and the Council aimed to create different kinds of fusions between the species. "I can''t create an army of cultivators like me," Noah said. "It''s simply impossible. They would be wild beasts rather than actual cultivators and that only if they survive the procedure. You can''t underestimate the instincts of a magical beast." Noah didn''t need Elder Julia to explain the reason behind her visit since it was quite evident. With the other forces making progress in that new field, the Hive wanted to become competitive by involving the best expert. However, Noah wasn''t lying. The mortality rate of the fusion was incredibly high and that when he used slaves that could only answer truthfully to his questions. Also, the issue of the instincts was something that had no solution. The only beings that could become hybrids without losing their sanity were those with a sea of consciousness able to match their bodies. As far as Noah knew, he was the only cultivator that matched that requirement. "We need something though!" Elder Julia said. "The other nation will pay any price to get their hands on this power, and some of them will eventually succeed. The Hive has just started to catch up with these forces. We can''t let them gain ground again." June remained silent during the conversation. She knew that she was still a foreigner when it came to those discussions. Her presence there was just a consequence of her relationship with Noah. Truth to be told, June would disclose her knowledge on the matter if she had any. However, the Elbas family had cut June and her family out from the testing phase since she had refused to swear oaths after taking down the Royal Inheritance. Noah fell deep in thought. It wasn''t that he didn''t want to help the Hive, but every approach that tried to replicate the power of the magical beasts would inevitably bring a series of failed experiments. The Hive simply didn''t have the human resources to endure such losses, and involving the foreigners would just interrupt the stream of migrants that saw the fourth organization as a reasonable force. Then, an idea popped in his mind when he saw the Demonic Sword uncaringly flying from a room to another. He remembered how the Empire wanted to create organic inscribed items to transplant in the cultivators, but there was a less invasive approach. The only issue was that he didn''t know if he was able to replicate the creation made while he was in the middle of his transformation. "I can''t promise anything," Noah began to say, "But I might be able to create something similar to my sword. There won''t be any drawbacks since your species won''t change, but the weapons would be quite revolutionary." Elder Julia''s eyes lit up and questioned him. "What do you need?" "Tell Thirty-seven to send all he has on the organic inscribed items," Noah answered. Chapter 799: 799. Help Noah would be lying if he said that he wasn''t interested in the organic inscribed items. It was a curiosity that had lingered in the back of his mind since the meeting with the Empire''s envoy. However, he couldn''t focus on them while he had an empty dantian, and discovering that his "Breath" affected his abilities became his priority ever since the beginning of his cohabitation with June. Yet, he decided to reserve some time to the study of those schools since the Hive seemed so desperate to become competitive in the hybrids'' field. Of course, he wouldn''t neglect this personal power. That was the mistake that most cultivators belonging to organizations did once they became too involved in the political issues of the world. Nevertheless, helping the Hive meant helping his status too, which was something that he needed since he and June still had to hide from the other forces. Also, the creation of living weapons was a clear expression of his individuality, something that he needed to exercise if he wanted to reach the point where he could wield the laws. Elder Julia left after his request. She had succeeded in involving Noah in the race currently happening in the outside world. Now it was up to him to decide how much he would help. "Our time together is always threatened, am I right?" June said before releasing a helpless sigh and lying on Noah''s shoulder. Noah understood how she felt. Even if they were both busy pursuing their power, they still lived together and managed to seize long moments of intimacy every few days. They had also synchronized their training schedules to optimize that. However, the world wouldn''t just stop because of their happiness. There was a high chance that the current race for the power of the hybrids would influence the outcome of future conflicts, and they couldn''t just ignore that. Noah took June in his arms, and she silently sat between his legs, enjoying the warm breath of her lover that hit her neck rhythmically. They didn''t need to say anything. They just remained in that position for a few minutes, seizing the last available moments of peaceful life that they could get. "Hey," June said at some point, "I want a spear. Make it orange." "I thought you wanted a large, pointy hat," Noah replied only to see June turning and climbing on his lap, pushing him down in the process. It didn''t take much for Thirty-seven to appear above the teleportation matrix and leave a series of scrolls in front of the mansion. Noah and June sensed his arrival while they were busy exchanging ideas on her cultivation technique. June centers of power shared a deep connection due to a technique called Perfect Circuit. Her body would work as a vast bridge that improved the exchange of energy between her dantian and mind, and the Heaven''s spark absorbed in the past made her lightning incredibly pure. However, that was just the foundation of her power. The true expression of her individuality had to come from the formations that she added to the Circuit. June had focused on a particular field of the formations called Perpetual formations, which allowed her to increase the output of energy generated by her centers of power as she kept on fighting. Yet, there was a set limit to how much energy they could produce, which left her quite worried about her prospects as a rank 5 cultivator. The mansion didn''t isolate its insides from the outside world since they had to sense when June''s notebook received a message, and Noah had an idea when he saw the automaton. He rushed outside and stopped him to request a few items before picking the scrolls and returning inside. "Our inscription methods belong to two very different fields, but the friction described in King Elbas'' research should suit you." Noah said when he saw June''s puzzled expression, "Thirty-seven will bring what he knows about altering the nature of the lightning element through formations. I''ve also mentioned your school." June didn''t know what to say. She had experienced a privileged life with the Royals, but they had their reasons, and there was a limit to how much she could ask. Instead, inside the Hive, Noah had access to basically everything and could take out inscription methods as if they were Obsidian Credits. Also, the fact that he was so concerned about her progress made her feel so loved that she was barely able to contain herself. Yet, she knew that Noah was busy now, so she just kissed him, whispered that she loved him, and left for another room. Noah revealed a complicated smile as he stared at her departing figure. As much as he desired her, he knew that there were more pressing matters that required his attention now. He sat on the mat and started to inspect the scrolls while activating the Divine Deduction technique to quicken his analysis. It turned out that there weren''t many inscription methods that dealt with organic items. That field seemed rather unexplored and old according to the amount of data described in scrolls. The main issue was that something organic had to be sort of alive or work in symbiosis with a living being to express its effects. Achieving that was extremely hard since and products would be either dead or too wild to control. It was simply better to create an inanimate weapon due to its reliability and easier construction. Noah studied all the scrolls multiple times for many hours. There wasn''t anything too specific since none of the methods led to something that could be considered a success. There were records about devilish weapons that ultimately revolted against their owners, or symbionts that took control of the user''s body and went on a killing spree. There were even many that had failed to keep the organic inscribed item alive. ''Keeping the will of the creature alive would just cause a rebellion in the long-run, but suppressing it would create a weapon weaker than the normal inscribed ones.'' Noah thought as he diverted his attention from the scrolls. ''The real issue though is that there can''t be a common ground between the two states. Something can be either alive or dead.'' There wasn''t a balance available. The experts of the past would have just found it otherwise. ''I need to keep the will of the creature alive while also finding a way to tame it.'' Noah''s ideas surged under the enhanced mental state created by the Divine Deduction technique. ''I need to use the Body-inscription spell, but not in its current form, and something to contain the will in the eventuality it goes out of control. I need Thirty-seven again.'' The Body-inscription spell was perfect for isolating the will of a magical beast, but Noah wouldn''t have a way to take it out from his mental sphere at that point. Yet, even if the spell was rather new and atypical, the automaton might have a way to turn it into something that suited his current task. Chapter 800: 800. Brain Thirty-seven returned to the mansion, bringing the studies that Noah had requested for June. Noah intercepted him and explained his issue with the Body-inscription spell. The automaton showed his interest in the spell. After all, it was only a few centuries old. It was an entirely new school in the cultivation world. Puppets weren''t popular among cultivators due to the expensive materials needed to build them and the limits in their power. They generally required complex arrays of formations and runes to work, and they would have restrictions in their actions even in that case. Puppets that were able to maintain some form of free will though stood on the other end of the power scale. Noah''s Blood Companions were mighty and could act according to their instincts, lifting a lot of unnecessary weight from his mind. The Copying technique worked similarly but used the restrained creatures as the foundation for its power. Thirty-seven had to leave for a while to analyze the issue, but he left the book describing the spell in Noah''s hands. Noah could resume his regular training schedule for a while since he couldn''t make any significant progress until he found a way to isolate the wills of the creatures. Yet, he still pondered about the various problems that he needed to solve once he managed to cross that initial hurdle. ''The weapons don''t have to be restricted to the perfect hybrids.'' Noah thought as the insides of his mind shone with the light radiated by the Divine Deduction technique. ''Even normal magical beasts could work, but their power would be inferior.'' Noah was beginning to realize that his idea would give birth to a completely different category of weapons if he succeeded. There would even be the need to create a separate terminology that expressed the various level of power and quality. However, he soon realized that it was impossible to contain the will of a magical beast or hybrid inside a random item. He needed something suitable for the peculiar substance of that material, and only a sea of consciousness could work for it. ''How am I even going to create a sea of consciousness?'' Noah thought when the issue became more evident. The mental spheres were an ethereal representation of a cultivator''s mind. They were different from the dantians, which were rather simple in comparison. There was something though that could work. Noah took one of the normal magical beasts'' corpses inside his space-ring and opened its head to analyze its brain. The creature had been dead for a while, and even his fantastic storage item couldn''t salvage the dispersion of its will. Nevertheless, Noah was just testing something at that moment. The Divine Deduction technique worked at full speed as he studied the brain of the wolf-type beast. Noah was looking for something specific, a particular part of those tissues that was able to turn into a crystal under the right circumstances. Noah applied a partial version of the Will-consuming runes, imbuing the brain with ethereal brown dust that carried his ambition and forcing it to linger inside the material with his consciousness. The brain fell apart. That body part belonged to a creature in the fourth rank, and Noah''s ambition was far too intense for it. Yet, Noah pressed on, uncaring of the damage that those tissues were suffering and focusing only on forcing the two materials to fuse. The brown dust eventually became one with the pulp of brain matter, but a little part of those tissues had gained a shade that was slightly clearer compared to the rest of the brain. Noah smiled and left the mansion to hunt a few rank 4 creatures in the wild areas that had appeared in the central territories. With his new status as a rank 5 cultivator and the separate dimension filled with teleportation matrices, the trip in the outside world didn''t even take a week. Noah returned in the mansion with three ape-type magical beasts in the fourth rank that followed him in a submissive stance. June had noticed his departure, but she was too busy studying the new schools provided by Thirty-seven. She felt forced to divert her attention though when she saw her lover followed by three tall beasts, but she could only shake her head when he saw him entering one of the reinforced rooms with the creatures. Noah growled, and the apes went in the back of the room. They could do nothing but tremble under the pressure generated by his aura. Then, Noah reviewed the process in his mind before grabbing one of the beasts and breaking its neck with a swift gesture. The other apes could only watch in silence as Noah seized the brain of their dead companion and gathered its blood in a large bucket. Something peculiar happened in his mind at that point. One of the spherical runes meant to inscribe the walls of his sphere opened and released the primary energy contained inside it. The energy began to disperse, but Noah promptly encircled it with mental waves that had passed through his walls to gain Heaven and Earth''s aura. After creating his darkness, Noah''s control of the primary energy had reached unprecedented heights, and he was even able to have a faint idea of the laws that he was imitating. Noah focused on the memories of the Cursed Dragon species. The pride of being at the top of the food chain spread through the brown sea only to gather in a small sphere that rose to land in the hands of his ethereal figure. ''This is too much,'' Noah thought as he took out a small drop of his mental energy from the sphere and let the rest falling back in the sea. Noah placed that drop inside the primary energy and opened the brain to seize only a small part of its tissues before immersing them in the bucket full of blood. Then, he forged everything together. The bucket exploded after a few seconds, making the whole mansion tremble and leaving Noah covered in blood. June didn''t even need to check on him to know what he was doing, but she still focused on the reinforced room for an instant to make sure that he was fine. ''Still too much.'' Noah sighed as he repeated the procedure. The same thing happened with the second ape, but the explosion was weaker compared to the first one. The forging had still failed though, which led Noah to use the last beast in the room. It was hard to create an item in the fourth rank now that his expertise allowed him to forge more potent weapons. The Elemental Forging method was quite unsuitable for cultivators that were holding back. Yet, Noah managed to obtain some results after he balanced the amount of energy to use. A layer of dense blood lingered at the bottom of the bucket after Noah completed the fusion, and a small, dark-red gem floated on it. The crystal was cracked and didn''t seem that special, but Noah knew that it was a Bloodline Inheritance. Chapter 801: 801. Mess The dark-red crystal wasn''t a real Bloodline Inheritance, not in terms of the benefits that could bring to the cultivators'' minds at least. Noah had only used his knowledge in the matter and the intensity of his will to recreate suitable conditions and force the crystallization. Cracks filled the crystal, and Noah sensed his mental energy escaping through those small fissures to disperse in the air. The Elemental Forging method had made it become part of the item, so they didn''t belong to Noah anymore. ''This won''t do.'' Noah thought as he analyzed the crystal. It wasn''t its cracked state that left him unsatisfied. He could fix that with enough practice in the forging process. Yet, the fact that his mental energy had occupied the insides of the crystal was a troublesome issue. He wasn''t trying to create actual Bloodline Inheritances, but a physical imitation of a sea of consciousness that could contain the wills of the magical beasts. That fake center of power was the key to the creation of living weapons. Noah knew that creating something as unique as his Demonic Sword was merely impossible. He had poured too much of himself in that weapon to produce something with similar qualities. However, forging organic inscribed items was possible, just extremely difficult. Noah didn''t need just to create them though. One of the most important requirements was to build living weapons that were also stable and wouldn''t revolt against the cultivators wielding them. ''I need to decide on a species if I want to optimize the process and reach the point where I can mass produce empty Bloodline Inheritances.'' Noah thought before summoning his sword to cultivate. Noah barely had any free time in that period. The training of his centers of power always had the priority, but testing his abilities and researching the organic living weapons forced him to execute multiple tasks at once. Luckily for him, it wasn''t hard to train all his centers of power at the same time. For his cultivation technique to work, he just had to press the Demonic Sword on the rune on his waist and make sure that its position remained completely still even with the enhanced suction force attempting to move it. One hand was enough to complete that task after he became used to the procedure. He could use his other hand to hold the sixth Kesier rune, which worked together with the spherical runes in his mind to enlarge its walls. After all, he just needed to keep a direct line of sight for the rune to unleash its effects. As for his body, he could take bites of any creature''s corpse even when his hands were busy. Rank 5 cultivators would generally avoid that approach when it came to their centers of power. Small mistakes in their training could hurt them, and the periods between every breakthrough were simply too long at that level. Most of them didn''t have a reason to risk injuring their centers of power just to have access to more free time. It was better to seclude themselves for years and temporarily neglect their cultivation during their period in the outside world. Truth to be told, Noah didn''t have any hurry either, except for the sixth Kesier rune that he could keep only for a limited amount of time. However, the matter with the living weapons interested him too much to delay it by a few years. The possibility of creating living beings able to give cultivators part of the power of the magical beasts without passing down their drawbacks was simply too incredible to ignore. After all, Noah had seen how helpful his flames were in an actual battle, and he couldn''t even begin to imagine how strong the Hive would become if he managed to give a similar weapon to each of its heroic assets. Also, he was diving deeper into the laws connected to his creation with those experiments. Success in that field would eventually benefit his dantian in the long run. As for June, she was busy studying the various formations provided by Thirty-seven, which put her in a situation similar to Noah. Yet, they decided to take a break every two months in which they would spend an entire day together. Noah felt his level increasing as the months passed, but he could sense how slow it was compared to when he was still a rank 4 cultivator. The fifth rank was too vast to calculate the time required for each breakthrough, and there seemed to be hidden obstacles along the path. The journey between the fifth and the sixth rank would ideally bring cultivators from expressing their individualities to wielding laws, which was a huge qualitative leap. It was no wonder that even incredible experts spent more than a thousand years to succeed in reaching the apex of the heroic ranks. Thirty-seven revisited the mansion at some point. He had ideated a formation able to reproduce some of the effects of the Body-inscription spell. Still, he wanted to discuss the matter with Noah before involving an inscription master in the case. When he saw the mansion though, he discovered that dozens of magical beasts'' corpses of various species surrounded the area of the separate dimension around it. The corpses weren''t in a good state. All of them were missing their heads and blood, and there were even multiple bite marks on them. Also, one of the corpses had a black sword stabbed on its back, which drained it right under the stupefied gaze of the automaton. "Hurry, I was waiting for you." Noah''s voice resounded from inside the mansion, and Thirty-seven simply floated above the corpses to reach him. The automation soon discovered that the trail of corpses continued inside the mansion. Still, there were a few areas that had been purposely kept away from those remains. Yet, those rooms had multiple burns on their walls, with some of the reinforced ones even featuring black cracks with the shape of a spider web. Whatever the couple was doing inside that luxurious building, it didn''t mind its integrity. Thirty-seven found Noah in a large room filled with blood, buckets, and maimed corpses. Noah was sitting cross-legged directly on the blood, uncaring that his robe was getting dirty. His focus was on the bucket in front of him, which trembled as his hands forced some kind of procedure. The automaton immediately understood that Noah was performing an inscription, and he didn''t dare to interrupt him. There was nothing more sacred than an inscription master at work in Thirty-seven''s mind. The process only lasted a few minutes, and Noah promptly took out a dark-red crystal from the bucket. Blood fell from the smooth surface of the crystal, and Thirty-seven noticed that there were similar items sparse in the room, which seemed to be of inferior quality. Noah turned to speak with the automaton after he inspected the crystal and stored it. "You can summon Flying Demon already. We need to perform practical tests before advancing in this field." Chapter 802: 802. Materials Noah had managed to complete the prototypes of the fake Bloodline Inheritances in those months, but there was an issue that prevented him from improving his expertise further. Since the prototypes came from beasts of different species, there would be slight variations in their creation. So, Noah had to decide which kinds gave birth to the best products and specialize in that process. Yet, only actual tests could solve his doubts. There was a limit to how much the Divine Deduction technique could calculate. Thirty-seven understood that the testing phase had already reached that point and contacted Flying Demon before exiting the mansion and preparing a few marks on the ground of the dimension. The insides the couple''s quarters, and the area around it were simply too dirty to build formations. Noah came out too and made a quick trip to the wilderness to submit a few heroic beasts in the lower tier. He made sure that they belonged to different species to test all the variabilities of his fake Bloodline Inheritance. When he returned inside the separate dimension, Flying Demon was already drawing on top of the marks left by the automaton. Noah''s decision to contact the Demon wasn''t casual. The testing phase still saw only rank 4 materials, which meant that any inscription master in the heroic ranks could complete the task. Yet, those experiments involved creations that could increase the power of the Hive as a whole, other than giving it the monopoly over an incredible resource. Noah would work only with experts that he trusted. The formation ideated by Thirty-seven was quite peculiar. Flying Demon had to modify certain lines according to the magical beast involved in the procedure and use its blood as a core material for specific inscriptions. Also, it used the heart of the creature too, making it rather expensive for a formation on that level. The testing phase though had just started. Thirty-seven and Noah had yet to perfect their methods, and there were aspects of the procedure that they could tune only after acquiring empirical data. "Let''s start with the ape-type," Noah said and growled to bring the tall ape in his group of beasts forward. The fact that he could control magical beasts wasn''t surprising after his hybrid status became renowned. The Demon just gazed at the ape for a few seconds before focusing again on the formation to tune it to the creature''s shape. Noah handed a fake Bloodline Inheritance to Flying Demon and sat at the borders of the formation, leaving the rest of the experiments in the duo''s hands. His knowledge of the inscription method was too shallow to help, but his time would come toward the end. Flying Demon materialized what seemed to be a petal made of ice and killed the ape that had just entered the formation. Its blood flowed inside specific lines that lit up and activated other mechanisms of the inscriptions. Those lines spread on the corpse too and searched for its heart. The core of the creature began to burn from inside its body. Thirty-seven observed it for a while before giving a signal to the Demon. Flying Demon quickly removed the corpse of the beast at that point, and the formation began to shine with a pale-red color. The light became denser, and the image of an ape soon took form in the air above the inscriptions. Thirty-seven turned toward Noah when the figure emitted its first roar. It was his time to submit the will of the beast. Noah had fought mental battles before his dantian had formed. Defeating the will of a creature in the fourth rank wasn''t an issue even if the fight was outside of his sea of consciousness. His mental waves surrounded the ethereal ape and assaulted it from every direction, piercing its figure in multiple spots. The beast crumbled after only one offensive, and Flying Demon promptly threw the dark-red crystal at the center of the formation. The shining dust released by the defeated creature converged in the fake Bloodline Inheritance and filled its insides. The crystal began to shine with a strange light that flashed from time to time. It seemed that the will of the beast didn''t like to stay inside that container, but it couldn''t escape since it was just dense mental energy. Its behavior was only something that the modified version of the Body-inscription spell had condensed. Noah picked the crystal and began to study it. There were no abnormalities in its functioning. It appeared that he had succeeded in copying yet another center of power. However, Noah wasn''t satisfied with only one test. He had managed to create a dozen fake Bloodline Inheritance using three of the most populous kinds of beasts in the Hive''s domain, namely ape-types, worm-types, and tiger-types creatures. Yet, he had to decide which of them gave birth to the best containers before specializing in the procedure and attempting to create a rank 5 version of that item. Thirty-seven and Flying Demon agreed with his plan and proceeded to perform more tests with the other beasts that Noah had gathered. The three of them completed a total of eleven formations, ending up with eight contained magical beasts'' wills. The fake Bloodline Inheritances created with the blood and brain of the tiger-type creatures weren''t able to accommodate even the will of a similar being. They broke apart after storing it for a few minutes. As for the other two types, they seemed to work almost perfectly. The automaton and Flying Demon waited for Noah to give his evaluation. They weren''t suited to judge creations that they barely understood, and Noah was the only one able to tell the subtle differences between those similar results. There was a reason why Noah had limited his gathering of blood and brains to the populous species. He needed an almost endless source of materials that shared similar properties so that he wouldn''t need to adapt the forging every time. Nevertheless, he hesitated when it came to deciding which material was better between the two kinds. It wasn''t that Noah was confused about their performance. He knew which one of the materials had behaved better in the form of a center of power. However, he couldn''t help but think that his past experiences could influence his judgment. ''It doesn''t matter if I''m just more used to it.'' Noah thought as he took his decision. ''A better product is still a better product. Also, I would just fix any problem that arises.'' Noah''s decision fell on the crystals made from the blood and brain of the worm-type magical beasts. Their creation was simply smoother, and they even worked better as a whole. The Bloodline Inheritance that he had absorbed in the past had given him some sort of innate understanding of those similar products, which was why he appeared to handle the worm-type creatures better. After he took his decision, the Demon and Thirty-seven left to handle matters connected to those experiments. The first phases had been a success, but they needed to press forward now. Chapter 803: 803. Experiments The experiments continued. Thirty-seven and Flying Demon worked on improving the formation, while Noah kept on perfecting the fake Bloodline Inheritances and studying the next steps. A series of buildings soon appeared next to the mansion. They were reinforced quarters that used part of the knowledge behind the Copying technique to restrain the creatures needed for the experiments. Those creatures weren''t only ordinary magical beasts. The Hive had delivered even hybrids of various kinds as a way to invest in the promising project unfolding in the separate dimension. Noah didn''t need to hunt worm-type beasts anymore once the Hive became involved. The heroic assets on the surface would take care of gathering the blood and the brains of those creatures and deliver them to the mansion so that he could wholeheartedly focus on the experiments. As time passed, the need for a terminology became evident since the fake Bloodline Inheritances obtained different features according to the quality of the will that they contained. Noah named them Beast Cores, and their power followed the same classification as the bodies of the magical beasts. However, that was only the basic feature of those items. Their real power was in the type of will that they contained. Depending on the amount of awareness that the will had, Noah classified the Beast Cores into three categories: wild, clouded, and conscious. The wills of ordinary magical beasts would fall into the first category. Yet, those of the hybrids could end up in all three of them. That depended on the level of intelligence that they kept after being contained inside the fake Bloodline Inheritances. Noah predicted that wild Beast Cores would be easier to control once turned into a living weapon, but they would also have limits since their lack of intelligence would prevent them from adapting to their new bodies. On the other hand, conscious Beast Cores would learn how to use the living weapons to their full potential, and they could even surpass the limits of their level once paired with the "Breath" of a cultivator. As for the clouded Beast Cores, the wills inside them were still confused, but they had a chance of becoming conscious since they came from hybrids. The production of Beast Cores became more streamlined eventually. Noah would only take care of forging fake Bloodline Inheritances, while Flying Demon and Thirty-seven handled the imitation of the Body-inscription spell. Flying Demon was more than capable of submitting creatures in the fourth rank. They even approached the creation of Beast Cores in the fifth rank even if only in a limited number since it was hard to find and hunt worm-type creatures at that level. Also, they needed the wills of a rank 5 beast too, which made the creation of their stronger version quite troublesome. That was expected though. No one would be so deluded to think that they could mass-produce living weapons in the fifth rank. Those limits depended on Noah''s skill too. At his current level of expertise, the Beast Cores with power in the lower tier of the fifth rank were the best that he could achieve. It took almost three years before Noah, and the others were almost ready to start the actual construction of the living weapons with all the Beast Cores created in that period. The Elbas family had summoned June some time before Noah declared the experiments with the Beast Cores over. The Royals requested her presence in a political event aimed to solidify the new noble families. It seemed something that often occurred among the powers that had a fragmented political system, and the Elbas family didn''t want to soften its control over the other nobles now that it was busy with its research. Even with oaths binding them, the nobles still needed to see the wills of their leaders, especially in that particular historical period. Noah and June had to separate, but they both knew that it wouldn''t be for long. Even if they still kept their relationship a secret from the other forces, June''s home was the mansion inside the separate dimension now. She would return there once she dealt with that political event. Of course, she left behind the studies provided by Thirty-seven. She had memorized them already, and she would only risk to expose herself if she reviewed them in public. There was no point in carrying them along. The next phase of the experimentation began, and it quickly led to countless failures. It was time to turn the Beast Cores into actual weapons, but that meant modifying specific body parts of the magical beasts so that they could become different living beings. Noah had already done far more than that. He had created life from inanimate objects even if he had to pour his individuality inside it and was under the peculiar mental state reached during the transformation. Yet, he was trying a different approach now, one that would eventually have set rules and requirements. He was creating a new field in the inscription methods, a school that had never managed to succeed. Noah tore the lungs of fire-breathing wolves, the venom glands of threatening snakes, the feathers of flying beasts able to create wind slashes, and much more. He was basically seizing the organs that allowed such creatures to attack. Then, he would fuse them with other materials to improve their effectiveness and durability, adding useful features when the body parts allowed substantial modifications. The other experts of the Hive couldn''t help him in that process. The Elemental Forging method was the best when it came to fusing different materials, and he was the only expert in that field. Thirty-seven though stuck with him and used his immense knowledge to suggest materials that were a better match for specific body parts. Noah had initially planned to create something similar to a Liquid Dantian and fuse it with the body parts to create a complete living being, but he quickly gave up on that idea. The experiments would only take longer in that case, and giving a dantian to a living weapon was akin to giving it a chance to rebel. Without that center of power, the might of the weapon would be fixed, but it would also be easier to control. Once Noah succeeded in the modifications, he had to fuse Beast Cores with his creations, matching their level of power and aptitudes to avoid any form of rejection. Noah and Thirty-seven saw countless Beast Cores falling apart as the fusions failed, or the products were unable to remain alive. They both expected that though, so they simply kept going until Noah managed to forge something stable. An eagle''s scream resounded in an open area of the separate dimension. The automaton and Noah stared at a fan made of shining gray feathers held together by a series of white strings that helped to spread energy through the surface of the weapon. Noah quickly grabbed the fan and used the primary energy inside his spherical runes to fuel the weapon that suddenly released a series of wind slashes. Chapter 804: 804. Fan Both Noah and Thirty-seven analyzed the power of the wind slashes with great interest. The attack flew for a while through the quiet environment of the separate dimension until it crashed with one of its invisible barriers, slightly enlarging it in the process. Satisfaction soon appeared in their expression when they understood the might of the slashes. Noah had used a rank 4 wild Beast Core in the lower tier and the feathers of a Sharp Eagle at the same level to build that weapon, and the prowess that it was capable of reflected the might of its materials. Noah did a quick evaluation in his mind. It hadn''t taken a lot of primary energy to produce that attack. It seemed that they had optimized the distribution of power quite well for their first complete living weapon. Thirty-seven took a transparent container full of a shining liquid from one of the structures around them, and Noah didn''t hesitate to drop the weapon inside it. The living weapon was a newborn, which meant that it didn''t know how to manage its body, especially since it was human-made. The liquid inside the container was a type of fluid that prevented the energy inside the fan from dispersing and gave it time to learn how to preserve it. Since they didn''t have a dantian, the living weapons didn''t have a way to refill the primary energy that made their bodies. They would have to go through maintenance often to prevent their tissues from decomposing, even after they learnt how to preserve the power inside them. "The first product is indeed promising," Thirty-seven said as he looked at the fan, "The initial investment has been massive, but it took you only eight years to create a stable weapon." Hearing the automaton speaking, Noah realized how much time had passed since he immersed himself in that engaging schedule. The eight years mentioned by the automaton considered only the experiments after the creation of the Beast Cores, which meant that he had spent a total of eleven years to create his first stable product. When he considered the two years spent in peace with June, he realized that he was already more than one hundred and ten years old. "This is just the beginning," Noah said as he moved to return to the mansion, "Bring a cultivator with a wind aptitude to test it properly once it stabilizes." He didn''t even need to turn to know that the automaton was nodding at his orders. The truth was that Thirty-seven had accompanied Noah for the entire duration of the experiments. Due to his peculiar status, he was always able to know when Noah resumed his tests and managed to appear right before he started forging. The automaton was wholly engrossed in the school that they were creating. It was as if nothing else mattered in that walking encyclopedia. He had even tried to press Noah to stop spending so much time cultivating, but he soon understood that it was impossible to make him modify his schedule. Yet, he accepted it since Noah was improving the procedure at an incredible speed, which made him respect the Demon Prince''s determination. On the other hand, Noah appreciated his help. The vast knowledge of the automaton encompassed every inscription''s field and allowed him to find suitable materials for each body part that they wanted to turn into a living weapon. Also, he was quite handy when he didn''t complain, so Noah just kept him around. When he returned to the mansion, he found June waiting for him with a curious expression. She had already come and gone a couple of times to complete missions for the Royals, but she had never been away for more than six months on both occasions. "Did you do it?" June asked, and Noah''s nod made her continue to speak. "You are incredible. The other nations are sacrificing resources and cultivators just to copy something that you''ve done when you were still a human while you are already moving forward." June was honestly surprised that it had taken him so little to obtain his first success. After all, she was busy finding a way to create a rank 5 cultivation technique for when her breakthrough arrived, but Noah had completed his task before hers. "My individuality suits these experiments too much," Noah answered, "It''s as if I have an innate understanding when it comes to building lifeforms of that kind." He was speaking the truth. There were many times during the tests where he would just follow his instincts, which turned out to be on point quite often. Noah noticed those changes even when he cultivated. It seemed that his training speed increased every time he advanced in his experiments. Expressing his individuality was benefitting him, but his improvements were still incredibly slow compared to when he was just a rank 4 cultivator. Even the requirements of his body had reached an insane level now that it was in the middle tier. "How is research going?" Noah asked as he sat behind her. His hand went for her low-waist, and his consciousness focused that same spot to check the status of her dantian. June had been in the fourth rank for almost seventy years by then. Her body had reached the fifth rank when she was in the wilderness of the other world, but her dantian was still at some distance from the peak of the solid stage. As for her mind, it was only a few years behind her dantian, which was something quite rare for a heroic cultivator as young as her. "What do you think?" June asked without showing the slightest embarrassment. They were so used to that kind of physical contact that it felt just natural to be in each other''s arms. "You should reach the peak in a bit more than a decade." Noah evaluated. Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance made her spare a lot of time. He allowed her to focus only on the formations since they were the true expression of her individuality in her cultivation technique. The foundation was the Perfect Circuit, a method that could theoretically work for every cultivator with a lightning aptitude. In a certain aspect, Eccentric Thunder''s technique was revolutionary since he had created something that every cultivator could adapt to their individuality once reached decent expertise. June dropped the scrolls in her hands and lay on Noah''s chest. They had to skip their last bimestrial break because Noah was too busy with the experiments, but now it was the perfect moment to make up for that since he was waiting for the weapon to stabilize. "The world is at peace now," June said as her hand went under his robe to play with a familiar scale on the side of his torso, "But the Elbas family seems on edge. I think something big is about to happen." June had already talked about that with Noah, but there wasn''t much that they could do. They could just improve and prepare for the next crisis. Their only consolation was that they would wait for it together. Chapter 805: 805. Tes The world had been at peace for too long, and even the battle against the natives wasn''t enough to appease the divergences that divided the four organizations. The Papral nation and the Elbas family had grudges against the Shandal Empire, and all three of those forces hated the Hive for the independence of the Coral Archipelago. Those resentments didn''t just disappear. They were still there, waiting for a chance to come out in the open. The fall of the new continent, the crisis of the winged beasts, and the dimensional portal had simply kept the four forces busy, but it didn''t solve their natural enmity. The race for the power of the hybrids was just another distraction, but everyone knew that something would eventually happen, and chaos would follow it. Yet, there wasn''t much that Noah could do about that. Even as a heroic cultivator in the fifth rank, he couldn''t face the wills of such big organizations alone. He could only prepare and try to improve the foundation of the Hive before an inevitable storm hit it. The fan eventually stabilized, and Thirty-seven summoned a heroic cultivator with a suitable aptitude and level to test it. The Beast Core inside it though had become used to its new body and wouldn''t let anyone use it. That was just the innate instinct contained in the will inside the Core. Cultivators would have to tame it like they would tame a wild creature, which was usually a tough task if there wasn''t a significant difference in power. However, Noah was there, and the will inside the Beast Core hadn''t lost its natural fear toward a being that was above it in the food chain. As expected, the strength of the fan exceeded the might of the original Sharp Eagle since "Breath" fueled it now. It became able to shoot wind slashes that didn''t differ much from spells in terms of power. However, it didn''t need mental energy, and even its requirements in terms of "Breath" were far lower than the average consumption of the spells. Noah and the automaton had basically created a weapon that allowed every cultivator to shoot an almost countless number of spells without depleting too much energy. It soon became evident that the experiment had been a success. "We can improve the anatomy and add multiple features to make it more consistent in battle," Thirty-seven judged, ignoring the amazed expression of the rank 4 cultivator wielding the fan. "The only issue is taming them, but these weapons weren''t meant for ordinary assets in the first place." "Agreed," Noah said without moving his eyes from the fan. "We can even create weapons in line with the cultivators'' individualities. Every other kind of inscribed weapon will become outdated once the living ones make their appearance." The automaton nodded. Noah and Thirty-seven had limited themselves to create something that worked, but they could start pursuing specific features now that they had confirmed their success. The heroic cultivator wanted to keep the fan, but Noah and Thirty-seven needed it as a sample for future projects. Also, the Elder didn''t submit the weapon, which was only working because it feared Noah. Even without a dantian, the weapon could still use the primary energy inside its body to revolt and attack its owner. After all, it was alive and with the mind of a wild beast. Noah and Thirty-seven immersed themselves in a long period of research and tests. Their school shared similarities to the formation field when it came to the knowledge concerning the materials to use. There were countless times when a particular body part would just reject the materials added to its shape, and there were even limits connected to the body part itself. Even after modifying its anatomy, those weapons could only express so much power. A catalog began to take form, and Thirty-seven diligently noted every interaction between certain species and specific materials. The experimentation had reached a point where Noah could aim to perfect his creation and try to bring out their full potential. The financial losses of the Hive were immense in that period. Most heroic assets were busy hunting down worm-type creatures or purchasing them from the other world, and a large number of them were wasted in the experiments. Elder Austin even had to check Noah''s work at some point. The automaton had started to miss his classes, and Noah resembled a hunger-driven monster able to consume dozens of magical beasts in the heroic ranks every week! The Elder had to see with his own eyes where all those resources went. Noah simply handed him a rank 4 living weapon in the upper tier and told him to test it. That weapon had the form of a sack that had a cave metal tube on one end. It was only of the size of an adult''s forearm, but claws-like legs were sticking from the bottom of the sack. That gave the item a menacing aspect, but it wasn''t its most peculiar feature. That was one of Noah''s latest creations and used a conscious Beast Core to work, which meant that it could perform more complex tasks. Elder Austin followed Noah''s instructions and let the legs of the weapon pierce his arm as he equipped it. Blood flowed inside the sac at that point, which began to take life as if awakened by that intense flavor. The Elder showed a surprised expression when he felt the will of the hybrid contained in the Beast Core trying to affect his mind, but he quickly suppressed and tamed it with his superior consciousness. Then, he poured a little part of his "Breath" to see its effects. The sack enlarged as the "Breath" activated its functions, and red flames came out of the metallic tube. The fire didn''t fly in a straight line though. They morphed and took the form of a tall wolf that jumped directly toward the Elder. Elder Austin only had to focus his mental energy to suppress the rebellion of the weapon, but he managed to evaluate the power of the flames nonetheless. Using his "Breath" made the fire reach the peak of the fourth rank, which was something that cultivators could express only through spells, except for a few exceptional cases like Noah. Giving such a weapon to worthy assets was akin to giving them a spell that didn''t require mental energy to work. Also, the cultivators wouldn''t need to train to use that power, and the only drawback seemed to be its unwillingness to follow orders. "Is the blood necessary?" Elder Austin asked as he removed the sac from his forearm. "Yes," Noah answered, "Blood Snakes use their blood or that of their victims to fuel their flames. Even I can''t modify the natural features of the body parts used in the creations of these weapons. I tried already." Elder Austin simply nodded at his answer and handed the sac back to the automaton that promptly stored it in one of his containers. "How long until you make something in the fifth rank?" Elder Austin asked at that point without bothering to suppress his interested smile. Chapter 806: 806. Fire The Hive provided Noah and the automaton with even more resources once Elder Austin confirmed that their research was promising. Generally speaking, Noah didn''t have to create too many living weapons since the Hive didn''t have a lot of heroic assets compared to the other nations. A hundred or so weapons of various power would be enough to equip even the cultivators that managed to reach the heroic ranks in the imminent future. Yet, creating those weapons benefitted Noah''s individuality, which made his cultivation speed increase consistently. Also, he needed his expertise to rise before he could approach the forging of weapons in the fifth rank. There was even the issue of making them specifically for the individualities of each cultivator, and Noah couldn''t complete that task without a large amount of experience. The years kept on passing as Noah and the automaton continued to work. Their creations eventually became more complex and featured multiple effects. The only problem that they couldn''t fix concerned the unwillingness of the Beast Cores, but that was something that their wielders had to solve on their own. The connection with the living weapon had to be nurtured personally, and it needed specific behaviors according to the wills contained in the Cores. Wild wills mostly required to fear the user, but the conscious and clouded ones could be quite canny and plot against their wielders. The cultivators had to break their determination before they could use them in battle safely. The news that Noah was creating a new type of armament spread, and he started to work on commission. The heroic assets of the Hive would report a series of requirements and explain their individualities to Thirty-seven, who would then formulate a blueprint with the catalog built in the past years. Noah would review everything after the automaton''s analysis and decide which weapon to prioritize according to the cultivators'' achievements. Of course, he was still forging living weapons in the fourth rank, and those cultivators didn''t need to pay for his work. Those assets didn''t have anything interesting for someone in the fifth rank. There were some of his old acquaintances among the cultivators that requested a personalized living weapon. Bruce, Roy, Sarah, and other members of the original Chasing Demon sect that had reached the heroic ranks in those years gave a detailed explanation to Thirty-seven, and Noah did his best to stick to those requirements. The fact that weaker existences could express their preferences didn''t bother him too much since he saw that as a form of training. Also, he simply refused to fulfill some of their requests when he found them stupid or could hurt the final product. Living weapons soon began to spread among the heroic assets of the Hive, and most of its cultivators became busy trying to submit them. Some even had to request for weaker Beast Cores since the clouded and conscious ones were too hard to handle. Noah didn''t mind that either. After all, he would just store the weapons that they sent back and create new ones. The Demonic Sword grew along his dantian too, so he just kept on following his packed schedule and seize valuable time with June whenever he had the chance. As for June, she kept on researching a way to cultivate in the fifth rank since her breakthrough was drawing near. After studying the schools provided by Thirty-seven for years, she had found a solution to her issue, but she required Noah''s help to implement it. Noah stood inside one of the largest rooms of the mansion and stared at a complex array of shining lines drawn on the floor. June was on the other side of the formation and was wearing an expression that he hadn''t seen since their first months as a couple. She was blushing. "What''s wrong?" Noah asked without even trying to hide his interest in his lovers'' behavior. The two of them had spent so much time together that they had lost any kind of embarrassment toward each other, and June was usually quite straightforward with her desires and requests. Yet, there she was, blushing as she tried to turn her thoughts into words. "I''ve found a type of formation that could work in creating the higher energy that I need to cultivate in the fifth rank," June said, "But I need your help in initiating it. Well, any heroic cultivator would be able to do it, but it has to be you." Noah understood the meaning behind her words only after she explained the method that she had ideated. When Thirty-seven gave June a series of teachings, he included even old and archaic schools that the world had mostly put aside due to the appearance of more reliable inscription methods. One of them was a type of dual-cultivation that aimed to alter the "Breath" of one of the participants. According to King Elbas'' research, June needed to create friction to obtain higher energy with her aptitude, and the only method that she found to apply that theory involved that formation. There was a chance that Thirty-seven could have helped her more if she had just asked, but she needed to set the formations by herself to express her individuality. So, she could only work with what she had discovered and apply modifications where the method required them. The reason why June was embarrassed was that she wouldn''t need to do much during that process. The cultivator giving away his energy would do most of the hard work, while the receiver only had to enjoy the procedure. To put it simply, June would create formations on her body that Noah had to activate according to a slow procedure. Also, that process had to last one entire week and required quite a lot of study. "Are you wondering if I can hold back for a week with your naked body in my hands?" Noah smirked as he asked that question. He was joking, but his instincts were really a problem for that method. "Would you prefer me to ask someone else?" June answered with her usual sharp words, but she didn''t manage to make Noah feel jealous since it was evident how she despised that thought. "I hate to interrupt your work, but I really need this," June said, "I wish there were another way." Noah simply shook his head at her words and neared her to lift her head and make their eyes meet. "I don''t," He said, but June''s expression kept on revealing the struggle happening in her mind. "Our relationship wasn''t supposed to hinder our path toward the higher ranks," June complained, "But now I''m asking you to take a break for my sake! What if I''m unconsciously trying to find a way to slow-" June didn''t have time to finish her phrase since Noah''s kiss forced her to stop speaking. He understood her worries, but he also guessed that June was mostly worried about endangering the nature of their relationship. So, he felt the need to reassure her with a few words. "June, you are the fire behind my creation. Making you stronger can only benefit me." Chapter 807: 807. Holding back Loud moans resounded in the mansion inside the separate dimension. Noah had made sure to send away Thirty-seven and to announce that he would take a month''s break from the creation of living weapons to memorize his role in the dual-cultivation modified by June. Of course, he stopped training only when he approached the seven days treatment since June required his presence for the entirety of that period. On the other hand, June had made sure to warn her family and the Royals. It would have been troublesome if they summoned her during the procedure. Noah touched specific spots of his lover''s naked body and poured small bits of his "Breath" inside the cores of the formation that she had drawn on her skin. The shining lines around them reacted every time part of his energy dispersed inside her and helped in modifying it so that she could absorb it. June couldn''t keep her eyes open nor hold back her voice during that treatment. It seemed that the creator of that inscription method had some hidden intentions since the body of the cultivators receiving energy would be sensitive during the procedure. Noah had to keep his cool and focus on injecting the right amount of "Breath" in each specific spot with precise timing while his lover almost screamed in pleasure. What was heaven for June was basically hell for him since he couldn''t vent the arousal that built inside him. Yet, Noah kept going, using his powerful mind to control his body and prevent it from fall prey to his instincts. For the first time in his life, he felt glad that his body was still in the middle tier even after feeding it for so many years. The week eventually passed, and the formation on both floor and June''s body shone together at that point. She felt part of her "Breath" changing form and taking features that didn''t match her usual energy as the light swept her. Then, a black spark appeared in her hand while she was still lying exhausted on the floor. Noah had promptly left the formation when the procedure ended and was inspecting the unique spark floating in her palm. He noticed that its aura carried properties similar to his individuality, but it was completely different at the same time too. ''What a reckless inscription method.'' Noah thought as he kept his eyes on the black spark. Modifying the nature of someone''s "Breath" could ruin their potential and endanger the integrity of their individuality. He would have never gone through that process if June wasn''t sure that it was her only way to create a cultivation technique in the fifth rank. "I''m sorry," June whispered as she lifted her tired eyelids to shoot a loving glance at him. "You have to hold back for a little more." Noah left after her words. He would have liked to help her since she was quite weak after the procedure, but he had reached his limit long ago and couldn''t hold back if he remained in her same room. When he came out, he announced that he would resume creating weapons and started to cultivate almost immediately. His cultivation speed had increased once again, but his mind was a mess. Images of June''s naked body kept on appearing in his vision, and the sound of her moans echoed in his ears. He really was at his limit. His announcement though helped in keeping him busy and slowly suppress the arousal that had accumulated in that week. The heroic assets of the Hive had filled him with requests in just a few minutes, and he waited for his training to end before starting to create living weapons again. Thirty-seven had returned too and resumed his role as assistant, wondering how Noah''s expertise had improved again in that short period. After creating a couple of living weapons at the peak of the fourth rank then, they decided that it was time to take their creations on a higher level. Noah knew Elder Austin quite well, and he had even watched the exposition of his individuality. If the Elder had followed Chasing Demon''s advice, his power would concern the explosive might of a volcano. Noah focused on that as he approached the creation of a rank 5 living weapon that used a wild Beast Core at the same level and with a fire aptitude. Every failure in creations with that level of power would be costly since many precious materials would be lost. The loss wasn''t limited to the brain and blood of the worm-type creature in the fifth rank used in the creation of the Core. It also involved the body parts of a magical beast at that same level and the precious materials used to modify and improve their anatomy. There were only so many magical beasts in that rank, and even less when Noah added his need for specific materials. Also, the fact that the cultivators in the fourth rank couldn''t hunt those powerful creatures made the gathering of body parts quite slow. However, Noah didn''t mind waiting. He was so engrossed in his schedule that he could only appreciate those calm moments when he had nothing to do. Normally, he would just spend them with June, but she was still in seclusion inside the mansion, and he didn''t want to disturb her. The idea behind Elder Austin''s weapon was rather simple. Explosiveness was a feature that even wild Beast Cores could understand and put into use, but Noah wanted to create something in line with the Elder''s individuality. After all, his current version of the living weapons couldn''t grow, which meant that he had to do something unique. Otherwise, the Elder would just stop using it after he advanced between the stages of the fifth rank. Noah decided to create a metallic glove made from the scales and lungs of a rank 5 Black Dragon once he had an idea of how hard it was to create a living weapon at that level. The creation was a success, and Elder Austin traveled toward Noah''s mansion to test his new weapon as soon as he could. The glove wouldn''t just spit flames. It had a series of containers inside its fabric that allowed it to store and condense "Breath" of the fire element. The Elder could then decide when to release that energy and create an offensive that would make most rank 5 cultivators in the gaseous stage run away. Ideally, Noah would have done the weapon with a conscious Core and added more features that only an intelligent will could handle. Yet, it was too hard to obtain suitable specimens at that level, and he didn''t want to risk the revolt of a living being in the fifth rank. A few weeks after Elder Austin took the clove and left, the aura of a rank 5 cultivator spread from inside the mansion. Noah turned only to see June wearing her usual orange robe but having dark sparks appearing on her skin from time to time. She had finally become a cultivator in the fifth rank. Chapter 808: 808. Crisis Noah wasn''t surprised that June had caught up with him. The fifth rank was simply too vast, and an entire century wouldn''t be enough to make a cultivator reach the next stage. Instead, a century was enough for talented cultivators to cross all the steps of the fourth rank. Of course, that didn''t mean that Noah and June were on the same level now. June''s mind had yet to reach the fifth rank, and her dantian had just experienced the breakthrough. There were decades of training of difference between her centers of power and Noah''s. Noah analyzed the dark sparks that appeared on her skin from time to time. He could sense that they were denser than the spark created when they dual-cultivated, and there were even orange shades in their dark brilliance. "Did you make it?" Noah asked, but June shook her head even if she maintained a happy expression. "I just implemented a small spark of the higher energy in the Perpetual formations and Perfect Circuit," June said, "It will take time to modify all my centers of power and sever them from the "Breath" completely. It is strange though. I''ve never felt so powerful and frail at the same time." Noah nodded at her words. He knew how her cultivation technique worked and how she wanted to move forward in the fifth rank. June wanted to replace her "Breath" to cross the limits of her centers of power. Yet, she didn''t have Noah''s understanding and had to rely on King Elbas'' research to create those dark sparks. That led her to produce higher energy that her Perfect Circuit had yet to learn how to handle. It would take time before she felt confident in using it. On the other hand, Noah had created his darkness because he didn''t want to lose that type of energy. He was a creator in his mind, and creators needed to have access to all kinds of materials to work. The primary energy was the result of his destruction, and his darkness was a pure expression of his individuality. The higher power that he planned to make in the future would be an expression of his creation, which would give him access to all the types of energy available in the world. He couldn''t just let go of his darkness like June planned to do with her "Breath". After all, she just needed sheer power, while Noah''s individuality made his requirements more complex in terms of energies. "Shouldn''t you be cultivating?" Noah asked with a smirk when he saw June nearing him. "I have to take care of my man first," June said without any trace of shame and took his hand to bring him in the mansion. The following period inside the separate dimension was quite messy. Heroic cultivators in the fourth rank would often contact Thirty-seven or directly use the teleportation matrix to request a meeting with the Demon Prince. However, Noah''s focus was on the living weapons in the fifth rank now, which forced him to ignore the requests of those weaker assets. As much as Noah wanted to equip all the rank 5 Elders of the Hive though, his cultivation level prevented him from creating something with a power that surpassed the lower tier of the fifth rank. The living weapons were a nigh-endless source of powerful attacks, but they were useless if the cultivator wielding them had access to a stronger offensive. Even the lower consumption of "Breath" wasn''t enough to make up for the lack of power. Beings like Elder Julia and Dreaming Demon couldn''t request their living weapons because they were too strong for Noah, and the same went for other Elders. The only entities that could commission weapons were Elder Justin and Elder Ingrid since they were still in the gaseous stage. That was Noah''s current limit, but the other Elders didn''t mind it. Actually, they were eager to see him grow after Elder Austin demonstrated the power of his weapon. Everyone was sure that Noah would improve in no time and that he would soon become able to arm all the heroic assets with his weapons. Only Elder Julia, Dreaming Demon, and Chasing Demon weren''t sure if he would ever catch up with them since they had cultivated for far longer than him. The production of living weapons slowed down after Noah completed the work for the rank 5 Elders in the gaseous stage. Most of the other assets in the fourth rank had already received theirs and were just asking for more of them so to improve their battle prowess further. Noah wouldn''t prioritize their requests since many had yet to learn how to control their first weapons. Also, having more living weapons could hurt their individualities since some heroic cultivators would start to rely on them too much and neglect their training. It was the same with the organizations. Cultivators would start to rely so much on powers that didn''t belong to them and neglect their real strength. The Hive didn''t need those kinds of assets. It wasn''t in a position where one of its heroic cultivators could give up on the prospect of becoming stronger. Amid that peaceful period though, the crisis that most cultivators were waiting for eventually showed itself. It all started with a series of gales gathering in a seemingly random spot above the sea and continued with black clouds appearing in the sky and shooting their threatening aura in that area. The ground began to shake, and earthquakes spread through both continents, warning even the human cultivators that something massive was about to happen. Noah was still in the separate dimension with June when the tremors spread in that place that was supposed to be safe from the events unfolding in the outside world. The ground shook, and small cracks appeared the frailest surfaces of the mansion. Noah suddenly felt his instincts screaming in fear and anger. He had already tasted that kind of danger. It had happened during one of his dreams when a dragon tried to battle against the endless barrage of black clouds. June glanced at him, and Noah nodded. There was no need for words between them. They simply kissed each other and moved toward their respective teleportation matrices to return to their nations. When Noah reappeared in the forest of White Woods and flew in the sky to inspect the events, he noticed that a vast array of black clouds had gathered in an area at some distance from both continents. The array of clouds was so vast that Noah was able to see it even if he was almost on the opposite side of the Mortal Lands, but he wasn''t able to make out who had triggered that massive Tribulation. Chasing Demon suddenly appeared next to him, and other Elders soon gathered in that same spot. Even the two Demons arrived and shot a questioning gaze toward the Patriarch of the Hive. Chasing Demon gave voice to a single line before flying toward the Tribulation. "God''s Right Hand is attempting to reach the divine ranks." Chapter 809: 809. Help The Elders stared at Chasing Demon''s departing figure, but they didn''t dare to follow him. The Patriarch was venturing into a territory where they couldn''t survive. After all, they were about to witness a Heaven Tribulation meant for beings at the peak of the sixth rank. Countless thoughts filled Noah''s mind. The knowledge retrieved in the library of the Mortal Palace hinted that the breakthrough of a rank 6 existence would mark the start of the decline of the Shandal Empire, and he could only feel excited about that. Generally speaking, the cultivators of different organizations would hope to see the enemy assets fail during their breakthroughs. Yet, the possibility of the god of the Empire disappearing from the Mortal Lands alongside God''s Right Hand would weaken the strongest nation beyond any measure. Noah could already imagine the Hive fighting together with the other two big nations to plunder the defenseless Empire, taking away resources that only the strongest force in the world could accumulate through millennia. Of course, Noah knew that the other nations might not know about the strange behavior of the god of the Empire, but it would be easy to spread that information. Thinking about that, a part of him regretted that he didn''t forge June a living weapon. The main issue there was that June''s power was still too unstable to control a Beast Core in the fifth rank, which led both of them to decide to wait until her centers of power became used to the higher energy. That would break the intrinsic limits of her Perpetual formations and allow her to develop her individuality beyond her wildest hopes. Yet, the Tribulation arrived before that could happen. Massive lightning bolts began to fall from the barrage of black clouds. Their orange light spread into the world and blinded any human cultivator that dared to look at that incredible catastrophe. Even Noah and the Elders found it challenging to keep their eyes on the blinding light in the distance, but they struggled to maintain a line of sight to analyze that once in a lifetime event. The sea seemed about to crumble when the lightning storm fell, but the area targeted by the Tribulation was quite small compared to the width of the barrage of clouds. That event differed from the Worldwide Tribulation that happened in the other world since Heaven and Earth could focus all their might toward a single existence. The northern coastlines of the two continents saw deep fissures appearing on their regions as a consequence of the shockwaves released by the lightning storm. Tsunamis followed them as the seabed kept on trembling. It must be said that God''s Right Hand had chosen the area where to face the Tribulation wisely since its destructive effects didn''t spread after the coastlines. ''Why didn''t he just face it in the new world?'' Noah wondered, but all his thoughts vanished when the mighty existence began to fight back. Clouds gathered over the surface of the sea, and a torrent of purple drops clashed against the lightning storm, pushing it back and tainting the lightning bolts that were still falling from the sky. Purple rain flew upward and clashed with the clouds of Heaven and Earth, dispersing some of them as the toxic properties of God''s Right Hand''s individuality affected the Tribulation. However, Heaven and Earth had just started to unleash their power. The clouds in the sky shrunk as they condensed to unleash an even stronger offensive. Red lighting bolts as thick as buildings fell toward the sea and targeted the mighty figure that Noah and the other Elders weren''t able to see from their position. The sea rumbled. That environment wasn''t empty, and countless powerful existences hid in its dark depths. When the red lightning bolts pierced the surface of the sea and brought light there, the fauna reacted. Grave roars resounded through the water, and Noah felt his instincts screaming as he heard them. Then, two massive figures came out of the sea and clashed directly with the clouds. Noah could recognize them even if their figures appeared blurry from his position. They were a couple of giant crocodile-like creatures that had fins instead of legs. Both of them were more than seventy meters long and radiated the threatening aura of beings in the sixth rank! ''They should be extinct!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind at that scene. The two creatures were Scaled Mosasauri, and Noah''s world hadn''t seen one of them for entire eras, which ultimately led the experts in the field to label them as extinct. Yet, they made their appearance when the Tribulation threatened their home and showed to all the humans that they were more than alive! The scene in the distance became messy at that point. Two giant forms would jump and fall back in the sea through the blinding red halo created by the lightning storm. Black clouds vanished with each of their attacks, but their cries of pain often echoed through the world. It was evident that they were no match for the Tribulation, but they still attacked it due to their innate aggression. "Did he choose that spot on purpose?" Elder Justin asked in the midst of his amazement. Yet, he didn''t turn to see if the other Elders knew the answer to his question. After all, those weren''t matters that cultivators in the fifth rank could know. The powerful Mosasauri eventually retreated, but their attack had given God''s Right Hand enough time to prepare one of his strongest spells. The sea suddenly rose and created a series of purple columns when it fused with the clouds created by the cultivator at the peak of the heroic ranks. The spell resembled the attack used by the god of the Empire to stop the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. The only difference was in their structure since the god''s spell had used ice instead of toxic water. The level of the sea lowered as the columns reached for the sky and crashed on the barrage of crackling clouds. The light released by the lightning bolts though still managed to illuminate the area even when submerged by the toxic water. The struggle of the clouds lasted for hours, and God''s Right Hand never stopped pouring his toxic water inside his spell. It seemed that he was trying to wear the Tribulation down, making it consume its power little by little. A lightning bolt would manage to pierce the thick columns from time to time, but Heaven and Earth clearly missed their targets since God''s Right Hand''s spell only continued to grow stronger. The toxic properties of his water even spread to the sky that lost its azure color and became purple in many spots around the black clouds. A battle at that level was bound to modify an environment forever. During the twentieth hour since the beginning of the Tribulation though, the columns began to fall apart only to reveal a clear sky above them. Then, an oppressing aura spread through the entirety of the world. The Shandal Empire had obtained another god. Chapter 810: 810. Plans It wasn''t just a matter of power. The aura that spread after the Tribulation ended carried a certain gravity that the weaker heroic assets weren''t able to define with their words. A purple cloud spread in the position where the lightning storm had unleashed its power. The sole existence of a being at that level was enough to modify the nature of the air that surrounded him. The laws that ruled the Mortal Lands seemed to disappear as God''s Right Hand''s influence spread. It was evident that his control over his newfound power wasn''t perfect since his aura leaked and changed the environment around him. ''Strange,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the event with wide eyes. Generally speaking, the matter of the world would crumble if a powerful entity was to absorb its energy. Yet, nothing similar happened after that breakthrough. Actually, it was something almost opposite to an absorption. God''s Right Hand''s aura turned the world in part of his individuality, without taking its structure inside his centers of power. There was a limit to how much Noah could understand due to the distance and his poor cultivation level. He was sure that there were laws involved in the breakthrough of the mighty entity, but he couldn''t grasp their meaning just yet. There was an issue though. The purple halo kept on spreading and didn''t seem inclined to stop anytime soon. A blue light suddenly pierced the purple halo and stopped its advancement before it could even begin to threaten the northern coastlines of the two continents. Time seemed to slow down as the two lights interacted only to resume flowing at a normal pace when they both disappeared. Everything had happened too quickly for anyone to analyze the event, but it was evident that the god of the Empire had intervened to prevent God''s Right Hand from losing control. Nevertheless, the purple spots on the sky and sea didn''t disappear. God''s Right Hand''s individuality had tainted that part of the world and changed it forever. The world fell silent after the god intervened. The heroic cultivators of all the other organizations didn''t dare to speak or, rather, didn''t know what to say after witnessing that massive event. A cultivator at the peak of the sixth rank had just won against the Heaven Tribulation that blocked its path toward the divine ranks, and he had even used two rank 6 creatures to help him with the task. It took only a day for all the rank 4 and 5 cultivators of those Mortal Lands to feel incredibly small when put in front of the hidden dangers of the world. "What now?" Elder Austin asked. He was the first to break the silence in the sky above the forest of White Woods, but the other Elders quickly understood the meaning behind his words. The Hive had classified and studied the knowledge retrieved from the Mortal Palace. So, all its higher-ups knew about the peculiar behavior of the god of the Empire. The only problem was that they couldn''t be sure if the divine existences had already left that lower plane. "He has yet to ascend." Dreaming Demon said at some point. "You''ll know when that happens." Flying Demon added. There was no need to explain how the two Demons knew that. They had been alive when the two powerhouses of the Papral nation left the Mortal Lands. ''So, you don''t have to leave the world right away.'' Noah thought after hearing their words. That was a matter that had always been unclear in the records that he had studied. Some said that the divine existences would ascend during their breakthrough. Still, others stated that gods had remained in the Mortal Lands for a while before leaving. He didn''t think much of it since the behavior of the divine beings was quite unpredictable, but hearing the testimony of the two Demons made him inclined to believe that cultivators were free to decide when to ascend once reached that level. None of the Elders left after their words. There was still someone that they had to hear before deciding on their next move. As if hearing their thoughts, Chasing Demon soon reappeared in their vision and floated until he stood right in front of his underlings. "This world now has two divine beings." Chasing Demon announced. His first words confirmed what the Elders were already believing, but he didn''t show any trace of fear. "I''ve already exchanged messages with the powerhouses of the other nations," Chasing Demon continued, "According to what happens next, we will decide how to act. Gods generally avoid interacting with weaker beings, but most of them leave something behind for their organizations. I know that you are eager to invade the Empire, but we should still make the necessary preparations for an assault. We might obtain good terms if we struggle enough." There was some helplessness in his words. He knew that the Hive would have no chance if the Empire decided to attack and use its new divine asset. So, he was just trying to prepare the Elders for the worst possible outcome. "You four," Chasing Demon said as he pointed at the two Demons, Elder Julia, and Noah, "Follow me in my quarters. We need to make a back-up plan." The other Elders didn''t mind that the Patriarch had chosen only the four of them. Someone had to prepare the assets in the various domains of the Hive. Also, the four cultivators that he had summoned had shown exceptional survival abilities, which were more than needed in the possibility that a god attacked. The group of five reached for the underground quarters under the forest of White Woods and sat on a table that Chasing Demon had promptly taken out from his space-ring. He didn''t serve any wine though, but no one was in the mood to drink in that tense situation. "I know for a fact that divine entities have limited power in the Mortal Lands," Chasing Demon announced as soon as everyone sat. "I don''t exactly know how it works, but refilling their dantians in the lower planes is quite troublesome for them." None of the Elders on the table heaved sighs of relief once learnt that. The sole existence of a god was enough to work as a deterrent. Chasing Demon nodded at their reactions and continued. "I''ve already contacted Thirty-seven. He is moving all our resources inside the separate dimension. If anything happens, I want all of you to hide inside it and come out after a thousand years. This is an order." Struggle appeared on the rank 5 cultivators'' expressions, but they eventually nodded. There was simply nothing that they could do to oppose a divine being. However, Chasing Demon suddenly smiled after the four of them accepted his orders and placed an old tome on the table. Everyone could recognize it since the title "Rise and Fall of the Empires of the bored god" was right in front of their eyes. "Now that we made plans for the worst outcome," Chasing Demon said, "Let''s decide how to act for the best one." Chapter 811: 811. Relocation The meeting didn''t last too long. The Elders and Chasing Demon just had to decide how to spread the information that the god of the Shandal Empire was very likely to leave his nation during or after God''s Right Hand''s ascension. That matter was rather easy. Chasing Demon and the other powerhouses had already exchanged messages during the Heaven Tribulation and expressed their inclination to cooperate against the common enemy. Of course, the Empire didn''t announce its plans, but a nation with two divine beings and a rank 6 cultivator could only be a threat in the eyes of the other forces. In the end, they simply decided to give away the original tome and let Thirty-seven copy its contents. King Elbas and Great Elder Diana wouldn''t be easy to convince to go to war over old records, but the Hive was sure that they would be at least interested in that eventuality. Giving away the original was just an expression of the Hive''s goodwill. It was just a way to make the other nations take its information seriously. The atmosphere in the world was tense after the Tribulation. Both human and heroic cultivators had witnessed how an entity had defeated the most dangerous hindrance on the path toward the divine ranks! The human cultivators didn''t care that they had been injured because they dared to look at that majestic sight, and the heroic assets felt happy even if the new god belonged to an enemy nation. They had seen the birth of a god, the pinnacle of the cultivation journey in the Mortal Lands! Most of them were still too shaken even to cultivate while others had secluded themselves right after the god of the Empire suppressed his underling''s aura. Ambition and dread filled those cultivators. Some of them saw in God''s Right Hand''s success hope toward their prospects. Others realized how far away they were from such incredible existences and found it hard to start walking again on the path toward the higher ranks. After all, the Heaven Tribulation had lasted for almost a day, and its area of destruction would have been able to cover an entire continent if God''s Right Hand didn''t choose to face his breakthrough in the middle of the sea. Also, the appearance of the two rank 6 Scaled Mosasauri reminded the cultivators of how little they knew about the world. The hidden dangers of the sea shook even Noah, but he felt thrilled rather than scared. The fauna of that environment was even more powerful than he imagined, and the harsh requirements of his body didn''t seem too helpless with two worlds at his disposal. Chasing Demon eventually dismissed the Elders and ordered them to help with the relocation of the essential resources of the Hive. Their presence there was unnecessary since he could deal with the other powerhouses on his own, while his organization needed all the manpower available. The Elders couldn''t relocate the Copying technique, which was by far the most potent weapon in the Hive''s arsenal. Yet, they could move all the archives, inventories, and other vital assets inside the separate dimension. Entire quarters disappeared and left empty spots in the cities under the domes. Even the towers built in the desert vanished in a matter of days. The shining pools though had to remain on the surface since it was impossible to replicate the environment rich of "Breath" of the new continent. Also, creating a connection between the surface and the dimension where energy could travel would only reveal the existence of their hideouts. Noah helped mostly with the relocation of the living weapons. Since they were living beings, they couldn''t enter the space-rings, and there were heroic cultivators still struggling to suppress their wills. There were even containers filled with other living weapons that had yet to have an owner. Those weapons mostly had conscious Beast Cores, which made them extremely difficult to control. The others were simply prototypes that Noah and Thirty-seven had decided to keep for future experiments. Noah had checked his mansion too, but June wasn''t even in her quarters on the surface. He expected that though, so he simply continued to help with the relocation at that point. The Elbas family and the Utra nation were reacting to God''s Right Hand''s breakthrough in the same way, preparing for the worst while also studying the contents of the tome shared by Chasing Demon. The truth was that both the Royals and the Council were organizations built on the remains of old powers. The mystical fog and the mountain chain divided the old continent into three areas that would usually become the domains of three powerful forces. That was something that had continued to happen throughout history since the appearance of those danger zones. Such natural borders had always allowed the existence and the development of three organizations able to claim those entire areas as theirs. So, it wasn''t hard to imagine that the leading forces of the three areas of influence would have access to past records. Most of them would be just fragments of the knowledge of the previous rulers, but there were times when they retrieved something intact, and that contained interesting pieces of information. Also, the Council and the Royals had incredible heritages. The orthodox sect of the Papral nation had obtained Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance while the Royals had King Elbas'' as their leader. An existence able to build a portal toward another Mortal Lands would surely own knowledge that covered many millennia of history. That was why they trusted Chasing Demon''s tome rather quickly, even if they still used their methods to ascertain its authenticity. Of course, that exchange of knowledge had happened only among the powerhouses. The heroic assets of all three forces couldn''t join such a conversation. Yet, Chasing Demon conveyed the results of their discussion to the Elders. "King Elbas and Great Elder Diana trust our source," Chasing Demon''s voice resounded in the minds of the Elders in the fifth rank, "We will pay attention to the sky. If the god follows God''s Right Hand during his ascension, we will create a united front and assault the Empire." Eagerness spread among the Elders after Chasing Demon''s mental message. Even Noah felt excited at the prospect of war. Cultivators had to spend long periods in seclusion to train, but they would just stagnate if they neglected real-world experiences. Noah was the same. Expressing his creation during those peaceful years had improved his cultivation speed, but he felt the need to show even the other aspect of his individuality. His duality was something that worried him at times since expressing both creation and destruction was rather vague as a concept, but that was his individuality. That duality defined his existence. The Empire remained silent throughout all that period, and the three forces had to wait three months before a change happened in the sky above the center of the old continent. A neat crack suddenly appeared in the azure sky and widened, revealing a white light in its insides. Chapter 812: 812. Ascension The crack was large, almost as large as an entire region. Also, it was straight, which was quite an unusual sight for that kind of phenomenon. Heroic cultivators had the power to shatter the air and the fabric of the sky, but they mostly reformed in no time and only showed complete darkness on the other side. Yet, there was an intense white light inside the fissure, which enlarged to form something similar to a wide oval-shaped door. The light didn''t shine on the lands under the crack and remained outside of the Mortal Lands. It seemed that it was unable to cross the now open borders of that world. The event attracted the attention of all the cultivators once again, but it wasn''t violent like the Heaven Tribulation. The sky had opened as if it was a natural occurrence, without releasing shockwaves nor unleashing catastrophes on the lands below. "God''s Right Hand has probably surpassed the Earth Tribulation and is ready to ascend!" Flying Demon said in a mental message directed to Noah. The Demon had recognized that event and had explained as soon as it happened. ''So, this is what an ascension looks like.'' Noah thought as he stopped cultivating and flew in the air to watch the event from a better position. The Hive had completely relocated its valuable resources and buildings by then, so Noah had decided to resume his cultivation in the quarters under his dome. He couldn''t just isolate himself in the separate dimension in that period, and it was improbable that June would return to the mansion anytime soon. Thirty-seven would just notify him of her return anyway, but he needed to stay on the surface in case something peculiar happened again. "I remember Master cursing when he first saw that light." Dreaming Demon said as she appeared behind Noah. Flying Demon was with her, but he remained silent as he stared at the large fissure in the distance with a reminiscing gaze. "It feels welcoming." Noah judged as he analyzed the white light inside the crack. Even if they were on the most distant spot from the center of the old continent, they seemed able to sense the aura carried by that glow perfectly. Noah felt as if the light would lead him to a comfortable and perfect place, away from the struggles of the Mortal Lands. It was a strange sensation, almost addictive, but that was still too far away from his level. "It''s a lie, isn''t it?" Noah said. He didn''t trust Heaven and Earth. He knew that they were conscious beings that worked for their interests, even if he couldn''t understand them. The white light gave birth to unreal sensations, to a sense of perfection that couldn''t exist in such a variegated world, which meant that it had to have a hidden purpose, one only known to Heaven, Earth, and divine beings. Both Demons laughed when they heard his remark, and Flying Demon couldn''t help but explain the reason behind their reaction. "Master said that it was a scam. No wonder you managed to seize his inheritance. You have the same mindset." "What did you two think about it back then?" Noah asked. "Happiness, power, eagerness, and much more," Dreaming Demon answered. "These are the usual emotions felt during your first contact with the divine light of the Immortal Lands." Noah''s eyes widened at her words. He had made the connection between the white world depicted in Divine Architect''s sculpture and that light, but he didn''t know if his idea was on point. Yet, Dreaming Demon confirmed his guess. That brightness came from the higher plane connected with the various Mortal Lands! "How does it work?" Noah asked. He couldn''t hold back his curiosity. "Do you just cross the fissure, and you are inside? What about the void between the Mortal Lands?" His curiosity though could only meet the shaking heads of the Demons. Even such old and powerful existences didn''t know the specifics behind the ascension. "According to what Master told us," Flying Demon began to speak, "Heaven and Earth open the portal when a being reaches the divinity with all its centers of power. If you refuse to ascend, the crack will close, and you would have to open it on your own the next time." "Is it hard to open it on your own?" Noah continued with his questions. "Master did it quite easily. He said that Heaven and Earth themselves didn''t want him in a lower plane anymore." Dreaming Demon answered. It was evident that Divine Demon didn''t explain much to his disciples, but just left a few impressions as he kept advancing. Noah would have preferred a complete guide and explanation, with personal considerations and descriptions of the true nature of Heaven and Earth, but Divine Demon''s character was quite peculiar. In his idea, demons had to find their path and make their discoveries. Handing them everything would just give birth to weak-willed cultivators. The three of them kept on floating in the air as they stared at the mysterious phenomenon in the distance. They didn''t have any orders. It was up to the powerhouses to inspect the behavior of the and decide on their next move. So, Noah and the Demons simply watched and experienced the aura coming from what was considered to be the finish line of the cultivation journey. Also, they were too far away from the old continent. They wouldn''t be able to see God''s Right Hand ascending even if they wanted. A strange aura suddenly spread from the old territories of the Shandal Empire and reached even the new continent. It didn''t seem to have a purpose. That aura was just a natural consequence of a consciousness that had crossed the limits of the heroic ranks. "They are ascending." Chasing Demon''s voice suddenly resounded in their minds. "Both of them are ascending." His voice was calm, but the Demons knew him too well not to sense the eagerness hidden in his tone. Yet, they didn''t say anything and waited patiently for the next update on the situation. Minutes passed as if they were years. Chasing Demon''s next message would declare whether the Hive would join the other nation in an assault to the most potent force in the world. Then, the fissure suddenly closed, and the sky quickly fixed itself, returning to its normal state. Even the eerie aura from before disappeared once the crack vanished. More silence followed, but Chasing Demon soon broke it with an announcement that made Noah and the Demons reveal cold smiles. "Both gods have crossed the fissure and left the Mortal Lands. The Empire is currently at its weakest. Rally the troops, we have a nation to plunder!" Noah and the Demons didn''t hesitate to follow his orders and shot toward the domes to give the long-awaited announcement. It was time to dethrone the Empire from its position as the most potent force in their Mortal Lands. Chapter 813: 813. Sanity Noah didn''t need to rally the troops personally, and the same went for the other Elders in the fifth rank. They just had to announce the decision of the Patriarch to a few rank 4 cultivators and leave those matters to them. He had to bring the living weapons outside of the inventories though, and he even had to make sure that the cultivators wielding them were able to handle them properly. Nevertheless, there was a task that required Noah''s presence and that the other Elders had requested him to handle before going to battle. Noah reached for the underground structure that restrained the creatures needed for the Copying technique together with the two Demons. Roars reached his ears as soon as they crossed the passage at the bottom of the new continent. Still, Noah knew that none of them belonged to his target. The trio walked throw the cave filled by shining lines until it reached a specific branch where chains and formations restrained a familiar mantis. "Danielle," Noah said as he faced the mantis, "We need to talk." Danielle slowly opened her mantis eyes and took a long look at the three cultivators standing in front of her. When she realized who they were, she tried to straighten her position and stand up only to realize that her body hurt too much to complete that task. Noah noticed a series of cracks on her silver body and clear signs of malnutrition. It was evident that she had to pay the price for the studies of the Hive, and those researches didn''t stop after Noah began to build living weapons. Yet, even if Danielle appeared weak, she was still a perfect hybrid in the fifth rank. Her body hid an incredible amount of power, even in her injured state. "Demon Prince of the Hive," A female voice came out of the mantis'' mouth. "Did you come here to kill me? Or do you just want to take away part of my body?" There were tinges of sarcasm in her voice, but Noah didn''t miss the intense helplessness that her words carried. "I was thinking about making a deal," Noah answered. There was more than one reason why there weren''t conscious Beast Cores in the fifth rank. One of them was Noah''s inexperience with materials on that level, but there was also the fear that the revolt of a weapon with that Core would cause serious problems. However, there was another aspect of the matter to consider. A living weapon in the fifth rank was a potent asset to assign to a cultivator, but it couldn''t compare to a perfect hybrid at the same level. The Hive only had eight Elders in the fifth rank, nine if they counted Amos Udye. The value of assets at that level was incredible. They were the elites among the exceptional talents that had managed to reach the heroic ranks! So, killing a rank 5 hybrid just to create a clouded or conscious Beast Core could only be a waste when compared to obtaining the creature as an actual ally. Of course, convincing the hybrids to join their organization after they had to spend decades as guinea pigs wasn''t an easy task, but Noah had something that the natives of the other world now lacked. He had the blood of their ancestors, beings that the natives had always worshipped and followed blindly. Danielle snorted and complained in a low voice. "Do you think I would accept to help you after you spent years experimenting on me and my species? The political system of my world wasn''t perfect, but we were united. We were humans striving to reach the pinnacle of our existence, the highest expression of our beings. You are just humans struggling to seize more resources." Noah and the Demons knew that Danielle was speaking the truth. The cultivators of their world lacked the unity of the natives. Still, that was also the reason why they had so many talents every century. It was their constant struggle and their desire to obtain more from the world that pushed many cultivators to escape from the traditions and old schools to invent new ways to cultivate and increase their power. That was also why they had so many inscription methods compared to the natives. "I went further in the experiments," Noah said as coldness began to spread from his figure. "I turned your species into consciousnesses for weapons. They are quite handy. Sadly, they are a bit unruly." Noah''s words triggered Danielle''s instincts, making her struggle and screech as she tried to bite his head off. However, the chains were too short, and she wasn''t able to even come near him no matter how she pulled. The Demons didn''t react to her attack, but they started to leak their auras as a form of warning. They wanted to remind her who was in charge there. Noah completely ignored her reaction and continued to speak even if the drooling face of the mantis indicated that Danielle wasn''t fully conscious. "Your people were united, but they had to follow the crazy dreams of their ancestors. Look at you, did you ever think about the consequences of turning yourself into a beast? Do you even remember your individuality? Are you still convinced that exchanging your freedom for that fixed spot in Heaven and Earth''s system is a good trade?" His words seemed to have some effect on Danielle since she retracted her face. She didn''t bother cleaning the saliva on her mouth though. It was as if she had fallen deep in thought. Then, she spoke with a human voice again. "What is your offer?" Noah hadn''t decided the details behind that pact with Chasing Demon or other Elders. They just left the matter in his hands since they trusted him. Yet, he knew that he had to give up on something to add another being in the fifth rank to the assets of the Hive. "In the other world, I gave you a chance to save your people," Noah said. "Now, I give you a chance to live instead of surviving. Mind you, I don''t plan on stopping the experiments on your kind, but we can seal agreements on that topic in exchange for your battle prowess." Danielle shot an angry glance at him after his words, but she quickly suppressed her emotions. She couldn''t hope to obtain complete freedom for her kind with just a promise. "A war must be drawing near," Danielle said as if trying to gain some edge over the transaction. "What would your fellow humans think of their Prince if they knew that he asked for the help of the monsters?" Noah revealed a cold smile before replying. "We are a bunch of criminals, traitors, and fugitives. Monsters wholly fit our tastes." Some seconds of silence passed before Danielle decided to speak again. "I want something specific together with the terms that we''ll decide later." It took an entire minute before Danielle managed to speak her next words. "I want to become like you. I want my sanity back." Chapter 814: 814. Boundless Danielle''s request wasn''t surprising. The faith of the natives came from their ancestors, and their defeat had shown the unavoidable weakness of the transformation. It wasn''t much a matter of losing their individualities. That was just another path that anyone could choose to take. Yet, the mental instabilities were an issue that made the natives behave like beasts, which was something that mighty cultivators simply couldn''t accept. After all, it was undeniable that the lack of control over their instincts was one of the main causes of native''s defeats. It was pointless to have a superior power if they didn''t have the mental capabilities to use it. The Demons glanced at Noah. They didn''t know if he could promise something like that, nor if he wanted to. It wasn''t a matter that concerned him personally in the end, so they would understand if he decided to refuse. "It will take time, and it won''t be my priority," Noah said. "I might do it as a favor if you perform well." "That won''t do," Danielle replied. "We followed our ancestors because they gave us hope in breaking free of the limitations of our species. We won''t follow someone who isn''t even able to promise us a future." The Demons felt angry at her words, but Noah only fell deep in thought. When his body reached the fifth rank, his pride as a hybrid had skyrocketed. He had become an existence meant to rule over other magical beasts at that point, and that part of him had grown stronger as he improved. It was his pride that had allowed him to contain the primary energy for the first time. It was his pride that had given him the influence to create a tide of magical beasts and uncover the defenses of his family and the other nobles. The truth was that he had never wanted a throne. He had only given orders when June or his interests were involved, but he didn''t plan to do that often. Yet, his pride was something that inspired other cultivators to follow him, and it even influenced their powers in some way. Those effects were unintentional, and Noah also failed to notice them at times, but they existed, and it was his choice whether to deal with the consequences. "Very well," Noah answered as soft growls accompanied his voice. "Follow me in battle, and I''ll show you how a hybrid should fight. As for your mind, I''ll just sever it from your body and put it into another one if I can''t find any other solution." Then, he picked his inscribed notebook and requested for an oath able to restrict Danielle. "Prince, are you sure?" Dreaming Demon asked. She didn''t want to see him bound to a promise that he might not be able to keep. After all, Noah himself had that claimed that there wasn''t a solution to the mental instabilities of the hybrids. "I''ve already created life and destroyed my connections with Heaven and Earth," Noah started to explain. "The fact that I don''t see a solution now doesn''t mean that I won''t find it in the future. My ambition is boundless. I won''t let the fear of failing to get in the way of my path toward the stars." Both Demons fell silent at his words. That was the first time that Noah had expressed his individuality so openly. "Being too ambitious can ruin any cultivator, Noah," Flying Demon commented after a while, but Noah only shrugged his shoulders. He remembered the pointers about the individualities that Chasing Demon had given during the banquet, and he knew that his ambition could become a problem in the future. Yet, he couldn''t change who he was. "My life started with my ambition," Noah explained. "If it ends because of it, so be it." The Demons didn''t speak any more at those words. Noah''s aura was resolute and sharp, without even a trace of doubt in its flow. It was rare for a relatively new rank 5 cultivator to be so sure of his path, but Noah knew his destination already, even if he didn''t know what kind of being he would be at that point. An Elder eventually arrived, and Noah sealed an oath with Danielle. The Hive would grant some amount of freedom to the hybrids after the assault to the Empire, but it would regulate them too. Also, any criminal that didn''t follow the rules would instantly become a guinea pig for some experiment. Of course, that pact involved only the perfect hybrids and not the magical beasts that had transformed due to the compound. The Hive would still be able to create conscious Cores from them if it invested some time in nurturing the newborn mental spheres of those creatures. Their freedom would then increase with time, according to their achievements inside the Hive. As for the issue with the mental instabilities, Noah and Danielle didn''t set a time limit. He just had to find a solution before leaving the lower planes. By the time Noah sealed an alliance with Danielle and organized the hybrids kept captive in the Hive, the human troops were ready to march toward the territories of the Empire. Noah flew toward the central territories past the azure plain together with Elder Austin, Elder Julia, and Danielle. They would be the rank 5 cultivators deployed in the first assault at the central areas inside the domain of the Empire, but they weren''t alone. The Elbas family and the Council had deployed a similar number of powerful assets on their respective borders and were ready to attack the central territories too. They were just waiting for the powerhouses to give the order. Of course, the rank 5 cultivators wouldn''t join the battlefield of the assets in the fourth rank, nor involve themselves among the human cultivators that had yet to invade one of the habitable areas. They had enemies suitable for their level to face. "I don''t like to have her here." Elder Austin said as he glanced at Danielle. "Her oath is so strict that she would die before even thinking of attacking us." Elder Julia said, uncaring of the tall mantis flying next to them. "I don''t agree with your presence here too, Prince," Elder Austin continued to express his complaints. "You don''t need to join the first battle, nor this war in general." "I want to fight, Austin," Noah said while wearing an eager expression. "I want to see where I stand compared to other rank 5 cultivators." Elder Austin simply sighed at those words and focused ahead. There were many buildings with the emblem of the Empire ahead and a series of human cultivators between them, ready to defend their city. In the sky, there were twenty or so cultivators in the fourth rank, a number of assets that matched the rank 4 cultivators deployed by the Hive in that battle. Further above, there where four rank 5 cultivators wearing stern expressions. Both forces seemed equally matched, but that only because the Empire had to defend three fronts. Chapter 815: 815. Peaceful Storm There were no warnings before the deployment of those troops. The Hive, the Council, and the Elbas family had simply moved their assets alongside their respective borders with the domain of the Empire, and the latter had answered by showing that it could match all three of them. It would have been impossible to catch that weakened nation by surprise. The central areas had so many buildings meant to inspect the environment that the Empire had noticed the enemy troops moving before they even exited their respective domains. There hadn''t been any negotiation either. It seemed that the Empire had understood that they had no chances to convince the enemy forces to back down. That was just the fate that the strongest nation of a world had to face once it lost its advantage over the other forces. The battlefields on the three borders were similar. All three of them featured four rank 5 cultivators and twenty or so cultivators in the fourth rank on both sides. The only differences were on the ground, where the human cultivators had to fight. Human cultivators couldn''t travel through the wild territories of the new continent due to the suffocating density of "Breath". So, each force had to resort to some method to allow them to travel and fight in those lands. The Elbas family had its ointment, the Council used a series of floating spheres that absorbed "Breath" and diminished the pressure on its assets, and the city shielded the cultivators of the Empire. The Hive, instead, had peculiarly solved the issue. Noah suddenly roared, and a series of magical beasts appeared on the ground behind them and charged toward the city of the Empire, only to stop in line with the other troops when he roared again. Those creatures weren''t only magical beasts. There were also perfect hybrids amid that army and Elite beasts that had developed a sea of consciousness. Most of them were creatures in the third rank that could ignore the suffocating atmosphere due to the inborn advantages of their species. Yet, there were a few hybrids in the fourth rank there that acted as captains. Noah and Danielle didn''t have much time to organize a proper army of hybrids after sealing their pact, but they could exploit the natural fear created by their presence to rule them. However, they still had to put a few creatures in the fourth rank to enforce their orders. That strategy wasn''t casual. Noah had suggested it using the battle strategy of the winged beasts as an example, even if his execution was far cruder. Since the events in the other Mortal Lands, it was pointless not to use the magical beasts as troops. Noah didn''t need to hide that aspect of his cultivation anymore, and the Hive would be able to preserve a large number of human assets by deploying beasts. Also, the hybrids were simply too powerful not to control their populations. Using them for an entire war as cannon fodder would skim their ranks and reveal those that were worthy of having some sort of control over the organization that would eventually form in the domain of the Hive. The exchange of stares between the various armies lasted only for a few minutes since a mental message reached the leaders of the invaders at the same time. "Attack!" The three powerhouses had given the order at the same time, and the leaders of the armies echoed it without any hesitation. A series of roars and battle cries resounded in the three battlefields as the invaders launched themselves toward the troops of the Empire. The cultivators divided themselves according to their level and set battle formations meant to absorb the first barrage of spells of the defenders. The fight among the cultivators in the fifth rank though unfolded quite differently from the messy battles below. Each of those assets neared the opponent in front of them slowly and performed greeting gestures. Noah''s opponent was a middle-aged man with short white hair and a pair of blue eyes. He didn''t have any beard and appeared quite ordinary, but he had a warm smile on his face that Noah found quite calming. "The Almighty has given me the name Peaceful Storm." He said, "The Demon Prince of the Hive doesn''t need to announce himself." Peaceful Storm performed a polite greeting after speaking, but Noah limited himself to observe him. Truth to be told, he had never understood while cultivators liked to speak so much before and during a battle. Words were mostly useless once spells started to fly at you unless some technique needed them. After all, what was the point of speaking when you could focus on killing your opponent? Yet, the battles had already begun under him, and Peaceful Storm didn''t show any kind of battle intent. Noah tried to inspect his surroundings in search of some sort of trap, but even his instincts sensed nothing. It seemed that the cultivator really wanted to talk while the weaker troops fought. "Why aren''t we trying to kill each other?" Noah asked. He noticed how the Elders near him had yet to fight too, and Danielle hadn''t charged. Noah had become curious at that sight. He felt as if there was something that he was missing. "Demon Prince, we are elites that have already ventured in our path." Peaceful Storm explained. "Killing one of us is quite difficult. Our accumulation and experience aren''t something that you can defeat so easily." ''Is he trying to bait me into charging at him?'' Noah thought for a second before denying that idea. Peaceful Storm appeared really convinced of that idea and even added something in line with it. "We don''t even need to fight. Why don''t we discuss our individualities and exchange a few attacks after the battle under us is over?" Noah had to admit that he felt somewhat disappointed to find such an unwilling opponent as his first real cultivator in the fifth rank. Nevertheless, he had come there to fight, and he didn''t care if his enemy had spent so much time in seclusion that he had forgotten a battle intent was. The Demonic Sword came out of his robe, and Noah wielded it only to slash it immediately after. Black smoke in the form of a claw came out of his weapon and flew in a straight line toward Peaceful Storm, but the latter simply sighed, and Noah''s attack stopped moving. It was as if it had slammed against an invisible barrier that it wasn''t able to pierce. Of course, Noah had already launched another attack by the time he realized that his casual slash wouldn''t be able to cross the barrier. A barrage of white flames engulfed the dispersing claw and surpassed that invisible blockage to reach for the rank 5 cultivator. Yet Peaceful Storm raised his hand, and the fire converged in his hand to form a bright white sphere. "See? Really hard to kill." Peaceful Storm said before launching the sphere toward Noah. Chapter 816: 816. Talismans Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw the white sphere flying toward him. He had yet to use any of his "Breath". Even the slash from before had only consumed primary energy. However, it felt strange seeing an opponent manipulating his flames so easily. Noah slashed toward the sphere, but he chose to use his darkness at that time. The Demonic Sword roared when it felt that energy flowing through its form and released a black line that severed the incoming attack in two and continued to fly toward Peaceful Storm. There rank 5 cultivator of the Empire felt slightly surprised when he saw that outcome and moved to dodge slash. Yet, right before the black line went past him, it divided and gave birth to a cloud of black smoke. The could then took the form of multiple sharp claws that changed their trajectory to chase after the cultivator. All of Noah''s abilities had changed drastically in the past years. Creating a personal "Breath" had forced Noah to adapt most of his attacks to his new energy, which meant completely reinvent them at times. His Dragon''s Claw martial art had initially been just a tool that made use of his physical might and his spreading destruction. Yet, it wasn''t any different from a spell now that Noah used the Demonic Sword as a conduit for his darkness. The energy that he had created could easily take any shape while also keeping its destructive force since all its particles were small swords capable of high sharpness. Noah could just pour power into his weapon and decide to change the shape of his attacks even when they had already left the sword! Also, the fact that the Demonic Sword had the corrosive smoke of the Demonic Form as part of its fabric made each of its attacks quite threatening. Peaceful Storm saw the incoming claws and felt forced to drop his previous behavior. He lifted his arms slowly, keeping his palms toward the sky as if he was trying to create an upward gale. To Noah''s surprise though, his attack suddenly changed trajectory and missed the cultivator''s head by a few centimeters. Peaceful Storm was about to speak again after he blocked that attack too, but Noah had charged ahead as soon as he understood that the claws weren''t going to hit him. The rank 5 cultivator realized just one instant too late that Noah was already above him, ready to deliver a kick to his face. Noah felt the world around him changing at that point. His opponent had been in front of him just now, but he could only see the blue sky a fraction of instant later. At first, Noah thought that Peaceful Storm had used some kind of movement technique to disappear from that spot, but he soon noticed that his opponent was still in his original position. The cultivator didn''t move at all. It was Noah the one who had been flung away! Noah didn''t feel hurt, but his mind reviewed the scene at high speed as he prepared for another offensive. ''Does he control the space?'' Noah thought as he deployed a series of saber-shaped runes from his palm. ''That should be impossible. King Elbas would have made the dimensional portal far sooner if it was possible to create an aptitude able to control the space.'' He activated the Divine Deduction technique to analyze the strange cultivator''s individuality, and he found just an explanation that could solve his doubts. ''It''s an imitation of the laws connected to space, but he uses the air to put it at use.'' Noah concluded in his mind. His evaluation only covered the most evident effects of Peaceful Storm''s individuality, but it would be quite useful if it turned out that he was right. The saber-shaped runes hadn''t changed after his breakthrough since they used the primary energy in the environment to work. Yet, he still used his "Breath" to make them appear in the open, which meant that their destructive force only increased due to his darkness. Also, they were already on Noah''s level when they came out. It was pointless to say how powerful they would become if the battle were to last for a long time. Noah proceeded on slashing, launching flames, and charging ahead with the split version of the Demonic Sword. However, Peaceful Storm seemed untouchable, no matter how many plans and strategies Noah came up with. It was clear that the cultivator specialized in defense, but Noah felt that he wasn''t using his real strength. In Noah''s mind, that was fine since he was doing the same, but he didn''t have all the time in the world since he didn''t know how the leaders would act once the battle under them ended. "The Almighty has left this world," Noah said, "I don''t know why do you even keep the name that he has given you." Peaceful Storm''s grin froze at his world. It seemed that Noah had finally obtained some kind of reaction from that elusive cultivator. Nevertheless, he didn''t let that opportunity go to waste and waved his Demonic Swords a few times in seemingly random spots. His slashes created oval black trails made of strange flames that seemed to carry metallic properties. Peaceful Storm''s seemed to understand what was happening and tried to react as fast as he could. The escorts during the crisis of the winged beasts had seen that ability, even if just a different version. So, he could vaguely imagine what was coming for him. A gale suddenly came out of his body and deflected everything that tried to reach him. However, he had been just one instant too late, and he had underestimated the new power of the Warp spell. Two trails of those metallic flames appeared behind his back, and a series of claws came out of them. The claws though seemed different from the previous ones since they were surrounded by the same flames that made the spells. Peaceful Storm''s gale managed to block some of the claws, but the others pierced his defenses and stabbed his back, creating a series of deep wounds and spreading corrosive black smoke inside his body. The cultivator of the Empire cursed and dropped his smile. Still, Noah was already on top of him, ready to deliver the kick that his opponent had dodged for a while. "I told you that we are hard to kill," Peaceful Storm said as he lifted his arm and showed a cracked talisman at the center of his palm. A whirlpool appeared on his hand, and its suction force was so strong that Noah didn''t manage to escape its area of effect even with his incredible physical strength! It was at that point that Noah called the saber-shaped runes on the battlefield and aimed them toward the cultivator''s arm. Peaceful Storm felt the incoming danger and retreated, taking that threatening vortex away with him and freeing Noah. The whirlpool eventually ended, but Noah was wearing a stern expression as he inspected his right leg since there were a series of cuts on its skin. Chapter 817: 817. Draconic It didn''t happen so often for Noah to suffer injuries against cultivators on his same level. His body usually protected him from their most basic attacks due to its natural defenses. However, Peaceful Storm''s talisman had managed to restrain him for a short period and even pierce his skin at the same time. It seemed that the cultivator wasn''t only specialized in defense but had a series of effective offensive methods too. ''It''s not surprising for such old existences to be so resourceful.'' Noah thought as he kept his eyes on his opponent. Peaceful Storm''s aura had condensed around him in a protective stance after the last exchange of attacks. That time, Noah could see how the cultivator''s "Breath" affected the air and space around him and was ready to deflect or redirect any form of offensive. His opponent had finally become serious, and Noah couldn''t wait to see how far his power had grown. Noah charged ahead again, uncaring of the injury on his leg. The resilience of his body couldn''t be compared to the human standards, so he was sure that he would win as long as he traded blows in that way. As for eating to increase his healing speed, that was something that wasn''t possible anymore now that his body had reached such heights. The requirements in terms of energy were simply too high now that he was in the middle tier of the fifth rank. Even if he were to eat a rank 5 magical beast now, it would still take a day for his skin to heal and that only due to the improved healing abilities inherited by the Yin Body. That was the reason why he had stopped eating during a battle unless his condition was critical, and he had abandoned the idea of creating a suitable secret technique. Taking a few bites would only reveal an opening to his opponents, and he wasn''t sure he had enough powerful corpses to make up for the consumption of primary energy that a secret technique in the fifth rank would require. It would be different if he somehow managed to condense an entire creature in the middle tier of the fifth rank into a pill, but he didn''t know any alchemist able to succeed in that task. Also, the product would be a proper rank 5 drug, which was something that cultivators couldn''t just produce at will, not in the quantity required by Noah at least. Peaceful Storm could only decide to contain the corrosive smoke in his body for the time being when he saw Noah launching a series of those threatening black lines as he shot toward him. His expression froze at that sight. He found it unreal that Noah could repeatedly attack with such might without even taking time to prepare his slashes. The truth was that Noah''s martial art had reached a higher level now that the Demonic Sword worked together with him. It was as if Peaceful Storm had to fight against two magical beasts in the fifth rank at the same time! A series of talismans came out of his ring before the lines clashed with the distorted air that surrounded him. They floated in front of him and created a series of arrows that shot at high speed toward Noah, ignoring his attacks. Noah''s eyes widened when he saw that he couldn''t follow the arrows with his eyes. They were so fast that they appeared able to teleport! However, he didn''t back down and ignored the dangerous feeling sensed by his mind as he activated the complete Demonic Form. Both Noah and Peaceful Storm were confident in their defensive abilities and didn''t let the opponent take control of the flow of the battle. The black lines crashed on the area filled with distorted air and morphed, taking the form of dozens of claws that tried to reach for the injured cultivator at its center. Yet, their trajectory was entirely off, and Noah had to decide to make the claws explode hit the cultivator with his corrosive smoke. On the other hand, the arrows landed on Noah''s body as soon as the armor of black smoke started to form. They pierced the spell and stabbed his skin, reaching even for the dense layers of muscles beneath. Noah had protected his vital organs with his arms and let go of the Demonic Sword to help him defending from the attacks. However, some arrows still managed to create deep wounds before they depleted their power and returned to be simple air. ''I understand,'' Noah thought as the broken armor started to reform. ''These attacks carry his aura, which means that he creates his talismans! He probably focuses all the power of his centers of power to defend himself, while he uses the talismans to attack.'' Noah wasn''t worried about his wounds in the slightest and continued to analyze his opponent''s power. He had to admit that it was quite a troublesome enemy. He could very well imagine how Peaceful Storm had spent decades honing his skill in the creation of talismans, which meant that his stash of prepared attacks could be endless. Nevertheless, even if he focused only on defending himself, Noah''s darkness fueled his offensive and made them incredibly destructive. The cloud of smoke inside the area of distorted space vanished at some point and revealed a Peaceful Storm filled with small wounds and red marks. His defensive spell couldn''t stop the advance of Noah''s corrosive smoke completely, which ended on his body and made a mess of his skin. Peaceful Storm though didn''t seem beaten and heaved a deep sigh as he raised his head to stare at his opponent. Whiffs of black smoke came out of his back when he breathed out. Without that foreign substance in his body, he could express his full power again. Yet, his expression froze when he saw the form that Noah had taken after the activation of the Demonic Form. That spell wasn''t unknown in the cultivation world. Noah had made it quite famous since it was on the first abilities noted down on his wanted poster. However, what was in front of Peaceful Storm was a completely different shape compared to what the records reported. Noah was covered with a thick layer of gaseous scales that swayed in the wind as they released trails of corrosive smoke. The scales seemed to have metallic properties as they took the shape of an armor. His helmet had the shape of a dragon head that had two straight horns coming out from its temples, and a thick tail came out from the bottom of his back. All in all, the new shape of the complete Demonic Form was humanoid, but it featured many details that only a dragon-type magical beast could have. Also, the corrosive smoke had changed when Noah used his darkness to create it. It was now denser and less chaotic, which allowed it to unleash more precise destruction. Looking at that monstrous figure, Peaceful Storm accepted that he had to go all out in that battle. Chapter 818: 818. Pillar Peaceful Storm felt almost depressed to realize that he had to become serious against a cultivator that had been in the fifth rank for less than fifty years. He was an experienced warrior that had managed to create a stable battle style that made use of his individuality even if it had mostly defensive features. Yet, he could only go all out in front of such a demonstration of sheer power. The strands of smoke coming out of Noah''s armor resembled sharp blades that shattered the air and created massive quantities of primary energy. The scales over his body were so dense that most cultivators wouldn''t believe that they were made of corrosive gas. It was as if Noah had transformed into a fiend born only to destroy, and Peaceful Storm couldn''t even put into words the amount of danger that he felt looking at his figure. Noah felt a series of gazes landing on him. The Elders and Danielle had started their battles too, but they were startled by the dangerous presence that had suddenly appeared when Noah transformed. Even the other rank 5 cultivators of the Empire couldn''t help but glance at him. However, Noah couldn''t care less about their gazes. The only thing that his eyes could see was the distorted area created by Peaceful Storm. There was something that blocked his path and denied almost all his attacks right in front of him. That was the perfect tool to test how far his destruction could stretch. Noah took a step forward and wielded the two parts of the Demonic Sword before gathering the saber-shaped runes at some distance from him. Peaceful Storm saw a fiendish figure surrounded by a sea of small sabers walking toward him and sighed when he noticed that those runes were becoming stronger every time Noah took a step forward. They were nearing the peak of the gaseous stage as they kept on absorbing the primary energy created by the corrosive smoke. Peaceful Storm understood at once that he had to stop his opponent before even his incredible defenses couldn''t protect him anymore. Nevertheless, Noah''s figure suddenly distorted and shot forward at high speed, reaching the borders of Peaceful Storm''s defensive area before he could even notice that event. Noah''s weapons were already raised by the time he reached the distorted area, and he used the momentum of his sprint to slash them toward the cultivator of the Empire. Two fuming lines barged inside the distorted space and pressed forward in a straight line, uncaring of the effects that his opponent''s individuality was trying to apply to them. Peaceful Storm saw his defenses falling apart. The black smoke filled his distorted area and destroyed the effects of his spell, while the two black lines continued to aim at him without being hindered in the slightest. He quickly took another series of talismans from his space-ring and started to cast another spell. A series of humanoid figures made of air took form in front of him and clashed with Noah''s attack while he commanded his area to explode outward. Noah saw that distorted space engulfing him and shredding his armor apart, flinging him away in the process. His body also suffered, and he coughed blood as his internal organs shook under the changes of pressure that they were experiencing. When Peaceful Storm was in command of his area, the space distorted in a way that protected him. Yet, when it exploded outward, it was so chaotic that it was even able to tear Noah''s Demonic Form apart. Noah stopped himself after being pushed back for a few kilometers and quickly reactivated his Demonic Form. His body radiated waves of pain, but they didn''t even manage to occupy a small part of his thoughts. There was only the ecstasy felt by sensing that his centers of power were able to sustain the consumption of his reckless battle style. ''Finally,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the consumption of his "Breath". His darkness was on the same level of the "Breath" in the environment, but Noah''s abilities required less of it when they acted in line with its nature. As for the Demonic Form, no spell in his arsenal expressed his creation and destruction better than it. Noah had never seen his most powerful spell consuming so little energy. It felt liberating having the possibility of going all out without worrying about emptying his centers of power. Peaceful Storm appeared in front of him while Noah bathed in the harmony that his existence had reached. The skin of the cultivator from the Empire was even worse off, and there were spots on his body where his bones were exposed. Also, he was missing a few fingers on his right hand. It seemed that his humanoid figures couldn''t completely protect him from the corrosive effects of Noah''s attacks. Yet, they were still standing around him in a protective stance, even if all of them had missing limbs. Noah roared when he saw him and released a wave of white flames that fused with the black smoke as they slammed on the humanoid figures. Peaceful Storm didn''t even look at it and threw other talismans that become arrows aimed for his opponent. Both of them didn''t even care about defending anymore. They just used the protections that were already in place and focused everything into their offensive. The humanoid figures exploded when the white flames and black smoke crashed on them, and Noah felt his body being pierced in multiple spots due to the arrows that he didn''t manage to block. The two of them seemed almost on the same level as they kept exchanging blows without taking any step back. Nevertheless, a blue pillar suddenly illuminated the area. It flung all the invaders away, either injuring or killing the weaker cultivators that were trying to conquest the city on the ground. Even Noah felt the blue halo radiated by the pillar, pushing him away from the battle against Peaceful Storm. It seemed that the invading forces had triggered one of the defensive measures of the city, which was even able to target heroic cultivators! Noah flew back for a few kilometers until he landed on the ground at some distance from the battlefield. His mind didn''t sense any threat coming for him, but he noticed that the other Elders and Danielle had been flung back too. In the city and the sky above it, the cultivators of the Empire cheered and shot challenging gazes at the survivors of the invading troops. It was as if they were asking them to attack again. Noah dispersed the Demonic Form and analyzed the survivors on the Hive''s side. To his surprise, all the rank 4 cultivators were still alive and were either hugging or caressing weapons that he was extremely familiar with. As for the hybrids on the ground, most of them had died when the blue light engulfed them. "Retreat," Elder Julia said at that scene. They couldn''t win unless they didn''t find a way around that protection. Chapter 819: 819. Regrouping The invading forces didn''t expect to take the city at their first attack. The defending side always had the advantage during a war, and the three organizations were attacking the most powerful force in the world. There wasn''t much that they could do before they analyzed the battlefield properly. Yet, the only way to do so was to test the defenses of the Empire and create countermeasures. Elder Julia and Elder Austin weren''t injured. They barely looked tired at all. However, Danielle had a few cracks on her mantis body. As for Noah, his skin had many wounds, and his robe was torn and bloody. The bleeding though had already stopped due to his powerful healing properties and the innate resilience of his body. Noah didn''t feel tired as he stood proudly on the rocky terrain, staring at Peaceful Storm that was eyeing him with an annoyed look on his face. Those wounds weren''t enough to force Noah to rest, but it wasn''t the same for his opponent. Peaceful Storm had come in contact with the black smoke multiple times, and that corrosive gas had even affected his internal organs. The humans were simply too frail, and Peaceful Storm was managing to keep on fighting because he was suppressing his injuries. Once he came back to his quarters, he would need to resort to powerful drugs to heal. On the other hand, Noah only needed to eat. His skin and muscles weren''t a problem, but his internal organs had suffered a bit during the outburst of the distorted space and needed some nutrients to heal quickly. Yet, Noah wasn''t worried about his state in the slightest. He only cared about his battle prowess, and he felt some satisfaction as he reviewed his first fight against a complete rank 5 cultivator. Noah knew that he had never really gained the upper hand in the battle. He had only relied on his superior body to match Peaceful Storm''s annoying defense. However, he couldn''t help but approve the power that his darkness was able to produce when it fueled his abilities. Peaceful Storm wasn''t weak, and his experience in battles at that level far surpassed Noah''s. Also, his centers of power were stronger than Noah''s, even if they weren''t on superior stages or tiers. Nevertheless, Noah''s attacks had managed to match his and even overcome them at times. ''I can fight the old monsters,'' Noah thought as he moved forward to gather the hybrids that had survived the blue pillar. Most of them were scared and had fallen prey to their survival instincts, but Noah''s roars calmed them down and forced them to regroup with the other troops. They had lost a battle, but that was just the beginning of the war. The Shandal Empire had managed to fend them off that time, but it was still against three powerful forces. Its defenses could only delay the inevitable defeat. The elders in the fourth rank shot worshipping gazes at Noah. They still wielded the living weapons that had given them an incredible advantage during the battle and had put them in a position where they could notice the arrival of the blue pillar before it was too late. Having access to an almost limitless number of spells had made them overwhelm the enemy forces and even kill a few of them before the blue light arrived, and Noah was the one who had provided that power. In their eyes, the Demon Prince wasn''t only an amazing individual anymore. He appeared perfect, whether it was his battle prowess or ability in the inscription fields. He was an existence that they couldn''t help but admire and revere. Noah didn''t mind their gazes. It would only benefit the Hive if his presence on the battlefield were to inspire the other heroic assets. After all, that was the purpose of a leader, and his title hinted that he would rule the Hive someday. "How bad is it?" Elder Austin asked as he neared Noah to inspect his injuries. The Elder hadn''t revealed his living weapon in that battle since he knew that they were just testing the enemy forces with that first assault. Noah didn''t have time to answer that Danielle snorted and turned to leave before giving voice to a few words. "He isn''t like you. Those wounds are nothing for our species." Noah watched her set off to return to the territories of the Hive, but he couldn''t understand how she felt after the battle. Even if she had been busy with her fight, she had been able to analyze Noah''s combat style at times, but she didn''t reveal her thoughts about it. Her reaction though didn''t faze Noah, who simply gestured at the Elder that he was fine before leading the hybrids back to the domain of the Hive. It was time to reorganize and set a meeting with the other forces to discuss the defensive methods of the Empire. After that, they would deploy an even stronger army and resume their attacks. Noah created a small cave after he was done taking care of the hybrids. He didn''t feel tired, so he had no reason not to train. He felt starving too, so it was a good time to make a thorough evaluation of his abilities now that he had used them in battle. ''The effects obtained with my darkness are amazing,'' Noah thought as he munched the body parts of a magical beast in the lower tier of the fifth rank. ''It''s a pity that some of my spells don''t work with it.'' Noah had tried his best not to lose any of his abilities after he created his "Breath". However, some of his spells didn''t work, no matter how many modifications he made to their diagrams. The Demonic Form, his mental spells, and his runes had only benefitted from his darkness, which simply increased their power and made them express his individuality. Yet, some abilities didn''t work before he made some changes to adapt them to his peculiar energy. The Merging spell was supposed to use the darkness in the world to boost his speed, but Noah had to change the focus of that diagram to his destruction to put it to use. He would suddenly sharpen his aura to its limit to brute-force his way through the air and sprint at high speed. It was more of a forced acceleration rather than a peaceful increase in speed after his modifications. The Warp spell suffered from the same issue. The black flames could still transport his attacks, but they couldn''t teleport him anymore. However, the spell would now empower the attacks that passed through them, which made Noah ignore the loss of some of its core features. His Blood Companion seemed to have issues with his "Breath" too. Noah had to use the primary energy to make it work, even if he obtained weaker effects. As for spells like the Dark Cover, the Dark Ray, and the Death Area, they simply wouldn''t activate. Chapter 820: 820. Quick Losing spells was a bit annoying, especially for a cultivator of the darkness element since that aptitude made them quite rare. However, Noah traded that for an increase of power in all the abilities that expressed his individuality. Also, there wasn''t much that he could do about that drawback. His existence was simply becoming more specialized in specific fields rather than others. The only thing that mattered was that he was able to match rank 5 cultivators older than him. His search for new abilities would come later, as well as his plans to create new ones. During his training and healing, Noah started to think about ways to create his higher energy. It had been a somewhat streamlined process with June. King Elbas had already discovered the method required by the lightning element, so she had only to find procedures that allowed her to reach that result. However, the research was quite vague when it came to cultivators with light and darkness aptitudes. It was a good thing that those rare elements could theoretically give birth to higher energies with any procedure, but it made Noah''s work harder since he didn''t even know where to start. It seemed that he could only overcome that issue by immersing himself in a long series of tests again. Nevertheless, the war wasn''t the right period for that kind of seclusion, and his priority was expressing his individuality since it benefitted his centers of power. Any research or test had to come later the nourishing of the stable sources of his strength. It didn''t take much for the attacking forces to uncover the secrets behind the defensive measure of the Shandal Empire. Having the Elbas family as an ally turned out to be quite amazing since its ranks had experts in every field that concerned the cultivation world. The Royals had already started to analyze that defensive method since their last defeat, and seeing it again gave them the pieces of information needed to define the limits and triggers of those pillars. It seemed that they were some sort of formations able to draw and accumulate the energy released during a battle and turn it into fuel to create a repelling force. The inscriptions though were inside the city, which meant that Noah and the others could only prevent the activation of that defensive method by winning their battles quickly. Once they discovered those features, the three forces reorganized and created a simple battle plan that took into consideration the pillars. They would simply overwhelm the Empire with their numbers. Noah didn''t see Peaceful Storm when the forces of the three organizations gathered in front of the city that signaled the beginning of the Empire''s domain. His injuries had wholly healed during the two months that had passed, but Peaceful Storm still needed some time to return to his peak. Also, Noah guessed that he had to refill his stash of talisman before he felt confident of joining the battlefield again. There was even the possibility that Peaceful Storm was creating something that targeted him personally, but Noah couldn''t do much about it. That was simply one of the drawbacks that appeared once the cultivators exposed their abilities. However, he noticed how Thaddeus Elbas was among the rank 5 cultivators of the Royals'' army, and his cultivation level matched his companions''. His mental sphere was still in the fourth rank though. The attackers didn''t create three different fronts at that time. Their focus was on taking the city before it accumulated enough power to create a blue pillar again. So, working together on a single battlefield was better than dispersing their troops and giving a chance to the Empire to exploit their political division. An army made of twelve cultivators in the fifth rank, almost a hundred rank 4 cultivators, and countless warriors in the human ranks gathered in front of the city only to discover that the Empire had matched the number of their assets again. Most of those existences didn''t even join the previous war, which meant that the Empire could give them a break without weakening its army. The battle started immediately at that time. The two armies clashed on each other as if they were two tides meeting themselves in the sky. Noah''s opponent was an old woman with long white hair and a hunched back. Her name was Countless Wings, and the reason behind that title became quite apparent when Noah forced her to fight properly just like he did with Peaceful Storm. Countless Wings dodged all of Noah''s attacks thanks to a pair of insect wings made of flames that had appeared behind her back as soon as the battle started. Also, she would leave a trail of fire able to give birth to small flaming butterflies whenever she retreated. Noah soon found himself surrounded by hundreds of those red butterflies, which would explode when he entered their area of destruction. It seemed that the Empire had already created a countermeasure to Noah''s battle style and chosen an opponent that forced him to fight at some distance from the actual battle. Countless Wings would even shoot arrows with an inscribed bow when the butterflies managed to hinder Noah''s path. That was the worst opponent for him since he didn''t have too many attacks that could work at that distance. The butterflies would target the saber-shaped runes too, which made it impossible for them to accumulate enough energy. Noah could only use his mental attacks at that point, uncaring of the fact that the Royals on the scene could recognize those abilities. He was a rank 5 cultivator now. There was a limit to how much the Elbas family could threaten him when the Royals were the only ones in possession of the images of his revenge. Hundreds of ethereal sabers clashed with the swarm of butterflies, causing their explosion and slowly opening a path for him. He deployed his runes again as he saw the butterflies diminishing and used the Demonic Form when he understood that those arrows could hurt him. A strange substance covered the metallic tip of those arrows. It was similar to the liquid used by Noah during the drawing of the rune for his current cultivation technique. It was just a far more intense version that made him feel weak whenever he dodged an arrow. The items retrieved in the other Mortal Lands had the magical beasts as their main focus. After all, the dire state of the natives wasn''t an act. So, their experts had spent most of their time researching how to weaken those creatures. The effects of those resources generally had a limited impact on him since he wasn''t only a beast, but it appeared that the Empire had used its time efficiently in those past years. Yet, the weakening only lasted for a few seconds, and Noah had dodged all the arrows that aimed at him. The butterflies though were rather hard to avoid, and Noah could only use his Ghostly Sabers to make them detonate before he entered their area of destruction. Chapter 821: 821. Sphere Countless Wings was a perfect counter to Noah''s abilities. The Ghostly Claws and the Demonic Form managed to repel the explosive power of the fiery butterflies, but Countless Wings kept on moving, and her arrows prevented Noah from chasing after her in a straight line. Also, as she kept Noah away, her wings would leave a trail of fire that created even more butterflies. Noah found himself unable to reach her even when he used the Merging spell, which left him in a hopeless pursuit that only depleted his energy. It seemed that he didn''t have any chance to gain the upper hand against Countless Wings. ''I didn''t want to use this just yet,'' Noah thought as he focused on activating another spell. It all started as a black dot coming out of his palm. That little sphere floated above Noah''s head and generated a gravitational pull when it was in position. The trajectory of the butterflies suddenly shifted and converged toward the sphere that shattered them until they were nothing more than primary energy. That primary energy then fused with Noah''s spell, enlarging its shape and increasing its suction force. Countless Wings was an experienced warrior who had witnessed a large variety of spells. The sphere summoned by Noah was an ability that the heroic assets of that world had already noted down, even if they weren''t aware of all its specifics. Yet, Countless Wings had already encountered similar attacks and knew that all of them could only absorb a limited amount of energy. It was a necessary feature dictated by the fairness of Heaven and Earth. An ability able to absorb energy indefinitely simply couldn''t exist. So, she decided to move even faster, increasing the number of flames that she left behind and creating more butterflies to overload that defensive spell. Noah felt strange when he saw the reaction of his opponent. On one side, he felt happy that Countless Wings had chosen that approach. Yet, part of him was worried at the sight of the black sphere madly absorbing the energy released by the shattered butterflies. The truth was that the Black Hole spell had gained unusual properties after Noah replaced the "Breath" of Heaven and Earth with his darkness. It had become a never-ending vortex able to devour any energy that came near it, and the usual limit applied to that kind of spells seemed to have vanished in its case. When he tested it inside the separate dimension, the Black Hole spell had continued to absorb energy even after it had become too powerful for his mind to handle. Noah had been forced to detonate it back then and listen to a long series of complaints from Thirty-seven, which labeled it as an unstable spell. Modifying and fusing two different diagrams had given birth to something impressive that could act on its own when Noah''s darkness fueled it. The cause behind its unusual behavior probably was Noah''s greed since it was a core part of the fused spell. That feeling apparently resonated with his "Breath" and destabilized the structure of the spell, turning it into an all-devouring sphere that radiated his distinctive destruction. Noah had understood that his mind had to improve before he could use it in battle at ease, but he always could detonate it before it escaped his control. So, his decision to use it in that fight wasn''t exactly reckless. It just made him feel worried about potential drawbacks. With the Black Hole spell taking care of the swarm of fiery butterflies, Noah could finally charge toward Countless Wings head-on. His Demonic Sword was enough to take care of the arrows, so he sprinted in a straight line, ready to bring the battle where his abilities excelled. Countless Wings was initially confident that the black sphere above Noah would reach its limits soon. Still, it only became bigger as she kept on accelerating to maintain the distance with her opponent. The main issue wasn''t the width of the sphere. Its gravitational pull became stronger as it absorbed more energy, and it reached the point where even the arrows started to deviate from their original trajectory. Also, the spell redirected part of its energy to Noah''s body, which made him feel stronger than he had ever been! Countless Wings could only begin to consider the idea of resorting to some of her items when she saw that her opponent was starting to gain ground. At that point though, loud cries filled the battlefield, and the attention of the heroic cultivators went on the city, where they saw the human troops of the Empire retreating in a hurry. The human army of the three forces had managed to overwhelm the enemy troops and take control of the city while the heroic cultivators were busy fighting the battles on their level. With the town occupied, the Empire didn''t have access to the trigger of the blue pillar and couldn''t defend that territory. The heroic assets of the Empire heaved helpless sighs and revealed annoyed looks, but they announced their retreat nonetheless. As a nation with a long experience in wars, the Shandal Empire knew that it was pointless to exhaust its strongest cultivators over a city that they had lost after only two battles. It was better to retreat to a place where they could benefit from their position as defenders once again. Letting the three forces overwhelm them with their superior numbers without even relying on some defensive measures was merely suicidal. A wave of cheers filled the army that quickly divided itself according to the origin of its cultivators. The three forces had finally managed to defeat the Empire in battle, but they were still opponents united only to take down a common enemy. Noah felt disappointed to see his opponent retreat so soon. Being interrupted when he had finally started to gain the advantage in his fight annoyed him, but he couldn''t just chase after her when she had regrouped with the other rank 5 cultivators. His attention went on the black sphere floating above his head, which had already become more than four meters wide. Its uneven edges leaked the destruction of his individuality and kept on creating primary energy to absorb. ''I wonder how much it can grow,'' Noah thought for an instant before suppressing that idea and starting to suppress his ability. The problem with letting it grow without limit was that Noah''s mind would have to endure the pressure generated by his connection with the spell. A power in the liquid stage of the fifth rank was probably the best that his mental sphere could handle right now and that only because the connection didn''t express the full might of the ability. However, someone interrupted him before he could shut down the spell entirely. "I saw those spells!" Thaddeus said as he stepped forward to face the group from the Hive. "They are the same abilities used by the cultivator that has destroyed the Balvan family." Chapter 822: 822. Accusations Noah couldn''t be bothered to deal with Thaddeus. He had a lot to do, even without considering his usual training. Analyzing a battle with the Divine Deduction technique had always managed to give him some insights on how to improve his combat style, and he couldn''t wait to return to his cave to study them. However, Thaddeus seemed set on making that matter public even if Noah was ignoring him. "The Hive has attacked the territory of my family!" Thaddeus shouted. "I have reason to believe that you are behind the assaults in the Utra nation." More Royals joined Thaddeus in his accusations. They even began to list a series of criminals that had joined the Hive and the behavior of that organization when it had yet to occupy the new continent rightfully. It seemed that Thaddeus aimed to discredit the Hive in front of the Council and possibly obtain a more significant share of the rewards of the war. After all, the wealth hidden in the Empire could lead any organization to the apex of those Mortal Lands. "I was alone when I attacked my family," Noah eventually said when he saw that those accusations were beginning to affect the Elders of the Council. He didn''t care if the Royals tarnished his name, but he didn''t want to lose the possible reward of that war. The Empire had even revealed that it owned spells of the darkness element, so he wanted to be in the first line when the plunder began. The Black Hole spell still hovered above him and kept on absorbing primary energy. Noah had decided to wait a bit before shutting it down since the situation had become quite troublesome. "I''ve taken care of some personal matters that concerned my family," Noah continued. "I believe that my actions are in line with your laws. After all, the Elbas family has no power when it comes to the internal struggles of the noble families." Thaddeus snorted at those words and continued to press on with his accusations. "How could you appear in the Utra nation without anyone noticing? Also, you''ve just admitted that you attacked your family. That makes you the first suspect of the other raids too!" "I''ve used a secret passage known only to the Balvan family," Noah replied. "My grandfather never felt the need to close it since your family had done a great job in convincing him of my death. It''s a pity that you only ever saw a weapon for your secret army in me. I might have joined you if that wasn''t the case." Some laughs resounded among the Elders of the Hive, and even the heroic cultivators of the Council couldn''t help but shake their heads. Noah knew some secrets about the Royals, and nothing was preventing him from revealing them. Just the matter concerning the creation of a secret army with various criminals would be enough to kindle the rebellious spirit of the noble families that had joined the Royals after the dimensional portal ruined the Utra nation. That wouldn''t be enough to create a rebellion due to the oaths in place, but it could cause some issues in the centuries to come. The truth was that every powerful organization had secrets. That wasn''t an issue during regular times when they operated in their domains. Yet, it could lead to problems now that they were in the middle of a war. Also, the relationship between the Council and the Royals had worsened since the assassinations in the new continent. The Hive was even the weakest force among them, so the Council would benefit more by siding with it and force the Elbas family to lower its share of the gains. "What secret passage!" Thaddeus couldn''t contain his voice when he heard Noah''s lies. "And, even if it existed, you were a whoreson! Your family would have never revealed its location to you." Noah''s eyes became cold at those words, and he controlled the Black Hole spell to move next to him. Thaddeus suddenly noticed that the black sphere had grown since he last focused on it. Its power was nearing the peak of the gaseous stage in its current form. "Are you saying that I wasn''t worthy of knowing that secret?" Noah said as growls began to fuse with his human voice. "How can you decide who is worthy of knowledge and power? You have barely made any progress in the time that it took me to reach this level." Cecil was among the rank 5 cultivator deployed by the Royals, and he observed the situation with a far calmer mind compared to his son. He could understand what Noah was doing. Discrediting Thaddeus in front of all those experts would make his words worthless and any accusation vain. Also, his explanations made sense and were backed by his incredible achievements. It was easier to believe that the Balvan family had accepted Noah at some point in his youth and revealed the existence of the secret passage. Whether that passage was real didn''t matter since Noah could just claim that he had destroyed it after the attack. After all, those words came from the monster that had reached the fifth rank in eighty years of life. Due to his achievements, everyone would believe that Noah had been able to sneak inside the Utra nation, destroy a noble family, and escape without anyone noticing him. It would be different if the cultivators charged with those accusations were just ordinary geniuses. A pact with the organization behind them would be enough to settle the matter, especially since it involved cultivators in the fifth rank. However, the cultivator in question was Noah Balvan, and, according to his version of the story, he didn''t even break any law since the Royals couldn''t affect the internal matters of the noble families. Cecil closed his eyes for a moment, only to reopen them and place a hand over his son''s shoulder. Thaddeus struggled to calm down, but his father whispered something in his hear, and he eventually gave up on the matter. Since Noah escaped from the Utra nation, taking care of him had always been one of Thaddeus'' goals, but that mostly was because he was aware of the Royal Inheritance. Now that the Elbas family had claimed it, Noah''s secrets had lost a lot of value. Also, those secrets had always been relevant only inside the Utra nation. He didn''t have anything on the Royals that could endanger their safety. He could only spread bad rumors, which wouldn''t force the Council to side with one of its allies. "Indeed, you are an exceptional cultivator, Patriarch of the Balvan family," Thaddeus said as he performed a bow. "You have acted according to our laws." When he turned to leave, Cecil whispered something to him again. "With the pool of enlightenment and the wealth gained in this war, the Elbas family will be unmatched. Patience, my son, don''t let the drawbacks of the pool affect your judgment." Chapter 823: 823. Occupy After the discussion ended, the assets of the three forces began to explore the city to see if they could find something valuable. A few rank 4 cultivators belonging to each faction joined the inspection too since there was a limit to what the troops in the human ranks were able to sense. The city didn''t have any precious material. The Empire had already taken away anything valuable before the first battle. Yet, the buildings and the defensive formation were still there, and they were assets that the experts of the three forces could use and study. The formation behind the blue pillars wasn''t exceptional, but the Empire had built that city for the sole purpose of analyzing the evolution of the central lands. It featured many useful buildings, and it even had vast cultivation areas for the experts stationed there. The leaders of the armies eventually decided to divide the city into three parts and use it to accommodate their troops. After all, there were many large habitations there, and they could even make use of the blue pillar in case the Empire decided to retaliate. Of course, no one expected the Empire to attack. The three forces had managed to win while being in a disadvantageous position. It would be simply suicidal to try and reclaim the city now that they had gained the territorial advantage. Noah didn''t return to the Hive''s domain and dug a cave in the outskirts of the city. He didn''t need a proper training area since he mostly cultivated and meditated in that period. Any experiment would consume years at his level, so he preferred to improve centers of power rather than immerse himself in one of his many projects. Also, the war would require his presence often, so it was better to focus on things that he could interrupt whenever he wanted. The battle against Countless Wings left him almost unscathed. The detonations of the butterflies had burnt his skin in some spots. Still, those injuries would heal in a matter of days. As he analyzed his battle, his confidence solidified. It was evident that he was on the same level as those old monsters even if he had yet to defeat one of them. His battle prowess mainly came from his darkness, but his spells were powerful in general. Also, the fact that he could use his martial art together with the Demonic Sword gave him access to a threatening and relentless offensive. After all, Noah was never really fighting alone. All his opponents had to face two beings capable of expressing a battle prowess in the fifth rank, and that had perfect coordination. Even the most experienced cultivators would find him troublesome to deal with. It didn''t take much before envoys from the other organizations started to knock on his and the Elders'' doors. The armies had fought together in that battle. The allied troops didn''t fail to notice the advantage of the rank 4 Elders of the Hive. The strange weapons that they wielded were simply too flashy to ignore. The allied troops saw how those weapons were able to launch a seemingly limitless number of attacks with power similar to the enemy spells. Such items were simply fantastic, and the cultivators wielding them didn''t even seem to suffer from any kind of drawback! It was needless to say that both the Council and the Elbas family became immediately interested in the living weapons, especially since they showed clear connections with the magical beasts'' world. Both organizations expected that the Hive would come up with something after the events with the other world. They had Noah in their ranks in the end. Yet, they didn''t expect that he could create something so useful so soon. After all, most of their experiments were still in the testing phase. Of course, the reason behind their failures in the past forty years was that they had mainly tried to replicate Noah''s body. Even if they had consulted him on that matter, the heroic cultivators of the two organizations weren''t willing to give up on obtaining the power of a hybrid. That led to countless failures and deaths that they had kept a secret from the world. Decades had to pass before they accepted that Noah had spoken the truth and moved toward other experiments. The envoys of both organizations tried to set meetings to discuss the living weapons, and they even named exorbitant prices just to analyze one of them. However, the Hive wasn''t willing to give any information just yet. Chasing Demon had decided that the Hive would wait until all its heroic assets obtained a suitable living weapon to create a market with those items. That was something that would have to wait for the end of the war when the thirst for those new assets reached its peak. Noah would have considered meeting the envoys if that led him to meet June again, but the Elbas family didn''t deploy her during the war. He expected that since the Royals wanted to show the power of their bloodline on the battlefield, but he still wanted to check up on her growth. He knew that it wouldn''t be a problem for her to hide her new energy. June still had access to her previous cultivation technique and could absorb normal "Breath" of the lightning element from the environment. However, he couldn''t wait for the moment when he could just walk with her under the astonished expressions of the Royals. He had to respect her wishes though. June still needed to take complete control over her family and leave the Royals on her own. She wouldn''t accept Noah''s help on the matter. The days spent cultivating passed quickly, and the next battle eventually arrived. The three armies divided themselves again to attack three different cities built on the central territories in control of the Empire. They were similar to the city that they had just conquered, but they featured far more habitations meant for human cultivators. The Empire was famous for having the highest number of cultivators in those Mortal Lands, and it had maintained that record even after the Council and the Elbas family had become more open toward the commoners. The arrival of the new continent had been the Empire''s great chance to obtain habitable territories for its insane number of troops, so most of its cities were just meant to accommodate them. The troops of the Hive moved toward their target with their usual formation. The hybrids would face the human cultivators, while the heroic assets would fight in the sky. Noah found a familiar face among the enemy rank 5 cultivators. Peaceful Storm was waiting for him with his warm smile radiating its usual calm aura. "Demon Prince," Peaceful Storm greeted him when the battle below them began. "How many talismans are you going to make me waste this time?" Noah didn''t speak, but wielded the divided Demonic Sword and used the Merging spell to launch himself at his opponent. He was set on aiming for the kill in that battle. Chapter 824: 824. Copy Peaceful Storm didn''t hesitate to deploy his defensive area of distorted space when he saw Noah pouncing at him as soon as the battle started. Even the cultivator of the Empire had decided to go all out from the start since he had understood Noah''s character by then. A series of talismans appeared in front of Peaceful Storm, and spells of various kinds came out of them. Noah saw arrows, humanoid figures, and eagles made of wind shooting toward him as he charged ahead. However, he was ready for their arrival. A black sphere appeared in front of him and quickly moved on top of his head, generating a gravitational pull that affected the trajectory of the incoming spells. Black smoke also started to come out of his body and took the shape of the scaled armor of the Demonic Form. Peaceful Storm''s attacks met the black lines released by the Demonic Sword and deviated only to end up in the Black Hole spell. The gravitational pull became stronger in the process, but it was still too weak to affect all the talismans of Noah''s opponent. Noah''s martial art had destroyed the humanoid figures and maimed the eagles, but the arrows were too fast and landed on his body, piercing the scaled armor and stabbing his skin. The surviving eagles then arrived and crashed on him, destroying a part of the Demonic Form and creating a series of light wounds on his chest. Nevertheless, those clashes weren''t able to stop Noah''s advance. Peaceful Storm''s spells released energy when they crashed on Noah, which the black sphere promptly absorbed, redirecting part of it in his body. The injuries that he had just suffered stopped bleeding as soon as that wave of nutrients filled him. Also, Noah had focused the humanoid figures because they were the only abilities capable of hindering his charge. The impact with the other attacks was barely able to slow him down. Peaceful Storm could only brace for the imminent clash when he saw that his talismans didn''t have any effect. Noah slashed with the Demonic Sword when he reached the edges of the distorted space. His divided weapon released two black lines that detonated into a cloud of corrosive smoke when their trajectory shifted due to that defensive area. Peaceful Storm saw the dangerous gas spreading inside his personal space and activated another talisman that created a series of gales. Winds began to blow inside the distorted area and pushed back the corrosive smoke, completely denying Noah''s attack. It was evident that the cultivator of the Empire had prepared for that battle, and Noah guessed that he had even exchanged notes with Countless Wings since he didn''t seem affected by the growing sphere above his head. Yet, being prepared and being able to counter an ability were two very different things. The destruction radiated by the Black Hole spell started to affect the area of distorted space. Small pieces of the sky began to escape Peaceful Storm''s control and fuel the black sphere that kept on increasing the power behind its gravitational pull. Peaceful Storm''s spread his consciousness at that sight and reinstated his control over the space around him, preventing Noah''s spell from affecting his defenses further. It was as if two individualities were fighting for the control of that part of the sky. Noah''s spell kept on radiating an intense destructive area, but Peaceful Storm''s control over his space was tight and didn''t waver under that external force. However, Noah had already swung his weapons again at that point, and another pair of black lines flew toward his opponent still surrounded by chaotic winds. As expected, Noah''s martial art wasn''t able to reach Peaceful Storm, and even the detonation of the black lines could only stop when it reached the winds. The activation of another series of talismans followed, and Noah found himself surrounded by countless attacks made of wind that flew toward him. It seemed that Peaceful Storm had waited for that moment to use dozens of his items at the same time. Noah knew that he had no chance to dodge. He could barely block the teleporting arrows. There was no point in trying to escape that barrage of attacks when he was so close to them. His only option was to destroy as many of them as he could and endure the rest with his body and scaled armor! Noah slashed like crazy, and a large cloud made of corrosive smoke formed around him as his martial art clashed with the incoming attacks. Arrows, slams, and claws would reach and hurt his body from time to time, but the Black Hole spell had become strong enough to affect his opponent''s offensive by that time. Meanwhile, the cloud spread and hid his figure, leaving Peaceful Storm confused about his actual position. It was a peculiar scene. A black cloud was slowly surrounding a spherical area of distorted space that kept on fending off the corrosive smoke thanks to the gales blowing in its insides. Noah knew that his saber-shaped runes would reach an incredible level of power in that environment, but he didn''t cast them because he wanted to leave all the primary energy released with the corrosive smoke to the Black Hole spell. His runes were too frail for the journey through the distorted space, but his unstable sphere could do the trick if it gathered enough energy. ''This brings up memories,'' Noah thought as he activated another spell while the cloud still covered him. The Empire had given him two spells as a payment for his pointers in the hybrids'' field. The Shadow Chains spell was troublesome to use due to all its restrictions, and Noah had even needed to modify it heavily before it could suit his individuality. As for the Shadow Copy spell, he had initially believed that a few changes to its diagram would have been enough to make it work. Yet, he soon discovered that he didn''t have enough power to make a copy of himself, even one meant only to launch a few attacks. His ambition was too intense, and his existence too complicated. His centers of power simply couldn''t sustain the consumption of energy required to create another Noah. Nevertheless, there was another living being that was easier to imitate since it was already an expression of himself. Noah focused, and four copies of the divided Demonic Sword appeared next to him as he floated in the middle of the black cloud. They didn''t carry the power of the original living weapon, nor the entirety of its complexity. They just managed to echo its destructive power, and that was enough for him. Two pairs of additional arms took form from the sides of his scaled armor and reached for the fake Demonic Swords. Then, they performed a downward slash that focused both fake and real weapons into a single attack. Peaceful Storm could only sense an intense, dangerous sensation before a long and deep cut appeared on his chest. Chapter 825: 825. Path Noah had been unable to use his old martial art since he had fused his body with a Cursed Dragon. The physical strength that he had been capable of expressing since that moment prevented him from using the forms ideated by the cultivators through the years. He was simply so strong that he couldn''t force himself to reach the human requirements that the martial arts had. That didn''t hinder his battle prowess too much because even his casual slashes could match the power of a spell since the insane body of a hybrid backed them. However, those attacks would be somewhat predictable due to the lack of intricate forms capable of giving birth to amazing effects. Noah had created martial arts over the years, but they had always been simple tools that made use of his physical strength. His greatest achievement in the past had been a slash that spread his destruction after it landed. Nevertheless, he had always abandoned those forms due to the lack of harmony in his centers of power. The "Breath" required to match his physical strength would often surpass what he was willing to consume. That issue had become somewhat bearable when his dantian reached the fourth rank. However, he still had to gather enough experience with his real power before creating something able to express everything that he was capable of. It had been more comfortable with the spells since his body didn''t play a part in their activation. Still, he had to become a complete rank 5 cultivator and create his Demonic Sword before he felt confident in creating a proper martial art. His current Dragon''s Claw was a rank 5 martial art with two forms. The first one created sharp lines that he could detonate to envelop his opponent in the corrosive smoke of the Demonic form. The second one used the Shadow Copy spell to perform a stronger version of the Third Form of the martial art that he had been forced to abandon when he was still a human cultivator. ''Void,'' Noah thought the name of the final technique of the Three Forms of the Ashura when he saw the black smoke in front of him dispersing due to his last attack. Void didn''t release any black line or corrosive smoke, but cut directly toward Noah''s target, severing everything in its path. It wasn''t a flashy technique, but it was quite complex to execute and extremely powerful. In its original version, the Third Form of the Three Forms of the Ashura would bring a cultivator''s body to its limit to express such power. However, in the modified version, Noah had to compensate for his already overwhelming physical strength by using a spell together with the martial art. Also, he had to be in the complete Demonic Form to create the additional arms and express the full power of what probably was his strongest attack. It was needless to say that the effects of such a technique were astonishing since it fused a hybrid body, a martial art, a spell, Noah''s darkness, and the Demonic Sword. Peaceful Storm couldn''t understand what had happened. A deep cut had appeared on his torso without him even seeing the attack that had caused it! His focus went on his area of distorted space at that point, and his eyes widened when he saw that a long gap had appeared in his defensive method. There was no black smoke on the edges of the gap, and the rest of his defensive method was still in place. Yet, a vast chunk of the distorted space between him and Noah was missing. For the first time in the battle, Peaceful Storm felt fear. If it weren''t for his defensive spell, Noah''s attack would have landed on his head, and half of his brain would have vanished in that case. As a rank 5 cultivator, there were only a few beings that could threaten Peaceful Storm''s life. However, they were quite easy to avoid, mainly since he belonged to the stronger organization in the Mortal Lands. Also, it was a rare event for cultivators in the fifth rank to engage in a deadly battle. The organization behind each of those assets would step forward whenever their life was in danger. After all, beings on that level were simply too valuable to risk losing them over something that could be solved with money and resources. Nevertheless, Noah had almost killed him in a battle for a city that the Empire was already ready to lose. Anger soon replaced the fear felt by Peaceful Storm. The cultivator from the Empire couldn''t accept that such a young monster had forced his survival instinct to resurface. His internal organs were about to come out of his injury, but he didn''t care. He had to show to the Demon Prince that his forty years spent at that level weren''t enough to match the experience gained in centuries of training. The remains of the distorted space exploded outward, enveloping the entirety of the black cloud and flinging Noah away. Then, Peaceful Storm followed that attack by unleashing almost all the talismans contained in his space-ring. The chaotic pressure hurt Noah''s internal organs as he flew backward, pushed away by the might of the explosion. Yet, his instincts suddenly sensed a significant threat following after him. Noah didn''t try to stop the pushing force of the explosion anymore at that point. He worked together with it to escape from the bad feeling that was drawing near. When his consciousness managed to analyze the cause of that threat, Noah could see that a wave of spells of the wind element was chasing after him as it filled the sky. It was as if a vertical tornado had appeared and was moving at high speed toward his position. Various spells made the tornado. Noah recognized all the talismans that Peaceful Storm had used previously together with other attacks that he had never seen. There were spears, slashes, griffins, and even a few peculiar wolves that seemed to hold all those forms together in a single offensive. ''Is this his most powerful attack?'' Noah thought as he used the Merging spell to escape faster from the incoming wave. There were simply too many spells in that wind-wave. Noah guessed that Peaceful Storm had activated more than two hundred talismans at the same time to create something so powerful! That wasn''t something that he could face alone, and he would have problems blocking it even with the help of the other Elders. ''His stash of talismans is simply incredible,'' Noah thought as he tried to find a way out of that situation with the Divine Deduction technique. ''He must have spent at least a century to create all of them.'' The Elders of the Hive noticed that attack, but they were busy with their battles and couldn''t intervene. Noah was on his own. ''I need to use everything.'' Noah calmly decided when he understood that he couldn''t avoid the wave. ''I need to open a path in the middle of the storm.'' Chapter 826: 826. Storm The copies of the Demonic Sword appeared once again next to Noah, and four fuming arms quickly rose from his scaled armor to wield them. The fake weapons and arms dissolved as soon as Noah performed a vertical slash. Yet, he didn''t wait to see the outcome of his attack. He directly activated the Warp spell and released the living weapon from his grasp. The Demonic Sword began to send black lines through the black flames on its own, and Noah created a series of Ghostly Sabers that he launched toward the center of the wind-wave. Then, he roared, releasing a series of white flames toward the enemy spells. In the end, he launched the Black Hole spell that was still hovering above him and summoned the Lazy Whale. The massive figure of his Blood Companion covered him and the Demonic Sword, which kept on sending slashes through the Warp spell even from inside the puppet. Noah had aimed all his attacks toward a specific spot in the barrage of spells to create an opening that would allow him to survive, and now he was simply waiting for the storm to reach him. The explosions echoing in the outside world sounded muffled from inside the Blood Companion, but Noah could sense how powerful they were through his consciousness. Also, his connection with the Black Hole spell was still active, and it gave him a general understanding of the amount of energy that it was absorbing. Nutrients slowly reached for his body. The Black Hole spell was sending part of the accumulated primary energy toward him, but Noah was too distant from his attack, and the transfer proceeded slowly. Yet, just a few strands of power that arrived filled him. Noah felt that his injuries were starting to heal as he bathed in that intense power, but the connection with the Black Hole spell suddenly broke, and a loud explosion followed that event. The insides of the Lazy Whale trembled as the shockwave engulfed the Blood Companion, but the storm reached him at that point, and everything became too chaotic to keep track of the outside world. The Blood Companion fell apart and reconstructed countless times in just a few seconds. Noah went from being full of energy to exhausted as soon as he clashed with Peaceful Storm''s attack. Cracks appeared on the ethereal figure of the whale inside his sea of consciousness as the cycle of destruction and reconstruction kept going until its half-transparent image crumbled entirely and fell on the sea below. Noah felt the death of his Blood Companion, but the strong offensive of his opponent didn''t give him time to focus on anything that wasn''t surviving. The scaled armor tried its best to destroy as much wind as it could, but it eventually fell apart, leaving Noah''s body exposed to the storm created by his opponent. Noah instincts took over him when his skin started to crack, and he released a roar accompanied by his flames to answer the furious attacks that had engulfed him. The Demonic Sword had stopped attacking and had reached him when the storm hit, and Noah held it tightly in his grasp as he waited for the storm to end. He didn''t feel hopeless. Peaceful Storm''s barrage of talismans had created a wild wave of spells, but they weren''t all aimed at him. Even such an experienced cultivator couldn''t control so many powerful attacks at once. So, Noah had calculated that he would have been able to survive if he destroyed enough spells in the area of the wave on his path. The only uncertainty was in how injured he would be after that. Noah spent minutes filled with pain and with the hot sensation generated by his flames. However, his calculations were on point, and he eventually opened his eyes only to find himself in an underground area. There was debris all over him, and he felt as if his body was in pieces. Yet, the connection with the Demonic Sword was still active, and his centers of power were fine, except for his body. He couldn''t help but release a laugh at that point. Even the accumulation of talismans of an old monster wasn''t able to kill him! The battles had temporarily stopped in the sky. Peaceful Storm had launched something so massive that he affected the even fights of the other heroic cultivators. The shockwaves that the storm released as it marched through the sky had also caused countless casualties in the city, which was nothing more than a pile of ruins after his attack. The Empire had suffered more though since its troops were surprised to see such a massive barrage of spells suddenly appearing above them. On the contrary, most of the cultivators of the Hive could notice the storm in time and hide. Of course, all the human assets of both sides had died, but Empire suffered far more losses for what concerned the cultivators in the fourth rank. As for those in the fifth rank, they were all alive, even if some of them were wounded. The anger of all the surviving heroic assets went on Peaceful Storm, who appeared utterly exhausted. Trying to control so many spells had drained his reserves of mental energy, but he needed to make sure that most of his firepower went after his opponent. He had failed to do that, but he felt still satisfied by the number of attacks that had concentrated in Noah''s position. In his mind, no cultivator in the gaseous stage of the fifth rank would be able to survive that offensive. After all, he had used only his most potent talismans, which had taken him more than decades to create. He didn''t mind the angry gazes of his enemies and companions. Killing the Demon Prince of the Hive was a great achievement, and sacrificing some cultivators in the fourth rank was just a small price to pay for that feat. Peaceful Storm even straightened his back to assume a proud stance now that the attention of all the heroic assets on the battlefield was on him. He wanted to make them think that he could launch another one of those attacks whenever he wanted. Nevertheless, debris began to move in the distance and claimed the attention of the cultivators from both sides. Noah''s bloodied figure climbed out of that rubble and slowly set foot on the cracked ground. He was holding the severed head of a rank 5 wolf-type beast in one hand, while his other arm covered the Demonic Sword that rested on his chest. The storm had injured his weapon too, which couldn''t fly anymore in that state. However, Noah wasn''t worried since he knew that its life wasn''t in danger. Peaceful Storm stared at him with wide eyes. He couldn''t believe that Noah had survived that attack! Noah ignored his reaction and took a bite from the wolf''s head before shouting something to Elder Julia. "You might want to gather the weapons." Chapter 827: 827. Victory Elder Julia snapped back to reality and dived toward the wreckage that was the ground to gather the living weapons left by the rank 4 cultivators that had died during the storm. The truth was that Noah''s safety had the priority in her mind, so she hadn''t thought about the living weapons until he resurfaced and proved his well-being. Of course, Noah was far from good. His body was a bloody mess. Peaceful Storm''s attack had broken his skin, torn his muscles, and damaged his internal organs. Only his bones appeared to be somewhat fine because they were resistant against that type of offensive. He would have to spend months in seclusion and consume a large number of powerful beasts to recover from his injuries and fix the Demonic Sword. Yet, he could stand and even put up a fight if the situation required it. The resilience of a hybrid was incredible, and Noah had smartly decided to rely on it only after using all his spells and technique to weaken the area of the storm that was aiming for him. With all those factors put together, it wasn''t a surprise that he had survived. However, that only applied to him and to the Elders that were aware of his abilities. The cultivators of the Empire felt amazed to see him surviving an attack that would be deadly for most existences in the gaseous stage of the fifth rank. After all, Noah had just reached that level in their eyes, but he was already an entity able to survive the most potent attacks of cultivators that had been in that rank for countless years! Most of them started to feel envious about his discoveries in the magical beasts'' field because they believed that his incredible achievements came from his status as a hybrid. They couldn''t possibly know that his darkness did most of the work in improving his abilities so that they could match those of his opponents. Also, with the Divine Deduction technique at hand, he could create and devise diagrams and methods far faster than his peers, which prevented him from stepping on higher levels unprepared. Elder Julia eventually gathered all the weapons dropped during the storm, but she returned to the sky with a sour expression on her face. There were almost ten living weapons among the wreckage, meaning that the same number of Elders in the fourth rank had died due to Peaceful Storm''s attack. Those losses weighed on the overall power of the Hive since it had spent the last decades gathering cultivators and nourishing them until the heroic ranks. The positive trend that it had experienced in those years had ended at that moment, and it would take the same amount of time to recover from that. Wars were necessary to balance the political power in the world whenever a significant event happened, and the cultivators needed that kind of struggle to improve. However, the weaker side would always feel its losses more than the powerful organizations. The Empire had lost a lot in that battle. Still, Elder Julia couldn''t help but reconsider if the Hive was ready for that war. It would take a while before their victories started to provide real gains. Those territories only featured useful buildings in the end, and the Empire could always move its resources away from their valuable domains when it felt that it was about to lose them. The invading forces would start to obtain valuable assets only when the entirety of the Empire''s territories on the new continent fell, and the war moved to the old continent. The sight of Noah casually eating the wolf''s head and dropping a few pieces of its flesh on the Demonic Sword, steeled Elder Julia''s determination. The Hive wasn''t as strong as the other organization, but it had some of the best talents in the entirety of those Mortal Lands. Its power wasn''t in its weaker troops but its exceptional leaders. After all, creating cannon fodder was easy, but cultivators like Noah and Divine Demon''s disciples were assets that even the other forces envied. "I hope the Empire won''t lose its cool next time," Elder Julia said as she shot a glance toward Peaceful Storm. The troops of the Empire pretended not to have heard her and retreated without saying a word. There wasn''t a city to protect anymore, so the battle had ended without winners. The Hive could only take it as a victory because it had obtained more lands to add to its domain. After the cultivators of the Empire left, the Elders gathered around Noah, who had simply sat on the ground. Only Danielle didn''t stay to check on him and returned to the Hive with a conflicted expression. Noah had noticed her behavior, but there wasn''t much that he could do about her. He technically was the leader of the hybrids in the Hive, but he couldn''t give them moral support. He could only show them how to make use of their superior bodies and wait until they lost their unwavering faith toward the teachings of their ancestors. "How long will it take for you to recover?" Elder Julia asked as she analyzed his injuries. "I''d say seven months," Noah answered while dropping another piece of flesh over the Demonic Sword. "You should be fine for the battles in this region." Elder Julia nodded at his words. She felt glad that he wasn''t as wounded as it appeared, but there was another issue that they had to cover before he secluded himself to focus on healing. "Do you believe that Danielle Duron will honor the oath?" Elder Julia asked. The human assets deployed by the Hive were mostly hybrids that needed someone able to control them since their mental instabilities were too prominent on their level. There were leaders among them that followed Noah''s orders, but they would need a replacement now that he was injured. Danielle was the only available candidate for that spot since she could force them to behave as soldiers rather than as beasts. Yet, without Noah''s presence in the battles, there would be no one able to stop her without triggering her oath. Elder Julia was worried that her mental instabilities could lead her to break her pact with the Hive and kill her. A hybrid in the fifth rank was too valuable to lose it due to a lack of proper containment methods. So, Elder Julia was asking the only one that could know something about that matter if Danielle could control herself without him on her same battlefield. Noah had to admit that he couldn''t control her too much, even if he were there since she was stronger than him. She had all the power needed to ignore his orders and just do as she wished. Nevertheless, part of his deal with her was that she had to perform well in the war, and benching her would just slow down the improvements that she was making by following Noah''s example. "She should behave, so keep her in the attacking team," Noah answered before taking out another beast''s corpse. Chapter 828: 828. Divine Noah dug a cave among the ruins of the city when he felt that his body had stabilized. The Hive had already decided that Elder Justin would be his replacement in the upcoming battles, so he could focus on recovering. Elder Julia would send him detailed reports after every fight too. The Hive didn''t want him to return to the battlefields unprepared. Noah ate entire rank 5 magical beasts every week and divided their flesh between him and the Demonic Sword. It took his weapon one month before the cracks on its surface closed, and it could resume its position as a core item of his cultivation technique. Days spent meditating and eating passed in the calm environment of the cave. The sound of footsteps often resounded from the surface, but Noah didn''t mind them and continued his slow recovery. He even analyzed his last battle against Peaceful Storm, which gave him ideas on how his battle prowess should evolve. The power of the second form of his martial art was incredible. Fusing a martial art performed with a hybrid body and a spell gave results that surprised even him. Of course, he had tested that attack when he was in the separate dimension, but he needed data from a real battle against a cultivator to understand how strong it was. It turned out that its power surpassed even his wildest predictions, which led him to explore that path further. The conquest of the other Mortal Lands had provided to the organizations of Noah''s world a broad series of techniques and spells that made use of the peculiar qualities of the natives. Most of them used their ability to control the "Breath" in the environment, but there were some that placed their superior physical strength as a core feature. However, the members of the Bloodlines were simply too few compared to the Flawed Humans. With so many cultivators lacking a dantian, the development of martial arts that made use of their strong bodies progressed slowly. Also, that wasn''t even their primary focus since their dream was to transform into perfect hybrids, which would render such techniques impracticable. Noah understood their point of view, but he felt disappointed to find himself wandering again in uncharted territories. Developing attacks that made use of both spells and martial arts would be far easier if he could gain inspiration from existing schools. ''I guess I can only create a new kind of technique,'' Noah thought as he evaluated the issue as he waited for his body to heal. It wasn''t a surprise that there weren''t examples of his idea in the world. It was already hard to find martial arts that made use of the physical strength of a hybrid in the other Mortal lands. A school that added spells to those rare forms couldn''t exist because there had never existed someone able to wield such power. ''Creating forms isn''t a problem,'' Noah evaluated as he thought about the diagram in his possession, ''But finding suitable spells is troublesome, especially for me. I feel that I lack the core materials needed for these new kinds of attacks.'' Noah had been able to recreate the Third Form of his previous martial art because he had a series of spells that met its requirements. However, doing the same for multiple attacks was hard since he would have to invent both forms and spells from scratch at some point. ''I can only focus on what I already have now,'' Noah concluded in his mind, ''This project will have to wait for the end of the war.'' The war continued while he was busy healing. Even the four organizations involved couldn''t fight too often, but there was at least a battle every two months. The three invading factions would mostly fight separately and focus on different cities. Still, there were times when the armies had to join their forces to conquest specific locations that had troublesome defensive measures. The Hive didn''t suffer such heavy losses in the following battles anymore. It was rare for rank 5 cultivators to lose their control and involve the weaker troops. The events with Peaceful Storms had been a case, and it was mostly Noah''s fault that he had decided to go all out. The conquest of the territories under the control of the Empire proceeded slowly since the cities started to feature more defensive measures as the three armies reached for the north-eastern coast. Also, the injuries suffered by the heroic cultivators took time to heal, and the three invaders didn''t want to deploy all their assets in that war. It would be too easy for one of the nations to double-cross its allies, so the invading forces maintained stable defenses in their respective domains. Noah came out of his cave ten months after his battle against Peaceful Storm. His body and the Demonic Sword had been fine for a while by then, but there wasn''t any fight in that period, so he simply continued to cultivate until Elder Julia summoned him. After a year of battles, the Empire had lost its control over the central areas of the new continent. Everything was going smoothly from the invaders'' side, but the first real struggles appeared once they reached the valuable territories of their enemy. The Council had fought its last battle over a barren mountain chain where the Empire had built a series of castles that worked as a formation. The outcome of that fight had been the total defeat of the forces of the Papral nation, with only its rank 5 Elders managing to escape the battlefield. Generally speaking, such a loss would force an organization to reorganize and prepare a strategy. Still, the Council had decided to contact its allies as soon as its Elders returned home. The defenses in that area were too powerful, which meant that they had to protect something precious! The Elbas family and the Hive had agreed with that hypothesis. They had moved the focus of the war on that territory, uniting their forces again to form a massive army. Noah had initially been surprised to see so many heroic assets deployed on a single battlefield. Still, he understood the reason behind the eagerness of the three forces when he reached the barren mountains. The castles built on the mountain peaks seemed extremely dangerous, but none of the heroic assets hovering at some distance in the sky cared about them. Their attention was on the ancient aura radiated from somewhere in at the center of that mountain chain. ''Traces left by divine beings!'' Noah shouted in his mind when he sensed that aura. He understood now that the Council had found one of the most valuable territories of the Empire during its advance, and it didn''t hesitate to ask for its allies'' help to seize it. Any organization would generally try to conquer such an area by itself, but the Council knew that it couldn''t defeat those defenses by itself. It needed its allies to break through one of the most protected areas in the entirety of the new continent. Chapter 829: 829. Strategy Noah wasn''t at his peak. The loss of his Blood Companion had removed one of his most reliable weapons, and he didn''t have time to find a replacement during his period of healing. Also, he had to review the Body-inscription spell to understand why it didn''t suit his darkness, which was something that didn''t allow him to express its full power. However, he wasn''t too weakened either. He had already stopped relying on his Blood Companion in the battles against the rank 5 cultivators of the Empire because he had far stronger abilities at hand. Of course, the lack of his last line of defense would force him to be a bit more careful in case another old monster snapped and unleashed their centennial accumulation on him. Still, he didn''t plan to hold back or, rather, he wasn''t sure that the situation allowed him to do so. The troops of the Empire set off from the castles and rose in the sky to face the three armies that had gathered in that territory to take control of the traces left by divine existences. The army that they formed appeared majestic. It featured twenty rank 5 cultivators and more than a hundred experts in the fourth rank that looked at the enemies with resolute expressions. They appeared ready to die to defend that area. A swarm of human cultivators followed their appearance. The surface of the mountains became crowded, and thousands of warriors prepared themselves for the imminent clash. Noah felt surprised to discover that most of those human troops were cultivators in the third rank! ''The reserves of the Empire are amazing,'' Noah thought. The number of human assets of the Empire was simply incredible. No other organization could even come close to that manpower. However, the Empire wasn''t facing just one force. Noah moved his attention to his side, where heroic cultivators dressed with three different types of robes hovered in the sky and analyzed the battlefield. The Elbas family had deployed eight cultivators in the fifth rank and more than forty in the fourth rank, and it had relied even on the noble families under its control to fill those spots. All its assets though wore the golden robes of the Royal family and performed a series of analyses with items that Noah didn''t recognize. June wasn''t among them. Noah guessed that she was still busy tuning her techniques and spells to her new lightning. After all, she didn''t spend thirty years testing and improving them as he had done, and her new energy required even more attention than his darkness. Her well-being didn''t worry him since she had the key that opened the separate dimension with her. Even if the Royals started to suspect something, she would just leave. The Council counted eight rank 5 cultivators too and a bit less than forty rank 4 Elders. Its assets wore green robes filled with protective inscriptions, and they assembled in peculiar battle formations as they prepared for the imminent battle. Noah didn''t see Faith either. Yet, she and June were basically on the same level, which meant that she was probably tuning her abilities too, or simply preparing for a significant breakthrough. ''June should be far stronger now,'' Noah had that random thought as he moved his gaze toward the cultivators next to him. He believed that the centers of power of the two women were on the same level, but June had access to higher energy, which put her far above her peers. The Hive had deployed many assets too, but their numbers paled compared to those of the allied forces. There were only twenty-five rank 4 Elders on Noah''s side and six cultivators in the fifth rank if Noah included himself. Elder Justin didn''t return to the territories of the Hive when Noah rejoined the battlefield because the fight in front of them was simply too important. However, Noah was surprised to see Amos Udye wearing the robe of the Hive and standing side by side with the other Elders and Danielle. It seemed that the Hive had decided to give a chance to the Udye family and was using that decisive battle as a sort of test. Truth to be told, all the heroic cultivators of the Udye family had to swear strict oaths when they joined the Hive. Those oaths weren''t like those of the Elbas family and didn''t restrict the freedom of the nobles. It just prevented them from ever betraying the Hive and forced them to follow the orders of the higher-ups of their new organizations. Nevertheless, Chasing Demon didn''t want to welcome those nobles too soon and had left them inside Noah''s dome to see how they behaved. The current battle then arrived, and the Patriarch decided that it was time to test Amos'' reliability by making him join the fray. The human troops of the invading forces arrived too and prepared for the battle. They formed a sea of cultivators that used various methods to defend themselves from the pressure created by the environment of the new continent. The Hive had to deploy actual human cultivators together with the hybrids since the chaos caused by Peaceful Storm. Yet, the overall power of its human troops didn''t decrease since there were many elites among them. "Prince," Elder Julia neared Noah when she noticed his arrival, "Do you need another explanation of the defenses of the area?" Noah shook his head at her question. She had already sent him a detailed report that described the protections uncovered by the Council during its first attack. The castles acted as the cores of a vast formation, but the area had multiple defensive methods, and the Council had managed to trigger three of them during their previous offensive. Its troops had to face the blue pillars found in the other cities, strange shadow figures that imitated their abilities, and a series of hybrids caged inside the mountains with special chains. There were bound to be more defenses, but the invaders had more heroic and human assets, which gave them some confidence in challenging those protections. However, none of the three forces believed that they would conquer that territory in just one assault. They knew too little about that area, and they would have to face the army of the Empire at the same time. The odds weren''t in their favor. "The Elbas family will record everything and prepare countermeasures for the next battle," Elder Julia began to explain their strategy. "The Council will take care of defending against the defensive methods with their battle formations. As for us, we have to reduce their number of heroic assets. We stand no chance if we have to deal with the army and the formations at the same time." Noah nodded at her words. The plan made use of the specialization of each organization and would limit the casualties on their side if nothing unusual happened. The Demonic Sword roared as Noah wielded it and scanned the battlefield to look for a suitable opponent, only to find Countless Wings staring at him with clear battle intent in her eyes. Chapter 830: 830. Chase Everyone on the battlefield knew that the fight would be tough and bloody, but no one showed any hesitation. There were traces left by divine beings as the prize, which were the most valuable resource in the new continent. All the organizations would pay any price to take control over them, even if they had to sacrifice heroic assets in the process. The battle suddenly started, and the battle cries of the invading forces filled the mountain chain. Multicolored flashes soon shone both in the sky and ground as the two massive armies crashed on each other. Noah went directly for Countless Wings. He didn''t see Peaceful Storm on the battlefield, but he knew that the cultivator of the Empire had probably informed the other assets about his techniques. However, he didn''t care. After all, there wasn''t a proper way to block the second form of his martial art, and he knew his new opponent too. The only issue was whether she had a trump card just as Peaceful Storm did. The death of the Lazy Whale had removed his last line of defense, but Noah now knew how powerful those old monsters could be. Also, Countless Wings didn''t seem the type to accumulate an immense number of attacks. Noah expected her to use more items that weakened the magical beasts rather than rely on disposable weapons. Countless Wings smiled when she saw him charging at her and created insect wings behind her hunched back to boost her flying speed and force Noah to chase her. Her trail made of flames reappeared too, and the same went for the fiery butterflies. Noah immediately deployed the Black Hole spell and summoned a series of Ghostly Sabers as he chased after her. He had even activated the complete Demonic Form since the beginning of the fight. He had revealed all his abilities in the previous battles, so there was no point in holding back, hoping that he could catch his opponent by surprise. Countless Wings knew that her battle tactic was bound to fail when Noah went all out, but she kept on escaping. It was clear that she had some kind of strategy in her mind, but Noah could only play along as he looked for an opening. What was surprising was that she didn''t shoot any arrow as the chase continued, which made Noah catch up far faster than the last time. Yet, when she was about to enter the range of his attacks, Countless Wings took out an inscribed crossbow from her space-ring and fired a series of inscribed arrows. Noah saw more than ten arrows catching on fire as they flew toward him. The crossbow seemed able to shoot fifteen of them at the same time, but the issue was in the power behind those inscribed items. The arrows were weapons at the peak of the fourth rank, and the crossbow radiated the power of the fifth rank. Also, the arrows flying toward Noah had been enhanced with a spell and with the particular substance that weakened Noah''s body, which made them even more dangerous. Noah could immediately see that the Black Hole spell wasn''t able to change the trajectory of those attacks, and he didn''t feel confident in blocking all of them with his Demonic Sword. He could mitigate the damage by destroying most of them, but his instincts were telling him that he shouldn''t let any of those arrows scratch his skin. Noah pushed the Black Hole spell forward and detonated it when it came in contact with the fiery darts. Everything in the range of the explosion turned into ashes and a massive area made of primary energy formed in the sky. Nevertheless, Countless Wings was surprised to discover that Noah hadn''t waited for the power of the explosion to fade before moving again. He had jumped right through the shockwaves to gain terrain on her! The might of the explosion burned part of his skin but left most of his more valuable tissues intact. Also, the Demonic Form had absorbed part of the impact and had reformed after he crossed the detonation. Countless Wings didn''t expect such a reckless act, but Noah was simply making use of the incredible natural defenses of the hybrids. A reckless battle style was perfect for his species. The cultivator from the Empire started to retreat again, but Noah had become close enough, and fake arms were already materializing on the sides of his scaled armor. Four copies of the Demonic Sword appeared too, and he wielded them to perform his most potent attack. Countless Wings didn''t look back and sprinted in unpredictable directions, trying to dodge the incoming attack that her mind labeled as deadly. Then, a sudden wave of pain spread from her right arm and spread through her body. Countless Wings turned only to see that her arm was missing and that only a small piece of flesh and bones had remained attached to her shoulder. The injury though didn''t slow her down and only made her more determined on putting some distance between the two of them. Luckily for her, the inscribed crossbow didn''t require two arms to use, so she could still apply her previous battle tactic. Noah seemed to have the upper hand for the entirety of the fight. Countless Wings would just escape and force Noah to defend until he managed to catch up and unleash his threatening technique. His attacks didn''t always work though. Noah''s recklessness had surprised Countless Wings once, but she wasn''t going to let that happen again. There were many times in which Noah''s reached her, but found himself unable to land any attack because she was either too far away or was already preparing herself to dodge. Noah seemed to have the advantage even in that case, but he knew that Countless Wings was baiting his attacks on purpose. After all, she could have just changed place with one of her companions if she was really in danger. However, she appeared set on winning that battle, even if she had to rely on a cowardly tactic. Noah was using four spells continuously, and he cast another one whenever he was close enough. The amount of energy consumed after creating his darkness had lowered by a lot, but he was still using too many attacks. Also, the spells depleted his mental energy at the usual speed, which wasn''t ideal considering that Countless Wings was trying to drag the battle on purpose. It was evident that Noah would become exhausted before her, but there was nothing that he could do about that. It was just a matter of battle styles and a lack of viable alternatives. Nevertheless, Countless Wings was suffering her fair share of injuries as the chase continued. Her left foot was gone too, and there was a long wound on her hunched back. The truth was that Noah only needed one precise attack, and the battle would be over. Shining lines suddenly appeared on the mountain chain and forced the battles to a stop. Most cultivators of the invading forces retreated, but the forces of the Council didn''t leave the battlefield. Chapter 831: 831. Predic Even if the assets of the three invading forces had specific roles to play in the battle, all of them had joined the fray and had fought against suitable opponents. However, when the inscriptions on the mountain chain lit up, the Elders of the Council stepped forward to activate a battle formation. The battle formation resembled a dance of some sort, nothing like the forms that Noah had seen when he fought against the disciples of the Charming Demon sect. The Elders in the fifth rank moved above those in the fourth rank in a synchronized ball that formed golden platforms under each cultivator involved in that technique. Golden lines then came out of the platforms and gave birth to a tall shield that clashed with the blue light coming out from the inscriptions on the mountain chain. It seemed that the protection had managed to stop the creation of the blue pillar by blocking the spreading of its light. The shield eventually shattered, and the formations on the mountains went dark, signaling the failed activation of the first defensive method of that territory. Loud cheers followed that scene, and both armies didn''t hesitate to resume their battles now that the situation was safe. Noah and Countless Wings started their cycle of attacks and chase again, but the cultivator from the Empire noticed how her opponent had blood on the corners of his mouth. Noah had used that short break to eat a few pieces of a rank 5 magical beast to refill some of the energy inside his body. That meal didn''t do much since he had only suffered minor injuries during the previous exchanges, but every slight advantage mattered in a fight between rank 5 cultivators. On the other hand, Countless Wings had to use her consciousness to stop her wounds from bleeding. After all, her missing arm and foot weren''t an issue in the short-term, but they could influence the outcome of the fight since she was aiming to exhaust Noah. The chase resumed, and Noah didn''t hesitate to use all his power to push his opponent''s reaction speed to its limits. He only needed to hit a vital spot once, and the battle would be over! Countless Wings did her best to be one step ahead of Noah always. She even started to overestimate him just to fight in the safest way possible. However, there was a limit to how effective the same tactic could be, especially against someone that owned the Divine Deduction technique. Noah had begun to feel the consequences of using so many spells at the same time before the pause caused by the defensive measure. He wasn''t tired yet, but his thoughts had started to feel sluggish. That was only a natural consequence of how fast he was depleting his mental energy, but his sea of consciousness was still fine. It had yet to reach the point where it started to affect his battle prowess. Nevertheless, that sluggishness made Noah consider the possibility that Countless Wings could win if they kept fighting like that. Noah intended to pressure her until she committed a mistake. After all, it had already happened three times, and he had managed to exploit those opportunities. However, she was being too careful now and didn''t reveal any opening, which forced Noah in a pointless chase. As he watched his attacks missing every time, Noah calmly accepted that his opponent wouldn''t commit any other mistake. ''I expected nothing less from an old monster,'' Noah thought as his determination surged. That realization forced Noah to decide between two options. The first one was to retreat and pick an opponent that wasn''t so prepared to fight him. The second one was to use even more mental energy to find a flaw in that battle style. Of course, Noah decided to follow the second approach. Changing opponents now would only create more problems since he would have to spend some time learning their abilities. Also, Noah wanted to prevail. He couldn''t accept that Countless Wings could defeat him just because her strategy was troublesome to handle. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique as he continued the cycle of chase and attacks. The inscriptions on the walls of his mental sphere helped him in sorting all the images of his clashes with Countless Wings. As he kept on fighting, more images appeared in his mind and joined the pile analyzed with the help of the divine technique. Noah quickly confirmed that Countless Wings was simply perfect in the execution of her strategy. It was her ignorance for what concerned his power that had caused her initial mistakes, but she had quickly become used to his real strength and had adapted her reactions. No matter how much Noah analyzed, there simply wasn''t any flaw. Yet, that didn''t mean that there wasn''t a way to defeat her. Countless Wings performed an evasive maneuver every time Noah attacked her with his second form. The direction in which she escaped was casual, and she even managed to hide any type of habit. However, she could only escape in a limited number of directions, and Noah could decide which ones she was most likely to pick with the amount of data analyzed by the Divine Deduction technique. Another series of inscribed arrows flew toward Noah and met a large Black Hole spell. Noah jumped through the explosion and prepared the attack that he had launched more than fifty times in that battle, but he didn''t unite all his arms at that time. Instead, he decided to use a weaker version of his second form, but that was capable of releasing two powerful slashes aimed in the directions where Countless Wings was most likely to dodge. When Countless Wings noticed that Noah had changed his approach, it was too late for her to do anything about it. Countless Wings saw the space on her right vanishing when one of Noah''s attacks reached her position, but she showed a confused expression when she sensed its power. Yet, pain suddenly spread from her back and forced her to focus on the state of her body. The only problem was that most of her body was missing. Countless Wings'' eyes widened when she saw that the left part of her body had disappeared. It wasn''t only her back. Even her left leg was nowhere to be found. It was needless to say that she couldn''t maintain her speed anymore with that injury. Noah had cut her in half, and she was managing to remain conscious just because her head and heart were still attached to that wreckage of a body. Countless Wings dived toward the ground at that point. She knew that she could still preserve her life if she managed to reach a safe position. However, a black sword suddenly appeared in her vision, and her world became dark. Chapter 832: 832. Defensive methods Noah dispersed the Demonic Form to hold Countless Wings'' maimed corpse from its neck. His free hand then went for the remains of her low waist to find a shining organ that radiated an immense amount of energy. An eerie silence spread through the battlefield. Every asset was busy fighting suitable opponents, but the death of a rank 5 cultivators didn''t go unnoticed. The eyes of the heroic cultivators went on Noah, who didn''t hesitate to eat the organ right in front of everyone. There was no point in hiding his hybrid''s habits anymore, and waiting would only spoil Countless Wings'' dantian. Noah felt an immense amount of "Breath" filling his body and fusing with his cells that broke it down until it became primary energy ready to nourish them. The burns caused by his reckless battle style started to heal when he absorbed those nutrients, and his hunger almost vanished in the short minute that it took him to make that energy his. Not even the magical beasts in the middle tier of the fifth rank provided so much energy. The dantian of a rank 5 cultivator that was nearing the peak of the gaseous stage contained so much "Breath" that even stronger creatures found it hard to match that amount of energy. Noah kept his consciousness on the battle, but he closed his eyes to enjoy the incredible sensation of having his hunger fulfilled. Also, as the nutrients became part of him, he started to sense the limits of the middle tier! ''It took me more than forty years!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he understood that the breakthrough in the upper tier was drawing near. Yet, he couldn''t help but feel slightly worried about the potential repercussion that such an improvement could have on his mental state. His body improved faster than his other centers of power, almost too fast. He knew that its growth would eventually slow down due to the lack of suitable prey. Yet, his mind was still not ready to handle the power of the upper tier. ''I still need some years,'' Noah thought as he reopened his eyes. ''It''s time to resume devouring the wills of the magical beasts to push my mind as much as I can before the breakthrough.'' Noah couldn''t think of any other solution at the moment, and he wasn''t willing to slow down his growth when he could just train harder. Also, he didn''t use the abilities of his mental energy at all in the last years, which gave to the walls of his sea of consciousness time to reach new levels of sturdiness. His mind would be fine even if he abused those devouring abilities for a while. Noah let Countless Wings'' corpse go when he finished absorbing the primary energy. It would take a few days for all his tissues to grow according to the nutrients gained. Still, they had already improved by a lot in that short minute. ''Now they have even seen that I can split my strongest attack,'' Noah thought as he moved his attention to the crowd of cultivators looking at him. The truth was that the split version of the second form of his martial art wasn''t too powerful, but Countless Wings had focused on dodging his attacks rather than blocking them. For example, that split version wouldn''t have been enough to pierce the entirety of Peaceful Storm''s distorted space. Yet, it was perfect for Countless Wings, even if Noah had to take a significant risk when he decided to pursue that approach. His mental energy had reached a critical condition. Using the Divine Deduction technique together with his other spells had weighed on his mind even worse than Noah had expected. His mind felt quite sluggish now. He felt the need to rest, but it didn''t seem that his enemies were willing to give him time to recover. The cultivators of the Empire were shooting hateful gazes toward him, but their opponents quickly forced them to resume their battles. Noah had managed to kill the first asset in the fifth rank in the fight, so it was the perfect time to force the rest of the army into a corner. A wave of casualties followed Countless Wings'' death. Heroic cultivators had already started to die before the appearance of the blue light. Still, the defeat of one of their leaders further increased the numerical advantage of the invading forces. The weaker rank 5 cultivators of the Empire found themselves against two enemies on their same level, which eventually led to substantial injuries. The defending assets in the fourth rank faced a similar issue too, even if it was harder to isolate cultivators when they were in the middle of an army. Meanwhile, Noah waited for his mental energy to recover and analyzed the battlefield to see if he could help in some battles without wasting too much power. The formation on the mountain chain lit up again at that point, and a series of shadows set off from the ground to join the fray. Noah saw a shadow coming toward him and launching a series of black bullets that resembled the copy of a spell of the water element. ''It''s inferior to the Copying technique,'' Noah evaluated as he let his Demonic Sword handle the incoming shards. The shadow seemed to have the power of a cultivator at the bottom of the fifth rank, but its attacks were so frail that the Demonic Sword alone could take care of them. That was the second defensive method of the territory, and there wasn''t a real way to counter it, according to the Council. The invading forces could only hold their ground until the Empire stopped providing energy to that part of the formation. Something capable of making bad copies of rank 5 cultivators would deplete an incredible number of Credits to function, and even the Empire would have to stop at some point. The biggest issue with that defensive method was that it was quite weak and only meant to support the actual troops on the battlefield. Also, there was a limit to how many cultivators it could copy, which turned out to be barely enough to make up for the numerical advantage of the invaders. ''It''s similar to my new spell, but I don''t think they have any awareness,'' Noah thought as he watched the battle between his weapon and the shadow. ''They even repeat the same attack over and over. They can only be annoying in this situation.'' Such a defensive method would have been useful if both armies had a similar power, but the invaders were more numerous, and the Empire had already suffered some critical losses. Noah remained still in the sky as the battles unfolded. He felt it necessary to study his potential opponents, but he didn''t limit his analysis on the cultivators of the Empire. After all, that alliance was bound to end at some point. Then, the ground shook, and a series of holes appeared on the sides of the mountains. Roars soon filled the battlefield as a series of powerful hybrids revealed themselves. Chapter 833: 833. Horse The hybrids came out from holes on the side of the mountains near the battles between the human troops, but their roars forced them to pause the hostilities. There were more than sixty hybrids in the heroic ranks, with seven of them being in the fifth rank, and the human cultivators of the invading forces stared at them in fear. They didn''t know if they were the target of those mighty creatures. However, the hybrids soon shot in the air toward the battlefield featuring heroic cultivators and revealed the massive chains that kept them linked to the bottom of those fissures. The chains were inscribed items similar to those used to restrain the slaves. It seemed that the Empire had managed to improve its iconic inscribed chains so that they could work even on those creatures. Also, most of those hybrids weren''t perfect beings but were Elite beasts that had developed a sea of consciousness during the transformation. Noah found the fact that the chains were able to control them quite amazing. ''I can join this one,'' Noah thought as he called the Demonic Swords and dived toward one of the incoming hybrids in the fifth rank. Due to his vast knowledge in the field, Noah could choose the creature that would require the least amount of mental energy to defeat. His target ended up to be a Horned Horse in the middle tier of the fifth rank. The Horse was six meters tall and had two pairs of horns coming out of its forehead and pointing ahead. It was a magical beast of the earth element that could control the ground to sprint toward its opponent, but its innate abilities were far weaker in the air. Also, the specimen that Noah had chosen as his target was a perfect hybrid, which meant that it had access to an inferior version of "Breath". Just when Noah thought that the Empire was wasting the power of the creature, the Horse created a series of platforms under its hoofs to sprint toward him. Noah found the horns of the Horse threatening to stab his chest in less than an instant, but he had reacted in time and slashed with the Demonic Sword to deviate the sudden attack. He felt surprised though. It seemed that the inscribed chains were forcing the hybrid to control its instincts and use all the abilities at its disposal. ''Sanity in exchange for slavery?'' Noah smirked when he thought that. ''This can''t be a solution to the issue.'' He knew the effects of the inscribed chains of the Empire. They were able to suppress even the essence of a living being, which turned it into nothing more than a puppet. His solution to the mental instabilities of the hybrids was a form of suppression too, but it wasn''t something so thorough that even his will was affected. He simply used his superior mind to keep his instincts in check and have the possibility to decide to let them take control. The Horned Horse found itself high in the sky when it managed to stop its charge. Yet, Noah was already behind it, ready to slash with his divided Demonic Sword. The weakness of that species was that it needed a run-up to make that sudden acceleration, which meant that Noah only had to keep pressuring it to block its most potent attack. The Horse controlled the "Breath" around it once again when it noticed that Noah was already attacking, and a layer of rocks appeared to form a protective armor. Also, the Horse even used the "Breath" inside its dantian to add more layers of protection to its defensive spell. Noah''s weapons crashed on its armor and dug deep cuts in it. Black smoke spread from the Demonic Sword too, and the layers of rocks began to crumble. Noah battle intent rose when he saw that the Horse could endure his physical strength. Most of his opponents would just explode if he were to land such a powerful attack directly on their bodies. The Horse neighed when Noah''s aura surged, and the latter answered with a roar that spread white flames all over its body. The hybrid didn''t hesitate to turn its armor into a series of spikes that shot in every direction and flung Noah back as he defended against them. The Horse finally had some space at that point and retreated only to perform the iconic sprint of that species with the help of platforms made of "Breath" of the earth element. Noah had just finished defending against the spikes when four horns appeared in front of him once again and threatened to pierce him from side to side. However, he quickly let go of the Demonic Sword to grab those horns and allow them to push him backward. Noah and the Horned Horse flew for entire kilometers, dividing the battlefield into two sides and running over multiple cultivators, hybrids, and shadows on their path. The Horse eventually understood that slamming Noah on other living beings wouldn''t be enough to make him land on its horns, so it changed direction and began to sprint downward. Impaling him to the ground seemed far more feasible than keeping on running around until his physical strength gave up to the countless clashes. Of course, Noah was just waiting for an opportunity to gain the advantage of the situation. When the two of them were almost on the ground, Noah spun on himself and used the momentum generated by the Horse to slam it on the side of the mountain right under them. The earth shook, and a huge crack formed in the area of impact, but Noah didn''t hesitate to grab the chains and pull them with all his strength. The Horse struggled, but its physical strength was slightly inferior to Noah''s due to a matter of species and progression in the middle tier. It shot in the air as Noah pulled and it met his punch when it reached him. Noah sent the hybrid back on the ground, but he pulled again to deliver another strong punch. The process repeated itself for a few times until the Demonic Sword reached him, and he wielded it to replace his punches with powerful slashes. Noah pulled, slashed, and flung the hybrid back on the side of the mountain multiple times. The Horse would manage to cast a defensive spell between one attack and another, but deep cuts appeared on its skin most of the time. The cuts eventually deepened and reached for the strong muscles of that specimen, but the chain in his grasp started to shine at that point, and the Horse answered to that unusual event with a loud neigh followed by human words. "I will kill all of you!" Noah didn''t know if the hybrids intended to kill the invaders or if its words were directed to the Empire, but he didn''t care. He was only interested in the powerful dantian of the creature. Chapter 834: 834. Giants That sudden awareness gained from the Horned Horse allowed it to find a way out of Noah''s incessant offensive. When Noah pulled the chains again, the hybrid used its innate ability to sprint even faster than before while covering its body with a layer of rocky armor. Noah sidestepped the charge, but one of his four horns managed to stab his chest and leave a long horizontal injury as it went past him. Since he was still holding onto the inscribed chains, he started flying alongside the charging Horse. ''Did the chain just force it to suppress its mental instabilities?'' Noah thought as he flew through the battlefield again as he kept his grasp on the inscribed item. He didn''t miss the flashes radiated by the chains while he was beating the creature, but he only managed to link them to the change in the behavior of his opponent now. It was as if they had forced it to regain its consciousness. ''Is it due to the absolute control that these bindings have once connected to a slave?'' Noah pondered about that feature, but the Horned Horse had managed to stop its charge at that point and was waiting for him with its horns pointed straight at his flying figure. Noah didn''t hesitate to dive among the horns with his Demonic Sword pointed toward the center of its forehead. A series of rocky layers appeared in the trajectory of his weapon, but Noah completely disregarded them and continued to pour his darkness into the sword. The Demonic Sword began to release black smoke that helped it pierce the defensive spell of the hybrid and stab its forehead. Yet, it didn''t manage to reach the brain of the creature since its skull was too sturdy. Of course, the battle would have ended far sooner if Noah used his spells, but he was trying to refill his mental sphere at the moment, and he didn''t need them to defeat his opponent. The Horse had just used three spells, which weren''t even that effective against him. There was a limit to how much a sudden acceleration and an exploding armor could do to him after he had to face Countless Wings'' strategy. ''It probably was a Flawed Human before the transformation.'' Noah thought as he delivered a punch to pull the Demonic Sword from its skull. ''It doesn''t have a great diversity of spells, and the platforms are just a trick that allows it to use its innate ability in the air.'' The Horse neighed in pain, but Noah interrupted its cry with another series of slashes. The corrosive smoke released by his Demonic Sword started to envelop its figure, but the rocky armor appeared again and forced him to break it with another series of attacks. ''Even someone so inexperienced can survive this long just because it''s a hybrid,'' Noah thought when he began to feel annoyed by the resilience of his opponent. Strictly speaking, the Horned Horse wasn''t strong, and it even fought poorly for a creature capable of complex thoughts. It had its sporadic moments of awareness when it managed to use its hybrid status to be threatening, but its lack of spells made it just a bit more resistant than a magical beast. Its physical strength was above the average of its species, but Noah had fused himself with a dragon. The only beings that could surpass the qualities of his body were beasts that were specialized only in one field. In the end, it was the same as in the other world. Noah had to face beings that were innately stronger than both magical beasts and humans, but with no idea how to use that power. "We are ready!" A loud shout resounded from the ground at that point, and Noah''s attention went there only to see a series of Elders of the Council messing with the inscribed chains. There were members of the Elbas family there too, and they wielded some strange kind of inscribed swords that they aimed at the links connected with the bottom of the fissures. Every cultivator that was fighting with a hybrid retreated by a few steps after that warning and Noah wasn''t an exception. Then, the Royals slashed their weapons at the links, which broke and fell apart. The inscribed chains started to flicker madly and sent waves of pain to the creatures connected to them. The collars around the hybrids began to shine too, which further worsened the pain that they felt. The hybrids began to thrash their bodies around as they tried to suppress that intense sensation, but it did little effect. They continued to suffer until their sea of consciousness eventually broke and announced the death of those slaves. Noah grabbed the corpse of the Horned Horse when it began to fall lifelessly toward the ground and opened its lower body to retrieve a shining organ that had already started to disperse its energy. He then ate the dantian of the hybrid in the open again and stored the rest of the corpse. That was still a creature in the fifth rank. Noah wouldn''t throw anything away. Another intense wave of energy filled his body and pushed its level further toward the peak of the middle tier. Even if the Horse had initially been a Flawed Human, it still had a dantian with power near the bottom of the gaseous stage of the fifth rank. The battles resumed with even more vigor at that point. The invading forces didn''t regain the upper hand immediately. The shadows had disappeared, but they had suffered their fair share of losses due to the two consecutive defensive methods. The rank 5 cultivators of the three forces though didn''t seem disappointed by that outcome. Even if some of their powerful assets had died, they wouldn''t have to face the hybrids again in the next battle. After all, it would be impossible for the Empire to refill its stash of slaves, with the three organizations unwilling to trade with it. Noah resumed his wait to recover his mental energy and began to feed the Demonic Sword to give it a well-deserved meal. After his victory against Countless Wings, the other cultivators of the Empire had understood that he was a dangerous variable in that war, and none of them wanted to abandon their battle to fight him. Even those that won against the invading forces would rather help some of their companions than challenge him in a one versus one fight. The real issue was that Noah seemed always to surpass their expectations, which made the level of his battle prowess quite unclear. Truth to be told, both Peaceful Storm and Countless Wings had been his opponents because of their suitable abilities, but they weren''t among the strongest rank 5 cultivators in the gaseous stage in the world. Peaceful Storm had his accumulation of talismans, but his power was still lacking. Then, just when the battle had resumed a regular course, seven castles lit up, and seven massive giants formed in the sky. Chapter 835: 835. Elemental formation The giants pierced the battlefield and stood behind the troops of the Empire wearing a menacing look on their emotionless faces. They were bald, humanoid figures with an ethereal body that radiated an intense light. All the giants were identical, except for the fact that they shone with a different light and exuded "Breath" of a specific element. Noah was amazed to notice that the white and the black ones were made of "Breath" of the light and darkness element. His amazement didn''t stop there. The power of the giants was a problem since all of them had an aura that matched inscribed items in the upper tier of the fifth rank! "Elemental formation!" A rank 5 cultivator of the Elbas family shouted when the giants appeared. The other Royals seemed to understand something at those words, and their eyes widened in surprise when they recognized that formation. Curiosity and unwillingness soon appeared on their expressions, but they soon started to retreat without moving their eyes from the giants. Their reaction confused the other heroic assets on their side who shot questioning looks at the experts from the Elbas family. After all, seven puppets in the upper tier of the fifth rank were threatening, but a formation still created them. There had to be something that they could do since they had so many experts in their army. "We can''t defeat it right now," The same Royal that recognized the formation announced to the entire army. "Let''s retreat." The heroic cultivators of the other organizations showed even more confusion at those words. The assault was going well all things considered, and they wouldn''t mind testing the limits of the Elemental formation for a while to see if it was as unbreakable as hinted. Preparation was everything. In the end, the sole reason why the invaders had managed to trounce the first three defensive measures was that the Council had tested them beforehand. However, the Royal was firm in his decision and ordered the assets of his faction to leave the battlefield. It must be said that even some of the members of the Elbas family showed some unwillingness at that decision, but they still decided to follow their leader. The Council and the Hive felt forced to retreat too when they saw more than a third of their joint army escaping toward safe territories. Noah didn''t hesitate to retreat either. His mental energy wasn''t in a critical spot anymore, but he was far away from having a full sea of consciousness. Also, his relationship with the Elbas family wasn''t friendly, but he trusted its judgment when it came to the various inscription fields. That was the kind of trust that he could give only to forces that he respected for their achievements, and the Elbas family had already established its value as an ally. The seven giants didn''t move at the enemies'' retreat, and the forces of the Empire stood still too. It seemed that there was some kind of condition to trigger a reaction from the formation, and the Empire didn''t dare to attack without it. The rank 5 cultivators of the three invading forces regrouped in one of the central territories that they had conquered during the war and began to discuss the recent events. It was needless to say that their conversation wasn''t peaceful. "Why did you order the retreat of all of a sudden, Andrew?" An Elder from the Council asked the Royal that ordered the retreat. "We had the advantage, and we could have tested those damned things first!" "It would have been a slaughter, Regina," Andrew Elbas answered. "I would normally agree with you, but we know what that formation does in this case, and I''m telling you that there are precise conditions to meet to break it." Regina and Andrew Elbas were rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage of the Council and the Royals and were also the leaders of their respective armies. Elder Julia was the leader of the troops of the Hive, but she had just reached the solid stage and wasn''t on the level of the other two. "And what exactly are those conditions? How do you know that we couldn''t meet them during the battle?" Regina pressed on with her questions, but Andrew remained calm and began to explain the specifics of the Elemental formation to the heroic cultivators gathered there. It turned out that the Elemental formation was an ancient inscription that used seven types of "Breath" to materialize pure forms on energy in the shape of humanoid giants. Its lines were quite complex, and they needed seven cores where cultivators had accumulated large amounts of "Breath". The most peculiar aspect of those cores was that only cultivators with that specific aptitude could fill them, which meant that the Empire had used cultivators of the light and darkness element to complete the formation! That piece of information surprised most experts on the scene. After all, cultivators with those aptitudes were extremely rare, and only two of them had appeared in more than a century. However, the Empire had lasted for millennia, and its political system provided cultivation resources to all of its citizens. It was different from the other forces where potential cultivators with rare aptitudes could remain commoners for the entirety of their lives. That method simply gave the Empire more chances to find the carriers of those rare aptitudes. Of course, it was very likely that the Empire had prepared the cores centuries ago and just used them now that it had to protect the traces left by divine beings. There was even the possibility that it had set them in the old continent in the past just to move them in the new one once a more valuable territory appeared. "There is a fatal weakness in the formation though," Andrew Elbas raised his voice when his explanation reached that important topic. "The giants can be difficult to face even for experts in the solid stage, but they would crumble easily if we manage to gather cultivators with all seven aptitudes." At his words, everyone on the scene turned toward Noah. He was eating one of the legs of the Horned Horse as he listened to the conversation. Danielle was next to him, and she stared at the piece of meat in his hands with an intense gaze, but she struggled to keep her calm. It seemed that she took that as some form of training for her mental instabilities. As for the other Elders of the Hive, their eyes sharpened when they listened to that last part. It wasn''t a secret that the Hive had a cultivator with a light aptitude in their ranks. After all, Amos Udye was right behind the Elders. Yet, the plan seemed to require both of their rare cultivators, which gave birth to suspicion and hesitation. However, Noah cut the exchange of stares short as he gulped the meat in his mouth and spoke to Andrew. "Explain." Chapter 836: 836. Daniel The strategy to disable the seven giants wasn''t too hard to perform and didn''t have strict requirements, except for the need of cultivators with seven different aptitudes. To deactivate the Elemental formation, the seven cultivators had to attack the source of the giants at the same time through specific items that would destabilize their form. The power of the attack didn''t matter too much, even simple rank 4 cultivators would do, and the Elbas family would also take care of the creation of the items. The only issue was in making those attacks land on the castles while the troops of the Empire defended them. Yet, the invading army had more cultivators, so creating a path was feasible. The hybrids had died too, so the Empire had lost one of its defensive methods, meaning that the next assault would lead to fewer casualties. Noah wondered how an inscription method with such an evident weakness could have survived until the current era after hearing the explanation. However, the truth was that the Elemental formation was quite outdated, according to the standards of the Eblas family, at least. Also, the Elemental formation wasn''t inherently weak. It was hard for a single organization to put together a team made of cultivators with different aptitudes, especially with the elitist political system that most forces had. It was a case that three of the most potent forces in the world were fighting together to take down the strongest one and that there were cultivators with the rarest aptitudes on the invading side. Without that, the attackers would have to face and defeat those giants with their heroic assets, which meant using seven rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage. "How is it?" Elder Julia asked Noah when the explanation ended. "Do you think he is up to the task?" Noah didn''t answer. He knew what the Elder wanted to know, but he wasn''t in a position to confirm her doubts. Only Daniel could answer that question. "I''ll make a trip back to the southwestern coast," Noah said as he stood up. "I have the feeling that I should be the one to offer him this mission." Elder Julia nodded and turned to discuss the specifics of the plan with the other leaders when Noah set off to return to his dome. . . . Daniel had faced his fair share of setbacks in life. As the heir of one of the wealthiest noble families in the Utra nation, he had always been quite privileged. His aptitude then pushed the nurturing of the Udye family to a higher level, which eventually made him become the hope of the Cause. Yet, Noah''s appearance had forced him to reconsider how talented he was. From the events in the Bare Dungeon to the raids in the Utra nation, Noah had always managed to be a step in front of him, until he became an existence that he couldn''t hope to reach. Daniel knew that there were monsters in that world, but he had initially believed that he was one of them. It had taken him the banquet in the headquarters of the Hive to realize that anyone could have reached his level of power with the backing of a wealthy family and a rigid training schedule. In short, Daniel had realized that he wasn''t really talented. He was just lucky. Of course, that wasn''t true at all. Daniel still stood among the geniuses of his generation, but his lack of experience had ultimately made him fall behind his peers. It had reached a point where everyone was surpassing him. However, after his privileged status began to fall apart and the dreams of his family vanished, he had started to understand his path. He realized that the political obligations placed on him since the discovery of his aptitude had blinded him for all his life. It had all started from his conversation with Noah when he pointed out how Daniel''s strength originated from his family. Then, it continued during the raids and culminated with the Hive accepting the entrance of the Udye family in its ranks. Daniel had felt defeated for most of that period, and he had even reached the point where he wanted to stop cultivating because of the countless losses that he had to endure through the decades. He was continuing to train out of habit, but his individuality was regressing due to his lack of willpower. Yet, seeing Noah returning from the new world as a complete rank 5 cultivator made him understand how meaningless all those titles and achievements were. The length of the journey didn''t matter. Surpassing other cultivators didn''t matter. There was only the finish line and the path to reach it. Daniel lost interest in the political matters of the world after that realization. His family wanted him to play an important role, but they were all cultivators striving for the sky in the end. A setback was nothing. A defeat was nothing. Death was nothing. Only the willpower to keep walking toward the higher ranks mattered, and he had almost lost it because he was too busy comparing himself to his peers. So, Daniel had decided that his willpower would become a light able to purify life from all those useless things. The other cultivators could either choose to follow his example or remain entangled in the messy political struggles of the various forces. . . . Noah returned to his dome after a long trip and didn''t hesitate to dive inside the mansion of the Udye family. After all, that region was under his control, so every building inside it was technically his. A series of servants and cultivators bowed when they saw him walking through the corridors of the mansion in the direction of the training areas placed underground. Noah reached the reinforced rooms and waited in front of one of them for the cultivator inside it to open it. His consciousness seeped through the walls and inscriptions on them and studied the whiffs of aura that filled its insides. He couldn''t understand much since the formations around the reinforced rooms were hard to pierce, but the Udye family had never needed to upgrade them. Only Amos had been able to reach the fifth rank, and he had a suitable training area already. So, Noah could sense that there was a rank 5 cultivator inside the room. The door of the training area opened, and Noah saw a cultivator with long, white hair throwing a series of materials in a large cauldron that trembled due to the substance brewing inside it. A white radiance shone under the cauldron, which heated it and forced the substance inside it to release its impurities in the form of gray smoke. "Daniel Udye at your service, Demon Prince," Daniel said without moving his attention from the cauldron. Noah didn''t mind his behavior and gave a short explanation, followed by an order. "The Hive needs your element to disable a formation. Follow me to the army. You''ll join the war." "Perfect," Daniel said, "I needed to express my individuality." Chapter 837: 837. Furious Water Daniel followed Noah as they flew back to the central territories where the army had momentarily decided to set an encampment. During the travel, Daniel had never stopped heating the cauldron with his white light, which kept on exuding that gray smoke full of impurities. He would often pour "Breath" in the solid stage of the fourth rank inside it and add other materials until small whiffs of rank 5 "Breath" came out and entered his body. Daniel had become a complete rank 5 cultivator in those years, and he had developed a peculiar cultivation technique, even if it seemed just an enhancement of his old one. The purification process expressed his individuality and made use of his expertise in the alchemy field, which made it quite suitable for him. However, he had just experienced a breakthrough. The level of his mental sphere barely met the standards of the fifth rank and put him at the bottom of that level. Yet, even with all his setbacks and poor level, Daniel was there, in the world where only elites could stand. "I never thought that losing everything could bring such clarity," Daniel said as they flew. "But I can''t be like you. I won''t give up on my humanity just to pursue power." "Who decides what''s human?" Noah asked. "A fixed morality doesn''t exist, just as there isn''t a fixed path. We just elevate ourselves as we walk through the cultivation journey, and the world doesn''t care if we are monsters or heroes. Also, you didn''t lose anything. You have more now than you ever did in the past." Noah''s words managed to surprise Daniel, who revealed a weak smile. He wouldn''t admit it openly, but Noah''s mentality was still better than his when it came to his approach to the cultivation journey. Daniel noticed how Noah''s character had changed after all those years. There was a time where he would have barely spoken to anyone, but now he didn''t seem to mind having a casual conversation that expressed part of their mindsets. It wasn''t a radical change. The violent and sharp aura that usually surrounded Noah was still there, but there was also a sort of calmness that enveloped it. That was a feeling caused by the steadiness of his individuality and his conviction that he was on the right path. He appeared to Daniel as if nothing could sway him away from the road that he had chosen. "I know that the Hive needs the magical beasts in the fifth rank in this period," Daniel said as he changed the topic, "But I should be able to make an improved version of the pills now." Noah''s interest rose at his words. The magical beasts'' pills were quite useful in dire situations when he didn''t have time to refill the nutrients inside his body quickly. They weren''t life-saving items, but they could help to increase his already high stamina and stabilize specific critical injuries if needed. Noah thought for a while before deciding on a solution that would benefit both him and the Hive. "You can go to the new world after the war is over. The hunting team will need an alchemist, but you need to take a few students too. The Hive needs more experts." Daniel nodded, and their conversation ended. They didn''t have much to talk about to begin with. Still, Daniel wanted to at least speak to the man that had indirectly rekindled his will to cultivate. When they reached the encampment, the armies had already divided themselves into three different sides according to their organization. Noah delivered Daniel to Elder Julia, who informed them about the progress in those past weeks. The Elbas family was still busy building the seven weapons, while the other factions had created a battle plan that would allow the seven wielders to reach their respective castles. The battle would resume as soon as the Royals completed their task. Noah simply cultivated as he waited for everything to be ready. After all, his role in the battle would be even easier since his allies didn''t need to protect him so strictly. He could just rely on his hybrid status to run through any blockage and let the other heroic assets handle anything that he couldn''t defeat on his own. He began to spend some time visualizing his projects and how he intended to create them since he had some free time between each cultivation session. When he picked Daniel from the southwestern coast, he had asked Thirty-seven to review the Body-inscription spell further to find the reason why it clashed with his darkness. He was still waiting for his answer though, so his meditation focused on other projects. The creation of his higher energy had the priority in his mind. That would put him on a different level compared to his peers, and he knew that he would achieve some sort of completeness once he obtained it. It wasn''t only a matter of battle prowess. Even his individuality would benefit from it since he would have three different types of energies at his disposal. His destruction and creation would reach new levels at that point, allowing him to have a real advantage over the old monsters. There were still living weapons to create. That field was new and had vast room for improvement. Also, Noah had yet to arm all the heroic assets of the Hive, which was something that he had to achieve before beginning to sell his creations. Solving the mental instabilities of the hybrids would take time, but he was already thinking about the type of society that he could build with them once the war was over. After all, he was their leader, so he had to take care of their growth and behavior. Noah had to create new spells too. His idea was to fuse martial arts and spells at some point and develop techniques that only hybrids could use due to the physical restrictions of the humans. The Royals eventually completed their task, and the three armies gathered before shooting again toward the mountain chain so valued by the Empire. The battle started almost instantly, and Noah had to face an unknown rank 5 cultivator at his same level that used a series of water whips to unleash a continuous offensive. The cultivator''s name was Furious Water, and he was a short old man with a few sparse white hairs on his almost bald head. He had a short grey beard, and his whips would often change shape to counter Noah''s offensive. It turned out that their combat styles were quite similar. They would try to overwhelm their opponents with countless attacks backed by an immense quantity of power. Of course, Noah''s attacks were stronger. Yet, Furious Water made up for that difference in power with numerous spells that changed the shape of his whips according to the type of attack that he was facing. It was clear that the Empire had given up on countering Noah''s abilities and had just sent a cultivator that had a lot of battle experience. Chapter 838: 838. Ready Noah and Furious Water appeared evenly matched. Their attacks kept on clashing without revealing who had the upper hand in those relentless exchanges. Noah was in his complete Demonic Form, filling a large area around him with corrosive smoke and launching countless slashes. The Black Hole spell was above him, absorbing the enemy''s attacks and increasing its power as the battle kept going. Furious Water controlled a barrage of blue whips that changed form mid-air as they reached for Noah. Most of them clashed with the black lines coming in his direction, and those that managed to cross the first line of attacks ended up absorbed by the gravitational pull of the black sphere. The two of them seemed to have reached a stalemate, but Furious Water was starting to feel the pressure of fighting a long battle against Noah. No conventional technique could block the second form of Noah''s martial art. Only inscribed items or defensive spells fueled by a stronger "Breath" could hope to stop the incredible power carried by his most potent attack. Furious Water was solving that problem by pressuring Noah so much that he wouldn''t have time to summon the copies of his Demonic Sword, but the battle was slowly escaping his control. The corrosive smoke was filling the environment, and it had reached a point where Furious Water''s whips couldn''t even clash with the black lines since the Demonic Form spell took care of them first. Noah was gaining ground, and escaping would only create an opening for him. The blue pillar started to form, but Noah didn''t stop his offensive since the troops of the Council stepped forward to create the golden shield. Some of the blue radiance landed on Noah, but he was pushed back for only an instant, and Furious Water didn''t have enough time to retreat. The rest of the battlefield was in a similar situation. The troops of the Empire were pushed back everywhere, and they could only wait for the activation of the next defensive measure to gain some ground. The Empire decided to summon the shadows rather quickly since it feared that the current trend would lead to the loss of the territory before they had time to reveal all their defenses. However, there were fewer shadows compared to the last time because the formation didn''t manage to copy too much with such short notice. Noah didn''t even care that a shadow had joined his battle and was trying to help Furious Water. There was a vast cloud made of corrosive smoke all around him and a large sphere that applied an intense gravitational pull above him. The attacks of his opponents couldn''t even hope to reach him in that situation. Generally speaking, the best way to avoid that troublesome effect of the Demonic Form would be to change location often. However, Noah was keeping Furious Water still with his incessant offensive. As soon as his opponent turned to escape, he would launch the second form of his martial art and kill him on the spot. "Damned monster!" Furious Water shouted as cuts appeared on his palms, and blood flowed in the whips that he was wielding, tainting them with a dark-red color. The power of Furious Water''s attacks suddenly increased, and Noah saw branches appearing on the various whips that started to push back the black cloud. The number of attacks multiplied too, which gave to the cultivator of the Empire some breathing room. Noah was initially surprised by the power behind his opponent''s spells, but he quickly understood why he didn''t activate that technique sooner. Furious Water''s body had begun to wither as his blood flowed in the whips, and his hands had become nothing more than bones in those short seconds. The withering didn''t stop. It began to spread on Furious Water''s forearms too as a drawback for that boost of power. ''It''s a secret art,'' Noah concluded in his mind as he analyzed the technique and revealed a smirk through the Demonic Form at that realization. Furious Water saw the mouth of the draconic helmet opening up to form a fiendish smile that showed a series of gaseous teeth. At that scene, he felt as if he was really fighting some kind of monster. Noah felt pushed back, but he didn''t stop attacking. If his opponent had to resort to a secret art to fight him, then he would give him a proper battle! The roars of some hybrids spread on the battlefield, but Noah ignored them after understanding their level. Those creatures were just some reserves that the Empire had decided not to deploy in the previous battle, but they featured only a single being in the fifth rank. His allies could easily take care of them. Furious Water''s arms had become skeletal after activating the secret art for a few minutes, and the drawbacks were starting to affect his chest at that point. It wouldn''t take much before the technique ended up killing him. Noah wanted to avoid that outcome because he aimed to seize his dantian. So, he kept on attacking and waited until the drawbacks showed a fatal flaw in his opponent''s battle style. However, his instincts suddenly sensed a dangerous presence coming at high speed from below him. Noah quickly launched the Black Hole spell downward, and the loss of that defensive measure increased the amount of pressure on him. Yet, only a couple of whips managed to hit his body in that situation before the detonation of the dark spere forced both parties to separate. Noah shot an annoyed gaze downward, where another rank 5 cultivator of the Empire was staring at him with a surprised expression. Spark and black smoke had spread everywhere under Noah. It seemed that the newcomer had tried to take him by surprise with a spell of the lightning element, but his superior awareness had managed to notice the arrival of that powerful spell. Yet, Noah now had two rank 5 cultivators and an annoying shadow as opponents, which was a level of power that he couldn''t handle on his own. Two cuts had appeared on his shoulders due to the empowered whips, but the armor had managed to block most of their power, creating only superficial injuries. Noah was basically at his peak, but he still couldn''t face such strong opponents together. Nevertheless, Elder Austin came to his help at that point, even if he remained at some distance due to the black cloud. The Empire though couldn''t sustain its losses anymore and triggered its next defensive method. The castles lit up, and seven giants appeared on the battlefield. The Empire had decided to activate the Elemental formation in the end, but the invading forces were more than prepared to fight it. Noah deactivated the Demonic Form, and the rank 5 Elders of the Hive landed on the air next to him when the corrosive smoke had dispersed in the air. A metal orb then appeared in his palm, and Noah started to fuel it with his "Breath". They were ready to assault the castles. Chapter 839: 839. Coordination The army of the invaders formed seven groups, and even the existences in the fourth rank left their battles to support their respective teams. According to Andrew Elbas'' description, the Elemental formation was powerful, so deactivating it had to be their priority. Noah charged the metallic orb in his palm as he waited for the leaders of each group to give the order to attack. He had hinted that there could have been a problem with the functioning of the item since his "Breath" wasn''t exactly ordinary. However, after performing a few tests in complete secrecy, he confirmed that he could use his darkness to be one of the energies needed to take care of the Elemental formation. After all, individualities always affected the composition of the "Breath" in peculiar ways, and Noah only needed to know if the metallic orb recognized his energy as "Breath" of the darkness element. The enemy troops showed stern expressions at that scene and gathered in front of the castles to prepare for the imminent clash. It was evident that the invaders had come prepared for their defensive method, so they could just do their best to protect it. "Charge." A single word resounded in the minds of the rank 5 cultivators of the invaders, but it was enough to trigger a series of battle cries that followed the advance of the seven groups. Noah stood at the center of his team, and his Demonic Sword followed him closely, ready to protect him in case an attacker managed to pierce the blockade around him. Of course, Noah could fight even if he was charging the orb, but he couldn''t express his real strength if he fought among allies. Multicolored lights spread in the environment as the seven teams crashed on the first line of defense of the Empire. Many spells flew and exploded as the various groups fought to pierce or block their enemies. Shockwaves and loud noises echoed through the groups, but Noah could only hear muffled sounds in the middle of all those heroic cultivators. Meanwhile, inscriptions started to appear on the orb as his "Breath" kept on fueling it according to Andrew''s instructions. "Wind, you are going too fast. Slow down!" Andrew''s voice resounded in the minds of the seven cultivators carrying the orbs. The Royal family had provided special notebooks that could keep track of the status of those items so that Andrew could monitor it. Deactivating the Elemental formation required strict coordination, which gave birth to the need of a supervisor that warned the carriers whenever they didn''t respect the planned schedule. Andrew had even chosen simple codenames to make their communication more intuitive. "Prepare for impact!" Someone in Noah''s group shouted, and he noticed how the black giant in front of his team had raised an arm to punch them. Elder Julia raised her hand at that sight, and the giant suddenly stopped moving before a small tornado formed inside its raised arm. The hurricane spread until its entire arm exploded, preventing the puppet from completing its attack. Noah''s group began to cheer, but the giant quickly raised its other arm to attempt in another attack. Yet, Elder Julia stopped it again with the same spells. The power of a rank 5 cultivator in the solid stage was incredible. It could directly incapacitate puppets that could potentially defeat other beings that were in the gaseous or liquid stage! Nevertheless, the Elemental formation wasn''t so easy to defeat. The Elbas family wouldn''t have retreated the first time otherwise. The arms of the black giant reformed in a matter of seconds and resumed their attempts to punch the team advancing through the allied troops. Yet, both of its limbs exploded again as Elder Julia created storms inside them. That cycle repeated itself multiple times, and Elder Julia couldn''t help with the advance of her team at all since she had to prevent the giant from landing its attacks on it. All the rank 4 cultivators would die otherwise, and there was a high chance to have casualties among those in the fifth rank too. If the invading forces had decided to attack without any preparation, seven rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage would have been busy keeping the giants at bay. The army of the three forces would have been too weak to face the Empire in that case. After all, the cultivators on that level were the leaders of each faction. Also, the giant didn''t appear weakened by the damages that it was suffering and simply regenerated in a matter of seconds, ready to attack again. The battles around Noah continued, and Elder Julia kept on fighting the Elemental formation as the team advanced. Andrew Elbas would shout orders through the special notebooks whenever one of the seven carriers didn''t respect the schedule set beforehand. The Empire did its best to stop the invaders. It even resorted to basic tactics such as leaving some castles unprotected, and focus all its troops on specific sources. However, the invaders had prepared for that eventuality too and simply reinforced the teams that had to face more troops. In the end, the numerical advantage and the losses inflicted through that year of wars won against the defenses set in the last decades by the most potent force in those Mortal Lands. The seven teams reached the castles and opened a path for the carries while protecting them from the enemy troops who were madly trying to break through the blockage. Noah flew at high speed toward his target enveloped in the black light of the darkness giant. He couldn''t understand anything about that kind of formation, but the amount of "Breath" of the darkness element contained inside that puppet was merely insane. It made him wonder if the Empire had hidden experts with a darkness aptitude through the millennia. "Is everyone in position?" Andrew asked when his team reached their castle and shouted an order when all the carriers gave affirmative answers. "Throw!" Noah threw the metallic orb in his grasp toward the castle, and the inscriptions on its shining form began to flicker as it neared the body of the black giant. A path opened in the ethereal body of the puppet, and the orb slid right through it before starting to destabilize. Explosions resounded as the seven orbs detonated at the same time and spread the shining lines on their surface on the castles. The giants suddenly stopped moving when that happened, and the formation on the sides of the mountains began to release sparks. It seemed that those lines, coupled with the "Breath" of the respective elements, had created a short-circuit in the part of the formation containing the Elemental formation. Those giant forms ultimately vanished as the effect spread, and the invading forces could focus once again on the troops of the Empire at that point. As for Noah, he looked for a particular lightning cultivator that had tried to catch him by surprise. Chapter 840: 840. Hun Noah couldn''t have precise reports about the abilities of the rank 5 cultivators of the Empire because there hadn''t been a major war for a long time. After all, no one had dared to attack the Empire for centuries. The only battles happened at the edges of the areas of influence of the three big nations, but they featured rank 4 cultivators at best. The arrival of the new continent had revealed some of its assets. Still, the majority of them had remained hidden, just as they had done for centuries. Also, Noah couldn''t decide who was his opponent most of the time, so he didn''t need outdated pieces of information. A list of the abilities of most heroic assets was bound to appear after that war, but it was too early to create a proper register after only one year. However, that lightning cultivator had snuck up on him when he was about to defeat Furious Water. Noah felt as if someone had made him lose the perfect prey, which wasn''t something that his instincts took lightly. The fact that the cultivator had almost succeeded in taking him by surprise was another troublesome issue. The world of the rank 5 cultivators was too variegated for Noah to be able to predict every battle style, and he was still too weak to fight multiple experts at once. So, he could only make an example out of him to stop other cultivators from imitating him. Noah rose high in the sky and scanned the battlefield as if he was a flying beast looking for its prey. The various battles appeared in his vision, but he was only interested in one target at the moment. Furious Water was nowhere to be seen. He had probably left the area to mend the injuries caused by the secret art. Yet, Noah managed to spot the lightning cultivator after a minute spent analyzing the area. His target was a tall man with a head full of long black hair. He had no beard, and he appeared as a youthful man in his thirties. Noah guessed that he was one of the new talents of the Empire that had managed to become a complete rank 5 cultivator just recently. Nevertheless, it seemed that he was used to those kinds of sneak attacks since he was trying to perform it on an Elder of the Council busy fighting a water cultivator of the Empire. ''Found you,'' Noah thought as his expression became cold and began to dive at full speed toward him. A draconic roar echoed through the battlefield. Noah launched a wave of white flames to stop the lightning cultivator from ambushing his allies as he continued his reckless charge. The lightning cultivator was surprised that someone was targeting him, but he soon realized how dangerous the situation was when he saw Noah''s figure behind the incoming flames. Sparks filled his body, and he suddenly released them to retreat at high speed. The flames missed him, but Noah''s reptilian eyes never left his figure. Noah activated the Merging spell and sprinted, following his target tightly as he watched him escaping through various battlefields in the hope that Noah would lose track of him. It was evident that head-on combat wasn''t his specialty, but Noah wouldn''t let someone that had tried to kill him get away so easily. A series of Ghostly Sabers appeared around him, and Noah created a sea of saber-shaped runes too as he continued his chase. They were fastest ranged spells that he had, and they could even reach distances precluded to his other techniques. The series of sabers flew ahead and tried to encircle the slippery cultivator who kept on dodging and using the other battles as a natural shield. However, Noah didn''t mind if his spells hit other cultivators of the Empire and continued to command the various sabers to move forward. Eventually, some of them landed on the body of the lightning cultivator, who spat a mouthful of blood as he kept running away. Noah created more Ghostly Sabers, but his mind suddenly sensed a threat on his path, and he promptly wielded his Demonic Sword to slash at it. His weapon released a black line that clashed with a spark that the lighting cultivator had left behind as he escaped. The spark exploded, but Noah ignored the shockwaves to focus on a series of lightning bolts that were converging at high speed toward his position. It seemed that the lighting cultivator had placed some kind of trap there, but the power of those attacks couldn''t match Furious Storm''s offensive. Noah expanded his consciousness without activating any defensive measure. According to his target''s behavior, there was a high chance that he would be nearby to watch if his trap was a success. The individuality of the lightning cultivator seemed able to suppress the innate violence and flashiness of his element, which made his attacks quite suitable for ambushes. Yet, those sneaky features ended up taking away some of the power of his lightning bolts. Noah felt as if they were the weakest attacks that he had seen since the beginning of the war. The lightning bolts drew near, but Noah waited until his consciousness found his target before deploying his defensive measures. In the eyes of the onlookers, a gray cloud suddenly replaced Noah''s figure when the attacks landed, but no one could understand how injured he was. They could only know that he was alive since they could still sense his consciousness. The lightning cultivator watched the scene from a relatively safe position and felt satisfied by that result. His individuality didn''t suit a battle with Noah at all, but he could slow him down, at least. Also, the fact that he had become a complete rank 5 cultivator just a few decades ago left him with an imperfect battle style that he was still trying to understand. ''The Almighty has given me the title Silent Lightning, but there aren''t many spells of my element with suitable features,'' Silent Lightning began to think as he turned to look for another battle where he could ambush someone. Still, he suddenly felt that something was amiss when he tried to place his left foot on the air. When he turned, he realized that the entirety of the left part of his body was gone. Silent Lightning''s eyes went toward the gray cloud that had become entirely black in the few seconds in which he had turned to retreat. A large fissure almost divided it into two parts, and a blurred fiendish figure came out of it as it flew toward him. Noah dispersed the Demonic Form when he reached Silent Lightning, who was too stunned by his fatal wound to react. He even remained still when Noah''s hand entered in his remaining low-waist through his injury and tore away his dantian. "The Almighty will return, and doom-" Silent Lightning tried to give voice to a threat as his opponent ate his dantian in a single bite, but Noah simply waved his hand and reduced the rest of his body into a pulp. The losers didn''t have any right to speak. Chapter 841: 841. Stele The destruction of the elemental giants forced the troops of the Empire in a passive position. The casualties on their side began to mount, and multiple heroic assets started to suffer injuries or die due to the overwhelming numbers of the invading forces. Not even the cultivators in the fifth rank could avoid that fate. That battle was leading to a defeat of the Empire. The defenders had exhausted their defensive methods by then. Only a few shadows still lingered on the battlefield, but they weren''t able to provide any significant assistance. Retreating seemed the only option left, especially since the Empire knew that it had to preserve enough troops to fight the next battles. There were still a few valuable regions on the northeastern coast, and there was all the central area of the old continent to defend too! Even the mighty Shandal Empire couldn''t lose too many troops. Winning the war without their god might not be an option, but it wanted to survive as an organization nonetheless. In their minds, the defenders didn''t doubt for even a second that the Almighty would return and reestablish his organization as the most potent force in those Mortal Lands. Yet, hope didn''t win wars, and the troops of the Empire knew that very well, which was why they still had one last trick to show to the invaders before leaving that territory. The defenders started to retreat, and the invaders chased after them to inflict as many losses as possible. They knew that the Empire had immense reserves of manpower, so killing its heroic assets could only benefit the next battles. However, the castles started to release a humming sound when all the invaders were above or near them. Those structures began to emit a soft light that increased in intensity with each passing second. Noah''s instincts screamed at that sight, and he shouted to warn his allies while he shot up in the sky to escape from the range of those buildings. "Retreat!" Of course, the other heroic assets were soon able to sense that danger too, but their innate awareness wasn''t enough to make them escape what would come next. Only a few experts in the fifth rank managed to follow Noah in time. The castles exploded and engulfed the entire area with a destructive radiance that didn''t let even the slowest cultivators of the Empire go. The sky above the mountain chain saw a multicolored light filling the whole region, with very few assets managing to escape that destructive halo. Cries filled the battlefield, and charred corpses started to fall on the ground. The human cultivators in the area directly turned into ashes, and the ground cracked under the pressure generated by the detonation of the castles. Noah watched everything from his safe position high in the sky. Danielle was with him, together with all the rank 5 cultivators of the Hive. They had escaped even before their senses managed to feel that danger. The reason for that was their trust in Noah, which made them more reactive to his warning than the assets of the other forces. There were other experts in the fifth rank with that group in the sky. Both the Council and the Elbas family had cultivators that had promptly followed Noah in his flight upward. Others, instead, had managed to escape from the range of the explosion by using specific movement techniques. The losses though were immense. The cultivators in the fourth rank that had been hit by the multicolored light were either injured or dead. Almost the entirety of the human cultivator had died. Those that had survived were severely wounded, saved only by the bodies of those before them. As for the beings in the fifth rank, all of them had survived, but many had hideous burns. The detonation of the castles wasn''t enough to threaten the lives of the assets in the fifth rank. Still, the various losses and the many injured would slow down the advance of the invaders by a few years. The troops of the Empire kept on retreating, and they soon disappeared from Noah''s sight. They left to the three forces a broken land and a series of debris, without even bothering to keep the defensive formation intact. "We won in terms of kill count," Andrew Elbas said as he analyzed the battlefield, "But this will slow us down for a while." "I hope that what they were defending wasn''t destroyed in the explosion." Elder Julia said as she scanned the environment, looking for something that gave value to all those deaths. The mountain chain was mostly in ruins, but a peculiar structure in the distance had remained entirely intact. The cultivators near her soon noticed that area too and began to near it carefully, afraid that the Empire could have set another explosive trap. There was a peaceful lake next to a crumbled mountain with no trace of vegetation nearby. Then, a bit farther away, there was a strange stele that radiated an ancient aura. The explosion seemed to have missed that piece of land. Both the lake and the stele didn''t show any wave or crack on their surface. Yet, the rank 5 cultivators that inspected it knew that there was some higher power keeping the area protected. "This, this!" Andrew stuttered a bit when he looked at the signs on the stele. Other cultivators of the water element did the same as they sat on the ground with their eyes fixed on those ancient marks. Their allies though quickly interrupted them and made them aware of their surroundings. Noah saw how Andrew and the others seemed to have come out of a sort of trance since they muttered casual words and glanced at the stele with evident eagerness in their eyes. It was as if everything else had lost importance for them. Only the contents of the stele mattered. "What is it?" Regina asked with an annoyed tone. There were even some of her underlings in the cultivators captivated by that structure. She couldn''t accept that they didn''t report to her as soon as they regained their awareness. Her underlings remembered their position at her question, but they could only express themselves in simple lines that didn''t make much sense. "Water! Water is life." "Water is a cycle!" "Water is eternal!" Other similar lines resounded in the area as the water cultivators of the three forces tried to explain the contents of their enlightenment. However, they only managed to give voice to confused words that didn''t help the others understanding the actual function of the stele. Luckily for the other experts, Andrew Elbas stabilized his mind in less than a minute and described with proper words his hypothesis concerning that ancient structure. "These should be the notes of a divine being of the water element. Any cultivator with the same aptitude can gain insights on the element thanks to them. I feel drained after just a few seconds though. I wouldn''t be surprised if the price to pay for it were your lifespan." Chapter 842: 842. Break The remains of the army eventually decided to build an encampment around the stele. It wasn''t just a matter of studying the trace left by a divine entity. The cultivators with a water aptitude wanted to use that structure to improve their understanding of their element and solidify their individuality. A large number of heroic cultivators moved from the domains of the three nations to join the army that had discovered that incredible structure. After all, water cultivators were quite ordinary in the world, and all of them requested to see the stele. Meanwhile, the rank 5 cultivators made a point of their situation. They hadn''t expected the Empire to lay such a trap, and they paid the price for underestimating it. Only the Hive counted more than ten casualties among the assets in the fourth rank, which was quite depressing considering that it had deployed only twenty-five of them for that battle. The rest of them were all injured, with some of them so severely that they had to return to the southwestern coast to receive specialized treatments. The Elders in the fifth rank were relatively fine. Elder Austin, Elder Justin, Daniel, and Amos had touched the multicolored light, but it only caused a few burns on their skin. As for the human assets, the losses were simply uncountable. "Years of accumulation and growth wasted because of a paranoid god!" Elder Austin exclaimed as he gulped a cup of wine before smearing some Primordial Ice on the burns on his legs. "Who even sets a self-destruct mechanism that doesn''t spoil the resource of a land? I could almost think that the Empire was expecting something like this to happen." All the rank 5 Elders of the Hive had gathered in an inscribed tent to discuss their next move, but they had ended up expressing their annoyance toward that sly organization. "The other forces lost far more than us," Daniel said as he swept his cup with his aura before drinking from it. "I guess we are lucky to have deployed fewer troops than them." He was injured too. His right arm was completely charred, but a thick layer of Primordial Ice covered that limb and was already quickening its recovery. The Elbas family had provided that resource freely after the explosion, so all the injured were using it. Elder Austin snorted before refilling his cup with some wine and drinking it all in one gulp. Then, he complained in a loud voice again. "The luck of the underdog! We have lost decades of progress in a single battle, and you talk about luck. There is no victory in losing less than your enemies. The real victory is in the gains that we manage to reap thanks to those losses." Daniel could only nod at his words. Casualties were inevitable, especially when facing a nation that had been at the peak of those Mortal Land for millennia. Yet, if the invaders managed to gain something that would boost their growth as organizations, they would see those losses as a fair price to pay. Noah remained silent as they conversed. The Elders didn''t treat Daniel or Amos coldly anymore, but they were starting to show some trust toward those two nobles. It would take time for the Udye family to become a part of the Hive. However, the Elders had already changed their behavior toward them. Daniel and Amos had fought together with them in the end. The world would label them as actual members of the Hive now that they had worn its robes in front of the other nations. There was no turning back from that. "It was worth it," Noah said as he stood up from the couch where he was sitting. "With the stele and the lava lake, we will groom stronger heroic assets and increase the number of our elites. Also, we have the living weapons, and the hybrids should provide more assistance once their mental instabilities are fixed." Then, he left the tent to return to a cave that he had previously dug to cultivate. They had already discussed anything important, so there was no point for him to remain there. His free time had to be dedicated to his training and projects, and he didn''t feel like wasting it to analyze the data of the last battle. Their allies had lost more than them, and the Empire had surpassed all three of them in that field. Elder Julia had calculated that at least eight cultivators in the fifth rank had died on the defending side, and Noah had filled two of those spots. The Empire had simply lost too much, and dozens of rank 4 cultivators couldn''t make up for the deaths of its elites. Elder Julia had warned Noah on that part. The fact that he could be a threat to cultivators on his level would force the Empire to deploy equal experts against him. They wouldn''t rely on tactics to beat him. Their only weapons would be their experience and individuality, which would give birth to battles a bit more complicated than his previous ones. If strategies didn''t work, the Empire would just make him face its best existences in the gaseous stage of the fifth rank. Noah didn''t know how much it would take to the three factions to reorganize, but that break gave him the chance to start experimenting in one of his projects. He resumed forging living weapons in that period of peace. After all, there was an abundance of magical beasts'' corpses due to the cleaning operations on the northeastern coast. His choice wasn''t random. He would need decades to complete his other projects, and he didn''t want to be interrupted when he was preparing for his next series of experiments. Seclusion and long periods of meditation were usually the best approaches for entities on his level, but gathering experiences had the priority since he could express his individuality freely. That was in line with the requirements to advance once reached the fifth rank, and Noah had long felt that his dantian was improving. Noah began to forge living weapons again, even if there weren''t rank 4 cultivators available for their purchase. The recent losses had left a lot of living weapons behind, but very few cultivators able to wield them. It was finally his turn with the sixth Kesier rune at some point, and his days suddenly became hectic. He couldn''t waste that opportunity to improve his mental sphere as much as he could, especially with the breakthrough of his body drawing close. A bit more than a year passed in that situation. The territory with the stele had become quite crowded in that short period. The arrival of the new troops helped their armies to reform, but they had to summon human cultivators personally since they couldn''t travel alone through the new continent. Also, the cultivators of the Elbas family were developing an item that could block eventual explosions of buildings in the future. The war was about to start again, and the invaders wouldn''t stop until the Empire didn''t have any domain left in the new continent at that time. Chapter 843: 843. Calmness The battles resumed once the experts of the Elbas family managed to find a solution to the catastrophic explosions that the buildings of the Empire could cause. However, they didn''t aim to protect the armies from the multicolored light. Something like that was simply impossible to create in such a short period, and a protective item in the fifth rank would have the same efficiency. Instead, the Royals developed a scanner that would warn the troops whenever the energy in certain formations accumulated to trigger an explosion. The warning would come far sooner than the actual detonation. After all, it was in the invaders'' interest to give enough time to escape even to their human troops. They couldn''t just keep only losing hundreds of promising human cultivators as collateral damage. The three factions didn''t divide themselves at that time. The Empire only had a few large regions left in its domain, and they were the territories that it had occupied right after the fall of the continent. Those areas would be protected in the same way as the mountain chain, which meant that the invaders had some harsh battles waiting for them. Yet, that didn''t discourage them. It would be strange if they managed to kick the Empire out of the new continent without struggles. The rank 5 assets deployed in the next fight remained almost the same, but the three organizations added more troops in the fourth rank to make up for their previous losses and increase the overall power of the army. A new wave of human cultivators appeared too, but their leaders had ordered them to be careful when advancing in the enemy territory. Faith had joined the army after the discovery of the stele, and her new cultivation level made her stand with the rank 5 Elders of the Council. Noah''s guess had been on point. She had been busy breaking through the fifth rank and adapting to her new power in those years. Yet, she didn''t have time to visit Noah when they were still in the encampment, even if she often waved at him with a radiant smile whenever she saw him. Noah had initially thought that she had become even more childish after the breakthrough, but seeing her calm expression when she stood with the other Elders made him rethink that evaluation. Faith''s calmness had evolved in those years. Her aura didn''t block the external influences anymore, but it forced them to adapt to her rhythm. The wind that blew in the sky became a soft breeze whenever it neared her, and even the sunlight acted strangely when it illuminated her figure. It slowed down and accumulated around her, making her figure shine and enhancing her already breathtaking beauty. The army of the invaders stood at the borders of a poisonous swamp that had a tall palace standing in the middle of the toxic gases radiated by the environment. Stern-faced cultivators waited in front of the castle, and the hatred that they felt seeped through their auras and reached the opposing side. Nevertheless, most cultivators still had the time to glance at Faith''s figure. They acted as if they weren''t about to engage in a deadly battle. The atmosphere suddenly changed when the order to charge spread through the invading army and forced the distracted assets to focus. The two armies clashed again, and the same series of defensive methods appeared to help the defending side. However, the three forces were more than used to those strategies and quickly deployed their countermeasures. There wasn''t another Elemental formation. That kind of inscription originated from specific cores that had been destroyed during the detonation of the castles. Still, the Empire had found a way to make use of the poisonous properties of the swamp. There would be sudden green torrents rising from the ground and aiming for the heroic assets fighting in the sky. They would divide themselves into a series of precise bullets that targeted the foreign cultivators, and the poison that they carried would weaken anyone that they touched. As a defensive method, those toxic bullets were far weaker than the Elemental formation. Yet, when the Empire used them together with the shadows, the invading troops began to feel some pressure. Nevertheless, the troops of the Empire were trying to save their strength. It was as if they weren''t interested in defending that territory since they only pursued safe battles, and they rarely engaged in one versus one fights. It was as if they had already given up on the new continent and were only trying to inflict as many losses as possible before the invasion inevitably moved in the old continent. Of course, there were exceptions to that approach. Noah exchanged blows with a rank 5 cultivator at the peak of the gaseous stage. She was a middle-aged woman with long blonde hair called Icy Stare, and her title was a perfect description of her facial features. Icy Stare had a cold expression as she froze the air around her to turn it into part of her spells. Various shapes made of ice took form from that ice and shot toward Noah, who was already using most of his abilities. He wouldn''t dare to underestimate an expert at the peak of the gaseous stage, especially after Elder Julia''s warning. So, he had activated his usual spells while he was trying to create a window where he could use the second form of his martial art. The only issue was that Icy Stare''s aura was able to affect even the corrosive smoke radiated by the Demonic Form, which slowed down its advance under its influence. The various weapons and beasts made of ice that shot toward him also seemed partially resistant to the gravitational pull of the Black Hole spell. That forced Noah to use the black lines to defend against the constant barrage of spells and his physical endurance to advance toward his enemy slowly. Yet, Icy Stare simply increased the number of attacks whenever she saw him taking a step forward to push him back again. There didn''t seem to be a limit to how many figures she could create, and she could even use the shards of ice that still floated in the sky to create more spells. ''This won''t do,'' Noah thought as four copies of his Demonic Swords appeared next to him, and four fuming arms wielded them. The instants lost to perform that preparation exposed him to her opponent''s attacks, which landed directly on the scaled armor. The Black Hole spell managed to take away some of their power, but they managed to pierce the gaseous protection nonetheless. It was at that point though that Icy Stare''s expression flickered, and she quickly shattered all the shapes around her to create a thick layer of ice to protect her. A vertical piece of the layer vanished as soon as it formed, and the rest of the wall of ice crumbled quickly. Icy Stare''s figure appeared again, but there was a long wound on her torso now. Chapter 844: 844. Ice Noah''s scaled armor had dispersed when the spells landed on him. A thin layer of ice had spread on his chest where a series of cuts had appeared. However, black smoke soon came out of his body and reduced the ice to ashes before turning him again into a fiendish figure. He had never liked to be passive in a battle, and Icy Stare was able to push him back. So, he had simply decided to endure the might of her spells with his body and cast the second form of his martial art. His physical strength was well known to the cultivation of the world by then, and no expert would ever allow him to get close. After all, even a single punch could kill them if they were careless. However, Noah would only express a part of his power if he didn''t use the incredible properties of his body. His martial arts were able to match spells because of it, but they alone didn''t cover everything that his body was capable of. In a situation where a melee battle was impossible, and his normal abilities weren''t able to overwhelm his opponent, Noah had decided to rely on his innate defenses to launch his most potent attack right through her offensive. ''Why is the Black Hole spell affecting her spells so little?'' Noah started pondering about the issue as he resumed his offensive. Icy Stare did the same, but she began to move to affect a wider part of the sky with her freezing aura. There was something strange with her spells. The forms that she created were extraordinarily lifelike and didn''t act according to specific patterns. Instead, they flew in odd trajectories and would even dodge some of the black lines launched by Noah. It was as if Noah was facing a series of lifeforms rather than simple spells. That peculiarity became more evident in the forms that imitated magical beasts. Those icy figures never flew in a straight line, and they even tried to encircle Noah at times. ''Dammit!'' Noah cursed in his mind before activating the Divine Deduction technique. He would generally avoid using so many techniques at once. The consumption of mental energy was absurd when he went all out, and adding the divine inscriptions worsened that already dire situation. The drawbacks of being a cultivator of the darkness element were still there, even if his darkness had considerably eased that issue. It was merely his mental energy the fuel that was enduring them now. The same problem didn''t appear in cultivators with more common aptitudes, and the existences in the fifth rank could make up for the difference in power between their elements by using more spells. Of course, not every expert in the fifth rank could obtain a large number of diagrams at the same level, but those that were experienced inscription masters had managed to create some spells through the centuries. Those attacks would even match their individualities most of the time, which made them stronger compared to those produced by others. Icy Stare appeared to be one of those experts since her freezing aura worked perfectly with her icy figures. Also, she was even able to reduce the destructiveness of Noah''s smoke, which meant that her ice wasn''t ordinary at all. Noah had a few plans to turn the situation in his favor, but only the clarity given by the Divine Deduction technique could put him always one step ahead of his enemy. He wanted to understand the nature of her ice too, so he could only sacrifice his mental energy in that battle. Countless thoughts surged in his mind as an army of weapons and magical beasts flew in his direction through odd trajectories. Noah saw a flock of eagles coming at him from below, a series of spears and shards rising in the sky only to aim for his head as they fell. Hundreds of small beetles sieged him from the front, and large axes occupied his sides. He was surrounded, and the expansion of Icy Stare''s ice wasn''t stopping yet. In a matter of minutes, she would turn into ice all that part of the sky. The number of attacks was simply too high for Noah to handle them with only his martial art and corrosive smoke. Even if those spells didn''t have their peculiar traits and the Black Hole spell could affect them, he would still be in trouble. However, he had a way to fight that offensive. A series of saber shaped runes appeared in the sky and began to absorb the primary energy that his aura and the previous clashes had created since the beginning of the fight. The runes soon reached a threatening power, and Noah controlled them to stop the incoming attacks. Also, he created hundreds of Ghostly Sabers that he sent after the moving Icy Stare. It was needless to say that the consumption of his mental energy increased further. Still, Noah didn''t find the point in having a full sea of consciousness when you were dead. The runes and black lines managed to fend off all the enemy attacks, and the Ghostly Sabers hindered the expansion of the ice as they chased after Icy Stare. The number of spells in Noah''s possession was incredible, and he was even able to overwhelm his opponent''s offensive when he used all of them. Yet, the price to pay in terms of mental energy was absurd, which didn''t allow him to fight in that state for long. Icy Stare kept on flying away from the Ghostly Sabers, but she didn''t notice how Noah was forcing her to remain close to his position. When she was close enough, he threw the Black Hole spell at here, detonating it when he was sure that she was in the area of the blast. Icy Stare staggered for a second due to the explosion, but the Ghostly Sabers caught up with her and quickly aimed for her body to hurt her internally. The ethereal sabers though froze mid-air as they were about to reach her. ''She puts a part of her life inside her ice,'' Noah thought as he understood the reason why his Black Hole spell had worked so poorly. ''My spell can''t absorb something carrying such a firm will. I would have to suppress it beforehand.'' Icy Stare seemed to use inscription methods similar to the Will-consuming runes. Her ice carried part of her will, and it even had precise orders since its creation. ''This is troublesome,'' Noah thought as he evaluated the battle as a whole. His attacks seemed able to overwhelm her for a few moments, but he had to decide if keeping on using all his spells, or just wait until she ran out of mental energy. A torrent of green water though surged from the swamp and temporarily interrupted the battle. Noah found himself fighting against a series of poisonous water bullets coming in his direction while expecting Icy Stare to exploit that opening. Yet, she didn''t do anything, and she even began to retreat with the rest of her allies. Chapter 845: 845. Eagerness Noah destroyed the poisonous bullets and stared at his departing opponent. The sudden retreat of the troops of the Empire confused him, but everything made more sense when he inspected the battlefield. A few rank 5 members of the Elbas family had gathered near the ground, where the green corpse of a man floated on the swamp. Noah didn''t recognize him, but the amount of attention that those experts were giving him hinted that he had to be on their same level. The Empire had managed to kill a rank 5 cultivator of the invading forces without suffering any casualty for what concerned experts on the same rank. Also, it had managed to inflict a lot of damage even on the other assets. Noah could see how most heroic cultivators on his side had green spots on their skin together with various injuries. Those spots slowly spread through their bodies and affected their healing properties too. It was clear that those existences were in dire need of special care. The new defensive battle style of the Empire had only focused on weakening the invaders, without caring about preventing the loss of the region. It was as if the defenders had sacrificed that territory to slow down the enemy army while also preserving as many assets as possible. Of course, the Empire had suffered some losses too, but they only concerned the human assets and the heroic cultivators in the fourth rank. The invaders had won the battle and obtained a new territory, but the state of their troops didn''t make it feel like a victory. ''I don''t know if they just want to gain time because they hope for the return of their god,'' Noah thought at the sight of that scene, ''Or if they are up to something.'' The records retrieved in the Mortal Palace were entirely accurate, and Thirty-seven had even vouched for them. After all, anything that a divine entity had deemed worthy of keeping couldn''t be false. So, Noah didn''t feel inclined to believe in his first hypothesis. Their faith in the Almighty might have blinded the cultivators of the Empire, but they were experts in the art of war. Their tactical retreat was just a piece of a strategy that they had set in motion. The only issue was that Noah couldn''t know where such a plan would uncover itself, and he knew that even his allies were clueless about that. There had always been spies among the three big nations, but the security was impenetrable when it came to those pieces of information. ''I wonder if it will be here or in the old continent,'' Noah thought before putting those problems in the back of his mind. He was almost sure that they would eventually walk into a trap, but he couldn''t know when or where that would happen. He didn''t have a way to discover that either, so he could only focus on his power. "Let''s go back to the encampment," Elder Julia said after nearing him, "We have to send the injured back to the headquarters." Noah nodded at her words and began to help to carry the wounded heroic cultivators of the Hive outside of that poisonous swamp. Some rank 4 Elders were barely able to stand in the air due to the toxins inside them, so they needed some help in returning to a safe area. Noah''s actions weren''t purely selfless. The poison spread through physical contact, and Noah was the only one capable of resisting its effects due to his hybrid body. Also, he could carry more than dozens of cultivators at the same time, so he was quite handy. That green substance had infected even some rank 5 Elders, but they were able to limit its effects with their powerful "Breath" and didn''t need help in returning to the encampment. As for the human cultivators, Danielle handled their evacuation since she could control the hybrids among them. She simply ordered them to act as mounts that the other assets could use to escape the swamp. The injured didn''t stop at the encampment though. Noah and the other hybrids carried them in the central territories, where a cloaked formation lit up at their passage. The troops suddenly found themselves inside the separate dimension when the light of the formation engulfed them, and they couldn''t help but notice two powerful figures looking at them with a curious expression. "War has indeed changed in these years," Flying Demon said at the sight of those cultivators full of green spots. "A poison able to affect heroic cultivators in this way didn''t exist back then." "Anything coming from the Immortal Lands can hurt heroic cultivators," Noah replied to him while dropping on the ground the pile of cultivators that he was carrying on his shoulders. "Don''t tell me that you can still feel bored after everything that you''ve been through." "Prince, it''s been a long time since we had a real battle," Dreaming Demon said when she saw that her lover had been made out. "You should understand our feelings better than anyone." Noah could only reveal a smirk at her words. Dreaming Demon was right. Fighting against enemies on that level was extremely satisfying. It had been a long time since enemies on his same rank managed to last so much against him. Most of the time, they would always fall apart whenever Noah revealed the power of his body or his modified spells. However, rank 5 cultivators could match his blows. Some of them had trump cards, while others were even able to push him into a passive position. They were enemies on an entirely different level. Each of them had a battle style that they had honed for centuries. They were perfect in their judgment and expression of their power. Noah had been able to kill Countless Wings because she was unaware of the full potential of his abilities and Silent Lightning because his spells were a bad match for Noah. Yet, even if he was overall stronger than both of them with his hybrid status and personal "Breath", he had still needed to surprise them to obtain a victory. Those struggles were slowly bringing his battle style to a higher level, and Noah learnt more about his weaknesses as he fought those powerful beings. To put it simply, he would be lying if he said that he wasn''t enjoying those bloody fights were perfection was the minimum requirement to come out of them alive. "Your turn will come," Noah said as he changed the topic. "A hidden weapon is scary precisely because it''s hidden. I believe I don''t have to explain this to you." Flying Demon released a laugh at his words and patted Noah''s shoulder. The Elder was eager to fight, but he knew that Noah was right. After that short conversation, Thirty-seven appeared next to them and activated a teleportation matrix inside the separate dimension to bring the injured troops on the southwestern coast. Before leaving though, the automaton handed a few tomes to Noah. Chapter 846: 846. Notes Noah returned to the encampment without the hybrids. Even if he could control them, he couldn''t bother to keep them in check all the time. He had far better things to do. A lot of cultivators had been injured in the previous battle. So, the armies were waiting for everyone to recover before going after the remaining domains of the Empire. Noah could use that time to train and to analyze his latest gain. Thirty-seven had given him a few tomes that researched schools that seemed to have similarities with the theories applied by the Body-inscription spell. He had even written a few notes where he explained what he had found on the incompatibility between his darkness and the Blood Companion. According to his understanding of the spell, the automaton believed that Noah''s darkness couldn''t fuel the functioning and the abilities of the Blood Companions because they imitated the original beast too much. The problem wasn''t in the spell but Noah''s individuality. His existence had simply become so specific that his energy couldn''t just activate effects that were too different from its nature. Thirty-seven suggested to apply substantial modifications to the spell by studying schools that researched similar topics, but Noah directly disregarded that approach. The formation field was vast and required a lot of general study before approaching one of its schools. Noah had the time to memorize that knowledge, and Thirty-seven would help him, but his expertise covered entirely different types of inscriptions. Also, his field of expertise worked well with his individuality. The powerful wills that his mind was capable of producing were perfect both for his destruction and creation. They had even influenced each other as Noah grew in the human ranks. So, spending decades studying another inscription method that didn''t suit him just to modify a spell wasn''t worth the effort. Noah could just create other spells in that time. Thirty-seven''s notes didn''t stop there. He suggested other approaches to the spell where he would directly remove the core of the beast to create some sort of amorphous puppet. Yet, Noah discarded that idea too since the final product would be far weaker than his usual Blood Companions. Some other ideas of the automaton saw Noah taking out necessary materials of the spell like the blood, the tattoos, or even the wills than he injected in them. However, all of them led to a weaker final product too, so Noah simply discarded them. The last idea was something that Noah had considered too in his spare time, but that he didn''t analyze yet because he was waiting for Thirty-seven''s opinion. The issue with the incompatibility was that there wasn''t any magical beast in the world capable of making use of Noah''s individuality. After all, that was the whole point of the heroic ranks. A cultivator had to become a unique existence that would eventually develop a personal law. Then, the solution to the problem was to create a magical beast that could be compatible with his individuality. ''Organic inscriptions to create a being that won''t conflict with my darkness once turned into a Blood Companion,'' Noah thought as he closed the tome containing the automaton''s notes. ''Basically, a chimera.'' The Divine Deduction technique was already working at full speed as Noah pondered about the matter. He had already stepped on the organic inscriptions'' field when he created the living weapons, but that project would require an entirely different level of expertise. Noah would need to build an entire body that could use his darkness as a fuel! Also, the Beast Core for such a creature would be extremely complex to create since the will of a random beast would just endanger the entire project. In the end, Noah would still need to perform the procedure for the creation of a Blood Companion on the creature, which meant that he would have to kill his creation. ''Troublesome indeed,'' Noah thought in the silence of his cave, ''But possible nonetheless. I just don''t know if it''s worth just for something that I will change every time I experience a breakthrough with my sea of consciousness.'' There was another doubt that lingered in his mind. Creating a chimera would be a clear expression of his individuality. Yet, he couldn''t help but think if such a project would have more chances to succeed if he had access to his higher energy. As he lost himself in his thoughts, a message reached his mental sphere, and Noah decided to put a hold to his meditation to head out of his cave. He reached for one of the luxurious tents in the encampment and was surprised to find Faith calmly drinking some wine inside. She wasn''t alone. Daniel was in a corner, staring at her with a curious gaze, while Elder Austin was sitting near her. "I was saying," Elder Austin said before clearing his throat when he saw Noah entering the tent, "Fire isn''t always violent. It can flow as if it was a river ready to burst out of an underground canal. Our elements have a lot in common, but the general opinion of the current experts puts them on opposite sides." Noah had never seen Elder Austin speaking so much about the fire element, but it wasn''t hard to understand the reason behind that strange behavior. The Elder sat straight as if he wanted to appear more manly to Faith, who was simply replying to him with her enchanting smiles. The jug of wine on the mat was one of those retrieved in the Mortal Palace, and its aroma had a calming effect on the minds of those smelling it. Even Noah felt more relaxed as that scent entered his nostrils. It was more than evident that Elder Austin was trying to hit on Faith. "You wanted to see me, right?" Noah said as he went for the jug and filled a cup before sitting on one of the available couches. "Yes! I''ve meant to come sooner, but the Elders wanted to make sure that I could put up a fight even if I''ve just become a complete rank 5 cultivator," Faith said. "Then, that poison came, and my body had a strange reaction to it. My pores started to secrete smelly pus, which seemed even infective. They sent me away from the tent until I managed to put the disease under control." Elder Austin cleared his throat again when he heard those words and suddenly stood up. "Elder Julia just contacted me. Let''s do this again." He said before leaving the tent. Noah didn''t know Faith as well as June, but he had spent fifteen years with her in the wilderness. She was childish, but she was far from stupid, especially when it came to handling men. When he turned to look at her, Faith winked at him and poured another cup of wine for herself. It had already been more than thirty years since they had last seen each other, and Noah appreciated what she did for June. "How is she?" Noah asked at some point. "In perfect shape!" Faith exclaimed. "That dual cultivation did wonders." Chapter 847: 847. Love Noah was a bit taken aback when he heard Faith''s words. He knew that she and June talked about many things, but he didn''t expect her to mention the dual cultivation right away. The memories of the week spent helping June with her higher energy appeared in his mind, and his eagerness to hold her resurfaced stronger than ever. He suddenly missed their long cohabitation in the separate dimension and the possibility to be with her whenever he wanted. Yet, that wasn''t the right time to expose their relationship. Noah could only suppress his longing and learn about his lover from Faith. "You are as curious as ever," Noah said, "I bet you asked for the details too." "Of course!" Faith replied while revealing a bright smile. "You should have seen her. She was so shy whenever she talked about it. I didn''t think you could have held back for so long with her in that state." At her words, Noah understood that she probably knew every intimate detail about his relationship with June. Yet, that fact didn''t bother him. If June had decided to tell her that, it meant that Faith was worthy of her trust. Noah shrugged his shoulders as he suppressed his instincts and spoke. "I love her, and she needed my help." Faith''s smile widened at his words, but she felt a bit disappointed to see that Noah didn''t show any trace of shyness when he said that. His expression remained relaxed and aloof. There was someone in the room that didn''t take his words so lightly. Daniel was calmly sipping his wine when he heard the word "love" coming out of Noah''s mouth. The surprise almost made him spit the wine back in his cup, and the coughing that followed claimed the attention of the other two cultivators on the room. He couldn''t believe his ears! Noah Balvan, the bane of the Elbas family, the lone cultivator that had fooled the big nations, the monster that unleashed destruction wherever he went had said to love someone. What surprised Daniel the most was that Noah didn''t flinch when he gave voice to those words. He made it appear as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "You-" Daniel began to speak, but he had to gulp the remaining wine in his throat before continuing. "Do you have a lover?" For some reason, he felt that he needed to know the answer to that question. Noah stared at Daniel with a cold expression. In his mind, he was trying to understand if he could trust him with that information. Yet, Noah soon dismissed his doubts. Daniel was the cultivator that had the most to lose inside the Hive. The very survival of his family depended on how he behaved. Also, the oath that bound him was quite strict. There was virtually no chance that he could expose some of the internal matters of the Hive even if he wanted to. "Of course, he has!" Faith intervened before Noah could say anything. "They are perfect for each other, and they are so cute when they become intimate." Faith covered her mouth to hide her strange smile, and she pretended to know nothing when Noah shot a cold glance at her. Daniel could see how the two of them appeared quite close. They didn''t act as the talents of two different organizations. When he linked Faith''s words to that behavior, Daniel started to wonder whether her relationship with Noah was more than just friendly. However, Noah understood that Daniel was having strange thoughts and decided to clarify the situation. "We are just friends. My lover happens to like her, and I have to hang with her when she decides to visit me." "Precisely," Faith added as she patted Noah''s shoulder. "Also, June would kill me if I tried anything, and I mean it. I even think that she can beat me now." When Faith mentioned June, everything clicked inside Daniel''s mind. He wasn''t ignorant when it came to the noble families that had joined the Royals in the past. After all, the Cause gathered many pieces of information back then, and the Elbas family didn''t hide its social activities. Instead, the Royals would often announce specific fusions with other noble families to improve their image in front of their underlings. They wanted to show how their power continued to grow even if they were already at the peak of the Utra nation. Yet, as far as he remembered, June Ballor was the most grumpy and unapproachable talent of his generation. Many called her a battle maniac, and she spent most of her time training in seclusion or during the secret missions of the Elbas family. Daniel could even understand how Noah and June managed to see each other. He knew about the existence of the separate dimension, and he was aware that it was almost impossible to track. However, he was still surprised that such peculiar characters had ultimately ended up together. Also, there was a grave doubt that screamed to come out of his mind. "Why did you accept to feel love?" Daniel asked as he wore an incredulous expression. "Why you of all of us have chosen to focus on something unrelated to the cultivation journey?" Noah''s growth had inspired Daniel to forsake every irrelevant matter in his journey toward the peak of the cultivation world. His individuality had become a light capable of purifying the life itself of all its useless aspects. Nevertheless, Noah had taken the opposite direction and was accepting things in his life that didn''t strictly involve his cultivation. Of course, Daniel couldn''t possibly know that Noah didn''t have much choice on the matter. His feelings had fused with instincts after his body reached the fifth rank, and seeing June again forced him to decide whether to pursue what he wanted or suppress himself. He ended up with June after that, and she had become a core part of his creation as their relationship evolved. "I didn''t lose focus," Noah said as he refilled his cup. "I''ve simply become strong enough to enjoy a few things." That was the truth. Power had always been the priority in Noah''s mind. Yet, as his level increased and through Elder Julia''s advice, he had learnt to appreciate other parts of his life. "But," Daniel didn''t seem convinced by the answer and continued with his questions. "You are on a different level! What will happen when you leave her behind?" Noah revealed a complicated smile and gave voice to soft words as June''s figure appeared in his mind. "June is strong. It will be up to her to follow me once I go away. I will only keep her spot empty because I know that she will reach me." Daniel couldn''t understand him completely, but Faith stepped in the conversation when she saw his confusion. "You can''t purify your way to the sky. You''ll end up with nothing if you keep on throwing away parts of you." Chapter 848: 848. Ligh Faith had seen how Daniel used his light to purify the wine and guessed the nature of his individuality. That had been quite easy for her since her individuality used to have similar features. Her peace was something that she enforced by keeping away anything that could disrupt it. Yet, her foundation would have been empty if she had continued to pursue that path. The opposite would happen to Daniel if he kept on pursuing his endless purification. His individuality would just become nothing at some point. Daniel''s eyes widened at her words. He understood what she was saying, and he managed to spot a fatal flaw on his path thanks to the insights gained in that short conversation. "I need to preserve a core that I can''t afford to lose," Daniel said as he turned his head to stare at the wall. "That is what I have to purify to its apex. My willpower must reach a new form." Noah had already started to ignore Daniel since he was clearly in the middle of a revelation. Faith soon lost interest too, and resumed her conversation with Noah. The two of them spoke mostly about June and the state of the war. It turned out that June''s centers of power still needed time to adapt to her higher energy. It was something revolutionary for her Perfect Circuit, especially since it allowed her to break the limits of her Perpetual Formations. Noah could only imagine her struggles: The biggest war of the last centuries was happening right in front of her eyes, and she wasn''t in the condition to join it. Also, she would have to hold back even if she did participate in the battles. The matter concerning the higher energies was something exclusive of the Elbas family, and Noah didn''t know who else had that research. So, June couldn''t create a credible justification for her new power if she was to reveal it. The only connection would be Noah, which meant that she would expose her relationship with him. As for the war, Faith revealed that even the Council was worried about the existence of a trap hidden somewhere in the Empire''s domain. The behavior of the defenders was too obvious. They were slowly preparing the field for a significant event that would happen in an unknown place and at an unclear time. The invaders could only approach every battle carefully and develop as many countermeasures as they could as they advanced. "The next battle should be in a wasteland near the Divine Stele." Faith said as she analyzed a simple map of the new continent. "Our forces want to corner the Empire in this forest or near these series of rivers. The final decision on this matter will arrive after we win the next fight." Faith didn''t even consider the possibility that the Empire could win. Hers wasn''t arrogance nor stupidity. It was a simple conclusion reached after observing the two armies clash. Even if the troops of the Empire were preserving their power, the invaders were too numerous. The defensive measures couldn''t block them due to the impressive knowledge of the Elbas family, and the Council could create intricate battle formations that prevented most of the Empire''s protection. It didn''t matter if the Empire was playing defensively and kept on weakening the enemy''s army. It would still be at a disadvantage in that war. After all, the three powerhouses would arrive once God''s Left Hand felt forced to join the battlefield, and that would put an end to her dreams of following the Almighty in the Immortal Lands. Noah nodded at her words. The strategy of the Council was good, and it would give to the invading army some control over the trend of the war. "Once the wasteland, the rivers, and the forest are taken," Noah said, "The Empire will be officially outside of the new continent." That would be an incredible achievement for the three forces. Kicking the organization that had been at the top of those Mortal Lands outside of the most valuable continent in the world would quicken its decline. Faith eventually stood up when they had exhausted their topics. It was time for her to return to the tents of the Council and check the status of the injured to see how long it would take for the war to resume. Yet, when she was about to leave, Daniel stood up and performed a polite bow before giving voice to a peculiar question. "Miss Vigny, why is the sunlight deciding to shine around your figure?" Both Noah and Faith felt surprised by that sudden question. However, Daniel appeared particularly serious at that moment. It seemed that his curiosity toward Faith wasn''t related to her beauty. Instead, he was interested in the behavior that the light assumed when it came in contact with her aura. He was probably trying to expand his knowledge for what concerned the laws of the light element, which was something that every heroic cultivator had to do with their respective element once reached a certain level. After all, the individuality had to lead to the world of the laws at some point. Seeing his seriousness, Faith decided to answer without revealing too much of her individuality. "It doesn''t decide. I create the conditions to make it shine more." Daniel mumbled for a few seconds before performing another bow and sitting back in his corner. Then, he closed his eyes and started to meditate. "He is peculiar too," Faith said as she glanced at Daniel before moving her gaze on Noah. "Maybe it''s just your influence." "A single mistake can create a chain reaction in a program," Noah replied as he walked past her to exit the tent. "Who knows, it might cause the complete failure of the system." Faith didn''t understand the meaning behind his words completely, but she could see how Noah''s consciousness had blurred for a few seconds before returning to its usual form. It was as if his mental waves had surpassed some invisible barrier when he spoke and returned to their typical composition when the silence returned. Noah returned to his cave at that point. It would take a while for all the heroic assets of the army to heal, so he had time to train and solve some of his immediate issues. That first one and easiest to fix was the power of his mental sphere. Noah didn''t remain in his cave for long. He soon joined the clearing parties that usually prepared an environment for the passage of the weaker troops. The clearing parties often targeted areas full of magical beasts in the fourth rank, but Noah'' didn''t care about those weaklings. He needed powerful creatures to enhance his mental sphere and give him enough nutrients for his body. The breakthrough for the upper tier was nearing, and his mind was still on the process of enlarging. However, it would be only a matter of years before his body advanced. Chapter 849: 849. Stronger Noah spent his time training and hunting with the clearing teams while the injured troops focused on healing. The walls of his mind were incredibly sturdy after the various projects and struggles that Noah had gone through. That made him able to use the devouring properties of his mental energy again without worrying about negative consequences. The hunting team mostly focused on the rank 4 magical beasts living on the path that the human troops would have to trail, but those beings were too weak for Noah''s requirements. He needed wills capable of enlarging his mental sphere, and he also wanted to push his body toward the peak of the middle tier in the process. So, he usually left the hunting teams alone whenever they reached a danger zone and went looking for prey that met his requirements. The four organizations had colonized and cleared large areas of the new continent, but there were always territories that were too troublesome to make habitable. The poisonous swamp was an example of that. The Empire had freed only a small part of that territory from the presence of magical beasts to place the castle and the formation that controlled the toxic water. Yet, the rest of that region was still filled by poisonous creatures that were too annoying to face as humans. Luckily for Noah, his hybrid status made him particularly resistant to those poisonous properties, which allowed him able to hunt freely in those areas. The hunting teams'' targets were the poisonous swamp and the mountain chain with the Divine Stele in their missions. It was enough for them to create a safe passage, but Noah''s presence allowed them to scare away entire packs without even lifting a finger. Noah would release a growl when he reached those areas before leaving to search for the powerful beings hidden somewhere in those regions. His roars scared away most packs, which made the missions of the hunting teams far easier. It wasn''t easy to find a satisfying number of rank 5 magical beasts, but the new continent was still something belonging to the Immortal Lands. In that environment rich of "Breath", powerful creatures would often take control of large and isolated areas. The mountain chain didn''t have many creatures on that level. Noah could only find two rank 5 magical beasts in the lower tier during his missions with the hunting teams. That wasn''t surprising. The mountain chain had traces left by divine beings, which had pushed the Empire to clear that region multiple times, leading to a scarcity of packs that met Noah''s standards. The poisonous swamp, instead, reserved more surprises. The Empire had barely touched that territory. That vast area had remained in a wild state since the fall of the continent from the higher plane. Noah could find four rank 5 magical beasts in the lower tier as he explored the swamp and two of them in the middle tier. There was even a danger zone in one of the areas where the water became more profound, which was densely populated by creatures on that level. However, Noah felt forced to ignore that part of the swamp since his instincts started to scream whenever he neared it. That sort of danger was something that only a being in the last stage of the heroic ranks could cause. There was a rank 6 danger zone inside that toxic environment. Noah noted that location in his mind. He had done the same whenever he found traces of rank 6 magical beasts since he would need them once his body reached that level. He knew that the requirements of his body could only increase as his rank rose. After all, it had taken him more than forty years to start to feel the arrival of the breakthrough even if he had eaten powerful creatures all the time. Yet, even if he had two worlds where he could hunt almost freely, Noah knew that he would have to explore the depths of the sea at some point. That environment was too rich of powerful beasts to ignore it. Noah performed the Body-inscription spell on his prey and let the properties of his mental energy devour the wills of the beasts that appeared inside his mind. Then, he ate the maimed corpses to nourish his body. His mind gained weeks of training every time his mental energy ate those wills, and his body neared the limits of the middle tier as he fed on the flesh of those creatures. His dantian also improved at an incredible speed when he trained. It was clear that the war had brought immense benefits even to that organ. Six months had to pass before all the injured cultivators became able to fight again, and the leaders of the three factions didn''t hesitate to order another attack at that point. The troops spread through the new continent gathered on the northeastern coast, near the encampment around the Divine Stele. They marched toward the wasteland situated at the end of that coastline when everything was ready. The Empire was waiting for them. Its observers had noticed the arrival on the enemy army since it left the encampment, and the defending troops had always been ready for the deployment. It was impossible to catch the Empire unprepared, especially since it was on edge all the time. The army of the invaders attacked without hesitation and faced the usual defensive measures that they had already seen in the other territories. In that area, the Empire didn''t manage to exploit the lifeforms to its advantage, so the protections were relatively weaker. Yet, there were chained hybrids in that territory, which made the battle somewhat hard to win without losing some assets. Also, it was almost impossible not to lose heroic cultivators when the Empire was so focused on increasing the number of casualties on the enemy''s side. Noah couldn''t go after the hybrids even if he wanted. Icy Stare kept him locked in a harsh battle that he didn''t know how to win. Her centers of power were on a higher level even if they were still in the same ranks and stages as Noah''s, and her battle style was incredible. Icy Stare would send various figures made of ice toward Noah while she kept on increasing the area of the sky that she could affect. Noah saw his opponent''s offensive becoming harsher as the air around him froze and gave birth to different shapes, but his mind was too busy for him to worry about that. He had activated the Divine Deduction technique since the beginning of the fight, but he was using it to find flaws in Icy Stare''s battle style. He would have been satisfied even if he found a sort of habit of her as long as he could exploit it. However, Icy Stare was perfect. She never repeated the same action twice, and she even had an exceptional understanding of her power. Of course, Noah had tried to find a solution during the months spent hunting, but his meditations led to no answers. Icy Stare was just stronger than him. Chapter 850: 850. Loss With the Black Hole spell almost ineffective against Icy Stare''s spells, Noah had a hard time creating a strategy that could allow him to defeat her. He lacked the means to gain the advantage in that fight. Of course, Noah had known that since his last battle with her. Still, he had chosen to fight her again to gain an idea of how to improve his combat style further. Truth to be told, his disadvantage came mostly from the difference of power between their centers of power. Noah had been in the fifth rank for a little more than forty years, and he had only spent a part of them training since he had advanced without a suitable cultivation technique. The fact that his darkness allowed him to match an expert at the peak of the gaseous stage was already an incredible feat, even if part of the merit had to go to his hybrid status. Yet, Noah had never been satisfied with his current power and always desired more. The power of his darkness didn''t make up for the weaknesses of his combat style. He lacked attacks that could match the power of the second form of his martial art, a type of offensive that only a hybrid could be capable of performing. Nevertheless, creating or modifying spells and fusing them with martial arts was a long process that Noah couldn''t start during that war. He didn''t have enough time to immerse himself in another series of experiments. Also, his instincts told him that he had to focus on the creation of his higher energy before concentrating on other projects. Having access to that new fuel would give Noah more possibilities to create a suitable offensive. It would even make him understand what it was capable of improving. The creation of something so powerful would require time and experience in the field, together with a detailed plan. King Elbas'' research said that darkness and light cultivators didn''t have only one way to create higher energy, but that lack of guidelines only increased the amount of work that Noah had to do in that project. It had been quite straightforward with June since King Elbas had explained what type of procedure the lightning element had to go through to evolve. However, she had still spent a lot of time preparing and studying the inscription methods that had allowed her to complete the evolution of her "Breath". Instead, Noah would have to start from scratch, knowing only that it was possible to create something similar even with his rare aptitude. Nevertheless, if he succeeded, he would be virtually unbeatable against beings on the same level. After all, his darkness was already incredibly strong, and he couldn''t wait to see how powerful he would become if he created a form of energy with his "Breath" as its basis. The battle against Icy Stare continued for a while. Noah would take a few hits from time to time to gain enough space to launch his more potent attack. However, Icy Stare performed an evasive maneuver every time she saw him enduring her spells with his body. There were clear limits to Noah''s simple combat style, and any expert in the fifth rank that he couldn''t overwhelm with his sheer power would understand them in a few exchanges. After that, it was almost impossible for Noah to hit them. ''A powerful Blood Companion would be beneficial here,'' Noah thought as he pushed his limits to block the barrage of spells coming at him. He had almost stopped attacking at that point and was mainly focusing on defending. The saber-shaped runes protectively flew around him and clashed with the countless figures made of ice that shot toward him. His Ghostly Sabers swarmed the area, looking for the expert that was freezing the sky around him. His Demonic Sword launched black lines every time Noah swung it, and his Demonic Form had long since created a massive black cloud that surrounded him. He didn''t activate the Black Hole spell at that time since its effects were underwhelming against that opponent. Yet, that wasn''t enough to compensate for the consumption of mental energy of the Divine Deduction technique. Noah didn''t dare to deactivate it. The reason why his defenses were able to hold on for so long was the enhanced speed of his thoughts that allowed him to find the best way to deal with the enemy''s spells in fractions of instants. That battle didn''t have a victor or a defeated. The troops of the Empire decided to retreat soon, and Icy Stare disappeared in the middle of her offensive. Noah broke apart the layer of ice around him when his opponent''s attacks stopped and analyzed the battlefield to see how much they had lost. It turned out that the Empire didn''t manage to be as effective as the last time. The invading troops had attacked with a newfound carefulness and were more inclined to engage in multiple battles rather than risk the lives of the heroic assets. That approach put the Empire in an unfavorable spot, especially since the defensive measures in that territory were quite basic, and the three forces had already found a way to deal with them. Both armies had seen casualties happening among the human cultivators and the experts in the fourth rank. Still, the invading troops forced their enemies to retreat thanks to their higher numbers and conquered that territory in just one battle. Noah didn''t feel in the mood to celebrate. It had never happened to him to lose against someone that was at his same level. Of course, he didn''t really lose. Still, he couldn''t see a way to beat her unless he added more techniques to his arsenal and improved his battle style, and that was a loss for him. A familiar voice suddenly resounded from behind him. "I never thought I''d see that expression on the great Noah Balvan." Noah''s mind became calm when that voice resounded in his mind. He turned only to see his lover staring at him with an arrogant expression. "I didn''t know that the Elbas family brought newbies to its wars," Noah said as he showed a cold smile toward June. The coldness radiated from his entire figure was enough to convince everyone on the battlefield that he wouldn''t hesitate to kill June if the situation required it. However, June could only feel warm at that sight. Orange sparks would run through June''s body from time to time. Noah inspected them with the Divine Deduction technique and couldn''t find any difference from the usual "Breath" of the lightning element that a rank 5 cultivator should have. It seemed that June had managed to cover her power well, and that fact could only reassure Noah. "Hmph," June snorted before adding a few words. "It''s a pity that we are on the same side." Then, she left to join the higher-ups of the Elbas family that welcomed her with broad smiles. It became clear to everyone that June Ballor was entering the war. Chapter 851: 851. Cage The wasteland didn''t have many resources, and the Empire had made sure to empty its buildings before the battle. The only real gains of the invaders were the same region and the contents of the space-rings of the fallen. Still, the leaders of the factions would divide them privately. Wars were usually harmful to both the attacking and defending sides, and it was possible to determine how worth that effort was only years after the battles were over. For now, the three organizations had only gained some random resources and a large amount of land. Of course, their primary interest was to weaken the Empire, so they didn''t care too much about their temporary losses. Yet, the overall number of cultivators in the world was decreasing at high speed due to those fights. The crisis that those Mortal Lands were waiting for had finally arrived. The greed of the cultivators had been the cause of that trend. Similar events had repeated themselves across the millennia, as if in a constant cycle of growth and mutual destruction. The various organizations of the world would increase their number of cultivators until those territories became too crowded, and they felt the need to expand. In the current political system, the war had begun due to the sudden weakness of the strongest organization. The invading forces aimed to put the Empire in a situation where it had to surrender all its resources and swear ponderous oaths that enforced its cooperation. After all, it would be pointless to defeat the Empire if it ended up destroying all its riches just to hurt the winners. Since there hadn''t been many injured in the battle over the wasteland, the invaders resumed their assault reasonably soon. After only a month of rest and analysis of the remaining territories of the Empire, the army of the three forces marched toward a region filled by small rivers. That region was more open compared to the forest next to it, so it would be easier for the invaders to spot eventual traps and similar. They were choosing to take care of the territory that appeared easier to conquest first. The army of the Empire was waiting for them as usual, but its troops didn''t have the same stern expressions that they had at the beginning of the invasion. They looked tired and dispirited as if they knew that they were about to lose again on that day. Of course, the cultivators on the invading side didn''t let that scene affect their judgment and charged ahead just as they did in all the previous battles. The two armies clashed in a matter of seconds, and the Empire resorted to its usual defensive measures to contain its losses and make up for their fewer assets. The formations in place there created the blue pillars and the shadows, but they didn''t add any new defense. Only the human cultivators saw the defending troops making use of the environment to their advantage. Large packs of rank 4 Swarming Piranha filled the rivers, and most heroic cultivators would die if they happened to fall inside them. It was needless to say what happened to the human troops that stepped inside those waters. Their entire bodies vanished before they could even scream in pain. However, those magical beasts were too wild to turn them into a weapon against the experts in the heroic ranks, so the battles on the sky saw only cultivators fighting in groups of various numbers. Only a few experts dared to dive into one versus one battles among those messy fights. June was one of them. She had finally managed to keep in check her higher energy and reveal only normal "Breath" in the fifth rank, so she could fight without worrying too much about exposing her strength and relationship. Yet, her power appeared quite underwhelming when she faced a rank 5 cultivator of the Empire. She was a newly advanced cultivator when she used the regular "Breath". After all, all her centers of power had become used to the higher energy by then. She had made it a core part of her strength. June struggled as she fought against the waves of blue flames launched by her opponent. She gritted her teeth and relied on the Perpetual Formations to increase the output of energy her center of power, but that wasn''t enough to match the fire coming at her. If Noah were to watch her during the battle, he would know that she was considering to forsake any pretense and unleash her real power. However, she held on and kept on fighting with her normal "Breath". When that wasn''t enough to face her opponent anymore, she retreated to join one of the groups of the Elbas family. The Royals showed understanding smiles at her decision. It was only normal for someone who had been in the fifth rank for only a few decades to be unable to match other experts. In their eyes, her decision to retreat was a mature acceptance of her limits. June could only ignore those smiles. Her mood was quite bad since she couldn''t have the battle that she had desired for so long. Yet, she had to hold back to preserve what was important to her. Also, she knew that being in a relationship with Noah would inevitably force her to fight the best cultivators of that world. She would eventually vent her battle intent. As for Noah, the army of ice figures entangled him in a battle once again. Truth to be told, Noah didn''t want to fight Icy Stare at that time. He had understood part of his weaknesses and accepted that he couldn''t defeat her, so he desired to approach different experts now. However, Icy Stare seemed set on fighting him even if she wasn''t able to inflict critical injuries due to his tight defense. Noah didn''t understand the reason behind her fixation on him, but he went along with the battle since he had no intention to retreat. Even in a fight that he couldn''t win, he would still express his individuality to its fullest. Icy Stare didn''t keep her intentions a secret. When the troops of the Empire started to retreat, and the figures made of ice stopped attacking, Noah heard her voice echoing in the area. "You are too troublesome to roam freely. I''ll make you spend the rest of the war inside my ice." Then, she left along with the rest of the defenders, leaving Noah in the middle of what seemed to be a cage made of ice. Noah didn''t answer her. He rarely spoke during a battle, and he had no interest in shouting after someone that was leaving. Yet, his aura was so sharp that the simple movement of his eyes shattered parts of the frozen sky around him. It had been a long time since someone had tried to cage him, but he wasn''t the human cultivators in need of teachings anymore. Now, he was a monster that she shouldn''t have provoked. Chapter 852: 852. Last battlefield The army of the invaders didn''t lose much in that battle. Only the human troops had suffered due to the Swarming Piranha, but the heroic cultivators were mostly fine. Also, the Empire only had one region left in its domain in the new continent. The three organizations were about to kick it out of the best territories in that world! However, Noah didn''t care about any of that. The inscriptions of the Divine Deduction technique still shone inside his mind and consumed his mental energy to accelerate his thoughts. Countless ideas surged and vanished in fractions of instants as Noah reviewed his battles against Icy Stare. He had already decided that his many projects would have to wait for him to create higher energy. Still, Icy Stare wanted to put him in a cage, and he wasn''t going to let it happen. The Empire was one step away from losing any claim over the new continent, but that didn''t mean that the last battle would be easy. Instead, there was a high chance that the invading troops would have to struggle to conquer it. The three organizations would take their time to prepare a thorough plan and gather more troops, and Noah guessed that they would need about six months. That period was too short to increase his power substantially, and he would have to spend some years in hibernation if he forced the breakthrough of his body. Yet, Noah didn''t need any extreme improvement. He just wanted to obtain something that could surprise his opponent. Creating martial arts was an option, but their power would be underwhelming if he didn''t fuse them with suitable spells. A living weapon could give him access to a new type of attack, but he knew that it would face the same rejections of the Blood Companions. The truth was that cultivators wouldn''t even think of creating something that made them capable of winning against an expert that was clearly above them. When they added only a few months to work with, such a project became even more unreasonable. Being labeled as troublesome by an expert such as Icy Stare would even flatter them if they were in Noah''s situation. After all, he had been a rank 5 cultivator for a little more than forty years, but he had already gained the recognition of the old monsters. However, Noah was different. The sole idea that the Empire could think about caging him with a stronger opponent made his instincts scream in anger. His mind then turned those instincts in feelings that his aura expressed by radiating sharp destruction in the environment. It was hard not to notice him. His mental waves were so dense that every heroic cultivator on the scene sensed them. June stared at him with a cold expression, but she felt worried inside. She had already seen that expression on Noah''s face many times in the past. It was the expression that he made when he was about to make something reckless to gain power faster. The situation seemed even quite serious since Noah didn''t try to sneak a peek at her when he turned toward the other Elders of the Hive. It was as if his whole being was set on an issue that he needed to solve. Noah turned toward the Elders in the fifth rank and searched for a specific cultivator among them. He found Daniel in the back of a group led by Elder Justin, and he appeared fine except for the apparent tiredness that filled him. Daniel saw Noah taking calm steps toward him, and a chill ran down his spine when he looked at his eyes. The sight of Noah''s vertical pupils gave birth to an instinctive fear inside him. Yet, when he reached him, Noah gave voice to words that Daniel would have never expected to hear. "I need your light." . . . The armies returned in the territory with the Divine Stele and prepared for the final battle in the new continent. The Elbas family started to hand its ointment to the human troops of all factions and tried to improve the countermeasures for the defensive formations showed by the Empire. The Elders of the Council practiced with the battle formations and shared specific strategies with the allied forces to improve their cooperation on the battlefield. As for the Hive, it just reviewed the equipment of its heroic assets and made changes whenever cultivators showed improvements in their control over the living weapons. There were many of them still restricted in the inventories in the separate dimension, and most of them had a conscious Beast Core since they were the hardest to submit. However, the Elders in the fourth rank that had survived through those battles had steeled their will and were ready to handle more complex and powerful weapons. The only issue was that they had only a few months to tame them and change their combat style to make use of their new asset. On the other hand, Noah and Daniel had disappeared somewhere underground and didn''t resurface at all during those months of preparation. Faith had initially wanted to visit Noah during that period, and she had even proposed plans to sneak June into his quarters when she went to her tent. Yet, June had refused her offers, explaining with vague words that Noah wouldn''t have been available until after the final battle. In the end, it took seven months for everything to be ready, and the army of the three factions set off at that point to march toward the last territory of the new continent controlled by the Empire. Noah and Daniel had resurfaced only a week before, but their centers of power didn''t show any difference after that seclusion. The only thing that had changed was that Daniel looked far thinner than before as if he had exhausted himself in that period. One week of rest though had been enough to make him recover part of his healthy appearance, and he showed no hesitation as he flew toward the battlefield among the other Elders in the fifth rank. The army soon reached a thick forest that spread for the entirety of that region and blocked the view of the ground. The Empire had probably added some features on those trees too since they were able to stop mental waves from inspecting the terrain. The troops of the Empire were waiting for the invaders and didn''t show any emotion when they saw them charging at them. Even those powerful battle cries weren''t enough to make them take a step back. Noah soon found himself surrounded by familiar ice constructs. Icy Stare hadn''t even waited for him to reach the enemy lines before unleashing her offensive on him. Noah activated his usual set of spells and the Divine Deduction technique. His shape morphed into a scaled fiendish figure, and a sea of saber-shaped runes came out of his palm to fly around him. Icy Stare had long since become used to his combat style and began to fly around him to freeze multiple parts of the sky. Yet, when Noah opened his mouth, the world around her lost its light. Chapter 853: 853. Fire The Cursed Dragons were a species of magical beasts that Heaven and Earth had punished due to the limitless potential of their flames. Noah had inherited that ability when he fused with one of their specimens, but he didn''t rely too much on his fire since he often had stronger attacks available. It merely was a matter of energies. The primary energy contained inside Noah''s lungs fueled the flames and made them a powerful tool that he could use repeatedly. Still, they didn''t match the might of his martial arts. Noah would use his "Breath", his inscribed weapons, and his physical strength when executing his forms. The sheer power of his lungs couldn''t match the energy released when he made use of all the tools of a cultivator. His fire wasn''t weak. It merely appeared limited when compared to all the abilities that a hybrid could wield. However, it was still an ability that could break the fairness imposed by Heaven and Earth, and, as such, Noah had always valued it a lot. Its power could even surpass the level of his body, but it still increased alongside it. The requirements of his lungs weren''t even harsh. Noah would autonomously absorb the light around him and redirect it to the organs that produced the flames. Yet, that didn''t mean that there weren''t ways to quicken their growth. During the seven months spent underground, Noah had asked Daniel to radiate his light so that he could bathe inside it. That created a training area where his lungs could absorb one of the purest lights available in the world. It was needless to say that his lungs had surpassed the level of his body in that period. They had become able to produce flames that only rank 5 magical beasts in the upper tier could create. Also, since they were only an isolated body part, Noah didn''t need to go through the usual hibernation to claim that power. Of course, that tilted the harmony that he had reached when he transformed in the other Mortal Lands, but his body was already nearing the upper tier, so that wasn''t a significant issue. His long sleep would reestablish the synchrony that he had chosen to lose to obtain that increase of power. Icy Stare''s vision went dark for an instant, but she didn''t lose her focus due to that sudden event. She could understand what was happening around her through her consciousness and connection to her spells. The frozen figures between her and Noah melted, and even the area of the sky that she had turned into ice became nothing more than air during that short instant of blindness. An extreme danger filler her mind too at that moment, and she instinctively retreated to escape from the incoming mass of destruction that was nearing her position at high speed. The light returned to her world soon, and her eyes could finally see the fiendish figure pouncing at her with his swords raised. It didn''t take her much to understand that she couldn''t avoid a direct clash. Icy Stare summoned all her power to freeze the area around her. She created a series of constructs that stood between her and her opponent in a defensive stance. Yet, Noah stopped, and four additional arms rose from his scaled armor to wield the copies of the Demonic Sword that he had generated during his charge. The dangerous sensation inside Icy Stare''s mind only intensified at that sight, and she promptly detonated her construct to weaken the power of the attack that was about to appear. She even used her remaining ice to build a protective wall that would block the shockwaves released during the explosion. A loud noise echoed through the battlefield as shards of ice shot in every direction. The shockwaves that spread from the epicenter of the detonation also dispersed part of the black cloud, revealing Noah''s figure. Nevertheless, they didn''t manage to stop his attack. An empty space appeared between Noah and Icy Stare as he slashed downward. All the shards in that path vanished as if they had never been there in the first place. The wall in front of the expert of the Empire couldn''t block the attack either, and a large, vertical fissure divided it into two parts before reducing its structure to simple shards. A long cut appeared on Icy Stare. The wound ran from her shoulder to her left foot, digging deep into her muscles. A layer of ice soon appeared on her injury and stopped the massive amount of blood that was about to leave her body. Icy Stare''s gulped a mouthful of blood that had tried to climb her throat and retreated. She knew far too well that her last attack hadn''t been enough to stop the monster on the other side of the shards. As if answering to her reaction, Noah charged through the shards floating in the sky and flew toward her. The maws of his fiendish figure were wide open as he pressed forward, and a thin gray smoke came out of them before being consumed by the dark gas released by the Demonic Form. Icy Stare''s timing had been perfect. In normal circumstances, Noah wouldn''t have been able to reach her, which would have given her time to prepare a countermeasure to his new attack. However, Noah''s flames now had the power of a rank 5 creature in the upper tier. Icy Stare''s vision became dark again before a burning sensation enveloped her skin. She felt her body burn in the middle of an intense fire that reopened her last injury too. Ice quickly formed above her skin to defend against that heat, but even her defensive spell didn''t seem able to block that heat. The protective layer of ice melted before her body returned to burn. The light returned to the world once again, and Icy Stare could see that the faint shapes of white flames were burning on top of her skin, leaving hideous injuries in the process. She didn''t have to analyze that fire to know that it was above her level. Steam started to come out from Icy Stare''s body at that point. Wrinkles appeared on her charred skin as her pores released that foggy gas that pushed the flames away. At that moment, she realized that the flames weren''t completely white. They were faint, almost ethereal, but they burned stronger than any other fire she had seen in her life. The flames dispersed, but her body had paid a heavy price. Icy Stare had suddenly become an elderly woman. Nevertheless, Noah hadn''t stopped charging ahead while she was busy defending against his flames. Before she could even heave a sigh, Noah was already on top of her, slashing with the divided Demonic Sword. Noah severed his opponent in two and stretched his hand to reach for her dantian. Yet, a red halo enveloped the two bloody halves before he could touch them. Chapter 854: 854. Retrea The two bloody halves of Icy Stare''s corpse started to morph as the red halo kept them floating in the sky. Their size grew, and a layer of gray hair appeared over her maimed robe. Noah instinctively took a step back. He had never seen anything like that, but he knew that the effect of some inscription. As he focused on the rest of the battlefield, he noticed that there were other areas where the same red halo had surrounded the corpses of the dead heroic cultivators of the Empire. The Elders of the Hive and the Council were as confused as him at that sight. Yet, their eyes didn''t linger too much on those events. They looked for the leader of the troops of the Elbas family. Andrew was aware of what was happening on the battlefield, but even he found it hard to hide his surprise. His expression was a mixture of curiosity, amazement, and greed as he stared at that red light. The gazes of his allies forced him to snap out of his thoughts. He had to the situation through the notebooks that the Royals had spread among the troops. "This is the Second Life formation. We can''t win this time, but we must fight anyway." Andrew said. His explanation ended there, but the other higher-ups of the army had learnt to know him reasonably well in that period of battles. They knew that his knowledge was incredible when it came to inscriptions and that they should trust his judgment. Noah couldn''t trust a member of the Elbas family, but he respected his expertise enough to do as he said. His attention though didn''t leave the halved corpse of his opponent, which had transformed entirely in those seconds. Icy Stare''s corpse had disappeared, and the maimed body of an ape-type magical beast had taken its place. The red halo began to vanish at that point, and Noah flew under it to grab the corpse when it started to fall. The two bloody halves of the ape''s body landed in his arms when the effect of the inscription vanished, and Noah could finally analyze that creature. The ape had been cut in half, but what surprised Noah the most was that its skin had the same kind of injuries that he had inflicted on Icy Stare. Under the layer of hair, he saw signs of burn and aging that were a perfect copy of what his opponent had endured during the battle. ''What is even happening?'' Noah thought as he kept analyzing the beast. Countless ideas surged in his mind as he tried to understand the purpose of that inscription. The Divine Deduction technique was still active too, so it didn''t take him much to come up with a few hypotheses. ''The trigger of the inscription is the death of a heroic cultivator,'' Noah thought as he gazed at the ground. The human cultivators of the Empire kept on fighting and dying under the assault of the invaders, but no red halo came for their corpses. ''According to the name given by Andrew, this should be a life-saving formation specifically meant for heroic cultivators.'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''Yet, not for all of them.'' Noah turned his eyes on the battlefield and noticed that the halo didn''t engulf all the corpses of the enemy heroic cultivators. It seemed to reach only for half of them, which turned into ape-type creatures too before falling lifelessly toward the ground. The sole idea that something like that existed made Noah concerned. There were so many majestic and miraculous aspects of the inscription methods that he ignored completely. Yet, he knew that they had to respect the fairness imposed by Heaven and Earth, which meant the price to pay to save the lives of those heroic cultivators had to be enormous. ''What is the value of a cultivator in the fifth rank?'' Noah questioned himself as he looked toward the forest that covered his view of the ground. He was almost sure that an intricate formation was right there, but he couldn''t be certain that it was connected to the red halo. Noah suppressed his thoughts after a few seconds. The war was still happening around him, and the Empire had just started to activate its defensive measures. The victory was not in sight. Three blue pillars formed in the air and radiated their destructive light to push back the invading troops. Hundreds of shadows set off from the forest and joined the battles in the sky. Powerful hybrids came out of the terrain and roared as they flew toward the first target in the heroic ranks that they could find. The intensity of those defensive measures was on a completely different level compared to the others seen in the other territories. It was as if the Empire considered that region as its headquarters in the same was as the Hive saw the forest of White Woods. It wasn''t a surprise. Each one of the four organizations had invested a lot in the first territories that they colonized, turning them into proper strongholds that were extremely hard to conquest. Only a series of attacks aimed to deplete the reserves of energy that fueled them could lead to a victory. The Elders of the Council used their battle formations to block the blue pillars, but they managed to prevent only two of them from affecting the environment. The last one unleashed its full might on the invading troops, injuring them and pushing them back. Only a couple of assets died in the process, but they had already been injured in the battles. All the others had reacted in time since they were used to that blue light by then. The shadows had never been a real issue in the other territories, but they were a real problem there. Facing hundreds of copies of heroic cultivators was hard even if those shadows could only perform the same attack over and over again. Also, there were still the other cultivators of the Empire to mind, so the invaders couldn''t just take care of the shadows first. The hybrids were a problem too. There were far more of them compared to the battle on the mountain chain, even if there was the same number of specimens in the fifth rank. The invading forced did their best to kill as many cultivators of the Empire as they could and deplete the resources used by the formations. Still, it quickly became apparent that they were slowly losing their positive trend in that battle. There were too many defenses to face, and some of them were a threat to rank 5 cultivators. Also, the fact that the red halo replaced some corpses of the defeated with apes made the invaders feel dejected about whether there was even a possibility to win. Because of those factors, no one felt surprised when Andrew, Elder Regina, and Elder Julia ordered a general retreat. The first battle for the last territory of the Empire in the new continent went on the defenders. Chapter 855: 855. Hawks "The Second Life formation trades the life of powerful beings to save another one," Andrew Elbas explained as the rank 5 cultivators of the three factions stood around him. "It transfers the injuries suffered by cultivators to the designed sacrifices. It can even undo their deaths if they are willing to give up to part of their cultivation level and potential." Everyone listened to him while wearing complex expressions. Even the other experts of the Elbas family felt conflicting emotions appearing inside them as they learnt about that miraculous inscription method. Noah could barely believe what he heard too. After all, Andrew was speaking of something akin to a resurrection! The cultivation world had created wonders, but a tool that allowed beings in the heroic ranks to avoid death even after being killed seemed too much. Yet, Andrew Elbas had no doubts about the functioning of the Second Life formation. According to his words, it was a legendary inscription method that appeared only in myths dated more than ten thousand years. The powerhouses of the past knew about it and had tried to get their hands on that life-saving formation. Many rank 6 cultivators would be willing to sacrifice their millenary accumulation for the chance of cheating death, and some of them would even use their organizations as the price for their rebirth. The cultivators at the peak of the heroic ranks only had eyes for the sky and the higher plane behind it. There were many of them willing to do almost anything to survive the Tribulations for the divine ranks. "How do we counter it?" Elder Julia asked as she broke the silence that had followed Andrew''s explanation. The Royal shook his head and replied without minding the hesitant expressions that had begun to appear on the experts around him. "We can only keep fighting until the Empire consumes all its sacrifices. This is a divine formation. Ants like us can''t break inscriptions at that level." The meeting ended a few minutes after that line, and the cultivators of the three forces returned to their habitations to prepare for what would be a war of attrition. With the tremendous defensive measures and the Second Life formation, that was the only option left to the invading forces. The blue pillars and the shadows used Obsidian Credits and other items capable of storing "Breath" to work. They couldn''t exhaust that resource since the Empire had accumulated riches for centuries. However, the hybrids and the Second Life formation were different. The invaders could force the Empire to a point where it couldn''t make use of them anymore. The second battle for the last territory of the Empire in the new continent began two months after the first one. The cultivators on the defending side that had died the last time stood proudly among the other soldiers. Still, it was evident that their resurrection hadn''t been entirely harmless. Noah stared at the distant Icy Stare. There were a few wrinkles on the exposed parts of her skin, and her hair had lost part of its bright golden color. There was even a faint mark on her forehead, precisely in the spot where Noah''s attack had landed the last time. Also, she appeared weaker than before. Her cultivation level wasn''t at the peak of the gaseous stage anymore, but it neared that limit. The other cultivators who had been resurrected showed similar features. They all had scars on their bodies, and their cultivation level was lower compared to the last time. ''Even with these drawbacks,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the enemy army, ''This is still an inscription able to resurrect heroic cultivators.'' The Hive had consulted Thirty-seven during the two months of preparation before that battle, but the automaton could only confirm the pieces of information conveyed by Andrew. There wasn''t a way to break that miraculous inscription method without the help of someone that was at least half-step inside the divine ranks. Of course, the Second Life formation wasn''t perfect. It would go against the fairness of Heaven and Earth otherwise. The version used by the Empire had other flaws too, which underlined the drawbacks of that inscription on that occasion. Yet, the cultivators of the Empire could always recover their previous level of power. The most important thing was to preserve their lives. The battle started, and the armies found themselves creating various battlefields where groups of cultivators fought against each other. Noah wanted to fight Icy Stare again. He didn''t care that she knew about his flames now since that two months weren''t enough to come up with a countermeasure that targeted his powerful attack. Nevertheless, she completely ignored him and joined a group battle against the cultivators of the Council. Noah found himself alone, without an opponent in the middle of a battlefield. Various fights occurred around him, but no one had come specifically for him. ''Did they decide to leave me free to act as I want?'' Noah thought as a cold smirk appeared on his face. If the Empire gave him the possibility to fly freely among the battles, he would surely use that chance to get his hands on powerful dantians. However, roars suddenly echoed through the battlefield, and Noah understood why the Empire hadn''t deigned itself to provide him with an opponent. Two rank 5 hybrids flew toward him. They were a pair of Sonic Hawks with a body in the middle tier and other centers of power at the beginning of the fifth rank. They were four meters tall and had a series of brown feathers that started to reveal shades of red when they reached their heads. Also, they were almost identical, as if the cultivators that had transformed into those creatures had been twins. Of course, they had inscribed chains around their necks, but they didn''t seem to hinder their flight. Noah didn''t even have the time to curse before those creatures opened their beaks and released sharp sounds that forced him to focus his consciousness on his ears. He didn''t dare to use his hands to hinder that noise because he knew the innate behavior of the Sonic Hawks. Something similar to an explosion resounded on the battlefield as the hybrids accelerated. Noah couldn''t follow their movements at that point, but he raised his divided Demonic Sword anyway as a scaled armor began to cover him. Then, the world in that area lost its light for a brief instant. When the light returned, the two Sonic Hawks had already flown past Noah after leaving two grave injuries on his shoulders. However, some of their feathers had vanished. There were even burns on those that had remained attached to their bodies. Sonic Hawks were famous for destabilizing their prey with sharp noises before resorting to a sudden acceleration meant to exploit that opening. That was the reason why Noah had decided to raise his living weapon to protect his vital organs before surrounding himself with his ethereal white flames. Chapter 856: 856. Noise Two cuts on his shoulders were noting if they allowed Noah to put his opponents in a worse position than him. He had never fought two rank 5 magical beasts at the same time, and the creatures facing him in that situation were even hybrids. Yet, for Noah, they were just food that he had to obtain. The only issue about fighting hybrids was that their physical might could rival his own. The fact that there were two of them with that power meant that the battle would be long and could lead to various injuries if he wasn''t careful. Engaging in such a fight in the middle of a battlefield was dangerous for various reasons. After all, someone had already tried to ambush Noah once. However, he couldn''t just give up on the possibility of obtaining those powerful corpses along with their dantians. Noah didn''t activate the Divine Deduction technique. He knew how those creatures acted already, and he could handle the spells in their possession without enhancing his mind. Also, he had to preserve as much mental energy as he could in case someone tried to sneak up on him. He didn''t hold back his other spells though. A sea of saber-shaped runes quickly surrounded him, and a black dot formed in his palm only to float upward to hover above his head. A series of Ghostly Sabers appeared around him too and pointed their tips at the Sonic Hawks that had already turned to face him. Trails of gray smoke came out of the fiendish mouth of his draconic helmet as he prepared his flames. Just the slight touch with his fire had made the two Hawks lose a large number of feathers, which acted as protection in that species. A direct attack would probably cause a critical injury in those hybrids. The only issue was that they were too fast for him to land a direct hit with his flames. They had even survived the direct contact with them thanks to their fantastic acceleration. The Sonic Hawks released another cry, and Noah felt his consciousness struggling to maintain its focus on the two figures that had suddenly accelerated in his direction. The "Breath" in their dantians had improved their innate ability so much that they could even affect Noah''s mind! Yet, Noah had already raised his weapons and surrounded himself with his flames, ready to receive their attack and counter-attack. The Hawks flew past him, piercing the layer of flames and leaving two deep marks on the sides of his waist. Blood started to come out of his injuries, but Noah''s attention had never moved from the chains that bound those hybrids to the fissures on the ground. As soon as he sensed the pain coming from his waist, he let go of his weapon and stretched his hand, tightening his grasp when he felt something metallic touching his fingers. Noah flew backward, pulled by the momentum of one of the Hawks as he kept his hand on the chain linked to its neck. The speed that he reached in those short instants forced him to close his eyes, but his consciousness remained vigil. The Sonic Hawk understood that something was wrong when it sensed that its speed was decreasing, but a wave of flames suddenly enveloped it and forced its flight to a stop. With the inscribed chain hold tightly in his grasp, Noah could aim his innate ability with high precision, and he didn''t fail to hit the hybrid that had just become aware of his presence. A series of loud cries spread through the battlefield as the Hawk screeched in pain. That noise claimed the attention of the other hybrid, which didn''t hesitate to echo that sound and direct it to the human that had hurt its companion. Noah felt as if his eardrums were about to explode. The sound attacks of those creatures were almost unbearable when he was too close to them. Yet, he didn''t let go of the chain and began to pull to put a stop to his target''s flight. The Hawk in the middle of the white flames never stopped screeching, and Noah felt as if blades were piercing the insides of his mental sphere as he endured those sounds. He wasn''t in a position to cast any other ability at that moment, but he could control those that he had already created. The saber-shaped runes and the Ghostly Sabers shot toward the burning figure that was still struggling to escape from the force that was restraining it. The spells lost part of their power as they ventured through the flames, but they managed to inflict a series of grave injuries anyway. The feathers had mostly turned into ashes by the time his spells landed on the Hawk''s body. So, they could pierce its skin and destabilize the internal organs quite quickly. His target though still struggled and even increased the intensity of its sound attacks. Its companion did the same as he began to speak in a human voice. "Let my brother go!" Noah perceived those words as hammers that slammed on the walls of his sea of consciousness. They made him lose the focus of the spells that were piercing the Hawk in front of him. His left eardrum even popped as those noises kept on targeting him. The creature in front of Noah was almost dead by then, but he wanted to deliver the final blow quickly. After all, that was still a two versus one situation. The two hybrids continued to scream as Noah kept on pulling the inscribed chains. His right eardrum popped too as he endured that loud noise, but the claws of the Hawk were already in his reach. Noah stretched his free hand to grab one of the hybrid''s legs, and he held it still as if waiting for someone to help him put an end to the battle. Of course, Noah already had something like that. The Demonic Sword had reached Noah quite fast, and it didn''t hesitate to fly toward the charred body that he was keeping still in his grasp. The movement of his flying weapon was decisive as it went for the throat of the hybrid. Noah had planned that already, and he didn''t act surprised when he saw the headless corpse of the Sonic Hawk. He simply stored it alongside its falling head. The other hybrid released an inhuman cry at that scene, and Noah felt another hammer slamming on his mental sphere even if he couldn''t hear anything with his ears. Yet, his consciousness made up for his broken eardrums and pointed him in the direction of the creature. Noah turned to face the incoming hybrid that had begun to accelerate toward him. It was flying in a straight line, which created the perfect situation to use another mental attack. The walls of his mental sphere trembled, and an ethereal saber formed in the air. The Mental Saber spell then flew toward his opponent that promptly tilted its wings to escape that threatening mental attack. As it passed next to Noah, the Hawk left three bloody marks on his right arm. Chapter 857: 857. Opposite mind The remaining Sonic Hawk didn''t use only its physical strength and its enhanced innate abilities in the last attack. It had used one of the spells in its possession during that charge. The chains that kept it bound to the ground began to shine as the anger for the death of its brother filled the hybrid''s mind. The inscribed item tried to suppress its instincts from taking control of its mental faculties, but the emotions of the Hawk were too intense and kept on fueling its insanity. Nevertheless, that didn''t seem to stop it from using spells. Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw the cuts on his arms. Generally speaking, a hybrid taken over by its emotions would rely on its beast side to fight. Yet, the Hawk had used even its human side in the previous charge. ''This should be impossible,'' Noah thought as he stared at the creature that was turning to face him again. According to his experience, no hybrid could cast spells during those moments of insanity. Their thoughts would regress and appear in the form of pure instincts, which prevented the creation of diagrams inside the mental spheres. ''Is this because of the laws?'' He wondered. That scene led him to consider the particular mental state that he had achieved during the transformation as the cause of that phenomenon. Still, the rank 6 ancestor inside the castle at the end of the continent would have obtained similar results if something like that was enough to control the mental instabilities. ''Maybe, it is a matter of variables.'' Noah concluded as he saw the Hawk preparing to charge at him again. The inscribed chains, a mind wandering in the world of the laws, the experience accumulated in those decades, and that last trauma forced the Sonic Hawk''s mental sphere to reach a higher state. It still acted and thought as a beast, but its instincts seemed able to understand that its mind had access to more powerful attacks. It was as if the mind of the Hawk had evolved after its brother''s death, and it was aware of the spells stored in its memories. It had turned the knowledge that the hybrid had accumulated as a human into instincts that it could use in battle. ''Complete awareness, but in the form of instincts,'' Noah thought before raising his weapon to face his opponent. ''The exact opposite of me.'' Noah knew that he represented only one side of the hybrids. He was a specimen that had chosen the path of the humans, of the individualities. Instead, the natives of the other Mortal Lands had followed their ancestors'' footsteps, becoming hybrid that pursued the path of the magical beasts. Noah''s path made him become an existence outside of Heaven and Earth''s system, while the natives were still inside of it, even if as its natural enemy. There wasn''t right or wrong in those paths. Both of them led to power and could reach the divine ranks. However, Noah hadn''t considered the possibility that even their minds could evolve in the opposite direction. Of course, his interest wasn''t purely academic. He had sworn to Danielle that he would fix the unavoidable mental instabilities of the hybrids inside the Hive, so he had to expand his knowledge about that topic. The hybrid had the chains of the Empire binding it though, so Noah couldn''t capture it alive to study it thoroughly. ''What a pity,'' Noah sighed as he spat a wave of flames to surround his figure. The feathers on the Sonic Hawk''s body rose and became a spiked armor that it tilted in Noah''s direction. Their tips cut the air and created large cracks in the sky, and its speed increased too due to the effects of spells that it vaguely remembered. However, all that expression of power didn''t scare Noah. He couldn''t follow the hybrid''s movements with his eyes. Still, he could predict where its attacks were going to land due to the cloud of corrosive smoke and the intense flames that surrounded his figure. As soon as Noah sensed some movements inside his area of destruction, he unleashed the Black Hole spell, his saber-shaped runes, and the remaining Ghostly Sabers in the spot right after that. An explosion occurred, and Noah fixed his feet on the darkness under them to resist the repulsive force generated by the detonation of his dark sphere. The armor of smoke around him dispersed as the shockwaves reached him, but the layer of flames had already weakened them. His body suffered virtually no damage in that exchange. When the sky reformed and the situation calmed down, Noah found the Sonic Hawk hovering weakly at some distance from him. Its body was a mess, and it had lost all its feathers during the explosion. Countless cuts filled its skin too, and there was blood coming out of its beak. The hybrid had almost died in one attack, but it wasn''t its fault. Noah had released the spells that had fed on primary energy since the beginning of the battle. The Hawk didn''t have any chance against that. Yet, the fact that it had survived proved how resilient hybrids were compared to humans. After all, Noah''s attack was something that only rank 5 cultivators at the peak of the gaseous stage could launch. Most experts would die if all those spells were to hit them directly at the same time. Their bodies would disintegrate even before the explosion. The hybrid didn''t seem intentioned to give up on its revenge and stared at Noah with a gaze full of hatred. That emotion was something that only Noah could recognize since he was a hybrid himself, and his mind could notice the various features of its expression even if it had the head of a bird. Nevertheless, it was too weak to do anything other than remaining in the air. Noah neared it, and his hand shot to close its beak when he saw that the Hawk wanted to use another sound attack. Both his eardrums had popped during that battle, and it would take them a while to heal. He didn''t want to worsen the injury now that the fight was over. A quick slash severed its head from the rest of its body. Without the feathers to defend it, the skin of the Hawk was slightly softer compared to beasts on a similar level. The inscribed chain fell toward the ground as Noah stored its corpse after taking out its dantian. The body of the other hybrid appeared in his hands too, and he proceeded on taking its dantian away before storing it again. The Sonic Hawks were too fast for him, and their annoying sound attacks had forced him to store the dantian of the first opponent for when the battle was over. That organ had lost some power inside the space-ring, but it still met the standards of the fifth rank. Then, Noah threw the two organs in his mouth and gulped as he turned to look at the rest of the battlefield. Chapter 858: 858. Over The surge of energy that filled Noah''s body forced his injuries to stop bleeding in a matter of seconds, but his overall condition didn''t improve. He was still deaf and with a series of deep cuts that had yet to start to heal. He could still fight. The consciousness of the heroic cultivators acted as a sort of sixth sense that could replicate the other five. However, it was a bit different for Noah since his body was an essential part of his increased awareness, and facing a rank 5 cultivator without one of his senses wouldn''t be smart. Everyone appeared rather busy though. The various groups of experts faced each other in careful battles filled with long-range spells that had a wide area of effect. Both sides were taking a slow approach for different reasons. The Empire wanted to hurt and kill as many heroic cultivators as it could to delay the invasion, while the three forces wanted to deplete the reserves of their opponent. A war of attrition was bound to bring the mental state of both armies to the limit, but there wasn''t any other option since it was impossible to conquer that region in a single battle. The defenses in that place were too tight. However, those defensive measures were already starting to crumble. Noah had killed two hybrids in the fifth rank, and the other heroic cultivators were obtaining similar achievements throughout the battlefield. The invader''s side was still more potent than the Empire''s even with all those protections in place. The three forces only had to tear apart every defense without losing too many troops to consider the war a success. The only real problem in those battles was the Second Life formation, which prevented them from securing kills on powerful heroic assets that created difficulties in every group. It was evident that the Empire had linked the formation only to the cultivators that it couldn''t afford to lose if it hoped to thrive once the war moved to the old continent. Losing its most powerful assets to weaken the enemy forces was a waste that would endanger its future as one of the leading organizations of the world. The invaders would suffer injuries and waste precious inscribed items to kill powerful enemies only to see a red halo covering their corpses. Knowing that their opponents weren''t dead was a blow to their morals, but the worst part was that they had to target them to deplete the sacrifices required by the inscription method. There was already a list that took track of all the assets linked to the Second Life formation, but there were always more appearing as the fights continued. It was as if the noticeable warriors among the troops of the Empire were immortals that they would have to fight and kill multiple times to take over that region. Another awful aspect was that the dead would maintain their memories after their resurrection. That gave them insights on the battle styles and formations of the invaders, which were essential data to improve their performance in future fights. The second battle in that territory was already harsher than the first one when it came to the group fights, and that could only become worse as the invaders kept attacking. However, there was no way out of it. Only a slow and constant siege would eventually force the Empire to retreat. In the end, Noah decided not to chase after other rank 5 cultivators. The possibility to obtain dantians was tempting, but his safety had to come first. The second battle ended soon, and the two armies separated in an orderly way to return to their respective bases. The various leaders set up plans and strategies to better contain their losses, but there wasn''t much to say to those now experienced troops. Everyone knew their role by then. The third battle happened two months later after Noah and the other injured experts had healed their wounds and returned to their peak. Noah found himself facing hybrids again, but there was only one of them at that time. It was another creature in the middle tier and with centers of power in the fifth rank. His opponent was a ten meters tall Armored Elephant, a peculiar species that could control the earth element in the environment to create metallic defensive layers over its skin. At the sight of that opponent, Noah could finally understand why the Empire didn''t want to send cultivators against him but just wanted to keep him outside of its assets. Icy Stare had labeled him as "troublesome", but the truth was that his level of power was too uncertain about sending an appropriate opponent against him. Even as a cultivator that had reached the fifth rank less than fifty years ago, Noah was extremely resourceful. He would improve after each battle, and he would always come up with ways to defeat his opponents if he fought them multiple times. Peaceful Storm had lost his centennial accumulation of talismans, Furious Water had injured himself to match his blows, and his sword had taken Countless Wings and Silent Lightning''s lives. Only Icy Stare had managed to suppress him for a while, but Noah had eventually found a way to kill her, even if the Second Life formation protected her. Sending more cultivators against him would only go against the idea of preserving the lives of the heroic assets pursued by the Empire. Also, using someone in the liquid stage would weaken the other fronts of the battlefield, where the invading forces already had the advantage. It was better to sacrifice hybrids to keep him away from the cultivators. The Empire had never thought about bringing them to the old continent anyway. Noah didn''t mind fighting hybrids. Their dantians weaker than those of the other cultivators and contained a less nourishing form of "Breath", but they were also easier to obtain. Those hybrids were threatening for any human at the same level, but they were nothing more than prey for him since he could match their physical strength. He could make use of strategies that cultivators belonging to the human species couldn''t apply. The third battle went by almost in the same way as the second one, with the only difference that the Empire had finally started to feel the losses suffered in the previous two fights. The fourth battle started two months after the previous conflict, and so did the fifth, the sixth, and the seventh. The same events happened in each of them, with the invaders slowly driving the Empire into a corner, and the defenders doing their best to damage the incredible army created with the joint effort of three organizations. Noah had always faced hybrids in those fights, and his allies had become so used to it that they would directly ignore any chained creature coming out of the ground. His breakthrough neared faster due to all the dantians eaten in that period, but everything ended in the eight battle when the Empire detonated the entire forest to cover its retreat in the old continent. Chapter 859: 859. Shares The Empire had finally given up on its last territory in the new continent, but the heroic assets of the three factions didn''t waste time in celebrations just yet. The detonation of the forest had affected countless human assets on both sides, but no heroic cultivator seemed to care about their well-being as they dived toward the ground. There was a priceless piece of knowledge hidden under the burning trunks and the vast column of gray smoke that rose from the terrain. The Second Life formation was too powerful to give up on retrieving it just because the Empire had decided to burn everything. Even a few sets of lines would have great value in the hands of those experts. Reconstructing the entire formation just with them would be impossible, but it was the beginning of a project that could eventually lead to the possibility of cheating death! However, the Empire had been thorough with its destruction. It didn''t leave anything valuable for its enemies to plunder. The war that had seen the experts of the world fighting to kick the Empire out of the new continent had ended. Yet, the losses on both sides had been so devastating that such outcome barely felt like a triumph. Many heroic cultivators had died, and the various clashes had required countless resources to provide protection and fight the defensive measures in place. The losses on the human assets had been massive too, which would inevitably lead to slow growth in the following years. Wars were expensive, and the only ones that could benefit from a victory often were the future generations of cultivators since they would have access to a broader range of resources and territories. Yet, for the current age, the only assets that had gained something were those that had a water aptitude. The gains of the invaders were a large chunk of territories, the space-rings of the fallen, and the Divine Stele. Also, the experts that had survived the battles had acquired a lot of experience when it came to fighting in the heroic ranks and expressing themselves. Those heroic cultivators were bound to have a more natural way toward the higher ranks from that point onward. After all, nothing could beat real life-threatening struggles when it came to improving their understanding of themselves. All of that would take time, but the three organizations weren''t in a hurry to chase after the Empire in the old continent. The Empire had controlled the central areas of the landmass for millennia. No one knew what to expect from the home of a force that had been able to put to use two formations that belonged to myths and legends. There was even the countless number of slaves that worked to keep its economy running! Everyone in the invading forces believed that they would have to face stronger opposition in the old continent, but there was no point in attacking now that they were at their weakest. They had just severed every connection of the Empire from the most valuable landmass of the world. Its growth was bound to stagnate now that they had isolated it back in its original home. Meanwhile, the three forces could grow and recover from the losses suffered during the war and even aim to surpass their original peak. They had too many possibilities at hand now that they could divide the entirety of the new continent among the three of them. The three factions had already decided to build a neutral city around the stele. It would have a political system similar to that once enforced in the Coral Archipelago, but the control of the central governments would be stricter to avoid another Hive. They would even assign the territories according to how close the domains of each faction were to them. The Hive, for example, would obtain control of a large part of the central areas since it controlled the opposite coast. Of course, the width of those territories depended on the actual value that they had. Since the central regions were still mostly barren, the Hive ended up obtaining the largest share of land among the three factions. Those long battles ended up improving the political relationships among the three forces. There were still unforgivable grudges between specific assets, but the presence of a common enemy not too far away forced them to stick together in a sort of natural alliance. Also, there was always the threat that the records about the god of the Empire were wrong. The god could always return to the Mortal Lands in a matter of decades instead of millennia. That unknown variable was the connection that the three invading forces shared, and that compelled them to remain in peaceful terms if the god returned and requested a price for their arrogance. Noah didn''t care too much about the division of the spoils of war since most of those resources didn''t concern him directly. None of the fallen had a darkness aptitude, and most of the riches in their space-rings would go in the inventories of the three organizations. He could ask for a list of those gains later on and take what interested him. What mattered for him now was to absorb all the insights that he had gained during the battles. He had to make the necessary preparation for the breakthrough of his body too. He also needed to create his higher energy so that he could start working on all the projects that he had in mind. After conveying his intentions to Elder Julia, Noah left the battlefield to return to his dome in the territory next to the lava lake. Noah didn''t do much at the beginning of his seclusion. He spent most of his time eating, cultivating, and using the Divine Deduction technique to evaluate his possible approaches to the creation of the higher energy. He also went out to hunt at times, but he didn''t eat all his prey since he needed to store some of them to feed the Demonic Sword during his period of hibernation. The truth was that Noah could approach the limits of the middle tier far sooner. After all, he had eaten many dantians in the battle for the last territory. His stash of magical beasts and hybrids had even refilled after the experiments with the living weapons. Yet, he had to improve his mind first, or he would end up like the natives, which was an outcome that he wouldn''t risk. The only issue was that he didn''t know how strong his mind had to be to control the instincts of a creature in the upper tier. That forced him to abuse the innate properties of his mental energy for a few months before he felt confident in taking the last step toward the breakthrough. In the end, he ate until familiar drowsiness enveloped his mind and put him in a deep sleep. Chapter 860: 860. Ambassador Noah dreamt. The images that he saw in his sleep mostly concerned the life of the Cursed Dragon species, but there were also pictures originating from his connection with the Demonic Sword. He saw his underground quarters through the senses of his weapon. He felt its hunger and the emotions that filled it when it stabbed its body inside the pile of magical beasts'' corpses that Noah had left there. In his erratic moments of awareness, Noah understood that his body was becoming used to the evolution of his existence. He wasn''t just a hybrid anymore. He was an existence that was bound to become a law outside of Heaven and Earth''s system if he kept on growing. The memories of the Cursed Dragon species were not enough to represent the state that his body was reaching, especially after it had been in contact with his darkness and Demonic Sword for so long. Among those images and sporadic awareness, Noah began to feel some eagerness for the sixth rank. There was a pattern in the changes in his body. The breakthroughs between the various tiers would only bring slight modifications, other than a massive increase in his physical might. Those were just attempts that his body made to harmonize itself with the rest of his centers of power, but the real changes happened when he advanced between the ranks. His mental energy had changed during the breakthrough in the fifth rank, and the walls of his dantian had become far sturdier as his body improved. Something similar was bound to happen when he reached the sixth rank, but the changes wouldn''t concern just his dragon part at that point. Noah expected to see an actual harmonization with his evolving individuality, something that would sever his ties with the other hybrids and put him in a league of his own even from an anatomical perspective. However, he knew even in his sleep that his breakthrough to the upper tier would increase the requirements of his body to unthinkable standards. Noah woke up among the silence of his underground quarters, with the Demonic Sword releasing a happy roar as soon as it sensed that he had regained his awareness completely. His hunger though was so intense that he couldn''t mind the affectionate gestures of his weapons. A series of rank 5 corpses appeared in front of him, and Noah didn''t hesitate to dive into them. The Demonic Sword began to fly around him protectively when it understood the state that he was in, and it didn''t even try to take a bite of the food on the ground. Noah devoured corpse after corpse, but his hunger didn''t flinch. It continued to assail his mind as if it was an urge that he had to satisfy if he didn''t want to go insane. More corpses appeared on the ground in front of him, and Noah continued to take massive bites without even bothering to munch them. They would turn into primary energy as soon as they entered his stomach anyway, so any other action was just a waste of time. His hunger calmed down only after he ate his tenth magical beast in the lower tier of the fifth rank, and he could finally relax to assess his gains at that point. His attention went on his other centers of power first. He didn''t have the chance to train his dantian during that period of hibernation. Still, his mind had improved thanks to the incredible quantity of spherical runes that applied constant internal pressure. Noah''s sea of consciousness had improved steadily and without any issue. Its walls had even regained some of the sturdiness lost when he abused the innate properties of his mental energy. The runes worked well as an alternative method to the Kesier runes, even if they couldn''t match their efficiency and safety. ''They can be the foundation for a new technique,'' Noah thought. ''I need to review the basics of the Kesier runes with Thirty-seven. My expertise should have reached a point where I can create a weaker version, at least.'' Noah had initially created the spherical runes because he wanted to improve his control over the primary energy and see if he could fuse his inscription methods. However, after training in the technique of the natives, he had used them only to enlarge his mental sphere. Yet, the Kesier runes were a pure expression of power according to the automaton, and he felt confident that he could turn his second success in the Will-consuming runes into something similar. His attention eventually went on his body, and the first feature that he noticed was the immense quantity of energy that each of his body parts contained. It was needless to say that he expected nothing less. After spending more than forty years eating rank 5 magical beasts and dantians, obtaining an insane amount of physical strength felt necessary. Nevertheless, the features of his body didn''t stop there. His appearance had changed a bit during his hibernation. His black nails were a bit longer and slightly pointy, as if wanting to resemble actual claws, and his skin had become even rougher. His hair had become longer too, making it seem more as the mane of a beast. Noah then blew softly toward his palm, and the azure light radiated by the underground walls of the new continent vanished for an instant before returning to the world. A small flame had appeared in Noah''s hand during that instant, and he noticed how it was even more ethereal than the fire used in the last phases of the war. His innate ability had improved as his body experienced the breakthrough. However, it remained inside the level of power of a beast in the upper tier, even if it still was stronger than the center of power. Noah picked his inscribed notebook and began to send a series of mental messages at that point, but he didn''t wait for answers. He directly called the Demonic Sword and started cultivating to make up for the time lost during his hibernation. To his surprise, the intensity of his cultivation technique had improved even more after his breakthrough. It seemed that his body had harmonized with the rune on his low-waist, enhancing its properties thanks to its innate adaptability. A series of messages resounded inside his mental sphere as Noah bathed in the feeling of sensing his dantian improving after so long. He soon learnt that he had spent almost eight years sleeping, and he also gained a general understanding of the changes that happened in the new continent during that period. Those years had been peaceful and had seen every organization doing its best to recover from the losses suffered during the war. The Hive had also expanded in its new territories, but the most exciting piece of information came from Elder Julia and concerned the neutral city. "Prince, we need a powerful ambassador there," Noah cultivated as Elder Julia''s voice resounded in his mind. "Also, June Ballor is there already." Chapter 861: 861. Expansion Noah kept on training as he reviewed the events that had happened in the world during his hibernation, as well as the details behind Elder Julia''s offer. The various forces had left the old continent untouched, but its constant decline was inevitable. The Portal in the Utra nation fed continuously on the "Breath" and nutrients of those territories, and the wasteland that it created kept on expanding as the passage remained open. The central areas had never been famous for their rich density of "Breath" due to the massive number of cultivators in the Empire. The retreat from the new continent had worsened that already dire environment, which was slowly following the destructive trend of the regions in the Utra nation. The only areas that still met adequate standards in terms of density of "Breath" were those inside the domain of the Council. The Papral nation was relatively abundant in terms of resources and regions where to raise cultivators, even if it was far emptier now. The new gains in the new continent had pushed the Council to resume a slow but constant relocation of its assets. Yet, it didn''t intend to move away from the old continent. Differently from the Elbas family, the Council was a form of government that represented all the major sects in the nation. Its rule didn''t set its foundation on the fear of a more potent force, but on a collaboration that would eventually provide shared benefits. The Hive didn''t have those sorts of problems. The Coral archipelago had become a testing area for the cultivators recruited through the Lutren nation and other channels, and its defenses were incredible. So, the Hive could focus all its efforts on its expansion in the new continent. Its priority now was to turn those still barren central regions in sources of income and to recover from the losses suffered during the war against the Empire. After all, it had lost countless human cultivators and hybrids in those clashes, and dozens of heroic cultivators had died too. The Hive had come out of the war with no more than thirty-five Elders in the fourth rank left as assets. Yet, even if its losses had been immense, they were nothing compared to the other forces since they had seen casualties happening among the cultivators in the fifth rank. The Hive wasn''t famous for its high number of heroic troops but its elites. Monsters like Noah and talents like many of the Elders were existences that excelled among their peers. Also, the rest of the world was still unaware of the presence of the two Demons inside its ranks. The two of them were old monsters that had learnt to survive through unthinkable struggles and had been personally trained by a divine cultivator! That feature didn''t apply only to the heroic assets. In those eight years, more rank 3 cultivators had managed to survive their Tribulations and had taken their place among the other elders. Most of those cultivators had fought in the war against the Empire and were experienced warriors, other than rare talents among the human ranks. It was only natural for them to experience their breakthroughs to the heroic ranks as soon as a period of peace arrived. The Hive didn''t focus only on its expansion and the grooming of those young talents in those years. The territories around the Divine Stele had required most of its attention since it had to decide which kind of restrictions to apply to the political system there. The three invading factions were on peaceful terms, but they were still enemies in the end. Each one of them could receive the same treatment of the Empire if they allowed themselves to become weak. So, the meetings to decide how to build and divide the city next to the Stele had taken time. They had concluded eventually and had started to build the city. Upon its completion, though, there were seats of power to fill before it could work as a trading center and as a training area specific for cultivators with a water aptitude. According to what Elder Julia said in her messages, the troops of the Hive were already there, but they lacked a leader. The other rank 5 Elders were mostly busy with their tasks, and the Hive couldn''t reveal the Demons just because it needed to show its power to the allied forces. The Hive would rather slow down its expansion than revealing such powerful assets. Noah was the perfect candidate for that role since he had never cared too much about the political environment of the various domains that he explored. After all, a rank 5 cultivator would be there just a deterrent against eventual revolts. ''They need a scarecrow,'' Noah thought as he reviewed the description of the ambassador''s role conveyed by Elder Julia. All it required was for him to be there permanently, but it didn''t involve any task relative to the management of the city. He just had to be there as a reminder to the other factions that they couldn''t bully the Hive away from the Stele. Of course, part of Noah had already accepted that offer when he heard about June. Still, his reasonable side decided to gather as many pieces of information as he could before making a decision. The outcome of that investigation led him to believe that becoming an ambassador would suit him. He would have large training areas, specific quarters ideated only to make the static lifestyle of the existences in the higher ranks more comfortable and direct access to all the resources traded in the city. That and the presence of the enemy forces right next to him would put him in a constant state of wariness, which could only sharpen his progress. His underground quarters were too safe, and he had already cleaned the rank 5 beasts from the areas nearby. He needed a new home, one where he could go all out with his experiments and feel the pressure radiated by the enemy forces. Noah contacted Thirty-seven before setting off, and the automaton decided to enlarge the separate dimension to continue working with him in the creation of living weapons. His interaction with Thirty-seven didn''t stop there. Noah asked for more information about the Kesier runes too. It didn''t take him much to set off from his dome and fly in a straight line toward the opposite coast. New experiences were always well accepted in his mind, and he even needed larger training areas, as well as researches that were available only among the larger forces. When he reached the region with the Divine Stele, he could immediately notice how the new city had been divided among the three nations. There were banners placed everywhere, with entire buildings relying on a flag or symbol to signal their loyalty toward a specific force. As for the actual share of buildings and territories there, the three factions had divided them equally. Chapter 862: 862. City The structure of the city was simple. It had its best buildings around the Stele and a series of quarters and markets in the more peripheral areas. As a neutral territory, the city was the perfect place where to exchange the resources generated by the new continent. After all, some rather independent cultivators traveled through the various habitable areas to trade goods or make a living. The grip of the three ruling forces over their assets wasn''t as strict as before. Many cultivators needed some independence even if they were bound to powerful oaths. The new continent was slowly obtaining the social environment that had been popular in the old one for centuries. Of course, it would never reach the point where the leading forces only ruled one nation and considered the regions on their borders as mere territories in their area of influence. The fact that only heroic cultivators could travel freely through the majority of the continent placed too much power on the various organization that controlled those areas. The weaker forces would lack the means to expand their power without the authorization and help of their leaders. Noah went directly for the central buildings as he flew over the city. As a rank 5 cultivator, he knew that the resources exchanged in that market couldn''t possibly interest him. Materials that were useful to experts at his level couldn''t appear in the open so easily. They didn''t have techniques and spells above the fourth rank either since the various leaders would keep those teachings for themselves. It was possible to find something valuable from time to time, but he didn''t have time to waste looking for items that didn''t influence his cultivation. He could send someone in his place to keep track of the market anyway. It wasn''t hard to find the buildings that belonged to the Hive. Long banners depicting an octopus enveloping a series of islands with its tentacles hung everywhere on the structures on the southeastern side of the Divine Stele. That division had been purely geographical. The Elbas family had built its structures on the northeastern side, while the Council had its palaces on the northwestern part. Those buildings encircled the Stele and acted as a line of protection for the most important resource in the area. Also, they skimmed the cultivators and envoys that sought to train near that trace left by divine beings. There weren''t only core members of the three forces there. Many members of the sects and noble families went there daily, hoping that the troops handling the entrance to that incredible training area would just let them pass. That system had already given birth to an intricate array of bribes and favors that the forces in place gathered to increase their influence. Just as it happened in the Coral Archipelago, the population there would eventually discard their ties to a specific organization as new generations took over. So, there was a need for a supreme authority there, something that would suppress any thought about rebellions just by existing. That was the reason why the three factions had decided to send a series of rank 5 cultivators to live and train there. The sole rumor about their presence there made the cultivators living there behave and increase their offers to the heroic cultivators of the three organizations. Those were just casual bribes that didn''t affect the overall accumulation of resources of those forces, but it was a good source of income that could potentially last forever. A series of heroic cultivation welcomed Noah when he neared the designated buildings of the Hive. He could recognize Morgan, Roy, and Duke among the ten experts that had organized the celebration for his arrival. However, there weren''t only cultivators of the Hive waiting for him. Noah could recognize June, Faith, Elder Estelle, and Elder Clara from the assets of the other forces. It seemed that the political environment had reached a level of serenity that welcoming an influential expert of an allied nation wasn''t so unusual anymore. The celebration was extremely formal. The heroic cultivators on the scene exchanged only a few toasts and a series of short conversations concerning the management of the city before returning to their buildings. The only meaningful discussion concerned the choice of a name for the city, but the rank 5 assets on the scene quickly settled for Divine Market. The Elders accompanied Noah inside the buildings belonging to the Hive and described in detail all the features that those structures had. There were a series of training areas with multiple quarters containing formations for various purposes. There were large halls open to the public, where both human and heroic cultivators worked on skimming through the insane number of requests to take a look at the Stele. In the end, the Elders escorted him to his quarters, which turned out to be a large underground structure that had a better version of all the services offered in the buildings above. Noah felt satisfied with his new quarters. It wasn''t easy to build something so intricate in just eight years, but he could imagine how the Hive had given priority to the Stele rather than to the barren central regions. ''There is only me as a rank 5 cultivator in the Hive,'' Noah thought as he dismissed the Elders, ''But there are Faith and June here. Life sure it''s funny at times.'' Noah couldn''t help but feel strange as he walked under the azure walls of his underground quarters. After all, he was now at the head of an organization that handled a neutral city. The similarities with the political system in the Coral Archipelago were stunning. The only difference was that he was on the other side of that environment now. Also, some of the cultivators there were real allies, which made the situation even funnier in his eyes. However, he didn''t want to waste too much time remembering how far he had gone since he first set foot on the Coral Archipelago. There were too many projects in line, waiting for him to start one of them. As his memories started to reach the Odrea nation though, he senses a series of steps resounded in that underground world. Noah didn''t even need to turn to understand who was behind that sound. Those steps followed a rhythm that he knew far too well to forget. "I thought we would have used Faith like the last time," Noah said as he turned to face his lover. "Noah, we are rank 5 cultivators managing one of the best resources in the entire new continent," June said as she stepped on the ground. "We can do whatever we want." Noah revealed a smile, but June spoke before he could say anything. "I''ve already spread the rumor that I would have requested for a battle. Don''t hold back." At those words, black sparks began to run through June''s body, and her aura began to radiate a thick battle intent. Chapter 863: 863. Playing Noah looked at his lover radiating a pure battle intent and sighed. He only wanted to train and dive into one of his projects now, but he had underestimated how serious June was about fighting. He could understand her feelings. She had fought a war without having the chance to reveal her real power, and holding back for so long made her reach her limit eventually. She had to vent and test what her higher energy was capable of. "Come then," Noah said after a few seconds of silence. He wasn''t going to refuse her. After all, he had always been aware of June''s character, and he didn''t dislike it at all. Only someone with a drive as intense as his could accompany him through his life, and if June needed an opponent, he would provide him. June''s smile widened at his words, and she took out her typical golden spear. More sparks began to run through her body as she pointed her weapon at Noah, and an orange halo started to envelop her as her black higher energy gathered on the arm wielding it. Noah couldn''t help but admire the beauty of that scene. June was breathtaking as she gathered her power to cast a spell. Her robe and hair fluttered due to the pressure released by her peculiar sparks, and her whole figure began to shine with an orange light that spread in the environment. Her sparks were black, but they shone with an orange color. The product of her friction had created something that carried features belonging even to Noah''s darkness. Of course, it didn''t carry his individuality, nor the properties of his "Breath". Only its appearance was similar to his darkness since Noah had helped in making one of the materials needed for its creation. Noah stretched his palm and held it still, waiting for the attack to arrive. He knew June too well not to understand the kind of spell that she was preparing. June''s battle intent increased even more when she saw that gesture. She felt challenged to express all her power, and that was what she intended to do. A black lightning bolt suddenly came out of her spear and shot toward Noah''s palm. An explosion resounded in the underground quarters, and the inscriptions on the azure walls of that area flickered as they fend off the shockwaves that reached them. Noah found himself in the middle of a trail of gray smoke, but his attention was on his hand. The center of his palm felt slightly sore, but there wasn''t any mark on it. June''s spell didn''t even manage to make him bleed. However, his arm had shaken when the lightning bolt landed. It wasn''t anything extreme, just a slight tremor that had lasted for less than a fraction of instant. Still, the fact that a cultivator in the gaseous stage had managed to make his body flinch after he had reached the upper tier was incredible, almost unbelievable! "How much can your centers of power handle?" Noah asked as he walked outside of the trail of smoke, but June had long lost interest in words. Another lightning bolt flew in his direction, but Noah deflected it with a mere wave of his hand. His innate awareness though made him notice that the power of that same spell had increased by a little. ''I guess we''ll find out,'' Noah thought as he focused on June again. She still had her spear raised, but some cracks had appeared on its body. Even an inscribed weapon in the fifth rank wasn''t able to handle the higher energy that she released. Truth to be told, June didn''t need an inscribed weapon. She had abandoned the martial arts just like the rest of the heroic cultivators on her level. Noah could rely on his physical strength to put his martial arts on the same level of the spells, but ordinary cultivators saw them only as a weaker type of offensive. Yet, June liked to wield a weapon when she fought. She had a special relationship with spears because of her harsh childhood, so he had never pressed her into changing her battle style. Still, it was clear that her inscribed item wasn''t able to keep up with her power anymore. The Demonic Sword roared after that second lightning bolt. It felt confused when it saw the two of them fighting, but Noah quickly patted it on its hilt and spoke a few reassuring words. "Don''t worry. We are just playing." The living weapon didn''t fully understand what he meant by "playing", but its connection with Noah made it aware that they weren''t trying to kill each other. It would have been too confused otherwise. After all, the sword had learnt to like June, especially since Noah''s emotions influenced some of its thoughts. June snorted when she heard that, and she started to rotate her spear to resort to a different attack. A series of dark crackling dark spheres formed in front of the rotating weapon and sparks spread from their edges to connect them into an intricate array. A lightning storm took life at that point. Small lightning bolts shot from that array and flew toward Noah in a straight line. June''s lightning reflected her individuality. All her attacks were powerful and direct. Noah kept on walking forward as he punched all the sparks coming at him. Flashes of a dark orange light shone in his vision every time his knuckles connected with one of the lightning bolts. Their power kept on increasing, but they were still unable to slow down his advance. ''I would have felt that if I was still in the middle tier,'' Noah thought at some point. June''s attacks had just reached a level of power that even hybrids in the middle tier would have trouble handling. However, he wasn''t worried about his safety. Rather, he wasn''t sure if June''s centers of power were able to handle all that might. It was still okay as long as they didn''t cross the limits of the gaseous stage, but she could hurt herself if she pushed her boundaries too much. Nevertheless, Noah knew his lover. Asking her to stop or control herself was pointless. He would have to put an end to the fight with his own hands if the situation became too dangerous. June released a series of sparks when Noah became too close, and she shot in the air, where she prepared a long-distance lunge. All the sparks that had affected the environment gathered in her position. Then, June shot downward, leaving an orange trail as she dove toward Noah. Noah saw cracks appearing on the tip of the golden spear as it reached for his head. There was so much energy inside its structure that even its sturdiest part was on the verge of falling apart. Yet, Noah didn''t move. He waited for June to enter his range and delivered an uppercut aimed at her weapon. Chapter 864: 864. Fear The golden spear exploded into countless pieces, and some of them even cut June''s skin as they flew in every direction. The higher energy that she had accumulated inside her weapon also went wild, and a thick lighting storm formed in the point where Noah''s fist had collided. The lightning storm expanded and flung June backward, making her slam in the azure wall of the underground quarters. As for Noah, he remained still as the sparks landed on his body and destroyed his robe. June''s higher energy already put her on par with cultivators at near the peak of the gaseous stage, and her centers of power kept on producing more of it as she kept on fighting. The attack that had enveloped Noah matched some of Icy Stare''s spells, and June was still creating more of it! Her next attack was bound to be slightly stronger too since Noah knew that his last punch would only fuel June''s battle intent more. As if answering to his understanding of her character, June''s aura exploded outward and filled the air around her with black sparks that radiated an orange halo. Crackling sounds began to echo inside the underground quarters at that point, and the nature of the atmosphere began to change as the amount of "Breath" of the lightning element increased. The wall where June had slammed didn''t crack due to the inscriptions filling its surface, but that didn''t mean that the impact was soft. June had hurt her back in the clash, and she had to rely on her higher energy to keep walking normally. Her aura though was more intense than ever, and black sparks started to separate from her body since her centers of power were producing far more energy than her Perfect Circuit could handle. It was the first time that June had to push her limits so much, especially with her new energy. Her body was overflowing with power, and even the formations meant for that purpose weren''t able to contain it. "I can still go!" June shouted as she waved her hands to take control of all the "Breath" of the lighting element in the underground area. Her higher energy then spread in the environment and fused with the "Breath" before shooting to the walls, ceiling, and ground of Noah''s quarters. Orange layers formed on top of the inscriptions, and dark sparks ran freely through them. It seemed that June was trying to turn the entire area in a personal domain where her energy could fly without any obstructions. Noah knew that spell. Its name was Prison of Lightning, and it was one of the diagrams retrieved from the other world. June had obtained it as a prize for her mission in the wilderness and had shown it to Noah during their cohabitation. Still, that was his first time seeing it with the higher energy as its core. "Are you sure?" Noah asked as he looked at the trembling orange layers. They seemed ready to unleash the massive amount of energy contained inside them, but he knew that they would remain still until June triggered them. "You aren''t only the man that I love, Noah," June said in a calm tone. "You are also the perfect opponent for my individuality." Noah could understand the meaning of her words. As a hybrid, his resilience was incredible, which gave June enough time to push her centers of power over their limits. A regular battle would have ended long ago. June would have either won with her last attack or lost because her opponent was far more potent than her. However, since Noah wasn''t going to stop her, she could fight until the output of energy produced by her Perfect Circuit far surpassed her usual standards. He was the only one in the world that could give her an endless battle. "Go ahead then," Noah said as a smirk appeared on his face too. "I want to see if my darkness is enough to match higher energy." Noah''s aura exploded outward too, and his "Breath" began to spread in the environment. The destruction carried by his darkness started to fight with the violent power contained in the orange layers for the control of the situation. Still, it was impossible to decide a winner before those energies turned into spells. Black smoke began to come out of Noah''s body, and a scaled armor soon formed around his figure. A black sphere appeared above his head too, and a series of saber-shaped runes came out of his palm to surround him. Noah wasn''t going to use his martial art. That battle was a pure conflict of energies to see how distant they were from each other in terms of power. On one side, there was Noah''s darkness, something that he had created using his individuality and the enlightenment obtained during the transformation as its foundation. On the other, there was June''s higher energy, which she had built through King Elbas'' research. June didn''t speak anymore at that point and triggered her spell. The orange layers started to release thick lightning bolt that encircled Noah in a spherical lightning storm. Noah saw his runes cracking and falling apart as they clashed with the various attacks, but the corrosive smoke around him offered enough protection for the time being. The cloud created through the Demonic Form eventually gave in to the barrage of lightning bolts that became stronger with each passing second. June was still fueling her spell, so the amount of energy that she produced kept on increasing. The Black Hole spell became the next target of the lightning storm. Its size had initially started to increase as it reduced the attacks into primary energy to absorb, but its structure began to fall apart as June pushed more power in her spell. It was as if those spells had a completely different structure even if they were theoretically on the same level. If Noah had to describe that difference using types of swords, he would say that his attacks were wooden words, while June''s were made of steel. They were in different leagues. The lightning storm began to land on the scaled armor after it broke apart the Black Hole spell. It didn''t take much before Noah felt the various lighting bolts crashing on his body and threatening to suppress him on the ground. ''This would have been able to kill me if I was still in the middle tier,'' Noah thought before moving his vertical pupils in June''s direction. She was sweating profusely, and her complexion had turned pale. A trail of blood had even begun to fall from a corner of her mouth. Her energy was stronger than his, but she had long reached the limit of her Perfect Circuit. Even at that point though, her power wasn''t enough to hurt Noah''s body. Noah shot forward and released a roar when he reached her. June''s mind froze when she sensed the innate danger caused by him. Her instincts told her that she could only escape in front of that creature. In that moment of unavoidable fear, June''s mind surrendered on its own, and her spell vanished into thin air. Chapter 865: 865. Personal world Making June surrender due to an instinctive reaction was the only way to stop the spell without hurting her. Noah just had to make her sea of consciousness aware of the power of his body to shut down her will to fight. The helplessness felt in front of a being on a higher level didn''t depend on the individualities. It was the result of the survival instinct that any creature had. June fell on her knees after her centers of power stopped producing that massive quantity of energy. The sudden return of her Perfect Circuit to an average pace made her feel dizzy, and the exhaustion that enveloped her body made her legs lose strength. Noah crouched and lifted her face as he caressed her. June was pale and appeared utterly drained, but she wore a satisfied smile as she examined her lover''s body. The last spell had managed to leave white marks on his chest and shoulders. It didn''t hurt him, but it had reached the point where even a hybrid in the upper tier had to start respecting her strength. That achievement was incredible for a rank 5 cultivator in the gaseous stage. After all, only beings on higher stages could face such powerful existences. The spells of cultivators at the peak of the gaseous stage were able to hurt Noah when he was in the middle tier, but now only existences on a higher level could pierce his natural defenses. Even then, they would have a hard time killing him due to his incredible resilience. Noah shook his head when he saw the satisfied expression of his lover, and he stuck out his tongue to lick one of the trails of blood that had fallen from a cut on her cheek. "Are you going to eat me now that I''m at my weakest?" June asked as she laid on his chest and immersed her hand in his hair. Noah showed an ugly expression when the taste of her blood filled his mouth. The flavor of the Heaven''s Spark that she had absorbed during her Tribulation was something that his body naturally rejected and found awful to eat. "It seems that you can''t be my food," Noah said as a warm smile appeared on his face. "What do I even do with you now?" June pulled Noah closer, and the two of them exchanged a long kiss before she replied to her joke. "You can let me sleep for a while here." Noah nodded at her words, and June''s eyes closed as she lost herself in his caresses. The underground area was a mess due to their recent battle, but Noah couldn''t care less about the furniture. June was sleeping in his arms, and his mind was consuming mental energy to fuel the Divine Deduction technique as he went through his ideas concerning the higher power. It was as if he had returned to his happy life inside the separate dimension. The battle had shown him how superior a higher energy was compared to normal "Breath". His darkness didn''t even come close to the power of June''s sparks. The creation of higher energy had been a priority in his mind, but now it had become a necessity. Noah couldn''t suppress his eagerness to get his hands on that power after seeing how strong it was. He didn''t have any instructions though. Even King Elbas had to give up on identifying a method for the light and darkness element since they didn''t have specific features. Those rare aptitudes enveloped almost all the behaviors that the "Breath" could have. They were generic in the sense that they could assume any form without giving up on their natural properties. That was the reason behind their superiority over the other elements, but it was also a hindrance to Noah''s project since there weren''t guidelines in King Elbas'' research. He only knew that it was possible to create something structurally more significant to the "Breath". If other heroic cultivators were to inspect him now, they would notice that his consciousness disappeared at times only to return after a few seconds. Noah''s mind had already interacted with the world of the laws, and he was able to reach that mental state for short instants as he meditated. It wasn''t something that he could control, but those moments had begun to happen more often as his level rose. His existence was slowly striving for the next step in the cultivation journey. Noah was making his ways toward the laws as the intensity of his individuality increased. His existence was becoming too strong to remain limited to the rules of the "Breath". ''A fuel, density, motion, a foundation, and friction are the methods for the other elements,'' Noah thought as he kept caressing the sleeping June. ''Theoretically, I can build higher energy with my darkness using any of those approaches, but I can''t settle for just any power. I need to create the best version that I can, while also respecting the features of my individuality.'' Noah already had a general idea of how he wanted to proceed in that project. After all, he had spent years knowing the contents of King Elbas'' research, and he had often found himself thinking about it during his meditations. The way he saw it, his higher energy had to be the maximum expression of his creation, so that he could have something specific for each aspect of his individuality. The primary energy was the product of his destruction and expressed his beast side. His darkness represented the entirety of his individuality and carried features belonging to both destruction and creation. Following that reasoning, his higher energy would have to be something strictly connected with his creation and human side. It would have to be the definitive tool for that aspect of his individuality. ''It needs to be a core material capable of creating a world.'' Noah concluded in his mind. He had set the features that he wanted his higher energy to carry. The only issue was the absence of a method that could turn his idea into real success. ''Countless tests again,'' Noah sighed when he thought that. He felt lost in that project. The situation was even worse compared to when he had to create his darkness since he lacked an example of what he should strive to create. He only had the material required for the task, but he had no idea how he could make it reach a superior form. So, he could only immerse himself in a series of tests that would eventually give him a general direction to follow. ''I need to deploy my darkness in an orderly and harmonious array,'' Noah thought as a whiff of his "Breath" appeared in the center of his palm. ''My higher energy needs to be a pliable material capable of assuming any form. It must be a dark matter through which I can create my personal world.'' Chapter 866: 866. Rumors June eventually woke up, but she remained lain on Noah''s chest as she observed him working. Tiredness still filled her entire body, and she found the focused expression of her lover a captivating sight. Noah continued to experiment as if he didn''t notice that June had awakened. There were too many thoughts concerning the higher energy in his mind to give her some attention. A small amount of his darkness moved in his palm and changed form as Noah controlled its structure with his mental energy. The changes were methodical and accurate, but they didn''t seem to lead to anything since the "Breath" returned to its original shape every time. Noah was trying to find out what composition suited his energy before moving forward in his experiments. He needed to know what form his darkness didn''t reject before starting to test on larger quantities of "Breath". It soon became apparent that his darkness didn''t like a static form. It wanted to remain free to move even if Noah forced it into a fixed shape. He expected something like that to happen since his individuality reflected his character, but he still felt disappointed when he confirmed that. It would be easier for him to proceed with a static form since it would have more evident rules. Shapeless higher energy would be far more complex to build, especially when it came to the harmony of its structure. However, he had always known that it wouldn''t be easy to reach a satisfying result. After all, he aimed to create something that could work as an essential matter for his personal world. Noah''s experiments continued for hours, and he stopped only when his sea of consciousness was almost empty. Only then did he turn toward June, who had observed him in silence for the whole duration of that testing session. "It won''t be easy," Noah said as he laid on the ground while keeping June over him. Her presence there was benefitting his creation since she was core part of that aspect of his individuality. Yet, they weren''t in the separate dimension now, so he couldn''t know for how long she could remain there. Also, she still needed to rest, so they couldn''t indulge in more intimate behaviors until she recovered. Nevertheless, she quickly reassured him before he could even question her about that topic. "I can come here often. We are the highest powers in the Divine Market city, and the Elbas family will believe that I visit you to have sparring sessions. I can ask for Faith''s help if they start to suspect something." June''s words made sense. The neutral city only had a handful of rank 5 cultivators from the three factions, and their meetings were somewhat allowed now that the allied forces had a peaceful political relationship. Of course, she couldn''t just live with him, but they wouldn''t have to be separated for decades again as long as they remained there. Also, June''s state would confirm her version of the story. After all, she had really fought Noah. "Are you saying that we have to fight every time you come here?" Noah asked, and June''s eyes lit up at that question. That idea was appealing for a battle maniac like her. Yet, it would be pointless to fight Noah again unless she improved her current power. She didn''t have a way to hurt him unless her Perfect Circuit became able to sustain an output of energy that could match rank 5 cultivators in the liquid stage. "We''ll come up with something," June said as she closed her eyes again. "The other expert from the Elbas family rarely comes out of his training area, and he wouldn''t dare to question the behavior of another rank 5 cultivator anyway." Having reached that level of power provided many benefits in terms of freedom, even inside strict organizations. After all, no one could judge such existences and decide if their approach to the cultivation journey was wrong. Only the powerhouses had that kind of influence, but they wouldn''t bother with matters so futile. Their interest was in the lands above the sky, not in what some of their most potent underlings did in their free time. The fact that they were in a neutral city also helped their situation. The main forces actually expected the envoys there to collaborate to prevent another Hive from happening. Noah limited himself to nod before sending a series of mental messages while June slept. He knew that she was right, but he would still ask the two Demons to create a few escape routes in case something happened. The truth was that Thirty-seven had already contacted them for the same task, even if his reasons were completely different. The automaton only wanted the possibility to reach Noah to continue their work on living weapons. Noah though had no intention to resume that project now. The automaton would have to wait for him to create his higher energy. Also, making the other forces wait while the Hive maintained its monopoly over the living weapons could only make their value increase. Both the Council and the Elbas family would be willing to pay a fortune to get their hands on one of them when they hit the market. June woke up a few hours later and decided to leave. During her way back to the buildings of the Royals, she made sure that many heroic assets saw her injured state just to spread the information that she and Noah were sparring in her visits. The news quickly reached all the heroic assets in the city, and their reactions surprised both June and Noah when they learnt about them. The Royals and the Elders began to admire June for her determination in pursuing her path. She was even willing to request for Noah as a sparring partner to obtain the help of the most talented cultivator of her generation. Of course, many rumors concerning what price she had paid for that service spread too, and Noah found himself receiving messages that inquired about that topic. However, he mostly ignored them since his mind could barely move away from his tests on higher energy. . . . Peaceful years passed, and the neutral city never stopped expanding in that period. Cultivators moved there because they didn''t like to be too close to the leading powers, even if they were members of their organizations. Still, most of the newcomers were powerful families or sects that had an interest in the Divine Stele. The markets in the city improved as more resources ended up inside them, but the gains of the Hive were inferior to those of the other forces since it had deployed fewer heroic assets compared to them. It was only natural that it could seize fewer resources with that lack of manpower. Yet, Daniel returned from the other world at some point, and he offered himself as an ambassador when Amos Udye updated him about that situation. In a matter of months after his return, Daniel moved to Divine Market city. Chapter 867: 867. Scene Daniel''s arrival balanced the power among the three factions ruling the neutral city. All of them now had two rank 5 cultivators each deployed there. Hence, their influence on the population became similar even if there was a still huge disparity in their number of heroic assets. The Hive still had less manpower on that level, but it wasn''t considered weaker than the other factions anymore. Daniel had followed Noah''s suggestion after the war and had gone to the other world to hone his abilities as an alchemist. He had even joined the hunting groups of the Hive there to help to gather of hybrids and ordinary beasts. Those years spent in the wilderness had helped him clear his mind after his conversation with Faith. He now understood what was wrong with his initial idea. He couldn''t become a law if he forsook even what made him unique. One couldn''t become stronger by willpower alone. There had to be features that individualities had to carry. Noah and June had their steadfast determination, but their paths were completely different. In the same way, Daniel had to push what made him unique forward and underline the features of his character. Even the purest light had a specific behavior. Daniel''s challenge was in making his individuality shine when his path put him in an endless refinement cycle. It often happened that heroic cultivators switched paths as their level increased. The greater understanding obtained once reached higher ranks could make them realize that they had been wrong about certain aspects of their individualities. Even Noah had become aware of his creation only during the exploration of the new continent. It was unlikely for newly advanced heroic cultivators to find the right path as soon as they surpassed the Tribulations. The matters concerning the individualities were deep and complex. They would even assume different features after the cultivators came in contact with the laws, or change entirely due to some real-life struggles. Generally speaking, it was never too late for heroic cultivators to switch paths as long as they didn''t reach the last stages of the heroic ranks. Their accumulation would be faulty at that point, which would prevent them from crossing the last obstacle before the divine ranks. Becoming a divine entity was a slow and cruel procedure. Even the most subtle mistake could prevent a heroic cultivator from obtaining enough power to face the Tribulation. The best way to spot those mistakes was to overcome struggles. Still, there were political systems that took care of most of the problems of talented cultivators, and Daniel had experienced that first-hand. His recent experiences though had forced him to grow, and his interaction with Noah and Faith had polished his understanding further. His decision to help with the neutral city hadn''t been casual either. He had chosen to go there to interact more with the talents of his generation. When Daniel reached the buildings of the Hive, he found himself in front of a scene that he would find it hard to forget for the rest of his life. He had gone directly for the underground quarters meant for rank 5 cultivators, but a dark lightning bolt fell right in front of him as soon as he crossed their entrance. A dangerous feeling quickly enveloped him, but he didn''t deploy his defensive measures when he understood what was happening inside that structure. Daniel saw June and Faith hovering in the air and exchanging a series of powerful attacks that shattered the air and forced the inscriptions on the walls to lit up. June was filling the entirety of the underground area with unstable spheres that released crackling sounds and lightning bolts, while Faith used her aura to suppress the violent features of her opponent''s energy. Ethereal rivers surrounded Faith''s figure and enveloped both June and her spells to spread her calming abilities on them. It was as if she was trying to shut down her opponent''s offensive while also defending against the constant attacks of the crackling spheres. Faith wasn''t having much success. June''s spells only became more violent under that suppression, and her battle intent kept on intensifying even if peaceful feelings hindered the functioning of her Perfect Circuit. What surprised Daniel the most was that both women appeared extremely serious about that battle. It seemed that they were really trying to kill each other! It was at that point that Daniel noticed someone else in the underground quarters. Toward the end of the structure, Daniel noticed a wide cloud made of dark gas and a cultivator with long black hair managing it. The cultivator had his upper body uncovered and performed fast movements with his hands as he tried to affect the nature of the energy in front of him. Daniel had already understood who that cultivator was even before noticing the few scales on his naked back. Only Noah Balvan could remain so focused on his projects while two rank 5 experts fought right behind his back. No one seemed to notice Daniel''s arrival. The three cultivators in the underground quarters were too focused on their business to care about that foreign presence. Of course, they didn''t really fail to notice him, but they were too immersed in their projects to give him any form of attention. Noah''s hands continued to shoot in seemingly random directions, and the cloud of "Breath" in front of him changed form according to those gestures. Four years had passed since he moved into the neutral city, but he still was in the initial parts of the testing phase. He had yet to find a higher form that his darkness accepted, and the failures that had filled the past years had eventually forced him to change approach on the matter. According to his ideas, using only small quantities of his darkness in his experiments would never lead to anything. So little energy couldn''t reach a higher state even if he knew the right method to use for that procedure. Only a large amount of "Breath" could give birth to higher energy. That was merely a matter of materials needed to create something stronger than the single items used in the procedure. So, Noah believed that he needed to use more darkness if he wanted to obtain some results. As soon as he moved the testing phase in that direction, the outcome of his experiments improved, even if that wasn''t enough to make him move to the next stage of his project. Also, risks accompanied that new approach, and they would force him to stop and reconsider his understanding at times. A sudden dangerous sensation filled the minds of Faith, June, and Daniel at some point, and the two women interrupted their battle to shoot toward the entrance of the quarters. Faith even grabbed Daniel his collar and pulled him into the corridor that led to the buildings on the surface. Then, a loud explosion resounded in the underground quarters, and a series of tremors even reached the corridor where the three rank 5 cultivators stood in silence. Chapter 868: 868. Astonishmen The explosion didn''t damage the structure of the buildings and underground quarters, but the protective inscriptions couldn''t prevent the tremors from spreading. They preserved the integrity of the constructions, but the detonation still affected the entire area. However, no one came to check the situation, and even the heroic cultivators living right above that underground area didn''t bother to leave their positions. Daniel was astonished. He knew that the experiments of a rank 5 cultivator could end up poorly, but the fact that none of the underlings of the Hive had come to help them was quite unnatural! After all, that matter concerned the quarters of their leader. Noah''s safety should be the main priority of the weaker heroic assets. Of course, Daniel couldn''t possibly know that the other Elders had already checked on him once when the first explosion resounded right under their feet. Yet, they had only found an annoyed Noah who ordered them to never check on his status anymore back then. Daniel soon started to understand that such explosions were a common sight in the neutral city. The two women next to him had reacted too fast, and they didn''t even appear bothered by that situation. Their expressions were more a mixture of helplessness and annoyance toward the interruption of their battle. "This one goes on me," June said at some point, and she started to walk back in the underground as if nothing unusual had happened. "They all go to you if I can''t shut down your battle intent soon enough." Faith replied as she followed her along the corridor. Daniel could only follow after the two of them while wearing a confused expression. In his mind, he was already reevaluating his expectations toward the task of an ambassador of the neutral city. When the three of them returned inside Noah''s quarters, they found him staring at the wall where the black cloud was hovering just a few minutes before. Yet, there was no gas now, and only a few marks on the azure rocks carried traces of its detonation. The Demonic Sword flew casually above him, but it didn''t seem interested in what he was doing. It had merely reacted to the sudden danger, but even the living weapon appeared used to that kind of commotion. Faith and June sat in a corner and took out a few cups that they quickly filled with strong wine, but they acted so naturally the Daniel felt forced to stare at them to be sure that he didn''t see things. Daniel knew that Noah and June were in a relationship, but he had yet to become used to her behavior. After all, he didn''t know her too well. The only pieces of information in his possession came from the reports that his family had gathered when it was still planning a revolution. June didn''t appear as a battle maniac at all while she drank and conversed with Faith. She seemed even able to go along with Faith''s playful character. The image of the talent of the Ballor family that Daniel had in his mind fell apart in a few seconds when he saw how she acted there. "I told you that she was cute!" Faith exclaimed when she noticed his stare. "And you have yet to see how they are together. I actually feel jealous at times." "Hmph," June snorted as she kept Faith still to prevent her from hugging her. "The most beautiful woman of the Mortal Lands can''t be jealous. Just leave Noah and me alone and get yourself a partner." "But men are so easy to take," Faith complained as she gave up on jumping in June. "Except for your man, I guess." Daniel stared at the two of them having that casual discussion with wide eyes. They were mighty rank 5 cultivators and the best talents of their generation, but they also appeared to be close friends that could relax together. Such a sight wasn''t common among cultivators at that level, especially when he took into consideration the different organizations behind them. It was usually impossible for experts coming from forces that used to be enemies to reach that type of trust. Yet, Faith and June had done that, and the fact that Noah was involved only made the situation even more astonishing in Daniel''s eyes. The images of the young man that had faced the rank 4 Excavating Worm in the Bare Dungeon appeared in his mind. Too much had changed in those decades. Still, they were now under the same roof as existences that the entire world revered and praised. Noah stood up at that point and neared the three of them while wearing an ugly expression. Daniel''s stopped staring at the two women. He didn''t know how jealous Noah could be about his lover, but he wasn''t going to test his chances since his mood appeared quite sour already. "Don''t worry," Noah said as he noticed his reaction. "Faith has more chances than you at that." Then, he sat next to June and filled a cup of wine for himself. Daniel felt a wave of amazement enveloping his mind once again as he kept on staring at that scene. He saw June casually laying her back over Noah''s chest and playing with one of the scales on the side of his torso. The most astounding aspect of that situation for Daniel was that Noah didn''t seem to notice that. He let her be as he closed his eyes to immerse himself in his thoughts. Daniel could only accept that Noah wasn''t only the monster that had spread chaos through the old continent when he was only a human cultivator. There was a side of him that no one knew except for June, Faith, and now him. "Are you going to stay there?" Faith asked at some point, and Daniel sighed before joining the three of them in that casual meeting. He even took a cup from his space-ring to drink with them. Though, he had to try his best not to stare too much at the couple at his side. "So," Faith said after Noah reopened his eyes, "How many more explosions should we expect? Elder Estelle is starting to think that you will blow the entire city up." "I''m about to increase the quantity of energy," Noah replied, "The other Elders should apply the protective inscriptions even on the buildings around this one." "Even more?" June asked with a surprised tone. "Didn''t you just raise it?" "Forcing my "Breath" into a shapeless construct is impossible," Noah answered. "I need to create a procedure that would lead it to a higher form naturally." "Won''t that make the testing phase far more dangerous?" June asked while wearing a helpless expression, but Noah limited himself to smirk. Daniel was utterly clueless about that topic, and it appeared that even Faith didn''t know much about it since she had started to ignore them. Yet, an idea suddenly popped in her mind, and she expressed it loudly. "June told me about your ex-girlfriend! Didn''t she come from a place with a training area for heroic cultivators?" Chapter 869: 869. Suggestion Noah didn''t forget about the Odrea nation and its Mausoleum. Actually, he was interested in the nature of that place. At first, he had learnt to accept it as a training area that the Empire used to skim its army. The official story was that a rival of the god of the Empire had lost the race to the divine ranks. That made the entire nation suffer from that. Yet, that was just the knowledge passed down by human cultivators. The records retrieved in the Mortal Palace had shown some discrepancies in that story. The Odrea nation would have been in that state for more than thirty thousand years if both stories were true, which was something than Noah found it hard to believe. An organization made only of a few thousand human cultivators couldn''t have lasted so much. There was some secret there. Still, the presence of the god of the Empire had forced the few curious experts to give up on its exploration. However, the god had disappeared for more than ten years, and the rumors had started to spread again. It wasn''t a case that Faith had thought about the Odrea nation when she understood the struggles that Noah was facing during his experiments. There weren''t many cultivators aware of the existence of the Mausoleum, but most of them could link that country with the god of the Empire. Anything related to a divine entity would be priceless for heroic cultivators, and entire organizations would be willing to fight wars for them. Nevertheless, Faith knew about that training area because June told her almost everything about her time with Noah. That gave her the idea that the solution to Noah''s issue could be inside one of the training areas meant for heroic cultivators. After all, it was more than evident that he needed all the help that he could get in that project. Even June had admitted that she had required Noah''s help to succeed in that secret project. That alone was the proof that he would have a hard time too. Truth to be told, Noah didn''t want to return to the Mausoleum just yet. Its last layer was an area meant for rank 6 cultivators according to Lisa''s story, which said that he couldn''t explore the entire structure at his current level. Also, he had just come out of a long series of improvements since the war had allowed him to express his individuality a lot. Once he completed the matter with the higher energy, he would have to dive into other projects that concerned his power as a whole. However, four years of testing didn''t lead him anywhere, and he could only find the reasons behind his failures even if he used the Divine Deduction technique. The actual procedure was still vague in his mind, and he could only test more approaches to find it in his current situation. ''The end of the fifth layer should feature laws since they are a core part of that rank,'' Noah thought as he evaluated Faith''s suggestion. ''Understanding more about that world can only benefit all my projects and my individuality.'' The idea that he had suppressed in his mind for so long began to take form. Just a few minutes ago, there were only thoughts concerning the higher energy there. Still, Noah began to believe that the Mausoleum could improve the state of his experiments as he weighed all the pros and cons. Also, the only other choice was to keep testing blindly, hoping that he would find a direction to pursue soon. June showed an ugly expression at Faith''s words. On the one hand, she didn''t like the idea of Noah going back to the country where he had his first relationship. On the other, she didn''t want the two of them to separate. Yet, she understood that Noah was facing some dangerous hindrances. After all, the explosions alone had made even Elder Estelle worry about the safety of the neutral city. "Are you sure that this is a good idea?" Daniel asked. "We are still at war with the Empire." Daniel had become too used to feel amazed in those short minutes that he didn''t even flinch when he heard the word "ex-girlfriend". Instead, he offered an objective view of the current political situation. "Our three forces are still recovering," Faith replied. "I''ve heard some of the Elders say that we need to wait at least fifty years before moving to the old continent. We aren''t losing anything right now, while the Empire rots in a wasteland." Of course, the old continent wasn''t a wasteland, not yet at least. Faith was exaggerating to prove a point. Isolating the Empire in the old continent would cripple its growth, while the three invading forces had the entire piece of Immortal Lands at their disposal. The gap in power between the two sides would slowly enlarge in that situation already. There was no point in forcing other battles. Noah knew that well, and he even agreed with the decision of the three forces to stop the war for a few decades. Still, he was considering the idea of visiting the Mausoleum, and that was bound to give birth to other issues that were internal to the three organizations. The Hive, the Elbas family, and the Council were at peace. None of them would dare to betray one of its allies because the weaker side could pair up with the Empire if the situation were too dire. That would balance the forces of those Mortal Lands again and waste the assets sacrificed during the war. Yet, a sudden lack of manpower would inevitably affect their growth. If Noah were to leave, the Hive would gain far less from the neutral city, and it would see its other projects slowing down to make up for the loss of one of its most powerful assets. There wasn''t a real solution to that problem either since the Hive didn''t have as many rank 5 cultivators as the other forces. Noah picked his inscribed notebook and began to send a series of mental messages to the other Elders at that point. He had never cared about politics, nor bothered to learn how to run an organization. So, he had to rely on the Elders'' judgment to see if that was the best moment when starting another mission. Also, he didn''t mind spending other years in Divine Market city. He was improving anyway. The Mausoleum was just an idea that was worth testing, but it wasn''t an essential part of his training. Elder Julia answered after a few minutes, and her words resounded in Noah''s mind. "It''s not an issue to replace you and Daniel in a few years. The Hive has obtained only barren territories, and the other rank 4 Elders are enough to handle them. Though, you might want to make it an official mission. It''s better to involve the other nations in this particular period." Chapter 870: 870. Hooded Devil Elder Julia''s suggestion was on point. The Hive had the separate dimension and could explore the Odrea nation and its Mausoleum unnoticed. Yet, the other countries would eventually notice the absence of its heroic assets, especially if one of them was the flashy Noah. It was better to involve the other forces in that mission. After all, the Hive could count on a series of allies that didn''t mind keeping secrets from their organizations. Faith had long lost her interest in the Council. She was more loyal toward June and Noah since they treated her fairly and didn''t stop her from acting how she wanted. The Council even trusted her and felt the need to make up for how it nurtured her. Her peace had benefitted more from breaking its rules than from isolating herself from the world in the end. The only real issue was the Elbas family. June wasn''t a Royal, and there was a limit to how much the Elbas family trusted her. There was a high chance that it requested for an actual carrier of King Elbas'' bloodline to be in a mission that concerned the secrets of the god of the Empire. "I''ll set up a few meetings and keep you updated," Elder Julia said toward the end of her mental message. "Try not to destroy Divine Market city in the meantime." That matter ended there. It would be up to the higher-ups of the three forces to find an agreement now. Noah knew that the Council and the Elbas family wouldn''t just let the Hive go alone in the Odrea nation. Still, there was a chance that Elder Julia could create favorable conditions if she were subtle enough with her offers. Every force was busy making up for the losses suffered during the war, and the pieces of information concerning the Odrea nation weren''t wholly reliable. So, it was possible to reach an agreement that the Hive could exploit. More years passed in the neutral city, and the gatherings in Noah''s underground quarters continued right under the curiosity of the heroic assets of the other forces. June and Faith would always return to the structures of their organizations carrying traces of battle, so most heroic cultivators believed that Noah was giving combat lessons. The tremors didn''t stop either, and they even became proper earthquakes at some point since Noah kept on increasing the amount of darkness used in his experiments. Yet, his tests didn''t cause any damage, and the other heroic assets didn''t dare to complain. Most of them were scared of the fame that accompanied the Demon Prince, but others wanted to join his private circle. That desire was quite popular. After all, Faith was often in his quarters, and any rank 4 cultivator would feel blessed if someone like Noah taught them how to fight. Yet, the higher-ups there knew that the Hive was planning something. Elder Julia had announced her interest in exploring the mysterious Odrea nation, but the negotiations proceeded slowly since the other forces had many doubts about her actual intentions. The offer was compelling though, and they couldn''t control the behavior of rank 5 cultivators anyway. Also, the only danger appeared to be the formation around the country, but no one believed that they couldn''t convince the citizens to open it when they wanted to leave. As for what concerned the limitation of the defensive formation, Elder Julia told the other forces that Noah had obtained some key during his stay there. The fact that the Hive could grant access inside the Odrea nation to heroic cultivators put it in an advantageous position during the meetings, and Elder Julia eventually managed to use that to obtain favorable terms. Four years after Noah''s conveyed the idea to Elder Julia, he, June, Faith, and Daniel left the neutral city to fly toward the western coast of the old continent. The four of them didn''t make any stop and reached directly for the spot where Noah had once left to fly toward the Coral Archipelago. The coastline of the old continent was too far away from the islands, so the Hive''s influence was weak there. Yet, the four years of meetings had given it enough time to make the necessary preparations for the task. Noah took out an inscribed item at the peak of the fifth rank when they reached the beginning of the formation. His mind now was powerful enough to notice it, so finding the perfect spot where to make any potential onlooker lose their traces was rather easy. The group dived in the sea and dug the rocky seabed right next to the beginning of the formation. Then, Noah threw a soft curtain above him and the others. The curtain was an inscribed item similar to that used to cover the door inside June''s quarters. No rank 5 cultivator would be able to see past it, and their position in the depths of the sea further hindered any investigation. Noah sent a mental message through his notebook at that point, and a formation lit up under the group''s feet and led them inside the separate dimension where the two Demons were waiting for them. "I hope something is interesting there," Flying Demon said. "I can''t even take a look at that damned Stele due to all this secrecy." Faith couldn''t help but show her surprise when she saw the Demons and the separate dimension. However, she had already sworn a pact with the Hive as requested by the agreement. She was expecting to learn some secret. Noah ignored Flying Demon''s words and went directly for the formation in front of him, and Dreaming Demon smiled at her lover before following him. The rest of the group was right behind Noah in a few seconds, and the formation lit up when they stepped on it. When the halo vanished, Noah found himself in an environment that he hadn''t seen for more than a hundred years. ''To think that I''ll come back here,'' Noah thought as he looked around before setting off toward the sole city in the entirety of that country. The Odrea nation still lacked any species of magical beasts since the defensive formation, and Mausoleum made use of most of the "Breath" in the area, but Its number of soldiers appeared to be the same. Noah swept the area with his mental energy as he flew, followed by his companions. The various human assets on the ground couldn''t escape his consciousness, and they didn''t notice his presence either. The group reached for the hidden city and landed in front of the castle built at its center. The guards patrolling there noticed their presence at that point, but they fell asleep as soon as they entered in contact with Faith''s aura. When they reached the main hall of the castle, they found an elderly woman wearing a golden crown smiling at them and greeting them with calm words. "Welcome. I''m happy that the Hooded Devil has decided to return." Chapter 871: 871. Changes Noah studied the old woman with interest, but his eyes widened when he recognized her. The crowned woman had white hair, but there were a few red strands combed around the golden crown on her head. That particular hairstyle and the red shades reminded him of the girl that the citizens of the Odrea nation called "Lord". "Lisa?" Noah asked, and the woman''s smile widened when she heard her name. Her gesture also confirmed Noah''s suggestion, and he couldn''t help but analyze her more at that realization. Lisa was just a rank 3 cultivator in the gaseous stage. Her mind was even in the third rank, so nothing about her could escape the inspection of Noah''s consciousness. Noah knew that Lisa wasn''t even a decade younger than him. Still, she had aged too quickly. Her current appearance was too old for a rank 3 cultivator that hadn''t lived for more than one hundred and fifty years. He found the reason behind that quite quickly. Lisa''s dantian had a long scar that leaked "Breath" always. The injury appeared old, and it seemed that it had never completely healed. Noah guessed that her cultivation had suffered many setbacks, which ultimately led her to age as if she was a commoner. "You haven''t aged a day," Lisa said as she stood from the throne and gazed at his companions. "But this doesn''t mean that you didn''t change." Noah could only gaze at the heroic cultivators behind him at those words. When he first arrived in the Odrea nation, he was still a lone cultivator that didn''t have any ally. He didn''t have any organization behind him either, and his power was too low to make him relevant in the political environment of the world. However, he wasn''t alone anymore now. His journey had eventually led him to find a lover, a couple of friends, and trustworthy companions. He even had one of the strongest organizations in the entirety of those Mortal Lands backing him. His power put him among the elites of the world too, with only a few old monsters still surpassing his level. She had met a ruthless warrior more than a hundred years ago, but she only saw a monster that had seized anything that the world had tried to keep away from him now. "Did you come to free us?" Lisa asked with a bit of helplessness in her tone. She had always believed that someone would eventually repay her kindness, but she wasn''t completely delusional. Noah was clearly above the human ranks, and beings on that level usually didn''t care for a bunch of human cultivators. Also, the defensive formation had managed to notice his group only after they crossed the borders of the country, which meant that he had to be exceptional even among the heroic assets. She was sure that someone with such a high status had other reasons to return in her wasted nation, and the only thing that she could think of was the Mausoleum. "We''ll explore the Mausoleum first," Noah quickly confirmed her suspicions. "You''ll join the Hive if we find nothing wrong inside it." Noah didn''t mind if the soldiers of the Odrea nation were to join his organization. They were only human cultivators, but they were experienced warriors that had been forced to fight for their lives since their birth. Even the best organizations couldn''t train warriors so suitable for the cultivation journey. Each one of those soldiers could become a match for the best talents of the world with the right resources, especially the youngest ones. Yet, he wasn''t exaggerating when he said that they had to explore the Mausoleum first. The god of the Empire was too mysterious, and the entire nation could hide secrets that they couldn''t even begin to imagine. Carefulness was the minimum requirement when dealing with something connected with a divine existence. "I understand," Lisa said as she moved to the back of the hall, where she placed her hand on a specific spot on the wall. A series of inscriptions lit up, and a hidden door opened to reveal a downward rocky passage filled with shining lines. Everyone in the group of heroic cultivators analyzed those shining lines, and even Noah couldn''t help but study them. His mind was now able to notice features that he had missed back then. The lines were old. Their primary purpose appeared to be the transport of "Breath" toward the deeper layers of the structure, while also releasing part of it in the environment. ''It resembles an irrigation system that uses "Breath" instead of water,'' Noah thought as he took a step inside the passage. ''Though it can''t be so easy.'' The heroic ranks weren''t only a matter of density of "Breath". There were laws involved at those levels. So, the claim that the Mausoleum had training areas suitable for cultivators from the first to the sixth rank meant that the deeper layers would theoretically feature something more than just "Breath". "Nina died in battle a few decades ago," Lisa said as soon as she saw Noah stepping inside the passage. "She had a family and even grandkids. They are still alive." Noah listened to those words but didn''t stop his advance. Lisa was scared that he would leave the citizens of the Odrea nation behind after obtaining what he wanted from the Mausoleum. Hers were just words meant to increase the chances to secure a future for her country. No one in Noah''s group spoke as they followed him in the corridor, and even Faith refrained herself from making comments about his ex-girlfriend. The reason for that was the tense aura that had started to leak from June''s figure. Noah took her hand when he noticed her reaction, and she lowered her head to hide her expression. "I can''t help but hating her since she has beaten me in getting you first," June said after heaving a sigh. The truth was that she wasn''t jealous of Nina, but her battle intent triggered an instinctive reaction to what she thought to be as a defeat. "I wouldn''t be with you if it weren''t for her," Noah said in a warm tone before pointing at the hall ahead. "Be careful. There are rank 1 cultivators here." June did her best to suppress her consciousness at that point. After all, even the slightest whiff of her mental energy would be enough to kill all the kids cultivating in the first layer. Curious gazes went for the six strangers that were walking through the Mausoleum. The rank 1 cultivators tried to inspect them with their weak minds, but they could only make out their facial features, without understanding anything about their power. Noah and the others didn''t stop. They walked directly toward the third layer when they found a hundred or so soldiers who kowtowed when they realized that they were in the presence of heroic cultivators. The group didn''t stop there either and strived for the corridor that led toward the fourth layer. Still, they only found a wall that had a teleportation matrix drawn on its surface when they reached its end. Chapter 872: 872. White ''That was expected, to say the least,'' Noah thought when he saw the teleportation matrix at the end of the corridor leading to the fourth layer of the Mausoleum. Noah''s sea of consciousness had been too weak to reach those depths during his stay in the Odrea nation. The shining lines that covered the entirety of that structure used to weigh too much on his mind. He had never explored past the third layer, but his knowledge of the heroic ranks made him imagine a similar outcome. The deeper parts of the Mausoleum couldn''t just rely on the "Breath" gathered in the country to provide a training area suitable for cultivators at that level. "I''m beginning to think that my life is just a series of separate dimensions," Flying Demon cursed in a low voice, but Dreaming Demon quickly caressed his shoulder to comfort him. Noah couldn''t blame him for feeling dejected. Flying Demon had spent most of his life inside separate dimensions, and he kept on using one of them to move around the world. The six of them were alone in that part of the Mausoleum. None of the other rank 3 cultivators in the country could reach that depth since they lacked the means to improve their minds to the limits of the human ranks. The path ahead was theirs to handle. Yet, they didn''t activate the teleportation matrix immediately. The experts didn''t know what they would find on the other side, and the bad experiences of the two Demons were enough to make Noah hesitant about that place. Still, that didn''t mean that they were giving up on their mission. They just needed to make a few preparations beforehand. The six heroic cultivators didn''t exit the Mausoleum. They contacted their organizations right in the corridor as they warned them that the mission could take a while. Of course, Faith and June made public only a few details concerning the Mausoleum since they intended to leave most of the gains to Noah and the Hive. The Council didn''t mind that Faith might be forced to spend years in the Odrea nation. There wouldn''t be battles any time soon, and the loss of a rank 5 cultivator in that period wouldn''t affect its overall influence on the continents. However, both the Hive and the Elbas family expressed their concerns. The Royals didn''t like that there wasn''t an actual carrier of King Elbas'' bloodline in the mission, but they had to give in to Elder Julia''s demands since the Hive held the key to cross the defensive formation. Still, they began to question why the exploration of an isolated nation would require so much time. The Hive had different complaints instead. With Noah, Daniel, and the two Demons deployed in that mission, most of its power would be gone for the duration of that exploration. Four rank 5 cultivators weren''t assets that it felt comfortable using for something so mysterious. After all, the Hive counted only ten experts at that level, and Danielle! Continuing in the mission meant almost halving its most powerful assets, which was something that it couldn''t decide lightly. Nevertheless, the prospects of obtaining something connected with the god of the Empire was too appealing, and the fact that the Hive would gain the largest share of the profits wasn''t something that it could overlook. Also, with the Copying Formation active in its most important territories, it would take an army similar to that deployed against the Shandal Empire to take it down. The political situation was in its favor too since the three invading forces had a common enemy, and switching side would bring balance in an otherwise dire situation. The Council and the Elbas family couldn''t risk that in a period when they had to focus on their growth. The unexpected happened in those days. Chasing Demon decided to intervene since it wasn''t clear which path was better to pursue and sent a direct message to the experts of the Hive deployed in the Odrea nation. Even Daniel received it. "Organizations aren''t meant to hold back talents, but to make them bloom. Press forward, fight, grow, and don''t hesitate. The Hive has thrived in barren islands. It won''t fall in a blessed land." Elder Julia then sent them a detailed schedule of the projects of the Hive to reassure the experts. It seemed that Chasing Demon would spend the following years spreading the Copying Formation in the barren territories obtained recently. His figure would be out in the open in that period, and his sole sight would scare away any force that intended to exploit that temporary weakness of the Hive to slow down its growth. The Demons, Noah, and Daniel could wholeheartedly focus on their mission after they learnt about that. With the Council and the Hive set on proceeding with the exploration, the Elbas family felt forced to give in to their demands and let go of the idea to send a carrier of King Elbas'' bloodline there. As for the citizens of the Odrea nation, they were living a rare period of peace. The Empire had interrupted its training after the defeat in the new continent. Those soldiers wouldn''t mind waiting a bit more to obtain their freedom. "Let me go first," Dreaming Demon said when the group had settled everything and was ready to activate the teleportation matrix. "Us," Flying Demon added as he stood side by side with his lover in front of the formation. Noah didn''t object. They were the strongest members of the group, and they had a better chance to face what the separate dimension hid. Also, they had the special inscribed notebooks that Thirty-seven had ideated, so there was a chance that they could warn the others once they were on the other side. The matrix didn''t need external "Breath". The formation inside the Mausoleum provided it with all the required energy already. It activated as soon as the two Demons touched its lines. The two of them vanished after the lines released a blinding light, and Noah and the others waited for them to update them on the situation on the other side. Yet, there seemed to be no need to use the notebooks since Flying Demon reappeared a few minutes later and urged them to join him. "It''s better if you see it with your eyes," Flying Demon said, and the group of five touched the shining lines that enveloped them with white light, before transporting them on the other side of the matrix. The white light still shone in Noah''s eyes when the effects of the teleportation vanished, but he quickly discovered that the sky was the cause of that phenomenon. The sky was entirely white and radiated a constant light that shone on the azure terrain that seemed to spread endlessly in every direction. Noah thought about something when he saw that scene, and the two Demons turned toward him when they understood that he was having ideas similar to theirs. The three of them couldn''t help but think about the sculpture that they had seen in the Mortal Palace. Chapter 873: 873. Acceptance The new environment had a white sky that radiated a perpetual light and an azure terrain that contained quantities of "Breath" that human cultivators couldn''t withstand. That sight was far more than peculiar, but the experts in Noah''s group had seen those strange features already. The azure terrain was an iconic quality of the piece of Immortal Lands, and all six of them had seen a similar light on the other side of the fissure created during God''s Right Hand''s ascension. Still, it was hard to make a connection with the higher plane, especially for cultivators that didn''t have access to the knowledge contained inside the Mortal Palace. It wasn''t a matter of lack of intelligence. Rather, the experts there couldn''t make the most immediate and reasonable deduction because it was too incredible to even think about it. Yet, that didn''t apply to Noah and the two Demons. The three of them had seen the sculpture that represented the universe known by Divine Architect. There was a bigger sphere in that structure, and its color was of the same pure white that filled the sky right now. Also, they had already made that connection during God''s Right Hand ascension, so it was easier for them to think of that insane possibility. "Is this a more ambitious replica?" Flying Demon asked. "The god of the Empire should be far older than her," Noah promptly refused that hypothesis. "And this Shandal Empire had just appeared in the period when she left. The timelines don''t fit." The three of them had a vague idea of when Divine Architect had lived. According to the records retrieved in the Mortal Palace, she had ascended six thousand years ago. The Shandal Empire had been only a few centuries old in that period. Noah and the Demons didn''t know the limits of the divine entities, but the pieces of information in their possession seemed to lead in a different direction. There was the chance that the god of the Empire had interacted with Divine Architect, but that white dimension didn''t seem her style. Of course, those were just hypotheses. None of them knew what the god of the Empire did when he disappeared. He might have returned to the Mortal Lands sooner and interacted with the divine entities of that time only to commission that work. "We should focus on another topic," Dreaming Demon intervened. "Finding out what this is has the priority over uncovering the reasons behind its creation." June, Faith, and Daniel watched that interaction with confused expressions, but they didn''t divert their focus from the world around them. The separate dimension appeared immense, and it had a density of "Breath" similar to that of the new continent. The formation was in the middle of a vast and barren plain that featured a series of solitary mountains in the distance. There were no visible edges. The plain stretched in every direction and led to different environments that the group couldn''t see from their position. Also, there were a few strands of grass growing sparsely on that otherwise lifeless terrain. The fact that a separate dimension was able to give birth to lifeforms wasn''t something that they could ignore. It was as if they were inside an actual world rather than inside something created by powerful existences. Noah and the Demons had already gone past those considerations. They were doing their best to find something that denied their initial idea of that place. Still, everything seemed to point in that direction. "We have to face it," Dreaming Demon continued. "It even fits what we know about the issue of the god of the Empire." "Yes," Flying Demon said with a tinge of unwillingness in his tone. "But why leaving after you have built this place. Does he take away pieces every time to bring them here?" "There was a black dot on the white sphere of the sculpture," Noah concluded, and even more unwillingness filled the Demon''s expressions at his words. Even if they didn''t know much, their ideas seemed too on point to deny it. "Do you mind explaining?" June asked as she kicked Noah''s ankle to claim his attention. Faith and Daniel couldn''t help but nod internally at that gesture. They didn''t want to be the ones to interrupt the conversation among those threatening entities. Only then did Noah realize that the three of them had yet to make the connection, and he didn''t mind solving their doubts. "This appears to be a replica of the Immortal Lands or some dimension built with actual pieces of the higher plane." As soon as he mentioned the Immortal Lands, the three of them made the connection with the details seen throughout their lives. The similarity of that dimension with what they knew about the higher plane soon became too evident to ignore. A wave of amazement swept them at that point. The sole idea that there was such a treasure hidden right in front of their eyes was incredible! Yet, it all made sense when they took into account that they had lived the entirety of their lives sharing those Mortal Lands with a divine entity that didn''t appear in public too often. "We press forward, right?" Flying Demon asked, and Noah''s eyebrow arched as he answered him. "Do I have to remind you what we didn''t when we spotted the Mortal Palace?" Both Demons revealed a smile at his words, and they set off to explore the area from a broader perspective. Noah quickly followed them, and the other three experts did the same. They didn''t need an explanation to understand that they weren''t retreating. As the six of them flew higher, they noticed that the white radiance began to affect their mental spheres. The sky exuded a pressure that prevented weak living beings to come close to it. The only issue was that even rank 5 cultivators were just weak existences in the eyes of a higher plane. The group rose in the air, but it felt soon forced to stop. The white light had begun to affect their mental capabilities, and only Dreaming Demon appeared able to press forward in her climb. However, she stopped with her companions anyway since they had reached a height that gave them enough vision of the surrounding areas. The environment that filled their vision resembled the new continent, with the only exception that the white radiance filled every corner of that world. There wasn''t any magical beast in their view, but other sparse plants started to appear once they moved their focus on the distance. There wasn''t any wind there, which gave an eternal aura to the scene. It felt as if those territories were immune to the passage of time and would remain in that state forever. "Shall we start with the back and see if there is some difference with the path forward?" Flying Demon asked, and his companions didn''t even need to nod to express their approval. They flew past the formation to search for the edges of that place. Chapter 874: 874. Gale The group soon discovered that it wasn''t hard to keep track of their position even if they lacked clear signals. The density of "Breath" in the air would decrease as they flew toward what they believed was the back of the dimension since it was in the opposite verse of the passage. They even started to find more complex lifeforms. The first trees appeared after they left the plain, and small patches of bushlands began to fill the terrain that kept on becoming darker as they distanced themselves from the teleportation matrix. The only issue with their exploration was the constant white light radiated by the sky, which ultimately forced them to advance on foot. There was no night in that strange world. The sky kept on shining endlessly, without ever stopping pushing the limits of their minds. Even with seas of consciousness in the fifth rank, the six experts couldn''t sustain that continuous pressure that tried to pierce the walls of their spheres. Reaching the ground didn''t solve that problem. As weeks passed, even the subtle pressure that reached the ground started to weigh on their minds and force them to take cover from the sight of that oppressing sky. The six of them had to dig deep caves to avoid direct contact with the white light and take short breaks to shake off the pressure accumulated during the exploration. Only a day or two of rest were enough for their minds to return to their peak. Still, the fact that they needed to hide from the light in the first place made them understand that the dimension wasn''t meant for beings on that level. Of course, that wasn''t something that affected them too much. The radiance of the sky was a positive influence on their mental spheres since it strengthened their walls. Noah even found himself flying alone at times to keep his training schedule going. Also, he required all the pressure that he could get if he wanted to rely on the properties of his mental energy again. In his opinion, the separate dimension had already met the requirements of a training area suitable for heroic cultivators. As they explored further, the azure ground started to turn brown due to the lack of "Breath" in its fabric. The environment had begun to lose the properties that made it part of a higher plane and was returning to the standards of the Mortal Lands. It was at that point that the group saw the first magical beasts of the separate dimension. They were rare creatures in the fourth rank that lazily fed on the "Breath" in the environment for their nourishment, but a few of them engaged in messy fights with beasts on a similar level. The population of that fauna increased as the ground became completely brown, and even some creatures in the human ranks began to appear. The beasts'' level decreased as they pressed forward, but their number increased since those areas were incredible for beings in the human ranks. Their lack of a sea of consciousness also made them ignore the constant pressure radiated from the sky, so they didn''t experience any drawback when they hunted on the surface. The limits of the dimension eventually arrived, and they appeared as a cracked cliff that led to a void often seen in similar structures. The six experts turned at that point and continued to analyze the environment as they made their way back to the teleportation matrix. They had a general direction and had gathered some data by then. It was time to dive deeper into the dimension. Noah had hunted and studied some magical beasts along the way, but he couldn''t find any difference from the creatures that populated the outside world. They even tasted the same, so he quickly gave up on the hypothesis that they could carry unusual features due to that unique environment. The only pattern that he could see in their species was that the creatures that could live underground were more populated. That led him to conclude that the sky affected them in some way that he couldn''t see in the span of a few weeks. After all, he didn''t see any flying creature in that period, and even the tallest beasts were rarer compared to the smallest. There seemed to be a natural selection that privileged the creatures that put as much distance as possible with the sky. Most of the data gathered from beasts in the human ranks though were unreliable since those creatures had yet to become proper inhabitants of those land. They were too weak to reach for the territories where the ground was utterly blue and matched the requirement of a higher plane. Even the beasts in the heroic ranks found right after the teleportation matrix suffered from the same issue. The group was seeing only the bottom of the food chain. The creatures that had gained from that environment had to be those living in the central areas. Noah and the others took a break when they reached the formation and walked toward the solitary mountains in the distance. That side of the dimension followed a similar pattern, and complex living beings began to appear as the group left the plain to enter that new area. The only difference was in the power of the lifeforms there, which were far stronger compared to those found on the other side. Magical plans and beasts started to show their presence as the group strived forward, uncaring of the continually increasing density of "Breath" in the air. Beings not limited to the lower tier of the fourth rank became a common sight in that mysterious land. It seemed that only the area around the teleportation matrix was devoid of the presence of lifeforms that could increase their power. At the same time, the rest of the world was incredibly similar to the new continent when it first fell. Some rare flying creatures began to appear too. Noah recognized most of those species and noted that all of them were the strongest kinds of those types of magical beasts. It seemed that the sky belonged only to the various species carrying the best features of their types. Noah didn''t stop his studies of the fauna during the exploration. Some of those species showed some of the improvements that they had gained due to that extreme environment. It wasn''t anything special. They just had slightly stronger innate abilities, but that feature started to manifest itself more often as the group moved toward the center of the dimension. However, an unexpected event happened as they made their way through the valleys formed by the solitary mountains. A soft gale started to blew from a random direction and swept the six cultivators with its warm air. The members of Noah''s group didn''t overthink about it since they were more interested in the lifeforms around them. Still, their consciousnesses became thinner under the influence of that wind, and their minds expanded until they reached a mental state similar to that experienced by Noah during the transformation. Chapter 875: 875. Laws Noah was able to maintain his control during that sudden sensation because he had already experienced it once. His mind returned to the peculiar state that he had experienced during the transformation. The world of the laws lay bare in front of his eyes, and the simple movement of his mental energy made him reach new levels of understanding. Yet, that sensation vanished as soon as the gale crossed them and dispersed in the air. Daniel and Faith fell on their knees when their consciousness lost their connection with the laws. They felt as if they had become devoid of any power as their minds returned to a normal state. However, their individualities soon filled their bodies and gave them back the strength that they had nurtured for all those years. June wavered too, but she managed to remain on her feet even if she gasped for air when her mental waves showed their presence again in the material world. Only Noah and the Demons didn''t experience any drawbacks after that sudden event. Still, their eyes scanned the environment with sharp movements as they tried to find the cause of that phenomenon. The truth was that even the three of them had felt scared when they lost control of their minds. Noah''s dread surpassed even that of the two Demons since he had thought that something had gone wrong with his body, and he was about to turn into a Cursed Dragon. However, that experience had been entirely harmless, except for the few seconds of struggles that Faith, June, and Daniel were going through. Actually, it seemed that the auras of the six of them had become slightly more intense after they stabilized. "What was that!?" Daniel exclaimed as he struggled to stand up, and Faith did the same as she clung on June''s robe. Yet, June wasn''t entirely stable and was about to fall at that pull, but Noah took her in his arms, lifting Faith in the process. He didn''t answer Daniel''s question since he wasn''t sure about what they had experienced either. He could only connect the soft gale to that temporary improvement of their consciousness, but he couldn''t explain the phenomenon. Dreaming Demon though had more experience in that field and gave a short explanation that could provide them with an idea of what had happened. "That wind has forced our minds to attune with the laws. I don''t know how something like this is possible, but it can help heroic cultivators if they experience it every once in a while." It was needless to say that her words gave origin to waves of shock inside her companions. After all, the laws were the last step of the heroic ranks! "It was indeed similar to that moment," June said as she clung onto Noah while her gaze wandered through the scenery. In her mind, she was trying to remember the sensations that she had just experienced in the hope that she could enter that state by herself at some point. Noah understood the reason behind the different reactions of the members of his group at Dreaming Demon''s words. It became clear that only cultivators who had already gazed upon the world of the laws could withstand that forced enlightenment without suffering any drawbacks. Noah had his experiences during the transformation and the rare moments of enlightenment when he experimented with his darkness. His mind touched upon that world too during his sessions of meditation, even if only for short instants. The two Demons were on higher stages inside the fifth rank, and they had a divine existence as their Master. They had already expressed their individuality enough and were on the phase where they had to learn how to wield the laws. Dreaming Demon was above her lover in terms of understanding since she didn''t have to go through one thousand years of stagnation, but her power had always been incredible. After all, she was a rank 5 cultivator in the solid stage. Still, Flying Demon had recovered during his period inside the Hive, and he was a proud existence at the peak of the liquid stage even if some of his potential had been wasted in Divine Architect''s dimension. His path had reached the point where he had to learn how to wield laws too, so his interaction with that world happened more than often. As for the other three cultivators in their group, only June had interacted with the laws once. Her enlightenment had arrived after the session of dual cultivation with Noah when she used the two types of sparks in her possession to give birth to her higher energy. Yet, it had been just a glimpse at that time. The forced enlightenment that she had experienced now had lasted more. "Is this even possible?" Noah asked as he caressed June''s hair. "Are there winds that force enlightenments a feature of the Immortal Lands?" That discovery was too surprising for someone like Noah, who was so keen on optimizing his training. If he found a way to study and exploit those winds, his understanding of the world would increase by leaps and bounds, and it would give him access to broader knowledge about the "Breath". Creating higher energy wouldn''t be a problem at that point, and even other projects would be far easier if he could reach the understanding of a peak rank 5 cultivator! However, nothing was free in the world of Heaven and Earth. Their fairness had to apply everywhere, even in innately good things. Dreaming Demon didn''t fail to notice the eagerness in his gaze and decided to explain the matter further and in all its aspects. "While every enlightenment is generally good, the fact that it is forced is an issue. The wind doesn''t affect your mind. It simply carries raw and chaotic laws that your consciousness analyzes when it comes in contact with them. A small whiff can improve your general understanding, but a storm would shred your individuality apart." "Are you saying that there could be storms up there?" Noah asked, and a tinge of eagerness appeared in his tone when he thought at the countless possibilities in which a divine being could make use of that phenomenon. "Noah," Dreaming Demon sighed before speaking again, "I''ve just discovered that there probably are winds made of laws in the Immortal Lands. According to the logic of this world, storms should exist as a form of calamity for divine beings, but I suggest you run away if you ever happen to encounter them." Of course, Dreaming Demon was trying to be reasonable because she knew that Noah found it hard to hold back when it came to improving his power quickly. Yet, she would gladly follow him inside a storm of laws if he found a way to exploit its potential. Nevertheless, they had to study that dimension first since it could give them a significant advantage once and if they managed to ascend. Since the wind could carry laws there, there was a chance that other dangerous natural events happened in the central areas. Chapter 876: 876. Storm The sudden event increased the eagerness of the group to uncover the secrets of that separate dimension. Still, they had to take a break before resuming their journey toward the central areas. They wanted to assimilate the gains obtained before approaching territories that were bound to be more dangerous. Their advance resumed, but they paid particular attention to any trace of wind as they moved forward. Dreaming Demon was right when she said that they shouldn''t abuse those chaotic laws, but that didn''t mean that they had to avoid them altogether. Those laws helped them broaden their understanding of the next step in the heroic ranks and weren''t harmful if taken in small quantities. Right now, only the two Demons were attempting to wield laws, while the others were still expressing their individualities. Noah almost lost interest in the magical beasts after that. He would still analyze the creatures that he found along the way, but understanding the structure of the fauna had lost the priority when he found a way to improve his power quickly. Also, the food chain appeared to be quite simple, and the unique features of the specimens living there weren''t so special either. The fauna was various, but there was an abundance of magical beasts that could live underground. So many different species normally wouldn''t live in the same regions, even in ones with a terrain that came from the Immortal Lands. Hence, Noah thought that the god of the Empire had thrown them there, without caring about creating any balance or functioning ecosystem. He had just let the natural selection take its course. Of course, that was just a hypothesis. Still, Noah had reasons to believe that the Almighty had never planned to manage the creatures there. No expert in the magical beasts'' field would have put flying creatures in a world where the sky was an enemy. It was just a waste of resources to place beings unsuitable for an environment, and that didn''t act as the primary source of food for the other species. In Noah''s trained eyes, they were little more than ornaments meant to make that dimension look prettier. As for the special features, any living being growing and feeding on the fantastic ground of the Immortal Lands would be stronger than its peers. It wasn''t a surprise that the creatures there had better bodies and could launch slightly stronger attacks. It wasn''t even a matter of "Breath". The energy carried by the magical beasts there was almost the same as the creatures in the outside world. Still, the constant nurturing of those lands made them grow with natural enhanced abilities. It was as if they were the best version that their species had to offer. The density of "Breath" increased as they move forward, but the white light radiated by the sky maintained the same intensity. It was a constant, wearing pressure that tried to make its way inside the mental spheres of the beings that it illuminated. The increased density didn''t affect the humans in Noah''s group. They were heroic cultivators that absorbed the "Breath" inside the matter. That raw form of energy didn''t help in their cultivation. Yet, it was different for hybrids and magical beasts. Noah felt rejuvenated whenever he breathed as the group reached the areas where the first creatures in the fifth rank began to appear. There were both plants and beasts in those territories, and the environment completely abandoned its barrenness to make room for various sceneries. Bushlands, forests, prairie, those territories of the separate dimension offered all kinds of eerie landscapes filled by powerful lifeforms. Also, the wind blew more often too in those areas. The six cultivators had managed to find only another soft gale as they reached for those lands, but they found two more of them as they explored those places full of life. There didn''t seem to be an actual connection between those two factors. According to Dreaming Demon''s hypotheses, the higher density of "Breath" had more chances to give birth to that messy accumulation of laws. The sky had some influence on that phenomenon too. The experts in the outside world would have seen it happen naturally in the new continent otherwise. However, the group soon realized that the higher presence of gales didn''t benefit them. The winds started to become more violent and dense as they pressed forward. They were still somewhat soft, but the number of chaotic laws that they contained had already surpassed what cultivators on their level were able to handle. The group switched from searching for gales to avoiding them, with only Dreaming Demon being able to immerse herself in that broader understanding. Flying Demon struggled when he saw his lover training so hard in those dangerous environments. He had the understanding and power to follow her inside those winds. However, his individuality still carried the scar left by his thousand years spent in the solitude of Divine Architect''s dimension. His existence was too unstable to merge with those laws and come out intact. On the other hand, Noah''s attention had gone back to the fauna of that place. There were dozens of magical beasts in the fifth rank in the few areas that they had explored, and that was only one side of that immense place. There was a high chance that the opposite part of the dimension followed a similar structure and featured the same number of powerful creatures that could help him nourishing his body. ''Reaching the sixth rank doesn''t seem impossible anymore with the sea, this dimension, and the other world,'' Noah thought as they crossed another region with seven magical beasts and plants in the fifth rank. With the winds made of raw laws, an environment that tried to imitate a higher plane, and the various powerful lifeforms, the Mausoleum had earned its claim to have training areas suitable for heroic cultivators. At some point in their exploration, Noah sensed something strange in the air. His body and mind gave birth to an innate awareness that even cultivators at higher stages would find it hard to match. Also, his survival instinct was a whole league above humans and simple beasts''. When they reached a prairie that divided the six of them from an azure river, Noah sensed a certain tension in the air, and his body didn''t hesitate to send basic pieces of information to his mind so that it could turn them into actual thought. It took less than an instant for him to understand the cause of that sensation, and he gestured to the others around him to stop before warning them with a single word. "Ambush." His warning triggered a reaction from the creatures that were lying in wait, and four giant snakes in the upper tier of the fifth rank materialized on the ground only to pounce at the group of humans. One of the snakes showed a surprised expression when it saw that Noah had blocked its sneak attack with his bare hand and began to speak human words as panic filled its mind. "We must stash food! The storm is coming!" Chapter 877: 877. Leader Noah had only needed one hand to stop the charge of the snake. His body was in the upper tier now, which matched the strength of the snakes. Yet, he had fused with a dragon, so his physical strength was slightly above that of his opponent. Of course, Noah would overwhelm it in that field if the snake was only a magical beast. Still, the words that it had spoken made everyone realize that they were facing hybrids. Also, that hybrid had used the language of the other Mortal Lands, which didn''t leave many doubts about their origin. The god of the Empire had probably put them inside the separate dimension after they lost the war. There was another possibility though. None of the cultivators there knew how the Immortal Lands worked. There was a high chance that hybrids lived in the higher plane since two of the two known Mortal Lands had managed to give birth to those species. It was only reasonable that such creatures lived up there. However, Noah felt that their language couldn''t be a coincidence since they had just won the war against the other world. It would have been a different story if they had used an unknown language, but Noah had already drawn his conclusion in the matter since that wasn''t the case. Moreover, Noah didn''t want to overthink about their origin since he had made his mind to capture at least one of them! His decision didn''t come only from the possible information concerning that dimension in possession of those creatures. The Hive needed as many assets it could get and the experts in the fifth rank were hard to groom. Forcing at least one of those hybrids to join his organization could only benefit its power as a whole. Noah smirked as he fixed his eyes on those of the panicking snake. The truth was that he had always preferred to fight against magical beasts because they allowed him to express the power of his body to its fullest. Two pairs of reptilian eyes exchanged a long gaze before they decided to break that stalemate. Noah stabbed his fingers in the scaled skin over the snake''s mouth and tightened his grip to tear away a large chunk of its flesh. The snake''s survival instinct kicked in at that point and activated its innate ability to put some distance from that threatening human. Its body became ethereal until it completed merged with the environment. The snake completely disappeared, and Noah found himself unable to locate it anymore. His consciousness didn''t sense anything, and even the wound that he had inflicted didn''t leave any trail. It was as if that more than fifty meters long creature had wholly vanished without leaving any track. ''Just as I thought,'' Noah concluded in his mind when he saw that ability for the second time. ''The four of them are Ghostly Snakes.'' A series of information appeared in his mind as he reviewed what he knew about that species. The main feature of the Ghostly Snakes was their ability to merge with the environment and suppress their presence. In that state, they would be almost invulnerable and could cross any material. They wouldn''t be able to affect the matter either though, which they compensated with their powerful bodies. Also, they had an earth aptitude, which was a feature worth considering since they weren''t only magical beasts. Noah''s expanded his consciousness to its limits and let his instincts roam free inside his mind. Only his body could help him sense the presence of the snake once it entered that immaterial state. However, even when he sharpened his senses, he could only sense a certain tension in the air and link it to a beast preparing an ambush. He couldn''t pinpoint where the next attack would arrive, nor when. He would only be able to sense it when it deactivated its immaterial form. ''I want to see if you dare to come then,'' Noah''s smirk widened, and a calm coldness invaded his eyes as strands of black smoke started to come out of his body. Noah didn''t want to scare the snake away. So, he let the smoke fly higher in the sky and disperse in the environment. That was a bait. He was trying to show part of his power to make the snake think that the corrosive smoke was his defensive measure. Of course, such strategies wouldn''t work against an actual cultivator. They were just simple tactics that exploited the instincts of the magical beasts. Even an apex predator would find it strange if its prey were too easy to kill. So, Noah had to show that he was ready to struggle for his life if he wanted his opponent to attack him. The snake was panicking and could only think about stashing food. When it saw the corrosive smoke coming out of Noah''s body, it felt the danger that it radiated. Still, it also sensed that its body could withstand it for enough time to reduce the cultivator to a pulp. Once it made those instinctive calculations, the snake neared Noah and spread its ethereal maws to surround his figure. Its body started to become material at that point, and it quickly closed its mouth to crush his prey in one attack. Yet, the snake''s vision suddenly turned dark, and a burning sensation filled its mouth. When the light returned to its world, the snake could see how a series of ethereal white flames were burning the internal skin of its mouth and throat. Nevertheless, it didn''t have time to focus on those flames since a dangerous sensation filled its mind and made it forget about the storm. Noah had already activated the complete Demonic Form by the time the snake managed to move its attention away from its mouth. Four additional arms had raised from his torso to wield four copies of the Demonic sword. The snake felt the need to run, but it was too late. Not even activating its innate ability could allow it to dodge that attack. Time seemed to stop when Noah slashed, but the pain arrived far quicker than the snake imagined. When it turned, it saw a deep cut originating from the left corner of its mouth and ending somewhere in the middle of its body. The snake felt relieved at the beginning. It seemed that the cultivator had missed all the vital organs. Yet, Noah released a roar as he raised his six arms once again in the air and prepared to launch the second form of the Dragon''s Claw martial art again. The cry carried a simple meaning, but the intense pride that only a hybrid in the upper tier could radiate backed it. Noah''s cry reached deep inside the snake''s instincts, but its mental sphere translated that roar in human words nonetheless. "Surrender or die!" The snake could only lower its head in fear at that point. Its instincts forced it to recognize Noah as its leader. Chapter 878: 878. Submission "Accept it," Noah said in a beast voice as he placed his hand over the lowered head of the snake. The black smoke that made his scaled armor dispersed as he poured his darkness inside the body of the hybrid. His darkness took the form of a series of small swords that fused with specific vital parts of the snake. They reached its heart, its lungs, its spine, and even its dantian before merging with those organs. That was the Shadow Chain spell that Noah had obtained from the Shandal Empire as a payment for his insights into the hybrid''s topic. Still, that spell had undergone so many modifications that it barely resembled the original. Generally speaking, Noah''s individuality wasn''t meant to suppress his enemies. He was pure destruction when it came to battles, and the original diagram of the Shadow Chain spell wouldn''t even work when his darkness fueled it. Yet, Noah didn''t want to give up on the possibility to capture strong existences alive. It wasn''t just a matter of preserving the state of the magical beasts. Noah intended to use it to capture powerful cultivators that he would use to improve the level of his mental sphere. After all, his status as a hybrid in the upper tier was enough to suppress most creatures. Still, cultivators would rarely follow someone willingly, especially an enemy that intended to kill them. Therefore, Noah had applied substantial modification to the diagram of the Shadow Chain spell to force it to work. His efforts hadn''t been in vain, but his new ability saw a couple of restrictions applied to its functioning. Noah had to personally defeat the existence that he wanted to submit for the spell to work correctly. The centers of power of his targets would naturally oppose the small swords otherwise and prevent them from fusing with their tissues. The second requirement was that the defeated existences had to accept the intrusion of those foreign forms of energy and let them seal part of their power. That was the hardest requirement to meet when dealing with cultivators since their strong wills usually didn''t allow them to submit too quickly. Yet, Noah could only work with what he had, and he couldn''t go against his individuality. The snake didn''t suffer during the procedure, but it felt the swords taking roots in its tissues and radiating violent energy. Also, it could sense the connection that they had with Noah, which made it think of him like a pack leader rather than a jailer. Noah swept the huge snake with his mental energy when he completed the spell. He wanted to be sure that nothing had gone wrong during the procedure since that was his first time using it on something so strong. The reason behind his outstanding battle prowess was his body. Since the breakthrough in the upper tier, the power of Noah''s martial art had reached another level. It was far above his spells in terms of sheer strength, especially when it came to his second form since it made use of all the centers of power of a hybrid. However, his spells were still on the level of a rank 5 cultivator in the gaseous stage. His darkness and aptitude made them match experts at the peak of that stage, but they weren''t deadly attacks in the eyes of a creature in the upper tier. Even if Noah had long crossed the halfway mark of the gaseous stage, his spells weren''t as effective as he wished against magical beasts on that level. Nevertheless, the Shadow Chain spell, renamed Shadow Swords spell after the modifications, would still create severe injuries if the snake tried to break it forcefully. After all, the swords had fused with the tissues of vital organs. They could almost kill the creature if they detonated in those spots. Once he made sure that the spell was working fine, Noah turned to see the battles of his companions. The two Demons had taken a snake each as their opponents. They were existences far more potent than the other members of their group and could take care of those hybrids that didn''t seem able to use spells in their panicked state. June, Faith, and Daniel instead were facing the last snake with some difficulty. The three of them found it hard to inflict injuries on that powerful creature, but the fact that they outnumbered it and that it didn''t use spells made it a viable battle. The ability to become immaterial of that species was quite threatening for cultivators that didn''t have a hybrid body. However, the Demons were on a level where their defensive spells could match the physical strength of their opponents, and the trio could pile their protective methods to obtain similar results. Noah felt glad when he saw that none of those snakes appeared to have entered the bestial mental state that he had noticed when he fought the Sonic Hawks. Their minds didn''t reach any complete awareness and were still struggling to decide if they wanted to be beasts or humans. That put them in a spot where they could still become useful assets for the Hive, which meant that the group had to do anything in their power to submit them. Dreaming Demon''s battle ended a few minutes after Noah''s. It was hard to submit magical beasts without the ability to command them, but her individuality allowed her to interfere with the fabric of the world. Affecting a creature weaker than her barely took any effort. Dreaming Demon''s snake appeared hypnotized after enough of her mental waves had seeped into its body. It even lowered its head to become a mount for the solid stage expert. Flying Demon was the next to end his battle. His snake had turned into a statue made of ice covered by hundreds of white flowers. The two Demons thought in the same way as Noah. Those hybrids were more useful alive since the Hive could interact with them through Noah. It would be a waste to kill them when they could nurture them to become powerful assets that would increase the number of higher-ups of the Hive. As for the trio''s battle, their fight was obviously taking longer than the others. Faith and Daniel were only cultivators in the gaseous stage and didn''t have access to any technique that could make them near the power of a beast in the upper tier. Their attacks could barely leave white marks on the gray scales of their opponent. However, June''s sparks were filling the gaps left in the defensive measures, and her power was quickly nearing the limits of the gaseous stage. It wouldn''t take much until she became able to hurt the creature. Noah''s snake though hissed in fear after the battle had continued for half an hour, and Noah turned only to see that his submitted hybrid was trembling as it stared at a specific point in the distance. Noah focused his eyes and consciousness in that spot, and his survival instinct kicked in when he saw a series of tornados coming in their direction. Chapter 879: 879. Digging The winds of laws were hard to sense. The seas of consciousness of rank 5 cultivators were still getting used to that form of energy, which made it impossible for them to notice the winds. During their exploration, Noah had the others had to rely on their eyes to find those gales. That wasn''t very practical since the group couldn''t make use of their strongest scanning tool. Still, that dimension aimed to imitate the Immortal Lands according to their hypotheses. It was only normal for beings in the heroic ranks to be unsuitable for that environment. Noah realized that they didn''t have time to escape from the path of the tornados in time as soon as he saw them. That colossal storm was advancing so quickly that it would envelop that area in a bit more than a minute! "Dive underground!" Noah shouted, and his words mixed with the growls that he instinctively released in that moment of danger. "Storm!" June, Faith, and Daniel didn''t divert their attention from the battle since the Ghostly Snake was too dangerous for them. Yet, the creature reacted at Noah''s roars and materialized next to its sealed companion to stare at the storm. At that point, the trio could join the Demons in their amazed stares toward the imminent calamity. The sides of that battle had vanished as soon as everyone became aware of the incoming storm. There was no point in fighting when they would die if they didn''t find cover soon. "Now!" Noah''s roars accompanied his words as he punched the ground and began to dig a tunnel as quickly as he could. The snake restrained by his spell struggled for a second before deciding to follow him, enlarging the passage that he had created in the process. The other hybrid next to it hesitated. It wasn''t under the control of the cultivators, but its mind was a mess, and it could only think of ways to escape from that situation. The sky was almost a forbidden area for beings with a mental sphere, and the storm was too tall anyway. There was no chance that it could reach a safe altitude in time. The same went for the other directions. The tornados were faster than any other creature in the fifth rank, so it was impossible to escape from their area of destruction. Only the underground world could offer some safety, but it would still take time to reach the depths necessary to avoid that calamity altogether. The snake was decreasing its chances of survival with every passing second. Its instincts ultimately forced it to follow Noah and the other snake in the tunnel. In its mind, the fact that they had been enemies just a few seconds ago had lost any importance in front of certain death. June, Faith, and Daniel didn''t reach for Noah''s tunnel but began to use their spells to dig through the terrain. As they kept on digging, their teamwork improved, and they even reached a speed similar to Noah. The Demons didn''t have problems either on the digging aspect, and they even had a submitted snake helping them in the process. The only issue was that they had to leave the frozen hybrid behind. The frozen snake was still alive. It couldn''t enter a space-ring. Also, it was in a coiled pose, which meant that Flying Demon would need to enlarge the hole by a few dozens of meters if he wanted to bring it with him. Noah had given up on punching through the azure terrain at some point and was directly headbutting the ground to increase his digging speed. The two snakes enlarged the tunnel that he had created as they followed closely behind him. There was no destination nor a safe area in his mind. Noah only knew that he had to go as deep as he could before the storm enveloped the region. The tornados eventually reached that area, and the entirety of the underground world started to tremble as they unleashed their destructive power on the environment. The matter of the world would directly disintegrate when it came in contact with the chaotic and dense laws carried by those wild winds. The laws inside it would then become part of the tornados and make them even thicker. Noah saw the ground around him trembling and cracking under the influence of the storm, but he kept on digging as he waited for the calamity to end. The tremors only lasted for a few seconds. The tornados were incredibly fast, and it took them only a few instants to cross the entirety of the region. Noah stopped when he sensed that the area was now stable, and his consciousness expanded to look for the other cultivators on his group. His mental waves quickly found the Demons and the trio who were safe in their tunnels. "Let''s wait for two parts of incense just to be sure," Dreaming Demon said through her consciousness when she sensed the mental waves of her companions interacting with her. The lack of tremors was a reliable indicator that the storm had gone away. Still, that dimension tried to imitate the Immortal Lands. There was too much that they didn''t know, so it was better to play it safe. The groups resurfaced after two minutes and stared at the destruction caused by the tornados. The plain was a mess filled with cracks and uneven boulders now, and there was no trace of the frozen snake anywhere. There wasn''t even a single shard of ice there. The vegetation had disappeared too, and the only thing that had survived was the azure river in the distance. Noah and the others became interested in the river when they saw that it was still in its previous state, but they had to settle an important matter before they could resume the exploration. Of the three surviving snakes, they had submitted two of them, but the last one had returned to its immaterial form during the trip back to the surface. Noah knew that it was still in the area because he could sense the tense atmosphere that it created. However, he couldn''t do anything while it was in that form. "You," Noah said as he turned to his submitted hybrid. "Tell it to come out and surrender if it cares about your lives." Noah''s words were mostly an appeal to the human side of those creatures, but it was also a loud threat that he didn''t hesitate to convey. After all, those creatures had intense instincts ruling all their actions, so it was better to trigger an emotional response by using one of its companions. The snake bound by the Shadow Sword spell showed some signs of struggle, but it hissed nonetheless. The remaining hybrid didn''t answer, and the tension that it caused vanished in a matter of seconds. Its instincts had taken control of its mind by then and forced it to abandon its companions to keep its freedom. A beast would never surrender from a safe position. Noah''s plan was unlikely to work in the first place. Chapter 880: 880. Central storm "So," Noah said to the two submitted snakes with words mixed with growls, "Who are you? How did you reach this place? What do you know about it?" The group had temporarily stopped on the wasted plain, and Noah was interrogating the hybrids since there was a higher chance that his pride would force them to use their human side. The snake under Dreaming Demon''s control seemed to be in a daze, and it didn''t answer, but the other creature was aware of its situation and lowered its head before speaking. "We are members of the Vilot Bloodline. We have escaped from our region after the powerhouses went crazy, and a powerful cultivator captured us after you defeated our world. When we reached this world, a mighty existence studied us for a few weeks before throwing us here. We have been stuck in this place since then." The snake would hiss as it told its story, but Noah didn''t mind it. Those cries actually gave him some insights about its mental state, which helped him understanding if it was honest. Yet, there was only helplessness in its tone. The snake felt utterly defeated after the recent events, and it just wanted to comply with Noah''s requests. "My name is Joel, and she is Raphaelle," The snake continued. "We have learnt a lot about this place, but there are many details that escape my mind since I''m not conscious all the time. You understand that part, right?" Noah didn''t answer that question but pressed Joel to continue his explanation. "I want everything that you can remember." Joel began to describe the territories that he had explored in those years, and it even listed the species that filled each of them. The pieces of information concerning potential prey were precise, and Noah didn''t find it hard to believe him. After all, Joel was a hybrid. His entire body and mind worked together with the sole purpose of looking for food. It was only reasonable that he had gathered so much data in that aspect. He even described the intensity of the winds in each area. His understanding of the matter was deep since his mental energy was always in the world of the laws. That meant that he wouldn''t get any benefit from entering the winds, but it also allowed him to sense them when they were too close to his position. "We don''t know how to detect the storms before it''s too late though," Joel said when the topic reached that point. "We have only adapted to this environment after a series of losses. There used to be seven of us, but our power doesn''t mean much in this world." Joel''s hisses carried sadness and frustration, but they were honest. The hybrid was doing his best to inform the group of cultivators. "Is there a pattern to these calamities then?" Noah asked. There was still something that he didn''t understand about their behavior. They had claimed that they wanted to stash food, but the storm had lasted only a few seconds in the end. "The central storm releases tornados quite often during specific months," Joel explained. "There will be others in the following days, and we aren''t stable enough to hunt in this period. We might lose ourselves and not notice the arrival of those violent laws in time in that case." The issue was connected to their instincts. They could lose their lives if they spent that period hunting on the surface. There was a chance that a storm enveloped them why they were busy eating their prey. So, they choose to spend the entirety of those months underground, eating what they accumulated before the arrival of the crisis. Noah found it peculiar that hybrids like them could come up with such a strict schedule while they lived in a wild environment. Their instincts would usually take full control until they reached the state of complete awareness of a magical beast. ''Maybe it was the sky,'' Noah thought as he gazed above him while sparing some of his attention to Joel''s explanation. ''This white light forces their minds to grow stronger, which pushes them away from a complete beast state.'' "What is this central storm?" Noah asked since that detail made interested him. "It should be the cause of these storms," Joel replied. "I didn''t stay too much to observe it, but I''m talking about a massive calamity that leaks smaller ones into the rest of the world. I believe its some defensive measures, and the tornados are just the drawbacks." The natives of the other Mortal Lands didn''t know much about the inscription field, so Noah didn''t give much importance to his evaluation. Hover, he was still interested in the central storm and wanted to take a look at it since it seemed the perfect place where to build the center of the separate dimension. If there was something valuable left by the god of the Empire, it had to be in the most protected territory. Of course, Noah and the others decided to live underground until that month ended. Earthquakes accompanied those silent days, and the environment had changed once again when the crisis was over. Only the river had survived the passage of the tornados, but the group quickly discovered the reason for that. The azure water of the river had the same fabric as the winds. It contained laws so dense that they had taken a liquid form. That discovery made them realize how the struggles to improve their power appeared insignificant when the divine was involved. The water carried so many laws that even Dreaming Demon didn''t feel confident in immersing herself in it. The enlightenment that she would receive was far above what her mind could endure. That river was a resource that only cultivators in the sixth rank or above could use. Nevertheless, the group didn''t linger too much near the river. It was useless for them, and they had a different target anyway. They advanced in the direction of the central storm, and the two snakes followed along. After all, they were beasts in the upper tier, which made them the perfect protection against powerful attacks. It took them some months, but they reached the location mentioned by Joel in the end. Still, what they saw confirmed that their level wasn''t high enough to thrive in that dimension. They had moved toward the central areas in the last period, but a tall wall made of violent winds formed a blockage that stopped anyone from proceeding further. The wall stretched for kilometers, and it curved when it reached the limits of the central areas. It was as if it protected those territories just like a defensive formation would do. However, there were no shining lines on the ground, and the group barely sensed anything with their consciousness. The immense storm was an invisible threat according to their minds. ''To think that all of them are chaotic laws,'' Noah thought as he stared at the scenery and tried to find a way to break through that blockage. Chapter 881: 881. Cliff The central storm was immense. It divided entire regions from the peripheral territories and created a tall blockage that prevented any living being from exploring its insides. Also, winds would often escape its surface and fly through the separate dimension in the form of violent tornados. It became clear that some of the gales in that world weren''t a natural phenomenon caused by the high density of "Breath" but came from that massive structure. Noah didn''t need to activate the Divine Deduction technique to understand that crossing the storm would be hard. Something so huge and containing such dense laws was bound to affect the areas above and under its frame. Moreover, there was a high chance that the environment on the other side contained living beings in the sixth rank! After all, the group had yet to meet a creature on that level inside the separate dimension. Still, they had reached what appeared to be its center. If that world featured rank 6 magical beasts, they had to be on the other side of the storm. The Demons shared Noah''s willingness to explore those hidden areas. They had his same mindset and knew that risk usually accompanied potential benefits. Yet, their companions showed some hesitation. June didn''t fear the other side of the storm, but she couldn''t think of a way to cross it safely. There were too many laws concentrated in that defensive wall, and their presence alone could interfere with the usual functioning of the "Breath". It was clear that the separate dimension wasn''t meant for beings on their level, and they could die just by attempting that crossing. However, she understood that they would try to reach the other side anyway when she noticed the light radiated by Noah''s gaze. She could see his eagerness, his greed, and his ambition radiated by his cold reptilian eyes. She even knew that Noah was already evaluating all the possible approaches as he stared at the storm. Then, she looked at the Demons and saw that they had similar expressions on their faces. June could only heave a helpless sigh at that point. The fact that she didn''t know how to cross that hindrance didn''t mean that her lover was in a similar state. Also, the two Demons were with them, and June had long since understood that they weren''t simple experts. It wasn''t only their power that made them exceptional. There was a subtle confidence and ruthlessness in their very approach to the world that would make them shine even among existences on their same level. As for Daniel and Faith, they had already given up on exploring those territories. They knew that Noah was amazing, but the difference in power between their group and the storm was too high. In their minds, six rank 5 cultivators couldn''t cross something that could even scare existences in the sixth rank. Nevertheless, they understood that they weren''t going to stop their exploration even in front of that massive calamity since Noah and the Demons began to exchange ideas right in front of them. "What about the separate dimension?" Noah asked, clearly hinting about Divine Architect''s tunnel. "The annoying guy would have to recreate its entire structure since this isn''t the outside world," Flying Demon answered. "The laws could even interfere with its functioning. The void will crush us if something goes wrong." "Digging under and flying above it also are out of the picture." Dreaming Demon added. "We don''t know how the laws have affected the air and the ground, and we might find a terrain that we would take months to break if we need to reach specific depths. It''s too dangerous to remain so close to the storm." "Well, we can''t just cross it," Noah exclaimed. "Is there no path for us?" The three of them became silent at that point. They weren''t ready to give up on the center of the dimension just yet, but there didn''t seem to be any feasible way unless they asked for the help of a powerhouse. Joel glanced at Faith and Daniel since the two of them shared his same amazement. He wanted to understand if Noah and the Demons were serious when they talked about crossing that monstrous storm. Faith and Daniel could only reveal helpless expressions at that glance. They believed that reaching the other side was impossible too, but they trusted Noah. They would follow him if he claimed to have found a path. "This dimension isn''t like yours," Noah said at some point, breaking the silence in the area as he looked at the two Demons. "Its borders aren''t clear, and nothing is blocking us from going near the void." The Demons'' eyes began to shine in understanding at those words, and Flying Demon couldn''t help but continue his phrase. "We might not need to come near the area affected by the laws and exit directly at the center of those territories." "The two gods are in the Immortal Lands," Dreaming Demon picked up from where her lover had left. "The only dangers are the rank 6 beings on the other side, but we would avoid them too if we come out directly at its center. It can work!" June, Faith, and Daniel didn''t understand what they meant with their words, but that wasn''t their fault. Their knowledge concerning separate dimensions was poor. They didn''t know enough to link their conversation with the answer that they had found. Truth to be told, Noah didn''t know much about separate dimensions either. Still, he had seen so many of them that he could analyze their differences and find a way to exploit their blind spots. "I''ll analyze the width of the storm." Dreaming Demon said as she closed her eyes. "I might need a few months, but I should be able to get a vague layout." Noah and Flying Demon exchanged a smirk at her words. They couldn''t wait to see what that copy of the Immortal Lands was hiding! . . . Seven months later, the group had returned to the edges of the separate dimension, where the ground had lost its azure color for the lack of "Breath" in its structure. The six cultivators and the two snakes stared at the cliff that led to a darkness that even the light of the white sky couldn''t illuminate. That blackness was the void often found between dimensions and worlds, but there weren''t many records about it since it was tough to study. The legends said that only divine cultivators could fly through the void and reach for various planes without the need for dimensional passages or similar tools. As for the heroic cultivators, their consciousness would disperse once immersed in that environment. Nevertheless, the path to reach the central areas was right there, in the space between the void and the landmass. "Remember not to distance yourself from the ground," Dreaming Demon warned the group. "No one can come to rescue you if you fall into the darkness." Then, she controlled Raphaelle and made her jump off the cliff. Chapter 882: 882. Stuffed beas The strategy ideated by Noah and the Demons was simple. The edges of that separate dimension were a bit further than the end of the landmass. So, they could theoretically fly under the continent and create a tunnel toward the surface when they reached its center. Of course, that task was easier said than done. The six of them didn''t have a method to sense where the void began. Their minds would disperse if they were to enter that mysterious environment. A misstep could kill them on the spot. Yet, Raphaelle had the body of a huge Ghostly Snake in the upper tier of the fifth rank. The group could use her to scout the path ahead and fly where she had flown already. Another issue was the fact that they had to fly in that dangerous place for months without ever having the possibility to rest. The ground at the bottom of the landmass was so tough that it could take them weeks to create caves, which prevented the possibility of taking breaks. It would be pointless to spend that much time digging before even reaching their destination. After all, they were powerful enough to fly for months without even flinching. The real problem was the dangerous environment, but it was doable. There was also the chance that they could encounter lifeforms at those depths. Still, that seemed highly unlikely since any magical beast would feel an innate fear toward those areas since they were too close to the void. As for what concerned their destination, Dreaming Demon had used the properties of her mental energy to study the other side of the storm. The group advanced while keeping the utmost attention on Raphaelle, checking if any part of her vast body crossed some invisible layer that divided the dimension with the void. Silence reigned among them for entire months since no one dared to break the concentration of their companions. The ground turned from brown to azure as they advanced under the landmass. The group kept the terrain close to their heads to avoid getting too close to the darkness under them, but it seemed that the safe space was at least a hundred meters wide. They didn''t lower their guard anyway after that discovery, but they relaxed a little when they understood that it would be hard to fall into the void. Those months passed slowly, and Flying Demon had to carry his lover from time to time so that she could adjust their direction. There couldn''t be any mistake in her calculations since the storm would destroy them if they happened to enter its range. It took some time, but the group managed to reach their target. The eight of them found themselves staring at a specific spot in the azure terrain above them and analyzing its structure to find any weakness in its fabric. It was time to dig their way to the surface, but they wanted to be as careful as possible before barging into an environment that could contain rank 6 creatures. "Scout ahead," Noah ordered Joel, and the snake used his innate ability to become immaterial and explore the tough layers of rocky terrain above them. Joel reappeared after a few hours and confirmed the safety of that environment. Also, he didn''t find any trace of the passage of magical beasts, which further reassured the cultivators. Noah, Raphaelle, Joel, and the Demons began to launch attacks at the azure terrain at that point. The rocks were hard and resembled materials in the sixth rank when it came to their toughness. That didn''t make them impenetrable, but it would take a while to pierce it even with the joint effort of three hybrids in the upper tier and two powerful existences. Yet, the five of them didn''t mind spending weeks in that task if that led them to the inventory of a divine being. The group took turns. Noah, the hybrids, and the Demons were the main piercing force, while June, Faith, and Daniel focused on spreading the damage that they had caused. The two teams alternated their efforts to keep their mental energy to optimal levels. They couldn''t risk getting too tired when they still lacked a foothold. The azure ground began to give up after a few weeks of continuous attacks, and a tunnel slowly formed thanks to their efforts. However, they had to spend some more time enlarging it to fit the two snakes. Noah and the others would never reach for the other side without their powerful cannon fodder. Spending some time to increase their chances of survival was the least that they could do. As the tunnel took form, the group could finally rest and let go of the tension that had accumulated on their minds after those months spent between the darkness and the azure ground. Nevertheless, a different tension appeared as they became close to the surface. The storm didn''t scare them. Dreaming Demon had spent a couple of months fusing her mental energy with the world to pinpoint the exact center of the separated area. Also, she had even repeated that process during their exploration. Still, they were about to resurface in an unknown environment that could feature existences at the peak of the heroic ranks. Feeling tense was only natural in that situation. Noah and the others didn''t dig the ground right under the surface. They let Raphaelle go ahead and excavate alone while they waited at some distance in the tunnel. If the hybrid sensed that something was wrong, Dreaming Demon would understand it, and the six of them would return at full speed to the bottom of the tunnel. Of course, they ordered Joel to stand between them and Raphaelle to provide another obstruction to any potential threat. Raphaelle eventually broke the last layer of terrain and resurfaced. Her consciousness shared everything that she saw with Dreaming Demon, and the latter conveyed what she received to the rest of the group. "It resembles the insides of a castle," Dreaming Demon said. "It''s ancient, but there doesn''t seem to be any danger." The cultivators let Raphaelle wander on the surface for a while before they felt safe enough to resurface. Noah found himself inside a large hall that seemed part of a tall structure. White columns stood near the azure walls of the room and shone with a light that resembled that radiated by the sky. Dirty grey tiles filled the floor, and a series of corridors linked that hall to other parts of the structure. An eerie atmosphere filled the insides of that place, but the group couldn''t sense the slightest trace of living beings there. The structure appeared uninhabited, but the cultivators weren''t ready to abandon their caution yet. No one spoke. The group went for one of the corridors to begin their silent exploration of that place. The structure though decided to surprise them rather quickly since the group found a stuffed winged beast used as a statue in the first corridor that they explored. The aura of a quasi-rank 7 creature still lingered around that ornament. Chapter 883: 883. Paintings Noah''s instincts exploded at that sight, but he held himself back because he knew that his body couldn''t eat that stuffed creature. Also, the winged beast wasn''t intact. He could sense that someone had replaced its insides with a material meant to keep the skin in place. Someone had removed the nails and the horns too. Only the skin of the original creature remained, and that was the cause of the quasi-rank 7 aura that lingered around it. The fact that Noah could control his instincts didn''t mean that the other hybrids in the corridor could do the same. Raphaelle began to salivate right in the middle of the corridor as an instinctive reaction to her hunger. Still, Dreaming Demon''s control on her mind was thorough and prevented the snake from pouncing at the stuffed creature to appease her cravings. The situation was different with Joel since Noah had only sealed its centers of power. The snake''s mind was still active, and most of his body was free to act unless Noah''s intervened. It all happened in an instant. Joel shot forward and spread its mouth to eat the stuffed creature in a single bite. Yet, Noah jumped and kicked the snake away to protect the ornament. Joel slammed into the wall of the corridor, and the other cultivators sieged the hybrid. The snake though didn''t care about that obstruction and was ready to throw away his life to take a bite of that powerful material. Of course, the five cultivators kept it at bay, but Joel didn''t want to stop. His instincts had taken control of his mind by then. He could only think about satisfying his hunger. "Can you store it?" Noah asked the spirit automaton of his space-ring as he lifted his item toward the stuffed beast. The automaton scanned the ornament and made a few calculations before answering. "I need to make some space, but there shouldn''t be any structural problem. I suggest you store it somewhere else soon though. Its aura can corrode the formations of the rings if it stays too much inside it." Noah nodded internally and ordered to the automaton to proceed. Dozens of magical beasts'' corpses came out in the open and lain on the ground as the automaton proceeded to make room for the powerful material. A wave of crystals also began to surround Noah and filled the corridor as millions of Credits exited his storage item. The ornament then disappeared from the corridor and landed in one of the now free spaces outside of the four formations inside Noah''s ring. According to the automaton, something on that level would take centuries only to start decaying, so it didn''t need to be preserved. Also, the aura radiated by that skin could damage the formations and spoil the ring, which was something that Noah wanted to avoid at all costs. He wouldn''t get another chance to find a storage item so powerful. Joel continued to struggle under the suppression of the five cultivators, but the disappearance of the winged beast made it feel lost. Yet, his hunger remained even if he had lost his primary target. Noah knew how to handle that situation and began to throw the crystals around him at the hungry hybrid. Joel spread his vast mouth and accepted those Credits, and he started to calm down as his body absorbed the "Breath" inside them. It took a couple of millions for Joel to recover some control over his mind and suppress his instincts. When he did, he looked around him in an apologetic look, fearing that his actions had caused the anger of his jailers. However, Noah barely cared about the Obsidian Credits, and the other cultivators weren''t hurt in the slightest. Also, it wasn''t his fault since his instincts weren''t something that he could control. Noah could have even just activated the Shadow Swords planted in his vital tissues to kill him, but it would have been a waste to lose an asset in the fifth rank. It was better to give up on his money since they had lost any importance by then. Noah looked around the corridor and saw that nothing had reacted to the mess that they had just caused. It appeared that the castle really was uninhabited and that they could take whatever they wanted. His greed increased at that realization. After all, they had barely begun to explore that structure, but they had already seized a quasi-divine material! There was bound to be more wealth there, and they could just take it and bring it back to the Hive! ''Luckily, we decided to explore this place before the war reached the old continent,'' Noah thought as he nodded toward Dreaming Demon. She understood the meaning behind his gesture and controlled Raphaelle to move forward into the corridor. The rest of the group followed at some distance and put Joel between them as a second line of defense. Noah and the others were almost sure that the castle was safe, but they couldn''t abandon their caution in a place that had quasi-divine beings as stuffed creatures. The corridor led to another large hall with a series of paintings. Their images depicted different cultivators standing in a white world with various expressions, and radiated an aura similar to that carried by the sky of the dimension. Each painting depicted a single cultivator, and the image of those existences exuded peculiar auras that seemed to represent the individualities of those beings. "This isn''t possible!" Flying Demon exclaimed when he looked at one of the paintings, and Dreaming Demon and Noah froze when they neared him to take a look at those images. The painting depicted the same white world, but the three of them recognized the cultivator represented there. It was a middle-aged man with long black hair combed in a simple ponytail and a pair of red eyes. He didn''t have any beard, and he was quite slender even if his black robe hid a thick series of muscles. There was an ambitious smirk on his face as he stared at the white world, and he had his arms spread to his sides as if he was trying to bathe in that light. "Why is Master there?" Dreaming Demon exclaimed after she recovered from her stupor. "I watched his ascension, and he went alone!" "Maybe the god of the Empire represents what he thinks happens upon their arrival in the Immortal Lands," Noah said as he pointed at the other paintings. "Some of them are more detailed than others. I bet they belong to the cultivators that he had accompanied in the higher plane." The Demons quickly agreed with his hypotheses, but they didn''t like that their Master was exposed there. Dreaming Demon reached for the painting, but an invisible barrier prevented her from nearing the wall. "Dammit!" Dreaming Demon cursed. "Even you can''t break it?" Noah asked. After all, Dreaming Demon was the most powerful cultivator in their group. However, she shook her head and sighed as she explained the situation. "I didn''t feel anything when I touched the barrier. These are protections that make full use of the laws." Chapter 884: 884. Allies The value of those paintings was immense. After all, each of them exuded part of the individualities of existences that had reached the divine ranks! They were almost on par with the traces left by divine beings in the new continent in terms of benefits that could provide. Just by cultivating near one of them, a cultivator could feel encouraged to train harder and reach for higher realms. It was a pity that they couldn''t take any of them. Still, Noah and the others could always come back and cultivate there for some time after they finished exploring the castle. It was also their intention to take a look at the lands outside of that structure. They just had to decide how to proceed in that task later on. The Demons found even a painting depicting Divine Elder Tabitha, but none of them could find one that portrayed God''s Right Hand. That gave more points to Noah''s hypotheses. It seemed that the god differentiated between the entities that he accompanied in the higher planes and those that ascended on their own. All in all, there were a bit more than a dozen paintings in that hall. That gave the cultivators a vague idea about the long life of the god of the Shandal Empire. The appearance of divine entities was a rare event. There would be a maximum of four or five of them every ten thousand years, and that only after the Mortal Lands had witnessed a period of extreme richness. That led the group to place the god of the Empire''s appearance more than thirty thousand years ago in the best-case scenario. There was a high chance that he was older than that, and their math didn''t even consider the years that he had spent in the heroic ranks. "Anyone would go crazy if he had to spend so much time trapped in a world that can''t nourish him," Noah said after they concluded their calculations. He couldn''t even begin to imagine the mindset of an existence that had to live through the millennia without any possibility to cultivate. "Sacrifice millennia of work just to stay in the higher plane for a while," Flying Demon said as he heaved a helpless sigh. "I wonder how a being with such determination ended up in this situation." Her lover shook her head at his words. Entities on their level couldn''t understand matters that involved the divine ranks. June, Faith, and Daniel spent their time in the hall wearing mesmerized expressions. They would have never thought that they could come so close to beings that appeared in legends described in precious records stored only by powerful organizations. The experience benefitted their mindset greatly since they could finally put a face on beings that appeared so lofty in their minds. The divine existences weren''t unreachable entities anymore. They were just incredible cultivators that had left their mark in history. The same went for Joel, who improved his control over his instincts in those short hours. It was as if those paintings kindled the ambition inside his human side. Noah and the Demons tried to identify Divine Architect, but their search didn''t lead to anything. The paintings didn''t follow any order, and the three of them only knew that she was a woman. They could guess what her individuality could be according to the fame that surrounded her figure, but that wasn''t enough to connect her to an actual image. The group eventually left the hall to continue the exploration of the castle, using the same formation that they had used since the beginning of their mission. The snakes explored any new area before the cultivators and made sure that they were devoid of any danger. Noah though kept special attention on Joel since anything carrying a powerful aura could trigger his instincts again. The other halls of the castle contained powerful items on a similar level to those that they had found in the previous parts of the structure. The group found a series of intricate diagrams drawn on scrolls made by a series of precious materials at the peak of the sixth rank. The diagram themselves radiated an eerie aura that seemed to affect the air lingering in front of them. They found a hall filled with weapons that even Dreaming Demon couldn''t near due to the threatening pressure that they released. Some of those weapons appeared to be masterpieces in the seventh rank too. Still, the group had to leave that area without seizing anything. Almost all the halls contained items at the peak of the sixth rank or directly at a divine level. Yet, the group found it impossible to seize any of them due to the power that they radiated or specific defenses in place. They started to feel lucky that the stuffed winged beast didn''t have any form of protection around it, and the most reliable hypothesis was that the god didn''t have enough time to place it. After all, that ornament was the only material that escaped the pattern of the castle. There weren''t only powerful items. Some of the halls contained strange things that weren''t necessarily strong or threatening. The group found a hall dedicated to a strange powder that distorted the space around it even if it was only a rank 4 material. They saw a metal that never stopped changing form in another one, and that could become gaseous at some point. Odd materials, powerful beings, and mysterious creations filled the castle, and the group had only managed to seize one item. The eight of them eventually reached a room that had an empty white throne placed at its center. There was a chessboard on a table near the throne, and a series of pawns surrounded it without apparent order. When the cultivators neared the table, they sensed a series of auras coming from those items. The auras were familiar. The chessboard resembled the sky, and the pawns carried a softer version of the individualities carried by the paintings! Noah and the others didn''t know what to think at that sight. The scene was too strange for them even to begin to formulate hypotheses. While they were busy analyzing the table, the ethereal figure of an old man appeared on the throne and began to speak. "It has never happened that someone reached this place without destroying the nation above." The cultivators and hybrids felt startled by that sudden appearance, but they quickly understood that the figure was only a will. Even if it belonged to a divine existence, there was a limit to how much he could do. "Don''t worry," The will said with an ancient voice, "We are on the same side. All the cultivators going against Heaven and Earth are my allies. This applies twice on you, man of two worlds." The will had turned his gaze toward Noah toward the end of his phrase, and he could only give voice to a question as he tried to suppress the surprise that he felt. "Who are you?" The will smiled and gave a simple answer. "I''m Shandal." Chapter 885: 885. Birth The world usually forgot about the names of cultivators that had earned titles through their lives, and only the organizations behind them kept track of them. It couldn''t be helped. Most cultivators gained a title after they reached the fifth rank or above, and the world would acknowledge their existence only at that point. Beings like Noah were rare since most human cultivators usually couldn''t affect the political situation outside of their nation. For example, the world had forgotten real names of the Demons long before the defeat of the demon sects, and there weren''t many cultivators that knew them even inside the Hive. That phenomenon appeared more often in the Empire since the god would bestow a title to every heroic cultivator. However, Noah and the others didn''t have any doubt when they heard the words of the will. The only existence that could carry the name "Shandal" was the god of the Empire himself. ''He shouldn''t be able to read my mind,'' Noah thought as he inspected the will. That ethereal figure shone with a soft white light that didn''t reveal any other color. Noah and the others could notice his long hair and beard that were both combed into thick braids held together by a series of rings. Noah was an expert when it came to wills, and he had already met one of them at that level. Back then, Divine Demon''s will had been able to learn almost everything about him with a simple glance. The difference between a human cultivator and a divine entity was too great, even if the latter was only a will. Yet, Divine Demon didn''t mention his transmigration, which meant that there were limits to how much he could learn without hurting the mind of his target. Now, instead, Noah was a rank 5 mage with unique mental energy capable of devouring wills. The innate defenses of his sea of consciousness were too tight for anyone to probe its insides without alerting him. He felt quite sure that Shandal couldn''t read his mind. Still, Noah was confident that the will didn''t refer to his hybrid status with his previous words either since the two Ghostly Snakes were right next to him. That left Noah quite confused. He couldn''t understand how Shandal had learnt about his transmigration without interacting directly with his mind. His companions had yet to notice the strangeness of the will''s words. Their focus was on the white figure who wore an emotionless smile as he stared at them. All of them had a lot of questions in their minds, and Noah wasn''t an exception. Yet, they decided to wait for Shandal''s explanation after they learnt his name. Flying Demon''s gaze inevitably went on one of the pawns as that stalemate continued. That gesture took less than an instant, but the will didn''t miss it and decided to address that topic. "Don''t worry about this," The will said in his ancient voice. "They aren''t connected to the divine beings now living in the Immortal Lands. I replicate their auras to keep track of the achievements of this world." "What is all of this?" Noah asked at that point. "Why does Shandal surround himself with these pieces of the divine? Why does he try to recreate the Immortal Lands? What''s the purpose of the Odrea nation?" Noah felt utterly lost. He knew that the god of the Empire was the weakest existence among the divine beings. After all, that information came from Divine Demon, and he trusted his judgment. Nevertheless, he was in a castle filled with items that were either in the divine ranks or at the peak of the sixth rank. Also, there were the paintings and the pawns that radiated part of the individualities of other divine beings. The so-called weakest god resembled some collector that amassed anything connected to the divine ranks. Noah felt safe to assume that no other god could ever match his accumulation of wealth, at least as long as they remained in the Mortal Lands. Shandal''s figure had become extremely mysterious in his mind, and he couldn''t help but fill the will with questions once he understood that he didn''t have bad intentions. "A sharp mind," Shandal commented. "Heaven and Earth did a mess with you." Noah''s eyes sharpened at those words. The memories of his Earth Tribulation resurfaced as he thought at the plan that the world had for him. He didn''t believe that Shandal knew all the details behind his transmigration, but it seemed evident that he knew a lot about Heaven and Earth. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for the will even to know his deepest secret. "If it''s the knowledge that you seek," Shandal said, "I have plenty of it. I can''t be sure about some details, but there is a lot of truth in what I will say if you are willing to listen." The others exchanged a glance, but Noah kept his eyes fixed on the white figure. He had already decided that he wanted to learn everything that the god of the Empire had discovered in his long life. The Demons and June were the first to nod at the will when they realized how severe Noah was. They would have accepted to hear him out anyway, but Noah''s attitude made them decide faster. Faith imitated them since her curiosity eventually surpassed the dread that she felt toward that will. Daniel followed her after a few seconds of hesitation. As for Joel, he lowered his massive head, hoping that Shandal didn''t punish him for the mess that he had made in one of the corridors. "Very well," Shandal said as he changed his position on the throne. "I discovered this later on, but it''s better to state it first. There wasn''t any Heaven and Earth in the past, nor Tribulations. There was no division between Mortal and Immortal lands either. The "Breath" of the world was for everyone to use, and anyone could strive for godhood without facing any suppression." The cultivators on the scene began to show surprised expressions as soon as the explanation started. If it were anyone else, they wouldn''t even consider his words. However, they were in front of the will of the oldest divine entity of their world. He was also someone that had visited the Immortal Lands multiple times and had created various Empires throughout history. "I know that this is a lot to take," Shandal said. "I was speechless too when They told me this. Still, this story fits with what I''ve discovered on my own through the millennia, so I''ve started to take it as true." Shandal didn''t explain who those "They" were but continued to tell his story. "A being eventually rose further than its peers and aimed to reach the tenth rank to surpass the limits of the divine. The legends say that it failed in the task, but it fused with the world and tainted it with its will to keep on living. That was the birth of Heaven and Earth." Chapter 886: 886. Answers "It''s unclear what went wrong with that being''s breakthrough," Shandal said. "The cultivation journey followed different paths back then that even They couldn''t retrieve. Yet, it was clear that it lacked something and that it wasn''t ready to give up on the tenth rank after just one failure." Noah''s group had long since forgotten that they were in a separate dimension inside the enemy territory and that they were speaking to the will of a divine entity. The story that they were hearing was too interesting for them to mind anything else. After all, Shandal was speaking about the origin of Heaven and Earth! They were the very foundation of the cultivation journey and set the rules for everything in the world. Their fairness was what forced the Mortal Lands to be in their current state, and their laws set the foundation for every living being striving for the divine ranks. Also, Shandal had mentioned the tenth rank, which was one of the most difficult topics among the higher-ups of any organization. "This powerful existence fused with the world upon its failure," Shandal continued. "It used its immense power to create a system that could give birth to the answer that it had missed. The Tribulations appeared, and the path to godhood became limited to personal laws that escaped what Heaven and Earth were capable of providing. All the cultivators became their guinea pigs meant to find the missing piece that would open the path to the tenth rank." No matter how absurd Shandal''s words appeared, the cultivators on the scene couldn''t reject them. Noah and the others didn''t know how he knew so much, especially since they were matters that belonged to the first era of the cultivators. Yet, they fit the current system perfectly and even gave meaning to the behavior of the world toward certain events. "Heaven and Earth created a higher plane from the pieces of multiple Mortal Lands and used it to push the gods to their limits," Shandal said. "The Tribulations, the fairness, and the ascension are just tools that the world uses to create an elite group of cultivators that has more chances to uncover the path that surpasses the divine ranks." Shandal appeared tired after that explanation. The structure of the will didn''t lose any energy, but its expression was one of helplessness. "Fusing with the world had its drawbacks though," Shandal continued. "Heaven and Earth started to lose their individuality as they remained trapped in the system that they had created. Flaws started to appear in the world, and their control over the rules began to falter as the millennia passed. You are just one of a series of mistakes committed by Heaven and Earth as their original will dissolved." Shandal had turned toward Noah at that last line, and the others in his group couldn''t ignore that information anymore. They started to glance at Noah with curious gazes, and even June showed some confusion when she looked at him. However, Noah''s gaze didn''t move. It remained fixed on the will. "Who are They?" Noah asked, but the will shook his head and continued his story. "The Attunement method leads to a dead-end because it imitates a copy of what once ruled the behavior of the "Breath"," Shandal said. "Still, I broke its limits as I tried to become a law of time. I would have never imagined that I would become forever bound to Heaven and Earth after overcoming the Heaven Tribulation." The expression of the will became even sourer when his story reached that point, but he didn''t stop speaking. "I became part of the system created by Heaven and Earth since I imitated their laws. This gives me access to their thoughts, plans, and actions, but prevented me from ever striving to become something more." "I fought it at the beginning," Shandal continued while wearing a smirk. "My path couldn''t be over yet. However, I soon realized that my mind was fusing with the world too and that my dantian couldn''t enlarge." "I started to play around then," The will announced without any trace of shame. "I played with the human and heroic cultivators of the Mortal Lands as I stood undisturbed at the peak of this lower plane. Eventually, someone else reached the divine ranks, and I followed them to the plane that I couldn''t reach on my own. That was when I met Them, and I received a mission in a world that I had started to hate." "The idea was simple," Shandal said. "I had to create an environment inside the system and teach what I knew to as many divine cultivators as I could. Those experts would then become proper enemies of the world and affect Heaven and Earth''s plan to their core." Of course, Noah and the others didn''t need to ask how he had increased the overall number of cultivators. Even the political system of the Empire seemed meant for that task. Giving the possibility to cultivate to everyone and grooming the most talented among them gave birth to many cultivators that would be commoners in every other region. "The priority was to send divine beings in the higher plane," Shandal said as he pointed at the chessboard. "I went after them just to remind myself of what I''ve lost, but the important aspect of the matter is that the newly ascended cultivators knew that they had to strive for a path outside of the system." According to the will''s words, anything related to the individualities had some traces of Heaven and Earth inside them. That would make them vulnerable to the suppression of the world once in the higher plane, which would end in their destruction. "Why the pawns? Why Odrea nation?" Noah asked again since the previous conversation ended. "The pawns are proof of my achievements," Shandal answered. "By creating the most powerful organization and forcing wars, I''ve managed to help the birth of many exceptional individuals that ultimately became gods. As for the Odrea nation, what you learnt on the surface has happened, just more than fifty thousand years ago." "What is its purpose?" Noah asked. "I need them to have a proof of human resilience," Shandal answered. "Back in my era, I destroyed the defensive formation and killed the patriarch of the Odrea nation after I won the race toward the Divine ranks. Yet, I needed something to observe to rekindle my spirit whenever I thought that the passage of time would crush me. I even created myself to stop the dispersion of my mind." The explanation seemed over at that point, but Noah and the others had so much to ask. "Why did you create this dimension?" Flying Demon asked. "I can''t improve here, nor in the Immortal Lands since my laws are just a copy of a copy of the natural ones in the world," Shandal said. "I figured that I could train again if I made a copy of a copy of the Immortal Lands." Chapter 887: 887. System Even after the helplessness accumulated for countless years, Shandal didn''t give up on cultivating. Noah and the others could only respect such an old existence and his determination. The group''s view of the world had changed entirely in those minutes. Heaven and Earth weren''t only nigh-omniscient existences anymore. They were an entity that had taken control of the various planes to create the answer that they needed to advance to the tenth rank. The Tribulations, their fairness, and their will inside the "Breath" were just tools that they used to force living beings to overcome their limits and walk on individual paths. The nature of the magical beasts and the hybrids were probably connected to their actions too. Still, the will didn''t speak about them, and Noah didn''t probe further for now since he had more pressing thoughts in his mind. Also, there was a high chance that Shandal didn''t know much about those creatures. There would always be some unclear aspects if a cultivator weren''t aware of the existence of the primary energy. The group didn''t learn only about Heaven and Earth''s past. They were now aware of what a complex and driven existence the god of the Empire was. Shandal had succeeded in his Heaven Tribulation, but he had used the laws tainted by Heaven and Earth to enhance his individuality. That led him to become one of the gears of the world, blocking his path toward the higher ranks just as it happened to that ancient being. Yet, he didn''t give up on his cultivation. Shandal used the ascension of other divine entities to reach the Immortal Lands to look for a way out of his situation. His trip didn''t give him an answer, but it provided him with knowledge and a mission. He would have to act as Heaven and Earth and create a system that nourished talents that could go against the current structure of the world. The Empire and his very existence were just hindrances that the cultivators of his Mortal Lands had to overcome to temper themselves. Even the wars that followed his departure were another form of training that he provided to all the heroic cultivators. Also, Shandal didn''t abandon his dream to cultivate as he proceeded with his mission. That separate dimension was his hope to find a way out of his cursed state. The god had to use every method at his disposal not to give up on his dream. The Odrea nation was a beacon that kept his ambition alive, and the will prevented the dispersion of his mind. Noah could guess how all the trophies stored in the castle had a similar purpose. Shandal was surrounding himself with traces of the divine to keep himself in his cultivation journey. However, some doubts appeared in the cultivators on the scene. They were overwhelmed by amazement and admiration once Shandal''s explanation ended. Still, they didn''t understand how the will could prevent them from ending in Heaven and Earth''s grasp. "Do you have a method to escape the system?" Dreaming Demon asked with a doubtful tone. Her individuality made her mental energy fuse with the fabric of the world. Her goal was to turn her thoughts into proper laws at some point, but she now feared that she could end in Shandal''s state. She was already in the solid stage of the fifth rank though. Her path was set, and there wasn''t a safe method to modify it unless she had access to a miraculous technique. The will shook his head at her question, but he wore a reassuring smile before replying. "I''m not even worthy of being a pawn. I can''t teach you how to go against the chessboard. Yet, I can use my knowledge and connection with Heaven and Earth to tell you who managed to escape their system already. I can even suggest which paths not to pursue if you allow me to learn about your individuality." "Enlighten us," Dreaming Demon said with the same tone as before. "I can sense the moment a cultivator escapes the system," Shandal said as he pointed at the presents. "You escaped it when you invaded Heaven and Earth''s laws and found hope for your survival. You have been outside it for some time since your sparks aren''t part of this world. You are still part of their system, but you have a special position since you lack individualities and are their natural enemies." Shandal described Dreaming Demon, June, and the hybrid''s state before pointing at Noah. "As for you, Heaven and Earth allowed you to cheat death and to keep your memories. You escaped their system at the moment you decided to cultivate." Noah''s companions could only shoot curious glances at him again, but June lowered head as if she was deep in thought. "Why?" Noah asked, acknowledging Shandal''s words in the process. "They needed to give up on controlling certain aspects of the world if they wanted to maintain it over the various tests," Shandal answered. "You have just happened to be the first experiment. In case of success, Heaven and Earth would have stopped caring about the arrival of souls." Noah felt disappointed when he heard him. He already knew that the reason behind his transmigration was far from meaningful, but it turned out that it was even less important than he thought. Heaven and Earth''s original will was dispersing, so they had to give up on some of their control over the world to keep their project functioning. One of the fields that they had chosen to abandon was the managing of souls, which led to Noah''s intact memories. "They decided that they couldn''t abandon it anymore after you turned out to be like this," Shandal continued. "Your very existence has become a beacon that radiates their mistake, and that affects those around you. The individuality of your other companions is already striving to escape Heaven and Earth''s system, and your influence is one of the reasons behind that process." Noah felt surprised when he heard those words. Shandal had managed to find the foundation of his individuality after just a short conversation. After all, the mistake that spread flaws had been Noah''s starting point when he began to explore his individuality. It made sense that only someone with a deep connection with Heaven and Earth could understand it. "I need this land and the items inside it," Shandal said as he stood up from the throne and walked toward the corridors. "But I can give you one item each from my collection. Please understand that giving you more could weaken your individuality and go against my mission." Shandal then pointed at Flying Demon before continuing to speak. "As for you, I can''t understand when you escaped the system, but I recognize the sorrow in your eyes. I think you might be suitable to inherit part of my individuality. The others can explore the castle to choose their item." The will seemed to remember something at that point, and he spoke one last time as he looked toward Noah. "The stuffed creature already counts as one." Chapter 888: 888. Life Noah didn''t mind the fact that the stuffed winged beasts had taken one of the available spots. There were two Ghostly Snakes in the group, which meant that they had two free items that they could choose for themselves. Also, he didn''t want to give up on the skin of a quasi-rank 7 creature. Noah didn''t know what requirements his body would have once it reached the late tiers of the sixth rank, but body parts on that level were bound to be useful at that point. The chance of taking items from Shandal''s collection was incredible, but the group didn''t explore the castle immediately. Each of them had something to take care of before searching for something that suited their situation. Flying Demon felt interested in Shandal''s offer. Still, he couldn''t blindly accept part of the individuality of a being that had been stuck at the bottom of the seventh rank for millennia. He would study the matter with his lover before deciding what to do. Faith and Daniel were excited about the possibility of obtaining something from the god''s collection. Yet, the fact that they were still inside Heaven and Earth''s system worried them. They had already decided to have some private discussions with the will before choosing their reward. The Ghostly Snakes remained still. Raphaelle was in the dull state caused by Dreaming Demon, and Joel understood his position. He knew that keeping his life was the best reward that he could hope for in that situation. As for June, she shot toward one of the corridors without caring about the confused gazes of her companions. Noah watched her leave and sighed. He knew that she was pissed, and he was even aware of the reason behind her mood. June couldn''t deal with dishonesty. The betrayal of her family when she was a kid had left her with trust issues that she still hid in her direct personality. Noah had founded his relationship with her on honesty. He knew that he had to be completely sincere to gain her trust and love. The only exceptions were the pieces of information that could hurt them if they ended up in the enemy''s grasp. His transmigration was definitely one of them. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine what the powerhouses would have done if they discovered that he could create flaws in Heaven and Earth''s system when he was a human cultivator. He could already imagine King Elbas turning him into a pendant meant to empower his bloodline in the eyes of the world. Yet, the discovery that Noah had lived another life changed his image in June''s mind. All of a sudden, he wasn''t only the aloof kid with a difficult childhood that had learnt to love her anymore. He was also someone else. A person that she had never met and that he had kept hidden from her. ''To think that our first fight would be over this,'' Noah sighed again as he started to walk in June''s direction. He didn''t believe that the discovery of his transmigration would lead to them breaking up. Their feelings were too deep to vanish or be tainted over something like that. Still, it was a matter than Noah had to address and explain adequately. Otherwise, there was the chance that he could lose June. Noah strolled. June had disappeared inside the castle, but she had left a trail of her scent through the corridors. Finding her wasn''t an issue for him, but he decided to approach her position slowly so that she could have some time to think alone. Noah climbed a long series of luxurious stairs as he followed her scent. The upper floors led to rooms that featured large windows and balconies. June was in one of those rooms, staring at the outside world as she supported herself at the edge of the balcony. Her hair and robe were still due to the absence of wind, but the white light of the sky illuminated her figure and enhanced her natural colors. Sparse dark sparks though would run through her skin from time to time, and Noah could only heave a silent sigh when he saw them. ''She is indeed pissed,'' Noah thought as he tried to approach her slowly. However, a dark lightning bolt landed on his chest before he could even enter the room. Noah held his ground against the attack, but the upper part of his robe fell apart in that impact. A fuming trail came out of his chest too, but his skin was completely intact. June didn''t even turn to launch her spell and continued to stare at the world inside the central storm. It was clear that she wasn''t in the mood for Noah''s usual methods. Noah stared at her in silence, appreciating every part of her figure immersed in the white light. When he thought about his mindset when he first arrived in that world, he found it hard to imagine that it would have led to a woman that he loved so much. "I never understood the reason why I kept my memories until my Earth Tribulation," Noah said as he remained outside the room. "Earth spoke to me and told me how I arrived here empty and without any desire. It was right. I was empty." June trembled a little when she heard those words, but a lightning bolt soon shot from her back and landed once again on Noah''s chest. Noah gladly accepted the attack and waited for the noise caused by the clash to fade to speak again. "I''ve lived for a little more than two decades in my previous world before being killed by mistake. Yet, I now know that I didn''t live there. My life started when my ambition appeared." A tremor swept June, but there was no spark nor lightning bolt at that time. She remained silent as she played his words again inside her mind. "There wasn''t any cultivation in my old world, but it wasn''t too different from this one," Noah continued. "Money was power, and you could only stick to the system if you didn''t have it. Birthright ruled in many fields, and true freedom was an idea that many humans ignored." "Who were you there?" June asked without turning to look at him. "A dreamless outcast," Noah answered as he entered the room and neared her. "That society wasn''t nice toward those that couldn''t blend with its rules. I was ready to settle for a simple life to have a small amount of freedom." June turned at that point, and Noah could sense her sadness when she spoke. "Why didn''t you tell me?" "It was too dangerous and too unbelievable," Noah said as he stopped right in front of her. "Also, I was born together with my ambition. Anything before that wasn''t my life." Chapter 889: 889. Discussion June reached for Noah''s naked torso and tried to scratch his skin. Yet, her fingers weren''t even able to leave marks on him. "Sometimes, I wonder what would have happened if you didn''t meet Nina," June said, and Noah understood that she was questioning the foundation of their relationship after the recent discovery. Noah took her hand and pressed it to his heart. The vibration caused by his heartbeat reached her palm, and his words followed that sensation. "Nina might have taught me that I can be with someone, but you are the one that made me question my detachment for the first time." June revealed a small smile, but she lowered her head. She didn''t retract her hand though. She didn''t want to lose even a beat of Noah''s heart while they were having that discussion. "Did you learn to be so smooth with words in your past life?" June asked. Noah wanted to reach for her and lift her head, but he held himself back. He couldn''t push June to accept or forgive him. That was something that she had to decide on her own. "I didn''t learn anything," Noah said. "I''m simply telling the truth. In both my lives, the only one that has managed to know me is you." A tremor ran through June''s hand, and Noah held himself back once again. He knew that she wanted to give in to her feelings, but her pride still didn''t let her jump on him. "Does anyone else know about your other life?" June asked. "The others should have guessed something by now," Noah replied, "But you are the only one that knows it." June lifted her head at that point and fixed her eyes in Noah''s. His heartbeat and his gaze were telling her that he wasn''t lying, and she could sense the slight worry hidden inside his mental waves. The truth was that she understood his decision to keep the matter about his transmigration a secret. It was too dangerous to leak such incredible information in a world full of monsters and experts ready to do anything in their power to gain an advantage over the Tribulations. That was also something that would be part of the secrets that they had to keep in the eventuality that their relationship was exposed. Noah didn''t go back on the promise that he made during the winged beasts'' crisis. He was hiding a detail that would have endangered him greatly. "I guess it pissed me to learn about that from Shandal," June said before continuing with a hesitant tone. "Can we keep this between ourselves? I want to be the only one to know this part of you." Noah revealed a smile and decided to tease her a little. "Are you sure that my greed didn''t influence you too much?" June didn''t laugh but reached Noah''s face with her free hand as she kept her gaze fixed on his eyes. Noah was speechless for a second. June wasn''t ready to give in until she heard those words coming out of his mouth. "Of course," Noah said in a firm tone. "Also, there are many parts of me that only you know." "Really?" June said as she put a sly expression on her face. "List them." Noah accepted her challenge and took her hands in his as he neared her to whisper in her ear. June let him speak, and a warm smile appeared on her expression as Noah listed a series of things that they had shared. A faint blush though began to appear on her face as Noah moved to their intimate moments. Her smile kept on widening until she felt the urge to kiss her lover and put that matter behind them. Noah felt her hand breaking free from his grasp and reaching for his cheek. June put her thumb over his mouth and tilted his head so that they could look at each other again. Then, she removed her thumb to kiss him. Noah had only given a glance to the environment after the balcony, but June''s kiss made him disregard anything that didn''t concern her. His feelings and instincts were already at their limits, and his mind could only focus on her now. There would be time to analyze the environment inside the central storm and pick suitable items from the castle. Yet, June had the priority now, as well as his complete focus and desire. . . . June and Noah returned to the throne room almost a day after their sudden departure. They found the Ghostly Snakes coiled on the floor as they waited for further orders and the two Demons inspecting the chessboard as they shared a cup of wine. The couple''s return didn''t go unnoticed, but the hybrids didn''t move from their spot. It seemed the Joel had received strict orders from the others and was guarding the area in case something wrong happened. The Demons, instead, left the chessboard and neared them. "Anything worth knowing?" Flying Demon asked Noah, but the latter shook his head. Noah understood that the Demon was curious about his past life. Still, there was a reason why he didn''t reveal that information to anyone, and the Demon respected his decision. However, it felt mandatory to ask if his past life contained something that could be useful to the Hive. Flying Demon smirked when he saw Noah''s gesture and moved his attention on June''s messy hair. She had never been known for her tidiness, but both her hair and robe appeared even worse off than usual. Flying Demon''s eyebrow arched as he moved his gaze back to Noah. A knowing smile appeared on his face, but Noah ignored it and walked past them to reach the chessboard. "Where are the others?" Noah asked as June reached him and began to study the chessboard too. Flying Demon revealed a proud smile when he looked at him and was about to answer, but Dreaming Demon preceded him. "They are having private discussions about their individualities. We want to go too before deciding about our item." Then, she cleared her throat before asking a question. "Did you find something interesting on your way?" Noah and June exchanged a glance before shaking their heads at the same time. They had taken a look at the environment, but their minds were too busy thinking about each other that they had almost forgotten where they were. Also, they didn''t recognize any of those items. The fact that most of them relied on laws made it hard to understand their purpose. They needed Shandal to make a conscious choice. They couldn''t just pick what appeared to be more valuable or powerful. "We have taken a look at the outside world," June said when she saw the complex expression that had appeared on Dreaming Demon''s face. It seemed that she was facing the same issue and wanted to know if they had found a solution. Nevertheless, June''s words were enough to ignite the Demons'' interest, and they didn''t hesitate to offer the couple a cup of wine as they waited for their story. Chapter 890: 890. Individualities The environment inside the central storm was a proper rank 6 danger zone. During the breaks when Noah and June didn''t focus only on themselves, they had inspected the outside world seen from the balcony of the room that they had occupied. What they saw confirmed their initial ideas. There were actual magical beasts in the sixth rank living in those regions. Noah had been able to sense two of them from his position in the castle, but his instincts had told him that there were more of them. After all, the central areas where only a limited part of the entirety of the separate dimension, but they weren''t small. Also, that environment favored those existences and allowed them to feed on the "Breath" in the air more efficiently. That removed their need to hunt for more prey often and helped in the creation of harmony in that fauna. Noah didn''t believe that Shandal left such powerful creatures completely unchecked, but there were no signs of proper management either. He guessed that the god of the Empire or his will intervened only when a significant clash between two leaders was about to happen. The Demons couldn''t do much with that information, and even June found it useless for her cultivation journey. However, that was a fantastic discovery for Noah that didn''t hesitate to memorize that place in his mind. His list of promising hunting areas increased as he uncovered the secrets of his Mortal Lands. It was as if old monsters and powerful beasts hid everywhere humans didn''t look too attentively. His mind wandered as he and June finished explaining their discoveries to the Demons. He couldn''t help but think about all the territories that he had overlooked and avoided due to his poor level. All of a sudden, the old Capital of the Utra nation appeared mysterious and powerful. That city had survived through the millennia and had been inherited by all the Royal Dynasties. It was bound to hide something incredible behind its tall walls. The fact that the Elbas family had mostly abandoned the Utra nation didn''t necessarily mean that it was useless or empty now. The destructive effects of the dimensional portal had yet to spread through the entirety of the country in the end, and there were ways to hold them back. The Capital wasn''t the sole mysterious territory in his mind. Noah didn''t forget to consider the core territories of the Empire and the entirety of the Papral nation in his reasoning. Both countries had an incredible history. The center of the area of influence of the Empire had been the home of the oldest god in those Mortal Lands for millennia, and the Papral nation had seen the ascension of two gods just a bit more than a thousand years ago! There were bound to be other secrets hidden throughout those lands, which could benefit his hybrid status or cultivation journey in general. The only issue was being powerful enough to explore them freely. Luckily for him, the three invading forces were at war with the Empire. It would take years for the battles to resume, but Noah knew that he would be in the first lines, fighting to reach the depths of what had once been the home of the strongest organization in his world. As for the Papral nation, that was Faith and Ravaging Demon''s home. Noah could exploit his connection with his friend or join the inevitable invasion that the Hive would launch once it was strong enough to retaliate against the Demon''s betrayal. The Demons, June, and Noah enjoyed the wine and exchanged ideas concerning their current situation. Except for June, they all had a general idea regarding their companions'' power, and they could point out the fields where they were lacking. That discussion aimed to give them a clear perspective over what they needed, even if they soon accepted the fact that any item in the castle would be too strong for them to handle. There were peak rank 6 and divine items there. Those weren''t tools that rank 5 cultivators could handle without triggering massive drawbacks. Noah was even worse off. He already had numerous projects in his mind, but he could only decide on their feasibility after he created his higher energy. He kept all his ideas bottled since his success in that project could change his plans completely. After all, he would obtain the final instrument for his individuality. He would have the matter that he needed to become a proper creator. However, he didn''t want to ask for spells and martial arts either. It seemed too much of a waste to pick something that he would have to modify to adapt it to his individuality. Faith and Daniel eventually returned to the hall and found the two couples relaxing as they shared a jug of wine. The two of them could notice the differences in their relationships in that scene. The Demons'' posture was elegant as they sat on the floor. They would often exchange warm smiles and lose themselves in their lover''s gaze when they took sips from their cups. Instead, June and Noah were more open about expressing their affection. June would lie on Noah''s chest and pull his hair whenever she wanted a kiss, and they would often whisper in each other''s ears, following that gesture with a laugh or a deep exchange of stares. The Demons stood up when Faith and Daniel returned, and Shandal''s will appeared at the entrance of a corridor to point them the way toward a different room. Noah inspected the two of them as they took the spot left by the Demons and began to drink too. Still, Faith noticed Noah''s strange attention and proceeded to reassure him. "He helped us. Our paths were already going in the right direction, but he explained problems that I had noticed just recently." Noah was inclined to trust Shandal since he knew about his transmigration. Yet, he wanted to make sure that the will didn''t have a personal agenda hidden under the mission of defeating Heaven and Earth. That didn''t seem to be the case since both Faith and Daniel confirmed the authenticity of his help. Of course, Noah couldn''t just believe their words when the will of a god was involved. The two of them had to describe the pointers that Shandal had given them before he felt that he was really on their side. Apparently, Faith would have eventually abandoned the system of Heaven and Earth due to her unwillingness to follow any authority or rule. Her peace would reach the point where the world around her willingly submitted to her pace. As for Daniel, Shandal had revealed that he would have been outside of the system already if his individuality wasn''t lacking. His purification needed a core that expressed the entirety of his existence. Daniel needed something to elevate to the divine. It took three days for the two Demons to return, and they didn''t withhold any information about their meeting either. As soon as they arrived, Flying Demon announced that he would inherit part of Shandal''s individuality. Chapter 891: 891. Choices The news that Flying Demon would inherit part of Shandal''s individuality was incredible. Even if he had ended up in that cursed situation, the god of the Empire was still an entity that had managed to reach the divine ranks! The process wouldn''t be quick, and Flying Demon had to be careful not to ruin himself. After all, individualities were unique, and cultivators couldn''t exchange them as if they were techniques or diagrams. Also, it was risky to imitate someone else''s path. Existences grew in power because they enhanced themselves as they strived for the higher ranks. Still, that made them specialize on a specific path and absorb only the laws connected with their individualities. That was the reason why cultivators that had reached a certain level of power couldn''t change paths anymore. Their entire existence would have become something too specific to go back to a general form. However, the offer came from the god of the Empire, a divine entity that was waging war against Heaven and Earth. He was bound to have countless methods in his possession due to his long life. Dreaming Demon had listened to his explanation too. The fact that Flying Demon had ultimately accepted Shandal''s offer meant that she didn''t find anything suspicious. After the two Demons returned, Shandal''s will reappeared too and addressed the issue that the cultivators were facing. "Walk with me through the castle. I''ll help you with your choice." Noah and the others stood up, and even the Ghostly Snakes slithered toward the will that had begun to stroll toward one of the corridors. The group saw the vast collection of powerful and peculiar items that Shandal had seized and stored over the years again. Yet, short descriptions about their nature and effects appeared under them when Noah and the others walked near them. The invisible barriers that had prevented the group from seizing everything during the first exploration were materializing words to read. There would be even exotic symbols at times that the cultivators could only scan with their mental energy to understand the purpose of certain items. A few of those treasures didn''t have any description but only notes signed by Shandal himself. "Most of these come from the Immortal Lands," Shandal explained when the group walked past an item without a description. "I didn''t manage to discover what they do even after millennia spent studying them. I believe my power is too low or my individuality too different to uncover their effects." Silence often reined as the group kept on walking in an orderly way through the many halls and corridors of the castle. The rewards were the only thought in the cultivators'' minds, and they wouldn''t care about anything else until they found something that suited them. Noah held June''s hand as they walked side by side through that massive collection. The recent fight had brought them even closer to each other, and they were enjoying that relaxing moment. It felt as if June and Noah were a couple that had gone out shopping, with the only difference that they intended to buy powerful relics that could benefit their cultivation. The two of them exchanged opinions on certain promising items, and the Demons would join their conversations when they knew more about specific topics. Faith and Daniel remained mostly silent instead, but they would ask for Shandal or the Demon''s opinion when they found something interesting. The browsing took almost half a day, and the group returned in the throne room after Shandal declared that there was nothing else to see in his castle. It was time for them to decide, but that choice wouldn''t be an easy one. It wasn''t a matter concerning the variety of those items. Shandal had collected the most powerful and bizarre things through his long life, so the rewards covered most fields of the cultivation journey. The main issue was that they wouldn''t be able to use most of those rewards until they reached the later stages of the sixth rank. Rank 5 cultivators couldn''t just wield a divine inscribed weapon. The sole might of such an item could destroy them. That made choosing harder since they would pick something that they could only use after they experienced multiple breakthroughs. Such a decision required them to have a clear idea of what they would need far in the future, which wasn''t something that they could have right now. Faith and Daniel were still growing when it came to their individualities. They had just learnt how to adjust their path to escape Heaven and Earth''s system, so they didn''t have many certainties when it came to their future. Dreaming Demon needed time to rethink her individuality too, but she was a bit better off compared to her companions. She had already restricted her choice over two items, with both of them beneficial to her peculiar mental energy. Flying Demon''s reward was Shandal''s individuality, and the snakes didn''t get the chance to choose something. As for June and Noah, they had their issues too. Differently from her companions, June had a pretty clear idea of what she would become along her paths. Everything in her individuality focused on constants and long battles, so she meant to pick something that could enhance that aspect of her fighting style. Yet, most of the items there had battle purposes, at least for those in the sixth or divine ranks. June found it hard to decide something that she could find useful in the future, be she was already skimming all the possible choices in her mind so that she could pick something very close to perfect. Noah''s issue, instead, came from the fact that his higher energy was an important variable that he couldn''t ignore. His existence, battle style, and even attacks would change after he managed to create higher energy. His body was bound to adapt too to that achievement and change form after every breakthrough. That uncertainty kept him unsure about three items that had different purposes, but that would be useful even when he reached their level of power. After a day spent meditating and exchanging ideas, all the cultivators had decided what they wanted, except for Noah. Dreaming Demon had chosen a strange pink liquid with power in the divine ranks. The liquid was also smelly, but it had empowering effects on the mental energy of the cultivators. Daniel chose an emblem that worked on light, and that could protect him if something unexpected happened. It was a divine item too, which made it a lifesaver in any situation. Faith used a similar approach to Daniel and just picked something battle-related. She chose a bracelet that would work as a defensive measure but also as a temporary enhancer of her mental faculties. As for June, she picked a hefty and old tome that described the formation field thoroughly and had even notes of the entities that had invented the methods recorded in it. On the other hand, Noah was still struggling to choose. Chapter 892: 892. Factions Noah didn''t want to pick a defensive item nor a weapon. He was a maker. He created what he needed, and that ability would increase once he succeeded in his project with the higher energy. Also, he didn''t want to use that chance for something meant to help him survive future threats. It didn''t often happen that he could choose from such a large variety of items, and he didn''t want to pick something that was only meant to keep him alive until he reached the divine ranks. His body already offered him insane survivability, and he would risk relying too much on the divine item. After all, he would use it to take by surprise and kill strong enemies so that he could seize their dantians. In his mind, it was better to pick something that could improve his growth since that would give him long-term benefits. Yet, his interest still lingered on three items even after he had cut away many promising weapons and defensive methods from his possible choices. Of the three, two of them were divine items, while the other was something with power in the heroic ranks. The first one was one of the items that lacked a complete description. It was a complex diagram that seemed capable of producing different effects depending on unclear factors. Through the years, Shandal had discovered that it needed "Breath" of the darkness element to work, but he had never managed to activate it. The few features that he had recognized came from his knowledge of spells and formations. According to the will''s description, the diagram didn''t have an upper limit in its power, but human cultivators would lose their minds if they happened to look at its lines. It was what appeared to be a spell that only heroic cultivators and above could hope to activate. The second one was another divine item. It was a mirror capable of predicting the outcome of experiments or similar procedures. Noah only needed to place the materials in front of the mirror as he watched his reflection to know if a process would succeed. The mirror even gave a detailed description of its prediction. That would help a cultivator to point out the mistakes in the procedure and fix them without wasting materials in countless trials. Noah''s ability to create would rise even further if he used the mirror together with the Divine Deduction technique. Still, that item had its limits, especially when it came to atypical inscription methods. The Elemental Forging was one of the atypical methods, and the mirror couldn''t understand it in its entirety. Its results would be slightly imprecise when it came to similar practices, and Noah wasn''t sure if using such a miraculous item suited him, especially since his creation would assume different forms once he gained the higher energy. As for the last one, it was a whiff of dense dark gas that seemed to contain many laws in its fabric. Shandal had already studied it and confirmed that it was a rare material capable of expressing many different shapes of the "Breath" of the darkness element. The item would be quite useful to Noah since it could expand his knowledge of the darkness element and give him ideas on how to proceed in his journey. Also, it would be beneficial in his meditations. All three items were good tools to have in the heroic ranks. Noah could find a worthy usage for each of those resources and gain benefits from all of them. However, he had to make a choice. The cultivators had already talked about the division of the resources. The Ghostly Snakes gave them access to two free items, which meant that they had to decide who would get more than one reward. The group had decided to award Noah and the Hive with the items initially meant for the hybrids. "Come," Shandal said as he neared Noah, who was still struggling to decide. "Let''s talk." Noah inspected the will for a few seconds before deciding to stand up and follow him the hall where he had discussed the individualities with his companions. That hall was smaller than the others, and it didn''t have any unique item. There were only a bed and a table with a peculiar chessboard that had six sides instead of four. There were also a series of chess pieces lain on top of it that were divided into three different colors. There was black, white, and gray, but there didn''t seem to be anything special about them since they weren''t inscribed items. "There are three major factions in the Immortal Lands," Shandal said as he sat on one of the three chairs around the table and began to reorder the pieces on the odd chessboard. "You can find the ever-hungry beasts, whose population can''t be controlled," Shandal said as he placed the black chess pieces on the board. "The scattered humans," The will continued as he moved his attention to the white pieces. "And the lonely hybrids," Shandal began to deploy the grey pieces at that point. "As far as I know," Shandal continued to speak as he watched the chessboard with a satisfied expression. "Not all humans decide to go against Heaven and Earth. There are a few organizations, but the population up there is too thin to affect the higher plane." "Who are They?" Noah asked to remind him of the questions that he had dodged earlier. Shandal shook his head at that question and started to move the pieces in a seemingly random way. Then, he decided to address the matter that he had revealed just a few days ago. "Your existence is even more unique than the others. I couldn''t believe it when you used a magical beast to become a hybrid. I didn''t even know that something like that was possible." "Did you keep track of me?" Noah asked with a tinge of surprise in his tone. "Yes," Shandal replied, "I''ve been keeping track of you since you appeared in this world." "Did you ever influence anything?" Noah felt the need to ask since he had to make sure that all his achievements were his. "No," Shanald said as he resumed moving the pawns. "You needed to find your path. Spoiled cultivators are useless against Heaven and Earth. I must say that you surprised me multiple times, but I had to expect it from someone that has lived two lives." Noah ignored his words. His previous life didn''t influence his current one, and he didn''t carry any meaningful information anyway. "Why did you call me here?" Noah questioned the will after that initial conversation. "I''ve learnt to understand the individualities of those surrounding me after spending countless years seeing cultivators rise and all," Shandal. "Yours is vast, incredibly vast. I don''t think I''ve ever seen someone else so driven and ambitious. However, are you sure that you can elevate it to the divine ranks?" Chapter 893: 893. Black firmamen Noah had heard similar words before. Chasing Demon had already explained the difficulties connected to a broader individuality in the banquet held to honor the return of the Demons. Heroic cultivators generally specialized in the aspects of their individualities as they grew. Their existence would then become able to affect the laws linked with them until they finally turned into something unique that didn''t exist in the world. Of course, the process would take more time if the individuality was vast and expanded in many fields. It was a simple matter of quantity of laws. Wider individualities needed to learn how to wield more of them to become something unique. However, cultivators had limits. Worlds could contain as many laws as they needed to work, but heroic existences were far below that level. It was normal for someone like Shandal to worry about Noah''s path. The latter was the most promising cultivator that those Mortal Lands had ever seen, and the god''s mission was to defeat Heaven and Earth. Also, Noah was the living proof of Heaven and Earth''s mistakes. He was too important in that mission to risk losing him due to his insatiable ambition. Noah didn''t feel surprised when he heard the will''s words. He had pondered about that matter too during his meditations. Yet, he had concluded that he was pursuing what he was. His approach was completely natural, and that was the individuality that reflected his entire existence. He was a sword capable of destroying and creating. His sole presence could turn the "Breath" in the environment in primary energy, and his darkness could give birth to living beings. Noah picked one of the chess pieces and inspected it before placing it down on its previous spot. He repeated that gesture for the pawns with different colors, and Shandal just studied him with a curious gaze. As a god who had lived for millennia in a lower plane, Shandal had learnt a lot about individualities. He had seen human and heroic cultivators grow and fall as they strived for the same level that he had reached many years ago. After so much time, he could obtain a general understanding of someone''s individuality in a matter of seconds, and discern the rest from their gestures of personalities. It could be said that the god of the Empire was the maximum expert in the lower planes when it came to individualities. Nevertheless, he couldn''t understand anything when he analyzed Noah playing around with the chess pieces. His connection with Heaven and Earth prevented him from understanding Noah''s in his entirety, but he felt surprised that he couldn''t even get an idea of the reason behind his action. After all, the chess pieces weren''t inscribed items. He used that odd chessboard to remind him of the fauna of the Immortal Lands. ''A lot of black pieces,'' Noah thought as he placed a gray pawn back in its place. ''A few white, and even fewer gray.'' The number of pieces of each color was a representation of the number of entities in each faction. From the chessboard, it was evident that magical beasts dominated the higher plane. Noah could understand now that such an arrangement was just another challenge placed by Heaven and Earth to find what they had missed. Still, he didn''t inspect the pieces for that reason. He was trying to understand if he belonged to one of those factions. ''None of them reflect my existence,'' Noah concluded in his mind after he put the grey piece back on the chessboard. He had never felt close to the humans, and fusing with a Cursed Dragon worsened that aspect of him. His success in turning himself into a hybrid had put him into a completely different species, especially after his breakthroughs modified his centers of power further. Noah could think like a human and understand their mindsets, but he wasn''t one of them, not entirely at least. He felt much closer to the magical beasts because he liked living in the wilderness. The lack of political restrictions and the absence of any rule suited him much. Also, power was the foundation of the world of the beasts, which was entirely in line with his existence. However, they were limited too. Creatures driven only by instincts couldn''t reflect him. They couldn''t even begin to represent his complex mind. As for the hybrids, they were part of his same species in theory. Still, even them failed to express the entirety of his existence. After all, Noah was a fake. He had created his hybrid status through an inscription method, which was a tool used by cultivators. Also, his path deviated from the type of hybrids of the ancestors of the natives. They would give away their individualities to obtain the power to devour laws and become the enemy of Heaven and Earth. Truth to be told, Noah didn''t know if there were other types of hybrids out there. His knowledge was limited to two Mortal Lands, and one of them had produced only him as a member of that species. However, he still felt different from them since his hybrid status was the product of an inscription method. "I respect you," Noah said, breaking the silence in the room and surprising Shandal, who was still confused about his previous actions. "Still," Noah continued after a brief pause, "I don''t care about any of this." The will''s ethereal eyes widened when he heard his words, but Noah was not finished yet. "I will go against Heaven and Earth," Noah said as he laid a finger on an empty spot of the chessboard. "But this isn''t my main goal. I don''t care about the grudges, about your noble mission, and about their plan to use divine entities as guinea pigs. All of this is meaningless to me." Cracks started to appear on the odd chessboard as Noah decided to put a bit of pressure on it. A large fissure eventually appeared and divided the entire item in two, making all the pieces on it fall on the table and floor. Shandal still didn''t act. He wouldn''t bother about a single item when such a peculiar cultivator was showing his nature right in front of him. "What do you care about then?" Shandal asked, failing to hide his curiosity on the matter. For someone who had lived more than fifty thousand years, seeing something so out of the schemes was refreshing other than enjoyable. Noah increased the pressure on the broken chessboard as he replied. "I''ll die if my individuality turns out to be too much to handle. I don''t care. I''ve already died once too." The rest of the chessboard fell apart at that point, and even the table under it shattered as Noah continued to put pressure and speak. "Yet, I won''t cut away parts of me to make my path easier. I understand that you have been mesmerized by the white sky, but my eyes have never once stopped at it. I can only see the blinding stars in the black firmament." Chapter 894: 894. Mark Shandal''s will could only remain silent when he heard Noah''s words. It was his first time hearing about such a peculiar individuality. Noah appeared as a madman who had gone crazy over his thirst for power in his eyes. After all, who could disregard the entire world to chase after the distant stars in the sky? Yet, Noah had been calm during his speech, and his entire figure brimmed with cold confidence that the will couldn''t help but notice. Part of Shandal now understood how Noah''s existence was able to spread Heaven and Earth''s mistake in the world. His gestures, his words, and his attitude were able to affect those around him and leave a mark in their existence. Shandal could feel his ambition rise after hearing him. The peace that he had reached after so many years spent stuck in those Mortal Lands faltered for a second as he bathed in Noah''s individuality. Of course, his mind was firm and could restore the calmness that Noah had disrupted. Still, the fact that such a young cultivator could almost leave a mark on him was amazing. Shandal could now comprehend why Noah wouldn''t limit his individuality too. He couldn''t hold back that boundless ambition that accompanied his every action. It was a drive that even a god would find it hard to suppress. Also, if Noah managed to push that feeling to the divine ranks, he would become a real threat for Heaven and Earth''s rule. Shandal knew that it would be hard, but the confidence that he had felt in his words was enough to make him believe that maybe Noah had a shot at succeeding. "Transmigration or not," Shandal said, "You would have been a monster anyway. Don''t make me wait for your Tribulation. I can''t wait to see what kind of lightning Heaven comes up with." Noah didn''t answer him. His mind was already wandering in the memories of the test of his attitude in the Royal Academy. He would never forget the feelings that he had experienced in his dream, and visualizing those images again could help him choose which item he had to pick. It was clear that each of his three choices would benefit him in some ways, but he couldn''t decide on which one would be the best for him. So, he would let his ambition decide. Noah didn''t lack resources or techniques in the end. Most of his projects were on hold because he was prioritizing his higher energy, but he was far from being without ideas on how to improve. He would have an easier time choosing something if there was an item that improved his training, but the things related to the darkness element were fewer, and he didn''t want to pick weapons or defensive methods. Shandal could understand what was going on in his mind. After all, he had summoned him mainly to help him choose something that suited him. "You seem to be doing well already," Shandal said while Noah was in the middle of reminiscing his dream. "You don''t need a perfect item. Just pick the most interesting one." Noah turned toward the will at that point and replied with a nod. Shandal was right. He was overthinking the matter because he wanted to optimize his journey to the higher ranks in the best way possible. Yet, he had failed to realize that he had already done that. Anything else would be something that enhanced qualities that were nearing perfection. Noah was about to perform a slight bow to thank him when he thought about the invading forces raiding the remaining territories of the Empire. Also, thoughts about the Odrea nation and that separate dimension joined that wave of information too. "You know that the Empire won''t last long, right?" Noah asked in a plain tone. Shandal was still a god. If his mood changed, most of the current organizations would fall apart under his power. Even his will would be enough to unleash enough destruction with all the divine weapons stored inside the castle. Noah was trying to see if the will was even slightly emotional about his country and belongings before joining the next war. He would avoid fighting an organization that had such deep reserves otherwise. Shandal though shook his head before reassuring him. "You are meant to take it. The battle will be bloody, but it will give birth to a stronger generation of cultivators." Then, he pointed at the ceiling and continued. "Take the cultivators in the Odrea nation too. I am in the Immortal Lands now, stealing as much as I can before Heaven and Earth notice me. I don''t need any other motivation to keep cultivating." In the end, he drew a circle with his index and continued. "No one else will find this land. I will take everything away before anyone comes near the Mausoleum. I will leave only a few pieces of the sky as a reward. Who knows? There might be another talent hidden somewhere." Shandal''s words made Noah understand that the god had allowed them to gain access to the castle even before they learnt about the central storm. It seemed that his commitment to nurturing talents was enough to make him give up part of his collection. Noah left a few minutes after those words. The two of them didn''t have anything else to talk about, and Shandal was very secretive for what concerned the Immortal Lands. His take on the matter was just another method meant to force cultivators to grow on their own and develop laws that Heaven and Earth couldn''t take. Kindling their curiosity could help in their journey. When Noah returned to the throne room, he found his companions cultivating in silence and inspecting their new items with eager eyes. They couldn''t store them inside their space-rings because something on that level would crack the formations used for the creation of their devices. Only June could save hers since the inscriptions on her tome only preserved its integrity. June interrupted her meditation when she sensed his aura and revealed a smile toward him. Noah sat next to her and heaved a sigh. The talk with Shandal had been brief, but it had helped him discover something about the Immortal Lands, other than solving his doubts for what concerned his reward. "What will you choose?" June asked when she saw that Noah''s doubts had disappeared from his expression. "The will made me realize that I''m not doing bad for my age," Noah replied. "You are breaking a record with every breakthrough," June said. "I don''t know if there is a way to train faster." "I know," Noah agreed with her. "It would be different if there were Kesier runes here. Still, I''ll take the diagram since it seems to contain an interesting spell. We have to pick something for Chasing Demon, and we are done here." Chapter 895: 895. Life The dense dark gas capable of expressing different shapes of the "Breath" of the darkness element could be useful. Still, it wasn''t a divine item, and Noah had already created his darkness. His goal now was to build something stronger that didn''t follow the laws of the world. The core item would also be his darkness, which was already outside Heaven and Earth''s system. So, the gas could only help him in his meditation. As for the mirror, it was a divine item, but it didn''t suit Noah''s main inscription method. It would still help him during his experiments, and using it with the Divine Deduction technique would reduce the time needed to complete his tests. Yet, it wasn''t something crucial to his cultivation journey. Also, the time spent in the experiments wasn''t exactly wasted. Noah''s expertise would increase as it did his understanding of a specific topic. Reaching results more quickly was generally better. However, Noah would grow more slowly as an inscription master if he faced fewer failures. All in all, both items were useful and could improve his current situation, but their effects would be minimal since his foundation was already sturdy. They weren''t necessary. On the other hand, Noah found the diagram interesting, even if it didn''t provide any evident benefit. The fact that Shandal didn''t manage to discover its effects after millennia of research was a clear sign of its value. Also, it involved the darkness element, which meant that it required a cultivator with the same aptitude to work. Human cultivators couldn''t look at it either, and Noah could only think that its power had to be incredible to produce such effects just in its diagram form. Hence his decision to pick it. There were even his instincts involved in the matter. Noah felt as if those intricate lines hid an incredible power that he wasn''t able to put into words due to his poor understanding of the laws. Noah and the Demons excluded most of the group when it came to deciding the last item. They still had a spot available, and they thought that it would be better to choose something that could benefit the Hive as a whole or their Patriarch. Yet, that matter was too private to include June and Faith, and the three of them eventually choose to exclude even Daniel since they would have to discuss Chasing Demon''s individuality to pick a suitable item. "It''s life, Noah," Dreaming Demon said as the three of them walked through the corridors of the castle. "Rufus'' individuality is about life." Noah nodded at her words but didn''t probe further. He could vaguely guess that Charming Demon''s death had influenced the Patriarch''s individuality, but that would be a private matter that only his friends could know. Noah was the Demon Prince and the possible heir to the seat of Patriarch of the Hive. Still, he wasn''t as close to Chasing Demon as those with whom he had shared most of his life. It was mostly a matter of cultivation level. The two Demons had learnt to know Rufus when they were in similar or close ranks, while Noah was just a human cultivator when he first met him. Even with his incredible growth, there was still some distance between Noah and Chasing Demon. Their relationship couldn''t help but be a bit complex since Divine Demon was involved in their meeting. Chasing Demon worshipped his Master, and he had acted according to that feeling when Noah claimed his inheritance. The two of them had then begun to know each other better through the years, but the duties of a Patriarch and Noah''s adventures always left little time available. They didn''t have the chance to become close yet, and things could only change when Noah reached his level. So, the Demon''s judgment was above his in the decision of the item. It would be up to them to pick something that suited the Patriarch or the Hive in general if they didn''t find anything suitable. Noah was there mostly because of his instincts, expertise in particular fields, and because his status made him eligible to know such information. It didn''t take much to find the perfect reward for the Patriarch. The three of them had already explored the castle twice and knew what could go along with his individuality. Noah and the Demons found themselves in front of a small humanoid puppet made of a brown-red clay. It was only the size of a man''s fist, but an oppressing aura came out of its figure. The puppet was something capable of unleashing power at the bottom of the divine ranks, and it involved the earth element, which matched Chasing Demon''s aptitude. Also, it was useful both to attack and defend, which even benefitted the Hive as a whole. "None of us has found such a perfect match, and he didn''t even need to come here!" Flying Demon exclaimed before exploding into a loud laugh. His words were on point. All the members of the group had to settle for items that only neared perfect suitability. Instead, Chasing Demon would obtain something that matched both his individuality and his role as Patriarch of the Hive. However, there was no malice in Flying Demon''s words. He felt truly happy for his friend, and his companions thought in the same way. "Can we even carry it outside of the dimension?" Noah asked as he inspected the puppet. Its size made it appear harmless, but his instincts told him not to come near it. "It says here that we only need to keep it away from the ground," Dreaming Demon pointed out as she read the description under it. "Do you want to do the honors?" Noah asked while taking a step back. Flying Demon couldn''t help but reveal a smirk at his action, and he spoke through his teeth as he turned toward his lover. "Let''s make your snake touch it first." "Indeed," Noah quickly agreed with him. "You told us that she wouldn''t remember anything anyway once your mental energy leaves her mind." Dreaming Demon nodded at their suggestion before focusing on her connection with Raphaelle to summon her in that hall. Once the group settled the matter of the rewards, they only had one last decision to make. The eight of them wouldn''t have problems carrying outside those items since they had chosen them considering that issue. Yet, some of them would have to bring them in their hands since the rewards were too powerful to enter their space-rings. Noah was an exception due to his rank 6 storage device, but even he had to make some room to accommodate the stuffed winged beast. As for the diagram, its lines were intricate and exuded a strange aura, but they were still just part of a diagram. It wasn''t an issue storing it inside his ring. The problem that they had to discuss now concerned their return to the outside world, and, more specifically, how long they would spend inside that separate dimension. Chapter 896: 896. Strength The sky of Shandal''s separate dimension was beneficial for the seas of consciousness, and the territories of that landmass contained various fauna filled by many powerful creatures. The winds made of laws were the real treasure though. Cultivators could improve their understanding of the later stages of the heroic ranks thanks to those gales. They were what made the Mausoleum an incredible training area for experts at that level. It was needless to say that all the members of Noah''s group didn''t want to leave that place. Only the snakes were an exception because they had been stuck there since the fall of their Mortal Lands. However, there were pressing political matters in the outside world that required those cultivators'' presence. June had to inform the Elbas family about the contents of the Odrea nation. Noah had to take back his place in Divine Market city to reestablish the influence of the Hive on that neutral territory. The same went for Daniel, who was another valuable asset in the ranks of the Hive. They couldn''t remain there since the outside world needed to know that they were available and not in some mission. Of course, time was relative when it came to rank 5 existences since hey could spend decades in their caves or habitation to complete experiments. Being missing for a year or two was entirely understandable for experts on their level, especially since their mission involved divine entities. Faith had a little better than her companions. The Council was powerful even without her, and the higher-ups wanted to regain her trust. The Elders of the Papral nation would look for her only if she had been missing for decades, and that wasn''t in the group''s plan. Yet, even if they couldn''t stay there for decades, they could still spend a few years seizing as benefits as they could. After all, anyone could exit the separate dimension and contact the organizations behind them to keep them updated about their status. Making up a story for their organizations wasn''t an issue since Shandal was open about his behavior. The will would just run away with most of his belongings as soon as a significant raid arrived, leaving no proof of his imitation of the Immortal Lands. Noah''s group could say that they had found an inheritance ground and that only the members of the Hive had obtained some rewards. There was a risk with that approach. Flying Demon had to inherit Shandal''s individuality, which was a slow and dangerous process. Exposing the existence of a divine inheritance ground could make the invading troops start another war to seize it. That would take away precious time from Flying Demon, and Noah wanted the inheriting process to be as smooth as possible. Also, the invading forces weren''t ready for an all-war again. They were still recovering from the previous battles, and exploiting the benefits of the new continent was the perfect way to put more distance between them and the Empire. They had to find a justification that didn''t trigger a mass invasion. Something that would buy enough time not to ruin both Flying Demon''s gains and the war that they were waging. In the end, they decided to remain in the separate dimension for three more years. The six of them mostly trained and made use of the incredible features of those lands in that period. With Shandal''s cooperation, they didn''t need to return near the void to escape from the central storm and could make use of the teleportation matrices inside the castle. They would go out and search for the winds or isolate inside the structure to focus on their power. Of course, Noah went out often since he needed to appease his hunger, but June always followed him and kept herself busy fighting other powerful creatures to express her individuality. Flying Demon spent most of his time in a separate hall with Shandal, and his companions didn''t fail to notice how his aura slowly changed as the months passed. Still, they weren''t worried about his well-being since Dreaming Demon would often observe his training session to make sure that the will didn''t try anything funny. Noah even resumed experimenting with higher energy. Shandal didn''t want to give him a private training area at the beginning because he felt that he was spoiling the group too much. Yet, he soon provided Noah with what he needed once his experiments started to explode and spread their destructive effects through the castle. Noah''s failures couldn''t create structural damages to that structure, but Shandal felt worried that the shockwaves released in the explosions could affect some of the weaker items in his collections. So, he appointed him to a reinforced room that didn''t even bulge when his experiments detonated. Nevertheless, the group eventually left the castle through a teleportation matrix and reappeared near the formation that led to the third layer of the Mausoleum. The two Demons weren''t there, but Noah had managed to submit another hybrid during his hunts. It was a rank 5 River Beaver whose intelligence was still childlike since it had evolved from an Elite beast when the compound activated. Noah would leave the matter to educate it to Danielle once he returned to the outside world. Still, for now, he just kept it sealed, just like he did with the other two snakes. The group didn''t hesitate to activate the teleportation matrix, and the seven of them soon saw the walls of the Mausoleum again. A small commotion happened inside the third layer when the rank 3 cultivators saw the appearance of the three powerful hybrids. However, Noah quickly suppressed it with the words that they had been waiting for their entire lives. "Gather everyone. It''s time to take you out of this wasted nation." Chaos swept the entirety of the Odrea nation after his declaration. Still, the citizens of that country didn''t take much to gather everything they had and reach the edge of the defensive formation that isolated them from the outside world. A crowd made of thousands of human cultivators gathered in a spot that Noah had pointed. He then activated the door that the Demons had previously created to bring that crowd to the separate dimension of the Hive. "Where should they go?" Thirty-seven asked when he saw Noah and the others following the crowd through the door. "Send them to the Coral Archipelago," Noah answered. "I''ve already warned the others of their arrival." Noah noticed Lisa looking for him through the crowd, but he ignored her. He had far more pressing matters to handle. Faith neared him and handed him her divine bracelet. For their story to work, only the members of the Hive could reveal their gains from the separate dimension, and Faith couldn''t hide her reward. So, the Hive would store it and wait for her to pick it up after the political situation calmed down. After all, someone could be waiting for them outside of the separate dimension, and that encounter could require a show of strength. Chapter 897: 897. Expected Noah and the others had created an excellent story to justify their divine items while preventing the other organizations from sending other teams in the Odrea country. They had revealed the existence of a separate dimension under the Mausoleum, and they had described it as an inheritance ground that tried to imitate the Immortal Lands. Their story fit what the world knew about the god of the Empire and even explained why they had gained access to divine items when they were only rank 5 cultivators. According to that lie, the group would have slowly explored that foreign land filled with dangers in the last five years. Yet, when they reached the rewards, they triggered a reaction in the separate dimension. The inheritance ground detonated, and the void enveloped its entire space. It was only due to the group''s careful approach that the cultivators had managed to return to the outside world in time while also seizing the divine items. Of course, Noah and the others could invent that story only because Shandal''s will was cooperating. They knew what would have been his reaction in the occasion of a raid, and they could use that information to fabricate a believable lie. Even if the Elbas family and the Council were to explore the separate dimension in the future anyway, they would only confirm their story. However, there were bound to be doubts, especially when it came to an inheritance ground storing divine items. There didn''t need to be glaring pieces of evidence about the group''s lie to cause a reaction in the forces that didn''t manage to obtain anything. One small discrepancy or ambiguous detail in their story was enough to make at least part of those organizations take action. Greed could lead humans to destruction, but it was also one of their most intense urges in life, and Noah knew that far too well. June and Faith had given vague reports to their organizations during their stay inside the separate dimension, and they had only revealed the entirety of their lie when they left it. Those two mighty forces wouldn''t have time to prepare much with such short notice, but they were still leading organizations in those Mortal Lands. They could come up with something fairly quickly, especially if they had begun to suspect something in those years. As for why they would even start to suspect them, Noah knew that it was because of him. There was a nation where only Noah could enter, and Elder Julia had prevented the other forces from matching the cultivators deployed by the Hive. The situation was already strange, and Noah''s fame wasn''t good to begin with. His missions usually led to significant consequences in the political environment in the world, and his enemies knew that he didn''t act unless he had a valuable reason. Of course, they didn''t think that June and Faith were involved in that possible ploy. The Council and the Elbas family knew that their relationship wasn''t bad after the events in the neutral city, but it would take decades of friendship to convince them to try to trick their organizations. Unluckily for them, Noah and June had spent a lot of time together, and Faith had become attached to them reasonably quickly. Also, there were oaths in place between the women and the Hive, which preserved their credibility. Noah, June, Faith, Daniel, the two Ghostly Snakes, and the River Beaver came out of the underwater cave where they had first used the separate dimension to cross the formation around Odrea country. Nothing had changed in those years, and the cave still had the curtain that blocked the investigation of eventual cultivators there. Yet, Noah didn''t feel safe to see that no one had entered that place. That could be a strategy meant to make him lower his guard. Noah''s instincts as a lone cultivator made him consider every eventuality. There was a chance that he was being paranoid, but he was too used to the methods of the Elbas family not to expect something. After all, the Royals and the Council knew that they would come out from that spot since June and Faith had warned them. Also, Noah couldn''t request the help of the Hive because that would be suspicious. No innocent man would ask for reinforcement when he didn''t expect a battle. Noah was trying to appear entirely in the right in that situation so that the Hive wouldn''t endure the consequences of his actions. The group came out of the cave slowly and with their consciousnesses wholly unfolded. The lack of any evident danger made them advance and exit the bottom of the old continent so that they could return to the surface. As they tried to resurface though, spells materialized in the water around them and shot in their direction. Noah felt surprised at that sight, but not because he didn''t expect an ambush. What startled him was the trajectory of the attacks. Generally speaking, his enemies would try to focus him because his power had always been unclear. He usually became stronger after every mission, which made it hard to estimate his actual strength. That left the eventual assailants no choice but to take care of him first to make sure that their plan would work. Yet, those spells were aiming for Daniel, and they were even trying to ignore June and Faith. ''Aiming for the weakest link?'' Noah wondered as he released a roar. His pride spread from his figure and reached the three hybrids who felt compelled to execute his orders. The two Snakes became immaterial, and the Beaver started to swim around the group to create a series of dense currents to protect them. The Demonic Sword also came out of Noah''s robe and launched black slashes against the incoming attacks. The ambush appeared quite threatening. Noah could recognize five spells with power in the gaseous stage of the fifth rank and one that matched the offensive of liquid stage cultivators! There was a real expert among the attackers, but Noah hadn''t been able to sense the incoming danger even with his innate awareness. It was needless to say that his mental waves weren''t able to find the enemies either. Two sharks made of water, a snakelike whip made of sand, two fiery spears, and a barrage of ice shards ran through the dark water to reach for the cultivators. The world turned dark for a few instants as a wave of flames followed Noah''s roar. His targets were the ice shards since they had the power in the liquid stage. Nevertheless, he wasn''t the only one who had reacted in time. June was already creating crackling orange spheres that were spreading a barrier between them and the spells. Faith had taken control of the water around them, making it so dense that it separated from the rest of the sea. Daniel''s light had followed the brief moment of darkness caused by Noah, and a white halo formed another layer of defense around the group. All of them were ready to fight that foreseen threat. Chapter 898: 898. Formation Noah''s flames landed on the incoming spells and depleted part of their power. His focus was on the dangerous ice shards, but his attack was wide enough to hit the other abilities too. The slashes of the Demonic Sword landed on the water sharks and spread a cloud of corrosive black smoke in their spot. The gas reached for the other spells too, but there was little that it could do. The Ghostly Snakes then appeared in the trajectory of the spells and used their vast bodies to block most of them. As beings with a body in the upper tier, the Snakes could face the spells in the gaseous stage without any problem. Yet, the shards pierced their skin, and some of them created injuries that reached for their muscles. A few shards and the whip managed to cross the blockage, but the various defensive measures deployed by Noah''s companions held their ground against that offensive and blocked the spells. The first clash ended with the Snakes suffering a series of wounds, but they were mostly superficial injuries and didn''t affect their battle prowess. ''Still nothing,'' Noah thought since his consciousness failed to sense the attackers. It was as if the spells had appeared out of thin air, without anyone fueling them. That was impossible unless there was an existence powerful enough to cover their presence. Still, Noah felt quite sure that the leader of that operation was the rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage hidden somewhere in the sea. It wouldn''t make sense for someone more potent than that to remain hidden during an ambush. ''There are inscriptions involved,'' Noah concluded in his mind when he couldn''t find another explanation for that event. Only formations and other similar methods could hide cultivators on that level while also allowing them to attack. That discovery surprised him. It hadn''t even been a day since June and Faith had warned their organizations about their arrival. However, Noah was almost sure that the Elbas family was involved, which made his knowledge in the inscription field unsuitable to judge what was possible. The Royals were unbeatable in that field, and the situation would be even worse if they had obtained the help of the Council. Breaking that siege had suddenly become incredibly hard in Noah''s mind. "Formations that deal with illusions and space have limited width and a command center nearby," June said as she prepared more defensive spells. "We can try to sprint, but I don''t think that they didn''t do anything to prevent that." June specialized in certain types of formations, but she had a general understanding of that inscription method. Her words helped Noah decide what to do next to escape from that situation. The same spells reappeared in the distance and shot once again toward the group. However, their defenses were already in place at that time. The cultivators only had to put some power in them to restore their structure after the previous clash, but they had enough time to attack before the spells arrived. Noah roared and slashed with his living weapon. A series of flames and black lines shot from his figure and aimed for the incoming attacks. Also, his cry contained specific orders for the Ghostly Snakes, who became ethereal and disappeared from the battlefield. Daniel spread his white halo even more, and the water that his spell touched began to boil due to the properties of his individuality. June launched a series of lightning bolts while creating more orange spheres. As for Faith, she limited herself to help the River Beaver in the deployment of defensive measures. With two members of their team holding back, they couldn''t express their full power. Noah wasn''t using his Demonic Form because it would affect his companions, and June was sticking to the "Breath" of the lightning element since they didn''t know the identity of the assailers. They were still able to hold on, but they would be forced to use their full power if they didn''t find a way out of that situation. Raphaelle materialized once again in the trajectory of the spells after they had clashed with the group''s attacks. Joel, instead, was nowhere to be seen. The second clash left Raphaelle in an even worse state, and her body alone wasn''t able to block all the attacks. Some of them landed on the defensive measures deployed by Noah''s companions and destroyed a large part of them. The might of a rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage wasn''t something that experts in the gaseous stage could block easily. Yet, the joint efforts of the group managed to prevent anything too bad from happening. The Ghostly Snakes were the only ones suffering injuries. The third series of spells appeared in the same spot and shot toward the group. However, a hissing sound started to spread through the environment at that point. Noah''s eyes lit up when he heard that cry, and black smoke began to come out of his figure. One of the advantages of being with other hybrids was that they could communicate in a language that humans couldn''t even begin to understand. With his previous cry, Noah had ordered Joel to use its innate ability to swim part the boundaries of the formation and find the command center mentioned by June. The hissing that he was spreading in the environment was his sign that he had found something. Four additional arms went to wield four copies of the Demonic Sword that had appeared as soon as the black smoke completed the scaled armor. Noah performed a quick slash, but his target wasn''t the incoming spells. He had launched his most potent attack on a seemingly random spot. June and the others felt forced to put some distance between them and Noah. The corrosive smoke was deadly even for them, and Noah''s sea of consciousness was the most advanced of the group. Also, his darkness fueled all of his attacks. Their power was far above the average of those launched by cultivators on his level. The very fabric of the environment around them began to shake as a fissure appeared in the sea. The tremors revealed shining lines placed in the water all around them. Noah could see a small cave built at the bottom of the sea through the fissure created by his attack. Now that his mental energy could inspect it, he understood that the water on that side felt different compared to that around him. Also, all the inscriptions that had appeared after Noah''s attack had confirmed that they were inside a formation. The spells eventually reached the group and clashed with the defensive measures and the Ghostly Snakes once again. The defenses held even without Noah''s flames, but the Snakes were about to suffer serious injuries. The group had to finish the battle quickly before they started to suffer real losses. Yet, only one of them had the strength to affect the control center. It wasn''t a matter of distance. The control center was too sturdy for ordinary cultivators in the gaseous stage to handle. Chapter 899: 899. Ligh "Nothing?" Noah asked as he executed the second form of his martial art, targeting the cave seen outside of the formation. His voice came out as a guttural growl due to the Demonic Form and his beast''s features. "Nothing!" Daniel exclaimed as he stored his inscribed notebook back in his space-ring and resumed fueling his white halo. "No mental message seems able to escape the area." The group had faced six more series of spells already by then, but their situation was about to become critical. The Ghostly Sakes were still doing their job as meat shields, but injuries filled their bodies, and some wounds even reached for their internal organs. Also, their instincts were starting to take control of their bodies and making them ignore Noah''s orders. Noah was using his pride to force the hybrids to maintain their sanity. Yet, their survival instinct was becoming more intense as the state of their bodies worsened. It was only a matter of time before the Snakes stopped using their reason and escaped the formation with their innate ability, leaving the rest of the group alone in the siege. Their sacrifice though had allowed the cultivators to block all the attacks and give Noah enough room to continue targeting the control center. The water around the group trembled again after Noah''s last attack, and the same series of shining lines appeared in that part of the sea. Some of them even fell apart during the tremors, but the formation was still mostly intact. ''They did this in less than a day!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he released another roar to suppress the instincts of the snakes. ''We would have already exposed some secret if it wasn''t for the hybrids.'' It was clear that their assailant had come prepared. They had deployed manpower stronger than Noah''s group, and they were even making use of an annoying formation. If Noah hadn''t submitted the three hybrids, they would have been forced to use all their assets to survive, which meant revealing June''s higher energy and the separate dimension. However, there was hope to keep their secrets hidden thanks to the sacrifice of the Snakes. After all, that was the whole point of their lie. Revealing the divine items would protect June and Faith''s status in their organizations and make their story more believable. The women''s cover would be exposed if the Hive was to reveal their divine items in the next years, and the organizations behind them would still think about creating raiding parties if they didn''t have a decoy. Instead, knowing that such precious objects were in the hands of the Hive would move their attention away from the separate dimension and give Flying Demon enough time to inherit Shandal''s individuality. Also, the other organizations would start to fear the Hive more if they knew that it owned those powerful tools. Fame and reputation could be the end of a lone cultivator, but they were an armor when it came to organizations. The copying formation already discouraged anyone from attacking the Hive, and the knowledge that it owned divine items would only strengthen that feeling. The only issue now was to make those items reach the safety of the Hive. Daniel had his emblem hung on his neck, and the fact that his robe covered it didn''t prevent its powerful aura from leaking in the environment. Meanwhile, Noah had both the stuffed beast and the diagram in his space-ring, which hid their presence. That was the reason why all the spells kept on aiming for Daniel. It seemed that the assailants weren''t trying to take down the entire group, but force them to give up on that divine asset before someone noticed that they were late. Noah''s eyes became cold when he saw the shining lines disappear again in the water. At that sight, it became clear in his mind that the Ghostly Snakes would die before he could destroy the entirety of the formation. It would be up to the group to face the full power of the spells once the protection of the hybrids vanished, and targeting the control center while defending could be a problem. Noah''s mind worked at full speed as he analyzed the situation. The Divine Deduction technique consumed his mental energy to evaluate how much the formation could endure, and if the group could destroy it without revealing anything. The answer was negative. Noah and the others would still need to use some of their hidden assets even if the Snakes gave their lives to defend them. Noah made his mind at that point. Daniel saw the fiendish figure nodding at him, and he didn''t hesitate to take the emblem in his grasp. If they had to reveal something anyway, they might as well use the divine items before the hybrids died. After all, the world already knew about them. Also, the effects of Daniel''s emblem were straightforward. The item gathered light and unleashed it to eliminate any threat attempting at the life of its wielder. Shandal had kept it charged, which allowed Daniel to activate it straight away and without the need of any "Breath". He only had to use a minute part of his mental energy to trigger its effects. The tenth series of spells formed and shot toward the group, but a blinding light soon filled the entire underwater area. The effects of the divine item were the exact opposite of Noah''s flames, even if they both turned the witnesses blind for a few seconds. Noah saw his world become completely white, and he couldn''t help but spread his mouth at that sight. Dense "Breath" entered his body and nourished his lungs. Still, the ability of the Curse Dragon species wasn''t able to create the usual black halo around him at that time. There was too much light, and its might even stretched outside of the formation. Noah sensed that his Demonic Form fell apart as the light swept him. It seemed that the defensive item saw the unruly properties of the black smoke as a threat to its wielder. However, it didn''t affect any living being. Both Noah and the Demonic Sword didn''t suffer at all inside that halo. The same went for his companions, and only some of June''s orange spheres vanished due to the effects of the emblem. The other defensive spells remained in place instead. When the halo vanished, Noah and the others discovered that they could breathe again. The emblem had destroyed the entirety of the formation, creating an empty sphere right in the middle of the sea. The water soon filled that gap, and the cultivators could sense that the sea had changed once they were submerged again. However, they didn''t waste time analyzing it since they weren''t safe yet. A roar ran under the sea, and black smoke began to spread once again since Noah quickly reactivated the Demonic Form. June and the others prepared their offensive spells too at that signal, and the Snakes became immaterial to prepare for the imminent clash. They could finally charge ahead now that the formation was gone. Chapter 900: 900. Head Noah and the others couldn''t know how effective the emblem would have been, but it did far more than its description implied. The item had taken care of all the threats in a large area, destroying the entirety of the formation that kept the group trapped. It had even affected Noah''s Demonic Form, but it seemed unable to hurt living beings since the hybrids were fine. The Ghostly Snakes'' minds were at their limits, and their instincts were about to take control of their bodies. The emblem would have targeted them if it could affect living beings. The only drawback of that divine item was the amount of light needed to recharge it. It wouldn''t be a problem for a divine cultivator with a light aptitude to keep it always ready, but Daniel was only a being in the fifth rank. No one in the group knew how long it would take for the emblem to become operational again. Daniel''s only hope was that Chasing Demon decided to relocate some of the resources of the Hive for that purpose. Nevertheless, the state of the emblem was the last of the group''s problems right now. Noah performed the second form of the Dragon''s Claw martial art as soon as the Demonic Form reactivated. A tall fissure appeared in the sea and created an empty path that connected Noah and the cave in the distance. Without the obstruction of the formation, Noah''s attack managed to reach the control center and create a deep crack in that area. An earthquake soon filled the bottom of the sea, but no one came out of the destroyed cave. It seemed that that place was abandoned and only functioned as the core of the formation. June and the others were ready to charge, but the outcome of Noah''s attack made them stop their tracks. Their enemies weren''t there. "They have to be near!" June shouted as she unfolded her consciousness to search for the assailants. She knew that the inscriptions didn''t store the spells inside the formation. They required someone nearby to use and redirect them into specific matrices meant to teleport the attacks inside the isolated area. Nevertheless, the fact that their enemies had yet to appear meant that they had no intention of revealing their presence. It was highly possible that they had considered the ambush a failure already and that they had started to run away. After all, that area was near the Coral Archipelago, and Daniel had just activated a divine item. The experts in the islands couldn''t miss that disturbance and would investigate the matter. Also, Noah and Daniel were late for their appointment in the Archipelago. The mission was over by then, and the group had to split so that everyone could return to their respective organizations. The battle didn''t last much, but the Elders of the Hive hadn''t been able to contact Noah and Daniel in that period. Noah was sure that reinforcements were already on the way, especially since the rank 5 Elders knew that the group was probably walking into a trap. However, Noah didn''t want to let the assailants go. He wanted to know which organizations were involved in the ambush. The current political situations wouldn''t allow him to exploit the eventual capture of one of them. Still, Noah could at least understand who was so bold to attack them while the Empire still had a rank 6 existence. Of course, his suspects were the Royals. Yet, there was a chance that the Council had decided to join the ambush due to its greed. Noah''s consciousness expanded to its limits, but it didn''t manage to sense any living being. That area of the sea even lacked magical beasts! Yet, his mental energy wasn''t his only hunting tool. Noah deactivated the Divine Deduction technique and let the sensations felt by his body fill his mind with countless pieces of information. As a cultivator that had fused with a Cursed Dragon, Noah found himself at a disadvantage when hunting underwater. However, he was still superior to any cultivator in that field. Noah sensed the faint trace of a warm current coming from the distance, and his body reacted instinctively to that input. He roared and used the Merging spell to sprint where his instincts pointed him. According to his body, something alive was at some distance in that direction. The Demonic Sword in his hands echoed his battle cry, and the two of them shot through the sea as they chased after that faint trace of life. Noah understood that the trace of life was trying to escape as soon as he became close to it. Still, he was faster, and his mental energy was able to sense the existence in the distance rather quickly. It was a rank 5 cultivator in the gaseous stage, and Noah couldn''t understand more even when his eyes became able to see the escaping figure. The assailant was wearing a black robe that hid their gender. Noah could only understand the cultivation level of his enemy without being able to gather any other clue. More hooded figures soon showed their presence inside the range of Noah''s consciousness. It seemed that they were converging in the same position from different spots. ''A teleportation matrix!'' Noah shouted in his mind when he understood what they were up to. The group of assailants probably had only one escape route. That was to be expected since they didn''t have much time to prepare. Noah guessed that they had set the teleportation matrix before even knowing when he and his companions were about to come out of the separate dimension. ''They were ready for this eventuality even before the end of the mission,'' Noah thought as coldness filled his body. He knew that he was flying alone toward six rank 5 cultivators, but he didn''t slow down. He would gladly endure one of their attacks just for the chance of uncovering their identities. The assailants didn''t turn back and moved at full speed toward a seemingly random spot in the sea bed. The sandy ground lit up when the first assailant stepped on the area that featured the teleportation matrix. The halo radiated from the array started to fill the environment as the shining lines prepared themselves for their activation. Noah understood that he wouldn''t reach the group on time. Each one of them had started to fly before him, and even his superior speed couldn''t make him stop them. So, he stopped and executed the second form of his martial art. The other five figures reached the teleportation matrix and jumped straight into its halo, but a fissure soon appeared in that spot and made part of the light disappear. However, as the lines stopped shining and the halo dispersed, Noah couldn''t see anyone standing on top of the destroyed formation. There were some traces of blood, and even a hand that belonged to a man had remained behind. Noah sighed and dispersed the Demonic Form as he reached for the hand. Yet, he stopped when the tattoo of a horned human head suddenly appeared on its back. Chapter 901: 901. Battle Spiri The horned head resembled the tattoo that appeared on the cultivators of the Chasing Demon sect when they joined it. Yet, Noah knew that the assailant couldn''t possibly be a traitor since his status as Demon Prince would prevent any member of the Hive from attacking him. It was hard to create oaths able to restrict rank 5 cultivators, but they would be almost impossible to break once sworn them. Only a stronger existence or an inscribed item meant solely for that purpose could help in that matter. Nevertheless, the oath of the assailant was still active and didn''t react to Noah''s presence, meaning that the cultivator couldn''t belong to the Hive. ''The traces of the Morphing Demon sect led to the Utra nation,'' Noah thought as he reviewed what he had discovered during his mission for the Patriarch. ''The Bleeding Demon sect should be one of the tribes recruited by the Shandal Empire, and the same should have happened to the Thieving Demon sect, even if it ended in the Papral nation instead. Still, they shouldn''t have the power to ambush us.'' The clues found in his mission hinted that all the surviving Demon sects had lost most of their assets during the escape. Even those recruited by the other nations were bound to be in a poor state back then. The image of a tall red-haired man appeared in his mind as he pondered about the issue. The truth was that Noah had thought about the Ravaging Demon sect as soon as he saw the horned face. After all, Ravaging Demon had his reasons to target the Hive, and he still had access to the full power of his sect. Noah didn''t know how strong his organization was, but it must have thrived in the thousand years after his betrayal. Ravaging Demon had played a vital role in the battle between unorthodox and orthodox sects, so his position in the Council had to be important. However, Noah knew that the Demon was at the peak of the fifth rank, which meant that there was a limit to how many rank 5 cultivators were willing to follow him. Of course, those were just hypotheses based on pieces of information that he had gathered through the years. Still, he had a way to confirm his ideas. The horned head vanished after a few seconds, and the hand became nothing more than a useless body part that carried no clues. Noah''s attack didn''t break the oath of the assailant. What he had seen on his hand was just the physical representation of that pact, not the actual vow. The symbol would reform on the main body now that the hand wasn''t a part of it anymore. Oaths would be useless if they were so easy to break. They were more thorough in their fusion with the cultivators'' centers of power, and they became part of them once sworn. Noah waited for his companions to catch up with him right next to the broken teleportation matrix. As he finally sensed their presence coming from behind him though, the remaining lines of the formation began to crumble until they turned into dust that fused with the seabed. Only the severed hand and a few traces of blood remained on the terrain when the rest of Noah''s group reached him. "Did you get them?" June asked when she saw the hand, but Noah shook his head before turning toward Faith. A series of saber-shaped runes came out of his palm at that point, and Noah assembled them to create a bigger version of the horned head. "Do you recognize this symbol?" Noah asked when his drawing entered Faith''s vision. Her eyes widened at that sight, and she shot a confused glance toward Noah before replying. "How do you know about it? That''s almost a taboo among the sects under the Council." "The Chasing Demon sect uses the same symbol, and I found it on this hand before it vanished," Noah said as a lifted his hand to show that a similar tattoo had appeared on his back. "Why is it a taboo? I thought that the Ravaging Demon sect was your ally." Noah went straight to the point. After all, Ravaging Demon''s betrayal wasn''t a secret, so he couldn''t understand how that symbol was a taboo for the Council. Faith fell deep in thought for a while. Her heart wasn''t on the Council''s side anymore, but she had never revealed secret information of her country. Yet, she had to say something if she wanted to help her friends. "The stories that we spread inside the country about the defeat of the Demon sects are mostly inaccurate," Faith said. "The orthodox sects don''t want the new cultivators to think that they had won that battle with the help of an enemy. I had to become a heroic cultivator before I learnt the truth too." Noah couldn''t help but feel surprised at those words. He didn''t know anything about the Papral nation except for its political system. However, he had never thought that it would censor its history to appear more righteous in the eyes of its youngest members. "The Ravaging Demon sect doesn''t exist anymore," Faith continued. "Its name is Battle Spirit sect right now, and it acts as a member of the orthodox faction on the surface. Yet, the Council knows that it has many underground activities right in the middle of the country." "No wonder," Noah said. "Ravaging Demon is still alive in the end." Noah could understand how part of what Faith was revealing was confidential. She probably had gained access to such records only because she was one of the Council''s rarest talents. "Yes, his behavior wasn''t a surprise," Faith replied. "The surprising part is seeing the Council making use of those underground activities instead of condemning them. When I first learnt about it, I felt that we had defeated the Demon sects just to become like them." "It''s part of the cultivation journey," June commented as she patted Faith''s shoulder to console her. "Everything gets tainted in the path to power." "Indeed," Faith said after heaving a sigh. "Still, it''s not the entirety of the Council. Our political system gives a seat to the leaders of every major sect, so there are small factions. One of them is led by Ravaging Demon, who is said to have many small sects under his rule." Noah didn''t need any other information to confirm that some of the assailants had come from the Council. Even if they belonged only to one of the factions, he would still hold the entire organization responsible. However, there was something else that he needed to ask Faith before he requested her for a complete description of what she knew about Ravaging Demon and his organizations. "Is the Council able to deploy that formation in less than a day?" Noah asked. Faith didn''t even need to think at that question. She promptly shook her head as soon as Noah finished speaking. After her answer, Noah felt sure that the Royals had played a part in the ambush too. Chapter 902: 902. Meeting Two powerful men stood in front of a fuming pool inside one of the restricted areas of the new Royal Academy. One of them had silver hair, a slender body, and shining golden eyes, which were the common traits of a member of the Elbas bloodline. Instead, the other had long red hair and a pair of dark eyes. They were both peak rank 5 cultivators, but they belonged to different organizations that wouldn''t usually hold those kinds of meetings. "So," The red-haired man said, "This is the miraculous item that you have mentioned. Are you sure that you have the authority to show it to me, First Prince?" "Of course," First Prince said, "My father has stopped caring about these matters. Us princes and princesses handle the family now, and you are the most promising ally. Don''t you think the same, Ravaging Demon?" Ravaging Demon didn''t answer, but he kept on staring at the pool with a mixture of eagerness and hesitation. The war against the Shandal Empire had opened the path for unforeseen and strange alliances. The departure of the two gods had even left an empty spot that every organization would be willing to fill, but that none of them had the power to cover alone. There were only a few forces that were worthy allying with, which led to the current situation, where the higher-ups of the Elbas family and Ravaging Demon were working together. First Prince let Ravaging Demon think, but a message suddenly arrived on his inscribed notebook. As he proceeded to take it though, the Demon spoke. "Don''t bother to listen. They failed." First Prince didn''t let his words discourage him and listened to the mental message. Yet, his usual arrogant smile flickered for an instant when he heard the report. Ravaging Demon didn''t even look at him since he was confident of his previous statement. His whole focus was on the pool and its murky oily water. However, First Prince couldn''t let go of the matter so quickly and probed the Elder. "How did you know?" Ravaging Demon ignored him for a while until he eventually snorted and explained himself. "My Master has chosen that kid as his heir. An ambush can''t defeat him." "Why did you decide to send your underlings then?" First Prince asked. He had always known that the so-called Demons had unusual methods, but it was merely idiotic to risk rank 5 cultivators in a mission that was bound to fail. Ravaging Demon turned toward the Royal at that point and showed a smile brimming with confidence before speaking. "I needed to send a message. It won''t be long until I seize what is rightfully mine. I''m the only one worthy of being the heir of the Divine Demon." First Prince had many questions. After all, he knew about the betrayal and that the Demon had traded his allies for a share of Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance. If he cared so much about his Master''s inheritance, he should have remained on the side of the unorthodox sects instead of help destroying them. Nevertheless, First Prince didn''t give voice to his confusion and let the topic end there. Curiosity was something that every inscription master had to learn how to control, especially when dealing with a probably unstable existence that had a lot of influence in his country. "The pool is constantly in function, and it doesn''t lack power since many cultivators of the last batch have died inside it," First Prince said as he pointed at the barely visible floating corpses in the murky water. "You can start by sending your oldest heroic cultivator to test its effectiveness before passing to the stronger ones." That was the approach that the Elbas family had applied once they discovered the exceptional properties of the pool. The Royals had sent all the heroic cultivators that had no hope in advancing there only to switch to those in the fifth rank slowly. "Do you know why they call us Demons?" Ravaging Demon asked. "You don''t respect the political limitations and rules of any nation," First Prince replied. "And you are powerful enough to earn a title of your own." Ravaging Demon shook his head as he exploded in a loud laugh. It took a while for him to suppress it, but he corrected the Royal as soon as he stopped. "That is just part of it. Demons don''t understand the basic ethic of life and act as they want. All their bonds, organizations, and items are mere tools meant to make them stronger. In the end, a true Demon cares only about his power. Anything else is a liability." "Is the Elbas family a burden in your eyes?" First Prince asked in a challenging tone. "Of course," Ravaging Demon replied before he started to undress. His actions caused a series of complaints from the Royal, but the Demon ignored them and walked toward the pool once he was naked. "We never tested it for beings on our level!" First Prince shouted as he watched Ravaging Demon stepping inside the pool and sitting in a casual posture. "I''ve already told you how a Demon acts," Ravaging Demon said once he was inside the pool. "My centers of power are a burden too. I''ve stagnated at this level for centuries by now. If I have to risk death to advance, I''ll gladly do it." First Prince could only sight at that sight and leave the restricted area. He had no power over someone like Ravaging Demon, but he had to prepare for when his father ascended. One way to do that was to form alliances with powerful and promising existences. As for what concerned Ravaging Demon, it would be up to him and the pool to decide if he was worthy of the sixth rank. . . . Noah and Daniel returned to the new continent a few weeks after the ambush. They had split with June and Faith on their way back to the Archipelago, but the hybrids had followed them since Noah had submitted them. Also, they had been in contact with Elder Julia for the matter concerning the ambush and the horned head. The main issue with that was that the political situation in the world was quite messy and tense. No one wanted to alter it before the complete defeat of the Empire. So, Elder Julia had declared that it was better to keep the matter a secret and take it out only when the Hive could benefit from it. After leaving the hybrids in Danelle''s care, Daniel and Noah returned to the neutral city. The city had changed a bit. A few new buildings had appeared in the territories near the Stele. The outskirts had grown too, and the appearance of many new habitations had expanded the city by a lot. There were even more heroic cultivators in there, and no sign of the usual tension among powerful organizations could be seen in those days. As for Noah, he had already isolated himself in his training area, set on coming out of it only once he completed his project with the higher energy. Chapter 903: 903. Iconic Earthquakes started to happen again in the neutral city as soon as Noah resumed his experiments. Still, the Hive had improved the underground training area while he was away. The tremors that reached the buildings on the surface weren''t strong enough to cause any damage, and the citizens soon became used to those events. After all, it wasn''t a secret that heroic cultivators performed experiments during their seclusion, and Noah already had a reputation in that field. As the years passed, the earthquakes became something iconic of Divine Market city. Everyone became used to them. Daniel shared the training area with Noah, but he cultivated in other places or even in the wilderness since it was too dangerous for him to remain there during Noah''s experiments. Noah had kept on increasing the amount of darkness used during his tests, which only caused heavier repercussions after each failure. Also, the fact that he wasn''t making any noticeable progress made him more reckless with his experiments. Noah would often fill the entirety of the training area with his darkness and start manipulating it as he tried to find a shape that his "Breath" accepted. The Divine Deduction technique was crucial in the process since he analyzed and changed approach even when he was in the middle of a different procedure. It was impossible to predict the reactions of his darkness. Noah usually had to improvise since his "Breath" reacted in unforeseen ways during the approaches that he had chosen beforehand. The increased quantity of darkness created even more unexpected reactions, which turned the entirety of the training area in a rank 5 danger zone due to how often Noah ended up causing an explosion. However, nothing seemed able to satisfy his darkness. His "Breath" appeared unable to find a stable form whenever Noah tried to increase its power. It had been more than ten years already since his return from the Odrea nation, but Noah had only managed to pile a series of failures. He had reached the point where he could list thousands of approaches that didn''t work and not even a promising one. Noah had always known that creating higher energy would be hard. After all, he had spent sixteen years to make his darkness, and he already had a sort of blueprint when it came to that experiment. Yet, he had never predicted that he would still be stuck on the starting point after so much time. Noah knew the reason behind the level of difficulty of that project. Generally speaking, cultivators had to be able to understand the laws to modify the structure and functioning of energies. They needed to follow universal rules concerning the behavior of the "Breath" of a specific element. The same would have been applied to Noah''s darkness. Still, he had created it using the shape that his primary energy had taken during the transformation into a Cursed Dragon. From there, Noah had just performed countless tests until he managed to create something stable, and that matched the power of Heaven and Earth''s "Breath". He had just memorized the procedure that his body had executed during the transformation and used it to make something that belonged only to him. That process didn''t involve laws or, rather, Noah wasn''t making use of them consciously. His mind would only gain brief insights during his meditation, which he then applied to his tests. What he obtained was a darkness that didn''t follow any known behavior and acted according to laws that weren''t part of Heaven and Earth''s system. That had always been Noah''s plan, but now he found himself unable to use studies and researches concerning the "Breath" of the darkness element because his energy acted differently. Without them, he was entirely in the blind and could only keep testing until he found something that could give him hope in succeeding. Of course, Noah didn''t lose his determination during those years, and he had even kept on training following his usual tight schedule. The invading forces were still reorganizing. A few decades weren''t enough to make up for the losses endured during the war against the Shandal Empire. Also, they weren''t in a hurry to attack the Empire again either. The fact that the invaders had complete control over the new continent assured them that they would experience better growth compared to the Empire. They would launch another offensive once they felt that the difference between their power was large enough to limit their losses. Still, their only focus was on turning their new domains into sources of income and nurturing new heroic assets. That left Noah with no tasks other than becoming stronger before the new major battle. That was precisely what he was doing, even if he didn''t have much success when it came to his higher energy. A change occurred after the fifteenth year of isolation. Noah was immersed in his darkness as usual. His hand performed quick gestures that affected the dense gas around him and tried to alter its shape. He was trying to force his energy into a massive gale at that time. He planned to unify all that darkness into a unified shape that he would condense by creating an artificial tornado. That was one of Noah''s untested approaches. His darkness would slowly fuse into a denser form at his gestures and began to blow through the underground room, gathering more "Breath" as it flowed. The gale seemed to work at the beginning, but the inherent violence in his energy soon began to create small unstable areas in that form. Blowing in an orderly way wasn''t a problem, but conflicts started to appear once the wind of darkness reached a specific density. The remaining darkness in the room would oppose the gale when it tried to absorb it, and black slashes shot once those two forms met. The situation eventually reached a point where more slashes were flying around the underground area than energy. Noah decided to endure one of the slashes to test their power, but the results were disappointing. The attack could only scrape his skin, meaning that it had barely surpassed the limits of the gaseous stage. ''This is already the best that my darkness can accept,'' Noah thought as he let his "Breath" disperse. ''I can''t improve this gale form anymore.'' As tiredness filled his mind though, he heard familiar footsteps coming from the corridor that connected the underground area and the buildings on the surface. "It took you a while," Noah said as he showed a smile to the woman that had just entered his training area. "I lost track of time while I studied the book from Shandal''s palace," June said, replying to his smile with one of her own. She and Faith had returned to their organizations after the mission in the Odrea nation. The matter concerning their sudden ambush forced them to prolong their stay there. Also, June had obtained a great amount of knowledge from Shandal''s castle, which led her to request to be reassigned in the neutral city only recently. Chapter 904: 904. Memories June couldn''t help but notice the darkness still lingering in the underground area as she reached for Noah to exchange a long kiss. "Are you still working on higher energy?" June asked after their lips separated, and she closed her eyes as she laid her head on his chest. "Yes," Noah said while caressing her hair. "Nothing seems to work." "You have lived two lives," June mocked him. "I''m sure you''ll be fine." "It''s not that simple," Noah replied as he gazed at the vanishing darkness in the underground area. "There weren''t cultivators in my previous world. We were just powerless humans. The laws weren''t something that we could bend at our will. They were fixed rules that we tried to exploit with complex machines and long years of study." That was one of the main reasons why Noah rarely thought about his previous life when searched for some inspiration. He was a rank 5 cultivator now. His mind was capable of ideating forms of energy in a matter of years, and his "Breath" fueled spells that could match the destructive power of some of the most advanced weaponry of his previous world. The difference between the two worlds was immense. Humans could become actual gods capable of moving entire Mortal Lands here. Noah didn''t feel arrogant about it. The humans of his previous world had been able to perform wonders even without the miraculous "Breath". They deserved a certain amount of respect, even if they had created a society that he had hated. "This is what you are trying to do, right?" June said without separating from his chest. "You want to create a natural procedure so that your darkness can reach a higher form on its own. You don''t need to bend the laws for that. You need to follow them." A warm smile appeared on Noah''s face as he lowered his head to stare at the woman in his arms. June''s could only guess it, but that was what Noah had done in the last fifteen years. The main issue was that he didn''t know which laws ruled over his darkness since he had created it after a long period of trial and error. Also, his mind wasn''t able to recognize them yet, so even knowing their name wouldn''t help Noah''s project. However, an idea took form as the warmth felt due to June''s concern filled his body. Noah had inevitably thought about his previous life at that moment, and something that he had studied in his past world began to interest him. June was enjoying her lover''s caresses when she noticed something strange. The two of them would usually enjoy their reunion whenever they spent some time separated. Noah''s arousal wasn''t something that he could control, and June wanted him as much as he did. Yet, Noah wasn''t giving in to his instincts, and he had even stopped caressing her. June didn''t think much about it. She would take the initiative since Noah seemed lost in some thoughts that she knew concerned his training. "Nuclear fusion¡­" Noah muttered while June was about to reach for his lips again. His gaze appeared lost, but there was a light at the bottom of his reptilian pupils. June could recognize that expression. The two of them had been together for decades already. She knew when her lover had found an answer to his issue. June remained silent as she stared Noah muttering incomprehensible words and moving his gaze through the underground area. She enjoyed seeing how such a usually profound and focused cultivator could show an excitement so intense. Noah''s eyes eventually focused again, and he understood what had happened when he saw June staring at him with one of her warmest expressions. His arousal kicked in stronger than ever at that sight, but another emotion had the monopoly over his mind now. "Don''t make me wait too much," June said before Noah could open his mouth to speak. Then, she kissed him and moved to the back of the underground area, where she started to cultivate. Noah''s emotions were a mess at that moment. The sole fact that June had understood him so easily was almost enough to make him spend the next month focused on her. Yet, there was something else that burned in his mind now. Something that had always been above any other emotion and drive. His aura became unsettled as his ambition reacted to his discovery. In the memories of his past life, Noah had found something that might be able to help him with the higher energy! Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique as he immersed himself in specific memories. His mind went back to when he was just a simple student and listened to his physic professor explaining how the stars worked. ''Lighter elements fuse to form heavier ones,'' Noah thought as he reviewed the few memories that he had about that period of his life. ''This reaction normally happens in the stars due to their incredible temperature and gravity, but I might be able to recreate similar conditions with my spells.'' Of course, Noah didn''t know much about that topic even when he reviewed his memories with his rank 5 mind and the divine technique. His studies only covered the basic theory behind nuclear fusion and never involved anything too specific. However, Noah was a rank 5 cultivator. Mountains could crumble if he stepped on them, and the sky would open at the swing of his blade. He wasn''t limited to the methods mentioned in the theory of the other world. He was just interested in the behavior that atoms had in those environments. There was a chance that his darkness would act in the same way if he managed to recreated those same conditions. As soon as Noah had the idea, he immediately pursued it. He even had the necessary tools already. They just needed some adjustments. . . . Eight months had to pass before Noah felt ready to start his first real attempt with that new procedure. The only thing that was still stopping him was the stubbornness of his lover. "I''m not going to leave," June said while Noah massaged his temples. "I''ve never seen you so worried. I won''t leave you alone." "I need this area completely devoid of any external energy!" Noah repeated for the tenth time. "Also, I don''t know what will happen, but it shouldn''t be something that my body can''t handle." That exchange of words continued for a while until June eventually gave up and exited the underground area while snorting at every step. When Noah was utterly alone, he sealed the entrance of the room and filled the entirety of the underground area with his darkness. The Demonic Sword wanted to come out to play, but Noah forced it to stay inside his robe. There was a high chance that the situation could escape his control. Then, he activated a version of the Black Hole spell that he had modified in those months and took a few steps back, ready to stop the procedure with his most potent attack if needed. Chapter 905: 905. Purity Purity was everything in what Noah was attempting to do. In the stars, nuclear fusion could eventually start using heavier elements if the temperature and gravity allowed it. Yet, Noah needed to limit the materials to his darkness. He was trying to create a procedure that would naturally bring his "Breath" to a higher state. There couldn''t be any impurity in that. The Black Hole spell floated in the darkness as his gravitational pull started affecting the energy in the underground room. "Breath" began to flow toward the small dark sphere, but it didn''t enter in it. It only remained on its surface where it accumulated. Noah had to modify his spell to make it fit the requirements of his procedure. The modification didn''t take long because he only had to remove some of the abilities of the dark sphere, but he still had to spend months on it since it was a rank 5 spell. However, he had obtained what he needed in the end. That version of the Black Hole spell didn''t increase in size nor absorbed energy in its form. Noah had left only its gravitational pull and eased its connection with his mind. Also, he had made sure that the dark sphere would continue working even after he severed his connection with it. It wouldn''t be stable without his direct control, but it wouldn''t weigh on his mind either in that way. That was just a precaution since the spell wouldn''t grow stronger with time. It didn''t absorb energy anymore, so its power was fixed somewhere near the limits of the gaseous stage. Still, Noah felt that it was better to play it safe when dealing with dangerous experiments. He didn''t know what would come out of that procedure, but he was sure that it could be fatal to neglect some details. Noah released more of his darkness as the spell kept on attracting it. He couldn''t leave any space in the underground area since he would risk attracting different types of "Breath". The sphere needed to be pure, wholly made of his darkness. Letting impurities fuse with its form would be asking to destabilize it. Layers of "Breath" gathered around the dark sphere. Noah''s darkness condensed around it and flowed in a round motion as the gravitational pull kept it bound in that place. Noah''s eyes couldn''t see it since the darkness in the air blocked the light radiated by the inscriptions on the walls. Yet, his mind could sense it. The small sphere had already become a giant uneven orb that had a dense gas flowing around its center. However, it still failed to show the reaction that Noah wanted. Noah didn''t mind it. The fact that his "Breath" didn''t cause any explosion showed how promising that procedure was already. His darkness would amass naturally around his spell and increase its density as more of it reached for the sphere. ''I wonder when it is going to have its gravitational pull,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the energy amassed in front of him. According to the physic that he had studied in his past life, gravity depended on the amount of mass accumulated in an area. Noah was trying to achieve that with his dense darkness, but he didn''t know what level of density it had to reach before it could start making up for the limited features of his spell. After all, Noah wasn''t an expert in that field. He was trying to imitate what usually happened in the stars with his poor knowledge. Noah kept on refilling the darkness in the underground area as the spell continued to gather it around its shape. The amount of energy accumulated there had already surpassed what he managed to withstand with his mind, but the weaker connection allowed him to maintain his control over it. Its gravitational pull though still failed to arrive, and the procedure eventually reached the point where the power of the Black Hole spell couldn''t attract energy anymore. ''This is the limit of an ability in the gaseous stage,'' Noah thought as he stared at the massive accumulation of energy in front of him. He couldn''t see it, but he faced it anyway since he was too focused on it. ''I have to loosen it up a bit,'' Noah thought as he turned and opened his mouth. White ethereal flames came out of it and spread in the environment, affecting the structure of his darkness and softening its innate resistance to the gravitational pull. Noah''s flames used the energy stored in his body. The primary energy fueled them and turned them into an attack of the darkness element. Using them directly on the sphere would affect its functioning and taint the material accumulated there. Still, the flames would only make Noah''s darkness more ductile if he only targeted the spots away from his spell. Also, the flames would disperse before the "Breath" reached for his spell, so he could use them quite freely if needed. The temperature in the underground area rose as flames spread in the air and loosened the structure of Noah''s "Breath". More darkness began to flow into the black sphere at that point, and the layers of energy around it resumed their accumulation. Then, Noah felt a second traction force coming from the dense gases in front of him. The darkness attracted by his spell had finally reached the point where it could help in that procedure! With two gravitational pulls together in one place, Noah didn''t need to use his flames anymore. The "Breath" that kept on flowing inside that construct made the traction force become powerful enough to surpass the limits of the gaseous stage. ''It''s about to become self-sufficient,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as he continued to pour "Breath" in the environment. He knew that it would come to a point where all his reserves of darkness would be gone, but he had to continue giving to the procedure only one material. Everything would have been for nothing if he allowed some different form of energy into the spherical accumulation of his darkness. The sphere''s shape had become peculiar after its gravitational pull started. There would be some occasional flare as more energy condensed there, and its surface was continually rotating as if it was an actual star that was trying to come to life. Eventually, Noah had to cut away his connection with the Black Hole spell because there was so much energy around it. That affected the link between Noah and his ability, even if it wasn''t a direct connection. The procedure though didn''t stop. The spell still worked after losing its connection with Noah, and the gravitational pull of the darkness around it had already become self-sufficient. Noah didn''t need to do anything but to wait until the experiment required his flames again. The hours passed in the underground area as Noah waited for a change to appear in his darkness. It was only a matter of time before a significant event happened. Chapter 906: 906. Higher energy The outer layers kept on growing in size and expand since the darkness in all the previous ones had reached a level of density that the gravitational pull couldn''t surpass with its current power. Yet, the traction force kept on increasing as more energy amassed there, and the most inner layers slowly started to reach higher levels of density. As the density increased, even the gravitational pull became stronger. It was a continuous cycle that would continue as long as Noah continued to provide the raw materials needed by the fusion. June sent him a mental message at some point, and Noah listened to it right away since the procedure didn''t keep him too busy. "The "Breath" is acting funny out here. It has started to converge toward the underground area since a while ago." She was still pissed that Noah had prevented her from joining the experiment, but she wouldn''t fail to inform him about the consequences that the procedure was creating in the outside world. After all, Noah had been locked up inside his training area for almost a day by then. She was worried about his well-being. Noah told her that he was fine, but he didn''t add any other detail. That wasn''t the time to let his mind wander through his feelings for June. He had to remain focused even if he only needed to pour more darkness in the environment to keep the fusion going. The massive sphere would become smaller every time the density in the inner layers increased. Still, that only enhanced its gravitational pull that made more "Breath" gather to form new outer layers. Noah almost felt in awe as he sensed those events unfolding right in front of him. The vast mass of darkness had a shape similar to the stars that he had seen in pictures in his previous world, and it was a fantastic sight even if he could only analyze it with his mental energy. Yet, the first issue eventually appeared. There were often flares rising from the surface of his sphere every time the density increased. They weren''t a problem before since they were too weak to cause any damage, but it had reached the point when Noah felt forced to take even more steps back. The release of energy was a good thing though. According to Noah''s memories, elements would release energy only when they fused, which meant that something was happening in the inner layers. Everything continued in that way during the entirety of the following day too, and Noah only had to keep darkness inside the underground area in that period. The cycle of shrinking and enlarging continued without any problem, and it was slowly leading to the point where a significant change was bound to happen. The Black Hole spell had stopped working by then, and the sphere had become entirely self-sufficient. Only an external influence or the lack of energy to gather could prevent it from growing further. Something happened during the third day since the beginning of the procedure. Noah was pouring darkness in the environment as usual when the sphere suddenly shrunk until it was a little orb once again. The gravitational pull that came from that new form was even far stronger since most of the "Breath" in the environment started to gather there and create more layers. ''It''s happening,'' Noah thought as a smile appeared on his face. The only thing that could make the gravity spike so much was the appearance of a heavier element, or, in his case, it meant that his darkness was finally transforming into a higher form of energy. Noah analyzed the inner layers. There were minute trails of dense gas at the center of the sphere that was far darker than the other surrounding it. When it came to higher energies, evaluating their power was quite complicated. For example, June''s black sparks still belonged to the power level of a cultivator in the gaseous stage, but their actual prowess could surpass those limits. The "Breath" and the higher energy were different both in shape and power that they were capable of releasing. No one had even created clear labels either since less of a handful of people knew about the existence of higher energies. Noah found himself in that spot now. He had a form of higher energy right in front of him, but he couldn''t evaluate how strong it was. He only knew that it was powerful thanks to his instincts. However, those minute strands of thick dark gas were the best result that he had obtained in more than two decades. They were energy on a higher level than his darkness, and they had formed through a procedure that just altered their environment. They had come to life naturally. Noah had just prepared the area for the procedure and set it off. Noah didn''t know if that was the final form that his darkness could reach, so he let the procedure going to see if he could strive for energy even higher than that one. The gravitational pull had started to affect the entirety of the underground area, and all the "Breath" inside it rotated around the black sphere. Noah had to pour a lot of darkness back in the air to keep up with that consumption, but its sight was terrific. It was as if Noah was in front of a real star, only black in color. June sent him another mental message at that point, but Noah ignored it. His focus had to be on the procedure since it had just chosen to form higher energy. The sphere enlarged and took the "Breath" still lingering in the outer layers. It was devouring everything that entered in its gravitational pull and built layers over layers made of energy. The quantity of higher energy kept on increasing too, which made Noah eager to see what would happen if all that "Breath" reached that higher form. Yet, June sent another message, and Noah understood that the situation had to be troublesome since she knew that he was focused on the experiments. "There are major repercussions here!" June said in her mental message. "The "Breath" is gathering toward you, and some of the weaker buildings can''t handle this suction force." Noah knew that stopping there was the right move. After all, he had already obtained what he wanted. The procedure worked, but he had to perform it in a different environment. Divine Market city didn''t allow him to go all out with his recklessness, and he would destroy some of the buildings in if he lost control after deciding to keep going. The mass of gas soon reached the inscribed walls and continued to grow. It had come to a point where even Noah was struggling to refill the darkness in the environment. However, that wasn''t inherently a bad thing. It only meant that nuclear fusion worked. Now, his focus was on finding if that was the limit of the higher energy and invent procedures that would allow him to seize it. Chapter 907: 907. Creation Noah''s inscribed notebook rang continuously. It was only June at first, but even the other rank 5 cultivators in the neutral city started to send him mental messages. All their messages described the same events. It seemed that the gravitational pull had started to affect both the "Breath" and the buildings on the surface. That wasn''t a force that the inscriptions in the underground area could block completely. Noah had created a small dark star that continued to grow stronger with time. Its effects were bound to spread in the outside world. It wasn''t an issue when the experiment affected only the "Breath". Cultivators in the heroic ranks would often perform techniques that involved large amounts of energy. Still, the buildings had started to crack under that pull too. The citizens of Divine Market city began to fear for their lives at that sight. The human cultivators were even worse off. They couldn''t leave the city without the tools necessary to survive the dense "Breath" in the environment of the new continent. They were trapped in a city that was slowly falling apart. The matter became even worse when the first rank 2 cultivators started to fell the effects of the increasing gravity. They would feel as if a mountain had suddenly appeared over their shoulders as they dragged their bodies into the main roads to escape from that slow destruction. Some of them even kowtowed in the direction of the central buildings, hoping that their mighty heroic cultivators could stop the catastrophe that was falling on their homes. Noah felt hesitant as he stared at the black star. The reports of the other rank 5 cultivators didn''t bother him, and he didn''t care about the well-being of the human assets in the city. However, June sounded concerned in her mental messages, which meant that the situation on the surface was quite bad. Also, the black star had reached the point where Noah wasn''t able to provide enough darkness anymore. Its traction force had become so strong that the underground area had started to have empty spots where the inscriptions on the walls could shine. Noah would pour more "Breath" in the air only to see it fly toward the black star. His experiment had reached the moment when he couldn''t contain it anymore. ''This is my limit as a cultivator in the gaseous stage,'' Noah accepted that in his mind as he inspected the illuminated areas in his training hall. It wouldn''t take much for the "Breath" from the outside world to fill those spots, and that was something that he wanted to avoid at all costs. Noah didn''t know what kind of reaction the black star would have when other materials fused with its form. There was even a high chance that tainting its purity would cause a detonation. An explosion backed by so much energy couldn''t lead to anything good. The inscriptions on the walls would probably be able to contain it, but Noah would have to endure the entirety of its might. As a rank 5 hybrid in the upper tier, Noah didn''t think that there were many attacks capable of hurting him, let alone killing him. Yet, the black star had his higher energy inside its fabric, which made it challenging to analyze. Noah felt confident that he could survive the explosion, but it wasn''t the same for many cultivators on the surface. Also, he was bound to end up badly injured, even with his fantastic body. ''Just a little touch then,'' Noah thought as he made up his mind and started to walk toward the black star. Power surges and flares would escape from that spherical amass of energy and sweep him with their power, but Noah strived forward with a determined expression on his face. His sharp darkness would land on him and tear his robe, but he didn''t stop. He continued to walk toward the center of the black star even when the flares left bloody marks on his body. That wasn''t the power of the gaseous stage anymore. Noah had created something able to hurt him. Noah felt proud at that realization instead of being worried about his safety. The energy that was able to hurt him was just darkness in a far denser form, but it was still his "Breath". So, that meant that his higher energy had to be far stronger than his normal darkness. Noah began to feel strange as he walked through the dense layers of darkness that had yet to become higher energy. They appeared as dense gases capable of slicing him in multiple pieces, but that could only cut his skin due to the innate violence of his energy. He didn''t fear that wild "Breath" though. He felt good, and his mind started to expand on its own while he lost himself in that sensation. There was creation everywhere he looked or touched. The sphere was the most natural expression of his individuality, and being in the middle of it gave Noah''s mind the possibility to increase his understanding of the laws connected to creation. His mind had entered a peculiar state as he reached for the center of the star. Noah would slowly understand the laws that regulated his darkness, and the subject became more complicated as he pressed forward. His journey toward the center of the sphere continued, and more superficial wounds appeared on his body. Still, he eventually reached the densest area in the entirety of his experiment. He arrived right in front of that gas that didn''t emit any light. Noah could sense it floating slowly through his darkness. He noticed some resemblance with his "Breath" in that form, but there wasn''t the usual sharpness inside it. The higher energy appeared almost liquid, and it radiated his intense ambition. There was even a sense of defiance surrounding its shape. It seemed that Noah''s ambition had evolved too during the procedure. It would become an arrogant statement that he still couldn''t put it into words. Noah raised his hand to touch the higher energy, and that simple contact was enough for him to gain even more insights into the laws ruling over that energy. It was mostly understanding concerning the laws of creation, but Noah found various pieces of his individuality inside it too. He soon understood that the higher energy was connected to his mind. It felt heavy and clunky, but he could control it. The higher energy felt solid at the touch, but it was gaseous since Noah''s hand made a hole in it without sensing any opposition. The last tool necessary for his individuality was right in front of him, but he would have to destroy it unless the automaton of his ring said otherwise. "The ring is nearing its limits," The automaton said as Noah let it inspect the higher energy. "But a little bit might fit." Noa nodded and seized part of that higher energy to store it. Then, black smoke began to come out of his body. It was time to destroy his project before it was too late to stop it. Chapter 908: 908. Polite The black smoke of the Demonic Form mixed with the dark star, and the gravitational pull trapped it in one of the external layers. Noah''s spell couldn''t hurt the darkness since it was his energy. It was an extension of himself. Still, Noah wasn''t aiming to destroy the massive accumulation of "Breath". His focus was on the core of the star. All that darkness would be useless if it lost its traction force. It would just disperse in the environment, and the inscriptions on the walls of the underground room would prevent it from damaging the structure. Noah transformed into a fiendish figure donned in a scaled armor before performing the second form of his martial art, targeting the small mass of higher energy in front of him. A fissure appeared right in the middle of the dark star, but, to Noah''s surprise, something had survived his offensive. Noah watched through his draconic helm how a few strands of higher energy had survived his most potent attack. Even the technique that fused the qualities of a hybrid with the spells had been unable to destroy his latest creation in one blow. He had even launched the attack right next to the higher energy. That was the best that he could do with the current level of his centers of power. ''No wonder it has taken me so much to make you,'' Noah thought as he revealed a smile and prepared another attack. The dark sphere had shrunk as soon as Noah destroyed part of its core. Yet, the gravitational pull was still there, and it would bring the star to its original might if he didn''t stop it completely. Noah attacked without showing the slightest hesitation toward the energy that he had needed decades to create. In its current form, the higher energy was a liability. It was a powerful energy that Noah could control, but that he didn''t know how to use yet. June had replaced her "Breath" with the dark sparks, and King Elbas gained access to his higher energy only when he used something that carried his bloodline as a fuel. However, Noah didn''t want to replace anything. He intended to keep his three forms of energy so that he could express all the shades of his individuality. Finding the procedure that allowed him to create higher energy was the first and most challenging step, but he still had to decide how to implement it on his cultivation journey. Also, he needed to improve the procedure too. The black star was a magnificent spectacle, but he needed to think about its feasibility. It didn''t often happen that cultivators had training areas during a war or a battle. They were a common sight only when they were in their respective organizations. If Noah didn''t improve the method to create higher energy, he would have to repeat that procedure before every battle. The second attack destroyed the remaining higher energy once for all, but the gravitational pull didn''t disappear just yet since there was enough darkness condensed there to keep it going. Still, Noah didn''t need to resort to his martial art to take care of that. Noah dispersed the Demonic Form and started to cultivate right in the middle of the black sphere. His Demonic Sword absorbed the "Breath" that he had previously poured in the environment and turned it into primary energy before transforming it into his darkness again. The massive sphere slowly started to become less dense until it eventually became a black cloud that converged toward the cross-legged Noah. Of course, Noah was only refilling his dantian. That energy wouldn''t help him improve. However, he discovered that the suction force of his cultivation technique had increased again. Noah knew the reason for that. His mind was still wandering the enlightenment obtained when he touched his higher energy. The understanding of laws of creation still lingered in his thoughts. They were vague and strange feelings rather than proper explanations. Noah felt as if his instincts had broadened. He sensed that they could guide him when it came to matters concerning that part of his individuality. The cloud eventually vanished too, absorbed by the Demonic Sword that Noah held tightly over his low-waist. Yet, he didn''t stop cultivating. After all, he had to make up for the three days spent focused on his project. Noah came out of the underground area only a week after the events with the black star, and the destruction that he had caused finally appeared in his eyes. The buildings near the center of the city were the sturdiest of Divine Market city since they were near the Stele. They had endured the increased gravity and the suction force quite easily. Nevertheless, the buildings on the peripheral areas had it worse. Most of them had a few cracks on their surface, while others had directly crumbled. There were large cracks on random spots on the terrain too. The ground had crumbled at some point during the continuous gravitational pull. There wasn''t any casualty because even the human cultivators had become used to Noah''s dangerous experiments, so they had created methods to survive. They had devised evacuations plans for when Noah started to deal with things too hazardous for them. Noah mostly ignored the human cultivators, and the heroic cultivators would never complain in front of him due to his bad reputation. Also, his eccentric behavior appeared as a feature to imitate since he was the most talented cultivators in history in their eyes. Yet, the citizens of the neutral city weren''t the only ones that had something to say about the recent events. "Demon Prince," Elder Estelle said as she neared Noah, who was standing in the sky, staring at the destruction that he had caused. "Do you mind joining me? The Council is holding a meeting with the members of the Elbas family. The Hive should have its seat." Noah could understand the reason why Elder Estelle would invite him. The other two forces had grown worried that Noah could take down the city with his experiments. However, Noah didn''t have time to join the political formalities required to ask a cultivator to train somewhere else. He had just experienced a breakthrough in his experiments, and the increased understanding of his creation could only benefit them. He didn''t want to let political matters hinder him now that he could finally improve his power significantly. The higher energy was just the beginning. There were countless projects that he had put in hold until he solved that issue. "Don''t worry," Noah replied in a flat voice. "I''ll train somewhere else." "Oh!" Elder Estelle exclaimed before trying to fake her relieved expression. "That''s not what I meant at all. Mine was just a polite invitation to discuss crucial matters about the city." The Elder didn''t mask her lie too well, but Noah didn''t mind it. Her reaction was perfectly normal. After all, he was the one threatening to destroy entire cities. Yet, the matter concerning the new training area was something that he had just conveyed to the Hive. Luckily for them, they had an entire separate dimension at their disposal. Chapter 909: 909. Talents Noah wasn''t the only one who had created chaos in those years. The Hive had welcomed the soldiers of the Odrea nation, and it had provided them with the means to walk on the path that Shandal had blocked for millennia. The sky above the territories of the Hive saw countless lightning storms happening while Noah was busy completing his project with the higher energy, and they didn''t stop even when he moved his experiments in the separate dimension. That wasn''t an unusual sight in the years after the war against the Empire. Many rank 3 cultivators had gained enough experience in those battles and reached the point where they felt confident in approaching the Tribulations. Yet, the Hive still had more of them thanks to the stream of experienced soldiers provided by Noah. The other nations didn''t fail to notice that peculiarity, and many experts even guessed that the mission in the Odrea nation had something to do with the high number of Tribulations. However, there wasn''t much that they could do after everything that had happened. The ambush had become the Hive''s shield against the probing of the other forces. It seemed that the three invading forces had sealed a silent agreement that prevented them from speaking about the ambush. None of them wanted to create discord before the war against the Empire was over. They limited themselves to maintain their polite and friendly attitudes during eventual meetings while also respecting the borders that they had set once conquered the entirety of the new continent. "The Hive has just obtained its one-hundredth rank 4 cultivator," Elder Julia said as she stared with a respectful expression at the Demon Prince meditating in front of her. "All of this was possible only thanks to you. We now have hope to match the other big nations even without the Copying Technique." Noah and Elder Julia were in one of the branches of the separate dimension. The latter usually sent him reports concerning the situation in the outside world whenever he went in seclusion, but she wanted to convey that news personally. After all, one hundred rank 4 cultivators put the Hive on a similar field with the other big nations that had always been a few steps above it. Its sheer number of heroic assets was finally meeting the standards of the organizations that were at the apex of those Mortal Lands. Also, Elder Julia wasn''t considering the assets that Noah had brought back from Shandal''s separate dimension. The two Ghostly Snakes and the River Beaver were hybrids in the fifth rank. Their value was priceless since they could theoretically become as threatening as Noah. Their hybrid status put them a bit above ordinary cultivators due to their incredible potential. "That many?" Noah asked as he interrupted his meditation and opened his eyes. He had always known that the soldiers from the Odrea nation were promising. Still, it had only been a bit more than twenty years since they joined the Hive. That period was in line with the time required for a rank 3 cultivator to reach the heroic ranks, but that would mean that they had focused only on their training in those years! "Prince, all the recruits in the third rank have gone in seclusion as soon as we provided them with the techniques that they needed," Elder Julia said as she summarized the events that Noah had missed while he was busy experimenting. "Even the oldest ones have shown unexpected improvements. I don''t think there is a human cultivator in the entire world who has as much experience as them." Noah nodded at those words. The soldiers of the Odrea nation had fought for their whole lives. Even Noah couldn''t match their experience when he was just a human cultivator. Noah could imagine how those soldiers had felt once they saw techniques in the fourth rank for the first time. It wasn''t surprising that most of them had gone in seclusion. However, he felt as if he had underestimated their potential. The Hive was trying to make up for the losses endured in the war, but those new arrivals had directly brought it to unexpected heights! "They still don''t have any experience when it comes to battles in the heroic ranks," Noah commented as he tried to see the only negative note on the matter. "Investing in that before the war resumes can''t be a bad idea." Elder Julia revealed a proud smile when she heard that, and she didn''t hesitate to give Noah more details. "The other Elders have already started training classes that make use of the Copying Technique. We even handpicked a few of new arrivals for Thirty-seven lessons. Of course, his other students will manage them while the automaton stays with you." "I''ll give him back as soon as we solve my issue," Noah answered in a helpless tone. "Keep him as long as you need," Elder Julia quickly replied. "There is no point in nurturing promising cultivators if we forsake our best one." The Elder left after her answer, and Noah stood up to return to a teleportation matrix that was at a few meters behind him. The light of the inscriptions engulfed him, and he found himself in front of a black star when the halo disappeared. "So?" Noah asked as he turned toward Thirty-seven, who was staring at the mass of darkness with an expressionless face. Noah had recreated the black star when he returned in the separate dimension, but he had waited for the automaton to ideate a formation capable of containing it first. The black star in front of him was a bit stronger than what he had created in the training area under the neutral city. Yet, a series of formations around it prevented its gravitational pull from affecting the separate dimension. The formation had the form of a cube that isolated the dark star from the outside world and stopped its inevitable leakage of energy. A series of shining lines created an area that contained only Noah''s darkness. "Compressing it further isn''t a problem," Thirty-seven said without moving his gaze away from the massive sphere. "It will create more higher energy, but I believe that you want that." Noah didn''t answer. He had contacted the automaton because he wanted a second opinion on the matter, and Thirty-seven was the maximum expert of the Hive when it came to inscriptions. "The problem is the formation," Thirty-seven continued. "I can''t create something smaller while maintaining its same power. I don''t see how you can carry around something so strong without affecting your centers of power or the world around you." Thirty-seven even proceeded to explain that most alternative methods wouldn''t work either because the black star was deeply connected with Noah. It would need a personal touch if he wanted to avoid unforeseen consequences. "This formation though can endure far more than this," Thirty-seven concluded as he turned toward Noah. "Chasing Demon has helped to deploy it. Anything below the sixth rank won''t be able to break it." Chapter 910: 910. Itch Noah knew that his higher energy was something that he had to manage on his own. However, he needed help for what concerned containing the dark star, and he liked to hear the opinion of other experts so that he could have a broader vision on the matter. Thirty-seven eventually went away and left Noah alone in that area of the separate dimension. The automaton had many things to handle in the Hive, especially with the new wave of promising cultivators from the Odrea nation. Also, his job was over there. Thirty-seven would make a list of inscription methods that could compress the dark sphere, but Noah had to do all the work since it was a matter that concerned his individuality. It would be even better if he did everything on his own for the same reason. Noah spent weeks meditating in front of his dark star. He would train and meditate as usual while thinking of a way to turn that power into something that he could utilize in battle. Of course, his thoughts didn''t focus only on his battle prowess, but Noah''s priority had always been his power. He had to find an answer to that question before he pondered about other applications. He would even spend time analyzing the lump of higher energy that he had seized during his first successful experiment. The higher energy gave him insights on the laws of creation whenever he interacted with it, but it seemed that those enlightenments consumed part of it, and the insights weren''t endless either. Noah consumed the first piece of higher energy to understand more about its nature and seized more of them from the dark star in front of him to deepen his understanding of the laws of creation. Restoring the massive sphere to its original power wasn''t a problem since Noah could pour more darkness inside the cubical formation. He didn''t even need to cast the Black Hole spell again since the gravitational pull made the star self-sufficient already. Yet, his mind soon became used to those insights, and the higher energy stopped deepening his understanding of the laws that ruled it. He had experienced all the enlightenments that it could offer. Noah began to experiment with the higher energy at that point. He would test it with his spells, eat it, and even using it as a material in his inscription methods. Eating that dense and dark gas didn''t give him much. Noah understood more about its structure before turning it into the primary energy that his body needed. The experiments with the spells and the inscription methods though produced peculiar results. The spells fueled by the higher energy wouldn''t work at all, but Noah expected something like that to happen. Noah had made his higher energy by creating an environment where his darkness would evolve naturally. He didn''t have any specific feature in mind when he made it. He used the only method that worked. Meanwhile, spells generally needed "Breath" to work. Adapting his abilities to his darkness had been a challenge already, and most of them had changed drastically too. When pushed to a higher form, his darkness lost most of its destructive features and became something dense that wasn''t suitable for his spells. His higher energy was different from June''s dark sparks and King Elbas'' fuel. June had to replace the "Breath" with the dark sparks in her Perfect Circuit. Her higher energy was a pure source of power that stood far above her previous lightning. King Elbas'' higher energy, instead, was connected to his bloodline. He could gain access to it only when he consumed something that expressed the power of his family. Of course, Noah didn''t know all the details concerning King Elbas'' power, but he could guess something since he had seen the differences between his and June''s higher energies. It seemed that the rare elements were as peculiar as the Patriarch of the Elbas family had described them. The fact that they didn''t have a fixed procedure led to different results that might even not meet the needs of a cultivator. Noah had considered the possibility of going back to the endless trial and error phase when he saw that his creation didn''t work with his spells. Still, he held back his final consideration when he saw what his higher energy produced when paired with his inscription methods. ''This can''t be right,'' Noah thought as he stared at a spiked sphere in his hands. When testing his inscription methods, Noah would often create Instabilities since he could easily spot the differences with his previous products. The Instability in his grasp was black and had a series of saber-shaped runes on its surface that worked as spikes. It appeared as identical to all the other disposable weapons that he had made in the past. The only peculiar and astonishing aspect of that sphere was that it radiated the aura of a rank 5 inscribed item in the middle tier. Noah knew that his mastery in the creation of those weapons had probably reached the point where he could produce items on that level. The only problem was that he was still in the gaseous stage, which made it hard for him to manipulate more powerful materials. Nevertheless, when it came to the Instability in his hands, Noah had only used the skin of a magical beast at the bottom of the fifth rank! Also, the higher energy was far denser than his darkness. Noah had been able to put only a minute part of it in his sea of consciousness to complete the procedure required by the Elemental Forging method. ''I wasn''t even sure if it could have reached the middle of the lower tier,'' Noah thought as disbelief still lingered in his mind. Noah had created a rank 5 inscribed item in the middle tier with only one basic material and a minute part of his higher energy. That achievement was incredible, and it was connected to his latest creation. The fact that he could drastically improve the power of his final products just by adding his higher energy to his inscription methods wasn''t something that he could ignore. Noah repeated the forging multiple times to be sure that his miracle wasn''t only a fluke caused by his recent enlightenments in the laws of creation. Still, the results were identical to his first Instability. He would create powerful items with materials on a far lower level. ''It might be the perfect tool for my creation,'' Noah thought as he stared at the seven spiked spheres in front of him. ''The Elemental Forging method isn''t even tuned for this type of energy. Just like my abilities with my hybrid status, my higher energy might not suit humans'' inscription methods.'' Countless thoughts rose and fell apart while Noah pondered about the issue. He had been initially disappointed that he couldn''t imitate King Elbas and June in their usage of their higher energy. Yet, now he felt his hands itching to create more. Chapter 911: 911. Collapse "So," June said as she analyzed the black star contained inside the cubical formation, "This is what made the great Noah Balvan worried." June then remained silent for a few seconds while she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. Yet, she could only guess that Noah had amassed a large amount of "Breath" in one place. "What exactly is that?" June eventually asked as she turned toward Noah, who was sitting cross-legged at some distance from her. Noah wasn''t meditating. June had arrived while he was inspecting one of his new creations, and he didn''t mind spending some time teasing her. He remained silent as his gaze moved between the various inscribed items lying around him and the cubical formation. In the past days, he had forged random weapons to see how far his higher energy could push materials at the bottom of the fifth rank. The results had always been exceptional. Noah''s higher energy would improve the outcome of his forgings, and he often ended up with items that he couldn''t usually make without an extensive period spent performing tests. As Noah acquired more experience with the higher energy though, he started to feel that it was still an imperfect form. Noah began to pour more darkness inside the cubical formation. The only way that he had to improve the current form of the higher energy was to push the black star toward a denser state. Also, he needed to find a way to carry that vast sphere around. Increasing its density would reduce its width in theory, which would save him from asking Thirty-seven a method to compress it. June knew that Noah was ignoring her on purpose. The last time that they had seen each other, she had pressed to remain with him because Noah had helped her create her higher energy. She wanted their relationship to benefit both of them instead of being the only one asking for help. Nevertheless, she understood the magnitude of Noah''s experiments when she analyzed the dark star. Noah''s procedure didn''t even come close to the safe dual cultivation that they had done in the past. It was a weapon of mass destruction that he exploited to elevate his darkness. June crouched behind Noah and hugged him while he poured his "Breath" in one of the links that would send it inside the cubical formation. "I wanted to protect you," She said as she laid her head on his back. "Yet, I can''t protect you from yourself." Noah revealed a smile at that point. He knew that his methods were reckless and dangerous, but that was how he had reached his current level. It didn''t matter if he had to cut one of his arms or spend entire years going mad to create his darkness. That was how Noah discovered and advanced, and his ruthless approach made him create wonders. "Just like I can''t stop you from you from being yourself," Noah said as he stretched to lie on her lap. "We strive toward the individualities at the beginning of the journey, and they end up limiting us in one path. We are who we are, June." "And we are together," June concluded his phrase and lowered her head to kiss him. It was time for the couple to have the moment of intimacy that they had delayed since her return in the neutral city. . . . June came and went in the separate dimension. There was an entrance inside the Hive''s training area of the neutral city, so she could go there whenever she wanted. It was still a peaceful period. The matter with the ambush had been suppressed by the invading forces to preserve that temporary peace, and the invasion of the old continent wouldn''t happen soon either. Daniel had the training area all by himself and would cultivate there, while Faith was still nowhere to be seen. Only June had interacted with her during the period after the ambush. "Here," June handed Noah a luxurious letter. The two of them were sitting in front of the dark star, taking care of their matters while giving in to their desires when they felt like it. The number of inscribed items lying on the floor of the separate dimension had increased, and the massive sphere made of darkness had become far bigger in the last period. Noah had continued to cultivate, forge, and pour his "Breath" inside the cubical formation. He had reached the point where he was waiting for his higher energy to take another step forward in its evolution before approaching the next stage of his experiments. Yet, that procedure took time since Noah had to pour massive amounts of darkness to increase the density of the dark star now. He had added that procedure to his schedule since he wasn''t in a hurry to complete his project. He would add fuel to the huge sphere whenever he had "Breath" to spare. Focusing only on his experiments would slow down the improvements of his centers of power, and that wasn''t something that he was willing to do. Noah opened the letter and found out that it contained a list of sects with short descriptions next to them. Faith had signed that letter too, and the aura that the signature contained made Noah sure that it wasn''t a fake. "She has been investigating Ravaging Demon''s affiliations," June explained as she played with one of the Instabilities laid on the floor. "This list isn''t much, but the internal matters in the Papral nation are quite messy. No one is willing to talk unless the Council steps forward." "This is already great," Noah said as he memorized that long list of names before storing the letter. "The Hive will eventually clash with Ravaging Demon''s factions. Gathering information is the best that we can do now." June''s focus wasn''t on him. She kept on looking at the inscribed items in the fifth rank sparse on the ground. Any expert would pay a lot of Credits to get their hands on one of them, but Noah couldn''t even bother to store them. Of course, Noah had his reasons for that. He wanted to have everything connected to his higher energy in his view to become more familiar with it. Noah started to pour his darkness inside the cubical formation. It had become a habit for him to do it whenever he was over with his training. Yet, something different happened at that time. The darkness in the outer layers of the dark star began to collapse and fuse with the layers below. That triggered a chain reaction that made the whole sphere condense and reach a new level of density. Noah directly stood up and moved toward the borders of the cubical formation. It seemed that his higher energy was finally ready to reach what Noah considered to be a perfect state. The lines of the formation shone as powerful flares erupted from the condensing sphere. It was as if the star wanted to send away some of the weaker energy contained in its form. Chapter 912: 912. Small star Noah quickly contacted Thirty-seven, who appeared in a matter of minutes. The automaton then controlled the formation so that the energy radiated by the flares would flow into other parts of the dimension. "Are you sure about this?" Thirty-seven asked. After all, that was the darkness that Noah had poured for weeks inside the cubical formation. "Yes!" Noah shouted as he stood on the verge of the formation. "Just let it happen." Noah''s memories of his past life weren''t helpful in that situation. He didn''t study the stars enough to affect the procedure without risking to disrupt the natural evolution of his darkness. So, he had decided that it would let his "Breath" regulate itself. Noah felt confident that its laws would force it to act according to his needs. The flares became less intense as the less dense darkness flew away from the formation. The collapse of the star continued though, and it eventually stabilized when it reached a small spherical form. Silent seconds passed as Noah, the automaton, and June inspected the small sphere that had replaced the massive star. The sphere was so dark that their eyes found it hard to define its edges. It was as if light couldn''t even come near that form, which made it appear as a black orb that distorted the air around it. However, Noah had familiarized himself with his higher energy in the last period. He could understand that the same type of energy made the sphere, even if it appeared far denser than before. The surface of the sphere remained still. Not even a ripple ran through its shape. Still, it floated on its own, and the trio could feel the intense gravitational pull around it. Noah suddenly took a step forward, ignoring the surprised glances that landed on its back. The gravitational pull became stronger as he neared the minute star. Yet, he was a hybrid in the upper tier. Enduring that traction force was something that he could do with a bit of effort. His mind started to expand as he neared the floating sphere. More insights on the laws of creation appeared in his thoughts under the influence of the higher energy. Noah decided to slow down his advance at that point. He didn''t know how many enlightenments the sphere could provide, but he felt that it was better to focus on them before interacting with the result of his procedure. Thirty-seven and June watched in silence as Noah took small steps and many breaks as he walked toward the little star. His eyes would often be closed too since his focus was on his mind. Noah spent half a day like that, slowly nearing the most stable result that his procedure had been able to produce. However, he eventually reached the sphere, and that was when he decided to touch it. Noah''s fingers stabbed the surface of the star easily. It was scorching, and it wasn''t solid at all. Instead, it seemed made of a dense gas that acted as if it was a liquid floating in the air whenever someone affected its shape. Noah felt even more insights on the laws of creation fusing with his mind and becoming something similar to soft instincts as he kept his hand inside the fist-sized star. He needed an entire day at that time to exhaust the enlightenments that his higher energy could provide. ''I see,'' Noah thought as he retracted his hand. ''Improving the outcome of my forgings is just a side effect. This energy hides far more, but I''m still unable to see it.'' Noah had begun to evaluate that hypothesis since his various experiments with the Instabilities and other disposable weapons. His higher energy seemed to have a specific purpose that he had yet to identify. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t worry about it. He was bound to discover that. The issue now was to find a way to carry it around without risking leveling cities. The star had become slightly smaller than a man''s fist. His initial idea had been on point, and adding more darkness had led to a natural compression that didn''t require any of Thirty-seven''s methods. ''Even if I manage to carry it around,'' Noah thought, ''How can I avoid setting up a similar environment to refill it every time?'' That was a major issue than Noah wanted to solve to make his new power suitable for battle. Having to resort to training areas and formations to refill his stash of higher energy was too troublesome. Noah wanted something that became part of his power, not a tool that he could use only after a long preparation. The truth was that Noah had an idea that would solve the issue. Still, that was another reckless idea. "You won''t like it," Noah said to June as soon as he came out of the formation and picked his inscribed notebook to contact Elder Austin. The Elder arrived a few hours later and lost himself in the sight of the small star floating inside the cubical formation before focusing on the two cultivators. Thirty-seven had left in the meantime since Noah didn''t need him anymore. "What is it, Prince?" Elder Austin asked with a curious tone. It was rare for Noah to contact him since Elder Julia handled most of the matters concerning the higher-ups of the Hive. Yet, Noah was the Demon Prince, and his recent achievements made all the Elders of the Hive feel indebted toward him. June felt curious too since Noah didn''t reveal the reason why he needed the Elder to move forward with his experiments. "Elder," Noah spoke, and his expression started to reveal his usual coldness even when he conversed with friendly faces, "I need your help to remove large patches of skin and muscles." Elder Austin had reached the liquid stage of the fifth rank in those years, and he had already helped Noah in a similar situation. Still, he couldn''t help but release a loud curse when he understood that Noah didn''t lose his self-harming attitude. On the other hand, June didn''t immediately understand what was happening, but the Elder''s unwillingness gave her some hints. Also, Noah followed with more details. "Don''t worry, Elder," Noah said as he tried to reassure Austin. "I only need you to skin the entirety of my back, and maybe part of my chest too. I don''t need too many muscles, just enough to reinforce the organ." "What organ!?" Elder Austin shouted. "And what only!? You can''t ask me to skin alive the second-most important figure in the whole Hive!" "You accepted to pierce my dantian last time!" Noah replied. "That was far more dangerous than this. I won''t die even if you happen to hurt a few internal organs in the process!" "This doesn''t reassure me at all!" Elder Austin shouted. Noah and Elder Austin continued to discuss right in front of June, who remained silent as she accepted what was happening. A smile appeared on her face when she saw her lover arguing to convince the Elder to hurt him. She didn''t like the idea of seeing Noah''s wounded, but she couldn''t help but admire his ruthlessness. Chapter 913: 913. Materials Noah knew his body and its limits. After all, he had created it and kept track of the changes that his many breakthroughs applied. The resilience of the magical beasts had made his body evolve together with his other centers of power. He had been a simple cultivator with a beast body in the past. Now, he was a harmonious being, with centers of power that featured the perks of both worlds. His dantian was sturdy and didn''t need any external force to advance. His mental energy could devour the wills of his prey and control other magical beasts with its power. His body had the strength of a creature, but it had access to the martial arts of the humans. That was the reason why he believed that his body would adapt if he added another center of power. His idea to solve the issues connected with the higher energy was to create an organ capable of storing it. That would allow him to carry it wherever he wanted and refill it even when he was fighting. His body would then improve that condition in the next breakthrough. It would make the new organ part of Noah''s harmony, creating a being capable of wielding three different types of energy. Elder Austin eventually accepted to help Noah. He didn''t have a say in the matter, but he felt that it was in his right to complain before yielding to his demands. Flames began to flow around the Elder. They took the form of two sharp knives under his control, and Noah could see how the aura that they radiated was different from the past. There was some violence in the Elder''s flames. They radiated a threatening instability that appeared ready to explode. It seemed that Elder Austin had taken to heart Chasing Demon''s pointers and had moved his individuality away from its previous path. His flames now contained the explosiveness of a volcano. Noah sat on the ground of the separate dimension with the upper part of his body uncovered. His back faced Elder Austin, who neared him while wielding the two flaming knives. June was still with them, and she kept her attention on her lover even when the Elder started to cut his skin. Elder Austin''s hands were steady as they moved the fiery knives to perform precise cuts on Noah''s back. His cutting speed though was low since he was dealing with materials in the upper tier of the fifth rank. The knives allowed the Elder to pierce Noah''s skin, but they struggled to pass through the thick layers of muscles. Still, that was intended since Austin preferred to hold back until he understood how strong Noah''s body was. June saw how her lover''s expression didn''t change when the Elder started to skin his back. Noah didn''t even flicker when his interiors were utterly exposed. Instead, he had the time to turn to look at the large piece of skin in the Elder''s grasp and do some quick math. Noah already had a blueprint of the new organ in his mind, and he could guess the requirements in terms of materials. The skin of his back was enough for two sessions of forging. "You can move to the muscles," Noah said after confirming that he didn''t need to use the skin on his chest too. "Take a few layers. You don''t need to go too deeply." Elder Austin nodded while wearing an annoyed expression. He didn''t like that task, and the fact that his knives would leave patches of charred tissues on Noah''s body didn''t help his mood. Yet, Noah didn''t complain nor cry in pain, which made the Elder''s work far more comfortable to bear since he didn''t meet any obstruction. The gathering of materials took less than an hour, and Noah stored his body parts inside the space-ring before starting to feed on a rank 5 magical beast in the middle tier. He now had the materials that he needed for the Elemental Forging method. He only needed to heal and to perfect some parts of the procedure in his mind before approaching his creation. "I will call you again if I need more materials," Noah said when he saw the Elder leaving. "Surpass me already, so I won''t have to do this again," Elder Austin said after a snort before stepping on a teleportation matrix and disappearing from that area of the separate dimension. June and Noah ended up alone again, but the former was in no mood to flirt, and the latter was injured. "How long will it take to heal?" June asked as she neared Noah to inspect his open wound. Blood flowed slowly outside of the large patch of missing skin. Noah''s healing abilities had already kicked in and were suppressing that injury. Still, Noah would need a while to return to his peak. His body was exceptional, but it was in the last tier of the fifth rank. His skin and muscles contained a large amount of energy, which meant that he needed to eat a lot if he wanted to increase his healing speed. "Two months, maybe three, it depends on how much I work in this period," Noah answered, but his words only irritated June. However, she quickly suppressed it. They had just fought about that same topic and conclude that they couldn''t alter what they were, even if that would lead them to make a reckless decision. June was a battle maniac, and she would probably decide to face enemies stronger than her for the sake of fighting. In the same way, Noah would do anything for power, even if that meant hurting himself in the process. "Will you put it in your body?" June asked as she glanced at the small star in the distance. June knew that Noah had already altered his body and that he had done so with far more invasive procedures. Yet, the energy contained inside the star was immense, and its gravitational pull was even stronger. That wouldn''t normally affect cultivators since they could use their "Breath" to defend against those effects. However, Noah planned to put the star inside his body! The internal organs of both beasts and humans were usually frail, and even Noah couldn''t claim to have the best of them in the hybrid world since there were body-nourishing methods that improved them. "It is unclear what I will become," Noah explained as he straightened his position and continued to eat to his fullest, "But I would solve most of the issues connected with the higher energy with that." Another powerful magical beast''s corpse appeared in front of him, and Noah continued to eat until his hunger reached average levels of intensity. The months spent healing gave him the time to focus more on the blueprint of the organ and on where he would put it. The choice eventually happened to be his heart since it was the only organ that had absorbed the qualities of the Yin Body other than the features of a magical beast. Chapter 914: 914. Forging The Yin body had created a black membrane around Noah''s heart when he was still a human. Then, when he had fused himself with a Cursed Dragon, the membrane and his heart had merged to become a single organ. That had improved Noah''s healing abilities. His injuries would close far faster than those of similar beings on the same level. Also, it made his heart one of the strongest organs in his body. Noah needed a place inside his body where he could put the organ containing higher energy. He couldn''t leave something capable of such gravitational pull near tissues that it could break apart easily. Of course, that was relative to Noah''s situation. Every tissue in his body surpassed the human standards, but he was dealing with an organ meant to contain a star. He had to make sure that he wouldn''t incur in ugly repercussions after the transplant. Nevertheless, Noah had yet to create the actual organ, so he didn''t spend too much time planning what would come after that. In his mind, the organ had to be reasonably simple. He would use his muscles to make the internal parts and his skin for the external ones. Then, he would forge them together with higher energy imbued with a specific meaning. In the end, Noah would add a modified version of his spherical rune to improve the overall containment of the higher energy. It took Noah a bit more than three months to heal, but that only because he refused to stop cultivating in that period. The massive wound on his back would start to bleed again whenever the Demonic Sword sent darkness to his dantian. Still, Noah returned to his peak and approached the forging once he made sure that he had studied every aspect of the procedure. Generally speaking, creating an organ meant only to contain energy was simple. After all, Noah would use his body parts to make it, which meant that there wouldn''t be any rejection after the transplant. The real issues were the actual capacity of the organ and whether it could contain that incredible amass of energy. Also, there was a problem connected to how resilient Noah''s body was. The new organ would be a center of power containing energy dense enough to level cities. Anyone would have second thoughts when the idea of putting it inside their bodies became doable in their minds. Yet, Noah couldn''t be sure of those features until he tested the item. Noah took a small bit of higher energy from the cubical formation and inserted it in his mental sphere. That seemingly solid gas entered the sea in his mind and came out in the form of a rotating orb that radiated a gravitational pull similar to that seen in the dark star. The meaning that he had used when he imbued the higher energy used his ambition as a fuel. Noah had imagined himself flying toward the starry sky and destroying everything in his path with his bare hands. He wasn''t a blade in the dream. He had human features as he strived for the peak. Noah had to imagine the entirety of himself as he reached for the stars since the new organ was bound to change his existence. After all, he was going to have four centers of power if the transplant was a success. As for what concerned the small star inside the cubical formation, its form became a bit unstable when it lost part of its energy. Noah would have to pour more darkness inside it to restore its balance. Noah completed the forging at his first try. The only real difficulty was the manipulation of rank 5 materials in the upper tier, but his higher energy smoothed the process since it was far stronger than his darkness. Also, its natural features helped to avoid failures and creating a complete product that didn''t require any tweak to reach a perfect form. The insights gained during his study of the higher energy helped too. Noah''s instincts now seemed able to understand how to handle certain parts of the procedure so that he could maximize the power of the finished product. What he obtained was a rank 5 inscribed item in the upper tier. It had the form of a small sphere, with dark features and a rough surface, and its power put them somewhere in the lower part of the upper tier of the fifth rank. Noah enveloped his creation with a spherical rune that he had made for that event. Its power couldn''t compare with the products that the separate dimension had seen in those years. Still, it was better to play it safe and add as many containing devices as he could. Noah had to wait until the small star inside the cubical formation regained its past stability before trying to move it inside the new organ. June watched as Noah held his new organ in his hands as he neared the small star. His connection with the higher energy made him capable of manipulating it, but there was still the chance that the star would react in strange ways due to that transfer. The higher energy moved quickly inside the organ who forced it to compress itself further to fit it. The transfer was surprisingly smooth. No major complication appeared during the process. Even the nature of the higher energy didn''t change after being compressed once again. It seemed that it had reached a form that was unwilling to let go. Noah had completed the easy part at that point. Now it was the moment to transplant the organ inside his heart. The Demonic Sword didn''t like to hurt Noah, even if he had his permission. Yet, it accepted to help him since their connection made the weapon understand that Noah needed it. Noah was a hybrid in the upper tier, but his other centers of power were still lacking. His spells could only reach the limits of the gaseous stage in terms of strength, and that wasn''t enough to pierce his skin. Noah could only use his physical strength to create a passage for the higher energy. Minutes of silence passed in the separate dimension while Noah reviewed everything that he had done in the last period. He controlled that he had considered every possibility before moving to the next phase of his project. June limited herself to stare at him. Her eyes couldn''t help but fall on the hole that he had cut on his chest. In the end, Noah pushed the small organ inside that hole made with his weapon before activating another round of forging to make his heart fuse with it. The dark organ reached for his heart and landed on its surface before the Elemental Forging method melded the two materials. Noah''s heart fused with the new center of power and created an organ capable of carrying out different functions. Yet, a few seconds after the end of the forging, Noah felt as if his whole chest was on fire. Even the insides of a fire-breathing dragon didn''t seem able to withstand the heat generated once the two organs had fused. Chapter 915: 915. Burning hear Noah would usually avoid inscribing an item that had already gone through one round of forging. The Elemental forging method required specific meanings for each product that he wanted to create, and fusing items that had already been inscribed usually led to a conflict of wills. However, Noah didn''t need to change the will when fusing the new center of power with his heart. He had used the same imbued higher energy to force their tissues to merge. That was necessary to make his body consider the new organ as part of Noah''s existence. He couldn''t just place it there because he needed to rely on the resilience of the magical beasts to harmonize that addition. Yet, the real harmonization would arrive after the next breakthrough of his body. Now he had to deal with the consequences of his new organ on his own. Noah felt as if the insides of his chest had turned into scorching magma after the two organs had fused. His body had been able to endure the heat radiated by the new center of power when it wasn''t part of his tissues, but it didn''t seem able to do so after the second forging. Noah fell on his knees as his consciousness gathered around his heart and tried to suppress the heatwaves. Blood fell from the wound on his chest when he crouched on the ground in a hurried attempt to contain that outcome. The new center of power didn''t have access to his circulatory system. It was part of Noah''s heart, but it was separated from the four chambers of his organs. Noah had only fused it with its tissues so that it could become part of his body. He wasn''t so idiotic to put his blood in direct contact with the dark star. However, the heat had arrived anyway, and it spread on the rest of his torso since his mental energy couldn''t stop it. Most cultivators would try to revert the process or label the experiment as a failure at that point, but Noah had faced worse repercussions in his life. He knew that his body could take a while to adapt to such invasive modifications. After all, he had to die when he fused with a Cursed Dragon to reset the laws that held his body together. Something similar had happened with the Forging of the Seven Hells too. Death would always loom around him whenever he performed one of his unorthodox experiments, and a simple scorching sensation wasn''t the worse that had happened to him. June had felt the urge to run toward him as soon as she saw him crouching on the ground. Still, she suppressed that instinct to give Noah enough room to operate. She was an expert in the formation field, but Noah was messing with the anatomy of his body. That kind of organic inscriptions wasn''t something that she could affect with her expertise. Noah roared in anger, and the world around him lost its light for an instant as he released a wave of flames. His instincts had told him to disperse some heat, but the issue didn''t originate from his lungs. Trails of gray smoke came out of Noah''s mouth as he gasped for air. He was starting to act as a magical beast since his mind focused on confining the heat spreading through his body. Noah spent entire minutes in that condition. He would punch, roar, and spew flames in the hope that releasing some of his energy would help to solve the issue. However, his body only needed time to accept that new energy. Noah''s condition slowly stabilized as time passed, and the heat became more bearable as his heart became used to its new chamber. It soon became apparent that Noah had mistakenly taken that scorching sensation as a consequence of the fusion of the two organs. That sensation was only an instinctive reaction of his internal organs adapting to the new source of heat that had appeared inside his body. June breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Noah calming down and sitting cross-legged to meditate. She could see through her mental energy that her lover''s consciousness had let go of its tension and was merely analyzing his body now. Noah watched his heart with his mind. His heartbeat was strong, and the addition to that organ didn''t affect the normal functioning of his circulatory system. Instead, he felt a strange power coming from the spherical chamber that had appeared on his heart. It wasn''t the gravitational pull or its temperature. Noah felt as if his entire existence was striving for something different from its current state. Something that he couldn''t define yet. ''Let''s see if this works,'' Noah thought before moving his focus on the new center of power. A small piece of his higher energy came out of his heart and appeared on his palm. Still, Noah''s attention remained on his chest to analyze how withdrawing power from the dark star had affected its state. Of course, Noah had tested that before fusing his heart and the new center of power. Yet, he wanted to see if something had changed after the forging. The dark star remained stable even after it lost part of its energy. The fact that the center of power compressed it helped in maintaining a steady form. However, Noah knew that he couldn''t let it become too unstable or withdraw too much higher energy. His new organ wouldn''t be able to contain the dark star if it returned to its weaker form when it was still a vast mass of rotating energy. ''I need to keep the star to optimal levels,'' Noah concluded in his mind and started to withdraw small pieces of the dark star to see when it would show signs of instability. He had yet to find a way to use it in battle but knowing its limits had the priority. Even if he developed a fighting method that made use of his higher energy, he wouldn''t resort to it until he knew exactly how much density the star could lose before returning to its giant form. It turned out that the compression of the center of power kept the dark star stable even when half of its energy had gathered on Noah''s palm. That gave Noah some confidence and eased his worries. His training and tests would take a long time if the star were to become unstable as soon as he withdrew some energy. Still, it seemed that he could act quite freely as long as he didn''t go under half of it. "It seems stable," Noah said as he reabsorbed the higher energy floating on his palm. A sudden weight landed on his chest when he did that, but that sensation disappeared in a few seconds. June neared him after those words, and her hand went on his chest, where the wound had finally stopped bleeding. "It''s hot," She said when she placed her palm on him. "Your fourth center of power is a burning heart." Chapter 916: 916. Sparks Noah spent the following weeks continuing his tests with his new center of power. He needed to become used to its limits before focusing again on the higher energy that it contained. Noah would study how long it took for the dark star to return to its peak, how quickly he could withdraw the higher energy, and how much of his darkness he needed to divert on his heart to refill it. After all, that was a completely new organ, even if part of it still acted as his heart. It was different from his other centers of power since he had almost two centuries to explore their functioning and limits. Noah forged, experimented with the Will-consuming runes, and even started to work on the living weapons again. It was needless to say that Thirty-seven felt excited when Noah told him that they would start working together again. Still, that feeling only became more intense when the miraculous properties of the higher energy showed their effects on the organic inscriptions. In the past, Noah had used his primary energy to perform the Elemental Forging method on weapons that had a different aptitude from his. Using his darkness would lead to rejections that increased the failure rate of the forgings. Yet, such rejections didn''t appear when he used his higher energy. That discovery surprised even Noah. The higher energy was a product of his darkness in the end, and it still carried the features of the darkness aptitude. Rejections would only be normal in its case. However, it seemed that the pure meaning of creation carried by the higher energy was enough to make up for the difference in the elements. The outcome was even slightly better than usual! It was worth noting that the living weapons created in that way would carry a trace of Noah''s aura, which made their attacks somewhat impure since there were different elements fused in one being. That didn''t affect the power of the weapons. Still, it worked as a signature that revealed the identity of their creator. Noah didn''t mind that after-effect for now since the living weapons had yet to enter the international market. Still, it was something worth keeping in mind in case he was to forge weapons for cultivators outside of the Hive. Once the peculiarity of his creations became famous, any expert would be able to recognize his works. His stash of magical beasts had started to become thin in the last period. Between the two healing sessions, the countless forgings, and feeding the Demonic Sword, Noah was starting to lack food for himself. The only things that had stopped him from going outside and hunting for more creatures were his eagerness to study his higher energy and the fact that he could use part of the energy in the star to appease his hunger. Yet, it had reached the point where Noah was seriously risking emptying his stash, which led him to come out of the separate dimension to hunt in the territories near the neutral city. June had returned on the surface already in that period. She had to lead some minor cleaning operations in a danger zone for the Elbas family, and she would use that opportunity to visit Faith, who was still somewhere in the Council''s domain. Noah reappeared in the underground training area and found Daniel cultivating in the corner of the vast room. There was a large cauldron in front of him, and strands of dim light would come out of it. It seemed that Daniel had stuck with his previous cultivation technique even after discussing his individuality with Shandal. Still, Noah guessed that there were minute differences that he wasn''t able to notice. Noah didn''t know anything about alchemy, and Daniel had one of the rarest elements too. Darkness and light had many mysterious features that only their owners could understand. Daniel interrupted his cultivation when he sensed Noah''s arrival, but a disturbance in the environment soon claimed the two cultivators'' attention. Noah felt anger rising inside him as his body understood what was happening. His body was able to sense the arrival of a Heaven Tribulation even before its dark clouds gathered. ''Why does Heaven keep doing it?'' Noah thought before shooting toward the surface. The truth was that he had expected a Tribulation to come when he first created the higher energy, but the lack of reactions from Heaven and Earth made him ignore that matter. Yet, the reaction arrived now that he had reappeared as an existence with four centers of power. Noah flew above the neutral city and gazed at the dark clouds accumulating in the sky. Elder Estelle and the other rank 5 existences were already there and looked at him with helpless expressions. Noah wanted to tell them that he would lead the Tribulation away from the city, but his mind suddenly expanded at the sight of the orange sparks running through the clouds. A lightning bolt fell from the sky while his mind was still wandering in that sudden enlightenment, and it hit him directly on the chest, throwing him back on the ground. That event surprised the rank 5 existences on the scene. After all, the Tribulation had the power of the lower tier of the fifth rank, and they had seen Noah fighting against cultivators at the peak of the gaseous stage. They would have never imagined that the famous hybrid of the Hive couldn''t react in time against that lightning bolt. It soon became evident that something was wrong with that situation, and the experts made the silent decision of taking care of the Tribulation before it fell on the city. However, before any of them could attack, a draconic roar carrying human words resounded in the area. "Don''t touch it!" The experts froze in place and turned toward the crater created by Noah''s fall only to see a figure flying away from the city at high speed. The clouds decided to chase after Noah, ignoring the dumbfounded experts that limited themselves to stare at the leaving Tribulation for fear to incur the Demon Prince''s anger. Noah flew toward the central territories until the city was nothing more than a dark spot in the distance. Then, he stopped and waited for the Tribulation to catch up with him. The black clouds quickly gathered above him again and started to release lightning bolts aimed at his chest. Their target was the fourth center of power. Noah didn''t defend. He closed his eyes and let the lightning bolts hit him and hurl him on the ground. His body felt sore after the impacts, but his mind was still lost in the sudden enlightenment that the Tribulation had brought. ''I see,'' Noah thought as he slowly stood up from the crater that he had created with his fall and lifted his arms so that his palms would face each other. The clouds didn''t wait for him and started to release more lightning bolts toward him. Yet, Noah ignored them and focused on the higher energy in his heart. ''This energy is meant to create the world.'' Noah thought, and black sparks formed between his palms. Chapter 917: 917. Meaning Noah didn''t know why he had suddenly felt able to create those black sparks. Maybe it was his period inside the Divine Architect''s separate dimension, or his experience with the Tribulations, or even his connection with June, who carried the scent of the Heaven''s Spark. Yet, he knew that he had understood how to recreate the lightning element carried in the Tribulation as soon as he saw the black clouds. Black sparks formed between Noah''s palms and condensed to create a thick lightning bolt that emitted crackling sounds even if its form was mostly solid. Meanwhile, some disturbance ran through the lightning bolts of the Tribulation that were falling toward him. Noah was ready to receive the attack of the black clouds when he saw their lightning bolts deviating and falling on different spots of the barren ground. It was as if something had forced them to change their trajectory. The same disturbance hit the clouds too. Noah saw how the crackling noise inside them became more violent, and their surface trembled. It seemed that some battle was happening inside the Tribulation. Yet, Noah couldn''t sense anyone else on the scene, and even his enhanced awareness couldn''t pick up anything. The aura of the Tribulation started to change during that struggle. It had only emitted a pure sense of destruction before, but some deeper meaning had begun to appear in the black clouds. The lightning storm was slowly shifting from being a mere punishment sent by Heaven to destroy a rebellious existence to a fair trial that featured a reward. It was changing into the same kind of Tribulation meant for beings that were about to step on a higher level of existence. ''Who is doing this?'' Noah thought at that sight. That strange event was taking over Heaven and Earth''s will and changing the composition of the Tribulation. Noah would benefit from destroying the clouds now. It wasn''t a matter of survival anymore. ''Is it the world?'' Noah thought before the lightning storm started again, and he felt forced to defend against the incoming attacks. Noah saw a dozen lightning bolts coming in his direction, but he was ready at that time. He threw the black bolt in his palms before wielding his Demonic Sword to launch more attacks. The Tribulation''s lightning bolts exploded into a series of sparks when they met the black lines launched by the Demonic Sword. Noah''s martial art was more than enough to deal with that threat. Instead, his dark bolt created a loud shockwave when it met with the Tribulation''s offensive. The two bolts destroyed each other and dispersed into the world when they clashed. Noah didn''t feel too disappointed about the power of his lightning bolt. That was his first time imitating a phenomenon of the world, and he didn''t use spells either. His sudden creation was just an imitation of the attacks that were coming at him, but they were far away from being optimized. Noah could destroy the Tribulation quickly if he used all his powers. Nevertheless, he knew that he wouldn''t get another chance like that. How many times could a cultivator test himself against a Tribulation? And how many of them could test their imitation of Heaven and Earth''s lightning bolts? So, Noah decided to focus on his dark sphere and used only his lightning to fend off the Tribulation. As he kept fighting, the differences between the lightning element and the darkness became evident. The lightning element was direct and violent. It wasn''t meant to be controlled. It only needed a target to pierce and destroy. Noah felt the black sparks trying to escape his control as he manipulated them to take specific forms. They wanted to go wild and cause havoc everywhere, without even minding their targets. On the other hand, the darkness element was vague. It encompassed almost every field, but it didn''t have any specific feature or innate behavior. Noah guessed that such behaviors were simply an innate feature of the elements. The less rare aptitudes had more transparent conduct compared to the rarest ones. The Tribulation started to fall apart after some time. After all, Noah had kept launching lightning bolts like crazy through the entirety of the battle. His ability to imitate the Tribulation increased as he kept fighting too. It had reached the point where his lightning bolts weren''t just the imitation of that phenomenon again. They kept on becoming stronger and denser until they were able to overcome the Tribulation''s attacks and land on the black clouds. Noah eventually destroyed the entirety of the Tribulation, and a humming sound spread in the area at that point. He felt as if the world was trying to announce something, but it didn''t understand it completely. He could only hear some random pieces of information, but most of his understanding came from the instincts that ran through his body. He could understand that the world had reacted at the appearance of such energy. Winning against the Tribulation would make the world accept his higher energy as one of the matters allowed in those Mortal Lands. The laws released from the Tribulation at the moment of its demise improved Noah''s understanding of the laws of creation. Those effects weren''t limited only to a quicker growing speed. They nourished his dantian too and pushed it toward a superior stage. Noah felt that his dantian had started to compress under the influence of the muscles around it. The darkness inside it slowly turned into a single and minute drop of a dark liquid that seemed made of swords. A roar escaped his mouth at that point. Noah couldn''t help but express his triumph to the world since he had just taken a significant step forward in his cultivation. He had become a rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage! ''Finally!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. ''It has taken me a century to reach this level!'' He had become a rank 5 cultivator when he was only eighty or so years old. Yet, he had to spend the following sixteen years focused on creating his darkness so that he could cultivate. Now, after a bit more than a century, Noah had taken another step forward in his path. Noah meditated and cultivated for a few days right on that spot in the central areas of the new continent. He had yet to stabilize his dantian, and he wanted to review what his new understanding had brought. Everything had suddenly become evident in his mind. Projects and ideas that he had stored inside his random thoughts appeared easier than ever. It was as if he had been born to create. After the acceptance of the world, Noah had become a proper maker. ''I guess I can focus on my battle prowess now that I''ve found a path for my higher energy,'' Noah thought as he opened his eyes and began to fly in the direction of the neutral city. ''I need to create a Blood Companion first,'' Noah evaluated as he remembered the utility of the Body-inscription spell. ''I even know which will to give it.'' Chapter 918: 918. Dark matter Noah had always relied on Blood Companions through the course of his cultivation journey. The Body-inscription spell had been his first spell and a useful tool that had allowed him to overwhelm his opponent even when outnumbered. Yet, his darkness had made him lose access to many of his previous abilities, which forced him to give up on creating Blood Companion until he found a solution to the issue. His higher energy though had revealed itself to be a matter capable of recreating the world. It could replicate the lightning bolts of a Heaven Tribulation, and it had even caused a reaction in the black clouds meant to destroy him. Noah now had the tools that he had lacked in his previous years and could devote himself to all the projects that he had set aside. The priority went to those that would improve his battle prowess. Of course, his study of the higher energy was far from over. After all, he had just discovered that he could imitate other elements with that power, which was no small thing. However, that research would take decades, and its results might be unclear. Even if it was a promising study project, Noah had to make sure that he was at the peak of his power before embarking himself in another long series of experiments. Noah''s return to Divine Market city created a wave of surprise and amazement. The other rank 5 cultivators had seen him cause a Tribulation and lead it away from the city. Still, now they saw him returning as a rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage. His title as the most talented cultivator in history wasn''t just for show. Noah proved to the world again that he was a monster capable of matching the exaggerated rumors about him. Reaching the liquid stage in a little more than one hundred years was an outstanding achievement. It showed that Noah didn''t meet any bottleneck along his journey and was continuing to advance at full speed toward the higher ranks. Truth to be told, reaching the liquid stage in one hundred years wasn''t too far off from the standards of the geniuses. It wasn''t a monstrous achievement like those that he had earned in the past. Yet, the matter spread far and wide nonetheless since it concerned Noah. Being a little above the genius level would still earn him the title of a monster since his previous achievements put him too far away from his generation. Noah''s notebook rang like crazy in those days. Every Elder of the Hive wanted to congratulate with him and set up friendly meetings where they could discuss their individualities and give pointers to each other. Noah was inclined to accept them, but he had too many projects piled up, and he had yet to study his new darkness properly. So, he turned the invitations down as he prepared to approach the experiments with his Blood Companion. Thirty-seven felt disappointed when Noah told him that they would need to stop experimenting on the living weapons until he took care of his matters. Still, the automaton decided to join Noah''s new project anyway since it sort of concerned organic inscriptions. Noah''s idea was simple. In the past, he had initially thought that he needed to assemble a body that would suit his darkness to avoid the rejections that had made him abandon the spell in the first place. Nevertheless, discovering that his higher energy was a pure tool of creation meant that he could assemble whatever he wanted as long as there was enough energy for the Blood Companion and himself. He didn''t even need the body parts of specific magical beasts. He could imitate them with his higher energy. There were only two issues with his idea. The first one was that Thirty-seven needed to reexamine the spell and change it according to Noah''s requirements. The seconds one was that he needed a will if the automaton decided to follow the living weapons'' approach. Thirty-seven though was happy to mess around with spells that involved organic inscriptions, and Noah already had the perfect candidate for what concerned the second issue. Noah had learnt after becoming a hybrid that the hunger of the magical beast was a curse. It was the sensation that drove all their actions, and that even took over their survival instincts at times. Still, there were peculiar specimens in the world that had learnt to control their instincts and live without hunting all the time. Noah didn''t know why that happened. It was something that went against the beasts'' instincts. However, he knew that he would have probably discovered it if he didn''t have access to so many preys all the time. Noah could hunt whenever and wherever he wanted. He didn''t have a pack to feed, and his power always allowed him to target beings that were on the same level as his body. The magical beasts couldn''t do that. They would usually hunt for weaker creatures and slowly grow while they tried to survive the constant clearing operations of the humans. So, some of them learnt to be patient and suppress their instincts, just like the Albino Snake, which was Noah''s target. Having the will of a beast capable of controlling itself would be amazing once created a Blood Companion. It would make a huge difference in battle, and Noah wouldn''t need to fear any rebellion since it wasn''t a hybrid. Finding it wouldn''t even be a problem since Noah could imagine where it was hiding. It had escaped in the territories of the Empire after the dimensional portal appeared in the Utra nation. However, soldiers of the Shandal Empire filled the central territories of the old continent. They would have noticed something so big slithering through their domain. So, the most obvious answer was that it was hiding inside the mountain chain that divided the two areas of influence. There would be time for the hunt though. Noah now had to create a body that could make use of his individuality and turn it into firepower too. Generally speaking, Noah would find specific body parts and forge them together to create a chimera. However, he could work more freely now that he had higher energy. He could use it as the primary material for his creation. After all, that would even improve Noah''s control over the Blood Companion and would prevent him from wasting time trying to piece exotic materials together. Noah''s project started with a long session of meditation accompanied by the Divine Deduction technique, in which he decided the features that his new Blood Companions would have. Also, he set its abilities and its anatomy according to his needs. The actual experimentations happened only after that, and Noah could discover even more applications of his higher energy. He wasn''t wrong when he thought that he could recreate the world thanks to his black star. Noah had begun creating the spine from nothing when he noticed that his higher energy could solidify if needed. It could assume any forms. That led Noah to call his higher energy "dark matter". Chapter 919: 919. Copy Creating with the dark matter felt strange at the beginning. Noah had never met such a peculiar material, and assembling it in the form of a living being broadened his vision for what concerned its potential. The higher energy could change form freely. Noah would forge it in the shape of a body part only to see it transforming into a gas whenever he wanted. Then, it could return to its solid form without losing the features that Noah had inscribed. It was mysterious and atypical, but the possibilities that it opened were also incredible. That wasn''t always a good thing, especially in the initial phases. Noah''s understanding continued to grow as he continued to build a body, and that forced him to reconsider some of the initial parts that he had created. He would suddenly find better ideas to put into use, or a sturdier structure, or even a completely different ability that was possible only thanks to the properties of the dark matter. The fact that he had reached the liquid stage didn''t help in the matter either. Noah''s existence had taken another step toward the world of the laws after the breakthrough, and his mind would peek at it more often now. His sessions of meditation became longer since his mind kept on reaching for the laws and understanding how to wield them better. That made him find more ways to improve his previous creation, which led him to review what he had been building. It was a cycle where creating the body of the Blood Companion led to an increase in his understanding, which then made Noah review and modify what he had built previously. Of course, that wasn''t bad either. It only increased the amount of time that Noah would spend on that project. Noah didn''t let his eagerness to improve his battle prowess take the better of him and wholly focused on creating the best body that his expertise was capable of building. He even started over at times when he found structures that were far better from those that he had used before. He didn''t mind taking his time though. After all, Thirty-seven had yet to come up with a modified version of the Body-inscription spell, and the two of them would have to fuse their separate works at some point. Nothing changed both in the separate dimension and in the outside world in that period. The three invading forces kept on growing and preparing for the attack on the old continent, and their assets focused on harvesting as many gains as they could from the new territories. There wasn''t a set date in their alliance that dictated when they would resume their offensive, but the atmosphere in the new continent became tenser as they years passed. That wasn''t the result of internal conflicts or specific meetings. The three organizations were keeping track of how many Heaven Tribulations appeared in the skies of their allies'' domains to check their growth. The Hive had surprised its allies in those years due to the troops from the Odrea nation. Still, the other forces had seen their fair share of breakthroughs too. Almost fifty years had passed from their first attack on the Empire by then, and every organization had obtained valuable territories other than more experienced troops. It was only normal for all of them to see positive results in that period. The more positive results appeared, the more the war drew near. June eventually returned to the separate dimension and found Noah immersed in a black cloud that didn''t let any light touch its surface. The cloud would take the shape of a long, scaled body at times and return to its gaseous form whenever Noah found some instability in its structure. There were even other features that became visible whenever the cloud turned solid. June could see a pair of large feathered wings too, and she even saw a claw once. Also, the overall size of the creature was massive. It was even bigger than the Lazy Whale that had died in the war against the Empire! It was evident that Noah was building some colossal monster that didn''t exist in the world. However, June couldn''t help but sense an absolute harmony in those forms. Noah didn''t forget that he had to create something functional. The Blood Companion needed a form that the will of a magical beast could control. It had to be a proper living being. He couldn''t just add every battle-related feature that he could think of. There had to be a harmony in the creature that he was building so that it could express its power without causing any internal conflict. Also, Noah was trying to tune it with his darkness since his "Breath" would fuel the creature''s abilities. That meant creating something in line with his individuality, and that wouldn''t give birth to any rejection with his darkness. In his idea, the dark matter would make the Blood Companion''s body, his darkness would fuel its abilities, and its every move would generate primary energy in the environment. The creature would express the peak of his creation since it made use of all the energies that Noah could wield. Its existence would even be one inclined to destruction, which would complete the representation of his individuality. "Why am I not surprised that you started to create a monster as soon as you advanced to the liquid stage?" June asked when she saw Noah coming out of the black could. "The surprises have just begun," Noah said as he wore a smirk and lifted his hand to show her the black sparks. June felt as if she was dreaming. It had never happened in the entire history of those Mortal Lands that a cultivator had been able to wield two elements! Yet, as she analyzed the sparks further, she realized that they didn''t belong to the lightning element. Instead, they radiated the same aura of the cloud, meaning that they belonged to the darkness aptitude. Noah didn''t wield two elements. His dark matter could recreate the lightning bolts of the Tribulation, but it remained an evolved form of his darkness. "The maker has found his tools, and now he wants to play," June said in a soft voice. She was the only one that knew the entirety of Noah''s individuality, so she could understand the path that he had taken with that energy. "No one knows about this," Noah said, ignoring her previous words. "I still need to study how to use the imitation of the other elements properly before showing it in battle." June couldn''t help but feel happy when she heard that. She was the only one aware of Noah''s secrets, and that made her feel as if they had their world that they weren''t willing to share with anyone. "What do you think you will do with it?" June asked as she took Noah''s hand. Dark sparks came out of her palm too, and they entangled themselves with the black sparks. "I only have a vague idea," Noah said as he pulled June closer. "Copy the elements, the matter, the world, and, eventually, Heaven and Earth." Chapter 920: 920. White mountain Noah''s plans for his dark matter didn''t stop to an imitation. According to what he had understood of his higher energy, he might reach the point where he could create his world at some point. Of course, that was purely theoretical. Noah had only managed to copy the lightning bolts of the Heaven Tribulation, and his work with the body of the Blood Companion was between pure creation and imitation. Noah was creating body parts that already existed in other magical beasts and building entirely new tissues when he couldn''t find something to imitate. His expertise with higher energy was what dictated his choices. Imitating was easier, and Noah could create tissues that he had already studied in the past. Pure creation, instead, was challenging and required tests to see if his products worked as intended. It was needless to say that the tissues built through pure creation suited his individuality better. Still, Noah wasn''t skilled enough to make an entire living being without taking inspiration from the world. Also, certain body parts were too perfect for what he had in mind, so he couldn''t ignore the examples that the world provided. June remained in the separate dimension and left it only when the Elbas family contacted her for specific meetings or assigned her missions. That rarely happened though, so she spent most of her time training near Noah, who was entirely captivated by his project. Noah and Thirty-seven had started to work together at some point since they needed to make sure that they were working toward the same goal. They had both planned that the modifications of the Body-inscription spell had to lead to some advanced version of the living weapons. Yet, they needed to set a direction so that their researches could eventually fuse into a single ability. Nevertheless, they quickly found common ground. Thirty-seven would try to modify the spell so that Noah would only need to transfer the will of the Albino Snake into the new body before inscribing it on his skin. After deciding on their direction, Noah and Thirty-seven returned to their work and focused on completing their separate projects. It only took a few years for both of them to complete their works. Thirty-seven even finished before Noah since his project only required him to modify certain parts of the Body-inscription spell. The only parts that required special attention were the modifications to specific core aspects. Still, the automaton did its best to keep as much of the original diagram as possible. On the other hand, Noah had needed a bit more to complete the body made with dark matter. There were many instances when he had to rebuild entire parts of the Blood Companion because they caused instabilities in its form. At times, some of its organs wouldn''t function correctly, which forced him to analyze and recreate tissues again. Noah eventually completed his work, and that signaled the beginning of the last phase of his project. It was time to hunt down the Albino Snake and finalize the creation of the Blood Companion. A vast black cloud started to compress, revealing Noah''s features. The gas gathered on his palm, where it formed a small orb that Noah stored inside his space-ring. There was enough room for the body of the Blood Companion after the years spent experimenting and testing. It wasn''t a problem to store his creation now. Thirty-seven came close and handed him a piece of leather that had a series of inscriptions on its surface. "Just fuel it and place it on the ground," The automaton said. "The inscriptions will do the rest." The piece of leather contained the modified version of the Body-inscription spell. Thirty-seven had created a disposable item capable of deploying the inscriptions necessary for its functioning so that Noah could perform the ritual wherever he wanted. Noah didn''t expect to find too many dangers on his path, but the mountain chain between the two areas of influence was a rank 6 danger zone. It was better to make upgrades to his arsenal as soon as he could. June was there too, and she and Noah exchanged a quick kiss before he stepped on a teleportation matrix and disappeared from the separate dimension. She would have loved to come with him even to relive the moments spent in the wilderness in the other Mortal Lands. Yet, she had to be available in the eventuality that the Elbas family summoned her. Noah used three teleportation matrices in a row to reach the closest spot to his target. According to his investigations, the Albino Snake had escaped along the eastern coast of the old continent after the dimensional portal appeared. That area wasn''t exactly safe since the old academy was in those territories. Still, Noah had no intention to risk meeting the silver-haired Royals again and decided to avoid entering in the Utra nation. The last teleportation matrix had brought him on the southernmost side of the old continent, and Noah flew above the sea until he crossed the eastern border of the Utra nation. Then, he kept flying for a few days and landed on the eastern coast only when he felt that he had put enough distance between him and the old domain of the Elbas family. At that point, Noah started to look for the traces of the Albino Snake and its pack. Luckily for him, that side of the old continent was mostly uninhabited. After all, the Elbas family had pushed as many assets as possible to migrate to the new continent. Noah found himself in a wild environment where only magical beasts tried to thrive even if the destructive effects of the dimensional portal were about to reach those lands. They were mostly creatures in the human ranks that ate each other to make up for the low density of "Breath" in the air. Of course, Noah completely ignored them as he looked for the traces left by the Albino Snake, and they weren''t hard to find due to the massive size of that creature. Noah followed those traces until he found himself in front of the familiar mountain chain that signaled the end of King Elbas'' domain and pressed forward while keeping his awareness to its peak. It seemed that even the mountain chain had been affected by the appearance of the dimensional portal. Many creatures had migrated and mixed themselves with the environment of that danger zone, making it more crowded and chaotic. Noah felt the urge to hunt the few powerful creatures that he found among those mountains, but he suppressed it to focus on the mission. There would be time to eat once he improved his power. Tracking down a creature in the fifth rank wasn''t a hard task for him, especially since he knew what he was looking for. Noah soon found himself in a valley between two tall mountains, and he saw a scene that made some of his oldest memories resurface. He saw a small and white mountain surrounded by a sea of snakes. Chapter 921: 921. Beam Noah''s level was too low back then to understand the rank of the Albino Snake. He had needed William to confirm that the creature was a rank 5 magical beasts. Yet, he could understand its exact level of power now that he looked at it from his position in the sky. The Albino Snake had recreated the same environment of Twilboia Cliff. A swarm of snake-type magical beasts in the human ranks surrounded its huge body and took bites of each other whenever their hunger became unbearable. As for the leader of that pack, it was a magical beast at the peak of the fifth rank. ''I just have to dodge its beam,'' Noah thought as he let memories resurface in his mind. Albino Snakes had the strong bodies usually seen in any snake-type creature, but their most threatening feature was their ability to condense light in their scales and release it in the form of a beam from their mouth. As their innate ability suggested, they were magical beasts with a light aptitude. The records that Noah had reviewed before going into that mission even specified that simple protections wouldn''t work against that attack. Still, those same records described that species as a peculiar kind of magical beasts. Albino Snakes didn''t always exist in nature. Their species was the result of a mutation that happened in an extinct type of snakes called Dark-scaled Snakes. The Dark-scaled Snakes were said to have an innate flaw since they shared some blood with the dragons. Their hunger and aggression would often go out of control due to the instability hidden inside their bloodlines. That eventually forced the cultivators of the past to create massive hunting parties meant to exterminate the threat of Dark-scaled Snakes. They managed to do that without leaving even one of them alive, but they didn''t predict that some specimens would develop a natural mutation to ensure their survival. In the face of extinction, some of the Dark-scaled Snakes gave up on their connection with the dragons and evolved into the current Albino Snakes, which had a more peaceful behavior. The new nature of the species allowed some of them to escape the extinction and thrive in danger zones that the humans rarely visited. Of course, Noah knew that most of that story had probably a lie. It seemed more reasonable that the hunting groups had missed the mutation and ignored the new species because it had white scales instead of black. It was only a few centuries after that clearing operation that a few experts had managed to find a connection with the now-extinct Dark-scaled Snakes species. Noah now knew why such a powerful beast could conceive that training system. It was like the Albino Snakes to be less violent than other creatures and sleep for most of their time. Yet, the fact that it was a relatively intelligent species didn''t mean that the specimen in front of him wasn''t unique. It would be impossible for another beast to feed only on newly advanced rank 4 creatures for who knew how long. Noah''s target was patient and could control its hunger, which was something that even he couldn''t do. Noah remembered how he didn''t even have a dantian when he first met the Albino Snake. Its simple breathing had almost killed him, and he had managed to survive only thanks to the Body-inscription spell. It felt only fated that the same creature would be the one allowing him to use that spell again. ''Hope you still remember how to snore,'' Noah thought as black smoke started to come out of his figure to create a scaled armor. Four copies of the divided Demonic Sword appeared around him too, and four fuming arms quickly wielded them. The white mountain on the ground began to move at that point. The Albino Snake''s senses couldn''t fail to notice the appearance of such a potent threat, and they awakened it from its slumber. The ground and the surface of the mountains next to that valley began to tremble as the Snake moved, but Noah''s attack landed before it could even show its face. A deep red mark appeared on the massive body of the creature, and blood soon started to fall from that injury. Noah had intended to cut the Snake directly in half, but it seemed that even his most powerful ability wasn''t enough to inflict a deadly injury. His slash had been able to leave deep wounds on multiple spires, but it didn''t reach the internal organs. He wasn''t surprised about that. The Snake was a creature at the peak of the fifth rank. Just one step forward would have made it enter the realm of the sixth rank, making it impossible for him to hunt the specimen. However, Noah could still hurt it in that state, and the wounds weren''t light either. He could kill it if he just invested some time on that hunt. A loud hiss resounded in the area, and Noah felt the will of the Snake trying to affect his mental sphere. It was using the innate ability given by its higher level to take control of all the beasts nearby. However, Noah''s mind was strong enough to suppress the urges given by the pack leader, and the beasts belonging to different species felt the need to retreat rather than obeying it. Noah knew the reason for that. The Albino Snake was asking to protect it with their bodies while it prepared a counter-attack. It wasn''t a surprise that they left. Also, they belonged to different species. The orders of a snake couldn''t affect a dog, even if they came from a creature in the fifth rank. Noah didn''t wait for the Albino Snake to prepare a battle strategy and pressed on with his offensive. A series of powerful inscribed items fell from Noah''s position toward the white mountain that was finally starting to show its face. They were mostly Instabilities, but there were some Hidden Threats along with other disposable weapons that Noah had created while he was experimenting with the higher energy. There was a significant problem in that hunt. The only ability that Noah could use to really hurt the Snake was the second form of his martial art. The others were powerful, especially after he had reached the liquid stage, but they still couldn''t compare to the fusion of martial arts and spells wielded by a hybrid. His physical strength was useless too since the Albino Snake was more potent than him. Being at the peak of the fifth rank put it on a completely different level. Still, Noah had no intention to get close to the creature. Albino Snakes couldn''t fly, which meant that Noah could stay in the sky and keep attacking it until it died. Nevertheless, the Snake wouldn''t go down without a fight. Its scales started to shine, and a white beam came out of its mouth when it opened its maw to aim at the fiendish figure in the sky. Chapter 922: 922. Leap Noah''s world suddenly became white as the noise of the detonation of his disposable weapons spread in the area. He didn''t remain still though and quickly used the Merging spell to sprint away from the Albino Snake''s attack. The beast''s attack was quick, but Noah had his fuming armor and had acted in time to dodge most of the destructive power of the white beam. Only the left side of his protection got destroyed as he escaped from the area of effect of the light. A series of hisses of pain followed that attack, and Noah heard even the Albino Snake''s cry among those sounds. The detonation of his inscribed weapons had spread chaos in the pack. Almost all the creatures in the human ranks had died in the explosions. The few of them that had survived had suffered grave injuries too since the disposable weapons were items in the fifth rank. The shockwaves that they had created were enough to kill anything in the human ranks. The Albino Snake had suffered only some minor injury, but the explosion had forced it to stop its light beam and focus on protecting its body. Noah had predicted such an outcome, and he had already prepared himself to launch another series of attacks. Noah executed the second form of his martial art again as soon as he came out of the beam. A fissure appeared among the light still lingering in the environment, and more deep wounds formed on the curled body of the Albino Snake. Then, Noah attacked again and again, taking advantage of every second that the Snake was giving him to inflict as much damage as possible. Noah managed to launch only three attacks before the Snake reacted. Angry hisses sounded in the area as the beast lifted its head again and threw another light beam. Noah couldn''t face the beam head-on. The Albino Snake was at the peak of the fifth rank, and its attacks could injure him gravely if he were to let it hit him directly. The difference between the strength of their bodies was enormous even if they were both in the upper tier of the fifth rank, and Noah was a hybrid. He couldn''t compare with a magical beast that had almost stepped into the last part of the heroic ranks. However, Noah didn''t need to get close to the creature, and the fact that it couldn''t fly allowed him to take complete control of the flow of the battle. Noah would dodge whenever the Albino Snake launched one of its beams and throw disposable weapons to force it to stop its offensive and give him time to attack. The Demonic Form prevented him from suffering any injury, and the Snake saw wounds piling on its body as the fight kept going. That was the difference in power between a cultivator and a magical beast. The Albino Snake was far stronger than Noah when it came to basic abilities, but he had the wits to choose the battle style that gave him more advantages. The fact that it couldn''t fly also helped a lot in the matter. The Snake was unable to face Noah as long as he stayed in the air. Still, the peaceful behavior of that species was just a natural consequence of their calculative minds. Albino Snakes weren''t on the level of intelligent beasts when it came to their thinking ability, but they came quite close to them. Also, Noah''s target was unique, so it wasn''t a surprise that it could resort to simple tactics. The Albino Snake''s body was a mess of blood and cuts after it exchanged multiple attacks with Noah. Still, it could keep fighting at full strength since the stamina of a beast at that level was nigh-endless. Yet, it began to escape toward the area of influence of the Empire, breaking every small hill that it found along its path. Noah chased after it and felt forced to shorten the distance between them to keep pressing it with his offensive. The Snake was slower than Noah since it didn''t have spells, and there were many hindrances on its path. However, it could reach the central territories alive if Noah didn''t continue to attack it at that pace. Nevertheless, the Albino Snake suddenly leaped, and its massive body twisted mid-air so that its head could reach Noah in an instant. The action of the Snake had been too sudden and quick for Noah to react in time. Less than a second before, he was chasing after the creature and launching as many black lines as he could. The instant after that, he was inside its throat, being pushed down by the contracting muscles of the beast. It became evident in his mind that the escape had been just a trap, and Noah had fallen for it. Noah had no idea that the Snake could jump so far up in the sky. After all, he had been at a few kilometers from the ground during the chase. Yet, the massive physical strength of the beast allowed it to shoot relatively high if it managed to coordinate its body. Noah didn''t panic though. He was shocked that a magical beast could prepare such a trap, but he saw that as an opportunity to affect its internal organs. The muscles kept on pushing him along its body, but Noah released a wave of flames and waved his Demonic Sword like crazy to launch as many black lines as possible. His flames didn''t manage to hurt the creature, but they weakened the layers of muscles and gave a chance to the black lines to seep through them and reach for its internal organs. The Albino Snake hissed in pain at that point. Its scales began to shine again, and white light accumulated where Noah was. Noah continued to attack even as the light surrounded him. He knew what was coming, but the only thing that he could do to stop it was killing the Snake before it completed the ability. The Snake hissed at the sky and released another beam of light while Noah was still inside its body. The light running through its throat destroyed the Demonic Form and exposed Noah to its destructive force. Nevertheless, Noah ignored the pain and focused on reforming the four additional arms with his corrosive smoke. The situation wasn''t ideal, but Noah managed to materialize two of them right in the middle of the storm of light and launched a weaker version of the second form of his martial art. The attack cut the beast''s throat and opened a path toward the internal organs, and Noah didn''t hesitate to keep his offense going. The battle had become a matter of attrition now. The first body to give up would become the other''s prey. Noah''s slashes eventually managed to pierce through the Snake''s body, creating an opening where he could escape. Still, he continued to attack the creature from the inside until he cut away an entire section of its body. When that happened, Noah''s bloody figure reappeared in the open. Chapter 923: 923. Unfair A torrent of blood fell from the severed parts of the Albino Snake''s body. Noah let the red cascades submerge him as he remained in the air to stare at the falling creature. He had ended up severing its body into two parts when he was inside its throat, but that didn''t seem enough to kill the beast. The headless part of the Snake convulsed and moved even after it crashed on the ground, but Noah''s attention was on the other piece of the body since he felt a pair of reptilian eyes fixed on his figure. The hatred contained in those eyes was so intense that Noah could almost understand what the Snake was feeling at that moment. He could imagine how suffering that kind of injury now that it was so close to the sixth rank had ruined its plans. Of course, the Snake couldn''t create proper thoughts. Its anger was an instinctive reaction to the fact that Noah had severed most of its body. As for what concerned the depths of that feeling, Noah could only imagine it. The Albino snake straightened up what remained of its body as its scales lit up again. It seemed that it had given up on escaping and wanted to vent its anger on the human figure floating at some meters above its head. However, the activation of its innate ability only made it lose more blood. Also, the light beam that came out of its mouth was far weaker than before since there were fewer scales gathering light now. Noah didn''t even bother to dodge the incoming attack. His skin was already a mess due to the prolonged period inside the Snake''s throat, and uncovered muscles were visible in certain spots. He had already tasted the best that the Albino Snake could do. That weakened attack didn''t even trigger his instincts. Trails of black smoke appeared on the sides of his torso and condensed to form four additional arms. The light that was submerging him couldn''t stop them from wielding the four copies of the divided Demonic Sword. Noah executed the second form of his martial art and created an empty area between him and the Snake, making the light in that trajectory disappear without leaving any trace. A large cut appeared on the Snake''s mouth, which stopped its offensive only for an instant before it relaunched its light beam. Noah didn''t move. He let the white light submerge him again before performing his most potent attack once more. The empty areas created by his slashes resembled the death zone that the Albino Snake used to have at the bottom of Twilboia Cliff. They represented an unsurmountable barrier that destroyed any hope. Only then did Noah realize how much he had grown. He had reached the point where he could play around with a dying creature at the peak of the fifth rank without risking anything. Pride, ambition, and hunger filled his body as he repeated that exchange of attacks until the Snake stopped launching light beams. His instincts were almost going crazy at that scene due to the relationship that he had with that creature. However, Noah''s mind was calm, and his face was expressionless. ''The joy of a beast can''t satisfy me,'' Noah thought as he started to descend toward the tired beast. The Albino Snake was a mess. It gasped for air as a natural reaction to its exhaustion, but it failed to realize that there were no lungs on that part of its body. A large red puddle had formed under it. The beast had lost so much blood from the injury inflicted by Noah that it could barely rely on its nigh-intelligent mind. There were other deep cuts on the rest of its body too, especially on the skin around its mouth. Noah''s last offensive had turned that body part into a broken mess. Yet, its reptilian eyes were still focused on Noah. They followed him as he descended and reached to touch it. The Albino Snake felt outraged, but it was too tired to react. So, it let Noah touch its skin. Noah sensed how sturdy the white scales were and sighed. He could tell how much energy those tissues contained, and he could understand that the creature had lived for more than a millennium at least. The life of such an old and powerful being was in his hands now, and he had no intention to preserve it. "The world has given you a good bloodline and an amazing mind," Noah said as roars backed his words. "Today, you didn''t lose because I have trained more, or due to a bad battle plan. You lost because you are only a beast, while I am much more." The Snake hissed, but it didn''t move. Noah didn''t know how much it had understood, but it almost appeared as if it agreed with his words. "I will give you a chance," Noah continued, and his aura suddenly turned sharp and colder before he decided to add something. "Don''t make me regret it." The Albino Snake understood the threat and lowered its head. It was as if it was surrendering on its own. Still, Noah didn''t need a subordinate. He required a will capable of learning and using the body that he had created with his dark matter. He meant those words though. A magical beast at the peak of the fifth rank had managed to hurt him using a trap, which meant that a hybrid or a cultivator could do much more in that situation. Noah didn''t even know his battle prowess when it came to facing cultivators in the liquid stage, but he knew that it wouldn''t be a one-sided fight. That unfairness for such a patient being was something that Noah wanted to fix, even if that meant talking with a dying creature to increase the chances of success of the procedure that he was going to execute. The Albino Snake died a few moments after he finished speaking. The injuries had become too much to endure, and it had lost way too much blood. Noah had sealed its fate since he neared it. Noah didn''t hesitate anymore after the Albino Snake died. He quickly went to store the other part of its body while taking out the piece of leather that contained a series of inscriptions. Noah placed the item on the ground and its contents spread on the terrain around it, creating a formation that stopped enlarging when it became more than ten meters large. Then, he picked the other part of the Snake and placed it on the formation. The shining lines lit up as soon as the massive reptilian head entered in their form, and the skin of the body piece began to burn to force the will of the creature to come out in the open. Noah just needed to defeat it before he could complete the creation of his Blood Companion. Chapter 924: 924. Ritual A huge, ethereal snake formed at the center of the formation, and it began to struggle as soon as it realized that it could move. Invisible boundaries kept the Snake''s will confined inside the lines of the formation, but they wouldn''t hold for long if Noah let it act freely. Thirty-seven had taken inspiration from the work with the living weapons to create that version of the Body-inscription spell. Still, he couldn''t focus on the sturdiness of the formation since it had multiple features that were absent in the original ability. After all, there was no Beast Core at that time. Noah would need to link that will with the body made of higher energy directly inside the formation if he wanted to meet the requirements necessary for the creation of a tattoo. That was an essential procedure to create a connection between the Blood Companion and Noah''s mind. Thirty-seven had to sacrifice the sturdiness of his formation to add those features. Noah looked at the struggling will and summoned a series of ethereal swords that pierced the Snake multiple times and forced it to calm down. However, he could still see an intense hatred in its eyes. Thirty-seven''s version of the spell didn''t require a complete subjugation to work. The main issue was that Noah wouldn''t use the blood of the creature during the ritual, so there had to be some collaboration in the procedure. Of course, Noah could keep attacking the will until almost nothing of the Snake was left, but that would only hurt the final product. The will would have lost most of its instincts by that point, making it unsuitable for controlling the new body. Noah spread his consciousness inside the formation and tried to use his pride to make the will comply with his needs. Yet, the Albino Snake had been a creature at the peak of the fifth rank. Noah''s dignity as a beast wasn''t enough to make it kneel. The will soon started to struggle to break free again, and Noah felt forced to unleash another series of ethereal swords to calm it down. It soon became evident that a normal display of power wouldn''t work since the Snake began to throw itself at the invisible barriers after a few instants. With his pride and experience in mental battles being useless, Noah felt that he had only one approach that could convince the Snake to follow through the ritual without turning it into nothing more than dense mental energy. Noah focused on his ambition and released a roar at the sky that expressed all his desire to cultivate. The air became tense after his roar, but the Snake became interested in the intense emotion that Noah had shown. All of a sudden, Noah had become interesting in the eyes of the will. "I will reach the stars," Noah said with words mixed with roars when he saw that the will was looking at him. "You can decide whether to disperse or follow me." There was a limit to how much the will understood of his words. Its focus was on the meaning carried by the roars and on the captivating ambition that Noah was capable of releasing. Magical beasts didn''t ponder about their existence in their lives. They just followed their instincts and grew more potent as a natural consequence of their hunger. They had never felt the ambition to reach higher stages. They had never dreamt about the higher ranks in the same way as the cultivators. The Snake could only wander in the intense ambition that Noah''s consciousness carried. It was an addicting feeling. It was as if the will had finally found a meaning behind the countless hunts to appease its hunger. It must be said that the Snake could only relate to Noah''s consciousness because he was a hybrid. His thoughts and emotions carried aspects that magical beasts could understand. There was no explicit agreement. At some point, the formation sensed the Snake''s willingness to follow Noah, and its lines shone with a brighter light. That was a signal for Noah. It meant that the ritual was ready to enter the last phase. Noah stepped inside the formation and took out the condensed body that he had built in the separate dimension. The black orb started to float inside the light, and a gentle pressure pushed both the dark matter and the will toward Noah. The orb and the will fused while they converged toward Noah''s chest. The ghostly figure of the Snake disappeared when it entered the mass of dark matter, but even that vanished once it reached his skin. Noah suddenly felt pressure coming from the inside of his mental sphere. His focus immediately went over the sea, where he saw that the ghostly figure of the Albino Snake was slowly forming next to the Kesier Runes. A connection formed too. It wasn''t a link as intense as that with the Demonic Sword, but he could feel part of the Snake''s instincts and feelings through it. After all, the Snake was technically alive. Its will had only suffered some slight damage. Its new body lived too, even if it belonged to a new species made by unique materials. Noah could sense its confusion now, but that was a normal reaction to its new body. The Snake used to have a light aptitude too, so the contrast that it felt was even more significant than expected. A sharp pain began to spread from his chest as the will became used to the new body. Black lines started to form on his skin and take the shape of a snake as the two completed their fusion. The drawing didn''t stop there though. A pair of large and feathered wings soon appeared on its back, and two claws formed on its sides. Even someone with only basic knowledge in the magical beasts'' field would notice that something was off about that drawing. The snake depicted on Noah''s chest seemed to have features that belonged to multiple magical creatures rather than on a single species. A couple of curved horns appeared on the sides of its head too before the light of the formation vanished. Noah couldn''t help but smile when he felt a familiar pressure inside his mind. It had been a long time since he last had a Blood Companion, and sensing its presence was reassuring. The lines of the formation retracted inside the piece of leather, and Noah stored it before standing up and analyzing his new tattoo. His body wasn''t bleeding, but it still needed some care. However, Noah could only think about testing his new Blood Companion now. ''Let''s see,'' Noah thought as he focused on his connection with the Snake. ''I guess I''ll go with Snore. It''s a fitting name.'' A deep hiss resounded in the area when Noah thought that, and dense black smoke came out of his chest to take the form of a massive figure. A more than one hundred meters long, winged snake formed right in front of him and turned to give an annoyed glance at its Master. Chapter 925: 925. Fire Ravaging Demon had his eyes closed as his mind wandered in the forced enlightenment caused by the oily water of the pool. The laws of the fire element connected with his individuality became faint instincts that he learnt how to control as he remained immersed in that miraculous item. He felt the intrusion of a foreign substance inside his dantian though. He did not doubt that he was sacrificing part of his potential to obtain the breakthrough that he had waited for years. Still, that was what he wanted. After all, he had always considered himself a true demon. He would do anything to improve his power. The entrance of the restricted area opened, and six powerful cultivators walked through it. The cultivator in the lead of that group was one of the silver-haired members of the Elbas family, First Prince, who limited himself to point in a polite way toward Ravaging Demon. The cultivators behind him performed quick bows toward the Royal before hurrying themselves in front of the pool to kowtow. The scene was quite peculiar since those five experts were cultivators in the fifth rank! "Master!" The five cultivators shouted at the same time, and Ravaging Demon could only nod seeing that his disciples had arrived safely in the Royal Academy. "I hope there were no issues during the transport," Ravaging Demon said as he glanced at the Royal still in the back of the restricted area. "Of course," First Prince replied. "We have common borders right now. What can even go wrong?" Ravaging Demon limited himself to nod at that answer and gestured to his disciples to rise. Then, he invited them inside the pool, and they didn''t hesitate to undress to join him inside that murky water. First Prince remained at the back of the area, but there was a pensive expression on his face. It was as if something was bothering him. Ravaging Demon didn''t fail to notice that expression, and he spoke to the Royal without turning. "Are you still worried about the plan?" "It''s not that," First Prince said while shaking his head. "We are sure to succeed. The Hive and the Council will never expect a betrayal right after the end of the war." "But?" Ravaging Demon asked again, expecting that the Royal had something to say about their strategy. "But there is a reason why cultivators in the sixth rank tend to avoid going after those on a lower level," First Price said as his expression turned grim. "If all the powerhouses start to act as they wish, there won''t be any habitable land anymore." First Prince''s point was reasonable. The power held by rank 6 cultivators was too great, and unleashing it freely on the landmasses would give birth to barren territories. It was enough to see what had happened in the central areas of the new continent to understand how destructive their power could be. Also, there were always variables when "Breath" was involved. The joint front against the leader of the winged beasts had given birth to a harmless species of flowers at that time, but there could be far harsher outcomes if they were unlucky. What if the next species of magical plants were carnivorous? What if unleashing so much power caused mutations in the creatures nearby? What if the lands involved never recovered from the battles? Causing a war that would involve the powerhouses could only lead to more destruction. That would render void the purpose of that battle. After all, there was no point in fighting if the winning forces couldn''t seize suitable benefits. There were more reasons behind First Prince''s worries. The Royal was sure that King Elbas would be the next powerhouse to ascend, which meant that the Elbas family would face a period of weakness. Creating grudges right before that could endanger the position of the Royals in the political environment of those Mortal Lands. There was even the chance that eventual enemy forces would aim to their destruction at that point. So, breaking unwritten rules worried him, especially since the only allied organization of his family would have someone as untrustworthy as Ravaging Demon as its leader. Of course, First Prince didn''t mention those reasons. The way he saw it, Ravaging Demon was just a tool meant to benefit his family, so he had to keep him on his side. "Mountains break, and skies fall," Ravaging Demon said after remaining silent for a while. "Do not worry about your resources. I''ll compensate the Elbas family if I happen to destroy too many territories." That answer didn''t satisfy First Prince, but it was enough to ensure that the Royals would gain something from giving that cultivator access to the pool. Still, he felt the need to remind him that his allies were a force that he couldn''t ignore. "I hope you will," First Prince said as he started to cross the entrance to exit that restricted area. "Otherwise, we will make sure that you understand how advanced our inscription masters are. Demons might be flashy and dangerous, but it''s in the silent and dark labs that monsters are born." After that reminder, First Prince exited the restricted area and sealed the entrance, leaving the six cultivators from the Papral nation alone. A moment of silence followed the Royal''s departure, but Ravaging Demon''s disciples quickly broke it to express their disagreement. "Hmph, what can a member of the Elbas family even know about monsters." "Indeed, they can only hide behind the power of their Patriarch. Anyone can be strong with a pile of inscribed items." Those complaints continued while the six of them remained immersed in the pool, but Ravaging Demon eventually silenced them. "Enough!" Ravaging Demon shouted, and his disciples quickly shut their mouths. "The Elbas family is strong, stronger than us. That''s the whole reason why I have to take the initiative in the betrayal. The hatred of the world will converge once again on the Ravaging Demon Sect." The disciples gulped when they heard that. They knew about the plan but imagining both the Hive and the Council coming after them was a dreadful sight. After all, that wouldn''t be the same as the war against the Shandal Empire. The invading forces were far stronger than that organization once they created a united front, while the situation would be far different once they betrayed the alliance. The Ravaging Demon Sect and the Elbas family would be on an equal ground with the Hive and the Council, which meant that the losses inflicted at the moment of the betrayal would determine their advantage. Also, that was the reason why they were waiting for the end of the war to act. They wanted to establish pacts with the Empire so that it would be forced to remain outside of that conflict. "Don''t fret though," Ravaging Demon said when he saw that he the hesitation in the eyes of his disciples. "My fire will eventually envelop the entirety of these Mortal Lands and create a path toward the higher planes. Then, I''ll destroy them too." Chapter 926: 926. Arguing Noah was unaware of the ploy brewing under the surface of that peaceful political situation. He knew that Ravaging Demon was up to something due to the recent ambush, but he couldn''t imagine the scale of that event. Also, both Faith and June were part of the organizations probably involved in the ambush. They had better chances to uncover something due to their position. Noah was still in the mountain chain between the two areas of influence, but the environment had changed after he created the Blood Companion. Most of the mountains around him had disappeared, replaced by piles of rubble and large boulders. The ground featured many cracks too, and every lifeform had escaped from that territory in the last hours. The most evident change though was in the amount of primary energy that filled the air. The environment had so much primary energy that it even failed to disperse. It was as if that lighter form of energy had replaced all the "Breath" in the area. Noah had tested the abilities of the Blood Companion as soon as he completed it, and the results were in line with his expectations. Snore was a lifeform at the bottom of the upper tier of the fifth rank. However, Noah had built its body with higher energy. That made its abilities stronger than those of the creatures on the same level. Also, Noah fueled them with his darkness, which further increased the might that they were capable of. Snore''s abilities caused the release of primary energy too, which could work together with some of Noah''s spells. Blood Companions had always been a powerful addition to his arsenal, but Snore was far above Noah''s previous ones in terms of utility, sheer power, and future usage. Noah had kept in his mind one of the major weaknesses of the Body-inscription spell when he had created the body made of dark matter. He couldn''t just waste time building a new body every time the old Blood Companion became too weak for his current level. Snore was a lifeform capable of growth. It was independent, but connected to Noah and submitted to him in certain aspects. The only problem was its food. As an existence made of higher energy, only Noah''s dark matter was a suitable food. After all, that was the only form of energy capable of empowering and nourishing Snore''s body. That meant that Noah had added another expensive asset to his collection. The Demonic Sword needed magical beasts'' corpses, while his Blood Companion required his higher energy, which meant large quantities of his darkness. The trade though was worth the price, especially when he considered that those special lifeforms were beings that could potentially accompany him through the entirety of his cultivation journey. The situation with the dark matter wasn''t dire right now. Noah had reached the liquid stage, and that made the creation of higher energy easier since he would need to condense less "Breath". Yet, he didn''t expect his burning heart to remain at that level. His new center of power was bound to improve and harmonize with his existence as his body grew in power. That would set new limits to what it could contain, and there was even a chance that the changes in his darkness would produce different dark stars in the future. That didn''t happen when his "Breath" reached the liquid stage. Still, Noah knew that it would be only natural for the dark stars to have different natures once he started to use even heavier elements. As for what concerned the Demonic Sword, there wasn''t a real solution to its hunger. Its situation had also worsened since it had experienced a breakthrough while Noah was testing Snore''s abilities. The Demonic Sword was unique, even among Noah''s creations. Its entire structure worked as body, dantian, and sea of consciousness. Yet, Noah had learnt that he couldn''t consider it according to the regular schools. The Demonic Sword was too unique to fit specific labels. Noah understood its level and knew that its growth was similar to that of the magical beasts. It would evolve once it had eaten enough to reach the breakthrough. The living weapon''s connection with Noah''s individuality though worked as a second hurdle to cross to reach the breakthrough, which was why it had remained in the lower tier of the fifth rank for all those years. Nevertheless, it had started to advance again after Noah had reached the liquid stage. That culminated in the sword progressing in the middle tier while he was busy testing Snore''s abilities. Of course, that was a good thing. Noah would be able to express even more power after the improvement of one of his core weapons. However, he couldn''t help but worry about the consumption of powerful magical beasts'' corpses now that his sword had advanced. Also, he was slightly annoyed that the Demonic Sword didn''t advance before the battle with the Albino Snake. He would have avoided suffering injuries if he had access to that sort of power since the beginning of the fight. Noah knew why the sword had advanced only at that moment. Snore was different from the sword both in terms of type of living being and purpose in battle. Yet, it was also similar to the living weapon since it was one of the assets that Noah considered special. The Demonic Sword had forced itself to advance when it sensed the appearance of a strong rival for Noah''s affection. After all, he was a father for it. The fact that both of them shared a connection with him also annoyed the sword. That almost caused him a headache due to the various emotions sent to his mind. The sword worried that Noah could neglect it now that it had a more powerful asset at hand. Still, it was also proud to be the first of his living creation. On the other hand, Snore only felt annoyed by that interaction. Its will belonged to a creature that had lived for more than a millennium, and it couldn''t be bothered to deal with those petty things. Also, it was far more potent than the sword at the moment, so he didn''t feel the need to mind the emotions radiated by the Demonic Sword. Snore would rather worry about its Master instead. Now that it had established a connection with Noah''s mind, its vision had broadened, and it could understand the reason behind its name. The fact that Noah still cared about that time when the Albino Snake had almost killed him in his sleep made Snore worried that it would have to face further punishments to relieve its Master''s stress. Of course, Noah wouldn''t do that. Snore was his asset now and even an important one. He would do everything in his power to make it grow since that benefitted him in the end. Just like that, Noah spent his time meditating in that destroyed and shattered territory, pondering about his next move while the two living beings argued in his mind. Chapter 927: 927. Options Noah didn''t leave the mountain chain immediately. His stash of magical beasts'' corpses had grown thin in the last period, and that danger zone was the best place where to refill it. Also, Snore was still becoming used to its body. Coupling its training with his hunts would settle both issues faster. The Demonic Sword had advanced too, which meant that Noah had to test his battle prowess once again. Noah spent weeks hunting in the mountain chain to tune his battle style to his new assets. Still, his mind was elsewhere most of the time since he had yet to decide what he would do next. There were many projects available in front of him. He had yet to create a training method for his sea of consciousness, and he didn''t even begin to fuse spells and martial arts. There was a lot to research with the dark matter too. Noah had only started to use his higher energy as a material, but it contained too much power to be limited in that single field. The most exciting aspect of the dark matter was how easily it imitated the world. It wasn''t just something that could improve Noah''s success rate and ability as an inscription master. Yet, knowing that it had the potential for more incredible things wasn''t enough. Noah would have to put years of research in that energy to learn about all its properties and limits. The main issue was that he had just come out from two long experiments and only the last one managed to improve his battle prowess. Creating the higher energy had opened many paths for him, but that alone wasn''t enough. Cultivators would often lose themselves in their projects. It was normal to ignore the world and its political matter for centuries to complete a technique or an experiment that was vital to their journey. Noah had done that too when he had to create his darkness. Failing at making his own "Breath" would have stopped him from growing. Noah knew that he had it easier than most cultivators. The Divine Deduction technique shortened the time required by all his experiments and allowed him to continue focusing on his actual power even if he was secluded to research something. Of course, he had never felt once that he didn''t earn his current strength. He had started to create even before the events in the Coral Archipelago, and that was the very reason why he had managed to seize Divine Demon''s inheritance. His growth would have been slower without the Divine Deduction technique, but Noah was sure that he would have reached his current state anyway. It would have just taken more time. The core issue in his indecisiveness was that he didn''t know what he needed to prioritize right now. Noah had always gone after what gave him power faster, leaving the projects that would provide benefits in the long run as last. However, each one of his experiments could take decades now that he was a rank 5 cultivator. His choice was among projects that he could complete in ten years and others that could even take a century! Anything involving the dark matter as energy would even take more time since there didn''t seem to be a limit to what it could do. Nevertheless, a war was coming, and improving his power as much as he could appeared to be the right choice in his mind. On the other hand, he wasn''t sure that he could complete even his easiest projects before the war resumed. After all, it was about to start again anytime by then. His choice ultimately fell on creating a training method for his mental sphere. Inventing a new type of technique in that short time was impossible, and improving his centers of power as fast as he could help in that matter. A stronger mind meant faster reasoning, which would give him an easier time when dealing with the issues connected to his many experiments. As for his higher energy, Noah wasn''t even sure that he could understand the entirety of its potential before his body harmonized his burning heart with the other centers of power. Also, he would need to remain in seclusion for decades performing tests based on hunches. It was better to focus on his mind and deal with those time-consuming problems after his foundation had grown again. Noah decided to return to the new continent at some point, but he didn''t spend much time in the neutral city anymore. He still executed his tasks as ambassador, but he would often go in the wilderness to hunt. June had also started to being summoned more often in that period, so he wouldn''t gain anything from remaining there. Noah didn''t need a training method for his mental sphere. The devouring abilities of his mental energy could provide him with all the improvements that he needed. Yet, the drawback of that ability was quite annoying and forced him to spend long periods focusing on recovering the usual sturdiness that the walls of his mind had. That was the reason why Kesier runes were so unique. They improved the power of the sea of consciousness without weakening its stability. They even enhanced its sturdiness. Any other training method felt underwhelming when compared to the Kesier runes. Still, that was only normal, and most experts in the fifth rank or above had eventually learnt to accept it. Noah had accepted that too, but he didn''t give up on finding a better alternative training method. It soon became clear to him that his spherical runes were the best tool for his intentions. They were still helping him modifying the nature of the walls of his mind, and they generated internal pressure, which was good when it came to a lack of sturdiness. They were similar to the Kesier runes in that sense. Yet, they couldn''t match the Kesier runes when it came to their efficiency. ''A pure expression of power,'' Noah repeated Thirty-seven''s words in his mind as he wandered in the sky above the central territories of the new continent. He had already asked to the automaton information about the inscription method used to copy the Kesier runes. However, he had only obtained a series of inconclusive answers and a pile of books that described all the procedures involved in that field. It turned out that copying a Kesier rune required multiple inscription methods which had been partially lost through time. There were formations, a school of runes called Copying Runes, and a vague talent for the Attunement method. Noah could see himself spending time to learn another inscription method, but creating a copy of the Kesier runes might not be worth the effort. There was a high chance that he could he would obtain the same results if he spent that time training his mind instead of researching for a method that did that. So, he had begun to focus only on the core of the Kesier rune. If he couldn''t copy them, he would create an item with similar purposes or build something that would focus on the sturdiness of his mind. Chapter 928: 928. Volunteers Noah had created the spherical rune because he was experimenting on controlling the primary energy back then. Yet, the natives'' inscription method had solved that issue before he could find another solution. His spherical runes had become tools meant to enlarge his mental sphere at that point, and the primary energy inside them was necessary to avoid the discordant aptitude during the experiments with the living weapons. The arrival of the higher energy had changed how Noah valued his assets. He didn''t need to use the primary energy to create anymore, and even the runes that made use of it had become obsolete. However, that was exactly how everything was supposed to work. The current state of his energies was in line with his individuality. The primary energy was connected to his destruction. Creating wasn''t its purpose, and it didn''t suit its nature. After all, it was lighter than his other energies, which made it more fitting as a fuel rather than as a material. Still, Noah''s achievements with the Will-consuming runes weren''t worthless. Instead, they opened the path for more spells and creations that would improve his battle prowess further. Noah could generate more primary energy now that he had added Snore to his arsenal, and that would make the spells that depended on it more potent in battle. It was a cycle that made use of his creations to fuel abilities meant only to destroy. Of course, they would require modifications to work with the new amount of energy, but Noah had improved both in cultivation level and experience with his creation. Upgrading the saber-shaped runes was easy, especially since he had added them to Snore''s body too. As for his spherical rune, Noah could only think of a way to turn it into a training method for the sea of consciousness. He needed to replace the primary energy inside them with dark matter and modify them so that the effects on the walls of his mind would be softer. The higher energy was his heaviest energy and created an intense internal pressure once inserted in his mind. That was generally a good thing since it benefited the mind''s width and sturdiness at the same time, but it also stressed the center of power a lot. Even as a rank 5 mage, Noah''s mind needed breaks. Only his dantian had become more resilient due to his hybrid status. His mental sphere was still frail. Nevertheless, the matters that involved the mind were dangerous and could cause deadly repercussions. One error in the calculations could lead to injuries, and they were tricky to heal when they concerned the mental spheres. Also, he had to be mindful of the long-term effects that putting such a powerful rune in his mind could cause. After all, he knew what constant influence could do on its walls. Luckily for Noah, he had volunteers that wanted nothing more other than becoming able to control their instincts. Noah started to spend most of his time in the central territories of the new continent after he set his mind on his latest projects. The Hive had released most of its hybrids there after the invading forces kicked the Shandal Empire away. Most of those hybrids were unable to control themselves, and the minds of some of them had switched to a full beast mindset already. They couldn''t live in the Hive''s domes with that behavior. They needed a place where their aggression couldn''t cause any damage. The central territories of the new continent were the perfect place for them since they were mostly uninhabited and barren. Even the wildest hybrids could act freely there and don''t bother anyone. The fauna in that place had become quite peculiar in those years. Danielle and other powerful hybrids that managed to have some control over their minds had become pact leaders that handled the creatures in those lands. It was as if those territories had become a natural reserve for hybrids, and the arrival of the three rank 5 creatures retrieved in the Shandal''s separate dimension had only divided the various packs further. That limited the number of hybrids lost due to natural causes and created some separated government that mainly discussed how to handle the mindless creatures better. Of course, there were many experts keeping track of the evolution of that society. The Hive didn''t want to fail to notice eventual signs of rebellion and insurgency. That wasn''t a pressing worry though since there weren''t enough intelligent beings there. The control of the "government" was more focused on dividing the pacts rather than on gathering them to create a joint front. Also, the hybrids knew that they need an organization of that world to help them. If they remained in that state, they wouldn''t even have a chance to seize independence. That was why a line of volunteers formed as soon as Noah announced that he was experimenting with techniques that could improve the seas of consciousness. Noah had said multiple times that there wasn''t a real solution to the mental instabilities of the hybrids, not yet at least. The best thing that they could do was to focus on improving their minds so that they could keep their instincts in check. His experiments went smoothly with so many available test subjects. Some missteps occurred, and there were cases of hybrids injuring their minds through the years, but that was only normal. A few of them even died during the initial phases of that project since Noah found it hard to balance the power of his rune when it came to rank 4 hybrids. The experiment didn''t concern only giving away runes that applied internal pressure on the mental spheres. Noah would even observe how the continuous exposition to that energy affected the walls of their minds. Still, he obtained decent results, which eased the tension that had accumulated in the air due to the nearing of the war. "When do you think the war will start?" June asked as she played with the tattoo on Noah''s chest. "A few years at best," Noah answered as he turned to stare at June lying right next to him. The two of them were in the training area under the neutral city. June had just come back from one of her errands with the Elbas family, so Noah had used that chance to spend some valuable time with his lover. "Years¡­" June murmured as she lost herself in Noah''s vertical pupil. "Did we reach the two hundred years mark already?" "I don''t know either," Noah said as his eyes lost focus. "Decades pass every time I test something." "Do you remember when you almost injured your centers of power to gain a few weeks'' worths of training?" June said as the memories from the Royal Inheritance made her smile. "Of course," Noah replied with a smile too. "You had to teach me how to take breaks." The two of them remained there for hours before returning to their tasks. One year later, the invading forces decided that it was time to resume the war. Chapter 929: 929. Slaves The decision of the invading forces to attack again didn''t arrive due to a specific event. It was an inevitable choice made after they saw that the decades spent in peace had made them surpass their previous level. After all, more than seventy years had passed since the end of the war. That time was enough to nurture promising cultivators from the human ranks to the heroic ones! Even old monsters had managed to improve in that period thanks to the experience gained in the battles, the training areas built in the new territories, and the Divine Stele if they had a water aptitude. The world never stood still. It always moved forward together with the powerful existences living inside it, and it wasn''t unusual to see a positive trend after gaining access to so many resources. Of course, the improvements didn''t arrive immediately. The Shandal Empire had burnt and destroyed the structures that it had built in those areas, which meant that the invading forces had to invest before they could seize benefits. Also, the positive trend didn''t concern the Empire since the invaders had confined it in the old continent. Still, the overall population of the cultivators increased, and they even surpassed their previous level in terms of power. It wasn''t hard to check which organization had improved the most during the period of peace. The Heaven Tribulations were hard to miss when all the invading forces shared borders. That wouldn''t provide a complete overview of their growth since the Tribulations only signaled cultivators approaching the heroic ranks and not those advancing through stages. Yet, they revealed the foundation of those organizations, which could lead to almost accurate guesses about their development. The Hive stood out thanks to the soldiers from the Odrea nation. Lightning storms continuously fell from the skies above the territories of the Hive and began to slow down only when the war drew near. Then, there were the other cultivators who had joined the war and other promising talents that had appeared in those years. The Council and the Elbas family did not doubt that the Hive had gained the most out of the war. The Elbas family followed the Hive in terms of the number of Tribulations. It didn''t have nearly as many, but they were still numerous. However, everyone in those Mortal Lands had noticed that the Royals had something going on under the surface. Everything had started since the creation of the dimensional portal and had continued when they forced the nobles to join their ranks with incredible promises. No one dared to underestimate them just because their number of Tribulations didn''t match the Hive. As for the Council, it was even more mysterious. The sects were quite secretive, and they only sent representatives in the Council. That meant that they could have different policies inside their domains and handle their growth as they wished. Then, there was Ravaging Demon and the underground operations that seemed allowed by the majority of the Council. Of the three invading forces, the Papral nation saw the least number of Heaven Tribulations in that peaceful period, but no one dared to underestimate it either. Noah didn''t know who had the idea to resume the war first, but he knew that there had been meetings among the higher-ups of each organization while he was busy with his projects. At some point, he received a mental message from Elder Julia, and he stopped his experiments to join the rest of the troops in the charge toward the old continent. Noah sat cross-legged in the sky above the western coast of the old continent. Elder Austin, Elder Julia, and Elder Ingrid stood in the air next to him, and they looked at the human troops deployed on the ground. There were the higher-ups of the Elbas family and Council in separate groups at some distance from them. Their attention was on the ground too. There was a large army made of human cultivators gathering near the sea, and many of them were still in the process of getting off the ships that had filled that area of the western coast. The peripheral territories of the area of influence of the Empire were mostly barren lands filled with slaves and without any real value. The heroic cultivators of the Empire wouldn''t bother to defend them, so Noah and the other''s role now was to oversee the battle. Of course, there was a limit to how much those existences cared about battles on that level. There was even a high chance that the Empire wouldn''t use precious formations to defend those lands. Those territories were useful to the Empire only as a source of Vostum, the material that most of its citizens used in their body-nourishing methods. Still, its population had decreased after the war, and it was about to face more casualties. Losing mining camps was the last of its problems. The Empire deployed a series of slaves to face the massive army. The clinking noise of the chains on their necks filled the entirety of the battlefield as they moved to face their enemies. The slaves wore blank expressions. Noah guessed that they were even unaware of the situation around them according to what he knew about the inscribed chains of the Empire. "This will be a massacre," Elder Ingrid commented as she watched the two armies nearing each other. The other Elders didn''t say anything to confute her words, and Noah knew that she was right too. It was pointless even to guess the outcome of that battle. It was clear that the Empire was only aiming to weaken the invading troops with that wave of slaves. The battle unfolded as Elder Ingrid had predicted. The hordes of human cultivators from the invading forces deployed effective combat formations that balanced their offense and defense. Instead, the slaves charged recklessly, uncaring that they were running toward certain death. Their charge would continue even when some attacks bounced them back of cut away one of their limbs. It seemed that the only thought in their mind was to reach the enemy army. That tactic eventually led to some casualty in the invader''s side. The invaders endured that reckless horde for a while before deciding to switch for a more defensive battle formation. The slaves charged anyway even when they saw that the invaders were luring them in smart traps or into empty areas that they would fill with attacks. They only cared about hurting their enemies. Rivers of blood fell on that sandy terrain. The ground became red and turned muddy as corpses accumulated on its surface. It was an atrocious sight, especially from Noah''s position. However, he had played his part already among those human cultivators, and he had survived. ''The struggles of the ants appear pointless in the eyes of the dragon,'' Noah thought as his mind wandered in the world of the laws. ''But a sword has no species, nor limits. It only knows that it has to cut to move forward.'' Chapter 930: 930. Orb The first battle on the old continent ended with a victory of the invading forces, but none of the higher-ups felt happy about it. The Empire had managed to inflict decent losses due to the reckless charge of the slaves. Instead, the invaders had only gained territories that had been emptied of their resources already. The Vostum was a good material, but the invading forces weren''t interested in that body-nourishing technique since they had different types of societies. They didn''t want every commoner to gain access to the cultivation journey. The Council and the Elbas family had rendered cultivation techniques more accessible since the fall of the new continent, but they didn''t want to imitate the Empire''s approach. They wouldn''t have a way to keep all those troops under their banners. The citizens of the Empire had an unshakable faith in Shandal. There weren''t oaths or deeds capable of matching such an intense feeling. Also, having a divine entity wouldn''t help the Council and the Elbas family either since those powerful beings would eventually leave the Mortal Lands. Not even Shandal wanted to remain in the lower plane. He was just forced to do so. The human troops quickly built encampments in the new territories, and even the higher-ups decided to create a few caves. There were even rank 4 cultivators among them, and they felt the difference in the environment as soon as they started to cultivate. For the natives of the new continent, the old one was simply a barren land. The possibility for those in the human ranks to walk freely and without the need for protection couldn''t match the majestic sight of lands coming from a higher plane. The ground didn''t shine, and the air was thin. Their minds felt lighter in the old continent, but those territories lacked the breathtaking aura that filled every corner of the new landmass. In the new continent, any habitable area was the best training zone in the world. In the old one, the "Breath" in the air was so scarce that the human cultivators found it challenging to refill their dantians now that they were all gathered in one region. Of course, that was worse in the territories of the Empire. Still, the old continent had those issues when it came to training areas, which was the reason why Noah had valued the "Breath" blessings so much before the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. The ensuing battles unfolded similarly. The Empire just threw hordes of slaves at the invading forces, and there was still no sign of a heroic cultivator on its end. It seemed that it was preparing something, but not even the Royals could guess what that was. The problem was that the Empire had controlled those regions for millennia. There were too many secrets hidden under those exploited lands, and no external force had managed to investigate them properly before. The threat of the god was too great, so only lone cultivators and experts with political missions had dared to venture inside the area of influence of the Empire. Even Noah had decided to avoid its core territories when he was only a rank 2 cultivator for the same reason. However, he knew more than most since he had to explore those territories during his search for the remains of the Demon sects. He had never entered the countries meant only for the citizens of the Empire, but he had memorized the areas nearby. In his mind, the Empire would probably keep using slaves until the invading forces reached its actual countries. In that way, it would only have to face tired troops while having access to the defensive measures in place. That idea though didn''t consider the heroic cultivators. Noah knew that the Empire had slaves in the fourth rank, but he didn''t know how willing it was to use them as cannon fodder. Even as slaves, they were still heroic assets. Nevertheless, no clue came up in the ensuing battles either, and Noah and the others even began to consider the possibility that the powerful assets of the Empire had just left. Yet, remaining in the old continent and using its accumulation of resources was still the most probable option, which was why the invading forces never stopped pressuring with their attacks. All the higher-ups were waiting for heroic cultivators to appear on the other side. They knew that the victories and losses of the human armies were useful only to gain face with the other organizations. They didn''t help in the overall situation of the war. However, they failed to arrive even when the invaders were about to reach their domain. Noah had already lost interest in those battles. He had been happy that his status had granted him a spot in the first line, but that was because he would have more chances to seize dantians in that way. He didn''t have any grudge with the Empire, and the only thing that interested him was its inventory since he was almost sure that it held techniques and spells of the darkness element. As for the precious resources and eventual inscribed items with power in the sixth rank, Noah knew that they weren''t there. Shandal would keep something so powerful in the separate dimension under the Odrea nation. Fighting only for the sake of fighting was June''s individuality. His depended on the situation, but it mostly required potential benefits to strive toward something. So, Noah spent most of his time during a battle meditating and managing his headache. A massive battle was raging on the ground, but Noah had his eyes closed as he sat cross-legged on the air. His focus was on a large and black orb radiating a faint pressure at the center of his sea of consciousness. The insides of his mind had become less crowded. There weren''t sphere-shaped runes on the walls anymore, and only the improved version of the saber-shaped rune remained. There were also the Kesier runes, and Snore''s ghostly figure coiled lazily next to them. Still, there was a large orb rotating right in front of them now. The orb was the result of Noah''s experiments with the training method for the mental sphere. It was a particular type of spherical rune that contained his higher energy and used his pride to alter the radiation that reached the walls of his mind. Through his tests with the hybrids, Noah had managed to limit the intensity of the dark matter''s radiations so that he could train all the time instead of taking away the orb whenever he needed a break. However, his higher energy was incredibly heavy. His mind could endure it without taking breaks, but that left him with a constant headache that weighed on his head all the time. Noah had tested and confirmed that his battle prowess wasn''t affected by that rune, but the headache was still annoying, and it affected his mood. A trace of hope appeared at some point. Noah sensed the arrival of a heroic cultivator on the battlefield and opened his eyes to recognize that Icy Cascade was flying behind the troops of the Empire. Chapter 931: 931. Beas Noah hadn''t seen Icy Cascade since Chasing Demon''s mission when he had to find the remains of the Demon sects. She had been a rank 4 cultivator in the gaseous stage back then, but she had improved in those years. She was now in the solid stage of the fourth rank. That growth wasn''t spectacular when compared to Noah or the other talents of his generation, but the fact that icy Cascade didn''t stop improving showed that she had some potential. After all, only a complete stop in the growth could lead to the stagnation of the centers of power. There was no problem with cultivators who had slow but steady improvements. More heroic cultivators appeared behind her. They all wore flashy inscribed armors that shone with a dark-red color and stepped forward while glancing at the battlefield with stern expressions. Then, their focus went on the heroic cultivators of the invading forces on the other side of that region. It was evident that the Empire was ready to take those battles more seriously now that the attackers were nearing the borders of its domain. "They are the Wardens," Elder Ingrid said when she saw those heroic cultivators. She was aware of the force tasted to defend the Empire''s borders since she had handled the Lutren nation for quite some time. Noah knew about that force too, but he didn''t expect that the Empire still had so many powerful cultivators in its ranks. There were a dozen rank 5 cultivators among those reinforcements and more than fifty soldiers in the fourth rank. Also, Noah didn''t see any of them in the battles in the new continent. That meant that they had spent all those years in those areas. ''I shouldn''t expect any less by the Empire,'' Noah thought as he straightened up his posture. The Empire was an organization created by a god who had lived for more than fifty thousand years. It had been able to produce two powerhouses, and one of them had even ascended! The fact that its number of powerful assets appeared endless didn''t come as a shocking surprise for Noah. Still, he had to admit that the Empire was revealing itself as a formidable opponent. Losing the new continent wasn''t enough. The most powerful organizations in the entirety of those Mortal Lands attacking it, but it was still capable of holding its ground. No matter how many cultivators the invaders deployed, the Empire always appeared able to match them. The members of the Wardens didn''t move. They remained in the sky behind the human troops as if waiting for the attackers to make the first step. That seemed a trap, but Noah didn''t sense anything different with his innate awareness. It was as if the Wardens wanted to face the enemy heroic cultivators without making use of their advantage as defenders. The group of Royals took out a series of inscribed items to study the environment, looking for eventual formations or defenses in place. However, even their advanced scanning methods didn''t find anything out of the ordinary. An exchange of glances happened between the heroic assets of the invading forces at that point. There was a bit of hesitation in their expressions, but the lack of defenses made them decide to advance toward their enemies. Noah had no intention to reveal Snore so soon. It had been a long time since he had abilities that the world wasn''t aware of, and he would prefer to keep it in that way for as much as he could. Yet, he still wanted to seize dantians to feed his body. After all, the breakthrough of his sword had just increased his need for nutrients. The situation didn''t seem ideal for his usual battle style. The members of the Wardens remained close without dispersing through the battlefield. They didn''t appear inclined to choose different opponents and to fight them separately. ''It might be a good moment to test the new runes,'' Noah thought as he stopped at some distance from a short man that radiated the aura of a rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage. His allies had similar ideas and didn''t get too close to the Wardens. However, they still chose opponents that matched their cultivation level. Noah glanced at the rank 4 cultivators under him. They were imitating the higher-ups by choosing suitable opponents, but they were too close to the experts in the fifth rank. There were even rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage above them. Being right under them while they fought could kill them in a few exchanges. Nevertheless, the rank 4 soldiers of the Empire didn''t seem to mind that aspect and prepared themselves to face the dubious invaders. Noah felt a series of glances landing on him. His weaker allies were worried that his renown smoke would kill them even before the shockwaves were released from his battle. The Demon Prince of the Hive wasn''t famous for his consideration in battle. The rank 4 cultivators could hope that the other higher-ups would try to hold back due to their presence, but they didn''t have any faith in Noah. "Shall we rise?" Andrew Elbas gave voice to everyone''s thoughts at that moment, and the weaker cultivators under him breathed a sigh of relief when they heard him. Yet, the Wardens replied by kicking the air under them and releasing a massive amount of "Breath" that filled that entire area of the sky. A series of blue lines appeared under the Wardens'' feet after that action, and the event wasn''t limited to the higher-ups. Even the rank 4 cultivators had executed the same gesture and had blue lines spreading under their feet. The invaders quickly took a few steps back when they saw that strange phenomenon. They weren''t ignorant about what was happening, and they didn''t want to face it before understanding its actual power. The Royals'' knowledge covered almost every kind of inscription method, and every sect in the Papral nation taught those techniques. Also, the Elders of the Council had used those formations during the war in the new continent. S,o even the cultivators of the Hive could recognize that ability. The Wardens were using a battle formation that involved a dozen cultivators in the fifth rank and more than fifth in the fourth rank. It was pointless to say that the power of a technique activated by so many powerful existences was bound to be threatening. Noah and the others retreated until they exited the range of the technique, but their eyes never left the Wardens. They kept track of how the blue lines spread in the sky and enveloped all the heroic cultivators of the Empire to take the shape of a vast magical beast. Noah couldn''t believe what he was seeing. A vast Tyrannosaurus had appeared and shone with the blue light of the inscriptions that made it. It even had strange features that didn''t match any record about that extinct species. The creature had two long horns, two pairs of massive claws, and three pairs of broad meat wings behind its back. Also, it radiated the power of a quasi-rank 6 existence. Chapter 932: 932. Creature Noah wasn''t surprised that the members of the Empire knew a lot about extinct and ancient creatures. Shandal had lived for so long that he had probably had the chance to study many different species that didn''t manage to survive the passage of time. Instead, what astonished him were the various features of the beast that didn''t match the records concerning that species. There weren''t many pieces of information about Tyrannosaurus and their various kinds, but Noah was sure that they didn''t have wings. Those two pairs of massive claws didn''t match any legend. Also, the fact that it radiated the aura of a quasi-rank 6 hybrid made that creature appear even more dangerous. Noah and the others were already on the other side of the battlefield by then. They didn''t know how fast the creature was, but they were quite confident that it wouldn''t chase them so far away. After all, the Wardens were there to defend the borders of the Empire. They had already shown that they wouldn''t advance further because their task didn''t concern any territory outside of its domain. Still, they remained there, inside the shining magical beast that glanced at them with a challenging gaze. Noah turned to look at the other higher-ups near him. He had to admit that he didn''t know what to do in that situation, but his allies knew far more than him in battle formations. His focus was on the cultivators in the solid stage of the fifth rank since their judgment was bound to be accurate. Elder Julia, Elder Regina, and Andrew Elbas wore curious expressions as they inspected the blue beast. They felt that its power surpassed the limits of the fifth rank, but they were also sure that it couldn''t compare even to the weakest rank 6 existence in the world. The Tyrannosaurus seemed weaker than rank 6 magical beasts at the bottom of the lower tier, but it was stronger than any of them. The main question in their mind was whether it was stronger than all of them when fighting together. The battle between the human troops continued to rage on the ground, and only some of those cultivators had the time to notice the massive blue figure that had appeared above them. As for the heroic forces of the invaders, they remained still, waiting for the leaders of the three armies to decide if the battle formation was something that they could face. The fact that there were only those heroic cultivators on the scene wasn''t a case. The invading forces had gained more territories to manage in the new continent after the defeat of the Empire. That forced many experts in the heroic ranks there to handle tasks that human cultivators couldn''t even hope to face. Yet, the three organizations could still deploy them in the war and deal with the consequences of their absence in those territories later. After all, the worst that could happen was the return of those areas to a wild state. That could lead to the destruction of structures built in the past years. Of course, defeating the Wardens now could only benefit the invaders. Also, their temporary retreat would lead to many casualties in the human cultivators fighting on the ground, which was something that any organization always wanted to avoid, if possible. That didn''t mean that heroic cultivators had to risk their lives to save some human assets. Still, there were methods to test the power of the creature without overexposing themselves. "A battle formation is inherently weaker than a real creature," Andrew said. "We might test its stability and see if it holds." The rank 4 cultivators backed down at those words. They didn''t want to remain too close when the higher-ups launched spells. Instead, the Elders of the Council stepped forward and deployed the golden shield that they had used to fend off the explosions of the blue pillars. Then, Andrew, Elder Regina, and Elder Julia stepped forward to cast spells toward the massive blue creature. A giant made of water, hundreds of wind blades, and a series of peculiar worm-like puppets appeared in the air and shot toward the Tyrannosaurus in the distance. The energy that those spells radiated as they flew created large cracks on the sky that recovered only a few seconds after their passage. The creature didn''t move. It only unfolded its broad meat wings and waited for the spells to arrive. The attacks trembled when they neared the battle formation. It was as if an external force was affecting them and shifting their trajectory so that they would land on the wings. The wind blades were the first to give in to that external force and fly toward the wings. Every heroic cultivator on the scene kept their eyes fixed on Elder Julia''s spell only to see it disappear inside the blue light radiated by the creature. The giant suffered from the same foreign force, but it managed to grab one of the Tyrannosaurus'' claws while that pull tried to drag it inside the wings too. The beast though lowered its head and bit the spell''s limbs off to remove its handhold. The giant disappeared inside the meat wings too, and the limbs still hanging on the beast'' claw soon turned into "Breath" that dispersed in the air. Even Andrew''s spells had failed to do anything to the battle formation. As for the worm-like puppets, they reached the Tyrannosaurus and coiled their bodies around its claws to avoid the suction force of the wings. The creature lowered its head again to free itself from that spell, but the puppets started to bite its radiant skin in a desperate attempt to enter its body. They even exploded whenever the maws of the Tyrannosaurus were about to destroy them. Their detonation could only slow the creature down for less than an instant, and eventually, all of them exploded to give enough time to one worm to pierce the surface of that battle formation. The last puppet managed to stab its head inside the creature before the Tyrannosaurus reached it and forced it to explode too. That final detonation caused a series of ripples to spread across the entire beast. However, the ripples soon stabilized, and the Tyrannosaurus began to shine with a brighter light. Even its power appeared to have increased after that quick exchange. It wasn''t much stronger than before, but that detail didn''t escape the focused minds of the rank 5 cultivators of the invading forces. Each one of them understood that the battle formation could heal itself due to the energy absorbed by the wings. A voice that carried multiple tones came out of the Tyrannosaurus and spread through the sky. "You had to go through me if you want to enter the Empire!" The Wardens challenged the invaders openly, but none of the higher-ups moved. It was evident that the words of those soldiers had a deeper meaning. They wanted to scare the attackers off or bait them into getting close again. They ended up being effective since the leaders of the armies turned and ordered a full retreat. Chapter 933: 933. Help The Shandal Empire wasn''t in a rush to end the war. It was the opposite. Being against three of the most powerful organizations in those Mortal Lands made the outcome of the war obvious. The Empire couldn''t aim for victory without the help of their Patriarch. So, it did its best to appear difficult to conquest and defeat. There were only two possible outcomes to that war: A complete defeat or a surrender with conditions. Being difficult to conquest would improve the terms of its submission. The more the invading forces suffered to advance, the more generous their offer to the Empire''s surrender would be. Of course, the invading forces wished for the exact opposite to happen. They knew that destroying the Empire was almost impossible since they were fighting it in its home. Still, showing their superiority on the battlefield could force it to accept harsh conditions. However, there were many secrets that the Empire had kept hidden from the world during its rule, and facing them in battle turned out to be more troublesome than expected. The invading army retreated after the appearance of the Tyrannosaurus. Many human troops died due to the sudden withdrawal, but the higher-ups of the organizations didn''t mind that. Their minds could only think of ways to deal with the powerful battle formation and prepare plans in case the Empire had more troublesome assets at hand. "As long as we disrupt it from the inside," Regina said to the other rank 5 cultivators gathered around her, "We can defeat that thing." Noah and the others had gathered in one of the encampments built in the newly conquered territories in the old continent. They were having a meeting to discuss how to deal with the battle formation. They didn''t have a problem finding out the main weaknesses of the Tyrannosaurus. After all, the Royals'' knowledge of inscription methods was almost boundless, and the Papral nation was the home of those techniques. The main issue was the power of the Tyrannosaurus. Battle formations required synchrony for them to work. All those involved in the technique had to execute precise forms together with their companions. A single misstep could make the formation lose power of directly crumble. That weakness was the main reason why those techniques weren''t widespread in the world. That made the battle formations'' field ignored and researched only by experts that had devoted themselves to their organizations. Ordinary cultivators would focus more on their power instead of using their time for something that didn''t benefit them directly. It was needless to say that the Hive didn''t know much about that field. Only the Demons knew more about it since they came from the Papral nation. Generally speaking, battle formations were useful and powerful. They were capable of great might and could turn a group of weak cultivators into a terrifying monster. Their effects varied too. Cultivators could use them both for offensive and defensive purposes, other than for more specific tasks. It took time to learn them though. A group of experts needed to train together for extended periods to achieve the synchronization required to activate those techniques. "Its skin didn''t seem too tough," Andrew Elbas said. "But we didn''t see all its abilities. Those wings might not be the only troublesome feature of that creature." The lack of evident weaknesses and insufficient knowledge about the Tyrannosaurus'' abilities made those experts decide to take the only approach that could work. "We need more cultivators," Elder Julia said, giving voice to the conclusion that everyone at the meeting had reached by that time. A strategy soon formed, and each force contacted reinforcements that would join them in the next attack. Since there was nothing that they could exploit to defeat the Tyrannosaurus, the invaders would overwhelm it with sheer power. Everyone would launch attacks on the battle formation to keep it busy, while the three leaders of the army would focus on disrupting its interior composition. It was a simple strategy, but the only one available for the invaders. The Hive decided to deploy Daniel, Danielle, and Elder Justin, other than some more rank 4 cultivators, and it took four months for all of them to arrive since they had to settle matters on the new continent. The other forces called for reinforcements too, and Noah saw June joining the army of the Elbas family in that period. Then, once everything was ready, the invading forces decided to attack again, set on defeating that fearsome Tyrannosaurus with their improved firepower. The human troops started to fight as soon as the battle began. Still, the higher-ups of each organization remained in the air, focused on the other side of the battlefield. The Wardens arrived in a matter of minutes, and they waited in the sky with stern expressions. Everything was unfolding precisely like the previous battle, but the invaders knew what to expect at that time, and they faced it willingly. Noah and the others flew toward the Wardens at high speed. There were more than twenty rank 5 cultivators crossing the sky above the battlefield to reach for the Wardens, who had begun to execute the battle formation at that sight. Blue lines shot in the air and took the form of the familiar winged Tyrannosaurus that radiated the aura of a quasi-rank 6 being. That didn''t scare the invaders, who continued to press forward until they were in its range. Fighting from far away couldn''t work if they hoped to defeat the battle formation. Most cultivators specialized in long-distance spells since they usually abandoned martial arts in the heroic ranks, but being closer to their target would produce better effects. The Elders of the Council created a series of golden shields with their battle formations, and Noah and the others started to prepare spells and launch them at the enormous blue figure. Noah let his aura go wild while a series of sabers gathered around him. Saber-shaped runes and Ghostly Sabers accumulated around his figure and created rivers of blades that flowed freely in the air. The Ghostly Sabers didn''t change in that period. Yet, the saber-shaped runes had seen an improvement to their structure after his success with the higher energy. Noah had mixed part of the dark matter with his ambition and greed when he created that new version of his first Will-consuming rune. Now the black sabers came out directly with power near the peak of the liquid stage and continued to grow as they absorbed primary energy. They still needed his darkness to come out in the open, but the fact that his higher energy was involved in the rune in his mind made every copy far stronger than Noah''s current power. ''I can''t use the Demonic Form with everyone so close to each other,'' Noah thought as he controlled the sea of sabers. "But this should make up for that." After that, he controlled the sabers to fly toward the massive beast that had already unfolded its wings. Chapter 934: 934. Exchanges The Tyrannosaurus didn''t do anything while the invaders assembled around it and prepared their spells. It was as if the cultivators of the Empire were challenging them. Of course, that wasn''t just pure confidence in the power of the battle formation. The wings of the Tyrannosaurus absorbed attacks and turned them into a fuel that empowered that ability further. It was evident that the cultivators of the Empire wanted to exploit the ability to face the more than twenty rank 5 cultivators. Also, that was another show of power. If the Empire managed to win again, it would force the invaders'' hand and demonstrate that it would be hard for them to win. Every action of the Wardens was for the sake of obtaining better terms for the surrender of the Empire. The attackers started to throw their spells at the battle formation. Various attacks of multiple elements flew through the air and targeted the massive blue figure that remained still at the sight of those abilities. The traction force of the meat wings pulled most of those attacks inside their structure, and only the spells of the three leaders managed to land on the Tyrannosaurus body. They had little effect though, and the creature was quicker than the last time when dealing with Elder Regina''s puppets. The beast then shone with a brighter light after that exchange. The spells that it had absorbed increased its power, pushing it closer to that of an actual rank 6 creature. Noah felt the connection with his sabers vanish after they entered inside the wings. It seemed that only attacks that had the power of the solid stage could ignore the traction force. Also, there didn''t seem to be a limit to how much the wings could absorb. Even the remains of the leaders'' spells went right inside them without causing any adverse reaction. However, the invaders knew that there had to be limits to the level of power that it could reach. The main issue with battle formations was that cultivators were handling them. If the Tyrannosaurus became too powerful, it would begin to affect the soldiers of the Empire inside it. The experts in the fifth rank would be able to handle that stress for a while, but there were rank 4 cultivators inside it too. They were bound to fall apart if the battle formation became too powerful for them. Nevertheless, the Wardens soon showed that they had a way to lower the level of their creation. The Tyrannosaurus spread its maws and released a pillar made of blue light that the Elders of the Council promptly blocked with their golden shields. That attack had been sudden, but the invaders were expecting some ability from that battle formation, so they reacted in time. Still, the Elders handling the golden shield coughed blood after blocking that blue pillar. It was evident that they wouldn''t be able to stop too many of them. The other invaders hesitated at that point. The pillar had the power to kill most of them in one attack, and it wasn''t advisable to face it without the proper protections. Launching more spells that couldn''t escape the traction force would only give the Tyrannosaurus more fuel for its abilities, which would lead to the destruction of the golden shields faster. However, the soldiers of the Empire were done waiting. They had already proven their point by then, and giving their opponents time to think of a solution for that issue was suicidal. The Tyrannosaurus swung its four claws, and a series of massive blue slashes came out of them. They ran through the air and targeted the weakest rank 5 cultivators in the invaders'' group. Those handling the golden shields managed to block some slashes, but some attacks reached a few cultivators that dodged or deployed defensive abilities. The slashes had a power slightly above the peak of the fifth rank, but all the attackers had come prepared and owned defensive items. Some of them were just disposable talismans, but others were proper inscribed items with power in the upper tier. The members of the Elbas family even had multiple defensive items that created a series of barriers right on top of their skins! As for Noah, no slash came in his direction, which allowed him to focus all his attention on his sabers. Noah didn''t use the Ghostly Sabers at that time. He couldn''t alter the power of that spell, and it had already proven itself useless against that kind of opponent. Instead, he deployed his saber-shaped runes again and spread his aura in the environment to quicken the creation of primary energy. The cultivators who didn''t have access to a form of attack that could reach the power of the solid stage of the fifth rank moved their focus on defending those that could. Noah saw Daniel and the other Elders gathering around him in a protective stance while he waited for his saber-shaped runes to grow. Similar scenes appeared in the other groups, and only Noah, one Elder from the Council, and some Royals ended up preparing attacks even if they weren''t rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage yet. That put them on another level compared to their peers in the liquid stage, even if their spells still couldn''t match those of the three leaders. Noah waited until his saber-shaped runes reached the solid stage before launching them at the Tyrannosaurus that had kept on throwing blue slashes at the golden shields. The weight that his spell had in his mind was immense and worsened his headache, but he held on and forced the sabers to fly in a straight line toward that massive creature. Other spells flew together with Noah''s runes. There were the attacks that the leaders had used previously together with fiery beasts and a massive golem that could run on the air. A large area of the sky shattered when those attacks landed on the Tyrannosaurus. Noah''s sabers stabbed the blue skin of the creature, but they didn''t manage to go any deeper than a few centimeters. The eagle and ape made of fire grabbed the creature''s claws and kept them still to let the flames affect them. The worm-like puppets bit the blue skin as soon as they managed to land of the creature, and Andrew''s water giant enveloped the head of the Tyrannosaurus in an attempt to restrict its movements. The golem pounced the creature and tried to fold its wings. As for Julia''s wind slashes, they followed Noah''s sabers to help them piercing the blue skin. Having so many cultivators dealing with a battle formation started to push it to its limits. There were too many powerful attacks aiming to restrict or harm the creature that it couldn''t even react. The light radiated by its body though suddenly became dimmer, and Noah felt a dangerous sensation coming from the Tyrannosaurus. A massive shockwave came out of its figure and shattered the spells clinging on its body, turning them into energy that its wings quickly absorbed. Then, it spewed another blue pillar that landed on the golden shields and made the Elder creating them cough blood again. Chapter 935: 935. Wings The last exchange forced the Tyrannosaurus to use a lot of energy. Its power started to near the limits of the fifth rank after the shockwave and the blue beam. Noah and the others couldn''t see the state of the cultivators inside the battle formation. Still, seeing how the light radiated by the creature had dimmed made them understand that their attacks were effective. The same could be said for the invading side. The cultivators in charge of the golden shields and those targeted by the slashes had suffered from those attacks. Only the cultivators in possession of powerful defensive items and those capable of launching spells with power in the solid stage were in perfect shape. There was hope to win the battle with those forces, but the fight was slowly turning into an endurance match, which was what the Shandal Empire wanted. The Wardens wished to resist for as long as they could. Of course, that bothered the invading forces since they didn''t want to deploy even more cultivators before entering the domain of the Empire. After all, there was still the chance that the defenders had some strategy to deal with that. Hope had started to appear though. The last exchange had revealed many abilities of the battle formation, along with some evident weaknesses. The Tyrannosaurus didn''t appear able to refill its energy on its own. It always relied on the "Breath" absorbed from the enemy spells to launch powerful counterattacks. The only basic offensive that it was capable of was the blue slashes, but they were manageable. Only the recent shockwave and the blue beams were troublesome to handle, but they consumed a lot of the energy contained in the creature''s form. Fending off the spells without absorbing anything had made its power fall already! Also, the Tyrannosaurus didn''t appear able to move freely. There had been times where it could have charged and inflicted a lot of damage, especially on the golden shields, since they were mostly meant to fend off energy. If the Empire wanted to win that battle, standing still and limiting itself to counterattacks wasn''t the right approach. "Can you two take care of the wings?" Andrew Elbas asked with a mental message sent through a special inscribed notebook that only the higher-ups of each force had. That message echoed in the minds of the rank 5 cultivators on the scene, but everyone understood who he meant with his words. There were only two experts on the scene who had access to precise attacks with power in the solid stage. Noah and Elder Julia exchanged a glance before nodding toward the leader of the Royals'' faction. Both of them didn''t know if it was possible to cut away the wings from a creature made through a battle formation, but they trusted Andrew''s expertise enough to follow his strategy. Elder Julia summoned hundreds of wind slashes that rotated around her body as she waited for the perfect chance to strike. Noah did the same with his saber-shaped runes, even if he needed to wait to push the power of his attack to its limits. There was only so much that Noah''s mind could handle. Manipulating spells that were far above his centers of power in terms of strength was a problematic matter that required mental energy and most of his focus. However, he knew that he could push the saber-shaped runes a bit further instead of stopping to the beginning of the solid stage. Noah had never stopped spreading his aura in the environment to increase the amount of primary energy available for him. That area of the sky had all the fuel that he needed, but it quickly vanished as his more than a hundred sabers fed on it. The other invaders and the Tyrannosaurus continued to exchange attacks while Noah and Elder Julia prepared their offensive. Another series of blue beams and powerful spells flew back and forth between the two sides that only managed to weaken each other without causing casualties. However, the invaders ended up being on the losers'' end after they fought without Noah and Elder Julia''s support. The Tyrannosaurus'' light dimmed only by a little, while the cultivators managing the golden shields began to look pale. It wouldn''t take much before the invaders found themselves without defenses. All of them would be too busy blocking the creature''s attacks to launch spells if the golden shields were to fall. The sabers around Noah had started to near the halfway mark in the solid stage though. That level of power was the best that he could handle without losing his control over his spell. Still, it was enough for him to join the offensive again. A simple nod was enough to make Andrew and Elder Regina aware that the two cultivators from the Hive were ready, and they didn''t hesitate to launch another series of spells toward the tall creature. The Tyrannosaurus reacted in the same way as before. It kept its wings unfolded and launched blue slashes toward the incoming attacks. Still, all of a sudden, a lump of black flames appeared under its body, and a series of saber-shaped runes came out of it. Noah had resorted to the Warp spell to exploit a blind spot in the battle formation, and his runes crashed directly on the base of the three pairs of wings. The entire beast started to flicker at that point, but it promptly released another shockwave to fend off the incoming attacks. Noah''s runes became dust in less than an instant, and even the other higher-ups'' spells became simple energy under that defensive measure. Nevertheless, Elder Julia made her move at that point and unleashed her wind slashes. They went above the creature before it could even spew more blue light and crashed on the base of its wings. Noah''s sabers had already damaged that area, and the Tyrannosaurus had lost a lot of energy using that last shockwave. Its sturdiness depended on its level, and now it was close to the peak of the fifth rank. So, it wasn''t a surprise when Elder Julia''s attack managed to cut away three wings in one go. Those shining body parts drifted away from the creature, and the light around them dispersed, revealing a few rank 4 cultivators. Those soldiers of the Empire had pale expressions, but they didn''t suffer any apparent injury. Their current state was only a consequence of Elder Julia forcefully cutting them away from the battle formation. Andrew and the others didn''t waste that chance and launched another series of spells that crashed on the Tyrannosaurus'' body. The impact released shockwaves that killed those rank 4 cultivators in an instant, with only one of them surviving since it was at the peak of that rank. The Tyrannosaurus revealed an ugly expression at that sight but didn''t lose its cool. It just released more blue slashes toward the invaders. Yet, black flames appeared under the creature''s body again, and saber-shaped runes came out of them. Noah''s spell landed on the remaining wings and cut them away. Chapter 936: 936. Advance Noah''s second wave of saber-shaped runes managed to cut away the remaining wings, which dissolved after separating from the Tyrannosaurus body and revealed a group of cultivators in the fourth rank. They didn''t last much since the other rank 5 cultivators in the invaders'' group launched attacks without caring about their power anymore. The meat wings capable of traction force were no more. Now even the cultivators that didn''t have access to attacks with power in the solid stage could join the offensive against the battle formation. The rank 4 soldiers of the Empire who were still in the sky outside of the Tyrannosaurus died when the more than twenty spells arrived. Their inscribed armors couldn''t protect them from the shockwaves released by so many attacks in the fifth rank. The light radiated by the Tyrannosaurus kept on dimming as the attacks landed on its body, and its skin started to become ethereal as it lost power. Human shapes became visible inside the beast as the offensive continued, and the invaders began to understand how that situation was affecting the soldiers performing the battle formation. The soldiers of the Empire had pale expressions as they executed forms to keep the battle formation active. What had been a powerful technique capable of threatening their enemies had become nothing more than a defensive measure against the relentless barrage of attacks. Noah and the others soon understood that they had been both right and wrong when evaluating the power of the battle formation. It appeared to be true that the Tyrannosaurus had limited maneuverability and seemed stuck in its place, but its strength didn''t come only from the energy absorbed. The creature suddenly released a burst of blue light and spewed a series of beams that the invaders quickly blocked with their methods. The golden shields protected part of them, but the others had to rely on their assets to defend themselves. Noah saw a blue pillar coming in his direction and roared. The world turned black for an instant before the powerful attack swept him and torn his skin apart. His flames had managed to block most of its power though, and they were still burning around him. His half ethereal half white fire had successfully turned a deadly attack into something that his body could handle. The sudden burst of power of the Tyrannosaurus had come from the "Breath" of the soldiers of the Empire, but they didn''t manage to make it return to its original power. They could only make it reach the level of a creature slightly above the fifth rank. Noah''s flames had been able to weaken the blue beam since the Tyrannosaurus had attacked multiple targets at the same time, and his fire was a weapon fitting of a beast in the upper tier of the fifth rank. The light that swept Noah after that only had the power of a spell at the bottom of the solid stage, which was something that his body could handle. Noah felt his skin cracking and suppressed Snore''s instinct to come out and protect him. There would be time for the Blood Companion to make its appearance, but now he preferred to suffer a few injuries rather than revealing his most potent weapon. His companions didn''t have the privilege of choice in that situation. Each separated beam had the power that neared the peak of the fifth rank. Most of the invaders had to resort to inscribed items to hope to survive that attack. Luckily for them, they had come prepared for that eventuality since they knew the strength of their opponent. Yet, not all of them could block the full might of those attacks. The weaker rank 5 cultivators among the invaders had to deal with the shockwaves released by the beams. Also, that blue light was hard to defend against, so others had to face part of its power directly. Injuries piled on in the invaders'' side. Some of them even saw their limbs explode as the blue light swept them. Noah could see June gritting her teeth and enduring the part of the beam that the inscribed items of the Royals didn''t manage to block. However, the light suddenly vanished when it pierced her skin. It was as if something had devoured it. Of course, June was using her orange "Breath" when fighting together with the Royals and the Council. It was needless to say how badly that affected her battle prowess, mostly since she had founded her individuality on her higher energy after reaching the fifth rank. Nevertheless, she still resorted to her dark sparks once the blue light threatened to enter her body. Yet, her action had been subtle, and everyone was busy dealing with the pillars, so no one noticed that irregularity. Only Noah could notice that because his attention had gone on her as soon as he blocked his beam. His instincts had screamed at that sight, but he suppressed his wild emotions to focus on the battle formation. The Tyrannosaurus appeared spent after that last attack. Its power was falling inside the solid stage of the fifth rank, and it kept on going down since the soldiers weren''t using their "Breath" to refill it. It seemed that the battle formation had finally pushed the cultivators of the Empire to their limits since cracks began to spread on the skin of the creature. Its blinding blue radiance had turned into nothing more than a pale halo too. The three leaders of the armies were the only ones that had managed to come out of the last exchange completely unharmed, even if Elder Julia had been the only one of them to resort to an inscribed item. Yet, they were ready to put an end to a battle that had already cost them too much. Their usual spells flew through the air and landed on the Tyrannosaurus body. They finally disrupted the stability of the battle formation that began to fall apart, releasing the cultivators inside it. The soldiers of the Empire didn''t wait for the second wave of attacks. They retreated at high speed and disappeared in the territories behind them in a matter of instants. Some remaining rank 4 cultivators weren''t fast enough and remained trapped inside the water arms of Andrew''s giant that killed most of them, leaving only two of them alive. They would be necessary for the interrogations later on. As for the rest of the invaders'' group, those who could move and didn''t suffer any severe wound pressed forward. They chased after the Wardens, who had already disappeared from their sight. Noah was one of them, but his chase was less cautious since his innate awareness gave him a clear idea of where the danger lurked in those lands. There were threats everywhere, except for the area right before the Empire''s domain. The scenery changed as Noah advanced. Massive walls appeared in his vision, and a series of tall buildings filled the world on the other side of those defenses. Also, in the distance, he saw a small structure floating at a few kilometers from the ground. Chapter 937: 937. Path The domain of the Empire appeared far different from the regions inside its area of influence. It lacked the barrenness and aura of desolation that filled the territories occupied by the slaves. Instead, it was gaudy and full of life. Noah could sense countless humans going on with their daily lives in that environment filled with cities and tall structures. The density of "Breath" was still low, but it didn''t reach the standards of the peripheral territories. It seemed that the Empire had invested a hefty sum of Credits to keep its domain suitable for cultivators. There were some traces of decay. Noah could see how some buildings had cracks on their surface or were in desperate need of maintenance. Still, that only concerned the minority of the structures. Noah committed to memory the scene on the other side of the defensive walls. The Empire had arranged its population in large districts that had their most well-kept buildings at their center. Those districts were similar to the domes in the Hive''s domain, with the only difference that they were everywhere and that they occupied most of those lands. It was as if the entirety of those regions functioned as habitable areas managed by small and separate governments made of heroic cultivators. Those rulers could also be soldiers in the fourth rank according to what Noah could sense. Some powerful auras came from the district directly under the defensive walls and the innermost regions, while the strongest one came from the floating structure in the distance. ''Wardens, normal soldiers, experts, and powerhouse,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the layout of that organization. The disposition and power of the districts gave him a clear understanding of how the Empire divided its assets. "Prince," Elder Julia said as she neared him, "We must go." Noah nodded at her words, but he kept his eyes on the Empire for one last second before turning to join his allies in their retreat. They had won the battle against the Wardens, and the human troops had defeated their enemies in the meantime. Yet, almost all the assets in the fifth rank had suffered injuries. The invaders had won, but the Empire had managed to make them pay an annoying price. Those powerful assets would now need to spend some time recovering and reorganizing before attempting the attack on the lands beyond the walls. Also, the assets of the Empire were packed. Each district bordered multiple quarters, which meant that the invaders couldn''t launch an attack unless they were ready to face the full might of that organization. The three attacking forces would need to deploy the entirety of their assets and inflict as many losses as they could if they wanted to avoid ending in a war of attrition. The only issue was that they didn''t know if it was possible to avoid such an outcome. The troops retreated in one of the encampments that they had built in those years. No meetings happened after the battle. All the higher-ups of the armies had silently decided that they would focus on recovering before planning their next move. Noah had it easier than his peers. Any injury on his body would take more energy to heal, but his regenerative properties were off the charts. Also, the blue beam had only affected his skin, which was the easiest body part to fix. He spent his time before the meetings meditating and focusing on training his centers of power. The power of the new saber-shaped runes left him satisfied, and they even had properties that he didn''t have the chance to show against the Tyrannosaurus. Since there was higher energy in their structure, the runes could abandon their solid form and turn into a black gas without losing the power that they had accumulated. That feature wasn''t useful in the battle against the Tyrannosaurus, but Noah knew that it would come out handy against cultivators. Anything that made his attacks less predictable could make the difference between victory and defeat in a battle. His sessions of meditation mainly focused on the path in front of him. He had settled the issues with his centers of power after the improvements to his spherical runes, but he had just begun to improve his battle prowess. There were parts of his existence that he had yet to learn how to express since they weren''t a pressing matter. Still, he felt that he was now ready to face the next challenge in his journey. He had to invent a field that fused martial arts and spells into a single school. Noah had other projects on hold. The miraculous properties of his higher energy still had a lot to reveal, and his burning heart had yet to harmonize with his existence. However, Noah felt as if he had focused only on his creation lately. His destruction had to evolve too, and he couldn''t help but prioritize it now that his creation put him on a path that would require decades to study. Noah had always prioritized immediate power over long-term projects. His personality didn''t only dictate that approach, but it suited the requirements that the world had when it came to survival. As he meditated, he analyzed the second form of his martial art, which was his only example of the field that mixed martial arts and spells. Nevertheless, he soon understood that he couldn''t use that attack as an inspiration for his future techniques. The origin of the second form of his martial art came from the Three Forms of the Ashura, and Noah had been lucky enough to find two spells that could replicate its requirements. Yet, that couldn''t happen twice. Noah couldn''t rely on his luck when it came to his power. Also, he didn''t want to spend years of research to find spells and martial arts that he could fuse into a stronger technique. Noah wanted to invent a proper school, a new field of techniques that only unique beings like him could execute. Of course, Noah wouldn''t bother to make the field generic. He couldn''t care less about other hybrids, especially since his project would take far longer if he aimed to invent a school that any being similar to him could study. He had already decided to make it as specific for his situation as possible, and he was ready to resort to the higher energy if his researches required it. The only issue was to find a starting point that could become the core of the new school. Something that could evolve in many forms according to the technique that Noah wanted to create. He needed to find a way to link physical strength, "Breath", and mental energy into sets of techniques that he could use for different purposes. In his mind, it would be better if he managed to create three sets that covered movement, offense, and defense. There was no need to start with pure creation from the beginning though. Noah had always found himself more comfortable in using what he had at hand to gain experience in a field before proceeding in inventing something original. Chapter 938: 938. Last phase Noah had to start from the basics. He needed to find something that could connect martial arts and spells so that he could build the foundation for his school. That part turned out to be easy. Only the body could be the core of each technique since it linked both dantian and sea of consciousness together. Also, the "Breath" and the mental energy were easy to control, while the flesh had limits to its movements. The "how" wasn''t an issue either since spells could have various effects, especially those of the darkness element. Noah only needed to pair a powerful spell with a martial art that suited its effect. The physical strength of his body would do the rest. Creating a martial art was tricky, but it was possible. Noah had done it in the past, and his current Dragon''s claw was something that he had made as soon as he had become a hybrid. The main problem was making a spell from scraps. Noah had done that too. He had studied the Will-consuming runes precisely for that purpose in the past, and his saber-shaped rune was his first original spell. The spherical rune had helped him creating the higher energy, but it had acted more as a cultivation technique rather than as a spell. Noah didn''t think that it suited his plans, so he didn''t consider it helpful for what it wanted to do. As for his other spells, Noah had only modified them to suit his needs and to match his individuality. They wouldn''t accept his darkness as a fuel otherwise. During his analysis, Noah found flaws even with his saber-shaped rune. It wasn''t a matter of its structure or functioning. What bothered him was the fact that he had taken inspiration from Ravaging Demon''s spell to create it. ''They are all copies,'' Noah thought at some point, but a more profound understanding soon dawned upon him. ''No one is ever truly original. Cultivators look at the legends of the past before paving their roads. There is nothing wrong with using concepts that others have already used. No one would pursue the laws otherwise.'' That realization gave him some peace. He understood that he had spent so much time trying to find something original that he had forgotten his place. Noah was only a rank 5 cultivator. That level of power put him among the higher-ups of a lower plane, but it was still nothing when compared to the might of Heaven and Earth. He had yet to learn how to wield laws, but he wanted to create something entirely new already. His ambition was blinding him. It tried to push him on a path that only divine entities could tread. Taking something from the world and reshaping it to your image wasn''t a misstep in the journey. Dantian absorbed laws to push existences toward a unique state. Therefore, he could do the same with spells and martial arts. As long as they suited his individuality, he would be on the right path. His peace vanished when his focus went on the laws. It became evident that he needed to follow where his individuality was going, but he needed to wield the laws if he wanted to express it on a level that suited his rank. ''I should focus on what I have at hand before diving into another project,'' Noah thought when he understood that he couldn''t control when his mind entered the world of the laws. ''Enlightenments will come naturally as my expertise increases. I can''t let my greed stop my improvements.'' Noah was beginning to understand what Chasing Demon and Shandal had warned him about. The intensity and vastness of his individuality wanted to push him toward projects that he couldn''t approach yet. There were two spells that he could work with already. He only needed to create martial arts that matched their effects so that he could obtain the same burst of power that he had with the second form of the Dragon''s Claw. It was better to focus on them and improve his expertise in the field for the time being. That would enhance his battle prowess immediately and still give him a good foundation. ''I need to learn how to create dust before creating a world,'' Noah thought as his mind became calm again. ''I need to sharpen my destruction before spreading it through the Heaven and Earth''s domain.'' The leaps in his power made him feel good, but they left him lacking in specific fields that were necessary for his journey. After all, he had seen it happening with his body since he didn''t know how to find peace in his hunger. Only half a year passed before the leaders of the armies summoned everyone again. That break had been necessary to gather more assets for the assault on the Empire''s domain and to heal the injured. The army didn''t see many changes in its structure. There was only a sheer increase in the number of troops of various ranks. Even the cultivators in the fifth rank had seen some reinforcements joining them as they approached what was meant to be the last stage of the war. There would be nothing else to conquest if the invaders took over the entirety of the regions in the eastern part of the central areas. Yet, they aimed to force the Empire to admit defeat and accept harsh terms for their surrender. In that way, the invaders would salvage the researches and resources in its possession and gain more than a few regions that barely satisfied the needs of human cultivators. Total destruction wouldn''t benefit them at all. The massive army marched across the land that had seen its last battle until it reached the tall defensive walls that separate the area of influence of the Empire from its actual territories. The human troops standing on the ground raised their heads to look at the figures walking on the sky at that point. They needed the help of the heroic cultivators to destroy that hindrance. "Who wants to do the honors?" Andrew Elbas asked, moving his gaze between Elder Julia and Elder Regina. Rank 5 cultivators had joined the army in the six months of break, but those three were still the leaders of their respective factions. Elder Julia shrugged her shoulders at that sight, and Elder Regina gestured to Andrew that he was free to act as he wished. The Royal felt satisfied with those answers and proceeded to cast a spell. A torrent fell from his palm. The water created a cascade that gave birth to rainbows as the sunlight crossed it. Yet, when it reached the defensive wall, it pierced its hard material and dug a fissure right in the middle of its structure. The fissure eventually reached the ground and spread, creating a large passage where entire platoons could pass. That was the signal that the human cultivators had been waiting for, and they charged right through the passage. The heroic cultivators in the sky did the same, but they felt forced to stop their advance since they found a series of blue Tyrannosaurus of various levels waiting for them. Chapter 939: 939. Charge The battle in the sky started even before the army on the ground met its enemies. The heroic cultivators on the invaders'' side didn''t fear the Empire''s battle formation anymore, and they promptly divided themselves into groups to face the Tyrannosaurus that suited their level. There were nine Tyrannosaurus. Three of them were similar to the one faced by Noah and the others in the previous battle. Instead, the others barely neared the fifth rank in terms of power. It seemed that the Empire was short of rank 5 cultivators that knew how to perform the battle formation. Otherwise, there would be no point in creating six of them that any expert in the fifth rank could destroy. Still, the invaders had prepared strategies for similar events. The various groups that they had formed were one of them. Noah was with the higher-ups of the Hive. Since there were only three quasi-rank 6 Tyrannosaurus, the three forces could divide themselves according to their faction. A crucial aspect of each group was the number of cultivators capable of launching attacks with power in the solid stage, which Noah and Elder Julia covered when it came to the Hive''s team. Another important aspect was the defense, but the Council had deployed enough Elders to offer a golden shield to each group. As for the other rank 5 cultivators, their role was to defend until those capable of an offensive in the solid stage destroyed the wings. At that point, everyone had to focus on attacking. The battle on the old continent had already proven itself to be different from the war in the new one. Back then, the Empire had relied on formations powered by the marvelous ground of the piece of Immortal Lands. Instead, it was now using techniques that no other organization in the world knew. Even the Royal family only had a few studies when it came to battle formations. It couldn''t be helped. Relying on formations in the new continent was only normal since its ground diminished the consumption of such inscriptions. Using them in the old landmass could make the Empire go bankrupt due to the immense quantity of Credits that it would need to fuel them. The battle formations used the cultivators as their fuel, and the Empire had plenty of them. Also, they were quite effective since they forced any attackers to face them directly and suffer some injuries. The only flaw in the Tyrannosaurus was that they found it hard to inflict casualties in the enemy army. The invaders were too cautious and prepared, while the battle formations had evident weaknesses that they could exploit easily. Noah and Elder Julia took their time to cut away the wings of their target. They didn''t have multiple cultivators able to express the power of the solid stage, so they could only take things slowly. However, they had many rank 5 cultivators set only on defending them, which made their role safe. The only tricky part was controlling their attacks so that they would dodge the Tyrannosaurus offensive and still hit the wings. More than ten exchanges had to happen before Noah and Elder Julia managed to destroy all the wings. The blue light around them dispersed at that point, and a series of rank 4 cultivators appeared. That event was the signal for the other cultivators of the Hive to start their offensive. The Tyrannosaurus was a formidable opponent even after it lost its wings. After all, its power resembled a quasi-rank 6 creature, even if it had many flaws. Those who weren''t capable of launching an attack with power in the solid stage could only see the Tyrannosaurus'' light dimming by a little every time of their attacks landed on its body. The group needed to weaken it a bit before all the Elders could hurt it. There was little that the other experts could do while its power was still above the fifth rank. Nevertheless, the battle went well. Noah and the others had many defenses in place and managed to slowly exhaust the Tyrannosaurus until the entirety of its blue body shattered and revealed the cultivators inside it. The fight was far from over though. The soldiers of the Empire had the chance to escape back then due to the defensive walls and the injuries suffered by the invaders. Yet, they had nowhere to run now. Those experts were fighting above their homes, and showing their backs to their enemies could only worsen that already tragic situation. It was better for them to fight, especially since they had an unshakable faith in Shandal and his Left Hand, who was still managing the organization. Noah chose his target in an instant. He was one of the few members of his group that had come out of the battle completely unharmed, and he didn''t hesitate to dive toward a fight. Elder Julia was fine too, and she led the path toward the enemies that were waiting for them. The other Elders were injured, but they didn''t dare to remain behind during such a crucial moment. After all, Noah and Elder Julia''s performance had been inspiring in their eyes. As for Noah, he had decided to charge right at the soldiers of the Empire because he had recognized Icy Stare among them. She had managed to escape death with the Second Life formation the last time, and her cultivation level had suffered a blow due to the consequences of the miraculous inscription method. Still, there she was, standing proudly on the air and radiating "Breath" in the liquid stage of the fifth rank. Also, she was keeping her cold gaze on Noah as her long blonde hair fluttered in the wind. It was as if she was challenging him to come, and Noah didn''t hesitate to accept her provocation since his awareness didn''t sense any particular danger. If the Empire had managed to create a formation capable of hiding itself from him, he would face the consequences of his actions. The other Elders of the Hive followed close behind him, and Noah couldn''t help but curse at that sight. He couldn''t use his full strength when it came to battles alongside his companions. His corrosive smoke was too wild. However, he didn''t slow down when flying toward Icy Stare. He wasn''t the same newly advanced rank 5 cultivator as before. Now his body was in the upper tier, their cultivation levels matched, and he had many tools that he didn''t have the chance to test against cultivators yet. The Black Hole spell appeared on his palm and floated until it took its position above his head. The Demonic Sword split, and Noah wielded the two halves. Ethereal and material sabers formed a sea that surrounded him. Noah''s figure became unclear too, and he sprinted as the Merging spell pushed his speed to the limits. He ended up arriving near the soldiers of the Empire at the same time as Elder Julia, with the only difference that he had already swung his blades by the time that he stopped. Chapter 940: 940. Chaos Two black lines shot from Noah''s swords and flew toward Icy Stare. The slashes were far faster than usual due to the momentum built with the Merging spell, but Icy Stare had learnt to know her opponent in the last war. The air behind her had already turned into ice by the time that Noah''s slashes appeared. Various figures formed inside it and began to fly toward the incoming attack. Her allies weren''t affected by the frozen sky since Icy Stare had limited the area influenced by her individuality. Still, that didn''t diminish the number of figures that she was able to create. Noah saw hundreds of shapes made of ice coming in his direction, but that didn''t stop his charge. Even if he wasn''t using the Demonic Form spell, he felt that he would be able to face those attacks head-on. Of course, Noah didn''t need to be so reckless, especially now that he was on Icy Stare''s level. He could express all his experience without resorting to irresponsible tactics. The black lines crashed on the figures made of ice and cut tens of them before Icy Stare''s spells managed to block them. Yet, Noah''s attack exploded into a cloud of corrosive smoke at that point and continued to wreak havoc inside the army created by his opponent. At the same time, Noah roared and unleashed a wave of flames that made the world lose its light for an instant. His attack destroyed most of the remaining icy-figures and melted the ice that had begun to spread between him and his opponent. Icy Stare maintained her cold expression as she looked at that scene. She wasn''t surprised in the slightest that Noah could face her attacks even after she had advanced to the liquid stage. Icy Stare had already suffered due to her arrogance. The Second Life formation had saved her life at that time, but she had learnt her lesson. She wouldn''t commit the same mistake twice. In her mind, she couldn''t underestimate Noah Balvan anymore. It would be better if she overestimated him. In that way, she was sure that she could always predict all his hidden cards and avoid ending up like the last time. It had been hard for someone like Icy Stare to reach that conclusion, mostly since she had lived for much longer than Noah. Still, she wasn''t delusional. The Demon Prince of the Hive was worthy of her respect, and she needed to face him carefully. On the other hand, Noah felt extremely confident. It would be enough for him to unleash Snore to gain an immediate advantage in that battle. Yet, he held himself back and decided to rely on his other spells. The dark sphere was still growing above his head, but his Ghostly Sabers were ready, and his runes were bordering the limits of the liquid stage in those instants. Noah slashed again and controlled his spells to shoot forward. Other icy-figures formed inside the frozen sky behind Icy Stare and flew toward the incoming attacks, but that clash ended up differently from the previous one. The saber-shaped runes had already surpassed what an ordinary liquid stage cultivator could handle. Icy Stare was an expert and had plenty of experience when it came to battles, but even her army of icy-figures couldn''t survive against that offensive. The saber-shaped runes tore apart any figure that they met. Weapons and magical beasts of various kinds had their bodies filled with holes and shattered into countless shards after the clash with Noah''s attack. They managed to block the runes at some point, but Noah''s offensive wasn''t over. The Ghostly Sabers flew freely through the sea of icy-shards. They aimed for Icy Stare, and they lost only a small part of their power due to the mental energy still contained in the remains of the spells. The black lines did the same, and they had no problem cutting through those remains to reach for Icy Stare. The cultivator of the Empire found two different types of attacks coming in her direction and could only resort to the frozen sky behind her back to block them. Icy Stare retreated among the ice that she had created with her individuality, and Noah''s attacks clashed directly on it. The black lines exploded in a cloud of corrosive smoke soon after they met the defensive measure, but the Ghostly Sabers continued for a while before stopping. Noah could sense through his connection with the Sabers that some of them had managed to enter Icy Stare''s body before being destroyed. Those mental weapons had managed to stay only for a few instants inside her though, so they had done little damage. The chaos of the battlefield had exploded around Noah while he was busy exchanging attacks with Icy Stare. Elder Julia had started to fight with a solid stage cultivator of the Empire and had moved their battle higher in the sky. The other Elders of the Hive had done the same, even if some of them had preferred group fights. Noah could sense Elder Austin and Elder Ingrid battling at some distance against two cultivators of the Empire that matched their cultivation level. Daniel and Amos Udye were doing the same in another corner of the battlefield. As for Elder Justin and Danielle, they had chosen to engage in one versus one battles against other experts. Most of the higher-ups of the Hive were on the battlefield, and only those that covered strategical roles or were incapable of attending had remained in the new continent. Elder Colleen had to manage the Coral Archipelago, and the two Demons were still in Shandal''s separate dimension. The powerful hybrids captured there had remained in the central territories too since their mental instabilities made them unsuitable for that kind of battlefield. Also, the Hive didn''t want to reveal all its assets. So, it tasked the hybrids with the control over the nature reserve before going to war. There were more rank 5 cultivators of the Empire on that side of the battlefield. Each Tyrannosaurus with quasi-rank 6 power needed at least ten of them to reach that level. However, the Elders of the Council that had previously taken care of the golden shield were handling them. That prevented them from ganging up against the cultivators of the Hive. There were similar scenes on the other sides of the battlefield. The Elbas family and the Council had managed to defeat their Tyrannosaurus and were currently facing the experts. Those two factions didn''t require additional help since they had deployed enough assets in the fifth rank, but they were having a hard time finding a quick victory nonetheless. The human troops had their messy battle on the ground, and the rank 4 cultivators were fighting in the air right above them to avoid the shockwaves released by the higher-ups. Chaos reigned everywhere, and most one versus one battles often interfered with the fights nearby. Nevertheless, a change happened after the heroic cultivators had immersed themselves in their battles. The central buildings of the districts near the floating structure started to shine before releasing massive arrows made of blue light. Chapter 941: 941. Tough The arrows were fast, and their size didn''t affect the speed that they were capable of. They were made of a pure blue light that left a shining trail wherever they flew. Noah had sensed the danger thanks to his increased awareness, but he had understood its origin only after the arrows appeared. After all, his senses were screaming non-stop due to the many powerful cultivators fighting around him. There was a limit to how accurate his perception could be in that situation. Also, he wasn''t one of the targets of the arrows. They were aiming for the leaders of the factions. Elder Julia saw the attack and retreated. Each arrow had the power of the peak of the fifth rank, and there were four of them targeting her. Luckily for the Elder, the arrows didn''t seem able to make sharp turns since they only managed to shift their trajectory slightly when she performed an evasive maneuver. However, they were fast and massive. The shockwaves that they created flung Elder Julia in the distance, even if she had stepped away from their trajectory. Noah''s eyes widened at that sight, and he started to retreat. He wasn''t worried about Elder Julia''s state since the sudden attack didn''t hit her directly. The problem was the enemy in the solid stage that was now lacking an opponent. The man in the solid stage that Elder Julia had fought until then reacted as Noah feared. He analyzed the battlefield for less than an instant before diving from his higher position in the sky to help Icy Stare. The fact that she was having trouble against Noah was evident. It wasn''t hard for the solid stage cultivator of the Empire to choose who to help, especially since Noah''s status made him famous. Taking down the Demon Prince of the Hive would show how hard it was to defeat the Empire. That higher-up of the defending army couldn''t let go of such a chance. Noah didn''t care about fame, and that battlefield wasn''t the right place where to test how well he would do against an enemy in the solid stage. He retreated without any hesitation and spewed flames on his path to hinder the charge of the cultivator hunting him. However, that only gave him a few seconds since Elder Julia''s opponent used a defensive spell to cross the flames and launched an attack once he was close enough to his target. Noah saw three metallic birds forming right in the middle of his flames. They started to flap their wings as soon as their bodies stabilized, and they shot at high speed against him, uncaring of the fire that surrounded them. Noah could only think about his survival in that situation, which pushed him to let go of any restraint. Black smoke started to come out of his body and took the shape of a scaled armor in a matter of instants. Four arms formed from his fuming torso too, and they wielded the copies of the Demonic Sword that had appeared while Noah cast the Demonic Form spell. Noah executed the second form of his martial art and launched the Black Hole spell that had hovered above his head until then. After that, he turned to continue his retreat. He didn''t want to spread his corrosive smoke near his allies, but there was a cultivator in the solid stage against him. Noah wasn''t going to hold back in that situation. A fissure appeared among the sea of flames, but the metallic birds didn''t disappear with Noah''s attack. Cracks spread on their dark-silver bodies, but they kept flying toward him at a slower speed. They met the Black Hole spell at that point, and an explosion happened. Still, even that attack couldn''t block all the birds. Two of them fell apart during the detonation, but the last one used the metallic shards of its companions to protect itself and heal part of its body. Noah stopped retreating when he sensed that. The spell of a solid stage cultivator was scary and powerful, but it seemed that he could handle it if he used his most potent offensive. He felt ready to face him if necessary. After all, he knew that Elder Julia would soon rejoin the battlefield. Four arms rose once again from his torso, but a dangerous sensation suddenly appeared on his right. The temperature around him dropped, and he noticed that ice was spreading in that area of the sky. Noah didn''t even have time to curse since dozens of icy-figures took form in the frozen sky and shot toward him. It seemed that Icy Stare had managed to follow him since he had stopped to launch his previous attacks, and she had cornered him in a challenging situation. Another fissure appeared among the black smoke released during his escape. Noah didn''t stop the second form of his martial art since the remaining bird was still the most dangerous attack coming at him. As for the icy-figures, he spewed flames at them, hoping that they would gain him enough time to deal with whatever would come next. The corrosive smoke had affected the structure of the metallic bird, and the slash destroyed it once for all. Instead, the flames wrecked the icy-figures and melted their shards, but they didn''t manage to reach the frozen sky. Noah saw more shapes taking form inside the ice spreading around him and sensed that the solid stage cultivator was about to cast another spell since he had caught up with him. The same scene was about to repeat itself, and Noah didn''t know if he could handle it without revealing Snore. However, a torrent of wind blades suddenly swept an area inside the black smoke and revealed the solid stage cultivator who used five metal birds to protect himself. Elder Julia reappeared on the battlefield too, and she nodded at Noah before shooting toward her opponent. Noah''s reptilian eyes became cold at that point. He could focus on his sneaky opponent now that the Elder was keeping the major threat busy. Also, he was already in his Demonic Form. He could worry less about his safety. A horizontal fissure appeared in the army of icy-figures and turned them into nothing more than shards and maimed shapes. The second form of his martial art reached for the layers of ice too, and it pierced them without any problem. Noah spread his consciousness when he saw that the ice had stopped spreading. His senses sharpened as he searched for the cultivator that had tried to trap him into fighting against the solid stage expert. A tremor swept Icy Stare as soon as Noah found her. She had started to retreat when Elder Julia returned, but Noah had turned his attention toward his original opponent too quickly for her to escape the range of his senses. It didn''t take much for her to sense a pair of vertical pupils on her back. Icy Stare didn''t need to turn to know that Noah was right behind her, trying to hunt her before she could return to her allies. Chapter 942: 942. Instants Icy Stare didn''t commit a mistake. She didn''t underestimate Noah, and she had even predicted that he would block her superior''s attack. Her problem was that Elder Julia had returned on the scene too soon, even after she had endured the shockwaves generated by the arrows. She didn''t try to sneak up on the solid stage cultivator of the Empire either before rejoining the battlefield. Icy Stare could only guess that Noah was so important to the Hive that even its higher-ups would ignore the possibility of taking a powerful opponent by surprise to help him. The cultivators of the Empire didn''t have that mentality. That organization had never been short on assets, and its members rarely valued themselves as more important than their mission. They had learnt to sacrifice everything for the greater good of their god. The only real recognition they could get would arrive once they reached the sixth rank and became a powerhouse. That was the reason for her flawed judgment. Elder Julia had come back as soon as she could to help Noah, which put Icy Stare in a troublesome situation. Icy Stare left a trail of ice as she retreated to return to her allies. Countless shapes formed inside those frozen areas too, but nothing seemed able to stop the Demon Prince of the Hive chasing after her. Noah waved his blades non-stop as he charged directly through the thick ice and half-formed figures. The Demonic Form gave him all the protection he needed, and his physical strength made him ignore any hindrance on his path. Also, the corrosive smoke released by his figure and the black lines shooting from his weapons destroyed any form of defense that tried to slow down his advance. Icy Stare would be able to stop him only if she decided to go all out. However, that would require her to freeze a larger part of the sky, which meant that she had to remain in the same area for a few seconds. That delay would be enough for Noah to catch up, so she could only resort to those improvised methods. Noah kept on slashing and charging through the ice. Saber-shaped runes had appeared around him too and were already feeding on the primary energy created with his attacks. Even if Noah had acted as soon as he found his opponent, Icy Stare still had a chance to reach a couple of her allies that were fighting against Daniel and Amos. Noah didn''t want his battle to end up in a group fight. It would be harder to kill anyone if he had to disperse his Demonic Form to avoid hurting his allies. So, he kept on chasing and pressing Icy Stare, waiting for a chance to appear. Noah was faster than his opponent, even if he was flying through a frozen sky. He was slowly catching up with her, but her allies were drawing near too. Still, Noah managed to obtain a clear vision of Icy Stare at some point. His smoke had destroyed enough ice that he could see the back of his opponent and her head. The walls of Noah''s sea of consciousness trembled as soon as he caught a glimpse of Icy Stare. A long ethereal saber formed in front of him and shot toward his opponent. The Mental Saber spell was an attack that Noah rarely had the chance to use. Most of the heroic assets of the world knew about that ability, and they would do their best to avoid giving him a clear shot. Also, cultivators in the fifth rank were resourceful. They had ways to deal with mental attacks, even if they remained hard to defend against. However, Icy Stare didn''t have time to cast specific spells. She could only activate a generic defensive item when she sensed the ethereal saber coming in her direction. A green vortex appeared behind her. It attracted any form of energy through its suction force and destabilized it in the process. When Noah''s mental attack reached it, its body became even more ethereal, but part of it crossed that defense and landed on Icy Stare''s head. The walls of Icy Stare''s mental sphere shook after the impact with the ethereal saber. The tremors weren''t strong since Noah''s spell had lost part of its power, and her mind was sturdy, but she still slowed down her retreat. Also, the ice around her stopped spreading, which limited the creation of icy-figures. Icy Stare''s focus was on stabilizing her mind. She couldn''t do anything to escape from the range of Noah''s martial art. Noah was already wielding the copies of the Demonic Sword and fusing them into one slash by the time Icy Stare''s managed to stop the tremors. Her consciousness had returned only to make her aware of the immense danger behind her back. It was in the instant right before Noah launched his attack that the central buildings in the districts near the floating structure lit up again and shot another series of blue arrows. Noah had paid more attention to those areas after he saw the first series of arrows. That made him aware that one arrow was coming in his direction as soon as they left the shining buildings. ''Not now!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he saw the giant arrow targeting him. He had noticed the attack in time to dodge it while avoiding the shockwaves that it created. Yet, he would need to start the evasive maneuver now to do so. If he wanted to escape from that powerful attack, he had to stop his martial art. Noah would be lying if he said that he didn''t think about suffering an injury to kill Icy Stare. However, he was right in the middle of a battlefield filled with heroic existences. That thought had arrived after he stopped his attack and flew downward to step out of the arrow''s trajectory. It was needless to say that there was a lot of dissatisfaction in his mind too. The arrow flew past Icy Stare without causing her any harm before disappearing on the horizon. The cultivators managing that defensive measure had protected her at the last second, giving her a perfect chance to regroup with her allies. Icy Stare didn''t hesitate to pick up speed again and fly toward the group fight. Her mind still felt a little sore, but she was overall fine. Noah saw her reaching for the cultivators fighting against Daniel and Amos and dispersed the Demonic Form. He needed to help them now, and he couldn''t do it with the corrosive smoke threatening to kill them. However, a white light suddenly burst out of Daniel''s figure and filled that area of the sky before Icy Stare could reach it. When the light dispersed, everyone could see how one of his opponents had become nothing more than a pile of bones. Daniel had killed a rank 5 cultivator in the gaseous stage! Still, a familiar red light surrounded the pile of bones and replaced it with a series of bones belonging to multiple magical beasts. Chapter 943: 943. Chase The Second Life formation was still in place, and all the invaders became aware of that after Daniel killed his opponent. They had always known that the Empire was bound to have robust defensive measures in its main territory. Still, they had believed that having more assets would eventually grant them a victory. However, that belief had started to waver as the invaders learnt about the many defenses of the Empire. There were battle formations capable of injuring rank 5 cultivators, arrows flying through the battlefields and disturbing fights, and even the Second Life formation. On top of that, the Empire had many powerful cultivators ready to fight for their lives. Also, the invaders didn''t know if the Empire had some other defensive methods hidden somewhere. The situation couldn''t help but appear grim. Casualties were inevitable in a war, but the Empire seemed capable of making the invaders suffer. Hesitation spread among the attackers. Many of them wondered if they should give up on those lands and let the powerhouses handle the war. However, they quickly suppressed that thought. They were fighting for techniques and resources useful in the cultivation journey. Taking the Empire out of the political picture would give to the other organizations more lands where they could grow. Letting the powerhouses handle the matter would remove any gain from the eventual victory. If a battle between rank 6 cultivators were to happen in those lands, there would be nothing to retrieve afterward. Also, the fact that the Empire was doing its best to appear challenging to conquer now didn''t mean that it would be like that forever. Each defensive measure depleted a large number of resources. After all, they were formations that could threaten cultivators in the fifth rank! The invaders could use the same approach that they had used in the new continent and slowly exhaust the reserves of the Empire. That would go against their original idea to assert their dominance right away, but it would still place them in a favorable position. Of course, they would still try their best to defeat the Empire as soon as possible, even if they knew that the war might take a while to end. Icy Stare kept on flying toward her ally, uncaring that Noah was right behind her, ready to join the group battle. On the other hand, Daniel and Amos were pressing the remaining cultivator with a sea of spells. Multicolored flames created whip-like forms that tried to entangle the soldier in the gaseous stage of the fifth rank. A halo made of pure white light surrounded them to enhance their destructive properties. The expert of the Empire could dodge the multicolored fire, but the light around the flames flickered from time to time and radiated a dangerous shockwave every time its brightness spiked. Noah couldn''t help but analyze Daniel''s light in the back of his mind. Its energy carried properties similar to the corrosive smoke of the Demonic Form, but it was in the shape of a calm halo that hurt everything that it touched. Also, Daniel''s light didn''t have the same violence as Noah''s smoke. It didn''t express a destructive meaning. It was something similar to a forced purification. ''Similar effects with opposite meanings,'' A random thought appeared in Noah''s mind as he chased after Icy Stare, who had started to use her ice to help her ally. Icy Stare knew that such improvised attacks couldn''t stop Noah. So, she chose to do her best to keep her ally alive to preserve her chance to survive. Hundreds of icy-shapes flew toward the duo from the Udye family. Daniel and Amos had to redirect their attacks toward Icy Stare''s spells since the threat of a cultivator in the liquid stage was too great for them to ignore it. Daniel''s light expanded and created a spherical defensive membrane that melted the outer layers of the icy-shapes when they touched it. Amos supported him by enveloping their figures with his multicolored flames. Amos and Daniel would have a hard time if Icy Stare focused all her attention on those spells. Yet, she could only launch basic attacks that reflected her individuality with Noah chasing her. The flames and the white light defeated the last of the icy-shapes right before crossing the layer of multicolored flames. Still, there were now vulnerable spots in their protections, and the cultivator in the gaseous stage didn''t hesitate to exploit that temporary weakness. A small lightning bolt flew through the empty spots of the duo''s defenses and exploded when it crossed the layer of flames. The detonation made the fire and light disperse and replaced them with a gray cloud. Icy Stare reached her companion at that point and started to cast a spell only to interrupt it when she saw two black lines coming in her direction. Layers made of ice appeared in front of her as she resumed her retreat, taking her ally with her. It didn''t pass enough time for icy-shapes to form though. Noah''s slashes pierced right through the ice and reached for the cultivators behind it before exploding into a cloud of corrosive smoke. Everything had happened so quickly that both clouds were still in place even when Noah reached his companions. Only then did the gray smoke disperse to reveal the two nobles. Daniel was fine. A dense layer of light acted as a second skin and made his entire figure shine. Yet, there were cracks in that protection, which indicated that the lightning bolt had managed to inflict some superficial damage. On the other hand, Amos had lost part of his torso in the explosion. Almost the entirety of the left side of his upper body was gone, and Noah could even see his internal organs from his injury. There was something peculiar about Amos'' stance too. He stood in front of Daniel, right in the trajectory where the lightning bolt had flown. It seemed that Amos had decided to step forward right before the lightning bolt exploded to protect Daniel. That kind of injury wasn''t enough to kill him. Amos'' expression was grim due to all the pain he was experiencing, but he was alive, and his centers of power were intact. Regrowing the internal organs and arm lost in the battle wouldn''t be a problem with the right drugs. The important thing was that his journey as a cultivator wasn''t over. Daniel placed his hand on the left side of Amos'' neck, and his second skin shattered to converge its light on his wound. Relief soon appeared on Amos'' expression, and his injury stopped bleeding in a matter of seconds. Noah''s eyebrows arched when he saw that Daniel''s light had that ability. He didn''t know how strong its healing properties were, but it was something that expressed his individuality nonetheless. Amos nodded at some point, and Daniel retracted his hand. The three of them then turned to look at the black cloud since it had finally started to disperse. Once the cloud vanished, Noah could see red light enveloping a magical beast cut in two halves and Icy Stare''s escaping figure. Chapter 944: 944. Rescue Icy Stare had managed to escape from Noah''s attack once again, but her ally wasn''t as lucky. By the time the black cloud dispersed, the Second Life formation had already replaced the cultivator in the gaseous stage with a magical beast. The Hive had managed to kill two experts in the fifth rank, but the Second Life formation had rendered those achievements vain. Icy Stare was too far away by then. She had kept on retreating toward the floating structure and had yet to charge the course of her flight. Noah could only think that she had decided to withdraw for good, that her role in the first battle over the Empire''s domain was over. Noah glanced at Amos before studying the entire battlefield. The invaders were doing well overall. A few casualties among the rank 5 cultivators of the Empire had happened, but the Second Life formation had always intervened to save their lives. However, the same didn''t happen for the heroic assets in the fourth rank. They would die without any hope to see a red light bringing them back from the dead. As for the invaders'' side, it saw casualties among its ranks too, but in far lower quantity. The three forces outnumbered the assets of the Empire and could use that advantage to limit the losses suffered on the battlefield. Still, the formations of the Empire were annoying to deal with. Many powerful cultivators had suffered injuries when they fought against the Tyrannosaurus, and the blue arrows worsened their situation. Even if the invaders saw fewer deaths, the quantity of wounded and incapacitated cultivators on their side was immense. Noah was about to send Amos away and search for a suitable battle when the central buildings in the districts near the floating structure lit up again and released the now-familiar blue arrows. There were two of them coming in his direction at that time, but one was slightly tilted and didn''t point at him. It took Noah less than an instant to understand that Daniel had become a target too, and quick math in his mind made him realize that his ally wouldn''t have to face the shockwave if he relied on his speed. Even Amos would be in danger since there was a limit to how fast he could fly with his injury. Noah didn''t say anything and grabbed the two nobles from their robes before throwing them upward. Then, he activated the Merging spell to follow them and perform an evasive maneuver. Daniel and Amos became aware of what had happened only when they saw the arrows missing them by a few hundreds of meters. Still, they managed to stop their momentum only when they were even farther away from their original position. Noah reached them one instant later, and he resumed his analysis of the battlefield without even glancing at them. "Thank you," Daniel muttered. He knew that he wouldn''t have dodged the arrow if it wasn''t for Noah. Even as a cultivator of the light element, Daniel didn''t have access to a defensive spell that could protect him from that powerful arrow. Noah didn''t have it either if he didn''t count Snore, but his awareness allowed him to react in time to escape that attack. Amos didn''t say anything. His life wasn''t in danger, but he was in no condition to fight. It would be better if he left the battlefield immediately so that he could start to recover. Meanwhile, Noah found his other allies. Elder Austin and Elder Ingrid were busy fighting two rank 5 cultivators in the liquid stage, but it seemed that they had the upper hand in the battle. Elder Justin was against a soldier on the same level, and they appeared to be even. Danielle was in a similar situation, but the threat of the arrows was affecting the power that she could express. The Elders of the Council were handling the cultivators in the gaseous stage. The enemies outnumbered them, but there was an Elder in the liquid stage among them who balance their power. The only ally that was in trouble was Elder Julia. She didn''t lack the expertise or power to match her opponent in the solid stage, but the many arrows flying toward her kept interrupting her offensive. The same went for Elder Regina and Andrew Elbas. They were against opponents with a similar cultivation level, but the blue arrows aimed at them tilted the scales of their battles toward the enemies. Noah didn''t use much mental energy during that battle. The runes used the primary energy in the environment, and he had relied on the mental spells only a few times. Also, he had activated the Demonic Form only for a short while, and the same went for the Black Hole spell. He had mental energy to spare, especially in a place where he found it hard to go all out. Noah activated the Divine Deduction spell and reviewed the few exchanges with Elder Julia''s opponent. He soon accepted that he didn''t feel confident in facing him without Snore''s help. Yet, he wouldn''t be alone in the battle, and his support could benefit the entire war. Noah turned toward Daniel, but the latter spoke before he could even say a word. "Go, I''ll just use the divine emblem if an arrow comes in my way again." Daniel knew that Noah couldn''t act as a bodyguard. His power gave him the chance to make a real difference on the battlefield, and restricting him to one place would be an insult to his strength. Noah limited himself to nod at Daniel before activating the Merging spell to fly where Elder Julia and her opponent fought. The two of them exchanged a series of powerful attacks that affected a large area of the sky and shattered the air with every clash. Countless wind slashes assaulted a series of metallic birds. Elder Julia''s offensive appeared endless, but she hid much more under that sheer display of power. Her individuality made her attacks hard to sense, and she could create slashes anywhere in the area that her consciousness could cover. On the other hand, the cultivator of the Empire had sturdy and robust birds that could withstand dozens of those attacks before showing some cracks. The only issue was that Elder Julia could attack him from any side while the birds had a limited area of effect. The leader of the Empire was a bad match for the Elder. However, five shining arrows suddenly flew through the barrage of wind slashes. They forced Elder Julia to stop her offensive and retreat. She had learnt to sense that defensive measure by then, but her opponent would always try to hinder her path with his metallic birds. His timing was quite impressive too, which made her guess that he was in contact with the cultivators controlling the shining buildings. Elder Julia ended up suffering small injuries and depleting a lot of energy with every clash, but something was different at that time since no birds appeared on her path. When she turned to look at her opponent, she saw that a black cloud had appeared in its place. Chapter 945: 945. Idea Noah had released two black lines as soon as he saw the blue arrows forcing Elder Julia to perform an evasive maneuver. His attack stopped the solid stage cultivator''s offensive and forced him to use his metallic birds to defend himself. The black lines couldn''t pierce the cultivator''s spell, but Noah detonated them once they were close enough to inflict some damage. The corrosive smoke that they contained enveloped Elder Julia''s opponent in a threatening cloud. A series of wind slashes soon pierced the cloud and ravaged its insides. Elder Julia had immediately understood what was happening, and she didn''t hesitate to launch an attack once the arrows had flown past her. The black smoke affected the power of the slashes, but they still managed to reach its center, where the expert of the Empire was using his defensive methods to fend off the corrosive gas. It was needless to say that the arrival of the new threat forced him to reveal more of his power. Noah felt a dangerous sensation surging from the back of his mind and warning him that something was coming. He couldn''t pinpoint the cause due to the many threats on the battlefield, but he retreated anyway. Messing with cultivators in the last stage of the fifth rank wasn''t a matter that he could take lightly. He was a hybrid in the upper tier, and his abilities were already above those that cultivators on his same level were capable of casting. Nevertheless, he knew that one serious attack from someone in the solid stage could hurt him badly, and he preferred to avoid that outcome. The cause of the dangerous sensation turned out to be both the districts near the floating structure and the cultivator inside the black cloud. Two blue arrows shot in his direction, and a series of metallic feathers came out of the remains of the black smoke to reach for him. Noah promptly activated the Merging spell to escape from the trajectory of the spells. He didn''t need to use that ability, but he wanted to put as much distance as he could between him and the feathers to counterattack. He was already far away when the arrows crossed his previous position, but the feathers were still after him. Noah could only turn at that point and use the saber-shaped runes around him to face the incoming spell. A loud clash happened. Metallic feathers and black sabers met mid-air and destroyed themselves. Noah''s runes had reached the power of the solid stage by that time, and the soldier''s spell wasn''t as sturdy as the birds. Both attacks failed to cross the opponent''s barrage. The cloud of black smoke had dispersed when the feathers shot toward Noah. The expert of the Empire reappeared in the open, showing how both Noah and Elder Julia didn''t manage to inflict much damage. There were metal feathers all over his body, and the same birds from before circled him at high speed to create a protected area with the soft shockwaves that they released. A few trails of blood seeped through the feathers and flowed alongside his body until they fell below. The cultivator of the Empire had suffered some light wounds, but it was unclear who caused those injuries. Still, his expression showed his immense anger and irritation. "Iron Feathers is an expert with earth aptitude," Elder Julia''s voice resounded inside Noah''s head at that moment. "Be careful, Prince. His attacks might appear straightforward, but he has a large variety of them." Elder Julia continued to convey what she had learnt about Iron Feathers during their battle. The truth was that she didn''t want Noah to join her fight, but the blue arrows were giving her a hard time. She needed help, and Noah could hurt her opponent. Also, he was the only one in the Hive who could help her without risking his life. After all, Noah had been a lone cultivator and had survived dangerous missions. His survival instincts were some of the best among the heroic assets of the entire world. There weren''t many cultivators that had experienced so many adventures and benefited from all of them. "Arrows," Noah replied and activated the Merging spell again to sprint downward. Elder Julia understood the meaning behind his word and performed an evasive maneuver too. Less than an instant later, four blue arrows crossed their previous positions and disappeared in the distance. Elder Julia couldn''t hide her surprise. She was a whole stage above Noah, and her mental sphere was almost on par with her cultivation level. According to common sense, she had to sense the arrows before him. Yet, Noah had perceived the incoming danger even before it left the districts. Elder Julia couldn''t do that. It was as if Noah had predicted that the Empire would aim for the two of them. "Can you predict the future now?" Elder Julia asked as she launched another series of wind slash. From her tone, Noah could sense that she wanted a serious answer. "Beast instincts," Noah calmly replied before slashing multiple times with his weapons. Both attacks slowed down once they neared the metallic birds tracing circles around Iron Feathers. However, they didn''t manage to stop them completely. The wind slashes clashed with the birds and feathers, but they didn''t do much. Iron Feathers'' defenses were too strict to suffer from an attack that he had already seen before. The same happened for the black lines, and Noah had to make them detonate, hoping that they could affect him. Another black cloud appeared in the cultivator''s spot, but the smoke dispersed quickly since Iron Feathers controlled his defenses to expand their aura of influence. Noah could finally see Iron Feathers'' state now. The expert of the Empire had a few cuts on his shoulders, and various spots on his body lacked skin. It seemed that the corrosive smoke had managed to seep through his defenses at some point. Still, those small wounds meant nothing, especially for a cultivator in the solid stage. His anger came from the fact that someone on a lower level was interfering with his plans. Noah''s status didn''t mean anything in his eyes now. Iron Feathers could only see a cultivator that didn''t respect his power. Iron Feathers couldn''t let that happen any longer. Massive four-winged birds appeared out of nowhere and joined the other smaller ones in their flight around him. They even tried to imitate the cries of beasts similar to them. However, they only managed to produce clinking sounds as their beaks opened and closed. The aura that he radiated was violent and filled with his feelings. Noah could understand the mindset of his opponent, with one look at how his influence was affecting the entirety of the area. "We can take it slowly," Elder Julia''s voice resounded in Noah''s mind. "There has to be a limit to his reserves, and we are two against one." Noah wanted to agree with her words, but he had an idea about taking someone''s dantian even with the Second Life formation. Chapter 946: 946. Trick Noah didn''t know much about the Second Life formation. He had learnt a bit about its functioning and requirements from Andrew Elbas, but even the Royals couldn''t be sure about every detail. After all, that was a legendary formation that those Mortal Lands didn''t see for millennia. The records concerning it were bound to be imprecise and fragmented. Still, even that little information gave Noah an idea. The Second Life formation would activate only after a cultivator''s death, which meant that he could seize anything he wanted from his opponents before that moment. In theory, Noah could eat the dantian of his opponent before killing him. Even a miraculous formation couldn''t affect his meal once the "Breath" inside that center of power became primary energy for his body. Of course, Noah had thought about that when he first saw the Second Life formation, but he never had the chance to test it out. Everyone in the world knew about his hybrid status, and none of them would ever let Noah become too close in battle. However, his recent breakthroughs and upgrades of his techniques gave Noah some confidence. It wasn''t ideal to use that confidence against a cultivator in the solid stage, but Elder Julia was with him, and he knew that her abilities could create the chance for a sneak attack. "Yes, we could take it slowly and drain him," Noah said to Elder Julia with a mental message sent through his inscribed notebook. "But we can also try to take him out in one assault." A cold light shone in Elder Julia''s eyes when she heard those words. If that idea came from any other cultivator in the liquid stage, she would ignore it. Yet, she became interested since it came from Noah. "Speak," Elder Julia said, but Noah suddenly waned her about the arrival of the arrows. The two of them then performed evasive maneuvers to dodge the incoming attacks while keeping their attention on the environment. Iron Feathers couldn''t take the initiative in the battle. As much as he hated to admit it, Noah was strong, and his abilities could threaten him. Fighting when outnumbered was tricky, mostly since both his opponents were dangerous existences. Iron Feathers could only wait for the two of them to attack or the arrows to make a move. When the blue arrows forced the two cultivators of the Hive to move, Iron Feathers controlled his three four-winged birds to shoot toward his opponents. Noah couldn''t help but curse in his mind when he sensed that two birds were coming in his direction. He could understand that Iron Feathers was mad that he had interrupted his battle, but he didn''t expect him to be so set on killing him. What was worse was that those massive birds were stronger than the previous ones. They were faster and bigger, but their bodies appeared thinner and less stable. Noah knew that he didn''t have time to activate the spells required by the second form of his martial art, and his saber-shaped runes were still absorbing primary energy. However, he had something powerful that he could put to use immediately without any preparation. Noah roared and slashed with his weapons. The world lost its light for an instant as his flames, and black lines clashed with the four-winged birds coming toward him. Metal shards fell off their bodies as the attack swept them, but they continued their charge through the sea of flames and corrosive smoke nonetheless. Theirs was a suicidal charge aimed only to kill their target. Noah felt an immense amount of danger coming from those constructs. Black smoke started to come out from his body, and his figure became blurry as he activated the Merging spell. Nevertheless, he didn''t run away from the birds. Instead, he charged directly at them. The saber-shaped runes formed a conical cocoon to increase his piercing ability, and he synchronized the slash of his weapons so that they would release the black lines when they collided with the birds. The fact that his martial arts had ranged effects didn''t mean that they were meant for long-distance battles. Noah''s specialty was still the melee combat, and his forms were more potent when executed directly on his opponents. A silent clash happened mid-air. Both Noah and the birds continued to fly in their respective directions even after they met, but the effects of the impact revealed themselves soon. The saber-shaped runes in front of Noah fell apart, and deep cuts appeared on his shoulders even if the scaled armor was almost complete. However, the birds had it worse since a long cut severed their bodies in half. Noah didn''t stop flying forward and shouted a series of mental messages directed at Elder Julia. "Can you hide my presence?" Elder Julia had dealt with her four-winged bird by then and felt relieved to hear that Noah was fine. Still, his question caught her by surprise. "It would only last for a few breaths," Elder Julia said after a short moment. Her individuality could work as a cover for certain existences, but Noah''s aura was too violent for her to hide it. Also, they were against a cultivator in the solid stage. There was a limit to how much she could do in that situation. "I''m coming toward you," Noah said when he heard her answer. "Pressure him when I make my move." The four-winged birds behind Noah exploded in a storm of metallic shards when their bodies fell apart. Yet, he had never stopped flying forward, so he had escaped their area of destruction before it even started. Noah reached Elder Julia instantly, and a strong gale came out of her body to fend off the corrosive smoke that he was releasing. The gale carried subtle effects too. It struggled to seep through the black cloud forming around Noah, but it hid his aura when it reached his body. Then, black flames appeared in multiple spots around Iron Feathers, and black lines came out of it. The cultivator of the Empire controlled the two-winged birds around him to fend off the attacks and the black smoke that they released in their explosion, but Elder Julia stepped in at that moment. A torrent of wind slashes swept Iron Feathers, and Elder Julia used all her tricks to force her opponent into a defensive stance. Some of her attacks would be invisible or hide under other spells to unleash their power when they were close enough to inflict some damage. Noah''s offensive didn''t stop either, and the black cloud around Iron Feathers grew as his attacks kept on exploding against his defenses. Nevertheless, the blue arrows soon appeared and forced the offensive of the cultivators of the Hive to a stop. Also, Iron Feathers followed the arrival of the arrows with a torrent of metal feathers that shot toward the cloud created by Noah. Elder Julia performed an evasive maneuver, but nothing came out of the black cloud next to her. The arrows and feathers pierced it without meeting any resistance, and their passage dispersed the smoke, which revealed no one inside it. Chapter 947: 947. Flaw Iron Feathers felt confused when he saw that Noah wasn''t inside the black cloud. However, that feeling only lasted for an instant since a dangerous sensation rose from the back of his mind and forced him to focus. Iron Feathers turned as he followed the origin of that sensation and saw Noah charging at him. He wasn''t using the Demonic Form because Elder Julia''s spell wouldn''t have been able to hide him otherwise, and he had even dispersed his other spells. The Demonic Sword laid on his shoulder, and he kept his arms spread as he neared the cultivator of the Empire. Elder Julia''s protection had lasted enough to get Noah close to the expert, but there were still fifty meters left to cross to reach him. Noah could cross that distance in less than an instant, but Iron Feathers had all the time to control his defenses too. The few feathers remaining around his body and the two-winged birds around him pointed at Noah as they prepared themselves to attack. However, Noah had already attacked. The walls of his mental sphere had started to tremble since he saw Iron Feathers turning, and an ethereal saber formed in front of him. The Mental Saber spell to shoot toward his opponent while he was still busy controlling his metal weapons. As a mental attack, the ethereal saber was extremely fast. Also, Noah was close to Iron Feathers already, so his attack landed on his head even before he could understand what threat was coming for him. Iron Feathers lost control of his spells when the saber hit his sea of consciousness. His vision went dark, and his consciousness retracted inside his sphere to stop the tremors that swept its walls. Generally speaking, Noah''s mental attack would often incapacitate his opponents for a few seconds, enough for him to complete the preparations for the second form of his martial art. Still, Iron Feathers was an old monster in the solid stage with a mental sphere that matched his dantian in terms of power. His mind carried the experience accumulated through centuries of cultivation and battles. The Mental Saber spell incapacitated him only for a fraction of an instant before reopening his eyes and using all his concentration to reclaim control over his metal weapons. Yet, Noah had reached him at that point. Noah looked at Iron Feathers'' bloodshot eyes and couldn''t help but feel some respect for that existence. He could see how the cultivator of the Empire didn''t stop the tremors in his mind and was forcing himself to regain control of his mental faculties in a desperate attempt to survive. Iron Feathers was mighty and worthy of the respect due to a cultivator who had reached the last stage of the fifth rank. Still, Noah had to kill him to tilt the scales of the war on the invaders'' favor and to seize his dantian. The metallic feathers and birds shot toward Noah as he swung his arms toward his opponent. Iron Feathers wasn''t ready to give up just yet. After all, he only needed to kill Noah before he could touch him. A metallic bird aimed for Noah''s right shoulder, but he didn''t do anything to stop it. A feather went for his left eye, and Noah tilted his head to dodge it. Another bird tried to target his heart, but the Demonic Sword shot forward to slow down its assault. A third bird tried to attack from his left side now that the living weapon was gone, but Noah''s hand shot to grab the metallic pupped by its neck. Then, Noah''s right hand touched Iron Feathers'' low-waist. Iron Feathers saw everything happening in slow motion. Noah blocked only the attacks that could threaten his life and let the others stab his body. His expression didn''t change either. His reptilian eyes expressed only determination and didn''t show any pain or struggle. Then, Iron Feathers saw Noah''s right arm reaching for his low-waist. Noah had arched his fingers during the attack, and his opponent couldn''t help but think of his hand as the claw of a magical beast. Noah''s pointy black nails helped in conveying that image too. Iron Feathers hoped that his skin and muscles could resist for even an instant so that he could use his spells to stop the assailant. After all, his body was in the sixth rank of the lower tier. There was a chance that it could give him an instant. However, he understood that all his hopes were nothing more than dreams when the tip of Noah''s nails touched his skin. Noah didn''t feel any resistance at all as he trusted his arm forward. His hand pierced Iron Feathers'' low-waist and came out from his back, holding a mixture of blood, muscles, and organs. There was even a shining spherical organ in Noah''s palm, which made him retreat his arm quickly to secure it. Iron Feathers'' eyes had widened when he lost his connection with his dantian. He glanced at the arm stabbed in his waist before moving his gaze toward Noah, who was observing him. Noah''s vertical pupils trembled. It seemed that he was ready to launch another Mental Saber spell. Yet, no attack formed in front of him. Noah had just prepared the attack in case the cultivator of the Empire tried to kill himself before he managed to eat the dantian. After all, Noah didn''t know the limits of the Second Life formation. The centers of power were part of an entity, especially when it came to existences in the fifth rank. They would express their individuality and be connected forever with them. There was the chance that the light of Second Life formation would envelop Iron Feathers'' severed dantian even if it were outside his body. Noah couldn''t risk that. He had to expose Elder Julia''s hiding abilities and suffer a few injuries to reach that result. So, Noah prepared a Mental Saber spell in case Iron Feathers tried to use his mental energy to control the metallic weapons around him. Noah retracted his arm and threw the contents of his palm in his mouth before grabbing the expert again. His eyes never left Iron Feathers during the process, but he could see how the cultivator of the Empire lost every hope when his dantian entered Noah''s mouth. A dense amount of energy filled Noah''s body. His cells destroyed Iron Feathers'' solid "Breath" and turned it into primary energy that nourished all his tissues. His wounds stopped bleeding and started to heal under the influence of that intense wave of energy, but Noah''s focus was on the "Breath" of the earth element still inside his body. After every part of Iron Feathers'' "Breath" became primary energy, Noah felt confident that he had severed any connection the expert had with the second life formation and decided to release him. Iron Feathers fell, and red light surrounded him when he crashed on the ground. Noah didn''t feel anything happening inside him. His theory appeared to be on point. He had successfully exploited a flaw of the Second Life formation. Chapter 948: 948. Sweep The metal birds and feathers fell apart and turned into energy that dispersed in the environment when Iron Feathers died. Noah checked his body for a while, but he saw no changes in the primary energy nourishing his tissues. The Second Life formation had replaced Iron Feathers'' corpse with the body of a magical beast, but the contents of his dantian had remained inside Noah. ''That was dangerous,'' Noah thought as he bathed himself in the surge of energy that was filling every inch of his body. The amount of power contained inside the dantian of a solid stage cultivator in the fifth rank was immense, and it forced his injuries to heal. It also pushed his body deeper into the upper tier, even if the growth was even lower than he expected. Noah felt surprised for a second, but he soon found the cause behind that event. The tissues of his heart devoured all the primary energy that converged there. It seemed that his organ had become a bottomless pit capable of absorbing all the nourishment that it could find. ''Four centers of power,'' Noah thought as he heaved a helpless sigh. ''I had to predict something like this. Having faith in my body is one thing, but I can''t expect it to evolve into a higher form on its own miraculously.'' The addition of his burning heart had increased the requirements of his body, which was something that Noah had overlooked until then. The reason for that was that his center of power was slowly harmonizing with the new organ. It was pushing it toward a different type of existence. Noah could already predict that his body would require even more nutrients in the future, but he accepted it. After all, he was already lucky that his hunger didn''t increase because of that. ''I should be able to face a solid stage cultivator head-on if I use Snore,'' Noah evaluated as he waited for his body to recover. He had suffered multiple injuries during the battle against Iron Feathers, and each one of them was quite severe. Only his skin and muscles had suffered though. Noah had been careful and had planned all his moves thoroughly. Even his last charge hadn''t been as reckless as it seemed. First of all, he had used one of the features of Elder Julia''s individuality. Some of the higher-ups of the other organizations knew that she could hide her attacks well, but most of them weren''t aware that she could use that ability on cultivators. Of course, that secrecy had vanished since everyone had seen Iron Feathers fall. Still, the outcome made it completely worth it. Then, Noah had prepared himself to face Iron Feathers'' counterattacks. He had dispersed his spells and used only the Mental Saber spell when his cover vanished. In the end, the Demonic Sword and his body had done the rest. It didn''t matter that some metal weapons had injured him or that Iron Feathers had a rank 6 body in the lower tier. As long as Noah could touch a human directly, he would be able to kill them. The battle had shown him that some of his abilities could match the cultivators in the solid stage. His martial arts were superlative. His body was in the upper tier, his dantian was in the liquid stage, and his Demonic Form had reached the middle tier too. With his darkness expressing his individuality, those assets together created attacks that surpassed the limits of the liquid stage. The spells of a cultivator in the solid stage were still more potent for now, but the simple martial art wasn''t the strongest weapon in Noah''s arsenal. When he coupled it with his Demonic Form, its power would match the experts in the last phase of the fifth rank. A dangerous sensation startled Noah awake and forced him to perform an evasive maneuver. A series of blue arrows soon crossed his previous position and disappeared in the distance, but his mind kept sending alert messages. Noah kept on flying in random directions as the central buildings in the districts near the floating platform continued to launch blue arrows toward him. It seemed that the Empire was pissed about the recent event and wanted to make his stay in the battlefield as hard as possible. However, Daniel and Amos'' opponents had died, Icy Stare had escaped, and Iron Feathers had lost his dantian. The Second Life formation had saved them, but the Empire''s side lacked assets that could focus Noah now. The relentless assault of the arrows didn''t lead to anything, and the central buildings soon stopped shooting them. After all, Noah only needed to activate the Merging spell to dodge them, while the Empire had to use many resources to create that attack. With no one there to force Noah in a corner, focusing him ended up wasting resources. "Can you still fight?" Elder Julia said after the assault of the arrows ended. Her question had a deeper meaning since it was evident that he had yet to empty his centers of power. The Elder was asking if he still wanted to help even after he had done enough already. Noah nodded, and the Demonic Sword split into two sabers when it sensed his intentions. He didn''t hope to retrieve more dantians since the cultivators of the Empire would be aware of his intentions now, but he could still help the invaders'' side in its victory. The Hive could then use his actions to request more resources once the Empire decided to give up. He could obtain many benefits since they were connected to the achievements obtained in battle. Noah and Elder Julia began to fly side-by-side to join the fights happening everywhere on the battlefield. They initially respected the cultivators that were testing themselves in one versus one battles, but they soon helped them too since the greater good of the invading forces came first. Red lights started to appear more often as Noah and Elder Julia helped in clearing the battlefield from the presence of rank 5 cultivators of the Empire. The number of powerful assets of the defenders decreased quickly since all the Elders they helped joined them in their sweep. They then moved their attention to the other factions and helped them to end their battles as quickly as possible too. The invaders could finally start to assert their dominance at that point, and both the Council and the Elbas family accepted the help of the Hive even if they were slowly gaining the upper hand already. All the experts in the fifth rank of the Empire eventually retreated or died under the positive trend started by Noah and Elder Julia. The Second Life formation prevented most casualties, but the red light didn''t arrive for some cultivators who died on the battlefield. As for the blue arrows, they became less dangerous once all the assets started to work together. Chapter 949: 949. Exploration The battle had become one-sided as soon as the invading forces gained the smallest advantage. It was enough for them to have one solid stage cultivator in the fifth rank free to help in other fights for the situation to snowball. Noah had helped Elder Julia, they had helped all their allies, and all the assets of the Hive had supported the other factions. The outcome was a complete defeat of the higher-ups of the Empire. The Second Life formation had saved most of them, but some died nonetheless. The weaker assets of the Empire felt forced to retreat at the sight of that event. They knew that stronger cultivators rarely joined battles on a lower level, but the fight was over. Remaining on the battlefield would push the higher-ups of the invaders to intervene to limit the casualties on their side. It wasn''t a matter of honor or fear of future retaliation anymore. The strongest existences of the Empire had lost. The weaker one could only accept that they had no power over that battle anymore. With the retreat of the weaker assets, the invading forces obtained the overwhelming victory they had desired, and they had to thank the Hive for that. Of course, most of the credits for that achievement went to Elder Julia. After all, Noah had been able to pull that sneak attack off only thanks to her individuality. Still, Andrew and Regina felt that they would have reached the same point anyway, so they tried to avoid the topic while staring at their armies. It was all about timing. It was customary for the first significant victory to influence the entirety of the battlefield. The Hive had only happened to succeed before the other factions. Elder Julia didn''t mind that the Council and the Elbas family avoided acknowledging the merits of the Hive. That wasn''t the best moment for negotiations anyway, and there were more pressing matters to handle too. Almost all the cultivators of the invading forces had suffered injuries, but the battle had ended far faster than they expected, which meant that most of them had energy to spare. They could still fight, and the Empire was at its lowest right now. Everything was for the sake of improving their image on the Empire''s mind. An overwhelming victory would lead to favorable terms for its surrender. Reaching as far as the floating structure during their first assault might even force the Empire to give up on some of their heroic assets to avoid extinction. All the higher-ups appeared to agree that pushing a bit forward was the right choice. There didn''t seem to be any threat ahead. The rank 5 cultivators of the Empire would be out of the picture for a while too. The only form of defense in sight was the blue arrows, but they weren''t a problem with so many powerful invaders. The invaders left those that had suffered severe injuries behind and started to advance toward the floating structure. The regions under them appeared uninhabited, with only the human cultivators still busy retreating filling that environment. There weren''t any citizens or commoners. Just empty districts and retreating human assets. That sight worried the invaders since they had seen how the Empire like to act when it was about to lose territories. They advanced carefully, looking for any trace of formations on the ground to see if their opponent planned to blow everything up. However, they didn''t find anything out of the ordinary, except that those districts appeared older when they analyzed them up close. Each one of them had training areas suitable for cultivators in the fifth and fourth rank, but they didn''t feature anything special. There wasn''t any defense in place, and the buildings meant for the human assets lacked the proper density of "Breath" most of the time. There were only a few habitations that could help rank 3 cultivators improve, while most of them were regular training areas that could barely meet the standards of those in the second rank. The domain of the Empire appeared far worse off than the invaders had predicted. The environment started to improve as they neared the floating structure. The districts still lacked defenses, but there were good training areas, at least. They weren''t on the level of the Capital of the Utra nation, but they were good nonetheless. Traces of defensive inscriptions began to appear eventually. They weren''t intricate lines, but they had the potential to express a lot of power. They also seemed to connect every district from that point onward. The heroic cultivators of the invaders could only slow down their exploration at that sight. They didn''t want to trigger any unknown formation, especially since they didn''t know the nature of such inscriptions. They didn''t appear too dangerous according to the experts of the Elbas family''s evaluation, but it was better to be careful in that situation. After all, they were in the open and near the central regions of their opponent. Anything could happen there. The human troops of the Empire were still retreating behind them. The heroic assets of the invaders had surpassed them as they explored those regions, and their human assets were chasing after them to inflict more damage. It felt strange that the Empire wasn''t showing any resistance when so many enemies walked on its ground and sky. Yet, the invaders soon considered the possibility that their opponent had nothing else to deploy. Its most potent formations were in the new continent, and both landmasses had the Second Life formation. All its heroic cultivators had escaped, had died, or had been injured by the after-effects of the formation. The blue arrows were threatening only when coupled with warriors on the battlefield. The floating structure radiated an eerie aura, but it didn''t seem that its features could spread on the regions nearby. That left the invaders with many training areas in a desolate environment with a series of mysterious but straightforward inscriptions. The Empire revealed the ability of those inscriptions soon though. As the invaders were about to enter the region with the floating structure, the lines in the districts lit up. It was needless to say that the attackers retreated immediately at that sight. A series of human figures flew down from the floating structure and reached for a series of districts. There were inscribed chains on their necks, and each one of them was a heroic cultivator. There were even a few of them in the fifth rank! Noah and the others had imagined that the Empire had restrained itself from using all the slaves in the first phases of the war, but they didn''t expect it to have such powerful existences. Nevertheless, the bodies of the slaves melted down when they landed on the central buildings of the districts, and a blue light started to spread from them alongside the lines on the ground. In a matter of seconds, blue light filled the entirety of the central regions of the Empire. Chapter 950: 950. Dome The blue light expanded, only to stop at the beginning of the inscriptions on the ground. The heroic assets of the three invading forces had already escaped from the central regions of the Empire and were staring at the sudden event with curious expressions. As the experts of the Elbas family had predicted, that formation didn''t have offensive properties. It was different from the blue pillars in the new continent. That blue light was denser, and it didn''t seem able to harm the attackers even when they tried to touch it. The blue light worked as a barrier, but it didn''t have only a simple protective layer. It was a large dome that covered the entirety of the central regions and the floating structure and its insides. It was as if a solid substance had enveloped that area of the world. The retreating troops of the Empire eventually reached that area and crossed the blue dome without any problem. Yet, the human cultivators of the invading forces slammed into that protection. The cultivators of the Empire appeared able to move freely inside that blue world. The dome didn''t even block the passage of "Breath", which meant that those regions wouldn''t be affected by the formation. The invaders weren''t interested in the nature of that defensive method. After all, the formation was relatively simple, and Andrew Elbas even described some of the features that he could understand with an inspection of his consciousness. The problem was in its power. The blue light radiated an aura that seemed to surpass the world of the heroic cultivators and stepped inside the divine ranks, even if only by a little. ''A quasi-rank 7 barrier,'' Noah thought as he suppressed a curse from escaping his mouth. He didn''t expect the Empire to have something like that, and he could predict how troublesome it would be in their strategy. Andrew Elbas and the other experts of the Royal family started to launch attacks and use inscribed items to study the blue dome. The more tests they performed, the uglier their expressions became. The mood of the invaders dropped when they saw the changes in the faces of the Royals. The other organizations wouldn''t have any chance against that defensive method if they could worry even the most advanced force in the inscription field. After a series of long and extensive tests, Andrew Elbas made a summary of the properties of the dome. "This light has no offensive features, but it''s different from most barriers. Its insides are filled with light too. Every part of the dome has the same sturdiness as the external layer." Andrew''s last words confirmed the fears of his allies. The fact that even the insides of the dome were part of the defenses made the formation far more challenging to handle. It meant that they would have to slowly dig through the light if they wanted to reach the regions inside it. However, the dome radiated a quasi-rank 7 aura. Even making a crack on its external layer would require the help of the powerhouses. Digging through it in a short period would require an actual god. "The Empire has triggered the formation with the lives of powerful cultivators too," Andrew Elbas continued. "This makes it far harder to find a countermeasure. Unorthodox techniques usually have other unorthodox techniques as a weakness. We would need to sacrifice lives to create something capable of destroying this blue light." At those words, the mood of the invaders plummeted. They had enough assets to match those sacrificed by the Empire during the activation of the formation, but none of them would be willing to give their life for the task. "What about King Elbas?" Elder Regina asked, without even minding if the Royals find her words disrespectful. She couldn''t see any way out of that situation. The citizens of the Empire could walk freely inside the blue substance, while all the other cultivators couldn''t even scratch it with their strongest attack. Only the maximum expert in the inscription field with a rank 6 cultivation level could find a solution. There was no one else inside the entirety of those Mortal Lands with enough knowledge and power to defeat a defense that neared the divine ranks. Andrew shook his head at her question and replied after heaving a sigh. "I''m afraid the Patriarch can''t cancel this formation unless he spends enough time and resources for the task. Even the testing phase would require sacrifices." Elder Regina went silent after Andrew''s explanation. No force would be willing to give away their precious heroic assets, and they didn''t even have that kind of power over them. It was one thing for them to die in battle. Yet, giving their lives for experiments that would only lead to the destruction of a formation was a waste. The Empire was cornered, and it had isolated itself in a small area of the old continent. It was still a threat since it had managed to salvage most of its powerful assets, but it had decided to seclude itself to save its domain. Its surrender would have led to a similar outcome. The only problem was that the invaders had lost their advantage over their enemy. Their impossibility to breach that formation made the Empire impossible to bully into submission. It could even decide not to have any negotiation at all. Of course, that would lead it to a slow but constant weakening since it had isolated itself to such a small area. The invaders didn''t know how many resources the Empire had accumulated through the years, but they were sure that it wouldn''t keep the formation up to see its power declining incessantly. After all, the Royals were confident that the formation would require resources every once in a while. Protections with power in the divine ranks had to have a steep cost when it came to the energy necessary to function. "What do we do now?" Elder Julia asked, even if she knew the answer to that already. She felt annoyed that the blue dome would stop the Hive from seizing the most significant share of the rewards, but she still wanted to hear the opinion of her allies. "I think it''s time to start negotiating the Empire''s surrender," Andrew Elbas said while wearing an ugly expression. That event was supposed to be a good thing. Still, he couldn''t help but think how hard the Empire would make it for them since it owned such an excellent defensive method. Elder Julia, Andrew, and Elder Regina stepped forward and sent a few mental messages in the blue light. A passage soon opened in the dome, and the three leaders stepped forward, uncaring that the light solidified behind their back as they moved toward the floating structure. The war had come to an end, but there was anxiety on the invaders'' side. The Empire had lost a lot and was bound to lose more. Yet, it had managed to play its enemies when their victory was so close. Now they could only hope that the fear of a prolonged siege would force the Empire to give in to their requests. Chapter 951: 951. Fire Noah and the others regrouped with the injured assets to summarize the situation. The sudden appearance of the blue dome had startled the heroic cultivators that had remained behind, but its properties surprised them even more. The dome had cut off the invaders from the core regions of the Empire, taking away any advantage that the Hive had gained by exposing the properties of Elder Julia''s individuality. It was up to the leaders of the armies now to seal a deal that could benefit their organizations. As for the other assets, they settled in the regions on the other side of the defensive walls. After all, the districts already featured many habitations that they could use. There was no point in building a poor encampment with so many buildings available. Still, they decided to take control of the districts near the defensive walls to avoid affecting the negotiations. That matter was quite tricky due to the outcome of the war. The invaders had won, but the Empire had put them in a position where they couldn''t advance any further. Noah could guess that Elder Julia and the other leaders would have a hard time negotiating the terms of the Empire''s surrender. Yet, there was a high chance that the powerhouses would settle everything privately, so the solid stage cultivators there would act only as messengers. The wounded cultivators started to treat their injuries while they waited to hear the results of the negotiations. Others even organized events to celebrate the end of the war and discuss their achievements in battle. After the leaders returned from the blue dome, the atmosphere among the three factions would become tense again. The war had only delayed the various investigations that concerned the ambush at the exit of the Odrea nation, but no one had forgotten about it. Once the Empire went out of the political scene, the Hive, the Council, and the Elbas family would have to face the issues accumulated during their period as allies. There was bound to be a period of peace after the end of the war, but that truce would be frail, ready to fall apart at the first sign of conflict. Noah didn''t care about the incoming political struggles. The fact that the Chasing Demon sect and the Elbas family seemed to have a secret alliance bothered him from time to time. Yet, he couldn''t do anything to affect the situation, mainly if his power remained in that state. He had realized something on the battlefield. His battle prowess was already stepping outside the limits of the liquid stage, even when he didn''t use the most potent weapon in his arsenal. The power that he was capable of expressing due to his many assets was unheard of. The fact that he was the creator of those weapons and abilities made his achievement even more incredible. Noah had understood that his individuality hid an endless potential. His greater drive was his boundless ambition in the end. It didn''t surprise him that his existence wouldn''t put limits on his abilities. However, there was a lot of work to do to express all his potential. Only his higher energy would require countless experiments to see how far it could go. As for the school that fused martial arts and spells, Noah was working on it while he waited for the return of the leaders. He didn''t feel like celebrating. In his opinion, he had met a barrier that he couldn''t piece, and he had only his power to blame. The more he climbed the ranks of the cultivation journey, the more he was forced to face monsters that had lived for centuries and millennia more than him. The simple exploration of the Empire had made him encounter divine items and the will of a god! ''I wonder if it will be the same in the Immortal Lands.'' Noah thought as he tried to create a martial art that could fit the Merging spell. He had been forced to rely on the Hive a lot during his journey through the heroic ranks. That was mostly about resources and studies, but he had benefited from carrying its banner too. The other organizations couldn''t target him openly since there was such a powerful force backing him. That had given him time to grow and become the threatening existence that he was now. However, he didn''t like that situation. It wasn''t about the Hive. He felt grateful for all its help, and he had friends among its ranks. Still, the limits imposed by the political system continued to bother him. ''I''m thinking about this again because I''m close to ignore these restrictions,'' Noah thought, suppressing the topic in the back of his mind. It wasn''t his first time thinking about that. After all, he was still a lone cultivator in his mind. He had never been blinded by loyalty or faith. He felt a sense of belonging to the Hive, but he wouldn''t die to protect it. Nevertheless, he knew that the strongest existences in the Hive had a similar mindset. The aim of every ambitious cultivator was the higher plane. Chasing Demon and the others like Noah wouldn''t sacrifice their organization for that purpose nor sacrifice themselves for its sake. ''Maybe that''s why we couldn''t rout the Empire,'' Noah concluded before a sudden dangerous sensation hit his mind. That feeling startled Noah, mostly since it disappeared after a few instants, replaced only by a tense atmosphere that weighed on his mind. Noah interrupted his experiments and came out of the training area that he had taken after the invading army settled in the various districts. His consciousness expanded to analyze the site, but he didn''t find anything out of the ordinary. Even the other cultivators didn''t notice anything and continued with their celebrations or recovery. He seemed the only one to have sensed that sudden event. Noah had learnt to trust his awareness over the decades. His survival instinct was something unique to his peculiar existence. Even the other hybrids couldn''t match that ability since their minds were still in the middle of becoming used to their mental instabilities. The tension didn''t go away as time passed. It remained there and grew in intensity with each passing second. It was as if a catastrophe was about to happen, but Noah couldn''t pinpoint its cause no matter how he looked. The other higher-ups soon noticed his abnormal behavior. Their expressions became severe at that sight. After all, they knew that Noah didn''t act causally or without any reason. They reached him in the sky and started to imitate the behavior of his consciousness. Their analysis of the environment though gave the same results. They couldn''t find anything out of the ordinary. A voice suddenly resounded in the minds of the heroic cultivators. It belonged to their respective leaders and announced the end of the negotiations. Yet, as the leaders were about to explain their deal, flames expanded to cover the entire area. Chapter 952: 952. Flower Dodging the flames was impossible. The fire had spread so quickly that Noah didn''t even have time to activate one of his spells before it swept him and his allies. The two beings connected to him reacted due to their instincts. The Demonic Sword and Snore argued a lot, but they bypassed Noah''s thoughts and followed his survival instincts as soon as the danger in his mind reached its peak. The Demonic Sword hid inside his robe, and a dense black membrane appeared over his body as the flames enveloped all the regions inside the defensive walls of the Empire. They even crashed on the blue dome, but they didn''t manage to do any damage to that structure. However, the various districts fell apart in less than an instant. They turned into ashes as soon as the flames touched them, and even their remains vanished. Any form of vegetation on the ground burned, and the terrain itself took fire. What had once been the home of the strongest organization in those Mortal Lands became nothing more than a black land filled with cracks and burning boulders. The scene became a spectacle of red shades with the occasional blue light of the dome managing to cross the sea of flames and shine into the world. The red sea remained in place for a while. Then, it retracted and condensed in the form of a man that gazed at his destruction with a satisfied smile. His expression became slightly annoyed when he saw that the blue dome didn''t suffer any damage, but his smile widened when he looked at the invading forces. There were only a few cultivators still standing in the air. Elder Regina and a few rank 5 cultivators stood behind a massive golden door that had managed to absorb most of the power of the flames. Still, their bodies had countless burns, and some of them showed charred bones too. The activation of the golden door wasn''t intentional. That protection was an item that the Council had given to Elder Regina to preserve her life. It was an inscribed shield that would activate on its own if she was to face a deadly attack. The Elders near her had managed to use the protection provided by the golden door to save their lives. Yet, the human cultivators and those in the fourth rank weren''t as lucky. Even their ashes had disappeared from the area. On the other hand, Andrew Elbas had reacted in time. A giant made of ice had surrounded all the assets of the Royal family and had prevented them from suffering any injury. Still, Elder Regina felt that his timing had been off. The giant had appeared even before the arrival of the flames, and Andrew didn''t have the thinking speed necessary to perform that action in time. The giant wasn''t an automatic defense. Elder Regina could be sure of that because she had felt a surge of power coming from Andrew as soon as the first flame appeared. That was her issue in the matter. If her senses didn''t deceive her, she felt sure that Andrew Elbas had activated his defensive item before the flames started to spread! Also, the ice giant had been able to block all the flames, which made her even more suspicious. After all, her item had been able to save her life, but it was a generic shield meant for every situation. In Andrew''s case, instead, the ice giant appeared meant to weaken attacks of the fire element. The leader of the Royal''s army had a water aptitude. Still, the fact that he owned such a powerful item capable of countering the fire element sounded too coincidental. As for the assets of the Hive, only Daniel, Elder Julia, and some other Elders were still in the sky. Noah, Elder Austin, Amos, and most of the weaker cultivators were nowhere to be seen. Those still flying were full of injuries, and only Daniel seemed somewhat better off. He had activated the divine emblem at the last second, and its light had protected those around him. However, he didn''t manage to recharge the item entirely in those years, which made it capable of expressing only a power similar to the sixth rank. "Ravaging Demon!" Elder Regina shouted toward the cultivator that had launched the flames. "How dare you attack us after everything the Council has done for you!" Suffocating pressure followed her words. Ravaging Demon unleashed the entirety of his aura and showed to the world that he was a complete rank 6 cultivator! The invaders still in the sky could finally understand how a single cultivator had managed to unleash such a destructive attack. In their minds, the powerhouses were able to shatter entire regions with a wave of their hands. "I''ve requested two things when I sealed the deal with the Council," Ravaging Demon announced. "I wanted part of Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance and the freedom to act as I wished. Regina, I''ve betrayed my brothers and sisters. You had to expect this." Elder Regina spat a mouthful of blood and began to cough after those words. Her condition was far worse than her companions since she had been the first to face the flames that had surpassed the golden door. She didn''t give voice to any curse though. She only tilted her head to stare at Andrew Elbas, who had a worried expression on his face. "You can drop the act," Elder Regina said as blood kept on flowing from her mouth. Her complexion paled after that effort, and she lost her foothold for a second as her consciousness wavered. Yet, one of the Elders behind her grabbed her and helped to stabilize her condition. "I''m not here to mess with the Council today," Ravaging Demon said as he moved his gaze toward a spot where the defensive walls had crumbled. "I just want to retrieve what is rightfully mine." Elder Julia and the other Elders of the Hive trembled when the Demon''s gaze swept them to land in a spot nearby. They understood who his target was at that point, and gloom appeared on their expression when they realized that they had no power over that situation. Noah had risen in the sky before the other cultivators and had been farther away from them when the flames spread. The defensive walls had crumbled over him when the fire reached that spot and Ravaging Demon''s focus was on those burning debris. As higher-ups of the Hive, the Elders knew that Noah had retrieved Divine Demon''s inheritance, and Ravaging Demon''s words made sense when they considered that event. The new powerhouse of those Mortal Lands wanted to obtain the legacy of his Master. Ravaging Demon stretched his hand, and his mental energy went toward the burning debris. It was about to seep through them when his connection with his consciousness wavered, which dispersed those condensed mental waves. "Who dar-," Ravaging Demon''s started to curse, but his body stopped moving all of a sudden, and a white flower started to grow on his stretched hand. Chapter 953: 953. Reunion Time stopped for everyone in the area, and even the flames still lingering on the ground froze. Only the flower on Ravaging Demon''s hand kept on growing. Ice started to spread from the flower. It covered Ravaging Demon''s hand and reached for the rest of his arm. Yet, when it was about to freeze his shoulder, the powerhouse tightened his fist and broke the ice. Ravaging Demon didn''t show any annoyance. Instead, he appeared in a daze as memories from more than a thousand years ago resurfaced inside his mind. "I thought you were dead," Ravaging Demon said without even spreading his consciousness to analyze his surroundings. "No need to hide. I know that you are protecting the boy." Two figures appeared from behind the crumbled defensive walls at his words, and time started flowing again after they stopped in front of the debris that had submerged Noah. The Elders of the Hive heaved a sigh of relief when they saw the two Demons arriving in their aid, and Elder Julia couldn''t help but nod when she saw that Flying Demon had reached the solid stage. There were now three rank 5 cultivators in the solid stage in the Hive, and two of them were existences that had been trained by a god! The forces of the Council and Elbas family showed surprised expression when the two Demons arrived. The Royals were mainly amazed that the Hive had managed to hide such powerful assets for so long. On the other hand, there were a few Elders that knew the identity of the two powerful cultivators and finding out that they had survived the destruction of the Demon sects surprised them to no end. The fact that they had stopped Ravaging Demon from seizing Noah made the scene even more nostalgic. One side featured Divine Demon''s faction, while the other had the reason for the destruction of the Demon sects. It was as if history was repeating itself. "One thousand years spent with a divine inheritance, and you have managed to reach the sixth rank only now," Dreaming Demon said while wearing an indifferent expression. "Pathetic." "Rufus has run away and hid while you bathed in riches," Flying Demon said while wearing the same expression of his lover. "It seems that Master made a mistake. You were never meant for greatness." Ravaging Demon''s smile reappeared after he heard the two Demons, and he started to laugh loudly right in front of the tense invaders. The appearance of two solid stage cultivators didn''t bother him in the slightest. After all, he was a powerhouse now. "I know what you are trying to do," Ravaging Demon said as he rotated his hand, and a small flame appeared on his palm. "You think that Chasing Demon will come here in time to save the boy if you give your life to block the next attack. You are delusional. This is already my second flame." The fire in Ravaging Demon''s palm shone brightly and seemed to contain more power than his previous attack. Elder Regina could immediately understand that her golden door wouldn''t save her life if those flames were to reach her. "Destruction that generates destruction," Dreaming Demon said. "You haven''t changed at all. I can''t say otherwise, but my path has never been so hopeless." "Also, you have misunderstood one thing," Flying Demon said as soon as his lover finished her line. "There is no chance that Divine Demon''s heir would let others handle his battles." As soon as the Demon finished speaking, Ravaging Demon sensed an intense surge of energy coming from the ruins under his old companions. . . . Turning time back a little, right after the sea of flames destroyed most of the Empire''s domain. Noah found himself under a pile of debris when he regained consciousness. A sharp pain filled the entirety of his body, but his mind was fine, so he focused on understanding his state. His dantian and burning heart were ok, but a curse tried to escape his mouth when he saw the state of his body. Only half of his torso had remained intact. It seemed that the flames had managed to touch him before Snore intervened to protect him. The left side of his body was gone or heavily injured, and there were patches of scorched skin everywhere. There was no trace of his left arm, and only half of his left leg had remained. Also, the left part of his face was a mess, and his left eye was gone. Noah understood that only an existence that was above the fifth rank could hurt him so badly and without leaving him any chance to react. Guessing that the culprit was Ravaging Demon happened quickly too since he could feel his individuality on his wounds. ''He held back,'' Noah concluded in his mind. Even with Snore''s help, he was no match for a powerhouse. The fact that he was still alive meant that Ravaging Demon wanted to capture him alive. ''The Divine Deduction technique,'' Noah found the answer to his doubts once again. Divine Demon''s technique was the only asset in his possession that could force the powerhouse to keep him alive. The arrival of Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon caused tremors in the environment that Noah didn''t fail to notice. He could sense how Flying Demon had advanced after inheriting Shandal''s individuality, but he knew that they wouldn''t be enough to take him out of that situation. ''Where is the damned ring,'' Noah thought as he struggled among the debris to find the black space-ring. He used to wear it on his left hand, so it had to be somewhere near him. A black shadow moved among the debris and appeared in front of him at that point. Noah saw the Demonic Form releasing a low grow as it pushed his space-ring toward him with its tip. It seemed that the weapon had looked for the storage device while he was unconscious. There were a few cracks on the sword, but it was overall fine. The fact that Snore and the Demonic Sword had put aside their divergences had given Noah a chance to join the battle against Ravaging Demon. After all, he still had Divine Demon''s rank 5 drugs inside the ring, and it also had multiple pills created by Daniel during his stay in the other Mortal Lands. The higher energy in his heart was fixing Snore''s body too. Noah was far away from his peak, but he didn''t have a choice in that situation. He had to fight. . . . Dense black smoke seeped out from the debris under the two Demons, and a draconic roar echoed through those regions. Even the humans on the scene could sense the intense anger contained inside that cry. The smoke became even denser, and scales began to take form as Snore solidified its body. A pair of feathered wings appeared only to flap and push the Blood Companion upward. Its reptilian head then came out of the debris, carrying a badly wounded Noah, who was sitting right in the middle of its horns. Chapter 954: 954. Sparks Everyone on the scene could see how bad Noah''s situation was. Half of his face was a mess of charred skin and fuming patches. The left side of his torso was non-existent, and burns filled the rest of his body. However, his figure radiated a surge of energy so intense that it was even affecting the air around him. The sky twisted wherever he passed, and small cracks appeared behind him as he rose while sitting on Snore''s head. Divine Demon''s rank 5 drug was the cause of that strange phenomenon. It forced the regenerative properties of Noah''s body to surpass their limits for a brief period. Still, he had to add many nutrients to make it work properly on his hybrid body. Noah had emptied his stash of Daniel''s pills and pieces of powerful magical beasts while he was under the debris. The immense energy they carried started to heal his body right away when coupled with the rank 5 drug and his innately high recovery speed. New tissues would grow from his burns as Snore rose in the air to reach the two Demons. New skin appeared on the burned patches all around his body, and muscles formed on the missing part of his torso. The process wasn''t by no means immediate. Even all those nutrients couldn''t fix Noah''s body in time for his battle against Ravaging Demon. However, they helped in hastening Noah''s recovery. By the time he arrived next to the Demons, there were already short bones stretching from his torso and left leg. "You know," Flying Demon started to speak as he analyzed the massive snake coiling around the three of them. "I thought you were into dragons, not snakes." "Can you fight?" Dreaming Demon asked, ignoring her lover, who kept his gaze on the Blood Companion enveloping them in a protective stance. "I don''t think I have a choice," Noah said with a voice mixed with growls. "Do you have the divine item?" Dreaming Demon snorted and showed a bottle containing a pink liquid. The smelly fluid filled only three-quarters of the container, and the Demon revealed the reason for that with her next phrase. "How do you think we stopped him before?" "Why does it have wings?" Flying Demon continued to ask about the Blood Companion, uncaring that Ravaging Demon showed a powerful flame only at a few hundred meters from them. "I like the horns. The claws are fine too. They add a nice aura to this creature." Noah glanced at Flying Demon before turning to speak toward Dreaming Demon. "Is this an after-effect of the new individuality?" "No," Dreaming Demon said as she heaved a helpless sigh. Yet, she couldn''t stop a smile from appearing on her face when she looked at her lover. "He is just happy that he is on my stage now." The trio conversed as if there wasn''t a powerhouse threatening to unleash another sea of flames right next to them. Of course, they were buying as much time as they could so that Chasing Demon could come in their help. Still, Ravaging Demon was letting them act as they pleased since he had already done his math. He had time to launch another attack. Chasing Demon was probably already on his way to those lands, but he wouldn''t be able to stop the next flame even if he flew at full speed. Ravaging Demon could take a few seconds to study the heir of his Master and see how he interacted with his old companions. Also, seeing that Noah was still able to talk so casually made him interested in Snore and his body. According to his calculations, the first sea of flame would have left Noah in a nigh-dead state. Ravaging Demon had planned to burn most of his body and dantian with that attack and save only his mental sphere since it contained the Divine Deduction technique. However, Noah had come out from the debris on his own, and half of his body was almost intact. Also, the various nutrients that he had used were healing him quickly. Ravaging Demon could even see his tissues growing with his bare eyes. "You aren''t bad at all," Ravaging Demon said while the trio kept bickering. Noah and the two Demons became silent when they heard those words and started to use mental messages to communicate. They had always known that wasting time wouldn''t work against such a canny existence, but it didn''t hurt to try their chances. Still, now they had to prepare an actual battle tactic, and the fact that they were against a cultivator in the sixth rank didn''t leave them many approaches available. "Can we defeat him?" Noah asked through a mental message directed to both Demons. "We can only try," Dreaming Demon answered using the same method. "I can weaken his connection with the spell with the divine item, but that will require all my concentration." "I can hold back the flames for a breath of time," Flying Demon added. "The individuality of a god is incredible, but I can''t do more due to my current power. You will have to exploit that chance on your own." "Not on his own," A fourth cultivator joined their mental conversation at that point. Elder Julia conveyed that message as she neared Noah and the two Demons. She couldn''t leave the three of them when their opponent was a powerhouse. "I''m counting on that breath of time," A fifth voice joined the mental conversation. Elder Regina flew toward the group of the Hive too and prepared her most potent spell as she tried to ignore the Blood Companion. Ravaging Demon had said that he wouldn''t target the Council in that battle, but his words meant nothing to Elder Regina. Nothing would stop him from turning toward his old allies once he had seized Noah, so she had better chances of surviving if she worked together with the Hive. The assets of the Elbas family didn''t move and remained behind the protection of the ice giant. June was among them, and she used all her focus to suppress her worry for Noah. She had understood a bit more about the secret pacts of her organization. She didn''t know about Ravaging Demon''s betrayal, but she had seen how Andrew Elbas had activated his defensive item before the flames even began to spread. However, June was stuck in that situation with the other Royals. It was evident from their expressions that some didn''t know about the arrival of the Demon either. Still, she couldn''t act as she wished there. Andrew would prevent her from leaving even if she wanted to blow her cover. "You can''t defeat me no matter how many ants join you," Ravaging Demon said as he saw the cultivators coming in Noah''s help. "Just go for it then," Noah said with a metal message as he nodded toward Dreaming Demon. "I''ll use something that might go through the flames." As he said that, black clouds accumulated in the sky, and strands of corrosive smoke started to come out of his body. Then, sparks crackled on Snore''s horns. Chapter 955: 955. Ready The corrosive smoke of Noah''s Demonic Form spread over Snore''s body, and the crackling noise of the sparks running through its horns intensified. A scaled armor appeared over his body too, and it filled his missing pieces of flesh with its dangerous gas. The black clouds gathering in the sky didn''t carry Heaven and Earth''s aura, nor had lightning bolts running through their surface. The world had reacted to the appearance of Noah''s sparks since they resembled those used during the Heaven Tribulation. Elder Regina and Elder Julia prepared their attacks too. A series of brown worm-like puppets formed in front of the leader from the Council and countless wind slashes began to rage behind the Elder of the Hive. Dreaming Demon took a sip from her bottle at that point. The divine liquid entered her body and enhanced the power of her sea of consciousness. Her eyes started to exude a pink radiance too as the miraculous item showed its effects. "Are you ready?" Ravaging Demon asked in a mocking tone. He had waited for his opponents to prepare all their attacks because he felt the need to prove that he was worthy of the sixth rank. After all, the Demons'' words were on point. Ravaging Demon didn''t manage to reach the sixth rank on his own even if he had done everything in his power to seize as many benefits as possible. Betraying his Master and the Demon sects wasn''t enough, and even obtaining Divine Elder Tabitha didn''t help his cultivation journey. Instead, Divine Demon''s weakest student had managed to reach the last stage of the heroic ranks on his own, surpassing Ravaging Demon by more than a century. Ravaging Demon took that event as an insult to his individuality. In his mind, he was the only cultivator worthy of being called "Demon". So, he had to prove that he was superior to the cultivators that still followed Divine Demon''s teachings. He had to show to the world that his betrayal was the right choice. Ravaging Demon didn''t wait for an answer at that time. A tremor swept the small flame in his hand before it expanded at high speed in every direction. Noah and the others couldn''t react in time to the spreading of the flames. The speed of a spell in the sixth rank wasn''t something that their eyes and mind could see, especially when they were so close to Ravaging Demon. However, the divine item was enhancing Dreaming Demon''s mind. It made her able to sense the incoming attack and to interfere with it. The air around the rank 5 cultivators trembled for an instant as Dreaming Demon consciousness affected the laws inside it. The same space started to bend to her will and act as she wished. Her mental waves eventually reached the sea of flames coming for them. The destruction contained in the fire was so intense that some of Dreaming Demon''s thoughts burned when they tried to affect their structure. Still, her will eventually seeped inside them and modified their purpose. The sea of flames started to retract as Dreaming Demon''s will replaced Ravaging Demon''s. It was as if the fire had suddenly changed target and worked in favor of the rank 5 cultivators. Yet, Ravaging Demon promptly expanded his consciousness and destroyed Dreaming Demon''s will, which made him take control of his flames once again. That battle of wills had lasted for a little more than an instant, but that provided a window where Dreaming Demon''s allies could act. Flying Demon''s individuality surged, and time stopped flowing in the piece of the sky in front of him. Both the sea of flames and Ravaging Demon stopped moving, and dozens of white flowers grew in the environment to spread thick layers of ice. The scene turned into a large sculpture of ice, but Noah and the others knew it wouldn''t last. Flying Demon had been able to stop the powerhouse only because he had exploited the moment when Ravaging Demon focused on his flames. When time stopped flowing for Ravaging Demon, and his flames, Noah, Elder Julia, and Elder Regina unleashed their attacks. The earth puppets and the storm of wind slashes shot forward to crash on the flames frozen in place. The crackling of the sparks running through Snore''s horns intensified and created a sphere made of black lighting right above its head before releasing a dense bolt that had the vague shape of a sword. Black smoke covered the sword-like lighting too, increasing its speed and adding corrosive properties to its form. The three attacks had the power of the solid stage of the fifth rank, and they were even above the average of what cultivators on that level could launch. That matter wasn''t too surprising when it came to the two Elders since they had used their strongest spells, but it was astonishing when considering Noah''s level. Elder Regina wanted to avoid studying the power of the Blood Companion since she was working with the Hive at the moment. Her idea was to remain polite and ignore the battle prowess of the Demon Prince. Yet, she couldn''t help but feel surprised when she saw that Snore was capable of such might. Noah using lightning bolts that resembled a Heaven Tribulation made her even more astonished. The Blood Companion alone appeared to be a remarkable creature. A strange matter made its body, and its physical features belonged to different magical beasts. Elder Regina was sure that Noah had built the creature. Something like that couldn''t exist in nature, mostly since its power was hard to evaluate. Snore radiated the aura of a magical beast in the upper tier of the fifth rank, but any expert would place it far higher in the food chain when looking at it. The three attacks slammed on the sea of flames and began to pierce it to reach Ravaging Demon''s motionless figure. The Demons'' attacks had weakened the power of the fire by a lot, but the three spells still struggled to move through the frozen flames. That was only normal. The powerhouses wouldn''t be so exceptional if a few rank 5 cultivators could defeat them when working together. Even one at the bottom of the sixth rank, like Ravaging Demon, was on a completely different league when it came to sheer power. The worm-like puppets were the first to stop. Elder Regina''s attacks had good piercing properties, but they required time to put them into use. Ravaging Demon would regain his ability to move soon. She couldn''t rely on that skill. The Elder decided to make the puppets explode as soon as they met their first hurdle, and their detonation opened a small path where the lightning bolt and the storm of wind slashes could proceed further. The next one to give up was Elder Julia. Her attacks were frail and struggled to survive inside that scorching sea. The wind slashes couldn''t stay for long in that environment, even with the ice suppressing the intense destruction radiated by the flames. Elder Julia could only condense all her slashes into a small spot to open a path for the fuming lightning bolt. Chapter 956: 956. Mountains Noah''s attack was dense, and it carried the intrinsic piercing properties of the lightning element. It was even a copy of the Heaven Tribulation, which made it one of the strongest kinds of lightning bolts in the world. Also, Snore''s horns had condensed the black sparks to make it more potent. The black smoke radiated by the lightning bolt improved its already high piercing ability, and the spells of the Elders left a path where it could pass without wasting too much energy. It had to clash with the flames multiple times, but it still managed to cross the entirety of the scorching sea to reach the figure at its center. A loud explosion followed the impact between Noah''s attack and Ravaging Demon. The ice that was spreading in the area frozen in time shattered at that point and a large cloud made of corrosive smoke enveloped the powerhouse. The sea of flames dispersed when it freed itself from Flying Demon''s ice. The rank 5 cultivators didn''t know if their offensive had worked, but they felt happy to see that they had survived Ravaging Demon''s second flame. "Did you hit him?" Elder Regina asked, disrupting the silence that had fallen on the area after the flames dispersed. "The attack landed," Noah said with a rough voice that was a mixture of roars and human words, "But I lost the connection with the lightning bolt right after the impact." Elder Regina wanted to ask how a cultivator with a darkness aptitude could create a spell of the lightning element, but she suppressed her curiosity. That wasn''t the right situation to investigate Noah''s power. The group eventually turned toward Dreaming Demon whose sea of consciousness was still under the effects of the pink liquid. The four of them could use their mental waves to investigate the area inside the black cloud too, but they didn''t dare to expose themselves to a rank 6 cultivator. After all, Ravaging Demon had a sea of consciousness in the sixth rank. Weaker cultivators had to be careful when interacting with the mind of such a powerful existence. The powerhouse could have mental attacks or use his superior mental waves to startle those who tried to probe him. Among those on the scene, only Dreaming Demon could investigate his status without risking to suffer an injury. Dreaming Demon''s mental waves had started to reach for the area filled with corrosive smoke even before the four cultivators'' gazes went on her. However, a series of flames sprouted from the black cloud and burned the gas, revealing Ravaging Demon''s figure. The powerhouse was still smiling, but his expression wasn''t as happy as before. Also, the upper part of his robe was in pieces, with only a few ragged strands hanging out of his belt. There was a large hole on his left shoulder, and his arm didn''t fall only thanks to a small strand of skin that kept it attached to his torso. The five cultivators had managed to injure Ravaging Demon, but his wound was nothing serious. It wouldn''t affect his battle prowess. However, the scene that followed the powerhouse''s reappearance ruined the mood of the rank 5 cultivators. Ravaging Demon''s shoulder turned into flames that remained in place for a few seconds before solidifying again in the form of a perfectly healthy shoulder. The Demon now appeared completely fine, with only his ruined robe to indicate that Noah''s attack had hit him. Noah and the others revealed ugly expressions. They could try to attack him again since Dreaming Demon didn''t deplete her divine item during the last offensive. Yet, the result would be the same. They had already used their most potent attacks in the end. The Divine Deduction technique made Noah analyze all his possibilities in less than an instant. He evaluated battle plans of various kinds, and there were even some that included the detonation of his space-ring. Nevertheless, all of them led to the same conclusion. Noah and his four allies would die as soon as Dreaming Demon used all her pink liquid. The Demons and Elders had similar thoughts. They considered and evaluated every battle plan that came to their minds. Still, there was no way out of that situation. The sheer power of a rank 6 cultivator made every trick pointless. The difference in their level was too large. ''I was too slow,'' Noah thought as he accepted that he could die in the following exchanges. ''I might have killed him if I were near the peak of the fifth rank.'' His mind sharpened as he thought that. Noah was ready to die, but he would fight until the end. He would show to that old monster what he had managed to achieve in two hundred years of relentless training. Still, Ravaging Demon didn''t raise his palm like the last time. He didn''t show to the rank 5 cultivators his third flame. Instead, his gaze went on the sky to stare at something that Noah and the others couldn''t even sense. A massive figure covered the sun at that point. The entirety of the Empire''s domain went dark as something enormous cut off the sunlight. Noah and the others raised their heads, but a mountain fell in front of them, causing an earthquake to spread in the regions nearby. Massive cracks appeared on the ground. The falling mountain had avoided all the assets of the invaders that were still on the battlefield, but it hit Ravaging Demon, who didn''t even try to move. Also, it created multiple clouds of dust after its impact with the ground, which blinded the cultivators on the scene. Noah wanted to investigate the cause of that sudden phenomenon, but a familiar aura soon spread in the environment. All the surviving members of the Hive couldn''t help but smile at that point since they knew that their Patriarch had come. Everyone''s gaze went on the sky, and astonishment spread among the various groups. The scene above them was too spectacular for them not to lose themselves in their amazement. There was a massive giant in the sky. It had a humanoid body and facial features that vaguely resembled Chasing Demon. The titan carried a mountain in its right palm, while the other was still stretched toward the ground. Chasing Demon sat on the giant''s shoulder. His gaze went on the surviving cultivators of the Hive for a short second before focusing on the spot where the mountain had hit Ravaging Demon. Ravaging Demon''s laughter echoed through the battlefield at that point, and flames spread from the mountain that had just fallen, turning it into a pile of ashes that dispersed in the wind. His figure became visible again. There were multiple spots where his body was nothing more than a mass of flames, and even a corner of his head lacked its tissues. "You raised them well," Ravaging Demon said as he showed his arrogant smile once again. "They have managed to seize their only chance to survive. They won''t have one the next time." Chasing Demon listened to his words but didn''t answer. Instead, he controlled the titan to launch the second mountain at him. Chapter 957: 957. Gathering Noah and the others retreated when they saw the massive titan throwing the second mountain toward Ravaging Demon. They could finally escape now that Chasing Demon was here. As for who would win that battle, there was no doubt in the assets of the Hive''s minds. Ravaging Demon was only a newly advanced rank 6 cultivators who even a few experts in the fifth rank had managed to hit. Instead, Chasing Demon had lived for more than a century as a powerhouse. The Patriarch of the Hive was even in possession of the divine puppet retrieved in Shandal''s separate dimension. The fact that he had reached the sixth rank on his own was proof of his superior talent too. The other assets of the Hive retreated when they saw Noah and the Elders flying on the other side of the destroyed defensive walls. The experts of the Council did the same, and they stopped near the five who had fought the powerhouse. The Hive and the Council had formed a silent alliance in those short minutes. The fact that the Elbas family was probably working together with Ravaging Demon''s factions made the two of them natural allies. Also, they were the organizations that had lost the most in Ravaging Demon''s sudden attack. All their human cultivators and experts in the fourth rank were gone. They had suffered casualties even among those in the fifth rank. That loss could put the Elbas family directly at the peak of those Mortal Lands. The alliance between the Hive and the Council appeared mandatory in that situation. There was even the foundation for future cooperation. If Chasing Demon were to win, the Royals would only have a rank 6 cultivator on their side. Annexing the remains of the Ravaging Demon sect wouldn''t help the Elbas family take the spot of the strongest organization since it would have two powerful enemies near its borders. Without the protection of a god, that could only lead to a slow and constant suppression from the enemy forces. The Royals would end up like the Shandal Empire, even if with fewer limitations. The assets of the Elbas family wanted to retreat too to avoid suffering from the shockwaves released in the battle between the two powerhouses. However, there was distrust in the experts of the Hive and the Council. Both sides didn''t know if they would fight in that situation. Yet, they were bound to discuss once they grouped again, which could only lead to conflict. A pyre surged and destroyed the second mountain. Ravaging Demon appeared among the ashes and flames still lingering around him, but his body was in a poor state. Almost the entirety of his lower body had turned into flames, and the same went for half of his head. It was clear that he was using a powerful defensive spell, but the impacts with the mountains had affected him. Pieces of flesh replaced the flames after they condensed, but that process didn''t happen on all his injuries. His head healed completely, but his lower body struggled to return to its original form. Only a leg reappeared, while the other was still in its fiery shape. "This life," Ravaging Demon spoke as he glanced at the massive titan high in the sky, "Does it come from her? How can a Demon care so much for someone else?" Chasing Demon didn''t answer, but a faint trace of sorrow appeared on his expression. Yet, his memories didn''t stop him from launching another attack. The titan started to descend, leaving the Patriarch of the Hive in the air. Its enormous body fell from the sky and picked up speed as it aimed for Ravaging Demon. A strong wind began to blow due to the movements of the puppet. Its body was so massive that its fall caused storms to spread through those destroyed regions. Its brown body slowly turned red as the friction with the air increased its temperature. In that status, the titan resembled a meteorite with a humanoid shape ready to kill any lifeform on the ground. The heroic assets on the scene showed worried expressions, and even Noah began to take steps back at that sight. The fall of the titan was akin to a natural catastrophe. There was a chance that the entire region wouldn''t survive that attack. He was even injured. He had yet to absorb all the nutrients inside him, but they wouldn''t be enough to heal his body completely. Noah needed to rest to stabilize himself, and facing such a mighty event could only worsen his condition. The Royals retreated too at that point. It didn''t matter if the Council and the Hive suspected them. Being too close to that battle would kill even the strongest cultivator among them. Escaping was their only chance to survive. No one could bother about starting a fight while something so dangerous was happening right next to them. The titan continued its descent as everyone evacuated the area. Then, when it touched the ground, a cloud of dust filled the entirety of the Empire''s domain. The ground cracked and shook. Any lifeform in the area vanished as the shockwave spread. The mountains in the distance crumbled, and every building in the territories outside of the defensive walls fell apart, unable to withstand the immense power released in the impact. The shockwave hit Noah and the other escaping assets too, but they had been quick in their decision to retreat, and that force only made them reach a higher speed. Of course, the human cultivators and experts in the fourth rank of the Elbas family couldn''t escape the range of its destruction. Some of them became nothing more than a bloody mass of flesh, while others felt their internal organs exploding due to the might of the impact. The rank 5 cultivators were fine though. The losses of the Royals were still below those of the other organizations. Once the shockwave dispersed, the escaping assets stopped to analyze the outcome of the impact. The dust settled and revealed a series of flame snakes flying above Ravaging Demon in a defensive stance. The giant stood above those creatures and limited itself to study them. The experts in the fifth rank immediately noticed that there was something wrong with the scene. They could accept that Ravaging Demon had managed to endure the two mountains, but the titan was on another level. Its power could level entire nations! They couldn''t believe that those flames belonged to Ravaging Demon. After all, Noah and the others had managed to hit him. He would have used the fiery snakes against them if they were part of his power. The answer to their doubts arrived quickly. A crowned silver-haired cultivator had appeared on the scene while the titan was falling. His flames had made those snakes, and they could stop the titan because he was on a superior level. "So," Chasing Demon said without turning his head toward King Elbas, "You will interfere." King Elbas was about to answer when a series of precise lightning bolts hit the heads of the snakes and dispersed them. Even Great Elder Diana had joined the battlefield. Chapter 958: 958. Exchanges Four powerhouses had gathered above the Empire''s domain in a matter of minutes. Their sides seemed set. They saw Chasing Demon with Great Elder Diana, and King Elbas with Ravaging Demon. The rank 5 cultivators in the distance could only retreat even further at that point. They were strong experts close to the last stage of the heroic ranks, but they couldn''t remain too close when four powerhouses threatened to unleash their power. Their cultivation level varied though. Noah and the others couldn''t discern who was the strongest among them, but the behavior of the rank 6 existences revealed that detail. Both Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had disregarded Ravaging Demon and were eyeing King Elbas with stern expressions. It was evident that the Patriarch of the Elbas family was the most significant threat in that situation. Noah had it slightly better than his allies and the other heroic assets. His instincts gave him a vague idea of who would be more dangerous to face, and the answer was King Elbas. ''He should be only a bit stronger than Great Elder Diana,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the powerhouses while retreating. ''Yet, I can''t imagine him losing.'' Noah didn''t know the reason behind that feeling. No matter how hard he studied the situation, his mind couldn''t picture a situation where King Elbas would lose. ''How many inscribed items does he have?'' Noah thought at that point. His instincts had never failed to guess a situation correctly. If they felt that King Elbas couldn''t lose, then there was a high chance that they were right. That''s why he thought about the inscribed items. They were the only variable that could make him triumph every time, even if his ally was just a newly advanced rank 6 cultivator. Also, King Elbas was the leader of the most advanced organization in the inscription fields. He had even created the portal toward other Mortal Lands! Noah wouldn''t be surprised if the powerhouse had countless inscribed items on himself. He would find it strange if he didn''t. "Ravaging Demon dies today," Chasing Demon said as he looked toward King Elbas. His statement sounded like a promise when it reached the other powerhouses, and Great Elder Diana nodded to show that she would help fulfilling it. "He is with me," King Elbas said in a plain tone. There was no fear in his voice, even with two powerful cultivators targeting him with their stern gazes. Ravaging Demon kept on smiling as he watched the atmosphere becoming tense. He seemed to enjoy that his sole presence was the cause behind the possible clash between the strongest existences in those Mortal Lands. "Stop me then," Chasing Demon said as he waved his hand. The titan had floated in the air after the fiery snakes blocked it, but it descended again at that gesture. Ravaging Demon didn''t move. He was right under the titan and stared with a fearless expression at the massive punch coming in his direction. The sole fist of the giant was as big as a mountain, and it created storms as it reached for the ground. King Elbas sighed and pointed the giant with his right hand. A drop of blood came out of his index. It shot like a bullet toward the massive puppet that was about to punch the ground. The drop of blood took fire during its flight, turning into a fiery phoenix that released a shrill cry spread through the battlefield. The soundwave was so powerful that cracks appeared in the sky and forced the rank 5 cultivators in the distance to cover their ears. It even stopped the titan''s movements for an instant. The cry gave enough time to the phoenix to reach the titan before it resumed moving. Still, a series of precise lightning bolts created a net that blocked the dive of the fiery bird. The titan moved again and finished his attack, punching the ground where Ravaging Demon was standing. Due to the interruptions, the giant wasn''t able to express its full power, but its punch created deep fissures nonetheless. However, flames soon spread from the cracks on the ground and gathered in the air to take Ravaging Demon''s form once again. His body appeared fine at that time, but his complexion was pale. It seemed that he didn''t heal but just recovered his original shape. Noah memorized every scene that he saw from the safe position reached during his retreat. The powerhouses were god-like creatures capable of destroying entire regions with a simple spell in his eyes. Also, they appeared incredibly hard to kill. Ravaging Demon was the weakest among them, but Chasing Demon could only hurt him with three attacks. The phoenix exploded into countless small flames at that point. They flew toward the empty spots in the net of lightning and tried to cross Great Elder Diana''s blockage. Yet, small lightning bolts came out from the lightning bolts that made the net and aimed for the tiny flames. King Elbas'' spell didn''t have any chance to survive under that attack, and all his flames vanished in a few seconds. The giant raised its humanoid head, and a crack appeared on the lower part of its face to take the form of a mouth. From Ravaging Demon''s point of view, it was as if a massive cliff was forming right under him. A series of small puppets came out of titan''s mouth. They were smaller versions of the giant and were only twice a human''s size. Yet, they had darker bodies, which signaled the presence of metallic features in their structure. Ravaging Demon saw thirty or so puppets rising in the air and trying to encircle him in a raw battle formation. Each one of them executed different battle styles, even if their movements were clunky. Still, they were puppets that radiated the power of the sixth rank. The Demon could guess that they could explode to release their energy. Nevertheless, escaping from them wasn''t an option, mostly since the net of lightning blocked the path above. Ravaging Demon decided to release his third flame. A sea of fire expanded from his palm and engulfed both puppets and giants. A series of explosions followed the spreading of the flames. The puppets detonated when their bodies started to destabilize, and they created a storm of debris and metallic shards that raged inside the fire. The titan straightened itself in the middle of the fiery sea. Ravaging Demon''s fire didn''t appear able to hurt it, and his flames only made its body turn red since they increased its temperature. The sea eventually retracted, and an even paler Ravaging Demon reappeared. He wore a tired expression, but his smile was still in place as if mocking any effort to make him submit. The giant raised its hand to grab him when he returned material, but King Elbas sighed again and used his finger to make a long wound on the back of his forearm. Then, he swung his arm, and an invisible slash cut both the net and the titan''s arm. Chapter 959: 959. Orb It took Noah a while to understand that King Elbas'' slash wasn''t invisible. The blood that came out of his forearm had taken fire during the attack and had created flames so fast that none of the rank 5 cultivators on the scene could see them. The net made of lightning bolts fell apart once a fissure spread on its surface. Its orange sparks dispersed in the air as the links crumbled. Still, cracks continued to appear in that area of the sky even after the spell was gone. The slash even severed the titan''s arm, which fell on the ground, creating another series of earthquakes. Ravaging Demon had managed to escape from its grip before it hit the terrain, and he had transformed in a series of flames that flew toward King Elbas. Chasing Demon acted and controlled the giant so that its mouth would aim for the escaping flames. The insides of the titan started to tremble at that point. A condensed shockwave came out of its mouth in the form of a low cry, which reached its target instantly. The trails of flames shook when the cry hit them. Most of them struggled to resist that attack only to disperse in the air. The fire that survived condensed into Ravaging Demon''s figure, which had many missing body parts. Both his arms were nowhere to be seen, and he only had his left leg. Half of his waist had disappeared too, and all his injuries leaked massive quantities of blood even if his "Breath" tried to close them. Also, no flames appeared to rebuild his missing parts. Ravaging Demon was bleeding for the first time since the beginning of the battle, and he didn''t seem able to suppress his injuries! The offensive against him didn''t stop there. Great Elder Diana pointed both her indices toward the wounded Demon, and small sparks came out of them. That attack consisted of minute lightning bolts capable of flying even faster than King Elbas'' slash. Holes appeared on Ravaging Demon''s body as the lightning bolts hit him. The pressure caused by that relentless offensive forced him to perform evasive maneuvers. Still, they only managed to limit the amount of damage that the Patriarch of the Council could inflict. Those lightning bolts were too fast and small. Ravaging Demon couldn''t dodge them even in his flame form, and King Elbas'' attacks weren''t precise enough to intercept that offensive. The Council and the Hive were finally gaining the upper hand in that battle. After all, they only wanted to secure the kill on Ravaging Demon in that situation. As for King Elbas, they could think of a way to deal with him in the future. However, King Elbas didn''t want to lose his ally. Ravaging Demon was only a newly advanced rank 6 cultivator. Still, his sole presence could help him balance the political environment that was bound to appear once the factions returned to their homes. King Elbas sighed for the third time, and an orb appeared next to him. The sphere emitted a multicolored light whose brightness flickered continuously. It could radiate the brightest white light before turning into a black radiance that obscured the area around it. "I hope you are worth it," King Elbas said as he glanced at the escaping Ravaging Demon before launching the orb toward the center of those regions. The light radiated by the sphere became unstable during its flight until it burst outward, enveloping the entirety of the battlefield with its chaotic aura. Great Elder Diana didn''t think much about the orb at the beginning. King Elbas didn''t throw it at her, so she continued to focus on the new powerhouse before it managed to escape. Yet, she started to lose control of her spells after the chaotic aura spread through the sky. She would still launch her attacks, but they became imprecise and messy when they tried to aim for Ravaging Demon. Great Elder Diana retracted her indices at that point and shot an angry glance at King Elbas before shouting words that echoed through the entire area. "Since when did you study my individuality?" King Elbas laughed, seeing that his creation had managed to incapacitate the second-strongest powerhouse of those Mortal Lands. His aura surged as his bloodline gained more importance due to that achievement. Of course, a normal inscribed item couldn''t stop a rank 6 cultivator. The orb was a disposable weapon in the sixth rank built only to counter Great Elder Diana''s precise lightning bolts. King Elbas had begun to create countermeasures to the other powerhouses since the battle against the quasi-rank 7 winged beast. The data gathered in that fight had given him a clearer idea of the abilities of the other rank 6 cultivators and made it easier to create something that could weaken their individualities. Great Elder Diana''s greatest strength was the precision of her lightning bolts. Cultivators with a lightning aptitude wouldn''t be able to control their attacks most of the time due to the intrinsic wildness of their element. Yet, the powerhouse of the Council had turned that weakness her iconic ability. King Elbas had built an item that unleashed a chaotic aura in the environment, creating an area where Great Elder Diana couldn''t make use of her troublesome abilities. That chaos would affect even other cultivators, but they would apply harsher restrictions only on Diana''s individuality. Ravaging Demon had never stopped moving, and he had continued to fly toward King Elbas even during the detonation of the multicolored orb. However, when he was about to reach his ally, the titan released another cry. Ravaging Demon''s body was a mess. Blood leaked from the missing pieces of flesh and the holes created by the minute lightning bolts. The dense shockwave made him puke blood when it swept him, and even his consciousness wavered after that last attack. The loss of focus put a stop to his flight and made him fall. The Demon wasn''t unconscious, but he struggled to fend off the effects of the shockwave. Chasing Demon waved his hand, and the titan started to run toward the falling Demon. Its feet eventually stepped on the air, making it sprint in a diagonal trajectory through the sky as it tried to intercept its target. King Elbas'' complexion paled at that point, and a single drop of black blood came out of his mouth. He then picked the blood and flicked it toward the giant, hitting it right before it could punch the falling Demon. Flames spread through the entirety of the titan''s body when the black blood touched it. That fire appeared able to affect its massive form since the rocky terrain that made it turned into lava that fell toward the ground. The giant cried again as if expressing its unwillingness to fall apart before it could complete its task. However, King Elbas'' flames were too powerful and liquefied its entire body before it could reach Ravaging Demon. Chasing Demon''s attack died with its arm stretched in a desperate attempt to reach its target. Chapter 960: 960. Struggle King Elbas had managed to defeat the attacks of two powerhouses and save Ravaging Demon at the same time. The latter eventually regained his foothold and resumed his flight toward the leader of the Royals. Great Elder Diana couldn''t interfere with him. She could use abilities that didn''t rely on her precision, but their power would be lower than her main attacks. King Elbas would fend them off with some casual spell. She was even on the other side of the battlefield, so she didn''t have time to fly through the chaotic area and intercept Ravaging Demon before he reached King Elbas. On the other hand, Chasing Demon was near the Patriarch of the Elbas family and could see Ravaging Demon rising in the sky toward his ally. His titan was no more though, so he lacked offensive methods at the moment. Both Great Elder Diana and Chasing Demon had yet to attack King Elbas directly. They had avoided bringing their battle on that stage to maintain the focus on Ravaging Demon. Once the three powerhouses started to attempt to their lives, the battle would gain different features. It wouldn''t be a struggle to seize or prevent an advantage anymore. It would become an actual war between the three major organizations of those Mortal Lands. The truth was that no one desired an all-out war. The three organizations lacked the assets necessary to pierce the defenses of their enemies, meaning that a proper battle among them couldn''t lead to benefits. After all, the three of them didn''t manage to rout the Shandal Empire even when they were at their peak and were fighting together. Going against each other after suffering all those losses would be suicidal since none of them could gain anything from their enemies. Chasing Demon found himself in a pickle. Attacking Ravaging Demon in that situation would force King Elbas to deploy more spells. Instead, attacking the Patriarch of the Royals would take away his attention from his ally. That would create a window that Great Elder Diana could exploit, giving her more chances to finish Ravaging Demon. Yet, it would also start a war against the Elbas family since it couldn''t ignore a direct assault to its powerhouse. Countless thoughts surged inside Chasing Demon''s mind as he looked at the flying Ravaging Demon. The hatred for Charming Demon''s death still burned inside him, but he had to consider other aspects due to his political status. The Hive was flourishing under his rule, but it had just suffered huge losses. Bringing it into another war would be a poor decision, especially since it could seal an alliance with the Council and suppress the Elbas family. Also, the Hive could execute secret plans against the Ravaging Demon sect in complete safety with the separate dimension. Obtaining the location of its assets wouldn''t even be a problem since the Council was bound to have countless reports about them. In the end, Chasing Demon thought about the inheritance of his Master. His two old friends were improving, but they needed his protection to focus on their cultivation without worrying about the enemy forces. The same went for Noah, which Divine Demon had chosen personally. Chasing Demon could choose to pursue the approach that gave him the highest chance of success in his vengeance, or avoid war and focus Ravaging Demon with his attacks. The first option would put Noah and all the assets of the Hive at risk, while the other would probably lead to the escape of his sworn enemy. A series of boulders appeared around the Patriarch of the Hive. They morphed into tall puppets that had sharp claws instead of hands. They didn''t have detailed facial features, but horizontal cracks spread on the lower part of their faces to form large mouths. The puppets began to fly in a straight line toward King Elbas. They raised their claws while their insides trembled to charge a weaker version of the titan''s sound attack. King Elbas'' eyebrow arched at that sight. He felt that he had underestimated Chasing Demon''s hatred when he saw that he had decided to attack him. He wasn''t scared about those spells, but defending himself and saving Ravaging Demon at the same time would force him to waste another powerful inscribed item. Still, the puppets made a sharp turn and dived toward the rising Ravaging Demon as annoyance filled King Elbas'' mind and the blood flowing out of his forearm turned into flames. It turned out that Chasing Demon had decided to prioritize the Hive over his revenge. Targeting King Elbas had only been a distraction that had forced the latter to prepare a defensive spell. Ravaging Demon was a mess. His body was nearing a critical state, and his consciousness was still recovering from the titan''s cry. When he saw the puppets diving toward him, his expression turned ugly, and his smile finally disappeared from his face. Massive quantities of blood came out of his mouth as flames spurted from his injuries. It seemed that he was neglecting his state to turn himself into fire to avoid the incoming attack. Yet, the cracks on the puppet''s heads spread at that point, and a series of dense shockwaves came out of them, engulfing Ravaging Demon with their tremors. The Demon saw his flames falling apart, and the sound attack made his mental sphere struggle to maintain control over his "Breath". He stopped flying to stabilize his condition, but that break made the puppets reach him before King Elbas could activate a different spell. The puppets slashed with their claws, which fell apart once they pierced Ravaging Demon''s skin. Their rocky limbs took fire when they came in contact with his insides, but they managed to inflict more injuries nonetheless. King Elbas suppressed a curse when he saw that Ravaging Demon was risking his life. The puppets wouldn''t be too dangerous in a normal situation, but his ally was already nearing his limit. The flames accumulated around him morphed to turn into small fiery birds that flew in Ravaging Demon''s aid. They crashed with the puppets and made their bodies crumble. However, the destruction of the rocky constructs released the energy that they contained. A series of explosions swept Ravaging Demon, engulfing his form into a cloud made of dust and rocky debris. King Elbas could only dive toward his ally at that point, and flames burned the entirety of the cloud when he reached it. Once the cloud was no more, everyone on the battlefield could see an unconscious Ravaging Demon floating in the air with his body filled by ugly wounds. Great Elder Diana and Chasing Demon prepared other spells while King Elbas analyzed the unconscious Demon. The latter was alive, but it was so weak that his figure barely emitted any aura. King Elbas took out a large orb from his space-ring at that point, which sucked Ravaging Demon in its insides before exploding, filling the sky with a bright white light. When the light dispersed, a pale and conscious Ravaging Demon was standing right next to the powerhouse of the Elbas family. Chapter 961: 961. Threats Ravaging Demon was injured, but King Elbas'' item had managed to stabilize his condition and wake him up. The other powerhouses couldn''t understand how weak he was, but there was a constant in the battle that made them realize how powerful the Elbas family was. King Elbas appeared prepared for anything. It didn''t matter if it was countering an individuality or healing a rank 6 cultivator in a matter of seconds. The Patriarch of the Elbas family had an inscribed item ready for that. Every major asset in those Mortal Lands had always known that King Elbas was an astonishing existence. After all, the dimensional portal had shown that his expertise in the inscription field surpassed any school in possession of other organizations. Yet, Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana felt that they had underestimated him after seeing him in action. Holding him in high regard wasn''t enough to evaluate the kind of threat that he could pose to them. King Elbas and Ravaging Demon floated closely in the air. It wasn''t possible to target only one of them anymore, mainly since Diana couldn''t rely on her precision at the moment. Launching an attack toward Ravaging Demon would involve King Elbas too, which went against what Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had tried to avoid for the entirety of the battle. It was time to decide how far they were willing to go to prevent the Royals'' faction from acquiring a second powerhouse. Chasing Demon had taken his decision previously, but he didn''t discuss the matter with his natural ally. Great Elder Diana could decide to continue with her offensive, which would force the Patriarch of the Hive to help her. The two of them exchanged a long glance after they analyzed the scene. The powerhouses were too far away to interact through their consciousnesses, but one of them had already shown his stance. It was up to Great Elder Diana to decide on their next step. Nevertheless, King Elbas'' patience had reached its limits by then. He had to waste two inscribed items in the sixth rank and even use his black blood twice to save Ravaging Demon. The value of a powerhouse was far above that of his creations. King Elbas could always make more of them, while he couldn''t decide when a new rank 6 cultivator would appear. Even the miraculous pool was a variable since it would generally kill half of the experts that immersed themselves in its oily waters. With the Shandal Empire out of the political scene, the Elbas family needed another organization as an ally to match its enemies. Otherwise, it would have to face their suppression, which would ultimately lead to its destruction. Powerful inscribed items could only slow down that outcome. After all, the Empire had relied on many miraculous formations but had ended up in a poor situation anyway. Inscribed items and formations could support the cultivators and tilt the scales of a battle on one side, but they couldn''t win wars on their own. There had to be powerful assets using them and exploiting the chances that they created. King Elbas waved his hand, and multiple disposable weapons appeared in the air around him. There were swords, spears, orbs emitting various radiances, and even puppets with intricate formations on their bodies. Also, each one of those items radiated the power of the sixth rank. King Elbas didn''t activate the weapons, but he spoke with an annoyed tone to announce his stance to the two powerhouses targeting Ravaging Demon. "This is only a fraction of my assets." It was needless to say that the sight of so many powerful weapons made Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana hesitate. Each one of those items was able to match the power of their spells. Some of them even had mysterious effects that the powerhouses couldn''t discern in that situation. Of course, both Chasing Demon and Diana had inscribed items of their own. They were still cultivators that had reached the last stage of the heroic ranks and had accumulated riches for the entirety of their long lives. Yet, they weren''t sure if they could match the accumulation of the best expert in those Mortal Lands. Silent moments passed while the four powerhouses eyed each other with a mixture of hesitation and annoyance. They wanted to get out of that situation after they made sure that they would have the upper-hands in the next years. However, it didn''t seem possible to reach that result without investing many resources. The atmosphere became tense as the seconds passed, but a fifth powerful aura appeared in the area before the rank 6 cultivators could act. "Attack now, and this part of the continent will sink," God''s Left Hand said as she rose above the blue dome. "This goes against our negotiations. King Elbas, I''ll join the battle if you unleash those items. It''s in my right to do so." God''s Left Hand''s appearance surprised the powerhouses and the rank 5 assets in the distance. The leaders of the armies didn''t have time to describe the negotiations to their allies due to Ravaging Demon''s sudden appearance, but they nodded when questioning gazes landed on them. The next exchange could destroy those regions once and for all, leaving only the blue dome intact. King Elbas'' disposable weapons would be already enough to make most of those shattered lands sink underground. Their clash with his opponents'' offensive could remove that entire area from the old continent. Nevertheless, that would go against the pact sealed between the invading forces and the Empire. The only organization outside of those negotiations was the Ravaging Demon sect, but it didn''t have the power to affect that situation. God''s Left Hand''s stance was clear. She eyed Ravaging Demon and King Elbas while battle intent spread through her aura. It was evident that she had decided to side with Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana. King Elbas revealed an ugly expression. He felt that he could defend against three powerhouses if he were to fight in his domain, but he could only rely on his inscribed items there. He wasn''t worried about his life though. He had so many lifesaving methods that made him confident in surviving the clash with a god, even if only for a few seconds. The problem was Ravaging Demon. "What if they start to attack?" King Elbas asked as he eyed the powerhouses at the edges of the battlefield. "They would have broken the pact then," God''s Left Hand said without any hesitation. "I will side with you in that case." King Elbas nodded at her words and stored his weapons back in his space-ring. Then, he started to fly away from the battlefield, and Ravaging Demon followed closely behind him. Noah gazed at the expressions of his Patriarch and knew that the battle was over. Everyone lost that day, and the various organizations had only set the foundation for future wars. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon glanced at him, and the three of them exchanged a cold gaze that carried a deeper meaning. They knew that they would raid the Ravaging Demon sect next. Chapter 962: 962. Flame The assets of the various factions started to leave the battlefield. The powerhouses moved with them, and the three organizations regrouped in different areas under God''s Left Hand''s stern gaze. Noah glanced at the battlefield as Chasing Demon flew toward him. The terrain had become black due to Ravaging Demon''s flames, and cracks filled every region around the blue dome. Devastation spread in every corner of what had once been the home of the most powerful organization. The area appeared even more wrecked than the central regions of the new continent after they saw the battle against the quasi-rank 7 winged beast. It couldn''t be helped. The old continent was frailer than the new one. The amount of damage that the powerhouses could do there was immense, and even a few spells could turn entire regions into wastelands. Noah''s gaze went on the various cracks only to notice that not even a drop of blood had remained on the ground. Those regions had seen the death of countless cultivators. Yet, the battle of the powerhouses had erased every trace of their existence. Elder Austin, Danielle, and Amos had disappeared during Ravaging Demon''s sudden attack, and no one had seen them after that. Of course, everyone in the Hive knew that they had died. Daniel''s divine item had managed to save only the Elders near him, and Noah had survived the first flames because Ravaging Demon wanted him alive. The fact that he had suffered fewer injuries than expected was just a case. After all, no one could even begin to predict that he had a Blood Companion made only of higher energy. Noah had never been the sentimental type. Even Lily and William''s deaths couldn''t make him mourn. He had become more open to his human side across the years, but that aspect of him had never changed. Death happened more often than anyone liked it, especially when it came to the cultivation world. Natural catastrophes or the whims of powerful existences could take the lives of beings that had trained for centuries in less than an instant. Some called that fate, but Noah knew that it was a matter of luck. Cultivators could train as hard as possible and prepare for every eventuality, but there was always something that could take their lives if they didn''t stand at the top. The recent battle was the proof of that thought. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had done their best to kill Ravaging Demon, but King Elbas'' interference had ruined their plans. One being at the top of the world had been able to turn the tables of an otherwise helpless battle. That was how influential the strongest cultivator in those Mortal Lands could be. ''Still,'' Noah thought as he moved his gaze away to join his allies in their retreat, ''Even he couldn''t do anything against the leader of the winged beasts. The peak doesn''t exist here. We are just ants trying to raise our heads for the first time.'' The death of those rank 5 assets put him in a sour mood. In the travel back to the territories of the Hive, Noah''s mind wandered among his plans to become stronger, even if a few memories appeared from time to time. Those memories mostly belonged to his interactions with Elder Austin. Noah remembered their battles in the new continent when the Hive had yet to claim some territories under its banner. He recalled the lessons concerning the individuality and the times when he had needed to hurt his hybrid body. There were memories about Danielle too. Noah didn''t forget how she had forsaken her pride and her faith toward her ancestors to grant a better future to the natives of the other Mortal Lands. They were both dead now, but they had managed to affect Noah''s cultivation journey, even if only in a small part. Mourning for them was almost a waste of time in his view, but forgetting them would deny the benefits that Noah had gained thanks to them. Silence reigned among the assets of the Hive as they reached the Coral Archipelago to return to the southwestern coast of the new continent. Chasing Demon disappeared while the survivor used the teleportation matrices on the islands, and he didn''t leave any order behind. Everyone understood that the time for words would come after they had recovered from their injuries. Their focus had to be on sorting their gains and return to their peak. The rank 5 cultivators dispersed when they reappeared in their respective domes and regions. Noah and the two Demons reappeared together in the central territories of the continent, but they only exchanged a nod before separating. Noah turned in the direction of Divine Market city after the Demons left. He didn''t know how the recent events would affect the political situation there, but it wasn''t his problem anymore. There was only one thought in his mind now. He wanted to become able to survive the attack of a powerhouse. Ravaging Demon had left with King Elbas, but he was too eccentric to remain behind the protection of the Royal family. He was bound to expose himself at some point, and the Hive had to be ready for that chance. After all, King Elbas'' inscribed item had stabilized his condition, but he had remained injured. Noah didn''t know how long it would take to the Demon to heal, but his wounds would delay his hunt for the Divine Deduction technique. Noah had a rank 6 cultivator targeting him now. His mental state was in complete battle mode, even in the safety of the Hive''s domain. The other higher-ups would handle the meetings with the Council, and the two organizations would create strategies and plans to deal with the new powerhouse. Yet, Noah had to make himself able to stand against him or at least survive one of his attacks. "Starve them," Noah said in a mental message directed toward Thirty-seven. It was time for the hybrids to join the political struggle and help the Hive in its wars. The fastest method to achieve that was to stop the growth of their bodies and focus only on enhancing their minds. His second rune would help in the process, but many of them would go crazy. Still, he didn''t care since he could turn every failure into materials for the living weapons. Noah returned in the separate dimension after settling the matters with the hybrids. His consciousness went on the large wounds on his body, but his intentions had nothing to do with the healing process. Noah remembered the flames burning his flesh. He used his connection with Snore to revive the sensations that had filled his Blood Companion''s body during Ravaging Demon''s attack. He felt the intrinsic destruction of the flames. They had carried a suicidal feeling, a desire to burn everything that existed, even themselves. ''A destruction so pure that it doesn''t fit the cultivation journey, nor any living being,'' Noah thought as he meditated in his mansion inside the separate dimension. His remaining hand opened at that point, and a black flame appeared in his palm. Chapter 963: 963. World The flame trembled violently in Noah''s palm. It radiated destruction that wanted to affect the entirety of the world and the same fuel that was creating it. Of course, Noah was restraining its destructive effects and letting it affect only the air around it. The flame was a copy of Ravaging Demon''s individuality, so it shouldn''t create primary energy with its aura. Yet, the fact that the dark matter was an evolution of Noah''s darkness made primary energy appear nonetheless. The output of primary energy was inferior to his other abilities though. The fire was different from his lightning bolts. Its destruction spread even on the primary energy that it created, diminishing its quantity in the air. ''What a troublesome individuality,'' Noah thought as a small spark appeared next to the flame. Seeing the product of Ravaging Demon''s existence up close gave him ideas on why the powerhouse had taken so much to reach the sixth rank. Noah didn''t know about the Elbas family''s pool, so his first guess was that Ravaging Demon had needed a lot of time to overcome the natural flaw of his individuality. His flames were a power that couldn''t go along with any form of life, and his destruction was too pure to belong to someone that wanted to grow. There was destruction in Noah''s individuality, but that aspect of himself came from Heaven and Earth''s mistake and his magical beast side. It wasn''t something that could hurt him. The primary energy that it created was the main nutrient of his body! Instead, Ravaging Demon''s individuality could only lead to one outcome. It could only burn everything. The black spark became bigger and started to interact with the flame. To Noah''s surprise, the two elements didn''t attack each other. Instead, they began to exchange part of the dark matter that made their form as if they were trying to fuse. Countless ideas surged inside Noah''s mind. He had expected the two elements to destroy each other due to their conflicting individualities, but they appeared attracted to each other. Their structures even started to merge in some spots! The flame and the spark managed to fuse only a small part of their dark matter but continued to interact without hurting their respective structures. Noah felt that something was missing when looking at them. That seemed to be the reason why the merging stopped. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique at that point, which made him consider an exciting option. ''I''ve initially thought about the dark matter as the material to create a personal world,'' Noah thought as countless options appeared in his mind. ''What if I need to replicate all the elements to reach that result?'' That reasoning seemed to lead him in the direction of the first spell that made use of his higher energy. That ability would be different from Snore since Noah wouldn''t have to build anything beforehand. For now, it was mostly speculation in his mind. However, Noah could imagine how he would eventually become able to deploy his world whenever he wanted once he managed to copy all the elements. As for its effects, Noah couldn''t predict them. It was all in his head anyway, so he quickly put the matter aside to focus on other pressing issues. A rank 6 cultivator was hunting him. Every second had to be used to improve his battle prowess. He couldn''t waste time daydreaming about the potential of his abilities. His body was still recovering, and it would take a few months to return to his peak. Even Divine Demon''s drug couldn''t hasten the healing process too much due to the immense requirements of a hybrid. Still, the same would apply to Ravaging Demon due to his high cultivation level. The powerhouse was bound to need a few years to heal from his injuries completely. Also, Noah had no intention to stay put in that period because of his injuries. One of the perks of being a hybrid was that he could focus on many projects, even in his poor state. Noah couldn''t resume the creation of martial arts because he had a few missing limbs, but he could analyze them with the Divine Deduction technique to complete the theoretical work. Meanwhile, he could apply his new flames to his battle style and handle the growth of the hybrids. Those beings would suffer a lot in the next period because the Hive desperately needed powerful assets to replace the losses sustained during the war. Starving the hybrids to focus on improving their mental capabilities would make many of them go mad, but that was the fastest approach to obtain valuable warriors. As for his new flames, the fact that he lacked an arm didn''t hinder his ability to forge. He could implement them into Snore''s body and improve its overall strength. Months quickly passed while Noah remained in his mansion inside the separate dimension. Elder Julia would contact him from time to time to update him on the political situation of the outside world. Still, she only reported a tense atmosphere, without any actual fight among the organizations. It seemed that every force was dealing with their losses and preparing for the inevitable clash that would happen in the future. There was no news about Ravaging Demon, but the Hive held many meetings with the higher-ups of the Council to seal a lasting alliance. Among the three invading forces, the Council had suffered the most from the powerhouse''s actions. Ravaging Demon didn''t only kill many powerful assets during his sudden attack. The sects under his banner had even revolted and claimed a part of the Papral nation, undermining a large part of the Council''s foundation. A third of all the sects under the Council had abandoned its rule. They had created independent regions inside the Papral nation, creating a force similar to the Coral Archipelago in the days after its independence. The only difference was that it had far more assets since they belonged to sects that had thrived for a long time inside one of the strongest organizations. Also, it had the backing of the Elbas family, which provided that new force with inscribed items meant to defend its borders. As for the Shandal Empire, it delivered the resources promised during the negotiations for its surrender. They covered many battle formations and some inscription methods that had disappeared from the world for millennia. However, the Empire didn''t give the Second Life formation, and the invaders had limited leverage since the blue dome would make the Empire survive for many years anyway. A few spells of the darkness element arrived at Noah too, but he didn''t analyze them while he was busy recovering and improving Snore. Even his Demonic Sword needed to heal, so he didn''t manage to cultivate much in those months. Yet, Noah started to leave the separate dimension often once his body and sword returned to their peak. Improving Snore was something that he could do in his spare time, but he needed to complete his fusion of martial arts and spells, other than refilling his stash of magical beasts'' corpses. Chapter 964: 964. Contac Noah completed the improvements on Snore''s body between his hunts and his experiments with the martial arts. The thought of focusing on recreating other elements had crossed his mind, but he eventually suppressed it. He didn''t know what triggered his ability to recreate elements. There wasn''t any fixed pattern. It was a sensation that started from his instincts and dawned upon him once it could take the form of thoughts. That field was too vague to explore when he had so many projects ready for him. His stash of corpses returned to its previous state quickly since the domain of the Hive was incredibly large by then. The hybrids that failed to maintain their reason helped refill his space-ring too since the creation of living weapons was still on hold. As for his martial arts, Noah had chosen to create forms that could match the Merging spell to add a powerful device to his survivability. Having a movement technique that could match the might of the second form of his martial art would be a great addition to his arsenal. Finishing to improve the Blood Companion gave him time to inspect the spells obtained from the Shandal Empire. They were two diagrams with power in the fifth rank and meant for darkness cultivators, but only one of them appeared suitable for his darkness. The first spell had healing effects. Its name was Dark Womb, and it enveloped a cultivator in a thick membrane that accelerated the recovery of tissues and centers of power. However, Noah''s individuality didn''t fit that ability at all. He had initially thought that the healing properties inherited by the Yin body would help him activate the spell, but his darkness appeared incapable even to create the membrane. Of course, Noah didn''t give it to the inventory of the Hive even if he couldn''t use it. His higher energy had just started to show its true potential. There was a chance that it could become a fuel capable of activating spells that didn''t match his individuality. Yet, Noah would have to modify the diagrams of the spells and rebrand them so that they could use his dark matter. That was something akin to creating a new inscription method, which was impossible now since his higher energy had yet to reveal all its properties. The second spell made use of a peculiar property of the darkness element. Its name was Black Mark, and it worked as a venom capable of weakening any living being over time. It was different from the Death Area spell. The Black Mark spell added a layer of toxic "Breath" to every ability and affected the centers of power of any existence once it entered their system. Noah had fewer hopes for that spell, but it turned out that the destruction of his individuality suited the venomous properties of the Black Mark perfectly. It changed the structure of the actual venom, but it kept its insidious power. The spell required a few modifications to express its full potential when paired with Noah''s darkness, but it was a useful ability that would make his attack far more dangerous. That even applied to his mental attacks since the venom had ethereal properties. The tests with his martial arts went well. Noah eventually created forms that could express his physical strength and match the effects of the Merging spell. The process took two years, and there were still a few adjustments that he needed to complete before he could use it in battle properly. However, the most challenging phase was over. Noah had almost taken the first step toward the creation of his school. Meanwhile, he increased the pressure that the second rune in his mind applied to its walls. A headache was nothing compared to the threat of a rank 6 existence aiming for the Divine technique inside his sea of consciousness. Faith reappeared in that period, and she managed to visit Noah a few times since she knew about the separate dimension. She used those visits to give him a complete overview of what she had discovered about the Ravaging Demon sect in those years, and what she found sounded problematic most of the time. Ravaging Demon''s followers had roots everywhere inside the Papral nation and in a few regions of the new continent. The damage that their betrayal had done to the Council was immense, especially since they didn''t limit themselves to leave. Many of the rebels were experts that covered essential roles inside the Council and owned secret information. They had used their knowledge to raid important buildings and places inside the new and old continent to seize as many resources as they could. Also, the fact that the old continent had seen a continuous emigration of assets for the new continent allowed them to claim a large area of the Papral nation under their banner. Faith believed that Ravaging Demon would reappear there once his issues were gone, and she agreed to ambush him with all their firepower at that point. However, the Elbas family''s protection made the task quite dangerous, especially after losing so many resources. The two of them even talked about June. She had yet to reappear since the end of the war against the Empire, but Noah understood her actions. Every asset under the Royals was busy preparing for the imminent clash, and she couldn''t disappear for a few years anymore. Those times were too tense. Even the smallest clash would bring the organizations back into an all-out war. Still, none of them would be able to seize a complete victory due to their poor state, rendering all their struggles pointless. It would take a while for Noah and June to see each other again, and they would probably stand on opposite sides of the battlefield by then. Something unexpected happened in that period. Elder Julia received a sudden communication from Chasing Demon that led her to join a meeting that saw the powerhouses of both Hive and Empire. When she returned from the meeting, she contacted Noah and the two Demons in a hurry to reveal that the Empire had asked to be part of the destruction of the Ravaging Demon sect. That was an odd request for an organization that had just lost a war. The Empire even had restrictions when it came to its influence on the political environment. Still, God''s Left Hand didn''t hesitate to reveal why she wanted to help the Hive. The powerhouse of the Empire had been discreet with her communications, and she didn''t even release her plan. However, she admitted rather quickly that she wanted to work with the Hive only because of Flying Demon. God''s Left Hand had seen Flying Demon in action. She could immediately link his individuality to the god that had left her to follow God''s Right Hand in his journey in the Immortal lands. Hence, seeing Shandal''s individuality again gave her a hint on the current situation. Two identical individualities couldn''t appear in the cultivation world, but Flying Demon''s aura had features that only Shandal could have. So, God''s Left Hand could guess that he had met her Patriarch somewhere. Chapter 965: 965. Threa The Hive wasn''t worried about God''s Left Hand''s offer. The negotiations for the surrender of the Shandal Empire didn''t allow it to attack any of the invaders. Also, it limited the influence that it could have on the political environment of the world. The invaders had cut it off from any event, allowing it to survive only inside the blue dome and in the wrecked regions around it. That wasn''t an ideal solution for the Empire, but preventing its destruction was already an outstanding achievement. The blue dome had even allowed it to retain many powerful assets and resources, making its situation less dramatic than it looked. Noah and the Demons discussed God''s Left Hand''s offer in private. Chasing Demon had already agreed to send them in the blue dome to see what the Empire could give them, but the trio wanted to set their story straight first. The matters of the separate dimension under the Odrea nation were a secret that only the higher-ups of the Hive knew about. The fact that Shandal''s will resided in a palace filled with divine items wasn''t a piece of information that they could share with the rest of the world. God''s Left Hand''s interest in Flying Demon hinted that she wasn''t aware of the separate dimension. Revealing to the powerhouse of the Empire that her Patriarch had enough items to save his organization didn''t seem the best approach. Yet, the three of them didn''t have a way to justify Flying Demon''s individuality. It made them wonder if Chasing Demon had revealed something already and whether they could speak openly to the powerhouse of the Empire. Any message directed to Chasing Demon remained unanswered in that period. Noah and the Demons had a special relationship with him, but it seemed that he was too busy to handle those small matters. His silence was a sign that he trusted the three of them though, so they prepared for their trip back in the old continent. The truth was that the Hive would accept any help at the moment. Even dealing with the organization that they had fought only recently was better than remaining alone to see the Elbas family growing thanks to its alliance with the Ravaging Demon sect. The alliance with the Council would eventually arrive too. Still, that matter was more complicated since there were grudges between Chasing Demon and the organization in charge of his old home. Both of them needed to look past their old conflicts if they wanted to focus on the Ravaging Demon sect. There was someone else willing to join Noah and the Demons in the trip to the blue dome. About half of assets salvaged from the Odrea nation had remained behind during the war against the Empire. The wanted to enjoy their well-earned break from the struggles of the battlefields. All of them had benefited from the resources of the Hive, reaching the heroic ranks in no time and managing to heal injuries that they had carried for decades. However, there was a loud question in their minds that no resources and techniques could silence. They wanted to know why they had to suffer for so long if their Patriarch had died more than fifty thousand years ago. Noah didn''t tell them about Shandal''s separate dimension, but the libraries of the Hive described how the Empire had fallen and reappeared across the years. That inevitably left the citizens of the Odrea nation full of questions that undermined the very foundation of their determination. They eventually felt that their struggles to survive had been pointless. Disheartened cultivators would lead to stagnating heroic assets. Those experienced soldiers couldn''t explore the depths of their individualities if their minds were stuck on existential dilemmas. Noah had given a vague explanation to the citizens of the Odrea nation once he learnt about their problems. It was in the Hive''s interest to remove their bottlenecks, but Noah intended to make them drop their desire to join the meeting with the Empire. That negotiation was too important to let cultivators full of anger and hate join it. Any outburst wouldn''t endanger their lives because of the pacts in place, but it could affect the meeting negatively. Nevertheless, the cultivators of the Odrea nation didn''t want to drop their requests. They had already figured out that Shandal had something to do with their prolonged imprisonment. They could find peace only by meeting those responsible for their suffering. Noah eventually agreed to let a few of them join him and the Demons in their trip to the Empire. Lisa''s familiar face soon appeared in the area of the separate dimension that the trio was expanding to reach the regions near the blue dome. She had managed to become a heroic cultivator in the years after her liberation. Yet, she was still at the bottom of the fourth rank due to her past injury. There were two men with her. They both were rank 4 cultivators in the liquid stage of the fourth rank, and their stern expressions showed how determined they were to hear the Empire''s version of the story. Noah''s gaze went on one of those men. He was tall, with bulging muscles visible even if he wore a loose robe. His skin was dark, and he had short curly hair. Still, his facial features were soft and reminded Noah of a woman from more than a century in the past. Lisa couldn''t help but avoid Noah''s gaze when she sat at some distance from the three rank 5 cultivators. Her behavior made him understand that the man had some connection with Nina and that Lisa had probably brought him along to appeal to Noah''s good-will. "You can speak," Noah said when he noticed that the man stared at his back with an intense expression. The man''s eyes widened, and he fell to his knees to kowtow toward Noah. Lisa and the other cultivator did the same when they saw him leaving the Demons to near them. "L-lord Demon Prince," The man said as he raised his head to look at Noah''s floating figure, "I''m Luke, Nina''s grandson." Noah didn''t answer but continued to inspect Luke with a cold gaze. "Why are we dealing with the Empire?" Luke eventually asked when he saw that Noah had no intention to help him through his questions. "Why aren''t we avenging the countless deaths that have swept out home due to the whims of a god?" Noah didn''t answer immediately. He knew that it was hard for such a young heroic existence to accept Shandal''s actions, but there wasn''t much that he could say to lift his morale. The unfairness of the human world was something that he had accepted even before transmigrating. There were no real answers to Luke''s question. "Because we can''t," Noah eventually said. "Find your peace or the power to claim your vengeance. Anything else is a waste of your breath." Noah was about to turn then, but he added something with a voice that was a mixture of human words and growls before rejoining the Demons. "Be sure to behave there." Chapter 966: 966. Surprise Noah''s threat silenced the three cultivators from the Odrea nation. Still, they didn''t feel angry about it. The sole fact that he had used his precious time to answer their questions made them appreciate their savior even more. The truth was that they knew their place. They were just pawns caught in the middle of a game played by a god. They were the nameless casualties that any war had, and they could only blame their bad luck for that. Joining the meeting with the forces of the Empire served the sole purpose of freeing their minds from the emotions that clouded their path. The other cultivators saved from the Odrea nation shared their feelings and wanted to see their envoys face the force that had kept them imprisoned for years. Noah and the Demons stretched the separate dimension until they reached the area under the blue dome before contacting the forces of the Empire. After receiving their answer, they set up a door that led to one of the large fissures in those regions. The world suspected that the Hive had a secret method to transport its troops. The other organizations couldn''t explain the events in the Utra nation otherwise. Also, there had been many occasions where the timing of its reinforcements was off. Nevertheless, suspecting something was different from being sure of it. The Hive could turn a deaf ear to any accusation since the other organizations didn''t have any proof. Resurfacing at the bottom of one of the fissures served that purpose too. Placing the exit under the blue dome would give unnecessary hints to the Empire. Noah and the Demons dug their way toward the dome and sent another message to their contact. A tunnel appeared in the ground inside the light at that point, and six heroic cultivators appeared behind the protection radiating a divine aura. They were three women and three men, and they gestured to the group from the Hive to step forward. The blue light didn''t hinder their passage, and a new world unfolded once they crossed the borders of the dome. Countless presences appeared in the range of their consciousness, and the noise caused by the cultivators training on the surface reached their ears even if they were underground. The Demons and the trio from the Odrea nation marveled at the properties of the blue dome. That divine defensive method appeared to block any noise and aura from its insides other than preventing any consciousness from inspecting those areas. Noah stopped once all those inputs reached his mind. He wasn''t stunned by the sudden flow of information. Instead, the aptitudes of the six cultivators at the peak of the fourth rank that had welcomed them left him speechless. The Demons didn''t understand the reason behind his behavior at the beginning since they couldn''t discern their aptitudes as fast as him. Noah wouldn''t be able to do it either in standard cases. Still, that situation was anything but ordinary. Noah could feel a sense of familiarity coming from three of them and a conflicting sensation from the others. It didn''t take him even a second to realize that he was facing cultivators with light and darkness aptitude! "Did you think you and Daniel Udye were the only ones in the world?" A familiar voice resounded in the underground tunnel, and Icy Stare''s figure soon became visible to the group. After fighting with her so many times, Noah didn''t feel any danger coming from her. Icy Stare had been a worthy opponent when he was in the gaseous stage, but he had eventually outclassed her. Noah had fought against a rank 6 cultivator and could express the battle prowess of an expert in the solid stage of the fifth rank. He had entered a world that she couldn''t even hope to reach with her current power. "Why did the Empire keep them hidden?" Noah asked. Having cultivators with the rarest aptitudes could enhance the image of any organization, especially if they had managed to reach the heroic ranks. "Why bother revealing them?" Icy Stare said as she neared them. "They are below average when compared to other cultivators. All their power comes from techniques and spells created by others, which is why they are stuck at this level. It''s not worth to invest more resources on them." Noah could understand her point of view. Spells and techniques of the darkness and light element cost a lot, and those expenses would be pointless if the nurtured cultivators didn''t become stronger than experts with common aptitudes. Failing to create a unique cultivation technique in the human ranks was a common occurrence. Yet, those six cultivators couldn''t make it even when they were at the peak of the fourth rank. That put them below the average of the cultivators approaching the fifth rank. The experts that had hopes to grow on that level were existences that had started to explore their individualities and were developing their power alongside them. As for how did the Empire get six cultivators with the rarest aptitudes, Noah didn''t even need to think about it. Most citizens of the Empire were cultivators, so spotting commoners with those aptitudes was easy. "Why showing them now then?" Noah asked. He couldn''t understand why the Empire would welcome them in that way. "To make you understand that we are far from doomed," Icy Stare said as she gestured to the groups to follow her. The cultivators exited the tunnel and resurfaced in the district that had generated the blue arrows during the last battle. The six cultivators with rare aptitudes dispersed at that point, but the group from the Hive was too focused on the floating structure to care about their departure. "The Empire still thrives," Icy Stare said as she rose in the sky to fly toward the floating structure. "We expected you to give up once you saw our divine defensive item, but Ravaging Demon''s appearance has taken us by surprise. Now we need more territories to stop our decline." Noah and the others followed her, but their eyes remained on the large landmass floating in the sky. It was as if an entire region had gained the ability to fly and didn''t want to return to the ground. Luxurious palaces and tall castles appeared on the surface of the floating structure. Countless shining lines filled its barren ground, which created a multicolored scene that made the base of the buildings shine with blinding light. "God''s Left Hand is waiting for you in that castle," Icy Stare said while pointing at the tallest structure on the right side of the flying region. "Follow me." The group followed her and moved toward the tall castle. Noah''s gaze often went on the center of the region to inspect a towering structure that resembled a mountain. That was the only spot in the entire area where there weren''t inscriptions. Icy Stare noticed his gaze and spoke while wearing a proud expression. "That''s the throne of the Almighty. When he sits there, his divine aura spread through our regions and enlightens the path toward the higher ranks." Chapter 967: 967. Offer The scene from above the floating structure was breathtaking. Every building in that area was a training area suitable for beings near the peak of the heroic ranks. It was as if the Empire had converged the riches accumulated through the years to build a paradise for cultivators. The air there even resembled that of the piece of Immortal Lands. The "Breath" in the environment was so thick that the formations on the ground remained active without a power source. Three structures stood out from the rest of the buildings. There was the tall castle on the right side of the floating region, the mountain-like building at its center, and a dark tower on its left area. The castle and the tower leaked a powerful aura that carried a violent feeling. Noah felt as if he was in front of natural calamities, ready to unleash their blind rage to the world. Instead, the mountain gave off a static feeling. Everything around its area appeared motionless as if stuck in time. The only word that Noah could find to describe its aura was "eternal", but he wasn''t sure that his consciousness could comprehend the true might of that structure. Icy Stare landed on the surface of the flying structure when the group drew near God''s Left Hand''s castle. They walked on the shining lines that filled the ground an among the luxurious buildings meant for the best heroic cultivators of the Empire. It was needless to say that living among the powerhouses was a big deal for the citizens of the Empire. Icy Stare gazed at those buildings with reverence and envy, revealing that even someone on her level didn''t have access to those areas. Dreaming Demon didn''t care much about the structures. Her attention was on the shining lines under her, which she studied as they walked through the floating region. Her expression soon showed amazement and zeal, and her eyes darted among the various lines in a messy attempt to memorize them. "Don''t bother," Icy Stare said when she noticed the Demon''s actions. "This is a replica of the Second Life formation already. It barely works as it is. Coping a few lines won''t even produce effects." Noah and Flying Demon''s eyes went on the ground at her words. The miraculous formation that had created so many problems in the war was right under their feet. They couldn''t contain their curiosity. "How did you manage to deploy something so complex in the new continent?" Dreaming Demon asked. "We didn''t," Icy Stare answered. "We increased the range of this structure so that it could reach those lands." Icy Stare''s reply appeared honest, which surprised the three rank 5 cultivators. Yet, they understood why she didn''t bother to hold back pieces of information. The lines on the ground were so intricate that even their powerful minds found them hard to memorize. The leaked complex auras too, which made them impossible to understand on the spot. Icy Stare knew that Noah and the Demons had no chance to learns something from that scene. King Elbas was the only existence in the world that could understand something from those short glances, but even he would have to struggle to memorize it. A few sparse auras appeared from time to time as they walked. There were some cultivators currently living there, but they didn''t seem interested in meeting the group from the Hive. Noah and the others didn''t ask anything either to preserve some politeness. They just took note that there were even rank 4 cultivators on that fantastic structure. The Empire probably rewarded those habitations to soldiers that had accumulated significant battle merits, without minding their cultivation level. Noah''s sensed a familiar aura at some point. His head turned toward a building filled with windows that showed a cultivator immersed in a cylindrical container filled with a dark-red liquid. "You pulled a nice trick on him," Icy Stare explained. "The Second Life formation has brought him back, but his existence can''t find the right harmony since you took away his dantian. He has yet to wake up." The man inside the container was Iron Feathers, the solid stage cultivator that Noah and Elder Julia had killed in the last battle against the Empire! Iron Feathers had his eyes closed as he floated inside the dark-red liquid. He appeared to be in a coma even if his aura flickered from time to time. Icy Stare continued to explain as they walked past him. "His consciousness is trying to wake him up, but his survival instinct stops him at the last second. We are trying to rebuild his dantian with the studies about the hybrids." Noah felt that she had directed her last line toward him, but he ignored it. His expertise in that field was only for the Hive to use. He would benefit if the other organizations were to waste resources in endless experiments. The group eventually reached the castle only to discover that its insides were less flashy than they expected. There was barely any furniture, and the most peculiar aspect of the main hall was the strong wind blowing inside it. The wind grew more intense as the group climbed a series of luxurious stairs to reach the upper parts of the castle. It soon started to gather in the form of small tornadoes that flew into different rooms before disappearing from their sight. It was a system of gales that created windstorms that disappeared inside the castle. Noah and the others could guess that the system was part of God''s Left Hand''s cultivation technique, but the oppressing aura coming from the top of the castle claimed the entirety of their attention. Icy Stare escorted the group until they reached a large door that stood at the end of the staircase. A whistling noise came out from the empty spaces between the door and the walls, signaling the presence of strong gales on the other side. "I can''t proceed further," Icy Stare said as she gestured to the group to cross the entrance. The door opened when Noah and the Demons touched it, revealing God''s Left Hand''s figure sitting on top of a massive tornado in a cross-legged position. The gales leaking from the tornado pushed the rank 5 cultivators backward, but they deployed their auras to fend off that pressure and protect the trio from the Odrea nation. The storm calmed down when God''s Left Hand opened her eyes, and the winds slowly dispersed as she floated back on the floor where a throne waited for her. "Please sit, envoys of the Hive," God''s Left Hand said as a series of praying mats appeared in front of her. "We have much to discuss and a lot to plan. Let''s not waste our time." Noah and the Demons stepped forward, followed by the trio from the Odrea nation. However, they didn''t sit straight away to stick to the approach that they had planned. "Speaking of wasting time," Noah said while wearing his usual cold expression, "What is the Empire willing to offer?" Chapter 968: 968. Negotiation The group from the Hive knew about the restrictions on the Empire. That organization didn''t have many ways to interact with the political environment. They couldn''t even attack any force thriving in the rest of the world. The Hive would be happy to receive any help. The only issue was that Noah and the others didn''t know how the Empire could improve their situation against the Ravaging Demon sect and the Elbas family. That was why Noah had chosen to start the negotiations by asking what the Empire was willing to pay. It was pointless to hear its requests if it didn''t have anything valuable to offer. God''s Left Hand felt surprised when she saw the trio in the fifth rank staring at her without any fear. Noah and the Demons were too conscious about their advantage in that situation to show any form of weakness. However, the powerhouse of the Empire had lived for a long time, and she had managed most of the political matters since she was the weakest rank 6 asset in her organization. Her experience when it came to negotiations far surpassed that of his guests. "As expected by the cultivators chosen by the Almighty''s will," God''s Left Hand said as she laid a series of delicacies and wine on the praying mats. "You have abandoned any formality because I can''t touch you. Nice guts." Noah and the others disregarded her praise to focus on her first line. God''s Left Hand had admitted that she was aware of the presence of Shandal''s will somewhere in those Mortal Lands! "I understand your confusion," God''s Left Hand said when she saw the expressions of her guests. "The Almighty has tried different approaches across the millennia. Me and Right Hand have been informed of his mission since we reached the sixth rank." "Why didn''t you save the Empire with his it-," Dreaming Demon started speaking, but the powerhouse''s aura suddenly spiked and cut her question short. "I don''t want to know where His will is," God''s Left Hand explained. "I don''t want to know what His separate dimension contains. I don''t want to know anything at all. Are we clear?" Her aura kept on increasing in intensity after she finished her question. Her veins bulged as her pressure almost hurt the cultivators in front of her. A few drops of blood came out of her eyes too. The fact that she threatened her guest''s lives had activated the restrictions one her, causing internal injuries. However, God''s Left Hand didn''t appear to care about them. She wanted to show her determination when it came to her previous statement, and the group from the Hive could only nod to answer her. Her pressure dissipated when God''s Left Hand saw that gesture, and she resumed to speak in a calm tone. "The Almighty suspects that a large number of cultivators outside of Heaven and Earth''s system will rise to the Immortal Lands. Making the Empire survive is my challenge, my struggle to reach the sky. I can''t receive His help." The cultivators from the Odrea nation didn''t understand what she meant with her words, but the trio in the fifth rank felt conflicting emotions surging inside their minds. On one side, they found God''s Left Hand''s decision idiotic. After all, her Patriarch had so many divine items that the entire world would collapse under their might. No cultivator could resist that temptation, especially those labeled as "Demons". On the other, the powerhouse''s faith in Shandal''s mission left them speechless. She was willing to let her organization fall apart to abide by the task of her Patriarch. Facing the hurdles that the world put in front of her without help would surely help her individuality. Still, the other option didn''t prevent that from happening. "Did you have the chance to save your people?" Luke said at some point. He didn''t understand the most of that conversation, but it sounded that God''s Left Hand was purposely refusing to make use of a powerful asset to improve her individuality. The powerhouse looked toward the trio from the Odrea nation with a curious expression. She felt surprised when she saw rank 4 cultivators with Noah and the Demons, but understanding dawned upon her when she took a second look at their faces. "I see," The powerhouse said. "You have helped the Almighty greatly. Your perseverance is commendable. Those of you who survived have received the best reward." "What reward?!" Lisa exploded at that point. She had seen too many of her warriors die and too much suffering to hold back in that situation. "We gave our lives countless times over a lie, over the sick game of a failure of a god!" God''s Left Hand''s eyes darted for a second when she heard the insult toward her Patriarch. However, she quickly remembered that any action against the rank 4 cultivators could kill her. As her mind calmed down, her aura went on her throne, which sent "Breath" through one of the shining lines nearby. After a few seconds, a bright circular glass came out of that same line, and the powerhouse threw it toward Lisa. "The Almighty recorded his mental state," God''s Left Hand said. "I''ve isolated the emotions that He felt when He looked at the Odrea nation. You''ll see how your struggles have stirred the determination of a god." The trio from the Odrea nation touched the glass and closed their eyes, ignoring everything around them. Noah glanced at them to make sure that the glass was harmless before speaking again toward the powerhouse. "My question is still the same." Noah didn''t care that the powerhouse knew about Shandal''s will. His position in that negotiation remained the same. It was pointless to hear her conditions if she had nothing valuable to offer. "The Empire can give you five uses of the Second Life formation," The powerhouse said. "Twenty, and the expenses are on the Empire," Noah replied. "Also, this is offer can only open the negotiations. I hope you weren''t betting everything on the formation." God''s Left Hand scoffed and revealed a smile before continuing with her offers. "The Almighty has explored this world. The Empire knows all its secrets, and it is willing to share a few of them." "We''ll take all of them," Noah promptly replied. "What more?" God''s Left Hand''s smile slowly faded as the negotiations continued. Noah would always ask for more than she offered, and he always requested her to add other assets on her plate. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon would intervene whenever the powerhouse mentioned items that Noah wasn''t knowledgeable about. A decent offer formed as the trio did their best to rip the Empire off. God''s Left Hand massaged her temples when her side of the deal was over. She felt a headache rising at the thought of the massive amount of resources that she was about to give away for her simple request. "The Empire can''t fight to conquer other lands," She said when it was her turn list her requests. "Yet, our restrictions say nothing about empty territories. We only want you to leave the regions of the Papral nation without an owner." Chapter 969: 969. Return The restrictions on the Empire declared that it couldn''t attack any of the forces on the world. Those limitations applied even to the Ravaging Demon sect, even if it wasn''t one of the invading forces. With all the world''s territories divided among the organizations and powerful packs of magical beasts, the Empire was bound to remain confined in the small area around the blue dome. However, the restrictions said nothing about ownerless regions. God''s Left Hand''s request saw the Hive leaving some regions empty once the attack on the Ravaging Demon sect began. That would allow the Empire to expand and leave the territories in the old continent''s central area. Anyone could understand that it would take centuries for the territories around the blue dome to recover from the powerhouses'' battle. The amount of damage that they had suffered went far beyond what conventional methods could fix. The Empire would need to invest resources that it didn''t have to accelerate the restoration of the ground. It would need to pour "Breath" and other nourishing substances before seeing something growing in those lands again. Those expenses would slow down its already endangered growth. It was more reasonable to migrate somewhere else. However, the southern side of the old continent had the dimensional portal turning the area into a wasteland, and its central regions were either destroyed or under the invaders'' control. The negotiations for the Empire''s surrender had even taken away its domains in the other Mortal Lands, leaving it only a few choices available. The new continent was entirely under the control of the three invading forces. So, the Empire could only migrate in the other world and clear some danger zones, or exploit the imminent attack on the rebellious sects in the Papral nation to expand. The group of the Hive had yet to discuss the number of regions needed to comply with the Empire''s request, but they were hesitating already. Accepting those conditions would help the Empire grow again, opening it to possibilities that the invaders had removed with the war. The Hive''s group didn''t know if their enmity with the Ravaging Demon sect was worth the risk of helping one of the biggest threats in the world recover. That was a choice that could lead to awful consequences in the future. It might endanger the well-being of all the invading forces. After all, it concerned the return of powerful organization into the political environment. Of course, the Empire would be restricted even if it was to expand. Yet, it was unclear for how long the restrictions applied on it could stick. Noah and the Demons discussed through mental messages while they pondered over the situation. The advantages that the Hive would receive from that negotiation were immense, but they didn''t know if they were worth the risk of saving the Empire. Nevertheless, they agreed to that condition in the end. The group''s decision didn''t take into consideration the entirety of the world. It was a selfish act that saw only the benefits that the Hive would receive. "Is this good for you too?" God''s Left Hand asked the trio from the Odrea nation after the rank 5 cultivators accepted her terms. They raised their heads to nod toward the powerhouse before diving back into the piece of glass. It was possible to understand from their expressions that their mental state had improved after taking a peek at that item. The only strange aspect was that they were crying, and their tears resumed to flow once their minds entered the glass again. The group from the Hive remained in that hall for a few hours to review the details of their agreement and enjoy the delicacies offered by the powerhouse. They eventually had to abandon any claim over the Papral nation to force the Empire to agree to everything they had set before. They didn''t swear an oath when the negotiations ended. There was no need to waste a precious inscribed item to handle those matters. The Empire would give only half of what it had promised and slowly send the rest of the resources as it gained territories. After the meeting ended, the group from the Hive returned on the fissure, where the entrance for the separate dimension was with only part of the promised goods. The Empire would send the rest after it organized the complex matters like preparing the Second Life formation for the new cultivators. The Hive wasn''t committing any crime by setting secret agreements with the Empire, but Noah and the others wanted to avoid claiming the attention of the other forces anyway. It was better for such pacts to remain concealed for as long as they could. Noah initially had some reservations about using the formation. The powerhouse had explained that it needed a link to the cultivators'' existence to bring them back. That would make them lose part of their individualities during the rebirth, which caused their loss in terms of cultivation level. Also, the number of resources required to bring the cultivators back depended on the energy contained in their beings. Noah soon found out that hybrids weren''t eligible for the formations, which made his hesitation vanish. According to the powerhouse, reconstructing an entire hybrid body was something that the Second Life formation couldn''t do. It worked for humans since it preserved their minds and most of their individualities with its connection, but it wasn''t meant to do the same with the bodies. It was as if the formation could work only when there were two significant variables. It couldn''t function when the body became a major aspect too. Noah took the piece of glass in his hands during the trip back to the new continent. A series of images and emotions filled his mind when his mental energy entered the inscribed item. He felt hopeless, lost, and without any will to live left inside him. Yet, the Odrea nation entered in his vision at that point, and many images scrolled past his eyes. They had a chronological order and showed multiple battles fought by the inexperienced soldiers of the Empire. The helpless struggles of the citizens of the Odrea nation seeped through him and made him feel as if something in the world could reflect his mental state. However, their determination to survive rekindled his will to defy Heaven and Earth and proceed on living through his cursed existence. The emotions were so vivid that Noah had almost forgotten about himself. He felt and saw as Shandal when he looked at the glass, and the sensations of a god were enough to make even his cold existence struggle to remain calm. Of course, Noah didn''t care about those images. His only interest was in the point of view of a god since it could reveal hints concerning the world of the laws. His decision turned out to be correct since he entered that peculiar mental state when he sensed the laws. Chapter 970: 970. Sea Noah was in the liquid stage of the fifth rank now. His path toward the sixth rank required him to learn how to wield the laws to aim to become one eventually. However, the laws were elusive, and Noah couldn''t touch their world whenever he wanted. He had interacted with them far more than other cultivators at his level, but he wasn''t able to control them yet. His abilities made use of his understanding already, but it wasn''t a proper control. It was only a natural consequence that came with his improvements. That was why he would seize any chance he found to make contact with the world of the laws. He managed to reach that state more often since he had improved his second rune, but those moments were still sparse and unpredictable. Seeing the world through Shandal''s eyes gave him a vague idea of the mindsets that divine entities had when interacting with matter. They didn''t think. Their whole beings appeared made of emotions. That realization matched his leading theory about the laws, even if he knew that Shandal didn''t put all of himself in those memories. Noah saw the laws as soft instincts that helped any cultivator in matters involving their individuality. They were something that experts could wield and turn into weapons, but they were mostly passive knowledge about a specific field. Noah''s understanding of his creation had increased while he built Snore''s body. The laws of that path had fused with his dantian and were part of him now. That improved his ability in his inscription methods even if he didn''t deploy the laws to help him. It was as if he could suddenly understand and predict more when it came to creating. Noah didn''t use the laws to become better. The laws were part of him, so he was better. The same went for his destruction. The battles fought in the last period, and his exchange with Ravaging Demon had improved his understanding of the laws relative to that part of him. His abilities grew stronger because he knew how to destroy better. That improvement even increased the amount of primary energy created due to the influence of his individuality. Abilities meant for destructive purposes came to his mind too. It was as if his mind had tuned with that aspect of his individuality and helped him find better ways to put it into use. Also, his projects required the entirety of his individuality. Noah destroyed and created at the same time, and the relative laws helped him through an endless cycle of passive knowledge and enlightenment. That was why his project with his school of attacks saw so many successes in such a short time. Noah was becoming able to create stronger abilities faster, which most cultivators in the liquid stage of the fifth rank couldn''t even come close to do. Of course, those advantages had drawbacks. Noah could fight stronger cultivators when he went all out, but his individuality also required more time to grow. That affected his overall growth as a cultivator. Noah''s improvements were by no means slow, but they weren''t as monstrous as before. His individuality was too vast to resume his old standards. Noah remained immersed in Shandal''s memories until the group returned to the new continent. He gave the piece of glass back to the trio from the Odrea nation at that point and left with the Demons to sort the gains obtained in the negotiations. The Empire had yet to give everything that it had promised, but the Hive should receive what it had established by the end of the week. After all, the most delicate matter concerned the Second Life formation. The others were just about transcribing old books and gathering many resources. Since Noah had lost access to the formation even before he could decide upon that matter, he felt eager to see the pieces of information that the Empire had amassed thanks to its god. Noah knew that there were a few rank 6 danger zones, but the sea''s fauna remained unclear, and there were bound to be many valuable places hidden somewhere. His expectation turned out to be on point when the detailed map of those Mortal Lands arrived through an orb that the Hive had chosen to communicate and exchange items. Noah and the Demons could see how the Empire had described the danger zones of both landmasses in great detail. The focus mostly on the level and peculiarity of the creatures habiting them. The same went for the sea. The danger zones there didn''t have many fixed borders, but the Empire had used the hunting areas'' width to make an educated guess. The Empire had even listed the rank 6 magical beasts confirmed in the sea. There were seven of them scattered through the waters, with only the two Mosasaurus sharing the same hunting zone. The map said that there could be other creatures on that level in the sea, but Shandal didn''t bother to explore it in detail. Most of his knowledge came from casual strolls that he would make every time his boredom got the best of him. The magical beasts weren''t the only exciting aspect of the map. Those drawings described even many peculiar areas that Shandal found too low-level to investigate in-depth. There were descriptions about the two danger zones that divided the old continent into three parts. It had vague comments in other areas like the valley previously habited by the Albino Snake and its pack. According to the map, Twilboia Cliff had a high density of "Breath" because a calamity had killed all the magical beasts. That left a series of powerful corpses on the ground, which eventually fused with the rocky terrain there, creating an area with a high density of "Breath". That land had lost its value due to the dimensional portal in the Utra nation, but the map had mentioned it nonetheless. The Hive could rely on that resource to look for possible sources of income that Shandal had ignored through the millennia. Noah and the Demons'' focus was on the sea since they had already seen the most secret place in the entirety of those Mortal Lands. There was nothing more hidden than Divine Architect''s separate dimension, and they had already taken everything they could before its destruction. The sea had a few areas with peculiar features, but they were always near the hunting areas of the creatures in the sixth rank. Only one of them was far away from any reported monster, but Shandal described it as a "tunnel that would probably bring more troubles than benefits". It was needless to say that Noah''s curiosity spiked when he learnt about that tunnel. However, he had to help the Hive with the Ravaging Demon sect before pursuing his desires. The Hive was still waiting for the Council to answer their offer and create an alliance. After that, they would start a war against the new force that was trying to climb the political ladder. Chapter 971: 971. Plan Reports about the situation in the Papral nation accumulated while the Hive and the Council were busy negotiating the terms of their alliance. The whole world was going through a period when all the organizations reestablished pacts to define their political sides. Noah went back to his mansion inside the separate dimension after parting ways with the Demons. He knew that Elder Julia would try to keep him away from the imminent attacks at the Ravaging Demon sect since he was a high-value target. Yet, he wanted to fight, which meant that he had to prepare for the eventual fight against a powerhouse. His tests with his new school of attacks proceeded steadily. His mind frequently touched upon the laws as he studied forms that he could pair with some of his spells. Noah perfected the technique that made use of the Merging spell and moved his research forward. He soon learnt how to diversify his creations. After all, each martial art could use multiple spells, which increased their power according to how harmonized they were with the basic form. The Demonic Form spell and the Black Mark spell could virtually suit any martial art since they added general enhancements to every ability. The consumption for each technique increased when Noah activated both spells, but power output reached insane levels. Noah felt that he wouldn''t have any problem fighting a solid stage cultivator in the fifth rank if he became experienced with his current project. His offensive was slowly entering a realm that liquid stage experts shouldn''t even begin to consider! Also, Noah felt that he was finally obtaining tools suitable for his species. He could feel all his strength being put to use when he performed the techniques from his new school. The new techniques allowed him to express the entirety of his existence, without holding back any of his unique features to suit the human standards. Years passed as all the organizations in those Mortal Lands reorganized and established new alliances. Their main priority was to recover from the losses suffered during the war, but that didn''t stop them from planning the next battles. The Council and the Hive managed to abandon their past grudges and seal a lasting alliance that saw them cooperating for the next three thousand years. That alliance was different from the pacts signed whenever a significant crisis or opportunity appeared. It was an agreement that featured detailed laws connected to a series of punishments for any transgressor. The Hive and the Council even created teams of powerful cultivators with the sole task of overseeing and enforcing those rules. Such teams had cultivators from both organizations and featured leaders who had authority over both forces'' assets. They couldn''t order rank 5 cultivators around, but their influence in the alliance wasn''t little. The alliance even saw the possibility of both organizations to fuse in the future. That outcome was unlikely, but it improved the relationships among the sects and the invisible domes, creating a more friendly environment. Only time would tell if those pacts would lead to a genuine friendship between the two organizations. All they could do for now was focusing on the destruction of their common enemy. Once the Hive and the Council finished handling the matters connected to their alliance, it was time to attack the Ravaging Demon sect. The rebellious sects had taken control of most of the Papral nation during the years after Ravaging Demon''s appearance. Their Patriarch didn''t show himself since the battle near the blue dome, but they had continued to expand their domain even without him. The Council had suffered too much to deploy troops to defend those poor territories. The war and the rebellion had taken away almost half of its assets, which prevented it from starting long battles right away. However, it could start pressuring the Ravaging Demon sect to draw out its Patriarch now that the Hive was on its side. The higher-ups of both organizations held long meetings meant to prepare a solid battle plan. Still, it soon became evident that a massive mobilization of troops could only trigger the Elbas family''s reaction. Another all-out war would hurt everyone, both attackers and defenders. Claiming vengeance was necessary, but resorting to expensive plans that would hurt their growth wasn''t worth it. The meetings went in a different direction after that realization. Both organizations would rather use small groups made of powerful experts rather than risking their already suffering foundation. The idea came from the Council, but it had taken inspiration from the Hive''s attacks on the Utra nation. The guerrilla-style battles seemed the best tactic to use against their enemy. That approach would make it hard for the Elbas family to send reinforcements, and it would force the sects under Ravaging Demon''s banner to assemble. The alliance could launch a massive attack at that point and end the Ravaging Demon sect once and for all. The plan worked perfectly in theory. The rank 5 cultivators chosen for the attacks could always destroy the regions if they didn''t manage to win against the enemy forces. Any outcome would lead to a victory since they would be fighting over the enemy''s territory. It was enough to create chaos, kill a few Elders, and run away to complete the attacks. There was a problem with that plan though. The guerrilla-style attacks had worked for the Hive because it owned Divine Architect''s separate dimension. Boundaries and defenses were powerless against that tool. The Hive could take any force by surprise, ignoring any protection in place. Almost no one was safe against the separate dimension. Still, that meant revealing the existence of the separate dimension to the Council or giving some clues about it, at least. It had been different with the Udye family and Faith. The nobles couldn''t break the pact with the Hive, and Faith was Noah''s friend. There was no risk of exposing the separate dimension. However, the situation was different when taken into consideration the Council as a whole. Great Elder Diana alone would manage to get that information from any Elder involved in the attacks. The Hive had to give up something to proceed with its plans. It didn''t reveal the separate dimension, but it took upon itself the task to create items capable of suppressing their allies'' consciousnesses. In that way, the Elders of the Council could make use of the separate dimension without being able to learn anything about it, even if it forced the assets of the Hive to accompany them. It didn''t take much to ideate the item required for their cooperation. Thirty-seven and his disciples came up with a blueprint in a few months and perfected the product in little more than a year. The inscribed item came out as a helmet capable of cutting off any external input once worn. It worked as an oath though, meaning that the cultivators had to accept its effects for them to activate. After the Council and the Hive surpassed that last hurdle, they could finally divide their most potent assets into teams and start their raids on the Papral nation. As for Noah, he chose to attack alone. Chapter 972: 972. Raid Noah walked through the tunnels of the separate dimension alone. There was a map provided by the Council in his hands which depicted the territory of the Papral nation in great detail. The map covered even the area of influence of the nation. It spanned the regions from the end of the mystical fog to the beginning of the sea on the northern coast. Some regions had a few red dots marked on them, which resulted from the Council''s investigation and hypotheses. They indicated the rebellious sects and the important structures conquered during the rebellion. His target was a new sect that had appeared during the last five hundred years. Its name was True Mountain sect, and it had gained fame quickly among the Council''s ranks due to its members'' power. The sect was the result of an internal fight that happened in a major sect. A rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage named Elder Marco had taken the best disciples from the original organization with him and founded the True Mountain sect. After Ravaging Demon''s appearance, Elder Marco joined the revolt against the Council, revealing that he had managed to reach the solid stage in those years. It was needless to say that the alliance''s higher-ups had expressed their complaints when Noah had chosen to go after such a powerful cultivator alone. However, his status in the political environment and his many achievements forced the Elders to accept his request. They didn''t like that he wanted to go alone either, but Noah had his reasons for that. His battle prowess had increased in those years, and he wanted to test it without foreign eyes on him. After all, the alliance required for the cultivators of the Hive to accompany those of the Council due to the inscribed helmets forced on them. Noah''s companion would have been an Elder of the allied force, and he didn''t want to make his strength famous so soon. The Hive left Thirty-seven the task to perform the calculations required for those precise attacks. The automaton had even linked the map to the separate dimension, so anyone could know which exit to use. Of course, the Hive had placed incomplete exits beforehand. The cultivators in the separate dimension only needed to pour "Breath" in their lines to make them appear in the outside world. Noah reached his destination in less than an hour and proceeded to sort the insides of his space-ring. There was no need for hoods or covers in those attacks. The Ravaging Demon sect had to know who was after it. Coldness started to come out of Noah''s eyes as his darkness went on the lines under him. His "Breath" completed the exit, which illuminated the area and engulfed him in its white halo. When Noah''s regained his vision, he was in the middle of a mountain path, with a dozen human cultivators starting at him in confusion. "Is this the True Mountain sect?" Noah asked, and the pressure radiated by his sea of consciousness forced those cultivators to answer. They limited themselves to nod since the air had become too suffocating for them to speak. Noah sensed the presence of a few rank 4 cultivators coming in his direction. He wasn''t using any concealing technique, so the whole sect became aware of his arrival. Another powerful aura burst from the peak of the mountain. Noah sensed that it belonged to a solid stage cultivator in the fifth rank and that it was about to converge toward him. However, before it could touch his consciousness, Noah waved his hand, and a series of Instabilities shot in various directions. A dense black gas surrounded his figure as the Instabilities detonated. They were his improved disposable weapons created with his higher energy. Each of them had power in the upper tier of the fifth rank and had equally strong saber-shaped runes as their spikes. The amount of destruction that they unleashed was immense. All the buildings on the path fell apart under the might of the explosions. The same road cracked and sank downward, toward the base of the mountain. The detonation of the instabilities affected even the mountain in its entirety. An earthquake swept the area, and large fissures appeared on its rocky sides, making boulders fall toward the ground. The sect''s defensive measures took care of external threats, but they couldn''t handle a sudden attack coming from behind them. Also, Noah''s Instabilities were powerful. Any standard protection would have crumbled under their might. The explosion propelled the saber-shaped runes, which shot forward and created an array of flying blades that filled the entire mountain. The few lucky cultivators that had managed to escape the detonation of the Instabilities had to face the fury of the runes, which ended their lives in a few slashes. Of course, the few survivors were heroic cultivators. The human experts had died as soon a whiff of the weapons'' aura spread in the environment. Noah remained inside the protection made of dark matter as destruction spread in every corner of the True Mountain sect. The area was bound to have some protected training areas that his Instabilities didn''t manage to affect, but he didn''t care enough to search for them. His focus was on the solid stage cultivator, whose aura was still on the mountain peak. It seemed that the expert didn''t dare to chase after him while his runes filled the sky. When the storm of blades ended, Noah came out of the dark matter and rose in the sky. The result of his destruction appeared in his view while his consciousness remained fixed on the mountain peak. The sect once had hundreds of buildings built inside the mountain''s side, but the Instabilities made everything fall apart. There was only a messy pile of rubble there now, and no one would be able to guess that a powerful sect had once habited in that area. "To think that you came to me willingly," A deep voice resounded in the area, and a figure flew from the mountain peak to descend toward Noah. "Patriarch''s reward will be incredible!" A middle-aged man with short black hair and a small scar that ran vertically through his mouth appeared in front of Noah. He didn''t have any beard, and his description matched the Elder described in the Council''s map. Noah had already deemed words pointless by that time. Black smoke started to come out from his body, and his dark matter began to condense under him. He was going all out. He couldn''t underestimate a cultivator in the solid stage even if he had the means to kill him. Nevertheless, his innate awareness suddenly sensed danger coming at high speed from behind him. Noah''s hand shot backward and grabbed the cause of that sensation. It turned out to be a spear made of ice that fell apart once he applied some pressure. A second powerful presence appeared at that moment and revealed a rank 5 cultivator in the liquid stage. Chapter 973: 973. One-sided It was common for such a powerful sect to have more than one rank 5 cultivator, but Noah didn''t sense the second presence until the attack reached his back. Noah turned to stare at the woman that had appeared on the ground. She was tall and had long blonde hair falling behind her back. There was a thin layer of ice covering her exposed skin and robe. It seemed that she had already activated a defensive spell. A perfectly square opening in the ground behind her radiated a faint blue light that Noah connected to inscriptions. He could guess why he didn''t sense her presence before. The opening probably led to a training area that had many protections. "Are you regretting this already?" Elder Marco said as he flew toward the other Elder. He placed himself between her and Noah with the intent of stopping the invader from focusing her first. "Carmen," Elder Marco continued as he tilted his head to look at the Elder under him, "Seize any opening. I''m more than enough for him, but I don''t believe that the Hive will send him alone in a mission without protections." Elder Marco didn''t transmit that conversation through his consciousness. He used his voice and made sure that Noah heard it. Elder Carmen nodded at his words and prepared a series of icy-spears that floated behind her back as she waited for the battle to start. Her eyes remained fixed on Noah, who had turned into a fiending creature wearing a scaled armor by then. Snore''s body had solidified too. The enormous snake protectively coiled around Noah and unfolded its feathered wings before hissing menacingly. He was ready to fight. Elder Marco felt completely confident since he knew that Noah was weaker than him by a full stage. Yet, his opponent didn''t try to escape even when Elder Carmen appeared. Also, the fact that Noah had come alone gave him a bad feeling. He couldn''t believe that the Hive had accepted to send its Demon Prince without informing him that a solid stage cultivator ruled the sect. Of course, Elder Marco couldn''t imagine that Noah had chosen him as a target to test his strength. There had never been a cultivator on a lower stage treating a more potent existence as a training dummy. He guessed that the Hive had messed up when it planned its attacks and had sent Noah into a location far more dangerous than expected. Noah''s aura didn''t reveal anything. There wasn''t his usual violence, nor the coldness that preceded his battles. Elder Marco expected to see at least a faint trace of fear, but it seemed that Noah''s mind had become blank. Elder Marco gave up on making that battle more satisfying at that point. His Patriarch''s target was right in front of him. There was no reason to delay his capture further. The air above him condensed and took the form of countless needles. A barrage of sharp spikes filled the sky and tilted toward the massive figure of the snake. A sudden dangerous sensation surged in Elder Marco''s mind right after he deployed his spell. Noah''s figure became blurry and black cracks appeared in the sky between him and Elder Carmen. A faint dark shape preceded the cracks. It was as if something was moving so fast that it destroyed that part of the sky with its passage. Elder Marco was a solid stage cultivator that had trained for a long time. He recognized a movement ability when he saw one. Yet, he didn''t have time to warn Elder Carmen since his consciousness had perceived the attack too late. His mind wasn''t at fault. He would have sensed that attack an instant before if Noah targeted him. However, the black shape went after Elder Carmen, meaning that his mind didn''t register it until it perceived energy release. The black shape was too fast for him to do anything about it. Elder Marco could only see the cracks in the sky spreading until they reached Elder Carmen, where they suddenly stopped. The black blur stopped moving after it crossed Carmen and took the shape of a fiendish form donning a scaled armor. Noah had reappeared wielding the Demonic Sword with one hand and while releasing dark matter. Elder Carmen had remained stunned for the whole duration of the event. The intensity of the danger in her mind was so great that her consciousness had frozen out in fear. Only her right hand moved, and she used it to point toward Noah''s previous position. Noah and Snore''s previous figures vanished into a cloud of black smoke. The speed that he had reached was so high that he had left after-images in the sky! The cracks in the air soon closed, until all the sky returned to its original state. The only difference was that Noah now stood motionless behind Elder Carmen. Elder Marco saw the scene unfolding in slow motion. It was a red line at first. A long but superficial wound appeared on Elder Carmen''s body and traced a diagonal cut across her torso and waist. Then, blood started to come out of her wound, but its quantity was too high for the kind of injury that she appeared to have received. In the end, the entirety of her upper body exploded into a rain of blood and internal organs, leaving only Elder Carmen''s waist and legs behind. Elder Marco felt amazed. He had never seen a battle between existences at the same level being so one-sided. Elder Carmen couldn''t even react in time, and her protective layer of ice crumbled completely at Noah''s passage. As for Noah, his hand quickly shot toward the insides of her low-waist to seize her dantian. He ate it in one bite, but he didn''t remain immersed in the sensations that it caused. There was Elder Marco still in front of him. That wasn''t the time to evaluate how much he had improved. Noah had always known that creating an individual school would make his prowess reach unseen levels, but he had been surprised too. Elder Carmen couldn''t even react when it happened. "You think you can come into my home and destroy anything that you like?!" Elder Marco shouted at that point. Refilling the assets in the fourth rank was already a troublesome matter, but Noah had killed the only other rank 5 expert of the sect. The True Mountain sect was no more, destroyed in a few exchanges against the Demon Prince of the Hive. That realization made him snap. It was as if he had wasted the last five hundred years of work. The spikes in the sky began to fall. They pierced the air, creating large areas where the world''s fabric broke and connected it with the void. Nevertheless, Noah stared at the incoming needles without any fear. He knew exactly how to block that attack. Snore raised its reptilian head and spread its maws to release a series of black flames. When they reached the spikes, a sea of fire appeared in its place, destroying many of them. Chapter 974: 974. Shor The sea of flames radiated a feeling of pure destruction while it spread in the sky and engulfed the barrage of spikes. The fire devoured most of Elder Marco''s spell, protecting the part of the terrain where Noah was standing. The rest of the spikes crashed on the terrain and destroyed most of the environment. Large cracks spread around Noah, who didn''t move his eyes from the cultivator in the sky. He could see Elder Marco''s expression turning into one of pure astonishment at the sight of those flames. The attack that had destroyed his spikes was almost identical to that of his Patriarch! His surprise didn''t stop there. Seeing that Noah owned flames capable of imitating Ravaging Demon''s individuality was already incredible. Yet, the fact that they could match a spell cast by a solid stage cultivator made them even more impressive. Snore let out a proud hiss and rose in the sky to face Elder Marco. The cultivator was about to prepare another spell when he sensed danger coming toward him. The Blood Companion''s body turned into smoke, and a black shape pieced it to shoot toward Elder Marco. Cracks spread in the sky at the shape''s passage, and part of the dark matter fell into the void among them. The attack aimed directly at Elder Marco at that time, so his mind could sense it in time to deploy countermeasures. The air in front of him hardened and formed a series of spiked shields with the same shape. Noah crashed into the spiked layers and stopped after breaking through them. However, Elder Marco had already left his previous spot. The broken shards of condensed air began to take the form of a sphere meant to trap him at that point. Yet, four additional arms rose from his torso and wielded the copies of the Demonic Sword that had appeared next to him. Elder Marco prepared an offensive spell high in the sky when another incoming danger forced him to dodge again. A fissure appeared right next to him, and the condensed air that he had prepared before disappeared without leaving any trace. The Elder was about to turn toward Noah, but Snore had reformed in the meantime. Black sparks filled the Blood Companion''s horns and condensed between them to create a massive lightning bolt that shot toward the solid stage cultivator. Elder Marco couldn''t believe his eyes. A liquid stage cultivator was able to corner him! Nothing like that had ever happened in the history of the world. Even the most monstrous cultivators had managed to fight head-on with experts on higher stages only thanks to particular items of favorable situations. Instead, Noah was fighting him fairly. He didn''t use any sneak attack or troublesome tactic. The Demon Prince of the Hive was deploying his best techniques and gaining the upper hand in the battle with them. Elder Marco felt a tinge of respect surging inside him. Noah was even better than what the reports said. He was a real monster capable of ignoring the common sense at the foundation of the cultivation world. However, pride soon suppressed that feeling. After all, Elder Marco was still an expert that had reached the solid stage. He couldn''t let a junior think so poorly of him. "Don''t die on me too soon!" Elder Marco shouted before releasing a loud laugh. The air in a large area of the sky became still, and the lightning bolt flying toward him slowed down, hindered by the dense atmosphere. Noah''s eyes sharpened at that sight. His mind sent warnings coming from every direction, but he couldn''t pinpoint the exact nature of the attack. The lines of the Divine Deduction technique began to consume mental energy to improve his mind''s capabilities. Noah knew that he was insanely strong for his level, but he couldn''t underestimate a cultivator in the solid stage. His consciousness couldn''t understand what Elder Marco was planning even after activating the Divine technique. Noah decided to resume his offensive at that point, but a sharp pain suddenly spread from his chest. Noah quickly retreated as his mind analyzed the insides of his torso, and blood filled his mouth. He soon discovered that the air inside his lungs had turned into sharp spikes. They had pierced his organs and were trying to reach for his heart. His higher energy expanded to fend off the threatening spikes, and Snore reformed around him, covering half of his body with its gaseous properties. A roar came out of his mouth too, and the world lost its light for a second. Noah spewed a trail of flames toward the dense atmosphere to destabilize the Elder''s spell and clean his lungs with that tainted air. The truth was that he didn''t expect Elder Marco to have access to such a powerful ability. Noah had never imagined that even the air inside his body could become a weapon under that old monster''s influence. He knew the reason behind his miscalculation though. Noah rarely found himself fighting cultivators that had a mental sphere more advanced than his. The improved awareness due to his hybrid status gave him a keener perception too. However, Elder Marco had cultivated for far longer than him. He had taken his time developing an alternative training method for his sea of consciousness. That put his mind above his dantian in terms of advancement in the fifth rank, far above Noah''s level. The Elder had even hidden his strategy. Increasing the density of the air around him had been part of his plan. It made Noah unable to realize that the air inside his lungs was turning into spikes since his mind sensed too many threats. Elder Marco didn''t let go of that chance. Spikes formed everywhere around him and destroyed the lightning bolt still in place. Then, they gathered to take the shape of gales that shot toward his target. Noah had suffered injuries twice already. The first time had been when he had slammed on the spiked shields and the second one in the last exchange. His understanding of a solid stage cultivator''s actual prowess in the fifth rank expanded as the battle continued. He had always known that those existences wouldn''t be easy to kill, but he couldn''t be sure about how hard they were to fight. Most of that came from his lack of experience in battles at that level. However, he was gaining a raw estimate of where he stood compared to those old monsters. ''I fall a bit short,'' Noah thought as the feathers on Snore''s wings rose to point at the incoming gales. Black sparks also appeared on its horns, and dark flames gathered at the top of its throat. ''But this doesn''t mean that I must lose,'' Noah calmly concluded inside his mind as Snore launched its attacks. A series of lightning bolts and violent flames crashed on the gales made of sharp spikes, and feathers chased closely behind them, ready to destroy anything that survived that offensive. Chapter 975: 975. Sky A loud crash of powerful attacks happened in the sky above the remains of the True Mountain sect. The lightning bolts pierced the gales'' loose structure and destroyed many spikes before exploding into crackling dark sparks. The flames swept the artificial winds too and enlarged, covering a large chunk of the sky with their destructive might. Only a few gales managed to survive those clashes, but they soon found a barrage of sharp feathers in front of them. Noah didn''t build Snore''s wings to help it fly better. They increased its agility mid-air, but that wasn''t their main purpose. Each feather was an improved version of the saber-shaped rune that used large quantities of dark matter. Noah had to build them one by one before fixing them to Snore''s body. They had become body parts of the Blood Companion once Noah perfected his creation. Still, they had remained disposable weapons that Snore would take a while to regrow. Of course, they were so troublesome to implement in the Blood Companion because their might was incredible. Noah had made sure that all of them had a starting level at the bottom of the solid stage and could grow as they absorbed the primary energy in the environment. Such a powerful attack would generally weigh a lot on his mind. However, Noah had limited their maneuverability to relieve part of their pressure. Also, Snore''s consciousness shared part of that burden, making them even more comfortable to handle. Noah and Elder Marco had gone through a few exchanges already. Primary energy filled every corner of the battlefield and struggled to leave the area due to its high quantity. The feathers had an innate traction force due to Noah''s greed. The primary energy converged toward them as they flew toward the gales and increased their power when it fused with their structure. By the time they reached the few surviving winds made of sharp spikes, their power had surpassed Elder Marco''s cultivation level! The feathers overwhelmed the gales and continued to fly toward the incredulous Elder, who could barely understand what was happening. They pierced the remaining dense air around him and aimed for his figure. Some of them didn''t manage to change their trajectory enough to hit him, and others had lost too much power due to the condensed air. Yet, many feathers still swept Elder Marco, who found himself engulfed in that barrage of sharp runes. Noah used that chance to deactivate the Divine Deduction technique. His mental sphere was still far away from reaching a critical state, but he had kept the Demonic Form active for the entirety of the battle. He couldn''t afford to waste too much mental energy, especially since he had also activated the Black Mark spell. A sudden surge of energy appeared in Elder Marco''s position. Noah sensed the power of the peak of the solid stage coming from that spot and saw a gray light coming out from inside the barrage of feathers. The runes slowly fell apart. Even the higher energy in their structure lost its stability and dispersed in the air, revealing a poor-looking Elder Marco that held a cracked talisman in his hands. The cultivator had resorted to a disposable inscribed item to fend off Noah''s attack, but his condition appeared terrible nonetheless. His robe was full of holes, and black spots filled the skin underneath them. His legs were nowhere to be seen, but there were only superficial injuries on the rest of his body. It seemed that he had managed to activate the talisman right before the feathers could reach his internal organs. An ugly expression lingered on Elder Marco''s face. He could now understand the real power of the hybrids and why they were so troublesome to face. The superiority of the magical beasts when it came to their bodies was one of the cultivation world''s pillars. Yet, that feature became almost unfair when existences paired them with the abilities of a cultivator. Elder Marco had hit Noah twice with abilities fueled by his "Breath" in the solid stage. On the other hand, Noah had landed only a blow on him. That would typically give the upper hand to Elder Marco in a battle between humans. However, the actual damage suffered by him and Noah differed in severity. Noah had taken Elder Marco''s legs and poisoned him with one attack. Those injuries were bound to affect his battle prowess, even if only slightly. Instead, Noah had a few cuts on his body and injured lungs, but those wounds didn''t affect him at all. The resilience of a hybrid was showing its importance in the battle. Humans were too frail to endure the same powerful attacks repeatedly. Elder Marco understood that he needed to end the battle quickly. Otherwise, Noah''s incredible body would slowly tilt the scales of the fight in his favor. Noah felt able to read what was happening inside the Elder''s mind. He knew that the next exchanges would decide the battle''s outcome, so he had to prepare for anything that the old monster had in store for him. "You know," Elder Marco said, "My individuality isn''t related to spikes and needles. It''s about control over the air. I make it take that form because it''s easier to turn it into a weapon, but it seems that it won''t be enough against you." Elder Marco''s aura spread, and a sense of stillness filled the world. His consciousness affected the air and tried to reach for Noah, but the dark matter of Snore''s body fended it off. Noah could see some similarities with Dreaming Demon''s individuality. The difference was in the subtlety of their mental waves. Dreaming Demon took control of the matter of the world delicately, while Elder Marco''s approach was forceful. That led to a difference in what they were able to obtain through their influence. Dreaming Demon could even fuse with Heaven and Earth''s will and predict future events with her individuality. As for Elder Marco, Noah had yet to see the full potential of that unique existence. Noah didn''t wait for the Elder to complete his preparations. Additional arms wielded copies of the Demonic Sword to perform the second form of his martial art. Snore spewed flames and launched lightning bolts too. The attacks struggled to fly through the condensed air. They managed to cross a large chunk of the sky thanks to their might, but it seemed that Elder Marco had paid particular attention to the space between him and his opponent. Meanwhile, his control over the sky expanded and reached the air behind Noah, affecting even his movements. It was as if the air had turned into a dense liquid that hindered anything trying to move inside it. "Let''s see how you handle the fall of the sky!" Elder Marco shouted as he raised his hand before swinging it down with a sharp movement. Noah didn''t even know what to look for since his mind sensed danger everywhere around him. However, when the Elder completed his gesture, he felt the entirety of the sky weighing on his back and flinging him on the ground. Chapter 976: 976. Suppression Noah felt an immense force weighing on his shoulders and pushing him at high speed toward the ground. There was nothing that he could do to stop himself. Even his hybrid strength enhanced by the Demonic Form spell couldn''t stop his fall. The large area of the sky condensed by Elder Marco slammed on the ground, crushing the already broken mountain and leveling the terrain. The dense air didn''t stop there. It continued to descend, creating a rectangular hole that kept on becoming deeper. The region occupied by the True Mountain sect had become unrecognizable after the battle had gone on for a few exchanges. Noah''s sudden arrival and consecutive attacks had already ruined the scenery significantly. Still, Elder Marco''s last spell was causing cracks to appear in the entirety of the region. The condensed air began to disperse after it had dug a hole a few hundred meters deep. Its disappearance left a space where the debris accumulated at the sides of the rectangle could fall. Noah was at the bottom of the hole when the debris began to fall over him. His body felt sore, but it was in one piece. He had a few broken bones, but the Demonic Form and Snore had managed to absorb most of the spell''s power. Elder Marco coughed a mouthful of black blood as he admired the result of his spell from high in the sky. That attack had required a great deal of focus from him, so his suppression on Noah''s poison had wavered for a few seconds. That massive display of power wasn''t efficient to use. It consumed a lot of energy, and it didn''t focus its damage on one point. It could be perfect against large magical beasts, but it was a bit wasteful against cultivators. The spell was by no means weak. Its large size made it unsuitable for targeting cultivators due to their small bodies, especially in a one versus one battle. The actual area that would hit them was only a minute part of the attack, which meant that most of the condensed air would end on the ground. Nevertheless, that was the safest and most challenging to avoid attack in Elder Marco''s arsenal. He could cast it from a safe position, and it worked as natural protection while he prepared it. Even the joint attack of Noah''s second form and Snore elements wasn''t enough to pierce it. ''Can he do it again?'' Noah thought as he rose in the sky. Yet, the same dangerous sensation as before filled his mind before a massive weight fell on his shoulders again and pushed him back on the ground. Noah felt his bones crackling during the impact. Elder Marco had launched another one of those large spells and had flung him on the ground again. The hole became more profound as the area of condensed air continued its descent. It leveled the previous debris that had fallen inside the rectangular chasm and dug for a few more hundred meters. Elder Marco spewed another mouthful of black blood. Noah''s poison managed to cause some damage every time he focused on casting that spell. Still, he inflicted more wounds on Noah in that way, so he felt satisfied with that outcome. The expert had found a way to avoid facing a hybrid body''s troublesome features and suppress Noah. Suffering some minor wound to end the battle safely was worth it. On the other hand, Noah was in a pickle. He could feel that his Black Mark spell was continuing to damage the Elder''s body, but he knew that he was suffering far more. Also, he didn''t know if Elder Marco was nearing his limits. He wasn''t aware of a solid stage cultivator''s full potential, so he guessed that the expert could continue with that tactic for a while. Noah was still okay, at least when it came to the world of the hybrids. Many of his bones were either cracked or broken, and his internal organs felt heavy after enduring that pressure. Quick math in his mind revealed that Elder Marco could kill him if he had the power to cast that spell nine more times. Noah would even become slower as time passed, meaning that most of his strategies would become useless. He felt that he had only two choices. He could dig a way out of that situation and call it a day, or try to defeat Elder Marco in the next attacks. The only problem with the second option was that he didn''t have a promising offensive strategy. He had already thought about digging a tunnel only to sneak on him once he resurfaced somewhere else. Yet, Elder Marco was high in the air, and Noah didn''t have anything to cover his presence. The Elder would notice the sudden attack and cast another of those large spells. After all, he only needed to sense the threat''s origin to decide which area to flatten. The only approach that could make an attack successful saw him piercing the condensed air formed while the Elder cast the spell and reach for him with the movement technique. The issue was whether Noah owned an offensive capable of doing it. ''Any solid stage cultivator can make me go all out then,'' Noah thought as a black sphere formed on his palm on began to float next to him. ''I guess thinking about killing them while being in the liquid stage is already a great achievement.'' The Black Hole spell had an innate gravitational pull that made the primary energy in the air gather around its form. Its power increased quickly, and it soon reached the standards of the solid stage. Elder Marco sensed that Noah was up to something. However, there was virtually no drawback in waiting for his opponent there in the sky. Also, there were various formations in the nearby regions so that Noah couldn''t escape underground. Of course, the Elder didn''t know about the separate dimension. He guessed that Noah was trapped there with him now. The territories nearby had sects under the Ravaging Demon sect too. There was no chance to escape with standard methods. However, Noah had no intention to escape. He had come there to destroy the True Mountain sect, and he would do it as long as he had a chance to succeed. Four fuming arms wielded copies of the Demonic Swords. Yet, they didn''t fuse into one slash. Noah was waiting for everything to be ready before unleashing another new technique. The dark sphere in front of him started to morph at that point. It became an irregular shape that floated toward the various Demonic Swords and covered their form with its energy. The Demonic Form enlarged when that happened, but Noah didn''t feel surprised since he had already tested the technique in private. The quantity of corrosive smoke released during that process was immense too due to that power-up. Another layer of a dark substance covered his weapons. That was Noah''s Black Mark spell, which increased the overall power of the attack. Then, Noah rose in the sky and slashed with his weapons at the first sign of danger. Chapter 977: 977. Water Noah''s scaled armor morphed when the power accumulated by the Black Hole spell converged inside it. It took a tall irregular form that vaguely resembled a six-armed dragon. Elder Marco didn''t hesitate to relaunch his large spell as soon as he sensed Noah rising from the hole. However, a massive figure appeared in his vision when the air around him started to condense. It was a gaseous shape. It had six arms stretched forward with claws pointing in the Elder''s direction, and a reptilian head with open maw between them. Its body was a cloud of violent black smoke that left a corrosive trail from its back. Still, its form condensed as it flew toward Elder Marco, and it slowly took the shape of a six-armed dragon. The dragon clashed with the condensed air spreading to complete the spell. To the Elder''s surprise, the creature broke through the dense atmosphere without any struggle and continued to fly toward him. Elder Marco felt threatened. He wasn''t sure if the attack could reach him, but his mind warned him that direct contact with it would be fatal. The condensed air suddenly started to retract and accumulate in the space between him and the dark shape, slowing down its advance and giving him more time to evaluate the threat. Yet, lightning bolts soon flew toward him from a different direction, followed by dark flames that radiated a destructive aura. That was a proper siege. Elder Marco felt like retreating at the sight of those attacks, but his experience in battles at that level revealed a second option. He had already seen how Noah''s abilities tended to assume draconic shapes. The many reports about him suggested that he had fused with a magical beast of that species too. When the Elder looked at the reptilian form breaking through his spell so quickly, he couldn''t help but link its appearance to a variation of Noah''s Demonic Form. After all, he couldn''t believe that the Demon Prince could vanquish his attack without relying on his hybrid''s strength. An idea quickly formed in his mind. He could end the battle in one blow if he managed to kill Noah while inside the six-armed dragon. The attacks of the winged snake would vanish as a consequence of its owner''s death. He didn''t need to escape or defend. Elder Marco only had to destroy the main spell of his opponent. The condensed air changed shape under his will. Most of it had already accumulated between him and the dragon, so it was easy for him to create something powerful in a few instants. A massive drill formed in front of the dragon and started to rotate. Its motion created storms all around its shape, which applied a pulling force to the environment''s air. Winds gathered around the drill, increasing its shape and its rotating speed. Even the black smoke that made the dragon began to waver as it flew toward the tip of the Elder''s spell. The two attacks clashed, and shockwaves flew everywhere as pieces of both spells fell apart in the impact. Cracks that led to the void filled the sky around them, and a large area became an unstable mess that very few cultivators would dare to cross. Elder Marco focused all his consciousness in increasing the rotation speed of the drill. His attack became stronger even as the six-armed dragon marched through its dense shape. Noah''s attack eventually lost too much smoke, and its stability wavered, giving a chance to the drill to destroy it in one go. Elder Marco prepared himself to restrain the Demon Prince at that point, but his expression froze when he saw no one inside the dragon. His consciousness quickly spread to find Noah. He couldn''t believe that the Prince was capable of such might without putting his body on the frontlines! Nevertheless, it was already too late. Elder Marco found his target only when a dark shape appeared on the corner of his eyes. Time slowed down for him in that situation. His eyes became able to make out Noah''s blurry features breaking the sky. The Elder could only condense the air around him in a desperate attempt to survive before his vision went dark. Elder Marco''s head exploded as Noah stopped behind him. His hands shot to stop his corpse from falling and stabbed his low-waist to seize his dantian. ''I did it!'' Noah couldn''t help but shout in his mind. The battle had been close, but he had successfully defeated a solid stage cultivator in the fifth rank on his own! He had to resort to a little ploy though, and luck had played a part in his victory too. Noah had planned to use the destruction generated by the two attacks to take his opponent by surprise. Yet, he didn''t expect the Elder to focus all his consciousness on the drill. That made it easier for Noah, who had planned to repeat the process until his enemy''s condition reached a critical point. The Elder had made a mistake during the exchange, and he had paid the price with his life. Noah believed that he would have won anyway if the Elder didn''t have other disposable items or secret abilities. Yet, managing to kill him without suffering additional injuries was the best outcome that he could hope for. Noah threw the bloody dantian in his mouth and seized the Elder''s ring. He was about to fly toward Elder Carmen''s corpse to find her storage item too, when his stomach became tense and forced him to bend. Vomit came out of his mouth. Noah spewed the Elder''s organ pieces along with the "Breath" contained inside the center of power. He continued to spit for a while. His body didn''t seem able to relax until it expelled anything belonging to Elder Marco. An oily liquid rose from his throat at some point, and Noah joined his palms to let it fall there. His condition improved as the oily liquid left his body. That substance was the cause behind his state. Noah wanted to analyze it and understand the reasons for the violent reaction of his body. A smelly scent filled his nose as Noah spit the liquid inside is joint palms. It didn''t resemble anything peculiar. He couldn''t sense any "Breath" or aura coming out of it. However, his mental energy became restless when he tried to investigate its fabric. Some foreign understanding tried to enter Noah''s mind at that point, but he promptly cut his connection with those tainted mental waves. The lines of the Divine Deduction technique began to shine as he kept on looking at that strange water. His brows furrowed as his mind tried to recall any memory that could help him understand the nature of that substance. Noah came up with a vague hypothesis after a while. There were unanswered questions when it came to the behavior of the Elbas family. There were only rumors when taken on their own. Still, they formed a pattern when pieced together, starting with the Royals claiming that they could force breakthroughs in heroic cultivators. Chapter 978: 978. Lis June had told Noah that there was a mysterious pool at the end of the Royal Inheritance. The claims that the Elbas family gave the chance for breakthroughs to the nobles came right after June''s team found it. The war against the Shandal Empire then revealed that some nobles had experienced sudden breakthroughs. That phenomenon wasn''t limited to them either. Some Royals had advanced faster than expected too. In the end, there was the cooperation between the Elbas family and the Ravaging Demon sect. The fact that a rank 5 cultivator stuck at the peak of the solid stage for so long had managed to advance right after the first sign of their alliance was suspicious too. It was safe to assume that even Elder Marco had gone through the same process. After all, even his breakthrough had been equally surprising. Everything seemed to fit the idea forming inside Noah''s mind. The foreign understanding that had tried to reach him was even another clue that supported his hypothesis. The pool retrieved in the Royal Inheritance appeared to have the ability to force breakthroughs in heroic cultivators. Yet, Noah''s body found its waters toxic, which was why he decided to refuse the understanding that they gave. There were some dark areas in his reasoning. Except for the actual proof that the oily liquid had some connection with the pool, Noah was unaware of its drawbacks. Such a miraculous item was bound to have massive repercussions on the centers of power of the cultivators. Even the natives'' transformation forced them to abandon their individualities, and that process was less invasive. ''Some nobles have never reappeared,'' Noah thought as the Divine Deduction technique helped him gathering all the pieces of information that he could find. ''And my body rejects this liquid, meaning that it can''t be anything good. I''ve never seen a magical beast being picky about food unless it has evident negative effects.'' An inscribed bottle appeared in his hands, and Noah stored the liquid inside it before putting it back in his space-ring. He wasn''t qualified to analyze that substance. It was better to leave the matter to Thirty-seven or Daniel. The destruction caused by his battle against the True Mountain sect appeared in his eyes when Noah moved his focus back on the environment. He expected to see reinforcements coming soon, so he didn''t want to remain in the area for much longer. Noah dived toward the ground and searched the spot where Elder Carmen had died. He quickly found her space-ring, and he returned in the location of the separate dimension''s door after seizing it. He had no time to look for the secret areas of the True Mountain sect. They would be troublesome to find and open due to the defensive inscriptions there. The alliance had predicted that the entrances to the separate dimension would break during the raids. It was part of its plan to deploy Thirty-seven''s disciples in each location to keep them functioning so that the attackers could retreat at any time. In Noah''s case, the destruction had been so thorough that the disciple in place had to rebuild the exit multiple times to keep it active for the whole duration of his battle. The door released a light that enveloped Noah''s figure when he activated it. The scenery of the separate dimension soon appeared in his eyes, as well as a familiar face that he didn''t see for a long time. "Demon Prince," Elder Roy said as he performed a polite bow, "I hope your hunt was fruitful." Noah''s consciousness swept Roy''s centers of power to check on their state. Many years had passed since the Elder had recruited him in the Chasing Demon sect, and many events had filled that long period. Elder Roy was still a rank 4 cultivator, but he had managed to reach the solid stage. Noah had outclassed his growth, but the Elder had found his path only after Thirty-seven joined the Hive. Noah nodded. That casual meeting reminded him of how much he had grown, especially since he had just overpowered a solid stage cultivator. "Get to the fifth rank," Noah said as he walked past him. "The Hive needs to recover from the war." There wasn''t much more that he could say to him. Their relationship had become stale since the Hive claimed its independence. Noah had been too busy becoming stronger than anyone in his generation to mind social interactions. However, seeing that the older generation''s experts were catching up eased his worries about the Hive''s situation. There were still many promising assets, and its foundation was finally on par with the other organizations. With the hybrids, the cultivators from the Odrea nation, and the many recruits that joined every day, it was only a matter of time before the Hive reached that level. It only had to turn that foundation into powerful Elders now. The insides of the Elders'' space-rings appeared in Noah''s mind as he walked toward a specific teleportation matrix. There were riches of various kinds inside them, but they mostly suited his two victims'' elements. There were a few valuable items, especially in Elder Marco''s ring, since he was the sect leader. They consisted of inscribed weapons and some scrolls, but nothing surpassed the fifth rank in terms of power. That amount of riches was average for rank 5 cultivators. Only cultivators that had encountered inheritances or were in similar lucky situations could get their hands on items that surpassed their power. Noah didn''t know if the True Mountain sect''s secret areas hid something else, but he wouldn''t risk his life to look for them. What he had obtained was already enough, and it wasn''t even the main goal of his mission. He had obtained what he wanted. The Ravaging Demon sect had lost two rank 5 cultivators, and he had tested his new abilities in a real battle. Also, he had seized essential pieces of intel from the Elders, which would help create a complete picture of the enemy''s situation. Noah returned to the gathering point of the alliance after using a series of teleportation matrices. It was a structure built in one of the destroyed areas under the control of the Hive. A series of amazed glances landed on his figure when he entered the large hall filled with Elders from both organizations. There were large maps that depicted the territory of the Papral nation and piles of notes next to them. The outcome of the first raids had already become a public domain for the most part. After all, there were many eyes on the Ravaging Demon sect. Also, some of the Elders that had rebelled had done so to become spies for the Council. Reports arrived continuously on a large crystal placed at the center of the room that created an ethereal screen where it listed all the major news. There were even kill counts when it came with the experts directly involved with the raids. Noah could see his name on the screen. He was almost at the top of the list, second only to Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon. Chapter 979: 979. Review Elder Marco and Elder Carmen''s names stood next to Noah''s. He felt amazed to find that the alliance had become aware of his kills so quickly. Still, the matter became doable when he thought about how the Council used to habit those lands a few years ago. There were bound to be remains of investigative items and formations in the Papral nation. One of the strongest organizations in those Mortal Lands couldn''t give up to their domain without activating some countermeasures. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon''s names were above his. They stood on the same line and top of the list, and they had four targets next to theirs. Noah recognized them from the data gathered about the Ravaging Demon sect in that period. The Demons had killed one cultivator in the solid stage, one in the liquid, and two in the gaseous. The Demons had been among the cultivators that had suffered the most from Ravaging Demon''s betrayal. Their anger wasn''t something that they could vent with a few raids. They had chosen to attack without bringing Elders from the Council, and they had targeted a region that had two different sects. No one in the alliance had dared to complain about their plan either since they knew their identities. The Council found it necessary to accommodate the Demons as much as it could. After all, part of their suffering was its fault. The sole fact that they had managed to forsake their past grudges to focus on Ravaging Demon was already a great result. Noah couldn''t help but apply his previous discovery to the current assets of the Ravaging Demon sect. It had been part of the Council, which had many heroic cultivators at the apex of its power. However, its number of powerful assets was abnormal, and there were a few cases of sudden breakthroughs when it came to old cultivators. Noah didn''t think much about it at the beginning. They were just targets that he had to kill to make Ravaging Demon come out. Yet, now they had become part of a ploy that had been in place for many years, probably decades! He could see the strings of the Elbas family behind the power of the Ravaging Demon sect. There was a chance that everything was only the product of his imagination. Still, many clues stated the opposite too. "Where are Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon?" Noah asked, breaking the silence that his arrival in the hall had created. "They went out again," Elder Regina said after she saw that the other Elders in the hall hesitated to reply. She even threw a small orb in Noah''s direction to update him about the other raids'' results. Noah caught the orb and inspected it with his mental energy. A list of all the achievements and pieces of information gathered after the battles appeared in his mind. Some of the attacks of the alliance had failed. The Ravaging Demon sect had deployed powerful defenses in essential locations, and the raiding teams there couldn''t find a way to cross them in a short time. Those weren''t common defenses placed at the borders of each domain. The separate dimension would directly ignore them in that case. Instead, they were formations placed directly at the center of each sect and capable of hindering any intruder. The alliance knew that the Ravaging Demon sect didn''t have that kind of inscriptions. It wasn''t a field that the Council specialized in. Also, those defenses seemed to target the effects of the separate dimension. It was as if the Ravaging Demon sect knew that its enemies had access to that tool, even if it had never suffered from the separate dimension before. All the clues led to the Elbas family again. The Royals were the only force capable of creating those defensive items in a few years and predicting the kind of attacks they had to stop. "Notify me if something changes," Noah said before leaving the structure. He was still tired from the previous battle, and his injuries had just started to heal. Noah had only changed his robe before visiting the structure, but there were many things that he wanted to before fighting again. The first one was healing, and the second was analyzing his current power thoroughly. The recent battle had given him a clear idea of where his battle prowess stood compared to solid stage cultivators. Noah had used all his abilities against Elder Marco, and the fight had been close nonetheless. ''I can face weaker solid stage experts,'' Noah concluded as he returned in the separate dimension. ''As for the stronger ones, I can only rely on my body for now.'' Noah gave the bottle containing the oily water to Thirty-seven before returning to his mansion. The images of his battle against Elder Marco filled his mind for the entirety of the trip, and he couldn''t help but feel satisfied with his new abilities. His movement ability fused the Merging spell with a martial art that used a mixture of brute force and a specific rhythm. Noah''s legs would imitate the effects of the Merging spell to enhance them and rely on their physical power to push his speed to the limit. The acceleration that Noah obtained with that technique was incredible. Its only issue was the lack of maneuverability due to the momentum that it was capable of providing. He could make sharp turns, but he couldn''t curve his trajectory accurately. Snore''s flames and feathers were incredible too, especially the latter since they weren''t limited to its level. The Blood Companion revealed itself to be a fantastic helper, with the only difference that Noah had finally removed the limitations on its growth. As for the ability that had given him the chance to win, Noah found it even more potent than he expected. Using the Black Hole spell to overcharge the Demonic Form spell gave birth to the third form of the Dragon''s claw martial art. Noah slashed his six arms without fusing them and threw all the black smoke around him along with the attack. That gave birth to a gaseous shape that took the form of a six-armed dragon. Its power was immense since it fused all the second form''s strong points with his other spells. The only issue was that the scaled armor would disappear after launching that attack. The same went for the copies of the Demonic Sword and all the Black Hole spell''s energy. Noah remained defenseless for a few seconds after using the third form of his martial art, but its power made it worth it. After all, Elder Marco had used the entirety of his consciousness to focus on his drill, but Noah''s attack had managed to match it for a few seconds. That was enough to prove how powerful it was. ''I''ve obtained these results by creating martial arts for preexisting spells,'' Noah thought as he meditated while his body absorbed nutrients to heal. ''How much power can I obtain if I create specific spells?'' Chapter 980: 980. Move The rounds of raids on the Ravaging Demon sect''s territories eventually ended. All the experts involved in the battles held a series of meetings to summarize the situation. The battles of the alliance in the Papral nation had been mostly successful. The only failures happened whenever the raiding teams met formations and inscribed items that targeted some of the separate dimension''s capabilities. The alliance''s kill count had reached eleven rank 5 cultivators of various stages and multiple assets in the fourth rank. The losses of the Ravaging Demon sect had been immense. It lost half of its strongest experts in just a few attacks. Of course, the alliance didn''t expect that trend to continue. The raiding teams had exploited the subtlety of the separate dimension well, but its enemy was bound to resort to countermeasures. The spies inside the Papral nation reported that most sects were moving in the locations that had survived the attacks. All the Ravaging Demon sect''s remaining assets amassed in three regions to prepare for the next waves of attacks. The rest of the Papral nation became empty of humans, and the packs of magical beasts didn''t hesitate to swarm them now that their enemies had disappeared. It took only a short period before those regions fell into a wild state. The forces of the alliance remained silent in that short period. Their enemies moved through teleportation matrices, which prevented eventual offensive operations. Also, some of their assets had to recover. Noah didn''t fight anymore after the battle in the True Mountain sect. His injuries weren''t severe, but the damage on the bones required some time to heal. His position on the leaderboard fell by a few spots, but he didn''t care about it. He didn''t need fame. His priority was on the path ahead. The Demons claimed the first spot though. Their fury against the Ravaging Demon''s underlings was boundless, and they vented it even on sects that didn''t have any rank 5 experts. However, even with all the separate dimension''s advantages, their enemies still had many powerful cultivators in their ranks. Simple sneak attacks could only make the raids easier. The Ravaging Demon sect had inherited part of the Council''s strength after the rebellion, but it could only retreat in front of the alliance. The Hive still had fewer experts than the other organizations in the world, but they were so strong that no one would consider it inferior. The Hive was a relatively young organization. It was normal for it to have fewer assets in the higher ranks. Yet, no one could match the quality of its experts. Noah alone raised the standard. After all, he was a cultivator capable of defeating existences on a higher stage! The reappearance and battle prowess of the Demons declared that the Hive owned the most talented cultivators. The only organization that could claim that spot was the Elbas family, but its fame mostly came from the incredible King Elbas. The alliance observed the Ravaging Demon sect''s behavior for a while and kept part of its attention on the territories of the Elbas family. Ravaging Demon had yet to show his face again. No one had seen him after the battle above the blue dome, and even the recent raids didn''t make him appear. A peculiar event happened in that period though. The alliance was still deciding on its next step when cultivators started to clear and habit the peripheral regions of the Papral nation. They were nothing more than settlements with only human cultivators led by a few experts in the fourth rank. The alliance didn''t mind them since they appeared as nothing more than hunting parties. Only the Hive knew that they had come to conquer some regions once the situation stabilized. The alliance had yet to divide those territories, and it wouldn''t do so until the threat of the Ravaging Demon sect vanished. Also, it was in no hurry to conquer them since they were part of the old continent. Only the most affectionate assets of the Council wanted their old home back to restore their face. After all, the Ravaging Demon sect''s rebellion had been something unexpected, but that they could prevent in many ways. Still, Ravaging Demon had helped the Council claiming the entirety of the Papral nation in the past. The losses that they had suffered during his betrayal had come after many advantages seized thanks to him. The alliance decided to assemble the armies once every expert had recovered from their injuries. Nothing peculiar had happened in those regions, so the attacking forces felt the need to pressure the Ravaging Demon sect before it came up with other countermeasures. They didn''t opt for the separate dimension though. That had to be a frontal attack that saw the Council and the Hive going against their common enemy. All the world had to see that scene. Three armies formed. The plan was to apply pressure on all the crowded areas at the same time and see if they could force Ravaging Demon''s hand. Of course, the powerhouses of both organizations would lie in wait for him. Noah and the Demons became the army''s leaders tasked to attack the Four Sigils sect, which was the new name given to one of the crowded areas. Some assets of the Council would join them, together with weaker cultivators from both organizations. There were even human cultivators, although not as many as during the war against the Shandal Empire. They were mostly assets that showed no talent or determination for the cultivation journey, and experiencing a battle could help them. "How do you want to drive them out?" Flying Demon said as he stared and the array of tall structures under him from the sky. "Prince, do you have something to throw at them?" Dreaming Demon asked as she turned toward Noah. There were assets of the Council among them, so she preferred to use his title when talking with him. The army had gathered in the region occupied by the Four Sigil sect, and the heroic assets were analyzing it from their position in the sky. Their target appeared as a marvelous city. It had four huge pagodas on its corners and a series of peculiar buildings among them. A series of mountains encircled those structures and worked as natural protection. They had faint traces of inscriptions on their rocky surface, meaning that they were part of the sect''s defensive formations. The Council''s intel had revealed that the Four Sigil sect had four rank 5 cultivators in its ranks, but only one of them was in the solid stage. With Noah and the Demons there, that threat was manageable. The only problem was its defenses. They could tilt the scales of the battle in favor of the sect. Noah shrugged his shoulders before waving his hand. Dozens of spiked spheres appeared in front of him and began to fall toward the mountain chain. Chapter 981: 981. Defenses Those Instabilities were all inscribed weapons with power in the fifth rank. Their tier varied, but there were a few of them in the upper level. Noah''s body was in the upper tier, and the Demonic Sword was still in the middle tier. Both of them required a large number of nutrients, but they had also become picky about them. Magical beasts in the lower tier of the fifth rank could barely satisfy their hunger. They preferred to hunt powerful prey to keep their carvings in check for more extended periods. However, there was a limit to how many powerful creatures habited the territories of the Hive. Noah had managed to refill his stash thanks to the hybrids, but he often had to rely on weaker beasts to satisfy his hunger. That made him gather many corpses belonging to weaker creatures. They were mostly big beasts though, which gave Noah enough materials to spare for some side projects, namely his disposable weapons. His higher energy improved the final products'' quality, allowing him to use many weaker materials to create valuable items. Noah could use many peak rank 4 body parts to mass-produce Instabilities with power at the bottom of the fifth rank. Also, the saber shaped-runes used as spikes didn''t depend on the material used. Noah tuned their level according to how much the sphere could hold, making the weapons threatening even if their overall power put them in the lower tier. Noah could refill his stash of Instabilities by sparing a few tissues from his meals, and he gladly did it since it improved his expertise with the dark matter. They were simple creations, but the experience was something built through countless hours spent training. The Instabilities fell toward the Four Sigils sect under the cold eyes of the Demons. They watched as the mountain chain around that large city lit up to create a defensive shield. Inscribed arrows shot from some buildings too. The arrows destroyed some bombs, but there were too many of them. Noah''s Instabilities fell on the golden shield, covering the city to release their destructive might. The bombs hit by the arrows exploded too, and a barrage of fuming spikes spread on the sky above the Four Sigils sect. Of course, the assets in the four rank on the scene had retreated a bit when they saw that the Demonic Prince had taken the initiative. They didn''t want to be too close when rank 5 cultivators acted. The light radiated by the golden shield flickered under the assault of the Instabilities. Each one of them was similar to a spell launched by a rank 5 cultivator, and more than forty bombs were exploding right above its surface! Cracks appeared on the shield, and golden shards fell on the city. Some saber-shaped runes even passed through the fissures and aimed for the buildings below. The arrows stopped them, but the explosions still raged in the sky, and the light of the shield dimmed as cracks accumulated. Then, the light completely vanished, and the mountain chain returned to its natural state. The storm of spikes flew toward the city at that point. Countless saber-shaped runes with the power of the fifth rank threatened to crash on the structures on the ground and unleash destruction among the cultivators inside them. Nevertheless, the pagodas lit up, and a wide array of inscriptions spread from them to cover the entire city. A series of golden beams then shot from the four tall structures and aimed for the spikes, destroying them at the slightest touch. Noah''s eyes sharpened at the sight of the beams, and the Demons turned toward him to nod. He had shared his theory about the Royal''s pool with the Hive''s higher-ups, and their opinions matched his. Still, there was a lack of actual proof since both Thirty-seven and Daniel were having issues analyzing the oily water. The quality of the defenses of the Ravaging Demon sect''s regions though showed how comprehensive its cooperation with the Elbas family was. The Four Sigils sect should only have a few defensive formations according to the Council''s intel. Instead, it had inscriptions capable of countering multiple kinds of threats. The lines on the ground probably had the purpose of defending from the separate dimension. Something like that wasn''t something that the Ravaging Demon sect experts could have built in a short time. Only the Elbas family had inscription masters with that level of expertise. The nods of the Demons meant that there might be more surprises once the attack started. The golden beams destroyed the saber-shaped runes before they could even touch the ground. Some of them managed to make a few buildings crumble, but that amount of damage was negligible. The Demons acted after the destruction stopped. Flying Demon deployed a layer of ice at the base of the mountains that spread over them as it made its way toward the city''s insides. Dreaming Demon closed her eyes, and the light of the formation dimmed as her consciousness invaded it. They had to take down those defenses before diving toward the city. They couldn''t barge in recklessly now that they suspected that the Elbas family had been there. The pagodas'' light fought against the spreading ice, but the latter seeped in some blind spots anyway. A few buildings started to freeze, and ice flowers grew on their surface. The flowers radiated Flying Demon''s individuality. They worked as the cores in a formation, giving more power to the ice that continued to reach the city''s center. The golden beams struggled to escape Dreaming Demon''s control. Yet, they only manage to bend their light without succeeding in reaching for the layer of ice. Panicked human cultivators began to exit their habitations and assemble in a battle formation at the center of the city. A few rank 4 experts also came out in the open to avoid the effects of the Demon''s attacks. Noah observed the scene with the utmost attention. The higher-ups of the Ravaging Demon sect had to appear soon. Otherwise, he and the Demons would level that city before the battle even started. As he had predicted, four figures suddenly shot in the air and stopped at some distance from the trio in the fifth rank. They were the four experts reported by the Council. The Demons continued to attack the city even after those enemies appeared. They had to damage its defenses as much as they could before the rest of the army invaded. However, their enemies couldn''t let them continue. There were two Elders in the liquid stage, one in the gaseous, and one in the solid. They were barely a threat in front of experts that had managed to survive the attack of a powerhouse. Yet, a series of inscribed items soon appeared in front of them and radiated auras with power at the peak of the fifth rank. The two cultivators in the liquid stage even started to execute strange forms to activate a battle formation. Chapter 982: 982. Golden Noah didn''t fear any of those enemies. His current battle prowess gave him enough confidence to fight all of them at the same time even! He didn''t know if he could defeat them, especially since they had powerful inscribed items. Still, he was confident that he could slow them down to buy some time for the Demons. A faint smell reached Noah''s nose and reminded him of the taste of Elder Marco''s dantian. A smirk appeared on his face when he identified the origin of that smell. The auras of the two liquid stage cultivators spread that hateful carried that hateful scent everywhere they went. Noah wouldn''t have been able to sense it before the battle against Elder Marco. Yet, his body could now perceive the presence of the oily water after it had a taste of it. After all, it was something that it hated, much like the Heaven Tribulations. Noah''s body had developed natural awareness against it. The forced breakthrough didn''t come with evident advantages, but Noah knew that individualities couldn''t express their full power if the enlightenment weren''t natural. The two liquid stage experts were bound to have flaws in their battle prowess, and he wanted to exploit that. Black smoke came out of Noah''s skin as his figure became blurry. The Ravaging Demon sect didn''t gather much intel from the raids due to their abruptness, so his abilities were still unknown to the enemy forces. Noah sprinted forward, leaving cracks in the sky behind him. He reached the four enemies before the scaled armor could even form, but his Demonic Sword was ready to slash at the two liquid stage experts. A faint golden light had begun to shine around the two cultivators since they had started to execute the battle formation. An array of scales had formed around them by the time Noah reached their position. The other two cultivators activated their peak rank 5 items too. The black cube in the solid stage expert''s hands expanded to create a large form that the sunlight seemed unable to illuminate. The last enemy threw a blue powder in the sky that surveilled the area, taking various shapes as it floated. The golden scales cracked under Noah''s attack, but the black cube''s expansion blocked it and pushed him backward. A metallic sound resounded in the sky as the slashes slammed on that dark fabric, leaving no marks on it. Noah''s legs landed on the cube, delivering two powerful kicks that didn''t manage to slow down its expansion for even a second. He wanted to remain there and deploy all his attacks, but the blue powder went after him, taking the shape of a giant eagle in the process. The world lost its light for an instant, and a wave of half-white half-ethereal flames came out of Noah''s mouth and engulfed the blue eagle. The creature changed form during the impact. Trails of dense blue powder came out of the flames and turned into a series of small snakes that pounced at Noah. The Demonic Form''s corrosive smoke hindered their advance, but a few of them managed to pierce the spell to reach for him. Still, they only found a cracked sky waiting for them. Part of the blue powder fell into the void as Noah sprinted away. He analyzed the expanding black cube as he flew around it, but he couldn''t find any weak spots in its structure. The situation didn''t bother Noah too much. The Demons could continue to damage the city''s defenses while the four experts were busy activating those powerful items. However, he still wanted to test his strength. After all, it rarely happened that something could resist his brute physical power so easily. Four additional arms wielded copies of the Demonic Sword as Noah executed the second form of his martial art. The air in the trajectory of his attack disappeared, but the black cube remained in place, and only a few cracks appeared on its structure. A clinking sound echoed in the sky again after the impact. Noah remained still when he saw that even his second-most powerful attack couldn''t pierce the cube. He felt something strange inside that metallic material, but he couldn''t understand anything else from that simple observation. Still, he opted not to use the Divine Deduction technique since he didn''t know how the battle would unfold. Buildings started to fall as Flying Demon''s spell spread through the entirety of the Four Sigils sect. The golden beams became dimmer too as Dreaming Demon''s consciousness damaged the sources of their power. Panicked human and heroic cultivators filled the streets of the city. All the sects'' assets had come out in the open by then, but their only hope was in their leaders. The defenses were slowly falling apart, and the rest of the attacking army stared at the process in awe and eagerness. Their moment was about to come, and everything had been possible due to the experts fighting above them. The blue powder came after Noah again, but its power had fallen since some of it had ended into the void. He felt almost tempted to ignore it and continue to focus the cube. Yet, he ultimately decided to sprint again and continue his assault in another spot. The powder radiated the power of the peak of the fifth rank, but it wasn''t too scary. It was annoying to deal with. Noah didn''t want to waste time with that troublesome item. He preferred to find a way inside the cube to hunt the experts before they prepared their countermeasures. The entirety of the sect became a frozen scenery in the next few minutes. No more lights came out of its buildings either, and the heroic cultivators on the scene had to use defensive spells to protect the human assets. Even the slight contact with the ice could freeze their entire figures. Flying Demon was a solid stage cultivator though. There was a limit to how much those weaker assets could fend off the ice. A series of cracks soon spread on the surface of the black cube, and a golden light came out of its insides. The item eventually fell apart to reveal a massive golden Tyrannosaurus! The Ravaging Demon sect''s solid stage and gaseous stage experts stood side-by-side with the giant creature as they retook control of their inscribed items. Surprise spread among the attacking troops. That golden figure was too similar to the battle formation of the Shandal Empire not to notice the backer of those rebels. All three invading forces had obtained the teachings of that battle formation, but there was only one force that could modify and deploy it in such a short time. It became evident to everyone that the Elbas family supported the Demon sect with its experience in the inscription field. Noah stared at the Tyrannosaurus and recognized the troublesome wings behind its back. However, its power didn''t reach the sixth rank. It only lingered in the solid stage. "I''ll take the big guy," Noah said, and the Demons revealed a cold smile as they glanced at the remaining two enemies. Chapter 983: 983. Caves Noah had chosen the Tyrannosaurus as his enemy mostly to test himself, but there were other reasons behind his decision. The Demons were the perfect experts to deal with any eventual defense deployed by the Elbas family while the allied forces regrouped. It was better if Noah took care of the most troublesome enemy while they managed the rest. After all, only one of their opponents in the fifth rank was in the solid stage. The had plenty of room to focus on the entirety of the battlefield. The Tyrannosaurus was different from the battle formation deployed by the Shandal Empire. It wasn''t only the different color of its light. Its form appeared far denser, and it only had a pair of arms and wings. It didn''t even require the same number of heroic assets. Only two rank 5 cultivators in the liquid stage had been enough to summon it. The power of the Tyrannosaurus appeared different too. Noah didn''t feel as if he was facing a formation. His senses told him that he was facing an actual magical beast. Noah''s eyes sharpened as he sprinted toward the tall beast. Pieces of information resurfaced in his mind as he tried to remember anything connected with that ancient species. He had the faint sensation that the Elbas family had deeply modified the battle formation, making it resemble the beast that it tried to reproduce. That meant that he could use the legends and old reports studied by chance when he was in the academy or searched for creatures suitable for the fusion. As if to prove his instincts wrong, the Tyrannosaurus spewed a golden beam aimed at the dark shape reaching for it. Its arms also slashed the air and released golden blades that flew toward the same target. Those were the same attacks used by the Empire''s battle formation. It seemed that the Royal''s version of the technique didn''t abandon those features. Noah ignored the incoming attacks. He was far faster than them. By the time they reached his position, he had already moved forward, leaving only a trail of cracks waiting for them. The cracks expanded once he reached the belly of the beast. A large patch of the sky fell apar as he made a sharp turn upward while releasing two quick slashes. The slashes slammed on the creature''s golden body, but they were unable to do much damage. Only a few deep marks appeared on its belly, but the wings promptly absorbed the energy still lingering in the environment to heal them. ''Are my instincts wrong?'' Noah thought as he rose above the Tyrannosaurs'' head to prepare another attack. However, the tail of the creature suddenly appeared on its path and cracked at him. The scene seemed to freeze for a moment. The cracks in the sky stopped spreading, and most of the black cloud around Noah vanished during the impact. ''They weren''t wrong,'' Noah thought as he looked above his head. His hand kept the golden tail stuck in an immovable grip, and his fingers had stabbed that dense light, creating cracks through that body part. After making direct contact with the creature, Noah could sense that the Tyrannosaurus'' physical prowess was on par with magical beasts near the peak of the fifth rank. ''It''s as if I''m fighting a proper hybrid for once,'' Noah revealed a cold smile as he thought that. ''I should let it know why a human form is the best for this strength.'' Noah didn''t feel any fear. Instead, his pride as a creature on the same level spiked when he found an opponent that could take his blows. He had found some of them in the other Mortal Lands too, but they were hybrids that could barely maintain their sanity. They were no more than beasts once they suffered a few injuries. However, there were two experts in the liquid stage controlling that powerful body now. Noah knew that there wasn''t the risk of them losing control of their mental faculties. He couldn''t help but feel excited at the thought of measuring himself against something that resembled him. The Tyrannosaurus spread its maw as golden light gathered in its throat. It was about to tilt its head to aim toward Noah when the latter abruptly pulled. The cultivators on the scene had begun to fight after the Demons destroyed the defenses of the city. Both humans and heroic cultivators had engaged in messy battles in the mountains around the city. Yet, the golden light above them suddenly started to shift, which created rotating shadows under them. Many couldn''t help but stop their battles to stare at the sky, and what they saw made them forget where they were. It seemed that the massive Tyrannosaurus was flying in circles. Nevertheless, they soon noticed that something was off. Its tail remained tense and pointing at the center of those circles, where a small fiendish figure was filling the environment with black smoke. It took those assets a few seconds to realize that the Demon Prince of the Hive was flinging the Tyrannosaurus around as if it was a small creature. Noah pulled the beast''s tail as he rotated on his position. The force that he applied was so intense that the Tyrannosaurus didn''t have the chance to stop its motion. It would have been different if the creature was a real magical beast or a hybrid. Still, two cultivators were controlling and creating that huge body, and they couldn''t find their balance while also keeping the battle formation active. Their expertise in that technique was minimal too, so they didn''t want to risk the golden beast''s integrity to attempt to restore their balance. Noah rotated to build momentum before throwing the Tyrannosaurus toward the Four Sigil Sect. A golden meteor fell under both armies'' incredulous eyes and slammed on the frozen buildings, spreading earthquakes that affected even the territories after the mountain chain. The dust eventually settled, but tremors continued to spread through the lands. The Tyrannosaurus'' fall had affected even the environment under the city, which continued to experience earthquakes. The Demons had fought against the other two experts in the meantime. They had the upper hand through the entirety of the battle, but their opponents had a series of peak rank 5 items that prevented them from expressing their full power. The black cube had reformed after the Tyrannosaurus'' appearance, and it had kept the duo from the Ravaging Demon sect safe. Instead, the blue powder had become a pile of ice shards after only a few exchanges. The gaseous stage cultivator though had deployed a series of whips that could act on their own and a dozen puppets with the shape of armored knights to replace it. Using so many items at the same time strained its mind to no end, but they allowed the duo to match the two Demons who assaulted them relentlessly. The Tyrannosaurus'' fall diverted their attention from their battle and made them stare at the destruction unfolding in the city. When the dust settled, they could see that the golden creature was at the bottom of a series of caves dug under the city. Chapter 984: 984. Understanding The light radiated by the tall beast illuminated the tall caves that made the city''s underground world. The area was vast and polished, which hinted that they weren''t simple tunnels dug to transport items. An eerie aura came out of that cavity too. The Demons couldn''t help but notice that panicked expressions had appeared on their opponents. The human cultivators and experts in the fourth rank resumed their battles, but the higher-ups remained still. Noah and the Demons seized that chance to send a series of mental messages to their allies in the Council to question them about the underground structure. However, they received conflicting answers. As cultivators who had lived through many ploys and near-death experiences, Noah and the Demons could guess when someone was trying to hide intel from them. The alliance between the Council and the Hive had set the basis for mutual trust, but they didn''t have to reveal everything about their organizations. Secrets had to exist, and the trio from the Hive felt that they had found one of them. Noah moved his attention to the eerie aura. A calming sensation accompanied it and filled the entirety of the underground structure. It spread on the Four Sigils sect too since there was a large fissure at its center now. A series of defensive formations activated after the breach. Layers of golden shields and armored puppets appeared on the surface of the city to protect that entrance. Noah and the Demons had found themselves in a similar situation many years in the past. They were in Divine Architect''s separate dimension, under the raining Heaven Tribulation, when they saw the Mortal Palace appearing. Their instincts as lone cultivators had made them ignore the danger and go after that mysterious place in the past. They didn''t even have to look at each other to make the same decision in the present. They could avoid the Tribulation in the past. Now, they had to defeat their enemies first. Their greed for resources couldn''t overcome their anger toward Ravaging Demon. Noah had no intention to chase the Tyrannosaurus inside the hole. The defensive formations would put him at too much of a disadvantage, even after his improvements. The Tyrannosaurus didn''t want to remain down there either. Noah could decide to help the Demons and come after it together with them if it didn''t help its companions in the sky. The two liquid stage cultivators inside the golden creature had understood that they weren''t a match for Noah in a melee battle. The Tyrannosaurus'' physical strength was above his, but they didn''t know how to use it properly due to their inexperience. Noah''s body was part of his existence, while the golden creature was only a weapon in those experts'' hands. There was an intrinsic difference in how much maneuverability they could have. It was only normal for Noah to be able to express far more power than his opponents. The Demons resumed their fight while Noah watched the Tyrannosaurus crossing the golden puppets and rising in the sky again. There were cracks over its body due to the last impact. Still, they were already healing due to the energy absorbed by the wings. Noah had understood that his normal tactics wouldn''t work against his opponents. The fact that the liquid stage cultivators relied on a battle formation made them quite hard to kill. It wasn''t a matter of abilities. Noah could dodge all the attacks of the creature, and his strongest technique could match its offensive. The only problem was its regenerative ability. The pair of wings absorbed the residual energy of every spell that passed near it. That allowed the battle formation to keep an intact structure and fight as long as the cultivators controlling it had enough energy. That gave a chance to the Tyrannosaurs to last more than Noah when it came to exhaustion. Noah knew that very well. The third form of his martial art could create a mess there, and his saber-shaped runes could try to sever its wings. Yet, he felt that he had a more straightforward method to deal with that creature. The Tyrannosaurus waved is arms to launch a series of golden slashes, but Noah had already started sprinting by that time. Cracks spread in the sky as he dodged the incoming attacks and reached for the maw of the beast. Noah delivered a powerful punch on the creature''s head, and golden shards shot everywhere as cracks appeared on that spot. The Demonic Sword left his grasp and stabbed those fissures to increase the amount of damage inflicted. The Tyrannosaurus'' tail tried to crack at him again, but Noah had predicted that attack. He sprinted away as soon as the Demonic Sword spread some corrosive smoke inside the creature and reached for another part of its body. Noah reappeared on the right side of its torso, and his fingers arched to form claws that ripped off the beast''s golden scales. The Demonic Sword quickly stabbed that spot again before Noah grabbed it to sprint toward another body part. The Tyrannosaurus couldn''t keep up with Noah''s speed, and all its attacks were unable to touch him. Also, relying on his physical strength prevented the accumulation of energy in the air, which negated the wings'' ability. Noah roared, punched, and stabbed as he sprinted around the massive beast. Cracks appeared and vanished as he continued to move in different spots to damage and destabilize the battle formation. That was a battle style suitable only to hybrids. It was an approach that allowed him to release only a small amount of energy while inflicting a good number of injuries. Noah was relentless in his offensive. Golden shards fell toward the frozen scenery as he kept on ripping the Tyrannosaurus apart. The mighty and scary figure had turned into nothing more than a maimed and broken creature after a few minutes. Signs of destabilization began to appear in its shape. The golden scales started to tremble as Noah''s assault continued, and many of them lost its solid form to return to a state of pure light. Noah noticed that phenomenon but continued with his offensive until a clear opening appeared in the beast''s body. The experts inside the battle formation were so busy trying to stabilize the technique that they didn''t notice the different smoke that had begun to enter the Tyrannosaurus. They only took it as Noah''s usual corrosive gas. However, their froze in place when they saw the massive reptilian head solidifying right next to their position. Their survival instincts spiked at that point, but it was too late for them to do anything. Snore released a wave of flames and a sword-shaped lightning bolt right in the center of the Tyrannosaurus, and the golden beast''s figure exploded into a storm of shards. A gray cloud followed the shards, but Noah quickly waved his hands to disperse it and catch the experts'' falling space-rings. As for their bodies, only a few bloody patches of tissues had survived the last attack. Chapter 985: 985. Statue Noah shook his head when he looked at the two space-rings in his grasp. The number of resources inside them was decent, but his thoughts were on the two liquid stage cultivators that had died under his attacks. They had relied on a battle formation that they couldn''t operate fully to improve their chances of survival, but the variety of their attacks had diminished due to that decision. Noah would have had a harder time dealing with multiple spells of various natures. Yet, the two experts would have died far sooner without the protection of the golden scales. Battle formations, inscribed items, and similar methods were helpful to cultivators. Still, there wasn''t much that they could do if the existences using them were weak or had evident flaws in their individuality. ''Power comes from within,'' Noah gave to the matter one last thought before moving his attention elsewhere. The Demons had ended their battle before Noah. It had taken them some time to get past all the protections and weapons of their opponents, but they were too experienced not to win that fight. Noah turned toward them only to see Flying Demon throwing two frozen human figures in his direction. He winked at him before focusing on the protected area in the middle of the city. Flying Demon''s ice had sealed the "Breath" inside the dantians of the two experts, preventing it from dispersing in the environment. Noah immediately ate them to obtain their nutrients. Noah''s focus went on the underground structure too. The golden shields prevented the eerie aura from leaking on the surface, but a strange sensation still lingered around the area. The human cultivators and experts'' battles in the fourth rank continued even if the fight was virtually over. The trio from the Hive could use that moment to focus on the caves before someone from the Council intervened. After all, that territory was the target of the army led by Noah and the Demons. The Council couldn''t claim the entirety of its resources if the trio were to seize them in that situation. The defenses in place to defend the underground structure were powerful. Their level lingered in the space between the fifth and quasi-sixth ranks, which showed how important those caves'' contents were. Noah and the Demons took their time to destroy the defenses without wasting too much energy or endangering themselves. Dreaming Demon hindered those formations'' responsiveness, creating opportunities that her companions exploited to destroy those inscriptions. The armored puppets fell apart without even being able to attack once, and the golden shields eventually followed that trend. The eerie aura resumed to spread in the city when the protections vanished, and the trio began their descent toward the caves. There weren''t many things that could surprise Noah and the Demons. They had dealt with gods rising into the starry sky and explored the researches of experts capable of probing other Mortal Lands with their creations. However, being immersed in a divine aura gave birth to mysterious and deep sensations even in such seasoned cultivators. Noah and the Demons could sense the trace of divine once they touched the eerie aura. Their minds began to wander in the world of the laws on their own. It was as if they had entered a realm close to those profound rules. Nutrients filled Noah''s body, but he couldn''t pay attention to them in that situation. His mind was lost as understanding dawned upon him. The feeling was similar to when he touched the winds in Shandal''s dimension, even if it was far softer and gentler. A general idea about the caves'' nature was already forming in Noah''s mind, but Dreaming Demon solved any doubt when the trio touched the ground. "Divine Elder Tabitha," Dreaming Demon said in a soft tone. Flying Demon nodded at her words, while Noah inspected that aura with a newfound interest. Even if the Demons had lived in that nation more than a thousand years ago, they didn''t know where Divine Elder Tabitha had placed her inheritance. It wasn''t a surprise that the forces of the Council didn''t want to give a clear answer. That place was the foundation of their power, as well as the reason behind Ravaging Demon''s betrayal. Noah could see how the cold expressions of the Demons softened as memories resurfaced in their minds. It wasn''t easy for them to suppress their emotions in that situation. Still, they had endured a lot already. Falling prey to their emotion would only threaten the stability of the alliance and endanger the position of the Hive in the world. "Let''s steal from a god," Flying Demon eventually said as he steeled his resolve. His lover caressed his shoulder before walking in front of him, toward the cave where the eerie aura was more intense. Noah didn''t speak and left the Demons handle their mental state. He was their friend, but only they could know the full extent of the scars that still burdened their minds. It wasn''t his place to say anything. The best he could do was to cover for their lack of focus. The trio advanced through the cave, paying the utmost attention to their surroundings. Those tunnels had a rectangular shape and sharp corners. Also, it seemed that they underwent constant maintenance since there wasn''t even a slight crack or trace of dust inside them. The aura intensified as the trio moved forward. They soon reached a large underground area where a series of columns surrounded a tall statue built at its center. "It''s her," Dreaming Demon said as the statue appeared in their vision. It depicted a woman dressed in a long robe that covered even her hands. Her eyes were closed, and she had long hair that reached her waist. Her face expressed a peaceful feeling, capable of calming down even the most violent of the beasts. Even Noah''s hunger dispersed in front of the aura radiated by the statue. Noah couldn''t help but think about Faith for a second. She didn''t resemble Divine Elder Tabitha, but their auras were similar. That could have been the reason why the Council wanted to keep her on its side even after her unruly behavior had come out. Her organization probably saw her as the rightful successor of its Divine Matriarch. "You came," A voice suddenly spread in the underground hall, and the trio quickly prepared themselves to fight. That voice belonged to Ravaging Demon, but the three of them couldn''t sense his presence anywhere in the area. "Can''t you see it?" Ravaging Demon said as he walked from behind the stature. He appeared as an average human in that situation. There wasn''t any sign of his mighty cultivation level. "I thought that my flames would be able to burn too after I reached the sixth rank," Ravaging Demon said as helplessness appeared on his expression. "I failed." Ravaging Demon sighed and gestured to the trio to follow him as he flew toward the ceiling of the hall. Noah and the others didn''t even bother to look at him before contacting the alliance''s powerhouses. Chapter 986: 986. Gathering Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had been ready for the eventuality of Ravaging Demon''s reappearance since the beginning of the attack. As soon as the trio in the underground structure gave the signal, they moved in their direction. A series of shining lines appeared on the ground of the hall, and a blinding halo filled the area for a few seconds before Chasing Demon''s figure appeared on the scene. A lightning bolt pierced the ceiling of the hall and stopped mid-air. The sparks condensed on the spot and took the form of Great Elder Diana''s figure. The two powerhouses had arrived in only a few instants! Ravaging Demon looked at the two powerhouses with a plain expression. It was as if he didn''t care about the threats that had appeared with the only task of killing him. "You failed to see the biggest flaw in your plan," Chasing Demon said as he rose into the air toward his sworn enemy. "You have never been worthy of the Immortal Lands." Ravaging Demon snorted when he heard that remark, and his sharp words followed it, "I don''t base my individuality on a dead lover and call it life at least!" "There is only one rule in the cultivation world," Great Elder Diana said as she joined the conversation. "You know that very well. Power is right. Weakness is wrong." "Power," Ravaging Demon said in a soft voice before exploding in a laugh and resuming to speak in a loud tone. "I stand here, at the last stage of the heroic ranks, and you dare to talk to me about power? I seized every chance, just like all of you did. Don''t lecture me about the cultivation world. I''m the embodiment of its true aspect!" The trio from the Hive listened attentively to the discussion, but an awful smell reached Noah''s nostrils as they remained on the floor of the hall. In his mind, he could now confirm that Ravaging Demon had made use of the Royal''s pool. Any small advantage could determine the outcome of a battle. That was true at any rank, especially when the mindset of a cultivator directly influenced the individuality. Noah knew that Ravaging Demon had no chance against those two powerhouses, but the Elbas family''s backing worried him. He couldn''t believe that the Royals had let them come so close to their target without preparing some traps. That was the reason why he sent a message to Chasing Demon, explaining the secret behind Ravaging Demon''s breakthrough. He didn''t dare to say it publicly because that could reveal his relationship with June, and he was sure that his Patriarch would be mindful of that too. Chasing Demon revealed a smile when he heard Noah''s message, but his expression soon turned sour. No one could understand his thoughts until he began to speak. "You betrayed everything and everyone for what? You ended up cheating your way to this level anyway. How can you even think that you can compare yourself to us?" Ravaging Demon''s laugh froze when he heard those words. He had no idea how Chasing Demon had learnt that information, but he had exposed the biggest flaw in his individuality! After all, Ravaging Demon truly believed that he was the perfect demon and the only cultivator worthy of that title. The fact that he didn''t manage to improve on his own was a crack in his belief that had haunted him since he reached the peak of the fifth rank. He had initially thought that his individuality was too vast and required more time. Yet, that belief had slowly turned into delusion after he spent hundreds of years stuck at his previous level. Ravaging Demon could only blame Heaven and Earth at that point. Changing path would probably kill him since his entire existence had destruction as its foundation. He had to cling on every other explanation to maintain his sanity. Still, the flaw remained there, and it became heavier inside his mind as time passed. It continued to grow even as he spent decades immersed in the oily water of the Royal''s pool. Now, Chasing Demon had given voice to his flaw, making it more real than ever. Ravaging Demon''s body began to tremble, and small pieces of his skin turned into flames as they lost their harmony. Even his face suffered from that destabilization, and his frozen smile deformed further during that process. "You can''t even handle failures," Chasing Demon said after heaving a helpless sigh. All his hatred seemed pointless when he saw how fragile his sworn enemy was. However, the hatred didn''t disappear. Ravaging Demon had to die. It was a vital matter for him. Chasing Demon reached forward, but a confused expression appeared on his face. His "Breath" came out of his hand, but it refused to form violent spells. "You can''t fight here," Great Elder Diana said as she created a platform made of "Breath" to lift Ravaging Demon through the fissure in the ceiling. "No one has ever managed to fight next to Divine Elder Tabitha." Chasing Demon nodded, and the three powerhouses flew outside of the underground hall, leaving Noah and the Demons alone. The three of them exchanged a glance and hesitated before deciding to follow the rank 6 cultivators. They were inside Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance ground, but the Council had owned that place for more than a thousand years. The Ravaging Demon sect had done the same in that period. It was unlikely that those strong organizations had left resources laying around for the trio to take. Instead, spectating a battle among cultivators in the sixth rank could provide significant insights into the laws'' world. The three of them could see how the powerhouses wielded their laws according to their individuality. Noah and the Demons resurfaced and found themselves in a thick forest. Noah could sense how the area''s lifeforms had fled due to the three powerhouses in the air. The trio flew away too, but only to find a safe spot to inspect the powerhouses'' battle. After all, even they couldn''t do anything when it came to fights on that level. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana circled the motionless Ravaging Demon and prepared their offensive spells. That resembled an execution since their enemy didn''t appear willing to react to those threats. Nevertheless, a fourth powerful presence appeared in the sky above them and claimed their attention. "I wouldn''t do it if I were you," King Elbas said as he spread his aura to announce his arrival into that battle. The four powerhouses had converged into the same battlefield once again. "You," King Elbas said as he eyed Ravaging Demon, "I''ll help you become a god. Now fight." Ravaging Demon''s figure stabilized when those words echoed in the environment. He didn''t care if King Elbas'' promise sounded absurd. He was willing to cling to anything as long as he could hope to reach the Immortal Lands. "You owe me one," Great Elder Diana said as she flew upward to face King Elbas. Chasing Demon limited himself to nod before focusing on his opponent, who had started to laugh again. Chapter 987: 987. Puppets Ravaging Demon laughed and exploded into a sea of flames. An intense sense of destruction filled the area and created large patches of void in the sky. Chasing Demon didn''t move. The flames engulfed him, but a metallic membrane came out of his skin and covered his entire body. When the flames retracted and condensed to retake Ravaging Demon''s shape, the membrane around Chasing Demon broke and revealed that he didn''t suffer any injury. The metallic shards of the membrane fell on the ground as Chasing Demon observed his opponent without revealing the slightest tinge of emotion. There was only coldness in his eyes as he looked at the man that he had hated for more than a thousand years. The ground rose after the metallic shards stabbed the terrain. Hundreds of humanoid golems formed and flew in the sky as they punched toward Ravaging Demon. The gravity around him increased too, and pressed on his form, slowing down the spreading of his flames. Ravaging Demon managed to turn into a sea of flames right before the golems reached him. A few of them exploded in the impact, but many endured the fire and waited for their caster''s orders. The metallic membrane protected Chasing Demon again, and its shards fell to the ground to create more golems. Meanwhile, Ravaging Demon reappeared higher in the sky, closer to the battle between Great Elder Diana and King Elbas. King Elbas had a series of long fiery snakes around his figure. They spewed long trails of flames that aimed for the elusive Great Elder Diana. Great Elder Diana danced in the sky as parks cracked under her feet. The snakes'' flames couldn''t touch her due to her high speed and sharp turns, and she launched small lightning bolts whenever she stopped. Her attacks landed on the snakes circling King Elbas but were unable to reach him. The two powerhouses exchanged attacks, defenses, and dodges without gaining the upper hand on their opponent. Of course, they weren''t trying their best. They were only preventing each other from influencing the battle between the two demons. King Elbas'' words toward Ravaging Demon had hinted that he wouldn''t help him against Chasing Demon. So, it was pointless to waste resources to gain the upper hand over Great Elder Diana. Their fight was necessary, but it was more of a probing than a proper battle to overcome their opponent. Ravaging Demon glanced at their battle before focusing on his opponent again. An army of golems flew toward him while Chasing Demon scattered more metallic shards on the ground. The forest had turned into a messy pile of debris and holes due to the golems that had formed. There didn''t seem to be a limit to how many of them Chasing Demon could create. Ravaging Demon spread his hand forward, and a violent flame appeared in his palm. That was his third fire already, and it was remarkably stronger than his previous attacks. Before the golems could reach him, Ravaging Demon''s fire exploded into a sea of flames again, destroying dozens of those rocky puppets. That generated more explosions though, which dispersed a large part of his attack. Ravaging Demon reformed again in another spot only to see that there were even more golems going after him. Chasing Demon wasn''t giving him any chance to recover. His complexion had already paled due to the many detonations. Ravaging Demon wasn''t immune to damage when he turned into flames. His situation could only become worse. The destructiveness of Ravaging Demon''s flames was increasing as he cast spells. Still, the number of golems under Chasing Demon''s control had never stopped growing either. The more golems fell apart, the more detonations would happen. Ravaging Demon could only continue to suffer more injuries if he kept on fighting in that way. A large crystal suddenly appeared in Ravaging Demon''s hand before he expanded his fourth flame. His fire converged into that item and shot toward Chasing Demon in the form of a crimson beam. The attack surprised Chasing Demon. Even as a powerhouse who had cheated his way into the sixth rank, his opponent still had a power worthy of that level. A normal rank 5 item wouldn''t be able to endure his "Breath". The crystal had to be an inscribed weapon in the sixth rank, and there weren''t any doubts concerning its origin. Chasing Demon suppressed a curse aimed at King Elbas and controlled the golems so that they would amass on the trajectory of the beam. The condensed flames had an incredible piercing power and destroyed hundreds of puppets as they tried to reach their target. Yet, the detonations that followed the golem''s destruction depleted their energy, making the beam unable even to come close to Chasing Demon. Ravaging Demon summoned his fifth flame, which burned with even more intensity than the previous one. Its destructiveness was so unruly that even the skin of his palm began to burn. Chasing Demon had no intention to lose the upper-hand in the battle. The remains of his golems and the other intact puppets began to converge on a spot right above his opponent to form a massive hand that closed on him. The hand trembled, and crimson light shone from the fissures among the fingers. Tongues of flames came out of them, but the grasp held strong and continued to squeeze the cultivator inside it. The crimson light eventually vanished before a red brilliance seeped out of the palm again. Some flames managed to come out from the small cracks on the rocky fingers, but the hand was as stable as a mountain. It seemed that nothing could make it move. Ravaging Demon had to resort to his seventh flame since both the fifth and sixth had failed. The massive fingers trembled slightly at that point, and some cracks spread throughout the hand. Yet, the grasp remained closed. Only the spreading of the eight flame managed to destroy the hand and release Ravaging Demon, who revealed his maimed state to the world. His body was a mess of bruises, broken limbs with bones coming out of his skin, and blood. The pressure that he had to resist inside the hand had hurt him badly, and it would have reduced him to a pulp if he didn''t manage to escape in the next seconds. However, as soon as Ravaging Demon''s sight focused, two massive pouches slammed on him and destroyed the entirety of his lower body. Chasing Demon didn''t stay still while Ravaging Demon was trapped. He had created two massive titans that had punched his opponent as soon as he freed himself. A cloud of blood and flames spread after the impact. Ravaging Demon spewed blood as his upper-body flew higher in the sky. He had been too focused on getting out of the hand that he didn''t notice the two titans. Those massive puppets now stood with their right fists connected to his previous position, but their heads tilted to follow his figure. Cracks spread on the giants'' faces to form huge mouths at that point, and their insides began to tremble to prepare a loud cry. Chapter 988: 988. Trapped Noah and the Demons observed the battles with the utmost attention. They didn''t let even the slightest detail escape, and they made sure to memorize every exchange among the powerhouses. The four of them appeared able to move the laws without thinking. Their hands moved, and the world acted according to their will. King Elbas'' flames burned more brightly after every attack blocked effortlessly. The more his figure gained importance, the more intense his fire would become. Great Elder Diana was untouchable. She danced in the sky, launching precise lighting bolts whenever she found an opening in her opponent. Space itself seemed to bend whenever she moved as if trying to give her the chance to attack. Ravaging Demon was a true embodiment of destruction. Large pieces of the sky fell apart every time his flames spread, and even the air burned due to the effects of his individuality. His flames didn''t leave even him unscathed. There were patches of burned skin on his upper-body, and smoke came out of his hair. Chasing Demon appeared majestic. His mental waves gave birth to humanoid lifeforms, and every piece of the terrain took life whenever his individuality swept them. All four of them acted normally as if casting those powerful spells didn''t require the slightest effort. They willed, and the world reacted. Even their expenditure of "Breath" appeared minimal since the environment helped them. They were existences able to wield the laws, but that had yet to become one of them. Noah could vaguely guess what the four of them were aiming for. Ravaging Demon was easy. He just wanted to burn everything and become a more profound type of destruction. King Elbas was the same. His arrogance pushed his bloodline to become the best possible fuel for his flames. His value as a material increased, which allowed him to give birth to stronger reactions. Great Elder Diana was strange. Her individuality expressed her complete control over the lightning element, but it also affected the space around her. Noah could only make various assumptions when looking at her. He couldn''t understand anything specific nor the law that she wanted to become. Chasing Demon''s individuality gave life to inanimate objects, but it wasn''t as simple as it looked. His aura radiated a peculiar craving, something far more profound than merely shaping and controlling humanoid puppets. He didn''t give life. He desired someone''s life so intensely that the inanimate matter took life when his individuality touched it. His aura conveyed that desire, and the ground replied, shaping itself in golems that obeyed his orders. It wasn''t a secret who was the cause of Chasing Demon''s desire. Ravaging Demon had understood that since their first exchange, and Noah didn''t take much to comprehend that too. Chasing Demon desired Charming Demon to be alive so intensely that his entire individuality had grown using that feeling at its foundation. As for which law he wanted to become, Noah didn''t know. His guess was on something related to resurrection and similar fields, but he couldn''t be sure. Nevertheless, Noah could relate with Chasing Demon, even if in a far milder way. His approach toward death had always been too radical for his mind to fall prey to such emotions. Still, he felt them. Also, his creation belonged to similar fields for what concerned the laws. He had even given birth to lifeforms already. Noah''s fingers tingled as he understood Chasing Demon''s individuality. He wanted to isolate himself in a training area right away to vent that eagerness, but the battle of the powerhouses kept him glued on the spot. Ravaging Demon floated in the sky without a clear goal. The lower part of his body was no more. The titans had destroyed it along with his dantian. The only force keeping him alive was his sea of consciousness, but that was a temporary fix. His life hung on a thin thread, and he needed to stabilize his body if he hoped to survive. Of course, his potential as a cultivator was no more. His dantian was gone. The only method capable of solving that issue was the transformation of the natives of the other world, but even King Elbas couldn''t replicate that easily. "What a disappointment," King Elbas said when he saw the poor state of his ally. "He even managed to destroy the fire prism. That was one of my first creations to reach the sixth rank." King Elbas snapped his fingers, and a peculiar reaction happened in Ravaging Demon''s maimed body. Trails of flames came out of his figure and converged in the Royal''s position where they fused with his skin. King Elbas''s flames became more violent as the process continued, and Ravaging Demon became thinner as his ally sucked his existence away. "You could have killed me when I was at my peak," Ravaging Demon said as he exploded in a vulgar laugh. "You won''t be able to absorb even half of my power now." King Elbas shook his head, uncaring that Great Elder Diana''s attacks were slamming on the fiery snakes around his figure. An arrogant smirk appeared on his face before he replied to his ally. "You need to invest resources in every experiment. Trust my words when I say that this is only another failure in my eyes." Chasing Demon suddenly arrived in front of the thinning Ravaging Demon and grabbed his head with both hands. There was only hatred in his expression. The sole thought that someone could take away his target had made him abandon any composure. "You thought that you could play around because you had nothing to lose," Chasing Demon said in a deep tone. "You made a mistake." King Elbas'' smirk froze when he saw a black sheet appearing next to the Demons. His expertise in the inscription fields made him understand the purpose of that item in an instant. "You made the Demon sects suffer their greatest loss," Chasing Demon continued to speak as his grasp tightened, cracking his opponent skull. "It''s only proper that you spend eternity protecting them." A faint substance came out of Ravaging Demon''s head and entered the sheet when Chasing Demon broke his skull. A small version of Ravaging Demon''s figure appeared on the black item and began to move while wearing a panicked expression. The trails of flame converging toward King Elbas dispersed, interrupting his absorption of power. Chasing Demon had killed his opponent with his last move, removing the owner of that energy and dispersing it in the environment. Chasing Demon glanced at the figure inside the black sheet. Ravaging Demon screamed and slammed its ethereal arms against the item''s fabric, but nothing came out of it. The Patriarch of the Hive had trapped his consciousness. As for what he would do with it, only he knew. Great Elder Diana and King Elbas stopped fighting at that point. There was no reason to continue that battle unless the leader of the Royals wanted to make the world fall into war again. Chapter 989: 989. Craving The three powerhouses didn''t move after Ravaging Demon''s death. Chasing Demon stored the sheet and joined his ally in her stare toward King Elbas. The leader of the Royals'' behavior would decide how the situation would unfold. They could have an all-out battle there, or retreat and return to their respective domains. Of course, the leaders of the alliance didn''t want to fight there. King Elbas was a formidable opponent, and his stash of inscribed items would most likely keep him alive against the joint offensive of his two enemies. That was the best outcome that Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana could picture in their minds. There was the chance that King Elbas could overwhelm both of them. Moreover, the Council and the Hive would gain the most out of a break in the hostilities. They could slowly suppress the Elbas family in the safety of their domains and eventually launch a war once the Royals declined. King Elbas'' flames showed signs of instability from time to time. Absorbing the dying Ravaging Demon wasn''t a natural process, and any sudden increase of power usually required a period of cultivation to stabilize the improvements. The leader of the Royals couldn''t suppress that instability. No matter how hard he tried, some of his flames would flicker, exuding Ravaging Demon''s destructiveness in the process. The alliance''s powerhouses didn''t overlook that, and they tried to memorize the instabilities'' rhythm to use it to their advantage in case a battle happened. King Elbas noticed their attentive gazes, and his expression became pensive as mysterious thoughts filled his mind. He seemed busy performing profound calculations in the span of those short instants. Then, he abruptly turned and left to fly in the direction of his domain. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana heaved a sigh of relief at that scene. The sole fact that King Elbas had considered the idea of fighting both of them was a sign that he could do it. The two powerhouses couldn''t possibly guess the real value of the assets created by the existence known as the best inscription master in those Mortal Lands. They didn''t know what he had managed to build in the years spent ruling his family. The two of them flew toward each other and exchanged a few words that the trio on the ground couldn''t hear. The war against the Ravaging Demon sect was virtually over, so they needed to discuss how they would divide the gains. The terms of the alliance would typically force them to divide everything equally, but those territories were the Council''s home. The Hive could give them back in exchange for more assets and some concession. Many cultivators of the Ravaging Demon sect had survived the battles. They were too valuable to be executed. It was better to turn them into manpower that could slowly gain the trust of the victorious organizations. Great Elder Diana left first, and Chasing Demon neared the trio on the ground. There was a complicated expression on his face. Part of him appeared happy, but there was helplessness behind his smile. The Demons wore a similar expression when they looked at their old friend. The pain that had festered for a thousand years was still there, but they had managed to find closure in the end. Their emotions surged as they reunited, and Noah distanced himself from them out of respect for their sorrow. Since no one had given him any explicit order, he flew back into the underground hall to meditate in front of Divine Elder Tabitha''s statue. Noah reviewed the images of the powerhouses'' battle as the eerie aura helped his mind explore the world of the laws. His thoughts felt smoother near the statue, and understanding soon dawned upon him. The rocky ground around the statue trembled slightly as Noah''s consciousness expanded, carrying the understanding he had just gained. The dark matter came out of his heart and fused with part of the terrain before two golems grew out of it. The golems initially had vague facial features, but they became clearer as Noah lost himself in his craving for life. Details appeared on both of them, and even robes soon shaped around the two rocky figures. Noah opened his eyes when he felt that the process had ended. The innate coldness in his reptilian eyes vanished as he turned toward the two golems to inspect them. They were different from Chasing Demon''s powerful puppets. They were golems that depicted two crucial figures that Noah had lost during his cultivation journey. One of them depicted Lily, whom Noah still remembered down to the slightest detail. The puppet had managed to represent her delicate features and caring gaze, and it even showed some of her usual bruises. The other depicted a young William Challi wearing a sleepy expression but with an expression similar to Lily''s. Noah stared at them without showing any emotion. He knew how Heaven and Earth handled the souls of living beings, so he was sure that a proper resurrection was impossible. Yet, looking gave birth to a soft sorrow inside him. Noah didn''t forget that the two of them had been essential at the beginning of his cultivation journey. Without them protecting and training him, Noah''s power would have never grown so quickly. Anger appeared inside him too. Part of him regretted the aloofness that he had carried with him from his past life. Lily and William had given him nothing more than love and care, but Noah had rewarded them with coldness and death. It couldn''t be helped. Noah could only think about his power back then, and it had taken him a long journey to accept his human side. He had to spend decades fighting, betraying, and escaping to awaken that part of him, which culminated with his love for June. Noah''s stare toward the golems became intense. Understanding of the laws of creation became clear in his mind as his emotions surged. He knew he could turn those puppets into proper lifeforms now. There was little that he couldn''t do in that particular mental state. He could even copy their personality, making the golems resemble those two important figures quite vividly. "The past can only drag you down," Chasing Demon''s voice suddenly echoed in the underground hall. Noah didn''t need to turn to sense that the three Demons had entered the area. "I know," Noah replied as his hand rose to point at the two golems. "This feeling can force life into inanimate matter, but it can never bring what you lost back." Chasing Demon sat next to Noah, and the other Demons did the same. The four remained silent, lost in their thoughts and emotions as Divine Elder Tabitha''s statue enhanced their mental capabilities. Noah slowly closed his hand after a while, and the two puppets crumbled. His emotions became sable again, but that craving for life remained and became part of him. Chapter 990: 990. Growth Noah and the Demons remained in the underground hall while the battles on the other two crowded areas ended. The terms of the alliance between the Hive and the Council covered the division of the gains already, but Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had made private pacts too. Most of the Papral nation''s territories would return to the Council, which would compensate the Hive by giving it a larger share of the gains. Moreover, the Council would share the training areas in Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance ground. The war against the Ravaging Demon sect had established a new political environment that saw the Elbas family as the strongest force in those Mortal Lands. Still, the Royals had powerful enemies who had even allied to control them. As for the Shandal Empire, its troops spread through some empty regions in the Papral nation and settled in its peripheral areas. The Council noticed their invasion only after the war was over, but there wasn''t much that it could do at that point. The Council had suffered countless losses after battling the Empire and the rebellion of the Ravaging Demon sect. It couldn''t afford another war, mainly since many higher-ups of the Empire had survived thanks to the Second Life formation. The Hive wasn''t willing to help it either. The Council didn''t know that it had sealed a secret pact with God''s Left Hand, but its decision appeared reasonable. The had been too many conflicts in the span of a few decades. All the organizations in the world had yet to recover properly. It was time to enter a long period of peace and make the best out of the new political environment that had formed. . . . Peaceful years passed. The political borders of the various domains remained the same due to the absence of any significant conflict. The only battles happened among human cultivators, but they could not affect the world''s forces'' relationships. The Shandal Empire and the Elbas family went utterly silent in those years. They both focused on reinforcing their domains and restore a positive trend in their growth, without interacting with the other organizations. Instead, the Hive and the Council began to interact often. They deepened their relationship by creating events meant for the promising human cultivators and organized meetings among experts in various fields. More neutral structures appeared in their domains. The alliance created sects that shared disciples from both forces and buildings meant for research and investigation. The Hive and the Council began to share techniques too. They used their accumulated knowledge in the inscription fields to research and exchange spells, martial arts, and peculiar creations. Of course, they didn''t share their secret and most valued techniques. The most precious items in the trades were the living weapons, but the Council had to pay a hefty price for each one of them. Both organizations flourished during those years, and their growth improved as their cooperation covered more fields. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon would often recall the old political environment of the Papral nation when they saw that, but they had found some peace after Ravaging Demon''s death. They could wholeheartedly focus on the positive aspects of that cooperation now. Most of the higher-ups of the Hive entered a long period of seclusion in those years. The world''s political matters didn''t require their presence to focus on their cultivation again. Noah did the same, even if his needs as a hybrid and his duties inside the Hive forced him out of his quarters more often than his peers. He had a few visitors too. Daniel, Faith, and the Demons would often come by his mansion in the separate dimension to share some wine and insights concerning the laws'' world. The four of them were busy with their matters, but they liked to spend time with Noah, especially since Shandal revealed that his existence went against Heaven and Earth''s system. The Demons came more often since they didn''t have any specific task. They visited Noah whenever they needed a break in their training and intimate time. Daniel came once every few years. The other Mortal Lands were the perfect research field for an alchemist due to the peculiarity of their lifeforms. He would often travel there to study and handle the faction of the Hive settled there. Faith could remain for days inside Noah''s mansion since she didn''t have any real relationship in the Council. Also, the rumors that she and Noah would eventually marry and reinforce the alliance''s stability scared many of her pursuers away. Noah had become even more famous after the wars. His battle prowess ignored any common sense and placed him near the top of the fifth rank even if he was still in the liquid stage. No one would dare to mess with him. Faith''s pursuers could only accept that the Demon Prince of the Hive had conquered the most beautiful woman in the world. Of course, that was the complete opposite of the truth. Faith could be at ease around Noah because she knew that he only saw June as his partner. As the relationship between the alliance and the Elbas family worsened, Noah found no chance to meet June. Faith couldn''t even visit her to gain information about her location, so the couple remained separated in those years. The Elbas family would still respect the pacts sealed before the recent chaos. The Council and the Hive could use the dimensional portal and rule over Divine Market city. However, they didn''t interact anymore, and they avoided themselves even when they were in neutral areas. Noah didn''t mind that at the beginning. He and June had spent years away from each other for many decades without endangering their relationship. Nevertheless, the peaceful period continued for decades, and the weight of those years began to accumulate on Noah''s mind, forming a constant longing that couldn''t go away. Noah still trained and experimented like a madman in those years. Yet, June''s face appeared often in his mind whenever his thoughts wandered. The peaceful period brought only positive events inside the Hive though. Many cultivators of the old generation managed to catch up with the talents that had outclassed them and reinforced their organization''s higher ranks. The various techniques retrieved along the years and created by the new generation of inscription masters gave birth to multiple experts too, reviving schools that were thought to be lost. The old leader of the thieves'' faction of the Chasing Demon sect, Bruce, managed to reach the fifth rank after applying the Enduring Demon sect''s methods to his cultivation technique. Alison managed to use the teachings of the Charming Demon sect to improve her illusions. She reached the fifth rank, and she even healed her revolting body in the process. Elder Roy reached that level too, but his focus remained on the inscription fields. His battle prowess was negligible even as a rank 5 cultivator. Noah managed the hybrids too, creating an elite force that the world was still unaware of. However, he grew restless with each passing year, and his eyes soon landed on the sea as he craved for new journeys. Chapter 991: 991. Adventure The growth of the Hive didn''t concern only the old generation of Elders. Too many forces had gathered there in the last years, and they were finally showing results in that peaceful period. The soldiers from the Odrea nation had accepted their past after God''s Left Hand gave them access to Shandal''s emotions. Their anger wouldn''t vanish quickly, but they took pride in their determination. After all, they had been able to stir the feelings of a god. That achievement was worthy of being recorded in the historical records of the world. Many human cultivators reached the heroic ranks too. The Hive had countless methods to stimulate the growth of its assets, and the alliance with the Council gave them a friendly opponent to surpass. The copying formation taught them how to fight in life-threatening situations, and the events with the assets of the Council provided experience in battles against cultivators. The Hive gave them access to various cultivation techniques, and Thirty-seven''s disciples held many classes that covered multiple inscription methods. The rivalry among the domes and the sects of the Council gave them another reason to improve. The Hive had reached the point when it could create small conflicts among its forces to stimulate its overall growth. Noah benefitted a lot from that peaceful period. His power grew smoothly, and his experiments increased his understanding of the world of the laws. He had also started to learn how to endure his hunger to improve his control over his instincts. Noah would purposely starve himself from time as a form of training, and the results were more than satisfying. His body slowly changed as it harmonized with the dark matter in the heart. Noah was already a unique existence since his hybrid status came from a technique, but the presence of a fourth center of power modified him further. The only problem was that his breakthroughs were far away. His mind had been in the fifth rank for a while by then, but the sixth rank appeared unreachable. His improved spherical rune kept enlarging his sea of consciousness, but Noah had yet to sense the arrival of a limit. His dantian improved quickly since his expertise with the world of the laws improved day by day. He wielded them with every new creation and destructive ability, and his cultivation level benefited from that. Yet, he wasn''t even halfway through the liquid stage. That wasn''t surprising since cultivators usually spent centuries at those levels, but Noah felt eager to become stronger. His body''s growth slowed down in that period, and his starving sessions had nothing to do with it. There were fewer targets that could nourish it enough to cause substantial improvements. There was a limited number of creatures in the upper tier of the fifth rank in the world, and eating weaker beasts barely satisfied his hunger. The dantians of the Ravaging Demon sect''s experts had given a boost to his body, but everything had proceeded slowly after that. Even the hybrids had started to behave, so Noah didn''t have any reason to eat them or turn them into materials. He had reached the point when he needed to move his attention away from the landmasses if he wanted to find suitable prey. Noah wasn''t too worried about his cultivation level. He knew that he was already growing as fast as he could. The only issue was the boredom that came with spending decades repeating the same training. He loved growing stronger, but he had never spent such a long period secluded in his training area. His mind was becoming tired of the pale environment of the separate dimension. He wasn''t keeping track of it, but he felt that he had spent a century there already! Having power was great, but using it felt nice too, especially when the experience gained in adventures could further push his improvements. Noah had a map that depicted various areas of the sea laid on the floor. Elements floated on his spread palm as he inspected the locations that could provide him with a fruitful journey. The Hive had never been better, and he didn''t need to pay attention to his tasks anymore since there were a few trusted leaders among the hybrids now. Only the creation of living weapons would stop, but Noah had created many of them already. He could leave without looking back. The political environment was stable anyway, so the Elders didn''t need him there. The elements in his hand exchanged part of their fabric among themselves as if they wanted to fuse. There was a black spark, a violent flame, a breathing rock, and a drop of dark water that changed form continuously. Noah''s dark matter had managed to copy the water element in that long period of training. Still, the enlightenment didn''t come from Faith''s individuality or other cultivators with that aptitude. His understanding had come from the Divine Stele. Noah had studied it for a while when he tried to copy the remaining elements, and he found a match with those divine remains. The individuality described in the Stele was all-encompassing and boundless. It didn''t have specific features because it could take any form. That matched Noah''s ambition and his vast individuality. Water that could be anything had identical qualities with his dark matter. As for the other elements, Noah didn''t have any luck with them. Nothing inspired him when it came to the wind aptitude, and he loathed the light radiated by Daniel. He needed different inspirations, and he couldn''t find them if he remained in the alliance''s territories. He intended to set off on his own. Noah missed the freedom that he had when he was a lone cultivator, and he wanted to revive that feeling now that his power allowed him to go almost anywhere in the world. The only one he would accept in the journey was June, but they couldn''t even talk, let along travel together. The tunnel outside the hunting areas of the seven confirmed rank 6 creatures inhabiting the sea often appeared in his eyes. Not even Shandal had explored that location, but it seemed the only possible target for Noah. Everything would be more accessible if he could hunt those powerful creatures, but he had to stick with beasts in the fifth rank for now. His breakthrough to the solid stage might give him a chance to fight them, but it was too distant to think about it. Noah memorized the layout of the bottom of the sea and began to make his preparations once he set his mind. He was going to explore that tunnel and cultivate in the open. The sole idea that he could ignore the political limitations for a while already cleared his mind and the Elders approved his decision when he notified them. Noah filled his space-ring with resources that could help him in the journey, but he didn''t request any life-saving item. He did get another ring though. He needed that to store the beasts killed as he traveled. After he settled and prepared everything, Noah left the separate dimension to venture through the sea. Chapter 992: 992. Lizard Noah''s awareness sent mixed messages as he flew above the surface of the sea. He was in the areas west of the new continent, and he would reach the eastern coast of the old one if he continued in that direction. According to God''s Left Hand''s map, the tunnel was somewhere in that part of the sea. The fall of the piece of Immortal Lands had changed the seabed''s layout, so Noah had to explore a bit. His consciousness couldn''t quite perceive the amount of danger hidden in the depths of the sea. The fauna there had innate hiding capabilities, and the dense waters at the bottom helped in covering the presence of powerful creatures. There was a chance that Noah wouldn''t be able to sense certain species specialized in ambushes, but his instincts would cover for most of the fauna. He was still a hybrid. There weren''t many creatures capable of catching him by surprise. Noah dived inside the sea and ignored any magical beast that he found on his way to the bottom. That area wasn''t the hunting zone of any known rank 6 creature, but it didn''t hurt to be careful in such a mysterious environment. The seabed was rocky, and deep ravines appeared from time to time as Noah''s exploration continued. He ventured in the gorges that his consciousness couldn''t fully cover, but they were mostly empty or inhabited by magical beasts'' packs. Noah spent days exploring the bottom of the sea. His "Breath" allowed him to remain underwater basically endlessly, so he didn''t resurface at all during that time. A small cavity eventually appeared in his view. It was narrow, but it stretched for kilometers, and it seemed to lead toward deeper areas. ''This fits the description on the map,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the entrance further. In the beginning, the rocks were of the same color as the rest of the seabed, but they became darker in the deeper areas. ''Lava?'' Noah guessed when he saw that feature. There was bound to be a scorching core at the center of that world, so it wouldn''t be strange if the tunnel reached the layers of magma. Noah''s cultivation level had reached the point when he could walk on fire and endure the fall of mountains. He didn''t fear those calamities. The only issue was whether he could remain trapped underneath the rocky layer above the magma. Noah was still analyzing the entrance when his consciousness sent warning signals to his mind. He quickly hid inside the tunnel and remained in wait to see the cause of that sensation only to see a massive lizard-like creature walking at a few hundred meters away from his spot. God''s Left Hand''s map gave a general description of the seven rank 6 creatures inhabiting the sea, but none of them resembled that giant beast. The lizard had the head of a crocodile, but it had long legs and a muscular body that showed only a few patches of scaled skin. Its teeth laid outside of its mouth when it kept it closed, and a dark substance came out of them, leaving a black train where it passed. Noah didn''t recognize its species. It probably was one of those ancient magical beasts that the world had mostly ignored since it lived in the sea. The creature was a beast in the sixth rank, but it didn''t seem able to sense Noah. It didn''t even try to hide its presence and walked through the seabed as it looked for prey. ''Eight confirmed creatures,'' Noah noted that beast in his mind. He had to prepare for when his body reached the sixth rank, so he had begun to make a list of the possible prey that could satisfy his hunger once he was at that level. Noah relaxed after the lizard disappeared and resumed his analysis of the area. His consciousness couldn''t reach its end, but the temperature rose as he went downward. Tremors suddenly spread, and the dangerous sensations from before reappeared in his mind. Noah stopped moving and focused on hearing to understand whether the lizard had returned for a specific reason. The tremors caused by the walking beast converged in the area above the tunnel before silence fell again. Noah could feel it. The lizard was right above him at that moment. Noah condensed his consciousness and retracted his "Breath". He tried to conceal his presence as much as possible so that the creature above him wouldn''t create a mess in the area. His eyes moved left and right as he waited in silence, and they eventually noticed that some of the black substance released by the lizard had entered the tunnel. When the substance entered in Noah''s field of view, the intensity of the dangerous sensation inside his mind exploded and forced him to act. Noah quickly jumped backward, and a giant mouth pierced the rocky seabed, destroying the tunnel in his previous spot. The lizard had directly stabbed the terrain, but it had kept its maw sealed. The lizard spread its mouth, and Noah saw how the tunnel began to crumble as a large hole formed there. ''It works as a sensor!'' Noah thought as he kept on retreating. The lizard''s attack had been too precise for it to be a lucky guess, and the only variable in the area was the substance released by its teeth. It seemed connected with the creature''s mind, and it used the substance to scan the area as it looked for prey. More hypotheses appeared in Noah''s mind. He could guess how the creature''s speed was only average among its peers, so it needed to sneak on its enemies to make up for it. However, all those ideas were mostly useless at the moment since Noah had no chance to fight a being in the sixth rank. Those were just pieces of information that he noted because he expected to hunt the beast at some point. Noah continued to run along the tunnel while the lizard lifted its head to stab another spot. The creature''s giant mouth missed Noah by a few meters, but only because he had resorted to his movement technique at the last time to sprint away. The lizard had calculated where he would be. Its only mistake was not knowing Noah''s actual speed. Noah felt lucky to see that the lizard wasn''t resorting to any innate ability. The dark substance seemed the only skill in its possession, but he didn''t take that for granted. The temperature rose as Noah descended. Smoke appeared as the rocks around his became utterly black. A red environment eventually appeared in his view. The lizard had stopped its offensive because its head couldn''t reach Noah''s position anymore, but he had continued to explore since he didn''t dare to go back anyway. Noah crossed the tunnel''s exit only to find himself flying above a sea of magma that had a few floating rocky platforms on its surface. Chapter 993: 993. Carps The tunnel connected the seabed to an immense underground area filled with magma. The ocean''s water mixed with the scorching liquid and formed large rocky platforms where it managed to lower the temperature. The crimson light radiated by the magma shone on Noah''s face and revealed the metallic properties of his skin. The "Breath" around his body prevented him from breathing the air there, but he was sure that it was scorching. Tremors still swept the areas above him. It seemed that the rank 6 lizard was unleashing chaos now that it had lost its prey. The rocky ceiling in that immense underground chamber threatened to fall every time it shook. Noah didn''t want to remain there. He wasn''t afraid that the lizard could catch up with him since it would have to dig through hundreds of meters of sturdy rocks. A rank 6 creature could do it if it put enough effort, but he would be far gone by the time it reached the magma. The real issue was the stability of the ceiling. The water and magma were in a fragile harmony, and an earthquake could generate an eruption or worse. Noah had already accepted that he would have to find another way back to the surface when he decided to return. Still, he didn''t want even that area to change completely. Noah knew where he would resurface with that route, but he couldn''t say the same if he changed location. ''Now what?'' Noah thought as he spread his consciousness to analyze the area. His plan ended there, after founding the tunnel. He didn''t know what to expect from that point onward. Another series of tremors swept the rocky ceiling, and a few large boulders fell through the waters to enter the layers of magma. Trails of bubbles expanded in every direction as soon as the harmony between the two liquids broke, and large black platforms formed everywhere. It was as if a large patch of the red sea was solidifying right in front of Noah''s eyes, creating instabilities that altered that already unstable environment. Some pillars rose from the magma and swam through the water to move toward the ceiling, creating cracks that tried to reach the seabed. It was only a matter of time before the entire area crumbled. Noah couldn''t help but curse the lizard in his mind as he dived toward the magma. He couldn''t let that his only way downward became another layer of rocks. His journey would be over before even starting otherwise. The dark matter came out of his body to protect him from the magma. Noah dived toward the crimson depths, ignoring the chaos that was spreading around him. Noah eventually managed to leave the chaotic area behind, and the crimson sea around him returned to a peaceful state. The magma became denser though, which made him feel like he was moving through a scorching jelly. Nevertheless, his mind was calm. That environment would be deadly for any human cultivator and even from many experts in the fourth rank. Yet, it was nothing worth considering for him. His instincts didn''t even react at the dangerousness of the magma. They did react at some point. Noah was descending slowly now that the lizard''s threat was gone, so he didn''t fail to notice the signals sent by his consciousness. Noah stopped and released his aura. The fierce pride of a hybrid in the upper tier of the fifth rank spread through the crimson sea. Generally speaking, his aura was enough to scare away most magical beasts. However, the beings sensed by his mind didn''t seem to mind it and continued their march toward his position. Noah could see those creatures with his mental waves once they entered in their range. They appeared as large fishes with a black skin that carried metallic properties. They swam through the magma quickly, and their mouths drank that scorching liquid as if it was nothing more than water. They had sharp fins, which Noah identified as their main offensive method. That simple inspection made him recognize their species. They were Fire-eater Carps, and there were five of them converging in his direction. Their level varied among the fifth rank, and two of them were near the peak of the upper tier. Still, it seemed that the Carps had dull senses since they often readjusted their trajectory as they became closer to Noah. ''They probably didn''t see prey in centuries,'' Noah guessed in his mind as the dark matter around him expanded to take Snore''s form. He didn''t want to go all out in that unstable environment. There was a chance that he could cause intense currents that would drive him back on the seabed. Still, battling against those beasts without unleashing some intense shockwave was impossible. After all, that was a fight among creatures in the fifth rank. Corrosive smoke came out of Snore''s massive body as the Carps neared Noah. The Blood Companion released a wave of black flames before eating one of the weaker creatures with a quick bite. The snake had formed too quickly for that beast to change direction in time to dodge the attack. Noah had exploited their weak senses as soon as he had the chance. The black flames burned the magma and spread toward the other Carps. Even that scorching liquid couldn''t do anything against the destruction radiated by Noah''s attack. Large patches of empty areas appeared in the red sea, but more magma quickly refilled them. The movement of that immense mass of dense liquid made the environment unstable and spread its effects toward the surface. Only the two Carps in the upper tier had resisted the black flames, but their metallic skin showed cracks in some spots. Noah''s destruction had reached insane levels of power as his connection with the world of the laws became tighter. His flames had become able to hurt even living beings that lived among magma! Snore, Noah, and the remaining two Carps exchanged a couple of attacks, but the latter eventually died under his fierce offensive. They didn''t manage to land even one attack on him. The area around him kept on trembling for a while due to the shockwaves still lingering in the area. They reverberated through the red sea before shooting upward, toward the surface. Noah noticed something strange in their movements. It seemed that the shockwaves vanished when they went downward. His curiosity peaked at that point, and he resumed his descent at full speed. It didn''t take much before his consciousness found a metallic surface that locked the magma in that area. Its fabric appeared incredibly sturdy, and the material that made it was something that Noah had never seen before. Further inspections revealed that it was more resilient than anything used by the organizations. Moreover, that black, metallic layer spread for countless kilometers in every direction. It was a proper membrane that isolated the red sea in the area under the seabed. ''Amazing,'' Noah thought before exploring the area. He didn''t know what he was looking for, but he felt intrigued when he found deep holes in that metallic layer. Chapter 994: 994. Apes Magma flowed in the holes, indicating the presence of empty spots in the areas under them. Its quantity in the sea didn''t diminish though, confirming the existence of a source somewhere in the ocean. Noah felt intrigued as he analyzed the holes. The metallic layer wasn''t the end of his journey anymore. There was something else hidden in the depths of those Mortal Lands. Noah didn''t know what to expect. The geology of his previous world didn''t have the "Breath" in its system. That layout was already strange if he tried to apply the common sense of his past life. Still, that only made him more curious. The metallic layer was already a useful discovery. It appeared as a material suitable for defensive items, and its durability surpassed anything on the surface. Moreover, there was tons of it. Mining it would be troublesome due to the dangerous environment, but it was something worth considering. Noah descended in one of the larger holes after he concluded his inspection. The black material''s fabric appeared softer as he reached for its center, but its value would still be high in the markets on the surface. Magma flowed endlessly, and Noah descended along with it. Yet, the black layer ended at some point, and Noah found himself in a red waterfall. His consciousness had kept his consciousness spread during his descent. He became aware of the environment on the other side of the hole as soon as he came out of it, and what he saw left him speechless. There was air around the waterfall. It had a sulfurous smell when it entered Noah''s nostrils, but that wasn''t even the most surprising feature of that area. The magma fell on a large red lake, but it didn''t increase its width. A small whirlpool near its bottom drained it due to another hole that connected that area to even deeper worlds. A few Fire-eating Carps inhabited the lake, but they were simple creatures in the human ranks. The most outstanding feature of that place was the environment outside of the lake. Noah found himself in a green world. Grass grew everywhere he looked, and mountains showed their tall figures in the distance. The sun''s light didn''t reach that place, but there were many holes in the black ceiling that acted like the sky of that place. Multiple waterfalls and lakes filled the environment and illuminated it with their soft red light. Noah could sense magical beasts in the distance. There was a proper fauna there, in a world that existed under a sea of magma. ''How isn''t all of this destroyed yet?'' Noah couldn''t help but question himself. The fact that there was even air under the ocean and the sea of magma was already miraculous! It wasn''t hard to find a quick explanation. The holes in the metallic layer were narrow, and the magma at that depth was dense. There was a limit to how much of it could invade that area. Also, there were other holes in that green environment too. The magma never had the chance to accumulate over a certain level. The plants there provided with clean air, and the metallic layer offered constant protection from the red sea on the other side. It was worth pondering who dug those holes, but Noah was more interested in the fauna to bother with it. He was already placing the black material on one side of a scale and the fauna on the other in his mind. If he didn''t find anything interesting, he would let that environment drown to seize the sturdy metal. Noah left the waterfall and began to explore those unknown lands. He started with the plants there before moving toward lifeforms in the distance. There didn''t seem to be magical plants nearby, but Noah guessed that he would soon find some of them. He didn''t believe that the "Breath" didn''t influence any of them. The region where he descended appeared mostly empty of magical beasts. Noah quickly linked that to the presence of so many waterfalls. The temperature was already high everywhere, but it was even higher near the lakes. Noah experienced another surprise when he reached the first pack of magical beasts. They were small reptiles that ran on two legs and a couple of short arms. They resembled a small version of the Tyrannosaurus, and their scales weren''t nearly as strong as that tall creature. However, they belonged to the same historical period. They were beasts that the surface thought to be extinct. ''Dwarf Raptors,'' Noah thought as he inspected that pack of creatures in the human ranks. ''The fauna here didn''t suffer from the changes that have swept the surface. It stagnated. I wonder how this place even came to be.'' There didn''t seem to be anything natural about that environment. The metallic sky alone appeared as something unnatural and too perfect for the survival of that hidden world. Still, Noah couldn''t notice any trace of cultivators. There was only a wild and peculiar life everywhere he looked. Noah killed some Raptors and stored them inside his ring before moving forward. He did the same with every other peculiar creature that he found along the way, and he confirmed that most of them were species that had disappeared from the surface. The number of waterfalls diminished as he explored other regions, and more magical beasts appeared in the environment. The density of "Breath" in the air increased too and surpassed the standards of best areas in the old continent. Noah could vaguely guess that he was flying under the old continent by then, but he didn''t know if there was a connection with the lack of waterfalls. Magical beasts in the heroic ranks began to appear as the density of "Breath" increased. Noah collected many specimens that he would study later to improve his knowledge in that field. The exploration quickly lost its initial excitement since Noah couldn''t find anything beneficial to his cultivation. The place was incredible due to its peculiar location and fauna, but they alone weren''t enough to stir his complete interest. ''This can become a secret hideout or some special training area,'' Noah thought as he flew above that strange land. ''Still, the separate dimension already covers those. It might be better to drown it after seizing some samples.'' Noah''s idea remained the same in the following days since he didn''t find anything that could surpass the metallic sky''s value. Yet, he wouldn''t call that world worthless until he explored it in its entirety. Then, he saw something that made him throw his previous idea away and never think about it again. As he flew above a mountain, he saw two packs of ape-like magical beasts fighting over some tree. They were all creatures in the human ranks, barely worthy of his attention. However, his consciousness tensed when he saw familiar runes on the furry skin of the specimens of one pack. Noah didn''t even think. His mental waves went downward, and all the apes in the other pack exploded. No one could hurt the most valuable magical beast with him there. Chapter 995: 995. Insurrection Noah descended toward the mountain as his aura enveloped the pack of apes. His pressure as a hybrid forced those beasts to stay still, leaving them barely able to breathe. The sole presence of a creature in the heroic ranks was able to suppress them altogether. In Noah''s case, he could make them yield with the most superficial thought. The apes trembled as Noah neared them to analyze their bodies. Disbelief was everywhere in his expression. That was the most unexpected discovery that he could find in that hidden world! ''Is this the Kesier species?'' Noah questioned himself even if he had clear proofs right in front of his eyes. The apes had black fur covering almost all their bodies, but there were strands of white hair that formed complex runes on it. Noah couldn''t possibly fail to recognize those runes. He had their copies floating at the center of his sea of consciousness, right above his half-transparent figure. The strongest specimen in that pack was a creature in the third rank, and it had three white Kesier runes on random spots of its body. The other apes had similar white hair that created several Kesier runes according to their rank. They didn''t have a fixed spot. The runes appeared in random places of the fur, but they always followed the order that cultivators used to train their seas of consciousness. All the rank 1 apes had the first Kesier rune, and those in the second rank had the second one. The third rank specimen had the third rune, which made Noah confident that the Kesier species followed that trend. He knew that already due to the legends spread on the surface, but he had learnt that history rarely told the truth. The Odrea nation''s events had taught him that things rarely were what they appeared, mainly when they belonged to a distant past. The runes on the apes'' fur couldn''t affect his mental sphere because he had already memorized them, but Noah could sense the pressure that they radiated. Cultivators could train their minds by staring directly at those beasts. The value of a single specimen of the Kesier species was immense. Powerful organizations would pay a fortune even for an ape in the first rank because they had the resources to nurture it. That would go out of proportion when it came to a couple of them. The possibility of making those creatures reproduce neared the value of the traces left by divine beings! Building a pack of Kesiers meant having an endless supply of Kesier runes! The world had enough of them when it came to the lower ranks, but things changed in the fifth rank already. Whether the organizations could nurture a beast until it reached the divine ranks and contain it, Noah didn''t dare to imagine it. Still, that hidden world had suddenly become too precious to destroy. A valuable material couldn''t match the Kesier species in terms of value. ''How can I bring them to the surface?'' Noah thought once he confirmed that those apes were the real deal. There was a significant issue with that world''s location that he didn''t know how to solve. The sea of magma above the metallic layer was a massive barrier that could stop any weaker being. Those creatures were too weak to swim past that, and Noah couldn''t even protect them. Anything about his existence radiated intense destruction. Noah''s spells and techniques would kill the apes before they could even reach the magma. ''I need to find a stronger specimen,'' Noah concluded in his mind. The stories on the surface said that the Kesier species battle prowess was quite remarkable, so there was a high chance that they were in the upper parts of the food chain there. ''What should I do with you?'' Noah thought, before punching a hole in the mountain to create a small cave. A growl came out of his mouth, and the apes moved inside the cave. Noah threw some of the beasts he had hunted during his previous days of exploration among the Apes and made the entrance crumble while giving voice to another growl. His voice was bound to scare them enough to remain in the cave for a few months. Noah didn''t think that those specimens were the only survivors of the Kesier species, but he wasn''t going to risk losing them. The tree contended by the two packs appeared as a magical plant that gave birth to large yellow fruits. Noah could sense that they had some particular property, but he couldn''t guess their actual value. Moreover, the magical plant gave off the aura of the third rank. Even when Noah ate one of the fruits, his body didn''t experience any reaction. Noah left the mountain and resumed his exploration toward more populated regions. He stored some of the fruits and put that matter in the back of his mind. The Kesier species had the priority at the moment. The world became darker as fewer red waterfalls appeared on his path, but the variety of creatures increased. More ancient and extinct beasts filled the environment, and some even reached the heroic ranks in power. The appearance of creatures in the heroic ranks was only the beginning. More powerful beasts and plants began to fill those lands, and larger packs ruled over entire regions. Noah felt amazed to see that those areas were even more crowded than some of his favorite hunting zones. The absence of cultivators didn''t limit those creatures that thrived without ever having to face clearing operations. Packs of Kesier specimens appeared from time to time. Their place in the food chain matched Noah''s guess since they often ruled any region they inhabited. Noah stopped holding back after he confirmed that those apes wouldn''t become extinct any time soon. He started to hunt them, paying the utmost attention to protect their fur. His gains culminated when he killed a Kesier Ape in the fifth rank. That single kill had given him two runes in the heroic ranks other than the valuable meat on that level. Something unexpected happened after he killed the rank 5 Ape. His consciousness sensed movements coming from under him, and the ground opened due to the effects of a spell. Noah didn''t move. The beast''s blood still ran down his arms while a series of humans came out of that hole and looked around the area wearing excited expressions. They were all human cultivators, except an elderly-looking man who radiated the power of the aura of an expert in the fourth rank. The expert noticed Noah, and his eyes widened when he sensed his cultivation level. His legs suddenly gave up due to the intense emotion, and he quickly kowtowed when he managed to calm down. "Thank you for killing the king of the region!" The man said without raising his head. "My tribe and I will gladly join the insurrection. May the humans reign over the Apes once again!" Chapter 996: 996. Mental Brand Noah didn''t answer the expert in the fourth rank at all. He had been surprised to realize that cultivators inhabited those lands, but the words of the elderly man gave the final blow to his mind. His consciousness went in the depths of the hole to explore its insides. Noah saw beds, chambers, and large halls built underground to create a structure that could contain at least one hundred cultivators. A red light came out of the hole. It seemed that the structure reached the layer of magma under the hidden world. Also, he noticed how there were more rooms than cultivators. Noah didn''t know if there was a deeper reason behind that detail, but he felt confident that he had misunderstood a lot about that world. "What do you mean by reigning over the Apes?" Noah asked after long moments of silence. The elderly man raised his head at his words. There was a bit of confusion in his eyes, but he didn''t dare to show any disrespect toward Noah. Moreover, the idea that he was an outsider didn''t even cross his mind. "Oh, mighty expert," The elderly man started to explain as his head went down again. "You probably come from regions that have managed to free themselves from the Apes. Ours was still in their control before you came and killed the king. It''s thanks to you if my tribe can breathe clean air again." Noah understood nothing from that, except the fact that there were more humans there. Yet, he couldn''t believe that magical beasts had managed to overwhelm cultivators. There was an expert in the fourth rank right in front of him, which meant that those tribes didn''t lack techniques. Generally speaking, that was enough for humans to defeat any magical species, no matter the number of its specimens. However, it appeared that the cultivators had lost that battle there since they lived underground. That location alone could be deadly to those in the human ranks, but they had dared to come out only after he killed the rank 5 Kesier Ape. ''How is this even possible?'' Noah questioned himself. He had tested the battle prowess of the Kesier species on his skin. Those Apes were strong due to the variety of attacks that they could deploy with their mental waves. Still, that could only match part of a cultivator''s strength. "How did you lose the surface?" Noah asked, uncaring that he was losing the chance to disguise himself as a native of those regions. There wasn''t anything to gain from lying about his identity, and the humans there couldn''t possibly have valuable items due to their poor situation. It was better to give them hope by revealing that he came from a better place. "Don''t you know?" The elderly man asked in disbelief. "Has your tribe forgotten about our past?" The leader of that tribe didn''t seem able even to consider that Noah came from the surface. He preferred to justify his ignorance by blaming his tribe or the environment where he grew. Nevertheless, Noah had enough of that exchange and decided to show his cards with his next words. "I come from the surface. Tell me everything that you know about this place." "Surface?" The elderly man asked, showing his confused expression again. Even after Noah''s direct phrase, he still couldn''t consider that possibility. "Surface," Noah said as he pointed toward the metallic sky. Realization slowly descended upon the elderly man who started to stutter as he tried to give voice to a line. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine how fragile his mental state was since that simple revelation made him lose any dignity as a heroic cultivator. The elderly man eventually managed to calm down, but his excitement still filled his next words. "D-did you find us? Are we finally going to leave this place?" Noah''s expression remained cold and aloof even when that expert pointed out one of that place''s issues. The layer of metallic material and the sea of magma blocked any mental message, which meant that no one could come in his aid. The Hive didn''t know his exact location since he had moved a lot once reaching the red sea. The lizard had even made a mess with the tunnel, so his last known place was useless too. There was no way to organize an extraction team, and Noah didn''t know how to set the separate dimension. Moreover, he wasn''t sure if the magma would hinder its correct functioning. Noah was alone. His best option was to resurface on his own and send the Hive''s forces there later on. Yet, he wanted to have a complete understanding of the world before leaving it. "Explain," Noah said as he released a whiff of his aura. The man''s excitement froze when he understood how dangerous his savior was, but his fear didn''t stop him from completing his task. "Everything happened after humans managed to turn the white fur of those creatures into a training method," The expert spoke, and Noah didn''t miss the regret in his tone. "The entire species was on the brink of extinction, but we didn''t want to stop anyway." The man was still kowtowing, but Noah wasn''t going to permit him to raise until he solved all his doubts. "We thought to know the Kesier species so much that it couldn''t reveal other surprises," The man continued. "We were wrong. Those Apes have an innate survival instinct that only appears when the species'' entirety is at risk. It allows them to sacrifice their runes to another being to make it stronger." "Like a sort of fusion?" Noah interrupted the speech only to see the man raising his head and nodding at his question. Then, he lowered it again to speak. "The old leader of my tribe told me that we chased the Kesier species to this place only to discover that a god had arisen among the Apes." Noah sensed the helplessness in the man''s tone, but his mind was elsewhere. If that man was speaking the truth, there was a magical beast in the seventh rank in that place! Of course, Noah didn''t believe him immediately. Who knew how much time had passed since the birth of the Ape God and if it had existed. After all, the events with the Kesier species had happened in a distant past. Moreover, there was a high chance that the Ape God had ascended in that period. Noah believed that the current situation was mostly the result of years spent in fear of that memory. "How do you know that the Ape God is still here?" Noah asked. Even as a scared cultivator that had grown hearing legends, that expert was a cultivator in the fourth rank. He was bound to have some common sense. The elderly man pointed at his head without raising it before speaking. "The Ape God summons all the humans in these regions every fifty years to leave a mental brand. I saw that creature a bit more than forty-five years ago." Chapter 997: 997. Delay The Ape God left a mental brand every fifty years, and forty-five of them had already passed since the last gathering. Moreover, the expert claimed to have seen the Ape God, which turned the situation extremely serious instantly. There was a chance that the scared expert had misjudged a powerful beast for a god, but Noah wasn''t willing to bet his life on the weakness of those inhabiting those lands. A series of fast thoughts surged and vanished in his mind in a matter of seconds. The truth was that no countermeasure would work against a being of such power. Even if only as a magical beast, a god was still a god. "Stand up," Noah eventually said as he turned toward the expert. "I want to know everything about this summoning and mental brands." The old cultivator explained everything he knew and even added his name, Winter, to the list. The Ape God spread peculiar mental waves that forced all the humans in their range to converge in its lair. The brands forced every cultivator to respect the Kesier species'' authority and prevented them from attacking any of those beasts. Winter said that the hatred of the Ape God knew no limits. It passed down some of its emotions when it set the brands, and the cultivators could understand how intensely it loathed humans and the reason behind that. The Ape God wanted to make those that had hunted its species pay. It forced them to a life of hiding underground, ruled by the same Kesier species that they had almost exterminated in the past. "Why isn''t anyone trying to leave?" Noah asked. It was possible to skip the summoning if he returned to the sea of lava and remained there for a few months. The orders of the Kesier species'' specimens were absolute for the branded cultivators, but some of them didn''t have them. Noah didn''t, but others had managed to remove it. Winter didn''t know much about that topic, but he claimed that experts roamed through those lands and prepared the ground for a revolt. Still, the issue with that piece of information was the same as the others. It came from an unreliable source. "You can, some can, most can''t," Winter replied with a helpless tone. "The Ape God only needs to brand you once to prevent you from leaving. Those who can escape the summoning have learnt secrets that they are slowly spreading through the world." Noah couldn''t understand if Winter had reached an unfixable state of delusion or if he needed to believe in those things to keep living in that world. His knowledge came from reports left behind previous inhabitants of the underground areas that his tribe occupied after the summoning. That was the only way to communicate through tribes, which meant that they exchanged information only every fifty years! That wasn''t enough for Noah. It barely reached an acceptable level when it came to the reliability of the source of those reports. He needed far more if he wanted even to consider facing a god. "Let me in," Noah said as his consciousness enveloped the rank 4 cultivator and seeped inside his mind. That process would typically hurt Winter, but he was allowing the inspection of the foreign force. Noah could see the insides of Winter''s sea of consciousness. Four Kesier runes floated above his half-transparent figure, but the rest of the sphere was empty. There was only a shining azure mark lingering at the top of its walls. The light of the mark flickered rhythmically and radiated a pale halo that spread through the mental sphere. The halo seeped through the sea too, affecting Winter''s thoughts and limiting his mental energy usage. Noah had never seen anything like that. It was rare for a technique that affected the free will of a cultivator to be so harmless. Winter appeared completely fine in the end. No one would notice anything strange in him unless they inspected the insides of his mind. Moreover, he could confirm that one of Winter''s beliefs was on point. Noah could not accurately evaluate auras far above his level, but he recognized the divine presence, especially after his trip to Shandal''s separate dimension. The mark and the light that it radiated were definitely above the heroic ranks in terms of power. Noah didn''t know if the Ape God was a proper divine existence or a being that was only half-step inside that realm. Still, sensing the divine made him abandon any intention to test its call. Now he had a serious choice to make, and there was even a time limit to it. "Where can I find those that have managed to escape the branding?" Noah eventually asked. Winter knew too little, and there was no point in making decisions with that bit of information. It was better if he directly questioned the experts that were already able to dream about an insurrection. Of course, Winter didn''t know anything about them either. He was a simple cultivator that dreamed about escaping that cycle of tortures, but he didn''t have to power to do it. He even refused Noah''s offer to look for other rebels together. Winter was set on trying to ignore the summoning before joining any unruly act. Otherwise, the Ape God would see all his plans and deploy its soldiers to stop them. Noah left on his own. He had less than five years before the next summoning, and he wanted to discover everything that the world had to offer. However, finding cultivators that were capable of hiding from a god was the opposite of easy. Noah didn''t have any luck and spent those years flying and cultivating. He kept the red waterfalls nearby and paid attention to the passage of time though. He couldn''t risk touching the aura of the god. He did find something that made him settle on a region until the day of the meeting. Noah had found a solitary mountain inhabited by a member of the Kesier species in the sixth rank. Approaching that creature was impossible, and the same went for thinking about defeating it. Still, Noah only needed to have direct contact with its sixth rune to train his mind, and that was doable if he played his cards right. It took him a bit of work and some planning, but he managed to force the mighty Ape out of its lair multiple times a week. He only needed to prepare a series of traps that made use of the instabilities. The traps wouldn''t inure the rank 6 Ape, but they could force it on a pre-planned route that allowed Noah to stare at its sixth Kesier rune from a hole in the black sky. He had to waste many resources, but his mind improved quickly due to those investments. The summoning day eventually arrived then, and Noah returned to the sea of magma to escape the range of the Ape God''s mental waves. Five years weren''t enough for his plans, but maybe he could do something in fifty. Chapter 998: 998. Rebels Noah didn''t want to abandon that hidden world, but he didn''t like the idea of involving other organizations in the matter. That was supposed to be his journey, so he didn''t want to contact the Demons either. Still, it was evident that he needed some help. There wasn''t only the Ape God as a threat. Other rank 6 specimens of the Kesier species filled those lands and acted as captains of multiple regions ruled by Apes in the fifth rank. Their political structure was very human-like, even if messy at times. They were doing well for a pack of intelligent creatures, but they remained magical beasts with apparent limits. ''Why every fifty years?'' Noah questioned himself as his dark matter prevented the magma around his from hurting him. ''I understand that it is torture, but there must be some other reason. Maybe the brands have a time limit and need periodic maintenance.'' He was cultivating among the sea of magma as he sat cross-legged on the metallic layer. The area turned out to be a good training zone since it forced him to use multiple abilities at once to protect himself, putting his mind under some stress. The recent experiences with the rank 6 Kesier Ape had further pushed his sea of consciousness. Noah didn''t even deactivate the spherical rune in his mind when he stared at the creature''s white hair. It had been a while since he had made use of the properties of his mental energy. He could devour the wills of the magical beasts now that the walls of his sphere had become far sturdier. He desired a breakthrough now more than ever. Anything improving his current battle prowess would make him take a step into the next realm. From being able to fight only rank 5 cultivators, he would look at the beginning of the sixth rank, even if from a distance. A soft sensation spread in the hidden world, and Noah sensed its expansion through the metallic layer. He had been initially worried that the Ape God''s mental energy could have seeped through the black sky, but the sea of magma turned out to be a safe area. Noah didn''t dare to return to the hidden world in the weeks that followed the god''s call. He didn''t know if the lingering laws moved by its thoughts would be enough to make him join the summit. He felt that the situation under him had calmed down only after three months had passed, but he still made Snore check the environment on the other side of the hole anyway. The Blood Companion didn''t sense anything out of the ordinary, and its mind remained calm, indicating the absence of the Ape God''s laws. Not all the cultivators found some underground structures to inhabit, and Snore could see some tribes escorted by Kesier Apes of various ranks. According to what Winter had said, those beasts would become the leaders of specific regions and rule over the humans inhabiting them. That seemed a good chance to free some tribes and gather as many reports as possible since the strongest Apes were in the upper tier of the fifth rank. The only issue was that there were seven creatures in the fifth rank, and two were in the last tier. The Kesier species had access to mental waves due to their innate ability. They had a sea of consciousness, but its purpose was mostly belligerent. Their thinking capabilities weren''t the first aspect that improved when their minds grew. Moreover, their seas of consciousness weren''t separate centers of power. Their power depended on their bodies. They were similar to the claws and scales of other creatures, nothing more than weapons that improved alongside the body. Of course, things weren''t so simple with the Kesier species. Having mental energy as the primary offensive gave birth to dangerous and hard to track attacks. There were other Apes in the fourth rank behind the rank 5 specimens, but Noah couldn''t bother to consider them. They escorted weaker tribes, but he didn''t mind them either. He had a target, and he couldn''t lose it because a few humans couldn''t endure his attacks. Seven pillars made of black flames appeared near the specimens in the fifth rank. The beasts reacted quickly, and an invisible force tried to disperse that fire. Some Apes attempted to compress it to take control of it even. Yet, a series of black slashes came out of them and crashed on the beasts. Those were Noah''s most simple attacks. Their power came from the Warp spell and the improvements that his mind had done. The two Apes in the lower tier died on the spot due to the violence of Noah''s blow. The three in the middle tier suffered grave injuries, while those in the upper tier managed to block the attack altogether. The human cultivators near the battle couldn''t withstand that pressure. Their minds exploded, and they fell lifelessly on the ground right after the first exchange! More black flames appeared, and more black lines came out of them. The three creatures in the middle tier were the first to give up, and they died one by one as Noah''s offensive continued. The Apes had yet to find him, but they had already lost half of their power! Another pillar of flames appeared between the two remaining creatures. They gathered their mental energy to create shields meant to block piercing attacks, but they suddenly expanded. Only then did the Kesier Apes notice two figures above them, a human and a tall snake. The human wore a relaxed expression. It was as if that battle didn''t worry him at all. On the other hand, the snake had its mouth open as it continued to spit black flames. The Apes had to retreat due to the danger radiated by Noah''s flames, but a series of humanoids puppets rose from the ground, and a barrier made of black water surrounded the two of them. The poor beasts lifted their head only to see Noah holding copies of his weapon with his fuming arms and Snore generating lightning bolts with its horns. The apes couldn''t do anything once that strong offensive fell on them. Even their strongest defense couldn''t do anything against that. Noah cleaned the battlefield and saved every body-part that had survived his offensive. Meanwhile, the surviving cultivators from the tribes stared at him with a mixture of awe and admiration. Someone had saved them from the control of the Kesier species by killing seven rank 5 creatures in a matter of minutes! Noah appeared as a monster in their eyes, but a monster that was on their side. The cultivators in the tribes weren''t the only ones that had watched Noah''s battle. A few figures had appeared in the distance right after the fight started and couldn''t help but feel surprised about his battle prowess too. Noah waited to scour the entirety of the battlefield before turning in their direction and replying to their stare. There were four figures there, and all of them were rank 5 cultivators. "You are the rebels, I presume," Noah said. "I have a few questions for you." Chapter 999: 999. Slaves Of the four rank 5 cultivators who had watched Noah''s battle, one of them was in the solid stage, two were in the liquid, while the last was in the gaseous. Noah''s words surprised them, especially since he didn''t show the slightest amount of respect for their power. It was as if he had already decided that he was their superior. One of the liquid stage experts, a middle-aged woman with short black hair, dark eyes, and pale skin, stepped forward while giving voice to a reply. "And who would you be? I never thought tribes would have the time to experiment with clothes." Noah''s robe came from the Hive, and it was quite luxurious for its kind. It was black with an icy-blue octopus draped on its back. On the other hand, the secret world''s inhabitants had shabby and torn clothes, which had endured the passage of time. "I come from the surface," Noah said while pointing at the black sky. "I am the most talented cultivator in history." The four experts wanted to laugh, but they couldn''t. The pride carried by his words and the battle that they had just witnessed made them wonder whether he was speaking the truth. Noah had defeated seven beasts in the fifth rank in a few minutes. That accomplishment was something that belonged to the realm of the solid stage cultivators! Still, the four of them didn''t feel like focusing on his ego since he had disclosed something more critical. Someone from the surface had managed to reach that hidden world after countless years! "Let''s get out of here!" The woman said while her companions shot forward to gather the rescued cultivators. "The God knows that its underlings have died. An army will be here soon." Noah didn''t fear the arrival of the army. He would take that as a chance to hunt more beasts. However, his priority was to establish a relationship with the rebels, so he flew after the departing woman. "Noah Balvan," Noah said when the two of them started to fly in the distance. "Ana," The woman said as she led the way. "Are you an important figure on the surface?" "Yes," Noah replied without showing the slightest shame, "But I can''t contact them. The sea of magma is too thick, and this metallic layer stops most mental messages." "It''s not surprising once you know its origin," Ana said as she revealed a sly smile. "The Ape God created this metal when it isolated this world. The bastard made a paradise for its monkeys." Noah didn''t manage to hide his surprise at that revelation. His cold expression broke as disbelief filled his face. He had seen the might of the divine beings once, and he knew that they were able to affect entire continents with their spells. Yet, that place was immense. Noah wouldn''t be surprised if it covered half of the surface. "Are you already trusting me?" Noah asked. Those pieces of information were something that cultivators would usually value a lot. He couldn''t understand why Ana gave them away so quickly. "There are no sides here," Ana said. "You are a human, so you are my ally." Noah didn''t bother to correct her. He only took the chance to question her about the secrets of that world since she didn''t intend to hide anything. "Back when humans discovered the miraculous qualities of the Kesier runes," Ana began her explanation, "All the forces of the surface were busy in a worldwide hunt of the Kesier species. These monkeys couldn''t do anything against the world''s cultivators'' effort and tried to escape in the sea, but humans followed them there too. "The hunt lasted for years and continued even when they found a path for the core of this world. Yet, no one could predict that the Kesier Apes could sacrifice themselves to boost their leaders'' power. The Ape God appeared that day over than one hundred thousand years ago when the humans suffered their first defeat against that species." The members of the tribes followed closely behind Noah and Ana. No one seemed to mind that he had killed some of their companions during the attack. Their eyes only showed gratitude when they looked at his back. "The God killed most of our leaders and fused its mental energy with the magma, creating a safe area in the middle of the burning core of this world," Ana continued. "It molded the earth and created a suitable environment where life could thrive, sacrificing cultivators whenever it needed to nourish it. Humans have been slaves since then." "How can I believe in any of this?" Noah asked. Ana''s story was majestic, something that any organization would teach to instill modesty in their cultivators. However, Noah had never heard of it. "Those on the surface saw it as a natural catastrophe," Ana explained. "The actual core of the world went through massive changes. I''m surprised there is even a surface left at all." Noah remained doubtful, mostly since she had spoken about events dated more than one hundred thousand years in the past. Simple rank 5 cultivators couldn''t live that long, even if they used unorthodox methods to prolong their lifespan. Ana seemed able to understand his doubts and continued. "This story comes from a direct witness of the birth of the Ape God. We are on our way to meet her." Noah''s eyes widened at that point. Cultivators had long lifespans, but surviving for that long would require a divine power or countless unorthodox methods to preserve their lives. Red waterfalls appeared more often as they proceeded onward. They soon began to fill the environment, creating long streaks of crimson lakes that illuminated the area. The black sky had large cracks in those regions, and Noah even saw a large chunk of its metallic structure fall while the group proceeded through the heat. Noah couldn''t help but link that area to a possible weakening of the Ape God. It was even older than Shandal, and the lower plane wasn''t a place where divine beings could improve. Ana noticed his interest in the cracks in the sky and revealed an excited smile before speaking again. "We think that the God is losing power. This world is slowly falling apart since its mental waves can''t reach these areas anymore. The time to strike back is close!" Noah didn''t share her excitement. No matter how weakened it was, a god was always a god. Also, he had another impelling doubt. "Why didn''t you leave?" Noah asked. "Why do you prefer to go against a god rather than escaping?" Ana wore a pensive expression as she gazed upward. Cultivators soon appeared among the waterfalls. They used black drills to expand the sky''s holes and increase the magma that poured into the world. They stopped their work for an instant to wave at Noah''s group, but they resumed their drilling immediately after. Noah could vaguely guess why they were expanding the holes in the sky, but Ana replied before he could ask anything. "We are born as slaves. Don''t pretend to understand what we want." Chapter 1000: 1000. Skeleton Noah stopped asking questions after Ana''s reply. The truth was that he still thought like a lone cultivator. He had a few people that he cared about, some even deeply, but he was still unable to see his organization''s well-being over his. Instead, the cultivators of the hidden world were different. The new generations were slaves since birth, and they had lived through a pain shared by all their peers. Moreover, escaping the summoning and obtaining the power to travel through the sea of magma wasn''t easy, especially in their condition. The natives passed down their techniques orally, which strengthened their connection with those in a similar situation. If cultivators were to leave in mass, that world would soon be devoid of cultivators. There would only be commoners with no chances to cultivate, and those who had benefited from that system didn''t want to leave them in that state. Reaching the surface to look for help wasn''t an option either. No would be willing to face a God, and the inhabitants of the secret world didn''t have anything valuable to offer. The magma and sea were dangerous too. The inhabitants of the hidden world couldn''t be sure that they would reach the surface at all. Also, the seabed changed continuously. They might never find their way back even if they succeeded in finding reinforcement. "Are you telling me that no one has ever left this place?" Noah asked. He knew that he was different, but it wasn''t easy to silence the cultivators'' innate ambition. "Some did," Ana explained, "But we aren''t sure that they made it to the surface. It''s not easy to cross the sea of magma with our shortage of techniques. We have been trying to build an inventory for a while, but our leader gets more tired every day, and she is the only one who can use inscriptions." The trails of magma on the ground soon became massive lava lakes that fused. Noah felt that he was staring at a red sea filled with crimson waterfalls connected to the black sky. That scenery was something that only heroic cultivators could witness. No human expert could survive in that scorching environment, and even those in the fourth rank struggled due to the high temperatures. The tribes that Noah had saved didn''t advance further, and only the three cultivators that were helping them along the way followed him and Ana across the red sea. A black structure soon appeared on the horizon. It was a palace with two tall towers placed on its short sides. Its edges and corners seemed to have gone through years of corrosion since none was even remotely sharp. It wasn''t corrosion though. The structure seemed to be incomplete in some spots as if the maker couldn''t bother to finish it. "This metal is hard to mold even when the Ape God''s mental waves leave it," Ana explained when she saw Noah looking at the imperfections in the structure. The structure stood on a rocky platform made of rocks and black metal, which floated on the red sea without a set destination. There were rank 5 cultivators on the edges of the ground controlling its direction and making sure that it remained away from the shore. Noah and the four experts descended on the platform and crossed the half-finished doors of the structure. There wasn''t even the slightest trace of inscriptions in the palace. It was a simple bulk of metal molded in the form of corridors and rooms. The five of them walked past rooms full of sheets and incomplete diagrams with cultivators studying them. The sheer number of experts in the fifth rank surprised Noah, but his instincts barely reacted when he met them. ''They must be below average in terms of battle prowess,'' Noah thought after they arrived in a throne room. Ana had hinted that before, but he didn''t know that the situation was so bad. Noah didn''t feel anything when he looked at the tall black throne built at the hall''s center. A skeleton sat there, but countless holes filled those bones and clear signs of corrosion covered them entirely. "Where is this expert?" Noah asked, but the skeleton suddenly moved, and the aura of a rank 6 cultivator spread in the hall. The skull turned toward Noah, and its jaw opened right before a female voice echoed through the black walls. "I haven''t seen one of those in ages." The voice was quite lively, almost childish, but the experts next to Noah performed a bow toward the skeleton while wearing their most reverent expressions. Noah didn''t take long to understand the situation. He had never thought that something like this could exist, but the "Breath" opened countless possibilities, and one of them was the ability to being alive with only your skeleton left. "What are you talking about?" Noah spoke without showing any respect. The skeleton-powerhouse had surpassed even Shandal in terms of resilience, but it had lost two centers of power in the process. She was barely even a cultivator anymore. "Your space-rings!" The skeleton answered. "Those Apes took away every inscribed item when they enslaved us! I almost forgot that humans had even created them!" The skeleton would always end her lines with an exclamation. It seemed that she used her voice to balance the lack of vitality of her body. Noah felt interested in the technique that she used to remain alive with a body in that state, but he mostly felt disappointed. He didn''t see any other powerhouse on his way to the throne, and the only one was a bag of bones. The war against the Ape God was only a pointless dream. The citizens of the hidden world had no chance to win. "Why don''t you tell your people to leave?" Noah asked. "I respect your unity. I find it idiotic, but I respect it. Still, you can''t free everyone. Most of them would die anyway once the sea of magma fills this world." "I see!" The skeleton said. "You people on the surface are different from us! But you seem strong, so I order you to help us!" The skeleton''s aura became thicker, and a deadly sensation began to fill the hall. Noah''s instincts felt the danger too, but that wasn''t his first battle against a powerhouse. Black smoke came out of his body. Part of it took the form of a tall snake, while the rest became a scaled armor that kept on releasing corrosive gas. His Demonic Sword roared as it split. Noah wielded the two parts and summoned four additional arms to prepare one of his most potent attacks. Snore spread its wings and opened its mouth. The sharp feathers began to tremble, and fire accumulated at the bottom of its throat. A rocky armor appeared above its skin too, and black sparks spread on its horns. The Blood Companion''s breathe released a chilling air, and a trail of black ice appeared on the metallic floor of the hall. "Come!" Noah shouted. "I''m dying to see where my power stands!" Chapter 1001: 1001. Body It had been too much. Since Noah stepped into the heroic ranks, the world''s political environment had limited most of his actions. An organization was stronger than a single cultivator. That was impossible to deny. However, those high enough in the cultivation journey could reach the point where they could ignore any limitation and threaten entire forces with only their power. Noah wasn''t there yet, but the situation in the hidden world was different. The cultivators there were scattered and enslaved, and their leader was nothing more than a bag of bones capable of releasing a powerful aura. An attack with power in the sixth rank was a threatening ability, capable of reducing into ashes virtually any existence in the lower ranks. Yet, Noah wasn''t a simple no one. His hybrid state gave him the best natural defense in the world, and his techniques put him in a realm of his own. The experts in the fifth rank around him felt the need to help their leader, but Noah''s sudden reaction made them take a step back. They couldn''t even begin to understand how a liquid stage cultivator could have access to so much power. The black metal that made the palace bent and screeched as the powerhouse''s aura tried to suppress Noah''s techniques. Snore''s figure became smaller under that pressure, but its body turned into smoke that protected the parts casting the attacks. Noah felt no pressure at all from inside the Demonic Form and his Blood Companion. His six blades were steadily held above his head, ready to unleash the second form of his martial art. "You sure are strange!" The female voice resounded again in the hall as the rank 6 aura became more intense. "Rank 5 cultivators must have become so delusional on the surface!" Noah didn''t even mind those words. He had understood long ago that powerhouses didn''t care about anyone in the lower ranks unless they needed something. The skeleton would have already attacked Noah if she didn''t need anything from him. However, her aura didn''t even take the form of a spell. It was only becoming more intense as if she was trying to scare him into submission. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique and observed the flow of the "Breath" in the area. The inscriptions on his mind''s walls helped him evaluate the situation more accurately, which led him to a simple conclusion. "You can''t cast many attacks, do you?" Noah asked in a rough voice mixed with growls. There had to be limitations due to the powerhouse''s poor state. Unorthodox techniques usually had harsh repercussions and endangered the overall power of a cultivator when abused. The skeleton had abused anything that could prolong her life, which probably left her with little more than a trace of her hold aura. The natives of that world exchanged glances before assembling in a battle formation around Noah. A few more cultivators arrived and joined the technique as soon as they understood the situation. Noah ended up surrounded by eight rank 5 cultivators of various stages, but his eyes never left the skeleton. He didn''t tilt his weapons either. His sole stance was a threat against the seemingly powerless powerhouse in front of him. "You''ll die!" The skeleton said with her usual childish voice. "Kill me in one blow," Noah replied, "Or his pretense of a revolution of yours will end once for all." Noah and the skeleton didn''t back off and remained in that stalemate as they analyzed each other. Meanwhile, the cultivators surrounding him remained still as they waited for the situation to evolve. Their unwillingness to attack made Noah crack a smile. Their hesitation was proof that they feared what he could unleash on their leader. The powerhouse found it hard to believe that her instincts told her to avoid a direct contrast with Noah. She knew that her condition was beyond what the word poor could describe, but she still had access to attacks with power in the sixth rank. Something on that level should be unreachable for cultivators in the lower ranks. She could understand that existences at the peak of the fifth rank could give her the feeling of having a chance to survive, but that sensation was astonishing when it came from Noah. "What are you?" The female voice echoed again, but it sounded far more aged at that time. There weren''t the childish exclamations anymore, but only a deep and profound tiredness. Noah didn''t answer. There was only one way to give hints about his species in that tense situation, which wasn''t through words. A crack appeared on the fuming helmet as Noah spread his mouth and lifted it to the ceiling. The world lost its light for an instant before revealing a column of ethereal and pale-white flames. The natives almost broke their battle formation at that sight. They could accept that the giant snake had access to different kinds of attacks, but the ethereal flames came directly from Noah! They had understood by then that Noah had a darkness aptitude. Yet, those flames made them aware that there was far more about his power that they didn''t know. Moreover, there was one existence in the hall who recognized that fire. "How can you possess the fire of the Light-devouring Dragons?" The skeleton said in her aged voice. "A giant snake as a puppet, darkness with various structures, and flames coming out of your lungs. What are you?" Her aura slowly dispersed during her words, and her underlings broke the battle formation when they saw that. It was clear that their leader had silently decided to talk with the foreigner. Noah inspected the experts around him and dispersed the Demonic Form when he sensed no more danger. Snore retracted its attacks too, but it resumed a solid form and coiled itself around Noah in a protective stance. "Light-devouring Dragons," Noah said as he sat cross-legged on his Blood Companion, "I didn''t know the name of their species. Heaven and Earth cursed them so many years ago that there aren''t record about their past might anymore." The skeleton and her underlings remained silent as they watched Snore lifting Noah in the air. "I fused with one of their kind," Noah revealed to make his figure as an inscription master more appealing to that force. "I''m the first artificial hybrid in the world." Those Mortal Lands had never been aware of hybrids before King Elbas opened a portal to the other world. It was only normal that the cultivators trapped in those regions would have never thought that something like that was possible. Yet, someone among them could immediately understand the benefits behind a hybrid body and how it could improve her situation. "Can you fuse me too?!" The skeleton said a few instants after Noah revealed his hybrid status. "We have plenty of beasts here, and there isn''t much left of me to fuse!" Noah revealed a cold smile when he heard the childish voice resounding again, and he couldn''t help but reply in an aloof tone. "I believe you need to offer something first." Chapter 1002: 1002. Fur Noah wouldn''t bother to list the many dangers connected to the fusion with a magical beast before hearing what the skeleton could offer. As far as he was concerned, the only valuable assets in that world were the Kesier species and the metal that isolated the sky. Anything else was appealing only for its historical value, but it couldn''t compare with the resources of the piece of Immortal Lands. "Is it possible?" The skeleton said with her aged voice. Noah was beginning to understand in which moods the powerhouse would switch voice. She was using her mature one now, so she was taking the negotiation seriously. "It is," Noah said as his eyes skimmed through her bones to evaluate their status, "But I think you understand the dangers connected to such procedure. Your status will make it quite dangerous." "It''s fine!" The skeleton said with her childish voice. "Take out everything from our inventory and show it to our guest!" The cultivators shot a warning glance at Noah before leaving the hall to follow their leader''s orders. They didn''t want to leave him alone in the throne room, but they were too loyal not to follow her directives. They came back a few minutes later, carrying a pile of sheets and broken inscribed items with various power before laying them next to the throne. Noah didn''t ask for their permission. He patted Snore that lowered its body to encircle the goods and give him a better view. The Divine Deduction technique activated as his eyes skimmed through the pile of items. He didn''t want to miss anything valuable due to his lack of expertise or the goods'' poor conditions. Nevertheless, he didn''t find anything worthy of his attention even after a few hours of thorough inspection. ''I can obtain better versions of any of these items on the surface,'' Noah thought as he put down the last scroll of the pile. ''These might be good in a second-rate force, but the Hive can provide them freely.'' The offer didn''t move him at all. Performing the fusion wasn''t a process that required many resources on his side, but he wasn''t going to give away his expertise in exchange for resources that didn''t help him. "This is worthless," Noah said without even trying to be polite. "These resources don''t even come close to a satisfying price." "This is everything in our inventory," Ana complained. "We accumulated these resources in countless years of oral transmission and exploration of underground structures." "It''s nothing compared to what we have on the surface," Noah explained. "Do you want to rob us because we are ignorant about the inscription methods of the surface?" Ana continued. She had begun to suspect that Noah was trying to exploit their situation to his advantage. However, that was quite far from the truth. Noah was the only inscription master capable of performing the fusion between a magical beast and a human. Every other organization had even asked for his advice when they were approaching that specific field. He didn''t perform the fusion to anyone other than himself. The skeleton would be his first commission, and the natives of the hidden world didn''t even know how unique that chance was due to their ignorance. "I''ve invented this procedure," Noah said, and his figure began to express the pride that he felt about that accomplishment. "To this day, I''m the only one capable of performing it." The rank 5 cultivators around him had no proof that Noah was speaking the truth, but the steadiness of his aura made them believe him. They even felt temporarily dizzy as his pride became more intense. It was as if Noah''s mental waves were trying to affect their minds. Still, no one gave that event too much weight since the powerhouse decided to step in the negotiation. "Come with me," The skeleton said in her aged voice. The powerhouse was different from her underlings. She had seen the surface and lived among experts. Her knowledge concerning the inscription fields was old, but cultivators had tried to harness the magical beasts'' innate abilities since the dawn of cultivation. Noah was an astonishing rank 5 cultivator, and she had never seen anyone wielding so much power at his level. Even if she were to consider his hybrid status a fluke, there was much more than met the eyes in her guest. When she added his ability to accomplish what even the experts in her past couldn''t do, Noah appeared as an unparalleled monster. The powerhouse''s underlings understood her silent orders and moved to the edges of the throne to lift it. They then moved toward one of the corridors, and Noah followed closely behind them. Noah had no idea where they were going, but the corridor went downward even if they were already on the ground floor. A red light shone on his face as they neared the point where the lava lake began, but a heavy aura came together with it. Noah felt some familiarity with that aura, but he couldn''t recognize it. It was as if his mind couldn''t comprehend the signals that it was receiving. The rank 5 cultivators carrying the powerhouse stopped moving after the last trace of the black metal disappeared, and drops of lava reached their position in the corridor. They gently dropped the throne on the floor and turned toward Noah as they waited for their leader to speak. "You can lift this alone, right?" The skeleton said, and Noah shrugged his shoulders as he neared her. His hand went under the throne and lifted that large chunk of metal easily before putting it on his shoulder and proceeding down the corridor. The aura became heavier, but it wasn''t hard to withstand. It seemed unable to affect the mental spheres in that state. "I forgot my name," The skeleton said with a mature voice before resuming with a childish one, "But you can call me Skully!" Noah ignored her and continued to carry the throne down the corridor until he reached the lava lake''s underground shores. There was a whirlpool at the beginning of the lake, and a large chunk of black metal became visible after it. "You want to take only a glance," Skully said. "Leave me here. I don''t want you to break what remains of my body." Noah finally felt interested in that force''s resources and left the throne there before venturing farther into the tunnel. His walk turned out to be short since white lines soon appeared on the large chunk of metal. The lines appeared harmless at the beginning. Yet, a sudden pressure invaded Noah''s mind and threatened to make it explode when he saw the first corner. Noah promptly closed his eyes and buried his head on the ground as he condensed his consciousness inside his mental sphere. Everything trembled in his view, but he managed to shout one line to the powerhouse before losing his connection with the outside world. "What was that?!" Skully replied with an aged voice. "An authentic divine item. The patch of the fur containing the Seventh Kesier rune of the Ape God." Chapter 1003: 1003. Material Everything trembled inside Noah''s mind, but he managed to make out Skully''s words before the world around him disappeared. His consciousness pressed on his walls to stop the tremors, but the violent pressure continued to make a mess of his sea of thoughts. The sea under his half-transparent figure raged, and waves surged. They slammed on the floating runes and Snore''s ethereal shape, flinging them away toward the walls. The impact gave birth to more tremors, which slowed down the stabilization of the sea of consciousness. Noah feared that cracks would form soon, but the walls'' sturdiness managed to suppress the shaking before any injury happened. Luckily for him, he didn''t resort to the innate ability of his mental energy yet. His mind was at the peak of its sturdiness after it underwent a long training period with the spherical rune and the Kesier Ape in the sixth rank. Noah took a while to stand up, but Skully waited patiently. She didn''t speak, and the cultivators at some distance didn''t even mock him for his poor performance. There was only a helpless understanding in their expressions. It was as if they knew what it was to be in Noah''s condition. Noah stood up and coughed a couple of times before all his functions returned to normal. His face was a mixture of disbelief and greed, and Skully''s words echoed in his mind as if they were a perpetual mental message. ''The Seventh Kesier rune!'' Noah shouted in his mind. What Skully had revealed didn''t concern only the most desired item in the lower planes. It also opened the chance for a real victory against the Ape God! "What do you mean by a piece of fur?" Noah asked in a hurry. "Don''t tell me that this is the actual Seventh rune of the Ape God." "It sure is!" Skully said with her childish voice. "I was there when that monkey took away its fur and fused it with the magma to create the black sky! It''s almost poetic that it would be the first piece to fall!" "It''s not even close to its full power then," Noah replied as calculations appeared in his mind. He recalled every piece of information and legend concerning the Kesier species in a few seconds, and they all led to the same conclusion. The Kesier Apes'' power depended on the number of runes on their fur. If the Seventh rune was there, then the God should have a rank 6 battle prowess! "Don''t let your mind run so fast," Skully said in her ancient voice. "I was here when the first trail of magma gave light to this world. I saw the Seventh rune fall, but the God touching everything with its mental waves anyway. I think that its peculiar ascension has eliminated some of the known weaknesses of the species." Skully''s speech made sense, and Noah understood it almost immediately. The Ape God wasn''t a normal divine entity. It had ascended through the sacrifice of multiple beings, shifting its evolution process on a different path compared to ordinary beasts of that species. The Ape God might have retained some of its original power even after losing the Seventh rune. Noah felt that he understood the rebel''s hopes now. As long as the rune remained away from its original owner, the God would keep on losing power, and destroying the black sky quickened that process. "I''ll perform the procedure if you help bring it back to my organization," Noah said after thinking about it for a moment. "I need to warn you. The mortality of the fusion is quite high, and I can reach a positive percentage only when it''s on myself." "I turned myself into a skull to stay alive," Skully said. "I sacrificed my dantian and gave up to any feeling or ability to move only to remain alive and guide the new generations. I know the price of power. What I need is a chance to fight. You can take the damned rune if you give me my revenge." It seemed that Skully''s condition was far worse than Noah had predicted. However, he respected that such an old monster still had the will to fight. Only really talented cultivators would last for so long in that condition without giving up on their ambitions. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique as he neared the throne. A pale light came out of his vertical pupil as he analyzed the old bones to inspect how much of the original cultivator had remained after many millennia. The rank 5 experts in the distance felt the need to intervene at that sudden act of disrespect, but Skully''s aura stopped them from moving further. She knew how an expert worked. Noah was treating her as nothing more than a material now. ''She has sat on this throne for so long that her bones have gained part of its properties,'' Noah thought as countless ideas filled his mind. ''I might be able to fuse some of the metal in her to improve her foundation before the fusion.'' "Is it possible in my condition?" Skully asked in her mature tone, but her voice carried a hint of worry. She feared that the only hope found in so many years would fall apart so soon. "It''s not impossible," Noah said while continuing his inspection. "Hard, dangerous, suicidal if you will, but possible. I would probably need to perform multiple procedures before approaching the actual fusion, but I should be able to try at least." Noah was speaking the truth. There was hope for the ancient powerhouse. However, he still needed more data. "I need a list with your preferences, tastes, and various details about your personality," Noah said, "You must be honest about everything. The slightest discrepancy between you and the specimen can cause the failure of the procedure." "There is no need for that!" Skully said. "I''ve spent so much time studying the Kesier Apes that I''ve learnt to behave like them! I''ve lost my old personality, my name, and most of my memories, but I''ve created a new one by living in this slavery! Only those Apes can be my match." Noah thought about it for a while before agreeing with her. She even lacked a dantian and focused everything on her mental sphere. Both she and the Apes had a wind aptitude too. There was only one problem, and Noah had to request something from the native forces to solve it. "Your body is a rank 6 material," Noah said. "Even in this destroyed state, it still retains the qualities of that level due to the unorthodox techniques applied over the years. I can''t fuse you with a magical beast on a lower rank." Skully remained silent for a few seconds before answering in her childish voice. "I guess you need to hunt a rank 6 Kesier Ape then." Chapter 1004: 1004. Hun Any living being would become an unparalleled existence once reached the sixth rank. That was the peak of the heroic ranks and the power limit of the lower planes. Divine beings would usually leave the weaker worlds unless they were in peculiar situations. Magical beasts in the sixth rank would be easier to hunt compared to cultivators and hybrids on the same level, but that didn''t make them simple prey at all. Moreover, the forces in the hidden world weren''t ideal for the task. However, a hunt was different from a regular battle. Hunters could prepare the territory and their weapons before approaching their prey. As for studying the target, the cultivators in the hidden world had dealt with the Kesier species for ages. Each one of them was akin to an expert when it came to those Apes. Noah stared at a simple mountain peak surrounded by a series of red waterfalls. That region was close to the rebel''s headquarters, but it was still inside the range of the Ape God''s mental waves. According to Skully, the black sky helped the God spread its influence, so the rebel forces mined it. The lava lake where they lived was a blind spot in the divine beast''s sight, and its summoning didn''t reach there. Skully had confirmed that the best target would be there. Those were the edges of the Ape God''s domain. Any reinforcement would take at least a day to arrive, giving Noah and the other forces enough time for their plan. Noah had eventually agreed to fuse Skully with a rank 6 Kesier Ape, but he had taken his time to prepare. More than fifteen years had passed since that agreement, marking Noah''s twenty-first year since his discovery of the hidden world. That period had been necessary to complete all the preparations needed to hunt a magical beast in the sixth rank. Yet, Noah didn''t feel confident even after fifteen years spent plotting and training. A rank 6 Kesier Ape in the lower tier lived in the mountain, and Noah had studied its habits and the terrain for almost five years by then. The creature was a perfectly healthy female specimen that came out of its lair twice a month. Planting traps with such a predictable schedule was easy, but Noah knew that they wouldn''t be enough to kill the Ape. The plan saw him and other cultivators at the fifth rank''s peak exploiting the traps to attack the creature. Still, their target was a magical beast in the sixth rank. They had to consider themselves lucky if they managed to hurt it. The real killing force was in three disposable weapons that Noah had managed to create in those years. He wouldn''t even have agreed to actuate the plan that day if it wasn''t for them. ''I hope they are enough,'' Noah thought as he stared at the mountain. ''I almost emptied their stash of black metal to complete these three.'' Three needles appeared in his hands, and Noah inspected them with the utmost attention. He had done that multiple times already, but he never felt that it was enough when it came to facing a creature in the sixth rank. The needles were quasi-rank 6 items that Noah had forged after years of failures. Their core material was the black metal imbued with the Ape God''s mental waves and processed for months in Noah''s dark matter. They were the best that Noah could do with his current expertise and power. His darkness needed to reach the solid stage for him to do better than that. Of course, Noah was ready to fail. Yet, there was a slight chance that the plan could work. The only issue was that their strategy saw the Ape eventually getting tired, which was one of the most unlikely outcomes when dealing with a magical beast. "I was wondering," Carl, one of the peak rank 5 cultivators that had joined the mission, said, "Do we have to be careful of its runes? I don''t want to ruin the leader''s body." Noah turned toward Carl and saw that even the other four cultivators in his team looked at him with similar worries in their expressions. His eyes couldn''t help but cold at that sight, and his aura became violent. "If I catch any of you holding back," Noah said as growls fused with his human voice, "I''ll switch to plan B and use each one of you as bait." There were five peak rank 5 cultivators in his team, but all of them felt a lingering fear rising from the back of their mind. They didn''t show any surprise at that feeling though. They had become used to the fact that Noah could scare them even if his centers of power were on a lower level. A silent nod from their side ended the matter, and the group of six returned to stare at the mountain from their hiding spot nearby, waiting for their target to appear. A tall Ape with six white runes on its fur eventually came out from one side of the mountain and floated toward the ground as expected by its usual routine. The beast landed and walked toward a hole in the terrain. That was the entrance to a tribe''s underground home. The Ape had the habit of taking a bite from one of the humans living under its domain. However, a loud explosion happened as soon as it stepped on the edges of the hole. The detonation shook the earth and opened large cracks that spread toward the mountain, spreading tremors even on its rocky surface. Noah and the others had come in contact with the tribe by digging long tunnels during the years of inspection. They had used the underground area to plant Instabilities at the peak of the fifth rank during the last week to minimize the chances that the Ape could notice their actions. A storm of saber-shaped runes came out of the black cloud that formed after the explosion. They raged in every direction, but clinking sounds echoed from inside the corrosive smoke. Noah had improved the Instabilities before the hunt. He had added the threatening properties of the Demonic Form and the Black Mark to increase their power. The core material used was the black metal once again. There seemed to be nothing that it couldn''t withstand, so Noah had used it in all his creations. The cloud suddenly froze, and its smoke began to condense into a small sphere. The figure of the rank 6 Kesier Ape became visible again, and the hunting party could see that the explosion didn''t even burn its fur. The sphere descended into the hole, and the ground under the Ape''s feet opened as if moved by an invisible force. The beast wanted to punish the humans that had dared to rebel, but it soon discovered that there wasn''t anyone in the underground structure. When Ape expanded its consciousness to look for its assailants, all the tunnels detonated, engulfing it into a vast cloud. Chapter 1005: 1005. Traps Skully''s knowledge had been crucial in the preparation of the plan. She knew how the Kesier Apes acted better than anyone else. She had even memorized the layout of their packs and the exact range of their consciousnesses. Through the years, Skully''s forces had come in contact with multiple tribes and had learnt how their rulers acted. In Noah''s target case, the Ape didn''t even bother scanning the region while remaining on the mountain. Noah and his team had been able to plant many traps between its strolls. There were disposable items hidden everywhere and in numbers that could make any force flee in fear. Carl nodded, and the group stood up to launch a series of long-range spells toward the massive cloud. The attacks didn''t have any offensive property. They aimed to lock the Ape in place so that the smoke could affect it. Ethereal barriers, walls, tall magical beasts, and puppets of various elements appeared around the cloud and isolated its form. Seconds of silence passed among the hunting team. The six of them remained still as they waited for the powerful creature to show signs of life and reveal if it had suffered any damage. The various spells around the cloud broke as an invisible pulling force made the smoke converge in another dark sphere, revealing the rank 6 Kesier Ape. Noah''s eyes scanned the creature, analyzing its body down to the smallest detail that he could see at that distance. His vertical pupils constricted as soon as he noticed the detonation had burnt some of its black hair. There was a small black spot on the skin under its fur too. The Black Mark spell had managed to infect the creature, but it seemed unable to spread further. That result made Noah happy. He had finally confirmed that there was hope in defeating that creature! The hunting team had revealed their position during the last attack, and the rank 6 Ape didn''t fail to sense the origin of those spells. Its head turned in the direction of the group, and it took a step on the air toward them as the two spheres floated behind its back. Noah and the others felt their instincts screaming in fear when the Ape''s focus went on them. There was a rank 6 creature coming in their direction, and all they could think about was to escape. Noah had it even worse than his allies. Magical beasts had innate respect toward the power hierarchy, and sensing the aura of the Ape made him want to kneel. However, his mind was superior to both human and magical beasts. That pressure wasn''t enough to make him crumble, especially since he knew what the Ape would experience. The Kesier Ape stepped on the ground once it crossed the hole formed after the detonation, but that action triggered another explosion. An even vaster cloud appeared in that spot, and a storm of saber-shaped runes filled the area. "Again!" Noah shouted, and his companions relaunched their restrictive spells, constricting the corrosive smoke in a fixed form. The spells remained in place a few seconds longer at that time. Yet, a cry suddenly resounded from inside the cloud, and both ground and smoke shot in every direction. Noah felt his ears ringing as he stabbed his hands on the ground to resist the shockwave. The cultivators next to him used spells or clung on trees nearby to prevent losing their foothold. Their hiding spot was a small patch of short trees near the mountain, but the shockwaves eradicated most vegetation between the group and the creature. Another black spot had appeared on the Ape''s skin, and another small patch of its fur was gone. The group''s traps were slowly affecting the mighty creature, but they had made it furious in the process. ''Not yet,'' Noah thought as Snore materialized behind him. The Blood Companion launched flames, sword-shaped lightning bolts, and a chilling gale as its wings unfolded and started to absorb the primary energy accumulated in the area. Power at the peak of the fifth rank wouldn''t be enough in that situation. Noah needed to push the limits of his mind and puppet at least half a step above that level. Snore''s attacks fell apart as they flew toward the Ape. An invisible force made the flames disperse and changed the trajectory of the gale. Only the lightning bolts managed to move a bit further and catch the beast in their range when they exploded. The Ape barely noticed that some black sparks landed on its fur. Snore''s attacks didn''t follow the usual ranking due to the higher energy in their structure, but they could only reach the solid stage in terms of power. A being in the sixth rank barely had to act to fend them off. Yet, Noah didn''t attack to hurt the creature. He aimed to trigger the other traps in the area. The destroyed ground lit up when the black sparks landed on it. Noah and the others had planted layers of various disposable items in the area. The bombs had different effects too and targeted multiple parts of the Ape. The cloud that filled the region after the sparks triggered the explosion appeared different from the previous ones. The smoke flew in a circular motion and created a condensed area of destruction in the form of a sphere. Noah had hidden a weapon capable of unleashing the Black Hole spell''s effects among the various improved Instabilities. The smoke could focus on a smaller area in that way, and its density would increase, enhancing its destructive properties. The experts at the peak of the fifth rank reinforced the black sphere with their spells and waited to see the result of that offensive. There was hope in their expressions since they could understand how many weapons the sparks had detonated in that spot. Noah had mass-produced disposable weapons in the past years because he knew exactly the kind of threat that he was going to face. He had emptied the rebel''s stash of black metal, but that had allowed him to create countless items. The sparks had triggered more than two hundred disposable weapons at the peak of the fifth rank at the same time. The amount of power amassed in the rotating sphere was immense and shook the entirety of the region. The restrictive spells slowly crumbled after a while, and the sphere began to show signs of instability. Another beast cry then sounded in the area and dispersed the entirety of the smoke. The Kesier Ape reappeared in the open, and anger was everywhere on its face. Its expressions were remarkably humanlike, so everyone on the scene understood the intensity of its emotions. A series of sharp feathers shot out of Snore''s wings at that point. Most of them had power at the peak of the fifth rank, and only a few of them gave off the feeling that they had taken a step toward the next level. Chapter 1006: 1006. Brain The Ape roared in anger again, and an invisible force slammed on the incoming feathers, crushing many of them in the impact. Still, there were hundreds of them, and some were more powerful than the others. The stream of feathers engulfed the beast and slammed on its body, releasing clinking sounds that echoed in the area. Most of them shattered when they touched the fur, but a few of them managed to leave white marks on the skin underneath it. One even pierced its skin when it hit the spot affected by the Black Mark. The poison in the disposable items had spread further after the last detonation, successfully weakening the Ape''s body by a bit. There were now sensitive spots on its skin, and the poison could only keep on spreading since the hunting team didn''t give the beast any time to recover. The Kesier Ape roared in anger when it saw the feather stabbed on its chest. The wound wasn''t deep, but it felt humiliating to allow weaker beings to hurt it. Its mental waves went crazy and released shockwaves that spread everywhere around it. The ground and the sky fell apart when that violent force swept them, and the trail of feathers either crumbled or changed direction during that chaos. Nevertheless, a slim figure maintained its trajectory even among the storm of mental waves and landed directly in the Ape''s right eye. The beast was still roaring when a black needle stabbed its eye and exploded as soon as it found a body tissue that it couldn''t pierce. The mental waves stopped raging at that point, and Noah could control the remaining feathers to aim them back at the Ape. He had hidden one of his quasi-rank 6 disposable weapons in the gale of feathers and managed to decide accurately on its trajectory thanks to Skully''s knowledge. If it weren''t for her telling him exactly how the Ape would react when attacked, Noah would have never hoped to land such a precise blow. Noah and his allies didn''t waste that chance and launched their most potent spells toward the stunned creatures. A trail of multicolored spells flew together with a fuming six-armed dragon and crashed on the defenseless Ape. The ground never stopped trembling during that battle, and the sky struggled to close the cracks that the many abilities caused. The last attacks worsened that situation, especially since the Ape released a condensed beam made of mental energy toward the hunting team. Noah and the others were ready for that reaction and left their spots. Yet, the beam was too fast, and Carl''s right leg vanished as he performed his evasive maneuver. The expert clenched his teeth and shot a glance toward Noah, who had eyes only for the creature in the distance. Seeing him in one piece made Carl breathe a sigh of relief. After all, the plan would be a failure without him. Noah kept his gaze on the Ape while a cold smirk lingered on his face. His aura became sharper whenever he saw a new injury appearing of his prey. He couldn''t help but enjoy seeing that his power was finally allowing him to fight beings in that realm. The Ape sensed his challenging gaze and launched another dense mental beam before shooting forward. Noah performed another evasive maneuver and commanded Snore to cast lightning bolts aimed at the creature''s path. Snore''s attacks triggered more traps, and the same rotating sphere made of corrosive smoke and threatening saber-shaped runes appeared around the Ape. The rest of the hunting team quickly reinforced it with their spells and grouped again as they prepared themselves to activate the next traps. The Ape roared to no end as it struggled to destroy the sphere. The smoke eventually dispersed due to its mental waves, but more black spots had appeared on its body by that time. The hunting group retreated and triggered the traps planted beforehand as the Ape chased after them. Noah had created enough disposable weapons to arm entire nations in those years, and he had deployed most of them to kill the rank 6 specimen. Cycles of explosions, spells, and retreats repeated themselves as Noah, and the others weakened the beast. Almost a thousand bombs with power at the peak of the fifth rank had exploded by then, but there seemed to be no end to it. A second quasi-rank 6 needle eventually found its way toward the creature''s left eye and exploded after it stabbed the organ deeply. Noah had managed to predict the precise moment when the Ape vanquished the smoke to catch it by surprise. Another series of powerful spells landed on the Ape right after the needle detonated inside its skull. The hunting team wasn''t giving it any time to breathe, which prevented it from attacking. Noah and the others could remain safe most of the time in that way, and the Ape was slowly reaching its limits. The beast''s fur was a mess, and only the six runes had remained intact. Its skin showed numerous cuts, some even deep enough to reach its internal organs. However, the vitality of a beast in the sixth rank was immense. The Ape still charged and destroyed attacks without the slightest effort. Only Noah''s attentive eyes could notice the small changes and delay in its reactions. The plan was working, but they needed the third needle to deliver the finishing blow. The first two had managed to hurt the Ape quite severely, but not enough to kill it. Noah''s eyes became resolute when he realized how deeply the poison was affecting the Ape. There was a high chance that he could create an opportunity for his allies. "Aim for the brain," Noah said as he passed the last needle to Carl and shot toward the Ape. A layer of black ice and rocks covered his figure before the corrosive smoke turned him into a fiend. Snore''s figure enveloped him too as he marched toward the beast. The Ape unleashed a gale of mental waves when it sensed Noah''s presence, but those ethereal attacks weren''t enough to pierce his defensive methods. Also, the beast was nowhere near its peak, which affected the power of its attacks. More traps detonated, and more spells landed on the creature as Noah marched forward and released roars. He was challenging it to a physical battle right on that spot. The Ape''s mind was a mess of anger and pain, and Noah''s roars triggered its most basic instincts, making it shoot directly at him. It didn''t even bother to use its mental waves during the charge. Noah executed the second form of his martial art, and a deep cut appeared on the Ape. Still, the beast didn''t stop its charge and used its long fingers as claws as it slashed its arms at him. Noah quickly raised his arms and blocked the blows, struggling to resist the immense force trying to reduce him into pieces. He didn''t even have any remaining power to launch flames. Yet, the Ape suddenly went limp and kneeled in front of him, showing a fuming hole on the back of its head. Chapter 1007: 1007. Procedure Noah stared at the corpse of the rank 6 Kesier Ape for only an instant before storing it inside his second space-ring. That wasn''t the time to lose himself in the overwhelming pride that was filling every corner of his body. There were still many procedures to perform, and he couldn''t let the material suffer even more damages. Carl''s couldn''t help but tremble in excitement as he watched the Ape disappear from his sight. It had taken all his determination to approach the beast from behind, and he almost didn''t believe that the small needle had dealt the fatal blow. His hands shook at the thought that he had killed a being in the sixth rank. He was a powerful expert, but he had always known that he was ordinary for his level. The success of the hunt made him feel something that he had never experienced before. There were deeper emotions hidden under that intense sensation of power, and the other four experts felt them too. Since birth, the natives had lived under the Kesier Apes'' rule, and now they had managed to kill one of their strongest specimens. That achievement made them feel as if their revolt was finally starting. Noah''s spells dispersed, revealing the poor state of his robe. Even with all his protection and the Ape''s weakened status, the last attack had affected his body. The skin on his forearms showed large bruises, and his arms felt sore. His shoulders let out cracking sounds when Noah moved, and his waist felt stuck in place. Approaching a rank 6 magical beast had been a reckless move, but Noah had done his math. The Black Mark had given him a general understanding of the Ape''s condition, and his many spells had ensured his temporary safety. It was a calculated risk that Noah had been willing to take to create an opening in the creature''s defense and test his current prowess. Now he knew that there was still an abyss between him and the sixth rank. However, he had understood that it wasn''t out of reach. It would be enough for any of his centers of power to experience a breakthrough to shorten that distance by a lot. Noah quickly suppressed the thoughts concerning his power to focus on the impelling issue. He had obtained the corpse needed for the fusion, but Skully was unable to undergo the procedure. "Noah!" Carl shouted before the other experts aligned next to him. "You have my deepest gratitude!" Carl bowed toward Noah, and his companions did the same. Their gesture was a simple demonstration of gratitude toward the expert that had made such an incredible feat possible. "It''s a pity that you have so little black metal," Noah said as he turned toward the rebel''s headquarters. "We could have started a proper invasion otherwise." The hunting group remained speechless at that claim. They had helped Noah planting the many disposable weapons, so they knew how many resources they had used to kill a single rank 6 magical beast. Noah had used most of the black metal that the natives had mined since they first rebelled to create the inscribed items deployed that day. He had kept a few of them for himself, but everything else had gone into the hunt. However, Noah didn''t seem to care about the expenses or the dangers of the hunt. He acted as if he could repeat that extraordinary deed easily as long as he had enough resources. There were a few unexploded traps in the area, but the hunting team could take care of them. Noah had to return to the headquarters to prepare the rest of the procedures. The road back to the black palace floating on the lava lake was uneventful, and Noah went directly inside the room that he had used in the past years during his experiments. It was one of the palace''s sturdiest areas, and the black metal that made its walls managed to absorb any shockwave caused by Noah''s experiments. The metal had power varying between the peak of the fifth rank and the middle tier of the sixth. That depended on how much time it had spent on direct contact with the sea of magma above. The longer the magma tempered it, the harder and more powerful it became. Noah had to rely on his dark matter to loosen the metal before he could use it during the forging. The procedure wasn''t too tricky with the parts at the peak of the fifth rank, but it took time when it came to the more challenging pieces. The same went for the Kesier Ape''s corpse that he had just obtained. Noah didn''t have the power to mold it as it was. He needed to loosen it up before he could make the necessary modifications. The modified version of the Black Hole spell appeared in his palm, and Noah threw it toward the center of the empty room as he poured his darkness into the environment. The area''s temperature was high already, so Noah only had to release enough "Breath" to create a dark star right in the center of the room. The gravitational pull was intense, but Noah had become used to working in that environment by then. The corpse of the Ape appeared in his hands, and he threw it directly inside the star. The dark matter moved as the corpse entered the sphere and began to float at its center. It remained suspended mid-air, right where the higher energy had the highest density. That was the method that Noah had used in the past to loosen up the black metal. The dark matter was peaceful at the star''s center, but the gravitational pull imbued it inside the materials. In that way, Noah would have some control over the processed items'' internal structure, and he could use them even if his level wouldn''t usually allow that. Noah walked through the dense dark matter and inspected the Ape''s corpse. Most of its black fur was gone, and even its six Kesier runes showed some damage. Its skin was a gory mess, and its eyes were beyond saving. The brain had suffered heavy damages too, but the higher energy was already filling the hole on the back of the beast''s head. Noah''s dark matter was a pure expression of his creation. It could theoretically replace any material and enhance its natural properties. However, that didn''t apply to materials on a higher level of the dark matter. Noah''s higher energy couldn''t create something stronger than itself. Still, it could make some patches. The patches had to find harmony with the material''s structure, which was harder to do when it came to something as complex as a rank 6 magical beast. Noah didn''t know how much the dark matter could fix those injuries, but he had another pressing issue now. He had to prepare Skully''s body for the fusion. Chapter 1008: 1008. Reinforcing "So," Skully said as Noah inspected her bones from various angles, "I won''t be able to see with my new body." The two of them were alone in the throne hall, and Noah had just finished explaining to her the damages that the rank 6 Kesier Ape had suffered during the hunt. Organs as the eyes and the brain were above the dark matter patching abilities, and Noah couldn''t recreate them at his current level. Skully would have to adapt, but he knew she wouldn''t complain at all once fused with the Ape. Noah had to fix the frailty of what remained of her body before approaching any form of fusion. Still, his inscription methods were too harsh for her, so he had to find a way to make the process more natural. Luckily for him, he had already found a material that worked perfectly for her, which could help in the forging. Skully had sat on that throne for who knew how many centuries. Her mental waves had interacted with it for so long that its black metal was part of her. She had used the other Mortal Lands'' natives'' inscription method unconsciously and had turned the entire throne in a material that reflected all her shades. Noah couldn''t imagine using anything else to improve her skeleton''s structure. "Your mental abilities will be stronger," Noah said as he distanced himself to get a clear picture of her overall condition. "I''m quite curious to see by how much. Yet, you might take a while to get used to it since we destroyed the Ape''s brain." "That''s fine!" Skully said in her childish voice. "I missed the training during the years stuck in this form!" Noah could only sigh at the sight of that excitement. The powerhouse didn''t know how many things could go wrong when using the Elemental Forging method, and she had to undergo two of them. Moreover, there were polishing sessions on both bodies to complete. Noah couldn''t leave them in the way they were, mostly since there were many incomplete body parts. "Carl," Noah said in a soft tone, and the expert in the fifth rank limped inside the hall, "Prepare the team to move her. I need to work on this throne." Carl performed a bow and limped back outside the hall. He could fly, but he needed to become used to his regrowing leg. There were only a few alchemists among the natives of the hidden world, but their level of expertise was far below average. They couldn''t concoct drugs powerful enough to heal Carl''s leg in just a few days. The cultivators in the black palace had initially been doubtful about Noah''s presence among them, but the recent hunt had improved his status by a lot. Moreover, the news that he was giving another body to their leader had improved their mood. He wasn''t a foreigner anymore in their eyes, but they wanted to know if he could do what he claimed before worshipping him as a savior. Carl returned with a group of peak rank 5 cultivators that used their most soft spells to lift Skully''s skeleton and empty the throne. Noah waited for them to leave the hall before processing the throne''s black metal with the small star made of higher energy. All he had to do now was waiting for both Ape''s corpse and throne to absorb part of the dark matter and give Noah some power over their structure. It took a few months for the throne''s fabric to give up and let the higher energy affect it. Noah sensed it immediately and prepared himself for the next phase of his plan. The expert at the peak of the fifth rank prepared a room where they laid Skully on a metallic table. There were old traces of inscriptions around it, but they were too consumed to work. Noah reached the room carrying a large slab of black metal carved out of the processed throne. There was dense smoke seeping out of it, but the item appeared harder than before. The experts backed down when Noah neared the table and placed the slab right next to Skully, who seized the chance to mock him. "Imagine killing me right in front of my men!" Noah ignored her line and placed his hands above the skeleton and the slab. The dark matter came out of his body and created an incubating chamber around the table, isolating it from external eyes. "It''s a good thing that you can''t feel pain," Noah said as he hinted that he was about to start. "Yes!" Skully said. "Years of suffering to obtain my dreamed Ape''s body! I hope it will be worth the wait!" Noah didn''t hesitate any further and began to control his darkness so that it activated the dark matter inside the slab and forced it to liquefy. An intense sense of life filled the room as soon as Noah''s imbued "Breath" made its appearance. That sensation was so fierce that Carl''s healing speed increased by a bit. The liquid metal floated toward the old and destroyed bones and began to seep in their structure. Getting inside them was easy, but fixing them was a slow and methodic procedure. Noah controlled the metal so that it filled every hole in the bones and improved their overall structure. A black layer even appeared over them, showing how more resistant they had become. That part was relatively easy. The only side that could cause Noah any problem was the skull due to its sensitive matter inside. There wasn''t a brain there. Skully had replaced it thanks to one of her unorthodox techniques. Yet, it was a sensitive spot, and Noah had to pay his utmost attention when fusing it with the metal. Noah continued until all the slab ended. He had done his math and knew that the Ape''s body could withstand the skeleton''s new weight without getting affected by it. The process ended smoothly. Skully survived the procedure, and Noah found himself closer to the laws of creation after he had done all that work. There had been times when he had to recreate entire bones to give stability to Skully''s overall structure. The skeleton was too old, and it had lost most of its original power. Skully ended up in a coma. The new bones and the different substance inside her had to find some harmony, especially since she would have to endure the fusion. Noah wouldn''t have forced her to undergo another fusion even if the Ape''s body was ready. Even a few years might not be enough to make Skully gain some stability with her new skeleton. A couple of years had to pass for both Skully and the Kesier Ape''s corpse to be ready for the fusion, and Noah decided to wait a few more months anyway after that point. Then, he brought Skully and the body into his training area, ordering everyone to leave them alone. He was going to create the second artificial hybrid. He couldn''t have an audience. Chapter 1009: 1009. Fusion Noah had turned himself into a hybrid when he was only a human cultivator. His mind had reached the heroic ranks before the experiments back then, but he didn''t have to face all the issues connected with individualities. According to his own words, it was impossible to find a magical beast that suited the individualities'' uniqueness. They didn''t exist in nature, so no other creature could imitate them entirely, not even if planned. However, Skully had lost her dantian long ago, and her personality had fallen apart in those millennia spent trapped under the rule of the Ape God. Her entire existence had become an empty vessel filled with pieces of information regarding the Kesier species, and she had acquired some of their peculiarities too. She was the only cultivator who could claim to be entirely in tune with those beasts. Noah would feel like fusing two magical beasts with a similar species due to the absence of individualities and Skully''s connection with the Apes. The only issue was with her sea of consciousness. Unlike his fusion, Noah couldn''t use Skully''s body as the core item because it was nothing more than bones. He had to use the Ape as the primary material and fuse the powerhouse inside it. That meant transferring Skully''s mental sphere inside the Ape and make her use its brain once she became a hybrid. Noah knew that there might be complications in that aspect of the fusion, but he was ready to prevent them. The procedure had required him to eliminate Heaven and Earth''s will before fusing the dragon''s tissues back then. Yet, Skully barely had any "Breath" on her skeleton, and Noah''s expertise was on a whole higher league compared to the past. The innate destruction radiated by his darkness had removed any trace of Heaven and Earth''s will from her skeleton during the first forging. What remained to do now was clearing the remaining strands of the Ape''s consciousness before starting the fusion. Noah placed a finger on his forehead, and a ghostly humanoid figure came out of it when he pulled it away. The shape was an almost transparent will that had his facial features. Skully inspected the scene with her consciousness as she lay on a large metal table next to the Ape''s corpse. She could sense the violent energy inside the will, and the intense hunger radiated by its form, but there was something strange too. The will didn''t have "Breath" in its structure, but something far more volatile, and that worked with laws that she didn''t understand. The powerhouse couldn''t possibly know that Noah had used primary energy to build that will. As the expression of his destruction, that energy was the perfect tool to eliminate the remains of the Ape''s consciousness. Noah inserted the will in the beast''s body. The greed inside enhanced his mental waves'' intrinsic properties and devoured any remnant of its consciousness, leaving only the laws that ruled its tissues intact. Noah left the will inside the corpse for a few hours. Skully''s mind would probably take over any remnant trace of the beast''s thoughts once fused, but he didn''t want to risk it. Moreover, the Ape was a rank 6 creature, which left Noah with no choice but to be thorough with that procedure. The will came out stronger after coming out of the Ape due to the pieces of consciousness devoured. Noah could use it to improve his mind, but he limited himself to store it for now. The dark matter came out of his heart and enveloped the large table, isolating both Skully and the Ape. Noah then lifted the skeleton and placed it over the beast as it gave the powerhouse one last inspection. Skully''s existence had harmonized with the black metal in her skeleton by then. Those dark bones were part of her and carried traces of her mind. There was a limit to how much Noah had managed to polish both bodies. His higher energy had filled most injuries and patched eventual missing tissues, but it couldn''t alter rank 6 materials too much. Everything else would be up to Skully once she became a hybrid. It would be up to her and her evolution as a new existence to determine what she could fix and change. "I''m going to start," Noah said as he placed his hands on the membrane made of higher energy. He was about to begin the procedure, but Skully wanted to say a few things first. "Noah," Skully said in her ancient voice, "Don''t forget about us if I die." Noah opened his mouth to speak but eventually decided otherwise. It wasn''t the best choice to give his cold answers to someone about to experience the fusion. He had already decided that he would rely on the Hive if he didn''t manage to handle the situation by himself. Noah''s darkness activated the higher energy, which forced Skully''s body to liquefy and fuse with the corpse under it. He wasn''t in a hurry at that time, so he could proceed slowly and double-check his every move. There wasn''t enough of Skully to fill the Ape, so he had to distribute her parts across the beast''s core spots. Only her skull fused entirely with the creature''s brain to ensure the powerhouse control over the body. That wasn''t a perfect fusion by far. Skully would have to slowly expand her control over her new body by using those core spots. When considering that she didn''t have a body for millennia, hers was a rehabilitation. The black skeleton eventually disappeared, and only the Ape remained. Noah fused even the internal tissues and adjusted their harmony before stepping back toward the area''s exit. He had fused everything. Skully and the Ape''s tissues had become one. However, the only way to know if the procedure had succeeded was to wait for the hybrid to wake up. "Prepare the defenses," Noah said as his back touched the door connected with the rest of the palace. "She should be weaker than our prey." The sound of steps resounded behind him. Noah had warned the peak rank 5 rebels that the fist awakening after the fusion was usually traumatic. There might be the need to fight until Skully regained control of her mental faculties and kill her if she didn''t. "Noah!" Carl said from the other side of the door. "Black clouds are gathering inside the sea of magma. You were right. A Heaven Tribulation is coming!" Noah smiled hearing that. He didn''t want to fight another rank 6 being that he couldn''t eat. The Tribulation could help them exhausting Skully until she regained consciousness. A thick aura spread from the large table and covered the entirety of the structure. Noah sensed the aggression contained inside those mental waves and exited the room before a deafening cry resounded in the area. Skully had woken up, but that roar didn''t contain anything human! "She''s hungry," Noah said in a cold tone as he pointed at the sky. "Let''s drive her upward. Let Heave and Earth handle this one." Chapter 1010: 1010. Control Noah and the rebels had decided to use the metal palace for the fusion even if they knew that a Heaven Tribulation would arrive. They didn''t know how Skully would wake up, so they preferred to use the palace for its defensive properties. They could always bait the hybrid outside if it awakened in a violent state. Noah, Carl, and the other peak rank 5 experts that had remained inside the palace during the fusion exchanged a glance before their auras spread outward. The dense pressure originating from Skully''s room pressed on their minds, but it didn''t focus them. It was an innate act of a powerful creature in a confused state trying to become aware of its surroundings. The cultivators'' auras made it concentrate on them and press on their minds with even more intensity. Noah and the others struggled under that pressure, but they promptly retreated to escape from its range. Another angry roar resounded from Skully''s room as the consciousness of the hybrid chased after the escaping cultivators. Loud stomps soon echoed through the palace, emitting the unmistakable sound of a massive creature walking on sturdy metal. The hybrid opened the room door and found a large hall with a broken throne placed at its center. A wave of confusion made it stagger for a few steps, but anger soon filled its mind again. Some memories tried to take over its instincts, but they made it lose control of its body whenever they resurfaced. The creature didn''t like that sensation, so it suppressed them and continued to march toward the escaping presences. The chase eventually brought the Ape outside of the palace, but a dangerous sensation quickly enveloped its mind when it felt the outside world''s fresh air. Its reactions were slow though, so it didn''t manage to escape the lightning that fell directly on its head. The Ape fell on its knees, and blood started flowing from its head. The lightning bolt had managed to hurt it, but that pain felt strangely refreshing. The beast touched its head and sensed that a long cut had appeared on top of it. Moreover, there was a spot on its nape where the skin felt different. Memories resurfaced as the sensation piled in its mind, but the danger of the Tribulation in the sea of magma above made it suppress them again. The survival instinct surpassed every other feeling in intensity. Noah watched the scene from inside one of the red waterfalls that filled the area. He saw the Ape shooting in the sky and aiming for one of the larger cavities in the black layer as it went after the origin of the Tribulation. ''It''s quite weak,'' Noah thought when he focused on the sparks accumulated inside the sea of magma. Noah had created a hybrid in the sixth rank, so it felt only normal that the Heaven Tribulation would have a similar strength. However, those lightning bolts were at the bottom of the sixth rank in terms of power. It seemed that the location of the hidden world interfered with the laws imposed by Heaven and Earth. Even their Tribulations found it hard to express their full power there. Moreover, the black sky blocked many lightning bolts, and only those that aimed for the holes in the metallic layer could hope to hit their target. Noah didn''t find anything on the expressions of the peak rank 5 experts hidden in waterfalls near him. They showed awe and fear toward that lightning storm, meaning that they didn''t find anything strange with that level of power. ''Maybe the God has something to do with this,'' Noah glanced at the palace before focusing again on Skully. There was a proper divine item in that world. That had to affect the laws meant for heroic cultivators. The Ape floated in the sky before a few lightning bolts slammed on its body. Wounds opened on its chest and shoulders, and dense black smoke came out of them. The Tribulation was threatening that newly created body''s stability, dispersing part of the dark matter that had patched its previous injuries. The impact flung the hybrid back on the ground, but it quickly stood up and relied on its innate ability to defend against other incoming lightning bolts. An invisible barrier formed around its figure as it shot again in the sky. The Tribulation''s attacks created ripples in that shield made of mental energy, and they managed to crack it only when the Ape was about to reach the sky. The Ape fell toward the ground again, ending directly inside the lava lake where the palace floated. The scorching sensation couldn''t do anything against its powerful body, but Noah felt worried when he saw the amount of dark matter dispersed after the impact. ''This won''t do,'' Noah thought as he stepped out of the red waterfall. The pride carried by his aura intensified as the images of his battle against the rank 6 Kesier Ape resurfaced in his mind. That feeling peaked when he recalled the sensations felt when he managed to block its physical attack with his arms. Carl and the others felt that Noah had suddenly become more dangerous. It wasn''t his power to have changed, but the violence of his aura. They felt as if a magical beast had suddenly replaced their ally. Noah released a roar, and the world lost its light for an instant. A pillar made of transparent white flames spread horizontally and affected some of the lightning bolts'' trajectory. The pressure radiated by the Tribulation focused on Noah at that point. He had interfered with someone else''s test, so he had become a target too. Nevertheless, another roar resounded in the area before the sparks in the magma could create attacks aimed at Noah. The cry was long, and its tone became clearer and more human as it continued. Noah had put all his pride as a hybrid in his last cry, and he had even ordered Skully to wake up. He was weaker than her when it came to the food chain, but there was a chance that his roar could awaken her human mind. A whirlpool formed in the lava lake after the cry and a large empty area formed right in the middle of those red waters. A figure slowly flew out of it, and Carl''s group couldn''t help but rejoice at that sight. Noah saw the Kesier Ape sitting on a floating throne made of lava. The beast sat in the same position that Skully had maintained for millennia, which confirmed that the powerhouse had gained control of her new body. Skully appeared unable to move, but she was using her innate ability quite skillfully. Her mental waves kept the throne solid, and she floated without using "Breath". "Thank you, Noah Balvan," Skully said in an ancient voice mixed with growls. "You can step back. I have too much to remember about being alive!" As she finished speaking, Skully shot upward, protected by an invisible barrier that the Tribulation didn''t manage to pierce. Then, she crossed one of the cavities and dived in the sea of magma, disappearing from Noah''s sight. Chapter 1011: 1011. Shoulder Noah climbed the red waterfall next to him and sat on the other side of the black sky once he reached the sea of magma. He wasn''t going to miss Skully''s battle. She was a rank 6 existence other than his second artificial hybrid! Skully sat on her throne as she floated directly toward the sea area filled with orange sparks. She didn''t seem to care about her safety at all as the barrier around her fell apart, and her bare body dived directly into the Heaven Tribulation. The sparks crackled with more intensity and released thick lightning bolts that landed directly on the burnt fur. Large wounds appeared on Skully''s body, but her face showed only an ecstatic expression. Skully looked no different than an injured Kesier Ape. Only her skeleton had fused with the creature, so no changes happened on the core body. She was five meters tall, with long arms and legs. Her mouth was big, and her jaw covered more than half of her face. Her eye sockets were empty, and most of her fur was nothing more than a charred mess. Cuts and injuries filled her body too. Noah''s higher energy didn''t manage to fix many of them. Moreover, dark matter leaked out of Skully''s skin whenever a lightning bolt hit her. The harmony that the black star had enforced was slowly slipping away as she suffered more damage. Some of the injuries that the period inside the black star had managed to fix reopened. Blood even started to leak from her eye sockets as the Tribulation raged on her. Nevertheless, a smile never left Skully''s ape face. The sole fact that her skin was able to feel something again made her ecstatic. Skully had come to accept her poor condition after millennia spent as a skeleton. She had completely given up on herself and had used all her knowledge to gather as many rebels as she could. It wasn''t a case that the rebellion had many experts in its ranks. Human cultivators could only inhabit a few safe areas, but the experts in the heroic ranks could live near the black palace and benefit from her knowledge. They would then spread such knowledge in other underground structures during the summoning and free as many tribes as possible. That provided a constant stream of experts, even if most of them ended up falling for the God''s calling due to the limited area of the safe zone. Only those who managed to reach the fifth rank and survive the lava lake''s environment could completely escape the calling. Anyone weaker than that would have to return to the tribes and train until that level. However, Noah''s arrival had given Skully hope. She had regained a body together with the ability to join her revolt. She just had to overcome the Tribulation now. Skully continued to smile as the lightning bolts crashed on her, but her aura slowly changed. She had yet to learn how to move her body, but her mind felt freer than ever. Skully could sense all the matter around her, and she felt sure that she could move it at will. Her thoughts resembled countless tiny hands that spread from her mind and reached everything in her range. More lightning bolts flew toward her as her aura changed. The Tribulation didn''t care that she had finally decided to act and continued its relentless assault. Yet, the bolts suddenly stopped when they were about to crash on her. They even tried to explode to catch her in their detonation, but an invisible force suppressed their entire form. The Heaven Tribulation didn''t stop, and more lightning bolts flew toward Skully only to remain stuck in place when they were about to hit her. The invisible force blocked all of them and prevented their detonations. The situation reached the point where the immobilized lightning bolts hid Skully''s figure from every angle. It was as if she had created an array of uneven spears to defend herself. A dangerous feeling surged in the back of Noah''s mind at that sight. His instincts told him that something massive was about to arrive, and he didn''t hesitate to descend into his hole. He remained inside the red waterfall though, and his consciousness continued to inspect the powerhouse''s battle. Skully felt the limit of her mind approaching and decided to release the lightning bolts outward, creating a series of explosions that made a mess of the magma controlled by Heaven and Earth''s will. The shockwaves spread through the entire area and created violent currents that made the waterfalls overflow. The pressure was so high that the holes in the sky enlarged as pieces of black metal broke and fell into the lakes below. The amount of magma pouring into the hidden world was so high that the main lake expanded until it engulfed many smaller ones in its tides. The catastrophe didn''t stop there since the waves made of lava submerged even the nearby territories, expanding the lake outside of the safe area. Noah and the other experts dodged the many black metal pieces falling from the sky as they remained in the air to probe the Tribulation''s status. It seemed that Skully''s attack had defeated all the sparks, which meant that she had earned her right to live as a hybrid. One of the biggest waterfalls opened and revealed Skully''s injured figure floating on a throne made of lava. Blood flowed everywhere, but a smile never left her face. Noah noticed that faint trails of black smoke came out of her injuries to patch them. His higher energy focused on the most destabilizing wounds and aimed to enforce some harmony in that body again. "You have ruined years of work," Noah said before heaving a loud sigh. All the time spent patching the Ape''s body up had been wasted by her reckless behavior. With the Tribulation being weaker than her actual level, Skully could have defeated it as soon as she gained control of her mental faculties. However, she had preferred to bathe in her newfound sensations before facing the challenge seriously. That decision led her to suffer multiple injuries and reopen old ones. Moreover, the stability of her body had been endangered, which would make her healing process longer. Noah neared her to inspect her conditions. The magical beasts'' innate resilience was already working on fixing her body, but she lacked proper nutrients. ''She must have trained with the Seventh rune for a long time,'' Noah thought as he glanced at her empty eye sockets. Skully didn''t show any instinctive behavior, which was rare for hybrids. Her mental sphere was far stronger than her body, which allowed her to remain in control of her faculties. "I think I''m hungry," Skully said as she expanded her consciousness to look for enemies. The "Breath" released by the Tribulation didn''t satisfy her. She needed prey to hunt. "I''ll explain everything on the way," Noah said as he sat on the air behind her back to stare at a white rune on her shoulder. "Be sure to remain still." Chapter 1012: 1012. Breakthroughs Skully flew above the nearby regions, destroying any pack of magical beasts that she could find and feeding on them to satisfy her hunger. Yet, she avoided going for the specimen in the sixth rank since her situation was still unstable. Noah followed closely behind her, together with a few rank 5 cultivators that wanted to follow his example. They knew that the miraculous events in the last period had happened because of him. They felt that imitating his behavior could make them as unique as him. Skully had now become a portable training area for the seas of consciousness of various levels. It was too dangerous for weaker cultivators to stare at her due to her runes. Still, she was perfect for those in the fifth rank. Noah and the others could train their minds while she was busy feeding herself. Her runes seemed to have a better effect too since they weren''t copies placed on standard sheets. The number of nutrients that a rank 6 body needed was immense, and the fact that she was injured didn''t improve her situation. Skully hunted rank 4 and 5 magical beasts of various species for an entire month before she could feel the slightest satisfaction. Her power didn''t increase after those meals, but her existence solidified as she became used to her new body. She had yet to walk, but she had started to move her fingers. The magical beasts'' innate resilience was even pushing away Noah''s higher energy to make room for a normal healing process. Noah followed her closely while the other experts respectfully alternated turns to occupy the spots behind him. No one dared to complain about his favorable position, nor about the fact that he collected all the Kesier runes left behind. Noah took the time to analyze the changes in Skully''s body while his mind expanded at an incredible speed. She was a pool of information regarding the creation of hybrids in the heroic ranks, so he wanted to study her thoroughly. The procedure had been relatively smooth, but Noah knew that he wouldn''t find the same extraordinary conditions if he were to perform it again. Skully didn''t have an individuality, and her personality was so fragmented that she suited the Kesier Apes perfectly. ''She still needs the higher energy to remain in one piece,'' Noah thought as he followed the powerhouse. ''It''s a pity for her dantian, but maybe I can fix that after a few breakthroughs.'' The hunting team didn''t go easy on the rank 6 Ape. Its body had many injuries that would generally make it unable to function. Yet, Noah''s higher energy was replacing some essential tissues until it healed. As for the dantian, Noah could create weaker versions of that organ, but he couldn''t link it properly to the rest of Skully''s existence. Placing an improvised center of power in her would do more harm than good. The rebels and Noah returned to the black palace after the hunting session was over. The mood among those forces had changed now that their leader could act again. The discussions concerning revolutions never stopped, and some even called for an all-out invasion of some regions. Of course, most of those ideas were delusional dreams of cultivators that had yet to realize how untouchable a God was. Still, there were some approaches worthy of being considered. The Ape God''s behavior was predictable. Its summoning happened every fifty years, but it didn''t manage its species as a proper army. Most of the specimens of the Kesier species formed packs that had no role in the summoning. The God left them free to thrive and controlled only some of them when it needed to escort cultivators. The only constant in their behavior was their hatred toward humans and their rule over them. Most heroic Apes ruled over tribes out of their own will and even clashed with preexistent packs to control those regions. That layout gave the rebels many chances to strike back and free more tribes. Creating a good army didn''t seem so unreal anymore. The only issue was that they didn''t have a place to stay since the safe area was too small and deadly for weaker cultivators. A couple of years passed, and the rebels had yet to come up with a proper strategy. They limited themselves to cultivate and prepare for any eventuality since their knowledge of the cultivation world was limited. They could only rely on Noah and Skully to find a solution. "I have something," Skully suddenly said as she waved her right arm. She and Noah were alone in the throne hall, with the former busy gaining control of her body and the latter staring at the Sixth Kesier rune on her fur. "About?" Noah asked with an uncaring tone. The way he saw it, it was better to free as many cultivators as they could and escape. Everything would be more accessible if he had access to the separate dimension, but the layers of magma and metal that isolated that place were bound to affect its functioning. Also, Noah didn''t want to return to the surface to ask Thirty-sever for fear of losing any access to that place. There were almost thirty rank 5 cultivators among the rebels, and Skully was a hybrid powerhouse. The experts were weak, and Skully lacked a dantian, but they were still a force that could bring the Hive to the apex of those Mortal Lands. When considering the amount of Kesier runes, Ape''s corpses, and the Seventh Kesier rune, Noah didn''t have any doubt that retreating was the best option. However, Skully wanted to free the tribes and inflict a loss on the Ape God. She knew that her idea wasn''t feasible, but she still wanted to achieve something similar. She even had an iron will. The millennia spent as a skeleton made her lose any fear of death. Noah''s threats to remove the higher energy from her body didn''t faze her. He had tried to do that and failed already. "I recalled a method to create a habitable area," Skully said as she tried to turn without any success. "But I need years and resources." "Don''t move!" Noah shouted as he stood up to move Skully back in place. The Sixth rune on her right shoulder had gone behind the throne during her failed attempt to turn, interrupting his training. "Did anyone ever tell you that you are a cultivation maniac?" Skully said in an ancient but friendly voice. Even if he had threatened her and used her only to cultivate, Noah was still her savior. Noah ignored her. His mind had never grown so quickly, and even his other centers of power were improving at an unbelievable speed. Only his body was a bit slower since he purposely suppressed his hunger. The breakthroughs that appeared so far away had finally shown their presence. Noah''s existence had been ready to advance for a while by then, but Noah had understood it only when his mind improved. Now he only needed to train for a few decades to reach them. Chapter 1013: 1013. Stability Noah''s individuality had advanced by leaps and bounds since he had gained access to the higher energy. The many battles and his achievements in the inscription field had widened his existence and made it reach incredible depths. He had various elements at his disposal, a puppet capable of expressing astonishing power, a branch of techniques that only he could perform, and items able to take down a rank 6 creature. Both his destruction and creation had crossed the limits that his cultivation level could hold. The only thing that Noah lacked was the years of training required to improve his centers of power. His individuality had advanced so quickly that it had left the centers of power behind! That became clear as his mind grew. Training with Skully''s rune made his sea of consciousness enlarge so quickly that it touched on the world of the laws quite often now. Nevertheless, even his improved understanding couldn''t give him a precise estimate concerning the arrival of breakthroughs. That was a complex topic, especially when it came to matters related to the world of laws. His initial estimate had been that the first breakthrough would arrive in some decades, but the time of the summoning came without any of his centers of power advancing. Noah had followed Skully everywhere in that period, and he had even helped her managing magical beasts'' packs at times. Moreover, he had explained to her the many advantages of a hybrid body. Skully didn''t have a dantian, but she had access to primary energy like him. Also, she could use the inscription method of the natives of the other Mortal Lands, but she had to modify the walls of her mind first. She could theoretically use martial arts in the same way as Noah. Her only problem was balancing the consumption of primary energy and finding a secret art that could give her access to it. As for the possibility of having a dantian, the two of them discussed the matter and agreed that they would wait for Noah to become more powerful. The population of Kesier Apes diminished rapidly in those years, but that event concerned only the regions near the lava lake. Skully didn''t dare to get too close to the lair of the God. She had started to fight rank 6 creatures though. Her control over her new body had even improved so much that she could walk by herself. It wasn''t a complete control yet, but she was getting there quickly. Noah spent the period during the summoning on the other side of the black sky. It wasn''t that he didn''t trust the safe area, but he didn''t want to risk it. The Ape God was bound to realize that something was happening in its blind spot, and Noah didn''t want to be there to see it that affected its behavior. ''It''s been more than fifty years already,'' Noah thought as he remained immersed in the magma, protected by a layer of dark matter. Noah didn''t even realize that he was more than three hundred years old most of the time. Entire months could pass in the blink of an eye, and years went by whenever he focused on his training. Almost two hundred years had passed since he reached the liquid stage, and even more since he became a rank 5 mage. However, Noah barely felt the passage of time. He had lived longer than any human in his previous world, and that thought didn''t even disturb him. He had become completely detached from the commoners, and he couldn''t consider himself human. His aspect had barely changed even. He still looked as if he was in his twenties, but there was a mature vibe around him. Also, the features given by the Light-devouring Dragon made him look fierce. ''It''s time,'' Noah thought as he felt the muscles around his dantian contracting. He released his grip on the Demonic Sword placed on low-waist and waited for his body to do the rest. He had returned inside the metal palace and was cultivating in one of the training areas when he sensed the breakthrough coming. His excitement mounted at that point, and he let the Demonic Sword fly freely in the room as he focused on his dantian. The muscles around his center of power contracted and pressed on its walls, increasing the density of the liquid "Breath" contained inside. Noah felt his darkness becoming hotter as it started to take a solid form. Waves of power surged inside him as his cultivation advanced. His darkness soon took the form of a minute shining crystal with the shape of a saber. Noah bathed in the sensation of power that filled his body. His mind automatically reached the world of the laws and made him understand more about his current situation. The fifth rank''s solid stage was the phase when heroic cultivators had to perfect how they wielded laws. The next step would see them striving to become a law, which was more an elevation of their existence than a learning process. Noah felt the sharp, destructive force contained inside the crystal and its capability to become a material for his creations. It was a fuel that carried both aspects of his individuality, which he had to perfect if he wanted to step on the sixth rank. The Demonic Sword flew back into his grasp and resumed its functions as the core item of his cultivation technique. The dantian that had returned to its smallest form began to expand again, and a second crystal soon appeared inside it. As "Breath" flowed inside his center of power, his heart began to beat faster until the higher energy compressed inside it applied a pulling force on his energy. Noah saw pieces of his solid "Breath" coming out of his dantian and reaching his heart, only to enter the valve that contained the higher energy. The process happened on its own, and Noah had no control over it. It seemed that his body had automatically connected those centers of power and was working to restore some balance. The dark matter inside his heart became denser, raising his organ''s temperature and increasing the gravitational pool that it applied to its surroundings. The black star there became even smaller, but its form started to grow unstable. Small flares appeared and released large quantities of dark matter outside of his heart. The flares became more prominent, and the stability of the star fell apart. All the dark matter expanded, creating a large sphere that had Noah at its center. ''Dammit!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he felt the walls of his heart stretching. His center of power wasn''t meant to endure the higher energy in that form. The dense waves floating outside of it threatened its stability. There wouldn''t be any problem if his body had already fused his heart and the other valve, but there were instabilities solvable only during a breakthrough. The situation was quite dangerous now. Noah feared that his heart could suffer if he continued to let his dark matter run wild. Chapter 1014: 1014. Abilities Noah didn''t fear for his life, but he didn''t want to risk suffering such an insidious injury and possibly lose his fourth center of power. His healing abilities were off the scale, but the heart was too delicate to ignore the danger. The Demonic Sword roared as it understood his intentions. The weapon was still in his grasp, so Noah only had to place it on his dantian to resume cultivating. The black star in his heart had become unstable because his darkness''s structure had changed when it reached the solid stage. The old harmony didn''t work anymore now. The solid "Breath" was heavier and required a higher density to evolve. The only solution for the current situation was to pour more energy inside the dark star until it found new stability. However, Noah had just advanced, so his dantian was mostly empty. He had to cultivate before he could fill his burning heart. "Breath" gathered on the blade of the Demonic Sword, which turned it into primary energy that the rune on Noah''s waist transformed into darkness. His dantian had long since created a connection with the rune, so the "Breath" was in the solid stage when it reached the center of power. The gravitational pull then forced the darkness away from the dantian and added it to the black star, increasing its width and traction force. The sphere kept on expanding, and it soon reached the walls of the room, bending the sturdy metal as it pressed on them. Small bumps appeared on the walls, but they held on against the pressure. Noah''s training area had always been extremely resistant in the end, and he had even created a black star there before. Noah felt his heart expanding as the dense area of the star became wider inside his organ. He had already surpassed the past density, but the harmony seemed still out of reach. More "Breath" became darkness, and more darkness became dark matter. Cracking sounds came out of the walls of the room, but nothing broke. Yet, the pressure began to go back at him and weigh on his body. Noah could sustain it easily initially, but it became harder to hold his weapon correctly as time passed. Noah didn''t stop filling his dantian with as much energy as he could. He didn''t want to get rid of the higher energy for even a second, and he was too eager to see the new power that he would obtain to stop now. The temperature rose beyond what the lava lake could do, and small cracks appeared on the walls. It seemed that the old structure was about to give in to the relentless pushing force. The star suddenly began to collapse on itself, relieving the room of some of the pressure that Noah had released. The dark matter converged toward Noah''s heart and amassed inside his fourth center of power. Noah''s breathing became ragged as his heart became hotter. The tissues of his organ expanded to make room for the new dark matter. His dantian never stopped absorbing "Breath", but the process appeared to be ending. The dark matter disappeared from the room and gathered inside Noah''s heart, creating a small black sphere that his organ compressed further. His fourth center of power had a star again, but it was brighter. It was a shining blackness that could blind any human. Noah cultivated until his dantian began to expand at a slower pace. He then switched to training his mind using the Sixth Kesier rune obtained from one of the rank 6 Apes hunted before the summoning. He inspected the changes with his higher energy only after all of that. His fourth center of power needed to stabilize itself anyway, so an early analysis would have given false results. The dark matter was the same as before, except for its unusual brightness given by its newfound power. The higher energy was at least twice as dense than before, and containing so much power eventually gave birth to that strange phenomenon. Noah could create all his previous elements with his new higher energy, and Snore had its agenda. The Blood Companion was already benefitting from the improvement, but Noah intended to review its structure after it evolved independently. ''I wonder what will happen when I become a rank 6 cultivator,'' Noah thought, trying to suppress the imagines of an actual black hole from appearing in his mind. The reaction would be too dangerous at that time, and it could kill him. However, his body would already be in the sixth rank, meaning that the burning heart would be part of him. Noah came out of his room with the intent to test his new power and found Skully inspecting a rune with the entirety of her consciousness. She could take her of herself, but the rune in her hands was the First Kesier rune. He couldn''t possibly understand what she was doing with it. His doubts didn''t last much because the powerhouse noticed Noah''s presence and decided to speak to him. "Do you remember the secret ability of those Apes? I should be able to do the same." Noah understood her point, but he knew her potential better than anyone. The only problem was whether there were conditions to meet for the activation of that ability. "You are a Kesier Ape," Noah began to explain as he strolled across the room. "You have that ability in you. Still, you once said that the other beasts had sacrificed willingly to the God." Noah''s reply gave Skully an idea. She had tried to make a connection with the rune until then, but she had never tried to force the process. After all, her roars could make any existence in the human ranks bow. Skully''s aura changed as she tried to absorb the First Kesier rune. It became more domineering, but it had some subtle mental waves among them. They worked as orders disguised as angry reprimands of a more powerful existence. To her surprise, his domineering cry affected the rune. The patch of white fur in her hands began to emit a faint light, and an instinct surging from the back of her mind made her place the shining hair on her forehead. The whiteness in the piece of fur disappeared at that point, and Skully released an excited growl when she understood that she had succeeded. She had managed to activate the secret ability of the Kesier Apes, even if only on the First rune. "What about you?" Skully said once she suppressed her excitement. "My underlings told me to watch over your room for fear that something could explode." Noah knew that the destabilization of his dark matter had probably scared all the cultivators inside the palace. Yet, he didn''t expect that Skully would come to prevent any harmful repercussions. "I think it''s time to understand how strong the Ape God is," Noah said as battle intent filled his mind. It was time to understand how strong he had become. Chapter 1015: 1015. Hunger The hidden world was an environment filled with ancient species and forgotten creatures, but it wasn''t useful as a territory. Nothing could beat the piece of Immortal Lands in terms of resources and density of "Breath". Noah had been ready to leave that place as soon as he restored the powerhouse''s body. Still, the rebels had no intention to leave before saving as many tribes as they could. Since Noah wasn''t willing to leave without the Seventh Kesier rune and those heroic assets, he decided that it was time for him to help them properly. That wasn''t his first rebellion, and he had become used to wars throughout his life. His experience in battles of that kind and his prowess could help the rebels end that matter faster. Noah went on a solitary exploration once his dantian reached the solid stage. He had yet to adapt his techniques to his new power, but the process would be faster if he had opponents that could endure his blows. Skully had defeated most of the packs around the lava lake, so he had to venture in farther territories to look for worthy opponents. Still, that world didn''t lack powerful creatures, so finding them didn''t take him much. Noah descended toward a small lake where a series of deer-type magical beasts had set up their lair. There were three specimens in the fifth rank among them, with one at the upper tier''s peak. Noah didn''t recognize that species, but he could understand most of their qualities with a glance at their physical features. The deer had long and intricate brown horns made of a metallic material. The strongest creatures among them were four meters tall and seven long. All of them had thick brown fur that stood up whenever they moved. The air around them was tense. Noah could easily guess that they had a lightning aptitude, but that didn''t affect his plan. After all, their power couldn''t faze him. ''Let''s start with the basics,'' Noah thought as the Demonic Sword flew in his palm, and he performed a casual slash. The solid darkness in his dantian moved together with his arm, completing the first form of his martial art. The black line that came out of it was a massive slash that divided the lake into two halves and spread a vast cloud of corrosive smoke. Noah had purposely missed all the beasts, but every specimen in the fourth rank or lower died when the shockwaves released by his attack spread in the region. Even the casual slash of a hybrid on Noah''s level was too much for them to handle. The entire region trembled after the attack, and the underground structure of the area destabilized as the slash dug in its depths. The simplest of Noah''s gesture was akin to a natural calamity in a mortal plane. The three surviving rank 5 deer let out angry cries as the ground trembled under their legs. Yet, they went silent when they identified the existence that had dared to invade their lair. Noah''s body had been in the upper tier''s last phases for a while, but that wasn''t the scariest aspect of his figure. His entire existence spread destruction that generated primary energy, and even the world''s pale light dimmed around him. Everything about him appeared meant to destroy, and his reptilian eyes radiated the sharpness of his existence. His cold gaze was enough to scare away the weaker deer. The leader of the pack couldn''t think of any way to defeat the flying invader. Its instincts told it to flee and never look back, but the pressure around it intensified when it was about to roar the order. Noah''s eyes shone with a cold light as he stared at the leader. His simple glance was enough to make the creature understand that it couldn''t go anywhere. Snore slowly took form after the deer gave up on escaping. The Blood Companion''s size had increased since the denser dark matter began to flow into its body. Its dark shape even sparkled with a black light from time to time, showing that Noah''s breakthroughs were affecting it. Its level had increased too. Snore had lingered on the lower tier of the fifth rank before, but it had suddenly risen to the middle tier now. Moreover, the new dark matter had yet to fill all its body, so that wasn''t its limit. Of course, that classification was something that Noah used to understand Snore''s growth better. The fact that the Blood Companion had higher energy as its fabric made its power impossible to classify with standard labels. Snore appeared majestic as it coiled around Noah. The Albino Snake''s will cheered as it sensed its new power and released a loud hiss to express its excitement. ''The flames should be enough,'' Noah thought as he sat on the Snake''s head. He didn''t care about the creatures on the ground. All he wanted was seeing the destructive might that he could unleash now. Snore spread its mouth, and a column of black flames fell on the remains of the pack. The three deer could only lower their heads and accept their fate when they saw the attack coming for them. The land became a charred wasteland in a few seconds. Snore''s flames didn''t leave anything behind, and even the vegetation at the bottom of the lake became nothing more than ashes. Entire layers of the ground burned as the flames lingered on its surface. A massive black cavity replaced that once green environment. As for the three rank 5 creatures, only a few body parts survived the black flames. Even such strong beings couldn''t do anything against Snore''s attack. ''This is far better than I expected,'' Noah thought as he inspected the effects of the flames. The solid darkness had improved his battle prowess by a lot, but those boosts multiplied when it came to his higher energy. ''I might become a match for weaker rank 6 cultivators once all my assets become used to my new level,'' Noah pondered. Ravaging Demon''s surprise attack had shown him how the higher energy was already making him ignore the gaps between the stages. Yet, he had now reached the point when he could begin to consider facing an actual powerhouse on his own! Noah gathered anything valuable from the area and returned to the black palace. He had decided to improve his techniques and hunt a rank 6 creature later to test his strength. A peculiar scene appeared in front of him when he returned to the throne hall. Skully sat on the floor, holding a piece of fur that had the Third Kesier rune on its surface while her mental waves surrounded it. The white hair turned black as her mind absorbed the power of the rune, but saliva drooled out of the corners of her mouth as the procedure continued. Skully''s smile was strange too. She appeared to be wholly captivated by that sensation. ''Don''t tell me,'' Noah thought before Skully turned and looked at him with a hungry expression. He couldn''t see any human emotion on her face. There was only hunger. Chapter 1016: 1016. Mental state ''She has abused it!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he understood what had happened. He had learnt to know Skully during the past years. She was a wise and driven powerhouse, but her long period spent as nothing more than a skeleton had left her with a massive flaw in her personality. The flaw didn''t go away even after her mental state regained some stability. Skully had become addicted to the sensations that her new body gave her! Noah knew that there wasn''t anything more addicting than sensing the centers of power improve. Skully had probably lost herself while she absorbed Kesier runes, and she didn''t stop even after her mind regressed to a wild state. "Skully?" Noah asked in a cold tone as black smoke came out of his body. He didn''t want to fight her, but he would go all out if necessary. Skully gave voice to a deep growl as she crawled toward him on her four limbs. She moved slowly as if she was taking her time to inspect a powerful prey. Noah''s pride surged, and he released a roar that echoed through the entirety of the metallic structure. He even relied on his control over the dark matter inside her body to weaken her during her crawling. Skully staggered, and her arms bent all of a sudden, making her slam her face on the floor. Confusion appeared on her expression, but a wave of anger soon replaced that feeling. Skully roared, and injuries opened on her body as black smoke forcefully left her figure. Blood came out of her mouth, but that damage didn''t stop her from getting back on her four limbs. Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw his higher energy leaving her body. Skully''s condition had improved so much in the last period that she didn''t need the dark matter to function anymore. A scaled armor appeared around him, and Snore took a solid form. The Demonic Sword released a draconic roar as it flew in his palm, ready to join him in the imminent battle. Carl suddenly arrived in the throne hall, but he froze in place when he saw that scene. He immediately understood that there was something wrong with his leader, but he didn''t dare to interfere. All the natives of the hidden world had a limited number of spells and poor cultivation techniques. Skully had helped them when she recalled some inscription method, but their power mostly came from the struggles that they had survived and a prolonged period spent cultivating. Their battle prowess was incredibly low, and even the natural features of their individualities were only faint abilities in their auras. "Bring everyone away," Noah said without moving his eyes away from Skully. "I''ll try not to destroy this place." Carl quickly nodded and left the hall. He felt relieved that Noah didn''t ask him to help in the battle. Skully was still his leader and the only reason why all of them had lived for so long without a mental brand. Blood kept on leaking from Skully''s mouth as she crawled near Noah. She then straightened her position when she reached Snore''s body, but her consciousness''s focus remained on him. Noah felt her mental waves trying to crush his mind, and he let them apply their pressure on him for a few seconds. When he sensed that there wasn''t anything human inside them, a lightning bolt shot from Snore''s horns and landed on her chest. Snore hissed, Noah roared, and the Demonic Sword released a loud cry as they deployed all their attacks. Six fuming arms became one and slashed downward, and various elements came out of the Blood Companion. A loud explosion resounded inside the throne hall. The metal in the room bent and cracked after Noah''s offensive landed on Skully, but a violent pressure soon covered the entirety of the palace. The cloud that had formed after the collision dispersed, revealing a cracked invisible barrier that had protected Skully. Not even the second form of Noah''s martial art had been able to touch her. A formless force reached for Noah, but it found only a crack in the air when it arrived on its position. Cracks spread around the hall as Noah used his movement technique to make the Skully lose track of him. Meanwhile, Snore pounced at the powerhouse, slamming on the cracked defensive shield and releasing its elemental attacks at close range. Its wings spread too, and their feathers stood up as they absorbed the primary energy in the environment. Noah had one crucial advantage. Skully acted as if nothing was wrong with her body, but he knew about damages that dispersing his dark matter had caused. Some of her internal organs were bleeding, and many of her joints had lost essential connections with her muscles. She was hurt, and her physical strength had almost diminished under the standards of a rank 6 creature. Moreover, Noah didn''t want to kill her. He only had to beat some sense into her until she regained her mental faculties. The lack of killing intent in his blows didn''t mean that he was holding back. It would be suicidal not to go all out against a being in the sixth rank. Noah sprinted until he felt sure that Skully had lost track of him before casting the Black Hole spell. All the primary energy created during the past attacks gathered in the sphere next to him and Snore''s wings. Skully roared in anger as her mental waves became violent. The Blood Companion''s body shattered in multiple spots when her attack swept it, but it didn''t move. Even after part of its wings broke, Snore kept them unfolded and launched its feathers. Skully endured those feathers with her bare body, but a few injuries were on her fur that made them somewhat threatening. Another mental shield soon appeared between her and the winged snake, blocking its attack once for all. The powerhouse was about to use her thoughts for offensive purposes again when a six-armed dragon slammed on her shield. The third form of Noah''s martial art and the barrage of feathers slowly pierced the defensive shield and hit Skully, who could only endure the blows. A loud explosion echoed through the palace again, and a hole formed in the black wall that had seen Noah''s most potent attacks converge. Shards of black metal fell from the cracks spread everywhere in the hall, but a tense silence filled the scene. Noah activated his Demonic Form again as he waited for Skully to move. He knew that she was still alive, but he was unaware of the condition of her mind. Snore remained in front of the hole, and dark matter came out of Noah''s heart to fix its maimed body. The Blood Companion returned at its peak in a few seconds, with only its wings lacking most of their feathers. Skully eventually moved and let out a pained groan as she supported herself on the wall''s interiors. Her eyeless head moved in the room before she gave voice to a question. "Did something happen?" Chapter 1017: 1017. Calling "No more rune absorption until you learn how to be alive again," Noah said as he scolded the sour Skully, who was evaluating her injuries. Most of her cuts came from when she had forcefully removed the dark matter inside her. However, there were some deep wounds that she couldn''t link to that event. The memories from when she had lost control of herself were slowly coming back, but they returned in the form of intense sensations that her hybrid brain turned into confused images. There was something that she couldn''t explain. Skully only recalled a fiendish figure and a tall winged snake when it came to her other injuries, which meant that Noah had managed to suppress her on his own! That wouldn''t be so surprising if he relied on his disposable items. Yet, there were no signs of his Instabilities in the throne hall. Moreover, Noah didn''t suffer any injury, meaning that the battle had been utterly one-sided during those short minutes. "Are you hiding a powerhouse somewhere?" Skully asked. Noah was only a newly advanced cultivator in the solid stage. Even if he was the best expert to have ever existed, no one should be able to ignore the barrier between the fifth and sixth rank. "No eating either," Noah ignored her as he continued with his directives. "Focus on training your mind. There might be a chance to overcome your stagnation since you''ll be staring at a divine item." Skully had to stop training in the past because her body was too frail to endure an even more powerful consciousness. Her mind would have reached the divine ranks by then otherwise. Carl was in the back of the broken throne hall together with a few experts. They stared at the interaction between their leader and Noah with wide eyes. They would have never expected to see a similar scene in their life. A cultivator in the fifth rank was scolding a powerhouse! Their respect for Noah increased even more after they saw Skully nodding under his stern gaze. Their leader, who had lived for more than one hundred thousand years, was agreeing with him! "I''ll take care of the rebellion for a bit," Noah eventually said after he finished giving Skully directives. The summoning had just come, so that was the perfect moment to free more tribes. Meanwhile, Skully could focus on recalling some techniques and inscription methods to teach to her underlings. . . . Noah took the reins of the rebellion in the next years, but he rarely appeared in the battles. His priority was to let Snore improve and apply eventual modifications when necessary. The natives of the hidden world expanded the cleared area around the lava lake and invaded deeper territories. They focused on defeating the weaker packs before grouping every team to fight against the strong ones. There wasn''t any Ape in the sixth rank left near their headquarters, so they could advance steadily and reduce the regions under the control of the God. Noah didn''t seclude himself in those years. He still trained like a madman, but he spent some time helping the digging of the sky. The black metal was a valuable material that could work as the core for many weapons. Also, the Ape God used the sky to spread its mental waves, so enlarging the holes would hopefully reduce its influence on the world. The Demonic Sword eventually evolved, reaching the upper tier. Noah''s breakthrough had unlocked its path toward the higher ranks. No major event happened during that period. The rebels advanced, the hole in the sky enlarged, and Noah improved. The human side of the hidden world became stronger, while the army of Kesier Apes became weaker. The environment was slowly assuming the trend of the surface, with the magical beasts suppressed by cultivators. However, the rebels didn''t believe that God would remain indifferent now that its species'' slaughter had resumed. The new dark matter pushed Snore to the upper tier''s peak, and Noah''s body reached the same level due to the hunts in those years. His tissues began to accumulate the energy necessary for the breakthrough in the sixth rank, but Noah suppressed his hunger at that point. He had just seen Skully losing control of her mental faculties. Her situation was peculiar, but nothing stated that Noah wouldn''t suffer from the same fate if he advanced before his mind was ready. ''I can''t risk it,'' Noah thought as he flew toward a red waterfall. Another fifty years had passed, and it was time for the God''s summoning. He would spend it above the sky as usual, but he was curious about the situation on the ground at that time. The lava lake''s size had tripled since the last calling. The new troops in the rebel army and Noah''s help had done wonders when it came to enlarging the holes in the sky. A constant red light filled those regions due to the many large waterfalls that poured magma into the lake. Some of it ended up seeping into even lower parts of the world, but no one cared about that since the lakes expanded nonetheless. Noah paid attention to the intact part of the sky as he meditated inside the sea of magma. The Ape God''s mental waves spread as usual, but they covered only the regions with the black metal above them. Their digging had expanded the safe area. Skully could adapt her plans to that discovery now and build habitations for human cultivators in regions far away from the Seventh Kesier Rune. "This is a body-tempering technique," Skully said as she showed rank 4 cultivators immersed in the lava lakes. The harsh conditions forced them to fly out of it quite often, but their bodies appeared far sturdier after every session of training. "I don''t think the surface has them anymore," Noah said. The body-tempering techniques used extreme conditions to improve the bodies of the cultivators. They were akin to unorthodox methods, just slightly less dangerous. Their effects thought were somewhat inferior to what the surface had now. They didn''t provide the explosive boost in power of unorthodox techniques nor the safety of body-nourishing methods. Still, any technique was better than no technique. What Skully had recalled was even quite powerful according to the standards of her time. The new generations of cultivators would grow stronger thanks to that. The powerhouse had even begun to build more structures on the lake and made them able to fend off the harsh temperatures. Human cultivators could live there, but they needed heroic experts to return to the land. Noah actively freed more tribes after all his assets adapted to his new power. The might that he was capable of was unparalleled among beings in the fifth rank. Yet, Noah didn''t test himself against rank 6 beasts since he didn''t want to eat them and let his body improve. His mind was reaching the fifth rank''s limits anyway, so he could wait a bit more. Nevertheless, after only twenty-five years from the last calling, the Ape God''s mental waves spread again, covering even the safe area. Chapter 1018: 1018. God The sudden summoning caught everyone by surprise. The natives of the hidden world, Skully, and even Noah had become used to the Ape God''s routine and capabilities, so they didn''t take any precaution against that event. Noah was staring at the Sixth Kesier rune on Skully''s fur when those ancient mental waves filled the world. He experienced the helpless feeling of having an unstoppable force taking control of his mind, leaving him unable to resist. Skully and Noah executed mechanical movements as they straightened their position and began to fly in the same direction. Other cultivators joined them as they advanced past the lava lake, and all of them had their same empty expressions. ''This is a God,'' Noah thought as his body moved on its own. His thoughts were free, but he didn''t have control over anything else. Even his mental waves couldn''t surge out of the sea in his mind. Noah didn''t feel angry. He had done everything by the book and acted according to what cultivators had learnt in millennia living there. He couldn''t predict that sudden surge of power from the God. ''To think that something so faint can turn me into nothing more than a puppet,'' Noah thought as his focus went on the force that was controlling him. The mental waves of the Ape God were almost unnoticeable. They felt like nothing more than a whisper when they reached his mind, but his whole existence became powerless at that sound. The God''s mental waves weren''t heavy, but they carried meanings so deep that even Noah''s mind didn''t understand why it was listening to them. Still, they felt simple, as if they were just casual thoughts generated by a superior being. More and more cultivators joined the trail of experts flying in the sky. The calling of the Ape God was inevitable, and no human living in that world managed to escape it. Entire tribes came out of their underground homes, wearing the same empty expressions as everyone else. A crowd of human cultivators gathered on the ground too. They were slower than the existences in the sky, and their resilience was lower. However, they kept moving forward even when the travel continued for more than a month. An army of Kesier Apes soon appeared and escorted the crowds of humans through the various regions. Their destination was a solitary mountain placed in the farthest place from the lava lake. Noah didn''t dare to imagine how stressful it was to spend an entire life as a puppet, and his respect for the natives of the hidden world increased as he experienced the summoning first hand. The helplessness that he felt could crumble any cultivator''s spirit, making it impossible for them to advance in their journey. Yet, there was an army filled with experts ready to fight back. Their only weakness was their lack of techniques, but that wasn''t their fault. ''They can decide to fight even after experiencing this countless times,'' Noah thought as his ambition filled the entirety of his thoughts. ''How can I allow myself to do any less?'' Noah''s change of mindset didn''t affect his sea of consciousness, but it made him decide to go all out to avoid the impending crisis. He had a chance to escape that situation, so he would take it. The Ape God''s mental waves had surrounded his mental sphere and kept on affecting it as he flew together with the other cultivators. His mental energy couldn''t move, but it was in direct contact with the creature''s faint thoughts. Noah''s mental energy had inherited the devouring properties of the magical beasts when he became and hybrid. He could absorb the wills of any living being as long as it came in contact with his sea of consciousness. The thoughts of the Ape God carried clear traces of his will. Noah had never seen such purity and intensity even when he used the theory of the Body-inscription Spell on rank 5 beasts to condense their minds. The amount of power that those divine thoughts contained was immense, which meant that they would expand his mind faster than any other drug or Kesier rune. Noah knew that he could survive that pressure for an instant. The simple glance at the Seventh Kesier rune had made him collapse, but he had survived without suffering any injury. He felt confident that he could do the same with the Ape God''s thoughts if he managed to devour a minute part of its mental waves. His only hope was that experiencing a breakthrough would temporarily free him and give him a chance to escape. The only issue was that the God''s calling was still resounding in the entirety of the hidden world. Gaining a few seconds of freedom wasn''t enough to make him escape the range of its thoughts. A plan quickly formed in his mind. His tricks and assets appeared in his view, and developed an intricate strategy that gave him a chance to escape the mental brand. ''I have to reach the meeting,'' Noah concluded in his mind. Even after all his reasoning, he found only one approach that could give him a chance to survive. Yet, he had to admit that pulling that off would bring his destruction into another league. The cultivators reached the solitary mountain, and the Kesier Apes led them through rocky tunnels that led to its insides. An intricate array of passages unfolded in front of Noah''s eyes, but his mind was elsewhere. He regained focus only when he reached an empty area at the center of the mountain, and his eyes moved on their own on a massive figure sat on a large rocky throne. Noah saw a twelve meters tall Kesier Ape sitting cross-legged on a refined throne carved out of the mountainside. The beast''s hands formed a circle in front of its lower-waist. It seemed that it was practicing a cultivation technique, but no "Breath" moved around it. Its fur was black, but it shone with a mystical light. Noah''s dark matter did the same, but they weren''t even close in terms of intensity. Six patches of white hair formed six Kesier runes, but the purity of the aura that they radiated surpassed any other rune that Noah had ever seen. There was a missing patch of fur on the Ape God''s right cheek. Noah didn''t even need to look at it to know where the Seventh Kesier rune had come from. Nevertheless, he didn''t expect the God to turn toward him and speak human words with a strange accent that resembled an ape''s cries. "So, you are the foreigner that has started this chaos. I can see it in your soul. I can sense that your power is nothing more than a side-effect to Heaven and Earth''s mistake." Noah remained speechless. A magical beast was using human words to communicate with him, and it was speaking about the core of his individuality! "Humans are all the same," The Ape God continued. "You think that you are stronger than any other being, but you are only lucky to be born in that species. If you were beasts, you would achieve less than worms." Chapter 1019: 1019. Dantian The Ape God''s insulted the entirety of humankind, but there was truth behind its words. Cultivators didn''t choose to be born with three centers of power, and the magical beasts weren''t guilty of having only one of them. Luck played an essential part in the cultivation journey, and its influence started as soon as a living being was born. The species itself declared the potential of a creature. Of course, there were exceptional cases, but the magical beasts had a fixed fate unless random mutations or stronger beings'' influence changed it. The creatures of the other Mortal Lands were the living statement that anything could happen in the cultivation world. Still, those were rare events. Cultivations were stronger than the magical beasts. That was an eternal truth of the cultivation world. Noah wanted to feign interest to gain more time, but his body didn''t react to his commands. Luckily for him, the God forced him to stare at its figure, which gave him full access to the Sixth Kesier rune on its body. ''Push as much as I can before devouring,'' Noah thought as he set his mind at ease in the hope that such behavior could improve his sea of consciousness faster. His plan to get out of that situation without a mental brand was dangerous, but its chances of working had increased when he heard the Ape speaking. He could exploit its anger. Noah was ready to use any leverage when dealing with a divine creature. "Heaven and Earth''s decisions are completely random," The rank 7 Kesier Ape said before heaving a humanlike sigh. "This creates a broken system. I''ll change it once I reach the Immortal Lands. I''ll make it fair." Noah found the God''s words interesting, but he maintained his focus on its Sixth rune. His mind was improving more quickly, so he didn''t dare to do anything else. "You detain the power to cheat Heaven and Earth''s system," The Ape said. "I need it. Give it to me." Noah''s thoughts became tense at those words. He expected something to happen in the next seconds, but the Ape remained still as if waiting for him to move. The God then released a laugh and waved its hand, freeing Noah from its control. The latter staggered as his mind restored all the connections with his centers of power. His breathing became rough, but he stabilized it in a few seconds. Noah cleared his throat as he glanced at the tall Ape on the rocky throne. He didn''t understand what the God wanted him to do, but he didn''t waste that chance to stare at its Sixth rune with even more intensity. "No need to feign ignorance," The Ape said again. "I''ve already restored the mental brand to all the cultivators here. I know what you gave her." Noah''s thoughts froze at those words, and his eyes looked around the empty area. Skully was next to him, while the rebels'' experts stood on other platforms that had appeared at the end of their tunnels. That was the entirety of the elite force of the rebels. Skully''s millennia of work had gone to waste as soon as the Ape God''s changed its routine. "What would you like me to do?" Noah asked when his gaze returned to the tall Ape. He wasn''t going to agree to any of its requests, but there was something that he needed to know before acting. The divine creature''s hands closed, and both its forefingers pointed at its low-waist before it gave voice to its request. "I want that human organ. I need a dantian to compete with the monsters above." "What do I get in exchange?" Noah asked with his usual cold tone. "Your life," The Ape God cut the negotiations short. It didn''t give him any hope to talk his way out of that situation. "I want a story and an answer," Noah''s answered firmly, and the Ape hesitated before it gestured him to speak again. "I want your story," Noah said as he sat on the ground. "And I want to know how you learnt about my peculiar nature." The Ape''s eyes went cold when it sensed that Noah was plotting something. However, it couldn''t understand what it was, which eventually convinced him that there wasn''t any hidden reason behind his words. Noah had all the hidden reasons of the world. They went from expanding his knowledge about the Kesier species to understanding the current power of the God. Moreover, he was gaining time for his mind to reach the sixth rank. The divine creature eventually nodded and began to tell its story. "I''ve come here to escape your kind. My brothers and sisters gave their lives to push me to this stage, and I sacrificed their rune to create this sky. This is a paradise for our species. Kesier Apes can live free from any ruler here and not fear for their lives. "I''ve known about the hole in the sky since before the rune fell. Creating a world with an imperfect divine power can only lead to that outcome. This is why I focused on growing a divine rune for myself rather than seizing my lost one back." Noah could say that its speech made sense. He didn''t know why, but his instincts told him that the Ape God wouldn''t have managed to stabilize the black sky even if it took the Seventh Kesier rune back. "Creating a world gives you a tighter connection with Heaven and Earth," The Ape eventually concluded. "I can understand what sort of mistake you are with a simple glance." ''I see,'' Noah thought, ''A creator knows.'' More details about the Kesier species'' leader became evident in his mind as he kept staring at its Sixth Kesier rune. Once his eyes became used to its divine halo, he could recognize the various flaws that filled its body. Noah could finally see the exhaustion behind its eyes, its inflated belly caused by failed absorption of food, the missing teeth in its mouth, and the slight tremors that swept its fingers from time to time. Time shouldn''t affect a divine being, not in such a short period, at least. There was something strange with the Ape God, and Noah didn''t fail to see it as his mind reached the limits of the fifth rank. "What are you waiting for?" The Ape asked with a tinge of anger in its tone. Noah felt forced to close his eyes to endure the pressure generated by its words, but the violent force lasted far less than he expected. It was as if the Ape was becoming weaker as their conversation continued! "This is an act, isn''t it?" Noah asked as a series of items left Divine Demon''s space-ring and entered his new one. Noah believed that all the cultivators in the area had a mental brand now, but he didn''t think that the Ape God could pull that feat off every time. It had probably reached its limits since it had shortened his period of rest. Then, Noah asked a question that made the divine beast shake. "Do you need a dantian to stop yourself from dying?" Chapter 1020: 1020. Rebellion Noah almost found it hilarious. The leaders of both armies had pushed the limits until they were almost about to fall apart. Skully had traded her sanity, body, and dantian for more years of survival in which she could train new generations of rebels. Her efforts had been praiseworthy, but their execution ended up being relatively poor due to her flawed memory. On the other hand, the Ape God had given up on its divine status to build a world for its species. Still, the origin of its divine power was flawed and imperfect, which eventually led to the fall of the Seventh Kesier rune. The Ape then had tried to reach the divine ranks on its own, but it had failed, falling trap of a constant weakening process that made its power regress back into the heroic ranks. That wasn''t everything. The Kesier species'' leader still had to restore the mental brands and perform the summoning, which were tasks that required a divine power. Noah could guess how the creature had resorted to any possible method to stall the dispersion of its divine power and continue its unmatched rule of the hidden world. Nevertheless, those methods had their limits, and Noah''s arrival forced it to break its routine and perform a summoning far sooner than the previous ones. Its mind had endured that feat, and now its after-effects were appearing on its body. "I don''t need anything from the humans," The Ape God said as it restored its composure. "I only want more power. My desire is the most natural feeling in the world." Noah sensed a faint tension in its voice, and its words had become even more similar to ape''s cries now. Also, the fact that it wasn''t questioning him about his moving of items made him even surer about his hypothesis. The spirit automaton of Divine Demon''s ring made the calculations in his place. Noah only needed to tell him what he needed, and the program executed the orders. All the resources that Noah had accumulated through the years went into his second ring. Its width was slightly inferior to the first one, but it was meant to store strong prey, so it performed its task quite well. Noah left the Obsidian Credits and anything useless in his old ring while moving everything else in his new one. That was true even for the two divine and quasi-divine items retrieved in Shandal''s separate dimension. He had to throw away many corpses and runes to make room for them, but he felt sure that he''d have more space soon. The Ape God didn''t flinch when it saw the divine scroll, but its body convulsed when the stuffed quasi-rank 7 winged beast appeared for an instant in the outside world before entering the other ring. The Kesier species'' leader began to droll, and its mental waves shot toward Noah once again. He lost control of its body for the second time, but his long speech with the Ape had given him the chance to seize as much as he could from the Sixth Kesier rune. Now he could only proceed with his plan and hope that he won''t suffer any lasting injury. The Ape''s mental energy touched Noah''s mind, but a minute part of those faint thoughts suddenly disappeared. The quantity was so little that the God didn''t even notice it, but it was a massive amount for a rank 5 mage. Noah felt a sudden surge of power coming from the center of his mind and slamming on its walls. It was as if a series of angry wills had taken form and were attacking his mental sphere at the same time. The process was excruciating, and Noah staggered inside the empty area at the center of the mountain. However, the energy dispersed when he devoured the God''s thoughts freed him of its control. Noah heard the sound of glass shattering as the pressure continued to expand his sphere. A series of cracks spread on the ethereal walls of his mind, sending waves of pain that made him feel like puking. Noah had eaten the smallest amount of thoughts that his mind could divide. Yet, even that grain of divine power had been enough to crack his mental sphere. Still, the injury wasn''t severe. The cracks weren''t deep and only spread in the walls'' interior parts, which were the easiest to heal. Noah knew that it would take a long period of nurturing to fix them, but he could only think about their expansion now. Noah''s sphere seemed to surpass some natural limits as it kept spreading. He felt profound thoughts concerning the world of the laws invading his mind and enlightening more about his path, but he also sensed that he had to review his plan''s details. During the breakthrough, the feeling obtained suppressed the pain caused by the injuries on his mind and made him battle-ready. Yet, the Ape God didn''t care about any of that. "This is a useless act," The God said, without showing the slightest amount of worry in its tone. The fact that Noah had become a rank 6 mage could barely scare him. Its mental waves moved once again to take control of its body, but Noah''s new awareness made him ready for that threat and allowed him to react in time. Noah snapped his fingers to fling Divine Demon''s ring toward the rocky throne before his figure disappeared. Cracks spread between his previous position and Skully, and the rebels'' powerhouse flew backward as Noah flung her away. He then shot toward the rocky walls of the mountain, uncaring of the fact that he had to dig his path for a few kilometers to return to the outside world. The Ape God had initially wanted to put an end to that mess. Noah''s new power made him fast, but it was still a god. Moreover, he had stopped to help Skully, which had slowed down his escape. However, Noah had perfectly evaluated the power of his assets. The God''s mental waves could only stop chasing after the rebels and focus on the black ring flying in its direction since its instincts told it to activate some defensive measures. Noah flew for his life. The scaled armor formed around him, but its shape morphed as the black branches spread on the Sixth Kesier rune that had condensed at the center of his sea of consciousness. The black smoke radiated by his form became violent and raged in every direction as he shattered the rocky walls of the mountain and opened a path for the outside world. Skully was still under the God''s control, but the latter didn''t have time to give her orders, so she slammed on the mountainside and cracked the rocky layers with her bare body. Noah''s physical strength had given her enough momentum to leave that place. Then, a deafening roar spread in the area, followed by a silence that preceded an earth-shattering explosion. Chapter 1021: 1021. Powerhouse The world began to tremble even before the explosion of Divine Demon''s ring swept those lands. It was as if it had noticed that an earthshattering event was about to spread in the area. The detonation that followed the silence reduced the entire mountain into ashes, creating a column of fire and smoke that reached the black sky as it spread in the regions nearby. The metal and the ground didn''t resist the explosions'' might and fell apart, opening paths for magma that flowed from both above and under the hidden world. However, even those red rivers couldn''t survive the self-detonation of Noah''s ring. It was an apocalyptic scene, and cracks that led to the void opened everywhere in the environment. The world was ending, and no one was doing anything to stop that destruction. Noah flew as quickly as he could, but the shockwave released by the detonation swept him anyway. He had just come out of the mountain when that immense power landed on his body. The Demonic Form improved as the black branches spread on the Sixth Kesier rune inside his mind, and Snore''s body covered him when he sensed the arrival of the shockwave. Noah''s body became tense as the explosion pushed him forward. The mountain, the God''s defenses, and the layers of smoke around him absorbed most of the blow, but some energy still landed on his back. His robe vanished, and the skin on his back became a bloody mess. The shockwave tore his muscles too, but it depleted its energy when it tried to touch his internal organs. Noah became a burning cloud of dark smoke as he shot uncontrollably through the sky. A sea of flames, gray smoke, and lava followed him and continued to pierce his defensive methods. ''This won''t be enough,'' Noah thought about the rank 7 Ape as he tried to suppress the pain that was afflicting his mind. His body''s injuries were easy to endure, but the cracks on his mental sphere sent sharp painful waves that made his mind go dark from time to time. Nevertheless, the constant flow of information obtained after his mind reached the sixth rank kept Noah vigilant. Creation and destruction became clear and expanded as the world of the laws unfolded in his eyes. He suddenly became able to see the laws everywhere. It was as if he had been colorblind through the entirety of his life, and he could finally watch the true appearance of the world now. The laws were everywhere. The matter didn''t function without them. Yet, most living beings would spend their entire lives without ever gazing at them. Noah couldn''t contain his astonishment as his consciousness kept on expanding. The laws that ruled the world appeared as the simplest energy in the entire existence, but they were so profound that no other complex force could match their power. It wasn''t a matter of intensity. The law''s power came from the true meaning that they expressed, and it varied according to how generic it was. However, that wasn''t the time to lose himself in the new capabilities of his mind, and Noah knew that well. His plan had to move forward, and he needed to escape the range of the explosion to actuate it. Cracks spread in the air under his feet as he shot forward to leave the edges of the shockwave. The momentum built during the explosion made him surpass his usual limits, but the injuries in his mind made it harder to endure. Noah held on, shooting as far as he could while keeping track of the expansion of the raging cloud. The explosion had created an unstoppable force that seemed inclined to devour the entire world. The shockwave eventually depleted its power, and the cloud stopped its expansion, giving Noah time to catch some breath. A destroyed world unfolded in his eyes as the gray smoke dispersed. There barely was any living being left in the range of the explosion, and only a few powerful creatures had survived by hiding underground or on the other side of the sky. A merciless calamity had fallen on that paradise, destroying anything on its path. Noah stared at the destruction that he had caused and let his mind wander. Divine Demon''s ring wasn''t part of his power, but he had been the one to trigger it. That destruction belonged to him. It was something that resonated with his existence. Noah spread his consciousness as much as possible, covering many of the areas affected by his reckless act. His back hurt, and his mind sent waves of pain, but he still lost himself at the sight of what he had unleashed. ''This is what I am,'' Noah thought as understanding filled his mind. He felt the need to cultivate and let his existence grow, but he knew that he couldn''t stop now. Skully''s aura suddenly touched his consciousness, and Noah turned to see the powerhouse crawling out of a pile of rubbles. Injuries filled her body too, but theirs weren''t as severe as Noah''s. She had come out of the mountain before him in the end, and she had a rank 6 hybrid body. Skully glanced at Noah before turning to stare at the destruction behind her. That was her world, but now multiple regions were nothing more than ashes and cracks. A violent force spread from the spot where there had once been the lair of the God. Mental waves and an invisible power moved through the wasted environment as if searching for someone. Skully''s expression became empty when she saw that energy. She performed a mechanical movement to turn toward Noah and speak in a voice that didn''t belong to her. "What have you done?!" Noah knew that the Ape God was behind that act, but his attention never went on Skully. His eyes stared at the invisible force moving earth, air, and sky, destroying everything on its path. The force resembled countless thin gales that could move freely through any material. It didn''t seem limited by its incorporeal form, and it could affect anything it wanted. When Skully looked at him, the force moved toward their spot. The God had found them, but Skully freed herself at that moment, making it unable to use her to hurt Noah. "Get the Seventh Kesier rune and gather all the survivors," Noah said as the black smoke of the Demonic Form spread for hundreds of meters. "Take a few Kesier Apes as captives too." "What will you do?" Skully asked. There was some hesitation in her eyes. After all, Noah had just killed most of her strongest underlings. She was unclear about their conditions, but only the luckiest of them could have survived the explosion. She knew that Noah had to choose between slavery and the current outcome, and she didn''t blame him. Yet, she needed some time to accept that her life''s work was gone. Noah didn''t answer her. His aura became violent as he stared at the incoming force. An intense thought resounded among the pain coming from his body and mind. "Enough with this shit. I''m a powerhouse now." Chapter 1022: 1022. Destruction Noah''s body and dantian were still in the fifth rank, but that didn''t change the reality of things. His battle prowess had lingered between the fifth and the sixth rank before his breakthroughs, but now it had finally reached the next stage. Of course, he wasn''t capable of expressing the full power of his mind. Most of his techniques needed modifications and weren''t able to use rank 6 mental energy without them. Yet, he had crossed that remaining half-step that separated him from the powerhouses. Noah sensed the power contained in his mind and felt free from the political restrictions that had hindered his actions. He had joined a world of monsters and gods when he reached the heroic ranks, but now he had finally reached the last stage. He had become one of those monsters. Skully shot toward the lava lake when she saw that Noah wasn''t paying attention to her. She decided to trust him and his resourcefulness. After all, he had already revealed that he had divine items inside his space-ring. Noah''s mind wandered as he watched the invisible force drawing near. He felt the pure anger carried by those mental waves, and the images of the Light-devouring Dragons'' Heaven Tribulations appeared in his view. He had felt the same anger. He had inherited it during the fusion, but it was part of him now. Noah could see himself in that force. His hand rose in the sky, and the air began to churn as his will spread in the environment. His feelings became words that he shouted as black gales took form around him. "Enough with the whims of bored gods!" Noah shouted, but his words became articulate roars when they came out of his mouth. "Enough with the limits of politics! Enough with holding back to benefit the weaklings! Let this world crumble!" His heavy hair fluttered as the black gales shot forward to meet the invisible force. Their clash created storms that affected entire regions with their destructive might. Noah''s attack halted the Ape God''s offensive for a few seconds before falling apart. The black winds were only a shape taken by the dark matter, while the invisible force was the innate ability of the Kesier Species. Moreover, the Ape God still had some trace of divine power in its existence. Noah''s attack had no chance to stop his opponent''s blow. It was already astonishing that he had managed to slow it down. The invisible force found only cracks when it reached Noah''s spot. He had sprinted toward the sky as soon as he launched his attack, leaving no chance for the God to hit him. Noah arrived on the black layer that protected the hidden world transformed. His scaled armor had changed after his mind broke through the sixth rank. Fuming spikes had appeared over his torso, and his fingers had become claws as long as the Demonic Sword. A pair of long horns grew from his draconic helmet, and a black cloud formed whenever he stopped. The corrosive smoke expanded quickly and covered large patches of the sky in a matter of instants. Also, holes that led toward the void filled the area affected by the spell. It was as if Noah had become a messenger of destruction. His whole being resembled an existence meant only to destroy in that form. The black metal of the sky resisted Noah''s spell''s effects, but its surface began to bend after it passed some seconds in direct contact with the black cloud. Noah waved his hand, and hundreds of Instabilities at the peak of the fifth rank spread under the sky. The rebels had enlarged the holes in the last period, restoring part of their stash of black metal and allowing Noah to resume his forging. The Instabilities detonated, enlarging the cracks already in the sky and creating new ones. Meanwhile, Snore formed and launched all the attacks that it was capable of toward those fissures. Noah''s plan was simple. If he Ape God didn''t want him to escape its domain, he would destroy the sky and let the sea of magma submerge that world. He didn''t hope for the event to kill the Ape. His goal was to trap it in an environment almost devoid of nutrients, knowing that it didn''t have the power to create a new hidden world. There was the chance that it could make its way to the surface and hunt him down, but that creature was intelligent and capable of complex emotions. Seeing its species dying after so many sacrifices would destroy its will and probably its determination. That would be fatal for a creature that already struggled to return to the divine ranks. Still, Noah hoped that it survived the fall so that he could hunt it when his body had reached the right level. Darkness spread under the black sky. A wave of destruction unfolded everywhere, but Noah felt compelled to escape when he saw the invisible force coming for him again. Noah laughed as he sprinted away only to resume his destructive acts in another spot of the sky. He felt happy from the bottom of his heart. A God tried to catch him, but it could only watch its world falling apart by the hand of a smirking fiend. The feeling of freedom and power that filled Noah made him unable to hold back his laugh. He knew that he wouldn''t have a chance against a proper God, but he was unbeatable at that moment. He saw a glimpse of the peak in that forgotten world, and he was going to enjoy it to its fullest. Large blocks of the sky began to fall as Noah continued to run away and unleash attacks. He even had the time to perform his techniques as he went farther away from the lair of the Ape God. The amount of solid darkness depleted while he used the Demonic Form was immense, but Noah didn''t care about anything else at the moment. He only wanted to destroy the world. Skully eventually contacted him through her consciousness, telling him that she had gathered everything valuable and everyone that had survived the chaotic summoning. "Follow the trail of smoke and bait those Apes!" Noah replied with his consciousness while he continued to escape in a seemingly casual way. The truth was that his understanding of the laws connected to the destruction of his individuality was telling him where to attack to cause more damage. Skully didn''t want to follow the black smoke. Her instincts told her to stay away from that corrosive gas, but she knew that Noah was her only hope to come out of that situation alive. More and more chunks of the sky fell. They pierced the ground and opened a path for the sea of magma under the hidden world. Huge red waterfalls filled the air, and an intense light filled that environment for the first time. Noah stopped attacking at some point and dispersed his spells. No one could mend the sky anymore. The hidden world was beyond saving. Chapter 1023: 1023. Path The remaining rebels gathered around Noah as the sky fell all around them and across the hidden world. They were mostly human cultivators since they had been too slow to reach the regions affected by Divine Demon''s ring''s detonation. Yet, a few experts had survived thanks to the Ape God''s efforts to contain the explosion. Skully was in their lead. Her mental waves supported the human cultivators in the air, but there was only sorrow in her expression. Even if she had recalled a body-tempering method during the last period, most experts had been too weak to survive the catastrophic event. Those that managed to save their lives had suffered massive injuries, and they would probably carry them through their entire cultivation journeys. Skully''s only hope was on the surface, but there was a difficult path between the hidden world and there. On the other hand, Noah felt ecstatic. His existence brimmed with power, and his individuality expressed its features through all his energies. It was as if destroying an entire world had renewed his life essence, making him appear livelier than ever. However, his injuries were there and threatened to control his mental function as soon as he stopped suppressing them. He was in deep need to rest, but the journey was still long. "What are you waiting for?!" Skully shouted when she saw that Noah didn''t move. The sky kept on falling everywhere around them, and massive quantities of lava were turning that world into a crimson hell. Yet, Noah didn''t act. He limited himself to stare at the destruction that he had caused with a dazed expression. Skully''s shout forced him to come back to reality, but his intentions didn''t change. It was too early to leave. Many specimens of the Kesier species had survived since they didn''t join the summoning, and they couldn''t allow them to reach the surface. The threat of the Ape God had to end there. No one could follow them. "Give me the goods," Noah said as Snore''s body materialized and spread its maw. The rebels didn''t bother to find new clothes, but they had gone to gather all the black metal they could find. Skully even had the Seventh Kesier rune and a few human specimens of the Kesier species with her. "This is my insurance," Skully said as she pointed at the large piece of fur under her arm. "The rest can go with you." Noah didn''t blame her for her lack of trust. He had chosen to sacrifice her people to maintain his freedom. His choice had been unavoidable, but his lack of hesitation spoke for his character. Snore suddenly shot forward. Its body turned into smoke and covered the heroic cultivators and the beasts. Ten of them were in the fifth rank, and more than forty were in the fourth rank. Still, the Blood Companion could envelop all of them in its gaseous form. Skully was about to panic when she saw the smoke rising and taking the giant snake''s shape around Noah. All the heroic cultivators were fine. Only their pieces of black metal had disappeared and the beasts. Moreover, Noah had poured some dark matter inside them. His higher energy helped to stabilize their wounded bodies and gave them new vigor right before the long journey through the magma. "Be ready," Noah said, "We need to stop them before leaving this place forever." Skully and the others remained speechless. Noah''s intense aura, coupled with his recent gesture and his calm in that apocalyptic situation made him appear as a perfect leader. The rebels couldn''t help but nod and turn in his same direction even if they felt doubtful. They didn''t know how he could be so sure that their opponents would come from that direction. Yet, they began to see a pattern in the sky as the destruction continued. Massive chunks of black metal feel everywhere randomly, but a path remained intact. That sight surprised the rebels to no end. After all, how could there be order among that worldwide event? A whole world was falling apart, but Noah had managed to affect his destruction so that only a safe path would remain. Black shapes appeared in the distance a few minutes after Noah''s order. Kesier Apes in the heroic ranks flew right under the patch of intact sky as they tried to find a safe spot. Those in the human ranks walked on the ground, but their situation was pitiful. Sprays of magma fell on their bodies and burnt them to death. Only those in the third rank managed to survive for longer, but they inevitably ended up submerged too. Noah''s attention was on the specimens in the fifth rank. They were the only ones that could survive through the sea of magma, even if with some struggle. As for Apes in the sixth rank, they had yet to appear. Noah pointed, and the rebels acted. A series of spells shot from the group of cultivators and landed on the flying pack. Countless specimens died on the spot, and those that survived ended up outside of the safe path, in the middle of the pouring lava. The rebels didn''t stop their offensive, but the safe path eventually broke, falling on the beasts that were still surviving their attacks. ''Where are they?'' Noah thought as he inspected the environment. Then, two presences appeared in the range of his consciousness. Noah sensed that two powerful creatures were walking on the other side of what remained of the safe path. Noah glanced at Skully, and she understood what to do when he pointed at that spot. The two of them launched their best attacks and destroyed that piece of the sky, uncovering the rank 6 Apes hiding above it. Snore released a loud hiss and launched all its attacks against the two floating beasts. Noah joined it by creating a six-armed dragon that shot in their direction. Skully didn''t hesitate and materialized a series of wind slashes that flew toward the Apes. The impact of those attacks destroyed the remaining safe area and left severe injuries on both creatures. Their lives wouldn''t be in danger during normal situations, but the world was ending, and being wounded could make a difference in their survival. All the magma contained above fell downward at that point. It landed on the remaining charred ground and quickly burnt it to ashes, revealing the crimson sea below. The two seas mixed, and the temperature in the area rose. The magma coming from below was far hotter than the other, and the area''s dangerousness increased as the two of them merged. Snore protected Noah and the captive beasts from the magma. His body could withstand that heat, but his back had suffered severe injuries, so he wanted to avoid worsening his situation. Skully protected the human cultivators with her mental waves, while the other experts deployed their defensive methods and supported each other to prepare for the journey. The group then looked above, toward the fuming figure that had caused such chaos, and waited for his orders. "Let''s return to the surface," Noah said, leading the way through the sea of magma. Chapter 1024: 1024. Battles Noah had left the Hive for a little less than one hundred and fifty years, but the situation on the surface had changed in ways that he couldn''t predict in that period. Generally speaking, peace after every significant battle would last for a long time. They could even stretch for millennia if the balance of power among the forces didn''t change. Noah had lived through one hundred years of peace before leaving, and a hundred more had to pass before the first sign of conflict appeared on the surface. It all began with a simple scuffle among human cultivators. Both the Hive and the Council were suppressing the Elbas family''s forces on their respective borders, and casualties happened from time to time during those small battles. The central powers didn''t care about them. Human cultivators'' death rarely bothered the experts in the heroic ranks, and the forces deployed there didn''t hold much value in the political environment. However, a young member of the Elbas family happened to be among a big battle once. The conflict saw some sects of the Council fighting peripheral forces of the Royals over a new habitable land that had appeared on the eastern side of Divine Market city. Those kinds of territories had begun to appear before Noah left. The presence of so many cultivators on the piece of Immortal Lands inevitably affected the density of "Breath", causing the creation of areas where even human cultivators could live without any protection. The higher-ups of each major force didn''t care about those lands, but they were a big deal for human assets. That was their chance to colonize the new continent without the help of their superiors. The battle that happened that day involved many small forces and gave birth to quite a big battlefield in terms of human assets. The young member of the Royals had joined it to gain some merits, but he ended up dying in the middle of the fights. The matter would have normally ended there. The best the Elbas family could ask for a human asset''s death was a few hundreds of thousands of credits. Yet, the father of the young Royal was a heroic cultivator, and he reacted by slaughtering the sects involved in the death of his son. That started a long series of conflicts that slowly involved even more powerful existences. No one wanted to turn the matter into an official war, but they didn''t seem able to stop the hostilities. Those battles became a matter of face, and the Hive had to join them to support the alliance. The battlefield''s width increased and involved more territories, forcing the three organizations to deploy more assets. Even rank 5 cultivators had to fight to defend the honor of their force. Those experts'' battles affected entire regions, and it became impossible to ignore the obvious at that point. Another war had started. Such a significant event happened due to the past grudges between the alliance and the Elbas family. They weren''t fighting for any specific resource or territory. They were enemies, so they killed each other. The first political act happened fifteen years after the beginning of the hostilities. The Hive and the Council had a sharp advantage over the Royals'' forces, so they managed to kick them out of Divine Market city. The alliance didn''t waste that chance to cut the Elbas family off from one of the best training areas on the new continent. That city had even amassed some crucial resources through the years, so the Royals'' losses weren''t negligible. However, they had even greater power over the forces of those Mortal Lands. After a few years of meetings and battles, the Dimensional Portal suddenly went silent and stopped absorbing "Breath" from the old continent. The Royals shut down the connection with the other world, cutting the alliance off from the greatest source of materials and hybrids in that lower plane. Everything became more severe at that point, and even the three powerhouses had to join the battles to make sure that nothing too valuable went lost forever. Their negotiations went poorly though, and those meetings often ended up with a series of exchanges that lasted for a few minutes. Each of their exchanges gave birth to battles that involved the higher-ups of every force. Many famous experts had the chance to show the results of their training in them. Many Elders of the Council had benefitted from the alliance. Faith was one of them, and she often joined the battles, showing her liquid stage cultivation level. Her figure appeared untouchable even when under torrents of attacks. It was as if the world itself wanted to protect her. The Hive showed all its new assets, revealing even the hybrids that had joined its ranks. Some of the older experts made their appearance too, and Daniel led them most of the time due to his peak liquid stage level. Nevertheless, the Elbas family''s show of force was even above theirs. Countless new experts appeared in its ranks, and most of the old ones achieved battle merits thanks to the breakthroughs obtained in the past years. The Council couldn''t understand how the Royals had gained access to so many powerful assets, but the Hive knew about the Royal pool. It even seemed that the Elbas family had improved its success rate since Noah''s report. June made her appearance in the political scene too. Her cultivation level had reached the liquid stage, but there seemed to be something strange about her centers of power. Her aura often experienced power surges that made her appear as a cultivator in the solid stage during her battles! Still, she managed to suppress those spikes almost immediately, even if she retreated as soon as she calmed herself. Her energies'' strange behavior didn''t go unnoticed, but most higher-ups linked that to her individuality going out of control. That wasn''t too unusual, especially when it came to violent existences. Faith''s decision to be her opponent was even stranger. The world saw the two of them as friends after the matters with Noah''s training area. Yet, everyone witnessed how the two didn''t hold back in the slightest when they fought. None of the higher-ups could imagine that Faith was helping June venting off some of her energy. She was the only one in the entire world that knew how complicated her situation was. "The Council struck first," King Elbas said as the three powerhouses floated in the sky above a peripheral region to hold their usual meeting. "It''s only right that you restore my past domains and compensate my family." King Elbas spoke with an uncaring tone. He had gone through those negotiations countless times already, and it had become apparent since the beginning that they would never reach an agreement. "Your family messed up over an insignificant matter," Great Elder Diana said. "I admit that you are resourceful, but you can''t fight both of us at the same time." King Elbas laughed at her words and glanced toward Chasing Demon before replying. "You let that little demon escape too, didn''t you?" Chapter 1025: 1025. Surface Noah''s disappearance didn''t go unnoticed, especially after decades of battles. Missing a war wasn''t something that he usually did, and his eating habits made it even stranger since many experts had joined the fray. Chasing Demon pretended not to hear King Elbas and created a series of small puppets that shot toward him and detonated right before touching his chest. A massive gray cloud formed, but flames burnt the smoke and revealed King Elbas, who stared at the Demon with an irritated expression. "I thought we were over with the usual pretense," Chasing Demon said as he shrugged his shoulders. He had seen that conversation happening so many times that he had grown tired of it. The Hive had joined the war only because of the Council. Chasing Demon would have never chosen to start a long battle now that the Hive''s growth was peaking. Yet, the terms of the alliance forced him to deploy some forces, so he took it as a chance to seize more resources. "Yes," King Elbas said as the flames condensed into a dozen giant fiery snakes that covered his body. "We are done talking." The three powerhouses entangled themselves in a series of exchanges, but they soon returned to their domains to leave some space to their underlings. They had no intention to go all-out for those petty battles. The other cultivators could defend the honor of their organizations on their own. Chasing Demon returned to the Hive with a pensive expression. King Elbas had spoken the truth. Noah had disappeared, and the higher-ups only knew where he had gone. The Hive didn''t send any search team. The Elders trusted Noah and his resourcefulness, and they respected his desire to venture in that journey alone. Still, they couldn''t help but feel worried about his well-being, especially now that the pride of the Hive was at stake. . . . While the new continent saw large-scale battles happening every month, Noah and the group of rebels were traveling through the sea of magma. Snore carried the black metal and the Ape specimens as it kept Noah''s protected, while Skully handled the thousands of human cultivators'' defenses. The other heroic experts helped each other during the journey back to the surface, but it was evident that they reached their limits after months spent in that state. Noah munched pieces of magical beasts all the time to suppress his pain. The injuries on his back had mostly healed, but his mind''s situation had remained the same. The magma''s constant pressure pressed on his mental sphere and enlarged its cracks, while his mental energy washed them often to mend them. Noah felt stuck in a cycle of pain and refreshing feelings that had continued since the beginning of their journey through the red sea. The only thing that he could do to alleviate his situation was to satisfy his hunger. No one spoke as they explored the rocky ceiling at the end of the sea of magma. The giant lizard had destroyed the previous entry point, so the group had kilometers of rocks that had endured unthinkable temperatures for millennia to cross now. Even Noah''s and Skully''s physical strength weren''t enough to pierce it. Their only option was to continue exploring until they found another opening toward the surface. Noah had memorized God''s Left Hand''s map, but there were no other exits on it. He could only float blindly, hoping that something had formed since the last time that Shandal explored the seabed. He didn''t even need a complete passage. Just a hole deep enough to cross the initial rocky layer would be enough to make them reach the surface. The group of rebels struggled to continue after more months through the magma piled on the previous ones. The human cultivators were relatively fine since Skully''s protection blocked everything. They were only hungry due to the complete lack of food for them. Instead, the heroic experts were about to exhaust their energy. Skully was beginning to consider the idea of letting the human cultivators die and focus her mental energy on the stronger assets when a narrow crack appeared on their path and gave them hope. Noah shot toward the crack and explored its insides. The fissure wasn''t too deep, but it crossed the sturdiest part of the seabed, leaving only a small layer of hard rocks in his path. Skully reached Noah and showed an ecstatic expression at that sight. That was the best path to the surface that they had found along their journey. They had to try to pierce it. "Get back," Noah transmitted through his consciousness. Black smoke began to come out of his body and destroy the magma around him as Skully retreated. Waves of pain spread from Noah''s mind as he used mental energy, but he held on and summoned all his strength to launch his best attacks. The second form of his martial art landed on the fissure''s ceiling, and Snore''s elemental offensive followed it. Skully returned to her underlings and deployed her mental waves to protect them. Pieces of the seabed fell as the red sea trembled, but Noah didn''t come out of the fissure when everything settled. Another tremor ran through the area. Noah had attacked again, but even that didn''t seem enough to pierce the sturdy layer since more impacts made the whole region shake. Noah was going all out to pierce the seabed, and the rocky stratum eventually crumbled under his relentless offensive. "Open!" Noah shouted through his consciousness, and Skully quickly mobilized the rebels. The group entered the narrow crack and saw Noah punching his way through the softer rocks. He had dispersed his Demonic Form, so the heroic cultivators and Skully swam forward to help him out. The group had to dig the seabed for kilometers for the first drops of water to land on their faces. The event made them even more determined to reach the real sea, and the last rocks that separated them from it soon fell apart. Noah closed his eyes when the cold water fell on his face. He had grown tired of the constant heat of the hidden world, and that refreshing sensation made him feel home. He had finally returned to the surface. He was back among the old monsters! The rebels saw the sea for the first time and remained speechless. They had only heard about it from Skully''s stories, but they had started to wonder if something like that existed long ago. A cold sea was unthinkable for them. The magma was everything the rebels had ever seen. Even the few rivers in the hidden world only had hot water that usually burnt their tongues. Skully couldn''t contain her emotions. Her expression showed disbelief, sorrow, and joy in sequence. She was the one who had suffered from in the hidden world more than anyone else, but she had finally returned now. As for Noah, he thought only about returning to the Hive and isolate himself to fix his sea of consciousness. However, he suddenly felt a dangerous sensation coming toward him. When he turned, he saw the giant lizard that had destroyed the tunnel again. Chapter 1026: 1026. Die ''Why is it here?'' Noah cursed in his mind. The journey through the magma had been uneventful due to the scary feeling that his group leaked in the environment. Yet, the sea was different. Lifeforms were rare in the magma, and the species that lived there usually hunted solitary prey or resorted to cannibalism to survive. However, the sea was vast, and its depths hid dangers that even some powerhouses preferred to avoid. Still, Noah didn''t believe that they had been so unlucky to find a rank 6 beast as soon as they resurfaced, especially when their situation was far from ideal. Noah was injured, and Skully was busy protecting the human cultivators from the pressure of the depths. The heroic experts were even exhausted after the long journey. The battle prowess of the group was basically at its lowest. ''Did it track me after so many years?'' Noah eventually considered that option, but he felt forced to suppress his thoughts because the lizard turned and began to charge toward them. "Bring them where they can survive and come down to help me!" Noah conveyed through his consciousness as he shot toward the lizard. His mind sent waves of pain when he activated the Demonic Form, but he didn''t dare to face a rank 6 beast without it. Skully shot upward after Noah''s order. She swam through the sea without even admiring the environment that she had missed for countless years. The human cultivators carried by her mental energy either puked of fainted due to her speed, but she managed to reach waters where they could survive in less than a minute thanks to that. Skully quickly let go of her underlings and returned toward the depth. She was a bit faster at that time, but she could only feel speechless when she sensed how the situation had changed in that short period. Snore had immobilized the lizard with its tall body. The rank 6 beast found it hard to get rid of the Blood Companion''s dark matter since it became gaseous whenever it was about to endure a heavy blow. Noah attacked the creature with the second form of his martial art. Due to Snore''s efforts, he could stay still and launch as many slashes as he wanted toward the head of his opponent. Skully didn''t even know why she had been in such a hurry in the first place. Noah seemed to have everything under control. Actually, it appeared as if the lizard didn''t stand a chance! Yet, she noticed how Noah slowed down his attacks after a while, which was strange for a hybrid. Skully would understand that if he had depleted his "Breath". Yet, that didn''t seem to be the case for him. Skully understood that there was something wrong with Noah. She had seen him acting strangely during the travel through the magma, but she didn''t give the matter too much thought because he had always been quite peculiar. However, it was only natural that his reckless actions in the hidden world had led to repercussions. No one walked away from a god without suffering any injury. The water around Skully churned as her mental energy forced it to take the form of thick spears that shot toward the immobilized lizard. Her innate ability even went to help Snore suppressing the creature. The lizard had many long wounds on its head due to Noah''s attacks, and Snore used them as the target for its elemental offensive. The beast roared in pain and struggled with more intensity whenever the Blood Companion attacked, but the dark matter was difficult to fend off. Snore''s body turned gaseous only to solidify after the lizard lost its momentum. The creature never freed itself entirely from the Blood Companion, and there wasn''t anything that it could do in a short time. Noah had noticed since his last meeting with the lizard that it didn''t use any specific ability. It appeared to be a beast that relied only on its body to fight. That hypothesis became certainty during that battle. The lizard didn''t resort to any ability even after being trapped for so long. Moreover, Noah''s attacks never managed to pierce its tissues too profoundly, which confirmed that it was a species that focused only on the body. That went to the advantage of cultivators since they had access to various battle styles. Noah could keep it still and launch a relentless offensive without even risking his life. SKully''s return made the situation even more one-sided. There were a rank 6 hybrid and a rank 6 mage fighting a magical beast in the lower tier of the sixth rank. Even with Noah injured, the two were more than enough to take care of the threat. Killing such a strong creature took time, especially when it came to a species that focused only on the body. Noah, Skully, and Snore had to resort to countless attacks to kill it. Skully used her mental energy to suppress it and deal blows in sensitive spots like the eyes and wounds. Snore would launch flames, lightning bolts, and a chilling breath on its injuries. Meanwhile, Noah slashed, creating fissures in the sea as they landed on the creature''s head. In the end, Noah''s corrosive smoke had the better over the beast. His Demonic Form could use mental energy in the sixth rank, so its power had benefitted a lot from his breakthrough. The smoke seeped into the injuries and filled the insides of the lizard, hurting it over time and eventually putting an end to its life. Noah quickly dispersed the Demonic Form when the battle ended. The cracks on his mental sphere had spread due to the effort, and using spells only worsened his situation. That was the reason why he didn''t rely on all his techniques during the battle. Most of them still needed the proper modifications to express his new power, and his mind couldn''t endure too many of them at the same time. Noah felt the need to rest now more than ever. Every second that he spent in that state would make his recovery longer. Yet, he didn''t forget to grab the corpse of the lizard before returning moving to resurface. Skully paid attention as Noah grabbed the lizard by its tail before dragging it upward. Her expression revealed the hunger that she felt in seeing such a large and nutrient meal going away right in front of her eyes. Noah noticed that, but he had other plans for the corpse. His mind had advanced, so he felt finally confident in approaching the breakthrough of his body. The best way to prepare for the chrysalis was to directly take the required energy from a creature that had reached the next rank. "You are on a diet," Noah conveyed through his consciousness before crossing the drooling Skully and swimming toward the surface, unaware that battles were filling the new continent. Chapter 1027: 1027. Battlefield Daniel stood in front of an army of heroic cultivators above what had once been a poisonous swamp. Faith was at some distance from him, and hundreds of Elders floated behind her. The alliance had deployed both armies after the usual scuffle among the powerhouses, and the experts of the Elbas family had flown out to face them. Daniel and Faith looked at the massive army of the Royals before exchanging a worried glance. As leaders of their respective troops, their mission was to contain the losses and come out victorious from the conflict. Yet, the Elbas family had deployed more heroic cultivators than their groups put together. That strange phenomenon had happened for a while by then. The Royals would progressively increase the number of heroic assets deployed in each battle, making it seem as if there was no limit to their power. Faith cracked a quick smile before moving her eyes on her designed opponent. June stood among the Royals wearing her usual orange robes, but a large hat on her head hid her expression. June had started to wear that inscribed item a few years after the beginning of the battles. Her power surges had become rarer since she had started using it, but she still experienced them every once in a while. Faith couldn''t help but feel sorry for her friend. Since the events with Ravaging Demon, all the heroic forces of the Elbas family had remained inside its domains, unable to join political meetings and compelled to become stronger. June had never met her friends in those years, and the enmity between the Royals and the alliance stopped any negotiation or neutral event. She had been alone for almost two hundred and fifty years. ''This wouldn''t have lasted for so long if you were here,'' Daniel thought as he saw Faith''s actions and turned his head toward the enemy army. Noah''s figure appeared in his mind, and he could almost imagine him coming up with a reckless plan that allowed the Hive to win instantly and seize some benefits. Daniel''s mindset had changed after Ravaging Demon''s sudden attack killed Amos Udye. He had understood the reason why Noah craved power with such intensity, and he had begun to desire it too. However, he was different from Noah. He couldn''t see himself as a lone existence. His light was a pure beacon that could show the path to those that chose to follow him. That was one of the reasons why Elder Julia had put him in charge of the army. Daniel had exceptional leadership skills, and he could take the best out of his troops. Moreover, he valued their lives, which made him a better captain than Noah. Still, he lacked the sheer power that Noah could express, but that wasn''t his fault. Noah was the best cultivator in history. Any comparison would be unfair. "Attack!" Daniel shouted, and Faith echoed his order. The alliance''s armies shot toward the troops of the Royals and engaged in a fierce battle as multicolored lights filled the sky. . . . Some weeks before, in an area north of the new continent, Noah''s group came out of the sea, and the rebels remained speechless when they saw the sun. Noah wasn''t in the mood to waste time. His mind hurt too much, and he was barely stopping the cracks on his sphere from expanding. Skully''s moved her attention between the environment and the lizard carried by Noah. Her hunger and happiness for her return fought inside her to take the spot of predominant feeling. Noah became aware of his position in a few seconds and pointed toward the new continent''s northern coast before flying in that direction. The rebels wanted to stare at the blue sky, but they promptly followed him for fear of remaining alone in that foreign world. No one spoke during the flight, but surprised gasps resounded among the group as the coastline became visible. Noah quickly adjusted his direction to avoid the Elbas family''s domain and fly over the mountain chain to return to the Hive. The Elders of the Council couldn''t miss his return. Noah and Skully''s auras were enough to warn everyone in the nearby territories that powerful existences were flying above them. Yet, no one dared to interrupt them. The Elders recognized Noah, but any desire to greet him vanished when they saw the huge lizard hanging from his grasp by its tail. Noah''s space-ring was full and couldn''t contain anything else. He had even left most of the black sky behind because of that issue. He could only carry the rank 6 creature with his hands. The effort didn''t affect him, but those who witnessed that event remained speechless and grabbed their inscribed notebooks after he went away. The news spread quickly, but its details sounded unrealistic. The Demon Prince of the Hive had returned, carrying the corpse of a rank 6 magical beasts with him, and followed by an army that featured a being in the sixth rank! Those who heard the news from their notebooks thought that the witnesses had suffered from some unorthodox technique''s after-effects. However, as more and more Elders began to report the same event, the higher-ups felt forced to investigate the situation. It was needless to say that their reaction was the same and the others. Noah''s uncaring attitude as he carried the lizard left them so astonished that they almost overlooked the powerhouse flying together with him. Noah mostly ignored the glances in his direction, but the rebels began to feel uneasy. They had never witnessed such incredible scenery, and it felt unreal to see so many cultivators shooting in the sky to stare at them. ''Why are there so few of them?'' Noah thought as he proceeded forward. He felt glad that no one was interrupting his return, but he understood that something was off. He had crossed most of the Council''s domain by then, but no welcoming party had arrived, and the Hive had yet to contact him. The only conclusion he could reach was that everyone was busy with something else. Then, his innate awareness perceived the shockwaves released in the battle above the eastern coast. Noah sensed the sheer amount of power deployed on that battlefield, and he changed direction after giving a few orders to the rebels. . . . A blinding white halo shone around Daniel as he floated across the battlefield. His light turned every spell aimed at him into "Breath", and purified the tissues of any cultivator in its range until only their bones remained. He appeared invincible in that form, but the other Elders struggled due to the high number of cultivators on the enemy side. All their opponents even had a series of luxurious inscribed items that made them hard to kill. ''We might have to retreat,'' Daniel thought as he inspected the battlefield, but a violent aura suddenly covered the entire region and forced the fights to a stop. When the cultivators turned toward the source of that pressure, they saw a young man with furrowed brows carrying a giant lizard. Chapter 1028: 1028. Old acquaintance "What''s the occasion?" Noah asked as he massaged his temples. The hand holding the giant lizard rose as if it wasn''t carrying anything, giving birth to a peculiar scene. The three armies stared at Noah in disbelief. The experts'' eyes went up and down as they followed the movements of the beast''s corpse. Something told them that Noah had forgotten that he was carrying such a large creature. Noah had come there in a hurry thinking that some significant event had caused the gathering of so many experts, but he couldn''t see anything valuable in the region. What had once been a poisonous swamp had now turned into a smelly region with brown ground that gave off purple shades. Peculiar and strange plants grew there, and a research structure stood in the distance. Yet, Noah didn''t sense anything worthy of such a massive battle. "It was a strange succession of events," Daniel spoke calmly, even if his expression showed his astonishment toward what he was seeing. "We are at war now." "What''s the loot?" Noah asked. He couldn''t believe that organizations at the peak of the world would have deployed some of their best assets over "strange events". Of course, Noah was one of the few existences that would find it hard to understand the reasons behind the war. He had always thought as a lone cultivator, so topics like honor and face had never crossed his mind. Daniel showed a complicated expression at that question. He knew Noah, and he was sure that he wouldn''t get what was going on. If he had to be completely honest, he would have never predicted that such small matters could have led to something so big either. However, no one inside the Hive could deny Noah an honest answer. "We are fighting for the honor of the Hive," Daniel eventually said. Noah thought that he had misheard his words, but Daniel''s stern expression confirmed his previous statement. That left Noah speechless. He couldn''t believe that he had delayed his rest over such a meaningless matter. ''Well, I''m here now,'' Noah thought as he swept the enemy army with his consciousness. He had some unfinished business with the Royals, and putting an end to that fa?ade could only benefit his imminent seclusion. The cultivators of the Royals'' faction shuddered when Noah''s mental waves went over them. They had begun to realize something when they saw the giant lizard, but the direct contact with his consciousness made them sure of his breakthrough. Noah was a rank 6 mage now. He wasn''t a complete powerhouse, but the level of his mind put him far beyond what they could handle. "Wait!" Daniel shouted when he understood what Noah wanted to do. "There is a silent agreement to limit the battles to the liquid stage!" Noah wasn''t in the mood for pointless discussions, and his restraints had vanished when his mind stepped in the sixth rank. He had finally reached the point where he could stop caring about politics and act as he wished. "Who cares," Noah said as he swung the arm carrying the beast. The battle had already started when he arrived in that region, so the armies had mixed. Still, groups of experts on each side handled the long-range attacks, and Noah threw the lizard at them. "Retreat," Noah said in a cold voice as he shot after the lizard. He needed the battlefield to be empty of allied troops to unleash his power. Daniel and Faith''s eyes widened when they saw his sudden action and ordered a full retreat. They knew Noah, so they could understand what was about to happen. The long-range experts of the Royals dodged the massive beast, but Noah suddenly arrived on the spot and grabbed its tail. Then, he swung it in a circular motion so that it would hit the retreating enemies. Snore took form from the black smoke that hung behind his back and began to launch lightning bolts toward any isolated enemy that it found. There were only rank 4 and 5 cultivators on the battlefield. The ground was deadly for those in the human ranks, and the silent agreement didn''t allow anyone above the liquid stage to join the battle. Noah was leagues above them now. A slaughter began as soon as he entered the battlefield, and his enemies could do nothing to stop him. Many of those experts wore defensive inscribed items, but Snore''s attacks pierced them as if they were butter. Even the protections at the peak of the fifth rank could only crumble when the lightning bolts exploded next to them. Noah''s blows had the same effects. He swung the lizard as he flew through the battlefield, and someone would either die or end up gravely injured in the impacts. As the allied forces retreated, Noah gained room to launch more destructive attacks. He didn''t resort to his techniques and spells due to his wounded mental sphere, but he let Snore go all out. A sea of black flames spread in the sky, lightning bolts flew everywhere, and chilling gales froze large chunks of air. The Blood Companion was enough to take control of the entire area. Noah stopped swinging the lizard when he saw that Snore could handle the rest by himself. His mental energy spread and gathered the intact corpses and space-rings near him. The effort hurt him a bit, and his control over the corpses and items wasn''t as stable as Skully''s. Yet, it did the job, and it gave him the chance to seize all the dantians and resources that he found. Moreover, he even found a ring that could contain the lizard. Noah ate the dantians that didn''t go through the waters of the Royal pool as he wore the new ring and stored the beast. There weren''t many of them that he could devour, but he still found a couple of edible ones. Snore continued to unleash attacks, but its offensive wasn''t casual. The Blood Companion smartly avoided June''s area and the part of the sky occupied by an old acquaintance. Noah turned toward Thaddeus Elbas when he finished his meal. He strolled on the air as he crossed the sea of flames that separated the two of them. Thaddeus appeared frozen in fear. He had managed to reach the last phases of the liquid stage thanks to the pool, which made him one of the Royal family''s core members. However, he was nothing more than an ant in front of who had once been only a promising disciple. "It has been a long time," Noah said in a cold tone as he came out of the black flames. Thaddeus couldn''t even muster the strength to nod when those vertical pupils stared deep into his mind. "I know that some of you did it," Noah continued as he arrived right in front of him. "But I''ve never heard a name." Thaddeus couldn''t even imagine what was going through his mind. He hadn''t seen Noah for centuries in the end. How could he understand what he was talking about? Noah placed a hand over his shoulder and spoke in a calm tone. "Who killed Ivor?" Chapter 1029: 1029. Questioning Out of all the people that had died after helping him, Ivor was the last one that he had yet to avenge. He even held a peculiar place in his mind compared to the other important figures in his life. Ivor had taught him the inscription method on which Noah still based most of his creations. It wouldn''t be wrong to say that his teachings had been what had allowed Noah to reach his current level. The two of them had never been too close. Noah could barely think about anything but himself back then, and Ivor only wanted to keep his inscription method alive. Their relationship wasn''t about affection. Noah and Ivor had their plans, and they had never let their feelings hinder them. Also, both their situation and their mental state weren''t ideal for that. However, even if Ivor was practically a walking corpse, he had unlocked Noah''s potential and was worthy of a good end. Thaddeus shuddered when Noah''s hand landed on his shoulder. He felt as if the slightest pressure could reduce his entire body into ashes. Still, those words reminded him of the smelly ruined cultivator that had taught Noah that reckless inscription method. The Elbas family had researched the Elemental Forging method after Noah''s hybrid status became renowned. The Royals thought that the secret of the fusion was behind that unorthodox practice, but they soon discovered that it was more than that. The Elemental Forging method wasn''t just about storing "Breath" inside the sea of consciousness. The real talent was in bending that energy to a will, which only exceptional cultivators could achieve. A massive organization like the Elbas family had assets that met both requirements, but no positive results came from the experiments. Each expert lacked something that only Noah had, and that wasn''t about his mental sphere being stronger than his dantian. The Royals couldn''t possibly know that Noah used his boundless ambition as the foundation for his wills. If they did, they would have never tried to cage him into the criminal army. Moreover, it wasn''t only a matter of ambition. Instead, it was the intensity of that feeling that made Noah''s miraculous creations possible. Thaddeus slowly began to accept his death as Noah''s reptilian eyes kept on piercing his mind. He knew that he wouldn''t leave that spot alive, but that realization made him calm. Once abandoned every hope to survive, Thaddeus could focus on protecting his loved ones, and one of them happened to be the culprit behind Ivor''s killing. "I did it," Thaddeus said in a calm tone, but a sharp pain spread from his shoulder as soon as he finished his line. Thaddeus turned only to see that everything under his right shoulder had disappeared. Noah had taken out even a piece of his neck with his move, but he was far from done. Noah placed his other hand on Thaddeus'' remaining shoulder and neared his ear. The Royal felt relieved that the reptilian eyes had left his mind, but the chilling voice that followed made him long for those vertical pupils. "You have always been nothing more than a lapdog," Noah said as growls echoed at the bottom of his throat. "You have never made any real decision in your life. Now, give me a name before I bring you home to play." Fear invaded Thaddeus once again when he heard those words. Noah didn''t care about the silent agreement at all, so he believed him. There were fates worse than death, especially in the cultivation world. Thinking about what Noah could do with him made Thaddeus shudder even more. He began to see the end as a reward at that point. "I-I can''t," Thaddeus stuttered, but that was only the beginning. Noah closed his hand, and Thaddeus'' left shoulder turned into a bloody pulp. His arm fell into the sea of fire below, becoming nothing more than ashes. The Royal didn''t feel any pain. His body was nothing more than an unresponsive block of ice, frozen in fear of the things that Noah would do if he took him to the Hive. Part of him wanted to give up his father. He would be dead anyway, so he wouldn''t feel the shame of betraying the man that had given him his current power and position. Yet, an oppressive aura soon spread in the environment, and all the surviving members of the Elbas family recognized it. Even Noah could understand its source. Only a powerhouse could make him feel in danger at his level. ''Time is up,'' Noah thought as he waved his hand. Thaddeus'' head vanished, and his body fell into the sea of flames. Noah didn''t even try to grab it since he had smelled the scent of the Royal pool when he neared him. Moreover, he had gained a general idea about Ivor''s killer. Thaddeus would be willing to resist so much only to defend someone close to him, which put a target on Cecil Elbas. "What is this?" King Elbas said when he arrived on the battlefield. His voice spread through the entire region, and the mental waves that it carried hurt Noah''s injured mind. "What are you even doing?" King Elbas spoke again, but his voice aimed directly for Noah at that time. Snore though coiled itself around him and absorbed part of the pressure, saving his mind from further pain. "I was pursuing a personal matter," Noah said in an uncaring tone. The two of them weren''t at the same level, but the leader of the Royals had to respect his power a bit now. "What personal matter?" King Elbas answered angrily. "You slaughtered my underlings without any reason!" "I thought this war didn''t have a precise reason," Noah answered as he shrugged his shoulders. His consciousness expanded past the region to search for the group of rebels, and he felt relieved sensing that they had entered the wasteland under the Hive''s control. He had given Skully a few indications before shooting toward the battle. Noah didn''t mind revealing that a Kesier Ape had joined the ranks of the Hive, but Skully was hiding the Seventh rune. Her mental waves barely prevented the leakage of the divine aura. Any powerhouse flying near her would sense the rune, so he had to get her inside the Hive. King Elbas showed an unsightly expression at his remark, and he stretched his hand as flames formed in his palm. Noah didn''t have any fear. His condition was too poor even to hope to survive that attack, but he knew that the powerhouse was already too late. As if answering to his confidence, two massive auras spread on the battlefield. The alliance''s powerhouses arrived on the region, and they shot a surprised look in Noah''s direction before wearing stern expressions and facing King Elbas. The black flames and the smoke dispersed a few seconds after their arrival, showing the destruction that Noah had caused. The number of casualties was immense, and only June and a few Royals had survived. The Elbas family had lost most of its heroic assets a few minutes after Noah made his official reappearance in the new continent. Chapter 1030: 1030. Deal The situation of the Elbas family had become tragic in the span of a few minutes. Noah had laid waste of most of its army, and Kind Elbas had suddenly found himself against three cultivators capable of unleashing a powerhouse''s battle prowess. Noah, Chasing Demon, and Great Elder Diana stared at King Elbas and saw the hesitation in his expression. They didn''t know what kind of calculations were happening in his mind, but they were aware that he was considering the possibility of fighting the three of them. That had happened again during Ravaging Demon''s events. No matter how outnumbered King Elbas was, he always appeared to have the resources and power needed to come out as the winner. That was his scariest aspect. King Elbas was the best inscription master that those Mortal Lands had seen since Divine Architect, and his foundation appeared even superior to hers. He was even the leader of one of the most potent forces in the entire world. King Elbas had access to any resource he wanted, and nothing stopped him from obtaining what he needed. However, he was still a rank 6 cultivator at the peak of the liquid stage. His knowledge was immense, and his expertise extraordinary, but his power couldn''t express those qualities to their fullest just yet. Noah could sense the level of the powerhouses now. Great Elder Diana was somewhere in the middle phases of the liquid stage, while Chasing Demon had yet to be halfway through the gaseous stage. The records of the battle against the quasi-rank 7 winged beast told him that God''s Left Hand was stronger than his Patriarch but weaker than the Council''s Matriarch. That put her near the peak of the gaseous stage unless she had improved in the last years. That understanding brought a greater realization to his mind. He was now sure that none of the powerhouses had ever fought for real in their scuffles. They had always held back for fear of each other''s assets. That didn''t apply to the fight against Ravaging Demon, but they didn''t need to use their real power for a cultivator at the bottom of the sixth rank. Noah tried to appear in peak condition even if his mind was killing him. He had only stressed it a bit during the battle, but the pain coming from its cracks made him feel like fainting. King Elbas'' expression eventually broke into an arrogant smirk. His gaze became aloof as he swept his opponents before going into the sky. Traces of emotions appeared on his face as his eyes reflected the vastness of the azure firmament, and his aura became eerie. The Royals'' leader had moved his attention away from his opponents, but none of them dared to attack him. Noah even felt that he understood King Elbas'' feelings. Noah could see how King Elbas didn''t care about any of those matters. His only goal was the sky, and his individuality grew as long as the world respected his figure. "Keep what you''ve conquered," King Elbas said without even lowering his head, "But we restore the neutral territories as they were before the battles." Great Elder Diana stepped forward and opened her mouth to speak, but Noah shot a glance toward Chasing Demon that hinted him to stop her. Noah hated to handle political relationships, but he knew how they worked. King Elbas had made a passive move, and Great Elder Diana saw it as an opportunity to seize more resources. However, Noah wasn''t in the condition to join battles on that level. He would have to prepare for weeks, even if he was at his peak! Chasing Demon understood the meaning behind his glance and shouted before his ally could say anything. "Deal!" Great Elder Diana shot a confused gaze toward him, but Noah left before he could see how that situation evolved. He had wasted enough time in the open. It was time to go in seclusion and heal before the breakthrough of his body. Skully and the rebels waited for him in one of the Hive''s territories on his path back home. Elder Julia had intercepted them, but she had instantly activated the Copying Technique when she sensed Skully''s aura. The rebels had quickly shouted Noah''s name to express their alliance with him, but Elder Julia couldn''t let them pass without any confirmation that they were speaking the truth. Yet, she had chosen not to attack even if the shining lines on the ground had begun to radiate a rank 6 aura. Elder Julia could summon a puppet capable of fighting Skully, but she preferred to avoid battling a powerhouse. "They are with me!" Noah shouted as soon as he reached the group. "Find them some accommodations and make Thirty-seven go through their techniques. I''ll seclude myself for a while. I might not come out for a few decades." Noah disappeared in the distance before Elder Julia even had the time to congratulate him on the breakthroughs. His flight quickly ended since he descended toward the ground while activating an inscribed item. A formation appeared, and its light enveloped Noah before transporting him inside the separate dimension. From there, he used a series of teleportation matrices to return to his mansion. The Hive had kept Noah''s habitation in order, and it had even added more formations around and inside its structure. Many features of the mansion had seen improvements, especially the various training areas inside it. The Hive had even added a garden filled with precious magical plants that released substances meant to heal injuries faster. Noah only needed a quick scan of his habitation to understand all its new features, and he quickly went for the garden to deal with his most pressing matter. His mind calmed down when he sat among those magical plants, and his mental energy began to wash the cracks once he was entirely still. Noah''s mental energy turned into a crystal-like substance as it filled the cracks. Only a small part of it remained attached to the walls of his mind, so he had to repeat the process for weeks until all the wounds had a layer of mental energy above it. The situation of his mind had finally stabilized at that point. Noah could resume his regular training without worrying about worsening his condition. He only had to be careful not to overdo. Noah found himself forced to hold back his body''s breakthrough once again since his mind couldn''t endure the period inside the chrysalis just yet. However, he focused on his dantian for the time being and even managed to gain experience in the world of the laws. His meditations also concerned some of his techniques. There was a lot to do before he could claim to have made his such a life-changing breakthrough. Still, he never explored the matter too deeply because there was a bigger variable in play. His body was about to evolve, and the process would involve even his new center of power. Noah was barely able to suppress his eagerness to see what he would become after he came out of the chrysalis. Chapter 1031: 1031. Chrysalis The Kesier Apes taken captive in the hidden world remained inside Snore for a while before Noah remembered them. He had kept them inside a sack of dark matter for so long that he had grown used to their presence. Moreover, they were always quiet due to the innate pressure that he radiated. His mind''s condition had forced him to cut off most external inputs. Still, he assigned them to Thirty-seven once he noticed them, and he even left a few chunks of the black metal to the ecstatic automaton. Healing all the cracks in his mind took almost three years. Noah had left them there for months, so the injury had taken roots. His crystalized mental energy had to remain in place for a long time before turning into part of the walls. Noah didn''t push his body after the limits of the fifth rank right away. He cultivated both mind and dantian for a while so that he could prevent any form of stagnation. He didn''t know how long the chrysalis would last at that time. His fourth center of power was a variable that had no priors in the cultivation world. He couldn''t even begin to guess how much his body would take to turn it into part of Noah''s existence. His dantian''s training went as smoothly as ever. Noah could see the laws of the world and study them directly from the matter in front of him now. Those pure and simple forces often carried true meanings that reflected shades of his existence. Destruction and creation were everywhere he looked, but he went after those that resembled his individuality, improving his understanding and increasing the speed at which his dantian enlarged. Those weren''t his laws. They belonged to Heaven and Earth. Noah could only use them to study how they wielded the matter so that his expertise could reach the peak, and he could start becoming his law. As for his mind, Noah only made sure that it recovered part of its past sturdiness, which wasn''t hard since he had a piece of fur with the Sixth Kesier rune and his spherical rune. Noah resumed eating two years after focusing on his mind and dantian. His body crossed the limits of the fifth rank when he took the first bite of the giant lizard, and his period of accumulation began. That was the time to accumulate nutrients to use for the evolution of his body. Magical beasts would need an average of a hundred peak rank 5 creatures to make their breakthrough safe. Yet, Noah knew that his requirements were anything but ordinary. His mind had warned him. His instincts feared the breakthrough. Something told him that even the entire body of a rank 6 magical beast wouldn''t be enough to fuel the evolution. Noah considered his options after his body had fully digested the lizard. Eating creatures on a higher rank always was a troublesome and long process, but his body had handled that better than he expected. The main issue was that the drowsiness had already arrived, and he felt that it wouldn''t take long for the chrysalis to form. However, the energy accumulated in his tissues wasn''t enough, according to his instincts. Noah had the time to take a teleportation matrix, reappear in a rank 6 danger zone, hunt down the area''s leader, and digest it before the breakthrough kicked in. Yet, he wasn''t sure if even that would suffice for the requirements of his body. It took him less than an instant to decide on his next step. A divine aura spread in his mansion as the quasi-rank 7 winged beast appeared in his room. What had once been a creature capable of defeating the world''s powerhouses was a stuffed statue now. Shandal had taken away all its interiors and valuable body parts, but its skin was still in place. Noah knew that he couldn''t hurt the beast. His power wasn''t enough to pierce its skin even after it had lost most of its body. As for eating it, he didn''t even dream about it. Nevertheless, any creature would release "Breath" upon its death, and the remains of the winged beast followed the same rule. Noah placed his mouth on its hand before he started sucking. His instincts begged him to take a bite, but his teeth could do nothing against that skin. All he could do was licking away the primary energy released due to its deterioration. Waves of power spread through Noah''s body as he ate the thick primary energy accumulated on the creature''s skin. He had never eaten something so pure, and the feeling of satisfaction that it gave him was addicting. He had learnt to control his hunger though, so he could control himself and continue to stuff his body with energy that no other beast in the fifth rank had ever gained access to. Noah continued even after he felt full. The drowsiness wanted him to fall asleep on the spot, but he suppressed it as long as he could. Eventually, he collapsed on the floor, and he had only the strength to put the winged beast back inside his space-ring before his mind went dark, and a crystal-like substance filled the entire room. Noah didn''t dream about his Demonic Sword or the Light-devouring Dragons'' past. Not even Snore''s sensations appeared in his vision as his mind wandered. What he saw was a starry sky becoming closer and zooming on the stars that he had pursued all his life. He watched matter burn and fuse as those majestic celestial bodies illuminated the dark void. Noah didn''t have his usual sporadic moments of awareness during that breakthrough, but he was in a nigh-conscious state through all of it. He immediately realized that those dreams were only about him and signaled how his existence had broken free from his world''s limits and aimed for the stars. An existence with four centers of power was otherworldly. It didn''t belong to Heaven and Earth''s system, and it wasn''t a natural occurrence. Its place was in the void, among other unique existences. Noah''s consciousness awakened at some point, and the simple opening of his eyes shattered layers of crystals in front of him. His hands closed to form fists, and that sudden movement caused shockwaves that reduced more crystals into pieces. There wasn''t any burst of hunger or prideful roar of success. Noah was calm, and he felt entirely in control of himself. Noah could immediately sense that some of his features had changed. His nails were still black and pointy, and his hair didn''t lose their metallic properties. However, the scales had disappeared, and his skin had become whiter as if it had reached a new purity. His entire body felt hot. He didn''t sense the heat, but he realized that his temperature was far higher than usual. Smoke came out of his mouth when he breathed. There seemed to be a furnace inside him, and the cause was his heart. A black star had replaced his organ. Chapter 1032: 1032. Reports A black star rotated at the center of his chest, right under the sternum and between the lungs. Noah''s heart had disappeared, replaced by a dense rotating sphere that executed his organ''s previous functions and added new ones. Noah closed his eyes to feel his body in its entirety. The black star had become part of the innate absorption of "Breath" performed by the magical beasts. It gathered energy inside its core before turning it into primary energy that nurtured his tissues. Yet, that primary energy appeared slightly different from usual. Its structure didn''t change, but there seemed to be more power contained in its fabric. It was as if the dark matter had improved its nature, making it become a better nutrient for his body. The same went for his blood. The black star filtered and improved its structure before sending it back in the blood vessels. Noah felt his body becoming stronger after every full rotation of the sphere, but the cause wasn''t a superior amount of energy. Noah felt purer. The dark matter elevated his tissues and nutrients toward a higher form of existence, distancing him from the labels commonly used to evaluate hybrid bodies. ''Quantity, intensity, and purity,'' Noah thought as he became aware of the immense strength that ran through his veins. ''The cultivation journey has forced me to pursue different goals as my rank improved. I''m elevating myself now.'' Noah faced the ceiling as he recalled the images seen during his dreams. He didn''t open his eyes, but he saw the stars calling for him. Both his body and mind had begun to walk toward them. ''This is too different,'' Noah realized at some point. His mind was strong enough to give him full control of his instincts, but not feeling them concerned him. It was as if he had become something entirely different. He didn''t feel like a hybrid anymore. Noah blew on his hand, and the world around him lost its light for a second before a small flame landed on his palm. His fire had turned black, and it released an aura that darkened the air around it. Its power was on a completely different level too. The remaining crystals from the chrysalis fell apart as soon as Noah''s fire appeared in the room. ''What have I become?'' Noah questioned himself, even if he was sure that there was no answer. There was nothing in nature that resembled his species anymore. He was the first of his kind, and his potential was unknown. The Demonic Sword soon barged in the room and greeted him with happy roars. Noah had tasked the Hive to feed it while he was in seclusion, but its show of affection appeared far more intense than the previous times. A series of sheets and items laid right in front of his mansion. The Hive had periodically delivered news and materials that he could use during his seclusion, and Noah didn''t hesitate to sweep through them. He couldn''t understand how long he had spent inside the chrysalis. His mind had improved with the spherical rune, but he had yet to become used to its pace now that he was in the sixth rank. The sheets quickly solved his doubts. He had spent fifty years in seclusion, which made him almost five hundred years old. Still, there were problems regarding the world''s current situation and how that affected him. Noah''s return didn''t go unnoticed, and many Elders of the Council had seen Skully flying together with an army of cultivators. Some had even noticed the runes on her body, and they couldn''t help but link them to the legendary Kesier species. The years after Noah''s reappearance saw a stream of envoys coming to the Hive to request audiences and meetings. Noah''s name often appeared in those, but the Elders dodged every question while they waited for him to come out of seclusion. Chasing Demon and the other higher-ups had questioned Skully after Noah isolated himself. The incredible story of the hidden world and the spectacular events concerning its end made them gasp in surprise. The fact that Noah had singlehandedly taken care of a divine being, freed the human troops, and destroyed an entire world left them speechless. Still, they had realized since that the Demon Prince''s growth had surpassed their wildest expectations since his return. Those events eventually caught the Elbas family''s attention, which managed to gain access to pieces of information through spies and by bribing weaker cultivators. The Royals almost went mad at the hint that the Hive owned specimens belonging to the Kesier species. Hordes of inscription masters let go of their hatred against Noah''s recent actions and flew to the Hive to schedule meetings. They even brought gifts in advance! However, the Hive''s Elders stalled their requests indefinitely, and the other forces soon understood that they had to wait for Noah to reappear before managing that matter. Skully and the rebels went through a few rounds of inspections from Thirty-seven before moving in different environments. The human cultivators ended up in schools and academies under the domes and received special treatment to make up for their poor techniques. Instead, the heroic experts and Skully chose to live among the hybrids and manage their lands. Elder Roy and other inscription masters accompanied them to explain how the inscription field had changed in the past years. Moreover, they desperately needed new cultivation techniques that reflected their individuality. Skully''s method had allowed them to reach the fifth and fourth ranks, but their power and battle prowess were lacking. The sheets went on, listing a series of evaluations on the black metal and the current state of the reservoir of Kesier Apes, but Noah could only skip those parts when he saw June''s name appearing on those reports. Noah had seen her during the battle above the poisonous swamp, but his mind''s condition was too poor to focus on multiple things. He had seen her wearing Eccentric Thunder''s hats, but he didn''t expect her situation to be as severe as the report stated. King Elbas had even arrived shortly after, forcing him to seize the first chance that he found to leave that place. The reports stated that June''s condition had worsened after the battles ended. Surges of orange sparks had often shone in the sky above her quarters, and many experts from enemy nations had noticed that. She had eventually become so unstable that the Royals sent her to the other Mortal Lands. The Hive didn''t know the details behind that decision, but it seemed that she had refused any treatment from her organization''s inscription masters. Noah knew why June wouldn''t let anyone come near her centers of power. Any inscription master would notice her higher energy at that point, and her life would end on the same day. Still, the reports weren''t over, and his eyes became cold when he read that hybrids had risen from the sea of the other Mortal Lands and were invading the landmass. Witnesses confirmed the presence of creatures in the sixth rank. Chapter 1033: 1033. Laughs Chaos marched toward the landmass of the other Mortal Lands, and June happened to be there. June didn''t need saving. She had built her power on top of Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance, but her individuality was only hers. There was the chance that she had even moved past the old cultivator''s teachings after obtaining the higher energy and the book in Shandal''s dimension. Noah barely understood how her cultivation technique worked. He couldn''t help her in that field. Yet, that didn''t mean that he didn''t want to be with her. ''I didn''t notice it,'' Noah thought as the images of his last battle appeared in his view. June was there, turned toward him as she stared at the destruction that he had unleashed. The sporadic sparkle let off by his dark matter illuminated the part of her face that the large hat couldn''t cover. Noah could only see half of her lips, but he saw no emotions in them. ''She didn''t want me to notice,'' Noah concluded, and the sheets in his hands turned into ashes as his dark heart spun faster. He felt uneasy whenever he recalled that half mouth. Something serious was going on with her centers of power, and whatever it was, she didn''t want Noah to be involved. ''She must have noticed my injuries,'' Noah thought as he sat on the ground of the separate dimension. He didn''t feel at fault for how her situation had evolved, but he wanted to do more for her. They had been apart for too long, and Noah had finally reached the point when he could stop abiding by the rules of the political environment. As for June, she had been in charge of her family for quite a while by then. The only problem was finding the right opportunity to escape the clutches of the Royals. She knew too much about the underground activities of the Elbas family. Most structures of the academy granted access only to the Elbas bloodline, but she was the first on the list of cultivators to call in case there was dirty work to do. It was time for the two of them to be together in the open, but they had to plan it thoroughly to respect their wishes. Thirty-seven materialized next to him at some point, and the teleportation matrix near the mansion lit up before revealing the two Demons walking in his direction. "Quite a show you pulled off down there," Flying Demons said. White flowers grew wherever he took a step, and ice spread on the ground around them. They radiated an eerie aura that appeared able to stabilize the environment of the dimension. "Skully told us everything you did," Dreaming Demon said. The air of the dimension bent due to the mental waves surrounding her figure. It was as if it couldn''t resist the authority that they carried. Both Demons had improved during those years. Dreaming Demon was nearing the peak of the fifth rank, while Flying Demon had crossed the halfway mark of the solid stage. Moreover, their auras were far more intense compared to those of experts at the same level. Their individualities were vast, and their ambition made justice to their divine Master. "You look good," Noah said, revealing a faint smile. "You look better," Flying Demon replied before letting out a short laugh. Noah wished that he could catch up with them in front of a few jugs of good wine, but June''s situation bothered him. He could use the rank 6 hybrids'' invasion to look for her and see if he could be of any help. "Planning to go somewhere?" Flying Demon said while wearing a wide smile. The ashes of the sheets were still there. He could understand the kind of reaction that Noah had after reading them. "We have built the tunnel for the Utra nation," Dreaming Demon continued while using her hand to cover her soft laugh. Noah felt confused only for an instant before understanding the situation and standing up to question the Demons. "Why would you want to come? There are creatures in the sixth rank there." Dreaming Demon''s aura surged, and Noah felt forced to expand his consciousness to maintain control of his body. The intensity of her pressure continued to rise until Noah saw it breaking through the limit of what rank 5 minds could express. He had never heard of mental waves capable of such prowess. Even his mind had always been so predominant only because of its high level. "I''m Divine Demon''s disciple, Prince," Dreaming Demon said as her voice twisted inside her dense aura. "Surpassing limits is what we do." "And we are so bored after cultivating here for centuries," Flying Demon added while releasing his usual laugh. "The Royals even cut us off from the battles for no reason. Still, your performance was amazing. I feel enlightened every time I hear the story of the lizard." "Should I remind you that the lizard ended up in my stomach?" Noah replied as a smirk appeared on his face. It was pointless to convince the Demons to drop the matter. They would have died inside Divine Architect''s dimension if they weren''t the most stubborn cultivators that he had ever met. "Can you three leave already?" Thirty-seven eventually said. "I''m too busy to waste time with maniacs." Noah glanced at the automaton, and his sack of dark matter opened, revealing another piece of the black metal retrieved in the hidden world. Thirty-seven''s ethereal eyes widened at that sight, and a smile quickly appeared on his face. "I need more space-rings and a detailed description of the evolution of the fauna in the other world," Noah ordered, and the automaton disappeared, only to return a few minutes later with the items that he had requested. "Just one last thing," Flying Demon said as he turned to look at Noah with a severe expression. "Don''t tell me that swinging magical beasts is your new technique." The sound of his laughs echoed through that area of separate dimension as the trio moved toward the teleportation matrix. The Demons told Noah funny anecdotes happened while he was away, and Noah went through his version of the hidden world''s events. Now that peace had spread among the three organizations again, they could use the dimensional portal freely. Yet, they decided to take the fastest path for the Utra nation since every expert in the world was looking for Noah. The three of them reached the dimensional portal in a few weeks and found troops wearing golden armors deployed in front of it. Their arrival alerted the troops who rose in the air to meet the trio, but the soldiers began to slow down when they became aware of their identity. There was only one rank 5 cultivator among the troops. The rest were soldiers in the fourth rank too scared to even look at the trio in the eyes. "I-I need to see your authorization," The captain said with a trembling voice, but Noah and the Demons glared at him. The captain didn''t even last a few seconds before lowering his head and moving out of the way, leaving the path open. Chapter 1034: 1034. Doubts Noah crossed the dimensional tunnel for the first time in centuries. He barely knew about the laws back then, but his eyes and mind could see them now. There were no laws in the void. The trio leaked them as if it was a natural occurrence in that environment, and they dispersed once they crossed the ethereal walls of the tunnel. Noah and the Demons could wield the laws, but they appeared unable to contain them when exposed to that blackness. They concluded that only gods could cross the void without being affected by its properties. After all, they were only borrowing true meanings that existed in nature. They didn''t produce them, and their individualities were too weak to contain them inside their centers of power. That experience was new even for the Demons, and the group silently agreed to quicken their pace to avoid any problem. A starry sky appeared in their vision when they crossed the exit. The various forces had dug the volcano away and built a fortress that protected the dimensional tunnel in those years. A city unfolded around the fortress. That was the center of the new world''s alien forces, so the many buildings had an orderly layout that resembled a military camp. Many layers of protection surrounded the various quarters and progressively increased the number of defenses that the city had since they stretched till its peripheral areas. Tall walls encircled the whole settlement too, and many cultivators patrolled on top of them. The other world had taken the colonization seriously. Noah and the Demons couldn''t help but feel amazed when they thought about the resources invested in that place. They immediately realized that even existences on their level would find it troublesome to breach all those defenses, let alone the fortress at their center. It felt surreal staring at the wonders that the four leading organizations could do when they worked together. "This place has better defenses than Rufus'' quarters," Flying Demon conveyed through his consciousness. The Copying Technique alone wasn''t enough to match those countless protections stacked on each other. Noah now understood why the forces deployed in that world didn''t panic nor request help when the rank 6 hybrids rose from the sea. They didn''t fear them. That city was the only neutral area in the other world. It worked both as a big market and as the center of the teleportation matrices connected to the landmass''s various research structures. Ordinary cultivators would have to go through a series of procedures before being admitted to the teleportation matrices, but Noah and the Demons were far from standard experts. Mental messages flew faster than cultivators in the dimensional tunnel, so the other side''s forces already knew about their arrival. A series of rank 4 Elders of the Hive welcomed the trio with deep bows and invitations to banquets organized in their honor. Flying Demon felt inclined to accept those offers, but Noah and his lover''s stern glances convinced him otherwise. Their arrival created some tension among the forces deployed there, and Noah was the reason behind that event. The news of his actions above the poisonous swamp had reached the other world, and the cultivators of the Elbas family didn''t see him in a good light. Noah had destroyed an army of heroic cultivators that featured even experts in the liquid stage. Many of them were heads of specific branches of the Royal family, while others were factions'' leaders inside that organization. He had only needed a few minutes to ruin their future and disrupt the entire power balance inside the Elbas family. It felt only normal that many factions resented him. However, the hateful gazes shot toward him from a distance weren''t enough to make him waste time. He had come there for June and to hunt rank 6 creatures. The resentment of those cultivators didn''t occupy his thoughts even once. "Demon Prince," A peak rank 4 Elder of the Hive said as she kept her head lowered. "I can only describe what I''ve seen. I''m sorry that my expertise in the magical beasts'' field isn''t to your satisfaction." Noah didn''t answer and continued to read a thick pile of sheets that described the fauna''s evolution from the Worldwide Heaven Tribulation until that day. Thirty-seven had given him a similar report, but Noah wanted to hear it from the experts on the field too. The only problem was that the cultivator in charge at the moment had a limited cultivation level. Noah had a significant doubt regarding the invasion of those powerful hybrids. Years had passed since the transformation, but only weak hybrids had come out of the sea before the attack. That was normal since powerful beasts would often live far away from the landmass. Their natural habitats were the depths of the sea, where the echoes of Noah''s cry couldn''t reach. There was a chance that a powerful creature had happened to swim near the coastline right at that moment, but that alone didn''t explain the presence of three rank 6 hybrids leading a large-scale invasion. Noah felt that there was something else. The other world was the perfect place to actuate unorthodox and condemned experiments since the news would reach the central powers slowly. Some of them might even go missing for mysterious reasons. ''Who would even create an army of hybrids on this level?'' Noah questioned himself. Even if he found it easier to believe that experts had given birth to that pack, he couldn''t find an explanation to justify their actions. The Demons eventually joined him in that structure. They had gone to another department that handled espionage operations and kept track of most teleportation to investigate June. "Here," Dreaming Demon handed Noah a report containing June''s travels, and he saw that she had moved toward the other side of the landmass, right where the hybrids were resurfacing. The report was seven years old though. June could have moved anywhere on the continent at that time. "Do you think she is still there?" Flying Demon asked, but Noah shook his head. "I think she went deeper into the danger zone," Noah explained as a smile appeared on his face. "A battle maniac solves problems by fighting." "Shall we move then?" Dreaming Demon suggested without showing the slightest amount of fear. The fact that their target was inside a rank 6 danger zone didn''t make her hesitate for even a second. "Just one last thing," Noah said before his aura spread inside the entire room and cut off any form of communication. The expert in front of him almost fainted when his mental waves reached her mind, but Noah''s piercing eyes kept her awake. Then, his cold words reached her ears and forced her to be completely honest. "Do you think there is a rebellion brewing here?" Chapter 1035: 1035. Instabilities June sat inside a cave dug under the broken palace where she, Noah, and Faith had met the last ancestor. A large metallic hat laid on her head and the flow of energy inside her Perfect Circuit became smoother whenever it neared her inscribed item. The roars of hundreds of magical beasts and hybrids echoed through the ceiling and walls of her cave, and countless heavy steps made the whole island tremble. She was in the middle of the invading pack, and she didn''t reach that position by chance. June had flown on the opposite side of the continent to remain alone, but she had pressed forward once she learnt about the hybrids. Being among experts in her current state was akin to exposing her higher energy, and June had to protect that secret to avoid the consequences of her betrayal. She had to protect her relationship with Noah too, but her priority now was to fix herself without being exposed. The truth was that the instability of her energy was her fault. She had failed to comprehend how powerful the higher energy would become when paired with her insatiable battle drive. June had replaced her "Breath" with her dark sparks. Her centers of power expressed her individuality and used higher energy as fuel for her abilities and their expansion. However, June was only human. Her centers of power couldn''t endure the magnitude of her energy because their level was too low compared to the strength that she was capable of unleashing. The True Thunder Body didn''t help her either. The dark sparks didn''t exactly belong to the lightning element, and Eccentric Thunder didn''t predict that his heir would gain access to such powerful energy so soon. It was an issue of power output. June''s Perfect Circuit couldn''t handle all that violent energy since she was a cultivator in the liquid stage of the fifth rank. The issue became even more significant when her individuality came into play. June was a battle maniac, and her centers of power would produce more energy as her fights continued. That put even more stress on her, which made the power surges inevitable. June would have been able to suppress her instabilities completely if she stopped cultivating. No higher energy through her Perfect Circuit meant no more power surges. Yet, that solution only worked if she halted her progress forever. As soon as she started cultivating again, the instabilities would return. June couldn''t possibly accept to see her cultivation journey end. She would rather die trying to find another way than live the rest of her days as an expert incapable of using her power. She only regretted not spending more time with Noah. Yet, she didn''t want to burden him with her mistake, which was why she hid her condition when he assaulted the battlefield. ''What did you even do to injure your mind?'' June thought. Noah rarely showed anything other than his cold face in the open, so he had revealed that there was something wrong with him when he massaged his temples. Of course, many wouldn''t even bother to analyze that gesture, especially when there was the corpse of a rank 6 beast hanging from his hands. However, June had noticed it, just as Noah had seen that her stern expression hid her grave condition. The sounds of steps intensified before calming down all of a sudden. June could sense that the pack had taken the island as its lair. Her prediction of where the beasts would stop had turned out to be true. June planned to force a breakthrough, and she could only do that by putting her life on the line. She needed a desperate battle, something that could push her far beyond her usual limits. She had initially thought to fight any creature that she found, but then the pack led by three rank 6 hybrids arrived, as well as her chance. June would fight it until her Perfect Circuit improved, or her higher energy overwhelmed her centers of power. It was a desperate action, but the only solution that she had. Noah''s face appeared in her mind one last time before she shot outside of the cave, and dark sparks surrounded her body. . . . Noah and the Demons activated a teleportation matrix inside the city while wearing solemn expressions. Noah''s guts had been on point. According to the expert in the magical beasts'' field, rumors about a rebellion echoed in the other world. It was only typical for forces distant from the main branches to feel separated from them. It had been the same in the Coral Archipelago, with the only difference that there were kilometers of void dividing the interest parties at that time. The rebels only needed to block the dimensional tunnel''s exit to separate the two Mortal Lands forever, and the defenses in the city had enough power to stop even powerhouses. ''Rebellions inspire rebellions,'' Noah thought as a different scenery appeared in his eyes. The Hive had shown that the world''s leading forces were vulnerable and could lose with the right tools, so anyone with some ambition dreamt of doing the same. If his guess was right, the sudden appearance of such powerful hybrids wasn''t a natural event. A threat on that level would keep most troops busy if it ever were to reach the city. Noah and the Demons reappeared in a structure of the Hive dedicated to the capture and enslavement of hybrids. It was similar to the hunting guild in Noah''s past, but with hunters in the heroic ranks. The trio had chosen that place for its position on the other side of the continent. From there, they could reach the area invaded by the pack in a few weeks. The hunters wanted to hold a banquet in their honor and show how valuable that structure was, but Noah didn''t care, and the Demons followed his lead. The three of them set off immediately and flew toward the island where Noah had met the last ancestor. The latest reports stated that the pack had halted its advance and that the leaders had returned inside the sea. That was the perfect moment to attack and skim their ranks, but the city sent no assets as if the forces there knew that a revolution was brewing. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique as he flew. He didn''t do it to study the political situation there, but to analyze his techniques. His mind and body were in the sixth rank now, and the improvements they brought to Noah''s prowess were immense. He only needed to make his techniques able to use that new power. The most significant changes had happened in his body. He felt stronger after every rotation of the dark star in his chest, and his entire being became purer thanks to his new heart''s effects. Noah had initially thought that it would take a while to find traces of his lover, but the scene found on the island changed his mind. The trio reached their target only to see hundreds of magical beasts'' corpses filling the red ground. Chapter 1036: 1036. Lead ''June,'' Noah thought when he saw the island filled with magical beasts'' corpses. Even among those bodies, his nose smelled her peculiar scent, confirming that she had been behind that slaughter. There were many dead creatures at the peak of the fifth rank on the ground and countless more in the lower ranks. Noah felt surprised to learn that June could unleash such power. After all, she technically was a liquid stage expert. Cultivators on that level could deal with stronger magical beasts quickly, but there were hundreds of corpses on the ground. Even with her higher energy, June must have gone all out to defeat that army. Noah could immediately understand that she was up to something reckless. He wouldn''t mind it in normal times, but her actions appeared desperate. It was as if her life depended on them. The dark star on his chest began to spin faster as soon as he had that impression. His consciousness expanded, and his thoughts became instincts that he could understand without turning them into words. His mind processed traces and clues at an unbelievable speed. It skimmed through any input found by his body and consciousness with the only purpose of understanding where June had gone. Noah felt as if he had activated the Divine Deduction technique, with the only difference that his body had started that process independently. It had reacted to Noah''s intentions and had empowered the features that made his innate awareness. It took him less than a minute to find the trail of smell that carried June''s distinct scent and discover that it led to the sea. To his surprise, Noah didn''t feel any anger when the Heaven''s Spark''s odor reached his nostril. ''Am I even a hybrid anymore?'' Noah couldn''t help but think as he led the way for the Demons. The three of them dived into the sea and waited for Noah to find more traces. There were other magical beasts'' corpses in the sea. Their maimed bodies floated in those murky waters, leaving a trail of death that the trio hoped led to Noah''s lover. The pack was far greater than the reports said, or it had been at least. June had killed hundreds of creatures in the fourth and fifth rank, without leaving even one specimen alive. Noah and the Demons didn''t even know if the rest of the pack existed. The only certain news concerned the existence of three leaders in the sixth rank that didn''t reappear since they vanished in the sea. ''Is she going after them?'' Noah wondered, but he couldn''t believe that June had become so reckless. If she did, it was because her situation was utterly hopeless, and she was looking for a miracle. That realization made him even more focused on finding her, which pushed his dark star to spin even faster. His senses reached a level of sharpness that made him see June''s traces on the laws around him. Noah felt surprised by the abilities of his body. He believed that part of his astonishment came from his first real appreciation of the sixth rank, but something told him that he had become even more unique. His new heart made him a peculiar being, but that wasn''t his most fantastic feature. He felt as if his body was actively pushing him to become stronger without requiring any fuel. That went far beyond the inherent advantage of the magical beasts. Those creatures had an easy path, but Noah''s body explored that field further. Its constant purification was a sort of preparation for Noah''s ascension! The trio continued to follow June''s traces until they sensed a wave of energy coming from the seabed. Noah didn''t even warn the Demons at that point. He directly shot toward the depths of the sea, creating a series of shockwaves that spread on the seabed and gave birth to an earthquake. Even the simple act of sprinting made nature in awe of his strength. He had become a natural calamity that had to hold back to live among cultivators now. That event forced the Demons to activate defensive spells, which deflected the might of the shockwave. Meanwhile, Noah reached the bottom of the sea in an instant only to find a cloud of black sparks moving forward. Noah was about to dive toward it when his instincts warned him of the presence of multiple life forms at some distance from him. His innate awareness gave him a complete view of the lair. He saw an even more numerous gathering of magical beasts, and he sensed the three powerful leaders resting right at their center. ''Hydras,'' Noah thought when he saw those creatures. The leaders of the pack were three Seven-headed Hydras in the lower tier of the sixth rank! Noah''s thoughts processed all the pieces of information concerning that species as he resumed his descent toward the crackling cloud. Hydras were peculiar. Their potential depended on the number of heads, which meant that those leaders could reach the seventh rank at best. Also, they shared many traits with dragon-like and snakes-like species, being right under them when it came to their bodies'' strength. They had different innate abilities too, one for each head, which made them quite troublesome to face. Yet, Heaven and Earth''s fairness made them quite dumb, forcing them to remain isolated on the dark corners of the sea''s depths. Hydras were extinct in the other world, but no one missed them since they brought more troubles than value. The only issue was that they had become hybrids in those Mortal Lands, solving their only natural weakness. Noah felt even more convinced that someone was behind their transformation. Those creatures would have never come near the coastlines, and it wasn''t in their genes to form such diversified packs. He had even started to believe that someone had instructed them to act in that way. Of course, that was purely hypothetical. Many experts capable of brainwash rank 6 hybrids, even if they had newborns'' minds and were stupid by nature. He would understand if one of the powerhouses had gone through the dimensional portal in those years, but the records said otherwise. Noah dived through the array of dark sparks, destroying them with his bare body, and landing right behind the figure that had appeared walking inside the cloud. June stopped when she sensed that familiar aura. Part of her felt warm thinking that she couldn''t hide anything from her lover, but the rest of her didn''t like that he had arrived right before her final act. "You shouldn''t be here," June spoke, and her works became sharp sparks that exploded in the water around her, echoing her voice. Noah could sense from her tone how unwell she felt, but he didn''t understand how her Perfect Circuit worked even when he analyzed it with his new mind. He noticed June''s cultivation level. She radiated the power of an expert that had almost reached the peak of the fifth rank, even if her centers of power only reflected her status as a liquid stage cultivator. Chapter 1037: 1037. Drug "You''ll die if you go against them," Noah conveyed through his consciousness, but June didn''t turn. She continued to walk forward with her head hidden under her giant hat. Most of June''s superior battle prowess came from her higher energy. She was like Snore, capable of surpassing the level of her centers of power because her fuel was far superior to the "Breath". The only problem was that June''s individuality pushed that advantage further, making her Perfect Circuit unable to withstand her power anymore. Noah couldn''t understand much from a simple glance, but he noticed how June''s body seemed on the verge of exploding. Her centers of power didn''t have the time to push the higher energy outside of her that more black sparks formed inside them. "Why did you try to hide this from me?" Noah asked as he raised his voice. The cloud of black sparks dispersed due to the sound''s intensity, and the water retreated, creating an empty area right in the middle of the sea''s depths. June stopped at that point, but she didn''t turn. Her perfect circuit began to leak higher energy again, but Noah''s consciousness expanded and dispersed the second cloud while it kept the water around them still. The more June avoided answering his questions, the more Noah understood how severe her condition was. "I can''t help you if you don''t tell me what the problem is," Noah said, but a power surge suddenly spread from June''s body and gave birth to another crackling could. Noah saw how June turned to face him even if her hat kept her face hidden. She remained silent for a while before deciding to speak for the first time. "You can''t help me." Noah remained silent as he waited for June to continue. She only hesitated a few more seconds before explaining. "If you fix this for me, I''ll feel defeated forever." Small help wouldn''t affect her, and Noah lending a hand to create her higher energy wasn''t a vital matter. Yet, June''s life depended on her ability to fix her condition at that time, and she couldn''t let anyone but her taking credit for that. If Noah saved her life, she would lose her desire to fight him. Her individuality only needed a crack to fall apart, and Noah understood that after her words. "Do you think that dying is the solution?" Noah asked. He wasn''t ready to give up on June. There were ways in which he could help her without endangering the integrity of her individuality. "This is the only way," June answered, spreading her arms to indicate the crackling cloud. "I need to force breakthroughs to contain this power." Noah couldn''t help but sigh when he heard that. June had chosen to act as a true battle maniac, but her odds of succeeding were horrible. Cultivators couldn''t just force breakthroughs in the heroic ranks. The Royal pool wouldn''t be so miraculous otherwise. "Is there nothing else you can do?" Noah asked as he began to walk toward her. The black sparks tried to destroy his robe, but his dark matter fended them off. "I-. You can''t." June said while she tried to suppress her voice. Noah saw her holding back from speaking and shot forward, shattering the remaining cloud and pushing the waters backward again. June didn''t move even when his hand went on her hat to lift it. Noah saw messy hair falling everywhere on his lover''s face as he removed that heavy inscribed item. June''s furrowed brows and closed eyes revealed the pain that she had been enduring in her condition. She dropped her act and her mouth and joined the rest of her face in expressing her suffering. Noah had never seen her in that condition. She seemed on the verge of collapsing, and all her efforts were on making sure that her Perfect Circuit held strong. "Let it go," Noah said as he caressed her face. June shook her head, but her expression eased up when his hand touched her cheek. The couple remained in that position for a while, immersed in the sensation that they had been unable to feel for centuries. Noah didn''t feel his arousal, but his mind calmed down when he touched her, and his dark heart spun faster. His creation spiked when he came in contact with the woman at the foundation of his idea of life. Noah had expressed so much destruction lately that he had almost forgotten how intense that harmonious calm was. June''s hands rose to hold his, and her expression relaxed as a wave of higher energy came out of her Perfect Circuit. The black sparks were violent and threatened to hurt her body with their momentum, but they slowed down when Noah focused his mind on them. Noah''s consciousness forced the higher energy to condense and leave June''s body in an orderly way. That was all the power that she had accumulated during her recent battles, so he had to disperse it to stabilize her condition. Minutes slowly passed until, eventually, June''s Perfect Circuit became devoid of any energy. June''s heaved a sigh and staggered when she felt empty, but Noah''s hand was firm, and she could cling to it to keep her balance. Her eyes opened for the first time and reflected the reptilian pupils fixed on her orange irises. Except for the scales, Noah''s appearance didn''t change much after the chrysalis. Still, June could notice the small details that the breakthrough had modified. His icy-blue irises had slightly enlarged and irradiated the white of his eyes with that bright color. He had become taller, and his skin resembled hot metal that didn''t have any crease on its surface. Waves of heats filled his body whenever the dark star in his chest completed a rotation. His muscles were more pronounced, but only slightly. They didn''t ruin the harmony that he expressed. Instead, June didn''t change much. Her look appeared a bit more mature, but she was still the young battle maniac met after the entrance test of the Academy in Noah''s eyes. She had lost weight, and her face revealed how tired she was, but those were only the effects of her condition. The couple stared at each other for a while before they went for each other''s lips and exchanged a slow kiss. They eventually separated to embrace each other and lose themselves in the feeling that their hug triggered. "What are your other options?" Noah asked once he felt that she had completely relaxed and didn''t risk activating her Perfect Circuit again. "Dying in a massive battle against creatures in the sixth rank is a great option," June said, and Noah felt her mouth breaking into a smirk on his chest. "Are you sure you don''t want to consider it?" "I''m sorry," Noah said, "My stomach has booked those hybrids. You need to find another way." June laughed, but her expression turned serious, and she left her chest to stare at Noah''s eyes again. When she sensed the feelings that they contained, she couldn''t help but reveal everything to him. "The Royal Academy has developed this new drug¡­" Chapter 1038: 1038. Rebels "You want to raid the Royal Academy?!" Flying Demon shouted when he heard what June had in mind. Noah had taken her away from the seabed, and the Demons had returned to the island with them. They sat on the floor of the destroyed castle now, and a few jugs of wine stood between the two couples. "The Royals have developed a drug that improves the sturdiness of the centers of power," June said as she shot an annoyed glance at Noah. He was filling her body with dark matter to prevent another outburst of energy, but his heavy consciousness made June feel uneasy. June had explained her second option to Noah and the Demons. The Elbas family had studied the ancestors'' compound for centuries by then, and it had created many exceptional items by reverse-engineering its structure. One of them was a potion that increased the sturdiness of the centers of power by fusing magical beasts'' features into their structure. Its effects replicated the transformation on limited areas of the body, improving its overall functioning. June''s Perfect Circuit would become able to bear her higher energy in that way. The only problem was that the Elbas family kept all their prototypes and recent creations in a restricted area. Only the members of the Elbas bloodline had access to them. As for turning her into a hybrid, Noah couldn''t. June''s individuality was a big issue, and she would feel in debt to her lover forever, which was an even greater problem. "She has the expertise to break the defensive formations," Noah said once he finished applying a layer of dark matter around the cores and weak spots of the Perfect Circuit. June had pointed them before, so his work had been thorough. June had chosen an old book full of teachings on the formation field as a reward from Shandal''s dimension. Unknowingly to the Royals, her expertise had grown immensely, and her unique position made her aware of the defenses in place around the restricted areas of the new Academy. "You forget one big problem," Dreaming Demon said when she understood the whole situation. "What stops King Elbas from appearing and killing you on the spot?" June bit her lower lip at that question. King Elbas was the only reason why she didn''t use the second option as her main strategy. The threat of the strongest powerhouse in the world was something that she couldn''t ignore just because she was desperate. It was better to try her luck against the magical beasts. Even with awful odds, she had more chances of succeeding there than in getting past King Elbas. The Demons and June stared at the bottom of their empty cups as they pondered about the matter. She didn''t have many choices. She could either jump into a deadly mission or rot at her current level forever. "I can get him out of the scene for a while," Noah eventually said, and the questioning eyes of the three experts went to him. Countless experts had tried to set up meetings with him to ask about the Kesier Ape spotted during his return. The best inscription master in the world would be interested in the topic too. As for how he planned to make King Elbas leave the surface, that was the easy part. Noah only needed to lie. The group had to solve one problem before devoting all their attention to June. The forces deployed in those Mortal Lands were planning a revolt, and an army with three rank 6 Seven-headed Hydras was waiting to invade. Noah even linked the origin of the revolution to some faction of the Elbas family now. After all, June had just confirmed that the Royals had made significant advancements in that field. Their discoveries could be behind the sudden appearance of hybrids from the bottom of the sea. Of course, June wouldn''t join Noah and the Demons in that mission. She had to remain put until they solved the situation and returned to the main world. . . . Noah and the Demons built a large cave in the seabed and used a few simple inscriptions to keep the water outside. They even had separate areas, so both couples could have intimate moments and cultivate in peace. The group had decided to refrain from charging at the pack to study the situation. They had to prepare a battle plan anyway, and they had taken the chance to see if Noah''s hypotheses held some ground. If rebel forces were behind the sudden invasion, someone would eventually instruct the hybrids about their new task. Waiting there for something to happen didn''t hurt anyone as long as the pack didn''t move. Dreaming Demon was in charge of analyzing the situation. Her individuality allowed her consciousness to spread farther than Noah''s awareness. Moreover, he was busy meditating and catching up with June. His mind and body were amazing, and he had yet to explore their full potential. Still, he had the time to focus on his techniques now, and his creation surpassed its old level since June was there. Noah focused mostly on improving the spells required for his techniques, namely the Shadow Copy and the Merging spell. They were the cores of his offensive and movement, so he had to make them suitable for his new physical strength. He even pondered about his elements from time to time. He needed only light to complete his full mastery, but Daniel''s individuality was far different from his. Only a month passed before something happened, and Noah didn''t manage to improve even when using the Divine Deduction technique. "Someone is coming," Dreaming Demon warned the group with her consciousness, and the three of them left the cave to move toward the pack. June remained behind because she had to abstain from using her centers of power. The trio reached the pack silently, hidden by Dreaming Demon''s mental waves. A rank 5 cultivator appeared in their vision, and she descended through the dark waters to near the hybrids. The woman wore a golden armor and held a long wand in her hand. A shining red crystal stood on top of her inscribed item, and its light forced the creatures to lower their heads. Even the three hydras didn''t dare to look at her directly. Noah and the Demons exchanged a glance, and Dreaming Demon''s mental waves expanded, affecting the waters and spreading until they reached the expert. The woman lost her balance for a moment before her expression became dull. Then, she started to walk toward the trio, uncaring that some creatures had lifted their heads after her departure. Once she regained her consciousness, she found three pairs of cold eyes fixed on her. The woman belonged to the Elbas family, but her expression lit up in joy after seeing Noah, and she began to speak before the trio could start questioning her. "So it''s true! You are the protector of the revolutions! Have you come to help us rebelling?" Chapter 1039: 1039. Rebellion Noah had to admit that he didn''t expect that type of answer from the rebel. He and the Demons were scary existences capable of exerting immense pressure, but the expert was only ecstatic to see them. "I''m Angela Elbas," The expert said, "I''m the leader of the research team sent here by the Royal Academy. It''s my honor to ask the hero of the Hive to join our revolution." She had the aspect of a middle-aged woman with long blonde hair and brown eyes. Her facial features showed how her bloodline was quite distant from the main branch of the Royals. The Demons turned to look at Noah, but the latter kept his eyes on Angela. Many thoughts surged in his mind, and some of them considered an eventual alliance with the rebelling forces. However, he didn''t see how helping them could benefit the Hive or their ally. It would be different if they could manage to seize control of the entire dimensional portal, but only King Elbas knew how it worked. It was a battle lost before even starting. The Royals'' leader had the most valuable and irreplaceable asset in his grasp. The revolt was hopeless unless the rebels didn''t want to return to the other world at all. Noah could never agree to that condition. The other world''s value was immense due to the piece of Immortal Lands, and it had all the threats that he needed to feel pressured enough to advance. "We only need to reach the dimensional crack," Angela continued with a voice full of excitement. "The forces on the other side will have no hope to reach this world once the only access is gone. We can reshape this continent in a paradise for cultivators led by a united organization." The trio could understand that Angela''s belief was solid, but they had seen too much to know that it was only a dream. Cultivators would often betray and kill to seize more profits, and every organization would eventually face internal battles and revolts. Noah and the Demons remained silent as they exchanged glances, and Angela didn''t fail to understand that something was wrong. Their expressions didn''t become warmer, and their cold eyes didn''t accept her as one of their kind. Only at that point did Angela consider that the legendary Noah Balvan wasn''t a protector of the oppressed nor a champion of the rebels. She saw the real him for the first time. Noah wouldn''t care about the revolution unless it benefitted him, but he was interested in the study that had led to the creation of those hybrids. Angela''s wand was in Dreaming Demon''s hands, and she studied it while the three of them tried to understand how to use that situation better. The most obvious option would be to use their prisoner to find the other rebels, but they had to retrieve many studies before making their move. However, they had underestimated Angela''s faith. As soon as she understood that the trio wasn''t going to help the revolution, she activated an inscribed item hidden inside her body. The trio saw a series of tattoos appearing on her uncovered skin. They depicted chains that spread on her hands and neck before releasing a humming sound. The wand''s crystal began to shine when the humming noise resounded in the area, and the creatures in the distance started to release angry roars as it continued to echo. One by one, the chains on Angela''s body broke, and the intensity of the humming sound increased, agitating more creatures in the pack. The crystal''s light became more intense too, and its radiance only made the beasts in the distance angrier. The trio acted quickly. Dreaming Demon''s mental waves spread to suppress the noise, Flying Demon froze the entire area, and Noah stomped Angela''s face, reducing it into ashes and creating a large fissure in the seabed. Nevertheless, their actions couldn''t stop the following series of events. Their reactions had been immediate, but they didn''t expect Angela''s tattoos. Even Dreaming Demon didn''t sense then, which meant that they had some concealing properties. Noah and the Demons couldn''t have seen them coming, but they understood what their activation had caused. The scepter appeared out of control, and its crystal started to tremble, as if ready to explode. Noah was about to punch it, but Flying Demon gestured him to stop and used his individuality to freeze the item. Meanwhile, the creatures in the distance rose from the seabed and turned in the red halo''s direction. Their eyes and senses locked on the three cultivators still illuminated by that light before charging at them. Noah quickly seized Angela''s space-rings and stored her body to see if it hid some other secret. Then, he took a step forward, ready to face the massive army of powerful creatures swimming in his direction. "Do we dispatch it?" Flying Demon asked while his lover stored the scepter. He wasn''t an expert in the field, so he wondered whether there was a chance to do something productive with those creatures. "The echo didn''t stop in this area," Dreaming Demon said. "A dense part shot somewhere toward the landmass." ''She has warned the rebels,'' Noah thought as the dark star in his chest spun faster. There was a high chance that the rebellion had already started, so they had to focus on weakening their enemies. "Can you take care of one of them?" Noah asked while the three Seven-headed Hydras surpassed the rest of their pack to reach them. "Can you take care of two of them?" Flying Demon said while exploding in a laugh. The Demons'' auras surged at that point, and their individualities spread through the sea, creating personal areas filled with their laws. Instead, Noah charged ahead, ignoring the threat that the three rank 6 hybrids posed to him. Something inside him told him that he had nothing to fear in a direct clash, and he was going to test his body''s prowess anyway. The first Hydra pounced at him with its four meters tall heads. Those specimens were huge and had long necks that stretched for more than twenty meters. They even had four thick fins that granted them good speed. Noah didn''t have access to his techniques, but he had enough assets to be deadly against creatures at that level. Sharp teeth filled his vision as the heads pounced at him, but he didn''t change direction. The Demons saw Noah slapping the head in front of him away and proceeding forward, leaving that hydra to them. His targets were the other two leaders that had fallen slightly behind. As for the countless creatures in the heroic ranks behind the three leaders, Noah didn''t even consider them as opponents. It would be strange if their joint attack could leave a dent on his skin. In his chest, the dark star began to rotate at an unbelievable speed when he saw fourteen scaled heads attacking him. The dangerous feeling finally appeared in his mind at that point, but his mouth was already open, and the world lost its light for an instant. Chapter 1040: 1040. Starry sky Noah didn''t notice some flames'' features right after the chrysalis, but they became impossible to miss when he used them in an attack. He had avoided testing his abilities in the open after the breakthrough. After all, his attacks were on the powerhouses'' level, so he needed a special training area to unleash them fully. His dantian was still in the solid stage, but he could destroy entire regions with his bare hands now that his body had reached the sixth rank. His quarters couldn''t contain him anymore, and even the separate dimension would suffer if he went wild inside it. A tide of black flames spread among the depths of the sea and sucked the dim light that managed to reach those areas. The water burned as Noah''s fire created a dark zone that made the Hydras and the pack behind them blind. A few lights began to appear among that violent blackness. They were small flashes that illuminated the environment and shone on the crying creatures that had been unlucky enough to touch the flames. It was as if a starry sky had appeared in the depths of the sea. Noah''s innate ability had given birth to a scene that many would admire in awe. The flames surprised Noah too, and they gave him hints on the being that he had become after the chrysalis. The properties of the Light-devouring Dragons had remained, but his existence had affected the nature of his innate ability. It was as if the last breakthrough made him reach a real harmony in his fusion. His abilities weren''t skills inherited by a different beast anymore. They were part of his bloodline, which appeared to be superior to any other life form in the world. The Hydras roared in pain when the flames engulfed them. Noah''s attack''s prowess surpassed every magical beast''s innate ability and stepped into the realm of the powerhouses. It had the power of a spell! The water didn''t do anything to weaken the black flames. They burned the scaled skin of the Hydras and limited their movements by injuring their fins. Yet, they managed to suppress the pain to counterattack. Noah saw fourteen reptilian heads spreading their mouth and launching various attacks directed at him. Each of the Hydras'' heads could unleash a different ability, but they remained specimens with a water aptitude. They had various attacks that shared the same element. ''They are smart,'' Noah thought as he stared at the attacks. Heat, cold, poison, pressure, pulling force, deafening noises, and mental waves came out of their mouths and landed on him. Noah didn''t have time to dodge, but the water around him began to burn as his body''s temperature rose. His dark matter also came out and applied a layer of protection. The Hydras had been smart enough to counterattack instead of letting him take the initiative. Still, that wasn''t enough to defeat him. The attacks pierced his defenses and landed on his body. Noah felt a wave of pain spreading through his skin, and many cuts appeared, but nothing went past his muscles. The fake "Breath" inside the hybrids'' attacks dispersed as soon as it entered in contact with the heat released by the dark star. It rotated so fast that its innate gravitational pull absorbed all the energy released by the creatures'' offensive. Noah felt the cuts closing when his dark star processed and purified that energy. His rotating heart had diverted all the functions of his body on the healing process, making it able to fix his injuries in a matter of minutes. An intense sensation of power filled Noah as he began to realize how much his body had improved. His strength and abilities were superior to his peers, but that was only a secondary effect of its main feature. The dark star didn''t only purify and elevate his whole being. It worked as fuel too, which put him on a different league compared to creatures on a similar level. It was as if magical beasts and hybrids used coal to function while he had already gained access to nuclear energy! That didn''t translate into an immense strength, but it improved all his body''s functions to an unmatchable level. Moreover, the dark star reacted to the inputs generated by his mind without the need of thinking. His instincts had become a silent brain that controlled the behavior of the dark star. Noah had protected the Demonic Sword with his arms during the impact, but the power of his body made him understand that he couldn''t use his living weapon until he adjusted his control. There was the chance that he would have to wait until it improved before wielding it again. However, that didn''t mean that it couldn''t help him in battle. The Demonic Sword could fight alongside him. The living weapon roared as he threw it upward. Snore formed around him, and the Demonic Sword stopped right above the battlefield, ready to support him. Noah shot forward, uncaring of the fact that the Hydras had resumed their offensive. Fourteen attacks of various nature engulfed his figure, but they couldn''t even leave a mark on his body after Snore weakened them. Black smoke rose from his skin and covered him in a spiked armor that enhanced his already impressive physical prowess. The Hybrids were powerless to stop him in front of such a display of power. Noah swam through the attacks and slashed with his clawed hands when he reached one head. Deep marks appeared on it, and a large part of its mouth fell apart after the impact. Green blood tainted the water too, but Noah''s offensive wasn''t over. The corrosive smoke spread in the reptilian head''s insides, and a dark cloud covered the whole upper part of the creature. With the black flames still burring around its lower body, the Hydra was entirely at his mercy. Snore unleashed its elemental attacks, and the Demonic Sword launched countless slashes toward the cloud. The injured head could only endure that oppressing offensive, granting Noah the chance to cover it with a series of punches. It took him only a few attacks to destroy that head, and Noah moved toward the next one at that point, spewing more flames to force the creature into a passive stance. The other Hydra felt troubled. Its heads tried to bite Noah, but he was too small to catch when it swam among its companion''s necks. Its instincts would generally tell it to unleash attacks anyway, but it didn''t want to hurt the other leader. As for Noah, he used the advantage given by his size to its fullest. He always remained close to his first target''s heads or necks, making it impossible to catch. One by one, the number of intact heads began to diminish. Noah punched, slashed, and spewed flames as he danced around the thick necks. His battle style was flawless and exploited all the weaknesses of that species while considering the improvements given by their hybrid status. It seemed that the rebels didn''t teach them any spells, so their intelligence only prevented them from hurting each other as they tried to catch him. Chapter 1041: 1041. Violen The seabed trembled as the battle against the invading pack continued. Shockwaves able to shatter the very fabric of the water covered the entire area, and tall tides formed on the surface. Noah needed three to four attacks to dispatch one head, and his size prevented the Hydras from launching their innate abilities after him. He moved among the long necks and accelerated whenever he found an opportunity. Meanwhile, his flames and corrosive smoke surrounded both creatures and applied damage over time, other than restricting their movements. The Hydras found themselves in a dire situation, and their instincts took control of their bodies when they saw Noah destroying the third head. The hybrids released an angry roar that became an intense sound attack once all eleven remaining heads pointed at the elusive Noah. He was swimming toward his fourth target when the pressure surrounded him and destroyed the layer of dark matter. The spiked armor began to fall apart while Noah remained immobilized in those sound waves. Yet, the dark matter came out of his body to form a layer of black rocks around his Demonic Form that kept the spell active. Meanwhile, Noah spat a series of dense fireballs aimed toward the various heads roaring at him. The hydras endured the first attacks, but the flames eventually forced them to close their mouth and dodge the relentless offensive launched through the sound waves. Noah used that chance to shoot toward a head that tried to retreat. However, Snore coiled around its neck and kept it in place, allowing Noah to reach it. A series of violent punches, slashes, and elemental attacks landed on the immobilized head, which exploded in a matter of seconds. Noah wanted to shoot right after his next target, but he found himself surrounded by ten reptilian maws that crashed in his position. The Hydras had stopped caring about their companions, and they were ready to hurt each other if that led to the death of their annoying enemy. Noah''s rocky armor broke, and the Demonic Form dispersed when the heads landed on him. He felt his bones screeching and the teeth tearing his skin, but he didn''t lose control of the situation for even a second. Noah''s hands stabbed in the head directly in front of him while the Hydras tried to ravage his body. He spread his arms to create a bloody opening in the creature''s tissues and spewed a dense wave of flames right inside the injury. One Hydra roared in pain as Noah crashed on the seabed. There were only nine remaining heads now, but all of them pounced the spot where he had landed. A laugh resounded among the noise of the shattering seabed. Noah laughed as he felt the dark matter coming out of his injuries and stopping the creatures from eating him. Moreover, the heads were suffering multiple burns due to the scorching temperatures that his body had reached. His situation was far from optimal, but he didn''t feel in danger at the moment. ''Let''s kill the first one,'' Noah thought. He had always focused on one Hydra with his attacks, which meant that his target had only two heads left. Noah spread his mouth to engulf the entire area in a cloud of flames. A starry sky appeared and surrounded the raging hybrids that had continued to attack even if their heads often clashed between each other. The flames gave Noah enough time to activate the Demonic Form again and make Snore materialize around his figure. The Hydras were happy to see that their targets had become bigger, but a wave of pain soon spread from one of their heads. The Demonic Sword had descended to stab a head in one of its many injuries. The weapon couldn''t pierce the thick layer of muscles, but it released corrosive smoke that spread in the creature''s insides. Snore exploited that chance to unleash its sharp feathers. Its attack had long surpassed the limits of the fifth rank due to all the primary energy contained in the environment, and nothing of the head remained after the blow crossed it. The Hydras had destroyed the Blood Companion''s body in the meantime, but Noah had already left. Sneaking through those long necks was easy for him, so he reached his target without the hybrids noticing him. The creature showed immense fear when it saw the fiendish figure landing at the neck''s base that supported its last head. It was about to launch an attack when Snore bit its mouth, forcing it to stay close. The Demonic Sword slashed the neck''s base multiple times, and Noah stabbed its clawed hands before focusing his everything on pulling. The Hydra released one last cry before Noah tore the entirety of its neck apart, separating it from its body. The remaining Hydra didn''t appear to care that its ally had died and launched its innate abilities. Yet, a reptilian head soon crashed on its necks and disrupted the trajectory of its attacks. Noah wielded the severed neck like a whip and cracked it at the creature without caring about its integrity. Fireballs also came out of his mouth as he aimed for the heads. The Hydra felt suppressed now that Noah could focus all his attention on it. The idea of retreating appeared in its mind, but its opponent wasn''t giving it any room to breathe. Noah''s assault was violent and constant. Each of his attacks tore large pieces of muscles apart, burnt its skin, and injured its insides. The Hydra couldn''t even attempt to counterattack in that situation. Snore and the Demonic Sword supported Noah''s moves with precise blows to either restrict the creature''s movements or enlarge preexistent injuries. They weren''t crucial to the battle, but they helped him suppressing the Hydra. Heads began to fall after Noah used the severed neck to fling the Hydra on the seabed. He walked on its body freely, surrounded by a violent cloud made of flames and corrosive smoke. Then, when the last head vanished, he released a roar that spread through the entirety of the underwater area. Even amid his euphoria, Noah noticed how his roar had changed. It still had draconic features, but it was far more profound than his previous ones. Also, it carried a mysterious sound that spread his aura wherever it echoed. The weaker creatures that had survived the battle among the leaders swam toward the destroyed seabed and lowered their heads. Noah saw magical beasts and hybrids of various species bowing and recognizing him as their new leader. There was an army at his disposal now, but Noah turned toward the Demons before minding those creatures. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon had made use of a different battle style. They were only cultivators, so they couldn''t be as reckless as Noah. They had used a series of long-range spells to immobilize and slowly injure the creature. By the time Noah had finished his battle, their opponent had only three heads still roaring against the two Demons. Chapter 1042: 1042. Homanss Flying Demon used his individuality to stop the creature for a few instants, and Dreaming Demon exploited that window to affect its mind and prolong its defenseless condition. The hybrid''s sea of consciousness was only in the fourth rank, so the Demons didn''t have any trouble in affecting its thoughts. Dreaming Demon could render their opponent defenseless and unleash attacks without risking their lives. Destroying heads wasn''t easy for them. Their attacks bordered the beginning of the sixth rank, but they lacked Noah''s might. Yet, Dreaming Demon''s mental waves affected the fabric of their tissues and made them frailer. Their battle had a slow pace and saw a constant cycle of attacks and retreats, which depended on when the Hydra recovered its senses. They weren''t as flashy as Noah, but they didn''t suffer any injury even after four heads had fallen. The Hydra''s survival instincts took control of its body at that point, and their intensity temporarily fended off Dreaming Demon''s will, allowing it to regain its freedom. The Demons had predicted that outcome. Flying Demon''s aura surged, and white flowers grew from its wounds and dead heads. They spread a thick layer of ice that covered the hybrid''s body and stopped its movements once again. The Hydra roared, but Dreaming Demon''s mental waves had already resumed their assault. The creature became drowsy when her thoughts affected the correct functioning of its mind, and Flying Demon used that chance to detonate his flowers. The ice that they had generated exploded too, and expanded the injuries on the creature. New wounds formed since Dreaming Demon kept on weakening the fabric of the creature''s skin, and another head fell lifeless on the seabed. Only two heads remained now, and the Hydra had yet to land a blow on the two Demons. ''As expected from them,'' Noah thought as he waited for their battle to end. The Demons had perfect synchrony and could multiply their prowess by chaining different abilities in a row. Moreover, their raw power was enough to leave marks on the hybrid''s body. Their experience and teamwork could completely submit even a creature in the sixth rank. "Come forward," Noah ordered with a growl as he kept his eyes on the Demons'' battle. The hybrids bowing on the seabed shuddered at his voice, but they couldn''t oppose his commands. Forty or so creatures reached the waters right under him and kept their heads lowered. They mostly belonged to octopus and snake-related species, but there were other types of beasts too. "Who of you can speak?" Noah asked with his human voice, and only a few specimens trembled at that time. A rank 5 Sea Snake with a sea of consciousness in the fourth rank swam forward and spoke using human words with a weird accent. "Lehader. Iss spehak." The Demons continued their battle, and Noah stored his prey''s corpses as he questioned the Sea Snake. "How did you gain intelligence?" Noah''s question wasn''t specific, but the roars that accompanied his human words carried a meaning that the hybrid understood more easily. "Meh remembeh golds homanss, greehn homanss, dark homanss." The Snake replied. "Meh wass sleehping whehn thehy light meh." Its language was awful, but Noah could confirm that some researchers were behind those hybrids'' birth. That put a new priority on the matters concerning the rebellion. He had to learn how the rebels triggered the transformation. As for the brainwashing part, he didn''t care about it. The Hive had never needed cannon fodder. It founded its strength on powerful and unique individuals. Also, no creature could oppose him and Skully anyway. "You can go," Noah said, and the hybrid returned to the group before they all swam toward the rest of the pack. He couldn''t learn anything specific due to its poor language, but he understood another critical aspect of the revolution. The Snake had spoken about dark humans, which was the signature color of the Hive''s robes. There were rebels even among his organization, but Noah couldn''t think of anyone that would betray Chasing Demon. ''Maybe I have yet to realize how much the Hive has grown,'' Noah thought as he heaved a sigh. The Hive wasn''t the underdog of the political environment anymore. It had grown enough to match the other organizations in the number of assets and sheer power. That was a good thing, but the chance of having rebellious forces among its ranks increased as its territories became more crowded. The Hive had lost the unity formed when it had rebelled against the forces of the world. It was one of them now, and it had even nurtured a large number of inscription masters. Breaking the loyalty oath was possible with the right expertise and materials, especially in the other world, due to the weak connection with the pact''s core item. Foreign experts could take care of that matter too. ''I can only hope that there isn''t anyone in the fifth rank,'' Noah thought as he saw the Demons destroying another head. He had already decided to take care of the rebels on his way out of the world. He didn''t want to lose the stream of hybrids that reinforced the Hive. The Demons eventually defeated the Hydra, and Dreaming Demon stored its corpse before the duo flew toward Noah. Flying Demon even imitated him wielding the creature''s neck like a whip as he swam. "There are traitors among the Hive," Noah conveyed through his consciousness before Flying Demon could crack a joke about his battle style. "We better hurry then." Flying Demon conveyed in a serious tone as he turned toward his lover. "Do you think the fortress can hold?" Dreaming Demon thought for a while before replying. "Most of the defenses around the dimensional crack are automatic for this specific reason. I bet the rebels have troops inside the fortress, but they still need to cross those protections." Noah sent a mental message to June before he ordered the pack to protect her cave. She was slightly annoyed that her condition didn''t allow her to join the incoming battle, but she didn''t complain. Noah and June had spoken a lot during their time inside the cave. She had no chance to pass unnoticed if she broke through the defenses of the Academy, which meant that she would become a public traitor. Yet, the couple had decided to use that chance to come out in the open. Noah couldn''t hold back anymore anyway, and June only needed a few words to separate her family from the Royals. As for the preparations for that significant event, Noah had a plan he didn''t wholly disclose to June. He didn''t want her to feel indebted, and he had a personal agenda too. The trio shot in the direction of Angela''s communication after they settled every matter. Noah used his innate awareness to follow the traces left by that humming noise, which led them to an underwater base of the continent. Chapter 1043: 1043. Traitors The underwater rocky wall at the continent''s base didn''t seem to have anything special, but both Noah and Dreaming Demon could see that something was off. There was no sign of inscriptions, but they noticed how certain rocks appeared sturdier than others. The wall didn''t emit any aura at all, and Noah could barely see laws in its fabric. "Do you want to knock or?" Flying Demon asked when he understood that they had found something. Noah glanced toward Dreaming Demon, but the latter shook her head before explaining herself. "I can''t crack it open silently." Noah shrugged his shoulders and stepped forward at that point. His fist quickly landed on the rocky wall and made the entire area shake. To the trio''s surprise, the wall didn''t crumble, and even the seabed under it remain intact. Noah risked to create large fissures if he didn''t control his strength when he walked, but those rocks didn''t budge even when he used his real power. ''They are good,'' Noah thought before launching a relentless offensive. His fists never stopped crashing on the wall, and countless shockwaves spread through the sea. The rocks began to show cracks only after Noah had punched them for a whole minute, but the first breach started a chain reaction that made the entire wall fall apart in a matter of seconds. The trio saw how a large entrance to an underground structure appeared once the wall crumbled. Many shining lines covered the tunnel that led inside the continent. The world lost its light for a second as Noah launched a wave of black flames inside the underground structure. Most of the shining lines went dark after the fire ravaged their surface. The entrance had been able to stop Noah for a whole minute, which hinted that the defenses inside could threaten existences at the peak of the fifth rank. Noah had decided to use his flames to take out some of the defenses beforehand, and Dreaming Demon had the same thought. Her mental waves spread inside the tunnel right after the fire dispersed, and the remaining shining lines went dark at their passage. "It''s clear," Dreaming Demon conveyed, and Flying Demon took the lead of the group. White flowers grew inside the tunnel as he moved forward, and ice spread from them, stopping any function of the materials used in that place. Dreaming Demon and Noah chased right after him and repeated the process whenever inscriptions reappeared in their view. Noah didn''t fear for himself. He had taken a bite of the Hydra along the way, and his dark star was quickening the healing process. His skin still carried some wounds, but they were closing quickly. On the other hand, some of the most potent defenses in that place could be deadly for the Demons. They felt astonished that rank 5 experts had built such a dangerous structure, but the other world saw many exceptional inscription masters in its regions. Moreover, the group didn''t want to trigger any self-destruct mechanism for fear of wasting time. They felt sure that something was happening on the surface, but they had decided to prioritize the researches. The trio crossed a series of large but empty halls. Noah and Dreaming Demon could sense that someone had been inside them recently, but they didn''t find any trace in the corridor. Any expert inside the underground structure had left hours before they found that place, and it seemed that they had managed to clean it up thoroughly. "Get out," Noah conveyed through his consciousness. The sea''s water had invaded the place after he destroyed the entrance, so he had to use his mental waves to communicate. "I''ll rush through it." The Demons nodded at his words and retreated. Noah waited for them to send him a mental message before sprinting through the structure''s remaining part, uncaring that shining lines appeared again. Strange and metallic sounds resounded inside the structure as Noah swam past the inscriptions. Various puppets appeared in his view, but he headbutted them as he moved forward. More empty halls appeared in his view, and more defenses activated at his passage. Noah saw beams made of different elements, noises that aimed for his sea of consciousness, and an endless amount of puppets with various functions. The tunnel had become crowded as Noah triggered all the defenses that he found. His flames and his body''s prowess took care of them most of the time, but he had to summon Snore for a few of them. ''It''s hard to believe that no powerhouse has helped to build this,'' Noah thought as Snore landed the finishing blow on a giant made of light that radiated the power of a being in the sixth rank. His consciousness suddenly sensed the presence of a group of cultivators coming from the last hall. Noah''s speed increased at that moment, and he crashed on the walls of that room when he felt that their auras were becoming fainter. Noah didn''t even look at the faces of the experts. His attention went on the teleportation matrix that illuminated their figures and was about to bring them back to that structure. The Demonic Sword shot forward before he could even order anything. Snore''s head appeared and froze the floor to slow down the accumulation of "Breath" required for the teleportation. Noah''s weapon roared as it landed at the experts'' feet and released a claw that destroyed the diagram''s center. The weaker cultivators on the teleportation matrix died when the corrosive smoke enveloped their bodies, but those in the fifth rank managed to get out of the black cloud. The light dimmed until it vanished entirely, filling the hall with darkness and silence. However, Noah steps soon resounded inside the structure, and the cries of his assets added pressure on the trembling experts. Snore coiled around them as hissing noises came out of its mouth. The Demonic Sword growled while it circled them and pointed its sharp edge on their faces. Noah neared the group of experts, but his eyes fell on those wearing the dark robe of the Hive. He didn''t recognize anyone in the group except for one of them. "Luke," Noah said as he stared at Nina''s grandson. "Why?" Luke had become a rank 5 cultivator after the secret deal with the Shandal Empire. He was only an expert in the gaseous stage, but any existence in the fifth rank had the potential to become important in the Hive. "You gave us freedom," Luke said as he lowered his head, "But peace didn''t reach our hearts. I dishonor my grandmother by betraying you, but I couldn''t live in the same world as Shandal anymore." Noah stepped forward, and the group of cultivators retreated until they reached the back of the hall. "I-I wanted him to stay away forever!" Luke continued to explain. "He will always be in my head unless I place the boundless void between us!" The group opened a path for Noah as he walked toward Luke. Nina''s face appeared in his view, but he spoke with his usual coldness. "You are going to tell me everything you know. Then, I''ll kill you." Chapter 1044: 1044. Pas Noah came out of the underground structure in a hurry. There was only coldness on his expression, and traces of blood still lingered on his hands and corners of his mouth. Luke and the other experts had told him everything there was to know about the revolution. Noah had even seized the researches that they were trying to get out of the structure. The most important studies and discoveries were already gone, but his loot wasn''t little, especially when it came to the pieces of information concerning the rebels'' plan. Noah reunited with the Demons to explain what he had discovered. According to Luke, the ideas of rebellion had brewed in the new world for a while by then. Yet, the rebels had never owned a weapon capable of surpassing the city''s defenses until a century ago. All the organizations in both worlds had continued researching the compound. Those studies were the key to surpass the natural limitations of the human species and could open the path for countless new cultivation paths. Noah had part of the blame when it came to how serious each force was in those studies. His many incredible achievements didn''t strictly depend on his hybrid status, but the organizations knew that it had helped him a lot. Every cultivator would pay any price to obtain his power, so the experts never stopped, and the organizations kept on pouring resources to uncover the secrets of the transformation. Countless experiments and many casualties eventually led to some results, but the greatest discovery came from the other world''s structures. The research team of the Elbas family deployed there learnt how to trigger the transformation! That discovery was bound to change the very foundation of the cultivation world. After all, anyone could get their hands on the compound since every creature in the other world carried it. However, those experts had lost their sense of belonging to the main world for a while. Their research gave real hope to the revolution. The city''s defenses could fend off powerhouses, but they couldn''t block an endless tide of hybrids in the sixth rank. The only problem at that point was in controlling the creatures so that the plan wouldn''t backfire. The rebellion had gathered many followers after that discovery, and it had increased the resources invested in learning to control the hybrids. The main world didn''t even know that the research team had found a way to trigger the transformation! It wasn''t hard to control the flow of information from that side of the dimensional tunnel, mostly since those in charge of overviewing the situation had already switched side. Nevertheless, Luke''s revelations'' most crucial aspect was that the rebellion had created multiple packs led by many rank 6 creatures in those years. They had even groomed obedient specimens to make them reach the sixth rank. The pack dispatched by Noah and the Demons was only one out of four armies created with the sole purpose of getting past the defenses of the city and closing the path toward the main world. There was only one problem. The rebels had initially planned to use the first pack to bait most loyal forces out of the city, but Noah''s group had intercepted it. Angela''s warning had then forced them to modify their approach and start the revolution immediately. The trio was a variable that the rebels didn''t predict. They had founded all their calculations on the fact that no one could oppose rank 6 creatures without the city''s defenses, so they had to act quickly. The Demons didn''t feel hurried. Not even a day had passed since Angela''s warning, and the other packs were still in the depths of the ocean when the revolution began. The trio had enough time to return to the city and help in the defenses. What worried the Demons was Noah. They knew something about his past and his relationship with Luke, but they couldn''t understand if that event had affected his mind. Nina had been the first to open him to his human side, so she was bound to have a place in his mind. Discovering that her grandson was a traitor could destabilize even the strongest cultivators. "Is he dead?" Dreaming Demon asked in a polite tone. She wouldn''t blame Noah if he had decided to leave the matter to them, but she had to make sure that no traitor remained alive. Noah nodded and gave her the space-rings containing the researches carried by the escaping expert. He understood why she felt so serious about the matter. She and her lover had suffered too much for experts like Luke. However, Noah was even more ruthless than her. He needed that world to satisfy his body''s requirements, and the rebels wanted to block that path. He couldn''t let it happen, even if it meant killing the grandson of a cultivator that had helped him in the past. His power would always be his priority. The group flew silently toward the surface. They didn''t feel like speaking after discovering that many forces of the Hive had conspired with the rebelling troops. Moreover, it had become clear that they had to improve the loyalty oath since so many assets had managed to break it without suffering any backlash. It took them a few weeks to return to the hunters'' guild, but their expressions went cold when they saw that it was empty. There were only a few corpses and the remains of the broken teleportation matrix inside. The rebellion had taken roots even on the opposite side of the continent. The trio didn''t have a fast way to return to the neutral city now. "Try to contact someone," Noah said as he gave them June''s contact. "Ask anyone. Find a quick path back to the city and let me know." The Demons didn''t need to ask what he would do. They had the same mindset, and they could see how eager Noah was for a battle. "There are seven more rank 6 creatures," Dreaming Demon said. "All of them have a mind in the fourth rank and are in the lower tier of the sixth. With dantians at the peak of the fifth rank, they should take a few months to breach the fortress." Dreaming Demon told him the result of her calculations. Those numbers came from Luke and her understanding of the city''s defenses. "Good luck," Flying Demon said as the duo took a few steps back. Noah had a rank 6 body, so he could reach the city far faster than them. It was clear that he wanted to fly across the continent instead of waiting for someone to answer. A shockwave spread from Noah''s spot, and his figure disappeared in the distance. The bare strength of his legs had been enough to leave a large crack in the sky that closed slowly. Noah flew as fast as he could. His mood was awful due to Luke''s events. He felt as if he had killed part of his past after executing him and the experts. Luckily for him, a battle was right on the other side of the continent, and he couldn''t wait to vent. Chapter 1045: 1045. Training Noah flew at full speed across the continent. There was only the dimensional crack in his eyes, and his goal was to reach it before the packs breached the city''s defenses. According to Luke, the rebellion had already started, which meant that the hybrids were heading toward the city. Seven creatures in the sixth rank and thousands of weaker ones were resurfacing from the sea''s depths and marching toward the continent at that exact moment. Noah had lost a few weeks to return to the hunters'' guild, but the invaders needed months to break through the defensive measures. The only variable was how close they were to the landmass in the first place. Even with his strong body, Noah needed a bit more than two months to reach the dimensional tunnel. He would take less if he had his movement technique, but he had yet to spend an extended period focusing on improving his spells and martial arts. Everything had happened too quickly after he came out of the chrysalis, and problems had piled up, leaving him no time to focus on adapting his battle prowess to his new power. However, Noah had a long trip in front of him, and he could use that period to improve. The dark star in his chest began to spin faster as if understanding his intentions. His thoughts turned into instincts that his mind processed far faster than usual. Then, the light of the Divine Deduction technique shone on the sea inside his sphere, quickening his thinking speed even more. Noah couldn''t put into words what he felt when both his body and his divine technique worked together to improve his mind''s capabilities. The world in his eyes changed color, and he began to see arrays of laws rather than matter. However, Noah didn''t want to enhance his awareness as a whole. The entirety of his mind began to focus on the modified version of the Merging spell and reviewed its structure to look for possible improvements. The thinking speed that his body could reach on its own was incredible, but nothing could match the effects of the Divine Deduction technique when mental energy in the sixth rank fueled its shining lines. Noah understood aspects of the Merging spell''s diagram that he had never even thought of looking for before. His mind generated the feelings that had led to those lines, recreating the original reasoning behind the ability. After understanding its origin, Noah could create different lines through his will. Instead of transforming a spell with rank 5 potential into a sixth rank technique, Noah focused on its core and expanded it according to his needs. It wasn''t a modification nor an improvement. Noah took someone else''s idea and made it grow on a path that suited his needs, avoiding the original limits that the creator had been unable to cross. A formless lump of darkness floated above the sea in Noah''s mind. Mental energy rose and arranged itself around the minute cloud, triggering its effects from time to time. Noah''s mind tested different dispositions while improving the new diagram. A spell brewed directly above the mental sea, and he couldn''t put into words the countless thoughts that surged inside him. Noah munched pieces of the Hydras'' bodies as his flight continued. He didn''t feel hungry, but he enjoyed sensing his body improving. Moreover, his dark sphere redirected part of the nutrients to quicken the production of mental energy. Once Noah set his mind into something, his body would do anything to improve the functions related to his project. It was as if his dark star was a sentient automaton made of his instincts and desires. A month passed, and the lump of darkness eventually became a vast lake that had strange fabric. Its shape became blurry even inside Noah''s mental sphere, but an intense sharpness filled the ethereal area. A sense of enlightenment dawned upon Noah. The original Merging spell made him use the world''s darkness to fly faster, but that new ability relied on his sharp individuality. It didn''t perform a partial fusion with the environment anymore. It expected Noah to force himself into the darkness around him to push the acceleration further. ''It reached the sixth rank,'' Noah thought as he moved to the next phase of his project. The spell alone was already an incredible achievement for a cultivator, but he was far more than that. Noah kicked the air and performed strange movements from time to time. His speed wavered, becoming lower or higher according to how successful his tests were. The Divine Deduction technique and innate awareness were still concentrating on completing his movement technique. Immense quantities of mental energy vanished every hour, and even vaster amounts of solid darkness disappeared after each test. Noah had reached the point when he needed to fuse his new spell with a martial art to create a technique suitable for his species. The only problem was that he had a limited amount of "Breath" due to his body and mind''s high requirements. Still, that didn''t stop him from testing as much as he could. He only had to stop once a week to refill his dantian and let his mind disperse the tension accumulated during the travel. The scenery changed once he reached the other side of the continent. The long defensive walls of the natives'' previous domain appeared in his view together with the ruins of their abandoned cities. Most of the natives had moved to the main world after they lost the war. Many were slaves or guinea pigs used in experiments with the compound, but the most stable among them had become part of unique armies. The Hive had managed to take that project to the next stage because of Noah''s authority over those creatures. There were entire regions in its domain meant for the breeding, growth, and training of whole packs of hybrids. The desolate scenery couldn''t faze Noah, who was still perfecting his new technique. However, countless cries soon reached his ears, which forced him to divert part of his attention to the vague shape of the neutral city in the distance. Noah saw countless figures on the ground and sky marching toward the defensive wall of the neutral city. He noticed a total of three armies led by seven powerful leaders that roared at the shining shield that had appeared to stop them. Luke had spoken the truth. The creatures'' strength matched his description, and the same went for the time they had required to reach the city. Noah and the packs had reached the city simultaneously, which gave him a considerable advantage due to the many defenses in place. Nevertheless, the shining shield suddenly became ethereal, and the energy that had accumulated on its form dispersed in the air. The various beasts and hybrids had yet to attack, which meant that someone had deactivated the defensive formation from inside the city. Chapter 1046: 1046. Brawl Not every defensive formation inside the city was automatic. There were many protections handled by the various factions living inside it. Only the fortress'' defenses were fully automatic. Everything else depended on how much the main world''s forces had been willing to invest in protecting the dimensional crack. Investing less would mean having full confidence in their forces. The loopholes in the city''s protection depended on how much face the organizations were willing to lose. Noah saw the shield disappearing and sprinted. Faint cracks appeared under his feet, and his figure became blurred once every few instants. He didn''t complete his technique, but there were many powerful enemies in front of him. Jumping right among them could force the dark star to push his mind even further and complete the ability that he had prepared during his travel. The armies of beasts and hybrids disregarded Noah''s oppressing aura and invaded the city. The defensive walls shone for a few seconds before crumbling, and the cores of many formations went dark when the seven leaders unleashed precise attacks on them. The rebels had trained the rank 6 creatures well. The leaders knew exactly where to attack to inflict the highest amount of damage. Many shining buildings and lines went dark before Noah could even catch up with the packs. Noah launched a wave of dark flames in the most crowded area near him. Countless cries echoed in the environment as a starry sky spread among the weaker beasts and killed tons of them in a few seconds. The buildings of the city suffered too. Noah''s attacks didn''t stop at anything, and they even engulfed cultivators that had failed to retreat in time. Noah didn''t care about the casualties at the moment. His only priority was to stop the rebels from closing the dimensional crack and isolating him in that world forever. The leaders turned their heads toward Noah after his flames ravaged their armies, but they chose to ignore him again. They limited themselves to roar orders that forced hundreds of weaker creatures to hinder his charge. Noah saw hundreds of hybrids using the fake "Breath" in their dantians to fly toward him. Their mental spheres resonated as they echoed their leaders'' orders, and an oppressing aura filled that part of the sky. Noah didn''t even feel the slightest amount of danger. Those mighty creatures were nothing more than ants in his eyes. Snore and the Demonic Sword came out and began to launch attacks toward the army. Meanwhile, Noah sprinted forward, creating large cracks in the sky and slamming directly on the hybrids on his path. Noah couldn''t bother to dodge or attack them. Even peak rank 5 creatures would explode once his body touched theirs at that speed. A bloody trail of body parts and internal organs followed Noah as he flew toward the leaders. There were two Seven-headed Hydras, three Steeled Octopuses, and two Giant Manatees in his sight, and he had to take care of the weakest among them in that situation. All his knowledge of the magical beasts'' field surged, and his mind sorted those pieces of information as he flew forward. Noah understood in a few instants that the Manatees would be easier to kill, so he began launching fireballs at them. The Demonic Sword and Snore appeared next to him and launched their attacks too. They understood Noah''s feelings, and they wanted to help him taking care of those creatures as fast as he could. Manatees had tough bodies, and those belonging to the Giant Manatees species were even forty meters long in the sixth rank. They were slow, but they had a great defense and an incredible physical prowess. However, they didn''t have any innate ability. Those creatures would have to face Noah in a melee battle, where he didn''t fear even the mightiest creature. Noah crossed half city to crash directly on the first Manatee. His inscribed notebook had begun to ring as soon as the forces on the ground noticed him, but he didn''t have time to mind them. Black smoke rose from his skin and formed a spiked armor, and a crack soon appeared on his helmet as he spread his mouth to bite the hybrid. The Manatee didn''t expect Noah to aim at it. The Hydras were closer, so they were the ideal target for someone in such a hurry. Instead, Noah had ignored the Hydras and shot toward the Manatees while gaining a sudden acceleration. His figure had disappeared only to crash on the creature''s body! Noah had failed to execute the technique perfectly once again, but he was getting close. The momentum accumulated in the sprint made his feet stab the creature during the landing. His mouth went on the beast and tore a large chunk of its skin. His clawed hands then expanded the wound and dug its insides until they opened a path for its internal organs. Noah spewed a wave of black fire, uncaring that the piece of skin fell out of his mouth in the process. The flames weren''t enough to fill the entirety of the creature''s insides, but the black cloud around him filled the empty spots and spread more destruction. The Manatee cried in pain, and its ally came in its help, but Snore and the Demonic Sword showered the second hybrid with attacks that hindered its advance. Of course, the Blood Companion and the living weapon couldn''t stop a rank 6 creature that relied only on its body for long. Yet, Noah only required a few seconds alone with his target to complete his hunt. The injured Manatee tried to kick Noah away from its body, but the latter had his feet stabbed in its muscles. No matter how much it struggled, Noah wasn''t going anywhere. Countless punches and slashes fell on the powerless leader. Noah dug the insides of the creature and exposed its vital organs. His flames and corrosive smoke followed right after, burning and consuming anything that they touched. Smoke began to come out of the Manatee''s mouth as Noah played with its insides. Its survival instincts took control of its body and made it dive toward the ground in a desperate attempt to fend off that dangerous presence. Yet, Noah let go of his foothold and jumped right inside its body to continue his destruction undisturbed. By the time the Manatee crashes on the ground, its heart had already ended in Noah''s space-ring. The loyal forces on the ground gathered around the giant corpse of the fallen leaders. A rank 6 creature had died in less than a minute, and they didn''t want to miss the expert that had made such a feat possible. Noah crawled out of the hybrid''s insides and stored its body once he stepped out in the open. His Demonic Form had disappeared, which allowed the experts to see his figure covered in blood and remains of internal organs. "Activate everything you can to buy me some time," Noah thought as a bad feeling filled his mind. Something told him that the fortress wasn''t as safe as Dreaming Demon had predicted. Chapter 1047: 1047. Whips The rebels had prepared for more than a hundred years for that event. They had invested most of their resources to develop a method to control the hybrids, but the dimensional tunnel remained their main target. Noah didn''t believe that they didn''t invent a method to quicken the invasion. The fortress''s defenses were automatic, and no one could deactivate them, but knowing their structure could make the armies'' attacks more efficient. The death of one of the leaders didn''t affect the tide of magical beasts and hybrids. The invasion continued almost undisturbed since many defensive formations either fell apart under the attacks or deactivated on its own. Only the automatic defenses remained in place and released a relentless series of attacks in the middle of the invading packs. The loyal forces knew that they couldn''t stop the leaders with the few formations still active, so they focused on the weaker creatures. As for the sixth rank leaders, the loyal forces could only hope that the fortress and Noah could kill them. Beams of various elements and hundreds of puppets went after the weaker beasts while Noah shot in the sky toward the remaining Manatee. The Demonic Sword and Snore were still trying to stop its charge, but the powerful creature forced them into a passive position. Noah''s arrival reverted the situation. He executed the same tactic as before, with the only difference being that he ignored the body at that time and focused on its head. He would have done the same before, but the presence of an ally so close to the beast made it troublesome for him to attack it in that exposed spot. The Manatee opened its mouth, showing its short but sharp teeth right before Noah reached it. Yet, Snore coiled around its body and bit its mouth to interrupt its attack. The fuming armor appeared around Noah once again, and he stabbed his clawed hands on the immobilized creature''s eyes. The Manatee''s skull became his handhold as he started to strike its mouth with his knees. Corrosive smoke poured inside the hybrid''s head while Noah turned its mouth into a bloody mess. Shards of teeth and bones shot out of the creature every time his knees crashed on its tissues, and the entirety of its lower maw soon vanished. The Manatee couldn''t even roar properly when the Demonic Sword flew under it and stabbed its brain from the wound. Corrosive smoke spread among one of its vital organs, destabilizing its balance and making its mind go dark. The living weapon actions stopped the instincts'' arrival, giving Noah enough time to crack the remaining skull open with his bare hands. The last of the Giant Manatees disappeared from the sky as Noah stored its corpse inside his space-ring. His next targets were the Hydras, but some anxiety filled his mind when he saw that they had already reached the fortress. Noah had taken care of the Manatees in less than ten minutes. Still, the invading forces had already reached the core of the city by that time. The entirety of the fortress began to tremble at that point, and shining lines lit up on its surface. A humming sound also echoed in the environment and disturbed the leaders'' concentration. The experts had fused both worlds'' inscription methods to create a building capable of fending off both cultivators and hybrids. Yet, the natives had always focused their expertise on fighting magical beasts, so the fortress was stronger against those carrying their features. The leaders roared in anger as the humming noise continued, and the shining lines soon released a red halo that enveloped the entirety of the city. Noah recognized that light. It had the same color and aura as the crystal on Angela''s wand. Still, the fact that the rebels had also used that method meant that they knew a lot about it. Both magical beasts and hybrids lowered their heads when the red halo illuminated the sky. Even the leaders couldn''t resist its oppressing features. Noah guessed that the red light would be able to hurt him too if he still was a complete hybrid, but his latest breakthrough had removed that weakness from his existence. A series of large runes appeared on the fortress'' surface while the noise and halo suppressed the armies. "Breath" gathered on those complex forms before thick whips shot out of them. The whips were five meters thick and didn''t seem to have a limit to their length. Pure red light made their structure. They shot after the leaders while they remained still. Both Hydras and Octopuses released painful cries when the red whips entangled themselves on their bodies. Smoke came out of their skin as the corrosive properties of their red light affected those creatures. Noah flew at high speed toward the Hydras even if the fortress''s defenses seemed to have everything under control. Those formations could even stop a powerhouse in the end. He didn''t expect anything less when it came to their favorite targets. However, he couldn''t shake off the feeling that the rebels had predicted that eventuality. After all, they would need months to cross the defenses, which was enough time to warn the main world''s powerhouses and request help. The rebels would have never decided to pursue that approach in those conditions. Noah believed that they had a way to quicken their charge toward the dimensional crack. ''I need to kill as many leaders as I can before they are ready to show all their cards,'' Noah thought as he sprinted toward the first Hydra. Large cracks appeared under his feet, but the technique wasn''t perfect at that time either. The red whips restricted the Hydra and its seven heads, making it nothing more than a punching bag in Noah''s presence. He landed directly on the first head and began to slash his way through its insides until its eyes lost every light. Noah then shot toward the next one and repeated the process. He didn''t even need to activate the Demonic Form to take care of creatures in that condition, but he did it anyway to accumulate corrosive smoke in the air. The red whips let go of the creature when Noah destroyed its last head, and the creature''s body ended in his space-ring while he turned to its ally. The other Hydra was in the same condition as the previous one, so Noah shot after it, planning to execute the same tactic. Nevertheless, something flew out of one of the buildings in the city at that point and left a white trail while it reached the highest point on the battlefield. Noah didn''t feel any danger when it stared at that inscribed item, but his mind warned him that something was off. The white trail dispersed as the item remained up in the air. A second of silence spread in the battlefield before the cylindrical weapon detonated and radiated a wave of white light that covered the entire city. The light crossed every beast, cultivator, and hybrid in the area without hurting them. However, all the buildings and formations went dark at its passage. Even the defenses of the fortress stopped working. Chapter 1048: 1048. Valian Cultivators rose from the city and shot toward the fortress after the while light deactivated all the formations in the region. The rebels revealed themselves and joined the hybrid leaders in their assault at the dimensional tunnel. Noah saw the scene in slow motion. He expected the rebels to have a secret weapon, but the latest inscribed items surpassed even his wildest imagination. One explosion had been enough to deactivate defenses that could stop powerhouses! The cultivators and leaders disregarded him and charged after their real target. Once they closed the dimensional fissure, the only connection between the two worlds would vanish, leaving every asset stuck in that place. A wave of anger rose inside Noah. His mental energy quickly fused with the dark matter released by the dark star, his darkness, and the primary energy inside his lungs as he spread his mouth to vent his unwillingness. "Stop!" Noah shouted, and his human words mixed with roars as they echoed through the sky. His cry expressed the entirety of his existence and affected the laws contained in the very fabric of the air. The world stopped under his command, and his roar resounded inside the minds of every asset in the city. It didn''t matter if they were magical beasts, cultivators, hybrids, or if they belonged to the allied side. Everyone stopped moving once Noah''s order reached their ears. Silence spread through the battlefield. Noah felt his pride surging and an immense sensation of power filling his mind. It was as if his unwillingness had unlocked a power that had always owned but that he never used. His feelings had made him wield the innate authority of a creature at the peak of the food chain! Noah felt surprised by that outcome. Only magical beasts and hybrids suffered the influence of stronger existences so much. The cultivators'' individualities made their minds too unique to allow anyone else to control their functioning. Yet, Noah''s roar had been able to spread his authority even over humans. His existence belonged to a species that even cultivators recognized as superior in their subconscious. Noah didn''t let his surprise slow down his actions. His consciousness expanded beyond its normal limits as he sprinted toward the crack and enveloped all the rebels in its heavy pressure. One intense thought ran through Noah''s mental waves and landed on the rebels'' seas of consciousness in his range. Their mental spheres cracked, and some even shattered completely when the will of a rank 6 mage landed on them. The rebels began to fall on the city. The minds of those that had survived Noah''s attack were still trembling and prevented them from stopping their descent. Rebels crashed on the ground, falling right in the middle of the loyal assets who had yet to regain control of their bodies. All they could do was stare in awe at the mighty existence that had halted their defeat at the last second. Noah landed in front of the crack, and Snore enveloped it with its body. A layer of black rocks covered the Blood Companion''s body, and a chilling gale came out of its mouth to freeze the area around it. A large chunk of black ice replaced the exit of the dimensional tunnel, and the statue of a giant snake occupied its center. Noah had protected the crack with everything he had while his enemies were still under the effects of his roar. The leaders began to struggle, and defiant cries soon came out of their mouths as they broke free from Noah''s orders. Anger appeared on their expressions as their instincts took control of their bodies. Noah''s authority had overruled the rebels'' brainwash when it took control of their minds. Those creatures were now free to act according to their wildest desires, and they all felt extreme anger toward the existence that had dared to stop them. The Hydras opened their mouths to launch different attacks, while the three Steeled Octopi''s tentacles cracked in his direction. Noah was alone against four hybrids in the sixth rank, and he couldn''t even exploit his many advantages since he had to prioritize the dimensional tunnel''s protection. He had to remain in that spot. The Demonic Form activated completely before the seven attacks of the Hydra landed on him. The armor partially broke, but the spell remained active. Still, the tentacles of the Octopi dispersed the remaining smoke and landed on his skin. Noah felt his interiors tremble as the tentacles cracked on his body. His bones and internal organs endured the shockwave caused by the impact, and his skin opened in different spots. Blood rose from his throat, and dark matter came out of his injuries. His body had already diverted all its nutrients to his wounds, but Noah had no intention to be a punching bag. He had held his ground during the assault. The attacks couldn''t fling him away, but the shockwaves that they released created cracks on the black ice behind him. Yet, before the last tentacle retracted, Noah waved his hand and stabbed his fingers in the metallic skin of one Octopus. The creature tried to pull him, but Noah didn''t flinch. Instead, his dark star spun faster as he applied strength on the limb in his grasp. Steeled Octopus''s bodies weren''t as elastic as those of other creatures belonging to similar kinds. Noah''s pull dragged the hybrid toward him, and it didn''t have the power to stop that. Noah''s free hand stabbed the tentacle too before he rotated his arms above his head. The powerless Octopus launched attacks in an attempt to free itself, but a fuming armor appeared in their path and stopped them from hurting Noah. The other leaders resumed their offensive, but Noah severed the tentacle from his handhold so that the creature would shoot toward the Octopi''s attacks. At the same time, he spewed a wave of black flames to block the Hydra''s blows. The flying Octopus slammed on the tentacles and blocked its peers'' attacks while a starry sky vanquished the Hydra''s abilities and proceeded to land on its body. Angry roars resounded in the area, and the hybrids suffered injuries, but Noah''s attention was on the loyal forces that were staring at his battle in awe. The experts appeared ready to worship Noah. There weren''t enough words to describe how valiant his figure appeared while he fended off the assault of four creatures in the sixth rank to defend the only path to the main world. Attacks landed on him, but his figure barely moved. His arms held the strength to fling massive creatures away, but he remained still, focused on defending the dimensional crack. His fiendish figure didn''t give birth to terror inside the loyal forces anymore. It had become a symbol of hope proper of an existence that was single-handedly stopping that revolution and saving them from complete despair. However, Noah didn''t feel pride in seeing their awe. His anger surged, and he didn''t hesitate to express it with loud words. "What are you looking at? Restore the damned formations!" Chapter 1049: 1049. Lights Noah''s audience had cultivators from the three nations, but they all followed his orders. Some of them executed the injured or collapsed rebels on the ground, while the others flew toward the various formations'' cores to activate them again. Many battles happened between the rebels and the loyal assets. The former took control of the cores even before the revolution started, and they had infiltrated the fortress. However, they had no control over the automatic formations. The best they could do was preventing the loyal forces from reactivating them. Noah engulfed the sky above the fortress in a cloud of corrosive smoke and black flames while the hybrids were busy defending from his counterattack. He would usually leave his spot and go after his enemies, but he couldn''t risk that his connection with Snore broke during the battle. He could use the dark matter to remain linked to his Blood Companion, but every defense around the dimensional crack would fall if the hybrids happened to cut his connection with the Snake. The rank 6 leaders released angry roars when they saw the dangerous cloud. Part of the flames threatened to touch their bodies and forced them to take a few steps back. Without the rebels'' brainwash ruling their minds, they only had the faint memory of their original target. They knew that they had to destroy the dimensional tunnel, but they felt Noah had the priority. Yet, they weren''t willing to charge through that annoying cloud. The hybrids'' intelligence made them take the safe approach, which meant relying on long-range attacks. The Seven-headed Hydra spewed seven different attacks aimed at the center of the cloud, and the Steeled Octopi cracked their tentacles to create shockwaves that cut both flames and smoke. Noah smiled when he saw those attacks. His goal was to buy enough time to restore the fortress''s defenses, and the careful nature of beings with intelligence was working in his favor. Flames came out of his mouth and blocked the Hydra''s attacks. The Octopi''s cuts were less precise, so he could ignore those that didn''t risk hitting the tunnel. Still, a few of them aimed for Snore, which forced him to intercept them with his body. Noah punched the shockwaves, but his fists weren''t suited to block such immaterial attacks. He had to use his body to stop them completely, and his Demonic Form wavered when they landed on him. The Hybrids didn''t stop their offensive. More currents of various nature and sharp shockwaves ran through the cloud, searching for the annoying opponent that had managed to stall the situation. Noah repeated his approach every time, using flames to block the Hydra and his body to stop the Octopi. Those actions initially took him no effort, but he began to feel tired after he reactivated the Demonic Form for the fifth time. Even Noah''s incredible body had its limits, and he was in a passive position. He could only defend without ever being able to strike back. His solid darkness eventually became scarce as the relentless offensive forced him to activate the spell for the tenth time. It wouldn''t be a problem if he could keep it functioning after every exchange, but the Octopi''s attacks managed to destroy his armor every few blows. Noah cursed his condition as he stuffed pieces of the Hybrid''s body in his mouth. His body couldn''t produce darkness on its own, but it could empower the features that didn''t lack energy. The production of mental energy increased, and his body''s temperature rose as the dark star spun faster. His skin blushed as more power flowed in his tissues and increased its defensive capabilities. The dark star diverted so many nutrients on his skin that Noah became able to endure the Octopi''s attacks with his bare body and without suffering any injury. Nevertheless, he didn''t deactivate the Demonic Form completely. His body still exuded corrosive smoke, which didn''t solidify into the armor. Noah produced it only to increase the size of the cloud. The hybrids'' offensive became weaker as the cloud enlarged. Their attacks had to go through kilometers of a raging fire and deadly smoke, so they lost a lot of power before reaching Noah. On the other hand, Noah began to diminish the amount of smoke poured into the environment. He didn''t have enough darkness to continue using a spell in the sixth rank. Of course, that forced Noah to use his bare body to defend more often, which eventually broke even his enhanced skin. Gray smoke and dark matter came out of his wounds whenever a cut appeared, and some blood rose from his throat as the effects of the shockwaves accumulated. Noah had taken the role of a punching bag in the end, but that was only a temporary act. His mind kept on sharpening throughout his time inside the cloud, ready to counterattack when the situation allowed that. The formations in the city began to show signs of life after an hour. Light spread along the lines on the most peripheral areas, and some defenses started to activate. The horde of magical beasts and hybrids had gone on a rampage after Noah''s roar. They fought both loyal forces and rebels since they barely recognized their allies anymore. The reactivation of the defensive formation gave them a common enemy. Beams, puppets, and large shields appeared in the city''s remote areas, creating battlefields that dragged their attention away from the fortress. More formations activated after them. Most of the city began to shine with a blinding radiance as the loyal forces seized the defensive mechanisms. Noah''s condition wasn''t ideal, and some tiredness appeared on his rosy face. He had protected the dimensional tunnel for more than one hour, and the cloud had begun to shrink since he couldn''t waste any more darkness. There wasn''t any significant injury on his body, but his skin featured many superficial ones. His last layer of protection was about to fall, and he couldn''t remain still for much longer. Still, a cold smile appeared on his face when blinding red light filled his vision. The fortress under him had resumed emitting its humming noise, and the massive whips came out of its defenses'' cores once again. The defensive methods saw Noah''s cloud as an enemy, and it released an intense red halo that forced all the smoke and flames to disperse. Once again, the leaders appeared in Noah''s eyes, but their eyes showed tinges of fear when they sensed the violent aura coming out of his figure. The whips shot forward to restrict the hybrids, but the four creatures wouldn''t let them get close again. They had been taken by surprise the last time, but they could approach the dangerous building with the proper methods now. Yet, they couldn''t predict that Noah''s mind had reached an instinctive level during the hour he spent as a punching bag. He felt utterly in tune with his body and the darkness around him, and he knew that he could pierce it with the right move. Noah stomped his feet in the air and a crack with a humanoid shape formed in the sky as he disappeared from the scene. Chapter 1050: 1050. Sprints The hybrids felt confused when they noticed Noah''s sudden disappearance. They had seen him shooting forward only to disappear one instant after. Nothing more than that peculiar crack remained of him. The Hydra suddenly felt a dangerous sensation next to one of its heads, but it only saw a headless neck when it turned toward that feeling. The danger had reached its mind only after the deed. The creature didn''t even manage to look at its enemy! The same crack with a humanoid shape had appeared next to the headless neck, but the Hydra found no trace of Noah. Still, the dangerous feeling returned one instant after it disappeared, and the creature found another headless neck when it turned toward it. Fear took control of the leader''s mind. The Hydra wasn''t even sure that Noah was the reason behind those wounds, but the danger returned before deciding on its next move. Another headless neck fell on its floating body. The hybrid gave up on any reasoning and let its instincts take control of its actions. Its four remaining heads spewed attacks in the air around it, but one neck blew apart before the creature could even cover its surroundings. That was a form of terror that only a few creatures had experienced in their lives. Every living being left traces of their passage or released shockwaves after surprise attacks. However, Noah''s presence never appeared, and his attack didn''t affect the environment. One by one, the remaining heads either exploded into a bloody pulp or saw deep cuts piercing through their brain. The Hydra died without identifying its opponent once, and that terror remained with the creature as life abandoned its body. Noah reappeared on the falling corpse of the creature to store it before it reached the ground. Drops of sweat ran down his forehead before evaporating due to the heat radiated by his body. His eyes were wide and bloodied, and the wounds on his skin had enlarged even if he didn''t suffer any other attack. Still, there was only happiness in his expression. ''The fabric of the world is frail and yet so dense,'' Noah thought as he took a moment to understand what he had just experienced. He had completed his movement technique when the formations in the fortress reactivated. His completely rebranded version of the Merging spell made him cut through the darkness element after partially fusing with it. That gave the spell a power that could reach the sixth rank, making it an incredible movement ability that matched Noah''s individuality. However, the diagram alone wasn''t enough to create those fantastic effects. Noah had developed a martial art that could fuse with the new Merging spell and bring out all the advantages of his body. The sheer strength of his muscles made him push the piercing power of his spell further, allowing him to cut right through the very fabric of the world! Noah didn''t only cut through the darkness. His technique made him fast enough to pierce the laws of the world! It was needless to say that the technique''s effects were far more remarkable than what the single spell could do. Noah became able to ignore the limitations of the space around him and imitate short teleports with his sprints. It was as if he entered a personal dimension when he used his technique, a world that only existences capable of ignoring the laws could reach. The effort drained his body and mind. The technique expressed the peak of his existence, and it was the best type of skill that his individuality could wield. As for his dantian, the amount of darkness depleted was negligible since Noah mostly used the "Breath" and primary energy in the world to fuel the ability. The three Steeled Octopi moved their attention toward Noah once he made his reappearance. Part of them was still unsure that he had been behind their companion''s death, but they remained careful nonetheless and rotated their tentacles to create a solid defense. The hybrids felt that the danger would come for them, so they deployed a rudimental defensive method that made use of their limbs'' flexibility and tough skin. Noah''s aura released a sharp power surge before his figure disappeared again, leaving the usual human-shaped crack behind. Crossing long distances with his technique wasn''t ideal, but he tested his limits now that he had the situation under control. Laws broke as his figure ran through the very fabric of the world. The damage that he caused wasn''t massive, but faint tremors appeared in the sky seconds after his passage. The world redistributed the laws to restore balance in the fabric of the sky. Those faint tremors were the result of laws reassembling to bring the harmony back. Noah''s body felt heavy while he traveled in that dark dimension. His eyes burned as they remained fixed on the blurry and foggy shapes of his targets. The place between dimensions where Noah traveled with his techniques was devoid of sounds, and it made his vision somewhat unreliable. He was so fast that his eyes didn''t have enough time to capture images. Still, Noah had to keep them open to give more inputs to his mind. It would be impossible for him to be precise if he closed his eyes. His consciousness required even those blurry images to confirm the position of his targets. The Octopus that Noah had thrown before had suffered injuries when it protected him from its allies'' attacks. Its body showed large green bruises, but blood had stopped flowing from its damaged tentacle. However, two of its limbs exploded while it performed its defensive maneuver. The creature wanted to close the opening in its defense, but a large hole appeared on its body and told it that the danger was already too close. Black fire began to come out of the opening, and shockwaves echoed from inside the Octopus'' body. The creature released angry cries as its tentacles went inside the wound to search for the intruder, but that only worsened its situation. Its tentacles went limp at some point, and its body began to fall toward the city. The creature had died, and terror spread among its allies when they saw its corpse disappearing mid-air and revealing Noah''s bloodied figure. Only two leaders remained out of the original seven rank 6 hybrids. Even if fear filled every corner of their minds, the Octopi maintained their calm and understood that they had no chance against that opponent. The surviving leaders began to retreat at full speed, but Noah sprinted again to pierce the body of one of the departing Octopi. The creature''s insides bore witness of his savageness, and life soon abandoned it too. Its corpse began to fall, but Noah stored it and looked toward the last leader in the distance before heaving a tired sigh. The creature had gone too far while he was busy killing its ally. He could catch up with it, but he would exhaust his darkness to land inside it. Chapter 1051: 1051. Last rebels Noah''s dantian had reached its limit, and even his incredible body had begun to feel tired. His mind wasn''t better off since Noah had jumped in the battle right after his long travel. Pieces of the corpses in his ring came out and ended up in his mouth while he stared at the departing creature. He couldn''t do anything about the last Steeled Octopus. He had suffered too much during the battle and due to the after-effects of his new techniques. Moreover, fueling the dark star only helped his body, so his other centers of power needed rest and traditional training to recover. However, Noah had managed to stop the rebellion and save the dimensional portal, other than gathering a total of eight corpses belonging to hybrids in the sixth rank. He could only feel satisfied with that outcome. Snore''s layers of protection eventually shattered, and it reformed around him. The Blood Companion had managed to remain in defense of the tunnel while Noah fought the leaders, but it couldn''t resist anymore after the dark matter in its structure lost its power. The solid form taken using the water and earth element was the only reason it didn''t shatter immediately. Those abilities had to break before it felt forced to return in its master''s range. Noah descended toward the city as cheers welcomed him back among the loyal forces. Those ecstatic cries faded a bit when the weaker assets saw his cold expression and dirty figure, but the Elders of the Hive continued their cheerful hymn. Noah didn''t have the grand and pure aura of a hero. His clothes weren''t flashy nor clean. His appearance was that of a fiend that scanned the environment with cold eyes. Blood and pieces of internal organs covered his entire figure, and his black robe had become nothing more than a pile of rags that barely remained on his body. Everyone understood his true nature at that sight and accepted the truth. No hero had risen to save them, but a Demon did, and his performance had been spectacular. Noah gazed at those cheerful troops feeling nothing but coldness. Creating his first technique had made him happy, but he still couldn''t shake off the bitter taste caused by Luke''s betrayal. ''Killing the past to take another step into the future,'' Noah thought as the loyal forces opened a path for him, ''What a bitter way to improve.'' His mind became calmer as he accepted that outcome. Every cultivator had a personal path, and they often clashed with each other. Luke''s decisions had happened to go against Noah''s agenda, and he had died because of that. That had happened many times already, and Noah knew that he would face it again in the future. His path had always been about cutting every hindrance that appeared in his way. The nature of his journey didn''t change since his childhood, and he didn''t regret it in the slightest. Noah walked until he reached a group of cornered rebels arrayed in a defensive formation around a cultivator at the peak of the solid stage. The man at the center wore golden armor and had similar facial features to Angela''s, with the only difference being his short golden hair. "You should have helped us!" The man shouted when he saw Noah approaching the group. "You have become one of them!" Noah didn''t want to waste time with those rebels. The man in the solid stage appeared to be the leader of a faction, but he was nothing more than an ant cursing his life after his plans had failed. Noah''s consciousness expanded, ready to kill the rebels in one blow. Yet, chains appeared on their bodies and space-ring when they sensed a threat approaching. "I have the best findings of our studies on my possession," The man shouted, lifting his palm to show the space-ring inside it. "Not even a powerhouse can stop me from destroying them." Noah recognized those tattoos. They were the same inscriptions that he and the Demons had been unable to stop when they captured Angela. The man showed a satisfied smile when he saw Noah''s consciousness halting its advance and began to state his conditions. "My name is Ebano Elbas, last leader of the rebels. I want a safe passage toward the end of the continent and an oath that no one will hunt us for the next one thousand years." "In exchange for those studies, I bet," Noah said as his aura became calm. Ebano was right. Noah had long since lost his status as a lone cultivator, and he had even accepted other people in his life. He had become a core part of the organizations that had once suppressed him too. However, that change had made him stronger. He would express only destruction if he didn''t become able to make his individuality accept life too. He wouldn''t have higher energy nor most of his creations. Power couldn''t come only from destruction. Ravaging Demon had walked on that path and failed miserably. "No," Ebano said, "We are better than the research teams in the main world. We will slowly trade our studies for resources once established the oaths." The loyal troops'' faces twisted, revealing angry but helpless expressions. They had already pillaged the other rebels, and they had confirmed that Ebano''s group owned the most valuable studies. A peak rank 4 Elder of the Hive informed Noah about that fact, and Ebano couldn''t help but announce the contents of his rings happily. "Do you want to know how to trigger the transformation? Are you interested in the brainwashing method? Do you desire an item capable of deactivating any formation? I have far more in my rings!" Worried gazes landed on Noah''s back as the negotiation continued. The loyal assets knew that Ebano''s threat was real since Noah had yet to end that situation. Noah had to admit that the other world''s research teams had achieved incredible successes during the centuries spent there. He felt interested in what they had found, but he didn''t see any way out of that situation. His mouth opened, and black flames surrounded the group, reducing the weaker cultivators into ashes in less than an instant. Ebano lasted a full second before his entire body burned. The tattoos had activated as soon as the flames touched their bodies. The space-rings of the group shattered, and no items came out of them. A starry sky had taken the place of the last rebels. Many buildings crumbled as Noah''s attack spread through the city, but the defensive formations eventually stopped it. Yet, the loyal forces stared at him in shock. Noah had just destroyed the studies that had almost taken control of a world. No amount of Credits would have been enough to buy them. Years of progress vanished in his merciless fire. No one dared to contradict him. His aura was so sharp that they feared to get close to him. After all, his flames had barely avoided hurting anyone. Chapter 1052: 1052. Intimacy The loyal troops of the Elbas family shot toward the ashes of the rebels after the flames dispersed. They madly searched through the remains of Noah''s destruction, but there was nothing left in the area. Their angry gazes shot toward Noah when they realized that they had lost those studies forever. The Elbas family''s factions had invested a lot in the research, and now everything was gone. However, they didn''t complain. The Royals could only lower their gazes when they met the cold reptilian eyes. It was as if Noah was waiting to have an excuse to kill them. "Restore the teleportation matrices," Noah said as he turned to leave. "I want to see everything that you have retrieved." The fact that he was the only powerhouse there made him the ruler of the entire world. No one could oppose him, so he could exploit the situation as much as he wanted. He didn''t decide to destroy the studies due to a whim. Ebano''s plan was solid, and it would have forced the three ruling organizations to waste resources and share the trades'' gains. Yet, the Hive didn''t have much to lose. Actually, obtaining and sharing those studies would have weakened its position in the main world. The Hive was the only force that could deploy hybrids efficiently and without risking a revolt. Obtaining the studies would have improved its understanding of the compound, but it would have also taken away its advantage. If every organization were to learn how to produce and control hybrids, the Elbas family would soon surpass both the Hive and the Council regarding knowledge in that field. The Royal Pool wouldn''t be the only problem of the alliance. The Elbas family would obtain the perfect method to weaponize magical beasts and improve its cultivators'' overall power. The Hive and the Council could do the same, but they didn''t have as many experts as their enemy. Sharing that knowledge would slowly make them fall behind in the political environment. Instead, now that the studies were no more, the Hive could continue to hold the monopoly over obedient hybrids and living weapons, making it a threatening force to face. The Council would benefit from the trades with its ally, while the Elbas family would have to restart their research. Noah didn''t believe that he could restrain the Royals forever, but his decision had made his organization gain more time. Only the higher-ups of the other world''s forces understood the reasons behind his actions, and they couldn''t help but fear his ruthlessness. Noah had decided to destroy studies capable of changing the cultivation journey forever to preserve his organization''s advantage. He had made the whole world suffer only to benefit a bit more from his current position. Noah sent a series of mental messages through his inscribed notebook while he occupied the fortress''s best training area. His mind was too busy handling his bitter mood and his excitement toward his potential to care about his image. He had accepted that he couldn''t do anything to stop his negative feeling. They were inevitable since they were the consequence of his wide path. ''Men can truly appreciate happiness only after they experience sadness,'' Noah thought as he let his mind wander while cultivating inside the training area. ''I appreciate strength because I know weakness. I appreciate life because I know death.'' Killing Luke made him feel as if he had negated part of his past, but he had taken steps toward the future. That mindset had helped him during the travel. Those bitter feelings had sharpened his mind, allowing him to complete his movement technique in a little more than two months. The Demons eventually returned, and June came right after. Noah found truth in his previous thoughts when his lover caressed his face as if knowing that something disturbed his mind. "You expose yourself to more sufferings as your existence reaches new levels of greatness," June said as she laid her head on his lap. "A being pursuing only destruction can''t feel, but it can''t improve either. An existence that can only create will feel everything, but it will never take a step for fear of hurting grass." Her words resounded in the training area as she turned to find a comfortable position on him. The Demons left when they saw that the couple was having one of their intimate moments, and they felt that both of them needed to rest. "An existence in the middle of both realms might go nowhere," Noah said as he caressed her hair. "His duality might crush him while he looks for what he is." "There has never been a middle, Noah," June said. "You of all existences should know that we can''t strive for balance anymore. We either take everything, or we die." June was mostly speaking for herself, but her battle intent had always shared similar features to Noah''s ambition. The two of them had both chosen difficult paths and were suffering from different backlashes. June''s Perfect Circuit couldn''t contain the immense power that she had obtained, and Noah''s individuality made him lose himself in thoughts concerning the nature of his existence often. "You couldn''t contain your battle intent," Noah said while wearing a smile and looking at his lover in the eyes. "And your ambition didn''t allow you to shrink your individuality," June said as a similar smile appeared on her face. They had known each other so well and for so long that they could understand the difficulties of their respective journey even if they were approaching the laws. "You need one last battle," Noah whispered as his hand went to untie her robe. "Succeed, and you will be able to fight forever." "You have already destroyed a world," June said as she opened his robe to kiss his torso. "You only need to create a new one now." Understanding flowed incessantly in both their minds. Talking with their partner cleared many doubts about the path in front of them and steeled their resolve. The revolution had been a simple prelude to the main event. What expected Noah and June in the main world was far more dangerous, but it was necessary for their situation. They had decided to come out in the open, but they had to complete one last deed before announcing to the world that June was a traitor and that Noah could have feelings. The couple indulged in a long intimate moment in which Noah had to make sure to leave the restrictions made with his higher energy intact. His arousal returned as the sound of kisses and moans resounded in the training area. Noah discovered how careful his body could be, and he learnt how to control himself as he held June''s naked back in his hands. The couple did their best to satisfy the desire accumulated for the past centuries and decided to come out of the fortress only after three months. The time had come for Noah to contact the best inscription master in the world. June''s life depended on whether King Elbas would believe his lie. Chapter 1053: 1053. When? Noah and the Demons left the other world when they set every matter. The studies they had retrieved from the rebels were mostly incomplete, but they increased the inscription and hybrid fields'' overall knowledge. Yet, they couldn''t take them. The studies had to remain in the other world, among the various forces. June remained behind, and she would wait a few months before returning to the main world. She and Noah had already planned their next moves, and they had even chosen to have a communication method at that time. Their decision was final. June would either die during the next mission or survive and join the Hive with her family. A horde of experts waited for Noah and the Demons on the other side of the dimensional tunnel. The loyal forces had warned the main world''s assets about their return, so many inscription masters had gathered in front of the tall portal to intercept the elusive Demon Prince. Noah saw heroic cultivators of the Council, Elbas family, and even Shandal Empire waiting for him when the sunlight illuminated his face again. They were all experts in the fifth rank dressed in their most luxurious robes and wearing polite expressions. The experts didn''t hesitate to bow when Noah came out of the dimensional portal. The fact that he had destroyed the studies didn''t seem to affect their respectful attitude. Noah didn''t know if that was the usual respect given to a powerhouse or if they were in awe of his deeds in the other world. Yet, that sight didn''t faze him, and he kept his cold expression as he announced his intentions to the crowd. "I will speak only with the leader of the Elbas family." His announcement left the experts speechless. The cultivators of the Empire could understand that he would ignore them, but the others had mixed feelings. The Council was his ally, so its Elders should prioritize the assets of their common enemy. A list of complaints appeared in their minds as they silently decided to report the matter to Great Elder Diana, but Noah silenced those thoughts with his next phrase. "I''ve found the Kesier species," Noah announced before moving toward the western coast of the old continent. The Demons followed him after shooting intimidating glances at the experts. They warned them not to follow the Demon Prince. Noah''s group flew back to the nearest entrance of the separate dimension, and they found Thirty-seven waiting for them once the light of the teleportation vanished. The automaton wore an angry expression, and his ghostly figure trembled as waves of rage filled him. His eyes went on Noah as loud words came out of his mouth. "How could you?!" Noah''s mind was so full of plans and strategies concerning his next move that he didn''t understand why the automaton was so angry at him. Yet, his following words solved his doubts. "You destroyed years of studies!" Thirty-seven shouted, raising his finger to point at Noah. "The research is sacred! Cultivators'' lives can''t compare to discoveries that have taken years to find!" The group ignored him when they understood the reason behind his anger, and Noah questioned him about important matters. "Where is the Patriarch?" Thirty-seven acted as if he didn''t hear his words. He continued to explain how every lost discovery was a curse that would affect humankind for eternity. His speech made some sense for an inscription maniac. However, Noah didn''t have time to waste. His plan had started when he had publicly announced that he wanted to speak with King Elbas. A few teeth of the Hydras appeared in his hands, and the automaton stopped speaking at that sight. He neared Noah to analyze the material better, but the hand closed, blocking his vision. "The Patriarch is in his usual lodgings!" Thirty-seven shouted in a hurry, and Noah let the teeth fall on the ground. Both he and the automaton had become used to those interactions. Noah even suspected that Thirty-seven''s unwilling behavior was an act. The Demons and Noah exchanged a nod before he flew toward the nearest teleportation matrix. They already knew their role in Noah''s plan, so they didn''t need to follow him back to the headquarters. Noah used a series of teleportation matrices to return to the forest of White Woods. His body could sense the presence of magical beasts caged in the depths of that area, but his focus was on the powerful existence that cultivated in the underground structure above them. "I need to talk with you," Noah conveyed through his consciousness, and a series of shining lines appeared under him. Their light teleported him directly in the underground structure, where he found Chasing Demon cultivating in a cross-legged position. The Patriarch had improved his cultivation technique after Thirty-seven joined the Hive, but he had wasted a lot of potential during the fifth rank. He advanced slowly, and he struggled to reach the halfway mark of the lower tier. Only the Seventh Kesier rune had helped him in the last period. "What brings you to see this old man?" Chasing Demon said in a rough voice as his eyes opened. Cracks appeared on his skin when he moved, revealing that a layer of rocks covered his entire body. Noah guessed that Chasing Demon was developing a new technique, but he didn''t probe further. His plan was already in motion, but he felt the need to warn the Patriarch. "I''m going to start a war against the Elbas family," Noah said as a jug of wine came out of his space-ring and floated toward the Patriarch. "Will you now?" Chasing Demon asked as he drank directly from the jug before throwing it back at Noah. Noah caught the jug and drank directly from it too. He shrugged his shoulders before taking another sip and explaining himself better. "Well, I will attack the Academy and make a mess. I don''t think they''ll like that." Chasing Demon smirked, and pieces of his rocky skin fell from the corner of his mouth, revealing his actual tissues. His eyes went on the jug, and Noah threw it back at him while the Patriarch asked a question. "And why would you do that?" "I need to help her," Noah said, and Chasing Demon almost failed to catch the wine when he heard those words. He was quite sensitive when it came to that topic. Avenging Charming Demon had given him peace, but it had also left him without any desire. He didn''t have much ambition left now that he had fulfilled his lifelong dream, and that mindset affected his growth. "King Elbas should be out of the scene for a while if everything goes according to my plan," Noah said in an uncaring tone. "I wonder if the Hive wants to use this to its advantage." Chasing Demon listened to Noah before drinking all the remaining wine in one sip. He then cleaned his mouth with his forearm before asking a simple question. "When?" Chapter 1054: 1054. Hu Noah flew toward the central territories inhabited by hybrids after he finished his conversation with Chasing Demon. The Patriarch had decided that the Hive would exploit his plan to attack the Elbas family, so there was a lot to prepare. The mansion inside the separate dimension couldn''t contain Noah''s power anymore, so he had chosen to spend the time before the meeting in regions that were still recovering from the winged beasts'' crisis. He could go all out there without destroying anything important. The hybrids had thrived in the new continent''s central regions under the Vidot family''s leadership, and Skully''s arrival only helped that positive trend. Perfect hybrids didn''t need specific resources to survive. They fed on the laws contained in the matter, so any food sufficed their needs. Moreover, cycles of starvation and training with Noah''s spherical runes kept their mental instabilities in check. The specimens that fell prey to their instincts became materials or food if their condition was permanent. Noah landed in one of the poorest regions and released a few cries to force out any pack that had chosen to inhabit that area. He didn''t care about their noises, but they were hybrids, and they were quite valuable even if their level was low. Due to Heaven and Earth''s fairness, stronger creatures would have a lower reproductive capacity than the weaker ones. It went without saying that hybrids suffered a great deal from those rules, so every specimen mattered. Noah dug a cave and sat at its bottom. His mind reviewed the events from the end of the chrysalis to his battle against the rank 6 hybrids. He had learnt a lot about the functioning of his body in that period. His dark star acted according to Noah''s needs other than applying a constant purification to his tissues, nutrients, and energy. Noah could force it to focus on specific processes if he concentrated, but its effects peaked only when the situation required it. The rebellion had started, and he was on the other side of the continent. Therefore, the dark star had forced his body to replicate the Divine Deduction technique''s effects, leading him to create his movement technique in no time. The Hydras had injured him with their joint attacks, so the dark star had diverted all the nutrients to fuel his healing properties. Attacks tried to pierce his muscles, so his black heart poured dark matter through the injuries to block the intruders. The rebels were about to reach the defenseless dimensional tunnel, but his energies fused to create a cry capable of commanding every species. Only his instincts could take the best out of his body, and Noah had no real control over them. He could obtain weaker effects with his thoughts, but his dark star''s real power was in its connection with his subconscious. It was as if his existence was telling him to venture toward new adventures, and Noah didn''t know if that had been a natural consequence of his evolution or the result of his reckless life. Noah meditated for a while to address the issue. He succeeded in forcing his mind into an instinctive state, but he had poor control over his thoughts when that happened. When he managed to push his instincts toward his goals, the effects were still inferior to his body''s full capabilities, so the process wasn''t worth the effort. Failing in that experiment didn''t worry him too much. He regretted being unable to empower his faculties at will, but he had a way around that. He only needed to put himself in danger. His focus went on the abilities that he had to improve then. He had many spells that couldn''t express power in the sixth rank in their current state and even those that could needed modifications. His existence had changed again, and his wills had a different intensity now. The dark matter had also become a core part of his being, so his modifications reflected those features. Some spells had different problems. The Shadow copy spell didn''t have limitations in its rank, but he used it to replicate the Demonic Sword, which found it hard to bear his new strength. Then, there were his elements, and Noah couldn''t help but think about June''s words when he pondered about the topic. He only lacked light to have control over all the types of energy in the matter. His next step would be to create a world at that point. Noah spent months in the silence of his cave, coming out only when he needed to test something. The region''s layout changed every time he unleashed his power, but the area was empty, so nothing suffered from his actions. The tests with the Demonic Sword went better than he expected. His time with June had taught him how to control his body, which allowed him to use his living weapon without risking its integrity. The Demonic Sword had a flexible structure, which made it endure Noah''s strength after a bit of practice. The only problem was that Noah couldn''t use his full power even when the two coordinated themselves to diminish the pressure on the weapon''s structure. Nevertheless, the effects were satisfying. The Demonic Sword''s slashes didn''t carry the destructiveness of Noah''s body, but they added a powerful tool to his arsenal. Also, they were attacks in the sixth rank, and they could help him in long-range situations. The problems arrived when he wanted to pair his offensive martial art with other abilities. The Demonic Sword couldn''t endure them, and Noah would remain with a significant weakness until he fixed the issue. The thought of creating a temporary weapon in the sixth rank crossed his mind, but he received the mental message that he was waiting for at that time. His loud announcement had reached the ears of the Elbas family''s higher-ups, and its Patriarch had contacted Chasing Demon to set up a meeting. ''It''s time,'' Noah thought as donned one of his best robes and left toward the spot designated for the meeting. The two Patriarchs had opted for an area near the snowy mountain on the southern coast for the location. That decision wasn''t casual. King Elbas had requested for Noah to come alone, so Chasing Demon wanted to use the king of the mountain as a deterrent in case the negotiations went bad. Noah used a series of teleportation matrices to reach his destination and sat on the snowy ground as he waited for the powerhouse. King Elbas arrived a few hours later, and a small hut appeared on the terrain when he snapped his fingers. Noah''s consciousness expanded, and his mind''s senses peaked as he inspected the structure. To his surprise, he didn''t see any inscription on it, and the laws inside its fabric confirmed that it was a simple wooden house. "Come, little demon," King Elbas said as he landed in front of the hut. "I want to hear what you have to say." Chapter 1055: 1055. Everything Noah followed King Elbas inside the hut, but he stopped his tracks when he saw the powerhouse snapping his fingers to light a fireplace situated on the other side of the entrance. The hut wasn''t big, and it featured only one large room. Wood made the entirety of the structure, and luxurious carpets covered its walls and floor. A round table stood at its center with two comfy armchairs placed on opposite sides. Noah couldn''t help but stare at the scene for a few seconds. With the fireplace as the only form of illumination and no inscriptions, the hut resembled one of his previous world''s structures. "Cultivators lose something when they obtain godlike powers," King Elbas said as a tinge of melancholy made its way through his arrogant. "I''ve never forgotten what it was to be a commoner." The powerhouse traced the surface of the table with his fingers before sitting in an armchair. His expression became pensive for an instant only to recover its sharpness when he focused on his guest. Noah could see the leader of the Royals outside of his role for the first time. King Elbas wasn''t only the arrogant expert who wore a crown wherever he went. He was also a thoughtful cultivator who could spend time studying the most basic structure, even if he could already build miraculous items. Every living being that managed to reach the sixth rank was exceptional in some way. King Elbas was the best inscription master in the world, and his expertise didn''t stop at the cultivation field. Noah didn''t see the arrogant expert anymore. In his mind, King Elbas appeared as a creator who had started from simple wood until he had learnt to handle materials bordering the divine ranks. Mysteries surrounded most of his history. The world only knew that King Elbas had been one of the nobles in the old Utra nation before his coup. No one knew how he had reached the sixth rank without alerting the previous Royal family. ''He is a monster,'' Noah concluded in his mind as he sat on the armchair, ''Just like me.'' King Elbas didn''t take out wine nor any food as per the customs of meetings on that level. He remained in silence, staring at his guest as he waited for him to begin the negotiations. Yet, Noah had a different plan. Everything about that meeting was a bait that had to lead to King Elbas abandoning his domains for a while. Noah couldn''t appear as if he was desperate to seal an agreement. Minutes passed while both existences remained in silence. Only the fireplace''s crackling and the noise of the storm outside accompanied the two powerhouses inside the hut. "I thought you wanted to talk about Apes," King Elbas eventually said, and the corners of Noah''s mouth curved upward at his words. He could have held back that smile, but he wanted King Elbas to notice the small victories that he managed to seize during their conversation. Noah had the upper hand in that meeting. The fact that King Elbas had contacted Chasing Demon after his announcement showed how the Royals'' leader cared about the Kesier species. "I thought pieces of information had a price," Noah replied, and King Elbas showed a smile too. He appeared happy that his guest''s resolve didn''t crack in front of him. "My descendants'' reports say that you can''t handle negotiations properly," King Elbas continued. "They were wrong." "Your family has been wrong about me since I was a human cultivator," Noah used sharp words to reply. "I hope this outcome doesn''t hurt your pride." A tremor ran through King Elbas'' eyes when he heard that answer. Noah had casually hinted at his individuality, but he knew that the Demon Prince of the Hive wasn''t someone that acted on whims. Noah was purposely showing his knowledge to prove that he wasn''t a simple newly advanced cultivator. King Elbas waved his hand, and a large jug appeared at the table''s center together with two cups. The powerhouse gestured Noah to taste the wine, but the latter hinted that he had to go first. "I might have taken an antidote before," King Elbas teased as he filled his cup and emptied it in one sip. "If there is an antidote," Noah said as he copied his actions, "then it can''t affect me." The flavor of strong wine filled his body. The dark star spun faster as it purified the nutrients carried by that liquid and diverted part of the energy absorbed to his mind. Noah felt a wave of heat filling his body. It was as if he had taken a bite from a scorching magical beast in the sixth rank when he understood how nourishing that wine was. King Elbas'' smile widened when he saw surprise appearing in Noah''s expression, and he couldn''t help but comment on the matter. "I could only brew six on these. The material went extinct afterward, and I''m still trying to recreate it. Let me tell you, it''s hard to make a rank 6 magical plant out of nothing." King Elbas was bragging about his expertise. After all, he talked about growing magical plants in the sixth rank due to a hobby. No one could even imagine what he did for matters that concerned his power. Noah decided to change the approach. He suppressed his surprised face and filled another cup before officially starting the negotiations. "I have found and captured a few specimens belonging to the Kesier species in the human ranks. The Hive is nurturing the pack now. We expect a new Sixth Kesier rune to appear every four hundred years." King Elbas'' eyes flickered as calculations happened in his mind. There was a difference between feeding a magical beast until it reached the sixth rank and pushing it at that level forcefully. The specimen in the sixth rank didn''t have to be healthy or strong. It could even be a pile of fur as long as it had the Sixth Kesier rune on it. King Elbas knew that he could shorten that period to two hundred years if he didn''t care about the creature''s condition. "What do you want for a female specimen?" King Elbas asked directly, but he didn''t appear too interested. He was already nearing the last stage of the sixth rank in the end. There was a limit to how much those creatures could interest him. It wasn''t even worth grooming a creature until it reached the seventh rank. King Elbas already had a good method to train his mind, and he would find it pointless to invest a lot of resources and time in that project. "The specimens of our pack aren''t for sale," Noah replied firmly, and interest finally appeared on King Elbas'' face. Noah had set up the meeting, which meant that he had something to trade. It also had to concern the Kesier species since he had mentioned it. King Elbas felt intrigued, and he understood that there was only one way to learn the nature of Noah''s goods. "What do you want?" King Elbas asked, and Noah replied while wearing a cold smirk. "Everything, of course." Chapter 1056: 1056. Deal Noah''s request wasn''t specific, but it was greedy enough to make King Elbas understand that his guest owned something precious. King Elbas'' eyes sharpened, but he couldn''t remain in silence for long. His mouth opened, and a question came out of it. "What did you even find?" "I want everything you have on the darkness element." Noah promptly answered. "I''m not talking only about spells and martial arts. I want every technique, research, and blueprint that cultivators with a darkness aptitude can use." The Elbas family stood at the peak of the inscription field, and its studies covered every aspect of the cultivation journey. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine how many discoveries and mysterious techniques the Royals had created under King Elbas'' rule. Yet, he had every intention to find that out. Silence fell in the room, and the crackling fireplace accompanied the two powerhouses once again. The duo filled and emptied cups as the minutes passed, but their eyes never left their adversary. Eventually, King Elbas took out a scale that had two golden plates on its sides. An eerie aura surrounded the inscribed item, and Noah could sense that its power was in the middle tier of the sixth rank even if it didn''t have offensive properties. King Elbas pressed two fingers on his forehead, and an azure lump of mental energy came out of his mind when he pulled his hand. He then dropped those thoughts on the plate near him, and the scale tilted in his direction. "This is the value of what you''ve asked," King Elbas said as he pointed at the empty golden plate. "It won''t record anything unless you want to." Noah felt intrigued when looking at the scale. King Elbas had created something on that level with the sole purpose of making his negotiations fair. Most powerhouses won''t ever think of spending time and resources creating something like that, but King Elbas was atypical. He appeared to have a rank 6 item ready for every occasion. Noah looked at the scale for a while, but he imitated King Elbas'' actions before he started to have some doubts about the truthfulness of his guest''s claims. The image of the Ape God appeared in his mind before Noah pulled that thought and placed it on the empty plate. His thoughts weren''t azure like King Elbas''. His shining lump of mental energy was brown, and it tilted the scale toward him when it landed on the golden plate. King Elbas'' eyes widened when he heard the plate landing on the wooden table. He knew exactly how valuable the resources requested by Noah were, so the reaction of the scale left him speechless. All the accumulated techniques, studies, and resources connected to the darkness element could rival any quasi-divine item in value. Yet, the scale declared Noah''s offer was far superior to that. The only possible conclusion was that Noah was willing to trade a proper divine resource! King Elbas didn''t hesitate anymore. A black tablet appeared on the table, and the Royal placed his finger on it. Azure runes formed on the item''s surface as he listed the contents of his oath and flung it toward Noah when he finished. Noah analyzed the oath with his mental energy. It was a standard item used during negotiations of that kind, which would activate once both parties agreed to the deal. Brown runes formed on the empty side of the tablet as Noah swore the oath. The negotiation had officially begun at that point. It was only a matter of deciding the terms. "I have a general idea of the location of your travel," King Elbas said in an attempt to lower the value of Noah''s offer. "Whatever it is, I can find it on my own." "You can''t," Noah replied, "I''ve destroyed the entire place. You need me if you want to get your hands on it." "It?" King Elbas asked. He had already understood that the matter involved resources in the divine rank, but he needed to hear their nature from his guest''s mouth. Noah smiled and took a sip from his cup. He let the tension build enough to see annoyance appearing on the powerhouse''s expression before revealing his resource. "I found a rank 7 Kesier Ape." King Elbas'' eyelids trembled, but he promptly closed them to hide his surprise. Many questions filled his mind, and countless doubts made him wonder whether his guest was speaking the truth. However, he knew that the time for questions was over. Both parties had sealed the oath. Their offers had to be true for the agreement to activate. "How did you even survive?" King Elbas couldn''t help but ask when he reopened his eyes. Still, Noah limited himself to take sips from his cup. "The exact location of the Divine Ape in exchange for martial arts and spells of the darkness element," King Elbas offered. Noah shook his head and gave voice to his counteroffer. "No. There is no precise location, and you will never find it without me. As I said, I want everything." "I need to invest resources to kill something on that level," King Elbas replied. "That''s what makes this trade fair," Noah said, putting an end to that argument. King Elbas could train his mind till the seventh rank on his own, but the Seventh Kesier rune would ensure his breakthrough. Even the best inscription master in the world couldn''t ignore that offer. "You have your deal," King Elbas eventually said, and the azure runes on the tablet began to shine at his acceptance. Noah smiled again and sealed the agreement by saying a single word. "Deal." Both sides of the tablet shone at that point, and runes appeared on the existences'' fingers. Noah saw black runes forming on his hand and flickering a couple of times before disappearing inside his skin. The runes traveled through his body, and the dark star focused on them when they floated toward his mind. Still, it let them pass because it felt Noah''s will inside them. The runes landed on his mind and fused with its walls. King Elbas and Noah had finally sealed the pact now. It was time to exchange the goods. King Elbas took back his inscribed items and placed a large map on the table. Noah stood up and began to describe the last seen location of the Ape God and the layout of the sea of magma. His explanation didn''t stop there. Noah explained the behavior of the red sea''s currents and gave King Elbas his personal opinion as an expert in the magical beasts'' field. The two agreed on the delivery of the resources too, so the matter ended there. They were about to leave the hut and return to their respective domain, but Noah had another doubt. "Why did you tell me about the higher energy?" Noah asked. "You knew it would have made me stronger." King Elbas had stood up by then and was walking toward the exit. Yet, Noah''s question made him stop to answer honestly. "I''m a researcher, Demon Prince of the Hive. I had to know which shape darkness would take." Chapter 1057: 1057. Fissure Noah and King Elbas left the region without looking back. Their conversation had concerned only the exchange of resources, but the two of them had understood a lot about their respective personality nonetheless. King Elbas had learnt how sharp Noah could be outside of a battlefield. He wouldn''t fear anyone as long as he had some leverage. He wouldn''t flinch even if a god stood in his way if he knew how to exploit the situation to his advantage. Noah had seen how the leader of the Royals was more than just arrogance. He was an expert entirely dedicated to his field of expertise. His experiments covered every aspect of the cultivation journey, and he had achieved great things in each one of them. King Elbas'' arrogance came from his results. He knew exactly how amazing he was, and he couldn''t help but feel superior to any other force in the world. His only mistake was being born after Shandal and God''s Right Hand. Noah''s mind kept on playing King Elbas'' answer to the question related to the higher energy. The Patriarch of the Elbas family was so selfless about his research that he had purposely provided his study to a potential enemy. He didn''t care that Noah could use the higher energy against him one day. He had to see how the darkness element evolved, even if that put him in danger. Noah''s respect for such a determined opponent couldn''t help but increase. The two of them belonged to the same type of cultivators. They were the monsters that regular labels failed to comprehend. Black versions of the elements floated in Noah''s palm as he flew back to the nearest teleportation matrix. Fire, water, earth, wind, lightning, and darkness rotated on his hand and exchanged part of their fabric. Still, they never fused. ''I need my light,'' Noah thought. His enlightenment over other elements came when he saw them expressed in ways that reflected his individuality or after being in contact with them for a long time. He couldn''t force that process. It had to be a natural understanding. His fire came from Ravaging Demon''s destruction, water from the Divine Stele''s enlightening properties, earth from Chasing Demon''s life, wind from the Ape God''s anger, and lightning from the Heaven Tribulation. The dark matter represented the darkness element, but Noah had yet to find something that could complete his understanding of those types of energy. Daniel''s individuality couldn''t work. The two of them were too different, and even their goals went in opposite directions. Noah wanted everything, both destruction and creation. He strived for the power to create and destroy matter because his ambition didn''t allow him to aim any lower. Instead, Daniel wanted purity. He pursued the simplest but most potent form in everything, even himself. Both paths led to power, but that was their only common feature. Moreover, Noah''s felt an innate disgust toward the light element, which made it even harder for him to lose himself in its fabric. Noah returned to his temporary training area in the new continent''s central regions. He dug another cave while waiting for the Elbas family to comply with their part of the agreement. The Royals'' inscription masters had to make copies of thousands of scrolls, studies, and techniques. The process would take a while. Still, Noah wasn''t in a hurry. He had to wait for King Elbas to leave the surface anyway. That was the only uncertainty in Noah''s plan. He didn''t fear the defenses of the Royal Academy, but he had no way to confirm King Elbas'' departure without putting himself in danger. His only option was to predict how long the Patriarch of the Elbas family would take to make the necessary preparations and decide to explore the sea of magma. Noah didn''t mind waiting, but he had to consider June in his plan. They had agreed that she wouldn''t return to the Elbas family''s territories until the mission started. Nevertheless, she was a battle maniac, and staying put wasn''t in her style. Her individuality might suffer if Noah waited too much before making his move. Noah meditated and cultivated. His focus was on the light element and his spells. Noah''s improvements were slow without the dark star pushing his mind to its limits, even if immensely faster than cultivators without the Divine Deduction technique. All his diagrams went through the same process as the Merging spell. His mind broke them down to their core ideas and rebuilt their structure after confirming that they could suit his individuality. Some goods began to arrive from the Elbas family. That batch of resources saw only techniques and spells in the human ranks, but Noah analyzed them nonetheless. He didn''t need strong abilities anymore. His interest lingered on core ideas that suited his needs and existences so that he could create skills meant for him. A sudden message came while he was busy sorting through thousands of scrolls and books. Faith contacted him, asking to settle the restlessness that was building inside the Council. Noah had publicly announced that he had found the Kesier species, but his decision to set up a meeting with King Elbas without considering his allies had created some tension. Noah would usually delegate those matters to the Elders of the Hive. The political environment had never interested him, and he had already obtained what he needed. Moreover, the Hive could use the Kesier species to gain more resources, so he didn''t mind leaving the matter to the other higher-ups. However, Faith had managed to convince the Council to offer something that could benefit him. The resources in its proposal didn''t appeal to his element nor his hybrid status. It wanted to intrigue his expertise as a swordsman. It was rare for cultivators to use martial arts, and they completely disappeared among existences in the fifth rank and above. Yet, the Council had found traces left by divine beings that appeared connected to those techniques. Noah stopped sorting through his piles of abilities to travel toward the part of the mountain chain that ended on the northern coast. It didn''t take much for him to reach that region since the Hive and the Council had established a thick array of matrices that connected the two domains. Faith welcomed him once appeared at his destination. Tall mountains filled his view, and large pagodas stood on their sides. Countless heroic cultivators sat cross-legged on those buildings'' balconies and roofs and stared at something hidden between the peaks. Other Elders joined Faith in her warm welcome, and the group eventually led Noah toward the pagodas where he could see the reason behind the cultivators'' focus. The mountains had seen many excavations in that area, but their purpose was to enlighten a fissure on one of them that radiated an ancient aura. The dark star in Noah''s chest spun faster as his consciousness went on the fissure. Its smooth edges had survived the passage of time, and not even a crack had appeared on their surface. It was as if the fissure carried traces of eternity. It resembled a mark in Heaven and Earth''s world that not even time could erase. Chapter 1058: 1058. Sword arts Noah''s consciousness covered the fissure and fused with the aura on its surfaces. Thousands of swords appeared in his mind. Noah felt the weight of countless experiences filling his thoughts and giving birth to an endless number of forms. One Cut contained hundreds of thousands of minute movements that could bring its power to the apex if executed in perfect succession. There was more than a martial art inside the ancient aura. Noah felt as if that fissure contained the experiences of a divine swordsman! ''This is incredible!'' Noah exclaimed, while his awareness wavered. Only a few experts in the cultivation world could claim to have the same experience in swords. Noah had wielded sabers since he had set his mind to learn martial arts, and swords had accompanied the entirety of his cultivation journey. He didn''t abandon that practice even when his centers of power pushed him toward other abilities. His individuality had the shape of a sword that could pierce the starry sky with its might. The first will that his ambition had fueled concerned his sharpness. Noah had always been unwilling to separate himself from his trustworthy weapons. Becoming a hybrid had solidified that feeling and had opened a path where his expertise could flourish, reaching levels of power that other existences could only dream of wielding. The dark star in his chest spun faster, pushing his body toward limits that Noah had yet to experience. His instincts didn''t want him to stop his immersion in that divine aura, and his greed desired to absorb all the knowledge contained in the cut. Humanoid shapes eventually appeared inside his mind. They moved, performing various forms while they wielded ethereal blades. Noah''s mind had harmonized with the sharpness carried by the ancient aura, and his thoughts played any piece of knowledge that they were able to translate. Understanding filled his whole consciousness as his thoughts kept on materializing the forms of ancient and forgotten martial arts. Noah felt that he was staring at the very origin of every sword art, only to see them become more complex as his mind translated more pieces of information. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique when he felt that his mind couldn''t keep up anymore with that stream of knowledge. The Divine ability pushed his consciousness''s processing skills even more and allowed him to remain immersed inside the ancient aura for longer. However, he had to give up and cut his connection with the fissure at some point. His mind felt exhausted, and one glance at the condition of his sea of consciousness made him understand that he had reached his limits. Almost all his mental energy had disappeared during the process. Remaining immersed in that understanding had depleted most of his thoughts, making him feel beyond drained. His vision was messy, and the sunlight hurt his eyes. Still, his condition slowly stabilized, making able to see a crowd of Elders staring at him with incredulous expressions. Noah didn''t have the strength to speak. He only wanted to rest and recover the mental energy to get back on studying the fissure again. There was too much inside that aura, and Noah didn''t want to miss any of it. Before he could shot toward a mountain to dig a cave, Faith stepped forward and handed him a small basket filled with crystalline water. She didn''t speak while she stretched the item toward him. Noah instinctively grabbed the bucket and drank from its edges. Some of the water fell on his face, and a gray smoke formed due to his body''s high temperatures. A refreshing feeling spread from his throat and face when the water touched his tissues. The tiredness that filled his mind softened and Noah found himself able to think properly again in a few seconds. The Elders of the Council had become used to the after-effects of the fissure. They had deployed many methods to improve the training sessions near the cut and shorten the time required to recover the mental energy depleted during the enlightenment. Those methods worked even better with Noah. His dark star purified and improved the crystalline water''s healing properties before pushing them toward his mind. In a few minutes, Noah saw the level of the sea inside his sphere rising. "You are incredible," Faith said when she saw that Noah''s face had recovered some energy. Noah paid attention to the crowd of Elders staring at him at her words, and his questioning gaze hinted that he desired an explanation to that event. "No one had ever lasted longer than a week when inside the ancient aura," Faith replied. "The rank of the sea of consciousness isn''t the only variable in place. Great Elder Diana can last only for five days, while some rank 4 cultivators have surpassed her easily." Noah understood the meaning of her words. A strong mind was necessary to process more information, but a swordsman would deplete less mental energy to translate those forms. "How long?" Noah asked, and the experts around him diverted their gazes. Regret appeared in the faces of some of the Elders. It seemed that they didn''t like how the events had unfolded. Yet, Faith showed a happy expression when she replied to his question. "You have been in the same position for two whole months! I knew that this place was perfect for someone like you." Noah could guess the reason behind the Elders'' regret now. They had long since learnt that the cut benefitted cultivators with swords experience, but they wanted a monopoly over that training area. Even after the alliance with the Hive, they didn''t feel the need to share that resource. The Elders knew that Noah would benefit from it more than anyone else. After all, he had swung his weapons throughout his entire cultivation journey. The Elders didn''t want to give more power to such an unruly existence, mostly since it belonged to a foreign organization. Faith had eventually convinced them, but they didn''t expect Noah to be so suitable for that resource. Noah had managed to meditate next to the Cut nine times longer than their best experts. Knowing the benefits that the fissure had given to them, they could only sigh, thinking about Noah''s imminent improvements. "You can negotiate the Kesier species with the Hive," Noah announced to the crowd, "But I can''t be the only one to have access to this place." Noah didn''t believe that the cultivators of the Hive could gain much from those divine remains due to how little heroic assets relied on martial arts. Yet, hordes of hybrids filled his organizations now, and some of them had bodies suited for those teachings. Moreover, those who belonged to the six Bloodlines had experience in martial arts even in the heroic ranks, making them even better candidates for that training area. "Agreed!" A loud voice broke the silence that had filled the region after Noah''s offer. Respectful expressions formed on the Elders'' faces as Great Elder Diana appeared in the sky above them. The Matriarch of the Council had given her official approval to Noah''s request. Now both organizations could prepare for the attack at the Elbas family properly. Chapter 1059: 1059. Hints Chasing Demon settled the matter of the Kesier species with Divine Elder Diana. The Council wouldn''t own any Ape, but it could join the Hive in improving their grooming. Also, it would have claims over some of the Kesier runes produced. Skully and the natives of the Vilot family handpicked a few hybrids to send toward the Divine Cut. They chose creatures with experience in martial arts. They even had to have humanoid bodies or be able to wield blades in their beast form. Moreover, any Elder who felt curious about the sword arts in the divine aura or wanted to improve their overall prowess could visit the Council''s territories. The alliance would then select who could train there again according to their talent in the field. The Hive became restless right after the news of the new traces left by divine beings spread among the Elders. Many cultivators traveled toward the mountain chain, hoping that their past training or individualities could match the ancient aura. That was a proper divine inheritance that didn''t cause any lasting after-effects. No one would ever refrain from attempting to seize it. However, most of them soon learnt the harsh truth. Abandoning martial arts after their centers of power had reached the fourth rank made them unsuitable for that inheritance. Their minds would take millennia to process that knowledge. The hybrids had it a bit better, especially those from the six Bloodlines'' inner circles. They had never needed to completely abandon martial arts since they were physically stronger than the main world''s cultivators. Those lacking a dantian had even needed to rely on them since spells took too long to cast. Skully traveled to the Cut too. Her appearance shook the Council''s Elders to no end, but they ultimately felt glad to be the Hive''s ally. Those Mortal Lands were experiencing one of the wealthiest eras that a lower plane could ever see. Their sheer number of heroic experts was unheard of in the historical records. Also, many cultivators were slowly reaching the peak of the fifth rank. Every organization expected more powerhouses to appear in the following years. Many experts linked that rare phenomenon to the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. Still, a few of them believed that the exceptional talents living in their era affected that trend. In less than a millennium, the world had seen God''s Right Hand''s ascension, King Elba''s dimensional portal, the fall of a new continent, wars of various width, and a crisis featuring a quasi-divine creature. Those events had given birth to countless talents that either inspired others or created even more shocking scenes. The positive trend never stopped because of that, and more experts felt spurred to do better. The hybrids remained for a few months over the Cut before many of them gave up on seizing the inheritance. Skully eventually abandoned the region too. Only a few weaker specimens remained there, and the Council prepared good accommodations for them. As for Noah, he had become the main topic of many conversations in that period. Noah almost couldn''t help himself. The last session of meditation near the Cut had given him so many ideas that he had started another one right away. Crowds of experts would reach the Cut and fail to last for more than a few days while he remained immersed in the divine aura for months. By the time his second training session ended, the Hive had already decided who was suitable for that type of procedure. Noah saw an Elder of the Council handing him a bucket filled with crystalline water when he opened his eyes. His mind struggled under the effects of that refreshing liquid, but he noticed how the pagodas were almost empty when he managed to focus. Many Elders had given up in that period. They had believed that hard work and constancy could eventually lead them to the bottom of the inheritance. Yet, that belief had vanished when they saw how long Noah could last. Only a few stubborn experts and a small group of hybrids had remained in the area. No one else felt like wasting time near the fissure when there were existences better suited for that inheritance. Hard work was pointless when Noah could absorb knowledge faster and for longer periods than anyone else. He could learn in days what other experts would take years to recreate in their minds. It wasn''t a matter of talent. Noah had never stopped using swords through the entirety of his cultivation journey, and that made him the perfect heir for that inheritance. Noah didn''t give much importance to those events. His mind could only focus on the forms contained inside the ancient aura now. He felt his expertise improving with each second spent in that meditation, and his body reached the peaks that he couldn''t usually force during the process. A war was about to start, and he had to improve as fast as he could before invading the Royal Academy. Noah didn''t know how much time he had, but he preferred to spend it training next to the Cut since the dark star would push his body''s abilities there. Studying resources for years wouldn''t give him the same immediate benefits as the Divine Cut. Improving his martial arts was even Noah''s priority, so he found no reason to be elsewhere. The Hive sent him weekly reports concerning June and King Elbas'' situation. All the new continent''s investigative structures focused their attention on the Royals'' domain, waiting for the powerhouse to leave the surface. The alliance knew that King Elbas expected the arrival of an attack after his departure. The powerhouse wouldn''t lose his chance to capture a Kesier Ape in the seventh rank, but he wouldn''t leave his domain unprotected. The Hive and the Council had to wait until King Elbas felt ready to leave the surface, which meant that they had to let years pass while they prepared for their offensive too. June did her best to kill her boredom. She entered the separate dimension and spent time with Thirty-seven. Her reward from Shandal''s dimension was the perfect bribe to learn even more about formations. A few years had to pass before the Elbas family showed some changes. They weren''t anything flashy, and they didn''t affect the weaker troops in the peripheral regions. No one informed the weaker cultivators about events of that importance, so their behavior didn''t change. However, the higher-ups of the Royals began to act slightly differently than usual. Experts gradually came back from the other world, and the resources exchanged or bought in the various trades saw a change in their nature. The masters of the alliance knew that the new resources exchanged with the Royals had the purpose of fueling defensive formations of protections of various kinds. The Elbas family had begun to prepare for the imminent battle, and it was trying to hide it. The alliance waited a few more years and contacted Noah only when it felt sure that King Elbas had left the surface. The war was ready to start. He just had to make the first move. Chapter 1060: 1060. Promise Noah ended his meditation session and went through the mental messages accumulated in his inscribed notebook once his mind recovered. The alliance claimed that King Elbas had left the surface for a few years already, and Noah agreed with the experts'' conclusion once he inspected the clues gathered in that period. Cracks appeared on the walls of his cave when his determination surged. Sharpness leaked out of his mind as a natural consequence of his concentration. The environment around him almost fell apart because of that. Noah had never felt so in tune with his martial art before. His expertise had fused with the forms inside the ancient aura and had given birth to countless inspirations. The inheritance was still there. Noah had yet to reach its end. He didn''t test its effects, so he didn''t know how strong he had become. However, he felt that he could express his new knowledge right away. That confidence didn''t come only from his body. The dark star pushed his learning capabilities to the limit during the meditation next to the Cut, but that alone wasn''t enough to make him learn new techniques instantly. The main reason behind that feeling came from the nature of the divine aura. Noah had to translate the forms before absorbing them, but they became part of him once his mind memorized them. Noah spent a few months pushing his centers of power to their peak state and improving them slightly. He didn''t want his existence to have any weakness before approaching the invasion. Mental messages shot from his inscribed notebook as he came out of his cave. He was telling the Hive to prepare since he was about to make his move. The light of the teleportation matrix shone in his eyes before the familiar environment of the separate dimension appeared in his vision. Noah had returned there after leaving the Council''s domain, and he found an annoyed June waiting for him. "You know that this isn''t my fault," Noah said as he took her in his embrace and kissed her forehead. "You could have put a bit more pressure on that old geezer," June complained, but her expression relaxed when she laid her head on his chest. The couple remained in that position for a few minutes before moving toward the next teleportation matrix. The path leading to the Royal Academy was only a few hours from their spot. Crowds of experts waited for them whenever they teleported in another area. They performed polite greetings and wished them good luck before they moved to the next matrices. Noah saw his acquaintances and friends along the way. Chasing Demon didn''t show his face, and the two Demons appeared only before the couple reached the last matrix. "You aren''t coming with me this time," Noah said when he gazed at the two Demons. He was about to go all-out, and he couldn''t let the couple be near him when that happened. He wasn''t even sure if his new enhanced sharpness would spare their lives once he stopped holding back. They couldn''t go with June either. She had to make the trip alone, and no one could help her in the mission. "We''ll wait for both of you on the frontlines," Dreaming Demon said while wearing a warm smile. Flying Demon limited himself to wink at Noah before the couple sent them off. Thirty-seven waited for the couple at the end of that corridor. He had created two exists toward the Royal Academy. One of them ended up inside the restricted areas, while the other teleported right at the structures'' center. June knew the Academy''s basic layout and position, so the automaton had managed to be precise with his inscriptions. The exits were incomplete though. He had to place the last line before the arrays could activate. Noah and June turned toward each other and exchanged a long stare. That could be their last time together. There were only two possible outcomes after they stepped on the matrices: A life together in the open or death. "I remember the first time we fought," June said as she took slow steps toward her lover. "We have lived for five centuries, but that memory is still clear in my mind." "You are speaking as someone who is about to die," Noah said while wearing a smirk and closing the distance to caress her face. June showed a warm smile at their usual exchange of lines, but she soon lowered her eyes when painful thoughts surged in her mind. Noah lifted her face at that sight, and June''s hand went on his chest to feel his burning core. "Noah," June said as her eyes went down again, "You have given new life to two nations, and one of them has reached the peak of the Mortal Lands thanks to you. You have revived old monsters whose only fate was to die in a forgotten dimension. You have given flesh, muscles, and organs to ancient bones." June''s words felt like heavy hammers when they reached Noah''s ears. He knew what she was trying to do, and it pained him having to hold back to let her finish. That could be their last time together. Noah wouldn''t dare to interrupt his lover at that moment. June squeezed his robe, and her fingers pointed on his metallic skin in a desperate attempt to remain with him forever. However, her grasp soon relaxed, and more words came out of her mouth. "I am the foundation of your life," She said, "But your creation is much more than that. It has already surpassed what a single death can affect." "You don''t have to say all of this," Noah said as he took her hand. "Yes, I have to," June replied, moving her free hand on his face, "Promise me that you won''t let a single death leave a crack in your individuality." Noah could only stare at June in silence after her words. She was too important for him, so he had no confidence in promising that. Yet, he could see the anxiety in her eyes. It was as if she was begging for him to say that. "I promise," Noah eventually said, "My creation won''t stop even if you die. Still, it won''t be the same without you." Calm appeared on June''s face when she heard that. She pointed her feet to leave a quick kiss on Noah''s lips before battle intent filled her expression. The dark matter came out of his body as her black sparks lifted Noah''s restrictions. Her cultivation level exploded with power as she left her lover''s arms and moved toward her designated teleportation matrix. Noah followed her with his eyes, and he suppressed his feelings as he walked toward the other matrix. His eyes never left his lover even when the light of the teleportation engulfed both figures. Thirty-seven inspected the exits after they disappeared, but his expression froze when he saw the condition of Noah''s matrix. Deep cuts had divided all the lines of the array in half. Chapter 1061: 1061. Jelly Noah felt a sticky membrane enveloping his figure even before the light of the teleportation matrix faded. A female voice reached his ears while his eyes became used to the new scenery. "We knew someone would have used this method to invade us!" The cultivator exclaimed. "State your name and your organiz-." The cultivator stopped speaking when the light dispersed, and Noah''s figure became visible. Everyone in the world knew his face, so she couldn''t help but feel fear when she recognized him. Noah found himself covered in a green substance that hindered his movements and kept him locked on the ground. The material resembled an elastic and opaque jelly capable of blocking even his mental waves. The Elbas family didn''t forget about the raids in the Utra nation. Its many inscription masters didn''t understand the nature of the separate dimension, but they developed measures that could block any ability of that kind. The woman analyzed the jelly around Noah with a worried expression. The material could stop quasi-rank 6 attacks, but it couldn''t hold a powerhouse for long. According to his centers of power, Noah wouldn''t be considered a complete powerhouse, but the battle prowess shown in the other world had demonstrated that he was more than worthy of that title. The woman began to retreat, knowing that Noah would break free anytime soon. However, she had underestimated how deep inside the sixth rank Noah''s power was, and her initial hesitation turned out to be a fatal mistake. Noah had spent so long immersed in the ancient aura that some of his mind''s features had changed already. His mental waves had become sharper, and his existence had returned to express the main characteristic that had accompanied his individuality since the beginning. He was a blade. His individuality had begun to express other features as he explored his destruction and creation, but his sharpness had always been the first will fueled by his ambition. Noah could easily break out of the jelly''s constraints, but he would lose half an instant to do so, and the woman wearing a golden robe would escape due to that delay. Yet, his middle finger was free to move since the edges of his hand kept that spot without jelly. Noah only needed to flicker it for a black line to come out of his palm and pierce the green substance. If his existence was a blade, then every cell of his body could become a sword. Noah had always used weapons to enhance his power output, but the Cut had shown him that he could apply his sharpness to his entire being. The woman of the Elbas family was only a cultivator at the peak of the fourth rank. The jelly weakened Noah''s casual slash, but his enemy''s body shattered when the black line touched her back. Noah stabbed his fingers in the opening and widened his arms. The jelly tried to stop him, but the sheer power contained in his limbs forced stretched it until it snapped. His consciousness expanded as he tore apart the green substance lingering on his body. His mission was to attract as much attention as possible and see if his target was inside the Royal Academy. The Royals wouldn''t forget about June with him there. They would initially try to take care of both intruders, but Noah had already decided to go all-out. His mental waves could cover almost all the Academy, but they couldn''t seep through many buildings. There were defensive inscriptions everywhere, and many structures had multiple layers of them. The layout of the Royal Academy became clear in Noah''s mind. To his surprise, the Elbas family had arranged that place in the same way as the old Academy. The Royal Academy resembled a small city that had a shining river dividing it into two parts. One side had various habitations, while the other had large research buildings. Of course, the value of those structures was on a superior league compared to the old Academy. That wasn''t a place where human cultivators could walk, and even beings in the fourth rank would find it hard to endure the pressure accumulated in the area. Noah could sense the presence of training zones in the peripheral areas of the Academy, but his interest was in the assets that populated the buildings and streets. His focus eventually went on one of them. His mental waves had successfully located Cecil Elbas. ''You were here in the end,'' Noah thought as a smile appeared on his face, and black smoke came out of his skin. He couldn''t help but feel happy at the idea that he was about to unleash his destruction in that place. That feeling didn''t come only from his enmity with the Elbas family. He was simply happy that he was about to express his individuality. Countless shining lines lit up around him as soon as he took a step outside of the jelly. Many defenses activated, and runes even appeared on the sky since his corrosive smoke was tainting the air. Noah felt the power of the sixth rank in some of the lines around him, but his mind sensed no danger. It was as if it knew that he could cross them easily. The spiked armor formed, and Snore appeared next to him. The Demonic Sword came out of his robe and flew inside his clawed hand, ready to fight alongside him. Noah didn''t worry about his living weapon''s integrity anymore. The Cut had shown him movements that could alleviate the pressure on the Demonic Sword even if he used most of his physical strength. The ground morphed, and fifty armored knights came out of it. A silver metallic layer covered their bodies, and each of them radiated the power of the peak of the fifth rank. Purple lines appeared in the sky, and a heavy pressure began to focus on Noah''s mind. A series of mirrors came out of the buildings nearby, and "Breath" of various elements gathered on their surface. Three massive humanoid puppets surged from the river in the distance and began to walk in Noah''s direction. They exuded power in the sixth rank, and their bodies appeared to lack a core, which meant that there was only water in their structure. More and more defenses activated in the distance. It was as if the entirety of the Royal Academy had transformed into an army of inscribed items that had to take him down as their only goal. Noah didn''t expect any less from the most advanced organization in the inscription field. Actually, he found those defenses too weak, which told him that there were more of them in deeper parts of the Academy. A series of cultivators wearing golden armors rose from some buildings in the distance. All of them wielded heavy cannons that had shining lines covering the entirety of its surface. Everything pointed toward Noah, but he didn''t show any fear. ''I guess I can begin,'' Noah thought as the fiendish smirk on his helmet enlarged. A human-shaped crack appeared in his position, and a starry sky covered the entire area. Chapter 1062: 1062. Grudge The world lost its light for a second, and Noah reappeared in the sky with his fiendish mouth still open. Flames spread under him, and the armored knights crumbled under the might of his innate ability. The aura radiated by the purple lines pressed on his mind and made him deplete more mental energy, but Noah preferred to take care of the other defenses first. Moreover, he would exhaust his solid darkness before emptying his sea of consciousness anyway, so he didn''t mind those inscriptions. Some of the mirrors shattered under the shockwaves released by his attack, but the others followed his figure and launched beams made of different elements. Meanwhile, the cultivators in the distance fired their cannons, which shot large bullets covered in a smelly substance. Noah tilted his wrist, and hundreds of black lines shot from the Demonic Sword. That simple gesture had been enough to launch slashes in every direction, and all of them had a quasi-rank 6 power! The Demonic Sword didn''t feel any pressure when releasing that attack. The period spent immersed inside the Cut''s aura had made him able to control his strength and turn his every move into a slash. The slashes crashed on the defensive measures. The beams couldn''t do anything against them, and the black lines landed on the mirrors. The bullets opposed some resistance, but Noah''s attacks pierced them anyway, even if they dispersed a few meters after. The mirrors shattered, and their buildings began to crumble due to the impact. Corrosive smoke spread on those spots too and seeped inside the cracks that had formed. The bullets exploded after being cut in half. They released a poisonous cloud that clashed with the Demonic Sword''s corrosive smoke. The two corrosive abilities destroyed each other as they fought. Noah''s eyes sharpened at that sight. He didn''t unleash his full power, but the Elbas family had managed to block him without suffering any losses. Also, those were only the first layers of defense. ''I might not be able to seize anything,'' Noah realized when he saw more knights rising from the ground. They were different at that time. Their metallic surface had turned black and had a few runes on it. More mirrors appeared on the intact buildings nearby. They began to accumulate "Breath" again, but Noah felt a sense of disgust when his consciousness analyzed that flow of energy. He understood what was happening instantly, but he wanted to test how effective that procedure was. The world lost its light again, and more flames covered the ground. Most of the knights crumbled, but some of them managed to endure the might of the flames. The mirrors launched white beams at that point, and Noah answered with the same slashes. The cultivator''s cannon shot again, but black lines were already flying in their direction, and the clash with the bullets created threatening clouds right next to them. The slashes fended off the white beams, but they didn''t manage to reach the buildings. More black knights surged from the ground, and they appeared as an improved version of those that had survived his flames. Noah could only watch as the defensive formations adapted themselves at his abilities and element. The new knights had high resistance to flames, while the white beams had used "Breath" of the light element as their fuel. He had never heard of anything similar. Formations usually had a specific task and set weaknesses. They didn''t change their approach according to their opponent unless someone controlled them. ''Can I even reach the core?'' Noah wondered, but he knew the answer to that question already. He was in the middle of one of the most advanced places in the world. He had no hope to cross those defenses on his own. Noah changed approach at that realization. Continuing to fight the defensive formations would only cause him more problems. It was better to aim for his target and unleash as much destruction as he could along the way. A human-shaped crack appeared in the sky as he shot toward Cecil''s presence. The latter was right beyond the three water puppets, and Noah''s initial idea was to ignore them. However, more lines lit up in the sky while he sprinted in his dark dimension. A series of currents came out of the puppets, and they blocked Noah''s path in multiple spots as they created a massive wall. There seemed to be sensors that worked together with the defenses all around the Academy. Puppets at the bottom of the sixth rank could gain an awareness superior to many powerhouses thanks to them. Noah felt forced to stop. Currents shot out of the wall in front of him, and white beams came after him from behind. The cultivators had pulled the trigger on the cannons, and the knights had begun to fly in his direction. That situation was dire. Noah wouldn''t suffer any injury, but he couldn''t let the formations gain the upper hand in that situation. Being suppressed there would mean having to break through the constant assault of protections tuning with his power. Snore enveloped his figure, and a layer of dark rocks covered its dark skin. Then, Noah threw hundreds of Instabilities as the rocky armor formed. Explosions echoed in the Royal Academy. The sky became a chaotic place filled with clouds of corrosive smoke and saber-shaped runes. The many attacks that had adapted to his power fell apart under the Instabilities'' might. Noah had taken the defensive formations by surprise when he relied on a different offensive. Nothing went through the layer of black rocks, and Snore released Noah when the storm of fuming sabers ended. Devastation unfolded in his eyes. Many buildings of the Academy had crumbled due to the sudden deployment of so many disposable weapons. Only the defenses that surpassed the fifth rank in power had survived that amount of destruction. Some of the shining lines had also gone dim, which gave Noah hope in defeating the defenses of the Academy. However, a wave of golden light soon spread from the ground, and the destroyed formations began to reform under that halo. The Elbas family had even created methods to restore inscriptions. Noah wasn''t an expert in the formations field, but he knew that such a feature was incredible even for the best masters! Noah didn''t stop his tracks due to his astonishment. Flames came out of his fiendish mouth, and elemental attacks shot from his Blood Companion. Snore even spread its wings as it began to charge its feathers. His wrist trembled from time to time, and hundreds of black lines shot out of the Demonic Sword. More cultivators rose in the distance, and Noah even saw Cecil through the holes that had formed on the water puppets'' wall. The Elbas family''s assets were ganging on him, and his smile couldn''t help but become wider at that sight. Those same cultivators had tried to suppress him in the past, but he was fighting alone against them now. Noah felt as if he was finally solving a grudge that had lingered in his mind for centuries. Chapter 1063: 1063. Intense battle Noah never stopped launching attacks. Multicolored lights filled the sky above the Royal Academy, and black clouds expanded among them as they tried to consume every defensive method. No side gained an advantage over the other. The defensive formations wasted a large amount of "Breath" to block the attacks and launch their abilities, while Noah depleted his energies to pressure them with his incessant offensive. Noah and the defensive measures appeared equally matched, but he was slowly losing ground. New knights came out of the ground, and they had an additional layer of protection around their armors at that time. A series of metallic shields appeared in front of the mirrors while they gathered energy. The defensive formations adapted to the Instabilities, his slashes, and Snore''s elemental attacks. Noah found it hard to advance in that situation since those inscriptions became more difficult to pierce. His movement technique allowed him to escape from any encirclement, but he couldn''t use it to sprint toward his enemies due to the many sensors filling the Royal Academy. He couldn''t even focus on those devices since the ground would fix them in a few minutes. He could exploit the period between one fix and another to aim for the Royals, but breaking the defenses on his path required more time. The Elbas family had created a perfect array of formations, and that was only the most superficial layer. ''I won''t even see the protections meant for stronger powerhouses at this pace,'' Noah thought as he disappeared in a human-shaped crack. The formations would force him to retreat soon if he didn''t change the trend of that battle. He wasn''t strong enough to overpower the various layers of protection, but there was something that he could do. The formations struggled against his attacks before the adaptation process kicked in, so he had a short opportunity every time he revealed a new ability. Still, revealing small bits of his power could only give him a minute or two before the formations countered him again. If he wanted to create a good opportunity, he had to show everything at the same time! The dark star in his chest spun faster when it sensed Noah''s determination. Massive amounts of nutrients went on his mind as a sea of saber-shaped runes surrounded his figure. The Black Hole spell followed the appearance of the fuming sabers. Noah had yet to improve his abilities, but those two skills could grow until they reached the sixth rank even without modifications. The sky of the Royal Academy reeked of his destruction. Noah had unleashed some of his strongest attacks for a while by then. Primary energy filled every inch of the battlefield. Most of it converged toward Snore''s wings, but some went on the other spells. Noah didn''t let the defensive formations hurt his spells. The black sphere and the runes shot above him and remained still as they absorbed primary energy. Snore did the same, but it continued to launch elemental attacks while it charged its feathers. Countless white beams and knights shot in Noah''s direction while he flew higher in the sky. Purple light pressed on his mental sphere, and water currents followed him to try to block his retreat. Noah spewed flames and launched black lines. His Demonic Form and attacks filled the entire sky with corrosive smoke that the formations soon felt forced to focus. The threat of the Demonic Form wasn''t something that they could ignore. The black clouds had rank 6 power even if they weren''t at their best due to the level of his dantian. The formation could focus only on Noah initially because he used the corrosive smoke to block some of the attacks. However, as the battle continued, those defenses had to switch their attention to his spell. Noah flew even higher in the sky. He was buying as much time as he could for his spells. Yet, he felt forced to act when he saw that the formations were starting to ignore him. The Black Hole spell and the saber-shaped runes still needed some time to reach power in the sixth rank, so he began his counterattack by throwing his remaining Instabilities downward. Hundreds of spiked sphere flew toward a dense array of white beams and water currents that surrounded an army of knights. Loud explosions echoed in the sky as the disposable weapons crashed on the attacks of the defensive formations. A storm made of fuming spikes ravaged the battlefield. They didn''t distinguish enemy from foe, and many of them flew toward Noah, who limited himself to glance coldly at the sharp runes. Metallic sounds resounded as the spikes landed on his metallic skin. Snore was busy charging its attack, so Noah wanted to block the blow to let his Blood Companion focus. White marks appeared on his skin as the chaotic storm of runes crashed on him. Some of them even tried to fly toward his spells, but Noah moved to act as a human shield. The white beams couldn''t do anything against the Instabilities, but many knights and the water currents survived the explosions. The spikes had ruined their structure, but the defenses continued to fly toward their target. The water began to disperse once reached the thick cloud. The rank 6 puppets were the only ones that could deal with Noah''s corrosive smoke, so they focused their offensive on it. The knights waited for the currents to create a path through the cloud before shooting toward Noah. Black lines clashed on the flying knights, dividing all of them in half. Noah''s spiked armor was a mess due to the storms of runes, but he didn''t suffer any injury. Instead, that last exchange had made him gain enough time to launch his counterattack. The defensive formations were still charging their next offensive when they saw a storm of abilities with rank 6 power falling toward the ground. The Black Hole spell flew downward, absorbing any energy still lingering in the air before slamming directly at the center of the Academy. Snore launched its feathers, aiming for the river among the shining structures. The saber-shaped runes ravaged the sky and destroyed the annoying purple lines, dispersing the mental pressure that was becoming unbearable. Noah flew downward together with his abilities. Flames and black lines shot from his figure, aiming toward the sensors and attacks of the cultivators coming from the distance. The chaos on the battlefield intensified. Noah''s abilities pushed back all the defensive formations'' attacks and suppressed those defenses for a window that he didn''t hesitate to exploit. His figure disappeared, leaving behind a human-shaped crack in the fabric of the sky. The sensors couldn''t sense his movements due to the intense shockwaves that filled the battlefield. The Elbas family''s cultivators couldn''t notice that most of the defensive formations were offline, but some of them sensed an immense danger while they escaped from the range of the destructive storm. Cecil Elbas was among them, but the danger that he felt skyrocketed when a scorching hand sealed its grasp around the back of his neck. Chapter 1064: 1064. You win Noah reappeared behind the escaping Cecil, and his hand squeezed the back of his neck, forcing him to stay still while his companions retreated. The water puppets had crumbled after Snore''s feathers ravaged the river. They didn''t have a core inside them, so Noah had guessed that the shining stream fueled those defenses. His guess had been on point since the puppets, and their abilities lost power once Snore''s attack destroyed most of the river. The water directly disintegrated when the feathers crashed on the riverbed, and the cracks spread to ruin the previous orderly shape of the canal. The Black Hole spell had eradicated the superficial layer of the ground, halting the creation of knights. Most of the buildings had vanished during the explosion, and the mirrors on them suffered from the same fate. His flames had created a starry sky right above the ground that ravaged anything that had survived the previous spells. The Royal Academy lost entire quarters instantly once his innate ability managed to exploit their defenseless state. Noah had deactivated the Demonic Form by the time he reached Cecil, but the corrosive smoke still lingered behind him. The cultivators on the other side of the battlefield couldn''t help due to the threatening cloud blocking their path. Moreover, the flames and the corrosive smoke had filled the battlefield so much that the healing light struggled to fix the formations'' countless damages. Noah noticed how that golden light could even reform formations that his attacks had wrecked, but he didn''t have time to feel amazed. His target was in his grasp, and he had crossed the initial defensive layers. He would typically use that situation to spread his destruction even more, but he had to confirm something before pressing forward. Cecil remained frozen in place under Noah''s pressure. He felt as if his life was the frailest thing in the world with the invader''s fingers around his neck. Yet, that terror couldn''t compare with the fear he felt when Noah''s cold words reached his ears. "Did you kill Ivor?" Noah asked, while his mouth almost touched the Royal''s ear. Cecil shuddered, and a tinge of disbelief made its way through his fear when he understood the reasons behind Noah''s actions. "Did you do all of this for that ruined cultivator?" Cecil shouted in anger. He had accepted his death in those short seconds, so he didn''t fear to let out his true feelings in the last moments of his life. "Did you kill my son to avenge that walking corpse? Did you declare war to the Elbas family for an inscription master that could barely remember your name?" Noah didn''t even listen to his words. It didn''t matter if the reasons that drove his actions were petty. He didn''t care that almost five hundred years had passed since Ivor''s events. Noah wanted closure on Ivor''s death, so he would fight for it. His opponents could either have the power to stop him or die. "Did you kill Ivor?" Noah asked again as his fingertips pierced Cecil''s skin. Some of the escaping Royals stopped their retreat and wielded inscribed cannons when they saw that Noah didn''t follow them. They prepared a battle formation to block him as soon as he resumed his charge. The golden light continued to fix the formations while Noah remained still. On the other side of the battlefield, the cultivators began to fly around the corrosive cloud to help their companions. Noah was wasting precious time, and Cecil knew it. His mind had become clearer than ever when he accepted his death. His only focus was on making sure that the Demon Prince of the Hive lost that battle now. No answer came from the suppressed Royal, and Noah knew that he didn''t have time to torture him. Also, Cecil was different from his son. He had the mindset of a real expert. Even when facing death, he had found a way to help his organization. Sharp thoughts surged inside Noah''s mind. He would have never invaded the Royal Academy only to kill Cecil during normal times, but he wanted to help June, so he had taken that risk. That whole mission was a ploy meant to make her task easier. Noah and the alliance could gain something out of it, but it wouldn''t be wrong to say that he had started a war to help his lover. "Fine," Noah whispered to Cecil''s ear. "I''ll play your game." Cecil felt an even colder chill spreading among his guts. He didn''t know what had changed, but he thought that something horrible was about to unfold. Dark matter covered the Royal''s body to create a layer of protection. Cecil was about to question Noah''s action, but an immense force pressed on him and made him unable to speak. Noah had shot forward without using any ability. His speed wasn''t as breathtaking as when he performed his technique, but it was still too much to endure for a solid stage cultivator like Cecil. Nevertheless, the dark matter protected the Royal''s body and left him able to see what was happening around him. Noah had sprinted directly among the enemy lines. The experts wielded heavy cannons and were far weaker than him, so they could barely react when they saw the invader landing among them. Cecil''s eyes widened when he saw hundreds of black lines shooting from the Demonic Sword and killing dozens of Royals in an instant. Peak rank 4 cultivators and various inscription masters in the fifth rank died, divided in half by attacks that they had no hope to block. "There''s more!" Noah shouted as growls accompanied his human voice. The Royals coming from the other side of the battlefield managed to cross the black cloud in time to see Noah landing among them. Cecil witnessed as Noah destroyed the very elites of the Elbas family. He had already killed many great experts when he returned from the hidden world, but that slaughter was different. Most of the cultivators fighting above the poisonous swamp had used the Royal Pool, which hurt their potential. Instead, those inside the Academy were valuable inscription masters. The Elbas family''s most significant advantage over other organizations was its superiority in studies that covered every field of the cultivation journey. Those experts were the foundation of its preeminence and killing them hurt its very future. Noah activated the Black Hole spell and rereleased the saber-shaped runes. His destruction never stopped spreading, so there was plenty of primary energy to fuel his attacks. Tinges of regret appeared in Cecil''s mind, but he remained silent. He wouldn''t concede to those threats. He could claim that small victory over Noah, and he had every intention to make that his last act of defiance. Noah continued to kill until all the cultivators had died. Only Cecil remained alive, but no sound came out of him. "You win," Noah eventually said when he saw that Cecil had no intention to give in. "I''ll just destroy everything." The dark matter around Cecil compressed, reducing him into a bloody pulp. Noah would never obtain his answer, but he had the entire Royal Academy waiting for him to vent. Chapter 1065: 1065. Powerhouses The formations of the Royal Academy partially regrew while Noah killed the experts. Some attacks shot toward him, but he dived right into the corrosive cloud to make them lose his tracks. White beams and knights pierced the cloud, but the corrosive smoke destroyed them before they could even find Noah again. The current power of the defensive formations was still too low to face his abilities. The destruction accumulated on the battlefield continued to fuel Noah''s spells. His offensive would be more vigorous with Snore''s feathers, but the Blood Companion had used all its bullets to destroy the river. Water started to come out from the destroyed riverbed. The ground even fixed itself under the influence of the golden light. However, it was still too early for it to summon the rank 6 puppets again. Noah remained inside the cloud and inspected the ground. He felt slightly surprised that those in control of the defenses were only trying to restore the previous formations since they had already proved themselves too weak to stop him. No different patterns appeared on the ground, and the structures only showed the same layout while they regrow. Noah felt that something was off, but he wouldn''t let that scare him. The Black Hole spell and the saber-shaper runes had reached power in the sixth rank while he waited, so he made them fall downward. A massive black sphere and a torrent of sabers flew toward the ground, and Noah came out of the cloud in his fiendish form to join his abilities. The ground opened before the attacks even landed. The pressure radiated by Noah''s offensive was enough to disperse the golden light and destroy the few shining lines that it had restored. A loud shockwave spread through the Royal Academy. Entire layers of the ground directly disintegrated as his attacks dug their way into the depths of the area. The Black Hole spell covered the entirety of the central area with its explosion, but Noah remained in its range, uncaring of the pressure that landed on his body. The shockwave didn''t even manage to make him change his trajectory. The color of the ground changed at some point. Noah saw a smooth black layer appearing on his path and fending off the shockwave that had preceded him. It seemed that he had reached a restricted area, but a tough material wouldn''t be enough to stop his offensive. The sabers converged in front of him and began to rotate to form a drill-like formation that clashed on the black wall. Screeching sounds spread from that spot, but everything went silent right before Noah landed. Noah felt the sharpness of the sabers-shaped runes resonating in his mind. He only needed to point the Demonic Sword toward the center of the drill to make all of them stop for a second. The sabers and the Demonic Swords stopped leaking any aura before exploding with the same sharpness at the same time. The two attacks became a single technique that fused the power of two rank 6 blows into one. The black wall had metallic properties, and defensive formations were reinforcing its structure on the other side. It could endure a few spells from a powerhouse, but Noah''s attack cracked its surface and made a hole that reached the other side. An eerie aura came out of the hole, but a dangerous sensation appeared in Noah''s mind as his consciousness sensed two powerful presences above him. Noah glanced at the cracked wall while stopping his offensive. The cracks weren''t enough to make him go to the other side, so he had to accept that his exploration of the restricted areas was over. Noah kicked on the wall to jump right back on the surface. Two silver-haired cultivators floated in the sky as they waited for him. Their golden eyes shone with the arrogance proper only of the Elbas family''s pure bloodline, and their centers of power expressed their status as powerhouses. "Second Prince was right again," First Prince said as he smiled toward Noah, "He is the same Demon that has invaded the old Academy." "Second Prince is usually right," Second Princess said while glancing at Noah with the same smile as her brother. "He might fight us this time." Noah''s fiendish form continued to emit corrosive smoke that covered his figure in a black cloud. Everything quickly became dark in his view, but that didn''t stop him from recognizing the two Royals. They were the silver-haired cultivators that had stopped him and the Demons from raiding the old Academy. Noah had to use Chasing Demon''s talisman at that time, but now he was a different existence. "Does the Patriarch of the Balvan Family like to hide?" First Prince said as fire surrounded his figure. Second Princess looked at the corrosive smoke and plucked a hair from her head to give birth to a giant fiery snake. She had instantly decided to use her bloodline to fuel her flames. She wasn''t using primary energy, but her fire was far more intense than her brother''s. Noah''s battle intent surged when he fixed his consciousness on the two Royals. He had only fought magical beasts and poorly trained hybrids since he had become a powerhouse. Those creatures were far inferior to cultivators in terms of battle prowess, and their only advantage was that they could endure his physical strength. However, cultivators could rely on spells, defensive items, and their experience in battles at that level. Noah didn''t expect to overpower them with a few tricks or by betting everything on his body. ''I wonder what peaks my body will reach against them,'' Noah thought as his eyes went on the Demonic Sword in his grasp. The Cut''s aura had enlightened him on many offensive methods that featured swords, but Noah had yet to use those that would express the full might of his body. He could launch powerful slashes without hurting his living weapon thanks to the expertise gained in the divine inheritance, but those techniques didn''t suit him. He knew how to launch gentle attacks, but he remained a creature with physical strength that surpassed even hybrids. His real power was in slashes that required brute strength other than technique. The only problem was that his Demonic Sword couldn''t survive many of them. ''You might get hurt,'' Noah thought, and the Demonic Sword answered with a roar that carried pure battle intent when it understood his feelings. With Noah''s breakthroughs and Snore, the Demonic Sword had found itself unable to shine during battles. It still was an incredible asset in his arsenal, but it had to wait for his dantian to reach the sixth rank before becoming a crucial part of his offensive. Noah had never forgotten about his living weapon, and even his idea of forging a rank 6 weapon was only a temporary solution. The Demonic Sword carried his individuality, so he knew that he would never abandon it. ''Fine then,'' Noah thought, and the Demonic Sword became smaller in his palm. It became as short as a knife as he raised it above his head and wielded it with both hands. Chapter 1066: 1066. Slashes The Demonic Sword had a flexible structure. It could compress and divide itself according to Noah''s needs, but it needed to return solid during specific actions. Noah couldn''t use the Demonic Sword to cultivate when it wasn''t in its original form, and he needed it in specific shapes to perform his martial art in the past. Yet, the Cut had sharpened his individuality and made him find his original expression of his power. A sword could slash in any form, even if it were nothing more than a short knife. Noah didn''t want the Demonic Sword to suffer due to his physical strength, but there wasn''t a way around that issue. He could either hold back while performing different slashes or change the living weapon''s shape to increase its density. In the form of a short knife, the Demonic Sword would be able to endure more pressure without affecting its sharpness. Noah only had to change his slashes slightly to tune it with the new length of the weapon. Second Princess had taken Noah''s seriously since the beginning and had used King Elbas'' iconic ability to fuel her flames. Instead, First Prince had limited himself to summon lumps of fire that floated around his figure as they waited for his orders. Noah would typically escape from that situation. He knew that he couldn''t win. Even with his many advantages and absurd body, he couldn''t deal with two powerhouses and the Royal Academy''s formations at the same time. Moreover, those two cultivators were King Elbas'' direct descendants. Noah wouldn''t be able to kill them if they had only a fraction of their father''s inscribed items. However, June was still somewhere inside the Academy. Noah didn''t know her status, but he wanted to gather the attention on himself for a long as he could anyway. His body gave him another reason to fight in that situation. The dark star''s best functions were on the hands of his subconscious, and Noah could trick it by putting himself in a tough fight. Fighting against the two powerhouses could force his body to create new techniques or finish the projects he had started since the end of the chrysalis. The two powerhouses kept on staring at the enlarging corrosive cloud while they waited for their opponent to come out. Even existences on that level couldn''t ignore the power of the Demonic Form. They preferred to remain still until Noah made a move rather than jumping into his dangerous lair. Small golden circles shone on First Prince''s fingertips. The Royal tapped them on the air, and flashy signals spread throughout the Royal Academy at his gestures. The golden light radiated from the ground began to neglect the destroyed buildings and lines in charge of creating knights to fix the sensors quickly. It seemed that First Prince was in charge of the defensive formations of the Academy. As the clash against Noah became imminent, he prioritized the restoration of the protections that could hinder Noah''s most annoying ability. There was no countermeasure to Noah''s sprints in the end. No one on that level was as fast as him. The Royals could predict and react to his movement technique only if the formations helped them out. A tremor swept the cloud, and the Royals prepared themselves for Noah''s attack. Yet, the sensors shone and began to send pieces of information to their minds that made them dodge immediately. A large part of the sky disappeared. A tall vertical fissure had suddenly appeared on the powerhouses'' previous spot, and they could only stare at it in astonishment. That crack was thirty meters tall and four large. It wasn''t the type of damage that the sky could fix quickly. Its size even created consequences in the environment. A vortex appeared in front of the crack, and the air went into the void. The fact that laws converged on that spot to fix it gave birth to a traction force that led matter into the darkness. The traction force didn''t affect only the air. Broken pieces of the formations, energy, and even part of the golden light ended up dragged inside the void. Noah had been able to create a natural catastrophe with a single slash! The Royals had no words to describe that event. They had spells capable of expressing as much power as Noah, but his sharpness made him far more dangerous for the world''s structure. His sharpness was more effective on material defenses, which made him a troublesome existence to face. They didn''t feel surprised about the destruction of the defensive formations anymore after that discovery. The sensors flickered like crazy while the two Royals retreated in opposite directions, and a golden light suddenly covered First Prince''s figure. A shockwave followed the appearance of that defensive measure. Noah had sprinted behind the powerhouse and delivered a punch, but the golden light absorbed most of the power behind his blow. "Not so fast, My Lord!" First Prince said as flames spread around his figure and engulfed Noah. The latter wanted to retreat, but he found that he couldn''t pull his fist out of the golden light even with his immense physical strength. The sky became red, and Second Princess launched her fiery snake toward her brother''s position to help him with the invader. First Prince''s fire had pushed the corrosive smoke away and dispersed part of Noah''s Demonic Form, but it vanished when a cry echoed in the battlefield and a starry sky spread in the area. Noah roared as he spewed black flames on the Royal''s defenses. The fiendish armor reformed completely while the golden light flickered under that offensive. Nevertheless, he still found himself unable to pull his fist back. The sight of First Prince''s arrogant smile and the dangerous sensation coming from Second Princess'' snake piled in Noah''s mind and made his dark star spin faster. Noah pointed the small Demonic Sword in his free hand toward the smiling Royal. His aura became an orderly tide that flowed toward the sky as it spread its sharpness in the environment. The fabric of the sky broke as Noah focused. The dark star forced the activation of the Divine Deduction technique to complete the slash that he needed to break free of that situation. Noah saw laws replacing the matter in front of him, and the world began to slow down. He started to see the various connections that kept the sky''s fabric united, and he instinctively learnt how to break them. His sharpness was a pure expression of his destruction. His existence could sever matter, fate, and even laws, and the fabric of the sky was only another hindrance on his path. Noah''s free hand moved slowly. He waved the tip of the Demonic Sword, separating laws from each other and creating a small cut in front of him. The Divine Deduction technique went dark at that point, and his vision became normal again. Yet, the scene that he saw was far different from before. The attack had cut the golden sphere around the Royal in half, and Noah''s slash had severed First Prince''s left arm too. Chapter 1067: 1067. Grin Noah''s battle prowess had reached the sixth rank even if his dantian was in the previous rank''s solid stage. His body gave him immense strength, and it elevated all his abilities to an unthinkable level for the state of his centers of power. His only weakness was that he had yet to go into seclusion to tune his attacks to the new power he acquired. Still, that wasn''t entirely his fault. Noah had learnt about June''s condition right after coming out of the chrysalis. Then, he discovered that there were rebels in the other world when he found her. He had to take care of the rebellion to save the dimensional tunnel, and the Council traded the Divine Cut for the Kesier Apes once he returned to the main world. The enlightenment obtained with the Cut''s aura had kept him fully occupied for years, which stopped the projects he had started in the previous free months. Noah didn''t even have the time to seize that Divine Inheritance since the time to start the assault on the Elbas family''s domain had arrived. In total, Noah had piled less than a year of actual training and seclusion, which was unthinkable for an entity on his level. The only reason he could express his current prowess was that the Divine Cut had pushed his individuality toward his sharpness. It was as if Noah had been through a polishing process that had taken out his strongest self. Still, there was a limit to how much power he could express due to the lack of training. However, his mind worked at an incredible speed when he was under pressure, or the situation required it. Noah had developed the movement technique in a matter of months, and most of the slashes performed during the assault on the Royal Academy were attacks that he had never tested. The same had happened at that moment. Noah had found himself stuck in a situation that required him to express more power, and his body had activated all his mental methods to create a technique that suited him. Of course, even his fantastic body had its limits. Noah needed to own the necessary power and expertise already for something on that level to be born. First Prince''s arrogant smile froze when he saw his left arm floating away from him together with the golden light that Noah had severed. Fear filled his mind as he thought about what would have happened if the defensive ability didn''t have enough "Breath" to deflect that blow. The truth was that the golden light had focused everything on restricting Noah, which meant that most of its "Breath" was between him and the Royal. That density of that energy had been enough to make Noah''s slash deviate from its original trajectory and cut First Prince''s arm instead of his head. "This is not possible," First Prince said slowly. His words resembled a mumbling proper of a researcher witnessing something that defied the laws of the world. The golden light came from a defensive item that had power at the peak of the gaseous stage of the sixth rank when it focused its energy on one spot. The "Breath" covered an entire side, so the defensive item didn''t reach its peak. Yet, it was still a shield that no newly advanced powerhouse could pierce! A human-shaped crack replaced Noah''s figure right before Second Princess'' snake engulfed that area. Her fire dispersed the starry sky and corrosive smoke but left First Prince unaffected. His sister''s spell didn''t hurt him. Noah reappeared behind Second Princess, but the sensors had warned her about his arrival. A golden light shone around her too and blocked his punch, locking him in the same situation as before. Second Princess didn''t stop there. She had seen what Noah was capable of, so she didn''t limit her defenses to that inscribed item. Wounds opened on her wrists, and blood flowed inside the light to empower its radiance. Noah executed his new cut again, and the laws in front of him separated. However, his slash found a denser layer of laws once it crashed on the golden light. A curse echoed in his mind when he saw that his new attack wasn''t able to pierce the shield. His Divine Deduction technique activated again as his body pushed his mental capabilities to their limits to solve that issue. Yet, Noah didn''t find anything in those fractions of instants. A conclusion became evident in his mind. His power wasn''t enough to pierce that defense. Second Princess revealed a smile at that sight, but her expression froze when she saw the fiendish figure doing the same. A wave of coldness filled her body as Noah sprinted backward to fly in the direction of the massive crack that the sky was still struggling to close. The pulling force became stronger as Noah dragged Second Princess and her defensive item toward the crack. His speed increased, and the Royal couldn''t help but shout when she saw how reckless her opponent was. "You are going to kill both of us!" Noah didn''t answer. Black smoke continued to come out of his spiked armor, which blocked any available path toward them. First Prince wanted to help her sister, but he had a hard time catching up with them. The fissure grew closer in Second Princess'' eyes. She had to do something to stop her opponent, but the golden light didn''t allow her to express her full power. Nevertheless, lowering her defenses would expose her to Noah. She was in a pickle, and no approach left her unharmed. Initially, she tried to test Noah''s recklessness. She didn''t believe that he would charge right into the void to kill her. Yet, the fiendish figure kept on looking at her with an evil grin, and his speed only increased as they neared the fissure. When they were about to reach the crack, she understood that Noah''s threats weren''t void. Multiple cuts appeared on her body, and blood covered her skin before she recalled the golden light. Then, her figure exploded into a fiery nova. Noah slashed as soon as he saw her defenses disappearing, but dense flames quickly pushed him away while dispersing his Demonic Form. A human-shaped crack replaced his figure right before he entered the fissure, and he reappeared above the sky to analyze the state of the battlefield. First Prince had just opened a path through the corrosive smoke when the flames destroyed every trace of it. A concerned expression appeared on his face when he saw that fire, but he relaxed after a bloodied figure appeared near him. Noah almost didn''t recognize Second Princess. What had appeared next to First Prince was a cultivator without any skin and missing the right part of her lower body. The last clash had left her badly injured, but she stood next to her brother as if nothing had happened. Even if she was only a cultivator, the resilience of a powerhouse was incredible. Chapter 1068: 1068. Invasion Noah didn''t suffer any injury during the battle, but that didn''t mean that he had the upper hand over his enemies. First Prince had only lost an arm, and Second Princess could suppress her wounds with her mental energy. Instead, Noah had wasted a lot of power, which was a problem that didn''t have an immediate solution. Noah had fought against the defensive formations and the various experts wielding inscribed items. Then the two powerhouses appeared, and he had to resort to even more powerful abilities to win a few exchanges. Using the movement technique, his spells, and his new slashes stressed his centers of power to no end, but his dantian was the organ that suffered the most from the pace of that battle. His abilities consumed immense quantities of his darkness since his dantian was still in the fifth rank, and his organ had to endure that fast depletion while he continued to fight. A dantian in the fifth rank would typically fall apart during a battle at that level. Noah''s organ could endure the various shockwaves and fast depletion due to his body, but it became sore nonetheless after being put under such heavy pressure. Noah could keep up for some more time, but he had no confidence in killing his opponents. The formations on the ground had almost completely reformed too, so he didn''t see much hope. ''I need more time,'' Noah thought as he stared at the two Royals immersed in the flames released by Second Princess. The environment was full of primary energy, but his spells couldn''t pierce their defensive items. Snore was out of feathers, and its attacks didn''t meet the standards for a battle on that level. Only his physical strength and slashes were adequate, but the Demonic Sword would reach its limits soon. His flames could only support him, and the Demonic Form was too easy to counter for his enemies. Noah''s expression didn''t reveal anything, but he had accepted that his only option in that situation was to retreat. ''How much longer?'' Noah wondered as he pretended to study his opponents. He knew that the Royals would wait for the formations to reform before resuming their offensive, but he didn''t have anything else to launch at them. June''s last words began to resound in his mind. His unwillingness reached its peak as the idea of leaving became more intense inside him. Every fiber of his existence raged at the thought of leaving her. Still, remaining there would lead to his death. The invasion would become a suicide mission if he allowed his enemies to corner him. Minutes of silence passed, with the Royals and Noah staring at each other. Second Princess even tested his reactions by drinking a few potions that healed her skin, but Noah didn''t react at that sight. Doubt formed inside the Royals'' mind. They believed that Noah had hidden intentions, but they couldn''t figure them out. They respected their opponent too much to think that he had invaded the Royal Academy unprepared. Yet, they couldn''t explain why he was purposely giving them time to recover. Still, the Royals didn''t act for fear of an eventual trap. Their respect for Noah was too great for them to think that he was buying time. The defensive formations eventually reformed, and the Royals exchanged a few glances before preparing massive spells. Both Second Princess and First Prince cut off long strands of their hair to give birth to six fiery snakes coiled around their figures. Blood came out of their wrists, and a series of humanoid giants made of fire appeared in front of them. The duo even plucked some of their fingernails to create long spears that pointed their fiery tips at Noah. The Royals had prepared their best offensive, and the defensive formations on the ground started to shine to announce their support to their owners. Noah saw an entire city and two powerhouses pointing all their firepower toward him. Noah didn''t even need to rely on his mind''s enhanced capabilities to understand that he wouldn''t be able to block the next attack. He would probably survive in a badly injured state, but his best option remained to retreat. His instincts fought inside him. His unwillingness to leave June and his desire to survive struggled to win Noah''s mind over, but he remained calm. Nothing could touch him when he relied on his movement techniques, especially if he flew upward, outside of the Royal Academy''s range. He could escape easily, so he had no reason to panic. As the Royals showed signs of impatience, Noah felt forced to act. He broke the silence to ask questions that could buy him even more time. "How did you reach the sixth rank? You are a copy of King Elbas'' individuality in the end." June had told him that the restricted areas of the Academy worked differently from the structures on the surface. They answered to different defensive layouts, which were mostly automatic. That gave her an advantage if her accomplice on the outside attracted enough attention. The forces of the Elbas family would take longer to notice her if Noah triggered every defense on the surface. The reward from Shandal''s separate dimension had taught her method to hide her presence in front of formations, but that was only a temporary measure. The defenses of the restricted areas would notice her during the second or third scan of the environment. Noah felt confident that she was safe. His only problem was how long she needed to get her hands on her drug. "Did you just realize how wrong your actions were?" First Prince shouted, and his laugh echoed in the battlefield. Second Princess still had some doubts, but she joined her brother in his laugh when she saw that Noah continued to wait for an answer. She began to think that her opponent had overestimated himself after the events in the other world. "King Elbas'' ways are mysterious and profound," Second Princess said, and her tone expressed all the reverence that she had for her father. "You can''t apply normal standards to him nor his family. You know only one aspect of the cultivation-." Second Princess interrupted her phrase since she saw Noah losing focus on their conversation and looking at some point in the distance. She didn''t understand what had changed until her inscribed notebook sent a mental message describing the other regions'' situation. Countless reports appeared in her mind and described how a full-scale invasion had started. The alliance was fighting on the borders of the Elbas family''s domain, taking one peripheral region after another. Then, First Prince whispered something in her ear. Something had disappeared from a restricted area, and the formations had noticed that only now. Anger surged inside her when she understood that Noah had acted as a distraction, but she couldn''t vent her feeling since she only saw a human-shaped crack when she glanced toward her opponent. ****** Notes: Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/EoCNovels Instagram: eocnovels Join the discord: https://discord.gg/CNh28NP Chapter 1069: 1069. Pain Noah had received two crucial mental messages while the Royals prepared their offensive. The first one came from Elder Julia and spoke about the alliance. The assets of both Council and Hive had started their assault while Noah fought in the Academy. The second one came from June. She had successfully seized the potion that would improve her centers of power and had returned inside the separate dimension through the exit that Thirty-seven had kept open. Everything had gone according to his plan, and Noah didn''t find any reason to remain there after those messages. Nothing could stop him if he used his movement technique to fly higher in the sky, and he only had to escape from the range of the Royal Academy''s formations to be safe. The sounds of countless battles echoed through the sky as he flew. The alliance had started a full-scale invasion on its enemy''s domains, and it didn''t spare any border. Noah flew toward the region''s borders and found armies of the Hive venturing through a wide array of Spiked Roots. The Elbas family had eradicated most magical plants and turned those on the borders into a defensive formation. The Hive had sent only a few heroic cultivators there, so the invasion proceeded slowly. Noah recognized Bruce and Sarah among the Elders in charge of the army of human troops. Bruce was still in the lower tier of the fifth rank, while Sarah had reached the peak of the fourth rank in that period. The two of them fought together with other Elders in the fourth rank to eradicate the magical plants and charge toward the region''s insides. Still, those were defenses that even peak rank 5 cultivators would take time to breach. The army stopped when it saw Noah flying in its direction. The Elders and the human troops cheered at the sight of the Demonic Prince. They knew that he had kept the Royals busy, so they couldn''t help but feel in awe in his presence. "Back down," Noah ordered, and everyone followed his commands without raising any complaint. The world lost its light for a second, and a starry sky filled the ground after the troops retreated. Every Spiked Root burned until only ashes remained. Even the shining lines that empowered and controlled those magical plants disappeared without leaving any trace after Noah''s flames filled the area. The Elders stared at the power radiated by his casual attack in wonder, but more cheers soon resounded on the battlefield. The Demon Prince had taken care of that hindrance for them. Their invasion could finally begin! Bruce and the others performed polite bows as Noah crossed them to fly toward the separate dimension''s nearest entrance. Their battle resumed as soon as he became nothing more than a black dot in the distant sky. Noah returned inside the separate dimension and used a series of teleportation matrices to arrive in his mansion. He found the two Demons guarding his inner quarters'' entrance, and Thirty-seven inspecting a suffering June inside them. An empty bottle laid next to June, who was sitting cross-legged at the center of the room. Sweat and a smelly black liquid came out of her pores, and her expression revealed how painful that process was for her. Noah''s dark sphere spun faster as he focused on suppressing his sharpness. Soft mental waves came out of his mind and inspected his lover''s centers of power. June''s dantian was shaking. The walls of her organ contracted and relaxed as the muscles around it became thicker. The connections with the rest of the body became sturdier too as the transformation continued. "There is nothing we can do for her at this point," Thirty-seven said as Noah retracted his mental waves. He had reached that same conclusion. It had only taken him one glance to recognize the hybrid transformation. Noah had to admit that the experts of the Elbas family were terrific once again. They didn''t know how to trigger the transformation, but they had managed to replicate its effects on the centers of power. Of course, the potion was still in the testing phase. Every Royal would have centers of power carrying the sturdiness proper of a hybrid otherwise. There was a chance of failure in that procedure, and they had yet to perfect it. Thirty-seven didn''t understand the potion''s composition, so he couldn''t do anything to facilitate or improve the procedure for fear of making it worse. June was on her own. "You can leave," Noah said as he sat right next to June. The Demonic Sword flew in his grasp, and he began to cultivate while his lover fought for her life. Being next to her was the best he could do. If she died, she would do it with him by her side, doing what they had done countless times before during their short cohabitations. Minutes passed, but nothing changed. Hours had to go by before the pain became too intense for June to remain in her position. She laid on the floor, and Noah promptly moved to put his lap under her head. He then resumed cultivating while she struggled over him. Noah''s centers of power eventually returned to their peak, and he could only let go of the Demonic Sword to stare at the suffering lover on his lap. June''s veins bulged, and black liquid came out of her pores. Noah''s robe became dirty and smelly as she clenched and convulsed on it, but he didn''t mind that in the slightest. Noah was scared even to touch her. He didn''t know if the heat radiated by his skin would negatively affect the procedure, so he limited himself to stare at her. Even with all the dirt on her face, Noah couldn''t imagine being with anyone else. Looks didn''t interest him, but her existence had been able to make both his emotions and instincts react. It was as if Noah''s individuality had chosen her as his partner for life, and seeing her in that condition made his mind devoid of any thoughts and sensations. June''s convulsions became more intense at some point, and she crouched as she crawled over Noah''s lap. Her fingers tried to pierce his skin, but her fingernails released screeching sounds when they slid over it. Then, she went limp, threatening to slam her head on the floor. June would barely feel the impact, but Noah grabbed her anyway. His hand supported the back of her neck while his thumb caressed her dirty cheek. "H-hey," June exhaled in a weak voice. Noah smiled at her while his soft mental waves inspected her body to check her condition. Her dantian had reached the solid stage during the procedure, and the overall structure of her body had improved. More connections among her centers of power had appeared, and her insides'' sturdiness had surpassed the human limits. A black spark crackled inside her dantian, and higher energy flowed freely inside her body without causing any damage. June was stable. The potion had worked! Chapter 1070: 1070. Gorge "Is everything ok?" Noah asked to check on June''s condition. He didn''t understand how the Perfect Circuit worked, so only his lover could confirm that the procedure had gone well. June stretched while on his lap before snuggling closer to his chest and replying with her mouth pressing on his exposed waist. "I only need to rest. Give me a bit, and I''ll let you go." Noah caressed his lover''s hair while she fell asleep. It was rare for cultivators on that level to sleep, but June''s body had suffered too much to heal naturally. She needed complete rest to become used to her improved organs. June didn''t speak casually. She knew that Noah had other plans in mind. There were many resourceful regions inside the Elbas family''s domain, and he could gain access to all of them due to his power. Yet, she wanted the two of them to remain in that position for a moment, and Noah could only agree to her request. They had been anxious until then, and they wanted to savor that instant of peace before the world forced problems on them. Noah stared at his lover and listened to her breathing. Seeing June asleep was a rare occasion, and he wanted to memorize her before returning to the battlefields. His consciousness expanded at some point, and Thirty-seven reappeared in the room without making any sound. Noah only needed to glance at the automaton to make him nod and summon a pillow out of nowhere. Noah carefully replaced his lap with the pillow and moved toward the exit of the room. June needed to rest, but he had returned to his peak, and he couldn''t let go of that chance. There was a place that he needed to visit before seeing if the Hive needed help or there were resources that might interest him. His training would have to wait for a little longer. "Check her condition all the time," Noah ordered the automaton before facing the two Demons sitting next to the exit. "You two have fun." The Demons revealed a cold smile at his words and shot toward the nearest teleportation matrix to join the invasion. Noah flew toward a teleportation matrix too, but his destination was the forest of spiked roots once again. The Hive had always known that the other organizations had taken control of traces left by divine beings during the colonization of the piece of Immortal Lands. The Council had obtained the Divine Cut, the Empire the Stele, the Hive the lava lake, and the Elbas family the Dark Gorge. Noah had eventually interacted with all of them during his rise to power. Now, he had the chance and the cultivation level to explore the Dark Gorge. The memories of the roars of the Gorge reappeared in his mind as he flew toward his target. The creatures trapped inside it had taught him a drive for freedom that time and chains couldn''t stop. Noah had been too weak to explore the Gorge back then, but his battle prowess was on par with powerhouses now, and he believed that he could even surpass some of them. There was no better time to dive into the darkness and uncover the secrets of that place. The armies of the Hive reappeared again in his sight. Bruce led the troops across the region and made them pillage anything valuable as they advanced toward the coast. Their strategy saw them avoiding the Royal Academy. That place was something that only a group of powerhouses could hope to breach completely. A series of polite bows followed Noah''s passage. He didn''t look in their direction, but all of them performed formal salutations when they noticed him crossing the sky and disappearing in the distance. The Elbas family had eradicated most of the Spiked Roots in the region, so the Dark Gorge appeared as a plain fissure placed in the middle of a barren area. Only a few inscriptions shone around it, but there wasn''t any lifeform on the surface. Noah landed at the edges of the Gorge, stomping directly over a formation and destroying its lines in the impact. Metallic sounds resounded from inside the darkness, but nothing happened on the surface. Formations weren''t Noah''s field of expertise, but he could understand that the shining lines around the edges were new. They weren''t part of the Gorge, which meant that the Elbas family had put them there for a reason. Noah hesitated for a second before deciding to destroy all of them. The Gorge had resisted the fall from the Immortal Lands on its own, so it was unlikely that the formations served to improve its structure. There was a higher chance that they were defenses. The formations quickly fell apart as Noah circled the edges of the Gorge, launching punches whenever he saw a shining line. A long metallic sound followed their destruction, and something began to move among the darkness. Noah didn''t know what he had done, but he didn''t fear the darkness. He jumped right inside the Gorge and floated as his mind inspected the environment. A series of old and inactive lines covered the rocky walls, but nothing special happened even when the sunlight became unable to reach those depths. Noah continued to descend, and cage-like structures appeared in his view. They resembled prison cells dug inside the rocky walls, with black metal bars made of a material that he didn''t recognize. They had large doors, but they were open. There were signs of forced entry on the black metal, which hinted that the Royals couldn''t open them through usual methods. The bars had missing chunks on their upper-parts, and the cuts were clean as if a blade had made them. Noah''s senses didn''t alert him, but the air became tense as he descended into the darkness. He had yet to find what had caused the movements before, and all he saw were open cells that had missing chunks of bars. The darkness behind him moved at some point. It was impossible to see that event due to sunlight''s absence, but Noah sensed something shifting in the laws familiar to him. He was a cultivator with a darkness aptitude that had learnt how to replicate the "Breath" of his element. He was sensitive to anything happening inside the darkness, and he didn''t fail to notice a creature rising among the complete blackness. Noah had to use his sea of consciousness to make out the creature''s appearance, but he struggled to have a complete image even at that point. It seemed that his mind couldn''t comprehend where the beast ended and the darkness began. ''What are these?'' Noah questioned himself as he stared at the creature. It had the shape of an ancient bird-like beast, but it didn''t have any solid form. It was nothing more than a silhouette too, and the insides of its body were empty. An aura with power in the sixth rank spread among the depths, but Noah spewed flames before the creature could even try to attack him. Chapter 1071: 1071. Tests A starry sky spread in the depths of the Dark Gorge, and the few lights let out by Noah''s flames illuminated the environment. Shadows formed, and the creature''s appearance became more visible even if the black fire had submerged half of it. Noah had already grasped its form with his consciousness, but looking directly at it gave him more hints about its species. ''Is that a Pterodactyl?'' Noah thought as waves of shock filled his mind. That wasn''t his first time seeing an ancient or extinct species, especially after the events in the hidden world. However, that specimen''s features were so unique that he couldn''t help but admire them. The creature didn''t have a proper body. It didn''t have any skin or tissues, but it had a fixed form. The only traces of its existence were its aura and the outlines of its shape. It resembled a basic Blood Companion when "Breath" didn''t fill its insides. Nevertheless, those were only its most evident characteristics. The feature that left Noah speechless was the fabric of its body. It wasn''t material, and it blended perfectly with the darkness around it. It was as if darkness itself made its few strands of tissues. Noah''s interest surged at that sight. A magical beast purely made of darkness would obviously attract his attention, and he had all the time to test its capabilities. The Pterodactyl''s aura placed it in the lower tier of the sixth rank, but Noah''s flames didn''t appear able to hurt it. They suppressed the creature, but its structure remained untouched. Moreover, it seemed that the beast was becoming used to the flames since it began to struggle to come out of the starry sky. Two hypotheses appeared in Noah''s mind, and he promptly shot forward to test them. His figure appeared above the struggling beast, and a punch landed on the black lines that depicted its head. Noah felt some resistance when his knuckles hit the creature''s ethereal edges, but his fist crossed them after that. A grunt came out of the beast, but it didn''t seem to have suffered any damage. ''It should have felt this one,'' Noah thought as he floated above the beast, ''But the flames can only stop it.'' The Demonic Sword flew in his grasp at that point, and Noah slashed without any hesitation. A black line landed on the creature, but it didn''t cross its body like his last attacks. Instead, it exploded into a cloud of corrosive smoke after making a dent in its head''s lines. A loud cry finally came out of its mouth, and its struggles to come out of the fiery sea became more intense. Yet, Noah continued his tests and unleashed a series of violent attacks under him. Noah gained a general understanding of the Pterodactyl''s prowess after he launched all he had on it. The beast appeared resistant to every attack, especially when it came to techniques relying on his darkness and physical strength. However, it felt the blows enhanced by his sharpness, and his dark matter appeared able to overcome most of its natural defenses. The Pterodactyl''s body was a mess after Noah completed his tests. The lines on its wings and slim torso had missing pieces on multiple spots, and only its head had remained mostly intact. Noah had done that on purpose. The head generally was the essential part of any creature, so he had focused on other spots to continue his testing and learn more about that species. Even an unknown creature in the sixth rank couldn''t do anything against Noah''s might. The more he fought with his new body, the more he could express its power. Suppressing a beast on that level barely took any effort. ''It shouldn''t be this weak,'' Noah eventually thought. He had a general idea of how strong a creature in the sixth rank should be, and the Pterodactyl didn''t even meet the standards of weaker species in his knowledge. Still, the prison-like structures inside the Gorge hinted that it had been kept captive. The creature''s strange body didn''t allow him to see any sign of starvation, but Noah found that as the only explanation for its low battle prowess. There was also the chance that they were a weak species, but Noah didn''t believe that his opponent was at its peak. A species on that level would have never survived in any food chain. ''How does it even eat?'' Noah pondered while the Pterodactyl cried in pain. Its screeches were deep growls that spread through the Gorge''s darkness and made the rocky walls tremble. The starry sky had dispersed by that point, so the Pterodactyl could touch the Gorge''s blackness again. Some of the lines that made its body began to regrow as the creature remained immersed in the darkness. The process was slow, but it was still faster than natural healing. It seemed that the darkness was the environment that took the best out of its species. Snore had formed next to Noah when he tested the elemental attacks, but it coiled around the powerless Pterodactyl to perform another test. After the Blood Companion sealed its grip on the creature, Noah flew upward to expose it to the sunlight. The Pterodactyl began to cry in fear. Noah heard its pleading growls as the sun started to illuminate its peculiar form. However, he ignored them to improve his knowledge of that creature. The black lines that made the Pterodactyl''s body began to fade as light illuminated its shape. The mighty rank 6 beast vanished when exposed to the sunlight, and only a few mental waves remained in its spot. Noah''s consciousness trapped those mental waves before they could disperse, but he saw only darkness when he absorbed them inside his mind. He felt the hunger that they carried, and a faint sharpness accompanied it. ''They can''t live during the day,'' Noah added pieces of information in his mental bestiary before diving back inside the Gorge. The fear of dealing with traces left with divine beings disappeared after he confirmed the Pterodactyl''s weakness. He had nothing to worry about if that was the species in charge of the Gorge. Darkness enveloped him once again as he descended past his previous spot and flew toward the bottom of the fissure. His consciousness sensed a series of presences waking up at his passage, and he didn''t hesitate to shoot toward them. Pterodactyls of various levels filled the depths of the Gorge. Noah saw two more specimens in the sixth rank surrounded by an army of beasts in the fourth and fifth rank. There were hundreds of creatures hidden in the darkness, but Noah felt that they were only a tide of ants. Chapter 1072: 1072. Cage Noah slaughtered his way through the army of Pterodactyls. Their bodies didn''t disappear if he killed them inside the darkness, so he stored them as life left them. Snore did most of the work. Its elemental attack ignored most of those creatures'' natural defenses and shattered the frail lines that made their bodies. Noah kept on wondering how such a species had managed to thrive for so long, but he could only use their captivity as an explanation. He didn''t know the Immortal Lands'' environment, and there were no existing reports about that place. There was the chance that weaker beasts could survive in the higher plane due to particular areas that featured fewer threats. Yet, the prison-like structure was artificial, which meant that someone or something had chosen to build it and trap that species before the piece of Immortal Lands fell. That added some value to the Pterodactyls. Still, Noah didn''t find the reason for that even after hundreds of specimens had died by his hand. The two rank six specimens took some more effort to kill since they worked against Noah together. However, that species could only fly and attempt to cut with its strange body, so they posed no threat to Noah. Hundreds of corpses had accumulated inside Noah''s space-ring by the time he defeated the army. Only silence and darkness remained in the depths of the Gorge. Noah inspected the walls before exploring the depths further. There were more cells there, but no inscriptions at all. He reviewed his idea of the formations on the surface. They probably had the purpose of preventing those creatures from going out of the fissure at night since the Elbas family had opened all the cells. Nevertheless, he still didn''t understand why the Royals had even decided to preserve that area. After all, those beasts appeared useless for most purposes. The metal of the cells seemed more valuable since it came from the Immortal Lands. Even Noah''s physical strength wasn''t enough to bend the bars. The Royals might have met the same problems seizing that metal since most of the cells were still virtually intact. Another strange aspect of that pack was that all its specimens appeared malnourished. Ordinary magical beasts would resort to cannibalism at that point, but that didn''t seem to be the case for the Pterodactyls. Noah dived toward the bottom of the Gorge full of doubts. There had to be something worthy of spending "Breath" to trap hundreds of creatures, and he had all the intentions to find it. No more Pterodactyls appeared in the darkness. It was as if that spot had an empty area entirely devoid of life. Yet, there were cells on the walls there too. The decision to live in the fissure''s initial parts had come from the beasts. Noah eventually reached the bottom and landed on a broad valley. The scene resembled what he found in the Granite Abyss, with the only difference being that the darkness there was due to the Gorge''s depth. His consciousness could cover almost the entirety of the place, so Noah could confirm that one of the valley''s sides was empty and explore the other one directly. Nothing made no sound in that environment, and he floated right above the ground to avoid making sounds with his steps. He didn''t feel any danger in front of him, but something told him to be careful anyway. That sensation was unusual for a being like him. Magical beasts'' instincts would ether differentiate between dangerous and safe, without nothing in the middle. However, he felt something different there. It was as if something mysterious was at the end of the valley, but nothing that he should be afraid of. Noah reached the end but found nothing unusual. There was only the rocky wall in front of him. Still, the eerie feeling remained, so he continued to investigate the area with his consciousness. Something began to appear in his mind as he continued to look for clues. The laws'' layout started to feel unnatural, and a peculiar detail became visible in the ground''s structure. It wasn''t anything flashy. Noah sensed all of that in the form of faint instincts that told him that something was off. He suddenly realized that the ground should feel differently, and a pattern appeared in his mind at that understanding. There were inscriptions that he couldn''t see there, and even his consciousness struggled to give them a form. Noah retracted his senses as he pondered over the matter for an instant. He didn''t have any method to unlock formations, and his expertise in the field was inadequate. He could only opt for one approach, and his fist landed on the ground right after he accepted that. The whole valley trembled, and even the walls shook to no end. Yet, no cracks appeared on their surface, and the rocks under Noah showed no sign of breaking either. Noah had found his confirmation that something was there. The only problem now was whether he could reach it. A torrent of punches landed on the ground. Noah attacked relentlessly, using all the strength contained in his body. Intense earthquakes spread through the whole Gorge, but the rocks didn''t give in to his assault. The ground held on even after his assault continued for an hour. The protections in place weren''t something that his physical strength alone could handle. Noah stopped his assault before heaving a helpless sigh. The Royals had probably uncovered what laid underground, and they had decided to preserve the Gorge because of that. He couldn''t imagine the Royals spending resources on something useless, and King Elbas wasn''t the type of powerhouse to accept defeat in front of a barrier. Yet, King Elbas had most likely breached the barrier due to his expertise in the inscription field. Noah had to rely on his abilities if he wanted to do the same. The Demonic Sword landed on his palm and its shape condensed. The weapon became even smaller than a knife. It resembled nothing more than a shard of a dark metal when it reached its highest density. Noah''s dark star sensed his feelings and empowered his understanding of the world. Arrays of laws appeared in his eyes, and the minute differences in their layout became more evident. Mental energy went on the lines of the Divine Deduction technique to improve Noah''s understanding. Faint ideas on how to destroy that array became more transparent as his mind''s capabilities surpassed their normal limits. When he felt ready, Noah let the destruction of his individuality guide him. Both his hands wielded the shard-like Demonic Sword and pushed it toward the ground in a slow motion. Noah saw the fabric of the world breaking as his weapon reached the ground. The pressure that fell on it was so great that a crack appeared on its surface. When the Demonic Sword''s tip touched the ground, a series of white lines lit up and covered the entire area. Yet, Noah''s sharpness spread through them and made the whole shining structure crumble. The ground became transparent, and the bars of a large cage appeared right under him. Noah only needed a glance to understand what he was seeing. There was another strange Pterodactyl inside that cage, but its aura was immense. Noah could only remain speechless when he realized that he was in front of a proper rank 7 magical beast. Chapter 1073: 1073. Predator Noah had interacted with divine beings in his life, but they always had something that stopped them from expressing the seventh rank''s real power. Divine Demon was a will, Shandal was the same, the winged beasts'' leader was only half-step into the divine ranks, and the Ape God had lost most of its power to create the black sky. They were never at their full power, and they could barely consider themselves as beings in the divine ranks. Only Divine Demon was an exception since his true self was somewhere in the Immortal Lands. What he had found at the bottom of the Dark Gorge was different. Noah was in front of a proper divine beast. Something that shouldn''t exist in a lower plane. Moreover, the rank 7 Pterodactyl didn''t seem to suffer from the same malnutrition as the specimens. Noah had seen the Ape God unleashing its anger on the world, but his instincts told him that the caged creature was more dangerous. Noah felt safe on top of those bars, but his mind had automatically compared the Ape and the Pterodactyl. The intensity of their auras wasn''t comparable. The caged creature was on another league according to his instincts. The Pterodactyl''s body was long, it stretched for twenty meters, and its unfolded wings covered more than thirty meters. The lines that made its shape were thick, and the darkness in their structure appeared denser compared to the blackness of the Gorge. Noah couldn''t diagnose if the beast''s condition due to its peculiar body, but its aura was enough to confirm that the Pterodactyls weren''t the weakest species that he had ever seen. A problem quickly became evident. The cage of the divine creature was intact, and its lines didn''t have missing pieces. The Pterodactyl continued to sleep even after Noah''s attack, which indicated how used it was to disturbances of that kind. Not even King Elbas might have managed to do anything to that creature, and Noah couldn''t help but feel helpless at that thought. He didn''t believe for even a second that he could succeed where King Elbas had failed. ''What can I even do with you?'' Noah thought as he continued to stare at the Pterodactyl. He had many ideas in mind, but he felt confident that King Elbas had already tested them all. ''Should I just move the cage?'' Noah acted as soon as he thought that. His fists landed on the ground while he walked away from the cage. Noah tried to find the spot where his strength became able to pierce the rocks, but he didn''t find anything even after he reached the other end of the valley. It was as if the bottom of the Gorge was part of the prison. That explained why Noah didn''t find any sign of digging in the valley, but it left him without any viable approach to seize the divine beast. Noah walked back to the cage only to discover that the aura leaking from it had become colder. The laws inside the area''s darkness had become still as if waiting for something or someone''s order. Noah''s mind felt a faint pressure coming from under him. That was a feeling that he knew well. It was the sensation usually experienced when a predator looked at him as if he was a prey. His eyes went downward and fixed themselves on the upper part of the Pterodactyl''s head. Noah didn''t know where its eyes were, but he was quite sure that the creature was looking at him. His stare continued for long minutes. He felt completely safe on the outside of the cage, but something told him that he would be already dead if those metal bars didn''t protect him. The silence in the depths of the Gorge was oppressing, but human words broke it and made Noah widen his eyes in surprise. "You are different from the others." Noah had kept his eyes on the Pterodactyl for the whole time, but the creature didn''t move. Yet, he was sure that those human words had come from the beast. ''Can all divine beasts speak?'' Noah wondered, but he promptly put that doubt in the back of his mind. A creature that had lived in the Immortal Lands could speak fluently, so his curiosity had moved toward other topics. "I come from a different organization," Noah said, but the Pterodactyl suddenly slammed its head on the bars right under him. Noah didn''t flinch at that attack, but the whole Gorge trembled. According to Noah''s understanding of the species, the beast''s physical strength was off the charts, and that wasn''t even its best ability. "Trying to scare me away?" Noah asked as roars mixed with his human voice. He had managed to maintain his calm, but his mind had entered a battle mode when it saw that sudden action. The Pterodactyl retracted its head before moving it right and left. Noah felt as if the beast inspected him from every angle, but there was a limit to how much it could sense from inside the cage. The metal bars didn''t only restrict the Pterodactyl as a whole. They even blocked its investigative methods. "You smell like those arrogant beasts," The Pterodactyl said in its slightly high-pitched voice, "But you appear different from them too." Noah crouched on the bars before giving voice to a question. "What do you mean by arrogant beasts?" The Pterodactyl ignored the question and continued to inspect Noah. Its head would slam on the bars from time to time, but he guessed that it used the vibrations of the Gorge to analyze how his body reacted. Noah tried to ask more questions concerning the Immortal Lands, but the Pterodactyl never answered him. It would only speak to underline the peculiarity of his body. ''I might as well try something,'' Noah thought, and a starry sky filled the cage as he roared downward. The Pterodactyl stopped moving while the black flames raged around it, but it didn''t seem bothered by their presence. It even resumed its previous behavior when it deemed that fire boring. Noah flew higher in the air and took out the stuffed winged beast at that point. The Pterodactyl stopped its inspection again as a second divine aura spread in the environment. "I''ll give you a piece if you start answering," Noah said in an attempt to gain something out of that encounter. He would give away part of the winged beast, but he was ready to say anything needed to give some value to that exploration. "Why would I even want it?" The Pterodactyl answered. "My species eats darkness." Noah''s eyes widened once again, but that didn''t come from his surprise. He had guessed that the Pterodactyl''s food was peculiar already since their bodies were unique. Yet, he didn''t expect it to reveal such information by itself. "Your companions didn''t eat enough of it," Noah said as he tapped his space-ring. "I have all of them here." Something had triggered an honest answer from the creature, and Noah tried to find what topic achieved that. The first thing that came to his mind was its pride toward its species. "They were a malnourished bunch of weaklings," The Pterodactyl said in disdain. "They have spent so much time in their cages that they have forgotten how to live in the darkness." "You seem to have forgotten too," Noah said, storing the stuffed winged beast and descending to knock at the metal bars. The Pterodactyl began to roar in anger at that point, and only a few human words appeared among its cries. However, Noah could understand the true meaning contained in them. "Don''t you dare underestimate my kind! I am the strongest predator inside the darkness! I''ve reached godhood undefeated!" "And now you are in a cage in a lower plane," Noah said before heaving a sigh. "So much for the strongest predator." The Pterodactyl raged inside the cage, and his cries expressed more angry words. "The sky has forced me to hide underground, and the humans have trapped me in these cages! My kind has never lost to creatures. We have lost to the world!" Chapter 1074: 1074. Negotiation Noah remembered the environment in Shandal''s separate dimension. The God of the Empire had tried to recreate the Immortal Lands there, and the oppressing white sky was a natural opponent of the Pterodactyls. It was as if Heaven and Earth had declared their species unfitting of the higher plane. Noah could only feel surprised that the rank 7 specimen had even managed to build a pack up there. Still, there was a limit to how much that information interested him. Noah wanted to understand if he could exploit that encounter to his advantage, but the situation appeared helpless. He couldn''t open the cage and breaking it was out of the question. Letting the rank 7 Pterodactyl free wasn''t ideal either since he would die if he succeeded. ''Should I just leave it here?'' Noah thought as he watched the beast raging inside the cage. He would generally kill it to remove the creature from King Elbas'' clutches, but he wasn''t sure that he could even leave a scratch on its divine body. "You better come up with something, or I''ll leave you here," Noah said at some point. His knowledge had limits due to the lower plane, but that creature had lived in the Immortal Lands. Moreover, it was a divine beast, so its abilities had to surpass ordinary beasts'' limits. The Pterodactyl continued to rage for a few seconds before calming down and pondering over the matter. Noah felt its stare on him as human words resounded in the darkness. "What can you even offer? Your darkness is so pitiful." Noah''s eyebrows arched. He didn''t think the creature would consider his words, but it seemed to be a way out of that situation. The only problem was whether he should trust the Pterodactyl. Snore formed next to him before unleashing a wave of black flames. The dark matter that made its elemental attack spread in the cage and engulfed the divine beast. The Pterodactyl shook when the higher energy touched its lines. It didn''t suffer any damage, but it was its first time seeing darkness that it couldn''t fuse with. The dark matter appeared far better than the normal "Breath" of the darkness element. Noah''s darkness was on the same level as that energy, but the dark matter was far more powerful. The beast remained silent as it watched the flames disperse. The dark matter left the cage and vanished in the blackness of the Gorge. The Pterodactyl appeared stunned, but Noah wasn''t sure that he understood the creature''s behavior correctly. His senses couldn''t comprehend much when it came to divine beings. He was mostly using his knowledge in the magical beasts'' field to help his mind. "You have some interesting stuff," The beast eventually said. "Why don''t you feed me with that energy until I''m strong enough to break the cage?" "Is that what your species eats? Darkness?" Noah asked. "Yes, only darkness can fuel beings made of darkness, and yours is quite pure," The Pterodactyl replied. "Now, hurry up. Give me that, but don''t transform it into flames or anything. It disrupts its purity." "That''s not going to happen," Noah said, and the beast began to rage again under him. Noah''s smiled while the Pterodactyl slammed its head on the metal bars. He couldn''t help but enjoy that situation even if he didn''t trap the divine beast himself. "Get me out already!" The Pterodactyl cried, but Noah shook his head. If he was going to cooperate with the creature, it had to be at his conditions. "You can speak quite fluently," Noah said after the Pterodactyl calmed down. "Are all divine beasts like you?" The Pterodactyl hesitated for a few seconds. It didn''t want to reply to Noah''s questions, but he appeared different from the other humans who studied it during the last period. There was a different type of interest in Noah''s eyes. King Elbas could only see a material and a peculiar creature when looking at the Pterodactyl, while Noah saw an asset that could increase his power. "All divine beasts can use human words," The Pterodactyl said. "The fluency depends on our innate intelligence." Noah''s smile widened when he heard that. The divine beast had finally started to cooperate, and a single answer had managed to improve his knowledge of his field of expertise. Having an ally who knew so much about the higher plane could help him reach the divine ranks. It could even increase his chances of survival during the divine Tribulations. The only problem was that the Pterodactyl''s knowledge could go against him during the negotiations since he didn''t know the limits of divine creatures. "I have an offer," Noah said after he pondered about the matter for a bit. "Become my slave." Noah directly started to ignore the beast after his words. He didn''t need to look at it to know that it would rage inside the cage again. He had no idea of how he could submit a divine creature. His power wasn''t enough to control it, and he was too weak to use the superiority of his species against it. The only one that could give him answers was inside the cage, and it would say anything to get out. Still, Noah wanted to gain something out of that encounter. He would leave he couldn''t find any solution. The Pterodactyl recovered its calm after a while and stared at Noah. It knew that it didn''t have any other chance to come out of there, so it had to find a way to exploit it. "I''ll never be a slave," The Pterodactyl eventually said. "What do you want then?" Noah asked. His previous offer had been only a ploy to force the beast to accept an unfavorable outcome. He didn''t expect it to play along. The Pterodactyl tilted its head to point toward Snore. Its lines followed the Blood Companion floating lazily behind Noah. Yet, it didn''t speak. The Pterodactyl remained silent as it continued to stare at a being entirely made of higher energy. "I can make a similar body for you," Noah said when he confirmed how deep its interest in the dark matter was. "I''ll even solve your problem with the sunlight. You only have to submit to me." "That''s not going to happen," The Pterodactyl replied, but Noah''s answer arrived before it could even think about something else to say. "Then you''ll remain here forever," Noah said, and those words appeared to hurt the creature deeply. He didn''t know for how long it had remained locked there, but it had to be quite desperate even to consider his words. A few minutes of silence had to pass before the Pterodactyl spoke again. "I accept to submit. Keep your darkness in the cage for a while so that I can fuse with it." "That''s not going to happen either," Noah turned down that offer. He wouldn''t let a foreign substance fuse with his energy. He would probably lose his life if a creature in the divine ranks tried to become part of him. "This is the only way," The Pterodactyl replied in a calm tone, but Noah could see the lies under its human voice. The beast had turned violent whenever something didn''t go according to its plans so that peaceful behavior was a pondered act. "You said that all divine beasts can speak," Noah said. "But you seem pretty above the average in terms of intelligence. What about your consciousness? Can you move it?" The Pterodactyl didn''t initially understand what Noah''s words meant, but a low growl spread through the valley when it did. "Do you want me to abandon my body?" The creature said, and Noah answered with a simple but universal nod. More silence filled the area as the creature pondered over the offer. Noah had guessed correctly. The core of that species was in a few mental waves that kept the lines together. However, the Pterodactyls were nothing more than thoughts that had taken control of darkness. They could separate their minds from their bodies if they wanted. What Noah didn''t know was that they would have to abandon their bodies forever if they did. Chapter 1075: 1075. Strategy That wasn''t an easy decision for the Pterodactyl. Giving up on a divine body wasn''t something that any intelligent creature would do. However, freedom was too appealing for a being that had spent a long time in captivity and didn''t see any hope of escaping without external help. Noah didn''t know about those drawbacks, but he had his share of worries too. Magical beasts'' seas of consciousness were imperfect, but he was still dealing with a divine being. He didn''t know how advanced its mental sphere was nor how powerful it would be. There was a chance that he could suppress it due to his many assets and innate advantages over the Pterodactyl''s kind, but some risks existed nonetheless. "You are a peculiar human," The Pterodactyl said without adding anything else. The creature and Noah had reached a silent understanding during their negotiations. They knew that they would both try to trick their opponent. "I''m not a human," Noah answered. He didn''t need to say anything else. He had completed his part when he had accepted to take that risk. The divine beast and Noah exchanged stares even if the creature didn''t have eyes. Their minds were enough to tell them that they were keeping their full attention on each other. "You have a deal, peculiar creature," The Pterodactyl broke the silence and the lines that made its strange body began to waver after it spoke. Nevertheless, Noah promptly backed off and returned toward the superior parts of the Gorge before announcing his intentions. "I''ll come back soon. Our agreement still stands." The Pterodactyl''s roars resounded in the Gorge as Noah left to make the necessary preparations for that procedure. As for the creature''s eagerness, he couldn''t care less. Noah dug a cave in one of the soft walls of the Gorge and quickly activated the Divine Deduction technique. He had to prepare every kind of protection before approaching the cage again. A plan soon formed in his mind, and strategies followed. Noah began to build a series of prison-like structures and large barriers with his dark matter. The Will-consuming runes'' theories and innate greed were enough to create lasting restrictions, but Noah wanted more. He needed multiple layers of protection so that his mental sphere didn''t suffer if the creature managed to break free. Noah would never let the Pterodactyl fuse directly with his darkness. He wanted to suppress it inside his mental sphere and restrict it inside a body made of dark matter. The procedure would be similar to what Snore had experienced, with the only difference that he had to force a divine mind inside a heroic body. ''I need weapons,'' Noah thought, and saber-shaped runes accumulated inside his mind. He had to use his darkness to create them, so the internal pressure inside his mind increased. Yet, he would use them to suppress the Pterodactyl''s will, so he didn''t hold back on the production. The only problem was whether his mind could contain the imminent battle. Still, he could only rely on his mental energy''s remarkable properties as a form of protection. Waves surged from the mental sea. Shining brown water covered the walls of his sea of consciousness, leaving only one spot open. Noah repeated the process multiple times and even waited for his mental sea to reform before resuming that procedure. His mind became a brown sphere that only had one small part devoid of water. The Kesier runes, his saber-shaped runes, and Snore''s ethereal figure were there, waiting for their opponent to arrive. Noah''s ghostly figure swam through the brown water as he prepared the battlefield. Lumps of dark matter assembled to create a tunnel and various traps meant to restrict the beast''s will. He even made a net to reinforce the entire structure. It took him two weeks to prepare everything, double-check the defenses, and cultivate until he returned to his peak. If he had time, he would spend a few years with the Seventh Kesier rune to maximize his mind''s condition. Yet, a war was raging outside, and he didn''t know how much the alliance would manage to conquer. He felt lucky enough that no one had come inside the Gorge during that period. That was his only opportunity to get the divine beast. Noah''s mind felt heavy when he descended toward the valley again. There was so much higher energy inside it that he could barely suppress his headache. The Pterodactyl lifted its head at his return. It wanted to complain, but it felt too eager to bother about that wait. That creature was a divine beast. Two weeks weren''t even enough for a nap. Months would go by wherever it lost focus. ''What do you need?'' Noah asked as he landed on the cage. He needed that information to make the last adjustment. ''Any darkness,'' The Pterodactyl replied. ''I need to take control of it and fuse my mind.'' Noah hesitated for a few seconds before a small whiff of dark matter came out of his forefinger. The creature would be far weaker if Noah made it fuse with his darkness. However, that would worsen its potential as a puppet. Noah was willing to increase the risk of that procedure to obtain an asset that could improve his power properly. The drop of dark matter fell downward, leaving a black trail connected to Noah''s hand. It crossed the metal bars, but it didn''t reach the center of the cave. It hovered right under Noah''s foot. The Pterodactyl showed no fear, and it started the procedure immediately. The lines that made its body began to tremble and the darkness inside them wavered as its consciousness slid outward. The creature''s head touched the part of dark matter that crossed the metal bars, and Noah felt a foreign presence trying to take control of its energy. The presence was intense, and its power breathtaking. It created shocks that spread until Noah''s hand only to disperse through his body. Some dark matter came out of Noah''s mind. The beast''s imperfect mind was stronger than he had expected, so he had to release some pressure. His mental sphere wouldn''t be able to contain it otherwise. Noah lowered the defenses of the dark matter inside the cage at that point. The Pterodactyl invaded his higher energy once nothing blocked its way, and its body crumbled when it completed the process. The rank 7 body was no more. The divine creature had officially reached the non-return point. Noah lost control of the dark matter inside the cage, but nothing spread outside the bars. Their material targeted the Pterodactyl, so even its consciousness suffered from their restrictions. Noah could still turn back. Cutting his connection with the dark matter would leave the Pterodactyl in that wretched state. The dark matter might even explode once it became unable to contain its imperfect mind. Noah was in the position to kill a divine beast! Nevertheless, his goal wasn''t pure destruction. He wanted a new weapon, a unique asset that would increase his power. Noah lifted his hand to connect the trail of dark matter to his mind. The higher energy fused with the tunnel inside his sphere, and the mechanisms prepared in the previous weeks activated. A pulling force began to attract the Pterodactyl''s invaded dark matter toward his mind. The creature screamed in pain as it clashed with the cage, but Noah pulled without minding the beast''s safety. It took more than one hour, but, eventually, a small part of the dark matter invaded by the Pterodactyl crossed the cage and entered the strand of higher energy. Chapter 1076: 1076. Master Noah didn''t have the power to pull the entire Pterodactyl outside of the cage, and he found it hard to do even with the creature''s new form. The metal bars hurt the Pterodactyl''s mind inside the dark matter, but the fact that a trail of higher energy connected it to the outside created a minute path where it could pass. Noah''s pulling force didn''t rely on bare strength. His mind didn''t have such capabilities. The higher energy''s unique properties confused the cage''s restricting ability, allowing him to retrieve the invaded part of dark matter if he went all-out. The procedure for him was relatively easy when compared to what the Pterodactyl was going through. The mysterious inscription method used on the bars ripped its mind apart whenever part of it escaped the imprisonment. Noah felt delighted at that sight. His worries eased when he saw how badly the cage hurt it. Small bits of invaded dark matter accumulated on the other side of the metal bars as the process continued. The Pterodactyl cried in pain, but its roars didn''t have any meaning. The divine beast had taken control of the higher energy, but it couldn''t use it properly. That was a completely new body made of something superior to the "Breath" of the darkness element. The creature didn''t have any experience with that material. It would have been different if Noah had let it fuse with his darkness. The Pterodactyl didn''t have experience with that material either, but it was more similar to the "Breath". Instead, the dark matter followed different laws and had an intrinsic power far superior to the "Breath". Noah had given the creature the best material in the world for its species, but the Pterodactyl couldn''t understand that just yet. Noah kept control of the integrity of the creature''s mind as the process continued. He could see its instincts and experience reaching the outside of the cave, but its knowledge appeared to be heavier. Some of the beast''s memories could easily cross the cage, but others fought against the pulling force. It was as if they didn''t want to reach the outer world. That wasn''t the Pterodactyl''s fault. Noah could immediately guess that those memories had formed in the Immortal Lands and contained pieces of information that a lower plane shouldn''t have. Noah did his best to pull as much knowledge as possible, but it became evident that he would have to exhaust himself if he wanted to seize it. He would typically make that trade, but that situation was too dangerous. He needed to remain at his peak to face the incoming battle. As soon as he encountered his first significant hindrance, Noah cut off the connection with the cage. The trail of higher energy separated from the metal bars, removing the safe passage to the outside world. The Pterodactyl screamed as it struggled to keep the dark matter that it had invaded in one piece. Yet, the cage obstructed it, and Noah continued to apply his pulling force. Its new body eventually separated. Part of the invaded dark matter proceeded through the tunnel of higher energy while the other remained inside the cage. Noah didn''t know how much the Pterodactyl had lost, but only its knowledge wasn''t enough to keep the dark matter in one part. The higher energy left behind in the cage soon dispersed, and the pieces of information inside it vanished forever. Only the Pterodactyl''s confused scream remained in the area, and Noah heard them becoming louder as its dark matter neared his head. The pressure inside his mind saw a sudden increase in intensity when that higher energy entered his sea of consciousness. The trail of higher energy followed the Pterodactyl''s mind and sealed the empty spot inside Noah''s mind, blocking every path for retreat. The traps inside the layers of mental energy activated and pushed the invaded dark matter toward the sphere''s center. The Pterodactyl had become violent as soon as it entered Noah''s mind. Its control over its new body was awful, but the sheer intensity of its divine consciousness could force the dark matter to release power surges. The creature was so angry that its feelings had forced themselves on its new body, giving it some offensive power. Noah didn''t expect anything less from a divine beast, and his preparations showed that he had judged its power correctly. Flares of dark matter shot from the beast''s body as it flew toward the center of Noah''s mental sphere. A thick net made of dark matter became visible whenever they tried to destroy the defensive layers of mental energy. However, Noah''s protections held tightly. That offensive wasn''t enough to break them. The defenses didn''t only restrict the Pterodactyl. Their main purpose was to reinforce the walls of his mental sphere and absorb eventual shockwaves. The last offensive proved that they served their primary purpose, but Noah had to make his mind reach its limits to contain all that energy. Yet, the area was about to become emptier. The Pterodactyl''s continued to rage even when it reached the center of Noah''s mental sphere, and some layers of mental energy fell apart. Still, the net of dark matter held most of the structure in place. Meanwhile, Noah''s ghostly figure, the saber-shaped runes, and Snore''s ghostly shape shot toward the lump of dark matter. The six Kesier runes floating above his mental sea started to release a humming sound that suppressed the foreign presence too. Noah''s attacks broke the dark matter, but they couldn''t hurt the divine consciousness. The ethereal figure of the strange Pterodactyl soon replaced the previous formless higher energy. The Pterodactyl could survive in its form made of mental energy inside Noah''s sea of consciousness. That new shape even gave it access to its accumulated experience now. The beast shot at high speed toward the brown mental energy, but the trajectory of his flight was odd. It appeared that it couldn''t go straight, making it easier for Noah''s weapons to land on it. Snore pounced at it directly and restricted its movements, while Noah turned his entire ethereal figure into a blade that slashed at the Pterodactyl. The saber-shaped runes flew through its ghostly body multiple times in a cyclic motion. Initially, the attacks didn''t do anything against the Pterodactyl''s figure. Still, Noah''s destruction made him find the injuries left by the bars and those from the forces severing of its knowledge. The Pterodactyl seemed incapable of controlling its body. It would go in a straight line only to fall toward the sea one instant after. Losing part of its mind had left the beast in a poor state, and it needed some time to become used to its new condition. Of course, Noah exploited that situation by using everything he had. His attacks created cracks on its ethereal body after some time, and the traps previously set inside the cover of mental energy came out to help to seize the beast. A series of spherical runes surrounded the broken figure and absorbed the shattered parts of its soft-red shape. The Pterodactyl became thinner, and Noah found it easier to break part of its body as the process continued. The Pterodactyl could only fall apart under that incessant assault. The spherical runes gathered every red particle that came out of its body before diving into the mental sea. Noah''s pride surged at that point, and currents made of mental energy and dark matter invaded the red particles to alter their structure. The consciousness of the Pterodactyl would usually vanish if left in that condition, but the spherical runes preserved it and gave Noah time to apply essential modifications. The red particles darkened under that refinement. Their color became a brown similar to Noah''s mental energy before the spherical runes fused to amass the creature''s mind in one place. The figure of the Pterodactyl reformed once all the pieces become one again, and the runes opened to let the mental sea touch it directly. A shining brown figure rose to stare at Noah then, and human words resounded inside his mind. "Hello, Master. I hate you." Chapter 1077: 1077. Bird Noah had used part of the theory behind the Body-inscription spell to submit the Pterodactyl''s mind. He had fused his thoughts with its consciousness to limit its behavior and create a connection with his mind. Since it was a divine beast, Noah had decided to add dark matter during the process too. The ghostly figure inside his mind would be heavier because of that, but Noah didn''t want to risk any rebellion. The limitations on its behavior and its submission had worked perfectly. The Pterodactyl was Noah''s puppet and had to follow his orders as well as prioritizing his interests. However, Noah couldn''t change its personality nor alter its mindset. The Pterodactyl was still the same creature as before, but Noah was its pack leader now. "I have truly fallen," The Pterodactyl shouted as it flew in Noah''s mental sphere. "A mere mortal being has managed to suppress me. I must be the unluckiest being in Heaven and Earth''s domain." Noah ignored it as he relieved his mind of some pressure. The mental energy and dark matter amassed for the procedure came out of his sphere and dispersed in the Gorge. The same went for his saber-shaped runes that vanished when they touched the air. A sense of relief spread once most of the useless energies left his mind. Noah had felt heavy until that moment, but he could experience some clarity again now. The Pterodactyl continued to complain and curse him, but Noah was too busy evaluating his condition to care about it. His mind felt sore after the battle, but it didn''t suffer any damage. The internal pressure was heavier than before due to the addition of the divine beast''s will, but he could endure it quite easily. The Pterodactyl had lost a considerable chunk of its mind when Noah pulled it out of the cage. It was still heavier than Snore, but a rank 6 sea of consciousness could contain it without repercussions. Noah knew that the internal pressure would intensify as Snore and the divine creature grew, but the Seventh Kesier rune appeased his worries. His body would then help contain such creatures, so he could focus on other aspects of his cultivation level. "Fate is against beings of darkness!" The Pterodactyl kept on shouting, and Noah moved his focus back to it. Its current state limited the divine creature''s growth. It was only a consciousness contained inside his mind. Noah needed to give it a body and transform it into a different life form if he wanted to keep it through the entirety of his cultivation journey. However, Snore''s body was one of his masterpieces, and Noah didn''t want to go through the same process for a creature that had yet to prove its value. Reports of the invasion on the Elbas family''s domain had accumulated in his inscribed notebook in that period. Noah went through them only to discover that the assault had slowed down once all the peripheral territories had fallen. Moreover, the Elbas family had revealed five new powerhouses during the battles. They were King Elbas'' direct descendants, and the defensive formations of their domain managed to fend off the invaders under their lead. The Hive''s higher-ups believed that those assets had relied on the Royal Pool to advance to the sixth rank. After all, no organization had ever owned so many powerhouses at the same time. Yet, Noah didn''t smell the Pool''s scent when he fought them. He wasn''t sure about the other three powerhouses, but he knew that First Prince and Second Princess had advanced without external help. King Elbas'' figure appeared in Noah''s mind as he transmitted that information to the Elders. His respect for the Royals'' leader had increased once again. The Elbas family had managed to produce five powerhouses under his lead. No other organization had achieved the same, and even the Empire was inferior in that field. King Elbas'' achievements surpassed Shandal''s. The organization of a mere powerhouse in the liquid stage had grown more than a force led by a god. "My only weakness is my kind!" The Pterodactyl shouted. "I''ve reached the peak in darkness only to face the merciless light." Noah grew annoyed with the divine creature''s will flying and shouting inside his mental sphere. He didn''t mind eccentric personalities as long as they benefited him, but the Pterodactyl had yet to prove its value. A war raged in the new continent. He couldn''t go into seclusion just yet, which meant that he could gather more experience before isolating himself for a long time. The Divine Deduction technique activated while Noah kept his focus on the Pterodactyl. He was going to fight again soon, so he could test the prowess of the annoying creature. A blueprint quickly formed in his mind. Noah had become more experienced in creating new life forms, and his creation helped whenever he had some doubts. Noah didn''t want to do anything special. He only needed a small puppet in the sixth rank where to put the Pterodactyl''s will. Its achievements in the next battles would then decide whether it was worthy of a proper body. "How much do you remember of the Immortal Lands?" Noah asked through his ghostly figure while his material hands began to work with some small strands of dark matter. "You cut away most of my knowledge, you damned Master," The Pterodactyl replied. "I remember the blinding light of the sky, humans walking inside my domain, and the metal of my cage. I remember that they gave me a hateful name to classify my peculiar kind." "Tell me that name," Noah ordered. The Pterodactyl had to reply due to the modifications applied during the suppression, so he took the chance to gather information about the Immortal Lands while he built a body. "Night-blade Pterodactyl," The beast said. "I hate that name." "What about Night?" Noah asked. The Pterodactyl snorted, and its loud words followed its gesture. "Magical beasts don''t need human names. Power is the only label that we recognize." Noah couldn''t help but like that line. A smile appeared on his ghostly figure as he replied. "You are my Companion now. You will become much more than a magical beast as long as you prove yourself useful." The Pterodactyl stopped flying at his words. Its strange head turned toward Noah and inspected him as if trying to understand how honest his words were. "What is your goal, Master?" The Pterodactyl asked, and some growls fused with its human voice. It seemed that its true nature came out whenever it found something that interested it. "I want the stars," Noah replied. "According to what you are telling me, the white sky is on the way. I guess that makes it my enemy too." The beast remained still. It analyzed Noah without putting its arrogance as a divine creature in the middle of its judgment. Noah had managed to free and suppress it. He had to be extraordinary to achieve that result without having centers of power in the divine rank. Magical beasts were innately diffident, but the Pterodactyl''s connection with Noah''s mind made it understand how genuine his feelings were. Noah was ready to destroy the sky to reach his goal, and he didn''t lie about elevating the creature''s existence. A peculiar thought began to form in the Pterodactyl''s consciousness. It would prefer freedom over anything, but it couldn''t think too badly about its current situation. Noah continued to use his inscription methods to forge a new body for the Pterodactyl. He would take a different approach at that time. Part of his dark matter would recreate a material sea of consciousness that the creature could use to control itself once outside of his mind. "Night is fine," The Pterodactyl said after two months spent in complete silence. Its attention had been on Noah for the whole time, and it had decided that trusting him wasn''t its worst option. "Night," Noah called his Companion a few weeks later. "I''m done." A lump of dark matter entered his mind, and the Pterodactyl''s consciousness fused with it before coming out of the mental sphere and floating toward a small puppet in his hands. "I hate you," Night said in a helpless tone when it saw the bird-like shape in Noah''s palm. Chapter 1078: 1078. Invasion "I almost believed you!" Night chirped while it flew around Noah''s head. "You dared to deceive a divine beast! This fate is even worse than death! Just put me back in my cage!" Night''s new body had the shape of a small bird that didn''t seem to have any unique feature. Noah had built it following the characteristics of the Night-blade Pterodactyl''s species. He had left the insides empty, creating only its edges. That was only an approximation of the Pterodactyls'' bodies. He would take his time to study the corpses in his ring in the future, but Night would have to use that small puppet until then. "Shut up," Noah said as he flew toward the exit of the Gorge. "I''ll give you a new one once I see how useful you are. Most importantly, do you remember how to fight?" Night went silent while it gave a proper inspection of its new body. It kept on mumbling some complaints from time to time, but it also sprinted at a speed that surprised even Noah. The beast became almost invisible in the darkness of the Gorge. It flew through the entirety of the valley in a matter of seconds. Noah had to stop his ascent to keep track of its movements. ''It wasn''t joking about its prowess,'' Noah thought as he inspected the small bird. Night''s new body was a puppet in the lower tier of the sixth rank. It could potentially surpass Snore''s power when it came to raw strength, but it lacked the features that made the Blood Companion a threatening asset. Nevertheless, Noah had to reevaluate the Pterodactyl''s claims. The beast had fused with the new body less than an hour ago, but it could already express a speed that surpassed Noah''s wildest predictions. It even reached the structural limits of the puppet! Noah felt lucky that the Royals didn''t feed the weaker specimens. Clearing the Gorge would have been troublesome if he had to fight the three rank 6 Pterodactyls at their peak. "Awful, awful!" Night shouted as it returned near Noah. "This thing is about to break already! How do you expect me to fight inside this trash?" "You won''t get a new one until you achieve something in the next battles," Noah''s answer was firm, but he felt slightly excited. Night had been able to express spectacular power already. A tingling feeling spread through his fingers when he imagined what it could do with a proper body. The Pterodactyl chirped angrily, but it didn''t try to rebel. It continued to circle Noah as he resumed his ascent toward the surface. However, it abruptly stopped at the sight of the sunlight. "The sunlight isn''t deadly for you anymore," Noah said, but Night didn''t move. It appeared paralyzed in fear, and even his mental orders weren''t enough to make it step into the light. ''I guess it carried most of its instincts out of the cage,'' Noah thought. Night had lost most of its memories, but it had kept the abilities gained in its countless experiences. It didn''t remember what it could do or how it used to fight. Still, its instincts allowed it to perform the attacks and movements that it had honed throughout its life. Night''s instincts gave it the ability to fight even if it didn''t remember how. Noah could feel its annoyance through their mental connection, but he knew it would eventually become used to its new condition. That was another reason why Noah didn''t make Night a proper body. The Pterodactyl''s mind would eventually adapt and grow again, which could potentially lead to a rebellion. Night was different from Snore. The Pterodactyl didn''t go through the Body-inscription spell, so its mind was a separated existence. It could live without Noah as long as it had a body. That gave it more freedom. Night didn''t need a trail of higher energy attached to Noah to survive. It was more similar to the Demonic Sword when it came to the type of existence. Noah feared that Night''s mind could outgrow its restrictions, which was why he wanted to keep its growth in check for a while. He wanted to be sure that it harmonized with its new condition before improving. Night remained stuck among the darkness, but Noah promptly grabbed it and threw it toward the edges of the Gorge. Curses chirped out of its mouth, but Noah ignored them as he followed its new asset. When Noah resurfaced, he found Night staring at the sun. There was no cultivator in sight, so he let the creature experience that moment of peace. "The light doesn''t seem so bad," Night said, and Noah cast some corrosive smoke while the beast admired what it had been unable to see for all its life. Noah spewed some flames too, and Snore''s head formed to launch some of its elemental attacks. The peaceful environment above the Gorge became a dangerous battlefield filled with powerful abilities. "Can you fight through them?" Noah asked, and Night didn''t hesitate to shoot inside the various attacks. Noah kept track of the creature''s movements and felt satisfied when it returned to fly around him. Night was even faster when he moved through the darkness that he produced. It was already an asset that he could deploy in battle. "I think I''m hungry," Night said. It didn''t completely understand its new body''s sensations, but Noah grabbed it before sprinting in the distance. Night''s body was a disposable inscribed item. Noah could fix it with his dark matter, but he didn''t intend to make it last. The beast would have to endure any sensation for now. The reports concerning the battlefields stated that a few crucial regions stopped the advance of the allied forces. The Elbas family couldn''t defend the peripheral territories of its domain, so it had focused its defenses on important areas. The snowy regions on the southeastern coast had fallen, but the Hive couldn''t seize the entirety of the Dark Gorge territory due to the Royal Academy. The forest of Siver-yellow woods had become part of a powerful formation that could fend off powerhouses, and the Royals still owned it after months of battle. They had kept their share of Divine Market city too. The Elbas family had prepared countermeasures after losing access to the Divine Stele in the past, and the allied forces had yet to break its defensive formations. Most of the areas featuring obelisks had survived the invasion, and only those that had seen powerhouses directly attacking them had fallen. The alliance''s gains were small, but that was understandable since their opponent had five rank 6 cultivators in its ranks. Noah didn''t go toward the Royal Academy. That place was almost impenetrable, and the alliance only had three powerhouses on its side. June had managed to seize the potion only due to her knowledge of the place, expertise, and Noah''s help. Divine Market city was the same. Noah preferred to isolate it before starting a long siege. That was the best approach when against defenses that could fend off rank 6 cultivators. His targets were the territories around important areas that had yet to fall due to their many defenses. His goal wasn''t to take away as much as he could from King Elbas. He wanted the alliance to have territories that it could defend once the Royals'' leader returned. Noah used a series of teleportation matrices to reach the northern side of the eastern coast. A series of obelisks were there, and many cities had appeared in that region in the past centuries. Two of the five enemy powerhouses defended that area, and a series of defensive formations created a powerful array of protections. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had gathered there after giving up on the Royal Academy and Divine Market city. The forest of Silver-yellow woods was too dangerous to approach without a plan, so that was the only viable target for them. When Noah arrived, he found the armies of the alliance fighting the assets of the Royals. The battle looked harsh, and multicolored lights shone behind the enemy forces. Chapter 1079: 1079. Chirp A tight array of shining lines stood behind the enemy army and engulfed it with a golden light. Both heroic and human assets of the Royal family saw their injuries healing at high speed as their battles continued. A series of blinding beams came out of the formations'' cores, and many Elders had to use defensive items to fend them off. Two large ballistae floated behind the array of formations. Peak rank 4 cultivators loaded massive inscribed arrows that crossed the entirety of the battlefield once launched. Only Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana could stop those arrows since they were disposable items with quasi-rank 6 power. When the Royals paired them with the rank 6 ballistae at the peak of the lower tier, they became attacks capable of killing powerhouses. The two leaders of the alliance could take care of those attacks and have enough time to charge at the ballistae. Still, Third Prince and First Princess floated behind the enemy lines and controlled the defenses to hinder their movements. ''How can they still have so many heroic assets?'' Noah thought. The Elbas family had deployed fewer troops on that battlefield, but its sheer number of powerful cultivators surprised him nonetheless. There were more than twenty rank 5 cultivators on the Royals'' side, and many of them were in the solid stage. Noah had already accepted that the Royal Pool was a miraculous item, but that rate of growth was simply unbelievable! The Hive had been at its prime for a while. Its best assets were the many talented cultivators gathered over the years. The other world''s rebellion had made it suffer some losses, but it had still produced more than forty rank 5 experts in the last centuries. However, the numbers of the Elbas family were off the scale. Noah had killed tens of powerful assets after returning to the surface, but there didn''t seem to be an end to them. Noah felt even surer that King Elbas had managed to improve the effects of the Pool. Such grooming properties were nowhere near the fairness imposed by Heaven and Earth. A single miraculous item wouldn''t be too troublesome if it were the only amazing asset of the Elbas family. The Hive had the Copying Technique in the end, and that was equally annoying to deal with. Yet, the Royals had their incredible expertise in the inscription fields, which made having so many powerful assets even more troublesome. The alliance had deployed more troops, but the many defenses in place made advancing impossible. The experts of both Hive and Council had the upper hand over their enemies, but they never managed to land a deadly blow. Noah saw Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon fighting in one corner of the battlefield against three experts in the solid stage. They appeared unstoppable with their battle prowess that surpassed the fifth rank''s limits, but their attacks barely crossed the golden armors worn by their opponents. Slowly exhausting the Royals didn''t work either since the formations'' healing light made every injury pointless. Instead, the enemy army could work together with the beaming cores and wound the allied forces over time. There were also a series of massive shields between the Royal army and the formations. Noah saw how the enemy cultivators could cross them easily to return to a safe spot. ''Shields, ballistae, and the two powerhouses,'' Noah listed in his mind the assets that could threaten rank 6 cultivators. He didn''t know if his arrival could turn the trend of that battle, but he had the chance to test his new weapon at least. ''I hate shining things,'' Night said through its connection with Noah''s mind. The bird-like Companion stood on Noah''s shoulder as he inspected the battlefield with him. ''That''s good,'' Noah answered with his mind. ''They are your targets.'' ''How should I even destroy them with this awful body?'' Night snorted, but Noah shot forward while replying in an uncaring manner. ''That''s your problem. Weren''t you the strongest predator?'' "The strongest predator in darkness!" Night shouted, and some cultivators turned in Noah''s direction when they heard the bird''s chirping cry. ''I''ll give you darkness then,'' Noah answered. His Demonic Sword flew in his palm as he neared the allied powerhouses, and Snore materialized next to him. The two older living assets stared at the bird on Noah''s shoulder in disdain. They knew how Night treated Noah, so they couldn''t help but find it annoying. Yet, Night barely deigned those weapons of a glance. It had been a divine beast in the end. Those two heroic assents weren''t worthy of its attention. Night''s indifference made the Demonic Sword and Snore even angrier. Noah could feel their intense feelings trying to interfere with the Pterodactyl, but they stopped when he reached Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana. The two powerhouses flew close to each other as they launched attacks whenever they didn''t have to defend against the threatening arrows. Armies of tall puppets self-detonated on the golden shields, and an array of orange spheres cast small lightning bolts that targeted the formations'' cores. Their offensive stopped whenever the two ballistae shot arrows. Metallic puppets and orange spheres would fall apart as the massive bolts crossed the golden shields and flung every cultivator in their range back. The arrows injured even the Elbas family''s assets, but they had the golden light healing them continuously, so they didn''t mind that strategy. Instead, the allied forces had to dodge those attacks every time and expose themselves to their enemies during the evasive maneuvers. Only Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana could remain still and cast spells capable of blocking the arrows. Chasing Demon saw the bolt curving to aim for his chest and was about to summon a few metallic creatures when he saw a familiar figure stepping in front of him. The emblem of the Hive on his back reflected the many lights filling the battlefield, and his aura resembled a violent torrent of swords capable of flying in an orderly manner. A smile appeared on the old powerhouse''s face. Now that Noah was there, the alliance could finally attempt to overwhelm the Royal family''s annoying defenses. Noah saw the arrow coming in slow motion. The Demonic Sword was in his grasp, and Snore was ready to help, but he wanted to see how potent those disposable weapons were. Before the arrow could hit his chest, Noah threw a punch, giving birth to a silent shockwave when his knuckles and the huge tip connected. Both Noah and the arrow remained still for an instant before the effects of their clash became visible to everyone. Cracks appeared on the bolt and covered its surface. A long wound opened on Noah''s arm, spreading from his knuckles to his shoulder. The impact also flung him away, but the arrow crumbled at the same time. Noah felt two powerful pairs of eyes on him when he managed to stop his momentum. Third Prince and First Princess stared at him from behind the shields with an annoyed expression. A few drops of dark-red blood flowed out of his wound, but corrosive smoke soon came out of his skin and covered his whole figure. Chasing Demon ordered a full retreat of the weaker forces at that sight, and Great Elder Diana imitated him. Noah was using the Demonic Form while being a rank 6 mage. The battlefield would soon turn into a rank 6 danger zone where only powerhouses could live. The Prince and Princess shouted similar orders, but the Elbas family''s troops only retreated behind the shields. They didn''t move to the edges of the region like their enemies. ''Is this darkness enough?'' Noah asked, and Night released a long chirping sound that resembled a battle cry. Chapter 1080: 1080. Shining thing Noah advanced toward the defensive formations without minding his surroundings. The cloud of corrosive smoke spread from his fiendish form and soon landed on the golden shields. The smoke didn''t manage to piece those defenses, but tremors sparkled from time to time on their surface as Noah''s spell continued to attack it. It was a constant siege. The Demonic Form forced the golden shields to waste more energy since it remained on top of them. "We can''t avoid the arrows," Chasing Demon said as he neared him. A metallic layer had appeared on top of his skin, and a humming sound came out of it to keep the corrosive smoke away. "Someone always needs to block them," Great Elder Diana said while reaching Noah too. An array of minute lightning bolts covered her figure and destroyed every particle of corrosive smoke that tried to touch her skin. Both powerhouses had defensive methods that countered Noah''s Demonic Form. The event didn''t surprise him since his spell''s features had become common knowledge since he escaped the Utra nation. It was only normal for powerhouses to develop countermeasures to such a threatening spell. Even Chasing Demon had created one in case enemies managed to reproduce it. "The Royals will probably start to attack now that you have arrived," Great Elder Diana continued. "We can''t breach them in only one battle. This is a slow siege." Great Elder Diana''s words made sense, but Noah wanted to see if Night could open a different path. His horned helmet turned toward Chasing Demon as he spoke to his Patriarch. "Let me try something." On that battlefield, Great Elder Diana was clearly in charge. Her cultivation level in the liquid stage put her one step above both Noah and Chasing Demon. However, they both came from organizations at the top of those Mortal Lands. The number of powerful items and assets in their possession transcended what a single powerhouse could accomplish. The alliance didn''t have a leader for that exact reason. If the Hive and the Council were to base their prowess purely on items, the Copying Formation would be enough to place the Hive on top. The problem there was that no one wanted to waste valuable items on a simple battlefield. The alliance didn''t want to reveal its cards, but it didn''t want to lose troops either, which was why Diana pressed for a slow and safe approach. Nevertheless, Noah was different. Chasing Demon nodded, and Noah shot forward. The Patriarch of the Hive followed him across the corrosive smoke, and Great Elder Diana snorted before imitating him. She didn''t care that Noah had ignored her proposal. She had always known how he acted. She was only annoyed that they would have to waste more time because Noah wanted to test himself. Two arrows flew across the darkness, aiming directly at the three of them. Both attacks went toward Noah, but Great Elder Diana stepped forward to block them. Diana joined her palms, and crackling sounds spread through the black cloud. It was as if that simple gesture had given birth to a lightning storm even if the two cultivators from the Hive didn''t see a single lightning bolt. The arrows reached her only to find her palms in their trajectory. Both Noah and Chasing Demon thought that her limbs would shatter, but two massive lightning bolts came out of her hands and turned the disposable weapons into ashes. A series of fiery snakes made their way through the darkness at that point. They had followed the arrows, so they didn''t come in contact with the corrosive smoke, which left them virtually intact. Chasing Demon stepped forward, and rocks began to form on top of his skin. The Patriarch transformed as more "Breath" of the earth element turned his figure into a massive golem that started to fight with the snakes. Great Elder Diana quickly went to help Chasing Demon. He was alone against the spells of two powerhouses, and she knew that the defensive formations had yet to unleash everything. Multicolored beams assaulted the corrosive cloud. Without the weaker heroic cultivators as targets, they could focus all their power on the powerhouses. Noah saw his area of destruction becoming smaller as hundreds of shining beams with power at the peak of the fifth rank assaulted the cloud. Even with three powerhouses against them, the Royals could hold their ground without suffering any loss! ''Are you ready?'' Noah asked while he let the two rank 6 cultivators block the attacks for him. ''Just give me a target,'' Night conveyed in an annoyed tone. Those types of battles appeared unworthy of its status, but it had to admit that it felt good to fight without worrying about the sunlight. Noah gave it an order and shot toward the golden shields. A loud shockwave expanded from his landing spot, but the light radiated by the defenses didn''t even flicker at his arrival. That was a formation with rank 6 power. Noah would have to do far more than that only to make a crack appear on its surface. Moreover, there was the chance that those lines could fix themselves like the inscriptions in the Royal Academy. Being so close to the shields exposed Noah, but his goal was to distract the two Royals from his main offensive. Snore launched its elemental attacks on the shields while the Demonic Sword became smaller than a knife. Arrays of laws appeared in his vision as Noah focused, and his slow slashes severed them. An intense tremor spread on the shields, and the light on a large area dimmed. The dark zone had the shape of a massive fissure, and the defensive formations took a few minutes to restore their radiance. However, no crack appeared on their surface. Even one of Noah''s most powerful slashes couldn''t do anything against those shields. Bright beams and spells of the fire element flew toward him right after he launched his attack. His body covered by the spiked armor could endure the cores'' blows on its own, but Noah couldn''t underestimate the Royals'' offensive. A human-shaped crack appeared in his spot right before the attacks could converge on him. The explosion that their crash caused engulfed Noah when he came out of his dimension and flung him back toward his allies. Chasing Demon couldn''t stop smiling. Noah''s prowess was off the scale for an existence that had lived a little more than five hundred years. He could already imagine how Noah would have no rivals in the lower planes once his centers of powers reached the last part of the heroic ranks. Great Elder Diana had similar thoughts, but she wasn''t as optimistic as her ally. The stronger a cultivator was, the harsher Heaven and Earth''s restrictions would be. A broader individuality made the cultivation journey harsher too. Noah''s growth inside the fifth rank matched and even slightly surpassed the best geniuses, but it wasn''t monster-like for that exact reason. Moreover, she was still a bit annoyed that Noah didn''t listen to her. Even monsters should respect experience and power, especially when they came from allies. "Can we use my strategy now?" Great Elder Diana asked, and Chasing Demon shrugged his shoulders. Two more arrows were coming, so he had to deploy some defenses. Great Elder Diana prioritized blocking the arrows too and almost failed to notice how Noah was barely listening to their conversation. She believed that he was disappointed due to the outcome of his attacks, but what she saw after she blocked the bolts made her think otherwise. Chasing Demon and Diana destroyed the arrows and were about to regroup with Noah to organize themselves when a series of explosions resounded from the defensive formations. The shining lines'' cores began to explode, destabilizing the entire array and removing annoying attacks from the Royals'' defenses. More cores continued to explode. No one except Noah knew how such an event was possible, but even he found it hard to believe it. In his mind, he could hear Night repeat the same line over and over again. ''Die, you shining thing!'' Chapter 1081: 1081. Similarities ''Kill the light!'' ''Destroy the light!'' ''Death to the light!'' Night sounded ecstatic as it flew through the corrosive smoke and unleashed its abilities on the formations'' cores. Its anger toward everything that shone appeared boundless, but Noah could understand the reason behind such intense feelings. The rank 7 Night-blade Pterodactyl had lived in the Immortal Lands for years without ever gazing at the sky. Heaven and Earth had put a massive limitation on its path toward the higher ranks. Noah didn''t know how old Night was, but he could understand that its life in the higher plane had been harsh. The creature probably blamed every form of light for its fall. Night accelerated inside the corrosive smoke before slamming head-on on the cores. Its attacks resemble a brainless charge that relied only on its physical strength and speed, but Noah could sense something more profound. His connection with the creature was strong. He could sense part of its unconscious and understand some of the things that Night didn''t even remember. The name Night-blade Pterodactyl indicated the species'' ability to turn into a sharp weapon right before attacking. However, the specimens didn''t become simple blades. Night merged with the world when it clashed with the cores. It became part of the laws of the darkness element and severed everything else effortlessly. Also, its cuts tainted the world, which gave birth to more darkness. It seemed that the more it destroyed, the more the world lost light. ''To think that we would be so suitable for each other,'' Noah thought as he witnessed more cores exploding and small dark areas replacing them. Noah and the Pterodactyl shared many similarities. He had also pondered the chance that the roars of that species had affected him during his past enlightenment. ''Merging with darkness to spread darkness,'' Noah thought while shaking his head. ''A blade that belongs to Heaven and Earth''s system can only obey their rules.'' Countless ideas on how to improve Night''s body surged in his mind, and a tingling sensation spread on his fingers. Noah wanted to forge, but that wasn''t the right moment. It wasn''t only the invasion. Noah was still doubtful about Night''s character and preferred to make it grow inside his mind for a while before improving its species. Both Great Elder Diana and Chasing Demon couldn''t contain their smiles at that sight. They had the power to destroy the cores themselves, but the Royals had never given them any chance. The same had happened when Noah arrived. There were too many defenses in place. However, Noah had a weapon capable of flying unnoticed among his corrosive cloud and expressing power in the sixth rank! Great Elder Diana completed multiple calculations in a matter of instants. Her slow approach had taken into consideration a battle prowess unable to inflict any damage to the formations, but the situation had changed now. "Destroy all the cores!" Great Elder Diana shouted. "We''ll focus on destabilizing the shields and protecting you!" Noah nodded, and a human-shaped crack replaced his figure. A massive fissure crashed on the golden shields and darkened a large chunk of their surface, but they remained intact. Noah reappeared in the open and pointed the tip of his knife-like Demonic Sword on one of the cores before performing one of his slow slashes. The core exploded, and a human-shaped crack replaced Noah, who moved toward another target. Night continued to destroy cores, and Noah helped it whenever he could. He had to let the Demonic Sword rest from time to time. That stressful battle didn''t suit a weapon in the fifth rank, and Noah''s expertise was the only thing keeping it undamaged. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana blocked the incoming attacks and launched spells on specific spots of the defenses. Their expertise in the formations field wasn''t low, so they could exploit the opportunities created by Noah. The two of them had even started to use inscribed items! The powerhouses found it pointless to reveal their weapons when they felt they couldn''t win the battle. Yet, Noah''s new power had given them a chance, and they didn''t hesitate to commit their powerful assets to exploit it fully. Chasing Demon held a long stick that had countless drawings carved on its surface. The carvings depicted magical beasts of various kinds, and a violent aura came out of them. A series of lens floated around Great Elder Diana. Small crackling spheres followed them and aimed their lightning bolts at the black glass that made those inscribed items. Whenever the arrows or the Royals'' spells arrived, Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana stepped forward and used their abilities to block them. Then, during their short moments of freedom, they activated their inscribed item to pressure the defensive array. The carvings on Chasing Demon''s stick lit up when he poured "Breath" inside them. The chosen beasts would form in the shape of earth puppets in less than an instant under that light. The stick shortened Chasing Demon''s casting time, but Noah knew it was far more than that. He could see the theories of the Copying Technique behind that summoning. His expertise could be low, but very few experts were capable of matching his knowledge when it came to magical beasts. The creatures on the stick were copies of existing beasts that took life once Chasing Demon fueled the item with "Breath". Of course, Noah didn''t know all those details, but he could vaguely figure out that the puppets were weaker reproductions of real creatures. Great Elder Diana''s lens had the purpose of enhancing the power of her lightning bolts. The leader of the Council specialized in precision. She could express the lightning element''s innate violence, but her individuality didn''t allow her to reach the peak in that field. However, the lens allowed her to be precise and destructive, making up for the only drawback of her individuality. The powerhouses'' attacks crashed on the golden shields whenever a core exploded. Their idea was to push the destabilizations to their limits until a crack appeared and allowed them to advance. ''I can''t go on much longer,'' Noah thought after he destroyed his thirtieth core. His dantian was almost empty after sprinting and attacking for so long, and his Demonic Sword was nearing its structural limits. Even Night''s shouts had become less lively after destroying more than fifty cores. Long battles on that level were Noah''s weakness due to the disparity among his centers of power. His dantian had reached its limits, but he wanted to press forward for as long as he could anyway. The alliance was attacking. Noah could retreat once he became exhausted. "I''ll retreat after a few more," Noah conveyed to the powerhouses through the alliance''s special notebooks. His announcement surprised Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana, but they accepted it quite soon. It was only normal for Noah to feel exhausted before them. His battle prowess made them forget that he was only a newly advanced powerhouse who had barely amassed five hundred years of experience. "Target these," Great Elder Diana sent a few specific locations to Noah''s mind, and he didn''t hesitate to sprint again to destroy those cores. He was unstoppable when he flew in his dimension, and everything fell apart when his blade cut the laws that made the matter. As an opponent, Noah was a deadly force capable of threatening solid defenses due to his high mobility and sharpness. Five more cores fell apart before the Royals could even think about targeting Noah, and seven more exploded due to Night''s actions. Noah retreated at that point. His low-waist felt heavy, and his dark star spun at high speed to compensate for the lack of darkness in his center of power. Night retreated too, and Noah massaged his temples when he saw its condition. The bird-like body that had taken him a few months to create had turned into a broken, empty head that floated back to him. Chapter 1082: 1082. Separate battlefields ''Must¡­ destroy¡­ light!'' Night conveyed in a tired attempt to launch another battle cry, but Noah quickly moved to seize that broken body. Night had managed to destroy everything except for its head, which was in a poor state too. Noah knew that the creature could surpass its body''s structural limits, but he didn''t think it would be so selfless in its anger. Noah carefully crushed the head and took the dark matter released inside his mind. His half-transparent figure then took Night''s consciousness and immersed it in the sea before pushing out the higher energy. Night''s mind rested under the nurturing properties of Noah''s mental energy. More thoughts fused with its consciousness to stabilize its growth and add more restrictions. The Pterodactyl''s mind didn''t suffer any injury. Its tiredness came from the body that it had destroyed with its reckless offensive. ''It''s pointless to leave it without a body,'' Noah thought as he came out of the corrosive cloud. ''And it will only hurt it to use such weak puppets.'' He had deactivated the Demonic Form before the last attacks, but he still felt drained. There was so much to do, but the war wouldn''t stop raging for a while. There was one problem with that. Noah didn''t believe that the alliance could take anything valuable away from the Royals. King Elbas was a monster, and most of his descendants were talented inscription masters. It didn''t matter that they were weak. All they had to do was relying on defenses that they had set beforehand to survive. Out of the territories in its domain, the Elbas family only had a few valuable ones remaining. The region with Spiked Roots hid the Royal Academy, but the Dark Gorge had fallen, and Noah had already taken the rank 7 magical beast. All the defenses would gather in the Academy now, so it was pointless to even dream about conquering it. The buildings in Divine Market city belonging to the Elbas family had tight defenses, and it could take a century of continuous siege to deplete the energy accumulated there. The alliance could endure the costs, but the lack of certainty made it doubtful. Both the Hive and the Council were more willing to invest time and resources in nurturing more cultivators. The Utra nation had the dimensional portal, but only King Elbas knew how to use it. Conquering that region was virtually useless since his return would restore everything to the previous state. The Elbas family used every other region in its domain as a livable land. It built obelisks and trained talents, but it didn''t have anything worthy of the attention of a powerhouse. The alliance was willing to invest resources for something lasting, but the defensive formations made even the valuable resources unappealing. The gains wouldn''t make up for the resources wasted to seize them. It was better to invest in the growth of assets rather than sending them into countless wars. The report at the end of the battle confirmed Noah''s guess. Even with the three of them in one of the less protected regions, they didn''t manage to pierce the golden shields. The alliance had invested a lot in that region already, so it will continue the assault until it fell. Taking away a habitable land would still hurt the Elbas family in the long-run in the end. However, both leaders didn''t want to push any more than that. The Elbas family had already lost a lot, and the alliance could remain above its enemies for years with those gains. With the Empire relegated to the peripheral territories of the Papral nation and the Elbas family stuck in four regions, the rule of the alliance would be undisputed. The Hive and the Council could keep on growing stronger than the other organizations for millennia. Noah agreed with the leaders'' vision and joined the next battles too. It had become evident that they couldn''t destroy the golden shields in a few assaults, but they could pressure them until they depleted all the energy stashed in the region. Third Prince and First Princess had a hard time dealing with the three powerhouses. Still, their greatest pain was the invisible puppet that felt through the darkness and destroyed everything that it could. Luckily for the alliance, those formations didn''t have self-fixing properties, so its assets could continue to create small damages through the years of battle. Noah learnt a lot about Night in that period, but the most surprising event happened two years after the beginning of the invasion. Great Elder Diana, Chasing Demon, and Noah hammered the defensive formations while dealing with the Royals'' assault as per usual. The Elbas family didn''t dare to deploy more troops there for fear of losing essential territories, so all the battles were similar to each other. Night and Noah destroyed cores, and the two powerhouses took care of the incoming attacks while expanding the tremors spreading through the shields. The cloud of corrosive smoke surrounded that battlefield, so some weaker cultivators had decided to fight on the regions'' sides instead. There were fewer protections there, so the battles mostly had fame as their main gains. The weaker cultivators couldn''t let the powerhouses decide everything. They wanted their share of the glory. Those battles happened in an orderly manner, and cultivators even bet resources from time to time. A few of them had to stop fighting because their power put them in a different league from other rank 5 experts. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon were like that. Their prowess surpassed the limits of the fifth rank. The same went for Elder Julia, who had steadily improved over the years. The Hive wasn''t the only organization to have experts of that type. The Elbas family had Andrew Elbas, who was on a similar level to Elder Julia, and a few solid stage cultivators who didn''t rely on the Pool to advance. The Council had Elder Regina, who appeared on the same level as Dreaming Demon. Many believed that the two of them would be the next existences to step into the powerhouses'' realm. Those existences couldn''t kill each other when surrounded by allies. It was simply impossible to deliver a fatal injury when their levels were so close. So, it was mostly weaker cultivators fighting. During one of those battles, a flash of black lightning fell on the battlefield, revealing June''s figure surrounded by waves of black sparks. An orange halo came out of her figure, and the Elbas family''s side cheered when it saw her solid stage cultivation level. Nevertheless, June rose in the sky until she reached the Hive''s army. A wave of surprised gasps and incredulous shouts echoed through that side of the battlefield, but that was only the beginning. "I''m willing to bet Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance to leave the Elbas family together with my family," June announced once all eyes went on her. Many experts knew about Eccentric Thunder, and some had even investigated the matter of his inheritance. Yet, the expert''s will had detonated everything to cover June''s traces, so everyone thought that every resource was gone. The offer was appealing, especially since June gave the Royals a chance to punish a traitor before her actual betrayal. They eventually sent one of the solid stage cultivators nearing the peak of the rank against her after agreeing to her conditions. June had been a liquid stage cultivator only a few years before, so no one expected much from her. Still, Andrew Elbas had sent one of the strongest assets among those that had relied on the Royal Pool to advance. Many believed that such a decision was overkill, but they had to rethink their evaluation when they saw June match her opponent''s blows after four exchanges. Chapter 1083: 1083. Poison Only the Elders of the Hive believed that June had some chances against her opponent. They knew more about her power, and her relationship with Noah gave her some credibility. Noah was the mighty Demon Prince who had defied any common sense. His woman had to be awesome too, and her fame had already proven that hypothesis to be true. June was the battle maniac of the Elbas family. She had led the unofficial and illegal missions of the Royals since she was only a human cultivator. Her family had been in charge of the western border of the Utra nation for decades, and her tasks didn''t stop after the migration. The matters of the Royal Inheritance were still a secret to many, but the Hive knew that she had been part of the clearing operations. The immense number of heroic cultivators of the Elbas family came from her efforts in seizing the Royal Pool. The Royals knew her value too, but June had never shown how powerful she was. Her battle prowess had spiked after obtaining the black sparks, but she had never revealed them to the public. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon neared the battlefield and stood next to the Elbas family''s forces before the fight began. They didn''t want to interfere, but they didn''t know what the Royals would do to seize Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance. June''s opponent''s name was Gustavo Elbas. He was a tall man carrying the usual features of the Elbas family, even if his colors indicated his distance from the main bloodline. His golden hair had brown shades, and his eyes were pale green, lacking any shine. He was an alchemy expert, but he didn''t manage to fuse his expertise with his cultivation journey like Daniel. The Pool had allowed him to reach the solid stage, and the various resources of the Elbas family had pushed his cultivation level near the peak of the rank. Yet, his battle prowess was somewhat lacking and heavily reliant on his creations. June stepped forward without showing any fear. The various Elders and Royals made a large circle around her and Gustavo, creating a large battlefield at some distance from the healing light of the golden formations. The faint shields were close, but no expert stood behind them. The powerhouses were fighting the real battle for that territory. The assets there were holding honorable matches to increase their fame and gain some resources. "When did you betray us?" Gustavo asked as he neared June. A series of potions and pills came out of his space-ring and floated around his figure. June snorted. She didn''t like it when cultivators had weapons that she didn''t understand. She was relatively simple-minded in her battle style. In her opinion, power had to overwhelm, not deceive. Gustavo quickly understood that his opponent didn''t want to engage in the usual foreplays that preceded an official battle. A tinge of disdain appeared on his expression. In his mind, only animals didn''t follow human formalities. "You are indeed a maniac," Gustavo announced. "The Elbas Bloodline doesn''t need weapons that it can''t control." Most experts of the Elbas family didn''t like June due to her unwillingness to marry one of the Royals. Hers was the only noble family that had yet to fuse with them, so many accepted her distant and violent behavior only because of her battle results. Still, she was openly betraying them right now. Gustavo could finally vent the annoyance that had accumulated during the past centuries. Soft gales began to blow from behind Gustavo. One of the potions around him broke, releasing a purple liquid that turned into a green gas when it came in contact with the air. The gales spread the gas, creating a large green cloud that covered the entire battlefield. The experts on the edges had to rely on their defensive spells to stop it from spreading further. June couldn''t avoid the gas, but black sparks came out of her body and destroyed any poisonous particles that tried to land on her skin. Her higher energy even expanded to create a defensive array. The gales changed direction, and the faint shape of a massive snake formed inside the cloud. June felt something landing on her back before her mind could even sense any danger. June flew through the cloud. Poison entered her skin, and a large bruise formed on her back. Behind her, a reptilian head chased after her, charging through the gas as it showed its massive fangs. Sparks crackled from under her skin while June stopped mid-air. Her defenses had been useless against Gustavo''s attack, but that had only ignited her battle intent. The Perfect Circuit stirred her centers of power to produce more energy. Denser and larger sparks came out of her body and took the shape of countless spheres that gathered lightning on their surface. The poisonous gas'' fabric began to crumble when it touched the spheres, and a large chunk of the cloud disappeared when they released a series of lightning bolts toward the incoming snake. Gustavo waved his hand, and a pill next to him broke. A purple liquid mixed with the cloud, giving birth to hundreds of dense trails that shot toward the snake. When the trails fused with the snake, the gaseous creature split into hundreds of small purple fangs that tried to dodge the incoming lightning bolts. June''s attacks destroyed most fangs, and even those that didn''t clash directly with the lightning bolts fell apart when they entered their range. Gustavo felt surprised when he witnessed that scene. His attacks'' power neared the peak of the solid stage. They weren''t as strong as proper spells, but they could overwhelm any blow from a newly advanced cultivator. However, June''s black lightning was peculiar. It felt weak, but it could destroy the fangs without even touching them! June performed an evasive maneuver, but two fangs hit her anyway. One stabbed her right shoulder while the other cut her left ankle. Both attacks injected poison inside her, but the higher energy released by her body managed to prevent it from spreading further. The black sparks couldn''t destroy them, and that caused her battle intent to increase even more. More sparks came out of her body, but they appeared to pulsate at that time. An array of lightning bolts covered her and expanded, following the rhythm of her heartbeat. The green cloud began to resonate with June''s heartbeat too. The aura released by her higher energy was so intense that the environment couldn''t help but follow her rhythm. Gustavo felt even more surprised. He couldn''t understand how someone weaker than him could have that influence of spells that had been enhanced by his potions. Three pills broke at the same time, and more gales began to churn inside the cloud. The gas became denser and darker, and June found it challenging to localize his opponent even when she expanded her consciousness. A smile appeared on June''s expression. She didn''t mind that her opponent was hiding. That gave her an excuse to unleash her power freely. June joined her palms, and a cube formed when she separated them. The crackling black form then floated above her head and became unstable. Lightning bolts shot in every direction whenever the cube trembled. They resembled massive arrows that cut the dark-green cloud and destroyed its poisonous gas. The orange halo they released illuminated the dark environment, revealing the gaseous creatures flying in her direction. Gustavo had created hundreds of beasts while June prepared her attack, but the lightning bolts destroyed them. However, the denser gas that made their bodies didn''t vanish. Instead, it fused with the cloud and began to press on June. She felt as if a cage had formed around her, and even her cube crumbled against that pressure. Gustavo appeared above her and poured potion after potion on the dense gas. His creations improved the poisonous properties of the cage and increased its density. Then, he performed a hand-sign, and the spikes rose from the internal surface of the cage. June could only let her body be pierced by those poisonous blades while allowing her individuality to push her power toward the next level. Chapter 1084: 1084. Heartbeats June felt the spikes piercing her skin and pouring poison inside her body. Her mind began to feel dizzy even if the higher energy suppressed the foreign substance. The face of her lover appeared in her vision while she amassed power. Noah would have never suffered that kind of injury, especially from a cultivator that relied on his potions and pills to match those on his level. ''I''m still so far away,'' June thought as the poison and the higher energy fought inside her. Noah was a powerhouse. His dantian was still in the solid stage, but he was a true member of the higher stage. He was even fighting on a battlefield that she and other weaker cultivators had to abandon. He was in another league, and his next step was the Immortal Lands. Their paths would diverge once again, and it was unclear how long it would take for them to reunite once he left. ''Only you can be my eternal opponent,'' June smiled as a peculiar scene appeared in her mind. She saw Noah disappearing in the white sky and becoming out of her reach. That vision made her sad but also extremely motivated. Her individuality depended on strong opponents, and her lover was the most powerful of all of them. "He could kill weaklings like you when he was only in the liquid stage," June said. Gustavo''s eyes sharpened when he heard those words, but his actions didn''t slow down. The Royal continued to pour potions on the cage. The pressure accumulated was enough to destroy most rank 5 cultivators. However, June remained still. She kept her eyes closed as she let her centers of power fill the Perfect Circuit with higher energy. The structure of her dantian, body, and mind had improved after she used the prototype. She had no more limits inside the fifth rank, but she still wanted to see if she could reach higher levels. There was an unreachable target in her vision. She recalled the toughness of Noah''s skin as she evaluated the energy accumulated inside her, and only one thought resounded in her mind. ''This isn''t enough to defeat him.'' Many experts had to control their ambitions once approaching the sixth rank. A broad individuality hindered the path toward the higher ranks, and it usually misled cultivators. Yet, some couldn''t stop themselves from following their true calling. Noah''s ambition prevented him from cutting away any part of his individuality. King Elbas'' pride and curiosity forced him to pursue every path in the inscription field. Other experts in the past had found themselves in the same situation. Legendary names like Divine Demon, Divine Architect, and others had pursued their paths without leaving anything behind. June''s path was the same. She could either soar while carrying everything with her or die trying. Gustavo smiled when he sensed that June''s body functions were slowing down. The poison was finally taking effect. Yet, a loud heartbeat affected the environment once again at that point. The cage began to contract together with the heartbeat. June''s aura then affected the gas and spread until it covered the entire cloud. Gustavo felt a dangerous sensation rising in the back of his mind. He hated that such a weak cultivator could make him so scared, but he knew that he had to retreat. The Royal jumped off the cage and tried to hide his presence in the dark-green gas again, but the explosion arrived before he could escape its range. An orange light spread from the poisonous cage, and lightning bolts shot from the enlarging halo, creating cracks on the dense gaseous layers. Gustavo had to dodge some of them while he retreated, but the influence of the heartbeat reached him during his evasive maneuvers. Gustavo began to sense the rhythm of June''s heartbeat while the orange light covered the entire cloud. A pulling and pushing force pressed on his body according to the rotation of the Perfect Circuit. The beat pushed him away from the expanding lightning storm, while the silence pulled him closer. He felt as if he was in a series of tides that kept him locked in the same area. The black lightning storm expanded together with June''s heartbeat. It destroyed everything it touched, and it increased in power after every cycle. June could feel that too. Her heart was the center of the Perfect Circuit, and each of its beats slightly increased her power. The lightning storm reflected that feature and expanded as she produced more energy. Terror appeared on Gustavo''s expression. June''s power didn''t make sense, and she kept on becoming stronger even! His first spell should have been enough to kill her, but she had survived all his attacks. Moreover, her body didn''t suffer from his poison''s effects since her black sparks isolated its properties. That was the worst possible outcome for him. He was a wind cultivator that relied on poison in the end. His strategies often saw him slowly damaging his opponent until he could deliver the final blow. That didn''t happen with June. Her individuality made him see the exact opposite of what he was expecting, which ruined his battle plan. Gustavo''s expression became resolute when the lightning storm was only a few heartbeats away from him. Countless pills came out of his space-ring and released a red smoke as they fused with the dark-red cloud. Gales blew through the cloud and gathered all the poison in the air in Gustavo''s position. The red and dark-green gas condensed until they turned into a liquid armor that covered the Royal and turned him into a giant. The lightning storm eventually arrived and clashed with him. Layers of poison splashed in every direction as the black sparks raged on its surface. However, the dark liquid''s corrosive properties managed to extinguish them before they reached Gustavo''s body. June shot forward at that sight. Green blood came out of her injuries and tainted her orange robe, but a wide smile shone on her face. She felt delighted that her opponent had survived the last attack. Her centers of power were producing even more energy now, and the world of the laws appeared in her vision as her existence strived toward the higher ranks. Her centers of power weren''t advancing. The energy they produced was so dense that the world mistook her for an existence near the peak of the solid stage! June bathed in that feeling as lightning bolts shot from her figure. They didn''t seem to have a target, but they stopped mid-air once they crossed the giant. Gustavo didn''t care about June''s strategy. The poison covering him was so strong that even his skin began to burn. That was his most potent attack, and he didn''t dare to prolong his suffering by using its energy to defend. The giant waved its limbs, and massive dark-red wing blades shot from its figure. Dark sparks exploded under June''s feet and allowed her to perform short accelerations that made her dodge the incoming attacks. Yet, the blades exploded every time June dodged one of them and the poison that they released managed to touch her from time to time. June charged forward, uncaring of the injuries accumulating on her body. Her figure continued to release lightning bolts that stopped mid-air behind and around the giant. Then, when she reached her opponent, the floating lightning bolts expanded to create a dark net that surrounded the red giant. Gustavo tried to stop the net from covering him, but the poison that made his armor fell apart when it touched the black lightning. June''s spell had successfully trapped him. The heartbeat resounded again at that point. It beat once when June landed on the net. It beat the second time when she raised her arms to the sky, and it beat a third time when a thick lightning bolt formed between her hands. The fourth heartbeat arrived when she threw her lightning bolt on the net, but Gustavo didn''t hear it. Chapter 1085: 1085. Face June''s spells had gained the effects of her individuality. The net around Gustavo enhanced her attacks other than damaging the giant by itself. When June''s lightning bolt hit the net, it triggered a chain reaction that released a torrent of attacks toward the giant. Splashes of a dark-red poison landed on the net only to shatter due to its destructive power. Lightning bolts dug the massive armor and pierced every defensive layer until they landed on the cultivators at its center. Gustavo screamed in pain as June''s attacks crushed his body. Its survival instinct made him throw potions and pills recklessly in a desperate attempt to escape from that deadly situation. The giant changed color under that relentless assault. Its shades became dark-blue until they turned completely black. Then, its structure became unstable, and violent tremors ran through its fabric, making it denser. Gustavo didn''t care about his safety anymore. When death became a possibility in his mind, he poured everything he had in the armor, uncaring of the harm that it could cause him. A dangerous sensation rose from the back of June''s mind, and she retreated a high speed while launching multiple lightning bolts toward the net. The giant inside it became bigger as she escaped, and a smelly smoke started to come out of its figure. An explosion occurred after a few seconds. The poisons accumulated in the armor led to a detonation that spread smelly dark drops everywhere on the battlefield. The cultivators observing the battle had to resort to defensive measures to fend off those poisonous drops. June had to launch countless attacks since she was closer to the detonation, but a dark current engulfed her nonetheless. The audience remained silent as the outcome of the battle unfolded in their vision. The clouds that had formed around the fighters were slowly dispersing, and no one dared to divert their eyes from them. The first one to disperse revealed a badly injured June. Her body was a mess of bruises, missing skin, and bulging pustules. The various poisons inside the current had begun to affect her muscles, but the pulsating Perfect Circuit kept them away from her insides. Then, Gustavo''s cloud dispersed, revealing a humanoid figure covered by a smelly liquid. The cultivators at the battlefield''s borders took a while to understand Gustavo''s condition, and they shook their heads when they realized how far gone he was. His body had fused with the poison, and it took all his mental energy to prevent it from crumbling. Still, dense drops fell from his figure, showing how even that effort was pointless. Gustavo pointed his arm toward June, but his hand melted and fell during the process. A confused expression appeared on his monstrous face. It seemed that he had yet to realize how injured he was. A thick lightning bolt suddenly pierced his chest and made what remained of his body explode. June didn''t hesitate to deliver the finishing blow since she was desperate to end that battle and rest. The Elders of the alliance cheered. June had won, adding another victory to the invading side. Unsightly expressions appeared on the Royals while Andrew picked his inscribed notebook to respect the terms of the battle. A few seconds had to pass before he announced the results. "From this moment onward, the Ballor family doesn''t belong to the Elbas family anymore. It is free to emigrate¡­" Andrew glanced at June as he interrupted his line, and she mustered her strength to complete it. "It will emigrate toward the Hive." The Elders of the Hive cheered, and the Demons stepped forward to help June. Her life wasn''t in danger, but she needed to rest immediately to avoid worsening her injuries. The matter appeared to be over, and everyone relaxed as they started to discuss who would fight next. Yet, a heavy aura spread on the battlefield, and the experts slowly turned toward the origin of that pressure. A silver-haired cultivator wearing a shining golden robe had appeared above them. He stared at the battlefield while wearing a confident smile, and his eyes darted between the allied and enemy troops. His aura revealed his status as a powerhouse, and the small crown on his head hinted that he was important even among rank 6 cultivators. His facial features resembled the other silver-haired experts, but he had a red mark in the middle of his forehead that differentiated him from them. "Second Prince!" Andrew shouted in a solemn tone as he kneeled in the air. The other Royals quickly followed his example, and welcoming cries echoed as all the members of the Elbas family fell on one knee. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon''s eyes sharpened at that sight. They had heard that name when they had invaded the old Royal Academy, but the fame of that powerhouse didn''t stop there. When the invasion started, the Elbas family had revealed its new five powerhouses. They appeared to be twins with identical cultivation levels who imitated King Elbas in both power and expertise. Nevertheless, Second Prince was different. He had already made some progress inside the lower stage of the sixth rank, and his appearance was more eccentric than his brothers and sisters. Moreover, he had been in charge of defending Divine Market city during the invasion. Great Elder Diana had fought him, and she described him as a canny mind and a great strategist, other than a true master in making use of defensive formations. His appearance there was unexpected. After all, the alliance could quickly make use of teleportation matrices to change their target. Yet, everything had happened too suddenly, so the troops had to reorganize before moving into the now defenseless territory. Chasing Demon and the others were in the middle of a battle too. The troops had to wait for them to be over before moving. "I didn''t know we let traitors escape freely," Second Prince said as his gaze stopped on the injured June. His golden eyes crossed her mental defenses and exposed her centers of power to his inspection. "You have Father''s research too," Second Prince announced in a severe tone. "Your betrayal is older than you make it appear." June''s eyes widened at his words, but a tremor swept her body at that point. She started to cough, and a smelly black liquid came out of her mouth as the effects of the poison intensified. She was getting worse. Every minute spent in that condition were hours added to her recovery. Still, that was the last of her problems now that a powerhouse''s focus was on her. "Your Highness," Andrew spoke in an attempt to justify his actions, "These are the rules of the fight. The Elbas family will lose face if we ignore them." "You lost enough face by letting a traitor win," Second Prince said in an uncaring tone. His hand rose, and flames gathered in his palm as his eyes remained on June, but ice suddenly spread on his fingers. The Demons arrived next to June and threw a few pills in her mouth. Some of her injuries started to close, and the bumps began to withdraw. The three of them were about to leave, but the heavy aura returned and stopped their movements. Dreaming Demon stared at Second Prince with a confused expression. The bottle containing the pink liquid was empty. She had used her remaining reward from Shadal''s dimension to stop the powerhouse, but he had recovered in a matter of seconds. "You used that against Ravaging Demon," Second Prince said as he shook his head to dispel the remaining effects of Dreaming Demon''s influence. "How can you expect that to work again?" The ice on his fingers broke, and flames reappeared on his palm. They took the shape of a small snake coiled around his arm as he pointed at the trio. He was about to launch a spell, but he quickly moved his arm to attack it somewhere next to him. An explosion occurred mid-air, and a man followed by a maimed bird, a flying blade, and a giant snake came out of it. Behind him, the golden shields fell apart, and the ballistae crumbled under the assault of the two allied powerhouses. Chapter 1086: 1086. Second Prince Turning time back to when June''s battle was still ongoing, Noah, Chasing Demon, and Great Elder Diana were fighting against the defenses they had memorized in the last two years. Night and Noah focused on the formations'' cores, and the two leaders handled the ballistae and the Royals'' attacks. The trio had become used to cooperate in the last period, and Noah had learnt to trust Night a bit more. The creature had grown after resting inside his mental sea multiple times, and it had become fonder of his Master. Most of that came from the harmonization with the modifications applied during the suppression. Still, the fact that Noah and Night shared similar personalities and goals had played an essential role in their relationship. "Ten in one sprint!" Night shouted, and Noah heard its words inside his mind. "Give me a decent body already!" "Ten," Noah calmly conveyed as he retracted the Demonic Sword and sprinted backward. "I might think of doing a second blade if that''s everything you can do." Night snorted and charged toward more cores. Noah kept making bigger and better bodies every time it destroyed them, so surpassing their structural limits had become a goal for the creature. Noah didn''t mind that. Third Prince and First Princess fixed part of the formations after every battle, so he needed Night to go all-out every time if they wanted to conquer that region. It still had a bird-like appearance, but Noah had experimented a bit to see what suited its species. Two years weren''t a long time for powerhouses, but Noah had learnt a lot by studying the corpses amassed in his space-ring. The Night-blade Pterodactyls'' innate ability allowed them to turn into darkness to generate darkness. They became blades capable of cutting the fabric of the world and causing a natural creation of darkness. Their bodies then fed on those laws and repeated the process until they advanced. Noah could spend an entire day listing the weaknesses of that species. The Pterodactyls advanced slowly, they had poor reproductive capacities, and their bodies were quite frail against attacks that crossed their natural defenses. They couldn''t even live under the sunlight, which halted their potential to the seventh rank since the Immortal Lands had a perpetual white sky. However, Heaven and Earth had applied their fairness on the Pterodactyls'' kind too. That species balanced those weaknesses with the most threatening offensive power that Noah had ever seen! Noah could cut laws with his new slashes, but the Pterodactyls became blades made of laws when they attacked. There was virtually no defense that could stop them as long as their rank was high enough to cut them. Replicating that feature was challenging, and Noah was still testing how to apply such a miraculous ability to the dark matter. The task would be easier if he used his darkness, but Noah wouldn''t limit his weapon''s potential because of a few hindrances. Night became darkness that lay waste of twelve cores in an instant. The creature was too fast and precise for the Royals to develop a countermeasure in a few years. Moreover, it was hard to identify the nature of the attacks, so they chose to focus on the powerhouses for the time being. Night''s body came out more wrecked after every attack. It had destroyed more than two hundred cores on its own during that battle, but it had sacrificed its lower half in the task. Only a small portion of its torso, one wing, and its head remained intact. Noah guessed that it would need to return inside his mind after less than ten exchanges. Noah destroyed eleven cores, and Night''s laugh resounded in his mind. The creature had learnt to savor those small victories in silence after understanding that they weren''t its Master''s fault. Night could sense due to the connection with his mind how the Demonic Sword suffered to keep up with Noah''s prowess. The living weapon grew together with his dantian, so it was still unsuited for battles on that level. ''I can''t keep up much longer either,'' Noah thought as he inspected the Demonic Sword. A few cracks had appeared on its tip. It could launch less than ten attacks too. "We broke through!" Chasing Demon suddenly sent a message, and Noah called Night back as he turned toward his Patriarch''s direction. The allied powerhouses had exploited Noah''s attacks to destabilize the shields, and a large hole had finally appeared in their golden surface. Cracks spread from the hole. The shields began to crumble as that instability started a chain reaction. The Royals even retreated at that sight, indicating that they couldn''t do anything to save the defensive formations. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana quickly prepared spells to destroy the ballistae. Noah relaxed, but something peculiar reached his mind now that his consciousness stopped focusing on the shields. At first, he sensed June''s familiar aura. He felt happy that she had rejoined the battlefield and that her centers of power worked properly. Yet, his dark star spun like crazy when he noticed the arrival of the third enemy powerhouse. He didn''t even remember when he entered his dimension. The world in his eyes became devoid of light as he flew toward the side of the battlefield to intercept the enemy spell. Nevertheless, before he could even reach Second Prince, a wave of flames hit him, forcing him out of his dimension. The defensive formations and ballistae crumbled behind Noah, but his eyes remained on Second Prince''s eccentric figure. The small crown on his head was eye-catching, but Noah''s focus was on the red mark on his forehead. Noah''s mind felt a dangerous sensation coming from that prism-like mark. It reflected the light that landed on it, making it shine together with the Prince''s golden eyes. It was a piercing gaze. Noah felt as if a dense halo tried to dig through his natural defenses and inspect the very core of his existence. However, his mental waves cut that foreign presence and freed his body of that strange pressure. ''How did he even sense me?'' Noah thought as he continued to exchange stares with Second Prince. He had noticed his friends and lover under him, but something told him that he shouldn''t get distracted. ''Is he really that strong?'' Noah couldn''t help but feel surprised. Second Prince was a powerhouse in the lower stage, which put them on the same level. He was slightly stronger than his brother and sisters, but Noah had fought two of them together already. Nevertheless, Second Prince appeared different. Noah didn''t know where that sensation came from, but he felt sure that he was in front of another monster. "You must be his heir," Noah said. He rarely spoke once a battle began, but he wanted to buy June and the Demons time. Also, he tried to destabilize his opponent with his revelations. June and the Demons quickly left the battlefield, and Second Prince followed them with his eyes. He had to focus quickly though since Noah didn''t let his distraction go to waste. Second Prince turned into flames that shot sideways, and a tall fissure appeared on his previous spot. His fire continued to retreat, but Noah reappeared above it, ready to thrust with his blade. Another large fissure appeared in the sky, but Second Prince''s flames dodged it by separating and regrouping in another spot. His body reformed just in time to see Noah''s fingernails slashing at his face. Five smaller cuts appeared in the sky, but a golden light shone from the Royal''s skin and blocked Noah''s attacks. Second Prince smiled when he was face to face with his opponent, and the brightness surrounding him intensified before exploding into a sea of fire. Second Prince reappeared higher in the sky, but his gaze remained on the flames below. His smile remained wide, but his eyes became solemn when he saw the half-naked figure of his opponent walking out of the fire. Noah didn''t suffer any injury. His skin shone with metallic properties, and black gas came out of his mouth as he held back his flames. Noah didn''t know if the Royal was powerful enough to face him, but he had confirmed that he was more ruthless than his siblings. Chapter 1087: 1087. Data ''Let''s end this quickly,'' Noah thought. His dantian, Demonic Sword, and Night were far away from their perfect condition, so he couldn''t express his peak battle prowess for long. Still, Third Prince and First Princess were busy dealing with the allied powerhouses, and there wasn''t any defensive formation on the battlefield. There was no better chance to kill one of the Elbas family''s strongest assets. Black smoke started to come out of Noah''s body. His spiked armor quickly formed, and a vast cloud covered a large area in a matter of seconds. "I see," Second Prince said as the corrosive cloud engulfed him. "The famous Demonic Form. Thaddeus should have given your head to Father when you were still a human." Another layer of light appeared around him. Its color was white at that time, and the corrosive smoke seemed unable even to get close to that radiance. It seemed that Second Prince had come prepared. His defenses against the Demonic Form were more effective than those deployed by the allied powerhouses. Hundreds of slashes flew through the darkness and converged in his position. Second Prince waved his hand, and tens of massive fiery snakes formed around him to block the incoming attacks. The white light of his defensive item spread on the snakes and made them resistant to the corrosive properties of the cloud, but the slashes carried Noah''s sharpness and cut right through them. Second Prince''s eyebrows arched as a metallic layer appeared over his white light. The slashes landed on his figure, but none of them managed to pierce his defenses. Noah appeared above his opponent while the torrent of slashes landed on his opponent. He pointed the tip of the Demonic Sword toward his head, severing the laws on his path as he lowered it slowly. A massive fissure appeared on the Royal''s spot, and the metallic defense opened in two only to reveal that it was empty inside. Noah felt confused, but a giant reptilian head bit on his torso and pushed him in the distance. Noah stared at the tall snake that clenched its maw on his body. The white halo around it made the creature unaffected by the corrosive smoke, but its power wasn''t enough to pierce his skin. A strange scent reached Noah''s nostrils at that point. His body instinctively rejected that smell, but the dark star spun faster and made him used to it. Noah''s consciousness became able to sense presences around him when his body adapted to the scent. Second Prince had created multiple snakes that flew in Noah''s direction and threatened to self-detonate. ''He has studied me for a long time,'' Noah thought as he tapped his finger on the reptilian head clenched on his torso. A small crack appeared on its forehead, and massive openings spread throughout its body due to the effects of Noah''s destruction. A human-shaped fissure replaced his figure then, and the incoming snakes detonated only to hit black smoke. Noah flew toward Second Prince''s presence, but another fireball forced him out of his dimension. Nevertheless, he was ready at that time, and he slashed with the Demonic Sword without losing his momentum. Second Prince was nearby, with his hand pointed toward Noah. He was ready to launch another spell, but he turned himself into flames when he saw Noah''s slashing in his direction. A large chunk of the black cloud disappeared as part of the sky became a massive crack connected to the void. Second Prince''s flames struggled to escape the fissure''s pulling force, and Noah didn''t let that chance go to waste. He reappeared on the flames'' path, and a starry sky spread in front of him. Countless slashes landed on them, and Snore quickly reformed to launch its elemental attacks. The Blood Companion fell apart and reformed every time he used his movement technique. The higher energy couldn''t keep up with his speed, so Snore lost its connection with Noah during his sprints. A torrent of attacks landed on the flames. A grunt came out of them, but a golden light soon shone from their surface. Noah recognized that defense and didn''t hesitate to rely on his strongest slash to deliver a decisive blow. Another fissure appeared on top of the previous one, but many runes covered the flames and made them disappear from that spot. Noah turned his head toward another area of the cloud. Second Prince''s body had reformed there, but his condition wasn''t optimal. Trails of blood came out of his mouth, and a long diagonal cut had appeared on his torso. The last offensive had been too much even for his many defensive methods. Noah''s power was enough to hurt him. Second Prince coughed blood before cleaning his mouth with his golden robe. The white light still protected him from the corrosive smoke, and his smile remained wide on his face. "You moved away from the hybrid realm," Second Prince announced. "To think that we invested so much in researching those creatures only for you to discover a superior state." Noah remained speechless when he heard that, but a sea of saber-shaped runes formed around him. Snore spread its wings too and began to charge its feathers with the primary energy accumulated in the environment. "I thought you wanted to talk," Second Prince exclaimed while releasing a laugh. "You are right. I am Father''s heir and his rightful successor. I have also inherited his curiosity, which makes you the most appealing being in my eyes." Noah calmly listened to his words while his attacks charged. He had enough energy for a few more exchanges, but he wanted to end the battle with the next one. Silent orders reached Night, who had hidden its presence inside the cloud. The creature prepared itself for the final assault. "You still seem a bit too much for me to handle at the moment," Second Prince continued. "I''ll be more prepared next time." Noah launched his array of sabers and feathers and waited for them to near his opponent before using his movement technique. It took him only an instant to reappear above Second Prince and unleash another powerful slash. Second Prince used all his defensive measures to block the attacks. The metallic layer covered his figure while he turned into flames. Yet, the torrent of sabers tore the dark-silver protection apart and opened a path for Noah''s slash. A fissure appeared on the spot. Half of Second Prince''s flames disappeared in the void while the others flew away to reform his body. The Royal reappeared in a maimed condition, with missing limbs and countless cuts, but with his smile still wide. Second Prince opened his mouth to speak again, but something moved inside the darkness and silenced him. The Royal revealed a surprised expression as a cut appeared on his neck, and his head fell from his shoulders. "Got him!" Night cheered while half of what remained of its body crumbled. The bird-like puppet flew slowly toward Noah''s shoulders before turning into a lump of dark matter that entered his mind. Noah wanted to heave a sigh of relief, but the decapitated body began to melt right in front of his eyes. It turned into a red liquid that the black cloud consumed in a matter of seconds. Instead, the severed head continued to float among the corrosive smoke with white light still covering its surface. The head eventually turned to face Noah upside-down with the same smirk that had accompanied the Royal through the entire battle. "All these data will be interesting to process," Second Prince announced as the light around his head dimmed. The corrosive smoke began to affect pieces of his skin, which slowly consumed what remained of his body. "It''s still too early for a proper battle among our organizations," Second Prince said as his head disappeared inside the cloud. "Spend a few more years taking this region. The real fight will have to wait for Father''s return." When the corrosive smoke destroyed the last bits of Second Prince''s tissues, a golden light shot from that spot and landed on the battlefield created by the four powerhouses in the distance. The light spread, creating multiple formations that gave birth to a series of golden shields and divining the Royals from the alliance''s leaders. Chapter 1088: 1088. Together Noah remained inside his black cloud. His gaze didn''t go on the newly formed golden shields. Instead, it remained on the spot where the smoke had consumed Second Prince. ''Was that a puppet?'' Noah couldn''t help but think after reviewing the last battle. His blows on Second Prince''s body and their exchanges had felt real. They didn''t differ from the battles with other powerhouses. Even Night didn''t sense anything unusual when cutting him. Yet, Second Prince had shown no fear of death. The peculiar way in which he had died also hinted that his body was a mere puppet rather than his bones and flesh. ''It was able to express so much power with a fake body,'' Noah''s mind felt heavy when considering that. He had initially thought that King Elbas was the last worthy opponent in the Mortal Lands, but it seemed that his heir belonged to the realms of monsters too. Every organization had promising cultivators that preferred to hide from the public scene and focus only on their path. Noah had always known that, but he had begun to learn more about them only after becoming a powerhouse. A smirk appeared on Noah''s face as the Demonic Form vanished, and the black cloud began to disperse. He felt happy that the struggles weren''t over. Now he knew that he wouldn''t have to spend the last part of the heroic ranks in complete safety. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana exchanged a glance before gazing in Noah''s direction. The dispersion of the cloud slowly revealed his figure, but he could only spread his arms to express his helplessness when he sensed the two pairs of eyes on him. The two powerhouses were cornering Third Prince and First Princess after the shields fell, but Second Prince''s actions had restored the battlefield to its previous condition. They weren''t back to the starting point though. The ballistae had fallen, and the new shields had fewer cores. It would take the alliance less than a year to conquer that region unless the Elbas family had other tricks. The battle ended like that. The troops began to retreat, but Noah had yet another gesture to make before returning to his quarters. Second Prince''s defeat was a silent authorization to respect the terms of June''s battle. Andrew Elbas continued to settle the Ballor family''s release in public so that everyone could see that his word had some value. Noah wasn''t aware of June''s bet, but he saw her injured condition. The Demons'' drugs and her body''s innate healing capabilities were already dealing with her wounds. She didn''t need any external help, so Noah could use that chance to announce something that he had waited to make public for way too long. Noah slowly descended toward the allied troops, who welcomed him with polite bows. Only those close to him dared to react differently to his arrival. Daniel nodded, Faith giggled while trying to hold back her excitement, and the corners of Elder Julia''s mouth turned upward. Dreaming Demon revealed a warm smile, and Flying Demon started to laugh, giving thumbs-ups with both his hands. Only June didn''t react at all. She kept her stare fixed on Noah as her lover neared the allied troops. June had understood what he wanted to do, but she waited for him to stand in front of her to give voice to a confident complaint. "I can deal with these wounds." "I know," Noah said while placing his palm on her forehead, "That''s why I''m doing it." June lowered her defenses and allowed Noah''s dark matter to run inside her body. The poison that had infected her tissues couldn''t do anything against the higher energy. In a matter of seconds, June''s body became devoid of poison, and her healing properties started to fix the damage suffered at full speed. Her skin began to heal, and her complexion regained some color. She still had bruises and some smelly spots, but Noah didn''t mind them in the slightest. The fixed stare of his lover left him speechless and in a daze. It didn''t matter of ugly she looked after the battle. It didn''t matter that her injuries had left horrid marks on her skin. Noah only needed to look at those orange eyes to recognize his lover and ignore everything else. The Elders of the Hive knew about their relationship, but the others didn''t share that knowledge. The experts of Council felt confused seeing that intimate interaction, but they understood something when they saw Faith''s expression. Many higher-ups of the Council still believed that Noah and Faith would eventually end up together. They were terrific cultivators, and their political value would make the alliance between their organizations sturdier. Nevertheless, there wasn''t any regret nor disappointment on Faith''s face. She appeared truly happy to see June and Noah interacting in that way in the open. While the Elder of the Council had restrained reactions at that discovery, the assets of the Elbas family''s responses were far flashier. June was quite famous among the Royals. She was the battle maniac who had refused every marriage proposal and focused only on her cultivation level. The Royals would barely see her outside of her quarters. She appeared to be a grumpy machine, programmed only to complete missions and cultivate. They had never seen her exchange more than a few lines with other experts, let alone allowing them to touch her. However, she appeared calm with Noah''s hand on her forehead. Her expression didn''t carry her usual coldness. Instead, it had a tinge of warmth that became more evident as that interaction continued. Some of her admirers froze in fear. They had chased June for a long time only to see the Demon Prince of the Hive casually behaving intimately with her. Other higher-ups had different reactions. Andrew Elbas and the leaders of various factions began to send countless mental messages through their inscribed notebooks. June had learnt a lot about the Elbas family. The Royals had never fully trusted her due to her aloof behavior, but she still had a general understanding of many secret structures and defenses. They had to modify all of them now that June had turned out to be intimate with such a high-level personality inside the Hive. It would have been different with the Council or other Elders, but Noah was famous for appearing behind the enemy lines out of nowhere. Noah and June weren''t paying attention to their surroundings. Only the eyes of their lover occupied their vision. The hand on her forehead slowly slid toward her cheek. Meanwhile, June reached for Noah''s robe to pull him closer. The two of them drew close without diverting their gazes. They didn''t speak nor convey anything with their gestures, but their lips eventually touched right in front of everyone. That removed every doubt about their relationship. The couple''s public kiss announced their status. That exposed them to enemy schemes, but June and Noah didn''t want to remain in the shadows anymore. "It took us only a few centuries," Noah whispered once their lips separated. June wanted to tease him, but she felt too happy to say anything. Her hand rose toward his face. Her thumb traced his features as memories resurfaced in her mind. Everything had begun with a promise after the crisis of the winged beasts. They were little more than talented heroic assets back then, with goals that forced them to separate multiple times. Their life together had been a series of moments stolen from a strict political environment that they had to respect as long as they remained weak. Yet, Noah''s prowess was in the powerhouses'' realm, and June had centers of power fueled by higher energy. They had been spectacular talents in the past, but they had become respected assets among the heroic ranks now. "You are still stronger than me," June eventually pouted, but both of them laughed at her words. Their journey was still long, and they had yet to face the Immortal Lands as a challenge. However, they could finally walk forward together now. Chapter 1089: 1089. Peace The alliance spent the following year dealing with the rebuilt golden shields. Second Prince didn''t appear again, but First Princess and Third Prince changed their battle tactic often to slow down the invaders'' advance. Noah, Chasing Demon, and Great Elder Diana had to deal with a series of quasi-rank 6 disposable items that had the sole purpose of slowing them down. They had to face a flock of hawk-like puppets capable of eating the energy inside spells before they detonated. They had to pave their way out of illusions that left them wandering inside Noah''s cloud for days. Once, they even had to deal with copies of themselves created after the defensive formations had gathered enough data about their individualities. Still, the efforts of the Royals could only delay the inevitable. Every defense fell, and the enemy powerhouses relied on giant runes on top of the obelisks to teleport their assets away. The Elbas family salvaged their assets in that way, but that wasn''t necessarily positive since only three regions remained in its domain. The lack of losses left them overcrowded. The higher-ups of the alliance held a political meeting after they conquered that land. They estimated the resources required to seize the remaining regions of the Elbas family, and the conclusions were disheartening. The defenses were too tight, and the five Princes and Princesses would be more threatening now that they could focus all their efforts on fewer territories. The alliance could even have to face all five of them simultaneously since the formations in the other lands were enough to stop any secret attack. A slow siege was possible, but the eventual gains didn''t make it worthy. The invasion came to an end at that point. Both the Hive and the Council divided their gains and established a series of neutral territories that they could use as headquarters for their alliance. They issued a series of smaller organizations meant to control and oversee the situation to prevent the appearance of rebellious groups. Still, those areas mainly served the purpose of increasing the friendly antagonism between the two factions. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana began to cover those new lands with defenses while building habitable areas. It was only a matter of time before their organizations started to prosper there too. The future for the human cultivators of both forces appeared brighter than ever. Only failures would have a lackl.u.s.ter growth with endless lands at their disposal and multiple adversaries to fight. The situation for the heroic cultivators was a bit different. More lands meant more space for training areas, but the few losses and increasing amount of powerful assets accelerated the new continent''s deterioration. That was an inevitable occurrence. Heroic cultivators absorbed the "Breath" inside the matter to improve, and having more of them would lower the overall value of the new continent. That wouldn''t affect only their training. The resources in the heroic ranks would slowly become scarcer as the deterioration continued. It was as if the world imposed a limit to the growth of the organizations. There could be only so many powerful cultivations around, and that world had delayed the issue only thanks to the piece of Immortal Lands. The other world had helped in the matter too, but the number of heroic cultivators had continued to increase, making even those vast regions not enough to sustain all of them. The deterioration had started right after the war against the Empire. As the organizations grew again, the world began to suffer. Everyone knew about that issue, but no force was willing to restrain their growth to benefit the world. Every leader would rather start another war than suppress their power. Noah didn''t care about that matter. Ruining a world to push his cultivation level upward was a trade that every cultivator aiming for the sky had to make. Those striving for godhood couldn''t keep in mind the well-being of the ants. That was a ruthless mindset that every heroic cultivator had to accept sooner or later. Without any opponents in sight nor war to fight, Noah could finally resume his long-awaited training. He had many projects to take care of, and the first one was obtaining the divine inheritance inside the Cut. Now that he had revealed his relationship with June to the world, he could spend time with her without minding the political environment. June and Noah spent a few months inside one of the new habitations built for them, but they soon restored a tight training schedule. The fact that they could express their love in the open didn''t divert their minds from their real goals. Their life became similar to their cohabitation inside Noah''s mansion. June''s training didn''t have special requirements, so she could follow him wherever he went. The Council built a tall tower near the Cut where those attempting to seize the divine inheritance could live. June and Noah could occupy the last floor of the structure due to their unique position. Noah couldn''t only focus on the Divine Cut. The time spent inside the ancient aura increased as his understanding improved. He had reached the point when each training session took him decades. His centers of power would suffer if he left them to stagnate so often. Noah had to take long breaks where he immersed himself in traditional training and some side projects. Faith, Daniel, and the Demons would visit them from time to time. They would even remain inside the tower for months whenever they felt the need to discuss their individuality. They were the most promising assets of their organizations in the end. They shared similar ambitions, and their paths had met more than once. Noah had united those different characters along his journey, and his influence had pushed their power forward. It wouldn''t be wrong to say that many of their achievements had come after interacting with him. Life was peaceful, and nothing could interrupt his cultivation. Without his hunger driving him in the wilderness often, Noah spent almost all his time between the tower and under Chasing Demons'' quarters. The Hive had placed the Seventh Kesier rune among the trapped magical beasts meant for the Copying Technique. That was the safest place in the entire organization, and the only spot deign of containing an actual divine item. Years passed quietly, with no major event happening. The lack of struggles would usually hurt cultivators, but Noah had acc.u.mulated too many experiences to suffer from that situation. The breakthroughs eventually arrived. Many assets had been near the peak of the fifth rank before the invasion, and those experiences had been enough to make their power cross the last step. Elder Julia''s dantian was the first to advance. The event surprised some of the higher-ups of the Hive since they expected Dreaming Demon to be the first. Still, many understood the reason behind that. The Demons had lost a lot of time inside Divine Architect''s separate dimension. Their cultivation level had reached those peaks due to their incredible talent, but they lacked the years of training needed for that breakthrough. Those arrived anyway at some point. Dreaming Demon advanced to the sixth rank with both dantian and mind only sixty years after Elder Julia. The two women became the third and fourth powerhouses of the Hive in less than a century after the invasion. Flying Demon had a harder time advancing. He had been at some distance from the absolute peak before the invasion, but the sight of his lover advancing pushed his centers of power forward. Seeing Dreaming Demon moving away from him was the greatest drive that his individuality could feel. For a cultivator who had spent one thousand years keeping his lover alive, losing her was his biggest fear. Two hundred years had to pass from the end of the invasion for Flying Demon to advance to the sixth rank. His breakthrough made the Hive match the forces of the Elbas family, but no new attack began because of that. Breakthroughs happened on the Council''s side too. Elder Regina advanced in the same period as Elder Julia, and others followed her example. Still, the Council didn''t manage to match the numbers of the Hive. Chapter 1090: 1090. Hair Noah felt the breakthrough of his dantian drawing close only after three centuries spent training in that peaceful period. It was needless to say that such speed surpassed the realm of the talents, but it wasn''t as monstrous as his other centers of power. Moreover, he felt that he lacked something to finalize his advance. Still, peace worked against those seeking enlightenment. Noah could only cultivate and meditate since no adventure or opponents gave him the chance to test himself. Of course, Noah would act if the issue persisted for too long. It wouldn''t be his first time doing something reckless in the hope that it benefitted his growth, and the Elbas family was always there for him. His training didn''t reach that point yet, so he continued to use traditional methods to train. For Noah, that meant using the Seventh Kesier rune, eating peak rank 5 magical beasts, and cultivating with the Demonic Sword. He paired the traditional training with his many projects. The Divine Cut occupied most of his attention, but he found time to forge and test other inscriptions. Also, he had to deal with Night''s constant harassment. Among his centers of power, his mind had the most remarkable growth. The Seventh Kesier rune wasn''t a copy. It was the actual piece of the fur of a rank 7 Kesier Ape, and its benefits were almost miraculous. Noah struggled to believe how easy it was to enlarge his mind with that divine item. He had even stopped using his spherical rune since he preferred to use all his mental energy in those training sessions. The Seventh Kesier rune improved the sturdiness of his mental walls too. In those three hundred years, the internal pressure caused by Snore and Night had almost vanished. His body had improved steadily. Noah didn''t have many rank 6 meals in those years, but his lack of hunger made them easier to endure. Peak rank 5 magical beasts could satisfy him. His level didn''t increase with them, but he couldn''t do much better even if he went out to hunt rank 6 creatures. As for those powerful beasts, most of them were hard to find, and Noah didn''t want to spend months studying their tracks and planning hunts unless it was necessary. Some of them weren''t on the lower tier either, so he didn''t know if he could defeat them. Luckily for him, the dark star took care of the growth of his body. It didn''t matter if it was food, darkness, or "Breath". His rotating heart kept on improving his tissues with whatever fuel it could find. The dark star depended on his dantian. Any improvement in his darkness would necessarily increase the power and efficiency of his fourth center of power. His dark matter had become slightly unstable as Noah neared the peak of the fifth rank. It was about to transform, but it still lacked a little push. It would be up to the rank 6 darkness to make it take the last step. Snore was in the same situation as the dark star. Its existence''s depended on Noah''s higher energy, so it had yet to become a fully rank 6 creature according to the world''s labels. The Demonic Sword was in the same situation, even if its issues came from Noah''s dantian. It couldn''t reach the sixth rank unless his individuality moved to the next stage, but it still required a decent amount of nutrients to appease its hunger. Noah had a few ideas for what concerned his Demonic Sword. His existence had evolved after the breakthrough of his body. Instead, his living weapon had remained tied to his hybrid status. He felt that he should try to fuse the dark matter with the blade''s fabric, but the Divine Cut took most of his time, and he didn''t want to approach that project when his higher energy was so unstable. The same didn''t apply for Night. Since the core of the rank 7 Pterodactyl was its mind, Noah could experiment freely with its body without risking its life. Countless sword forms floated inside Noah''s mind. They performed harmless cuts before shattering and fusing with his mental sea once he understood them. Noah''s consciousness was inside the ancient aura of the Cut. That was his longest training session inside the divine inheritance so far. He had been sitting on top of the tower for fifty years already. The sword arts shown inside his mind covered every possible technique that involved blades. They went from delicate thrusts to a violent series of slashes. Noah lost himself inside the constant enlightenment. His consciousness wavered until he almost forgot who he was. It was as if everything about him was becoming a sword. Still, that path wasn''t his. The creator of that inheritance was an unparalleled expert, but Noah was different. His individuality could have the form of a sword, but he was much more than that. That was the reason why he never let his mind wholly lose itself in the ancient aura. He didn''t want to lose his path while pursuing methods to improve his power. Noah wanted to learn from the Divine Cut, not become its copy. Something unusual happened when the forms that had accumulated inside his mind fused with his lowering mental sea. Usually, new figures would appear until Noah exhausted his mental energy, but that didn''t happen at that time. Swords entered his mental sphere and amassed to form a human figure. Noah''s focus spiked as the ghostly shape of a man landed on his mental sea and inspected the area. The man appeared relatively young, not even in his thirties. He had long hair and beard, and the same went for his eyebrows that fell on top of his eyes. An intense sharpness spread from his figure. Noah felt as if everything about him was a blade. Every hair, every inch of his ghostly shape was a sword that pointed at him. The man scratched his hair and lifted his eyebrows to stare at Noah''s ghostly figure. His attention briefly went on Snore''s shape, but he quickly recognized the owner of that mental sphere. Noah could finally see his eyes when he removed the hair in front of them. The man didn''t have pupils nor irises, but Noah could swear that he felt a sharp gaze on him. There was an unfathomable truth in his eyes. Noah couldn''t even begin to understand it, but he knew that it was there. ''Is that his law?'' Noah thought, but the man began to speak before he could inspect him further. "So," The man said, "You must be a fellow swordsman." His words carried a sharpness that hurt Noah''s mind even after it went through centuries of training with the Seventh Kesier rune. Yet, Noah endured the pain to perform a quick greeting bow. The man began to mumble as he kept his eyebrows lifted. Noah felt naked in front of his empty gaze, but something told him that he had to go through that inspection to reach the next stage of the inheritance. The man eventually shook his head and placed his arms on his waist as he shouted his final evaluation. "You are a brute!" The shout forced Noah to focus on keeping his mental walls stable, but part of his mind remained on the man since he didn''t seem to be over yet. "You swing swords as if they were hammers!" The man shouted again. "You only rely on your physical strength to obtain power. Come back here when you can differentiate blades from maces!" The sharpness intensified until Noah felt forced to cut the connection with the ancient aura. He had to disperse the pressure accumulated in his mind even after the outside world appeared in his vision. Once he recovered, he found a one meter tall bird-like creature looking at him with a mocking expression. Chapter 1091: 1091. Brute Noah had improved Night''s body whenever he had time. The Pterodactyl would even destroy itself on purpose to force him to forge something new. Night had been restless in the last three centuries. At first, it had flown across the regions near the tower, hunting every strong creature that it found. Still, it had soon grown bored of fighting rank 5 creatures, leading it to move its focus elsewhere. The Pterodactyl felt bound to Noah, so it never went too far away from his training areas at the beginning. It tried to fight the powerful creatures under Chasing Demon''s quarters when Noah trained with the Seventh Kesier rune, but he stopped it every time. Night had eventually given up on that task too, only to search for a new opponent. It looked down on the rank 6 magical beasts in the world, but it never fought them since Noah needed them. The formations in the alliance''s domain were technically on its side, so it had to give up on them too. The lack of worthy opponents put it in a similar situation to Noah, which improved their connection once again. Yet, the Pterodactyl didn''t have to cultivate, so it had entire years of free time that it didn''t know how to fill. Its eyes had risen to the sky at some point. That azure environment had a distant ball of fire capable of illuminating the Mortal Lands. The humans called it "Sun", but that was only another shiny opponent for the Pterodactyl. Noah had to interrupt his meditation once because he felt the connection with Night becoming thin. His consciousness had returned to the material world to discover that his new companion was trying to reach the Sun. It was needless to say that the effort had almost killed the creature. Still, that had forced Noah to accept the fact that he couldn''t leave Night without anything to do while he trained. He couldn''t afford to lose a divine creature''s mind due to its selfless crusade against the light. Its last act had even defied its connection with Noah, warning him of the possible repercussions of the creature''s boredom. Noah had solved the issue by giving it an almost impossible task. The Night-blade Pterodactyls needed an isolated environment completely tainted with their darkness to reproduce. Their species didn''t need a partner. The laws that they spread would automatically generate one of their kind once they became dense enough. Noah had personally cleared a large underground area in one of the central territories that had yet to recover from the winged beasts'' invasion. He had reinforced its edges with the Elemental Forging method and had given it to the Pterodactyl. His task was simple. Night had to destroy every law in the area until it became the perfect breeding ground for its species. An eventual success would provide strong beasts to the Hive, so that was a win-win situation for him. Night had taken the task seriously, but there was a limit to how much it could do on its own. That let Noah enjoy years of peaceful training without worrying about his reckless companion. As their connection improved, Night had learnt to sense when Noah came out of his meditations. It had even felt his sense of loss after the last one, which was the reason behind its mocking expression. Noah stared at the bird-like creature next to him. It was only the shape of a big bird, but he had learnt to recognize its different expressions without needing facial features. "Someone just lost against a ghost!" Night exclaimed, following its line with deep chirps. It wasn''t a small bird anymore, so its cries carried a bit of dignity. "I won''t let a suicidal bird give me lessons on how to win," Noah snorted as he laid on the roof of the tower. The starry sky filled his vision, but the figure of the long-haired man in the inheritance appeared between him and the stars. That was the will of a god. Noah had just interacted with an existence who had left its inheritance inside the Immortal Lands! ''There is a chance that he didn''t expect heroic cultivators to find it,'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes. The eccentric expert had performed that slash in the Immortal Lands, where divine beings walked freely. He might have intended to pass down his inheritance to fellow divine existences, but the fall of the new continent had ruined his plans. Noah couldn''t be sure of that. The Divine Cut was there now, so he would attempt to seize it. However, he accepted inside his mind that he might have to give up on the inheritance if he met a bottleneck. ''He is right,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''I am a brute.'' The understanding obtained in the Divine Cut had shown Noah how limited his martial arts were. He could barely call himself a swordsman. His slashes were only a channel where Noah poured his physical strength. ''I lack grace,'' Noah thought. All the sword arts learnt in the past three centuries had brought his sharpness to a new league. He felt that he could cut down Second Prince''s defenses with his bare fingers now. Yet, his core had always remained the same. His strongest slashes relied on his physical strength. ''Do I need to seize all the inheritance?'' Noah started to ponder. ''Is this greed that I feel only a side effect of my individuality?'' Questions piled up inside his mind. As his path in the heroic ranks reached the last stages, his road toward the stars became foggy. Mind and body were fine. They advanced without needing any deep understanding. The problem was Noah''s dantian since it depended on his individuality. "I''ll say this once again," Night shouted, "I thought the Sun was closer! At most, you are to blame for building a body with such awful senses!" Noah reopened his eyes to look at the proud Pterodactyl chirping justifications next to him. He had always envied the easy path of the magical beasts, and his thoughts went on the cultivation journey of the perfect hybrids. His mind lost itself in his life''s many experiences only to understand how unsuited he was for peace. Even his long seclusions in the past had the purpose of preparing him for a new battle. ''I''m truly a brute,'' Noah couldn''t help but smile at that thought. Many cultivators would do anything in their power to remain inside their quarters for centuries. Some would even abandon organizations to avoid wasting time in the political environment. Noah was the opposite. He went from one battle to another in a constant search for a new enlightenment. Since difficulties forced his power to improve, he dived directly into them. "Night," Noah said at some point, "Why do you want to destroy the light?" The Pterodactyl felt the seriousness in Noah''s words and decided to stop complaining to give an honest answer. "Because it''s my enemy. Heaven and Earth made it in this way." "Are you nothing more than a bunch of instincts even after I gave you a new body?" Noah questioned the creature again. "I don''t know," Night replied and remained silent for a few seconds before continuing. "I know what I am. I know that I hate light. I don''t care what or who decided this, but I can only be myself." Noah felt that some clarity returned in his mind after its words, and he patted the bird''s empty head before complimenting it. "You are the smartest Night-blade Pterodactyl of the world." Night felt delighted to hear that, but it soon recalled something that made it complain once again. "I''m the only Pterodactyl in the world! This complement has no value!" Noah only heard part of that line. His mental waves had already touched the ancient aura of the Cut, bringing him back in the divine inheritance. Chapter 1092: 1092. Mine Ghostly swords crossed Noah''s mental sphere''s borders and gathered above his mental sea to create the eccentric man once again. The latter lifted his long eyebrows to look at Noah before speaking with a disappointed tone. "The brute is here." Noah smiled, and a pair of short swords formed in his ethereal figure''s palms. He didn''t even speak before performing his strongest slash toward the expert. Four additional arms formed on his torso. They all wielded blades and joined the other limbs to slash at the owner of the divine inheritance. A six-armed dragon shot from Noah''s figure and crashed on the mental sea. The internal pressure spiked due to the shockwave released in the impact, but Noah endured the pain without moving his focus from the expert. Night''s words had cleared his doubts. He wanted the divine inheritance, so he would do everything in his power to seize it. The unwillingness of the expert wouldn''t matter if Noah could overpower it. Tall tides formed on the mental sea. The expert and the dispersing six-armed dragon disappeared under the raging brown water, but Noah quickly stabilized his mental energy. "Why do you even need six arms for this?" Sharp words resounded inside the ethereal space. The expert walked from below the sea, shaking his head in disappointment. He lifted his forefinger in front of his face and curved it with a quick movement. Noah could barely contain his surprise when he saw a six-bladed cloud flying in his direction. Noah performed his strongest slash once again. A dragon and a formless cloud clashed mid-air, but the six-armed creature couldn''t do anything against the expert''s attack. Terror rose inside Noah, but the cloud didn''t harm him when it engulfed his figure. It dispersed before reaching the mental walls. The expert wasn''t trying to hurt him. The sharpness pressing on Noah''s mind came from the man''s might, which was a feature that it couldn''t suppress. Noah had realized that after the last exchange, and excitement inevitably built up inside him. The environment of the sea of consciousness was different from the outside world. Most of Noah''s power there came from the level of his mind. Noah didn''t have the Demonic Sword''s structure as a limit there, and the same went for his spells. He could use slashes that he was too worried to perform in the outside world. Moreover, he had the will of a divine existence as his training partner. "Purity overcomes brute power," The expert announced. "You have walked the path of the blade by chance. You didn''t choose it, and your slashes reflect your lack of commitment." Noah listened to the expert''s words, but his ethereal arms were moving once again. The only limit was his mental walls'' sturdiness, so he wanted to show everything he had before meditating on those teachings. Noah wasn''t a hybrid anymore. Many of his spells still carried dragon-like features, but his existence had distanced itself from those creatures. He could roar and spit flames, but he had a dark star as his core. Magical beasts and hybrids couldn''t claim him as part of their kind anymore, so his attacks had to do the same. Noah''s additional arms disappeared, and the two swords fused to form a longer blade. Both his arms wielded its hiltless base as they rose above his head while he focused. ''Destruction can create darkness,'' Noah thought as he slashed downward. His blade traced a black line in front of him, but nothing more seemed to come out of it. The expert opened his palm. An intense shockwave resounded as a black slash landed in his open hand, and sharpness spread everywhere inside the mental sphere. Noah suffered. His mental walls struggled to remain still when he used his full power, but the training with the Seventh Kesier rune proved itself useful in that situation. The mental sphere stopped trembling after a few seconds. Even Noah''s most potent attack wasn''t able to destabilize it for too long! The expert remained silent as it stared at the slash in his hand. He lifted his eyebrows again to inspect it, and some inaudible words came out of his mouth. "This is quite better," The expert said. "You might have walked this path for the wrong reasons, but you learnt something along the way. Maybe you aren''t hopeless." Noah didn''t speak. That was his strongest attack, something that he could only launch in the ethereal world of his mental sphere. Yet, the expert had easily stopped it. Also, he was forcing it to remain in his palm. The slash would typically disperse once it released its power, but the expert used some unknown method to keep it intact. "What is a sword for you?" The expert asked. "A weapon," Noah gave an honest answer. He knew the deeper meaning behind that question, but Noah didn''t want to lie about his mindset. Since his first time wielding a saber, Noah''s mindset had never changed. His individuality might have the shape of a sword, but that didn''t stop him from considering himself as a weapon either. "That''s right," The expert replied. "They are tools meant to kill. Their purpose is to give an advantage in battle, cut better, and sever everything in their path. Fingers and nails can''t be so effective, and the same goes for teeth and fangs." The expert eventually let Noah''s slash disperse and started to scratch his beard as he walked in circles above the mental sea. "It''s never the blade," The eccentric man continued. "A sharp piece of metal can''t have any depth. Cultivators add meanings once they wield swords. They invent martial arts, they create paths, and, sometimes, they become part of them." The expert gestured to Noah to come closer, and he didn''t hesitate to fly toward him. The inheritance''s owner started to walk around him at that point, and the same inaudible words as before buzzed as he inspected him. "You are a sword," The expert eventually concluded, "But you lack purity. You seized everything you could along your path, disrupting your harmony and the path you managed to unlock. It''s time to choose." "Choose what?" Noah asked. He could understand where the expert was going, but he wanted him to say it loudly. Each of the eccentric man''s words carried his sharpness. Noah felt enlightened every time that pressure appeared inside his mind. He would get the expert to talk as much as possible if he couldn''t seize the inheritance. "Your path," The expert replied. "I see a magical beast, a swordsman, a creator, and a destroyer inside you. While some of these paths can live together, others will inevitably suffer as you advance." Noah sighed. That was a warning that he had already heard multiple times, and he had slowly learnt the reason behind that as he became familiar with the laws. The laws were simple but powerful truths. They carried the true meanings of certain aspects of the world. Cultivators would eventually become laws upon reaching the seventh rank, and expressing a simple but powerful meaning was impossible if their individualities were too complicated. "I won''t choose," Noah said, and his words startled the expert. "My ambition is boundless. I will take everything that increases my power and bring it to the Immortal Lands. Accepting limits will be the end of my path." "What if I say that you can''t take my inheritance unless you accept the sword as your only path?" The expert asked, and Noah could sense a tinge of curiosity in his tone. Cultivators like Noah were rare, but his determination was a common sight in the Immortal Lands. Every divine being was a stubborn and resolved individual, so seeing that feature in a potential heir pleased the expert. An ethereal sword formed, and Noah''s ambition surged as he wielded it with two hands. His sharpness spiked, and the water of his mental sea began to rage as it resonated with his mindset. "I''ll take it anyway," Noah said as roars fused with his human words. "You can increase my power, so I will resort to every trick and asset in my arsenal to make you mine." Chapter 1093: 1093. Sword Sain The expert smiled when he heard those words. His forefinger rose once again as he spoke in a challenging tone. "Attack right here then. Don''t hold back." Noah''s ambition intensified even more. A god was right in front of him. Cutting him down would be the greatest accomplishment even made by a heroic cultivator. The world around him disappeared as his focus reached its peak. Noah could only see the forefinger. Nothing else mattered in his mind anymore. A black spot appeared on his ghostly figure''s chest. The mark enlarged until it took the shape of a star that engulfed half of his torso in its rotation. Noah was calling upon the entirety of his individuality to perform that slash. It didn''t matter if some of its aspects didn''t match swords well. He wanted to pour all his existence into his most potent attack. His ghostly figure began to morph. A tail and two wings grew from his back. A pair of horns rose from his forehead, and his fingers became long claws. The environment darkened. Noah''s brown mental energy dimmed as his existence invaded that ethereal world. Yet, the expert remained still, waiting for him to launch his final attack. Noah eventually acted. His sword felt heavy as he lifted it above his head and focused everything he had on his blade. A sense of emptiness pervaded his being as his everything went on the weapon, but Noah had already stopped thinking. Anger was the last to arrive. The forefinger was only a minute part of the divine will''s body, but its power surpassed anything that Noah had ever met. He felt mocked. The expert believed that one finger was enough to suppress him, so he had to prove him wrong. Of course, Noah wasn''t thinking straight in that situation. It didn''t matter how powerful a heroic cultivator was. Gods were in another realm, and even their wills were too powerful for the lower plane''s weak experts. However, Noah used his unreasonable desire to kill a god to push his power even further. His ambition became so intense under that concentration that it made his sturdy mental walls shake uncontrollably. Noah didn''t feel any pain, or, rather, he couldn''t sense it in that situation. Only the forefinger existed in his mind. Everything else was inside his ethereal blade. His sword eventually fell. Noah felt as if he was trying to cut through the hardest material in the world as he swung his blade downward. It was so heavy that bulging veins appeared on his material body outside. Instants of silence felt like an eternity. Noah''s mind remained devoid of any thoughts as he performed the slash that carried all his life. The ethereal sword touched the tip of the finger, and its blade lost any weight as its power came out of it. Noah''s mental faculties returned only sense an immense force flinging him backward and making him slam on his trembling walls. Minutes of silence went by after the slash and the finger connected. Noah was too confused to understand what was happening around him, and his trembling mind added waves of pain to his condition. Noah took a while to recover and focus again on the expert. He didn''t see any slash when he looked in his direction, but his eccentric figure still stood on top of his mental sea. The man''s finger was in front of him. Noah didn''t manage to make it move at all, let alone cut it. Yet, he soon noticed that something was off since the expert had arched his eyebrows. Noah felt drained, and even the level of his mental sea had reached a critical condition. However, he straightened his position and walked toward the motionless expert who showed a slight smile at that sight. Noah walked until his eyes were right above the finger. He didn''t see anything peculiar, but he felt that something was off. His focus increased once again. Noah mustered the last bits of his mental energy to inspect the tip of the finger. Laws appeared in his vision, and the structure of the will became somewhat clear at that point. Noah didn''t even dream to understand the expert''s law, but he could see that something had happened on the finger''s tip. Its structure was still intact, but a minute spot appeared damaged. "I thought you lacked purity due to your various paths," The expert finally decided to speak. "But there is another side to consider. Are you certain that you don''t want to focus solely on the sword?" "I''ve decided that long ago," Noah replied weakly. His consciousness had begun to waver in those last seconds. His mental energy was getting too scarce to keep him awake. The expert sighed before continuing with his teachings. "The path for purity sees the removal of imperfection and foreign elements. Yet, nothing is extraneous to the blade capable of encompassing everything." Noah''s mind broadened as understanding flowed inside him. His consciousness was about to fade, but he used everything he could to keep the connection with the Divine Cut intact. "The blade of ambition is your sword," The expert said as his words became muffled. "Rather than removing paths, you must bring them to their peak and unite them into a single sword. There can''t be existences carrying multiple laws, but those with vast individualities do exist. As for boundless, that will depend on you." Noah started to see the outside world as the voice of the expert resounded in his dizzy mind. It was day when he awakened, but he soon collapsed on the spot. The last line of the expert echoed inside him. "You are worthy of my inheritance. From now on, you''ll address me as Sword Saint." Then, Noah''s consciousness went dark, and his body slid from the roof of the tower to fall toward the ground. . . . Noah awakened in a dark environment. The laws of the darkness element were intense there, but he could sense something familiar inside them. A bird-like creature rested next to him. Noah could finally recognize where he was when he noticed Night crouched on his side. That was the environment that he had created for the Pterodactyl. The creature must have taken him there after he fell from the tower. Night woke up when it saw that its Master had recovered. It stretched a bit before setting off and resuming its mission to turn that area into a breeding ground. Noah then noticed Snore coiled behind him and the Demonic Sword by his side. His two living assets had come out on their own to protect him while he remained unconscious. His inscribed notebook had stored a few mental messages. They mostly questioned him about his health, but those close to him knew that Noah had often engaged in reckless training methods to improve his power. There was even a summary of what had happened while he was unconscious, but nothing was worthy of his attention. He had slept for a little more than two months in the end. Nothing could affect peace in such a short period. Flying Demon joked on how Night had caught him mid-air when he fell from the tower, and Dreaming Demon wished him the best in terms of health. Only June''s message forced him to answer. Her words proved once again how close the two of them were, and Noah couldn''t help but smile when he heard her. "Did you gain anything good?" June''s voice echoed in Noah''s mind when he played her message, and he could only answer in one way when he recalled the events inside the ancient aura. "I gained everything," Noah conveyed as he stood up to return to the surface. He had a meeting with Sword Saint that he didn''t want to miss. Chapter 1094: 1094. Spells "Where is your bestiality?!" Sword Saint exclaimed as he curved his finger to launch a slash. Another slash was coming in his direction, and the two attacks clashed mid-air. Noah saw his attack losing against the expert''s copy. Sword Saint''s slash crossed his ethereal figure without doing any harm before dispersing on his mental walls. That was the training method decided by Sword Saint. Noah had to launch attacks that the expert copied in their purest form. He then also listed the weaknesses of Noah''s slash to instruct him. The idea behind that training was to force Noah to express every aspect of his individuality in his slashes. He had refused to abandon his other paths, so he needed to fuse all of them into his sword. That was easier than done. Whenever Noah focused on his destruction, he failed to add his creation. Whenever he minded only his sharpness, he forgot about his bestiality. Sword Saint''s attacks couldn''t copy Noah''s individuality completely. There were some aspects that he could only try to imitate since he lacked understanding in those paths. The issue was harsher when it came to Noah''s beast side. Sword Saint could perform slashes that relied on brute strength, but they didn''t come close to Noah''s iconic attacks. Still, Noah didn''t have to imitate the expert''s attacks. He only needed to learn and take inspiration from them. Everything else was up to him and his ability to push that path forward. Noah called upon his pride and used all the physical strength that he could imagine to slash toward the immobile opponent. He didn''t forget to follow the specific forms learnt during the enlightenments, so his blow had some grace too. A thick slash flew out of his ethereal sword. Sharpness came out of its shape and broke the water inside the mental sea. Yet, small dark spots formed on its surface after that destruction. "Better!" Sword Saint exclaimed before curving his forefinger again. A similar thick slash shot from his hand and clashed with the incoming attack before piercing it to fly toward Noah. The expert''s slash dispersed after it crossed Noah''s ghostly figure. The same outcome had occurred, but Noah felt his excitement building up anyway. Noah could feel his existence improving as that training continued. That process forced his individuality to converge into a slash, pushing his being together like never before. His body had harmonized his many features before, but that process was different. It involved laws, and it was more connected to what Noah expressed rather than focusing on his species. "What did I do wrong this time?" Noah asked. His slash had lost against an imitation, so he had to improve it. "Intensity," Sword Saint answered. "You still think before attacking. This affects the power that you can express. Everything must come naturally. This slash must become your starting point once you manage to bring every aspect of your existence out." Sword Saint meant that Noah needed more training. He had to turn his best slash in his weakest and start improving from that base. The path in front of him was still long, but he had a direction, and the guidance of a divine will now. Luckily for Noah, the training sessions with the Divine Cut had become shorter after Sword Saint''s will materialized. The battles inside his mental sphere lasted as if they were fights in the outside world, so he never spent more than a few days there. Noah depleted almost all his mental energy in every session anyway, but he could spend more time on his traditional training and many projects after he rested. There was one particular project that bugged him. No matter how hard he tried, he didn''t manage to copy the light element with the dark matter. It seemed that his higher energy was utterly incapable of reproducing that element. The more he tried to modify it to succeed in his task, the more the dark matter lost power. Noah had begun to think that it was against his higher energy''s nature to become that element. Still, he wasn''t ready to give up on the project yet. After all, he had already thought of a spell that made use of all his copied elements. In theory, its effects would make him ignore most of the limitations brought by his low level among the powerhouses. Other projects proceeded well instead. Noah had to keep his diagrams in their original state while he focused on meditating next to the Divine Cut, but he had time for them now. His new state as a rank 6 mage and his incredible body allowed him to go past his spells'' original purposes. Noah didn''t need to abide by the creators'' initial intentions anymore and could push their core ideas on a path that suited him. Noah could keep many old spells, and he could even recover some of those abandoned in the past. The limitations on their power didn''t matter anymore since he rebuilt them in his mind. That project led to many side projects since he had to treat every spell differently. There were cases where he could even fuse a few of them, but that led to difficulties. It was hard to fuse two core ideas into a greater one without damaging their intensity. Noah had to test that process many times before understanding that he had to change his approach. Noah had never learnt how to create diagrams from nothing because his expertise brought him on different paths. Yet, he could use wills to obtain similar effects. Noah had already done something similar in the past. Translating diagrams into wills so that he could modify them had allowed him to improve many spells during his journey across the heroic ranks. He didn''t do the same when he became a rank 6 mage because of both worlds'' many events, but nothing stopped him now. Moreover, he wanted to improve that procedure too. Noah wasn''t satisfied with wills that depleted themselves once "Breath" triggered their effects. He wanted something lasting. The Will-devouring runes came in his help at that point. With a mixture of strong wills and his three energies, Noah could create runes that replicated spells once fueled with darkness. They were different from the Kesier runes. Noah had to immerse them inside the mental sea because they needed constant contact with his mental energy. Those runes were far from perfect, but Noah felt that he was finally learning something he had desired since he was a human cultivator. He was finalizing his method to create spells! Many runes started to fill the mental sea. Noah added one spell after another to his arsenal. They couldn''t express his full power since they didn''t involve his body, but his battle style would gain some variety. There were too many eyes on him now. Every powerhouse had developed countermeasures to his iconic attacks. Improving his abilities wasn''t enough. Noah needed more of them to compete in that realm. That eventually led to the biggest problem. One of Noah''s strongest spells was the Demonic Form, but it seemed that all the world had developed countermeasures against its corrosive effects. Night could exploit it to express its power, but that didn''t make his corrosive smoke more useful. Noah had used the spell only to enhance his body and as a form of protection in the last battles. The Demonic Form was peculiar among spells. It had a strange form that grew according to the number of Kesier runes inside a mental sphere. That was one of the reasons why Noah had never attempted to modify it. It appeared too complicated for him, and he didn''t want to risk ruining his greatest asset. However, he was in the last stage of the heroic ranks now. His Divine Deduction technique had rank 6 mental energy as a fuel, and his dark star pushed his abilities far beyond their normal limits. It was time to improve the Demonic Form, and the Black Mark spell seemed perfect for his needs. Chapter 1095: 1095. Roots Noah studied the roots entangled on the floating Kesier runes for months before feeling confident enough to modify them. The Divine Deduction technique had never stopped illuminating the insides of his mental sphere in that period. That slowed down his training with Sword Saint a bit, but Noah had never held back when he found a way to improve his power. The Demonic Form and the Black Mark had similar effects. Noah could already imagine the corrosive smoke carrying poisonous properties on top of its corrosive ability. Still, he needed to modify the Demonic Form spell''s very core if he wanted that to happen. Noah had to fuse the original idea behind the Black Mark spell into the roots, which was an invasive procedure. Noah didn''t focus only on the roots'' structure when he studied his spell. He paid particular attention to the laws in their fabric and how they interacted with the Kesier runes. The more he learnt about that diagram, the more he realized how complex it was. Yet, he understood that certain tricks were behind the creation of spells that didn''t have limitations to their power. The Warp spell, the Shadow Copy spell, the Body-inscription spell, and the Demonic Form all had external factors connected to their diagrams. The last two had quite obvious requirements, while the others only needed stronger mental spheres. Having more external factors allowed the diagrams to be less complicated. They could have fewer lines since part of their effects depended on things unrelated to their core. However, the Demonic Form ignored that theory. Its roots acted as if they were a parasite drawing power from the Kesier rune, even if they didn''t hurt them in the slightest. That would typically make any modification more difficult, but it made it easier for Noah. If he could treat the spell as a living being, he could make use of his expertise. Noah felt as if he wanted to improve the species of the Demonic Form when planning its modifications. The roots weren''t an actual lifeform, but that wouldn''t matter as long as they behaved like one. At first, Noah began experimenting with the small bits of roots that tried to cover the Seventh Kesier rune''s almost-invisible shape. Noah was nowhere near the seventh rank, so only the rune''s faint shape had begun to form in his mind. The roots wanted to cover that too, but they could only hang from the Sixth rune after failing. Imbuing wills in the matter was something that Noah had done since his time in the Royal Academy. The Elemental Forging method proved itself exceptionally useful in that situation. Noah had to break down the Black Mark''s spell to its core, translate it into a will, and forge it into the roots. His centuries of training in that inscription method made him confident in succeeding without hurting the spell. A few failures happened, but Noah only lost part of the superfluous roots in the process. That didn''t affect the spell, so he felt at ease in suffering those losses. A few positive results happened as he became more experienced with the procedure. Still, Noah cut away those forged parts anyway since he wasn''t satisfied with their power. The experiments stretched on for an entire decade. Noah did nothing but training, sparring with Sword Saint, and modifying the Demonic Form in that period. Then, when he finally obtained satisfying results, he entered the last stage of the experiment. Noah couldn''t allow himself to fail at that point. He was about to modify the core of the Demonic Form spell. Any mistake would damage one of his strongest weapons. The First Kesier rune had the least number of roots, but the spell''s core was there. Every effect and ability of the Demonic Form came from a thick root that gave birth to all the other ones. Noah reviewed the procedure multiple times before approaching the First Kesier rune. He used the Divine Deduction technique to eliminate every flaw, and even his body reacted in the end. ''I will succeed,'' Noah thought when he sensed his dark star spinning faster and improving his mental capabilities. His determination had triggered one of the best features of his body. His star had reacted to the pressure that Noah felt when approaching the modification. The thick root occupied Noah''s vision. His ghostly figure floated in front of the First Kesier rune and called upon primary energy previously stored in his mind to begin the procedure. During his experiments, Noah had found out that the dark matter was too heavy to interact with the roots without damaging them. The same went for his darkness, which forced him to use primary energy to perform the forging. ''Soft without lacking intensity,'' Noah thought as a rune surged from the depths of his mental sea and reached the cloud of primary energy next to him. The rune had a peculiar shape. It was a black spot with uneven edges that tried to spread in the environment. That was the rune created to push the Black Mark spell to the sixth rank. Dark matter made its entire structure, but Noah had to sacrifice it at that time. The rune fell apart inside the thin cloud of primary energy. Noah pushed the dark matter out of his mental sphere, but he restricted the meaning that it carried inside. He didn''t care about the rune. He could always make another one when he had the time. What interested him was the pure meaning he had managed to translate when he updated his spells. The core idea of the Black Mark spell remained inside the primary energy. That thin substance initially ignored the influence radiated by that meaning, but it started to bend as Noah''s containment continued. With Noah there, even the volatile primary energy had to acquire special features. After all, he had become able to interact with the laws when he reached the sixth rank. He didn''t need to rely on the native''s inscription method to control the primary energy anymore. The Black Mark''s core idea became less intense as the procedure continued. The primary energy absorbed it and gained its features, which slowly turned it into the forging material. When the meaning vanished, Noah approached the thick root and began the inscription. The modified primary energy flowed inside the Demonic Form''s core, forever altering its fabric. The root began to shake as Noah continued to pour primary energy inside it. Its branches became thinner as their core weakened, and some of them directly fell from the runes to disperse in the mental sea. Noah continued without minding those repercussions. He knew what was happening, so the wilting of the roots didn''t scare him. Little by little, all the branches fell. Only the core root remained on the Kesier rune by the time Noah completed pouring primary energy. The root shook. It shrunk only to grow larger again in a cycle that continued for minutes. Noah could only watch at that point. The forging was complete. It was up to the diagram to adapt now. The root''s color changed. It was already black, but the addition of that meaning made it even darker. Its edges became difficult to make out since light couldn''t illuminate it properly. The tremors eventually stopped, and the root remained still as if dead. However, it remained attached to the First Kesier rune, which made Noah confident in the procedure''s success. As if answering to Noah''s confidence, the root slowly started to enlarge. It was a timid growth initially, but it gained speed as it became used to its new structure. Multiple branches grew from the central body, and an intricate diagram quickly appeared on the six Kesier runes as the roots covered their surface. They even tried to spread on the Seventh Kesier rune''s faint shape, but they failed as their predecessors. Once the structure stabilized, Noah felt a surge of power filling his mind. Something inside him had already predicted the power of his improved spell, and the result made him feel ecstatic! Chapter 1096: 1096. Return Improving the Demonic Form put an end to the projects linked to his spells. Noah didn''t lack fighting methods now. Actually, he had never been able to use so many abilities at the same time! Runes with various shapes filled his mental sea, and black roots covered his Kesier runes. His spells were ready for battle, and Noah couldn''t wait to test them in the open. However, the world was still at peace, and Noah had to teleport between the Divine Cut and Chasing Demon''s quarters for his training. The Hive had built a proper habitation for him, but he preferred to finalize the matters with Sword Saint before settling there. As he poured more of himself inside his slashes, Noah''s individuality advanced, pushing his dantian toward the peak of the fifth rank. It was only a matter of time before he became a fully-fledged powerhouse. When he was almost eight hundred and fifty years old, an inevitable change occurred, and the peace in those Mortal Lands finally fell apart. King Elbas had disappeared for centuries by then. No one believed that he had died in his search for the rank 7 Kesier Ape, but that didn''t explain why he had been missing for so long. The underground world was vast and messy. A sea of magma filled most of it and forced everything inside to move according to its currents. Noah had been honest during the negotiations with King Elbas. His description of the currents was as accurate as he could make them. The journey toward the Ape God would only take a century, according to his calculations. The delay in King Elbas'' return hinted that something had happened, and the whole world learnt about that when the Royals'' leader returned to the surface. No one noticed anything at the beginning. There wasn''t any earthquake or natural calamity to announce that event. Yet, the investigative buildings of the organizations soon saw something peculiar. The period of peace had made those buildings quite useless. The heroic cultivators overseeing the nations'' borders and the sea had to spend centuries observing the complete nothingness. However, sounds of alarm resounded everywhere once they recorded the image of a crowned cultivator flying together with a tall ape that had six white runes on its fur. The higher-ups of every organization received messages and came out in the open to witness that event with their eyes. Noah was cultivating in front of the rank 7 Kesier rune when the message arrived. Dreaming Demon, Chasing Demon, Flying Demon, Elder Julia, and Skully were with him, and they all reacted in the same way at that news. The six powerhouses teleported on the surface and set off for the eastern coast. Other rank 5 cultivators followed their example, and the teleportation matrices across the new continent shone to no end. A crowd soon formed in the sky above the eastern coast. A total of ten rank 6 existences stood on the alliance''s side and stared at the five Princes and Princesses floating above the sea. The Empire had sent some troops too. God''s Left Hand floated at some distance above the sea together with other cultivators. There was even another powerhouse next to her. The world''s best assets had gathered to witness the return of the strongest powerhouse in those Mortal Lands. King Elbas'' figure became visible at some point. He reappeared from a distant point in the sea and flew slowly toward his underlings. His golden robe shone on its own, and his crown reflected the sunlight, giving off a blinding radiance. The rank 7 Kesier Ape floated by his side. A golden shield filled with runes surrounded the creature and forced it to fly alongside King Elbas. Still, it didn''t restrict its movements inside the separate area. The golden cage radiated a peak rank 6 aura. Its power was at the limits of the heroic ranks and managed to block the trapped creature''s punches. The Ape was weaker than Noah recalled. Its power had fallen in the quasi-rank 7 stage. Yet, its condition seemed to have improved since the last time. It appeared full of vitality and in a perfect state. Even the missing piece of fur had reformed. No rune had appeared in that spot, but there were a few white pieces. It was as if the Ape''s rank had regressed only to increase again. Noah knew that such improvement was far from natural. He had left the Ape inside a sea of magma while its world crumbled. That wasn''t an environment that could benefit its growth, especially in its weakened state. King Elbas probably had intervened. The best inscription master of the world knew methods that could restore the Ape to a decent condition. No one questioned the prowess of the golden cage. The experts didn''t know how that item could contain a quasi-rank 7 creature, but the answer to their doubts was in the powerhouse flying next to it. There was one aspect of King Elbas cultivation''s level that shocked all the bystanders. The Royal had left when he was at the peak of the liquid stage, but now his dantian expressed the solid stage''s power! King Elbas had a breakthrough during his journey. He now lacked only one step before becoming a god! "Father!" The Princes and Princesses shouted as they bowed when King Elbas reached them. The leader nodded at his underlings before inspecting the cultivators of the other organizations. A lot had changed while he was away. Many cultivators had advanced to the sixth rank, and the Elbas family had lost most of its territories. Moreover, the Royals had gone through three hundred and fifty years of suppression while the alliance had flourished on their old lands. Second Prince straightened his position and handed a white orb to his father while keeping his head lowered. The item fell apart when King Elbas touched it, and the white gas that came out of it flew inside the leader''s mind. King Elbas kept his eyes closed for a second before reopening them and showing a wide smile. His gaze then went on the alliance''s side as he gave voice to a playful comment. "You sure had fun while I was gone. Well, I expected much already." The lack of anger in King Elbas'' words surprised some of the experts on the scene, but Noah and a few others could understand how he felt. King Elbas was a powerhouse in the solid stage. He didn''t mind those worldly matters at all. "I''ll take back the snowy land and the bushland," King Elbas announced in a peaceful tone. "You can keep the others for now." His announcement forced the various leaders to send a series of mental messages, but they quickly had to stop their actions since the Royal began to advance again. King Elbas moved toward the alliance''s side. The Princes and Princesses didn''t follow him, so he was marching alone toward ten rank 6 experts. "You!" The Ape cried when it noticed Noah from inside the golden shield. "You damned creature! Destroying my world wasn''t enough. You had to send this damned human too!" Noah ignored the cries of the beast and kept his attention on King Elbas. Yet, the latter didn''t like that sudden outburst and waved his hand to activate some restrictions. Faint chains appeared on the Ape''s fur. They came from beneath its skin and suppressed both its physical strength and mental abilities. The beast collapsed inside the shield. A few shrieks of pain came out of its mouth, but King Elbas'' cold words silenced even them. "I told you to use human words." Chapter 1097: 1097. Invasion King Elbas'' actions showed how he had captured the quasi-rank 7 creature both internally and externally. Everyone could now understand how the Ape couldn''t break through the golden shield. The sudden outburst and suppression of the Ape didn''t change what was happening. King Elbas was still walking toward the eastern coast, and the allied powerhouses had yet to make their move. That was probably the best chance to kill King Elbas. He had just returned from a long journey, and his opponent had been a former divine magical beast. His breakthrough was a problem, but there was a good chance that the Royals'' leader was hiding some injuries. Also, he was far away from his domain now, so he couldn''t use defensive formations. Still, killing him would probably free the Ape God, and the Princes and Princesses were nearby. The alliance outnumbered them, but there was a solid stage powerhouse among their opponents. King Elbas walked in the air showing his usual arrogant smile. It seemed as if he desired for his opponents to make a move. However, no one attacked. "Let''s defend!" Great Elder Diana transmitted through the alliance''s inscribed notebooks, and everyone retreated toward the eastern coast. Even Noah didn''t object to that order. He didn''t believe for even a second that King Elbas was unprepared. In his mind, he had already accepted that the alliance couldn''t do anything to defeat him. Differences in ranks and stages became harder to cross as the level increased. Both Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had inscribed items that allowed them to express more power, but that was even more true for King Elbas. Defeating him might be impossible, but they had no reason to do that. The alliance owned most of the world anyway. They could defend and continue to solidify their superiority. King Elbas didn''t chase those cultivators. He even let those in the fifth rank return toward the nearest teleportation matrices. He didn''t seem to care about anything around him. He had one goal, so he was going to walk toward it slowly. Elder Julia and Chasing Demon took control of the Copying Technique deployed in the region mentioned by King Elbas. They prepared themselves for his arrival while the other higher-ups of the Hive remained nearby, ready to intervene if needed. Great Elder Diana and other higher-ups of the Council did the same. They joined the Elders of the Hive in their waiting for King Elbas'' arrival. The Copying Technique activated before the enemy arrived. Countless magical beasts formed on the surface of the snowy plain and arranged themselves in a defensive formation. Meanwhile, the cultivators living in the recently built domes and structures used teleportation matrices to abandon the area. The region was about to see a solid stage powerhouse unleashing his power. Even Noah and the others didn''t feel confident in surviving that. The army of magical beasts had hundreds of different specimens that would follow precise roles meant to make use of their innate abilities. Chasing Demon had become an expert with the Copying Technique. He didn''t pick the creature to capture randomly but chose those that would benefit the overall defenses. It was pointless to trap too many magical beasts. One single creature was enough to create a limitless number of copies, so diversity was better than sheer numbers. Noah didn''t help with the Copying Technique, but he could see that Chasing Demon had done an incredible job. Any expert in the magical beasts'' field would praise him for his choices. There were thousands of magical beasts at the peak of the fourth rank. They all had a water aptitude and specialized in long-range attacks. Their species were among the strongest of their kind too. A series of peak rank 5 magical beasts stood in front of that army. Other water-type creatures specialized in long-range attacks filled the ground and acted as leaders of the swarm. Noah recognized various kinds of seahorses, turtles, and giant fishes meant to pressure the incoming powerhouse. Chasing Demon could avoid summoning so many weaker beasts, but doing that balanced the region''s depletion of energy reserves. It was cheaper to have an army of rank 4 creatures than a single one in the sixth rank. It didn''t matter that King Elbas was in the solid stage. The constant assault of so many immortal creatures could probably affect him in the long run. The fact that Chasing Demon had summoned such an army didn''t mean that he didn''t create copies of rank 6 creatures. A tall ape stood among the beasts. That was the previous king of the snowy mountain! Entire organizations would find it challenging to deal with that army. The problem wasn''t in the sheer number of troops but because they were virtually immortal! King Elbas took a few days to arrive. He reached the sky above the snowy plain walking at his slow pace and wearing his arrogant smile. The Ape God was still inside the floating golden shield next to him, and the sight of the army silenced the creature. Silence fell on the entire region too. The army of beasts went silent while King Elbas inspected the area. A tinge of surprise appeared on his expression, but he shook his head in the end. King Elbas lifted his arm, and a drop of blood fell from his forefinger. The drop took fire as if descended toward the army, but it was only a small flame when it crashed on the ground. Intense rumblings spread on the terrain, and crack opened in the entirety of the region. Tall tongues of flames came out of those fissures and enveloped the army of beasts. The copies couldn''t do anything against that attack. The power of a solid stage powerhouse wasn''t something that they could oppose. The once snowy plane transformed into a red environment after King Elbas'' attack. Melted rocks and uneven terrain filled the area, and the region''s structures became nothing more than fuming debris. Only the dome stood still, but large cracks spread on its surface. The city under it had become visible too, which showed how much power it had already lost. The region had become worthless after one attack. The Hive would have to spend decades fixing the damages only to bring it back to a decent state. Chasing Demon could decide to abandon that territory. The Hive didn''t need it. Its value came from the fact that the Elbas family couldn''t occupy it. However, the alliance had the chance to test King Elbas'' power at that time, and the Copying Technique had yet to show all its tricks. It didn''t hurt to waste some amassed "Breath" to defend it. The army of beasts reappeared in less than ten seconds. The creatures didn''t wait for the powerhouse to attack and launched their innate abilities as soon as they reformed. The sky changed color. The reddish halo generated by the setting of the Sun disappeared, replaced by a blue radiance. King Elbas saw the region disappear, replaced by an array of water missiles and currents that carried different properties. The fabric of the sky fell apart. The air itself trembled until it crumbled under that myriad of attacks. A large passage to the void appeared, but the assault of abilities didn''t stop. The amount of energy depleted to launch those attacks was unfathomable, but even that wasn''t enough to suppress the enemy powerhouse. The endless tide of abilities took fire at some point, and the flames spread until they reached the army of beasts, which crumbled under that counter-attack. Chapter 1098: 1098. Fire The army of beasts suffered a complete defeat once again. One attack from King Elbas was enough to eradicate all the creatures in the region. The fire that destroyed the beasts covered the ground and ruined its condition even more. Trails of dust then rose among the flames and flew toward the massive opening that had appeared in the sky. The pulling force of the void was intense, but the world fixed that crack at high speed. No matter how numerous they were, the attacks of weaker creatures couldn''t affect the fabric of the sky for too long. In seconds, King Elbas and the Ape God remained the only figures in the sky. Not even a speck of dust had landed on the powerhouse''s robe, which remained clean and tidy as if the last exchanges didn''t happen. A massive figure suddenly appeared behind them, and the temperature in the area dropped by a few degrees once its aura spread in the environment. The previous king of the snowy mountain was a rank 6 White Ape in the middle tier. Chasing Demon had captured it after the invasion and made it part of the Copying Technique. The White Ape was the second strongest magical beast trapped under Chasing Demon''s quarters. Noah didn''t know how the Patriarch had captured it, but the creature could now act as one of the protectors of the Hive. Ice spread in the sky as the creature pounced at King Elbas. The powerhouse exploded into a fire wave that engulfed the tall white figure and melted the ice that had formed. King Elbas became visible after his fire disappeared. He appeared clean and unharmed again, but he couldn''t relax since a torrent of water-type attacks flew in his direction. The army of weaker creatures had reformed while King Elbas dealt with the White Ape. They didn''t hesitate to launch their innate abilities once their target reappeared, and the blue radiance filled the sky again. King Elbas used his mental energy to stop those abilities right before they landed on him. Fire then covered their surface and spread toward the attacking beasts, burning them into ashes. Right after the army crumbled, the White Ape reappeared behind him and tried to land a blow on his back. King Elbas had to explode into a sea of flames to take care of that threat, but he found water-type spells flying toward him again when the fire dispersed. Chasing Demon and Elder Julia weren''t giving King Elbas any time to breathe. They made use of the invincibility of the copies to pressure their opponent and exploit his casting time. Tens of exchanges repeated themselves in the following hour. Chasing Demon changed the movements of the White Ape and altered the battle tactic from time to time. The Copying Technique could express its real power with the backing of one of the world''s strongest organizations. The Hive didn''t lack resources, and the new continent''s ground was rich of them too. The Hive could go on for years. It had prepared for too long and stashed large quantities of fuel for the Copying Technique. It could defend against a single powerhouse as long as the lines of the formation remained intact. King Elbas'' reactions didn''t slow down in the slightest under that assault. Instead, he became faster in countering the attacks after every exchange. The only reason the copies managed to surprise him from time to time was that Chasing Demon often changed battle tactics. He even modified the structure of the army at some point to make the data gathered worthless. King Elbas appeared suppressed by that defensive measure, but the allied powerhouses didn''t dare to feel joyous about that event. ''He is studying the Copying Technique,'' Noah thought as he watched King Elbas refusing to change his battle tactic. The best inscription master in those Mortal Lands had items that could make his life more comfortable in that situation. Even slightly more powerful spells could help him deal with the assault better. However, King Elbas refused to rely on anything different than his basic flames. He had used his higher energy during his first attack, but he had never called upon that power again. Noah knew about his curiosity, so he guessed that the Royal had become interested in the Copying Technique. Losing some face to study more about its functioning was a trade that King Elbas was more than willing to make. The atmosphere on the defending side was far tenser. The Hive was using its strongest defensive method, but that couldn''t even force King Elbas to fight seriously. Great Elder Diana sent message after message during the battle. She was instructing the inscription masters of the Council on King Elbas'' habits and abilities in the hope that they could develop something able to counter him. King Elbas eventually grew bored of that situation, and he stretched his arm again to throw two drops of blood toward the ground. The drops took fire as they fell, becoming fiery arrows that pierced the broken surface and spread a sea of fire in the underground world. The region crumbled after his attack. The ground fell downward, and the cracks already in place spread when deeper ones appeared. The army of beasts became pale after that attack, and many of them stopped moving. Only the strongest creatures continued to launch abilities, but they weren''t even worthy of consideration without the immense numerical advantage. King Elbas shook his head and started to descend toward the ground as the spells nearing him took fire. His descent appeared undisturbed, but Chasing Demon soon proved him wrong. The Patriarch of the Hive knew what King Elbas had tried to do with his last attack. He wanted to destroy the lines of the Copying Technique to take care of the threats'' core. Chasing Demon had played along. He commanded most of the army to remain still until King Elbas exposed himself. That moment luckily arrived soon. The tide of beasts suddenly began to move again, and the White Ape reformed only to pounce at King Elbas from behind his back. Attacks came out of the creatures, and the area became blue again. King Elbas snorted at that sight. That simple scheme wouldn''t hurt him even if he decided to rely on weaker protective methods, but he felt pissed that Chasing Demon had managed to trick him. That didn''t only make him lose face. It also showed that he didn''t understand the Copying Technique, let alone where its lines were. A drop of blood came out of King Elbas'' forehead, and a fiery shield formed once it took fire. The protection blocked the incoming attack and enlarged until it covered the entire region. The ground didn''t suffer from that attack, but the copied beasts in the area burnt when they touched the fire. The army started to reform again, but King Elbas didn''t want to waste any more time there. Three drops of blood came out of his hand, and a red halo filled the environment once they fell on the ground. The entire area suddenly took fire. The whole region became a burning mess, and the superficial layers of the ground became ashes as King Elbas tried to reach the core of the Copying Technique. Any human structure in the region disappeared, and entire pieces of ground vanished under the merciless fire. The flames continued to burn for a whole minute, and King Elbas dispersed them only once he found traces of the shining lines. Chapter 1099: 1099. Ancestor The lines of the Copying Technique shone on King Elbas'' face and illuminated the night. The Royal had successfully uncovered the inscription generating the endless tide of magical beasts, and he inspected it with great interest. Noah quickly sent a message to Chasing Demon. The Patriarch was aware of King Elbas'' curiosity, but Noah wanted to make sure that he knew how dedicated the Royal was as a researcher. "Don''t worry," Chasing Demon replied through a mental message, "I''m just getting started." The lines of the formation shone more brightly after Chasing Demon sent that message. The army formed again, and the White Ape was among the creatures, staring at the powerhouse accompanied by the golden cage. King Elbas was ready to activate some defensive method, but the magical beasts didn''t attack. They stood on the charred ground, watching the powerhouse inspecting them with an interested gaze. A second rank 6 aura appeared among the army at some point. A human figure flew above the beasts and landed on the Ape''s shoulder before joining the creatures in their stare. That figure didn''t need presentations. He was the tall man with red hair and dark eyes who had started a war for the sake of his destruction. King Elbas'' eyebrows arched at that sight. Ravaging Demon looked down on him in an incredibly realistic manner. Even his centers of power matched his old cultivation level. "I expected something similar when you captured his remaining consciousness," King Elbas announced, conscious that the experts in the distance would hear him. "However, this goes beyond my wildest expectations. You managed to replicate a powerhouse!" King Elbas resembled a kid who had just discovered a new toy, but he expressed his excitement with a grace fit of his status. The arrogance in his expression became less intense as he learnt about creations that he couldn''t imitate. Still, his curiosity replaced that feeling, and his eyes began to shine with a golden light. King Elbas rarely showed that aspect of his individuality in the open. It would be too easy to exploit his uncontrollable curiosity toward any form of inscription otherwise. Yet, he now stood at the peak of the heroic ranks. There was virtually nothing in a lower plane that could threaten him. Only Shandal''s return might force him to hold back, but the God of the Empire had no interest in suppressing such a promising expert. Ravaging Demon didn''t wear his iconic smile, but he lifted his hand to prepare his spell. King Elbas saw a scarlet flame appearing in his palm before a blue radiance filled his vision. The tide of weaker beasts launched attacks that quickly took fire as the Royal counter-attacked. The White Ape created ice platforms in the air to run away from the flames, and Ravaging Demon remained on its shoulder as he waited for his moment. Once the fire dispersed, the White Ape leaped from the platform to fall toward King Elbas. Ice surrounded its figure and transformed it into a massive spear that crashed on the powerhouse. Ravaging Demon had jumped off the Ape when the ice began to cover it. He waited until the second wave of flame melted the spear and killed the beast inside it before flying toward King Elbas and triggering his attack. A sea of flames spread on the region. A pure sense of destruction invaded the battlefield and fought the fire still lingering on the ground. The rank 6 copies had both performed suicidal attacks. Chasing Demon knew that the Copying Technique alone couldn''t defeat King Elbas, but he wanted to see if the Royal had a limit or showed flaws in his battle style. King Elbas became visible once Ravaging Demon''s flames dispersed. His robe was still clean, and he had suffered no injuries. Even that last assault had proven itself useless against him. The copies reformed and resumed their endless assault. The Copying Technique managed to keep King Elbas busy for two more hours before deciding that it was time to move on. The Royals poured four drops of blood on the shining lines under him, and fire spread in the region''s underground world. A large chunk of the Copying Technique fell apart during the attack, but some inscriptions remained in place. The region wasn''t as lucky. It had already become a mess of scorching fissures and melted rocks due to the past exchanges, but now it crumbled downward since it had lost most of its underground area. The terrain caved in. Some of the melted rocks began to flow across the new cracks, creating dense dark-red rivers. The structure of the region remained unstable even after all the boulders and chunks of terrain settled. No more copies appeared around King Elbas, but he could sense traces of "Breath" gathering at some distance from him. King Elbas wanted to follow those traces to reach another core of the Copying Technique, but three figures started to form after he walked for some time. Ravaging Demon reappeared, and the White Ape reformed too. The third figure took more time to form, but it eventually became material in the shape of a giant snake. Noah almost couldn''t believe his eyes. The third beast that had appeared was a Flying Snake quite similar to the last ancestor of the other world! Moreover, it radiated faint mental waves and carried traces of a dantian. Chasing Demon had summoned a creature killed by the Worldwide Heaven Tribulation! "Do you like it?" Thirty-seven''s voice resounded in Noah''s mind when the Flying Snake formed completely. The automaton used a private channel to talk with him, so no one could hear their conversation. "Did you use the ashes of the ancestor?" Noah asked. He had given the bucket to the automaton long ago, but he had almost forgotten about it. The remains of the rank 6 creature had lost all their power. Heaven and Earth had been thorough in their destruction, so Noah didn''t expect the automaton to do much with its ashes. "They have been a pain to restore into a useful form," Thirty-seven replied. "I have treated them with the most nurturing materials for over a century to recover a small part of their original power. Then, I used the theory of the Body-inscription spell to create a drawing that resembled the original creature." Noah was speechless. He remembered that the ashes didn''t carry the slightest trace of the ancestor. They were nothing more than a common material, but the automaton claimed that he had partially restored them. That went beyond Noah''s comprehension. Thirty-seven''s accomplishment resembled a resurrection rather than a restoration. He had also managed to put those results into use, which made them even more valuable. "The creature isn''t exactly alive," Thirty-seven continued, "But there are loopholes in the Copying Technique. Since it can replicate almost everything, you only need to give it the right inputs to create what you desire." Noah guessed that the automaton was excited to see his creation finally joining a battle. He couldn''t explain while Thirty-seven was so polite and expansive with him otherwise. The Flying Snake radiated an aura at the peak of the middle tier, but it had a dantian near the peak of the liquid stage. When it came to its cultivation level, it was as strong as Great Elder Diana. The Snake was a hybrid too, so it could rely on its physical strength. Noah didn''t believe that the Council''s Matriarch would lose in a direct fight against the creature, but that didn''t diminish its value. King Elbas didn''t show any fear in front of the three rank 6 copies. His cultivation level was still far above theirs, but the constant assault of the Copying Technique was about to affect him. He was only one cultivator. Even his immense power had limits, and Chasing Demon was doing his best to see how strong the Royal was. Chapter 1100: 1100. Spear A violent battle unfolded on the melted and destroyed region that had once been a white and pure land. King Elbas never expressed his real power during the battle, but the three rank 6 copies were slowly forcing his hand. Moreover, the army of weaker creatures reappeared from time to time and made him change his battle style. The last attack with higher energy had destroyed part of the Copying Technique, but that was the domain of the Hive. Chasing Demon had covered entire regions with his inscriptions, so he only needed to summon the copies a bit farther away. King Elbas'' life was never in danger. The only capable of injuring him was the Flying Snake, but the creature never touched him. It didn''t matter what tactic Chasing Demon deployed. King Elbas only needed to explode into a raging inferno to destroy anything coming at him. That was a sheer difference in power that numbers couldn''t overcome. It was why armies had no chances against powerful beings and the proof that a higher cultivation level was above a swarm of ants. However, the immortality of the copies made the situation quite tricky. King Elbas never managed to advance since his opponents always kept him busy with attacks that he had to block. The situation would be different if King Elbas were a hybrid. A creature with a body capable of blocking those attacks could fly freely across that land and reach its goal in one sprint. Yet, cultivators couldn''t take that many attacks head-on. Their bodies were too frail, even in front of weaker beings. King Elbas felt once again forced to unleash his higher energy after the three copies stopped his advance for more than three hours. Five drops of blood fell from his fingers and unleashed a raging fire that burned every shining line in sight. The Royal began to advance again at that point, but Ravaging Demon, the White Ape, and the Flying Snake reappeared near the region''s borders and pounced at him again. All the experts watching the battle in the distance could feel King Elbas'' annoyance. The Copying Technique might be unable to defeat him, but the expert couldn''t eradicate it either. There was no actual countermeasure once the inscriptions activated. Divine Demon had created the perfect defensive method, and his disciple was managing it with great ability. A slight change occurred in King Elbas. He didn''t suffer any injury, his robe was still tidy and shining, and his power didn''t waver in the slightest. Yet, his complexion became slightly paler. The change was so subtle that many experts failed to notice it, but that event couldn''t escape the eyes of the Hive''s powerhouses. The Copying Technique had affected King Elbas! Even solid stage powerhouses had to take the defensive method seriously! It was needless to say that the Hive''s power skyrocketed in the eyes of its enemies and allies. After all, the Copying Technique didn''t show its real power since the Coral Archipelago''s independence. Many had forgotten how dangerous those inscriptions could be. Some powerhouses even wondered whether they had limits to their power. The answer to that question was a clear "no". The Copying Technique only needed "Breath" and trapped creatures. Anything else came from the ability of the existence in charge of it. The small organization that had managed to escape the three leading forces'' control just a few centuries ago had become the most protected domain in the entire world. Those that still had grudges against the Hive could only give up on their vengeful plans at that sight. Only an existence at the peak of the heroic ranks could attempt to seize something from the Hive. King Elbas was the sole power in the world that could succeed in that task without external help. Even he had to accept his limits at some point. The copies were nowhere near his level, but their immortality was slowly getting to his nerves. Only his curiosity toward the inscription method kept him calm. Still, King Elbas was losing face in front of the entire world to satisfy his curiosity. His grand and glorious return had turned into a messy battle where he couldn''t come out as the winner with his base power. It was with a bit of unwillingness that King Elbas decided to take the threat more seriously. A crimson spear appeared in his hand, and the air around the weapon burned when it touched its aura. The world went silent when a weapon at the peak of the sixth rank made its appearance. Its power seemed to surpass what the heroic ranks could express, and Noah could sense the higher energy brimming inside its structure. The spear''s shape was quite simple. It only had one long blade on its tip, and its shaft was metallic. Yet, Noah knew how King Elbas created his higher energy, so he could see past those polished materials. His dark star spun faster as his attention went on the spear. He could sense King Elbas in its fabric, and his expertise in the Elemental Forging method made him understand part of its core materials. The sharp head felt like bones in his mind, and a faint smell of blood came out of the shaft. Other precious materials had fused with its structure, but Noah could confirm that King Elbas had used his body tissues as core materials. That was what Noah had done many times in the past. Discovering that the two of them shared that type of creative process made him feel strange. King Elbas didn''t act. He kept his spear pointed at the ground and waited for his opponents'' reaction. The truth was that he didn''t want to attack with his inscribed weapon. He had already destroyed the region beyond recognition, so he tried to avoid making it more worthless. Yet, the Patriarch of the Hive was a demon. He had chosen to waste an immense quantity of energy for the sole purpose of keeping the Royal at bay. It didn''t matter that the Hive had no hope of defending that territory. Chasing Demon had to show the price of attacking his domain, which turned out to be the region itself. The Hive didn''t need that land, but Chasing Demon would rather see it fall apart than ending in the hands of his enemies. If he couldn''t have it, then no one could. Nine figures appeared at that time on the charred land. Three copies of each rank 6 protector took form on the region''s broken and burning surface and prepared their last suicidal attack. King Elbas shook his head and let the spear fall. He didn''t even throw it. His hand opened, and the powerful inscribed weapon began its descent. Fire covered the spear as it fell downward. The copies didn''t care about the weapon and unleashed everything they had on the cultivator flying above them. Nevertheless, before their attacks or themselves could reach their opponent, the world turned red, reducing them into nothingness. Some of the experts that were too close to the battle had to retreat once that scarlet radiance filled the environment. The spear had suddenly released its power, and everything in its range had fallen apart under its scorching pressure. Then, when the weapon touched the ground, a massive fire rose and filled the entirety of the region. The flames even stopped at its borders and remained still as if they were a fiery defensive wall. Chapter 1101: 1101. Invitation What had once been the snowy plain now shined with a bright red color. Flames filled the entirety of its surface, and their tongues rose toward the sky, illuminating the areas nearby. The flames flickered and trembled in the night without ever dispersing. It was as if King Elbas'' spear had given birth to a perpetual fire that nothing in the world could suppress. The experts observing the battle noticed the strange features of the flames. The snowy region containing the tall mountain didn''t suffer from the increased temperature. The fire didn''t affect the sea past the coastline either. The spear had created a fiery cage that isolated that region from the outside world. As for the actual condition of the land, only King Elbas could know that. Chasing Demon stared at the fiery scenery while Elder Julia waited for his directives. The two of them had shared the weight of the Copying Technique, but she was out of options now. The flames blocked any offensive. It was pointless to create copies on the borders since their attacks would melt as soon as they touched the fire. That had now become King Elbas'' private land. Nothing could pass there unless he decided otherwise. Elder Julia knew about Chasing Demon''s divine golem. The Hive still had a chance to fight for that territory''s ownership, but she didn''t know how far her Patriarch was willing to go. The same helplessness pervaded the experts watching the scene. Only inscribed items could help once the solid stage powerhouse showed his real power. The difference in their cultivation level was too steep to overcome with the Copying Technique alone. It would be different if the Hive had captured a peak rank 6 creature, but no one in its ranks could pull off that task. Also, there would be a problem containing the creature afterward, and that without considering the "Breath" needed to copy it. Chasing Demon stared at the raging flames in silence. The red radiance filled his vision even if he was at some distance along the southern coast. Eventually, he decided to send a message to announce the outcome of the battle. "We lost the snowy plain, or what''s left of it." No one felt at a loss once those words echoed from their inscribed notebooks. The Hive had done its best and more. Chasing Demon didn''t have any fault in that defeat. The world now knew how strong the Hive was. Every organization would think twice before deciding to invade its territories. King Elbas didn''t know that Chasing Demon had officially given up on that territory. He stared at the snowy mountain in the distance and waited for his opponents to make a move. However, as time passed and nothing came to attack him, he showed his arrogant smile to the world before descending toward the flames. His figure eventually disappeared among the fire, leaving every spectator unsure of what would come next. King Elbas had announced that he would reclaim two territories when he learnt about the new political borders. The second region was a neutral land of the alliance, so it didn''t have the Copying Technique to defend it. A massive call to arms spread among the ranks of the alliance. Every cultivator and hybrid who had a cultivation level in the solid stage of the fifth rank or above had to join the defense of the last territory. An army of experts gathered in the bushland next to the region featuring the forest of Silver-yellows. Noah and the other higher-ups prepared themselves for the incoming mayhem. Ten powerhouses stood in front of almost sixty rank 5 experts in the solid stage. Those troops were elites among elites and possibly the strongest force in the entire world. Yet, their opponent was a solid stage powerhouse, and they had no confidence in dealing with him without the Copying Technique. The defensive formations could block some of his attacks, but the battle wouldn''t be as entertaining as the last one. The priority of the alliance was to salvage troops. The Hive and the Council didn''t want to lose essential assets for a region that wasn''t vital to their organizations. Still, they wanted to put up a fight. The alliance would consider the defense a success if it managed to force King Elbas'' hand once again. As long as the region became worthless, that wouldn''t be a loss. Days passed, and nothing moved inside the Royals'' domain. The Princes and Princesses even returned to their respective regions without performing any flashy action. The days eventually became weeks, and then months. The Elbas family had gone silent during that period, and no battle started even among the human troops on the other borders. It was as if peace had returned. Still, the alliance''s experts couldn''t shake off the feeling that King Elbas had yet to stop interacting with the political situation. Tension built among them. Both Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana didn''t know what was going on, but they didn''t believe that King Elbas would go back on his word. Something eventually happened after six months of tense waiting. The five Princes and Princesses came out of their lands and gathered above the bushland to announce their Father''s will. "Father wishes to express his respect for the Hive''s power," Second Prince shouted when the five Royals lined up in the sky above the southern border of the region. His words echoed through the land and reached the allied troops hidden in a temporary military base built on the western border. No one moved though. They had to hear what the Royals had to say before deciding on their next action. "Father says that he doesn''t want to destroy an entire region again," Second Prince continued, "But he can''t let the strongest organization in the world have so little land either." Noah heard a few snorts resound next to him. Elder Julia and many rank 5 cultivators couldn''t help but disagree with the claim that the Elbas family was above them in terms of power. ''It''s not the organization,'' Noah thought with a tinge of helplessness, ''One existence is enough to make that claim true.'' He didn''t like to hide, but he had to respect his opponent''s strength. There was a thin line between being reckless and suicidal, and Noah had no intention to cross it for the sake of his pride. "King Elbas has invited some of you to a formal meeting," Second Prince spoke again. "I''ll call now those that he has personally invited to this event." Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana nodded at each other when they heard those words. That was the best outcome, in their opinion. Other battles at that level would only hurt the world, and no organization desired that. Some of the new continent''s central territories were still recovering from the battle against the quasi-rank 7 Winged Beast. That alone explained how damaged the world would be if that trend against King Elbas continued. "Great Elder Diana of the Council!" Second Prince began to announce those invited to the meeting. "God''s Left Hand of the Empire! Chasing Demon of the Hive!" The audience felt shocked when they heard God''s Left Hand''s name. They thought that the invitation involved only the alliance''s members, but it seemed that King Elbas wanted the negotiations to feature every organization. A moment of silence followed those names. The Patriarch and Matriarch of the alliance began to discuss the preparations needed before the meeting. Everyone thought that the list was over. Second Prince had already called the highest members of the three organizations in the end. However, he surprised the audience by adding a last name. "Noah Balvan of the Hive!" Second Prince announced as his smile became wider. "The four of you are invited in the fiery land to join King Elbas'' banquet. The date is three years from now. There shall be peace until then." Chapter 1102: 1102. Expressions The five Princes and Princesses left the region after they completed their task. The experts of the alliance in the military base watched them go before meditating on their message. King Elbas wasn''t the type of cultivator that would resort to schemes to deal with his opponents. He was driven and curious, but he wouldn''t do anything to hurt his image. Moreover, his cultivation level placed him away from political struggles. His only goal was to ascend now, so the organizations didn''t think that the meeting would endanger them. Reports reached the alliance''s inscribed notebooks. Those in charge of overseeing the new continent''s situation stated that the Princes and Princesses had left for the Papral nation. The structures on the old continent then confirmed that the Royals had conveyed their invitation to the Empire before returning to their respective regions. The matter became official at that point. The Royals had invited all the interested parties and restored their political silence, and only one doubt remained in the minds of the three leaders. They couldn''t understand why King Elbas had decided to invite Noah too. Noah wasn''t exactly famous for his political skills, and King Elbas had suffered a loss when he dealt with him. Even his inscribed items didn''t prevent the Demon Prince from tricking him into leaving the surface. "You don''t have to come," Chasing Demon said as he neared Noah. The Patriarch was worried that Noah could be in danger if he went to the meeting. Noah couldn''t claim to know King Elbas personally, but he understood him. They had a lot in common, but there were a few sharp differences that made them uniques. King Elbas was a true creator. His interests enveloped everything in the world, and he was willing to put himself in danger and damage his reputation to appease his curiosity. Noah put his cultivation level and battle prowess before everything. He had developed other interests throughout his life, but they always concerned his power. King Elbas preferred grand actions and flashy gestures to prove his superiority. Instead, Noah would often resort to tricks and deceit when necessary. Noah didn''t care about his image, while King Elbas needed it to fuel the power of his bloodline. If the Royal had to resort to a trick to kill Noah, his family would lose most of its reputation. "I''ll go," Noah firmly answered, and the weaker experts paying attention to that interaction couldn''t help but nod at his determination. Noah had learnt to behave like a true leader with time. He often ignored those obligations due to his aloof character, but he always acted while keeping the Hive''s best interests in mind. It wouldn''t be wrong to say that the Hive''s status would be nowhere near its current one if it weren''t for him. Noah didn''t only obtain the tools necessary for the rebellion. He had also gathered a large number of experts and resources across the years. The Seventh Kesier rune alone was enough to make him the most important existence in the entire Hive. He didn''t manage any political matter, but the higher-ups knew that their organization''s future was safe with him. The Elders of the Council saw that too, and they felt glad that Noah was their ally. He usually created chaos whenever he moved, but they would never hope to have him as their enemy. Even if his dantain was still in the fifth rank, no one dared to consider him an incomplete powerhouse. Actually, some believed that he was already stronger than his Patriarch. Of course, Noah didn''t care about his public image. His mind had registered only two pieces of information: The meeting with King Elbas and the time he had to prepare for that event. ''Training with Sword Saint is obvious,'' Noah thought as the troops dispersed, ''But what should I do other than training?'' Three years were nothing for him now. He could spend them thinking about his next project if necessary. Yet, he still had plans to increase his power in the short-run. Noah had solved the situation with his spells, and he had even improved the Demonic Form. His centers of power grew steadily, and his dantian only needed time or some sudden enlightenment. He couldn''t accelerate the training with Sword Saint. Only the endless repetition of his best slash could make it become his foundation. The copying of the elements had met a bottleneck. Noah had no idea what to do with the light element, and no one could help him in that matter. Noah could begin to create techniques capable of fusing with his new spells. Still, his sword arts were incomplete, so he found it pointless to invent forms that he would have to change soon. ''It seems that you are my only option,'' Noah thought, and a surprised gasp resounded in his mind. Night had remained inside its dark underground area during the recent events. King Elbas probably knew a lot about that species, so Noah didn''t want to risk it while it was in that weak body. Their connection had improved, so the two could talk even if they were in different regions. It was as if Noah had a permanent open channel with the Pterodactyl''s mind. "Is something happening?" Night asked through its connection, but Noah didn''t answer. He would keep the creature curious for a while to avoid seeing its smug face again. The world couldn''t return to complete peace after King Elbas'' return. The shadow of war loomed over the new continent, so every expert did their best to improve their prowess. They didn''t know how the meeting would unfold. It was better to prepare for the worst. Chasing Demon even issued a series of specific orders meant for Thirty-seven. The automaton and his disciples had to create temporary cities in the separate dimension if King Elbas decided to go all-out against the alliance. There wasn''t enough time to resume creating living weapons, and Noah wasn''t in the mood to use those years for that. The various experts could only use their resources to either purchase or build their inscribed items. Noah returned to the tower next to the Divine Cut. He had a room on the last floor where the sunlight couldn''t enter, and he quickly began his project there. That wasn''t his first time improving Night''s body, and he had already studied the corpses of its species in the past. Replicating those creatures'' innate ability was hard, but Noah didn''t want to stop at that. The Night-blade Pterodactyls were incredible in the right environment. Noah had even begun to believe that they could really be the best predators in darkness. However, that wasn''t enough. It was pointless to be the best among ants in a world filled with dragons. Night had sensed that something was up, so it didn''t hesitate to fly to the tower to spy on its Master. When it reached the last floor, it found June opening one of the windows to allow it inside. The beast wanted to shoot directly in the isolated room, but June promptly stopped it. "Noah is working with the corpses of your species," June said before returning to her mat to cultivate. Her appearance didn''t change in those years, but the aura that surrounded her had become unstable. It was as if she was ready to explode at the first sign of battle, which created a sharp contrast with her calm expression. "Is he creating a new body?" Night asked as a deep chirp accompanied its human words. "It was about time! I suffered so much in this thing!" June stared at the bird-like creature with interest, but she didn''t say anything. Night eventually found that constant gaze annoying and questioned her about it. "What is it?" Night asked with a tinge of impatience. "Noah always tells me that you are more expressive than humans," June replied without moving her gaze. "I just can''t understand where your expressions are." Chapter 1103: 1103. Transformation The day of the meeting arrived, and the four powerhouses left their training areas to gather on the corner of the southeastern coast. The region was still on fire. The flames had never stopped flickering for more than three years, but the four experts knew that King Elbas would make his move soon. King Elbas didn''t disappoint them. The flames slowly went down, and a shocking scenery filled the vision of the four invited to that event. A green prairie covered the land, and mid-sized magical beasts of various ranks populated it. Noah recognized them. They were Royal Peacocks, and their bright feathers illuminated the area with multicolored light. Tall trees with large, rainbow-colored leaves and pale-yellow trunks filled the coastline. The marvelous leaves reflected the sunlight and filled the environment with a mystical halo. A ditch ran from the southern coast and crossed half of the region before ending in a large lake. A series of horse-type magical beasts rested near its waters and stared at the Peacocks with a hungry expression. Those Horses usually fed on other magical beasts, but they didn''t hunt the Peacocks in the region. A series of runes flickered on their bodies whenever their instincts tried to take over their actions. The region had been nothing more than a massive fire just a few seconds ago, but now it had turned into a paradisiac land that expressed nothing but peace. The most striking element in the area was the massive castle placed right at the region''s center. The castle had a rectangular shape and four tall towers at its corners. Golden bricks made its structure, and crystal-like windows filled its walls. The building improved the image of the scenery further. That land had instantly become the most beautiful place in the new continent, and no one would ever dare to object to that. ''My consciousness can''t go past the grass,'' Noah thought as he inspected the area. The beauty of the land couldn''t faze him, especially when he was about to meet the strongest cultivator in those Mortal Lands for the second time. Noah''s mental waves couldn''t cross the surface. The underground world of the region remained a mystery, which hinted at King Elbas'' training area. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana exchanged understanding glances with Noah. They had noticed the same peculiarity, but there wasn''t much they could do about it. God''s Left Hand didn''t interact with the trio. The Shandal Empire was outside of the political struggles. Its entire domain was nothing more than a few poor territories. The other organizations were technically enemies. God''s Left Hand had sealed a pact with the Hive, but that didn''t make her situation better. The Hive wouldn''t even help the Empire if it was in danger. Some Elders had a connection with the Second Life formation, but that didn''t make the two organizations allies. The four flew through the region until they reached the castle. Its tall golden door then opened, and the five Princes and Princesses walked out of it to welcome the guests. "Please," Second Prince announced, "Come inside. Father is waiting for you." That sight didn''t please the four experts. Their organizations had kept their eyes open in the past years, but they didn''t see the Royals exiting their regions. Yet, there they were, and their luxurious golden robes showed how prepared they were for that event. That put the guests on the weaker side, but King Elbas was probably enough to do that by himself. The presence of his underlings didn''t change their difference in power. Noah didn''t bring any special weapon or protection to the event. He had even left Night in its underground area since he didn''t want to see how the Pterodactyl felt about King Elbas. The other powerhouses had behaved differently. They didn''t wear any form of protection, but their space-rings were full of disposable inscribed items that could save their lives if the situation evolved poorly. God''s Left Hand was the first to descend toward the entrance, and the remaining three followed her after exchanging a glance. Noah and Second Prince stared at each other during his descent. The red crystal at the center of the Royal''s forehead resembled a third eye that registered and studied his every move. Still, Noah''s prowess had evolved by leaps and bounds in the past three hundred and fifty years. He wasn''t nearly close to the same opponent that Second Prince had fought with his puppet. The experts began to walk through the golden corridor after they crossed the castle''s entrance. A Royal escorted each powerhouse, and First Prince walked in front of the group to lead the way. Noah wasn''t surprised that Second Prince decided to walk next to him. He didn''t bother Noah, but the latter could sense that his mental waves tried to probe his new power. Of course, Noah''s aura shredded into pieces any form of investigative method. He didn''t even need to focus on countering those faint auras trying to get past his innate defenses. Second Prince eventually turned to look at Noah when all his investigative methods failed. His expression showed his great surprise at his guest''s improvements, but his arrogant smile remained wide on his face. Noah didn''t look at him, but his mental waves imitated the Royal''s behavior and inspected his centers of power. Second Prince accepted that challenge and used his defenses to stop Noah''s mental energy. However, a flash of golden light suddenly came out of his body and startled the other experts. "What is it?" First Prince asked as his eyes moved between his brother and Noah. The atmosphere became tense as everyone sensed that a fight was about to start, but Second Prince promptly spoke to disperse that tension. "My inscribed item is acting strangely. I''ll get Father to take a look at it later." Chasing Demon glanced at Noah, who shrugged his shoulders to express his innocence, and the group forgot about that event to continue their march. Noah and Second Prince were at the back of the group. Most of their interactions went unnoticed since the other powerhouses were busy studying each other. No one noticed that Noah''s mental waves had cut right through Second Prince''s defenses effortlessly. The abruptness of that event directly destroyed the defensive item that the Royal had used to help him in the task. "Another puppet," Noah whispered, and Second Prince''s expression froze when he heard those words. His guest had uncovered his secret with a simple glance! The Royals weren''t the only ones capable of learning from the enemy''s techniques. In the last centuries, Noah had eventually understood why he didn''t notice that his opponent had been a puppet. The red crystal had mysterious abilities, and one of them allowed Second Prince to alter his aura. That had tricked Noah in the past, but it didn''t manage to do the same now. Noah''s mental waves had gone directly for the crystal and had seen that body for what it was. The Second Prince next to him was nothing more than a golem created with rank 6 materials. "Are you even real?" Noah mocked him as the group walked past a series of golden doors. The castle was immense, but First Prince led the group directly into the meeting area. Second Prince didn''t answer and began to walk faster. The other Royals understood that something had happened and picked up some speed to reach their destination more quickly. The group eventually reached a corridor without any door that had a garden at its end. Many precious plants grew there, and countless delicate scents created a peculiar smell that accelerated the seas of consciousness'' thinking capabilities. Noah''s mind experienced the same effects of the Divine Deduction technique, even if in a less intense manner. Still, he couldn''t help but feel surprised. The acceleration of mental faculties happened naturally. It didn''t consume more mental energy, and it didn''t seem to have any adverse effect on the sea of consciousness. King Elbas welcomed them from the top of a long table featuring ten large armchairs. The meeting could finally begin, but not before the Royals'' leader announced the main topic. "I''ve found something at the center of this plane." King Elbas said before sitting on his armchai Chapter 1104: 1104. Once Every piece of furniture in the garden had a golden color. The table, the armchairs, the short sticks that kept some magical plants straight, and the window on top of the room reflected a golden halo. The plants in the indoor garden seemed affected by that halo, but the experts couldn''t pay attention to that after King Elbas'' revelation. Chasing Demon and the others glanced at Noah, who could only shake his head to answer. He had explored the world under the surface, but he had never gone as far as reaching the core of the plane. The core of the planet was hotter. That was common knowledge among the higher-ups of every organization. The temperatures there were so high that every material melted by merely standing in its area of influence. Yet, the density of the magma increased as one descended further. Noah didn''t know if the core followed that trend, but he didn''t expect many cultivators to survive there without external help. Even most powerhouses would have to resort to inscribed items to explore that area. "What did you find?" God''s Left Hand asked without taking a seat, but King Elbas didn''t pay her attention. The Princes and Princesses sat next to their Father and imitated him in ignoring the guests. The four powerhouses eventually took a seat since their curiosity got the best of them. Great Elder Diana sat on the short side of the table, and the other experts took the long ones. Noah surprised Chasing Demon by sitting next to Second Prince, but his confident expression reassured the Patriarch. Second Prince didn''t like that disposition, but he had to maintain some dignity in front of his Father. He was his heir in the end. He didn''t sit next to him only due to seniority reasons. "What did you find?" God''s Left Hand asked again after everyone had taken their seat, and King Elbas finally seemed to hear her words. The Royals'' leader waved his hand to fill the table with strong wine and special delicacies, and Noah didn''t hesitate to fill his cup. He wouldn''t waste that chance since he knew how good King Elbas'' wines were. His direct behavior surprised some cultivators on the table, but they quickly let go of the matter to focus on the meeting''s main topic. King Elbas imitated Noah and filled his cup as he finally replied to that question. "Laws in their raw form." Only God''s Left hand understood what King Elbas meant with those words. Chasing Demon, Noah, and Great Elder Diana had no idea of what that was. King Elbas decided to explain since he noticed the confused expressions of his guests. "Raw laws have yet to gain a true meaning. Powerhouses can absorb them to increase their cultivation level without suffering any backlash. They are ownerless energy that awaits to receive a purpose." It was needless to say that the revelation shocked the three experts. If what King Elbas had said was true, anyone could directly increase their cultivation level by absorbing the raw laws. "How can something like this exist?" Noah asked after he took a sip from his cup. Raw laws defied the fairness of Heaven and Earth if he had understood how they worked. They would be no different from the Royal Pool without its side-effects. "They are addicting," God''s Left Hand intervened to clear some doubts. "Your individuality needs to be strong too. They won''t turn into your laws otherwise, and you''ll lose your path forever." ''There are side-effects then,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. A limitless increase in the cultivation level was too good to be true. Nevertheless, King Elbas would have never returned to the surface and disclosed that information without wanting anything in return. It was normal to have doubts about his behavior. "Why are you telling us this?" Great Elder Diana said. "Why didn''t you stay there by yourself until you ascended?" King Elbas took a sip from his cup at that question. He didn''t like to talk about his failures, but he didn''t enjoy lying either, especially now that he was a solid stage powerhouse. "I didn''t reach the solid stage with the raw laws," King Elbas admitted. "I experienced the breakthrough before even finding the Kesier Ape. I met the raw laws only after the underground currents forced me near the core." The four from the three forces remained silent as they waited for the last part of the story. Instead, the Princes and Princesses lowered their heads since they knew about that already. "I¡­" King Elbas struggled to continue that phrase, but he eventually steeled his resolve. "I''ve lost myself inside the raw laws for an entire century. I''ve survived because a defensive item has stopped me from hurting my cultivation level. I spent the remaining time underground cleansing my dantian." "What can we do with a resource that even you can''t control?" Chasing Demon asked. He liked the idea of obtaining quick powerups at no cost, but he wasn''t unrealistic. King Elbas was the strongest and most prepared cultivator in those Mortal Lands, but even he had failed to avoid the addicting properties of the raw laws. The other powerhouses in the world had no chance to seize them. "I was alone, injured after a battle with an unreasonable creature, and exhausted after centuries in the magma," King Elbas stated without showing the slightest shame. "I can''t create an item to seize the raw laws, but I can build an exploration party for the same purpose. We can control each other and make sure that we don''t go mad." "You have five powerhouses under you already," Noah joined the discussion once the topic reached that point. "Why did you even summon us? Aren''t your sons and daughter up to the task?" Noah''s words were sharp as swords, even if he didn''t exude any aura when he talked. It didn''t matter what King Elbas said to justify his family. His actions had already revealed how he felt about his underlings. "I don''t know if they are," King Elbas admitted without even looking at the other Royals. "Still, I''m going to find out." King Elbas stood up at that point, and a map appeared on the golden table. The drawing depicted the new continent and divided its regions according to the current political borders. "I want to hold a tournament to reorganize our domains," King Elbas said. "Powerhouses will fight among themselves to seize each region, but we will exclude those that are too important to every organization." A few regions on the map lit up. The Hive saw the area between the lava lake and the forest of White Woods become purple, indicating that King Elbas saw them as its core domains. The same happened for the Council. The lands between the natural paradise and Divine Market city became green, with some purple tinge near the Stele. Nothing lit up for the Empire, but that only meant that it couldn''t lose anything. Still, the powerhouses had yet to hear the reason why they should join that tournament. Great Elder Diana gave voice to everyone''s question. "What if we refuse to join both the journey and the battles?" "I''ll spend the next century taking every land that you have," King Elbas replied coldly, glancing at Chasing Demon with the corner of his eyes. "I don''t mind burning the entire new continent. I don''t need it anymore." His threat sounded real. Noah had believed him even before he finished speaking. "What about you?" Noah asked. He didn''t mind fighting. He had actually been waiting for opponents to come in his way. However, everything would be pointless if King Elbas joined the battles. "Only my underlings will fight," King Elbas said. "The new powerhouses will fight themselves for the right to come in my journey. The regions are only a bet on the side." The conditions didn''t appear too strict, especially for the Hive since it was proud of its experts. Chasing Demon didn''t believe that the Princes and Princesses would be stronger than his fellow Demons. "I have only one condition," King Elbas added before finalizing his offer. "You can only fight once." Noah found King Elbas'' forefinger pointing at him when he heard those words. Chapter 1105: 1105. Group battles "Why is that?" Noah asked with a tinge of interest in his tone. The fact that King Elbas had placed a limit on him spoke for his prowess, but Noah didn''t care about fame. He only wanted the chance to seize rank 6 dantians. King Elbas'' gesture surprised the other guests too, but they could vaguely guess why he wanted to apply restrictions on Noah. His answer conferment their hypothesis too. "You have already proven your ability," King Elbas announced. "You all have shown that you can deal with threats in the sixth rank. Those that have advanced while I was away didn''t, so I want to test them before bringing them in my journey." King Elbas didn''t miss the chance to remind everyone that the mission was happening because of him. He could place all the restrictions and rules that he wanted. The others couldn''t object after the last threat. "Does that mean that we can''t fight either?" Great Elder Diana asked, and King Elbas nodded to reply. The Royal''s idea became clear now. He wanted to hold a tournament among the newly advanced powerhouses to see if they were worthy of accompanying him. The three leaders had to admit that they were quite pleased with those conditions. Except for Noah, their new powerhouses lacked battle experience at that level. Still, they were proud of their underlings. The alliance also had many superfluous territories, so it didn''t mind gambling them to train its future leaders. Moreover, success in the mission would shorten King Elbas'' time in the Mortal Lands. Once he ascended, the alliance would have no real enemy in the entire world. Chasing Demon felt a bit sorry for Noah, but he didn''t have any power over the matter. King Elbas had been quite clear. They could either obey or waste centuries of accumulation. The meeting moved forward, and the group set the methods and conditions of the battles. King Elbas dictated most of them, but the other leaders managed to make him rethink certain aspects of that tournament. Since there were only a few new powerhouses, the four organizations would engage in group battles. They didn''t set a rule against killing, but they strongly advised against it. Also, cultivators could give up in the middle of the fight. There was no need for oaths or similar methods to seal the agreement, and those involved in that meeting weren''t easy to bound to inscribed pacts in the first place. It would be up to the various organizations to respect the rules. That gave King Elbas the last say on every matter, but the situation would be the same, even with oaths. What was happening there was positive in the minds of the three leaders. The Elbas family currently had the strongest cultivator in the world, so they had to avoid any frontal clash. Still, Chasing Demon and the others had managed to enlarge the areas that the tournament couldn''t affect. King Elbas had eventually given in to some of their relentless requests and complaints. The Hive and the Council considered themselves satisfied with the new dispositions obtained. The Hive would keep all its essential territories even if it lost all the group battles, which involved many central regions. Cultivators could quickly adapt to new environments, and the Chasing Demon didn''t mind creating multiple domes in some regions. Yet, the hybrids needed their space. The guests left and conveyed the news of the tournament to the powerhouses of their organizations. The battles would begin in five years, so everyone had time to prepare. Noah returned to the tower next to the Divine Cut to train with Sword Saint. By then, he had completed the projects that he could finish without having a rank 6 dantian. He didn''t need any special training before the battle. At best, he could plan what he would hide during his group battle. He had already decided that he wouldn''t show Night, but there were other abilities that he would rather keep hidden for now. He didn''t fear the other newly advanced powerhouses, especially after years of rigorous training with Sword Saint. Yet, the Royals were tricky to fight, and they probably had many countermeasures to his most famous abilities. ''I guess I can only avoid using my spells,'' Noah thought before contacting Thirty-seven. There was one small issue that he had meant to solve for a while but that he couldn''t fix with his expertise alone. The Demonic Sword and Night were living beings. They were both quite peculiar among lifeforms, but space-rings didn''t allow them inside their separate dimensions anyway. Noah had never minded that too much since the weapon and the Pterodactyl had tight links with his mind. Yet, he would venture to the center of the plane soon, and he didn''t want to endanger them. Of course, Noah didn''t consider for even a second the possibility that he would fail to qualify for the mission. If the group battle became too tough to handle while holding back, he would go all-out. "I heard about King Elbas," June said as she reached the roof of the tower. "Raw laws and the center of the world. Sounds fun." The couple''s interactions had become more peaceful after spending more than three centuries without hiding their relationship. They had lost their desperate craving to make the best out of their time together. Still, they didn''t desire their partner any less than before. "Peace is making you jumpy," Noah teased June as she sat next to him and lay her head on his shoulder. June''s aura appeared ready to explode. She could control it easily thanks to her improved Perfect Circuit, but that didn''t make her less annoyed about that long peace. She had hoped that King Elbas'' return would bring a new wave of battles, but the outcome of the meeting had disappointed her. "I think I''ll go in the other world while you are away," June said after the two of them had stared at the scenery for a while. The mountains covered in a thin fog and the ancient vibe radiated by the Cut created a wonderful picture that the couple enjoyed in silence. "Hoping for a new rebellion?" Noah asked as a peaceful feeling filled his being. Noah stood in the last stage of the heroic ranks. His lover was next to him, and the Hive grew steadily. They had no real enemies and nothing else to wish for from that world. That was life at the peak. Countless years of training to be one step closer to the Immortal Lands, and nothing else to do but perfect their arts. Many would find that kind of life perfect. Noah could obtain everything he wanted, and he had already seized most of that. However, Noah and June were both bored of that situation. The mysterious lower plane couldn''t keep secrets from them anymore. They had uncovered everything there was to discover, and they had reached a simple conclusion: That wasn''t enough. Noah was a boundless ambition striving for the higher levels, and June an endless battle intent that couldn''t stop craving for more opponents. Staying still went against their nature, which was why they ended up joining one mission after another whenever they had the chance. "There are many hybrids there," June replied. "Helping to clear the other world is better than remaining here where everything is so unchanging." "I bet Faith will come with you," Noah said, and June nodded while wearing a warm smile. The two of them had become real friends in the last period. Other than being her sparring partner, Faith had helped June survive her boredom in the previous centuries. "She says good things about Elder Laura," June said while turning to look at her lover. "Try not to kill her." King Elbas and the others had already planned the matches of the tournament. Noah would fight against Second Prince, Elder Laura, and True Speed, the new powerhouse of the Empire. "I won''t target her on purpose," Noah replied. "My real target is that puppet-user anyway." Chapter 1106: 1106. Ordinary Noah flew toward the bushland next to the region featuring the forest of Yellow-silvers. His opponents were already waiting for him, but he wasn''t late to the appointment. Five years had passed in complete peace. The region rebuilt by King Elbas didn''t show any sign of activity in that period, and no one from the Elbas family had occupied his area. King Elbas had taken the entire region as his training area. The other assets of his organization overcrowded the few remaining lands in his domain, but he didn''t seem to care. Elder Laura, Second Prince, and True Speed floated on different borders of the region. Second Prince occupied the southern border, showing his usual golden robes and the small shining crown on his head. The red crystal at the center of his forehead reflected the sunlight, and his smile was wide as he looked at his opponents. True Speed floated above the eastern coast. He was a youthful tall man with short black hair and no beard. A tight red robe underlined his bulging muscles, but he had a peculiarity that was hard to miss. The new powerhouse of the Empire didn''t have human feet. Both his legs had wolf-like features, and his hairy paws stuck out from the bottom of his robe. The Empire had met some success with the hybrid transformation. Every organization had done the same, but only a few of them had implemented it to high-ranking cultivators. Noah couldn''t help but praise that type of process in his mind. True Speed had gone through a proper partial transformation to avoid the issues connected with his individuality. That didn''t give the expert a hybrid body, but it unlocked some abilities humans couldn''t perform. It wasn''t hard to guess that the man''s name came from a movement ability. Elder Laura flew above the northern border. She had long brown hair tied in a bun and a pair of green eyes. She appeared relatively young too, and her green robe enhanced her curves even if it didn''t reveal her skin. According to June, Elder Laura was one of the few higher-ups of the Council who had never tried to pressure Faith. The latter also liked her, so her death wasn''t something that she wanted to see. The three cultivators had a similar cultivation level. They were all rank 6 cultivators in the gaseous stage, with Second Prince being the most advanced. Those small differences in power weren''t enough to declare who was the strongest among them. It only indicated who was closer to become a law. Noah was the weaker of them in terms of centers of power. Only his sea of consciousness was above theirs, but his body and dantian were far behind. Still, that didn''t speak for his battle prowess, and the anxiety lingering on his opponents'' gazes when they looked at him proved that. The four of them flew toward the center of the region when the four leaders appeared high in the sky. King Elbas, God''s Left Hand, Great Elder Diana, and Chasing Demon would act as judges for each battle. Noah didn''t say anything when he and his opponents gathered. He bowed only out of respect for the leaders above them, but he wasn''t in the mood for political foreplays. Second Prince felt in the same way, but Elder Laura and True Speed paid particular attention to Noah when they bowed toward him. "It''s an honor to fight against the Demon Prince of the Hive," True Speed said before retreating to the coastline. "I can''t wait to fight the bane of the Elbas family," Elder Laura announced before retreating toward her border. Noah saw the woman leaving and decided to use his consciousness to send her a mental message. "If you see darkness, run." He didn''t care that the other two could see that action. The Hive and the Council were allies. It was only normal to exchange a few private words between cultivators from those organizations. Elder Laura stopped her tracks when the mental message reached her consciousness, and she glanced at Noah wearing an interested face. Yet, some fear had appeared in her eyes. Second Prince snorted before retreating toward his border too, and Noah decided to imitate him to begin that battle. King Elbas waited for everyone to be ready to throw a fireball that exploded mid-air, releasing small flames that dispersed in the environment. That was the signal decided previously by the four organizations. The battle had officially begun now, and Noah soon saw how feared he was by all three experts. The fire dispersed only to reveal Elder Laura, True Speed, and Second Prince flying toward him at full speed. ''Are they for real?'' Noah thought as he released dark matter to create Snore next to him. Elder Laura wielded an inscribed black arrow and loaded three water arrows as she flew toward Noah. Yellow sparks crackled on True Speed''s legs, and the fur on his feet stood up when he activated his innate ability. Small shockwaves spread from under him, and his figure became hard to see as he accelerated. Second Prince had quickly summoned his fiery snakes by giving fire to one of his silver hair. He and the beasts flew toward Noah in what appeared to be a planned joint attack against the strongest among them. The three powerhouses had instantly chosen to join their forces to defeat Noah! Their intense auras filled the environment and cracked the sky at their passage, but Noah couldn''t feel any danger at that sight. ''My sensed must have dulled after fighting for so long against a divine will,'' Noah thought as he lifted his arm and arched his fingers as if they were claws. Noah wasn''t underestimating his opponents, but he had fought Sword Saint for years by then. He knew the terror that divine existences could generate, so he didn''t feel anything when against powerhouses. Attacks eventually shot in his direction. Elder Laura fired her water arrows, and Second Prince commanded the snakes around him to release a torrent of flames. True Speed kicked the air in front of him, and a series of quick lightning bolts flew in the sky. The attacks converged in Noah''s position, but he didn''t perform any evasive maneuver. He only lowered his arm with a quick movement, and five black cracks formed as his fingers dug in the fabric of the sky. The three powerhouses didn''t even sense the attack coming. Only Second Prince understood something at the last instant and activated a defensive item. A large golden shield appeared in front of the trio, who could only watch five thick slashes appearing in the sky and cutting their attacks. The slashes flew through their abilities before landing on the golden shield. The structure of the defensive item began to tremble to no end at that point, and its light eventually dispersed as cracks appeared on its surface. Second Prince threw away one talisman from his space-ring after Noah destroyed the spell. He didn''t even try to hide his surprise at the sight of Noah''s prowess. That shield was enough to endure a few spells launched by cultivators close to the last part of the gaseous stage. It was quite strong as a defensive item, but Noah had pierced it with a single attack. Moreover, Noah''s slashes had crossed attacks before landing on the shield. That had dispersed some of their power, but they still managed to pierce Second Prince''s defensive item. The three powerhouses calmly realized that Noah''s battle prowess had already gone past ordinary gaseous stage cultivators. Chapter 1107: 1107. One-sided The four leaders observing the battle revealed surprised expressions seeing Noah''s attack. He didn''t use his Demonic Sword, and he had barely depleted any "Breath". However, the slashes that had come out of his fingers carried the power of spells launched by experienced powerhouses! That should be impossible for a cultivator that didn''t even have a rank 6 dantian. The leaders could understand that Noah''s sheer power allowed him to fight powerhouses, but they didn''t expect him to have such mastery with laws already. ''Creation is lacking,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the effects of his attack. The most significant difference between ordinary and experienced powerhouses was in how intensely they could express their individuality. In the seventh rank, their individuality would be intense enough to turn into a unique law. That was the evolution of a cultivator from the heroic to the divine ranks. Noah had stepped on that path by now. Even if his dantian shouldn''t allow him to carry laws as well as other powerhouses, he already wielded the intensity proper of an experienced being. It was as if Noah had already strived to become a law without waiting for his dantian to advance. The shock of the leaders came from the fact that such an event wasn''t possible in theory. "His mind is making up for it," King Elbas explained after he analyzed the issue. The Royal was surprised too. He could understand that Noah used his body to compensate for his weaker centers of power, but he had never heard of a mind doing the same for the laws of the dantian. The contenders couldn''t see the reactions of the leaders nor hear King Elbas'' explanation. Still, they realized that Noah was far stronger than he appeared. Second Prince, Elder Laura, and True Speed didn''t plan to cooperate beforehand. They had charged at Noah together because they had no confidence in doing that on their own. Once Noah was out, they could decide who was the strongest among them. The power that Noah had revealed forced them to change their approach. They couldn''t only launch spells at the same time to defeat him. They had to work together and create a proper strategy. Noah didn''t give them any time to regroup. A human-shaped crack replaced his figure, and a series of tattoos appeared on Second Prince''s forearm when he neared the group. Second Prince quickly activated talisman to create another golden shield, but the ability immediately fell apart since Noah had arrived above them and had launched five more slashes already. Snore quickly reformed and spewed its elemental attacks. Fire, ice, and lightning bolts came out of its mouth and horns and shot toward the trio running for their lives. Noah had yet to improve Snore. He had decided to wait for his dark matter to evolve before fusing all the elements with its structure. Noah had initially planned to wait until he obtained all the elements, but he had eventually set a date for its upgrade since he had no confidence in copying the light element. Second Prince vanished in a sea of flames and reformed at some distance from Noah. Five drops of blood came out of his palm, and a massive snake formed once they took fire. A giant humanoid figure made of water surrounded Elder Laura and protected her from the elemental attacks. Her defensive spell fell apart under that offensive, but she managed to endure the blow and load five arrows in her inscribed bow. Yellow sparks covered True Speed''s legs, and the expert disappeared from his spot. Small crackling areas formed on his path as he sprinted toward his opponent. It had been a long time since a cultivator had tried to engage Noah in a melee battle. Only magical beasts and hybrids could match his physical strength in the end. However, True Speed sprinted toward him without any fear. His movement technique resembled Noah''s in some aspects, but he lacked the physical strength necessary to threaten him. The power of True Speed''s attack came from the yellow lightning bolts gathering on his legs. His acceleration was a consequence of the energy released during their motion. Noah sensed True Speed coming. He could dodge him or even launch an attack in his direction. Yet, he chose to face him with his bare body to feel how advanced the Shandal Empire''s fusions were. True Speed delivered a powerful kick aimed at Noah''s head only to meet his palm. Noah blocked the attack, but his opponent released the amassed lightning bolts at that point. An intense series of lightning bolts entered Noah''s palm and ran through his insides. Noah''s arm trembled under the intensity of that blow, but his dark star blocked most of that energy. ''It''s not bad,'' Noah thought as he clenched his hand. True Speed held back a painful cry as five long wounds appeared on his right leg. Noah''s fingers had even stabbed his ankle, and they continued to dig his tissues to rip his wolf foot apart. His other leg shot as he tried to hit Noah again. Still, Noah blocked the attack with his free forearm and endured the lightning bolts released in the impact. Noah had to admit that the Empire had done a great job with the fusion. True Speed''s lower body carried the physical strength of a hybrid and its innate ability. Yet, that wasn''t enough with Noah. His body was simply on another level, and his higher energy protected his insides. Snore launched its elemental attacks against the trapped cultivator while Noah continued to endure the lightning bolts entering his body. He didn''t manage to chop the limb in one slash, but he would do it with the second. Second Prince and Elder Laura''s attacks disrupted his plans. The Elder shot the five arrows that turned into dragons mid-air, and the Royal''s snake spewed crimson flames that left large cracks on the sky. True Speed had activated a defensive item before Snore''s attacks landed on his body. Thick sparks had surrounded his body and blocked the various elemental blows that tried to kill him on the spot. Noah analyzed the scene and threw True Speed toward the dragons before creating a human-shaped crack with his sprint. He reappeared behind Elder Laura in an instant with fingers arched to slash at her back. Another water giant surrounded her figure, but Noah''s slashes pierced it and left five deep wounds on her back. Her defenses weren''t enough to block his attacks at such close range. Elder Laura endured the pain to control the dragons and avoid True Speed. Meanwhile, Second Prince reappeared on Noah''s side, followed by his massive snake and ready to launch another attack. A starry sky suddenly covered the area. Noah had launched his flames to damage his opponent and sprint without being seen. The trio retreated in fear as they used their spells to block the black flames, but a series of thick slashes came from the fire and aimed for the three of them. The lights of more defensive items shone in the sky as the cultivators blocked the slashes. Second Prince''s sensors lit up only to see his snake falling apart and Noah''s figure becoming visible among the flames. Another series of slashes shot out at that point. The battle was utterly one-sided. Noah had cornered them with only his bare hands. Of course, his fingers were far more than strong weapons. Noah could perform slashes that surpassed his previous might with them due to his intense individuality. He wasn''t a brute anymore. There were precise techniques hidden behind his simple movements. The trio was out of option. Only a few exchanges had been enough to prove Noah''s superiority, even if the three of them never had any doubt about that. The only problem was that they couldn''t compete with Noah even as three, and he had yet to show his real power. It was with a tinge of unwillingness that the cultivators began to announce their defeats. "I surrender," Elder Laura said, and True Speed didn''t hesitate to imitate her. "I surrender too." Noah felt surprised by that sudden surrender and glanced at Second Prince with a curious expression. Still, the Royal followed the other cultivators'' example. "I surrender, " The Royal said, and the first battle of the tournament ended. Chapter 1108: 1108. Second Battle ''Where are the tricky defensive methods?'' Noah thought as annoyance built inside him. ''Where are their secret techniques? Where are their schemes to corner me?'' Noah couldn''t believe that his battle had been so short. He had barely exchanged a few blows that the fight was already over. Elder Laura and True Speed heaved a sigh of relief. Their injuries were deep but not too severe. One healing session would be enough to fix them. Instead, Second Prince stared at him while wearing a mocking smile. At that point, it became clear that he had never wanted to fight him seriously. His priority was to get him out of the tournament as fast as possible. Noah felt slightly deceived. That outcome had left a bitter feeling in his mouth. He didn''t expect to seize rank 6 dantians easily, but he wished to have a chance at least! ''I can''t say that they made the wrong call,'' Noah thought as he accepted that result. Except for Second Prince, he didn''t believe that the others had a chance to survive if he fought seriously. Second Prince and the others left to treat their injuries and prepare for the next battles. They could fight again, so that loss didn''t affect them in the slightest. They considered that outcome a victory since Noah didn''t manage to inflict any lasting wound. They would be able to express their full power in the next fights. Noah had to retreat even if he felt disappointed. There was still the mission at the center of the plane, so he had to prepare accordingly. Thirty-seven was handling the creation of a space-ring capable of containing living beings, and Noah didn''t have any project at hand. Still, he could investigate matters that rarely affected the surface. As an expert in the magical beasts'' field, Noah knew virtually any species in his Mortal Lands. His knowledge also covered a big chunk of the extinct and ancient creatures after his adventure in the hidden world. However, the sea of magma was mysterious. Its fauna had remained the same for eras, but that didn''t help the experts since only a few cultivators had explored its depths. Noah didn''t find anything specific even when he researched and purchased records concerning that topic. He knew that there were magical beasts down there, but he couldn''t find out which species. King Elbas didn''t reveal much about his journey, and Noah knew that he would be vague even if he tried to investigate the matter. It was up to him to gather as much information as possible. Noah didn''t want to learn about the fauna down there because he feared those ancient species. He felt uneasy leaving that knowledge only to King Elbas. Yet, he didn''t find anything relevant or that had a bit of reliability. That made sense due to the peculiar environment of the sea of magma, but it still troubled Noah. King Elbas would be in complete control of the mission. The experts with him would be blind unless he decided to reveal something. ''I guess thick skin and fire-related abilities,'' Noah thought as he gave up on the matter. He could guess some of the magical beasts'' characteristics in the sea of magma, but that didn''t help him too much. It would be up to him and his survival instinct once the mission started. The next group battle started two months after the first one. That fight featured Dreaming Demon, Elder Regina, First Princess, and True Speed again. The Shandal Empire only had one newly advanced powerhouse, so True Speed had to fight in every group battle. That put a lot of pressure on him since his victory could bring the Empire back to the new continent. Yet, he had to accept his limits and go all-out only in battles that he could win. "I surrender, " True Speed announced as soon as the second group battle began, and his three opponents couldn''t help but be surprised about that. The audience saw the matter differently. Elder Regina, Dreaming Demon, and First Princess were among the best new powerhouses in the world. Noah and Second Prince were exceptions since they lived in the realm of the monsters, but those three women were only a few steps behind them. True Speed''s surrender forced the trio to go all-out from the beginning of the battle. The fight unfolded far differently than the first one, and the audience could see how strong those new assets were. Dreaming Demon expanded her consciousness as soon as the fight began, but her opponents quickly activated countermeasures to her individuality. Elder Regina summoned a human-shaped puppet that absorbed her opponent''s mental waves and left her an area untouched by her influence. First Princess didn''t use any spell, but she relied on a similar method to keep Dreaming Demon''s threatening mind away from her. She threw a dark orb that floated above her head and absorbed the mental waves flying in her direction. Dreaming Demon''s opponents had studied her power thoroughly. She had managed to block powerhouses while she was still a rank 5 cultivator in the end. Her achievements made her worthy of in-depth analysis. Still, that wasn''t enough to stop her offensive. The air affected by her consciousness bent and amassed to form a series of human-like shapes that shot toward her opponents. The wind-shapes carried her mental waves and spread them wherever they went. More puppets appeared as they tainted other parts of the battlefield. It took only a few seconds for an army to form and surround the two women. A wild fire surrounded First Princess'' figure and fended off Dreaming Demon''s puppets. Yet, her flames slowly started to bend to the Demon''s will as the wind-shapes spread her influence. It didn''t take much before First Princess felt forced to rely on another inscribed item. A cylindric object flew among the puppets'' army and exploded in a white radiance that removed the Demon''s influence from the air. Noah was watching the battle. He recognized that inscribed item. It was similar to the flare used by the rebels to shut down the defensive formations in the other world. ''They recovered that study,'' Noah thought as the battle raged in front of his eyes. Elder Regina had summoned an army of puppet-like beasts to fight against the enemy''s creations, but she was slowly losing ground. Dreaming Demon''s influence had become too thick around the Elder, and the creatures crumbled without detonating as her will invaded their fabric. Elder Regina appeared unable to do anything against her offensive. First Princess'' next actions surprised the audience. She had just freed herself of the Demon''s blockage, but she didn''t counterattack. Instead, she launched a fiery snake in Elder Regina''s direction. The powerhouse of the Council was struggling already. The arrival of the snake forced her to rely on a defensive item to avoid deadly injuries. A talisman came out of her space-ring and covered her in a thick rocky armor. Dreaming Demon didn''t understand the reasons behind First Princess'' actions, but she didn''t waste the chance that she had created. The intensity of her influence in the environment suddenly spiked, and her mental waves seeped in Elder Regina''s armor to destroy its superficial layers. Then, the flames arrived and crushed what remained of her defensive method. Elder Regina could only give up on the fight when she saw that the army of wind-puppets shot toward her now that she was defenseless. Once Elder Regina left the battlefield, Dreaming Demon and First Princess went all-out against each other. They didn''t exchange any word nor hesitated in unleashing everything they had at their opponent. The sky became a mess. Dreaming Demon''s mind continued to spread until it First Princess used her white explosions to get rid of her influence and counterattack. The two of them didn''t manage to land a single direct blow on each other. First Princess'' items saved her every time, and Dreaming Demon took control of the flames whenever they became too close. To the audience''s surprise, the two women fought until both their centers of power had exhausted their reserves of energy. That was a clear tie, and the judges above them agreed with that outcome. As for the territory gambled in the group battle, King Elbas assigned it to the Hive since Dreaming Demon''s prowess didn''t come from inscribed items. Chapter 1109: 1109. Third battle The second battle ended with another victory of the Hive, but both Dreaming Demon and First Princess earned the right to join King Elbas'' mission. The Royals'' leader didn''t care about the territories. The tournament''s sole purpose was to test the new powerhouses'' prowess, and both women had succeeded in meeting his standards. The third group battle started a few months after the last one. Flying Demon, Elder Regina, Second Prince, and True Speed gathered on the battlefield and began to fight without many foreplays. The only exciting exchange of words happened between Second Prince and Flying Demon. The Royal had stared at the Demon for so long that he ultimately questioned him about that. "Do you like me or what?" Flying Demon asked in a mocking tone, but that didn''t affect Second Prince''s smile, who replied honestly. "I can''t wait to see the individuality of a god." The fact that Flying Demon had inherited Shandal''s individuality wasn''t a secret. He didn''t disclose the matter to anyone. Still, every expert of the world had paid a great deal of attention to the God of the Empire. They couldn''t possibly fail to recognize such a similar individuality, and it was enough for one force to notice that for everyone in the world to learn about it. Flying Demon didn''t care about Second Prince''s words, and the contenders quickly returned to their borders to start the battle. True Speed tried to fight at that time, but the three powerhouses ganged on him to kick him out of the battle. No one wanted to see the Shandal Empire on the new continent again, so he was the natural enemy of all three organizations. Second Prince had to deal with both Flying Demon and Elder Regina once True Speed conceded. The two experts were allies, and they both knew that their opponent was the strongest among King Elbas'' underlings. Elder Regina surrounded the Prince with an army of earth-puppets. Magical beasts of various kinds charged through the fiery walls protecting him and detonated once they were about to fall apart. Flying Demon''s white flowers grew among the flames and spread ice among them. His individuality even stopped their flickering before frost covered them. The Royal relied on his blood to fuel spells capable of destroying both ice and puppets. His figure often exploded into a sea of flames, and fiery snakes always covered his body to protect him. The fiery creatures spewed dense flames too. The area occupied by Second Prince was nothing more than a massive fire that took different shapes depending on his needs. The Royal didn''t use any inscribed item to match his opponents'' offensive. His dense flames were enough to melt the ice and keep the puppets at bay. That spoke for his prowess, but Elder Regina and Flying Demon didn''t care about proving themselves better than him. Kicking him out of the group battle was their main goal. Second Prince fought bravely. His flames used ten drops of his blood as fuel at some point and transformed into a nine-headed hydra that occupied half of the battlefield. That spell was massive, and the scorching aura radiated by its flames was enough to melt any of Flying Demon''s attempts to freeze it. The intensity of its pressure fended off Elder Regina''s puppets too. The allied powerhouses found themselves cornered at the borders of the battlefield. No rule stated that they couldn''t cross them, but that didn''t help them solve the situation. Flying Demon and Elder Regina exchanged an understanding glance as they dodged the pillars of flames launched by the hydra. They would go all-out together. Flying Demon''s aura surged, and his consciousness covered the entire region, engulfing the hydra in his individuality. Countless flowers grew in the sky, but they didn''t spread any ice. Instead, they exploded to create a storm of ice-shards that melted before they could reach Second Prince, who was at the center of the massive beast. The spell seemed to be over, but more flowers suddenly grew from inside the hydra and detonated before the flames could melt them. Second Prince generated a sea of flames inside the dense fire and melted the new attack. However, his focus had wavered for a second, and a flower grew on his neck due to that distraction. Ice quickly spread from the flower. Half of Second Prince''s torso had turned frozen by the time Second Prince took care of the storm of ice-shards. The ice didn''t only stop the functioning of his tissues. It influenced his very existence, freezing it in time due to the laws contained in Flying Demon''s individuality. Elder Regina didn''t fail to exploit that chance. Flying Demon''s attack had rendered the hydra motionless, so she could send an army of puppets through its flames without losing too many of them. The puppets eventually detonated right before Second Prince regained control of his body, and the hydra dispersed in the explosion. Trails of fire came out of the gray cloud that had formed after that clash. They converged higher in the sky to reform Second Prince, who appeared to had suffered some slight injury. Part of his skin carried scarred spots due to the forceful removal of the ice. The most significant wound was a red mark on his neck that exposed his skin''s lower layers. King Elbas appeared in the middle of the battlefield at that point, forcing the three powerhouses to stop their offensive. The leaders in the sky didn''t know what he was up to, but they descended to make sure that their underlings were safe. "The three of you are worthy of joining my journey," King Elbas announced. "This land will go to the Hive." His last line confused Elder Regina. She felt that King Elbas didn''t give her a chance to prove herself against Flying Demon. However, right before she could give voice to her complaint, she saw that a white flower had appeared on the back of her right foot. "You bastard," Elder Regina said as she shot a hateful stare toward Flying Demon, but the latter spread his arms to express his helplessness in the matter. He was a demon. He had to put the Hive''s best interests before any alliance or pact. Their cooperation had given him a chance to take his ally by surprise, so he had seized it. The third group battle ended with the Hive still undefeated. That didn''t increase its domain since the won territories had previously belonged to it already. Still, the prowess showed by its powerhouses demonstrated to the world that the Hive had earned its spot among the strongest organizations. Its current position didn''t come from the Copying Technique alone. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana held a long meeting after Flying Demon''s actions, but the two leaders eventually let go of the matter. The two decided that they would think about their domains after the battles ended. The fourth group battle featured Elder Julia, Elder Laura, First Prince, and True Speed again. Elder Julia and First Prince were on another league compared to the other two powerhouses. True Speed was the first to surrender since he found the three opponents ganging on him again, but Elder Laura suffered from a similar fate. Elder Julia and Elder Laura were fighting against First Prince as everyone expected them to do. Yet, the Royal didn''t mind relying on inscribed items in his battle. While a torrent of wind slashes and water arrows destroyed his flames, First Prince activated a golden rune that made him reappear above Elder Laura. That was an instant teleport. Even matrices wouldn''t be able to be so quick in their effects. Elder Laura''s last line of defense activated on its own when she saw a fiery snake slamming on her figure and pushing her toward the ground. A broken water giant became visible on the ground after the cloud created in the clash dispersed. Elder Laura was inside it, but a large chunk of her waist had disappeared after the attack. Her dantian was safe, but she felt the need to concede anyway. She preferred to treat her injuries now to express her full power in the next battle. Chapter 1110: 1110. Fourth battle Elder Julia and First Prince remained alone on the battlefield. The two of them stared at each other for a while before resuming their offensive. First Prince knew about his opponent''s individuality. Elder Julia shared similar features with Dreaming Demon, but her influence affected a different aspect of the world. Dreaming Demon forced her will in the matter. She affected the laws of both world and living beings without caring for their structure. Elder Julia''s focused on her aura instead. She could make it invisible to the enemy''s mind and tricky to deal with. Also, she preferred to use simple attacks rather than complex constructs. Her individuality wasn''t as broad as Dreaming Demon''s, but that allowed her to gain power faster. Her more straightforward path was one reason she had advanced to the sixth rank before the Demon. First Prince had a hard time keeping track of Elder Julia''s offensive. She didn''t rely on schemes or plans. It was in her nature to pair an imponent display of power to insidious slashes. Elder Julia hesitated to face the Royal too. The fact that he had relied on inscribed items made the situation far more complicated than she expected. First Prince was by no means weak. He was weaker than Second Prince, but he was still more potent of many new powerhouses. Elder Julia was the same, but she lacked such powerful inscribed items. She didn''t even go to Shandal''s separate dimension, so she lacked a divine weapon that could bring her prowess to the next level. First Prince and Elder Julia''s levels were similar, but the inscribed items were a vital variable that she couldn''t ignore nor overcome with her methods. The Royal summoned a series of fiery snakes once he decided that it was time to resume the battle. Elder Julia answered with a sea of wind slashes that clashed with the flames spewed by the creatures. Many of the slashes crumbled as the flames engulfed them and flew toward Elder Julia. However, a dangerous sensation suddenly surged inside First Prince''s mind and forced him to explode into a sea of flames. Two massive slashes divided his array of fiery snakes into four parts. They created a cross-like fissure in the sky that absorbed the flames gathered in the environment. Only a few fiery trails escaped the void''s suction force, and they condensed at some distance in the sky to reform First Prince''s body. First Prince didn''t have any time to relax since a series of wind-spears materialized around him and converged in his position. The Royal had to explode into a sea of flames again to dodge that attack, but something similar happened once he reappeared. Elder Julia wasn''t giving her opponent any time to breathe. Her consciousness covered the sky, allowing her to cast precise spells that shot toward First Prince as soon as he reappeared. Moreover, she used her hiding skills often. Many of her tricky attacks arrived after the Royal blocked the flashy ones. First Prince had to deal with a myriad of both visible and invisible wind-weapons. Countless slashes often filled his vision, and the Elder always forced him to rely on the sea of flames to escape her offensive. Elder Julia couldn''t match First Prince''s inscribed items. So, she wouldn''t give him time to use them! The Royal never suffered an injury during those oppressive exchanges, but his energy reserves depleted at high speed to dodge the relentless offensive. The visible attacks weren''t a problem, but he couldn''t cast the most suitable spells for the invisible ones since his opponent always managed to catch him by surprise. His consumption of "Breath" and mental energy would be far lower if he could identify the type of attack in time. Still, Elder Julia''s individuality made that impossible. Determination appeared on First Prince''s eyes as that situation continued for an entire hour. He would lose if he didn''t do anything to change the trend of the battle, but he didn''t have any safe option at hand. Golden runes lit up on his skin once her reformed in the sky. Slashes, swords, arrows, and spears of various shapes appeared around him and converged in his position, but he didn''t rely on his sea of flames at that time. First Prince jumped toward the side with the least number of wind-weapons and summoned a series of snakes to endure the blow. The blades and slashes cut his defenses and dug in his muscles, but he didn''t reveal any fear at those wounds. The blood that came out of his injuries took fire before the other weapons could reach him. Dense flames went out of his body and formed the shape of a gigantic eight-armed titan that swung its limbs around him. Elder Julia saw her spells vanish under the titan''s rage, but her problems didn''t end there. Every time the fiery creature swung its arms, massive fireballs would fly out of them and destroy everything in their path. Gales made of sharp slashes clashed with the fireballs aiming for her, but Elder Julia had to perform evasive maneuvers to dodge those chaotic attacks nonetheless. The wind slashes weren''t dense enough to stop the fireballs. They could only slow them down and give Elder Julia time to dodge the offensive. Golden runes shone in a spot behind her while she retreated. The eight-armed titan disappeared from its previous location and reformed behind Elder Julia, taking her by surprise. The titan clasped its hands on her figure, and the audience held their breath when they saw that nothing came out of the fire. It was as if Elder Julia had died on the spot. Nevertheless, the most experienced cultivators among the spectators noticed how no ashes came out when the titan opened its hands. First Prince looked around him as golden runes lit up on his skin again. He was ready to launch another instant teleportation as soon as he found his opponent. Elder Julia reappeared in a corner of the battlefield. She seemed unharmed and with her robe still intact. Yet, her expression revealed how unhappy she was about that situation. Her battle prowess was enough to suppress First Prince, but the difference in inscribed items ultimately tilted the scales of the battle against her. Truth be told, First Prince had shown great resolve in charging toward the wind-slashes and weapons to escape from the negative trend where Elder Julia was forcing him to stay. The Royal had proven that he wasn''t only a spoiled cultivator who had managed to reach the sixth rank because of his Father''s backing. He had the determination to stand among powerhouses without any shame. "I surrender," Elder Julia said when she saw the golden light radiated by First Prince''s skin. She couldn''t handle those teleports. She had survived the first attack because she had created a copy of herself during the battle. Still, her cover was now gone. The region went to the Elbas family, but the Hive didn''t mind that outcome. First of all, King Elbas had recognized Elder Julia''s prowess and had agreed to bring her on the journey. Moreover, that land had initially belonged to the Council, so the Hive didn''t suffer any loss. Almost all the Hive''s new powerhouses had qualified themselves for the mission at the center of the plane. Only Skully remained among the forces in the sixth rank who had yet to earn King Elbas'' recognition. Yet, she didn''t want to return to the sea of magma. She preferred to remain on the surface and handle the hybrids rather than returning to the place that had kept her prisoner for more than one hundred thousand years. By the time the fourth group battle ended, the party for King Elbas'' mission already had a decent number of experts. Five came from the Hive, four from the Elbas family, two from the Council, and only one from the Shandal Empire. There were still battles to fight, but every organization learnt to recognize the best assets currently living among them. The twelve of them were elites, even among powerhouses. Chapter 1111: 1111. Fifth battle "It''s been a while since I last fought cultivators," Skully said when the contenders of the fifth group battle gathered in the sky. She had regained her eyes in those years, and they shone with a yellow radiance. All the other powerhouses of the Hive had qualified for the mission at the center of the plane, so they couldn''t fight anymore. The terms of the tournament saw some leniency for the organizations in that situation, but King Elbas viewed the lack of other assets as a sign that they shouldn''t have too many territories. Of course, that went against the Hive and the Council, but they couldn''t stop King Elbas. Giving a few territories back to the Royals was better than wasting resources and time delaying the inevitable. Skully opponents were Elder Laura, True Speed, and Third Prince. The tenor of their battle was far less intense compared to the others, but the four of them put up a fantastic spectacle nonetheless. Having a rank 6 Kesier Ape fighting in the open made it difficult for many weaker cultivators to watch that battle. The runes on Skully''s back forced the audience to resort to special methods to watch the fight. Moreover, seeing that the Hive had such a peculiar powerhouse among its ranks spoke for its variety. The world''s forces knew that they were behind the Hive when it came to creating a hybrid army, and they could witness its real power in that fight. Elder Laura''s complexion was a bit pale, but her past injuries didn''t seem to affect her battle prowess. She and Skully ganged up on Third Prince before even minding the opponent from the Shandal Empire. The two powerhouses had decided to kick the Royal out of the battle to eliminate the trickiest threat. Third Prince''s inscribed items scared them, and they didn''t want to give any territory to the Elbas family. True Speed could only go with the flow. It felt refreshing for him to express some of his power, but he remained wary of his temporary allies since he knew how the situation would unfold afterward. Third Prince''s battle style was reckless. He couldn''t match the three opponents ganging on him with his power, so he relied on many defensive and disposable items to block the attacks coming at him. Then, he used his spells to attack. The items kept him safe, so he could focus everything he had on launching a mad offensive toward his opponents. Elder Laura''s arrows transformed mid-air and took the shape of huge magical beasts that fought against any fireball or fiery pillars that came in her direction. True Speed dodged the enemy attacks easily and kicked the air to launch violent lightning bolts that crashed on the Royal''s defenses. Skully had it a bit worse. Noah didn''t make her a dantian, and he had yet to even think about that project. She could only rely on the natives'' inscription method to launch spells, but their power was quite dull. However, her defenses were solid. Skully''s sea of consciousness had improved a lot since her return to the surface. Her mind was among the strongest in the Hive, and she could even pair her mental waves with the Kesier species'' innate ability. The flames that came in her direction fell apart before they could touch her fur. Skully then condensed them with her consciousness and launched them back at her opponent. Third Prince initially managed to hold his ground against the three of them, but his stash of inscribed items depleted at high speed due to that relentless offensive. It only took him an hour to understand that he wouldn''t find a way out of that situation no matter how many defenses he used. It was better to invest his resources in easier battles. The focus of the allied powerhouses moved on True Speed after Third Prince conceded. The expert of the Shandal Empire had to deal with their joint offensive, but he put up a fight at that time. Elder Laura''s arrows struggled to catch True Speed. He was too fast, and his movement technique virtually had no limitations in terms of distance. True Speed didn''t have limits on his stamina either. His lower body had fused with a magical beast, so it carried all the hybrids'' fantastic properties. He could sprint for days without even sweating. He could even launch an endless number of lightning bolts as long as he had "Breath". The audience could finally see that he wasn''t weak at all. Yet, Skully''s innate ability countered his high mobility. Thoughts were faster than him, and a Kesier Ape founded its attacks on them. True Speed continued to dodge the water creatures coming in his direction when he hit an invisible wall. The air around him had condensed so much that it had created a proper cage. Countless lightning bolts exploded inside the invisible cage as True Speed tried to free himself, but even his element''s piercing features weren''t enough to penetrate the condensed air. That was quite normal. Skully was also a hybrid, so the two innate abilities were almost on the same level. True Speed''s skills were a bit weaker only due to the lower level of his mental sphere. True Speed decided to reveal some of his power when he saw a series of bright blue dragons coming in his direction. Elder Laura had exploited the chance created by Skully and had attacked her opponent instantly. The sky turned yellow as True Speed gathered all the sparks amassed in his fur to execute one of his strongest attacks. Lightning bolts crackled on his whole body as he crouched inside the cage. Noah was the only one able to understand what True Speed was doing. "Breath" flowed above the expert''s skin as he sprinted forward and turned his body into a massive lightning bolt. That move was similar to Noah''s techniques. It fused a spell with a martial art to bring the best qualities of a hybrid body out! The lightning bolt pierced the condensed air of the cage and flew toward Elder Laura. True Speed didn''t want to attack Skully since her physical strength was similar to his. Elder Laura threw everything she had at the incoming yellow flash. Massive water creatures appeared in front of her and created a tight defense. ''It will fail,'' Noah thought when he saw the defensive wall. Cultivators never expected how strong the techniques of a hybrid could be. Simple spells weren''t enough to stop it. As Noah had predicted, the giant lightning bolt pierced the dragon-like creatures that had appeared in Elder Laura''s protection. True Speed''s figure reappeared with feet aiming at the Elder as the beasts exploded. The fact that he had become visible again meant that it had lost some speed to pierce the creatures. Skully could intervene in time to entangle her mental waves around True Speed and stop his charge once and for all. True Speed could only give up when he saw Elder Laura loading her bow while Skully''s mental waves restricted him. He had lost again, but no one would underestimate him anymore. Skully and Elder Laura bowed at each other at that point, and the former conceded to give that territory to the Council. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana had already decided on that matter beforehand. The fifth group battle came to an end, but King Elbas had yet another surprise to show. When he descended to announce the outcome, he assigned the territory to the Council, but he didn''t acknowledge Elder Laura''s prowess. In his opinion, the Elder was still too weak. She still needed a few centuries inside the sixth rank to learn how to use her power correctly. Chapter 1112: 1112. Sixth battle King Elbas'' decision angered the other leaders who held a long meeting that delayed the sixth group battle by a few months. The meeting''s outcome disappointed the alliance''s leaders since King Elbas didn''t want to acknowledge their complaints. It was his mission, so he didn''t want to bring anyone he didn''t find worthy. Chasing Demon could quickly get over the matter since it didn''t affect the Hive personally, but Great Elder Diana''s anger couldn''t fade so quickly. The mission at the center of the plane involved raw laws. They could improve any powerhouse that absorbed them. Refusing one of the Council''s experts was akin to putting a limit to her growth. Still, Great Elder Diana couldn''t do much about that situation. King Elbas had been clear about Elder Laura. She wasn''t ready in his opinion. The tournament eventually resumed, and Skully and True Speed rejoined the battlefield. Elder Paul filled the Council''s spot, and Second Princess took care of the Elbas family''s side. Elder Paul was the third and last new powerhouse of the Council. He was the youngest member of the higher-ups, and his youthful appearance proved that. He was short and quite slim. Long black hair fell on his shoulders, and his pair of blue eyes reflected their light on the world. His dark skin had many white marks due to the numerous scars that filled his body. His cultivation level appeared to be at the bottom of the sixth rank, but his battle style carried some peculiarity. As soon as the battle began, Elder Paul uncovered his right arm to show a beating mass that covered most of his limb. That pile of superfluous reddish tissues was uneven, and it didn''t resemble anything in nature. Noah''s eyes lit up at that sight. He could vaguely understand what that mass was, and he couldn''t help but feel interested in the studies behind its creation. The mass became redder as Elder Paul summoned a series of fiery lions that formed an offensive array in front of him. The flames that made the creatures reacted to that change of color and became denser. It was as if the mass was a new organ that interacted directly with Elder Paul''s spells. The denser flames also obtained some violent feature, making them quite similar to those of some magical beasts. Noah had no more doubts at that scene. The mass was an attempt to make a living weapon, even if the Council had pushed the study toward a different field. Thirty-seven and Noah''s living weapons used specific organs to replicate a creature''s innate abilities. Their modifications improved the skill and made it a useful tool for cultivators. Instead, Elder Paul''s living weapon appeared fused with his body. That wasn''t a proper hybridization. Instead, it resembled what Noah had done with his fourth center of power. The lions'' shape appeared unstable, but they charged at Second Princess without hesitation or falling apart. Skully supported Elder Paul with her mental waves, and True Speed joined them in their ganging on the Royal. Second Princess did the same as her brother. She relied on her inscribed items to handle the defenses while she went all-out with her spells. Her inscribed items appeared to be weaker and fewer in number. The lion''s flames often pierced her defenses and threatened to burn her only to crash on another protection. Skully''s mental waves managed to pierce her defenses too. They acted as an invisible force that created a path through the golden light and flames protecting the Royal. Both Elder Paul and True Speed exploited her efforts by sending spells whenever Skully opened a path. Second Princess ended up in a poor position relatively quickly, and a few injuries eventually appeared on her body. Determination surged in the Royal''s expression at some point. Losing in that way would make her the weakest among King Elbas'' underlings, and she wanted to avoid that outcome. Second Princess threw many talismans while the relentless offensive of her opponents continued. They activated attacks and defenses that gave her the time to prepare a stronger spell. The unstable lions crashed on a series of giant fiery snakes and didn''t manage to advance. True Speed''s lightning bolts slammed on tall walls that created many defensive layers between him and his opponent. Skully tried her best to create a path among the flames, but one of the talismans had similar effects to the white halo and made her lose connection with her mental waves. Second Princess used her fingers to create holes at the centers of her palms. The blood that flowed out of her injuries fused with her flames and transformed them into phoenix-like creatures. Her primary target was Elder Paul since he was the biggest threat. His flames were too threatening with the enhancement of his horrid additional organ. The Royal would win as long as she managed to defeat him. Elder Paul''s living weapon became redder as he generated a wave of violent flames that took the form of a tall roaring lion. The creature didn''t spit flames, but its fangs and claws resembled fiery swords when it bit and scratched at the phoenixes. Skully used her mental waves to hinder the movements of the phoenixes once her consciousness unfolded again. Second Princess'' attacks couldn''t hit the Elder with that focus. However, Second Princess continued to throw fireballs like a madman. The attacks transformed into phoenixes once they consumed her blood, and her complexion paled as she continued to pour more of it in her spells. True Speed couldn''t do much in that situation, and he didn''t want to go all-out before his other opponents turned on him. There wasn''t any attack coming at him, but he couldn''t pierce the thick flames that had appeared in the Royal''s defense. The expert of the Shandal Empire decided to wait for someone to concede since everyone was ignoring him. He preferred to let them waste their energies rather than helping in defeating one of them. The pressure on him was immense. His performance would decide if the Empire could return to the new continent, which was what every organization outside of it desired. The mission at the center of the plane was only a bonus to him. Ensuring a future for the Empire while it lacked its God was the best he could do for his organization. Such loyalty made him wait until Second Princess became exhausted and conceded before turning into a lightning bolt and charging at Skully. The rank 6 Ape had used most of her focus on protecting Elder Paul, but her consciousness was still around her. The sparks surrounding the expert''s body vanished right before he could reach Skully''s skin. True Speed kicked Skully anyway. His feet landed on her arm, and his claws pierced her skin when he curved his fingers. Another wave of lightning bolts gathered on his legs and entered Skully''s body through the claws still stabbed in her skin. That attack was hard to handle, and Skully could only concede since Elder Paul didn''t manage to help her sooner. Only Elder Paul and True Speed remained on the battlefield at that point. The army of lions shot toward Empire''s expert, but he dodged everything coming in his way. Elder Paul could only deploy defensive spells since True Speed launched lightning bolts whenever he stopped. His battle style imitated Great Elder Diana, but he had far less grace and control than her. The battle continued for a while until smoke started to come out of Elder Paul''s living weapon. That was the signal that it had reached its limits, which forced the expert of the Council to rely on normal unenhanced abilities. True Speed could finally make use of the superior qualities of his partial hybrid body. He launched an endless number of lightning bolts toward his opponent until the latter was out of energy. Elder Paul had to concede in front of the hybrid''s stamina. He had already fought for an entire day, using spells worthy of a powerhouse. He couldn''t keep going on anymore. True Speed could finally claim a victory, and King Elbas acknowledged his prowess. As for the Empire, it gained the old poisonous swamp on the eastern coast. Chapter 1113: 1113. End The Shandal Empire made its official return to the new continent after True Speed''s victory. The previous pacts sealed with the invaders became null, and King Elbas even helped remove some of the oaths that God''s Left Hand couldn''t handle independently. One region wasn''t much, but it saved the Empire from its dire condition. Now it could dispel the blue dome, keep its influence in the Papral nation, and build structures for the heroic cultivators on the new continent. That was a breakthrough for the Empire, and True Speed was a hero for his achievement. His perseverance, patience, and determination had allowed him to seize the right chance at the right moment. The alliance saw the gains seized during King Elbas'' journey vanish. Losing a few territories wasn''t a problem, but its influence on the new continent grew thin as its domains shrunk. The Hive and the Council couldn''t lose vital territories, but many of their plans suffered heavy delay now that the four organizations were on the new continent together again. There were still a few regions involved in the tournament, but King Elbas had already made his mind on the new powerhouses. He only had to review his evaluation once due to Elder Paul''s performance in the ninth battle. Skully and True Speed had continued to fight in every group battle since their organizations couldn''t deploy anyone else, and the Council had only deployed Elder Paul on its side. Instead, Second Princess and Third Prince alternated themselves in the fights. The situation in the battles was against them, but they tried their best to win nonetheless. Skully, True Speed, and Elder Paul would always gang up on the Royals before focusing on each other. The Elbas family was too dangerous right now, so they had silently decided to keep its expansion in check. The Hive and the Council always came out as winners of the next battles. True Speed didn''t manage to take his opponents by surprise anymore, so he lost due to the numerical disadvantage every time. Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana divided their territories according to their past domains and terms of their alliance, so their underlings didn''t fight between each other. That approach made it harder for them to gain King Elbas'' acknowledgment, but Skully didn''t care, and Elder Paul didn''t seem to meet his standards initially. However, his living weapon changed in the ninth battle. It didn''t have the horrid shape of a beating mass anymore. It had transformed into a tense sack-like membrane that covered his arm. Elder Paul''s flames turned into a scarlet liquid capable of scorching the sky when enhanced with the improved living weapon. They weren''t lava, but they resembled some of its features in their liquid form. The new flames burned the Royal''s fire and blocked True Speed''s lightning bolts. If it weren''t for Chasing Demon and Great Elder Diana''s agreement, Elder Paul would win every battle with his new weapon. The Council sent Elder Laura after King Elbas acknowledged Elder Paul. She did her best to gain as much experience as possible, but her efforts didn''t amount to anything. Elder Laura had already planned what she would do after the tournament was over. She had decided to undergo the procedure with the living weapon after seeing True Speed and Elder Paul. Losing the possibility to seize raw laws annoyed her. Still, she had to admit that King Elbas was right. Her prowess was inferior to the other powerhouses. Going into the mission at the center of the plane could cost her life. Seizing every opportunity to advance was the right approach to the cultivation journey, but she had to be alive to do that. The tournament eventually ended and left the political borders of the new continent almost unchanged. The only difference was in the few regions that had fallen under the Shandal Empire and the Elbas family. First Prince and True Speed''s victories had given one new territory to their organizations. They were even neighbors now that Empire shared the northern border with the Elbas family. The Council had theoretically lost more in the tournament, but its alliance with the Hive allowed it to retain most of its former power. That kept the two organizations as the overlords of the new continent. The chaos and excitement created for the tournament quickly dispersed as the battles ended. The fourteen for King Elbas'' mission gathered to settle the last agreements before departing toward their respective habitations. Both new and old assets had to prepare for the journey. Obtaining clothes and defensive items that could work well in the sea of magma was the least they could do before the mission. Noah returned to his regular training, but Thirty-seven gave him good news soon. It took the automaton only a few years to complete his assignment, and Noah didn''t hesitate to claim it. "Come here," Noah shouted as he floated among the pure darkness of Night''s underground area. "I''m not going inside a cage again!" Night shouted as it hid among the darkness that it had created. The Pterodactyl had yet to succeed on its task, but Noah guessed that it was close. He had sensed that as soon as he entered the underground area. There was life in that darkness. "You can come out whenever you want, " Noah said, "But the sea of magma is quite shining. I can''t let you swim freely there." "You want to cage me and prevent me from destroying the light!" Night replied. "Dismantle me already since you are at it." "Our journey will bring us at the center of the plane," Noah said with a teasing tone. "The core should have the most shining materials in the world. Are you sure you want to miss this chance to see one of your greatest enemies?" Silence fell in the underground area, but faint steps soon echoed in through the darkness. The edges of a Pterodactyl became visible, and Noah descended toward it to check its condition. Night''s new body carried most of its species'' features. Noah had replicated many of those unique creatures'' mysterious characteristics, but he had made it far smaller than the original. Night had the shape of a Pterodactyl now, but it was only two meters tall and four wide when it spread its wings. Noah had yet to make proper modifications, but the dark matter already improved its body by a lot. "Here," Noah said as he raised his hand toward the creature. Night could see three space-rings on his fingers, but one of them was dark-purple and didn''t block the Pterodactyl. The tip of Night''s head touched the dark-purple ring, and its figure slowly disappeared from the underground area. ''How is it inside?'' Noah asked through his mental connection with the creature. Night snorted a few times before returning to the outside world and answering. "It''s small, but it''s dark, at least. I can even see the outside while I''m there." Thirty-seven had ideated the new space-ring according to Noah''s requests. Since he knew how picky the Pterodactyl was, he had asked the automaton to make the insides without light. The automaton had been impeccable, and he had even explained to Noah how that inscribed item worked. The new space-ring didn''t work as a regular storage item. It wasn''t a mini separate dimension. Thirty-seven had to steal actual space from the outside world and compress it through an unusual formation that covered the metal. Night wouldn''t enter a different dimension. It would teleport to that different space inside the ring. The difference between the two procedures appeared slight with words, but Noah could understand how hard it had been for the automaton. The Demonic Sword flew inside the new ring and remained there. Night snorted again before following its example and sharing the separate space with the weapon. Noah was almost ready to leave, and he had already requested the materials that he needed to use before departing from the surface. Still, he had a few years, so he could avoid neglecting his training. Chapter 1114: 1114. Law A black slash flew inside Noah''s mental sphere. The ethereal space of that environment seemed to break under the violent power contained in the attack. Black trails followed the slash. They appeared to come out of it, but an expert eye would see that they formed right after the attack crossed that space. Sword Saint curved his finger to launch a similar slash, and the two attacks collided mid-air. Noah''s blow lost, but it held its ground for a few seconds before splitting into two parts. "I can''t help but regret showing you this path," Sword Saint said after his slash crossed Noah''s ethereal figure and dispersed before reaching the mental walls. Noah shot a questioning look at him as he analyzed the outcome of that clash. He could feel that he was getting close to perfecting that attack. Only a few more decades would be enough to complete it, according to his calculations. "Your graceless efforts to keep using blades for the centuries have made you suitable for my path," Sword Saint announced. "Your training would be already over if you had given up on the other aspects of your individuality." Noah shook his head at that remark. A more straightforward road made a cultivator grow faster, but it also gave less power. He would probably make the same decision even if his ambition allowed him to cut away part of himself. "I just need to train more," Noah said as he shrugged his shoulders. Noah''s status had changed a lot during his cultivation journey. In the past, he would have modified any part of himself to seize power faster. However, he wasn''t in a hurry now. He would still prioritize the projects that could increase his power in the short-term, but he wouldn''t waste his potential to quicken his training. ''Now that I think about it,'' Noah thought before telling Sword Saint about his mission at the center of the plane. The expert was a divine being in the end. He could know something about that environment even if he was only a will. "I see," Sword Saint said after Noah finished his story. "Hunting for the raw laws. Quite ambitious." Noah''s ethereal eyes widened at that answer. The fact that Sword Saint knew about the purpose of the mission surprised him, but there was a detail that left him confused. "What do you mean by hunting?" Noah asked. According to King Elbas and God''s Left Hand''s description, the raw laws didn''t sound like something he had to catch. "Did you expect them to come willingly in your arms?" Sword Saint answered with a tinge of sarcasm in his voice. "They come from the world to fuse with the world. Did you think Heaven and Earth made them for you?" Sword Saint''s words made sense. Noah had initially thought that the addiction and instabilities caused by the raw laws were enough as drawbacks to make them fair. King Elbas had even admitted to having fallen for their captivating capabilities. He wasn''t the type to reveal such a shameful story with the sole purpose of deceiving his future companions. God''s Left Hand was also there, and she had confirmed the Royal''s version of the story. Those two organizations couldn''t possibly have secrets deals because the Hive had already taken care of that part. Still, Noah was aware that there were many blind spots in his knowledge of that topic, and the same was true for God''s Left Hand. She had probably learnt about the raw laws from Shandal, but she might only know what they were. That would have given King Elbas the chance to hide crucial parts of his journey in the sea of magma. Noah didn''t believe that he had lied, but he was sure that he had kept many details a secret. Sword Saint lowered his hand and sighed seeing Noah''s going over his memories of the meeting. The expert inside his mind was nothing more than a will, but that didn''t prevent him from changing his approach when needed. "The world is a system," Sword Saint began to explain as a sphere of light formed in front of him. "Heaven and Earth can''t bother to refill all the laws and "Breath" lost because of the lifeforms in their planes, so they put a generator at their center." A darker sphere appeared at the center of the whiter one. Gray trails came out of it and dispersed in the outer layers. "I thought raw laws didn''t have any true meaning yet," Noah questioned Sword Saint on the matter. He would take any piece of the expert''s knowledge before the mission. "They don''t," Sword Saint answered as countless black dots appeared around the darker sphere, "But the rest of the world still has Heaven and Earth''s will. I don''t know the structure of this plane, but I''m sure that the path toward the raw laws won''t be easy." Noah nodded before sitting on his mental sea. He had already guessed that there would be magical beasts, but the expert''s words hinted that the world might be his enemy in that environment. "When are you leaving?" Sword Saint suddenly asked. Noah felt surprised about his interest in that matter, but he replied honestly anyway. "One year," Noah answered, "We have yet to decide the day." Sword Saint scratched his beard while murmuring inaudible words. He began to walk in circles, and his attention went on Noah from time to time. "You aren''t a bad heir," Sword Saint eventually said without stopping his tracks. He kept on walking in circles even as he talked to Noah. "You are wasting my expertise by making this training only one aspect of his power," Sword Saint continued, "But you aren''t bad at all." Noah watched the expert. He didn''t know what was happening, but something told him that he shouldn''t interrupt the hairy figure. "A dangerous journey right in the middle of our training," Sword Saint said to himself before releasing a snort and stopping his tracks to face Noah. "Well, you would ask for this if you knew what I have in mind anyway." Noah began to understand something, but he remained silent. He limited himself to stand up to be ready if the expert asked him to perform some slashes. "You have learnt countless sword arts before reaching my will," Sword Saint announced. "They cover almost every possible form created by swordsmen, but they are nothing more than variations." An ethereal sword formed in the will''s hand. Noah''s interest reached its peak during the explanation, and his dark star began to push his mental capabilities beyond their normal limits. Noah even activated the Divine Deduction technique. The insides of his mental sphere became brighter as the inscriptions on its walls consumed mental energy to bring his mind to a superior level. That was the same state in which he had created his movement technique. Noah couldn''t be more focused even if he relied on inscribed items or drugs. Sword Saint continued once he sensed that he had his heir''s full attention. "Once you break down every sword art to their simplest core, you will see that a sword can only execute two forms: A slash and a lunge." Sword Saint performed a simple slash and lunge as he spoke. No sharpness came out of those forms, but Noah could sense something profound in those smooth movements. He didn''t know why, but he felt sure that Sword Saint had focused on those forms for so long that they had become the main feature of his individuality. He felt that the expert had finally decided to show his law! Chapter 1115: 1115. Forms "The slash is the most basic sword attack," Sword Saint explained as he raised his ethereal blade above his head. "But it''s also the broadest. It can have an endless number of angles and forms, meaning that its potential is infinite." Sword Saint''s sword descended when he concluded his line, and Noah marveled at the spectacle that such a simple gesture originated. The sword multiplied during its descent. Countless ethereal blades appeared next to it and performed slashes alongside the expert''s movement. The blades didn''t have an end. Noah recognized some of the forms expressed during that attack, but there were others that he had never seen before. Still, he felt that Sword Saint''s attack covered every possible slash. The ethereal swords went upward, downward, diagonally, and at different lengths. One attack contained every slash in the world. Noah was too weak to sense it clearly, but he understood that Sword Saint''s form carried part of the infinite. Noah couldn''t imagine what that attack would cause inside his sea of consciousness if the expert decided to pour his sharpness in the attack. Luckily for him, Sword Saint slash didn''t radiate any power in the area. It was a simple demonstration meant to show part of his law. "You can say that the lunge is the opposite," Sword Saint said once he returned in his original position. "It''s the simplest sword attack. It only has one form, but there are countless variations in its speed and rhythm." Sword Saint half-crouched as he pulled his blade backward before concluding. "This makes its power limitless." The expert pushed his sword forward, and Noah sensed as if an unstoppable force was about to pierce his mental sphere and spread its influence in the outside world. Sword Saint didn''t add his power to the attack, but Noah feared for his life at the simple sight of that form. Once again, he found himself forced to accept that he couldn''t understand the true power of those blows. "Two attacks hide countless forms," Sword Saint said after he straightened his position. "Two attacks carry unlimited power." Noah''s full attention was on the expert. Both his attacks and words carried a true meaning that Noah failed to understand completely. Yet, he felt that something had entered inside of him after seeing them. It was as if his subconscious had registered something that his mind still couldn''t process. Sword Saint''s forms and words had already become part of him, but he couldn''t call upon those true meanings with his current power. "Is there a peak to this path?" Sword Saint questioned himself as he moved his gaze upward. "Is there a set limit? I still don''t know, but it''s my lifelong purpose to learn the truth about this." An intense sharpness came out of Sword Saint''s figure, but that aura didn''t interact with Noah''s mental sphere. It existed, but not in a form that could hurt Noah. "You can''t trail my path," Sword Saint said after moving his attention back at Noah. "But seeing my path might help you. I strive to fuse the two attacks into one, and this is the highest purity I can express." Sword Saint lowered his weapon before revealing a helpless smile and warning Noah. "I can''t hold back my aura when I perform this. Your next task is to spend the time before your mission meditating on what you saw in this training session." Noah nodded, and his mental energy surged from his mental sea to cover the walls of his sphere. Sword Saint then waited for Noah''s signal before proceeding with his technique. There was a flash of light followed by an intense surge of sharpness. Noah saw the technique, but the scenery of his mental sphere suddenly disappeared. He found himself in the outside world with a trembling mind. The Divine Deduction technique had deactivated autonomously, and the dark star put all its efforts into stopping the tremors that kept Noah unable to focus. The sharpness lingering inside his sea of consciousness kept the tremors going for an entire day. His situation was different from when he had exhausted his mental energy, which alarmed June and Night. Noah was in a constant state of pain. The walls of his mental sphere continued to shake, and he couldn''t make them stop no matter how hard he tried. His condition improved slowly. His mental sea absorbed small bits of that sharpness as that process continued, and that foreign feeling eventually vanished. Noah reopened his tired eyes only to see that he was on June''s lap. His lover had continued to cultivate, but she didn''t want to leave him alone during that struggle. Night had arrived too, and it flew around the tower''s roof as if it was making sure that no threat neared its Master. Still, it promptly flew back to its underground area once it sensed that Noah had awakened. "How come you always end up like this?" June asked as she opened her eyes when she sensed that Noah''s struggle was over. She knew how her lover behaved, but she wanted to tease him a bit before his departure. However, Noah wasn''t in the mood for sweet talks now. Noah stood up and kissed the confused June before moving toward the edge of the roof. He raised his hand to the sky, and the Demonic Sword reacted to his needs, coming out of his new space-ring to land in his palm. June couldn''t understand what was happening, and she felt even more confused when she saw Noah''s slashing with his blade without releasing any power. No black line came out of the Demonic Sword, and Noah didn''t even rely on his physical strength during that movement. He lowered the blade before half crouching and performing a lunge. That last attack was the same as the slash. Nothing came out of the Demonic Sword, and no aura spread in the environment. Noah behaved as if he was a commoner. His blows resembled those of mortals that had yet to gain access to their first Body-nourishing methods. In the end, Noah lowered his weapon and remained still. He didn''t move, and his eyes didn''t focus on sunset even if they looked in that direction. June could only sigh at that sight. She didn''t know what the Divine Cut''s aura had shown to Noah, but she was aware that nothing could startle him now that his workaholic attitude had taken posses of his mental faculties. Noah stared at a fixed spot in the distant sky as he tried to recall everything that he had witnessed in the last training session with Sword Saint. His mental energy was almost gone, but his sea of consciousness produced new one at high speed. Noah would recover completely in less than a day, but his focus was elsewhere. ''Why can''t I see it?'' Noah thought as he fell backward to lie on the roof. He had seen Sword Saint''s last attack, and he had memorized it too. That series of images was somewhere in his mind, and Noah could even gain access to it quickly. However, he couldn''t see anything even when the memory appeared in his vision. It was as if his mind couldn''t replicate those images due to its low level. ''That was the peak of a god,'' Noah repeated in his mind in disbelief. ''The current peak of Sword Saint''s path, a slash capable of fusing every sword art.'' His ambition soon filled every inch of his body, and determination replaced the disbelief. Sword Saint had decided to give him something important since the mission at the center of the plane would be difficult, and Noah intended to learn that lesson. Noah stood up and returned to the edges of the roof to repeat Sword Saint''s forms. He didn''t manage to recall the final slash, so he only performed slashes and lunges without releasing any energy. There was a true meaning behind those forms. Noah had seen it with his mind, and he could sense it inside him somewhere. Chapter 1116: 1116. Guardian The day of the departure eventually arrived. King Elbas had sent a letter to every party member two months before, and everyone had confirmed their presence. Chasing Demon, Elder Julia, Flying Demon, Dreaming Demon, and Noah set off from different regions in the Hive''s domain. They gathered in the designed spot above the sea between the two continents. King Elbas had opened a path when he resurfaced. He had reinforced it with some inscriptions since he had every intention of using it again. He had already decided that he would hunt the raw laws. The forces of the Council soon joined the group. Great Elder Diana, Elder Regina, and Elder Paul reached the same spot and exchanged polite greetings with the powerhouses of the Hive. Elder Regina still felt resentful against Flying Demon due to his actions in the group battles, but she had to respect him nonetheless. The Demon didn''t have any honor, but he had proven himself as a capable ally. The Shandal Empire joined the group too. The alliance''s forces had to suppress their annoyance in seeing God''s Left Hand and True Speed flying from the new continent. The two powerhouses performed polite bows to the other experts, but it was clear that they didn''t have a friendly relationship with them. The air among the group became tense due to the awkwardness created after their arrival. The group of powerhouses had to wait for an entire hour before the forces of the Elbas family decided to appear in the sky. King Elbas, First Prince, First Princess, and Second Prince flew toward them and performed simple bows. Almost all the powerhouses of the world had gathered there on that day. The fourteen of them would leave the surface soon, and they didn''t have any worry about their territories'' safety. Generally speaking, their departure would be the best chance for rebellious organizations and other forces to perform coups and claims for independence. However, the four forces had sealed a temporary peace. That allowed the assets remaining on the surface to focus on the threats outside of them. Moreover, the leaders didn''t fear the other rank 6 cultivators from other organizations who remained on the surface. Each of their regions had defenses capable of stalling powerhouses for decades, so no force had enough manpower to invade enemy lands. "Let''s go," King Elbas said a few minutes after all those chosen for that mission gave their consent to start the journey. The Royal didn''t make any grand speech or explanation about the environment under the seabed. It seemed that he wanted to keep his companions in the blind for now. The group descended toward the bottom of the sea without encountering any magical beasts. Every creature on their path ran away before they could even think about hunting them. That event didn''t surprise Noah. A creature''s instincts would rage madly if a rank 6 magical beast were too near it. There were fourteen powerhouses in the group, so every creature would see the area around them as the most dangerous place in the world. Noah didn''t speak at all during the descent. He had been silent since the various experts had gathered above the sea. His mind was far away. He was still thinking about Sword Saint''s last attack even if the mission had already started. He couldn''t help it. Any heroic cultivator would remain mesmerized at the sight of a god''s law. That wasn''t something that simple inhabitants of a lower world could witness. His focus on the environment didn''t waver because of his current mental state, but everyone could see that something important occupied his thoughts. King Elbas quickly found the tunnel he had reinforced in the past and led the group through it. Noah soon saw a familiar scarlet halo illuminating his face and trying to affect his mental sphere. The magma couldn''t do anything against his sea of consciousness. He had grown too much since his last visit there, and those natural hindrances couldn''t stop him from going deeper in the magma. No magical beast appeared as the group swam across the scorching current to shorten their path toward their destination. They couldn''t just go straight for the center of the plane. The destruction of the hidden world had spread many pieces of the black sky in the sea, and some giant boulders often fell from the seabed. There were walls and floors, even in the sea of magma. They didn''t hider the cultivators too much, but King Elbas made deviations anyway. Noah tried his best to remain focused even if Sword Saint''s attack and Night''s endless complaints took a lot of his attention. The Pterodactyl had begun to shout curses at the sea''s scarlet magma due to the light in the environment. Noah had to hear its plans to destroy the plane''s core. Some of them even involved the destruction of the entire world. Of course, an annoying Companion and a reoccurring thought couldn''t make him distracted. He only had to deplete more mental energy to do everything together. King Elbas remained silent for the entire journey, and the group could only follow him. The heat didn''t faze them since they had come prepared for that type of mission, but the complete lack of information became oppressing after an entire year spent swimming in that red environment. "How long until we reach our destination, Father?" First Prince asked at some point. It seemed that King Elbas didn''t even instruct his sons and daughter about that topic, so they were swimming blindly too. "Six years at this pace," King Elbas conveyed while spreading his consciousness so that everyone could hear his answer. "We can take less, but I want to use my old road, which is quite hard to find in this everchanging environment." The powerhouses didn''t feel discouraged. Instead, having an idea of the time required to reach the core allowed them to organize themselves. There were some experts capable of cultivating while moving. Others had unique martial arts to practice, and all of them had training sessions on hold due to the mission. The invitation had changed their priorities, but they knew what to expect now, so they could resume part of their abandoned projects. Every powerhouse in the mission had robes featuring powerful inscriptions that blocked the magma''s properties. They couldn''t stop the high temperatures completely, but they offered a good defense against that environment. The Royals were a bit better off in terms of defensive inscribed items. Second Prince carried an orb capable of releasing a cold halo that balanced the temperature of those illuminated by it. Noah was among the firsts to start cultivating while swimming through the red sea. He had gained a lot of experience with his cultivation method by then, so he could train by using the dark matter as a cover for the Demonic Sword. The six years went by in a blink. The group eventually reached a massive wall in one of the hottest areas so far. The structure was black, and metal made most of its fabric. Yet, that material was different from the black sky in the hidden world. Noah began to analyze it only to see traces of blood vessels and other organs inside that massive structure. They were impossible to miss due to their size, but Noah still struggled to believe that something so big could be alive. After all, the wall stretched for a few kilometers. Noah had never heard of a creature so big in his years as an expert in the magical beasts'' field! Nevertheless, a more in-depth analysis revealed how those body tissues didn''t belong to a single lifeform. The wall was similar to the Purple Corals under the Coral Archipelago. "Here," King Elbas pointed at a cavity inside the black wall and crossed it before anyone could follow him. His underlings quickly went after him, and the rest of the group did the same. The insides of that tunnel were a nice change to the blinding red environment, but Noah''s interest rose when he saw a completely different light coming from the end of that passage. The other experts felt confused too, but King Elbas quickly explained the situation. "This is one of the entrances to the center of the world. The illusion around the core is the first guardian." Chapter 1117: 1117. Yellow King Elbas'' line stirred the curiosity of his companions. That was the first real piece of information about the plane''s core revealed by the expert, and what it carried was quite amazing. The word "guardian" hinted that their destination was a protected area. Sword Saint had said something similar to Noah, but only King Elbas knew the specific defenses about that plane. As for the other cultivators in the group, only God''s Left Hand knew a bit more about the matter, but even she was ignorant about the dangers around the generator of raw laws. First Prince asked more about the topic, and King Elbas explained without revealing too much. "You can''t simply swim toward the plane''s core. You''ll only lose yourself among currents capable of affecting your sea of consciousness. Even my mind can''t escape them." King Elbas had expanded his consciousness before giving that explanation, so all the powerhouses learnt about that. However, he didn''t say anything about the number of guardians that they would have to face in the journey. Doubts began to appear in the powerhouses'' minds. They started to wonder if King Elbas had even reached the raw laws in the first place. Noah had different thoughts. He couldn''t understand why Heaven and Earth would create defenses that even peak heroic cultivators couldn''t cross only to make paths among them. ''Are these more trials meant to nurture promising paths?'' Noah questioned himself. He knew that Heaven and Earth lacked something to reach the tenth rank, but that approach would also benefit cultivators outside of their system. Actually, existences that trailed on paths outside of Heaven and Earth''s system were more likely to end up finding those remote and hidden training areas! ''They can''t even blame their sloppiness,'' Noah continued to ponder. ''The creation of the planes should have happened when they were at their peak. Unless they took it and added guardians.'' Noah couldn''t find an answer. Most of the knowledge about Heaven and Earth was obscure and lost in time. Even the gods living in the Immortal Lands would probably know only a part of their history. The magma on the other side of the tunnel radiated a blinding yellow light that forced some cultivators to close their eyes and rely on their consciousness to inspect the environment. Noah could keep his eyes open because his body was far beyond the human limits, but he couldn''t say that seeing gave him any advantage. There was nothing to see. The yellow light filled Noah''s vision and hid anything that was farther than a few hundred meters. It was as if the world itself didn''t want anyone to witness that scene. The "Breath" in the area was dense, denser than it was now on the new continent. Also, it had a certain purity that Noah couldn''t exactly describe. The only word that he could find to define it was "untainted". When his consciousness analyzed it, he felt as if it had just formed. "This way," King Elbas said, and his words awakened the cultivators who were still in a daze due to their first contact with the plane''s core. It was impossible to replicate a similar environment. The place''s temperature wasn''t a problem, but no expert could recreate such pure "Breath". The group began to move again, and inscriptions lit up on the robes of the experts. Their light wasn''t able to seep into the blinding environment, but that radiance was a statement of how the temperature had risen in that new area. Noah had an inscribed robe too, but he relied on his dark matter to cover the Demonic Sword whenever he felt like cultivating. The blinding magma had been interesting at first, but even that environment had become dull after a few months spent swimming through it. The powerhouses had started to cultivate there, and they had immediately noticed that the purity of the "Breath" benefitted them. The absorption of the "Breath" inside the matter was faster and smoother there. They didn''t feel any lack of energy even when they all cultivated at the same time. That was unthinkable for a lower plane. After all, there were thirteen rank 6 cultivators of various stages there! Noah felt the same benefits. His dantian reached the limits of the fifth rank and continued to accumulate darkness during his cultivation sessions. His breakthrough would usually start once he reached that stage, but Noah''s dantian didn''t advance. It wanted something more than a large amount of energy to move to the next rank. "This way," King Elbas said again at some point. The heat had become more intense as they proceeded toward the plane''s center, and the radiations of the magma had started to affect even the powerhouses'' minds. The weaker among them lost their tracks from time to time. They became unable to sense those around them and wandered away from the group. King Elbas had to use his mental waves to reclaim their attention, and he didn''t care if those about to lose themselves belonged to an enemy organization. The phenomenon affected mostly True Speed and Elder Paul since their minds were the weakest of the group. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana weren''t in the position to pay attention to them, but King Elbas took care of the issue. Noah felt strangely unaffected by those radiations. He could sense the pressure trying to force his consciousness backward, but his mental waves appeared able to cut right through it. He had initially thought that his mental waves'' sharp features countered the yellow magma''s natural pressure. Still, that hypothesis lost any sense when even Great Elder Diana was about to stray away from the group. A simple feature couldn''t compare with raw power. Great Elder Diana''s consciousness was far stronger than Noah''s, so his resistance to the radiations had to come from something else. The only remaining possibility was that his superior species didn''t suffer from the restrictions of that place. His mental waves were different in the end, and they didn''t belong to any type of creature. ''Am I alone in this species?'' Noah questioned himself. He had thought the same with his hybrid state before the events in the other world. Yet, he felt that there had to be someone similar to him in the planes blessed with the "Breath". However, it seemed that the world wasn''t ready for his kind. He didn''t know if it was the same for Heaven and Earth, but he had no way to verify it. Noah didn''t reveal his advantage to anyone, but he didn''t pretend to lose his tracks either. The other experts were too busy minding their safety to pay attention to him anyway. The only one who could notice that was King Elbas, but Noah made sure to remain at the end of the group even if everyone tried to stay close. "This way," King Elbas said again. The group had swum in the yellow magma for more than a year, but nothing had changed there. They had to advance slowly due to the restrictions on their mental waves, but they had still traveled for a long time already. The pure "Breath" was a pleasant discovery, but they had yet to find something that justified such a long mobilization. Impatience inevitably built inside the various experts, but no one dared to give voice to that feeling. Even if they didn''t want to admit it, none of them could return to the red magma without King Elbas. The yellow environment finally showed a change. Noah and those who could keep their eyes open saw a dark spot in the distance that disrupted the scene''s uniformity. King Elbas moved toward it while using his consciousness to send signals to the others, and the group quickly became able to inspect that strange entity. The dark spot was a land that floated among the yellow magma. It had an uneven shape, and it appeared quite vast. Noah guessed that it was as large as a region, but he couldn''t be sure since the pressure had begun to affect him too there. A black metal made its ground. That material enhanced the natural radiations of the magma and created an environment where thoughts couldn''t survive. Chapter 1118: 1118. Royal Metal "We have beaten the second guardian," King Elbas said as he landed on the metallic land. "The raw laws are at the center of this region." "What is this land?" Great Elder Diana asked. "How many more guardians do we have to face?" Her patience had reached its limits after swimming through the magma for years. The last part had been even worse since she hadn''t been able to use her power as she wished. Noah could feel part of that annoyance now that he floated next to that black metal. Having the range of his consciousness restricted made him virtually blind in that foreign environment. He guessed that the suppression would be even stronger once deep inside the region. For the first time since the beginning of the mission, Noah thought that his level wasn''t suitable for that journey. King Elbas glanced at the group still floating in the magma. Runes shone in his eyes, and his expression didn''t carry his usual arrogance. The Royal heaved a sigh before replying. "Nothing can live here, and the same matter tries to force you away. There are only three more guardians, but there are no words to describe the last two." Both the Royal and the Matriarch had boosted their voice with their "Breath" to speak. Their mental waves couldn''t reach their companion, so they had to spread vibrations through the magma to speak. "The third guardian is the land itself," King Elbas said as he tapped his foot on the metal. "We must walk in these conditions until we reach the very center of the plane. The journey will be rather peculiar." No sound came out of the metal when King Elbas tapped on it, and no mark appeared on its surface. Still, there was something off with that material. It lacked any aura. It would typically be impossible for anything to survive in that environment to be devoid of aura or halo. Yet, the metal appeared empty of any quality. ''It''s not the metal,'' Noah thought after seeing that. The magma''s radiations became more intense when they touched the region, but the land didn''t do anything to make that happen. Noah''s curiosity eventually made him separate from the group and reached King Elbas on the landmass. His mind trembled slightly when his feet touched the metal, and the environment appeared different there. It was a strange feeling to describe. Noah felt as if his existence spread through the ground and expanded. The sensation was extremely addicting since his growth lost any limit once in contact with the metal. Noah''s survival instincts kicked in at that point. His dark star spun faster than ever to restore his focus and make him jump to leave the ground. Once his connection with the metal broke, Noah found himself inside the yellow magma again. He was far above the landmass, and the group of experts stared at him with a curious expression. The Demons and Elder Julia had methods to use their eyes in that environment, and they stared at Noah''s faint figure with evident confusion. They felt glad that Noah was fine, but they didn''t understand what had happened. On the other hand, Noah found his dantian partially drained. His cultivation level didn''t regress, but a chunk of his darkness had disappeared. ''What was that?'' Noah thought before slowly descending again toward the landmass. The feeling that had invaded his mind was as captivating as an illusion, but he knew that it had been real. His existence had really spread, but he wasn''t in control of the process. Noah hesitated a bit before placing his foot back on the metal. The strange feeling returned, and his focus wavered in the incredible sensation of his expanding existence. However, he forced his mind to remain focused, and the feeling slowly disappeared as he kept his individuality in check. If he didn''t lose himself, the ground didn''t absorb his darkness. "You sure are full of surprises," King Elbas said under the attentive gaze of the rest of the group. His praise toward Noah was honest, and it even carried a trace of admiration. Then, a smile appeared on his face as he questioned Noah. "They are quite captivating, aren''t they?" Noah was still quite confused about everything that had happened, but the Royal''s words confirmed one of the many hypotheses that had appeared in his mind. "Are these raw laws?" Noah asked. The metal behaved in line with what he knew about that resource. The process only appeared to happen in reverse. According to what he knew, the raw laws had to flow inside cultivators and fuse with their existence. Instead, the ground applied the opposite effect. It absorbed individualities to fuse them with its fabric. "Sort of," King Elbas replied. "I think they are close to their pure form. These are raw laws to obtain meanings. They don''t have a clear state yet, but the world has already tasked them to become something." Noah nodded as he crouched to study the ground. The surface was uneven, and there were various cracks across it. Yet, he couldn''t rip a piece of that metal even with his physical strength. "I guess they are still in this form because the world doesn''t need more yellow magma now," Noah said, and King Elbas nodded in agreement. The land acted as a reserve of laws ready to refill the yellow magma, and Noah even guessed that it could turn into other materials. Everything depended on the true meaning that it absorbed. ''Such a ductile material,'' Noah thought as disappointment surged inside his mind. ''This can turn into anything, but I can''t even seize a small piece.'' "I call it Royal Metal," King Elbas continued. "I wonder what will happen if it manages to absorb an entire individuality. It''s regretful that no slave can ever reach this place." The Royal wanted to study the various features of the landmass, but its peculiar environment made any research impossible. Mental waves couldn''t survive outside of mental spheres there. It was needless even to consider the functioning of inscribed items needed for the study. The other cultivators slowly gathered their courage and approached the landmass. The Demons were the first to step forward, and the rest followed right after them. The same backlash that had hit Noah struck them, but their protective inscribed items activated and preserved their individualities. The only ones to struggle even after that were True Speed and Elder Paul. King Elbas looked at the two young powerhouses with a blank expression. He didn''t want to reveal his thoughts, but the other experts could vaguely understand them since they felt in the same way. True Speed and Elder Paul appeared too weak for that environment. Their battle prowess was above average, but their individualities seemed too frail to reach the end of the mission. Still, they couldn''t go back now. Only King Elbas and Noah could move freely inside the yellow magma, but none of them would ever decide to escort them back to the red sea. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana intervened when they noticed how bad their underlings'' situation was. Inscribed items came out, and some of their "Breath" seeped inside them to protect their centers of power. True Speed and Elder Paul''s condition stabilized after that. They even became able to see, but they couldn''t express their true prowess due to their leaders'' restrictions. "What''s the fourth guardian?" Noah asked while he waited for everyone to become used to the landmass. "We will need to fight," King Elbas answered and didn''t reveal much more. Still, that piece of information was enough to bring some tension among the group. Noah was relatively okay, but the other experts were only cultivators. Fighting without spreading their minds would be hard, and spells might even not work at all because of the restrictions. The group eventually started to move again. The experts walked, but they only took a few months to find what King Elbas had said. The ground began to morph in front of them, and strange metallic shapes rose to stop their path. They didn''t seem intentioned to charge at the group, but they didn''t feel harmless either. Chapter 1119: 1119. Gian The metal radiated meanings when it took those shapes. Noah recognized sharpness when he saw blade-like structures, brute strength in massive boulders, and calm in a tall pillar that had risen from the ground. He didn''t recognize some meanings, and the most complicated shapes even had more than one of them. Still, they all felt incomplete. Moreover, all the shapes shared a faint hunger. That was the representation of what King Elbas had said before. Those were raw laws with the purpose of finding a meaning. "Will they attack?" Chasing Demon asked as he blinked his heavy eyes. A thin rocky layer covered his eyelids to protect them, but the continuous use of that ability made them tired. "Only once they feel your individualities," King Elbas answered. "We can''t avoid them. I''ve tried and failed already." The battle was mandatory, but the experts quickly overcame their hesitation. That was better than spending more years swimming aimlessly through the magma. King Elbas waited for everyone to prepare proper offensive methods before walking toward the shapes together with the rest of the group. Noah was the only one who didn''t take any inscribed item or special protection, but he probably was the most at ease in that situation. Since mental waves could barely exist in the open, Noah was the only one who could express most of his battle prowess without relying on inscribed items. The same went for True Speed, even if he had other issues. His mind was too weak for that land, and he had to keep part of his attention on not losing his individuality. Of course, the Royals wouldn''t have any problem there either since their creations covered every field of the cultivation journey. As for the others, Noah couldn''t be sure. The group didn''t fight together. Powerhouses were usually independent, and those there represented four different organizations. Many would like to see some of their allies fail to move past the army of strange shapes. The only one who was remotely crucial in everyone''s eyes was King Elbas, but his companions only worried about not losing his tracks. Noah felt at home in that situation. The smell of betrayal lingered among them, and everyone watched their back in fear of a sudden backstab. That was his environment. His time as a human cultivator wasn''t any different from that situation. The stakes and his power had only increased in ways that very few could define. King Elbas was the first to clash with one of the shapes. The others had to be close to witness his battle, but they remained a bit behind to see how those types of fights unfolded. The Royal wielded a yellow spear that disappeared inside the magma as he waved it at a construct that was half humanoid and half spiked mass. The spear landed at the center of its strange body and stopped there, unable to pierce its rigid material. However, King Elbas'' arrogance surged and flowed through his weapon to end on the shape. The figure destabilized as King Elbas'' individuality affected its internal structure. The laws exuded by the Royal made the shape grow until it became too unstable to remain in one piece. King Elbas'' opponent crumbled right after becoming seven meters tall. The pieces of black metal fused with the landmass when they landed on the ground, and no more shapes formed in that spot. The two Princes and one Princess decided to imitate their Father. They picked three different shapes and waved fire-resistant inscribed weapons at them. Their weapons couldn''t pierce their metal, but their arrogance surged when they established that contact, and the forms grew before crumbling a few seconds later. King Elbas inspected his underling''s battles. Second Prince''s opponent had become six meters tall before falling apart, while the other two Royals had only managed to push the shape''s height to five meters before they crumbled. Noah felt that he understood something watching their battles. The meanings carried by the three''s individualities were complete, but their intensity determined the height that the shapes would reach. King Elbas nodded at Second Prince before choosing another opponent. He completely ignored First Prince and First Princess, who could only reveal ugly expressions before throwing themselves into another battle. The other experts gained some confidence after seeing the trio succeeding in defeating those beings at their first try, and they picked opponents to test themselves. Everyone obtained different results according to the meaning that they poured into the shapes. Chasing Demon''s opponents multiplied and gained humanoid features before falling lifeless on the ground and fusing back with the landmass. Great Elder Diana''s meaning made them shrink until they were nothing more than small puppets. Elder Julia turned them invisible, Flying Demon''s influence stopped their movements, and Dreaming Demon''s shapes transformed into copies of her before crumbling. Elder Regina''s opponents transformed into different creatures before falling apart. Everyone was quite successful at the task, but some struggled at that. Elder Paul''s puppet didn''t fuse back to the landmass even if it absorbed his meaning. Bulging masses appeared on its already strange body, but it remained intact as it chased after the Elder. True Speed was the same, but he had quickly found a solution to the issue. His meaning made the shape tremble and blur without succeeding in killing it. Still, he kicked it repeatedly until he could go past it. Instead, Elder Paul felt troubled. The ugly shape followed him, and he had no real way to fend it off. The construct eventually touched him, and his complexion paled as he felt his individuality slipping away to fuse with the form. The Elder screamed, but there was a limit to how much his companions could hear in that situation. Moreover, they had their battles to handle, so they ignored the vibrations spreading through the magma. Only Noah saw the scene and decided to test himself on that horrid thing. He reappeared on the side of the shape and placed his hand on it as he poured his ambition. What followed startled everyone on the scene and gathered the attention on him. Noah wanted to test himself. Saving Elder Paul was a favor that Council would surely repay once returned to the surface. Yet, he didn''t expect the shape to have a violent reaction. The construct didn''t change form when Noah poured his ambition. It directly exploded with violence that created an area devoid of yellow magma for a few seconds! Even the radiations suppressing the mental waves went away in those instants. It seemed that Noah''s ambition was too much for those shapes to handle! Elder Paul''s defensive item had activated to protect him from the explosion, and Noah''s robe did the same. His clothes didn''t have great overall defenses, but they endured that detonation. The Elder quickly stood up and remained close to Noah. He had understood that he couldn''t deal with those shapes, so he would follow Noah for that part of the mission. Noah began to charge at every puppet that he found. His simple touch was enough to set off loud explosions that created empty areas. True Speed eventually joined Noah too. His kicking tactic had worked for some time, but the shapes had surrounded him at some point, and he had luckily escaped that encirclement before it was too late. Everything went well for a few days. The group made their way through the army without encountering any difficulty, and even King Elbas thought that they would be fine if they continued like that. The four guardians had never truly threatened the group because King Elbas had taken care of leading the experts and showing them how to deal with each hindrance. His first voyage cost him countless resources and investigative items invested in uncovering the path through the magma and the forms'' weakness. Nevertheless, that land could still surprise him. On the fifth day of peaceful and safe destruction of the forms, a massive mountain rose from the ground and took the shape of a humanoid giant. The giant radiated the meaning that King Elbas and the others had poured inside the previous forms, but it didn''t contain Noah''s ambition. As if wanting to announce that it was different from its smaller companions, the shape slammed its massive fists on a spot among the surprised group. Chapter 1120: 1120. Meaning "What now?" Great Elder Diana shouted while she dodged the giant''s attack. The other powerhouses jumped away too, but they all turned their heads toward the only expert that could know more about that situation. King Elbas stared at the giant while he retreated. That sudden event had surprised him, but he couldn''t hide his curiosity when inspecting that peculiar shape. The giant was more than seventy meters tall. It had two long arms and humanoid features, but the meanings brimming inside its structure modified its shape after its attack. More heads appeared on its large neck, and limbs grew from its torso before becoming invisible. Ice spread from its feet, and a dense aura covered its entire figure. A snake-like tail came out of its back, and violent winds blew from the creature''s horrid mouth. Also, it continued to grow. Its size increased due to the Royal''s arrogance. Sharp spikes spurted from its hands as the giant took a step forward. The ice that spread under it couldn''t go far due to the yellow magma, but it still survived enough to prevent anyone from nearing the creature. The giant slammed its fists on the ground again and forced the cultivators to retreat further. The invisible limbs widened the impact area, but the experts didn''t forget them when performing their evasive maneuvers. However, they didn''t expect a storm of spikes to come out of its hands. Those sharps objects flew toward the cultivators'' heads with a precision that forced them to rely on defensive items to block the attack. The group had split into small teams due to the giant''s offensive. Everyone had done their best to remain near King Elbas, but they had separated anyway to dodge. Noah was with Elder Paul and True Speed when the storm of spikes arrived. The two experts revealed themselves useful since they activated a few talismans, but some sharp metal crossed the defenses anyway. True Speed saw a spike crossing the barrage of lightning bolts that had come out of his talisman and aiming directly for his left eye. Yet, Noah promptly grabbed it and waved his other hand to take care of the other trespassers. A thick black slash came out of his hand and fended off every spike that had surpassed the experts'' defenses. The two cultivators shot grateful looks at him, but their expression froze when they saw Noah shooting forward to store all the pieces of Royal Metal that had yet to fuse with the ground. Noah couldn''t let go of that chance. The giant had divided the Metal for him, and he would appease his greed until King Elbas'' instructions arrived. ''They still explode at my ambition,'' Noah thought as one spike detonated when he poured his meaning inside it. He was analyzing the phenomenon too, but he didn''t have enough data to find a solution. Currents began to form as the giant launched attack after attack. It''s snake-like tail even joined the offensive and spewed raging winds from its mouth. Pressure built on the group''s mental spheres. Walking in that environment was hard in calm conditions already, but the giant''s actions had worsened the situation. The currents threatened to fling some of the experts away, and that outcome would be fatal for many of them. They couldn''t expand their consciousness in that environment, and their vision only had a range of a few hundred meters. Getting too far away from the group could become a death sentence! "These raw laws are desperate for meanings!" King Elbas shouted once he managed to suppress his curiosity to focus on taking care of the giant. "We need an intense meaning to fill all this Metal." King Elbas stepped forward after his explanation ended, and his three underlings placed themselves at his sides in a defensive stance. A few inscribed items appeared in the Royals'' hands. Golden shields featuring fire-resistant runes covered the team from the Elbas family as they prepared the assault. The other powerhouses immediately understood what they wanted to do. King Elbas wanted to pour his meaning in the giant, but he needed the protection of his underling to complete the task. The experts shot toward him and deployed their defensive measures too. Puppets, barrages of wind-slashes, and a thick array of lightning bolts appeared around King Elbas as he waited for the giant to act. Noah, Elder Paul, and True Speed had rejoined the group too. Yet, they limited themselves to stand there since they didn''t have powerful defensive items like their companions. True Speed and Noah could still take care of some direct blow with their bodies, so they waited to see if the situation required their help. The group organized the counterattack before the giant could launch its next offensive. Everyone in that mission had lived through many dangerous experiences. They had reacted in less than an instant. The giant slammed its fists again, and the magma raged as its massive body moved. The cultivators could see the yellow sea''s wrath from inside the defenses, but no tremor spread on the landmass even after the limbs landed. The landmass didn''t budge at all. There was a battle among beings at the peak of the heroic ranks on its surface, but nothing seemed able to affect its stability. King Elbas exited the defenses right after the snake-like tail, and the spikes crashed on them. His path toward the chest of the giant was devoid of any danger, and he managed to reach it with a single leap. The Royal''s spear touched the giant''s chest, and his arrogance flowed inside the Metal that made its structure. The puppet started to grow, but its form remained stable even after it became more than three hundred meters tall. King Elbas had to push himself away from the giant since its fists were coming toward him. The expert managed to swim past them and regroup with the others, but his inscribed weapon fell prey to the invisible limbs. "What have you done?!" Great Elder Diana complained when King Elbas returned inside the protections. The experts couldn''t see the giant''s heads anymore since it had become too tall. Their vision could only reach the end of its torso and understand that more attacks were about to fall on them. "It seems that my meaning can''t fill the whole being," King Elbas answered calmly, but the others in the group could only glance at him in disbelief. The Royal didn''t only fail in his task. He had made it far worse! The group was directly under the puppet, and they would have been able to escape if its size had remained the same. However, now it was too big. They didn''t have enough time between one offensive and the other to get out of its range. "You just killed us!" God''s Left Hand shouted, and winds blew from her figure. She wouldn''t die without putting up a fight, but she was too angry to remember that King Elbas was her ally right now. Helplessness spread among the group, but Noah removed any restriction on its aura at that point. The radiations in the area struggled to suppress it, but everyone around him could sense his core meaning. The group''s eyes went on him, and they felt amazed when they came in contact with his ambition. Cultivators would usually have mental protections to hide the true nature of their existence, but Noah was showing everything there. The experts caught a glimpse of what Noah felt every day. They sensed his boundless ambition and his unshakable resolve in his journey toward the stars. That emotion couldn''t vanish with time. Nothing could suppress it as long as Noah lived. It was a fire that fueled everything inside his individuality and forced him to seize anything that came in his way. "Is this enough?" Noah asked in a plain tone while looking at King Elbas. The Royal couldn''t hide his surprise when he sensed that ambition, but he didn''t answer. Instead, he deployed a massive golden shield that covered a two hundred meters large area. That was his silent answer to Noah''s question. King Elbas would take care of defending him while he swam toward the giant. The Royal''s gesture was a signal that made the others return to their battle position. Everyone deployed more defenses as they opened a path where Noah could pass. Chapter 1121: 1121. Los The giant continued to launch its violent offensive toward the group. Its size was a problem since its enormous limbs were always in the path toward its chest. Noah was at the edge of the shields created by the defensive items. Golden light, wind-slashes, lightning bolts, and so on filled his vision, but he paid attention only to the giant''s movements. Its fists, invisible limbs, and tail landed on the shields, but the puppet didn''t have a battle style. Its offensive was only a violent succession of attacks. Still, it didn''t show any openings. Noah had to consider the path toward the center of its chest too, so he needed a long opportunity to land his blow. The ice that spread from its feet wasn''t a problem, but he didn''t have a long weapon like King Elbas. Noah would have to enter the dense aura around its body if he wanted to touch it directly. Tension mounted among the group, but no one dared to speak. Noah needed to focus, and the experts could only rely on his individuality to save their lives. Noah crouched, and his dark star spun to send power to his legs. He didn''t leap just yet, but he wanted to be ready for when an opportunity arrived. Cracks spread on King Elbas'' golden shield as the offensive continued. The giant never stopped attacking, and the protections eventually started to deplete their power. The golden shield fell, and the attacks began to land on the array of lightning bolts. They eventually vanished too, and the task of protecting the group went on the wind-slashes. "Don''t activate anything else!" Noah shouted when the attacks began to land on the Princes and Princess'' shields. The experts wanted to activate more talismans and inscribed items to gain more time, but Noah needed the giant to expose itself. The closer its attacks were to the group, the more the path toward its chest would be free. True Speed and Elder Paul gulped when they saw their companions stopping their actions. Those that weren''t managing defenses turned toward Noah and waited for him to act. The golden shields crumbled, and the three Royals turned toward Noah. The layer of ice fell, and Flying Demon sat on the metal to wait for Noah''s grand gesture. As every defense fell, the experts turned to look at Noah. They had more items ready, but they didn''t activate them to let him work in peace. Brown beast-like puppets crumbled under the violent gales spewed by the giant''s tail. The last defense crumbled, and Elder Regina turned toward Noah as the fierce currents in the magma landed on the group. The giant followed that attack with its fists, and its invisible limbs retracted in the meantime. Its tail retreated too as it charged another attack, and Noah finally saw an opportunity appearing in his vision. Noah leaped as the two fists fell toward the group. His figure swam right between the giant''s arms and pierced the dense aura that covered its body. The aura applied heavy pressure on Noah''s body as he landed on the giant''s metallic chest. The experts on the ground activated their defensive items to block the incoming fists, but Noah acted before the protections formed. Noah''s ambition surged and flowed inside the puppet''s structure. The group saw the fists stopping mid-air before the entire giant exploded into a storm of metallic pieces. The explosion created a large empty area that the yellow magma refilled in an instant. The powerhouses on the ground kept their defenses active only to lower them when they saw no more strange shapes rising from the landmass. They had defeated the fourth guardian, but they couldn''t be pleased about that result since none of them could see Noah. The explosion had flung him away. "I''ll complete this mission with you," Chasing Demon conveyed through the magma, "But mark my word. If the Demon Prince doesn''t return to the Hive, none of us will." His message was for King Elbas, but no one from the Elbas family replied to that threat. Instead, the one to complain came from the Shandal Empire''s side. "You can''t expect us to remain here until we find him," God''s Left Hand said. She knew that Noah had just saved their lives, but she had already given up on the matter. Noah was nowhere near them, and cultivators couldn''t rely on their consciousness in that environment. The group didn''t have any method to look for him, and she thought that the same went for Noah. "The Patriarch doesn''t expect you to do anything," Flying Demon said, and his lover promptly finished his line as she stepped forward. "He is saying that you want to find him if you care about your life." The atmosphere among the group became tense as the Demons stated their position on the matter. Elder Julia only needed to move next to Dreaming Demon to express her stance too. The Royals didn''t say anything, but Great Elder Diana felt the need to make her stance clear to her ally. "I''m going to help you, but I will leave if we can''t find him." Chasing Demon didn''t answer her, but a familiar voice suddenly reached the group and eased the tension that had built in those few seconds. "I need another inscribed robe," Noah said as he descended toward the landmass. "Mine broke during the explosion." Noah''s figure slowly became visible to the experts on the ground. His robe was mostly gone, and the protective runes had vanished, making the magma affect his skin. However, Noah''s body fended off the heat efficiently. Some red spot appeared on his skin, but the magma''s scorching properties didn''t manage to injure him deeply. Chasing Demon showed a proud smile as he saw Noah landing among them. He quickly handed him one of his spare robes, and Noah wore it right in front of the experts. Every powerhouse there was more than a thousand years old. Noah was the only one still below the nine hundred years mark. None of them minded the sight of his naked body. Their thoughts pondered over the strangeness of his return. They couldn''t explain how he had found his way back to them. After all, losing themselves was the greatest danger in that environment. "Don''t use human standards to evaluate me," Noah said when he felt those curious gazes on him. The truth was that he had been quite lucky. The explosion had fended off the radiations, so his consciousness had been able to spread again for a short time. Noah had lied about his abilities, and the experts could vaguely notice that. Yet, none of them questioned him about his methods out of respect for his last gesture. He had saved their lives in the end. They couldn''t disrespect him by inquiring on how he could keep track of where he was. Accepting that answer made room for another feeling. The experts had sensed Noah''s boundless ambition before the last exchanges with the giant, and they couldn''t help but look at him differently now. The Demons and Elder Julia already knew about that feature in his individuality, but the others could only marvel at his drive''s intensity. The powerhouses finally understood a large part of Noah''s mindset. They became aware of the reasons behind his past actions. The story of his cultivation journey had instantly become far more profound now that they knew about his ambition. A strong drive was necessary to advance in the cultivation world, but Noah''s ambition was so intense that it felt almost binding. He could only move forward. Everything in his life had to bring him closer to his goal. Their reactions varied. True Speed and Elder Paul felt inspired, but the more experienced powerhouses sensed a tinge of pity rising inside them. Noah lived for power. His main focus always had to be his growth. A life spent like that wasn''t worth living for those that had many interests. The experts even marveled at how he had managed to maintain a relationship through the years, but they vaguely understood something when they realized who his partner was. Nevertheless, they all became sure of one thing. Noah would advance as long as he lived. For some reason, they even became certain that he would ascend one day. Chapter 1122: 1122. Center King Elbas didn''t show any emotion when Noah returned, but his underlings didn''t manage to imitate him. Second Prince smiled when looking at him. He appeared truly happy that Noah was still alive and could find his way back to the group. Instead, First Prince and First Princess revealed ugly expressions. They didn''t like Noah because he was the most promising new powerhouse in the world. Losing him there would have solved many of their future problems. Noah didn''t care about the stares. He had chosen to return because he didn''t feel confident in succeeding in the mission without King Elbas'' knowledge. Still, the Royals'' leader was the only one who didn''t reveal anything, so he wanted to proceed with the mission. There was no point in wasting more time in that hostile environment. The other powerhouses felt in the same way. They wanted to take care of the last guardian and return to the surface as soon as possible. "Let''s move," King Elbas said. He understood the group''s mood, and he wanted to reach raw laws that he could absorb quickly. He was quite better off because his inscribed items were on a superior league, but he didn''t like that place any more than his companions. The days spent walking through an identical scenery returned. The landmass showed some slight differences in its layout, but the group quickly became bored of that too. The magma''s radiations became more intense as they neared the center of the landmass, and resisting the Royal Metal''s effects became harder as they advanced. Their existences wanted to merge with the ground and expand far beyond their limits. The sensation caused by their direct contact with the Metal was so tempting that some powerhouses had to take breaks in the magma from time to time. That became impossible at some point since their vision shortened further. Even King Elbas couldn''t see farther than a dozen meters as the plane''s center drew near. The influence of the Royal Metal began to affect the entire area above the landmass too. Even with simple methods to avoid getting lost, the cultivators couldn''t stop feeling that captivating sensation. The scenery eventually changed. The group had walked for years until they finally reached the center, and the sight amazed them beyond every limit. The landmass didn''t end. It continued past the center toward another secret entrance to the area. Yet, the yellow magma couldn''t reach that point. It merely hovered over that spectacular spot. ''What is that?'' Noah thought as he gazed at their destination. The plane''s center appeared as a massive rotating sphere with most of its body inside the landmass. Uneven white and dark lights made its structure and flew inside it in a perpetual motion. They didn''t exit the sphere. The lights remained inside its shape and rotated together with the whole structure. "That''s the fifth guardian," King Elbas announced while wearing a stern expression. Even that mighty expert appeared in awe of that mystical object. The sphere radiated a faint aura, but every bit of its presence seemed to contain an unfathomable power. It was as if it carried the most intense meanings in the world, but they were so indistinct that they barely counted as such. Noah couldn''t understand the nature of the object in front of him. Without the magma''s radiations, his consciousness could finally expand freely, but he couldn''t analyze the sphere''s properties anyway. His mental waves shattered whenever they tried to probe those rotating lights. Moreover, the vague pieces of information that managed to return to his sea of consciousness didn''t make sense. They felt too deep for anyone to understand them. Noah had seen gods in action and interacted with a few of them, but he believed that even they couldn''t study those meanings. "What am I looking at?" Great Elder Diana asked, but King Elbas could only shake his head. "I can only give you guesses and hypotheses," King Elbas said. "I''ve tried everything, but I can''t come up with certainties." "Your hypotheses are enough," Chasing Demon said as he stepped forward to stand next to the Royal. King Elbas glanced at him before heaving a sigh and explaining what he thought. "Every true meaning has similar features in terms of composition. The intensity can change, but you can''t fail to recognize them." Even True Speed and Elder Paul nodded at that line. They were far more inexperienced than the rest of the group when it came to laws, but no one could mistake them for something else. "These meanings are different," King Elbas continued. "They exist. We can see them flying in front of us. Yet, they are so faint that they escape even the most subtle mind." No one could understand where the Royal was going with his speech, but everyone remained silent. They wouldn''t approach the sphere without his explanation anyway. "They seem part of the world," King Elbas continued, "But not of this dimension, not only this one at least. I think they are part of the very fabric of reality. They should be the true meanings of space and time." King Elbas'' revelation startled his companions. It wasn''t rare for cultivators to touch on space and time when absorbing laws, but they had never seen them in that state. "Are the insides of the sphere a separate dimension?" Noah asked, even if he knew that his question was quite na?ve. He couldn''t label something created by such laws as a simple separate dimension. That sphere carried meanings far more profound than that, but he didn''t know how else to express himself otherwise. First Prince and First Princess despised his approximation, but they had to admit that there was no other way to describe the area. Even they would have thought about a separate dimension once hearing talks about space and time. "Yes and no," King Elbas replied. "There is a separate reality inside, and everything in its fabric has raw laws that have yet to gain meaning. I think Heaven and Earth use it as a generator to refill lower planes when they lose too many laws." King Elbas stepped forward after his explanation ended. He didn''t know anything else, but the raw laws were right in front of him. He wanted to go inside the sphere, but he would bring his underling at this time. The three Royals followed him while wearing excited expressions. They knew that they had to make sure that their Father didn''t lose his mind, but they couldn''t wait to train too. Noah and the others also advanced, but a doubt appeared in their minds when they saw King Elbas separating himself from the group together with his underlings. Their questioning gazes made the Royal speak again. "The insides are strange. The deeper you go, the higher density of raw laws you''ll find. I need to make sure that we don''t separate, but I won''t use my methods on you." The Royal began to draw red marks on the area''s edges on the landmass dug by the sphere. His underlings did the same, and they drew those marks on each other''s bodies afterward. Some of the powerhouses could understand that those marks were simple inscriptions to track each other. Still, they didn''t understand why the Royals would need something like that. The sphere had a radius of two hundred meters. It would be impossible to lose anyone in there now that the yellow magma wasn''t a variable. Yet, the experts didn''t think that King Elbas had gone mad, and they began to review his words to see if they had missed some critical information. ''What does he mean by a separate reality?'' Noah pondered once he identified the core of the Royal''s explanation. He knew what it could mean, but he didn''t think that such a thing could exist in a lower plane. When he reached the edges of the rotating sphere, Noah felt in awe, but his curiosity on the matter made him place himself behind First Princess. He couldn''t get those inscriptions, but he wanted to end up in the same place as King Elbas. The Demons and Elder Julia went behind him and proceeded forward until all the Royals had disappeared inside the sphere. Then, they crossed its edges, and the scenery in front of them changed again. Chapter 1123: 1123. Alone Noah didn''t feel any pressure when he crossed the edges of the strange sphere. Still, the world in front of him changed drastically once his eyes became used to the new environment. The yellow radiance disappeared, and his consciousness could expand freely. Noah found himself in a dark environment that had countless small white dots in the distance. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize that scenery. That image had been in his mind since his attitude test in the Royal Academy. What had appeared in front of him was the starry sky that he had dreamt through his cultivation journey! Panic built inside Noah''s mind as he understood where he was. The darkness around him didn''t have any matter, and the stars were clear in his vision. He was inside the void without any protection! Noah quickly suppressed his consciousness and covered his figure in a layer of dark matter, but he soon saw that the void there didn''t behave as he expected. His mental waves didn''t disperse when they were outside of his sea of consciousness. They flew freely and undisturbed. They even appeared smoother in their motion. The same went for his body. Noah was flying in the complete emptiness, so he didn''t have the slightest obstruction. There wasn''t matter to slow him down. ''There is no "Breath",'' Noah thought after he dispersed his protections. The environment was barren. The absence of matter made it devoid of anything that Noah could absorb to refill his centers of power. ''The void is the absence of laws,'' Noah concluded. Luckily for him, the void in that separate reality didn''t affect his mind, so he could study it in complete safety. Noah had seen the void many times in his life. His attacks always opened large cracks in the world''s fabric, so that blackness wasn''t an unusual sight. Having the chance to study it without facing its dangers was an irreplaceable experience. Still, he soon understood that the void wasn''t special without its threatening capabilities. Being in the absence of laws made his movements and mental waves smoother. Noah felt that he could fly faster than ever there. His attacks were also stronger than usual since they faced no suppression from the environment. Yet, there was nothing else to see. The void was only an empty space that didn''t interact with anything. ''I should save my darkness,'' Noah thought as he inspected his surroundings. The lack of "Breath" prevented him from cultivating, so he couldn''t refill his dantian even if he wanted to. Noah was alone in the area. His consciousness spread to its limits, but he couldn''t find any of his companions. That felt strange since the group had entered from the same spot, but the Royals'' tracking inscriptions began to make some sense now. King Elbas must have known that they would have ended up in different areas of the void. Noah wasn''t the type to remain still and see if something changed around him. He was an explorer, and the stars shining in the distance gave him a destination. He began to fly at moderate speed, kicking platforms of "Breath" to push himself forward. That method allowed him to spare some darkness while giving him enough acceleration. The void appeared infinite. Noah spent days flying toward the stars without seeing any change around him. His consciousness remained unfolded, but he didn''t sense anything either. The stars didn''t become closer as he flew forward. Even as months passed, the scenery in front of him remained the same. It was hard to keep track of the passage of time in that environment. The same went for the distance that Noah had covered. He could only rely on the spinning of his dark star to calculate them but knowing the numbers didn''t help his current situation. Noah never stopped. He didn''t know how to exit that separate reality, but he guessed that he only had to fly in the opposite direction. He didn''t test that before because he didn''t know how that environment worked. It would have been a problem if he teleported in a random spot of the yellow sea when he exited. No planet appeared in his range. Noah had initially guessed that the separate reality would imitate the universe''s structure, but it seemed empty. The months became years. Noah felt slightly annoyed that he couldn''t cultivate for so long, but his mind''s growth appeased that feeling. Noah didn''t need to use his spherical rune anymore because the Seventh Kesier rune was far better than any training method. Yet, he had recreated it in that environment. It only took a bit of dark matter and some darkness to rebuild the rune. Noah had gladly sacrificed a small part of his precious energy to continue his training. Even if Noah had yet to find his companions, his journey wasn''t lonely. Night spoke a lot during the flight, and it often made appreciations to that dark environment. The Pterodactyl didn''t call it perfect due to the absence of the laws, but it liked how there was no light whatsoever. Of course, it complained that Noah was flying toward the only trace of light, but it didn''t do anything reckless to stop him from reaching his destination. Something finally happened in his third year of continuous flight. His consciousness came in contact with two different kinds of mental waves, and he quickly changed direction to meet the existences behind them. "It''s you," First Prince said through his consciousness. He stood next to First Princess, and the two Royals stared at Noah while revealing a tinge of disappointment. Noah neared them without any fear. He didn''t like to work with the Elbas family either, but the two Royals could lead him toward the only expert that knew something about that place. Moreover, he had already fought against First Prince during his attack on the Royal Academy. He didn''t fear him even when he had worked together with his sister and defensive formations. He barely felt any danger now that he met him there after centuries of training. "Where is your Father?" Noah asked in a plain tone, and the Royals'' eyes sharpened when he addressed them and their leader in that way. Yet, they were in the same situation, and they didn''t want to face Noah if necessary. The sensations caused by his ambition were still vivid in their minds. It was only normal for the Royals to respect him now. "He should have gone toward the stars," First Princess replied as she showed the red marks on her hands. The marks had turned into arrows that pointed toward the stars, and the red lines on First Prince''s hands had gained the same shape. "Let''s go then," Noah said as he began to fly in that direction. The Royals didn''t like that he had immediately acted as if he was their leader, but they didn''t object and followed him. The trio resumed their flight, and Noah noticed that the two Royals had a more advanced method to save "Breath" in that environment. They had small runes under their feet that emitted soft shockwaves that pushed them forward. "What do you know about this place?" Noah asked after a few weeks spent in complete silence, but the two Royals could only shake their heads at that question. "This is a test for us too," First Princess replied. "We can''t rely on our Father''s might," First Prince said as a bit of arrogance leaked out of his figure. "Everything would be too easy otherwise." Noah didn''t refute that statement. A strong backing was an incredible advantage in the cultivation journey, and the Elbas family had the most powerful one right now. Once a few months passed, the three unfolded consciousnesses saw another change in the area around them. They didn''t find another companion, but their minds sensed something peculiar nonetheless. The trio''s minds found a small white light hovering in the darkness. They didn''t notice it initially because it was hard to keep track of the distance there. Still, they immediately understood what it was when their mental waves touched it. The three experts felt a tempting sensation invading their minds. Their very existence saw that small light as the best nourishment for their individuality. The group had found their first raw law! Chapter 1124: 1124. Hands Noah didn''t hesitate for even an instant. As soon as the raw laws entered his mind''s range, his legs kicked the air to make him sprint toward that light. His experience as a lone cultivator allowed him to act before the Royals, but they reacted rather quickly too at that sudden event. Noah reached the lump of raw laws in less than a second, and he stretched his hand toward that white sphere of light to seize it. He didn''t know how to absorb that resource, but he trusted his body to handle that part. However, a fireball landed on his arm right before he could close his fingers around the sphere. The explosion that followed pushed the raw laws away and made Noah lose his chance to seize them. The Royals appeared in that spot immediately after the explosion, but Noah had already shot forward to go after the raw laws. He didn''t care about the two powerhouses. Killing them in a mission where King Elbas was the leader wasn''t ideal. Also, the raw laws were more important than that. The lump of light appeared distant again after the explosion pushed it away, but Noah instantly reached it. As long as it remained inside the range of his consciousness, the strange sense of distance in the void wouldn''t deceive him. Another fireball exploded above Noah right before he could seize the white light. The raw laws shot downward at that point, and Noah followed after them. "Let''s talk about this," First Princess conveyed as the two Royals chased after Noah. The latter didn''t stop, so she threw another attack to push the light away. Noah felt annoyed seeing his target escaping from his grasp at the last second again. He suddenly stopped chasing after it to deal with the problem, and the two Royals immediately halted their flight at that sight. They didn''t dare to come too close to him, and a chill ran down their spines when they saw him turning to fix his vertical pupils on them. "Talk?" Noah said as he stared at the duo. He didn''t want to fight if possible, but there were silent rules that had to be respected. "I''m stronger than both of you," Noah transmitted in a cold voice, "So I''ll take the raw laws." The Royals had never lived without a backing. They didn''t know how things worked among lone cultivators. King Elbas wasn''t there to protect them, but Noah was still mindful of offending such a powerful existence. Moreover, he needed their tracking inscriptions to find other companions. "You have come in this mission thanks to our Father!" First Prince shouted through his mind. "It''s only normal for the Elbas family to take the biggest share of the gains." "Not the Elbas family," Noah replied. "King Elbas and he isn''t here. I only see two weaklings trying to use his name to seize something that they can''t obtain with their own hands." Noah''s sharp words hurt the Royals'' pride, and First Prince almost launched an attack at him as rage filled his mind. However, First Princess grabbed his wrist to stop him. "He wants us to use "Breath"," First Princess explained when her brother looked at her with a confused expression. Noah revealed a cold smile when he sensed that. He didn''t care that First Prince didn''t fall for his taunt. He had already stated his superiority, so he could only send an ultimatum now. "I''m going to seize the raw laws again," Noah conveyed as he turned. "Stop me, and I''ll take care of you two first." The Royals watched him walking toward the white light. Noah could have reached it with a single leap, but he wanted the duo to decide how that situation would unfold. First Princess revealed an ugly expression. She felt mocked by Noah''s actions, and her brother felt in the same way. Yet, he didn''t have her self-control. First Prince saw Noah''s slow walk as a major insult. He felt as if the Demon Prince wanted him to drown in helplessness. Blood fell from his eyes and facial pores as anger filled his whole being. His sister wanted to stop him, but it was too late to interrupt his spell. The blood took fire and gave birth to an eight-armed titan. Golden runes shone on First Prince''s skin, and their halo teleported him on top of Noah before he launched his attack. Noah had followed his actions with his consciousness, so the sudden appearance of the titan didn''t surprise him. Still, that course of events made him sigh. Fighting the Royals and offending King Elbas were actions that he was willing to do if the situation required it. Yet, the fact that he couldn''t recover the darkness lost in the battle made him less inclined to fight. Of course, First Prince had gone too far already. Now he could only blame himself for any unwanted consequence. Noah blew toward the lump of white light to make it leave that area before charging at the eight-armed titan. It would be easier to catch up with the raw laws if he pushed them. A battle among powerhouses would fling them far away, and they could even become too fast for him to reach them. The giant had punched downward, but massive slashes appeared on its dense flames when Noah charged toward the descending limbs. Four arms fell apart by the time he reached the titan''s chest, where First Prince was. Noah raised his finger and pointed it toward the Royal. His arm performed a quick thrust that opened a massive hole at the center of the titan''s body. Golden light filled the area. First Prince felt speechless when he saw that three of his life-saving inscribed items had activated at the same time to fend off Noah''s attack. ''Always full of defenses,'' Noah cursed in his mind as the golden light shone on his face. A massive shield, an array of runes, and a reinforced armor stood between him and the Royal. All of them radiated an aura at the peak of the lower tier. Those items would usually make First Prince untouchable among powerhouses in the gaseous stage, but Noah only saw a challenge in those defenses. His cultivation level didn''t show it, but he was the strongest among the newly advanced powerhouses. No one even came close to his power after the extensive training inside the Divine Cut''s aura. First Prince quickly suppressed his astonishment and poured more blood inside the titan to refill the missing flames. Meanwhile, its remaining limbs threw fireballs at Noah in the hope of slowing him down. Noah''s aura surged as he glanced at the fireballs, and his sharpness spread in the environment. His arms didn''t move, but the attacks divided themselves in half under the effect of his influence. Then, Noah retracted his arm and stretched his fingers to make them take the form of a blade. First Prince felt an intense danger from that action, but his sister luckily interrupted Noah''s preparations. A massive snake had formed around First Princess when she realized how strong Noah was. She knew the dangers of getting exhausted in that environment, but she couldn''t leave her brother alone. The snake spewed a dense torrent of flames that reached her opponent right before he could launch his lunge. Noah had to leap upward to dodge the attack, but that gave the giant enough time to reform. Eight fiery arms swung in Noah''s direction and threw fireballs. The blackness of the void had turned into a red environment in a matter of seconds, but Noah didn''t feel danger when seeing those flames. "Let me out!" Night shouted inside Noah''s mind. "Let me kill their light!" Noah ignored the Pterodactyl and arched his fingers to swing his arms multiple times. Massive black slashes came out of his hands and crashed on the fiery limbs, destroying them and forcing the Royal to retreat. Night was perfect for that environment, and it didn''t even consume darkness in its current form. Its power came from the dark matter. Nevertheless, Noah didn''t want to reveal its power just yet, and he still preferred to keep the Royals alive. His hands were enough to handle the situation. Chapter 1125: 1125. Lunge The two Royals stared at him while wearing unsightly expressions. Noah''s power level made no sense, and they couldn''t even begin to evaluate his actual battle prowess. Noah was only a peak rank 5 cultivator in theory, but his attacks could threaten defenses capable of blocking peak gaseous stage powerhouses. That was unreal for the standards of the cultivation world. The Royals could understand that if Noah used his higher energy to express a prowess superior to his current level. Yet, Noah only relied on his bare hands to launch those attacks. There was only an explanation for that power. Noah had begun to walk the path to become a law even if his dantian didn''t evolve to the next level. As for how much power his individuality could wield, the Royals couldn''t predict that. They had come in contact with his existence, and that had proven that his potential surpassed their Father''s. There was another issue connected to that battle. Noah had used only his slashes, while the Royals had relied on their best spells. First Prince and First Princess had initially thought that they could exhaust Noah due to his weaker dantian, but that appeared as a tiny hope after the last exchanges. "Is that it?" Noah taunted them. As long as they kept on wasting "Breath", he would seize an easy victory while saving his darkness. Still, those tricks couldn''t work on powerhouses, especially after they had understood his intentions. Even the impulsive First Prince had a brain under his thick arrogance. The duo exchanged an understanding glance and dispersed their flames. A series of inscribed items came out of their space-rings. Both Royals wore golden armor and wielded longswords that emitted flames on their own. Golden shields surrounded their figures, and an array of runes reinforced those already incredible defenses. The Royals then took out a few talismans and red runes fused with their bodies when they broke them. Their auras surged when the runes lit up, and more flames appeared on top of their weapons. The duo had come prepared for everything. First Prince and First Princess could even come up with ways to fight without wasting "Breath" in a few seconds. ''This might be troublesome,'' Noah thought. The Royals weren''t weak, and their expertise in the inscription fields made them tricky opponents to fight. It would be different if Noah could go all-out, but he didn''t have a way to break those defenses without wasting more energy than his opponents. He would come out weakened no matter the outcome. ''I guess I can''t hold back too much,'' Noah concluded as the Demonic Sword came out of his space-ring and landed in his hand. Night complained that he had chosen his weapon rather than it, but Noah ignored it as the dark matter came out of his body and took the shape of a giant snake. Snore didn''t change too much in the last centuries. Noah had only added a few weapons to its body, but he didn''t do anything too invasive since he had yet to see how the dark matter would evolve. The Blood Companion''s size had increased since Noah''s dantian had reached the peak of the fifth rank. It was more than one hundred and fifty meters long now, and its structure appeared slightly unstable. Flashes of light flickered on its black body whenever the higher energy in its fabric underwent a surge of power. Those were dark glimmers, but they managed to illuminate the void anyway. Snore launched its elemental attacks without even waiting for the Royals to act. Lightning bolts accumulated and shot from its horns, flames came out of its mouth, and violent winds blew from its nostrils. The wings were useless in that environment since there wasn''t any matter or "Breath" to destroy. Noah couldn''t create primary energy, so he could only use those abilities in their weakest form. The Royals swiftly dodged the elemental attacks, but a storm of massive slashes appeared on their paths and pushed them far in the distance. Noah saw their defenses blocking the slashes, but he didn''t chase after them. Instead, he sprinted backward, toward the lump of white light that he had blown away previously. It took him only a few minutes to reach the raw laws that were flying in the distance. They didn''t stop since the void opposed no resistance to their motion, but they didn''t go too far. Noah finally took them and inspected their structure. He had seen laws many times already, but they appeared different. There wasn''t any deep meaning inside them. The laws were only an ethereal substance that could unleash an incredible power once it became complete. Noah had no idea how to absorb them. He felt tempted to place them directly inside his dantian, but he didn''t know if they had to go through some special process first. The Royals eventually caught up and threw a series of runes around him. The inscriptions gave birth to golden lines that created a prison-like structure around Noah. The prison had formed too quickly. It seemed that the lines had some teleporting abilities since they had managed to isolate the area before Noah could even react. The lines became thicker as the prison became smaller. More runes formed on its surface, but Noah promptly launched a wave of slashes that crashed with them. The prison didn''t budge. It continued to restrict, and it stopped when it isolated Noah in an area smaller than ten cubic meters. Noah attacked again, but the outcome was the same. The lines weren''t wholly material, so they managed to resist his slashes more easily. "We know you raided the Dark Gorge," First Princess conveyed. "This is the result of our studies on that peculiar species. A prison resistant to any attack and with great power at its basis." "Give up and hand over the raw laws," First Prince continued. "You are a formidable opponent, but you need liquid "Breath" to open a path in this item." The Royals felt sure of the sturdiness of the prison. Their confidence came from the fact that King Elbas himself had created that item by using what he had discovered from the Night-blade Pterodactyl species. The prison wasn''t in the middle tier in terms of power, but its quality made it the sturdiest cell in the lower tier. Noah didn''t have the amount of energy required to break through it. Noah looked at the prison and sighed. The Elbas family had always tried to chain him to their organization. The memories of his time in the Utra nation surged in his mind. He had changed so much in those centuries, but the Royals didn''t modify their behavior toward him. Yet, that was their mistake. The Royals kept on building countermeasures to his power without understanding his true nature. Noah never stopped improving, and he had a card to play even in that situation. ''I''ll give you plenty of food when you heal,'' Noah thought, and the Demonic Sword replied with a resolute roar. It didn''t care that it was going to suffer as long as Noah came out victorious. Snore disappeared, and Noah closed his eyes. In his mind, Sword Saint''s performed identical lunges capable of launching an unstoppable force. That was the peak of the piercing attacks. Noah didn''t master it yet, but he had trained in the lunge and the slash since his last training session with the Divine Cut. Noah half crouched and retracted his sword. His mind became one with his existence, but the images of Sword Saint''s lunge continued to play in his mind. The Royal didn''t know what to think at that sight, but their expression soon turned severe when they felt the intense sharpness that had begun to accumulate on Noah''s figure. ''The lunge''s power is limitless,'' Noah thought as he thrust his blade forward. An unstoppable force assaulted the golden lines of the prison and created a large hole. Noah''s attack didn''t have any form, but the Royals could see it flying in the void before dispersing in the distance. Noah came out of the prison only to notice that the raw laws in his hand had gained peculiar meanings. They radiated his ambition. Chapter 1126: 1126. Problem Noah''s darkness had halved after his last attack. Sword Saint''s lunge was a technique that he shouldn''t perform recklessly before mastering it. That wasn''t one of Noah''s casual slashes. It was part of Sword Saint''s core inheritance. The energy that it depleted even surpassed the requirements of the Demonic Form. Yet, the power that it was able to unleash made up for that consumption. Noah had launched a lunge that even peak gaseous stage powerhouses would struggle to block while he was still a rank 5 cultivator! The Royals couldn''t explain that event. Their prison was one of the last items created by their Father, but Noah had pierced right through it without even activating his iconic Demonic Form. Their battle intent waned at that sight. They didn''t have stronger methods to fight him there, and Noah overcame them without relying on spells. In their minds, Noah''s figure became even mightier. Feeling his ambition had already made them respect him more, but that battle prowess solidified his position. The Elbas family had access to countless historical records and studies. Knowledge and expertise were the main qualities of all its members. First Prince and First Princess also had access to King Elbas'' studies and records. No heroic cultivator could match their knowledge when it came to the cultivation world and modern inscription methods. Such a display of power made them sure of something. Noah was the most promising expert that the cultivation world had ever witnessed. No one in history had ever come closer to such might. Noah lost interest in the two Royals when he sensed their battle intent fading. The muffled wails of his Demonic Sword came before opponents that he didn''t even want to kill. The living weapon had already returned inside Noah''s new space-ring. Cracks filled the entirety of its surface, and some metallic shards had even fallen from its structure. Sword Saint''s lunge had forced it to surpass its structural limits. Noah could only launch two attacks at that level without sacrificing the Demonic Sword. ''To think that I had to use the lunge before regrouping,'' Noah cursed in his mind as he transferred a few magical beasts'' corpses in the space-ring with Night and the Demonic Sword. The weapon ate in that separate space and began its recovery. Noah guessed that it would take half a year to heal completely, which gave him hope for future fights. The void in the separate reality was so vast that the Demonic Sword had plenty of time to heal before Noah met other struggles. Its current injury would be a problem only if he were unlucky enough to find a battle in that period. As soon as he finished dealing with the Demonic Sword, Noah moved his attention to the raw laws. The lump of white light had been in his hand when he performed the lunge. Noah''s individuality had engulfed the laws during the attack, and they had gained his characteristics. They now radiated a thick ambition capable of burning forever. That feeling was identical to Noah''s, and he also felt a sense of belonging when inspecting it. The Royals didn''t dare to move while Noah studied the lump of light, and they didn''t do anything even when he ate it with a single bite. Noah knew that he only had one way to put an end to that fight, so he used the only method that he could think of to absorb that resource. Everything else was up to his dark star. The raw laws descended toward Noah''s spinning heart and fused with its structure, unleashing a surge of energy that he had never experienced before. The star started spinning madly. The amount of energy to purify and distribute was so much that it had to overcome its limits to handle it. Noah felt his body becoming hotter. Trails of energy carrying his individuality spread everywhere inside him and nurtured his existence as a whole. His tissues became sturdier, and his muscles expanded. His internal organs'' condition improved too, and his level inside the lower tier of the sixth rank advanced. Noah''s mind also benefitted from the raw laws. Its walls became thicker and sturdier. The mental sea flickered as its surface started to shine under the effects of such nutrients. His dantian obtained the largest share of nutrients. Darkness filled its insides as the trails of energy nurtured the organ and broadened Noah''s already vast individuality. Noah smiled as he felt his centers of power brimming with power. The raw laws had refilled his dantian and improved his overall condition. Still, they weren''t able to push his level past the fifth rank. ''What is your problem?'' Noah thought as he focused on his dantian. He was full of darkness, and the organ was already at the peak of the solid stage. That last surge of energy should have pushed it past that bottleneck. The distance from the sixth rank was less than a step in the end! Noah couldn''t find the cause behind that delay. He could only guess that his individuality wasn''t ready to begin the journey to become a law, but he had some doubts about that. His mind had already pushed his prowess past that stage. He knew that his existence had been ready for the breakthrough for a while by then. ''Is the vastness of my individuality the issue?'' Noah questioned himself. He knew that his path was right, so that was the only problem that could hold him back. Noah remained silent as he pondered about the issue. He didn''t have a solution. Limiting himself was a path that he couldn''t walk. His gaze suddenly went on the white stars in the distance. All those dots had to be masses of raw laws, and now he knew how beneficial they were. ''Maybe I can force the breakthrough even if I don''t find an orthodox solution,'' Noah concluded. He was there to seize raw laws anyway, so he would see if that idea worked soon enough. ''Right,'' Noah thought as he recalled something, ''I don''t feel any different. Where is the addicting feeling?'' King Elbas and God''s Left Hand had stated that the raw laws caused an intense addiction. Even the Royals'' leader couldn''t escape from their effects. Noah and the others had felt that and could confirm their words. Even the raw laws inside the black landmass threatened to make them lose their minds. However, Noah didn''t sense any addiction after he absorbed them. He only felt stronger than before, but no lingering feeling had remained in his mind. Noah didn''t believe that both King Elbas and God''s Left Hand had lied about their qualities. He could only guess that his dark star had taken care of that dangerous feeling during the purification. ''This solves a lot of problems,'' Noah smiled again under the Royals'' stern gaze. The duo was worried that Noah would charge at them after seizing the white light, and his random smiles made his mental state even harder to read. They were ignorant about the raw laws'' effects too, so they didn''t know how Noah would turn after absorbing them. A cultivator with such an intense ambition would surely cause a mess if he fell prey to his greed. Noah glanced at them after he had finished evaluating his condition. He was back at his peak, but he didn''t want to resume his battle with the duo. That would be a waste of energy, especially after he had proven his undisputed superiority. Noah knew that he wouldn''t have problems seizing the raw laws from now on. "Did you damage your tracking inscriptions during the battle?" Noah asked through his consciousness, and his plain tone reassured the Royals. "Don''t underestimate our inscriptions," First Princess said. "We have invented schools far more advanced than your Elemental Forging method." She was trying to maintain some of her arrogance in front of a complete defeat. Noah understood her intentions and avoided adding anything to that conversation. "Let''s go then," Noah said and turned to fly toward the stars in the distance. The Royals showed unsightly expressions, but they followed him anyway. No one said anything, but the Royals had silently accepted that they would be nothing more than a compass from now on. Everything would go to Noah until they managed to regroup with their Father. Chapter 1127: 1127. Range Noah, First Prince, and First Princess found three more lumps of white light in the five months that followed their battle. The spheres had different sizes depending on how many raw laws they contained, but Noah took all of them without even asking for the Royals'' opinion. The duo from the Elbas family didn''t complain either. They had accepted their position in the group and wanted only to find their Father now. Noah''s condition improved greatly because of those resources. The raw laws could increase the level of all his centers of power, which made them the best nutrient in the entire lower plane. However, his dantian didn''t advance. The laws obtained his individuality when they came in contact with his aura, and they fused with his organ, but that wasn''t enough to push it to the sixth rank. Noah didn''t overthink about that matter. He didn''t have another solution, so he would try everything that the separate dimension offered him. He didn''t fear for the condition of his centers of power since his species had made them extremely durable. His dark star even removed the addicting properties from the raw laws, so he could push his dantian''s limits as much as he wanted. The Royals'' mood worsened as they saw Noah becoming stronger right in front of their eyes. Yet, they never gave voice to any complaint. They could only wait for their Father to rectify the chain of command. A change happened in that month. The Royals and Noah had flown in the void for so long that they couldn''t miss the appearance of two more consciousnesses in their range. Noah knew that King Elbas wasn''t among those two existences because he had paid attention to the Royals'' tracking inscriptions, so he immediately changed direction when he sensed them. Great Elder Diana and Elder Regina soon appeared in his vision. The two women were at the peak of their power, and broad smiles shined on their faces. Their expressions looked strange. They both appeared ecstatic, and they didn''t even bother to inspect the trio that had joined them. "Did you find any raw law?" Noah asked before even greeting them. His instincts were sending confusing signals to his mind. Part of him felt in danger, while the other didn''t find anything off with that situation. "Yes," Elder Regina said as her smile stiffened. Her expression began to relax after her answer, but some confusion still lingered on her face afterward. "Let''s look for more," Great Elder Diana conveyed before directly turning to fly toward the white stars in the distance. She didn''t even look at the others as she set off. Elder Regina appeared to struggle to disperse her confusion, but she quickly chased after her Matriarch anyway. The Royals exchanged an understanding glance, and Noah didn''t fail to notice that gesture. However, he didn''t look at them. His eyes sharpened, but he went after the duo from the Council anyway. First Prince and First Princess hesitated, but Noah stopped to glance at them before resuming his flight. The duo understood his silent order and followed him through the void. Noah and the Royals had understood that there was something wrong with the experts from the Council. The raw laws had to be the cause behind their strange behavior, but they didn''t appear dangerous just yet. Another month had to pass before the five of them found more raw laws. There were two lumps of white light, and Noah separated from the group to near the smaller sphere. Great Elder Diana did the same with the larger sphere, and her aura surged to make it gain her qualities. She then placed the raw laws directly on her low-waist that absorbed them without any struggle. Noah felt slightly surprised by how quickly the Matriarch had completed the absorption, but he didn''t care too much about it. Still, Elder Regina suddenly appeared next to him, who was about to pour his aura in the raw laws in his grasp. "Give them to me," Elder Regina said, and her mental waves conveyed her threatening tone when they landed on Noah''s consciousness. Noah ignored her, and his aura surged to bind that resource to his individuality. The Elder watched him eating the lump of light, and her expression turned dark when it disappeared from her vision. "You¡­" Elder Regina struggled to send that mental message, "You stole them." Noah''s eyes sharpened when he sensed her intentions. His reptilian pupils went on her eyes, and his consciousness focused on her confused mental sphere. Elder Regina gathered "Breath" in her palms, but the sharpness carried by Noah''s mind broke her concentration and made her lose her grip over that energy. Anger started to build inside her, but her mind was too confused to deploy any protection against Noah''s influence. His mental waves cut right through her mind and forced her to sort her chaotic thoughts. Elder Regina struggled to focus, and her mental defenses suddenly appeared around her figure. Noah prepared himself to fight since he couldn''t suppress her anymore, but the Elder revealed her regular expression when she lifted her face again. "My apologies," Elder Regina said as she performed a deep bow, "It seems that I was about to fall prey to the raw laws'' addiction. Thank you for awakening me." Noah nodded at her polite gesture. He felt glad that he had avoided the battle again, but his problems didn''t end there. A heavy consciousness unfolded and applied pressure to everyone in the area. The group recognized Great Elder Diana''s aura, but they didn''t see the Council''s composed Matriarch when they looked toward her. Orange sparks crackled around Great Elder Diana''s figure as she moved her gaze among her companions. Her eyes moved madly among the experts until they eventually stopped on Noah. "You stole them," Great Elder Diana conveyed, and the four experts felt her thoughts echoing inside their minds. The direct contact with her consciousness made them understand how messy her mental state was. Great Elder Diana''s individuality focused on precision, so her chaotic thoughts didn''t suit her at all. Noah''s mind sent warning signals. His instincts even told him to leave the area and escape since the situation had become too dangerous. Yet, Noah had nowhere to go. He was inside Great Elder Diana''s range. He wasn''t sure that he could escape her attack even if he relied on his movement technique. "Matriarch," Elder Regina stepped forward to near Great Elder Diana, "We have prepared sedatives to solve this issue. You can use mines if you want to save yours." Elder Regina took out a bottle filled with a dense green liquid and handed it to her Matriarch, but Noah suddenly appeared behind her and threw her away before leaving in a hurry. Great Elder Diana exploded into a storm of lightning bolts that unleashed a destructive force in the environment. The power of the liquid stage of the sixth rank brimmed in those attacks, but they didn''t hit any of her companions. First Prince and First Princess had always remained at some distance since their reunion, so they could escape the lightning bolts'' range even if they noticed the attack after Noah. Elder Regina stopped herself after flying uncontrollably in the void. Noah had saved her with his last gesture, but the situation didn''t seem good at all from her position. Noah reappeared in a distant spot in the void. The light radiated by the lightning bolts illuminated his face, and Great Elder Diana''s consciousness still pressed on his mind. He wasn''t outside her range, and he knew that escaping wasn''t a possibility since the Matriarch''s eyes had remained on him for the whole duration of the spell. Chapter 1128: 1128. Sedative ''This isn''t a fight that we can win,'' Noah thought as he stared at the lightning storm surrounding Great Elder Diana. The Royals took a few steps back, but Noah promptly warned them with his cold gaze. They had to remain there and help him in case of need. Elder Regina wanted to get close to her Matriarch, but Noah shot a cold glance at her too. Great Elder Diana wasn''t in a state where she could recognize her. Great Elder Diana didn''t advance, but she kept her eyes on Noah. She seemed set on making him the target for her anger. Noah didn''t have to guess why he was in that situation. Great Elder Diana had become addicted to the raw laws, and seeing him eating them had triggered her anger. ''I can''t escape either,'' Noah accepted in his mind as he evaluated the situation. The range of Great Elder Diana''s mind was too large for him to escape without having to clash with her at least once. He could sacrifice one of the experts with him to gain time, but none of them would be up for the task. Moreover, Noah didn''t want to escape alone only to remain lost in the void. The alliance also needed Great Elder Diana, and the Divine Cut was in her domain. ''I guess I can always throw the Royals at her if everything else fails,'' Noah concluded as his expression became resolute. He would go against a liquid stage powerhouse. "You two," Noah conveyed through his consciousness, uncaring that Great Elder Diana could hear him, "Deploy every protection you have and try to buy some time." "Are you asking us to go against a liquid stage powerhouse?!" First Prince immediately complained. "You are a fool! Why should we even help her?" "You either help her with me," Noah replied while pouring his coldness in his mental waves, "Or I''ll leave and hunt you down if you manage to survive." Noah''s threat wasn''t empty for the Royals. They had recently seen him overcoming what they thought to be mandatory limits, so they believed him when he said that he could escape the Matriarch. First Prince went silent after the threat, and First Princess nodded at Noah to confirm their cooperation. They didn''t like to work with him, but the Elbas family needed Great Elder Diana too. King Elbas had already revealed that he had fallen prey to the addicting properties of the raw laws. If that happened again, the group of experts needed the second strongest cultivator''s help. "Give me your sedatives," Noah conveyed when looking at Elder Regina. She didn''t hesitate to fly toward him and hand a few bottles containing a green liquid. "Thank you for this," Elder Regina said, but Noah ignored her. He wasn''t doing that for the Council or Great Elder Diana''s sake. His interests and life were at stake there. Great Elder Diana didn''t attack during that interaction. Noah could sense some struggle in her consciousness, but he had no idea how to exploit it. It would be different if he had to face the Demons, but he didn''t know the Matriarch enough to force her to regain control of her mental faculties. "Go," Noah said at the Royals, "Launch something." The duo from the Elbas family shot a surprised glance toward him, but they decided to follow his orders when they saw his cold reptilian eyes again. They timidly took out a series of inscribed items meant to restrict their opponents and threw them at Great Elder Diana before retreating by a few hundred meters. A series of golden runes and a black thread flew toward the lightning storm. The chord enlarged during the flight and began to move on its own as it encircled the powerful spell. Great Elder Diana was far from her peak in that condition. Her centers of power were full of energy, but her mental state didn''t allow her to express her individuality. She was a violent addict angry at someone who had taken the last dose from her. Her surges of energy were chaotic, and her spells were a messy display of power. Nevertheless, her attacks had liquid "Breath" as fuel. That alone gave her enough power to be above any gaseous stage powerhouse. The lightning storm reduced the black thread into ashes, but the spell''s intensity diminished in those spots. The golden runes approached those areas, and many of them fell apart. Still, a few managed to fly past that protection. "My laws!" Great Elder Diana shouted through her mind and lifted her arm to deal with the incoming runes. Sparks gathered in her palm, but a tremor rank through her consciousness and her spell dispersed the energy that it had accumulated. That forceful interruption even caused a backlash. Deep cuts appeared on the Matriarch''s arm as the "Breath" that had accumulated there left the limb in a hurry. The golden runes successfully landed on her body and released a halo that restricted her movements. Even her consciousness shrunk under their effects. "Go talk to her," Noah said to Elder Regina. "Use any topic that can make her regain focus." It had become evident after the last exchange that Great Elder Diana was helping them in the battle. Part of her mind wanted them to win and restore her mental faculties. Elder Regina nodded and flew on the opposite side of the lightning storm to tell a few stories that only she and her Matriarch knew. They were mostly tales about conversations shared while they restored the natural paradise on the western coast. The struggles inside the Matriarch''s consciousness became more intense as the runes and Elder Regina suppressed Great Elder Diana and made her cooperate. Yet, the lightning storm still raged around her. That spell was a continuous defense that fed on her reserves of energy to expand. Noah shot toward the array of lightning bolts at that point. A layer of dark matter covered his figure, and Snore formed before engulfing him in its massive body. Layers of rocks and ice covered the Blood Companion and turned it into a statue. The void''s unique environment allowed it to maintain its momentum even if Noah couldn''t sprint since he was inside it. The Royals controlled the runes to use all their power right before the snake statue crashed on the lightning storm. Elder Regina did the same by telling something more intimate about the Matriarch. Great Elder Diana''s consciousness shrunk even more, and the lightning bolts in her defensive spell slowed down while her confusion intensified. The snake statue crashed on the storm then. The lightning bolts made massive holes inside Snore''s defensive layers and destroyed every protection in only a round of attacks. The Blood Companion suffered too, and its body fell apart as all those powerful attacks crashed on it. Noah knew that Snore couldn''t block the attacks, so he had relied on his iconic spell to cross that barrage. When the row of lightning bolts was about to fall on him, black smoke came out of his skin and covered him in a corrosive armor. The lightning bolts had gone past many layers of protection, but they still destroyed the armor and unleashed their remaining power on Noah. Yet, he used that delay to sprint toward the other side of the storm. Snore fell apart, but Noah reappeared in the defensive spell''s insides with two long wounds on his back. Gray smoke came out of the injuries, and some of his internal organs were visible, but Noah didn''t care and pressed forward. Great Elder Diana was still too confused to react to his arrival. Noah swiftly grabbed her chin and poured a bottle of the sedative that he had just taken out of his space-ring inside her mouth. The Matriarch gulped, and her expression quickly returned to a stern one. The lightning storm disappeared when Great Elder Diana regained control of her mental faculties. Her consciousness unfolded again, but it didn''t apply any pressure at that time. "Noah Balvan," Great Elder Diana said as she straightened her position and adjusted her robe, "What can I do to thank you?" Noah revealed a cold smile before replying in his usual manner. "Leave all the raw laws to me from now on." Chapter 1129: 1129. Companions ''I would have no chances against her in normal conditions,'' Noah thought after reviewing the battle with Great Elder Diana in his mind. The group had resumed their flight toward the stars in the distance, but Noah couldn''t shake off the sensation of impotence felt in front of such a powerful expert. Great Elder Diana had been barely conscious, and part of her mind had held her real power back during the battle. She couldn''t even rely on her individuality, but she had been a threatening opponent anyway. The injuries on Noah''s back were proof of how distant he was from the liquid stage in terms of prowess. Great Elder Diana''s raw display of power was able to wound him deeply, even when he deployed his best protections. The lack of a rank 6 dantian held back the power that Noah could express. Gaining access to rank 6 darkness would bring his overall prowess to the next level. Moreover, the new darkness would make his dark matter evolve, unlocking many creations that Noah had chosen not to approach while his higher energy was unstable. There was so much to improve when it came to his creations. Yet, his dantian appeared unable to leap in the next rank. Noah could only stuff it with raw laws for the time being. The group of five encountered other lumps of white laws along their way. Noah took them without any opposition nor complaints, and his injuries healed in a couple of months with their energy. Great Elder Diana had promised that she would leave every raw law to Noah, and she didn''t want to risk falling prey to the addiction again. The same went for Elder Regina since she had come close to going mad too. The Royals couldn''t even begin to start a negotiation. Noah was stronger than them, and he had the backing of the most potent powerhouses of the Council now. There was nothing First Prince and First Princess could do. Noah didn''t even glance at his companions whenever light entered in the range of his mind. He directly seized them knowing that they were rightfully his. It took another year for the group to find a change in the environment. The number of raw laws on their path had increased, which hinted that they were nearing the center of that separate reality. Noah had eaten more than fifteen lumps of light when he sensed the traces of a battle. The group found True Speed and Elder Paul fighting over a fist-sized sphere of light. That was the largest mass of raw laws that Noah had ever seen, and the two experts from the Council had to rely on their sedatives to fend off its captivating aura. The two cultivators fighting to seize it appeared lost in their anger. Their expressions were a mixture of rage and anxiety as they launched attack after attack at their opponent. Their auras didn''t reveal any trace of confusion. They appeared utterly lost in their addiction. Still, their cultivation level had increased. Noah inspected the battle for an instant before glancing at Great Elder Diana, who nodded in response. She then stepped forward and used a minute speck of her liquid "Breath" to create a few lightning bolts. The duo had understood each other with a simple exchange of gazes. Great Elder Diana would capture their addicted companions since it was far easier for her to do it. The lightning bolts shot toward Elder Paul and True Speed, and prison-like structures formed around them. The two insane cultivators tried to launch themselves at the crackling bars, but they fainted as soon as they touched them. They were lucky that Great Elder Diana''s individuality focused on precision. She managed to hold back her power so much that her lightning bolts didn''t hurt the two experts. Noah seized the raw laws while Elder Regina and the Matriarch neared the trapped experts and poured sedatives in their mouths. An intense sensation of power filled Noah as the two woke up. Great Elder Diana left the experts in Elder Regina''s hands. She would handle explaining their situation and what had happened while they were prey to their addiction. Elder Paul and True Speed shot incredulous gazes toward Noah when they learnt of how he had saved them all from Great Elder Diana. Still, they had already given up on the raw laws. Going mad had taught them about the dangers connected with that resource. They would have remained without any "Breath" in the middle of the void if Noah''s group didn''t appear to stop them. The group resumed their flight once again, and it didn''t take much before they encountered another lost companion. God''s Left Hand appeared in their vision, and she didn''t show any sign of addiction even if her power had increased. "Oh," God''s Left Hand conveyed while revealing a surprised expression at the sight of the group, "You are all fine." She was surprised that the journey through the void didn''t result in any casualty, especially when it came to the weaker experts. God''s Left Hand guessed that Great Elder Diana had found them all and kept them away from the raw laws, but the surprises weren''t over for her. Noah stepped forward, and Great Elder Diana followed him. Elder Regina went too, and the trio reached God''s Left Hand to hold a meeting away from unwanted ears. "I''ll leave the biggest share of raw laws to you," God''s Left Hand began without hiding her surprise when she saw that the Royals didn''t join the negotiations. She let the matter go since they didn''t complain, but the Council''s Matriarch left her speechless. "All my shares will go to the Demon Prince of the Hive," Great Elder Diana said, and Elder Regina continued on the same line. "Mine will go to Noah Balvan as well." God''s Left Hand''s eyes widened, and they went on Noah, who replied with a cold smile. The expert from the Shandal Empire couldn''t even begin to guess what had happened in the past years. Noah had a rank 5 dantian, but every powerhouse was stepping back to leave all the resources to him! God''s left Hand eventually calmed down, and she expressed her position with clear words. "I don''t know what you did to gain their favor, but I won''t sacrifice my share to you. I''ll take the second biggest part of raw laws out of respect for Great Elder Diana." "I''ll take the biggest share then," Noah replied, "But True Speed also joins the Hive. He owes me his life. You can ask him if you want." Elder Regina avoided to meet God''s Left Hand''s questioning gaze, but Great Elder Diana nodded at her without showing any ripple in her stern expression. The Matriarch of the Council knew that Noah was fearless during negotiations. He had also dealt and tricked King Elbas! Seeing him replying so fiercely at the offers of a cultivator far stronger than him made her sure that Divine Demon had chosen his heir well. Noah was a Demon to his very core. True Speed couldn''t vouch for him since he was still back in the group, but Noah turned to glance at him. The expert of the Empire lowered his head at the sight of the reptilian eyes. Still, there was only respect in that gesture. God''s Left Hand didn''t wholly believe Noah, but she didn''t mind giving up part of his share to keep the whole group happy. After all, she represented the weakest organization in that team. Moreover, she had already absorbed many raw laws during her solitary travel in the void. She had come prepared for the addicting properties of that resource, but her mind was reaching its limits. Giving Noah and the Council some face couldn''t hurt her. The Demon Prince was even doing her a favor in handling so many raw laws by himself. "You have a deal," God''s Left Hand concluded, and Great Elder Diana gestured to the others to join them. They would resume their flight immediately. Chapter 1130: 1130. World The number of raw laws eaten by Noah in the voyage through the void was immense. The Matriarchs of the Shandal Empire and Council couldn''t believe that he had yet to advance after absorbing so much true meaning carrying his individuality. Noah''s dantian remained at the peak of the fifth rank. Powerhouses in the liquid stage would feel the effects of so many nutrients, but his center of power remained unaffected. That peculiarity couldn''t escape the Matriarchs'' attentive eyes. They were both experienced in the cultivation journey, but they had never seen nor heard of such a peculiar case. Moreover, Noah showed no signs of addiction. He ate far more than God''s Left Hand, but he never took breaks. Instead, the Matriarch had to avoid absorbing raw laws if she had seized some in the previous month. Noah didn''t even rely on external items to keep his mind in check. He appeared utterly undisturbed by that immense amount of nutrients that invaded his body and nourished its every fiber. The Matriarchs decided to explain that peculiar quality with Noah''s hybrid status. Still, even if they came close to the truth, they couldn''t imagine how wrong they were on the matter. Noah''s dark star was a bottomless pit capable of purifying any energy and redirecting it where he needed it the most. His body improved by leaps and bounds even if it only took a minor share of the raw laws. Noah had already crossed the halfway mark of the lower tier, and that alone explained how much he had eaten. His companion felt in part envious of his qualities, but they mostly admired how resilient Noah was to any adversity. Even the void couldn''t affect his greatness. The group proceeded without ever stopping, and the stars in the distance eventually became closer in their vision. They began to show their true form of massive spheres of white light covered in a tempting aura. Great Elder Diana and Elder Regina started to consume large quantities of sedatives to fend off the aura leaking by those massive stars. God''s Left Hand had to reduce her absorption of raw laws to once every two months for the same reason. Noah liked that situation. He could eat even more since everyone struggled to face those auras. Truth be told, Noah wasn''t immune to the captivating properties of the auras. Still, it was easier for him to resist them since he had never suffered from addiction to the raw laws. It was as if he had returned to the black landmass in the yellow sea. He only needed to remain focused on his existence to avoid falling prey to that sensation. Entire years passed with no one saying a word. Cultivators didn''t mind the silence, but that was a different situation altogether. Only the Demons, Elder Julia, Second Prince, and King Elbas had yet to appear. They made the strongest assets of both Hive and Elbas family, so the group couldn''t help but worry about their state. Of course, that feeling wasn''t the same for everyone, but all of them feared the eventuality that King Elbas had gone mad again. It would be even worse if that happened to all the missing experts. Then, the group found their first white star. It suddenly became bigger in their vision, and its radiations almost made a few of them dive in its light. Great Elder Diana directly retreated when she felt her mind wavering. She dragged Elder Regina and Elder Paul away with her until the white star was nothing more than a large sphere in the distance. God''s Left Hand tried to resist its captivating qualities, but she felt forced to imitate the Council''s Matriarch to avoid going mad. True Speed went with her since his situation was far worse. The Royals remained in front of the giant sphere for a long time before moving their eyes on the monster that could bathe freely in that radiance without suffering any adverse effect. First Prince and First Princess had yet to touch the raw laws to resist them quite efficiently. However, Noah was on another level. He could float directly in front of that captivating mass without moving a single step forward. The Royals couldn''t go that close without losing themselves. They would have to rely on inscribed items to fend off the radiations and limit their absorption to only a small chunk of the entire star. "Go with the others," Noah ordered at some point, and the Royals could only leave to join the group that had retreated in the distance. Noah didn''t mind that others watched him in action, but the star was too big compared to the lumps of white light found along the way. He needed more time to eat all the raw laws inside it, and he guessed that the dark star would take a long time to purify and redirect them. It would be different if the Demons or Elder Julia were there or he could trust someone among the group. However, he was alone, and the only ones capable of resisting the aura belonged to King Elbas'' faction. Noah stepped inside the white star and floated until he reached its center. His consciousness slowly became denser as his ambition filled his mental waves, and the raw laws around him gained their qualities. ''Is this what I''ll feel when I''ll reach the stars?'' Noah pondered. Noah felt boundless and without any limit with the white sphere carrying his individuality and resonating with him. His existence felt more than simple energy contained inside an array of flesh and bones. It was part of the world, of an entire reality illuminated only by his brightness. Still, that was the complete opposite of what he wanted. Noah desired power so that he could wield. He wouldn''t sacrifice his uniqueness to become part of a larger system. ''This path toward light can''t suit me,'' Noah thought as he inhaled to begin his feeding on the raw laws. ''Everything about me belongs only to me. I might take the world one day, but it will never have me.'' The white star shrunk as Noah ate. The cultivators in the distance could sense how the faint radiations that reached their position became less intense. Noah ate without placing any limit to his greed. Every raw law around him belonged to his centers of power, so he would make sure they had them. The strange connection with the world that Noah had found during the absorption enlightened him on a matter that had annoyed him since he had reached the void. His dantian absorbed most of that true meaning without growing. Everything fused with its structure, but the breakthrough didn''t start. Nevertheless, Noah could finally understand what his organ required now. It was something that he had tried to complete in the last centuries without any success. ''My destruction can fuse all my individuality into a blade,'' Noah thought as the light around him slowly dimmed. ''My path with the hybris has peaked in my current form. My creation has altered the cycle of life and brought it into my palm.'' Those were the main aspects of Noah''s individuality. They reflected his largest paths that then had countless ramifications. Yet, he had failed to notice one obvious problem. His dark star was a proper center of power now, and it needed to be ready to step on the path of the laws for his individuality to advance. Noah had always connected the copies of his elements to his creation, but it seemed that they had gained a central role with the dark star being his fourth center of power. ''It is as June said,'' Noah concluded in his mind as the light around him went completely dark, and the white star disappeared. ''I need to create my world.'' Chapter 1131: 1131. System Elements had distinct features that made them different from each other. Those qualities didn''t identify them since spells had various effects, but their nature was to follow them. Light and darkness were complete opposites, and they even repelled each other. The light element was soft, almost weightless. It could fill entire areas without affecting anything, and it focused on purity rather than sheer quantity. It was calm and captivating. Some of Daniel''s leadership skills came from his innate aura as a cultivator with a light aptitude. Instead, the darkness element was heavy. It was violent and abrupt, and it didn''t care about anything that it destroyed in its expansion. Darkness appeared able to engulf everything. It strived for quantity, and it didn''t stop at anything. Both elements shared similar features too. They were a core part of the world''s fabric, and they were everywhere. They also tend to expand as long as they had space. Nevertheless, Noah couldn''t replicate the light element even if it had those similarities with his aptitude. He had even tried meditating next to Daniel, but that only originated negative sensations inside him. The matter didn''t appear to have a solution, but the enlightenment gained inside the white star stated that he had to complete the creation of his world if he wanted his individuality to advance. That was a requirement set by his dark star. His new center of power made his individuality even harder to improve, and Noah could only accept that annoying feature. ''What will happen with all this energy then?'' Noah questioned himself about that issue. His dantian had absorbed the largest share of raw laws among his centers of power. Still, they had only fused with its structure without adding any other effect. The raw laws kept on refilling his dantian, but they didn''t improve it. Their energy had still flowed there though, and Noah didn''t know what had happened to it. ''Maybe it will show some change once I manage to advance,'' Noah thought. ''I wonder if I can still force it with this resource.'' Noah didn''t give up on the possibility of forcing the breakthrough. That was the easiest method, especially since he didn''t have a solution for the light element. The group rejoined Noah when they saw the white star disappearing, but they felt surprised when they saw him. They couldn''t understand how he was still at the peak of the fifth rank even after absorbing so much true meaning. Noah didn''t explain anything and turned to continue his long flight. The others could only follow him without asking any questions related to his cultivation level. The endless void filled their days again, and only the casual appearance of raw laws made them deviate their path. Yet, Noah often flew toward them on his own in that part of the travel. The radiations filled the whole area. The group was too close to the bigger stars to avoid their effects, and even Noah had begun to struggle to continue moving forward without relying on external items. Luckily for them, both the Council and the Shandal Empire had prepared for that journey. The two Matriarchs had many potions and pills that could keep their minds calm and unaffected by the radiations. The experts began to trade those resources and keep notes of eventual payments that they had to complete once returned to the surface. Only the Royals remained out of the cycle since they had brought their methods and didn''t sell to anyone. Noah found more giant stars to eat, but the outcome was always the same. Only his mind and body showed improvements, while his dantian remained the same. The experts eventually had to rely on the raw laws to refill their dantians. The long journey cost them small bits of "Breath" at every sprint, and they had flown for more than a decade already without even cultivating once. Of course, the others alternated themselves in the absorption to keep in check any adverse reaction. Noah''s body advanced steadily in the lower tier and even neared its last part. His mind improved in sturdiness, and his spherical rune enlarged it at a steady pace. At some point, the group finally found the remaining team members, but the scene that appeared in front of them was more complicated than it seemed. The Hive''s experts were at some distance from a system of seven massive stars that radiated dense auras. The light in the spheres seemed about to become solid due to the pressure that those radiations created in the area. The blackness of the void didn''t exist there. The seven stars managed to illuminate every corner of the area since they formed a wide static circle that left large empty paths among them. Chasing Demon, Flying Demon, Dreaming Demon, and Elder Julia were right outside of the dense area. They kept their eyes fixed on the whirlpools that the radiation formed on the void, but they didn''t show any sign of addiction. Second Prince was right in front of them, in the middle of the dense radiations. He kept his eyes closed as he floated in a cross-legged stance among them. The radiations gathered in the red crystal at the center of his forehead. Small traces of white light flew with them too and flowed inside Second Prince as he continued his meditation. His level saw a constant increase during that process, but his training was nothing compared to what was happening in the middle of the seven stars. Noah moved his gaze only to find King Elbas floating in a cross-legged position right at the center of the array of stars. He was in the denser spot and where the largest number of radiations amassed, but a golden light covered his skin and protected his body. Noah neared the four from the Hive who could only shrug their shoulders at his questioning gaze. Their version of the story then explained how they had ended up in that situation. Apparently, the black and white sphere in the middle sea could lead anywhere inside the separate reality. Considering the size of that world, even the slightest difference during the entrance would bring cultivators to a completely different place. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon had quickly found each other with their personal methods, and they had met Chasing Demon along their way. During their hunt for raw laws, they had found King Elbas, Second Prince, and Elder Julia who were flying toward the stars. The situation had changed at that point. King Elbas had gained the monopoly over every raw law and had given some of them only to Second Prince. The Demons and Elder Julia had become like the rest of Noah''s group. They weren''t strong enough to oppose the powerhouse dictating the rules, so they could only continue to fly, hoping for a change in that trend. That didn''t happen until they found that array of stars. King Elbas had immediately shot toward its center and had cultivated since then. "Why are you still here then?" Noah asked after their story ended. King Elbas was busy, so they could leave to look for other raw laws. They were there to increase their personal power in the end. "No one leaves," King Elbas conveyed as his consciousness expanded. His mental waves could cross the pressure generated by the stars and reach the group outside of their dense influence. "Every speck of raw laws belongs to me," King Elbas continued. "They will be the foundation for my ascension. I''ve invited you here only to be my audience." Noah remained speechless. The content of King Elbas'' message stunned him, but what surprised him the most was that the Royal didn''t appear insane when he spoke. King Elbas was in complete control of his mind. He had said that without having become addicted to the raw laws. Chapter 1132: 1132. Laughs and death King Elbas''s message carried a subtle threat that made every cultivator tremble. Even Noah couldn''t avoid reacting to the innate fear that a solid stage powerhouse caused inside him. That was the same sensation that Noah had felt when he faced Great Elder Diana. The only difference was that the fear coming from King Elbas'' meditating figure was a hundred times more intense. The Royal had been clear. The experts had to stay there and watch him as he absorbed raw laws to complete his journey through the heroic ranks. ''How long will it take?'' Noah wondered as he suppressed his survival instincts. His body rarely felt such intense instincts anymore, but King Elbas'' mental waves had awakened the primal side that Noah had long since left behind. King Elbas'' orders had one fundamental problem. Everyone on the scene would gladly give up on the raw laws to avoid facing the strongest expert in the world. However, King Elbas had been in the liquid stage just a few centuries ago. Even if he had advanced as soon as he left the surface, that would only add a bit more than three hundred years to his time spent in the solid stage. Powerhouses would usually take millennia to advance through the entirety of the sixth rank. King Elbas was in the last stage of that path, and his words hinted that he needed an audience until he ascended. ''This can take thousands of years,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''Hoping that the raw laws will reduce that time to a few centuries is just delusional.'' The raw laws could help King Elbas reach the peak faster, but Noah''s centers of power couldn''t afford that long period spent without growing. His mind would be fine, but his body and dantian would surely suffer from some stagnation if he left them be for millennia. The situation was even harsher for the other experts since they didn''t have Noah''s dark star. Noah''s aura revealed his internal struggle. His power was everything to him, so he couldn''t remain calm when King Elbas threatened his potential. "What''s in your mind?" Flying Demon asked. He was the first to sense what Noah was thinking, and the Demons paid attention to that mental message. Noah turned toward the trio. Chasing Demon and the others shared his mentality, and he was almost sure that they had his same goals. They wanted to become gods and ascend toward the white world above. A calm smile appeared on his face as he accepted what he was about to propose. Noah had almost forgotten what it was to live without nothing to lose, and he instinctively became serene at the thought of putting everything on the line. "Death is not too bad," Noah conveyed, and a tremor ran through the Demons when that message reached their minds. Noah had never spoken with them about his transmigration. June had desired to have that part of his life all for herself, and the Demons had respected that. Still, he had now begun to reveal something, and there was only one possible reason behind that gesture. "I always imagined it as a peaceful end to such a long life," Chasing Demon replied as a broad smile appeared on his face too. His aura had also become less tense after understanding what Noah had in mind. "I don''t know about peace," Noah replied, and a short laugh echoed through his consciousness. "I would describe it as empty." A second of silence followed his answer, but Flying Demon''s loud laugh soon broke it and claimed the experts'' attention before he announced his position. "I can deal with empty!" Flying Demon said, and Dreaming Demon smiled seeing her lover getting so excited. She didn''t say anything, but she nodded at Noah to express that she would accompany him in his plan. "What is happening?" Elder Julia asked when she saw the three Demons and Noah conversing happily while King Elbas'' mind covered the entire area. The other experts stared at them while wearing confused expressions too. They had heard the whole conversation, and they couldn''t understand what they had in mind. "The Demon Prince is tired of living," Flying Demon proudly announced while nearing Noah, "We think that it would be a pity to let him die alone." Noah and Flying Demon exchanged a glance before laughing together. They appeared almost insane in Elder Julia''s eyes, but Great Elder Diana''s laugh soon joined theirs. "I like your idea," Great Elder Diana said while nearing the Demons. "Let me accompany you in this last march." Elder Julia finally understood what they were about to do at that point, and her expression froze for a second. Then, her face relaxed, and she began to laugh together with them as she accepted death. The remaining expert slowly understood what was happening, and they felt shocked about that plan. God''s Left Hand even expressed her stupor. "Are you all dreaming? You can''t succeed!" The laughing group turned toward the Matriarch, and they answered according to their character. Noah shrugged his shoulders and spoke in an aloof tone. "I''ve already died once. This whole life is nothing more than my stupid dream to reach the stars." "I''ve dreamt for a thousand years," Dreaming Demon conveyed. "I don''t mind closing my eyes again." "This is all time stolen from Heaven and Earth for me," Flying Demon said among his laughs. "Why would I care if I were to die here?" Chasing Demon glanced at Great Elder Diana before adding his mental message too. "I''m nothing more than a corpse dreaming the dead. I think it''s time to wake up, even if it will be for the last time." "I never thought I would die fighting together with Divine Demon''s disciples," Great Elder Diana said as she glanced at the Demons. "Fate sure is funny." "It will be even funnier if we were to succeed," Elder Julia said, and everyone around her laughed at her joke. God''s Left Hand watched the group and shook her head. Her eyes then went on the seven stars and King Elbas'' figure among them. The Royal had heard everything, but he didn''t act to stop what was happening. He either didn''t care about the matter, or he didn''t consider the group a threat. First Prince and First Princess suddenly understood the group''s intentions, and they shot next to Second Prince, who was inside the dense radiations. Golden runes appeared on their robes and a series of shining lines formed to create large crowns on their heads. The radiations didn''t surpass those inscriptions, so they could remain next to their meditating brother at ease. God''s Left Hand sighed before joining the laughing group. True Speed followed her. Elder Regina and Elder Paul did the same, and she surprised her companion with her sudden laughs. "You are insane," God''s Left Hand said, "But I obey only the Almighty. I won''t let this man decide on my future." "A slave till the end," Noah mocked her, and God''s Left Hand replied while showing a smile. "Has anyone ever told you that you should respect your seniors?" Noah laughed again, and the rest of the group did the same. The relaxed atmosphere among them didn''t reflect the plan that had brewed in their minds. "Do you have a strategy?" God''s Left Hand asked, but the Demons and Noah could only smile to reply to her. They were about to attack a solid stage powerhouse in the middle of seven captivating stars and dense radiations. Three Royals also were in their path, and they had some of the best items in the world. There was no time to plan things out. They would only become stronger if the group left them to meditate freely. "Do as you wish," Noah said as he stepped forward, and black smoke began to come out of his skin. "Be sure to make a mess before you die." Chapter 1133: 1133. Waves of attacks "I advise you to step back!" First Prince conveyed as he and his sister deployed their inscribed items. A golden halo surrounded them as armors, shields, and longswords appeared next to them. "It''s too late for that," Second Prince said as he interrupted his meditation to stand up. His stern eyes analyzed Noah and the others before a broad smile appeared on his face. The experts next to Noah deployed their methods to defend against the Demonic Form, but their instincts told them that they wouldn''t be enough to block it. Still, they didn''t have time to focus on Noah''s spell. Their surprise had to wait. Now there was only their desperate march. The group had decided to attack King Elbas. None of them wanted to give up on their potential, so they had to face the Royal if they wanted to continue on their path. Some of them had considered the possibility of escaping. However, King Elbas was at his peak, and no one could stop him on the surface. Dealing with the problem now was their only chance to ensure a future for their cultivation journey. The experts spread around the seven stars when Noah activated his iconic spell. They summoned their weapons and unleashed their aura without any care for their reserves of "Breath" once they took their position. Great Elder Diana took out her black lenses and created crackling spheres behind them as she prepared her offensive. Chasing Demon wielded his stick covered in magical beasts'' carvings, and his "Breath" flowed inside it as he became ready for battle. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon were together. They didn''t rely on any inscribed item, but hundreds of white flowers grew around them, and dense mental waves invaded their fabric. Dreaming Demon''s individuality wasn''t suitable for the environment of the void, but she could empower her lover''s spells. They had to work together to express their prowess to their fullest. Elder Regina summoned an army of puppets. Various magical beasts made of sturdy rocks surrounded her and pointed their fangs at the seven stars. Elder Julia disappeared, but countless wind slashes formed in the area. Weapons of various types also appeared and filled every empty spot around the Royals. Winds started to blow inside the void. Hurricanes formed as God''s Left Hand unleashed her individuality. She was a calamity sent by a god, and the area was about to experience her power. Elder Paul and True Speed were together too. The Council''s expert uncovered his right arm to reveal a red mass that covered his limb''s upper part. His living weapon had improved again, and he didn''t hesitate to activate its power by creating a series of fiery lions in front of him. Yellow sparks ran on True Speed''s legs and tore apart the lower part of his robe. His furry legs became visible to everyone, but no one cared about them in that situation. Noah stepped forward. The black smoke coming out of his figure surrounded him in a corrosive cloud that hid the features of his armor. The three Royals lost track of his presence, but they didn''t dare to move their eyes away from the cloud. Their arrogance didn''t make them blind. The Royals could see that Noah''s Demon Form was far more dangerous than before, but they didn''t let their surprise distract them. The area was about to fall into complete chaos, and they could only rely on their inscribed items to defend unless their Father interrupted his meditation. No one attacked. Everyone waited for something to trigger the now inevitable battle. The eyes of the experts slowly focused on the corrosive cloud that hid Noah. The black smoke expanded, and it would soon touch the area covered by the dense radiations. It seemed that both attackers and defenders had silently decided to wait for that moment to start the battle. Tension built among the Royals. They began to take step backs together with the expansion of the cloud. The pressure that they felt became even more intense when they sensed how relaxed their opponents were. The Royals didn''t believe it first, but the attackers had given up on life to make that assault. God''s Left Hand and other''s determination wasn''t as intense, but they knew that they could die quickly too. When the corrosive smoke touched the aura dense with radiations, mayhem engulfed the entire battlefield. The spheres behind Great Elder Diana''s lenses released lighting bolts that the black glass enhanced. They shot toward King Elbas and exploded into a crackling gray cloud. Chasing Demon activated his stick, and an army of magical beasts made of a rocky substance formed before charging at the seven stars. Flying Demon detonated his flowers, and Dreaming Demon empowered their properties. A layer of ice covered the entire battlefield, and a storm of ice-shards ravaged the area while spreading the Demon''s individuality further. Elder Regina''s puppets shot toward King Elbas, and many of them detonated when they came in contact with the dense radiations of the raw laws. The many wind-weapons around the array of stars flew forward and severed everything they could. A few of them managed to get past the radiations, but they reached the grey cloud nonetheless. God''s Left Hand unleashed her storms. Her hurricanes crashed on the star in front of her and released violent gales that ravaged the area. True Speed and Elder Paul launched their abilities too. The Elder made his lions charge at the Royal, and True Speed kicked the air to throw yellow lightning bolts that landed directly near King Elbas'' position. A series of black sabers came out of the corrosive cloud. They exploded once they touched the Royals'' inscribed defenses, and they spread the dark smoke further. The attackers had launched their offensive. Some of their attacks had targeted King Elbas, but many had focused on covering the entire battlefield. Noah had aimed for the Royals since they stood on his path. He had used part of the revisited Shadow Copy spell to launch sabers carrying the corrosive smoke. Still, they were only casual attacks meant to test his opponents'' reactions. The attacks made a mess out of the area. The void couldn''t fall apart, but part of the light inside the stars separated from the spheres and spread in the environment. The powerhouses didn''t destroy the raw laws, but their spells had affected the structure of the stars and disturbed King Elbas'' meditation. The Royals soon became visible again. A golden light pierced the corrosive smoke that had surrounded them and revealed their shining figures. The golden shields around them had been enough to block Noah''s casual attack, but there was no happiness in their expression. First Prince, First Princess, and Second Prince didn''t even bother to check their condition before turning toward their Father. A gray cloud had covered King Elbas'' figure, and many attacks had pierced it while he remained hidden inside it. His consciousness didn''t show any reaction at those attacks, so everyone knew that the offensive didn''t hurt him. The gray smoke soon dispersed and revealed King Elbas surrounded by a thick array of golden runes. He had activated an inscribed item to fend off that offensive, but annoyance soon spread through his mental waves. King Elbas broke his cross-legged position and stood up. His gaze swept the experts of the other forces and expressed his reluctance to take part in that struggle. "Why do you even fight this?" King Elbas conveyed through his consciousness. He found that desperate effort completely pointless. The attackers didn''t answer. Their reply was another series of attacks covering the entire area and filling the void with their destructive might. Chapter 1134: 1134. Variable The fact that King Elbas had come out unharmed from the first wave of attacks didn''t stop Noah and the others. They had always known that the Royals'' leader was a monster, so they didn''t feel surprised about that outcome. The attackers knew their charge was a desperate attempt to save their potential. They wouldn''t have accepted death if the task was easy. The second wave of attacks crashed on the area inside and around the seven stars, giving birth to a second gray cloud with a darker shade at that time. The cloud didn''t have time to disperse since the third wave of attacks suddenly crashed on the battlefield. Noah and the others weren''t using their strongest spells, but their offensive was relentless. The fourth wave of attacks arrived, but a sea of flames exploded from the middle of the stars and fended off the incoming offensive before it could reach King Elbas. The flames were dense and violent. They were nothing more than a causal counterattack from the Royals'' leader, but they destroyed every spell in their path and forced the enemy experts to retreat. Noah was inside the corrosive cloud when the flames arrived. His instincts sent warning messages that made him retreat until he was outside of the fire''s range. The scenery changed when the flames dispersed. Most of the corrosive smoke had disappeared, and the fire didn''t spare the dense radiations either. Only the stars and the Royals had remained untouched. King Elbas had made sure to spare his resources and his underlings during his wide attack. King Elbas became visible again when the fire went away. He was in the same position as before, but his expression showed a tinge of disappointment. "That''s everything you can do?" King Elbas asked as his arrogance spread in the area. "I need a powerful audience. My achievements will be meaningless otherwise." His mocking words hit the leaders of the enemy organizations deeply. They didn''t make them rely on reckless tactics, but they reminded them how behind they were in terms of cultivation level. Chasing Demon, Great Elder Diana, and God''s Left Hand knew that they couldn''t overcome that difference in sheer power with numbers. Only something or someone equally strong could make King Elbas back off. The two Matriarchs and Patriarch exchanged a glance and silently decided to go all-out. God''s Left Hand took out a black fan from her space-ring, and a quasi-rank 7 aura filled the void. Great Elder Diana donned an orange armor covering her entire body, and another quasi-rank 7 aura spread in the environment. King Elbas stared with interest at their weapons, and their might didn''t scare him in the slightest. His expression showed his pure curiosity at the sight of such powerful inscribed items. Nevertheless, his expression froze when a rank 7 aura filled the void with its oppressing might. Chasing Demon had taken out the dark-red puppet that Noah and the others had obtained in Shandal''s separate dimension. The puppet was only the size of a fist when Chasing Demon wielded it. Yet, it began to grow as soon as he poured his "Breath" inside it. The consumption of energy wasn''t high. The puppet only needed a bit of "Breath" to activate. The fuel that it needed was inside its structure, and only the ground of the new continent could refill it. King Elbas watched as the puppet quickly transformed into a massive humanoid giant that was more than five hundred meters tall. Even the other experts remained speechless at the sight of such a titanic weapon. Chasing Demon sat on top of the giant, and his "Breath" gathered in front of him to give birth to two smaller titans. The Demon would deplete less energy if he could use actual ground and reinforce it with his "Breath". However, the separate reality didn''t have any matter, so he had to materialize it through a spell. The quasi-rank 7 weapons of the other leaders appeared mere playthings when placed next to the dark-red titan. Its aura was so oppressing that even the stars stopped refilling the area with their radiations. ''He has taken it out,'' Noah thought from inside his corrosive cloud. He didn''t know where Chasing Demon had stored the puppet, but he noted inside his mind to ask him about that if they ever survived. ''I should get serious too,'' Noah concluded, and his palms opened to let dark matter on them. A flame that radiated boundless destruction formed, and water capable of taking any shape appeared next to it. Rocks radiating an intense craving for life followed them, and angry winds encircled those elements. The last ones to gather were the orange sparks imitating Heaven and Earth''s Tribulation, and the dark matter in its raw form. Noah''s elements had aligned in his hands, and they circled themselves as if they wanted to fuse. Noah knew what he had to do to advance. He had to make that part of his individuality advance, which meant bringing those elements to the next step. They would become the very fabric of his world, but he lacked one last fundamental element before the technique could take form. The battle against King Elbas could be his last one, but his dark star worked better when his life was in danger. Noah thought that he could accelerate the arrival of the enlightenment if he relied on his higher energy to fight. Snore formed next to him, and Night came out of the new space-ring. The Demonic Sword appeared above him too, but none of them attacked just yet. For some reason, the Royals didn''t move from their spot even if their Father had mighty opponents everywhere. They seemed focused only on Noah, and they didn''t show signs of retreat when the divine titan made its appearance. Noah wanted to make things difficult for King Elbas, but the presence of the Royals on his way made his plan impossible to actuate for now. He had to take care of them first if he wanted to scheme against their leader. ''Do they fear me so much?'' Noah smiled at that thought before launching his elements. Snore did the same once it saw the attacks. Noah was the greatest variable in that battle. His power didn''t even come close to King Elbas, but that wouldn''t be his first time landing a decisive blow on an opponent that was far above his level. Moreover, his physical strength was a deadly weapon for humans. Noah only needed a touch to shatter even the mightiest human body. The Royals didn''t care about the experts with a predictable prowess. Their Father could handle them. Their only problems were those full of surprises, and Noah was the first one that had come to their minds. A wave of fire, water blades, formless winds, and lightning bolts came out of the cloud. A layer of sturdy rocks covered the attacks and increased their power as they flew toward the Royals. Corrosive smoke came out of them too. Noah''s Demonic Form followed all his attacks, and it only waited for his opponents to come in direct contact with the smoke to show its new effects. The Royals placed their defensive items in the attacks'' trajectory, but an intense shockwave broke their concentration and made the elemental blows land on their golden armors. Second Prince had to rely on a fiery shield to block them. The leaders had launched their spells and had used their inscribed weapons to siege King Elbas, who had wielded a series of quasi-rank 7 items. He had a rectangular golden shield in one hand, and its surface absorbed the lightning bolts coming out of Great Elder Diana''s orange armor. There was a fiery sword in his other hand, and King Elbas used it to fend off the threatening winds created through God''s Left Hand''s fan. As for the titan, King Elbas had to take many disposable quasi-rank 7 items to summon a series of golden disks that blocked the incoming attacks. The titan slammed its massive hands on the golden disks that had moved in its trajectory right before they could reach the white stars. Chasing Demon snorted, but he threw the two weaker giants forward, and he detonated them before King Elbas'' flames could take care of them. Chapter 1135: 1135. Disappeared The only thing holding the rank 7 titan''s power back was Chasing Demon''s cultivation level. He couldn''t unleash its full potential nor rely on some of its unique features because his mind and dantian weren''t up to the task. He could still activate some of its most powerful abilities, but doing that would leave him drained and could hurt his centers of power. That outcome wasn''t ideal in an environment without energy to absorb. The detonation caused by the smaller titans'' self-destruction overcame the flames that King Elbas had launched to block them. It also spread a shockwave that covered the entire battlefield, affecting everyone in the area. First Prince, First Princess, and Second Prince blocked Noah''s elemental attacks, but the corrosive smoke that he released touched their skin. Even if the golden halo radiated by their inscribed items weakened its destructive properties, the smoke still managed to affect the Royals with some of its new features. Black spots appeared on the Royals'' faces. The sudden invasion of a foreign substance shocked the trio and forced them to take out precious drugs to counter its poisonous properties. However, Noah wasn''t the type to let that opportunity go. His fingers straightened to make his hand resemble a blade, and his mind focused on activating one of his revisited spells. A rune rose from the mental sea and flew toward the walls of Noah''s mind. The diagram had an unclear form that changed shape according to the contents of Noah''s thoughts. Darkness rose from Noah''s dantian and reached the spot where the rune had landed. The mental energy inside the diagram''s fabric activated its effects once paired with the "Breath". Noah raised his hand before lowering it slowly. His fingers molded the corrosive smoke as they cut through the cloud, and three fiendish figures formed in front of him. It wasn''t easy to see them inside the cloud since they had corrosive smoke as their material. Yet, Noah knew that three humanoid figures had formed in front of him, and their appearance resembled his when he donned the fuming armor. The Shadow Copy spell didn''t change too much after the modifications. Still, Noah could only activate its effects on the Demonic Sword back then since his individuality had the shape of a saber. Sword Saint''s training had expanded that aspect of his existence. Every part of Noah''s individuality flowed inside his sword arts now. Everything about him had become a sword. His entire being radiated an intense sharpness that didn''t come only from a small part of his existence. That removed any limit from the Shadow Copy spell. The ability could now copy Noah in his strongest form, even if it had other restrictions and weaknesses regarding the copies'' actual power. A fiendish figure came out of the cloud when the Royals drank their drugs to defend against the poison. The fuming armor had changed after Noah had modified the Demonic Form, but the difference didn''t involve its core aspect. The fuming armor still featured a long tail, a pair of horns, a draconic helmet, and long claws. Yet, the smoke that it leaked enveloped the area in a dense and dangerous sensation. Moreover, the smoke appeared to have a will of its own. It spread in the environment as if looking for prey. It acted as a predator in its hunting ground. The Royals saw the fiendish figure and prepared themselves to defend against any trick behind that frontal attack. They didn''t believe that Noah had charged directly at them without any scheme to back him up. Still, the fiendish figure continued its reckless charge until it was about to crash on the trio covered in the golden halo. The Royals couldn''t hesitate anymore at that point. Everyone in the world knew that Noah was lethal in close quarters, so they had to fend him off before he could lay a finger on them. First Princess and First Prince took care of the matter. The drug had yet to remove the Black Mark spreading under their skin, but they relied on their best attacks nonetheless. Blood came out of the duo''s fingers, and two massive fiery figures formed. An eight-armed titan and a giant snake surrounded the three Royals and condensed their flames on the spot where the fuming copy was about to land. First Prince and the others couldn''t hide their surprise when they saw the fiendish figure releasing a few black lines before exploding into a cloud of corrosive smoke. The Royals immediately deployed their investigative items. A white orb appeared among them and poured its shining light on the cloud that tried to pave its way through the flames, but it didn''t find any trace of life. Noah wasn''t there. He had managed to invade the area around them with his smoke, but his exact location was still unknown. The Royals didn''t dare to let their guard down, but another fiendish figure suddenly flew out of the first cloud and entered the second one. First Prince activated the orb, but the fuming armor came out of the cloud to explode inside the flames again. The two fiery creatures focused on fending back the new smoke, but two more fiendish figures flew toward the trio at that point. Both fuming armors wielded a sword as they flew directly toward the Royals. First Prince and the others didn''t know what to think anymore, so they launched everything they had on the opponents. Blood fell out of Second Prince''s eyes, and a fiery nine-headed hydra formed next to the other giant creatures. The three spells were the maximum expression of the Royals'' prowess. The three Royals were about to launch their attacks at the two fuming enemies when they sensed the arrival of another shockwave. The leaders'' battle was infuriating behind them, and they had already suffered from their carelessness. The Royals couldn''t let its shockwaves take them by surprise again, but they couldn''t ignore the fiendish figures either. Noah had done that on purpose. Differently from the Royals, he was completely relaxed and could focus on the leaders'' battle. He could predict when a shockwave was about to fill the environment from the rank 7 titan''s movements. Exploiting that opportunity was only a matter of timing afterward. That was the only reason why he didn''t use the three copies at the same time. He needed to gain time to create that opportunity. The Royals gave up on attacking and focused everything they had on defending. Their flames became denser as the creatures surrounding them shrunk, and the light of their inscribed items became more intense. That probably was one of the highest defensive power that gaseous stage powerhouses could wield! "Stack them up!" First Princess shouted, and First Prince immediately followed her orders. Second Prince felt slightly confused, but he did as she asked anyway. The three massive creatures fused to form a denser and formless wall of fire. The flames inside the wall became so thick that their power stepped on the liquid realm when paired with the golden protections. First Prince and First Princess knew that Noah had an attack capable of piercing even the strongest defense. His lunge was a terrifying attack that they didn''t know how to deal with. The best they could do was creating a defense with power in the liquid stage and hope that it would be enough to stop the lunge. It would be better to prevent it, but setting a line of protection had the priority. The fiendish figures didn''t perform any slash. They crashed on the dense flames and exploded into a cloud of corrosive smoke fused with the others in the area. The Royals waited for Noah to attack, but their white orb didn''t sense anything. It was as if their opponent had disappeared. Seconds of tense silence passed among the flames and darkness. The Royals'' spells eventually fended off the corrosive smoke and allowed them to see the environment again. First Prince and the others didn''t find anyone in front of them, but their Father''s angry mental waves told them that something was off. "What are you even doing?!" King Elbas conveyed, and the Royals turned only to see that a white star had disappeared. There was only Noah in its spot. Chapter 1136: 1136. Mayhem King Elbas was in a tough position. His opponents launched a relentless offensive, and the rank 7 titan was an item that he couldn''t stop completely. He could only rely on his stash of quasi-rank 7 items to limit the titan''s influence on the battlefield. The golden disks eventually broke while King Elbas deflected and blocked the Matriarchs'' offensive. He took out a quasi-rank 7 phoenix-like puppet at that point, and the creature set off to deal with the titan. Golden fire surrounded the phoenix as it exchanged blows with the titan. Its efforts allowed King Elbas to gain a few minutes, but the puppet soon crumbled under the might of an actual divine item. King Elbas threw another quasi-rank 7 phoenix at the titan, and he had another for when the second one fell apart. Once his stash of powerful puppets ended, he began to rely on disposable weapons that pushed Chasing Demon''s giant away. The three attacking leaders almost couldn''t believe their eyes. King Elbas'' stash of powerful items appeared endless, and a chill ran down their spines when they recalled all the small battles that had happened in the past. King Elbas must have had that stash for a while by then. Many of those quasi-rank 7 items went back to when he was still a liquid stage powerhouse. The Royals'' leader was an unparalleled existence. His expertise didn''t have limits, and he had begun to break the barrier among stages since he was only one of the world''s leading forces. His performance was spectacular. The leaders of the major organizations were deploying everything they had, but he came out unscathed from every clash. Still, Chasing Demon and the others knew that even his immense potential had limits. King Elbas was a monster, but his stash of powerful items had to end at some point. Their exchanges continued until a sudden change in the battlefield forced King Elbas to focus elsewhere. The Royal''s mind covered the entire battlefield, but the titan''s continuous assaults forced him to neglect most of what happened outside of his fight. The rank 7 titan slammed its fists on a quasi-rank 7 shield that had appeared in the trajectory of its attacks. The item broke, but the giant had to recover its limbs to prepare for its next offensive. The clash between the two created a shockwave that spread outside of the array of stars. Still, its intensity wasn''t enough to kill the powerhouses fighting outside of it. King Elbas could finally focus on the entirety of the battlefield again in that moment of break. The weaker experts were still launching attacks at him, but his fiery swords destroyed them together with God''s Left Hand''s blows. He didn''t even have to mind an offensive on that level. Then, his focus moved on his underlings, and he felt slightly satisfied with their battle prowess. The Royals'' dense fiery wall surpassed the limits of their stage. It would be foolish not to recognize such an achievement. However, his anger surged when he saw that one of the seven stars had disappeared. That large mass of raw laws had been there just a moment ago, but now there was only Noah in its spot. ''Six left,'' Noah thought as a cold smile appeared on his face. He had to admit that the Royals were strong when they worked together and deployed their inscribed items. Only his lunge could breach their last defensive measure, but he couldn''t waste one of his two attacks for them. Noah couldn''t use his strongest attacks when he wasn''t sure that the leaders could deal with King Elbas. In case everything else failed, he could still aim to surprise him. Still, the Royals weren''t an easy target, so he had switched to a less difficult prey. The stars didn''t defend themselves in the end. They were there, begging for someone to absorb them. Noah didn''t have a particular reason to target the stars. They refilled his dantian and improved his overall condition, but taking them away from King Elbas didn''t help him in the task. King Elbas only needed to find another way to advance or scour the void for more raw laws. Losing the stars didn''t ruin his potential. Noah only wanted to make him mad. He didn''t know if those small failures could affect the Royal''s power, but every cultivator would eventually commit mistakes if the pressure became too heavy to handle. King Elbas had nine experts targeting him with a continuous offensive, and three of them had items that forced him to defend. An angry mental state might make him lose. Chasing Demon didn''t waste the opportunity created by Noah and poured large quantities of "Breath" inside the titan that spread its aura in the environment. The Demon paled after that action, but small rocks came out of the titan and gave birth to an army of humanoid puppets that radiated a quasi-rank 7 aura. The rank 7 titan''s main feature was "life". It suited Chasing Demon''s individuality, allowing him to use less "Breath" when activating its abilities. The puppets moved slowly and deployed themselves in a battle formation as they pointed their heavy limbs at King Elbas. The titan grabbed a dozen of them and threw the group at the Royal in the distance. King Elbas wanted to make Noah pay for stealing his resources, but Chasing Demon wasn''t giving him any time to breathe. He had to deal with that expert, but the offensive of the others blocked his every move. He had to change the trend of that battle. He might end up losing otherwise. The humanoid puppets reached King Elbas at high speed. Their fists pointed at his face, body, and legs, and some of them aimed for the area around him. King Elbas had to use his golden shield to block Great Elder Diana''s offensive and his sword to deal with God''s Left hand and the other experts. His hands were full, but his inventory had everything he needed to block the puppets. A series of inscribed daggers came out of his space-ring and destroyed the puppets while crumbling shortly after. King Elbas cursed when he evaluated the cost of those lost weapons, but he felt glad that he had managed to defend once again. His consciousness remained unfolded, but he focused directly on Noah since he knew what type of troublemaker he was. Yet, he found out that another star had disappeared during the last exchange. Noah didn''t even bother to look at the Royals after he had fed on the first white star. He had directly cast his Demonic Form again, launched a few copies to spread his smoke, and left for more raw laws. The Royals couldn''t catch up with him, and King Elbas was too busy to mind him. Instead, Noah had the best resource of a lower-plane at hand, and he wouldn''t wait until someone seized it. Noah improved and refilled his reserves. It only took him a few instants to take all those raw laws and redirect them to the dark star. Only his organ could handle such intense and fast training. King Elbas couldn''t stand that situation anymore and decided to take the battle toward the next step. He had never been a vicious fighter, but he would be merciless on that day. Blood fell from the Royal''s fingers, and an unstable flame began to form. Then, the fire expanded until it became a large sphere that shone everywhere in the region. Power accumulated in that spell, and an explosion soon arrived. The flames shot everywhere, and a fiery sea accompanied it in its destructive might. Chapter 1137: 1137. Marks The flames engulfed everything. They spread quickly and crossed the five stars before continuing further. King Elbas had poured ten drops of blood in that attack. His might far surpassed the average power that a solid stage powerhouse could wield. Every expert on the scene had to rely on evasive maneuvers and powerful inscribed items only to create a chance for their survival. After all, King Elbas'' higher energy wasn''t something that they could block. Chasing Demon had it easy. The rocks on the titan''s head moved and opened an area where he could hide. Yet, the others didn''t have a divine item at hand. Great Elder Diana began to sprint backward. Her orange armor stored lightning bolts that she could control, and they showed their power during her escape. However, even if she accelerated by flying on top of lightning bolts, the flames touched her and melted her armor. The energy contained in the armor exploded outward right before the flames threatened to reach Great Elder Diana''s back, and that detonation allowed her to escape their range unscathed. God''s Left Hand used her fan to push herself outside of the flame''s range. She swung her arm continuously to create gales that slowed down the fire and flung her away. Her acceleration surpassed Great Elder Diana''s. The flames managed to touch her fan and melt part of it, but her weapon could still work by the time she had reached a safe area. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon had never been too close to the battle. Her individuality empowered the white flowers and ice shards, allowing them to remain in a relatively safe spot. They only had to detonate all the ice and flowers accumulated during the past exchanges to escape from the fire''s range. Their spells had never managed to touch King Elbas directly, but they were tricky to deal with in the long-run. The Demons hoped that his fiery blade broke at some point. Elder Regina and Elder Julia shared the same desire. Their attacks had never managed to get past King Elbas'' innate defenses, and that made them feel rather useless. The arrival of the flames made of higher energy forced them to act. Elder Regina gathered all the beast-like puppets around her and used them as armor that pushed her outside of the fire''s range. Elder Julia had never been visible since the beginning of the battle, but she reappeared in a safe spot in the distance even before the flames could cross the remaining stars. True Speed and Elder Paul didn''t have any flashy method or item at hand, but the former was half-hybrid, and his legs allowed him to escape from that dangerous situation in no time. The same didn''t apply to Elder Paul, who ended up surrounded by flames before he could even summon a fast lion to help him escape. The experts on the scene could only watch the flames covering Elder Paul without releasing anything in the environment. It was as if the Elder had wholly disintegrated in a single attack. The flames ran over the Royals, but they appeared immune to their destructive power. They looked around each other in the hope of finding their elusive opponent who had dared to anger their Father. Still, when they looked in Noah''s last spot, they could only find a humanoid crack hanging on the void. ''This doesn''t feel too different,'' Noah thought as he sprinted through his dimension. He had initially feared that the void would place a limit to the moves that involved dimensions due to the lack of matter. Yet, he was even faster than before there. ''Maybe the walls among dimensions are thinner here,'' Noah thought as he stopped. The battlefield had turned into an inferno of fire during his escape, and only four existences dared to live in that environment. King Elbas didn''t have to defend from his energy, and the Royals were safe and sound too. The only one taking the attack head-on was Chasing Demon, but he had the protection of a divine item. All the other experts had retreated. One single attack from King Elbas had been enough to fend those powerhouses. He appeared genuinely unstoppable. King Elbas'' surprises didn''t end there. The Royal teleported among his flames and reappeared on top of the titan''s head. His fiery sword appeared in his grasp, and twenty drops of his blood flowed inside it. The weapon began to shine with a golden radiance as yellow flames came out of its surface. The fire focused on the tip of the blade right before King Elbas slashed with it, aiming at the spot where Chasing Demon''s path had appeared. It seemed that King Elbas wanted to take out the most troublesome opponent, and Chasing Demon was on top of the list due to his rank 7 item. Cracks appeared on the surface of the sword as a thin golden slash came out of it. The weapon crumbled after it launched its attack, but King Elbas didn''t even look at it. He only focused on the attack. The slash crashed on the titan''s head and spread a thin line that radiated its golden light even if it was only a mark. The fissure wasn''t deep, but the sole fact that King Elbas had managed to inflict some damage to it showed his potential. The giant began to move again, but King Elbas threw more blood on the flames that had formed in his palm and exploded into another sea of fire. The experts had just begun to near the battlefield, but they had to retreat again at the sight of King Elbas'' higher energy. The Royal reformed on top of the giant to execute the same attack as before. He had to use another powerful weapon that crumbled again, but another golden mark appeared on its head, and its arms rose to grab him. King Elbas teleported away. He appeared able to go anywhere in an instant as long as there were his flames on it. A soon as the titan attacked, King Elbas teleported behind it to repeat his offensive. He took out a new sword that crumbled after his slash. Golden marks accumulated on the titan''s head as King Elbas continued with his offensive. The experts in the distance wanted to help him, but the Royal released more flames every time to isolate their battle. Chasing Demon''s decision to remain inside the range of the sea of flames had isolated him from his allies, and no one could come in his aid now that the situation had reached that point. The army of puppets had fallen apart during the first wave of flames, and King Elbas'' continuous reactivation of his defensive spell made it impossible for Chasing Demon to counterattack. Only one solution became viable in his mind. He had to escape from there and regroup with the others. The titan instinctively understood what Chasing Demon had in mind and turned to retreat outside the range of the flames. Puppets came out of its back to detonate too. King Elbas had a hard time chasing after Chasing Demon, but he poured drop after drop of blood to make up for his lack of speed. His complexion paled, but that gave him the chance to spread his flames further and teleport next to the titan. The titan and King Elbas'' chase continued for a few minutes, and the golden marks on its head became more than thirty. The Royal became satisfied at that point. He had wasted so many rank 6 and quasi-rank 7 weapons there that he would need to spend entire millennia on building everything back. Yet, he had reached his goals, and his next teleportation showed that. King Elbas teleported on top of the titan''s head and touched it directly. The golden marks began to shine at that point, and an explosion followed. A third of the titan''s head disappeared, and Chasing Demon came out full of injuries. Chapter 1138: 1138. Warp King Elbas'' preparations had been meticulous. All his slashes had served to gather enough energy to inflict a decent amount of damage on the divine puppet. The effort left him weakened. King Elbas had used his blood to create higher energy and empower his weapons, so his incredible prowess had a price. Chasing Demon floated in the void near the maimed titan. Burns and large wounds filled the entirety of his body, but he was awake. The explosion had fended off King Elbas'' flames, but they quickly expanded again and neared his defenseless body. The Royal also teleported in the nearest fiery spot to prepare his final attack. King Elbas didn''t wield any weapon at that time. Blood flowed out of his fingers, and golden flames formed in his palms to take the shape of two long spears. As the flames around him advanced, the Royal pointed the spears at Chasing Demon''s floating body before giving them a soft push. The spears spread fire as they crossed the void. Their flames fused with the red ones and advanced to encircle Chasing Demon with an inferno of higher energy. There was no escape from that situation unless the Demon was able to fly through the flames. The titan moved right before the fire could touch its Master. Its mouth opened, and a deafening metallic cry came out of its massive figure. The sea of flames shattered as dense vibration covered the battlefield and destroyed everything in their path. Even the five white stars crumbled as the shockwaves separated the raw laws inside them. The golden spears fell apart, and King Elbas tried to teleport away only to find out that the space around him was too unstable to activate that technique. The vibrations engulfed King Elbas, and blood flowed out of its mouth as he activated countless disposable items to resist that shocking attack. Surprise appeared in his expression. The Royal had calculated what Chasing Demon could unleash with his current cultivation level, but that attack had surpassed his expectations. Golden shards covered King Elbas. His inscribed items shattered as soon as they came out of his space-ring, but he had to sacrifice them to weaken the shockwaves. "Are you really ready to die?!" King Elbas conveyed as a tinge of anger filled his mental waves. Chasing Demon straightened his position and flew back to the titan. Blood flowed from his ears and eyes, but the most striking feature was that a hole had formed on his low-waist. Still, he appeared stronger than ever. His cultivation level rose until it broke through the limits of the gaseous stage, and liquid "Breath" flowed out of his hole to fuel the titan. ''A secret art!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he analyzed the battle. He had resumed collecting every raw law that he found, and the titan''s cry put even more distance between him and the Royals. Noah was free to act as he wanted now that the fire was gone, but Chasing Demon''s gesture darkened his mood. There was no turning back from a secret art. The Patriarch had sacrificed his dantian to obtain a temporary surge of power, but he alone might not be enough to handle King Elbas. The experts around the battlefield resumed their offensive once the vibrations vanished. They wanted to support Chasing Demon, but none of them could come close. King Elbas could kill all of them with his flames. That defensive method was a barrier that they couldn''t cross with their current power and assets. ''Night,'' Noah thought, and the consciousness of the Pterodactyl focused on him. Night had returned inside the space-ring when Noah charged at the Royals. It had yet to have its chance to shine, but the battlefield didn''t give it many openings. "Are you finally letting me join the fray?" Night replied in an excited tone. The journey through the yellow magma had made it quite restless, and the years spent in the void didn''t solve its boredom. "I need you to kill one of them," Noah conveyed, "It doesn''t matter if you crumble in the process." "Will I get a new body?" Night asked. The chance to become part of the battle didn''t make it forget about its needs. "I''ll make your final body if you succeed," Noah answered, and an excited roar echoed inside his mind. That was the only reply that he needed before turning to stare at his pursuers. The three Royals had tried their best to stop Noah, but they often lost sight of him. The titan''s cry had also forced them to retreat, which made them almost give up on their task. However, they found Noah staring at them right before they decided to focus on the other experts. A chill ran down their spine when they saw those reptilian eyes coupled with a stern expression, but they deployed their spells and items to prepare for the battle nonetheless. The massive fiery figures and the golden halo of their items surrounded the trio once again. Noah stared at them for a second before summoning his corrosive smoke. The black cloud appeared again, but dark winds blew from inside it and spread the corrosive smoke more quickly. It didn''t take much before the Royals found themselves surrounded by Noah''s spell. The fiery figures fended off the corrosive smoke, but the trio was inside Noah''s cloud. They knew that his attack could come from anywhere. Three fiendish figures suddenly crashed into the flames. They fought and struggled to reach the Royals, but they could only consume part of their fire. Still, a dangerous sensation suddenly rose inside the Royals'' minds. They looked around the cloud only to see that countless black sabers had come out of the smoke and were attacking their spells. That wasn''t enough to pierce their defenses, but Noah had just begun to launch attacks. He didn''t need to pay attention to his energy since the raw laws refilled his centers of power after every absorption, so he went all out. Snore slammed on the flames. A layer of rocks and ice covered its figure, and other elemental attacks shot from its head. Slashes of various size joined the sabers in digging through the flames. They all came from a different angle. It was as if Noah was flying around the Royals and launching attacks non-stop. Two different waves of flames crashed on the Royals'' defenses. One of them created a starry sky, while the other carried violent destruction. Mental attacks took form in the void too. Massive ghostly swords joined the offensive and unleashed their power on the encircled Royals. Noah had ultimately decided to fuse the Ghostly Sabers spell and the Mental Saber spell. He had lost some diversity by uniting those attacks, but his individuality was too big to contain it in such small swords. The Royals almost couldn''t believe their eyes. They were three gaseous stage powerhouses, but Noah had managed to surround them with an insane number of spells. Their flames could barely hold back the siege. There were so many attacks around them that they couldn''t break their concentration for even a second. Noah had hoped that the Royals would focus only on what they could see. His spells were slowly digging through the flames, but his dantian was about to become empty already. He could sustain an offensive on that level for less than ten minutes. His darkness couldn''t fuel so many spells at once and for a long time. Still, those attacks were only a diversion. The Royals poured everything they had to stop the enemy spells, but a tall, dark line suddenly appeared right inside their three fiery creatures. The line widened to create a black portal where a fourth fiendish creature came out. The Royals didn''t even have time to redirect their defenses that the figure slashed with the small blade in its hands. The Warp spell had changed after Noah''s modifications. He had been unable to teleport himself for a while, but rebuilding its diagram had unlocked that feature again. Noah didn''t create a portal anymore. He used the theory behind his movement technique to cut an opening inside the world''s fabric. Once inside that personal dimension, Noah could open an exit to come out. Chapter 1139: 1139. Methods The new Warp spell wasn''t a proper teleport anymore, and it wasn''t as immediate as Noah''s movement technique. Yet, it allowed him to move undisturbed and unnoticed behind the enemy defenses. Noah was inside the fourth fiendish figure. His corrosive smoke couldn''t expand inside the flames, but he had slashed with the Demonic Sword before the Royals could even start to restrict him. The Royals didn''t have time to redirect their defenses. A large chunk of their flames disappeared before the golden shields around them fell into pieces. Noah''s slash released a black line that crashed on their armors and created large cracks before the golden runes on their bodies stopped his attack once and for all. Even with the surprise effect, Noah didn''t manage to hurt the Royals. Both First Prince and First Princess poured more blood in their flames to increase their density. Instead, Second Prince remained in a daze as the crystal at the center of his forehead shone. A shadow came out of Noah''s slash. Second Prince suddenly awakened and retreated, but his brother and sister didn''t see that attack until it was too late. First Prince saw a huge but strange figure for less than an instant before the golden runes on his body crumbled, and half of his torso separated from him. That was a clean cut. First Prince didn''t even have time to react to the sudden assault, but he tried to ignite the blood coming out of his injury to cast a massive spell. Yet, no "Breath" gathered at his command. It took him a second to realize that his dantian was in the part that Night had cut away. First Princess tried to recover the half torso, but the shadow reappeared, and she could finally make out its shape after the light of the flames shone on its figure. The creature was similar to the Pterodactyls inside the Dark Gorge, but its lines appeared denser. Moreover, the pressure that it radiated didn''t belong to a simple beast in the sixth rank. Her flames condensed around her body, but Second Prince intervened before the two could clash. A drop of blood flowed from his crystal, and a dense red light came out of it. Night wanted to kill First Princess too, but it suddenly lost any control of its body. The beam had severed its head from the rest of the dark matter, turning it into nothing more than a floating triangle that leaked energy. First Princess was livid. She amassed her dense flames to create a sphere ready to explode on the Pterodactyl''s head. Yet, danger filled the entirety of her mind as Noah appeared above her. Noah didn''t have the fuming armor over him. The new flames had eventually defeated his spell, so he had to fly across First Princess'' snake without any protection. Red spots formed on his skin as the flames burned him. Still, his eyes remained fixed on First Princess'' head. Noah lifted the Demonic Sword that was still in the form of a small knife and pointed it at the Royal. He wielded it with two hands, and his arms slowly descended as they aimed for the laws that made her defenses. Second Prince launched another red beam, but a large vortex and Snore appeared in its path. The Blood Companion used its statue form to weaken the attack, and the vortex absorbed the remaining energy of the blow. Nothing came for Noah. His defenses had blocked the blow and had given him enough time to finish his attack. First Princess could only stare in fear at the descending blade. The runes around her body exploded before a drop of blood fell from her forehead. Then, a black line divided her in half, and her consciousness went dark. Noah didn''t show any happiness at that sight. He descended to retrieve First Princess'' dantian, and he moved toward First Prince''s center of power after he ate it. "Don''t you dare!" First Prince sent threats with his consciousness, but Noah had already taken his dantian by that time. Night slowly floated back inside the space-ring as Noah ate that organ too. First Prince felt fear. The flames still filled the environment, but Noah didn''t care. He let them burn his skin as he walked toward the Royal and grabbed his head. "No-," First Prince tried to say something, but Noah applied some pressure and reduced the Royal''s head to a bloody pulp. Two powerhouses had died in a few exchanges. They had survived Noah''s offensive multiple times only to die when they had given up on their favorable position. They didn''t have any chance against Noah without an escape route or covers behind their backs. The flames continued to burn Noah. The fire-resistant runes on his robe couldn''t do anything against that empowered fire. Yet, he didn''t leave them even after he finished the two powerhouses. Second Prince saw Noah turning in his direction. Large red patches had appeared on his face, but the Royal didn''t dare to underestimate his opponent for even a second. The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds before the Royal stepped back. His gesture was a clear statement that he had no intention to join that battle any further. Noah kept on watching him while the flames around him dispersed. He then seized the space-rings from the two corpses and turned to fly toward the nearest amass of white light. The truth was that he had depleted most of his darkness for that last offensive. His dantian was in a critical condition, but he had finally taken care of those keeping him away from King Elbas. Now he could study the main battle and see if he could influence it. King Elbas and Chasing Demon had continued to fight while Noah was busy dealing with the Royals. Chasing Demon had returned on top of the titan that launched loud cries whenever King Elbas tried to cover the battlefield with flames. The hole on the Demon''s waist continued to pour liquid "Breath" inside the divine item. Each second that he passed in that state worsened his condition, but the Royals'' leader had a hard time dealing with that new power. The titan could finally show part of its true might now that Chasing Demon had given up on salvaging his centers of power. Hordes of smaller puppets came out of its body, and its movement appeared smoother. King Elbas would generally rely on his sea of flames to destroy the army, but the titan shouted often, and its vibrations always made him waste many inscribed items. The Royal had actually retreated since Chasing Demon had activated the secret art. The experts around him were even continuing with their offensive, so injuries eventually appeared on his body. Great Elder Diana would always exploit the seconds right after the vibrations'' dispersion to launch precise lightning bolts at her opponent. Instead, God''s Left Hand waved her fan continuously, and King Elbas always had to deal with her gales on top of escaping from the titan''s offensive. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon managed to slow him down from time to time. Their attacks weren''t as effective as their companions, but they created flaws in his defenses that the others exploited. True Speed had joined his Matriarch after Elder Paul''s death, and he limited himself to launch his yellow lightning bolts. That continuous offensive slowly exhausted King Elbas, who had already injured himself to land a blow on the titan. The situation appeared quite grim for him. Chapter 1140: 1140. Change Hope spread among the attackers. They were doing it. King Elbas appeared unable to defend against their joint offensive, and his condition worsened after every exchange! Still, King Elbas was the best inscription master of the world. Using powerful items against him could work for a while, but his expertise would become an essential variable in a long battle. Chasing Demon pressed on. The titan waved its massive fists while the Royal dodged the army of puppets that charged at him. The titan would destroy some of the puppets with its attacks, but the latter detonated into a storm of rocky shards that forced King Elbas to deploy more defensive items. The Royals'' leader had used more than fifty items in the sixth rank by then. Many of them were at the peak of the upper tier, while only a minority had quasi-rank 7 power. The number of items already used was incredible. Only Shandal could match his accumulation of weapons, but he was a god who had lived for more than fifty thousand years. Nevertheless, even King Elbas'' huge stash began to dwindle. The Royal tried his best to cover any signal of that event, but everyone noticed how he relied less and less on his items as the battle continued. There were some attacks that King Elbas couldn''t block on his own, but all the others were for his flames to handle. The Royals'' leader had to save them for critical situations. The trend of the battle didn''t change. King Elbas even risked dying a couple of times since his reaction time had increased as injuries piled on him. It was as if he was waiting for something to happen, which was the same moment that all the others on the scene feared. The titan was about to punch through a series of puppets to reach King Elbas when its movements stopped. No sound echoed in the area, but the eyes of the experts went on Chasing Demon. The Hive''s leader spat mouthfuls of blood as he crouched on the titan''s shoulder. His skin had turned gray, and energy leaked out of his hole instead of going into the divine item. Chasing Demon had activated a secret art to unleash that battle prowess. That empowerment had its limits, and it seemed that he had finally met them. King Elbas smiled as he exploded into a sea of golden flames. All the puppets around him burned into ashes and blocked the offensive of the other experts. He was finally free to do as he wished. The titan couldn''t roar unless Chasing Demon poured liquid "Breath" in it. King Elbas was too tired to teleport in another spot among the flames, but he could still charge at his opponent. The fire on his path became denser as spears took form and flew with him toward the coughing Demon. There seemed to be nothing able to stop that charge. After all, the experts'' spells couldn''t go past the thick golden flames. Some of them even began to plan their escape. Suddenly, the division among organizations returned, and any powerhouses that didn''t belong to their force became disposable. However, the experts soon focused on the battlefield again since a black line appeared on King Elbas'' path and enlarged to create a portal. The Royal felt surprised at that sight, and a dangerous sensation filled his mind when he saw more than a thousand spiked spheres coming out of it. The spiked spheres had various power. Most of them were in the lower tier, but a few reached the peak of the tier. That kind of threat couldn''t scare him away usually, but King Elbas had suffered too much in the battle, and he didn''t have the items to face that attack head-on. He could only slow down his charge so that his flames would take care of the Instabilities. The spheres detonated and released their spikes. The flames in a small area retreated due to the might unleashed by more than a thousand explosions, but they soon advanced again. Noah had begun to use saber-shaped runes as the spikes of the instabilities for a while by then, but they couldn''t do anything once the golden flames swept them. The difference in level was too great. The golden flames were one aspect of King Elbas'' higher energy in the end. Weapons that couldn''t even reach the middle tier couldn''t compete with that power. Still, a massive punch crossed the melting array of spikes and crashed on the spears that had formed during King Elbas'' charge. The Royal had the time to escape because he promptly detonated some inscribed items taken out of his space-ring. A deafening roar spread through the battlefield and destroyed the sea of flames. The titan had awakened, and its Master was controlling it again. Chasing Demon became visible again after that exchange. His skin was still gray, and blood flowed out of his hole, but he stood proudly on the titan''s shoulder as he controlled it to suppress King Elbas. Noah''s interruption had gained enough time for his Patriarch to recover, with the only difference that Chasing Demon wasn''t strictly better. He had decided to sacrifice even more of himself to continue fueling the secret art. King Elbas could only curse Noah. The victory was so close, but his sudden attack had brought him back to the previous situation. The Royal knew that he wouldn''t last until Chasing Demon became unstable again. There was too much coming at him, and Noah was quite troublesome to deal with due to the new Warp spell. "Fine then," King Elbas conveyed through his mental waves, and his aura suddenly became stronger as he escaped from the various attacks. Golden flames surrounded his body, and the titan roared to destroy them. Yet, they endured the vibrations and continued to cover his figure as a transformation happened inside him. King Elbas was the original creator of higher energy according to his research. That field was still vast and unexplored, so there was a large room for improvement. The Royal had avoided choosing which path to take because he had never been in a hurry. He was the strongest in those Mortal Lands already, so he had never needed to gamble when it came to his power. However, the experts of the other organizations were about to kill him. It was pointless to hold back some of his resources for the sake of the future. King Elbas'' aura became more intense. The golden fire fed on his skin and blood to become stronger and apply modifications. When the Royal came out of his cover, his injuries had started healing, and his eyes shone. His figure began to release even more flames at that point. King Elbas hadn''t advanced to the seventh rank, but his power appeared far different than before. The experts couldn''t understand what had changed, but Noah inspected the scene and became aware of how King Elbas had pulled that power-up off. Noah was the only one to notice and understand the change because he had seen those same features in June. She was fundamentally different from the other cultivators because her centers of power didn''t have "Breath". The same had happened with King Elbas. He had decided to abandon his "Breath" and use only his higher energy as his fuel. That gave him more of the resource that he needed to fight and a superior starting point in terms of sheer power. Moreover, King Elbas had studied the titan enough to know its weak spots. He only needed to take a small disk and other inscribed items before resuming the battle and aiming for those areas. Chapter 1141: 1141. Flaw Noah knew the differences among stages and ranks far too well. After all, his greatest weakness was his lack of darkness in the sixth rank. When Noah saw King Elbas bursting with incredible power, he immediately knew what had happened. The Royal had thrown away his "Breath" to make his centers of power run only on higher energy. The transformation would generally need a long period of seclusion and invasive drugs to take effect, but King Elbas had completed it in a matter of instants. It was as if his centers of power were ready for that moment. King Elbas only needed to set his mind for his entire being to transform. The golden flames illuminated the void and spread around King Elbas. They didn''t create a fiery sea, but they covered his figure, creating innate protections against any enemy attack. The experts spread around the battlefield pressed on with their offensive. They didn''t care that their centers of power were nearing a critical state. The only thing that mattered was that King Elbas couldn''t leave that area alive. Various attacks flew toward the Royal. Lighting bolts, dense gales, storms of ice-shards, puppets, and wind-slashes flew toward him. Yet, those spells could only burn when they touched the golden flames. King Elbas'' fire had changed. Even his previous golden flames couldn''t destroy the enemy spells so quickly. Their overall destructiveness had increased in ways that the experts couldn''t understand. Chasing Demon didn''t let King Elbas'' new technique scare him. The titan swung his fists toward the Royal and clashed with the fire without showing any hesitation. King Elbas didn''t dodge. A golden flare spread through the void as both massive fists landed on his figure. A shining radiance filled the environment, and the result of that clash shocked everyone once the light dimmed. The fists had clashed with the flames, but they didn''t manage to close on King Elbas. His golden fire was so dense that even a divine item couldn''t break through it with its sheer power. Chasing Demon inspected the scene without revealing any emotion. However, those who knew him well could see the amazement in his eyes. The Hive''s leader had relied on a secret art to push his cultivation level to the liquid stage. That was the only way to unleash more of the titan''s power. Still, King Elbas'' new form could block the titan''s blow without relying on any particular technique or inscribed item. The golden flames had reached a level that ignored the widespread labels of the cultivation world. The flames appeared incredibly strong, but their power was still in the solid stage of the sixth rank. The fact that they had blocked the titan''s attack didn''t make any sense for those who didn''t know about the higher energy''s unfathomable prowess. Even Noah felt shocked about that outcome. The higher energy''s power was exponential, and it increased by leaps and bounds along with the "Breath" level. The golden flames had surpassed even his expectations. Stopping the titan''s blow with their sheer power was something that no one would ever think to be possible. Noah felt some helplessness watching that scene, but his ambition surged too. Seeing that the higher energy could have such might pushed him to focus his whole being on completing the last step needed for his breakthrough. The lines of the Divine Deduction techniques illuminated the insides of Noah''s mind as they consumed his mental energy. His dark star began to spin faster as his whole existence focused on overcoming the bottleneck that kept him stuck in the fifth rank. Noah was flying on the edges of the battlefield when he saw the power of King Elbas'' flames. He had continued to absorb any raw law in the environment while watching the main battle, and he had intervened without stopping his looting. The sight of such prowess made him lose himself inside his ambition. Noah desired power so badly that his entire existence was trying to push his level to the next stage. He didn''t have any clue on how to complete his project with the dark matter. The light element was too distant from his existence, so he even lacked a starting point in that matter. However, his mind had reached a state that benefited any enlightenment dawning upon him. His existence had become ready to advance. Noah only needed the trigger for the breakthrough now. King Elbas laughed when he saw his flames stopping the fists. His aura surged as his arrogance reached its peak. He had managed to stop a divine item without the help of inscribed weapons or secret arts. There were virtually no superior achievements that he could accomplish while in the heroic ranks. His cultivation level increased on its own. King Elbas'' advanced inside the solid stage without absorbing any energy from the environment. His individuality was striving for the status of law right in front of his enemies. Chasing Demon couldn''t let him continue. Allowing King Elbas to improve was foolish, and he didn''t have much time left anyway. The titan roared, and thick shockwaves spread through the battlefield. King Elbas'' flames endured them, but Chasing Demon''s attack had only begun. An army of puppets came out of the dark-red massive figure. Chasing Demon spat a mouthful of blood as the clay-like material that made the titan began to morph. One of the titan''s arms transformed into a long hammer that the puppet grabbed with its free limb. Chasing Demon''s right arm exploded as the giant ripped off the weapon to swing it toward the Royal. King Elbas had to suppress his arrogance when he saw the hammer swinging in his direction. The dangerous sensation that he had felt at that sight forced him to focus on the battle. A series of spears took form among the golden flames that surrounded his body. They shot toward the hammer and exploded into a violent surge of energy that slowed down the weapon. The hammer continued in its trajectory even if it had lost part of its power, but King Elbas could stop it with its flames at that point. ''Strange,'' Noah thought as he watched the battlefield. ''He should be able to push the titan away if he used techniques fueled on his higher energy.'' Noah could see details that others missed due to their lack of knowledge about higher energy. He had created Snore and Night''s body with the dark matter. His runes also used higher energy as their core material, and the same went for the Elemental Forging method. June had adapted some of her old spells to her black sparks too. She had it easy since her diagrams had already seen heavy modifications to match her Perfect Circuit, but that didn''t mean that King Elbas could do the same. The higher energy was different from the "Breath". Regular diagrams didn''t work with it, and even the core ideas behind those techniques couldn''t fit the incredible power contained in it. King Elbas had managed to fuel his centers of power with higher energy, but he had yet to use specific spells or techniques that relied on it. He was only controlling his golden flames with his mental waves, which was similar to what Noah did with his other elements. ''This might be his limit,'' Noah thought as coldness filled his mind. His centers of power were full since he continued to absorb raw laws, so he could use the Divine Deduction technique without minding his mental sea. He suddenly stopped flying around the battlefield, and his hand slashed the void. A black line appeared in front of him and created a portal where he slashed again before pouring dark matter. King Elbas was using his golden flames to destroy the army of puppets when a black line appeared next to him. A wave of dark fire came out of it, and ice soon followed it. A series of sharp rocky weapons came after them, and violent gales blew after those attacks. Darkness spread among King Elbas, but his flames barely felt any pressure. They were too strong to suffer from those attacks. Chapter 1142: 1142. Nuisance The portal didn''t close until a series of thick lightning bolts came out of it. They crashed on King Elbas'' figure before burning together with any other trace of dark matter. King Elbas barely noticed Noah''s elemental attacks. They weren''t any different from the experts'' offensive, so he didn''t pay much attention to them. The puppets born from the titan began to detonate right after Noah''s offensive. They covered King Elbas with sharp rocky shards and intense surges of energy, but the golden flames blocked everything. A moment of peace followed the explosions. King Elbas wore an arrogant smile when he saw that his injuries had completely healed, but his expression froze when a new cut appeared on his cheek. The event surprised everyone on the scene. The flames didn''t lose against any attack, but some energy had pierced them anyway. Even King Elbas had to ponder over the matter to explain how that had happened. "He can''t use any spell with his new energy," Noah suddenly conveyed with his consciousness, and everyone on the battlefield heard his message. "His flames still belong to the fire element. They share the same innate flaws of that aptitude." Cultivators used spells to change the nature of their elements and made them unleash different effects. Water could pierce flames in the form of ice, and the same went for other aptitudes. Noah had the same problem with his higher energy. The dark matter didn''t want to become light no matter how hard he tried. King Elbas had to suffer from the same weakness since he couldn''t use spells to make up for the flames'' innate flaws. That piece of information wouldn''t usually help to defeat King Elbas. The sheer power carried by his flames was enough to fend off any attack that came at him. However, eight powerhouses were attacking him non-stop, and Noah launched causal blows whenever he found the right opportunity. Flames didn''t have an exceptional defense in their raw form. They were violent and intense, but they couldn''t offer much protection unless cultivators used them with a suitable spell or technique. King Elbas'' flames had to deal with different types of attacks, but they never changed form to deal with them most efficiently. Their structure slowly became more unstable during the assault, but the experts'' attacks couldn''t reveal their flaws due to their lack of power. Still, Noah had launched a varied offensive. The dark matter that made his elemental attacks weakened the flame''s structure and allowed Chasing Demon''s puppets to inflict some damage on the Royal. King Elbas didn''t have to worry about that small cut, but Noah''s actions had revealed a crucial weakness in his current status. The Royals'' leader had obtained enough power to fend off the titan by giving up on his "Breath", but he had sacrificed his variety in terms of spells by doing that. Moreover, he had used many inscribed items to defend against the titan in the early stages of the battle. King Elbas was able to unleash more power than ever in his current condition, but he also had more evident disadvantages. The experts instantly understood the meaning behind Noah''s message. Anything that could give them hope was well accepted in that battle, and Noah had just provided them with significant insights into their enemy''s power. All of them had many spells in their arsenal. They rarely used the majority of them since they couldn''t express their individuality to their fullest, but that didn''t matter in that situation. Their attacks couldn''t defeat the flames anyway. It was better to use specific spells to destabilize King Elbas'' higher energy and open a path where Chasing Demon could strike. King Elbas had to admit that he didn''t think about that flaw in the chaos of the battle. Resorting to the higher energy had been the right call, but that had turned him into nothing more than a solid stage powerhouse. He wasn''t a resourceful leader anymore. The higher energy had made him a target that had an evident weakness to exploit. King Elbas didn''t blame himself. That chaotic battle would lead anyone to commit mistakes. Instead, his hatred focused on Noah. The two of them respected each other, but they were their worst enemy in that situation. Noah''s knowledge of the higher energy made him the greatest obstacle in his plan. The experts changed their approach. They launched spells and attacks that aimed to destabilize the golden flames. They didn''t know how stronger the higher energy was than the average "Breath", so they could only rely on their knowledge of the elements to give Chasing Demon a chance. True Speed had a limited variety in his battle style, but his companions didn''t suffer from his hybrid status'' restrictions. They could use everything they had memorized in their life. Great Elder Diana took out her lenses again, and they arranged themselves in a line. Her lightning bolts lost part of their precision when they passed through the layers of black glass, but their power skyrocketed in the process. God''s Left Hand folded her fan and swung it to launch dense winds at King Elbas. The Demons gave up on spreading Flying Demon''s flowers and focused everything they had on creating a storm of ice-shards. Elder Julia amassed her wind-slashes to create a few dense weapons that contained all her power. Elder Regina did something similar by fusing her puppets to summon three large snakes that flew toward the Royals. Since flames were weak when it came to defending, the experts condensed their attacks to destabilize a few areas around King Elbas. The Royals'' leader blocked all the attacks without even bothering to look at them, but a few cuts appeared on his body when the remaining puppets sieging him detonated. The energy released in the explosion managed to pass through those destabilized areas and inflict some superficial wounds. That wasn''t much, but it was better than being powerless against King Elbas'' power. King Elbas'' flames blocked the titan''s fists once again, but the Royal had long since abandoned his smile. His enemies were wounding him. There was nothing to be proud of in that situation. Another problem appeared as more exchanges followed. King Elbas had to burn himself to create higher energy, so his condition weakened as the battle continued. The Royal had drugs that could provide an instant regeneration, but that didn''t fix the issue. It would be better to rely on the surge of energy generated by the raw laws to heal. However, when King Elbas focused on the battlefield''s edges again, he noticed that almost every trace of white light had disappeared. A face appeared in his mind at that sight. He knew the culprit behind that event, and his anger surged when he saw him flying toward the few remaining raw laws in the area. King Elbas almost didn''t believe what he was about to do, but he wanted to take care of that nuisance. A wave of golden flames came out of his feet, and the Royal ignored everything coming at him as he flew toward his new target. Noah had never stopped collecting raw laws during the battle, and his flight was so peaceful that he could always keep his attention on the fight. His body had improved a lot after absorbing those raw laws. Noah had begun to near the peak of the lower tier when he saw King Elbas flying at high speed toward him. Noah felt an instinctive fear at that sight. The strongest expert in the world had abandoned his battle to take care of him! Yet, King Elbas wasn''t too fast. His lack of spells made him rely on his bare flames'' propulsion to accelerate, and that gave Noah enough time to deploy his movement technique. King Elbas found nothing more than a human-shaped crack dug inside the void when he reached Noah''s previous position, but he didn''t give up on catching him just yet. Chapter 1143: 1143. Maker Noah escaped without even looking at his companions since he knew that they had no hope of catching up with King Elbas. Even his movement technique wasn''t enough to match the acceleration created by the golden flames. Noah''s only hope was to reach the titan before the Royal could find him. That was only a faint hope. King Elbas appeared able to follow Noah''s movements while he was inside his dimension, and he didn''t stop his chase for even a second. Violent tongues of flames came out of the Royal''s feet as he shot through the void. Noah''s senses were far from perfect while he used his movement technique, but he could feel the immense dangerous sensation that his pursuer caused inside his mind. Chasing Demon and the other experts had reacted to King Elbas'' attack quickly. They had all begun to move toward him without giving up on their safe spots. It would be pointless to save Noah while dying in the task. Chasing Demon was the only one that kept on flying, disregarding his safety. Chasing Demon was about to lose his centers of power anyway. He would rather die saving the future leader of the Hive than survive as a maimed cultivator. The fact that King Elbas had left the battlefield to chase Noah worsened the experts'' overall situation. Chasing Demon would soon run out of fuel for his secret art, and their hopes would vanish at that moment. King Elbas couldn''t escape from the battle to deploy that tactic before. All his arrogance would be pointless if he couldn''t deal with a gaseous stage powerhouse that had relied on a secret art. Yet, Noah had given King Elbas an excuse to make Chasing Demon waste time. Noah had only himself to blame for that turn of events. Noah exited from his dimension only to create another human-shaped crack. He couldn''t stop for even a second with King Elbas following him, but the situation didn''t look good for him. King Elbas was too fast, and he had to take a long path to gather with the experts without meeting him. Crossing him was also out of the question since Noah knew that he couldn''t dodge any of his abilities. His mind understood that before Noah could even turn those instincts into thoughts. He wasn''t fast enough to regroup with the others before King Elbas reached him. The Divine Deduction technique was still active, and his dark star redirected all his energy toward his mental faculties. Noah was at his mental peak in that situation, but he couldn''t think of any way to survive. ''Dammit!'' Noah cursed as he continued to fly. ''Is this the end?'' Noah felt doomed. Nothing among his techniques and spells could help him survive that chase. King Elbas would reach him and kill him without any doubt. The Demonic Sword, Snore, and Night felt his desperation. They were too close to his mind not to sense that intense emotion. The Blood Companion and the living weapon remained silent. They knew that Noah needed to focus on finding a solution. Yet, Night wasn''t as polite as his other assets. "Why don''t you just kill that shiny eyesore?" Night complained as if there was nothing wrong with what it said. "Go and kill him. Shut his light forever." Noah heard those words inside his mind, and he couldn''t believe how delusional the Pterodactyl could be. "How can I even kill him?" Noah asked. "You are just a talking head in my ring, and I have nothing that can stop him. We are dead." That was the truth. Noah had reviewed everything he had and could wield, but nothing could help him survive. "Are you giving up?" Night asked, and Noah could only sigh at that question. He had one last move available, but doing that would remove even luck from his chances. Still, Noah had never relied on luck in his life. His determination and ruthlessness were the only things that had made him reach his current peak. The experts were flying while keeping an eye on King Elbas'' movements, but they felt shocked when they saw Noah coming out of his dimension and stopping in the void. He didn''t escape. Noah turned toward his incoming opponent and released dark matter as he watched the Royal become closer. Noah knew that his current spells couldn''t save him. So, he decided to bet everything on his dark matter and the power it could release once he completed that path. That was a gamble, but Noah had nothing to lose. He was dead anyway. He would use the danger caused by King Elbas to push his power forward at least. The dark matter took the shape of the elements that Noah had managed to copy, and he tried to force the creation of light while his eyes remained on King Elbas. The dark star spun faster than ever, and its rotation speed continued to increase as it tried to push Noah toward his survival. The dark matter began to flicker, and surges of energy caused small flashes of light that went dim after a few seconds. Noah couldn''t keep the dark matter shining for long, and something told him that he wasn''t executing the right approach. Making his higher energy sparkle wasn''t the same as recreating the light element. "What are you even doing?!" Night complained again when it saw the light coming from the dark matter. The Demonic Sword and Snore roared and hissed at the Pterodactyl through their mental connection. They wanted it to shut up while Noah was in that dire situation. Yet, Night didn''t care about them and continued to complain. "Why are you forcing that wonderful darkness to shine?!" Noah felt annoyed after his higher energy went dark. All the other elements were in front of him, but the light didn''t want to form. The Pterodactyl then made him even more irritated during those anxious moments, and Noah couldn''t help but answer him to vent. "I need light, you stupid creature! The world has light as one of its core elements, and I need it to make my own." Noah was about to make one last attempt before King Elbas reached him, but Night spoke again and disturbed his concentration. "Aren''t you the creator? Can''t you make a world without light?" Noah was about to scold it again, but something inside him broke at its words. It was as if a veil disappeared from his mind and revealed to him the truth behind that matter. ''Have I ever needed the light element?'' Noah questioned himself. It had felt natural to attempt to copy all the elements after he had managed to reproduce the Heaven Tribulation''s lightning. Noah wanted to create a world in the end, so he had to imitate the harmony around him. However, Night was right. He was the maker. He could make any rule and harmony he wanted without limiting himself to the simple imitation. Heaven and Earth had chosen to use seven elements to create the world, but Noah could make his with six. No one could stop him nor point out flaws in that project. ''Did my ambition blind me?'' Noah thought as the dark matter in front of him began to transform. Noah''s ambition was boundless, so he had desired to complete his copy of the elements before attempting anything different in that field. He was so focused on taking everything that he couldn''t see how he had never needed the light element in the first place. King Elbas saw the changes happening in front of Noah while he flew toward him. The dark matter had taken the form of six elements, but they suddenly began to fuse. The dark matter then expanded and enveloped Noah''s figure in a thick cloud made of higher energy. King Elbas didn''t hesitate for even a second before shooting right into it. King Elbas flew through the dark matter before noticing that something was off. The higher energy took peculiar shapes that he recognized, and he even saw a proper building at some point. The Royal didn''t know what Noah was creating, but he could sense him at the center of the cloud, so he never stopped his flight. However, his eyebrows arched when a rank 6 aura spread inside the darkness. Chapter 1144: 1144. Breakthrough King Elbas flew across the mutating dark matter. The world around him changed as the rank 6 aura spread through it. Various shapes formed as he moved toward the center of the cloud. Buildings appeared from time to time, and a large landmass formed at some point. The dark matter inside those shapes was dense. It appeared to have a solid form, but the power that it contained wasn''t superior to that inside the gaseous higher energy. King Elbas understood that Noah was advancing to the sixth rank and that the breakthrough had triggered an evolution in his higher energy. Noah had been like him just a few exchanges ago. He had used the higher energy only in its raw form or to empower some of his creations. However, he was now fueling a technique with it. The dark matter never kept its solid form for too long. Intense tremors ran through the cloud and radiated a deep humming sound that echoed inside it. King Elbas initially thought that the vibrations followed Noah''s heartbeat rhythm, but he had to withdraw that hypothesis. The humming sound resembled a rotation of some sort, but the Royal couldn''t understand the cause behind it. The dark matter continued to transform. King Elbas even saw an entire town forming before crumbling into a wave of dense gas. His curiosity had long since peaked, but he didn''t stop to study the area. King Elbas reached the center of the cloud, and he found Noah floating among his dark matter. Dark gales flowed out of his chest and poured higher energy in the area, but Noah didn''t seem to suffer from that. The Royal stopped to analyze Noah. His curiosity eventually had the best of him, and his mental waves spread to study what was happening around him. Noah released dark matter continuously and in immense quantity. The humming sounds echoed every time the dark star performed a rotation and poured higher energy into the environment. The process didn''t appear to be under Noah''s control. He had his eyes closed as he floated among his dark matter, and the shapes that it took came from the depths of his subconscious. King Elbas couldn''t help himself. Noah''s higher energy appeared as the perfect tool for a creator, and the Royal had an unstoppable desire to own it. Still, his attention soon had to focus on something else. Noah''s dantian had already reached the sixth rank by then, but its power grew every time he exuded higher energy. Noah wasn''t cultivating, but his dantian improved nonetheless. It was as if his organ had stored so much energy that it didn''t need any external resource to grow. King Elbas saw that the dark matter became unstable as Noah''s cultivation level increased. A faint dangerous sensation appeared in his mind, and that forced him to suppress his curiosity. He had no idea how Noah could threaten him, but he wouldn''t ignore his instincts. He had chosen to go after the Demon Prince for a reason in the end. It was better to kill him before he became even more troublesome. A tongue of golden flames gathered in his hand and took the shape of a long spear. King Elbas was about to launch it toward Noah, but the fire lost its form while he threw them. King Elbas felt shocked. He had yet to create spells meant only for his higher energy, but that was a simple manipulation! Flames gathered in his palm again, and another spear formed. However, the same thing happened. The weapon fell apart as he was about to throw it, and the golden fire dispersed inside the dark cloud. King Elbas'' curiosity returned at that sight. The best inscription master in the world couldn''t condense his higher energy anymore, and he had to know the reason behind that shocking event. "You might want to leave," Noah said as he opened his eyes. His focus went on his dark star, and he completely ignored the Royal as he studied the changes inside him. His dantian had advanced in the sixth rank, and all the raw laws that he had absorbed showed themselves. They had always been inside his organ, waiting for it to accept their power. Noah had overcome the bottleneck. All the power that he had accumulated during the journey through the void was now showing its effects. Rank 6 darkness accumulated inside his dantian even if he didn''t cultivate. Gaseous sword-like amass of energy took form inside his organ and enlarged it. His dantian didn''t even try to oppose some resistance. It enlarged at the faintest internal pressure, and it continued to grow as more darkness accumulated in its insides. Noah surpassed the halfway mark of the gaseous stage in a matter of minutes, and his growth didn''t stop there. His dantian continued to advance, and it soon surpassed the level of his body. Part of the darkness flowed inside the dark star and gathered in its core. The higher energy that made his fourth center of power became denser and poured all the superfluous dark matter into the outside world. Noah had started creating his world to trigger his breakthrough, but his dark star had continued to fuel it on its own. All the superfluous dark matter became part of the cloud. King Elbas couldn''t understand what he meant with that warning, but the dangerous sensation intensified as Noah''s level increased. It had only been a faint feeling initially, but now it had become something far more serious. The Royals'' leader knew that he would suffer some injuries if he remained there. The sole thought that something like that was possible shocked him, but he didn''t leave the cloud anyway. King Elbas was a researcher. There was a gaseous stage powerhouse with the ability to scare him, and his curiosity needed to know how that could happen. Deep humming sounds spread through the cloud, and a peculiar scenery took shape as the dark matter transformed again. Buildings and defensive walls appeared around Noah, and their forms were quite detailed, even if part of their fabric remained in a gaseous state. King Elbas didn''t recognize that place, but a cold expression appeared on Noah''s face. Noah didn''t choose to create that. The dark matter had done everything on its own, and it had built a place that he knew far too well. ''Balvan Mansion,'' Noah thought as an intense tremor originated from the dark star and spread in the dark matter around him. The buildings fell apart before the entire cloud stopped moving. "What is happening?" King Elbas asked. "Why can''t I command my higher energy as I wish?" King Elbas wore a severe expression, but his eyes sparkled with intense curiosity as he inspected the changes in the dark matter. Everything around him was unknown, and Noah held all the answers. The dark star released another tremor, and the dark matter in the area began to converge toward Noah. The process was slow initially, but the dark star released an even more intense tremor that made the dark matter speed up. A third vibration followed it, and the higher energy formed proper gales that flowed back into Noah''s chest. Noah released a grunt as he felt that surge of energy. Having so much dark matter condensing inside his dark star gave birth to immense pressure, and he even crouched to endure it. King Elbas watched as the cloud disappeared to take place in the void. Noah had reabsorbed all his higher energy at that point, but his level didn''t stop increasing. The darkness continued to flow inside the dark star and increase its density. Noah felt as if he was about to explode, but he couldn''t suppress the process no matter what he did. He couldn''t contain that power, and his instincts advised him otherwise. Noah could only give in to that pressure and let the dark star handle the rest. King Elbas was still mesmerized by that event that he almost didn''t react in time to avoid the flares of dark matter that suddenly came out of Noah''s chest. A rotating dark sphere enlarged from the center of his torso then, and Noah''s figure soon disappeared inside his higher energy. Chapter 1145: 1145. Summi The dark star expanded violently and engulfed Noah in its raging rotations. An intense gravitational pull spread in the void and attracted every lingering speck of energy. The raw laws didn''t escape that, but they moved slowly. King Elbas retreated as the star expanded. Its surface was still gaseous, but its density slowly increased as more darkness came out of Noah''s dantian to fuse with the fourth center of power. Flares shot out of the rotating sphere. Power surges happened as the dark matter became denser after every rotation. There were different layers at the beginning. The dark matter was almost solid in the center of the sphere but looser toward its edges. However, everything slowly collapsed. The dark star stopped expanding and condensed. Power surges caused flares that shot through the void, but the dark matter always returned to the rotating sphere even if it went far away. The sphere stopped shrinking when it reached a radius of five meters, but a second collapse happened in its core. Its edges had become solid, but its insides transformed into a rotating whirlpool that exuded an even stronger gravitational pull. It was as if the edges had turned into a container for the black hole at its center! The fabric of the void began to shatter under the pressure released by that strange object. The void didn''t have any matter, but it still belonged to a set dimension. The black hole''s pulling force wasn''t strong enough to affect the world, but its dense radiations appeared able to influence that reality. The black sphere resumed its shrinking process and dragged the shards of broken void with it. Noah slowly became visible again, and he kept his mouth open as his head looked upward. Those who knew him could guess what he was doing even if no sound spread through the void. Noah was roaring at the sky to announce his breakthrough! A large patch of liquid blackness formed around Noah as the black hole shrunk until it disappeared inside his chest. His body shook as the fourth center of power resumed its normal functions, and an intense wave of energy filled all his tissues. His body soon reached the peak of the lower tier under the nurturing of the black hole, and his dantian did the same by reaching the peak of the gaseous stage. His consciousness expanded, and his mental waves became heavy thoughts capable of covering the entire battlefield. Snore came out of Noah''s body on its own and began to hiss at the sky. Its structure trembled as the new dark matter replaced the old one, and its size grew to reach the rank 7 titan. The Blood Companion unfolded its giant wings, covering a six hundred meters area with their size. Its feathers trembled as the new dark matter improved their structure. Noah had undergone a complete breakthrough right in front of everyone. The evolution of his dark star had shocked all the experts on the scene. The dark star had become a black hole contained in a layer of solid dark matter. The darkness that flowed inside it became denser and purer before the center of power redirected that energy back to Noah''s tissues. Noah felt as if his body was about to explode with all that energy filling him. He had never thought that he could be that powerful, but his path had finally become clear now. There were no more foggy areas nor doubts. Noah had completed his absorption of external laws to step on the path that would lead his existence to become something equally strong. Noah was finally walking the path to transform into a law. A faint true meaning formed inside him, but it was still too weak to match the divine entities. King Elbas had tried to analyze the dark matter''s qualities during Noah''s breakthrough, but his calculations could only make him more amazed. The dark star''s power was immense. It contained so much energy that even a few powerhouses would find it hard to match. Learning that such a dangerous and incredible object was part of his body explained why he had expressed so much power while being in the fifth rank. The dark star appeared as the best power core in the world. It could sustain Noah''s body for centuries without ever depleting its energy, and it had now evolved into a black hole capable of condensing even more fuel. The experts of the other organizations took note too. They had initially believed that the dark star was part of a cultivation technique connected to Noah''s dantian. However, they soon understood that it was something entirely different. The dark star had singular energy that was outside of the dantians'' realm. It resembled King Elbas'' golden flames, but it was also entirely different and unique to Noah. Moreover, it was part of his existence, which gave him something that the experts found hard to believe. The dark star absorbed and released energy. It had advance together with Noah''s dantian, so it had a strict connection to his individuality. Only centers of power behaved like that, but the dark star didn''t match any known organ in the magical beasts and cultivators'' fields. There was only one possible explanation. Noah had created a fourth center of power! That realization shocked everyone. Noah didn''t only turn into a hybrid when he was a human cultivator. His existence needed more, so he had evolved his status further. His incredible prowess had an explanation now. His body had long since surpassed the hybrids'' realm, and the reason for that was the dark star. The experts didn''t let that event stun them. They had continued to advance toward King Elbas while Noah completed the breakthrough, but the Royal acted before they could reach him. King Elbas gathered his flames in his palm again and threw the fiery spear that formed toward Noah. The power of his higher energy filled the void and radiated a heavy pressure. The flames appeared to touch on the absolute limit of the sixth rank. Nothing could be stronger than them without stepping on the divine stage. Noah had yet to understand how strong he was after the breakthrough, but the fiery spear flying toward him didn''t give him any time to analyze his new power. The black hole rotated inside the solid dark sphere, and large quantities of dark matter came out of him. A vast cloud formed in less than an instant and enveloped both Noah and King Elbas. The spear flew through the dark matter undisturbed. Noah''s higher energy had evolved, but it wasn''t strong enough to oppose King Elbas. However, the flames that made the weapon slowly lost their detailed shape and dispersed inside the cloud. The spear disappeared before it could even reach Noah. "What trick are you using?!" King Elbas shouted, and the sound of his voice echoed inside the dark environment. The sound was another clue connected to Noah''s new technique''s true nature, but that didn''t help King Elbas. He still couldn''t understand how the dark matter worked. Chasing Demon and the other experts eventually entered the cloud too. The Hive''s Patriarch was in an awful state, and he had turned into nothing more than a corpse who could barely stand up. Noah came out of a gale of dark matter flowing next to the Patriarch. King Elbas had temporarily lost track of him, so he had some time to prepare a plan. "This technique won''t suppress him for long," Noah said, and Chasing Demon appeared surprised that sound could fly there. "He will soon understand how to overcome the limitations that I''ve applied to him." "What do you suggest?" Chasing Demon replied weakly. "I''ve created an opening in the void during my breakthrough," Noah answered as a cold smile appeared on his face. "Let''s throw him there." Chasing Demon''s eyes lit up for a second, but his expression soon turned grim. He didn''t have much power left. He could control the titan for one last exchange before his entire existence turned into dust. Noah understood what he had in mind, and a structure rose from under him. It resembled the underground mountain where Chasing Demon used to cultivate, but it had raw laws on its summit. Chapter 1146: 1146. Blackness Noah had gathered and absorbed raw laws while his dark star transformed into a black hole, but he didn''t forget about his Patriarch. Chasing Demon was the only one in possession of a weapon capable of dealing with King Elbas. Losing him would mean the death of all the experts in the area, so he had to live no matter what. Noah had saved some raw laws for him. He didn''t know how gone Chasing Demon was, but that resource had brought him directly to the peak of the gaseous stage. His individuality had been ready for that level of power, but the raw laws still managed to provide the energy necessary for the growth of his dantian. There was a chance that they could fix Chasing Demon''s centers of power too. Chasing Demon and the titan had lost their right arm during the last exchange with King Elbas. His condition had weakened further while he followed him to save Noah. He was on the brink of collapse, so Noah''s gift could reveal itself as a lifesaver. "What is this technique?" Chasing Demon asked as he stepped off the titan to land on the mountain. The raw laws gathered toward his maimed body and fused with his centers of power to fill him with energy. "This is my world," Noah replied without hiding anything. That answer alone couldn''t explain the depths of his technique anyway. "It''s a bit dark," Chasing Demon answered as some color returned to his skin. The wound on his arm also healed, and he couldn''t help but reveal a smile when he realized how powerful his successor had become. "It fits my tastes," Noah smiled back before leaving the Demon to his absorption. He still needed to warn the other experts about his plan. King Elbas tested different types of attacks while inside the dark cloud, and he was getting near the answer that he sought. None of his golden flames ever managed to fly longer than an instant, but he slowly understood what held them back. Noah reappeared at some distance from him, with Snore standing proudly behind his back. The other experts did the same as they prepared spells from different areas of the battlefield. King Elbas wasn''t close to the liquid blackness that Noah had unintentionally created, but it was the experts'' job to take care of that matter. "This area doesn''t follow the normal laws of the world," King Elbas announced when he saw his enemies appearing around him. "Let me guess. You set the rules so that they can benefit you. This is your domain where you can pretend to be a god." Noah had no words to say to King Elbas. He felt surprised that the Royal had understood so much about his techniques in only a few minutes, but that wasn''t the time for admiration or respect. The experts had to deal with King Elbas, or he would deal with them. There wasn''t any other possible outcome in that situation. Snore spread its mouth as it prepared its elemental attacks. The dark world trembled as the Blood Companion launched a series of blows toward King Elbas. God''s Left Hand and the others followed the same tactic as before. They relied on attacks that the fire element would typically struggle to block in its raw form. A series of spells and techniques flew toward King Elbas, who could only deploy his golden flames around his figure to block them. The fire clashed with the attacks, but its structure soon wavered due to the dark world''s limitations. King Elbas was right. Noah''s world didn''t belong to anyone but himself. He set its rules and decided how foreign energy would behave. Since his target was King Elbas, Noah had applied limitations to his flames. The air in the dark world was nothing more than thin dark matter, so no one could escape its restrictions. King Elbas took out an inscribed item when he saw his flames dispersing. A large golden shield formed around him and fended off the attacks. Yet, it broke after it completed its task. The Royal had begun to run short of inscribed items for a while by then. Chasing Demon had forced him to use almost everything he had to stop the giant. King Elbas only had a few disposable items now. They would generally save him in normal situations, but everything was more difficult for him inside the dark world. Moreover, the disposable items would break after one use. It didn''t matter how powerful they were. King Elbas couldn''t rely on them to block his enemy''s offensive forever. The experts and Noah began to assault him with a never-ending offensive. They had long since stopped caring about the condition of their centers of power, and they were focusing everything they had on dealing with the Royals'' leader. King Elbas couldn''t remain unscathed for too long. He didn''t rely on his inscribed items at times, so the enemy''s attacks managed to land on his body after his flames dispersed. Long wounds appeared on his body. The golden robe turned into a mess of rags and destroyed tissues as the experts pressured him to no end. That seemed to be the end for King Elbas, but he could still hide surprises. King Elbas'' flames slowly began to resist Noah''s limitations. The dark world used Noah''s will to apply its restrictions, and his higher energy empowered those qualities. Yet, King Elbas was amazing. He had understood how the dark world worked, and he had already learnt how to deal with it. His flames became more intense as time passed. The might that they carried was so fierce that the dark matter couldn''t limit their effects anymore. King Elbas would waste more energy in that way, but everything would be worth it if he managed to escape from that siege. Noah didn''t show any fear when he saw that King Elbas could stop their offensive without relying on disposable items. They weren''t the main force anyway. King Elbas began to advance when he felt that he had become used to the amount of higher energy he had to release to overcome his limitations. He had only needed to make his flames denser and more powerful. Nevertheless, a giant figure suddenly came out from the thick dark matter under him and grabbed his fiery figure. Chasing Demon and the titan reappeared on the battlefield without revealing any trace of their presence. Noah had used his dark world to hide them and create that opportunity for a surprise attack. The Demon looked far better after he absorbed the raw laws. His cultivation level radiated the aura of a liquid stage powerhouse, but some of his injuries had remained in place. The hole in his low-waist was still there, and his right arm didn''t regrow in those minutes. Yet, his skin regained some color, and he didn''t appear as a corpse anymore. King Elbas radiated flames that stopped the titan from squeezing him to death. Its massive fingers even suffered from the power released by the fire, and large boulders fell from them. Still, Chasing Demon didn''t want to kill him. Noah''s plan had higher chances of success, so he controlled the titan to fly in the direction of the ruptured void. The titan flew at high speed. The dark matter around it helped its movements and allowed it to go faster. Noah followed the Patriarch as he adjusted the dark world to his needs, and the experts chased after him while they kept their spells ready. The large patch of liquid blackness eventually appeared in their eyes. The void had already begun to fix itself, but there was enough space where they could fit King Elbas. Chasing Demon controlled the titan to accelerate. Its remaining arm rose to clash with that portal to another dimension. Its fist slammed into the liquid blackness that opposed some resistance before allowing it inside. King Elbas tried to unleash as many flames as possible, but he couldn''t avoid reaching the other side of the crack. Chapter 1147: 1147. Defying The crack in the void continued to heal while the titan kept King Elbas trapped on the other side of the liquid blackness. Tongues of golden flames came out of it from time to time, but the divine item held strong. Chasing Demon''s skin began to turn gray again. It seemed that the effort was reverting the effects of the raw laws, but he didn''t dare to diminish his output of energy. He had understood that Noah''s technique had limits and that King Elbas had already begun to overcome them. There wouldn''t be another chance to defeat him if he failed to keep the Royal in the other dimension. The dark-red surface of the titan began to burn under the effects of King Elbas'' flames. The golden fire moved in an orderly manner and according to precise lines to unleash a strange aura that appeared to be quite effective against the divine item. King Elbas had understood how the titan worked by then. Its structure was still mostly a secret, but he had learnt enough to target its innate flaws. The experts gasped at that sight. King Elbas was in an unknown environment and inside a divine item''s grasp, but he still managed to attack at full power. Their eyes went on the expanding void. They wished that they could do something to quicken the fixing of the crack, but they could only wait and hope that Chasing Demon would hold strong. The crack was inside Noah''s dark world, but he didn''t have any power over the other side. Even the titan had to struggle to pierce the liquid blackness. His strength alone wasn''t enough to affect the situation. Silence spread among the group. The experts could only hold their breath as the golden flames began to cover the titan''s arm. The fire even reached the giant''s shoulder as it continued to unleash its destructive properties. Noah tried his best to suppress the golden flames, but they were too dense for his dark world. His will couldn''t apply any restriction on them when they were so dense. Even with his recent breakthrough, Noah remained a gaseous stage powerhouse. He couldn''t surpass King Elbas when it came to raw power. Chasing Demon couldn''t move. His whole focus was on pouring the entirety of his cultivation level on the titan to fuel its incredible strength. Part of it also went on keeping its structure intact, so he couldn''t break his concentration for even a second. The flames eventually reached him before continuing to spread on the rest of the titan. Chasing Demon burned, but his concentration didn''t waver. His eyes remained on the shrinking crack. His mind had cut away any other input and made him focus only on his task. His organization and friends'' future was at stake, so he didn''t care if his body crumbled in the process. Flying Demon''s aura surged at that sight. Flowers grew from his figure as his mental waves became violent and messy. His eyes remained fixed on Chasing Demon. He wanted to memorize that moment without interfering with his Patriarch''s heroic sacrifice. Dreaming Demon was in a similar condition. She wore an ugly expression as she clasped her hand around Flying Demon''s arm. Her gesture didn''t aim to hold her lover''s back. Her fingers stabbed in his skin as she did her best to restrain herself. The two Demons suffered the most intense emotional blow, but Elder Julia and Noah weren''t too better off. Elder Julia had known Chasing Demon since the Coral Archipelago. The Hive had yet to be born at that time, and there were only separate sects ruling the underground world in the islands. She had seen the rise of the Hive under Chasing Demon''s leadership. They had started from a small and isolated area in the sea, but now they belonged to one of the world''s greatest organizations. Noah still recalled the few conversations that he had with Chasing Demon. The Patriarch had never complained about his behavior. It didn''t matter how many forces he offended. Chasing Demon would always deploy the assets of the Hive to back Noah up. Chasing Demon had never tried to suppress Noah. Instead, he had done his best to push him further on the cultivation journey. The Patriarch had even provided Noah with pieces of information that only powerhouses could know only to help him in his path. Noah had always known that he lacked something. He could never sacrifice himself for the sake of his organization. However, he couldn''t help but feel pure respect toward Chasing Demon''s action. The Patriarch had lost the love of his life after Ravaging Demon''s betrayal, but he had continued to train to exact his vengeance. His efforts to benefit the Hive didn''t stop after he killed his mortal enemy. Chasing Demon had devoted his entire existence to spreading his Master''s teachings, and the Hive now was an organization full of entities who were proud of the label "Demon". Divine Demon might have preferred him to abandon everything and focus on his path, but Chasing Demon was different. Noah had felt something during his long period of training. The Patriarch had reached his limits. His potential and will didn''t allow him to advance further. The thought that someone with such a grim future could still focus everything on his organization made him respect Chasing Demon even more. He was a true leader, and the Hive wouldn''t be the same without him. "Tisha," Chasing Demon suddenly said while his figure burned. His words echoed through the dark matter, and Dreaming Demon''s attention focused on him. "You have always had more foresight than any of us," Chasing Demon continued. "I know that you will do your best to build a future for the Hive." Dreaming Demon couldn''t muster the strength to answer him, but she performed a deep bow before focusing on his figure again. She wouldn''t dare to miss his death. "Arthur," Chasing Demon spoke again, and Flying Demon''s aura became peaceful as he focused on his words. "You''ve suffered more than any of us, but you didn''t let your pain destroy your future. I leave Master''s inscriptions and the defenses of the Hive to you. Be sure to discipline that stubborn automaton." A tear ran down Flying Demon''s left eye before performing a deep bow and resumed to watch his old friend. "Julia," Chasing Demon continued, "You have handled every political matter while I spent my time cultivating. I can''t think of anyone else who could manage the Hive better than you." Elder Julia nodded before bowing. Chasing Demon had basically named her the new leader of the Hive, preferring her to his old friends. She couldn''t feel more honored. The golden flames covered the whole titan and threatened to burn the dark world. Yet, they remained on the divine item as they focused all their power on it. The crack had almost closed by then. Chasing Demon only needed to hold on for a bit more to defeat King Elbas once and for all. Still, his goodbyes weren''t over yet. "Noah Balvan," Chasing Demon said as his figure crumbled and the giant started to speak with his voice, "Demon Prince of the Hive, Divine Demon''s heir." Noah''s attention spiked as Chasing Demon listed his titles, and his eyes remained fixed on the giant as it continued to speak with the Patriarch''s voice. "You have defeated opponents far stronger than you since you were only a human cultivator," The giant said as its arm broke and it used its body to block the opening in the void. "You have surpassed every expectation, and your potential knows no limits. You are the best cultivator that the world has ever seen, and your power doesn''t follow any common sense or label." The giant began to crumble, and only ashes came out of the golden flames. Nevertheless, Chasing Demon''s voice continued to echo through the dark world. "I know you don''t want to be a leader, but you still deserve a title worthy of your achievements. From now on, you will be Defying Demon. May the Immortal Lands tremble when they hear your name." Chapter 1148: 1148. Price The titan slowly disappeared, consumed by the golden flames. King Elbas had achieved something incredible by destroying a divine item while being in the heroic ranks, but Chasing Demon had the last say in the matter. The flames dispersed and the ashes spread in the dark world to reveal a perfectly intact void. The crack had disappeared. The structure of that separate reality had reformed, and King Elbas didn''t manage to cross the liquid blackness before it was too late. "Quickly!" Elder Julia suddenly shouted as she looked toward Flying Demon. "Freeze his ashes. We might be able to bring him back!" Her statement didn''t reveal that the Hive had secured spots in the Second-life Formation, but the experts from the other organizations still shot suspicious glances at her. The Hive members didn''t answer, and God''s Left Hand lowered her head to avoid revealing any clue about their secret cooperation. The fact that Flying Demon didn''t act made Elder Julia understand that her idea wasn''t feasible. His reaction forced her to review the situation, and she eventually reached the same conclusion as her companions. The group was in a separate reality where laws worked differently. The Second-life formation required the connection with the cultivators to be active when they died, and Chasing Demon had turned into ashes while part of his consciousness had fused with the titan. The journey back to the surface would take them years, especially now that they didn''t have a guide. That period was enough to make any connection dissipate unless someone had access to particular methods. Moreover, Chasing Demon had poured his entire existence in the titan to fuel its abilities. Even if his connection with the formation were still active when they returned to the surface, it would find no cultivator to resurrect. Chasing Demon was gone, and there was nothing that his companions could do to resurrect him. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon neared Elder Julia and placed a hand on her shoulders. They knew her pain far too well. They had both felt the same unwillingness that had filled her mind. "You know his story," Dreaming Demon said. "Don''t you think that he deserves some rest?" Elder Julia struggled to accept that outcome, but she ultimately nodded and lifted her head to look toward Noah. "Did you really see death?" Elder Julia asked, and Noah could only show her a sad smile as an answer. "Where is he now?" Elder Julia still asked. Noah looked toward the void above him as if searching for the rulers of the world. He knew the answer, and he didn''t mind giving it to her. "Heaven and Earth collect dead souls from countless worlds. They dismantle and purify them before creating new ones to insert in living beings." Elder Julia lowered her eyes, but her expression soon relaxed. She accepted that there was nothing in their power to revert that outcome. Chasing Demon''s soul had probably left that world already. The other experts didn''t investigate the topic discussed at that moment out of respect for the Hive''s loss. Still, they didn''t forget where they were, and awkward expressions appeared on their faces as they looked around them. Noah retracted his dark matter as soon as he noticed their gestures. He had kept the dark world active until then, but the fight was over now. The experts began to look for raw laws when the entirety of the void reappeared in their eyes, but they felt disappointed when they saw only darkness around them. Noah had absorbed every raw law in the area. He had given the only ones that he had spared to Chasing Demon, so the experts could only venture through the void again if they wanted to find more of them. During their inspection, they noticed that something was off. The experts had seen Noah killing First Prince and First Princess, but Second Prince was still alive. Yet, he wasn''t anywhere near them, and he didn''t even leave a trace to follow. Second Prince had abandoned the battlefield, and his destination was unknown. Noah and the other cultivators from the Hive remained silent as they reviewed Chasing Demon''s last moments in their minds. They didn''t seem interested in the void anymore, so the other experts could only exchange glances to understand each other''s intentions. Truth be told, Noah, the Demons, and even Elder Julia had already understood that they couldn''t remain inside the void any longer. The battle against King Elbas had depleted most of their "Breath", and they couldn''t refill their dantian inside the void. The only source of energy there were the raw laws, but there weren''t any of them in the area. The group could advance deeper in the separate reality and hope to find raw laws soon. However, dealing with their addictive properties in their weakened state wasn''t optimal. Moreover, Second Prince was still out there, and King Elbas'' defeat had left them without a guide. The group had to find a solution to that issue before deciding to move again. Noah stared at the spot where King Elbas had disappeared. That mighty expert had managed to spread his flames across dimensions without any training. He couldn''t believe that the Royal would die so easily. No one knew what the other dimension had to offer. The group felt satisfied with locking King Elbas away for now, but the best inscription master in the world didn''t obtain that title by mere luck. There was a high chance that he managed to return. After all, King Elbas already had experience in interdimensional travels. He had created the tunnel for the other world. "We should retreat," Noah conveyed through his consciousness, breaking the deafening silence that had descended on the group. The Demons and Elder Julia nodded at his words, but God''s Left Hand unfolded her mind to give voice to a few complaints. "Why should we leave now? I didn''t spend the entire battle looting raw laws while we drained our centers of power!" Noah wasn''t in the mood for political talks, especially right after Chasing Demon''s death. He knew what God''s Left Hand wanted to do. She aimed to receive compensation for her services in the battle. Yet, Noah shut her up with a message that left everyone speechless. "Because I''m the only one who won''t lose himself in the yellow sea. I''m the only guide you have, so you''ll do as I say." Of course, Noah didn''t want to save God''s Left Hand, but he couldn''t show any weakness now that the Hive had lost its Patriarch. He had to make sure that the other organizations didn''t think about exploiting that temporary weakness. As for fighting God''s Left Hand and leaving the Shandal Empire''s forces inside the void, Noah didn''t see that decision in a good light. The Shandal Empire wasn''t an ally, but the alliance could gain valuable resources and studies if it let it leave. An organization that held details concerning the divine ranks wasn''t a force that he could ignore. The centers of power of most experts were almost empty too. Noah knew that he had some advantage in that sense, but he didn''t want to waste his energy to fight against cultivators who had many inscribed items. "You can remain here if you want," Noah continued without showing any shame, "But don''t think that you can follow me without paying an adequate price." Chapter 1149: 1149. Funeral Remaining in the void with little to no "Breath" was a gamble that the experts weren''t willing to take. God''s Left Hand could only back off and accept Noah''s conditions. Her only hope was that the alliance wouldn''t be too harsh on the Shandal Empire. They had fought together, so the Matriarch believed that she wouldn''t have to pay a lot for Noah''s services. Great Elder Diana agreed to Noah''s directives without complaining. She felt lucky enough that she had survived that harsh situation. Betting on her self-restraint and fortune wasn''t ideal when their return would bring great benefit already. King Elbas was far away, and Second Prince had escaped somewhere. The Shandal Empire wasn''t a threat, so the only enemies of the alliance left on the surface were Third Prince and Second Princess. The two Royals weren''t much of a threat. Noah had defeated their older brother and sister on his own. However, the territories in the Elbas family''s domain had a wide array of protections that would take years to overcome. Still, with King Elbas gone, the alliance now had years to invest in that siege. Great Elder Diana knew that the battles would be hard, but she didn''t mind that after what she had experienced in the separate reality. Elder Julia gathered Chasing Demon''s ashes, and Flying Demon froze them before storing them inside his space-ring. The experts of the Hive didn''t intend to attempt reviving Chasing Demon. They only wanted to make a funeral worthy of the leader of one of the strongest organizations in the world. There wasn''t much to prepare. The experts couldn''t cultivate, so none of them had to waste time refilling their centers of power. They could begin their return to the surface almost immediately. The group began to move only a few days after the battle. Chasing Demon''s death was still palpable in their minds, but they had other priorities. Returning to a safe place was the least they could do after such hardships. Another long journey through the void started. All the experts knew where to go since stars shone in the distance. They only had to go in the opposite direction. The march to return to the yellow sea took longer even if they didn''t make any stop. Most of the experts had to save "Breath" to fly, so they couldn''t go too fast. The void never changed, and the lack of a proper exit weighed on the cultivators'' minds. The experts couldn''t understand how far they were from the edges of the separate reality, so they felt they were flying most of the time aimlessly. When they first reached the separate reality, the group was too interested in finding raw laws, so that distance appeared easier to cross. They even had the stars as a target and the sparse raw laws that they could absorb. No angry outburst came out of the experts'' mouths. There was no point in complaining there. The void wouldn''t change just because they were bored. The group eventually reached the separate dimension''s edges that didn''t oppose any resistance at their passage. They were a simple membrane that allowed everyone to enter and exit. Noah was the first to cross the separate reality''s edges, and the yellow world reappeared in his vision for the first time in years. Nothing had changed there. The tempting black platform had remained the same, even after their long journey in the void. The rest of the group soon exited the separate reality, and they showed dubious expressions when Noah''s moment arrived. They had learnt how to deal with raw laws and resist their captivating properties inside the void. Still, the yellow magma offered a different type of difficulty, which they couldn''t overcome independently. It wasn''t a matter of personal power or strength that they could wield. The yellow magma''s radiations targeted their minds, and no experts wanted to get lost inside it. No puppet appeared on their path as they walked or flowed through the black landmass. All experts had chosen to take some time to cultivate as soon as they exited the separate reality, and their condition immediately improved. Noah didn''t want to waste any time walking on the landmass, but he wanted to make sure that he traced King Elbas'' steps correctly. He didn''t want to take the short path only to discover that he was lost. The group relied on a series of inscribed threads to avoid losing any of their members. Noah walked in the lead and held a long cord connected to the other experts. The item became quite useful once they reached the end of the landmass and swam through the sea. It was the time for the scorching sensation again, but even that environment didn''t scare the experts. A large metallic layer soon appeared in their eyes, and Noah didn''t hesitate to swim toward the tunnel in its center. Needless to say, some of the experts tried to seize some of that material, but all of them failed. The metal was too hard, and nothing appeared able to cut it. It didn''t even bend, so the cultivators could only cross the tunnel to return to the sea of red magma. The area''s temperatures remained scorching, but they had diminished now that they had reached the other sea and red magma filled their vision. Enduring the heat was easy now that everyone could cultivate. Returning to the familiar red sea also gave the group hope that the journey was almost over. The group swam for a while until they found an opening in the seabed above them. They quickly crossed it, and the azure water of the sea met them. They had finally returned to the surface! The experts didn''t speak. They separated to return to their respective domains, and Noah soon found himself with the two Demons and Elder Julia next to him. "Where does he want to be dispersed? Elder Julia asked, but Noah shook his head. The only two who could know more about Chasing Demon were the couple right next to them. "There is only one place worthy of his ashes," Flying Demon began to say, and Dreaming Demon intervened to give more information. "He had taken a liking in the archipelago. No other place can be his tomb." The four of them moved toward the Coral Archipelago at that point. Once they were on top of it, Flying Demon took out the frozen ashes and reabsorbed his power. The ashes dispersed in the winds, and the experts on the scene had different reactions at that sight. Noah maintained his aloof expression. But his eyes followed the trails of ashes that dispersed on the archipelago. A few tears came out of the Demons'' eyes, and Elder Julia performed a deep bow before remaining in that position until all the ashes had dispersed. In the trio''s mind, Chasing Demon''s death had become more comfortable to endure. The old patriarch had done a lot for the Hive. Seeing his ashes dispersing was a painful but relieving process. The four remained in the sky for an entire day before breaking their contemplation. They decided to focus on the matters concerning the new continent from now on. "What now, Defying Demon?" Flying Demon asked while wearing his usual smile. Still, no happiness accompanied his gesture. "There are only two Royals left on the surface," Noah answered. "They don''t deserve those territories. It''s time to take them." Chapter 1150: 1150. Defenses The Hive as a whole held Chasing Demon''s funeral during the months following the return of the powerhouses. Months of political silence followed the dispersion of his ashes. The Hive didn''t make any move, and even its borders remained peaceful while the higher-ups held their event. The rank 5 Elders held banquets to recall his moments as a leader. Flying Demon, Dreaming Demon, and Elder Julia joined those events to tell stories that the weaker assets had missed, but Noah didn''t go to any of them. Noah had promised a full-on invasion. It was his first time ordering something on that scale, but the Hive''s powerhouses knew that he wasn''t joking around. Chasing Demon''s death had to be a signal. His sacrifice had to state that the Elbas family couldn''t be part of the new continent, and Noah intended to make that idea real. Still, he had some projects to finish before approaching the tight defensive formations that surrounded the four regions under the control of the Elbas family. Noah remained inside his new quarters during the political funeral. The Hive had built an incredible underground mansion for him. It was a proper palace that featured areas meant for all his needs. The location was also optimal for Noah''s training. The mansion was under one of the territories inhabited by hybrids, so he could ignore any restraint when testing some new techniques. The new mansion had a cultivation area with so many "Breath" blessings that the air in there had surpassed the peaks of the piece of Immortal Lands when it first fell. It had a training room filled with formations that could replicate various battle sessions. Noah could even use some of his memories to improve their effects. Another area had many materials capable of releasing heavy pressure. That could help Noah''s mind improve, but the Hive knew that he had access to the Seventh Kesier rune, so it focused the training on strengthening the mental walls. Noah couldn''t cultivate just yet. His dantian peaked after the breakthrough, but his cultivation technique required the Demonic Sword. The living weapon had to evolve before it could enlarge Noah''s dantian again. The amount of energy that it could absorb at its current level wasn''t enough to train the center of power. Noah often traveled toward the Divine Cut to exchange blows with Sword Saint. His normal training didn''t interfere with his improvements with the sword arts, and his existence continued to rise toward new peaks as he kept on fighting with the will. Sword Saint had shown him his best attacks, but Noah didn''t mind training with someone who could endure his blows. The divine will was the perfect sparring partner. The Demonic Sword eventually evolved. Noah had invested many of the magical beasts'' corpses inside his space-rings to feed the living sword, but his expenses saw good returns in the end. The blade could endure all his attacks after it reached the sixth rank. It could even perform Sword Saint''s core techniques at that point. However, Noah wasn''t satisfied with its current form. The Demonic Sword had to express the entirety of his existence, but it lacked one core material. The dark sphere had transformed into a black hole after the breakthrough and the dark matter that it released only helped Snore in its basic form. The dark world used Noah''s higher energy as its fuel. He had yet to test that technique''s power with experts at his level, but he knew that it contained an incredible value. Noah had managed to suppress King Elbas'' golden flames with his dark world. The restrictions didn''t last long, but that period was enough to defeat any opponent near his level. That was the kind of weapon that could defeat stronger cultivators, but Noah didn''t accept to have only one of them. Noah began his experiments with the Demonic Sword almost immediately. It only took a month for his first experiment to fail, but the mansion contained the detonation. The failures didn''t affect Noah''s anymore. His body was so strong that even the explosion of rank 5 and 6 materials couldn''t hurt him. His companions didn''t have to worry about him. The Demonic Sword accepted every test happily. It felt the pain lingering inside Noah''s mind, so it preferred to help him through those stages in the best way that it could. The blade endured every modification, and it even went through countless painful tests. The experiments took a while, but Noah eventually succeeded. He was attempting to modify a living being, and Noah wouldn''t care about its behavior too much. Yet, he wasn''t willing to make his living weapon suffer pointlessly. Noah succeeded in the end. His project consisted of fusing dark matter in the Demonic Sword, and the blade accepted that treatment. Torrents of dark matter had flown inside the Demonic Sword and improved its structure. The living weapon''s anatomy was peculiar, but Noah followed the process closely from beginning to end. Noah ignored any social stimulus in that period. He had too much to do, and any eventual opponent wasn''t worth the time wasted when he didn''t prioritize his power. The Demonic Sword became bigger as dark matter fused with its structure. It reached the point when it didn''t need to shrink from performing specific attacks anymore. The living weapon didn''t change shape before meeting an enemy, but its internal structure improved in ways that he couldn''t describe. It absorbed all the missing pieces of his existence, and it had naturally improved as if it was waiting for that experiment to happen. Divine Market city appeared in Noah''s eyes after he ended his training session for good. The area had so many defensive formations that he didn''t even begin to count them, but he cared about them. Second Princess appeared behind the enemy protections, so Noah had a limited set of actions. Yet, he was ready to fight there for years only to drag her out. "We can decide on the matter in a far more enjoyable place," Second Princess said when she saw Noah nearing the defensive formations alone. She had learnt about the events inside the void from the pieces of information concerning the powerhouses'' last mission, and she truly feared Noah''s mindset at the moment. Noah wasn''t the type to do anything reckless unless it benefitted his cultivation level. Yet, the situation was different now. He didn''t want to join negotiations. He only wanted to create a mess to honor Chasing Demon. "The time for negotiations is over," Noah replied while the Demonic Sword roared while inside his space-ring and landed in his hand. "I want every member of the Elbas family out of the new continent, and I''ll use everything in my power to accomplish that." "Demon Prince of the Hive!" Second Princess complained as the light of the inscriptions in front and behind her lit up. It seemed that she had activated a signal that triggered all the defenses in the area. A rocky giant appeared behind her, and a building released a fire that compelled anyone in the area to retreat. All the defenses became clear in Noah''s mind, but he didn''t care about any of them. Chapter 1151: 1151. Exchanges Second Princess tried to lead Noah toward a negotiation, but he didn''t care about that. He had decided to take charge of the invasion, so he had to do it in his way. The fire covered the giant as countless shining lines filled the environment. The sky above Divine Market city lit up, and the golden light that the inscriptions radiated overcame the natural illumination of the sunlight. "I suggest you rethink your decision," Second Princess said as the aura of the inscriptions spread in the region. Noah could sense many defensive methods with power in the sixth rank, but his feelings didn''t change. His instincts told him that he didn''t have to fear those defenses, so he could unleash his prowess without any restraint. Dense dark smoke came out of Noah''s figure and filled the entire area. Noah''s higher energy spread to create the dark world, and the light radiated by the inscriptions dimmed under its influence. Noah had learnt more about his dark world during his period of training. That technique created a personal domain that he could use to perform any task. He had completed the evolution of the Demonic Sword inside the dark world. His success rate improved there, and he had an almost endless amount of dark matter in that environment. The restrictions applied by the dark world were even more beneficial in a fight. Noah was against a powerhouse who was weaker than him, so his suppression would work far better. The inscriptions were the only problem. Noah could kill Second Princess in a few exchanges without defensive formations, but she was too smart to leave her protections. The Royal had learnt about the events inside the void through rumors spread by spies hidden in the various organizations. Forces as big as the Elbas family usually filtered those pieces of information due to their lack of honesty. However, the matter concerning King Elbas'' mission had involved only powerhouses, so there was a limit to the amount of data that the spies could understand. They didn''t know the details about Noah''s prowess, and they didn''t believe that he had enough power to break the formations anyway. Noah had already attempted and failed in that, so the Royals didn''t think that a simple breakthrough could give him too much power. Of course, they were wrong. Improving the Demonic Sword had been enough to put Noah''s power on par with other existences in the liquid stage. Noah could now do whatever he wanted. There were only a few people who were still willing to face him. Noah crouched when he saw that the battle drew near. His Demonic Sword went backward as its aura fended off the pressure that came in their direction. "You are a fool," Second Princess concluded before retreating even further. Noah didn''t hesitate, and he didn''t even speak with the Royal. A massive surge of power gathered on his figure, and the world''s fabric bent under the might released by his aura. Second Princess wore a broad smile on her face, but her expression froze when she sensed the aura accumulated during the attack''s preparation. Noah lunged forward, and a large hole appeared on the vast array of defensive formations. The giant in the distance crumbled too, but Noah didn''t feel satisfied. A series of white beams and armored humanoid puppets shot in his direction after the formations suffered that damage. Large ethereal arrows followed that counterattack, and a series of massive red whip followed those defensive methods. Noah watched the array of attacks coming in his direction and lifted his blade. The Demonic Sword didn''t suffer any damage during his last blow, and his dantian still had plenty of darkness left afterward. The Demonic Sword began to tremble after it rose to reach his chest. Noah titled its sharp tip slowly, and countless mirror images of the living weapon appeared around its main body as his blade descended. The methods of the defensive formations were various and powerful. Second Princess had every reason to feel safe inside her area. Yet, Noah''s technique appeared stronger than she had expected. Noah''s slash launched countless slashes that carried the power of the sixth rank. The defenses flying toward him crumbled under Sword Saint''s technique, and no golden light ever hit him. The slash had an unclear shape. Different attacks flew together with the massive black line that shot out of the Demonic Sword. Fainter slashes accompanied the black line and created an array of sword arts that clashed with the defensive formations. One attack was enough to face all the blows launched by the inscriptions. The slash cut the armored puppets and the beams in half. Its power allowed it to pierce the golden halo too, and some of its effects reached the defensive formations. The shining lines above the buildings of Divine Market city trembled when Noah''s slash hit them. The black line was thick and dense, and normal defensive methods couldn''t deal with its power. The defenses fell apart as Noah placed the Demonic Sword on his shoulder. The golden halo was already fixing those inscribed lines, so it was pointless to press the offensive further for now. Analyzing the defenses of the area had the priority. Noah''s attacks would be more focused on the flaws of the array only after he found them. Second Princess had remained in a safe spot when the slash arrived. Its unclear form was a spectacle that a few experts could understand, and she wasn''t one of them. Noah''s slash went straight, but many seemingly ethereal cuts appeared around it and created an attack that the defensive formations had a hard time blocking. It wasn''t as strong as the lunge, but it carried an innate boundlessness that she couldn''t face no matter how she approached the attack. One slash appeared to contain every sword art in the entire world, but some of its ethereal images were too faint to inflict the desired damage. The formations almost reformed by the time Noah decided to raise his sword again and prepare himself for the next attack. Noah didn''t have any specific method to defeat the formations. There were too many defenses, but his attacks could pierce them and defeat any counterattack that came in his direction. His only option was to pressure the defensive formations as much as he could before calling the other Elders for help. Still, that was his last resort since he wanted to complete the task alone. Seizing one of the most protected places on the new continent by himself would improve his status and make the Hive even more dangerous in the minds of every other force. King Elbas'' absence and Chasing Demon''s death had left an empty spot that everyone wanted to fill. Rebels and smaller organizations couldn''t wait for any of the forces in charge of the world to commit mistakes and allow them to become the new Coral Archipelago. However, Noah intended to show that the Hive was on a completely different level to scare away any spy or expert who had doubts about its power. Chasing Demon wouldn''t be able to see that, but every cultivator would know that the Hive had reached those heights with him as its leader. "I''m not the Demon Prince of the Hive anymore," Noah said as his blade began to vibrate. "I''m Defying Demon, the best cultivator in history." "It doesn''t matter who you are," Second Princess replied as she stepped forward to fly among the golden halo fixing the formations. "You are only a powerhouse, and these defenses have a nigh-endless source of energy. You need an army of rank 6 cultivators to overcome them." Noah didn''t answer. The time for words was over, and he had already conveyed what he wanted the world to hear. Now he only needed to attack the defensive formations until he eradicated them. Chapter 1152: 1152. Training area The Demonic Sword released intense vibration that spread among the dark world''s fabric. The dark matter inside the blade made Noah''s new technique resonate with the weapon''s intentions. Noah had fused his higher energy inside the Demonic Sword after it reached the sixth rank. The process didn''t only make the weapon longer and sturdier. It even added a few effects that he had yet to show to the world. Sword Saint''s techniques were incredible. The power that they could express surpassed the natural limitations of a cultivator''s rank and relied on the true meaning of the divine entity''s law to unleash their might. However, Noah''s law was different. He had yet to give it a proper form and true meaning, but he knew that he couldn''t rely on Sword Saint''s attacks to grow. Noah used Sword Saint''s techniques because their raw power was immense, but he had to reach that point with his arts if he wanted to push his expertise forward. That meant using all his assets to give birth to new personal techniques. It was the same hindrance that he had to overcome when he infused his spells with his physical might. He only had to do the same with the dark world now. "I like this scene," Night commented from inside Noah''s space-ring. Noah''s dark world enveloped the array of defensive formations and suppressed the golden halo that they radiated. The tremors that ran through the dark matter pushed the light backward, and some inscribed lines shattered due to the pressure that accompanied the expanding dark world. Darkness was suppressing light. The Pterodactyl couldn''t be happier when it watched that scene. Noah ignored Night. There was only one goal in his mind. He had to solidify Chasing Demon''s legacy to make his sacrifice even more meaningful. The dark matter began to churn and gather around the Demonic Sword as the tremors continued. Second Princess felt a chill running down her spine as she saw the whole cloud empowering Noah''s weapon. It was as if the Demonic Sword had fused with Noah''s world. The Royal took a few steps back as the golden light around her dimmed, and she waved her hand to trigger the formations'' offensive again. The fiery giant reformed and walked in front of the shining lines. White beams shot out of the cores that filled the formations, and armored puppets formed among the light and stepped forward to create an army around the titan. Large ethereal arrows flew out of buildings that resonated with the formations, and massive red whips made their way through the dark matter to reach Noah. The defensive formations revealed their full power and focused everything they had on Noah, who limited himself to raising his Demonic Sword above his head. The gales of dark matter blew around the living weapon and made its blade disappear inside the dark world. Second Princess knew that Noah still wielded it, but she couldn''t see what he was preparing. The vibrations intensified as the attacks flew forward. The arrows, the whips, and the white beams fell apart under the suppression of the dark world, but the giant managed to reach Noah''s position. Many armored puppets detonated when they crumbled, but their explosions paved the way for the other constructs. The dark world couldn''t suppress so many attacks simultaneously, but the giant and the puppet''s movements felt sluggish inside the dense tides of Noah''s higher energy. The giant slammed its fists toward Noah, but the dark world opened at that point. A three hundred meters long blade became visible as Noah tilted his wrist. A massive amount of dark matter descended together with the Demonic Sword as Noah performed his slash. The blade appeared heavy, but it completed its attack in less than an instant. The giant and the army of puppets disappeared as the dark matter carried by the blade engulfed them. Second Princess suddenly couldn''t see anything since the gales of higher energy completely suppressed the formations'' light. When the golden light returned to illuminate the area around her, she saw a spectacle that left her speechless. The formations'' attacks were nowhere to be seen. Noah''s slash had destroyed them, but that didn''t surprise the Royal too much. He had done the same in the past exchange in the end. However, her eyes remained fixed on the buildings'' shining lines under the Elbas family''s control. A massive opening had appeared right at their center, and some of the structures had crumbled during the attack. Noah''s attack had destroyed the formation''s effects, pierced the inscriptions, and fallen on the buildings behind the defenses. Its energy had ended right before touching the ground. Second Princess couldn''t suppress her surprise as she fixed her eyes on Noah. Her gaze carried a faint trace of fear. The last attack would have landed on her if the formations didn''t deviate its trajectory. "Is this the best you can gather in one slash?" Noah asked the Demonic Sword as he held it in front of his face. The blade roared a few answers, and Noah nodded before lifting the weapon above his head again. Second Princess couldn''t believe her eyes when she saw dark matter gathering around the Demonic Sword again. Seeing Noah talking with the blade was peculiar, but the fact that he could launch that attack left her completely speechless. Countless inscribed items came out of her space-ring. Runes, shields, disposable weapons, and armor sets flew to fuse with the defensive formations to improve their abilities. It was now clear that Noah could inflict heavy damages on that part of Divine Market city even if he couldn''t eradicate the defensive formations. His lunge and strange slash dispersed right after clashing with the shining lines, but that last attack contained too much energy to lose power so soon. Second Princess even tried to send a few messages through her inscribed notebook, but Noah''s dark world blocked every connection with the outside. The Royal was alone and isolated in that area. "The Royal family has the best inscription masters in the world!" Second Princess shouted when she saw the tall blade descending again and carrying even more dark matter with it. "We will rebuild everything that you destroy in no time! Your efforts are pointless!" Noah didn''t answer. There was no point conversing with the Royal after the situation had reached that stage. Moreover, he had already set his mind. That place had to fall in the Hive''s hands. The Elbas family had to leave the new continent. He didn''t care about anything else at that moment. The blade fell, and another massive fissure opened among the formations. Second Princess'' reinforcements prevented the attack from reaching the buildings behind the defenses, but they didn''t manage to block it completely. Dark matter flowed inside the fissure, but the healing golden light soon fended it off and started the restoration of the shining lines. Second Princess activated more inscribed items at that point, and she even went on the ground to use communication methods that the dark world couldn''t stop. She needed reinforcements. That place had the best defenses in the entire new continent, but Noah brought them to their limits on his own. Second Princess did her best to reinforce the formations and plan eventual improvements, but she stopped her tracks when she saw Noah lifting his sword again. She didn''t even have the time to do anything before the blade fell downward, carrying even more dark matter with it. Many of the new defenses that she had deployed fell apart during the attack. The golden light found another massive fissure to fix when it didn''t even finish rebuilding the previous one. Second Princess remained still as the golden light filled her vision. She had already done everything she could, but that wasn''t enough to stop Noah. Her mouth opened when she saw Noah raising his sword again. The dark world churned even more as massive quantities of the dark matter gathered around the blade. His expression barely seemed focused on the defensive formations. Second Princess felt that he was giving more importance to perfecting his slash rather than conquering that territory. It was as if Noah had turned one of the most protected regions in the new continent into his training area. Chapter 1153: 1153. Determination Divine Market city had remained mostly peaceful even after the alliance started its first invasion. Yet, a black cloud now hovered around the buildings belonging to the Elbas family. The citizens had seen Noah arriving there and covering the area with his black smoke. That scene had initially made them panic, but they soon noticed that no shockwave came out of the cloud. No sound echoed from there either, so the weaker cultivators didn''t know what was happening inside the cloud. Only experts near the peak of the fifth rank or on the powerhouses'' level knew about the reasons behind Noah''s actions. Second Princess didn''t lose her cool. Noah had displayed an incredible prowess, but he was only one expert. His power went way above his cultivation level, but he had an entire array of formations against him. The formations weren''t simple defenses either. The Royals had made them for eventual new invasions, and they had amassed reserves of energy to make the inscriptions last for years. Even if Noah could destroy many of them with his attacks, the region wouldn''t fall in his hands anytime soon. Noah was aware of that fact, but his drive went past what Second Princess could imagine. His unshakable determination had always been one of the main factors behind his growth, and now he had set his eyes on Divine Market city. Second Princess witnessed how driven Noah was in that period. She had initially thought that he would give up after a few weeks, but a year passed by, and Noah was still assaulting the formations on his own. Noah was relentless. He slashed continuously every other day and spent the rest of the time cultivating right in front of the formations. If Second Princess decided to attack him while he trained, Noah summoned Snore and let it handle the defensive formations. His stash of dark matter was virtually infinite, and Elders from the Hive entered the cloud every month to refill his space-ring with provision. The black hole in his chest would turn any energy he absorbed into nutrients anyway. Noah even improved as his assault continued. He would treat his attack on the defensive formations as proper training for his sword arts, and Second Princess had to witness his growth. Sword Saint''s slashes represented the peak of the divine will''s path, so Noah didn''t improve much on them. His experience with blades couldn''t match that mighty existence, and only centuries spent slashing would make Noah able to perform those attacks correctly. On the other hand, Noah''s martial arts improved by leaps and bounds. The Demonic Sword became more used to its new form as it kept on releasing slashes that relied on the dark world. It also unlocked new abilities. The Demonic Sword already had a ductile structure, but fusing with the dark matter allowed it to transform into dense smoke if the situation required it. On a structural level, the Demonic Sword had become almost indestructible. The dark matter reinforced and refilled eventual internal damages caused by excessive stress or pressure, so the blade never reached a critical condition. The same went with Snore. Noah had yet to improve his Blood Companion, but the creature had reached incredible levels on its own when the dark matter evolved. Its previous abilities had grown exponentially, and its elemental attacks resonated inside the dark world, becoming stronger and able to cover a larger area. There were some drawbacks to Noah''s driven assault. He never left the dark world, so he couldn''t fly toward Chasing Demon''s old quarters to train with the Seventh Kesier Rune. Night complained too. Noah had yet to build a new body after the creature sacrificed its old one to defeat First Prince and First Princess. Still, its protests came from its excitement. The Pterodactyl had seen how powerful Noah''s dark matter had become, and it couldn''t wait to obtain a body made of it. The citizens became used to the dark cloud covering a third of Divine Market city after a year, but many weaker cultivators chose to leave anyway. Their worries came from other cultivators'' reports from the Royals'' faction who had left the city already. Their description and stories of the events inside the cloud were enough to scare anyone away from the area. The buildings inside the cloud had become deserted since Noah''s attacks would land on them from time to time. Third Prince had even come there to assess the situation once, but there was nothing that he could do to help his sister. The two Royals were too weak to join the efforts of the defensive formations. Noah was way above their level, so they could only allocate as many resources as possible and hope that he would eventually get tired. Noah disappointed them. It didn''t matter how many new defenses appeared inside the formations nor how time-consuming his attack was. He remained there, slashing madly with his Demonic Sword and making that region virtually uninhabitable for any expert. Of course, the Elbas family wasn''t willing to let go of that region. With most of their stronger assets gone or missing, the Royals needed to refill its ranks with new talents. The Divine Stele was one of the best training areas in the new continent. Losing access to it would only worsen the already awful situation in which the Elbas family was. Noah''s assault didn''t stop after the first year. He kept the dark world active even after two more years had passed, and the Royals could only grow more desperate about the situation. The assault didn''t inflict much structural damage. Noah''s slashes would reach the buildings from time to time, but those structures'' value wasn''t high. However, the siege depleted an immense amount of energy, and it also stopped most activities in that part of the city. The cultivators who would benefit the most from the Divine Stele couldn''t walk on its streets because Noah was a constant threat. The exchange of resources with the other factions wasn''t possible, and the Royals didn''t have anything to bargain to make Noah stop. The dimensional portal wasn''t even an issue anymore since King Elbas was out of the political scene. Only he could close it at will, so no one could affect it now that he was gone. The Royals'' desperation reached its peak after ten years spent in those conditions. Noah had learnt to know the defensive formations so well that he managed to make his slashes land on the ground quite often. The power of his attacks had also increased, so that part of Divine Market city became even more unlivable. Second Princess and Third Prince did their best to keep that land, but the resources spent were a heavy blow to the Elbas family''s economy. The region didn''t produce anything and only consumed resources. Training cultivators was always an investment, but the Royals couldn''t do that either in those conditions. The situation was even worse since the Hive and the Council had severed every trade with the Elbas family. The Royals felt lucky that they still had territories in the other world in that political environment. When Noah''s assault entered its twentieth year, the Royals knew that they had to make a decision. Their options were quite limited, but they tried everything before going for the approach they had tried to avoid. At first, Second Princess tried to contact other powerhouses of both Hive and Council, but she received no reply. Her focus then went on trying to negotiate an alliance with the Shandal Empire, but God''s Left Hand limited herself to refuse them. With the whole world ignoring them, the Royals had to give up on their claims over Divine Market city and relocate most resources and formations in the Royal Academy. The event happened silently. One day the formations activated, and the other day they didn''t shine anymore. Noah had never managed to eradicate the defenses, but his relentless assault had driven the Elbas family away. Chapter 1154: 1154. Rare Even if the Elbas family left Divine Market city silently, the repercussions that the event had on the world were quite loud. Noah had singlehandedly driven away what everyone thought to be one of the world''s strongest organizations from a divine resource. That alone spoke for how the Royals'' power had fallen after the mission at the center of the plane. The experts gave Noah credit, but he wouldn''t have succeeded if the Elbas family had been at its previous peak. It didn''t matter how amazing he was. His cultivation level wasn''t high enough to take on a major organization on his own. Noah''s achievement announced to the world that the Elbas family could lose, but only the Council could benefit from that discovery. The Shandal Empire had gained access to the new continent again, but it was in no condition to start a war. Great Elder Diana saw the outcome of Noah''s assault as the signal that the Elbas family''s defenses couldn''t endure a proper attack for long. The alliance could finally get rid of that organization once and for all. Noah retreated to his quarters after his twenty years long solitary battle ended. He had ignored many friends and projects after returning from the separate reality, and it was time to give them some of his time. "Is your mourning over?" June asked when she saw Noah entering his underground quarters. She had begun to cultivate there while he sieged Divine Market city, and her cultivation level had slowly neared the peak of the fifth rank. Noah could see that it would take her one century or so to become a powerhouse, and the reports of the Hive told him that other experts were in a similar state. Daniel had continued to progress steadily. His position inside the Hive had long since solidified. He was now in charge of a few factions inside the organization. He had become the lead alchemist of the Hive, and he even had a few loyal apprentices. Elder Julia would also send him to meetings with the Council too since his character suited those events. Elder Justin had reached the solid stage and was progressing nicely. The news of Chasing Demon''s death had pushed him to enter a long period of seclusion, and he intended to come out only after he became a powerhouse. Elder Colleen and Elder Ingrid were in a similar situation, even if their level was still around the solid stage''s halfway mark. Many other Elders had also advanced through the stages of the fifth rank, which gave the Hive positive prospects. Noah knew that cultivators couldn''t just train to reach the sixth rank. Many of those promising experts would remain stuck near the peak of the fifth rank for a long time and possibly forever. Stepping on the path to become a law wasn''t something that everyone could do. A single flaw in their individuality could ruin their future as cultivators and stop their advancements forever. Ravaging Demon was the best example to describe the harshness of the cultivation journey. His talent was immense, and his drive boundless. However, he founded his existence on a flawed core, which forced him to resort to the Royal Pool to advance. "I think part of Chasing Demon wanted to die," Noah replied while nearing his lover. "Maybe he has never been completely alive after Charming Demon''s death." June was cultivating on a praying mat, but she interrupted her training to pull Noah down with her. She then made him sit so that she could use his lap to lay her head. "We have outlived old monsters," June commented as she closed her eyes to immerse herself in Noah''s scent. "We have become them. I recalled only recently that we are more than nine hundred years old." "Who counts anymore," Noah replied while caressing her hair. His gaze moved through the large training hall, and he couldn''t help but compare it to the small room that he had when he was still inside Balvan Mansion. Most of the people that he had met in his life were dead, and only a few of them had died of old age. Noah had even killed many of them through his journey. Still, he could now stand among those at the peak of the heroic ranks. The mountains of corpses had become tall enough to make him peek at the divine ranks. Noah felt close to the end of his journey in the lower plane, but he knew that there was still an abyss between him and the Immortal Lands. "Do you think that King Elbas is dead?" June asked and broke the peaceful silence that had fallen between the couple. "No," Noah replied honestly, "He will probably reappear in a millennium or so, flaunting how awesome he is. If I have to rely on my instincts to judge, I can''t imagine him dying in a lower plane." "You don''t even know where you sent him," June complained in a teasing tone, "But you are sure that he will reach the Immortal Lands. Should I be jealous?" Noah smiled, but his expression turned serious when he reviewed King Elbas'' prowess. His answer made June wear a stern face too. "We gave him the greatest struggle of his life. I can''t imagine how powerful he will be after he overcomes it." "Do you fear him?" June asked. "Of course," Noah replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "The Hive already has a contingency plan ready in the eventuality that he returns as a divine entity. We have the same for Shandal and every other threat that we can''t face." "Which is?" June questioned him. "Hide until you are strong enough to face them," Noah gave another honest answer. The Hive''s greatest advantage was Divine Architect''s separate dimension since it could become the best hideout during a crisis that it couldn''t face. Noah didn''t like to hide any more than other experts on his level, but there were threats that even entire organizations couldn''t face. It was pointless to engage in a battle that he couldn''t win if he had a way out of it. The couple chatted for a while before resuming their normal lifestyle. Noah and June still lived together, but their cultivation sessions lasted for entire weeks, and they had many projects to handle. The best they could do as a couple was to set specific days every few months that they had to spend together. That didn''t interfere with their training and gave them breaks from an otherwise dull schedule. Noah could finally focus on improving his Companions in that period. The alliance had begun to pressure the Elbas family''s domain, but he had already done his part. He would join the battle only after he completed all his projects. Improving Snore turned out to be relatively easy. The Blood Companion had an innate connection with the dark world since it had acted as a catalyst for Noah''s elemental attacks. The Demonic Sword had evolved and fused with the dark matter easily because it was a mirror of Noah''s existence. Still, Snore accepted the improvements because the dark world was its natural environment. Undoing and reassembling the Blood Companion core''s structure was extremely easy inside the dark world. Noah barely had to make any effort to replace body parts that didn''t suit its new power anymore. That saved Noah a lot of time, especially when it came to the testing phase. He only had to forge organs that could empower Snore''s elemental attacks. Instead, Night''s improvements took longer to make. Noah had promised the Pterodactyl its final body, but that meant creating a proper living being where he would put the creature''s consciousness. It also meant that Noah had to make it able to grow. Night was different from Snore. It wanted to be its own existence that didn''t need Noah to improve. Noah had to do all of that while improving the Pterodactyl''s innate ability. His tests in the past had given him plenty of data, and his conclusions led him to use the rarest material in his space-ring. Noah had managed to retrieve some pieces of Royal Metal from the landmass in the yellow sea, and they appeared to be perfect for Night''s species. Chapter 1155: 1155. Improvements The Royal Metal was quite peculiar as a material. It changed its shape according to the individuality poured inside it, and it crumbled once it obtained a complete meaning. It was also incredibly sturdy. Noah recalled how no one in the group of experts had managed to seize shards of the metal from the black landmass. The pieces in his possession came from one of the giant''s attacks. Night''s innate ability made it transform into darkness whenever it attacked. Its structure interacted with laws during its assaults, and the task required its strange body to work correctly. Noah found replicating that ability quite hard. He had succeeded after many tests, but he always felt that he couldn''t quite express Night''s true potential with the previous bodies. The dark matter did its best in aiding Night''s innate skills, but the Royal Metal could bring those abilities to a superior level. The only problem was the self-destructive behavior of the material. For the first time in his life, Noah had to mess with the laws inside materials for the forgings. The Royal Metal didn''t bend or break, but Noah didn''t need to modify its shape. His focus was on its fabric, and he spent months identifying the laws that triggered the unwanted effects. Flawed raw laws made that material. Their goal was to search for meanings, and Noah had every intention to satisfy their wish, but he wanted to remove their annoying after-effect. Identifying his targets didn''t give Noah the ability to remove them. He didn''t have the power to cut through the Royal Metal, so he couldn''t cut away those laws either. Yet, he knew a particular creature with spectacular piercing abilities, which could improve the final product if it spread its darkness inside the Royal Metal. "You want to create a series of bodies that I have to destroy to get the final one?" Night asked when Noah told it about his plan. The Night-blade Pterodactyls were spectacular when it came to affecting laws. Night had managed to destroy formations'' cores while ignoring every defense when it was only a small bird. It could do the same for the Royal Metal with the right body. The Pterodactyl was nothing more than a huge empty head, but it analyzed the black spikes that Noah had laid on the ground with great interest. Noah didn''t need to point out the exact laws that it had to cut away. His mental connection with the creature was enough to give it a target. The only problem was whether Night could pierce the metal. "I will need twenty bodies to complete the task," Night eventually said. "I''ve never seen this material before. I will destroy part of me every time I enter its fabric." "What are you willing to do for the perfect body?" Noah asked while wearing a smirk, and Night didn''t hesitate anymore. The two of them began a long project that saw Noah building good bodies only for the Pterodactyl to destroy them whenever it attacked the spikes. Noah didn''t deplete precious materials since Night''s bodies only required dark matter. Still, he couldn''t hold back on their qualities since the creature wouldn''t be able to cross the metal otherwise. The project consumed a lot of time, but Noah soon optimized the forging process with the dark world. Night also attacked while inside it to improve its piercing ability. Night managed to remove the last of the unwanted laws from the spikes after destroying sixteen bodies that had the power of the sixth rank. Experts would go crazy if they heard those numbers, but Noah had long since stopped considering rank 6 resources important. Only top-tier resources and divine items could interest him. The black spikes fell apart after Night attacked their fabric. They became a thin sand-like material that carried a faint trace of the Pterodactyl''s aura. Noah felt delighted with that outcome, and he began the construction for Night''s final body immediately. To make Night able to grow, Noah had to infuse part of the dark matter with meanings retrieved from its consciousness. The Pterodactyl didn''t follow other magical beasts'' normal anatomy, so he had to use specific instincts to make his higher energy behave as if it was Night''s original body. The process took a long time since Noah had to wait for Night''s consciousness to recover after he forged a part of dark matter. He had applied the theory of the Will-consuming runes on the Pterodactyl. Then, he forged the sand-like material with the infused dark matter to create a ten meters tall body that had wings capable of covering a fourteen meters large area. Of course, the body carried the characteristics of the Night-blade Pterodactyls. It only had edges and didn''t have any organs. Still, the Royal Metal had fused with its fabric, so it wasn''t only dark matter anymore. Noah ultimately fused Night''s consciousness with its new body, and the creature soon tested its abilities. "It feels strangely comfortable," Night commented after it flew for a while. It had even gone in its breeding area to test its innate ability, and the results left it quite amazed. "I don''t feel any resistance when I attack," Night said in an excited tone. "I can transform faster, and I feel lighter even if I can sense that the body is heavier. I can even feed on the darkness that I create!" Night couldn''t contain its excitement, but Noah limited himself to flag another project as completed. With all his companions taken care of, there were only a few things left to finish. The runes immersed in his mental sea were useful assets that Noah had to pair with martial arts to make them suitable for his species. He also had to complete Sword Saint''s training, but he wasn''t sure that it had an end. The strange diagram that he had retrieved from Shandal''s separate dimension had yet to react to his energies, so Noah didn''t spend much time analyzing it. Instead, the other reward became far more tempting now that his body was about to reach the middle tier. Noah suppressed the faint hunger that had appeared in that period and focused on pushing his body and dantian toward the next level. It was better to rely on the winged creature''s remains when his body''s requirements reached levels that he couldn''t satisfy with the world''s resources. His dantian didn''t have the same problems, and it advanced in the liquid stage a few years before he hit the one thousand years mark. Noah had spent only a bit more than a century in the gaseous stage, but the raw laws had benefited his growth in ways that surprised even him. Advancing in the liquid stage didn''t make his dark matter change. The dark hole in his chest became able to amass more energy and purify nutrients better, but its functions remained the same. The sudden breakthrough made Noah the strongest expert in the Hive, and the other powerhouses in the organization pressed him to hold an official ceremony to announce the event. The Demons and Elder Julia wanted him to take the role of Patriarch even if he wouldn''t handle any political matter. They only wanted Noah to become the face of the Hive. Noah didn''t mind that task. His job would be to defend the Hive and deal with other significant problems, which were almost non-existent in that period of peace. He would have to make decisions regarding worldwide events, but his mindset was perfect for an organization like the Hive. In his mind, Noah had already accepted that role, but he wanted to complete another task before appearing in public to announce that event. His body was at the peak of the lower tier, but it required valuable resources to breakthrough. Noah didn''t want to use the winged beast now, but there were powerful creatures in the world that could provide what he needed. Chapter 1156: 1156. Fog Demon Noah had taken note of the rank 6 magical beasts that he found during his many adventures. He had always known that his body would require them at some point, and that moment had arrived. Even when his battle prowess had reached the powerhouse''s level, he had decided to ignore those creatures since many of them weren''t in the lower tier. Still, Noah was on a completely different level now. He firmly believed that magical beasts in the middle tier wouldn''t be a problem with his current prowess, and he wanted to test himself anyway. Moreover, the world didn''t offer him many incentives. The alliance had resumed its assault on the Elbas family''s domain, but he had nothing to gain out of it. Without King Elbas, the Royals weren''t enemies worthy of his time. Yet, Noah loathed spending centuries reclused in his quarters, so a hunting session was the perfect adventure for the current period. Noah had two worlds as hunting areas, and both of them had a sea with their fair share of powerful creatures. However, tracking those magical beasts would take him a while, so he preferred to take care of those inhabiting the landmasses first. The new continent''s fauna was a mess due to the many changes in the political borders and the constant expansion of the leading organizations. Many rank 6 magical beasts that Noah had found in the past were either dead or held prisoner inside formations. Even the king of the snowy mountain had fallen prey to the Copying Technique. Noah had always known that the seas were more reliable hunting areas, but he wanted to take care of the landmasses first. He immediately thought about the two peculiar danger zones in the old continent once he made his mind. According to the reports accumulated through the years, the mystical fog and the mountain chain that divided the old continent into three areas hid rank 6 creatures. Noah had found one of them inside the mystical fog when he searched for the remains of the Demon Sects, so he was quite sure that even the mountain chain had a creature on that level too. ''The mystical fog first then,'' Noah thought as he left his quarters to fly toward the old continent. The last time he traveled there, Noah had required an emblem that stated his peaceful intentions. Yet, the old political borders didn''t exist anymore, and his cultivation level was so high that he didn''t require any permit to fly in countries outside of the Hive''s domain. The Shandal Empire couldn''t object to anything he did, and the Council would even organize events to welcome him properly if it knew about his arrival. Noah reached the old continent and entered the mystical fog without contacting nor warning anyone. Only June knew that he had left and why. The environment inside the mystical fog didn''t change in those years. That danger zone had resisted the war against the Shandal Empire, and the powerful beings that inhabited it had remained the same. The Fog Demons were still the overlord of the area. Sparse packs of hyena-type and wolf-type magical beasts occupied the peripheral regions, but they mostly served as food for the rulers. Noah ignored every creature in the fifth rank and flew directly toward the old continent''s eastern coast. He had found the rank 6 magical beast in that area during his last exploration, and beings on that level rarely moved from their lairs. Just as Noah had predicted, he sensed the presence of a creature in the sixth rank when he neared the spot that once featured the entrance to Divine Architect''s separate dimension. Noah didn''t have the time to analyze the beast in his last exploration, but he could recognize its species even before entering its range now. It was a Fog Demon that had taken the shape of a giant Three-headed Hyena. A few weaker creatures belonging to that species patrolled the lair, but they couldn''t even notice Noah nearing them. Noah knew the right approach to hunt Fog Demons. They relied on the fog around them to launch attacks and build protections, so hunters would usually try to get rid of it before launching a surprise attack. The Fog Demons'' actual bodies were weak, and they barely met other creatures'' standards on the same level. Yet, they were quite threatening in a foggy environment. Noah wanted to test himself, so he didn''t rely on his knowledge in the magical beasts'' field to face his opponent. Instead, he descended toward the lair while letting his aura run wild in the environment. The pressure that he generated startled the weaker beasts that began to roar in his direction. There was mostly fear in their minds, but they couldn''t leave their leader alone. The rank 6 Fog Demon raised its foggy heads to stare at Noah. It had been a long time since someone had challenged it, but its instincts didn''t become dull in that long period of peace. Noah unfolded his consciousness, and sharp mental waves covered the area, unleashing a wave of destruction that the old continent''s ground couldn''t endure. Noah''s mental waves resembled massive blades that fell on the area, creating large cracks on the frail terrain and killing some of the unfortunate weaker creatures that had happened to touch his consciousness. The Fog Demon roared in anger, but Noah could recognize how the cry was only an imitation of the Three-headed Hydras'' voice. Still, the creature revealed its real power when it accepted Noah''s challenge. ''Middle tier,'' Noah thought as the Demonic Sword came out of his space-ring to fly in his hand. The Fog Demon didn''t wait for Noah to attack. Part of the fog around the beast solidified to create a series of spikes that flew toward him. Noah sprinted forward, leaving only a human-shaped crack in his previous position. By the time the storm of spikes reached that spot, he had arrived next to his opponent. The Fog Demon noticed Noah only when it was too late. He had already completed his slash when the three heads turned toward him. A tall black line landed on the foggy body of the creature and dug deep inside it. The slash even cut the ground on the sides that cracked and shattered under the might unleashed. A surprised expression appeared on Noah''s face when he saw that his attack didn''t reach the other side of the foggy body. He expected such defenses from other beasts'' actual skin and muscles, but he didn''t think that the Fog Demons'' innate ability could be so strong. The rank 6 specimen''s control of the fog had allowed it to create an armor capable of withstanding Noah''s casual slashes. That achievement wasn''t something that Noah could underestimate. The Fog Demon threw its heads toward Noah. He could dodge the attack easily, but he decided to face it with his bare body. Noah let go of the Demonic Sword and punched at one of the heads while using his free hand to stop the other one. His knee rose to land a blow on the third one. The fog that made the heads shattered under Noah''s blows, but he found his limbs stuck inside that dense gas once they dug through its surface. Spikes then grew from the foggy body and tried to impale the restrained Noah, but the Demonic Sword slashed at the heads to free him of those restrictions. He suddenly roared too, and a starry sky spread in the area. The Fog Demon could endure Noah''s blows because its body was on a higher level, but the black flames destroyed many layers of its foggy armor and pushed it back by a few hundred meters. Chapter 1157: 1157. Carried away ''Its body is only a channel for its innate ability,'' Noah thought as the Demonic Sword flew back in his hand. Generally speaking, his body had long since surpassed the standards of magical beasts and hybrids. His physical strength was far superior to those creatures, and it allowed him to deal with stronger beings at times. The Fog Demons had a weak body, but they focused all their power on their innate ability. Since Noah''s opponent was in the middle tier, his physical strength and casual slashes didn''t manage to eradicate its foggy armor. ''I should take this a bit more seriously,'' Noah concluded, and a series of saber-shaped runes came out of his palm before surrounding his figure. Noah knew that the fastest way to deal with the creature was to summon the dark world and rely on his strongest slash. Still, he had other abilities that he didn''t test in a proper battle yet. The black fire kept on burning, but the beasts'' armor enlarged as more fog gathered inside it. The gas also became denser, and the flames couldn''t pierce it anymore after that. The beast molded the fog around it to create a series of giant Hyenas that ran toward Noah. They were fast, but Noah slashed a few times with the Demonic Sword to launch multiple black lines that divided the copies in half. He then sprinted forward, and the array of saber-shaped runes shot in front of him to create a rotating drill that vibrated together with his living weapon. The primary energy that had gathered in the battlefield flowed inside them and improved their power. Noah''s new sabers were in the liquid stage of the sixth rank, but they grew further as his destruction nourished their form. The Fog Demon tried everything to stop his charge. It launched other Hyenas copies, spikes, and it even created dense walls. However, the array of sabers pierced everything and made Noah reach his opponent in a blink. The beast roared as its armor exploded outward. That condensed gas destroyed the saber-shaped runes that had lost a lot of their power during the charge, but it wasn''t enough to fling Noah away. Noah almost placed a knee on the ground as he stopped right under the two meters long ant that had come out of the fog and focused his momentum on the Demonic Sword. Then, he performed an upward slash that reached the creature. His blade touched the creature and dug in its exoskeleton before severing it in half. The Fog Demon couldn''t do anything against Noah''s direct blow. His physical strength alone was enough to pierce its natural armor! Noah''s sharpness and the power contained inside the Demonic Sword did the rest. The blade had yet to reach the middle tier, but it could express might far superior to its level when Noah wielded it. The ant didn''t die after Noah cut its body in half. It screeched, and all the fog in the area flowed toward its position, creating a wild storm that made Noah lose track of his opponent. The gales continued to blow until the sunlight illuminated the destroyed bottom of the mystical fog. The beast had accumulated so much fog that the sun managed to shine on that region. Noah expanded his consciousness to search for his opponent, and he found it in a spot among gales that converged mid-air. His first instinct was to attack, but he remained still when he saw the new form taken by the Fog Demon. A humanoid giant grew from the converging gales. That new foggy armor wielded a blade with one hand, and it had facial features that vaguely resembled Noah. The Fog Demon had tried to imitate Noah since he was the strongest opponent that it had ever faced. As an expert in the magical beasts'' field, Noah couldn''t help but be interested in that creature and its innate ability. The giant raised its blade and slashed toward Noah. Its lower body dispersed into the fog as the weapon descended, and another storm spread through the environment. The ground broke as the storm spread. Numerous debris and large boulders flew in every direction, but Noah let those coming toward him crash on his body as he kept his eyes on the descending sword. A smile had appeared on his face when he saw the attack. He felt as if a magical beast was challenging him on sword arts! Noah crouched as he drew the Demonic Sword backward. If the creature wanted to fight with blades, he would show it a proper technique. His aura surged as the sharpness radiated by his existence gathered on his blade. His eyes moved toward a spot inside the giant''s chest as he prepared one of his strongest attacks. Noah unleashed Sword Saint''s lunge before the foggy blade could hit him, and a chasm opened as his sharpness flew toward the giant. The foggy blade fell apart as Noah''s lunge pierced its base and created a large hole in the giant''s chest. A second of silence followed the exchange, but the fog gathered by the innate ability soon dispersed. A small and maimed corpse fell on the ground as the fog filled the area again. Noah walked toward the Fog Demon''s remains and scratched his head when he saw the poor state in which it had ended. Only a small part of its body had remained intact. Everything else had disappeared in the might of the lunge. ''I got carried away,'' Noah thought as he collected the small remains of the beast together with the half body that he had severed before. ''I need to use more spells the next time,'' Noah thought while reviewing the battle. ''The saber-shaped runes are good. I should test the other ability now.'' His hunt had only begun. The Fog Demon had one of the weakest bodies among the world''s various species, so Noah had never taken that challenge seriously. It had been enough for him to use one of his strongest attacks to deal with the threat. For a magical beast that supposedly was on his level, its actual prowess had been quite disappointing. Noah knew that the labels of the cultivators couldn''t describe his prowess accurately. There was nothing about him that matched the standards of the power system of the world. His body was in the lower tier, but it was an evolution of the hybrid status. His physical prowess and healing properties were off the charts, and the black hole could enhance all his innate skills. His dantian was at the beginning of the liquid stage, but it didn''t contain "Breath". Noah had severed every connection he had with Heaven and Earth''s system and used only energies that suited his individuality to improve. His mind was above both dantian and body in terms of progression inside the sixth rank, but it didn''t have the azure mental sea like other cultivators. Noah''s mental energy was dark-brown, and it carried features of both magical beasts and humans. His mind didn''t have limits connected to species, and it could express more pressure than others on the same level. In the end, Noah had a black hole in his chest. His fourth center of power improved his functions and gave him access to various new abilities that culminated with his dark world. In the liquid stage, powerhouses could face rank 6 magical beasts in the middle tier, so Noah was entirely at ease in those hunts. The difficulties would come when he found creatures that neared the tier''s peak, but part of him wished to see some of them. It wasn''t only a matter of nutrients. Noah wanted to fight. He desired to face struggles that forced him to advance on his path, and his only hope now was in the rank 6 magical beasts in the two worlds. ''Next is the mountain chain,'' Noah thought before flying away from the mystical forest. He left behind a destroyed environment and earthquakes that spread until the inhabited regions on both Papral nation and central territories. Still, those were the natural after-effects of a battle between rank 6 beings. Chapter 1158: 1158. Tes Noah didn''t eat what was left of the Fog Demon immediately. His body was already at the peak of the lower tier, so he wanted to trigger the breakthrough only when he had enough nutrients to complete it. The requirements in terms of energy for his body were unclear. After all, he had relied on the stuffed winged beast to push himself in the sixth rank. Noah didn''t believe the requirements would be as harsh as before, but he still wanted to prepare a few complete corpses for him to eat before taking a step in the middle tier. Reaching the mountain chain on the other side of the old continent took him only a few days. Most of the central regions were under the alliance''s control, so there were many teleportation matrices in the area. The mountain chain didn''t change either. Wolf-like and ape-like creatures filled its regions, but the fauna''s average level was relatively low for someone who had experienced life in the new continent. A few packs led by rank 5 specimens ruled over large areas, but they were nothing more than kings of ants compared to the mighty fauna of the new continent. Noah didn''t bother with the weaker beasts and went looking directly for a target that suited his needs. Anything under the sixth rank wasn''t worth his time. The search for a rank 6 magical beast took longer at that time. Noah almost believed that the mountain chain didn''t have a specimen on that level at some point. Yet, he eventually found a strange-looking mountain that radiated an ancient aura. The aura was faint, almost unnoticeable. Noah risked to miss it since he had inspected those regions from his spot high in the sky. His instincts told him that something was there, but he couldn''t quite understand the nature of the threat when it was in that state. The only thing he could do was to force a response to investigate further. Noah launched a casual slash toward the mountain, but his black line didn''t create any fissure in that rocky surface. The structure didn''t even tremble after the impact. ''Is it an armor?'' Noah thought before the answer appeared in his vision. The mountain began to shake, and large boulders fell on the ground. An intense aura spread in the environment and made every pack of weaker beasts run in fear. Roars echoed in the sky, and Noah could understand only part of those confused cries. The magical beasts announced that the king of the mountains had awakened, and it was ready to unleash its anger. ''Middle tier,'' Noah evaluated when he sensed that aura. ''It''s stronger than the Fog Demon. This thing is past the halfway mark of the tier.'' Some excitement built up inside Noah as the features of the beast became clear. A massive tail separated from the mountain and cracked on the ground. A pair of atrophied wings unfolded only for large boulders to fall from their surface. A draconic roar spread in the area as a large reptilian head became visible among the falling rocks. Noah couldn''t help but smile when a forty meters long dragon separated itself from the mountain and expressed its anger toward him. ''This species should be extinct,'' Noah thought while he let the dragon recover from its long sleep. That creature was a Mountain Dragon. It was different from other beasts of a similar kind since most of its tissues were hard rocks rather than flesh and bones. That didn''t allow Mountain Dragons to spit fire, but it gave them a superior defense, which was among the best in the magical beasts'' world. That species had an innate ability too. Mountain Dragons could release intense shockwaves by moving specific body parts, and they maximized those effects when they used their tail or wings. However, the Mountain Dragon''s wings that had appeared in front of Noah were relatively small compared to the rest of its body. That species didn''t have large wings, but they were too small. Noah guessed that the beast had entered a long period of hibernation. Its initial intention had probably been to limit its energy consumption while absorbing "Breath" from the mountain chain. However, it was hard for magical beasts that didn''t have an innate predisposition for long periods of hibernation to wake up. Many would enter it to wait for the arrival of new fauna and die in their sleep. Mountain Dragons were also among the biggest dragon-type magical beasts, and their bodies were quite powerful even without their incredible defenses. They had only two significant weaknesses. Their body healed slowly, and they often required an environment filled with rocks to replace certain destroyed parts. Also, they were quite slow compared to other flying creatures. The dragon released a few long roars, but it didn''t attack. It was more intelligent than the Fog Demon, and it could understand that Noah wasn''t as simple as he looked. Moreover, it felt something familiar in him. His scent made him appear as one of its kind, even if he had the shape of a human. The dragon growled, and Noah''s eyes lit up when he understood the meaning behind that cry. The creature had stated that the mountain chain was its hunting area. Noah released a growl to reply to the dragon. There wasn''t an exact way to translate his cries into human words. He had only told the creature that he had come to kill it. The dragon roared in anger, and it slammed its massive legs on the mountain that had been its home for a long time. Cracks appeared on its surface and spread on the ground as it released part of its physical might. Yet, its show of strength only made Noah more excited. His consciousness had already spread, and his aura gave birth to primary energy that amassed in the sky. Black smoke started to come out of Noah''s figure. The fuming armor formed in a few seconds, and a dark cloud engulfed the mountain peaks with its corrosive properties. The dragon sensed the black smoke trying to consume its rocky skin and grew restless. It began to roar, but its cries carried a deep tone at that time, and intense shockwaves spread from them. Part of the cloud shattered when the shockwaves expanded through the corrosive smoke, but Noah was busy focusing on something else. Noah had stretched two of his claw-like fingers and had pointed them at the dragon''s head while holding his wrist with his other hand. That gesture didn''t appear to have any meaning, but a rune inside his mental sphere had reached the mental walls and was activating its effects. The shockwaves continued to spread since the dragon never stopped roaring. Its tail also began to crack in Noah''s direction, but the creature was too rusty after its period of sleep. The attacks released by the tail missed Noah by a few hundred meters. The smoke on the areas of impact disappeared, but he didn''t care. There were only him and the left eye of the creature in the world. The dragon adjusted its aim as it tested its tail a few more times, but Noah had completed his spell at that point. A black line formed between his fingers and the beast''s eye, and Noah slashed his hand upward when that happened. The Mountain Dragon didn''t understand anything at first, but pain soon spread from its head. When its attention finally went on its left eye, it saw that a long cut had appeared there. Noah had taken away the eye and cut through a thick layer of skin. The improved version of his Dark Ray spell had managed to hurt a creature that had the best defenses among magical beasts. He could consider his test a success. Chapter 1159: 1159. Instability One of Noah''s greatest weaknesses had always been his lack of long-range abilities. His mental attacks had been easy to counter once the world learnt about them, and his slashes could never pierce the enemy''s defenses when launched from far away. The dark world had fixed that weakness, but a cultivator had to remain inside it for Noah to apply the restrictions and launch his strongest attacks. Night was another powerful asset that perfectly paired his dark clouds, but Noah didn''t want to rely only on such massive techniques to express an essential part of his prowess. Snore had taken care of the long-range side of his offensive, and the latest improvements had made it a great asset to use in that field. Still, it also relied on the dark world to express its true might, leaving Noah with a small number of attacks that he could use without the dark matter. Sword Saint''s slashes were powerful and immediate, but Noah knew that he would eventually abandon them to make room for attacks that expressed his individuality. He needed reliable techniques that could reach opponents far away, and he had made sure to improve spells that could fix that weakness in his battle style. The Dark Ray spell had always been weak compared to the other spells that Noah had owned in the past. The Demonic Form was too strong, and his physical prowess usually pushed him to engage in melee combat. Yet, training with Sword Saint had taught Noah that everything could be a sword. Even a spell with good piercing abilities could turn into a blade in his hands. The Mountain Dragon roared in pain, but anger soon filled its mind. It had barely fought for a few minutes, but its opponent had already injured it. Its atrophied wings began to vibrate, and the vegetation around its mountain wilted as the Dragon forcefully drained energy from the environment. The wings slowly grew as nutrients filled them. The Mountain Dragon turned its lair into a wasteland to restore its body parts to their old peak. Its tail cracked in Noah''s direction during the process. Intense shockwaves shot toward him, but the Demonic Sword launched slashes that fended them off every time. Noah appeared to be lost in his thoughts as he deflected the Dragon''s attacks. The new Dark Ray spell had decent power, and its piercing abilities were strong among his skills, but it took a long time to cast. A small dark sphere eventually came out of his clawed palm. A vortex rotated at its center, and uneven edges contained its power. The sphere enlarged as primary energy converged toward its form. It soon became a ten meters large mass that leaked surges of power from its shape. The new Black Hole spell resembled Noah''s fourth center of power, but it lacked its orderly shape. It was a simple mass of energy that absorbed anything coming in its way and used it to grow in size. Noah couldn''t add sharpness to that ability, but it expressed both creation and destruction due to the power that it could absorb and unleash. The only problem was that its shape had become quite unstable after all the modifications and improvements. Noah had created the current Black Hole spell from two different abilities that he had rebuilt until they could reach the sixth rank. That instability was a natural consequence of all the modifications applied over the years. The Dragon continued to launch shockwaves with its tail, but the Black Hole spell''s gravitational pull made them converge toward its form. The attacks crashed on the sphere and destabilized its surface even more, but the spell eventually absorbed their power to increase its size. Some worry filled the Dragon''s mind as the spell became more than thirty meters tall. It wasn''t even spherical anymore. Its shape had become a mass of flares and boiling edges. ''I wonder how much energy it can absorb before exploding,'' Noah thought while creating copies of the fuming armor. When creating that spell, his initial idea had been to replicate the dark star''s power, but it seemed that his darkness wasn''t dense enough to contain so much energy. Yet, he could use its instability to his advantage. After all, he only wanted an explosion. He didn''t care if he couldn''t control it. ''I guess I can only wait and see,'' Noah took a step back as he thought that and launched his fiendish copies toward the dragon. The Mountain Dragon''s wings had returned to a decent condition after absorbing all the energy in the environment. It began to flap them, and intense shockwaves spread under the creature. The mountain chain had lost most of its energy by then, and those attacks made it crumble. Large fissures opened among the rocks, and the ground began to cave in as its underground structure shattered under that pressure. The Dragon then aimed its wings at Noah before using them to help its tail in its offensive. The number of attacks shooting from its figure tripled, but they all ended up inside the Black Hole spell. Meanwhile, the fiendish figures landed on the dragon and began to slash at its rocky skin. Their power alone wasn''t enough to pierce its tissues, but the corrosive smoke made them able to surpass that first line of defense. The Dragon saw those enemies cutting away large boulders from its skin and turned its attention toward them. A series of shockwaves shot from its tail and wings, and the fiendish copies soon exploded, filling that area with even more corrosive smoke. The creature turned toward Noah only to see that the Black Hole spell had reached its head. The mass of energy had become more than fifty meters tall by that point, and the vortex at its center released sharp sounds as it rotated. The Dragon didn''t have the time to roar as the Black Hole spell exploded, engulfing everything in the area with a wave of dense energy that carried corrosive properties. The black cloud dispersed as the spell detonated, and Noah removed his fuming armor to fly toward his opponent. A large crater had appeared where the spell had exploded, and all the mountains in a few kilometers'' radius had crumbled as the wave of energy swept them. The danger zone had entirely changed after those exchanges. Any battle among existences in the sixth rank would alter the environment forever, and those effects were even more evident in the old continent. Many packs of magical beasts had died during the battle. They had been too slow in their escape, and the shockwaves released by Noah and the Mountain Dragon had destroyed their bodies, leaving no traces on that ruined region. Noah descended into the crater while his mind went through the battle to find flaws that he could fix and new ideas on how to improve his abilities. He had already found something that could solve the Black Hole spell''s instability and improve the power of his copies. Overcharging them with the energy accumulated in the sphere would make them far more threatening. Noah didn''t even need to modify the diagrams inside his sea to apply those effects. He had already invented a martial art that worked similarly. He only needed his copies to perform it to gain its effects. The Dragon was under a pile of debris and dust. Most of the rocks on its head and torso had crumbled during the explosion, so he could see its exposed pale-yellow skin. The creature breathed weakly. It had survived the explosion, but it was too tired to continue fighting. Noah had destroyed its will and forced it to accept its death. ''If only your element were different,'' Noah though as a sigh escaped his mouth. The Mountain Dragon was an exceptional specimen, and he would consider turning it into a Blood Companion once his mind had more room if it had a different aptitude. However, Noah would spend fewer resources building a similar body and throwing inside a different will. The Dragon''s mind was too weak to meet his standards. The Dragon could even become a useful asset in the Copying Technique, but Noah needed it for his reasons. He didn''t hesitate to sever its head with a clean slash. Chapter 1160: 1160. Megalodon A creature with one of the weakest bodies in the magical beasts'' field and one that had just awakened from a long slumber couldn''t satisfy Noah''s thirst for a decent opponent. Noah had gathered valuable data from both battles, and he had even accumulated a decent amount of flesh that could help him during the breakthrough. Yet, he wanted more. The world had understood that Noah had set off to hunt powerful magical beasts by then. The mystical fog had hidden his fight against the Fog Demon, but the mountain chain didn''t have the same covers of that region. Every organization had noticed the violent shockwaves that had spread from the mountain chain, and the higher-ups who explored that area after Noah left could see the aftermath of his battle. The mountain chain had changed forever. Noah''s destruction still lingered on the destroyed ground of that danger zone and continued to make it crumble. It would take years for the area to become fertile again. The aura of a rank 6 existence wasn''t something that the ground could shake off in a few months. Noah didn''t care about the damages that he caused to the world. The old continent was useless anyway, and he wouldn''t hold back even if he found valuable prey in the piece of Immortal Lands. His issue now was that he had to venture through the sea if he wanted to find other rank 6 creatures, and they wouldn''t be as weak as his previous two opponents. As for those still living in the new continent, Noah decided to ignore them. His new position as the Patriarch of the Hive would give him some responsibilities, and he didn''t want to hurt his organization by killing every possible candidate for the Copying Technique. ''There should be at least seven creatures in the sixth rank in the sea of these Mortal Lands,'' Noah thought as he studied God''s Left Hand''s map. That was the same map that he had used to reach the world under the seabed. Noah didn''t find anything wrong in relying on its since the marine rank 6 creatures'' habitat didn''t change by much through the years. Noah didn''t even think about hunting the two Mosasaurs. They had fought with God''s Right Hand during the Heaven Tribulation for the seventh rank, so their power had to be in the higher tier. His battle prowess was incredible, and his body carried features that every existence in the world envied. However, Noah was still in the lower tier, so he preferred to leave those two creatures for last. The other recorded overlords of the sea had an unclear level, but Noah wasn''t too worried about that. The lizard-crocodile that he had found in his journey to the hidden world was only in the lower tier in the end. ''There should be a Megalodon south of the old continent,'' Noah evaluated before setting off from a cave that he had dug inside the Utra nation. Shark-type creatures usually had a limited number of attacks, and the same went for their ancient version. The sea had different requirements in terms of the characteristics needed to survive and improve. Speed and tracking abilities usually triumphed over a large variety of techniques. That would typically benefit cultivators if the hunts happened on the landmasses, but they became deadly abilities once inside the sea. Noah had the movement technique, so he didn''t fear the speed of any creature. His hybrid consciousness surpassed both human and magical beasts, so he wouldn''t lose in that field either. Only various innate abilities could create some problems, but Noah didn''t fear those either. His carefulness was an instinct that he had trained through the years, but it didn''t reflect the actual danger that he would face. Noah immersed himself in the sea once he crossed the southern coast of the Utra nation. He descended until he reached the seabed and began to swim while following the hunting area''s edges recorded in God''s Left Hand''s map. His journey through the pure darkness of the bottom of the sea was solitary, but it was never silent since Night would often comment on the environment''s beauty. "We should move here!" "Why didn''t you build my quarters in this beautiful place?" Noah ignored the Pterodactyl for most of the journey, but he never failed to question the creature about the Immortal Lands whenever it showed signs of recalling something about the higher plane. "Do the Immortal Lands have a sea?" Noah asked. "I couldn''t explore much up there," Night replied. "I ascended only to remain stuck under the surface. The sky was too blinding. I couldn''t even use the storms to travel." Noah guessed that the storms mentioned by Night were the same that Shandal had tried to replicate in his separate dimension. Those gales carried chaotic laws that anyone could absorb, but the Pterodactyl couldn''t describe more since it had never explored the surface. "What about the underground world?" Noah continued his probing. "What do you remember about that?" Night thought for a while before giving a vague answer. "It isn''t any different from here. Better ground, stronger creatures, but nothing more. I would remember more if someone didn''t cut away a big chunk of my mind." Noah ignored the last line, but something felt off. He didn''t believe that the Immortal Lands could be so simple, but Night was only a magical beast, so its understanding of certain aspects of the world had harsh limits. "How many divine creatures are there in the Immortal Lands?" Noah eventually asked what interested him the most. Cultivators could ascend as soon as their dantian reached the seventh rank, but Noah''s body would probably be still in the heroic ranks by that time. If the Immortal Lands'' environment wasn''t too harsh, Noah could consider ascending and completing his body''s evolution up there. Meeting its requirements would be far easier on a higher plane. Night understood part of his intentions, and it advised against that idea. "There are gods wherever you look. Weaker creatures do fill the Immortal Lands, but I''ve seen leaders that could kill me with a glance." Noah''s mood darkened when he heard those words. That was his greatest worry when it came to the Immortal Lands. Divine Architect''s sculpture hinted that all the divine beings in the various lower planes ascended in the same Immortal Lands, meaning that the higher world would have many gods. Their long lifespans and experience would make them quite hard to kill, which meant that the Immortal Lands'' population couldn''t be low. Noah couldn''t think of ways to prepare for that journey properly. Most of the resources found in the lower planes would be useless against creatures that had lived in the Immortal Lands for a long time already. It was better to ascend and create suitable weapons there than waste precious time in a lower plane. Still, Noah had now decided that he wouldn''t leave the Mortal Lands until all his centers of power had reached the seventh rank. ''The black hole should give me an advantage,'' Noah concluded as he inspected the insides of his chest. ''I wonder when it will evolve again.'' His journey through the seabed remained peaceful for a few more months, but Noah eventually found his prey. His consciousness even alerted him that the creature had noticed him too. The faint shape of a massive Shark had emerged in the distance. Noah could understand its size with his consciousness, but the feature that surprised him the most was the dangerous sensation that had appeared in his mind. The Megalodon was one hundred and twenty meters long, and it had a thick body more than thirty meters wide. Three rows of razor-sharp teeth covered both sides of its mouth, and a tall fin came out of its back. Scars filled its thick skin, and faint traces of blood came out of its mouth. That rank 6 creature was near the peak of the middle tier, but it was in its prime. Chapter 1161: 1161. Strong Noah immediately deployed the Demonic Form. He would still hold back the dark world for the time being, but he didn''t dare to underestimate the Megalodon too much. He didn''t recognize its species, so his knowledge in the magical beasts'' field couldn''t help him in that battle. Still, that only fueled his battle intent. Noah had finally found the fight that he was looking for. The Shark swam deeper in the darkness, but Noah knew that it wasn''t escaping. He had felt its hunger when his consciousness touched its innate aura. The beast wouldn''t give up on the chance to eat Noah. The water in the area became denser as the Megalodon''s aggression seeped through its fabric. It was as if the world itself had felt that a violent battle was about to unfold. Noah created three fiendish copies, unleashed his saber-shaped runes, cast the Black Hole spell, and wielded the Demonic Sword. There wasn''t enough primary energy to fuel his abilities in the area, but he knew that he would fix the issue soon. A massive figure reappeared from the sea''s dark depths and swam at an incredible speed toward Noah. He barely had the time to notice the Shark''s charge before it arrived in his position. The Megalodon bit on the seabed where Noah was, but it didn''t feel any meat when it shattered the hard rocks through its teeth. Instead, the saber-shaped runes that didn''t crumble in the impact stabbed its flesh from inside its mouth, and the fiendish copies exploded to fill its insides with corrosive smoke. The Black Hole spell didn''t have the time to gather energy, so it crumbled during the impact without injuring the creature in the slightest. The cloud that Noah had created when he activated the Demonic Form corroded its flesh, but it couldn''t go past its superficial layers. Black spots appeared on its skin as poison entered its body, but the Shark ignored it. The creature was too massive to suffer from the effects of the Black Mark spell so quickly. It would take a while before Noah''s poison managed to affect it. ''It''s fast,'' Noah evaluated as he reappeared in a higher spot in the sea. Noah had misjudged the Shark''s innate abilities. He didn''t expect such speed in such a massive creature, but it seemed to be its strongest quality. The acceleration that the Megalodon could obtain was almost on par with his movement technique, and such feat revealed how amazing that ability was. The Demonic Sword began to vibrate, and Noah focused on launching a tall slash with countless attacks around its shape. The black lines amassed to create a blow that carried every sword art that he knew. The Shark didn''t fail to notice the attack and accelerated to dodge it. Noah''s slash crashed on the seabed and the various lines that made it crushed the rocky terrain, creating an uneven crater. Noah sprinted to enter his dimension and follow after the Shark. He wouldn''t let it prepare another charge. The Megalodon pierced through the water at incredible speed, but a trace of anger came out of its figure when it sensed that its opponent was after it. It was its first time finding an existence capable of matching its speed, and that discovery made it feel challenged to no end. That was its hunting area, and speed was its ability. That small creature couldn''t live after such an insult. The Shark performed sharp turns and launched thick shockwaves whenever it swung its tail. The sea opened every time one of those attacks shot toward Noah, but he dodged all of them. The beast eventually stopped to swim in a circle. A series of sharp attacks came out of its figure as a whirlpool formed in its position. Noah felt forced to stop his chase since the pulling force of the whirlpool threatened to drag him inside that storm of shockwaves, but a dangerous sensation filled his mind when he came out of his dimension. The massive shape of the Shark appeared next to him while carrying the momentum generated by its acceleration. The creature had already left the whirlpool. The beast had used it as a distraction to catch its opponent by surprise. Noah released a roar as he kicked the water under him to shoot toward the creature''s head. The sprint made him avoid the sharp teeth, but the impact between his fist than the Megalodon flung him far away. Noah crashed on the seabed and straightened his position as his feet and Demonic Sword slid on the rocky terrain to stop his momentum. Three fissures had formed by the time he stopped, but the beast didn''t give him the time to catch any breath. The Megalodon reappeared above Noah. It had sprinted right after their clash, and his punch didn''t slow it in the slightest. A fist-sized injury had appeared on its head, but it was only a few centimeters deep. Noah felt the teeth of the Shark closing around him, but the creature suddenly retreated as a figure pierced the insides of its mouth and came out from the top of its head. Night reformed among the darkness of the bottom of the sea. The Pterodactyl revealed its new body to the world before hiding inside the blackness again. ''Fine,'' Noah thought as he evaluated the damages on his right hand. That frontal clash had broken his wrist and knuckles, but the black hole was already redirecting energy there. ''You are strong,'' Noah concluded as a smile appeared on his face. Dense smoke came out of his chest and took the form of a massive winged snake that made the water tremble with its hisses. Noah had decided to deploy his Companions after those exchanges. The Megalodon was too strong to face when he held back his best abilities. It wasn''t an issue of power levels. The Shark would destroy Noah''s spells before they even formed, so he had to rely on more immediate weapons. The Megalodon retreated in the darkness of the sea after Night wounded it. Noah could sense its intense anger, but he didn''t plan to dodge its next attack. Noah let go of his sword and waited for the assault to arrive. The Shark wasn''t late, and its massive figure appeared on top of him in a second. Snore shot forward, and its massive body coiled around the Megalodon to slow down its charge. Noah also shot forward to help his Blood Companion in the task. The Shark pushed both Noah and Snore back, but the two didn''t let go of the creature. He had both his hands on the Megalodon''s head as he pressed on the beast with all his strength. Night didn''t remain still. Its figure flew inside Snore and severed the Megalodon''s fins while Noah and the Snake restricted it. The Shark eventually lost its momentum and found itself unable to escape the giant Snake. It would typically launch a series of sharp shockwaves to destroy anything blocking it, but something else prevented its movements. Night had severed its fins, and it didn''t spare its tail. The Shark was nothing more than a massive body without any ability to move. The Pterodactyl had taken away that ability from it. Noah revealed a cold smile as he watched the helpless creature. The Demonic Sword returned in his hand, and he swam on top of its head until he reached the spot right above its brain. The Shark didn''t feel defeated yet and tried to struggle even without its core body parts, but Noah didn''t lose his foothold on the creature''s head. Noah pointed the Demonic Sword at the Megalodon''s head, and laws appeared in his vision. The world froze in his eyes as he concentrated on ending the battle in that last slash without ruining the creature''s body. Then, his sharpness shot downward, and the Megalodon''s eyes went dark as Noah dug a hole that reached deep inside its brain. Chapter 1162: 1162. Stronges Noah collected three corpses of creatures in the middle tier of the sixth rank in little more than a few months. His hunts had gone far better than he expected, but he found some trouble searching for his fourth target. The vastness of the sea was his enemy, and the hunting areas of the marine rank 6 creatures were far bigger than those on the landmass. The seabed was irregular too. It had deep trenches filled with countless magical beasts and a high density of "Breath". That made Noah''s exploration slower, especially since many marine creatures had good hiding capabilities. His target was an octopus-like beast at that time, but he didn''t seem able to find it. Noah searched in every trench and underwater structure that he found inside the hunting area recorded on God''s Left Hand''s map. He even dug inside submarine mountains and volcanos. However, he found no trace of his target. Even the fauna in that area didn''t act like it had a rank 6 creature hiding somewhere. ''It might have moved,'' Noah considered that option, but the hunting area recorded on the map wasn''t close to the piece of Immortal Lands. The creature didn''t have any reason to move, and it had no threatening opponents nearby. The Mosasaurs weren''t close to its hunting area. Noah had to spend months to find the first traces of his target. He had to use his knowledge in the magical beasts'' field to imagine what the octopus would do if it wanted to expand its hunting area. That was the only explanation that he could find for the lack of traces, and his guess ended up being on point. In one of the deepest trenches at a few kilometers outside of the hunting area marked on his map, Noah found a large patch of polished rocks that spread till the ditch''s bottom. The water in the area was dense, and a slimy green substance hovered near the trench''s entrance. Noah found that oily liquid more often as he descended deeper in the ditch, and the water almost disappeared when he reached the bottom. It was as if a different sea had formed right above the seabed at the trench''s bottom. Noah knew that only a creature in the sixth rank could create such changes in the environment. The influence of its aura had changed the entire zone, modifying it so that it suited its natural gifts. The atmosphere became tense as Noah continued his descent. The creature hiding in the depths had noticed his presence, and its aura naturally expressed its battle intent. Noah felt a dangerous sensation forming inside his mind. He had yet to see the beast, but he felt sure that his opponent was at the peak of the middle tier. Everything fell into chaos in an instant. Tens of thick tentacles shot from under the oily substance and converged in Noah''s position. Noah didn''t even evaluate the threat. The dark matter came out of his black hole, and the dark world enveloped the area. Snore took form around his figure, and a fuming armor covered him, transforming him in his fiendish form. The tentacles pierced the dense dark matter that had appeared in their way and clashed with the Blood Companion. Snore endured the blows, but large chunks of its body shattered during the impact. The limbs of the creature didn''t stop there. They had flat tips with the shape of an arrowhead, which allowed them to dig deeper into the dark matter that made Snore. The creature knew that the Blood Companion was only a puppet. Its attacks pointed directly at Noah. Snore didn''t remain still. The damages to its body didn''t affect it in the slightest. The dark world resonated with its intentions, and dark matter amassed around its figure while a layer of hard rocks covered its skin. The higher energy also transformed, and Snore soon became a massive statue that stopped the tentacles inside its body. A shadow ran through the dark world and severed the restrained tentacles. Night had attacked as soon as it found an opportunity, and it took down seven limbs in one charge. A wave of large bubbles containing the green liquid surged from the bottom of the trench, but Noah didn''t wait for the creature to unleash its angry counterattack. The defensive layer around Snore broke and turned into smoke as Noah stepped outside of his Blood Companion. He held the Demonic Sword high above his head, and dark matter converged around its figure. A massive head came out of the oily substance. Two dark-green eyes shone among the trench''s darkness, and hundreds of tentacles became visible around it. ''What octopus!'' Noah shouted in his mind as his sword descended. ''This is a Kraken!'' The Demonic Sword carried a large amount of dark matter in its descent. The higher energy had transformed the weapon into a three hundred meters long blade that slashed at the creature emerging from the depths. Countless arrow-headed tentacles rose from the oily substance''s surface, but Noah''s slash fell on the head of the Kraken before it could launch an attack. The whole trench began to tremble as Noah''s sharpness, and that wave of dark matter crashed on the beast. Large boulders fell from the polished walls, and cracks opened on their surface. The dark world moved so that the corrosive smoke released by Noah could flow on the spot where his slash had fallen. The Demonic Form''s corrosive properties followed the tunnels that the dark matter had created inside the cloud. That was Noah''s strongest attack. It surpassed both Sword Saint''s techniques, and it was the best that Noah could do with his current expertise. Sword Saint had shown him his final slash in the past, but Noah had yet to understand its forms. His knowledge of the sword arts was too poor even to see that attack correctly. The seabed continued to tremble, but Noah remained still. The boulders falling in his direction crumbled under the pressure of the dark world, but they amassed freely on the spot where the Kraken had appeared. Noah didn''t believe that his attack had killed the creature. He knew exactly how strong he was, so he was aware that only one slash wasn''t enough to defeat a magical beast at the peak of the middle tier. Just as he had predicted, a series of pointy tentacles shot out of the debris and converged toward Noah. The slimy green substance covered their tips and part of their surface as they cut through the dark world. Noah launched a few slashes, and the dark world resonated with his sword. The thick black lines that came out of his blade enlarged as dark matter joined their assault and copied their properties. One black line was big enough to clash with multiple tentacles, but the latter pierced right through Noah''s attacks before continuing their charge toward him. Black sparks gathered between Snore''s horns before a thick array of sword-shaped lightning bolts shot toward the tentacles. The dark world enhanced those elemental attacks too, and crackling sparks amassed around them. The simple elemental attacks had turned into small lightning storms that flew toward the tentacles. The impact with the Kraken''s limbs deviated them from their original trajectory, but they remained intact even after such amass of energy had exploded on them. ''What is this substance?'' Noah thought before a copy of the Demonic Sword formed in his free hand. Both swords began to vibrate before Noah slashed toward the array of tentacles. Two attacks that expressed all the sword arts he had learnt in his life came out of them, and they stopped the tentacles when they crashed on them. However, not even Sword Saint''s technique managed to cut them. It seemed that the green substance improved their defensive properties in ways that Noah still didn''t understand. Clean cuts appeared on the tentacles once they stopped, and their severed ends fell toward the bottom of the trench. Night became visible for an instant before its figure mixed with the dark world again. The oily liquid countered Noah''s sharpness, but it couldn''t stop the strongest predator inside the darkness. Chapter 1163: 1163. Escape Night''s performance was spectacular. Its innate abilities worked perfectly with Noah''s dark world, and the Royal Metal inside its new body made it so fast that no one could keep track of its movements. Its attacks were smoother too. The Royal Metal and the dark matter enhanced its innate skill, and the dark world pushed that ability''s power even further. Noah wasn''t sure if the Night-blade Pterodactyls were the strongest predators inside the darkness, but he knew that no one on its level could match Night''s offensive prowess now. Surges of bubbles came out of the oily layer at the bottom of the trench. Noah could sense the Kraken''s anger from those underwater roars, and the vitality that they expressed made him even more serious about the battle. The Kraken had lost almost twenty tentacles, and Noah''s strongest slash had landed right on its head. Any creature would typically show some weakness after those injuries, but the marine overlord sounded more vigorous than ever. The Demonic Sword''s copy turned into smoke that fused in the dark world as Noah raised his blade above his head. Dark matter gathered around its shape as he prepared another massive slash. The Kraken didn''t dare to show its head again, but it didn''t care about its tentacles. Hundreds of sharp arrowheads came out of the oily surface and shot toward Noah at high speed. Noah couldn''t see the trench anymore. Sharp tentacles covered by the green liquid filled his vision and created a blockage that he couldn''t dodge. Yet, he had no intention to escape from that clash. The Demonic Sword descended and carried a big chunk of the dark world with it. A sharp wave of dark matter and corrosive smoke fell on the limbs that filled the trench. The oily substance tried to stop the attack and make it slide over the tentacles, but Noah''s slash was too massive and violent. It crashed on the limbs and cut everything on its path. Dark-green blood filled the water and created a large stain between Noah and the Kraken. Still, the slash had managed to cut only part of the tentacles. The other continued to shoot upward. Snore opened its mouth, and a wave of black flames engulfed the tentacles. Raging black gales came out of its nostrils, and lightning bolts shot from its horns. The dark world empowered the elemental attacks. The fire became denser and vibrated as its destructiveness reached its peak. The gales created proper tornadoes, and the lightning bolts fused with them to give birth to a crackling storm. The tentacles tried their best to overcome the elemental attacks, but a layer of ice soon covered their surface, and a series of small snake-like puppets coiled around them to restrain their movements. Snore then unfolded its wings. Its feathers began to tremble and exude a sharpness that spread through the entire dark world. The tentacles stopped struggling as that aura filled the dark matter around them. The Kraken had sensed the power of the incoming attack, and it didn''t like the dangerous feeling that it caused inside its mind. The dark world aided Snore''s wings. Noah''s higher energy helped to gather primary energy, which flowed inside the feathers at an incredible speed. Snore completed the preparations for its strongest attack in a few instants and released a barrage of sharp feathers that radiated the power of a spell at the peak of the liquid stage! The elemental attacks had continued to restrain the tentacles while Snore prepared its offensive, but everything between Noah and the Kraken vanished once the feathers arrived. All the tentacles that had amassed in the trench crumbled into a pool of blood and torn flesh. The grand offensive of the Kraken couldn''t do anything against such a massive attack. The Kraken was about to roar in anger again, but Noah had already launched another slash. The Demonic Sword had fused with the dark world and had begun its descent by the time the feathers disappeared. Another intense series of tremors filled the trench, and the seabed around it as Noah''s slash landed on the creature''s head. Dark-green blood filled the entire area, but the corrosive smoke soon destroyed everything that wasn''t dark matter. Noah descended toward the trench''s bottom, uncaring of the boulders falling from the walls at his sides. His Demonic Sword was above his head again, and more dark matter gathered around it. Snore launched its elemental attacks toward the oily bottom, and Night inspected the situation, waiting for a suitable moment to act. The Kraken couldn''t do anything against that violent offensive. Its remaining tentacles shot upward only to clash with the elemental attacks. A shadow then severed them and opened a path for Noah. Another long slash descended, and the Kraken could only rely on its thick skin to block it. Elemental attacks followed, and the creature sank deeper into its slimy layer to deplete some of their power before they landed on its body. Noah launched another slash, and the oily layer opened to reveal the massive creature. It was more than one hundred and fifty meters large, and it filled the entire bottom of the trench with its size. A few tentacles still undulated around its figure, but there were mostly maimed limbs. The creature had lost most of its offensive abilities in the last exchanges, and fear soon filled its mind. The Kraken began to escape. Noah had overcome everything that it could throw at him, and there was nothing else that it could do to stop him. Noah saw the Kraken using its remaining tentacles to sprint across the trench and enter a fissure in the polished walls. The opening was narrow, but the beast slid inside it without any problem. A human-shaped crack replaced Noah''s figure, and he reappeared right in front of the fissure. He stabbed one of the tentacles still outside with the Demonic Sword before using his clawed hands to dig deeper into the injury. Noah used that wound as a handhold when he tried to pull the creature back in the trench. Still, his physical strength couldn''t overcome the Kraken. Snore quickly reformed and bit on another tentacle. The two continued to pull while Night entered in the fissure and cut every piece of flesh in its way. The Kraken struggled madly, but Night eventually cut too many vital tissues. Noah and Snore finally managed to pull the beast outside of the fissure, but it was already dead by the time it returned at the bottom of the trench. A shadow came out from one of the cuts that filled the Kraken and returned to its original form. Night made its appearance among the blood, water, oily substance, and dark matter that filled the area. The Pterodactyl raised its head as if expressing how proud it was about its achievement, but Noah ignored it as other thoughts filled his mind. ''This is my limit for now,'' Noah thought as he stored the massive corpse and swam through the battlefield to collect any body part that he found. A creature at the peak of the middle tier had forced him to make use of all his weapons. The fact that he could defeat it would surprise many experts, but Noah never felt satisfied with his current power. ''Peak of the middle tier is equal to liquid stage powerhouses around the halfway mark of the stage,'' Noah calculated in his mind. The dark world was more effective against cultivators since it could interfere with the laws they wielded and tried to express. Still, Noah''s raw power placed him among experienced liquid stage powerhouses already. ''I should be a bit weaker than Great Elder Diana right now,'' Noah concluded. ''My body and sword need to advance before I can claim to be unbeatable in the liquid stage.'' Noah knew that the journey in the separate reality had made him skip entire centuries of training. That had been possible because his individuality had been ready to reach his current level, but now it needed to grow again. Thinking about the many years he would spend in complete peace annoyed him a bit, and he felt even more eager to ascend. Chapter 1164: 1164. Breakthrough Noah had many adventures during his life, and he rarely stayed still. Having a safe place to cultivate had been a priority in his youth, but the search for incentives had replaced it once his level started to depend on his individuality. Experiencing new struggles was the quickest way to improve, and Noah had always wanted to grow as fast as possible. Yet, the world didn''t have other secrets. Noah had explored the entirety of the surface, its depths, and its core. He only had part of the sea left before he could claim to know every inch of those Mortal Lands. Noah knew that the dimensional tunnel led to a different world that could lead to another core, but something told him that the raw laws wouldn''t be as effective as before. His cultivation level matched the state of his individuality now. A sheer increase in its size would require some time to consolidate in his existence. The raw laws would still quicken his growth, but Noah would consider making a journey toward an unknown plane''s center only if he was out of other options. King Elbas had taken care of most defenses during the mission in the separate reality. The journey there had been smooth and almost without any environmental threat. Sword Saint had hinted that different planes would have different guardians, so Noah could guess that the other world''s core would be far different than the explored one. Noah wasn''t King Elbas. He was terrific in his fields, but his expertise wasn''t as vast as the Royal. He didn''t have any confidence in the journey. That was the same reason why no powerhouse had suggested a second mission. Without King Elbas leading them, going to the other world''s mysterious core was too much of a gamble. Noah could only continue his hunt for marine rank 6 magical beasts to increase his power. He had stashed four corpses already, but he planned to add two more before going back to his quarters and approach the breakthrough. He had other projects in mind, but they required his body to be in the middle tier and the Demonic Sword to advance. The only aspect of his battle prowess that he could still improve on his own regarded his spells. Noah could create sword arts to pair with his new abilities. He knew that he wouldn''t manage to complete the process for many spells, but there were a few of them that could become core assets of his prowess with enough work. Noah spent one entire year to track his next target, but the power of the creature forced him to give up on the hunt. He found the whale-type beast that ruled over the sea north of the new continent, but it was in the upper tier. His senses had allowed him to recognize the threat before it was too late. The last battle with the Kraken had shown him that his limit were opponents in the middle tier, so he retreated. That setback forced Noah to waste more time, but he found the other two creatures signed on the map rather quickly. It took him only a few months each. The first prey was a giant carp with black scales that protected the entirety of its body. It was only a beast at the beginning of the middle tier, but its innate defense forced Noah to spend an entire day to kill it. Even his strongest attacks managed to break only a dozen scales with each blow. Those body parts had peculiar properties that Noah would study later on. The second opponent was a giant piranha that had a tide of weaker beasts in its pack. They were mostly rank 4 creatures, but they were so many that Noah found himself submerged in violent waves that couldn''t pierce his skin. That kind of approach couldn''t work on him. Noah''s only weakness was that he was facing creatures with stronger bodies, but those attacks didn''t even manage to bite him. The piranha pack''s leader was a specimen in the middle tier, around the halfway mark. Its innate ability consisted of subtle roars that echoed through the water and reinforced its underlings. Yet, the weaker piranhas couldn''t hurt Noah even after the roars made them enter a frenzy. The underlings launched suicidal assaults, but they could only explode on his body without doing any damage. Noah charged straight at the leader, ignoring the smaller creatures that swam in his way. The battle lasted only a few exchanges since the rank 6 beast died in no time. After Noah collected his last prey, he decided to head back to his underground quarters. He had left for less than three years, so he was sure to find nothing new there. He had gathered six corpses of magical beasts in the middle tier of the sixth rank. The last three known creatures in that world were in the upper tier, so Noah couldn''t go after them just yet. Noah spent some time with June when he came back, and he studied with Thirty-seven the materials that were better off in the automaton''s hands. The Fog Demon was virtually useless in terms of materials, and the same went for the Megalodon. Its teeth were sharp, but they weren''t as sturdy as other metals. The Kraken''s body was useless too, except for the organ that produced the oily green substance. Noah gave it to Thirty-seven since his expertise covered even alchemy and other fields that could help him identify the nature of the liquid. The Mountain Dragon had lost most of its skin, but Thirty-seven took an interest in its remaining rocky skin, and Noah found no reason to keep it. The same went for the organs that the piranha used to empower its underlings. The automaton showed interest in the carp''s black scales, but Noah didn''t let him take all of them at that time. Those materials could be useful to him too, so he kept a large share of those goods. After he gave away all the useless loot in his space-rings, Noah spent many months following his usual training schedule. He spent most of the time fighting with Sword Saint, but he didn''t neglect his dantian and mind. The breakthroughs of his body had always taken a while. Noah preferred to make his centers of power ready for his long sleep before consuming the corpses acquired during his last mission. He even improved the spherical rune again so that his mind could expand while he couldn''t train. Only his dantian would remain still for a bit, but Noah guessed that a complete rest could only benefit his center of power after its leaps across the stages. Once he set everything, Noah entered one of the deeper areas of his underground mansion and sealed it through the defensive formations deployed there by some expert. Only June remained in the mansion, but she wouldn''t disturb him during such a crucial moment. Those coming to visit her would do the same without question. Noah began to eat the six corpses and continued until he left no trace of them. The drowsiness hit him as soon as the black hole distributed that energy through his body, and he closed his eyes to immerse himself in the warm feeling of the breakthrough. No dreams appeared during his sleep, but Noah remained in a nigh-aware status for the whole duration of his breakthrough. The black hole in his chest would release violent flares when a surge of energy escaped its suppression, but it soon took back that power with its gravitational pull. The membrane around the black hole also expanded from time to time, but it soon condensed again to give that energy to Noah''s body. Noah had to sleep for fifteen years before a surge of energy filled his body, and startled him awake. He didn''t even have the time to check his improvements when the Demonic Sword appeared in front of him. The living blade exuded an aura with power in the middle tier. While Noah was asleep, the Demonic Sword had advanced to match his dantian. Chapter 1165: 1165. Horned head Noah had to attend an important event before he could resume his regular training schedule. It was something that the Hive had patiently waited for years, and it wouldn''t be wrong to say that the entire alliance had been in the same situation. Chasing Demon''s death had left an empty spot in the Hive''s leadership. Dreaming Demon, Flying Demon, Elder Julia, and Skully took care of that part by managing different matters, but it wasn''t the same without a proper leader. The problem wasn''t in the management of the Hive. The Demons and various other higher-ups were self-sufficient. Every dome could keep working without orders coming from above. However, the Hive lacked an identity without a leader. Rebels and lone cultivators would appear in an organization that showed that kind of weakness, and the morale of the troops would plummet without someone to look up to. It was the same with the Shandal Empire. Its warriors could engage in long wars without fear for their lives because they knew they had a god watching over them. Such flaws in an organization would never affect cultivators like Noah and the Demons, but they were the minority of the Hive''s assets. Most human experts and cultivators in the fourth rank wanted to put a face on their organization. "It''s time," Flying Demon''s voice resounded inside Noah''s underground mansion. Noah interrupted his training and stood up to leave his quarters. June shot a smile in his direction as she watched him go through the main door. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon appeared in Noah''s vision when he left his quarters. They wore black robes that had a purple octopus draped on their back. The octopus had long tentacles that enveloped a series of purple spots in a protective embrace. They represented the islands of the Coral Archipelago, the ancestral home, and the symbol of the birth of the Hive. "Do I need to wear these too?" Noah asked while inspecting his clothes. He didn''t prepare for the occasion. He was wearing an old robe that had borne the weight of his training sessions. "Yes," Dreaming Demon replied while revealing a warm smile, "But that will come later. Now there is something that you must see before the ceremony." Noah noticed how Flying Demon wore a stern expression that conflicted with his usual joking mood. It seemed that the event was quite important to him, so Noah decided to respect his feelings. The Demons led Noah in the sky, where they began to fly in the direction of the Coral Archipelago. The trio didn''t use any teleportation matrix, and their pace made them reach their destination in a few weeks. Some tension surrounded the trio. Noah didn''t receive any explanation, but he understood the reason behind the duo''s silence. The ceremony had already begun. The travel itself was part of it, and the silence was a gift for Noah. He could use that time to enjoy his last moments without the weight of an organization on his back. Of course, Noah could use that time to go away. Taking charge of the Hive wasn''t mandatory, but he could see how there wasn''t anyone more suitable than him inside the Hive. He had understood what it was to be a leader by then. He had always ignored those obligations because of the issues that they would bring, but the situation was different now. Leaders didn''t need to be the smartest asset in their organization. They didn''t need to be the canniest, nor the most empathic. Their only requirement was to be able to inspire the other members of their organization. Cultivators had to take pride in their leaders, and they had to strive to become like them. Noah had always thought that his battle prowess was the only thing he could offer to an organization. Yet, he had often failed to consider how his life had inspired others. From being the bastard of a medium-size noble family, Noah had reached the peak of the lower plane. Also, he was now about to take charge of the same organization that he had helped become independent. Any human cultivator would feel waves of ambition surging inside them when hearing that story. Noah''s journey was a tale that they could describe in legends even if they didn''t include all his incredible achievements. That was the role of a leader. Noah had to become the embodiment of all the dreams and hopes of the weaker cultivators in his organization. His figure would become proof that anyone could reach that level of power. Noah couldn''t help but reveal a surprised expression when he and the Demons reached the Coral Archipelago. The place didn''t change much, but a tall structure had appeared on the central island that had once been Chasing Demon''s home. A statue stood at the center of the Archipelago. The structure depicted a man with sharp features, and a pair of shining red crystals illuminated the area from its eye sockets. The figure depicted Chasing Demon in his prime. It represented him with an arm raised toward the new continent. It had a stern face, and a heavy aura surrounded the structure. Noah didn''t recognize the materials used to build the statue, but he knew that the structure wasn''t only decorative. Faint traces of inscriptions hovered around it, and the density of "Breath" on the entire island surpassed that in the rest of the Archipelago. "You''ll also have a statue one day," Dreaming Demon commented when she saw that Noah had remained speechless. "As long as the Hive exists, your name will survive the passage of time." The trio moved toward the base of the statue where the other powerhouses of the Hive were waiting. Noah saw Skully and Elder Julia bowing toward him as they landed on the island. Dreaming Demon touched the statue, and a formation began to shine on the polished gray material. She then gestured to the others to follow her, and all of them place a hand on those lines. The scene in Noah''s vision changed, and he found himself in a room surrounded by complete darkness. He and the four powerhouses stood around a table placed on the small patch of brown ground under them. An inscribed item stood at the center of the table. It was a fist-sized horned face similar to that used by the Hive to bind new cultivators to its rules. Noah guessed that the item was the core of the network binding all the Hive''s members, and Dreaming Demon confirmed his hypothesis. "This the item that manages all the oaths sworn by the members of the Hive," Dreaming Demon said. "You have received the privileges of the Demon Prince already. You will obtain complete control over the network now." Noah didn''t back away and revealed his palm to the group. The tattoo of the horned head rose from inside his body to appear on his skin. The powerhouses did the same. Even Skully had a similar tattoo, and she showed it without any hesitation. The item began to shine as if resonating with that gesture. Dreaming Demon then hinted to Noah to touch the horned head, and he didn''t shy away. Pieces of information flowed inside Noah''s mind when he placed his palm on the inscribed item. They covered every aspect of the Hive, from the number of recruits to the domes'' power. There were a series of reports too. They were yearly reviews of every formation deployed on the Hive''s domain. They considered their current condition and the amount of energy that they depleted. Then, Noah felt a connection with all the other cultivators inside the Hive. It was a faint sensation that didn''t weigh on his mind. Still, he knew that he could control their oaths from now on. "You have formally become the Patriarch of the Hive," Dreaming Demon announced. "Now it''s time for the celebration. We have already prepared suitable clothes." Chapter 1166: 1166. Gesture Noah changed clothes after he exited from the separate dimension that contained the horned head. His new control of the Hive''s oaths took place in the back of his mind and became an instinctive ability on its own. He didn''t need the training to enforce those oaths, and a simple thought was enough to modify some of them. Noah had gained complete control of the Hive in a few minutes. Skully and Elder Julia left to prepare the new continent for Noah''s arrival, but the Demons remained with him. Dreaming Demon continued to reveal her warm smile, and Flying Demon appeared more relaxed after the transfer of the leadership. "Master wasn''t the type to waste time on ceremonies," Flying Demon said after heaving a sigh. "Well, there wasn''t anyone capable of making him change his mind either. I''m surprised you have accepted this role without complaints." Noah was about to reply, but Dreaming Demon interrupted because she felt the need to explain her lover''s words. "He is saying that you are quite similar to our Master. We were both afraid you would refuse to become a Patriarch because it might limit your freedom." The Demons knew how Noah thought, and that was the exact reason behind their doubts. Yet, Noah saw his new role differently. "I won''t organize any event," Noah said. "I won''t handle any political issue. I only need to step in when the Hive is in danger. I might end up doing less than what I already do." Noah spoke earnestly, but the Demons exploded in a loud laugh when they heard his words. They could finally understand why Noah didn''t even try to avoid that role. "Do you plan to be a Patriarch that remains hidden in his quarters and comes out only when the situation can benefit him?" Flying Demon asked, and Noah shrugged his shoulders to reply. His gesture caused another wave of laughs, but the Demons knew that Noah''s attitude didn''t come from laziness. The world was at peace, and the Hive was the strongest organization in the entire plane. The Council and the Empire had leaders with a better cultivation level, but that didn''t matter too much when Noah was part of the picture. Noah''s obligations wouldn''t change after he became a Patriarch. The other powerhouses already managed all the aspects of the Hive, so he didn''t need to do anything else for his organization. "I can accept that!" Flying Demon eventually stopped laughing to speak. "Protect the Hive when everything else fails. Do it for the organization that has given you a home, and for Chasing Demon." "Master has never liked organizations either," Dreaming Demon continued. "He has always considered them a trap for weak-willed cultivators. He used the Demon Sects only to gather resources that he needed." Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon continued to describe how Divine Demon was as a leader. He sounded like an absent Patriarch who appeared only when a situation involved precious resources. Divine Demon was quite strict in his idea of the cultivation journey. He acknowledged the utility of organizations, but he loathed that they could take time from his training. He was also a ruthless teacher. He often fought to obtain whatever he wanted, and he never gave too much importance to appearances. Noah felt that he would be the same type of leader. He would use the Hive only when he needed resources that he didn''t have the time to collect. As for the political borders, the alliance only had the Elbas family left as an enemy. Noah wouldn''t need to join meetings or negotiations unless a new threat appeared. The trio resumed their flight again, but their destination was the forest of White Woods on the western coast of the new continent at that time. The Demons wanted to escort Noah from Chasing Demon''s old quarters to the new ones. Noah wore a neat robe that appeared less luxurious than those of the Demons. The higher-ups didn''t want to make him go out of his character, so they prepared tight clothes that gave off an important aura. The octopus and the islands were still there, but Noah''s robe didn''t have loose sleeves or special symbols on his shoulders and legs. His were simple battle clothes of exceptional fabric. Noah''s underlings wouldn''t see him as an unreachable existence if he appeared in public with those clothes. They would see an ordinary cultivator who had reached the top through struggles and battles. That was the exact image that the powerhouses wanted Noah to have. There was no need for him to pretend to be someone else. He only had to be himself, and the story of his life would do the rest. Noah and the Demons crossed the entire new continent to reach the western coast. The journey took a while, but everyone could see him getting his earned throne in that way. The forest of White Woods had remained the same, but there was a throne floating above it now. The seat was nothing special. It was a simple tall armchair made of rocks. The Demons left Noah at that point and flew toward the sides of the throne. Elder Julia and Skully appeared from different teleportation matrices and imitated the Demons. The four powerhouses waited for him to take his seat, and countless teleportation matrices lit up as Noah began to fly toward the throne. Many experts reached the region to witness the birth of their new Patriarch. Even human cultivators managed to attend the event through special channels that shielded them from the new continent''s pressure. Noah didn''t look behind him. He flew until he reached the throne. Then, he turned to sit on it. The powerhouses didn''t make any speech nor announcement, but everyone on the scene knew that the Hive now had a new Patriarch. Noah stared at the crowd watching him while wearing a stern expression. June and other old friends were among the audience, and traces of his surprise almost appeared on his face when he saw all of them bowing in his direction. Thousands of cultivators amassed near the teleportation matrices and on the edges of the domes nearby, but all of them bowed to greet their new Patriarch. Memories resurfaced inside Noah''s mind. He had already seen a similar scene. It was the same view experienced during the attitude test at the Royal Academy. Countless powerful existences bowed toward him, but Noah didn''t feel anything special at that sight. It had been the same during the attitude test. He had never desired to rule, and his mindset didn''t change after almost a millennium. Noah recalled how that dream continued. His eyes instinctively went to the sky, and the Demons couldn''t help but smile at that sight. Some of the best experts on the entire plane were expressing their loyalty toward him, but Noah''s only interest was in the world above. The Demons knew that. Noah''s gesture had only confirmed their idea of him, and they felt glad that they were right. Some of the experts inside the audience noticed his gesture too. Noah''s first act as a Patriarch made him appear uncaring, but a few promising cultivators caught a glimpse of his drive. Even becoming the Patriarch of the strongest organization in the world couldn''t distract him from his real goal. Noah''s drive was pure, and the audience could see that from his gesture. That casual move expressed who Noah was as a cultivator. Some of those in the region felt their ambition surge and fill their minds. Chapter 1167: 1167. Oval The ceremony ended with a large celebration that saw most of the higher-ups of the Hive joining in. The weaker cultivators had parties and events in their respective domes since their status didn''t allow them to be with the other Elders. Large tables filled with strong wine and delicacies filled the various domes. Noah and the other powerhouses moved to the azure plain, where they enjoyed a well-deserved break from the tension that had followed Chasing Demon''s death. The main theme of the celebration was Noah''s life. Experts told stories about him or tales that had spread among the weaker troops. Those who had interacted with Noah during their lives recalled those moments loudly and laughs filled the Elders whenever they described how aloof he had always been. Noah''s character had never been a secret, but many were still amazed that he had reached his current position. They didn''t feel surprised that he had become the new Patriarch. Instead, they wondered how he had survived through his many adventures. "Dreaming Demon and I were using our best spells to fend off the lightning bolts," Flying Demon shouted while waving his cup, "But he took them directly on his shoulders! I swear, I''ve never seen someone overcoming a Heaven Tribulation in that way!" Laughs followed his story, and Noah shook his head as he refilled his cup. Flying Demon was twisting the events in Divine Architect''s separate dimension, but Noah had no intention to correct him. The Council''s higher-ups joined the celebration at some point, and more tables appeared in the area. Faith, Elder Regina, and Great Elder Diana sat near Noah, but the others didn''t have the right to join him. More experts told stories, and they became vaguer as the celebrations continued. Some founded their tales on rumors that everyone found it hard to believe. Noah let them have fun and commented when the Elders asked for more details. Many also wanted to learn about his mindset when he went through specific struggles, and he didn''t mind explaining his reasons. Toasts happened often. Everyone wanted to announce their loyalty toward the new Patriarch, and some of Noah''s old titles came up through the various speeches in his honor. Noah heard titles that he had left behind by many years. Some called him Hooded Devil, or Patriarch of the Balvan family, or bane of the Elbas family. Still, all of them ended up with the same line. "I drink to honor Defying Demon, the second Patriarch of the Hive!" God''s Left Hand joined the celebrations too, but she had come only to express her acknowledgment of Noah''s new position. She would deal with him for the upcoming political issues, so she intended to start with the right foot. Noah''s wasn''t famous for his mild temperament. God''s Left Hand wanted to make sure that their past experiences didn''t endanger the relationship between their organizations. The celebrations continued happily for almost three days, but a sudden event forced them to a stop. The Elders and other guests had begun to discuss individualities at that point. They had taken the chance to improve their knowledge and understanding of the heroic ranks, and the powerhouses would give their opinion whenever they felt like it. Yet, the sky above them began to flicker during those discussions. The tremors were faint and almost unnoticeable. They had to appear a few times before the powerhouses noticed that something was off. Noah raised his eyes to the sky, and the other powerhouses imitated him when they sensed the same disturbances in the fabric of the sky. The rank 5 Elders didn''t immediately understand what was happening, but they followed the higher-ups'' gazes when they saw their stern expressions. The sky trembled, and its fabric bent from time to time. It was as if something or someone was trying to tear it open from a place that no one could see. Noah suddenly stood up, and the other powerhouses did the same. Great Elder Diana, Elder Regina, and God''s Left Hand neared the Hive''s experts and prepared themselves to fight. That group could think of only one explanation for that phenomenon, and they didn''t like it. Only the joint forces of their three organizations could give them hope to fend off that dreadful outcome, but even that didn''t make victory sure. The sky continued to tremble, and an oval shape formed. Yet, its edges were too faint to affect the sky, and no crack appeared on its fabric. Something opened inside that oval shape. A line formed and tried to spread, but nothing managed to reach the sky. That seemed to happen in a separate dimension that the experts could see because it was quite close to theirs. "I-." A voice came out of that shape, and the powerhouses'' auras became tense when they heard that. They recognized that voice. It belonged to the expert that they had banished during their mission in the plane''s center! "Will-," The voice echoed again. It seemed that King Elbas was struggling to convey that message. It wasn''t clear if he could pierce the fabric of the sky and return to that world. His aura didn''t reach Noah and the others in the end. Only his voice seeped through the barriers among dimensions and turned the celebrations into a grim event. "Return!" A small tongue of golden flames came out of in the world, and King Elbas'' aura spread in the environment before vanishing. The fire dispersed in the sky, revealing that the oval shape had disappeared. The world had returned to its previous peace, and no more tremors spread from that spot. Noah and the others sent a series of mental messages toward the cultivators in charge of the observation points through the continents. They wanted to know if that phenomenon had appeared somewhere else in the world. The cultivators'' answer was positive. The phenomenon had happened at the same time in eight different spots of the sky. Still, it seemed to be over now since they didn''t report anything else. The powerhouses remained silent as the weaker Elders watched them. There was something far more important to plan, and they couldn''t relax anymore. King Elbas had announced his return, and his message had reached multiple areas of the world. Those who knew about his banishment could only remain speechless and respect the Royal even more. Noah and the others couldn''t stop that. King Elbas was bound to become stronger after what had happened, and his complete return would push that improvement further. Not even the barriers among the dimensions could keep the Royal away from that plane, and the powerhouses could only accept that the peace was about to end. Noah knew that their time was short. The organizations had to develop a plan to defeat the strongest cultivator in the world, and they had to do it quickly. The celebrations had yet to end in theory, but Noah decided to cut the matter short by giving his very first order as Patriarch of the Hive. "Prepare for war," Noah said as he turned toward the weaker Elders. The seriousness that he exuded made his sharpness surge. Cuts appeared under his feet as his aura became tense due to the imminent threat. The cultivators remained speechless, but Noah left right after he gave his order. His first instinct was to fly toward the desert to find Thirty-seven. The automaton was the only one who could know a method to stop King Elbas. Chapter 1168: 1168. Preparations Noah didn''t give other orders, but the Elders didn''t need more directives. His call for war was enough to activate all the parts of the Hive that could help in battle. Chasing Demon had taught Elder Julia how to handle the Copying Technique, so she set off to hunt more magical beasts. She even relied on Noah to make use of his expertise in the magical beasts'' field. Since they knew King Elbas'' abilities, they could pick creatures that countered him. Of course, that wouldn''t be enough to stop the Royals'' leader. A powerhouse in the solid stage who used only higher energy couldn''t lose against an army of weaker beasts. Still, King Elbas needed to consume himself to set fire to his higher energy. Slowing him down might tire him enough to defeat him. Flying Demon had learnt how to create doors in the separate dimension, so he handled the creation of specific tunnels that could give the allied forces an edge over King Elbas. The Hive didn''t care about the secrecy of the separate dimension anymore. It preferred to reveal its functioning if that gave it an advantage over its enemy. The world already knew that the Hive had a method to teleport troops secretly, but the other organizations didn''t know how exactly it worked. Still, the Hive was willing to reveal everything to solidify its position as the strongest force in those Mortal Lands. Skully instructed the hybrids. She taught them battle formations and created different platoons according to their abilities. The hybrids would be nothing more than cannon fodder if the Hive deployed them in a frontal assault against King Elbas. So, Skully decided to prepare a strategy with Flying Demon to make them rely on the separate dimension. Dreaming Demon couldn''t do anything specific, but the hybrids were in desperate need of a proper teacher. Skully could control them, but they needed someone that could teach them how to fight. Noah would be perfect for that role, but he had other plans. Dreaming Demon took that position, and she filled the hybrids with spells that could match their innate gifts. The Hive couldn''t live in fear of a revolt from the hybrids'' side. It preferred to bring their power to their peak so that they could help against its threatening enemy. The rest of the Hive worked around the powerhouses. Many helped Flying Demon digging new paths in the separate dimension, while others joined hunts to capture magical beasts useful for the Copying Technique. The entire Hive began to work toward the same goal: Creating an array of defenses that could block King Elbas! Noah''s schedule was different. He had just advanced to the middle tier, and his dantian had reached the liquid stage only recently. He couldn''t hope in any breakthrough, and his current power couldn''t do anything against King Elbas. Yet, he had projects that could help the Hive as a whole. The creation of living weapons and his inscribed items could improve his domain''s defenses by a lot. Noah didn''t waste time. He immediately contacted Thirty-seven and reviewed the situation with him. The automaton wasn''t a strategist, but he knew how powerful solid stage powerhouses could be. Thirty-seven couldn''t help too much in the matter. His expertise was incredible, but the heroic ranks were his limit. He couldn''t create inscriptions capable of stopping an existence that bordered the divine ranks. Still, he could advise Noah. The mass production of living weapons resumed immediately, and the automaton ideated formations that relied on Noah''s disposable items. Noah didn''t mind using his time to focus on his inscription methods. The creation of living weapons was something that he had avoided for many years, but King Elbas'' threat made it his priority. Noah and Thirty-seven worked with Elder Julia to refill their stash of magical beasts'' corpses, and they soon gathered enough materials to resume their project. Hundreds of living weapons came out of the separate dimension to arm the Elders. Noah took care of the weaker cultivators before focusing on items that required his complete concentration. Equipping rank 5 Elders at his current level wasn''t a problem, but the Hive needed far more to fend off King Elbas. The entire world was against a solid stage powerhouse who used higher energy. Having weapons in the fifth rank wasn''t nearly enough. Noah created living weapons for each powerhouse and for the rank 5 cultivators that deserved special treatment. June obtained a spear capable of enhancing lightning bolts. Noah had used the best materials that he could gather to create the most durable quasi-rank 6 weapon in the world. Daniel obtained a living weapon too. Noah used a peculiar species of frog-type magical beasts to create a cauldron capable of improving the purification process with every material. That was another quasi-rank 6 item. Noah had chosen to restrain his ability again so that rank 5 cultivators could use it. The same went for other promising Elders in the fifth rank. Noah armed every expert in the Hive before moving to other projects. The second part of his strategy against King Elbas was preparing traps that could keep him away from the Hive''s domain. Noah worked with Thirty-seven to create formations that could enhance the destructive properties of the Instabilities. Those disposable items weren''t cheap, especially their rank 6 version, but Noah didn''t care as long as they could stop King Elbas. The last phase of his strategy was something that he had to handle alone. The alliance had assaulted the regions under the Elbas family''s control after Noah''s achievements in Divine Market city. Still, both the Council and the Hive had chosen to attack the Royal Academy rather than the paradisal territory built by King Elbas. The southeastern corner of the new continent was King Elbas'' new home, and no one in the alliance had dared to attack it for fear of the defenses in the area. The powerhouses wanted to leave that region as the last target of their assault. They feared King Elbas'' expertise too much to siege his home. However, Noah had learnt to understand King Elbas after their interactions. He knew that the Royal couldn''t possibly create too many defenses in a region that he had restructured in a few years. There was a limit to how much a powerhouse could build in less than a decade. Even the best inscription master in the world would need his fair share of years to deploy an array of defensive formations capable of stopping the assault of rank 6 cultivators. Noah flew toward the corner of the southeastern coast once he completed all his projects with Thirty-seven. There was something that only he could do in that region, and he didn''t hesitate to step forward since his opponent was King Elbas. The Royal had brought the Ape God back from the sea of magma, and he had also restored part of its power before resurfacing. The Ape God was the strongest being in those Mortal Lands, but no one had heard about it after King Elbas took over the snowy plain. The creature was still somewhere on the surface, and the only place capable of containing it was King Elbas'' home. Noah inspected the paradisiac region thoroughly before deciding to land in front of the palace built at its center. His instincts didn''t sense any threat, and that confirmed his hypothesis. King Elbas didn''t set any defense in the region. He had used his name to keep everyone away, but that wasn''t enough to fend Noah off. Chapter 1169: 1169. Negotiations Noah neared the corner of the southeastern coast slowly, but his instincts soon reassured him. He didn''t feel any fear when landing on that prairie. The region appeared harmless. The magical beasts living there maintained their unusual behavior even after King Elbas had disappeared for years. Still, Noah didn''t sense the effects of formations when he neared the entrance of the palace at the center of the region. There was something active underground, but it didn''t seem aimed at Noah. King Elbas had created training areas, but he didn''t waste time building defensive formations. Noah felt some danger when entering the palace. The inscriptions there applied pressure on his mental sphere. Yet, they didn''t aim at him. They expressed part of King Elbas'' might, but their purpose wasn''t to protect the area. Noah guessed that they gathered energy to fuel the training areas underground. Of course, there was a chance that many defenses had become inactive after they spent many years without their creator. Noah didn''t care about the specifics of that region. His target was somewhere inside the palace, and he felt free to enter it when his instincts didn''t sense anything. The palace''s insides were as luxurious as Noah had recalled, but he didn''t spend time investigating every room that he found. Many areas contained valuable resources, but they had barriers dividing them from the rest of the structure. Noah could break those barriers if he decided to invest time and resources in the effort, but his target was elsewhere. He had felt it since he had entered the palace. He had to go underground to find it. The palace had many corridors, but Noah only needed to listen to his instincts to find his target. He walked past many halls radiating a breathtaking aura and descended stairs with multiple branches until he reached a large room. There were barriers there too. It seemed that King Elbas had deployed defenses only when he had to protect specific resources, and one of them could be vital to the alliance. Noah arrived in front of a small door that had multiple shining lines on its edges. A peak solid stage aura covered those walls, but he didn''t need to think of a way to break them just yet. He kept his eyes fixed on the quasi-rank 7 magical beast restrained by a golden sphere inside the room. His best hope to stop King Elbas was in a creature that loathed humanity with every fiber of its body. The Ape God appeared to be sleeping when Noah arrived, but the sole trace of his aura made it react. The creature didn''t speak human words when it noticed its guest. Its anger took control of its functions and made it unleash a violent offensive against the golden barrier. Noah noticed how the chains didn''t appear no matter how much the Ape struggled to break free. He couldn''t help but rejoice to see that King Elbas'' influence had waned after they banished him in that different dimension. "I''ve come to talk," Noah said while the Ape screamed and threw punches at the barrier. The creature didn''t stop its offensive at his words, but Noah had predicted that reaction. He didn''t show any surprise as he sat in front of the room to wait for the beast to calm down. The Ape God''s stamina was immense. It raged against the barrier for two entire weeks before it grew bored of that struggle. Noah had studied the creature in that period. The Ape appeared stronger than before, but it was still far from returning to its previous peak. King Elbas'' absence had slowed down its recovery, and Noah could only feel glad about that. The fact that the Ape was still near the heroic ranks made it too weak to break the barrier and gave him the chance to seal a pact. The Ape God snorted after it stopped its offensive and lay down inside its barrier while showing its back to Noah. It didn''t want to talk to him, and even the sight of his figure caused waves of anger inside its mind. However, Noah needed it, so he made the first move. "I can give you freedom," Noah said. "I can give you the chance to take your vengeance against the cultivator that has captured you." The Ape didn''t answer, but Noah didn''t give up. He knew what the creature thought about humans, and he was aware of its mindset''s weaknesses. "My organization is treating your kind quite nicely," Noah continued. "The Kesier Apes under our control are growing well. I suspect that we will have some rank 6 specimens in a few more centuries." A tremor ran through the Ape God, but it didn''t turn. The creature did its best not to fall for Noah''s tempting words. "You know," Noah pressed on, "I agree. Humans are lucky. They are born with three centers of power, but many of them don''t deserve it. I''ve seen far too many cultivators wasting their innate gifts. This doesn''t happen in the magical beasts'' world." The aura of the Ape God surged at those words, but Noah knew that the barrier would stop any attack. King Elbas'' restrictions worked in his favor now that he wasn''t attempting to break them. "I don''t know if you are aware of this," Noah continued his monologue, "But humans envy magical beasts. Your bodies and innate gifts are incredible. Every cultivator wishes to have such an easy path toward the higher ranks." Noah taunted the Ape with his last line, and the creature couldn''t ignore him anymore at that point. It stood up and turned to stare at him while unleashing a wave of violent mental waves that crashed on the golden barrier. "This is the same reason why I fused with a magical beast," Noah said while making up for his previous words. "I wanted your strength and training method, so I accepted every aspect of your kind." The Ape God didn''t want to listen to him, but its situation had never been lower. It had lost its pack, the hidden world, and its freedom in a few centuries. Everything that it had built had crumbled, but Noah was there to give it hope. As for what kind of hope, the Ape didn''t know. Yet, that was better than spending decades without food and freedom. Listening to the man who had destroyed its world was better than nothing. "You have ruined me," The Ape God said. "My pack, my power, you have destroyed everything out of your greed. You are no different from the golden human. You can only see resources when you look at my species." "Is that bad?" Noah replied while shrugging his shoulders. "We do what we can to reach the sky. You would do the same if you were in our position. Don''t look down on humans only because you can''t be like them." Noah''s words caused a violent reaction in the beast, but he waited for the creature to calm down. It took the Ape God another week to stop its assault on the golden sphere and accept that idea. The Ape God had never discussed matters related to species with a human, and Noah was quite peculiar even at that. He could understand the vision of both cultivators and magical beasts, so his words always hit the right topic. "You didn''t oppose the sacrifice of your companions," Noah said, and his words reopened the Ape God''s old scars. "You let them die to reach the divine ranks. You are no different from humans hunting down a species for their benefits." Chapter 1170: 1170. Orders "What do you even know about my pain?!" The Ape God exploded into a loud reply. "How can you compare greed to a pure sacrifice? Humans and magical beasts have nothing in common!" "And yet," Noah replied after heaving a sigh, "I''m a human and a magical beast. I have lived in the wilderness and among the politics of the cultivators. I have seen both sides, and I know that your feeling is nothing more than envy originating from your weakness." "Envy?!" The Ape God exclaimed. "There is nothing to envy in humans!" "You wanted a dantian as far as I remember," Noah replied. "I wonder why you desired a human organ." Noah revealed a smile at that point. He wanted the beast to become even angrier so that he could see how deep its hatred was. His plan would become unfeasible if the Ape God hated humans from the bottom of its existence. Yet, there was hope for cooperation if it could accept them. "I want the world to be fair!" The Ape God complained. "I''m against Heaven and Earth too," Noah replied. "We have two common enemies." The Ape God remained silent after that reply. Noah had made clear that King Elbas was his opponent, so the creature could guess that he needed its help to defeat him. "Little human," The Ape God said, "You have yet to gaze at the divine, but you want to fight beings that are near that stage. The golden human isn''t as weak as I was." Noah continued to smile. That answer had started the negotiations, even if the beast wasn''t aware of that. "If King Elbas remains in power," Noah said in an uncaring tone, "Your species will remain enslaved. There won''t be any free Kesier Ape in this plane." The Ape God shook its head before expressing its doubts. "I bet you want to offer my species freedom. You, the human who destroyed our last lair in the world." "I''m not a human," Noah promptly replied. "You are no savior either," The Ape God continued. "You must be desperate to seek my help. I think that I will enjoy hearing your dying cries from my prison. Who knows, you might get a cage right next to mine." The beast showed a mocking smile, but Noah didn''t lose his cool. He had dealt with existences that were far more threatening than the Ape. He knew how to apply pressure when he held the advantage in a negotiation. "Hybrids run free in my lands," Noah explained. "They live, eat, breed, and die in complete freedom. Your species can obtain the same treatment." "I won''t trust a destroyer," The Ape God answered. "I don''t trust those hybrids either," Noah replied. "I barely trust anyone in general. I''m not asking for that. I only want your power, and you can trade it for the well-being of your species." "I''d rather die," The beast said. "Then you have doomed your kind," Noah replied and stood up to leave the area. Noah didn''t turn. He walked through the corridor and reached the stairs that led to the surface without hesitating. He felt the eyes of the Ape on his back, but he didn''t give it any leverage through his gestures. The beast had to think that its only hope for freedom was about to leave forever. "How many?" The Ape shouted before Noah could step on the stairs. "How many Kesier Apes are there in your organization?" Noah stopped his tracks, but he didn''t turn. His mind focused on his connection with the horned head, and a list of reports appeared in his vision. "More than a hundred specimens in the human ranks," Noah said without turning, "A dozen in the heroic ranks." "Why have you asked for my help?" The Ape questioned him. Noah turned, but he didn''t return to the entrance of the prison. He pretended to think about his reasons for a second before answering. "King Elbas is about to attack the entire world. You are the strongest creature in this plane right now. Asking you to fight with us is only natural." The Ape God fell deep in its thoughts as it sat on the floor. Noah didn''t know what it was considering, but he knew that the creature would accept to deal with him unless it had a death wish. There were fates worse than death, and the Ape God was experiencing one of them. It had survived the initial hunt of its species only to see Noah destroying its world. Then, King Elbas had captured and trapped it on the surface. The Ape God didn''t have any contact with the outside world, so it could only spend its days wondering about its species'' fate. Magical beasts could sleep for a long time, but the creature was partially awake when Noah visited it. That was a clear sign that its mental state didn''t allow it to sleep properly. The fate of its species weighed on its mind. After all, the Ape God had failed those that had sacrificed to push its power to the divine ranks. The creature couldn''t enter a long sleep even if it tried. "What happens if he wins?" The Ape God asked. Noah shrugged his shoulders again before giving an honest answer. "Most experts will hide and wait for King Elbas to ascend. My organization will destroy every resource before retreating to a safe area, including the Kesier Apes. We can''t give them to our enemies." Noah''s words sounded like a threat, but he didn''t want to put his words in that tone. He only wanted to tell the truth to the beast. The Ape God remained silent for a while, but it eventually expressed its conditions for that cooperation. "I want the members of my species free of your control. I don''t want them to interact with humans anymore." Noah shook his head and replied without showing any hesitation. "Cultivators need the Kesier runes. I can ensure their freedom, but they must cooperate with the human world." "That''s just a different type of prison!" The Ape God complained. "It''s a prison with wardens that won''t perform experiments on you," Noah replied. "No one would rip off your runes nor force you to breed. You know that humans are stronger than magical beasts. You won''t get a better deal." "This is an extortion," The beast complained again. "You can tell this story to your underlings if you accept these conditions," Noah said. "Your alternative is an entire life as the last of your kind until King Elbas forces you to breed." The Ape became angry and started to shout. "You are using my dedication toward my species to manipulate me!" "Of course," Noah replied. "I will use every trick at my disposal to improve the success rate of this battle. You only have to decide how badly you want your species to thrive." The Ape God felt defeated. It couldn''t win in a discussion against Noah, and he had spoken the truth for the entire negotiation. The beast didn''t have any other option. The only thing that could stop it from accepting his conditions was its pride. Still, the Ape would easily give up on it to protect its species. That had been its main purpose. The Ape only wanted its underlings to live without fear of being captured. It didn''t matter how much it had to sacrifice to obtain that. "You are a monster," The Ape God eventually said, but Noah shrugged his shoulders again. "I have to deal with beings that are far above my level," Noah said. "I can only be a monster if I want to survive." Silence fell between Noah and the Ape, but the beast soon expressed its decision to accept those conditions. "I''ll send someone to deal with the defenses and create an oath," Noah said as he finally stepped on the stairs. "Remember that you take orders from me now." Chapter 1171: 1171. Defea It was the first time the entire world worked together to plan a battle against a common enemy. The Hive and the Council had already helped each other in the past. Still, the Shandal Empire''s addition improved that already solid alliance. Something similar had happened during the winged beasts'' crisis, but the situation was different at that time. The organizations could prepare defenses together and plan strategies that involved all their forces at that time. The usual divisions that involved those forces fell apart in front of King Elbas'' threat. The Matriarchs and Noah knew that their lofty status in the world would crumble if they let the Royals'' leader retake control of some regions. The goal was to kill him or banish him again. Sending any heroic cultivator in the void would condemn them to certain death. King Elbas had managed to survive the last time only because the separate reality behaved differently. The three organizations deployed defenses on their respective domains, but they also reinforced the Hive''s borders. Chasing Demon, his divine item, and Noah''s dark world had been crucial assets in King Elbas'' banishment. The Royal would most likely unleash his rage on the main culprit behind his defeat. Noah helped in the preparations whenever he could. His expertise could only cover certain aspects of the defensive formations, so he completed his tasks quickly. There were only so many resources in the world. Noah couldn''t create Instabilities and living weapon without limits, so the negotiation with the Ape God signaled the end of his obligations. He would return to King Elbas'' palace once Thirty-seven and his disciples were about to free the quasi-rank 7 beast, but he could focus on himself in the meantime. Even if King Elbas'' return could lead to their deaths, Noah and June didn''t spend much time together. They were both busy trying to improve their chances to survive, and they needed power for that. Noah didn''t have methods to improve quickly. He had completed all his projects, and there were only details to polish in his battle style. Some of his spells could match martial arts, but his main offensive remained connected to the dark world. Cultivating in his underground quarters and training with the Seventh Kesier rune were core parts of his daily schedule, but he had something else that kept on polishing both his existence and battle style. Sword Saint continued to exchange slashes with Noah. The divine will kept on teaching him everything he knew about sword arts. Yet, Sword Saint didn''t have any new techniques to teach. He had already shown Noah the apex of his path. Noah could only grow as a law to improve his battle prowess. Noah was in the liquid stage of the sixth rank now. His path required him to solidify a personal law and obtain a true meaning that expressed his existence. That was the exact purpose behind Sword Saint''s training. The more Noah poured his existence into his slashes, the more he would strive forward, slowly becoming a law in the process. "I can see your savagery!" Sword Saint exclaimed as he slashed against Noah''s attack. "I can see your techniques, your creation, and your destruction!" Sword Saint''s slash clashed with Noah''s attack and pierced it. The blow dispersed before it could reach Noah, but he didn''t seem satisfied about that result. "What am I lacking?" Noah asked while his thoughts reviewed the last exchange. Noah never failed to analyze all his slashes. That had always been his approach. He rarely pressed forward unless he had flaws to fix. However, his slash appeared perfect. It expressed the entirety of Noah''s existence, and it carried all his features. Noah couldn''t understand why he didn''t manage to defeat Sword Saint. That was his apex, the very peak of his expertise. Still, the divine will didn''t budge. "You are too bound by the heroic ranks in this state," Sword Saint replied. "You have strength and power, but you lack true meaning." Sword Saint unleashed his aura at that point, and Noah struggled to keep his mental sphere safe from the existence''s sharpness. "You fail to see what it is to be a god," Sword Saint continued as a blade appeared in his ethereal hands. "I am a sword. I am the apex of the sword. Sword arts advance because I exist. This is the influence that you have to reach." Noah couldn''t help but remain speechless at that announcement. Sword Saint''s sharpness had become more intense as he spoke. His aura had managed to affect Noah. He felt weaker as that speech continued. It was as if his sharpness lost intensity during the will''s expression of power. Noah couldn''t believe his senses. Having his sharpness losing power due to a similar law''s effects was an outcome that he didn''t think possible. Yet, Sword Saint, even in the form of a will, could affect all the sharpness in the world. Noah could only feel amazed seeing his influence on a world far away from his main body. "What is your law?" Sword Saint asked as his aura became even more intense. "What is the meaning of your existence? What do you want to represent once you reach the Immortal Lands?" The will''s words created waves in his mental sea. That was a representation of Noah''s mental state when hearing his speech. Sword Saint had always tried to push Noah toward the divine ranks. His techniques and teachings had to unify Noah''s existence to the point when he could evolve it. Noah understood that after the speech. His aura surged, and his sharpness retrieved its intensity when he made his mind. Laws were unique, but every heroic cultivator had to form their own once they reached the sixth rank. Many would create it only when they arrived at the solid stage, but there were exceptions. Noah had reached the liquid stage without bothering to build a law. His cultivation journey had always been relatively smooth, and his dark world had solved his latest bottleneck. Still, that speech pushed his power further forward. All the memories involving his core drive appeared in his mind. Noah saw the dragon from his childhood, the attitude test in the Royal Academy, and his dreams in the wilderness at the same time before he understood who he was. Laws were hard to explain, but Noah didn''t have any doubt when he reviewed who he was. Powerhouses would usually spend entire years secluded to decide which path to take, but Noah didn''t even hesitate when he thought about that. "I have an eternal fuel," Noah said as he raised his ethereal sword. "Nothing can suppress it, and flawed raw laws detonate when they touch it." Noah''s ethereal blade began to grow as his aura flowed inside it. Sword Saint felt sharpness, savagery, creation, and destruction coming out of Noah''s figure, but they weren''t enough to express his existence. Tension spread inside the area. Noah''s mental sphere endured the new pressure, but it seemed quite used to it. The only one who appeared to suffer from that was Sword Saint. "My ambition can''t stop," Noah said as his blade grew until it touched the limits of his mental world. "It is boundless, and it had fueled every aspect of my individuality even before I reached the heroic ranks." Sword Saint saw Noah slash in his direction and launched an attack of his own. His expert eye could identify the properties of that blow in an instant, but he didn''t feel able to copy it. "My law is ambition," Noah announced after his slash pierced the will''s attack and dispersed before reaching his figure. "I know I will reach your level. This is the reason why I can defeat you now." Chapter 1172: 1172. Cage Sword Saint was a divine will, but he had clear limits to what he could imitate. Noah''s last slash had enhanced his individuality and brought it on a level that different laws couldn''t copy. There was an ambition that Sword Saint couldn''t imitate. The powerhouses during the mission had remained speechless when they sensed Noah''s drive. His main feeling had a boundlessness that they couldn''t even begin to imagine. Noah couldn''t think of any other path capable of containing the entirety of his existence. He had poured his ambition into his last slash, and the result had left him amazed. The slash had surpassed Noah''s limits. It had touched on a level of power that Noah didn''t reach yet. It was as if he had pushed his prowess according to what his ambition could imagine. That wasn''t theoretically possible. Every cultivator had a limit to how much they could express. They could deploy their existence, but that was it. Yet, Noah had endless fuel. His ambition was intense enough to cast his abilities in their best form. His slash was already pure, but his main drive made it as strong as a law. Sword Saint lowered his head before lifting his long eyebrows to stare at Noah. He had finally broken through the limits that bound the heroic ranks. Noah had expressed his law. "Can you do it again?" Sword Saint asked, and Noah didn''t hesitate to summon the feelings that had filled him when he launched his previous attack. His ambition surged again and flowed into his slash while carrying every aspect of his existence. A pure meaning became part of his attack and made it surpass its average level of power as it flew toward the will. Sword Saint inspected his opponent''s attack thoroughly at that time. Noah couldn''t sense it, but time slowed down in the will''s eyes as the slash flew toward him. Every detail of the attack became clear to Sword Saint, but he knew that he couldn''t replicate it. Blades didn''t matter anymore. Noah was finally pushing his individuality on a level that even Heaven and Earth couldn''t imitate. He still launched a slash, but his attack lost against Noah''s blow again. There was nothing more that the will could do at that point. Noah didn''t understand that yet, but he had completed his training. "You did it," Sword Saint said. "You took your first step to become a law. This is your path now. Don''t let doubts and uncertainties taint it." Noah showed a confused expression at that announcement, but he remained silent. Every word spoken by the will was an enlightening line that he didn''t dare to miss. "The law of ambition!" Sword Saint shouted as his figure became fainter. "So intense that even cultivation levels give in to its power. You know that you can win on an even field, so your law makes you stronger than you are. Truly wonderful." "Most cultivators have to give up on that feeling to advance," Sword Saint continued, "But you made it your core drive. Your path won''t be easy, but you have decided now. Advance as much as you can. I want you to find me and unleash your best slash as a form of greeting." Noah finally understood what was happening, and part of him felt some regret. He didn''t want his training with Sword Saint to end, but he knew that he had reached the last of those sessions. "My existence strives for perfection," Sword Saint explained. "I want to find the slash able to express every slash, even those still unknown. I desire to become the embodiment of the sword itself, and my goal is to expand its limits." Sword Saint''s sharpness reached a level that Noah struggled to contain. His mind felt like exploding, but he didn''t dare to miss those last teachings. "Your law focuses only on yourself," Sword Saint said. "You are aware of your power, but you want more. Your ambition will give you what you desire, but I don''t know where it will lead you. I know it will have the shape of a sword, but I can''t even imagine what it will carry." "Reach the Immortal Lands and show me your progress," Sword Saint concluded as his figure was almost about to disappear. "Show me an ambition that can force me to advance." The will''s desires were selfish. He wanted Noah to express his individuality because he needed to advance on the sword path. Noah didn''t care about those promises, but he wanted to fulfill them for his reasons. He wanted to meet Sword Saint in the Immortal Lands and show him that his ambition could contain everything. "Don''t mention my name when you go up there," Sword saint said as his figure vanished to become thoughts in Noah''s mental sea. "I have the habit of challenging everyone for an exchange of attacks. I''ve made too many enemies across the years." Noah nodded as he watched Sword Saint vanishing inside his mental sea. Noah was alone inside his mind now, but his Companions and living weapon kept him company. The insides of his mental sphere became ethereal too. Noah woke up in the outside world, but the emotions that he had felt during the last training session still echoed in his mind. Noah knew what he had done and what he needed to do. He felt the need to cultivate to improve his current level, but he wanted to exploit those moments as much as he could. However, Sword Saint''s aura quickly disappeared as Noah reviewed his teachings. All the Elders and hybrids that were slowly learning about the various sword arts found themselves unable to establish contact with the divine will. The training area lost its value after its divine resource had completed its training. Cracks spread on the Divine Cut''s edges after Sword Saint''s will vanished, and the whole world suffered because of that. Those with some talent with sword arts found their connection with Sword Saint cut off, and Noah was the culprit behind those events. He had shown the will that he could take the following steps on his own, and the world adapted because of his breakthrough. Noah had ruined the Divine Cut as a training area, but he had obtained Sword Saint''s teachings in the meantime. The world returned to its usual peace after a while. The Divine Cut''s disappearance still burned inside the Council''s mind, and the Shandal Empire didn''t need to object to its treatment after learning about that. A limited resource had disappeared forever, but Noah appeared stronger than before. That sight could only benefit those waiting for the battle against King Elbas. They would be the first to die during normal times, but Noah''s battle didn''t involve the only cultivators. King Elbas had almost breached the entirety of the Hive the last time, so Noah had to make sure that everything was perfect. The formations relying on Instabilities were ready. The troops had their living weapons, so Noah had only one last thing to do. After Sword Saint disappeared from the Divine Cut, Noah flew toward the southeastern coast and neared the Ape God''s cage that was about to open. Chapter 1173: 1173. Return Noah''s improvements weren''t substantial when it came to his cultivation level. Yet, those who saw him knew that there was something different with him. While Noah flew through the new continent, those watching him understood that the disappearance of the divine aura from the Cut had something to do with him. It wasn''t only the fact that the divine aura had disappeared after he left that region. Noah appeared different. His figure had become hard to make out even with the help of inscribed structures. Noah reached King Elbas'' palace in the region on the southeastern coast''s corner and walked directly toward the underground area. He found Thirty-seven waiting for him together with the Ape God that showed an eager expression. "I hope you will honor your promises," The Ape God said before Noah nodded at the automaton. Thirty-seven pressed on the ground, and the barriers around the room opened. The Ape God could move the golden sphere that contained it outside of its prison, and part of its aura began to leak in the area. "I can break this barrier on my own," The Ape God said while touching the golden light around it, "But you need to remove the curse under my skin. The golden human has placed chains that bind my muscles." Thirty-seven''s eyes lit up at those words, and he began to inspect the creature with a newfound interest. It seemed quite captivated by the thought of analyzing formations capable of suppressing a quasi-rank 7 beast. The Ape God unleashed more of its aura and focused as much pressure as it could around Noah. "What stops me from killing you now?" The Ape God asked. Noah let the pressure fall on him before his sharpness surged. His aura appeared boundless in the creature''s eyes, but its power wasn''t enough to fend off the Ape God''s mental waves. Still, Noah didn''t show any fear. His aloof expression didn''t reveal any interest in the Ape God. "Do it," Noah said as his expression broke into a mocking smile. "Kill me. Actually, leave me alive enough to see what King Elbas does to your species. I want to die laughing." The Ape God sensed the complete lack of fear coming from Noah''s figure and dispersed its mental waves. It didn''t like that outcome, but it knew that Noah would be in complete control of its actions now. Thirty-seven wanted to follow the Ape God, but Noah''s stern gaze forced the automaton to return to his duties. He had to bind the creature to an oath, and there were countless defenses to review. The Ape God left toward the region inhabited by the colony of Kesier Apes. Noah had made sure that they had their territory, so he felt confident that the quasi-rank 7 beast wouldn''t complain about its new accommodations. Thirty-seven quickly chased after the beast, and Noah slowly walked outside of King Elbas'' palace. The luxurious corridors and the paradisiac scenery that appeared in his vision after leaving the palace couldn''t disrupt his concentration. His entire being had only one goal. Noah wanted to survive the incoming assault and reach the Immortal Lands. Sword Saint had made him understand his law, and Noah wanted to improve it now. His power had just begun to show the effects of his true meaning, but he could already see how amazing it was. Noah''s ambition could force his attacks to express a superior power. They didn''t depend only on his cultivation level anymore. His law could make them become the best version of themselves. It was a simple matter of fuel. Noah''s cultivation level was lacking compared to existences at the peak of the heroic ranks, but his ambition was so intense that his blows could surpass their natural limits. June''s individuality was similar. Her centers of power could produce unlimited energy as long as she kept on fighting and her body didn''t crumble in the process. Noah was the same, with the only difference that his unlimited potential involved his abilities. He already had endless fuel, so he only needed skills that could make use of it and experience with his law. His power couldn''t reach the solid stage even when he relied on his immature law, but he could come close to that level. His ambition was too undeveloped to make him jump ranks, but that was its main purpose. As someone who had always lived in a world filled with old monsters, Noah had finally obtained the power to match them. The only problem was that he had yet to develop it properly. Years of peace went by. The organizations continued to pile on one defensive formation after another even after more than thirty years had passed from Noah''s celebration. King Elbas didn''t show his presence anymore. No cracks appeared in the sky, and the Elders in charge of inspecting both continents didn''t see anything unusual. Noah didn''t let that peace affect his mental state. Discovering his law had enhanced his worse habits, and it had taken him a while to suppress them again. Having such an intense ambition fueling all his functions made him desire more power immediately. He had to become used to breaks again, and his patience with the inscription methods took a while to return. Still, he had learnt to control himself in those years. The intensity of his law kept him worried even after he returned to his normal state, but he knew that he couldn''t do anything about that. He had only taken one step toward creating a law, but he had to go through a long period of seclusion to adapt already. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine how long it would take to adjust to his ambition once his existence improved. The years of peace passed quietly until a change happened in the sky and alerted the three leading organizations'' assets. Noah was the first to learn about that event thanks to his instincts, but the other higher-ups soon received warnings that informed them about that event. A large number of troops rose in the sky from the three organizations. They directly took teleportation matrices or flew to reach the western borders of the Hive''s domain. Those areas would be the first target if King Elbas decided to attack the Hive. The western coast had become the most protected area in the new continent. The sky trembled, and long black lines fell from random spots before vanishing into thin air. They didn''t seem part of formations. Noah guessed that they were King Elbas'' attempts to break through the barriers among the worlds. The fabric of the sky eventually fell apart as those attacks continued. The various lines that had appeared fused and created a long fissure that was as thick as a man''s arm. The fissure expanded until cracks appeared in the sky and a portal formed among the air. Pure darkness was visible from the other side of the line, but a golden figure soon came out of it. The world held its breath when it saw King Elbas coming out of the sky. Tension built among them, but the Royal seemed to have other plans. It didn''t show any hatred in his expression. His face revealed only the curiosity that had always filled him. The organizations prepared all their defenses, and countless cultivators settled inside the separate dimension. Many of them had entered only because Flying Demon''s strategy saw them launching spells while going up and down from the doors filling the coast. Chapter 1174: 1174. Bridge The whole world moved as soon as King Elbas reappeared. The Council, the Hive, and the Shandal Empire had prepared for that event, so every asset knew their role. Cultivators from the three organizations entered the separate dimension and waited for Flying Demon to give them orders. The Hive had disclosed one of its most useful and secretive assets to the world to face King Elbas. The hybrids moved too. They followed Skully as they took place in different spots of the separate dimension. The world appeared empty after everyone was in position. Shining lines flickered on the surface of the various regions, but King Elbas didn''t seem interested in them. He glanced at the ground for only a second before he resumed to inspect the sky around him. The Royal appeared lost in his curiosity, but the organizations'' leaders didn''t dare to underestimate him. They knew that his interest could become a fatal flaw in certain situations, but they weren''t willing to strike first. King Elbas eventually focused on the new continent again. His eyes went on a neutral building where Noah, Great Elder Diana, and God''s Left Hand had teleported to handle the battlefield. Those leaders were in the same danger. They had no reason to act separately. King Elbas smiled as he kept on staring at that building. His hand rose and gestured to those inside the structure to join him. Noah, Great Elder Diana, and God''s Left Hand exchanged a glance before the three of them exited the building to fly toward King Elbas. They didn''t know what the Royal wanted, but he wasn''t the type to use tricks in battle. The trio reached the Royals'' leader, but they remained at some distance from him. They trusted him, but they wouldn''t risk their lives only to accommodate the whims of their enemy. "Careful as always," King Elbas commented, but he didn''t appear angered by that behavior. Instead, he seemed glad that the trio had behaved in that way. "I''m the strongest cultivator in the world," King Elbas announced when he saw that the three powerhouses didn''t say anything. "I deserve the largest piece of these Mortal Lands." "Humans rarely get what they deserve," Noah replied before the Matriarchs could intervene. "Your family taught me that." His words didn''t seem to affect King Elbas since he continued to smile. Still, he focused on Noah, and a comment came out of his mouth. "You have become stronger again," King Elbas said. "Even I pale in front of your impressive growth. It''s a pity that you live in the same era as me. You would have been unbeatable otherwise." King Elbas tried to taunt Noah, but he limited himself to show his usual smile. The Matriarchs'' gazes moved between the two powerhouses as that exchange of words unfolded, and they both felt outsiders in that discussion. Noah and King Elbas appeared to have a peculiar understanding with the other. They said certain words only for them to carry a completely different meaning. The Matriarchs didn''t know if they were probing each other or complimenting themselves. King Elbas'' comment had been honest. He noticed Noah''s new aura, and his curiosity spiked when he realized that he couldn''t understand it with a glance. Noah''s ambition wasn''t as simple as it sounded. King Elbas had seen it during the journey at the center of the plane, but he didn''t comprehend it there either. That was the reason why King Elbas accepted Noah as a true genius. He respected Noah even if he felt superior in far too many aspects of the cultivation journey. "Why don''t you give up on everything and focus on your ascension?" Noah asked after he and King Elbas had exchanged smiles for a while. "You have proven your power to the world already. Not even the barriers among dimensions can stop you. Go, plan your journey to the divine ranks. Leave these regions to us." "Are you suggesting that I let you go?" King Elbas asked in a surprised tone. He didn''t expect Noah to propose something like that. "You know that we will fight as long as energy fills our centers of power," Noah replied as he shrugged his shoulders. "We can''t know who will win, but we are both aware that the world will become nothing more than a wasteland if we fight." "I know who will win," King Elbas said as his smile widened. "No one will win," Noah continued. "Both sides will lose the world." Noah''s words made sense. King Elbas'' last assault on the new continent had destroyed the snowy plain and had turned it into a charred region. It took the Royal''s expertise in multiple inscription fields to restore the ground to its previous state. King Elbas had improved since his last assault, but the other organizations had done the same. They would also fight together at that time, so the new continent would see more power unleashed on its surface. The three organizations'' experts had already estimated the damages that the new continent would suffer in a full-on battle against King Elbas. At least half of the new continent would burn. The organizations would try their best to restrict that destruction to the still-recovering central areas, but they knew that two coasts would become wastelands in the process. Noah and the Matriarchs were willing to make the trade if that led to King Elbas'' defeat. However, they would rather find a peaceful solution. It would be perfect if they could even maintain control over their domains. King Elbas didn''t even consider Noah''s offer. He continued to smile as slow words came out of his mouth. "Let''s lose the world then." King Elbas wasn''t the type to place traps or trick his opponents, but Noah wasn''t like him. He was a demon, and he would resort to any method to defeat his opponent. The Royal''s last line announced the beginning of the battle, so Noah didn''t hesitate to act. Dark matter came out of his chest, and the dark world unfolded in less than an instant. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana revealed surprised expressions at Noah''s sudden gesture. They didn''t plan to attack King Elbas directly, so they didn''t understand Noah''s plan. Yet, a heavy pressure soon filled the entirety of the dark world. Noah''s ambition spread through the dark matter, and that gas became even denser than it already was. "I have already seen this technique," King Elbas announced as the dark matter suppressed his individuality. "It''s more polished than before, and I can sense some true meaning. However, it''s still the attack of a liquid stage powerhouse." Golden flames came out of King Elbas'' figure, and part of the dark world burned under their power. The Royal appeared as a sun capable of shining even in the deepest darkness. Noah wasn''t so delusional to think that the dark world alone could work against King Elbas. His real offensive was far more silent. Noah slashed with his fingers, and portals opened at the edges of the golden flames'' area. Dark matter, black lines, and corrosive smoke came out of them, but those attacks burned as soon as they touched the fire. Snore''s head appeared too. It launched a series of elemental attacks that barely crossed a few hundred meters inside the sea of flame before disappearing. It seemed that Noah''s sudden attack had failed, but his trump card had yet to make its appearance. The Demonic Sword rose above his head, and Noah wielded it as dark matter flowed inside its form. A massive slash came out of the weapon when it descended, and the attack crashed on the sea of flames surrounding King Elbas. Even that attack burned after a few seconds, but Noah''s massive slash had managed to create a bridge of darkness through the golden flames. A shadow flew through it and disappeared before reaching King Elbas. Chapter 1175: 1175. Fires King Elbas had studied the Night-blade Pterodactyls, but he couldn''t predict Night''s power. The creature was a former divine magical beast that had kept many of its instincts after it escaped its prison. Moreover, its new body enhanced its innate abilities, and the Royal Metal inside it made Night even more threatening. Noah''s ambition affected Night''s prowess too. The Pterodactyl felt its entire being brimming with power as Noah''s law covered it. Even if the effect of Noah''s law lasted only an instant, Night felt as if it had become one step closer to its previous level. One instant was all the Pterodactyl needed. It transformed as soon as it came out of the trail of dark matter created by Noah''s slash, and it dived right through King Elbas'' defenses. The Royal immediately sensed the threat, and a second wave of flames came out of his figure. Yet, when he studied his body, King Elbas noticed that a small cut had appeared on his cheek. "This one is tough," Night conveyed through its mental connection with Noah. Its shadow had come out of King Elbas'' body as soon as it sensed the new flames coming, and it had returned inside the dark world by cutting through the fiery sea around his figure. Part of its body had suffered some damage, but the dark world quickly poured dark matter inside it. Night wouldn''t return to its peak immediately, but its recovery wouldn''t take long. Night sensed Noah''s intentions and returned by his side. The surprise attack had failed, so the leaders could only rely on their previous strategy now. "Let''s retreat!" Noah conveyed through the inscribed notebooks that the leaders had prepared before the battle. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana didn''t like how Noah''s words resembled an order, and they were still pissed that he didn''t warn them about the surprise attack beforehand. However, they didn''t say anything and flew toward the surface where a large formation opened a path for the secret dimension. King Elbas barely had any time to react. Not even ten seconds had passed between Night''s attack and the leaders'' retreat. They retreated in the separate dimension without giving their opponent any opportunity. The entire southeastern coast lit up as countless doors connected to the separate dimension activated. Multiple platoons made of cultivators and hybrids appeared on the surface and launched attacks toward King Elbas before the inscriptions teleported them away. King Elbas waved his hand, and his flames burned every attack flying at him. Thousands of spells had converged toward him, but even their joint power wasn''t enough to make him flinch. It couldn''t be helped. The platoons only had rank 4 and 5 assets. Even if they could launch an offensive capable of making entire regions crumble, they couldn''t do anything against King Elbas. "You have united a world against me," King Elbas said as he watched the formations shining again. "You have my most sincere gratitude." The platoons came out of the teleportation matrices and launched another wave of spells before disappearing from the surface. They couldn''t touch King Elbas even with their second offensive, but their task was a success every time the Royal made use of his golden flames. Noah, God''s Left Hand, and Great Elder Diana knew that beating King Elbas in a frontal clash was impossible. Yet, the Royal had to burn himself to create his golden flames, so they could hope of tiring him out. "You made the world the last stepping stone before my ascension," King Elbas announced as he spread his arms. "I can''t ask for a better last enemy in the Mortal Lands." Everyone inside the separate dimension could hear his words. The organizations had deployed many sensors through the sky and ground before the battle to keep track of King Elbas'' condition. His words made God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana''s expressions turn ugly, but they didn''t lose their battle intent. On the other hand, Noah continued to show his cold smile as he watched the images of the fight happening in the outside world. Noah didn''t care about King Elbas'' arrogance. He didn''t mind if the Royal ascended before him as long as he left the world. Still, Noah wasn''t willing to suffer a massive defeat in the hope that the event could push King Elbas into the divine ranks. He would use every trap that he had prepared. King Elbas continued to unleash golden flames to stop the rhythmical offensive of the weaker assets. The platoons would appear from different formations, launch their spells, and disappear right after. There wasn''t a proper strategy to stop that type of offensive. Yet, they couldn''t do anything against King Elbas. They were nothing more than flies for King Elbas'' defense. "Keep attacking," Noah conveyed through the inscribed notebook connected with the army. "Keep the sky golden." The Matriarchs couldn''t hold back their voice anymore when they saw him ordering the troops around without even consulting them. God''s Left Hand didn''t have any friendly relationship with the Hive, so she was the first to give voice to complaints. "Who put you in charge?" God''s Left Hand said. "You aren''t the leader of this army. Stop behaving like that." "Have I ever given an order that you didn''t agree with?" Noah asked without moving his eyes away from the screens that depicted King Elbas. "You attacked without consulting us," Great Elder Diana stepped in that discussion to express her opinion. "That wasn''t an order," Noah replied. "Also, I''ve left a mark on his face. That should slow down his improvements for a while." Every powerhouse in the world knew that King Elbas'' individuality grew together with his achievements. The fact that a liquid stage expert had wounded him was a blow to his arrogance. Of course, Noah''s actions would be useless if the world didn''t manage to defend against the attack. Nothing would be able to stop King Elbas anymore at that point. King Elbas began to descend while arrays of spells continued to converge in his position. That offensive didn''t slow him down, and the Royal had all the time to prepare his counterattack. Flames condensed in his palms to take the shape of long spears. King Elbas let them fall toward the ground as he descended, and long trails of golden flames followed them. "Full retreat!" Noah shouted through the inscribed notebook, and all the platoons returned inside the separate dimension to avoid the incoming attack. In their place, an army of magical beasts appeared on the surface and took care of their task. The organizations didn''t dare to slow down their offensive for even an instant. King Elbas had to be under constant pressure, and he couldn''t take breaks to fix the injuries caused by his higher energy. The main goal of the defenders was to exhaust him. Giving him some time to recover would only make that threat unbeatable. "You did it again!" God''s Left Hand complained. "I''m faster," Noah replied without showing any slyness in his expression. "And I''m the leader of the strongest organization in these Mortal Lands. Most defenses come from the Hive, so I don''t see anyone more suitable to be the shot caller in this room." The trio was in an isolated part of the separate dimension. Almost everyone had access to screens that played the images in the sky, but only the leaders had so many inscribed items around them. Various objects meant to evaluate the current power of a cultivator and analyze their existence surrounded the leaders. That was a proper control room. "Warn us if you are about to do something reckless again," Great Elder Diana said to put an end to that discussion. She didn''t mind that Noah had decided to call the shots, but she didn''t like when he deviated from their main strategy. She could have helped during the surprise attack if she knew that Noah wanted to execute that strategy. The spears landed on two different regions while the army of beasts created through the Copying Technique continued its assault. Massive fires unfolded on those territories as King Elbas'' attacks touched the ground. Chapter 1176: 1176. Turn King Elbas'' might was unstoppable. The sea of flames protected him from every attack, and his spells had the power to set fire to entire regions. That was the prowess of a cultivator at the peak of the heroic ranks. King Elbas deserved his title of "strongest in the world". Noah didn''t let fear fill his mind at that sight. Every cultivator had limits, and King Elbas wasn''t an exception. The only problem was how much the world would lose to exhaust that threat. King Elbas landed on the ground while the sea of flames still surrounded his figure. The Copying Technique had never stopped creating armies of magical beasts, and attacks of various nature had continued to converge in his position. As long as they forced King Elbas to defend, Noah didn''t mind spending an insane number of resources to keep the Copying Technique active. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana seemed to have accepted Noah''s leadership after their brief discussion. They didn''t complain about his behavior anymore, but he had to admit that there was truth in their words. Great Elder Diana was right. She could have helped during Noah''s sudden attack, and the same went for the other Matriarch. Noah wasn''t fighting alone, but his mind kept on making him believe otherwise. His ambition was too intense to let him consider others whenever he made a decision. "Activate the traps," Noah whispered at his inscribed notebook, and the Matriarchs nodded. There was nothing else that they could do in that situation. King Elbas had just landed on the ground when an earthquake filled the entire region. Cracks spread on the terrain before a detonation reduced the whole territory to a broken mess. Countless explosions resounded in the area as the Instabilities hidden under the surface activated and engulfed King Elbas in their destructive might. A storm of saber-shaped runes came out of the vast gray cloud that had covered the entire region. The whole area had fallen into chaos, but the golden light of King Elbas'' flames never flickered even during that mess. Noah had hidden hundreds of Instabilities in the sixth rank in that region, but their detonation didn''t seem to affect King Elbas in the slightest. The Copying Technique stopped to create magical beasts to make room for the platoons. The cultivators and hybrids started teleporting outside of the separate dimension again to launch attacks. The new array of attacks dispersed the gray cloud and revealed King Elbas still protected by his golden flames. A storm of saber-shaped runes infuriated around him, but nothing seemed able to pierce his defenses. The platoons'' attacks suffered from the same fate. They burned as soon as they touched the golden flames. Nothing appeared able to stop King Elbas, but Noah was fine with that. He was willing to sacrifice regions to make his opponent waste more energy. He had prepared other countermeasures in the sixth rank, but he wanted to deploy them only after the Royal showed signs of exhaustion. King Elbas started to walk through the land. His goal was unclear, but the defenders didn''t care about it. They only wanted to kill their target. They didn''t care about the damages that the world would suffer during the battle. They had an escape route settled, so they could push all their efforts into stopping King Elbas. A series of dark lines began to shine after the Royal had walked for a few kilometers. A dense aura fell on his figure and tried to restrain his movements. Yet, the sea of flames around him blocked most of the negative effects after a few seconds. King Elbas had promptly modified their structure so that they could stop that new trap. King Elbas'' flames became denser under the pressure''s effects, but they couldn''t move as freely as before. His overall defense had improved, but Noah and the others had already predicted a similar outcome. "Start with the counters," Noah ordered, and the platoon replaced some of their members to make room for new cultivators and hybrids. Noah, Elder Julia, and Skully had prepared battle formations for every occasion, and the current situation required spells that had excellent piercing properties. King Elbas'' flames had become denser in exchange for maneuverability. That opened the path for specific types of attacks, and Noah knew that far too well. A torrent of lightning bolts, massive ice-arrows, and spears flew toward King Elbas, who was still trying to understand how to destroy the formations generating that pressure. Burning everything didn''t always work, and King Elbas still had his curiosity to suppress. The expert didn''t mind spending a few rounds of attacks studying the dark lines. Noah had shown Thirty-seven part of the Death Area spell to create that defense. The pressure generated by the dark lines was only a consequence of the power blocked by the flames. Their real effects would typically weaken the bodies of any cultivator until they collapsed. Yet, the flames protected King Elbas from the dark lines'' most dangerous effects, making them almost useless. King Elbas continued to advance as countless attacks kept on converging toward him. The formations couldn''t stop him, and all the other traps containing Instabilities barely managed to slow him down. "Should we deploy the heavy weapons?" God''s Left Hand asked, but Noah shook his head. It was too early. King Elbas didn''t show any sign of exhaustion even after more than forty arrays of spells had fallen on him. He had also ignored the Instabilities and formations, so he was still too strong for the other rank 6 defenses. "What are you waiting for?" Great Elder Diana asked. "Three regions have already become nothing more than fiery debris. Why should we lose more?" "If we attack now," Noah said, "He will fend off our rank 6 assets with a wave of his hand. There is only us after those defenses, and we all know that we don''t stand a chance." "Most of those regions belong to the Hive," Great Elder Diana said. "Let them burn," Noah replied. Great Elder Diana had shown some concern for him and his organization, but Noah didn''t want that. Regions and territories could heal, but the Hive wouldn''t keep the world if King Elbas were to take it over. Noah had decided to sacrifice the lands even before he saw how strong King Elbas had become. He didn''t care about the regions in the slightest. The Copying Technique and the platoons launched a long and incessant offensive that forced King Elbas to keep his flames active. Still, the Royal continued to march toward the opposite coast without showing any struggle in his expression. Regions took fire, exploded, or crumbled during the exchanges and the activation of the defenses. The Hive''s expenses and losses were already immense, but the other organizations weren''t better off. King Elbas would deviate at times. He would start walking through the territories of the Council before returning to the Hive''s domain. It was as if he was enjoying that situation. There was an entire world attacking him, but he could walk around freely, without ever being in deadly danger. Noah and the Matriarchs had continued to stare at the screens, and hope eventually appeared in their vision. It was subtle, but the three of them saw a sudden change in King Elbas'' skin tone. He seemed paler than before, and a comparison with a previous picture confirmed that. The defenses were working. King Elbas was finally showing some flaws. Noah glanced at the two powerhouses at that point, and they nodded to accept his strategy. They had understood each other immediately after they noticed King Elbas'' limit. "It''s your turn," Noah said through an inscribed notebook, and King Elbas stopped his tracks when he saw a tall Ape walking toward him. Chapter 1177: 1177. Technique "I must have damaged your mind the last time," King Elbas said as his smile widened at the sight of the Ape God. "Your memories must be off. I have already defeated you." The Ape God stopped at some distance from the Royal. The creature didn''t dare to enter the range of his flames. The world around them was a charred mess covered in cracks and holes. The continuous exchanges between King Elbas and the defenses had destroyed every region where he had walked. King Elbas'' might was clear to anyone who had witnessed the battle, but the Ape God showed no fear when it faced him. Many humans couldn''t see the emotions radiated by its expression, but Noah could see its determination. The Ape wasn''t fighting for itself, and it didn''t care about the organizations in the slightest. Its determination came from its desire to provide a future to its species. The history of the Kesier species had plenty of atrocities and death, but the Ape God now had a chance to end that trend. With the Hive as its backing, its species could flourish away from the cruelties that had always accompanied it. "Magical beasts aren''t inferior to humans in terms of willpower," The Ape God announced as the world kept its eyes on the creature. "We are more focused, stronger, and purer. Heaven and Earth have placed restrictions on our kinds, but we strive for the same sky as everyone else." The beast conveyed those words so that the entire world could hear them. Many couldn''t understand the reasons behind that gesture, but Noah could sense the more profound meaning that the speech carried. The Ape God was ready to die to keep its side of the deal, but it wanted to make sure that the human world knew about its vision. After losing so much, the creature only wanted the acknowledgment of its hated enemies. It wanted to express its belief to the human world. Magical beasts weren''t inferior. They were unlucky to have only one center of power. "Your words are nothing more than empty complaints," King Elbas commented after the Ape finished its speech. "The world doesn''t care about you. Don''t use your species to justify your weakness." "It''s easy to say this when you are a human," The Ape God replied. King Elbas chuckled when he heard that answer. His aura surged as he shook his head. The flames surrounding his body became violent as his mental waves filled the region. "Easy?!" King Elbas shouted as his flames raged on the destroyed region. "You refused to ascend! You didn''t dare to prioritize your interests over your species! You have chosen to wallow in your hatred rather than stepping into the divine path!" King Elbas appeared angry. The words of the Ape God had triggered some painful memories of his past, leading to his outburst. The leaders couldn''t help but feel happy about that reaction. They liked seeing King Elbas wasting more of his power. Still, that sight made them a bit pensive. King Elbas'' history was mysterious. Nobody truly knew how such a mighty expert had managed to reach the sixth rank under the previous Royal family''s attentive eyes. They guessed that he had to sacrifice a lot before reaching his current status. He wouldn''t be so angry about the Ape God''s words otherwise. The Ape God''s eyes widened when it saw the violent tongues of flames stretching in its direction. Its consciousness expanded, and an invisible force clashed with them to stop the advance of the raging fire. However, King Elbas'' higher energy was far denser than those mental waves. The Ape God''s innate ability didn''t appear able to suppress the golden flames. The Ape God had to shoot in the air to avoid the incoming attack. A torrent of golden light exploded in its previous position and expanded to create a fiery sea. Flames rose from the sea to fly toward the escaping beast, but the Ape God decided to become serious at that point. King Elbas had restored part of the creature''s power after he captured it. The Ape God was now a proper quasi-rank 7 magical beast with no drawbacks when using its abilities. Its power didn''t depend on its remaining divine aura anymore. The Ape God had completed the heroic ranks again and was now half-step into the divine realm. Its attacks couldn''t reach its previous peaks, but the Ape didn''t have to worry about depleting its energy anymore. In terms of sheer battle prowess, the beast was far stronger than before. The Ape''s consciousness became denser, and the air around its figure started to tremble as the invisible force invaded the environment. The golden flames flying in its direction slowed down as they entered the area under the creature''s control. Golden specks came out of the flames and dispersed into the air. The Ape God used its consciousness to destroy King Elbas'' higher energy and open a path where it could counterattack. The destruction spread. The trails of golden flames dispersed due to the invisible force, and the same eventually happened to the sea of fire on the ground. King Elbas smiled, and the flames around him condensed in his palm as he aimed his open hand toward the creature flying above him. Yet, the separate dimension'' lights suddenly shone, and a series of platoons appeared to launch their offensive. The troops hidden inside the separate dimension didn''t waste that precious chance. King Elbas had lowered his defenses to focus on the Ape, but that battle wasn''t a one versus one. A wave of spells flew toward King Elbas and forced him to deploy even more golden flames. His defenses returned and fended off the attacks, but the Ape God exploited that moment of distraction to destroy the energy accumulated in his palm. The invisible force tried to wrap itself around King Elbas'' hand after it made the higher energy vanish, but the Royal''s aura surged, and a torrent of raging flames engulfed his figure. The flames surged toward the sky and broke its fabric, creating large areas connected to the void. It was as if King Elbas was an erupting volcano, and nothing around him survived his might. The platoons retreated inside the separate dimension even if the flames were far away. That enemy was too strong for them, so they prioritized their safety to remain useful in the battle. The Ape God didn''t even try to destroy those flames. The invisible force pushed it outside of their range, and it condensed mental waves as it waited for King Elbas'' figure to become visible again. "I know what your plan is," King Elbas'' voice came out of the torrent of flames. "You think that you can exhaust me if you sacrifice enough territories." The raging flames shrunk as his words echoed in the environment. They became denser as they condensed around King Elbas to give birth to pieces of equipment. Once the shrinking process ended, King Elbas wore a fiery golden robe and wielded a long spear that radiated an oppressing aura. A blinding crown shone on his head, and the air around his figure bent under his pressure. ''Dammit,'' Noah thought at that sight. He was the first to realize what had happened. One of King Elbas'' weaknesses was his lack of techniques that made use of his higher energy, but it seemed that the Royal had fixed that issue during his banishment. *** Note: read the author''s thoughts. Chapter 1178: 1178. Struggle King Elbas had used his higher energy in a technique. His flames weren''t only violent surges of energy anymore. They had taken an orderly form, and the sheer power they radiated brought the air to its structural limits. His figure was blinding, and his power was unfathomable. King Elbas appeared unbeatable already when the golden flames surrounded him, but now he seemed even stronger than before! God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana glanced at Noah after witnessing that event. He was more knowledgeable about the higher energy, so they hoped he could evaluate King Elbas'' new power. However, Noah had no words for them. The robe, spear, and crown surpassed what his mind could study. Their level was too close to the divine ranks for him to understand their power. ''This might be too much,'' Noah thought as he stared at the screens transmitting the battle on the surface. Beating King Elbas had never been an easy feat. Even with all the forces of the world working together, Noah didn''t feel sure that they could stop him. That feeling had become more intense after the Royal unleashed his technique. Except for his stamina, King Elbas didn''t seem to have any weakness. That was an existence close to the divine ranks. King Elbas appeared to be at the very peak of the heroic path. His strength set the limit that a cultivator could reach while remaining a powerhouse. He would still be inferior to the Ape God if he used normal "Breath". Yet, his higher energy pushed his power in the same realm of the creature, where he could use the humans'' superiority to his advantage. King Elbas pointed his spear toward the Ape God, and the sole movement of the weapon created a wave of flame that shot from the line traced by its tip. It was as if the Royal had launched a slash. That casual movement was enough to create an attack that many experts would find it hard to block. The Ape God felt a dangerous sensation filling its mind, but it didn''t stay in one spot to evaluate the threat. The invisible force surrounded its body and made it shoot far away. King Elbas titled its spear to keep its tip pointed at the beast. Those slow movements created more golden slashes, and the whole weapon began to vibrate after it locked its target. The Royal bent before throwing the spear at the escaping magical beast. Golden light came out of the weapon and engulfed the entire region with its halo, making it impossible to see his attack''s effects. A cry eventually echoed among the blinding light. The world returned to its usual color only to show that the Ape God had lost its right arm and that most of its fur had burned in those short seconds. King Elbas still wielded the spear. It wasn''t clear if he had thrown it at all or if his previous movement had projected the weapon toward his target. Yet, the power that it could unleash was terrific. Noah and the others didn''t manage to analyze the attack with the investigative methods that filled the new continent. King Elbas'' power was too intense for those sensors to study it. The leaders couldn''t rely on their senses either since the screens had gone crazy when the golden light had filled the region. They didn''t manage to transmit most of the technique. The Ape God roared in pain, but its invisible force moved to close the injury. Blood stopped flowing from the wound, but the creature didn''t appear relieved about that fact. Its eyes went on King Elbas, who was still showing his broad smile. His skin tone had paled a bit after that attack, but he seemed to be nowhere near his limit. Noah and the others could see that too. King Elbas had just unleashed an attack capable of destroying a quasi-rank 7 beast''s limb, but he didn''t suffer any evident repercussion. There was only one explanation for that outcome. That was King Elbas'' base power, and that shocking attack was something that he could launch repeatedly. Noah didn''t believe that King Elbas could unleash so much power without suffering any repercussions. Strong techniques had drawbacks, especially if they could cross the limits of the ranks. Yet, even if the drawbacks existed, King Elbas managed to hide them well. After all, the defenders could only use his skin tone to keep track of his exhaustion. The Ape God was even more surprised than the leaders. It had fought against King Elbas when it was weakened and among the sea of magma, so the Royal''s growth astonished it to no end. King Elbas was only a newly advanced solid stage powerhouse when he reached the Ape God, but now he stood at the very peak of the heroic ranks. The raw laws alone couldn''t explain that extraordinary growth. King Elbas'' individuality must have been ready to advance for a while already! God''s Left Hand''s determination was the first to waver. She couldn''t see a path toward victory when their opponent was that monster. The Ape God was on the same level as the winged beasts'' leader. Shandal had to intervene the last time to defeat the creature, but King Elbas appeared able to handle those types of threats on his own now. He could accomplish what Shandal had done while remaining a powerhouse. King Elbas had already surpassed what God''s Left Hand considered as beatable. "Maybe we should-," God''s Left hand began to speak, but Noah''s sharp consciousness suddenly filled the room and interrupted her line. Both Noah and Great Elder Diana had understood God''s Left Hand''s intentions from the changes in her expression, and he had decided to act before his ally. "We will continue our offensive," Noah said. "You might be used to kneeling toward stronger beings, but I prefer to do everything in my power to prevent that outcome before even considering it." "Don''t compare King Elbas with the Almighty," God''s Left Hand replied as her consciousness expanded and fought Noah''s mental waves back. "I didn''t," Noah answered without moving his eyes from the screens. "A heroic cultivator has limits that divine entities can ignore. King Elbas isn''t an exception. We only need to find them." "And how do you suggest to do it?" Great Elder Diana asked. "I''m with you, Defying Demon, but we need to decide how to deal with his technique." Noah inspected the three fiery items with the Divine Deduction technique before deactivating the ability and sighing. Nothing came to his mind. Even his mental skill couldn''t lead him to a plan capable of stopping King Elbas. "We don''t deal with it," Noah eventually said. "Let him burn everything." "You want to condemn our world!" God''s Left Hand complained, but Noah and the other Matriarch ignored her. The alliance''s leaders had a different relationship, and they could force God''s Left Hand to agree with everything they said. The Shandal Empire was too weak to have a say on matters that concerned the world''s future. "Are you willing to sacrifice the new continent to have a chance of stopping him?" Great Elder Diana asked. "I''m willing to sacrifice much more than that," Noah replied as his cold smile vanished. His eyes went on the Matriarch''s, and the two exchanged a long stare. Great Elder Diana could only sigh and nod. The situation had changed after King Elbas revealed his technique. The organizations had initially fought to obtain a better future, but now they needed to struggle to prevent the worst possible outcome. Chapter 1179: 1179. Ashes Fighting for a better future and struggling to prevent the worst were quite different mindsets, but Noah and the others didn''t get to choose in that situation. King Elbas was too strong. Nothing they did slowed down his offensive, so they could only keep throwing attacks and traps at him. They would have to deal with the damages after they managed to win. "Slow down the pace," Noah conveyed through his inscribed notebook after he reached a silent agreement with Great Elder Diana. "Stay alive. This will last a while." Noah''s simple orders were enough to change the strategy of the army. The Ape God retreated even faster than before, and the Copying Technique activated to facilitate its escape. An army of magical beasts appeared at some distance from King Elbas and charged toward him while launching countless attacks. That would typically force the Royal to unleash his sea of flames, but the attacks burned before they could even reach his figure. The pressure radiated by the golden crown was too intense for those weak abilities. The copied beasts then tried to use their bodies to stop him, but they suffered from the same fate of their innate abilities. Their figures turned into ashes due to the passive effects of King Elbas'' technique. Nothing seemed able to come near him. The heat and pressure radiated by the three fiery items were too intense for anything under the sixth rank. Elder Julia was in charge of the Copying Technique, and she also had a screen that allowed her to keep track of the battle. Seeing that King Elbas'' technique had made him untouchable forced her to deploy the strongest beasts trapped under the forest of White Woods. Ravaging Demon, the White Ape, and the Flying Snake appeared near King Elbas, and multiple copies filled the area. Elder Julia didn''t need Noah''s approval to resort to that display of power. She had understood that the situation was far more tragic than they had predicted. King Elbas stopped tracking the Ape God to stare at his new opponents. There were more than twenty rank 6 existences around him, but none of them was able to cause the slightest amount of fear in his mind. They were nothing but puppets meant to slow him down and make him deplete energy. "I will play your game," King Elbas announced. "I will destroy everything and everyone you throw at me. Numbers can make up for the difference of power at times, but I will show you that this doesn''t apply to me." King Elbas waved his spear after he finished speaking, and long trails of golden flames shot out of the line that he drew with the weapon''s tip. The rank 6 beings'' copies tried to dodge the flames, but their figures ended up engulfed in that raging sea. They didn''t even manage to resist for a second under their power. Elder Julia quickly summoned new copies, but another wave of flames engulfed them before they could even fully form. King Elbas only needed to pass them when he moved his spear. The golden flames coming out of the trajectory traced with the weapon did the rest. Those exchanges repeated themselves a few times before King Elbas had enough room to point at the place where the Ape God had disappeared. The golden halo filled the entire region again, and a fuming pit replaced the teleportation matrix used by the beast. King Elbas knew that he was fighting in the enemy territory. The defenders had a clear advantage since they didn''t mind the condition of the new continent. Still, King Elbas could easily take care of the teleportation matrices and doors connected with the separate dimension. He only needed to take his time destroying all of them. Elder Julia never stopped summoning the three rank 6 guardians. The Council and the Shandal Empire had redirected resources toward the Copying Technique before the battle, but its expenses already surpassed their wildest imagination. King Elbas attacked the ground only when he managed to take care of the rank 6 copies fast enough. His strategy was slow, but the Royal inevitably cleared a large area from its inscriptions. Then, he began to move toward the next region. He never flew, but he managed to cross entire kilometers with a casual sprint. The traps placed beforehand activated whenever he reached a designated spot. Instabilities unleashed a storm of saber-shaped runes in the sky, and other peculiar inscribed items showed their power to stop King Elbas. The Royal could ignore the saber-shaped runes, but some of the traps released a strange liquid that managed to suppress part of his flames for an instant. That was one of Thirty-seven''s creations. It was an azure liquid that tried to imitate King Elbas'' flames to counter them. Of course, the liquid couldn''t do much, but King Elbas had to deplete a bit more energy to restore his items to their peak, so the leaders considered that a win. However, nothing truly managed to stop King Elbas, and Noah had to deploy the Ape God again to slow down the destruction unleashed by the Royal. The platoons'' attacks made of hybrids and cultivators barely managed to get near King Elbas'' figure, and the Copying Technique was too ineffective for the energy that it depleted. The defenders needed more time, and Noah wasn''t willing to deploy the powerhouses just yet. The death of only one of them would start a chain reaction that would end with their defeat. The Ape God reappeared in the distance and unleashed a series of raging winds toward King Elbas. The Royal didn''t hesitate to point his spear at the creature, and the golden halo covered the region again. When the light dispersed, a large fuming hole had replaced the beast''s teleportation matrix, and the Ape God was in a different area, ready to launch another attack. Those types of exchanges continued for a while. The creature now knew how fast King Elbas'' attacks were, so it could act according to that timing. Noah did the same since he ordered the platoons to attack whenever he found the right chance. King Elbas'' offensive had finally slowed down once the Ape God had stepped forward. The quasi-rank 7 creature kept the Royal busy for entire hours before he suddenly changed approach. The rank 6 copies appeared around King Elbas once again, and he began to move his spear toward them as usual. The Ape God used that chance to launch its violent invisible force, but the Royal stopped his movement and redirected the weapon at the creature. The copies charged at King Elbas, but the crown radiated a heatwave that turned their bodies into ashes. Then, the golden halo filled the entire region again. The golden light remained in place for a few seconds at that time, and a peculiar scene appeared in the experts'' vision once it dispersed. King Elbas had left his previous position and was now in front of the Ape. His hand was around the creature''s neck, and he floated at a few meters above the ground, enough to lift the beast from the terrain. The Ape God had lost all its limbs. Both its legs and remaining arm had disappeared while the golden halo filled the region, and its expression was empty. There wasn''t even pain on it. "I guess this is your strongest asset," King Elbas said as he glanced at the Ape God one last time before golden flames covered its figure. In a few seconds, the tall body of the quasi-rank 7 creature became nothing more than ashes. Chapter 1180: 1180. Openings The world couldn''t believe what it was witnessing. A quasi-rank 7 magical beast, the strongest creature on that plane, had died under King Elbas'' unstoppable offensive. Desperation spread among the defending troops. They had done their best and deployed every asset in their arsenal, but they had barely managed to put a dent in King Elbas'' technique. The Royal didn''t suffer any injury since Noah''s surprise attack. A whole world''s efforts didn''t appear to be enough to stop that mighty being''s assault. "I wonder what Defying Demon wants to do now," God''s Left Hand said. She tried to mock Noah with her tone, but her voice carried helplessness that she didn''t manage to hide. God''s Left Hand wasn''t a coward. Her initial suggestion came from a cynical analysis of their situation. King Elbas was too strong. Nothing the organizations did had brought any result. Their struggles to fight the Royal had only led to the destruction of a large chunk of the new continent. There wasn''t enough land for all the cultivators in the world anymore. Noah''s decision to press forward had worsened the already bad issue related to the overcrowded regions. "It must be easy to live without being worried about your safety," Noah commented without looking at the Matriarch. "You spent your cultivation journey under the divine aura of your Patriarch, and you even shaped your character to suit your leader." God''s Left Hand wanted to reply, but Noah''s intense aura filled the room again and forced her to remain silent. The sharpness that he radiated was too threatening for her. "Tell me," Noah continued as he turned toward God''s Left Hand, "Have you ever been in danger? Did you ever fear for your life with Shandal watching over your back the whole time?" God''s Left Hand remained speechless for a second, but she eventually stuttered an answer. "W-what are you even asking? Every cultivator who has reached this stage has faced death many times! I was with you inside the separate reality!" "You were there indeed," Noah said as a sigh escaped his mouth. "Why are you so afraid then?" "I''m not afraid!" God''s Left Hand shouted. "We can''t win this fight. Sealing a deal with King Elbas is the only way to ensure a future for our organizations." "A future as slaves," Great Elder Diana commented. She partially agreed with God''s Left Hand''s vision, but she would do anything to avoid that outcome. Both Matriarchs turned toward Noah at that point, and he remained silent as he inspected the screens in the room. The Copying Technique and the platoons had resumed their assault, but King Elbas directly ignored them to focus on destroying the formations. Without the Ape God limiting his movements, King Elbas eradicated formations from entire regions in a matter of minutes. He appeared even stronger than before. "I fell in Twilboia Cliff when I still didn''t have a dantian," Noah said at some point. "The valley at its bottom was a rank 5 danger zone that nobles ignored due to its dangerousness. I fell there after my father sent me on a suicide mission. I guess he didn''t like that I survived." Noah appeared pensive as memories filled his vision. He still recalled those events. Even he found it hard to believe that he had survived a direct meeting with the rank 5 Albino Snake. "What''s the point of this speech?" God''s Left Hand asked. "Do you want to compare your struggles with mine? Fine, you had a worse life, but this doesn''t help us." Noah recalled the helplessness felt in front of the rank 5 magical beast when he still didn''t have a dantian. He remembered the condition of the weaker snakes in its pack, and he couldn''t help but shake his head at those memories. That was true desperation. That was real helplessness. When Noah compared his current situation to that of the weaker snakes in the past, he didn''t feel doomed. "I''ve sneaked past a rank 5 magical beast when I still lacked a dantian," Noah said as he waved his hand at the screens to turn them off. "Our enemy is only a stage above us, and we have the best assets of the world on our side. I didn''t give up back then. I surely won''t right now." Noah began to walk toward the room''s exit, but God''s Left Hand questioned him before he could leave. "Where are you going?" Noah turned and shrugged his shoulders before answering her. "I''m going to fight King Elbas. I''m not the type to manage a war from outside the battlefield anyway." "That''s suicidal!" God''s Left Hand complained. "The Ape God didn''t manage to defeat him. What makes you think that you will make any difference?" "I''ve defeated the Ape God before King Elbas," Noah replied. "I wasn''t even in the sixth rank back then." Then, he left, and the light of a teleportation matrix soon shone on the Matriarchs'' faces. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana exchanged a glance, but the Matriarch of the Council soon chose to follow Noah. "You too?" God''s Left Hand asked. She couldn''t believe that those leaders were so reckless. "For someone who has an unshakable faith in her leader," Great Elder Diana said without stopping, "You surely have no respect for the experts around you. Remember that you are alive because a cultivator weaker than you has sacrificed his life to banish King Elbas." Great Elder Diana left, and the light of the teleportation matrix soon shone on God''s Left Hand''s face. The Matriarch remained alone in the dark room inside the separate dimension. God''s Left Hand cursed inside her head as she tried to turn the screens on again, but she eventually punched the table filled with inscriptions when she saw that they didn''t answer her commands. The separate dimension didn''t belong to the Shandal Empire. The Hive had opened its doors to the other organizations, but Noah remained the only one capable of controlling its functions. Before she could even realize it, the Shandal Empire had become connected to the Hive. Its fate depended on Noah''s benevolence. Nothing could stop him if he decided to kick all of them outside of the separate dimension. Even if God''s Left Hand didn''t want to admit it, Noah had become her superior. He held the keys to the only place capable of protecting them from King Elbas, and he would share it only with those who followed him. God''s Left Hand eventually left the room and activated the teleportation matrix that the other leaders had used. She found herself in a large area inside the separate dimension after the light vanished, and the other powerhouses were there with her. True Speed, Elder Regina, Elder Laura, and the other powerhouses of the Hive were all there. Only Elder Julia was missing since she was busy managing the Copying Technique. Faith and Daniel were in the hall too, but God''s Left Hand ignored why peak rank 5 cultivators would join that meeting. The cultivators'' eyes were on Noah, who inspected them with a cold gaze. An icy-blue light came out of his irises as the Divine Deduction technique pushed his mental faculties to their limits. The black hole in his chest rotated at full speed and pushed his mind toward its peak. Noah couldn''t think faster than that even if he relied on specific drugs. "King Elbas might appear in perfect condition," Noah began to speak after God''s Left Hand arrived, "But that''s only an act. I don''t know where his limit is, but it should be quite close. We can create two opportunities. Unleash everything you have during those openings." Chapter 1181: 1181. Trap Noah didn''t reveal the specifics behind his plan. The Elders of the alliance could guess what those two opportunities were. Faith and Daniel''s presence was enough to explain that. The two of them still had the divine items from Shandal''s separate dimension. They could stop King Elbas'' offensive, giving the powerhouses enough time for a counterattack. Of course, Noah didn''t dream that the powerhouses'' joint offensive could pierce the defenses of King Elbas'' technique. Yet, that would make him deplete more higher energy, bringing him closer to exhaustion. That was the last strategy that Noah could think of. Everything else had already failed. He would order a full retreat if that plan didn''t lead to anything either. Daniel and Faith couldn''t step into the battlefield. They were only peak rank 5 cultivators. The simple shockwaves released during the fight among powerhouses would kill them. However, the new continent was the Hive''s home. Flying Demon had built countless doors on the surface so that the weaker troops could make use of their spells without risking their lives. Faith and Daniel could do the same, even if their role were far more dangerous. They needed to appear on the battlefield right before King Elbas'' attacks landed on the powerhouses. Noah didn''t make any motivational speech. Those in the hall knew their roles. They only had to join the fight now. There was no need for sentimental speeches either. The powerhouses had already gone through those in the separate reality, so there was nothing left to say. The group waited inside the hall for days. A large screen showed them images of the battlefield, and different emotions appeared on their expressions as they watched King Elbas'' destruction. The Royal burned every formation that he found. His aura scorched the regions and transformed them into fuming wastelands. Almost all the central regions became nothing more than destroyed lands as that trend continued. The eastern coast suffered from the same fate before King Elbas set his eyes on the southern coast. Noah moved at that point, and the others followed right after him. They walked toward a teleportation matrix that led to the territory east of the lava lake. The group of powerhouses teleported on the surface and moved their gazes toward the battlefield. King Elbas was still destroying every inscription that he found while the Copying Technique and platoons assaulted him. The arrival of Noah''s group on the surface claimed the Royal''s attention, and he stopped his precise destruction to focus on them. His smile shone together with his technique at the sight of his enemies. "You finally decided to appear," King Elbas said, and his words echoed through the new continent as they reached for the group. "It seems that your defenses don''t have anything left." King Elbas flew through the regions at high speed while the weaker cultivators, hybrids, and rank 6 copies assaulted him. Their attacks barely managed to pierce his scorching aura, and a slight movement of his spear was enough to take care of the abilities that came close to him. Noah and the others didn''t move. They were aware of King Elbas'' character, so they knew that he would come toward them without deactivating his technique. The Royal was proving that he could triumph over that challenge. The group of powerhouses was nothing more than a stepping stone in his eyes. The powerhouses showed ugly expressions at the sight of King Elbas'' confident face. They liked that he didn''t deactivate his technique, but their determination began to falter when they saw that the Royal didn''t show any sign of exhaustion. His skin had continued to become paler as the battle continued, but he still radiated the same power as before. Killing the Ape God had even increased the intensity of his aura. Traps activated as King Elbas continued to fly. Storms of saber-shaped runes and tides of toxic liquids fell on his figure, but his robe and crown burned everything. Nothing could touch him. Noah deployed his dark world when King Elbas was about to reach him. Snore appeared behind his figure, the Demonic Sword flew in his palm, and Night came out of the space-ring to fuse with the darkness. The powerhouses let the dark matter engulf them as they wielded their weapons. The scene resembled the battle inside the separate reality, but the sides'' power difference was far different now. King Elbas had never been stronger. Instead, Noah and the others lacked Chasing Demon and his divine titan. The powerhouses'' joint power wasn''t enough to replace the divine item, but they had to try anyway. They still had a few cards to play, so they weren''t ready to give up on the new continent just yet. King Elbas barged inside the dark cloud without any hesitation. The dark matter tried to suppress his fiery technique, but the intensity of his individuality blocked it. The dark matter burned as King Elbas flew toward the center of the dark world. Noah''s higher energy couldn''t withstand the scorching pressure released by the Royal. Noah kept his cold eyes on his target. He was the only one capable of pinpointing King Elbas'' exact position inside the dark world, so it was his role to start the offensive. A golden halo eventually seeped out of the dark matter right in front of the group. King Elbas was about to reach them, so Noah gave the signal that the other powerhouses were waiting for. Noah raised the Demonic Sword above his head, and dark matter flowed inside its shape before he slashed forward. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon worked together to create a storm that followed Noah''s slash. They had already tested that technique on the Royal, so they didn''t mind deploying it again. Great Elder Diana and True Speed launched lightning bolts enhanced with their abilities. The Matriarch had her black lenses, and the half-hybrid of the Empire had his legs pushed to their limits. God''s Left Hand unleashed a series of hurricanes, and Elder Regina created an army of beast-like puppets that flew through the dark matter to converge in King Elbas'' position. Elder Laura shot a series of arrows that transformed into massive azure dragons. Elder Julia wasn''t on the scene, but she supported the group by deploying many copies of the rank 6 guardians inside the dark world. The powerhouses of the world had launched their best attacks. That offensive would be able to fend off most threats in any lower plane, but their opponent was the strongest monster in the world. Blinding golden light filled their vision before their attacks could land on King Elbas. A dangerous sensation surged inside the powerhouses'' minds, and countless disposable items came out of their space-rings as they tried to stop what was about to land on them. Noah knew what was about to arrive. His dark world sent every piece of information inside his mind, so he could see King Elbas bending forward to launch his spear. ''He is aiming at me,'' Noah thought as a smirk appeared on his face. The mighty King Elbas wanted to take care of Noah first. It seemed that even the resourceful Royal was worried that Noah could have other troublesome strategies. King Elbas was right, but he didn''t imagine that Noah had already activated his first strategy. The Royal launched his spear, but a pure white light suddenly shone under him and engulfed his figure. The attack vanished, and part of the fiery items fell apart under that divine light. King Elbas quickly tried to summon more golden flames, but the powerhouses'' offensive landed on him before he could activate his technique again. Chapter 1182: 1182. Injuries A loud explosion resounded inside the dark world, but nothing came out of the black cloud. The group of cultivators didn''t wait to see the outcome of their attacks. They directly launched more spells and techniques where their first blows had exploded. Daniel had appeared on the battlefield for less than an instant. He had activated his divine item and left through the same teleportation matrix before he could even see the effects of his actions. The battlefield was too dangerous for him. He would have died if he was still inside the dark world during the detonation of the powerhouses'' attacks. Noah and the others launched another wave of attacks, but they didn''t stop there. They continued to fill the dark world with their strongest techniques to exploit the window created by Daniel''s divine item. A golden halo suddenly seeped through the dense dark matter and illuminated the entire cloud. Noah''s higher energy burned as King Elbas unleashed his flames again. The darkness of Noah''s world dispersed as tongues of golden flames raged inside the black cloud. King Elbas burned every trace of higher energy around him and revealed himself to the defending group. A few cuts had appeared on King Elbas'' face. Long wounds filled his arms and torso, and a trail of blood flowed from his left foot. Daniel''s divine item had taken him by surprise. King Elbas knew that the Hive had some other cards to play, but he didn''t expect something able to destroy his technique! The white light had sensed the dangerousness of King Elbas'' robe and crown. Part of its power went to destroy them, leaving the Royal almost defenseless for an instant. Most of the item''s power had gone on the spear and the attack it was about to release. If it wasn''t for that, King Elbas might have ended up n.a.k.e.d after the white light swept him. Still, King Elbas would have never let Daniel''s divine item hit him if he wasn''t about to launch an attack. The rank 5 expert had to catch him by surprise to obtain decent results. The golden flames surrounding King Elbas condensed and took the shape of his robe, crown, and spear again. However, a violent fire continued to burn around his figure even after he completed the technique. It seemed that King Elbas didn''t want to risk getting hurt anymore. He had decided to use all the aspects of his higher energy, even if that consumed more fuel. Noah kept his eyes fixed on King Elbas. His reptilian eyes could see his opponent''s complexion becoming paler under the golden halo radiated by the flames. More blood flowed out of the Royal''s injuries too. It was clear that King Elbas was pushing himself to deploy that level of power, but Noah couldn''t understand how far his limits were. Without clear indicators, Noah could only hope that the Royal would become exhausted soon. "Don''t stop attacking," Noah said as roars mixed with his human voice. The powerhouses had stopped their offensive when King Elbas had revealed himself to them, but Noah wanted the Royal to endure as many attacks as he could. King Elbas'' smile didn''t fade when the attacks landed on him. His expression had frozen for a second, but he soon found his arrogance again when he saw that he could block the offensive easily. Yet, his aura appeared far tenser now. It seemed that the group had angered him with the last trap. The powerhouses resumed their offensive, and lights shone on the surface of the new continent. Platoons made of cultivators and hybrids appeared and launched their spells toward the dark world before returning inside the separate dimension. The dark matter inside the cloud created channels where the platoon''s offensive could fly. Noah''s ambition enhanced their power, and his dark world made them converge in King Elbas'' position. The Royals'' leader watched as the attacks landed on the flames surrounding his figure and burned into nothingness. Even the powerhouses'' offensive couldn''t do anything against his higher energy. King Elbas appeared unbeatable in his new form. Attacks carrying rank 6 power couldn''t even go past his peripheral layer of flames, and he still had his crown and robe as defenses. "It''s over," King Elbas said as he tilted his spear to point at Noah. The weapon sent waves of flames as it moved inside the dark world, and it stopped when it pointed at Noah. King Elbas bent again to prepare his attack, but he didn''t see that another rank 5 cultivator had entered inside the cloud. Noah could use the dark world to hide cultivators and suppress their auras. King Elbas didn''t notice that Faith had teleported in the cloud to join the battle. Right before King Elbas could launch his attack, Faith threw her bracelet inside the dark world, and Noah controlled the dark matter so that the item would arrive between the group and the Royal. King Elbas suspected something. After all, Noah and the other powerhouses were still there, and their power wasn''t enough to stop him. The Royal knew that the best moment to deploy traps was when he was about to attack. Yet, he didn''t sense anything around him. The group of powerhouses continued to attack King Elbas, who remained in his bent position. The golden flames around him took care of their offensive as he inspected the area around him. King Elbas didn''t want Noah to trick him again, but he soon understood that he didn''t have a choice in the matter. He could only attack and see what the outcome was. The Royal tested the traps'' efficiency first. His flames spread to cover a larger area of the dark world, and surges of power came out of his figure at random moments. He had yet to attack, but he pretended that he was about to launch his technique. King Elbas wanted to see if he could trigger the trap without actually wasting the acc.u.mulated energy. Nothing activated, and the powerhouses continued to launch their attacks as if nothing strange was happening. They didn''t react to King Elbas'' peculiar behavior at all. King Elbas still felt that something was off, but he eventually gave up trying to understand his opponents'' plans. He decided to destroy everything with his superior power. The Royal launched his attack, and a golden halo filled the dark world. The spear created a trail of flames as it flew toward the powerhouses. Noah felt the incoming danger. His senses screamed in fear as the attack flew toward him at a speed that he could barely understand. However, he was calm since he knew that the divine bracelet was in the spear''s trajectory. King Elbas'' smile froze when the spear stopped mid-air. It had destroyed dark matter along its way, but something had managed to block its momentum. The dark matter around Faith''s bracelet burned and revealed the item, which activated at that point. The world suddenly slowed down, and even King Elbas suffered from those effects. Noah and the others knew about the effects of Faith''s bracelet. The item could enhance the wielder''s consciousness or expand to give birth to a peculiar shield. King Elbas felt slow, and the flames around his figure didn''t flicker with the same intensity as before. Still, he knew that time was flowing at a normal pace for him. His spear had activated a divine item that had surrounded him and his flames in a spherical area that rendered harmless any form of energy inside it. King Elbas'' techniques were too powerful, so the item didn''t manage to block them completely. The bracelet didn''t have any wielder. There was a limit to how much of the divine realm it could express. Yet, that suppression was enough to give Noah''s group another chance, who didn''t hesitate to launch everything they had toward King Elbas. Chapter 1183: 1183. Offensive The powerhouses poured everything into their offensive. Their attacks took the acc.u.mulation of their life experiences and threw it at King Elbas. The divine bracelet kept the Royal stuck inside that harmless world. King Elbas found himself unable to launch attacks while that aura surrounded him. However, the bracelet didn''t affect the powerhouses'' attacks. They seeped inside that peculiar area and crashed on the restrained flames. Countless explosions resounded inside the dark world. Noah and the others didn''t limit themselves to launch only one wave of attacks. They pressed on for as long as the divine bracelet lasted. They had to make sure that King Elbas didn''t survive. That was their last chance to win the battle, and they didn''t dare to waste it. The golden halo radiated by King Elbas dimmed as the attacks continued to land on his defenses. The powerhouses submerged him with everything they had. The divine bracelet depleted its power after half an hour. Noah''s group never stopped attacking during that period, and they didn''t slow down even after the peculiar aura vanished. Noah retrieved the bracelet as he kept on slashing toward King Elbas'' position. The disturbances inside the dark world were too intense, so even he didn''t know if their offensive was working. Still, he continued to press on. "Are you done?!" An angry voice eventually resounded from the spot where the powerhouses'' offensive had converged. A golden halo seeped out of the array of spells and dark matter, and tongues of flames shot outward to burn everything converging in that area. The flames continued to spread until half of the dark world burned into nothingness. The golden halo that they radiated soon dimmed after the fire stopped expanding, and the powerhouses could see King Elbas again at that point. The Royals'' leader''s condition was poor. His technique didn''t cover his body anymore, and severe wounds filled him. King Elbas was still in one piece, but a large chunk of the skin on his torso had disappeared. Noah and the others could stare directly at his churning muscles and bleeding organs. His face was a mess too. King Elbas'' cheeks had caved in, and most of his silver hair had disappeared. Part of the skin on his almost bald head had also vanished, and his skull was visible to everyone. Blood flowed out from large wounds on his limbs. King Elbas had lost his clothes during the assault, so the group could see the gravity of the injuries that filled his body. If their opponent were any other powerhouse, Noah and the others would consider that outcome as a victory. Yet, King Elbas was too threatening even in that condition, so they decided to pressed on with their offensive. King Elbas'' body was the fuel of his flames. With his tissues in that condition, his higher energy wouldn''t have enough materials to burn. The golden flames endured the new wave of attacks for a while, but King Elbas eventually spat a few mouthfuls of blood before bending to cough. His fire started to retreat at that point. His higher energy began to lose power, and the techniques landing on it managed to destabilize its structure. The mighty flames had begun to lose ground against the powerhouses'' offensive. King Elbas wasn''t untouchable anymore! Hope spread among the group of powerhouses. That was their moment. The efforts of an entire world had finally managed to bring King Elbas to his limits! Smiles appeared on the powerhouses'' stern expressions. They could feel their victory nearing. Sacrificing almost all of the new continent had led to that once in a lifetime chance. Only Noah didn''t let his emotions take control of him. Coldness came out of his figure and flowed inside his slashes. His mind couldn''t think of anything but to kill that fearsome opponent. King Elbas stopped coughing and straightened himself before his eyes went on the tight array of attacks that was pushing back his flames. Part of the light radiated by his golden eyes dimmed, and a tired expression appeared on his face. For the first time since the beginning of the battle, King Elbas considered the possibility that he could lose. Part of him justified the event since his opponent was an entire world, but there was a thought inside his mind that became more intense as his defenses continued to fall. King Elbas had always been arrogant, but that feeling had many miraculous achievements as its foundation. The Royal had never been delusional. His same life was proof that he truly was the best. However, he acknowledged that there were other beings as exceptional as him. King Elbas was the best inscription master in the world, but he wasn''t the first to carry that title. The world was full of monsters, and every new generation brought young talents into the cultivation journey. The sixth rank was the peak of a lower plane, but it was a crowded spot. King Elbas'' eyes went past the attacks that besieged his flames to search for a cultivator among the group of powerhouses. His mind stopped thinking about unnecessary things when he saw cold vertical pupils staring at him without radiating any superfluous emotions. Noah''s focus on him was pure. It didn''t carry any hatred or ambition. He didn''t let anything that could affect his prowess occupy his mind. That was pure dedication toward his goal, and King Elbas didn''t fail to notice it. His eyes widened as Noah''s devotion made him remember something that he had forgotten during his path toward the peak of the heroic ranks. "Cultivators must be ready to sacrifice themselves to reach their goals," King Elbas shouted as his flames fell apart. "I have been so focused on being the best in this plane that I''ve forgotten a simple lesson." King Elbas'' words echoed through the dark world even if the attacks'' explosions tried to suppress them. The other sounds didn''t affect them in the slightest. Noah felt a chill running down his spine when those words reached his ears, but he didn''t let them affect his attacks. There was only one thought in his mind. He had to finish King Elbas to put an end to that crisis. "This is only one of many planes," King Elbas said as a sigh escaped his mouth. Blood continued to flow out of his injuries as his defenses crumbled. The attacks had almost destroyed all the flames around him, but the Royal didn''t show any fear. "I''ve been too arrogant," King Elbas continued. "I thought that being the best here meant that I had nothing else to learn from a lower plane. I was wrong." After that line, King Elbas'' flames stopped losing their ground. The powerhouses still attacked with the same intensity as before, but the fire didn''t crumble anymore. "A worm can teach a dragon how to crawl," King Elbas said, "And an old monster can remember a core aspect of the cultivation journey from the youngest of the demons." Noah attacked with even more fury as fear filled his mind. His black hole continued to push him beyond his limits, and his slashing speed increased as the black world resonated with his worries. "Thank you, Noah Balvan," King Elbas said as he lifted his left arm. "Thank you for reminding me what it means to sacrifice everything to reach your goal." King Elbas'' arm suddenly took fire, and those flames left his torso to fuse with the golden sea around him. The powerhouses'' attacks began to burn, and tongues of flames followed the trails of energy they released until they reached the group. The experts had to cut their connection with their techniques to prevent the fire from landing on them. The golden flames around King Elbas began to burn with even more intensity than before. The power they radiated was so intense that the dark matter in the area burned at the simple contact with their aura. The dark world dispersed, and only a small dark cloud continued to cover the group of powerhouses. The rest of the sky belonged to King Elbas'' flames. *** Note: read the author''s thoughts. Chapter 1184: 1184. Existing ''We lost,'' Noah thought when he saw that King Elbas had managed to overcome his limits. The Royal''s decisiveness in sacrificing his left arm to generate even stronger flames made the last of Noah''s plans fail. He didn''t have any other strategy now. "Go," Noah said as he lowered the Demonic Sword. "The dark world will cover your retreat. Fall back into the separate dimension." The powerhouses had stopped attacking after the flames threatened to reach them, but they weren''t ready to give up on the battle yet. However, Noah''s orders made them realize how hopeless that situation was. Even the resourceful Noah had given up on that battle. If he had decided that there was nothing left to do, then they had no chance of coming up with something that could help them win. The Demons began to retreat, and the other powerhouses followed their example. They descended through the dark matter behind Noah to reach the closest entrance to the separate dimension. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon stopped their tracks when they saw that Noah wasn''t following them. Their worried gazes went on him, but Noah reassured them with a few words. "I''m not sacrificing myself," Noah said. "I only need to try something before leaving." "Don''t die," Flying Demon said as he and his lover continued to descend. King Elbas smiled when he saw the powerhouses leaving the battlefield. Flames gathered on his palm to take the shape of his fiery spear, and he titled it to aim the weapon at his enemies. Flames came out of the spear''s tip as it moved in the sky. The fire''s intensity had increased so much that large pieces of the sky fell apart wherever the Royal''s higher energy flew. King Elbas wouldn''t let go of the powerhouses so easily. He had gained something meaningful out of that battle, but he wasn''t the type to spare his enemies after they had done everything they could to kill him. There was only one way to end that battle. King Elbas had to kill those who had opposed him and claim the entire world as his domain. King Elbas'' spear stopped moving when it pointed at God''s Left Hand. The Matriarch of the Shandal Empire was the closest to the ground, so the Royal wanted to target her first. Yet, King Elbas stopped acc.u.mulating energy for his attack since he saw Noah stepping forward and pointing his sword at him. "Are you following Chasing Demon''s footsteps?" King Elbas asked when he saw Noah''s actions. Noah didn''t answer. He kept his eyes on King Elbas and let the aura that Royal radiated engulf his figure. Fear filled his mind, but Noah didn''t suppress it. His black hole showed its true potential when his life was in danger, so he didn''t want to waste that chance for quick empowerment. King Elbas felt surprised, but he didn''t let that feeling stop his actions. He didn''t want the other powerhouses to escape, so he pointed the spear at the lower part of the remaining dark world. A blinding golden light started to fill the environment. King Elbas radiated the halo that usually preceded his terrifying attack, and Noah''s instincts couldn''t help but scream in fear at that sight. Noah could feel his black hole rotating faster as death began to loom around his figure. He knew that he would die if he took that attack head-on. The Divine Deduction technique activated on its own as the danger radiated by King Elbas increased. Everything inside Noah told him to escape, but he forced himself to remain still in front of the retreating powerhouses. The dark world hid the powerhouses as they continued to retreat, but Noah didn''t do that on purpose. His mind could only focus on his fear, giving birth to an intense desire to remain alive. Noah was relying on his survival instincts to force a breakthrough in his battle prowess! Time flowed differently in Noah''s eyes. Barely a couple of instants had passed in the outside world, but Noah felt as if he had been in that dangerous position for entire days. The more power King Elbas acc.u.mulated, the more danger he felt. That caused his mind to work even faster, and the faint trace of enlightenments eventually came out of his messy thoughts. Noah saw Sword Saint again. He immediately recognized those images since they came from important memories of his training with the divine will. Sword Saint performed his lunge and slash before focusing on performing his final attack. The third technique had kicked Noah out of the mental training area back then, but his mind replayed those images now. Noah could finally see Sword Saint''s peak technique again, and his mind managed to understand part of the theory behind it. He even felt enlightened on an important aspect of the sword path, but his Divine Deduction technique deactivated at that point. Noah reopened his eyes only to see that King Elbas'' halo was still spreading in the environment. Not even a second had passed since he had starting recalling his training, and his mind felt sore after that effort. Yet, he felt now able to test another attack, and he already had a target for that. Noah placed the Demonic Sword in front of his head and let the memories of Sword Saint''s final attack fill his mind. King Elbas'' halo reached the dark world at that point, and part of the dark matter burned under the scorching aura radiated by the light. Ambition flowed out of Noah''s figure and pushed his centers of power beyond their limits as he focused on replicating that mighty attack. Meanwhile, King Elbas launched his spear to destroy the lower part of the dark world. A wave of golden flames burned the entire region as it flew under Noah''s group. God''s Left Hand was about to reach the teleportation matrix when the fire burned every formation in the area. Part of the fire touched her, and her legs turned into ashes before she could even start retreating. God''s Left Hand could only suppress a cry of pain as she flew back to the upper parts of the dark world. The group turned toward King Elbas at that point. His golden halo had removed any hiding ability from the dark world, so they didn''t have a safe path toward the surface anymore. They had even lost their closest entrance, so they were at a loss of what to do. Their eyes eventually moved on Noah, but they felt surprised when they sensed the aura he released. He appeared far stronger than before. It was as if he had suddenly crossed the half-way mark of the liquid stage in those short seconds. King Elbas also noticed Noah''s changes, but he could sense that his centers of power didn''t grow. Noah''s individuality had pushed them beyond their limits, which gave him power that surpassed his cultivation level for a short time. The Royal felt amazed at Noah''s individuality, but its effects weren''t strong enough to threaten him. Still, King Elbas decided to make Noah his new priority and pointed his spear toward him. Yet, before he could prepare any attack, Noah spoke in a solemn tone. "Sharpness doesn''t need any form. It cuts by existing." Chapter 1185: 1185. Defeat King Elbas didn''t understand those words, but Noah''s aura surged after he finished his line. His sharpness became so intense that cracks opened in the fabric of the sky even if he didn''t move. Noah still wielded the Demonic Sword in front of his face, and the remaining dark world flowed inside the blade as he focused on the images of Sword Saint''s final slash. He needed everything he could muster to perform that technique. Sword Saint''s final slash wasn''t something that belonged to his path, so he used all the energy inside his centers of power to replicate it. King Elbas could vaguely guess what was happening, but he didn''t show any fear. His condition was a mess, but he had already accepted to sacrifice part of himself to win that war. The blood flowing out of his injuries burned as more flames fused with the golden sea surrounding him. Part of the new fire also merged with the spear to fuel his next attack. The group of powerhouses watched as the two monsters prepared their next offensive. Not even a second had passed since King Elbas'' last attack, but they felt as if they had remained in that state for days due to the tension acc.u.mulated on the battlefield. The outcome of that exchange would decide their fate, and it was too late for them to help Noah fending off the next attack. ''The final form of the blade has no shape,'' Noah thought as enlightenment dawned upon him. ''A slash without art. The peak of the blade is formless. It cuts because it exists.'' Noah''s aura began to tremble at those thoughts. He loosened the grasp on the Demonic Sword and placed his forehead on its surface. He wouldn''t perform a slash. He didn''t need to. King Elbas continued to smile, but his expression froze when a violent tremor spread through his body. The Royal spewed mouthfuls of blood as some vital organs threatened to collapse, and his spear broke into a chaotic mass of flames as he lost control of his technique. Noah attacked at that point. He didn''t move nor push his energies forward. He focused on the Demonic Sword and let his sharpness do the rest. King Elbas'' was struggling to stabilize his condition when he sensed the spike in Noah''s aura. Yet, he didn''t see anything coming at him, and the sea of flames around his figure remained intact even after Noah''s individuality quieted down. However, pain suddenly spread from his chest. King Elbas'' body was a mess filled with injuries, but he didn''t fail to notice that a new wound was making its way through his tissues. A small cut opened at the center of his chest. The wound became larger until it became a black line that left a diagonal mark on his whole torso! King Elbas couldn''t believe what was happening, but he promptly deployed his flames to stop the enlarging of the cut. His whole figure took fire, and the black line slowly vanished under the effect of his higher energy. When the flames dispersed, the powerhouses could see that the superficial layers of King Elbas'' skin had disappeared. A long cut divided his torso in half, and part of his internal organs became visible through it. The powerhouses could even see King Elbas'' beating heart. If Noah were slightly stronger, the Royal would have died in that short moment of weakness. ''A blade that needs no form nor slashes,'' Noah thought as a sense of weakness spread through his body. ''Truly the peak of the sword path.'' Performing Sword Saint''s final technique had exhausted him. His body still had a lot of energy due to the black hole, but Noah felt tired nonetheless. It wasn''t exhaustion that came from the condition of his centers of power. Noah felt as if his existence had become tired when he pushed his level above his actual rank. Sword Saint''s final technique wasn''t an attack that he could perform without drawbacks. Noah felt that he was about to faint, but there was still something that required his attention. King Elbas did his best to stabilize his condition. Part of the sea of flames around him flowed inside his body and covered his wounds to stop the bleeding. The Royal had decided to preserve his higher energy after entire days spent wasting it. Noah''s group had brought him to his limits, and he couldn''t risk suffering any more injuries. "You die now," King Elbas announced, but Noah acted before he could even raise his hand. Noah took a space-ring and squeezed it inside his palm before throwing it toward King Elbas. The cracks on the item spread as it flew toward the Royal, and it crumbled when it touched the scorching aura. Once the space-ring fell apart, the items contained inside it came out into the world. King Elbas saw hundreds of spiked spheres filling his vision before the sound of explosions reached his ears. Noah still had a few traps. They wouldn''t do much against King Elbas if he were at the peak of his power, but his current condition forced him to focus on stopping those Instabilities. The dark world formed around Noah again, and the group used that chance to retreat toward the nearest teleportation matrix. The storm created by the Instabilities stopped with it touched the dark matter. King Elbas did his best to burn all the saber-shaped runes as fast as he could, but the powerhouses were already on the ground by the time he took care of the items. "See you in the Immortal Lands," Noah said as the teleportation matrix under them activated. The Royal shot toward the powerhouses even if a blinding light began to engulf their figures. He threw a wave of flames on that spot, but his senses told him that he had been one instant too late. Noah appeared inside the separate dimension and found Thirty-seven waiting for his orders. The other powerhouses soon turned toward him too, but he had already decided on his next move. "Detonate everything," Noah said as he suppressed the dizziness trying to take control of his mind. "Don''t leave anything to King Elbas." Thirty-seven hated when cultivators destroyed inscriptions for their benefits, but King Elbas had burned almost all the formations on the new continent. The automaton had taken King Elbas as his life-long enemy, so he didn''t complain when Noah told him to destroy everything. King Elbas hovered above the spot where Noah and the others had disappeared. Complex calculations happened in his mind as he tried to understand how to gain access to the separate dimension. Then, the sound of explosions reached his ears. The Royal could only watch as every formation, item, or building that still had a connection with the Hive detonated and released all the "Breath" acc.u.mulated in their structure. That outcome didn''t surprise King Elbas, but he had to act now if he wanted to find his enemies. He knew that there was a formation under him, so he only had to activate it to reach Noah and the others. King Elbas'' flames came out of his figure and seeped inside the ground. A few shining lines burned due to the pressure that his higher energy radiated, but others activated under his expert control. The formation activated and began to teleport the Royal. Yet, a tremor ran through the light engulfing him, and King Elbas found himself in a room full of instabilities once the lines went dim. King Elbas immediately understood that the Hive had built traps together with the entrances of the separate dimension. Any unauthorized entry would bring the intruders in there. Large screens inside the separate dimension showed how every door, formation, and building on the surface exploded. Everything of the Hive disappeared without leaving any trace, and Great Elder Diana soon gave a similar order after witnessing that spectacle. The buildings and formations of the Council exploded too, and the Matriarch turned toward God''s Left Hand to see if she was willing to do the same. God''s Left Hand could only sigh and pick her inscribed notebook to order the Empire''s structures'' self-destruction. Noah gave a quick look at what would be his new home for a long time before he retreated in his quarters. He was in desperate need of rest after that defeat. Chapter 1186: 1186. Hidden The Hive, Council, and Shandal Empire''s assets settled inside the separate dimension after King Elbas defeated them. The Royal had fallen into a trap after Noah and the other powerhouses retreated, but the sensors on the surface confirmed that he had survived the Instabilities'' explosions. The Hive had other traps prepared for future intrusions, but King Elbas didn''t trigger any of them. The Royal had won against the whole world, but he had suffered too many injuries in the process. He needed to recover, so he couldn''t hunt down his enemies just yet. His higher energy had suppressed his injuries, but King Elbas'' condition was too poor. He couldn''t risk triggering more traps until his wounds healed. As a peak rank 6 cultivator, King Elbas would require more time to fix himself. Even his expertise in various inscription fields couldn''t help him in that situation. King Elbas had burned himself too much, and he had even obtained some enlightenments during the battle. Even if he still had enemies hidden in the separate dimension, his priority was reaching the higher plane. The Hive had become used to managing the separate dimension since Noah and the others retrieved Thirty-seven. Chasing Demon had prepared that place to be his organization''s last resort, so the Elders had an easy time adapting to their new lifestyle. The separate dimension didn''t have problems containing many experts, but that environment wasn''t ideal for their training. The issue was even worse for heroic cultivators since they required the "Breath" inside the matter to improve. The automaton and Chasing Demon had taken care of that issue long ago. They had relied on entrances that took "Breath" from the outside world and stored it inside the dimension. The Hive had destroyed all the formations that led to the separate dimension when it gave up on the surface. Yet, Thirty-seven and Flying Demon could build doors capable of seizing "Breath" from the outside world whenever the separate dimension began to show some instability. Of course, King Elbas could notice those doors if he investigated the world thoroughly, but the Royal didn''t cause any problems in the years following his victory. He didn''t even destroy the sensors that still filled the sky and the few intact spots on the surface. It was as if he had disappeared from the new continent. Noah and the others didn''t think that he had forgotten them. Their best guess was that King Elbas had secluded himself to treat his injuries and review the battle to push his power closer to the divine ranks. Divine Architect had hidden the separate dimension from Heaven and Earth since it copied their work and went against their rule, but Thirty-seven had made sure to avoid that issue. He had first set a formation that could hide the separate dimension, but he had eventually found a way to make that work without external inscriptions. Heaven and Earth wanted to destroy Divine Architect''s separate dimension because it tried to give birth to Mortal Lands and its potential was virtually limitless. However, the Hive had always used it only as a method to surprise its enemies. Its separate dimension had never attempted to cover the entire plane, and it mostly was a series of tunnels that ended up in large halls. Most assets didn''t like to remain inside the separate dimension for years, but the situation didn''t allow them to do otherwise. King Elbas was virtually unbeatable, and most of the new continent was in ruins. Even if the dimension''s insides didn''t have a great density of "Breath", they were still better than the surface for now. The three organizations maintained their separate political structure, but everyone knew that the Hive was the overlord of their new home. The Hive had given them a place safe from King Elbas, and it didn''t mind sharing it for a long time. Yet, it was the only force that knew how the dimension worked, so the Council and the Empire could only bow their heads in there. The cultivators took a while to become used to the life inside the dimension. Nothing grew on its yellowish ground, and there was only darkness surrounding them. Yet, that was better than certain death or slavery, so they accepted that new lifestyle. The Hive had stashed food able to last for centuries, and it had even created a small ecosystem that could provide a decent number of resources every year. That wasn''t enough to feed all the human cultivators in the dimension, but they had to survive with what they had. The higher-ups of the Hive had to make harsh decisions to ensure the survival of the three organizations. They rationed the food and forced restrictions on the weaker population. Human cultivators had to receive a permit to give birth. The separate dimension couldn''t feed too many mouths, so the Hive had to make sure that the population didn''t increase during their stay there. The Hive prioritized the well-being of those that showed some talent in the cultivation journey. The others received less food and resources. The Council and the Shandal Empire helped the Hive in enforcing those restrictions and rules. They even agreed to make the punishments harsher to improve their control. The situation was far from the ideal, and the higher-ups'' decisions provoked a widespread malcontent among the weaker cultivators. However, the leaders had to prioritize the survival of their forces as a whole, so they ignored those complaints. After forty years spent inside the separate dimension, many of the sensors placed in the outside world went dark. That signaled that King Elbas had resumed his offensive, but the Hive didn''t try to stop that. All the sensors eventually went dark, and the three organizations found themselves completely isolated from the outside world. King Elbas didn''t stop there. He spent the following years destroying every door that the Hive used to refill the "Breath" inside the dimension. Yet, he soon had to give up on that task. Flying Demon and the automaton could create new doors in a matter of hours. They could build many of them simultaneously and in opposite positions, so King Elbas never managed to destroy all of them. The Royal tried to make his way inside the separate dimension from time to time. Yet, he always found rooms full of Instabilities waiting for him whenever he managed to get near the actual dimension. He couldn''t possibly know that, but he was against an automaton created by Divine Architect. His incredible expertise had found a worthy opponent. The attacks quieted down on the sixtieth year of life inside the separate dimension, but the three organizations didn''t dare to peek at the outside world even after King Elbas went utterly silent. The leaders couldn''t let a faint hope make them waste the years endured inside the dimension. They would start considering going out only after they obtained proof that King Elbas had left the plane. King Elbas began to attack again after ten years of silence, but his offensive only lasted a few months at that time. His efforts only led him to find a series of traps anyway, so the Royal grew bored of that process quite soon. The Royal attacked again ten years later, but his efforts lasted even less at that time. He went completely silent after only a week of attempts to break inside the separate dimension. King Elbas followed that trend for a while. He attacked the separate dimension once every ten years until he eventually remained silent for more than half a century. However, the leaders remained set on remaining hidden, and more years passed. Chapter 1187: 1187. New life The life inside the separate dimension wasn''t easy, but many adapted faster than others. The human cultivators had it easier than most. They had to deal with their lack of freedom, but they didn''t have a hard time training. After all, they only needed "Breath" and some fights to strive for the heroic ranks. Instead, the situation wasn''t easy for the heroic cultivators. Their requirements to advance were harsher, and the peaceful life inside the dimension made their growth slower. Some talents still managed to improve at a decent pace, but they also suffered due to that stale environment. The separate dimension didn''t offer any incentives, so they could only rely on their willpower to keep growing. The hybrids had it worse than everyone else. They usually required a lot of food, but that was one of the most valuable resources inside the dimension. Their dantians and seas of consciousness could improve normally, but their bodies remained near their original level due to the lack of proper prey. That made many hybrids go wild. Their hunger became so intense that they started attacking their companions and invade areas of the dimension inhabited by cultivators. The higher-ups suppressed those threats and used their corpses to refill their stashes of food, but they had to implement different methods to control them at some point. The three forces wanted to survive, but they also desired to keep growing. There was a limit to how much they could improve as organizations in that environment, but they still did everything in their power to prevent negative trends. Skully took care of the situation by forcing the hybrids to hunt themselves. That would reduce their population, but it would also maintain the overall power of the stronger specimens. The other powerhouses in the separate dimension also obtained specific roles as the years passed. Great Elder Diana''s control turned out to be useful for Thirty-seven. She helped manage the flow of the "Breath" through the various doors, and she also came up with ways to divide the resources more equally. Elder Julia had lost her purpose once the Hive abandoned the Copying Technique. Still, she joined Skully in managing the hybrids to help her create a better army. The Shandal Empire''s powerhouses didn''t link too much with the alliance, but they still helped whenever the population required their help. God''s Left Hand was quite knowledgeable, so the other leaders asked her for forgotten methods that they could use to improve the separate dimension. That didn''t help their situation, but it was better than nothing. Moreover, God''s Left Hand got to play her part in the survival of the organizations. Other powerhouses spent most of their time in seclusion. Their expertise couldn''t help inside the separate dimension, so they focused on improving their power. The three organizations would resurface at some point, and they needed to be ready for a clash with the new forces on the landmasses. They couldn''t let themselves grow weak in that environment. Some promising peak rank 5 cultivators managed to reach the sixth rank during the years spent inside the dimension. The new lifestyle benefitted Daniel''s individuality. He also became a beacon of hope for the masses of weaker cultivators who couldn''t endure remaining trapped in that sterile environment for too long. His existence slowly advanced until he became a rank 6 cultivator, and his popularity among the various organizations increased together with his power. Faith had become quite popular too. She had always been famous due to her beauty, but her peace made her become one of the most acclaimed higher-ups among the three organizations. The life inside the separate dimension benefitted her. She became a rank 6 cultivator a few years after Daniel, and the two of them began to work together at that point. Both human and heroic cultivators liked to be in their presence, and the two new powerhouses didn''t avoid to take care of those assets during those difficult times. Other peak rank 5 cultivators didn''t manage to obtain the same results. Being trapped and in a dead environment crushed their determination and hindered their path toward the higher ranks. The most iconic case was June since her individuality depended on her battle intent. The lack of enemies and battles that could satisfy her slowed her growth and made her fall behind her companions. Faith tried to help her, but the separate dimension couldn''t endure battles among existences on that level. Their blows would force the area to expand, and the Hive couldn''t risk that. Heaven and Earth were a constant threat. Thirty-seven felt quite sure of his calculations, but even he couldn''t predict when they would notice the separate dimension and start sending Tribulations inside it. It was better to keep the width of the separate dimension limited to the very minimum. The Hive couldn''t let that place end up like Divine Architect''s separate dimension. June didn''t find a solution to her issue, and she even became unstable at some point. Noah wanted to help her, but he couldn''t go against her individuality in the process. June eventually had to ask for Flying Demon''s help, and she started a trend that many heroic cultivators decided to follow. Flying Demon was one of the most important figures inside the separate dimension since he was one of the few experts capable of creating doors that led to the outside world. His work provided "Breath" inside the dimension, so every cultivator respected him. Yet, as King Elbas'' attacks became rarer, he found himself with nothing to do. The Demon didn''t complain since he could spend time with his lover, but the situation changed after June asked for his help. June knew about Flying Demon''s individuality. His ice had peculiar qualities that made it able to interfere with time. That was precisely what June needed. Since she couldn''t cultivate properly, she would rather have the Demon turning her into a block of ice until the Hive managed to come out of the separate dimension. Flying Demon''s individuality would also preserve the state of her centers of power, and the fact that she was still a rank 5 cultivator made the task relatively easy to accomplish. Noah couldn''t say that he liked that outcome, but June''s potential was at stake, so he approved that process. Once the matter became official, many rank 4 and 5 cultivators decided to ask Flying Demon to freeze them until the three organizations resurfaced. Flying Demon performed his task impeccably, and a large number of heroic cultivators ended up in special areas of the dimension dug to preserve their frozen bodies. The process also eased the pressure on the dimension since it required less "Breath" after many powerful cultivators froze themselves. ''Four centuries have passed already,'' Noah thought as he sat in front of a pillar of ice. June was inside the pillar. The ice had preserved her beauty and cultivation level through the years, but Noah felt bitter when looking at it. He had to live through that period on his own. The separate dimension''s environment didn''t benefit him either, but Flying Demon didn''t have the power to freeze him. Moreover, he was the leader of the Hive. He needed to remain awake to control the situation and maintain order. ''It should be almost time to go out,'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes to meditate. ''King Elbas should complete the preparations for his ascension soon.'' Chapter 1188: 1188. Clear Noah''s period inside the separate dimension wasn''t as harsh as many others, but he had his fair share of difficulties too. As soon as the battle against King Elbas ended, Noah''s centers of power suffered from Sword Saint''s final technique''s downsides. Noah''s life had never been in danger, but he had to rest for a while and let his centers of power recover from that strain. After all, he wasn''t on a level where he could perform that type of attack. He had to rely on his ambition to express a prowess beyond his limits. After he recovered, he handled the messy situation inside the separate dimension. There were three organizations and countless cultivators to manage. Noah had to invent a social system that could force those assets to survive together without endangering their overall strength. That task revealed itself quite challenging, and Noah had to test different approaches before finding a system that could last for centuries. Luckily for him, he had experienced allies that advised him through that period. King Elbas'' attacks came often in the initial periods inside the separate dimension, so Noah had to work at close contact with Thirty-seven and Flying Demon to manage the traps. Noah could start to relax after King Elbas'' offensive slowed down, but that brought another problem that he had managed to ignore during those tense years. The lack of threats brought Noah back into a peaceful period when he didn''t have any incentives. That forced him to spend long periods in seclusion to obtain slight improvements. Any powerhouse would have to face those same challenges, but Noah had never liked that pace. He had always taken the shortest route to power, but he didn''t have any alternative approach in that situation. In the end, June decided to ask Flying Demon to freeze her, which forced Noah to spent those boring years on his own. Without his lover around, Noah could only spend his time in endless training sessions that brought little results. Of course, only Noah could consider his improvements slow. Most powerhouses couldn''t even come close to his training speed even on the surface. Being in the liquid stage of the sixth rank meant that Noah had to push his existence in the realm of the laws. He didn''t need to improve the quantity or the quality of his darkness anymore. The cultivation journey forced him to focus on the purity of his individuality now. The true meanings carried by the laws were pure expressions of power, and Noah had to turn his vast existence into something similar. Noah''s law was an expression of his ambition. It forced his power to reach peaks that his cultivation levels had yet to see, and it pushed his prowess on leagues that were still at a few decades from his current state. The law of ambition relied on Noah''s potential. Since he knew that he would reach those heights, his individuality allowed him to obtain a speck of that power for a short period. Still, that couldn''t possibly be the only aspect of his individuality, especially since his existence carried various characteristics. The only problem was that Noah struggled to find them due to his slow improvements. Four hundred years had to pass before Noah began to consider the idea of leaving the separate dimension. King Elbas destroyed every sensor he found, but the automaton kept sending new ones into the outer world whenever he opened a new door. That allowed the Hive to gather some data before the Royal took care of them again. The Royals'' leader even stopped destroying the sensors at some point, so the Hive slowly regained vision of the situation on the surface. Most of it wasn''t visible due to new formations that had appeared there, but Noah''s focus had never been on that. The sensors of the Hive mainly pointed at the sky. All the assets were waiting for when the Heaven Tribulation would arrive and bring King Elbas to the seventh rank. Noah''s last line to King Elbas wasn''t a taunt. He had meant his words back then. King Elbas had managed to defeat an entire world, so Noah had no intention to fight him anymore. In his opinion, the Royal would surely reach the Immortal Lands, so he didn''t need to settle his grudges there. Moreover, Noah didn''t manage to feel completely angry about King Elbas. The Royal had killed Chasing Demon and forced the Hive to run away, but he was an existence worthy of respect. Noah couldn''t think of anyone more worthy of the Immortal Lands than King Elbas, and he knew that he wouldn''t be able to beat him as long as he remained in the liquid stage. King Elbas'' expertise in the inscription fields alone made him a perfect candidate for the higher plane. Still, his cultivation level had always been equally impressive, so that sealed the matter for Noah. "I have today''s reports," Flying Demon announced when he entered a hall filled with icy pillars that contained cultivators. "Nothing out of the ordinary. The sky is clear." Noah was in front of the pillar containing June when he heard those words, and a sigh escaped his mouth. King Elbas was still somewhere in the lower plane. The organizations couldn''t go out just yet. "There have been small troubles with the hybrids and the Shandal Empire," Flying Demon continued. "Do you want to hear about them?" Noah thought about the matter for a second, but he eventually shook his head. He didn''t care about any of those issues, and he had appointed his underlings there already. Flying Demon saw that answer and sighed. His gaze remained on Noah for a few seconds before he decided to walk toward him. The Demon sat next to Noah while inspected him with a curious expression. However, some surprise appeared on Noah''s face when he saw Flying Demon taking out a jug of wine from his space-ring. "I thought we had finished the wine three hundred years ago!" Noah exclaimed as a cup appeared in his hands. "I''ve kept this hidden until now," Flying Demon said as a laugh escaped from his mouth. "I planned to drink this after we came out of the dimension, but you seem to need it more than me." "I''m just bored," Noah replied as he stretched the hand holding the cup. Flying Demon smirked at that sight and poured some wine for him and Noah before their gaze went on the pillars filling the room. "Boredom is part of a powerhouse''s life," Flying Demon said after he took a sip from his cup. "I still remember Master causing troubles whenever he met a bottleneck or completed his projects." "I think you have more experience in living inside prisons for centuries," Noah replied, and Flying Demon showed an ugly expression before exploding into a loud laugh. "How much did we lose in these years?" Noah asked after a while. "We didn''t lose," Flying Demon said as he checked the reports acc.u.mulated through the years. "Our power has increased, but not as much as we wished. I bet the Elbas family will be far stronger than before once we come out of here." "We''ll fight anyway," Noah replied. "Of course," Flying Demon continued as his expression become cold. "I want to get rid of the rust on these old bones right away." Noah''s expression became cold too at those words, and they both continued to stare at the pillars as they shared that jug of wine. In their minds, they could only think of the moment when they could finally come out in the open to reclaim what they had lost against King Elbas. Unfortunately for them, they had to wait for another one hundred years before their sensors picked up signs of black clouds covering a large chunk of the sky. Chapter 1189: 1189. Meeting Clouds began to fill the sky seen by the sensors of the Hive. That was the news that everyone living inside the separate dimension expected, but it only gave birth to another waiting period. The sensors fell apart after the clouds came. The Hive went blind again and started to see the surface''s situation only after days went by. A fissure had opened in the sky once the leaders and the other higher-ups restored their sensors. A white light came out of the crack, and a peculiar aura reached the various inscribed items that kept tracks of the situation on the surface. The Hive didn''t have any doubt. Someone had gone through the Heaven Tribulation and had gained access to the Immortal Lands! Everyone knew the existence behind that feat, but that signal didn''t start a mass exodus just yet. The Heaven Tribulation was only one of three tests that King Elbas had to overcome. The Hive waited for years. The first fissure closed after a while, but new ones didn''t appear. No one believed that King Elbas had decided to ascend right away. He was the type of existence that would settle old matters before traveling toward the higher plane. Noah didn''t deploy defenses nor prepared the population for war. A god was an existence that heroic cultivators couldn''t face no matter how many methods they deployed. If King Elbas wanted to settle the old scores with the three organizations, Noah wouldn''t even waste time to think about that. Time passed, but no fissure appeared in the sky. The sensors didn''t catch any image worthy of the leaders'' attention. A tremor swept the separate dimension during that period. The traps didn''t trigger, but an invader entered those hidden areas and spread his divine consciousness across the many tunnels and halls. The higher-ups didn''t even need to guess the identity of their invader. There was only one existence capable of gaining access to a divine sea of consciousness in those Mortal Lands. King Elbas appeared inside the separate dimension and announced his arrival to the population. Short tongues of golden flames came out of his skin as his aura spread inside that fake world. The Royal didn''t need to make preparations anymore. He was a god now. Defenses in the heroic ranks couldn''t even force him to deploy his energy. "I only want Noah Balvan," King Elbas announced after chaos spread inside the separate dimension. That line surprised the higher-ups, but they eventually tried to contact Noah with their inscribed notebooks. That effort was unnecessary since King Elbas'' voice had echoed through the entirety of the dimension. Noah came out of a teleportation matrix inside the separate dimension a few minutes later. His face radiated the pure determination that filled his mind, but there was no fear in his eyes. King Elbas was a god now. Noah was a resourceful cultivator, but he didn''t have methods to deal with an existence on that level. He had teleported there knowing that he couldn''t escape meeting the Royals even if he relied on his many strategies. Noah flew to meet King Elbas on the empty ceiling of the separate dimension. He had accepted death long ago, so the meeting didn''t cause any outburst in his instincts. His mind didn''t feel any danger. Noah''s centers of power had tuned with his mindset and didn''t trigger any survival instinct. It was as if his sea of consciousness knew that he had accepted death as a possible outcome. Noah knew that he couldn''t escape that situation. He had hoped that King Elbas would leave the lower plane without minding his past grudges, but there was nothing else that he could do now. If King Elbas wanted him dead, there was nothing in the entire plane that could save him. Noah felt free when he flew toward King Elbas. For the first time in many years, he didn''t feel the burden of the political environment in those Mortal Lands, and all his worries slowly abandoned him as he flew toward that meeting. When he reached the Royal, Noah didn''t feel like Defying Demon or the Hive leader. He was simply an existence meeting another powerful cultivator. All the restrictions and labels had gone away in a situation that could lead to his death. "I thought you would have tried to resist this," King Elbas said when Noah reached him. "You might have gained a few years." Noah smirked, and his ambition seeped out of his figure like an unstoppable wave. He even stopped controlling his aura before replying to the Royal. "What''s the point of delaying certain death?" Noah replied. "Kill me if you have to. I''ve never wasted time in my life. I won''t start now." King Elbas smiled at those words, and his arrogance spread through the separate dimension. His consciousness carried an energy that Noah couldn''t wholly understand, and the sole blowing of his mental waves expanded the edges of the area. Noah showed no fear at that show of power. He felt devoid of every emotion in front of that powerful existence. Feelings weren''t something for an expert who had accepted his death. King Elbas eventually retracted his aura when he saw that Noah didn''t show any reaction. A tinge of disappointment appeared on the Royal''s expression before he started to speak. "You have understood your position too well," King Elbas said as a sigh escaped his mouth. "Even a god can''t make you tremble once you give up on life." King Elbas stopped speaking to analyze Noah''s expression again, but he soon continued his speech. "I''m not here to kill you," King Elbas said. "I''ve spent the last years exploring every spot in these Mortal Lands, and I''ve even ventured at the center of the other world. These planes have no more secrets for me, and my interest in them has already waned." Noah remained expressionless, but part of him envied King Elbas. The Royal had reached a level of power when he could travel easily in every danger zone of the world and come back in a few years. There wasn''t a higher level in the lower planes. King Elbas had reached the very peak of that world. "I''ve spoken with Shandal''s will," King Elbas eventually said. "I should be outside of Heaven and Earth''s system, but I can also be their missing piece. Even that failure of a god couldn''t be certain about this. I can only go to the Immortal Lands and find out." "Is this fear that I sense?" Noah said as his smirk widened. "Is the mighty King Elbas afraid of the rulers of the world?" Noah didn''t care that his words were offensive. He had stopped holding back since he couldn''t beat King Elbas anyway. "Yeah," King Elbas replied, and his smile faded to make room for a pensive expression. The Royal appeared bothered about that issue. "You appear to be quite against Heaven and Earth," King Elbas continued. "Killing you gives me no benefit, but leaving you alive might help me one day. As much as I hate your confidence, I can only agree with your last farewell. We''ll see each other again in the Immortal Lands." King Elbas began to fade after he gave voice to that line, but Noah remained still as he waited for that situation to end. "I''ve fixed the new continent," King Elbas said as his figure slowly dispersed among his golden halo, "Have fun conquering it. There is only boredom afterward." Then, King Elbas vanished, and a mental message reached Noah''s mental sphere. A fissure leading for the Immortal Lands had appeared on the sky again. Chapter 1190: 1190. Invasion "Well," Noah shouted after King Elbas'' figure dissolved, "You heard him. Prepare for the invasion on the surface." King Elbas didn''t contain his voice during the meeting. The entire separate dimension had heard his replies to Noah, and the same went for the latest announcement. His words echoed through the many screens and items that filled that place. Needless to say, Noah''s announcement gave birth to a chaotic awakening of the population inside the dimension. Many human cultivators there had never seen the surface, and those who had been lucky enough to live there longed for it since the first century spent in hiding. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana teleported where Noah was and reached him on the ceiling of the dimension after his announcement. "The crack has just appeared," Great Elder Diana said. "We should wait a few more years before starting the invasion." "I agree," God''s Left Hand continued. "This can be a trap. I wouldn''t believe King Elbas so easily." Noah glanced at the two Matriarchs and scoffed. Emotions surged inside his mind now that he knew that his cultivation journey wasn''t over, and a loud laugh came out of his mouth. The Matriarchs stared at Noah, who laughed without even holding back. They showed a confused expression since they couldn''t understand how he could be so relaxed in that situation. Noah continued to laugh as the memories of his life resurfaced in his vision. He had been ready to throw them away just a few minutes ago, but he didn''t need to give up on his individuality anymore. King Elbas had said that Noah could attack the world without worrying about him, and Noah believed him. The Royal had never relied on lame tactics when he was a heroic cultivator, so he had no reason to do that now that he was a god. "I thought you knew how a god''s mind worked," Noah said once he managed to suppress his laugh. "King Elbas'' eyes can''t see the lower plane anymore. They are stuck on the Immortal Lands. He won''t act even if we destroyed his entire organization right in front of him." "There''s nothing wrong with being careful," Great Elder Diana said. She agreed with Noah, but the organizations had already waited for five centuries. A few more years wouldn''t make any difference in their situation. However, Noah wasn''t as patient as her. He would have gladly waited if he had something to do inside the separate dimension, but it had been a long time since he felt some incentives rousing his ambition. "Careful?" Noah replied while scoffing again. "A god has just pierced our defenses and left without leaving any trace of his passage. We can''t stop him even if we detonated the whole dimension. Give up and start preparing your troops. This is an order." Great Elder Diana''s eyes widened at those words, and some battle intent surged inside her. Noah didn''t show any awkwardness when he ordered her around, and he even appeared quite at ease when he did that. Still, she had to calm down after she analyzed the situation in her mind. Noah was right, and it was in her interest to do as he said even if she didn''t acknowledge him as her leader. "You too," Noah said as he turned toward God''s Left Hand. "I''ll let the weaker troops have fun for a few weeks. I''ll join the battlefield afterward." God''s Left Hand wanted to complain, but she agreed to his orders without saying anything. The two Matriarch left to prepare their organizations for the incoming battle, and Noah picked his inscribed notebook to do the same. Chaos spread inside the separate dimension. Every rank 5 cultivator and powerhouse started to reassemble armies and prepare strategies as Noah''s orders reached them. Noah didn''t remain in the middle of that area. He teleported where the ice pillars had remained for years and waited for Flying Demon''s arrival. Flying Demon reached him in less than an hour, and Dreaming Demon was with him. She had tagged along her lover to make sure that the awakening of those cultivators went well. Moreover, Noah''s lover was among those frozen by Flying Demon''s individuality. Dreaming Demon wanted to make sure that nothing happened to June. "Are we finally reclaiming the new continent?" Flying Demon asked as he snapped his fingers. White flowers started to appear on the pillars after his gesture. The more they grew, the more ice they took away from the structures keeping the cultivators safe from the passage of time. "We''ll claim the whole world," Noah replied. "I know I won''t have anyone on my level after my next breakthrough. I want to enjoy my last war on a lower plane." "Well said!" A female voice suddenly resounded inside the area, and Noah couldn''t help but smile after hearing it. His arms spread as he waited for his lover to come in his embrace. June had awakened as soon as the ice began to disappear, and she couldn''t help but announce her happiness when she heard Noah''s line. Her battle intent spiked as the ice finished flowing inside the flowers. Her aura filled the entire hall, and black sparks appeared on her figure as she took long steps toward Noah. June jumped right inside Noah''s embrace when she reached him, and the two of them exchanged a long hug. June had been unconscious during her period inside the ice, so she let Noah hold her as much as he needed to. She had always known that Noah would have a hard time alone inside the separate dimension, but she couldn''t risk her cultivation level. Still, she didn''t mind remaining in her lover''s arms for a while, even if a war was about to start. June''s cultivation level was unstable. She appeared half-step inside the sixth rank, but she radiated intense and violent shockwaves that carried a far superior power. She seemed about to advance, but she wouldn''t let her Perfect Circuit improve now. She needed a battle to maximize her gains from the breakthrough. "How long until we are ready to go?" June asked while her face remained immersed in Noah''s chest. "No more than a week," Noah replied. "Most of the new assets have never seen a war. They should gain some experience as soon as possible." "What about you?" June asked as she left his chest to stare deep into his vertical pupils. "I will join the war only after the first clashes," Noah replied while placing a hand on her cheek. He caressed her with his thumb while he immersed himself in the sensation that their reunion caused. "How generous of you," June smirked before leaving a kiss on Noah''s lips. Then, she escaped his hug to make a few preparations for the war. The other experts frozen by Flying Demon''s individuality awakened after her departure, and Dreaming Demon used her mental waves to put them up to date with the current events. Battle intent leaked from their figures as they left to prepare for the war. They had chosen to freeze themselves because the environment of the separate dimension was too peaceful for their individualities. They wouldn''t back down from a battle of that size. Noah watched the experts bow to him and leave the area after they recovered. The Demons kept their eyes on him for a while before they retreated to their quarters too. ''I''m not generous,'' Noah thought as he replayed June''s joke in his mind. ''I simply don''t think anyone can stop me if King Elbas doesn''t intervene." Chapter 1191: 1191. Departure Noah had gone through rough periods inside the separate dimension, and his cultivation level didn''t improve by much compared to his usual training speed. Yet, he had used that time to meditate. Noah couldn''t test his abilities inside the separate dimension, but his journey through the last stages of the sixth rank was more than a mere slashing session. Techniques were useful to cultivators, but they had to nurture their individualities to obtain their power. King Elbas had proved that already. He had to lose all his items and disposable weapons to complete his path. Noah had always owned various techniques that only expressed certain aspects of his individuality. Sword Saint had trained him so that he could put his entire existence into his slashes, and Noah had completed that phase when he reached the liquid stage. Still, that was only the starting point for his journey to become a law. Now that his entire existence was in one place, he had to make it grow until it obtained a true meaning. Noah had techniques that were stronger than his existence in the past. Sword Saint''s final slash could overcome the attacks that made use of his dark world, which meant that Noah''s individuality couldn''t surpass abilities that carried sheer superior power. However, that had changed during the five hundred years spent inside the separate dimension. Noah used that time to focus on his individuality, and his prowess had benefitted from that. Noah knew that he was far stronger than before. He didn''t know exactly how powerful he had gotten due to the lack of proper enemies in those years, but his instincts told him that he was nowhere near his previous level. The fissure leading to the Immortal Lands was still open in the sky when the cultivators who had lived inside the separate dimension for more than five centuries came out of it. A blinding white light appeared on the western side of the new continent, and an army of cultivators replaced it when it dimmed. The three organizations took out all their assets except for the weaker human experts. Noah gazed at the sea for an instant before focusing on the white crack leaking out a welcoming aura. He felt a pulling force trying to bait him to enter it, but his mind cut away that influence immediately. The fact that the crack was still open meant that King Elbas had yet to leave those Mortal Lands. However, Noah didn''t care about that. Even if his feelings came from the simple respect toward another talented existence, he trusted the Royal. Noah didn''t hesitate and led the troops toward the surface. A bit of hesitation filled the two Matriarchs and the other higher-ups, but they followed Noah without giving voice to any complaint. When the massive group of experts came out of the sea and gazed their eyes on the new continents, they couldn''t help but remain speechless. King Elbas had burned almost every region when he returned from the separate reality. Entire lands had become nothing more than charred wastelands under the effects of his higher energy. However, the scenery that welcomed the assets of the three organizations was the complete opposite of what they recalled about the new continent. Immense prairies and many magical plants filled their vision. The roars of magical beasts echoed through the surface, making it give off a lively atmosphere. The terrain had many large fissures, but it wasn''t dead anymore. Even the central territories had completely recovered. King Elbas had fixed the new continent in those five hundred years, but he had to take the energy required for the task from somewhere. The powerhouses were the first to notice the differences from the piece of Immortal Lands that they recalled. The new continent was initially brimming with "Breath" and uninhabitable by human cultivators, but that landmass radiated a weaker power now. The "Breath" in the air wasn''t as dense as before, and even the ground contained less energy. It was as if King Elbas had sacrificed the quality of that landmass to restore its state. The human cultivators who had come out of the separate dimension deactivated the inscribed items meant to shield them from the pressure of the "Breath". The new condition of the landmass allowed them to walk freely in those regions. The new continent wasn''t nearly as poor as the old one in its current condition, but it was far from its previous peaks. The experts of the world had managed to ruin it in a bit more than a millennium. Of course, they wouldn''t complain about that outcome. The major organizations had always known that their unrestrained growth would eventually turn the new continent in that state. It had merely happened earlier than they expected. Noah soon lost interest in the new environment and focused on searching for traces of enemies. His consciousness expanded and covered half of the western coast with his sharp mental waves. Shining lines appeared whenever Noah''s consciousness flew above the regions. The entirety of the coastline appeared to be under the influence of defenses capable of bearing his innate pressure. Noah didn''t trigger those formations with his pressure, but the resilience shown during his analysis confirmed that they were all defenses in the sixth rank. "I didn''t say that taking the world will be easy," King Elbas'' voice echoed through the sky, and golden flames appeared right under the crack. The flames condensed until they took the shape of King Elbas. The Royal appeared in the sky and spread his aura through the world so that everyone could feel it. It was a calm aura that hid a violent behavior. King Elbas seemed a ticking bomb ready to explode whenever the situation required it. Many weaker heroic cultivators took steps back at the sight of King Elbas hovering in the sky, but Noah had completely different feelings. There was only annoyance in his mind. "Why are you still here?" Noah asked as he shouted toward the crack. "Go to the higher plane already. Leave us ants to our games." Noah replying in that way to a divine cultivator was a sight that made many experts fear for their lives. They didn''t know if Defying Demon had angered King Elbas with his aloof and uncaring character. Yet, King Elbas limited himself to show a smile at those words before turning to fly toward the insides of the crack. A couple of rank 6 cultivators came out from the center of the new continent at that point and began to shout toward King Elbas. "Wait, Father!" Second Princess said as she tried to reach King Elbas before it was too late. "Take care of this army!" Third Prince said. "If you kill them, the Elbas family will keep control of two worlds for millennia!" King Elbas stopped flying when he heard those words, and the experts inside Noah''s army trembled when they saw him turning toward them. They initially thought that his descendants'' pleads had succeeded, but they soon understood that they were wrong. The Royals'' leader continued to turn until he faced Second Princess and Third Prince, and he stared at them for a few seconds before giving voice to a phrase that made them show ugly expressions. "I am the Elbas family," King Elbas said before turning and flying through the fissure. Chapter 1192: 1192. Now Third Prince and Second Princess remained speechless when King Elbas left the lower plane while giving voice to that arrogant line. Still, they didn''t expect that his words alone could help them. The whole world watched his departure and the defeated organizations staring as his thinning figure knew that he had spoken the truth. King Elbas was the foundation and the very core of his organization. King Elbas had a mysterious past. He had lived under the suppression of the previous Royal Family and had managed to overcome it with his power. Then, he had brought his family to the peak of the world. The Royal''s accomplishments also went far beyond any other expert living in his era, and he had achieved feats that many believed to be impossible. The dimensional tunnel alone was enough to make his name immortal in that plane. Connecting two Mortal Lands was a feat that many experts had only dreamed of accomplishing. His war against the whole world sealed his position as an incredible warrior too. King Elbas was a perfect cultivator that didn''t have any weakness. He was a monster in battle and when it came to the inscription field. King Elbas'' departure triggered the bystanders'' memories, and they could only marvel when they thought about the existence who had just left the plane. The fissure''s closing put an end to King Elbas'' history in the lower plane, but it gave birth to his legend. A tremor ran through Third Prince and Second Princess'' bodies when the fissure in the sky closed. The immense respect that the three organizations'' assets felt toward King Elbas improved the innate arrogance that his descendants carried. The Two Royals felt a surge of power filling their centers of power. Golden flames came out of their bodies as if they were the flares of a star, and their cultivation level rose during the process. Third Prince and Second Princess were nothing more than powerhouses near the half-way mark of the gaseous stage before that scene. Yet, their cultivation level rose till the peak of the stage after their Patriarch left the world. Noah gazed at the Royals, but he didn''t act. He had decided that he would leave the initial stages of the invasion to his underlings, so he had no intention of charging ahead just yet. Moreover, the two Royals weren''t worthy of his time. He might have fun dealing with the formations covering the new continent, but defeating them wouldn''t bring him any benefit. ''I wonder if Second Prince has come back from the separate reality,'' Noah thought as he gazed toward the new continent. ''He should still be King Elbas'' heir.'' The cultivators'' gazes from the three organizations went on Noah while he wondered whether there was a worthy opponent left on the plane. The centuries spent inside the separate dimension had solidified Noah''s position as the three organizations'' leader. The Council and the Shandal Empire were still independent, but they knew that they needed the Hive''s help to take back part of the world. Noah briefly glanced at the army behind him before pointing at the new continent. His aura surged as he spoke human words that carried low roars with them. "I won''t join the battlefield for a year. You want to conquer something before I step into the fray." The assets of the three organizations didn''t need motivational speeches. They had developed an intense eagerness to return to the surface after surviving inside the separate dimension for five hundred years. Even the cultivators who knew only the separate dimension had that eagerness. They had grown hearing the legends of a better place, and seeing it for the first time made their enthusiasm spike. Every cultivator and hybrid who had gone through the life inside the dimension could barely hold back from charging toward the new continent. Noah''s words lifted their restraints and acted as a signal for the beginning of the invasion. The army around him charged ahead without even bothering to assemble into battle formations. The Royals stabilized their condition and activated their defensive formations when they saw the massive number of heroic cultivators charging toward the western coastline. The three organizations didn''t lose much power during those five centuries. They had to limit their growth due to the scarcity of resources inside the dimension. Still, the breakthroughs of some assets made up for that drawback. Faith and Daniel had reached the sixth rank during those years. The addition of two powerhouses to the alliance brought its power way past that of any other organization. The alliance had ten powerhouses in its ranks, and two of them were the now the strongest existences in those Mortal Lands since King Elbas had left. There were magical beasts hidden inside the sea that could surpass their level, but Noah and Great Elder Diana expressed the human world''s current peak. ''That''s not higher energy,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the Royals who still released golden flames from their figures. He decided to watch the invasion from a casual spot in the sky, and he didn''t miss that critical detail about the Royals'' power. It seemed that they only gained access to part of their Father''s individuality. Normal "Breath" fueled those golden flames, and their power only appeared slightly more threatening than different types of fire. Gigantic spears formed on the coastline, and their tips rose toward the sky to point at the incoming army. An intense aura came out of their ethereal shapes, and a blinding halo began to cover their figures. The entire western coast lit up as the army marched ahead. The aura of formations with power in the middle tier of the sixth rank filled the sky, but the three organizations'' experts didn''t let it scare them. Defensive formations in the middle tier were still fine. The nine powerhouses charging ahead of the army could handle them and open a path where the army could pass. However, there weren''t only nine existences in front of the army. A peak rank 5 cultivator was among them and released black sparks from her feet to match their speed. ''She must be excited,'' Noah sighed when he noticed June trying to keep up with the powerhouses. Her cultivation level slowly rose as she neared the coastline. June sensed the arrival of a battle, and her Perfect Circuit produced as much higher energy as it could to fuel her individuality. June was a battle maniac who couldn''t join a fight for centuries. The only thought that she was finally about to release her power made her cultivation level grow. Spears shot out of the golden halo filling the western coastline. Each of those attacks radiated the aura of a powerhouse at the bottom of the liquid stage. Cracks filled the sky as those attacks flew toward the army. More than thirty spears were converging on the experts from the three organizations. That was an offensive that could push the powerhouses to their limits! Great Elder Diana and God''s Left Hand prepared themselves to cast their best spells. They were the only powerhouses in the liquid stage, so it was in their interest to take care of those attacks. That would save the weaker powerhouses'' energy, and it would give their organizations more chances to seize regions before Noah stepped on the battlefield. However, black lines suddenly appeared at the center of those spears and divided them in half. No cracks spread from those new attacks, but the Matriarchs stopped their charge to glance at the powerhouse who had decided to remain behind. "One year starting now," Noah revealed a cold smile when the Matriarchs fixed their eyes on him. His action reminded them who was at the peak of the chain of command. Chapter 1193: 1193. Landing A chill ran down the Royals'' spines when they saw the spears cut in half. Those attacks lost their power and vanished into a cloud of golden energy. Third Prince and Second Princess recalled Noah''s prowess very well. They had witnessed his determination when he conquered Divine Market city, and they had heard about his feats during the battle against King Elbas. Noah was a monster, but he had a fatal weakness: He was too young! His past battle prowess was already miraculous for someone on his level. However, his current power appeared boundless. The Royals saw how Noah didn''t even need to move to fend off the attacks of their defensive formation. The five hundred years spent inside the separate dimension had given him what he had always lacked due to his fast growth. He had now polished his power to make it express its true potential. Great Elder Diana and God''s Left Hand felt amazed too. They had never seen Noah in action during the past five hundred years, but their instincts had always told them that he was improving at a fast pace. Yet, they didn''t expect his level to be so high. The Matriarchs had understood how Noah had taken care of the spears, but the event still surprised them. The Matriarchs didn''t stare at Noah for too long. They quickly turned back to rejoin the powerhouses who had continued to fly toward the coastline. They had a critical mission to complete in that invasion. The Matriarchs had to secure as many regions as they could before Noah decided to join the battlefield. As the leader of the Hive, Noah was in complete control of the strongest organization in the world. He also was one of the most powerful existences in that plane, with only Great Elder Diana being his match. The Council and the Shandal Empire couldn''t oppose the Hive''s will even if they joined forces, so they had to reestablish themselves on the new continent before it could say anything about that. Noah was aware of that. His decision to delay his taking part in the battlefield was an honest gift to the organizations that had fought King Elbas with him. There was another reason too. Noah''s underlings needed to fight, and he didn''t want to hinder their chances to gain vital battle experiences. Noah preferred to leave them on their own for a while. After all, the Elbas family wouldn''t fall in only one year. Its defenses alone were enough to make it last for more than a decade. The defensive formations launched another attack right before the powerhouses managed to reach the new continent''s shores. Golden spears flew in their direction, but they all faced them without any fear. The Demons, Elder Regina, and Elder Julia took care of most of them by deploying some of their strongest techniques. The spears could match a liquid stage powerhouse''s spell at the bottom of the stage, but they had limited power and an ethereal structure. The lack of a wielder also affected their structure. Flying Demon''s individuality made flowers grow everywhere in the sky. They released a peculiar aura that froze the air and slowed down the advance of the spears. Dreaming Demon unfolded her consciousness and made her mental waves seep inside the structure of the golden spears. Her goal was to weaken their fabric so that even gaseous stage powerhouses could take care of them. Elder Julia and Elder Regina supported the Demons with spells that had a large area of effect. Elder Julia launched a massive wave of wind-slashes that crashed on the weakened and restrained spears. At the same time, Elder Regina summoned an army of puppets to shield the group from the formations'' remaining power. The spears struggled to pierce those attacks, but the powerhouses had focused their structural weaknesses. Techniques that were only a mass of energy were easy to destroy if a group had access to various types of spells. ''As expected,'' Noah thought while inspecting the battlefield. ''They are quite cheap.'' Noah had initially felt surprised when he saw formations covering the entire western coast, but he couldn''t believe that they could express too much power. King Elbas was a true master in the inscriptions field, but he had to respect certain limits when building formations. One of them was the fuel that they required. The new continent had suffered a lot after the last battle, and most of the reserves of energy in the world had vanished to face King Elbas. The Royal couldn''t amass a lot of fuel in those five hundred years, so he had to compromise on the spears'' structures to make them cheap to cast. The spears were exceptional weapons capable of carrying a lot of power, but they were relatively easy to counter by cultivators who had a lot of battle experience. Of course, that was true only if those cultivators'' power was near that of the spears. June coughed blood as the four powerhouses opened a path among the array of spears. The shockwaves radiated by those attacks were enough to destabilize her organs and create internal injuries. However, more black sparks came out of her figure after she stabilized her condition. Her individuality was already in motion. Her Perfect Circuit was producing massive quantities of higher energy to make her power go beyond her limits. When it came to June, surpassing her limits meant improvements in her cultivation level. She had remained at the peak of the fifth rank for a long time, but her power appeared about to take the last step after she suffered those injuries. The Matriarchs caught up with the group of powerhouses and surpassed them to set foot on the new continent. Their auras then spread through the coastline and began to eradicate every shining line that they found. Tempests formed on the coastline and thick lightning bolts flew high in the sky to create masses of sparks that released smaller bolts toward the surface. The other powerhouses felt forced to stop when they saw that scene. They had managed to endure the previous attack due to its flaws, but they couldn''t do anything against the Matriarchs'' spells. Only June continued to fly forward. Her face became ashen, and blood continued to flow out of her mouth as the shockwaves running wild through the environment injured her. A cloud of black sparks formed and crumbled around her. June appeared on the verge of collapsing, but she strived through the shockwaves and landed on the landmass anyway. The energy released by the Matriarchs'' spells was even more intense in that spot. Injuries opened on June''s skin, and blood splashed out of those wounds under the effect of those shockwaves. Yet, June remained calm. There was only determination in her expression. The Matriarchs and the other powerhouses began to worry about her well-being at that point. They vaguely understood how her relationship with Noah worked, but they didn''t want to see her die. She was still Noah''s lover. No one knew what he would do if she died due to the Matriarchs'' spells. It didn''t matter that joining that battlefield was her mistake in the first place. The Matriarchs and powerhouses couldn''t imagine that June had done that on purpose. Her Perfect Circuit produced sparks continuously, and it eventually found the structure of her higher energy unsuitable for the new level of power that it was reaching. June''s centers of power slowly took the last step that divided her from the sixth rank. They began to advance right in front of everyone. Chapter 1194: 1194. Destruction Tremors swept June whenever a shockwave hit her. She coughed blood almost rhythmically as convulsions filled her figure. Still, a different type of shockwave came out of her body after her centers of power started to advance to the sixth rank. A heartbeat began to echo in the area, and her sparks expanded after every beat. The Matriarchs activated their defenses when they saw that June wasn''t in control of the expansion of her higher energy, but her sparks began to converge back on her right before reaching them. The black sparks returned inside June''s body, and she convulsed as all that energy amassed inside her Perfect Circuit. An orange halo filled the area around her, and shockwaves spread whenever her heart beat. The first heartbeat shattered the few strands of grass that had survived the Matriarchs'' spells. The second heartbeat filled the ground around June with cracks. The third one affected the sky, creating small cracks that led to the void in its fabric. At the fourth heartbeat, June''s aura surged, and a series of chaotic black lightning bolts shot out of her figure. June''s aura became more intense, and it soon broke into the sixth rank. Her power surged, and her higher energy went wild as she unleashed the battle intent that she had felt forced to suppress. Her hair fluttered in the wind that she created by launching those thick lightning bolts. Golden lines fell apar whenever her violent attacks landed on the inscriptions in the area. Even if June didn''t do that on purpose, she helped the Matriarchs take care of the formation that created the golden spears. June''s breakthrough created a lightning storm on a region of the western coast. Her bolts flew in every direction and without a specific target, so her companions had to fend them off whenever they found one of them aiming for them. The Matriarchs summoned shields while they continued to fuel the spells they had launched toward the inscriptions, but the other powerhouses had it slightly harder. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana had access to liquid "Breath", but the other powerhouses were only in the gaseous stage. Their individualities were intense, but their "Breath" couldn''t match June''s higher energy. Even if her cultivation level was lower than her companions, June''s higher energy was far denser and could generate far more power. A white halo began to surround Daniel''s figure. The lightning bolts entering inside his defensive spell split into orange and black bolts before vanishing inside the light. Faith needed to summon a spherical water-shield that engulfed her figure to protect her from the lightning bolts. Her aura helped her defensive method by making June''s attacks almost harmless to her. True Speed dodged those attacks, and the other Elders could rely on similar methods to either evade or stop June''s attacks. The only one who had to retreat was Skully since her mental waves were a bad match for those dense lightning bolts. June''s heartbeat continued to echo through the coast, and her power surged with it. More black sparks came out of her figure, and the entire area soon became a crackling mess. "Calm down!" Great Elder Diana shouted. "You are obstructing the others!" Great Elder Diana didn''t have any political power over June, but she seemed to listen to the Matriarchs'' words. June''s body soon stopped releasing sparks randomly, but the intensity of her aura continued to rise nonetheless. Her heartbeat stopped though. June tried to hold back. She didn''t want to destroy the area with her influence. Once June called back the lightning storm, the other powerhouses managed to land on the new continent and begin their clearing operation. No one had decided or ordered that, but every powerhouse knew that they had to take care of the defensive formations first. They couldn''t leave those spears in the Elbas family''s hands even if their ethereal structure made them easy to counter. The powerhouses divided pieces of the western coasts among themselves. Daniel took the southern part, where a grassland had replaced the desert that filled that region. He waved his hand, and a white halo rose from the ground and condensed among the formations. In a bit less than a few seconds, Daniel destroyed those formations and cleared the area. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana continued to unleash their previous spells to deal with the formation. They took care of the central regions and covered the largest area among the group. The weaker assets relied on their strongest abilities to take care of those shining lines. They took care of the remaining regions, and they also remained in a group to avoid unforeseen negative consequences. Only the Demons, Elder Julia, and Elder Regina didn''t join that massive clearing operation. The formations continued to launch spears even if they aimed at the coast, so they needed to block those that targeted their companions. June took out a golden spear from her space-ring. A buzzing sound came out of the long weapon, and a series of lines dug its surface to create a linear pattern. She didn''t have many chances to use her living weapon because she had only been one of the many weaker assets against King Elbas. However, she could unleash its true power now. The weapon was a quasi-rank 6 item. Now that June was a powerhouse, she could push its efficiency to its limits and make use of the inscriptions that she had added on top of Noah''s work. June was an expert in the formations'' field. The book that she had retrieved from Shandal''s dimension had taught her a lot. She had even modified some of the methods recorded there. Black sparks flowed inside the spear and amassed inside the lines dug by Noah. The buzzing sound intensified at that point, but June wasn''t satisfied with that amount of power. More black sparks came out of her body to flow inside her living weapon. The spear appeared unable to contain her energy at some point, but inscriptions appeared on top of it to enhance its storage capacity. June pointed the spear toward the northern side of the coastline. Those regions were still empty because the weaker powerhouses had started the clearing operation from the corner of the landmass, so she could go all out. The spear released a blinding orange halo, and June''s heartbeat resumed echoing in the area. Then, at the third heartbeat, a dark crackly wave of energy came out of her weapon and created a beam that reached far in the distance. Moreover, the attack continued to remain active as long as June had enough fuel to pour inside the weapon. She only needed to tilt the spear a few times to clear half of a region in a few minutes. The defensive formations on the coastline couldn''t survive the joint assault of the powerhouses. They didn''t have anyone protecting them, so they could only crumble under the might of the invaders. The invaders appeared about to conquer their first territory right after the beginning of the war. That could be a magnificent feat that would surely boost the morale of the troops who had yet to join the battlefield. However, a golden light soon rose from the coast''s broken ground and began to fix the inscriptions. Even if the powerhouses continued to unleash their spells, the halo mended half of the formations. Chapter 1195: 1195. Battlefield The resilience of the Elbas family''s formations was something that the Hive had learnt after its many attacks on the Royals'' domain. They had invented inscriptions capable of fixing the shining lines, which made their defenses extremely annoying to deal with. However, the amount of power displayed by the assets that had come out of the separate dimension was immense. The two Matriarchs were unstoppable. Their spells could almost cover entire regions and rip off any formations on their surface in a matter of minutes. The other powerhouses weren''t weak either, but they needed more time to deal with those defenses. Faith wasn''t even well-versed in offensive spells. She had average attacks for a powerhouse at her level, but her main quality was her impenetrable defense. Still, the Elbas family didn''t have large reserves of energy, so it couldn''t keep the healing light active for a long time. The relentless destruction of the defensive formations on the western coast consumed a lot of the energy acc.u.mulated in the area. Even the inscriptions on the in-land regions would suffer if those reserves were to vanish. Third Prince and Second Princess could only activate more defenses in front of such a display of power. The regions near the western coast lit up, and various formations became visible on their surface. The powerhouses had to face different formations since they had decided to spread their efforts through the entire western coast. A series of golden giants rose in the region next to Great Elder Diana and began to walk in her direction. They all radiated an aura at the bottom of the middle tier and wielded long spears that spread flames around their tips. A wall made of runes came out of the territory next to God''s Left Hand. They turned toward the Matriarch and began to gather energy once all of them pointed at her. Puppets of various sizes appeared next to Faith. They marched through the sky while a trail of golden flames came out of their feet. Elder Julia had to deal with an army of enslaved hybrids, and Elder Regina found a series of red wh.i.p.s surging from a region nearby and cracking in her direction. Skully saw multiple magical plants growing around her under the effects of some inscriptions. They had green trunks and a series of thick metal-like branches that turned in her direction and began to charge at her. Massive structures came out of the ground from a region near June. They appeared as buildings with a series of runes on their sides, but their effects were unclear. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon witnessed how the ground of the region next to them surged to take the shape of a massive dark-yellow monster. The creature had two vaguely humanoid arms, but its body was round, and a large crack spread at its base as if it was a giant mouth. More puppets appeared near True Speed. They were different from those that had formed in the region near Faith. Her opponents had different shapes and emitted flames, while those against him seemed to be simple armored knights. Elder Laura had to face something similar to the wh.i.p.s against Elder Regina. She was against a series of large ballistae already pointed in her direction. Golden runes exploded in the region near Daniel, and three cultivators came out of the halo they had released. The trio appeared to belong to the Elbas family, but they had golden hair and green eyes, which expressed how far they were from the main bloodline. Yet, the three of them were powerhouses at the bottom of the sixth rank. It seemed that the Elbas family had managed to increase its number of assets on that level during the last five hundred years. ''The Royal Pool has survived the battle against King Elbas,'' Noah thought when he saw the three new powerhouses on the Royals'' side. The awful scent of the Royal Pool had reached his nostrils even if he was at some distance from the western coast. Noah was sure that the Elbas family had relied on that miraculous item to refill its assets. The battle broke out immediately. The powerhouses from the three organizations charged toward the new defenses and unleashed their cultivation level''s full might to fend them off. Most of those defenses carried a power similar to powerhouses at the bottom of the liquid stage, but they shared the same weaknesses as the golden spears. It would be hard for the weaker powerhouses to deal with the new defenses, but they were confident that the Elbas family couldn''t withstand a long battle. Great Elder Diana waved her hands, and her black lenses assembled behind her back. She then turned her weapons toward the giants while pointing her forefinger to the ground under her. Orange sparks acc.u.mulated behind the assembled lenses and released lightning bolts on their black glass. The power contained in Great Elder Diana''s spell skyrocketed after her attacks came out of her weapons, and three massive bolts crashed on the giants before they could even react. Other lightning bolts came out of her fingers. They weren''t as big as those enhanced by her inscribed weapon, but they were more than enough to deal with the formation creating the golden spears. The Matriarch didn''t want to stop her attack on the western coast. She had a way to maximize the depletion of energy on the enemy''s side, so she used most of her power to take care of both formations. God''s Left Hand did the same. She had understood the Elbas family''s situation, so she relied on massive storms and piercing attacks to destroy the regions around her and take care of the beams that the runes had begun to launch. Gales blew from behind her and crashed on the wall of runes together with the tornadoes that she created. Some of them took the shape of large arrows when she needed to destroy those formations'' cores. Many of the other powerhouses couldn''t deal with the new formations and the lines creating the golden spears at the same time. They needed the entirety of their cultivation level to face the defenses in the middle tier of the sixth rank. True Speed completely ignored the western coast as yellow sparks began to run on his legs. He charged toward the puppets while leaving a trail of cracks in the sky that closed in a few seconds. One of his kicks could make a puppet crumble even if their armors partially absorbed the lightning bolts released with his attacks. His power wasn''t overwhelming, but he could face that army even if his cultivation level made him unsuitable for that type of battle. Skully had also forsaken the coast, and her mental waves filled the sky as she tried to stop the metallic branches from converging on her spot. The magical plants around her continued to grow, but the powerhouse focused on increasing the number of gales condensed on the battlefield. Faith jumped right among the army charging at her and unleashed her individuality. The puppets tried to attack her, but their fiery abilities weren''t a match for the azure sphere that had appeared around her figure. The shield wasn''t mighty, but Faith''s individuality made all the attacks change their course and disperse into energy inside her defenses. *** Note: read the author''s thoughts. Chapter 1196: 1196. Energy Daniel was in the same situation as the weaker powerhouses. He was already stronger than the average cultivator in the gaseous stage of the sixth rank, but his opponents were quite annoying. He was against two men and one woman at the bottom of the sixth rank. Daniel couldn''t focus on the inscriptions generating the golden spears when he was busy with a battle on that level. A white halo spread from Daniel''s figure and covered a large chunk of the sky as he charged toward his opponents. The three powerhouses took out a series of defensive items before deploying various offensive spells that converged toward Daniel. A wave of blue flames, bird-like creatures made of gray metal, and three massive pillars flew toward Daniel. They entered the expanding white halo and tried to converge on the cultivator at its center. However, Daniel''s individuality purified those attacks and turned them into nothing more than "Breath". Even the auras of the Royals vanished from that energy under the effects of the white halo. The white light then morphed. Its surface became unstable as flares came out of its spherical shape. The flares shot in every direction and purified everything they touched. Any inscription illuminated by Daniel''s light vanished, and the powerhouses'' defenses crumbled when his individuality reached them. The Royals had deployed the usual defensive methods of the Elbas family. They wore golden armors, a golden halo surrounded their figures, and runes covered their skins. Their protections weren''t on the Princes and Princess'' level, but they still reached the peak of the lower tier in power. Yet, Daniel''s individuality turned them into nothing more than raw materials and pieces of metal. Moreover, the light that had seeped through the defenses had turned pieces of their skin into withered tissues. Cracks appeared on those spots under the stunned powerhouses'' inspection, and they couldn''t help but retreat when they understood how dangerous Daniel was. Daniel wasn''t as impressive as Noah when it came to his battle prowess, but he had one of the rarest aptitudes too. The many events in his life and his growth inside the Hive had made him capable of facing peak gaseous stage powerhouses even if he had been in the sixth rank for only a few centuries. June could take care of the coastline and the structures that had come out from the nearby region. She didn''t do that on purpose or, rather, unleashing her power affected the golden spears anyway, so she didn''t need to focus on them. Black sparks covered her figure and spread in the environment to give birth to a loud lightning storm. June''s higher energy behaved like Noah''s cloud, but it had far different effects. June''s heartbeat echoed through her higher energy, and lightning bolts shot out of it at every beat. The number of attacks even increased as June kept the ability active. The golden spear was still in her grasp, and part of the black sparks flowed inside it to prepare her next attack. June only needed to point it toward the structures that had begun to move in her direction to release a black wave of energy. The runes on the structure''s side lit up when June''s attack landed on them. A series of shining lines appeared on the buildings and activated the ability of those formations. A golden whirlpool appeared on top of the runes while June continued to keep the spear pointed at the first structure. Her higher energy continued to flow inside her weapon, but her attack didn''t seem able to destroy that building. The whirlpools struggled to deal with June''s higher energy. Their inscriptions'' purpose was to absorb "Breath", so that denser energy wasn''t something that they could dismantle easily. Yet, there was more than one building. The other structures moved to assist June''s target, and their inscriptions fused when they made their sides touch. The shining lines slid on the structures'' surface and reassembled themselves to suit that defensive measure''s new form. The buildings had previously been independent defenses, but they had turned into a tall wall that gave birth to a single massive whirlpool. June''s wave of energy eventually began to crumble under the effects of the golden whirlpool. Black sparks fell from the attacks'' structure and entered the runes on the tall wall. The golden inscriptions on its surface changed color as June''s higher energy fueled those formations. They became darker, and an orange halo started to surround the massive structure. Then, a golden beam came out of the whirlpool and started to fight against June''s attack. The two waves of energy pushed each other as they tried to overwhelm their opponent''s offensive. Orange and dark flashes shot out from the area where the two beams fought. The ground under the tall wall crumbled as June''s sparks fell on the terrain and unleashed their immense power on the environment. A series of cracks eventually formed around the area where the two beams fought. Openings toward the voids surrounded those chaotic but dense waves of energy and expanded as more power leaked into the sky. June continued to pour more energy into the spear, but she soon understood that something was off. She felt that her attack lost power during the clash with the defensive wall. The whirlpool didn''t disappear after it released the golden beam. It continued to absorb the black sparks and make them part of its power. Also, there didn''t seem to be an end to its capacity. June could only witness as her attack slowly lost its ground against the golden beam. The advance of the wall''s ability made the whirlpool absorb more of her higher energy and continued to increase its power. The golden beam eventually overwhelmed the black energy, and June felt forced to perform an evasive maneuver. Dense light fell on the storm that surrounded her, and it slowly lost power as lightning bolts pierced its structure. Part of the storms fell apart to destroy the golden beams, but higher energy came out of June''s figure and refilled those missing spots. Also, the new sparks appeared far denser and more threatening than the previous ones. June''s battle intent surged as she turned toward the tall inscribed wall. The runes on its surface had abilities similar to her individuality, and she felt excited to have found something that could endure her relentless blows. She had found an opponent that could force her to unleash even more power. That was what June had desired for the past centuries! Her heartbeat became more intense as waves of higher energy came out of her figure and fueled her abilities. Her spear started to tremble as sparks flowed endlessly inside its inscriptions, and a buzzing sound came out of its shape. The storm became more violent too. Dark clouds appeared high in the sky as a result of the influence of June''s sparks. She seemed to be able to influence the behavior of the environment with her aura. Shining lines lit up on the spear. They increased the amount of energy that the weapon could store, but June had long since stopped caring about its structural limits. A quasi-rank 6 weapon was a miraculous item in the hands of rank 5 cultivators. Yet, powerhouses required stronger assets, and June had reached that point as soon as she advanced. Daniel and Faith had to improve for a few decades before Noah''s living weapons couldn''t help them anymore. However, June had only needed to lose one clash to reach that point. Her Perfect Circuit produced so much energy that the entirety of her region on the western coast became nothing more than an array of black sparks. Lightning bolts fell from that array of higher energy and destroyed the ground under them. When June saw the first crack appearing on the spear, she pointed it at the wall and launched another crackling wave of energy. She intended to go all out and see where her individuality would bring her. Chapter 1197: 1197. Idea Elder Laura had her fair share of issues facing the defensive formations. She shot arrows against the ballistae''s bolts, but her attacks couldn''t stop those inscribed weapons'' attacks completely. The ballistae were inscribed weapons in the middle tier that launched bolts with power at the peak of the lower tier. The might that they were capable of was superior to most gaseous stage powerhouses. Elder Laura had to perform evasive maneuvers multiple times to dodge all the attacks coming in her direction. She even shot her morphing arrows toward the weapons when she found an opening, but her techniques would always crumble under the power of the bolts. Even if her arrows transformed into giant magical beasts, the bolts shot by the ballistae always pierced them to converge on her position. Moreover, the golden light filling the coastline was fixing the spears, so she was about to face formations on two sides. Still, Elder Laura couldn''t do anything to avoid that outcome. She could only do her best and try to find a flaw in the ballistae''s array. Elder Julia didn''t have any issue facing the hybrid army and dealing with the coastline at the same time. Her wind-slashes filled the sky above those regions and flew through everything that shone or moved. The formations on the coast couldn''t do anything against that display of power, but the hybrids opposed some resistance. The hybrid army had one Poisonous Giant Frog in the sixth rank as its leader. The creature''s centers of power were near the bottom of the sixth rank, but it had many weaker beings ready to give their lives to defend it. The creatures in the army didn''t belong to their leader''s species. They could only display basic battle formations, but that didn''t influence their battle prowess in front of a powerhouse. The weaker hybris had power between the fourth and fifth rank, and only a few of them had a quasi-rank 6 body. It seemed that the Elbas family didn''t invest too much in raising them and solely relied on their sheer power as a form of defense. The Royals only wanted an army that could protect their regions, and the chains locked on the creatures took care of that task. The Elbas family couldn''t care less if all the hybrids died to complete their missions. They were disposable assets anyway. The Poisonous Giant Frog was a threatening opponent for a cultivator. It had a strong body, but it didn''t lack long-range attacks that could match human spells. The Royals had also taught it a few techniques, so its battle prowess was far above the level of its centers of power. ''It''s a bad copy of the Ancestors,'' Noah thought when he looked at the Frog. He could see how the Elbas family had tried to improve the leader''s condition, but they had been quite sloppy at it. The Frog''s spells empowered its innate poisonous abilities, but it didn''t add other attacks to its arsenal. The Royals didn''t even try to make the creature express its full potential. They had disregarded fundamental aspects of its innate superiority as a hybrid. ''Their desire to control everything has always been their greatest weakness,'' Noah thought as a sigh escaped his mouth. He had suffered from the same behavior when he was only a human cultivator. The Royals desired to have complete control over their underlings, which affected their troops'' overall power. Elder Julia made most of her wind-slashes converge toward the hybrid army, and many of her hidden attacks pierced the ranks of the weaker beasts to crash on the Frog. The army''s leader used the creatures with a quasi-rank 6 body as its shields, but Elder Julia''s attacks were hard to notice, and even its superior awareness couldn''t help it in the task. It would have been different if the Frog was a bit stronger, but its level was far below Elder Julia''s, so it could only endure her attacks as it waited for an opening in her offensive. Elder Regina summoned an army of puppets that detonated whenever they clashed with the red wh.i.p.s. Part of her creations was already on the ground, dealing with the inscriptions that the golden light kept on rebuilding. The wh.i.p.s were massive and tried to catch her with their fast attacks, but Elder Regina was in complete control of the battlefield. Her puppets moved following precise battle formations that always left an escape route open for her. The puppets detonated every time the wh.i.p.s crashed on them, but Elder Regina never stopped creating more beast-like creatures to refill her army''s ranks. That battle style depleted her "Breath" quickly, but she didn''t care as long as she managed to inflict some damage on the red wh.i.p.s. Her goal was to make the Elbas family consume their reserves of energy, and she was doing great at that. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon were experienced fighters, so the appearance of that strange creature in the nearby region didn''t worry them. Moreover, they were among the best gaseous stage powerhouses in the world, and they were fighting together. They had nothing to fear in that situation. The creature appeared made of a mixture of metal, mud, and terrain. The Demons destroyed large chunks of its body with their attacks, but the region always provided more materials to fix those spots. Its arms could also stretch, and sharp spikes shot out of the four fingers of its vaguely humanoid hands. A dense gas came out of its large mouth too, but the Demons avoided all those attacks. Flying Demon covered the entire region on the coast with his white flowers. Ice spread from them, and his influence soon reached the strange creature. Ice began to cover the monster that replaced the frozen pieces of its body with more materials. Its endurance appeared connected to the number of resources in the ground, so defeating it slowly would hurt that area''s value. Dreaming Demon used Flying Demon''s ice to make her consciousness seep faster in the creature''s fabric. She wanted to take control of it, but she soon understood that the task wouldn''t be easy. The materials in the creature''s body were already under the influence of another consciousness, and the Royals seemed to have placed protections against her methods. Something or someone was already controlling the ground in the entire region, so the Demons had to find the existence behind that defense if they wanted to avoid ruining that land forever. "I''ll open a path," Flying Demon said toward his lover. He waved his hand, and the flowers shattered to release a storm of ice-shards that crashed on the monster. The creature''s movements slowed down as the attacks landed on its body. Pieces of frozen ground fell from its figure as the monster tried to replace its wounded parts, but Flying Demon''s offensive didn''t give it enough time to heal. The monster eventually stopped moving, and ice covered its whole figure. Flying Demon joined his hands in front of his chest, and a tall flower grew on the frozen creature. Then, Flying Demon''s hands separated, and cracks appeared on the tall flower''s structure. A vertical fissure spread from the white plant''s top and reached the creature. The crack began to spread on the frozen creature, and it soon opened a large cavity that divided its body in half. Flying Demon only had to split his hands further to open the monster and reveal its insides. Frozen terrain and mud fell from the creature''s insides when Flying Demon forced it open. Dreaming Demon''s consciousness shot forward to inspect it, but her mental waves had to reach deep inside the region to find the monster''s core. There was a small golden sphere made of a smooth metal under the monster. Dreaming Demon shared that vision with her lover, and Flying Demon couldn''t help but find similarities between that item and Noah''s Beast Cores. It seemed that the Elbas family had tried to create a fake sea of consciousness to give birth to that monster. They wanted to give life to the very ground of a region so that it could fight with them. The Demons exchanged a cold smile at that sight, and the same idea appeared inside their minds. Chapter 1198: 1198. Item Chaos spread on the western coast and the inland regions as the powerhouses unleashed their abilities to fight against the defensive formations. A golden halo covered the coast and tried to repair the inscriptions, but the destruction generated in the many battles worsened their condition. Some battles gave birth to shockwaves that spread even in the nearby regions and destroyed the formations on their surface. The Matriarchs'' were enough to clear all the central part of the coastline. The same wasn''t valid for the other powerhouses, but many of them managed to take care of the inscriptions in their regions even if they had to deal with other defensive formations. Still, there were spots where the golden light managed to fix the inscriptions. The southern side of the western coast had Daniel and other cultivators who were too busy with their new opponents and couldn''t take care of the formations under them. True Speed, Elder Laura, Faith, Daniel, and Skully had to neglect the coastline, and the golden halo soon fixed the inscriptions in some of their regions. Spears eventually formed and began to fly toward the intruders again. The battlefield became even messier at that point. Third Prince and Second Princess controlled the spears to focus the assets struggling against the formations. The Royals ignored the troublesome opponents to focus on those that would suffer the most from those attacks. Faith and True Speed had annoying abilities that would make them fend off the spears easily, so the formations focused on the other three powerhouses. Elder Laura had issues against the ballistae, but she had managed to become used to their offensive. She had also come close to hit a few of them between one attack and another. However, the golden spears'' arrival forced her to perform multiple evasive maneuvers in a row until she escaped from the formations'' range. The Elder couldn''t deal with both defenses and could only leave the battlefield for now. Skully was inside in an array of branches that tried to crash on her body and block every escape route. Her mental waves managed to fend off most attacks, but she had to rely on movement spells to dodge some of them. Her mental waves were dense and could stop a few branches, but there were too many of them. She could summon winds capable of destroying some attacks, but that wasn''t enough to block the magical plant''s offensive. Moreover, the formations around the magical plants improved their vitality and benefitted their growth, which gave birth to more branches every second. Skully soon found herself overwhelmed and had to rely on a different battle style to take care of her opponents. Her mental waves began to amass and condense into a different shape. Skully gave birth to a series of wind-slashes that resembled Elder Julia''s attacks. Skully''s slashes were quite tall and radiated an intense aura. They didn''t give off any sharpness but only relied on the amount of power acc.u.mulated inside their shapes to inflict damage. The wind-slashes flew toward the branches that restrained Skully''s flight and cut right through them, opening a path where she could escape. Skully''s felt excited to see that the new approach worked well against those magical plants, and she intended to focus their trunks after destroying every branch in her way. Yet, golden spears suddenly set off from the region behind her and converged in her position. They even dodged the branches on their path to preserve their power for the peculiar powerhouse. Skully cursed in her mind, but she promptly decided to escape from that situation. She couldn''t face both defenses at the same time, so she covered her figure with the wind-slashes and flew away from that entanglement. The branches fell apart as she escaped, but some spears landed on her and destroyed part of her defenses. A few of them even pierced her skin, leaving deep injuries on her body. Skully managed to escape the range of those formations at that point, but she didn''t stop amassing mental energy to create more attacks. The invasion wasn''t over, and she needed to be ready for when a new chance appeared. Daniel had it far harsher than his companions. His opponents were three powerhouses, and they could work together with the golden spears to maximize their opportunities. Waves of flames, bird-like puppets, and ice-pillars assaulted the white halo radiated by Daniel. The Royals didn''t mind that their attacks couldn''t cross his defenses. They only wanted to keep him in his place until the spears arrived. Daniel sensed the arrival of the spears, and his white halo became unstable again under his control. Flares came out of its uneven shape, and a few dense rays accompanied them in their offensive. The dense rays weren''t chaotic attacks. Daniel aimed them directly at the Royals while he flew toward their attacks to dodge the incoming spears. The white halo became thinner as Daniel''s light gathered inside his beams to enhance their piercing power. The Royals'' attacks couldn''t do anything against them, and they also had to dodge some flares as they avoided the enemy''s offensive. The spears pierced Daniel''s halo and flew through it for a while before dissolving into a small cloud of golden energy. They had almost defeated Daniel''s protection, but he wasn''t in their trajectory anymore. Daniel waved his hands at that point. His halo exploded outward and gave birth to a series of thin beams that aimed at the Royals. Yet, a series of golden spears appeared in their trajectory and gave the three powerhouses enough time to escape. The Royals didn''t let that chance go to waste. Daniel was defenseless, so they could hope to inflict some damage if they unleashed their best attacks. The water aptitude Royal created a series of pillars that converged in Daniel''s position. They left a trail of ice as they encircled him and tried to trap him in a cage-like structure. The earth aptitude Royal summoned an army of bird-like puppets that flew through the cage''s bars and forced Daniel to focus on them. He couldn''t unleash the white halo again with so many creatures keeping him busy. The fire aptitude Royal covered the entire area with blue flames that didn''t affect the ice created by her companion. Daniel couldn''t help but suffer injuries in that situation. The ice wasn''t a problem, but the birds were annoying to deal with since their metallic structure was sturdy. Also, the blue flames didn''t hurt them and affected only Daniel. A white radiance came out of Daniel''s skin and stopped most attacks. The flames vanished under the effects of his individuality, but the birds pierced his skin before dissolving into energy. The flames kept coming, and there were still many bird-like puppets sieging him. Moreover, the cage began to emit strange vibrations that suppressed the expansion of Daniel''s light. The three powerhouses were successfully suppressing him, and they had the time to cast more attacks while he tried to free himself. More golden spears had set off from the ground and were flying in his direction too, so he had to do something to avoid worse injuries. Daniel didn''t hesitate once his consciousness noticed the threats around him. An emblem appeared in his hand, and a blinding white halo spread from his figure. The light didn''t stop expanding until it engulfed the sky above the southern part of the western coast. Chapter 1199: 1199. Rolling Daniel relied on his divine item as soon as the situation became too problematic to handle with his current power. He knew that the invasion had only started, so he didn''t mind using his best tool to come out of those restrictions. The white light made everything vanish. The cage, the blue flames, and the bird-like puppets disappeared without leaving any trace. The Royals even retreated in front of such a display of power. The golden spears didn''t release any energy when the white light engulfed them. Daniel''s divine item eradicated their existence, but it didn''t reach the inscriptions on the coastline. Daniel had gained some time to breathe, but his situation didn''t change. The three powerhouses still targeted him, and the defensive formation had already resumed creating spears. Escaping appeared to be the best option in that situation. The invaders didn''t need to conquer the entirety of the coastline in their first attack, so retreating wasn''t a bad outcome. Daniel didn''t make the defensive formations deplete much energy because his opponents were cultivators, but keeping them busy had allowed his companions to take care of that task. Still, he didn''t want to retreat just yet. There were other cultivators in the same situation, and he could join them to exploit the flaws in the Royals'' defenses. The regions had different defenses, and they appeared able to affect only the lands nearby. The formations didn''t have a good range, so Daniel could use that feature to his advantage once he regrouped with some of his companions. He could even choose regions near the Matriarchs to have an easier fight. The two liquid stage powerhouses would take care of one side of the battlefield for him. However, when Daniel inspected the situation on the coastline, he found out that the Demons had already deployed a strategy that left him and all those checking the events stunned. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon had split the monster in half and found its core, but an idea had come to their minds when they saw that the golden sphere resembled Noah''s Beast Cores. Dreaming Demon was an expert capable of influencing the laws inside the matter with her mental waves, and she could even control other creatures with her individuality. The same went for fake seas of consciousness. They were even easier to subdue for her. When Daniel retreated in the air to gaze at the western coast as a whole, he saw the Demons sitting on top of the mud monster that charged recklessly at the regions nearby. Dreaming Demon controlled the monster to invade the coastline and destroy the inscriptions that the golden light tried to restore. Their goal was to use the creature to crush the spears multiple times until the Elbas family''s energy reserves vanished. That would make their task easier since the monster still relied on those resources to function. Its fake sea of consciousness was only an amass of instincts and tasks that the Royals had programmed it to do. The energy still came from the regions through a special connection between the golden sphere and the ground. The Demons didn''t understand how that connection worked, but they didn''t need to know that to make use of the monster. Dreaming Demon''s control was so subtle that it didn''t even trigger the failsafe placed by the Royals. The monster crossed entire regions in a matter of minutes. It became bigger as some of the ground where it crawled fused with its body. Flying Demon laughed as the monster laid waste to the formations. Its destruction was even more thorough than the powerhouses since it ripped off entire chunks of the ground and absorbed them into its shape. Skully could only reveal a smile when she saw the monster destroying the formations near the magical plants and moving toward the black storm. The Demons had given her the chance to fight undisturbed for a while, and she didn''t want to waste it. The monster moved toward June''s battlefield, and Flying Demon stood up to take care of the matter. Dreaming Demon had to keep her focus on the golden sphere, so she couldn''t help him in that situation. Flying Demon stared at the dense array of black sparks raised his hand. He knew that asking June to hold back for a while was pointless, especially when she was in the middle of an exciting battle. It would be faster if he opened a path through the storm. Flowers grew in a straight line between Flying Demon''s hand and the storm. The man''s individuality surged, and his creations exploded into an array of sharp shards that crashed on June''s black sparks. June''s higher energy was dense, and it would typically fend off most attacks. However, her focus was on the defensive wall in the other region. The storm around her was leftover energy that her Perfect Circuit created. A path opened among the storm. June''s sparks shattered, and ice appeared on their surface as Flying Demon''s influence engulfed them. Flying Demon then snapped his fingers, and those frozen sparks shattered. A wave of ice-shards fell from the sky as the monster crossed that region, and the Demon gathered them to create a shield above his group. Lightning bolts fell from other sides of June''s storm, but Flying Demon''s shield blocked any attack coming in his direction. His group soon went out of the wave of higher energy, and the ice-shield crumbled as they moved toward the Matriarchs'' battlefield. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana weren''t as focused as June. They noticed the Demons'' arrival and retracted their spells to let them pass without causing any trouble. The monster became bigger as it crawled through those regions and it eradicated the formations that created the spears along the way. The golden halo had to rebuild entire parts of the terrain to restore those inscriptions, and that made the Royal deplete even more energy. "They cut the connection with its sea of consciousness," Dreaming Demon said as she closed her eyes to pour part of her energy inside the creature''s core. "We are almost on the other side!" Flying Demon shouted as it placed his hands on the creature''s body. His "Breath" flowed inside the monster, and Dreaming Demon redirected it toward specific areas. The Royals couldn''t let one of their defenses fall into their enemies'' hands, but they took a while to cut the connection with the monster since they were busy managing the golden spears and other formations. Still, the Demons used their "Breath" as fuel for the creature so that they could finish their sweep of the coastline. After all, there was no better destroyer of inscriptions among their group. The creature retracted its strange arms and sealed its mouth to focus everything it had on reaching the other corner of the coast. Under Dreaming Demon''s control, the monster began to roll on those regions and rip off even more terrain. Daniel and Elder Laura could only smile when they saw Flying Demon laughing on top of a line of terrain that didn''t move even if the creature rolled. Dreaming Demon had created a platform that made them remain still no matter which actions the monster performed. The monster eventually reached the end of the coastline, and its structure began to crumble as it fell into the sea. The creature gave off a loud cry, but the Demons didn''t even glance at it as they jumped back on the continent. There was only destruction in front of them. The golden halo tried to restore those pieces of ripped ground, but the process was far slower than before. The group could focus on the formations in-land without worrying about the spears for a while. Also, now that the Demons were on the southern side, they could help with the defenses that had made their companions struggle. Chapter 1200: 1200. Division Daniel was aware of the Demons'' mindset, so he shot directly toward the Royals. A white light came out of his figure and covered the area with a thick aura that seeped through every surface. The intensity of Daniel''s aura increased as he neared the powerhouses, and even the sky began to suffer under the effects of his individuality. The air slowly vanished, and cracks opened in the sky as Daniel''s light destabilized its structure. It seemed that he could even affect the laws in the environment when he went all-out. The Royals retreated while launching their spells. The three powerhouses relied on their techniques to slow down Daniel''s advance, but dizziness soon invaded their mind and made them lose control of their abilities. Ice began to spread under their feet. The Royals weren''t aware of what was happening around them. They didn''t even notice that their legs had fused with the chunk of ice under them. They were utterly defenseless, and Daniel only needed to touch them with his light to deliver a fatal blow. A wave of golden flames engulfed the Royals and fended off the white light when Daniel''s halo was about to touch the three powerhouses. The fire didn''t hurt the Royals. It acted as protection meant to give them time to retreat. Third Prince and Second Princess had launched it to save their powerful assets. Yet, the flames didn''t manage to shake off the Demons'' influence thoroughly. They had fended off Daniel''s light and gave them some clarity back, but Flying Demon''s ice remained unaffected by that fire. "Not so fast," Flying Demon said as he and his lover reached Daniel''s position. The trio glanced at the three powerhouses still engulfed in the golden flames before looking toward the Royals in the distance. Third Prince and Second Princess could only reply with an ugly expression to their gazes. Flying Demon raised his hand, Daniel pointed his palm toward his enemies, and Dreaming Demon closed her eyes to unfold her consciousness. The Hive''s trio was about to unleash their offensive on the trapped Royals, but Third Prince and Second Princess acted before their attacks were ready. The three Royals began to scream in pain as part of the golden flames burned them. The Hive''s trio remained speechless when they saw the powerhouses leaving the ice to escape through the fire. It wasn''t hard to understand how the three had pulled that off. Third Prince and Second Princess had saved their underlings by turning their legs into ashes. Flying Demon and Daniel wanted to chase after the departing Royals, but Dreaming Demon gestured them to stop. Her consciousness was still inside the area, so she could see part of what waited for them ahead of that region. Surpassing the golden flames wasn''t a problem. Third Prince and Second Princess had become stronger after King Elbas'' departure, but they were still against some of the world''s best gaseous stage cultivators. Yet, Dreaming Demon sensed some danger coming from the region where the three Royals were escaping. She felt that her group might not be able to cross it easily. "Let''s focus on the coast," Dreaming Demon eventually announced as she opened her eyes and retracted part of her consciousness. She didn''t need to explain anything to her two companions. Both of them were aware of her abilities and trusted her judgment. There had to be a good reason if she had decided to stop the chase. The trio''s eyes moved north at that point. The monster''s charge had helped all the battlefields, but cultivators were still struggling to defeat the defensive formations. "One each," Dreaming Demon said before flying toward True Speed''s region. Flying Demon winked at Daniel before flying toward Elder Laura''s battlefield, and the latter pretended not to understand his gesture when he gazed at the remaining fights. There was only Faith to help on that side of the coast, so Daniel flew toward her. Once the reinforcements arrived, the situations on those battlefields utterly changed. True Speed had continued to crush armored puppets since the beginning of the invasion. The Royals had even avoided to target him with the golden spears because his movement technique was too troublesome to deal with. The expert from the Shandal Empire would escape. Using the golden spears against him was a waste of resources. True Speed didn''t manage to destroy many puppets. He had to use all his physical strength to make one of them crumble, but they used battle formations that often limited how often he could attack. Moreover, the puppets had started to counter his physical strength by assembling more pieces of armor. They only needed to gather the materials from the destroyed golems to build better ones. True Speed continued to fight even in that situation. He didn''t care if he now needed two or three blows to deal with a puppet. He would still remain on the battlefield because his organization needed his efforts. The Shandal Empire was the weakest among the world''s forces, and it also had worse growth. Both the Hive and the Council had seen cultivators advance to powerhouses'' rank even if the three of them had shared those centuries of isolation inside the separate dimension. Even the Elbas family had managed to produce more powerhouses. The Royals'' methods weren''t orthodox, but that still didn''t justify the Empire''s low growth. True Speed could only believe that the Shandal Empire had a flawed foundation at that point. He didn''t know if Shandal''s influence had something to do with it, but he needed to give his organization a home if he wanted to find and fix those flaws. That was why he couldn''t leave the battlefield no matter what. He had to seize regions where the Empire could prosper and improve its mindset as an organization. The puppets suddenly stopped moving when Dreaming Demon reached True Speed''s battlefield. The cultivator from the Empire wanted to complain when he sensed her, but he decided to remain silent. There was no need to discuss who would own that region if they were to work together. The priority was to capture it. Dreaming Demon glanced at him before nodding and closing her eyes. She had understood that True Speed wouldn''t object to the two of them fighting together, so she decided to become sober. Her consciousness spread in the environment and seeped inside the puppets'' structure. Still, they were powerful enough to hinder Dreaming Demon''s influence, so she focused on stripping them off their armors. The puppets'' armors shattered. Metallic shards fell toward the ground and revealed the unpolished torso and legs of those golems. The Royals didn''t even bother to finish them since they had to wear protections all the time. True Speed didn''t let go of that chance and sprinted forward. The puppets usually tried to rely on their strong defense to encircle him after enduring one of his kicks, but the situation had changed now. The puppets weren''t much for him without their armors. A kick was more than enough to kill one of them. True Speed ran through the puppet army and kicked everything he found. He didn''t bother to maximize his momentum anymore since they were defenseless, so he could focus on taking care of them as quickly as he could. Half of the army had fallen apart when the puppets understood that they had lost their armors. Chapter 1201: 1201. Allies "Need a hand?" Flying Demon said as he reached the battlefield with the ballistae. Elder Laura had managed to regain some control over her battle after the monster took care of the golden spears, but her situation wasn''t ideal. The ballistae were still threatening opponents for someone on her level, and she never managed to damage any of them. Flying Demon laughed when he saw that the Elder didn''t answer him. His hand rose in the air, and countless flowers grew in the sky between the inscribed weapons and the powerhouse. The bolts shot from the ballistae crushed the flowers, but a layer of ice covered them after the shards of Flying Demon''s spell filled the area. The ice froze the bolts and spread through the sky. Flying Demon used the frozen arrow as the cores of a white net that gave birth to more flowers. The net continued to expand, and it soon reached the ballistae. Golden runes shone on their surface, and bolts materialized on their strings after their light dimmed. Those weapons reloaded automatically, and they didn''t even need cultivators to control them. The Royals could aim them at their opponents even if they were far away from that region. The ballistae attacked again, and the bolts pierced part of the net before remaining stuck in its cold structure. Moreover, the ice continued to expand, and the Royal soon felt forced to move those weapons back. Elder Laura didn''t let that chance go to waste. Her arrows were far nimbler than the bolts, so she could shoot them through Flying Demon''s net. Five blue arrows materialized on her inscribed bow and shot in the holes of the net when she released the bowstring. Her attacks transformed into long snake-like creatures that flew through Flying Demon''s spell and converged on one of the retreating ballistae. The snakes crashed on the weapon without managing to inflict any damage. The ballistae weren''t as fragile as the bolts. They were inscribed items in the middle tier, so a simple attack from Elder Laura''s wasn''t enough to destroy them. However, inscribed weapons generally had specific weaknesses, especially when it came to bows and crossbows. The snakes continued to move after they landed on the ballista. They slithered over its body until they could stab their fangs on the string. The weapon would be useless if they managed to destroy that piece. Of course, the Royals had prepared defensive measures. They were aware of the weaknesses of those weapons. The fact that they didn''t require cultivators to function left them open to attacks on their structure. A golden light began to come out of the ballista attacked by Elder Laura. The halo corroded the snakes wrapped around the weapon and made them vanish before they could destroy the string. The halo continued to shine even after the snakes vanished. The light repaired the damages on the string and restored it to a perfect condition in seconds. The last attack didn''t lead anywhere. Elder Laura appeared unable even to destroy one of those weapons! Flying Demon''s laugh continued to resound in the sky, and Elder Laura turned to shot an angry glance at him. She felt as if the Demon was mocking her, but he pointed at the ballista before she could say anything. The golden halo vanished after it fixed the damages on the string, but white flowers suddenly started to grow from the spots attacked by the snakes. The flowers grew until they covered one-third of the weapon, and the golden halo reappeared to stop them. Yet, Flying Demon snapped his fingers and detonated his spell. The explosion destroyed the string and part of the slider before releasing a storm of ice-shards shot that flew toward the ballistae nearby. Flowers began to grow where the spell hit them, and a golden halo soon started to shine from them too. Flying Demon continued to detonate his spell whenever the golden halo was about to stop his flowers. Ice-shards flew in every direction and expanded his influence whenever they landed on other weapons. That cycle continued until the golden light managed to eradicate every trace of Flying Demon''s individuality. Still, he had already rendered three ballistae harmless by that time. More light filled the area and tried to fix the damaged weapons, but the restoration was slow since they lacked essential pieces of their structure. The pressure on Flying Demon and Elder Laura diminished by a lot for the time being. Even if Flying Demon had managed to damage the ballistae and bring the invaders one step closer to victory, Elder Laura didn''t feel happy about that outcome. Anger surged from inside Elder Laura as she inspected the net before turning toward Flying Demon again. "You tainted my attack!" Elder Laura shouted in an angry tone, but Flying Demon limited himself to smirk at her. "We are allies!" Elder Laura continued since she didn''t feel satisfied with that answer. "You could have just told me that you were to hide your attacks inside my arrows. There was no need to do it secretly." Flying Demon had used his net to taint Elder Laura''s arrows with part of his individuality, but she didn''t like the fact that he had kept that action a secret from her. "I could have," Flying Demon said as a cold smile appeared on his face, "But now you are aware of the difference between our power." A chill ran down Elder Laura''s spine when she heard those words. Flying Demon wasn''t threatening her, but his actions had a motive that went beyond alliances and enmities. Flying Demon had shown her that he could hide his attacks inside hers freely. Elder Laura didn''t even notice that until he revealed what he had done. That was a proper show of force that the Demon had done without any apparent reason. He only wanted Elder Laura to know that they were worlds apart in terms of battle prowess. "Why?" Elder Laura couldn''t help but ask. She didn''t believe that Flying Demon''s only motivation was to show off. "It was easy to follow the Hive when it gave you a home," Flying Demon answered without withdrawing his coldness. "I don''t want anything bad to happen now that we are outside again." Understanding dawned upon Elder Laura at that point. The Demon wasn''t looking at the invasion. His eyes were already gazing on the future of the alliance after it reclaimed the new continent. His demonstration was a reminder that the Hive and the Council weren''t equals anymore. They were allies, but Noah''s words had more importance than others. "Now," Flying Demon continued after he saw that Elder Laura had understood his message, "Can I use your arrows to reach the ballistae? I think working together is the best option in this situation." Flying Demon winked at Elder Laura after he finished his line, and she felt even angrier about the whole situation. Yet, she wasn''t a hotheaded cultivator who would fall prey to her feelings when there were many political issues at stake. Elder Laura suppressed her anger and nodded at Flying Demon. Five arrows appeared on the string of her bow as she drew it. She was ready to resume her offensive. As for her feelings, she couldn''t vent them in front of a powerhouse far stronger than her. Chapter 1202: 1202. Help Faith was against puppets that released golden flames wherever they flew. They had various sizes, but the biggest one wasn''t even ten meters tall. Yet, their size indicated how many flames they released during their flight. The bigger ones left wide trails that filled the sky with the iconic fire of the Elbas family. An azure sphere covered Faith and protected her from the puppets'' offensive. They could only throw punches at her and slash with their silver swords, but those attacks couldn''t even pierce the external layers of Faith''s defenses. Her only problem was the fire. Her influence on the environment suppressed the puppets'' flames, but there were too many of them flying around her. The situation would become problematic if she lost control of the battlefield for even a second, but her casual attacks weren''t enough to destroy the puppets. She eventually decided to prepare a strong spell while she kept her defenses active, but that shrunk her influence on the battlefield and let some of the flames run wild. Faith had predicted that outcome, but she didn''t mind it. She wasn''t scared about those puppets. She had felt more fear during some of her sparring sessions with June. A white light soon shone on the battlefield, and Daniel surpassed the encirclement of puppets to enter inside Faith''s sphere. His attack destroyed the fire acc.u.mulated in the area, but it didn''t manage to touch the golems since they retreated as soon as they sensed his individuality. "How long do you need?" Daniel asked. He had known Faith long enough to understand what she was doing. "Not much," Faith replied. "It should be enough to take care of most of them." "Do you need help?" Daniel continued. Faith wasn''t the last powerhouse who had been unable to keep the golden spears in check. He would fly toward Skully if there were no need for his presence there. "I don''t really need it," Faith replied, "But it doesn''t feel bad to fight together. We can finish them quickly if you remain here." Daniel glanced at her without revealing any expression, and Faith turned toward him while wearing a similar face. None of them said anything when their eyes met. Faith continued to gather energy for her spell, and light acc.u.mulated on Daniel''s palms as they remained in that position. They both wanted to add something, but they felt that there was no need for words. They had grown closer through the years, and both of their individualities had improved since they first met. Now they stood at the peak of the heroic rank, and they had both become beacons of hope for the weaker cultivators. Their roles in their organizations were similar, which made them spend a lot of time together inside the separate dimension. Faith''s peace and Daniel''s purity were quite suitable for each other, and they had even discovered that cultivating together brought them benefits. Daniel and Faith had never gone past their friendly relationship. It wasn''t something that they could do easily. Both of them had issues in that aspect of their lives to overcome before they could even understand what they wanted. Still, they both liked spending time together, so they didn''t mind using situations to their advantage. That battle was only the last of the many experiences they had decided to share after a silent understanding. Daniel joined his hands, and a long rapier made of light formed in front of him as he separated them. He then wielded the weapon and thrust it at one of the bigger puppets that flew around Faith''s protection. The rapier released a flash after Daniel''s sharp movement, but nothing flew through the air. Yet, the puppet flew backward and shot in the distance after he completed the attack. Daniel continued to thrust his rapier, and other puppets shot in the distance. It was as if something had managed to fling them away, but they couldn''t understand the nature of that attack. The puppets flung in the distance returned in Faith''s position to cover the area with their golden flames, but small marks had appeared on their torso after the last clash. The marks were as big as a thumb and released a trail of smoke. Some of them were deep enough to pierce through the other side of the puppets, while others only managed to reach the center of their bodies. The smaller puppets had suffered the worst injuries, but they didn''t appear too threatening. Small holes weren''t dangerous for those beings. However, Daniel kept on thrusting his rapier and launch his invisible attacks. The puppets couldn''t do anything to avoid them, and holes appeared even on their flames when they tried to use them as shields. Faith didn''t have to worry about the puppets at all with Daniel weakening them. She already had the advantage in that battle, but his arrival made her even more certain about her victory. The water shield began to tremble once Faith acc.u.mulated enough "Breath". A humming sound echoed from her defensive spell, and the puppets began to slow down when those soundwaves reached them. Third Prince and Second Princess could control the puppets and rearrange them into various battle formations, but those golems began to ignore their orders after Faith''s spell released that sound. Some of the puppets even flew toward Faith and remained in front of her protection. It seemed that the humming sound could affect their behavior and make them attracted to her energy. Then, Faith''s sphere exploded, and her water burst outward. Most of the puppets found themselves engulfed by the waves created right in the middle of the sky, but the impact was easy to endure. The puppets didn''t reveal any injury after Faith''s water swept them, but they had stopped releasing golden flames. They didn''t even charge at the two powerhouses anymore. Faith had rendered them unable to do any harm. "They are all yours," Faith said as she lost interest on that battlefield. She could destroy those puppets herself, but Daniel had an offensive spell at hand already. Daniel thrust his rapier until all the light that it contained vanished. Then, he joined his hand against to create a long spear that he threw toward a crowded area. The spear detonated when it reached its destination, and a white halo covered the area around it. Daniel''s individuality began to affect that chunk of the sky, and the puppets inside it started to lose pieces of their bodies under its effects. His thrusts had opened small holes in the puppets that destabilized the puppets'' structure, and his light returned their bodies to their original form. Raw materials appeared in the sky as Daniel''s individuality turned those defenses into nothing more than metals and other items. The puppets'' army lost almost all its members in only one joint attack, and the two powerhouses wanted to pressure their opponents until all of them became nothing more than dust. Yet, the Royals called their defense back and left that region unprotected. Third Prince and Second Princess knew that they were losing a lot during that invasion. The best they could do in that situation was to preserve as many assets and resource that they could. It was pointless to invest them into territories that they couldn''t defend. Faith and Daniel watched the puppets leaving the battlefield and exchanged a glance. They stared at each other for a while before Daniel broke the silence with a question. "Do you want to help Skully?" "Sure," Faith replied, and the two of them set off to reach the region where Skully was fighting. Chapter 1203: 1203. Conquest The new defenses deployed by the Elbas family began to fall. One by one, the invaders managed to overcome the challenges in the regions near them. Great Elder Diana slowly destroyed the giants that tried to catch her with their spears. The healing light of the formations tried to fix their injuries, but the Matriarch''s offensive was relentless and never gave them time to breathe. Moreover, she was too fast for those giants. Their number didn''t help them since the Matriarch only viewed them as targets to destroy. God''s Left Hand was in a similar situation. The wall of runes against her could only crumble when it faced her storms and dense gales. Each of her spells inflicted heavy damages on those inscriptions, and the golden light coming from the ground never manage to fix them entirely before the next wave of attacks arrived. Elder Julia eventually crushed the army of hybrids. The Poisonous Giant Frog was a resilient opponent, but the powerhouses assaulted it with attacks that it couldn''t even see. The other hybrids in the army tried to shield their leader from her spells, but their effort was pointless since Elder Julia always managed to make some wind-slash slip past the blockage. Elder Julia''s battle style was also flawless, and she left openings in her offensive only when she wanted to lure the hybrids into a trap. The Royals felt forced to make the army retreat at some point to salvage some of their most valuable assets. Elder Regina''s approach was different from her companions. Her puppets couldn''t inflict heavy damages on the red wh.i.p.s, but they could leave many injuries on their structure. She would have to create something bigger to eradicate them, but she had chosen to opt for a different strategy. The Elbas family had limited resources and assets. The Royals didn''t have the power to stop the three organizations when they worked together. Still, it had the chance to preserve a few regions if the invaders committed some mistake during their attack. Ending a battle as quickly as possible was usually good since it limited the chances of suffering losses. Yet, the Royal didn''t have much energy stored, so depleting it would benefit even the future battles. Elder Regina''s life wasn''t in danger against the red wh.i.p.s. She could fight slowly and force the Royals to fix their defenses multiple times to maximize their energy consumption. Skully and the magical plants appeared to have reached a stalemate. The powerhouse managed to destroy branches from time to time, but she never injured the trunks of those defenses. The magical plants had it a bit worse than her. They couldn''t catch her, and her innate ability made her a troublesome opponent to trap with a few branches. The best they could do was stopping her from advancing. However, Faith and Daniel soon arrived in her help, and they ignored any strategy when they joined the battle. The sheer power of the three powerhouses was more than enough to eradicate those magical plants. True Speed and Elder Laura''s battles ended soon after the Demons joined them. Dreaming Demon''s influence on the puppets made them easy targets, and Flying Demon''s abilities were quite effective against inscribed weapons. June had to struggle in her battle. The defensive wall appeared able to absorb every attack that landed on its surface, and it could turn that energy into beams slightly stronger than the original technique. The whirlpool continued to overwhelm her attacks, but that only pushed her Perfect Circuit to generate more energy. The energy released in her battle was so intense that the regions under her shattered whenever it leaked. June''s spear was full of cracks. It had long surpassed a quasi-rank 6 weapon''s structural limits, and it remained in one piece only because its quality went far beyond ordinary inscribed items. Noah had built it knowing that June would wield it, and she had reinforced it with her formations. A weapon that had gone through those two experts couldn''t break easily. June cleaned her mouth with the edge of her sleeve. She had spat some blood after the last clash with the defensive wall. The beam that it had released had utterly overwhelmed her attack, and it had almost reached her. Her complexion was pale, but she radiated more energy than ever. The storm around her had covered the entire region by now. Still, it didn''t expand because the shockwaves released in Matriarchs'' battles destroyed her higher energy when it went too far. June''s battle intent filled the storm and made it release countless lightning bolts toward the ground. Her sole presence had managed to unleash destruction in a wide area, but even that amount of power wasn''t enough to defeat the formation against her. There was a limit to how much she could achieve with sheer power, but June didn''t believe that her individuality could lose against some inscriptions. She had to win when it came to battles of that kind. June knew that there had to be a limit to how much energy the whirlpool could absorb. However, she had yet to find it. The defensive wall had managed to reflect all her previous attacks. Still, she had a plan. Her spear wouldn''t survive that tactic, but it was time to change her weapon anyway. She couldn''t think of a better way to use it either. June pointed her spear at the defensive wall, and all the sparks started to fly toward her figure. The storm quickly disappeared, and black lightning bolts began to run through her body. An intense aura spread through the sky as June condensed that higher energy. She did the same for the new sparks that her Perfect Circuit had produced after losing against the wall before making everything flow inside her weapon. More cracks opened on the golden spear, but June traced lines around its structure as her higher energy flowed inside it. Black lines formed around the living weapon and created a formation that stopped its destruction. Third Prince and Second Princess revealed a surprised expression when they saw that. They were inscription masters with a lot of experience in multiple cultivation fields, but they had never seen someone creating formations in the sixth rank with simple movements. Formations even required specific materials, but she didn''t use anything except for her higher energy. They didn''t know where June had learnt to perform such inscriptions, but that level of expertise exceeded theirs. June continued to reinforce the spear until all her higher energy condensed in its structure. She decided to attack only when her Perfect Circuit became empty and started to produce more fuel. The tip of the spear shattered as soon as June released her wave of energy, and the rest of the shaft ended up in the same state when her attack reached the defensive wall. The whirlpool activated and began to absorb the energy contained in June''s attack, but the lines that covered the wall started to flicker after a while. Small explosions happened on the inscribed structure. Some of the lines on its surface became unable to withstand that flow of power and detonated, releasing the energy they had acc.u.mulated in the process. That trend continued until even the rune under the whirlpool began to flicker. June only had a small part of the spear''s flat end left in her hand, but she never stopped her offensive. Cracks spread from the rune, and orange light came out of them. The golden halo tried to fix those damages, but June''s flow of energy was too intense for that formation. The wall tried to release some of that energy by launching a beam that could counter June''s attack, but that attempt failed before even starting. The rune couldn''t stabilize itself under an assault on that level. The cracks eventually spread until the wall''s stability fell apart, and the whole structure blew apart, releasing thick lightning bolts that gave birth to a storm wherever they landed. The end of June''s battle was the last defeat that Third Prince and Second Princess were willing to witness on that day. They deactivated the healing formation with a wave of their end, and they disappeared from the battlefield before anyone could think about chasing them. The invaders had yet to realize that, but they had already conquered the entire western coast and nearby regions. Chapter 1204: 1204. Settling The invasion continued for a while even after Third Prince and Second Princess retreated. There were still defenses active on the regions involved in the attack, but the powerhouses didn''t take long to defeat them. Without the healing light, those formations weren''t as threatening as before. The powerhouses could defeat them slowly and group up whenever they needed. The Royals had also recalled all the valuable assets, which made it even easier for the invaders. They had already gained the advantage in that battle, so the fights could only lead to one outcome. The invaders conquered the western coast and the regions nearby during their first attack. Not even a day had passed since they left the separate dimension, but they had already regained some footing on the new continent. Of course, they couldn''t directly rebuild habitations and similar structures. The invaders had to take care of all the inscriptions hidden inside the terrain and perform a thorough inspection of the whole area. Five hundred years weren''t a long time for heroic cultivators, but they were enough to place traps and similar protections on the whole new continent. Luckily for the invaders, the Hive had an asset capable of identifying most inscriptions. Only divine formations could escape his eyes. Noah sent Thirty-seven and other powerhouses of the Hive to explore all the regions conquered in the attack. He prohibited to set foot on the new continent until his underlings completed that analysis. The army could only hover above the sea while they waited for the powerhouses to complete the inspection. The experts in the heroic ranks helped the human cultivators, and all of them trembled in excitement at the scenery that filled their eyes. Those assets were eager to reach those lands, but they respected Noah''s orders. Waiting a few weeks wasn''t hard after five hundred years spent in the barren separate dimension. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana used that time to negotiate with Noah. They knew how much he hated handling political issues, but they needed to decide a few things before their organizations started settling in those regions. "The Shandal Empire should get as many regions as the Council," God''s Left Hand argued. "We might even split the coastline into three equal parts." "I disagree," Great Elder Diana said. "The Empire doesn''t have the assets to defend so many territories. It would be a waste to leave these lands in your hands." "We can''t grow if you keep on giving us nothing but scraps," God''s Left Hand complained. "The Empire is the weakest organization only because the entire world has continued to suppress us since the Almighty''s departure." God''s Left Hand mentioned Shandal to remind the leaders that her Patriarch was still in the Immortal Lands. The god of the Empire would return one day, and she wanted to make sure that they didn''t forget that. "That''s exactly what the Empire has done for millennia!" Great Elder Diana replied. "The Council didn''t forget the centuries spent fighting in the old continent. This is simply payback for those years." Noah remained silent while the two Matriarchs discussed next to him. Both of them wanted him to pick a side, but he couldn''t care less about their arguments. Also, those discussions bored him. He only wanted that invasion to be over so that he could start looking for something to do until he reached the seventh rank. "We''ll divide the conquered territories equally," Noah said, and his words put a smile on God''s Left Hand''s face. Yet, his following lines made her expression freeze. Noah wore a cold as he turned toward the Matriarchs to continue speaking. "Yet, I suggest you take what you can defend. We don''t want to create tension among our organizations so soon, right?" The Matriarchs understood the meaning behind Noah''s words, and God''s Left Hand couldn''t help but curse in her mind when she heard them. The Empire only had two powerhouses in its ranks. That amount of power was nothing against the numerous assets of the alliance. Nothing would stop the Hive and the Council from attacking the Shandal Empire once they established themselves on the new continent. God''s Left Hand could only decide to be humble in that situation and aim for a lower number of regions. Great Elder Diana did the same. The Hive was stronger than the Council, and the Matriarch wanted to convey that she accepted Noah''s leadership inside the alliance. The world would still see her and Noah on the same level, but they would know who was in charge of the alliance. Great Elder Diana''s behavior surprised Noah. He wondered how such an old monster could accept a new leader so easily, but he guessed that she was smarter than most powerhouses. The events in the past centuries had established the Hive''s superiority, and Great Elder Diana wasn''t willing to fight to reject that statement. She had accepted her new status and was already looking at how that could benefit her. Noah felt a bit disappointed by that outcome. Great Elder Diana was the only existence in the world who could face him in battle. Second Prince was probably still around, but Noah had never considered him his equal. Without opponents, Noah could only continue training alone. The only adventurous idea that appeared in his mind was the exploration of the other world''s core, but he didn''t even know if King Elbas had left the dimensional portal open. ''Don''t tell me that I have to remain in seclusion until I reach the divine ranks,'' Noah thought before suppressing his worries. He did not doubt that he would reach the Immortal Lands, but he didn''t know how boring the journey toward the higher plane would be. The group of powerhouses and Thirty-seven spent a few weeks inspecting every inch of the territories involved in the invasion. They found a few traps and some inscriptions that had survived the battle, but they took care of them on the spot. The cultivators from the dimension could finally begin to settle on the new continent at that point. Noah gave the ok on the matter, and the army divided itself as the assets followed their respective leaders toward the appointed regions. Noah did the same with the Hive, but he limited himself to assign roles to the higher-ups before choosing a region that could work as his temporary training area. In the end, he settled in the area that had once featured the azure plain. King Elbas had transformed it into a green prairie after he burned it, and Noah couldn''t find anything better when it came to the density of "Breath" and sturdiness of the ground. The three organizations went silent at that point. All their higher-ups and inscription masters began to reinforce their borders and build structures that could accommodate their underlings. There was a lot to build and even more to reorganize, but they neglected the projects that would take many years to focus on creating defenses that could blow a few assaults. The experts knew that their invasion wouldn''t stop there. It was pointless to create robust defenses in regions that would lose their status as edges of their domain soon. It was better to focus everything on stabilizing their situation so that they could resume the invasion without worrying about their new homes. Chapter 1205: 1205. Puppets The invasion resumed a few months after the three organizations settled in their new homes. They only built a few habitations and created many protections before venturing to the regions more inland. The Elbas family showed that it still had many defenses worthy of its fame. The Royals revealed most of their arsenal in the battles that followed the first invasion. King Elbas had created many defenses during the five hundred years of undisturbed rule. The number of resources available in the world had diminished after his mindless destruction of the new continent. Still, he had managed to put together a few protections that made the invaders struggle. The inscribed items in the middle tier weren''t a problem for the powerhouses of the three organizations. However, Third Prince and Second Princess used them together with battle formations performed by their weaker assets. Moreover, they even revealed rank 6 inscribed weapons in the upper tier. The invaders didn''t even reach the new continent''s center when five massive puppets surged from the regions and began to face the invaders. An Eight-armed Titan, a massive Snake, a Nine-headed Hydra, a Phoenix, and a Three-headed dog appeared on the second line of defense of the Elbas family. The puppets represented the Princes and Princesses'' iconic spells. Golden flames came out of their red bodies, and they consumed the Royals'' blood to work. The five puppets expressed power that only solid stage powerhouses could wield, but that didn''t mean that they were unbeatable. They were still inscribed weapons, and the invaders could find countermeasures to their prowess. The appearance of the puppets slowed down the invasion. The troops from the three organizations had to study those weapons before approaching them. They couldn''t just charge at defenses stronger than them. Noah kept his promise and stayed away from the battlefields for an entire year. It didn''t matter that his underlings suffered defeats. That process was necessary for their growth. Even weaker heroic cultivators had joined the fray in that period. Large battles happened in the air every time the invaders attempted a new tactic against the puppets. During that year, the invaders focused their efforts on the Three-headed Dog since it appeared to be the weakest puppet. It was on the same level of power as the other upper tier items, but its attacks were slightly easier to predict and avoid. Still, the Three-headed Dog managed to defeat its opponents even if they tried to exploit its weaknesses. The difference in their power was too great, even if the three organizations worked together to beat it. The invaders didn''t lose their morale because of those defeats. Wars among heroic assets could last for decades, and they only needed to defeat the puppet once to eradicate it. The Royals had even avoided using the healing light during the last battles. It seemed that their reserves of energy had already reached a critical condition in that year, so they could only rely on their defenses'' intrinsic power. There was another reason behind the invaders'' unyielding battle intent. They had only relied on God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana during that year when it came to opponents that they couldn''t face. Yet, the strongest cultivator in history could finally step on the battlefield now that one year had passed. The Matriarchs wouldn''t have to be the main offensive force in their attack anymore. Noah could join them. The appearance of the puppets had ignited Noah''s battle intent since he had finally found worthy opponents. He couldn''t help but consider them as a gift left to make his boredom vanish. One year after the three organizations left the separate dimension, Noah set off from his training area and flew toward the territories that featured the fiery puppets. Those areas had been nothing more than destroyed rocky environments before the battle against King Elbas, but they featured tall mountains that showed some trace of vegetation now. The invaders'' previous attacks had destroyed most of the fauna there, but some lifeforms still survived in a few protected zones. It seemed that even the Elbas family wanted to preserve part of the life on the new continent. Noah''s arrival on the battlefield was a signal that awakened the weaker troops from the three organizations. They had kept track of the passage of time during the past attacks, so they had prepared themselves for the moment when he would join the fray. The Demons, the Matriarchs, and the other powerhouses rose in the sky and reached Noah, who kept on flying toward the central regions. None of them said a word as more troops gathered behind them. The rank 4 and 5 cultivators of the three organizations would typically fight the Elbas family''s experts on areas far away from the existences in the sixth rank. Yet, none of them intended to join the battlefield on that day. They all wanted to witness Noah''s power. None of them wanted to miss that scene. Noah felt eager too. He had studied the reports regarding the puppets, and he had observed the fights of the other powerhouses. The invaders couldn''t gather many details about the Three-headed Dog''s abilities since they had faced it only four times, but that was enough to identify its most threatening attacks. The puppet''s flames were annoying. They had peak middle tier power since the inscriptions around the creature enhanced the Royals'' cultivation level. Still, its most troublesome quality was its exceptionally strong body. King Elbas had created the puppets by using some of the best materials in those Mortal Lands. The red metal that made its bodies could absorb most impacts and was virtually immune to any form of fire. Moreover, the golden flames that ran over its surface fixed the dents that the Matriarchs managed to inflict. The puppets were perfect guardians, and their level made them threatening opponents since the three organizations didn''t have a solid stage powerhouse at hand. The Dog''s power wasn''t enough to scare Noah away. The Matriarchs had already confirmed that liquid stage powerhouses could injure the puppets, so they only had to inflict enough damages in a single attack to defeat it. A tremor filled the central regions when Noah reached his target. A massive Three-headed Dog came out from the mountain chain in the land right in front of him, and a wave of golden fire filled the sky as soon as it appeared. The heads of the puppet spewed more fire as the creature roared toward Noah. Yet, it didn''t attack but remained inside the borders of its region. Noah knew that any attempt to bring the puppet outside of its region had failed. The Royal had programmed it so that it would only attack anyone trying to invade its territory. Those were the real defenses of the Elbas family. They were on a different level than the formations of the western coast. Noah didn''t need to review his strategy with the Matriarchs. The three of them would be the only ones nearing the Dog, while the other weaker powerhouses would only provide long-range support with their abilities. Only the leaders of the organizations could endure the shockwaves released by the puppets. However, right before Noah could charge ahead and trigger the puppet''s offensive, a golden rune appeared next to him, and a massive fireball teleported in that spot. The fireball exploded and engulfed the entire area in a wave of golden flames. The powerhouses could retreat to escape from the fire since they weren''t close to Noah, but the Matriarchs had to activate defensive spells to protect themselves. The power of the flames surprised the Matriarchs since their defensive spells burned under their assault. The two liquid stage powerhouses had to rely on talismans to stop the fire completely and escape from its range. Noah''s figure became visible among the flames before his underlings could even begin to worry about his well-being. His robes were intact, and no burn had appeared on his body after that surprise attack. The powerhouses turned toward him when they saw him wearing a wide smile. He appeared happy that someone had tried to kill him off with a sneak attack. "You were indeed alive," Noah shouted once all the flames dispersed. His eyes went on a distant spot in the sky where a crowned figure had become visible. Chapter 1206: 1206. Star Noah didn''t have any doubt about the identity of his assailant. There was only one existence who could wield such power and wasn''t part of the organizations under him. The figure that appeared in the distance wore a small golden crown. He didn''t show his usual smile to the invaders, but the red crystal at the center of his forehead announced his identity to the world. ''He has become stronger,'' Noah thought as he inspected Second Prince. The Royal was at the peak of the liquid stage, and golden fire surrounded his figure. He had inherited his Father''s flames, but there was only "Breath" in their fabric. He didn''t use higher energy, but his cultivation level was surprising. Noah didn''t grow as fast as he could due to the restrictions of the separate dimension, but that rate of improvement surpassed even monsters! No one on the scene believed that Second Prince had reached that level of power due to his efforts or talent. After all, the powerhouses had lost track of him inside the separate reality. There were still some raw laws in that environment. Second Prince didn''t speak, but Noah didn''t wait for him to do so. He flew higher in the sky to avoid entering the range of the Three-headed Dog as he neared the Royal. Noah showed no fear as he flew toward Second Prince. The two of them were too distant from the new continent to trigger any formation, so they could talk or fight freely. "No more fireballs?" Noah asked when he reached Second Prince. The Royal wore a stern expression as he inspected Noah. His cultivation level was above Noah''s now, but he still felt some hesitation inside his mind. Second Prince couldn''t explain the reason behind that feeling. Yet, his instincts told him that he couldn''t beat Noah at his current level. "No more smiles?" Noah asked as he revealed his usual cold smile. "It''s quite reckless for you to come here," Second Prince said. "We might be far above the landmass, but this is still my domain." Noah sighed when he heard that answer. He didn''t know if the Royal wanted to fight, but there had to be a reason behind his sudden attack. "I''m not good at foreplays," Noah said as his smile vanished and the Demonic Sword flew in his palm. "Do we try to kill each other? Do we talk? I''m good either way since your Father has left a few opponents for me before leaving." Second Prince kept his eyes fixed on Noah as he analyzed his behavior. He tried to see some flaws that could reveal his arrogance or worries, but Noah appeared completely relaxed in that situation. Noah didn''t feel fear. His instincts told him that Second Prince was dangerous, but he had been in front of a god. A cultivator in the same stage couldn''t trigger his survival instincts. "What''s there to talk?" Second Prince asked. "Let''s go. I don''t want to risk bringing more destruction to the new continent." Noah shrugged his shoulders, but he followed Second Prince when he turned to leave. The two left the sky above the new continent to reach an area in the middle of the sea. "It is customary that the leaders of the strongest organizations in the world let their underlings deci-," Second Prince began to speak. Still, Noah interrupted his line by slashing toward his spot. A black line cut Second Prince''s torso diagonally, and the two pieces of his body began to separate. Yet, they both turned into flames that reattached themselves to reform the Royal''s figure. "I see that you don''t care about this," Second Prince commented, but Noah slashed again. The battle had started. Noah had no more words for his opponent at that point, and his face could express only coldness. Noah''s second slash divided the Royal in half again, but he didn''t bleed. Golden flames came out of the cut edges, and his two pieces reattached themselves in a few seconds. "You didn''t even bother to check if this place had traps," Second Prince said, and four metallic pillars rose from the sea. The pillars encircled the two cultivators, and a golden light came out of their surface. Their halo was about to reach Noah, but he closed his eyes and placed his forehead on the Demonic Sword as he focused on those items. The halo suddenly stopped expanding, and a long cut appeared on the pillars'' surface. Second Prince''s expression became even more severe when he saw those inscribed items falling apart after enduring Noah''s attack. Second Prince didn''t sense Noah''s attack. It was as if the pillars had crumbled under his sharpness. Noah didn''t waste time and resumed to launch slashes toward Second Prince as soon as the pillars crumbled. The Royal appeared immune to his attacks, and he always reattached its severed parts through the flames coming out of its injuries. Second Prince didn''t appear affected by those attacks, but he didn''t seem to like Noah''s actions. He snapped his fingers, and golden runes came out of his skin before disappearing inside the air. Noah didn''t sense anything, but a golden rune suddenly reappeared next to him and a fireball teleported in that spot. An explosion resounded in the area, and a wave of flames filled that piece of the sky. Second Prince didn''t stop his offensive there. More runes appeared near Noah''s position, and various attacks replaced them after their halo dimmed. Fireballs, spears, and snake heads crashed on Noah as more golden flames spread in the sky. Second Prince unleashed an array of spells that opened large cracks connected to the void. Noah felt that something was off. He never felt the need to dodge or react to those attacks because his instincts didn''t sense any danger coming from them. His sturdy skin was more than enough to endure those blows, and his aura could even weaken them before they landed on his body. ''Why is he so weak?'' Noah questioned himself. Second Prince was at the peak of the liquid stage. His individuality would theoretically be only a few steps before the state of law, but the power that he was expressing wasn''t even close to that level. That surprised Noah, but it led to only one explanation. Second Prince was holding back. No powerhouse could reach that level without going through the personal growth required by their individuality. Noah didn''t know why Second Prince wasn''t showing his real power, but he had a way to find the answer. Noah stomped on the air, and his figure disappeared. Even Second Prince lost track of him, but a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him. Second Prince barely had the time to understand what had charged at him. He only saw the shape of a sword before pain spread from the center of his chest. Noah reappeared behind him and slashed again. His previous attack had created a crack that led to the void right in the middle of his torso, but he wanted to put an end to the battle right away. A second crack cut the upper part of the Royal''s body diagonally. The flames that came out of the severed edges flowed inside the void and disappeared from that plane. Noah didn''t know how that defensive spell worked, but he could open cracks in the sky easily at his level. If Second Prince didn''t want to reveal his cards, he would feed him to the void. Second Prince turned his head before his entire figure became unstable. Noah felt a dangerous sensation at that point, but he also understood that it was too late to dodge the incoming attack. The Royal blew himself up, and a storm of golden flames filled a large chunk of the sky. It was as if a star had appeared above the sea and had destroyed everything in its range. Chapter 1207: 1207. Copies The sea of golden flames engulfed Noah. Cracks opened in the sky as the destructive force of Second Prince''s fire spread in the area. The golden star expanded, and flares came out of its unstable surface. Yet, a fissure soon opened at its center and divided the fiery sphere into two precise halves. Noah came out of the fissure and floated outside of the star''s range. The sharpness radiated by his consciousness had cut the flames, but many of them had landed on his skin. Still, he didn''t suffer any significant injury. ''He can hurt me then,'' Noah thought as he stared at a burned spot on his right arm. The flames had managed to burn a small part of his skin, but he had acted before the damage spread. Noah didn''t lower his guard. Second Prince''s aura still lingered in the area, but even his superior awareness couldn''t pinpoint his location. ''Does he even have a real body?'' Noah wondered as his consciousness expanded to look for the Royal. He had cut Second Prince many times, but he had never managed to kill him. The Royal had always used fake bodies and clones that didn''t reveal any difference from an actual body. Mystery surrounded Second Prince. He was different from the other main descendants. Noah had never managed to understand him, but he had never bothered to do it since he had always been stronger than him. However, the situation was different now. Second Prince''s cultivation level was superior to Noah and Great Elder Diana. Noah wasn''t sure about his actual battle prowess, but he knew that he had to take care of him to remove the alliance''s last hindrance. Noah waited for Second Prince to reappear, and his eyes sharpened as he saw that the golden star began to morph. His consciousness sensed multiple presences appearing around him, but all of them carried the Royal''s iconic aura. After the flames completed their transformation, Noah saw five identical Second Prince. They all radiated a cultivation level at the peak of the liquid stage, and Noah couldn''t sense any difference when he inspected them. It was as if the Royal had cloned himself right in front of him. Noah''s instincts even begin to send warning messages to his mind. The technique didn''t seem to be a trick or an illusion. ''Can he really multiply himself?'' Noah wondered. He had to admit that he didn''t expect Second Prince to own such a strange technique. He knew that it was possible to perform feats that defied reason through the "Breath", but replicating a powerhouse required an immense amount of energy. The Copying Technique had the same issue. Even with all its reserves of energy, the Hive didn''t manage to create an army of rank 6 creatures against King Elbas. Yet, there were now five Second Prince in front of Noah, and the Royal didn''t rely on any external source of energy to perform that feat. Noah didn''t even sense a surge of power when that happened. "What exactly are you?" Noah asked. He never spoke once a battle started, but Second Prince was too peculiar. Noah couldn''t hold back his curiosity when looking at him. "What is indeed the right word," The five copies of Second Prince replied together. "I''m one of the masterpieces of the best inscription master of these Mortal Lands. You might have created living weapons, but my Father has surpassed you even in that field." ''I see,'' Noah thought as black smoke started to come out of his skin. ''He is an inscribed human.'' A cloud of corrosive smoke soon filled the area. The activation of the Demonic Form instantly covered the sky and engulfed the five Second Prince. A golden halo came out of the five Royals and fended off the corrosive properties of Noah''s smoke. Not even a speck of his gas managed to land on the five powerhouses. Noah couldn''t play around anymore in front of such prowess. His instincts told him that Second Prince wasn''t on his level, but he couldn''t underestimate five of them. Still, he didn''t want to reveal everything that he was capable of. Second Prince was probably hiding more tricky techniques, and Noah didn''t want to give him a complete demonstration of his power until he was sure that the Royal was really there. The five Second Prince raised their hands to launch waves of golden flames that burned Noah''s corrosive smoke. The black cloud vanished in a few instants, but a shadow appeared next to one of the copies before the last trail of gas disappeared. The copy exploded into a fiery storm that gave birth to another star. The flames engulfed the other four Royals, but it didn''t manage to reach Noah since he had begun to retreat as soon as Night attacked. The Pterodactyl came out of the golden star and flew back inside Noah''s ring while he raised the Demonic Sword above his head. Dark matter flowed out of his chest and entered his blade as he prepared one of his iconic slashes. Noah''s blade descended, and darkness filled the sky. Dark matter engulfed the golden star and destroyed everything in its path. Only cultivators staring at the battle from afar could see the attack in its true form. A gigantic blade had appeared after Noah''s slash, and the technique had launched a storm of dark matter. The entire area became part of Noah''s dark world, which enhanced the sharpness carried by the slash. The fabric of the sky managed to remain intact only because the dark matter contained the destructive power launched during the attack. Noah knew that Second Prince had survived the attack. Nothing could escape his vision inside the dark world. He had seen the slash destroying the copies and preventing the golden flames from exploding outward. The technique had removed every trace of the Royal, but Noah could still sense his aura lingering around him. It was as if he existed even when he lacked a body. ''Does he have a core somewhere?'' Noah wondered. That was the only explanation he could find to define Second Prince''s odd power. "You have become stronger," Second Prince''s voice echoed through the dark world. "It doesn''t surprise me that my Father has acknowledged your power. I wonder if you can put an end to my existence." "Do you want to die?" Noah asked as he kept his weapon ready to slash. He would attack as soon as Second Prince regained a physical form. "I''ve never been alive in the first place," Second Prince continued, and something began to move right outside of the dark world. "Is my existence worthy of this power? Can something like me advance through the cultivation journey? Can I become a god? I don''t know." Multiple pecks of golden flames appeared around the dark world''s edges. They expanded until an army of Second Prince''s copies formed in the sky. Noah''s instincts warned him about the danger that was about to fall on him, but he didn''t move. The dark world was his strongest defensive and offensive method. Flying out of it would only expose him. "Show me," Second Prince''s copies spoke at the same time as they pointed their palms toward the dark world, "Show me the ambition that has made even my Father acknowledge you." After they finished speaking, Second Prince''s copies launched waves of golden flames that covered the dark world. Chapter 1208: 1208. Tricks ''How do I even kill him?'' Noah wondered as he flew through his dimension. He had chosen to rely on his movement technique to escape from the golden flames after seeing that his dark matter couldn''t block Second Prince''s attack. The dark world had lasted long enough to create a path through the barrage of copies, and Noah had used that chance to fly above the battlefield. Second Prince''s copies turned toward him at the same time before turning into flames that flew in his direction. Noah couldn''t understand how much energy the Royal had gathered after his last attack, but he didn''t see any reason to change his approach. The Royal was still in the liquid stage. Even after he created an army of copies, his overall power never reached the solid stage. Noah felt confused about that, but he didn''t have time to study his opponent''s power. He couldn''t divert his attention from the battle anymore. Second Prince had already proven that he was able to hurt him. The trails of flames flew toward Noah, but he slashed before they could reach him. A wave of dark matter engulfed them and recreated the dark world, but Second Prince''s aura didn''t vanish. Sparks appeared once again around the dark world, and the army of copies reformed. In less than an instant, the golden flames burned the dark matter and forced Noah to escape. Noah reappeared in the sky and launched another slash, but the outcome was the same as before. Second Prince''s presence didn''t disappear even after the dark matter destroyed all its flames, and its copies reformed around the dark world again. ''This won''t do,'' Noah thought as Second Prince forced him to escape again. Noah didn''t have problems with his reserves of energy anymore, but he didn''t believe that he could last more than Second Prince. The Royal had already admitted that he wasn''t a normal cultivator, so Noah couldn''t apply his knowledge to understand his limits. Yet, Noah knew that there was a limit to how much King Elbas'' creations could defy logic. Even as a masterpiece, Second Prince had to follow the laws of the world. His energy had to come from somewhere. A regular liquid stage powerhouse couldn''t fuel that ability so often, and even an inscribed item couldn''t escape those restrictions. There had to be drawbacks. The only problem was that Noah couldn''t see them. Even his mind kept on telling him that Second Prince was cloning himself freely. ''I guess I had to reveal something,'' Noah thought. He had to give up on his initial approach if he wanted to win that fight. Noah didn''t launch another attack when he reappeared in the sky. Second Prince''s copies transformed into flames that flew toward him, but he waited until they were close to perform one of his new techniques. Noah''s ambition surged, and arrays of laws replaced the world in his eyes. His cultivation level grew as his individuality pushed his power toward peaks that he had yet to reach. The Demonic Sword began to tremble as Noah''s focused on the laws carried by Second Prince''s flames. He saw King Elbas'' arrogance inside that golden fire, but there were other meanings that he couldn''t recognize. However, Noah didn''t need to understand his opponent''s laws to cut them. Noah''s sword descended. The movement appeared slow in his eyes, but Second Prince didn''t even notice it. The blade had completed the slash before the trails of flames could even reach their target. Nothing seemed to happen after Noah attacked. The flames swept him and created a star in the area. Yet, countless fissures soon appeared in the fiery sphere''s fabric. Countless cuts covered the star. Its flames fell apart, and Noah didn''t even bother to walk out of their range as he looked at the destruction that he had caused. He didn''t suffer any injury. His slash had severed the destructive properties of the flames, rendering them harmless. They weren''t even warm anymore, and the sky could endure the energy they carried without shattering. Cuts continued to appear on the flames that condensed into Second Prince''s shape. The Royal didn''t create any more copies, and he ignored Noah as he stared at his body. Noah''s attack didn''t end even after Second Prince reformed. Cuts opened on his body, and golden flames came out of them. The Royal appeared made of fire, but that didn''t slow down Noah''s technique. "What have you done to me?" Second Prince asked as injuries continued to appear on him. The Royal tried everything. Golden runes began to shine on his skin, and potions came out of his space-rings to drop their contents on his body. Second Prince used all his knowledge and healing methods to stop Noah''s technique, but nothing seemed to work. Cuts continued to open on his body even if Noah didn''t attack anymore. ''He can survive this too,'' Noah thought as he inspected Second Prince. It didn''t matter how many injuries the Royal suffered. His flames always fixed his body. "Make it stop!" Second Prince shouted and launched a wave of flames toward Noah, but he easily dodged it with his movement technique. Second Prince chased after him, but his body continued to fall apart and slowed him down. Noah didn''t even need to rely on his movement technique to retreat at that point. The Royal understood that his efforts were pointless as long as cuts continued to appear on his body. Determination appeared in his eyes before he blew himself up again. Second Prince''s presence disappeared for the first time since the beginning of the battle, but Noah didn''t drop his guard. He knew that he had forced the Royal to execute some dangerous technique, but he didn''t believe that Second Prince would give up on him. As Noah had predicted, Second Prince''s aura suddenly appeared in the area again, and sparks of flames formed near him before taking the Royal''s shape. Second Prince heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that the technique had stopped, but Noah promptly slashed toward him again. The Royal dodged the attack, but anger appeared in his expression when he saw that Noah had launched a simple slash at that time. The fear of the previous technique had made him perform an evasive maneuver to avoid something unable to hurt him. "This one is real," Noah said as he reappeared on top of the escaping Royal and slashed toward him. Second Prince tried to understand if Noah was speaking the truth, but everything had happened too fast. His consciousness didn''t have enough time to analyze the attack, and he couldn''t risk suffering from that threatening technique again. The Royal turned into flames to dodge the slash, but a loud curse resounded in the area when he noticed that Noah had tricked him again. His attack didn''t even launch the usual black lines. Noah didn''t put any energy into his blow. Second Prince was about to condense into a human form, but Noah appeared next to him again and slashed without saying anything. The Royal could only perform an evasive maneuver at that point, and he didn''t even bother to curse when he noticed that Noah had tricked him again. That chase continued for a while, and Noah didn''t mind that trend. He was barely consuming any energy to follow the Royal, but the latter had to deplete a lot of "Breath" perform his evasive maneuvers. Noah didn''t know how vast Second Prince''s reserves of energy were, but that approach gave him enough time to learn about the Royal''s limits. Second Prince understood Noah''s intentions, and he eventually decided to stop dodging. His body divided itself into various strands of flames that condensed to create his copies, but a wave of dark matter engulfed them before they could attack. The Royal reformed in a different spot of the sky after the attack, and he could only show an ugly expression when he saw that cuts had started to appear on his body again. Chapter 1209: 1209. Crystal Noah''s individuality focused on his ambition. His law made him overcome the limits of his cultivation level, but it also had other effects. Noah had been unable to abandon anything during his journey. His ambition had made him keep his destruction, creation, and other aspects of his existence. That path was far harsher than other journeys due to the width of the individuality, but Noah had managed to push it to his current level. Now, the ambition that had made him unable to leave anything behind allowed him to express everything simultaneously. Noah''s new slash wasn''t exactly a new technique. It used the basics learnt during his training with Sword Saint, and it applied them to all his attacks. Noah only had to pour his ambition into his blows to manifest its effects. The countless cuts were one of the techniques that best expressed his individuality. Noah only had to slash once to create a virtually endless number of injuries on his opponent. His slash could generate other slashes. Destruction and creation worked together to give birth to an attack that would keep going as long as Noah''s ambition continued to burn. That was what Sword Saint had taught him. Noah could pour everything he had into his slashes to create an attack that knew no end. It destroyed to create more destruction in an endless cycle. Second Prince blew himself up again when he saw that Noah had hit him with that troublesome technique. His body reformed high in the sky, but Noah promptly flew after him to continue his assault. The Royal couldn''t regain the upper hand in the battle. He had no way to predict when Noah would activate his individuality''s troublesome properties, which forced him to deplete a large amount of energy to dodge all his attacks. Noah didn''t mind that type of battle. His endurance in those conditions was nearly endless, and he barely needed to perform real attacks anymore since Second Prince always performed evasive maneuvers. The two powerhouses continued to fight in those conditions for entire weeks. Noah never let the Royal escape from his sight, and Second Prince could only rely on his immense reserves of energy to keep dodging. Noah and Second Prince flew above both continents as their battle continued. The other powerhouses could see them for a few days before their fight led them above the sea again. There seemed to be no end to that trend. Second Prince never had the time to react, and Noah''s battle style was flawless. He never allowed him to do anything other than escaping. ''Where does he keep all this energy?'' Noah wondered as he continued to suppress Second Prince. He had forced the Royal to perform evasive maneuvers more than a thousand times, but Second Prince didn''t show any sign of exhaustion. He didn''t commit mistakes either, so Noah couldn''t hit him with his technique anymore. Noah couldn''t explain how anything in the heroic ranks could last so long. The energy consumed by Second Prince during the battle was enough to replicate ten rank 6 beings through the Copying Formation, and he was still going! The relentless chase saw no changes even after one month. Noah and Second Prince remained locked in that situation, and none of them managed to catch their opponent off-guard. Noah didn''t let that situation win over his determination. He knew that if he let Second Prince go, the Royal would develop countermeasures to his abilities. That was his best chance to end him. He only had to remain patient and never give a chance to react to his opponent. Second Prince began to feel the pressure of Noah''s approach after the two of them spent two entire months in that situation. Noah noticed that change in his mindset since the Royal began to test different strategies during his escape. Second Prince tried to delay the solidification of his body. He attempted to create decoys and copies through his flames, and he even took out inscribed items in the hope of gaining valuable instants. However, Noah never failed to punish him with his new technique. Second Prince could only blow himself up every time the cuts started to reappear on his body. He had no other way to stop that technique. Those attempts made Second Prince waste even more energy, but Noah had to suppress him for another month before showing signs of exhaustion. Second Prince became slower in his reactions. Noah began to land some blows on him even if he didn''t test other strategies. That development in their battle made Second Prince''s situation quite critical. He almost didn''t believe that Noah had managed to bring him to his limits, but the Royal could only blame himself. He didn''t underestimate Noah, but the latter had overcome Second Prince''s highest evaluations. After all, the Royal could copy himself without dividing his power. He didn''t believe that a powerhouse in the liquid stage could defeat that. Yet, Noah didn''t only overcome that technique. He had also forced Second Prince into a situation where he could deplete all his energy. That outcome was simply unbelievable in the Royal''s mind, but he couldn''t deny the reality of his current condition. "Curse you!" Second Prince shouted before touching the crystal at the center of his forehead. Noah used that chance to land another blow on him, but a blinding red light filled his vision afterward. The halo radiated from the crystal didn''t give birth to any dangerous sensation in Noah''s mind, but it cut away his connection with the outside world for an instant. Noah immediately deployed the dark world and activated the Demonic Form to defend himself, but no attack came in his direction. After the halo vanished and he could sense the outside world again, Noah retracted his spell and dark matter to inspect the environment. Second Prince had used that chance to disappear, but he had left behind half of his crystal. Noah felt slightly annoyed that Second Prince had managed to escape him again, especially after he had spent the last three months chasing him through the world. ''I need to invent something new before I face him again,'' Noah thought as he picked that half crystal. ''I didn''t even manage to understand what he is.'' Noah could only sigh at that outcome, but the crystal soon caught his attention. His mental waves went on the item, and images tried to barge inside his mind at that point. Noah quickly cut the connection with the crystal. He wanted to be careful when it came to items that belonged to the Elbas family. They knew too much about the inscription fields for him to act recklessly. Dark matter rose from Noah''s chest and entered his mind to create a few defensive layers. Part of his higher energy also reinforced his sturdy mental walls as he prepared himself to connect his consciousness with the crystal again. Once he prepared all his defenses, Noah spread his mental waves toward the crystal again, and the same flow of images began to enter his mind. The images were a messy mass of colors at the beginning, but Noah slowly reconstructed them. When he had completed that process, he saw King Elbas pouring his blood on a red crystal. Chapter 1210: 1210. Memories Noah felt like dreaming. He had gone through similar sensations already in his life, and he could barely believe what was happening. The images that had appeared in his head gave off the same vibe as a Bloodline Inheritance. Yet, they were also similar to the dreams he experienced when he was still absorbing the Light-devouring Dragons'' bloodline. Noah couldn''t understand what King Elbas had created just by listening to his sensations. He had to dig deeper in the memories contained inside the crystal to discover more about that item and Second Prince. His mental waves went back inside the crystal, and more images flew toward his mind. Noah didn''t want to go through many cycles of that process, so he continued to maintain the connection with the item until no more colors entered his consciousness. Noah let his mind process those pieces of information until he obtained an orderly series of images. Even some sounds began to echo inside his mental walls as those pictures started to move. "Failure," King Elbas'' voice resounded inside Noah''s mind. The sound wasn''t clear. It was muffled, and it seemed to come from far away. The images showed King Elbas handling a series of items to inspect the red crystal that had received his blood. His mouth would move at times, but no sound came out of it. Noah guessed that those memories were incomplete. He had a vague idea about the experiment that the Royals'' leader was performing, but he had too many questions about the whole matter. Moreover, King Elbas was mostly talking by himself. His mouth moved only when his considerations couldn''t remain inside his mind anymore. That scene depicted King Elbas in his natural environment. Intense curiosity brimmed in his eyes as he inspected the crystal with various inscribed items. The Royal''s focus was on his creation, and he didn''t show any anger in front of a failure. ''If these are memories,'' Noah thought as the images became foggy for a few seconds, ''Who is watching him?'' Noah obtained the answer to his question as soon as the images became clear again. King Elbas pinched the crystal in front of him and shattered it into pieces before turning toward the images'' point of view. His muffled voice resounded once again inside Noah''s mind as the Royal pointed at his palm to open a wound. "Second," King Elbas murmured, "I''ve never succeeded at the second attempts." The Royal dropped his blood on the point of view. Shades of red appeared on the images as the drops flowed on top of them. The redness began to flicker, and the images became clear once again as the drops vanished. Noah could guess what had happened at that point. The second crystal had absorbed King Elbas'' blood, and a consciousness awakened. The images suddenly became messy. Noah saw darkness followed by redness. King Elbas'' figure alternated between foggy and clear in a cycle that continued for a few minutes. Then, at the peak of the images'' clarity, Second Prince''s resounded inside Noah''s mind. "Who are you?" "I am your Father," King Elbas answered as he hurriedly picked his inscribed items again to inspect the crystal. His expression remained stern as the process continued, but the light coming out of his eyes became brighter as he read the results of his analysis. "I did it," King Elbas murmured. "You are the first living being created through my blood. You shall be my heir. I''ll award you the name of First Prince!" Silence filled the room, but King Elbas patiently waited for an answer to arrive. Yet, when the crystal spoke, the Royal could only show a mix of surprise and interest. The redness became more intense as Second Prince''s voice resounded in Noah''s head. "First? I''m the second! You have destroyed First!" King Elbas didn''t initially understand what Second Prince meant, but everything became clear to him when he turned to look at the pieces of the other red crystal. "Oh," King Elbas said, "You could already see before inheriting my will. Part of me must have flowed inside you when I assembled the crystal." King Elbas performed more tests, but he eventually put everything away to speak with his creation. "Fine, I''ll call you Second. I will teach you what I know before giving you a body. I''ll probably make more of you if the experiment turns out to be a success." King Elbas stretched his hands to take the crystal, and the images became foggy after he picked it. Noah waited for a while, but he could only see two more scenes from the memories he had obtained. The first one showed Second Prince running through what appeared to be a lab. The crystal in his forehead was the point of view, so Noah didn''t manage to get a good look at the environment while he remained immersed in those memories. Second Prince gasped for air as he climbed a stair that ended into a trap door. His hands managed to lift its edges and make some of the air outside it flow inside the lab before someone flung him back at the bottom of the room. King Elbas appeared in Second Prince''s vision, but his expression didn''t carry the same excitement as the first images. There were only seriousness and a tinge of disappointment on his face. "You are too free," King Elbas said while heaving a sigh. "Your potential is immense, but you carry my desires and dreams. I can''t let you fulfill yourself before I leave this world." The images became foggy as soon as King Elbas'' hand stretched to cover Second Prince''s vision. The second scene showed a place that Noah remembered well. It depicted the separate reality when Noah killed First Prince and First Princess. The redness in Second Prince''s vision flickered to no end as he kept his focus on Noah. The images became more vivid as he killed the two descendants. Noah could sense his ambition in the images. It was as if his individuality had flowed inside Second Prince and had left a mark in his mind. ''Did I inspire Second Prince?'' Noah wondered as the images became foggy, and the memories ended. There were still many questions inside his mind, but Noah wasn''t really interested in Second Prince''s life. Every living being went through hardsh.i.p.s, and many of them carried traumas of those events for most of their journey. Overcoming and owning them was what allowed them to reach higher peaks in their path. However, a detail in those images had caught his attention. When Second Prince lifted the trap door, Noah had seen part of the structure that stood on top of the lab. Noah didn''t see much, but he recognized the style of the structure''s inside. He couldn''t forget them since he had lived in similar buildings for a while. ''The Capital in the Utra nation,'' Noah concluded in his mind. There was only one place in the entire world that had such polished buildings, and the old Capital was one of the few spots that could still hide secrets from Noah. Noah didn''t believe that the Capital held any riches since the Elbas family had moved all its assets to the new continent and had placed the dimensional portal in that nation. Yet, there was a chance that it still hid King Elbas'' old lab. If that turned out to be accurate, Noah felt relatively sure that he could find some research there. Chapter 1211: 1211. Lab The old Capital had lost any importance to Noah and other thieves after the migration into the new continent. King Elbas had even placed the dimensional portal in the Utra nation, which decreased the value of what had once been one of the world''s most advanced cities. Too much had happened back when Noah was still performing raids with the Demons. That eventually led him to never think about the old Academy and Capital again but seeing Second Prince''s memories had ignited his curiosity. King Elbas was a monster, and he was even more impressive when it came to the inscription fields. If there was even a slight chance that his old lab contained some of his studies, Noah had to seize it. Moreover, he had the faint feeling that Second Prince still had some connections with that place. After all, King Elbas had appeared twice in the memories obtained through the red crystal. Noah browsed through his inscribed notebook before deciding to make the travel on his own. His underlings and the other organizations were still busy studying the Three-headed Dog, and they weren''t even close to defeating it. Noah had time for a trip to the old continent. ''It acted like a Bloodline Inheritance,'' Noah thought as he inspected his mind, ''But it didn''t improve my sea of consciousness.'' Noah felt slightly disappointed that the memories obtained through the piece of crystal didn''t improve his mind. Second Prince would have instantly become more valuable if his consciousness could work as a Bloodline Inheritance. Yet, King Elbas didn''t create Second Prince with that feature. His mind resembled a Bloodline Inheritance because it carried intense emotions, but his memories didn''t have the same miraculous effects. Noah flew toward the Utra nation and stopped to inspect the area once he reached the old Capital. The lands there barely had any vegetation left, and even the city''s tall defensive walls had suffered from the existence of the dimensional portal. King Elbas had left the portal open before departing for the Immortal Lands. The consumption of energy had continued during the five centuries that the three organizations had spent inside the separate dimension. The Utra nation was on the path to become a desert. The only feature that had stopped its degradation was the mountain chain in the distance since it contained a lot of energy. Still, it didn''t meet the standards of other habitable lands anymore. There was simply nothing valuable left in those regions. Even the weaker magical beasts and normal animals had left that nation and the ones nearby. Noah didn''t feel much by staring at that desolation. He had embarked on the cultivation journey in that nation, but there wasn''t anything left there. Only ruins and bitter memories could appear in his vision. The buildings inside the Capital had it a bit better than the defensive walls due to some "Breath" blessings left behind during the migration. Still, even those resources had suffered from the effects of the dimensional portal. The tall structures envied by the entire world had become nothing more than ruins. The city''s luxurious streets and quarters had turned into symbols of the era before the new continent. Noah never forgot who he had been before finding the Hive. He was nothing more than a human cultivator when he had started to live in the Capital. His job as a hunter and the memories of his secret missions were still vivid in his mind. It felt strange returning there as the leader of the most powerful organization in the world. Noah could barely believe how weak he had been in the past. He still recalled the struggles to obtain techniques and the constant suppression that he had to overcome to reach his current status. Time had made all of that vanish, but those memories would live forever in his mind. Those memories surged inside his mind as he descended toward the streets of the Capital. Only one thought kept on echoing through his mental walls as he looked at the scene: ''The cultivation journey is ruthless!'' Not even the best city in the world could survive the passage of time. The Royals didn''t think twice before abandoning the Capital to make new homes in the new continent. Humans cultivators who couldn''t even walk on the piece of Immortal Lands had migrated without giving the matter any second thought. They had left everything in the hope that the new world could give them a chance to reach the peak. Noah didn''t linger too long in his memories. Those ruined streets and buildings made him pensive, but he had a lot to do, and he couldn''t waste time. The world wouldn''t wait for him. Every second lost was a chance given to his opponents to catch up with him. Noah didn''t have threatening enemies in the world, but his mindset never allowed him to relax. Noah didn''t need to search for traces of King Elbas'' old lab. He had sensed a familiar aura with his innate awareness as soon as he landed inside the Capital, and he walked directly toward the source of that trace. He soon arrived in front of a crumbled building. The debris was all over the place, but he could see that someone had moved them recently. The debris crumbled into a pile of dust as soon as Noah''s consciousness touched them. His mental waves blew the dirt away and revealed the same floor he had seen in Second Prince''s memories. Noah wielded the Demonic Sword and started tapping the floor with its tip. His consciousness couldn''t sense anything specific there, but he knew that the owner of that familiar aura had stopped there. His sword sensed something at some point, and Noah stabbed it on the floor before tilting it to lift the trap door. King Elbas'' old lab appeared in his vision, and Noah analyzed the insides with his consciousness before walking down the stairs. Dust, books, scrolls, and a few inscribed items appeared in his vision. Most of them were old or broken, but there was something that the passage of time didn''t ruin. Still, the items didn''t go past the fourth rank in terms of power. For a powerhouse like Noah, most of the stuff inside the lab was nothing more than junk. Noah couldn''t focus for too long on the lab. He had noticed even before entering that place that there was someone else there, and he could place his eyes on the other powerhouse after he had descended the stairs. "You are a tough one," Second Prince said as he inspected his forehead with a series of inscribed items. "No wonder my Father respected you so much." Only half of his crystal had fallen when he had performed that reckless evasive maneuver, but it seemed that it had mostly regrown during the short period after his battle against Noah. Noah looked at the Royal before losing interest in him. No tension formed in the air even if the two of them were in the same room. None of them wanted to fight at the moment. "Are the other main descendants like you?" Noah asked as he picked a random item from a desk near him. His mind didn''t sense any energy coming from that, so he placed it back where it was. Second Prince appeared slightly surprised by that question, but he answered anyway. "No. He has labeled me as a failure, so he has created the others through normal methods. Well, normal for his standards." Chapter 1212: 1212. Life Noah had many questions, but his main goal was to find studies left behind by King Elbas. Still, he would take any piece of information that Second Prince was willing to give him. "Why didn''t you run?" Noah asked as he browsed through some of the scrolls on a dusty shelf. "You knew which memories the crystal you left behind contained. You knew that I would have come here." The scrolls contained studies aimed for cultivators in the fourth rank fifth rank, but even Noah could see that the current inscription methods were more advanced than those described. King Elbas might have been a genius, but most of his knowledge had become public domain. Only his latest inventions were still a secret, and the world wasn''t sure if his descendants knew all of them. "I came at you with the strength of ten powerhouses at the peak of the liquid stage," Second Prince replied as he took a bag of blood from a drawer next to him, "But I lost anyway. What should I try next time? Should I wait until I can do the same at the solid stage? Should I take my victory if I manage to become a god before you?" Noah didn''t answer that question. He had found a book that described some taming method, and he promptly stored it. The Hive didn''t need help in controlling the hybrids as long as Noah and Skully were there. However, Noah would eventually ascend, and beings stronger than Skully were bound to appear sooner or later. Noah didn''t want to leave the Hive unprepared for the army of hybrids, so he stored that book to improve Thirty-seven''s knowledge. The automaton would take care of teaching it to the others when the time was right. "These studies don''t belong to you," Second Prince said as he poured a few drops of blood on his forehead. His crystal absorbed the liquid, and a small part of its missing piece regrow after that procedure. "Didn''t you just admit your eternal defeat?" Noah asked as he continued to browse through that collection. He wanted to make sure that he didn''t miss anything valuable, so he inspected every item that he found. Second Prince remained speechless after Noah''s reply. He had vented previously, but he didn''t expect Noah to treat that lab as if it was his raiding ground. In the end, Second Prince sighed before asking Noah a question. "Why didn''t you kill me? Don''t tell me that you have started to pity me." "You are a cursed existence," Noah began to speak as he heard those words. "Your Father has tortured and restrained you. Isn''t this how life normally goes?" Noah wasn''t serious, but Second Prince didn''t laugh. He shook his head and continued the treatment for his crystal. Some of the shelves fell when Noah moved them to inspect certain items. The most important resource in the lab appeared to be the scrolls and books, but even those were quite old for the current era. Yet, Noah took anything that appeared remotely valuable. It would be up to Thirty- seven to sort them and evaluate their utility. Even if none of them could improve the Hive''s current state, it could lead the automaton to create something that could benefit his entire organization. "You," Second Prince hesitated for a moment before resuming speaking, "Your ambition. It touched me in the separate reality. I managed to awaken a part of my personality in that place." Noah didn''t answer. He could feel that Second Prince''s speech wasn''t over. He didn''t know what the Royal was about to say, but he didn''t have much to do. Looting a lab didn''t require much attention. "How can an existence like you choose to live?" Second Prince asked. "I''ve read your story, I''ve made my investigations, and I know about a part of your individuality. Your law of ambition burns hotter than Father''s flames. I didn''t think it to be possible." Noah recalled his defeat against King Elbas. The Royal had overwhelmed the forces of the entire world with his golden flames, and some of the powerhouses still feared that color. The memories of such a massive battle could even affect the minds of the strongest cultivator. King Elbas was an existence worthy of creating those traumas. "Why would I even help you?" Noah asked. Second Prince wasn''t his ally. Part of him knew that they weren''t enemies either, especially after learning how King Elbas had manipulated him. Yet, Noah couldn''t find any reason to help him. "I still am King Elbas'' heir," Second Prince replied. "I am the best inscription master in the world now." Noah shook his head as he continued to browse through that collection of antiques. Second Prince was willing to bribe him as long as he could receive an answer to his question. "What is your source of energy?" Noah asked. "Do you even have a dantian?" Second Prince''s eyes lit up when he saw that Noah had taken an interest in him. That gave him hope, but he had to answer honestly to avoid triggering another battle. "My dantian is only for scene," Second Prince began to explain. "It grows and absorbs laws, but it contains no "Breath". My energy comes from the seabed." Noah didn''t need to show a curious expression to make Second Prince understand that he wanted to hear more about that method. He only turned and looked at the Royal with his usual cold reptilian eyes. "The new continent was powerful enough to fuel formations on its own," Second Prince explained. "The seabed is quite similar. I have a formation connected to a teleportation matrix down there. The energy that it gathers flows directly into my dantian." "So," Noah spoke to make sure that he couldn''t gain anything from eating Second Prince. "Your dantian is worthless, isn''t it?" "Yes," Second Prince showed a smile as he replied. "I''m only a consciousness that moves puppets. I wouldn''t satisfy you if you were to eat me." Noah could only sigh at that discovery. Learning about Second Prince''s cultivation method made him want to scan the seabed and see if he could find that formation. If the Hive learnt how to harness energy from the seabed, it wouldn''t have any problem activating the Copying Technique. "You ask me how," Noah said as his inspection continued. "I don''t know. I''m alive, so I choose to live. There isn''t anything out of it. My ambition is boundless, but I would have remained alive without it too." "Do you think I can?" Second Prince asked. "You are the only one turning this into an issue," Noah quickly replied. "Alive, dead, human, monster, who cares. You can cultivate, so you can live this life." Noah''s words were something that Second Prince had repeated himself many times, but they had a different weigh when Noah was the one to speak them. Second Prince suddenly seemed to understand something, but his mood didn''t change. He remained pensive, and he didn''t appear wholly convinced about Noah''s point. "The thing about your dantian," Noah began his speech, "You are completely useless to me without it. Killing you gives me no benefits, but I have another role in mind that you can fill." "Which is?" Second Prince asked. "Deal with my boredom," Noah replied. "I''m going to grow bored of these lands quite soon if no one tries to reach the top of the world. I don''t want to spend the solid stage in seclusion." Chapter 1213: 1213. Puppe "What do you mean?" Second Prince could vaguely understand Noah''s words, but he wanted to hear him describe them. "I''ve already lived as a slave. I won''t be yours." "You should feel lucky that I have no interest in killing you," Noah replied as he showed a cold smile toward the Royal. A chill ran down Second Prince''s spine when the reptilian pupils landed on him. He felt naked under Noah''s piercing gaze. Even if the Royal wasn''t an actual living being, his survival instincts screamed in fear when death became a possibility in his mind. Noah could end his life in that situation. Nothing in the world could stop him, and Second Prince didn''t have any secret strategy to deploy. The Royal would die for sure if Noah decided to attack. Yet, Noah soon diverted his gaze to explode into a loud laugh. Second Prince gave up on understanding him after that event, and he limited himself to listen to what he had to say. "You don''t have to do anything too specific," Noah said after he suppressed his laugh. "Live, grow, fight. Do whatever you want, but keep me as your enemy. Be a constant threat in my life. I don''t want this war to be the last exciting event that I will see in the lower plane." Second Prince couldn''t believe his ears. It was as if Noah was hiring an assassin to avoid living in peace for the rest of his journey through the heroic ranks! "Are you crazy?" Second Prince asked, but Noah shrugged his shoulders at that question as he continued to browse through the items in the old lab. The Royal found that task unreasonable. No living being would choose to add danger to their lives unless that brought clear benefits. Yet, Noah didn''t seem to have anything to gain from that. A smile started to appear on Second Prince''s face as that idea settled in his mind. He was King Elbas'' heir, so he only needed time to come up with threatening offensives and assassination plans. "What if I manage to kill you?" Second Prince asked as his smile widened. "I will just die," Noah replied without stopping inspecting the lab. "I should warn you though. I won''t hold back during your attacks, so it will be up to you to survive." Second Prince''s smile froze when he heard that answer. He did not doubt that Noah was serious about his proposal now, but he still didn''t know how he had to react to it. Noah understood that the Royal found it hard to accept his reasons, but he didn''t want to give up on that chance. After all, he could solve one of the issues that had bothered him since King Elbas'' banishment. "Look," Noah said before taking a short break to think about words that the Royal could understand. "I will let you live today as long as you promise me not to disappear from the political scene. Don''t ask yourself why. Just do your best not to die the next time we see each other." "Aren''t you afraid I will go after the other members of your organization?" Second Prince couldn''t give up so soon, but Noah''s answer left him dumbfounded. "Where is the fun in that?" Noah replied. "Shouldn''t you prove that you can aim for the sky? What is the point in hunting down weaklings?" Noah didn''t look at the Royal during his answer, and he completed the inspection of the lab while Second Prince remained dumbfounded. There wasn''t much in the lab. The few items and studies that Noah had taken weren''t exceptional nor competitive in the current inscription fields. Still, they carried King Elbas'' genius. The most valuable aspects of those studies and items were the ideas that had led to their creation. Those ideas could inspire the current generation of inscription masters and open the path for the birth of new masterpieces. Noah couldn''t let go of the chance to make the experts in his organization grow. Noah gave another look at the lab before moving toward the stairs. He had already said his piece. It was up to Second Prince to decide what to do. Noah wouldn''t lose anything even if the Royal decided to hide and never show his face again. He had nothing to gain from Second Prince anyway. He could become useful only if he became a proper enemy. "Does this mean that you think I''m worthy of being your opponent?" Second Prince asked before Noah could leave. "Recognition won''t lead you anyway," Noah replied as he lifted the trap door. "If I were you, I would stop searching for what I am and start looking for where I want to go." Noah left the lab after that line. Second Prince remained behind, but Noah didn''t look back as he set off to return to the new continent. He didn''t have anything else to say. Second Prince had to make his choice now. The invasion was still in its early stages in the new continent. The five massive puppets had stopped the expansion of the three organizations, limiting them to the western coast and the regions nearby. The powerhouses among the invaders had found some weaknesses in the Three-headed Dog during their assaults. Still, all the strategies proposed during their meetings had an unavoidable flaw. The puppets were rank 6 weapons in the upper tier, but the organizations only had access to liquid stage powerhouses at best. The difference in sheer power between the defenders and the invaders was too steep to overcome without external help. Of course, the powerhouses had made those calculations without considering Noah''s power. He had yet to join that battlefield, and the experts couldn''t create accurate strategies without knowing how much he had grown. Noah''s return put in motion strategies that had been impossible to apply without him. The invaders could now test the puppets'' prowess more accurately and hope to reclaim their lost land. Great Elder Diana, God''s Left Hand, and Noah gathered near the region containing the Three-headed Dog. A month had passed since the events with Second Prince, and the leaders of the three organizations had finally completed the preparations for a powerful assault. The attack would feature only the three of them at that time. The trio''s role was to test the puppets'' structural limits and see if they could hope to destroy it without creating something on a similar level. "You have the highest piercing power," Great Elder Diana said while looking toward Noah. "We''ll open a path through the flames. See if you can break that red metal." Noah didn''t answer, but the Demonic Sword flew out of his space-ring and landed in his hand. That gesture was enough to express his compliance with the strategy. The trio flew toward the mountain chain in the region in front of them, and a golden halo soon filled the sky as flames surged from the ground. A massive Three-headed Dog came out of the mountains and began to roar toward the three powerhouses. Flames came out of its red skin and amassed inside its mouths. The Matriarchs attacked before the puppet could gather enough energy to attack. The previous attacks had taught them how long the creature needed to launch its flames, so they didn''t fear its offensive. A series of dense lightning bolts shot out of black lenses and crashed on the golden flames surrounding the Dog. That attack didn''t manage to destroy the fire, but it destabilized its structure. God''s Left Hand waved her damaged inscribed fan, and a series of dense gales blew from her figure to converge on the spot damaged by Great Elder Diana. The fire in that spot crumbled, and a narrow path opened through the puppet''s innate defenses. Noah''s blade descended at that point. He wouldn''t waste the chance created by the Matriarchs. Chapter 1214: 1214. Damage Noah could now condense his dark world inside the Demonic Sword and unleash it when he completed a slash. Yet, that attack had multiple variants. The blow that he had shown to Second Prince aimed to cover a large area, but the situation was different now. The Matriarchs had managed to uncover only a small part of the puppet''s skin, so Noah had to unleash everything he had in that spot. No slash came out after Noah''s sword descended, but the Three-headed Dog trembled as something landed at the bottom of the tunnel dug through the flames. The puppet slid through the mountains and created cracks at their bases as it tried to maintain its position after the impact. Something had landed on its body, and the power that it carried had threatened to fling the Dog away. God''s Left Hand showed a confused expression while staring at the opening that she had created in the puppet''s defense. She didn''t see Noah''s attack, but the reaction of the other Matriarch told her that something had happened. Great Elder Diana''s reaction wasn''t flashy, but her aura became tense when she witnessed Noah''s slash. Her cultivation level was still a bit above the Hive''s leader, so she had been able to see the true nature of Noah''s attack. Noah''s slash wasn''t invisible. It was simply tiny. A minute black shard had flown out of the Demonic Sword and had crossed the opening in the puppet''s defenses to land on its skin. The amount of energy contained in that shard was unfathomable. Noah had condensed the entirety of his dark world in that attack. When it came to sheer power, that was Noah''s strongest slash. The trio watched as the golden flames filled the tunnel created by the Matriarchs. They waited until they could get a good look at the red metal, and confident smiles appeared on their faces when they saw the damages inflicted by Noah''s slash. The attack didn''t manage to pierce the red metal, but a deep white mark had appeared where the slash had landed. That was the only proof that the leaders needed to decide their approach with the puppets. The powerhouses in the world had lost a lot inside the separate reality. Only a few of them had died, but King Elbas had burned most of their stronger items. The weapons that allowed some of them to overcome the difference of power between the stages was no more. God''s Left Hand still had her fan, but it had suffered damages, and she was the weakest leader. The trio theoretically held enough power to deal with threats on the puppets'' level, but the Elbas family had built them to shine in battle. With the right allocation of energy and protections, an upper tier item could be unbeatable with sheer strength alone. That didn''t seem to be the case for the Three-headed Dog. Noah''s slash could damage it, so the three organizations could overcome that hurdle. It was only a matter of strategy now. The golden flames slowly fixed the damage. Red metal replaced the white mark and brought the puppet back to its peak condition. ''Maybe if I amassed enough primary energy,'' Noah thought as he inspected the puppet. Noah had other attacks that could deal with the puppet''s annoying abilities, but he didn''t want to reveal all his assets. He had a new enemy now. The sole fact that Second Prince existed made him remember the danger that the cultivation world could bring. Moreover, the Matriarchs had to play their parts. Noah didn''t want to carry the weight of the war on his own. That approach would only hurt the Hive since it wouldn''t learn anything about the other leaders'' abilities. "Shall we continue for a while?" Great Elder Diana asked before her companions could say anything. The Council''s Matriarch had a lot of experience in the political field. She didn''t even try to trick Noah and God''s Left Hand to make them reveal everything they had since she valued the integrity of the alliance far more than those small gains. God''s Left Hand and Noah nodded without adding anything else, and they immediately began to assault the puppet with the same strategy they had applied before. Great Elder Diana destabilized the flames'' structure, God''s Left Hand made them crumble, and Noah attacked the opening that the two Matriarchs created. The only difference was that they didn''t stop there at that time. The trio continued to assault the Dog until it finished gathering enough flames. By focusing the same spot over and over again, they had managed to pierce the initial layers of red metal and damage the puppet''s insides. Yet, the creature''s counterattack forced them to stop their relentless offensive. The Dog spread its mouths, and golden beams shot out of them. The attacks didn''t aim for the leaders but converged in front of the puppet to create a massive fiery sphere that radiated golden light in the sky. The invaders had already seen that attack multiple times, so Noah didn''t feel any surprise at that sight. He knew that was about to come, and he placed his blade on his forehead as he focused on the environment. A rain of fireballs flew out of the fiery sphere. The golden halo dimmed as the star shrunk, but the process continued until all the flames had flowed into attacks flying toward the leaders. Noah closed his eyes and unfolded his consciousness. He could sense hundreds of fireballs converging in his direction, but he didn''t move. ''I exist,'' Noah said in his head as his ambition surged. ''I can cut one of those fireballs, so I can cut all of them.'' His cultivation level surged and reached peaks that he had to explore, and a tremor ran through his aura as his sharpness manifested in the world. There were so many fireballs in the sky that the entire area was still golden, even if the main star had vanished. No other colors could exist in that environment, and even the air struggled to resist the pressure that those attacks radiated. As an upper tier inscribed weapon, the Three-headed Dog could launch attacks that resembled a solid stage powerhouse''s spell. Its fire wasn''t normal either since it took inspiration from King Elbas'' higher energy. Yet, a large chunk of the array of fireballs went dark after Noah launched its attack. Fissures appeared on every fiery sphere flying toward him and divided them in half. The light that they radiated instantly dimmed after they suffered that damage, and they didn''t even explode after Noah''s sharpness destabilized their structure. Their flames faded in the sky. Great Elder Diana didn''t have issues dealing with the attacks converging toward her either. She had created a crackling orange sphere by gathering the lightning bolts launched by her lenses while the puppet still prepared its attack. Then, small but dense bolts shot out of her attack and seeped inside the fireballs coming toward her. The fireballs initially didn''t show any difference in their behavior, but they all exploded after a second passed. A flash of golden light filled her side of the sky before vanishing altogether. God''s Left Hand had to rely on her inscribed weapon to deal with that offensive. Her fan had suffered damages, but it still was a quasi-rank 7 item. The prowess that the Matriarch could express through it was immense. Her gales swept the fireballs away and made them explode in different areas of the sky. None of them could touch her, and her feat put an end to the puppet''s first offensive. ''This is annoying,'' Noah thought when his eyes went on the Three-headed Dog after. He searched for the spot he had managed to damage, but the golden flames had fixed it while the trio was busy fending off the fireballs. ***** Note: will come when I wake up. Chapter 1215: 1215. Void The most annoying aspect of the puppet''s healing properties wasn''t in its fixing speed. The main issue was that the golden flames relied on a source of energy that didn''t have clear limits. The golden halo capable of healing formations used "Breath" to replace and fix inscriptions, but the puppets had only one fuel. They consumed the blood of the Elbas Bloodline to activate their flames and obtain those annoying abilities. That made the battle more troublesome. Noah and the others couldn''t aim to slowly exhaust the reserves of energy connected to the puppets in that situation. They didn''t know how their fuel behaved. It would have been different if the Hive still had access to the Copying Technique. The damage that the leaders could inflict with that asset would be enough to make even those powerful puppets struggle. Yet, the organizations were on their own now. The best they could do was creating inscribed weapons that countered the puppets'' abilities, but they still needed to find a way to inflict consistent damages. "Can you cut it from one side to another?" Great Elder Diana asked as she neared Noah. God''s Left Hand shook her head when she heard that, but her eyes widened when she saw that Noah was pondering about the matter. It was as if he was really considering whether he could do it or not. "Does the Hive have another divine weapon stored somewhere?" God''s Left Hand asked. Noah scratched his head as calculation happened in his mind. The puppet was sturdy, and the materials that made it were quite hard, but it was only half a stage above him when it came to sheer power. "I might be able to come close to that," Noah said as he continued to study the Three-headed Dog. "I need to land on it after preparing my attack for a while. Still, I think it''s easier to cut the heads." With enough preparations, Noah knew that his sharpness could overcome the red metal''s sturdiness. The upper tier wasn''t exactly on par with the solid stage, so he felt confident of reaching that level if he pushed his ambition to its peak. Noah''s answer didn''t surprise Great Elder Diana. Her evaluation of the strongest cultivator in history was on point. Defying Demon was a monster among monsters. "We only need to take care of the flames then," Great Elder Diana said as she turned toward God''s Left Hand. The Empire''s Matriarch had her doubts, but her role in that strategy didn''t appear to be too dangerous. It didn''t hurt to try that approach with those conditions. The Three-headed Dog charged another attack while the leaders conversed, but it lost its targets before it could create the rain of fireballs again. Noah and the two Matriarchs flew out of the puppet''s range as soon as the golden star formed. Noah crossed his legs and closed his eyes once the trio reached the edges of the battlefield. His consciousness expanded, and his aura became more intense as he relied on his ambition to enhance his abilities. The two Matriarchs left to fly toward different teleportation matrices. They needed to take a few items from their organizations'' temporary headquarters to succeed in their plan. The air around Noah fell apart as his mental waves spread in the sky. Primary energy formed from the "Breath" that his destruction shattered. The primary energy was volatile and would usually disperse in a few seconds, but Noah''s consciousness kept it in its place. His mind had long since become able to affect the laws of the world, and the primary energy couldn''t escape his influence. Noah''s aura grew as that process continued. His cultivation level surged, and white smoke came out of his skin as the black hole in his chest spun faster. Red spots appeared on his skin. His body temperature went beyond what normal humans and magical beasts could endure as he pushed his cultivation level to its peak. When the Matriarchs returned, Noah''s cultivation level had reached the peak of the liquid stage, and its growth had yet to stop! God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana felt that something was off in the area, and surprised expressions appeared on their faces when they studied that phenomenon. Some of the higher-ups had learnt about the secrets behind the magical beasts'' evolution path. As the experiments with the hybrids continued, the world''s experts had become aware of the existence of the primary energy. However, they had soon discarded any project featuring the higher energy since they saw it as a weaker version of the "Breath". Only Noah still relied on it since it was an expression of his destruction. The Matriarchs remained silent as they waited for Noah to complete his preparations. A tremor ran on their eyes when they sensed that his cultivation level stepped outside the limits of the liquid stage and began to reach the solid stage. Noah was crossing the distance between the last two stages of the heroic ranks with his individuality! "This-," God''s Left Hand began to comment, but Great Elder Diana shot a warning glance at her. She could make her considerations after the battle was over. Now she had to leave Noah be. Once Noah''s cultivation reached the quasi-solid stage level, he opened his palm to create a small dark sphere that applied a gravitational pull on the primary energy accumulated in the sky. The sphere absorbed everything it could. The primary energy converged inside its shape, but Noah''s spell also captured "Breath" in its pulling force. The Black Hole spell became bigger, and its surface started to show signs of instability after the power accumulated in its structure surpassed the liquid stage''s limits. It seemed that the spell was about to explode, but Noah promptly stabbed the Demonic Sword in its dark surface at that point. The Black Hole spell shrunk as the Demonic Sword absorbed its power. Noah''s living weapon trembled as that intense energy filled its structure, and growls came out of it as it struggled to contain that power. Noah knew that he was pushing his living weapon to its limits, but the Demonic Sword could endure that for a bit. He would consider his creation a failure if it couldn''t keep up with his individuality. "Open the path," Noah ordered, and the Matriarchs deployed their offensive methods to take care of the golden flames. Great Elder Diana took out an orange shard from her space-ring, and she crushed it in her palm to release the lightning bolts that it contained. A storm began to expand in her palm, but her individuality forced that energy to remain condensed. God''s Left Hand drew circles with her fan, and gales converged at their center. Whirlpools formed in the air as the Empire''s leader created small versions of her tornadoes. Great Elder Diana launched her spell when the other Matriarch nodded at her. Her storm flew toward the left head and expanded once it touched the golden flames that protected it. Lightning bolts and orange light fought the flames to open a path for Noah. The storm then detonated when it couldn''t progress any further and spread sparks through the golden fire. God''s Left Hand unleashed her spell at that point. Her tornadoes abandoned their condensed form to turn into gales that converged on the left head. The golden flames still had sparks running through their structure, and they couldn''t endure the violence of the gales. God''s Left Hand destroyed them with a single attack, and the head of the puppet finally lost its defenses at that point. The puppet wanted to roar at its opponents, but Noah appeared on top of its left neck. His Demonic Sword descended while carrying the momentum accumulated with his movement technique. His veins bulged as he focused that immense amount of energy into a single attack. Laws manifested in Noah''s vision as the blade descended. The Demonic Sword felt heavy, and his slash appeared slow to his senses. Yet, the Matriarchs saw everything happening in less than a second. The sky broke right after Noah stepped on the puppet. A tall fissure replaced its left neck, and its severed head fell into the void. Chapter 1216: 1216. Hope The Matriarchs knew what was about to happen, but seeing that scene stunned them anyway. Noah''s slash had ripped off the puppet''s neck and the sky''s fabric, creating a fissure so large that the giant severed head couldn''t avoid falling into the void. The fissure threatened to engulf the rest of the body too, but the Dog took a few steps back to avoid that dangerous area. Its remaining head even stopped gathering flames to focus on retreating. The world lost its light for an instant when Noah spewed his flames in the insides of the puppet. He never failed to inflict more damage when he had the chance. Noah''s starry sky flowed inside the puppet and burned its frailer parts, but the golden flames soon converged in his position and forced him to retreat. The puppet''s natural defenses covered the empty spot and started to heal it. Yet, the damage suffered was too large for the flames to fix it in a short time. Moreover, the Dog''s head contained more inscriptions than the rest of the body. The flames required more time to rebuild those lines. Noah reappeared next to the stunned Matriarchs. His cultivation level returned to its normal state, and he felt heavy when the drawback of his ambition hit his centers of power. Forcefully raising his cultivation level had serious drawbacks on his dantian and mind. Regular centers of power wouldn''t be able to withstand that pressure. After all, the ability of Noah''s individuality resembled a secret art. However, Noah was even beyond hybrids when it came to the sturdiness of his centers of power, and his black hole made sure to refill their structure with energy whenever they were about to reach a critical state. Noah could withstand drawbacks that would ruin most cultivators and hybrids. He was the only being in the world capable of wielding such ability without suffering any injury. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana could express their amazement now that Noah had completed the attack, but they didn''t comment on the matter. They only noted that Noah''s power could reach the solid stage if he had enough time to prepare. ''Tricky one,'' Noah thought as he stared at the puppet. He didn''t mind the Matriarchs'' curious gazes. His last action had demonstrated once and for all that he was the strongest warrior in those Mortal Lands. Even those who struggled to accept his superiority could only give up on their delusions after witnessing that scene. The Hive, the Council, and the Shandal Empire were allies, and that made Noah their leader. There was no need to make the matter official since all the higher-ups in the world had accepted that. Also, Noah knew that it was better to leave certain things unsaid. Forcing his hand on the Empire and Council would only cause unwanted reactions from the two Matriarchs. Red metal regrew from the severed neck of the puppet, but nothing appeared in its insides. The golden flames were fixing only its external layer at the moment. ''They have a weakness then,'' Noah thought as coldness seeped out of his eyes. That trend in the healing process was a massive flaw in the puppet''s power. Taking out one head had removed one-third of its offensive prowess! "How long do you need to launch another attack with that power?" Great Elder Diana asked when she noticed that weakness, but a dangerous sensation soon surged inside her mind. Great Elder Diana turned only to see that Noah had his cold reptilian eyes fixed on her. She felt him inspecting her and trying to understand what her intentions were. "Shall we stick with one every battle?" Noah asked as he smiled toward the Matriarch. Great Elder Diana''s eyes sharpened at those words. She had understood the reason behind Noah''s coldness, and she didn''t hesitate to nod. Her question probed directly into Noah''s power. If Noah''s answered honestly, he would reveal his current limits. "Once is more than fine," Great Elder Diana said to reaffirm her position. She didn''t fear Noah, but she didn''t want their relationship to grow cold. She had misspoken due to her excitement, but she wouldn''t dare to let it endanger the alliance with the Hive. God''s Left Hand remained silent during that interaction. She could only accept that she was outside of the political scene since her power didn''t amount to much. Her only valuable asset was the damaged quasi-rank 7 fan, but her cultivation level couldn''t grant her a spot among the world''s true leaders. "Good," Noah said as his expression relaxed. "Let''s see how long it can withstand our attacks." The Matriarchs forgot about the previous scene after his words. The puppet became their main concern again, and spells soon shot from their figures to destroy the golden flames. The trio didn''t discuss to decide a strategy, but they instinctively aimed for the damaged part of the puppet. The leaders couldn''t ignore such a large opening in its sturdy skin. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana cleared the golden flames around the severed neck multiple times, and Noah never failed to sprint toward that spot to launch powerful attacks. The trio put their offensive on hold only when the Dog attacked, but its abilities weren''t as dangerous as before since it lacked one head. The leaders didn''t even need to try their best to destroy the rain of fireballs. Noah and the others resumed their offensive after they fended off the fireballs, and the golden flames never managed to heal the massive injury since the leaders kept on focusing their attacks on that spot. The small strands of red metal that had regrown when the flames protected that spot crumbled whenever Noah landed on the puppet. His attacks destroyed every soft spot outside and inside the Dog and forced it into a constant healing process. Noah didn''t have the time to use the full power of his individuality in that situation. He limited himself to launch slashes that unleashed his dark world in the area. The golden flames could fend off Noah''s dark matter, but the spots without them suffered damages whenever the higher energy seeped through their structure. Noah could modify the properties of the dark world freely. In that situation, he used it to enhance the innate destructiveness of one of his strongest attacks. Since his focus was on the areas without golden flames, Noah could use the same technique that had managed to corner Second Prince. His slash covered the puppet''s vulnerable spots and released dark matter that carried the entirety of his individuality. Noah''s sharpness continued to destroy the red metal even after the golden flames forced him to fly away from the puppet''s skin. Cuts and fissures appeared both on the outside and inside of the creature, and they continued to ravage its body even after its protection reappeared. Inscriptions crumbled under the intensity of Noah''s sharpness, but the red metal endured his power. That was a material in the upper tier in the end. Noah couldn''t destroy it unless he brought his cultivation level to the peak of the liquid stage. The leaders'' assault continued for a few days. The Dog never managed to heal its injuries, but the powerhouses couldn''t inflict any more substantial damages. Their offensive opened cracks on its body and destroyed some of the inscriptions. Still, the golden flames always mitigated the damages that it suffered by fixing many spots during the rain of fireballs. However, the Dog didn''t rely on any secret attack during that exchange, and the leaders soon understood that they could take it down in that assault if they had enough firepower. The three of them only needed to exchange a few words before contacting the other powerhouses in their organizations. There was hope to destroy one of the puppets now, and they wouldn''t waste it. Chapter 1217: 1217. Crumble Noah, God''s Left Hand, and Great Elder Diana continued to attack the Dog while they waited for the other powerhouses in their organizations to arrive. The trio didn''t expect the puppets to have a flaw in their healing skills. Noah''s slash had revealed that weakness, and they could adapt their strategy to that discovery now that they saw hope in destroying one of the defenders. Retreating and reorganizing was worth it only if they couldn''t destroy the puppet during that assault. Yet, the three had managed to inflict more damages after one of its heads was out of the picture. That had opened the path for a crucial victory. It didn''t matter that the leaders had discovered it just now as long as they managed to exploit it. Dreaming Demon, Flying Demon, and the other cultivators from the Hive were the first to arrive on the scene. The golden flames spewed by the puppet were too dangerous for them, but they could help taking care of the protections around its body. The Council''s powerhouses reached the battlefield right after their allied Elders, and they quickly created an offensive strategy that could ease the Matriarchs'' role. True Speed was the last to arrive, and he joined the plan that the other powerhouses had devised. Among the powerhouses, only a few of them wielded enough power to affect the golden flames. The Demons, Elder Julia, and Elder Regina could replace one of the Matriarchs'' attacks if they worked together. June had to go through a few exchanges before she could join them, but Daniel, Faith, and the others lacked the sheer destructive power needed to affect that threatening fire. They didn''t even have weapons that could enhance their power and make them surpass the limits of their cultivation level. Yet, they could deploy a strategy similar to that used against King Elbas inside the separate reality. All kinds of flames had similar structural weaknesses, and the golden ones protecting the puppet weren''t even higher energy. The group of powerhouses only had to make a few attempts before they found something that could heavily affect the fire. The Demons and the other powerhouses who had already fought against King Elbas knew which abilities they had to use, and the others adapted to their battle style. Faith condensed her individuality in the shape of a few bubbles that flew through the storm of attacks before exploding when they touched the golden flames. The bubbles released shockwaves during their explosion, and the golden flames became harmless for a few seconds when Faith''s individuality swept them. Daniel imitated Faith, but he had to modify his attacks since his individuality wasn''t as intense as Faith''s. He unleashed his white light before condensing it into beams that landed on the flames protecting the puppet''s damaged parts. Skully couldn''t do much in that situation. Her mental waves were too frail to survive among those powerful attacks, so she could only use her innate ability to support the other spells. Her mental waves made her companions'' attacks faster and increased their piercing ability. She covered their spells with a few layers of condensed energy aimed to enhance some of their properties. Laura did her best with her arrows, but she was in a similar situation to Skully. Her attacks lacked the power needed to survive in that environment, so she could only use them to shield her companions'' spells. As for June, her attacks became stronger every time she failed to hit the golden flames. Her lightning bolts initially crumbled due to the shockwaves released by the many spells that filled the area, but they eventually became strong enough to help with the offensive. The powerhouses'' efforts were commendable, especially in a battlefield that could easily lead them to their death if they failed to dodge the puppet''s offensive. However, they only managed to replace Great Elder Diana. They still needed God''s Left Hand''s help to open a path through the golden flames. Still, that was already a lot. Having more than one liquid stage powerhouse inflicting damages on the puppet made their offensive far more threatening. Noah and Great Elder Diana used every chance created by their companions to enlarge the damages on the Dog. After many exchanges, its severed neck had become the origin of wide cracks that spread until the other heads. That approach was slow, and it didn''t bring immediate results. Yet, it worked, and the three organizations didn''t mind keeping that trend for entire days as long as they managed to destroy one of the defenders. The puppet only had to crumble once for its territory to become part of the invaders'' domain. One victory was all the three organizations needed against that type of defense. The Dog''s flames began to lose intensity after that battle continued for an entire week. Even that inscribed weapon had limits, but the Royals didn''t let it die so quickly. Third Prince and Second Princess appeared on the scene while their enemies were busy defending against the rain of fireballs created by their puppet. The Royals dropped blood on the creature''s heads, and their flames returned to their initial intensity after they burned that resource. Their power also increased as the two powerhouses continued to add fuel to their puppet. That gave birth to a series of violent offensives that forced the invaders to focus on defending. The Dog had managed to surpass its limits for a few hours thanks to the Royals'' blood, and that gave it enough time to heal part of the damage that it had acc.u.mulated during the previous exchanges. However, the invaders regained the upper hand in the battle after the puppet depleted that surplus of energy, and its power returned to its previous level. Noah and the others only had to last a little longer than they had predicted to defeat that defender. The shockwaves released in that battle destroyed the region and the lands nearby. There were too many powerhouses fighting at the same time, and that affected the condition of the new continent. Wars among existences on that level always led to those outcomes. Both invaders and defenders knew that they couldn''t avoid causing damages to the environment unless they found a peaceful way to settle their battle. Of course, no negotiations happened. The Elbas family was the enemy of the world, and the three organizations would gladly sacrifice some regions to take a step toward reclaiming the new continent. Noah and the others would assess the condition of their domain only after they reclaimed it. They wouldn''t hesitate to destroy it as long as it continued to belong to their enemies. Third Prince and Second Princess appeared on the battlefield to give their blood two more times. Their gesture always made the puppet unleash a wave of power that forced the invaders to slow down their offensive, but that never managed to stop them completely. By the time the Dog crumbled, only Noah, the two Matriarchs, June, True Speed, and Skully still had enough energy to keep fighting. The others had depleted their reserves of "Breath" to lead the puppet toward its destruction. The invaders didn''t need their full force at that point. The three leaders were enough to conquer that land and eliminate all the inscriptions in the region. Chapter 1218: 1218. Expansion The victory against the Three-headed Dog led the invasion into a new phase. The three organizations now knew that they had enough power to defeat the other puppets, so they only had to plan their strategies before resuming their assault. The Eight-armed Titan, the Snake, the Nine-headed Hydra, and the Phoenix were stronger than the Three-headed Dog, but they shared the same weakness. Its healing ability rebuilt the body parts that required fewer efforts to fix before moving to the areas that had more inscriptions. That flaw allowed the invaders to suppress the puppets as soon as they inflicted severe damages. Of course, the invaders had to approach every puppet differently. Noah would push his ambition to its fullest only once in the fights, so they had to inflict as many structural damages as possible with that attack. The invaders decided to attack the Phoenix after defeating their first puppet. They wanted to take care of the weaker defenders before dealing with the stronger ones. The Phoenix had an erratic battle style. It didn''t require long periods of acc.u.mulation to launch its attacks, but it couldn''t cover a large area with its offensive. The creature launched giant fireballs through its wings, but it could only create four of them at the same time. The invaders had an easier time blocking them since they could join their forces to take care of that offensive whenever the Phoenix decided to attack. Noah decided to cut away one of its wings since its offensive appeared to rely on them. His choice gave good results, and the Phoenix became unable to launch more than two fireballs at the same time after it lost that limb. The invaders could apply the same tactic that had defeated the Dog at that point. The Phoenix didn''t let them attack too often, but it couldn''t stop them from inflicting damages to its body. As long as the large injury created by Noah''s slash remained, the damage inflicted by the invaders always surpassed what the golden flames could heal. That was enough for the invaders. They only needed to keep attacking after their battle reached that situation. The puppet would eventually crumble if they continued to worsen its condition. Third Prince and Second Princess appeared on the battlefield again while the invaders suppressed the Phoenix, but Noah and Great Elder Diana had predicted their arrival. The two leaders shot toward the Royals when they stepped on the battlefield, but their assault didn''t lead anywhere. Noah and Great Elder Diana could only force Third Prince and Second Princess to use a few defensive items to escape. That outcome disappointed the two leaders, but their actions prevented the Royals from refilling the Phoenix''s reserves of energy. That eventually allowed the invaders to destroy the puppet faster than the previous one. The invaders picked the giant Snake as their next target once even the Phoenix crumbled and Thirty-seven helped remove any lingering inscription. That puppet gave off a stronger aura than the Nine-headed Hydra, but Noah strongly advised against focusing on the weaker target since it represented Second Prince''s technique. Noah didn''t fear Second Prince''s methods, but he wanted to clear as many territories as possible before being stuck into long battles. Restoring a stable foothold on the continent had to be his priority if he cared about his organization''s power. The Snake was different from the previous two targets. It didn''t have a clear weak spot, and its body was too thick for Noah. He could sever it with the right angle and enough time to prepare, but he didn''t know how freely the puppet would let him move. Having only one head gave the Snake fewer spots to defend. It could focus all its flames on a magical beast''s sensitive areas and made those who could come close to its power struggle to wound it. Moreover, the puppet could launch waves of flames that filled large pieces of the sky without acc.u.mulating energy. The invaders had to prepare fire-resistant robes before the battle since the Snake was too dangerous to face without inscribed defensive items. Noah attempted to cut its head a few times, but the Snake always managed to dodge or avoid his attack. Golden flames would come out of its skin whenever Noah''s blade became too close, and it could also perform evasive maneuvers whenever Noah managed to sprint past the fire. In the end, Noah had to settle for cutting away a large chunk of its body and leave the head intact. That slowed down the invaders'' advance, but they managed to destroy the puppet anyway, even if they had to attack it four times and with different battle tactics. As for the Royals, Third Prince and Second Princess didn''t show themselves while the invaders ripped the Snake into pieces. They feared what Noah and Great Elder Diana could do if they managed to capture them. The last two puppets were both quite annoying. The higher-ups had tested their power while Noah was still inside his year of break from the invasion, and they couldn''t understand which one was stronger. The Eight-armed Titan wielded an incredible physical strength, and it could create massive swords with its flames. It didn''t have any long-range attack, but it was a threatening foe already in its current form. The Nine-headed Hydra had opposite abilities. Its physical might was on par with the Titan, but it could only launch long-range attacks. It was quite powerless when an enemy managed to slip past its flames. Noah would typically choose to fight the Hydra since it appeared to be weak against his abilities, but he had to be wary of Second Prince. He didn''t know if the puppet carried a trace of the Royals'' prowess. Only King Elbas was aware of that. The Matriarchs understood his concerns after Noah explained the situation to them. Second Prince was King Elbas'' heir in the end. The puppet that depicted his technique had to be different from the others. The leaders decided to put a hold on the battles against the puppets due to those doubts. Defeating the other three creatures had already opened the path for the conquest of half of the new continent. The invaders only had to deal with the defensive formations there to seize them. The three organizations expanded on the northern side of the new continent. The various powerhouses led different attacks while Noah and the Matriarchs studied a viable offensive to defeat the two remaining puppets. Years of battles went by, and the invaders slowly reached the eastern coast as their advance continued. The defensive formations on their path could only hinder their inevitable conquest of those areas. The leaders let their organizations settle in their new domains before resuming the war. They wanted to jump back on the positive trend that they had abandoned when they escaped inside the separate dimension. They were finally back into a prosperous land filled with resources. It didn''t matter that the current new continent had already suffered from many wars. It was a paradise compared to the separate dimension. As for the war, the Matriarchs eventually decided to listen to Noah''s instincts. They would leave the Hydra as the last puppet and move their focus on the Titan for now. Chapter 1219: 1219. Differen The Eight-armed Titan defended part of the mountain chain that covered the central part of the new continent. Its region wasn''t as crucial as the landmass''s resources, but it was a guardian that the invaders wanted to defeat. The three organizations wouldn''t hold back anymore now that King Elbas had left the lower plane. The Elbas family had to leave the new continent and pay for what it had done to the world''s previous overlords. The powerhouses gathered above the region defended by the Titan. All the rank 6 existences of the invaders flew there to begin a joint assault to one of the last champions of the Elbas family. They didn''t have a proper strategy since they had yet to test the limits of the puppet. However, they were ready to unleash everything they had in that battle. Noah approached that battle with a heavy mind. Part of him wanted to test himself against that puppet, but he knew he had to hide his power in front of the other organizations. His instincts told him that he couldn''t face the Titan on his own. Still, he felt close to its level of power. After all, his ambition alone brought him near the solid stage in terms of battle prowess. Noah felt slightly conflicted about the whole matter, but he decided to test the puppet with the other powerhouses before choosing how to approach that battle. His biggest issue was the golden fire protecting its red skin. Noah was unsure whether he could face it when it came to its physical might. Noah and the others had gathered a lot of experience with the other puppets, so they knew how to coordinate themselves in those fights. He didn''t even have to give orders to make them start the assault. Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon covered the battlefield with their coordinated spells. White flowers spread everywhere in that chunk of sky, and heavy mental waves came out of the ice they generated. Daniel and Faith had learnt how to make their attacks work together with the Demons. Their individualities had a wide area of influence, so they could use them to pave the way for the Demons'' spells. Faith''s mental waves flew through Dreaming Demon''s consciousness and faced the golden flames head-on. Their goal was to reduce part of its destructiveness. Daniel did something similar. His light took the shape of dense white trails that avoided the flowers to attack the flames. Faith and Daniel were only gaseous stage powerhouses, so their individualities couldn''t affect the flames too much. Items in the upper tier were above their power, but their attacks managed to cause some changes in that defensive layer. The flames didn''t lose much power, but they slowly shrunk under the effect of those individualities. Drops of blood appeared inside them as Daniel turned them into their true form and made them unable to fuel the puppet again. The Demons'' attack reached the flames only after they underwent that process. The ice melted when it neared them, but part of Dreaming Demon''s mental waves managed to seep into their fabric and weaken their structure. Dreaming Demon even managed to make a few strands of fire fight among themselves. Yet, even the work of four gaseous stage powerhouses couldn''t create a flaw in the flames. Those were only superficial damages. The puppet generated new flames continuously, so the four only affected part of their external layers. Elder Laura and Elder Regina had learnt to work together too. They both gave birth to various creatures with their spells, so they could create battle formations meant to counter the puppet''s innate abilities when they cooperated. The two of them also came from the same organization. They had the time to study and prepare techniques that could damage the golden flames in that period. The tactic that led to better outcomes saw Elder Regina creating an army made of countless worm-type creatures and Elder Laura shooting snake-like beasts that ate them to apply a layer of protection around their bodies. That gave the puppets enough time to reach the flames and detonate around the Titan. When paired with their companions'' attacks, their spells could fly through the fire until they were almost above the red metal. Elder Julia had gathered enough experience to make her attacks aim for the flaws that her companions created. She could condense her wind-slashes into small blades that pierced the weakened spots among the flames and create long paths that led to the Titan''s skin. The other gaseous stage powerhouses could only have a supportive role. Their individualities made them capable of powerful attacks, but that was a useless feature against flames that could surpass them in their raw form. The best attack of a gaseous stage powerhouse couldn''t even come near a casual spell launched by a being in the solid stage. The same went for the weaker experts. They could only cast techniques that worsened the flaws created by their companions. The efforts of the gaseous stage powerhouses made them able to replace one of the leaders, but the Titan was different from the other puppets. It wielded long swords that forced one of the experts in the liquid stage to block the shockwaves that they created. The powerhouses fought outside of the fiery swords'' range, but they had to remain inside the reach of their shockwaves if they wanted their influence to maintain its power. That forced Great Elder Diana to focus her offensive on destroying any harmful shockwave that aimed for the weaker powerhouses. She could launch attacks toward the puppet even with that role, but she didn''t manage to inflict significant damages when she split her attention. God''s Left Hand helped the other Matriarchs with her new role, but her main job was to clear the weakened golden flames and create an opening that Noah could exploit. The invaders had to use part of their power to defend. It was up to Noah to make up for that loss of firepower. Noah didn''t join that battle immediately. He remained at the battlefield''s edges as his companions became used to the Titan''s fighting style. His ambition had already brought his aura to the quasi-solid stage level, but he waited before making his move. He had to see if the puppet gave them hope to win that battle before deciding how to act. The Titan was relentless. It slashed with its swords and tried to hit the powerhouses at the edges of the battlefield, but it could only reach them with the shockwaves generated with its attacks. The leaders blocked those shockwaves, so the invaders and the Titan remained in a situation where they were unable to hurt each other. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique to evaluate his options, but he soon understood that he had already grasped all the aspects of that battle. His only option was to fly through the slashes and reach the Titan to exploit the openings created by his companions. However, charging inside the puppet''s range would give it the chance to inflict some damage with its technique. He had to risk something to obtain benefits. Noah never hesitated to do that when it benefited him, but that battle would only help the organizations'' political influence. He didn''t need to conquer those regions, but his battle intent became more intense as he kept watching the Titan. His instincts told him that he could defeat it if the other powerhouses kept on weakening the golden flames. Noah glanced at the two Matriarchs before heaving a silent sigh. King Elbas had already proven that a single cultivator could defeat an entire world, so it was pointless to hold back when he desired to test himself. "Don''t stop attacking," Noah said as he broke his stance to sprint inside the Titan''s range. "I''m going to try something different." Chapter 1220: 1220. Bai Noah heard some protests reaching his ears, but he ignored them as he sprinted toward the Eight-armed Titan. Its swords immediately flew toward him when he entered its range, but a black cloud appeared in that area before they could converge on him. The dark world expanded and slowed down the swords for an instant. The Titan''s weapon soon pierced Noah''s dark matter and destroyed the cloud, but they only found a human-shaped crack when they reached the center of the technique. Another cloud appeared where the powerhouses'' attacks converged. The dark world unfolded again, but a layer of corrosive smoke covered its edges and enlarged the path through the golden fire created by Noah''s companions. Noah could change the shape of the dark world as he liked. He could even modify some of its features according to his needs. His dark matter created tunnels where the corrosive smoke of his Demonic Form flew freely. That allowed his spell to damage the flames even if the dark world surrounded his figure. The Titan''s flames had endured the assault of the other powerhouses for a while by then. The experts from the three organizations had created an opening above the puppet''s chest, and Noah''s had sprinted to unleash his dark world and corrosive smoke there. The Demonic Form spell finished to destroy the weakened flames and uncovered the Titan''s chest. Noah now had the defenseless red metal right in front of him, and his cultivation level had already reached the point where he could launch a slash capable of ripping off a large chunk of the puppet. However, launching his strongest slash would exhaust all the power that he had gathered through his ambition. Noah knew that his group couldn''t defeat the Titan in the same way as the other puppets. He and his companions couldn''t exploit the damage created with one slash since the fiery swords blocked most of the attacks that entered their range. One large wound wasn''t enough to force the Titan into a passive position. Noah had to do far more if he wanted to have a chance to defeat that opponent. Noah''s black hole rotated faster as he decided to remain there. He was fast enough to dodge the blades, and being a bait could make his companions more useful in the battle. The Titan spread its arms before pointing its swords toward the center of the new cloud and thrusting them. The fire that made those weapons fused and created a dense mass of flames when they converged on the same spot, but they only hit a human-shaped crack again. Noah reappeared on top of the Titan. The dark world had taken the shape of a dense defensive layer that covered his fuming armor when he came out of his dimension. His companions could see the air around Noah bending under the pressure that his figure applied on the sky. His quasi-solid stage cultivation level was enough to open cracks, but the condensed dark world made him too heavy for that area. It was as if the sky couldn''t withstand the amount of energy he had condensed into a small area. Even the sunlight couldn''t overcome the gravitational pull that surrounded him. Noah had transformed into a black hole that had the shape of the Demonic Form. The pressure that affected the sky weighed on his body, but it also gave him immense power. There was a limit to the number of attacks that he could perform when the dark world took that shape, but Noah had chosen to use that technique because he had a clear strategy in mind. The golden flames in that spot were intact, but Noah''s technique allowed him to remain among them without suffering any injury for a few seconds. The Titan swung its swords upward, but Noah delivered a punch to the puppet''s head before they could reach him. His fist dug into the red metal and arrived in the empty insides filled with inscriptions. The puppet lost its balance after that attack. Noah''s punch created a shockwave that made the Titan bend backward, and its swords missed him by a few meters due to the impact. The powerhouses didn''t let that chance to waste. Noah had chosen to charge in a spot full of golden flames, leaving the cleared area unused. The Titan''s chest didn''t have fire protecting it, and its swords didn''t launch shockwaves toward the other assets anymore. The path was clear. The powerhouses launched everything they had at the Titan''s chest, and deep cracks appeared on the red metal in that spot. Their joint attack allowed them to create some decent damage. Noah sprinted away to reappear on the Titan''s chest. He couldn''t survive for long among the golden flames, and that area was the only spot without fire that allowed him to continue unleashing the power of his individuality. Noah delivered another punch, and he tried to use the cracks opened by his companions to increase the amount of damage he could inflict. Another shockwave ran through the Titan, and it made it miss its attack again. Meanwhile, a large chunk of its chest fell, and Noah flew directly inside it. The powerhouses remained speechless when they saw Noah entering the Titan, but they could only trust him in that situation. They resumed their destruction of the flames, and they aimed at the damaged spots to slow down the healing properties of the creature. Noah''s defensive layer had recovered during his previous attack, so it could face the golden flames again. The puppet''s insides were full of fire, but his protection could survive for a couple of seconds in that environment. The world of laws appeared in Noah''s vision as he inspected the inscriptions inside the puppet. His expertise in that field was poor, but he could vaguely understand which lines were more important. ''Not yet,'' Noah thought as he sprinted upward to pierce the Titan''s head from the spot he had previously damaged. Noah continued to fly until he escaped from the range of the flames, and his aura became more intense as he saw the Titan restoring its balance and aiming its swords at him again. The empowerment given by his ambition was about to end. Noah couldn''t match solid stage powerhouses for too long. He could only launch two more weaker attacks before the effects of his law vanished. The fact that he had been in that superior state for three exchanges prevented him from launching his strongest slash, but Noah had already expected that. He planned to force the Titan''s attention on him since he could continue to damage it and expose flaws in its battle style at the same time. That allowed his companions to use offensive spells against the red metal. They didn''t need to limit themselves to defending and destroying the flames anymore since Noah took care of part of that already. The gaseous stage powerhouses couldn''t do much, but his approach gave Great Elder Diana the chance to attack multiple times. Also, the whole group could aim directly for the red metal after they removed the flames. Noah''s strategy multiplied the offensive prowess of the group. While he acted as bait, Great Elder Diana could always attack the puppet, and her companions had the time for a direct blow once every two exchanges! Chapter 1221: 1221. Broken The powerhouses couldn''t even begin to express how amazing damaging the puppet as a united group felt. They had fought and defeated three puppets already, but only Noah and Great Elder Diana had managed to inflict blows directly on the red metal in the previous fights. However, the situation had entirely changed due to Noah''s strategy. He had limited himself to reveal part of what the dark world could do when he used it together with his ambition, but the Titan had immediately lost the upper hand in the battle. The puppet focused its efforts on catching Noah, but he was too fast, and he damaged the red metal whenever he dodged. Moreover, his actions gave his companions all the time in the world to establish a second offensive. The Titan suffered immense damages during those long seconds. Noah had created a large hole on its chest and head, and the other powerhouses had opened cracks connected to the first spot. It would typically take half a day for the group to reach the same results. Yet, they had only fought for less than a minute! Of course, it would have been better to exploit Noah''s strongest slash, but the Titan''s defense was too tight for that. The cover to the fiendish armor worked better against that opponent. Noah sprinted again to dodge the eight fiery swords trying to catch him. He returned inside the Titan from the hole in its head and threw a punch in an area filled with golden lines. Most of those inscriptions went dark after the shockwave generated by Noah''s attack spread on that area of the puppet. Noah had aimed to destroy the inscriptions during that attack. His punch didn''t manage to pierce the red metal, but he could gain far more benefits from that type of attack. His eyes remained fixed on the dimming lines during his stay inside the Titan. Some functions and failsafe of the puppet stopped working after that blow, but something even more peculiar happened as those inscriptions crumbled. The lower part of the Titan became unable to create golden flames. Its legs and low-waist became defenseless after Noah destroyed the inscriptions connected to that function. ''Found them,'' Noah''s eyes lit up before he sprinted outside of the Titan. Noah only had one attack left. His power would return to its actual level after that, but he had already decided his target. The Titan was an inscribed weapon. Its abilities came from formations and other types of lines. King Elbas had placed them inside its body since it was its safest spot, but they were the perfect target for anyone capable of reaching them. The puppet could function only because of those lines. Destroying them would stop some of its abilities until the golden flames fixed the damaged inscriptions. When it came to the Titan''s inscriptions, Noah had made sure to understand which lines gave it the ability to produce flames. His inspection didn''t grant him a complete overview of that array of inscriptions, but he had figured half of it at least. That was enough to give his group an important advantage that could last even after the empowerment from his ambition ended. Noah saw the swords reaching for him once again, but he sprinted toward the Titan''s chest at that point. Great Elder Diana and the others had changed their target when they saw the flames on the puppet''s legs disappear, so no attacks were flying in that spot. The Demonic Sword had returned inside the special space-ring while Noah fought in that new form, but it flew back in his palm when he returned in front of the golden lines. Part of the armor of dark matter morphed to envelop the blade to protect it from the flames. Noah pointed the tip of the Demonic Sword toward the center of those inscriptions, and the dark matter around him began to flow inside his blade as he prepared a powerful attack. The real fiendish armor finally appeared in the open, but the corrosive smoke soon burned under the golden flames'' power. Noah''s defenses instantly crumbled when he redirected his dark world toward his weapon. Pain reached Noah''s head when his skin began to burn. His incredible body managed to fend off the flames for three whole seconds before its external tissues crumbled under the fire''s might. Noah''s quasi-solid stage cultivation level was only a fake created with his ambition. His centers of power didn''t become stronger during that empowerment. Only the energy that he exuded surpassed his current limits. The Demonic Sword absorbed all the dark matter, and it didn''t spare the higher energy protecting its shape. Cracks started to appear on the living weapon as the flames landed on its body, but Noah didn''t interrupt the preparations for his attack. He only had one last blow left. He would have to rejoin the group afterward, so he couldn''t waste it. The world of laws appeared in Noah''s vision, and his hand trembled when he found his targets. The Demonic Sword''s tip touched one of the lines, and countless black dots flowed inside that golden line. The dots destroyed the inscription and spread on those nearby to continue their destruction. Noah had chosen a spot with many lines intertwined with each other so that his attack could affect more of them. Also, he had targeted those that could generate the flames. If he managed to remove them, the Titan would almost become a punching bag for the group of powerhouses. Noah couldn''t admire the result of his efforts since his cultivation level began to fall as soon as he launched that attack. His condition was even awful since he had remained inside the flames without protection for a few seconds already. A human-shaped crack replaced his body, and Noah reappeared next to the Matriarchs. The two leaders could only glance at his fuming figure for a second since a breathtaking view soon caught their attention. Noah''s attack continued to destroy the inscriptions inside the puppet. Cut began to open on the red metal whenever the sharpness couldn''t find other lines to target. All the inscriptions near the Titan''s chest disappeared in less than a second, and massive changes happened to the puppet''s battle prowess. The golden flames disappeared, but light promptly came out of the mountain chain and started to rebuild the inscriptions lost during the assault. The Titan''s legs stopped functioning, and it fell on its knees. Three of its arms went on the mountains to support its massive body and prevent it from landing entirely on the ground. Five fiery swords disappeared, but three of them remained intact. Noah didn''t manage to destroy the inscriptions connected to them in his last assault, so the puppet didn''t lose those abilities. The Titan''s movements became slower once it stabilized its new position. It tried to stand up again, but all his gestures appeared clunky, and it didn''t seem able to perform certain actions anymore. Noah''s had destroyed its defenses and rendered it virtually harmless when he had crushed the golden lines. He had managed to inflict more structural damages against the other puppets, but his achievements in that battle were more than enough to open a path toward victory. The group now only had to damage the Titan as much as possible before the golden light fixed its annoying abilities. Chapter 1222: 1222. Egg The battle against the Eight-armed Titan continued, but the powerhouses destroyed most of it before the golden light managed to fix its inscriptions. The puppet lost all its arms and legs before the golden flames began to burn on its skin again. Yet, the battle had already ended by then. That fire alone couldn''t stop the powerhouses. The Titan crumbled, and the leaders inspected the region to remove any inscription still lingering in the area. In less than a week, troops from their organizations started to settle and build encampments to reclaim that land properly. The organizations resumed their expansion after the Titan fell. They had defeated almost all the guardians of the Elbas family, so they could conquer most of the new continent before having to gaze at the regions that still had powerful protections. The Elbas family had reinforced most of the regions in its domain, but there were a few lands that had special protections. The last part of the mountain chain at the center of the new continent had the Nine-headed Hydra, and the southern part of the eastern coast had piles of formations that could replicate the might of a solid stage powerhouse when working together. That disposition of the defenses revealed that the Royals had never planned to control the entirety of the new continent for long. They knew exactly how strong they were, so they had reinforced only a few crucial regions. Third Prince and Second Princess didn''t expect King Elbas to leave without even bothering to deal with their enemies, but that had only accelerated the inevitable invasion. The three organizations had still part of the new continent''s southern area to reclaim, but they had to face the threatening Hydra before they could advance further. The problem with the last puppet was that its range was far wider than the Titan. The waves of flames that the nine heads launched could fill the sky above multiple regions while maintaining their upper tier power. Reaching it was pointless. Noah could use the armor made of dark matter to cross the Hydra''s barrage of attacks, but he wouldn''t have any support inside it. Moreover, he could guess that the Royal would modify some of the puppet''s defenses to stop him from destroying the inscriptions. If Noah went inside the Hydra and something went wrong, he would remain stuck among the golden flames. The invasion had to stop for a few years. Thirty-seven, Noah, and other inscription masters had to build a series of specific weapons to counter the Hydra''s annoying abilities. The three organizations finally had access to many resources again. It didn''t matter that the new continent had lost a lot of power since it first fell. It still contained materials that could help them out. The experts created robes, barriers, formations, and talismans. Noah even built a few living weapons that could fend off the flames a few times. The main issue against the Hydra was its level, but the invaders could use many inscribed items to make up for that difference in power. Truth be told, Noah believed that he could create something stronger than the golden flames. He didn''t know if he could build a proper weapon in the upper tier, but reaching that level of power with disposable items was more than possible with his current expertise. However, he didn''t want to start a long series of experiments, and he would rather preserve the world''s resources. Wasting valuable materials in a battle that they could win through other methods risked to leave him without the items required by his projects. Also, he wanted the other organizations to do their share of work. They would start to take advantage of the Hive if it kept on solving every issue. The attack on the Nine-headed Hydra started ten years after that break. The powerhouses revealed a long series of defensive items in the lower and middle tier that could block the golden flames when they worked together. The invaders had to perform a few tests against the puppet before they felt confident that their methods worked, but they launched massive attacks once they polished their battle strategy. Their offensive progressed slowly, but that was the best that they could do in that situation. The powerhouses had to use most of their energy to fuel the defensive items and arrive on a spot where their spells could reach the Hydra. Then, they had to damage the puppet. Noah didn''t dare to expose himself after he had revealed his techniques and limited himself to launch slashes that could leave long cuts on the Hydra''s heads. The assault had to progress slowly because the invaders couldn''t remain inside the Hydra''s range for too long. They had to inflict as much damage as possible before retreating and refill their reserves of energy. That wasn''t always possible, but the invaders slowly polished their battle style against the Hydra and began to cut multiple heads during each assault. That gave the group the time to recover before the entire puppet could fix all its damages. The invaders had to dismantle it little by little and could only win if they managed to remain constant in their results. The didn''t seem to be any problem in that aspect of the assaults. The invaders always managed to inflict significant damages in each battle, so the destruction of the Hydra became only a matter of time in their minds. However, something strange happened while the group continued to attack the puppet. Seven heads of the Hydra never managed to regrow, and the invaders wanted to increase that number soon, but Noah''s instincts suddenly felt an immense danger. There didn''t seem to be anything different from the usual in the area. The Hydra spat fire that the powerhouses blocked with their defensive items. The experts then moved the protections forward to make the puppet enter the range of their abilities. Noah couldn''t explain the reason behind his sensation. He initially thought about Second Prince, but the danger he felt was too intense for it to come from the Royal. ''What is even happening?'' Noah shouted in his mind as he looked around him. His companions were too busy dealing with the flames to notice his odd behavior, but they sensed his mental waves expanding recklessly in the sky. Part of Noah''s mental waves burned when they crossed the defensive items and entered in the flames, but he didn''t mind that loss. All his focus was on finding the cause behind that danger. The feeling never waned. It only increased in intensity, and Noah eventually acted. His instincts had never misjudged a threat, so he trusted them enough to call a retreat. "Fall back!" Noah shouted before sprinting outside of that region. His companions remained speechless when they noticed his sudden action, but that wouldn''t be Noah''s first time predicting or sensing a dangerous event before them. Moreover, they all trusted his judgment. He had to have a good reason to interrupt the assault and let the Hydra heal. Noah continued to retreat until the dangerous feeling began to disperse. He had to reach the center of the region nearby before he felt safe to stop. The other powerhouses did the same and grouped around him to question him about the issue, but Noah didn''t even glance at them. He was too busy searching for the cause of his sensation to mind his companions. ''What is this?'' Noah asked himself when he saw that nothing happened. He was almost about to think that his instincts had failed for the first time. Yet, a giant lightning bolt fell from the sky at that point. It crashed on the Hydra and pierced its golden flames before shattering its body. Noah almost couldn''t believe his consciousness. The lightning bolt carried an energy superior to the Heaven Tribulation faced by God''s Right Hand. His eyes went on the sky, where he saw that a large hole had appeared in its fabric. A pure white light came out of that fissure, and some smoke still lingered on its edges. Noah looked at the ground at that point, and his surprise could only increase at that scene. He saw a cultivator covered in trails of white smoke holding a large egg with both his arms. "Almighty!" God''s Left Hand shouted while the group silently recognized that cultivator. Chapter 1223: 1223. Human thief Noah couldn''t fail to recognize the God of the Shandal Empire, especially after meeting his will. Also, the aura that he radiated carried the unmistakable trace of a divine being. "Almighty!" God''s Left Hand shouted again before kowtowing on the air. Tears fell from her eyes, and her aura became stronger as she expressed her utmost respect toward her leader. It was as if Shandal''s return in the lower plane had stirred her individuality to improve. The other powerhouses showed different reactions at that scene. Concern appeared on most of them, but those who had been in Shandal''s separate dimension didn''t feel any fear. The reappearance of the God of the Empire would give a new life to that organization. His sole presence was enough to make it become the strongest force in the world, and his guidance would make its growth spike again. It was normal for the powerhouses from other organizations to fear Shandal. His return would make them lose some of the benefits they experienced while he was in the Immortal Lands. Instead, the powerhouses who had been in Shandal''s dimension knew that he didn''t mean any harm. The God wouldn''t influence the political environment. He only cared about sending more cultivators to the Immortal Lands. As for Noah, he could barely focus in that situation since his instincts were screaming like crazy. They had gone silent after the lightning bolt fell, but they had soon started to warn him again. Noah wanted to focus on Shandal, but his mind didn''t allow him to do it. His eyes moved between the egg and the crack in the sky on their own. They didn''t even give him the time to look at the divine cultivator! The egg made Noah feel the most intense hunger that he had ever felt in his life. It was as if he had gone back to when he was a hybrid. It took all his concentration to remain sane in that condition. The hole in the sky made him feel danger. Noah sensed a massive menace whenever he looked at white light leaking from that connection to the Immortal Lands. That dangerous feeling helped to keep in check his hunger, but Noah felt conflicted anyway. He didn''t know what to think in that situation. Too much was happening at the same time, and his mind acted as an enemy due to all the sensations that filled it. Noah''s black hole rotated and sent a large amount of energy toward his mind. His condition slowly stabilized, but his instincts continued to run wild through his mental sea. The black hole had only made Noah able to endure those sensations. It didn''t make them disappear. Once Noah''s stabilized, he could finally inspect the god. Shandal was gasping for air while sitting cross-legged on the ground. The debris created after the lightning bolt destroyed the Hydra surrounded him, but he had eyes only for the egg between his arms. Noah''s attention went on the egg. It was green, and it was as big as a man''s chest. Its surface appeared quite sturdy, but Shandal still held it as if it was the frailest item in the world. What surprised Noah the most was the aura exuded by the egg. That was a proper rank 7 item, and the energy that it spread in the environment made every magical beast and hybrid hungry for it. ''Can a creature be born directly as a divine being?'' Noah wondered as he continued to inspect the egg. His senses weren''t reliable when it came to the divine realm since he was still too weak to grasp it. Noah didn''t manage to pinpoint the actual cause of that divine aura. Both the material that made the egg and the creature inside it could be the source. ''This hunger isn''t natural,'' Noah thought. ''Divine creatures shouldn''t cause these reactions inside me.'' Noah had already been in the same room with divine items and resources, but his hunger had never reached that level of intensity. The only explanation was that the egg had some unique features. ''That would also explain this flashy return,'' Noah thought as his eyes went on the sky. The danger that he felt coming from the crack was peculiar too. It was different from the lightning bolt that had fallen in the lower plane. It appeared almost alive when Noah tried to analyze it. However, the crack began to close as the seconds passed. The hole shrunk as the structure of the sky enlarged to block that passage for the Immortal Lands. "Almighty!" God''s Left Hand shouted again without raising her head. Shandal heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that the crack had started to close itself. His attention could finally go on the group of powerhouses staring at him while wearing stunned expressions. "I didn''t plan to return so soon," Shandal announced as he stood up, "But I couldn''t escape in any other way. I had to make Heaven and Earth notice me to open this shortcut. Nothing cuts through planes better than a Tribulation." Shandal appeared to be in a happy mood. He began to laugh on his own, and he didn''t even care that his hair and beard were a mess. Only one braid had survived. The lightning bolt had destroyed the others. His aura seeped through the environment and affected the matter that made it. Shandal was a failed divine cultivator, but he carried some features of a true god. God''s Left Hand couldn''t contain her excitement anymore after she heard her leader speak. She straightened her position and flew toward Shandal to welcome him back to the lower plane properly. Gales formed in the air after she passed. Her individuality made her a calamity that served only Shandal, so the Patriarch''s return made her power grow. The other powerhouses relaxed when they saw God''s Left Hand''s actions, and some felt intrigued about the whole situation. They didn''t know how valuable the egg was, but they mostly wanted to talk with an actual god anyway. "Don''t move," Noah said in a low tone after True Speed left the group to follow his Matriarch. Noah had purposely waited for the powerhouses of the Empire to leave the group before giving his warnings. The hole in the sky had yet to close, and he still felt danger coming from it. It was better to wait until the fissure disappeared before moving right under it. True Speed and God''s Left Hand didn''t manage to reach Shandal since a growl came out of the fissure and echoed through the whole lower plane. The air in the sky shattered, and cracks opened when that sound passed. None of the powerhouses had doubts when it came to evaluating Shandal''s enemy. Everyone knew that only a creature in the divine ranks could give birth to such an intense sound. Noah had to condense his consciousness inside his mental sphere to endure the vibrations caused by the growl. His mind could understand the meaning behind that cry. "Human thief," The creature on the other side of the fissure said. Noah felt curious about the matter, but he couldn''t step forward and ask for the details of Shandal''s journey. He had to organize a specific meeting for that topic. Still, the surprises weren''t over yet. Noah was about to evaluate whether to greet Shandal when a curved green claw pierced the fissure in the sky and enlarged its edges. Chapter 1224: 1224. Crisis "Human thief," The growl resounded again and spread through the entire world. "Human thief!" The sky trembled when the claw surpassed the edges of the hole and appeared in the lower plane. A divine aura spread from it, and the world''s fabric found itself unable to bear it. Countless cracks appeared in the sky as the divine aura spread. A lower plane was too frail to endure that creature''s aura, but the divine being in the Immortal Land didn''t seem to care. It continued to growl and stab its claw deeper into that world. The powerhouses couldn''t do anything in that situation. They didn''t even move. There was nowhere to hide when divine beings became involved. King Elbas had already proven that. ''The sky will collapse if that guy tries to cross the barriers between planes,'' Noah thought as he studied the claw. Noah could learn many pieces of information from a single body part, but he didn''t know how useful his expertise was in that situation. Even discovering the creature''s species wouldn''t help him at all unless it had severe flaws. Yet, even serious flaws wouldn''t help him. There was a simple but insurmountable problem in that situation. Noah couldn''t damage a divine being. Surviving in its presence was already a remarkable feat. A tremor suddenly ran through the claw, and a few sparks came out of it before dispersing in the sky. An angry roar followed that event, but the body part began to retreat nonetheless. The claw disappeared among the white light, but the hole didn''t show signs of closing. It was as if something was keeping it open, but that action happened on the other side. Noah and the others couldn''t forcefully block it since the culprits were then in the Immortal Lands. A series of low roars began to echo through the hole again. The meaning that they carried was different, but Noah understood most of it. "World too frail," The creature growled, "Kill human. Take egg. Make them fear us." "What did you even lead here?" Noah asked without moving his eyes from the crack. Shandal knew that the question was for him. He didn''t know how Noah could be so relaxed in his presence, but he didn''t feel angry about his gesture. Instead, Shandal looked above him before heaving a sign and replying to those who were listening. "This is my fault. I might have led the Eternal Snake''s species into a lower plane." All the powerhouses turned toward Shandal when they heard his words. The name of that species was quite peculiar, and it didn''t seem like a good sign. "What will happen now?" Noah asked without minding that he was speaking with an actual god. His survival instincts made him completely disregard respect and politeness. "I''m in the same situation, young man," Shandal answered. "We can only believe in Heaven and Earth''s restrictions now." Having faith in Heaven and Earth wasn''t something that Noah could do. His ambition surged while he waited for the Eternal Snake on the other side of the hole to do something. His cultivation level increased too. Noah couldn''t gather much power, but he almost reached the peak of the liquid stage. His eyes had already reopened when something happened in the crack. Layers of ice and silver reinforced the edges of the passage and forced it to remain open. That method completely stopped the natural healing of the sky. Shadows appeared through the white light, but some of them released an angry roar when the Heaven Tribulation on the other side punished them. Their crime against Heaven and Earth was that they had tried to fly into the lower plane while being in the divine ranks. The world couldn''t allow that. Shandal was a peculiar existence, so Heaven and Earth never bothered to punish him. They tried to hit him only when he went in the Immortal Lands. A series of growls echoed through the sky again, and Noah could hear that they were only complaints aimed at the fragility of the world. There was a chance that those creatures had never lived in a lower plane, so their surprise was understandable. ''It shouldn''t be too smart,'' Noah thought as he inspected what he could in that situation. The Eternal Snake didn''t appear to be as smart as other creatures. Night could talk freely, but that species of beasts had many difficulties in reaching that level of expertise with words. After that failed attempt, the creatures on the other side of the crack sent something into the lower world. Ten giant boulders fell from the sky and crashed on various spots of the world. The new continent saw the highest number of those meteors falling on its surface. Some of them ended up in the sea, while one even landed in the old landmass. The crash of those boulders created intense shockwaves that threatened to wipe out the living beings in entire regions, but Shandal intervened at that point. His consciousness unfolded and covered the world, and his divine "Breath" moved to perform a spell that only a few experts noticed. His individuality made him freeze the shockwaves that remained on their spot until they depleted all the energy that they contained. Shandal''s individuality affected the boulders, but it was only a matter of time before the creatures inside them freed themselves of that cover. They had used it exclusively to preserve their health in the end. Each boulder radiated a peak rank 6 aura, and they remained in that shape and spots for a long time. A twitch soon appeared on Shandal''s face, who recalled his consciousness and stood up. He couldn''t use his divine power for a long time and refilling it was even more troublesome. It was better to save it now that he knew that he couldn''t avoid that threat anymore. More roars echoed from the hole in the sky. The creatures on the other side cried the same lines again, but only Noah could hear their meaning. Still, the other powerhouses could vaguely understand their purpose. As the growls echoed through the sky, the ten boulders began to tremble. The white smoke coming out due to the burns suffered during the fall vanished, and a few cracks opened on their figures. The boulders started to move as those orders reached them. They soon revealed to the world what they were. They had taken that oval form to pass through the hole in the sky and get the surface, but they were nothing more than massive snakes coiled to take that shape. The ten snakes roared at the sky when they stretched. Noah could immediately understand that those weren''t simple snake-like creatures since their cries made them sound like dragons. Still, he didn''t feel fear. Instead, he was excited that such powerful creatures had fallen from the sky. It was as if the Immortal Lands wanted to ensure that the world had enough nutrients to reach the divine ranks. Moreover, that was the struggle that he had searched for in the last period. Shandal''s return had given birth to a battle that would force Noah to overcome his limits, and he didn''t desire anything else. The world was about to undergo a peculiar crisis, and Noah couldn''t wait to jump right into it. Chapter 1225: 1225. Challenge The world fell into chaos as the roars echoed through the sky. The ten snakes that had awakened in the lower plane and the leaders in the Immortal Lands chanted war cries that affected every living being. An invasion had begun. Ten peak rank 6 creatures had fallen into the world. Their power was enough to alter the division of power between humans and magical beasts, but that wasn''t the end. The creatures above had reinforced the crack in the sky. The passage toward the Immortal Lands was still open, and it didn''t show any sign of closing. No one knew for how long the divine creatures would be able to keep the fissure open. Heaven and Earth would surely punish them for that, but the experts in the lower plane couldn''t predict when the Eternal Snakes would become tired. That allowed the divine creatures to send reinforcements. The experts in the heroic ranks didn''t know how powerful the pack in the Immortal Lands was, but they could guess that it didn''t have a shortage of peak rank 6 specimens. The crack was a continuous threat that hung over the world. The organizations had to take care of it before a horde of powerful beasts fell into the lower plane. However, Shandal was the only one that could deal with that issue. The ice and silver that had covered the crack''s edges came from the divine beings in the Immortal Lands. Even the efforts of the whole world would be useless against those materials. Shandal was the only one capable of expressing power in the divine rank. He had to remove those restrictions and make sure that the crack closed. Still, it was unsure whether he could deal with the issue. Everyone knew that he wasn''t a proper god, so there was a chance that he couldn''t destroy those abilities. It soon became clear that the experts had to cooperate with Shandal, but that meant negotiating with a divine being. The heroic cultivators hesitated to plan a strategy after they understood that they had to fly toward him. That hesitation appeared even in the experts that had been in the separate dimension under the Odrea nation. Meeting a will was different from talking with an actual divine being. Noah would typically have no worries in those situations, but he had a lot to lose now. The peak rank 6 Snakes were the best nourishment that he could find in a lower plane, and he wouldn''t dare to approach negotiations that involved them unprepared. ''He probably doesn''t know about our conversation,'' Noah thought as he glanced at Flying Demon, who sensed his stare and turned to nod at him. Flying Demon had inherited part of Shandal''s individuality. He was the perfect powerhouse to bring in that meeting. Shandal heaved a sigh when he saw what he had brought to the world. He expanded his consciousness again to establish a connection with his separate dimension, and an ethereal figure soon set off from the old continent to fly toward him. The group of powerhouses saw Shandal''s will fusing with his figure. The memories of his will flowed inside his mind instantly, and the god showed a different expression when he reopened his eyes to look at the experts. "I see," Shandal said as his eyes moved among the powerhouses of the Hive. A satisfied expression appeared on his face, and he started to play with his long beard as he inspected those who had met his will. Noah and the others felt naked under his intense gaze. "You have grown quite well," Shandal said. "Especially you, man of tw-." "I want to discuss something with you," Noah interrupted Shandal before he could speak about his transmigration again. "I believe you want to help us deal with this crisis, but I want to know what role you will play first. I''m interested in some of the creatures that have fallen." Noah''s hesitation didn''t last long. As soon as he saw Shandal''s will fusing to the main body, he knew that he could act freely. After all, he was quite crucial to existences that went against Heaven and Earth. Shandal smiled when he heard those words, and he nodded before sitting on the ground. The experts understood the meaning behind that gesture. That same ground would hold their negotiation. Noah flew forward, and Flying Demon followed him. Great Elder Diana did the same while bringing Elder Regina with her. God''s Left Hand appeared different from before now that her leader had returned. She radiated intense confidence in her abilities, and her individuality leaked from her figure to affect the environment. Wild winds formed wherever her influence reached, but they were too weak to hinder the path of her fellow powerhouses. Noah and the others went to the Empire''s higher-ups and sat in front of the waiting god. God''s Left Hand and True Speed didn''t sit. They moved behind Shandal''s back and remained there as if they were his protectors. Sternness also appeared on their expression when they took those spots. "You said that you were interested in the Snakes," Shandal said to start the negotiations. "I thought that a creature like you would be more interested in this." Shandal moved his arms to reveal the egg, and Noah''s pupils shrunk at that sight. His instincts suggested reckless plans to his mind, but he limited himself to suppress them. "The Eternal Snakes are famous for their longevity and endurance," Shandal said before giving voice to a short laugh. "I don''t have the strength to defeat one of them, but this egg will directly give birth to a divine specimen. I want to use its energy to see if I can improve my cultivation level." Shandal''s statement made Noah give up on the egg. The god of the Empire would use everything he had to fix his condition, so he wasn''t willing to put that resource for sale. "Can living beings be born directly as gods?" Noah asked as curiosity filled his mind. He had only managed to gather small pieces of information about the Immortal Lands, and none of them talked about the fauna in that place. Even Night was useless in that field since it had lost many memories. Shandal scratched his beard before replying. "It''s rare, but it can happen. There are many divine beings in the Immortal Lands, and some have laws capable of affecting the world. You will find many peculiar things up there." A tremor ran through God''s Left Hand''s face when she heard those words. Her Patriarch had confirmed that Noah would reach the Immortal Lands. She couldn''t believe that even Shandal had acknowledged his talent. The same went for the powerhouses from the Council. Great Elder Diana and Elder Regina didn''t look at Noah, but seeing Shandal being so confident about his statement made them respect Noah even more. As for Noah, he didn''t care about those words. He had only one goal in his mind. He had to secure the powerful specimens that had fallen into the world. "Only you can take care of the crack," Noah said without commenting on the previous matter. "I''ll deal with the energy that is forcing the sky to remain in that state," Shandal replied. "I won''t touch the magical beasts." His line reassured Noah, but it worried the other experts. Great Elder Diana even spoke to express her fears. "They are creatures at the peak of the sixth rank. I''m not sure we can take care of them with our current forces." "So?" Shandal said while standing up. "This is your challenge to overcome. Good luck." Chapter 1226: 1226. Ambition Great Elder Diana wanted to say something else, but Shandal disappeared before she could make any sound. He had decided that the negotiations were over, so the powerhouses could only accept that outcome. Noah was satisfied with that result. Shandal wouldn''t affect the battles against the peak rank 6 Eternal Snakes, so he could use his influence to assign more hunts to the Hive. The egg was tempting, and its aura still lingered inside his mind. Yet, that was the resource of a divine cultivator, so he couldn''t hope to seize it. Noah would be lying if he said that he didn''t think about stealing the egg. Still, he knew his limits, so that idea never managed to go past the back of his head. Noah had even obtained a new piece of information concerning the Immortal Lands. He now knew that divine beings could give birth to other creatures in the divine ranks. That changed everything in his idea of the fauna up there. He had already guessed that there wouldn''t be any creature in the human ranks up there. Still, he was now sure that there would be far more divine beings than he had predicted in the Immortal Lands. As for the crack, the group could only trust Shandal. The survival of human society depended on his task. Noah stood up too after Shandal left. Great Elder Diana and God''s Left Hand shot confused gazes at him, but he had other pressing matters in his mind. The leaders wanted to organize a plan to deal with the ten peak rank 6 beasts, but Noah had his instincts to satisfy before. He also felt a battle intent surging from the bottom of his mind. Noah didn''t want to work together with the other organizations just yet. Opponents that could endure his strength had appeared, and he couldn''t wait to test himself. The battles against Second Prince and the puppets had forced Noah to reveal part of his power, but he had never felt fully satisfied there. The Royal was weaker than him, and he relied on its peculiar existence and superior expertise in the inscription field to last against Noah. The puppets weren''t living beings. They were defenses created to be annoying and hard to deal with. Noah didn''t have the time and space to express his prowess in those battles. Noah desired to fight an opponent that could force him to go all-out, and a few contenders had just fallen from the sky. He couldn''t contain himself anymore. He had to seize that chance. "Let''s see how the situation evolves," Noah said. "The beasts will follow the aura of the egg, so they will probably search the entirety of the new continent to retrieve it. Our organizations didn''t build much. We can let these creatures hurt the Elbas family for us." Noah''s words made sense. The three organizations had returned to the surface less than twenty years ago. All their buildings and defenses were only temporary structures created to last while the invasion continued. Abandoning wasn''t a problem, and they could exploit the destruction created by the Snakes to damage the Elbas family and its domain. Noah was sure that the Snakes would converge in the new continent. The trace left by the egg had disappeared together with Shandal, so the beasts would think that their target would be in the landmass. God''s Left Hand quickly agreed with Noah''s idea, and even Great Elder Diana felt inclined to study the situation for a while before deciding on an approach. However, the leaders couldn''t help but question Noah when they saw him setting off in the direction of one of the Eternal Snakes. "We didn''t decide any plan," Noah said as he shrugged his shoulders. "You can behave as you wish. I''ll do the same." After those words, Noah ignored any other complaint and flew toward the nearest Eternal Snake. He didn''t even inform his companions about his destination. There was only the imminent battle in his mind. Shandal had returned while the group was fighting with the Hydra, and Noah had barely used any energy. He was virtually at his peak. Noah flew through the sky. His aura became sharper as he sensed the mighty opponent in the distance. His cultivation level also surged as his ambitions pushed his centers of power beyond their normal limits. A creature at the peak of the sixth rank was stronger than him. Noah wasn''t so delusional to think that he could defeat existences at the heroic ranks'' apex. However, the Eternal Snakes were magical beasts, the weakest type of creatures in the world. They stood under humans and hybrids, but Noah surpassed all three of them when it came to sheer potential. With his ambition leading him to the quasi-solid stage, Noah believed that he could put up a fight against those Snakes. He even guessed that he could land a few blows if he could exploit the species'' flaws. Noah flew higher in the air when he sensed that his opponent was nearby. His vertical pupils shrunk when he laid his eyes on the massive Snake that had fallen from the Immortal Lands, and his instincts began to scream again. The Eternal snake was immense. It was longer than Snore, and it had dark-green scales that appeared indestructible. The creature had four arms with three giant claws each. A pair grew near the head, while the other was at the center of its body. The limbs were quite short compared to its size, but they appeared quite threatening nonetheless. Noah didn''t feel only danger when he looked at the creature. His hunger had also surged again, and he soon understood why his instincts had acted in that way. Creatures on that level wouldn''t normally give birth to those reactions inside him. It was as if anything coming from the Immortal Lands could awaken his most profound and most primal instincts. Noah soon understood the reason behind his intense sensations. The Eternal Snake didn''t seem different from any other magical beast initially, but some of its peculiarities became obvious as the analysis continued. The scales of snake-like and dragon-like creatures would always gain metallic properties after the specimens became strong enough. It was a simple matter of evolution. The skin of a beast became sturdier as its power increased. However, the Eternal Snake''s skin appeared even sturdier than what Noah had predicted. He had never thought that materials in the heroic ranks could give off such a powerful aura, but he found the reason behind that feature immediately. That magical beast lived in the Immortal Lands. Its meals consisted of other creatures and "Breath" coming from the higher plane. With such top-tier nutrients, the body of the Snake had reached the peak. The creature was the best possible version of a specimen at the peak of the sixth rank. Even species with better innate gifts would be inferior to that beast unless they grew in the same environment. ''It is bordering the quasi-rank 7 in terms of power,'' Noah evaluated, and his ambition became even more intense at that sight. Seeing the higher world''s effects on a simple magical beast made him desire to ascend even more. He desired that environment since it was the best training area in all the planes as far as he knew. The desire to make the Immortal Lands his territory increased and his ambition continued to make his cultivation level grow under that wave of greed and impatience. It didn''t take much before Noah''s ambition made him break through the solid stage. Chapter 1227: 1227. Stuck Noah''s breakthrough was the result of his law. His ambition had empowered his cultivation level so much that he had advanced to the solid stage. Of course, that was only a temporary boost. Noah would suffer a backlash when the effect of his ambition ended, but he was ready to endure it. He only wanted to have the power to face the Eternal Snake head-on. The creature slithered right above the ground. Its skin didn''t touch the terrain, but cracks opened anyway at its passage. The pressure generated by its aura and its quick movements were something that even the new continent couldn''t endure. The Snake didn''t manage to sense Noah in the sky when he was still in the quasi-solid stage, but his complete breakthrough made his aura impossible to miss. Moreover, the Snake sensed that Noah aimed at it. Any other magical beast would normally stop and face its opponent at that point, but the creature from the Immortal Lands continued to fly toward the trace of the egg''s aura. Noah felt strange at that sight. The Eternal Snake was at the peak of the sixth rank and had the best body for a creature at its level. Very few beasts in the entire lower plane could be its opponents, but it wasn''t free to follow its instincts. The mission given by the leaders in the Immortal Lands was too important. The Snake would ignore everything and everyone to complete it. A mighty magical beast was nothing more than an underling in the Immortal Lands. Noah felt his ambition surge again at that sight, but he didn''t have the time to remain immersed in his thoughts. A human-shaped crack replaced his figure, and Noah reappeared on the escaping Snake with the Demonic Sword already in his hands. Noah didn''t want to use all the power accumulated with his ambition, so he didn''t pour all his energy into the slash that followed his reappearance. Yet, he launched an attack that no creature in the upper tier could block completely. His dark world flowed into his blade, and the Demonic Sword launched it when Noah slashed with all his strength. A massive fissure appeared on that spot, and the dark matter released in the attack expanded to give birth to a large cloud. The dark world made its appearance and covered part of the beast''s body. There was a limit to how much Noah''s technique could affect beings that didn''t rely on laws, but he didn''t dare to face the Snake without his dark matter. The Snake roared in pain, but it didn''t stop to face its opponent. It continued to fly, but it launched attacks that didn''t make him lose any time. Noah saw a layer of ice covering the edges of the dark world. His dark matter tried to fend it off, but there seemed to be more than just water in that technique. Silver drops floated among the ice and gave it metallic properties. They also radiated a peculiar aura that made them hard to inspect. Noah had never seen anything like that, but that wasn''t the time to analyze the materials that made his opponent''s abilities. He had yet to make the Snake stop in the end. ''Am I not even worthy of your attention?'' Noah thought as a tinge of anger appeared in his mind. Snore formed among the dark world, and Night came out of his space-ring. He planned to go all-out now, but he had to use his Companions to preserve the boost given by his ambition. The ice continued to cover the dark world, but Night took care of it. Its figure became one with the dark matter and destroyed the innate ability of the Snake. The dark world improved both Night and Snore. The two of them also had a connection with Noah, so they benefited from his ambition. Shards of ice fell toward the ground, but the Eternal Snake didn''t stop. Noah''s last slash had only managed to break a few scales, but that didn''t even count as an injury. Noah saw the body of the Snake moving through the dark world and closed his eyes. Both his hands went on the Demonic Sword as he pointed its tip toward the flying creature. He could see everything inside the dark world, and its analysis surpassed most inscribed items meant for that purpose when Noah used it together with his consciousness. Noah studied the structure of the Snake. He soon understood that the beast wasn''t flying. Its claws gave birth to a thin layer of silver ice that allowed it to slither above the ground. His destruction made him understand the weak structural points in the creature''s body. Noah wasn''t sure about that evaluation since it was mostly a faint feeling, but it didn''t hurt to trust his individuality. The dark world began to shrink as large quantities of dark matter flowed inside the Demonic Sword. Noah left enough higher energy to cover Snore and Night, but he poured everything else in his living weapon. Noah performed a downward lunge at that point. An immense piercing force shot from his figure and flew toward the bottom of the Snake''s body. Snore joined the assault too. Its wings unfolded and began to absorb primary energy while it launched its elemental attacks in the spot focused by Noah. Night was also going to support Noah, but it waited to see the outcome of his lunge before deciding where to attack. Noah reappeared on top of the Snake''s tail. He had left the dark world and had followed the trajectory of his lunge and increased its power by adding the momentum generated during the sprint. The Demonic Sword pierced the dark-green scales and dug through the muscles as Noah''s physical strength pushed the tail downward. Snore''s attacks also arrived, and they helped to destabilize the innate defenses of the beast. The layer of silver ice crumbled under that pressure, and Noah could push the Snake''s tail toward the ground at that point. The energy carried by his lunge continued to pierce the beast''s tissues, and green blood rained out of that injury. Noah''s attack still had energy left. The Demonic Sword stretched as it pierced the tail from the other side and began to dig the terrain. The Snake didn''t even bother to look at the cause of the pain it felt, but it soon became unable to move. Something was blocking it. No matter how much it pushed. The Snake couldn''t move, and it only felt more pain whenever it tried to force itself free. The creature had to turn at that point. Its massive head pointed at its tail, and its reptilian eyes found a similar gaze inspecting it. Noah had finally managed to stop the Eternal Snake''s charge. His weapon was more than fifty meters long now, and part of it had reached terrain hard enough to keep the creature''s still. Noah''s grasp remained on the Demonic Sword as it looked at the Snake. The creature was finally looking at him. It seemed that he had succeeded in becoming more important than its current mission. The Snake opened its mouth, and silver drops fell from its fangs. Noah could guess that it had multiple innate abilities, but he soon had to suppress his curiosity to focus on the battle. Snore coiled itself around the Snake''s head and forced it to remain closed. Yet, the creature was stronger than the Blood Companion, so it slowly torn the tissues made of dark matter as it opened its mouth again. The Eternal Snake began to prepare its attack again, but a series of cuts suddenly appeared near Noah, and the peculiar figure of the Pterodactyl appeared under the sunlight. Chunks of flesh fell from the Snake''s body, and more green blood splatted on Noah''s figure. That didn''t faze him, and he promptly stored every scale and piece of flesh in his space-ring. Chapter 1228: 1228. Tail A roar of pain came out from the restrained creature''s mouth after Night severed chunks of its tail. The Eternal Snake''s attention was entirely on Noah now. It had eventually understood that it had to deal with that opponent if it wanted to continue its mission. ''You finally noticed me,'' Noah thought as his aura continued to surge. He could now feel what June went through during her battles. Facing an opponent above his level forced his individuality to push his centers of power. In Noah''s case, the empowerment didn''t come due to the production of more energy. His centers of power went beyond their stage because his ambition made them reach levels that Noah would eventually achieve. Noah''s individuality worked as a secret art when it came to battles. His true meaning covered multiple aspects of the cultivation journey, but that was its real application during fights. The Snake suppressed its sensations to stare at its opponent in anger. Snore had already reformed and was restraining its mouth, but the creature didn''t care about that annoying puppet. The magical beast disregarded everything else to stare at Noah with the intensity that only a peak rank 6 existence could exert. Noah felt a heavy pressure landing on his mind. He could sense part of his instincts pressing him to bow his head in front of such a mighty creature. However, he wasn''t a mere magical beast. His existence had long surpassed the limits of those species. His pride surged and filled his aura. His sharp mental waves raged around his figure and radiated the entirety of his existence. Noah''s consciousness destroyed the "Breath" around him and slowed down the Eternal Snake''s healing properties. Tinges of his sharpness formed inside cuts on the tail and opened more wounds as his aura flowed. It was as if Noah''s existence was on fire. All the aspects of his individuality strived for their peak as his ambition fueled them. There didn''t seem to be a limit to the level that he could reach when he expressed its true meaning. Noah couldn''t help but release a roar while the Eternal Snake stared at him. A peak rank 6 being was trying to suppress him, but the sheer power released by his existence was enough to fend that pressure off. He had the peak of the heroic ranks in front of him. That was the very top of the world, but his power allowed him to damage it. Nothing else in the world could bring Noah more ecstasy than that. He could finally wield power to injure the strongest beings in the world after a life spent enduring their suppression. Becoming a powerhouse had freed him from many annoying aspects of a lower plane, but now he could claim to have true freedom. He had touched the peak that many sought to reach. The Snake didn''t seem a mindless beast. There was some intelligence in its reptilian eyes, and it looked at Noah as if it was studying what kind of existence had dared to oppose it. Noah didn''t miss that detail, even when that wave of feelings was engulfing his mind. Anything coming from the Immortal Lands interested him a lot, and he couldn''t help but compare the magical beasts living in the lower plane with the Eternal Snake. ''Living there doesn''t only affect the body,'' Noah thought as his roar echoed in the sky. ''It''s not a proper intelligent beast, but it comes close to it.'' The benefits given by the Immortal Lands went far beyond better nutrients. The calm that Noah could see in the creature''s eyes was something that he had never seen in another magical beast. It made sense that the Immortal Lands'' white sky would affect even the magical beasts, but Noah had never understood how deeply it could change their behavior. "Ant can''t win me," The Snake growled, and Noah understood the meaning behind those cries. A tinge of scorn appeared on the Snake''s expression. It didn''t care that Noah still had its blade stabbed in its tail and Snore was restraining its mouth. It didn''t appear concerned at all. "Ant?" Noah said using roars instead of human words. "I am a monster." The world lost its light for an instant as Noah spewed black flames on the beast''s head. Snore pointed its wings toward that spot too, and a series of saber-shaped runes shot out of them. The Snake didn''t expect the flames, and it didn''t imagine that Snore could attack while restraining its mouth. The properties of the dark matter surprised the creature from the Immortal Lands and gave it no time to react. Noah didn''t stay still while the attacks crashed on the beast''s head. Part of the Demonic Sword melted, and a second blade formed in his hands as he walked toward the edges of the wounds. The other part of the Demonic Sword still kept the creature locked on the ground. It wouldn''t last for long without Noah holding it, but it gave him enough time to launch another attack while the fire and Snore assaulted the head. Night appeared next to Noah, and dark matter came out of his chest. The dark world formed in a second, but it soon flowed inside the Demonic Sword. More cuts opened on the Snake''s tail. Night had exploited that instant when the dark world covered the environment to use its innate ability to its fullest and inflict as much damage as it could. The world of laws appeared in Noah''s eyes as green blood splatted out of the new injuries. He walked among those splashes and let his individuality guide his mind. The black hole rotated at full speed as Noah''s destruction studied the structure of the wounded tail and found weak spots in it. He soon knew where he had to hit to inflict more damage. Night continued to ravage the Snake''s skin while Noah raised his blade. The sky shattered whenever the weapon moved, but he couldn''t even sense the changes around him in that state. An angry roar soon resounded in the area, but Noah''s blade descended at that point. A large fissure replaced a chunk of the Snake''s body, and the rest of the tail twisted as it remained stuck on the ground by the other Demonic Sword. Noah had to use his movement technique to escape from the pulling force of the void, and he reappeared on top of the other Demonic Sword to look at the result of his attacks. The last slash had severed the Eternal Snake''s tail. His attack had managed to cut a peak rank 6 beast''s body from side to side. The tail was the thinnest part of the creature''s body after its arms, but Noah wouldn''t be humble with his achievements. His prowess was worthy of respect, especially when he considered his actual cultivation level. Noah was a liquid stage powerhouse, but his blows could inflict serious injuries to a peak rank 6 creature. Only King Elbas could match that achievement with his many inscribed items. The severed tail disappeared as Noah stored it inside his space-ring. The two pieces of the Demonic Sword also fused to reform his living weapon. Chapter 1229: 1229. Stuck Another roar followed the previous one, and silver drops rained on the sky as the Snake freed itself from the starry sky that covered its head. Trails of ice formed wherever the liquid flew, and even the flames couldn''t escape those effects. Snore suffered from that attack too. Its enormous body froze together with the black flames that had surrounded the Eternal Snake''s head. The Snake tilted its head, and the ice around it shattered. Noah could see the effects of his previous offensive, but the result left him slightly disappointed. Even if his individuality had improved Snore''s power, the Blood Companion remained connected to his black hole. Noah''s ambition couldn''t empower it as it did with his centers of power. It required better dark matter to cross the limits of its tier. Yet, it still managed to wound the creature. The skin on the left side of the Snake''s head had become a mess of cuts and torn tissues after it endured the storm of saber-shaped runes. That attack had damaged the thick muscles under the skin, but it didn''t manage to reach the skull. The Snake''s eyelid had also protected its left eye, but the creature had to sacrifice it during the process. Green blood flowed out of those injuries, but the shards of ice that had fallen on the ground soon floated toward the Snake''s face and covered the wounds. Part of the also ice flew toward the tail to cover the various injuries and large cut. It didn''t take much before blood stopped flowing out of them. Noah could use that chance to attack, but he wanted to inspect that innate ability. According to Shandal, the Eternal Snakes had an incredible vitality, but that only explained part of what they could do. Also, Noah knew that his current prowess had a time limit. He had already launched many attacks and fueled his puppets with his ambition. His individuality couldn''t do miracles. Its effects had to end at some point. Still, he couldn''t help but show a wide smile when he stared at how he had damaged the Snake. The invasion wouldn''t crush the lower plane as long as he wielded that power. The ice slowly changed color. It previously was mostly silver, but it gradually turned dark-green to match the shade of the Snake''s scales. It also changed shape. The ice transformed into actual pieces of skin that fixed the injuries. Noah remained speechless at that sight. The new tissues were no different from the actual skin of the beast. It seemed that the vitality of that species didn''t apply only to the amount of energy that its specimens carried. ''This is the evolution process of the magical beasts!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he understood the basics behind that ability. The ice that had fixed those injuries had come from Noah''s frozen abilities. The Snake had taken control of the energy that they contained and used it to patch its skin! Noah''s mind became silent for an instant before a tide of ideas surged inside it. His creation consumed his mental energy to give birth to a series of designs that attempted to replicate that innate ability. It wasn''t his first time meeting similar abilities, and he had even wielded a similar one in the past. Yet, he had never seen something so immediate and in line with the qualities of the magical beasts. The Eternal Snakes could use the energy that they captured to fix their injuries in seconds. That went far beyond the normal absorption process of the magical beasts! ''Destroy others to recreate yourself,'' Noah''s expression became solemn as he thought that, but his instincts soon forced him to put those ideas in the back of his mind to focus on his opponent. The Snake was livid. It inspected its tail and released angry roars when it saw that its ice didn''t make the severed piece regrow. The creature spilled more ice in the surrounding area to create more materials for its ability, but no number of shards was enough to regrow its tail. Their color didn''t even change when they touched that body part. ''I can''t play around much longer,'' Noah thought as corrosive smoke started to come out of his skin. The Snake turned to look at Noah once it gave up on regrowing its tail. Its eyes radiated intense anger, and silver liquid fell from its open mouth. The growls that came out of it didn''t make any sense when they reached Noah''s ears. The Snake was simply expressing its anger with cries that had no meaning in human words. The fiendish armor formed around Noah, and a corrosive cloud immediately appeared around him. Dark matter also came out of his chest and recreated the dark world. Snore reappeared behind him, and Night hid inside the darkness to wait for a chance to attack. Noah was ready to have his last exchange with the Snake, and he didn''t care that his remaining power might not be enough to kill it. Noah raised his sword, but his survival instincts suddenly began to scream and forced him to perform an evasive maneuver. He entered his dimension and sprinted upward, but a shockwave hit him before he could reach his destination. A dense pressure interrupted Noah''s technique and flung him in the distance. His bones released screeching noises as he did his best to oppose that force and stop himself. Noah didn''t even know what had hit him. His dark world didn''t sense anything, but an attack had almost landed on him. The shockwave that it had released had even been enough to interrupt his movement technique. Noah managed to stop himself after he flew for a few kilometers, and the scene that appeared in his eyes made his mind grow cold. A large chunk of the terrain in front of the Snake had disappeared. Part of the sky right above it had turned into a wide fissure that led to the void. A long crack had opened in the region too. The fissure started from the Snake and continued until the land nearby. As an expert in the magical beasts'' field, Noah could identify what had caused that change in the environment. He could see the maimed tail of the Snake pointing at him, but he found it hard to believe that it had been capable of that destruction. Moreover, that attack didn''t cause the usual mindless destruction that most magical beasts would create. It had focused the spot where Noah had been just an instant before, and that had given the blow far more power. ''Don''t tell me that they can use techniques,'' Noah thought as he recreated the dark world. The Demonic Form had survived the shockwave, so corrosive smoke had already started covering his figure. The black hole spun faster as Noah focused on the Snake. His fourth center of power worked together with his desire to see the attack, and a large amount of energy flowed in his eyes while they remained fixed on his opponent''s body. The Snake didn''t hesitate and leaped toward Noah. The terrain under it crumbled under the physical strength that it released to jump, and its massive figure became hard to follow after it left the ground. Noah could see everything with the empowerment caused by his black hole. The Snake used its flexible body to act as a whip and surpass its limits during its offensive. Its head shot forward when it was about to reach Noah. The momentum that it carried created cracks wherever it passed. Noah had to sprint again to dodge that attack, but the same pressure forced him outside of his dimension. When he could focus on his opponent again, he found that his dark world had fallen in the void connected to the crack opened by the Snake''s bite and that a layer of ice had spread from its mouth. Then, he noticed that his feet had fallen prey to that innate ability. Chapter 1230: 1230. Close The Eternal Snake had shattered the sky with both its leap and bite, and the last attack had spread its silver liquid. The air had turned into a thick layer of ice, and Noah wasn''t fast enough to escape that ability. Noah found himself stuck inside the ice. Cracks appeared on its surface as he tried to pull his feet off of it, but the ability managed to delay him for one instant. The Snake exploited that chance to leap toward Noah again. The creature was above him before he could even decide what to launch to escape from that situation. Noah could only let his vast experience guide him in that situation. His blade rose to meet the insides of the Snake''s head, and dark matter flowed inside his weapon to create one of his strongest slashes. The Demonic Sword became bigger before clashing with the Snake''s mouth. When the two touched, Noah felt an unstoppable force flowing through the weapon and reaching his arms. His connection with the Demonic Sword made him aware that the blade couldn''t take that force head-on. The Snake''s physical strength could shatter his living weapon and his body at the same time! However, Noah had never planned to challenge the beast with his physical strength. He had always known to be inferior to that creature. Only his superior techniques could make him triumph in that battle. The ice covering his feet shattered as Noah endured the pressure that landed on his body. His veins bulged and exploded as he gave his everything to stop that charge for a second. Cracks appeared on the surface of the Demonic Sword during the clash. The blade suffered structural damages even if the dark matter made its fabric almost indestructible. Still, Noah''s attack managed to hurt the creature. His blade stabbed the insides of its mouth and dug deep in its skin. It even reached the skull after crossing its muscles. Noah''s body sunk in the layer of ice. He used the physical strength of the Snake to escape from the other side of that prison. Once his feet touched the air again, he recalled the Demonic Sword inside his space-ring and let the momentum created in the clash fling him downward. The Snake didn''t let him go. It shattered the ice and charged after him while the shards gathered inside its mouth. The injury that Noah had created healed before the beast reached him. The Eternal Snake opened its mouth to prepare its bite, but Noah sprinted away before it could finish its attack. A shockwave came out when its maw closed, but it didn''t manage to reach its opponent at that time. Noah had become used to the battle rhythm by then. Even with its immense strength and troublesome innate ability, the Snake was still a magical beast, and that made its fighting style limited. The creature used the flexibility and might of its body to the fullest, and it also exploited that physical strength to make its slow innate ability threatening. However, that was everything it could do. The magical beasts'' weaknesses were still there even if the Eternal Snake expressed the absolute peak of the sixth rank. Even the inhabitants of the Immortal Lands couldn''t escape the limits of their species. Noah never stopped sprinting. He knew that he couldn''t let the Snake retake the upper hand, but he didn''t use that chance to escape. He could launch one last attack before the effects of his ambition faded. The drawbacks would also be quite harsh at that time, so he aimed to deliver a killing blow. That was his last chance to get something out of the battle. The next ones would go better since he had already gathered enough data about that species, so he could target other benefits now. The Snake appeared unable to pinpoint his location. It had managed to follow him previously because the shockwaves forced him out of his dimension, but he was untouchable as long as he remained outside of its range. The creature roared in anger, and the claws on its arms began to shine with a silver color. Waves of its liquid shot out of its limbs whenever it waved them, but those attacks were slower than its previous ones. ''The liquid is threatening only when it follows the charges,'' Noah thought as he dodged the silver waves flying through the sky. He would love to find out how such a species had developed their battle style, but he couldn''t waste time in that situation. He could only guess that divine beings'' guidance and the Immortal Lands'' pressure had made their understanding about their abilities evolve. Ice appeared in every direction. The entire area froze as the Snake continued to unleash its anger on the sky. It couldn''t forgive the ant that had cut its tail. Noah continued to sprint around the Snake until an opening arrived. The creature had stopped and had turned toward the center of the continent after a while. It seemed that its mission had resumed being a priority in its mind once it lost its opponent. At that point, Noah sprinted toward its head and reached it in less than an instant. The Snake appeared happy to see him, but Noah didn''t bother to notice those details in that situation. Dark matter flowed inside his Demonic Sword as his blade descended. The cracks on the weapon spread as Noah pushed its structure over its limits. He had to go beyond what the Demonic Sword could endure in that state if he wanted to kill the Snake. Noah slashed, and a fissure appeared on top of the Snake. A long cut appeared on the creature''s head, and the blood that spurted out of it fell into the void. The cut was deep, but Noah didn''t manage to make it go all the way down to the other side of its head. The slash didn''t have the same piercing ability as the lunge, but his assault didn''t end there. More blood came of the injury when Night flew across it. The Pterodactyl dug through its muscles to open a path for its brain. Everything would be over if Noah managed to destroy that vital organ. Snore also appeared under the fissure and launched its elemental attacks inside the wound. Its fire, gales, and ice opened the path for its lightning bolts and eventually managed to crack the Snake''s skull. Night flew back inside the injury at that point. It seeped inside the cracked skull and cut everything it could, but the Snake leaped toward the ground at that point. Noah, Night, and Snore gathered in the sky and watched the Snake crash on the ground. His cultivation level began to decrease as the effects of his ambition waned, but he didn''t retreat just yet. He had to know if the damage he had dealt in the last exchange was enough to bring the creature to the death''s door. The Eternal Snake was at the bottom of a pit created after its charge, but it didn''t move. It barely showed any sign of being alive. However, the ice that had accumulated on the battlefield shattered and converged toward the creature''s head. Noah could only sigh when he saw the shards filling the injury and beginning to change color. Growls also began to come out of its motionless mouth. It was only a matter of seconds before the Snake healed and resumed to charge at Noah. ''I''m close,'' Noah thought as he shot one last glance at the Snake before leaving the area. He had confirmed that his current power allowed him to survive a battle on that level for a few minutes. Chapter 1231: 1231. Power Noah didn''t regroup with the other powerhouses after the battle against the Eternal Snake. The drawbacks of his ambition had started to affect his centers of power, so he preferred to recover in a safe place. The world was currently a mess. The ten peak rank 6 creatures had stopped at nothing to converge at the center of the new continent, but they didn''t encounter many hindrances. The three organizations had been on the new continent for less than twenty years. The few protections that they had managed to deploy couldn''t stop those creatures, especially when no cultivator worked together with them. The leaders had decided to let the Snakes roam freely for now. Struggling to defend their domains would only ruin the condition of the new continent, and they didn''t mind leaving the Elbas family as the only resident of that landmass. A small loss could bring many benefits. They had no reason to defend lands that they could barely claim as their own. God''s Left Hand and the other troops of the Shandal Empire returned to the old continent to occupy their old domain. King Elbas had destroyed the blue dome during the five hundred years of his undisputed rule, but he didn''t bother to attack the structures that it contained. Those buildings and cities were in ruins since many magical beasts had chosen to place their lairs there. Yet, the Empire only needed a few years to clear those lands and start reconstructing its ancestral home. God''s Left Hand also showed her goodwill toward the Council by abandoning the Empire''s claims on the Papral nation. Great Elder Diana could move her troops there while the situation on the new continent remained unstable. Only the Hive found it hard to settle. The Demons and the other higher-ups wanted to use the Coral Archipelago as their temporary home. Still, most of the exoskeleton of the Purple Coral had disappeared after those five hundred years. They could only guess that King Elbas had some interest in that material, but that didn''t change the condition of their ancestral home. The purple halo didn''t fill that area of the sea anymore, and many islands had sunk after they lost their foundation. As for Chasing Demon''s statue, the Hive had brought it inside the separate dimension after losing against King Elbas. It was still there, waiting for the organization to find a new home. The higher-ups of the Hive divided themselves into different regions and separated their underlings into crowded platoons. Some occupied the Utra nation, others settled in the remaining islands of the Archipelago, and many returned in the separate dimension. The dimensional portal was still open, and no one bothered to defend it. The other Mortal Lands had flourished in those years since no wars happened there. The Elbas family had captured many specimens there, and it still controlled a large part of that landmass. Yet, only weaker cultivators inhabited it since the stronger ones preferred to live in the piece of Immortal Lands. The three organizations could decide to move to the other world until the situation in the new continent stabilized, but they didn''t want to lose their chance to reconquer the world. Shandal had yet to make his move, so they didn''t know when the crack in the sky would close. Not even God''s Left Hand was aware of the intentions of her Patriarch. The lack of buildings meant to inspect the nearby regions prevented many heroic cultivators from watching Noah''s battle. Still, some powerhouses used inscribed items to look at it from far away, and they didn''t hesitate to let the world know about his prowess. Most of the weaker powerhouses couldn''t even imagine how a liquid stage cultivator had managed to reduce a peak rank 6 magical beast in that state. Some aspects of that story were even more absurd. After all, they saw a powerhouse forcefully bringing his power to the next stage and facing that creature on even ground. Noah wielded a secret art that didn''t cause grave repercussions on his centers of power. Moreover, his individuality didn''t seem to have limits to how much it could increase his might. That made Noah''s power hard to evaluate, and it also created an eerie halo around his figure. Ranks and stages didn''t matter against him, and he always had more techniques in store. Noah didn''t cut ties with the Hive while he focused on his recovery, but he let the other powerhouses handle the weaker troops. He had settled in a cave on the seabed near the new continent, and he had slowly created a good training area while he let his centers of power rest. The strain that his mind and dantian suffered when he pushed his power to the solid stage was immense, so he had to spend a few months without training them to disperse the accumulated stress. That wasn''t a problem in that situation since he had a lot to think about. The battle against the Eternal Snake had inspired him, but it had also shown flaws in his prowess. Night was fine. The Pterodactyl became stronger after every fight, and its innate ability surprised even Noah at times. That creature was the perfect offensive tool, and Noah had even removed its limitations after he built a body with the Royal Metal. Night was also excited about its new potential, and it couldn''t wait to return to its previous peak to see how strong it would become. The Demonic Sword wasn''t an issue either. Noah had a weapon that could absorb the entirety of his individuality and grow with him. He couldn''t ask for anything better when it came to blades. The dark world was strong too. Noah didn''t have the time to list all its passive benefits. It was a pity that it worked better against cultivators due to its ability to suppress laws, but Noah only had vague ideas on how to improve it for now. Noah couldn''t complain about his sword arts. His slashes were among the strongest attacks in the entire world. He could only aim to create more techniques that fused spells with his physical might when it came to that field. Snore was the only real flaw in his battle prowess. The Blood Companion wasn''t even close to being weak, but it couldn''t keep up with Noah''s monstrous might. The dark world empowered its abilities, and the dark matter made its body extremely hard to deal with. Still, its elemental attacks didn''t manage to do much. Only the saber-shaped runes attached to its wings were threatening, but that was true for all the weapons relying on the primary energy. Snore needed to improve, and Noah didn''t want to wait for his dark matter to reach a superior stage. He was the maker, so he could turn his Blood Companion into a deadly weapon without needing to rely on external factors. Noah could begin to modify Snore right away, but another project occupied his mind and didn''t let him think about anything else. Countless ideas had started to fill his mind after witnessing the innate ability of the Eternal Snake. Thinking that he could use what he destroyed to heal himself left no room for other projects. Noah knew that succeeding in replicating the Snake''s healing ability would make him unstoppable. His individuality was a perfect match for that skill, and he needed that tool to express the power of his incredible body to its fullest. Yet, he had enough experience in the creations of abilities to know that it was almost impossible to replicate them. Only the Body-inscription spell could directly seize them, but he needed something more invasive in that case. Noah didn''t want a Blood Companion that could heal him with its abilities. He wanted that skill to depend on his destruction. He desired to obtain it and make it part of his bloodline. Needless to say, Noah began to use the Divine Deduction technique non-stop after his mind had recovered. He had set his eyes on that power, and he would stop at nothing to obtain it. Chapter 1232: 1232. Preparations Noah had seized many pieces of the Eternal Snake''s body during the battle. He would normally eat those resources to improve his body, but he had a better use for them now. He had to learn how those tissues functioned to replicate that ability. The Divine Deduction technique never stopped consuming his mental sea in that period to bring him closer to a solution. All his ideas eventually converged toward an unavoidable decision. He had to involve the Body-inscription spell in the process. The only problem was that he had yet to invent the procedure. Noah needed to embody the innate ability of the Eternal Snake. Translating it into a spell or technique would make it depend on his darkness and mental energy, and it would also fail to express its real power. Instead, Noah wanted to add that ability to his bloodline, which meant that he had to modify his body to succeed in that task. The situation in the new continent continued to decline while Noah remained in seclusion. The ten peak rank 6 Eternal Snakes grouped at the center of the landmass, but they decided to scatter when they didn''t find their target. The egg wasn''t there, but their mission wouldn''t be over until they found it. The Snakes initially began to follow the vague traces of the egg''s aura, but they couldn''t imagine that Shandal had already brought it to a place that they couldn''t reach. The god of the Empire had even suppressed the egg''s aura when he left the new continent. Nothing could lead the magical beasts to the Odrea nation. Moreover, they couldn''t enter the separate dimension even if they examined the old continent. The Snakes were only magical beasts, while Shandal was a divine being. The Elbas family eventually had to face the Eternal Snakes. The Royals and their troops were the only inhabitants of the new continent, and the invaders would stop at nothing to inspect every inch of that landmass. The three organizations rejoiced at that outcome. The few remaining lands in the hands of the Elbas family would be the last part of their invasion, and they could only enjoy seeing them wasting resources to stop the Snakes. Months went by, and all the Snakes eventually gathered on the southeastern side of the landmass to assault the lands under the protection of the Elbas family. Noah received weekly reports about the situation on the new continent while he was in seclusion. The Elbas family had managed to stall the Snake''s assault and defend its domain, so there was nothing worthy of his attention in those messages. His session of meditation had led to a breakthrough when it came to his project. Noah now knew what he had to do to absorb the Eternal Snake''s healing ability, but he had to review the details of that procedure with a great expert in the inscription field. Flying Demon visited Noah and created a door for the separate dimension in his cave. Noah needed to resume his training with the Seventh Kesier rune, but his main priority was to discuss his project with Thirty-seven. "Do you really want to do this to your body?" Thirty-seven commented after he learnt about Noah''s project. "The success rate of a second forging isn''t high, and the final product is usually disappointing." Noah and the automaton were reviewing the procedure in a building inside the separate dimension. That place still contained the cities that the three organizations had built during the five hundred years of hiding, but they all belonged to the Hive now. There was no reason for the Council and the Shandal Empire to return inside the separate dimension. The Hive wouldn''t be benevolent now that the outside world didn''t place any threat in front of them. "I am not even sure that your mind can endure this pressure," Thirty-seven continued. "Those beasts of yours should bring it near its limits already." "The pressure will be only temporary," Noah replied. "I won''t actually create a new Blood Companion. I need the creature''s consciousness only to trigger the transformation. I will suppress it once the procedure succeeds." Thirty-seven nodded, but he didn''t appear convinced about the whole idea. Noah''s body was already beyond the fairness decided by Heaven and Earth. Increasing its power again was an unnecessary risk in his eyes. However, Noah couldn''t give up on that healing ability. His ambition affected his mindset in that field, but he had already made sure that his individuality wasn''t tricking him. The procedure wasn''t complicated, and the risks connected to eventual failures weren''t deadly. Yet, Noah had built it while considering that his body could overcome most limits due to his fourth center of power. The black hole was a miraculous tool, but Thirty-seven didn''t like to bet on organs that didn''t have a specific function. The automaton preferred actual data over reliable beliefs. Still, he couldn''t stop Noah from approaching that procedure, so he did his best to study it thoroughly. Noah would give him samples of the silver liquid produced by the Snakes in exchange, so he gave his everything in polishing that process. Noah had to make multiple modifications and go back in seclusion to complete the polishing of his procedure. It took him and the automaton half a year to finish, but the outcome of those meetings didn''t lead to the desired results. Part of the procedure had to remain dependent on the abilities of Noah''s body. It would succeed if the black hole helped in the matter. Yet, that was enough for Noah. He didn''t reveal all his secrets to the automaton, so only he knew that he had good reasons to feel confident about the procedure. "You still need to test this beforehand," Thirty-seven said when Noah was about to leave. "There are only ten specimens in the world that carry those organs. With your expertise, you should be ready with two or three tests, which means that you have to kill three to four Eternal Snakes." Noah nodded at that evaluation. He had reached the same conclusion, and he was confident that the Divine Deduction technique could reduce that number. However, the automaton had misunderstood Noah''s intentions for what concerned the ten peak rank 6 creatures. "Don''t worry," Noah said as he began to walk toward the teleportation matrix in the room, "I plan to take all of them." The automaton''s eyes lit up when he heard that. He couldn''t wait to get his hands on the silver liquid, and he became so excited that he didn''t notice the light of the teleportation matrix shining on his ethereal face. Noah teleported in a secret location inside the separate dimension. June, Daniel, and Skully were there, but neither of them spoke when he arrived. Their focus was on the piece of fur placed at the center of that dark hall. A few inscribed candles illuminated the Seventh Kesier rune and allowed those experts to observe the best training tool for the seas of consciousness. Noah didn''t say anything either and sat next to June to join that training session. His ambition leaked out of his figure as he began to stare at the rune, but he made it flow upward to leave the others unaffected. He had to become stronger to defeat the Eternal Snakes. A hunt was waiting for him, but he had to make sure that his centers of power could endure the stress generated during those battles. After all, he would go all-out the next time he faced those beasts. Chapter 1233: 1233. Hun Noah couldn''t obtain significant improvements in a short time, but he still trained until he felt that his centers of power had grown a bit. The breakthroughs were still far away, and his existence was slowly harmonizing now that he was striving for the peak of the heroic ranks. Only his mind continued to remain above his other centers of power. Those years'' training wasn''t different from that done while the three organizations were inside the separate dimension. Yet, Noah had something to strive for now, and that quickened the pace of his growth. Moreover, he was in the outside world. Thirty-seven and the other experts had done an excellent job making sure that the separate dimension always had "Breath", but nothing could compare with the new continent. Noah had decided to place his training area near that landmass on purpose. He wouldn''t choose a worse place just because it was safer. The other powerhouses had imitated him. Many caves appeared on the seabed around the new continent as the world''s experts resumed to prioritize their power. Only God''s Left Hand and True Speed didn''t leave the old continent. The Empire had regained their source of enlightenment now that Shandal had returned. Shandal had yet to make his move, but Noah''s plan didn''t involve him. He couldn''t care less about the world now that he had such an exciting project at hand. Noah stopped his intensive training after five years. He found no reason to delay his hunts any longer since his centers of power had already grown a bit. Also, the battle on the southeastern side of the continent was about to reach a critical state in that period. The Elbas family had stalled as long as it could, but the Eternal Snakes had finally managed to break through the peripheral defenses of those regions. It was time to decide which side would win that fight, but Noah didn''t want that to happen. He felt no mercy for the Royals, but he would rather have the Snakes exhausting their resources than forcing them to escape. Noah wanted that stall to continue. Forcing the Royals to go all-out could only lead to two disappointing outcomes. The first saw the Elbas family escaping while preserving most of its resources, which was not ideal. The other was even worse. It viewed the Royals killing all the Snakes and keeping their corpses for themselves. Noah had to stop that from happening, but there was only one thing that could prevent those situations. He had to help the Elbas family, even if only indirectly. ''I wonder if they will send some more creatures,'' Noah thought as he flew toward the southeastern regions while looking at the crack in the sky. Nothing had changed around the crack. That opening didn''t even leak any superior energy, so it only acted as a constant reminder that there was something better in the world. The cries of the divine beings resounded from time to time, but they didn''t pressure the underlings in the lower plane. The leaders in the Immortal Lands didn''t seem impatient. Noah guessed that a few years barely counted as time for divine beings. The crack had remained open for less than ten years in the end. Even he could sleep for far more. The new continent had returned to its wrecked state after the ten peak rank 6 Snakes explored it. The beasts even affected the energy contained in the ground, but their destruction wasn''t too concerning. The ground was simply in pieces, but it was still capable of accommodating magical beasts and plants. It wasn''t as broken as when they hid inside the separate dimension. Noah reached the southeastern part of the new continent and stopped to inspect the battles in those regions. The Snakes didn''t work together to destroy the defenses they met, so the Royals had an easier time keeping them busy. The experts of the other organizations had already learnt a lot about the defenses in those areas. They had started to analyze those formations as soon as the battle with the Snakes began, so Noah could ignore the shining lines that appeared in his vision. Yet, he couldn''t help but remain stunned when he saw the Snakes in action. According to the reports of the experts, those beasts rarely stopped attacking. They had only taken a few short breaks during those years, but they still assaulted the formations with all their strength. Their stamina was incredible, and they could also heal themselves by destroying the enemy''s attacks. Noah could only think that they truly deserved the title "Eternal". ''It''s time to begin,'' Noah thought as he diverted his gaze from the battlefields and inspected the regions around him. That was a hunt, which meant that Noah could prepare for the battle. He felt confident that he could lure one of the Snakes out, so he didn''t need baits for that fight. Noah had retrieved the remaining Instabilities situated in the traps connected to the separate dimension, but he didn''t know if he could use them efficiently against the Eternal Snake. His main offensive had to come from his techniques, spells, and individuality. Noah unfolded his aura once he found an area that was quite distant from the battlefields. Primary energy formed and accumulated in the sky while he filled the ground with Instabilities. His ambition surged at some point. His cultivation level grew slowly, and spells appeared around his figure as the process continued. A sea of saber-shaped runes and the Black Hole spell appeared around Noah and began to absorb the primary energy that was accumulating in the area. Snore also appeared, and his wings unfolded to absorb part of that primary energy. The three abilities that required that process grew stronger as Noah let his ambition bring his cultivation level to the solid stage. Noah''s level continued to grow even after it surpassed the limits of his real rank. It went slightly deeper into the solid stage before stopping completely. That was the limit of his ambition. Noah needed to get closer to the solid stage with his real cultivation level if he wanted his individuality to produce stronger effects. Noah let his aura run wild at that point, and a roar came out of his mouth. His cry requested a challenge to one of his old opponents. The Eternal Snakes would normally prioritize their leaders'' orders, but one of them had suffered a lot because of Noah. When the beast sensed his aura and heard that roar, it couldn''t help but abandon its assault to charge toward his position. Another roar soon echoed through the sky. The Snake replied to Noah''s challenge as it charged toward him. Less than a day had to pass before the creature reached its opponent. Noah revealed a cold smile when he saw the condition of the beast. Its tail didn''t regrow in those years, and a long scar tainted its smooth head. The Snake still carried the signs of the injuries suffered during its battle against Noah. The same went for its anger. The only reason why Noah didn''t need a bait was that the beast was still livid about that fight. Black smoke began to come out of Noah''s skin. The fiendish armor soon covered his body, but three copies of his spell suddenly appeared next to him. The dark matter came out of his chest at that point. A second defensive layer formed on top of the four fiendish armors, but that didn''t stop the generation of corrosive smoke. Then, Noah controlled the Black Hole spell to move in front of him. The black sphere had become an unstable giant star that released violent flares after absorbing a massive amount of primary energy. Snore and the saber-shaped runes were in the same state. The feathers, the sea of blades, and the Black Hole spell had reached the solid stage in terms of power. The Eternal Snake didn''t stop its charge even when it saw all the techniques that its opponent had prepared beforehand, but Noah had no intention to face it head-on. Noah waved his clawed hand, and the three copies of his fiendish armor flew inside the Black Hole spell. When they came out of it, they had become fifty meters tall giants. Chapter 1234: 1234. Suppression The Eternal Snake didn''t fear Noah''s display of power. His cultivation level was strange to evaluate, and he didn''t come close to the peak of the sixth rank anyway. However, the creature still had survival instincts. A chill ran down its spine when it saw the three fuming giants coming out of the Black Hole spell. The beast could sense that those fiendish copies were dangerous. Noah''s ambition couldn''t fill the gap between him and the Snake. Still, he was against a magical beast, so he could use his superior arts to make up for that lack of sheer power. The Snake could use its body perfectly. Some of its attacks even resembled martial arts due to how efficient they were. Yet, it still couldn''t compare to an actual cultivator when it came to how much it could empower its basic strength. The creature had only created a battle style that made it use the full potential of its body and innate abilities. Noah didn''t deploy the dark world in that battle. He preferred to keep it as a second armor that empowered his physical prowess and defense rather than wasting it to create his domain. The Snake could make the dark world disperse with a simple attack. It would be a waste to use it in a vain attempt to suppress the creature. The cloud of corrosive smoke seeping out of Noah''s figure soon engulfed the Black Hole spell, Snore, and the sea of saber-shaped runes in its shape. It even hid the giant fiendish copies in its darkness. The Eternal Snake didn''t care about that, and the fear that it felt toward the fiendish copies wasn''t intense enough to stop its offensive. The creature charged toward the black while opening cracks in the sky due to its violent momentum. However, as soon as it pierced the external layer of corrosive smoke, its body stopped, and a wave of silver liquid accompanied the cry that it released. The silver rain froze part of the dark cloud and sky. A layer of ice spread in that area, and the Snake promptly cracked its maimed tail to shatter it. A storm of ice-shards shot in the area and a crack opened in the sky. Half of the corrosive cloud also dispersed, revealing the beings that had managed to stop the beast''s charge. The three giant fiendish figures had their claws against the Snake''s mouth. Some of their sharp fingers even fused with those of the other copies when they overlapped. Noah was among the copies too. His Demonic Sword had become fifty meters large to join giant figures and stop the Snake. Trails of green blood fell from the point where the claws and the Demonic Sword converged. Noah had used the creature''s momentum to his advantage and had managed to inflict a deep wound on that spot. One of the copies had lost its lower body after the tail attacked, but the corrosive smoke around it soon converged toward its figure and recreated the missing parts. The ice-shards did the same. They stopped dispersing and flew toward the injury on the Snake''s head to fix that damage while the creature spat more silver liquid. Noah closed his eyes as ice-shards crossed him, and the area in front of him began to freeze. His consciousness unfolded and inspected the spot where his Demonic Sword had dug the Snake''s flash. The sharpness carried by his aura became more intense. The two defensive layers covering his face opened to let him place his forehead on the Demonic Sword. The ice spreading in the area shattered at that gesture. The Snake felt forced to retract its head due to the pain that it felt. Countless cuts had suddenly appeared between Noah and the beast, and most of them had focused the insides of the wound on its mouth. The giant fiendish figures charged ahead at that point. Their physical might had become acceptable due to the empowerment of the dark matter around them, so they could avoid to blow themselves up at the first clash. Their claws tried to slash at the injury, but the Snake convulsed too intensely to give them a clear shot. Their attacks mostly landed on the intact dark-green scales, and only a few of them managed to worsen the wound on the creature''s head. Cuts continued to open in the sky. The ice-shards became nothing more than a silver powder under the effects of Noah''s sharpness. The same happened inside the injury on the beast''s head. Noah''s slashes had never stopped cutting after he released his attack. Noah waved his hand, and the sea of saber-shaped runes moved forward. The blades created an orderly array that converged toward the Snake. The slashes of the fiendish copies created white marks when they hit the scales. Other wounds opened only after many attacks had converged in the same spot. The arrival of the sabers helped the copies. The runes disregarded the serious injury to aid the fiendish giants in their offensive. The sea of blades divided itself into multiple rotating arrays of saber-shaped runes that crashed on the white marks created by the giant copies. Multiple wounds opened while the Snake remained busy fighting the fiendish armors and enduring the pain caused by the cuts opening inside his deepest wound. Silver liquid continued to come out of its mouth, but Noah controlled part of the sabers and the giant copies to take care of it. He was doing his best to limit the creature''s healing ability, and his corrosive smoke did a fantastic job at that. Noah''s spells and techniques were suppressing the Eternal Snake, but he knew that the positive trend wouldn''t last. More sabers came out of his hands, and another fiendish copy began to form near his figure. His mind felt heavy during that process. Controlling so many spells applied a lot of pressure to his mental sphere. The empowerment that they obtained after absorbing the primary energy in the environment made that situation even worse. Traces of a headache began to appear in Noah''s mind, but he didn''t care as long as his mental walls remained stable. Luckily for him, training for more than five hundred years with the Seventh Kesier rune had made his sea of consciousness extremely resilient. ''Heavy repercussions are nothing as long as there are no injuries,'' Noah calmly thought as he proceeded to create another fiendish copy. The new saber-shaped runes had already begun to absorb primary energy, and his fiendish copies entered inside the Black Hole spell to obtain part of its power. The first wave of sabers exhausted their power soon, but they succeeded in inflicting multiple injuries in the most damaged spots of the Snake''s head. Noah''s sharpness was still creating cuts in the environment, but he felt that it was time to act. He couldn''t let the Snake become used to that fighting rhythm. He had to keep it suppressed until it exhaled its last breath. The second wave of saber-shaped runes flew forward, and the two giant fiendish armors came out of the Black Hole spell to join the offensive. Noah even covered their figures with dark matter to turn them into threatening tools. The Demonic Sword shrunk in his hands, and Noah immersed it inside the Black Hole spell. Dark matter also flowed inside the blade to push its power beyond its limits. Noah''s living weapon had healed while he planned his new project. Its structure didn''t have any damage, so it could absorb a massive amount of energy in its current condition. The pressure inside Noah''s mind increased even more, but he suppressed every unwanted sensation to activate one of the runes inside his mental sea. Then, he slashed at the sky and sprinted through the crack that had appeared. Chapter 1235: 1235. Range The saber-shaped runes and the giant fiendish copies became less accurate after Noah entered his dimension. Controlling his spells from inside that dark environment was hard, and the Eternal Snake didn''t overlook that detail. The beast was against multiple enemies, and cuts continued to appear inside his most profound injury, but it didn''t lose its cool for too long. Noah''s offensive had surprised it, but there was no fear in its eyes. The creature knew how resilient it was. It didn''t like to suffer, but it wouldn''t hesitate to injure its body to escape from a difficult situation. It was aware that its healing abilities were off the scale. Weaker beasts would usually ignore how strong their innate skills were, but that didn''t apply to the Eternal Snakes. The beast couldn''t create ice in that situation. The five copies and the sea of blades took care of its silver liquid as soon as it escaped its mouth. Yet, there was something that they couldn''t suppress. The Snake began to fall when the corrosive smoke destroyed even the ice that acted as its foothold. Noah''s spells chased the creature until it crashed on the ground. Their offensive never stopped, but the beast began to counterattack now that it could exploit its body''s flexibility again. One of the giant fiendish copies exploded when the tail cracked on its figure. Violent gales made of corrosive smoke shot everywhere in the environment, and the energy contained by the fuming armor caused an explosion in the area. The Snake roared in pain when that wave of energy hit its injuries. Its condition worsened, and the blades exploited that situation to inflict even more damage. The beast didn''t even try to dodge those attacks. Its head remained still as it let Noah''s abilities ravage its skin and muscles until it became nothing more than a maimed mass of flesh. Only its skulls continued to give it a reptilian shape. The Snake''s tail continued to crack while that offensive continued. Every attack destroyed part of Noah''s abilities, and it didn''t mind trading pieces of its skin to take care of them. The awareness of its nigh-immortality allowed the beast to fight recklessly without suffering too much. After all, it could always regenerate through its innate ability. A black line appeared next to the Snake''s neck and widened to create a portal. Noah came out of it while his Demonic Sword was already aiming to slash at the creature. The Snake felt an immense danger at that point. Noah had charged the Demonic Sword with the Black Hole spell and the dark matter, and his ambition had also brought his cultivation level to an insane power. That attack could sever its neck. The blade felt heavy as it descended toward the dark-green scales. The pressure accumulated around its sharp shape ripped the sky''s structure and twisted the light that reached that area. The Snake didn''t have a defensive method at hand. Its scales would usually suffice against other beasts. Yet, it knew that it could die if it let that attack land on its neck. Without defensive methods at hand, the Snake could only resort to the opposite approach. It would attack Noah before his technique landed. Noah saw how the tail twisted and made a sharp turn to fly toward him. Determination appeared in his eyes as Snore formed in the trajectory of that attack. He wouldn''t dodge. He couldn''t lose that opportunity. It wasn''t a case that Noah had chosen to use the Warp spell in that situation. He knew that the copies and blades couldn''t win on their own. Only the Demonic Sword could inflict deadly injuries. Noah had waited until the Snake exposed itself before attacking. He had sacrificed most of his spells to create that opportunity. He had reappeared only when the tail destroyed the third giant fiendish copy. However, the Snake''s flexibility had surpassed his expectation. The creature had managed to change the direction of its tail in an instant. Noah''s mind had made the math as soon as he noticed that attack. He wouldn''t manage to cut the entire head before the tail landed on his defenses. Yet, the Snake wasn''t the only existence that liked to fight recklessly. The Demonic Sword landed on the dark-green scales and cut them as if they were air. The blade continued to dig through the Snake''s body without meeting any hindrance until it crossed half of its width. The living weapon hadn''t become bigger after absorbing that massive amount of energy. However, its range went far beyond its actual shape. Only half of the Demonic Sword was inside the beast, but the damage that it caused reached even the opposite side of the creature''s neck. Yet, when Noah was halfway through his slash, the Snake''s tail arrived. Its momentum made it pierce the dark matter that made Snore''s body, but the Blood Companion released its feathers at that point. Snore had finished preparing its strongest attack before Noah launched his spells, but he had chosen to preserve it for critical situations. The danger that he felt coming from the tail was enough to decide to use that tool. The feathers fell on the dark-scales and slowly ripped apart the Snake''s tissues. The tail continued to pierce dark matter as it flew through that barrage of attacks, and pieces of skin fell on the ground as it reached for Noah. The tail became nothing more than a messy and bloody mass of tissues connected to bones, but that wasn''t enough to stop its attack. The tail eventually pierced Snore and landed on Noah while he was still finishing his attack. The Blood Companion had managed to delay the Snake''s offensive for less than an instant, and Noah couldn''t complete his slash in that time. Noah felt an immense force landing on the left side of his torso. His two layers of armor tried to stop that attack, but the tail pierced them even if it was badly injured. That flung Noah away and made him crash on the ground where he dug a long underground tunnel. The terrain shattered while he tried to use the soil to stop himself from going even further away. An explosion resounded in the area when Noah shot out of the ground to resume his battle. However, he couldn''t help but curse when he saw the condition of his opponent. Noah had lost less than five seconds inside the ground, but the Snake had been able to destroy all the giant fiendish copies in that period. When Noah reached the creature again, countless ice-shards were already converging on the injuries that filled its head. Some of them were already healing the beast too! Noah didn''t waste time. His eyes went on the massive cut on its neck where most ice-shards were gathering. There was only a chunk of the Snake''s tissues keeping its head and body together. He still had the chance to stop the healing process. His armors had reformed during his flight back to the battlefield, and his Demonic Sword had never left his hands. However, the Snake didn''t hesitate to send its still maimed tail toward its opponent again. Determination appeared once again in Noah''s eyes. His left side hurt, but he couldn''t stop now. The tail landed at the center of his torso after Snore appeared on its trajectory to absorb its power. Another unstoppable force engulfed Noah, but he promptly stabbed the Demonic Sword in one of the few spots on the tail that still had flesh. He didn''t pour any energy inside the weapon, so he could use the sturdiness of the Snake''s tissues to his advantage. The blow didn''t manage to fling him away at that time. He had managed to remain in the Snake''s range by using the Demonic Sword as a handhold. Chapter 1236: 1236. Dead Blood flowed through Noah''s throat and reached his mouth. His defenses had barely blocked the Snake''s attack, but he had still suffered a lot of damage in the process. Yet, he only cared about the fact that the creature was still in his range. His corrosive smoke had already resumed filling the area, and the ice-shards accumulated on the Snake couldn''t heal it quickly with that hindrance. The ice-shards had yet to heal the Snake completely. Blood still flowed from two serious injuries, and the corrosive smoke didn''t hesitate to fill those spots. Cuts had never stopped appearing in the injury at the center of the creature''s mouth. Noah''s technique wasn''t easy to counter, and a magical beast didn''t have access to abilities that could suppress it. The wound on its neck remained the deepest one. Part of the tissues that kept its body and head attached had regrown, but the injury still went beyond the Snake''s spine. ''Your turn,'' Noah thought as he used his free hand to grab the tail. ''I''ll deal with the less serious one.'' A shadow came out of Noah''s space-ring and fused with the corrosive smoke after those thoughts. Meanwhile, Noah retracted his blade and stabbed a more central spot of the Snake''s tail. Noah had removed half of the Snake''s dangerousness by restraining its tail. He wouldn''t give up on that advantage anytime soon. His consciousness spread and a devilish smirk appeared on his fuming armor as he continued to pull and thrust his Demonic Sword to advance on the Snake''s body. Dark matter also flowed inside his blade as he prepared a powerful attack. The Snake didn''t remain still. It found the corrosive smoke annoying because it slowed down its recovery, but it knew that the cause behind those abilities was the small figure clutched at its tail. The creature tried to get rid of that presence by slamming its tail on the ground multiple times. Massive cracks opened on the terrain and entire chunks of that region pulverized under its physical might. However, Noah remained attached to its body even after it thrashed him around. The Snake didn''t hesitate to attack with its head at that point. It didn''t care that its tail would suffer some damage in the process. It could recover almost to its peak as long as it killed its opponent. Noah saw the massive reptilian head charging at him, but it slashed at the tail before the attack could reach him. Then, he left behind a human-shaped crack as he entered his dimension. His attack severed the tail and made the Snake roar in anger when its mouth bit empty air. The creature spewed more silver liquid to use that free moment to recover, but pain suddenly spread from its head. Noah had reappeared on the creature''s head and had stabbed his blade on the deep injury on its mouth. The Demonic Sword joined the other cuts in destroying those tissues, and it dug deeper into them as dark matter flowed inside its shape. The Snake swung its tail at Noah, but it had yet to become used to its missing piece, so the attack missed him. Noah could continue to stab the Demonic Sword deeper in the injury without even bothering to dodge. Cuts suddenly appeared in the injury on the creature''s neck too. A shadow severed chunks of flesh whenever it entered that wound, and the healing of the ice-shards soon stopped being enough to counter that offensive. The Snake crashed its head on the ground in a desperate attempt to shake Noah off, but his foothold remained steady while he continued to dig through the creature''s flesh. The rocks and terrain landing on his armor couldn''t even make him flinch. The beast''s survival instincts stepped forward at that point. The Snake spread its mouth toward the sky and released a torrent of silver liquid. A column formed in the air before silver rain fell everywhere on the battlefield. Ice covered the area in an instant. Noah had never seen the Snake releasing so much silver liquid at the same time, and the effects that it had on the environment were incredible. The silver rain reached every inch of that area and turned them into ice that shattered to converge toward the Snake. Long trails of ice-shards began to fly to fix the injuries suffered by the beast. Noah''s corrosive smoke suffered from a similar fate. The passive ability of the Demonic Form couldn''t stop that skill. The silver liquid was more resistant than the ice-shards and could freeze even that threatening gas. The poison carried by the Demonic Form couldn''t affect the Snake either. The Black Mark couldn''t hurt such a powerful body because Noah was far weaker than the creature when it came to his actual cultivation level. Noah saw ice spreading everywhere around him, but he didn''t panic. He had one last surprise for the Snake, and his consciousness told him that it had finally arrived. The Snake rejoiced when it felt its injuries closing, but a black mass suddenly filled its vision. The Black Hole spell had remained in the sky after the battle had moved on the ground. Noah had called it now to deal with the last struggles of the beast. The Black Hole spell had never stopped absorbing primary energy. The power in that unstable mass scared even Noah, but he knew that he couldn''t avoid that blast. The massive dark sphere exploded when the Snake launched an angry roar. All the ice-shards converging toward the creature vanished under the wave of energy released during the detonation, and even the silver liquid stopped falling. Noah''s armors blocked part of that shockwave. The Black Hole spell transformed the energy that it absorbed, but it still used the Demonic Form''s smoke to increase its damage. That couldn''t hurt Noah, so he only had to block the rest of the energy. The armor of dark matter collapsed and reformed during that shockwave. The wild energy rushing on Noah''s body destroyed even the Demonic From at some point, which left him to endure part of the explosion with his bare skin. The area became so messy that Night had to escape from the injury on the Snake''s neck in that situation. The explosion of the Black Hole spell was too dangerous. Noah used all his strength to remain attached to the Snake''s head during that shockwave. His ambition almost reached its limits when he relied on his individuality to endure the explosion. The shockwave eventually ended. Noah didn''t even need to check to know that his body was full of injuries, but he had other important matters handle now. His ambition surged one last time as dark matter flowed inside the Demonic Sword still stabbed in the Snake''s head. His veins bulged as he tried to make up for the lack of power with his physical strength. The blade began to move while the Snake continued to struggle. Noah dragged the Demonic Sword through the Snake''s head as he tried to reach its brain. The Demonic Sword became longer while inside the Snake''s flash. More cries echoed through the sky during that process, but Noah couldn''t spare even an instant to inspect the outside world. Night resumed its offensive too, and Snore reformed to restrain the heavily injured Eternal Snake. The puppets began to work together to end that exhausting battle. The Demonic Form and dark matter covered Noah''s figure to empower his physical strength. He was using everything he had to kill that resilient beast. A roar came out of Noah''s mouth as the Demonic Sword cut the Snake''s head until it reached the injury on the neck. Noah took a while to notice that he had actually severed the upper part of the creature''s skull in half. Another roar resounded from behind Noah. The Eternal Snake''s head fell as Night finished cutting the last tissues that kept it attached to the rest of the body and announced its victory. The massive creatures fell lifelessly on the ground, but Noah kept his abilities active even if his cultivation level was plummeting. His eyes remained fixed on the Eternal Snake, but his superior awareness soon confirmed that the beast was dead. Chapter 1237: 1237. Second wave Excitement and exhaustion mixed inside Noah as he stared at his prey''s corpse. He had successfully killed a peak rank 6 magical beast, but he had paid a hefty price to achieve that. His body hurt in multiple spots, and blood kept flowing out of his mouth due to his many internal injuries. Noah had yet to examine his condition thoroughly, but he knew that the situation wasn''t good. He had gone all-out against the Eternal Snakes. Different opponents would have required other approaches, but that was the best that Noah could express right now. He had used his new spells, his ambition, and all his assets. His centers of power needed to grow if he wanted to improve his battle prowess. The Eternal Snake''s corpse and all the pieces of its flesh disappeared when Noah stored them inside his space-ring. He didn''t need the entire body for his experiments, so he could eat most of the creature while he recovered. Noah spat mouthfuls of blood as he set off to fly back to his cave. The drawbacks of his ambition made him feel extremely weak, but he ignored the pain coming from his body to leave the area. His consciousness remained wary of other possible threats. He was at his weakest now, and that would be the perfect moment to ambush him. ''This is why I left Second Prince alive,'' Noah smirked as he thought that. Noah knew where the other Eternal Snakes were, so he wouldn''t feel any danger in that situation had he not asked Second Prince to remain a threat for him. Instead, the sole fact that the Royal was out there made Noah remain focused on the environment. His black hole even poured more energy than usual into his injuries to stabilize them and keep him ready to fight. That was what Noah desired. He wanted his mind to feel in constant danger to force his growth to continue. Peace was his enemy, and only endless hindrances could polish his individuality. Something strange happened while Noah flew back to his cave. The death of the Eternal Snake didn''t go unnoticed. The leaders in the Immortal Lands had their eyes on the lower plane, and they didn''t fail to notice that one of their underlings had disappeared. A roar came out of the crack in the sky when the divine beings noticed that. More cries followed that, and their echoes spread till the bottom of the sea. The nine peak rank 6 Snakes interrupted their assault on the regions ruled by the Elbas family to regroup and roar at the sky. Noah was still nearby when that happened, so he heard everything. Those cries didn''t have any specific meaning in human words. They only aimed to force an answer from the underlings so that their leaders could understand if one of them had died. ''They can''t see everything,'' Noah thought as he added that piece of information to the back of his mind. He didn''t know if the divine beings had a clear view of the lower world or could only communicate through cries, but that event partially solved his doubt. Noah guessed that the leaders could hear everything perfectly, but they couldn''t inspect every inch of the Mortal Lands from their viewpoint. Noah had already guessed something similar since the leaders didn''t react when Shandal hid the egg in his separate dimension. There might even be delays to the images seen in the Immortal Lands due to the distance between the planes. That event confirmed his hypothesis and added more data to his knowledge about the Immortal Lands. Still, it also made him understand that the leaders wouldn''t remain silent while he hunted their underlings. Noah accelerated while the roars continued to echo through the sky. He didn''t know what would happen once the leaders confirmed one of their underlings'' death, but he was too weak to face any outcome. The roars coming from the crack became louder, but the underlings could only keep on releasing their cries. That situation had to continue for an entire hour before the divine beings gave up on finding their missing pawn. Silence fell in the world at that point. Noah continued to fly at full speed toward his cave, but his instincts told him that something was coming. The experts in the world began to observe the crack lingering above their heads. The layers of silver ice that covered its edges slowly melted and a few drops fell on the new continent. Those drops came from the Eternal Snakes'' innate ability, but they were far more powerful than those faced by Noah. When they touched the ground, ice spread until it covered entire regions. Noah saw that happening right in front of his eyes. The drops had fallen near the center of the new continent, and he had yet to cross that area when the regions in his vision became an icy silver land. The mere leftovers of a divine being''s innate ability had been enough to turn a quarter of the new continent into a frozen land. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine what amount of destruction one of the leaders could unleash. Noah quickly changed direction. He dived in the sea near the eastern coast to continue his journey back home underwater. Meanwhile, the world around him changed as the divine leaders took the events in the lower plane more seriously. A green claw pierced the crack again, and the sky threatened to shatter under the might released by the divine beast. A second claw slowly joined the first one and enlarged the fissure that connected the lower and higher plane. Large fissures connected to the void opened in the sky as the pressure in the lower plane increased. Even the ground began to shake when the aura of that creature spread through the world. The powerhouses could only feel desperation when they watched that scene. They couldn''t hide from that threat unless they decided to migrate to the other world. More fissures opened in the sky. The situation reached the point when the gravitational pull of the void began to affect some flying magical beasts in the distance. That scene depicted a world on the verge of falling apart, and Noah didn''t hesitate to turn toward the dimensional portal when he saw that the divine being didn''t stop. However, a loud cry of pain suddenly echoed in the sky. Orange sparks ran through the green claws, and cracks appeared on their structure. The few green shards that fell from the claws burned into ashes under the effects of the sparks. It seemed that Heaven and Earth wouldn''t allow that creature to destroy a lower plane. Noah changed direction again when he saw that, but his instincts continued to scream even after the divine beast retracted its claws and covered the edges of the crack with silver ice. The Tribulation couldn''t suppress the anger of the leader. Noah could sense that something else was about to come. Just as his instincts had predicted, many dark-green boulders began to fall from the crack. They resembled meteorites that crashed on different areas of the lower plane and created shockwaves capable of terminating the life of all the weaker creatures in the world. A divine consciousness spread through the world and suppressed those shockwaves. Shandal saved the inhabitants of the lower plane again, but he didn''t make his appearance. He even masked the origin of his aura. Countless roars resounded in the world when the Eternal Snakes that had just fallen into the world awakened. The second wave of invaders had arrived before Noah and the others could even gain the upper hand against the first. Chapter 1238: 1238. Going ou The powerhouses learnt what it meant to hold absolute power after Noah killed one of the peak rank 6 Eternal Snakes. The sheer might that one of the leaders wielded was enough to put the entire word''s integrity at risk. ''Is that even a rank 7 magical beast?'' Noah wondered as he returned to his cave. He had ignored everything happening in the outside world as he swam at the bottom of the sea to return to his training area. Roars echoed non-stop above him and reached his position even if he was underwater, but he didn''t stop his journey to inspect them. Still, Noah began to have doubts about the actual power of the leaders in the Immortal Land. He had seen gods in action in his life, but those creatures appeared to be on a completely different level. Noah didn''t dare to think that the leaders were in the eighth rank. After all, Shandal had managed to steal an egg from them. A fake god like him would have died against creatures on that level unless he had the help of something with a similar might. Countless mental messages arrived on his inscribed notebook. The Hive''s higher-ups and the other leaders wanted to know what had happened to cause such an uproar. Noah didn''t answer them until he reached his cave, and he only replied to the Demons'' worried messages since they were enough to spread the news to the other powerhouses. Everyone soon learnt about Noah''s achievement. They didn''t inspect the entirety of his battle since their eyes were on the territories of the Elbas family. Also, they thought that Noah only wanted to test himself as usual. They didn''t expect him to aim for the kill. However, when they learnt that he had killed one of the ten peak rank 6 creatures, many of them began to give voice to loud complaints. "You can''t do whatever you want during this crisis!" Great Elder Diana said while her anger took control of her usual calm. "Why didn''t you wait for the Almighty''s directives?!" God''s Left Hand said with a newfound arrogant tone. Noah ignored those mental messages to focus on his recovery. He had finally inspected his body after returning to his cave, and his condition made him wear a grim expression. The Eternal Snake had landed direct hits on him only twice, but those blows had damaged Noah''s skin and insides badly. The creature had also thrashed him around, but those attacks didn''t injure him seriously. Two large black patches had appeared on Noah''s left side and chest. The Snake''s maimed tail didn''t manage to pierce his skin, but it had damaged it together with the tissues under them. Even his organs didn''t escape that attack. Noah rested while the world adapted to the arrival of the new magical beasts. He ignored every report and complaint that reached his inscribed notebook to focus on his recovery. His centers of power had accumulated a lot of stress during the last battle, and he could only eat pieces of his powerful prey to quicken his recovery. The peak rank 6 creature''s flesh mostly helped his body, but the black hole redirected part of that energy to his centers of power to restore them. Once his centers of power recovered, Noah activated one of the spells that he had reconstructed during his peaceful periods. Darkness came out of Noah''s dantian and created a solid form around his figure. That shape resembled a large blade that contained him in an environment capable of benefitting his healing process. Dark matter aided the process too. The black hole seemed to work together with that environment to help Noah''s recover faster. That was the Dark Womb spell that Noah had never been able to use in its previous form. It expended a large amount of darkness, mental energy, and dark matter while it remained active, but it allowed him to recover far quicker than usual. A day inside the Dark Womb was equal to a week of normal recovery. That was an advantage that he didn''t dare to ignore, especially now that he was getting closer to the Immortal Lands. His body had only one weakness. It required a massive amount of energy and many months to heal. Noah couldn''t avoid that since the high quality of his tissues caused it. Still, he had a spell that could ease that issue now. Of course, the Dark Womb spell put more stress on his centers of power, so he wanted to use it only when his dantian, mind, and black hole were in good conditions. Activating it when the drawbacks of his ambition still affected them could worsen their state rather than heal them. Even with the Dark Womb spell, Noah''s body still took almost nine months to heal completely. He had to stop his technique to recover his energy from time to time. Yet, he had spent most of that period inside the large blade, and he had still required that long to heal. His body would have taken years to heal without his spell, and that showed how hard his battle against the Eternal Snake had been. ''What is even happening in the world?'' Noah thought when he finally decided to inspect his inscribed notebook. He had returned to his peak, so he had to learn what he had missed by ignoring every report. All the powerhouses had kept their eyes on the world during those months. According to Elder Julia and the Demons, the divine beings had sent more rank 6 creatures to search for the egg, but they weren''t at the peak of the rank. Most of the new Snakes were in the lower tier, with only a few in the middle tier. Still, their numbers were a big problem. The divine beings had sent forty creatures in the sixth rank to help the other underlings. Such a sheer number of powerful creatures finished destroying the fauna and flora of the world. They ravaged every inch of the world and even explored the sea. Fights among the remaining rank 6 marine magical beasts and the Eternal Snakes happened. The hunting zones of those overlords of the sea meant nothing for the creatures coming from the Immortal Lands. Even the Elbas family had to give up on its domain after the Eternal Snakes received reinforcements. The magical beasts had gathered on the southeastern part of the new continent right after they landed, and their offensive wasn''t something that the Royals could stop. The attack of forty-nine rank 6 creatures was something unheard of in a lower plane. No force in the world had ever managed to wield such power, and the four organizations didn''t even come close to that number when they were at their peak. No lower plane could survive that threat. The might of one pack from the Immortal Land was enough to conquer everything. The powerhouses had already planned to migrate to the other Mortal Lands and destroy the portal while Noah focused on his recovery. The world was too dangerous for them, but they had the chance to start anew. However, they didn''t move since Shandal had yet to act. The powerhouses didn''t know what would happen when he joined that battlefield, and they would give up on the piece of Immortal Lands only after all their hopes failed. They knew that no other lower plane had such a valuable environment, so they didn''t want to abandon it unless they had no other choice. Noah couldn''t stop smiling while he read those reports. The world had entered a wild state, and rank 6 magical beasts had become a common sight. That was his ideal environment. He wouldn''t have to worry about his body''s growth if he managed to exploit that chance properly. "This is why the forces of the three organizations are waiting for Shandal to make his move," Dreaming Demon''s voice resounded in Noah''s mind as he listened to the last mental message from the Hive. "We have no contacts with the Elbas family, but the separate dimension doesn''t have room for them anyway." "I agree," Noah replied to that message through his inscribed notebook, "You should wait for Shandal. Still, be ready to evacuate the world. I''m going out." Chapter 1239: 1239. Dantians Noah''s inscribed notebook rang to no end after Dreaming Demon received that message, but he didn''t care. The other powerhouses wanted to evacuate the world because it had become too dangerous, but Noah found the new environment perfect for his needs. There were forty-nine new rank 6 creatures in the world, and all of them could help Noah''s body reach the peak of the heroic ranks. He couldn''t give up on that chance to skip years of boring absorption of energy from the environment. Noah had gained one corpse, but he needed three to four more to feel confident in his project. Now he had weaker specimens at hand, but the hunts had become far more difficult according to the reports of his underlings. The Eternal Snakes always moved in groups. Finding one alone was impossible, and they didn''t even fight themselves for the ownership of certain regions. The beasts appeared utterly dedicated to their mission. They searched the landmasses and the sea without stopping at the hindrances that they found on their path. The Snakes even explored the underground world of both continents. The beasts excavated large tunnels and destroyed entire regions to inspect every inch of the lower plane. Some groups had also moved to the seabed. Their great power wasn''t enough to dig tunnels that reached the red sea in a short time, but they didn''t mind putting effort into that task every day. Noah wondered if the creatures would go as far as enter the separate reality if they couldn''t find the egg. He didn''t know if they could reach the yellow sea without any help, but he didn''t linger on that thought for too long. The scariest aspect of that invasion was that Shandal would never let those creatures obtain the egg. The Snakes would never find the separate dimension unless he desired otherwise. That was the greatest issue in the matter. The powerhouses didn''t know what the divine beings would do to the lower plane if their underlings were to fail. Noah found it pointless to spend time thinking about those possibilities. Matters that involved divine beings were outside of his reach, so he could only prepare for the worst while making the best out of that situation. It was precisely for that reason that he didn''t want to wait for Shandal to act. Gods were too different from heroic cultivators, so he wouldn''t rely on Shandal''s whims when it came to that crisis. His goal was to kill and seize as many Eternal Snakes as he could now. He didn''t care if the divine beings in the Immortal Lands destroyed the world because of his actions. He would escape through the dimensional portal if the situation reached that point. That was the expression of his determination. He was willing to sacrifice the world to reach the Immortal Lands. Only his power mattered, while almost everything else was expendable. Noah had already isolated the organ that produced the silver liquid during his time inside the cave. Those creatures had large glands in the bottom side of their mouths, so he could limit himself to sever that part if he met specimens that he couldn''t kill. Of course, Noah would rather take the whole beast and use it as a nutrient for his body, but he had to prepare for the worst, and his new ability had the priority. Noah came out of his cave and flew high in the sky to inspect the two continents with his eyes. The reports couldn''t give him the details that only an expert in the magical beasts'' field could notice. He had to see those beasts for himself and decide if he had to resort to unique baits to isolate them. Also, he wanted to test how thorough the control of the divine beings was. His first prey had abandoned its mission to fight him. The event showed that the Snakes could ignore their orders and follow their instincts in certain situations. ''Anger is fine,'' Noah thought as he decided to inspect the old continent first. ''I wonder if I can use something safer to obtain similar results.'' The old continent had less Eternal Snakes, and those creatures had even lost interest in exploring it. Most of its regions had crumbled during their inspection. In their minds, such a frail land couldn''t possibly hide their target. They couldn''t even begin to imagine that Shandal''s dimension had been there all along. Still, it wasn''t their fault. Their limits as magical beasts in the heroic ranks prevented them from sensing that place. Noah flew at high speed through the sky, but two existences soon appeared inside the range of his consciousness. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana appeared in front of Noah, and he stopped to greet them. Yet, a cold smile broke on his face. The two leaders couldn''t hide the reason behind their visit from him. "Defying Demon," God''s Left Hand greeted Noah, "May I know where are you headed?" Noah''s smile widened, but his reptilian eyes radiated only coldness. An emotionless voice also came out of his mouth when he replied to the leader. "There are many valuable creatures in the world. I plan to take a few of them." The leaders'' expressions darkened when they heard those words. Noah didn''t even try to hide his intentions. His behavior made the powerhouses aware that he didn''t consider them capable of stopping him. "You must put this hunger of yours on hold," Great Elder Diana said with the politest words that she could find. "The very fate of the world is at stake. Why would you hunt now? You can wait for the god of the Shandal Empire to ensure our safety first." Noah scoffed and shook his head. He didn''t want to ruin his relationship with Great Elder Diana either, but he wouldn''t slow down his growth to preserve alliances. Everyone was aware that Noah was the strongest heroic cultivator in the lower plane, and he knew the benefits that came with that title. The fact that no one could defeat him meant that he could do as he wished in every situation. "I misjudged you, Great Elder Diana," Noah said as his smile vanished. "I never thought that you would place your safety in the hands of a god who has abandoned his organization countless times." Great Elder Diana lowered her head at that point. Noah was right. The historical record had already proven that Shandal wasn''t reliable. The invasion of the Empire had been a success for that exact reason. God''s Left Hand opened her mouth to complain, but Noah spoke before she could say anything. "I do not doubt that Shandal will close the crack," Noah said. "Still, that can happen tomorrow or a thousand years from now. Gods are whimsical, and I won''t live my life according to their plans." "We know your weakness," God''s Left Hand said after she wore an ugly expression. "You need time to prepare your individuality. You are at our level now." Battle intent began to fill God''s Left Hand''s aura after she spoke. Her intentions were clear. She would stop Noah even if she had to fight him. "Your level?" Noah replied as he waved his hand. The sheer physical strength contained in his arm allowed him to open cracks in the sky with that gesture. Five slashes also came out of his fingers and flew in the distance while opening fissures too. God''s Left Hand could only remain silent at that display of power. She knew that Noah was strong, but she wasn''t alone. Noah didn''t feel like discussing any further. He had a goal, and he wanted to reach it before something forced him to leave that world. His aura surged, but his cultivation level remained the same. Noah didn''t rely on his ambition at that time. He planned to face the powerhouses with his real power. "I have something better than your dantians at stake," Noah said as the Demonic Sword came out of his space-ring and landed on his hand, "But I''ll take them if you try to stop me." Chapter 1240: 1240. Resolution God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana couldn''t help but shake when they felt Noah''s aura focusing on them. That was their first time having Noah as a proper opponent, and the fear that he generated in their minds surpassed their expectations. No label could describe Noah''s power. He was a liquid stage cultivator capable of expressing peak stage prowess without ambition, and peak rank power when his individuality fueled his existence. He had various attacks in his arsenal, but his main offensive featured slashes that could match spells. His puppets also made up for any flaw in his battle style, and his body was capable of miracles. Noah was the most fearsome opponent in the entire world. He was wicked and competent, and no one could ever claim to know the entirety of his prowess. The entire world knew tales about his achievements. His adventures had already entered the historical records. His name carried the weight of all the hindrances that he had overcome through his life. Thinking of facing him was foolish, but God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana acted in good faith. The world was at stake in that period, and stopping Noah was the only thing that could delay its destruction. God''s Left Hand had lost most of her restraint after Shandal returned to the lower plane. In her mind, the Empire had become the strongest organization in the world again, so she wouldn''t restrain herself during political matters. Great Elder Diana was different. She could understand both Noah and God''s Left hand, and her intentions were merely practical. Relying on Shandal was the safest bet in that situation, while letting Noah free to act would force her organization to migrate to the other world. She didn''t feel any hatred toward Noah, but she had to fight him to ensure a better future for her underlings and herself. Noah wanted to avoid that battle too. He wouldn''t have even discussed with the leaders when the world was still in its previous condition, but the appearance of so many powerful creatures had turned his priorities upside down. He needed the Eternal Snakes for his project and body, but he also desired to have a valuable army at hand if the world''s situation was too hard to handle on his own. His ambition made him desire everything, and that included the power held by the two allied organizations. Still, he wouldn''t hesitate now that God''s Left Hand had expressed her stance. He waited to attack only because Great Elder Diana had yet to unfold her aura. Her actions would decide whether that fight had to happen. Great Elder Diana glanced at the Matriarch before moving her gaze on Noah. A tinge of regret appeared on her expression as her aura surged, and crackling spheres formed around her figure. The various emotions on the Matriarch''s expression vanished as determination replaced them. They were in the same mess together now. They had to survive the fury of the strongest cultivator in history. A human-shaped crack replaced Noah''s figure as soon as Great Elder Diana unleashed her aura. The Matriarchs placed their backs against each other and prepared for his attack. The whole world knew about Noah''s abilities. The experts had failed to see part of the battle against the Eternal Snake, but they had observed him for a long time. Nothing Noah did could surprise them. Both God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana had prepared countermeasures to his iconic abilities, and they had items that could hinder his usual fighting style. Black lines appeared around the Matriarchs who didn''t leave their defensive stance. Those attacks widened to create portals that released hundreds of slashes, but Noah didn''t reappear in the open. God''s Left Hand wielded her quasi-rank 7 fan and waved it toward the slashes coming in her direction. Dense gales formed in front of her and clashed against Noah''s attack. Great Elder Diana took out her black lenses, and her crackling spheres released lighting bolts through them to enhance their power. Her attacks also clashed with the slashes, but they created an array of sparks when they exploded. The Matriarchs weren''t weak. Their attacks fended off Noah''s slashes, but black smoke slowly seeped out of the portals and created a wide corrosive cloud that enveloped the two powerhouses. Small lightning bolts appeared on Great Elder Diana''s figure and acted as a second skin as they run over her body to destroy the corrosive smoke. God''s Left Hand had a technique to counter the Demonic Form too. A small but fast whirlpool formed above specific areas of her body and gathered the corrosive smoke around there to release it back into the environment. The Demonic Form had become too famous. Every powerhouse in the world had developed countermeasures to its threatening features. Even Noah''s allies had to create spells that could counter its corrosion. The Matriarchs didn''t dare to move. They were safe as long as they looked out for each other, and charging through the cloud would only force them to rely on their improvised collaboration. They would be weaker in that situation, and Noah would surely exploit that flaw in their battle style. Their best option was to remain precisely in their position and react to everything Noah threw at them. Shadows moved through the cloud. Humanoid and peculiar shapes appeared for less than an instant in the Matriarchs'' gazes and forced them to remain alert. A denser smoke also spread through the cloud while they remained in that situation. It didn''t take much before the dark world formed around a thick layer of corrosive smoke that continued to assault the Matriarchs. Noah came out of his dimension at that point. He could feel the Matriarchs'' laws struggling to overcome the suppression of his dark world, but only Great Elder Diana could achieve some little success. The dark world was Noah''s domain. He decided what could exist inside it. However, that was also the weakness of that technique since he had to wield enough power to suppress the laws coming from his enemies. Cultivators needed sheer and superior power to break free of the dark world. Every other approach would only suffer from the restrictions that Noah had decided. Noah raised his blade and pointed it in a specific spot of the dark cloud. His Demonic Sword began to vibrate, and more dark matter flowed inside its shape to empower his offensive. God''s Left Hand suddenly felt danger in her mind, and her instincts told her to perform an evasive maneuver. However, she had underestimated how fast Noah''s attacks could travel. A painful sensation suddenly spread on her left shoulder. She lowered her head only to see that a fist-sized hole had appeared in that spot. The lunge had spared her arm, but God''s Left Hand knew that his failure in delivering a deadly attack wasn''t his fault. The whirlpool around her body had prevented his blow from hitting her head. Noah had aimed for the kill at his first attack. He wasn''t playing around either. Multiple dangerous sensations appeared on the Matriarchs'' minds at that point. They both glanced at their ally to evaluate that situation, and they didn''t hesitate to convey that they shared the same threats. Waves of smoke flowed through the cloud, and many attacks appeared in the Matriarchs'' vision while they deployed their defenses. Noah had launched a dozen lunges toward them, and they had to stop them before they became nothing more than corpses. Chapter 1241: 1241. Scrolls Noah wasn''t holding back, but he didn''t use all his techniques right away. He limited himself to use the warp spell and his sword arts because he didn''t know what the Matriarchs had in store for him. Cultivators were different from magical beasts. They had tricks, strategies, and inscribed items that could turn a certain victory into an overwhelming defeat instantly. Noah was stronger than the two powerhouses, but he had to be wary of their experience and preparation. He wouldn''t be surprised if they prepared items to defeat him even before the situation reached that point. The lunges flew through the dark world without any obstruction. Noah''s ability would even make them stronger if they weren''t so fast. The Matriarchs only had an instant to react, but they didn''t fail to deploy spells that could stop Noah''s offensive. Great Elder Diana''s crackling second skin expanded and created a spherical defensive net that destroyed anything trying to cross among its holes. A massive amount of her "Breath" went inside the net and fueled the many lighting bolts that converged on the lunges when they crossed her protection. Those powerful attacks couldn''t do anything against her spell. God''s Left Hand waved her fan vertically a few times before violent gales shot out to clash with the lunges. Noah didn''t think much of that spell initially, but he had to reevaluate it when he saw his attacks falling apart. The winds that she had created through that gesture appeared dense enough to stop his sword arts. Noah believed that the Matriarch of the Empire would struggle a bit more to deal with his attacks, but it seemed that Shandal''s return had made her power improve more than he expected. A large cut suddenly opened on God''s Left Hand''s back. The Matriarchs showed a surprised expression, but she soon redirected more "Breath" toward her whirlpools to increase their rotation speed. Noah knew through his mental connection that Night missed God''s Left Hand''s neck because the whirlpool on her back had accelerated on its own. The defensive ability had noticed the arrival of a threat and had acted before the Matriarch contemplated the issue. Night was one of Noah''s aces. Even the Elbas family had been unable to obtain its power, and its body had gone far beyond the limits of its species after Noah used the Royal Metal with it. There was a chance that something capable of countering Night couldn''t exist in a lower plane. The existences facing the creature could only rely on wide defensive methods to hinder its silent attacks. The two Matriarchs had done that. The crackling sphere and those whirlpools created a defensive array that could block attacks coming from any direction. Noah had to break them if he wanted to inflict serious damage on the two powerhouses. ''They won''t reveal anything at this pace,'' Noah thought when he understood that he couldn''t defeat them with only casual attacks. Noah entered the dark world, and smoke started to come out of his skin. The demonic armor covered his figure instantly, and three fiendish copies appeared near him in the next second. A small sphere appeared in his palm, but Noah immediately threw it outside of the dark world. The Black Hole spell was frail, so he needed to keep it away from the battlefield to rely on its power. Snore formed inside the dark world before it surrounded the Matriarchs with its huge body. Lightning bolts, gales, and fire shot out from its head as it blocked some of the powerhouses'' escape routes. The dark world empowered Snore''s elemental attacks while its suppression intensified. The Matriarchs'' defensive spells lost some of their effectiveness when the Blood Companions'' abilities swept them. The two powerhouses couldn''t ignore the dark world for too long. Their level didn''t allow them to keep control of their abilities inside that environment. God''s Left Hand destructiveness lost intensity, and Great Elder Diana''s failed to properly control her lightning bolts when the dark world affected their defenses. The elemental attacks destroyed them to envelop the Matriarchs in a tight wave. Noah didn''t stop there. He was inside the dark world now, so he could charge his Demonic Sword with dark matter more quickly. His higher energy flowed inside the blade and transformed it into a four hundred meters long sword that fell on the spot where the elemental attacks were suppressing the powerhouses. Night also remained in the area to prevent anyone from escaping that offensive. Shockwaves spread through the dark world. Noah''s domain trembled under the might that he had unleashed, but no happiness appeared on his face. He knew what had happened to the Matriarchs through the dark matter around them, and he didn''t like what he sensed. Violent lightning bolts shot out of the raging waves of dark matter that surrounded the Matriarchs. Dense winds also rotated around the area and created a massive tornado with the Matriarchs as its center. ''They are far more prepared than I expected,'' Noah thought as the dark matter in front of him dispersed to reveal the two powerhouses. Both Great Elder Diana and God''s Left Hand held two long unfolded scrolls high above their heads. Countless lines covered the yellow surfaces of those items, and some of them shone brighter than others. Those items were similar to talismans, but they didn''t have a limit on the spells that they contained. Experts had to inscribe the scroll to engrave a series of spells on their surface to activate them at a lower cost. Of course, the scrolls would express their true power when they contained the best spells that the cultivators wielded. The Matriarchs had engraved some of their most powerful abilities on those items, so they could cast them as soon as their "Breath" filled those lines. Moreover, the spells used by the Matriarchs to defeat Noah''s offensive were slightly different from their usual attacks. They didn''t carry the powerhouses'' individualities, so the dark world couldn''t suppress them on the spot. That was a weakness of the dark world. Noah could prevent the Matriarchs from using their laws whenever he saw fit, but he had to know which meanings he had to suppress beforehand. Noah couldn''t even imagine how long the Matriarchs had needed to inscribe spells that didn''t even suit their individuality, but he soon suppressed those thoughts when his opponents began to speak. "It''s hard to keep track of all the eyes studying you once you reach a certain status," God''s Left Hand said. "The entire world has created countermeasures for you since the battle against King Elbas." "We have our pride too," Great Elder Diana said. "You were nothing more than a bastard back then, but I was a powerhouse already. I took orders from you because you were stronger, but that doesn''t mean that I am weak!" Great Elder Diana''s aura surged as another set of spells lit up on the scroll that she held. Her lightning bolts began to transform into an army of crackling wolves that charged toward Noah. "I won''t remain passive anymore," Great Elder Diana continued. "You have chosen your path, so don''t blame me if I aim to kill you now. May the best of us win!" Great Elder Diana jumped on one of the wolves at that point and used it to fly out of the dark world. God''s Left Hand did the same, and Noah couldn''t stop them because the dense tornado that slowly rotated at the center of his technique had begun to move toward him. The two attacks made him feel danger. He couldn''t ignore them. Chapter 1242: 1242. Throa Noah launched the fiendish copies toward the army of wolves and gathered dark matter inside his blade to deal with the tornado. He had initially thought that God''s Left Hand''s spell matched her individuality, but the dense gales that made it didn''t carry her destructiveness. The tornado rotated slowly, and it acted as a massive club rather than as a calamity. It had an orderly structure while God''s Left Hand typically used violent winds. The fiendish copies fought against the army of wolves before exploding into a dense wave of corrosive smoke. Some of those creatures survived that offensive, but the dark matter that fell on them afterward finished destroying them. Noah slashed at the tornado. His massive blade cut that rotating figure in half and dispersed its winds through the dark world. It filled the empty spot that the Matriarchs had created with their abilities, but that was useless now. God''s Left Hand reappeared above Noah, outside of the dark world. She was still riding the wolf, and a series of spheres made of raging winds hovered in their palms. The spheres fell toward the dark gas, and storms appeared in those spots. The raging winds expanded until they became a series of small tornadoes that tried to disperse the dark matter. Great Elder Diana appeared under Noah, outside of the dark word. Thousands of minute lighting bolts had appeared above her. They resembled small arrows when they shot toward the dense cloud to disperse the dark matter. The dark world suppressed the Matriarchs'' abilities when they entered inside its range, but Noah let them destroy it. His opponents weren''t interested in remaining inside his technique anymore. It was better to use it in a different form at the moment. More dark matter came out of his chest, and a second layer of armor appeared on top of his fiendish figure. Some of the higher energy around him also fused with his protection, and three more copies appeared next to him to go through the same process. Noah called the Black Hole spell at that point. The small sphere had become quite big during those few exchanges, but it still needed to grow to express its overwhelming power. Yet, that didn''t stop Noah from making the copies go through the spell to turn them into giants. The same went for his Demonic Sword since he immersed it inside the Black Hole spell. Snore reappeared behind his figure. The Blood Companion couldn''t stop the Matriarchs since they had suddenly unleashed far more power than usual, but it didn''t suffer any damage in the process. The Matriarchs moved again. They didn''t dare to remain in the same position for fear of having to face one of Noah''s threatening attacks. God''s Left Hand dismounted from her wolf and launched it at Noah while she created a series of gales that began to blow around him. Great Elder Diana threw a series of crackling spheres that surrounded Noah and worked together with the gales to create a special aura around him. Noah felt the sky''s structure becoming frail under the effect of those spells. ''They want to suppress me by using the void,'' Noah thought. He couldn''t fail to recognize the tactic that defeated King Elbas the first time. The Matriarchs'' spells made the sky too frail for his physical might. Anything beyond human standards would turn the entire area into a massive fissure. Noah waved his hand, and a black line appeared in front of him. A portal opened, but the sky''s structure crumbled, and the fissure that came after that engulfed the Warp spell. The Matriarchs didn''t stop their offensive. Great Elder Diana followed her attacks by launching other crackling spheres that surrounded the entire frail area. God''s Left Hand waved her fan to create violent gales that circled the frail area and created a barrier that prevented others from crossing it. The Matriarchs wanted to trap Noah before delivering their final attack. He wouldn''t have any escape at that point. Noah closed his fist, and that simple gesture opened many small cracks around his hand. The sky was too frail, but he quickly found a way to escape from that situation. His leg bent as Noah crouched in the area. Other cracks appeared around him because of that gesture, but Noah had eyes only for the area with fewer crackling spheres. The Matriarchs tried to launch more spells, but Noah charged and made the whole area crumbled as he tried to enter his dimension to overcome the hindrances on his path. The whole area became a massive crack connected to the void that applied a strong gravitational pull on Noah. That suction force was so intense that he couldn''t even gather darkness under his feet to sprint away again. Meanwhile, the Matriarchs had launched more spells. Three giant lightning bolts with the shape of arrows and a wide dense gale surpassed the area''s edges and converged toward Noah. The void was annoying, but the incoming attack worsened his situation. Noah used part of the dark matter inside Snore to create platforms under him and sprint away. As for the enemy spells, he let his copies face them. Noah disappeared after the spells exploded. A cloud of gray smoke appeared on its spot, but the void absorbed it in an instant. The Matriarchs couldn''t see Noah anywhere. They didn''t think that he had fallen into the void, but they didn''t know how he could hide his presence so well. The two tried to gather again, but Noah reappeared behind God''s Left Hand and slashed at the same spot damaged by Night. A second skin made of dense air appeared on top of her figure and blocked the attack, but the crack that it opened sucked away most of that energy. Noah punched using his free hand at that point, but he saw no fear inside God''s Left Hand''s eyes. She felt confident in that situation, which meant that she was still hiding something. A long cut appeared on God''s Left Hand''s face as Noah began to retreat. Night took the powerhouse''s right eye away with its attack. God''s Left Hand broke a talisman at that point, and a wild series of tornadoes formed around her figure and began to fly in every direction. Those tornadoes also appeared different. It wasn''t gray as usual. Its color was closer to a proper black that gave off a dangerous aura. That wasn''t the average wind. Its aura was eerie, but he could sense the danger coming from inside it. Noah continued to retreat, but an array of lightning bolts blocked his path by creating a tight net that released attacks. He had ended up encircled again, but he didn''t mind that situation. God''s Left Hand had suffered a bit, while Great Elder Diana felt her pride as a powerhouse plummeting whenever Noah survived one of those attacks. Instead, Noah had yet to suffer any damage. He was even in perfect condition since he didn''t use his ambition at all. Noah wasn''t in control of the battlefield, but he still had the upper hand. The Matriarchs were attempting to take him out with a few grand moves, but he preferred to slowly and safely wound them. Snore charged toward the black winds while Noah sprinted upward. He had no reason to face Great Elder Diana''s spell, so he dodged it to disappear from the battlefield again. The black winds destroyed Snore and crushed even the dark matter that made its body. The Blood Companion couldn''t do anything against them, which was why Noah had decided to improve it after completing the other task. Noah reappeared behind God''s Left Hand again while the black winds ravaged its body. His Demonic Sword lunged at her throat, and Night aimed to sever her torso. The tip of the blade pierced her skin before she exploded into a wave of scorching gales that reformed near Great Elder Diana. A trail of blood still fell from her throat, but she didn''t bother to clean it. Chapter 1243: 1243. Sacrifice The Matriarchs didn''t expect anything less from Noah. He had claimed the title of strongest heroic cultivator for a reason, and his battle style made it clear that no one on his level was his match. It didn''t matter that the Matriarchs had prepared for that battle. Noah had various abilities, and the powerhouses couldn''t counter all of them. Some of his techniques didn''t even have actual countermeasures. Noah didn''t have a time limit in that situation. The power that he wielded in the battle didn''t come from his ambition, so he could fight the Matriarchs without having to put his life on the line. He could rely on his superior battle prowess to exhaust them. That would eventually expose some flaws in their fighting style, and he wouldn''t hesitate to exploit them. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana understood that they couldn''t defeat Noah with normal methods. He could overcome all their plans and even injure them at the same time. Great Elder Diana glanced at her companion. A few injuries had appeared on God''s Left Hand''s body, and she had lost her right eye during the last exchange. Each of Noah''s attacks could be deadly. The two of them wouldn''t even have survived for so long if they hadn''t studied all his abilities. Two layers of armor still protected Noah. Instead, the Matriarchs had already shown their tricks. Their traps had also failed, which left them with nothing but injuries. The sky slowly reformed as Noah and the Matriarchs studied each other. Neither of them appeared willing to make the first move, but Noah soon decided that he had enough of waiting. A sea of saber-shaped runes came out of his figure and surrounded him. Snore reformed and unfolded its wings, and the Black Hole spell floated toward him. Copies of his fiendish armor also formed among the sea of blades. They immersed themselves in the Black Hole spell as soon as they appeared in the open, and five giants came out of the dark sphere once the empowerment ended. The sheer power in Noah''s techniques was able to twist the sky''s structure and bend the sunlight. That area had become nothing more than a black patch capable of altering the very fabric of the world. It was as if Noah''s abilities were cancer that spread through Heaven and Earth''s world and tainted it with his existence. His dark world and corrosive cloud would often hide his arsenal, but the Matriarchs could witness it in its spectacular might in that situation. Noah lifted his free hand at that point. He pointed at God''s Left Hand with two fingers and focused on the sharpness carried by his existence. God''s Left Hand didn''t feel anything initially, but a dangerous sensation soon built up inside her mind. She felt that something was about to arrive, but she couldn''t understand the nature of that threat. Great Elder Diana''s eyes suddenly widened as she inspected that scene. Her hand shot in front of her companion and lightning bolts exploded in the area. The Empire''s Leader was about to question her, but she soon noticed that traces of Noah''s sharpness came out of her companion''s technique. Great Elder Diana had prevented the casting of a spell, and a chill ran down God''s Left Hand''s spine when she saw that the attack had aimed at her forehead. She couldn''t lower her guard for even a second against Noah. She couldn''t allow herself to show any flaw against that opponent. When the duo glanced at Noah again, they noticed that he had disappeared from the center of his abilities. They couldn''t sense his presence anymore either, but they couldn''t focus on that since the techniques in the distance began to fly toward them. The five giants moved, surrounded by the tight array of blades. Snore also flew with them and used the dark matter around the fiendish copies to remain intact even if it had lost its connection with Noah. God''s Left Hand waved her fan to create a series of dense gales that resembled snake-like creatures as they flew through the sky to reach Noah''s attacks. Great Elder Diana used her black lenses to generate a barrage of thick lightning bolts that filled the sky with an orange radiance. The Matriarchs prepared themselves for a loud explosion and intense shockwaves, but their consciousnesses suddenly sensed a presence nearby, and the world around them became dark. The powerhouses began to retreat as soon as they understood the nature of the darkness that had surrounded them. Noah''s dark matter was easy to recognize, so they knew what was about to happen. The dark world suppressed the Matriarchs'' spells, and Noah''s attacks destroyed them after entering his domain. The dark matter even improved their power as it enhanced their effects. Snore became bigger. The saber-shaped runes accelerated as they turned into smoke. The claws of the giant copies grew as dark matter flowed inside them. Flashes of orange and gray light shone on the Matriarchs'' back and forced them to stop their retreat. Night had attacked them, but their defensive spells had blocked it. The array of attacks drew closer, and the dark world suppressed any foreign law in the area. The Matriarchs felt cornered, and they could only take out their inscribed scrolls again to rely on the domain''s weakness. All the lines on their scrolls lit up right before Noah''s attacks crashed on the duo. The area became a mess of explosions, tornadoes, and lightning storms, but Noah remained nearby, ready to take the life of whoever managed to survive that clash. Even if he was inside the dark world, Noah didn''t understand what was happening in the impact area. The clashes among the many abilities made that zone chaotic, and dark matter often crumbled as shockwaves came out of it. Noah waited a few seconds before he charged his Demonic Sword with dark matter. His blade grew until it was more than four hundred meters tall, and he slashed at the area that still featured multiple clashes. The massive blade descended, and the dark world tuned with the sharpness that it carried to enhance its abilities. That blow contained so much power that even the dark matter opened to let it pass. Before the slash swept the area, black winds appeared inside the dark world and expanded to create a massive tornado. An array of dense lightning bolts also shot out of the spell, and sparks began to run through those raging gales. The tornado clashed with the giant blade. The Demonic Sword pierced the spell while losing part of its power, but the lightning bolts that shot out of the tornado prevented Noah''s weapon from damaging them any further. The lightning bolts landed on the giant blade''s structural flaws and dispersed most of the dark matter that the Demonic Sword had accumulated. The massive weapon soon became an unstable mess that the tornado could sweep away easily. The tornado didn''t stop expanding. The dark world crumbled under that spell and the lightning bolts that it released. Dark matter also fell apart when it touched the sparks running through the winds. Noah''s technique was about to lose against those spells, but he wouldn''t let the Matriarchs regain the upper hand in the battle. He charged right through the storm and used his movement technique to pierce the tornado. Sparks landed on his body and shattered his robe as cracks opened on his skin. Noah had eventually chosen to suffer some damage in that battle, but that was only part of his regular fighting style. He often decided to sacrifice something to put his opponents in an even worse situation. Chapter 1244: 1244. Damage The dark winds ripped off the armor made of dark matter, but they lost their power after completing that feat. A large opening appeared on the black tornado, but the sparks that ran through it soon filled that spot. Noah only had the Demonic Form at that point. The sparks generated lightning bolts that destroyed his fiendish armor and landed on his skin. However, the damage that they inflicted wasn''t even worthy of consideration for someone like Noah. His skin cracked, and many cuts appeared on his body. Yet, his resilience went beyond both magical beasts and hybrids. Those injuries didn''t even manage to slow him down. Noah crossed that barrage of spells and entered inside the maimed tornado. Calm filled the area, but two figures soon appeared in his vision. God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana were both injured. The last array of attacks had crushed their defenses and threatened to kill them on the spot. The complete activation of their inscribed scrolls had saved them from certain death. The tornado and the countless sparks that filled its surface were the best spells that those items could generate. God''s Left Hand had already suffered some light injuries during the previous exchanges, but the last clash left her maimed. Her left arm had disappeared, and part of her torso had become a bloody mess. The injuries even spread to her legs. Her entire left side was about to fall apart, and only her mental energy kept it together. Great Elder Diana was a bit better off, but she had also suffered her share of damage. Her right hand had lost a few fingers, and patches of broken skin filled her legs. A few cuts had appeared on her torso and face too. Yet, those were still light injuries for an expert on that level. The Matriarchs had to endure attacks that were on the same level as those launched by them. The difference in the injuries came from the innate defenses of their bodies. The toughness of Noah''s skin could match the power of a couple of defensive spells, while the Matriarchs'' bodies were far below the magical beasts'' level. The duo couldn''t surpass him when it came to resilience, even if they were two against one. Noah sprinted toward the Matriarchs, but they both snapped their fingers when they saw him. Their individualities also surged while they prepared new attacks. The dark world''s suppression couldn''t reach the empty area at the center of the tornado. The tornado and the sparks caved in. They began to fill the area with pieces of attacks that flew for a while before converging toward Noah. Meanwhile, Great Elder Diana and God''s Left Hand unleashed techniques that carried their intense individualities. God''s Left Hand was a calamity. Her winds existed to destroy and fly unbound through both land and sky. Countless gales came out of her figure and began to twist around her as if they were giant snake-like creatures. They even rotated to create a series of attacks that converged toward Noah. Great Elder Diana had perfect control over her wild element. Sparks accumulated around her and gave birth to countless minute arrows, with each of them carrying the power of her lightning bolts. Those spells joined the collapse of the previous ones in their flight toward Noah. He sensed threats from every direction, but he had every intention to continue moving forward. Dark matter came out of his chest as he deployed the dark world again. The spells that carried the Matriarchs'' individualities lost power as the higher energy banished those laws from Noah''s domain. Noah could charge through them without worrying about his safety once the dark world suppressed those spells. He waved his hand to launch slashes that tore through the violent gales, and his body destroyed the arrows when they crashed on him. The arrows only managed to leave small dots on his skin. Those weren''t even worthy of being injuries for his standards, but he could understand how dangerous it would have been to face those attacks without the dark world. Both God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana could injure him if he ignored their attacks. The Matriarchs were worthy of his respect even if they relied on their numerical advantage to deal with his techniques. Noah quickly made his way through the spells and arrived in front of the Matriarchs. His sword cut through the fabric of the sky as it slashed toward them. Both Matriarchs activated a talisman to deal with that attack. Black winds raged out of God''s Left Hand''s palm, and a giant bird-like creature made of lightning bolts came out of Great Elder Diana''s figure. Part of those spells fell into the crack created by Noah''s slash, but the rest of them swept Noah and pushed him away. However, he managed to wave his hand and Demonic Sword again before returning inside the area with crumbling sparks and winds. Noah''s hand released five casual slashes that landed on God''s Left Hand. She didn''t have any protection in that situation, so the attack chopped her remaining arm and created five long marks on her torso. Those injuries were even quite deep. God''s Left Hand''s life might have been at risk if it wasn''t for the array of spells flinging Noah away. The Demonic Sword released a thick black line that bent the air around it. Great Elder Diana was also defenseless, and the attack severed her lower body, transforming her into nothing more than a floating torso. Noah suffered injuries too. The winds ravaged his body and rotated as they tried to pierce his skin. The Matriarchs had given up on inflicting new injuries and focused on enlarging those suffered during the previous exchanges. Noah''s chest was their favorite target since it was full of small holes due to Great Elder Diana''s arrows. The black winds crashed on Noah, and the bird-like creature engulfed him before trapping him inside its body. Lightning bolts ran through its figure and landed on him while trying to stop his momentum and escape from that situation. The spells had slowly managed to create large wounds on his body, but dark matter promptly came out of them to protect him and prevent further damage. It had also started to heal those injuries. The winds and lightning bolts appeared indestructible even when he relied on his physical strength, but he soon placed the Demonic Sword on his forehead and focused on his individuality. His sharpness surged. Countless cuts appeared on the bird''s body and made it crumble into a rain of raging sparks. The same went for the gales that still tried to hit him. They became nothing more than shattered air after his slashes finished destroying them. Noah''s sharpness didn''t affect only the spells around him. His consciousness reached even the Matriarchs who saw a series of cuts appearing on their maimed bodies out of nowhere. God''s Left Hand coughed blood as her defensive spells tried to stop that technique. She couldn''t stop Noah''s cuts at all, and they continued to ravage her body no matter how injured she was. Great Elder Diana had already lost a lot, and those cuts didn''t help her. However, her individuality could deal with the attack more easily. She would directly burn the injuries'' edges as soon as they appeared. Chapter 1245: 1245. Red rune The victory was near for Noah. Both God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana had suffered grave injuries. Instead, he was still at his peak when it came to his battle prowess. The external layer of his body was also a mess, but he was an existence that surpassed the hybrids'' realm. That damage didn''t affect his movements nor abilities. It only hurt. Cuts continued to open on the Matriarchs'' bodies. Blood spilled everywhere in the area, and Noah soon aimed at his next target after he managed to stop. Great Elder Diana''s dantian was basically in the open since the Demonic Sword had severed her lower body in the last clash. Noah could charge at her and decide to suffer a few more injuries to retrieve that organ. The battle would be over once the Council''s Leader lost her dantian. God''s Left Hand alone couldn''t even come close to Noah''s level of power. She had managed to survive for so long only because of the numerical advantage. The pieces of the black tornado and sparks still converged toward Noah, but he reactivated the Demonic Form and covered his fiendish armor in a layer of dark matter to fend them off. His two armors had already been enough to fend the two spells off when they were complete. They didn''t even budge now that those abilities were in pieces. Noah bent his legs as he prepared himself to sprint, but the Matriarchs acted before him. Their consciousness expanded, and the environment churned as they called upon their individualities to gather the remains of their spells. Trails of energy gathered in the sky. "Breath" of the lightning and wind element converged toward the Matriarchs in the form of sparks and dense winds. It was as if they were preparing a final attack, but Noah still had Night waiting nearby. There wouldn''t be any last spell if the Matriarchs died before casting it. While the cuts still filled the Matriarchs'' bodies, Noah launched a series of slashes in their direction. He didn''t use only the Demonic Sword to generate those attacks. Even his free hand and mind helped to create a threatening array of powerful blows. Night attacked too. It could charge at the Leaders through the dark world and increase Noah''s offensive power by cutting away one escape route. The powerhouses didn''t lose their inscribed scrolls. God''s Left Hand had lost both her arms, but she had seized her space-ring with her mental waves before it fell toward the surface. The scrolls appeared in front of them and lit up completely. The black tornado reappeared, and orange sparks crackled on its surface. The slashes launched by Noah crashed on those spells, but they couldn''t do anything against them. They even pushed the dark world back since they didn''t carry the Leaders'' laws. Night had to retreat too. It could cut through those powerful spells, but it would remain in the open afterward. Completing an attack wouldn''t cost its life, but it was a risky move, especially now that the Matriarchs gathered all the "Breath" that carried their aura. Noah stepped back when he saw that spectacle. The black tornado expanded and blew more of his dark matter away, and the Matriarchs gained valuable time to create powerful spells. Running inside the spells again wasn''t doable anymore due to the dangerousness of the abilities prepared there. Noah didn''t want to remain stuck in a tornado with an unavoidable attack. His sharpness was still affecting the Matriarchs, so Noah knew that it was only a matter of time before the duo gave up on fighting or died. There was no actual counter to his endless cuts. A powerhouse would need to suppress his individuality to put an end to that technique. Noah recalled the dark world as he continued to retreat. He eventually stopped escaping, and he pointed two fingers toward the faint trace of the two powerhouses. His sharpness surged again as his consciousness expanded. Noah focused on establishing a connection with the other side of the tornado to launch the improved Dark Ray spell that he never had the chance to use due to his frenetic battle style. However, a sudden event claimed his attention and made him put aside the idea of launching that attack now. A divine aura spread in the world, but that didn''t come from the beings in the Immortal Lands. A human figure was flying in the sky, and every powerhouse in the world knew who he was. Shandal had made his appearance in the world after years of silence. His return gave birth to a wave of cheers from the weaker cultivators and other higher-ups. Even the Matriarchs stopped their offensive to observe him. Of course, neither of them lowered their guard in that situation. Noah could very well decide to attack even if Shandal was respecting his side of the deal. After all, they didn''t expect the god to interfere with matters that concerned heroic cultivators. Shandal flew slowly toward the crack. He remained at the same height as the opening to prevent the divine beings in the Immortal Lands from noticing him. Once he reached the crack, Shandal took out one of the divine items from his inventory and pointed it at the layers of silver ice that prevented that hole from closing. Time appeared to slow down for the rest of the world. Shandal moved normally, but Noah and the others felt that they couldn''t control their bodies properly after the god unleashed his aura. The pressure that spread in the world was immense. That weight didn''t faze Noah, but many weaker cultivators couldn''t withstand being under the aura of a divine being. They had to retreat to the separate dimension or stop looking at inscribed items that transmitted images of that event. The item that Shandal had taken out was a red rune that shone like as if it was an inscribed crystal. Its flickering light affected the silver ice every time it illuminated it. The ice slowly melted under the effects of Shandal''s rune, and the sky began to reform as soon as part of the crack''s edges became free again. Shandal had studied the situation thoroughly. The Eternal Snakes and the divine beings were too far away to notice something. They would only see the crack closing when it was too late to do anything about it. That was Shandal''s goal. He had to avoid angering the divine beings until the crack closed. His calculations told him that it was possible to succeed without any negative consequences, but those matters were complex when it came to creatures in the divine ranks. The ice continued to melt under the influence of the red rune. Shandal''s individuality accelerated that process for him while slowing down the world. The crack eventually reached a critical state since most of the ice around its edges had disappeared. Shandal needed only a few more minutes to complete the procedure. The divine beings noticed what was happening with the crack at that point. Closing the passage would force them to give up on the egg forever, and it would also make them lose all the weaker specimens deployed in that mission. Shandal continued to remove the last bits of ice to let the sky heal. The process was almost over, but the divine beings wouldn''t suffer that loss without fighting. Chapter 1246: 1246. Third wave Angry roars echoed from the closing crack. They spread through the entire lower plane and claimed the attention of all the rank 6 Eternal Snakes searching for the egg. Noah couldn''t believe his ears. He could understand how many divine beings conveyed their anger from the Immortal Lands, and that number left him speechless. ''Nine,'' Noah concluded in his mind as the loud cries continued to echo through the sky. A single pack of magical beasts in the Immortal Lands had nine divine beings, and Noah wasn''t even sure that they were all the divine assets in that group of creatures. The amount of power contained in the Immortal Lands surpassed his expectations. He had always known that there were many divine entities there, but even his generous evaluation had been wrong. Noah would be alone once he ascended, and he didn''t plan on taking Shandal''s offer. He didn''t want a guide, and he wasn''t interested in joining any organization before learning more about the environment in the Immortal Lands. Yet, he didn''t know if his power alone would be enough to make him survive up there. Noah trusted his instincts and battle prowess, but the task appeared far harsher than he had predicted. ''I need to become far stronger,'' Noah thought as those angry roars filled his ears. ''Surviving isn''t enough. Being strong among heroic cultivators isn''t enough. I need to be a monster even among gods.'' His ambition seeped out of his figure and filled his consciousness as he stared at the crack. He didn''t want to behave like a scared beast after the ascension, but he needed far more power than he had predicted for that. The black hole in his chest began to rotate faster as his ambition pushed his fourth center of power to its limits. The Divine Deduction technique even activated on its own. Countless ideas on how to become stronger surged in his mind. Most of them were unrealistic and impossible to actuate in his current situation, but there was something that he could complete before his ascension. The lower plane had its limits, but Noah planned to stretch them as far as he could before ascending. It might be impossible for him to be a monster when he reached the Immortal Lands, but he wanted to be as complete as possible by that time. The rank 6 Eternal Snakes scattered through the world raised their heads and began to roar toward their leaders. The latter replied with cries that carried a simple order, and all the creatures in the lower plane set off for the crack when they heard them. Forty-nine rank 6 magical beasts began to slither toward Shandal on platforms made of ice. The leaders had asked them to keep the connection between the planes open, and they didn''t hesitate to charge toward the god of the Empire. Silver liquid came out of their mouths and created long trails made of ice as they converged toward the crack. It was as if a series of slim icy-pillars had started to grow from the surface. The leaders didn''t stay still after giving that order. A massive green claw passed through the crack again, but only its tip managed to reach the lower world. The sky had already healed a big part of that fissure. The world didn''t even tremble when that piece of divine body crossed its edges. It seemed able to contain that amount of divine power. The divine creature tried to dig the claw deeper into the crack, but orange sparks soon ran through it and began to destabilize its structure. Cries of pain also resounded from the passage, and the divine power spread through the world lost part of its intensity during the process. The Heaven Tribulation was attacking the pack of Eternal Snakes again. Its power appeared even superior to the previous ones since it managed to shatter bigger chunks of the creature''s claw. It seemed that Heaven and Earth had grown tired of that invasion on the lower plane. They wanted to punish the Eternal Snakes once and for all. The claw started to retreat even before the rank 6 creatures reached Shandal. Yet, silver light began to shine on the crack''s edges as the Snakes'' innate ability covered those spots. Shandal''s red rune melted the ice that formed inside that silver halo in no time, but the divine beasts never stopped spewing silver liquid on the crack''s edges. The sky continued to fix the crack, but the ice slowed down that process and forced Shandal to remain. The weaker Snakes reached him at that point, and they immediately spewed bullets made of silver liquid toward their target. Noah could see how the rank 6 Eternal Snakes didn''t show any fear. Magical beasts would usually be frightened against opponents far stronger than them even if they had precise orders. However, those creatures appeared quite confident during their assault. ''Are they used to fight against divine beings?'' Noah wondered when he saw that odd behavior. Magical beasts could ignore some of their instincts when powerful leaders ruled over them, but they couldn''t suppress what they felt during those moments. The lack of fear in the Snake''s eyes told Noah even more about the Immortal Lands. That was his first time seeing magical beasts so confident about a battle they couldn''t hope to win. Shandal didn''t even bother to glance at the incoming attacks. His free hand rose in the sky, and an azure light began to shine on his palm. One word also came out of his mouth as that halo covered the entire area. "Stop," Shandal said, and everything illuminated by his light suddenly stopped moving. The silver bullets flying toward him stopped mid-air. The air stopped moving, and the gales didn''t blow through the sky anymore. Even the Snakes remained immobilized after Shandal''s word, and traces of panic appeared on their expressions. Shandal kept the azure halo active while he continued to remove the ice. The rune melted the silver reinforcements only to see the crack''s edges freezing again. However, the crack continued to close even if the leaders were doing their best to hinder Shandal. The healing process also became quicker. It seemed that the world didn''t want that passage to exist anymore. The Eternal Snakes in the Immortal Lands didn''t know what to do. Shandal didn''t give them much time, and they couldn''t focus on the crack with the Heaven Tribulation punishing them. They didn''t have paths that led to victory anymore. Still, that pushed them to do their best to make that lower world regret its decision. Another series of cries resounded in the world, but nothing moved when the roars spread through the lower plane. Those orders weren''t for the weaker Snakes frozen in time. They were for the beings in the Immortal Lands. Before the crack could close, countless boulders fell through the opening and landed on the surface. Shandal''s consciousness expanded to suppress the shockwaves that they created, but he didn''t do anything to stop the process that followed that event. Different cries added themselves to the noise filling the sky. The third wave of Eternal Snakes woke up, and one of them carried a quasi-divine aura. Chapter 1247: 1247. Packed The third batch of powerful Eternal Snakes had descended in the lower plane, but Shandal stopped caring about them as soon as the shockwaves vanished. He didn''t even pay attention to the quasi-rank 7 creature that had joined those reinforcements. Shandal kept his focus on the crack and ignored everything else. He didn''t move even after the third wave of invaders rose in the sky to join their companions'' offensive. The azure light radiated by Shandal''s palm froze them in time as soon as the halo landed on them. Only the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake struggled a bit before joining the other motionless creatures. Shandal was in a different league. His power alone was enough to stop the whole invasion, but he didn''t have any interest in that. He would close the crack because that mess was his fault, and he was the only existence in the world capable of succeeding in that task. Moreover, there were many valuable existences in the lower plane that deserved a chance to reach the Immortal Lands. The crack continued to close while the area around it remained frozen in time. Only the leaders'' roars continued to echo, but they soon stopped shouting when they realized that their underlings wouldn''t manage to stop Shandal. A series of low growls followed that realization. Noah''s eyes widened when he understood the contents of that discussion, and he began to think of ways to help Shandal due to that sudden turn of events. Still, he soon accepted that he couldn''t be of any use in that battle. The army of beasts was enough to kill him even if he relied on all his methods. Shandal was alone in that task. The leaders suddenly went silent. No sound echoed throughout the world. Only the faint noise made by the melting silver ice spread in the area. A tremor ran through Shandal''s eyes when his instincts warned him about the imminent danger. His mind wasn''t the only one to sense that threat. Even the powerhouses in different parts of the world felt the same sensations. Noah wasn''t an exception. He felt that danger with more intensity than everyone else, and he didn''t hesitate to take a few steps toward the surface since he was aware of the Snakes'' plan. The silence continued until a loud thud echoed through the world. The sky trembled after that sound and cracks opened on its fabric. The new cracks led to the void. The leaders were doing something on the other side of the passage, and their actions managed to create repercussions on the lower plane. A second thud echoed. More tremors filled the sky, and a new series of cracks opened on its structure. The other powerhouses understood what the leaders were trying to do at that point. Their underlings couldn''t defeat Shandal, and they couldn''t enter the lower world without destroying it, so they had only one option left. The leaders abandoned the idea of retrieving the egg since they couldn''t stop the closing of the crack, but they didn''t give up on their anger. The best way to vent it was to destroy the world where the thief had hidden. Those were the contents of the discussion among the divine Snakes. They had briefly reviewed their options to decide that it was better to destroy that lower plane once and for all. As for the Heaven Tribulation, they would deal with it afterward. A third thud echoed, and cracks leading to the void opened even near the passage for the Immortal Lands. The black and white doors intertwined, but the latter was denser, so it overcame the former, leaving only a few open areas that led to the darkness. Silence fell in the world again, and no more thuds followed at that time. It almost seemed that the divine Eternal Snakes had given up on their plan, but a claw pierced the opening again and began to apply pressure to reach the lower world. The claw didn''t manage to go too deep due to Shandal''s efforts with the crack, but that small part of a divine body was enough to destabilize the world''s structure now that it had suffered a lot of damage. The world began to tremble as the creature tried to enlarge the crack to push its claw deeper into the lower plane. Heaven and Earth attempted to end its efforts through the Tribulation, but the divine being didn''t care about the destruction of its talon. Cracks opened on the green claw, and chunks fell toward the lower world. However, the orange sparks always pulverized them and ensured that the Mortal Lands didn''t obtain such valuable materials. The Snake pushed its claw deeper into the lower world, and the structure of the sky soon reached its limits. All the fissures leading to the void expanded and created connections with each other. A net formed in the sky, and only a few parts remained intact. The cracks covered most of it. Heaven and Earth continued to unleash their anger toward the divine creature, but the Snake didn''t care. It continued to push its claw downward even if it had reached a critical state after many lightning bolts. The net became thicker as the cracks enlarged. Both the landmasses and the seabed began to tremble as the stability of the sky was about to crumble and engulf everything in the void. That was an apocalyptic view. The world was ending, and the strongest cultivators in the world could only watch as the god of the Empire fixed the situation. The Heaven Tribulation eventually triumphed over the claw. The cracks on its surface became too deep, making it crumble into a series of green chunks that the orange sparks pulverized. The passage to the Immortal Lands began to close at full speed again. The many cracks that filled the sky didn''t seem to affect that procedure, and no silver liquid appeared to delay it any further. That opening closed in the following seconds. The passage for the Immortal Lands vanished without leaving any trace, and the leaders on the other side didn''t even have the time to release the last roar. The threat of the Immortal Land had finally vanished, but an issue soon became evident. The cracks connected to the void didn''t close, and it didn''t take an expert to notice abnormalities in the behavior of the sky. The sky continued to remain unstable. The fissures didn''t show signs of closing even if there was plenty of "Breath" in the environment. That phenomenon was bizarre and went against the common knowledge of the world. The sky had never behaved like that. The delay in its healing didn''t even come from its lack of energy. Noah and the others didn''t know what to think about in that situation, but Shandal had the answers that they needed. Shandal snapped his fingers, and the ice under the frozen Eternal Snakes around him shattered. He also released the creatures from their restrictions, and they fell toward the surface as they tried to regain control of their bodies. The Snakes scattered through the world, and roars soon came out of their mouths as they tried to contact their leaders. However, no answer came from them. Shandal descended toward Noah at that point, and his confused gaze made the god explain the current situation. "The sky is injured, and the world is unstable," Shandal said as he inspected the world. "This world is too packed with powerful existences to begin the healing." Chapter 1248: 1248. Decision "What do you mean with too crowded?" Noah shouted to question the god of the Empire. He could feel his instincts screaming when he inspected the sky. The dangerous sensation that such scenery caused inside him surpassed all the threats that he had faced throughout his life. His instincts told him to escape, to run away as fast as he could, and never look back. It was as if they had decided that the world was beyond saving. "The number of powerful beings surpasses what the world can take in its current state," Shandal explained, and his words spread through the sky to inform every powerhouse willing to listen. "The internal pressure caused by all of us is too much for this damaged plane." Shandal''s words left everyone speechless. According to him, the last attack of the divine Eternal Snakes had managed to bring the world on the verge of destruction. The net of fissures connected to the void didn''t remain still. It slowly enlarged as time passed, and that made Shandal''s words easier to believe. The higher-ups had yet to count how many specimens had reached the lower plane after the third wave of reinforcements. Still, it was clear that rank 6 creatures filled both the surface and the seabed now. Even a perfectly intact lower plane would find it hard to withstand the internal pressure that those creatures caused. It wasn''t a surprise that the world couldn''t endure them now that it was in that state. "Almighty!" God''s Left Hand shouted as she kowtowed in the middle of the sky. "How do we solve this?" Shandal glanced at her underling before shaking his head. That gesture already answered her question, but he decided to give more details to inform those unable to see him. "You don''t," Shandal replied. "The world can''t start healing until it stops using its energy to contain its population." Shandal began to leave at that point, but Noah couldn''t accept that outcome easily. He had great plans for the myriad of Eternal Snakes that had invaded the world, and he wasn''t willing to give up on them so soon. "Where are you going?" Noah asked. "You have the power to save the world. You are the solution to this problem." "Heroic cultivators have their hindrances to overcome," Shandal replied after heaving a sigh, "I have mine. I would help you if my actions were to lead to your doom, but you have another world available. You can survive this event without my help, so I won''t do anything." Shandal then teleported above the old continent and waved his hand. The land under him shook, and the terrain opened as a huge landmass rose in the sky. The landmass wasn''t wholly material, and it wasn''t only a wide chunk of terrain. It had a white sky and storms above its surface. Noah and other powerhouses of the Hive could immediately recognize that land. That was Shandal''s separate dimension. The god had taken it out in the open without even bothering to hide it from the other cultivators. The separate dimension shrunk after Shandal performed a sigil with his hand. That land became nothing more than a small white sphere that the god stored inside one of its devices. It was clear that Shandal had every intention to abandon that world. The powerhouses didn''t need any other proof to understand how far gone their world was. Noah''s inscribed notebook rang to no end, but he ignored those messages. A strange idea had formed in his mind, but he knew too little about planes to decide if it was feasible. "I have one last question," Noah shouted, knowing that Shandal would hear him even if his voice didn''t reach his position. "I wish to go over it privately." God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana heard him, but they didn''t understand why he thought that Shandal would grant him that meeting. However, an azure flash soon shone near Noah, and that halo engulfed his figure. The azure light threatened to blind Noah, but he didn''t show any fear and let the halo create an isolated area. Shandal soon appeared in front of him, and Noah could only sigh as he prepared his question. A lot would change depending on how Shandal answered. Noah was ready to put his life at stake. "Thinking of something foolish?" Shandal asked as a faint smile appeared on his face. Noah didn''t bother to nod as he asked his question. "How many existences need to leave for the world to stabilize?" Shandal''s smile widened. The god had to admit that Noah was even more reckless than he thought. "Hundreds for it to be able to heal again," Shandal replied. "I''m not talking about rank 4 creatures." Noah fell silent as calculations filled his mind. He had understood what Shandal meant. The migration alone wouldn''t be enough to save the world. "You are about to leave," Noah said at some point. "Three organizations will do the same. They have hundreds of heroic cultivators and a dozen powerhouses. This should be enough to slow the destruction of the world, am I right?" "Yes," Shandal replied. "I''d say the world will gain half a millennium worthy of time with that migration. My departure alone will delay its destruction for three centuries at least." ''Five hundred years,'' Noah thought as the calculations continued in his mind. That would generally be a short period for a rank 6 existence, but Noah didn''t intend to spend that time cultivating. With his Dark Womb spell, he could kill one Eternal Snake and recover in less than a year. Noah knew that it would be harder to find isolated Eternal Snakes now, but time was on his side. Even if his instincts begged him to leave, his ambition kept making him consider all the benefits he could obtain in that ruined world. "The dimensional portal can''t withstand your pressure," Noah commented after he reached a conclusion about that issue. Shandal snorted before answering. "I''m a god. I will travel through the void to reach the other world. I will use the dimensional portal only to keep track of the path." Noah nodded and performed a sincere bow. Shandal had never tried to suppress him, even if he had the power to do so. The god had even helped him without asking anything in return, and he was now answering every question. Shandal had even given Noah the best gift for an existence like him. The god didn''t do that on purpose, but Noah felt that a polite gesture was the proper way to show his gratitude. "This is a goodbye then," Shandal said as his smile widened. "Don''t die. I''ve already mentioned you to them. It would be a pity if your peculiar existence didn''t manage to reach the Immortal Lands." Noah shrugged his shoulders and floated outside of the azure aura while waving his hand. His mind felt heavy whenever he thought about his decision. The azure area vanished as Noah walked away from it. Shandal''s presence had also disappeared after that, but a similar light shone inside a crack above the Utra nation. Shandal had left the world, but he had warned his underlings before beginning his journey through the void. God''s Left Hand had already left the area and was preparing her organization for the migration. Noah sighed when he saw that Great Elder Diana left the area too. He picked his inscribed notebook and informed the Demons about the situation. He also gave a few orders. The Hive had to migrate to the other world and never come back. There was a chance that the dimensional portal would crumble once the lower plane worsened, so they had to hurry. Then, he contacted someone that deserved a personal message. "June," Noah said to inform his lover about his decision, "We need to talk." Chapter 1249: 1249. Memories "We have always known that our paths will eventually diverge," June said before heaving a sigh. "The only place where we can be truly together is the top." Noah and June were in an isolated room inside the separate dimension. He had flown there and explained his plan to his lover, but her answer made him feel bitter. Cultivators had long lives, and that gave them many chances to create deep relationships. However, their journeys forced them to remain alone. Their individualities weren''t something that they could nurture with others. Some called it a curse, but only those willing to give up on everything could hope to reach the higher ranks. There were very few cases in which couples managed to spend their lives together without neglecting their training. Noah couldn''t help but think about Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon. They were among the few exceptions in the world, but they had to survive through steep hindrances to reach their current situation. They had yet to survive the Immortal Lands, but Noah believed that they wouldn''t separate even on that occasion. They had already proven that they could overcome the harshest hurdles. Noah and June had a different type of relationship. Their cultivation journey was too important to let feelings get in their paths. Their priority remained their journey even if they loved each other. The couple had managed to be together for a long time because their individualities shared a few fields, but they sought different things, which often made them separate. The current situation in the world wasn''t any different. Noah knew June better than anyone else, and he was aware that magical beasts would soon bore her. The army of Eternal Snakes could partially provide her with the endless battlefield that she had dreamed of, but she would eventually grow tired of having to face the same enemies. The reason why Noah had managed to kill a creature far stronger than him was what made the army of Snakes inconvenient for June. She didn''t want to be a hunter capable of exploiting her opponents'' weaknesses. She aimed to become the best warrior. "It sure is a pity," June said as she sat on the ground of the floor. "I didn''t think this moment would come so soon. I suppose we can''t even take a month off for our goodbyes." Noah''s inscribed notebook rang to no end even after he gave the order to migrate. He had yet to inform his underlings that he wouldn''t follow them in the other world, but the chaos had already spread among the three organizations. That gave him an idea of how little time he had with June. After all, the fissures in the sky had never stopped expanding. It was in his interest to relieve the world of some internal pressure as soon as possible. The more the organizations delayed their migration, the less time Noah would have to save the world and himself. "Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon should complete the preparations in a couple of days," Noah said as he sat behind June. "I would need to kick you all out if you take more than that." June laid her back on Noah''s chest and closed her eyes. Her lover began to caress her messy hair, and the two of them remained silent as they enjoyed the feeling of being together. "The Immortal Lands are big," June said as she straightened her position to sit on Noah''s lap. "We only have to remain alive to meet again," Noah replied as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer. Noah placed his chin on her shoulder, and the two of them remained silent as they stared at the wall of the room. Countless thoughts rose in their minds, but they ultimately led to the same conclusion. They had to make the best out of the time that they had left. Still, Noah and June weren''t a young couple driven by their need to feel closer. They were far beyond the phase when they had to spend intimate moments that lasted months. The sole being in each other''s arms was enough to make them at peace. They didn''t want anything else other than remaining in that position until they had to separate. "The world will become boring without you," June said at some point. Neither of them knew how long they had been in that position, but they never grew tired of being so close to each other. "The political environment will change again after your departure," Noah replied. "The Empire will try to expand again now that Shandal has returned. The Council will want an even closer relationship with the Hive to fend that threat off. Great Elder Diana might even try to fuse our organizations." "I guess I won''t lack wars," June said as a smile appeared on her face. The sole thought of those battles lifted her morale a bit. Noah could almost see all the events that would follow the migration. He had learnt to know the political environment quite well, even if that field had never interested him. It wasn''t hard for him to predict what would happen. "Hey," June said at some point. "We will be apart for a very long time." She then turned to face Noah while sitting on his lap. He could see the desire in her eyes trying to overcome the other emotions that their imminent separation caused inside her. "We should make a good memory," Noah replied as a warm smile appeared on his face. The couple didn''t need to speak anymore. Noah and June knew each other too well to understand how they wanted to use the little time that they had left. . . . Two days later, the entire Hive gathered in front of the dimensional portal to begin the migration. The Eternal Snakes had regressed to a state of wild beasts after losing the connection with their leaders, which made them ignore the Utra nation. The dimensional portal had turned those prosperous lands into dried terrains. The Eternal Snakes had even destroyed them during their mission. The Utra nation had become nothing more than a pile of debris. Many experts were even surprised that it was still in one piece after what it went through. Noah was high in the sky as he stared at the troops under him. The powerhouses floated slightly under him, and the rank 5 Elders managed the various factions inside the Hive. The human cultivators crossed the portal without any hesitation. Noah looked at them disappearing in the dark vortex, but he didn''t feel anything at that sight. ''I guess I''m an awful leader,'' Noah thought as he held back his words. He had yet to reveal to his troops that he wouldn''t follow them in the other world. Noah wanted to inform only the powerhouses to avoid the celebrations that his announcement would cause. The portal flickered whenever the net of cracks expanded. The destabilization of the world affected its correct functioning, but the situation wasn''t critical yet. It would take a while before that item stopped working. Thirty-seven had already made his calculations, and he had predicted that the portal would last another year. The rank 4 Elders began to cross the portal after all the human cultivators had completed the migration. The experts in the fifth rank followed them. Noah and the powerhouses soon remained alone in the sky. Chapter 1250: 1250. Departure The powerhouses turned toward Noah, and the memories that he shared with all of them resurfaced in his mind when he looked at them. Noah still recalled that Elder Julia and Elder Austin were the first rank 5 Elders to join the new continent''s colonization. Those secret missions had laid the foundation of the current power of the Hive. Elder Austin had died during Ravaging Demon''s sudden attack, but Elder Julia had continued to improve until she became one of the Hive pillars. She was Chasing Demon''s true heir. He had taught her how to control the Copying Technique, and she had been in charge of managing the Hive ever since his sacrifice. Skully was nothing more than a consciousness and a pile of bones when Noah first met her. The Kesier Apes had taken control of the hidden world, and she was in charge of the rebellious faction. Noah had prolonged her lifespan by fusing her with a Kesier Ape, and he had freed her underlings when he destroyed the hidden world. Upon returning to the Hive, Skully had decided to manage the hybrid armies. Those troops had flourished under her rule, and only a few of them lost control of their mental capabilities during those years. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon were lifelong friends. Noah had found them in Divine Architect''s separate dimension and saved them from certain death. That event started a long series of adventures that saw the trio spreading chaos throughout the world. The raids on the Utra nation and the many tunnels in the separate dimension also came from their collaboration. The Demons had even helped Noah getting his revenge against his family. They had been on the frontlines in every war or battle after they revealed themselves to the world. They also carried Divine Demon''s original mindset. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon were existences that truly embodied the will of the defeated Demon Sects. The memories with Daniel went way back in the past. Noah didn''t care about him when he was in the Royal Academy, but he didn''t forget the events in the Bare Dungeon. Daniel was nothing more than a promising noble back then, but his life turned upside down after meeting Noah. The events with the Cause and the migration of the Udye family ultimately led him to become another pillar of the Hive. In the end, Noah looked at June, and countless memories surged inside his mind. Noah had met June on the air-ship leading to the Royal Academy, and they had fought on that same vehicle. That signed the beginning of a relationship that didn''t fade through the years. The battles inside the Royal Inheritance had strengthened their friendship and led them to live together for a while. The gift of Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance had created a bond that they couldn''t ignore even when they belonged to different organizations. Then, the reunion during the winged beasts'' crisis signed the beginning of their relationship. Their feelings had survived the many separations and the constant hindrance placed by the world around them. Noah didn''t know what to say when the powerhouses looked at him. He couldn''t help but recall countless memories featuring them. Yet, he felt at peace when he thought about that separation. ''I have shared many lives with them,'' Noah thought as he recalled what kind of man he was before his transmigration. ''To think that my life would be so full.'' The man who saw no value in life had ended up experiencing far more than the average cultivator. Noah had survived where many would have fallen, and he didn''t neglect his desires along the way. "Why isn''t he just sending us off?" Flying Demon pretended to whisper as he turned toward her lover. "We won''t see him until we reach the Immortal Lands," Dreaming Demon replied in a normal tone. "It''s normal to go through your life''s experiences after such a big separation." "I actually have to ask him something before going away," Daniel said as he joined that conversation. "A Patriarch should have a say in these political matters." "As if Faith cares about the politics!" June replied while shooting an angry look toward Daniel. "The whole world knows about you two. We have been inside a separate dimension for five hundred years. You can''t hide anything in that environment." "It''s still a matter of political relevance," Daniel said. "The Patriarch must approve. I''m sure Chasing Demon has done the same with the two of you." "Silence!" Elder Julia shouted. "You can wait until I become the Matriarch and ask me if you are scared of his judgment." "I think I''m the only one who has no hope to see him again," Skully said as she joined that conversation. "I should have more time with him to express my gratitude properly." "I don''t think he cares about that," Flying Demon replied. "He surely doesn''t care about that," June added. "I bet that we are nothing more than pawns who apply pressure on the world at this point. You should never underestimate how addicted he is to his training." "You are right," Dreaming Demon said, "We should leave soon. We are consuming precious time." Noah didn''t completely understand what was happening at first. The powerhouses spoke as if they were aware that he would remain in the main world. However, he had revealed his intentions only to June. He didn''t believe that she had spread that news to the powerhouses, but he couldn''t find other possible explanations. His questioning gaze went on June, but she shook her head before opening her mouth to speak. "Don''t look at me. They figured it out on their own. I guess they know you quite well." Noah''s eyes widened, and he moved his questioning gaze to the other powerhouses. Yet, they all nodded while wearing smiles. "I even wondered whether I had to make a speech," Noah said before heaving a sigh. "Well, there is no point since all of you are aware of my intentions." Noah stopped speaking to look the powerhouses in their eyes again. Then, he resumed. "I won''t be leaving with you. The current state of the world is too beneficial to my cultivation method to give up on it so easily." "Don''t worry about us," Dreaming Demon said. "The Hive will remain one of the stronger organizations in the world, even without you. You have raised it well." "We will be fine," Flying Demon continued. "I was growing bored of being the strongest organization anyway. Some struggles can only benefit us." Skully flew toward Noah at that point, and she kowtowed in front of him before he could say anything. She remained in that position for a while before standing up and heading for the dimensional portal. Her figure disappeared as soon as she crossed that vortex. Noah couldn''t help but think that he would never see Skully again. He didn''t manage to make her a dantian in the end, but she would continue to fulfill the promises made with Danielle and the Ape God. The hybrids would grow strong and without mental instabilities due to the training method polished through the years. Thirty-seven could create replicas of Noah''s spherical runes, so the future of those creatures would be bright. The Kesier Apes would also be free to thrive among the other creatures in the Hive''s ranks. The Ape God would obtain what it had always wanted. Its species won''t see another slaughter as long as the Hive remained in power. Chapter 1251: 1251. Immortal Lands Daniel stepped forward after Skully left. He neared Noah and lowered his head to speak. However, Noah gave him an answer before he could say anything. "I don''t care whether your relationship with Faith has political value or not. Chasing Demon has supported June and me even if our feelings could start a war. I don''t see why I should be against you two." Daniel remained speechless for a second before nodding. He then raised his head to focus on Noah''s reptilian pupils, and memories also began to rise inside his mind. Noah had been an unreachable rival for most of his life, but Daniel had started to bloom as a cultivator only after he had given up on that rivalry. Still, Noah had been crucial in Daniel''s growth. He had shown him how limited his mindset was, and his many achievements had worked as an inspiration. Daniel couldn''t express how grateful he was for all the chances that the Hive had given him. He was nothing more than a noble without a nation after the Elbas family forced everyone to migrate, but he had found a new home that he wished to protect with his life. The Hive had given him far more than a home. Daniel could grow both as a person and a cultivator among the Elders. Nothing similar would have happened without Noah. Their adventure in the Bare Dungeon when they were only human cultivators had been the start of his real journey. "Let''s meet again in the Immortal Lands," Daniel eventually said as he suppressed his memories. "I''m sure Faith won''t get over the fact that you didn''t say goodbye to her otherwise." Noah nodded, and Daniel turned to leave. He flew directly inside the dimensional portal and disappeared from the world. Elder Julia flew toward Noah at that point, and she bowed before he could say anything. However, she began to peek at him when she saw that he remained silent. "I don''t think there is an Elder who loves the Hive more than you," Noah eventually said. "Only you can be my successor. I''m sure you will be a great Matriarch." Elder Julia smiled, and she straightened herself before bowing again. She felt delighted that Noah had acknowledged her value, but there was something else that she wanted to settle before leaving. "I need a second in command in case something happens to me," Elder Julia said after she straightened herself again. "That is up to you," Noah replied. "You are the leader of the Hive now." That line wasn''t enough to satisfy Elder Julia, who continued to give voice to her request. "That won''t do it. I want you to take part in this decision. This is an order." Noah''s eyebrows arched at those words, but a smile appeared on his face when he saw Elder Julia''s serious expression. A few names appeared in his mind, but he soon made a decision. "Daniel Udye," Noah said. "He is the best candidate for that role." Elder Julia smiled too at that point, and she bowed one last time before turning to fly toward the dimensional portal. Her figure disappeared in a blink. "Imagine how awkward these goodbyes would have been if the Elbas family didn''t improve the portal," Flying Demon commented as he looked toward the vortex. "We would have to wait for the powerhouse to reach the other world before sending the rest. It''s quite convenient now." "I think I will miss these jokes," Noah said as he shook his head. "Be sure not to remain trapped in a separate dimension this time around. I won''t be there to save you." "Don''t worry!" Flying Demon replied as he flew toward Noah. "I will wait until I reach the Immortal Lands to fall into some trap. You should be able to save me at that point. Maybe you can even use that spectacular technique." Flying Demon pretended to wield something extremely heavy and swing it around. It was clear that he wanted to recall the battles when Noah had used magical beasts'' corpses as weapons. "If only we had more time," Noah said as he sighed when the Demon reached him. "What do you mean?" Flying Demon asked. "We still have the Immortal Lands. I''m sure we will find the time to drink some good wine between millennium and the other. This isn''t even worthy of being a separation." "He is right," Dreaming Demon said as she reached Noah and her lover. "Our destination is the same. We will simply meet up there. Making grand promises among us is useless." "Continue being the backbone of the Hive, Tisha," Noah said as he smiled toward Dreaming Demon. "It will get quite messy pretty soon." "Let them come," Dreaming Demon said before releasing a loud snort. "I can''t wait to see which organization will be foolish enough to attack us." "I leave the Hive in your hands then," Noah concluded. "See you in the Immortal Lands." The Demons wore broad smiles while they nodded at those words, but they soon turned to fly to the dimensional portal. Their figures disappeared as soon as they crossed the vortex. Now only June and Noah remained in the sky. June flew toward Noah, and the latter opened his mouth to speak, but she promptly placed a finger on his lips. She even shook her head to convey a message that only her lover could understand. They had already said their goodbyes privately. They didn''t need words anymore at that point. They only had to separate and found each other again in the Immortal Lands now. Noah revealed a warm smile as he took June''s hand to free his mouth. The two of them then exchanged a deep kiss, but June soon turned to leave too. When her figure disappeared inside the dimensional portal, Noah flew toward that dark vortex and stared at the passage. There was a lofty life in front of him. Noah was the strongest existence among the three organizations, and his last battle against God''s Left Hand and Great Elder Diana had revealed that he belonged to a superior league. He could even aim to conquer the world if he abandoned the old one. Virtually no one could oppose him there. He could even unite the three organizations into a massive force with the power that he wielded. However, Noah had never desired a throne nor underlings to command. Being a leader was a burden that he didn''t want to endure. Noah liked freedom. He desired to have no limitations during his pursuit of power. His goals had always been the stars high in the sky, and it had never changed until that moment. ''Heaven in front of me,'' Noah thought as he turned to stare at the main world, ''Hell behind my back.'' The cries of the Eternal Snakes filled the sky. Noah could sense some powerful specimens in the distance, near the mountain chain that had previously acted as a danger zone. His smile slowly vanished as an expressionless face replaced it. A dense coldness came out of his reptilian eyes when he thought about the many specimens he had to kill to save the world. The dimensional portal was still active, but it would lose its power in one year. Noah could always change idea, but he moved before even considering migrating. Noah flew back to his cave on the seabed. Countless hunts waited for him, but he had to prepare one last asset before he could feel confident in approaching the many packs that had formed in the world. It was time to improve Snore. Chapter 1252: 1252. Abilities The Hive, the Council, and the Shandal Empire left the world on the same day. Great Elder Diana and God''s Left Hand led their underlings away before the Hive as a sign of respect toward the strongest organization in the world. No one knew what the Elbas family was up to, but the Royals didn''t visit the dimensional portal before the other organization left, and Noah went in seclusion right afterward. Noah needed to keep his mind focused on his project, so he couldn''t pay attention to the Elbas family. He would learn whether the Royals had left the plane only after he came out of his cave. The three organizations'' departure relieved the world of some internal pressure, but that didn''t fix its condition. There were still too many rank 6 existences in the lower plane, so the net of cracks continued to enlarge. The world had a time limit, and Noah knew that far too well. It was as if he had a death sentence hanging above his head, which fueled his unwavering concentration during his project. Noah knew that the dimensional portal would remain stable for only one year, but he had long chosen to stay in the main world. He even lost track of the passage of time once he started modifying Snore, and his only hope to leave that world vanished without him even noticing it. The projects of cultivators near the peak of the heroic ranks would often take a while, and Noah used his first year of seclusion just to set the foundation of Snore''s new power. Snore was a being made of dark matter through a variant of the Body-inscription spell. It was different from Night. It required a connection with Noah since it was a proper Blood Companion. That made it limited in certain aspects of its power, but it gave Noah more freedom regarding what he could modify. Night didn''t give up on its species. It could express so much power because Noah had built a body capable of an improved version of its innate abilities. Instead, Snore was a consciousness placed inside a powerful weapon. Noah had created life by fusing the consciousness of an Albino Snake and a body capable of wonders. In theory, its potential grew alongside Noah''s expertise. Since his abilities had always been stronger than his copied elements, Noah had equipped Snore with those attacks to create a puppet capable of facing any enemy. However, Noah had gone beyond the simple elements after creating the dark world. Those attacks ended up becoming lacking as he continued to surpass his previous limits, especially when he used his ambition. Night could keep up with him because its innate ability was incredible, and it carried the knowledge of a divine magical beast. Its new body had also removed the restrictions on its species, which gave it the chance to improve even more. Instead, Snore could only improve the abilities that Noah had built for it. Its growth also depended on the dark world, but its superior affinity with that technique didn''t make up for the difference in power with Night''s innate gifts. Noah had started to plan Snore''s modifications as soon as he tested his battle prowess, but the various events that had fallen upon the world had kept him busy. Still, he could now focus on his project, and some of the ideas that he planned to implement in the Blood Companion''s body surprised even him. Snore had dark matter as its fabric and used elemental attacks as its abilities. The saber-shaped runes placed on its wings were weapons that copied Noah''s spell, but they were disposable items that didn''t even suit the Blood Companion''s overall structure. Noah knew that it was time to give a direction to Snore''s evolution. The world''s perilous condition gave the push that his mind needed to invent an innate ability worthy of belonging to his Blood Companion. In theory, Snore could launch the dark world since its body could create abilities made of six elements, but Noah found no point in turning that into an actual attack. His black hole already spread dark matter quickly, so he had no reason to build a copy of his technique. It was pointless to give Snore abilities that he could already use. They would always be stronger when Noah cast them, which would only make him ignore his Blood Companion when it came to battles. Snore needed something unique that only its status as Blood Companion allowed it to use. Moreover, Noah needed to be able to rely on that ability during battles. Years slowly passed as Noah took away, modified, and rebuilt Snore inch by inch. Its foundation was solid and only needed a few additions, but its arms, wings, and head required thorough analysis and changes. First of all, Noah cut away the arms. He had planned to make Snore able to launch slashes when he first created it, but that idea had turned out to be a failure. Noah''s slashes were attacks that only he could launch. No other existence in the world could replicate them, and even Sword Saint''s will had failed in copying their power. Snore had no chance to succeed in that feat. The wings were useful, but Noah could achieve the same result by creating a sea of saber-shaped runes. The feathers usually had a higher-starting power, but Noah didn''t want to have too many abilities reliant on the primary energy. That would only lower the amount of primary energy in the environment faster. Noah would feel forced to use fewer abilities to optimize the charging of his strongest spells. It was better not to have weak skills at all at that point. Noah cut away those vast, feathered wings and replaced them with three pairs of smaller wings. The new ones didn''t have any weapon attached to their structure. He had created them with the sole purpose of increasing Snore''s speed and agility. Snore''s skin became sturdier as Noah reinforced its structure with more layers of dark matter. He wasn''t applying any special method to improve the quality of its body. He was piling more materials on each other. At last, Noah began to work on Snore''s head. Noah didn''t want to deprive Snore of its ability to launch different elemental attacks. They could reveal themselves useful against tricky opponents, and it couldn''t hurt to have some variety in its fighting style. Yet, he wanted them to be only one of its basic abilities, something on which he could build something stronger. Noah had eliminated the dark world from the poll of possible techniques, but his mind remained fixed on the idea that he had to use all his copied elements for Snore''s final ability. ''Creation leads to destruction,'' Noah thought when enlightenment dawned upon him. The dark world was only one of the applications of the copied elements. Noah used them to cast that technique because his higher energy was an expression of his creation, but he could turn them into an ability that Snore could operate more efficiently. The dark world was a fusion of six elements copied through the dark matter. They worked together to create a place that responded only to Noah''s will and acted as his domain. However, Noah could make them have the opposite effect. He could force instabilities in their fusion to release destructive energy capable of eradicating the very matter of the world. Chapter 1253: 1253. Changes Noah left the cave in the seabed for the first time after fifteen years spent in seclusion. The cracks in the sky had widened in that period, but their size was in line with Shandal''s predictions. ''Less than five hundred years,'' Noah thought as he glanced at the sky before setting off for the western side of the new continent. Noah flew slowly and let his superior awareness learn as much as possible about the new environment of the world. Various packs of Eternal Snakes appeared in his path, but he avoided all of them. It wasn''t time to fight them yet. Noah wanted to train for a while before starting his massive hunt. The environment had already started to change in those years. The magical beasts released auras capable of changing the territories around them into lands that suited their species. It usually took centuries for a single pack of magical beasts to modify an environment. Still, the world had already begun to show changes due to the numerous Eternal Snakes in the sixth rank. The temperature had dropped, and ice covered vast areas. Even part of the sea couldn''t escape that change. Noah guessed that the world would soon contain only one species of magical beasts. It wouldn''t take much before Eternal Snakes in the first rank started to appear either. Nothing could stop that trend. Noah couldn''t perform a clearing operation on the entire world just yet, so both landmasses and sea would soon turn into the perfect breeding ground of the Eternal Snakes. A layer of thick ice covered a location in the sea west of the new continent, and Noah dived right through it to reach his destination. The seabed soon appeared in his eyes, and Noah expanded his consciousness to find traces of formations in the area. His mental waves eventually found dormant inscriptions, and he didn''t hesitate to swim toward them. Those lines lit up when Noah touched them, and light engulfed his figure. He soon found himself in the familiar environment separate dimension, which appeared far larger now that no one occupied it. Noah used a few teleportation matrices powered by formations that gathered "Breath" from the outside world. A city eventually appeared in his eyes, and he quickly moved toward its center. The city''s central building was the tallest structure in the area, but Noah only cared about it contained. A secret room on the last floor hid a teleportation matrix that led him to a separate location that confined a large piece of black fur. The Hive couldn''t carry the Seventh Kesier rune through the dimensional portal. That was a proper divine item coming from a divine magical beast. That tunnel through the void would have never endured the pressure that it released. Thirty-seven and his disciples had planned to make copies of the Seventh Kesier rune as soon as Noah brought it back from the hidden world. Yet, the project was quite ambitious, and it had taken them centuries only to come close to a decent imitation. Kesier runes wouldn''t carry all their miraculous power in their copies, so it was always more beneficial to train with the original. Still, even the imitations were quite valuable since they were more efficient than other training methods for the sea of consciousness. The Hive mainly wanted to use the copies as insurance in case of invasions, but it could also trade them for items with equal value. It wasn''t a surprise that Thirty-seven had something ready before the attack of the Eternal Snakes. ''I wonder if I should bring this in the Immortal Lands,'' Noah thought as he looked at the rune. ''I don''t have a proper use for it after I become a rank 7 mage.'' Noah was still wondering whether he would build his Inheritance. He rarely did things for others, especially those that he had never met. However, most cultivators abided by that tradition. Inheritances didn''t only express the dreams of their creators. They were a mark of the existence of the cultivators. Noah''s allies had already left the world, so he couldn''t gift his teachings to anyone close to him. Yet, Divine Demon had created his Inheritance without giving it to the Demon sects, so Noah could take him as an example. ''I guess I have to save the world first before thinking about leaving something behind,'' Noah thought as he suppressed those ideas. His mind focused entirely on the Seventh Kesier rune at that point, and a long training session began. Noah didn''t only expand his mind in that period. He also ate and cultivated as if the world wasn''t about to end. Years quickly passed as Noah focused on improving his centers of power. His battle against the Eternal Snake had proven that he could face peak rank 6 magical beasts, but he wouldn''t find a solitary creature in the current environment. He had to become stronger before he could approach the hunts. That would be his second last long seclusion before he started to focus only on the Snakes. He would enter the last one once he obtained enough materials to resume his experiments with the creature''s innate ability. Noah tried his best to keep track of the passage of time at that time. He couldn''t let five hundred years slip by while he focused on improving his centers of power. Still, a whole century went by before he snapped out of his constant training. His dantian had to show signs of an imminent breakthrough for him to understand that he had spent too long in seclusion. ''Time to hunt,'' Noah thought as he left the separate dimension. Noah flew through the world and inspected the various lairs that the Eternal Snakes had built. A large part of the landmasses had turned into blocks of ice in those years, but the number of rank 6 specimens appeared lower than before. That was within Noah''s predictions. Many rank 6 magical beasts couldn''t cohabitate for a long time without a leader who suppressed their innate aggression. The net of cracks had enlarged a lot in those years. He could still see the sky, but it was clear that the world was going toward its end. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake had created the largest pack and had settled at the center of the new continent, where the silver liquid of the divine beasts had fallen. The peripheral areas of that landmass and the old continent accommodated smaller packs, but the nine peak rank 6 Snakes led most of them. The only place that contained even smaller packs and weaker Eternal Snakes was the sea, but that was enough to give Noah an idea of how he had to approach the hunt. Noah flew toward the most distant area from the continents and dived into the sea. His consciousness expanded at that point, and he searched for any trace of life that was worthy of his time. It didn''t take him much to find a few Eternal Snakes that wandered outside of every pack. Even the magical beasts'' world had exiled specimens, and they were the first creatures that Noah had decided to hunt. ''I should kill them quickly,'' Noah thought when he looked at the three rank 6 Snakes in the distance, and dark matter came out of his chest. Chapter 1254: 1254. Escape The dark matter spread at the bottom of the sea. The Eternal Snakes in the distance could immediately sense the danger coming from that spot, but they charged toward it without any hesitation. Magical beasts with such a high rank wouldn''t escape in front of a threat. They knew that they stood near the peak of the world, so they treated anything dangerous as potential food. Snore quickly formed as more dark matter came out of Noah''s chest. He wouldn''t rely on the dark world in that battle. He had already confirmed that the Eternal Snakes wouldn''t give it time to express its power. The Blood Companion''s appearance had changed. Its overall size was still the same, but it didn''t have its arms anymore. Three pairs of scaled wings had also replaced its previous ones, and its face was far different than before. Snore''s head was still similar to a snake, but it had features that made it resemble a dragon now. Its nose wasn''t flat anymore, and its mouth had become sharper. Moreover, the six horns that came out from behind its eyes gave the creature a fiendish appearance. They made a sharp turn to point forward and cover its head. They resembled a piece of armor rather than crucial body parts required for Snore''s new ability. Noah''s ambition filled his aura and made his cultivation level grow. That empowerment partially affected Snore, who pointed its horns toward the three creatures and began to prepare its new ability. ''Attack the strongest one,'' Noah thought, and his orders reached the Blood Companion through the connection in his mind. The Eternal Snakes were still at some distance from Noah, so Snore had the time to prepare its ability. Its horns began to tremble. Sparks, fire, ice, rocks, wind, and dark matter started to come out of them. Each horn appeared capable of replicating only one element, but that was only the initial phase of the ability. Ice spread in the area as the Eternal Snakes spewed silver liquid during their charge. Water froze and shattered, but Noah limited himself to watch them as his ambition continued to push his cultivation level upward. The elements kept acc.u.mulating inside Snore''s horns before that energy flowed in its throat. The Blood Companion adjusted its aim and opened its mouth to release a dark beam that made the Eternal Snake''s halt in fear. The energy launched by the beam was so violent that pieces of Snore''s mouth crumbled during the attack Part of its throat fell apart. The Blood Companion injured itself to cast its innate ability. The Eternal Snakes tried to leap away from that attack, but the dark beam was too fast. The upper tier specimen couldn''t dodge it, and it could only spit large quantities of silver liquid in the hope that it could block part of the offensive''s destructive might. Then, something unusual happened, and the Eternal Snake remained dumbfounded at that sight. The dark beam pierced the layers of ice and came into contact with the silver liquid without freezing. It appeared immune to that ability. The beam landed on the Snake''s body and continued forward. It pierced the creature and spread in the sea behind it, disintegrating the very fabric of the water that happened to cross. Snore closed what remained of its mouth after its attack touched the upper tier specimen. The energy contained in the beam had destroyed its lower maw and most of its throat, but dark matter soon flowed out of Noah''s chest to fix that injury. The upper tier Snake didn''t feel pain initially, and that continued even after Snore closed its mouth. However, when it looked at the spot where the beam had landed, it noticed that a large circular hole had appeared on its body. Snore''s attack had pierced the Snake from side to side, and it had even ignored the defenses in its way. Noah had created a weapon capable of destroying everything down to the very fabric of the matter. That was the alternative application of the six elements in his possession. Fusing them into an orderly array gave birth to the dark world. Instead, forcing them to condense into a violent mass of energy and releasing them at the same time created a beam capable of destroying the matter itself. Noah nodded when he confirmed that his technique worked as he had planned. The dark beam left behind a tunnel devoid of any particle or laws. It was the ultimate weapon of destruction. The beam was a technique capable of annihilating matter. The silver liquid couldn''t freeze it because the wild energy would destroy it before its effects could spread. The energy created in that unstable manner also couldn''t survive for too long in the open. It would spread and destroy as long as it had the power to do it. Noah didn''t know what he had created during his experiments. He vaguely recalled hearing of energy with similar behavior in his previous life, but he knew that his product was completely different. The "Breath" affected the laws of the world too much to use his past knowledge to identify specific types of energy of matter. Noah only knew that he had invented a destructive version of the dark world, and its power was immense. The power carried by the beam was so violent that even the caster suffered some damage when it launched that attack. However, Blood Companions had terrific healing capabilities, so Snore was the perfect creature for that ability. The upper tier Eternal Snakes slammed its head on the ice around that had survived the beam to create shards capable of healing the huge hole that had appeared on its body. Still, no number of shards could ever fix that injury. The ice tried to stop the bleeding, but it couldn''t close that huge hole. The upper tier Eternal Snakes released a roar that echoed through the water, and its underlings soon gathered in front of it. The two middle tier creatures acted as a meat shield as the trio resumed their charge toward Noah. ''Again,'' Noah thought as his ambition pushed his power toward the limits of the liquid stage. Snore didn''t hesitate to execute his orders. A dark light began to shine on his horns again, and the elements reappeared on their surface. The energy they acc.u.mulated then flowed in Snore''s throat, and the Blood Companion opened its mouth to release it. The three Eternal Snakes were in a straight line as they swam toward Noah. They spat their silver liquid to create multiple layers of ice and acc.u.mulate enough shards to heal themselves, but the beam destroyed everything in its path. The attack landed on the first Snake''s head and pierced it from side to side before continuing toward the silver liquid behind it. That innate ability couldn''t do anything, so the wild energy reached the second creature''s head and made a hole in it. The beam continued even after that. It reached the layer of ice protecting the upper tier creature and destroyed it. Yet, the Snake had disappeared by the time the attack crossed that defense. Noah almost couldn''t believe his eyes when he saw the upper tier Eternal Snake swimming in the distance. The creature had decided to escape when it saw that its two underlings had died in one attack. Chapter 1255: 1255. Loot The upper tier Eternal Snake wasn''t the only one surprised by the might of the dark beam. Noah was also in awe of the attack''s power. He knew how strong Snore had become, but he could barely believe that it could make holes in magical beasts in the last tier of the sixth rank so easily. Snore had finally become able to wield the real power of the dark matter after the modifications. The base level of Noah''s fourth center of power didn''t limit its prowess anymore. The Blood Companion had obtained an ability on par with its Master''s slashes! ''I can go wild,'' Noah revealed a cold smile as he thought that. A human-shaped crack replaced his figure as he entered his dimension. Eternal Snakes were nimble once in combat, but their maximum speed couldn''t compare to Noah''s movement technique. The upper tier magical beast tried its best to run away, but a shadow soon appeared above its head and released a thick slash that flung the creature into the seabed. The Snake straightened its position and filled the area with the silver liquid, freezing the water and creating a defensive layer. Still, Snore had reformed by then, and it didn''t hesitate to launch another threatening beam. The attack pierced the ice and landed on the Eternal Snake''s body, creating a large hole right below the other. Silver shards soon converged in that spot to close the injury, but Noah wouldn''t give the creature time to heal. Noah reappeared next to the first hole. His cultivation level had broken through the solid stage with his ambition, and the dark world had flowed inside the Demonic Sword to push its power beyond its structural limits. The Eternal Snake opened its mouth to spit its silver liquid toward Noah, but the latter had already raised its weapon. The slash that followed that gesture opened a fissure that finished severing the creature''s body. Noah severed the Eternal Snake''s body, and its head fell on the seabed. A dense trail of silver liquid accompanied its fall, and ice-shards soon tried to patch its injuries. However, Noah had attacked the hole near the Snake''s head. The creature had lost most of its body in that exchange. The upper tier Eternal Snake was nothing more than a head connected to a few strands of maimed flesh. It couldn''t even move properly in that condition. Noah could land on it and press his blade on the injury created by his first slash. The pleading cries of the Snakes couldn''t shake Noah''s mind. He filled the Demonic Sword with dark matter again and began to pierce the creature''s skull. Using Snore''s beam would kill the creature more quickly, but Noah wanted to preserve the Eternal Snake''s glands. His Blood Companion had already ruined the two middle tier specimens, so he had to be careful when collecting his prey. The Eternal Snake managed to endure the initial lunges, but the light in its eyes eventually vanished and put an end to Noah''s first hunt. His kill count amounted to three rank 6 specimens already, but he could use only one of them for his main project. Noah knew that the world only had less than four hundred years left, but he wouldn''t postpone a project that could improve his species. Becoming stronger would make him hunt faster, so he didn''t mind investing time in the testing phase. Noah collected the corpses in his space-ring. He had taken a few more storage devices before the Hive''s departure, so he could store the creatures freely for the time being. He didn''t want to dispose them inside the separate dimension just yet. His ambition was still pushing his centers of power above their real level, so he could keep hunting. The area that he had chosen for his first hunt held only small packs of weaker Snakes. The strongest ones were in the new continent, so he could enjoy his battles without worrying too much about his strategy. Noah could go wild. The strongest specimens in the area were in the upper tier, but Snore could carve holes through their bodies with its new ability. Those threatening creatures couldn''t oppose him anymore now that all his assets had reached a satisfying level. The only drawback of Snore''s new ability was its high consumption of dark matter due to the constant regeneration and the violent energy condensed in the form of a beam. Yet, the black hole in Noah''s chest didn''t seem to have limits. Noah even wondered if he would witness his fourth center of power reaching its limits in those hunts, but the black hole continued to work normally even after he spent a whole day hunting Eternal Snakes. It was easier to prolong the effects of his ambition if he didn''t push his centers of power too much. Remaining at the bottom of the solid stage was enough to kill all the creatures in the area and maintain the empowerment for an entire day. Noah''s hunts had played exactly like the first one. The Eternal Snakes would initially try to face him due to their innate aggression, but Snore suppressed them every time. The Blood Companion also became used to its new ability as it continued to fight. Its aim improved, and it soon managed to hit the Snake''s neck with extreme precision. Noah didn''t have to worry about losing valuable materials anymore by the end of the day. It took him only one hunt to seize all the body parts that he needed for his project, and he had also obtained a large amount of nutrient flesh in the process. The cave dug in the seabed had become too small for his needs at that point, but Noah didn''t mind investing some time to enlarge it. He wanted to return to the separate dimension only when he needed to cultivate. ''I knew it would be easier now that Snore has become useful,'' Noah thought as he inspected his loot, ''But I didn''t expect to meet the requirements for the testing phase so soon.'' Noah sat in front of seven maimed reptilian heads. They all had a series of holes at their center due to the many lunges used to kill them. Most of them were at the peak of the lower tier, and only one of them was in the upper tier. The leader of the area was in the first group of creatures, so Noah could find only weaker specimens during the rest of the hunt. He had more corpses in his space-rings. The rest of the bodies of those seven creatures and four more Snakes had remained inside his storage devices because he had ruined their glands during the battle. Noah could only use them as resources for his body, but that result didn''t disappoint him. After all, he had already gathered more than enough resources for his project. ''I should start immediately,'' Noah thought as he began to dissect the heads to seize the organs that he needed, ''Completing this phase will bring me one step closer to improving my bloodline.'' Creating a complete prototype wasn''t the end of Noah''s project. He needed to fuse his product with his body, which meant that he required something on a similar level. Still, his body didn''t follow standard labels when it came to describing its power. Even a specimen in the upper tier couldn''t match the energy contained in its tissues. Noah was sure that he would need the glands of a peak rank 6 specimen to complete his project and obtain that incredible ability. ***** Author''s note: Same old story. I went to sleep. The other chapters will come in a few hours. Chapter 1256: 1256. Experiments Noah knew the flaws of the Elemental Forging method better than anyone else. He had long since surpassed the previous experts in that field. He was a pioneer when it came to that inscription method. One of the most significant flaws in the Elemental Forging method was that inscribing the same item multiple times would lead to a weaker structure. The final product wouldn''t carry the intended power either. Noah had fused his body with a Light-devouring Dragon when he was only a human cultivator. In theory, he had already used the first round of forging. That was the reason why he had held back from improving his bloodline. He had managed to link the fourth center of power to his heart, but that wasn''t a proper forging. His body had taken care of fusing the two organs for him. Yet, Noah''s body had gone through many changes since the fusion with the magical beast. It had evolved to express his individuality, and it had also entirely changed after attuning with the black star. Noah''s confidence came from that event. His body had evolved past the initial forging and had broken through the limits of the three major types of beings. Many experts still viewed him as a hybrid, but Noah knew that he had become something far superior. Since the evolution had modified every fiber of his body, Noah felt confident that it didn''t carry any trace of the previous forging. Moreover, the dark matter improved his tissues constantly, so he didn''t believe that they still counted as inscribed items. Noah couldn''t test that because any trace of his forging had vanished after the many evolutions. Thirty-seven''s hesitation came from that issue. The automaton wouldn''t advise undergoing a forging in those conditions. However, Noah had already made his mind, and he had also chosen the organs that he had to fuse. A failure in the procedure wouldn''t kill him if he limited the forging to a few parts of his body. The organs that he had decided to modify were his lungs. The Light-devouring Dragons'' innate ability was powerful when it came to the magical beasts'' world, but it fell short compared to Noah''s prowess. A strong ability wasn''t enough for him anymore. Noah needed the best of the best at his current level. He would ignore any skill weaker than his slashes otherwise. The Light-devouring Dragons'' flames had unlimited potential, but Noah''s growth had outclassed even that ability. His fast improvements didn''t give time to his innate ability to catch up. Noah''s flames were by no means weak. They were stronger than any innate ability cast by magical beasts in the middle tier. Yet, his battle prowess had already reached the peak of the upper tier, which made them useless when he went all-out. The ability that Heaven and Earth had deemed as unfair wasn''t even worthy of its casting time in Noah''s eyes. His power barely made any sense anymore, especially with his ambition removing the limits of his centers of power. Noah didn''t want to give up on his flames, and he wouldn''t just ignore them as he strived for the higher ranks. Improving an ability was easier than creating a new one in the end. He preferred to invest time in that project rather than spend years meditating to invent something. Of course, Noah invested time in that project because he believed that the finished product would bring his battle prowess to a superior level. He could already imagine his flames obtaining the same capabilities as the Eternal Snake''s silver liquid. There was another aspect of his body that made him confident in the success of the procedure. The black hole automatically helped in any struggle that Noah faced. He didn''t even need to control it to obtain its support. His fourth center of power would surely help during the fusion. Noah didn''t fear anything with the dark matter by his side. The main problem in that project was the modification of the Eternal Snake''s glands. Those creatures had a water aptitude, and the nature of their innate ability didn''t work well with flames, even if they were of the darkness element. That was a structural issue that Noah had to solve to approach the last stage of the project. He also had to modify the glands to match his lungs in terms of raw power and fabric. The experience gathered while creating living weapons helped Noah with those issues. Thirty-seven had also reviewed the project, so Noah already had a series of concrete ideas for the testing phase. The glands didn''t share the same sturdiness of the Eternal Snake''s skin. They were softer and had an innate immunity to the freezing properties of the silver liquid. Noah''s lungs were the same, even if their immunity worked on his flames. His first step consisted in making the two organs compatible while modifying only the glands. It would have been easier to modify both organs and make them reach a common ground. Still, Noah couldn''t change his body due to the flaws of his inscription method. Each Eternal Snake had two glands, and Noah approached the testing phase one organ at the time. He even experimented more wildly since he had gathered many corpses. He could ignore losing a few materials if that helped him create the strongest possible version of his final product. Noah had to come out of his cave from time to time to search for crucial materials. The Hive had emptied the inventories in the separate dimension, so he had to gather resources by himself. That ended up being relatively easy. The higher-ups of the three organizations had completed a thorough inspection of the world after they came out of the separate dimension, so Noah knew where to find the materials that he needed. The Eternal Snakes'' invasion couldn''t affect those spots too much because they contained rank 6 materials. Noah mostly needed sturdy metals that could change the glands'' nature, so there was a limit to the damage that those creatures could cause in those areas. The only obstacles in the gathering of materials were the creatures that inhabited those areas. Yet, that only increased the number of corpses in Noah''s possession. His kill count went from eleven to sixteen in the weeks that followed his first hunt. Noah''s initial tests turned out to be complete failures, but he expected much. Changing an organ''s nature wasn''t an easy feat, especially when he had to make it as powerful as his lungs. Noah could test more than ten different metals on each gland since he only aimed to change their nature in that phase. His approach was similar to when he had modified the Demonic Form spell. He would cut the organ into pieces and test different fusions to see what worked. Noah had to come out of his cave to gather materials multiple times during that phase. He even had to find another opening for the red sea to search for creatures and materials that could bring the nature of the glands closed to his needs. In the end, he completed that phase by involving the Will-consuming runes in the procedure. His greed, ambition, and dark matter managed to change the nature of the glands after sealing them together with a combination of different metals retrieved in the sea of magma. Noah felt excited at that initial success. That was the biggest hurdle to overcome before the actual fusion, and it had taken him only a couple of years to complete it. The following phases were easier. Noah only had to apply those modifications to a complete gland without ruining its intrinsic properties. Then, he needed to hunt a peak upper tier Eternal Snake without damaging its organs. Noah had already killed a creature on that level, but he had ruined its glands when he dissected it. Still, he knew that the battle wouldn''t be as harsh as the previous one. Chapter 1257: 1257. Clearing operation The second phase of the project wasn''t as troublesome as the first, but Noah had to approach it slowly because a failure would ruin a whole gland. Still, his many successful hunts gave him a large number of core materials. Noah could take more risks and fix every flaw instead of focusing on creating a product that his dark matter had to improve. The world barely noticed the death of those Eternal Snakes. Noah had hunted only scattered packs in peripheral areas, so the landmasses'' situation didn''t change in the slightest. The same went for the sea. Noah didn''t have the time to search for the remains of the previous fauna. The vast dark depths hid some creatures that had survived the invasion, but he had no interest in them. The net of cracks had continued to expand in that period. Noah''s hunts couldn''t help the world''s condition just yet, but he didn''t feel anxious. He didn''t know how many rank 6 creatures he had to kill before the world could start to heal, but he had no reason to hurry. Each hunt slowed down the cracks'' expansion, and the Eternal Snakes helped in the matter. The invasion had destroyed the previous fauna, which left the Eternal Snakes without any food. They could only resort to cannibalism to appease their hunger, and that helped the world. It would be a problem if more Snakes were to reach the upper tier or the quasi-rank 7 stage, but magical beasts needed a massive amount of energy for each breakthrough. They even had to survive long periods of hibernation. Five hundred years wouldn''t be enough to complete those breakthroughs. A few peak lower tier Snakes could reach the middle tier, but they weren''t an issue for the world. Still, the world''s structure would suffer if too many battles were to happen at the same time, especially if they involved powerful creatures. Noah knew that he couldn''t approach the strongest specimens until he relieved the world of some pressure. It was safer to clear the entire sea before moving his focus on the landmasses. He even planned to leave a few corpses in the sea of magma. The Eternal Snakes would find it hard to reach them there, so the bodies release their "Breath" in the environment rather than passing most of it to other creatures. Noah completed the second stage of the testing phase in five years. He had taken his time to remove any instability, and the final product ended up surpassing his initial prediction. Noah had planned to rely on his dark matter when there were only nine Eternal Snakes in the world. His project saw a relatively stable organ as core material. Instead, he could now create perfectly stable and improved glands since he had gained access to multiple Eternal Snakes. The project could enter its final phase now. Noah only had to clear all the areas that wouldn''t cause harsh battles before approaching the actual fusion. Noah''s kill count had reached twenty-two specimens after his various travels to gather materials. Still, only two of them were in the upper tier. The creatures in the lower tier were always more numerous. Of the twenty-two corpses, Noah decided to keep only twelve of them. The creatures in the middle tier and above were useful for his body, and the Demonic Sword didn''t mind eating some of the weaker ones. As for the others, Noah threw them in the red sea to disperse their energy in the world. It would take a while for the magma to disperse all the "Breath" they contained, but Noah couldn''t do any better. He had even tried to hide them from the fauna down there. He could only be more thorough once he fixed the main issue. A lower plane would typically have ten to fifteen existences in the sixth rank at best. That number changed according to the species and actual power of those beings, but that was enough to give Noah a vague idea of how many Snakes he had to kill. His world was also different due to the fall of the piece of Immortal Lands. That lower plane could contain far more powerful existences than average because of the energy that the new continent had brought to the environment. The planes could also stretch those limits by redirecting part of their energy to suppress the internal pressure, but Noah''s world was too damaged. He guessed that meeting the standards calculated in normal conditions wouldn''t be enough for his situation. Noah had completed the testing phase, and he had disposed of the corpses that he didn''t need. He needed a peak rank 6 specimen to complete his project, and that required some preparation. The nine peak rank 6 creatures all lived on the landmasses and had large packs under their control. Some even shared a few regions peacefully, making their overall power too much for Noah to handle. Some of those peak rank 6 Snakes also worked as underlings of the quasi-rank 7 specimen, making entire areas of the new continent unapproachable. Noah had to rely on his experience as a hunter if he wanted to safely face those magical beasts. Noah didn''t waste time. He had to clear the sea first, and he didn''t hesitate to begin his long match across the seabed. The third wave of invaders had brought the number of rank 6 specimens in the world above one hundred, but almost forty of them lived in the sea. Noah had already killed twenty-two of them, so he only had to complete that part of his worldwide clearing operation. The Eternal Snakes living in the sea couldn''t do anything against Noah. Their innate abilities couldn''t do anything against his destructive might. Snore''s dark beam was a deadly weapon that they couldn''t block even after piling countless layers of ice. The wounds that it inflicted also made it impossible for the shards to fix them properly. Night was a constant threat. It could appear out of nowhere and inflict precise wounds that could reach even their bones. Still, it rarely needed to make an appearance in that phase of the hunt. Noah was relentless. His desire to complete his project made him hungry for more battles. His Demonic Sword also never failed to pierce the Snake''s defenses, and his spells could help him ending the hunts more quickly. Finding and killing all the specimens in the sea took a while. That environment was too vast even for an existence like Noah. Still, his innate awareness always allowed him to find traces of his targets. Noah killed twenty rank 6 specimens in the years that followed the beginning of his clearing operation. That number increased whenever one of the Eternal Snakes living on the landmass decided to migrate. The world didn''t reward his efforts. The net of cracks continued to expand even after he had taken care of so many powerful creatures, but Noah didn''t mind that. The new valuable corpses allowed him to improve both his body and his Demonic Sword, while the weaker ones ended up in the red sea where the magma took care of giving "Breath" back to the world. Only the Eternal Snakes in the human ranks that had appeared after the environment''s modifications continued to occupy the sea. The other creatures in hiding were still too scared of the invaders to come out in the open. Noah didn''t relax after clearing the sea. Those battles were nothing more than hunts devoid of any danger, but he was about to approach a battlefield that could cause him some trouble. It was finally time to attack the landmasses and complete his project. ***** Author''s notes: I''m quite busy today, but I should manage to prepare the chapters for tomorrow. Still, I will just complete them tomorrow morning if I fail tonight. Don''t panic if you see fewer chapters. I will always fill my daily quota. Chapter 1258: 1258. Slow approach Noah''s only real target was the old continent. The new one was unapproachable due to the presence of the quasi-rank 7 specimen, and most packs there could work together without creating too many internal conflicts. One attack on those lands would cause a massive mobilization of reinforcements. Noah would find himself against hordes of rank 6 magical beasts in no time. Attacking the old continent was safer, and it required less planning. Noah didn''t even need a strategy there. He could take his time and slowly kill all the Eternal Snakes in those regions. Noah didn''t need to aim for the peak rank 6 specimens right away. He could slowly clear the area with hit-and-run tactics. It didn''t matter if he happened to lose a corpse or two in the process. Moreover, he didn''t even need to salvage the Snake''s glands unless he met a peak rank 6 specimen. He could pursue the quickest approach and ignore the damage that he inflicted on those creatures. Noah flew above the old continent a few times to perform a simple inspection of its fauna. Three peak rank 6 Eternal Snakes occupied those lands, and they had thirty weaker specimens under their rule. Those creatures had created three large packs that ruled over different sides of the continent. Ironically, they had divided the landmass according to the old areas of influence. The mystical fog and the mountain chain were natural borders, so Noah didn''t feel surprised when he saw that arrangement. He had also expected that the Eternal Snakes would consider the Papral nation more valuable due to its distance from the inactive dimensional portal. The ground in the Utra nation was too frail. It could barely accommodate the eight rank 6 specimens that had chosen it as their home. The continent''s central regions were in a similar state, but they could withstand the pressure coming from its nine powerful creatures. Instead, the Papral nation could easily accommodate its sixteen rank 6 specimens. The main issue there was the lack of food, which would eventually lead to internal clashes in the future. Noah picked the Utra nation as the starting point of the clearing operation on the old continent. As he flew closer to those regions, he could see that the ground was trying to recover now that the dimensional portal had stopped working. However, the presence of the powerful pack of Snakes made those efforts vain. The energy in the environment converged toward those creatures due to their innate absorption of "Breath". ''Four in the lower tier, three in the middle tier, and the leader,'' Noah summarized in his mind after completing another analysis. ''I might be able to face them together, but I don''t know if the world can endure that kind of battle.'' The world was still unstable, so Noah had to avoid long battles, especially when they saw him going all-out. Part of him wanted to test the limits of his current prowess, but the hunter inside him knew that it was too early for that. Noah approached the southern coast of the old continent and threw some leftovers of his previous hunts in the sea before hiding inside the sea. Dark matter came out of his chest once he reached a suitable spot for his ambush. The dark world unfolded around him and hid his presence. Snore also materialized and prepared its deadly beam. Noah wasn''t sure if that bait would work. Magical beasts had sharp instincts, and he couldn''t cover the aura of the dark world. He could hide inside it, but he couldn''t suppress the radiations of his technique. Still, Noah knew that the magical beasts had an instinct that often suppressed their ability to think straight. He was aware of how intense their hunger could become. Those Eternal Snakes had never learnt what it meant to live in a poor environment. Their passive absorption could satisfy them in the Immortal Lands, but it wasn''t enough in the lower plane. Their lingering sense of belonging to the same pack led by divine beings made them resort to cannibalism only when they couldn''t endure their hunger anymore. Yet, that was only a temporary solution that didn''t solve their core issue. The Snakes were in a weaker world that couldn''t come close to the Immortal Lands in terms of density of "Breath". Their invasion had also killed the few preys that they could hunt. Those who managed to adapt to the change of environment would remain calm and probably survive the imminent struggles. The others would start inevitable internal battles that would lead to a few survivors. Noah had to wait for weeks before the area above him showed any sign of life. A massive reptilian head stuck out of the coastline and observed the bait in the distance. Its forked tongue analyzed that part of the sea and warned the creature about the danger hiding in the depths. Still, the Snake waited a bit before retreating into the landmass. The Snake reappeared a few weeks later. It still performed its careful analysis of the area before disappearing again. It seemed that the creature didn''t trust Noah''s bait, but it was clear that it could barely hold back its hunger. It wouldn''t have come to inspect the leftovers otherwise. The Eternal Snake took only a week to reappear for the third time. Noah could see that a trace of determination had emerged on the creature''s face, so he prepared Snore for the attack. However, the beast retreated again after its usual round of inspection. Noah had to wait until its fourth visit in the area to see platforms made of ice forming above the sea. The Eternal Snakes moved quickly. It didn''t want to remain among that dangerous sensation for too long. Its idea was to fill its mouth with leftovers and return to the safety of the landmass. Still, a ray of violent dark matter carved a hole in its head and killed the creature on the spot. The beast couldn''t even hope to dodge since it could sense the attack only after it left the dark world. His first prey on the landmass ended up being a middle tier specimen. Those in the lower rank were aware of their weakness, so they didn''t explore past their patrol areas. Noah quickly seized the corpse and took a part of its flesh for himself. The rest of its body went with the bait to improve its appeal in the eyes of those beasts. His tactic worked since another middle tier Snake soon jumped off the coastline and began to fly toward the bait. Still, it shared the same fate as the last creature. A dark beam pierced its head and killed it on the spot. Noah took the entirety of the corpse at that time since he didn''t want to risk luring out the peak rank 6 specimen. He would directly face the leader once he removed its underlings. The third middle tier creature appeared on the coastline and followed the example of its predecessors. Its death happened in the same way too. One beam was enough to kill that massive Snake and seize a large amount of valuable flesh. Noah left the bait in place to see if any of the lower tier specimens would arrive. Yet, they didn''t move from their territories even if they had lost their pack''s higher-ups. **** Author''s notes: Sorry to make you all go through this again. The next two chapters will arrive after I wake up. Chapter 1259: 1259. Sprint Noah threw more resources in his bait to lure out the peak rank 6 specimen, but the creature didn''t leave its lands. The lower tier specimens were the same, and that left him out of options. That was the limit of the safe approach. Noah had only managed to kill three specimens before the real battle. Noah didn''t know if the world could withstand it, but he would do his best to avoid any unnecessary attack. ''The weaker creatures will surely jump into the battle once I start fighting their leader,'' Noah thought as he resurfaced and stored his bait. ''I can only take care of them first if I want to avoid useless shockwaves.'' The lower tier creatures didn''t even modify their patrol after the death of the middle tier Snakes. Noah knew where they were, which allowed him to create a strategy that could limit the damages on the world. Noah flew above the southern coast before stopping and bending his knees. He had already planned the route in his mind. He only needed to be as precise as possible now. The peak rank 6 Eternal Snake lived near the mountain chain because it was the only land in that part of the old continent that could withstand its pressure. The other creatures occupied the frailest regions, and Noah could meet them before his real target if he made the right turns. Coldness came out of Noah''s figure as he focused on his task. A map of that side of the old continent appeared in his mind, and a route quickly formed on it. Then, a human-shaped crack replaced his figure, and Noah disappeared inside his dimension. The dark scenery seen from inside the personal dimension didn''t give Noah many details about the old continent''s actual environment. Yet, he had already memorized the Snakes'' position, and he could predict their reactions due to his vast knowledge in the magical beasts'' field. Noah followed the western coastline until he abruptly stopped and wielded the Demonic Sword. A lower tier Eternal Snake had appeared in the lands under him, and the creature released a surprised roar when it noticed his figure. Dark matter quickly flowed inside the Demonic Sword before Noah slashed at the beast. A massive mass of blackness in the form of a blade flew out of his figure and crashed on the surprised creatures before it could even release its silver liquid. Noah''s ambition had begun to build up during his sprint. His cultivation level had reached the quasi-solid stage by the time he met his first opponent. The Snake in the lower tier couldn''t defend against that attack. That was one of Noah''s strongest slashes launched after his ambition had boosted his power. The storm of dark matter engulfed the creature and ripped its flesh into pieces. The slash carried Noah''s sharpness even in that massive form, and the Snake''s innate defenses couldn''t hope to stop it. Noah charged toward the storm and waved his hand when he found the maimed corpse of the Eternal Snake. The slash had destroyed most of its flesh and lowered its value, but he didn''t mind that loss. His body was in the middle tier, and it required far more energy than any other creature on the same level to improve. Noah had reached the point when he couldn''t consider magical beasts in the lower tier as a proper meal. The maimed corpse disappeared as a human-shaped crack replaced Noah''s figure. He sprinted toward the eastern coast at that time. The opposite side of the continent accommodated another weaker creature. Noah''s innate awareness sensed that something had changed in that environment after the first prey released its roar. His consciousness could only feel that for a fraction of a second since he immediately sprinted again, but that was enough to make him aware of what was happening. The pack had learnt about the presence of an invader. The four remaining creatures on that side of the old continent would now converge toward Noah''s first victim. Noah still had an advantage, so his second hunt went smoothly. He reached the eastern coast, found the lower tier specimen, and ripped its flesh apart with a slash that unleashed a storm of dark matter. His neat and precise attacks couldn''t prevent his second prey from releasing a cry. The remains of the pack learnt about Noah''s new position. After storing the maimed corpse, Noah sprinted again. He flew alongside the eastern coast at that time, and he left his dimension when he saw a powerful trace of life in that dark scenery. That supposedly was the spot occupied by another lower tier specimen, but Noah found two pairs of reptilian eyes turning in his direction after he reappeared in the sky. The peak rank 6 Eternal Snake had reached its underling, and it didn''t hesitate to fill the area with silver liquid during Noah''s slight hesitation. ''Not yet,'' Noah thought before a human-shaped crack replaced his figure. The peak rank 6 specimen could wait. Noah had to take care of the weaker creatures before fighting his real target. Noah sprinted toward the western coast to intercept the last lower tier Snake on that side of the continent. His innate awareness flickered when it sensed that a powerful creature was nearby, and Noah came out of his dimension to launch another sharp storm of dark matter. The Eternal Snake appeared in his vision for only an instant. The storm of dark matter immediately engulfed its figure and destroyed its flesh. ''Almost there,'' Noah thought as he unfolded his dark world. The two remaining specimens in those lands quickly reached Noah''s position after hearing the cry of his third prey. The sight of the dense dark cloud didn''t scare them, and they charged toward it without even stopping to analyze the threat. However, a straight black line came out of the dark world and pierced the lower tier Snake''s head. Noah had his fingers pointed toward that creature, and he curved them upward to finish off the beast. The black line followed the movement of his fingers. It continued to cut its flesh and bones until it came out from the upper side of the Snake''s body. Even the peak rank 6 specimen stopped to watch the effects of Noah''s spell. It was still alive, but its instincts gave it different sensations. It was as if they already considered it a corpse. The weaker Snake suddenly opened into two parts. Noah''s spell had almost severed the creature in half. It had missed only a small amount of flesh. The creature was still in one piece, but its injury didn''t even give him the time to launch its silver liquid. The Snake died without understanding who had killed it. The peak rank 6 Eternal Snake turned toward the cloud while wearing a wary expression. The dark world collapsed under its eyes, and the dark matter caved in to take the shape of a humanoid armor around Noah. Noah wouldn''t use his Demonic Form now that he was in front of his real target. The end of his project was finally in his reach and the excitement that he felt made his ambition push his centers of power into the solid stage. Dark matter flowed inside the Demonic Sword and turned it into a four hundred meters long blade, and Snore formed behind his back. A shadow also came out of his ring before vanishing in the environment. Noah wouldn''t hold back when facing an opponent at the peak of the heroic ranks. **** Author''s note: The next chapter should come out in a few hours. Chapter 1260: 1260. Victory Noah''s previous attacks had spread destruction through the world. His storms of dark matter had created large fissures in the fabric of the sky, and even his spell had opened a few cracks. The frail ground of the old continent had crumbled under his attacks, but that was nothing compared to what it was about to happen. Noah had restrained himself before, but he couldn''t do the same against his last opponent. The peak rank 6 Eternal Snake filled the area with silver liquid that created multiple layers of ice. It had seen how deadly Noah''s abilities were, so it wouldn''t take risks when facing him. On the other hand, Noah was quite at ease. He had already beaten a similar creature in the past. The effort had left him badly injured, but he was far stronger than before now. His centers of power were still on a similar level, but he had added a powerful weapon to his arsenal. That addition alone gave him all the confidence that he needed in the battle. Of course, he couldn''t attack mindlessly. He still had to retrieve the creature''s glands, meaning that he had to leave the lower part of its head undamaged. The Snake leaped toward Noah. Its charge destroyed part of the defensive layers to create a cloud of ice-shards that fell on the ground. The creature didn''t need to hold back. Its species was famous for its healing abilities, so it had naturally developed a reckless battle style. Noah respected that behavior, but he had long since learnt how to counter that troublesome ability. The Eternal Snakes could close their injuries with the ice-shards, but they couldn''t regrow entire pieces of their bodies. The Eternal Snake reached Noah in an instant. Silver liquid came out of its open mouth, and its fangs threatened to close on the black armor. Yet, a series of cuts appeared on the slimy insides of its maw before the creature could finish its attack. Magical beasts had a fatal weakness that cultivators could easily exploit. Their battle style was always the same, and there was a limit to how much they could improve it. Even creatures that had lived in the Immortal Lands and bordered the state of intelligent beasts couldn''t do much about that. Their single center of power didn''t give them any chance to break through their species'' limitations. Noah had already studied the Eternal Snakes and learnt all their moves. He even knew their internal composition better than any other expert in the magical beasts'' field, so that species couldn''t surprise him anymore. His opponent wielded raw strength far superior to his, but that would be useless if it couldn''t land a single blow on him. Night ravaged the insides of the upper part of the creature''s mouth before leaving that spot and merging with the environment again. Noah used that chance to sprint toward the center of its body and thrust the Demonic Sword in its flesh. Snore quickly reformed and wrapped itself around the Eternal Snake''s body. The Blood Companion''s mouth opened to launch its deadly dark beam near the spot damaged by Noah. The beam effortlessly carved a hole in the Snake''s body, and Noah swung his blade as soon as the violent energy dispersed. The creature became aware of its surroundings only to see half of its body falling toward the ground. The Snake released a cry that expressed both pain and anger. The ice-shards that had previously acc.u.mulated in the environment flew toward its mouth and body to close the injuries. Meanwhile, its head shot toward its enemy. However, the Snake didn''t sense anything when it closed its mouth on the human figure, and a painful sensation soon spread from its body. The creature saw that Noah had reappeared near the large injury and had stabbed its flesh again. The Blood Companion had also reformed by its side, and the dark beam soon shot out of its mouth to carve another large hole. Noah followed Snore''s attack with a powerful slash to cut the pieces of flesh that kept the injured part connected to the main body. Another big chunk of the Eternal Snake fell toward the ground under its angry gaze. Technically speaking, the Eternal Snake was faster than Noah in close combat. Its physical might was also above his, and the shockwaves that the creature released with each attack could destabilize him. Yet, Noah knew what type of attack the creature would launch. He didn''t even need to see his opponent to know where and when he had to dodge. That gave Noah the ability to be a few steps ahead of his opponent. He sprinted even before the enemy''s attacks started, and he reached its body in time to exploit the openings left during its offensive. Moreover, the ice-shards couldn''t completely heal the wounds that he inflicted. Except for the cuts in its mouth, the Snake''s innate ability couldn''t fix the damage that it was suffering. Those exchanges continued for a while. The Snake''s body kept becoming shorter every time the creature attacked, and it soon found itself without the flesh needed to perform its leaps. The Snake lost its agility and explosive speed after Noah cut away enough of its body. He didn''t even need to predict his opponent''s attacks at that point since he was faster in that phase of the battle. The creature continued to struggle. It didn''t give in even if it had lost most of its body. Still, its attacks were quite pitiful in that condition. They didn''t even meet the standards of a peak rank 6 existence. Noah continued to sever pieces of its body until the Snake was nothing more than a reptilian head standing on top of a trail of ice. Its innate ability had closed its injuries, but its current state made it unable to move properly. The Snake could only release more silver liquid and create a frozen structure that protected it. Yet, that ice was nothing in front of Noah''s blade. The Demonic Sword dug a hole in those defenses in a few slashes. Noah reached the head and landed at its center, right above the creature''s brain. Dark matter flowed inside the Demonic Sword before he thrust it downward. The Snake''s cried in pain, but Noah didn''t stop. His ambition continued to push his centers of power beyond their limits on its own. Thinking that he could complete his project made his individuality explode. After the seventh lunge, the light abandoned the Eternal Snake''s eyes. Noah''s kill count had reached fifty specimens at that point, but the main achievement was that another peak rank 6 creature had died. Only eight peak rank 6 Snakes remained in the world now. There was still the quasi-rank 7 creature above them, but Noah couldn''t spare any thought for the hunt after his last victory. He didn''t even care about the condition of the world. Noah would take his time to study the expansion of the cracks later on. Now he could only think about his project. His ambition continued to surge even if the battle was over. Noah had to forcefully suppress it to stop the empowerment that it gave to his centers of power. The drawbacks soon arrived, but Noah ignored them. He quickly gathered all the body parts on the battlefield before leaving the old continent to fly toward the separate dimension. He needed to be completely isolated to feel at ease when performing the fusion. He couldn''t trust the cave in the seabed with so many threats in the world. Chapter 1261: 1261. Fusion The Elbas family could still be in the world. Noah had spent the last year of the dimensional portal in seclusion, so he didn''t confirm whether they had left the plane. Noah didn''t sense anyone observing him during his hunts, but the Royals were experts in fields that he couldn''t even fathom. There was a chance that they had seen his battles without alerting his innate awareness. The cave in the seabed didn''t have any defense. Noah couldn''t relax there, and his mental state was crucial for the success of the procedure. Noah rested inside the separate dimension for a few weeks and trained for a while only when he felt sure that his centers of power had dispersed the stress acc.u.mulated in the last battle. Once Noah returned to his peak, he began the preparation for the procedure. Noah had already completed all the steps required for the success of the procedure. He had changed the nature of the Eternal Snake''s glands without breaking them. Now he only had to do the same before proceeding with the fusion. The head of the peak rank 6 Snake was in his possession. Noah only had to seize the glands and perform the transformation he had mastered to become ready for the fusion. The alteration of the gland''s nature went perfectly. The fact that they were organs at the peak of the sixth rank didn''t matter in front of Noah''s higher energy. His wills and dark matter turned those organs into dark sturdy sacks that didn''t contain anything. They could still produce an altered version of the silver liquid, but Noah needed them devoid of any foreign substance. ''It''s finally time,'' Noah thought as he summoned Snore. The Blood Companion formed next to him and shrunk as it followed his orders. Snore became a small winged snake that wasn''t even one meter long. Noah couldn''t escape its usual issue in those procedures. His natural defense was too high, and it was hard to create precise wounds that could allow him to perform his fusion. The Demonic Sword could solve that if Noah decided to go all-out, but Snore could do the same without wasting his precious energy. After all, Noah wanted to remain at his peak even when his torso was open. Noah took some blood from the dissected reptilian head and traced two lines on his n.a.k.e.d torso. Snore charged its innate ability and released a small dark beam that moved on those marks. Even Noah''s incredible skin broke under Snore''s dark beam. That violent energy could hurt its caster, so it wasn''t a surprise that it could damage his body. ''It''s easier when my body is my weakest center of power,'' Noah thought as pain began to spread in his mind. Noah had faced problems whenever he had to modify certain parts of his body because his cultivation level wasn''t high enough to hurt him. Elder Austin had often helped him solving that issue, but Noah''s attacks were now stronger than his tissues. He could take care of that issue on his own. It even felt refreshing being able to be able to handle everything without external help. The dark beam pierced his body from side to side, but it left his lungs untouched. Noah immediately focused on stopping his black hole from improving his recovery, but his fourth center of power didn''t seem interested in that damage. ''You understand me,'' Noah thought as he heaved a sigh. His fourth center of power was mostly autonomous, but it depended on his subconscious. It couldn''t possibly stop Noah from becoming stronger now that his whole existence desired that fusion. ''My last problem is gone,'' Noah concluded as he spread those cuts to expose his insides. He had already planned how to approach that fusion. He wouldn''t need to break his rib cage to reach his lungs since the glands would liquefy during the forging. Noah laid his back on the floor and placed the altered glands inside his injuries. The forging only needed the organs to be close, so he didn''t need to pay too much attention to their position. Blood tainted the floor of the reinforced room in which he had chosen to perform the fusion. His hands rose to touch the glands, and his mind focused on the only emotion that could make that forging possible. Dark matter came out of his chest and flowed through his mind. When it came out of his mental sphere, the higher energy carried an intense ambition. That wasn''t the usual ambition shown when he pushed his centers of power beyond their actual level. That feeling carried unquenchable greed, which was what Noah needed. Only a fool would try to improve his body even after it had reached such an unfathomable level. Yet, Noah couldn''t give up on possible empowerments because he was already strong. His ambition always made him desire more power, giving birth to intense greed that would feel satisfied until it had obtained everything it wanted. Noah''s constant hunger had stopped bothering him after he had obtained the fourth center of power. However, his instincts had become more intense and deeper since they had fused with the very core of his individuality. A vague shade in his existence would become a flashy characteristic of his individuality. Anything fueled by his ambition would reach intensity levels that could even lead Noah away from his original path. That was the real drawback of his ambition. A bit of stress on his centers of power was nothing compared to the constant worry that his individuality could render him blind. The dark matter covered Noah''s chest as it poured his ambition into the glands. The structure of those organs trembled as a new drive fused with their fabric and forced them to liquefy. The same fabric of the glands began to desire that fusion. Noah was affecting the laws in their structure with his will. His creation allowed him to modify the matter without much effort. Coldness spread in his chest, but an intense pain soon suppressed all his senses. The entirety of his mind fell victim to that sensation, and Noah could only spare some attention to the actual procedure while it endured that suffering. Noah had become used to those procedures by then. Pain couldn''t make him lose focus nor control of the fusion. He was a real expert in those fields. The glands liquefied and fused with his lungs. Noah soon found himself unable to breathe, and even the few grunts that tried to come out of his mouth ended up being nothing more than silent gestures. Dark matter flowed inside his body together with the liquefied glands. Noah''s higher energy worked as a glue capable of filling every flaw in the organs stabilizing inside his chest. Noah''s felt his lungs growing before shrinking again. They then expanded to restart that cycle of absorption and distribution of the new material in their structure. The fusion went smoothly. Both lungs and the glands already knew what they had to do. Noah''s body followed his desires, and the Snake''s organs carried his ambition, so they accepted themselves. The same went for the nature of those organs. After the modifications, the glands had become suitable for Noah''s body, and they accepted their new structure and nature. A few problems arose after the entirety of the glands had fused with his lungs. Those organs carried two different innate abilities in the end. It was only normal for their laws to fight for the ownership of that matter. However, the black hole released more dark matter at that point. A thick layer of higher energy covered Noah''s lungs and isolated them from the rest of his body. The dark matter created two incubators that suppressed those conflicts and helped to adjust the structure of those organs. Part of the energy absorbed by the black hole also flowed inside their structure and pushed them to fuse completely. Noah heaved a sigh of relief when he inspected the incubators. He had been ready to throw away his lungs in case they threatened to explode, but his fourth center of power had behaved according to his predictions. Chapter 1262: 1262. Golden net The fusion was complete, but Noah''s lungs needed some time to adapt to the changes in their structure and learn how to activate their new innate ability. Noah couldn''t even test his organs for the time being. He couldn''t know if the forging were a success until his lungs stabilized. However, his dark matter took care of them, and the incubators didn''t affect Noah''s lifestyle. It was harder to breathe with his lungs in that condition, but he didn''t need air to survive. Noah could only wait and hope that his dark matter would take care of any flaws in his new organs. He felt quite optimistic about the whole fusion, but his eagerness to test his new power made him impatient. Luckily for Noah, he had plenty of things to do. He had completed all his projects, but there was still a world to save. He could also spend more time training since the packs on the surface needed to reallocate their forces to occupy the now empty lands. The world was still too damaged to endure harsh battles. Noah would have to slowly kill all the rank 6 creatures until the net of cracks started to close before he could test his limits. That strategy would be even easier if Noah let the magical beast fill the lands he had cleared. He wouldn''t need to resort to baits if the Snakes began to separate on their own. The desire for a larger lair was an innate instinct in the magical beasts. Noah was sure that the two remaining packs in the old continent would become thinner after some of their specimens moved in the Utra nation. Noah trained for a while without losing track of the passage of time. A few decades went by, and his power slightly improved in those years. His dantian continued to approach the peak of the liquid stage while his body grew quickly due to the many preys that he had hunted in the last years. It had never happened in a lower plane that a magical beast or a hybrid could improve their bodies so quickly. Yet, Noah had already done something similar, and the current situation with the Eternal Snakes could only benefit him even more. His greatest advantage was that his battle prowess allowed him to hunt prey on a higher level than his body. He didn''t have limits now that the lack of suitable targets wasn''t an issue anymore. Noah decided to come out of the separate dimension after fifty years spent training. His lungs were still inside the incubators made of dark matter, but he felt that the modifications were almost complete. His mission was the main reason behind his decision to interrupt his training. He had to save the world to survive. He didn''t expect to ascend in the next centuries. The net of cracks had continued to expand in those years, but Noah felt glad to see that the destruction of the world had slowed down. It seemed that his hunts had finally brought some results. Noah tried to calculate how much the world had left before the void swept it, but that field was outside his capabilities. He could only guess that he had gained a few decades after his hunts. ''I still have three hundred years, according to Shandal''s evaluation,'' Noah thought as he inspected the sky. ''I don''t plan on fixing this problem in more than that.'' Noah flew toward the old continent after he gave up on evaluating the state of the world. The packs there had behaved as he had predicted. Some of the weaker specimens had migrated to the Utra nation to create a third pack. The migration didn''t involve only the creatures in the old continent. Some Snakes from the other landmass decided to move toward a less crowded area. A few even decided to venture through the sea since it was mostly empty. Noah didn''t do anything reckless. The fauna''s changes had revealed to him that the packs were quite easy-going when it came to the migration of a few specimens. They didn''t incur any punishment from the leaders. Part of the mindset developed in the Immortal Lands still occupied the Eternal Snakes'' minds. Those creatures were far stronger than beasts on the same level due to their previous environment, but their aggression couldn''t compare with those living in a lower plane since birth. On a purely evolutionary aspect, magical beasts that had grown in a lower plane would find it easier to survive. Instead, the heroic creatures in the Immortal Lands had never suffered from a shortage of food, so they didn''t learn what it could mean to let go of one of their underlings. The Eternal Snakes were slowly learning the true meaning of hunger. Noah was sure that their instincts told them to keep a low profile due to the state of the world, but a war among those packs was imminent. Noah took his time to clear the sea again and hunt the creatures in the Utra nation through baits and sudden attacks. His kill count quickly rose to fifty-six, but the world still didn''t show any progress. ''I can either wait or cause a mess,'' Noah concluded after he reviewed his options. The remaining Eternal Snakes had many underlings, and there was a limit to how much Noah''s baits could work. He didn''t fear jumping right in the middle of those packs, but the condition of the world worried him. He couldn''t let too many rank 6 existences clash. That could only enlarge the cracks and bring the world closer to its destruction. Yet, he didn''t want to wait for some creatures to occupy the free lands either. Noah couldn''t decide which was the best course of action, so he returned to his training. The incubators were about to open anyway. He could think about that issue only after he had tested his new innate ability. Something strange happened while Noah was in the separate dimension. Golden lines rose from the seabed and created tall pillars of light that touched the sky and created a second net. The second net was golden, and it covered the pieces of the sky that the void had yet to take. It was as if a dome had suddenly appeared to protect the entire world! Noah overlooked that event while he was inside the separate dimension. Still, he wouldn''t have paid attention to it anyway because the layers of protection around his lungs had finally broken in that period. The incubators made of dark matter opened, and his body reabsorbed the higher energy. Noah could finally start to breathe properly again, but his eagerness to test made him ignore that detail. Noah came out of the separate dimension in a hurry, but he remained speechless when he saw the golden net that had appeared in the sky. He couldn''t fail to recognize that golden light. That was the iconic color of the Elbas family, and there was no one else in the world capable of such a feat. That event confirmed that the Elbas family had remained in the lower plane and worked on something that could fix the world. The golden net had that exact purpose. It forced the various pieces of the sky to remain in one place and make it harder for the instabilities to affect them. Chapter 1263: 1263. Silver halo "Beautiful, isn''t it?" A voice resounded from behind Noah while he studied the golden net. The owner of that voice didn''t try to hide its presence. Noah recognized him as soon as he sensed his aura. Second Prince had come to visit him. "Is this your way of ambushing me?" Noah asked without turning. Noah had asked Second Prince to remain a constant threat in his life, but the Royal had disappeared from the political scene after that conversation. "The world is too frail to endure a battle between us," Second prince replied. "Saving this plane has the priority. We can go back to our games only after everything stabilizes." "You aren''t helping the world if the rest of your family is still here," Noah said while turning. Second Prince hadn''t changed in those years, but his expression appeared more relaxed. He didn''t carry his wide smile or his expressionless face anymore. He seemed at peace. "This net should stop the expansion of the cracks for a whole century," Second Prince replied without giving importance to Noah''s comment. "I can create more of these and find a permanent solution in those years." Noah''s eyes lit up at those words. He didn''t care that Second Prince was an exceptional inscription master, but the capabilities of the golden net interested him. "How much can this protection endure?" Noah asked as he pointed at the net. Second Prince''s expression froze for an instant at those words. He knew what Noah would do if he told him the truth. After all, he had observed his feats during the past years. Yet, Noah''s approach wasn''t wrong, and Second Prince knew that. The Royal tried to fix the world through inscriptions, while Noah aimed to kill all the powerful creatures that prevented the healing process with their pressure. "I guess," Second Prince said before stopping to think, "You should be able to go all-out once. The Royal Reinforcement will lose most of its energy to suppress you, but I know you will take down a considerable number of Eternal Snakes." "Oh?" Noah continued, "Will you let me destroy your creation?" "I can''t stop you anyway," Second Prince replied. "I might as well wish you good luck." Second Prince had remained calm even after Noah had tried to taunt him. He didn''t seem to care about his creation at all. He had accepted that Noah would create a mess anyway, and it was better to do it while his golden net was active. Moreover, Second Prince exuded newfound confidence in his aura, which was the opposite of his face. The Royal''s expression expressed laziness and aloofness. The red crystal still occupied the center of his forehead. That was Second Prince''s core in the end. The Royal was an inscribed human created by King Elbas. "Did you find your path?" Noah asked as he turned to look at the magical beasts in the distance. The new continent was nearby, so Noah could sense the different packs and creatures near the coastline. Second prince had told him that he had one battle available, and he wanted to choose his target well. Second Prince didn''t answer immediately. He turned to look in the same direction as Noah for a while before replying. "Yes. You were right, but I won''t give up on my legacy." Noah didn''t answer. He had been slightly curious about the issue, but he didn''t need to know anything else. He only wanted to know if Second Prince could remain a threat for him even in the solid stage. "I will surpass my Father," Second Prince continued. "King Elbas was a monster, but I''m his rightful heir. I must do better." Noah shrugged his shoulders and left for the southern coast of the new continent. He had chosen his target, so he had no reason to hesitate. Moreover, his hunts were more interesting than his conversations with Second Prince since he couldn''t gain anything out of him. The golden net was the only reason why the Royal had earned some of his respect. His ambition began to push his centers of power beyond their limits as he flew toward a specific pack. His cultivation level reached the solid stage in no time now that his real strength was bordering that breakthrough. The southern coast of the new continent held one of the best training areas in the entire landmass. Even King Elbas didn''t dare to modify that region after he had conquered it. The lava lake was the best training area for heroic cultivators with a fire aptitude, but it also contained a divine creature''s remains at its bottom. No one confirmed that, and those who could explore its bottom didn''t bother to inform the others. The ancient aura that it radiated was an irresistible bait for the Eternal Snakes since it reminded them of the Immortal Lands. The same went for the regions frozen by the divine beings'' silver liquid. The central areas of the new continent had the highest density of beast in the world now. Noah wanted to go to the lava lake to seize the remains at its bottom. He didn''t know if his space-ring could hold them or if he could reach the bottom. However, he could use that region to test how close he was to the divine ranks. Since the last opponent in the world was the massive quasi-rank 7 Snake, he wanted to have something that told him how close he was to that level. The lava lake was the home of three packs, but only two had peak rank 6 specimens. The other had two creatures in the upper tier, which balanced the overall power of those groups. Noah''s centers of power had long surpassed the solid stage, and they were still growing. His ambition was overflowing now that he had obtained the chance to go all-out. He didn''t even hide his presence. Noah descended toward the lava lake and waited for all the Eternal Snakes in the area to notice him. He had to try something before going all-out. The Snakes felt suspicious at first, but they sent the middle tier specimens to investigate. Those creatures converged toward while using both their necks and tail as wh.i.p.s. Noah didn''t move. He let the array of tails and heads land on his body and fling him away. He ended up in the sea, but his ambition didn''t stop overflowing. ''Can''t they damage me a bit more?'' Noah complained in his mind as he shot back in the sky and returned to the lava lake. The attacks had created multiple bruises and a few cuts in Noah''s body, but he limited himself to inhale as much air as possible to launch his new innate ability. The world lost its light for an instant, and a starry sky appeared right above the lave lake. All the beasts in the area could understand that the invader had returned, and they didn''t hesitate to charge toward him. Noah waited for the flames to do something different while he watched middle tier snakes drawing closer. The attack he had launched was identical to his previous ability, but he couldn''t believe that he had failed. The Snakes drew even closer, but a strange radiance soon began to shine from the black flames. A silverish light created a halo around the tongues of fire and divided them. Then, a few tongues of flames separated from the main attack and converged toward Noah. They landed on his body and recreated his skin to heal his injuries. They couldn''t do much against the bruises, but those small cuts vanished without leaving any trace. All in all, the ability was powerful, far better than his previous innate ability. However, Noah had yet to master it. The silver halo didn''t appear immediately during his attack, and that couldn''t happen again. Chapter 1264: 1264. Call to arms Noah inhaled again while the middle tier Snakes leaped toward him. Those creatures attacked him without holding back, but they could only fling him further away. His skin opened in a few spots, and more bruises appeared on his body as he fell into the sea. Creatures on that level couldn''t hurt him more than that. Noah was too strong for magical beasts on that level. Noah came out of the sea and focused on the group of middle tier Snakes. The creatures had flown past the continent''s edges during their last attack, but they began to retreat when they saw that the invader was still alive. Those underlings knew that they weren''t a match for Noah. Their leaders had sent them to test his prowess, and the result of those exchanges worried them. It was clear that they couldn''t hurt Noah. Their bodies were on the same level, but the quality of Noah''s tissues was almost on par with creatures in the upper tier. Moreover, his ambition empowered him as a whole, which made him express an even superior power. Creatures in the middle tier had become nothing more than ants in Noah''s eyes. It didn''t matter that the Eternal Snakes'' state was perfect due to the environment of the Immortal Lands. They lacked the power to threaten his life. Noah barely considered those creatures as enemies. They were nothing more than target dummies useful while he learnt to release his new lungs'' real power. The lungs didn''t lose their ability to cast simple flames. Noah had simply added a new function to their structure. In theory, they could also use the healing skill without relying on the fire. However, Noah didn''t need the weaker versions of his innate ability. He wanted to express the fusion of the two skills and see the new power of his organs. ''I have already learnt how to do it,'' Noah thought while he flew toward the retreating creatures. ''My body knows what to do. My mind only needs to understand that.'' Noah closed his eyes as he entered the new continent again. The middle tier Snakes charged toward him at that point, but he ignored them to focus on his lungs. His organs seemed to react to his concentration. The laws in their fabric began to work together to express the real power that his lungs were capable of. The world suddenly went dark, and cries of pain resounded in the area before light returned in those lands. Black flames covered by a silver halo had filled the sky, and the middle tier specimens couldn''t ignore them at that time. The Snake''s flesh burned while they remained immersed in those peculiar flames. Noah''s attack forced them to interrupt their assault to fill the area with their silver liquid, but their innate ability crumbled due to the destructiveness carried by the fire. Then, the pieces of burning flesh separated from the Snakes and converged toward Noah. Those fiery chunks of skin and scales turned into ashes before fusing with his body and redirecting the energy they carried toward his injuries. Even the bruises began to heal after that wave of energy entered Noah''s body. It was as if the flames had consumed the Snakes'' flesh only to take the "Breath" that it contained and transfer it to Noah. ''Not yet,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the effects of his attack. Noah knew that he had failed again. His mind had told him that he didn''t express his lungs'' true potential as soon as the flames came out of his mouth. Still, that only made him more enthusiastic about his new ability. All his injuries had healed in a few seconds at that time. He had returned at his peak instantly, and that wasn''t even the full power of his lungs! The leaders of the packs couldn''t ignore that threat anymore. Their underlings had revealed to them that Noah was too dangerous and that they had to handle him properly if they wanted to beat him. A series of roars echoed in the region after the four leaders gave voice to a battle cry. All the creatures in the three packs spewed silver liquid to fill the environment with ice-shards as they rose in the sky to face the invader. The middle tier Snakes managed to escape the silverish starry sky and reunite with the rest of the packs during that call to arms. Noah''s flames even dispersed shortly afterward, but his focus remained on his organs. Second Prince had given him the chance to go all-out, and Noah intended to kill every specimen in the area. Yet, he wouldn''t start fighting for real until he learnt how to express his innate ability properly. The sky above the lava lake turned into a massive structure made of ice in a few seconds. The three packs counted more than forty specimens, and all of them were pouring their silver liquid into the environment to prepare for the imminent clash. The leaders acknowledged Noah as a worthy opponent and used their numerical advantage to modify the environment according to their needs. The Eternal Snakes would almost be immortal with so much ice lingering in the air. Noah ignored the behavior of those creatures and closed his eyes again. His lungs began to tremble as dark matter flowed into their fabric. The primary energy that they contained fused with the higher energy to activate the functions of his organs. A smile appeared on Noah''s face when he felt the reaction of his lungs. He knew that he had succeeded before he even launched his flames. The world went dark for an instant, and a blinding silver radiance filled the environment when the light illuminated that area again. The halo almost hid the pitch-black flames that crackled in the sky and surrounded the frozen structure. The ice created by the Eternal Snakes melted, and the energy that it contained entered tongues of flames that separated from the main attack and converged toward Noah. Flames surrounded Noah''s figure and transferred their energy to him. His black hole then absorbed it to purify it and distribute it on his tissues. Noah could directly absorb the energy seized by the flames if he didn''t have any injury. He could make that power his as long as his fire managed to burn the matter that contained it. Countless small flames flew toward Noah to transfer the energy that they had gathered while they melted the frozen structure. All the ice in the sky soon vanished and revealed the Eternal Snakes, who kept spitting silver liquid. Only a few chunks of ice remained in the sky. They were the result of the leaders'' innate abilities, and Noah''s flames couldn''t burn them easily. Their power was on a similar level. Noah still came out as the winner of that clash of innate abilities. His flames spread in the sky and engulfed the weaker creatures who had lost the protection of the ice. Many specimens in the lower tier couldn''t escape them. Casualties immediately mounted. Noah''s flames burned to death the lower tier specimens that didn''t manage to escape toward their leaders. Eleven creatures died before the fire depleted its energy. Most of the other weaker beasts ended up badly injured. Chapter 1265: 1265. Battle formation The effects of Noah''s flames were devastating for the weaker creatures. His innate ability surpassed the level of power of normal middle tier creatures even without the help of his ambition. Noah had fused two different organs into one. That didn''t only add another feature to his flames. It also empowered them. The fusion didn''t double the flames'' power since the Eternal Snake''s glands weren''t as strong as his lungs. However, the many precious metals and the wills he had used during the procedure raised his final product''s overall level by a lot. His lungs were an inscribed weapon now. It was only normal for their power to go beyond their structural limits. The wills that Noah had forged together with the other material made them surpass what a simple fusion could produce. Without the empowerment of his ambition, his flames'' level of power was in the upper tier. His body alone could almost match magical beasts in the last part of the heroic ranks, so his new ability could go beyond that. Once his individuality raised the level of his centers of power, Noah''s flames could match spells launched by solid stage cultivators. They had become useful again after the fusion, and Noah could only rejoice as he learnt about their features. The power of his innate ability had surpassed his predictions. The incubators made of dark matter had improved part of the new features and had adapted them to Noah''s existence. That was the reason why they could fix even internal injuries. Noah''s healing ability had surpassed its source. He now wielded a superior version of the silver liquid, which also had a destructive effect in his case. The weaker specimens had retreated after they tasted the power of Noah''s flames. The lower tier Snakes that had survived that attack had suffered severe injuries, and the situation of those in the middle tier wasn''t any better. Large patches of charred skin filled the weaker creatures. Some of them had directly lost pieces of their bodies among the flames. After the attack, the only ones that had remained unscathed were the four leaders and the Snakes hidden behind their ice. ''I don''t even lose their energy if I happen to burn them,'' Noah thought as coldness came out of his reptilian eyes. Noah would usually avoid destructive abilities when it came to creatures that he could eat. He didn''t like to waste resources that could improve his body. Yet, his innate ability gave him the energy contained in the burned flesh. Part of it would disperse while his flames defeated his opponents'' innate defenses, but that loss wasn''t too significant. Noah still obtained the majority of the energy contained in what he burned. That alone made his innate ability more valuable and ideal for every situation. A chill ran down the leaders'' spines when Noah''s coldness reached them. They understood that the invader could kill all of them if they let him act freely. A few roars came out of their mouths, and Noah''s eyes widened when he heard them. The cries carried precise orders directed at the weaker creatures. The leaders were rearranging them to deploy a battle formation! ''How can they know this?!'' Noah shouted in his mind. He had already accepted that the Eternal Snakes were almost intelligent magical beasts. Still, that formation was something that only creatures of the caliber of the winged beast could use properly. Noah didn''t know how the Eternal Snakes could know that battle formation even if they didn''t classify as intelligent beasts. Still, he obtained his answer as soon as he saw the packs deploying that technique. The four leaders retreated and began to fill the environment with silver liquid while the other creatures advanced. The middle tier Snakes occupied the group''s external spots, while the lower tier ones remained in the center. The sky soon froze, but the ice shattered and converged toward the weaker creatures. The leaders didn''t stop spitting silver liquid, so more frozen layers appeared in a few seconds. Noah could interrupt that procedure, but his interest in the magical beasts'' field didn''t allow him to charge ahead. He wanted to see what those creatures could create when they deployed their techniques. Armors made of ice-shards took form around the group of weaker Snakes. Most of them covered the middle tier creatures, but they didn''t leave those in the lower tier unprotected. That was a proper platoon made of Eternal Snakes. Noah and Skully had used the hybrids in the same way against King Elbas, but those creatures were pulling that off without having a single intelligent beast among them. ''They must have seen their divine leaders doing it,'' Noah thought when he understood how the Snakes had managed to come up with that battle formation. ''They are replicating what they have done in the Immortal Lands.'' Noah had understood those details from the flaws in the battle formation. The armors weren''t complete. The ice-shards had left many vulnerable spots, which meant that the four leaders'' control wasn''t perfect. It was clear that Eternal Snakes in the heroic ranks couldn''t express that technique''s real power. They could arrange themselves in an orderly formation and imitate annoying strategies, but they couldn''t perform them perfectly. Yet, that strategy could still improve their overall prowess. The weaker Snakes would become useful now that they wore armors ready to heal them. Noah could understand the power behind that battle formation in an instant. The Eternal Snakes wanted to use their nigh-infinite endurance and their healing abilities to exhaust him. The ice created by the leaders would defend against most abilities, and the weaker Snakes didn''t need to hurt their opponents to make them waste energy. That was a technique that made use of the qualities of their species. Noah guessed that the Eternal Snakes had improved it multiple times until it had reached its current form. ''Truly spectacular,'' Noah thought as he analyzed the battle formation. Noah felt glad that he had let the Eternal Snakes complete their technique. He had learnt an important detail about the fauna in the Immortal Lands in that battle. Generally speaking, the weaker specimens in a pack would be nothing more than cannon fodder against a powerful opponent. However, the creatures in the Immortal Lands turned their underlings into weapons that could put even strong enemies in danger. Noah didn''t know which species could deploy a similar technique or even make use of their weaker specimens. Yet, those abilities wouldn''t surprise him anymore once he reached the Immortal Lands since he had learnt about their existence. ''It''s time to end this,'' Noah thought when he saw the group of armored Snakes charging toward him while ice-shards followed their figures. Those techniques could work against magical beasts that found it hard to defeat the leaders'' ice, but Noah had yet to show his real power in that battle. His ambition surged, and an armor made of dark matter appeared around his figure. That layer of protection took a fiendish shape once corrosive smoke started to come out of his skin. Second Prince had given him the chance to go all-out, and Noah wouldn''t hold back as long as the golden net shone above his head. Chapter 1266: 1266. Angry The armored Snakes charged at Noah while more ice spread behind them. Ice-shards detached from the frozen structures and followed them in their flight. The armors had closed the injuries created by Noah''s flames, so the weaker Snakes could express most of their power. Thirty creatures in the lower and middle tier charged at him without showing any fear. They appeared to have full confidence in their tactic. The Demonic Sword came out of Noah''s space-ring and landed in his hand. A shadow also flew out of his storage item and vanished while a massive figure formed behind his back. Snore hissed at the incoming Snakes as it prepared its innate ability. A dark beam made of violent higher energy landed on the creatures before they could reach Noah. The group of Snakes didn''t even try to dodge that attack. The dark beam crashed on the middle tier creature in the frontline and divided the battle formation as it pierced through everything in its path. The middle tier Snake died on the spot, and even the creature in the lower tier behind it fell prey to Snore''s threatening attack. However, the beasts behind them managed to move their heads away from the beam''s range and continued to fly even if large holes appeared on their bodies. The frozen armors healed the injured, and the ice-shards converged on them to restore their defenses. The Snakes were almost back at their peak by the time they surrounded Noah. Countless attacks flew in his direction. The Snakes used their flexible body to crack their heads and tails at him in a reckless offensive that disregarded the damages caused by his corrosive smoke. The world went dark for an instant while the attacks flew toward Noah. A blinding silver radiance filled the area when the light returned, and the Snakes found themselves inside a sea of black flames. Their frozen armors managed to fend off the destructive properties of Noah''s innate ability and allowed them to complete their attacks. A series of heads, teeth, and tails crashed on Noah''s figure, and shockwaves spread in the impacts. ''I can understand how this can work in a battle among magical beasts,'' Noah thought when he saw that the attacks couldn''t even make a dent on his armor, ''But they must have overestimated their abilities if they think to exhaust me with this.'' Noah''s free hand shot to grab the nearest middle tier Snake. The creature''s head was still in his range, and it couldn''t escape his claws. Those sharp fingers pierced its skin and kept it stuck in Noah''s grasp. Noah swung the Snake as if it was a mace. The creature''s massive body slammed on its companions and amassed them on a side so that Snore could target them with its threatening beam. A few Snakes died on the spot after the beam pierced their heads. Night killed others by seeping through the openings in their armors and making a mess of their insides. More died due to the corrosive smoke that Noah released continuously. The frozen armors would have been troublesome to handle if they were perfect, but they couldn''t stop Noah''s abilities in their flawed state. Small flames flew toward Noah and transferred energy to his body. His innate ability never stopped providing him with the power contained in the flesh that it burned. Green blood fell everywhere in the area since the Snake kept getting injured by the flames and the corrosive smoke. Still, the ice continued to heal them. Noah could defeat that group easily. He only needed a few exchanges to kill those weak creatures. Yet, he risked losing his main targets if he focused too much on the Snakes that had charged at him. The Snakes continued to launch their reckless offensive, but they abruptly stopped at some point. Angry roars came out of their mouths when they saw that Noah had disappeared, replaced only by a human-shaped figure. Noah sprinted toward the four leaders. Dark matter flowed inside the Demonic Sword and prepared one of his stronger attacks. There were only two peak rank 6 specimens among the leaders. The other two were only in the upper tier, so Noah felt confident that his blade could cut them from side to side once fully charged. Noah reappeared behind the frozen structures that acted as a shield for the leaders. The four Snakes were pouring silver liquid in the environment by the time he came out of his dimension and pointed his blade toward one of the weaker specimens. He would typically aim for the strongest ones, but he preferred to wait for Snore to handle the peak rank 6 specimens. Its dark beam was the strongest attack in his arsenal, and it was better to reduce the numerical advantage when it came to beings that could hurt him. Noah pulled his blade backward before lunging it toward one of the upper tier Snakes. A torrent of dark matter came out of the Demonic Sword, and an intense sharpness began to leak in the environment. The dark matter engulfed the creature''s head and startled its companions, who began to roar. Their underlings didn''t hesitate to charge in their aid after those orders, but Noah still had the time for another attack before they arrived. Snore formed while the torrent of dark matter engulfed one of the leaders. Night also reached Noah and fused with his attack to secure the kill in case the Snake survived. When Noah''s lunge vanished, the headless corpse of the Eternal Snake fell toward the ground. That sight made the other leaders angry, but Noah acted before they could make a move. Noah charged toward the other weaker leader. He let go of his Demonic Sword as he slammed on the creature''s head and stabbed his clawed hands in its flesh. Dark matter came out of his armor and converged toward the Demonic Sword that had followed Noah''s movements. The blade absorbed the higher energy while Noah tore the Snake''s head open. The peak rank 6 leaders tried to come in their companion''s aid, but Snore released a dark beam to stop them. The Blood Companion had moved so that its beam could hit both of them, but the second Snake dodged the attack when it sensed its dangerousness. The first Snake also tried to dodge the attack, but the dark beam was too fast. It landed on its head and created a large hole that took away its brain in one go. The Demonic Sword returned in Noah''s grasp after it had finished absorbing higher energy. Noah swung it in the opening created with his claws, and a torrent of dark matter destroyed the Snake''s insides. Night also arrived to make sure that the creature didn''t survive. It took Noah only two exchanges to kill three leaders. Those creatures wielded enough power to hurt him properly, but Noah''s approach had been flawless. He had never given them the chance to attack him. Only one peak rank 6 Snake remained on the battlefield, but the creature began to escape as soon as it saw its companions die. It wouldn''t stay there to fight a monster that had killed three of them in a few seconds. Noah sprinted toward the escaping creature and reached it in an instant, but a deafening roar filled the sky above the new continent and forced him to ignore his target. Noah didn''t dare to turn as he flew toward the sea while collecting the corpses that had acc.u.mulated on the ground. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake had become angry, so he had to leave the continent as soon as possible. Chapter 1267: 1267. Sunk The air shattered as the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake roared. Noah immediately turned back when he heard that, but he couldn''t escape the shockwave that the cry generated. Noah had faced beings capable of wielding divine might in his life. His cultivation level had always been inadequate on those occasions, and the current situation wasn''t any different. The gap between the heroic and divine ranks wasn''t something that secret arts or special techniques could cover. Gods lived in a league of their own. All those powerful beings had managed to elevate their existences past their mortal restraints. They had obtained power that went past what a lower plane could contain. Noah knew how even a small shard of divine might could unleash a power that no heroic being could face. That level wouldn''t be so difficult to reach otherwise. Yet, he had always felt a rush of ambition whenever he came into contact with one of those existences. Noah couldn''t wait to reach that level. His whole life was about getting stronger, and that league was the final stage. Noah felt exactly like that when the shockwave swept him, but his rush of ambition was far more intense at that time. Every fiber of his existence shook in excitement when he saw that he could withstand that catastrophic event. ''I''m only one step behind you,'' Noah thought as he rushed toward the southern coast. He could feel it in his very core. He didn''t have a chance against the leader of the Eternal Snakes, but he was close, closer than he had ever been in his entire life. The divine ranks were right around the corner. Noah only had to cross the last hurdle and elevate his existence to where it strived to be. Noah''s battle had awakened the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake. A creature on that level couldn''t fail to sense the commotion happening above the lava lake. Someone had dared to invade its domain, and that couldn''t go unpunished. The quasi-divine creature had to show the world that it was the true king of that landmass. The shockwave shattered the ground and opened large cracks in many regions. Cliffs appeared everywhere in the new continent, and only the central lands remained unaffected by that pressure. A thick layer of ice created with the silver liquid of the divine leaders covered the central lands. A quasi-rank 7 creature couldn''t destroy it with a simple roar. Matter on that level wouldn''t normally be in a lower plane. The Snake''s gaze inspected the lands around it once it finished expressing its anger. It didn''t sense any trace of the invader, but it could see the state of the packs that had faced him. The three packs had suffered a lot during Noah''s assault. He had killed one specimen at the peak of the sixth rank, two in the upper tier, and almost twenty among middle and lower tier. That loss wasn''t something that the quasi-rank 7 creature could ignore. Those were powerful underlings that the leader treasured for many reasons, especially its hunger. Less than seventy rank 6 Snakes remained in the world after Noah''s assault. The quasi-rank 7 creature wanted to return to the Immortal Lands one day, but it didn''t know if that number was enough to ascend. Noah was a threat to its ascension. It had to eliminate anyone who put its reserve of food in danger. The Snake shot toward the southern coast when it made sure that Noah had left the continent. Its sprint through the sky made the whole golden net tremble, and shards of that inscription fell before dispersing in the air. Its sole movements were enough to damage the formation that Second Prince had created after decades of study. The creature didn''t even care that its actions were bringing the world closer to its end. The quasi-rank 7 creature reached the coast in less than an hour. Its speed went beyond any other existence in the lower plane, and the violence released during its leaps was enough to threaten the very structure of the world. It was as if the world itself was saying that something on that level couldn''t be there. The Snake''s power had already surpassed the heroic ranks, so it had to go in a world that could contain it. Noah had long since left the area by the time the leader arrived. He had sensed its anger, and he didn''t hesitate to sprint toward the nearest entrance to the separate dimension while the creature reached the coast. Yet, he didn''t use the teleportation matrix to leave. He held back from activating it because he wanted to see what the quasi-rank 7 Snake would do and learn more about its power. Quasi-rank 7 beings were slightly different from complete divine existences. They had access to power that went beyond the heroic ranks, but they weren''t proper gods. The Ape God couldn''t express divine might too often, and the winged beast was nothing but a fly in Shandal''s eyes. The god of the Empire also had its limits. He had a limited amount of divine "Breath". The quasi-rank 7 Snake was similar to the leader of the winged beasts. Its power wasn''t wholly divine, but it didn''t have limitations when it came to expressing its might. It was always above the heroic ranks in terms of battle prowess. The Snakes'' leader released another angry roar when it sensed that Noah''s tracks led to the sea. He had gone underwater to return to the teleportation matrix, and that had made him hard to track. The Snake wasn''t a marine beast. That environment couldn''t affect its battle prowess, but it reduced the range of its awareness. The creature wouldn''t be able to sense him even if he was nearby. Noah kept his mind focused on the creature. His attention was on the final target of his hunt, and he didn''t care if his consciousness ended up revealing his position. He wouldn''t let go of that chance. Learning about his prey was a crucial aspect of his hunt, and he had another reason to delay his return in the separate dimension. His ambition was exploding. Feeling so close to that level of power had put his existence aflame. His dantian began to improve on its own during that process. His individuality also helped his other centers of power, and his black hole activated on its own to support that process. It had sensed Noah''s peculiar mental state, and it didn''t hesitate to provide dark matter to quicken that improvement. The quasi-rank 7 Snake began to slam its tail on the southern coast''s lands, avoiding the lava lake in the process. The terrain sunk under those repeated blows, and the sea soon took over the area. The sea submerged entire regions. The weaker Snakes could only escape during that expression of pure anger, and some of them even suffered injuries in the process. The quasi-rank 7 Snake stopped attacking the coast only after the sea had invaded most of its lands. Its mouth opened at that point, and a wave of silver liquid fell on the ground as it flew across the areas that it had destroyed. The sea froze. A thick layer of ice replaced the lost territories and created lands that radiated the leader''s aura. It was as if those regions were now an extension of the Snake''s senses. The Snake then raised its head at the sky and spat more of its liquid. A vast cloud soon formed, and silver drops began to fall everywhere on the new continent. **** Author''s note: The next chapters will come after I wake up. You know the drill. Chapter 1268: 1268. Ironic The golden net had continued to crumble while the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake expressed its anger. The appearance of the cloud filled with silver liquid wasn''t an exception. Each drop that fell through the sky helped in destroying Second Prince''s formation. Trails of ice formed in the sky as the drops fell, and the lands froze once they touched the ground. The new continent transformed as that peculiar rain kept falling. The quasi-rank 7 Snake was transforming the landmass into its ideal lair. The ice also spread to the sea. The new continent enlarged as the water froze. It didn''t take much before new regions appeared around the landmass. Except for the central regions, all the frozen lands radiated the quasi-rank 7 Snake violent aura. The creature had used its ice to expand its mind''s range and increase its control over the landmass. That was its home now, and the Eternal Snakes living there would benefit from the changes in the environment. Noah guessed that more creatures of that species would also appear due to those favorable conditions. The golden net couldn''t endure that show of power. Only a few golden shards remained in the sky when the cloud depleted its reserves of silver liquid. A few attacks from the quasi-rank 7 specimen had been enough to destroy Second Prince''s formation. Its might wasn''t something that inscriptions in the heroic ranks could contain. Noah''s ambition calmed down after that process ended. That feeling remained intense, but it stopped empowering his centers of power. The drawbacks soon arrived, but Noah didn''t mind them. He remained on top of the teleportation matrix and waited for his peculiar mindset to end. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake had stated that it wouldn''t stand by while Noah killed its pack. He couldn''t even go all-out anymore since it had destroyed the golden net. The leader had brought him back to square one, with the only difference that the population of Eternal Snakes had decreased by a lot in the past years. Noah had almost halved the original number of specimens in the world. Noah gazed at the sky while he remained on the teleportation matrix. The net of cracks didn''t enlarge during his observation. It seemed that the last hunt had finally slowed down the deterioration of the world. He didn''t know if the world had already reached a stable condition, but he wouldn''t spend years observing the cracks to understand that. That was Second Prince''s role. Noah''s preferred to hunt. ''I can only play it smart now,'' Noah thought as he activated the teleportation matrix to return inside the separate dimension. The last hunt had brought many benefits, which went beyond the mastering of his new innate ability. He had also seized many valuable corpses. Noah went into seclusion once he returned to the separate dimension. He ate, cultivated, and trained with the Seventh Kesier rune to improve his base power and bring him closer to the last stage of the heroic ranks. His mind continued to expand without encountering any hindrance, and his body finally neared the breakthrough after eating those prey. As for his dantian, Noah''s cultivation sessions ended up triggering peculiar mental states that made him wander in the world of laws. Noah spent years observing how his influence affected the world''s structure. His destruction shattered the "Breath" while his creation reassembled it in the form of his darkness. Still, those were only some aspects of his individuality. Noah knew that his ambition was the core of his existence. He had to make that feeling reach a higher state if he wanted to advance. Heroic cultivators had to become laws to reach the divine ranks. The process was slow, and it often failed due to the many impurities that their individualities carried. Laws expressed true meanings, which were some of the simplest forms of energy in the world. They carried an immense power, but they weren''t complex in their structure. Noah had to bring his individuality to a similar level to become a god, and that required him to find a true meaning capable of expressing all the features of his existence. He had learnt about the effects of his individuality during the liquid stage, but he needed to elevate his existence to make it to the next phase. It wasn''t a matter of abilities or techniques anymore. Noah now had to be a superior existence to reach the last stage. ''My ambition doesn''t have a fixed form,'' Noah thought as he remained immersed in his training. ''It can fuel all the aspects of my existence and make them go beyond their normal level. It is a miraculous power that forces the very matter to ignore its limits.'' Noah''s ambition defied logic. It behaved as a secret art that could empower all his techniques and centers of power without leading to harsh repercussions. His individuality was the realization of Noah''s greatest dream. He had always desired a power that ignored external restraints and weaknesses. Those meditations eventually led to a memory that he knew far too well. A scene that had remained stuck in his mind for his entire life resurfaced and filled his thoughts. ''Even after all these years,'' Noah thought as a smile appeared on his face. Noah had barely been five months old when he saw that scene. He didn''t have any goal back then. Life appeared valueless in his eyes, and he believed that nothing could stir his feelings. However, a dragon had appeared on the Balvan mansion''s doorsteps, and Thomas Balvan had fended it off with his bare hands. ''To think that it has always been here,'' Noah thought as he stopped cultivating to explode in a loud laugh. Noah couldn''t believe that he still remembered that memory so vividly. He was a two thousand years old monster, but that scene didn''t disappear among the many events of his life. ''It took me so long to understand this,'' Noah thought as he laid on the floor of the separate dimension and continued to laugh. Throughout his life, Noah''s desire for power had taken many forms. The cultivation world had techniques, spells, and martial arts, so his craving took those forms. The world had already tainted his desire by then. Noah''s feeling lost part of its purity as he advanced through the cultivation journey. That process was inevitable, but Noah reached that conclusion only when he reviewed his life from his current level of power. ''Techniques, spells, martial arts,'' Noah shouted in his mind, ''They are only things. I''ve desired them because they gave me power, but my ambition transcends what items can accomplish!'' Noah''s cultivation level increased as those thoughts filled his mind. He had found his true meaning, and his whole existence reacted to that event. The ambition felt when Thomas Balvan fended off the dragon was pure. It was the simple desire for power of a man that knew nothing about the cultivation world. Noah couldn''t apply his ambition to actual methods because he didn''t know anything. He was only a child filled with an unstoppable drive. His ignorance about the cultivation world had made his ambition reach a level of purity that disregarded the restraints and laws around him. Not knowing had allowed his feeling to be devoid of any impurity. Now, Noah felt the same pure ambition running through his existence. It was a feeling that ignored all the things that he had learnt through his life. It was a form of energy that did whatever it desired and disregarded whether that was doable. Noah couldn''t stop laughing. He found it ironic that his cultivation journey had brought him back to his first step, but he didn''t fail to notice the changes in his cultivation level. His dantian advanced to the solid stage while that feeling filled his existence. Chapter 1269: 1269. Home Noah had found his true meaning in his oldest memory. His experiences paled in front of the purity that his ambition had been able to express when it first formed. His ambition was an energy that defied levels of power, limits, and laws. Its only purpose was to bring Noah more power, and it didn''t matter which method it used to do it. The structure of the separate dimension changed as Noah''s aura filled the area. His cultivation level exploded and spread through the environment around him while carrying his ambition. The invisible walls of that dark place expanded. The separate dimension enlarged due to the pressure radiated by Noah''s aura, but his ambition modified their very structure. Matter began to appear on those walls. Large patches of a gaseous material condensed inside the limits of the separate dimension and improved their sturdiness. The gas expanded until it filled the walls of the corridors near Noah. Their structure improved when his ambition seeped into their fabric and made them reach their best state. Something similar happened to the buildings around him. Dark lines appeared on their structure as Noah''s ambition forced them to become their best version of themselves. It was as if Noah''s individuality was forcing the matter to express its true potential. His sole existence was enough to bring buildings and ethereal walls on a level that they wouldn''t normally reach without the addition of more inscriptions. The ground of the separate dimension also changed. Noah''s ambition elevated the nature of a few patches of that fake terrain and turned them into real ground. Those changes weren''t temporary empowerment obtained while Noah was there. His ambition had altered their structure forever and pushed it beyond its limits. That area of the separate dimension became remarkably similar to the outside world. Noah''s ambition had elevated its state, and that matter couldn''t regress to its previous level anymore. Noah sensed those changes and understood that he had succeeded in bringing out the real nature of his true meaning. His existence didn''t affect only himself anymore. He had begun to alter the laws in the matter. His true meaning now altered the structure of the world by merely existing. His law was finally forming, and the matter around him couldn''t escape the effects of his individuality. Noah''s existence held the same authority as the other laws in the world. He only needed to make his influence grow to reach the divine ranks now. ''A long time has passed again,'' Noah thought as he suppressed his aura. Heaven and Earth couldn''t notice the separate dimension because of the precautions taken by Thirty-seven. However, they also ignored that area because its structure was far inferior to the surface. Divine Architect''s separate dimension aimed to replicate the Mortal Lands, and Noah''s ambition risked to fulfill that goal. He couldn''t let that area evolve into a real lower plane if he wanted Heaven and Earth to continue ignoring it. Noah had needed a whole century to advance. His training always required a lot of time, and he couldn''t quicken the arrival of his enlightenment. Yet, he had still reached the last stage of the heroic ranks at an unbelievable speed. He wasn''t sure whether he had crossed the two thousand years mark already, but he knew that no other cultivator was his match when it came to his growth. Noah didn''t waste time comparing himself to other famous existences. His mind had reached a new level of clarity, and his thoughts had attuned with his individuality. He could only think about his power now. Noah spent a few more decades cultivating. He needed to stabilize his power, and he wanted to see if the Demonic Sword would advance in those years. The living weapon''s potential depended on his cultivation level. Noah''s breakthroughs would often lead to the growth of the Demonic Sword. The blade improved quickly in those years. Noah''s breakthrough had unleashed its potential. Moreover, the Demonic Sword hated to remain behind the other companions, so it did its best to reach its Master''s level. The structure of the Demonic Sword changed as it improved. Noah had fused dark matter with its fabric, so its growth didn''t affect only its base power. The blade evolved as it used Noah''s ambition as a guideline for its growth. It became longer, and its fabric obtained new features as it improved. The Demonic Sword was a unique lifeform. It was a hybrid with the shape of a blade. However, Noah had long since surpassed the limits of those species. He had fused dark matter with its fabric, but that had only improved its overall structure. Its nature had also changed, but it still lacked one aspect of Noah''s power. That changed after Noah obtained his true meaning. The Demonic Sword transformed into strands of gas once its breakthrough began, and it entered Noah''s body to seep inside the black hole. Noah''s fourth center of power purified its structure, and his ambition forced its nature to express its true potential. When the strands of gas came out of his body, the Demonic Sword had reached the upper tier, and it had become able to generate that matter! Fusing with the dark matter wasn''t enough to express Noah''s existence. The Demonic Sword had to obtain the fourth center of power to become a weapon worthy of its Master. The Demonic Sword roared when it reformed in front of Noah. The dark matter that leaked out of its shape began to generate a cloud of higher energy, but Noah promptly wielded it to teach it how to control its new power. The blade couldn''t create the dark world, but it could reach new levels of sharpness now that it owned Noah''s higher energy. The breakthrough to the upper tier had given the sword an innate ability. ''I have the dark world,'' Noah thought as a smile appeared on his face, ''Snore has the dark beam, and now my sword has something similar. I''ve never felt so complete.'' Noah waited a few more years before leaving the separate dimension. He had to make sure that he was in control of his new power before returning to the outside world. The surface had changed in that period. Most of the new continent had turned into a frozen landmass capable of improving the Eternal Snakes'' reproductive capacity. Many new specimens had appeared in those years, and most of them had reached the third rank while Noah was in seclusion. The quasi-rank 7 Snake had also eaten some of its underlings in the sixth rank, but it had held its hunger back while its new home formed. The world lacked magical beasts. The Snakes'' leader had prioritized rebuilding a fauna over its hunger to ensure that it would have reserves of food in case its Tribulation failed. Having many powerful specimens spread through the world would quicken the birth of new creatures. The leader''s aura couldn''t fill the whole plane, so it had to rely on its underlings to complete that task. Noah''s actions had delayed its plans, but the world had finally turned into a suitable breeding ground after those three centuries. The leader could now eat some of its underlings from time to time while it waited for more powerful specimens to appear. It was the same with the rank 5 Albino Snake, with the only difference that the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake wanted to apply that system to the whole world. Chapter 1270: 1270. Connected Noah didn''t like that the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake had begun to eat its underlings. He also had an interest in those creatures since they were the best food for his current state. His body had begun to approach the breakthrough to the upper tier, but Noah was aware of its insane requirements. All the creatures hunted in those years had only managed to push its power across one tier, and he had reached the point when his center of power would need even more energy. That was a drawback that would accompany him for his whole life. A higher power required more energy to advance, and Noah knew that he had the best body available. His recent project had also increased those requirements. His body had become even stronger after the fusion with the Snake''s glands. The empowerment had raised the amount of energy needed for his breakthrough. Noah didn''t regret his choice. He would never give up on power because it made his cultivation journey harsher. He actually considered those severe hindrances the proof that he had become far stronger than his peers. Noah studied the surface for a while, and he analyzed how his new level affected the world around him. His hunts had to continue, but he needed to prepare a proper strategy. Killing the quasi-rank 7 Snake would relieve the world of a lot of pressure, but Noah didn''t know if he could face a creature on that level. Moreover, he was sure that the plane couldn''t endure his full power until it started recovering. The presence of the quasi-rank 7 Snake also prevented him from using some approaches. Noah couldn''t be as reckless as before due to the frozen lands. The Snakes'' leader would immediately notice him if he stepped on the new continent. Noah could only rely on hit and run tactics there. Yet, he had another continent at his disposal. Noah could clear the old landmass and see if the world returned to a decent state. That would give him the chance to deploy different tactics, and it would make the hunts on the new continent more entertaining. There was another positive aspect in that otherwise awful situation. Noah''s ambition managed to affect the world''s structure just like it did with the separate dimension. More matter would appear wherever his aura spread. That eased his worries about the world''s frailty since his ambition made it more stable. He only needed to let his ambition affect his battlefields before starting his assaults. The hunts would be even less entertaining, but Noah couldn''t risk destroying the world. ''I wonder how strong I have become,'' Noah thought as he moved toward the old continent. It annoyed him that he couldn''t test his new power properly, but he couldn''t avoid that issue in his current situation. Saving the world came before his whims. His very future depended on his hunts. ''I guess I will be able to go all-out only during the last battle,'' Noah concluded as his attention went inside his special space-ring. ''Upper tier specimens shouldn''t even come close to my level now.'' The Demonic Sword let out a roar from inside the space-ring as it understood Noah''s mindset. The blade had experienced a breakthrough after the last training session, and its very nature had changed during that process. Noah didn''t know how strong his living weapon had become, but he knew that simple upper tier magical beasts wouldn''t be enough to test its power. He could easily kill those creatures when he was in the liquid stage and the Demonic Sword was in the middle tier. He didn''t believe it would take more than one slash to take care of them at his current level. The creatures on the old continent had divided themselves again, and Noah didn''t hesitate to exploit that flaw in their defenses. There were less than twenty-five rank 6 specimens in those lands, so he could take care of them without needing unique strategies. Noah hunted those specimens by repeating the same approach. He flew inside the continent, slashed at the first creature that he found, seized its body, and returned in the sea. He didn''t need to do anything else to clear the old continent. He only had to let some time pass between one hunt and the other to avoid spreading chaos too often. The old continent was the home of two peak rank 6 Snakes, but even they couldn''t do anything against Noah''s new prowess. The Demonic Sword divided their heads in half as soon as he launched an attack. The blade could generate dark matter on its own now. Whenever Noah''s slashed, the Demonic Sword would release a sharp dark line that cut everything on its path. The sharpness that the living weapon was capable of reached an insane intensity when Noah performed his techniques. It was as if the Demonic Sword benefitted from two rounds of empowerment during the same attack. Moreover, that was only the basic form of the blade''s innate ability. It was a simple release of higher energy in the shape of a sharp line. The Demonic Sword could do much more, but the Eternal Snakes never gave it the chance to show other abilities. ''I have reached the point when peak rank 6 creatures can''t do anything against me,'' Noah thought while he inspected his space-ring as he sat on the teleportation matrix connected to the separate dimension. His storage item contained twenty-three corpses of rank 6 Eternal Snakes that featured almost identical injuries. A sharp cut had severed their heads into two parts. The only difference was in how deeply each slash had managed to dig their bodies. The bodies of the peak rank 6 Snakes had managed to stop the slashes right below their neck. The sturdiness of their scales was extraordinary. Still, it was pointless since they could block Noah''s attacks only after the vertical cuts divided their heads. Noah had needed less than four months to take care of the creatures on the old continent, and he had returned to the entrance of the separate dimension once that landmass was empty. His body could probably reach the upper tier if he used part of the stuffed winged beast, but Noah wanted to see how the situation on the surface evolved before deciding on his next move. The quasi-rank 7 Snake didn''t react to his hunts since its home was in the new continent, and the creatures had died before they could release a cry. However, the leader would surely do something once it noticed that twenty-three valuable specimens had disappeared from its pack. Noah''s prediction turned out to be on point. A deafening roar echoed through the sky a week after he had completed his clearing operation, and the massive figure of the Snakes'' leader became visible above the new continent. The Snake appeared wary of the world''s condition. It didn''t let its anger rule its actions, but it still used its silver liquid to modify the environment again. The creature didn''t rely on any special technique at that time. It flew above the sea that divided the two continents and spat silver liquid to freeze it. A frozen platform soon connected the two landmasses and turned them into one giant continent that the other specimens began to occupy under the leader''s orders. Every pack and valuable specimen began to live on the ice that radiated the leader''s violent aura after that migration ended. Noah''s actions wouldn''t go unnoticed anymore. Chapter 1271: 1271. Elated Noah returned inside the separate dimension after he witnessed the changes caused by the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake. It was time to make his body advance, so the hunts could wait until he came out of his seclusion. Every breakthrough of his body would often force him into hibernation. Advancing from one rank to another would also create a chrysalis, but it was hard to calculate how long they would take. It was the same with his dark matter. Noah''s higher energy depended on his darkness, but it didn''t have a clear behavior. His breakthrough to the solid stage didn''t make it evolve. Noah could guess that the dark matter would reach the next state when he advanced to the divine ranks. He could predict that his higher energy couldn''t remain the same after his darkness went through that massive change. It wouldn''t make sense if the black hole didn''t change at that point. Yet, Noah still couldn''t be entirely sure about that due to the higher energy''s peculiar properties. The same applied to his body. After the many improvements, his center of power had reached an incredible state, so it was only normal for the periods of hibernation connected to his breakthroughs to be longer. However, his black hole optimized most processes when it came to his existence. Noah almost expected his hibernation to take less time since his fourth center of power would help during the breakthrough. The main issue was that the world had less than two hundred and fifty years left, according to Shandal''s initial calculations. Noah had killed many rank 6 creatures, so he guessed that he had gained a few centuries in the process. Yet, the world didn''t remain calm in those years. The golden net had stopped part of the quasi-rank 7 Snake''s first outbreak, but the plane had to endure the second one on its own. The leader had tried to be gentle when it fused the two continents because its instincts had warned it about the dangers connected to its actions. Still, magical beasts didn''t excel in controlling themselves, especially when it came to problems they couldn''t understand. Noah didn''t stay put in those years either. He had hunted as many creatures as possible, and even all his precautions couldn''t prevent him from spreading chaos in the world. Those actions had shortened the lifespan of the world. Noah had made sure that the net of cracks was stable before returning inside the separate dimension, but some concern had inevitably remained inside him. Still, that gave him some hope. His black hole reacted to his mindset, so it would feel his concern about the length of the hibernation. Noah didn''t expect the hibernation to last more than a century, especially if he stuffed his body with a lot of energy. He could still decide to wait for the world to stabilize fully before approaching the breakthrough, but he believed that he could avoid facing the quasi-rank 7 creature for now if he let his body improve. Noah resumed his usual training routine after returning to the separate dimension, but he focused mostly on his body at that time. Eating his new preys gave his body the boost needed to reach the peak of the middle tier, but that point always marked the beginning of his problems. Reaching the peak wasn''t enough for bodies, especially those that carried features belonging to the magical beasts'' world. Noah needed to acc.u.mulate enough energy to advance, or he could end up failing the breakthrough. The world had more rank 6 creatures, but they couldn''t satisfy Noah. He had used the stuffed winged beast in the past, and he would do the same now that he was approaching the last part of the heroic ranks. Drowsiness began to fill his mind, but Noah didn''t let that feeling affect his power. He had enough experience in that process to know that he still had time to prepare. Noah took out the stuffed winged beast from his space-ring. He could recognize the spots on its skin where he had previously sucked some "Breath", and he didn''t hesitate to point his blade at them. Sucking the "Breath" coming out of the stuffed creature''s skin wouldn''t be enough at his level. His instincts told him that he needed actual flesh to meet the requirements of his body. The Demonic Sword trembled while Noah kept it pointed at the weakened spots on the stuffed creature''s skin. The living weapon''s tip touched those quasi-divine tissues and acc.u.mulated power as it prepared an attack. Noah''s ambition surged as he focused on his target. He knew that he could crack that skin. He had finally reached the level when he could start dealing with materials that carried some divine power. The Demonic Sword didn''t change shape during that acc.u.mulation of energy, but dark matter soon began to leak out of it. Noah understood that the weapon had reached its structural limits at that point, and he closed his eyes as he focused on his sharpness. Both Noah and the Demonic Sword began to radiate an intense sharpness. Those auras fused and flowed through the weapon as Noah launched his attack. The separate dimension trembled, but Noah kept his eyes closed during the attack. When he opened them, he ignored the destruction that his lunge had caused to focus on the stuffed winged beast. Noah could see how a fist-sized opening had appeared on the creature''s arm. The skin in that spot had shattered and fallen on the floor after the attack. The broken winged beast''s skin resembled dark shards of glass, but Noah didn''t have time to appreciate it. The drowsiness had begun to fill his mind faster after the attack. It seemed that it had felt the temporary weakness that had followed his surge of ambition. Noah stored the stuffed winged beast and sat on the ground to eat the pieces of skin. He ignored the surges of energy that those materials generated inside him and focused only on completing his meal. His mind went dark as soon as he ate the last piece of skin. He laid back without even fully digesting that meal, but a smile appeared on his face as he fell asleep. Noah had understood that he had met the requirements of his body as soon as he finished eating. He wanted to quantify how much energy was filing his insides, but his mind went dark before he could make any comparisons between the sixth and the quasi-seventh rank. No dreams appeared in his vision during his sleep. Noah could only see images sent by his Demonic Sword and companions in his rare conscious moments. His black hole absorbed the energy contained in the winged beast''s skin and spread it through his body to make it reach the next tier. The fourth center of power quickened that natural process and improved it with its constant purification. Noah smiled again when he reopened his eyes. The separate dimension was still in one piece, which meant that the outside world didn''t crumble during his sleep. An intense feeling of power began to fill his body as Noah became aware of the changes that happened during the breakthrough. His nails had become shorter, and his skin paler. He was abandoning the features obtained by the Light-devouring Dragons. Except for those features, his appearance didn''t change much. Noah felt that his eyes had become colder, but he guessed that the Eternal Snakes'' bloodline was to blame for that. After all, his body now carried part of that species. ''I can''t test my power here,'' Noah thought after he gazed at the state of the separate dimension. The lunge launched before falling asleep had enlarged part of the separate dimension and destroyed many buildings. Noah couldn''t risk making it even larger for fear that Heaven and Earth could notice it, so he decided to study the condition of the world before planning his next move. It was the same as the Demonic Sword. Noah couldn''t test its new strength until the world stabilized. Noah''s smile widened when he came out of the separate dimension. He had yet to inspect the world, but the golden light that he saw from the bottom of the sea was enough to make him feel elated. Chapter 1272: 1272. Landing Second Prince had created another golden net. He also appeared to have improved the structure of that formation since it now had more lines and nodes. ''How long have I slept?'' Noah wondered as he inspected the world. The continent didn''t go through many changes during his sleep. The frozen lands had enlarged a bit, but they had yet to cover the whole landmass. Moreover, the number of weaker specimens didn''t increase by much. A few rank 4 Eternal Snakes had appeared among the packs, but the number of new creatures in the human ranks told Noah that he had been asleep for less than eighty years. His math wasn''t perfect, but he felt sure that the real answer was close to his guess. His expertise in the magical beasts'' field wasn''t only for show in the end. The presence of the golden net was a gift that Noah intended to use to its fullest. He had the chance to go all-out again, and he had just gone past an important breakthrough. That gift couldn''t have come at a better time. Noah now had the chance to test his new power and kill many rank 6 Snakes in the process. The quantity would depend on whether he could escape the anger of the quasi-rank 7 leader. Noah performed a thorough analysis of the continent before finding a spot high in the sky where he could let his ambition run freely. He was about to enter the domain of a quasi-rank 7 creature, so he had to push his centers of power far beyond their limits to ensure his survival. His cultivation level increased. Noah''s empowerment would start from the solid stage now, so his ambition could raise his power more smoothly than before. Lumps of darkness appeared around Noah as his ambition filled the sky. His individuality also affected the golden net, and black lines appeared on its structure as its nodes enlarged. Of course, Noah could choose to consider the golden net as an enemy and deny it of that empowerment. Still, the appearance of Second Prince''s formation was the best thing that could happen to him in that situation, and he didn''t mind letting his ambition improve it. Noah''s body also improved. It grew inside the upper tier and reached levels that it would typically take centuries to touch. Even his mind went through a similar process, but Noah couldn''t quantify how far he was from the divine ranks once it stopped. The empowerment that he obtained through his ambition didn''t reflect the actual growth of his existence, so he couldn''t understand where his breakthrough stood. Overall, Noah became a powerhouse near the peak of the sixth rank after his ambition finished elevating his might. He didn''t know how strong he had become after that process, but he was about to find that out. Only five large packs remained on the continent. The five peak rank 6 Snakes were their leaders, and they counted a dozen underlings each. They also had countless creatures in the human ranks under their rule, but Noah didn''t waste time considering them. The quasi-rank 7 Snake was alone at the center of the landmass. Its home was in the territories where the divine silver liquid had fallen. The creature could enjoy an environment that resembled the Immortal Lands there, and it didn''t allow anyone near it. The leader wanted the precious energy contained in those frozen regions all for itself. It wasn''t willing to share it with anyone, even if that could bring him valuable food in the future. Magical beasts usually preferred immediate gains, and Noah could understand that mindset. ''I wonder how many of them can I kill before it forces me to escape,'' Noah questioned himself as he prepared a strategy. The main issue about the five packs was the ice where they lived. Those frozen lands worked as an extension of the leader''s mind and would notify it once Noah attacked. ''My only option is to be quick and relentless,'' Noah concluded as a cold smile appeared on his face. The Demonic Sword flew out of his space-ring and landed on his hand as Noah crouched in the air. His legs bent as he turned toward one of the packs, and a human-shaped crack replaced his figure as he sprinted. The Eternal Snakes on the landmass ignored that an enemy had observed their arrangement from a spot that their awareness couldn''t reach. Still, their instincts warned them about an imminent danger after Noah sprinted. Yet, it was already too late to stop Noah. They didn''t even have the time to raise their heads to the sky that one of the frozen regions exploded into a storm of ice shards and black smoke. Noah came out of his dimension to land on the head of one of the peak rank 6 Snakes. His momentum was so intense that he ended up destroying a large chunk of the region after he pierced the creature. The peak rank 6 Snake suddenly found that a large hole had appeared at the center of its head, and its vision went dark as life abandoned its body. ''I didn''t expect this,'' Noah thought as he stored the corpse while inspecting the destruction that his landing had caused. ''I didn''t want the whole world to learn about my attack.'' Noah didn''t know the extent of his new level, so he had decided to go all-out as long as the golden net continued to remain in one piece. Yet, he didn''t expect that his simple landing would have destroyed a good part of that region. ''Now that I think about it,'' Noah realized, ''It would have been strange if I did less than this. I''m currently near the peak of the sixth rank. I''m supposed to destroy entire regions with my attacks.'' Noah didn''t stop moving while those considerations filled his mind. Killing only one peak rank 6 specimen wasn''t nearly enough in that situation. The underlings in that pack roared when they saw that their leader had died, but black lines suddenly appeared at the center of their mouths and cut their heads in half. Noah had swung his blade while focusing on the sharpness radiated by his existence. That gesture had created a series of thick lines on the opponents in the range of his consciousness. Eight rank 6 Eternal Snakes died in the attack. Noah had only needed an instant to kill them. There were even a few creatures in the upper tier among them. Still, that didn''t make any difference for him. Noah could sense that the specimens on the borders of the region had managed to escape his attack. They had also begun to flee toward the quasi-rank 7 leader, but he didn''t have time to intercept them. The leader would sense Noah''s presence anyway. He would rather move toward the next pack than try to avoid the inevitable. As he had predicted, a deafening roar echoed through the sky before the escaping Snakes could even enter the leader''s lair. The continent shook, and the golden net began to tremble under the might released by that cry. The quasi-rank 7 Snake had awakened, and it knew where Noah was. A dangerous sensation appeared in his mind when he sensed a pair of intense reptilian eyes landing on his back. Noah knew that the leader had set its eyes on him, but that sensation vanished when he entered his dimension. He didn''t even pick the other corpses since he couldn''t afford to waste precious seconds. Chapter 1273: 1273. Kill count ''Eight underlings, one peak rank,'' Noah thought as he sprinted through the frozen lands. The kill count in his mind was still too small to call the hunt off. Noah needed to get rid of more Eternal Snakes if he wanted to have a final battle with the quasi-rank 7 leader. The leader roared in anger when it lost vision of Noah. Without special abilities, magical beasts couldn''t follow his movements when he entered his dimension, but that didn''t stop it from chasing after him. The quasi-rank 7 creature leapt in the sky and created a trail of ice to slither toward Noah''s previous location. It didn''t care that it couldn''t sense the invader anymore. Reaching its fallen underlings would give it a head start for when Noah reappeared. The leader couldn''t believe that Noah could outrun it. Following his tracks would eventually make the two of them meet. Noah flew faster than he had even done before. He knew that the leader would come for him, so he had to make the best of that attack. He had learnt where the packs were during his inspection of the continent. He had clear targets, and his goal went past the acc.u.mulation of resources at that time. Second Prince had given him a valuable chance, and he wouldn''t waste it. His greed could wait for the world to recover. He only had to kill now. The roars of the leader reached him inside his dimension, but Noah remained focused on his mission. His new level allowed him to sprint as long as he wanted at the cost of more energy, but he would gladly end up exhausted if that led to the restoration of the world. Also, he barely needed to use energy to kill the weaker specimens. His battle prowess had surpassed what magical beasts in the heroic ranks could reach. He guessed that even peak rank 6 cultivators couldn''t see that realm. Obtaining such power without taking even a small step into the divine ranks was incredible. Noah''s achievements defied logic, and that wasn''t even the best that he would be capable of in the heroic ranks. Noah had barely stepped into the last stage of the heroic ranks, but he could already express a miraculous battle prowess. No one could predict how strong he would become once his centers of power arrived at the peak of the rank. A few lights eventually appeared in Noah''s vision as he sprinted through his dark dimension. He had reached the next pack in no time, and he didn''t hesitate to swing his blade at that point. The Demonic Sword opened a path through the fabric of the world. A series of frantic rank 6 Eternal Snakes appeared in his vision when he crossed that passage. Noah didn''t even look at them as he expanded his consciousness and bent his legs. His mental waves managed to identify eleven creatures while he raised his blade to place it on his forehead. The Snakes wanted to roar to notify their leader about the presence of the invader, but black lines suddenly pierced the center of their heads. Those attacks then expanded to divide their heads in half. The only creature that managed to escape the black line was the peak rank 6 Snake in the pack, but the beast suffered serious injuries in the process. The Snake had managed to dodge the black line''s expansion that had pieced its head by moving away from that spot. Yet, the attack was still there when it performed the evasive maneuver, so the creature ended up losing a third of its skull in the process. Noah noticed that a creature had survived, but he didn''t have time to finish it. He didn''t know what that beast could do in that state, but he had far bigger problems to handle in that situation. Noah released the strength acc.u.mulated in his legs to sprint again. He only had the chance to seize a couple of corpses before entering his dimension and flying toward the next pack. ''Eighteen underlings, one peak rank,'' Noah thought as he updated the kill count in his mind. He didn''t fail to kill the peak rank 6 Snake due to a lack of power. He had yet to become used to his new level, so his control over his slashes had been slightly off. That slight delay in the expansion of the black lines had given the peak rank 6 Snake the chance to dodge, even if its messy attempt had ended up inflicting a considerable injury anyway. Still, Noah now knew what he had done wrong, so he was confident that it wouldn''t happen again. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake didn''t fail to notice that Noah''s aura had reappeared for an instant. The creature had reached his previous location, and it didn''t hesitate to shoot after him. Noah knew that his situation had just worsened. The leader was now aware of his direction, so it wouldn''t stop at his last location. The creature would continue charging forward until it either met him or sensed his aura again. However, there wasn''t much that he could do about that. Noah had been aware of that danger when he decided to attack the continent. He didn''t fear the quasi-rank 7 specimen with his new power. His ambition became more intense as Noah felt a pressure building up inside his mind. The danger felt in that situation made his individuality express more power, and his level grew as he continued to fly in his dark dimension. The quasi-rank 7 Snake roared to no end. Its anger knew no limits. Noah had destroyed centuries of planning and preparations in mere hours. The golden net couldn''t endure the pressure radiated by the leader even after the empowerment of Noah''s ambition. The quasi-rank 7 creature wasn''t holding back either. Pieces of Second Prince''s formation fell non-stop from the sky as that chase continued. Noah came out of his dimension when he reached the third pack. His mind expanded to lock on the ten rank 6 Snakes in its range, and his blade touched his forehead to launch his quickest attack. The Eternal Snakes wanted to release roars, but storms of dark matter formed above them and fell on their heads. That violent energy took the shape of ten massive blades that pierced the terrain as they destroyed everything on their path. Noah almost cursed his greed when he saw that attack. He didn''t want to release so much power at once. Still, the recent empowerment of his ambition altered his control over those slashes. The storms of dark matter killed the Snakes instantly. Ten headless corpses fell on the ground after the attacks ended. Still, his actions worsened the condition of the golden net. Noah didn''t want that, but he still lacked control over his strength, especially when his ambition pushed his centers of power beyond their actual level. However, Noah didn''t lose even an instant in that region. He picked the corpses near him and sprinted again. He still had two packs to destroy, and he couldn''t waste time with the quasi-rank 7 Snake chasing after him. ''Twenty-seven underlings, two peak rank,'' Noah updated the kill count in his mind as he pressed forward. He knew that he didn''t have much time left. Chapter 1274: 1274. Clash The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake never stopped. It chased after Noah even when his presence vanished. The creature wasn''t stupid. The underlings in the heroic ranks were almost intelligent beasts, so the leader was even smarter. It could vaguely understand what Noah was trying to do. That understanding mostly came from its instincts. The leader knew that the world was in danger, and Noah''s actions taught it about the solution to that issue. Still, the quasi-rank 7 Snake was a magical beast. There was a limit to how much it could care about Noah''s good intentions. The creature mostly felt anger at the sight of its dying pack. Anger wasn''t the only feeling that spread in its mind. The leader saw how Noah never spent more than a few instants in each region, and the destruction that he could unleash in that short time was worthy of respect. Tens of rank 6 Snakes had already died by his hand, and the leader had yet to reach him. The quasi-rank 7 specimen had to accept that its opponent wasn''t a simple invader. That acknowledgment gave birth to another feeling inside the leader. A tinge of fear appeared among its anger. Noah had managed to make the quasi-rank 7 creature worried. Of course, Noah wasn''t aware of that. He could learn about it if he paid attention to the leader, but his mind could only think about the location of the next packs. The continuous sprint through his dimension had yet to affect his centers of power, but Noah knew that drawbacks would arrive soon. His movement technique wasn''t ideal for long distances, and he had to pay a hefty price to cross entire regions with it. Noah didn''t have any other option. The Warp spell was too slow and would ultimately let the leader reach him if he started to rely on it. Moreover, he wouldn''t mind dealing with the consequences of his actions if he succeeded in his mission. The fourth pack eventually appeared in his vision. Noah saw twelve Snakes after he came out of his dimension, and he didn''t hesitate to place his blade on his forehead once his mental waves branded those creatures. Twelve black lines formed and severed the heads of those creatures in half. Noah had managed to perform a perfect attack in that harsh situation. He had finally become used to his current level of power. Noah stored a few corpses and sprinted again. Yet, a deafening roar reached his ears before he entered his dimension. The cry was close. The leader had almost reached him, and that put even more pressure on Noah''s mind. ''Thirty-eight underlings, three peak rank,'' Noah updated the kill count in his mind as he flew through his dimension. He didn''t know if he could make it till the last pack before the leader caught up with him. Still, he wasn''t willing to stop now that he had come so closer to completing his goal. A massive presence became visible in his dark dimension. Noah could see that the leader was gaining ground. According to his calculations, the two would meet as soon as he reached the last pack. His math wasn''t perfect, but he had a chance of ending his mission during that hunt. Noah didn''t even think about escaping when he understood that he could fix the world in one last sprint. The presence behind Noah became bigger. Noah heard the leader''s roars from inside his dimension, and the pressure they generated threatened to interrupt his movement technique. Yet, Noah endured that pressure as he pressed forward. His ambition also reappeared to raise his centers of power a bit more and give him the chance to reach the last pack before the leader. The leader moved faster than him even after the last empowerment. Noah was almost about to give up on his hunt at some point, but a few lights suddenly appeared in his vision and made him throw those thoughts in the back of his mind. Noah came out of his dimension and turned. A dozen rank 6 Eternal Snakes were in front of him, but he had to take care of the threat behind him before aiming for those creatures. A massive reptilian head filled his vision when he turned. Noah saw the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake up close for the first time. The creature resembled a slithering dark-green river that filled the world with a silver radiance. The leader leapt toward Noah as soon as it sensed his aura. It had waited for that moment since the beginning of that chase. Its anger was about to explode. It couldn''t wait to rip the intruder to pieces. The world in Noah''s eyes slowed down as his concentration reached its peak. He could see the leader spreading its mouth as it flew toward him, and he raised his sword as he prepared his attack. Laws replaced the matter in his vision. Noah had less than an instant to prepare his attack, but that time was more than enough to call upon all his power. Black smoke and dark matter flowed out of his body to create layers of armors that empowered his physical might. His figure began to radiate a sharpness that opened cuts in the fabric of the sky. The Demonic Sword began to radiate a similar sharpness. The blade trembled as dark matter started to leak out of its body. The leader reached him as soon as Noah completed those preparations. He didn''t have the time to perform a slash, but he didn''t need to deploy a sword art in that situation. The leader''s upper mouth and the Demonic Sword clashed as Noah wielded it with both his hands. A massive pressure fell on his arms as he and the creature exchanged their first attacks. The layers of armors on his arms and shoulders exploded into a storm of corrosive gas and raging dark matter. His bones also screeched as he tried to fend that creature off. Noah eventually had to give in to the massive physical strength that had landed on his body. Still, a cold smile appeared on his face when he saw the leader in a similar situation. The clash had flung Noah away, but it had also stopped the leader''s charge. A deep cut had appeared on the creature''s mouth too, and Noah''s sharpness continued to inflict damages in that spot even after the main slash lost its power. Noah had just confirmed that he could injure a quasi-rank 7 creature and that his physical might was almost on its level. Moreover, he had obtained those results without learning the depths of his new power. There was a chance that he could defeat the quasi-rank 7 specimen already if he went all-out. However, the world had yet to return to a condition when it could withstand a battle between the two. Noah crashed on the frozen region, and he disregarded his momentum to focus on the creatures around him. His mind could only sense eight rank 6 Snakes in that situation, and Noah quickly placed his blade on his forehead to kill them. Black lines appeared in front of the Snakes and cut their heads in half. Those creatures died right after announcing their leader''s arrival, and the quasi-rank 7 creature watched that happening in front of its eyes. Chapter 1275: 1275. Peace Noah created a deep pit on the frozen region after the clash with the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake, but he straightened himself as soon as he completed his attack. The leader roared in anger when it saw the death of its underlings. Its cries also carried pain since Noah''s sharpness kept opening cuts inside the injury on its mouth. The quasi-rank 7 creature was livid. It could barely contain its feelings, but Noah didn''t remain still to watch how it would react. He had completed his mission. His kill count amounted to forty-six underlings and three peak rank, and the continent contained less than twenty rank 6 specimens after that hunt. Noah didn''t know if the world could start healing now, but he couldn''t prolong his hunt anymore. He had to get away from the Snakes'' leader and let his centers of power recover. Noah sprinted as soon as he straightened his position. The leader released another angry roar at that sight, and it spread its mouth to spit a torrent of silver liquid toward the sky. A cloud soon formed, and silver rain began to fall from its surface. Trails of ice and frozen lands began to fill the environment, but the Snakes'' leader wasn''t satisfied with that outcome. The quasi-rank 7 specimen didn''t know where Noah had gone at that time. There wasn''t any other target worth defending on the continent, so the creature felt no need to move from its position. Yet, it still wanted to kill Noah. The massive rain was only the beginning of its outburst. The Snake wouldn''t let that invader catch it unprepared again. The Snake continued to spit its silver liquid in the sky. The cloud slowly enlarged, and it eventually grew past the edges of the continent. Its rain began to fall on the sea and enlarge the landmass. The leader didn''t stop there. It wasn''t satisfied with a bigger lair. It wanted the whole world to become its home and radiate its aura. The cloud kept growing since the Snakes'' leader didn''t stop pouring silver liquid in the sky. The creature continued to use its innate ability for entire days, and it halted only when its rain fell everywhere in the world. The whole world transformed as the cloud released the silver rain. Layers of ice spread wherever the drops fell, and the entirety of the sea soon become nothing more than a frozen landmass. The few regions that had yet to freeze didn''t escape that transformation either. The leader''s patience had ended. In a bit more than a week, the creature transformed the world into an endless frozen land. The quasi-rank 7 creature stopped releasing silver liquid at that point and began a thorough inspection of the world. The leader couldn''t find Noah, but it ended up eating the corpses that he had left behind when he escaped. Then, the leader returned to the lands frozen by the divine silver liquid. The whole world was an extension of its mind now. Nothing could escape its eyes anymore. Noah had watched the whole transformation. He had returned on the entrance to the separate dimension after escaping from the continent, and he had paid particular attention to the leader. He didn''t care if the world froze. Those changes couldn''t affect him. Yet, he wanted to know if the leader could express that power without incurring any negative repercussions. After all, the quasi-rank 7 Snake could have just transformed the world in the past centuries. There was no need to wait for an invader to decimate its underlings to deploy that strategy. Noah''s guess was on point. He had seen with his consciousness how the leader lost its scales during its long attack. Pieces of its body had fallen as it pushed the limits of its innate ability. That kind of injury wasn''t enough to weaken it permanently. The leader had just overworked itself, using a lot of energy in the process. Noah guessed that it would now enter a long hibernation to recover and wait for a new pack to form. ''This would be the perfect moment to attack,'' Noah thought, but he soon threw that idea in the back of his mind. His ambition had run off, and the drawbacks had arrived. Noah also needed to recover after going through such a long and dangerous hunt. Moreover, the main problem was still there. The world was too frail. The events in the past days had even enlarged the cracks in the sky after the golden net crumbled. Noah had failed to hold back a few times during the hunt, and he had also clashed with the quasi-rank 7 creature once. The Snakes'' leader had done the same, and its actions had brought even more destruction to the world. It was customary for the world to suffer when existences at the peak of the sixth rank expressed their power. Their basic aura was so intense that it could shatter the fabric of the sky. However, Noah knew that too much had happened in those days. The world needed a long period of peace to understand if it could begin its restoration now that a lot of internal pressure was no more. Noah returned inside the separate dimension and immersed himself in his training while waiting for the world to stabilize. He had confirmed that his current power was enough to face a creature on that level, and that had given birth to a constant craving for a good battle inside him. The years passed quickly, but Noah didn''t bother to check the situation in the outside world. He would have to make a hole in the frozen layers above the sea to inspect the changes thoroughly, and he didn''t want to end up fighting the quasi-rank 7 Snake unless he had confirmed that the world could take it. That required a long time. Noah guessed that even a few centuries wouldn''t be enough to fix the damage acc.u.mulated since the divine leaders tried to destroy the world. That was the reason behind Noah''s lack of hurry. He had no reason to go outside and alert the Snakes'' leader that he was still around. Noah always lost track of time during his training sessions. Two hundred years had to pass before he understood that it was time to take a good look at the world. Ice welcomed him once he came out of the separate dimension. The underwater area was the only zone above the seabed that hadn''t fallen prey to the leader''s innate ability, but pieces of the frozen landmass fell there from time to time. Noah focused before sprinting toward the surface. His Demonic Sword couldn''t cut through the frozen lands on its own. He had to rely on his ambition if he wanted to go past that blockage. His individuality brought him near the peak of the sixth rank. The frozen layers crumbled under his attacks after he reached that level, but he still sprinted to leave as few tracks as possible. The Snakes'' leader noticed that something had come out of from an area near its home. It didn''t hesitate to roar at the sky while ordering to mobilize the troops. Noah could hear those cries, but he ignored them to focus on the world. The net of cracks had shrunk by a lot in the last two centuries. It seemed that the plane had finally started healing. Chapter 1276: 1276. Last hunt Noah had succeeded. He had saved the world after centuries of struggles. The closing of the cracks had signaled that the plane could endure the internal pressure caused by its inhabitant and resume its normal functions. ''I have time now,'' Noah thought as the roars of the Snakes'' leader filled the sky. The pressure radiated by the quasi-rank rank 7 Eternal Snake opened cracks in the sky, but the world fixed them in a matter of seconds. The plane now had enough extra energy to deal with those issues. Noah observed the Snakes'' leader and the world for a while before deciding to return to the separate dimension. His approach could finally change now that he had saved the plane. He could deal with his problems without taking unnecessary risks. His final opponent was a creature that had taken a step into the divine ranks. He couldn''t underestimate it, especially since it was a magical beast. Noah knew how resilient those creatures were, and the Eternal Snakes even excelled in that quality. He couldn''t underestimate how hard it would be to kill a quasi-divine specimen. He had already confirmed that his attacks could hurt the leader. The issue was whether he had enough energy to kill it. Also, the whole world had turned into a frozen landmass due to the creature''s silver liquid. Noah believed that the leader could use all the ice around it for its healing ability, which would make it virtually immortal unless he managed to kill it in one blow. ''Can I even reach that level with training alone?'' Noah wondered as he meditated in between his training sessions. Killing rank 6 magical beasts with a single attack was easy for him. His centers of power had reached the last part of the sixth rank, so he could express far more might than creatures on a similar level. Noah had a body that surpassed magical beasts and hybrids in every aspect. His dantian contained energy that he had created to be perfect for his individuality. His mind carried features of both cultivators and beasts. Those features were enough to place him above normal beings on a similar level. Those three centers of power could make him defy logic already, but Noah had reached a superior realm with his black hole. The fourth center of power made his might skyrocket. His black hole affected every aspect of his existence, and his dark matter was an energy that he actively used to empower most of his attacks. The black hole and his superior features made his prowess impossible to evaluate. Even Noah didn''t know how strong he was right now, but he didn''t plan to remain on the same level for long. He had to kill a quasi-rank 7 magical beast that could use the entire world to fuel its innate ability. Noah had to raise his base power so that his ambition could push him on a level where he could defeat the Snakes'' leader. Noah had completed every project, and his mind struggled to give birth to ideas that could lead to an increase in his power. He felt as if he had reached the limits of his rank. It was as if existences in the heroic ranks couldn''t become stronger than that. Noah had improved in every field of the cultivation journey connected to him. He had the best living weapon, and some of the world''s strongest creatures were his puppets. His darkness expressed his individuality, and his body had just gone through an improvement that had made his innate ability useful again. His sword arts already went beyond what heroic cultivators could do. Noah had inherited Sword Saint''s three main techniques, and he could perform them at ease. He had even begun to develop personal slashes since relying on his individuality would bring him more benefits in the long run. His mind was improving with the Seventh Kesier rune. Noah could use his mental energy''s peculiar properties to devour wills and force his sea of consciousness to grow faster. Still, that could hinder his stable progress with the rune. The Seventh Kesier rune was too good. Other methods might make his mind grow faster in the short run at the price of its stability, but they would still lose in the long run against the rune. Noah had a side project that he could complete. His many spells still required a martial art to express might worthy of an existence with a powerful body. However, he mostly disregarded that since he knew it couldn''t lead to a sharp improvement in his battle prowess. His most powerful spells already had martial arts attached. Also, most of the diagrams that he had rebuilt didn''t pair well with his expertise. After all, Noah''s strongest martial arts were his sword arts. That left Noah without a clear goal. He only knew that he had to kill the quasi-rank 7 Snake and seize its corpse. That resource was precious for him. ''How can I even defeat it?'' Noah thought as he tried to imagine the battle in his mind. The main issue in that battle was the ice spread in the world. Noah would normally take his time to destroy the frozen lands and leave the quasi-rank 7 Snake unprepared. Still, the creature could recreate those regions easily. That approach would never work, especially since the Snakes'' leader could sense Noah whenever he damaged the frozen landmass. He couldn''t catch the creature by surprise even when it was recovering. The only option for him was to be stronger than the Snake. Tricks couldn''t work against the creature, and the ice acc.u.mulated in the world could solve most of its issues. Noah entered a long period of seclusion now that he had all the time that he desired. He couldn''t find any reason to jump directly into a battle that he wasn''t sure he could win. The world still needed to heal completely, so Noah didn''t mind spending a few more centuries in seclusion. His power grew well due to his determination and incredible assets. His body and dantian had remained near their previous level, but his mind had improved at a decent speed. The Seventh Kesier rune made it ignore most of the limitations on the centers of power. His existence slowly grew inside the last part of the sixth rank. Noah could feel himself changing every day. It was as if his individuality knew that he was steadily striving to evolve into something more. The seclusion continued for two centuries. Noah''s thirst for battles was about to explode after so long spent inside that boring place. He needed to vent his feelings and take care of the main problem in the world. ''There are still a few powerful underlings,'' Noah thought as he flew out of the separate dimension to approach the surface. The underlings didn''t scare him since they wouldn''t be capable of joining the battle between Noah and their leader. It was hard to kill Eternal Snakes, but they couldn''t affect a fight on that level. ''I can only go there and see for myself if my prowess has reached that realm,'' Noah concluded as he let his ambition run wild. His centers of power reached the peak of the sixth rank before the empowerment stopped. A slash then shot out of his figure and created an opening in the frozen layer above the sea. A flawless dark sky appeared in his vision after he pierced the frozen land. The world had recovered completely. Noah could go all-out without worrying about the plane''s condition. **** Author''s notes: The other chapters will come when I wake up. Chapter 1277: 1277. Mocking Noah''s ambition couldn''t push his centers of power past the peak of the sixth rank. His individuality didn''t appear able to cross that limit just yet. That wasn''t a surprise. The divine ranks marked the beginning of an entirely new type of cultivation journey. That level also brought an immense amount of power with it, and Noah didn''t know if his existence could contain it. His individuality couldn''t replace actual growth. Noah''s real strength came from his foundation, and his ambition reflected the power of a cultivator who had just reached the last stage of the heroic ranks. He was sure that his individuality would eventually manage to make him cross the limits of the heroic ranks. Yet, he needed his centers of power to be closer to the divine realm to achieve that. His ambition needed to grow before it could succeed in that task. Still, Noah knew that he would obtain more significant gains if he tested his prowess against the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake. Noah flew in the sky above the Snakes'' leader. His desire to kill that powerful creature didn''t make him forget about the advantages that he could wield. Cultivators were stronger than magical beasts for many reasons, which was even truer for an existence like Noah. He knew how to exploit his superior awareness and abilities, and he didn''t hesitate to rely on his knowledge to obtain the upper hand in the battle. The Snakes'' leader had begun to express its anger as soon as Noah made a hole in the frozen layer. The creature recognized the aura of the invader that had almost destroyed its plans to return to the Immortal Lands. Its anger was boundless, but the creature didn''t let its feelings blind its mind. The quasi-rank 7 Snake knew that Noah was resourceful and elusive, so it began to deploy its abilities before he could make his move. The Snakes'' leader raised its head and began to fill the sky with its silver liquid. Its instincts told it that the world could finally endure its power, so the creature didn''t try to hold back anymore. A massive cloud formed high in the sky, and silver rain started to fall from its surface. The creature had already turned the whole world into its lair, but its abilities could transform the area around it into its ideal battlefield. Noah observed how frozen structures formed above and around his target''s lair. That ice carried the entirety of its power, making it impossible to cut unless he used his full strength. However, that was what Noah had come out of the separate dimension to do. He wanted to test his power against a specimen that stood on the absolute limit of a lower plane. The world in Noah''s vision changed as he focused on the presence hidden by the frozen structures. Laws became visible in his eyes as he gathered his power to release his strongest attack. He didn''t have the chance to test how strong he was in the past. Noah had yet to polish his fighting style, but he planned to complete that task in the next exchanges. It was finally time to learn how strong he was, and the best way to do it was to go all-out since the first attack. Corrosive smoke and dark matter seeped out of his skin and created two fiendish armors around his figure. The Demonic Sword began to tremble as higher energy amassed inside its structure. Dark matter eventually came out of the Demonic Sword after it filled every inch of its fabric. The living weapon had reached its peak form, but it didn''t stop producing higher energy. The world didn''t restrain Noah anymore. He could finally reach his real limits and see how the Snakes'' leader reacted to that. ''Pierce the cloud, the ice, and your enemy,'' Noah repeated those words inside his mind as he raised his weapon above his head. The dark matter leaked by the Demonic Sword condensed to enlarge its shape. The weapon became bigger and larger, and dense trails of higher energy began to flow around its form. Those trails soon became storms of dark matter that surrounded the Demonic Sword while it kept growing. It was as if Noah''s blade had started to generate pure destruction. The sky couldn''t endure the pressure radiated by Noah and his weapon. His sharpness filled every brim of dark matter that flew out of them, and cracks opened even if his ambition had improved the area''s structure. The quasi-rank 7 Snake sensed the events happening in the sky. A dark cloud had begun to spread above the silver one created with its innate ability, and the danger that it radiated made the creature decide to remain under its protections. The Snake felt boundless anger toward Noah, but that only made it more focused. Its goal was to kill that threat, and the best way to do it was to take him seriously. ''I see,'' Noah thought as he inspected how preparing for that attack had modified the environment. ''I create a world of destruction.'' Noah shut his mind after that thought. Everything about him focused entirely on the quasi-rank 7 Snake as he began to perform his slash. The Demonic Sword was heavy. Noah felt as if he was trying to move an entire continent as he slashed toward the ground. The slightest movement of his weapon broke the sky. The power he had acc.u.mulated in the area tore its structure apart and created passages to the void. The world promptly redirected energy toward those spots to close the cracks, but the storms of dark matter and the massive blade opened new ones as they continued to fall downward. Then, when Noah completed his slash, a black mass fell from the sky and filled the whole area under him with the power that it carried. The world fell into chaos. Eternal Snakes screamed in fear when they sensed that they couldn''t escape the range of that attack. Noah''s slash covered entire regions. Its width didn''t affect its speed. The attack clashed with the leader''s abilities in less than an instant. It was hard to understand the black mass''s shape when observing it from the side or above. Only the target of Noah''s attack could see its true form. The ice acc.u.mulated in the area was an extension of the leader''s mind, so the creature could inspect the attack in its entirety. It could see how that dark mass was a rain of sharp pillars that tore the world apart during their descent. The silver cloud couldn''t even attempt to slow down that attack. The sole pressure radiated by Noah''s slash destroyed it and stopped the silver rain. The frozen structures came next, but Noah''s attack engulfed them as it crashed on the ground. His slash covered the whole area and gave birth to multiple earthquakes when it touched the terrain. The world trembled. The shockwaves radiated by Noah''s attack opened cracks on the frozen landmass and sky. Large chunks of ice separated from their main structure and sunk into the sea. The perfect environment created by the Snakes'' leader couldn''t endure Noah''s might, and only the ice born from the divine silver liquid remained intact as his attack continued to ravage the land. Sharpness also leaked out of the black mass. Cuts opened everywhere that aura spread, and Noah''s destruction soon began to fill every inch of the area. That destruction continued for a while, but the dark matter eventually dispersed. Still, Noah''s aura continued to create cuts in the sky even if his attack was over. A peculiar sight appeared in his vision once his attack stopped disrupting his analysis of the surface. Most of the frozen ground under him had sunk into the sea, and only the divine ice had remained intact after that slash. On that piece of intact land, Noah could see the badly injured quasi-rank 7 Snake staring at him while wearing a mocking expression. Chapter 1278: 1278. Violent exchanges Noah''s eyes sharpened when he saw the leader''s expression. His attack had destroyed a large chunk of its lair and transformed it into an island made only of divine ice. His slash had also badly wounded the creature, but it didn''t show any fear. The leader''s condition was pitiful. The slash had created large holes in its body and had severed entire pieces of its flesh. The Snake was more than seven hundred meters long, but it had turned into a maimed shape that barely had any living feature left. Noah''s attack had exposed the Snake''s organs. It had destroyed a third of its face and severed its clawed arms. Its body was a mess of broken flesh and holes that pierced it from side to side, but the creature didn''t appear worried. Dark matter began to acc.u.mulate near Noah again, and a shadow flew out of his space-ring. Snore''s hisses also echoed through the sky, but the Blood Companion didn''t reveal itself while its Master gathered power again. Noah''s instincts told him that something was off, so he didn''t hesitate to prepare another massive slash. However, the entire world began to tremble before he could finish gathering energy. The cracks created by the slash enlarged as earthquakes filled the whole world. Noah''s sharpness continued to open cuts in the environment, but that event didn''t depend on his attacks. The frozen landmasses rose toward the sky. Tall silver mountains formed in the world as the ice reacted to the Snakes'' leader intentions. Large chunks of ice separated from the mountains and shattered to take the form of thick ice-shards as they flew toward the leader. A storm soon covered the creature and hid it from Noah. Noah knew what was happening, so he couldn''t allow that process to continue. He pointed his blade toward the storm of ice-shards before performing multiple lunges that carried all the power acc.u.mulated until that moment. A series of sharp black pillars fell toward the ground and pierced the storm of ice-shards. The island made of divine ice shook under the might carried by Noah''s attack, but no cracks appeared on its surface. The storm quickly dispersed as Noah''s aura consumed it, but a figure shot out of it before the pillars could hit it. A dangerous sensation accompanied that vision, and Noah raised his sword to prepare for the imminent clash. The figure disappeared from the island, and Noah slashed at his side as he followed its movements. In an instant, the leader''s massive body appeared next to him and clashed with the Demonic Sword. The Snake didn''t deploy any special technique. It had reached that speed through its brute force, and cracks had opened in the sky after that jump. The world couldn''t endure its physical strength. Noah held the Demonic Sword with both his hands as he tried to endure the immense power that had landed on his arms. His blade had stopped the leader''s charge when its momentum was at its peak. That was the strongest physical attack that the Snake was capable of! The armors on his arms broke as Noah tried to fend the Snake off. Things would become dangerous if he let the creature gain the upper hand in the fight. Noah didn''t forget his first battle against that species. Eternal Snakes could chain leaps and attacks to generate a relentless offensive. He couldn''t end up in that situation against the quasi-rank 7 creature. His veins bulged, and the Demonic Sword roared as Noah mustered all the power inside him to endure the attack. A web of cracks opened from the spot where the blade and the Snake touched. The shockwaves released in their clash destroyed the sky''s fabric. That was the peak of a lower plane. Creatures below the divine ranks couldn''t wield a greater physical strength. Noah and the leader were showing the world what it meant to be at its apex! Noah began to slide in the air at some point. The Snake was still stronger than him when it came to its physical strength. The empowerment of his ambition and the innate superiority of his centers of power weren''t enough to make him match that quasi-divine creature. Yet, part of him had expected that outcome. Noah respected the divine ranks too much to let his new power blind him in front of the obvious. Noah was the best heroic cultivator in history, but the Snakes'' leader had taken a step into the divine ranks. Techniques and abilities were useless in front of a power that surpassed him in quality and quantity. His ambition made him defy logic, but divine creatures could defy laws. They were existences that stood among the very rules of the world in terms of power. Noah felt surprised when he saw the leader''s condition. He had been too focused on the clash to notice that its body had almost healed completely. He could barely find any injury on the creature. The ice-shards had recreated even the missing pieces of flesh. The Snakes'' leader could do what its underlings couldn''t. Its innate ability allowed it to regrow even the severed parts of its body. Noah didn''t think about anything when he noticed that feature. He noted down that piece of information and stored it in the back of his mind as he called for his hidden asset. He couldn''t let anything distract him in that situation. The slightest delay in his reactions could make him end up in a relentless series of attacks that he would have a hard time escaping. A massive reptilian head suddenly came out of Noah''s fiendish armor. Snore had formed inside the defensive layer made of dark matter and had remained hidden as it waited for a chance. The outcome of Noah''s first attack had shown him that he couldn''t kill the quasi-rank 7 creature in one blow. He could have a chance if he slashed from a short distance after completing his preparations, but Noah knew that the Snake would never allow that to happen. Noah needed another method to kill the Snake, and he could only think of his Blood Companion''s innate ability when he considered the destructiveness of his attacks. The dark beam was virtually unstoppable, and it was the perfect weapon against creatures of that species. Snore''s head grew as it came out of Noah''s armor. Its six horns began to gather elemental attacks and redirect their energy toward the Blood Companion''s mouth. The power that pushed Noah back suddenly disappeared as the leader leaped in the air before jumping again to assault its opponent. The Snake showed great agility and control of its massive body by performing two sprints in a row. Snore tilted its head while Noah closed his eyes to spread his mental waves in the area. A dark beam came out of the Blood Companion''s mouth as he laid the Demonic Sword on his forehead. The Snakes'' leader performed a sharp evasive maneuver when it sensed the dangerousness that accompanied the beam. The creature leaped again to dodge the attack, but a series of dark lines materialized in front of it when it changed direction. The dark lines didn''t wait for the Snake to crash on them. They flew toward the creature and opened cuts in multiple spots. Its mouth even became a bloody mess after their passage. Other black lines appeared in the area and pierced the leader in different spots. Noah launched all the attacks that he could muster, and Snore spat another dark beam aimed at the creature''s head. Yet, a storm of ice suddenly surged from the ground and engulfed the Snake. The power radiated by the ice even hid the leader''s presence. An entire frozen region had separated from the landmass and had flown in the sky to help the Snake. Chapter 1279: 1279. Head ''This won''t do,'' Noah thought as he stared at the storm of ice. Noah had confirmed that he owned stronger attacks. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake couldn''t match his offensive. That was one of the fields where magical beasts inevitably fell behind cultivators. Noah was almost able to match the creature''s physical might. The Snake didn''t have other attacks at its disposal, so Noah could overcome it with his sword arts, spells, and techniques. However, Noah''s prowess had a fatal weakness. The power that he expressed during that fight wasn''t his real strength. His ambition made him reach that level, but that empowerment had a time limit. Those limitations had become laxer after he reached the solid stage, but that feature didn''t vanish with his breakthrough. Noah would eventually go back to his real level, so he had to kill his opponent before that happened. The Snakes'' leader had a world''s worth of stashed energy. Except for the island made of divine ice, all the frozen lands were part of its innate ability. Noah didn''t know if his ambition would last until the Snake depleted that energy. Still, that was only the back-up plan. His main strategy saw him killing his opponent before its ability activated. ''I should slow it down at least,'' Noah thought as he stared at the storm. The world went dark for an instant. Black flames surrounded by a blinding silver halo had appeared in the environment when the light returned. Noah had decided to reveal his innate ability when he understood that he couldn''t kill his opponent quickly. The black flames struggled to affect the storm. That ice carried the leader''s aura and power, so they couldn''t burn it unless it lost most of its energy. Yet, there was plenty of extra energy in the environment. The world had even returned to a perfect state, so the flames could still be of some use. Noah''s fire burned the "Breath" in the environment and the smallest ice-shards as they surrounded the storm. Small flames then separated from the main attack and converged toward Noah to transfer their energy. The small damage suffered during the clash with the Snake healed in a few seconds. The extra energy remained inside the black hole, ready to assist Noah''s body whenever an injury appeared. The Snake eventually made its move. The creature leaped through the storm and flames to charge at Noah, but Snore didn''t hesitate to launch another black beam in its direction. The creature performed an evasive maneuver, and Noah created black lines on its path. More slashes then landed on its body, and Snore tilted its head to prepare its innate ability again. The Snake could only call upon its ice again. One of the frozen regions under the battlefield rose before breaking apart and engulfing the creature in a second storm. Snore launched its black beam, but Noah felt through the connection with the Blood Companion that the attack didn''t manage to touch the Snake. That exchange had ended up in the same way as the previous. Noah knew that he would lose if he let the Snake continue like that. Yet, he didn''t have anything else at his disposal. He had already used his innate ability, slashes, and Blood Companion. There was only one last card to play. The Eternal Snake came out of the storm again, and trails of ice followed the creature in its charge toward Noah. Snore launched a dark beam to force it to change direction, and Noah deployed his slashes again to interrupt its evasive maneuvers. The creature didn''t hesitate to rely on its innate ability again. The storm that followed it fused with the ice that had surged from the terrain to heal and hide it. Yet, a cry suddenly resounded from inside the storm, and Snore immediately aimed at the source of that sound. The dark beam destroyed everything on its path, and a second roar echoed through the sky once the attack crossed the barrage of ice. Noah still didn''t have a clear vision of his opponent, and the storm hindered his mental waves. Yet, he acc.u.mulated his power anyway and prepared for the Snake to appear again. He didn''t want to launch his strongest attack unless he was sure that he could kill his opponent. Normal injuries were useless against the Snake. Only a fatal blow could make a difference in that battle. Nothing happened for a few seconds. The storm closed the hole made by the dark beam and continued to hide the creature, but a third cry of pain soon echoed through the sky and gave away the Snake''s position. Night had followed the Snake inside the storm and had attacked it as soon as the ice hid it. The Pterodactyl didn''t have the power to kill the creature on its own, but it could counter the creature''s most annoying ability. The dark beam could hit the Snake when Night forced it to reveal its position. The creature didn''t even expect the attack to arrive, so it wouldn''t perform evasive maneuvers in that situation. The creature didn''t even want to come out of the storm because Noah''s slashes could reach it anywhere as long as he could lock his mental waves on its body. The Snake could only remain in a passive position when Noah relied on all his powerful assets. Noah''s excitement became more intense as he watched those exchanges. His instincts told him that he had a chance to kill the creature as long as he continued to fight like that. The Demonic Sword began to tremble and leak dark matter once it stuffed its structure with energy. Noah was ready to unleash his strongest attack, but he held back from slashing at the storm. The Snake had already survived that attack once. Its ice had saved it, and Noah didn''t know for how long Night could create those opportunities. The creature would eventually become used to that fighting style and use the ice differently. Noah had to kill the beast before that. He couldn''t waste his attack in another pointless destruction that would bring him back to square one. Noah waited until a roar resounded from inside the storm again. Snore immediately spewed its dark beam at that signal, and Noah used that attack as the path for his slash. The Demonic Sword descended, but nothing came out of it just yet. Noah straightened his blade and aligned it with the dark beam before pulling it back. Then, when the dark beam was about to end, Noah thrust the Demonic Sword forward, and a sharp storm of dark matter came out of it. Noah''s lunge used the hole created by the dark beam to fill the insides of the storm with his sharpness and destructive might. The attack enlarged the injuries created by Snore''s ability and made the creature release another cry. Night continued its silent offensive while darkness spread inside the storm. The dark matter helped the Pterodactyl''s ability and allowed it to express more power. Since the Snake didn''t stop screaming in pain, Noah and Snore could launch multiple attacks. Their offensive was relentless and precise, and pieces of the creature''s body vanished before the ice could even begin to heal the old injuries. The storm stopped raging at some point. The ice in the air fell back into the frozen ground, and a massive figure became visible among that debris. Noah could see the Snake falling together with the chunks of ice. The creature had lost its head and many other pieces of its body during the last exchanges. Chapter 1280: 1280. Divine The headless quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake fell onto a frozen region together with the remains of the storm. Its corpse was a mess of injuries and missing chunks of flesh, but Noah didn''t feel at ease at that sight. His instincts didn''t stop sending warning signals to his mind even after the Snake lost its head. Noah began to consider an unthinkable possibility, and he sprinted toward the falling corpse to prevent that from happening. Noah entered his dimension to reach the corpse, but a shockwave spread in the area and forced him to stop sprinting. The environment had transformed in the short time that Noah had spent inside his dimension. Entire regions had exploded to create storms that surrounded the corpse and protected it from anyone trying to reach it. More regions continued to explode. Noah felt eventually forced to retreat since a quarter of the world''s frozen lands had begun to shoot their ice into the sky to create storms around the Snake''s corpse. ''What is even happening?'' Noah wondered as he inspected the event from a safe position in the sky. The Snake didn''t activate any ability during the fall since it was technically death. The ice had started surging on its own. It was as if the world had decided to help the creature. ''If only I were slightly stronger,'' Noah cursed in his mind. The storms carried the leader''s power. They resembled proper attacks in the quasi-divine rank even if their might came only from the chunks of ice''s hardness. Noah would attempt to cross the storms if his body was on the same level as the leader. Yet, his physical strength was slightly weaker even with the empowerment of his ambition. He would be overwhelmed by the chunks of ice if he tried to reach the creature. Returning inside the separate dimension appeared to be the best option since he couldn''t predict what would happen once the storms quieted down. Still, Noah wanted to learn about the Snake''s abilities. Moreover, his ambition was still empowering his centers of power. Noah could fight while wielding the same prowess that had put the Snake in that condition. That situation didn''t sign the end of his attempts to kill the creature. Noah crossed his legs and sat in the air. He closed his eyes to expand his mind and call upon his power. Snore slithered out of the fiendish armor and wrapped its body around Noah. Energy moved on its horns as it completed the preparations for its dark beam. Night appeared and landed on Snore. The peculiar Pterodactyl was ready to fly toward the Snake as soon as it left the storms. The Blood Companion didn''t even mind its behavior since it prioritized that hunt''s success over its quarrels with the puppet. The Demonic Sword began to tremble as it rested on Noah''s lap. Dark matter began to leak from its shape after it stuffed its fabric with all the energy that it could contain. Noah''s ambition surged as he remained still. His individuality didn''t go through any explosive boost. It slowly became more intense as it spread in the environment and empowered everything it touched. Seconds lasted as if they were minutes. Noah waited for the storms to end as his whole being focused on a simple task. He had to kill the quasi-rank 7 Snake. Nothing else mattered. Cracks opened in the air around him as his sharpness became more intense. Noah was condensing the entirety of his individuality to complete one task, and his aura reacted to his mindset. His aura and mental waves became sharper. They destroyed the "Breath" in the area and filled the sky with primary energy. A dark sphere appeared above Noah at some point. The Black Hole spell began to grow as it absorbed the primary energy acc.u.mulated in the environment. Noah also surrounded his figure with a sea of saber-shaped runes that imitated the other spell. Copies of his fiendish armor slowly appeared next to him. Six of them formed and flew toward the Black Hole spell to wait to receive its energy. Noah had called upon his entire arsenal for that battle. He didn''t know how long it would take for the effects of his individuality to expire, but he would spend that remaining time without holding anything back. Pieces of ice began to fall on the terrain as the storms lost some of their intensity. The world slowly stabilized, and Noah opened his eyes when he sensed a strong presence at some distance from him. Noah could see the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake standing proudly on one of its frozen regions. All its injuries had healed during the storms. The ice had even rebuilt its entire head and all the missing pieces of flesh. That wasn''t everything. A thick layer of silver ice now covered the creature. Noah had already seen that ability, but the leader''s armor appeared far more powerful than the poor-looking ones deployed by the pack in the past. Noah had many questions. He had seen a magical beast coming back from the dead. His instincts had immediately told him that something was off, but that didn''t change how miraculous that ability was. The Snake didn''t die even after it had lost its head. Noah didn''t know if it could deploy that ability again or it had conditions attached to that unique feature. Yet, his mind stopped any thought that could divert his attention. The truth was that Noah didn''t care about the Eternal Snake in that situation. Part of him had accepted that he couldn''t defeat the creature in that battle, so he only wanted to go all-out. He would be ok with any outcome. The Snake sensed its peculiar mental state and roared to express that it viewed the battle in the same way. Noah was a worthy opponent in its mind, and it deserved to see everything it had. Noah straightened himself before waving his hand. His fingers left a black mark on the sky that opened to become a portal. Then, he stabbed his sword inside it. The Snake didn''t understand what Noah was doing, but an unstoppable force suddenly flung him downward. A portal had appeared behind its neck, and the Demonic Sword had come out to launch its attack. Noah didn''t release the energy that it contained. He had revealed the Warp spell to get an idea of the armor''s sturdiness, and what he discovered made his expression grow even colder. The Snakes'' leader was a quasi-divine creature. Its strongest techniques would strive toward the ranks beyond the heroic ones. The whole reason why it had reached that stage was that it had already taken a step into the seventh rank. However, its body was average for a creature on that level. Noah could almost match the creature''s physical strength, and that was unthinkable for a beast that was close to becoming a god. The Snake''s healing ability was incredible, but Noah had replicated it in no time. Still, that brim of divine power had to go somewhere, and Noah had placed his bet on the last skill used by the creature. Those storms had revived the Snake and built an armor. The first part would already be enough to step into the divine realm, but it seemed that the second one carried similar properties. The ice that made the armor surpassed the level of the leader. It was a proper divine material, which made its protection a divine item. Chapter 1281: 1281. All-out Noah didn''t need to think to know how that battle would end. The presence of a defensive item in the divine ranks could only lead to one outcome. A quasi-rank 7 creature was an opponent that Noah could overcome due to his ambition and the many advantages connected to his centers of power. However, the presence of a divine item changed everything. The Snake''s weakest feature had just become its strongest. The divine armor covered its entire body. Its assaults were now unstoppable. The dark beam had incredible destructive properties, but it couldn''t overcome such a difference in power. The dark matter had to evolve before it could make a dent in that armor. The same went for the rest of Noah''s abilities. Nothing he had could make up for that difference in power. He had been able to fight the Snake until now because most of his attacks carried might that defied logic. Still, the armor marked a point that he couldn''t cross at his current level. Noah didn''t retreat in front of that threat. His ambition became more intense as he analyzed the Snake and its divine item. The Snake''s power hinted at an important detail. The creature wasn''t a complete divine beast, so that armor was the best it could do. Noah even guessed that it couldn''t keep it active for a long time. Yet, the Snake had used only a quarter of the ice in the world to create that protection. Logic said that it could perform that technique three more times before it depleted its core material. Also, the actual power of the Snake didn''t change after it created its armor. The creature was still a beast that Noah could suppress even if there were an abyss of difference between their levels. The Snake would end up in a sorry state as long as Noah managed to cross the armor. That defensive item was troublesome, but he still had a chance to defeat his opponent. The divine armor had only three openings. The ice didn''t cover the Snake''s eyes and insides of its mouth, which left them exposed to the same attacks that had managed to suppress it before. Noah only had to prevent the Snake from summoning the storms again while aiming for a quick kill. If he succeeded, he could even test if his theory was on point. He didn''t believe that the Snake could rely on those techniques often. The armor and the reconstruction of its head were skills that went beyond lower realms, so there had to be a limit to how many of them it could perform. It was a simple matter of logic. The Snake wasn''t a divine being, so its divine techniques usually had drawbacks and limitations that Noah could exploit. The Snake lost its patience when it saw that Noah didn''t attack. The sudden blow from before left it slightly confused, but it was too angry at Noah to let him do as he pleased. The creature jumped forward, and massive cracks opened in the sky at its passage. Noah had prepared his arsenal beforehand, which gave him a good advantage against the beast. The only problem now was to use his weapons smartly. The Snake reached Noah''s position in an instant, but he was ready. The creature''s speed didn''t increase after the storms, so he knew exactly how fast it was. Noah could dodge and escape until he wielded enough power to defeat the creature without relying on strategies. However, he didn''t plan to leave the battlefield just yet. The sight of something in the divine ranks had ignited his desire to test himself. Noah raised his free hand, and the six fiendish giants flew next to him to help him in the task. The Snake arrived in an instant, but it found six pairs of clawed hands waiting for it. An immense force landed on Noah and shattered the armors protecting his right arm. Still, he didn''t suffer any injury at that time. The fiendish giants had eased the impact with the creature. Noah didn''t waste time. He pointed the Demonic Sword toward one of the eyes and lunged while unleashing all his acc.u.mulated power. The Snake didn''t have the time to dodge. It was still trying to fling Noah''s away when a torrent of dark matter pierced its eye and ravaged its insides. Noah''s assets didn''t let the other eye go. Snore bit the other side of the Snake''s head and released its dark beam. Night also moved and fused with the insides of the creature to unleash its destruction. The Snake screamed in pain, but Noah didn''t waste the moment when the creature opened its mouth. Two of his fiendish giants entered it and exploded to fill the creature''s body with a cloud of poisonous, corrosive smoke. The sea of saber-shaped runes followed the fiendish giants. They entered the Snake''s mouth and began to ravage everything they could. In an instant, Noah had unleashed the entirety of his arsenal on the creature. He did not doubt that his abilities would kill the Snake on the spot, but he was more interested in what happened afterward. The Snake began to fall toward the ground after that series of attacks. Yet, one of the fiendish giants grabbed it, and Snore coiled itself around it to restrain it. There was nothing but dark matter, corrosive smoke, and floating pieces of flesh inside the divine armor. Noah''s attacks had reduced its body into a messy pulp of blood and skin that were about to disappear due to the sharpness still lingering inside the divine item. However, the silver armor lit up before the last of the Snake''s tissues could disappear. A blinding light came out of it, and angry roars soon echoed through the sky. When the silver light disappeared, Noah could see that the Snakes'' leader had wholly reformed. All its injuries had disappeared, but the armor had paid the price for that restoration. The ice of the armor had become thinner after that round of healing. Noah could sense that it even expressed less power than before. Noah''s eyes lit up when he saw that. He now knew how to defeat the Snake. It could take a while, but he had a strategy, at least. The Snake leaped away and destroyed two fiendish giants with its charge. Then, it made a sharp turn to charge toward Noah again. Noah didn''t fear that attack. He could inflict more damage than the creature did, so he didn''t mind playing the target in that battle. Moreover, he felt too excited in that situation that he didn''t mind taking those blows head-on. The two remaining fiendish giants and Snore stepped forward to intercept the charge, and Noah raised his hand again to help in the task. However, his cultivation level suddenly dropped and reminded him that he didn''t own that power yet. ''Not now!'' Noah cursed in his mind as he threw every disposable attack at the creature. The Black Hole spell flew toward the Snake together with the two fiendish giants. Snore even helped them, but Night reappeared next to Noah and flew inside his space-ring. The giant uneven sphere exploded, but its power wasn''t suitable for that type of battle. Hitting the holes in the armor required precise and condensed attacks, and the Black Hole spell was the opposite of that. The fiendish giants and Snore did their best to stop the Snake. The copies even detonated when they saw that they couldn''t stop the creature anymore. When the Snakes'' leader managed to cross those hindrances, it saw only a human-shaped crack. It couldn''t sense Noah anywhere. Chapter 1282: 1282. Investment Noah returned inside the separate dimension after the battle. The effects of his ambition had run off mid-fight, but he had managed to escape. ''My ambition can''t last for so long,'' Noah concluded after he reviewed the battle. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake was weaker than him, but its resilience made it hard to defeat since his superior strength had a time limit. ''Three to four times for each divine armor,'' Noah calculated in his mind. ''The entire world should make it able to perform that ability only four times. I need to kill the Snake a minimum of twelve times to win this fight.'' Noah didn''t consider the things that could go wrong in his math. Battles on that level could be unpredictable, especially when it came to magical beasts and their instincts. The Snakes'' leader had never shown fear or worry during the fight. Even when Noah had found a way to counter the storms'' cloaking capabilities, it had always remained calm. Noah analyzed his opponent while he let his centers of power disperse the stress acc.u.mulated in the last battle. He reviewed every exchange and technique deployed in the fight, but the process always brought him the same conclusions. He could kill the Snake, but the creature had multiple lives. That made it almost impossible to defeat when Noah''s superior battle prowess had a time limit. Noah didn''t let that fact discourage him. Some strategies could make up for the flaws in his battle prowess. He only needed to find the correct tactic to defeat his opponent. ''I need to save energy while inflicting fatal blows,'' Noah thought as images formed in his mind. ''This fight might not be impossible if I plan every step carefully.'' Noah didn''t have any other option. The quasi-rank 7 Snake would probably be his last real opponent in the lower plane. After defeating the creature, he could only remain in his quarters and cultivate until his centers of power reached the divine ranks. Second Prince could still surprise him, but Noah couldn''t see him as a worthy opponent anymore. He would fight the Royal if the situation required it, but he wouldn''t hunt him. Defeating the Snake wasn''t a priority now that the world was safe, but Noah hated spending centuries in seclusion. Still, he had to accept that he had almost reached the limits of the heroic ranks, so the lower plane couldn''t offer him any other adventure. His decision to fight the Snake at his current level could only delay the inevitable, but Noah preferred to handle that matter before entering a long period of seclusion. Facing those struggles could make his power increase faster, and Noah never ignored those opportunities. Also, it was better to polish his individuality before improving it. That approach would reduce the chance of ending up with a flawed law. A scene had appeared inside Noah''s mind while he analyzed his issue. Two figures fought each other to the death while exchanging various blows that always led to different results. The two figures depicted Noah and the quasi-divine Snake. Noah imagined how the battle against the beast would go if he approached it in different ways. It didn''t matter for how long he reviewed that battle. Noah didn''t have many attacks that could kill the creature in one blow, which made his offensive limited. Having fewer attacks at his disposal made his offensive predictable. Moreover, Snore''s dark beam was one of those techniques, and the Snake could already dodge it often. Yet, the dark beam wasn''t the main issue in that fight. Noah''s attacks performed well, especially when he considered that his real level was nowhere near the Snake. The main problem was the time that passed between one exchange and the other. Noah''s offensive had to stop whenever the storms surrounded the Snake. Night had managed to counter that ability a few times, but it didn''t solve the issue. ''It would be great if I could just charge through them,'' Noah thought, and the images of the storms appeared in his vision. The pieces of ice carried by the storms were quasi-rank 7 materials. Their sturdiness stood on the limits of a lower plane. The Snake even had a divine armor that made it quite troublesome to fight. ''My body is too strong to have a classification,'' Noah thought as he continued to consider his options, ''But I know that it''s better than magical beasts and hybrids. It shouldn''t even be hard to make it able to endure those attacks.'' Noah had barely stepped into the last part of the sixth rank. His centers of power were only at the beginning of that stage, so they could become far stronger before the inevitable jump to the divine ranks. He was almost able to match the Snake''s physical power, which showed how strong his body was. If he managed to improve it enough to surpass the creature''s level, he would cross the storms and spare a lot of time during the fight. ''It shouldn''t be hard to reach that level,'' Noah thought as the stuffed winged beast materialized in front of him. Hunting couldn''t bring Noah any valuable resource since only a few rank 6 creatures had remained in the world. The quasi-rank 7 Snake even ate them from time to time, so Noah would have a hard time finding suitable prey. However, he had the stuffed winged beast at his disposal. He had always avoided eating its skin because his breakthroughs required an immense quantity of energy. Still, that resource appeared to be perfect for his situation. Noah wouldn''t even lose his stash of quasi-divine flesh if he ate the winged beast. Using that stuffed creature could give him access to the quasi-rank 7 Snake, which was far more intact. He wouldn''t lose the resource needed for the breakthroughs since consuming the winged beast was an investment toward a greater hunt, a mission that could bring him an entire quasi-divine creature. The more Noah thought about that, the more he felt convinced that eating the winged beast was the right choice. He could deploy a completely different offensive against the snake as long as he surpassed its physical strength. He wouldn''t fear its attacks anymore. His slashes would also improve since they depended on his physical strength. The next battle could be the last if he went there after his body grew. ''No time to waste then,'' Noah thought as he stood up and wielded his Demonic Sword. He had decided to eat what remained of the winged beast and spend some time training. His other centers of power also needed to improve. A better foundation would produce better effects with his ambition. The Demonic Sword touched the stuffed creature''s skin as Noah pointed it toward that resource. The world of laws appeared in his eyes as attacks started to come out of his blade. Glass-like shards fell on the ground as the stuffed beast lost pieces of its skin. Noah peeled all the tissues that Shandal had ignored when he seized that creature. Once the entirety of the stuffed beast had turned into nothing more than an empty bust, Noah sat on the floor and began to eat its skin. Inside his mind, the imaginary figures of him and the Snake continued to fight. Noah had decided that he would kill the quasi-rank 7 Snake in his next fight, so he didn''t hesitate to imagine a simulation of that battle. **** Author''s notes: The other chapters will arrive after I wake up. Chapter 1283: 1283. Fear A quasi-rank 7 creature was the best food for a body in the upper tier. The stuffed winged beast only had its skin left, but that resource could boost Noah''s power by a lot. Ordinary magical beasts would find it hard to digest a resource on that level, but Noah''s body didn''t have those limits. His black hole also helped in that process and made him absorb the energy contained in the winged beast''s skin in no time. Still, the actual improvement of his tissues arrived slowly. The black hole had to purify the energy absorbed from the skin and redirect it to every corner of his body. Then, it had to harmonize that growth so that Noah could obtain the best out of that process. Noah mostly trained while his body grew, but his mind continued to imagine battles against the Snakes'' leader during the whole process. That type of mental training would generally fail to reproduce the true might of a creature. Yet, Noah had studied the Eternal Snakes for entire centuries by then. His knowledge allowed him to create perfect simulations and even predict situations that he didn''t trigger during the last fight. The leader''s battle style wasn''t hard to understand. Its attacks consisted of a relentless assault that made use of the flexibility of its body. Its offensive was also reckless due to its confidence in its innate ability. Noah had calculated that he would have to kill the Snake a minimum of twelve times. His opponent wasn''t the leader alone. He had to force it to consume all the ice acc.u.mulated in the world. Part of him understood how King Elbas felt after he returned from the void of the separate reality. The Royals'' leader had to fight an entire world set on killing him, but he triumphed due to his nigh-endless reserves of energy. Noah''s situation was slightly different but also quite similar. Even with his ambition, his sheer power couldn''t reach the levels that King Elbas had shown in the past. Still, he was getting there. ''I will be far stronger than him once I reach the true peak of the heroic ranks,'' Noah thought as the images in his mind dispersed. He had finally completed his mental training. He knew exactly how he had to fight the leader. Now he only had to apply those plans in the battle. Noah came out of the separate dimension once his body had absorbed the nutrients. He didn''t have to prepare anything else. He only had to win now. The world had returned to its previous frozen state in the years that Noah had spent inside the separate dimension. The Snakes'' leader had spread its silver liquid again to restore the regions destroyed in the battle. The frozen landmass had expanded. The creature''s ice now reached deeper into the sea. It seemed that the Snake wouldn''t be satisfied until the entire world turned into ice. That sight didn''t discourage Noah. If his strategy worked, he wouldn''t have problems killing the Snake more times. His ambition had a time limit, but it could last enough if he minded his reserves of energy. Noah''s aura grew as he stared at the layer of ice that stood in his way to the sky. His ambition surged and pushed the level of his centers of power beyond their limits, and spells activated on their own as he prepared for the imminent battle. Corrosive smoke and dark matter seeped out of his skin to create two layers of his fiendish armor. The Demonic Sword flew out of his space-ring to land on his hand, and Night merged with the environment to prepare its surprise attacks. Snore formed inside the armor made of higher energy, and the Black Hole spell materialized above Noah''s head. A sea of saber-shaped runes also flew out of his hands and began to absorb the primary energy created after his aura spread in the environment. The copies didn''t appear. Noah had used them during his previous battle to match the leader''s physical strength, but he didn''t need them anymore. They were only a waste of energy against that opponent. The roars of the Snakes'' leader resounded above him after his aura expanded. The creature had noticed the arrival of its annoying opponent, and it cried its impatience to resume their battle. Noah could sense from its tone that the creature considered him a worthy contender for the throne of the world. Even the Snake wanted to see who was the strongest existence in that lower plane. A surge of dark matter came out of Noah''s living weapon after he pointed it at the ice above him. The attack dug a smooth tunnel where Noah flew to reach the surface. The Snake was already filling the sky with its silver liquid when Noah resurfaced. He wasn''t the only one capable of preparing his attacks, and the leader wouldn''t hold anything back after it accepted Noah as a worthy opponent. Noah''s aura continued to surge after he reached the surface. His ambition finished empowering his centers of power while he observed the magical beast preparing the battlefield. His dantian reached the peak of the sixth rank and stopped growing, but his mind and body acted oddly after they touched the same level. His ambition didn''t stop empowering them after they reached that point, but it seemed unable to push them beyond the limits of the heroic ranks. Yet, the empowerment didn''t stop. Noah felt the limits of his mind and body bending to accept that extra power, and a feeling of completeness filled him once their level rose again. Noah could feel it. His mind and body had reached the absolute peak of the sixth rank in that situation. Even a tiny whiff of energy would be enough to make them step inside the divine realm. No thoughts surged in Noah''s mind as he observed his opponent. His mental sea was calm since he knew exactly what he had to do. The difficulty in that fight consisted of being as perfect as possible. Silver rain started to fall from the vast cloud in the sky, but Noah ignored that event. The corrosive smoke coming out of his armor was enough to destroy the drops that fell in his direction, and he didn''t care about the ice in the environment. Getting rid of the cloud was a waste of energy. Killing the Snake would force it to use the ice in the environment anyway. Noah began to walk toward the Snake as his corrosive smoke spread through the landmass, and the ice crumbled under the deadly properties of the Demonic Form. His current level allowed his spell to counter the creature''s innate ability perfectly. The Snakes'' leader could notice that Noah had improved, but it didn''t reveal any fear. The ice''s best quality wasn''t its sturdiness in the end, and it could always make more of it. Frozen structures formed on the world, but Noah limited himself to walk toward his opponent. The Snake couldn''t use its ice to hide anymore. The smoke of the Demonic Form created holes in every defensive layer that divided the two of them. Entering the deeper parts of a lair wasn''t a smart move, especially when it came to magical beasts capable of creating battle strategies. Yet, Noah wouldn''t waste his limited attacks to force his opponent out of its safe area. Noah could sense something moving through the ice around him, but he kept going. He knew that the Snake would attack at any moment, which would mark the start of his strategy. A crack suddenly opened in the ice above him, and a massive figure dived through the corrosive smoke to crash on Noah''s head. However, a clawed hand suddenly appeared in its path. The leader felt surprised when it sensed its momentum dispersing. Noah had managed to stop its charge with one hand, and his claws had stabbed its mouth to keep the creature locked in that position. Then, a chill ran down the leader''s spine when Noah''s reptilian eyes landed on it. A crack opened on his fiendish armor to form a devilish smile that made the Snake tremble in fear. Chapter 1284: 1284. Storms and blackness The Snake could understand that something was off, but it couldn''t do anything in that situation. Noah was keeping it stuck in its grasp. The creature had to tear its mouth apart to escape. Noah wouldn''t let it do as it wished. Each second spent in that situation was time that he couldn''t use to fight, so he didn''t hesitate to raise his sword to attack the restrained beast. The Demonic Sword pierced the creature''s scales and dug its skin before releasing a torrent of dark matter that destroyed its insides. The attack engulfed the beast''s skull and came out from its back. The Snake lost the upper part of its head after a single attack. Slashes capable of a large area of effect were pointless against that opponent. Noah only needed to be precise and deadly. The frozen lands in the world surged toward the sky when they sensed the Snake''s death. A storm made of large chunks of ice engulfed the duo and separated them. Ice crashed on Noah and flung him away. His corrosive smoke couldn''t prevent those chunks from hitting him, but they only managed to crack his armor when they landed on his body. The dark matter that surrounded his figure began to freeze, but the armor forcefully expanded to create the dark world and prevented any chunk from reaching Noah''s position. Noah''s physical strength was above the Snake now, but the storm could still hinder his movements, and he couldn''t let that happen. He couldn''t let the creature stall. The dark world enhanced Noah''s awareness and allowed him to sense the traces left by the creature. The storm had already hidden the Snake''s aura, but it had yet to cover the smell of blood lingering in the air. Noah sprinted forward, and the dark world condensed in the form of a fiendish armor before he entered his dimension. The shockwaves released by the storm attempted to stop his movement technique, but Noah fended that pressure off by relying on his physical might. A presence eventually appeared in the dark environment. Noah quickly came out of his dimension and saw countless ice-shards converging toward the corpse of the Snake that floated in the air. Noah couldn''t reach it in time to stop the healing process, but the same didn''t apply to his assets. A giant reptilian head came out of his armor and spat a dark beam toward the motionless creature. Snore''s violent energy engulfed the quasi-rank 7 Snake and created a massive hole in its head. The ice acc.u.mulated until that moment crumbled, but more frozen lands separated from the ground to help the creature. It was as if the Eternal Snake was the favored son of the world. Every piece of ice in the plane worked for the creature and tried its best to revive it. Another storm crashed on Noah and flung him away, but he deployed the dark world again to resume his assault. In the many strategies that he had played inside his mind, the best one saw the Snake depleting all the ice without being able to revive. Of course, that was only the best possible outcome. Noah had created multiple strategies before the battle, so he could adapt his approach according to the creature''s reactions. Noah charged forward until the Eternal Snake appeared in his vision again. Snore''s head came out of his armor and launched another dark beam, and the ability successfully interrupted the healing process. The ice began to radiate an ominous aura at that point. It seemed to have its own mind, and it didn''t like that Noah kept interrupting the Snake''s revival. Entire frozen regions shot in the sky and aimed for him while giving birth to raging storms. Chunks of ice as big as mountains flew in his direction and crashed on his figure before shattering into a wave of smaller ice-shards. Even Noah''s new physical might didn''t allow him to fend off those attacks. He inevitably lost his momentum as he tried to stop himself from crashing on the ground. His saber-shaped runes had remained outside of the battlefield before that moment, but they flew to help Noah when he remained entangled in the storm of ice. The dark sabers turned into smoke that seeped through the storm before condensing into a solid form once they reached Noah. They then flew toward him and began to rotate to open a path where he could escape. The saber-shaped runes had arrayed themselves to create a drill-like structure that Noah followed to leave the storm. Many of them broke in the process, but they succeeded in making Noah reach a safe area. Storms raged in the distance. Noah knew that his opponent was inside them, but he couldn''t avoid what was about to happen. He knew what would come out from that violent mass of ice. An angry roar suddenly echoed through the sky. A giant figure shot out of the storm and charged at Noah while releasing more silver liquid. The divine armor had appeared around the creature. Ice covered its entire body except for its eyes and the insides of its mouth without affecting its flexibility. The battle had already reached the point when Noah couldn''t abuse his physical superiority anymore, but he didn''t mind it. He calmly accepted that his first strategy had failed and that it was time to deploy the next one. The chunks of ice that the Snake didn''t use during its revival flew alongside the creature. Noah''s opponent had also begun to fight differently after their last clash, but there was a limit to how much its fighting style could change. Noah didn''t show any fear and charged at the incoming beast without entering his dimension. It was in his interest to clash with the Snake, so he didn''t let it lose track of him. Cracks opened in the sky as the two charged toward each other. The Snake radiated a silver light due to its armor and the storm following it. Its assault made even the world tremble due to its connection with the frozen lands. Noah radiated pure blackness. Corrosive smoke flew out of him and created a giant dark cloud as he charged toward his opponent. His spell had already covered most of the sky behind him during those short seconds. The Snake lowered its head and flipped its body in the instant before the clash. Its massive tail swung toward Noah while carrying a wave of ice with it. The creature had learnt from its past mistakes. Noah could kill it while it was inside the divine armor. Yet, the back of the defensive layer didn''t have any opening, so it could attack its opponent safely. Noah didn''t slow down his charge at that sight. His cold eyes analyzed the tail for an instant before focusing again on his opponent''s head. He couldn''t waste time against a material that he couldn''t break. He had to remain focused on the spots where his weapons could inflict some damage. The chunks of ice flying together with the tail suddenly crumbled as a shadow moved past them. Snore even came out of Noah''s armor and hissed as it rose toward the massive tail. A loud clash happened between the Snake''s tail and Noah''s puppets, but he didn''t even look in their direction. He flew past the creature''s body and reached its head, where he stabbed his blade in one of the openings. Then, a storm of dark matter filled the insides of the divine armor. That was the fourth death experienced by the Snake in the battle. Chapter 1285: 1285. Entire world Noah was unstoppable. Obtaining a superior physical strength made the Snake powerless against him. The storms could slow down his assaults, but they only ended up delaying the inevitable. The divine armor didn''t budge, but Noah''s attack destroyed everything inside it. The surge of dark matter would normally sever only a chunk of the creature''s body, but it managed to do far more damage in that close area. The ice in the world began to tremble after the Snake died for the fourth time. The ominous aura radiated by that material became more intense and forced more frozen regions to shoot in the sky. The ice appeared alive. It reacted to the creature''s condition and didn''t hesitate to fill the sky with storms when it sensed that its creator was suffering. Noah knew that the ice and the Snake had a tight connection, but he didn''t expect that material to overreact to the creature''s condition. Some worry appeared inside him. That was only the fourth death, but half of the world''s frozen lands had already flown in the sky. Noah couldn''t imagine what would happen once that number increased. However, that situation didn''t only benefit the Snake. Noah had initially calculated that the creature would have depleted that amount of ice after its sixth death. Instead, it seemed that the battle would last less than he expected. That could only benefit him. A shorter battle would remove most of the uncertainties that accompanied his strategies. After all, Noah could lose only if the effects of his ambition ran off. He had already confirmed that the Snake was weaker than him. Frozen mountains flew in the air and converged toward Noah while ice-shards flowed inside the divine armor to revive the Snake. The ice didn''t want him to interfere with the healing process, and he had already accepted that he couldn''t avoid ending up far away. A silver mountain crashed on him, and cracks appeared on its surface before it broke into a series of large chunks of ice that spread through the sky. The ominous aura suddenly became more intense while Noah flew away, and his fiendish smile widened when he sensed that. Night had hidden inside the armor before the storm arrived. The Pterodactyl confirmed through its connection with Noah''s mind that it had killed the creature while it was about to revive. Noah eventually managed to stop himself and charge toward the massive storm again. Half of the world had fallen into chaos. Still, that was the only possible outcome of a battle between existences at the peak of a lower plane. More ice surged in the sky and fused with the storm that continued to rage above the frozen lands and sea. Snore had to appear in the open to help Noah fending off the giant silver chunks that flew around the reviving creature. Something different was happening inside the storm at that time, but Noah didn''t have time to waste. Snore launched a dark beam that opened a tunnel through the ice and allowed him to fly directly toward the divine armor in the distance. Pieces of flesh and organs had begun to appear inside the armor, and Noah could even see the spots that Night had cut during its surprise attack. He purposely slowed down his charge when that scene entered his vision. Noah wanted more ice to acc.u.mulate inside the armor so that the Snake''s losses would increase after he destroyed its body. The storm noticed Noah and tried to launch giant frozen boulders in his direction, but Snore appeared again and stopped most of them. The remaining chunks of ice crashed on his body but were unable to do anything. Noah reached the Snake when a good part of its skeleton, tissues, and muscles had reformed. He stabbed the Demonic Sword inside one of the openings in the armor and released another lunge. The attack filled the armor''s insides with a raging dark matter that destroyed everything on its path. That incomplete body couldn''t do anything to stop that destruction. The Snake''s sixth death arrived, and the ice understood that it couldn''t stop Noah if it continued to hold back. The world began to tremble as all the frozen regions rose in the sky and converged toward the divine armor. Noah felt fear when he saw pieces of ice as big as the old continents flying in his direction. He couldn''t avoid that attack even if he used his movement technique to shoot high in the sky. The frozen regions were too big to escape from them. His Demonic Sword began to tremble as Noah turned. Dark matter seeped out of his blade and began to rotate around it. Noah wielded the Demonic Sword with both hands and raised it above his head as he focused on one of the huge pieces of ice flying in his direction. Part of the dark matter coming out of his blade created a vertical trail of dense smoke that appeared fused with the weapon. When the massive piece of ice was about to hit him, Noah slashed, and a black line appeared in front of him. The attack divided the frozen land in half and allowed Noah to remain still while those two silver chunks surpassed him and converged toward the divine armor. An intense shockwave spread in the sky after all the giant pieces of ice crashed on the Snake''s position. A storm of ice-shards and debris flung Noah away, but he managed to stop himself when he was still close enough to inspect that event. The central areas of the storm condensed and morphed. The ice that had previously covered the whole world had now gathered in the same spot to give birth to a new ability. Noah could only prepare for the worst as he waited for the Snake to come out. He couldn''t charge at the storm when they contained all the ice in the world. His physical strength was immense, but he would need to have a divine body to deal with those hindrances. The storm quieted down after its central parts condensed, and the ice flying in the external areas also fell to fuse with that giant body. A massive silver mountain appeared in the sky once the process ended, and Noah couldn''t even see its summit due to its immensity. The ice began to morph again after that structure became stable. The mountain stretched, and a reptilian head soon appeared among those vague features. Clawed arms grew from its bottom, and a tail soon became visible on its back. The mountain further condensed then, and its vague features became more detailed as they took the aspect of the Eternal Snake. All the ice generated through the leader''s innate ability had condensed in that area to create a massive armor. The Snake had now become almost as big as half of the old continents. It was immense. Noah could only modify the strategies in his mind at that sight. He knew that the Snake would show something else once it neared its death, but he didn''t expect it to summon all the ice in the world. Luckily for him, the new armor wasn''t a divine item. It exuded the same level of power as the Snakes'' leader. Chapter 1286: 1286. Digging The divine armor didn''t disappear after the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake created that giant layer of protection. Noah could sense the divine aura flowing out of that immense amount of ice, so he could guess that the creature was somewhere inside that silver shell. The already big Snakes'' leader had transformed into a giant mass of ice that had its shape. That sight would normally scare away most of its opponents, but Noah didn''t let the view of that new ability discourage him. ''I can still kill it,'' Noah thought as he stared at the creature. He had prepared his attacks while he waited for the transformation to end. He wanted to be ready for any ability the Snake decided to deploy, but he didn''t expect that the creature would help him. The ice created by the creature''s silver liquid had gathered into one place now. Noah wouldn''t need to kill the Snake multiple times anymore. Defeating it in that new form would be enough to win that battle. The Snake had solved his greatest weakness by taking that form. The ability had obviously empowered the creature, but Noah saw that as an opportunity to end the battle more quickly. Noah didn''t need to mind his energy anymore now that he only had to win once. He could attack without caring about his time limits. The battle had fallen into the field that he preferred. The Black Hole spell flew out of the sea to reach Noah. The spell had become a giant unstable sphere after acc.u.mulating primary energy through the entirety of the battle. Its power almost crossed the limits of the heroic ranks, and its flares opened cracks in the very fabric of the sky. Noah didn''t need anything else in that situation. His puppets, the Demonic Sword, and the fully-charged Black Hole spell were his strongest assets, and he had to focus his energy on the best he had to offer to win that battle. He had to pierce a world worth of ice in the next exchanges. He couldn''t waste energy into abilities that could only dent that massive protection. Large chunks of ice fell when the giant armor opened its mouth. A deafening roar came out of the ice. Large cracks opened in the sky due to the shockwave that accompanied that sound. Blood rose through Noah''s throat after the shockwave swept his figure. His armor had protected his external tissues, but it could only block part of the pressure that landed on his internal organs. ''This form isn''t just for show then,'' Noah thought as he evaluated the power carried by the roar. The Snake had been unable to hurt him before because his superior physical strength made him overwhelm the creature. However, it seemed that the ice didn''t only protect the Snake. It even improved its body in that form. The tables had turned once again. The Snake had reclaimed its spot as the strongest creature in the lower plane when it came to physical power. Noah wouldn''t be able to fight it as easily as before, but his plans didn''t change at that discovery. Nothing had changed. Noah had already been able to kill the Snake when its physical strength surpassed his. He had lost due to the time limit on his power back then. Still, the situation had evolved in his favor now. The Snake began to move after its roar stopped echoing in the sky. The world trembled whenever its tail moved, and cracks opened due to the power released during its flight. The creature contained enough energy to cover the entire world. It was only normal for the sky to being unable to withstand its pressure. Noah sprinted ahead. He entered his dimension and came out only when he was on top of the massive creature. His Demonic Sword was already pointing downward as he descended toward the Snake''s head. The quasi-rank 7 creature had become far slower after it had taken that form. It couldn''t move freely with that amount of ice above its body, and its mind wasn''t nearly strong enough to control the protection well. Noah landed on the Snake''s head before the creature even noticed his presence. His Demonic Sword dug through the ice without any problem. Yet, the blade was too small to do anything on that armor. No special attack came out of it. Noah held back from using his strongest slashes in this situation since he had to wait for a more suitable spell. The Snake eventually sensed that Noah had landed on its head. The creature opened its mouth again and released another deafening cry that made him spit a mouthful of blood once the shockwave swept him. Then, its tail cracked toward Noah, and he didn''t even try to dodge the attack. He didn''t want to lose its momentum, and he didn''t mind suffering a few injuries if that led to a victory against the strongest creature in the plane. The Snake slammed its tail on its head. A storm of ice-shards filled Noah''s vision before Snore came out of his armor and launched a dark beam toward the incoming attack. The dark beam created a tunnel in the spot of the giant armor that was about to hit Noah. He didn''t even need to move since he ended up inside that hole while the tail landed on the creature''s head. Shockwaves hit Noah while he kept both hands on the Demonic Sword stabbed in the ice. He couldn''t let the Snake flinging him away in that battle. The hunt required a lot of work at that time, and he couldn''t lose his momentum. Noah smiled while he remained surrounded by silver ice. The tail eventually rose and freed him from that place, and he could see that the giant unstable sphere had finally reached his position. The Black Hole spell crashed directly on the Snake''s head. Noah didn''t mind that the explosion would hit him too. He would suffer more injuries in that exchange, but he didn''t mind that as long as he could reach the center of that armor. The giant sphere landed on the armor''s head and exploded, engulfing everything in the range of its attack. The sky and the ground trembled due to the shockwave that it had released after the detonation. Noah felt an intense force landing on his body and tearing his armor apart. The ice suffered from the same fate. The Black Hole spell destroyed a large chunk of the creature''s head. The divine aura coming out of that armor became more intense after the Black Hole spell dug deeper into that defensive ability. Noah understood that he had taken a step toward the Snake when he sensed it, and the fiendish armors promptly covered his figure again as he prepared his offensive. Noah almost puked, and blood flew out of the many superficial injuries that had appeared on his body. However, he was still at his peak. His resilience wasn''t something that a single spell and a few roars could affect. The Demonic Sword came out of that spot as Noah flew where the divine aura was more intense. That would work as his starting point. He would dig through the armor from there. Chapter 1287: 1287. Slamming Noah reached the spot where the divine aura was more intense and stabbed his weapon into the ice. The Demonic Sword released a sharp wave of dark matter that dug through the creature''s protection and opened large cracks around the impact point. His free hand grabbed one side of the nearest crack before he pulled to tear it open. Chunks of ice fell and crumbled under the effects of his Demonic Form as Noah made his way through the giant armor. The Snake found it had to aim for Noah while he dug through its armor. He was too small for its new form, and its roars didn''t manage to slow down his offensive. Yet, the creature didn''t just stay still while Noah attempted to take its life. If its tail couldn''t reach him, it would use the environment to its advantage. The Snake lowered its head and dived toward the world. The ice had destroyed most of the previous lands when it acc.u.mulated around the creature, so the duo soon found themselves underwater. Noah could sense what was happening around him, but he didn''t do anything to dodge the attack. He stabbed his Demonic Sword into the sturdiest piece of ice that he found and prepared himself for the imminent impact. The Snake slammed its head on the seabed. The rocky ground at the bottom of the sea crumbled under the might of the blow. Magma soon rose from the cracks opened after the impact. Noah felt his insides churning due to the pressure that reached his body. His bones released screeching noises, and his muscles broke as he focused on remaining attached to the Demonic Sword. Blood came out of his mouth, and his black hole redirected most of the energy it contained toward the damaged tissues. Noah had begun to suffer serious injuries, but his offensive had to continue. Snore came out of his armor and launched its dark beam toward the trace of divine aura leaking out of the armor while Noah focused on stabilizing his condition. A large tunnel opened, and he crawled through it as he searched for the Snake''s actual body. Corrosive smoke acc.u.mulated in that environment and destroyed all the ice that it found. Since Noah''s ambition was still applying its effects, the Demonic Form could consume that powerful material. The Snake raised its head and resurfaced before flying in the sky. It then lowered its head again before diving toward the seabed. That was its only effective offensive method, so it didn''t hesitate to perform it whenever it could. Noah ripped pieces of the armor apart and stabbed his Demonic Sword in the ice again when he sensed that the impact was near. An intense shockwave resounded in the environment at some point, and he could feel the same pressure as before landing on his body. Blood flowed everywhere as Noah straightened himself and resumed his assault. His condition kept worsening, but that was the only approach that could lead him to victory. The seabed shattered again, and magma came out of the cracks that had opened due to that offensive. The world didn''t appear able to withstand the amount of power released in that attack. The immense resilience of Noah''s body allowed him to express his peak power even when injuries filled his tissues. His black hole even began to spread dark matter inside him to stabilize and reinforce his condition. The fourth center of power knew that Noah wanted to put an end to that battle now. He wouldn''t have a better chance to defeat the Snake anytime soon otherwise. The Snake began to resurface again, but that area of the sky went dark as Noah released his flames. Black fire radiating a blinding silver halo spread through the many cavities opened in the giant armor and came out of the ice once it filled that space. The fire burned the weaker chunks of ice before converging toward Noah to heal his injuries and transfer the energy that it had absorbed. Flames soon surrounded Noah''s figure and closed his injuries. The wounds that had acc.u.mulated on his body healed before the creature could reach the summit of the sky. Noah''s new innate ability could show its real power now that it managed to burn the ice. He could achieve the same degree of immortality as the other Eternal Snakes in that situation. The quasi-rank 7 Snake didn''t have many options. Noah was deep into its armor, so it could only continue to slam its head on the seabed to take care of that threat. The impacts with the seabed injured Noah every time. His armor often broke due to the violence of the crashes. Yet, he always managed to make some progress in his excavations. The Demonic Form''s corrosive smoke and his fire opened large paths through the ice and made sure that the falling chunks would turn into nothing more than dust. Noah didn''t want to defeat that technique only to go back to the previous type of battle. He couldn''t let the Snake revive after he had invested so much energy in that fight. Noah found it easy to dig through the ice with the Demonic Sword and Snore. His slashes and lunges always managed to sever and piece large pieces of the armor, and the dark beam had yet to find a material that could stop it. Part of the sea turned red due to the magma that had reached the surface. The creature''s relentless dives had created a large passage connected to the central parts of the world. The dives became more intense after Noah dug for almost half of the giant armor. The Snake could sense that its opponent was about to reach its body, and its survival instincts began to take control of its actions. The Snake continued to rise and dive, changing spot whenever all the seabed under it fell into the magma. Cracks in the sky opened as it accelerated its movements to slam its head more times. Noah eventually reached the center of the armor. Injuries kept acc.u.mulating on his body and healing, but he ignored that annoying process when he saw the divine armor and the Snake''s real body inside it. The creature tried to escape through the ice when it saw its opponent, but Noah''s brute strength surpassed the advantages that the Snake had in that situation. It was its ice in the end. It was only normal for the material to move at its passage. Noah flew toward the Snake and clutched his clawed hands on a handhold on the divine armor. He then crawled to reach the creature''s head and stab his Demonic Sword into one of the eyes. Snore quickly materialized to take care of the other eye, and the two launched their abilities. A wave of dark matter entered the divine armor and went wild. The higher energy carried Noah''s sharpness, his power, and the energy radiated by the living weapon. Snore launched its dark beam and cleared the insides of the divine armor. Nothing could escape the violent energy released after the attack. Noah spat a wave of flames again, and the corrosive smoke continued to destroy ice as it spread in the environment. The divine armor also became thinner as it tried to revive the creature. Snore didn''t let the Snake reform, and more divine ice vanished to fuel its revival. Ice also separated from the giant armor to create gales that aimed to fling Noah away from that important location. Night revealed its presence at that point. A shadow flew through the barrage of ice and rendered it harmless. That small storm crumbled against the Pterodactyl. Noah and Snore continued to attack the Snake and destroy the ice. The effects of his ambition had begun to run off, but he didn''t stop his offensive. The divine armor crumbled after the Snake died four more times, but the ice around it converged toward its position and tried to start another healing process. Noah didn''t care about that and continued to launch slashes and lunges toward the powerless creature. The ominous aura radiated by the ice eventually vanished, and he couldn''t see ice-shards converging toward the Snake anymore. When he succeeded in storing the maimed corpse of the creature, Noah knew that he had won. Chapter 1288: 1288. Monster The ominous aura was no more. Noah had even managed to store the maimed corpse of the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake. The only possible conclusion was that the creature wasn''t alive anymore. Noah didn''t believe that at first. The Eternal Snake had come back from the dead so many times that he felt skeptical about its actual death. However, his instincts soon reassured him, and the ice appeared to have lost the drive that characterized its peculiar behavior. The giant frozen structure had stopped moving, and it soon fell while carrying Noah with it. The drawbacks of his ambition began to hit his centers of power. Noah felt weak, weaker than he had felt in years. That battle had utterly drained him, but the dark matter released by his black hole filled his body with a refreshing feeling. The black hole wouldn''t allow him to collapse on the spot, but it couldn''t heal him either. Even his new flames couldn''t fix his current condition since his tiredness didn''t come from injuries. Only a long rest could disperse the stress acc.u.mulated by his centers of power. The injuries would arrive if Noah continued to use them without getting rid of the fatigue that they had acc.u.mulated. Those wounds wouldn''t even be easy to treat. Stress was tricky to deal with when it came to centers of power, and Noah wasn''t an exception. He had a few advantages in the field due to the dark matter and his innate superiority, but he couldn''t overwork himself for too long either. ''I need to stop fighting like this,'' Noah thought as he raised his head and pointed his feet on the platforms of "Breath" that cultivators used to fly. The massive frozen structure stopped falling after the area that had witnessed Noah''s battle landed on his palm. There was enough ice to cover entire regions in that maimed armor, but Noah could keep it in the air even in his weakened condition. The Eternal Snake had consumed its divine armor to revive a few times, so only the quasi-rank 7 ice remained in the area now. Still, that material carried the same energy of its body, so Noah could eat it to absorb its nutrients. His gains in that battle surpassed his wildest expectations. The entire frozen structure had enough ice to revive the Snake five to six times, but now it belonged to Noah. It was as if he had obtained more than six complete quasi-rank 7 corpses after winning that fight. Noah couldn''t store the ice as long as it kept that shape. His space-rings weren''t big enough to contain that giant structure, and its power also went beyond what they could hold. Yet, Noah didn''t have to hide anymore now that the Snakes'' leader had died. His victory had essentially freed the world from those creatures. He could throw it on the surface and build his new home around it. ''This power should be my last resource,'' Noah thought as he brought the ice on the ground, ''Using it as my normal battle style will only bring injuries in the future. I can''t be this weak in the Immortal Lands.'' The world was a mess after the battle between Noah and the quasi-rank 7 Snake. Most of its old layout was no more. The ice had destroyed entire continents when it flew in the sky to create the frozen armor. Only a few large islands continued to float on the sea. A few changes would happen due to the magma flowing out of the shattered seabed, but Noah could only settle for the largest piece of land that he found for now. Noah laid the frozen structure on one of the largest islands before coming out of it to inspect the area. The ice went beyond the edge of that piece of land, but the terrain appeared able to withstand its weight. Noah had already planned his next moves. His victory against the Snake marked the end of his adventures in the lower plane. It was time to seclude himself until his centers of power reached the seventh rank. He would have to prepare for the Tribulations, but they didn''t worry him too much. Heaven and Earth had already tried to punish him multiple times, but he had only gotten stronger after them. His level of power was already far beyond their fairness. Still, the world managed to give him one last surprise. A series of powerful presences appeared in the range of Noah''s mind, and he could only heave a sigh when he recognized the owner of that aura. "I guess this is the perfect time to attack me," Noah said without moving his eyes from the ice. Twenty human figures appeared in the air above him and surrounded the island. They were identical, and they all wore the same small golden crown on their heads. "This is my last chance to overcome you," Second Prince''s copies said at the same time. "I''m grateful for what you have achieved in these years, and I won''t forget your teachings. Yet, I''m sure you understand why I am doing this." Noah raised his head to stare at the copies that had surrounded the islands. They all exuded the aura of a newly advanced solid stage cultivator. "I do understand," Noah replied. "I even asked you to do this." Second Prince''s copies smiled at the same time when he heard those words, and they pointed their right hands toward Noah as they began to acc.u.mulate power. That was an army of solid stage cultivators. Second Prince would have had a chance of defeating the quasi-rank 7 Snake if Noah didn''t take care of the issue first. "I''ll make sure that time won''t erase your name from the historical records of the world," Second Prince said as golden flames gathered on his palms. "You should focus," Noah replied as a cold smile appeared on his face. "Killing me is no easy feat." Second Prince snorted before his copies launched their attacks. Waves of golden flames flew out of his hands and filled the island with their destructive might. The island sunk under the might released by the Royal. The ice remained unaffected by those attacks, but it fell on the seabed after losing its foothold. Part of it remained on the surface. The frozen structure was too big for the sea. It created a huge silver mountain after most of its body went underwater. A figure slowly walked out of the wave of golden flames. Noah ignored that attack as he strolled on top of the frozen structure and inspected the areas nearby. The flames couldn''t hurt his body. The drawbacks of his ambition made his centers of power weaker than their actual level. Still, that didn''t apply to his tissues. He felt tired, but his condition didn''t affect the sturdiness of his skin. His body had become too strong after eating the remains of the winged beast. Even the attacks of twenty solid stage cultivators couldn''t pierce his innate defenses. Of course, Second Prince didn''t use any special attack. His flames were the most basic spell that he could launch, but that scene still surprised him. Noah was a monster that no labels could classify. His level of power went beyond common knowledge. Inside Second Prince''s mind, he appeared far more dangerous than the quasi-rank 7 Snake. **** Author''s notes: Did you miss me? Chapter 1289: 1289. Overwhelming ''This will be tricky,'' Noah thought as he inspected the areas around the frozen structure. The world still had a few rank 6 creatures left, and they wouldn''t hesitate to assault the quasi-rank 7 ice once they sensed that the area was safe. Noah needed to secure his gains, but he had to deal with Second Prince first. The Royal had chosen the worst possible situation to attack him. The drawbacks of his ambition made Noah extremely weak, and that battle would only mark the beginning of other fights. ''Oh well,'' Noah concluded as he heaved a helpless sigh, ''Time to suffer an injury.'' Second Prince''s copies joined their hands to condense stronger flames and prepare an attack that could piece Noah''s body, but an intense aura suddenly filled the area. The Royal''s eyes widened when he sensed that Noah''s cultivation level reached the peak of the sixth rank. A chill ran down his spine when he saw that his opponent could still use his individuality to boost his power. "This shouldn''t be possible!" Second Prince''s copies shouted at the same time. The Royal had studied Noah during the past centuries. Second Prince had used his methods to watch his battles and understand his power, so he could guess that Noah''s condition was far from ideal. "Don''t you care about your centers of power?!" Second Prince asked as fear built inside his mind. The Royal knew that Noah was extremely resourceful. He always had a secret weapon or some strategy that could make him win otherwise impossible battles. However, Noah had just fought against a quasi-rank 7 creature! He had revealed everything he had, and he had drained his reserves of energy. The stress acc.u.mulated by his centers of power also made them quite frail, so he was in no condition to fight properly. "Better than dying," Noah said as his cold smile widened. Second Prince could now see the depths of Noah''s insanity. He was selfless when it came to what he was willing to sacrifice to stay alive. Moreover, no fear had appeared in his eyes even after he understood the danger that had fallen on him. Noah wouldn''t allow himself to end up in a passive position. He couldn''t underestimate the preparations completed by Second Prince in those centuries. The Royal wasn''t delusional, and he would have never attacked him if he didn''t have a solid plan. Noah trusted Second Prince enough to believe that the Royal could kill him if he didn''t go all-out. Noah would rather suffer injuries that he could treat rather than face an unknown danger. Second Prince''s copies began to take a few steps back when Noah''s aura swept them, but a shadow soon flew around their figures. Ten of them lost their heads during that moment of hesitation. The headless copies turned into golden flames that converged toward the intact ones. Second Prince lost the upper hand in the battle after a single exchange, and he could only think about escaping after realizing that Noah could kill him in the next moves. Yet, dark matter soon came out of Noah''s chest and surrounded the area. The dark world engulfed Second Prince''s remaining copies and suppressed their power. The Royal''s copies quickly transformed into flames that tried to fly out of the dark world, but a heavy pressure landed on them and forced them to remain still. The dark world wasn''t a technique that Second Prince could face while Noah''s ambition empowered his centers of power. The Royal knew that, but he had attacked him only because he didn''t believe that Noah could use his individuality again! The golden flames struggled to overcome the suppression of the dark world, but they stopped moving when Noah appeared in front of them. Snore''s massive figure also became visible as it surrounded them with its body. The golden flames condensed until they became a small orb that Noah grabbed while he unfolded his consciousness. He knew that Second Prince''s real body wasn''t there, so he had to find it to get rid of the issue once and for all. Second Prince''s inscriptions surpassed what Noah could comprehend, but the dark world could affect the laws'' correct functioning. Noah''s ambition also boosted his mind''s capabilities, and the Divine Deduction technique activated on its own to bring his awareness to its peak. The Royal didn''t say a word while Noah closed his eyes to focus on the environment. Only a faint fear came out of the lump of flames while Second Prince waited to see if his opponent could find him. Noah''s consciousness became able to pierce the very fabric of the world in that situation. His mental waves seeped through matter and laws as they searched for anything connected to the golden flames. His mind soon found something, and a surprised expression appeared on Noah''s face when he understood from where that trace came. He couldn''t help but shoot a surprised glance toward the golden flames before moving in the direction of that connection. The flames remained silent at first, but they soon grew restless when Second Prince saw Noah flying in the right direction. Still, they couldn''t escape his grasp while the dark matter suppressed them. The dark world moved together with Noah as he reached a seemingly random spot in the sky. The flames in his hand started to detonate at that point, but the dark matter suppressed their explosions and forced them to remain in Noah''s grasp. ''I would have never found him if I didn''t use my ambition again,'' Noah thought as he straightened his fingers of his free hand to make them resemble a blade. "Stop!" Second Prince''s voice echoed in the area when Noah pierced the world''s structure with his arm. His limb moved through the void until he found what he was looking for. Noah then pulled back his arm and enlarged the crack to allow the passage of his target. Noah pulled a scared Second Prince from the void. The Royal couldn''t believe that Noah had actually found him there, but there wasn''t much he could do anymore. The dark world had started suppressing Second Prince as soon as he entered its range. Noah''s firm fingers also held his neck and threatened to kill him on the spot. Second Prince lost any will to fight after that overwhelming display of power. He couldn''t even put up a decent battle when Noah used his ambition to empower his centers of power. Noah inspected Second Prince. The Royal had covered his body in inscriptions to survive the void''s environment, but they appeared to work only because he wasn''t a real human. The shining lines that filled his body converged toward the red crystal at the center of his forehead. They didn''t even have the iconic golden color of the Elbas family. Most of those inscriptions radiated crimson shades while they tried to illuminate the dark world. ''What should I do with him now?'' Noah wondered as he inspected Second Prince. A peaceful expression had appeared on the Royal''s face after he accepted death. There also seemed to be some relief in his eyes. It was as if Second Prince felt happy that his struggles were about to end. Truth be told, Noah didn''t need to kill Second Prince. The Royal was more useful alive than dead, especially when there was an entire world to rebuild. Noah quickly reviewed the issue before shattering the flames in his hand and reaching for the red crystal. Second Prince didn''t even struggle when Noah ripped his core away from his body. Second Prince''s body began to age at a fast pace after Noah removed the crystal. It soon turned into ashes that the dark world finished destroying. "Stay there until I decide what to do with you," Noah said as he threw the crystal. Snore''s open mouth materialized in its trajectory and made it disappear. Chapter 1290: 1290. Drawbacks The period after Second Prince''s sudden assault was hard for Noah. The second activation of his ambition hurt his centers of power and made them too frail to endure the power that they contained. His body struggled to contain the strength that it carried. The weight of his other centers of power also became almost unbearable, and only the dark matter flowing inside his tissues managed to keep them in one piece. His mind felt heavy, especially since Noah could stop the production of new mental energy. Cracks appeared on his mental sphere due to the internal pressure that pressed on its walls. Noah also felt confused. His body couldn''t fully contain his sea of consciousness, so he would black-out for a few instants every once in a while. His dantian had it a bit easier than his other centers of power due to the almost absence of darkness in its insides. However, the muscles pressing on its walls made it regress by a few years. The only organ that continued to work correctly was the fourth center of power. Noah''s black hole provided every inch of his body with as much dark matter as it needed and prevented him from falling apart. Noah couldn''t leave the frozen structure while he endured that painful process. Ideally, he would need to isolate himself in a safe place and sleep until his centers of power dispersed the acc.u.mulated stress and gained their strength back. Yet, the quasi-rank 7 ice was the most appealing resource in the world after the frozen land created by the divine silver liquid. The creatures that had survived the battle between Noah and the Snakes'' leader would kill to take a bite of that structure. Noah could barely remain conscious in that condition, but his aura still leaked from his figure, and the magical beasts in the world could sense the dangerousness that it carried. They would never decide to approach the frozen structure as long as he remained there. Noah went through cycles of roars of pain, blood loss, injuries opening out of nowhere, and sudden surges of power while he endured the drawbacks of his ambition. Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword surveilled the area around the frozen structure while he remained immersed in his painful healing process. They could understand how harsh that situation was for him, and they didn''t hesitate to support him in the best way they could. Noah''s body wanted to fall apart. Pieces of his skin even dispersed their energy when they became unable to contain it. Yet, his dark matter always managed to prevent the worst possible outcome whenever those situations appeared. Nothing could help Noah''s healing process. Any other external energy would only break his already frail tissues and worsen his condition. He had to wait for his centers of power to become stable while he remained on the frozen structure. His only consolation was that the magical beasts in the world didn''t try to take the ice since they were too scared to enter the range of his aura. Their decision to avoid the frozen structure didn''t come only from the fear that Noah''s aura caused inside their minds. The surviving rank 6 Eternal Snakes had understood that their leader had lost against him, and that made Noah the new ruler of the world in their view. His victory had put him at the very peak of that lower plane. He had become the king of the world even if his mind was too confused to realize it. Moreover, he wasn''t a cultivator, so the magical beasts had more respect for his power. Their instincts saw the frozen structure as Noah''s lair, which suppressed their innate greed for valuable resources. Noah felt as if he was in a long nightmare. His mind went dark and played scenes from his memory while his dark matter prevented it from escaping his body. Chaotic images appeared in his vision, and his instincts reacted at certain scenes. His body would even spit flames on its own whenever he saw some of his old opponents. Clarity slowly returned to his mind as his condition stabilized. Noah returned lucid only to sense a wave of tiredness filling every corner of his existence. His mental waves quickly sent a series of reports to his mind once they understood that Noah was conscious again. He became aware of the damage that afflicted his body in a few seconds, and his expression turned grim when he sensed that his cultivation level had fallen. His dantian had shrunk, and his body had lost some of its power. His mind had also suffered a series of injuries that sent sharp waves of pain to his mental sea. Each of those problems was quite severe, and Noah could only sigh at that sight. He had paid the price to get rid of Second Prince quickly, and he had to deal with the consequences of his actions now. Noah straightened himself before sitting cross-legged on the frozen structure. He didn''t dare to cultivate in his condition, but he tried to take control of the black hole to improve its healing abilities. His mind, dantian, and body needed to undergo a long recovery, but Noah wanted to shorten that process by focusing all his efforts on one of them. The black hole didn''t struggle and let Noah direct its action. His fourth center of power redirected most of its dark matter toward his mind and helped it close the cracks that had appeared on its walls. Noah couldn''t think properly with his mind in that condition, so he wanted to fix it before analyzing his centers of power again. The loss of power annoyed him, but he could take his time to get his cultivation level back once he secured his mental stability. Thin patches of dark matter covered the cracks on his mental walls and allowed his mind to use most of its mental energy to fix them. Crystal-like structures filled those fissures and quickened the healing process while the higher energy took care of the external pressure. Noah''s mind took a while to heal. His center of power was near the peak of the sixth rank, so it needed a massive amount of mental energy to recover. Noah''s mental sturdiness was also incredible, so his center of power took longer than usual to return to a decent state. His mind required forty years to fix the cracks and reach a perfect condition. His body and dantian had stabilized on their own while Noah fixed his mind. They had mostly suffered from a loss of power, so they didn''t need dark matter to heal eventual injuries. Noah couldn''t let the matter about his loss of power go. His ambition wouldn''t allow him to remain calm until he returned to his previous cultivation level. Noah felt like an addict going through withdrawal as he studied his dantian and made sure that it could cultivate again. His Demonic Sword didn''t hesitate to fly toward him once he confirmed that he could resume his training. His dantian began to expand again, and some calm filled Noah''s mind when he lost himself in that feeling. The center of power grew quickly since his existence was ready to reach superior levels. Noah returned to his previous peak in less than fifty years. Chapter 1291: 1291. Corner Noah only had to fix his body after his mind healed and his dantian returned to its previous peak. That center of power didn''t suffer any injury, but it had lost a lot of energy while it dispersed the drawbacks of his ambition. Noah couldn''t bear seeing his level regress. His addiction toward cultivation didn''t allow him to stay put until he regained what he had lost while he recovered. Many powerful creatures had died during the battle against the quasi-rank 7 Snake. The leader had also eaten some of them in the past centuries. The world had gone from being packed with rank 6 beasts to having only a few of them left. However, Noah didn''t lack food. The quasi-rank 7 ice and the maimed corpse of the Snakes'' leader would keep him satisfied for a long time. There was also a chance that they would be enough to bring his body to the peak of the upper tier. The only problem with that material was its sturdiness. Noah couldn''t destroy it without relying on his ambition, but he wouldn''t bring stress on his centers of power for that small issue. Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword could help him in that matter. They could slowly break the ice into shards that Noah could eat to nourish his body. The main force in that gathering of resources was Night since its two companions lacked the precision required in that task. Snore''s dark beam even threatened to destroy that valuable material, so it had to rely only on its physical strength to help in the matter. The three assets didn''t go along well, but they could ignore that when it came to Noah''s needs. The Demonic Sword and Snore even accepted Night as the leader of that operation since they acknowledged the creature as the trio''s smartest. Noah''s mental state was still quite messy due to his need to restore his power, but he didn''t fail to notice his assets'' behavior. He could see how Night had abandoned some of the most extreme features of its personality and overall matured as a living being. ''Maybe it is just preparing for the Immortal Lands,'' Noah considered that option, but he didn''t linger on the matter for too long. It was only normal for Night to change after what it had gone through. The modifications on its body alone were enough to alter its mindset, and the prolonged stay with Noah had also adjusted its attitude to suit its new situation. Night wasn''t a simple magical beast anymore. Noah had forced its existence to evolve, and the Pterodactyl slowly accepted that change. It had grown more silent and mature, and its intelligence had also improved as it improved in its new body. On the other hand, Snore and the Demonic Sword had mostly remained the same. The blade had learnt to control its hunger, but that didn''t count as an alteration of its behavior. The trio slowly gathered pieces of ice that Noah gulped without even attempting to munch. His teeth weren''t able to destroy that material at his current level, but the black hole would help the digestion once it entered his body. Noah''s level grew quickly, and he soon returned to his previous peak. The quasi-rank 7 ice was the best food in the entire world. His body recovered in no time. The time to think about his future arrived after Noah fixed his centers of power. He had remained on top of the frozen structure for almost two centuries. The world had already adapted to the catastrophic changes that happened during the battle against the Snakes'' leader. The magma that had flowed out of the broken seabed had solidified and had given birth to a large land that connected multiple islands. Sparse pieces of territories floated on the sea and created areas where terrestrial magical beasts could live. The sea had returned to cover most of the world, and the living beings had adapted to that environment. The few remaining rank 6 Eternal Snakes had taken control of the lands, and new marine creatures had begun to appear in the sea. The "Breath" favored the birth of creatures that suited the new environment. They were mostly snake-like creatures due to the Eternal Snakes'' influence, but variants appeared from time to time. The world was slowly regaining its diversity. That process would have typically stirred Noah''s curiosity, but his mind was busy on more important matters in that period. Noah didn''t have any other opponent. He had reached the peak of the world, and his cultivation level was nearing the end of the heroic ranks. The Immortal Lands were right around the corner. Noah only had to push his centers of power to the heroic ranks'' peak and face the Tribulations to ascend. That required some preparations, but they weren''t a problem. Most powerhouses would struggle once they reached the last part of the sixth rank, but Noah''s situation couldn''t be more perfect. Noah had the Seventh Kesier rune for his mind, a large amount of quasi-rank 7 ice, and his individuality had already begun to strive for the state of law. He had everything he needed to become a god. Now he only had to cultivate until the breakthroughs arrived. Noah could take care of other projects if he desired. He could decide what to do with Second Prince and the rest of the Elbas family. He could review his assets and apply eventual improvements whenever he found flaws. Noah could even create new spells or techniques. However, he didn''t care about the Elbas family, and he would rather work on his assets after he obtained divine power. He would review his battle prowess before the Tribulations, but he didn''t see the point in investing time in projects that he could complete after becoming a god. Noah quickly understood why existences about to reach the peak of the heroic ranks didn''t interfere with the political world anymore. There was no point in those struggles once the Immortal Lands became a real possibility. The ants had their games. The others had their journey toward the sky to take care of, and Noah had finally reached that point. His eyes couldn''t remain on the ground anymore. He would complete his unfinished business after he reached the next rank. ''Which should I face first?'' Noah wondered as he inspected his centers of power. His body was the weakest among them, but the world had many resources that could quickly raise its power. Both the divine and quasi-rank 7 ice were resources that could push its strength to the peak smoothly. His dantian was stronger than his body, and Noah''s trusted his individuality. He knew that he wouldn''t face bottlenecks during his meditations, but he lacked the resources to quicken the process. His mind was already nearing the peak of the rank, and Noah had the Seventh Kesier rune. He believed that his sea of consciousness would be the first to advance if he trained his centers of power equally. Noah could prioritize other centers of power if he wanted, but he didn''t find any reason to delay his breakthroughs. His mind was closer to the seventh rank, so he would face the Earth Tribulation first. ''Earth,'' Noah thought as the memories from his past Earth Tribulation resurfaced in his mind. ''I guess we will see each other again soon.'' **** Author''s notes: Next chapters will come after I wake up. I''m trying to restore my usual routine, so endure for a bit more. Chapter 1292: 1292. Meeting Earth Noah couldn''t put the frozen structure inside the separate dimension, so he had to take the Seventh Kesier rune out in the open. The only land worthy of being his new home was the island made of divine ice. Noah moved the frozen structure there before flying toward the separate dimension to recover the Kesier rune. Night and the Demonic Sword remained behind to guard his quasi-rank 7 resource while he made that trip. The world belonged to him now, but he couldn''t underestimate its inhabitants. The Royals and the rank 6 Eternal Snakes could think about stealing part of the ice if he didn''t protect it. Everything went smoothly. Noah recovered the Seventh Kesier rune and settled on the island made of divine ice. He used the frozen structure''s insides as his new training area and isolated himself from the rest of the world as he focused on his centers of power. Noah needed to push his power to the seventh rank, and the lack of opponents in the world forced him to succeed in the task through normal training sessions. Still, he didn''t mind that now that he had almost reached the peak of the sixth rank. He only had to complete the last part of his journey. His adventures in the lower plane would end there, and Noah gave his everything in that training. The Seventh Kesier rune enlarged and strengthened his mind. His training sessions with the Demonic Sword improved his dantian and pushed its power toward the higher ranks. The quasi-rank 7 ice continued to provide valuable nutrients that made his body grow. Noah''s centers of power improved smoothly and at a quick pace. The fact that they were striving to the limits of the heroic ranks didn''t affect their growth, which continued to be in the realm of monsters. It was as if Noah''s existence had grown tired of remaining in the sixth rank. His individuality wanted to reach the divine realm, and it made his training smoother. Noah didn''t think about anything else. His mind remained focused on his centers of power and never bothered to pay attention to the world around him. Years, decades, and centuries passed, but Noah barely noticed the flow of time. He remained in the same position for the entirety of that period, and he moved only once a sense of completeness dawned on his mind. Noah focused on the center of his sea of consciousness and saw that the Seventh Kesier rune had almost formed. He only needed to glance at the piece of fur to complete it and become a rank 7 mage. The Earth Tribulation would come right after, so he suppressed his desire to reach that level to complete a few preparations. Noah was an expert when it came to battles inside his mind. He had spent his whole life with the Body-inscription spell and the Elemental Forging method in the end. That ethereal place had become a battlefield multiple times. The Tribulation didn''t worry him, but Earth was a variable that he couldn''t ignore. Noah didn''t know what tricks that existence could pull off during his breakthrough, so he had to set up as many defensive layers as possible. Dark matter flowed inside his mental sphere and reinforced his mental walls with multiple defensive layers. Snore''s ethereal figure hid inside the higher energy and prepared for the imminent fight. The saber-shaped rune multiplied as "Breath" entered in its ethereal figure. Multiple weapons entered the layers of dark matter and became ready to fend off any invader. Night sat on Noah''s head and used its connection with his mind to create a projection of its consciousness. The Pterodactyl had decided to fight in the Tribulation as soon as it heard who Noah''s opponent would be. The Demonic Sword did something similar as it laid on his knees. Noah''s ethereal figure found his blade in its hands when it opened its eyes and looked at the many protections prepared for the Tribulation. ''It''s time,'' Noah thought as he opened his real eyes to look at the piece of fur. Noah only needed a glance to complete the Seventh Kesier rune inside his mind. His mental walls began to expand, but they soon met an invisible barrier that forced them to stop. The mental walls began to tremble at that point. Those vibrations created a humming sound that resonated with the outside world and triggered a peculiar reaction in his mental sea. Noah couldn''t see it, but the world around him had grown silent after the humming sound spread in the environment. The waves crashing on the island made of divine ice became quiet, and even the magical beasts swimming in the range of the noise stopped moving. The humming sound carried an aura capable of stopping the normal functioning of the laws in the matter. It exuded an authority that went beyond the world itself, and Noah could experience it properly for the first time as the Tribulation started. He had been nothing more than a rank 3 mage when he first approached the Earth Tribulation. Noah had never touched the world of laws at that time, and he had barely known what it meant to be an existence. However, his individuality was now striving to enter the divine realm. His fourth center of power had also been able to imitate the world''s elements and create copies that reflected Noah''s existence. Noah could now understand part of Heaven and Earth''s nature. Shandal''s theory saw them as a quasi-rank 10 existence that had failed in stepping into the next realm. Their aura could enlighten him on the divine ranks and the levels beyond them. ''Multiple laws create a world,'' Noah thought as his ethereal figure stared at his mental sea. His defensive layers of dark matter had left a spot where Earth could pass. Noah lost control of part of his mental energy while his mental walls continued to radiate the humming sound, but he didn''t feel surprised about that event. He still recalled how his past Earth Tribulation went. His conversation with that powerful existence had enlightened him and had eventually led to the fusion with the Light-devouring Dragon. The aura carried with the humming sound was having the same effect. Noah became able to take a peek at the superior realms when he studied that noise, and multiple theories formed in his mind. Part of his mental energy surged from the mental sea. That lump of dark-brown water morphed until it became Noah''s copy. Earth had appeared, and it wore a broad smile as it inspected the area. The defensive layers of dark matter sealed the opening and condensed as Noah prepared for the clash. The tips of the saber-shaped runes came out of the higher energy and pointed at Earth as they waited for Noah''s order. Figures flew through the dark matter that covered Noah''s mental walls. He had prepared an entire army for that clash. Earth couldn''t even gain access to his mental energy with the higher energy isolating the battlefield. Earth appeared slightly interested in the dark matter, but it mostly exuded amus.e.m.e.nt through its expression. Then, it opened its mouth, and an androgynous voice resounded through Noah''s mental sphere. "Hello, my child, son of another world," Earth said, repeating the greetings used in the last Tribulation. Chapter 1293: 1293. Interrogation "I see that you made some changes here," Earth continued to speak, but Noah didn''t let its strange voice distract him. He could sense that Earth was using its influence to take control of his mental energy. Yet, the dark matter blocked every lump of dark-brown water that tried to come in the existence''s help. Noah had complete control of the battlefield. The higher energy appeared able to stop Earth''s strategy and kept it confined in its current shape. "What is this thing?" Earth asked as it inspected its body, but Noah didn''t answer. He could attack right away, but he wanted to see if he could learn something from that mighty existence. Earth represented the peak of the known cultivation journey, and Noah treasured every second spent analyzing it. His mental walls continued to tremble and release the humming sound. Noah let his mind wander in the aura that the noise carried to take glimpses of the higher realms. The cultivation journey consisted of constant empowerment of one''s existence. Cultivators initially had to amass more energy, but they needed to elevate their individuality once they reached the higher realms. According to that behavior, Noah could guess that he had to apply the same to his law. He had to bring his individuality to a realm that surpassed those true meanings. The only issue in that task concerned Noah''s knowledge. He didn''t know any form of energy that could surpass laws, so he lacked a target to strive for. He was approaching the divine ranks without having any idea about the nature of his future path. Still, every cultivator who reached the divine realm was in the same situation. Noah wanted to see if he could gain something by studying Earth''s aura. ''Complex arrays made of simple meanings,'' Noah thought as he let the humming sound fill his mind. ''What were they trying to become?'' Earth noticed something when it saw that Noah wasn''t paying attention to the Tribulation. It immediately stopped studying the dark matter and created an ethereal sword that flew toward its opponent. A series of saber-shaped runes came out of the defensive layers and intercepted Earth''s sword. The mental energy that made its structure crumbled and fell toward the higher energy protecting Noah''s mental sphere. The dark matter opened and let that mental energy reunite with the mental sea before isolating the battlefield. Earth''s figure became more ethereal after that event, and an unsightly expression appeared on its face. It seemed that Noah''s preparations had put it in a tough situation. "You failed to reach the tenth rank, am I right?" Noah asked after he saw that change in Earth''s expression. The last exchange had confirmed that the Tribulation wouldn''t be a problem for him. The dark matter stopped Earth from deploying its annoying abilities and limited that existence to the small amount of mental energy gathered when it formed. Noah could win in a single exchange, but his reasons went beyond the simple overcoming of the Tribulation. Earth had the answers that he sought, so he wanted to prolong his breakthrough as long as possible. Earth''s expression lost any emotion at his question. It became an aloof face that didn''t carry any trace of life, and more swords came out of its hands. "You were so talkative the other time!" Noah shouted as more sabers came out of the dark matter. "Why don''t we have a nice conversation? You can show me images of my ideal life again!" Earth threw its swords, but the sabers intercepted them and redirected the stolen mental energy toward the mental sea. Noah''s copy faded a bit more, but it didn''t hesitate to create more weapons. It seemed that Earth wanted the Tribulation to end quickly, and Noah couldn''t do anything to stop that. He couldn''t prevent that existence from wasting the stolen mental energy. ''Fine then,'' Noah thought as he sent a message to one of the figures hiding inside the dark matter. "Why did you make the Immortal Land so bright?!" An angry human voice accompanied by roars resounded inside the mental sphere as a huge Pterodactyl came out of the dark matter. Night pierced Earth''s lower body and destroyed it in one assault. Its anger toward that existence was boundless due to what it had gone through in the Immortal Lands. The creature couldn''t even bear its sight, but it held back to give Noah a chance to obtain what he wanted. Noah charged ahead and grabbed his copy''s shoulders. His fingers transformed into claws that stabbed Earth''s ethereal skin and kept it locked in that position. "What were you trying to become in the tenth rank?" Noah shouted as he questioned Earth. "What comes after the laws?" Earth''s face remained expressionless during Noah''s questioning. It didn''t want to reveal anything to that opponent. Leaving him in the dark was the only advantage that it could obtain from that situation. However, Noah didn''t give up so easily. He didn''t need words to obtain his answers, not when a superior existence was in his clutches. Noah opened his mouth and bit at his copy. His mental energy fused with his ethereal figure, and an intense aura swept his mind for an instant before disappearing. Earth didn''t show any reaction, but Noah didn''t care. He continued to take bites of his copy and eat the mental energy it contained to experience that intense aura. The humming sound began to fade as his mental walls started to stabilize. The Tribulation was about to end, but Noah continued to devour Earth''s ethereal figure in a desperate attempt to understand the nature of its existence. The intense aura appeared and vanished as Noah regained control of his mental energy. His mind didn''t have the time to study those sensations, but his instincts managed to memorize the feelings that Earth''s existence caused inside him. Earth''s figure became nothing more than an expressionless face as Noah continued to devour it. It slowly began to vanish once it lost too much mental energy. Yet, a theory had formed inside Noah''s mind at that point. It was a vague idea that he couldn''t translate correctly. Still, he tried to convey it to Earth. "You were trying to become a world," Noah said as he studied the vanishing expressionless face. Earth didn''t reveal any reaction, but Noah bit on its vanishing figure one last time to experience the changes that his words had caused. The intense aura was still there, but Noah''s instincts sensed something different in it. That feeling wasn''t enough to give him any real answer. It only showed that his words had managed to trigger a reaction. Noah didn''t know if that reaction meant that his guess was on point. Still, he now had a hint about the journey in the divine ranks. That was already something. It was more than what other heroic cultivators knew when they approached the divine ranks. His mental walls stabilized after the head vanished, and a surge of power filled his mind. His mental sea evaporated, and dense dark water replaced his mental energy. His sea of consciousness had begun to produce mental energy in the seventh rank, and its arrival forced Noah''s mental waves to expand. All of a sudden, the entire world appeared in his vision. He could see every corner of the lower plane. Chapter 1294: 1294. Vision Noah''s consciousness expanded. His mental waves resembled a raging tide that covered the world and radiated his aura. His body found it hard to contain such power, but dark matter soon came out of his black hole and surrounded his mental sphere to increase its stability. Even Noah''s amazing body couldn''t fully withstand the weight of a center of power in the seventh rank. Noah lost himself in the sensations that ran through his mental waves. He could see everything in the world, and he could uncover secrets just by focusing on specific areas. His vision changed. Laws replaced the matter and allowed him to see the true nature of the world. A piece of the sky far away from his home had a strange structure. The laws in its fabric were too well-ordered to be a natural structure. Noah only needed to focus on that spot to see that the opening to a separate dimension occupied that area. ''That must be the Elbas family''s hideout,'' Noah thought before moving his attention elsewhere. Noah''s mental waves could pierce the thick seabed and study the red sea below, but they couldn''t go deeper than that. The magma radiated a peculiar aura that managed to stop Noah''s mind after it explored its depths. His mind swept the various living beings that had appeared during his seclusion. Some creatures in the human ranks even died due to his lack of control. The death of those beasts made Noah understand how strong he had become, and he didn''t hesitate to test the power a bit more. A rank 6 Eternal Snake appeared in his vision, and he focused his mental waves on the creature to see how deeply he could hurt it. The Eternal Snake didn''t understand what was happening. Its instincts had begun to scream as pressure fell on him. Its dark-green scales broke as Noah''s mental waves applied his aura on its body. His thoughts could become weapons capable of hurting even creatures near the peak of the heroic ranks. Noah could affect the world just by willing it. Noah did not doubt that he could kill the creature, but he let it go after he felt that he had gained enough control of his new power. His mental waves slowly retracted, but the aura that they radiated continued to spread his individuality. Lumps of darkness appeared in the fabric of the world due to the ambition carried by his consciousness. Black lines formed in the sky, sea, and ground as his mental waves studied those areas. Wielding so much power made Noah ecstatic, but he soon grew bored of the world around him. The various laws in the matter made the environment appear entirely different from before, but it was quite dull in his eyes. Those laws didn''t contain any special power. They were simple rules that the matter had to follow to make the world function properly. Once Noah understood them, he lost any interest in that aspect of the lower plane. His mind was now on the same level as the laws of the world. Noah couldn''t feel interested in things that he could bend to his will with simple thoughts. Only one place managed to stir his interest. The quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake had changed the world''s layout, but that region had survived the many catastrophic events and had resurfaced after the ice left. Noah moved his attention to the lava lake. That region was mostly underwater, but part of its scorching waters had created a red spot in the middle of the sea. His mental waves dived deep inside its lava until they reached the origin of that scorching temperature. Noah could see how a giant skull at the bottom of the lake radiated an aura capable of altering the laws around it. Noah inspected the skull for a while. It had a reptilian shape, but most of its features had disappeared after its power had dispersed in the environment. He couldn''t understand the species of that creature from its skull alone. He guessed that it belonged to a crocodile-type magical beast, but that was all. The scorching sensation radiated by the skull managed to hurt his consciousness. His mental waves were too ethereal to survive in that place, but Noah could produce more of them to continue his inspection of the area. ''I can take it if I can''t reach the seventh rank with my current resources,'' Noah thought as his mental waves left the lava lake. ''I will eat it after the breakthrough otherwise.'' Noah didn''t immediately resume his training. His new sea of consciousness had given him countless ideas on how to improve his power, but he wanted to wait until all his centers of power reached the seventh rank before approaching those projects. There were also features about his new level that he had yet to grasp fully, but Noah wanted to elevate his whole existence before testing his limits. Still, he needed to test something else before resuming his training. The Seventh Kesier rune had become useless after his breakthrough, but Noah didn''t want to stop enlarging his mind. Noah initially began to create improved versions of his spherical rune, but there was a limit to how much he could enhance that method before the breakthroughs of his other centers of power. Since he couldn''t aim for quality, Noah began to stuff his mind with as many spherical runes as possible. Yet, that only led him toward an annoying conclusion. It didn''t matter what he did. Noah couldn''t apply pressure on his mind anymore. All his puppets and runes couldn''t even begin to make his mental walls budge. That was the main reason why divine existences didn''t remain in the lower planes. Noah believed that he could create a training method for his mind before his ascension, but he had the higher energy. Most experts would find it hard to invent a technique without having access to materials in the divine ranks. The lower planes had their limits. Noah even guessed that they couldn''t withstand the presence of cultivators that were beyond the bottom of the seventh rank. The invasion of the Eternal Snakes had proven how frail the Mortal Lands were. Noah didn''t know the divine leaders'' level, but he believed that he could become a threat to the world around him if he didn''t ascend. ''Not that I aim to remain here any longer,'' Noah thought as he retracted his consciousness. ''I will delay my ascension only to take care of the loose ends here. I also need to prepare for the Immortal Lands, but I won''t hesitate to leave once I complete everything.'' Noah could barely contain his excitement at the thought of entering a superior and unknown world. He would finally experience emotions that he had forgotten after living at the peak of the lower plane for so long. Moreover, he couldn''t wait to face all the dangers that the higher plane contained. His power would increase by leaps and bounds once he found hindrances again. ''The next one should be my body,'' Noah thought as he commanded his puppets to gather more ice. ''It''s quite fitting for the Heaven Tribulation to be the last.'' Chapter 1295: 1295. Ice Noah knew that his body would be the next center of power to face the breakthrough. His dantian had surpassed it before, but he had a large amount of quasi-rank 7 ice now. His body soon surpassed his dantian, even if its requirements were insane. The advantage of the resources obtained after the battle against the quasi-rank 7 Eternal Snake made its growth smooth. Noah ate without holding back. His mental waves even helped his companions in the gathering of ice. The frozen structure slowly shrunk as Noah ate it. By the time his body reached the peak of the sixth rank, all the quasi-rank 7 ice and the Snake''s maimed corpse had ended up in his stomach. ''As expected,'' Noah thought as he inspected the island. ''I need divine materials to fill the requirements for the breakthrough.'' The Pain Tribulation would come before his body advanced to the seventh rank. Noah still remembered his last one. The breakthrough to the fourth rank had been quite gory, but he guessed that he wouldn''t have to face the same process. Noah was a human during his past Pain Tribulation. His body had absorbed "Breath" filled with Heaven and Earth''s will to reconstruct its tissues. However, he was a completely different existence now, especially when it came to his body. Noah went beyond magical beasts, humans, and hybrids. He couldn''t possibly guess what would arrive for him once he approached the breakthrough. Noah couldn''t do anything to understand how the world and his body would react to the breakthrough, so he could only make sure that his tissues had enough energy to reach the divine ranks. Quasi-rank 7 materials didn''t contain enough energy for that. Noah''s body had insane requirements, so only divine materials could ensure that he wouldn''t die during the breakthrough. ''I need to destroy the ice,'' Noah concluded as he stood up and spread his mental waves through the island. The silver liquid of one of the divine Eternal Snakes had given birth to that frozen island. That ice had remained intact even after Noah and the quasi-rank 7 creature had gone all-out, so he did not doubt its power. Noah had the resource needed for his breakthrough under his feet. His only problem was that he had to find a way to break it. His mental waves seeped inside the divine ice and tried to alter the laws in its fabric. Noah''s mind could pierce its natural defenses, but his aura didn''t have enough power to break it. His ambition spread through the divine ice, but the destruction that it radiated couldn''t split that matter. It would have been different if his dantian had already reached the seventh rank. Still, Noah couldn''t succeed in the task with only his mental waves. Noah couldn''t wait for his dantian to advance. His body could barely contain his new mind. Obtaining a second center of power in the divine rank would surely make it collapse. Moreover, he had a bad feeling about the Heaven Tribulation. It was a vague sensation that had appeared in the back of his mind after the breakthrough. It was as if he could sense what the world was planning for him, and he didn''t like what he understood. Still, it made sense that Heaven and Earth would make it hard for him during the breakthrough of his dantian. That was their last real chance to defeat him before he reached the higher plane. ''I guess I need to use it,'' Noah thought as he heaved a sigh. He had a strategy to split the divine ice into pieces that he could eat, but he would lose part of that material in the process. Yet, he couldn''t see any other solution to that situation. Noah moved to one corner of the island and pressed his finger on the ice. Snore and Night were already at the bottom of that landmass, ready to grab anything that fell. Becoming a rank 7 mage didn''t only bring his consciousness and mental energy to a superior level. The breakthrough had given Noah advantages that he had yet to study properly. However, there was one advantage that he couldn''t fail to notice. One of his spells depended on his Kesier runes, and he couldn''t miss the fact that black roots had spread on the Seventh. ''Just a tiny bit,'' Noah thought as he activated the partial Demonic Form. Noah''s dantian was nearing the peak of the sixth rank. It contained enough darkness to make him fight for weeks. Yet, the simple activation of the Demonic Form depleted more than half of its energy. Noah expected a similar consumption. The level of his mental sphere set the power of the spells that he cast, so his Demonic Form was a divine spell now. The amount of darkness contained inside his dantian wasn''t enough to cast the complete version of the spell, but Noah only needed a bit of the corrosive smoke to split the divine ice. A few strands of black smoke came out of Noah''s finger as he pressed it on the ice. Cracks opened in the air as soon as the corrosive gas spread, and part of it entered the void as it consumed the fabric of the world. Noah focused on his spell to redirect the smoke toward the ice. Those strands of corrosive gas quickly touched the ground and dug in its surface. The process went smoothly. The Demonic Form didn''t meet any problem in that task. The cracks expanded as Noah continued to pour those small trails of smoke on the ice. The world didn''t seem able to endure the power of his spell, but he didn''t care enough to stop it. Noah had already saved the world once. He didn''t care if he ended up creating a catastrophe while he seized that material. The corrosive smoke consumed part of the divine ice as it seeped into the island. Small shards separated from the structure and fell into the sea, where Snore and Night gathered them. Noah did his best to control the behavior of that wild gas. He didn''t mind that it attacked the fabric of the world, but he didn''t want to lose too much of the ice while he split it. The island shrunk as that process continued. Noah couldn''t keep the spell active for more than a minute, and he even had to limit himself to those few trails of smoke to make it last so long. His darkness wasn''t enough to fuel that spell. The power that it exuded didn''t belong to the lower realm. It was something that only gods could wield. Noah had to proceed slowly, splitting one part of the island at the time. He needed to divide all the ice into pieces that he could eat before he could resume his training. The drowsiness would arrive once his body surpassed the limits of the heroic ranks. Noah wouldn''t have enough time to split the ice at that point, so he had to prepare the material beforehand. Noah didn''t even know how much his body needed to advance, so he didn''t resume his training until he turned the whole island into a series of chunks that he could eat. After Noah completed that process, he sat on the sea and began to eat the divine ice. It was time to trigger his breakthrough and stuff his body with energy. Chapter 1296: 1296. Chrysalis The amount of energy provided by the divine ice was immense, but Noah''s body was a bottomless pit. He had to devour a third of his stash to feel completely stuffed. The drowsiness reached its peak when Noah felt that his tissues couldn''t contain any more energy. The Demonic Sword, Night, and Snore came out in the open to guard his stash while lying on the ground to face the breakthrough. The Pain Tribulation would typically arrive during the breakthrough to the seventh rank, but Noah didn''t feel anything out of the ordinary when he closed his eyes and lost himself in the process. The only difference was that his consciousness didn''t go dark when the evolution started. Noah remained completely aware of his surroundings even if he couldn''t move his body. Noah didn''t know if his mind had caused that change in his breakthrough. Still, that alone didn''t explain the lack of the Tribulation. His best guess was that his body was too outside of Heaven and Earth''s system to trigger a reaction in the world. Drops of sweat came out of his skin and evaporated to create a greyish chrysalis. Noah remained stuck in that crystal-like environment and could only inspect the changes of his body to kill time. His black hole took charge of the transformation. The energy acc.u.mulated in the past years had gone through the purification of his fourth center of power. That organ knew exactly how to improve his body. The changes were slow. It would take months to transform a patch of Noah''s skin. His insides required even more time, so he eventually moved his attention elsewhere. His mental waves could reach every corner of the surface. Noah could see how the world''s fauna and flora evolved while he remained stuck inside the chrysalis. Timid cultivators from the Elbas family came out of their separate dimension from time to time. Their journeys in the outside world consisted of hunts and quick inspections of the surface. It was clear that they wanted to occupy the outside world again, but they were too scared to make an official return. Noah could guess that they often stared at the sky, hoping to see the signs of his ascension. The years spent stuck inside the chrysalis gave Noah the time to study his new power more thoroughly. His rank 7 mind made him constantly aware of the laws in the environment, but there was far more to it. Noah could sense that his thoughts had become far heavier. They didn''t weigh on his mental sphere, but they affected the world whenever they came out of his mind. The structure of his mental waves had also become denser. Noah could now use them to perform complicated actions. They had become a proper extension of his body that resembled the innate ability of the Kesier Apes. Noah performed some tests while his body continued to evolve. He tried to release thoughts that carried faint intentions in the environment to study how they affected the world. The meanings were simple. They carried raw sensations like warmth and cold, but Noah felt amazed when he saw that they replicated them in the outside world. Noah thought about warmth, and the mental energy that carried that sensation generated a wave of heat where it dispersed. The same went for his other tests. His ideas now had the power to alter the correct functioning of the world. He had become a true god. The world could only bend to his will and adapt to his influence. Those feats would cause uproars among heroic cultivators, but Noah felt that those effects were only a natural consequence of his level. His mindset had adapted quickly to his new status. The lower plane had become a playground that he could modify at will, and Noah soon lost interest in that. The years spent in that condition were tragic for a workaholic like Noah. He could sense how much time he had wasted inside the chrysalis. That was pure torture for him, but he could only endure the process and wait for it to end. Noah made a list of the things that he had to complete before ascending. He had to thoroughly review his assets, create a storage device capable of holding divine materials, and invent new techniques if possible. He also had to decide how to settle certain matters. Second Prince was still inside Snore, and he had to determine whether he would create his inheritance. Noah wouldn''t normally bother to build an inheritance, but most of the items inside his space-rings would become useless in the Immortal Lands. All his scrolls and techniques in the lower ranks did nothing but filling his valuable storage items. Throwing them away was a waste, and he couldn''t give them to the Hive since the dimensional portal didn''t work. The best solution was to create an inheritance ground and stuff it with the resources he didn''t need anymore. ''Divine Demon created it,'' Noah thought when he saw that the chrysalis was finally about to fade. ''It won''t even take me much time once I become a god. I guess the descendant of the Elbas family will have a chance to seize it.'' Cultivators mostly created inheritances to pass down certain studies and hope that the heirs would surpass their previous level. Others hated some enemies so much that they would force their successors to take care of their grudges. Noah didn''t have any specific reason, but he knew that a few experts would have been happy to see that he had left something behind. Ivor would curse him if he didn''t teach the Elemental Forging method to anyone else. His inheritance could even help human cultivators in his same situation at some point. It could give them the power needed to escape their fate. That was what Eccentric Thunder''s inheritance had done for him, so he didn''t mind doing the same for the new generations. His expertise also was quite valuable. The theory behind the higher energy alone was enough to make any trial worthy of the effort. As the chrysalis dispersed, Noah could see that the aspect of his body didn''t change much. No strange features had appeared, but he could feel that his tissues had reached the next realm. A wave of power filled every inch of his body, and faint black lines covered his skin. They were barely visible, but Noah remained speechless when he understood their function. Those lines were similar to blood vessels, but his body used them to carry his dark matter. Those conduits converged toward his black hole so that it could provide them with higher energy depending on his needs. His lungs had the highest number of lines, but they were everywhere in his insides anyway. It seemed that Noah''s body had fused part of its functions with the black hole. The dark matter had become a core part of its strength, and something told him that he had gained a new innate ability. Noah straightened himself after the chrysalis dispersed. His hand went to grab a piece of divine ice before he squeezed it in his grasp to check his power. The shard crumbled under his physical strength. Noah confirmed that his body had reached the seventh rank, and his attention moved to the lava lake at that point. He could finally seize the skull at its bottom. Chapter 1297: 1297. Meditation Noah''s body had advanced to the seventh rank. The breakthrough had given the center of power a new innate ability and immense strength. Moreover, there was another advantage that he couldn''t ignore. Noah''s body had the chance to continue to grow. The divine ice left and the skull at the bottom of the lava lake were materials that he could use to improve his level while remaining in the lower plane. That advantage was massive. Noah could ascend without having a body at the bottom of the seventh rank. He could avoid being the weakest type of god, which was important when it came to a new and unknown environment. Noah didn''t hesitate to fly toward the lava lake and dive toward its depts. His dense mental waves allowed his robe to remain intact in that environment, and his body barely felt the heat radiated by the skull. Noah could feel that he had reached the peak of the world. His dantian had yet to face the breakthrough, but his current power placed him far beyond the realm of the heroic cultivators already. Even if incomplete, Noah was a proper god. He could travel through the entirety of the lower plane without bothering about strategies and plans. The world had become nothing more than a playground after his last breakthrough. Noah seized the skull and ate it on the spot. His teeth were now able to break the tough fabric of the divine materials, so he didn''t need to resort to his partial Demonic Form anymore. His body improved after each bite, but the growth was minimal. Even the rare divine materials had become nothing more than a casual meal for him. The lava lake dispersed once Noah consumed the skull. The best training area for cultivators with a fire aptitude had fallen under his greed. Of course, Noah didn''t even bother to think about that aspect of his actions. He didn''t care about the heroic cultivators left in the world. He would have probably eaten the skull even if the Hive was still in the world with him. Improving his foundation before the ascension was too important. Moreover, that growth would give him an advantage against the Heaven Tribulation, which continued to worry him. The dangerous feeling in the back of his mind had become more intense after his body advanced to the seventh rank. It was as if the world knew that the final breakthrough would arrive soon. Noah ignored that sensation for the time being. He focused on eating all the divine ice and stabilize the level of his body so that he could concentrate on his dantian. His body improved as he devoured all the divine materials in the world. Still, it didn''t manage to reach the half-way mark of the lower tier with those nutrients. Its level had barely crossed the bottom of the lower tier, but Noah expected much. It was only normal for its requirements to skyrocket after the breakthrough. Noah didn''t even feel worried about those requirements. He actually felt ecstatic about them. Having steeper requirements meant that his body had reached an insane level of power. The lower plane''s frail environment didn''t allow him to test his strength, but Noah knew that he had surpassed the level of other divine creatures by a lot. Noah could focus on his dantian after his body stabilized. That was the only center of power that could still grow while he remained in the lower plane, so all his efforts converged in his cultivation sessions. Dantians didn''t only need long hours of training to advance. They expressed a cultivator''s individuality, so Noah had to pair his cultivation with meditations. His mind was in the seventh rank, so Noah''s meditations went smoothly. His two divine centers of power also stirred his dantian to improve more quickly, and that prevented the appearance of bottlenecks. ''My ambition is an energy capable of defying laws,'' Noah thought during one of his meditations. ''It answers only to my will. My thoughts can transform my individuality into a force capable of miracles.'' Noah had pretty much understood what his law would be. His ambition was so boundless that it could encompass and empower all the aspects of his individuality. It could turn the hunger inherited from the Light-devouring Dragons into intense greed that desired every form of power. It could push his destruction beyond its normal limits. Noah could find weak spots even in creatures above his level when his ambition fueled that aspect of his existence. His ambition could make his creation match the real world. Noah''s inscription methods could force materials to surpass their limits and transform into powerful items. His ambition could also improve his cultivation level. It could force the matter around him to grow into its best version. That force didn''t have limits. Noah focused on that. The boundlessness of his ambition was the idea that he had to elevate to the realm of laws. That was its core and the reason why his individuality could be so powerful. The fact that his ambition had no limits made it able to apply its miraculous effects. Something like that wouldn''t be possible if it had a limited amount of power. ''Boundlessness is the key,'' Noah thought during his mediations. Noah had begun to cultivate and meditate at the same time. He didn''t need to remain focused on his Demonic Sword, so he could let his mind wander while his dantian enlarged. ''I wonder if I should use it,'' Noah questioned himself at some point. His focus moved on the inscriptions on his mental walls. The Divine Deduction technique was Divine Demon''s masterpiece, and Noah had just reached the level when he could use it at its full power. The strength of technique depended on the level of his mental energy, but it couldn''t go past the seventh rank. Divine Demon was only a newly advanced god when he created his inheritance, so he could only leave behind the rank 7 version. ''Maybe just for a few seconds,'' Noah thought as he gave in to his desire to test the Divine Deduction technique. His mental energy moved toward the inscriptions on the mental walls, and the technique activated before Noah could even prepare for the event. A surge of data suddenly filled his mind. The Divine Deduction technique forced his consciousness to expand and inspect the world as a whole. Countless laws entered his view. Ideas on how to modify them appeared in his mind, and a nigh-infinite number of projects filled his thoughts as he analyzed the world. Noah forced his mind to focus on his existence. His thoughts stopped analyzing the world and concentrated on the growth of his individuality. Problems in the heroic ranks weren''t even a problem for a divine mind boosted by the Divine Deduction technique. Noah could see his individuality as a whole and imagine the form that his true meaning would obtain once it reached the seventh rank. ''Of course!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as understanding dawned upon him. ''My ambition can''t have a fixed shape! It must be a limitless fuel capable of improving anything in the world!'' Laws were simple. The more Noah thought about his individuality, the more complicated his idea of his true meaning became. The Divine Deduction technique revealed that flaw in his reasoning and brought him back to the real path in a few instants. Noah could see his individuality evolve once he reached that conclusion. However, a curse soon filled his mind. Noah interrupted the Divine Deduction technique to focus on his dantian and saw that his cultivation technique couldn''t enlarge it anymore. Then, a crackling noise reached his ears. Noah didn''t need to raise his head to know that the Heaven Tribulation had arrived. **** Author''s notes: I couldn''t bring myself to do 6 am again yesterday, so I just went to sleep. The other chapters will arrive in a few hours. Chapter 1298: 1298. Heaven Noah raised his head and saw that black clouds had covered the sky. The Heaven Tribulation had begun as soon as his dantian crossed the limits of the sixth rank. The enlightenment brought by the Divine Deduction technique had made him unable to stop in time to prepare for that event. ''My greed always puts me in these situations,'' Noah cursed in his mind as he stood up to face the Tribulation. The Divine Deduction technique had consumed a quarter of his mental sea, so he had enough mental energy to fight. His body was also at its peak. The abrupt arrival of the black clouds didn''t put him in a disadvantageous position. Noah had only lost the chance to prepare a few defenses. A thick lightning bolt fell from the enlarging clouds, but a dark beam suddenly pierced the sky and destroyed the attack. Snore and Night had guarded Noah during his training, so they were ready to fight anytime. ''Eager to kill me?'' Noah thought as a cold smile appeared on his face. Snore quickly moved near him, and Night fused with the environment as it prepared for the battle. The Demonic Sword released a roar before landing in Noah''s hand. Noah was ready to fight. It was finally time to push his existence in the divine ranks. He only had to defeat Heaven to enter the last known realm. The black clouds continued to enlarge. Their last lightning bolt was an attack capable of quasi-rank 7 might, but Noah had fended it off easily. That amount of power couldn''t even make him move. The Tribulation seemed to understand that. Its first attack was only a test to probe Noah''s power, and it didn''t like what it revealed. Noah''s existence was already far beyond what power in the heroic realm could handle. The Heaven Tribulation needed to resort to divine power if it wanted to injure him. A series of lightning bolts fell from the clouds, but Noah decided not to move when it sensed their power. They were attacks with quasi-rank 7 power again, so he didn''t need to do anything about them. The lightning bolts converged in his position and destroyed everything on their path. Ground, water, and air crumbled under their might, but Noah didn''t even move when they landed on his shoulders. The upper part of his robe broke, but no marks appeared on his skin. Those attacks couldn''t hurt him. His body was already worthy of being in the Immortal Lands. The Heaven Tribulation began to radiate a peculiar aura when it saw that Noah could ignore attacks on that level. The black clouds appeared angry that a being in the lower plane could endure their might so easily. Noah limited himself to stare at the Heaven Tribulation. That was his chance to test his power before the ascension, but he wasn''t sure if the black clouds were a worthy opponent. His mind still sensed a vague danger coming from the clouds, but Noah could see how they couldn''t launch anything stronger than that in their current form. ''What will you do?'' Noah wondered. He was quite interested in Heaven''s power, but he felt disappointed in that Tribulation. The greatest hurdle in the cultivation journey couldn''t even force him to deploy his defensive methods. The crackling noise radiated by the clouds became more intense as they continued to enlarge. The entire sky turned black as the Heaven Tribulation became a worldwide calamity. ''Quantity can''t help you here,'' Noah thought as he stood on the surface of the sea. That transformation didn''t change anything for him. The cloud''s power didn''t enter the divine ranks, so they couldn''t release anything capable of hurting him. Enlarging the scope of their attacks was useless if none of them could threaten Noah. The clouds became denser after they covered the whole plane, but their power didn''t increase even at that point. They didn''t release any other lightning bolt either, and Noah eventually grew bored of that loud spectacle. If the Heaven Tribulation couldn''t bring some excitement, it was better to be over with it quickly. Noah wanted to move to the Immortal Lands, and wasting time wasn''t in his style. Noah began to fly toward the array of clouds. Snore rose with him, and Night watched everything from his hiding place. Cracks opened in the sky as Noah focused. His mental waves began to radiate his sharpness through the world, and the power they carried managed to destroy its structure. The lower plane couldn''t withstand Noah''s existence anymore. He had become unfit for the Mortal Lands. The power that he wielded was too much for that frail matter. The black clouds launched more quasi-rank 7 lightning bolts, but they didn''t manage to slow down Noah''s calm flight. His head didn''t even budge when those attacks landed on it. A peculiar event then happened in the array of clouds. A loud crackling noise ran through them and silenced the sparks that had acc.u.mulated in their dark insides. ''Is this anger?'' Noah thought when he heard that noise. The crackling sound resembled an angry roar. It carried Heaven''s reluctance to bow to him, and it caused another transformation. The clouds began to condense. They retracted to converge in the sky above Noah. Sunlight soon fell on the world again as they gathered their power in a small area. The vast layer of clouds quickly transformed into a black mass that released rumbling noises. Sparks ran over its surface before converging toward its center. The dangerous sensation in the back of Noah''s mind became more intense during that process. He knew that Heaven Tribulation was preparing something capable of defeating him, but he wouldn''t give it the time to complete the transformation. Noah wanted to test his power, but his desire for a proper battle didn''t make him blind. He would have the time to enjoy proper fights once he reached the Immortal Lands. He had to prioritize the destruction of the Tribulation now. Snore opened its mouth and released its dark beam. The violent energy contained in its attack swept the dense mass of clouds and destroyed the gas. Noah''s eyes sharpened when the dark beam dispersed and revealed that area again. A large crack had appeared in the sky, but an orange humanoid figure now flew in front of it. The gravitational pull of the void didn''t seem to affect the figure. Its body was an array of orange sparks that remained still while releasing loud crackling sounds in the environment. Pure lightning made that figure. It resembled the Heaven Tribulation''s embodiment, and it radiated an intense aura that forced the laws of the world to work faster under its influence. The world seemed to cheer at that sight. The laws in the matter recognized the crackling humanoid figure as their ruler and did their best to please it. The structure of the world became sturdier. Noah felt that the matter wanted to create a suitable battlefield for that creature made of lightning. Noah didn''t feel any doubt at that sight. The orange figure represented the dangerousness sensed by his instincts. The array of lightning bolts that made that existence carried divine power! "You must be Heaven," Noah said as his cold smile broadened Chapter 1299: 1299. Dangerous The figure didn''t answer. It continued to float in the air while the world cheered at its arrival. Something told Noah that the figure wasn''t similar to Earth. It didn''t seem to be a sentient being. It was a simple embodiment of the true form of the Heaven Tribulation. ''A mass of destructive power with a few wills,'' Noah concluded in his mind. Noah decided to make the first move since the figure appeared unresponsive. He wanted to end the Tribulation quickly to focus on his ascension, and he had to defeat that existence to reach that phase. Snore opened its mouth to launch its dark beam again. The violent energy flew toward Heaven, but it stopped before touching it. The raging dark matter contained in Snore''s innate ability didn''t seem able to reach the figure. The intense energy radiated by the divine sparks destroyed the beam before it could engulf Heaven. The danger in the back of Noah''s mind suddenly spiked after that attack. Snore also sensed the threat, and it interrupted its beam to break that connection with Heaven. However, it was one instant too slow. A loud rumbling noise filled the sky as a lightning bolt shot out of the orange figure and destroyed the dark beam. That violent energy pierced the attack and reached Snore in an instant. Snore''s head exploded when the lightning bolt hit the creature. The sparks that it carried spread through the Blood Companion and destroyed every inch of its body. A painful hiss resounded inside Noah''s mind after the clash. Cracks opened on Snore''s ethereal figure and almost destroyed its consciousness. That single attack had injured the Blood Companion and had rendered it useless in the battle. Noah''s eyes widened at that sight. Snore wasn''t in the divine realm because its power depended on his darkness, but it was still a being capable of quasi-divine might! However, Heaven''s attack had almost killed it. One lightning bolt with power in the divine ranks had been enough to force the Blood Companion out of that battle. Noah promptly called Night back and stored his Demonic Sword. It was clear that Heaven could destroy the assets that weren''t in the divine ranks, and he couldn''t risk the lives of his companions in that battle. Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword were a core aspect of his battle prowess. Their potential was limitless, but they didn''t have the chance to reach the divine ranks since Noah''s dantian had yet to advance. Only Night could grow on its own, but it had been unable to fill its requirements. Noah had already planned to help it, but he had prioritized his breakthroughs in the past centuries, and the Pterodactyl had been busy protecting him. Heaven disappeared after Night and the Demonic Sword returned inside the space-ring. Noah''s smile vanished when he sensed how fast that figure was, but he didn''t lose track of it. Noah punched at his side, and pain spread from his knuckles as a loud crackling noise resounded in the sky. When he turned, he saw that Heaven''s fist had clashed with his attack. The lightning bolts running through Heaven''s body seeped in Noah''s skin and managed to break it. Injuries opened on his hand as the two fists remained connected. Heaven appeared surprised that Noah''s physical power could match its blows. Its vague facial features didn''t reveal any emotion, but Noah could sense the shift in its mindset from the aura that it radiated. A cold smile appeared on Noah''s face again. His hand shot to grab the figure''s wrist, and black smoke started to come out of his skin. Noah didn''t care that the lightning bolts crackling on Heaven''s body injured his palm and spread through his arm. He would gladly sacrifice a limb or two to destroy that threat. Half of the darkness inside his dantian vanished as Noah activated the partial Demonic Form. Corrosive smoke began to cover the figure''s arm and spread in the area to create a deadly cloud. Heaven tried to pull its arm back, but it couldn''t free itself from Noah''s firm clutches. The corrosive smoke began to seep inside its body and destroy the sparks that ran through it. Another loud crackling noise spread through the sky as Heaven gave voice to its anger. Sparks amassed at the center of the figure''s chest, and a lightning bolt soon flew out of that spot. The lightning bolt struck Noah''s chest and opened a web of injuries. Dark-red blood flowed out of those wounds, but Noah didn''t lose focus on his grasp. He had no intention of letting Heaven go. The world went dark as Noah spat his dark flames. A blinding silver halo illuminated the sky when light returned in the area, and the fire''s destructive force joined the corrosive smoke to damage the orange figure. Lumps of dark flames soon separated from the main attack and fused with Noah''s body. The energy that they carried healed his injuries in an instant. Noah didn''t stop there. The fingers of his free hand straightened to take the shape of a blade that he didn''t hesitate to slash toward the orange figure. The world''s structure had become far sturdier after Heaven''s arrival, but Noah''s slash pierced through it anyway. A massive vertical fissure opened in the sky as his attack cut the crackling figure from head to toe. A long wound appeared on Heaven. Noah''s slash had cut its body in half, but the lightning bolts running through its figure soon reconnected and pulled together the severed sides. The lightning bolts on its arm separated while Heaven fixed its body. Noah tightened his grasp and destroyed a chunk of sparks, but his opponent''s hand fused back with the figure before he could seize it. A series of lightning bolts then shot out of the figure. They crashed on Noah and managed to fling him back now that he had lost his handhold. Noah fell in the sea, but he managed to stop himself before reaching the seabed. Multiple injuries had appeared on his torso, but he ignored them as he stared at the blinding orange light that had begun to fill the sky. Heaven was preparing a massive attack, and Noah could sense the dangerousness that it carried. He could feel that the next lightning bolt would threaten his life. ''My higher energy has yet to advance,'' Noah thought as he activated his new innate ability, ''But it should still boost my power.'' The black hole began to rotate faster after it sensed Noah''s decision. Dark matter came out of the fourth center of power and flowed in the vessels obtained after the breakthrough. A surge of power suddenly filled every inch of Noah''s body, and he gave voice to a draconic roar as violent feelings rose in his mind. Black lines also appeared on his skin as the dark matter began to push him beyond his limits. Heaven replied to that roar with a loud rumbling noise. The orange halo surrounding its figure condensed to create a thick lightning bolt that remained still in its hand. Heaven threw that lightning bolt, and Noah spat a dense wave of flames. The sea opened as the two attacks flew toward each other, and cracks spread through the entire world due to the might that they carried. Then, an explosion resounded in the sky, and a shockwave spread through the entire world. Chapter 1300: 1300. Violen The shockwave generated after the clash between the two attacks covered the entire world. The waters opened until they revealed the seabed, many islands crumbled, and the fabric of the sky shattered under its might. One simple clash gave birth to a catastrophe that engulfed the entire world in its raging might. Many living beings died before they could understand what was happening. Only the creatures that had escaped on the other side of the plane managed to survive after suffering serious injuries. The world saw its fauna and flora vanish again. Nothing could withstand the power generated by the clash between two existences capable of divine might! The lightning bolt had higher piercing capabilities, but it depleted part of its power as it flew through the wave of black flames. By the time it reached Noah, he could stop it with his bare hands. Noah grabbed the lightning bolt and tightened his grasp. The attack shattered into a wave of sparks that burned when they touched the black flames. Surges of power filled Noah and healed his injuries. Dark matter flowed in his black vessels and pushed his body beyond its limits. Noah roared again. His flames and black hole gave him so much energy that he had to express his power with his voice. More fire also came out of his mouth in the process. Heaven''s broken arm reformed. The figure raised both hands in the sky, and a blinding orange halo spread in the environment again. Noah''s instincts screamed at that sight. Heaven was preparing something massive, and he could feel the danger that it carried. Magma flowed out of the broken seabed, but Noah didn''t dare to move. His aura surged, and intense sharpness began to spread in the area as he closed his eyes to focus on the world. The laws appeared in his mind. Noah could sense all of them, and he could understand the best way to destroy them in an instant. His mental waves also studied Heaven''s fabric, but they didn''t manage to grasp its nature. The laws expressed by Heaven were chaotic and unclear. That figure appeared made of pure destructive energy. Still, that was enough to make Noah understand how he had to defeat it. That humanoid figure was a representation of the Heaven Tribulation. The amount of energy that it carried had a limit that reflected the world''s fairness. Noah only had to force Heaven to deplete its energy. He could achieve that through many approaches, but he preferred the most violent ones. Noah''s fingers curved to create claws as he raised his hands to the sky. His sharpness intensified as he focused his physical might and the darkness left in his dantian on the preparations for a massive attack. The orange halo around Heaven condensed in the shape of two thick lightning bolts. A rumbling noise then spread in the sky as it launched its attacks. Noah''s fingers pierced the fabric of the world before he forcefully slashed his hands toward the incoming lightning bolts. Large fissures appeared in the sky as black lines flew to meet the incoming attacks. The entire plane trembled when the attacks clashed. A violent shockwave flew through the world as ten slashes met two lightning bolts. The might released in that exchange surpassed the previous one, and most of the seabed broke in the impact. The lightning bolts destroyed most of the slashes, but Noah''s attacks eventually triumphed on Heaven''s blows and continued to fly toward its figure. The crackling shape couldn''t do anything to stop their arrival. Three giant fissures appeared on Heaven''s position. Only three slashes had survived the clash, but they carried the entirety of their initial power when they crashed on the orange figure. Rumbling noises echoed in the sky as Heaven found its body divided into four parts. Some sparks fell inside the void after the exchange, but the others immediately tried to reconnect the severed sides. A roar suppressed the rumbling noises as Noah reappeared next to Heaven and slashed at its head. His dantian didn''t have any darkness anymore, but he didn''t need it at that moment. His hands resembled blades as he slashed them toward his opponent. His fingers pierced the structure of the world and opened horizontal cracks that severed the figure again. Noah then punched Heaven. His fists forced part of its sparks to disperse in the sky every time they landed on its body. Blood and injuries appeared on his knuckles, but that didn''t stop his offensive. A rain of punches fell on Heaven, who lost a large number of its sparks while Noah''s offensive continued. He even spat flames from time to time, so the injuries appearing on his body never managed to become too severe. Heaven''s vague mouth enlarged as a deafening rumbling noise spread in the sky. A series of lightning bolts shot out of its figure and flew everywhere in the area. Noah was right next to the orange figure, so he couldn''t avoid that attack. Lightning bolts landed on his chest, shoulders, face, and legs, and all of them opened injuries where they hit. The impact of those attacks threatened to fling Noah away, but he promptly stabbed Heaven''s body with his fingers to create a handhold. The lightning bolts running through his skin continued to injure him, but he didn''t show any hesitation in his actions. His legs darted to throw kicks that destroyed the sparks in multiple spots, and his hand alternated between launching punches and releasing slashes that opened large cracks in the sky. His flames filled the area whenever his injuries were about to become severe, and the energy they accumulated healed him. It also provided more fuel to his violent and reckless approach. A second deafening noise arrived. A third followed, and the fourth wasn''t late either. Heaven released a wave of lightning bolts whenever it shouted in anger, but Noah never let it go and continued to assault it with the best that his physical might could offer. The orange halo radiated by Heaven eventually began to darken. Noah was forcing it to waste a lot of energy in those exchanges, and nothing it did seemed able to make Noah retreat. The figure tried to condense the thick lightning bolts again, but Noah didn''t give it any chance to complete any attack. He would destroy Heaven''s limbs every time they reformed, and he even headbutted the maimed shape whenever he had the opportunity. Heaven slowly became unresponsive. The lightning bolts that ran through its body lost power as the energy stored in its figure began to reach its limits. A few attacks in the divine rank were already at the limit of Heaven and Earth''s fairness. Noah had triggered the most powerful type of Tribulation due to its immense power, but even that had to respect the world''s limits. If that battle continued, the entire lower plane would turn into a wasteland. Heaven and Earth had to limit the amount of energy poured into the Tribulation, or they would risk losing an entire world. Heaven shrunk under Noah''s assault, and the energy that it released entered his body and flowed inside the black hole. The fourth center of power then purified that energy and redirected it toward his dantian, becoming his iconic darkness. The process continued until Heaven''s figure completely disappeared, and Noah''s dantian shrunk to elevate the nature of the darkness that it contained. Chapter 1301: 1301. Black hole Noah''s dantian shrunk after the energy released by Heaven filled its insides. His darkness boiled and released nutrients that his organ absorbed to elevate its level. The darkness also changed. It had the form of a series of sword-shaped crystals that emitted a dark light before, but it turned into a pitch-black gas after the breakthrough. The gas appeared made of a sharp substance that didn''t radiate any light. The power that it contained was immense, and a sense of completeness filled Noah once that energy began to interact with the other centers of power. Meanwhile, part of the energy released by Heaven flew high in the sky and opened a large crack. White light filled the insides of that fissure, and a captivating aura came out of it as it spread through the world. The path for the Immortal Lands was open. Noah only had to cross the crack to reach the higher plane and leave his world. His mind memorized the peculiar aura seeping out of the crack and made him able to see past the world''s structure. Noah could see the void everywhere, but something similar to a dimensional tunnel grew behind the white crack. That was a striking difference in the other side of the world''s fabric. That tunnel wasn''t something that everyone could see. It was as if the plane had given Noah access to that structure now that he had defeated the Heaven Tribulation. ''That''s how they do it,'' Noah thought as he memorized the position of that tunnel. Divine cultivators rarely used the first fissure to reach the higher plane. They opened paths for the Immortal Lands on their own after they had handled all the matters in the lower plane. Noah had always wondered about the theory behind that process, but the answer turned out to be simpler than he expected. Divine cultivators could recognize the entrances to the Immortal Lands placed by Heaven and Earth. ''Did I forget something?'' Noah thought as he focused on his new power. He had finally become a complete god. Noah had overcome all the Tribulations and reached the real peak of the world. The aura that he released fixed the many cracks created by his battle against Heaven. Dark patches appeared in the sky and ground to improve the world''s stability and bring its fabric into a superior realm. Everything slowly calmed down, but Noah soon understood what he had forgotten. It was enough for him to see his darkness moving on its own toward his black hole to recall that his breakthrough would bring. His rank 7 darkness flowed out of his dantian and entered the black hole. The dark matter inside the fourth center of power became unstable after the arrival of the new material. Noah sensed something breaking inside him. The spherical form taken by the black hole opened, and flares of dark matter came out of the organ as his higher energy began to evolve. The black hole began to expand, and Noah promptly shot in the sky. The world could barely endure the power released when he only had two centers of power in the divine ranks. Noah didn''t know what would happen with four. Flares of dark matter shot out of his chest and pierced everything in their path. They even dug deep fissures in the few remaining patches of the seabed. Noah knew that he couldn''t suppress that energy. The dark matter was evolving, and he had to complete the process if he wanted to bring it back to a decent shape. However, Noah lacked darkness now, so he didn''t know if he would have to wait for a while before he could condense the black hole. He could only hope that the process wouldn''t be troublesome. More dark matter came out of Noah''s chest. That dense black energy began to rotate once enough of it accumulated around his figure. A massive vortex formed in the sky, but flares still shot out of his figure and thickened the structure. The whirlpool slowly transformed into a giant star that kept enlarging as the black hole emptied its reserves of energy. The entirety of Noah''s dark matter came out of his body and took the shape of a black star that threatened to become as big as the Mortal Lands. Noah didn''t know how to stop that process. He had some experience in the field, but that breakthrough was completely different since it featured divine darkness. The sky turned dark as the massive star continued to grow. It stopped enlarging only when it had reached a size similar to half of the world. The star remained quiet at that point. It stopped enlarging, but flares still came out of its unstable figure. That mass of energy couldn''t stay in the open. Noah observed the behavior of his higher energy. Dark matter continued to fill the dark star, but that structure didn''t shrink yet. He could only wait for something to happen. His darkness was no more, but the dark matter devoured anything that it swept in its destructive might, and the dark star enlarged as a consequence. Noah waited. He knew that he couldn''t force the transformation unless he had more dark matter, but he was also aware that the dark star would find the path to become stable. It was a part of Noah''s existence, so it could react to specific lines. Shockwaves spread through the entire patch of sky occupied by the dark star. The dark matter felt angry about its new form, but it continued to rotate as it waited to return inside Noah''s body. Materials, laws, water, and air converged toward the black star that absorbed them to gain some fuel. Noah''s higher energy then destroyed them and made them part of the main technique. Noah had to remain inside the dark star for a while before he saw some changes. The black star began to shrink after it managed to convert enough materials into part of its structure. The massive, uneven star slowly shrunk back into Noah''s chest and took the spot of his fourth center of power. It remained a spherical lump of energy, but It had a rotating vortex that divided it in half now. Noah''s fourth center of power had become an unstable star cut in half by a black hole. It would reach true stability only after replacing all the materials picked along the road with real darkness. Flares still came out of his chest from time to time, but Noah learnt to sense them. He soon understood how to interrupt them with his mental energy, but he didn''t give them too much attention since he would fix the issue quickly. The main problem in that transformation was the lack of darkness inside Noah''s dantian. He had just advanced to the seventh rank, so his organ was empty after the small amount of energy from before triggered the transformation of the black hole. Cultivating wasn''t an option since his training depended on his Demonic Sword. Noah couldn''t train his dantian as long as his living weapon remained in the heroic ranks. He needed the blade to advance before it could reassemble the energy that it absorbed into divine darkness. Chapter 1302: 1302. Nigh After the new black hole returned inside Noah''s chest, Snore''s structure changed. The new dark matter was so dense that it appeared to be liquid, and the Blood Companion obtained those properties. The new dark matter replaced the old one and improved Snore''s body. The Blood Companion also inherited the instabilities of the black hole. Still, Noah would fix that temporary flaw once he regained access to his cultivation technique. Noah returned to the surface as those changes happened. He felt tired due to the lack of darkness in his dantian, but his excitement knew no limits now that he could leave the world whenever he wanted. The fissure leading to the Immortal Lands slowly closed as Noah waited for his condition to stabilize. He couldn''t do much without darkness, but his Demonic Sword improved quickly now that his entire being had reached the divine realms. Noah had succeeded. He had completed the cultivation journey in the lower plane and was almost ready to continue it in the Immortal Lands. He only had to complete a few projects before leaving the world. Years passed as Noah waited for his Demonic Sword to evolve. He focused on healing Snore''s ethereal figure with his mental energy in that period, and it took him a few decades to fix it completely. The blade took a bit more to reach the breakthrough. There wasn''t any valuable creature in the world after the battle against Heaven, so the sword had to rely on the environment''s energy to advance. Luckily for Noah, the Demonic Sword''s hunger didn''t cripple its growth. The blade continued to advance due to its need to represent his existence, and it managed to take a step into the divine ranks in fifty years. Its structure began to change once its power crossed the heroic ranks. The blade became denser as its fabric''s quality evolved, and the dark matter generated in its insides obtained features similar to Noah''s black hole. Noah still considered his dark matter to be a gas, but that energy had become so dense that he could smear it on his skin without forcing it to take different shapes. It was almost a liquid now, and the amount of energy that it contained left him speechless. His darkness was capable of divine might, but his higher energy went beyond that. Something peculiar happened after the Demonic Sword advanced. Noah wanted to cultivate immediately to complete the stabilization of his centers of power, but the blade managed to surprise him. "F-father," A young human voice mixed with draconic roars came out of the Demonic Sword after it completed the breakthrough. Noah stared at his blade with wide eyes, but he soon managed to explain what had happened. The Demonic Sword was a hybrid that had centers of power fused in its fabric. Each inch of its body could behave as one of them and release different types of energy. The blade was like Noah but without a proper subdivision of its centers of power. Its fabric allowed it to act as a sea of consciousness, dantian, body, and burning heart. Hence, it was only normal that its intelligence would increase after it reached the seventh rank. Magical beasts with inferior minds could give voice to human words, so the Demonic Sword''s achievement wasn''t too stunning. "What can you say?" Noah asked, but the Demonic Sword answered with roars at that time. Those cries carried a meaning that he could understand due to the connection between the weapon and his mind, and it was enough to show him how far the blade could go in terms of human language. The blade was still growing, and Noah was sure that it would eventually learn how to speak properly. Yet, it was too soon now. Noah tested the Demonic Sword''s intelligence for a while before deciding to take care of the flaws in his power. He had to fix the matters with his fourth center of power as soon as possible. Noah resumed his cultivation sessions, but he soon understood why gods found it hard to train in the lower plane. He now had to absorb the energy contained in the other laws to improve, which meant destroying the world''s fabric. He could seize a small number of laws every few months without affecting the world too much. Still, that little amount of energy couldn''t satisfy his desire for power. His dantian couldn''t improve in those conditions, but Noah could fix the issue with his black hole at least. Every time he managed to fill his dantian, the darkness inside it would flow toward the black hole and replace part of the energy used to fill gaps. The black hole slowly became more stable, and the same went for Snore. The dark matter even obtained a new feature after the fourth center of power polished its breakthrough. It began to emit a halo able to negate any form of light. That feature was similar to the effects of his innate ability, but it worked in the opposite way. Noah absorbed the light in the environment to create his flames. Instead, his higher energy was so dark that the light couldn''t escape from its color. Snore slowly obtained those features too. Noah had managed to stabilize his breakthroughs and improve most of his companions in less than a century. Now it was time to focus on the projects that required some effort. Noah had abilities to review and update, but he wanted to prioritize his companions before moving toward them. Snore and the Demonic Sword had advanced, but Night was still in the heroic ranks. The Night-blade Pterodactyls fed on the darkness created after their attacks. Their food were the same laws that their behavior generated. Noah had been unable to reproduce it before because it always involved laws that he couldn''t study properly due to the weakness of his centers of power. Yet, the situation had changed now. He now had a rank 7 mind accompanied by the Divine Deduction technique. He could also handle primary energy freely, so he didn''t hesitate to begin that project. Noah first had to memorize the structure of that darkness. Then, he had to reproduce it through the primary energy. In the end, he had to convince Night to eat it. Replicating those strands of darkness turned out to be easy, but most of the merit went to the Divine Deduction technique. Still, even with all those efforts, Night continued to grow slowly. Noah didn''t start any new project while he waited for Night to reach the breakthrough. The Pterodactyl fed on that darkness and improved, but it still took a full century to achieve the breakthrough. Its new body had made it impossible for the creature to advance quickly, but Noah didn''t mind taking his time once he reached that point. Now that he was one step before the Immortal Lands, the lower plane had become incredibly dull. Night eventually advanced. The creature released a loud cry accompanied by human words, and Noah could sense the excitement that filled its body. Yet, when the Pterodactyl advanced, black clouds formed in the sky. It seemed that a Tribulation was about to fall to punish that creature. Chapter 1303: 1303. Projects Heaven expressed its anger by creating an array of black clouds. Their aura converged on Night, and the crackling noise they released became more intense when they identified the creature. Night had come out of its chrysalis when it survived the breakthrough. Magical beasts would normally face only the Pain Tribulation in their journey toward the higher ranks. Still, some of them did something to trigger Heaven''s anger and had to face its punishment too. The Heaven Tribulation caused by Night''s breakthrough didn''t carry any deep feeling. The black clouds were a mass of destructive power that wanted to kill the Pterodactyl. They wouldn''t give any reward to the creature if it managed to survive the punishment. The dark clouds condensed quickly, and lightning bolts soon fell from their surface. The attacks converged on the still confused Pterodactyl, but they vanished when a shadow appeared between them and the creature. Those lightning bolts were capable of quasi-rank 7 might, but Noah was a complete god now. His sole presence was able to destroy the attacks of the Tribulation. His aura wasn''t a simple expression of his consciousness anymore. It also carried the true meaning radiated by his dantian. Noah''s existence had become a law capable of suppressing other laws. The lightning bolts were only quasi-rank 7 attacks. The chaotic laws that they contained could only crumble when they touched Noah''s dense and sharp ambition. ''Is Heaven delusional?'' Noah wondered as he stared at the sky and sat on one of the Pterodactyl''s black lines. Night had become massive after the breakthrough. It was now almost forty meters long, but its size didn''t affect its agility. Moreover, its peculiar body had obtained strange features in the divine ranks. The black lines that made Night''s body left dark marks on the world''s structure whenever the creature moved. They could damage the sky''s fabric by simply existing, and that spoke for their sharpness. At its current level, Night had surpassed its previous peak. Its new body had allowed it to evolve into an existence that could destroy laws at ease. It wasn''t a surprise that Heaven and Earth wanted to destroy such a creature. Its sole existence was a threat to their laws. They couldn''t even imagine the amount of damage that it could inflict once it attacked. However, those Mortal Lands were still Noah''s domain. He had defeated Heaven just a few centuries ago, but the world had sent black clouds against him again. ''I guess I need to remind you why I won in the first place,'' Noah thought as a human-shaped crack replaced its figure. "Leave it to me!" Night said through the connection with Noah''s mind. "I want payback for that damned shiny world!" ''I don''t have time to waste,'' Noah replied. ''You will get your revenge in the Immortal Lands.'' Noah reappeared among the crackling clouds, and the expansion of his consciousness attracted the Tribulation''s attention. He then raised his hand, but another voice reached his mind before he could perform his attack. "Father, father!" The Demonic Sword said through its connection with Noah''s mind. "Me, me!" The living weapon wanted to help Noah in the battle, but he couldn''t let it express its real power. The world couldn''t withstand it. ''You will also wait for the Immortal Lands,'' Noah replied. ''We have become too powerful for this world.'' The destructive power contained in the area converged to fend off the intruder, but the sparks stopped moving when Noah''s aura covered the entire Tribulation. The dark clouds'' fabric began to tremble as Noah tried to affect their laws with his aura, but the Tribulation appeared immune to that type of damage. The clouds had a deeper true meaning protecting them from Noah''s aura. They wouldn''t let anyone command them. They took orders only from Heaven and Earth. Noah noted that piece of information in the back of his mind before waving his hand. The Tribulation carried innate defenses that his power couldn''t overcome, but they weren''t enough to prevent its destruction. A horizontal fissure opened in the sky. Noah had only waved his hand, but the world couldn''t endure the might generated by that gesture. The slash divided the array of clouds into two parts, and their energy soon flew into the void. Noah didn''t even have the time to absorb that power since the Tribulation vanished in an instant. ''I have no control over my strength,'' Noah thought as a sigh escaped his mouth. His power had increased by leaps and bounds after his recent breakthroughs. He had even taken his time to fill the black hole with rank 7 darkness, so his whole existence had already surpassed the limits of a normal god. The lower plane could barely contain the pressure that he released. Noah could feel the fabric of the world breaking apart every time a new living being appeared. Noah had to leave soon, or the world would go back to its previous destroyed state. Still, he didn''t care about the matter enough to ignore some of his projects. He would still complete all his preparations before his ascension. He didn''t dare to reach the Immortal Lands with unfinished projects. "That was my kill!" Night shouted as it flew in the air. The Demonic Sword came out of Noah''s robe and roared at the incoming Pterodactyl, and the two began to bicker over something that Noah didn''t even bother to hear. Snore also formed on its own and joined the conversation between the two companions. Noah returned to the surface and planned his next moves. He was almost ready to leave. He only needed to take care of a few things, and he would be good to go. He needed to create a few tools that could help him in the Immortal Lands. Noah knew that he couldn''t build weapons due to the lack of valuable materials in the lower plane, but he wanted to make a storage item. The spells inside his sea of consciousness had to reach the seventh rank. All his diagrams had to evolve into abilities that he could use in the higher plane. That project didn''t worry him since he could use the Divine Deduction technique at its best now. His rank 7 mental energy could activate its real power and boost his mental capabilities far beyond their normal limits. Noah had to leave the testing phase for the Immortal Lands. The lower plane would crumble before he became used to his new power. The projects about his power ended there. Noah''s other assets had already reached the divine ranks, so he could theoretically leave once he improved his spells. However, he had two external matters to handle. The first one saw the creation of an inheritance. It was a tradition among cultivators to leave a mark of their lives on the world, but Noah wanted to leave something behind for a different reason. The inheritances had given him the chance to reach his current level. Noah had obtained essential items and techniques even when he failed to become Eccentric Thunder''s heir. Their importance in the cultivation journey was immense. Noah wanted to give other cultivators the same opportunities that had allowed him to reach his current power. Selfishness was necessary in the cultivation journey, but he didn''t need it now that he was about to leave the world. ''I have to handle one last project after all of that,'' Noah thought as the red crystal inside Snore''s body appeared in his mind. **** Author''s notes: Hello world. Chapter 1304: 1304. Separate space Noah couldn''t cultivate since the world didn''t have enough energy to enlarge his dantian, and it also lacked materials that could improve his body. Yet, he could create a superior version of his spherical rune now that his black hole had become stable. The dark matter was the core material of his Will-consuming runes. His mental energy could work together with the higher energy to create a tool capable of applying pressure to his mind. Noah felt better after his mind began to enlarge again. Its growth was minimal due to the lack of primary energy in the spherical rune, but that was better than nothing, especially in his current situation. The training technique was already complete. Noah only needed to reach the Immortal Lands to gain access to the energy that he required. After that, Noah focused on improving his spells. The process went smoothly due to the Divine Deduction technique, but it differed from what he expected. His rank 7 mind allowed Noah to consider his existence as a single law, without the differences among his centers of power. The modifications on the spells couldn''t only consider a few aspects of his individuality anymore. His previous modifications didn''t take into consideration his black hole. The dark matter had always been in its own realm, and Noah lacked the expertise needed to fuse it with his spells. However, his existence had become complete after his centers of power entered the divine realms. Noah carried the true meaning of his ambition now, and his assets were only branches of that individuality. When the Divine Deduction technique analyzed his spells, his mind automatically tore them apart to rebuild them from scratch. The core idea that they carried didn''t suit Noah''s new status anymore, so he had to create something entirely different. His black hole worked together with the Divine Deduction technique to push Noah''s mind beyond its limits. Traces of his ambition also surged toward that center of power to improve it further. Noah''s mental capabilities reached an insane level when those assets worked together. Lumps of dark matter flowed out of his black hole to fuse with the spells'' core ideas and create runes that could use the higher energy as a fuel. His spells evolved. The modifications reshaped them into a form that matched Noah''s law and expressed the entirety of his power. Noah completed the modifications in less than half a century. He couldn''t wait to test their power, but he had to hold back to focus on his other projects. He only needed to complete one last project before he could focus on matters that didn''t involve his power. Space-rings were some of the most essential inscribed items in the cultivation world. Their utility didn''t need explanations, but they often had limits connected to their level. Noah''s rings were in the same situation. He would soon approach the Immortal Lands, but his storage items weren''t able to withstand the pressure radiated by divine materials. The divine diagram obtained in Shandal''s separate dimension was an exception since it didn''t express its pressure when inactive. His space-rings would lose their usefulness in the Immortal Lands. ''How do I create space-rings in the seventh rank without materials?'' Noah wondered as he used the Divine Deduction technique to improve his mind. His thoughts eventually led to an obvious conclusion. Noah couldn''t create rank 7 space-rings even if he asked Second Prince for help. Noah wouldn''t give up so easily. He had only concluded that he couldn''t build improved versions of his usual storage items, but they weren''t necessary if he could create something with similar functions. His attention soon went on the dark world. His technique allowed him to create a domain where he was the undisputed leader, and its power had also improved after his breakthroughs. The dark world now threatened to shatter the world''s structure every time it appeared. Noah''s new dark matter had become so dense that it could create an improved copy of the Mortal Lands! Luckily for Noah, he didn''t need to deploy the entirety of the dark world to perform tests. A smaller and weaker version of that technique was enough to see if his ideas could give birth to what he desired. The dark world''s structure depended on Noah. He could decide which laws that technique had to suppress and enhance, and the same applied to those connected to space. Noah could bend the space inside the dark matter at will after his breakthroughs, so creating a separate dimension inside the dark world became easy once he became used to that process. The dark world was his domain. He only had to desire it, and a separate dimension would form inside it. Still, he had to gain some experience in that procedure to create something stable. Once Noah completed his experiment, he obtained a separate dimension that he could shrink at will and store inside the black hole. A single thread of dark matter was enough to create a door connected to that space, and its limits depended on Noah''s level. Since his dark matter was in the seventh rank, it could contain rank 7 materials. Noah had yet to test if the separate space could store items at the peak of the rank, but he could learn more about his technique''s limits only after reaching the Immortal Lands. After all, the separate space didn''t strictly depend on the dark matter. It was a place created by the dark world, which was already one step above Noah''s higher energy in terms of power. Still, Noah couldn''t be sure about that until he tried to store powerful materials inside the separate space. The fact that it could contain the Demonic Sword and Night was enough for now. After that last project was over, Noah began to think about his inheritance properly. He already had an idea of what he would leave behind, but he was uncertain about the trials to create. ''I need to create trials that human cultivators can overcome,'' Noah thought as he flew toward the entrance of the separate dimension, ''But I can''t use me as an example.'' Noah was aware that his power had always been off the charts. He had done his best to exploit the advantage given by his transmigration, so he had always been one level above his generation. ''Divine Demon put rank 4 magical beasts in his dimension,'' Noah continued, ''But he allowed group fights in that part of his inheritance. This is not what I want to do.'' Inheritances often targeted human cultivators because they had yet to approach their individuality. That was the best time to understand where their path would lead them. Inheritances meant for heroic cultivators usually consisted of techniques, spells, and materials that could support them in the last part of their journey, but Noah desired to create something different. He wanted to build a place where lone cultivators could shine. As for the contents of the inheritance, Noah had already decided what he would leave behind. He had two studies that could allow a cultivator to defy Heaven and Earth''s limits, and he planned to give them to whoever managed to overcome his trials. Of course, he was thinking about the Elemental Forging method and the research about higher energy. Chapter 1305: 1305. Inheritance An inheritance wasn''t hard to make for a divine being. Noah''s inscription methods didn''t suit that type of structure, but his mental waves were enough to alter the environment to his needs. Inheritances generally needed a secret location, trials, and rewards. Noah could use the separate dimension for the structure, and he had already planned what to give to his heir. He only needed to create the tests to complete that project. Noah would normally fill the place with powerful magical beasts, but the world had a shortage of living beings. He could use his ability to communicate with those creatures to create packs and force their reproduction, but he preferred to use another approach. The many experiments with the living weapons had taught him how to create living beings. Noah could fill the separate dimension with an army of creatures that followed his orders instead of training living beings for the task. Living beings only needed a body and a core that acted as a consciousness. Noah could use the dark matter to overcome the first hurdle and his mental waves for the second. The creatures had to be in the human ranks, with only a few leaders in the heroic ones. His thoughts had become so powerful that they could easily give life to beings at that level. ''It needs to test every aspect of a cultivator,'' Noah thought as he planned the features that his creations would have. ''My heir needs to be a complete warrior with good survival instincts.'' A shape took form in Noah''s mind as he focused on those ideas. Dark matter flowed out of his black hole while he remained immersed in his thoughts, and a figure soon appeared in front of him. Noah saw a humanoid creature when he opened his eyes. The beast was three meters tall and had long arms filled with bulging muscles. Its hands and feet featured long claws, and a layer of sharp fur covered its entire body. The dark matter had been able to create the creature instantly. That prototype was only a rank 4 specimen, so the higher energy could complete the task in no time. ''A bit small for a beast in the heroic ranks,'' Noah thought, and more dark matter flowed out of his black hole to converge in the creature. The humanoid beast grew until it became five meters tall. Its power had suddenly shot to the fifth rank after that empowerment, but Noah promptly took away some of his dark matter to lower its level. It was hard to limit his higher energy''s power, but Noah only needed to complete the process once. He would mass-produce those creatures afterward. ''A long-range attack now,'' Noah thought, and the dark matter acted. A pair of curved horns grew from the creature''s temples, but its power shot in the sixth rank after those modifications. Noah had to call back part of his higher energy to lower its level and force it to return at the beginning of the fourth rank. ''Perfect!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind before enveloping the creature in his mental waves. A small strand of his thoughts separated from his consciousness and flowed inside the beast. The humanoid creature immediately took life began to roar toward Noah. Noah had given the creature a minute part of his greed and the knowledge about its body. The beast knew no fear, so it didn''t hesitate to attack him since hunger filled its mind. Black lightning bolts gathered on its horns while it swung its massive arms toward Noah. The creature aimed to kill him, but it didn''t even manage to overcome his dense aura. ''I should put some limits to its behavior now,'' Noah concluded as unique wills gathered in his mind. Noah had created a proper living being, meaning that the creature had the chance to evolve. Yet, that species carried some of the strongest features in the magical beasts'' field, so he couldn''t let them act freely. If such a strong species ever happened to set foot on the outside world, it would unleash chaos among the fauna. There was a high chance that it could even become the plane''s overlord, and Noah wanted to avoid that outcome. Moreover, he had to prevent those specimens from resorting to cannibalism. The purpose of his trials would vanish if potential heirs were to face a being in the fifth rank once they approached his inheritance. Noah didn''t take much to polish the mindset of the creature. A few strands of his thoughts were enough to complete the creations of a new species. Black clouds formed in the sky when the world sensed the appearance of that new species, but Noah only needed to unfold his consciousness to disperse them. That Tribulation had power in the fourth rank, so Noah didn''t even bother to raise his head to destroy it. Once Noah completed his new species, he began restructuring the separate dimension. He needed to enlarge specific areas and make them converge toward the rewards. Noah enlarged and destroyed parts of the separate dimension, he opened portals inside its fabric to create alternative paths, and he filled the area with his dark matter. His higher energy carried his desire to hide and reinforce that place. Heroic cultivator wouldn''t be able to break those protections and seize the rewards now. His dark matter could also reinforce and refill the destroyed creatures, so Noah packed the separate dimension with his higher energy. Inheritances could remain hidden for millennia, so Noah had to make sure that his trials would survive the passage of time. Noah then covered the dimension''s entrance with a few layers of dark matter that concealed its location. Those defenses would disperse after two thousand years, but they would continue to apply their restrictions even after the inheritance opened. Noah began to mass-produce his creatures after he completed all the modifications on the separate dimension. Peak rank 3 humanoid beasts started to fill those areas, and leaders in the fourth rank took charge of certain checkpoints. In the end, Noah condensed his expertise in the Elemental Forging method and his knowledge about the higher energy to give birth to a will that could control the dark matter in the dimension. The will also carried his gratitude toward the many experts that had decided to create inheritances in the past. That feeling would prevent his will from rebelling and would force it to continue in its mission. Noah knew himself too well. He was aware that his will wouldn''t stay put unless he used appropriate feelings to control it. Noah sorted out his items at that point. He could leave behind most of his old weapons, scrolls, and books since they would become useless in the Immortal Lands. The techniques in his possession were of the darkness element, but Noah didn''t limit his inheritance to cultivators with that aptitude. His scrolls and books would become valuable again once the Elbas family came out of its dimension and rebuilt a society. Noah didn''t have much left after that process. His separate space contained only the Demonic Sword, Night, Shandal''s strange diagram, the Seventh Kesier rune, and a few materials after completing his inheritance. The invasion of the Eternal Snakes had shown him that the Immortal Lands featured many beings in the heroic ranks, so Noah decided to bring the Kesier rune with him. There could be societies in the higher plane where he could trade it. After Noah left the separate dimension, his will took control of the dark matter inside it and hid the entrance. The inheritance was now active, but it would become accessible in two thousand years. Noah wanted the human society to evolve before revealing his inheritance. Activating it now would only give it to the Elbas family. ''An inheritance purely founded on battle prowess,'' Noah thought once he reviewed his creation from the outside world. ''June would love it.'' A wave of memories surged in his mind when Noah thought about his lover, but he soon suppressed his feelings to focus on his last project. He only had to decide what to do with Second Prince before leaving the world. Chapter 1306: 1306. Chance ''It''s time to settle that matter,'' Noah thought as he summoned Snore. The Blood Companion appeared and spat a red crystal in Noah''s hand. Second Prince''s core didn''t react to that change of environment, but Noah could sense that he wasn''t dead. "Hey," Noah said as he pecked the crystal. "I''m about to leave. I need to decide what to do with you." Second Prince remained unresponsive. The crystal didn''t show any sign of life, but that act couldn''t deceive Noah''s mind. Still, he didn''t think that the Royal was pretending to be dead. "I will just break you then," Noah said and tightened his grasp. Cracks opened on the crystal as soon as his fingers pressed on its smooth surface. Second Prince didn''t answer at the beginning, but a few screams eventually resounded from that item. "Do you have anything you want to say?" Noah asked as he straightened his fingers. "Breath" flowed from within the crystal and healed the cracks while a ragged breath echoed from the item. Second Prince sounded far away from his prime, but Noah didn''t mind that delay in his answer. "You," Second Prince replied, "You kept me in complete darkness for more than a millennium! Why didn''t you just kill me?! I couldn''t even self-destruct inside that thing!" A hint of surprise appeared on Noah''s face when he heard those angry reprimands. He had lost track of the passage of time while he was completing the preparations for his ascension, so he had never considered how Second Prince felt about his prison. A thousand years weren''t a long time for powerhouses, but Second Prince had spent that period in the complete darkness, unable to do anything with the dark matter suppressing the crystal. That was even worse than the Demons'' confinement. Second Prince had to spend that time completely alone and unaware of his warden''s intentions. "I have been busy," Noah replied as a carefree smile appeared on his face. "Busy with what?!" Second Prince shouted. "You had no opponents in the entire world! I''m sure you could have spared a few days among your many impending matters!" "Enough, I''m tired of this already," Noah cut that topic short. "I don''t mind letting you leave, but killing you is also easy. Convince me to spare your life." Noah had lost any interest in Second Prince, the Elbas family, and the lower plane''s environment. He couldn''t find any of that interesting when the Immortal Lands were so close. Existences on the level of Second Prince had become nothing more than ants that he could ignore. It was the same mindset shown by King Elbas when he managed to enter the separate dimension. Gods were in their realm, and they couldn''t bother to waste time over lowly matters. Second Prince didn''t answer. It went silent again, but Noah squeezed the crystal to force some reaction out of him. "What do you want me to say?!" Second Prince asked while shouting. "I''ve lived in my Father''s shadow for most of my life, and I''ve become your entertainment for the rest of it. I''ve failed in the cultivation journey. Let me die already." "Giving up in front of the chance to live is quite disappointing," Noah said as a sigh escaped his mouth. "I guess King Elbas'' experiment was a failure in the end." The crystal began to vibrate when Second Prince heard those words, and his angry voice came out of the item again. "I''m more than a simple experiment. I''m an inscribed human. My potential overcomes what simple living beings can achieve." Noah could sense traces of pride in Second Prince''s words. It seemed that he had accepted his peculiar status. "This pride is worthless without ambition," Noah replied. "You talk about potential, but you have never fully expressed it. King Elbas and I are far stronger than you." The crystal went silent again, but Noah knew that Second Prince was thinking about his words, so he gave him the time he needed. Truth be told, Noah pitied Second Prince a bit. The Royal was by no means weak, but he had lived in the same era of two monsters. The first was his creator, the mighty King Elbas. His Father was the best inscription master in the world who had also proven his might when he fought against the organizations. The second was Noah, whose cultivation journey defied any logic. The stories of his adventures could leave anyone speechless, and his achievements were even more legendary. Second Prince was slightly above the ordinary geniuses. He couldn''t compare himself to monsters, and his greatest advantage consisted of his peculiar status. "Why would you even let me live?" Second Prince asked in a helpless tone. Noah scratched the side of his head before giving an honest answer. "It would be a waste otherwise. I would have totally killed you if I were a heroic cultivator, but you can''t even touch me at your current level. You don''t have the power to be my enemy." "Are you implying that my weakness has given me the chance to survive?" Second Prince asked as anger began to fill his words again. "Yes," Noah replied bluntly. Silence followed that exchange of words, but Second Prince soon gave in to his desire to live. "I''ve helped you when the world was too frail to withstand your power." Second Prince said. "It doesn''t count," Noah replied. "You mostly wanted to save yourself when you completed that formation." "I can show you the way for the separate dimension of the Elbas family," Second Prince continued. "Anything you like will belong to you." "I am a god," Noah replied without showing the slightest interest in the matter. "How can you offer me the creations of experts in the heroic ranks?" "I can accompany you in the Immortal Lands!" Second Prince said as he changed approach. "I can grant you my expertise in exchange for a few materials." "Your expertise is useless among divine materials," Noah replied. "You don''t even know if your inscriptions work up there. Moreover, I already have noisy companions." Snore pretended to look away when Noah gave voice to those words. The Blood Companion couldn''t fully understand the human language, but it could sense that Noah wasn''t saying good things about it. Then, Second Prince said something that stirred Noah''s interest. "I can recreate the dimensional portal," Second Prince exclaimed. "I can give you the chance to meet your organization. I only need a few centuries, a millennium at best!" "I won''t spend another day in this plane," Noah replied, "But you have earned your life back." Noah placed his finger on the crystal, and a minute will fused with its surface. Second Prince could only accept that oath. He needed to rebuild the dimensional portal in less than a millennium, or he would die. "I guess throwing you in the sea is fine," Noah said as he turned toward the separate dimension of the Elbas family." "Completely fine," Second Prince replied, and Noah threw the crystal when he heard his answer. The crystal flew for half of the plane before falling in the sea, right below the entrance of his separate dimension. Second Prince was now free, and the same went for Noah, who moved his attention to the sky. It was time to leave. **** Author''s notes: The other chapters will come after I wake up. I promise that I''ll try to make this the last time. Also, I''m planning to take a day off one of these days, but I''ll warn you when the time comes. Chapter 1307: 1307. Ascension Noah''s centers of power had reached the seventh rank. His dark matter had also evolved, and he had already created a temporary training method for his mind. He only needed to fill the spherical rune with primary energy to complete it. He had already improved his spells and created a separate space where he could store divine items. The lower plane''s frailty prevented him from testing and developing new techniques, but Noah wouldn''t hesitate to approach that project after his ascension. His companions had also reached the divine ranks. Snore, the Demonic Sword, and Night were proper rank 7 creatures now. It was unclear whether a lower plane had ever contained so many divine beings. Noah had also completed the inheritance ground and put an end to his relationship with Second Prince. His friends in the other Mortal Lands would get the chance to colonize the main world again once the Royal restored the dimensional portal. Noah couldn''t do anything else in the lower plane since he had completed every preparation. It was time to ascend. Wild emotions surged in Noah''s mind as he approached the sky. His mental waves made sure that his condition was at its peak as he stared at the faint tunnel on the other side of the world''s fabric. Familiar emotions filled Noah''s mind and made him recall memories from his past as a lone cultivator. He was about to enter the last known stage of the cultivation journey. The final phase of his adventures was in front of him. Noah''s consciousness unfolded, and his mental waves seeped in the world''s fabric. His thoughts carried a simple intention. He expressed his willingness to leave the lower plane. A crack soon opened in the sky, and white light filled Noah''s vision as he stared at the world inside the fissure. A captivating aura seeped out of that passage, but his mind fended off its properties and allowed Noah to remain calm. Noah didn''t turn to glance one last time at the world that had been his home for more than three thousand years. He knew what he would leave behind, and he felt no hesitation on the matter. His existence couldn''t be in that place anymore. It was too small and frail for a god. Noah wouldn''t feel any attachment toward a world that rejected him due to his power. The whiteness of the Immortal Lands shone in his eyes. Noah could hear Night''s annoyed complaints inside his mind, but the creature tried its best to suppress its anger. Even the Pterodactyl understood what Noah''s ascension meant. He would instantly go from the peak of the food chain to its bottom once he reached the Immortal Lands. The time for games was over. Its instincts had to remain sharp and ready to face any threat. ''One step closer to the stars,'' Noah thought before crossing the fissure. The scenery in his vision became chaotic, but Noah soon regained his focus. He found himself in a sturdier version of King Elbas'' dimensional tunnel, and the blackness of the void surrounded the structure. That tunnel didn''t apply any protection against the void. It was a thick array of white lines that radiated a heavy aura. Noah soon noticed that he couldn''t move his body due to that pressure. Noah''s individuality became unstable inside the void. It tried to come out of his figure and disperse in that strange environment. However, his mental waves soon enveloped his body and forced his existence to regain some stability. He was a god now. The unique properties of the void couldn''t affect his existence anymore. Noah could fly through that blackness freely if he desired. The white tunnel forced Noah to fly forward, and it even made him accelerate as time passed. Noah couldn''t expand his consciousness past the structure, so he could only focus on the endless array of lines that filled his vision. There was something mystical about those lines. Noah could inspect them with his mind, but he didn''t sense any peculiar aura coming out of them. The tunnel contained common laws. It was a natural creation that didn''t carry any external influence. It was no different from a river or a mountain when it came to the simplicity of its structure. The white light was the only peculiar aspect of that structure. It came from the lines, but its aura transformed after it touched the void. It was a strange transformation that happened after the light left the lines. Noah couldn''t understand that process. It happened on a level that went deeper than laws. It was similar to them but also completely different. That simple event made Noah aware that he was approaching a higher world. He went from understanding every process around him to being unable to study the first strange phenomenon that he saw. Noah flew for entire weeks. He couldn''t calculate the passage of time in that strange environment, but he could see that the white light became more intense as the days passed. The strangeness of the environment kept Noah entertained for a while. Everything was new for him, so he couldn''t grow bored of that light. Also, his companions often spoke and discussed, so he wasn''t completely alone. The tunnel abruptly ended at some point. Noah suddenly regained control of his body only to see an immense white plain filling his vision. Then, he felt an intense gravitational pull dragging him toward that landmass. Noah couldn''t do anything to oppose that force. Even his divine power wasn''t enough to fend off that gravitational pull off. He could only accelerate toward the whiteness and do his best to control his speed. His eyes slowly adapted to that light, but he still couldn''t see anything outside of the whiteness. Yet, he could understand that the landmass wasn''t a simple immense continent. It was a giant planet. ''The Immortal Lands!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as he tried to understand as much as possible of that world. He couldn''t see the entirety of the planet from his position, and the white halo prevented him from gazing at the environment behind that massive world. However, he could notice a few black spots on that mass of whiteness. Noah couldn''t be sure of that, but those spots resembled holes carved in that whiteness. One of them was right under him, and Noah was flying toward it. ''They must be entrances connected to other Mortal Lands,'' Noah guessed as the gravitational pull forced him to accelerate toward the hole under him. A heavy pressure landed on his mind when he crossed the hole. Noah couldn''t even keep his eyes open, and he had to condense his consciousness to protect his mental sphere from that external force. The pressure became less intense as he continued to fall, and even his speed diminished. When he managed to open his eyes, Noah noticed an azure land filled with plants that he had never seen before. Noah crouched and landed on the ground. The sturdy terrain of the Immortal Lands remained stable during the crash. Not even a crack opened on its uneven surface. That sight felt refreshing for Noah. He had finally reached a world that could withstand his power, and he couldn''t wait to explore it. However, before he could unfold his consciousness to study the area, a dangerous sensation appeared in his mind and forced him to turn. ''I''ve grown tired of snakes,'' Noah thought when he saw a giant creature lifting its reptilian head to the sky and fixing its eyes on him. **** Author''s notes: It was my bro''s birthday, so it took me a while to reach the pc. The next chap will come in a few hours. Chapter 1308: 1308. Crowd An intense divine aura filled the area. A wave of power swept Noah when the Snake lifted its massive head toward the sky and fixed its eyes on him. Noah couldn''t recognize the species of that creature. A pair of straight golden horns came out of its head, and yellow scales covered its body. Moreover, the beast appeared to be past the halfway mark of the lower tier. ''My luck has improved,'' Noah thought as coldness seeped out of his eyes. ''I didn''t expect to meet a rank 7 magical beast so soon.'' Noah had to suppress his power for centuries during the last part of his life in the lower plane. He couldn''t even begin to express his strength in that frail world. However, the higher plane was on a superior level. The terrain didn''t even shatter during his landing. Noah knew that he could finally go all-out. The Snake gave voice to a few hisses before throwing itself at Noah. The creature used the upper part of its body like a whip to crack its head at its opponent. Noah let the black hole fill his dark vessels with higher energy and raised his hand. An immense power ran through his arm and landed on his back. Still, his body didn''t falter in front of that force. His feet dug the terrain as the attack pushed Noah back. He slid on the sturdy azure ground as he focused all his power on his arm. The Snake managed to Noah push for an entire kilometer, but the power of its attack eventually dispersed. Pain then spread from the tip of its head at that point, and the creature found itself unable to retract its body. A chill ran down the Snake''s spine when it understood why it couldn''t move freely. Noah had stabbed his fingers on that small patch of skin and was keeping the creature locked in his grasp. The Snake felt like a simple prey under Noah''s cold gaze. The creature had underestimated its opponent, but it wasn''t ready to give up just yet. Winds began to blow in the area as its golden horns started to vibrate. Air flowed on those body parts as the Snake activated its innate ability. A dangerous sensation appeared in Noah''s mind before a dense gale blew out of the Snake''s nostrils. A storm engulfed Noah and ripped the upper part of his robe apart, and a few white marks appeared on his skin as the attack landed on his body. The storm eventually dispersed, and the creature revealed a surprised expression when it saw that a giant black snake had replaced Noah''s figure. Snore had come out when it sensed that Noah couldn''t withstand the attack directly, and it had helped him preserving his handhold. Its fangs had also stabbed the creature''s mouth to restrain it further. ''That was refreshing!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. A smile appeared on his face as pain reached his mind. It had been a long time since his last exciting battle, and he couldn''t help but feel excited when he saw that even a simple divine beast could match his physical strength. Moreover, the Snake''s attack had been almost instantaneous. Noah couldn''t dodge it in time. ''Now you die,'' Noah eventually redirected his cold smile toward his opponent. The Snake couldn''t see Noah anymore, but it could feel the coldness that he radiated. It could sense the danger that was about to fall on it, and its survival instincts took control of its body in a desperate attempt to escape from that situation. The creature began to struggle. It slammed its tail and relaunched its innate ability, but Snore managed to endure most of those attacks. The few injuries that it suffered even healed in an instant. The Snake could only watch as Snore''s horns started to vibrate and amass dark matter. The creature could sense that it wouldn''t be able to survive that attack. Noah helped in keeping the Snake still while he remained inside Snore. He couldn''t wait to win his first battle in the Immortal Lands, but his mind suddenly sensed the arrival of a second enemy. The presence was too fast. It pierced Snore''s body and reached Noah''s position in an instant. He could only raise his free hand to stop the incoming creature. An even stronger force crashed on his arm and ran through the entirety of his body. Noah managed to remain still only because the Snake fought the attack with him. Snore quickly reformed on Noah''s side as he studied the creature that had attacked him. It was a ten meters tall deer-like creature that had two pairs of giant crimson horns. Smoke came out of the Deer''s horns. Noah was holding one of them to keep the creature still, so he could sense the wave of heat that they radiated. Even his skin couldn''t defend against that ability and began to burn. ''Lower tier of the seventh rank,'' Noah concluded as he analyzed the beast''s power. ''It''s a bit stronger than the Snake, and its innate ability counters Snore''s body.'' Noah began to think that there was something strange with that area. He could accept that the Immortal Lands had an abundance of divine creatures, but he couldn''t understand how different beasts could cohabitate in the same environment. Two creatures from different species but with similar level would usually fight for the control of an area. That situation made even less sense since they were both targeting Noah. ''Maybe it''s just a case,'' Noah wondered as he kept both creatures locked in his grasp. ''I can study this area after I kill them.'' Two magical beasts in the seventh rank would typically force divine cultivators to retreat and reorganize their offensive. Yet, Noah was different. He had three divine creatures with him, and his power surpassed what simple rank 7 experts could do. Noah''s aura surged as two shadows came out of his chest. Night released an angry roar when it saw the white sky, and the Demonic Sword did the same at the sight of the two beasts. Snore was the first to attack. Its massive mouth enveloped the Deer and stabbed the terrain to keep it locked in that position. Its six horns began to accumulate dark matter as it prepared its innate ability. A series of deep cuts appeared on the Snake''s head. Night released a storm of attacks that severed entire chunks of the massive beast''s skin and revealed the skull underneath. The Demonic Sword shot downward and severed the Deer''s crimson horns before stabbing the terrain. Noah quickly stored those body parts in his separate space before wielding the blade and pointing it at the Snake. His companions were enough to defeat those creatures, but Noah wanted to end the battle quickly. He was in a foreign environment that he didn''t even begin to study. He couldn''t remain in the open for too long. However, his consciousness suddenly sensed the appearance of a third presence. Snore''s head exploded before it could launch its attack, and a twenty meters tall Eagle came out of the raging dark matter to attack Noah. The Demonic Sword trembled at that sight, and Noah didn''t hesitate to wave it at the new opponent. An intense fear filled the beast, and its survival instincts forced it to change direction at the last second. The creature didn''t manage to dodge Noah''s slash, but it prevented it from landing on its head. A black line flew through the white environment and severed one of its massive brown wings, forcing the Eagle to crash on the ground. Snore reformed before the Deer could retreat. Its mouth enveloped the beast again and kept it still as it prepared the dark beam. Meanwhile, Night continued to injure the restrained Snake and severed its horns to counter its innate ability. Three magical beasts in the seventh rank couldn''t even make Noah move, but his consciousness soon sensed the arrival of two more powerful creatures. Chapter 1309: 1309. Tide Two cultivators stood high in the sky while Noah fought against the rank 7 magical beasts. He couldn''t sense them due to special techniques that hid their presence, so they could observe them without causing any reaction in his instincts. "He is quite strong for a newbie," One of the cultivators said. She was a beautiful young-looking woman with long brown hair and a pair of big dark eyes. "He can''t join us, Miss Canson," The man next to her replied. "He is one of those hybrids. That physical strength doesn''t belong to the human realm." He was a tall middle-aged man with short blonde hair and a long black beard combed into three thick braids. His eyes were green, and he had thin black eyebrows. "Mother told me that the human army used to have hybrids in the past," Miss Canson replied. "Zach, why don''t we accept them anymore?" "Hybrids often are unstable existences," Zach answered. "Their mindsets are also hard to discern since they are both humans and magical beasts at the same time. There have been incidents in the past, but I''m sure you have read about them in the city." Miss Canson pouted before crossing her arms and speaking. "But they are so rare and powerful! Look at him! Did you ever see such a strong newbie?" "I admit he is quite amazing," Zach answered. "Yet, no one can survive the tide of magical beasts gathered in the landing zones without external help. Remain focused. This is your first time forcing an ascended to swear an oath. They can be averse at first." "That''s why you are with me, isn''t it?" Miss Canson replied as a smile appeared on her face. "Yes, but we can''t underestimate the tide," Zach answered. "Others in our position have fallen due to their inexperience. It''s better to wait until the newbie is exhausted." "You are too careful when I''m with you," Miss Canson said as her smile vanished. "Your Mother is a frightening existence," Zach replied. "You have yet to understand how powerful gods can be, but you will learn about that soon enough. I will make sure of that." . . . Noah was obviously unaware of the cultivators in the sky. His innate awareness couldn''t perceive them, and the divine beasts around him had claimed the entirety of his attention. The number of magical beasts around him didn''t stop to five. More creatures in the seventh rank had appeared and didn''t hesitate to pounce at him. The current situation saw Noah against a Snake, a Deer, an Eagle, a giant Turtle, a fiery Dog, a six-legged Tiger, a black Crocodile, a burly Ape, and a white Elephant. Nine magical beasts were attacking him simultaneously, and some of them even managed to synchronize their innate abilities. Luckily for Noah, those creatures were in the lower tier, so he managed to fend them off without suffering severe injuries. He had even guessed that such a gathering of different beasts wasn''t a natural occurrence, but he couldn''t reach any conclusion due to his lack of knowledge about that Immortal Lands. ''Night?!'' Noah shouted through his connection with the Pterodactyl as he ran on the azure ground and dodged the many attacks that converged in his position. Noah had become aware of an annoying feature of the Immortal Lands during the battle. The white sky above him radiated a heavy pressure that forced him to deplete mental energy, and that consumption increased by a lot if he flew. He had learnt about that feature in Shandal''s dimension, but he didn''t think that the sky could suppress him now that he was a divine existence. That discovery led him to remain on the ground to preserve his mental energy. "I don''t remember everything!" Night shouted through its connection with Noah''s mind. "You destroyed most of my memories. You can''t expect me to be an expert about this place. I didn''t even explore the surface due to this damned light!" Night and Snore were supporting Noah as much as they could. The Blood Companion was the perfect meat shield, and its dark beam often managed to carve holes in the assailant. The Pterodactyl remained hidden and came out only to attack any creature that was about to reach him. Noah didn''t limit himself to escape. He released massive black blades whenever he slashed with his Demonic Sword. He wasn''t using all his power, but his attacks weren''t weak either. There was one issue with Noah''s level. The Mortal Lands didn''t give him the chance to enlarge his dantian, so he would end up drained if he used his strongest attacks. He had the dark matter, but that alone wasn''t enough to express his full power. The nine magical beasts struggled to find an opening in his defense even if Noah wasn''t going all-out. They were weaker than him, and their innate abilities were often unable to pierce his tough skin. The same went for their physical prowess. Noah was stronger than all of them, and he could often deal with three of them at the same time without relying on the Demonic Sword. That was quite surprising for a newly ascended cultivator, but those magical beasts didn''t grow scared of his power and continued to assault him. ''Give me anything!'' Noah continued to shout through his connection with the Pterodactyl. "This should be one of the so-called landing zones," Night replied once it managed to reconstruct some of its shattered memories. "All newly ascended existences will arrive in these kinds of territories." ''Couldn''t you tell me this before I crossed the damned fissure?'' Noah conveyed. "I couldn''t remember this before!" Night replied. "Do I have to remind you who made me so forgetful?" Noah didn''t answer anymore and focused completely on the battle. His opponents weren''t at their peak. His slashes and his companions had managed to inflict many severe injuries on a few of them, but they never stopped attacking. The resilience of magical beasts in the divine rank was immense. Some of them would remain alive even if Noah managed to cut their heads! ''I can kill them slowly,'' Noah thought as he kept dodging the attacks flying in his direction. ''No point exposing myself so soon.'' Noah recalled what it was to live in a dangerous and unknown environment. He wouldn''t allow himself to deplete his energy in that battle due to the threats that could be lying in wait. Moreover, he was the same as those creatures. Actually, his body was even more resilient than theirs. The constant assault of nine rank 7 magical beasts would exhaust him quickly, but he had a considerable advantage in that battle. Noah could easily hurt those beasts. Instead, the creatures could barely manage to hit him. Their attacks also struggled to pierce his skin, so he could dispose of them slowly and safely. Dark beams, tall swords, fiery waves, gales, lightning bolts, and much more shone in the azure environment. Those attacks gave birth to a multicolored battlefield that often saw blood falling on the ground. Noah slowly deprived those creatures of their offensive tools. The Deer, the Snake, and the Eagle had already suffered injuries before, but similar wounds appeared on the other beasts as the battle continued. The chance to inflict a fatal blow almost appeared in Noah''s vision, but a series of cries forced him to diverge his attention. His consciousness could sense that ten more rank 7 magical beasts had reached the area and were planning to join the battlefield. Chapter 1310: 1310. Order ''There is no end to them!'' Noah cursed in his mind when he heard the other magical beasts. ''I will become an easy target if I escape in the sky,'' Noah thought as he tried to plan his next move. ''The world''s structure is also quite sturdy here. I don''t think I can use my movement technique without modifying it first.'' Many of the magical beasts attacking Noah had long-range attacks that could reach him if he decided to escape in the air. Some of them could even follow him, and a few were flying creatures. ''I guess I can''t hold back anymore,'' Noah concluded as he prepared himself to use his darkness. . . . The two cultivators in the sky had continued to observe Noah''s battle. They let out surprised gasps from time to time, and they had even developed an interest in Noah''s companions. Zach had been in that position multiple times before. It was his job to oversee that landing zone and take care of all the newly ascended existences. His job didn''t require him to kill the newbies, but that happened whenever he found existences unwilling to swear the oath. He didn''t even need to attack them most times. He could let the tide of magical beasts handle them. However, Noah had shown his incredible battle prowess in that battle. He rarely let his opponents'' abilities hit him, and many of them couldn''t even manage to pierce his skin. Moreover, his attacks always managed to hurt his opponents. It didn''t take much before injuries appeared on the entire group of magical beasts. "Didn''t you say that no one can overcome the tide without external help?" Miss Canson asked as a curious smile appeared on her face. "Only nine beasts can''t form a tide," Zach replied, and ten different roars soon resounded in the environment. Ten magical beasts left their lairs and reached the battlefield to join the injured creatures in their assault at Noah. They were still unable to gain the upper hand in the fight, but their attacks finally inflicted some deep wound on his body. Noah''s body was incredible, but it couldn''t withstand the innate abilities of almost twenty rank 7 magical beasts. That number of creatures could fill the gap that separated them from Noah. "We should prepare," Zach said when he saw that Noah had begun to suffer from that difference in numbers. "The beasts will defeat him soon." Miss Canson nodded and took out a white sword that was hard to see among the whiteness radiated by the sky. However, as soon as the duo began to descend, the entire area went dark for an instant. When the light returned to the world, Miss Canson saw that Zach had moved in front of her and had taken out a yellow sheet that had a series of intricate runes drawn on its surface. Zach had prioritized defending Miss Canson during that strange event. In his long life, he had never seen the light of the sky vanishing so abruptly, but it didn''t take him much to understand the cause behind that phenomenon. The duo remained stunned when they looked toward the ground. A blinding silver halo hovered in the area, and a wave of black flames covered the entire battlefield. A fiendish figure had replaced Noah, and a black cloud soon covered him as it spread in the environment. The duo couldn''t ignore the danger they felt when they looked at that scene, but the reactions of the beasts surprised them even more. The nineteen rank 7 magical beasts had retreated and looked at the black smoke while wearing scared expressions. Zach and Miss Canson could understand the dangerousness of that gas by the fear that those creatures exuded. Other magical beasts had begun to move toward Noah while the battle raged, but the arrival of the black smoke made them retreat in fear. They had understood that Noah wasn''t an opponent that they should face at their current level. A shadow then came out of the cloud to reach the nearest beast. The yellow Snake had been the slowest to retreat, and it couldn''t escape from Noah due to the many injuries that filled its body. Noah didn''t waste time. He waved his sword at the creature, and its head separated from the rest of its body. The Snake remained alive even after that injury. Still, a hole immediately appeared at the center of its skull and killed it once and for all. Zach and Miss Canson''s surprise intensified when they saw the corpse disappearing from the battlefield. It was rare for a newly ascended existence to have a storage item capable of containing divine creatures, but Noah clearly was one of the few exceptions. "You should remain behind," Zach whispered when he realized that Noah wasn''t even close to average newly ascended cultivators in terms of power. He had already accepted that Noah was quite strong, but that sudden show of power forced him to review his idea about Noah. Once he understood that, he couldn''t let Miss Canson come even close to the battlefield. Miss Canson wanted to complain, but another shocking event happened. The magical beasts had begun to escape once they witnessed the Snake''s death, but Noah gave voice to a deafening roar that forced some of them to remain still. Only the weaker creatures in the group didn''t manage to reject Noah''s orders, but that was enough to prove his superiority. Miss Canson didn''t know much about hybrids, but Zach knew that they could command other creatures when their power surpassed theirs. It wasn''t a surprise that Noah could use it. Yet, the magical beasts that his roar could submit gave Zach an idea of his target''s power, and he didn''t like what he understood. Noah killed the beasts that didn''t manage to ignore his order and stored their corpses in the separate space. He then dispersed the Demonic Form and finished absorbing the lumps of flames that were flying toward him. His injuries had healed in an instant, so he almost returned at his peak. He even had a small amount of darkness left, so he didn''t feel the need to rest just yet. Zach''s expression became cold when he saw Noah studying the area, and he gestured to Miss Canson to remain hidden in the sky while he took care of the matter. She limited herself to nod, but her eyes couldn''t leave the newly ascended warrior that had managed to fend off the threatening tide of beasts. Noah wanted to cultivate right away, but he didn''t feel safe in that place. Night had only hinted to the landing zones, but he could vaguely guess what it meant with those words. The tunnel seen in the lower plane made him feel quite sure about his theory. Unless the white passages for the Immortal Lands moved, they would force the cultivators to land on specific areas. The holes seen from the outside of the white sky were another hint that supported his theory. Cultivators and other divine existences could only pass through them to enter the Immortal Lands, which would easily lead to the creation of hunting areas. Noah was picking a direction when he sensed the arrival of another existence. That event made him worried since the cultivator had appeared out of nowhere, but he slightly relaxed when he didn''t feel any killing intent coming from that cultivator. When he turned, Zach performed a polite bow to greet him. Chapter 1311: 1311. Enemies ''How can he fly so easily?'' Noah wondered when he saw Zach floating above him. Zach didn''t seem bothered about his position, and Noah found that feature quite strange since the cultivator was in the gaseous stage. Noah guessed that Zach had an item or a technique that allowed him to ignore the white light. Noah and Zach''s minds slowly touched after they made sure that they had no evil intentions. The two consciousnesses took care of selecting the language to use for the incoming conversation, and they separated immediately after that. "I must say," Zach began to speak, "I''m quite impressed by your battle prowess. It''s a pity that your kind can''t join us." Noah didn''t answer, and his face didn''t reveal any emotion at those words. Yet, his mind grew colder when he understood that Zach knew about his hybrid status. ''He must have observed my battle,'' Noah concluded in his mind, and that thought made him quite worried. If his hypothesis was on point, then everyone knew that the area was a landing zone. Zach would surely see that he had just ascended from a lower plane, and that would reveal that Noah''s centers of power were only at the beginning of the seventh rank. Of course, that wasn''t exactly correct when it came to Noah. His mind and dantian were basically at the beginning of the seventh rank, but his body had begun to improve. Also, he had the black hole, which could be his trump card in that situation. "I don''t want to cause any trouble," Zach continued as he took a white tablet from his space-ring. "My name is Zach Foredall. I''m part of the Crystal City, and it''s my job to make sure that newly ascended existences won''t become a threat to the human army. I need you to swear that you won''t cause any damage to our side." Noah remained silent as he continued to inspect the cultivator. He continued to suppress his emotions, but the coldness that seeped out of his figure became more intense when he heard those words. Zach didn''t speak anymore either. He had said his piece, so everything was up to Noah now. Zach wouldn''t spend other words for an existence that couldn''t join his side. "Or?" Noah eventually asked, and Zach immediately understood what he meant with his question. "I can''t let a potential threat roam freely," Zach answered as traces of killing intent began to seep out of his figure. "I guess this Crystal City must be nearby for you to be so thorough," Noah said as he tried to focus on the horizon. Noah couldn''t see any structure nearby, but Zach''s eyes had sharpened for an instant when he heard those words. That was enough to reveal that Noah''s guess was close to the truth. "There is no need to fight over such a small matter," Zach resumed his speech after he exchanged glances with Noah for a while. "This oath is harmless. It won''t affect your journey. I will even share a report concerning the last known location of some hybrids with you if you swear it." Noah memorized his words, but he didn''t give him any answer. His attention had shifted during Zach''s speech. Noah had begun to sense a peculiar aura coming out of him when his killing intent spread in the environment. That aura wasn''t strange enough to arouse Noah''s suspicion, but he felt that something was off when he sensed that it came from multiple directions. One source of that aura came from Zach, while the other flowed out of a seemingly random spot in the sky. Noah turned toward that spot, and Zach''s expression paled when he understood where Noah was looking. Miss Canson was in that area, but it seemed that Noah couldn''t see her. "How can you fend off the pressure of the sky?" Noah asked without moving his gaze from that seemingly random spot. Zach felt slightly threatened when he observed Noah''s actions. His power was enough to match that newly ascended monster, but he couldn''t risk Miss Canson''s life during the mission. Moreover, Zach was unaware of Noah''s assets and mindset. He didn''t know if Noah would abruptly attack that spot out of curiosity or if he would ignore it. "We use special items," Zach replied in an attempt to bring Noah''s attention back on him. "They are quite common among humans. You can''t miss them if you even reach a market." "Weren''t those of my kind unwelcomed by humans?" Noah asked. "The Crystal City is the most radical about this issue," Zach answered. "Other societies don''t care about your species as long as you don''t cause any trouble." Zach knew what was happening. He wasn''t revealing those pieces of information because Noah had managed to trick him. That was a pure show of goodwill that he hoped would lead to Noah swearing the oath. However, Zach had failed to understand Noah''s mindset. He couldn''t possibly know that Noah had spent a long part of his life cursing the restrictions applied by his world''s political system. Noah saw the Immortal Lands as a place where divine existences could ignore any form of organization and strive to touch the sky with their power. He wouldn''t let anyone put limits on his freedom as soon as he reached the higher plane. "You aren''t alone, are you?" Noah asked, and Zach''s eyes widened when he heard those words. An intense killing intent began to flow out of his figure at that point. Zach couldn''t hold back anymore when he understood that Miss Canson could be in danger. He had to show Noah that he would kill him if he didn''t swear the oath. The scenery in Noah''s eyes slowly changed as his superior senses became used to that peculiar aura. Dark matter flowed out of his black hole and entered his eyes to enhance his view. Black vessels appeared on his sclera as his reptilian pupils sharpened. Miss Canson''s enchanting figure slowly appeared in his vision, and Noah couldn''t help but wear a cold smile when he saw the worried expression on her face. "I can kill her before your attack reaches me," Noah said at some point. "You know that you can''t stop me. You have seen my battle." Zach had no words to express how he felt about Noah. Not even a day had passed since his landing, but Noah had already succeeded in two almost impossible feats. Noah had defeated the tide of beasts waiting in the landing zone and had managed to look past the technique developed in the Crystal City! Part of Zach wanted to kill Noah on the spot, but he had to prioritize Miss Canson''s well-being, so he couldn''t attack. Yet, Noah soon proposed something that he couldn''t ignore. "It''s too soon to make enemies," Noah announced. "Let''s forget about this discussion. You two let me go, and I''ll leave without causing a mess. It seems pretty fair to me." "You have no idea who you are threatening," Zach said, but his killing intent lost some intensity when he heard Noah''s offer. "I don''t really care," Noah said as he shrugged his shoulders. "We have a deal, right?" Zach hesitated for a second before nodding, and Noah waved his hand before turning to leave. Noah had been honest. He had no intention of making enemies without learning more about the Immortal Lands. After all, the higher plane was an environment that could contain rank 8 and 9 existences. Yet, he wasn''t delusional. He knew how extremist organizations worked. Zach had let him go, but Noah was aware that the cultivator would report his arrival to the Crystal City. Chapter 1312: 1312. Fores "We failed the mission because of me," Miss Canson said once Noah disappeared from her sight. "I will make sure that my Mother understands this. You would have taken care of him if you didn''t have to protect me." Miss Canson appeared quite broken about that outcome. She cared about Zach, and she didn''t want to see him punished due to her weakness. Moreover, meeting Noah had shown her the difference between an ascended and a divine existence that didn''t overcome similar trials. "I wouldn''t be sure so sure about that," Zach replied without moving his gaze from the direction where Noah had left. "Hybrids are hard to deal with, and this one has been ready to fight during the entire conversation. He didn''t want a battle, but he didn''t fear it either." "Do you think he had a chance against you?" Miss Canson asked as surprise appeared on her face. Her Mother had chosen Zach as her protector because he was strong and had a lot of experience dealing with ascended. However, his words conveyed his hesitation about the whole matter. "I can''t be sure of that," Zach replied. "He shouldn''t have much experience in battles in the divine ranks, but he managed to defeat the tide without relying on his individuality. That alone speaks for his power." . . . Noah left the area as fast as he could. He didn''t try to use his movement technique in his current condition, but his physical strength made him capable of great speed anyway. The magical beasts in the area didn''t attack him. Noah could sense them, but he also saw that they ignored him for no apparent reason. ''Did I get approved or something?'' Noah wondered as he ran past that crowded land. The creatures in the area hadn''t hesitated to attack him when he landed in the Immortal Lands, but they were ignoring him now. It was as if they had no interest in fighting someone that had survived the tide. Moreover, they also ignored each other. That area featured multiple lairs, but those powerful magical beasts didn''t bother to fight for the ownership of that region. It was as if they had agreed to attack only the newly ascended existences, and Noah couldn''t even begin to understand how they had decided that. His extensive knowledge in the magical beasts'' field didn''t cover that behavior. Noah didn''t stop to inspect the environment, but he still memorized the lands he crossed as he tried to leave the landing zone. The area was full of life and had an uneven layout. Short mountains filled with magical plants covered that azure land. Various magical beasts had created lairs in that environment, but their influence didn''t manage to affect the laws in the matter around them. Noah could sense divine auras filling the entire area. The magical beasts, some plants, and the terrain radiated their influence in the environment and covered it with a thick halo. The pressure radiated by the white sky fused with that halo and created a shining environment. Noah couldn''t linger in the area for too long, but that sight left him mesmerized. He didn''t need to unfold his consciousness to sense the difference with the lower plane. Every brim of matter in the Immortal Lands carried an intense vitality and appeared as the most valuable material in the entire world. The piece of Immortal Lands that had fallen in the lower plane was no match for the actual higher world. The amount of energy in that environment was on a superior league, and Noah couldn''t wait to feed on it. Anxiety that only a dangerous environment could cause filled Noah''s mind. His arrival in the Immortal Lands had been quite messy, but he had learnt a lot about the higher plane during those events. The Immortal Lands didn''t have a shortage of living beings. Countless magical plants filled every inch of the landing zone, and many divine creatures inhabited those areas. Moreover, he had confirmed the presence of cultivators. The two gods had also disclosed the existence of organizations and societies that had different beliefs. ''I wonder if the Crystal City has a cultivator in the eighth rank,'' Noah thought as he ran through the uneven terrain. Noah crossed countless mountains and ran for entire weeks before the scenery in his eyes started to change. A large river appeared on his path and marked the entrance to a different environment. The uneven terrain filled with short mountains and chaotic vegetation stopped before the river. Noah could see a tall forest on the other side of that large stream, and the aura that surrounded that zone triggered his survival instincts. Trees more than four hundred meters tall filled his view. They had large azure leaves, and their thick brown trucks hid the insides of that region. Also, a dense aura covered the entire area and made Noah''s instincts rage in fear. Something powerful had taken the forest as its lair. Noah felt glad that his knowledge of the magical beasts'' field revealed itself useful in that situation, but he couldn''t be happy about what he understood. ''Maybe the landing zone is one of the exceptions of the Immortal Lands,'' Noah thought as he stopped before reaching the river. ''This region follows the same patterns that I''ve learnt to recognize in the lower plane.'' Hypotheses amassed in Noah''s mind. The arrival in the Immortal Lands had filled him with questions that he couldn''t answer due to his poor knowledge about that environment. Noah turned to look behind him. He believed that cultivators from the Crystal City would eventually come for him, so he couldn''t remain in the landing zone. It was better to hide among magical beasts that would defend their territory rather than among uncaring creatures. Noah would be able to use his expertise in the forest, and the leader of that area could work as a deterrent against eventual pursuers. ''I should hide here until I understand how the Immortal Lands work,'' Noah concluded as he jumped the river to land among the tall trees. ''I''m quite curious to see if they will follow me in this environment.'' Noah ventured inside the forest, but he didn''t dare to run toward its central areas. He remained in its peripheral parts and changed direction whenever the danger felt by his instincts became more intense. The forest seemed endless, and it was thick enough to cover part of the white light radiated by the sky. The pressure on Noah''s mind weakened in that region, so he didn''t mind running for a few more weeks before deciding to settle. Noah used the Demonic Sword to dig a cave in the tough azure terrain and sealed it to hide inside that dangerous environment. He had to test a few things before he could resume his exploration of the higher plane. The battle against the tide had brought a few benefits. Noah had managed to test his battle prowess properly and had confirmed that he was quite powerful for a newly ascended existence. Even Zach Foredall had remained wary of him during their conversation. That proved that his power was worthy of respect. Noah had seized the corpses of five divine beasts after the battle against the tide, so he could feed himself for a while. He expected his body to improve quickly in the Immortal Lands, and he didn''t mind using it as the foundation of his power. His spherical rune required primary energy, and Noah only needed to unfold his aura to create it. However, he preferred to prioritize another aspect of his power before approaching that matter. He had to see if he could enlarge his dantian. Chapter 1313: 1313. Abundance Noah''s body didn''t have any special requirements. It only needed energy to improve. The same went for his mind. He would use the spherical rune for that center of power until he created a better training method. Yet, dantians could be tricky to enlarge. Their level depended on the cultivators'' individuality, and the lower plane didn''t offer any knowledge of the divine realms. Noah didn''t know what he had to strive for at that point in his cultivation journey. He had obtained some clues during his Earth Tribulation, but he had yet to understand them completely. ''How should I aim to become a world?'' Noah wondered as the sensations felt after he ate Earth resurfaced in his mind. The meaning of that word was quite vague, but Noah couldn''t translate those sensations in any other way. He could only see how cultivating in the Immortal Lands felt and progress from that point. Noah had already cultivated with his dantian in the seventh rank, but he didn''t aim to enlarge it during those periods. He had only needed to refill his darkness to stabilize his dark matter. The lower plane couldn''t suffice enough fuel for the task, and Noah didn''t dare to try it. Still, it was now time to test how the Immortal Lands reacted to his training. The Demonic Sword flew out of his chest to land in Noah''s grasp. His cultivation technique evolved together with the living weapon and the rune on his low-waist, so he knew that he met the requirements for that procedure. Noah placed the back of the sword on his waist and began to cultivate. True meanings flowed into the blade, became primary energy inside it, and transformed once they reached the rune. His dantian absorbed that energy and began to enlarge. Noah didn''t notice any issue during the process, so he continued to cultivate. Nothing strange happened even after two weeks passed. ''Maybe my individuality has already met certain requirements,'' Noah guessed after he interrupted his training. ''I can only hope that it continues to be like this.'' Noah was sure that advancing through the divine ranks wouldn''t always be so easy. The higher levels of power had different requirements, but he had yet to understand them. He felt something different during the enlargement. Almost everything around him carried a divine aura, so the laws he absorbed provided him with immense energy. His lack of knowledge about the higher ranks bothered him, but Noah wouldn''t complain about his situation. He wanted to understand the path that his existence was treading, but the absence of hindrances appeased his annoyance. After Noah confirmed that his dantian could improve, he unfolded his aura to cover a wide underground area. He didn''t dare to cause troubles on the surface for fear of attracting the attention of the leader of the forest. His aura seeped inside the Immortal Lands'' sturdy terrain and slowly turned it into primary energy that flew toward Noah. He then absorbed it inside his mind to fill his spherical rune. The internal pressure became more intense and pressed on his mental walls. His sea of consciousness finally began to enlarge at a decent speed, and Noah continued to stuff the spherical rune with energy until the first drawbacks appeared. Noah couldn''t let his training affect his awareness, so he had to stop stuffing energy before headaches and similar drawbacks arrived. He even interrupted the absorption before those limits to prevent issues related to the white sky and sudden mental attacks. Once Noah took care of his mind, he could focus on his dantian and body. He had many preys to eat, and he wanted to store a decent amount of darkness before resuming his exploration. His lack of darkness couldn''t be an issue in that environment. Noah couldn''t live with the fear that his stash of energy would run out. It was pointless to be a divine existence if he couldn''t express that power for more than a few attacks. Months passed as Noah focused on improving his foundation. His level steadily rose as he solidified his position as a divine existence. It felt good to be in an environment that could sustain his growth. His centers of power felt at home in the Immortal Lands. The laws were abundant, and the matter around remained intact even after he absorbed its energy multiple times. Noah would normally cultivate until the growth of his centers of power showed signs of slowing down, but the events with Zach and Miss Canson compelled him to leave the area. He would have hunted all the beasts in the landing zone otherwise. ''I wonder where the next landing zone is,'' Noah thought as he unfolded his consciousness to inspect the surface. ''I want to see if those areas have some restriction that forces those magical beasts to attack only the newly ascended existences.'' The forest didn''t change in those months. The heavy pressure was still there, but Noah ignored it to continue exploring the peripheral areas. Noah didn''t want to meet the leader of the forest. That creature was ignoring his presence, and he desired to keep things in that way. That environment was far less crowded than the landing zone. Noah could sense some powerful magical beasts among the heavy aura, but he never understood their exact power since he always avoided them. Creating chaos in a foreign environment ruled by a creature that could cover it with its aura wasn''t ideal. Noah wanted to leave the forest quickly to avoid remaining in that dangerous situation. Yet, his guess about the Crystal City ended up being on point. Zach had warned his organization about the events with Noah, and a hunting party soon caught up with him during the months that he spent in seclusion. . . . A few weeks before Noah came out of his cave, four rank 7 cultivators gathered above the river next to the forest. Zach was among them, and he wore a hesitant expression as he stared at the tall trees. The four cultivators wore white robes with long sleeves. A few purple designs covered the edges of their clothes, but they all had different styles. Zach also wore those robes, and his purple designs depicted a series of different weapons. "Gil, are you sure that he went in the forest?" Zach asked as he turned toward a tall cultivator with long black hair and dark eyes. His purple designs depicted a series of wolf-like creatures. "I''m certain that he entered the forest more than a month ago," Gil replied. "This region belongs to the Twelve-legged Queen," One of the two women among the group added. She was short and extremely overweight. Long blond hair covered her face, and her robe''s designs depicted a series of bubbles of various sizes. "Bertha is right," The second woman in the group continued. "Madam Canson has made a deal with her. She will notice me if I were to enter the forest." The woman had short brown hair and a pair of shining blue eyes. Her robe''s designs depicted waves, and she was the only cultivator in the liquid stage among the group. "You can be at ease, Lady Lena," Zach replied. "The three of us are enough to take care of him. I''m glad that our weakness can be useful to the City." Lady Lena nodded at his words. The Twelve-legged Queen would react to any invader that wasn''t at the bottom of the seventh rank, so only her three companions in the gaseous stage could continue the chase. "Make the Crystal City proud," Lady Lena said as she gestured to her companions to proceed. "Remember, humans are a perfect species. Don''t let the physical strength of the hybrids affect your belief." After her words, her three companions crossed the river and entered the forest. Chapter 1314: 1314. Ambush Noah was unaware that three cultivators from the Crystal City had followed him into the forest. He had predicted that Zach and his organization wouldn''t leave him alone, but he didn''t expect them to catch up with him so soon. After all, Noah had plenty of experience covering his tracks, and he didn''t stop running for entire weeks before settling to cultivate. Noah continued to avoid every powerful being sensed by his consciousness as he ran through the forest. Some of those presences belonged to magical plants, but he never had the chance to study them as he did his best to leave the area under Crystal City''s jurisdiction. His travel through the forest went smoothly. He didn''t meet any problem during his exploration, but the scenery in his vision didn''t change even after a few more months passed. The forest seemed endless. It made sense for the Immortal Lands'' environments to be wider, but he didn''t expect that a single region could take entire months to cross. Still, Noah never stopped moving. The heavy aura that covered the environment stirred his black hole to work faster and redirect most of its energy toward his body. Noah was moving quickly. Ordinary rank 7 cultivators in the gaseous stage wouldn''t match his speed unless they used movement techniques, but Noah guessed that they couldn''t release much energy in that environment. Yet, his belief shattered when he sensed a series of presences entering the range of his consciousness. Surprise filled Noah''s mind when he sensed those presences. They vanished after a second, but he could understand their nature during that time. They weren''t living beings. They radiated the unmistakable aura of a spell. ''Did they find me?'' Noah immediately guessed as he accelerated. The chance that other cultivators lived in that environment was relatively low, and the likelihood that they had used spells when surrounded by the heavy aura was even lower. The cultivator who had cast that spell was looking for something, and it was too coincidental that the technique vanished once it touched Noah''s consciousness. Noah ran at full speed. His black hole poured even more energy into his body and filled his dark vessels with dark matter. He became even faster due to that empowerment, but he still failed in shaking off his pursuers. A series of ghostly wolves appeared in front of him at some point. Those creatures were identical to each other, but a horizontal black line cut them in half before they could howl at Noah. The Demonic Sword had landed in Noah''s hand as soon as the creatures appeared, and Noah didn''t hesitate to slash at them. His attack also landed on some trees, but it didn''t manage to sever their thick trunks. The ghostly wolves began to disperse, but Noah jumped past them without even observing their end. He couldn''t study his opponent''s ability with the heavy aura being a constant threat in that environment. Noah continued to run until the ground morphed in front of his eyes. Tall weapons came out of the terrain and tried to stab him. Dodging them made Noah slow down, but he persevered in his escape. ''They must be nearby,'' Noah thought as he sensed that peculiar aura again. The attacks that had appeared in front of him exuded the power of the gaseous stage. Noah knew that his pursuers had to be inside the range of his consciousness. However, he couldn''t pinpoint their exact location due to their concealing method. Transparent bubbles fell from the trees at some point. They shone with an azure light when the sky illuminated them, but they appeared empty. Yet, Noah could sense that they contained an immense amount of energy. Noah tried to dodge the bubbles, but they released intense waves of energy when they exploded on the terrain. He couldn''t escape those shockwaves, but his body managed to endure them without suffering grave injuries. His priority remained to escape, but his mind began to analyze those attacks and their influence on the environment. There was something off in that situation. He couldn''t explain how his pursuers could ignore the aura of the leader of the forest. If his pursuers came from the Crystal City, they had to know the forest and had an idea about its dangerousness. The fact that they launched attacks so uncaringly hinted that the leader of the area wouldn''t bother to intervene in those battles. ''They might also be complete idiots,'' Noah thought as he continued to dodge attacks and wave his blade to press forward. Underestimating opponents was a deadly flaw, but overestimating them could lead to similar awful outcomes. Noah respected those who had managed to reach the divine ranks, but the Immortal Lands had already shown him that he couldn''t apply his values in that world. Noah had understood that when he threatened Miss Canson. She was at his same level, but she appeared less experienced than all the powerhouses met in his life. The natives of the Immortal Lands would have an easier path toward the higher ranks, especially if they had powerful backings. They would never suffer from a lack of knowledge about the ranks, and the environment around them was a paradise for cultivators. Those favorable conditions often gave birth to idiots, but Noah couldn''t bet on that just yet. He continued to run through the forest and waited for something to change. Three different abilities converged on his position at some point. Ghostly wolves appeared in the distance and started to run toward him. Various weapons came out of the ground and tried to pierce him with their sharp side. Bubbles fell from the trees and released shockwaves that destabilized him. Noah was ready to slash his way through those spells, but more of them appeared in his vision before he could perform his martial art. A single attack wouldn''t be able to pierce them, so Noah felt forced to stop to take care of them. Black lines flew under the trees'' crowns as Noah attacked those abilities. The wolves and weapons weren''t a problem since his sharpness could cut them, but the bubbles exploded even if he destroyed them before they touched the ground. Shockwaves swept Noah and made blood accumulate in his mouth. He had suffered a few light internal injuries during the escape, and he immediately identified the cultivator behind that ability as the main threat. Three figures appeared above him after he stopped. Noah could sense the peculiar aura again, but that concealing method couldn''t hide his opponents from his awareness when they were so close. Noah recognized Zach among the trio, and his eyes sharpened when he inspected his companions. The purple designs on their white robes revealed who was behind those abilities, and Noah immediately fixed his on the overweight woman. "We meet again," Zach announced as he gazed toward Noah. "How did you find me so soon?" Noah asked as he prepared for the imminent battle. "How can you not fear the leader of the forest?" The three cultivators revealed a cold smile when they heard his questions. Their reactions told Noah that he wouldn''t receive any answer, but he didn''t feel surprised about that. He wanted to gain a few more pieces of information before going all-out, but it seemed that those cultivators had no intention to speak. Chapter 1315: 1315. Echo Noah had yet to become completely used to his divine powers, but he could rely on his instincts to understand how dangerous a situation was. When he inspected the three cultivators, he felt sure that they could defeat him if they worked together. It wasn''t only a matter of power. Noah''s opponents had a vast battle experience, and they were already aware of the physical advantages of a hybrid. ''I wonder if they know about the higher energy in the Immortal Lands,'' Noah wondered as corrosive smoke came out of his skin. Noah didn''t hesitate to activate the complete Demonic Form, but he held back from using his higher energy. He only filled his black vessels with dark matter once the fiendish armor covered his figure. There was something strange about the whole situation. Noah didn''t know how the trio had managed to catch up with him so soon, but he felt more surprised about their lack of worry. The forest was a danger zone ruled by a powerful being, but the trio didn''t hold back. The three cultivators didn''t show any fear when they launched their attacks. ''What are they hiding?'' Noah wondered as the corrosive cloud spread in the area. The black smoke consumed the trees and ground as it expanded. Even those divine materials couldn''t do anything against the might of the Demonic Form. Zach, Gil, and Bertha revealed some concern when they studied the corrosive smoke. Zach had already seen that spell when Noah fought the tide, but he could realize how dangerous it was only now that it threatened to engulf him. Gil summoned his ghostly wolves, and they shot inside the corrosive smoke. However, an unsightly expression appeared on his face when he lost contact with them. His companions saw his reaction and accepted that they had to avoid Noah''s spell. Yet, they didn''t back out of that fight and summoned their techniques to deal with the threat. Giant weapons came out of the ground. Zach summoned huge spears and swords made of black metal. They created a tall wall that tried to stop the expansion of the corrosive smoke. Bertha''s belly shrunk as multiple azure bubbles came out of her mouth. They descended toward the expanding cloud and exploded once they touched the corrosive smoke. The shockwaves that followed the explosions pushed the cloud back and revealed its insides. Half on Noah''s corrosive smoke vanished when that surge of energy spread, but he was nowhere to be seen. Gil closed his eyes and crossed his legs as he sat in the sky. An army of ghostly wolves materialized next to him and opened their mouths as they pointed at the black cloud. No sound came out of the wolves, but silent tremors swept the area after their gesture. Noah didn''t manage to notice it before, but he could sense the matter shaking now that he was inside his corrosive smoke. ''That answers one of my questions,'' Noah thought when he saw weapons coming out of the ground under him. Zach had managed to target him after those tremors swept the area. Gil had to be the reason why the trio had managed to reach Noah so quickly. Noah kicked the weapons rising toward him. The corrosive smoke had forced them to deplete part of their power, so his attack easily crushed the spell. However, a series of azure bubbles converged in the part of the cloud above him and exploded, releasing shockwaves that destroyed the smoke and revealing him. The trio could finally see their opponent again, and their eyes sharpened at the sight of his fiendish armor. A helmet that resembled the head of a dragon covered his head, and two long fangs came out of his pointy mouth. Scales covered the entirety of his body, and a long tail came out of his back. Claws replaced the fingers of both hands and feet, but the corrosive smoke soon covered his figure again. The cloud reformed while the trio studied Noah''s spell. ''Since they don''t fear the leader of the forest,'' Noah thought as he raised the Demonic Sword above his head, ''I don''t see why I should hold back.'' The Demonic Sword trembled, and Noah waved it as soon as it amassed enough dark matter. A storm of black lines came out of the corrosive cloud and flew toward the three cultivators. Zach, Gil, and Bertha promptly performed evasive maneuvers to dodge the slashes, but they felt forced to stop themselves when sharp black lines appeared on their path. The entire area was in the range of Noah''s consciousness, so he could make his sharpness explode anywhere he wanted. He didn''t need to slash to launch his threatening attacks. Black smoke spread from his slashes and created a second cloud. The three cultivators weren''t able to dodge it, but they quickly deployed their defensive measures as they continued to retreat. Zach, Gil, and Bertha separated as they escaped the corrosive smoke. Their white robes began to radiate a faint light that covered their figures and fended off Noah''s spell, but that defense didn''t manage to block the Demonic Form in time. The corrosive smoke had managed to touch them before they could activate their inscribed robes, and bloodied injuries had replaced their skin in those spots. Moreover, black marks surrounded those wounds and expanded through their bodies. Bertha didn''t hesitate to cut away her infected tissues. A piece of her cheek separated from her body and released a violent shockwave when the energy that it contained spread in the environment. The corrosive smoke had hit Zach on his arm, but the skin on that spot transformed into a black metal that stopped the poison. Gil had been the slowest to react to Noah''s spell. The corrosive smoke had consumed half of his left thigh and had infected what remained of it. The poison was even spreading toward his calf and waist, but he quickly acted to save his leg. Some of his ghostly wolves flew toward him and ran through his leg. They took away part of the poison every time their crossed his limb, but they died after it spread inside them. Noah didn''t remain still while the trio dealt with the infection. He had initially decided to kill Bertha first due to the dangerousness of her attacks, but Gil became his main priority after he learnt about his tracking abilities. Gil was still in the middle of saving his leg when he saw a shadow coming out of the second cloud. A large cut opened on his chest before he could even understand what had attacked him, and a dangerous sensation filled his mind when he sensed Noah''s sharpness filling the air around him. A black line materialized and threatened to cleave Gil in half, but a deafening howl suddenly came out of his body and destroyed the incoming attack. Noah lowered his blade when he saw Gil''s aura spreading in the environment. He could see the true meaning that it carried. The cultivator had activated the effects of his law. ''Resonance?'' Noah thought when he saw Gil''s law. He couldn''t find a better word to translate Gil''s true meaning, but its effects soon became clear. The howl released by his body spread through the area and became more intense as the matter began to echo that sound. Noah couldn''t escape from that attack. The soundwave engulfed him and forced his tissues to tremble according to its rhythm. Chapter 1316: 1316. Laws Laws were powerful tools, especially when cultivators in the divine ranks used their individualities to fuel their attacks. Gil was only a rank 7 existence in the gaseous stage, but the activation of his true meaning brought his attacks on a superior level. Noah saw his fiendish armor falling apart when the soundwave engulfed him. His skin also trembled according to that rhythm, and blood amassed in his mouth as internal injuries accumulated. The echo of the howl shook Noah''s insides and forced him to spit mouthfuls of blood. He didn''t even charge at the cultivator, but the power of his individuality forced him to retreat. That was the strength of a god. An individuality could affect the matter in the area and change its functions. Simple spells couldn''t defend against that type of power. Noah felt naked in front of that ability. ''So that''s how it is,'' Noah thought as his black hole sent dark matter toward his injuries. Noah had brought his dantian on a decent level after his seclusion. In theory, he didn''t have any weakness. Yet, his inexperience in battles in the divine ranks didn''t allow him to express his real power. Instead, Gil knew what it meant to be a rank 7 cultivator. He knew how effective his individuality was, so he didn''t hesitate to deploy it when Noah was about to kill him. Zach and Bertha imitated Gil when they saw Noah''s armor shake. Their auras surged, and their laws spread in the environment as they affected the matter. Zach''s individuality allowed him to transform anything into a weapon. Spears and blades grew from the air, the ground, and the trees and shot toward Noah. His true meaning was hard to translate into words, but Noah could sense the smell of a battlefield when his aura reached him. That individuality tasted like blood, sweat, death. Bertha''s belly shrunk as her aura spread in the environment. Pieces in the matter around her absorbed her energy and transformed into multicolored spheres that flew toward Noah. They were proper bombs that threatened to release the dense energy contained in their fabric. Noah felt tinges of admiration surging inside him when he sensed how her aura affected the environment. The might of her attacks was something that he had to respect as a fellow destroyer. Weapons and shockwaves flew toward Noah while he dealt with Gil''s individuality. Most blades and spears crumbled due to the corrosive properties of his fiendish armor. Still, some of them managed to land on his skin anyway. Also, his spell couldn''t stop the surges of energy. Screeching noises echoed in the area as the black weapons landed on his skin. The spears and blades had lost a lot of power when they crossed the corrosive smoke, so they could only slide on Noah''s body when they reached it. As for the shockwaves, they joined Gil''s howl in their assault at Noah''s insides. Those individualities found it had to work together, so they depleted each other''s power while affecting Noah''s internal organs. ''It has been so long,'' Noah thought as he bathed in the pain that filled his mind. Noah had overcome many struggles in his life, but it had been a long time since cultivators on his level could even attempt to damage him. However, those opponents could succeed in that task without relying on their teamwork. There was a limit to the risk that he could feel when he ventured through danger zones. Noah always accepted their threats when he decided to explore specific areas. Yet, the danger felt against opponents on his same level stirred his instincts in ways that environments couldn''t match. The threat caused by the leader of the forest couldn''t equal the drive that filled his mind in front of powerful enemies. ''How can I even decide to hold back in front of this power?'' Noah thought as internal injuries continued to open inside him. ''Why would I disrespect such valiant warriors?'' Zach, Gil, and Bertha began to cast their next attack after they revealed their individuality. Their auras fused with their mental waves to give birth to powerful spells, but they felt forced to stop when they sensed a fourth law invading the area. Noah roared, and his cry carried pure happiness. That battle made him feel at home. He recalled his early days as a lone cultivator and rejoiced when he sensed emotions that he had long forgotten. Enemies that could threaten his life tried to block his path, and he didn''t have any back-up or safe area where he could retreat. Noah felt utterly cornered, and that made him ecstatic. He could finally feel drives that he had forgotten in the lower plane. He could sense his survival instincts stirring him to bring out every bit of his power. A defeat meant death. That simple but pure feeling filled his mind and made him reveal the power of his ambition. Zach, Gil, and Bertha had altered the matter in the area with their individuality, but they suddenly lost control of Noah''s surroundings when his aura surged. The matter around Noah began to evolve when his ambition altered its laws and forced them to transform into their best version. Some of the trees that his corrosive smoke had consumed also regrew in seconds as his aura spread. Part of the shattered ground condensed and took the form of a sturdy terrain that exuded metallic properties. Noah''s ambition forced everything affected by his law to evolve. Still, the changes in the environment were only a consequence of his individuality. His law mostly affected his cultivation level, which rose until it crossed the halfway mark of the gaseous stage. His body also improved as his true meaning filled his tissues. Noah continued to roar as that empowerment pushed his centers of power toward a superior level. The world even went dark for an instant when black flames came out of his mouth. Dark matter was filling Noah''s black vessels, so his flames came out far stronger than his actual level. The advantage given by his fourth center of power began to show its effects when he used both his innate abilities simultaneously. The flames fused with the corrosive smoke released by his fiendish armor and fended off the shockwaves released by Bertha''s law. The same happened to Gil''s rhythm. His howl didn''t manage to affect Noah''s surroundings anymore after he revealed his ambition. Only Zach''s weapons managed to continue their flight toward Noah, but they found themselves unable to pierce his skin. The empowerment given by his ambition made his innate defense unbeatable by a single ability. The trio remained focused on Noah and fended off his flames while his ambition spread in the environment, but shadows never stopped moving through the clouds during those moments. Pure terror engulfed Gil''s mind when Snore pointed its open mouth toward him. The Blood Companion had used the corrosive smoke of the second cloud to get close to the cultivator and prepare its innate ability in secret. Bertha felt a similar sensation while she defended against the black flames. Cuts opened on her large belly when a shadow flew past her. She didn''t even understand what had attacked her, but she sensed that her life was in danger. Zach could only remain speechless when he saw that his companions were in danger. Tinges of anger also formed inside him since Noah had preferred to attack them instead of him. Chapter 1317: 1317. Challenge Noah didn''t underestimate Zach, but Gil and Bertha''s abilities were far more annoying in that situation. Gil could track him down even after months passed, and Bertha''s attacks carried a massive amount of power. It was a simple matter of necessity. Dealing with Zach''s abilities wasn''t a priority in that situation, but that still made him feel underestimated. Zach''s aura became more intense. The smell of blood became more intense in the area, and more parts of the environment transformed into weapons that flew toward Noah. Pieces of his skin also separated from his body to take the shape of dark-red spears that joined the offensive. Gil was sure that he would die if he remained in that position. A different howl came out of his body and made his figure disappear. A dark beam engulfed his position at that point, but Gil reappeared high in the sky and stared at that violent energy. Pure fear filled his expression. He had managed to teleport away at the last second, but he couldn''t shake off the terror caused by Snore''s innate ability. Divine cultivators were extremely hard to kill, especially those that had a vast battle experience. However, Gil knew that the dark beam could kill him in an instant, and that shook the core of his confidence. His current power had no value if a newly ascended existence could overcome him so easily. Bertha felt something similar while Night attacked her, but her situation wasn''t as tragic as Gil''s. The Pterodactyl couldn''t cut past her layers of fat because they contained a massive amount of energy, so she could react to its assault. Intense waves of energy came out of her injuries whenever Night managed to damage her. Her explosive power allowed her to counterattack even if the Pterodactyl was assaulting her, and Bertha could disregard that immediate threat to help Zach''s offensive. Her blood flowed out of her injuries and transformed into scarlet bubbles that flew behind Zach''s weapons. Noah could only raise his Demonic Sword and fill it with as much dark matter as possible before slashing to fend off that offensive. A storm of dark matter came out of his figure. A giant blade made of sharp higher energy flew out of the cloud that surrounded him and clashed with the enemy''s offensive. The array of weapons crumbled when it faced Noah''s attacks, but it managed to deplete most of its power. When the scarlet bubbles touched the dark matter and exploded, a dense wave of energy reached Noah and flung him on the ground. The Demonic Form broke when Bertha''s attacks reached him. Noah found himself spitting mouthfuls of blood as he slid on the tough ground, but the energy transferred by his dark flames soon converged toward his black hole and healed him in an instant. ''Can I defeat them with the dark world?'' Noah wondered as he stopped and deployed the Demonic Form again. The dark world was one of his most powerful skills against cultivators due to its ability to suppress unwanted laws. Still, Noah didn''t know how strong that technique would be in the Immortal Lands. He didn''t want to reveal all his abilities either. He knew how important it was to keep trump cards hidden, especially when they couldn''t lead to a certain victory. Noah wasn''t sure that the dark world could make him win that battle. Even with his many advantages, he couldn''t overcome three rank 7 cultivators without sacrificing something. The trio also came from a supposedly powerful organization in the Immortal Lands. After all, the Crystal City seemed to control an entire landing zone, and that showed how strong it was. The inscribed robes were another proof of its power. Noah didn''t know how rare divine items were in the Immortal Lands, but the Crystal City could provide personalized versions to its underlings. Noah had noticed how the purple designs hinted at the individualities of the trio. The Crystal City had to own experienced inscription masters to complete that task, and Noah couldn''t predict whether the trio had other inscribed items with them. If the dark world failed, Noah would have revealed all his abilities for nothing. Only death would wait for him afterward. That realization forced him to plan a different approach to the battle. He had already confirmed that his attacks could threaten the lives of his opponents. The only problem was that their numerical advantage forced him to divide his offensive. ''I can win in a one versus one,'' Noah concluded as he launched a series of slashes to slow down the arrival of the next offensive. ''I need a few instants to isolate one of them.'' The Divine Deduction technique activated on its own while Noah pondered about the issue. The trio launched more attacks that clashed with his slashes and overcame them. Snore and Night did their best to mitigate the power of the blows that eventually landed on his body, but Noah still suffered some damage during those exchanges. He couldn''t defeat the attacks of three rank 7 cultivators, especially while he tried not to use the dark world. Noah analyzed his possibilities in an instant. The tongues of black flames allowed him to remain at his peak while countless thoughts ran through his mind and gave birth to a wicked plan that he couldn''t wait to deploy. ''I guess I will satisfy my curiosity,'' Noah revealed a cold smile as his armor reformed and depicted a devilish grin on its helmet. Zach, Gil, and Bertha never stopped launching attacks fueled by their laws, but fear filled their minds when they heard Noah giving voice to a deafening roar. His cry spread through the forest and flew toward its center. Noah had conveyed a simple message with his roar. He had expressed his desire to challenge the leader of that area! A strange silence covered the area after the echoes of his roar dispersed. The trio and Noah continued to exchange attacks, but the sounds that they released seemed fainter when they spread in the environment. It was as if something had forced their abilities to make less noise. A powerful creature had decided to join that battlefield after Noah''s roar, and its simple decision caused their attacks to be more silent. Earthquakes began to fill the forest. The battle between Noah and the trio had been unable to cause those reactions in the environment, so the four of them stopped fighting when they witnessed that event. Trees fell in the distance. Those massive and resilient plants disappeared as a giant shadow neared the battlefield. That figure was as tall as the brown trunks, and it was as large as forty of them. Fear appeared on the trio''s faces, and Zach couldn''t help but turn toward Noah to shout words that sounded like a curse. "What did you do?!" Still, Zach could only see that Noah''s figure had disappeared. His cloud had even stopped expanding, which confirmed that he had left the area. Zach cursed in his mind and began to leave, but a heavy pressure fell on the area and forced him to remain still. The same when for his companion, who could only observe the creature that had appeared near them in fear. A giant spider had appeared next to them. The beast had twelve hairy legs and a massive body covered in dark-brown fur. Ten black eyes covered its face, and two pincers came out from the sides of its mouth. The creature released a low screech accompanied by human words once it stopped near the trio. "Who dares to challenge me?" Chapter 1318: 1318. Dark world Noah didn''t leave the area. He had run away from the corrosive cloud and deployed his dark matter to hide behind the nearest tree. His higher energy took the shape of a fiendish armor while he observed the catastrophe that he had caused. His instincts screamed in fear when he saw the massive Spider. Every cell in his body stirred him to escape as far as possible, but his eyes seemed glued to that majestic creature. The Twelve-legged Queen''s aura was one with the forest. At first, it would appear that the creature''s existence had fused with the environment, but the Divine Deduction technique made Noah understand the truth behind that scene. The beast''s aura didn''t copy the environment. The Spider had given the laws that it carried to the forest. That area was part of its being, and the creature could bend the matter around it as much as it wanted. Noah was speechless. Magical beasts would elevate their existence as they grew through the ranks, but they didn''t have individualities. The massive Spider could generate those effects with its sole passive influence. The forest was the representation of the Twelve-legged Queen''s aura. Even the resilient matter of the Immortal Lands couldn''t escape from its influence. Noah didn''t doubt his instincts. He knew what had appeared in front of him. The Spider was a proper rank 8 magical beast. It was an existence that had grown past the simple state of a divine being! ''It''s a world born from its existence,'' Noah thought as countless pieces of information ran in his mind. The Twelve-legged Queen was a living representation of the path past the seventh rank. It showed him what he had to strive for if he wanted to progress through the cultivation journey. The effects of its aura were different from his dark world. Noah''s technique relied on his higher energy to occupy an existing space and transform it according to his will. However, the beast didn''t need any tool to generate superior results. The alterations caused by the Spider''s aura weren''t a temporary phenomenon. The matter of the forest would continue to belong to its existence unless a stronger law conquered it. The changes in the matter showed some flaws in their structure. Its laws still strived to enter Heaven and Earth''s system, but Noah linked that to the Twelve-legged Queen''s level and species. Cultivator would generate even stronger effects with their individuality. The same would apply to creatures on a higher level, but even those fainter alterations were enough to give Noah an idea of the path in front of him. ''My existence needs to become a world of its own,'' Noah concluded as he deactivated the Divine Deduction technique. ''A single law flying through an array of true meanings is not enough. My individuality must become as powerful as the higher plane.'' That was his path. His law had to reach the point when it could generate an entire world without the help of techniques and tricks. Those effects also had to be permanent. The empowerment that his ambition was currently capable of was still too lacking to compare to that power. Noah''s black hole rotated as fast as it could in that deadly situation. The rank 8 beast''s aura tried to suppress him and make him helpless, but his many methods had granted him the ability to move. The dark matter weakened the natural influence radiated by the Spider, and his black hole managed to salvage his body''s freedom. The trio also distracted the Twelve-legged Queen, so most of its aura was converging on them. Only the leftovers of the Spider''s aura reached Noah, but he had to deploy all his methods to fend it off. His body felt sluggish anyway, but he was glad that he could still move. "Why did you challenge me?" The Twelve-legged Queen said as low screeches accompanied its human words. Its voice generated shockwaves that seeped through the fiendish armor and made Noah''s insides churn. He felt as if hammers were striking his organs and didn''t want to stop anytime soon. Rivers of blood flew out of Noah''s mouth as he forced himself to remain silent. The dark matter around him was hiding his presence, but he didn''t dare to underestimate the awareness of a magical beast in the eighth rank. The Twelve-legged Queen was in the lower tier, but that didn''t give Noah the chance to take the matter lightly. Instead, he had one more reckless action to perform before he could run away. Simply gaining an escape route wasn''t enough for Noah. Gil would track him as soon as he left, and he couldn''t deal with the trio when they worked together. Moreover, his knowledge was still too shallow when it came to the Immortal Lands, but he planned to solve all his problems with his next move. "We didn''t," Zach stammered an answer and closed his eyes as he struggled to finish his line, "Your Majesty." Even the members of an extremist faction had to show their respect toward such a powerful magical beast. Beliefs didn''t matter anymore when their opponent could reduce them into a pulp with the sole intensity of its aura. "I heard the challenge," The Twelve-legged Queen continued. "Magical beasts don''t lie. Are you comparing me to humans?" Those words seeped deep inside the trio''s beliefs, but they could only play along in that situation. It didn''t matter that Madame Canson had sealed an agreement with that creature. The Spider could still kill them if they made it angry. "I wouldn''t dare, your Majesty," Zach continued. "There is a fourth-." Zach didn''t manage to complete his line because dark matter engulfed the area and suppressed his words. The sudden appearance of the dark world surprised even the Spider, but the aura innately radiated by its body destroyed the higher energy before it could reach it. The Twelve-legged Queen didn''t feel anything when it saw the dark matter filling the area. It didn''t sense any danger coming from that almost liquid substance. Actually, that higher energy carried properties similar to its forest. Noah had altered the aura of the dark world to make it resemble the forest. His imitation appeared poorly-executed, but it managed to make him gain a few instants. The Spider understood that something was off when it saw ice spreading on the edges of the dark world. A rocky layer also formed on top of the expanding frost, and the black cloud shrunk to transform into a giant Snake. Snore engulfed the area with its huge body, but the Spider didn''t hesitate to throw one of its legs toward the beast. However, when its limb touched the rocky layer, the Blood Companion''s figure opened and dispersed into a storm of dark matter. The Twelve-legged Queen didn''t think that a cultivator was behind that attack. It didn''t even recognize the dark world as a technique since Noah had given it Snore''s shape. The Spider believed that a unique magical beast had chosen to attack its lair but had retreated once it sensed the forest leader''s power. The Twelve-legged Queen then unfolded its aura to search for the invader, but it focused back on the cultivators after it didn''t find anything. Still, the creature noticed that something had happened during the previous events. The trio was a duo now. Bertha had disappeared. Chapter 1319: 1319. Pain and hunger Noah ran faster than he had ever done before. Trees appeared and vanished in his vision as he tried to leave that dangerous forest. The area still trembled. Every inch of that environment radiated the Twelve-legged Queen''s aura and increased the range of its senses. Yet, they never managed to notice Noah since the dark matter was covering him. Also, he was less than a speck of dust lost inside an ocean. Noah had never been too good at hiding himself, but the Spider couldn''t tell the difference between him and one of the magical plants in the environment while he was inside the armor of dark matter. ''Why am I even forced to go through this as soon as I reach the Immortal Lands?'' Noah cursed in his mind as he kept his emission of energy to the minimum. Cries and tremors ran through the forest during his escape. The Twelve-legged Queen continued interrogating Zac and Gil, but Noah had no intention to see how long that decoy would last. He had to leave. He would die if the rank 8 magical beast found him and deployed its abilities to hunt him down. Noah''s vast knowledge and unique techniques would be useless once the creature decided to use its power against him. Noah ran for entire months, and his black hole made him go faster when he sensed that the forest didn''t shake anymore. The Twelve-legged Queen had stopped dealing with the duo, so he had to give everything on his last sprint. The end of the forest eventually appeared in his eyes. Noah saw a giant lake unfolding past the last array of trees, and he didn''t hesitate to fly above it. The white sky began to apply the entirety of its pressure on his mind once Noah left the safe area created by the trees'' azure crowns, but he didn''t dare to slow down. Noah didn''t care if he depleted all his mental energy during his escape. His only priority was to put as many kilometers as he could between him and the forest. Everything else could wait for when he stopped. The lake radiated a dangerous area, but Noah didn''t study it. He flew for more months and eventually reached one of the bordering regions. A gray mountain chain appeared in his vision, and Noah landed in one of its valleys to find a decent hiding spot. Noah let his instincts pick the place where he would dig a cave. Dangerous auras came out from all the mountains, but he settled in the safest areas that he could find. The location for his cave ended up being a valley between two short mountains. Noah dug in its terrain and built a temporary home that he reinforced with his dark matter. Once the dark matter began to radiate the same aura as the environment, Noah called back his fiendish armor and began to assess his condition. He had suffered multiple injuries during the battle against the three cultivators, but his dark flames had always managed to fix them. At the moment, Noah only suffered from a lack of energy, especially when it came to his sea of consciousness. His body was still full of energy, and Noah didn''t use his darkness during his escape. His dantian was far from full, but refilling it wasn''t a priority. The same went for the black hole. Noah had mostly used dark matter in that situation because it could keep him hidden from the rank 8 creature''s aura, but his fourth center of power seemed to have an endless stash of energy. ''I can rest for a while,'' Noah thought as his spherical rune appeared in his palm. ''I will move as soon as I learn how to leave the area of influence of the Crystal City.'' Noah had stopped training his mind during his escape due to the white sky, but he would reactivate it as soon as his mental sea reformed. He wouldn''t neglect his training, even with pursuers after him. The Demonic Sword came out of his separate space once his mind recovered and began to expand again. Noah cultivated and refilled his dantian before focusing on what he had gained in the forest. Most of his thoughts analyzed Noah''s sensations when he saw the rank 8 magical beast. The insights about the path past the seventh rank filled his mind and allowed him to understand what his law had to become to advance. Plans about his current situation also formed in his mind. He didn''t have a method to fend off Gil''s tracking abilities, but he could counter them by reaching a place where the Crystal City couldn''t follow him. When Noah sensed that the pieces of information in his possessions weren''t enough to create a solid plan, he took out something from his separate space. Bertha fell on the ground of his cave. She had a series of threads made of dark matter wrapped around her large body, but she wasn''t awake, so those restraints were only a precaution. The cultivator was unconscious, and one of Noah''s spells was the reason behind her condition. Tiny dark blades ran under Bertha''s skin from time to time and reinforced the blockades placed around her centers of power. It had been a long time since Noah used the Shadow Swords spell. Most of the original technique had disappeared after the many modifications that happened when Noah was in the sixth and seventh rank. Yet, it now was a diagram that suited the entirety of his existence, and that could express divine power. Noah could restrain a cultivator''s centers of power by creating a series of mental blades that carried specks of dark matter inside their shape. The spell was tricky to activate in an actual battle, but the appearance of the Twelve-legged Queen had given him the chance to act. The expansion of the dark world and the appearance of Snore''s figure had the sole purpose of deceiving the rank 8 creature. Noah had managed to seize one of his opponents and run during those valuable instants. ''My problems would be over if I managed to capture the howling guy,'' Noah thought as he pressed his hand on Bertha''s forehead to check the state of his spell. ''A pity that he was too far away. Well, she was the strongest in the group, so she might have more to say about the Crystal City.'' Once Noah checked that the Shadow Swords spell was still in place, he decided to relieve Bertha''s mind of some pressure and called back part of the restraints that kept her unconscious. She would be able to wake up after Noah reabsorbed some of those blades, but it would be impossible to cast spells in that condition. Bertha slowly woke up and tried to release a warning cry when she realized where she was. However, no sound came out of her open mouth, so she soon felt forced to turn toward her warden. Noah inspected her with cold eyes. He had already decided to kill her in his mind. He would olny learn as much as he could from her before that. A rank 7 cultivator with tight connections with the Crystal City was a valuable loot. Noah couldn''t wait to learn more about the Immortal Lands from Bertha. Chapter 1320: 1320. Torture Bertha tried to scream and curse Noah while the Shadow Swords spell suppressed her voice, but he didn''t lower the restrictions until she became tired of that process. "I will let you speak now," Noah said as he placed his hand on her forehead. "You must have understood by now that you can''t escape from my spell. Don''t try anything funny." Some of the small dark blades flowing under her sky left her throat and reinforced the blockades on her centers of power. Bertha found herself able to speak again, and her first words were a threat sent to her warden. "You will die of a horrible death once the Crystal City gets its hands on you," Bertha said as she gnashed her teeth in anger. "Your mind will suffer so many tortures that you will end up begging us to kill you." "You wanted to kill me already," Noah replied as the Demonic Sword came out of his separate space. "This threat is pointless. You made me your enemy after our first meeting." Dark matter flowed out of his black hole and covered Bertha''s belly. The Demonic Sword then cut a piece of her flesh while the higher energy suppressed the energy that it contained. Noah analyzed Bertha''s tissues right in front of her eyes. He could see the immense energy they contained, and he couldn''t help but feel interested in her individuality. "Your body is really unique," Noah commented once he understood how her law worked. "Your organization believes in the superiority of the human race, but you try to imitate magical beasts with your techniques. It''s a pity that you didn''t manage to keep your dantian and body separated. This method only allows you to store energy, but it doesn''t give you any real empowerment." Bertha''s eyes widened when she heard his words. She couldn''t hide the nature of her true meaning in her condition, but she felt surprised that Noah had managed to grasp so many details about her law with one quick inspection. She had initially believed that Noah was a valiant warrior with rich battle experience, but his last feat altered her idea about him. Noah wasn''t only a brute. He was a true master in fields that she had yet to define. "Accumulation," Noah announced. "A simple true meaning. Your body is the catalyst for your individuality, and it lets you stuff it with energy that you can release at will. The complexity of a law usually depends on its power, but you manage to reach similar results by accumulating more "Breath"." That second explanation wasn''t as surprising as the first for Bertha. After all, her law was right in front of his eyes. Discerning how she had reached that point had been the hard part. "The Crystal City doesn''t answer to threats," Bertha said when she saw that Noah remained silent. "Its members are true believers. It will be an honor to sacrifice my life to slow down one of its enemies." "Death isn''t the issue here," Noah replied. "I will definitely kill you. Nothing can change my mind about that. You only have to decide for how long you want to suffer." "What do you mean?" Bertha replied. She could understand what Noah meant, but she wanted to gain as many instants as possible. Bertha hoped that her companions would find her, and only time could make her chance of survival higher. "I understand fanatics," Noah answered. "I know that your faith isn''t something that you can trade. I need to make you desire death to obtain the answers that I want. Killing you will be the reward of this process." Noah spoke heartless words, and Bertha could sense that he had experience dealing with his enemies in that way. Some fear built inside her when she felt the coldness carried by his voice, but her resolve remained firm. "Your friends won''t come for you," Noah said at some point. "That giant Spider has remained with them for months. I can''t imagine what it did with them." "The Crystal City and the Twelve-legged Queen have an agreement," Bertha replied as pride filled her expression. "This is the power that you have chosen to oppose. We can influence entire regions of the Immortal Lands." "Your boss must be a rank 8 cultivator then," Noah added. "A magical beast on that level would never deal with weaker beings, and it wouldn''t be alive if your leader were stronger than that creature." Bertha knew that she had revealed something with her words, but that didn''t slip out of her accidentally. She had purposely told Noah how strong the Crystal City was in an attempt to scare him away. However, Noah had dealt with existences stronger than him throughout his entire life. Those threats were nothing more than empty words in his ears. Bertha''s line didn''t even manage to break his calm. "I need to know how far the influence of the Crystal City spreads," Noah began to list his questions. "I need to understand where I am and what I need to search for. I also want a complete overview of the forces nearby." Noah''s requests were simple and covered his most impelling doubts. He would ask about the divine inscribed items only after Bertha decided to give up. "You are wasting your time," Bertha said as a cold smile appeared on her face. "I know," Noah replied as the Demonic Sword cut another piece of her belly. The Demonic Sword continued to cut Bertha''s belly, but she didn''t show any reaction at that event. She didn''t seem to care about her body at all. The blades of the Shadow Swords spell lowered part of the restrictions applied on her dantian. Her individuality began to affect the environment at that point, and energy accumulated on her belly to heal her injuries. Noah then controlled his spell again to restore the restrictions on her dantian. The Demonic Sword also began to cut her belly, but it dug a bit deeper at that time. Bertha understood what was happening once Noah stopped attacking her again to give her dantian the chance to heal her injuries. Noah was testing her resistance to pain to see how long it would take to shatter her resolve. Noah cut her and let her dantian activate its healing properties. He repeated that process countless times, and he always severed a bit more of her body as he continued that torture. Bertha''s resolve was incredible, but her determination began to waver once she saw her body regrowing for the thousandth time in a row. There was still no sign of her allies, and Noah was relentless in his torture. Worry mounted inside her, and something forced her to accept death as the only possible outcome. Bertha had started to respect Noah''s relentlessness, which made her understand that he didn''t bluff before. Noah tortured Bertha until she began to spill a few pieces of information. A map slowly formed in his mind as he learnt about the layout of that part of the Immortal Lands. The following topic of their conversations revolved around weapons and inscriptions. Noah had an intense interest in the tools that allowed those cultivators to ignore the pressure radiated by the white sky. In the end, Noah killed Bertha. He seized her dantian and let the energy contained in her body flow inside his tissues. He had learnt enough. It was time to move again. Chapter 1321: 1321. Destination Torturing Bertha brought multiple advantages to Noah. His body improved by leaps and bounds due to her dantian and body. Still, his greatest gains came from her knowledge. Noah learnt a lot from her. Those pieces of information didn''t involve only the layout of the Immortal Lands. He also understood how far the influence of the Crystal City spread. According to Bertha, the higher plane was a messy place filled with organizations. Most regions in the Immortal Lands were lawless regions filled with various magical beasts and simple groups of cultivators. Yet, some of them were under the control of forces that weaker beings had to respect. The Crystal City was one of those forces. Madame Canson was a rank 8 cultivator, and that gave her the power to build an organization around her. The population of the Immortal Lands valued existences in the eighth rank a lot. Bertha spoke of them as a privileged class in the higher plane. It seemed that rank 8 beings were celebrities in that world, and any organization would treat them with the respect they deserved. Even the Crystal City treated the Twelve-legged Queen with respect. It didn''t matter if that existence was a magical beast. As long as a being reached the eighth rank, it would become an esteemed guest in any organization of the Immortal Lands. Noah had obviously asked about rank 9 beings when he questioned Bertha, but she couldn''t give him any valuable information. According to her, there were rank 9 existences in the Immortal Lands, but they never involved themselves with the rest of the world. The reports that involved rank 9 existences were mostly vague or unrealistic. Even cultivators in the eighth rank couldn''t be sure about the power wielded by beings on a higher level, so they never dared to confirm those rumors. The information that involved the Immortal Lands'' layout gave Noah an idea of how he had to move to avoid troubles. The area of influence of the Crystal City was only a small part of the higher plane, and it even bordered the lands belonging to intelligent magical beasts. Noah had many possibilities at hand. Most divine beings would avoid organizations anyway, so he could easily live without remaining stuck in any of them. ''The Crystal City marks the end of the human area,'' Noah thought as he sorted the knowledge obtained from Bertha. ''I should meet more human settlements as I march past these danger zones. Finding useful items shouldn''t be a problem at that point.'' Noah''s interrogation had focused on the inscribed items after he learnt about the general layout of the Immortal Lands. According to Bertha, storage items were a valuable resource in the higher plane, and most rank 7 cultivators had to rely on external organizations to take care of their materials. It wasn''t a surprise that cultivators couldn''t gain access to divine items. The inscription methods of the lower plane often relied on imitating Heaven and Earth''s laws, but that process had clear limits. Wills also had a hard time affecting the matter in the higher world, so those capable of performing inscriptions were an elite class in that place. Noah had yet to test how his Elemental Forging method would perform in the Immortal Lands, but he expected the matter of the higher world to resist his wills when they tried to alter its fabric. The creation of storage items was also a niche of the inscription field, so it wasn''t a surprise that only a few masters could perform it in the Immortal Lands. Noah was an exception due to the dark world, but most cultivators would have to swear specific oaths to obtain those tools. Cultivators like Bertha were an exception due to their backing. Still, that didn''t apply to every organization in the Immortal Lands. Noah knew that his next destination would give him a clearer idea of the situation in that world. ''I wonder if I can turn the separate space into a sellable divine item,'' Noah thought as he left his cave to resume his journey. ''Now that I think about it, I don''t even know which currency they use here.'' The matter concerning the storage items was the reason why Noah couldn''t seize anything valuable from Bertha. She couldn''t give her resources to him due to the restrictions applied by Madame Canson. Noah couldn''t obtain the item that fended off the radiations of the white sky nor anything that could stop Gil''s individuality. He was back a square one with a stronger body and a vaster knowledge about his new world. The forest, the large sea, and that mountain chain were still peripheral areas of the human domain, and Noah had no interest in reaching smaller cities. Moreover, he wanted to get far away from the Crystal City, so he picked a famous town in the Immortal Lands as his next destination. ''Vagona City is one of the biggest human settlements in the entire higher plane,'' Noah thought as he reviewed the pieces of information obtained from Bertha. ''I should find something valuable there.'' Noah had picked a destination, but the journey was long. Bertha didn''t dare to be vague during her explanation, and she described the many lands that he had to cross to reach that place. Rich cultivators had access to sophisticated transports, but Noah didn''t even know how to summon them. He would have to make the journey on foot, but he didn''t dislike the idea too much since it allowed him to learn more about the Immortal Lands. There was a limit to how much an organization made of pure humans could understand the regions inhabited by magical beasts. Noah felt strange that creatures could rule over entire lands in an area under the control of cultivators, but he suspected that stronger beings had taken secret agreements to settle those matters. Still, he wanted to see those lands with his own eyes and memorize all the emotions that the environment sent to him. He wanted to see how being an existence that surpassed the hybrid realm affected his understanding of the whole higher plane. Noah set off and traveled through the mountain chain. His destination lain after many regions, which translated into multiple years of march in the complete wilderness. It would take him an entire decade spent traveling to reach the first small settlement, but Noah planned to avoid it. That city was a branch of the Crystal City, so he preferred the wilderness over certain problems. Of course, Noah wouldn''t spend entire decades focused only on traveling. His priority was to reach the stars beyond the sky, and he had to increase his cultivation level to do that. Noah had already planned that he would spend many years cultivating inside improvised training areas and hunting every potential prey he found. His current cultivation level almost represented the bare minimum of the Immortal Lands, and Noah had no intention to remain at that stage for long. The fact that his actual power didn''t reflect the average might of a rank 7 cultivator in the gaseous stage wasn''t enough to make him satisfied with his current battle prowess. Improving was the key to gaining access to more opportunities, and Noah planned to solidify his divine foundation before reaching Vagona City. He wanted to be the best newly ascended cultivator by the time he reached his destination. Chapter 1322: 1322. Vagona City Noah had to explore multiple wild regions during his voyage toward Vagona city. Magical beasts occupied many large lands even if the area belonged to the humans, and Noah preferred to travel through them rather than risking encountering members of the Crystal City. The Immortal Lands weren''t free of the curse of the magical beasts. Those creatures were too resilient and advantaged in the cultivation journey. Even areas inhabited by mighty rank 8 cultivators couldn''t avoid them. Through Bertha''s explanation, Noah had understood that the human area was nothing more than a series of cities filled with danger zones. Those settlements would have large safe environments around their borders, but no amount of clearing operations could prevent the arrival of magical beasts in their domain. The "Breath" was to blame for that outcome. That miraculous energy favored simpler living beings, which gave birth to a constant stream of magical beasts and plants. Most magical plants in the areas inhabited by humans were harmless, but the same didn''t apply to the violent magical beasts. Those creatures lived by their hunger even in the divine ranks. They were only more careful about their behavior. Noah crossed marvelous regions as he marched toward Vagona City. He had already seen the forest inhabited by the Twelve-legged Queen and the vast lake, but he explored far more incredible lands during the years that followed his clash with the Crystal City. The Immortal Lands were immense, and the same applied to their regions. Noah saw prairies as vast as the new continent, mountains that merged with the whiteness of the sky, and mountain chains that would take centuries to explore. None of those lands was in decline. They were full of life, and many magical beasts had taken them as their home due to their richness. Noah hunted freely during his voyage. He held back only when he sensed auras on the same level as the Twelve-legged Queen filling the regions. Also, he often created training areas when he felt the need to cultivate. He felt completely free in the wilderness. Noah had experienced the life of a magical beast already in the lower plane, and he didn''t hesitate to enjoy the same lifestyle in those lawless lands. There was simple happiness in the lack of political struggles. Noah could hunt and cultivate as much as he desired, and his cultivation level benefited from that environment. However, he also met the unavoidable limits given by his peculiar species. Noah wasn''t a magical beast. The individualities were tricky powers to improve, and he soon had to face their limits. His dantian suddenly stopped improving during his voyage, and he didn''t appear able to solve the issue at his current level. Noah tried everything after that problem arrived. He threw himself into crowded packs of rank 7 magical beasts in the lower tier. He stuffed his body with as many nutrients as possible. He spent entire years immersed in meditations empowered by his Divine Deduction technique. Nothing seemed able to overcome the bottleneck met by his dantian. Noah found himself unable to enlarge his organ, and he couldn''t find a solution to that issue no matter how hard he tried. The freedom felt in that slow exploration of the higher plane abandoned Noah''s mind once his dantian stopped growing. Anxiety replaced that sensation. Noah couldn''t enjoy the wilderness anymore after he faced a bottleneck that he couldn''t overcome. Noah could understand that his growth had to require far more than a simple accumulation of energy. Having access to an environment packed with laws wasn''t enough to push his level toward the higher ranks now that he was a god. However, he lacked guidelines about the journey ahead. Noah had vaguely understood what he had to strive for, but he didn''t know how to approach that path. His voyage through the wilderness became more hurried after his dantian met that bottleneck. Noah understood that he couldn''t find the solution to his problems in an environment ruled by magical beasts, so he did his best to reach his destination more quickly. Noah didn''t stop his hunts, but he didn''t waste time in pointless meditations anymore. He wouldn''t neglect his body, but he wouldn''t hope in a miracle either. He had to learn more about the divine realms, and he couldn''t acquire that knowledge from the magical beasts. He had to see cultivators on a higher level to understand how his journey had to proceed. After crossing endless regions and multiple environments, Noah eventually reached a green plain placed in the middle of an immense mountain chain. Green grass covered that land and filled the area with its radiance. A few trees also grew in the region, but the most striking aspect was the immense series of structures at its center. A series of large buildings occupied the central part of the plan. Crystal-like materials filled the white metal that acted as their core item. Those structures resembled large mansions rather than simple buildings, but Noah could see that they had different purposes even before entering the city. The city didn''t have any defensive wall, but Noah could sense that the entirety of the plain lacked magical beasts. The reason behind that phenomenon was the intense aura radiated by that immense array of structures. Noah had to stop his march to suppress his instincts once he sensed that aura. Five powerful individualities filled the plain and scared away any existence that had ill intentions. Vagona City was the home to five rank 8 cultivators! ''A white city where peace is mandatory,'' Noah thought as he calmed down. ''Just like Bertha has said.'' Bertha''s knowledge ended there. She only knew the regions near the Crystal City and the path toward Vagona City, meaning that Noah had to gather information again now. Still, Vagona City was outside of the area of influence of the Crystal City. The humans there didn''t follow those fanatics'' beliefs, and they accepted every intelligent being as long as they didn''t cause any trouble. Noah didn''t hesitate to march toward the city once he stabilized his condition. Crowded streets and different individualities soon entered in the range of his consciousness, and many eyes turned in his direction. Vagona City didn''t have a main gate. Anyone could enter. Yet, it was customary to suppress the seas of consciousness in that area out of respect for the weaker beings inhabiting those streets. Noah didn''t take much to understand that feature. He had seen that rank 5 and 6 cultivators were the majority of Vagona City''s population while his mental waves spread in the area, but he recalled his consciousness when they began to suffer due to the innate pressure radiated by his mind. A few annoyed comments resounded through the streets after his gesture. Most of those heroic cultivators complained about Noah''s lack of manners, but he ignored them to focus on the city. Noah didn''t dare to stir any trouble with the five rank 8 auras covering the whole city. He was in a foreign environment, so he had to study his surroundings to avoid incurring the wrath of some powerful existence. **** Author''s notes: I''ve decided to take a break after one year+ of constant writing. Only two chapters today and no chapters tomorrow. Releases will resume normally on the 14th. Chapter 1323: 1323. Chief Ash Vagona city was immense. Humans of various ranks filled its streets, but all of them wore robes and armors made out of divine materials. Large mansion-like buildings illuminated the area with the whiteness radiated by their metal. Those radiances obtained different shades after they passed through the crystals embedded in their surface, so the city''s halo didn''t disappear in the light of the sky. White metal and crystals also filled the streets. Everything structure in Vagona city appeared perfectly polished and devoid of any stain. It was a divine scenery, an environment that no lower plane could offer. Still, the presence of heroic cultivators left Noah confused. The invasion of the Eternal Snakes had confirmed the presence of heroic existences in the Immortal Lands, but Noah didn''t know how that process worked for cultivators. They weren''t magical beasts that could live off of the "Breath" in the environment. They needed to overcome real-life struggles to build their individualities and push them through the heroic realms. Noah didn''t even know how newborn humans survived the pressure of the higher plane. There had to be some specific procedure to allow the birth of those weaklings, and he guessed that only wealthy cultivators could build families in that environment. ''There is too much that I don''t know about this place,'' Noah concluded as he studied the scene. The buildings on the peripheral areas of the city had large labels that described their functions. Runes and images shone on their surface and radiated ideas that made anyone understand which activities happened inside. Noah didn''t recognize the language used on the labels, and there seemed to be different ones according to the owners of those buildings. Yet, those runes, letters, and signs exuded true meanings that translated them into a message that he could understand. Blacksmiths, libraries, inscription halls, and other types of shops filled the outer circle of Vagona city. There were even a few restaurants among them, and multiple customers waited in line for their turn to enter them. Noah found himself lost in that flourishing environment. He had gone from the complete wilderness to that crowded scenery, and that sight left him speechless. ''I can only explore and see,'' Noah concluded in his mind as he ventured through the large streets of Vagona city. Noah didn''t unfold his consciousness, but his superior awareness allowed him to hear the many topics spoken by the crowds that surrounded him. The heroic cultivators mostly spoke about trivial matters. They named famous chefs and designers that only involved the style of certain inscribed items. Instead, the cultivators in the seventh rank were mostly silent bystanders who didn''t interact with anyone and became lively only once they entered the buildings. Noah couldn''t hear what anyone said once they entered the buildings. A barrier prevented sounds and auras from seeping out of those structures, so he couldn''t overhear any valuable information. Still, he could see how the crowds of weaker cultivators showed respect for the existences in the seventh rank. They opened the path for anyone capable of divine might, and the same happened to Noah when he walked through the streets. Noah saw crowds opening at his passage. The cultivators in the heroic ranks didn''t dare to stand in his way even if they had suffered from the expansion of his consciousness. They revealed pure respect at his sight, and they felt no anger when they moved to let him pass. It was needless to say that Noah felt wary when he saw that behavior. His lack of knowledge of the customs of that place made him worried about eventual repercussions to that generosity. However, he could only accept it for the time being. Noah could only hope that he wouldn''t have to compensate anyone for that type of respect. There was a limit to how appealing the various shops appeared to Noah. He found some interest in the robes made of divine materials, but he barely browsed through the items shown in the open before moving forward. His abilities had always gone against armors of any kind. Noah could consider them now that his spells didn''t destroy his clothes anymore, but the sturdiness of his skin made him ignore those pieces of equipment. Noah had yet to learn about the type of currency used in the Immortal lands, so he didn''t want to focus his study on such ignorable items. His main focus remained his centers of power. He had to understand why his dantian had stopped growing before thinking about inscribed weapons. The library was the most appealing structure in his eyes, and Noah didn''t hesitate to walk toward the biggest one once he gained a general understanding of that area of the city. The structure had tall walls around its perimeter and a large gate that featured a group of guards wearing light-yellow robes. Those cultivators were all rank 7 existences, and a few of them went past the gaseous stage. A series of thick books that radiated the word "knowledge" occupied the label of that library. Noah also saw a peculiar rune that didn''t exude any specific meaning there, but he didn''t fail to notice the same design draped on the robes of the guards placed on the entrance. ''This building must belong to a specific organization,'' Noah guessed as he neared the library. The line opened when he walked toward the structure. The heroic cultivators waiting for their turn to enter let Noah pass, and some divine existences did the same after they inspected his cultivation level. Noah didn''t know why he was receiving such respect, but he put everything in the back of his mind as he waited to enter the library. He knew that he would eventually find the answers to his questions, and his focus remained on the structure that could provide them. A group made of five cultivators gathered on the gate when it was Noah''s turn to enter. Four of them were in the gaseous stage, while the last radiated the aura of an existence in the liquid stage. "Do you have any affiliation with the Sailbrird family?" The liquid stage guard asked Noah when he reached the entrance of the library. The cultivator was a tall woman with short black hair and shining green eyes. She wore a light-yellow armor that carried more details compared to her underlings, but her aura lacked any individuality. Noah could sense the power radiated from her figure, but he couldn''t feel any individuality inside it. The liquid stage woman could contain the entirety of her law while her aura spread through the sky. It seemed that the control of her true meaning surpassed what Noah was able to comprehend. "No," Noah replied. He didn''t dare to lie in that situation, but the woman didn''t seem satisfied with his answer and continued questioning him about his political affiliations. "Do you have a special status given by the five Lords?" The woman asked only to receive a negative answer. "Do you own a series of buildings in Vagona city?" The woman continued, but Noah shook his head. "Are you part of some minor organization?" The liquid stage cultivator asked, but Noah shook his head again. The surprise on the woman''s expression increased every time he gave her negative answers. Noah was trying his best to remain honest until he understood how things worked in the Immortal Lands, but it was clear that those inhabiting the higher plane had values that he had yet to grasp. Chapter 1324: 1324. Soul Stones The woman''s name was Chief Ash. Noah had learnt a bit about her during her questioning. She was a member of a guild that served the Sailbrird family and provided its structures with guards. Noah wanted to ask more about those organizations, but Chief Ash never gave him the chance to question her. The line behind him also grew annoyed with his negative answers, so he preferred to cut the conversation short to enter the building. "Since you have no affiliation whatsoever," Chief Ash announced once her interrogation ended, "I need you to pay the entire fee to enter the library. One hundred Soul Stones will grant you access to most structures belonging to the Sailbrird family for a whole year, but you can pay five of them if you desire a simple visit." Noah had no idea what she was talking about. The cultivators before him didn''t pay to enter the library, so the currency of the Immortal Lands was something that he had yet to see. Chief Ash could see the confusion in Noah''s face, and she seemed to understand something when he didn''t give her an answer. She bent toward him and isolated the two of them with her aura before questioning him again. "Is this your first time in a human settlement?" Chief Ash asked, and Noah couldn''t help but nod at her question. Noah could guess that his inexperience in those matters had exposed his newly ascended status, but he didn''t mind that. Chief Ash revealed a newfound interest in him after she learnt about that feature, and Noah saw a chance to understand more about the Immortal Lands when she asked him to talk in private. The four gaseous stage cultivators took charge of handling the line while Chief Ash led Noah in a large area near the defensive walls. A table and two chairs appeared on the white floor when she stopped, and Noah didn''t hesitate to sit to talk with that expert. "I guess you spent a millennium in the wilderness after leaving the landing zone," Chief Ash announced once she sat on the opposite side of the table. "A few centuries," Noah rectified to study her reaction. Only a few decades had passed after Noah''s ascension, but he didn''t want to reveal too much about himself. He preferred to lie to see how Chief Ash reacted to his claims. "Centuries?" Chief Ash asked again while surprise flashed on her face. She tried to suppress her emotions, but Noah didn''t fail to notice that slight change on her face. His answer had been too sudden, so Chief Ash didn''t manage to hide her real thoughts about his situation. "It''s not rare for newly ascended cultivators to spend some time alone before approaching organizations," Chief Ash revealed when she saw that Noah had noticed her expressions. "Still, they often fail to grow on their own. Talents like you are an exception. You must have many stories about your life in the lower plane." Chief Ash had understood that Noah was new to the environment of the Immortal Lands quickly. She had seen many of them through her long life, and she usually needed only a few details to identify which existence had just reached the higher plane. "I will be blunt," Chief Ash continued. "You have the potential to reach the liquid stage. You can choose to join my guild and gain access to the knowledge you were hoping to find in this library or continue in your solitary training. I won''t suggest the latter, but you are still too young to understand how hard the path ahead can be. My invitation will remain open for as long as you need." Chief Ash gave Noah a metal card that had a peculiar rune drawn on its surface. That symbol was different from those on the guards'' robes, but Noah decided to take it when his instincts confirmed its harmlessness. Chief Ash''s eyes widened when she saw Noah storing her card. Storage items were a rare resource in the Immortal Lands, so she couldn''t fathom how Noah had access to one of them. Inheritances usually explained that, but Noah didn''t seem the type of cultivator to rely on resources obtained from other experts. His claim about his growth speed already placed him above the average divine experts in the Immortal Lands, so it was probable that his expertise surpassed most of the other gaseous stage gods. "I''m willing to give you some information as a show of goodwill," Chief Ash announced after she saw Noah storing her card. Her approach had changed, and Noah could recognize that as his chance to learn more about the Immortal Lands. He knew that Chief Ash would hold something back, but he didn''t mind that behavior as long as he obtained something valuable. "Do cultivators aim to become a world in the eighth rank?" Noah asked, but Chief Ash''s face didn''t show any reaction to his words. Noah had taken her by surprise the first time, but she had been ready for her questions now. His words had surprised her, but she didn''t reveal any emotion. She only shook her head to express the secrecy of that information. "How do you grow through the stages of the seventh rank?" Noah asked, but Chief Ash shook her head again. She wouldn''t reveal anything to him since that topic involved many branches of studies that belonged to the Sailbrird family. Chief Ash wouldn''t be able to push Noah toward her guild if she revealed such important information. "Soul Stones," Noah eventually said. "Talk to me about them." "You can find them in many forms," Chief Ash explained. "They are the only possible currency in the Immortal Lands since they contain raw laws, and cultivators can absorb their energy to improve their level. Are you knowledgeable about raw laws?" Noah''s nod made Chief Ash continue. "Most of the mines of raw laws are under the control of powerful organizations, so you will always find them in the same shape in the cities. Yet, no one will refuse them if you find Soul Stones of peculiar shapes." The explanation had been quite extensive at that time, but Noah wanted to learn more about them. Raw laws had their limits when it came to the cultivation level, but Noah wouldn''t disregard them now that his dantian had stopped improving. "You asked me one hundred Soul Stones to enter the library," Noah asked. "Is that normal for this place?" Chief Ash hesitated a bit at his words, but she eventually gave Noah an idea of how the economy in the Immortal Lands worked. Cultivators belonging to powerful organizations or who had completed jobs with them gained access to heavy discounts that made the access to those structures almost free. The fee of one hundred Soul Stones would go down to five for any cultivator who had helped those organizations, and the price could go further down for those who still belonged to them. The initial price seemed meant to force lone cultivators to join organizations. Noah did not doubt that Chief Ash and similar platoon leaders did their best to recruit promising cultivators. However, Noah desired to remain alone, so he soon refused her offer and walked out of the structure to decide on his next move. Chapter 1325: 1325. Inscription hall Chief Ash held back from revealing anything valuable even after realizing that Noah was above average newly ascended cultivators in terms of talent. Of course, Noah didn''t reveal the truth about his growth speed either. Her reactions had told him that his talent was a currency he could use once he found a suitable environment. Yet, her lack of cooperation had eventually forced him to leave the library. Noah didn''t want to remain entangled in organizations. He would consider them only after learning more about the environment of the Immortal Lands, but he would rather avoid them at all if he had the chance. Still, it became clear that he needed money to obtain the information he needed to decide how to behave in the higher plane. Earning Soul Stones seemed hard for cultivators that didn''t belong to organizations, but he had a few ideas on how to solve that issue already. Noah had obtained many valuable materials during his voyage toward Vagona city. He didn''t eat the entirety of the prey hunted through his journey, so he could trade some of them for that currency. All the shops in the city required divine materials. Noah guessed that they had specific suppliers aware of their needs, but he predicted that he could sell his resources without joining any organization. Noah expected the shops to lower his materials'' price due to his lack of backing, but he didn''t mind it as long as he could access the city''s shops. Another idea involved the inscription halls seen as he walked through the city. They always had large crowds of cultivators in the heroic and divine ranks staring at the gardens that encircled their main buildings. Experts performed inscriptions there, but Noah had ignored them before during his first exploration. Still, his second exploration revealed that anyone could enter the inscription halls and show his expertise. The cultivators waiting outside could then place an offer for any finished product, and the inscription hall itself could take an interest in the experts involved in those procedures. Noah had yet to understand if he could perform inscriptions in the Immortal Lands. He had completed a few quick tests during his voyage, but he had never attempted to create a proper inscribed weapon since his training had occupied most of his time. However, the inscription halls could give him the chance to test his ability and compare it to other divine experts. He could even gain something out of it if he managed to build a stable product. As for the experts belonging to the inscription hall, Noah didn''t even consider the possibility of attracting their attention. The items in Vagona city had gone through multiple polishing, and the messy products of the Elemental Forging method didn''t fit that haughty environment. ''It''s better to avoid crowded inscription halls,'' Noah thought as he walked through the white streets. Fewer customers would give him fewer chances to sell his products, but Noah was still too wary of his surroundings to jump into proper competitions. Moreover, he didn''t want to interact with the population of Vagona city too much due to his lack of knowledge about its political system. Noah tried to study some of the inscription masters performing in the most crowded halls, but he soon discovered that he had to pay one Soul Stone to be part of the audience. The barriers around the structures also blocked most of his mental waves, so he couldn''t even see which inscription methods the experts inside them used. The idea to learn about his competition waned before even forming, but Noah used that discovery to approach the second phase of his plan more quickly. Noah walked until he found a smaller inscription hall that didn''t have any picture on its label. It only had a few runes that conveyed the function of that building. A few old-looking rank 7 cultivators sat in front of the entrance and observed the single expert performing inscriptions on the other side of the short defensive walls. Noah could see what the master was doing, but he didn''t dare to force the barrier to spy on the area. "Three Soul Stones to join the auction," A rank 7 cultivator in the gaseous stage said as he placed himself between Noah and the entrance to the inscription hall. "I''m not a buyer," Noah replied as he tried to sound as polite as possible, "I''m here to perform inscriptions." Noah''s words stirred the curiosity of the guard who inspected him from head to toe. It was hard for cultivators to recognize Noah''s peculiar status when he didn''t show his physical strength, but the gaseous stage expert didn''t look for those features. "This inscription hall is quite famous," The guard said when he understood that Noah was a newbie of the Immortal Lands. "We can offer you only a day free of charge. You will need to pay afterward." Noah could only nod at those words. He didn''t even want to ask about the price to join the insides of the inscription hall, but he didn''t mind it for now. One day was more than enough to understand if he could perform inscriptions, and he could always change building if that inscription hall were to refuse him at some point. The guard sighed and let him pass after his positive answer. Noah lost contact with the outside world once he crossed the structure''s barrier, but its insides became apparent when he stepped into the large garden around the central building. Noah could finally see the expert performing inscriptions in one corner of the garden. He was a rank 7 cultivator in the gaseous stage with long white hair and a youthful appearance. The man had grey eyes and wore a grey robe with a large black rune drawn on its chest. The man ignored Noah and remained focused on his inscription method. An azure gas flowed out of his head and fused with the crystals in his palms, slowly altering their shape and aura. The process resembled the inscription method of the natives of the other world, but Noah could sense that the azure gas didn''t carry simple meanings. It seemed to exude something more complicated, but a loud voice suddenly resounded in his mind and forced him to stop his analysis. "Don''t try to copy other''s inscription methods," An ancient voice resounded inside Noah''s head. "It''s a crime to steal ideas from other masters. This will be your last warning." ''They always understand that I''m not from the place,'' Noah thought as he diverted his gaze from the other inscription master and sat near the entrance to focus on his creation. Noah didn''t need to create a blueprint or invent a new product. The materials inside the separate space were too different from what he had used in the lower plane. Also, he already had the perfect idea for that procedure. There was one inscribed weapon that had accompanied Noah since the events inside the Odrea nation. His bombs only required one material and his saber-shaped runes, making them the cheapest item in Noah''s knowledge. That made them perfect for his current situation. Noah could attempt to complete them without wasting too many materials. At worst, they could threaten to explode before stabilizing, but the separate space could cover for that feature. Chapter 1326: 1326. Auction The gaseous stage guard let out a surprised gasp when he saw Noah''s taking out pieces of skin belonging to a divine magical beast from his chest. Still, he soon covered his mouth to preserve the tranquility of the inscription hall. It wasn''t hard to discern that Noah was a newly ascended existence. His robes and behavior made it impossible for him to appear as a citizen of the Immortal Lands. His gaze exuded his curiosity toward everything in Vagona city, and his clothes were nothing more than rags in that world. Even heroic cultivators wore robes made of divine items. Only a newbie would still lack such common defenses. Still, the fact that Noah had a storage item changed the guard''s idea about him. He suddenly became curious about that newly ascended cultivator. The guards of the inscription halls could watch the masters in action, but they couldn''t escape the barrier''s restrictions. The experts in the inscription fields had to feel safe in those structures, so no one could memorize their methods while they performed. The ancient voice and the white-haired inscription master''s calmness made Noah feel safe to inscribe in that place. He could fully focus on his procedure and strive to create a stable item. Dark matter flew out of Noah''s chest and seeped inside the magical beast''s skin in his hands. The higher energy followed Noah''s instructions and shaped the material according to his needs. Those piles of tissues soon transformed into a sphere that began to absorb his darkness. Noah let the incomplete Instability amass darkness until it grew unstable. The item was about to explode, but he promptly stored it inside his separate space and used the dark matter to isolate it. No one in the area heard anything, but they could see how gray smoke came out of Noah''s mouth after the Instability exploded. The barrier''s restrictions didn''t allow them to understand if that was part of his inscription method. Still, they began to grow wary of that peculiar expert. ''My wills are too shallow,'' Noah thought as he focused again. ''These materials are too resilient. I need to change approach.'' Dark matter flowed out of Noah''s chest and created a minute version of the dark world between his palms. Then, another piece of magical beast''s skin exited the separate space and entered his technique. Noah suppressed the law inside the material as dark matter modified its structure and fused it with his wills. The Instabilities were simple inscribed weapons, so he only had to make them able to contain his darkness. The dark world benefitted the forging, but the incomplete Instability grew unstable after Noah began to fuse his saber-shaped runes on its surface. He soon found himself forced to store the item inside the separate space and suppress its detonation again. The audience understood that something was off when they saw grey smoke blowing out of Noah''s mouth again. That hinted at a failure in the process, but their interest grew when Noah took more divine materials out of his separate space. It wasn''t hard to find divine materials in the Immortal Lands, but Noah was alone. The audience didn''t know if he had friends outside of Vagona city. Still, they began to respect his ability. That inscription hall didn''t have many cultivators among the spectators, but they had some relevance inside Vagona city. Some of them began to consider hiring Noah to gather divine materials for their shops, but neither dared to interrupt his performance. ''The dark world can weaken the innate defenses of the material,'' Noah thought as he deployed his technique again, ''But my wills can''t replace its laws. The dark matter can''t be the core energy in the forging with items at this level.'' Noah sighed when he understood that. The dark matter had allowed him to create wonders out of common materials, but it was too impersonal when it came to dealing with laws. Noah could still fuse it with the material''s structure, but he couldn''t use it to carry his wills, not if he wanted to succeed in the forging at least. Only his individuality could create laws capable of transforming those items, so he had to use the energy that reflected the entirety of his existence. A peculiar aura started to come out of Noah''s figure once he prepared the minute dark world and more magical beast''s skin. He tried to contain the radiations of his individuality, but his ambition still affected the air around him while he focused on creating wills. Black lines appeared on the air around his figure as his cultivation level grew. Noah became stronger right in front of everyone, and even the white-haired inscription master stopped his performance to focus on him. "Is he using a secret art to succeed in the inscription?" One of the old-looking cultivators among the audience asked. "It''s not completely foolish," Another cultivator in the audience answered. "The masters of the inscription hall might recruit him if he succeeds. Injuries to the centers of power are easy to heal once you have their backing. He is willing to sacrifice his potential to join them." Noah couldn''t hear the conversations spoken among the audience, but his focus wouldn''t allow him to do it even if the barrier didn''t exist. He had decided to reveal part of his individuality during the procedure, so he couldn''t falter for even an instant. Darkness flowed inside his mind and transformed as it fused with his wills. The waters of his mental sea surged and crashed on his mental walls as his ambition fueled ideas of explosions and violent energy. Those ideas entered the darkness before Noah used that energy to modify the magical beast''s skin contained in the dark world between his hands. His technique would suppress the material''s law, but it wouldn''t interfere with the actual forging. The darkness imbued with Noah''s wills altered the material''s structure and transformed it into a black sphere. Saber-shaped runes also came out of his mind and fused with the Instability''s surface to create its spikes. Dark matter then seeped inside its structure and fixed any flaw that it found. The higher energy also improved the overall quality of the disposable weapon and filled it with power. The darkness helped in that process too. The Instability would be threatening as long as it contained enough energy, so it didn''t matter which one Noah used. The Instabilities'' destructive power would eventually rely on the primary energy once Noah perfected the creation of that weapon. He only wanted to see if he could complete the item now, so he used energies that were easier to control. The dark world slowly flowed back inside Noah''s chest. A spiked black sphere that radiated metallic properties became visible to everyone once the dark matter left the area between his palms. ''Lower tier,'' Noah thought as a tinge of disappointment filled his mind. The Instability was a rank 7 weapon, but it didn''t carry the power to match the spell of a gaseous stage cultivator. It was almost a waste of materials since it barely met the standards of the divine realms. "Did you complete it?" The ancient voice resounded in Noah''s head again. "It''s quite weak for a disposable weapon," Noah conveyed through his mental waves. "I should be able to make it match a spell if I perfect the procedure." After Noah replied to the ancient voice, he dived back in his experiments, unaware that his recent success in creating the Instability had already given birth to an auction. Chapter 1327: 1327. Free The rules of the inscription halls were quite simple. There could be special ones depending on the structures'' owners, but most of them followed the same guidelines. They allowed inscription masters to show their expertise for a set amount of time freely, and the audience watching them could decide to make offers about their complete products. The same applied to the owners. They could place offers and bid against the audience for the purchase of the inscribed items. The owners would have an advantage in the auctions since they were partially unaffected by the barriers. They could study the complete products'' power better than the cultivators outside the inscription halls, but everyone knew about that feature. Actually, the fact that the owners decided to bid on certain inscribed items usually made the audience more set on purchasing them. It showed that the product had some value. Of course, the masters that had created the inscribed item could refuse to sell after they heard the price, but that was a rare outcome. Most experts entered the inscription halls intending to gain fame and money, so they would usually accept any form of compensation for their work. The first Instability created by Noah had attracted the attention of some of the owners. An ancient voice had resounded among the audience and had placed a bidding price of five Soul Stones. That number of Soul Stones was nothing unusual for the citizens of the Immortal Lands, but it showed the owners'' interest in Noah''s product. A series of bids followed that, but they stopped when they saw Noah''s completing a second Instability. Noah didn''t stop after his first success. He was unaware of what was happening around him since he remained focused on perfecting the procedure. The Divine Deduction technique also activated on its own due to how concentrated he was. The second complete Instability came out as a rank 7 disposable weapon near the lower tier''s halfway mark. Noah studied it for a while before storing it inside the separate space and taking out more pieces of skin to resume his forgings. Noah didn''t feel satisfied with those Instabilities. Normal inscribed items could fall short in terms of power since cultivators would pair them with their abilities, but the same didn''t apply to disposable weapons. Even if the Instabilities didn''t require many materials, Noah still lost pieces of skin in the divine ranks during the forging. It wasn''t hard for him to gather more of them, but he would rather eat them if he couldn''t create anything decent. Disposable weapons needed to be as powerful as spells or more to justify their consumption of materials. That was an unwritten rule among cultivators. No one would decide to use weak items when they had access to stronger abilities. ''They must be in the upper part of the lower tier to have any use among gaseous stage cultivators,'' Noah thought as he dived back into the Elemental Forging method. His ambition continued to alter the matter around him and fuel the wills that fused with his darkness. His individuality was the key behind the success of his inscriptions, so he couldn''t turn it off for now. Noah wasn''t going all-out. His ambition wasn''t pushing his centers of power beyond his structural limits. He was using his individuality only to strengthen his wills and create an energy that could replace the laws inside the skin''s structure. The drawbacks would be mild after that procedure, but Noah expected to experience a slight headache after he suppressed his individuality. He had to pay the price for his current power, but his centers of power wouldn''t suffer since his ambition had mostly flowed inside his wills. The third Instability appeared in the open, and Noah stored it inside the separate space. The disposable weapon had bordered the halfway mark of the lower tier again, so he decided to change approach. Noah began to use the primary energy to stuff the Instabilities with power after his third complete product. He had to polish the procedure to obtain better results, and he took that chance to perfect the new blueprint for those disposable weapons. No failures followed his change of approach. Noah had gained enough experience with the divine materials during his previous forging, so the resilience of their laws didn''t hinder his inscriptions anymore. Moreover, the primary energy had a few advantages. It was lighter than the darkness and the dark matter, so the Instabilities could contain far more of it. The weapons would also grow unstable more rarely due to those features. Noah lost track of the passage of time, and a day eventually passed while he remained immersed in his creations. However, no one stopped him. The owners of the inscription hall even instructed the guards to leave him be. The cultivators among the audience could hear those directives, and their excitement rose when they understood that the owners were publicly recognizing Noah. Rumors soon spread among Vagona city. The customers of the various inscription halls had tight connections, so it didn''t take much for a crowd to form around the structure where Noah was performing inscriptions. "He sure looks young!" One of the cultivators in the audience exclaimed once he managed to see Noah. "He has created more than ten inscribed items, and their power keeps growing!" Another cultivator said to reply to the previous exclamation. "How many materials does he even have?" A third cultivator asked. "Maybe he belongs to the inscription hall of another city," Someone else guessed. "This structure belongs to the Balrow family," One of the original customers said to correct the rumors. "The Monneay family owns the most popular inscription halls in Vagona city, but its competitors are on the same level." The price for Noah''s Instabilities continued to increase as the crowd around the inscription hall grew. More wealthy cultivators placed their bids and challenged the Balrow family in the auction. Noah slowly perfected the procedure. He was about to run out of materials after he completed his thirtieth Instability. Still, his creations'' power was steadily striving toward the lower tier''s peak after his many tests. ''The next one should be almost perfect,'' Noah thought as he continued to forge. Creating inscribed weapons filled him with a strange sensation now that he worked with divine materials. Noah felt his individuality growing as he used it to alter the laws inside the matter. He felt as if he could finally cross the bottleneck that had forced him to leave the wilderness. The thirty-first Instability couldn''t reach the peak of the lower tier either, but Noah didn''t feel discouraged by that event. Perfection required many tests, and he had just begun to learn how to handle divine materials. Yet, Noah had now depleted all his materials, and that made him curse in his mind. His desire to complete the procedure had taken over his initial intentions. Noah saw a crowd of cultivators staring at him from the other side of the entrance. He initially turned to see if someone else was behind him, but he soon accepted that their gazes were for him. The white-haired cultivator had also stopped inscribing to stare at him. The exhaustion of his materials didn''t seem the main issue anymore in that situation. "Why did you stop?" The ancient voice resounded again, but Noah could hear that it came from an old-looking cultivator that had materialized in front of him. The cultivator was a bald man who had a thin white beard that reached his belly. He wore a luxurious green robe, but burns filled his sleeves and ruined those otherwise spending clothes. He kept his eyes closed, so Noah couldn''t see their color for now. Still, the detail that caught Noah''s attention the most was his cultivation level. The expert was a rank 7 cultivator in the solid stage, but no laws leaked out of his figure. "I''m out of materials," Noah honestly replied. The cultivator nodded and rubbed his beard as he waved his free hand. After his gesture, a series of barrels materialized next to him, and Noah could see how they contained different rank 7 materials in the lower tier. "You can use them," The cultivator said. "Don''t worry. I''m giving them for free." Chapter 1328: 1328. Explanations Noah understood that something had happened while he had remained immersed in the Elemental Forging method. The audience, the other inscription master''s reaction, and the solid stage cultivator''s words told him that his creations had attracted some attention. However, Noah couldn''t trust him so easily. He didn''t forget where he was, so he had to be careful about those offers. "Why would you offer me free materials?" Noah asked without suppressing his interest in those materials. The barrels contained strange metals and peculiar tissues that Noah wanted to study, but he didn''t take them even if he let his interest leak out of his figure. Noah had plenty of experience in being a lone cultivator. He knew how he had to act to preserve some advantage in a foreign environment. It was clear that his inscriptions had attracted some interest, but he didn''t want to appear as the canny cultivator that he was. He would rather pretend to be a clueless genius in the inscription field while he studied his surroundings. "I''m willing to pay to see you in action," The cultivator said while wearing an expressionless face. Noah pretended to feel concerned about his words. His eyes widened as he put his hands behind his back and began to stand up. "The barrier outside the structure prevents the creation of memories about the inscription methods seen here," The cultivator said when he saw Noah''s reaction. "Do you recall anything about Master Jay''s technique?" The cultivator pointed at the white-haired expert during his question. Noah began to think about his brief inspection of that expert''s inscription method, but he soon discovered that he couldn''t remember anything about it. No memories about his previous analysis existed in his mind. Noah recalled that he had tried to study the white-haired expert, but he couldn''t remember even the faintest image when he thought about that. ''I wonder where is the limit to this feature,'' Noah thought as he inspected the barrier. Noah didn''t know how strong a cultivator needed to be to avoid those effects, but his simple inspection couldn''t reveal anything useful. Yet, the solid stage cultivator understood his thoughts and didn''t hesitate to reassure him. "I only remember a small cloud when it comes to your inscription method," The cultivator said. "I will forget about that too in a few days. Most of the barriers and restrictions in Vagona city have to go through the leaders'' inspection. They make sure that every shop works in complete fairness." Noah didn''t need to ask who the leavers were. The five rank 8 auras that covered Vagona City were enough to answer those doubts. "I don''t want to join any organization," Noah announced as he moved his eyes between the materials and the bald cultivator. "That''s normal for newly ascended cultivators," The cultivator said. "I won''t hide my disappointment, but we have long lives. I''m sure you will consider the inscription halls of the Balrow family in the future." Noah didn''t hesitate to question the cultivator about some aspects of the Immortal Lands since he appeared inclined to solve his doubts. It was clear that he wanted to gain Noah''s favor, and he wouldn''t miss that chance. The cultivator''s name was Saul Balrow. He didn''t originally belong to the Balrow family, but his talent in the inscription field had given him the chance to join that organization and hone his skills. He had also managed to improve after he didn''t have to worry about resources anymore. Saul gave Noah a general overview of Vagona city. A few powerful families owned most of the shops, and they also had branches in other human settlements. The five rank 8 cultivator didn''t belong to any of them, but they had organizations that handled other aspects of the city. Noah finally gained a general idea of the political structure of the human side of the Immortal Lands. Cultivators divided themselves into organizations that had various purposes, and the most powerful of them had rank 8 existences as their leaders. The most populated cities on the human side had multiple leaders from different organizations that enforced peace together. That didn''t apply to the smallest ones that ended up being lawless zones where cultivators could act as they desired. Saul stressed how beneficial the cities'' life was, but Noah didn''t want to remain entangled with political issues after his ascension. Once the elderly cultivator finished his explanation, Noah changed the topic of their conversation. "How much did you offer for my items?" Noah asked before pointing at the audience across the entrance. "How much did they?" Noah wasn''t completely unaware of the environment of the Immortal Lands. He knew the rules about the inscription hall, so he could guess that his Instabilities had earned a decent success. Saul''s expressionless face flickered for an instant at those words, but he didn''t hold anything from Noah. Still, he needed to ask a few questions before giving his weapons a final price. "How do your items work?" Saul asked, and Noah saw the audience growing silent after his words. Those cultivators wanted to see the effects of Noah''s items to adjust their bids, but most of them felt somewhat discouraged. They knew how much the owners were willing to offer, so they thought they stood no chance in that auction. "The Balrow family is willing to give you ten Soul Stones for each item," Saul said. "I know that your initial products were still incomplete, but we want to purchase them anyway at full price." ''Do they want to rope me in?'' Noah wondered, but he soon understood that Saul''s offer was quite close to the audience''s best ones. A few wealthy cultivators had offered similar numbers, but they weren''t willing to purchase the incomplete products. Only the inscription hall could find even the weaker items useful. ''Three hundred and ten Soul Stones,'' Noah did the math in his head, ''Are they even a decent number?'' Noah''s lack of knowledge about the prices in that place was starting to annoy him, but he was about to fix that weakness. "Three hundred and ten it is," Noah said as he took out thirty-one instabilities and placed them next to him. "I can reach one thousand if you attach a description of your inscription method," Saul continued. "I can also offer you ten thousand to learn more about your storage item." "The rest isn''t for sale," Noah replied before shooting a cold glance toward Saul and continued. "For now, at least." Saul showed his first smile since the beginning of their conversation and nodded at his reply. He didn''t feel bad about that rejection. He had seen many cultivators like Noah desiring to remain alone for the entirety of their divine journey, but they always joined organizations at some point. A pile of gray rocks covered by white lines fell from Saul''s space-ring and accumulated in front of him. Noah could sense the presence of raw laws in those items, and he couldn''t wait to get his hands on them. Noah took out thirty-one Instabilities from his separate space and stored the Soul Stones. The inscription hall had lost its appeal after that transaction, so he left the structure after exchanging a few more words with Saul. "Use this card if you want to contact a member of an inscription hall under the control of the Balrow family," Saul said as he handed Noah a small card made of green metal. "Give me your name. I will inform all the branches that you are welcome in our inscription halls. Chapter 1329: 1329. Fallen The green card had a simple rune on its surface, the same mark embroidered on Saul''s green robe. The item expressed the acknowledgment of the Balrow family. Saul had basically accepted Noah as a fellow inscription master. The audience, the guards, and Master Jay gasped at that sight. It was rare for a cultivator to obtain that token during his first visit to an inscription hall. The card wouldn''t only allow Noah to enter every inscription hall of the Balrow family freely. It would also give him some recognition in similar structures belonging to other families. Noah didn''t fail to notice the reaction of the cultivators around him. He understood that the card was an important item, so he didn''t hesitate to store it after he inspected it with his mental waves. ''He wants a name,'' Noah thought while Saul kept smiling at him. Noah could tell Saul his real name and leave, but he had the chance to express his affiliation with some powerful existence now. Cultivators also used titles often, so he didn''t mind saying one that could lead him to potential allies. Noah didn''t want to join any organization, but he wouldn''t discard the chance to create back-up plans. He already had a powerful enemy. Paving the path for the arrival of potential allies seemed necessary in his situation. "Defying Demon," Noah said, and one of Saul''s eyebrows arched when he heard that name. Hearing that name had triggered something inside Saul''s mind that made him break his peaceful expression. However, Noah could only memorize that detail and leave the inscription hall for the moment. Noah didn''t know if Saul had any connection with Divine Demon. Still, he could confirm that his decision to reveal his title didn''t endanger his relationship with the Balrow family when he sensed the green card changing. A few symbols appeared on the card. Noah couldn''t read that language, but he could hear the name "Defying Demon" when he inspected them with his mental waves. The Balrow family had officially accepted him as a welcomed guest. ''I have finally made some progress,'' Noah thought as the effects of his ambition waned. The crowd in front of the inscription hall opened at his passage and stared at him from afar after he left. Noah didn''t want them to see his cultivation level falling, but they respected him enough to leave him alone. His performance had placed his name among the promising newly ascended existences. Many cultivators among the crow expected Noah to become an important member of an inscription hall in the future. Noah didn''t have the same expectations. There was a crucial aspect of his existence that placed him in a different realm from the human world. He couldn''t even begin to imagine what problems his species could cause. Still, he now had enough money to solve some of his doubts about the Immortal Lands. Three hundred and ten Soul Stones wouldn''t grant him access to all the structures in Vagona city, but they were enough to make him visit the library. Moreover, his recent experience with the Elemental Forging method had unlocked something inside him. Noah felt that he had crossed the bottleneck and that he could increase his cultivation level again. Yet, he decided to delay his training to gather information about the higher plane. A slight head-ache filled his mind after his centers of power returned to their real level. Noah didn''t use his ambition to empower himself during his forgings, so the drawback ended up being relatively easy to endure. The sensations felt while his ambition affected the laws around him were vivid inside his mind, and Noah did his best to memorize them. Those feelings contained the reason behind the unlocking of his cultivation level, and he would do anything to keep them alive. Noah returned to the big library and found Chief Ash smiling at him. She kept her arms crossed in front of her chest as she stared at his figure nearing the building belonging to the Sailbrird family. "I told you that you had potential," Chief Ash said. "You made a name for yourself already. Still, I didn''t expect you to be an inscription master." "I can pay the fee for the library now," Noah said as he ignored her comment. "News run fast in Vagona city," Chief Ash didn''t let the topic go. "Almost every weaker existence is aware of your arrival after your performance in the inscription hall." "I only want to read a few books," Noah said as he continued to ignore her. "Inscription masters are a valuable resource in the higher plane," Chief Ash kept going. "You have lost your anonymity, Defying Demon. I wouldn''t be surprised if smaller organizations were to kidnap you now that you have revealed your talents." Chief Ash''s words sounded like a threat, but Noah didn''t give them much weight. Her intentions were clear. She wanted Noah to join her guild now that he was still somewhat unknown. It would be too late if Noah continued to reveal his value. Simple guilds would lose any hope to obtain him since the big families would step in. "I''m sure the sophisticated citizens of Vagona city won''t resort to such methods," Noah replied as a cold smile appeared on his face. Noah stopped in front of Chief Ash and kept his reptilian eyes fixed on her. She couldn''t discern his hybrid status only from that feature, but she didn''t seem interested in the secrets he carried. Chief Ash only wanted to recruit Noah. Her desire seeped out of her figure and began to fuse with the environment. Still, the arrival of her underlings forced her to retract those strands of aura. Noah took out five Soul Stones from his separate space when the other guards arrived, but Chief Ash shook her head and opened a path for him. "Take this as proof of my goodwill," Chief Ash said as she pointed at the entrance of the library. "You can stay there for three months and have complete access to the first level. You will need to pay for specific tomes or information with great value." Noah''s eyes went on the entrance before darting again on the liquid stage expert. Chief Ash was offering him a free visit to the library, but Noah''s instincts told him not to trust her. Still, that didn''t involve the actual visit, so Noah limited himself to nod before walking toward the entrance. Chief Ash''s suspicious behavior couldn''t worry him with the five rank 8 existences watching over the entire city. "Are you sure, Chief?" One of the weaker guards asked once Noah entered the library. "My contact in the inscription hall said that he created thirty-one inscribed weapons in a row. Also, he might have some connection with that other troublemaker." "This is Vagona city, a reign of peace," Chief Ash replied to her underling. "We will confirm if he knows anything about that arrogant bastard once he leaves." "He appears used to a life in the wilderness," The guard argued. "We might be unable to keep up with him once he leaves unless you were to join the chase." "There will be no need for a chase," Chief Ash said as a confident smile appeared on her face. "I know exactly where he will go after his visit to the library. Every newly ascended cultivator wants to see the Land of the Fallen after learning about its existence." Chapter 1330: 1330. Books The brightness of the library filled Noah''s vision. The structure resembled an immense palace on the outside, but its insides appeared far bigger. Something stretched the space inside the structure and made it far bigger than it could be. Bookshelves filled the hundreds of meters large main hall, and a large staircase circled the walls and led to the upper floors. Noah could see more bookshelves from the few balconies on the upper floors. Cultivators browsed them while sitting on luxurious sofas, and the scenery wasn''t much different in the main hall. Multiple reading areas divided the many bookshelves. Some of them had specific purposes, and a few even held a series of cultivators discussing specific topics. Experts could even create groups there before venturing outside of Vagona city. The areas that held discussions or groups of cultivators didn''t let any sound escape from their edges. Complete silence filled the library, and some runes placed on its walls even absorbed the noise made by the turning of pages. There were even catalogs that listed the services offered by the library. A series of waiters occupied every reading area and advised any cultivator in need. Noah felt utterly lost in that environment, but a waiter quickly noticed his confusion and led him toward a white screen after exchanging a few polite lines. The screen had an interactive list that reacted to the mental waves. Noah only needed to think about what he desired to read, and a series of names would appear on the device. The waiter confirmed that Noah could read anything in the main hall of the library for free. That structure only featured an entrance fee and a payment to enter the upper floors. Noah could also purchase wine and other goods to accompany his reading, but he wouldn''t waste money before obtaining a general idea of how the Immortal Lands worked. ''This is even better than I expected,'' Noah thought as more names appeared on the screen. ''Can I even read all of them in three months?'' Noah had seen thousands of names flashing in his vision as his mental waves interacted with the device. He had so many questions that the list on the screen never stopped changing. ''This will take too long if I don''t do it properly,'' Noah concluded before calling one of the waiters. The waiter was a tall man in the gaseous stage. He wore a tight pale-blue robe just like the other cultivators working inside the structure, and he didn''t hesitate to help Noah with his issue. Of course, Noah had to pay for that service. Ten of his Soul Stones disappeared from his separate space as he questioned the waiter about his many doubts. The library was simply too big, and it contained multiple versions of the same books. Experts would also create essays on some of those tomes, so Noah had no idea which one would be best for him. Instead, the waiter advised him to read specific tomes and scrolls after hearing about his needs. Noah ended up with more than a hundred books even after that skimming process, but he couldn''t reduce their number any more than that. The waiter took care of bringing all the books to the reading area chosen by Noah, and he even carried some cheap wine to complete his service. For Noah, that cheap wine was the best he had ever tasted. He could sense the divine materials used in its creation, and he felt strange when his mind calmed down. That beverage could affect his divine mind, and it was the cheapest on the catalog! Noah couldn''t even imagine what the most expensive would do to his sea of consciousness. Noah dived into the books after the waiter completed his task. Many of them spoke about the layout of the Immortal Lands, while others told legends and pieces of history of that place. The Immortal Lands were too vast to create complete maps. Noah could only learn about the general position of some important places. He would have to go to the upper floors to obtain detailed and updated descriptions of certain territories. That study still helped him learn more about the Immortal Lands, but that place was so vast that it had any kind of region. Immense mountain chains, lakes as vast as seas, endless plains, the higher plane had everything. Moreover, it was unclear whether the Immortal Lands had an end. Many experts had tried to understand how large the higher plane actually was, but they couldn''t find an exact measure to describe it. The Immortal Lands transformed often. They even enlarged through a process that no book in the main hall could describe. Noah could only guess that Heaven and Earth continued to expand their domain and annex more territories to the higher plane. That process was the reason behind multiple unexplored regions. The constant expansion of the Immortal Lands made every map inexact and forced the cultivators to focus on many important areas rather than on the entirety of the plane. The political situation of the Immortal Lands was even messier than their layout. Magical beasts and humans had precise borders that they never crossed due to agreements sealed among powerful existences. As for the hybrids, they were hard to track, and many suggested that their home was the unexplored part of the plane. That division made it relatively easy for Noah. He could easily travel between one side and the other depending on his needs. His discovery made him quite pleased, but his mood soon turned sour after he studied more books. The two sides had multiple leaders and even more underlings. The humans had also divided themselves into countless organizations, and the magical beasts had done something similar with their packs. The library couldn''t teach him about the various alliances among those forces. Noah would need to resort to specific services of the library to obtain those updates, but he didn''t have enough money to purchase them. ''I guess I need to memorize the political alliances once I see them,'' Noah concluded once he stopped studying the families and the various organizations that filled the human side. Noah studied tomes that spoke about the cultivation journey in the divine ranks. Those teachings weren''t detailed, and they were mostly guesses of cultivators that had managed to advance in the past. Their experience was enough to confirm the idea that had brewed in his mind after the events in the inscription hall. He was already on the right path, according to those books. Divine cultivators needed to evolve through their individuality, and that involved affecting the world with their law. Their true meaning had to suppress the rules of the world around them and turn it into their domain. It was similar to the effects of the dark world, but cultivators had to apply them without relying on techniques and spells. ''So, I need to use my ambition to force my cultivation level to improve,'' Noah summarized in his mind, ''But I can avoid using my individuality if I train more on affecting the world around me. I guess this process changes depending on the true meaning.'' **** Author''s notes: I''ll write the last one after I wake up. Sorry for the annoying routine. Chapter 1331: 1331. Inheritances After learning about the Immortal Lands'' layout, obtaining a vague understanding of their political divisions, and studying how to advance through the divine ranks, Noah could focus on his path ahead. A peculiar aspect of the Immortal Lands was that most of their population didn''t come from a lower plane. Most newly ascended existence struggled to survive the change of environment, and the rank 7 Heaven Tribulation was a difficult hurdle to overcome in the Mortal Lands. Instead, the natives of the higher plane could rely on their backing and powerful divine tools to overcome that hurdle. Becoming a god in the Immortal Lands wasn''t hard. It was a simple matter of resources. The Soul Stones that Noah had obtained by selling his Instabilities were the reason behind that feature. That currency contained raw laws that cultivators could absorb to improve, so anyone could hope to reach the seventh rank as long as they had money. That made the mines of Soul Stones quite valuable for the population of the Immortal Lands. Most of those locations belonged to important families, and Noah could memorize them as he studied inside the library. Those locations became off-limits once a powerful family occupied them, but even those organizations couldn''t control all of them. New mines of Soul Stones would appear every decade, and many explorers lived to find them. Noah read about mining guilds and famous explorers who had managed to find those locations and seize them before the arrival of powerful organizations. The library couldn''t offer him detailed reports about those mines, but it taught him why they formed. Mines of Soul Stones would often appear after large battles occurred. The Immortal Lands would reabsorb the corpses of divine existences and generate those locations after a set amount of time. Even the death of many rank 7 magical beasts could create those locations. The Soul Stones had a chance of forming as long as a massive amount of energy flowed back into the ground. Noah didn''t care about those mines for now, but studying them led him toward the type of knowledge he desired. The Immortal Lands had witnessed countless experts rise and fall. An endless number of battles had happened on their surface and sky. Soul Stones'' mines had been the reason behind some fights, but they weren''t the only resource that divine cultivators sought. Every existence strived to reach the higher ranks. Magical beasts could eat anything containing energy to improve, but cultivators and hybrids needed more than that. However, gaining access to resources that could make them improve wasn''t easy. Obtaining mines of Soul Stones required luck and long years of research, and the same went for unique resources that could benefit their training. Still, specific locations could contain far more than simple resources, and it was hard to keep them a secret from the population of the Immortal Lands. Powerful organizations would try to hide them, but they always became famous if those forces failed to seize them quickly. ''How many inheritances the higher plane even has?!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he read the reports about those locations. Due to the presence of countless divine experts, the Immortal Lands had a large number of inheritances. The library had recorded thousands of them, and only a few of them had found worthy heirs. Most inheritances still lacked an owner, and some were so hard to seize that the organizations controlling those areas had turned them into a popular attraction for hopeful cultivators. The most famous known inheritance was the Land of the Fallen. Its location bordered the magical beasts'' side, and its story was a legend that every cultivator had heard. The peace between the humans and the magical beasts was only a temporary phase reached after countless battles. Those sides were unable to live together, so the clashes always resumed at some point. Many famous wars had happened on the borders between the two sides, and the humans had often lost them. The endless tide of magical beasts was something that they couldn''t restrain for too long. The "Breath" suited those creatures too much. That led to a constant shrinking of the territories of the human sides. Many powerful organizations would band together to fend off the magical beasts every time the peace crumbled, but their efforts could only delay the inevitable. The magical beasts'' side was too powerful, and it hid dangers that the human forces didn''t want to awaken. Even mighty rank 8 cultivators would limit themselves to reconquer only a few regions when they had the chance. They didn''t want to anger the living calamities in the depths of the creatures'' domain. Many powerful existences had died on the borders between the two sides. Those regions were rich, and the death of so many cultivators had given birth to a peculiar phenomenon after countless years of war. Divine cultivators weren''t just a mass of energy. They had powerful seas of consciousness that could affect the laws of the world. Upon their death, their mental waves could alter the environment and give birth to improvised inheritances that respected their last wishes. ''To this day,'' Noah read through the reports, ''The many powerful forces of the human side have confirmed the presence of two hundred and thirty-seven inheritances on the border with the magical beasts'' domain.'' Learning about that sheer number of inheritances almost made Noah go crazy. His greed threatened to leak out of his figure, but he promptly suppressed it to continue his study. ''This number only considers the inheritances near the human domain,'' Noah read. ''Regions that have seen even bigger wars are now deep into the magical beasts'' domain, which makes them hard to seize. The library has recorded those great battles'' locations, but it doesn''t have more details.'' Noah put down the book in his hands after he read that part. Sword Saint''s inheritance had taught him about the presence of those places in the Immortal Lands, but he didn''t believe that there could be so many of them. Famous organizations also controlled some of those inheritances. Noah read about names that he had heard during his short stay in Vagona city. Every force with a rank 8 existence in its ranks controlled at least one of them. ''The last wishes of dying cultivators are so powerful,'' Noah thought as greed built inside his mind. ''Wonderful!'' Noah found it hard to contain his excitement. Differently from the other cultivators, he didn''t have to limit his exploration to the human domain. He didn''t care if his actions broke the peace between the two sides, and his species made him perfect for that task. Noah called the waiter and paid him again to search every piece of information related to the Land of the Fallen. He even purchased reports and books stored on the higher floors of the library. His slim finances became slimmer, but Noah didn''t even bother to keep track of them as he studied those reports. It wasn''t a problem for him to generate money if he had enough materials, and he couldn''t think of a better way to spend it anyway. Three months quickly passed while he amassed knowledge about the Land of the Fallen. Noah left the library after that period ended, and he didn''t even glance at Chief Ash as he exited the structure. Noah finally had a target, and nothing could distract him from it. Chapter 1332: 1332. Robe The Land of the Fallen was the perfect target for an existence like Noah. His experience in the magical beasts'' field and his prowess allowed him to move freely between the two domains and gave him the chance to inspect multiple battlefields. The main issue was that he had to return to the area of influence of the Crystal City to reach the first battlefield. The belief of their members made them the perfect first line of defense against those creatures. That was the reason why the human side didn''t complain about their fanatism. ''I can''t be unprepared anymore,'' Noah thought as he walked through Vagona city. Noah had learnt how easy it was to make enemies in the Immortal Lands after the events with Zach and the group from the Crystal City. He had also gained some fame in Vagona city, so he suspected that more troubles would appear on his path. That forced him to make some preparations. Noah wasn''t a clueless member of the Immortal Lands anymore. He had studied enough to learn how to improve his survivability and voyages, so he didn''t mind spending more time in Vagona city to obtain everything he needed. His research in the library had cost him almost half of his Soul Stones, but Noah could easily obtain more of them. Yet, he had to visit a few shops before understanding how expensive his needs were. ''I need to buy clothes,'' Noah concluded after he reviewed everything learnt in the library. Noah had always ignored defensive items because of his Body-inscription spell and powerful body. His skin was sturdier than most materials, so he found it pointless to waste time creating or purchasing armors. His battle style was also quite reckless, and clothes would only stand his way. However, that inscription field was quite famous in the Immortal Lands. The higher plane''s environment provided an abundance of divine materials, so the experts there could specialize in difficult creations. They could build light clothes capable of fending off divine spells! That wasn''t everything. The inscribed robes could have a multitude of effects depending on the needs of the customers. Some even had regenerative properties. The cultivators'' physical defense had always been poor, but the experts in the Immortal Lands could make up for that weakness by purchasing rank 7 inscribed robes. ''I don''t need more protections,'' Noah thought as he walked toward one of the most famous shops in the city. ''But having something that can hide my presence might be useful.'' Noah had learnt which forces handled the creation of inscribed robes. Most inscription halls had a few experts in charge of that field, but only a few of those masters could enter the Monneay family and earn a fortune by building clothes. That was the reason why the Monneay family was more famous than the Balrow family in Vagona city. Its population was quite rich, so it could invest more money in those expensive inscribed items. The Monneay family obviously had shops connected to their inscription halls. It had built a business out of the creation of those valuable items. Noah entered the biggest shop that he found and paid thirty Soul Stones to reach the higher floors of the structure. He did not need the cheaper robes. He needed to find a master and ask for clothes with specific features. A waiter led him through the long staircase coiled around a huge pillar placed in the middle of the main hall and left him in a large room once they reached the last floor. Other waiters brought a series of delicacies and beverages to enjoy while Noah explained his needs. Different masters had different specializations, even if they belonged to the same inscription field. The shop had to hear about his requests to offer a suitable service. The waiters also gave Noah a catalog that listed all the features available. Some robes could even empower a cultivator''s individuality if the expert managed to understand it. Moreover, the masters had a tier that stated their ability. ''A robe made by a tier-one master can cost up to one hundred thousand Soul Stones, with price depending on the level of the robe,'' Noah read through the catalog. That price was obviously out of his reach, so he had to settle for a meeting with a tier-four master specialized in cloaking robes equipped with regenerative properties. A stern woman arrived in the room after a while. She was a rank 7 cultivator in the gaseous stage with short black hair and dark eyes. The master sized Noah in silence, but she soon shook her head. "I can''t create what you need," The master said before explaining further. "I don''t have the power to build something that can hide your existence. Only tier-three masters and above can inscribe what you need." That answer left Noah dumbfounded. The robes created by tier-three cultivators could cost up to one thousand Soul Stones, and he didn''t know if he could accumulate that sum by selling Instabilities. The value of his inscribed weapons would decrease if he started to mass-produce them. He would also need to kill multiple divine magical beasts to accumulate the materials required for their creation. Still, he was about to venture for a long journey. The knowledge accumulated in the library didn''t prepare for everything that he could encounter in the wild regions. He also desired something that could allow him to escape in case the situation required it. "Call a tier-three master then," Noah said as he began to plan a hunting route while he waited for the new expert to arrive. It took a while for the tier three master to arrive. Noah had to wait a few hours before a gloomy short woman with no hair and white eyes entered his room. Noah felt slightly worried when her aura spread in the room. Her presence was far more intense than the other master, and her cultivation level was also on a higher level. She was a rank 7 cultivator in the liquid stage, and Noah felt naked in front of her aloof gaze. Her eyes seemed to hide some secret, but Noah didn''t have the power to uncover it. "Do you have any affiliation or special status?" The woman asked after she finished her inspection. Noah took out his green card, and the master nodded after seeing the name engraved on its surface. Then, she gave voice to a series of instructions. "I''m Thea Monneay," The master said. "I accept your request and will start working on it as soon as you leave a deposit. The item will cost between one thousand and two thousand Soul Stones depending on its final state." "Is one hundred Soul Stones enough for the deposit?" Noah asked. "No," Thea replied bluntly, "But I will make an exception since the Balrow family is trying to rope you in." Noah felt glad that the events inside the inscription hall ended up bringing him some benefits. He hastily took out the Soul Stones and waited for the master to give him further instruction. "I only need to see your individuality properly now," Thea said after she stored the Soul Stones and sat on the couch in front of Noah. Chapter 1333: 1333. Cave Noah left the shop after he completed Thea''s requests. He wasn''t worried that she could leak the details of his individuality. Every inscription master had to swear oaths that protected the customers, so he only needed to accumulate Soul Stones now. The inscription hall of the Balrow family would probably give him a job if he asked, but Noah didn''t want to waste time in Vagona city anymore. He had even decided to abandon the idea of mass-producing Instabilities since that would take a while. The Instabilities were cheap to make. One magical beast could give Noah enough materials to forge even forty of them if it were big enough. However, he would rather create a single valuable item than use so many nutrients for something that he had to sell. The robe could cost up to two thousand Soul Stones, and Noah had the vague feeling that he would require all of them to purchase it. Thea had to build an item in line with his individuality, so his ambition could play its part in the process. Moreover, Noah needed to buy something that could allow him to fly freely. He had vaguely understood how expensive that would be, so he had to sell a masterpiece to accumulate enough money. ''What should I even build?'' Noah wondered as he left Vagona city and shot toward one of the mountains around that plain. Noah had a few ideas, but he would create a blueprint only after completing his hunts. He had to adapt to the materials that he found. Leaving the city made Noah feel refreshed. The pressure radiated by the five rank 8 existences had always weighed on his mind in the past months. His instincts had never stopped sensing threats during his stay. The pressure of the white sky soon replaced those powerful auras. Vagona city fended off those radiations, but they came back as soon as Noah returned in the wilderness. ''Maybe I can do something about this blinding sky,'' Noah wondered as he let his senses guide him toward the nearest lair. "It is the most hateful thing in the whole world!" Night exclaimed in his mind when it heard his thoughts. "I need to destroy it! Don''t you dare to use your weakness to hold me back!" Night had become used to the fact that the light couldn''t kill it anymore, but it couldn''t forget the experience of its first ascension. It hated the whiteness that filled the Immortal Lands with everything it had. Its feelings were so intense that they even affected Noah''s emotions. ''I need to destroy it to reach the stars anyway,'' Noah replied through the connection with the Pterodactyl. ''We only need to go through the various steps of the human world. It''s not my first time climbing to the apex of the food chain. I only need to do it again.'' Night became silent after it heard those thoughts. It knew that Noah wasn''t lying, and it trusted him to succeed. Its vague memories about its first ascension made it aware that its master was the strongest newly ascended existence in the world. His growth would be exponential once he seized what he needed. Noah ran through the flourishing mountain chain until he arrived in front of a large cave that radiated a dangerous area. His superior awareness told him that a series of rank 7 magical beasts hid in its depths, and his instincts confirmed that he could handle the hunt as long as he was careful. Yet, while Noah was about to enter the cave, his superior awareness warned him about the presence of multiple threats behind him. His instincts also told him that those auras didn''t belong to magical beasts. Some cultivators were trying to encircle him. ''It should be impossible for the Crystal City to be already here,'' Noah thought. ''This only makes me desire the cloaking device more.'' Noah heaved a sigh while he entered the cave. A lair of magical beasts was the perfect place to counter an ambush. He could rely on his hybrid features to make up for the numerical disadvantage. The pursuers didn''t stop running in his direction even after using their mental waves to inspect the cave. Ordinary cultivators couldn''t sense the magical beasts as well as him, but that lair had enough creatures to make their presence impossible to miss. ''They aren''t stopping,'' Noah thought as dark matter flowed out of his chest and took the shape of a massive snake that engulfed his figure. The events with the Twelve-legged Queen had revealed part of his abilities to the Crystal City, so Noah found it hard to believe that its members would follow him in a lair. However, he was almost sure that he didn''t offend anyone inside Vagona city. If his pursuers didn''t come from the Crystal City, they were probably after his abilities as an inscription master. ''I would have agreed to talk inside Vagona city,'' Noah thought as a cold expression appeared on his face, ''But we are in the wilderness now.'' Noah always had a reason to kill other cultivators. It didn''t matter if they wanted him alive. Their dantians were resources that he wouldn''t dare to miss. He even had the chance to seize their storage spaces now. It had been impossible to force Bertha''s item due to the restrictions of the Crystal City, but Noah believed that he wouldn''t have problems against weaker forces. Seven rank 7 cultivators in the gaseous stage entered the cave after confirming that Noah was inside it. They wore black robes, and tight hoods covered their faces. "We need him alive," One of those hooded cultivators said as the group walked through the rocky environment. "This Defying Demon shouldn''t have many resources, so his only value is in his abilities as an inscription master." The other members of the group nodded at those words, but they soon hesitated to proceed when they lost track of Noah''s aura. The seven then exchanged a glance before dispersing through the various branches of the cave. Noah seemed to have completely disappeared, but those cultivators had already confirmed that the cave didn''t have an exit. He had to be inside. It was only a matter of finding him now. Soft steps echoed through the silent cave. Low snores resounded from the deeper parts of the lair and made the cultivators wary of the creatures resting inside that place. Noah''s disappearance had already messed up with their plans, but they weren''t willing to give up on obtaining an inscription master just yet. The value of those experts was immense, especially for small organizations. ''I don''t recognize those clothes,'' Noah thought as he stared at the group from a peculiar hiding spot. ''Some of those auras feel familiar, but I can''t put a face on them. They must have been among the crowd in front of the inscription hall.'' Noah was inside Snore. The Blood Companion managed to suppress his aura, and a layer of dark rocks disguised the creature as part of the environment. Noah stared at the group''s movements while he remained hidden, and he decided to act only when one cultivator neared his position. The expert walked slowly, but dark energy suddenly began to gather on the cave''s ceiling. Snore launched its dark beam before the existence could even understand what was happening. **** Author''s notes: Same as yesterday, but you should receive the next chapter far sooner this time. Chapter 1334: 1334. Secret organization ''I need to sacrifice some of them to gain the upper hand,'' Noah thought as he watched Snore''s dark beam engulfing the cultivator and creating a hole in the ground underneath. That attack alarmed all the existences inside the cave. The other six cultivators and the magical beasts in the lair converged toward the dark beam when they sensed that surge of energy. Screeches and tremors filled the cave as the magical beasts left the depths to reach Noah''s position. The cultivators were closer to that area, so they managed to see the massive snake closing its mouth and diving deeper into the lair. Noah had no intention to face the cultivators head-on. He would rather pretend to be a giant snake and observe their fights to see if he could understand something about their origin. Even while inside Snore, Noah was faster than his pursuers. The dark matter created with rank 7 darkness gave the Blood Companion immense power and made it almost stronger than any magical beast in the lower tier. Those cultivators would have to use movement techniques to catch up with him. Still, deploying them while magical beasts charged toward them would only cause problems, especially since they had yet to locate Noah. A series of giant Scorpions appeared in Noah''s view at some point. They were almost eleven meters long, and their exoskeleton radiated a dark-gray shade as they ran through the shining cave. Six thick legs, two massive claws, and a tail bigger than the rest of their bodies gave them a threatening appearance, but they could only show some hesitation when they saw Noah. ''Eight magical beasts in the lower tier,'' Noah thought as his aura spread in the environment. His ambition seeped inside the Immortal Lands'' fabric and gave birth to black lines that reinforced the cave''s overall structure. The air thickened as his individuality forced it to reach superior states of existence. Noah''s greed accompanied his ambition as he unfolded his aura. Intense aggression reached the Scorpions and the cultivators and made them feel pure terror. The cultivators and the magical beasts understood that Noah was stronger than them as soon as his greed filled their minds. They had no chances in a one versus one battle. The pursuers didn''t let that feature scare them away. Cultivators could deploy tactics and make use of inscribed items to overcome a difference in power. They also wouldn''t dare to split after seeing the instant death of their companion. The magical beasts were different. They wouldn''t mind banding together to defeat stronger opponents, especially when they invaded their lair. However, Noah''s pressure compelled them to avoid him. That wouldn''t usually be enough to stop the always-hungry magical beasts, but Noah released a roar during their instants of hesitation. His deafening cry spread through the entirety of the cave and gave those creatures a third option. "Let''s focus on the humans!" Noah said through his roars. Some rank 7 magical beasts weren''t capable of generating complicated thoughts, but Noah''s message was simple. It stirred their innate sense of belonging to a faction that saw the cultivators as enemies! The Scorpions shot toward the six cultivators as soon as Noah''s cry reached their minds. They saw him as a powerful ally willing to fight together to take care of the most annoying threat. Refusing him would be stupid. The cultivators had understood that Noah was hiding inside the giant snake after he unfolded his aura. They were already preparing strategies to avoid the Scorpions and corner him, but the arrival of the draconic roar made their expressions pale. The Immortal Lands were immense, and their citizens had deployed a countless number of unique techniques. Those living in the higher plane had seen so many strange abilities that they didn''t even question the reason behind Noah''s reptilian eyes. Yet, the roar made the six cultivators feel a danger that only a powerful magical beast could generate. An obvious conclusion appeared in their minds as the cry echoed through the cave. Defying Demon wasn''t a cultivator. That discovery forced them to reconsider their approach. Capturing a hybrid was a complicated matter to handle. The group''s preparations lacked tools that could make them suppress such a powerful creature. The cultivators decided to retreat simultaneously. They stopped their charge and turned to avoid the incoming Scorpions, but their instincts made them stop as soon as they began to escape. In the instant after they stopped, a series of black lines formed in front of them and shattered the air. Even the sturdy azure rocks of the cave couldn''t survive that attack. A large chunk of the ceiling fell and blocked that tunnel. Some of the bravest cultivators among the group disregarded the sharpness in the area and charged through the falling boulders. Yet, deep cuts opened on their bodies when they touched Noah''s aura. Their effort to prevent remaining stuck in the cave only brought them large injuries. The boulders sealed that path before any of them could reach the safe area. The Scorpions reached them at that point, and the two groups started a violent fight. The cultivators had already given up on completing their mission, so they only wanted to buy enough time to create a passage through the boulders. Instead, the Scorpions radiated pure hunger. Magical beasts on their level rarely had the chance to feed on cultivators, so they didn''t hold back in their attempts to tear their flesh apart. Noah kept his eyes closed as he remained inside Snore. The Demonic Sword was on his forehead, ready to unleash slashes whenever one of the cultivators was about to attack the boulders. He wouldn''t let anyone escape the cave. Even in that dire situation, the cultivators managed to gain the upper hand in the battle. The superiority of their species wasn''t something that magical beasts could overcome so easily. Noah had to help the Scorpions a bit more. Black lines severed the air in the battlefield and created holes in every distracted cultivator. He let his pursuers hurt the beasts, but he didn''t allow them to have hope. The cultivators slowly began to die. A few instants of hesitation and the multiple injuries accumulated on their bodies gave Noah and the Scorpions many openings that they could exploit. Still, their deaths made the beasts'' instincts go wild. Noah had to launch some of his slashes toward the Scorpions and roar again to make them focus. He told them that they had to divide the prey together, and the Scorpions could only follow his orders for the time being. They would turn on him after that battle was over, and they knew that he would do the same. "Wait!" One of the hooded cultivators shouted. "We can talk about this!" The robe partially masked the cultivator''s voice, but it couldn''t hide much in its tattered state. Noah could hear the desperation in that man''s tone, but he didn''t slow down his offensive. More cultivators died, and the man who had spoken before eventually remained alone against the eight injured Scorpions. His life was about to end, and only Noah could save him in that situation. "Please, I will tell you everything!" The man shouted again. "I will serve you! I will give you everything I have! I will also let you take my companion''s belongings!" Noah felt interested in that offer, but he could sense that the cultivator was still holding something back. A blinding red light suddenly came out of his body and covered a large area with an intense fire. Two Scorpions died after that attack, but it seemed that the item couldn''t affect inanimate matters with its destructive might. The fire didn''t open a path through the boulders, and the man soon had to face the assault of the angry beasts again. His desperation reached its peak at that point, and he decided to reveal everything to appeal to Noah''s mercy. "I come from a secret organization!" The man shouted. "I can tell you everything you need. I can give you access to pieces of information that no library has! I can-." The man couldn''t finish his line since a cry of pain reached his ears, and green blood rained on his head. When he raised his eyes, he saw that the massive snake had bitten off half of a Scorpion''s body. Chapter 1335: 1335. Terror Noah was interested in the resources carried by his pursuers. He was also quite curious about what the man had to say since the library couldn''t give him access to every valuable report. However, his curiosity wouldn''t lead him to spare the life of someone that had tried to ambush him. The appeal of valuable resources wouldn''t hold back his blade either. The man had to offer Noah something more valuable than that, and his words had centered the mark when he spoke about the secret organization. There was a limit to what Noah could learn inside a library, and his lack of affiliations put him in a tough spot when it came to knowing what mattered in the Immortal Lands. The Land of the Fallen, the other inheritances, and the names of the various organizations were only a small part of what the higher plane held. Noah knew that every political environment had a dark side, an underground world that ordinary cultivators and reports didn''t consider. His experiences in the lower plane had proven that he belonged to that secret part, and he couldn''t wait to dive into it. The five remaining Scorpions turned toward Snore when they saw the snake tearing one of their companions in half. They weren''t among the smartest species of magical beasts, but they could realize when one of their allies betrayed them. Loud screeches filled the cave as the Scorpions ignored the hooded man and turned their attention toward Snore. They simultaneously decided that they would take care of the snake before moving back to the cultivator, but the Blood Companion exploded into a storm of dark matter. Noah expanded the dark world and reappeared on top of the nearest Scorpion. The center of power that had improved the most since his arrival in the Immortal Lands was his body, so he could finally show his superiority against those creatures. The dark world had surprised the Scorpions, so Noah''s target couldn''t react in time to dodge his attack. His sword rose and descended before it could even realize what was happening. Noah jumped off the Scorpion to reach the next target. Behind him, a fissure opened on the creature and divided its body into two halves. One slash had been enough to kill it. The dark world could suppress part of the creatures'' senses at its current level. Noah''s technique had improved after his dark matter evolved, and it had become quite efficient against weak magical beasts. The Scorpions needed time to get used to that strange environment. Their instincts could still sense imminent dangers, but they were slower than Noah. Being aware of his attacks didn''t make them able to dodge them. Noah reappeared above the next Scorpion, and the Demonic Sword descended again. Snore also formed in a different spot of the dark world and launched its innate ability toward another creature. Two Scorpions died at the same time, and Noah didn''t hesitate to make a move toward the remaining three creatures. Snore coordinated with him to finish that battle as soon as possible. The hooded man was completely blind. The dark world suppressed his power and senses. It didn''t even allow him to hear any sound coming from the battles unfolding around him. He felt frail under the suppression of Noah''s technique. He couldn''t summon his individuality, and even controlling his "Breath" had become hard. His mental waves even crumbled as soon as they left his mind. The hooded man had never been in a similar situation. Disbelief filled his mind when he understood that a single existence had been able to put him in that state. Noah was on his level. His hybrid status gave him more power than any ordinary cultivator, but that could only influence the physical aspect of his prowess. Yet, the difference of power shown in that battle was immense. The hooded man couldn''t even understand how a gaseous stage cultivator could gain access to such strength. His hopelessness made him feel as if he was fighting against an existence in the liquid stage! Of course, Noah was no match for actual liquid stage cultivators. His higher energy made him far stronger than existences on his same level, but he couldn''t cover the difference between the stages yet. The dark matter flowed back inside Noah''s chest at some point. The hooded man regained his ability to see after the dark world dispersed, and the scene that appeared in his vision left him completely dumbfounded. Noah had deployed the dark world for almost a minute. Six hungry magical beasts in the lower tier had been alive before his techniques, but they all died among that darkness. The hooded man''s eyes darted from one corpse to another. They all featured injuries that pierced them from side to side. Noah had access to attacks that could ignore those creatures'' innate defenses and kill them in seconds! That discovery made him even more desperate about his situation. Noah had just become an unbeatable monster in his eyes, and he would do anything to please him. Noah landed on the ground, but he didn''t call Snore back as he walked toward the hooded man. The Blood Companion slithered behind him and kept its dark eyes fixed on the cultivator. The man didn''t dare to move under that pressure. He let Noah place a finger on his forehead and inject a series of Shadow Swords into his body. He didn''t even react when he sensed the spell closing on his centers of power. "You might want to talk now," Noah said as roars mixed with his chilling human voice. Snore encircled the two, and Noah sat on its body as he waited for the cultivator to speak. The dark matter that made the Blood Companion also morphed to create a large armchair that grew under him. Noah''s mental waves expanded and reached the corpses of the Scorpions. Those heavy body parts flew toward him and disappeared inside his separate space, except for a single claw that remained in his grasp. Noah bit on the claw and started munching its tough tissues without moving his eyes from the cultivator. Green blood fell from the corners of his mouth under the man''s skeptical gaze. The hooded man felt only terror at that point. Noah had performed that act to show the difference between their species, and he had obtained the desired effects. The cultivator wouldn''t ever try to lie to him after witnessing that scene. "I-we have received the order to capture you," The man began. "Your performance in the inscription hall has attracted a lot of attention." Noah continued to eat the claw, but the coldness radiated by his figure became more intense after he heard those words. That explanation couldn''t satisfy him. "I can unlock the space-rings of my companions for you," The man continued. "I will also give you everything I own." The man hoped that he could please Noah with those words, but the coldness in the area became more intense again. Noah didn''t want small pieces of information. He desired everything. "Where do I need to start?" The man eventually asked. "The beginning of this secret organization," Noah casually replied. "Don''t forget any detail. I want to hear everything you know." Chapter 1336: 1336. Spy The hooded man didn''t know much. He was only one of the weakest henchmen in a large organization that dealt with multiple aspects of the Immortal Lands. According to his words, that secret force even had a few rank 8 existences in its ranks. The man''s name was Fergie, and he had a fire aptitude. He had short black hair and red eyes. A series of scars filled his body, and he appeared unable to remove them even with his divine status. The item that had instantly killed two Scorpions before came from the division leader seated in Vagona city. It was something given to him after he completed multiple missions, but it was nothing more than a disposable weapon capable of great power. Fergie had never met the leader of his division. He only had a special inscribed notebook that allowed him to communicate with the secret organization''s higher-ups. He didn''t even know the name of that force. He was only aware of its existence and that it was one of its members. The secret organizations had members in every part of the Immortal Lands, according to Fergie''s knowledge. It mostly dealt with rare items and specific political missions in Vagona city, but there didn''t seem to be a limit to the types of jobs it could complete. Moreover, it didn''t have any competitors in its field. Fergie claimed that his organization was the only secret force in the entirety of the Immortal Lands. The most incredible fact about that force was that most cultivators were unaware of its existence. The higher-ups of the other organizations and families ensured that it remained a secret from the ordinary citizens, and they even provided fees to keep it active. ''This isn''t a simple group of rebels or mercenaries,'' Noah thought as he listened to Fergie''s explanation. ''This organization has deep roots in the very structure of the Immortal Lands. I''m surprised something like this even exists in this place.'' Noah knew a lot about secret organizations. He had been the Patriarch of a former underground sect, and he had witnessed multiple revolutions. The fact that something so big could survive among other powerful forces made him sure that its leaders couldn''t be simple rank 8 existences. "I don''t know anything else," Fergie said. "This kind of knowledge is easy to obtain once you are inside the organization, but you won''t find anything about it if you use normal methods. You can only trust my words." "You are nothing more than the last wheel of a power that you don''t understand," Noah coldly replied as he massaged his temples. The situation had instantly become more complicated. Noah didn''t expect to face repercussions for his actions in the cave, but he now knew that the Immortal Lands were hiding a lot from him. Taking into consideration the many families and famous forces was easy. Remaining wary of a secret organization that could influence the entire human domain was a stressful matter. Noah also wanted to use that knowledge to his advantage, but he didn''t know how far he could push his luck in that situation. "I can set up a meeting with the division leader," Fergie proposed. "Inscription masters are a rare resource in the higher plane. I''m sure the organization will give you special benefits, especially after it learns about your species." "Why would anyone willing meet stronger existences?" Noah asked in a rhetorical tone. Meeting important figures inside the secret organization was out of the question. Noah couldn''t ensure his safety in front of those existences. It would be perfect if he could seize benefits from afar, but he didn''t know if that was possible in his condition. "Give me everything contained in your space-rings for now," Noah eventually said as deep thoughts surged inside his mind. Fergie began to gather his companion''s resources while Noah continued to evaluate his situation. He had a few options at hand, but he didn''t which one could benefit him the most. Becoming an external ally to the secret organization was the best option, but the other party could label him as a threat and hunt him down. The risk of creating more enemies was something that Noah had to consider thoroughly. Instead, ignoring everything learnt from Fergie was a waste. Noah could kill him to remove the last witness of those events. No one would be able to warn the secret organization about his knowledge at that point, but he would also lose his only contact with that force. ''I need to use him,'' Noah concluded in his mind. He couldn''t find a perfect solution, but Fergie gave him the chance to approach the secret force without exposing himself. The only problem was how freely he could control him. "Do they check your memories?" Noah asked when Fergie neared him to deliver the goods. "They won''t unless I reach higher places inside the organization," Fergie replied. "I have been forced to join after I offended a member of the Sailbrird family. I need to work for it until I repay my debt." "Which will probably never happen," Noah concluded Fergie''s line. A series of items fell in front of him. His pursuers didn''t have much. They only owned a few Soul Stones and some valuable material. They didn''t have any technique with them, but Noah could finally obtain the items capable of fending off the sky''s pressure. ''A little more than six hundred Soul Stones and materials that I can''t sell here,'' Noah thought as he inspected the special items. ''Maybe commissioning a robe to a tier-three master has been too much at my current level.'' "Why are inscription masters so rare here?" Noah asked as he played with six black bracelets. Noah had been able to gain three hundred and ten Soul Stones in a few days, but those cultivators were poorer than him even if they belonged to the secret organization. He suspected that the library had failed to teach him some crucial aspects of the Immortal Lands. "It''s hard for us natives to develop inscription methods," Fergie answered. "We don''t live through the human ranks, and the divine materials of the higher plane prevent us from gaining experience in those fields. Only wealthy families can nurture talents since the heroic ranks." That was another piece of knowledge that the library had failed to give him. Noah knew that divine magical beasts could give birth to heroic creatures, but he had no idea if the same applied to humans. No cultivator in the human ranks could survive the Immortal Lands'' environment, but there weren''t many ascended experts in the entire higher plane. Still, Fergie quickly solved his doubts. "Humans use artificial environments," Fergie replied. "Most families have special separate dimensions that nourish their children until they reach the heroic ranks. They pay good money to the libraries to keep the reports about them outside of their structures." Dark matter seeped inside the bracelets and confirmed that they were harmless. Noah wore one of them and sensed some pressure leaving his mind. He could finally fly freely under the white light of the sky. He had obtained one of the items needed before the journey toward the Land of the Fallen. "Tell the organization that I used my hybrid status to win against your group," Noah said after he decided how to use Fergie. "Tell them that I managed to run after killing the others, and mention that you want to move in the Land of the Fallen. I want to review every mission you receive from now on." Chapter 1337: 1337. Surprise Noah let Fergie go back to Vagona city to report the failure of his mission. He had left a large amount of dark matter inside his body to keep the Shadow Swords active, so he didn''t need to control him directly. Fergie''s dead companions also had inscribed notebooks that Noah could seize, so contacting him wasn''t a problem. The Shadow Swords made the cultivator Noah''s servant, but the two had to remain separated to avoid unwanted attention. Noah''s plan didn''t change after learning about the existence of the secret organization. His main focus would always remain on his power, and the Land of the Fallen could offer him more opportunities than any other place in the Immortal Lands. Still, he wanted to remain informed about other opportunities. Fergie could keep him updated about them. Noah planned to precede every group sent by the secret organization if he learnt about something interesting. Noah could put the matter about the secret organization in the back of his mind after Fergie left. He still needed more than a thousand Soul Stones for his robe, and he didn''t dare to begin his journey without that item. His recent discovery had only reinforced the belief that he needed something capable of masking his presence. He couldn''t allow anyone to follow him, especially since threatening existences hid in every organization of the Immortal Lands. Noah still needed to decide which item he would forge to obtain that sum, but he had gathered some materials. The cultivators and the Scorpions had given him various resources that he could use to create something valuable. His options quickly moved toward the weapons. Noah didn''t know what the market of the higher plane needed now, but items that anyone could use were always a valuable resource. ''Do I just create the biggest bomb that I can make?'' Noah wondered as he sized his materials. He had enough materials to create something huge, but the actual value of a giant bomb would go down if he didn''t add any important feature. The Instabilities were strong, but they were also easy to defend against. If Noah created a bigger version of those disposable weapons, he risked forging something that could endanger the caster. ''I guess it''s time to create living weapons,'' Noah concluded as he left the cave and set off to find other magical beasts. Noah had usually needed Thirty-seven''s help during the creation of living weapons. The automaton had immense knowledge, and it was the expert behind the birth of the modified Body-inscription spell. That spell was necessary to isolate a magical beast''s will and place it inside a Core, but Noah was a god now. He could use his mental waves to replicate similar effects and obtain what he needed. He would also resume using the innate properties of his mental energy. It was a waste not to eat the wills of his prey, but his mental sphere was still too fragile for that type of training. Noah needed to find a beast with an ability worthy of copying, and the Scorpions didn''t have it. Most of the creatures inhabiting the mountains near Vagona city were the same. They lacked valuable innate skills. A large Crackling Eagle eventually entered the range of his consciousness and aroused his interest. That creature wasn''t too powerful, but it had a good movement technique that Noah could replicate. Working with materials of the lightning element made him think about June, but the many adventures that waited for him on his journey made him ignore the longing that he felt. His divine status and dark matter allowed Noah to simplify many procedures during the creation of that living weapon. He had to use the Divine Deduction technique and fail a few times to polish the process, but he eventually obtained something worth selling in an inscription hall. "The leader accepted to transfer me in the Land of the Fallen," Fergie said through the inscribed notebook. "I will set off in a few months after joining a new group. You shouldn''t come back to Vagona city until we leave." Noah could understand the reasons behind Fergie''s worry, but he had matters to complete in Vagona city. He couldn''t leave just yet. He would deal with everything that appeared on his path after he obtained what he needed. Noah quickly returned to Vagona city after he completed his weapon, and he didn''t hesitate to walk back to the inscription hall belonging to the Balrow family. Saul came out of the main structure once he saw him, and a small crowd formed in front of the inscription hall after they notice his arrival. Those cultivators believed that Noah would create many inscribed items again, but they soon felt disappointed. "Do you have any cultivator with a lightning aptitude that can test these?" Noah asked as he revealed a simple-looking pair of shoes. Noah didn''t use many materials to create those shoes. The Crackling Eagle had provided resources with an innate resistance to lightning, and the Scorpions had given him a large amount of sturdy skin. Saul inspected the shoes, but an Eagle''s cry resounded through the inscription hall when his mental waves touched the weapon. That sudden event startled him, but an intense interest soon filled his min. The expert had never seen anything similar. The Immortal Lands had many unique techniques and weapons, but Saul had only interacted with prototypes when it came to living items. Instead, those shoes didn''t show the slightest flaw. They were a proper lifeform that Noah had built to serve cultivators. Needless to say, Saul had already decided that he would purchase that item. It didn''t matter if he couldn''t use it. Studying that single living weapon could unlock many inscription methods that had failed to progress for years. Saul eventually found a cultivator with a lightning aptitude and summoned her in the inscription hall to test the shoes. The will inside the Core tried to oppose its new master, but it soon agreed to comply with her demands. The woman tested the shoes and remained speechless in front of their power. Even Saul had to admit that the effects shown by that item surpassed his expectations. The shoes allowed the cultivator to release lightning bolts to accelerate. She had instantly gained a movement technique that didn''t deplete much energy. She didn''t even need to train to perfect it. "One thousand and nine hundred Soul Stones," Saul said after the woman returned and left the shoes on a pedestal. Noah''s eyes sharpened when he heard that number. Saul had kept track of him and knew exactly how much he had to pay for his commissioned robe. "Don''t even think about it," Noah replied. "Six thousand." "Even items in the liquid stage don''t cost that much," Saul continued. "This is the best available item for cultivators in the gaseous stage," Noah replied again. "I bet you have a line of rich customers willing to pay far more than that." Saul smiled when he heard that remark, and the two eventually agreed to value the item four thousand and five hundred Soul Stones. Noah acceded to sell it right away after he heard that price, and he directly left to reach the shop where he had commissioned his robe. A waiter calmly led him toward the shop''s upper floors, and Thea quickly joined him in his room. Still, her expression showed a mixture of emotions that Noah couldn''t decipher. "Did something happen during the inscription?" Noah asked. "No, no. Nothing that tragic," Thea replied. "It''s actually the opposite. Your robe has come out as a rank 7 item in the middle tier." Chapter 1338: 1338. Famous "What?!" Noah exclaimed when he heard Thea''s words. He couldn''t hide his surprise. He had guessed that his ambition would influence the creation of the robe, but he didn''t expect it to reach the middle tier! After all, Thea wasn''t an ordinary expert. She was a tier-three inscription master in the liquid stage. Her power and expertise put her far above regular rank 7 cultivators. Her backing also made her a privileged existence in the Immortal Lands. Noah was sure that she didn''t commit any mistake during her inscription. Masters at her level would be meticulous about the number and power of the materials used during the procedure. The reason behind that surprising outcome had to come from outside her ability. Still, Vagona city had rules that every shop had to respect, and many of them revolved around inscriptions. Noah had commissioned an item, and Thea had asked a maximum of two thousand Soul Stones. The law was on his side in that transaction. "Something like this has never happened to me," Thea said. "The expenses for the new materials will be on me. I only ask you to wait a bit longer for your commission." "Can''t you give me the robe in the middle tier?" Noah asked. "You don''t understand," Thea answered. "Our robes are so powerful because they perfectly match the individualities of our customers. They link themselves to their existence. Having something far stronger than you risks to suppress rather than empower." There was an issue with the overlapping of individualities. Noah would probably face similar problems if the Demonic Sword were to surpass his level. The weapon would become the core of his existence instead of being one of its branches. Noah had questioned Thea because he was unaware of the features of those robes. Yet, he became interested in her creation after he had learnt about them. "What if you sold it to me anyway?" Noah asked, and Thea showed pure confusion at his question. The rules of Vagona city forced her to recreate the robe at her expense. That included purchasing materials and the time required to perform the inscription. Also, it would waste her first creation since it could only suit Noah. Choosing to buy the robe in the middle tier was simply stupid in her eyes. Noah suddenly sounded like an idiot to her. She suspected that he underestimated the dangerousness that could accompany a divine item. Of course, Noah didn''t underestimate anything. He was betting that he could control the middle tier robe with his current power. If the task happened to be impossible, he would commission a new item. "This is a rank 7 item in the middle tier," Thea said as her tone grew calmer. "Its abilities reflect that level of power, and even its innate defense is quite high." Thea had changed approach after she saw Noah''s reaction. She wouldn''t complain about his alleged idiocy as long as it could solve her issue. Yet, she couldn''t sell an item in the middle tier at the same price as a weaker one. "The laws of Vagona city are clear," Noah replied as a cold smile appeared on his face. "You have told me that two thousand Soul Stones were enough for your robe, and I won''t spend more than that. The choice is yours. Either throw this item away and inscribe a new one or sell it at the established price." Thea felt surprised for the second time in that conversation. She didn''t expect Noah to know the rules so well, and he had even instantly understood how to exploit that situation to his advantage. No one would ever buy a robe inscribed for someone else. The clash between the individualities would lower its power, making it express weaker features. Thea would have to sell that item at a far lower price or directly throw it away. She could contain her losses and even gain something out of her work only if she completed the transaction with Noah. . . . Noah came out of the shop a few hours later. Thea had almost instantly accepted to sell him the robe for two thousand Soul Stones, and she had used the time after the transaction to explain to him how the item worked. The shop had even given him a storage item that could contain the robe. It was a crystal-shaped black pendant with less than a few meters of space, so it was relatively cheap in the current market. Noah entered a random restaurant and ordered some wine while he contacted Fergie. The cultivator had warned him not to return to Vagona city, so Noah wanted to understand how the secret organization had taken that news. "You are in the clear," Fergie''s voice resounded in Noah''s mind as he held his inscribed notebook. "The division leader has lost interest in you after learning about your hybrid state." Noah had to wait a few hours to receive that answer, but he felt happy to hear it. He could now leave and take his time in the wilderness without worrying about other sudden ambushes. ''I need to leave soon,'' Noah thought as he felt gazes landing on him. ''I have become quite famous already.'' The cultivators passing in front of the restaurant and those sitting on the tables near him couldn''t help themselves. They would stare at Noah as soon as they recognized him. That wasn''t a surprising reaction from the citizens of Vagona city. Noah had gone from completely unknown to one of the most promising inscription masters in the gaseous stage. Selling the living weapon to the inscription hall had made his fame skyrocket, and his many interactions with the best shops had helped in that matter. The name "Defying Demon" was now quite known, and many powerful families had already made plans to recruit him. Noah could guess that powerful cultivators would look for him in the next period, and he didn''t want to go through that. He feared that he would meet someone who could force him to join an organization. Those were the dangers of being at the bottom of the food chain. Noah had been lucky with his encounters, but any cultivator in the liquid stage or above had the power to force him to join an organization. Chief Ash, Thea, and Saul had no intention to use violent methods, and Noah wanted to leave before he met someone that would. His acquaintances could also change their minds if he stuck around for too long, so he couldn''t hesitate anymore. Noah left the restaurant in a hurry after he heard Fergie''s answer. Vagona city couldn''t offer him anything else for now, so he set off as soon as he reached its borders. He had planned the route to the Land of the Fallen, but he didn''t want to travel just yet. Noah had to solve the issue with the robe before diving deep into the wilderness, and only a long period of training could increase his chances to succeed in handling that item. The middle tier was slightly weaker than the liquid stage but quite stronger than the gaseous stage. That would put Noah in a tough spot if he were a simple cultivator, but his hybrid status gave him some hope in the matter. Also, he had overcome his bottleneck, so he had the chance to increase his power again before testing how hard it was to control the robe. Chapter 1339: 1339. Ownership Noah had learnt how he had to advance through the divine ranks. Rank 7 cultivators needed to expand their individualities and made them able to affect the laws around them. Their existences had to become complete worlds that could interact with the higher plane. That belief came from the sum of his clues and understanding. Earth and his experiences in the inscription hall had taught him what a cultivator had to strive for in the divine ranks, but his knowledge about the matter was still vague. Different ranks usually represented different stages in the cultivation journey. Noah knew that he would be a world at the peak of the divine ranks, but he wasn''t aware of the various steps he had to follow to reach that destination. He could only guess them for the time being. Still, the first step appeared quite obvious now. His individuality had to learn how to take control of the laws around him. It was the same effect of the dark world, but Noah had to obtain it with the sole force of his existence. His instincts told him that he would reach the eighth rank only when his individuality managed to create a personal domain right in the middle of those divine lands. His guess seemed to work while he cultivated inside an improvised cave in the mountain chain around Vagona city. Noah sensed the arrival of bottlenecks from time to time, but he could overcome them by training on influencing the world with his individuality. The cave and the rocky terrain around him had transformed after he spent a few years immersed in his cultivation. Thick black lines ran on the azure surfaces of his habitation, and part of the mountain around him had also turned black after his extensive training sessions. Noah was growing at an incredible pace, and he was vaguely aware of that. The matter affected by his individuality would still return to its original state after some time, but he was slowly learning how to make those changes eternal. The reason behind his success in his cultivation came from his experience in that process. The dark world had already shown how to handle a personal domain, and the pride inherited from the magical beasts'' world allowed him to affect the laws more easily. His hybrid status was helping his cultivation, and the same went for his fourth center of power. Features that would generally affect different aspects of his power improved his situation in ways that other cultivators could only envy. Noah felt that the divine ranks were pushing his existence to reach a complete state that didn''t see any difference among his centers of power. He guessed that growing as a god would make him more similar to his Demonic Sword since the blade had four centers of power fused into a simple form. ''It''s time,'' Noah thought once he felt that his existence had reached a superior level of completeness. Spending unending years in seclusions had never been his main approach to the cultivation journey. Noah wanted adventures, so he didn''t hesitate to take out his pendant once he felt that his power had risen to a decent level. Snore, the Demonic Sword, and Night came out of his chest and waited for him to wear the robe. They would attack the item if something went wrong and limit the damages. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique, and the black hole in his chest spun faster to empower the resilience of his mind. He needed the best out of his mental capabilities to succeed in his task. The pendant radiated a dark light that became more intense when Noah touched it. A long strand of a black cloth came out of the storage item, and a powerful aura spread in the environment when it landed on the ground. That cloth didn''t have the form of a robe. It was nothing more than a polished strand of a soft material. Still, Thea had told Noah how to activate its properties, so the item''s shape didn''t surprise him. Noah undressed and took a deep breath before touching the cloth. The item began to move at that point, and an intense ambition came out of it to fuse with Noah''s existence. A violent surge of energy invaded Noah''s mind once the two ambitions met. He felt as if a foreign existence wanted to take control of his thoughts and rule his actions. Something similar happened to his other centers of power. His black hole slowed down its rotation, his dantian started to leak darkness, and his body felt clunky to move. The cloth saw its ambition as the core of Noah''s existence, and his individuality seemed to agree with that. Noah felt the ownership of his power slowly move toward the item as he remained in contact with it. Snore and the Demonic Sword gave voice to hisses and roars when they saw Noah in that condition, but he refused their help through his mind. Noah felt that he could tame that item. He was stronger than ever. The events with Fergie''s group had benefited his body, and his dantian had grown well in the last years. He was far past the bottom of the gaseous stage. His ambition surged while the cloth tried to take control of every aspect of his existence. Pride, aggression, greed, sharpness, destruction, creation, and everything fueled by his individuality came out of his figure and interacted with the item''s aura. The Demonic Sword resonated with Noah''s individuality. The weapon roared as it unfolded its aura and helped his existence fend back the power of the cloth. Noah felt through the influence that reached his mind that he was still far away from that level of power. However, he was against a piece of cloth that carried an echo of his existence. He had an immense advantage in that battle. The cloth''s aura slowly submitted to Noah''s existence after the Demonic Sword helped in the battle. The fabric began to wrap itself around his arm and continued until it covered most of his body. Once the process ended, Noah felt naked. He was wearing a black robe, but he didn''t sense its weight. He couldn''t even tell where the aura from before had gone. ''A true piece of art,'' Noah thought. That superficial feature had already proven that an expert had created that robe. Noah could sense that his new clothes'' black fabric was as sturdy as his skin even if it wasn''t its main quality, but he didn''t feel the weight of its power. ''Let''s try to activate its effects,'' Noah thought as he poured darkness inside the robe. The consumption of "Breath" of an item in the middle tier was incredible, so Noah had to use a lot of his darkness to see the effects of his new clothes. The robe morphed as energy flowed through its fabric. Strands of cloth came out of it to cover every exposed piece of skin. The robe didn''t even spare Noah''s fingers. Only a small part of his face remained uncovered, but the hood and scarf that had appeared after that process ended could keep Noah anonymous anyway. Noah quickly controlled the robe to free his fingers of its cloth, and the fabric followed his orders. A rank 7 inscribed item in the middle tier was following his directives. He had succeeded in subduing something more powerful than him! Chapter 1340: 1340. Exciting Noah performed a few tests with the robe before calling back its power and turning it into its original form. He had to understand for how long he could use its cloaking ability, and the result satisfied him. The robe required a lot of darkness to activate its power, but its consumption was almost non-existence once it fully transformed. That discovery eased Noah''s worries since he could now treat the item as one of his spells. The robe''s style was quite simple in its normal form. It was tight and battle-oriented. It lacked any sign and pattern. It was nothing more than black cloth piled together to create elegant but plain clothes. ''I can finally move toward the Land of the Fallen,'' Noah thought after he spent a few more months cultivating in his cave. Fergie had told him that he had already left Vagona city to fly toward the Land of the Fallen with his new team. They were ahead of Noah, but the journey to reach that place was quite long, so he had the time to catch up with them. The dark matter in Fergie''s body could fuel the Shadow Swords spell for a few decades, and Noah needed to refill it if he wanted to keep the cultivator under his control. Still, there would be time to meet along the journey, and he could always sense how long his restrictions would last. Noah wouldn''t give up on his spy so easily. He had managed to place a mole inside that mysterious secret organization, and the benefits that it could bring made Fergie quite valuable in his mind. Noah wasn''t even after political recognition, so he could avoid arousing suspects easily. He only wanted to use Fergie to seize valuable resources and reach important areas before they became too famous. The long journey started with Noah leaving his cave and flying in a straight line toward his destination. The bracelets seized from Fergie''s last team would eventually stop functioning, but they could help him ignore the radiations of the white sky for now. Noah would purchase a better version of those items at some point, but he didn''t want to waste Soul Stones for now. That currency could help him overcome a few bottlenecks since it contained raw laws, so he wished to accumulate them until he found something necessary for his journey. The knowledge obtained in the library gave Noah a complete image of the lands that he had to cross. The wilderness followed specific patterns in the human domain, and that made his hunts straightforward. Every environment had a single leader in control of a predominant species. The regions of the Immortal Lands were immense, so their fauna didn''t lack diversity. Yet, they all had certain creatures at the top of the food chain. When Noah knew their features, hunting down suitable prey was almost a child''s play for a hunter like him. He could make full use of his superiority and exploit the innate weaknesses of those creatures to kill them quickly. His robe also kept him safe from the strongest beasts in the regions that he crossed. The item could hide his presence even from creatures in the middle tier, so he had nothing to worry about as long as he continued to be careful. Noah''s stash of materials grew as he flew through those lands and explored their environments. Majestic sceneries always filled his vision, and the pure aura of the Immortal Lands always accompanied his travel. Still, Noah noticed how the magical beasts in those regions became more violent as he neared the end of the human domain. Their behavior didn''t come from the scarce influence of the cultivators. Its cause was the intense aggression that flowed out of the lands in the distance. That aggression managed to affect Noah too. He had distanced himself from the magical beasts'' world after his existence evolved into something that surpassed the hybrids, but that aura was too intense even for him. Noah didn''t notice that feature after his ascension because the events that had followed it had been quite messy. He had also marched toward calm lands back then, so his senses never truly experienced the difference in the atmosphere. Yet, he now experienced that aggression in its entirety. The violence that filled the air made him jumpy and paranoic, and it forced him to take breaks more often to calm himself. Noah became sure that the magical beasts'' domain hid threats that he couldn''t quite conceive. He had experienced too little of the Immortal Lands to know the long-lasting effects of rank 8 creatures, but he knew that the lingering aggression had to come from something stronger. ''A horde of monsters that hide living catastrophes,'' Noah concluded during his travel. Those were the only words that he could use to describe his feelings toward the magical beasts'' domain. His superior awareness worked against him in that situation since it made him sense that aggression more vividly, but Noah didn''t let it scare him away. That aura caused his instincts to go wild, but it also stirred his ambition to grow. Part of him couldn''t wait to obtain enough power to explore those lands and uncover their secrets. As the years passed, Noah eventually felt forced to contact Fergie again. He had to refill his body with dark matter, and he wanted to see if the secret organization had informed him about exciting issues. Fergie didn''t answer at the beginning. Noah waited for days that his spy listened to his mental message, but he lost his patience after more than two weeks passed without a reply. Noah gave a quick command to the Shadow Swords at that point. He only needed to focus on his mental connection with that spell to activate a part of their power. Of course, he didn''t order anything that could expose Fergie, but he wanted to remind him who controlled his life. Noah didn''t mind threatening him if that improved his results. Fergie replied a few hours after Noah activated his spell. The cultivator was livid about the whole matter, but Noah gave voice to a series of threats that made him fear for his life. The sole idea that the secret organization could become aware of his betrayal made Fergie shake in fear. Even exposing Noah wouldn''t save him from endless tortures once his companions learnt about his status as a spy. Fergie even agreed to meet Noah after his threats. The two had to travel for three months to reach a region that allowed Fergie to split from his group and encounter his master without arousing any suspect. "I was in the middle of a hunt!" Fergie complained when he met Noah. "I can''t show any weakness if I want to keep my privileged status among gaseous stage cultivators. You should also care about this!" "I do care about the value of my precious spy," Noah said as he filled Fergie''s body with dark matter, "But I suspect that he wants freedom." "Not at all!" Fergie exclaimed as he lowered his head. "I swore to serve you! I will never dream about betraying my merciful master!" Noah ignored those words to question him about important matters. He had already traveled for some years since his departure from Vagona city, but Fergie didn''t give him anything valuable in that period. "Teams don''t usually receive new missions before meeting their new leader," Fergie explained. "That can happen when something rare appears out of nowhere. The Immortal Lands can be unpredictable, but you can''t expect to meet new opportunities every decade." "What about the old ones?" Noah asked. "Is there something worth exploring in these areas that you have failed to mention while you were busy hunting?" A chill ran down Fergie''s spine when he heard those words, and he fell silent for a few seconds as he thought about an answer that could satisfy his jumpy master. Then, he seemed to recall something. "There is an old inheritance ground at a few months of travel from here," Fergie explained. "It belongs to the Balrow family, and it has already rewarded a few cultivators. Yet, it should still have many rewards too difficult to obtain." Chapter 1341: 1341. Pyramid Noah was in a hurry to find adventures that could force him to improve. The Land of the Fallen perfectly suited his needs, but the higher plane had many places that could entertain him while his cultivation level grew. The library only mentioned the most noteworthy locations. It discarded old inheritances, especially those considered too troublesome to conquer. The inheritance mentioned by Fergie was one of them. It didn''t have proper trials, but it contained resources that a powerful existence had accumulated for millennia. According to the data retrieved during its explorations, the inheritance was a vault placed in the Immortal Lands to hide items. The forces on the surface had uncovered it only after the higher plane had gone through multiple mutations, so any information regarding its creator had disappeared over time. The dangers of vault let to believe that its creator had been an existence above the gaseous stage of the eighth rank. It contained threats that even some of the leaders in Vagona city couldn''t approach. Still, the vault had different layers of difficulty. That structure had many rooms and corridors. They led to multiple sealed areas and defenses that reflected the level of the items stored inside. Rank 7 cultivators would usually appreciate that feature since it allowed them to avoid competing with stronger existences. Experts would go after resources that could help them at their current level, so they would ignore the weaker ones. Yet, the vault was different from a normal inheritance. The creator of that place didn''t want the items to leave. Its defenses aimed to kill any trespasser instead of testing them. That increased the overall dangerousness of the vault. The cultivators attempting to take those items were thieves. They didn''t aim to become the heirs of a forgotten inheritance. Still, disorganized groups didn''t have the power to overcome the defenses, so the Balrow family easily bought the vault in an auction. That would generally be the end of the matter. The Balrow family would invest time and effort to seize every item in the vault and pay its purchase back. However, the defenses had turned out to be quite challenging even for its forces. The Balrow family had the power to breach the sealed aura protected by defenses in the seventh rank. A single rank 8 expert would have been enough to complete the task. Yet, a force on that level had no interest in such weak resources. It preferred to turn them into a source of income while focusing on the items in the eighth rank. That vault had been a popular destination for hopeful rank 7 cultivators for a long time, but its fame had eventually waned. Only the forces of the Balrow family still patrolled its perimeter and attempted to obtain items. The other experts had moved toward other appealing locations. Noah flew toward the vault. He didn''t care if his ability wouldn''t allow him to seize any item. He only wanted to test his power and see if he could succeed where others had failed. He didn''t mind obtaining divine items, but he didn''t care if he couldn''t either. The vault would act as a preparation for the Land of the Fallen, and it would also give him the time to adapt to the annoying aggression that filled the environment. Fergie had told him everything he knew about the vault before leaving to return to his companions. Noah was on his own now, but he felt quite confident that the Balrow family would treat him well after showing his green card. Many different sceneries went by in his eyes as he flew toward his destination. An immense lake with a wide piece of terrain at its center eventually appeared on his path, and he dived right toward it. A series of rank 7 consciousnesses quickly focused on him, and a few guards came out of the door placed inside the surface of the island. They all wore green robes that carried the Balrow family''s symbol, and they appeared quite friendly toward Noah. "It''s been a long time since anyone has attempted to steal something from this place!" One of the guards exclaimed when she saw Noah landing on the island. She was an old-looking woman in the liquid stage. She kept her long gray hair combed into a thick braid behind her back, and wrinkles covered her face. Still, her smile appeared radiant when she looked at Noah. "Is there an inheritance here?" Noah asked as he inspected the island. Noah couldn''t sense anything out of the ordinary in that place. It didn''t seem to have anything different from the lake and its nearby areas. "No foreplay?" The woman asked as her smile widened. Noah took out the green card from his separate space, and the guards revealed surprised expressions at that sight. They could understand what that item meant, and they recognized the name written on its surface. "Forgive me for not recognizing you, Defying Demon," The woman said as she performed a polite bow. "I''m Chief Etta, from the personal army of the Balrow family. We welcome you here to the Pyramid." Noah didn''t hide his surprise when he heard her words. He couldn''t see any Pyramid around. The whole island appeared empty, and even the underground world didn''t seem to hide anything. Still, he had seen how the guards had come out of the ground. Noah guessed that the Balrow family had placed high-level protections that could deceive even his innate awareness. He also suspected that the place had countermeasures meant for rank 8 cultivators. ''Inscription masters sure are famous here,'' Noah thought as he bowed to reply to Chief Etta''s gesture. Noah couldn''t understand how a liquid stage cultivator could bow to a weaker one. Every organization in the Immortal Lands appeared in need of members, and powerful existences were even willing to lower their heads if that improved their chances of obtaining an inscription master. Chief Etta quickly snapped her fingers when she saw his surprise, and a series of lines soon became visible on the island. The inscriptions created a net that slowly unlocked that place. Noah expected to see a huge structure appearing out of nowhere after those inscriptions arrived, but nothing happened. The island remained unchanged. Those lines didn''t change its layout. "This way, please," Chief Etta said as she knocked on the ground, and a door materialized in that spot. She and Noah then moved through the stairs and entered an underground world full of branches and guards. There were many rank 7 cultivators in those caves. Noah counted almost forty of them, but his instincts told him that there were greater dangers in that place. Chief Etta led Noah toward a specific underground hall and touched its wall. The rocky azure terrain became transparent after her touch, and the tip of a huge Pyramid became visible from the other side. "The environment inside the Pyramid is quite messy," Chief Etta explained. "You might chase a rank 7 item only to fall among threats in the eighth rank. The Balrow family won''t enter to help you if you mess up, but we can offer many services that could help you in the task." **** Author''s notes: The other chapters will arrive after I wake up. Chapter 1342: 1342. Layers The Balrow family had managed the Pyramid for millennia and had mapped most of its insides. It had also studied many of its defenses and sealed areas that no one had ever entered. That knowledge had a price. Every cultivator could purchase it before entering the Pyramid, and Noah didn''t hesitate to use his Soul Stones. The Balrow family even gave him a discount after they investigated the reason behind his green card. The Pyramid had six layers connected in a messy array of corridors and secret passages. They had different difficulties, and Noah''s cultivation level allowed him to be safe only on the lowest one. The first layer was at the base of the Pyramid and featured defenses meant for rank 7 cultivators in the gaseous stage. The sixth was at its summits, and it could contain protections that even experts near the peak of the eighth rank couldn''t cross. The knowledge about the layers featuring rank 8 defenses was expensive. The Balrow family had opened the Pyramid to the public, so it couldn''t stop any powerful existence from attempting to retrieve the most valuable items. However, it set an astronomical price that scared away even most rank 8 cultivators from other families. Those experts could still enter the Pyramid without purchasing the knowledge accumulated through the years, but no one advised that. Moreover, they had to pay a basic fee to enter the structure anyway. Noah had only paid for the knowledge of the first three layers. Even with the discount, he had to use one thousand Soul Stones for it. He would need far more money to obtain the reports about the upper parts of the pyramid. "You will use the entrance to the first layer," Chief Etta said while Noah studied a map filled with details. "There are secret paths on the higher layers of the Pyramid, but we assign the entrance according to the challenger''s cultivation level. It saves us a lot of trouble and keeps the weaker resources away from greedy powerful existences." Noah nodded as he heard that explanation. The Balrow family had instated a rewarding but straightforward system around the Pyramid, and he felt glad that he didn''t have to compete with anyone on the higher ranks. Rank 8 cultivators could only enter the Pyramid from the fourth layer or above. They could still reach the lower parts of the structure through secret passages, but only the Balrow family was aware of them. "As you can see on the map," Chief Etta continued, "We have already defeated the easiest defenses. Only the difficult ones are left, so be careful when you approach them." When they reached the base of the Pyramid, Chief Etta unfolded her aura and created a separate domain that fended off the senses of the other guards. Noah felt immediately alerted, but his instincts told him that she didn''t have bad intentions. "I will be frank," Chief Etta said after heaving a sigh. "Even if the first layer is for gaseous stage cultivators, only experts in the liquid stage could face its defenses safely. I advise against an exploration. Even the family is about to close the Pyramid and seize all the weaker resources left inside." Noah understood why Chief Etta had unfolded her domain at that point. She didn''t want him to enter the Pyramid because it was too dangerous. The Balrow family would lose a possible promising member if he were to die there. ''Nothing ordinary could have remained undefeated for so long,'' Noah thought while he stared at the concerned expression of the old-looking cultivator. ''The higher layers must have even more resources and undefeated defenses. I wonder who build it. Was it a rank 9 cultivator? Do they even exist? Where are they in the higher plane?'' Noah''s mind started to wander at the thought of such powerful existences. He was a god. His mind could bend the laws of the world to his will, and entire continents would open due to his physical might. Yet, there were beings that he couldn''t even look from afar. "Don''t worry about me," Noah said after he snapped back to reality. "I will remain in the first layer and only approach the defenses that suit my abilities. Besides, I want to see the insides before you close it to the world." Chief Etta couldn''t argue. She couldn''t suppress the curiosity of a cultivator, especially when it came to an inscription master. She could understand his need to see what powerful experts were capable of. "We will know if you overcome one of the defenses," Chief Etta added while winking at him, "But we won''t be able to see the nature of the reward if you store it." Her aura then condensed back inside her figure. The other guards around the Pyramid glanced in her direction to express their confusion about her gesture, but they put the matter in the back of their heads when they learnt who Noah was. Chief Etta was giving him special treatment. She had basically told him that the world would gain a vague idea of his prowess if he overcame one of the defenses. "I''ll be going," Noah said while performing a polite bow. Chief Etta nodded and placed a hand on one of the dark-yellow bricks of the structure. The wall moved, and a narrow path opened in a few seconds. Noah glanced at the summit of the Pyramid before crossing the entrance. Darkness filled his vision, but that didn''t affect his senses. He could hear the wall closing behind him and severing his connection with the outside world. ''I don''t want to expose my strength,'' Noah thought as he walked through the polished narrow corridor, ''But I can''t give up on divine items either.'' Noah could only sigh at his helplessness in the matter. The Immortal Lands had organizations that were far stronger than him, so he couldn''t avoid playing by their rules. If he succeeded in seizing some items, the Balrow family would become aware of his strength. The new would then reach other organizations if he refused its invitation, triggering a chain reaction that would force him to rely on a powerful backer. Noah could predict it. He was an expert in exploiting disadvantages, and he couldn''t help but see how powerless he was about the whole situation. He had only one way to escape that system and maintain his freedom. He had to be one step ahead of them and grow far faster than they could imagine. ''Seize something valuable here, run toward the Land of the Fallen, explore forgotten battlefields in the magical beasts'' domain, grow,'' Noah thought as he stopped and closed his eyes to steel his determination. ''I''ve done it once already. This is no different from the lower plane. The stakes are only higher.'' Noah knew how he had to move, and he had even prepared a few back-up plans already. His decision to reveal his title, his friendly relationship with the Balrow family, and his spy would become useful if he failed in preserving his freedom. He only had to see if his growth could keep up with his ambition. That was the only variable that didn''t depend on any external factors. Darkness flowed inside the robe to change its shape. A hood grew over his head and concealed his aura before Noah resumed his exploration of the first layer. Noah was ready, and he had already decided how to surprise the Balrow family. **** Author''s notes: Give me a few hours for the next one. Chapter 1343: 1343. Swarm The map purchased before entering the Pyramid described the first three layers in great detail. It showed every hidden door, passage, and shortcut that Noah could take to reach his targets faster. The many defenses in front of the sealed areas also had detailed explanations. Noah could read the types of protection in front of each room and understand where his abilities could shine. Noah intended to use the advantages given by his hybrid status, but he couldn''t feel sure about his success even then. The defenses in the Pyramid worried him. They weren''t protections that gaseous stage cultivators should face without a team. Noah followed the map while he inspected the area. The Pyramid contained countless rank 8 materials in its structure. Their disposition and the inscriptions that linked them made the whole place an item capable of surpassing the eighth rank. It was a masterpiece that only a few existences in history could build. The structure was devoid of dust, and Noah couldn''t see a single crack on the corridors'' dark-yellow bricks. The Pyramid appeared immune to the passage of time. Every corner had symbols carved on its walls. Noah didn''t know what language that was, but the aura that it radiated made him understand its meaning. Those signs told the number of the layer. ''There have been cases of cultivators entering the wrong trap doors and ending in the sixth layer,'' Noah thought as he recalled some of Chief Etta''s words. ''They have managed to avoid its defenses and come back due to these symbols. Why did the creator crave them? Are they only for style?'' The Pyramid contained many unanswered questions, mainly because no one had managed to conquer it yet. Even the Balrow family was still struggling against the defenses in the upper layers. The structure resembled an inheritance due to some of its features. The numbers on the walls and the weaker defenses on the lower layers made the experts believe that the creator wanted to reward eventual explorers. Yet, the defenses'' dangerousness and the Pyramid''s merciless layout made most believe that the creator was simply a sadistic existence that wanted to lure cultivators inside the vault. It was strange, and Noah could see those opposite features as he walked through the dark corridors. They came from the same creator, but they seemed to carry different intentions. ''I''m still too weak to worry about the mindset of the powerful gods,'' Noah sighed as he put those thoughts in the back of his mind. ''Less curiosity, more loot.'' The map was clear about the path that he had to take. Noah pressed his hand on specific bricks to move them and open secret passages that led to deeper parts of the first layer. Every floor had different areas that featured harsher defenses depending on their secrecy. The past waves of explorers had already cleared the accessible areas, so Noah could only aim to unlock the most difficult ones in the first layer. The defenses even had a ranking that followed the labels given to cultivators. Even peak gaseous stage experts couldn''t overcome the harshest one. Yet, Noah could see how the creator had only expected humans to enter the Pyramid. The defenses were impossible to overcome for cultivators on the gaseous stage, but a hybrid had a shot at them. Noah knocked three times on a tile, and a secret passage opened. Stairs went down and then back up to lead him in a deeper area of the first layer. He turned right, left, and left again until the corridors opened into a large door. That was the access to one of the most dangerous areas of the first layer. The defenses would activate as soon as Noah took a step forward. A few tiles would move to release a swarm of minute metal puppets. According to the reports, the puppets could disrupt the "Breath" inside the matter destroy any material. Even defensive items in the liquid stage crumbled against the swarm. That protection had killed countless cultivators already, but their sacrifice had allowed the Balrow family to understand that only spells could help in that place. The minute puppets weren''t able to destroy the "Breath" if cultivators continued to fill it with individualities. Still, the intensity of the laws inside the energy had to match a liquid stage expert''s power level to survive the swarm. Attacking was also useless. Even solid stage cultivators couldn''t destroy those puppets. ''Any rank 8 expert would surpass this easily,'' Noah thought as dark matter came out of his figure. ''I''m lucky that the Balrow family has preferred to turn this into a source of income.'' The dark matter surrounded his figure, and Snore''s massive shape also formed around him. A layer of ice and black rocks grew on the Blood Companion''s skin as it laid its head across the few meters that separated Noah from the entrance to that sealed area. Tiles moved as soon as Snore entered the invisible area of the protection. A swarm of black fly-like puppets came out of the walls and covered the Blood Companion. Buzzing sounds reached Noah''s ears and made him feel dizzy, but the dark matter around him managed to suppress part of that dangerous noise. Snore''s pain also reached his mind. Noah could sense what the Blood Companion was enduring under the assault of the swarm. Those puppets destroyed the dark matter that covered its body and even seeped in its insides. The Blood Companion didn''t manage to last for even a second. The puppets entered its body and shot toward Noah, who was still busy assessing the situation. Then, a second wave of dark matter spread from his chest. The higher energy was denser at that time and intended to suppress those annoying puppets. Noah unfolded the dark world while filling it with his ambition. The technique enhanced what his individuality could express and improved the Blood Companion''s durability. His cultivation level also rose during that process. Noah didn''t want to keep his ambition active for too long, but it was clear that he couldn''t overcome that protection without it. The unfolding of the dark world pushed the swarm back, but the puppets quickly began to eat through its fabric again. Even the denser dark matter couldn''t stop those creatures. It only managed to delay them for a few instants. Noah didn''t need more time. Those instants were enough to run through Snore and reach the other side of the corridor. Three seconds were nothing for existences who had lived for more than a millennium, but Noah felt as if an eternity had passed when he took that single step. The buzzing sound became more intense as he leaped through Snore''s body to reach its opening mouth. Trails of puppets pierced the dark world, the defensive layers around the Snake, and its body while he was still mid-air. Flies reached Noah''s left shoulder while he was landing on the other side of the corridor. A sharp pain spread from that spot, but Noah couldn''t stop himself anymore. Snore''s mouth transformed into a wave of dense gas that exploded outward. The detonation bought Noah the fraction of an instant that he needed to step on the entrance and shot in the next area. Noah slid on the polished floor of the sealed area before crashing on the opposite wall. The bricks didn''t budge during the impact, so he could stop the momentum accumulated in that reckless leap. The dark matter in the corridor dispersed, and the flies retreated inside the closing tiles. Noah had defeated that protection. He had reached the place that entire groups of gaseous stage cultivators had failed to touch. ''My defenses when I use all my techniques should almost reach the liquid stage,'' Noah thought as he inspected his shoulder. ''Most of the merit in this success goes to the density of the dark matter.'' The swarm had almost ripped off the entire arm during that short contact. The puppets were as threatening as the reports said. They weren''t beings that gaseous stage cultivators could face. Noah turned to inspect the room at that point, and his eyes widened when he saw a pile of Soul Stones amassed in a corner. The exploration of the Pyramid had already paid his initial expenses back! Chapter 1344: 1344. Statues ''Thirty, no. Forty thousand!'' Noah thought as he inspected the pile of Soul Stones. No rank 7 cultivator in the gaseous stage could have access to that amount of wealth, but it now stood right in front of Noah''s eyes. His consciousness also expanded to study the room, but he didn''t find any danger in place. The pile of Soul Stones was the actual loot protected by the swarm of puppets, and it now belonged to him. Noah disregarded his injured shoulder to walk toward the gray mineral and store it inside his separate space. ''How can this not be an inheritance?!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. That sum of money was immense for a cultivator at his level, but it was nothing for an existence capable of building the Pyramid. Noah couldn''t understand the point of hiding forty thousand Soul Stones. The creator couldn''t possibly find them valuable. Noah inspected every corner of the room before sitting at its center. There was nothing else in the area, which reflected what the Balrow family had studied during those millennia. That place wasn''t special, so the Soul Stones were the actual resource protected by the swarm. ''This is so strange,'' Noah thought. ''Why would someone build such powerful defenses to protect futile money? What is the point of having layers meant for rank 7 cultivators? Why creating such a complicated structure if you are unwilling to see your resources go away?'' Noah could find many possible explanations for the strangeness of the Pyramid. Still, he couldn''t confirm any of them. He suspected that the Balrow family knew more about the structure since its experts had explored the upper parts of the Pyramid, but he couldn''t do anything with that guess. His thoughts mostly lingered on how he could find loopholes in the Pyramid. Noah wanted to understand the creator to exploit eventual flaws. Still, everything was too vague. ''Is my mindset too distant from those powerful experts?'' Noah questioned himself without managing to find an answer. Noah eventually let go of his doubts and focused on healing his shoulder. The Pyramid wasn''t something that an existence as weak as him could understand nor conquer, so he quickly stopped trying to find an answer to his many questions. He only had to accumulate resources and leave. Noah didn''t need to solve every mystery that he found. His cultivation level always had priority, and he didn''t have any time to waste. The fly-like puppets had turn flesh, muscles, and even bones when they threatened to rip off his shoulder. The damage was quite severe, and Noah couldn''t heal it in a short time without the help of a spell. Noah didn''t mind waiting for his body to recover naturally, but he didn''t want to waste time. The Pyramid was still neutral territory for him. The Balrow family liked him, but he couldn''t rely on that vague feeling for too long. ''I wonder if they already know that I have succeeded,'' Noah wondered even if he knew the answer to his question. The Balrow family didn''t place recording items because most cultivators wouldn''t enter the Pyramid otherwise. Yet, it could understand when someone crossed certain defenses through a series of sensors spread among the layers. A strand of dark matter came out of Noah''s chest and spread outside of the room. The corridor didn''t react to the arrival of the higher energy. The tiles remained in their place, and no puppets came out to attack the dense gas. The Pyramid had sensed that Noah had retrieved the resource inside that sealed area, so it stopped providing energy to the swarm. That threatening defense was no more. ''They definitely know,'' Noah concluded after that test. More dark matter came out of his chest, and darkness flowed out of his dantian to fuse with his mental energy. A sword-like shell formed around him and began to accelerate his healing properties. The injury on his shoulder would typically take years to heal, even if he were in the Immortal Lands. However, the Dark Womb spell could lower that time to some months. Noah didn''t lack food since he had spent most of his travel hunting. The stay inside the Dark Womb spell was silent and relaxing, and his shoulder quickly healed during that process. He even cultivated once his body returned to its peak. Noah wouldn''t disregard his training even there. Then, Noah left the room to walk toward the next sealed area. The first layer had a few defenses that even his many advantages didn''t allow him to overcome, so he only had three more targets in mind. It felt odd that the Pyramid had such a variety of defenses. Some of the protection featured shockwaves that had managed to destroy the seas of consciousness of entire groups of experts. Those tests were impossible to overcome by weaker cultivators. Even Noah had to ignore them. Noah could only aim to surpass the defenses that targeted dantians and bodies. His dark matter and hybrid status would allow him to show his superior might at that point, which gave him a chance to seize a few resources. After crossing a long corridor, entered a secret path inside a wall, and turned a few tiles to uncover an underground tunnel, Noah reached his second target. It was an area at the end of a large passage that featured multiple statues fixed on its walls. The statues depicted demon-like creatures who had short horns, sharp fangs, and humanoid features. Noah didn''t recognize that species, but his instincts made him able to sense their dangerousness. The demon-like figures wielded thick maces with both their hands and wore angry expressions pointed at the floor. According to the Balrow family''s records, the statues would swing their weapons once cultivators passed through the corridor, and their strength wasn''t something that humans could handle. The maces also seemed to be special inscribed weapons capable of weakening spells. Only martial arts could express their real power there, and Noah felt eager to test them. When it came to physical strength, Noah had no equals at his level. He was the strongest species due to the fourth center of power, so it was normal for him to feel confident about that test. The statues began to swing their maces when Noah stepped inside the corridor. Dark-yellow trails flashed in his eyes as those massive weapons descended toward him. The clash between the weapons and Noah created shockwaves throughout the area, but he didn''t move. He didn''t even stop running forward when the maces landed on him. Noah ran toward the entrance in the distance. As long as he breached the defense, he would obtain more resources and reach a safe area. His greed seeped out of his figure as the entrance drew near. Noah couldn''t contain his excitement when he sensed pain spreading from his torso, back, and arms. The maces kept on landing on him, but they couldn''t hinder his charge. Then, when he was about to reach the entrance, an unstoppable force landed on the right side of his waist and pushed him back at the beginning of the corridor. Noah understood what had happened only when the back of his head slammed on the floor. He felt blood rising from his throat and accumulating in his mouth, and a stabbing pain spread from his waist. Chapter 1345: 1345. Disposable puppe Noah''s waist turned purple as blood leaked from his internal organs. His black hole quickly provided dark matter to start the healing process, and a dense membrane covered his injured tissues. The last mace was capable of far more power than the others. Noah didn''t sense anything unusual from that weapon and its statue when he inspected the corridor, but there was something different about them. Noah wondered why the reports of the Balrow family didn''t mention anything about that feature, but he quickly found the answer to his doubts. The group of cultivators that had come before him didn''t reach the last statue. No one was aware of that detail. ''The creator is a sadistic monster,'' Noah cursed in his mind as he assessed the injuries suffered. The mace had managed to hurt his internal organs, which usually took longer to heal. The attack had also torn his robe, which confirmed that the last statue''s power surpassed the middle tier. ''I have just fixed it,'' Noah cursed again when he saw the torn spots on the robe. It took energy to fix the robe. The item could take part of it from the environment, but the process would be faster if Noah used his darkness. Still, that slowed down his training, which annoyed him. Noah remained in that position for a while before he straightened himself and marched toward the entrance of the protected area again. He had never been scared of pain, and the valuable items were right in front of him. He only had to deal with one insanely strong statue to obtain them. The statues began to swing their maces again, but Noah didn''t budge when they landed on his body. Groups of cultivators would struggle to fend those attacks with their martial arts, but he could withstand them with the sheer power of his physical might. Then, Noah stopped before reaching the last statue. Maces landed on his back, but he didn''t mind them. His eyes and mental waves remained fixed on that last hindrance. ''I''m too weak to see any difference,'' Noah thought as maces continued to rain on him. ''The presence of rank 8 materials makes my expertise in the inscription field useless.'' After Noah reached that conclusion, dark matter flowed inside his black vessels, and a fiendish armor made of higher energy formed around his figure. Then, he activated the Divine Deduction technique as he took a step forward. Dark-yellow light flashed in his eyes, and the ceiling of the corridor soon filled his vision. Noah found himself outside of the array of statues again, and pain spread from his right shoulder. ''I managed to salvage the robe,'' Noah thought as he straightened his position and resumed his walk toward the protected area. A rain of maces fell on him, but Noah didn''t even look at them. His eyes remained on the last statue, and the armor of dark matter reappeared around him when he reached it. A flash of dark-yellow light made the world in his vision transform again. Noah was back at the beginning of the corridor, and pain spread from his whole chest. ''I almost saw it,'' Noah thought before standing again and marching back toward the protected area. That cycle went on for a few hours. Noah did nothing but charge through the statues and return at the beginning of the corridor after the last one hit him. His body was a mess of injuries, but he took consolation in the fact that he had found a way to overcome that defense. The last statue swung its mace as soon as he entered its range. It was too fast for him to run past it. Yet, its weapon followed the same trajectory every time. Noah had learnt about that detail during his initial attempts to enter the protected room, but he still lacked something to overcome that defense. His senses told him that the statue performed the same attack every time, but he had to experience it multiple times to understand its actual trajectory. The mace was basically invisible. It was so fast that his superior awareness could only catch glimpses of its shape when it attacked him. Noah couldn''t dodge it until he understood its trajectory, so he had to throw himself at the statue until he understood how it moved. Then, after facing the threatening statue thirteen times, he sat at the beginning of the corridor and activated the Dark Womb spell to heal his injuries. He had completed his tests. His next march would be his last. Months passed again. Noah slowly returned at his peak, fixed his robe, and cultivated to improve his power. Once he felt satisfied with his progress, he left the floor to march through the corridor again. Noah barely felt the rain of maces. He had become so used to those attacks that his mind didn''t even memorize them. They were nothing more than slaps for his body anyway. It was pointless to care about them. When Noah reached the last statue, he stepped forward and ducked. Something flew above his head, but he didn''t manage to see it. Still, he knew that he had overcome the last statue. Noah quickly leaped forward after the mace missed him, but the last statue swung its weapon again. A stabbing pain spread from his back, but he didn''t see any dark-yellow light at that time. The scenery had changed after he focused again. Noah was against a wall, and his arms felt sore. The mace and flung him forward, directly into the protected room, but he hurt himself when he tried to stop his momentum. No anger or annoyance surged in Noah''s mind when he saw that different scenery. He turned to stare at the statues outside of the room. A smile appeared on his face as his mental waves spread. The entirety of the room soon appeared in his mind. Noah inspected every corner of that place and found only one item inside it. The item was a small copy of the statues on the corridor. It was barely bigger than a man''s fist, but it radiated an aura that made him worried. Noah''s mental waves converged on the item, and a series of information flowed into his mind as he studied the small statue. He suddenly learnt how to control that weapon, and he didn''t hesitate to spit some blood on it. Even more pieces of information flowed into his mind at that point. A mental connection also formed between Noah and the statue. He had successfully bound it to his existence, and his eyes shone with a cold light when he understood its power. ''A disposable weapon with power at the bottom of the middle tier!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. ''This will finally give me some survivability among the other monsters!'' Noah couldn''t contain his happiness. He stored the small statue in the separate space and sat on the floor to start healing his injuries. The last attack had hurt him badly again, and his robe also needed some repairs. Still, Noah was ecstatic. The Soul Stones had been a great reward, but they couldn''t compare to a weapon that could keep a liquid stage cultivator at bay for a few exchanges. Chapter 1346: 1346. Impossible Noah didn''t move from the room until he returned to his peak. The statues on the corridor had disappeared while he recovered. They had nothing to defend, so the Pyramid had taken them back. ''Two left,'' Noah thought as greed seeped out of his figure. He had been inside the Pyramid for almost two years, but he had already gained enough to consider the exploration worthwhile. The Soul Stones were incredibly useful, but the disposable statue was on another level. A battle against a liquid stage cultivator wasn''t a dream anymore now that he had obtained the small statue. His superior power and his disposable puppet could finally give him a chance against existences stronger than him. Moreover, the first layer wasn''t over. It still had two protected areas that Noah could overcome with his physical superiority and higher energy. They could potentially give him more valuable tools, and he couldn''t wait to get his hands on them. Noah left the corridor and followed the indication of the map to reach his next target. Tiles moved, walls opened, and trapdoors appeared out of nowhere after he performed specific actions. In less than a day, he reached another corridor that led to a protected room. ''This one should be the same as the statues,'' Noah thought as he studied the seemingly empty corridor. According to the reports of the Balrow family, the tiles in that corridor would move, and weapons would shoot out of them as soon as someone stepped inside their range. The weapons had the same features as the maces. They could completely ignore most spells and stop only in front of powerful martial arts. Yet, no group had ever come close to reach the end of the corridor, so Noah expected something dangerous to be there. Snore and the fiendish armor made of dark matter covered his figure as he shot forward. Layers of black ice and rocks materialized around the Blood Companion as the dark world filled the corridor. Noah didn''t hold anything back. The dangerousness of the last statue had taught him how sadistic the creator of that place was, so he couldn''t underestimate any defense. Spears and swords of various shapes came out of the floor, walls, and ceiling after their surface opened. They stabbed toward Noah as they pierced the dark world. The technique could only hold them back for a fraction of an instant. The weapons pierced Snore''s defensive layers and stabbed its body. Their unique features made them cut through the dark matter easily, but they could only stop when they reached Noah''s skin. They were the same as the maces. The dark world, the copies elements, and Snore came from techniques that didn''t involve his body, making them unable to stop the weapons. Instead, they couldn''t do anything against Noah''s body. They didn''t even leave marks on his skin. A metallic sound echoed through the corridor whenever a weapon landed on him, but that didn''t slow down his charge. The Balrow family had ranked that defense higher than the statues, but Noah felt it to be easier. However, his survival instincts began to scream when he reached the end of the corridor, and he couldn''t help but stop his charge before the last protection. The tiles and bricks around him had moved, but weapons had yet to come out of those empty spots. However, Noah felt that he would die if he took a step forward. Even his hybrid body wouldn''t save him if he advanced. ''How is this possible?'' Noah thought as weapons stabbed from behind him. Metallic noises echoed through the corridor as Noah studied the path ahead of him. The protected room was less than five meters from him. He could cross that distance in less than a second, but his instincts told him that he wouldn''t survive if he tried to leap. ''Maybe there is a trick again,'' Noah wondered as he took a step back and came out of Snore''s body. The Blood Companion followed his orders and stuck its tongue into the range of the last protection, but it suddenly disappeared. Noah didn''t see what had happened. He couldn''t even see the shadows of what had cut Snore. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique and made Snore stick part of its mouth inside that last area. A hiss of pain followed the disappearance of a chunk of its head, but dark matter promptly flowed inside the snake to fix the damage. ''They must be arrows,'' Noah concluded after witnessing the scene for the second time. Snore''s tough body had allowed him to see the true nature of the weapons in the last part of the corridor. They were thick arrows that flew at an unimaginable speed and destroyed everything on their path. They also came from every direction, which left him without a blind spot that he could exploit. That seemed a perfect defense, and Noah felt that he didn''t have the power to overcome it. Of course, Noah didn''t give up so easily. He waited for Snore to reform and pushed it back into the last part of the corridor. The Snake hissed in pain again as an even larger chunk of its head disappeared. Noah did some math in his head, and the result was that he wasn''t fast enough to dodge the arrows. ''What now?'' Noah thought as weapons continued to land on his back. Snore opened its mouth and spat a wave of violent dark matter that reached the other end of the protected room. The attack didn''t manage to damage the structure, and the same applied to the arrows. They would directly cut through the dark beam and continue on their path. Noah conducted more tests. He launched spells, used his dark world, sacrificed pieces of Snore, calculated Night speed, and performed martial arts. Nothing was faster than the arrows, and they would fire at anything that entered the last part of the corridor. The short delays caused by his techniques and arts didn''t give Noah enough time to overcome that defense. Noah couldn''t see any hope in that corridor. Noah performed more tests, but nothing worked. The arrows always pierced everything that he threw at them. Nothing in his arsenal could help him defeat that defense. His unwillingness eventually vanished and allowed him to turn back. His armor dispersed as he sat at the beginning of the corridor to evaluate the issue. There had to be something precious in that room, but Noah couldn''t obtain it. His abilities were a bad match for those arrows. His instincts told him that he couldn''t win there, and the Divine Deduction technique made him reach the same conclusion. After a bit of hesitation, Noah left the corridor to march toward his last target. He still had another shot at increasing his gains, and he didn''t want to waste it. Another series of secret passages and strange moments on the walls followed. Noah used the map''s instructions to reach his target, and greed spread from his figure when he found it. That corridor was slightly different from the others. It was darker, and it had a series of lit torches stuck in the walls. The room at its end was the farthest place from the entrance in the first layer, and that meant something according to some of the past explorers. Chapter 1347: 1347. Staircase The layout of the Pyramid had a tight connection with the difficulty of the protections. The harder it was to reach an area, the harsher its defenses would be. The dark corridor led to the deepest protected room in the first layer, which was on the opposite side of the entrance. The aura that surrounded the place was different, and its torches created an eerie halo with the faint red light radiated by their flames. According to the Balrow family''s reports, the torches'' fire would expand once cultivators stepped inside the protected area. It would fill the entire corridor and burn everything. It wouldn''t differ between energy and flesh. Noah was in a pickle there. The reports said that the flames could consume even some weaker items in the middle tier. It wasn''t something that gaseous stage cultivators should be able to face. However, he had the dark matter and a body that surpassed the hybrids. His individuality could also boost his strength. His power could reach levels that gaseous stage cultivators couldn''t touch. That gave him some hope, but the defense featured another difficulty that made the matter even more troublesome. The door at the end of the corridor wasn''t open. He couldn''t sprint to the flames to seize the resources contained in that area. Weaker experts from the Balrow family and other cultivators had performed various tests in that corridor. They had tried to defeat the flames, blast the door open from afar, and even attempted to find a secret passage that could lead them toward the valuable items. Still, nothing seemed to work. The torches were almost indestructible and would continue to generate flames as long as something stood in the corridor. The door was the same since it had similar materials in its structure. As for alternative paths, the experts had formulated a few theories about that corridor. Most of them believed that the door would open after they seized the items contained in every other protected area of the first layer. Others thought that the real entrance for that room was in the superior layer, but a few believed that the fire was a trial that tested an existence''s endurance. Noah couldn''t enter that room had complicated conditions. He couldn''t clear every protected area in the first layer. Also, he didn''t think that he could find a secret passage when hordes of experts had failed to locate it. He could only bet on the fact that the fire wanted to test his endurance. ''I will try only once,'' Noah thought as his ambition surged. Noah sat cross-legged on the floor as his cultivation level rose. He intended to push his power to its limits and activate all his defensive abilities at once. That was his last chance to obtain something from the Pyramid, and he didn''t know when the Balrow family planned to close it to the public. He couldn''t hold anything back. Dark matter filled the black veins in his tissues as his individuality forced his centers of power to grow. Noah''s cultivation level crossed the halfway mark of the gaseous stage and neared the peak of the stage. He couldn''t touch the peak, but he could come close to it. His long training sessions had improved the effects of his ambition. Noah could now wield the power of an expert that had already set the foundation for his breakthrough. Corrosive smoke and dark matter flowed out of his figure and surrounded him in two defensive layers. A fiendish armor soon covered him, but the gasses didn''t stop expanding after completing his defensive technique. Noah unfolded his dark world and contained the corrosive cloud inside it. The technique created a third defensive layer around his armor, and Snore soon formed to help in the task. The Blood Companion transformed into a statue covered in ice and black rocks as it enveloped his figure. Black flames that radiated a silver halo also spread through the dark world and created another layer of protection. Noah felt like a turtle hidden in its tough shell when he inspected the defenses around him. He had used everything in his arsenal and had expressed his real power. It was only a matter of endurance now. Noah used the dark world to move inside the corridor. The fire inside the torches expanded when Snore''s statue crossed the invisible dividing line, and an inferno unfolded in the area. Faint scarlet flames filled the corridor and burned the edges of the dark world. Noah felt the area under his control shrinking as the defense attacked his techniques. The dark world seemed able to endure the power of the flames for a while. They didn''t manage to pierce Noah''s domain quickly and could only burn it slowly as they expanded toward him. Noah didn''t bother to keep track of the passage of time. He wouldn''t revisit the Pyramid, so he didn''t need to accumulate pieces of information that the Balrow family could use. He would remain there. He would even let the flames burn part of his body to test that theory. If that sacrifice didn''t grant him access to the room, he would leave the Pyramid and fly toward the Land of the Fallen. The flames eventually burned the entirety of the dark world and reached Snore''s figure. They pierced the rocky layer and melted the black ice before reducing the Blood Companion to ashes. Black flames and corrosive smoke unfolded in the area at that point. Snore even reformed as those abilities made Noah gain a few valuable seconds. The Blood Companion crumbled again, together with the black flames and the deadly smoke. Nothing seemed able to stop the torches'' fire, but that gave Noah hope. Some defenses in the Pyramid would fall under tricks and unique methods. The more impossible they appeared, the more likely it was that they required a secret approach. Those secret methods risked bringing the cultivators closer to their death, but they were the only available approach for weaker existences. Noah was doing the same. He was trying to use his advantages to find paths among those otherwise uncrossable defenses. The fire reached the fiendish armors. The layers of corrosive smoke and dark matter slowly burned. Noah eventually found himself without any protection. His middle tier robe and his skin burned at the same time. Pain filled Noah''s mind, but his greed suppressed every other feeling. Noah didn''t even care that he was suffering injuries. He only desired more resources. As his skin burned, the door at the end of the corridor began to move. It slowly opened, and Noah promptly leaped forward to pass through the narrow passage. His mind threatened to go dark as the flames continued to injure him, but his greed preserved his awareness and forced him to press forward. At some point, the flames vanished. Noah heard the door slamming on the walls of the corridor behind him. He had crossed the entrance when he was under the effects of his greed. Noah didn''t allow himself to relax just yet. He inspected the room with his mental waves, but he soon noticed that it didn''t contain any inscribed item. There weren''t even Soul Stones inside it. The lack of resources didn''t mean that Noah didn''t find anything interesting in the room. One of its walls featured a narrow staircase that led somewhere not recorded in the map purchased from the Balrow family. **** Author''s notes: I wanted to avoid doing it again, but it''s 6 am, and I''m too sleepy to focus. I''d rather sleep and write better chapters tomorrow than force myself to remain awake. Sorry for having this messy schedule. I can only promise that I''ll try my best to do better. Chapter 1348: 1348. Emotions Noah''s condition didn''t allow him to think properly. The drawbacks of his ambition fell on his centers of power and made his mind feel sluggish. Drowsiness also filled his mental sea and forced him to sit down. The injuries suffered while he endured the fire worsened his condition. He couldn''t assess the strangeness of that room properly while he went through those painful sensations. Noah decided to sit on a corner and close his eyes. He didn''t sleep, but his awareness wavered as his mind struggled to remain wary of his surroundings. His black hole filled his body with dark matter. The higher energy worked together with his innate regenerative abilities to heal his injuries and disperse the stress accumulated while his ambition was active. No one disturbed Noah while he was in that weakened condition. Months passed quickly as confused thoughts filled his dizzy mind. Noah continued to think about the Pyramid while pain and tiredness filled him. He had always felt that there was something off with that structure, and every expert who had the chance to explored it had felt the same. That feeling had only become more intense after he saw the narrow staircase. The torches were defending something that didn''t involve resources. Something told him that he was resting in front of the answers to his doubts. His curiosity and greed stirred his centers of power to heal more quickly. They were mere feelings produced by a tired mind, but his existence reacted to them and did its best to get Noah out of that weakened condition. Complete clarity slowly returned to Noah''s mind, and hunger soon replaced his other feelings. He had to refill the energy depleted to heal his injuries and disperse the stress. Luckily for him, he had a large stash of rank 7 magical beasts in his separate space. Noah noticed that Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword were in different corners of the room when he took out pieces of flesh from his separate space. His companions had come out during that period of weakness and had protected him in silence. They didn''t make a sound when he started to move again. Their connection with his mind made them understand that he still needed to recover, so they remained in their spots to inspect the perimeter. Even if other explorers were to reach that room, they wouldn''t be able to enter. No gaseous stage cultivator could defeat those dangerous creatures. Noah ate quickly, but he didn''t linger of the beautiful sensation caused by the energy that flowed back into his tissues. His eyes remained fixed on the staircase. He couldn''t wait to explore the areas that even the powerful Balrow family didn''t reach. Once his body returned to its previous peak, Noah called back the Demonic Sword to cultivate and increase the amount of primary energy contained in his spherical rune. His centers of power returned to their previous might and began to grow. The emotions felt during the last months had made his potential improve again. His cultivation was smooth and without hindrances. After he completely recovered, Noah stood up and called back his other companions. He didn''t waste time in useless thoughts and walked directly toward the staircase. He had already spent entire months evaluating every hypothesis. It was time to find the answers to his doubts now. The narrow staircase made sharp turns. Noah kept track of his movements and compared them with the map from the Balrow family. That path seemed to be inside the Pyramid''s external walls and kept on climbing until it crossed a few superior layers. Noah didn''t know where he was going, but worry filled him when he sensed that he had crossed the third layer in terms of height. The staircase had followed the Pyramid''s peripheral walls through a secret path that no one had ever found. The staircase moved past the fourth and fifth layers. Noah felt worried that the secret path could lead toward defenses that even peak rank 8 cultivators couldn''t defeat, but he didn''t stop. He couldn''t retreat without even knowing what he had uncovered. Then, the staircase made him cross the sixth layer. Most cultivators would escape at that point, but Noah couldn''t shake the feeling that something was off about that place. His instincts also reassured him, so he proceeded slowly. The Demonic Sword flew in his hand when he saw a change in that dark-yellow environment. The narrow path led to a dark room that radiated white flashes on a constant rhythm. The light was harmless, so Noah decided to approach the room. He crouched as he walked past the last steps of the staircase, and his eyes widened when he gazed at the scenery inside that secret area. A swarm of fly-like puppets flew through the room while carrying minute materials. They amassed them in a pile at the back of the area, and a white light shone from its insides at a steady rhythm. White lines lit up and went dark on that pile of black materials. It resembled a dune made of metallic sand that shone whenever it accumulated enough resources. Noah didn''t enter the room, but he continued to peek to studied the process. The puppets were building something, and shock filled his mind when he recognized some features among that pile of minute materials. A flash of light filled the area, and a claw appeared on the pile''s base. The room lit up again, and a second talon formed next to the previous one. The light seemed to indicate the moments when the materials fused. The pile of grain-sized metals transformed as the flashes continued to fill the room. A creature slowly took form. Noah''s eyes remained glued to the process until he saw the swarm of minute puppets retreating and revealing a humanoid beast covered in metallic feathers. The beast''s head made him think about an eagle-like creature, but Noah could see that it wasn''t an actual lifeform. The flies had created a tall puppet that radiated power in the middle tier. The eagle-like humanoid puppet didn''t move. Faint white light shone from inside it and illuminated the room, but it remained immobile as if waiting for something. Noah sat on the staircase at that point. An idea had begun to form in his mind, and his hands itched to test it. He believed that the Pyramid had created that puppet for him. ''Is this a real inheritance then?'' Noah wondered as he studied the puppet. The flies didn''t use rank 8 materials when they built it. They had created something slightly stronger than the torches'' fire. Noah didn''t believe that to be a case, but his doubts forced him to wait until he inspected the whole situation properly. There was no one else in the room. Noah sat on the staircase and studied the immobile five meters tall puppet. His thoughts soon converged toward a single question. He wondered whether he could defeat that creature. ''I am the strongest type of existence,'' Noah thought as his eyes remained glued on the creature. ''I stand above magical beasts, humans, and hybrids. I have a living weapon that features the same advantages by my side, an improved version of the deadliest creature, and a Snake capable of pure destruction.'' Noah had to admit that no gaseous stage cultivator could even come close to match his power. He had three divine creatures by his side and was an existence that regular labels couldn''t describe. The puppet resembled a magical beast in the middle tier made of precious materials. Its power was clearly above what gaseous stage cultivators could handle, but Noah knew that he had a chance to defeat it. His ambition began to improve his centers of power before he could reach a conclusion, and he sighed as he straightened his position. His individuality had decided. His existence wanted to see if he could defeat the puppet. **** Author''s notes: My hibernation is over. The will arrive in a few hours. Also, thank you for the constant support. I feel blessed to have such good readers. Chapter 1349: 1349. Violent battle Black smoke flowed out of Noah''s figure as his ambition empowered his centers of power. The two layers of fiendish armor formed, and the dark world expanded. The dark matter couldn''t cross the room. There was an invisible barrier that divided the staircase and the secret area, but Noah couldn''t sense it with his mind. Something told him that he had to enter the room to affect its insides. That test wouldn''t allow any cheat or tactic. It wanted Noah to fight the puppet on an even field. ''Fine then,'' Noah concluded before cutting away any useless thought. The puppet was a creature in the middle tier. Its materials made it stronger than an average magical beast, but its power was within the range of Noah''s prowess. The light coming from inside the puppet intensified when Noah entered the room. The invisible barrier didn''t affect him, and it didn''t even hurt the abilities prepared beforehand. A flash of white light filled the room and blinded Noah for an instant. The puppet began to move after that event, and screeching noises resounded in the area as it stretched its metallic body. The puppet''s eyes lit up and white lines formed on its body. The creature then turned toward Noah, and its beak opened to release a high-pitched scream. Everything around Noah trembled when the soundwave reached him. His dark world absorbed part of those vibrations, so his fiendish armor managed to remain intact. However, he became aware of the puppet''s power when its scream landed on his abilities. The puppet seemed to stand on the line that divided the stages. It was too strong for any gaseous stage cultivator, but it was one step away from entering the realm of liquid stage experts. Noah itched to see if he could defeat such a creature. His muscles tensed as he crouched to prepare a sprint. However, the puppet acted before him. A shadow ran through the room and pierced through the dark world. The area was less than twenty meters wide, so the clash happened in an instant. Noah instinctively raised his sword, and a reptilian head also began to form in front of him when he sensed the arrival of the puppet. An immense force then landed on him, and he lost his foothold as he flew backward. Blood flowed in Noah''s mouth when he crashed on the dark-yellow walls. He suddenly noticed that the passage to the staircase had disappeared after he entered the room. He had to defeat the puppet if he wanted to survive. Noah sensed something moving again, but he slashed before it could reach him at that time. The Demonic Sword grew during the attack. It had transformed into a massive blade when it crashed on the puppet. A massive force landed on Noah''s arm as the puppet tried to fend the blade back. A draconic roar came out of his mouth as his dark matter flowed inside his black vessels to improve his physical power. A high-pitched scream resounded in the area as Noah completed the slash. A crash followed his attack. The puppet had slammed its back on the opposite wall. Noah and the puppet exchanged a glance. The creature''s shining eyes seemed able to pierce the dark world to stare at his vertical pupils. When facing a magical beast or a cultivator, Noah would understand part of the emotions that filled his opponent''s mind. However, he couldn''t feel anything when he sensed the puppet''s gaze on him. That creature was a mindless weapon. It felt no pain, and it wouldn''t stop attacking until it had destroyed its opponent. Noah spat a wave of black flames as he shot forward. The puppet screamed before charging at him, and a clash soon happened at the center of the room. The puppet waved its long claws, but Snore''s head bit on its arm before it could finish the attack. Noah slashed at the creature''s head, but its free hand blocked the blade before it could land on its metallic skin. Noah''s leg shot toward the puppet''s stomach, but the creature lifted a knee to stop his attack. It then tried to stab Noah with its beak, but a cut appeared on its pointy mouth and deflected the attack. Violent dark matter gathered in Snore''s mouth while it restrained the puppet''s arm, and the Demonic Sword began to tremble as it accumulated energy. Night dived back toward its mouth in an attempt to destroy its beak. The puppet slashed with its free leg, but Noah used his foot to stop the attack before it could reach him. More flames then came out of his fiendish mouth and filled the room with his threatening innate ability. Snore launched its beam, and the puppet screamed as the attack ravaged its left arm. Yet, it didn''t try to retreat. It used its immense physical strength to dig through the Blood Companion''s body and get closer to Noah. Its beak broke at that point, but the damage didn''t seem to faze it. Cracks opened on its left shoulder as it tried to create a path through Snore''s body, and the dark beam eventually consumed its arm. The puppet used that chance to stab its cracked shoulder in Noah''s chest. The two layers of armor prevented it from digging too deep in his flesh, but it still managed to pierce his lung. Snore bit on the creature''s head at that point, and Noah threw punches at the cracked shoulder to pull it out of his body. The Demonic Sword began to launch slashes that slowly dug through the puppet''s hand, but its claws managed to damage the blade''s structure. The battle appeared slow in Noah''s eyes, but only a few instants had passed since the two of them had begun to fight. He and the puppet were throwing everything they had at each other in the hope that their opponent would fall first. There was no need for tactics or strategies in that battle. Noah couldn''t use his speed on that small battlefield, so he had to overpower the puppet with his abilities. On the other hand, the puppet didn''t care that its body suffered damages as long as it managed to injure Noah. It was a selfless charge that disregarded everything but its opponent. Noah''s cultivation level continued to grow as he remained entangled with the puppet. His physical strength had initially been lower than his opponent, but it was slowly reaching it under the effects of his ambition. His desire to defeat the creature and the power generated by his survival instincts made his ambition more intense and revealed what his divine individuality could really achieve. Roar and screams echoed in the room. The Demonic Sword eventually cut the puppet''s hand, but the creature used its remaining claws to stab Noah''s abdomen. Cracks appeared on the puppet''s neck as Snore launched another dark beam while it kept its head inside its mouth. Still, the feathers on the creature''s body stood up and allowed it to pierce the Blood Companion. The puppet crashed on Noah, and its sharp feathers pierced his armors before stabbing his body. Waves of dark matter flowed out of his injuries while small cuts opened on the creature''s body. Snore reformed to bite at the creature''s waist. The Blood Companion didn''t care that the feathers pierced its body. It only wanted to relieve Noah of some pressure. Noah slashed at the puppet''s head multiple times. The Demonic Sword never stopped falling on the creature, and it slowly managed to pierce that sturdy metal. Night helped wherever it could. It had the power to sever part of the puppet''s fabric, so it enlarged all the damages that its companions created. Noah eventually let go of the Demonic Sword and stabbed his clawed fingers on the puppet''s damaged head. A vertical crack began to open on the creature as he pulled with all the physical strength he could muster. The feathers stabbed in his body enlarged his injuries as the puppet struggled, but Noah didn''t care. He only wanted to rip the creature in half. Chapter 1350: 1350. Paths The puppet had lost its left arm and its beak during the previous exchanges, but that didn''t stop it from injuring Noah. Its maimed hand had pierced his abdomen, its damaged shoulder had stabbed his chest, and the sharp feathers on its body had sliced his whole torso. Noah had his clawed hands stabbed on the puppet''s head. He spread his arms to enlarge that crack, uncaring of the fact that the feathers stabbed in his torso would hurt him in the process. Snore launched its dark beam, and a wave of violent dark matter engulfed the puppet''s torso. Part of the attach reached Noah and damaged his waist, but he did nothing to stop his companion. The Blood Companion could feel Noah''s determination. After millennia spent together, Snore had learnt how Noah fought and had attuned its mind to his battle style. His pain didn''t matter. His injuries didn''t matter. Destroying his enemies was everything, and Snore understood that. Night was inside the puppet''s fabric and severed the laws that kept its materials together. The Demonic Sword attacked on its own with slashes fueled by dark matter. Noah''s ambition empowered him and his three companions. The Demonic Sword obtained the greatest benefits due to its tight connection with his existence, but Snore and Night also saw their power rise under the influence of his individuality. Four beings with power nearing the peak of the gaseous stage were attacking the feathered puppet with all they had. Their joint force managed to pierce its tough body and fill it with injuries. Pieces of black metal fell on the floor as that offensive continued. The puppet''s head eventually gave in to Noah''s physical strength and shattered, taking chunks of his flesh with it. A vertical crack opened on the puppet''s torso, and Noah didn''t hesitate to stab his clawed hands inside it. He pulled to enlarge the wound, and the feathers tore apart his flesh in the process. Noah felt the pressure on his legs vanishing at some point. Snore''s dark beam had finally managed to destroy the puppet''s waist, and the creature lost control of its lower body once that happened. The Blood Companion then bit the shredded piece of the torso and gnashed its fangs to destroy it. Noah''s arms were on its path, so it couldn''t launch the dark beam since it would weaken his offensive. A web of cracks suddenly spread from the vertical fissure and detached the puppet''s maimed body from its feathers. Night had exploited that moment of weakness to destabilize the creature''s structure. The Demonic Sword destroyed the destabilized parts with its slashes, and Snore bit off a large chunk of the maimed torso. The puppet continued to move even if it was nothing more than a small metal piece that featured one damaged arm. Yet, its power had fallen to the point when Noah could completely overwhelm it. Noah tore the remaining torso open and slammed its pieces on the floor. Punches and slashes flew toward the moving chunk of metal, and black shards shot everywhere in the room during the impact. The offensive slowly revealed the source of the white light. It was an oval shape that acted as the core of the puppet and radiated intense energy. Noah stopped punching to grab the oval and rip it away from the messy pieces of metal under him. Invisible energy kept it attached to what remained of the puppet''s body, but it didn''t manage to resist Noah''s physical strength. A snapping sound resounded in the room when Noah severed the oval away from the black metal. The puppet finally stopped moving at that point, and a faint white light spread in the area. Noah stored the item and grabbed the Demonic Sword to inspect his surroundings. He didn''t know what that light meant, but he prepared for the worse. Luckily for him, nothing came in his direction. Still, two openings appeared on different walls to create passages. The arrival of the light had only signaled the end of that trial. One of the passages led to the staircase. Noah could use it to retreat and exit the Pyramid. Instead, the other was dark, and he couldn''t quite understand where it would bring him. ''Are there more trials?'' Noah wondered as a sense of weakness filled his centers of power. A waterfall of blood fell from his torso once his ambition stopped empowering him. His dark matter quickly sealed the injuries, but it couldn''t stop the arrival of intense dizziness. Noah felt confused, but his instincts kept him on his feet. The resilience of the magical beasts'' world didn''t allow him to faint. He would die before falling prey to his weakness. ''I might win against a liquid stage cultivator if I use the disposable puppet,'' Noah thought as he sat on the floor. The pieces of metal that had flown through the room converged toward his chest and entered the separate space as he crossed his legs to focus on recovering. He had yet to analyze his gains, but healing came first. He couldn''t lower his guard in that strange place. He didn''t trust the sadistic creator of the Pyramid. Noah focused on recovering. He dispersed the stress accumulated by his centers of power and ate to fill his body with energy. He then cultivated to enlarge his dantian. Only his mind continued to improve through the whole process. Once his centers of power returned to a decent state, Noah activated the Dark Womb spell to heal his body more quickly. He had suffered severe injuries during the battle, so the simple accumulation of energy wasn''t enough in his situation. Even with the Dark Womb spell, Noah had to remain in the secret room for an entire year before he could heal completely. Still, he didn''t mind spending so long in that situation since he felt stronger than ever afterward. Noah felt that his existence had improved after the battle and that long period of recovery. It seemed that using his ambition made his potential grow quickly. The benefits gained after training his individuality to affect the environment couldn''t compare to those obtained in that process. ''I need to find a way to exploit my ambition without suffering such heavy drawbacks,'' Noah thought as he evaluated how quickly his dantian improved during his training. The power of his individuality was insane. It acted like a secret art that could empower all his assets at the same time. It also depended on his potential, which didn''t put fixed limits to its effects. Any cultivator would pay immense sums of money to obtain items capable of the same effects. Even if the empowerment was temporary, it allowed Noah to surpass his limits and defeat opponents that experts at his level couldn''t even approach. The uniqueness of his individuality was what made it so hard for him to remove the drawbacks. Such a strong ability required after-effects to exist. Everyone would rely on secret arts otherwise. Noah put the matter on the back of his mind after he recovered and improved. That wasn''t the time to think about his power. He was in a strange structure that could give him valuable items, and that was his priority for now. The new passage made him curious, but Noah wanted to inspect his gains first. The black metal seemed valuable, but the white oval had captured his attention since the end of the battle. Chapter 1351: 1351. Body Noah took out the white oval and studied it with the help of the Divine Deduction technique. The item acted like a center of power that could contain "Breath" and send it toward specific channels. The oval didn''t send energy anymore now that it lacked a body to fuel. Noah could study how it interacted with his mental waves and tissues without wasting the precious "Breath" it contained. ''Light element,'' Noah concluded after a quick inspection. The elements in the Immortal Lands had the same rarity as the lower planes, but the cultivators there didn''t meet similar difficulties. The experts with a rare aptitude had an easier time in that world since they couldn''t be born as commoners. They were still rare, but they had access to far more techniques. Moreover, their starting level would be in the heroic ranks, which put them past the need for random spells. Noah placed a hand on the oval and used his mental waves to control its energy. The "Breath" flowed inside his body and crumbled to create primary energy that his tissues could absorb. The oval had contained enough energy to fuel a puppet in the middle tier. It had lost part of its power during the battle, but it still counted as the flesh of a magical beast on the same level. Noah felt an intense surge of power filling his tissues as his body absorbed that energy. His flesh, muscles, bones, and organs greedily devoured the primary energy and pushed his level past the halfway mark of the lower tier. As Noah had predicted even before ascending, his body quickly surpassed the level of his other centers of power now that he was in the Immortal Lands. The number of nutrients available in the lower plane couldn''t compare to that rich environment, so it was only normal for its growth to be exponential. Once all the energy contained in the oval ended in his body, Noah performed a second analysis of the item. He quickly realized that he couldn''t understand which materials made it. He could only grasp its general functioning since he had created similar tools in the past. The oval was a more polished version of a center of power. It couldn''t grow nor absorb energy on its own, but it could send it far faster than a real dantian. Even his black hole paled in that field against that item. Noah raised the item above his head and continued to study it as the room''s faint light illuminated it. The oval had become a transparent metallic object after he absorbed its energy, but it maintained a peculiar halo due to the materials that made it. ''I can study it to improve my future replica of centers of power,'' Noah concluded after a while. ''I think I can''t put anything else in my body, but Night and Snore might need this technology one day. Also, I will surely create more Blood Companions in the future. It would be a waste not to learn from it.'' Noah would directly use the oval if its power were slightly higher. He would soon be able to create items in the middle tier, so he didn''t need that object since it had a poor match with his element. He couldn''t even sell it since he needed to study its internal composition. Noah would destroy it to analyze its fabric once his mental waves could recognize the materials in its fabric. Noah eventually put back the oval inside his separate space and moved his focus on the black metal. That material was sturdy and flexible, but he still couldn''t use it in his forgings since his level was too low. Except for the energy absorbed during the inspection, Noah couldn''t use those items at his current level. He had to grow until he could affect their fabric, so he could only store them for now. ''What do I even do now?'' Noah wondered once he completed all his tasks. A second passage had opened in the secret room after he defeated the puppet. That undiscovered path wasn''t over and continued toward areas that Noah felt wary of exploring. The puppet had almost pushed his centers of power to their limits. Noah couldn''t express more strength. He would die if he were to encounter a harsher trial. However, retreating seemed even worse. The Pyramid didn''t have a stream of cultivators anymore, so the Balrow family had no reason to use it as a source of income. That force would soon close it to focus on retrieving its resources. Leaving now would probably make him lose every chance to explore the Pyramid again. The Balrow family would also notice the new secret area and explore it until its end with experts in the eighth rank. Greed could often lead cultivators to their death. Noah wasn''t an exception, but his innate superiority gave him a few advantages. Also, he had the disposable puppet in the middle tier on his side, so his chances to survive weren''t low. Noah couldn''t find the right answer to his question, so he decided to follow his instincts. The new path didn''t make him fear for his life, so he would press on with his exploration. The new path was dark and continued in a straight line as far as Noah could see. That went against the actual structure of the Pyramid. That corridor would lead outside of the building if he considered only its apparent size. ''Where does this even lead to?'' Noah wondered as he stepped inside the opening. The passage behind him didn''t close even after he walked for a few meters, so Noah pressed forward without worrying about the possibility of remaining stuck in that place. His senses became unable to keep track of his movements as he kept walking. Noah felt slightly dizzy, as if he was teleporting. Yet, the scenery in his eyes didn''t change. Even his consciousness confirmed that he was still inside the Pyramid. Noah didn''t wholly trust his senses in that area. His superior awareness had always placed him above other cultivators in that field, but the Pyramid could make even rank 8 experts struggle. He wouldn''t be able to sense everything in an environment mostly made of rank 8 materials. He even had to take into consideration the power of the creator. If the Pyramid didn''t want him to notice something, he would remain clueless about any event. No turns appeared on his path. The corridor didn''t go up or down. It continued to stretch in a straight line that didn''t seem to have an end. Even his mental waves couldn''t find the exit. Noah never stopped walking, but he didn''t accelerate either. He continued to move at a slow pace to ensure that he could retreat as soon as something he couldn''t handle appeared on his path. The scenery eventually began to change, but his senses couldn''t completely understand what was happening. Noah felt as if he was still inside that secret path, but a large room slowly unfolded in front of him. Noah stopped and crouched at that point. His robe had recovered, so it could activate its concealing effects. He didn''t know how useful that ability would be in that situation, but it was better than nothing. His mental waves seeped inside the room and gave him a dim view of its insides. Noah could make a luxurious bed out of the messy images that returned to his mind. Then, he saw a body laid on it. Chapter 1352: 1352. Book A suffocating aura filled the large room. It was so dense that it made the entire area foggy. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine the level of power that an existence had to reach to create such effects, especially since the source of that phenomenon was the motionless body laid on the large bed. ''Is he dead?'' Noah thought as he continued to inspect the man lying on the bed. More details returned to his mind as his inspection continued. Noah silently accepted that he would die if the expert were to wake up, so he abandoned his careful behavior. He found no point in it now that he had reached that dangerous room. The expert wore a luxurious white robe and multiple items laid on his body and face. The resembled inscribed weapons, but Noah couldn''t be sure of his judgment since the suffocating aura hindered his analysis. The man didn''t breathe. He didn''t react to his mental waves either, but faint flashes of white light rhythmically ran through the room and converged on his body. The expert didn''t react to the light either. He seemed dead, and Noah eventually confirmed that he was nothing more than a corpse. The room was doing something with his body, but he couldn''t understand the purpose behind that process. A few barriers blocked his mental waves whenever he tried to bring them closer to the body and the items laid on it. The room had protections that didn''t allow him to move his consciousness where he wanted. Items filled other parts of the room and created messy piles. As his inspection continued, Noah slowly understood the Pyramid''s purpose and the intentions of the experts when he built it. He felt as if the suffocating aura gave him the answers he had sought since he first stepped into that structure. The aura carried the expert''s unwillingness to let go of those items and the helplessness of his situation. Its influence filled every corner of the room and flowed inside the Pyramid, spreading through its fabric and giving it purposes even after its creator died. The Pyramid was a tomb that acted according to its dead creator''s feelings. It rewarded some lucky cultivators while punishing others according to his whims. His feelings didn''t have a pattern, so the Pyramid had acted on its own and divided its structure into two parts. One had proper defenses that tried to kill eventual thieves. The other featured trials meant to reward worthy cultivators. Noah didn''t know why he understood all of that, and he felt even more confused by the fact that the corpse was continuing to emit its aura. Death didn''t seem able to stop that expert from spreading his existence, and his creation reacted to what it carried. ''Why is he telling me this?'' Noah wondered, but he soon put those thoughts in the back of his mind. Obtaining answers was nice, but he wanted actual benefits. The room was full of resources that had barriers in front of them, but there was an item that it didn''t protect. Noah''s focus went on an old book placed beside the bed. The tome was thick and radiated an aura that put it below the other items in the room. The aura conveyed more answers once he noticed that item. The book was his reward for reaching that place, and its power reflected the struggles that he had to overcome. ''I see,'' Noah thought as he finally gained the full picture of the structure. The expert had most-likely created the Pyramid when he was still alive. Then, he had chosen it as his tomb, but he couldn''t suppress his aura even after his death. The Pyramid probably had stronger versions of the oval item in its structure. That had allowed it to react to its master''s aura and create paths that expressed his ambivalent intentions. Noah could imagine it in his mind. He had seen how the fly-like puppets had created the feathered creature by using minute pieces of the black metal. He could guess that something similar had happened in every protected area of the Pyramid. The fact that a dead existence could create such a massive inheritance left Noah speechless. He couldn''t understand how strong that expert had been in the past, but he felt the utmost respect toward him. That was real power, an influence that even death couldn''t suppress. The expert had become an eternal expression of his existence, and time couldn''t affect it. Yet, even that mighty expert had died. Noah felt as if he had seen the level that he strived to reach with every fiber of his existence to understand that it didn''t represent the end of the cultivation journey. The aura gave him answers whenever doubts appeared in his mental waves. Still, it didn''t reply to one of his most pressing questions. It didn''t explain the purpose behind those faint flashes of light that converged toward the corpse. ''What is he trying to do?'' Noah wondered before he moved his attention to the structure. ''Maybe this process depends on the Pyramid itself.'' Noah wouldn''t be surprised if the Pyramid had gained some basic form of intelligence after countless years spent under the influence of its dead master''s aura. After all, it had the energy to function, so it had the chance to evolve. As for what it desired, Noah could only think about one answer. The Pyramid could only want its master back. Even if that thought sounded insane, he believed that the structure was trying to resurrect that mighty expert! ''This is none of my business,'' Noah concluded as he put those hypotheses in the back of his mind. ''I don''t care if this monster comes back to life. I have my journey to care about.'' The book represented the secret reward of the first layer. Each layer would bring to that room, but the Pyramid would prepare different prizes depending on which hidden path a cultivator completed. Noah had found the secret path in the area meant for gaseous stage cultivators, so he received the weakest final reward. As for its actual power, he could only judge it after he studied it. His mental waves flew toward the book and enveloped it in a gentle embrace. Noah controlled his consciousness to lift the book and bring it outside of the room. He couldn''t enter the room. He didn''t dare to imagine what would happen if his mental sphere were to enter the range of that suffocating aura. The book flew outside of the room and landed in his hands. Noah wanted to study it immediately, but the flashes of white light became brighter after he seized that reward. A few slight tremors ran through the Pyramid at that point. Something was happening, but Noah ignored the nature of that event. Still, he felt the need to leave and let the structure act as it wished. Even the suffocating aura was telling him that his time in that room was over. Noah shot one last glance at the corpse on the bed before turning to leave. The tremors became more intense as he ran through the corridor and returned to the area where he had fought the feathered puppet. Something big was about to happen inside the Pyramid, and Noah didn''t know if the guards outside of the structure could see those changes. Yet, he planned to leave before he could turn the Balrow family into an enemy. Chapter 1353: 1353. Expensive Noah couldn''t see the changes in the Pyramid because he was running as fast as he could toward the exit. Still, the guards outside the structure could inspect the events through the sensors previously placed by the experts of the Balrow family. Chief Etta and the guards had seen that Noah had succeeded in entering some protected areas. Their interest in him had skyrocketed at that point. They couldn''t let such a powerful and talented inscription master escape from their clutches. Still, they forgot about Noah when the Pyramid began to tremble. Their sensors sent signals that they couldn''t completely understand. It was as if the whole structure had taken life after Noah cleared the secret room in the first layer. The guards saw how a massive amount of energy flowed toward the top of the Pyramid in an area that even the experts in the eighth rank couldn''t find. They didn''t know what was happening, but they believed that Noah had the answers that their questions. His recruitment couldn''t be the priority in front of the activation of such a majestic structure. Noah ran through the secret passage as fast as he could. He knew that the Balrow family would question him once he came out of the Pyramid, so he wanted to exploit his only advantage in that situation. The Balrow family wasn''t exactly there. The Pyramid was empty since no one was attempting to retrieve the items inside it. Mere guards couldn''t decide to restrain him after his services in the inscription hall. Chief Etta also was the highest-ranked cultivator in the area, so Noah had a chance to escape if the situation became too unfavorable. Their lack of preparation for that strange event was Noah''s only advantage. He had to exit the Pyramid before the guards could receive orders from the higher-ups. Noah didn''t take much to leave the Pyramid. He was in the farthest zone from the entrance, but he only had to cross a series of secret passages to return there. The light radiated by the underground area shone in his eyes after less than two hours. Chief Etta was waiting for him in front of the entrance, but Noah didn''t feel surprised about that. He would actually believe that the Balrow family knew something more about the Pyramid if he didn''t see the guards'' concerned faces when he came out of the structure. "Can we talk?" Chief Etta said when she saw Noah coming out of the Pyramid. Noah revealed an aloof expression at her sight. Chief Etta wasn''t showing her aura, but she seemed ready to do it if Noah did something strange. The Pyramid continued to tremble. Noah sensed the walls of the entrance shaking around him while he kept his reptilian eyes on the guard. Chief Etta wore a stern expression, but he could see traces of hesitation on her face. "I''m in a hurry," Noah replied while maintaining an aloof expression. "A friend has an opportunity for me. I can''t be late." Chief Etta didn''t believe Noah at all. She had talked with Saul during her investigation of his background. She knew that Noah was nothing more than a newly ascended cultivator who had lived in the wilderness for some years. Still, she couldn''t force him to stay on the island against his will without ruining every hope of a friendly relationship. Noah was an asset that the Balrow family was interested in obtaining, and she didn''t want to be the reason behind an enmity. Noah''s words had a hidden meaning. He had purposely revealed that an opportunity was waiting for him somewhere, meaning that he would lose something if he didn''t leave immediately. That put a price on his time. It told Chief Etta that she had to pay Noah to obtain answers. Chief Etta wasn''t an inexperienced expert who had lived her life in the shadow of a massive organization. She was a leader among the guards, and that spoke for her ability. She was aware of the advantages given by her position, while Noah was a simple talent with no important affiliation. The only thing that concerned her was his name, but she could easily ignore that detail since she lacked proof. "What happened inside the Pyramid?" Chief Etta asked without mentioning what Noah had said before. "I will gladly sell you a report once the matter with my friend is over," Noah replied as he pretended that the tremors around him didn''t exist. Noah was acting as if nothing strange had happened. Moreover, he didn''t deny the Balrow family of answers. He was trying to delay that exchange of information. Chief Etta was in a tough spot now. Noah didn''t break any rule. Actually, he had even preferred the inscription hall of the Balrow family when he was in Vagona city. That spoke for his behavior toward organizations that treated him well and fairly. In the end, Chief Etta gave up on trying to win that contest of words and took the easy path. She would play along with Noah''s intentions if that gave her what she needed. "A thousand Soul Stones to answer a question," Chief Etta offered. "Ten thousand for my honesty," Noah replied before scoffing loudly. One thousand Soul Stones were nothing for the Balrow family, especially when Noah could give no more than four answers. He didn''t mind telling Chief Etta what had happened inside the Pyramid, but he didn''t want to sell that information for crumbs. "I don''t have oaths with me," Chief Etta continued. "I have no reason to lie," Noah replied. "Unless you give me one." His expression remained aloof and uncaring. That situation didn''t seem to affect him. Noah didn''t show any fear, even if the massive structure was shaking around him. "Ten thousand it is," Chief Etta said as she gave in to his demands. "What is happening inside the Pyramid?" "I have no idea," Noah replied, and his answer left Chief Etta, and the guards on the scene dumbfounded. Chief Etta could sense the honesty carried by Noah''s words. He was purposely revealing his intentions in that situation to show that he was playing by the rules. "What did you do inside the Pyramid then?" Chief Etta pressed on with another question, but Noah didn''t answer. He limited himself to stretch his arm forward. Chief Etta snorted and turned toward one of the guards to whisper a few orders. The cultivator shot outside of that underground area only to return a few minutes later with a green space-ring. The guard gave the space-ring to Chief Etta, and she waved her hand. Ten thousand Soul Stones amassed on the ground in front of her, and Noah didn''t hesitate to leap forward to store them. "I found a secret passage behind the last protected area," Noah said before adding another detail. "I have reason to believe that every layer has something similar." "How can you be so sure?" Chef Etta asked as she threw ten thousand Soul Stones on the ground again. Noah stored the money and smiled at her to indicate that he wouldn''t answer until she paid for it. He didn''t like to be in a position where she could refuse to give him Soul Stones at the last second. Chief Etta waved the ring again, and more Soul Stones fell on the ground. Noah stored them in an instant and sighed before giving an honest answer. "I''ve met the will of the Pyramid," Noah explained. "You need to satisfy certain conditions and clear specific rooms to gain access to the secret paths that lead to that area." Noah and Chief Etta exchanged a long glance at that point. She wanted to question him more, but he was too expensive. Also, he had already given satisfying answers. That was enough for now. Chief Etta nodded, and Noah bowed before walking past her to leave the underground area. His time with the Pyramid was over, but he had one last trick in mind. There was a chance to keep that structure open to the public. Chapter 1354: 1354. Repor Noah left the underground area and resurfaced on the island in the middle of the vast lake. The guards that he met shot careful glances toward him, but Noah ignored them and pressed forward until he returned in the wilderness. After Noah left the lake''s range, he activated his robe and dived toward the surface to hide among a short forest that stretched for a few kilometers. Noah didn''t stop even at that point. He continued to march toward the Land of the Fallen without even bothering to check if messages had arrived. His priority was to leave the areas around the Pyramid. As long as he was in the wilderness, the Balrow family wouldn''t be able to catch up with him easily. Noah traveled for two entire months before stopping near a series of short mountains and creating a cave. The Land of the Fallen could wait for him to complete his ploy and study his reward. Only one message had reached his inscribed notebook. Fergie had updated Noah about his position. His team had reached the Land of the Fallen while Noah was inside the Pyramid. Still, nothing noteworthy had happened in those years. ''He is in Silkpost city,'' Noah thought after hearing the mental message, ''The last human settlement before the domain of the magical beasts.'' Noah could feel that he had gotten closer to the reign of those creatures. The violent aura that filled the sky had become more intense. Luckily for him, his mind had become used to it, so the negative feelings that had afflicted the first part of his travel didn''t reappear. The Shadow Sword spell inside Fergie had enough energy to last a few more years, so Noah wasn''t worried that the spy could escape his control. He could focus on other matters after he took care of hindering the Balrow family''s plans to explore the Pyramid without external cultivators. "Do you have any method to spread reliable reports?" Noah asked through his inscribed notebooks. "Can you use some of the channels of the secret organization?" Noah put the notebook back inside his separate space at that point. He had to wait for Fergie''s answer to start his ploy, so he could inspect his gains at that point. The old book retrieved in the room with the creator''s corpse appeared in his hands after he performed a few training sessions. A few complicated symbols filled its tough cover. They resembled an old language that told Noah the tome''s title when he inspected it with his mind. ''Artificial cores and the workshop,'' Noah read on the cover. ''First part of six. Inheritance of the Great Builder.'' Needless to say, Noah felt intense waves of emotions surging in his mind after reading that title. He didn''t only learn the name of the creator. He had also confirmed that the book contained part of his inheritance. Noah stopped thinking and began to browse through the book. He didn''t recognize the language of its symbols, but they radiated an aura that made him understand the meanings that they contained. He could read even if he didn''t know that language. It felt even easier to memorize those words. The aura of those symbols improved his understanding of those topics. The first part of the book spoke about items that could replicate the centers of power. Noah linked them to the oval seized from the feathered puppet, and his interest increased at that discovery. Noah had initially planned to improve his mind and destroy the oval to study its structure, but the book explained those topics. He didn''t need to lose that item anymore. He could sell it or modify it depending on his needs. The explanations about the flow of energy and storage capacity enlightened Noah. They taught him how to improve the fake centers of power and even make them surpass the real versions. Noah even gained a few ideas on how he could prolong the duration of the Shadow Swords spell inside Fergie. His hands itched to test the things described in the book, but he preferred to read through all of it before deciding his next move. What he had learnt in the book was only a mass of theoretical knowledge. He needed to test it to see what could work with his expertise. After all, the book didn''t explain Great Builder''s inscription method. Noah still had to use his techniques to create items. Moreover, his replica of the centers of power wasn''t outdated nor inefficient. His creations seemed to be fundamentally superior to the ovals mentioned in the tome. They had a few flaws that the book taught how to solve. The storage capacity was a severe issue that Noah could overcome with that knowledge, and the same went for the improved flow of energy described among those pages. Noah moved on to the second part of the book, but Fergie contacted him at that point, which forced him to postpone his study. "I can''t spread a report without showing any proof that it tells the truth," Fergie said in his message. "Still, the organizations will investigate on the matter if the news is interesting. What is this about?" "The Pyramid has activated," Noah replied through a mental message. "The true inheritance has appeared, and the Balrow family wants to close it to the public. I want to arouse the interest of the masses in that place again." "Isn''t it better to keep the news for yourself?" Fergie replied a few minutes later. "Just do as I say," Noah answered. "If they have doubts about the report, tell them to check for any seismic activity. The whole Pyramid has started to shake. I''m sure that they will find something that confirms my words. Mind you, do not use my name." The conversation ended there. It would be up to Fergie to create a believable story. It was enough for one trustworthy expert to confirm his words for a horde of cultivators to appear around the Pyramids. Even the mighty Balrow family would have to compromise in that situation. The Pyramid belonged to that force, but other experts from important organizations would surely know how to apply some political pressure. ''I will seize everything if they can stop themselves from finding the secret areas in the other five layers,'' Noah concluded as he put those matters in the back of his mind. The Balrow family had powerful cultivators in its ranks, and the same went for the other organizations. Its experts had stopped exploring the Pyramid because its defenses were too hard to overcome, but everything would be different now. Noah had opened the path for true inheritance. That would make the Balrow family and the other force spend a fortune to overcome every protection inside the Pyramid. It wasn''t a matter of gaining a few valuable items anymore. Those forces could seize the legacy of an expert who had managed to fend rank 8 cultivators off with his creations. His knowledge was priceless. As for Noah, he continued to study the first piece of the inheritance. The book began to describe a strange technique after it explained the functioning and structures of the fake oval centers of power. Chapter 1355: 1355. Workshop The book retrieved in Great Builder''s Pyramid was the first part of his inheritance. It described two topics. The first one involved the oval items that acted as centers of power. The second explained the workshop and its functioning. For "workshop", Great Builder indicated the ability to create items with other items. Noah had seen an example of that skill. The fly-like puppets had built the feathered creature right in front of his eyes. That technique allowed a cultivator to automate a process so that other spells, arts, or puppets could perform it. In Great Builder''s case, the whole Pyramid was a workshop divided into multiple areas that could complete different tasks. The workshop didn''t initially interest Noah. He didn''t intend to build a home and settle. He wanted to roam freely and explore the Immortal Lands, so a massive structure would only slow him down. Great Builder wanted his heirs to use the ovals and the workshop together. Cultivators could mass-produce virtually anything if they could master those two creations. The first book only contained a few examples and descriptions of their weaker versions, but they were enough in the hands of an expert. Noah didn''t want to follow Great Builder''s footsteps, but he couldn''t discard that piece of inheritance. There was value in that knowledge, and he wanted to incorporate some of it into his battle style. Great Builder had been a monster. Even after his death, his existence continued to affect the Pyramid and influenced its many functions. Not using his inheritance would be a proper waste. The problem was that Noah''s expertise lingered in a different field. He was a creator and specialized in beast-like puppets, but he didn''t build disposable beings. His companions were all unique and had features that no other creature could replicate. However, an idea formed in his mind as he reviewed the issue. He could create his version of the oval cores, and he could invent a stable structure for a living being in an instant. He only had to approach the creation differently. Great Builder had the Pyramid and its fly-like puppets as part of the workshop. The many materials inside the structure allowed it to build creatures and oval cores in a few minutes. Noah lacked those three aspects of the workshop, but he had a technique that could perform their functions. It could even add a personal touch that would make the inheritance suit him. The dark world could imitate some of the Pyramid''s functions if Noah programmed it beforehand. The dark matter in its fabric could theoretically replicate every material in the world, and it could also take care of the manpower needed for the creation. ''It might be possible,'' Noah thought as the light of the Divine Deduction technique shone through his eyes. ''It won''t be as sophisticated as the Pyramid, but it would allow me to bring the workshop with me. The dark world will also improve if I can master this technique.'' Countless ideas surged in Noah''s mind after he completed his evaluation. The bare shape of a technique soon took form, and Noah didn''t hesitate to test it. According to the book, cultivators would generally need to create a structure first. They would then build a series of workers who could take care of the most minute detail of every puppet. In the end, they needed to invent blueprints to fuse with the structure. The process would be automated at that point. They only needed to create a power source for their creations and connect it with them. That was easier than done, mostly since Noah wanted to revisit the technique to make it suitable for his prowess. He could already imagine what the dark world could become with that power, and he itched to test its feasibility. ''Let''s start with something simple,'' Noah thought as some of the dark-brown water inside his sphere surged and created a spherical area that radiated detailed instructions. Once the project in his mind ended, Noah summoned a small version of the dark world and began experimenting with its insides. It wasn''t hard to control the dark matter, but programming it to perform a specific action resulted quite impossible. It was a matter of mental prowess. Noah didn''t know how intense his wills had to be to make the dark matter behave as he desired. ''I need more training in this,'' Noah concluded after he called back his dark matter and exited the cave to resume his journey. The thoughts about the workshop filled his mind, but he couldn''t remain in the wilderness for too long. He had to reach Silkpost city to understand how he had to move in the Land of the Fallen. Also, he had to refill Fergie''s body with dark matter at some point, so he needed to be there. ''The issue is that my programming doesn''t work,'' Noah thought as he flew through the white sky. ''My wills struggle to contain so many details, and the dark matter doesn''t move well under their control.'' Noah had to improve in those two fields before he could create a proper workshop. His wills had the priority, but he already had ideas that could make him ignore his weakness. He was an expert in wills, especially magical beasts that he had eventually turned into living slaves. The half-transparent figures that had entered his min could suffice for his needs after going through heavy modifications. Instead of making wills every time, Noah began to consider the idea of creating resilient blueprints connected to disposable puppets. Those creatures would lack diversity, but Noah was fine as long as he made that technique work. Since Noah had nothing to do, he could focus on the workshop while he flew toward the Land of the Fallen. Blueprints formed and shattered as he repeated the process countless times. He had yet to create a will or an ethereal figure that could last while continuing to affect the dark world. That was the first hurdle, and Noah didn''t complete it even after he reached Silkpost City. He had arrived at his destination. The Land of the Fallen was after that place, and the magical beasts'' domain wasn''t too far away either. Noah contacted Fergie and began to alter the nature of the oval seized from the feathered puppet. His dark matter flowed inside it and created a fake core that could act as a center of power and fuel the Shadow Swords spell for a long time. Creating something like that was necessary. Noah would eventually venture through the magical beasts'' domain, so he had to make sure that he wouldn''t lose his spy during the travel. The oval didn''t resist Noah''s influence. It accepted the dark matter easily, and it quickly transformed it into a storage item that could fuel other techniques and creatures that fed on his higher energy. He could do the same for his dark world. Building Beast Cores wasn''t an issue in the Immortal Lands, so he could create them with eventual puppet once he completed building everything else. Noah met with Fergie and forced him to swallow the oval item filled with dark matter. The cultivator was unwilling initially, but he couldn''t oppose Noah even if he wanted to. Chapter 1356: 1356. Poster Fergie didn''t feel any different after he swallowed the oval, but he could sense that something had changed in the swords that restrained his centers of power. The oval began to fuel the Shadow Swords spell as soon as it stabilized inside Fergie''s body. It even adapted to the consumption of Noah''s ability. Noah studied those changes with his mental waves. Great Builder''s cores were more polished than his fake centers of power. The oval automatically learnt how much dark matter it had to send to optimize the Shadow Swords spell. ''My cores have more potential,'' Noah thought as he studied Fergie, ''But I lack the millennia of expertise accumulated by Great Builder. My creations are mere toys compared to his.'' Noah didn''t feel discouraged by that discovery. He was still a newbie in the divine ranks when he considered the countless experts that filled the Immortal Lands. His time to shine would come as long as he continued to do his best to improve. For now, he could only appreciate the fact that he was far stronger than his peers. "What is the secret organization up to in these regions?" Noah asked once the matter with the oval was over. The secret organization had accepted Fergie''s request almost instantly. It had moved him and a series of gaseous stage cultivators in Silkpost city without raising any complaints. Fergie had even reported to the new leader. The secret organization had some business in the Land of the Fallen, and Noah wanted to know it. "Mostly underground markets and secret auctions," Fergie explained. "The vast number of inheritances in these areas creates a high demand of buyers. Those who can seize some rewards prefer to keep their organizations in the dark, so you can obtain something valuable even if you don''t fight in the various trials." Noah could understand the mindsets of those who were strong enough to succeed in some inheritance. The families and organizations behind them would take a share of their gains whenever they found something valuable. Giving a favorable position inside the organization in exchange for those goods wasn''t enough for those talented cultivators. The untold rule of the cultivation world existed even among divine existences. Everyone strived for the higher ranks, and political statuses couldn''t compare to actual empowerments. The underground markets covered that need. Cultivators could purchase items, techniques, and resources that they needed without involving their organizations in the process. Fergie confirmed that even important members of those organizations used the secret markets to purchase valuable resources. The powerful forces of the Immortal Lands silently accepted their existence and allowed them to thrive in the Land of the Fallen. ''This is the perfect place for me,'' Noah concluded after Fergie gave him a general overview of those regions. Fergie couldn''t know everything since his position in the secret organization was too low. Yet, he told Noah enough to make him start planning his moves. The underground markets'' environment benefitted cultivators without organizations the most if they had enough money with them. Noah''s wealth amounted to more than seventy thousand Soul Stones after the events in the Pyramid, so he could move freely there. Moreover, Noah had lived among secret organizations for most of his long life. He knew how he had to move in those environments. Even with the favorable environments, Noah didn''t feel the need to look for a secret market just yet. He preferred to obtain valuable items directly from the inheritances rather than purchasing them with Soul Stones. His study inside the library had taught him a bit about the Land of the Fallen. The powerful families had thoroughly explored the battlefields inside the human domain, so he wouldn''t move blindly. Noah could directly fly toward some famous inheritances, and that was exactly his plan. Remaining in the open would only cause him more problems, and he lacked resources anyway. Facing struggles would also make him grow faster, so he had no reason to waste time in Silkpost city. If the situation became too troublesome or if he happened to cause a mess, Noah could always depart from the human domain. The battlefields in the magical beasts'' reign were nearby. The Land of the Fallen was the safest place for an existence like him. "One last thing," Fergie said when he saw that Noah was itching to leave. "Do you happen to be this cultivator?" Fergie took out a wanted poster that featured moving images, and Noah''s eyes widened at that sight. The sheet depicted his battle in the landing zone together with zoomed sections on his face. The wanted poster also listed a series of rewards under the images. The organization that had created the sheet was willing to pay a million Soul Stones for him. It didn''t matter if he was dead or alive. "Why do you always fail to mention important things?!" Noah shouted as anger built inside him. His underling was an awful spy. Noah had no idea why a secret organization would continue to make use of such a cultivator! "Who are they?" Noah asked as growls accompanied his words. "Who is looking for me?" A chill ran down Fergie''s spine when he sensed Noah''s anger. Truth be told, he had left that piece of information as last because he was scared that Noah would kill him on the spot. Taking care of the loose ends was the best course of action for a wanted man. Killing Fergie would remove the only cultivator who had the power to betray Noah. However, Fergie couldn''t hide that information from Noah. Those posters filled Silkpost city, so he would have eventually learnt about them. Noah would have an actual reason to kill Fergie at that point since he had purposely withheld something that could have led to his death or capture. It was a difficult decision, but a well-thought one. Fergie believed that Noah would survive even if he withheld that information from him. He could avoid eventual punishments only if he were frank with his master. "The Crystal City," Fergie said as he suppressed his fear. "Its experts also give descriptions of some of your abilities. They are quite vague, but I can confirm that they are on point." Noah''s expression became cold as he fell silent. The border with the magical beasts'' domain belonged to the Crystal City in theory. That was the only organization willing to act as the first line of defense against those creatures. The other organizations didn''t like those fanatics, but they respected their strength and services to the human cause. Noah guessed that those forces would be more than willing to help the Crystal City if they found him. "Why is no one aware of this?" Noah asked as he seized the wanted poster. "I have spent years in the Pyramid, but they let me go easily." "This poster isn''t public," Fergie answered. "Only a few professional guilds and some assassins are aware of this bounty. The Crystal City doesn''t want to admit that they have failed to capture you. Their work might help the humans as a whole, but they have made many enemies along the way." "What are you implying?" Noah asked. "Well," Fergie hesitate for a second before continuing, "You are one of the few rank 7 cultivators who can attack them. The other experts usually remove the oath when they reach the eighth rank, and they can''t act freely for fear of involving other strong forces. You can be a valuable pawn in their eyes." Chapter 1357: 1357. Hellish Landscape Problems always arrived in bulk. Noah only wanted to explore a series of inheritances after the mess with the Pyramid, but the Crystal City didn''t want to let him go. ''The Land of the Fallen has just become a massive trap,'' Noah concluded after analyzing his situation. ''There might be assassins in every corner. I don''t think I can escape from them forever.'' Noah wasn''t against small organizations. He couldn''t escape from a region as he did with the Elbas family. He would have to leave the whole human domain in his situation. Of course, Noah wanted to avoid that option. The lands under the control of the magical beasts could give him many nutrients, but he had learnt the limits of living in the wilderness long ago. Noah needed to interact with cultivators to improve as a cultivator. It was merely logical, especially for an existence that had to nourish an individuality with multiple features. ''He told me before entering Silkpost city,'' Noah thought as he glanced at Fergie. ''Maybe it''s just fear, but it doesn''t hurt to give him a purpose.'' "I will set you free when I reach the eighth rank," Noah said casually. "You will decide if you want to keep working for me afterward." Fergie felt dumbfounded when he heard those words. He didn''t know if Noah was joking or was utterly delusional. Noah had spoken about the eighth rank as if it was an easy level to reach. He didn''t show any uncertainty about his belief. Noah had sounded sure that he would grow to that point. Fergie could only reply with a nod. He didn''t wholly believe Noah, but he couldn''t do anything else in his situation. It didn''t matter if he believed Noah. Betraying him wasn''t an option now. Noah had lost interest in his underling as soon as he spoke those words. He had far more important matters to handle. He had to decide how to proceed with the Crystal City hunting him down. ''The easiest option is to join another powerful organization,'' Noah thought before discarding that idea. Even if he were to join the Balrow family, its higher-ups would force him to swear the Crystal City''s oath to avoid problems. He would keep his life, but he would lose his freedom. Escaping wasn''t an option either, not before seizing everything that the human domain had to offer at least. Noah felt interested in the wilderness and inheritances they contained, but his growth remained his main priority. ''I can only choose the battlefield then,'' Noah concluded in his mind. Facing the Crystal City head-on would be idiotic. That organization even had at least one rank 8 cultivator in its ranks. Noah couldn''t fight it in an open field. He had to use all the tricks learnt in the lower place to defeat it. "I suggest you return to Vagona city," Fergie said at some point. "The Crystal City can''t attack you there, and you have enough talent to join a powerful family. Staying put for a few millennia isn''t shameful when your opponents are those fanatics." "Who cares about shame," Noah replied while a sigh escaped his mouth. "I won''t hide for millennia and risk my potential. Just keep me updated about eventual secret auctions. I will handle this mess." Noah walked past Fergie after that line. He had no reason to waste time anymore. A plan had already formed in his mind, and he couldn''t wait to put it into motion. Fergie could only watch Noah leave and disappear from his vision. No words managed to come out of his throat. Things that seemed so normal in his mind were utterly unacceptable for Noah, and he couldn''t help but feel in awe of that mindset. A small fire lit up inside him after Noah left. The more Fergie thought about him, the more he felt that he lacked something as a cultivator. Noah''s approach to life left him speechless and put him in a strange mood. Fergie suddenly felt the need to cultivate harder and spend more time focusing on his power. A laugh eventually escaped from his mouth after he analyzed those emotions. The human world had suppressed his ambition, but a hybrid had managed to awaken it. . . . Noah flew at full speed toward Silkpost city. He could avoid entering the settlement to reach his target, but he wanted all the forces involved in his hunt to see him. The Land of the Fallen had many famous inheritances that had yet to find an heir, and one of the most renowned was a place called Hellish Landscape. The Hellish Landscape was an inheritance created by the dying wish of an important leader who had fallen against the hordes of magical beasts crossing the border. Her name was Heavenly Fire, and she had been one of the strongest rank 8 cultivators of her time. Her dying wish had given birth to a separate dimension that had trapped many magical beasts and had hidden her belongings. Most experts even believed that her core techniques were somewhere at the bottom of that inheritance. Heavenly Fire''s inheritance featured items and techniques meant for cultivators with a fire aptitude. Noah wouldn''t naturally feel any interest in them. Still, the expert''s dying wish had been so powerful that it had absorbed other inheritances when it took form. The separate dimension didn''t contain only Heavenly Fire''s inheritance. It also featured many smaller legacies created by the dying wishes of weaker cultivators. Heavenly Fire''s greatness had even allowed the Hellish Landscape to contain other rank 8 cultivators'' inheritances. That separate dimension was the most popular location in the entire Land of the Fallen. Still, its environment made it hard to explore. The magical beasts trapped inside the Hellish Landscape were the same creatures that had managed to kill Heavenly Fire. That spoke for their power, and their long imprisonment had given them the time to fill that environment with descendant. The creatures in the separate dimension were also more violent due to their anger toward human beings. Some experts believed that a few of them had also developed Bloodline Inheritances due to their leaders'' intense emotions. The Hellish Landscape''s value increased because of those features, but they also made its environment harsher. Only powerful experts could survive there. The weaker ones had to limit themselves to the few safe areas. Noah had chosen to explore the Hellish Landscape because his species had an advantage in environments filled with magical beasts. His hybrid status could even save him from those creatures'' intense aggression since he wasn''t an actual human. Moreover, a wild environment would give him a significant advantage against eventual pursuers. Noah planned to lure any assassin member of the Crystal City inside the Hellish Landscape and take care of them while exploring the various inheritances. Silkpost city soon appeared in his vision. That city was far different from Vagona city. It featured a series of small mansions and tents that their owners could easily move if the situation required it. Their vicinity to the magical beasts'' domain put Silkpost city in constant danger. Its citizens didn''t know when the next invasion would arrive, so they were ready to move anytime. Noah landed on one of the main streets of the city. Tiles mixed with terrain divided the various buildings, and powerful experts walked around them as they inspected the goods they contained. The atmosphere was far different there. Noah felt as if he had entered a battlefield filled with warriors, and some of them turned in his direction after he landed. Chapter 1358: 1358. Bai Noah couldn''t understand the intentions of those cultivators by their simple stares. He had just landed on the city in the end. It was only normal for those experts to inspect him. The defensive robes worn by those experts revealed their status. Most of them belonged to well-known organizations that had deployed them in the Land of the Fallen to fight for the resources that it contained. Some cultivators didn''t appear to belong to any famous force. Noah couldn''t understand if they were hiding their status or were simple experts who had flown there in the hope of obtaining something valuable. Still, he didn''t care about that. ''They don''t need to hide their hatred,'' Noah thought when he sensed a series of intense gazes landing on his back. Those gazes came from cultivators who wore white robes that featured a series of purple designs. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize them. They belonged to the Crystal City. Noah ignored those experts and hurried forward. Those cultivators didn''t follow him, but he could sense that they activated their inscribed notebooks when they saw him leaving. Silkpost city had similar rules to Vagona city. The leaders of that settlement didn''t allow fights in its range, but their restrictions had noble reasons. Noah had studied that in the library. Silkpost city had three leaders in the eighth rank who actively entered the Land of the Fallen to seize resources for the human side. Those three powerful existences lived to stop the magical beasts'' advance, so they forbid cultivators from fighting among themselves. They couldn''t bear to see the human side getting weaker on its own. The rank 8 leaders belonged to three prominent organizations. One of them came from the Crystal City, one from the Monneay family, and the last from the Sailbrird family. Their position in Silkpost city benefited their organizations since they could overview most of the resources retrieved in the Land of the Fallen. Those experts could even affect some of the secret auctions and underground markets. Their power would typically allow them to act as they wished in Silkpost city. Still, they did their best to keep an eye on each other to avoid internal clashes. Their position wouldn''t even last forever since the famous organizations often organized tournaments to decide who could rule there. Only the Crystal City didn''t have to join those tournaments. Its work on the border with the magical beasts'' domain gave its members an honorary position in the city and an eternal spot on the ruling seat. Noah had learnt all of that in the library. He knew that the Crystal City wouldn''t attack him as long as he remained in the range of the other two powerful auras. His casual stroll expressed how safe he felt in that place. ''I wonder how many will come after me,'' Noah thought as he inspected the various shops. The buildings in Silkpost city mostly sold battle-related items. Every expert there aimed to approach the Land of the Fallen, so that type of business flourished there. The inscription halls were also different. They didn''t have large gardens where inscription masters could exhibit their ability. All the work happened inside their main structures. Noah didn''t find anything interesting in the shops. The lack of diversity in their products soon bored him, especially since those items couldn''t compare to those found in Vagona city. Still, he didn''t interrupt his stroll. Noah wanted everyone to see that he had landed on Silkpost city. He had to be sure that his opponents learnt about his arrival. Noah activated the Divine Deduction technique at some point. That ability couldn''t help him find those after his bounty, but he didn''t like to waste time. He could study Great Builder''s teaching while he played the bait in his own hunt. The theory behind the workshop hid great power. Noah knew that he could implement it in the dark world and improve his technique''s overall strength. The danger that filled his surroundings pushed his mind to do better. Noah used the bounty on his head as fuel that forced him to get closer to a solution. The dark world could provide the materials and the manpower. Noah only needed wills capable of programming the dark matter to create the workshop inside his technique. His expertise led him to test his ideas on wills with the shape of magical beasts. The experience accumulated with the Body-inscription spell also helped him polishing his creations. ''This won''t work either,'' Noah thought as a series of ethereal figures crumbled and fused with his mental sea. Even seas of consciousness in the divine ranks had their limits. Noah''s thoughts contained immense power, but he couldn''t devise an entire living being and give it orders without depleting their energy. The dark matter also forced him to use more energy than usual. Affecting ordinary materials would be easier in his situation, but Noah didn''t know where to build the workshop if he didn''t rely on his higher energy. The dark world had to be the core of the workshop. That technique was too perfect not to pair it with Great Builder''s inheritance. ''I need to start with simple creatures,'' Noah eventually concluded. ''Ants, flies, anything that won''t crumble before it completes giving orders to the dark matter.'' Noah didn''t ignore his surroundings while his mind worked on finding a solution to his issue. He noticed how a few cultivators had started to follow him, but their power didn''t make them a threat in his eyes. Those were simple scouts sent by the forces that had received the wanted poster. Their job was to keep an eye on him and understand where he was going. ''Didn''t they tell them that I am a hybrid?'' Noah wondered as he continued to stroll through the city. The scouts had decent hiding techniques, but they were useless against his superior awareness. Noah could even smell them among the groups around him. They could hide from a cultivator, but any hybrid would spot them immediately. Noah knew that the Crystal City didn''t lie about his species, so he couldn''t understand the scout''s behavior. Something felt off, so Noah began to accelerate. The smell that reached his nostrils became less intense, which allowed him to understand what the scouts were up to. The scouts accelerated together with Noah, but they eventually saw him shoot in the air and leave the city''s range. Unsightly expressions appeared on their faces when they sensed that they had failed to put a tracker on him. The smell didn''t manage to mark his robe. Noah flew toward the Land of the Fallen, but he didn''t use his full speed. He wanted his pursuers to follow him, so he couldn''t use his real power during the travel. A vast plain soon unfolded in his vision. For the first time since his ascension, Noah saw a region devoid of magical plants. That land still contained the Immortal Lands'' usual energy, but nothing grew on its barren soil. Multiple groups of cultivators occupied specific locations of the plains. Sparse flashy buildings filled the environment, and lines of experts often stretched from them. The atmosphere became even tenser once Noah reached the plain. The air felt dense with aggression, sorrow, hatred, and anger. It was as if he could sense the emotions radiated by the past experts'' dying wishes. Noah took a while to become used to that atmosphere. His superior awareness made him feel more than others, so his mind had to endure the streams of violent emotions that landed on its ethereal surface. Chaotic memories also appeared in his vision. Noah saw messy images flashing in front of his eyes before his focus returned. ''How can so many powerful experts die in the same place?'' Noah wondered as he learnt to fend off the violent emotions that filled the area. Then, when he managed to suppress that external influence, he turned his eyes toward a large crack that spread through the plain and almost divided it into two different regions. The entrance to the Hellish Landscape was at its bottom. Chapter 1359: 1359. Fire Noah dived directly into the crack. His behavior wasn''t unusual, so the cultivators in the area didn''t even bother to look at him. Signals and runes covered the walls of the crack and indicated the direction to take to reach the Hellish Landscape. The separate dimension had multiple entrances controlled by different organizations, and Noah flew toward those that belonged to the Balrow family. Noah didn''t want to join any organization, but he wouldn''t refrain from using a family that desired to rope him in. His continuous refusals would eventually ruin that relationship, but it didn''t hurt to exploit it for now. Entering the Hellish Landscape wasn''t hard. Noah only had to dive deeper into the crack while following the indications on the walls to reach that separate dimension. The Immortal Lands'' rocky terrain slowly turned red as Noah reached deeper parts of the crack. The temperature also rose to indicate that he was getting closer to his destination. The scenery in his eyes changed at some point. A scarlet environment replaced the red rocks that had begun to fill the depths of the cracks. Trails of smoke rose toward the pale-yellow sky, and massive fires illuminated the world in the distance. Noah had suddenly found himself inside the separate dimension, and crowds of cultivators appeared in his vision when he crossed a cloud of gray fumes. ''Quite peculiar,'' Noah thought as he inspected the area. The Hellish Landscape mainly contained "Breath" of the fire element, and that gave birth to a series of massive fires that could continue to burn for millennia. Noah saw a plain made of red soil, mountains of flames in the distance, and lifeforms that could absorb the very fire that filled the environment. There didn''t seem to be any distinction between the ground and the flames. A large patch of terrain could take fire on its own and shrink the lands that the cultivators could inhabit. The powerful organizations took care of extinguishing those fires. Some of them could even radiate a level of power in the eighth rank, so they needed to remain outside of the inhabitable zones. A large mansion surrounded by cultivators stood at the center of the red plain. Noah recognized the symbols of the Balrow family on the structure, so he didn''t hesitate to take out his green cards when he saw that guards approached him. The guards performed a polite bow at that sight and let him land. They didn''t even investigate his identity. They only reported to the leaders inside the mansion that Defying Demon had entered the Hellish Landscape. Noah didn''t waste time in the area. He only had one advantage in that situation, and he didn''t want to lose it to purchase maps and learn more about that environment. He needed to choose a battlefield before his pursuers reached him. The insides of the separate dimension weren''t under the protection of the three rank 8 existences in Silkpost city. Humans could fight themselves freely there. A few experts wearing green robes came out of the mansion to greet Noah, but he didn''t even look at them and continued to fly through the separate dimension. A red halo filled every inch of that world. That separate dimension was immense, but fires filled most of it. The lifeforms in that environment had also evolved according to that feature, so they often released flames that made the scarlet aura more intense. Noah didn''t know where he was going. He had learnt something about the Hellish Landscape in the library, but he was unaware of many details. He could only guess where a few inheritances were due to the layout of that place. The powerful organizations had created a series of roads that shielded part of the heat radiated by the flames. Those paths connected the various mansions in the Hellish Landscape and the inheritances discovered in the past. Noah only needed to enter one of them to be safe. It was hard to follow a cultivator''s aura in that environment. Still, he didn''t want to escape from his pursuers. In his mind, it was better to kill them before they stopped underestimating him. Vast lands made of fire expanded in his vision. Magical beasts and plants of various kinds thrived among the flames and kept track of his movements. Those creatures could sense his species'' strangeness, and Noah could feel the same when it came to their hatred toward humans. Most of those beasts shot furious glances at him only to lower them after they understood that he was a hybrid. The world put a lot of pressure on him. The flames were hard to endure, and the heat that filled the environment could even make his centers of power sluggish. His mind also had to endure its share of suffering. The heat and the hatred of the magical beasts filled the sky. Some of the smoke trails even contained dense versions of those features, so he had to avoid them for the time being. The smoke could be useful to his training, but Noah didn''t want to tire himself out yet. He had to complete his business with his pursuers before enjoying the benefits of that environment. Noah continued to fly forward, using his instincts to decide where he could lay efficient ambushes. The only neutral areas were those filled with fire, so his choice soon fell on one of them. The world in his vision became even redder when he dived inside the flames. A series of dense fiery tongues created a surface where he could step and walk, but he soon confirmed that he could pierce them to dig deeper into the separate dimension. Diving was the method to reach the harsher parts of the Hellish Landscape. The immense fiery scenery was only the most superficial layer of that separate dimension. ''Some powerful inheritances should manage to affect the environment at some point,'' Noah thought as he kicked the dense flames to create a tunnel through them. ''The flames will become more intense, but I can handle the superficial layers.'' The temperature rose as he continued to dive through the dense flames. Even weak gaseous stage cultivators could endure that fire and fight freely at those depths, so Noah felt the need to go deeper. Noah had finally reached a place where he could fight without creating any mess. He could choose a battlefield where his hybrid status would grant him the most significant advantages. A few large tunnels appeared in his vision as he continued to dive through the flames. Those were paths dug by the other organizations that any cultivator could use. They only needed to pay a fee since those roads led directly to certain inheritances. . . . While Noah was busy finding a battlefield, multiple cultivators appeared in the sky of the Hellish Landscape. Dozens of experts descended toward the fiery surface and studied each other when they noticed other teams with similar intentions. Those teams didn''t say a word to each other, but they understood that they were after the same target. That forced them to cooperate for the time being and search for Noah''s tracks together. It didn''t take them much to guess the general direction where Noah had gone. They had experts meant to track him down, so they quickly moved toward the lands filled with fire. Their chase had begun. **** Author''s notes: My neck is killing me for some unknown reason. I can''t manage more than one chap. Will sleep and make the others. Chapter 1360: 1360. Rumbling Region The arrival of Noah''s pursuers was a strange sight that the cultivators inside the Hellish Landscape couldn''t help but notice. It wasn''t odd for experts to enter the separate dimension in groups. Still, it was rare for so many assets without an apparent organization to join forces as soon as their exploration began. However, no guard could stop them since they all had cards and tokens that stated their position inside various organizations. Some of them had even worked for multiple forces, so their credentials allowed them to avoid the mansion without meeting any troubles. Tracking cultivators inside the Hellish Landscape was quite hard, especially if they left the safe areas. The massive fires that made most of that separate dimension could destroy traces and leftovers of auras in seconds. Still, individualities could take countless shapes, and some of them allowed cultivators to find fellow experts without the need for any trace. In some rare cases, a few existences could even divine the position of their targets. The team of pursuers contained some of Noah''s old acquaintances. Zach and Gil from the Crystal City were there, but they wore robes that didn''t expose their affiliation to that organization. The guild that was protecting the library in Vagona city was also there. Other smaller guilds and organizations had joined the hunt due to the bounty on Noah''s head, but their members didn''t feel in control of the situation while working together with those teams. It wasn''t even a matter of influence of their forces. The presence of two liquid stage cultivators put those groups instantly in charge of the chase. Noah had met only one of those liquid stage experts, and she was wearing a disguise to avoid linking her identity to her guild. Chief Ash from the guards of the library in Vagona city was among the hunting group. The other liquid stage expert had never interacted with Noah, but she had been close to meet him in the forest ruled by the Twelve-legged Queen. She was Lady Lena from the Crystal City, and she was also wearing a disguise to protect her organization. The cultivators in the gaseous stage could avoid hiding their identities since they weren''t worthy of recognition. The Immortal Lands had countless experts at the beginning of the divine ranks, so they weren''t famous enough to need a thorough disguise. Instead, the two liquid stage experts had already surpassed the masses of nameless divine existences. Their cultivation level spoke for their talent. They had already proven that they could strive for the higher ranks, and that gave them some fame. Those who witnessed the arrival of that hunting group didn''t link the event to Noah. No one would believe that a team that featured two liquid stage experts would go after a single gaseous stage cultivator. Of course, they didn''t know all the facts. Noah had already deeply offended the Crystal City, and Chief Ash''s team had personal motives to join the hunts. Moreover, Noah''s identity as a hybrid had forced those experts to take the hunt seriously. Not even Fergie had been able to foresee that they would have sent liquid stage cultivators after him. . . . Noah continued to dive through the dense scarlet flames, unaware that dozens of cultivators were already searching for him. The environment remained the same for entire hours. Flames filled Noah''s vision and enveloped his body, and their power slowly increased as he ventured deeper into the separate dimension. Noah had to use a few tunnels at some point. Flames with power in the middle tier had begun to appear in his path, so he had to fly toward a few safe areas to continue his descent. The tunnels among the sea of flames featured countless guards and a few structures belonging to the various organizations. Noah only needed to show his green card to avoid the entrance fee, but his worries lingered elsewhere. His green card carried his name. Noah had to leave traces if he wanted to reach deeper parts of the separate dimension. Noah couldn''t avoid that, but he took advantage of that unfavorable situation to purchase maps about the Hellish Landscape. Cultivators rarely visited the shops in those areas, so he quickly found a structure that didn''t feature any line. ''Where should I go?'' Noah thought as he continued to follow the tunnel while studying the map. Except for the endless lands made of fire, the Hellish Landscape had a few regions that featured solid ground. Different dying wishes had clashed on those spots and had given birth to strange environments devoid of flames. Noah didn''t want to leave the fires. His hybrid status made him more resilient than every cultivator, so he preferred to fight in an environment that could wear out his opponents. Still, he also wanted something that wouldn''t benefit cultivators with a fire aptitude too much. The messier the environment, the better it was for him since he could adapt to any situation. ''This seems interesting,'' Noah thought when he read the description of a mark in a deeper part of the separate dimension. The Hellish Landscape was immense. Its regions featured countless magical beasts, and their power would increase with the depth. The same wasn''t true for the flames since they would weaken whenever they clashed with a different dying wish. Noah''s target was among one of the regions that could contain magical beasts in the eighth rank. That place''s name was Rumbling Region, and it featured the inheritance of a rank 8 existence with a lightning aptitude. According to the map, the lightning bolts shooting out of the inheritance had created a landmass. They had clashed with the flames for millennia and given birth to a peculiar region. That place even had a different fauna and flora from the rest of the Hellish Landscape. The flames there had power at the peak of the middle tier, but the magical plants in the area fed on them and weakened their might. Noah read that the surface had multiple large areas where the fire barely crossed the halfway mark of the lower tier in terms of strength. The map gave Noah a detailed description of the path that led toward the Rumbling Region. He had to follow a series of tunnels and cross flames through entire regions of the separate dimension. Still, the journey didn''t scare him. He was looking forward to reaching his destination. Purchasing the map had given him a general overview of the inheritances contained in the Hellish Landscape, and what he leant made his interest skyrocket. He wanted to test himself in a few of them, but he had to take care of his issue first. . . . "Have you seen this cultivator?" Lady Lena asked one of the guards in a tunnel near the surface. Chief Ash stood politely behind her, and the rest of the gaseous stage experts imitated her. They all waited for Lady Lena to handle the situation since she had revealed her affiliation with the Crystal City. Due to the flames and Noah''s robe, the hunting group was struggling to find him. The experts would eventually locate him with their abilities, but Lady Lena didn''t want to waste time. The Crystal City was important in the areas near the border, so the guard could only bow in front of the white metal card shown by Lady Lena. The cultivator didn''t hesitate to contact the other troops stationed in different tunnels to please her. In a matter of seconds, the guard found something that matched Lady Lena''s description. The inspection was so thorough that the hunting group even learnt about his possible destinations. **** Author''s notes: My neck seems fine this morning. The should arrive in a few hours. Chapter 1361: 1361. Splitting Noah flew quickly. Tunnels and areas filled with flames went by until he reached his target. A dark-red landmass soon appeared in his vision. It was as big as the piece of Immortal Lands fallen in the lower world, and a yellowish halo surrounded it as it floated among the sea of flames. The landmass had plains, forests, and mountains. Countless magical beasts had taken it as its home. That region was one of the spectacles that only the Immortal Lands could offer. No material in the lower plane could survive a similar environment. Lightning bolts fell from the tallest mountain situated at the eastern edge of the landmass. The inheritance of the rank 8 expert was at its summit, and it continuously generated sparks that ran through the entire region and transformed its matter. The flames alone couldn''t give birth to that place on their own. Only the clash between two elements with similar power could create something so spectacular. Noah felt in awe of the resilience of the creatures living on the landmass. The various magical beasts had learnt to absorb the flames that made the sky and the lightning bolts running in the ground, and their power had benefitted from those elements. The lightning bolts carried a strange individuality. It allowed the beings that fed on their power to alter their species. Noah had never seen anything like that. The sparks seemed able to force those beings to evolve. The magical beasts had it a bit worse on the landmass. The rulers of the Hellish Landscape all had a fire aptitude, so the Rumbling Region weakened their innate abilities. Only the species that couldn''t survive in the sea of flames lived there. Noah''s instincts sent warning messages to his mind. He could sense the presence of rank 8 magical beasts among the flames around the landmass. Still, the Rumbling Region didn''t have such strong creatures. As for cultivators, the Rumbling Region appeared temporarily devoid of them. The inheritance in that place was quite challenging and could be deadly, so it wasn''t popular among the weaker experts. ''This is perfect!'' Noah thought before diving toward the landmass. A layer of darkness and dark matter covered his figure and helped his innate defenses fending off the dangerous flames that filled the environment. A few fiery tongues with power in the upper tier swam among fires in the middle tier. The flame''s might decreased as Noah neared the landmass, and he could soon lower his protection without feeling in danger. A strange sensation filled him when he stepped on the dark-red ground. The lightning bolts had nourished that terrain for millennia. The whole landmass radiated the mighty rank 8 existence''s aura. ''What is this feeling?'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes to experience the influence contained in the ground. His body naturally absorbed the energy in the environment, and Noah could feel which effect that aura tried to apply on his tissues. The expert''s individuality wanted to alter his figure''s fabric and reassemble it to improve its state! Noah didn''t sense any harm coming from that aura, so he let it affect a small part of his skin while he absorbed the energy in the environment. However, he soon witnessed something strange. The black hole activated on its own and sent dark matter toward the piece of skin that the expert''s aura was trying to modify. The higher energy fought against that individuality and fended it off, regaining complete control over Noah''s body. Even the absorption of that energy went differently. The black hole would normally purify any nutrients before sending it back to his tissues, but the center of power decided to keep some of that energy for itself at that time. Noah felt as if his black hole was studying that expert''s individuality. The fourth center of power wanted to learn from it and improve its functions! ''Cultivating here might not be a bad idea,'' Noah thought as his gaze went on the distant tall mountains. His interest in that inheritance had suddenly skyrocketed. The enhancements that the expert''s individuality tried to apply matched the purification operated by his black hole. The mountain could teach him how to improve his fourth center of power. Still, Noah didn''t let his greed take control of his actions. He had far more important matters to handle. He even had to prepare for the imminent clash. Noah avoided the territories under the control of upper tier creatures but chose to settle near the Rumbling Region''s center. He wanted to remain in control of the whole area to decide how to ambush his pursuers. The ground was too hard for him. Even his strongest attacks couldn''t pierce it, so he had to settle for one of the magical plants in the area. Noah dug a small room inside one of the thickest trees in the lower tier that he found. That magical plants didn''t have offensive capabilities, so it didn''t struggle when the Demonic Sword cut its insides. The Divine Deduction technique activated when Noah began to cultivate inside the tree. His consciousness also expanded to inspect the area. He had decided to train while he waited for his pursuers to arrive. Noah wouldn''t usually waste mental energy before a battle, but completing his workshop would make his battle prowess skyrocket. His instincts had also begun to sense some danger, so his mental capabilities worked at full speed to solve the issue. He was close to a solution. He only needed to complete one blueprint to activate that ability, and he intended to do it before his pursuers arrived. . . . The hunting group flew through the tunnels and reached the area where the Rumbling Region was. The guards could only point them in that direction, so discerning where Noah had gone was in the expert''s hands. "There are too many interferences here," Gil said as howls spread from his figure. "I can sense that someone has recently flown through this area, but I can''t pinpoint the exact location." Some hierarchies had already formed among those experts. Those who belonged to assassin guilds and other smaller organizations didn''t dare to oppose the Crystal City''s orders. Only Chief Ash could join those conversations, but Lady Lena often took decisions on her own anyway. They weren''t a united group. They had the same target, and the Crystal City was willing to cooperate with all of them to ensure the success of the mission. The other teams wouldn''t even be there otherwise. "The Rumbling Region, the Fiery Lake, and the Three White Peaks," Chief Ash said at some point. "These are the only possible destinations in this area. We know that he has a darkness aptitude and a powerful body. He is also aware that someone is following him. I bet that he will use his advantages to set up an ambush." "Hybrids rely too much on their bodies," Lady Lena said after sighing. "The Rumbling Region should suit him the most. He will probably try to use the flames to wear us down." "Do you suggest exploring the Rumbling Region first?" Chief Ash asked. "No," Lady Lena replied. "He will only escape again if our guess is wrong. We should split. The Crystal City will take the Rumbling Region. Your guild can handle the Three White Peaks. The others will go to the Fiery Lake." A series of unsightly expressions appeared on the members of the weaker organizations. They had joined the hunt because of the bounty on Noah''s head. Dividing the teams would only lower their chances of seizing it. "Don''t worry," Lady Lena added after she noticed their expressions. "You have already helped. The Crystal City will pay as long as the mission is successful. You can split the reward afterward." Her words improved the overall mood of the group. The weaker members had no more objections at that point. The three teams split and flew toward their respective directions without saying anything else. Chapter 1362: 1362. Overwhelmed Noah cultivated, meditated, and experimented with his dark world while his consciousness remained unfolded. His mind could sense almost everything happening in the Rumbling Region. Only the flames and the occasional lightning bolts interrupted his perception. Mental energy rose from his mental sea as inscription illuminated the walls of his consciousness. His thoughts flew inside his mind to create simple shapes capable of containing enormous power. The figure of a spider slowly formed above his mental sea. It had six slim legs and a minute body, but it didn''t crumble after its creation ended. That was as far Noah had managed to go with the workshop. A stable set of rules was the best he could do for now. ''It won''t be useful unless I turn it into a rune,'' Noah thought as he continued his training inside the trunk. Since the blueprint for the workshop had to affect the dark world, Noah couldn''t use his higher energy to create the creature''s shape. The rules carried by his thoughts would only interfere with the dark matter, and the same went for his other energies. Noah needed to create a new rune that could force his dark world to mass-produce magical beasts, and he could only use his mental energy to complete the task. His thoughts had to reach the same level of power of inscriptions built through different energies. The task was arduous. Noah''s expertise also diverged from that type of inscription since he had always used his many energies to create stronger products. When it came to using only his thoughts, he found himself inexperienced. Still, his other abilities were a perfect match for Great Builder''s individuality, so he pressed on with the experiments. Noah could feel that he was close to completing the first blueprint. He only needed a small push to polish it. Luckily for him, he had enemies willing to give him a reason to improve. Lady Lena, Gil, Zach, and a fourth cultivator from the Crystal City descended toward the Rumbling Region while Noah was in the middle of his training. The unknown member was a middle-aged woman in the gaseous stage with long blonde hair and dark eyes. Her position among the other weaker experts didn''t appear to be low, but she couldn''t show off with Lady Lena next to her. The group of four landed on the dark-red terrain and began their investigation. Lady Lena and Gil took care of that part of the hunt, but they failed in locating Noah in that wild environment. They could sense Noah''s aura in the environment, but they couldn''t pinpoint his exact location. The flames'' interference and his robe''s hiding capabilities made the task too hard to solve in a few hours. "Be careful," Lady Lena said as she stepped forward to lead her group toward the center of the region. Even with the robe, Noah couldn''t hide the traces left during his training. The group from the Crystal City could understand that he was somewhere at the center of the region, and they didn''t hesitate to march toward those areas. Noah was aware of the movements happening around him. He had seen how many cultivators had arrived before retracting his consciousness. He was relying on his instincts to keep track of their behavior now. The presence of the liquid stage cultivator worried him, but part of him trembled in excitement at the idea of facing an existence at that level. Noah wanted to throw himself at Lady Lena right away, but he had to take care of her underlings first. Noah wasn''t sure that he could handle a cultivator in the liquid stage, but he was certain that his death would arrive if he let those underlings alive. He needed to be wholly focused on Lady Lena to fight her, and he couldn''t let weaker enemies hinder him. Noah''s mental waves spread through the environment and covered almost the entirety of the landmass. His robe managed to hide most of their properties, but Lady Lena soon realized that something was off. That sensation didn''t come from her consciousness. Her instincts had told them that the area had suddenly become more dangerous, and she prepared for the imminent clash. Noah closed his eyes, and his enemies appeared in his mind. The Demonic Sword flew out of the separate space and landed in his hand before lifting it to laid it on his forehead. Zach and Gil had already fought against Noah, so they had learnt part of his abilities. Yet, Noah had grown a lot since his landing in the Immortal Lands. His body had reached levels that they couldn''t imagine, and his other centers of power had also seen a decent growth. Noah wasn''t a newly advanced god anymore. He was an existence that could defeat beings stronger than him. Gil was the first among the experts in the gaseous stage to notice that something was off. Through his howls, he sensed that the air had become denser as if an invisible layer of energy had covered the whole area. It didn''t take him much to understand what was happening, but it was too late when he noticed anything. A black line formed above his head and crashed on his body in an instant. The same happened for Zach and the other gaseous stage cultivator. They saw massive black lines appearing above their heads and transforming into large but sharp blades that fell on them. Only Lady Lena remained outside of that assault. Noah knew that his chances of taking her by surprise were scarce, so he didn''t even try to attack her. Noah moved among the thick trees as he studied the effects of his attack. His opponents would find him if he remained in the same spot after unfolding his consciousness. There was a limit to what his robe could do at such a distance. Disappointment soon filled his mind when he saw that azure shields came out of the cultivators'' figures and expanded to form three large spheres. His black lines vanished among the tides running on the defenses'' surface. His attacks couldn''t even pierce them. The landmass began to tremble at that point. Noah felt an immense threat flying in his direction, but his instincts told him that he couldn''t avoid that clash. Noah turned and slashed in the direction of the danger, but a tide of azure water crashed on him, destroying his attack and flinging him away. He soon found himself at the bottom of a mountain and with his bones emitting screeching noises. His robe was in tatters. Even that magnificent piece of equipment couldn''t fend off the attack of a liquid stage cultivator. Noah spat a mouthful of blood as he straightened his position and shot in the distance. He didn''t want to face an expert in the liquid stage directly, but what he desired didn''t matter in that situation. A series of water currents ran through the fiery sky and converged in his position, crashing on his body and pushing him back on the ground. The impact on the landmass was so intense that earthquakes began to spread through the regions. Noah felt his bones cracking as the water prevented him from making any movement. Strange noises echoed from inside his body, and blood accumulated in his mouth. Those were only casual attacks, but Noah felt utterly overwhelmed. The differences among the stages and ranks in the divine realms were immense, and filling those gaps required countless items or a great talent. Training was also essential. "You thought you were so strong, didn''t you?" Lady Lena said as she and her underlings neared Noah. "Hybrids rarely are great thinkers. They often give up on their intellect to choose the path of the beast. You won''t be any different." Noah struggled to get up, but more currents fell on him and continued to damage him. Lady Lena wanted to keep him down, and she was succeeding. "I already am different," Noah said as black smoke began to come out of his figure. Two shadows also shot out of his separate space, and his ambition began to fill the entire aura. Noah was about to go all-out, but he held back the disposable puppet. **** Author''s notes: Next 2 after I wake up. Chapter 1363: 1363. Tide Lady Lena''s might was immense. Her casual attacks could suppress and injure Noah easily. The gap between the gaseous and the liquid stage was something that would take more than a few tricks to fill. Noah sensed his power increasing as his ambition seeped out of his figure. His cultivation level rose as all his techniques and assets spread in the world. ''Three gaseous stage cultivators, one in the liquid stage,'' Noah thought as the range of his consciousness increased. ''No gaseous stage expert can win this battle.'' That conclusion was obvious. Lady Lena''s power alone could suppress him. The battle would only become harsher once her three underlings joined the fight. ''I can''t escape, I can''t hide, and I can''t win,'' Noah concluded as his power rose. Facing certain death made his survival instincts scream, and Noah didn''t dare to suppress them. He needed to feel everything and understand how hopeless his situation was to create a chance. He needed to sense the most intense desperation to force his existence to improve. Truth be told, Noah didn''t predict that the Crystal City would send a liquid stage cultivator so quickly. Still, he couldn''t avoid ending up in that situation unless he decided to slow down his growth. His ambition had forced him to be in that situation, and Noah could only rely on his individuality to overcome that challenge. If he couldn''t do it, he wouldn''t be able to survive what would come after that battle. ''I have done this countless times,'' Noah spoke to himself as pure coldness came out of his figure. ''I will use every trick, every shameful act, every desperate move to overcome this challenge. Honor is pointless. Sanity is pointless. Power is everything, and I need to be alive to seize it.'' Lady Lena didn''t let the unfolding of Noah''s techniques startle her. The dark world and the corrosive cloud were expanding toward her, but another wave of torrents forced them to shrink. Noah could sense everything happening around him. Azure torrents pierced his strongest techniques and converged in his position to crash on his body again. Blood accumulated under his skin as countless internal injuries opened. The dark world and corrosive cloud expanded once again. Noah had just suffered heavy injuries, but the power unleashed by his abilities didn''t decrease. Lady Lena could see how they had moved closer to the peak of the gaseous stage. "A reckless animal indeed!" Lady Lena shouted while raising both hands to the sky. Her aura expanded and seeped into the environment to alter its laws. The sea of fire that filled every inch of the sky morphed and obtained liquid features. The flames transformed into scarlet waves that began to move toward the expanding cloud. Noah sensed the arrival of the scarlet tide. It was as if the whole sky was falling on him. Lady Lena''s individuality carried endlessness that he couldn''t describe, and part of him felt unable to conceive methods to stop that attack. ''I see,'' Noah thought as Snore appeared in front of him and spewed its dark beam. ''She carries the true power of a catastrophe. The endlessness of countless waves, and the might of something that can''t stop moving forward.'' Snore''s dark beam crashed on the waves, but it only managed to pierce a part of those scarlet waters. The sky continued to fall on Noah and destroyed all the techniques that he had deployed in his defense. That attack could kill him. Suicidal thoughts surged in his mind as Lady Lena''s individuality converged on his figure. The immensity of her waves made him desire to give up and put an end to that struggle. Noah opened his mouth, and the world went dark for an instant as a defiant roar spread in the environment. Dark flames surrounded by a silver halo shot everywhere on the Rumbling Region right before the tide crashed on him. The whole landmass trembled, but it didn''t suffer any damage. The shockwave generated in the crash eradicated some of the trees in the area and destroyed part of the black flames. No gaseous stage cultivator could survive that attack. Even the strongest material in the lower tier couldn''t remain intact against the full might of an expert in the liquid stage. The waves slowly transformed back into flames as Lady Lena retracted her individuality. A destroyed environment became visible after her spell vanished. The cultivators from the Crystal City saw a maimed body among that destruction. The waves had almost reduced it to a pulp. Its limbs had vanished, and its torso was nothing more than a series of torn tissues immersed in a pool of blood. A faint trace of life came out of the body. Noah appeared on the verge of dying. It seemed that even his centers of power didn''t want to keep him alive anymore. "Wonderfully done," Zach said as he performed a bow toward Lady Lena. The other underlings imitated him, but Lady Lena didn''t move her eyes from Noah''s body. She sensed that something was off, but she couldn''t pinpoint the cause behind that feeling. Moreover, she couldn''t understand how Noah was still alive after her attack. Hybrids were only slightly stronger than magical beasts when it came to their physical strength, and her attack could even threaten some creatures in the middle tier. Nothing should have survived the waves, but Noah was there, alive. That scene left Lady Lena dumbfounded. She saw something impossible. Her worry slowly began to vanish when she sensed that Noah kept weakening. He would die soon. That flaw in her understanding would disappear as soon as that issue ended. "Hmph!" The third underling snorted when she saw that Noah was still hanging on his life. "He dares to remain alive after Lady Lena''s attack! Can I put an end to his struggles?" A slight tremor ran through the sky after her words, but only Lady Lena managed to sense it. Cultivators in the gaseous stage couldn''t feel that subtle change in the environment. "Kathleen, Zach, Gil," Lady Lena said as coldness appeared in her eyes. "Retreat." Three underlings couldn''t understand the meaning behind her words, but a suffocating aura soon filled the sky and forced them to remain still. An intense feeling crashed on their minds and forced them to condense their consciousnesses in a desperate attempt to stabilize their center of power. Their thoughts tried to shoot out of their minds when that feeling swept them. Desires that they couldn''t suppress took over their mental spheres and made them gasp for air. The trio in the gaseous stage didn''t understand what they were feeling. Their eyes moved on their own to stare at the red sky above. Small white dots even appeared in their vision. For some reason, they began to see stars in that separate dimension. Lady Lena easily fended off the effects of that individuality, but she couldn''t stop the black flames. The black fire had expanded after that aura filled the environment, and countless specks of energy flew toward Noah to fuse with his body. A silver halo soon enveloped Noah. His destroyed tissues grew right in front of Lady Lena''s eyes. His body reformed in a few seconds, and a violent aura came out of his figure. When a twitch ran through Noah''s fingers, Lady Lena began to sense an aura with power in the liquid stage coming out of her opponent. Chapter 1364: 1364. Domains Lady Lena unfolded her aura and created another tide that began to crash on Noah. She wouldn''t wait for him to recover. Her survival instincts were telling her that it was better to finish him off quickly. The flames in the sky transformed into a scarlet sea that flew toward Noah. Waves crashed on his spot again, and more tremors ran through the Rumbling Region after her attack. Lady Lena didn''t stop there. She quickly cast her ability again and created more waves around her figure. The sky continued to fall on Noah. The expert could launch an endless attack that would never stop. A silver halo soon shone from inside her scarlet waves, and a black spot spread until it filled the entire ground. Dark flames began to burn Lady Lena''s waters and send energy toward their center. Lady Lena tried to create more waves, but the flames didn''t stop. They kept expanding and threatened to reach her position since they were following her spell. The expert had to dodge. Lady Lena cut her connection with the tide and shot higher in the sky while dragging her underlings with her. The trio was unable to think properly with Noah''s aura filling the environment. They could only stare at the sky in wonder. The flames expanded until they covered the entire Rumbling Region. Any magical plant or beast with power near the bottom of the middle tier or below died under the violence of Noah''s ability. The energy contained in their bodies then converged toward the source of the flames. The powerful beings in the area couldn''t understand what was happening, but they decided to hold back their offensive when they heard a draconic roar spreading through the landmass. The fire shrunk after it consumed everything that it could. Lady Lena observed the scene, and her eyes sharpened when she saw the shape of a cultivator appearing among the condensing flames. "You have my gratitude," Noah said as he straightened his position. His robe and body had reformed after the flames had taken all the available energy on the landmass. Lady Lena couldn''t find a single injury on his body. Noah had returned to his previous condition, except that his cultivation level was in the liquid stage now. "You won''t be so grateful after I kill you again," Lady Lena answered as the upper part of the sky took a liquid form. Noah limited himself to reveal a cold smile. The time for words was over. He only wanted to test his new power now. A deafening roar came out of his mouth as he raised his head to the sky. He felt his ambition exploding. He sensed his need to turn the whole environment under his control. Noah had never sensed such intense power. Every inch of his body cheered, and his mind expanded. The world around him transformed due to the aura that he released. Black lines appeared in its fabric and strengthened its structure. His ambition was raging energy that forced everything to evolve. Impurities began to fell from the landmass, and the surviving creatures in the area neared the battlefield to bathe in his aura. The magical beasts and plants could sense Noah''s ambition''s beneficial properties, and they didn''t hesitate to get closer to his influence. Even Lady Lena felt compelled to let that individuality affect her tissues. ''I can do it in this state!'' Noah thought as an ethereal figure took form inside his mind. His thoughts surged to give birth to a six-legged spider. A massive amount of mental energy flowed inside that figure and filled it with rules and orders. The creature soon took life and flew inside the mental sea to join the other runes. Lady Lena suppressed her desire to bathe in Noah''s ambition and waved her hand. The scarlet water accumulated above her separated to form a series of torrents that fell toward Noah. The whole sky converged toward him, but he didn''t feel the slightest danger at that sight. The Demonic Sword roared as Noah waved it. The blade seemed heavy. It was as if it carried the weight of the whole world while it slashed toward the falling torrents. Lady Lena''s mind screamed in fear, and she quickly performed an evasive maneuver to dodge the incoming attack. When she turned to inspect her ability, she saw that a large chunk of her scarlet sea had disappeared and that black lines were expanding from that spot. A dangerous sensation suddenly appeared next to her, and her remaining waves immediately converged in that spot. A tall Pterodactyl became visible when the torrent crashed on its body. Lady Lena suddenly sensed another threat. A dark beam was flying in her direction, and her instincts told her that she couldn''t block it. She had to perform another evasive maneuver to dodge that attack. Still, the danger sensed by his mind didn''t disappear even after the violent dark matter missed her. A slash appeared on her path while she flew through the sky. Lady Lena didn''t have the time to dodge that attack, so a large cut opened on her body when she touched the black line. "Damned beast!" Lady Lena shouted, and her blood flowed out of her injury to fight against Noah''s slash. A slash-like wave came out of the cut and destroyed Noah''s attack. Lady Lena''s blood also fused with the environment and transformed a large chunk of the sky into a shining sea. Noah didn''t remain still during his offensive. He had flown after Lady Lena when Snore forced her to dodge. He was already behind her by the time she created the sea again. Noah performed a lunge, but her Demonic Sword met an invisible barrier before it could reach Lady Lena''s back. The air between him and his opponent had obtained liquid features and was protecting her from his attacks. "What?" Lady Lena turned to show a mocking smile at Noah. "Did you think that power was everything for divine cultivators? You truly are a beast. This part of the sky already belongs to me." Noah felt a massive pressure falling on his body. The air had become invisible water that crashed on his figure and tried to squeeze him to death. The scarlet water above Lady Lena began to rotate while Noah remained stuck inside the invisible tides. A dense column grew out of the massive whirlpool and converged in her hand. Lady Lena threw her edge of the column toward Noah. It was only as big as a man''s fist on that end, but it rotated quickly and began to dig Noah''s skin when it landed on him. The attack consumed water, but Lady Lena had connected the column to the liquid sky above her. That attack could theoretically be endless in that situation. It wouldn''t stop until it pierced Noah. ''This suppression is similar to my dark world,'' Noah thought as his smile widened. He was in danger. Lady Lena was the strongest opponent that he had ever met. However, he couldn''t hold back his happiness. The power that ran through his body made him feel ecstatic. Still, Lady Lena''s aura was starting to suppress his individuality. Her endlessness seemed able to overwhelm his ambition. Noah grew weaker with each second that he passed in that situation. Noah''s black hole rotated faster than ever. Cracks appeared in the liquid air as dark matter flowed inside his black veins and pushed his physical might above his natural limits. Lady Lena could suppress his individuality thanks to her experience in the liquid stage, but she couldn''t restrain him. Noah''s hand slowly took the form of a claw and slashed toward the column. Noah''s movement was slow, but it managed to launch a slash that severed the column and forced Lady Lena to retreat. The Crystal City''s expert didn''t let go of her control of the area during her retreat. She continued to make pressure and attacks converge on Noah, but a dense black gas came out of his chest and forced its way through her domain. Lady Lena''s individuality was still stronger than Noah''s dark matter, but a violent beam and a shadow flew behind her and forced her to dodge again. During that instant of distraction, the dark world reached her and enveloped her figure. Chapter 1365: 1365. Stronger Lady Lena couldn''t do anything as the dark world enveloped her. The dark matter stole that area''s ownership from her, and its influence began to suppress her individuality. However, her aura seeped out of her figure and gave birth to raging waves that slowly created a safe zone around her. Even inside the dark world, Lady Lena expressed her individuality and turned part of the environment into her domain. The safe area wasn''t big, but it continuously expanded as her azure waves pressed on the dark world. Lady Lena could only affect a four square meters wide zone, but her individuality was slowly enlarging it. Shadows moved inside the dark world. Lady Lena couldn''t see much. Her senses were dull due to the suppression of Noah''s technique. Yet, she could feel that something was brewing inside that darkness. Noah didn''t think. He let his instincts drive his actions against that powerful foe. He had yet to become used to his new power, so only his vast battle experience could make him express a decent prowess. Lady Lena was stronger than him. Her individuality alone could fend off Noah''s ambition and the dark world at the same time. She was an expert who had learnt how to use her liquid stage prowess. Instead, Noah had to bring himself on the verge of death to achieve that power. He didn''t even know what would happen when the effects of his ambition ran out. Everything that was happening to him was new and unclear. Still, his condition didn''t change his intentions. Noah had to deal with Lady Lena and all his pursuers. He had to win that battle to establish his place in the Immortal Lands. Mental energy flowed inside the spider-shaped ethereal figure that he had completed after his empowerment and came out of his mind to fuse with the dark world. The dark matter around him became tense after those orders seeped into its fabric, and creatures quickly took form under his attentive gaze. Noah saw a giant six-legged spider appearing among the dark world. Dark matter made the entirety of its body, and simple instincts ruled its limbs. Its overall structure seemed quite fragile, but it moved and could act on its own. A second spider appeared as the ethereal figure continued to affect the dark world. Small vortexes formed among the technique and gave birth to those creatures. The dark matter only took a few minutes to create an army of spiders. Those creatures didn''t even look at Noah. They directly shot toward Lady Lena once dozens of them had formed. The dark world continued to create spiders that shot toward Lady Lena, and Noah followed them to join the assault. Those creatures couldn''t win on their own. They contained power in the liquid stage, but their bodies'' frailty made them too weak to defeat that threatening opponent. Lady Lena''s waves had continued to expand her domain, but she had to redirect her ability when she saw the spiders coming out of the dark world to assault her. Dozens of spiders recklessly charged in the area under her control and stretched their sharp limbs toward her figure. The waves destroyed them before they could touch her, but the dark matter in their bodies filled her domain and gave part of the ownership back to Noah. Moreover, their assault seemed endless since more spiders jumped out of the darkness to attack her. The dark world began to close on her figure as dark matter accumulated around her. Her waves continued to rage and destroy anything that came too close. Still, her methods lost against the endlessness of the beasts'' tide. Noah didn''t let that chance go to waste. He waved his Demonic Sword to launch massive slashes that ran through the army of spiders and crashed on Lady Lena''s safe area. Snore and Night also joined the offensive. Dark beams flew through the dark world and crashed on Lady Lena''s waves. The Pterodactyl used its speed to cut through that defensive ability and slowly create an opening in her technique. It was a proper siege. Noah used all his abilities to create a flaw in Lady Lena''s defense, and he seemed on the right path. Her waves were slowly giving in to Noah''s attacks. However, Lady Lena was a rank 7 cultivator in the liquid stage who had lived in the Immortal Lands for countless years. Her abilities didn''t stop the activation of her individuality. She had techniques that Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine. Lady Lena closed her eyes, and the waves around her stopped moving. They remained still against Noah''s offensive. They didn''t even try to block his attacks. The dark beams, the army of spiders, Night, and the slashes crashed on her figure, ripping her domain to pieces. The dark world soon came into contact with her skin, and a sense of weakness filled her existence as the technique suppressed her law. Another series of attacks was about to land on her defenseless body. Noah could almost see his victory drawing closer. Yet, a blinding azure flash suddenly shone among the dark world and radiated energy that fended the technique back. Pillars of light ran through the dark world and cut its fabric as they rotated around the expanding sphere that had replaced Lady Lena''s figure. Those pillars resembled swords capable of destroying Noah''s technique, but he soon understood their true nature. He could sense Lady Lena''s individuality inside them. They weren''t blades. They were a threatening tide that had taken a condensed form. The endless expanding waves had transformed after the activation of that technique. Their power had increased because Lady Lena had condensed them into a slim shape, making them able to pierce the ability that was trapping her. The efforts exerted during that technique were substantial. Lady Lena''s individuality could potentially be endless, and condensing its power into such an orderly form required all her concentration. Still, it also brought incredible results. Noah saw his dark world crumbling under the power of an individuality that he couldn''t stop. His strongest technique against cultivators couldn''t do anything against Lady Lena. She was stronger than him, and no tricks seemed to work. Noah looked around his crumbling dark matter. Parts of his dark world were still active, and that gave him the chance to continue his offensive for a while. After that, he would be in the open again, and she wouldn''t fall prey to his technique so quickly at that time. ''I need to kill her here,'' Noah concluded after allowing his mind to think again. ''The workshop, Snore, and Night will cover me. Those techniques usually have the same weakness, and I need to risk it.'' Snore formed next to him and spewed a wave of violent matter. The Demonic Sword left Noah''s grasp and flew inside Night to shot toward the spherical structure together. The remaining dark matter transformed to give birth to an army of spiders that ran toward the threatening opponent. Noah was still holding the disposable puppet back, but he found no reason to use it there. The surface of Lady Lena''s technique could barely contain his companions'' attacks. The spiders had managed to join because Noah didn''t care if they fell during the offensive. Then, he shot forward, right behind the army of spiders. He would use them as a shield to reach the central sphere and give Lady Lena a demonstration of the power inherited from the magical beasts'' world. Chapter 1366: 1366. Holes Lady Lena''s pillars didn''t attack randomly. She had initially focused on the dark world due to that technique''s annoying properties, but she redirected her condensed tides toward the incoming offensive when she sensed it. The pillars curved as they moved toward the dark beam, the army of spiders, and Night. The Pterodactyl was the only asset fast enough to dodge them, but Lady Lena''s technique managed to slow down its advance anyway. The spiders couldn''t do anything. The workshop wasn''t complete since Noah had yet to add cores to its creations, so the creatures exploded into a wave of dark matter when the pillars hit them. The dark beam could continue to fly forward even when multiple pillars converged on its position. Still, Lady Lena soon focused on that ability and made most of her dense tide target it. Snore''s innate ability eventually stopped moving, and the endlessness carried by Lady Lena''s individuality made the pillars pierce that violent dark matter. The dense tides soon reached the Blood Companion''s head and destroyed it. Noah''s sensed Snore''s pain, but he didn''t help it. The Blood Companion had performed its role flawlessly. Lady Lena had used most of her pillars to stop its incredible ability, and that gave Noah the chance to reach her. The same went for Night. The Pterodactyl could finally move freely when the pillars converged on Snore, and its figure soon appeared above Lady Lena. The creature disappeared to attack the defensive sphere, and the Demonic Sword remained outside to slash at the same target. The army of spiders reached the azure sphere an instant later. Every grain of dark matter in the area had transformed into those simple creatures and given birth to hundreds of specimens. Lady Lena found herself surrounded by a swarm of reckless magical beasts that assaulted her defense without hesitation. The pillars moved to fend off the spiders and slow down the blade''s offensive, but a crack suddenly opened on her sphere. Her tide immediately flowed to fix it, but Noah appeared there and stabbed his hands on the edge of the fissure. Corrosive smoke and dark matter flowed out of his chest to create his two layers of armor. He took the form of a fiendish creature that pulled with its claws to widen the breach created through Night''s efforts. Lady Lena wanted to launch another ability, but the corrosive smoke seeped through the crack and forced her to activate another defensive technique. Her skin began to glow with azure light, and the Demonic Form found itself unable to touch it. Yet, using that defensive spell had given Noah the time to muster his strength. His clawed fingers stabbed the endless waves and forced them apart as he pulled with both his arms. Noah could feel an immense force piercing the armor on his hands and digging through his skin. Injuries appeared on his body again, but he was so focused that he barely sensed them. Lady Lena felt alarmed when she saw that her tides couldn''t stop Noah''s physical strength. They never stopped flowing, but they couldn''t defend against the physical strength of a monster. Noah widened the crack and used his claws to tear pieces of that azure sphere. Most of them vanished in the distance after Noah threw them into the scarlet flames above. Still, a few exploded in his hands and unleashed all the power that they were capable of. The explosions almost flung Noah''s away, but the army of spiders and his physical might allowed him to hold his position. Lady Lena felt terrified at that sight. Not even some of her strongest abilities could deal with Noah''s immense strength. When Noah felt that he had enough room to attack, he lunged with his stretched claws directly toward the expert''s throat. He wanted to kill her in one blow. Lady Lena didn''t let that happen. The tides around her exploded and deviated Noah''s arm, which stabbed her chest. The wound was deep and her from side to side, but it was pointless against a cultivator at her level. The heart was nothing more than an organ that pumped blood. Cultivators could easily patch those injuries with "Breath" and mental energy until they could focus on healing properly. Noah tried to move his arm to rip her chest into shreds, but a heavy pressure suddenly landed on his body and kept him stuck in that position. He found himself unable even to open his mouth. "Too late," Lady Lena said as a smile appeared on her face. Blood flowed out of her mouth and injuries, but she didn''t appear concerned. She only wanted to mock Noah''s efforts to beat someone who had a cultivation level above his. Coldness came out of Noah''s fiendish figure when she saw her reaction. His reptilian eyes studied her, and a strategy soon appeared in his mind. The spiders began to explode as soon as Noah had that idea. The pillars had destroyed the dark world, but nothing stopped Noah from unfolding his technique again. His reserve of dark matter was virtually endless. He could chain attacks as long as Lady Lena didn''t manage to fling him away. The dark matter spread in the environment again, but the pressure quickly landed on it and forced it to remain still after it moved for a few seconds. Under that suppression, the dark matter couldn''t rebuild the dark world, and it couldn''t produce more spiders. It couldn''t even apply any defense against Lady Lena''s attacks. It was simple black smoke that carried Noah''s individuality. "This is the end, beast," Lady Lena said as pillars came out from the remains of her azure sphere and landed on Noah. Noah held strong, but the pillars soon pierced his skin and ravaged his insides. Two large holes formed on his torso and those wounds enlarged as the rotating attacks moved toward his head. Lady Lena could see her victory, but a dark beam suddenly landed on her and pushed her higher into the sky. Noah kept his fingers stretched and sealed his grasp only when her dantian landed on his palm. A rain of blood followed the act, and screams of pain echoed in the environment. Noah raised his head and saw Lady Lena standing among flames with power in the upper tier. Snore had used the dark matter released by the spider to form its head and launch a final attack against Lady Lena. The expert still had her azure shield active under her feet, but the violent dark matter carried so much might that it pushed Lady Lena directly into the sky. Since Noah had his clawed hand stabbed in her chest, he could seize her dantian as the dark beam flung her above. The shining organ was in his palm, and he didn''t hesitate to eat it. Noah still feared for his condition. He didn''t know what had happened with his ambition, but he couldn''t risk running out of power now. A series of presences appeared in the distance, but Noah couldn''t care less about them. He unfolded his dark world again and spewed black flames to weaken the fire in the sky and heal the deep injuries on his torso. Lady Lena screamed when she saw her dantian ending up in Noah''s mouth, but no sound came out of her mouth when he flew through his flames to grab her and bring her back to the ground. Chapter 1367: 1367. Insul Countless burns filled Lady Lena''s body as he stood on her knees on the dark-red ground. Noah''s skin had also burned when he flew through the sparse tongue of flames with power in the upper tier, but his techniques and resilience had allowed him to suffer fewer injuries. Moreover, his flames had burned part of the scarlet fire in the middle tier and had brought nutrients back to his body. His injuries had mostly healed by the time he returned to the ground. Holes remained on his skin and muscles, but his internal organs were fine. Intense energy surged inside Noah. Lady Lena''s dantian contained "Breath" in the liquid stage, and he had never eaten something so nutrient. Every cell of his body rejoiced when the black hole transformed that power and redirected to his tissues. Noah didn''t let that feeling distract him. Lady Lena had lost her dantian, but she remained a divine cultivator. She could easily survive without that center of power. "The Crystal City won''t forget this insult," Lady Lena said in a weak voice as she raised her head to stare at her opponent. Even without a dantian, her eyes continued to carry the fanatical belief of the Crystal City. Her expression didn''t show any weakness. She still believed herself to be better than Noah. Noah''s gaze was cold when he inspected her. She respected Lady Lena and felt slightly grateful for the power that she had managed to bring out of him. He didn''t know what would happen when his ambition ran out, but he already treasured the experience gained in that battle. Lady Lena had allowed him to taste the fights among liquid stage cultivators, and she had also shown him how to use an individuality properly. "You have caused this mess for a stupid oath," Noah said as the fiendish armor vanished, and he wrapped his hand around her head. "If I ever obtain enough power, I will destroy the Crystal City with my own hands." Noah didn''t immediately tighten his grasp around her head. New presences had arrived when he brought Lady Lena back to the ground, so he wanted to understand if he could use her as a hostage. A group of familiar cultivators accompanied Zach, Gil, and Kathleen on the ground. Noah felt surprised when he recognized Chief Ash and some guards among those new arrivals. "Are you with the Crystal City?" Noah asked as he studied that new group. Chief Ash was with ten gaseous stage cultivators that stared at him with wide eyes. They appeared weaker than the Crystal City''s experts, but their number made them annoying to deal with. The Crystal City''s trio slowly regained their awareness, and shock filled their expressions when they saw Noah holding Lady Lena''s head. They couldn''t understand how the situation had turned in that way, and anger built inside them. Yet, they didn''t dare to make a move with their leader in that condition. Chief Ash was the most surprised of them all. She had met Noah only a few years ago, but the aura that he radiated was completely different after that battle. His cultivation level also shocked her. She couldn''t understand how someone could advance so quickly. "Don''t kill her," Chief Ash said. "It won''t solve anything. The Crystal City will only send more assassins against you." "Then, my situation won''t change either way," Noah replied in a cold voice. "Why are you here? My bounty should be quite new, so you left Vagona city for other reasons." Chief Ash''s gaze became cold when she saw Noah''s confidence. He had battled with a liquid stage expert right after a breakthrough. He had to be exhausted, but he still appeared convinced in his ability to survive. "I have personal business with you," Chief Ash said. "We have marched in the Land of the Fallen to interrogate you. We came in possession of your wanted poster by chance." Noah snorted when he heard that. He shot toward the other members of the Crystal City without letting go of Lady Lena''s head. When he reached them, his free hand darted and seized the trio''s dantians. Zach, Gil, and Kathleen were powerless in that situation. Noah''s aura made them lose focus and rendered them unable to react to his attack. Noah threw the dantians in his mouth before waving his hand. The trio''s heads exploded after that gesture. Three gaseous stage cultivators died in an instant. Wielding power in the liquid stage made Noah almost unbeatable in that situation, and he wanted to exploit it for as long as it lasted. He would deal with the drawbacks of his ambition after he solved the issues that surrounded him. His attack was a pure show of strength. Chief Ash''s group didn''t react to his actions even if he was killing potential allies. Still, the expressions of those guards didn''t reveal any deep affiliation with the Crystal City. Noah saw a chance to leave without fighting at that sight. "Why did you do it?" Chief Ash asked. "No one comes in possession of my wanted poster by chance," Noah explained. "Who are you? Why are you eligible for these types of information?" Chief Ash gulped when she heard those words. Noah knew far more than she expected. It seemed that he had already established important connections in the Immortal Lands. "Our guild can take care of many jobs," Chief Ash explained. "We obtained the poster due to our connections with a secret organization. We aren''t members, but it still asks if we want to." "Why did you refuse?" Noah asked. He felt curious about the whole situation at that point. Ideally, the secret organization could offer many benefits, especially for an expert at Chief Ash''s level. She even had a few troops. Her situation inside that force would be far better than Fergie''s. "We didn''t refuse," Chief Ash replied. "We negotiated the terms of our affiliation, but we have to complete some missions to obtain the benefits that we requested. One includes the capture of a cultivator that you seem to have connections with." Noah couldn''t understand what she was saying. He had just reached the Immortal Lands. His only real connection was Fergie, but his level was too low to be part of a mission connected to benefits. "I will explain everything if you let Lady Lena go," Chief Ash added. "I will even share the reward for bringing her back with you." Chief Ash felt quite sure about her words. She had chosen them carefully, creating both curiosity and a possible reward. Yet, Noah suddenly tightened his grasp and destroyed her head. Lady Lena died without even understanding what had triggered Noah''s behavior. "Why did you do it?!" Chief Ash asked. "She is an important member of countless troops, small organizations, and the Crystal City itself. No deal will protect you now. You can only join an organization with more power and hope that they will protect you." "I was going to kill her anyway," Noah replied while shrugging his shoulders. "Now, name of the cultivator. I want to understand this connection." Chief Ash struggled to come up with a decision. She didn''t want to reveal that name for multiple reasons. She preferred to have Noah as an ally, and discovering that he had a connection with her enemy would ruin her plans. Still, lying to him wouldn''t work in that situation. Only the truth would work with him. "Have you ever heard of the name Divine Demon?" Chief Ash asked. Chapter 1368: 1368. Cooperation Hearing that name made Noah''s mind go back in time, to when he was only a human cultivator inside the Chasing Demon sect. Obtaining Divine Demon''s inheritance had brought Noah immense benefits. The Divine Deduction technique had been a core aspect of his entire journey, and the Copying Technique had allowed the Hive to seize political relevance. Divine Demon was also the creator of the Demon Sects. He was a complete monster who could excel both in the inscription field and on the battlefield. According to the stories told by the other Demons, Divine Demon was ruthless and overbearing. He would even throw his disciples into packs of dragons to test their potential. Noah didn''t feel surprised that the expert had made a few enemies. He had done the same right after his ascension in the end. Yet, he didn''t expect to hear his name in that situation. Chief Ash noticed the changes in Noah''s expression when he heard that name. Noah rarely failed to mask his reactions, but he couldn''t help himself there. Divine Demon''s name was too valuable for him. Noah was his heir and the leader who had brought the Demon Sects back to the peak of the lower plane. Saying that he had a connection with that expert couldn''t explain the entirety of that relationship. "Do you know where he is now?" Chief Ash asked. She had confirmed that Noah knew Divine Demon, and that changed her situation. Noah had suddenly become the key to obtain an advantageous position inside the secret organization. Roping him in had become her priority. Noah shook his head while wearing a cold expression. He had no reason to lie, but he felt that he could exploit that situation to his advantage. The drawbacks of his ambition would eventually arrive, so he had to find a solution to that stall. The vagueness of his current power made him unwilling to fight again. Still, he didn''t want to let go of that chance. "Are you allies?" Chief Ash asked with a tinge of annoyance. She could understand what Noah was doing, but she had no way to stop it. Chief Ash also wanted to avoid a fight after witnessing Noah''s recklessness. She didn''t know how far he was willing to go to remain alive. "I only heard legends about him in the lower plane," Noah replied. "We don''t have any relationship. His name had survived after his ascension, and I''ve heard it a few times." "Why do you share the name Demon then?" Chief Ash continued. "He started this tradition," Noah replied. "It''s nothing more than a name used to label troublesome cultivators." Chief Ash felt disappointed when she heard that. She didn''t have great hopes, but she expected to gain something from a cultivator who had ascended from the same plane. Noah was now useless in her eyes when it came to the search for Divine Demon. He was only a cultivator with a bounty on his head that she wanted to recruit in her force. Silence fell in the area after that last exchange of lines. Both sides didn''t know what to do. They only knew that they wanted to avoid a battle. "Don''t you want one million Soul Stones?" Noah taunted Chief Ash at some point. He wanted to hurry her to decide, but his words did not affect the expert. Chief Ash didn''t let Noah distract her. ''I''m only wasting time here,'' Noah thought before turning toward the tallest mountain on the Rumbling Region and setting off. "Where are you going?" Chief Ash quickly asked. "I don''t have time to waste," Noah said as he glanced at the group still on the ground. "Contact me when you decide what you want." A small amount of mental energy flowed inside his inscribed notebook and shot toward Chief Ash. She could now contact him even if he couldn''t. "Do you want to hunt him down together?" Chief Ash asked before Noah could turn again. "Does he have anything valuable?" Noah asked while doing his best to hide his true intentions. An unsightly expression appeared on her face, and her underlings reacted in the same way. They would feel surges of anger whenever they thought about that arrogant expert. "Divine Demon has become famous quickly," Chief Ash began to explain. "He has shown immense talent in the inscription halls, he has seized multiple inheritances, and his growth speed has shocked many organizations. He is like you, an expert that any force wishes to have." Noah didn''t feel surprised about that, but he remained interested in her speech. After all, he wanted to know how Divine Demon had managed to become an enemy of the secret organization. "The secret organization has invited him twice," Chief Ash continued. "Divine Demon has refused the first invitation and killed the messenger on the second one. He has survived multiple assassinations afterward and even destroyed some of the hidden bases of this hidden force. Our team isn''t the first one sent to take care of him." ''We ended up doing the same things,'' Noah thought as he laughed internally. Divine Demon thought like him. They were both experts who suited that label, and their talent made them experience the same struggles. "It''s safe to say that his wealth is considerable," Chief Ash concluded. "We even suspect that some forces use him to solve some of their problems. The rumors say that he can optimize any inscription and improve every technique." ''The original Divine Deduction technique!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. He was the only one in the world to know how Divine Demon could be so valuable even among talents. Noah also carried the Divine Deduction technique, but he had yet to obtain the power to modify it. The same wouldn''t be true for that mighty expert. Noah felt sure that Divine Demon had improved his iconic technique and had brought it to a superior level. If Noah had to be completely honest, he wanted to meet Divine Demon. Interacting with powerful experts usually benefitted his individuality, and he felt deep gratitude toward that expert. However, cultivators could change during their lives, especially after the ascension. The new environment gave everyone the chance to start again, and Noah didn''t know if Divine Demon had seized it. Noah didn''t want to meet Divine Demon and find that he didn''t care about his heir. That would only put Noah in danger. The unknown made everything connected to that expert quite foggy. "Do you know where he is now?" Noah asked after a few seconds of silence. "We have hints and traces," Chief Ash answered. Noah thought for a while before giving a conclusive answer. "I can join you in the search for Divine Demon, but I want some rewards upfront. Moreover, I want to explore the Hellish Landscape properly before leaving the Land of the Fallen." Chief Ash understood that she couldn''t obtain a better deal in that situation. She couldn''t force Noah, and she needed manpower for the task anyway. As for the rewards, she would come up with something later. "Deal," Chief Ash said. "We will leave the Land of the Fallen and wait for you in Silkpost city. We will set off to find and hunt Divine Demon after you leave this place." Chapter 1369: 1369. Underground room Noah watched as Chief Ash ordered her underlings to retreat. The gaseous stage cultivators didn''t hesitate to leave the Rumbling Region, and she followed them after she sent an imprint of her inscribed notebook to him. They could contact each other now, so they didn''t mind that temporary separation. Their deal was already in place. They only had to respect it now. Noah couldn''t leave the Hellish Landscape right away. He wanted to explore that separate dimension and evaluate his condition before throwing himself into a new adventure. Even if Divine Demon could turn out to be his enemy, Noah wanted to meet him. Still, he had to complete a few preparations against him and Chief Ash''s group. Chief Ash didn''t mention Divine Demon''s cultivation level, but Noah could guess that he was somewhere around the last stage of the seventh rank. An opponent capable of such might required Noah''s full attention, especially since he had to travel with many potential enemies. Noah flew toward the mountain that released lightning bolts. A cavity appeared in his vision when he reached the peak, and orange flashes shone from time to time from its depths. He didn''t have any information about that inheritance. His map was vague and only mentioned that the lightning bolts would become more frequent inside it. It didn''t say anything about eventual trials and rewards. Noah entered the cavity and walked for a few hours toward its depths. The ground there had a bright red color, and multiple holes filled its surface. It seemed that someone had dug out pieces of that cave in the past. Noah didn''t know if that had been the work of a single cultivator. Still, that scene confirmed the absence of valuable resources in the initial parts of the inheritance. Noah didn''t continue to march deeper inside the cave after that discovery. He sat on the ground and focused his attention on his centers of power. His ambition had made all his organs improve. His dantian was in the liquid stage, his body had reached the middle tier, and his mental walls had become tougher. It was as if he had gone through multiple breakthroughs at the same time. That would typically make him ecstatic. Yet, worry filled his mind when he saw how quickly he had advanced. The drawbacks of his ambition would eventually arrive, and their intensity would depend on how much he had improved with his individuality. The drawbacks after such growth could render him unable to move for entire decades, but there seemed to be something strange about that empowerment. His cultivation level didn''t start to decrease even after hours had passed. ''Can I make these breakthroughs permanent?'' Noah wondered as he inspected his condition. His ambition had forced him to reach a level of power that he was ready to wield. His new state only gave him more power and influence over the world, which made him hope to turn that empowerment into a permanent condition. ''I''ve eaten four dantian already,'' Noah thought. ''I shouldn''t need energy. What I need is for my black hole to understand that I don''t want to let go of my current power.'' Noah turned toward the depths of the cave at that point. Only his black hole had the power to influence the effects of his individuality, so he wanted to improve it before the drawbacks arrived. The lightning bolts released by the inheritance could make his tissues evolve. In theory, they had the power to improve his black hole even if it was quite protective. It didn''t want to use the energy in the sparks as they were. It absorbed them and redirected them in the shape of primary energy. ''I need to make them work together,'' Noah concluded as he stood up and walked deeper into the cave. A lightning bolt eventually ran through the ground, and Noah''s hand shot toward it after assessing its power. That massive orange spark couldn''t reach the outside world since he seized it when it tried to cross him. The lightning bolt threatened to shatter after Noah took it from the ground. The violent energy contained in that attack wanted to disperse, so he ate it before it could lose its power. The meal didn''t provide any immediate benefit. That lightning bolt had power in the middle tier. The energy that it contained was lower than what Noah had tasted before. Still, his black hole reacted to the strange aura radiated by the lightning bolt and stored part of its energy when it purified what it contained. The primary energy that filled his tissues didn''t feel different, but it didn''t match the amount of power in that attack. His fourth center of power kept part of that energy to improve, but the process seemed slow. Noah could only think of a method to quicken that empowerment, which involved gathering more lightning bolts. Noah marched deeper inside the cave and seized every lightning bolt that he found. They didn''t seem to surpass the middle tier in power, so the journey toward the first large underground room ended up being uneventful. When the underground room unfolded in Noah''s eyes, he saw that a crackling lake occupied its floor. Countless sparks filled the base of that area, but they didn''t hinder his advance since a large tunnel dug right through them and connected the room to the deeper parts of the cave. ''Someone has been here already,'' Noah thought as he inspected the sparks. The lightning bolts that ran through the area above the floor had a different power. Most of them were in the lower tier, but a few thicker ones were in the upper tier. Noah guessed that he couldn''t seize any reward there, but his interest lingered on the lightning bolts. Those attacks carried the expert''s peculiar individuality, and no amount of wealth could compare to the chance of improving his power. ''I hope they still send me the information if I end up spending too long on this place,'' Noah thought before walking toward the lightning bolts and sitting among their crackling noises. Lightning bolts landed on Noah''s body and tried to fuse with his tissues. Yet, the black hole always stopped their energy from fueling his cells directly. The fourth center of power didn''t accept anything that didn''t first pass through its dense vortex. The same strange phenomenon as before continued to happen. The black hole retained part of the absorbed energy to study its properties and improve its state. Noah didn''t sense anything different at the beginning, but the black hole eventually began to spin faster. More energy flowed inside it, and less energy reached the rest of his body. It seemed that the fourth center of power was preparing itself for some mysterious event. The lake of lightning bolts shrunk as Noah continued to absorb that energy. The sparks in the upper tier even separated themselves to refill the hall with threats on a weaker level, and Noah could only rejoice at that sight. The hall was a proper stash of that strange energy, and he couldn''t wait to absorb all of it. He even felt that his drawbacks were about to arrive, so he didn''t dare to waste time. Chapter 1370: 1370. Permanent growth Noah continued to absorb the lightning bolts, but a tremor ran through his mind when he sensed that his cultivation level began to fall. The weakening process was slow but constant. The effects of his ambition had eventually run out. The event made his worry increase and forced him to quicken the absorption of the lightning bolts. His weakening aura filled the underground hall while carrying intense destruction. Some of the sparks transformed into primary energy even before entering his body. Noah felt in a rush. Every fiber of his body clung to his power and struggled to fight the weakening process affecting every tissue. Even his mind began to feel dull since it lost its grip on the superior understanding that it had reached after the battle with Lady Lena. The black hole spun faster as it continued to store energy. It didn''t send anything to his body and kept every nutrient for itself. Noah''s worry had influenced it and was forcing It to work faster. A vague sense of completeness filled his mind at some point. Noah didn''t completely understand what was happening, but he remained speechless when he saw that his black hole''s rotations were slowing down. He initially thought that the process had failed, but a dense wave of energy suddenly came out of his black hole and flowed toward every part of his body. Dark matter also enveloped his insides and forced the weakening process to a stop. Noah lost his connection with the outside world when the dark matter filled him. His vision went dark, and no sound reached his ears. He also stopped feeling the toughness of the ground. The black hole had cut him away from any external input. Then, shining dust-like energy started to flow out of the dark matter and enter all his tissues. Noah felt an intense surge of energy enveloping his whole body and affecting his other centers of power. The black hole had triggered a peculiar process, and he could only observe its effects in that situation. Waves of energy filled his insides. Those nutrients entered his tissues and forced them to evolve. Noah had already reached a state of nigh-perfection after the continuous purifications of his black hole, but that transformation seemed to push him across the half-step that he had yet to complete. His nails slightly grew, and the icy-blue light radiated by his reptilian eyes intensified. Minute bits of impurities came out of his pores, and more dark vessels grew under his skin. His muscles bulged, and his internal organs began to work faster. A sense of clarity also unfolded as that energy nourished his mind. Noah could finally analyze his transformation thoroughly, and he liked what he was witnessing. The black hole had learnt from the expert''s aura. It had found ways to improve its purification and optimize the division and type of nutrients that the tissues had to receive. It had used the individuality carried by the lightning bolts to improve. The fourth center of power had depleted most of the energy absorbed in the room to perform that research, but it could now reveal its benefits. Noah felt at the very peak of the food chain when he sensed those nutrients improving his tissues. He could sense that the black hole was polishing his already incredible species. Most of the energy redirected toward his other tissues went on his dantian. The black hole understood that his ambition''s drawbacks were about to endanger his centers of power, so it did its best to stabilize its structure. His dantian could contain liquid darkness in its current state, but the weakening process wanted to bring its power back in the gaseous stage. Yet, the black hole tried to set Noah''s new level as the foundation of his power. There was a chance to make those breakthroughs permanent, so it didn''t hold back anything to succeed in the task. Noah began to feel hungry as the improvement continued. His focus remained on his dantian. He saw the dark matter releasing massive quantities of primary energy that fused with his organ and tried to detach it from the after-effects of his ambition. His dantian soon began to shrink again, and the same went for his other centers of power. Noah was losing his power, and he could only hope that his black hole''s solution would work. As nutrients flowed in his dantian, the organ stopped shrinking and modified its structure according to the properties carried by the primary energy. The black hole was stuffing energy inside his dantian to force it to remain at that level. Stopping the drawbacks seemed impossible, so it tried to create a checkpoint where the weakening had to stop. Silent hours went by in complete darkness. Noah couldn''t sense anything coming from the outside world, so he focused his whole attention on his insides. The weakening continued. Noah saw his dantian reaching the bottom of the liquid stage and threatening to collapse, but its structure suddenly stabilized and stopped suffering from the drawbacks of his ambition. The same went for his body and mind. The black hole had succeeded. His body''s level reached the bottom of the middle tier and stopped falling. His mind tried to collapse on itself, but the energy that flowed inside its mental walls halted that process. Noah had yet to realize it fully, but he had broken a record of the Immortal Lands. He had reached the liquid stage in mere decades. His ambition and his black hole had succeeded in making him defy common sense once again. ''My black hole has turned my potential into actual power,'' Noah thought as the outside world reappeared in his senses. His ambition was a strange power that allowed him to fulfill his potential, but it worked as a secret technique that applied hefty prices to his empowerment. Yet, the black hole had managed to transform that temporary boost into permanent growth. ''This can become an alternative to my cultivation technique,'' Noah thought as he reviewed what had happened since his first exchange with Lady Lena. It made sense for his ambition to improve his power, and it wasn''t strange for that growth to be permanent either. That was the whole point of his individuality. It could transform potential into actual strength. However, it was tricky to use. Noah had almost died against Lady Lena, and he had needed to deploy his black flames before that exchange happened to obtain those effects. What had happened to his centers of power wasn''t the result of a proper technique. It was a sum of multiple abilities that could pair their effects to create something that most cultivators would label as miraculous. Noah wanted to replicate that effect and transform it into a technique. Yet, he couldn''t experiment with that procedure, and his mind warned him about his lack of potential to use it. He had already reached the level of power that he deserved. If he wanted to go through that procedure again, he had to understand and wield the power hidden behind the higher stages. Noah felt hungry and tired after that procedure, but his tests had just begun. His first consisted in seeing if his ambition could raise his cultivation level again, and the answer to that doubt was a loud "no". He couldn''t even activate his individuality in his current condition. ''I see,'' Noah concluded. ''Increasing the influence of my ambition gives me potential. I can use it to improve my power through normal training sessions or to be reborn as a stronger being every time.'' Noah didn''t linger for too long on that mental discussion with himself. He set off toward the deeper parts of the cave. There was an inheritance in front of him, and he couldn''t wait to seize rewards. Chapter 1371: 1371. Hole Noah quickly dealt with his hunger by eating some of his reserves of magical beasts'' corpses. He even crushed a few Soul Stones to absorb their energy. Using the Soul Stones for his body was a waste, but he wanted to bring his condition to its peak before facing the inheritance. Noah was also quite wealthy for his level, so he didn''t mind relying on that resource. The lightning bolts ran through the cave more often as he marched deeper into the inheritance. Noah seized those that his level could withstand and absorbed their energy to improve his body. Yet, he had to dodge those too powerful for him. His body cheered every time the black hole sent energy to its cells. Noah was still feeling the fatigue accumulated after his battle with Lady Lena, but his fourth center of power was taking care of that. The energy that the black hole released dispersed his fatigue and strengthened his tissues. The fourth center of power had become able to understand the flaws in his condition and rearranged the nutrients to solve them. It was like having a personal doctor that continuously pushed his condition back to its peak. The process wasn''t even slow. The black hole''s power had entered a superior league after it studied the expert''s individuality. ''I''m really curious about the final reward of this inheritance,'' Noah couldn''t help but think as he inspected his black hole. The benefits that the lightning bolts had brought to his fourth center of power and overall existence were substantial. Noah couldn''t wait to see if the lower layers of the inheritance hid something even better. ''An individuality that forces the matter to evolve,'' Noah thought as a cold smile appeared on his face. ''This is perfect for my true meaning.'' A large corridor followed the large hall. Noah descended through the mountain''s insides until he reached another vast room that shone with a bright orange color. The insides of the room were different from the previous ones. Sparse sparks filled the area and floated mid-air even if their bodies carried intense violence. Noah only needed one glance to understand that someone had already cleared that area. The sparks didn''t even care about his presence since they had already completed their task. The sparks contained energy, so Noah took his time to absorb them. He had to avoid those radiating power in the upper tier, but his improved body could withstand even those near the middle tier''s peak. Noah pressed on after clearing that room. The lack of active trials and rewards left him unsatisfied, but the energy that flowed inside his body alleviated that feeling. A corridor that led to another large hall followed the room with the floating sparks. Noah saw a series of destroyed puppets made of lightning bolts in the new area, and he arrived at the same conclusion as before. The level of the broken puppets gave him a vague idea of the difficulty of that trial. Most lightning bolts still carried power in the lower tier, so he didn''t feel worried about the next rooms. Noah continued his absorption of energy and exploration of the underground area. The inheritance led him toward the bottom of the mountain, at the very core that most beings never had the chance to see. He didn''t find any active trial. Someone had cleared all the rooms along the way, so he limited himself to absorb the lightning bolts on his path. The progression of the lightning bolts'' power began to worry him during the last halls. Noah had mostly found sparks in the upper tier in the previous rooms, so he felt quite sure that he couldn''t overcome any test from that point onward. However, he decided to continue his march anyway. He wouldn''t give up on the free energy contained inside that long underground structure, and he wanted to see how an active trial looked like before going away. The true meaning carried by those lightning bolts had made him interested in that expert''s power. He wanted to see if an active trial could inspire him. Noah had to cross a few more halls to find an active trial. The room that unfolded in his vision was immense and seemed to stretch until the Rumbling Region''s bottom. Its width even covered half of the mountain''s base. That area resembled a huge underground hole that led toward the deepest part of the landmass. Noah could vaguely guess that reaching the bottom of that area would bring him to the last reward of the inheritance, but he had no chance to succeed in the task. Shining lightning bolts that radiated a blinding orange light filled the hole. They flew from wall to wall to create a tight crackling net that left only a few paths open. Those paths would change every second since the lightning bolts never stopped flying through the holes. That seemed a trial meant to test the endurance or the speed of a cultivator, but Noah knew that he couldn''t overcome it. The lightning bolts radiated the suffocating aura of the eighth rank. They were the embodiment of the expert''s true meaning, and no material in the area could escape from their effects. The dark-red terrain of the Rumbling Region had transformed as those lightning bolts kept ricocheting through the hole. Countless shining red crystals made the walls and ceiling of that area. The ground had evolved into a completely different material, and Noah could sense its value when he inspected it with his mental waves. The crystals carried an intense sense of evolution capable of affecting their surroundings. ''These must be the best filling materials available,'' Noah evaluated as he studied the area from the exit of the last corridor. ''I wish I could use them for my companions.'' Noah sat on the exit and watched the lightning bolts fly through the hole as he let his mind wander. He had already accepted that he couldn''t seize those materials. Still, he wanted to experience the might of the eighth rank. Those lightning bolts didn''t only affect the environment. They actively searched for anything impure in the area to apply the evolution that they carried. They also resonated with the environment. The walls didn''t make the lightning bolts deplete part of their power when they crashed. They didn''t even damage the crystals as they bounced back. Everything in the area belonged to that peculiar true meaning. It resembled a physical domain, with matter that was part of that law. ''A small world,'' Noah concluded in his mind at some point. The hints and clues gathered during his adventures through the Immortal Lands created a clear idea of his path ahead. Noah could finally claim to have some knowledge of the cultivation journey in the divine ranks. ''I guess I will find similar scenes in all the other inheritances,'' Noah thought as he stood up. He was about to leave, but an idea had formed in his mind in front of that magnificent scene. The Hellish Landscape was full of valuable resources and inheritances, but he was only a cultivator in the liquid stage. It had been the same during his exploration of the Pyramid. Noah was strong and unmatched among his peers, but his cultivation level made him unable to obtain the most valuable rewards of those inheritances. ''Maybe I should find Divine Demon before investing time in these places,'' Noah thought as he began to leave, but a sudden dangerous sensation made him freeze. The lightning bolts ricocheting inside the hole had ignored him while he was on the exit, but one of them separated from the main array to crash on his back right after he went back inside the tunnel. Chapter 1372: 1372. Names Noah''s mind went black for an instant. When he recovered his awareness, he found himself lying on the dark-red ground of the corridor. Smoke came out of his back, and a tingling sensation filled his skin. Still, he couldn''t see any injury. Even his robe was fine and without a scratch. ''What exactly has happened?'' Noah wondered as he rechecked his body. His black hole was rotating faster than usual, but he couldn''t find anything strange inside him. He didn''t even feel sore. Everything was fine, and even his fourth center of power soon started to work at its regular pace. Noah didn''t exactly recall what had happened. He remembered a flash of orange light before darkness filled his memories. Those clues could only lead to one conclusion, but that idea was unreasonable. ''That is impossible, right?'' Noah thought as he turned toward the hole. The lightning bolts ricocheting inside the hole were the only element that could cause that orange flash, but Noah couldn''t believe that he had survived one of them. Each lightning bolt was an attack in the eighth rank. Noah had become stronger after the black hole purified his centers of power, but he was still far away from being an existence who could survive those blows. ''The true meaning of evolution,'' Noah began to think about a possible explanation. ''Something like that shouldn''t aim to destroy matter.'' Noah soon understood that he couldn''t find an answer if he relied only on his reasoning. He had to perform a few tests and observe how the lightning bolts reacted before deciding how to proceed. A piece of flesh from one of the corpses inside his separate space appeared in his hand. Noah neared the hole again and threw the material among the lightning bolts before activating the Divine Deduction technique. The lightning bolts immediately converged on the piece of flesh. They were too fast for Noah to follow them. Still, his superior awareness boosted by the Divine Deduction technique allowed him to see how they affected the laws in that material. The piece of flesh had many flaws in its structure. Countless impurities filled its fabric, and the lightning bolts enhanced them when they crashed on it. Impurities burst out of the flesh, destroying the material during the process. The lightning bolts forced blood and pus to exit the item until it transformed into a small crystal. The crystal then fell toward the bottom of the hole, passing through every lightning bolt that it met. Noah even heard the sound of the item hitting the ground after a few seconds. A cold light shone from Noah''s eyes. A strange idea had formed inside his mind after that test, and he didn''t hesitate to throw more materials at the lightning bolts to see if he had understood correctly. The lightning bolts forced every material that touched them to evolve. They destroyed the impurities and transformed the items into flawless crystals that fell undisturbed at the bottom of the hole. ''Don''t tell me,'' Noah thought as shock filled his mind, ''The lightning bolts can''t damage something that already lacks flaws.'' That discovery left him speechless, but a lightning bolt suddenly separated from the main array and interrupted his reasoning. The attack crashed on Noah''s chest, but he managed to maintain his awareness at that time. The lightning bolt dispersed inside his body without causing any effect. It didn''t even leave any lingering energy in his tissues. It disappeared as soon as it completed an inspection of his existence. Noah could only reveal a wide smile after witnessing that scene. He stretched his hand toward the crackling net, but nothing happened even after the lightning bolts converged on him. ''Amazing,'' Noah thought as he stared at the lightning bolts flowing freely through his hand. Those attacks didn''t seem to notice him. He appeared immune to their might since his body had already reached a flawless state. His black hole had taken care of that process before, so the lightning bolts couldn''t get rid of any impurity. ''Most cultivators have probably died during the purifications,'' Noah concluded as he stepped outside the hole''s edge and began a slow descent. More lightning bolts converged on him, but they did not affect his tissues. Noah could continue his descent toward the bottom of the hole without encountering any problem. He didn''t even feel any resistance. Noah kept the Divine Deduction technique active in case he found lightning bolts that could destroy him even in his flawless state. Yet, he didn''t meet anything that could hurt him during his descent. He reached the bottom of the hole without trouble. The environment was different there. A shining crystal-like red floor made the bottom of the hole, and part of the walls carried similar features. A single space-ring laid at the center of the area. The ground was empty of any item and resource. Noah began to walk toward the space-ring, but the lightning bolts above him morphed to take a humanoid shape at that point. The figure landed on the floor between him and the item, and it raised a hand to gesture to Noah to stop. ''Is this a will?'' Noah asked himself when he saw the humanoid crackling figure. The crackling noise radiated by the lightning bolts became more intense after the figure appeared. Noah remained still as he waited for something to happen, and a thunderous male voice soon resounded in the area. "Do not take it," The voice said, "You don''t need it." Noah inspected the area to search for the source of that voice. Finding it ended up being easy. Every lightning bolt in the hole radiated that sound at the same time. "What do you mean by that?" Noah asked. "Explain yourself." The crackling noise intensified once more before the answer arrived. "You already have the tools to evolve yourself. The ring only contains the instructions to recreate this Evolution Pit. Leave it for another heir." "Can''t I take it to sell it?" Noah asked, but a lightning bolt fell in front of him and opened a crack into the crystal floor. The lightning bolts could hurt even flawless items if the will wanted. Noah wouldn''t risk enraging the owner of that inheritance after he discovered that feature. "You are free to disclose the secret behind this trial," The voice continued. "My only desire is to make the human side stronger." Noah remained silent for a while before turning to the wall. He patted the crystals on its surface and inspected their structure before nodding multiple times. "Can''t I have these at least?" Noah asked. "I have used your individuality to improve, so I''m technically your heir already." As soon as his line ended, lightning bolts fell on the wall, and red crystals rained around him. They were all materials in the middle tier that carried the iconic evolution of that expert. "Leave now," The voice said. "Let me return to my eternal slumber." "What was your name?" Noah asked as he began to leave. The expert''s individuality had helped him maintaining the empowerments of his ambition. Asking for his name was the only form of respect that Noah could show him. "Dead don''t need names," The voice said before the crackling figure crumbled into a series of sparks that fused with the net above. Chapter 1373: 1373. Legion Noah stored the crystals and left the pit after giving one last glance at the array of lightning bolts. He had gained something out of that inheritance, so he didn''t mind spending a few seconds to appreciate the scene. ''He didn''t give me anything above my current level,'' Noah thought as he walked back toward the entrance of the inheritance. ''What a stingy will.'' A sigh escaped his mouth, but Noah soon suppressed it. The hole contained crystals in the eighth rank, but the will had limited itself to give only items in the middle tier. Still, Noah couldn''t complain since his gains were substantial. ''I guess there is no point in searching for other inheritances,'' Noah thought. ''I have been lucky this time, but I will only find dangers that I can''t face in the next ones. A few valuable items can''t compare to the experience gained by exploring the world.'' Noah''s thoughts confirmed his previous reasoning. It was pointless to explore the Hellish Landscape and the Land of the Fallen as a whole at his current level. Most of the inheritance there required a cultivation level in the solid stage at least. He preferred to look for Divine Demon with Chief Ash and her underlings. His feelings about that legendary existence were still unclear, but Noah felt that he would make up his mind once he met the Demon. Noah already saw Divine Demon as a natural ally, but he didn''t want to rely on events that had happened in the lower plane to decide that. The Demon wouldn''t even be aware of who had seized his inheritance since he had been in the Immortal Lands for more than nine thousand years. ''I wonder what he is up to,'' Noah thought. According to Chief Ash, Divine Demon resembled a mercenary willing to use his expertise for money. That position would allow him to accumulate many resources, especially in an environment with few inscription masters. . . . The members of the Crystal City and Chief Ash''s group weren''t the only team that had entered the Hellish Landscape. The Crystal City had contacted multiple smaller forces to hunt Noah, and some of them had remained near the Rumbling Region while he was busy exploring the inheritance. Those who had gone to the Fiery Lake were mostly mercenaries and assassins. They differed from Chief Ash and Lady Lena''s teams since they lacked any form of backing. Chief Ash and her team had gone to the Fiery Lake to talk with the other groups after sealing a deal with Noah. She was the only one who could force the other guilds to back away, and most of those cultivators listened to her words, especially after she mentioned Noah''s liquid stage level. However, one of them secretly remained behind and marched toward the Rumbling Region after everyone had left the area. The cultivator then settled on the landmass and waited for Noah to reappear. . . . Noah left the inheritance quickly. He had already seized all the lightning bolts that he could absorb, so that place had become utterly useless to him. He planned to tell the method to seize the inheritance to June once they managed to meet in the higher plane, but it was pointless to him to even think about that now. When he left the cave at the peak of the mountain, his superior awareness sensed that an enemy presence was among the few trees that had survived his battle with Lady Lena. Noah initially thought that some of the stronger beasts had become addicted to his ambition and was waiting for him to reappear, but he quickly suppressed that idea. A magical beast hungry for his ambition would directly follow him inside the cave. The presence of Chief Ash wouldn''t be enough to make it abandon a decent meal. His enemy was somewhere on the landmass, but even his senses couldn''t pinpoint its exact location. Noah felt eager to test his new power, but the situation was too unclear for him to act freely. He returned inside the cave and activated the ability of his robe to hide his presence. Then, he came out of the cave again and set off toward the sea of flames above the Rumbling Region. Noah would be able to return to the surface in no time if he took the right tunnels. However, a hooded figure suddenly appeared on his path. That existence radiated power in the gaseous stage, but it stood among those flames as if they didn''t affect its body. Noah found that scene peculiar. He didn''t understand why a gaseous stage cultivator would block his path. His consciousness quickly unfolded to search for other potential dangers and ambushes, but it didn''t find anything. "I''m alone," A female voice came out of the hooded cultivator. Noah felt even more confused at that point, but he didn''t let that strange event make him waste more time than needed. "Can I help you?" Noah asked. "I''m in a hurry." A snort resounded from the hooded figure before it turned into a shadow. Coldness came out of Noah''s eyes when he saw the cultivator shooting toward him and preparing a punch that aimed at his head. Noah raised a hand, and the punch landed on his palm. An immense force ran through his arm at that point, and his feet slid through the air as he resisted the power carried by that physical attack. ''She didn''t use any spell nor technique,'' Noah thought as he lowered his fingers to keep the woman stuck in his grasp. Noah arched the fingers of his free hand before slashing at his opponent. That attack could kill any creature in the gaseous stage at that distance, but the woman threw a kick at his arm before he could complete the movement. Her free hand then darted to throw another punch, but Noah promptly shot toward the ground without releasing his grasp on her hand. The woman could only crash on the dark-red terrain and endure the series of kicks that fell on her waist. The woman was in a tough spot, but her robe suddenly wrapped itself around Noah''s fingers and created an opportunity for her to leave his grasp. Noah couldn''t stop her from escaping at a few hundred meters from him, but he didn''t follow her just yet. An aura in the liquid stage expanded in the area when the enemy took off her hooded robe. A woman with long red hair and dark eyes appeared in front of Noah, and he could inspect her real level when she stopped running. She was a liquid stage expert with a body in the middle tier. Yet, her body featured a few details that made Noah confirm what he had guessed during that short battle. The woman had a series of sharp teeth coming out of the sides of her mouth, and her hair resembled the fur of a certain magical beast. Her fingers also were oddly long and pointy, as if they were claws made of meat. She was a hybrid, but that alone didn''t explain why she had hidden her cultivation level and had joined the hunting group. "It''s been a long time since I''ve eaten a hybrid," Noah said as he walked toward the woman. "Wait!" The woman exclaimed when she understood his intentions. "I acknowledge your strength. The Legion will open its doors for you." Chapter 1374: 1374. Sky ''What is it now?'' Noah thought as he inspected the hybrid. ''Another organization?'' Noah couldn''t help but feel surprised at how hungry every organization in the Immortal Lands was for new members. He had interacted with the human side for no more than a few decades, but he had already received multiple invitations. Almost every force that he met had tried to rope him in. "You don''t belong to the human side," The woman said. "They only want to exploit your strength, but you will never manage to obtain any valuable position with them. They will try their everything to suppress you." "You can''t live with the beasts either," The woman continued. "Those creatures don''t have what you need to improve as a cultivator. You can be a king there, but I suspect that you have far more ambitious plans." Noah listened to her words without revealing any emotion. The woman was right, but she didn''t know what Noah''s mindset was. He liked his current freedom, so joining an organization was out of the question for now. Still, Noah recognized the value of having powerful allies. Even if they didn''t actually help him during battles or challenging situations, he needed them to trade, sell, and purchase items. They could also provide information that he wouldn''t be able to obtain otherwise. "I guess the Legion is where I belong, right?" Noah said while maintaining an expressionless face. The woman smiled when she heard that question. She didn''t mind the vague sarcasm hidden in Noah''s voice. She expected him to have a similar reaction. "You will never have to hide your true nature in the Legion," The hybrid said. "We live in the Outer Lands, where intense tempests of laws shake the sky. Look for us when you grow tired of listening to beings that can''t understand you." The woman then threw a token that Noah grabbed easily. The item was a small piece of wood that had three deep cuts carved on its surface. "My name is Grace," The hybrid said as she turned to leave. "See you soon." Grace left without adding any explanation to her invitation. She didn''t even describe the Legion, but Noah could understand its most striking feature. The Legion had to be a force made only of hybrids. Noah had long since guessed that something like that existed, but he didn''t expect to meet it so soon. ''The Outer Lands should be outside of the two domains,'' Noah thought as he recalled some maps of the Immortal Lands. ''Tempests of laws capable of shaking the sky sounds interesting.'' Noah had learnt about the storms of laws in Shandal''s separate dimension. He knew that they existed in the Immortal Lands, but he had yet to meet them. ''Maybe those storms appear where the higher plane has yet to stabilize,'' Noah concluded before moving his attention to the token. The rectangular piece of yellowish wood appeared utterly ordinary, but the marks on its surface gave the item a peculiar aura. Intense aggression came out of those cuts, but a peaceful feeling also lingered under their violent features. The aura radiated the power of the eighth rank, and it hinted to a being whose existence carried an evident duality. Noah felt sure that humans and magical beasts couldn''t create those effects with their attacks. Only a hybrid could wield that type of power. ''Interesting indeed,'' Noah thought as he stored the token and sat on the dark-red ground. His gaze went on the sky and looked past the sea of flames above to land on the white layer that covered the entirety of the Immortal Lands. His black hole rotated faster as countless emotions surged inside his mind. The Immortal Lands were immense, and Noah had only explored a small fraction of their regions. There was far more to see and study, and the same went for the many organizations that filled those territories. The secret organization, the Legion, and the various families met in those years were only a part of the Immortal Lands'' political environment. Noah had just begun to learn about those forces, but he felt already overwhelmed with information. When he paired those forces to the vastity of the higher plane, Noah felt eager to explore. He desired to throw himself into every territory and uncover their secrets. It didn''t matter if their owners were humans or magical beasts. He had a lot to explore, but his current level only allowed him to scratch the surface of the higher plane. He could almost go anywhere he wanted, but he couldn''t study everything about those lands. ''I want to reach the eighth rank already,'' Noah thought as he lay down to stare at the sky for a bit longer. Noah knew what his next move was. He had to leave the Hellish Landscape and return to Silkpost city to meet Chief Ash. He wanted to look for Divine Demon, and her group was his best chance at finding him. Yet, he couldn''t meet her unprepared, especially after his recent breakthrough. Chief Ash didn''t give him a time limit, and Noah planned to assimilate what he had obtained before joining her group. Noah had reached the liquid stage, but his new level didn''t cause any change in the black hole. The dark matter in its insides was slightly denser, but that was it. His fourth center of power and his dantian could only improve through standard methods. His mind was sturdier than before, and it had benefitted from the growth of his existence. Still, it didn''t show any substantial improvement other than its ability to create blueprints for the workshop. Noah planned to train and polish that process before joining Chief Ash''s group. He had tested how useful the workshop was against Lady Lena, so he wanted to bring the technique to its peak. His body was better off than his other centers of power due to the many valuable nutrients in the Immortal Lands. Anything around Noah contained divine "Breath", so he could quicken its growth steadily. Great Builder''s inheritance and the Evolution Pit had provided him with materials that he wanted to use. His first idea was to improve his companions, but he planned to create new ones since his mind seemed able to handle them. Another important technique that he wanted to improve was the workshop. Noah had managed to create shadows of spider-likes creatures, but the workshop''s true power didn''t come from the innate strength carried by the blueprint. Great Builder had used the oval core to improve the feathered puppet inside the pyramid. That process showed the real use of the workshop. A creature fueled by "Breath" wouldn''t have the same frailty as those that only had dark matter. The frailty of the spiders came from that. They were only a mass of dark matter arrayed together in the shape of a magical beast. They lacked a fuel that could reinforce their bodies and strengthen their overall state. Noah also had to fix the matter concerning martial arts and spells. He needed to update a few attacks and restore his movement technique to improve his chances to survive. ''I''m looking at fifty years of seclusion,'' Noah thought before sending a message to Chief Ash. He would remain inside the Hellish Landscape to train for a while. Noah wanted to prepare for his meeting with Divine Demon. **** Author''s notes: I changed nine thousand years to four thousand in the previous chapter. I swear I knew math before starting this story. Chapter 1375: 1375. Gathering Noah didn''t remain in the Rumbling Region. The guilds that Chief Ash had sent away knew that he was there, and the Crystal City didn''t withdraw the bounty. More mercenaries and assassins would come for him, so he couldn''t remain in the same place to train. It was better to find a different spot far away from the Rumbling Region where he could spend peaceful years and focus on his prowess. Noah had maps and Soul Stones to spend in case he ran out of ideas. Finding a safe spot inside the Hellish Landscape wasn''t a problem with so many forces occupying its territories. Noah eventually opted to avoid any interaction with the human forces and travel through the vast sea of flames until he found a spot far away from any recorded inheritance. Fire in the middle tier couldn''t hurt him anymore, so he had many options at his disposal. Once he found a decent spot, Noah deployed his dark world and began to cultivate. He had a lot to do, but he couldn''t risk enraging Chief Ash since she was his only lead toward Divine Demon. He had to focus on the abilities that could quickly improve his battle prowess. Years went peacefully inside the Hellish Landscape. No one could find Noah while he cultivated in a random spot among the sea of flames. The tracking abilities didn''t work either since his dark world made sure to erase every track that he had left during his travel. After a bit more than fifty years, Noah decided to leave the separate dimension and meet with Chief Ash. His robe and dark world kept him hidden from unwanted gazes, and he quickly managed to disperse any pursuer once he returned to the wilderness. Noah couldn''t go back to Silkpost city. The Crystal City was one of the overlords of that settlement, so he couldn''t appear publicly. Chief Ash had also advised against that since their cooperation would be exposed if someone recognized him. Chief Ash and her group reached Noah in a forest near Silkpost city after exchanging a few mental messages. They didn''t seem bothered by the fact that they had to wait more than half a century to begin their mission. Decades went by as if they were seconds for divine cultivators, so they didn''t mind waiting until he completed his exploration of the Hellish Landscape. "The Land of the Fallen had far more territories back then," Chief Ash said after she performed few formal greetings with Noah. "The magical beasts have taken most of them due to their constant expansion. In my opinion, the humans can''t win against that enemy." Noah could only nod at her explanation. She wanted to console him since he had left the Hellish Landscape quite soon, but he didn''t care about her words. He only wanted to know what she knew about Divine Demon. "You lead the way," Noah said as he straightened his position. "I hope this force is enough to take him down." Chief Ash''s group consisted of twelve gaseous stage cultivators and her. They weren''t a weak force, but Noah had the vague feeling that they weren''t enough against Divine Demon. "It''s not," Chief Ash replied bluntly. "That arrogant bastard is in the solid stage. Our role is to support the main group during the battle. Our leader will fight Divine Demon directly." Noah revealed a surprised expression at those words. He had always thought that Chief Ash was the leader of her guild. He didn''t expect her to be a simple underling. "Right, they don''t record these in the libraries," Chief Ash said. "Every guild needs a cultivator in the solid stage to obtain the acknowledgment of the stronger forces. You can even set up an entire organization once you have a cultivator in the eighth rank. Mercenaries and assassins can have only leaders in the liquid stage, but they aren''t real groups." Noah limited himself to nod again, but he felt happy inside. His cooperation with Chief Ash had just begun, but he had already gained valuable information that the libraries couldn''t offer. ''We have to join a solid stage cultivator then,'' Noah thought as he suppressed his emotions. ''I wonder how strong experts at that level are.'' Noah also felt lucky that he had spent many years improving his prowess. He wouldn''t be unprepared even in front of a solid stage cultivator. He wouldn''t win if a battle were to happen, but he felt confident in his ability to escape. ''I only have to decide what to do once we find Divine Demon,'' Noah thought. It was still unclear whether Divine Demon could be an ally. The behavior of that expert would decide Noah''s actions. Noah didn''t want to fight him, but he wouldn''t hesitate to draw his blade if the situation required it. "Does this mean that Divine Demon has a guild?" Noah asked as he continued to investigate. "No, quite the opposite," Chief Ash replied. "He doesn''t want to join any organization, and he even kills whoever tries to find him. Those like him aren''t rare when it comes to ascended cultivators, but they usually understand the limits of traveling without the backing of an organization sooner. He is an exception." "What about his contacts and alliances?" Noah continued. "Doesn''t he have customers? I don''t believe that he has no help after spending so long in the Immortal Lands." "We have confirmed a few names through the secret organization," Chief Ash said. "They shouldn''t be a problem. Their relationships are strictly professional, so we might find troubles only if Divine Demon has some specific resource coming from other forces." Noah nodded a third time before following the weaker troops that had already begun to move toward their destination. Ordinary cultivators couldn''t cross the wilderness like him. They needed safe paths that they could travel without meeting many magical beasts. The group moved quickly. Chief Ash didn''t tell Noah their destination, but he could guess where they were going since he knew the Immortal Lands'' general layout. They were returning to the area of influence of Vagona city. Noah and the others traveled for months through the wilderness. Chief Ash''s group knew all the safe paths through the forests, mountains, and lakes that appeared in their view, and Noah could only adapt to their approach to those lands. The group didn''t aim to return to Vagona city. Chief Ash and the others were going in one of the peripheral territories inside the mountain chain. More cultivators appeared in that region. A few groups converged toward the peak of the mountain and brought presents that they exposed to the other cultivators to brag. Noah didn''t understand why they would do something like that, but Chief Ash gladly began to explain again. "The boss is on the summit," Chief Ash said. "My guild doesn''t have many restrictions, but our leader wants to see the results of our missions before assigning some rewards." "Why aren''t you taking out any present then?" Noah asked, but something told him that he already knew the answer. "I have completed a few tasks already," Chief Ash said, "Those experts mostly are weaker cultivators who can''t even go past the initial phases of the divine ranks. Asking for help is their only hope." **** Author''s notes: The last chapter will arrive after I wake up. Chapter 1376: 1376. March Noah observed the trails of cultivators climbing the mountain. They were a proper platoon of experts at the bottom of the gaseous stage, and he could count at least forty of them from his position. "The boss will use the entire power of our guild for this mission," Chief Ash continued to explain. "Divine Demon isn''t an opponent that we can take lightly, and we really care about joining the secret organization." Noah nodded, but his thoughts lingered on other topics. The fact that Chief Ash''s boss wanted to use the entire guild for Divine Demon confirmed the expert''s strength and made Noah even more curious to meet him. ''I should be able to handle them if Divine Demon takes care of the boss,'' Noah thought as he planned a possible betrayal. His excitement rose as the experts climbed and descended from the mountain. That platoon was slowly getting ready to move. It was almost time to meet the ancestor of the Demon Sects. "You did find him in the end!" A male voice suddenly resounded from one side of the mountain chain and broke the peaceful scene. Chief Ash''s aura became tense when that voice reached her ears, and Noah miss that detail. He turned in the direction of that sound and saw that another small platoon had arrived at the mountain. That team had a liquid stage expert in its lead. He was a tall and burly man who wore a ragged robe. His face and short black hair were full of dirt, but his shining red eyes created a sharp contrast in his appearance. "Chief Barret from Baycross city!" Chief Ash announced. "Late as usual." "I didn''t think you would take so long," Chief Barret replied. "The Crystal City rarely fails." Chief Barret''s gaze moved on Noah after that line. The expert tried to inspect him, but his consciousness destroyed those mental waves before they could even land on his skin. "He seems strong," Chief Barret concluded as a smile appeared on his face. Chief Ash turned toward Noah, but he ignored her inquisitive gaze. He wouldn''t reveal anything to those experts since there was a high chance that he would end up betraying them. A few more platoons led by liquid stage cultivators arrived afterward. Chief Ash''s guild had six experts in the liquid stage, a few hundred in the gaseous stage, and one leader in the solid stage. It was an immense force in Noah''s eyes, but it didn''t matter too much in the higher plane''s political environment. The six Chiefs held a private meeting before instructing their respective troops and the various gaseous stage cultivators that had descended from the mountain. They were preparing everyone for the mission, and they soon completed their tasks. Noah sat cross-legged on the rocky ground without interacting with the other experts. Mental waves and curious gazes flew in his direction, but his consciousness protected him from the unwanted analysis. Grace''s words resounded in his mind when he sensed the more fearful and worried gazes. Those experts appeared concerned about his species, and the most anxious of them even began to discuss the hybrids'' weaknesses loudly. Noah didn''t react to any taunt. He knew how things worked among those troops. The weaker cultivators only wanted to feel powerful while their leader protected them. Then, after everyone had completed their preparations, a heavy aura descended from the mountain. All the experts in the area stopped chatting and straightened their position to bow toward the figure that had appeared above them. Noah didn''t bow, and his instincts screamed when he laid his eyes on the man that was descending from the mountain. He was a short man with a kid-like appearance. He had long golden hair and golden eyes, and he wore a black robe that suppressed his bright colors. The kid''s gaze ran through his troops before landing on Noah. His dense mental waves flew toward him and began to pierce his consciousness, but a layer of dark matter promptly spread inside Noah''s body and hid every detail about his existence. The solid stage expert didn''t feel scared about the dark matter, but a series of roars filled his mental waves as soon as they touched Noah''s higher energy. Hisses also entered his thoughts and forced him to stop his analysis. "What a peculiar being," The kid said in an ancient voice that didn''t match his appearance. "Did he really kill Lady Lena from the Crystal City?" "Yes, sir," Chief Ash said after raising her head. "I''ve seen it with my own eyes. He smashed her head and ate her underlings'' dantians." Noah didn''t reveal any emotion, but coldness began to fill his mind. His instincts told him that something was wrong with that situation. It was as if the guild was ready to betray him at any moment. "Defying Demon, right?" The kid continued, and Noah limited himself to nod at his question. "I am Boss Van," The kid said. "Help my guild, and I will reward you with Soul Stones and teachings about the higher stage. Do you think you can handle this mission?" "Of course," Noah replied as strategies began to amass in his mind. Countless plans surged as he inspected the solid stage cultivator. Noah couldn''t understand much from the Boss Van''s aura, but his instincts could give him a vague idea of the expert''s might. Needless to say, Noah felt almost crushed by Boss Van''s pressure. That expert was too strong. The solid stage seemed to be a realm of its own. "Good," Boss Van said. "Let''s march then. Divine Demon lives near the border with the Outer Lands. It''s a lawless zone, so don''t hold anything back. I know he won''t." The troops under him gave voice to a short battle cry before turning toward their destination and begin their march. They ran toward the safe path right after that mountain, and only Boss Van remained in the air to inspect the situation. Noah didn''t join the troops in the safe path. He marched through the danger zones near that army while he continued to check his power. He even used his Divine Deduction technique to begin other projects. Boss Van never lost track of him. The solid stage expert''s consciousness could cover entire regions, and Noah made sure to remain inside its range. He didn''t want to make them lose trust in him already. Noah had never explored the regions between Vagona city and the Outer Lands. They were in the opposite direction of Silkpost city, but they stretched for far longer. The guild was actively marching toward the edges of the Immortal Lands. The higher plane never stopped expanding, so Noah couldn''t predict how long the journey would be. The group marched past big and small human settlements. Noah even saw a few solitary palaces that ruled over entire regions. The human domain was the home of many forces, and most of them had to settle in those peripheral regions since the central ones already featured powerful organizations. Those lands didn''t even have the restrictions of the other cities. They could feature battles among cultivators who wanted control over those regions. Only the big settlements with multiple rank 8 existences could live in apparent peace. "We are almost there," Boss Van eventually conveyed through his consciousness. The troops slowed down their advance at that point and prepared for the battle. They took out various inscribed items and created a battle formation as they waited for their leader''s orders. Noah didn''t know what they expected him to do in that situation, but Boss Van promptly descended from the sky to solve his doubts. "Divine Demon is somewhere in the next region," Boss Van said. "Go and bait him out." Chapter 1377: 1377. Divine Demon ''So that''s their plan,'' Noah thought after Boss Van''s words reached his ears. Using Noah as bait wasn''t a bad strategy in theory. Chief Ash and Boss Van were unaware of the actual nature of his relationship with Divine Demon. They didn''t mind testing him in that mission. Even if Noah were to betray them in the middle of the mission, they would gain an idea of Divine Demon''s position. That was already good for their plan. The entire guild could encircle him at that point. The guild wouldn''t lose anything even if Noah were to run away without searching for Divine Demon. Boss Van would only change tactics at that point. Still, they didn''t suspect the worst-case scenario. Noah wasn''t a simple cultivator who had learnt legends about Divine Demon during his stay in the lower plane. He was his heir, and leaving him alone with the expert could lead to unexpected outcomes. Noah didn''t answer. He didn''t need to reply to Boss Van to express his decision to play the bait. The situation benefitted him, and he couldn''t escape those orders anyway. "Will you handle the rest?" Noah asked. "Focus on baiting him out," Boss Van said after snorting. "He can''t defeat my entire guild if he fights in the open." Noah thought about the Copying Technique and wondered if Divine Demon had managed to improve it during his stay in the Immortal Lands. Yet, he quickly focused on his mission and turned to fly in the next region. The gazes of Boss Van and the rest of the guild landed on Noah''s back as he set off from the azure terrain and flew toward the next region. His departure signaled the beginning of the mission, and a tense aura filled the environment as those experts began to feel the pressure of the imminent battle. It was unusual for weaker cultivators to fight stronger ones. The guild''s opponent was a solid stage expert, and only Boss Van matched that power. Chief Ash and the others could join the battle head-on. Boss Van''s underlings used cloaking devices to hide among the tall magical plants that filled those regions and prepared for their opponent to arrive. Instead, Boss Van remained in the open. He stood in the middle of the sky with his consciousness unfolded. Nothing escaped his mental waves. He could sense every creature in the forest that filled those regions. Noah studied the environment as he flew above those lands. An immense forest expanded in his vision, and a few mountains disrupted that green scenery. Those trees also hid a few deep cracks that connected the surface to an unknown underground world. ''Divine Demon doesn''t seem the type to hide underground,'' Noah thought as his instincts guided his movements, ''But I can''t sense anything from up here.'' Noah studied the forest, flew around the mountains, and inspected the lairs that radiated a powerful aura, but he didn''t find Divine Demon. That left him with the underground world, which he didn''t hesitate to explore. Noah dived inside one of the largest cracks and found something strange as soon as he reached a certain depth. He didn''t sense anything at all from that point onward. The ground didn''t even radiate its usual aura. Something was covering the area. It resembled a barrier meant to hide any aura or prevent it from spreading in the environment. Noah couldn''t identify its true nature, but his instincts confirmed that it was harmless, so he continued his descent. His feet eventually reached an invisible membrane. That slight touch created waves across the barrier that showed Noah how far that protection stretched. It covered the entirety of the crack and most of its walls, but it didn''t prevent anyone from crossing it. Noah could directly enter if he desired it, but he preferred to test something else first. His consciousness spread to make sure that Boss Van''s mental waves could reach that place, and a soft voice came out of his mouth after he confirmed that detail. "I''m Defying Demon, heir of Divine Demon''s inheritance, and leader of the Demon Sects," Noah said. "I request a meeting with Divine Demon." His words dispersed through the crack, but nothing happened on the other side of the barrier. Noah could only sigh and cross that membrane, hoping that Divine Demon didn''t build any defense that could deceive his senses. The membrane didn''t carry any peculiar aura. It didn''t show anything that could reveal details about Divine Demon''s individuality, and Noah didn''t even bother to inspect it after discovering that feature. Once he crossed the barrier, Noah could sense the auras coming from that underground aura. He immediately felt the presence of a few magical beasts together with an intense emotion that filled every material in the area. The crack ended in a valley that split into many tunnels. A vast underground world seemed to unfold from that spot, and Noah even guessed that some of those paths would lead to the other fissures. Still, his main focus remained on that peculiar emotion. ''Is this battle intent?'' Noah wondered as he breathed the air filled with that emotion. Being with June for entire centuries had taught Noah the different shades that a battle intent could take. June radiated violent happiness when she fought, while Noah leaked cold aggression in those situations. Instead, the battle intent that filled the valley seemed greedy. It desired something that Noah couldn''t guess without any clue. It wasn''t even violent, but it appeared ready to explode. The magical beasts sensed during the descent were inside the tunnels. Those paths were quite deep, so Noah couldn''t understand where exactly those creatures were. The same went for Divine Demon. Noah couldn''t find him from his position in the valley. He needed to enter the tunnels and explore that underground world to find his target, and his superior awareness helped him in the task. Noah only needed to walk in front of every entrance and list in his mind those that made his instincts scream louder. If Divine Demon occupied the area, he would be the strongest being in the entire underground world. That expert was only a human, so it was unlikely that he had learnt to live in peace with those magical beasts. It was more probable that he had submitted them. Noah activated his robe and entered the tunnel that hid the greatest dangers. His dark matter also spread under his tissues to prepare a first defensive layer in case some fast trap activated. The exploration went smoothly until the tunnel opened into a large underground hall that split into even more caves. Noah could count more than sixteen paths from his position, but his attention soon went on a figure laid on one of the entrances above him. The figure belonged to a middle-aged man with long white hair and no bear. A dense aura surrounded his body, and his red eyes illuminated the bottle that he brought to his mouth. Noah had seen a similar figure in the past. He was at the bottom of an inheritance hidden under the Great Whirlpool near the Coral Archipelago. He could instantly recognize Divine Demon when he saw him. "We finally meet," Noah said as he performed a bow. He felt pure gratitude toward Divine Demon. His gesture expressed how deeply the expert''s inheritance and his disciples had improved Noah''s life. "I''m thinking," Divine Demon said without turning his dead. "I don''t talk when I''m thinking. Talk with the dragons." "Dragons?" Noah asked before a series of draconic heads came out of the various tunnels connected to that large hall. Chapter 1378: 1378. Heir "Food!" "Some food!" "Eat it before the bastard stops us again!" Noah translated the dragons'' roars in his mind as he inspected those creatures. Black scales became visible after those creatures peeked out of their tunnels to fix their reptilian eyes on him. The same flicker that Noah had seen when he crossed the barrier spread through the walls of the underground hall. A dense membrane covered the entire area, and its properties had kept the dragons hidden from Noah''s consciousness while they were inside the tunnels. ''He didn''t lose his old habits,'' Noah thought as he watched those creatures coming out of the tunnels and revealing their huge bodies. They were all Fire Dragons, the most common species of dragon-like creatures. They were more than twenty meters long and could morph the flames spewed by their pointy mouths. The Fire Dragons weren''t weak, but they lacked special features that could make them shine among the other species of dragons. They were powerful creatures that didn''t have any evident weakness. ''Should I show off?'' Noah wondered as those eighteen dragons opened their mouths and spewed scarlet flames that filled the entire underground hall. The flames raged through the area but didn''t cross the membrane that covered the various tunnels. The barrier stopped them from reaching the valley or paths that led to the surface and kept them confined inside that vast hall. When the flames dispersed, the dragons saw Noah in the same position as before. No damage had appeared on his body, and even his robe was completely intact. He had endured the attack without deploying a single technique. There wasn''t any dragon in the upper tier among that group. A few of them were in the middle tier, but most of those creatures were in the lower tier. Some of the middle tier dragons were stronger than Noah in terms of progress through the seventh rank, but their flames couldn''t even scratch his skin. Noah''s body was too strong from those creatures. They would need to use their innate ability and coordinate an offensive if they wanted to injure him. "The fire does nothing!" "Attack directly!" "Tear it apart with your fangs!" The dragons roared orders that Noah could understand, but listening to them didn''t change his approach to the situation. If Divine Demon wanted to test him, he would show him the real power of his heir. The creatures flapped their wings to increase their momentum as they charged toward Noah. Hungry roars filled the underground hall as that pack converged on him from every direction, but he didn''t move even in front at such a display of power. Noah limited himself to open his mouth and give voice to a deep roar that made the membrane on the walls tremble. The dragons instantly halted their advance by digging their claws on the rocking terrain, and soft tremors ran through their scales as that cry filled their ears. The roar carried a simple meaning. Noah had ordered the dragons to bow while his pride flowed into his voice. Those creatures couldn''t believe their ears when they sensed the aura of a Light-Devouring Dragon filling that cry. Noah''s pride didn''t only carry the might of the Light-Devouring Dragons. He had improved his species multiple times already, so those creatures saw in him the ultimate specimen among dragon-like beasts. They had never sensed something so strong through their long lives. Their instincts acted before they could decide what to do. The dragons lowered their heads, and their tremors intensified when Noah unfolded his consciousness to cover them in his pride. One roar had been enough to tame those creatures. Divine Demon finally moved his gaze toward the bottom of the hall at that point. Noah sensed that and raised his eyes to exchange a glance with the expert. His reptilian pupils met those red eyes, and a soft radiance shone from them as their Divine Deduction techniques activated on their own. The inscriptions on Noah''s mental walls didn''t consume any mental energy. They only lit up when they sensed similar lines inside the expert''s mind. A series of memories came out of Noah''s mental sea and shot toward Divine Demon as that stare continued. Those thoughts featured all the events related to Divine Demon, the Demon Sects, and Noah''s identity as an heir. Divine Demon absorbed those memories and closed his eyes to process them. Noah''s Divine Deduction technique deactivated at that point, and no adverse effect spread through his mind after that peculiar event. The expert nodded a few times as he inspected those memories. Various emotions appeared on his face as he studied the events that had followed his ascension. Noah remained silent out of respect for the expert. Those memories told him about Ravaging Demon''s betrayal and all the hardships suffered by his other disciples. Noah didn''t dare to disturb him in that situation. After a while, Divine Demon opened his eyes and revealed a long sigh. His bottle reached his mouth once again, and drinking noises followed that gesture. The bottle then ended, and Divine Demon threw it at his side before turning his attention back on Noah. The noise caused by the shattering of the bottle echoed through the underground hall as the two began to stare at each other again. "Noah Balvan, Demon Prince of the Hive, Defying Demon," Divine Demon said slowly, "My disciples have caused you many problems. As their Master, I am ashamed." "They have been valuable allies for most of my cultivation journey," Noah replied. "Normal cultivators couldn''t match the might of the Demons. Your legacy is safe in their hands." Divine Demon snorted before jumping out of the tunnel. He landed on one dragon and shook his head toward those creatures. The beasts were still bowing toward Noah, and the arrival of their warden made them shake even more intensely. "They have died because they were weak!" Divine Demon announced. "I can justify only Chasing Demon. The others weren''t worthy of their titles if a single betrayal has led to their death." Noah didn''t know what to answer at those lines. Ravaging Demon''s betrayal had been so effective because the orthodox sects had access to Divine Elder Tabitha''s inheritance. Divine Demon had left his legacy in the archipelago, so the Demon Sects couldn''t win that battle. "I can''t read your mind anymore," Divine Demon said, "But I can understand your thoughts. My disciples have no excuses. A defeat is a defeat. I hope that Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon ascend soon so that I can start training them again." A wide smile appeared on Divine Demon''s face at that point. He patted one of the wings of the dragon under him as thoughts on how to punish the surviving Demons filled his mind. "So, you are a hybrid," Divine Demon said when he focused on Noah again. "Your species might come in handy in the Outer Lands. The Legion is hiding something valuable, but its members won''t tell me anything. I wonder what they will say when I show them that my heir is a hybrid." Noah felt immediately curious about that, but he suddenly recalled the dangerous situation around the region. Boss Van''s guild was still ready to ambush Divine Demon as soon as he came out of his lair. Chapter 1379: 1379. Whistle "Boos Van and his guild are outside, waiting to ambush you," Noah explained when he saw that Divine Demon intended to leave right away. "Does this place have a secret exit?" "Yes," Divine Demon exclaimed, "But we won''t use it. Our enemies have come for us. It''s only normal to show them our gratitude." An intense aura seeped out of Divine Demon''s figure after he said those words. Excitement, battle intent, and a tinge of defiance filled the violent mental waves that spread in the underground hall. The membrane crumbled when it touched Divine Demon''s consciousness. He had prepared himself to leave without asking Noah more about the army waiting for him on the surface. "I will take care of Boss Van," Divine Demon said. "You will handle the others." The guild had six cultivators in the liquid stage and a few hundred gaseous stage experts. They weren''t a force that Noah could take lightly, especially since he lacked experience in battles at that level. He had only fought against Lady Lena since he had reached the liquid stage. "Can''t we plan something?" Noah asked. "We can easily take them by surprise if we use the membrane and some technique." "We can," Divine Demon replied, "But we won''t do it. We will face our opponents head-on and defeat them with our superiority. Stop wasting time unless you want to see the dragons in the upper tier." Noah''s eyes lit up at those words. Divine Demon had access to magical beasts in the upper tier, and that made his hunger awaken. "Don''t even think about it," Divine Demon said after he noticed the changes in Noah''s expressions. "I value my dragons. If you want food, you have enemies waiting outside." Noah felt quite startled at how quickly the situation had evolved. He had come there with Chief Ash and Boss Van less than a day ago, but he was now cooperating with Divine Demon. "Can you handle Boss Van?" Noah eventually asked when he saw Divine Demon jumping toward the corridors. "Of course!" Divine Demon exclaimed. "I wish I could face more of him at the same time. These experts who have never experienced the lower plane can''t compare themselves to monsters who had overcome every obstacle on their path." Noah felt speechless once again. Divine Demon appeared confident, and no trace of fear tainted his expression. The expert had decided that he would fight, so he had already prepared his mind for the imminent clash. "They told me that you deal with multiple organizations," Noah said as he began to follow Divine Demon, who had left to enter a tunnel. "Many organizations indeed," Divine Demon replied. "The inscription masters in the higher plane are laughable, and the various forces are also quite poorly handled. Most of their members believe that having a rank 8 cultivator in their ranks will save their lives. Pathetic." Divine Demon felt angry to see that those cultivators weren''t doing their best to improve. That went against every fiber of his body. He couldn''t forgive cultivators that didn''t make use of their natural gifts. His aura was a mess. Noah could sense an intense desire toward something that he couldn''t understand. Divine Demon''s individuality appeared quite complicated, but it was completely obscure to Noah''s eyes. "Stop staring," Divine Demon said at some point. "My individuality is the law of the challenge. It allows me to overcome obstacles even when a situation appears doomed. I get stronger by winning basically." "Why are you telling me everything?" Noah asked, concerned that Divine Demon had already revealed his individuality to certain forces. "I am the ancestor of the Demon Sects," Divine Demon said. "I have divided the Papral region into two sides, and my disciples have ended up ruling the whole world. I know how to handle these secrets. Still, reaching the top after the whole world has learnt about your abilities sounds like a good challenge." The flaws of his individuality had already become visible to Noah''s eyes. Divine Demon needed challenges to advance, and he made his situation harsher on purpose before a fight. Noah did something similar when he wanted to quicken his growth, but he would never take his challenges lightly, especially when they could kill him. Divine Demon didn''t seem to apply the same carefulness. He charged directly at his enemies once he assessed their power. "Does your individuality apply only to your battles?" Noah asked. He wouldn''t hold back his questions since Divine Demon appeared willing to speak about that topic. "It applies to everything," Divine Demon replies. "I can overcome challenges even in the inscription field. How do you think I came up with the Copying Technique and Divine Deduction technique? I had to overcome the difficulties of that task." ''He is a maniac,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''Even more of a maniac than June.'' The duo moved through the underground structure and climbed a tunnel that brought them to the surface. Noah inspected his surroundings before peeking out of the terrain, but Divine Demon directly shot in the sky to search for his opponent. "Van! I know you are here!" Divine Demon shouted after he rose in the sky and found no opponent waiting for him. Noah ignored Divine Demon''s behavior and used his robe to hide among the trees. The expert needed a challenge to improve, but he couldn''t force Noah to take the hard path on purpose. "Fine then," Divine Demon said before bringing his hand to his mouth and whistling. The air began to tremble after that gesture. Faint soundwaves spread through the sky and fell on the ground as that noise made the fabric of the world shake. Noah started to run at that sight. He didn''t want to end in the middle of an attack cast by a solid stage cultivator. He was strong, but he couldn''t survive something at that level. Craters opened on the ground as that soundwave spread. Divine Demon''s dragons came out of the terrain and rose in the sky to inspect the area. They even launched flames to destroy pieces of the forest that enemies were using as a cover. The flames landed on the terrain right after Noah escaped from the range of the soundwave. Pillars of fire filled his figure and tried to burn him, but his body was too strong for those attacks to have any effect. Only the two dragons in the upper tier that had appeared behind Divine Demon could hope to damage him. The dragons transformed the whole forest into an inferno of scorching flames, and most trees burned under those attacks. Those beasts even coordinated to take down the stronger magical plants on the ground. The flames uncovered large patches of the ground. A dark-blue charred ground replaced the forest as the dragons'' offensive continued. Those trees were simply between Divine Demon and his challenge. A shadow eventually shot out of the forest. Boss Van revealed himself and approached Divine Demon without daring to get too close to him. He remained at some distance as he began to converse. "I have finally found you," Boss Van said. "Today is the day you die." "You only needed to send me a message if you wanted to fight," Divine Demon replied. "Petty tactics won''t open the path for the eighth rank." Divine Demon''s aura became a bit more intense after those words. He had won that exchange of lines, so his power had increased. Chapter 1380: 1380. Three attacks Boss Van showed an unsightly expression at Divine Demon''s sudden increase of power. He was aware of the expert''s individuality since that wasn''t their first meeting, but he couldn''t avoid triggering its effects. Divine Demon smiled before bringing his hand to his mouth. Another whistle came out of his figure, and the dragons turned their mouths toward Boss Van at that order. A series of scarlet flames filled the sky as the dragons attacked. Even the two creatures in the upper tier behind Divine Demon helped in that offensive by releasing fire that merged with their companion''s ability. Boss Van didn''t dodge the flames. A soft wind blew out of his figure and fended off the incoming attacks, creating a safe aura around him. Not even the fire in the upper tier could pierce that spell. Divine Demon whistled again at that point. Dense energy came out of the dragons at that order, and their flames morphed under its effects. The fire that had filled the sky transformed into two massive clawed legs that slashed at Boss Van. The guild''s leader couldn''t ignore the dragon''s offensive anymore after those creatures activated their innate ability. They were simple magical beasts, but their power wasn''t something that he could underestimate when they worked together. "One month," Boss Van said, and a wave of condensed air blew out of his figure. Those gales destroyed the fiery legs and continued to fly until they reached the creatures behind them. Most of the lower tier dragons died after that attack, and those in the middle tier suffered severe injuries after the condensed air ripped their scales off. Divine Demon shook his head as he released a loud sigh. The death of his dragons didn''t seem to bother him. Instead, he appeared tired when he saw that scene. "Do you know how hard is it to find dragons of the same species in the higher plane?" Divine Demon said in a low voice. "I had to explore the Outer Lands for centuries to find these specimens!" "Why don''t you fight me with your power then?" Boss Van asked. "This battle would be too easy to win if I use my spells," Divine Demon said before sighing again. "I wouldn''t improve at all like that. You don''t even have the guts to fight me on your own!" Boss Van''s eyes sharpened when he heard those words. Only Noah knew that his guild was there, so Divine Demon''s remarks led to a single conclusion. "I have it!" Divine Demon exclaimed as the redness radiated by his eyes intensified. "Let''s make a bet. I will only use three spells. You can have my life if you survive them." "What makes you think that I will play this game?" Boss Van said, but Divine Demon had already brought his hand to his mouth by the end of his line. Another whistle resounded in the area, and the remaining dragons dived back into the ground after that order. Only Divine Demon and Boss Van remained in the sky at that point, but the atmosphere became tenser after that event. Boss Van wanted to add something, but Divine Demon ignored him as he gathered his energy. He turned his palm upward and closed his eyes as his aura spread through the sky. Divine Demon''s aura was intense. It carried his desire to win, and the environment morphed under its effects. The "Breath" in the area gathered around him while its nature changed. That energy featured multiple elements and true meaning before, but it transformed into "Breath" of the water element after it entered Divine Demon''s range. Boss Van''s eyes widened. A dangerous sensation had invaded his mind, but it was too late for him. He couldn''t dodge the incoming attack anymore. He could only activate another defensive spell. "One year!" Boss Van shouted as Divine Demon began to raise his palm. A dense defensive layer made of condensed air seeped out of Boss Van''s skin and gave birth to multiple storms. Wild winds shot in every direction due to the power generated by his spell. Divine Demon completed his gesture while his opponent was busy activating a defensive spell. The ground and the air under Boss Van rose and transformed into a multicolored torrent that crashed on the expert and pushed him high in the sky. "One year!" Boss Van shouted again while the torrent dragged along its trajectory. The defensive spell that had formed over his skin became thicker and exploded outward, releasing even more storms in the sky. The dense water of the torrent managed to piece those winds, but Boss Van''s technique eventually managed to stop the attack. Boss Van stopped himself high in the sky. Chunks of his skin had disappeared after the attack, and his appearance had also changed. The faint trace of a beard had grown under his chin, and height had increased after that exchange. Energy amassed around Divine Demon again. The world''s matter seemed to obey him, but that connection wasn''t as simple as it looked. He didn''t manipulate the "Breath" in the environment. That energy helped him on its own. It was as if the world wanted him to win and transformed the matter in energy that he could use. Divine Demon didn''t use much "Breath" during his previous attack, but the environment had fueled it to increase its power. Those effects were similar to the dark world. Noah could use his dark matter to boost the power of his attacks and companions. As for Divine Demon, he appeared able to use everything in the world for that task. "What are you doing?!" Boss Van shouted as he spat a mouthful of blood. "Begin the offensive on this monster!" The members of Boss Van''s guild launched their spells at that order. They had remained hidden inside the forest until now, but their attacks didn''t take their opponent by surprise. The "Breath" of the water element around Divine Demon moved on its own and created a series of whirlpools that protected him from the massive array of spells that had flown toward him. The world didn''t want him to lose, so it acted to stop that offensive. "This doesn''t count!" Divine Demon shouted as he glanced at the troops hidden inside the forest. The intense aura that accompanied his gaze forced those weaker cultivators to stop their offensive. They felt as if they were suffocating when Divine Demon''s individuality fell on them and applied its pressure. "I won''t be your opponent," Divine Demon said after he studied what he could perceive of those troops. "My heir will take care of you." "Heir?" Boss Van asked as winds blew out of his injuries to heal them. His appearance continued to age as he used his "Breath". His individuality appeared connected with his lifespan, and his body grew after he consumed part of it. "Him," Divine Demon said as he pointed toward a seemingly random spot in the forest. Boss Van focused on that spot and saw a hooded Noah trying to sneak closer to his underlings. The attention of the other members of his guild also went there. They didn''t fail to notice a figure moving at high speed through the trees. Noah sensed that the battlefield''s attention had moved on him, and a helpless expression appeared on his face as he shot an annoyed glance toward Divine Demon. Chapter 1381: 1381. Proud Noah had to avoid entering Divine Demon and Boss Van''s range during his search for the enemy troops. He couldn''t lower his guard for even a second when two experts at that level fought. After his cover vanished, everyone could see him moving through the forest. "Could you not announce me when my opponent is an entire platoon?" Noah asked in an annoyed tone. "Go and make me proud, my heir," Divine Demon replied before moving his attention on Boss Van again. It didn''t matter how intensely Noah stared at Divine Demon. The expert ignored him to focus on his opponent and prepare for the next attack. Noah remained alone in the middle of the enemy gazes. "Take care of him quickly and help me," Boss Van said before focusing on Divine Demon. Chief Ash and the other underlings didn''t hesitate to prepare spells after that order. All their attacks would aim at Noah to make sure that he died as fast as possible. ''Why do I even surround myself with maniacs?'' Noah thought as a loud sigh escaped his mouth. Noah had located the troops after their first wave of attacks toward Divine Demon. They had cloaking devices, but they could make them invisible after they discharged such a massive amount of energy. He only needed to expand his consciousness to see that those troops were pointing at him as "Breath" amassed inside their bodies. Something massive was about to arrive, and Noah felt that he couldn''t dodge it. ''Luckily, I have come prepared,'' Noah thought as he bent his legs and crouched toward the enemy army. Multicolored lights shot out of the group and flew toward Noah, but his figure disappeared before those spells could hit him. Chief Ash and the others couldn''t see him anymore, but a loud clash resounded among their ranks and made them turn toward the source of that noise. The various Chiefs turned and saw that one of their companions in the liquid stage had vanished. Noah had appeared in his place, and countless patches of fresh blood covered his robe. No injury had appeared on his body. That blood didn''t belong to him, but the other cultivators couldn''t find its source. Then, they noticed that one of their six liquid stage cultivators had disappeared. Fear and disbelief filled their minds when they considered the possibility that Noah had killed one of their strongest members in less than an instant. They couldn''t explain how that was possible on multiple levels. They didn''t even see Noah move when the spells crashed on his previous position. ''The movement technique works well,'' Noah thought as that blood flowed inside his separate space. The rest of the expert''s body also was inside his black hole. Noah had used his movement technique to reach him and destroy his head before he could activate any annoying defensive spells. Noah had to leave something for later when he meditated inside the Hellish Landscape. Making use of the red crystals retrieved in the Evolution Pit would take too long, and he didn''t want to keep Chief Ash waiting for too long. Still, he had improved core aspects of his battle style, and one of them was his movement technique. Noah couldn''t use his movement technique in the Immortal Lands before. The world''s fabric was too thick for him, and opening a path through its structure was impossible at his previous level. Yet, the breakthrough to the liquid stage had opened the path for various improvements. The Divine Deduction technique could also show its real power, so solving that issue didn''t take him long. The previous movement technique made use of multiple abilities to work. Noah fused his physical might, his Merging spell, and his sharpness to create a hole through the world''s structure and cross a vast distance instantly. The new technique didn''t involve any dimensional travel. Noah had taken inspiration from Night to create that version of his ability. When he shot forward, he used his physical might to bring the Merging spell to a superior level that turned him into an invisible sword. Noah wasn''t untouchable anymore when he sprinted, but the new version of his technique featured a far higher speed and allowed him to conserve more momentum during his offensive. The liquid stage cultivator he had targeted couldn''t even react before his body transformed into meat pulp. Dark matter and corrosive smoke came out of Noah''s skin before the other experts could attack. The dark world unfolded in the area, and two layers of his fiendish armor covered his figure. The cultivators in the gaseous stage weren''t a problem. Noah could handle them easily, even without the dark world. Yet, he needed that technique to take care of the Chiefs. His movement technique was deadly in a one versus one situation, but he couldn''t rely on its power with five liquid stage experts focusing on him. He needed all his abilities for that battle. A wave of suppression fell on the guild''s experts. Their laws felt weaker inside that dark environment, but they didn''t let the darkness divine them. A few spells flew out from the group, but those cultivators soon stopped trying to pierce that technique. The dark world could move as it wished. The dark matter was resilient energy that followed Noah''s orders. The guild''s group did not have a chance to leave that technique without giving Noah an opportunity to strike. Seconds of silence passed inside the dark world as the group waited for something to happen. They saw shadows flying through the darkness, but they never managed to understand their features. Low roars spread through the dark world as the group waited. They knew that something was about to arrive, and they were ready to face it. A few reptilian heads became visible among the dark matter as dragons made entirely of higher energy charged at the group of cultivators. They were all magical beasts in the middle tier created through the workshop, but a black radiance came out of their almost empty eyes. The second part of Noah''s seclusion had involved the workshop. Noah had learnt how to complete the blueprint needed for the workshop after his battle with Lady Lena, so he could now use his expertise to create different and more complicated creatures. The black radiance coming out of their eyes came from fake cores that he had installed inside those creatures. Those dragons were now perfect puppets that could show their real power once they joined a battle. The guild''s group launched attacks against those beasts, and they died quickly, but more reptilian heads peeked out of the darkness and fixed their eyes on those cultivators. That army counted more than three hundred specimens after the reptilian heads stopped appearing. Only a few of them had eyes that radiated a black light, but the others weren''t too weaker than them. Still, they were less durable, so they took the vanguard as they charged toward the group of experts. The swarm of dragons crashed on those cultivators and struggled violently to inflict as many casualties as possible. Noah didn''t even need to move. He could watch that battle from a safe position with the Demonic Sword and Snore waiting for their moment to shine. **** Author''s notes: I need another hour or so for the last chapter. I''ll publish it once I''m done. Chapter 1382: 1382. Relentless Boss Van and Divine Demon ignored Noah''s battle. They stared at each other and waited for their opponent to make a move even after a black cloud covered part of the region. "The next one will be stronger," Divine Demon announced. "You might want to use more years." Divine Demon wore a mocking smile when he talked to his opponent. Boss Van didn''t reply, mostly because he knew that the expert was correct. The last attack had injured him even after he had used two defensive spells. Divine Demon''s attacks were powerful, and the whole world worked with him to increase his spells'' strength. The previous torrent didn''t contain much energy. Divine Demon had thrown a simple spell fueled with a small amount of his "Breath", but the world had turned it into an attack that could threaten an entire guild. Boss Van had silently decided to play along with Divine Demon''s game. He only needed to survive two more attacks to kill him, and Divine Demon wouldn''t back off from his bet since his individuality depended on it. Fighting Divine Demon when he used all his spells was too troublesome. His gamble had given Boss Van hope to complete that match without suffering any significant injury. "Get ready," Divine Demon said as he spread his arms and pointed his palms upward. Even more matter in the world converged toward his figure and transformed under the effects of his law. Entire chunks of the Immortal Lands'' tough ground rose in the sky and morphed into drops of water that began to float around him. Divine Demon''s aura intensified as he raised both palms and clasped them above his head. The water around him surged together with his gesture, and an even bigger torrent flew upward to engulf Boss Van with its might. Boss Van didn''t want to face the attack, but the water was too fast for him. Dodging it was impossible for him. He could only rely on the gales that came out of his figure to defend and save his life. "One hundred years!" Boss Van shouted, and the sky divided itself into two parts. A hurricane engulfed his figure and connected the sky with the ground as it pierced the massive torrent that was pushing him higher. His dense winds fought against the raging waters that attacked his body, and pieces of his skin disintegrated during the process. When that exchange ended, Boss Van descended from the sky with the aspect of a young man. Hair grew from under his chin and chest, but the blood flowing out of his injuries hid most of those new features. Boss Van didn''t lose any limb in the last exchange, but most of his skin had disappeared. His muscles were out in the open, and his blood flowed freely from them. No more winds came out of his figure to heal those injuries. His individuality didn''t work well with his poor condition, so he had to limit his spells to contain the blood loss. However, Boss Van wore a wide smile. He had already survived two attacks, and he had yet to go all-out. In his mind, that battle was over. The shockwaves released during their exchanges unleashed chaos in the environment. Even the insides of Noah''s dark world couldn''t avoid but suffer from them. The army of dragons and part of the dark world shattered when those shockwaves reached the black cloud. The cultivators from the guild and Noah ended up puking blood as their insides trembled under the power unleashed by two solid stage experts. ''Why am I even fighting so close to them?'' Noah cursed in his mind as he controlled the dark world to resume the workshop. Black orbs came out of his separate space and fused with the dark world while the dark matter rotated to give birth to more dragons. Those cores entered some creatures and filled them with Noah''s darkness, giving them the stability that most of their companions lacked. The workshop was working perfectly. Its only weakness was in Noah''s shortage of cores. If he had more time to prepare, he could create an army made entirely of puppets that resembled middle tier magical beasts in power. Still, the technique was showing its power even during that flawed execution. The army of cultivators had turned into a small group of experts that struggled to continue to fight. Chief Ash and the other four Chiefs were still alive, but injuries filled their bodies. Instead, most of their underlings had died under the dragons'' relentless assault and the corrosive smoke that flew through the dark world. The value of the workshop was immense. Noah could fuse the suppressing effects of the dark world with an endless army of powerful beasts. No force could withstand that offensive for too long. Moreover, the dark world allowed Noah to ignore most of the workshop''s weaknesses. The technique required many materials in Great Builder''s version, but Noah could use the nigh-unlimited dark matter inside his black hole for the task. The black hole also had its limits, but Noah''s darkness always refilled it. He could use the energy contained in two centers of power to keep the workshop active, which translated into an immense number of magical beasts. Noah could also cultivate while the workshop was active to refill his dantian and obtain more dark matter. In theory, his technique didn''t have limits since it didn''t weigh on his mind. ''I need to end this and leave those two to their fight,'' Noah thought as Snore and the Demonic Sword released understanding cries. ''I''m suffering injuries only because I''m too close to them.'' The five liquid stage experts continued to fight against the horde of dragons while they watched their underlings die. Gaseous stage cultivators couldn''t survive in that environment for too long, and the Chief didn''t have time to protect them. The dragons'' assault was reckless and relentless. Those creatures stopped at nothing, and they suicided in an attempt to add another injury to their opponents'' bodies. Fighting that type of enemy was exhausting. The Chiefs would have already planned to escape the dark world if it wasn''t for Noah''s previous show of power. Noah had demonstrated that he was too fast. Some of them would surely die if they tried to escape the dense cloud. Yet, the situation had become so dangerous that even the most reckless plan had gained a decent appeal. Remaining inside the dark world would lead to certain death, so risking their lives to escape was the only strategy that could make them survive. The Chiefs exchanged an understanding glance before a series of multicolored lights exploded outward and fended off part of the dark matter that enveloped them. Noah sensed five figures shooting in different directions in a desperate attempt to leave the dark world. Their plan was a simple one but quite effective since their opponent was alone. Of course, that was a miscalculation on their side. The Demonic Sword shot after one expert. Night came out of the separate space to chase Chief Ash. Snore fused with the dark world to fly after another cultivator. Noah joined the hunt and went after one of the remaining targets, and the army of dragons flew toward the edges of the dark world to seal any possible exit. Noah''s companions didn''t have to win. They only needed to keep his opponents busy for a few seconds, and he would reach them with his movement technique. Still, Night, Snore, and the Demonic Sword took their task as a chance to prove their power. The Demonic Sword gathered and generated dark matter as it flew toward one of the Chiefs. The weapon had become a massive blade by the time it reached its target, and the dark world enhanced its power when it released a slash. Night was subtler. Chief Ash didn''t even sense when the Pterodactyl fused with her body and began to sever her law. Snore limited itself to appear in front of its target and launch its dark beam. The dark world enhanced that attack, and a wave of violent dark matter ran through the entire cloud. Chapter 1383: 1383. Bickering When Noah was inside the dark world, he had the power to defeat an entire army of rank 7 cultivators that contained five experts at his level. That battle prowess was absurd for an existence who had just advanced to the liquid stage, but Noah wasn''t an ordinary cultivator. His new power also came from the Great Builder''s inheritance, so it wasn''t a surprise that he could express such strength. However, every ability had weaknesses. The workshop was an incredible technique, but its creations were valuable only when Noah used them to overwhelm his opponents. In a situation when everyone was doing their best to run away, the dragons couldn''t express their real power. Noah used his movement technique to reach his target in an instant. Chief Barret soon appeared in his vision, but Noah only saw a blur as he flew through his body. The expert was under the suppression of the dark world. He couldn''t sense Noah. His body exploded before he could even understand what was happening around him. The Demonic Sword had transformed into a massive blade during its slash. The dark matter inside the dark world and generated by its body had filled it with so much energy that its target couldn''t react to its power. The slash unleashed a storm of dark matter that severed everything on its path. A hole also appeared on the cloud due to the massive amount of higher energy moved during the attack. The sword''s target could only crumble when a sixth of the dark world fell on him. It didn''t matter that the living weapon was still in the lower tier. That amount of higher energy could kill any cultivator in the liquid stage if it hit them. Chief Ash felt safe for most of her escape, but her body split in half when she was about to reach the edge of the dark world. Disbelief filled her mind when she saw her consciousness growing dark. During her last instant of awareness, she saw a strange Pterodactyl leaving her figure to merge with the black environment. Snore''s dark beam was Noah''s strongest attack. That violent dark matter existed only to destroy even if it carried the power to create. It was the most offensive form of the copied elements, so it could disintegrate all the originals. The Chief struck by Snore''s beam tried to fight back with a series of spells, but they crumbled under the might carried by the violent dark matter. The Blood Companion defeated its target in an instant and created another hole in the cloud due to the higher energy moved during its attack. The last liquid stage expert was an old woman with long gray hair called Chief Taylor. A series of dragons came out of the blackness and threw their fangs at her while she tried to escape from the dark world. Those puppets often managed to damage her body, but she never stopped escaping. Even when the dragons bit their left arm off and cut away one of her legs, she continued to fly toward the edge of the dark world. Chief Taylor''s individuality allowed her to transform her skin into a crystal-like mineral featuring high defensive properties. The suppression of the dark world had slowed down the activation of that technique and had made her suffer severe injuries. Still, wounds stopped appearing on her after she completed her ability. The dragons couldn''t hurt her anymore at that point. They had managed to pierce that ability before, but they didn''t have enough time to do it now. Their attacks could only make her bounce through different areas of the dark world until she eventually left that blackness. Noah and his companions couldn''t stop her. They had too many opponents, and the shockwaves radiated by Divine Demon''s battle had destroyed most of his fake cores. The puppets that had gone after Chief Taylor didn''t have enough power to stop her advance. The Demonic Sword, Night, and Snore proudly returned toward Noah after they defeated their enemies, but he revealed an annoyed expression at their sight. "I killed him, Father!" The Demonic Sword exclaimed as roars mixed with its human voice. Snore hissed to convey the same message, and it raised its massive reptilian head to express its pride. Only Night remained silent and took out Chief Ash''s maimed corpse from its empty insides. The Demonic Sword and Snore froze at that point. They understood that they had forgotten something vital for Noah. Their attacks had been so massive that their targets had turned into dust. "Nicely done, Night," Noah said as he stored Chief Ash''s corpse. He also stored his target, and the dark world brought him the corpses of the other cultivators who had died in its range. His black hole would suppress the intact dantians and preserve their energy for later. The dark world even brought all the storage items that floated through its blackness. Noah would study them later. He had to chase after Chief Taylor and put an end to his battle now. He would take care of his gains only after his targets were dead. The dark matter flowed inside his chest as Noah recalled his technique. The three companions'' bickering resounded inside his mind, but he ignored it to search for his target. His consciousness expanded as soon as the outside world became visible again, but he couldn''t sense anything other than Divine Demon''s intense aura. Noah didn''t even need to turn in his direction to understand that he had to prioritize his escape in that situation. The entire region had turned into Divine Demon''s personal world after Boss Van survived his second attack. The environment sensed that Divine Demon could lose that bet, so it expanded his influence until it enveloped an even larger area. The region had transformed during those short seconds. A large chunk of the ground, part of the sky, and all the remaining trees had turned into multicolored water that rose to surround Divine Demon. The world was giving him the power that he needed to win that bet. Laws transformed on their own to create the perfect environment for his abilities. Boss Van didn''t feel worried. It didn''t matter how much power Divine Demon amassed. He believed that nothing could kill him at that point, especially since he had many years left. "Buying time won''t help you," Boss Van taunted Divine Demon. "I acknowledge the power of your individuality, but it''s something too troublesome to handle. What happens if you lose even once? Do you need to live without knowing defeat to advance?" Noah heard Boss Van''s words even if he was flying at full speed away from that region. Nothing could force him to stay in an area that was about to witness Divine Demon''s last attack. Noah shared some of Boss Van''s concerns. Divine Demon was a monster, but his individuality seemed to work against him. It forced him to turn any situation into a hard challenge, and it even made him risk his life against opponents that he could defeat easily. Still, Divine Demon had managed to ascend and reach the solid stage with his individuality. Noah had to believe in his ability. The Demon was a maniac, but he wasn''t weak. Even his most reckless move hid boundless confidence. Chapter 1384: 1384. Math Divine Demon sighed when he saw that Boss Van had survived his second attack. An annoyed expression appeared on his face even when the world continued to give him energy to use for his spells. He didn''t like that outcome. He wasn''t scared that Boss Van could survive his third attack, but he didn''t feel happy to have reached that point. "I can''t allow myself to lose, can I?" Divine Demon said before sighing again. Boss Van continued to smile, but traces of doubt formed inside him when he studied his opponent''s expression. The lack of fear on Divine Demon''s face gave him a bad feeling that didn''t come from the massive amount of energy accumulated around him. "I have lived for nine thousand years," Boss Van said. "I use one thousand to increase my cultivation level. I can pour the rest in my spells, and I''ve barely needed one hundred of them to block your previous attack. There isn''t a single solid stage cultivator capable of making me use eight thousand years with a single ability." Boss Van wasn''t bragging. His math came from his experience. After all, he wasn''t an aloof member of one of the powerful organizations. As a guild leader of a minor force, he had to fight multiple times and earn his place in the solid stage. "Your math isn''t wrong, but you have missed an important detail," Divine Demon said as he pointed at the energy around him. "I always make things hard. Battles that I can win in a few exchanges transform into deadly challenges that I have to face seriously. Betting my life is the only way I have to improve my power." "You have found the limits of your individuality then," Boss Van said. "Hurry up. Attack. I will take your life afterward." The redness radiated by Divine Demon''s eyes intensified after that line. The time for taunts was over. He had to launch his last attack and see if his cultivation journey could continue. "One stream can pierce the ground," Divine Demon said, and the energy around him condensed to create a small trail of water that flowed across his arm. "A waterfall can pierce rocks," Divine Demon said, and more energy flowed inside the river that began to shake uncontrollably. "The ocean can pierce the world," Divine Demon said, and all the energy around him fused with the stream. The small river began to shine and radiate a multicolored light while it rotated around Divine Demon''s arm. Its waters obtained intense violence that made them release surges of energy into the environment. Boss Van immediately noticed that the small stream was different from the previous spells. Divine Demon''s attacks had been nothing more than simple torrents before. Yet, his third ability carried peculiar features. The stream appeared far more complicated. The energy inside it had condensed in a peculiar manner and had begun to move according to a strange rhythm. It was a proper ability instead of a simple display of power. "I don''t like fighting seriously," Divine Demon said as he pulled his arm backward and opened his palm. "Every battle ends quickly if I do. My cultivation level barely improves whenever I use my real power." Divine Demon''s "Breath" came out of his dantian and fused with the stream at that point. The multicolored water became white after that process ended. It had transformed into a type of energy that surpassed the normal limits of the "Breath". "Still, I am a Demon that feeds of victories," Divine Demon concluded. "It doesn''t matter how boring it is. I have to win, even if I need to perform a miracle to achieve that." Noah studied the battle from a safe spot in a region nearby. Surprise filled his mind when he saw the river rotating around Divine Demon''s arm. He couldn''t be sure of that, but it seemed that the "Breath" had transformed into a type of higher energy on its own! ''What exactly is his individuality?'' Noah wondered as disbelief replaced the surprise. Creating higher energy and using it in spells required years spent in seclusion and a multitude of tests. It wasn''t something that a cultivator could learn to do in the middle of a battle. However, Divine Demon didn''t respect that common sense. He needed to win his challenge, so his individuality had forced his attack to evolve. Noah didn''t know if that was the Demon''s usual battle style, but he felt almost sure that his white water didn''t carry the stability that higher energy should have. ''Don''t tell me that he has created it on the spot,'' Noah thought as his eyes remained glued on the battle. Noah was about to witness the exchange between two solid stage cultivators. He wouldn''t miss it for anything in the world. "Your chest will disappear now," Divine Demon said as his palm shot forward. The river rotated faster during the attack. Divine Demon''s arm shone with white light as it stretched toward his opponent and released the energy that he had accumulated. No water came out of his palm. Divine Demon sent his energy flying toward his opponent during the attack, and a white flash illuminated the area before disappearing in the following instant. The whole attack had lasted less than a second, but Divine Demon found himself without energy left. A tired expression also appeared on his face since his dantian had emptied its insides to fuel that spell. The world didn''t send more energy toward Divine Demon. His aura also shrunk and returned inside his figure. His individuality didn''t affect the matter anymore. He was defenseless and exhausted now. Noah held his breath as he moved his gaze toward Boss Van. The scene that he saw made surprise take over his disbelief and his Divine Deduction technique activated on its own to review that attack. No light came out of Boss Van''s eye. Half of his head had disappeared during the flash of light, and his entire torso had met the same end. Divine Demon''s attack had left only his limbs untouched. ''I didn''t sense any shockwave,'' Noah thought as countless images ran in his vision. In theory, a cultivator couldn''t attack without releasing shockwaves in the environment. Their intensity depended on the power of the ability. The energy inside those spells and techniques made the matter react to its passage. Yet, Divine Demon''s attack didn''t radiate anything. All the energy accumulated from the world and Divine Demon''s dantian had disappeared without leaving any trace. Boss Van''s maimed corpse was the only proof of its existence. ''The world has opened a path to victory,'' Noah thought as he understood what had happened. ''It prevented his attack from leaking energy and created an opportunity that Divine Demon could use to win. It''s not only a matter of "Breath" with him. He seems able to turn any environment into a superior form of my dark world.'' Divine Demon breathed loudly after he saw Boss Van''s corpse. His dantian began to produce "Breath" at high speed to refill its insides, and his mind did the same with its mental energy. His cultivation level rose after Divine Demon finished refilling his centers of power. He instantly became stronger than before. Winning the bet had made his strength increase. Chapter 1385: 1385. Miracles "Care to explain what was that?" Noah asked after he left his hiding spot and flew toward Divine Demon. Noah knew that he couldn''t even hope to copy the effects of Divine Demon''s individuality, but he wanted to understand how he had created higher energy out of nowhere. Noah wanted to leant something that he could implement into his battle style. "My heir!" Divine Demon exclaimed as energy filled his centers of power. "How was your battle?" "One of them managed to escape because someone has forced me to fight in the middle of his battle," Noah said without hiding the annoyance that he felt. "Wonderful!" Divine Demon shouted. "Maybe more of them will come then. Good, good. A Demon should never lack enemies." "The Crystal City is already after me," Noah said as he massaged his temples. "I only needed you not to reveal my position." "The Crystal City?" Divine Demon asked. "I think they have forgotten about me." "Wait," Noah replied. "Can gods even forget things? Also, how did you survive the beast tide with that troublesome individuality of yours?" "I simply escaped," Divine Demon answered in a plain tone. "I was so fast that the expert from the Crystal City didn''t manage to take a good look at me. I''m not a brute. I know when I need to run." Noah didn''t expect that. He already imagined Divine Demon as a mindless maniac who threw himself into unwinnable battles to improve his cultivation level. Still, he felt glad to learn that he was wrong about him. "I didn''t know you could use higher energy," Noah eventually said as the two began to descend toward the ground. "Higher energy?" Divine Demon answered as confusion appeared on his face. "What''s that?" Divine Demon''s answer left Noah''s speechless. His expression revealed the sincerity of his words, which made Noah even more surprised about the whole situation. "That white energy during your last attack," Noah said while he imitated the palm strike. "That wasn''t exactly "Breath", was it?" "Oh, that," Divine Demon said as he put a hand under his chin. "I can''t learn too many techniques and spells since they would ultimately hurt my individuality. I create new ones with the Divine Deduction technique during my challenges. They always change, and I don''t memorize any of them, so I simply call them Miracles." Noah reached new levels of speechlessness when he heard that answer. Divine Demon, the expert who had created techniques that had led the Hive to the top of the lower plane, didn''t own abilities but only invented them on the spot. "My individuality is what has allowed me to create such powerful techniques while I was only a heroic cultivator," Divine Demon explained. "I don''t follow the normal process. I rely on my desire to win, and an ability eventually appears." Noah had faced and studied countless individualities throughout his life. Most of them were simple expressions of laws that already existed in the world, and only a few were as complicated as his ambition. Divine Demon''s individuality was simple, but it was also the most complicated law that Noah had ever seen. The need to constantly challenge himself forced Divine Demon to live a troublesome life that other cultivators couldn''t even hope to survive. ''He must have created the Divine Deduction techniques to make up for his innate weakness,'' Noah thought as the two flew back in one of the cracks. ''His individuality would have killed him countless times already if he didn''t have a method to enhance his mental capabilities.'' "The Crystal City might be a troublesome opponent," Divine Demon said after they returned in his underground hall. Noah showed a confused expression at that remark. He didn''t expect Divine Demon to label an enemy as troublesome without showing any excitement. "I told you that I''m not a brute," Divine Demon continued while taking a jug of wine from his space-ring. "The guilds and all the smaller forces mostly have cultivators that couldn''t meet the standards of the big organizations. They are generally weaker than the rest." Noah reviewed his battle against Lady Lena when he heard those words. His cultivation level was slightly higher back then since his ambition was empowering his centers of power. Still, the expert from the Crystal City had managed to hold her ground for a while anyway. Instead, the Chiefs of Boss Van''s guild couldn''t face him even after his cultivation level had fallen and stabilized at the bottom of the liquid stage. Noah had perfected his workshop and his movement technique since his battle with Lady Lena, but those improvements alone couldn''t make a fight against five liquid stage experts as easy as it had been. The Chiefs were clearly weaker than Lady Lena, but Noah didn''t give the matter much thought at the beginning. Some cultivators just happened to be stronger than others. That difference of power could have been just a case. Yet, Divine Demon''s words said otherwise, and Noah could only believe them. The expert had lived in the Immortal Lands for far longer than him, and he had surely interacted with the human society more often. "I need to destroy the Crystal City quickly then," Noah said as he sat on the ground and laid his back on the rocky wall. "Remember to call me when you do," Divine Demon said as he joined Noah on the ground and prepared two cups. "I need stronger enemies. The secret organization only sends whimps after me. I feel underestimated." Noah took a cup and drank together with Divine Demon. The duo remained in silence as strong wine entered their bodies and relaxed their mind. Part of the stress accumulated during the battle dispersed under the effects of that warm liquid. "How are my disciples?" Divine Demon asked at some point. "They are fine," Noah replied. "The other organizations can''t compete with the Hive, and the other world should be more peaceful. The techniques of the other Demon Sects are also alive. They should arrive here in a few millennia." "The lower plane has become messy after I left," Divine Demon said before giving voice to a short laugh. "That chaos spreads from here, the place closer to Heaven and Earth. Every change in the Immortal Lands affects all the other Mortal Lands. It''s a never-ending cycle that will continue as long as the white sky remains above us." "Have you seen the Outer Lands?" Noah asked. "Do storms fill them? Have you ever witnessed new regions fusing with the Immortal Lands?" "You will see everything soon enough," Divine Demon replied as he refilled both cups. "The Legion controls a place that I want to explore, but they never let humans get close. I will use you to enter it." "You could at least try to make it seem like a cooperation," Noah replied as a laugh escaped his mouth. "What''s the point," Divine Demon said. "You are my rightful heir, and you have even led what remained of my disciples to the peak of the world. Some friendships take centuries to form, but this one has needed a simple glance." The duo continued to speak about various events after that line. They mostly conversed about the other Demons, but they also discussed matters related to their individualities. When the bottle was over, they separated to cultivate in different areas for a few months. They would then regroup in that underground hall and travel together in the Outer Lands to meet the Legion. Chapter 1386: 1386. Departure The underground structure of the region was vast. Noah and Divine Demon could choose different training areas inside it without distancing themselves too much. Noah had a lot to go through after the battle with Boss Van''s guild. His opponents didn''t have special space-ring like the members of the Crystal City. He could seize all their items, even if his corrosive smoke and the army of dragons had damaged most of them. The Soul Stones were sturdier than most inscribed items due to their peculiar nature, so Noah could add almost twenty thousand of them to his stash. The same wasn''t true for the other items. The various cloaking and defensive devices had suffered damages during the battle. Noah could only store them in the hope that an inscription hall would buy them anyway. Those cultivators didn''t have anything valuable. Their status inside the Immortal Lands was too low, and most of their profits went to the guild, so they never managed to accumulate riches. The most significant gains from the battle were the many dantians seized from the experts'' corpses. The Demonic Sword and Snore had failed to preserve their opponents, and Chief Taylor had escaped, but Noah had managed to get his hands on a high number of centers of power anyway. Noah ate while he turned the black metal obtained in Great Builder''s Pyramid into fake cores. He had lost most of his old stash due to the shockwaves radiated from Divine Demon''s battle, so he needed to refill it. Moreover, the workshop could show its real power only if he provided its creations with those simple centers of power. The dragons would be too frail to fight against cultivators in the liquid stage otherwise. His technique would lose most of its value if he depleted all his fake cores. Finding a new material for the fake cores soon became one of his new priorities after Noah depleted the black metal obtained in the Pyramid. Still, he didn''t worry too much about that issue. The Immortal Lands had enough materials to satisfy his needs. The Demonic Sword advanced while he was busy polishing the workshop. The blade reached the middle tier easily since it depended on Noah''s cultivation level. Only Night was still in the lower tier at that point, but Noah couldn''t quicken its growth. The Pterodactyl was different from Snore and the Demonic Sword. Its power didn''t depend on Noah''s might. He could only create unique darkness to help it. After he finished dealing with the workshop, Noah could finally focus on other pressing matters. He had two main projects at hand, and he could choose only one before regrouping with Divine Demon. Noah still had the red crystals obtained in the Evolution Pit, but every project that involved his companions always kept him busy for entire decades. Also, that material carried unknown capabilities that he didn''t dare to test on those creatures. Night, the Demonic Sword, and Snore were core aspects of his power. Noah alone was far stronger than his peers due to his hybrid status, but his companions made him a one-man army. The three peculiar living beings were divine existences that made his prowess increase by a lot. ''Night is only useful inside the dark world for now,'' Noah summarized in his mind. ''I should just create a new Blood Companion and study the effects of the red crystals while I wait for it to catch up with my level.'' That decision led to another problem. Noah had Snore and the workshop, so he was already making the best out of the dark matter. Even if he used his higher energy as a core material, he couldn''t surpass what he had already built inside the Snake. It was better to take a magical beast with a useful and powerful innate ability and turn it into an intelligent puppet. His new Blood Companion had to be similar to Night, but Noah didn''t know which species suited his current battle prowess. The Immortal Lands had a different and vast fauna that Noah had yet to understand fully. He couldn''t decide on his next Blood Companion without a clear vision of which species he could find in the higher plane. He couldn''t even create something to destroy it afterward since he planned to begin testing the red crystal with his next Blood Companion. That material was a precious resource that he had to handle carefully since he didn''t have the power to steal more of it. With the workshop completed and the matters about the Blood Companions put aside, Noah began to focus on the last field at his disposal. Being able to use the movement technique again made his battle prowess skyrocket, and it also reminded Noah of how much power he could express when he used all the aspects of his hybrid status. His personal arts were something that spells and techniques on the same level couldn''t match, and Noah wanted more of them. That desire also involved his slashes since they had begun to feel too simple for the types of battles he was facing. The key to being stronger than any cultivator and magical beast was in that field. Noah had to improve his personal arts if he always wanted to be one step ahead of his opponents even when they were at his same level. The issue there was that he needed to invent forms capable of surpassing Sword Saint when it came to his slashes. The techniques he used were the best sword strikes available, and he could only overcome them when he involved his individuality. Apart from the slashes, Noah didn''t need to create another personal art, especially after restoring his movement technique. His focus had to go on those attacks. Noah still had something else to improve after ruling out the other fields. The Divine Deduction technique was in its original form, which was a negative feature that he had yet to fix. The Divine Deduction technique was incredible even in its current form, but Noah had to transform it into something that could suit his existence. Divine Demon had to do the same after his ascension, but the process was far easier for him since he was its creator. Noah didn''t get anything done during that period of training. His projects would take countless years, and he couldn''t hope to complete them before regrouping with Divine Demon. A few ideas had popped into his mind as he wondered about those three projects, but he eventually decided to wait until his meeting with the Legion to pursue them. The Legion''s members were hybrid. An organization of that kind would surely have studies about fields similar to Noah''s personal art, so he felt quite eager to meet them. The break lasted for almost six months in which Noah mostly ran simulations with the Divide Deduction technique and cultivated. He needed to accumulate experience for his projects to immediately begin them once he obtained the required materials or inspirations. As for his cultivation, Noah focused on restoring his potential. He lacked an essential feature of his individuality now, and he could only rebuild it slowly during his training sessions. After six months, Noah and Divine Demon regrouped inside the large underground hall and resurfaced to begin their march toward the Outer Lands. Chapter 1387: 1387. Shadows The Outer Lands weren''t a fixed place. Cultivators gave that name to all the regions outside of the human and magical beasts'' domains, so their actual width was unclear. Noah and Divine Demon marched for years, avoiding any human settlement that they found on their path. They had caused enough trouble already, and Chief Taylor was alive, so it was better to remain anonymous for the moment. Their march was peaceful and filled with breaks spent conversing or cultivating. Divine Demon''s aura scared away most magical beasts, and Noah''s superior awareness allowed them to avoid any dangerous lair. The two grew closer and learnt each other''s characters during their travel. Their personalities had many common points, so they got along well and never second-guessed their decisions. They had become a well-oiled team in a matter of months. The scenery slowly changed as they ventured farther away from the center of the human domain. Fewer settlements appeared on their path, replaced by multiple danger zones that featured various packs fighting over territories. The magical beasts occupied every inch of the Immortal Lands. If it weren''t for the cultivators defending their borders and sealing pacts with them, those creatures would have already conquered the entirety of the higher plane. The environment also went through some changes as their march continued. The regions became wilder, and soft winds started to blow from time to time. Noah didn''t need any explanation to recognize them. They were the same gales made of laws found in Shandal''s separate dimension. "The farter you go, the more intense these winds get," Divine Demon explained as they flew above a barren mountain chain. "They come from the edges of the Immortal Lands, where new territories appear every decade." "Do Heaven and Earth never stop building?" Noah asked as he absorbed the laws that his destruction turned into primary energy. "Who knows," Divine Demon replied. "Seeing the edges of the higher plane isn''t an easy feat. Only truly powerful existences can reach them due to the barrier of storms." "Have you ever traveled there?" Noah asked. "Once, but there isn''t much to see," Divine Demon answered. "You might get lucky and see a mountain appearing out of nowhere when you are there, but that''s it. I went only to learn how the Immortal Lands worked, and I came back with more doubts than answers." "The all-expanding theory isn''t enough?" Noah continued to question the expert. "It is correct, but far from enough," Divine Demon said as he pointed toward the horizon. "Where do Heaven and Earth even take the energy to build so many territories? Why do that at all? It would be easier to find answers if we were to observe the Immortal Lands from outside, but only those with a death wish leave the white sky." The duo had conversed about those topics multiple times already. Noah didn''t need to question the expert again to understand the meaning behind his words. The white sky had holes equipped with dimensional tunnels that connected the higher plane with the lower ones. Powerful existences could theoretically fly through them and arrive in the void, but that effort was quite pointless. The Immortal Lands had expanded for eras, and the same went for the white sky that enveloped them. Even powerful divine cultivators would take millennia to travel to the edges of Heaven and Earth''s system to watch it in its entirety. That wasn''t even the main issue in the matter. The whiteness of the sky was blinding, and it hid its various holes. It was impossible to find the way back inside the higher plane once flying out of it. Divine cultivators could survive in the void, but they couldn''t live inside it. That environment lacked any form of nutrients, so their energy would slowly deplete until nothing remained of them. The travels through the void were also dangerous since it was hard to understand where to go. Shandal had felt confident in the task because King Elbas'' dimensional tunnel acted as a signal, but no cultivator would normally choose to venture there. "It would be feasible if we knew how big the Immortal Lands are, but alas," Divine Demon eventually concluded before heaving a helpless sigh. The storms of laws were too intense near the higher plane''s edges, so no one knew for how long they continued. The cultivators had also forgotten how big the magical beasts'' domain was since the wars with those creatures always forced them to migrate at some point. The picture of the Immortal Lands that had formed inside Noah''s mind was quite simple. He imagined the magical beasts'' domain as cancer that continued to expand and the human domain as a white spot that never stopped retreating. Countless regions called Outer Lands surrounded them, and their unclear width made any attempt to calculate the exact size of the Immortal Lands impossible. The outside exploration was also impossible due to the threatening properties of the void and that unclearness. Even if powerful explorers prepared themselves for the task, they would risk spending pointless millennia searching for the end of the white sky. "We can only accept this prison as long as we remain simple gods," Noah added at some point. "You need to become an existence capable of producing "Breath" or something similar," Divine Demon replied. "Maybe that''s what Heaven and Earth are trying to do. We might be nothing more than keys opening the path to the tenth rank." The duo couldn''t have proper answers. Theirs were only hypotheses generated after studying the clues in the Immortal Lands. Their cultivation level was too low to have any certainty in that matter. "How long till we reach the Legion?" Noah asked after the second decade of travel went by. "We are already in its domain," Divine Demon replied. "They are probably trying to find someone in the solid stage because of me." "Don''t start with your challenges," Noah said as soon as he saw the redness radiated by Divine Demon''s eyes becoming more intense. "I need them as allies to learn what they have discovered about the hybrid statues." "Can''t you kill them and seize their studies?" Divine Demon asked as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "I don''t know where they keep their resources," Noah replied. "I also expect them to have rank 8 hybrids in their ranks. Their sole thought is enough to destroy me." "Peaceful it is," Divine Demon quickly gave up arguing with Noah. Divine Demon only wanted to win his challenges, so he didn''t care how his relationship with the Legion ended up being. Instead, Noah was different. He needed those creatures to see if its members had created something to implement his battle style. Noah suddenly stopped as their march continued. Divine Demon turned toward him to understand what was happening, and Noah''s expression revealed everything he needed to know. Multiple presences had appeared around them. Noah didn''t know from where they had come out nor where they were hiding, but he couldn''t see any of them from his position. The region had nothing more than a few short mountains and rocky terrain. Hiding there was virtually impossible, but Noah''s senses weren''t lying. Before he could reply to Divine Demon, two shadows came out of the terrain and charged at him. Noah didn''t even think in that situation. His hand shot forward, and he found two hands stuck in his grasp. Chapter 1388: 1388. Tes Noah sensed an immense force landing on his arms, and his innate ability activated on its own to boost his physical strength. Dark matter filled his black vein as he studied the two figures that had attacked him. Two hybrids in the liquid stage, a man and a woman, wore a surprised expression as their gazes darted between Noah''s hands and his face. Their cultivation level was similar to Noah''s, and their bodies also stood at the same tier. However, Noah had been able to stop their attacks at the same time and was even managing to restrain them. Noah had agreed with Divine Demon to approach the Legion peacefully, but he wouldn''t hold back during a surprise attack. His fingers stabbed his opponents'' tough skin and dug through their knuckles as his aura spread in the environment. Divine Demon felt slightly annoyed that the hybrids had completely ignored him. He was about to unfold his aura when a powerful consciousness covered the area and forced him to divert his attention from Noah''s battle. He could understand the level of that expert from the consciousness. Divine Demon knew that an existence in the solid stage was somewhere in that barren region. More auras unfolded as Noah waved the experts in his grasp whenever they tried to counterattack. Two more consciousnesses belonging to solid stage hybrids filled the region and converged toward Divine Demon. Multiple weaker auras drew closer until Noah began to see shadows flying in his vision. A series of blows landed on his back before he could even understand what had hit him. He had to focus to sense that two more hybrids had appeared behind him. ''Do they have cloaking devices?'' Noah wondered as blood climbed through his throat. His insides shook after the last attack, but Noah didn''t let go of the hybrids in his grasp. They had brought the fight to him, so he wouldn''t hold back. Noah waved the two restrained hybrids toward the existences behind him. The duo had to dodge for fear of hurting their companions, but they didn''t expect a massive reptilian head to come out of Noah''s body and launch a dark beam toward them. The escaping hybrids could only dodge again, and Noah used those precious seconds to slam his enemies on the ground and kick them until they lost consciousness. Multiple injuries appeared on the hybrids'' bodies. Noah could hurt him with his physical might, so he didn''t need the Demonic Sword and Night to come out just yet. The hybrids that had escaped dived back toward Noah, but the world suddenly went dark and forced them to stop their advance. When the light returned, they found black flames covered in a silver radiance around their bodies and in that entire chunk of sky. "Enough!" A loud voice spread through one of the consciousnesses belonging to a solid stage hybrid. The black flames vanished as the shockwaves radiated by that voice spread through the environment, and the two hybrids under Noah began to float away under the effects of the expert''s mental waves. The hybrids above Noah also left the area and regrouped on top of one of the short mountains nearby. Noah and Divine Demon could finally see the entirety of the team that had attacked them by looking in that direction. ''Eight hybrids in the liquid stage and three in the solid stage,'' Noah counted in his mind when he saw that small platoon. The situation wouldn''t have been dangerous if it wasn''t for the three solid stage hybrids. With them on the scene, Noah couldn''t do anything too overbearing since they could intervene. Noah took out a piece of wood from his separate space and showed the claw marks on its surface to the group. The hybrids exchanged a few glances at that sight, but their expressions didn''t lose their seriousness. "Are you from the Legion?" Noah asked without waiting for them to speak. "Grace has given me this token. We just want to talk." Noah''s words didn''t seem to cause any evident reaction, but he waited anyway. Those experts were his only lead in the search for arts that only hybrids could use freely. He didn''t want to turn them into enemies so soon. "You have to pass a trial to talk with us," One of the solid stage cultivators said. "What kind of trial?" Noah asked with no hesitation. "You have to fight our strongest warriors," The hybrid said. "If you win, I will personally answer your questions." Noah felt slightly concerned that. He didn''t even come close to a solid stage cultivator in terms of power, let alone a hybrid with a body in the upper tier. Yet, the solid stage hybrid soon reassured him about the rules. "You have to overcome foes at your cultivation level," The hybrid said. "You will fight five of them in total and earn your place among us. We will talk then." Noah thought for a few seconds before agreeing to those conditions. He would fight and prove his strength if necessary. He didn''t fear anyone at his level anyway. Noah took a few steps forward while Divine Demon retreated. That was a matter that only hybrids could handle, so the Demon didn''t even dare to join the battle. He would let Noah take care of that situation. "Go get them, my heir," Divine Demon cheered for him as he landed on the barren ground and took a jug of wine from his space-ring. He had decided that Noah was enough in the matter. "Clement!" The hybrid announced, and a man with long curly hair shot in his direction without holding anything back. The man was tall and brawny. Thick hair covered his exposed chest and arms, and a long black bear grew from his chin. His eyebrows were also thick. It would have been easy to mistake him for a gorilla that wore a robe. Clement reached Noah in an instant, and he joined his hands to swing his arms upward. Still, Noah nimbly dodged that attack and rotated on himself to throw a kick to the hybrid''s abdomen. The sound of bones shattering and internal organs condensing filled the air. Clement spat a mouthful of blood and opened his hands to grab his opponent, but Noah punched the hybrid right in the middle of his forehead. The attack flung Clement on the ground, and Noah promptly followed him. The hybrid didn''t seem to have any desire to use his "Breath" and activate spells or technique, so Noah did the same. "Enough!" The solid stage hybrid in the distance shouted before Noah could reach Clement with his descending blow. Clement quickly stood up and glanced at Noah before flying back to his group. The two hybrids that Noah had injured before then shot forward even if the leader had yet to call them. They were too angry at Noah. "Can I use my weapons and innate abilities?" Noah asked before those experts could reach him, and the team leader in the distance shook his head to answer. ''Why would they even test themselves like this?'' Noah thought as annoyance filled his mind. The woman opened her hands and straightened her fingers to form claws while the man kept one of his legs bent to accumulate power. Yet, Noah didn''t let them have the initiative. Noah was faster than them. He only needed to wrap his hands around their faces and slam them on the ground before they could release their attacks. Chapter 1389: 1389. Daring Noah dived at full speed and stomped his feet on his opponents'' chest. The two hybrids spat mouthfuls of blood after the impact, and traces of "Breath" leaked out of their figures when they sensed Noah''s killing intent. Their instincts were reacting to Noah''s dangerous area. The two hybrids felt compelled to release their "Breath" to defend against whatever was about to come. "Enough!" The team leader in the distance shouted, and Noah shot an annoyed glance in his direction. Noah had enough of that fa?ade. His black hole put his species above the hybrids. In his mind, testing his strength was a useless procedure. The leader seemed to understand that Noah was far stronger than the average hybrid with a body in the middle tier. Still, he wanted to know how powerful Noah actually was. "Jordan, go," The leader said toward one of the solid stage experts. Noah showed a surprised expression when he saw the expert descending from the short mountain and walking toward him. It didn''t matter how strong he was. He didn''t have the power to face an existence in the solid stage. His thoughts ran quickly, and his legs bent. Countless ideas on how to escape that situation surged in his mind. The hybrids were still under his feet, so he instantly decided to use them as hostages. "You can use your "Breath" and mental energy," The leader suddenly said. "She can''t." Noah froze at those words. Hybrids weren''t much different from magical beasts when it came to their physical prowess. The leader was basically asking him to defeat a creature in the upper tier. ''Can I do it?'' Noah wondered while he studied his opponent. His opponent was a tall young-looking woman with long brown hair and green eyes. She seemed slender, but her large gray robe hid most of her physical features. Noah couldn''t even see her hands due to her clothes. Yet, his mind barely managed to memorize her aspect. Jordan was quite beautiful, but Noah could only focus on her cultivation level while watching her getting closer. Divine Demon stopped drinking but didn''t lower his cup when the hybrid waked in their direction. A tinge of interest appeared in his expression, and his eyes darted between Noah and that new opponent. The Demon felt quite curious about Jordan''s battle prowess, but he also wanted to see what Noah would do in that situation. After all, Noah had the upper hand there since the two hybrids were still under his feet. Before Noah could even make a decision, his legs relaxed, and he stepped off the two hybrids who immediately stood up to shoot in the distance. His desire to test himself had triumphed over the danger that he felt. He wanted to see if he could defeat that powerful existence. Divine Demon exploded into a laugh and finished drinking his cup. He then turned toward Noah and Jordan before pouring more wine. He didn''t want to miss that battle. Noah didn''t hold anything that could improve his physical prowess back. Corrosive smoke and dark matter came out of his skin to create the fiendish armor, and his higher energy also filled his black vessels to boost his strength. Black flames flowed out of his mouth as if they were a river falling from a cliff. Noah didn''t want to attack his opponent with them. He only wanted them to be in the environment in case he suffered severe injuries. Noah arched his fingers to create to transform his left hand into a claw that he pulled back as he leapt backward. Jordan seemed to understand what he wanted to do, but she limited herself to raise her hand and reveal her open palm. There was no arrogance in Jordan''s expression. She was simply conscious of her superior power. Also, she had acknowledged Noah''s prowess, so she didn''t want to risk injuring him. That exchange suited both of them, so they didn''t complain nor retreat. They remained silent as they prepared and waited for the attack to begin. Noah shot forward. The world in his vision became blurry, but he never lost sight of Jordan''s palm. His figure morphed and transformed into a black sword that reached his opponent in an instant. When the sword hit Jordan''s palm, Noah''s figure replaced the black weapon, and a loud shockwave spread in the environment. The ground under the two of them cracked and shattered, and the same went for the terrain behind Jordan. Divine Demon laughed again when he saw Noah''s sharp energy coming out of Jordan''s back and flying in the distance. The attack had definitely hit, and its might was quite outstanding for an existence in the liquid stage. Jordan kept an aloof expression until her feet began to slide on the ground, and a pinch-like pain reached her mind. Noah had managed to push her back, even if only slightly. She pulled back her hand to stare at her palm. A minute cut had appeared at its center, and a drop of dark-red blood flowed out of the wound. Noah had also managed to injure her. "Testing him any more is pointless," Jordan shouted as she raised her injured hand to show it to the leader. The hybrids in the liquid stage remained speechless at the sight of that minute wound. Noah had used spells and martial arts, but that wasn''t an easy feat nonetheless. The upper tier of the seventh rank wasn''t a level that existences near the bottom of the liquid stage could affect. The fact that Noah had managed to piece Jordan''s skin revealed how his battle prowess was off the scale. "You and your friend have earned your meeting," The leader said before retreating on the other side of the mountain. "I''m not only a friend!" Divine Demon shouted while the rest of the hybrids followed the leader behind the mountain. "He is my heir! I''m the Master here!" The hybrids ignored him, but Jordan gave voice to a short laugh before moving her eyes back on Noah. She studied the fiendish armor and followed the trails of smoke that came out of it when Noah called it back before fixing her gaze on his reptilian pupils. Jordan''s pupils changed when they met Noah''s eyes. They sharpened until they became two fissures. She also had reptilian eyes, but she kept them hidden. Noah''s instincts became alert, but they didn''t sense any danger coming from the hybrid. Jordan exuded a strange aura that made him feel protected. It was as if they were natural allies. "You earned this," Jordan said before revealing her palm to Noah. The drop of blood was still there, and Noah glanced at Jordan before bending to lick her palm. A surge of energy suddenly entered his body, and his black hole quickly absorbed it to begin the purification. "How daring," Jordan said as a smile appeared on her face. "You could have used your finger." Noah didn''t say anything and only watched as Jordan released a happy laugh and turned to join her team. In less than a minute, the hybrids had gone on the back of the mountain. Only Divine Demon and Noah remained in the area. "Well done, my heir!" Divine Demon exclaimed as he stood up and stored his wine. "I told you it would have been easy with you here." Noah ignored him as peculiar thoughts rose from his mental sea. It had been a long time since he had interacted with another hybrid, and he had to admit that it felt quite good to be among similar existences. Chapter 1390: 1390. Encampmen Noah didn''t feel strange or off. That simple gesture exchanged with Jordan had made him view the Legion under a perspective that he didn''t consider before. Humans and magical beasts couldn''t offer him those interactions. Only hybrids could understand how desirable a drop of blood was and remain calm when someone liked it off their palm. The action had lasted less than an instant, but it made Noah rethink Grace''s words. She had spoken the truth, and Noah could understand it only now that he had experienced a second of life among existences like him. Those thoughts didn''t make Noah willing to throw away his desire for freedom, but they made him review his idea of the Legion. He felt more inclined to have that organization as an ally now. Divine Demon couldn''t understand what Noah was going through, and even June would struggle to sense that. The feeling of belonging to a species that they didn''t even consider surprised Noah deeply. ''This is how everyone feels then,'' Noah thought before following Divine Demon, who had already begun to walk toward the short mountain. ''I hope they don''t do anything against me. It would be a pity to destroy them.'' The duo walked on the other side of the mountain, and an encampment unfolded in their vision. Simple tents made of rank 7 materials grew from the terrain and accommodated far more hybrids than expected. The team they had seen before was only a small part of the whole platoon that had come to meet them. Noah could count more than thirty hybrids in the gaseous stage, twelve in the liquid stage, and five in the solid stage with his consciousness. ''How did they even manage to hide from my awareness?'' Noah wondered, but his nose suddenly picked a faint scent that made everything clearer. The scent created an invisible cloud that covered the entire encampment and remained on the hybrids'' robes. Noah found it hard to lock his attention on the existences in the area, but that didn''t stop him from pinpointing the source of the ability. The scent came from one of the largest tents. One of the solid stage hybrids released it and hid the entire encampment with that ability. The two hybrids that had fought together against Noah waited for the duo at the entrance of the encampment. Noah couldn''t see any resentment in their eyes. He actually sensed that a faint trace of respect came out of their expressions. "Let us accompany you to the team leader," The woman said as she took a step forward. "I hope you won''t hold any grudge. We have to be wary of any outsider." The duo didn''t look at Divine Demon. They only addressed Noah with their words. It seemed that they didn''t see the expert as an existence worthy of their attention. Divine Demon didn''t mind that. He was aware of how the three factions interacted. Both humans and magical beasts did the same when it came to existences belonging to different species. Noah limited himself to nod, and the duo relaxed at that gesture. They even began to describe some aspects of the Legion after they told him their names. James had short dark hair, dark eyes, and no beard. Elsie had long scarlet hair and similar dark eyes, and both of them were quite young-looking. According to their words, they were among the new talents of the Legion. They were hybrids born directly into the higher plane, and that awarded them with a special treatment. Just like Noah had confirmed with the Eternal Snakes, even the hybrids benefitted from growing up in the Immortal Lands. The higher plane''s marvelous environments awarded them with greater potential due to the quality of nutrients they could provide. James and Elsie had been in the higher plane since their birth, so they were the best possible hybrids in theory. Those who ascended from the Mortal Lands had a lower starting point compared to them. The conversation then moved to the encampment. The duo explained how the Legion never sent hybrids into solitary missions because its priority was to preserve their lives. The hybrids weren''t a rare sight in the Immortal Lands, but they still shared the innate weaknesses placed by Heaven and Earth''s fairness. They had low fertility, so any of them was a priceless asset in the Legion. James and Elsie also explained how the Legion was in control of a few landing zones. That organization had fought for them in the past, and it had defended them until now. They were one of its primary sources of hybrids, so it was willing to wage wars to protect them. As for the types of hybrids, James and Elsie couldn''t give Noah a definitive answer. The Immortal Lands seemed to hold every kind of variant, so they had never bothered to study the small differences among them. Only a few experts among the Legion could define the exact type of a hybrid. James and Elsie were like the natives of the other world with a human shape. They had fake dantians that fed on laws, but they didn''t have individualities. As for Noah, they labeled him as one of the strongest types of hybrid. He had a physical might that surpassed magical beasts and an individuality. That made his existence hard to improve but also gave him more power. The only type that could match him was his direct opposite, hybrids who had individualities inside beast bodies. They were less common than Noah''s type, but the Legion had many of them nonetheless. According to the duo''s words, those existences lived in the Outer Lands around the magical beasts'' domain due to their aspect. Most of them were members of the region, but they operated in those creatures'' territory because it was easier for them to mix among the fauna. James and Elsie led Noah and Divine Demon toward a big tent that belonged to the team leader. The expert arrived after the two hybrids left, and he revealed his name before gesturing to the duo to sit on a praying mat that covered the habitation''s floor. The leader''s name was Ian. He was a middle-aged man with short blonde hair and red eyes that shone with a darker glow than Divine Demon. He took a jug of wine from his space-ring once they all sat, but his face didn''t show any trace of kindness. He was only polite. "You wanted to talk," Ian said as he filled three cups. Noah glanced at Divine Demon. He didn''t have any specific questions to ask Ian. Meeting the Legion was his idea. "There is a place in the Outer Lands that I want to visit," Divine Demon said as he picked one cup and raised it to his mouth. "I''m not sure I can help," Ian replied. "The Legion doesn''t handle transports. I can only organize an escort for the right price." "Only the Legion can help me reach this place," Divine Demon continued when he lowered his cup. "I know that some of your members consider it sacred even." Ian''s eyes widened at those words, but he maintained his composure. He even refilled Divine Demon''s cup as he waited for him to continue. "I know that you show it to your important members," Divine Demon continued. "I want you to make an exception for us." Chapter 1391: 1391. Party "Why would you have any interest in that place?" Ian asked after he heard Divine Demon''s request. "Even the Legion doesn''t dare to enter it carelessly." Noah''s curiosity for that place increased when he saw Ian''s reaction. He had already decided that he wanted to visit it since Divine Demon had requested his help to enter it. The Demon didn''t explain the nature of that place, but Noah could guess that it could bring him massive benefits. Divine Demon wouldn''t even try to enter it otherwise. "Supreme Thief''s inheritance belongs to every race," Divine Demon replied. "I contacted the Legion once already, and I retreated peacefully in front of its refusal. I came in peace once again, but I brought my heir this time." Ian appeared to be conflicted about the matter. His eyes moved between Noah and Divine Demon, but he didn''t seem able to find a proper answer. Noah understood that Ian''s thoughts didn''t linger only on Divine Demon''s request. The leader was pondering about multiple matters at the same time, and one of them involved Noah. It wasn''t hard to guess why Ian was interested in Noah. He had shown his excellent battle prowess already. It wasn''t a surprise that the team leader wanted to recruit him. "I don''t have the power to give this authorization," Ian eventually replied. "Then contact someone who has it," Divine Demon continued. "It''s not that simple," Ian answered. "I might intercede to award a visit to your heir, but I can''t explain the situation properly from her when it comes to you. I would need to bring you to one of the leaders for that." "I don''t mind meeting your leaders," Divine Demon said before giving voice to a short laugh. "But I mind bringing you to our cities," Ian promptly replied. "The humans will eventually migrate to these lands once the magical beasts resume their invasion. I don''t want to give your side valuable information, and we all know how easy it is to break an oath." Noah memorized the last part of that line. He had yet to improve his connections with the various aspects of the human society of the higher plane, so he was still unaware of what was normal in that place. Learning that breaking oaths was possible and easy made him feel quite relieved, even a bit surprised. He had yet to find a shop that sold inscribed items capable of such feats, but he quickly suspected the involvement of the inscription halls in the matter. "You don''t have to worry about that," Divine Demon replied. "The secret organization, the Monneay family, and many smaller forces already see me as an enemy. My heir has even clashed with the Crystal City. We don''t work with the human side unless it offers greater rewards, and there is nothing greater than Supreme Thief''s inheritance." Noah''s interest was shooting over the roof after hearing that name twice. An inheritance that Divine Demon held in such high regard had to be incredible, and he couldn''t wait to enter it. Ian shot a surprised glance toward Noah when he heard Divine Demon''s words. His mouth even hung from his jaw while he studied him. "What''s the matter?" Noah asked when that stare became too intense. "How did you anger the Crystal City?" Ian asked. "They wanted me to swear an oath right after the beast tide," Noah explained. "I left, they chased me, I killed a few of them and left again. They then put a bounty on me, but I killed those that came after me too." Noah said that as if it was the most normal thing in the world, but Ian could barely contain his surprise when he listened to him. His mouth opened even more as he learnt about Noah''s messy arrival to the Immortal Lands. "Did you really defeat the beast tide?" Ian asked. "The other ascended hybrids can''t?" Noah replied with a question. Divine Demon soon exploded into a laugh as that interaction continued. Pride filled his aura when he saw the stupor that his heir could cause in that solid stage expert. "They can''t," Ian replied. "Most of them, at least. What do you think about joining the Legion? I guess you have already received an invitation since you caused so much trouble." Noah nodded and took out the marked piece of wood, and Ian nodded at that sight. The Legion had experts hidden everywhere, and they often managed to invite the hybrids that arrived in landing zones outside of their control. "I want to remain free at the moment," Noah replied, "But I don''t mind reconsidering my position after I learn more about the Immortal Lands." "That''s understandable," Ian said before nodding a few times. "One last thing. You said that you killed members of the Crystal City. Can you tell me who exactly?" "Lady Lena," Noah replied, mentioning the only noteworthy name among his victims. Ian''s expression froze after Noah''s answer, and he quickly picked his inscribed notebook to contact someone. After he sent a mental message, he stood up and gestured to the duo to stand up. "It seems that you have already performed a great feat for the Legion," Ian said as he escorted the duo outside the tent. "Lady Lena has killed many hybrids during her life with the Crystal City. Even if you did it for personal reasons, I can''t ignore someone who has avenged our fallen companions." "Will you bring us to the inheritance then?" Divine Demon said as a broad smile appeared on his face. "No," Ian answered, "But I will bring you to someone who can approve you. I suggest you rethink this now if you have any hidden purpose. No one can lie to her, and she is merciless against the potential enemies of the Legion." Noah glanced at Divine Demon, and he nodded to confirm his position. He didn''t have any grudge with the Legion, and he had no interest in ruining that peaceful relationship for now. The duo would proceed with the mission as planned. Once the three of them reached the center of the encampment, Ian raised his head to the sky and released a loud howl. That cry carried an immense joy that Noah and the other hybrids in the area could feel and share. The howl also carried a simple meaning. It announced Lady Lena''s death, and the other hybrids cheered when they heard that news. Ian didn''t mention that Noah was behind that feat to maintain his anonymity. It seemed that the expert wanted to keep Noah pleased at the moment, so he didn''t cause any problem for him. Chaos spread after Ian''s howl. A dug a large hole in the azure ground while others removed the tents and threw them inside that pit. Then, those who could spit flames lit up the fabric in the hole and created a massive fire that illuminated the entire region. Barrels of wine came out of their space-rings and landed around the fire. The hybrids roared and cried as they filled countless cups and drank without holding back. The entire encampment was celebrating. Only the five solid stage experts remained on the sides, watching their happy underlings giving in to their beast sides and abandoning any form of decency belonging to their human part. Chapter 1392: 1392. Supreme Thief The flames danced in Noah''s eyes as he remained on the sides, watching the encampment celebrate Lady Lena''s death. Wine never stopped flowing in the hybrids'' cups, and countless cries ran through the region, scaring away any lifeform that had taken those lands as their home. It was impossible to witness that scene among humans. Most of them had lost their ability to celebrate so wholeheartedly. Only cultivators in the weaker ranks could aim to replicate that type of party. A banquet filled with conversations about individualities and similar topics was the most cultivators in the higher ranks would do as a celebration. It wasn''t in their nature to engage in the activities happening in front of Noah and Divine Demon''s eyes. Divine Demon mostly laughed during the celebrations. He even sat near the hybrids at some point and took a few cups of their wine for himself. Instead, Noah remained on the sides. His caution didn''t allow him to relax. Suddenly, Noah began to miss June. He had been on his own for entire millennia, and the party made him aware of that. Noah didn''t mind being alone. He actually preferred it most of the time. Yet, he had allowed himself to feel, so he couldn''t stop that tinge of longing from seeping out of his mental sea and filling his mind. ''Hurry up,'' Noah thought when June''s face appeared in his mind. ''I might go too far away if you don''t reach the Immortal Lands soon.'' "Like what you see?" Jordan said as she approached Noah. Her large robe had gotten loose during the celebrations, and her right shoulder was now in the open for everyone to see. Her amber skin shone as the scarlet flames danced in the area and mixed with the azure radiance released by the ground. "It is a strange scene," Noah replied as he turned toward the fire. "My lower plane couldn''t offer something like this." "Most lower planes have that issue," Jordan said while also turning toward the fire. "You aren''t the first to stare at this scene in surprise. There aren''t many hybrids even in the vastness of Heaven and Earth''s system." "It''s only fair for us to be a minority," Noah admitted. "The other species won''t even exist if we didn''t have this weakness." "You don''t seem the type to care about fairness," Jordan teased him. "I only care about my power," Noah replied. "Everything else is circumstantial." "Many hybrids were like you, but they eventually accepted the Legion as their home," Jordan continued. "You can live how you want and do whatever you desire, but you will always be part of this organization. No one else can understand you." Noah didn''t answer anymore. Jordan was right, but he didn''t like the idea of joining an organization, especially when he didn''t know anything about it. "Don''t deny your nature," Jordan continued. "There are so few hybrids already, and even less like us. Dragons with a human shape should stay close. We have the strongest blood running through our veins. It''s a pity to spill it with no one nearby to lick it." ''Maybe one day,'' Noah concluded in his mind as he watched Jordan leaving to rejoin the celebrations. The hybrids went on for days, but Noah didn''t watch the whole party. He left at some point and climbed one of the mountains nearby to resume his training. The noises of the celebration reached his ears, and the light of the flames illuminated his body, but Noah ignored everything around him. Nothing existed when he was cultivating. His mind focused on his centers of power and cut off everything else. Noah knew what he needed to do to improve. He only needed time and many tests to obtain the power that he sought. The celebration ended before Noah could achieve anything, and Divine Demon soon notified him that the encampment was about to set off. Ian would lead them to one of the cities in the Outer Lands, where a leader of the hybrid faction would evaluate them. "I think it''s time you tell me more about Supreme Thief''s inheritance," Noah said as he interrupted his training and followed Divine Demon. "The tales about this expert are quite legendary," Divine Demon explained. "It''s not hard to learn about his existence. Every rank 8 being in the human domain also knows that the Legion controls his inheritance." The group of hybrids waited for Divine Demon and Noah to arrive before setting off in the distance. The duo followed behind them but remained at some distance to keep their conversations private. "Supreme Thief has been a rank 9 existence in his prime," Divine Demon said continued. "According to the legends, he has reached the peak of the cultivation journey by stealing from every organization. It didn''t matter to which side they belonged. Supreme Thief has stolen every kind of technique, spell, and material from all the known forces. He didn''t even spare the other inheritances." Divine Demon couldn''t contain his smile when he spoke about that expert. Noah even sensed a tinge of admiration leaking out of his aura. "It is unclear whether he really died," Divine Demon explained. "We only know that he has disappeared for hundreds of thousands of years and that he has left his inheritance among the stormy edges of the higher plane. As the Immortal Lands expanded, the inheritance appeared." ''He created an inheritance in the middle of the storms of laws,'' Noah thought. ''I wonder if he managed to see the world past the edges of the higher plane.'' "The appearance of an inheritance belonging to a rank 9 existence made the whole world go crazy," Divine Demon continued. "Every organization wanted to control it, but the hybrids have been smarter. They lifted the whole region with the inheritance and moved it to a secret location. The human domain has been unable to gather any information about it since then." "How do you know that the Legion hasn''t cleared the inheritance already?" Noah asked. "This is the most interesting part," Divine Demon replied. "According to the legends, Supreme Thief''s inheritance isn''t a single place. It contains multiple areas meant for different qualities and abilities, all of them with the chance to give rewards in the ninth rank. I''m not underestimating the Legion. I only believe that no force in the world could clear it." "And we went through this mess to enter this unclearable place, am I right?" Noah asked as a smile also appeared on his face. "Of course!" Divine Demon replied. "I can''t let anyone complete the trials before me. Supreme Thief was a real Demon, so I need to be his heir!" "I might take it from under your nose if you aren''t careful," Noah said in a teasing tone. "I did the same with your inheritance in the end." "I expect nothing else from you, my heir!" Divine Demon said. "This is the inheritance of a rank 9 existence. Nothing should stop you from reaching its end." "Let''s try not to kill each other," Noah said before exploding into a laugh. "We will keep things fair between us," Divine Demon replied as his eyes became cold, "But only between us." Noah revealed a similar expression, and the duo fell silent as they followed the group of hybrids. They couldn''t wait to see what Supreme Thief had created. Chapter 1393: 1393. Stunning Noah and Divine Demon followed the hybrid team for months. They crossed countless regions and witnessed a multitude of environments before reaching something that resembled a city. "Not yet," Ian transmitted to the duo with his consciousness. "This is one of our major forces. The city is deeper into the Outer Lands." An immense encampment unfolded in Noah''s vision after he received that message. Countless hybrids in the seventh rank occupied that multitude of tents and created a poor imitation of the human cities. Noah recognized shops of various kinds and countless habitations as he flew above the encampment. Its overall population was lower than Vagona city, but that number was still outstanding since all those citizens were hybrids. Not all of them had a human form. Noah saw creatures with magical beasts'' bodies conversing with other citizens and purchasing items from some shops. The peculiarity of that scene left him speechless, but he soon accepted that such a view was quite ordinary among the Legion. The group of hybrids didn''t stop flying and crossed the encampment to venture deeper into the Outer Lands. That settlement was nothing more than a weak army placed near the human domain to ensure that no explorer managed to reach the lands belonging to the Legion. Noah and Divine Demon had to fly behind Ian''s group for entire years and reach lands where intense winds blew to arrive at their destination. A series of tall buildings eventually appeared in their vision, and the noises of a bustling city reached their ears before they could even set their eyes on its citizens. "This is Yellnbel," Ian transmitted with his mental waves. "One of the few moving cities of the Immortal Lands." Countless tents filled Yellnbel''s outskirts. Its tall structures also swayed left and right as the winds crashed on their light materials. A series of holes spread from under them and no streets divided them. The buildings appeared shoved into the ground. They didn''t have a solid foundation, and something told Noah that he could lift them if he applied enough strength. ''Do they really move the city if the situation requires it?'' Noah wondered as he studied those structures. Nothing kept them fixed on the ground. The holes prevented the buildings from giving in to the intense winds, but they couldn''t stop anyone from lifting them. The entire city seemed ready to leave the area. Noah even guessed that a single rank 8 existence could lift all the structures with mental energy. Those buildings appeared incredibly light and served the sole purpose of being easy to move. ''No wonder they are so hard to find,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''They can just leave whenever an enemy force learns about their position.'' Everything became clear in Noah''s mind after he studied that scene. Before, he couldn''t understand why the humans didn''t attack the hybrids and overcame them with their numbers. Yet, that approach sounded impossible when their opponents could move their cities at will. "We might not have the polished streets of the human domain," Ian explained through his mental waves, "But luxury is pointless. We don''t need to appear grand. We only need power, and we have it." An intense aura enveloped Ian''s team, Noah, and Divine Demon as they continued to fly toward Yellnbel. Mental waves in the eighth rank studied them and allowed them to pass after they confirmed their identity. Noah and Divine Demon exchanged a glance and nodded at each other before continuing to advance toward the city. It was too late to go back now. They had to reach the end of the matter and obtain permission to fly toward Supreme Thief''s inheritance. Noah wasn''t worried about himself. He was a hybrid who had already proven his strength. The Legion had already expressed its desire to make him join its ranks, and he had also gained some favor by killing Lady Lena. Divine Demon was the issue. He was a human, and his personality was quite peculiar. The expert would stop at nothing to obtain what he wanted. He was using a peaceful approach only because it was impossible to reach Supreme Thief''s inheritance without the Legion. Ian''s team flew above the tents and landed at the base of one of the city''s tallest buildings. Divine Demon and Noah followed them, but most of the group dispersed before reaching the structure. Only Ian, Jordan, and a few more hybrids remained at the building''s base, waiting for the duo to land. It seemed that the others had other matters to handle now that they had returned to Yellnbel. "Follow me," Ian said before recalling something. "And try to restrain your thoughts. The leader has seen enough indecent ideas with her ability." Noah and Divine Demon exchanged another glance before following Ian inside the gray structure. The swaying didn''t seem to exist there, and a large barren room unfolded in their eyes after they crossed the entrance. A few pieces of furniture saved the room from being an empty area, and a staircase connected that floor to the upper ones. The couch and table there also had a sticky material keeping them glued on the floor. It seemed that the hybrids were ready to move at any time. Ian led the duo and the rest of his group to the upper floors of the structure. Similar rooms unfolded in their vision, but even they were mostly empty. Still, it seemed that someone had left only recently since Noah could sense traces of warmth on the furniture. Right before reaching the last floor, Ian and the rest of his group stopped. He then gestured to Noah and Divine Demon to proceed before performing a bow toward the top of the staircase. It was time for Noah and Divine Demon to receive their evaluation. The duo finished climbing the staircase and arrived in a large room with a series of carpets covering its walls, ceiling, and floor. Two couches also stood on opposite sides of the area, and a tall metal throne grew from its bottom. A stunning middle-aged woman sat on the throne. She had long black hair and dark skin, and the light radiated by her azure eyes was so intense that it could illuminate the entire room. The pressure that her eyes could radiate made Noah and Divine Demon feel powerless under her gaze. Their thoughts also suffered from the effects of that azure radiance, and their minds became sluggish as they tried to return to their normal functioning. Noah and Divine Demon felt unable to think in that situation. Azure light seeped inside their minds and studied their mental seas, but they couldn''t do anything to stop that probing. The mighty rank 8 expert could do what she wanted in that situation. Still, Noah and Divine Demon had offered themselves for that evaluation, so they didn''t try to hide anything. They let the azure light roam freely inside their minds and study their intentions. "Supreme Thief''s inheritance isn''t as nice as you think, human," The woman said at some point. "Dying there is common. That great expert''s tests are ruthless, and they won''t hesitate to take your life if you aren''t careful." "Having said this," The rank 8 expert continued with her captivating voice, "I won''t stop you from testing your skill and luck. Our friendship depends on your potential gains, so I won''t suppress your desires. You can go and see Supreme Thief''s inheritance for yourself." Chapter 1394: 1394. Tempting Noah and Divine Demon felt compelled to perform a polite bow after hearing the expert''s words. "Human, you can go," The expert said after Noah and Divine Demon straightened their position. "I wish to talk with Noah alone." The woman''s words created waves of shock in the duo''s minds. They had never revealed Noah''s real name to Ian and the others. She could have learnt it only when she inspected their mental seas. The azure halo radiated by the woman''s eyes became less intense and allowed the duo to think properly again. Divine Demon slightly relaxed and gave one last glance at the expert before winking at Noah and leaving the room. Noah turned toward the expert at that point. He didn''t know how much she had managed to learn from the inspection of his mind. Still, he suspected that the reason behind her request concerned his memories. "My name is Theodora," The woman said after a few seconds of silence. "I speak for the entire Legion when I say that it would be our honor to have you in our ranks. Your achievements are impressive, to say the least." "How much did you see?" Noah asked as a tinge of annoyance inevitably leaked into his voice. Noah didn''t like that Theodora had inspected his memories. He had stored many valuable scenes there, and most of his valued relationships were there as well. The Legion could have learnt about the entire Hive after that short interaction. "Do not worry," Theodora replied. "I''ve sworn to use my gift only against the enemies of the Legion. I won''t spread anything learnt from your mind unless you hurt my organization." Even if Theodora didn''t add any malice in her words, Noah took that line as a threat. His memories would be safe as long as he didn''t become her enemy. "Gift?" Noah asked. It had become a habit to learn everything he could from the existences that he met. Seemingly useless information could become a trump card in a specific situation, so he always tried to probe his potential opponents. "I have nothing to hide," Theodora said as a knowing smile appeared on her face. "I have the blood of the Psychic Carps in my veins. That places me among the weakest hybrids in terms of battle prowess, but I make up for that in fertility. The weakness of my species gives me the chance to give birth to my kind." Noah didn''t dare to think anything when he heard those words. Theodora had already shown that she could read his mind easily, so he preferred not to ponder about that information at all. "Oh? Afraid of your own mind?" Theodora said as she stood up from her throne and neared Noah. "I wonder what June would think when she learns about your desire." Noah didn''t move. He watched Theodora stretch her arm to caress his shoulder. Her hand then slid toward his bare neck. "What do you say, little dragon?" Theodora continued as her voice became even more tempting. "Your kind is so rare. I can help to populate it, and June won''t even learn about it." Theodora touched his neck, but her hand froze when she noticed Noah''s cold gaze. His eyes didn''t flicker under that temptation. His mind had remained calm under her warmth. "Don''t underestimate my will," Noah said in a cold tone. "Also, I suggest you keep this from June. You will have to use my memories otherwise." Theodora retracted her hand and covered her mouth as a soft laugh came out of her. She seemed strangely pleased that Noah had managed to reject her so easily. That outcome didn''t hurt her pride at all. "Go now," Theodora said as she returned to her throne. "I know that I will see you soon. You might not need the Legion now, but you will eventually accept us. You will even help us when the time is right." Noah didn''t question her anymore and turned to descend the staircase. His mind relaxed once he left the range of her azure radiance, and countless thoughts flew out of his mental sea as he reviewed those scenes. He wanted to blame himself for his carelessness, but he had to accept that the situation had been hopeless. Even Divine Demon had to lower his head in front of a rank 8 existence. Noah never had a chance to hide his thoughts in front of Theodora. ''I wonder if the other leaders are like her,'' Noah thought as he exited the building. ''As for what she said, I guess she was speaking about the migration of the human domain.'' The powerful existences of the Immortal Lands seemed to view that migration as inevitable and imminent. The attack of the magical beasts would force the humans to move their domain, which would inevitably make them enter the Legion''s lands. That would be the beginning of a war with multiple battlefields. One side saw humans against magical beasts, while the other featured cultivators against hybrids. Noah would have to decide whether to join the battles or remain on the sidelines at that point. ''I have been through this already,'' Noah thought as he found Ian''s group and Divine Demon waiting for him outside the entrance. ''I need to become stronger to seize benefits in the imminent war. My power must come first, or I won''t obtain anything even if I fight.'' Ian and the other hybrids appeared surprised that Noah had come out so soon. They were aware of Theodora''s habits, so they had suspected that Noah would remain in her quarters for a while. Noah ignored those gazes and exchanged a glance with Divine Demon. The two understood each other in an instant, and they soon turned toward the hybrids while expressing evident greed. They had done everything Ian had asked them to do. It was time for the Legion to honor its side of the deal. The hybrids had to show them the path toward Supreme Thief''s inheritance. Ian understood the duo''s intentions, and he promptly sent a series of mental messages to create a new team. Some of the hybrids living in the encampment around Yellnbel set off to meet him in the sky. They had specific tasks, but they all were near Supreme Thief''s inheritance. "Let''s go," Ian said before shooting in the distance, followed by the rest of his team. Noah and Divine Demon chased after him, and their travel resumed. Different regions began and ended in their vision as the group flew through the sky, and more years passed as they moved toward that famous destination. Then, a tall structure appeared in their eyes. At first, that scene made Noah and Divine Demon think they were about to venture through another mountain chain, but they soon understood that something was off. An azure region stood above another land, and a structure grew from its peak. The building was different from those seen in Yellnbel, and it was far bigger than anything in Vagona city. It was even taller than Great Builder''s pyramid. "Do you move the whole region when you have to hide the inheritance?" Divine Demon asked as he studied that scene. "Of course," Ian replied. "We can''t put the inheritance inside our storage devices since no artificial space in the world can contain the legacy of a rank 9 existence." "Won''t eventual enemies see you?" Noah asked as he joined Divine Demon in the study of that immense structure. "It is always gone by the time enemies are about to reach it," Ian replied. "This is Supreme Thief''s inheritance. The Legion won''t even come close to risk losing it." Chapter 1395: 1395. Palace The scene was majestic. An entire region stood on top of the azure ground, and a palace-like building rested above it. Supreme Thief''s inheritance seemed to stand on the largest mountain in the world, on a structure created only for its presence. No wild living beings lived in the area. The Legion had scared and killed flora and fauna there when it placed the inheritance on that region. Still, Noah could sense multiple traces of life coming from the top of the immense mountain. Ian led the duo and his group toward the inheritance, and Noah could soon see how grand Supreme Thief''s creation was. The palace had an ennagonal shape, and nine towers grew from its corners. Light-azure marble covered the entire structure, except for a few large windows that reflected a dim radiance. Each tower had nine windows, and they seemed able to radiate only two colors. Some were black, while others were white. All the white ones were near the top of the structures, while the black ones occupied their base. The most peculiar aspect of the inheritance was that it didn''t have an entrance. Its walls were smooth and without the faintest dent. The storms of laws and the passage of time didn''t manage to ruin that spectacular structure. "You must have noticed that you can''t enter the inheritance through normal methods," Ian began to explain as the group landed on the vast barren plain that surrounded the structure. Faint meanings came out of the towers. They seemed to hint at certain aspects of the cultivation journey, but Noah and Divine Demon couldn''t understand them from that distance. "The roofs of the towers are the entrances, and each tower leads to different types of trials," Ian explained. "Each trial has nine layers, and each layer has multiple challenges. You wouldn''t even believe the number of separate dimensions contained in the whole structure." Needless to say, Noah could barely bring himself to speak when he heard those words. He had explored many inheritances throughout his life, and he had even built one. However, everything paled in front of Supreme Thief''s creation. "You can open the path to the lower layer only after you complete nine challenges," Ian continued, "But that isn''t the maximum number of tests that each layer contains. You can obtain rewards even in areas that we have already cleared." "The human organizations must be desperate to find this place," Noah eventually said. "More than desperate," Ian replied. "This inheritance alone has given to the Legion most of its current wealth. It''s only thanks to Theodora and many efforts that we have managed to keep it safe from enemy hands." "What about the trials?" Divine Demon asked. "They have clear differences, but they tend to be less specific in the upper layers," Ian explained. "We have given names to the towers to describe the field that they test. They are strength, will, speed, defense, power, martial arts, spells, offensive inscriptions, and defensive inscriptions." Noah and Divine Demon fell silent at that point. In their minds, they were already choosing which towers they would face first. "Each layer has different levels of difficulty," Ian concluded. "They match to the stages of the divine ranks, so it''s not a surprise that the lower ones are still dark." That last piece of information almost made Noah go crazy. Supreme Thief wasn''t only a monster who had reached the ninth rank. He had also created an inheritance that could test cultivators at the peak of the divine ranks! That placed the palace far above the pyramid in terms of value. There was simply no point in comparing those inheritances. Supreme Thief was an unparalleled monster, and the whole world had to be grateful for his efforts in creating that inheritance. "You can already enter," Ian said as he pointed at the towers. "Fill the roof with your mental energy, and you will teleport inside the inheritance. It''s impossible to miss the paths leading to the lower layers, and the same goes for the exits. You can''t get lost." Noah and Divine Demon set off as soon as they heard those words. They couldn''t hold back in front of such a valuable place. However, Ian reached them to hand one of the marked wooden tokens to Divine Demon. "There are only hybrids in the inheritance right now," Ian said as he handed the token. "You will need to show this to reassure them." Ian left after that last reminder, and the duo separated as they flew toward different towers. The Legion had placed banners on the roofs to describe the trials, so they could already decide where to go. Divine Demon flew toward the roof with the banner that radiated the word "power", while Noah landed on the tower called "strength". It wasn''t hard to understand which fields those words indicated, so they choose trials that matched their best qualities. The "power" tower involved dantians, and Divine Demon couldn''t wait to test his individuality its challenges. As for Noah, his physical strength was off the scale, so he had chosen the "strength" tower to see if he could find trials that hybrids at his same level couldn''t overcome. The "strength" tower had the highest number of white windows. Only three of them remained black, and that gave Noah a general idea of the Legion''s power. It was clear that it had existences that could defeat tests meant for rank 8 cultivators in the liquid stage. Noah and Divine Demon didn''t exchange any last glance. They directly poured their mental waves on the blue roofs and saw the scenery in front of their eyes transforming as the teleport activated. They couldn''t bother to check their companion with Supreme Thief''s inheritance under them. They could only think about all the possible rewards now. When Noah managed to focus his vision and unfold his consciousness, he found himself in a seemingly ordinary environment filled with a faint-azure light. The fake sky had that color, but the ground radiated shades that tried to imitate the outside world. Before he could analyze the new environment more thoroughly, a series of runes appeared in his vision and conveyed a simple message with the meanings they radiated. ''Cultivation level too high for this layer,'' Noah read, ''Descend by one layer to gain access to suitable tests.'' ''This restriction must be the reason why the Legion didn''t manage to go too deeply in the other towers,'' Noah thought as he studied the environment to learn more about that place. Many members of the Legion didn''t have individualities and had a low aptitude toward certain fields. The fact that each layer applied restrictions to the contenders'' level had forced those hybrids to focus on towers where the power of their species could shine. Still, it made them disregard the others. ''The "strength" tower must be popular among the hybrids,'' Noah guessed, ''But my superior abilities don''t involve only my physical strength. I might have a chance to seize multiple rewards in the other towers if the situation is like this.'' A vast prairie expanded from his position and ended in different environments. Noah could see a tall forest, a mountain, and a small stream, but the pillar of white light shining in the distance claimed most of his attention. ''The passage for the lower layer must be there,'' Noah thought before moving in the direction of the pillar of light. Chapter 1396: 1396. Mountain Noah had chosen the "strength" tower because his body was far above the standards of the middle tier, but he didn''t expect Supreme Thief''s inheritance to reward his situation even more. With the restrictions on the cultivation level, Noah didn''t have to worry about the lack of rewards. The higher layers would have more contenders, but those limitations gave him a chance to overcome challenges that no one else had managed to beat. Hybrids filled the first layer of the inheritance. Noah met many teams as he flew toward the white pillar in the distance. Those existences barely even glanced at him since they were too focused on searching for undiscovered tests. The Legion had placed multiple signals throughout the layer. They were inscribed items that described the known undefeated challenges and even explained parts of their contents. Noah couldn''t test himself in that layer, but he spent some time gathering information about the types of tests that the "strength" tower offered. Still, he soon gave up on searching for something that could help. The undefeated challenges in the first layer could feature any hurdle. They went from lifting an insane weight to facing creatures that lived in remote lairs without using "Breath" or mental energy. Noah began to understand why the Legion had tested him in that peculiar way. Ian and the others wanted to see where his physical strength was compared to its other members. That information was useful when it came to Supreme Thief''s inheritance. ''No point remaining here any further,'' Noah thought before disregarding any signal and hurrying toward the pillar. The white light began to fill his vision, and Noah could soon touch the pillar and experience its effects. The environment transformed again as a teleport started, and a barren land unfolded in his eyes when his mind managed to focus. No runes appeared in front of him at that time. The inheritance didn''t apply any restriction to him in that layer. Noah could finally search for a challenge that his superior physical strength could allow him to overcome. The barren seemed to expand endlessly. It was far bigger than any region of the higher plane, so Noah couldn''t even see its edges. Still, the second layer featured the same signals as before, so he eventually found something that aroused his interest. ''Lift the azure mountain. The reward is under it,'' Noah read from one of the signals and didn''t hesitate to approach the challenge. A short mountain was a few kilometers away from the signal, and Noah landed at its base to approach the trial. A few hybrids were there before him, so he had to wait for his chance to test his strength. The hybrids that saw him approaching the mountains revealed broad smirks. Noah''s body had grown a lot, but it was still far away from the halfway mark of the middle tier. It was only normal for those existences to believe that he stood no chance against that trial. ''How do I even lift it?'' Noah wondered as he studied the huge structure. A crack ran around the mountain''s base and signaled that it wasn''t part of the ground. Anyone could stab their fingers in that fissure and see if their strength was enough to win the challenge. Noah did exactly that. He inserted his hands and part of his arms into the crack and began to pull. The mountain shook and trembled under his physical might, but he could immediately sense that power wasn''t enough to succeed in the feat. A peculiar light began to spread through the crack as Noah continued in his attempt to lift the mountain. There seemed to be something hidden under that structure, but he couldn''t understand what it was from his position. ''This won''t do,'' Noah thought when he saw that his physical strength allowed him to move the mountain only for one meter. ''Let''s see what Supreme Thief says about this.'' Dark matter began to come out of his black hole and fill his black vessels. Noah''s physical strength surged as his innate ability activated. The mountain started to shake with more intensity when Noah poured the entirety of his physical might into his arms and legs. The tremors began to affect even the terrain nearby as he slowly lifted the whole structure. His feet eventually had to stand in the air since Noah had managed to lift the mountain for more than three meters. He went under the crack at that point and began to push the structure higher as he reached for the center of its base. The hybrids watching the scene remained speechless. They had seen how Noah''s physical strength had skyrocketed once those black veins had filled his skin. They couldn''t believe that a simple innate ability could give so much power. However, the mountains continued to go higher, and it soon started to float on its own. The weight pressing on Noah''s arms suddenly vanished once the whole base had left the ground. ''I did it,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. The loss of weight of the mountain was a clear sign of his success. Moreover, he had discovered something helpful during the trial. The inheritance had allowed him to use his dark matter. Even if the test was purely physical, he could use techniques to improve his prowess. ''Does this apply to every test?'' Noah wondered as he descended toward the center of the crack. A golden casket stood at the center of the hole previously filled by the mountain. Noah didn''t feel any danger coming from it, so he seized it before returning to the surface. The mountain descended after Noah took the reward, and an earthquake spread when it landed back on the ground. That chaotic event was unusual in the inheritance, but the hybrids on the scene completely ignored it to keep their focus on Noah. The gazes of those hybrids didn''t stop Noah from opening the small casket. The golden light dimmed once he opened the item and uncovered its contents. Noah found a single red pill laid on a series of luxurious fabrics. A few runes drawn on the casket''s insides described the nature of the item and its purpose. The red pill was a life-saving drug meant for cultivators. It could fill them with a sudden wave of strength and made all their injuries heal. Noah guessed that it was valuable, but he couldn''t really use it. Since he was even above hybrids, most of the drugs meant for humans would have limited effects on him. His body required too much energy, so that pill wasn''t a life-saver item in his hands. ''Selling this shouldn''t be a problem,'' Noah thought as he stored the casket. ''I might even decide to keep it for now. I don''t have any valuable drug with me, so it might be useful.'' Noah left the area after seizing the reward, and the hybrids who had witnessed his feat decided to follow him. They wanted to see if he could overcome another challenge and reveal parts of the second layer they had yet to uncover. His desire to seize as many resources as possible made Noah disregard the team of hybrids that had begun to follow him. He didn''t care if he had an audience. He wouldn''t change his approach toward the inheritance. **** Author''s notes: I need another hour or so to complete the last chapter. I will upload it when it''s ready. Chapter 1397: 1397. Boar Noah didn''t limit himself to use his dark matter whenever he had the chance. He first tested how much the inheritance allowed him to cheat. The tests became impossible to overcome whenever Noah tried to use his "Breath" or mental energy, even if he limited them to the simple boost of his physical strength. The same happened when he deployed the dark world or used the dark matter to create the fiendish armor. The "strength" tower only tested his physical prowess and gave rewards meant for his body. Unless the test expressly said so, he couldn''t use his abilities. However, the inheritance didn''t react when he used the dark matter to activate his innate ability. It seemed that the tests saw the dark vessels as an extension of his physical strength, and the same applied to his dark flames, even if they weren''t useful most of the time. Noah didn''t mind those restrictions since he knew that his innate ability gave him another advantage that other hybrids didn''t have. The fact that he could indirectly use the energy inside his fourth center of power gave him the battle prowess of a cultivator instead of making him rely only on his physical strength. That advantage allowed Noah to clear multiple undefeated challenges in a row. Those tests often involved heavy or tough materials that he had to lift or destroy, and their reward matched their difficulty. Most of the undefeated tests were challenges that peak middle tier hybrids didn''t bother to approach. They were too simple for existences at that level, and their rewards wouldn''t help them in the breakthrough. Moreover, the members of the Legion cared for each other. The strongest existences in every layer often ignored trials that they could overcome easily to leave some resources to the weaker hybrids. Greed didn''t move their actions since they were placing the well-being of their organization above simple rewards. Noah didn''t respect that unwritten rule. He didn''t belong to the Legion, and he wouldn''t hold back even if he did. He didn''t hold back in front of the chance to obtain valuable resources. Various pills and potions began to fill his separate space as Noah cleared trials. The number of hybrids following him to admire his physical prowess also increased as he moved through the second layer. Noah couldn''t avoid attracting attention. His body''s level wouldn''t normally allow him to defeat those challenges, but his innate ability gave him the chance to clear most of the easy ones on the first try. The hybrids following him couldn''t even complain. Noah was theoretically weaker than some of them, but he could clear trials that they couldn''t even approach. That alone turned him into a celebrity during his first journey through the inheritance. ''Eight life-saving drugs between potions and pills, three high-energy containers that I can eat right away, and a small rank 7 space-ring,'' Noah summarized his gains when the easy challenges were over. ''The inheritance is slowly giving me better rewards. I wonder what the hardest challenge in this layer would award.'' The second layer was so vast that there didn''t seem to be an end to its trials. Those barren lands even hid magical beasts and plants featured in some challenges that created a few livable areas. That environment resembled a small world that the Legion had yet to explore fully. ''I guess it''s time to start fighting seriously,'' Noah thought as he glanced at the group of hybrids behind him. Noah didn''t want to show all his abilities to that audience. He didn''t know if the inheritance would react to his companions, but he preferred to keep them hidden unless he found something complicated. That was exactly what he was aiming to find now. Noah continued to approach every challenge in his path, but he tried to pick the most difficult ones to obtain better rewards. The layout of the second layer was relatively easy to understand. The farther Noah went, the harder the trials became. He only needed to cross the pillar leading to the third layer to reach an area filled with seemingly impossible challenges. The signals in those areas had also become scarcer. Only a handful of trials were still considered unfinished. The others were hidden somewhere inside the second layer. ''I can only hope to find something eventually,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''I can''t give up on these resources. This inheritance is basically asking me to become rich.'' Of course, Noah didn''t care about his wealth, but the currency of the Immortal Lands was quite valuable. The Soul Stones contained raw laws that he could absorb to quicken his growth, and having many of them would allow him to use them more often during his training sessions. ''Defeating the Steeled Boar in a physical battle, no "Breath" or mental energy allowed,'' Noah read from one of the signals placed in the deeper areas, ''This sounds hard.'' Noah''s dark world enhanced his senses and allowed him to find traces of the Steeled Boar. The creature was hiding in one of the few livable areas in that barren land, and it fed on the magical plants that grew due to the high density of "Breath" in the air. The Steeled Boar was a rank 7 magical beast near the peak of the middle tier. It was nine meters tall, and it featured a brownish metallic skin that acted as a natural form of defense. Two thick curved tusks grew from the sides of its mouth, and its aura carried the intense hunger that it felt. When Noah neared the livable area, the Steeled Boar came out of its lair and shot in his direction. Noah didn''t even need to search for the creature anymore at that point. He could hear the noise created by its heavy steps from kilometers away. Noah activated his innate ability as he turned toward the creature. His fingers took the shape of claws that he didn''t hesitate to slash at his opponent. Yet, lines shone of the creature''s body when the inheritance sensed that Noah had relied on the sharpness in his aura to launch that attack. The black line that came out of Noah''s hand crashed on the Boar''s head without doing any damage. The inheritance was boosting the creature''s physical might since Noah had tried to cheat. The Boar also accelerated during its charge. The empowerment given by the inheritance had allowed the creature to gain an explosive speed that made it crash directly on Noah. Noah couldn''t avoid that blow. He could only stretch his arms and make sure that the creature''s tusk wouldn''t hit his body or any vital point. The impact flung Noah away. He couldn''t fight the creature while the inheritance empowered it. He had to wait and perform evasive maneuvers to deplete the surplus of energy that was filling the Boar''s body. The shining lines eventually vanished, and Noah could finally dive back into the fight. He didn''t use any trick at that time. He charged directly at the Steeled Boar and used his fists, legs, and teeth to overcome the beast with the only method allowed in that trial. The battle soon transformed into a test of endurance. The Boar couldn''t suffer much damage since its skin protected it from most blows, but its internal injuries began to accumulate as Noah''s assault continued. Chapter 1398: 1398. Perfection Noah punched, kicked, and spewed flames on the Steeled Boar while he dodged its attacks. Even with the empowerment of his innate ability, he was weaker than the creature in a battle of pure physical strength. Yet, he had his speed on his side. The Boar was big and had a limited number of moves that it could perform. As long as Noah didn''t give it enough space to prepare a charge, the beast couldn''t launch threatening attacks. However, the Boar made up for the simplicity of its attacks with its incredible defense. Its brownish metallic skin protected the creature from almost any form of damage, especially when Noah could not use his best abilities. He managed to inflict some internal injuries due to the sheer power released by his attacks, but they couldn''t affect the Boar''s resilience in such a short time. The fight soon became a battle of endurance. Noah couldn''t hurt the Steeled Boar, and the creature couldn''t catch him. The two exchanged countless blows that created intense shockwaves, but neither managed to gain the upper hand. Noah sprinted, leaped, and flew around the creature to dodge the massive tusks and the body slams that came in his direction. A storm of punches, kicks, and "Breathless" slashes went out of his figure whenever he stopped or found a safe opportunity in that chaotic battle. The hybrids in the distance couldn''t understand why Noah was continuing to fight. They had guessed by then that he had an incredible innate ability, but that couldn''t help him in a prolonged battle. When it came to his endurance, Noah had to be inferior to the Steeled Boar. The difference between the levels of their bodies was immense. No innate ability could make up for that. Yet, Noah''s body had gone through multiple cycles of purification, and even the Evolution Pit couldn''t find flaws in his tissues. The black hole also fueled his center of power and functioned as a nigh-infinite reserve of energy. Noah didn''t believe that a simple magical beast could last longer than him. Their levels were worlds apart, but the quality of his body was many leagues above everything else. When he added his black hole to his situation, he saw that the Boar had no chances. Only mistakes in his battle style could lead to a defeat. The Steeled Boar could win if it managed to land a few direct blows, but Noah planned to be perfect. He would fight without even giving the beast a chance. Existences in the seventh rank had deep reserves of energy. A mere magical beast at the bottom of the lower tier could fight for entire months if the situation required it. Noah was forcing the Boar to deplete far more energy than usual, but the creature didn''t grow tired even after an entire day passed. Nothing happened even after a week went by. The beast didn''t slow down its offensive and didn''t show any sign of exhaustion. The same went for Noah. He felt that he could fight for entire years in those conditions. Moreover, he never stopped landing blows on the brownish skin, so the Boar''s condition worsened continuously. An entire month had to pass before Noah saw some changes in the creature''s condition. A trail of blood came out of its mouth, and its breath became slightly irregular. The Boar had finally begun to show the damage suffered after acting as Noah''s punching bag for an entire month. Its attempts to catch Noah had also helped in worsening the faint internal injuries that Noah''s blows managed to create. The hybrids in the distance held their breath at that sight. Noah was doing it. The Boar had shown a sign of weakness before him. If he continued to fight like that for more months, he had a chance to overcome one of the most difficult challenges of the second layer. Noah''s audience only increased during his battle. The scene depicted repetitive moves and boring battle tactics, but those hybrids couldn''t stop watching him once they laid their eyes on the fight. Noah was perfect. His every move allowed him to gain the most out of that situation without putting him in danger. His majestic battle style showed his vast experience and steady mind to his audience. His aura also radiated an intense ambition that began to affect the hybrids in the distance. Noah wasn''t using his individuality to empower his blows, and he didn''t plan to reveal it either. However, his true meaning leaked out of his figure, and he couldn''t stop that process even with the help of the black hole. Noah couldn''t hide that part of himself during such a violent battle. His ambition was the core of his individuality, so nothing could suppress it while he was busy doing his best against the Boar. He was putting his entire focus on the fight, and his existence reacted to that feeling by expressing his true meaning through his aura. His ambition affected the hybrids that were watching him at some distance from the battle. They could sense their potential growing as the fight continued to rage. A simple but breathtaking idea formed in their minds as Noah''s ambition affected their reasoning. They could be Noah if they wanted. They could jump in that battle and fight perfectly for entire months if they desired. Those hybrids had the potential to reach that level of perfection. They could defeat the Boar if their body obtained a similar power. That thought shook the very foundation of their minds. The hybrids couldn''t explain why they had given up on a trial that they could have overcome if they worked hard enough. Of course, Noah wasn''t winning only due to his perfect battle style. His black hole and superior body played an important part in that fight. He would have exhausted himself already otherwise. During the third month of continuous battle, the Boar committed a grave mistake. The creature spat a mouthful of blood that made it lose a lot of time and focus, and Noah didn''t hesitate to exploit that opportunity. Noah jumped toward the Boar''s head as soon as he saw that the beast stopped attacking him for an instant. Intense aggression spread from his body at that point. His opponent was showing weakness in front of him. He had to punish the beast for that insult to his commitment. The creature sensed an immense force landing on its head and slamming it on the ground. A series of punches followed that, but the Boar barely felt them due to its dizzy mind. Noah tried to focus the same spot on its skin repeatedly to destroy the brownish protection. Dents and bruises had appeared on the Boar after three months of continuous fighting, and his fists eventually managed to open a crack in its defenses. The Boar cried in pain after a brownish shard fell from its head. Noah''s eyes lit up at that sight, and his fingers arched to stab that opening toward the creature''s insides. Once his finger entered the Boar''s head, Noah ripped off a large patch of its skin and spat flames in its insides. An intense surge of energy soon reached his body as the black fire separated from the attack and gave him the primary energy contained in the burned tissues. Then, a loud cry filled the area before the creature stopped moving. Life abandoned its eyes, and Noah announced the Boar''s death with a roar shouted at the fake sky. Chapter 1399: 1399. Like Clamors resounded in the distance after the Steeled Boar died, and some of the hybrids roared at the fake sky to join Noah''s cry. They wanted to celebrate his victory and announce to the world that he had succeeded in a feat that everyone thought to be impossible. Noah''s pride reacted to those roars. He felt instincts buried deep inside him awakening and resurfacing over his mental sea when he heard those hybrids acclaiming him in a language that humans couldn''t understand. His species had surpassed the hybrids, but the instincts that came from the magical beasts'' world were still inside him. Noah could create a pack if he wanted. Part of his audience already considered him as a leader worth following. Still, his greed soon overcame that feeling. He had completed one of the hardest trials in the second layer, and he couldn''t wait to see what reward Supreme Thief had prepared for him. Nothing happened even after a few seconds passed. Noah didn''t know what he had to look for, but it seemed that the Steeled Boar didn''t carry the answer. Noah then stored the creature''s corpse and flew toward the Boar''s lair since it was the only place that could contain the reward for the challenge. As the magical plants entered his vision, Noah could immediately sense that something in the area had changed. The magical plants were quickly wilting, and their energy flowed toward the center of that livable land. When the magical plants died, a surge of energy spread in the environment. Noah walked toward the source of that phenomenon and found a strange fruit laid between wilted trunks and fallen leaves. The fruit was small, no bigger than a man''s fist. It was dark-green, and a series of soft spikes covered its surface. Still, its most striking feature was the massive amount of energy radiated by its figure. "I must warn you," A male voice resounded behind Noah as he was about to pick the fruit. "That''s an Uwan, the fruit of the death. It contains enough energy to repopulate an entire forest, but a powerful poison fills its insides. That''s the innate defensive ability of that species of magical plants." Noah''s senses didn''t feel any danger, so he picked the fruit before turning toward the hybrid. He saw a tall hairy man with short black hair and yellow eyes politely staring at him outside the dead forest. "You are?" Noah asked as his gaze returned to the strange fruit. "Don," The man replied. "You must be a new talent of the Legion. This is my first time seeing you here." Don wasn''t one of the weak hybrids that had followed Noah throughout the second layer. His cultivation level neared the last part of the liquid stage, and his body was also about to enter the range of the middle tier''s peak. He was an expert of the second layer, one of the few hybrids who could approach the most challenging trials and have a chance to win. "I''m not part of the Legion," Noah replied honestly. "Why did you warn me? Do you want this fruit?" Don felt surprised to hear that Noah had entered the inheritance without joining the Legion. His eyes flickered, but he tried to maintain a calm appearance in front of Noah. The hybrid had sensed that something had changed after Noah had spoken to him. Noah wasn''t treating him as a friendly bystander. He had started to view him as a potential threat. Noah''s actions had no malice. His reaction was the result of years spent as a lone cultivator. His caution never allowed him to lower his guard. Don didn''t understand how Noah could be there, but he had accepted his reaction more easily after learning about his situation. It was only normal to be cautious inside an inheritance filled with hybrids belonging to the same organization. Still, his instincts startled him. Don''s centers of power were far above Noah''s, but the latter managed to trigger his instincts. The hybrid could sense that Noah was extremely dangerous. "We don''t steal from our kind," Don replied with a tinge of pride in his voice. "My words were only a friendly warning. The energy inside Uwan''s fruits is dangerous if left untreated. I know a procedure, but I''m afraid that I can only purify sixty percent of its energy." "I will handle the purification," Noah said before recalling something. "Do you know where the other hard trials are?" "Harder than defeating a Steeled Boar near the peak of the middle tier with your bare hands?" Don asked as one of his eyebrows arched. "Yes," Noah replied. "It''s pointless to leave their rewards here. I might as well seize them." Don remained silent for a second before exploding into a loud laugh. His voice became high-pitched as his laughter continued and made Noah think about monkey-type magical beasts. "I like you," Don eventually said once he managed to suppress his laugh. "The Legion definitely needs someone with your guts. I will show you the harder trials, but you won''t like what you''ll see." Noah''s curiosity became more intense when he heard that. He stored the Uwan''s fruit and stepped off the forest to follow Don, who waited for him before setting off. The duo flew through the deeper lands of the second layer without saying much and stopped only when they reached the locations of the more demanding trials. As Don had predicted, Noah didn''t like what he saw. "This asks you to survive for a thousand years without eating and cultivating," Don said once they reached a deep fissure. "This wants you to dig a hole as deep as the entire layer," Don explained when they reached a part of the barren land filled with deep pits. "This is my favorite. I almost didn''t believe the seer when she divined it," Don said once they reached the peak of a tall mountain. "You must turn this whole structure into dust. Of course, you can only use your bare hands." Noah began to understand how the second layer handled the harder trials at that point. They were harsh, but most of their difficulty came from the time required to win them. Both hybrids and humans could improve on their own during that time instead of performing useless tasks for entire centuries. No reward in the middle tier was worth that kind of effort. "Are they all like this?" Noah asked after the duo crossed the mountain. "Yes," Don replied. "I''m afraid you took care of the last decent trial in the whole second layer. All the others require so much time that you would obtain greater improvements by cultivating in a random land in the outside world." "What''s the hardest of them all?" Noah asked at that point. Noah didn''t want to waste time, but he might invest a few decades every now and then in one trial since they didn''t require much effort. If he then happened to reach the upper tier before completing it, he would simply leave the challenge alone. "The hardest isn''t something that you can clear at your level," Don said. "I''ve seen your battle against the Boar. Perfection won''t be enough there. You won''t survive it." "That''s something I''d like to decide," Noah replied. Don heaved a sigh before changing direction to move deeper into the second layer. His mouth opened to give voice to a line that made Noah even more curious about that challenge. "Trust me. You won''t like it." **** Author''s notes: I need an hour or so for the next one. Will publish it when it''s ready. Chapter 1400: 1400. Impossible "We found this when we were searching for the end of the second layer," Don explained. "Most of my old team can''t fight here anymore since they are approaching the breakthrough or have already moved to the third layer." "I thought the Legion didn''t know how vast the layers were," Noah replied. "That''s true only for the lower ones," Don said. "Any rank 8 expert can travel through the entire superior layers and create a detailed map of all the trials. The Legion doesn''t divulge the location of the most difficult ones here for fear that the weaker members would forget about their normal training to chase impossible rewards." Don''s words made sense. It was easy for cultivators to lose themselves in faint hopes, especially when their cultivation level began to stagnate. Hybrids had it even harder in those situations since their instincts would work against their minds. "The Legion won''t do anything if they find them, but all the stronger members know how pointless it is to waste time here," Don continued. "You have understood it as soon as I described the other trials." Noah fell silent at that point. Don was right. He had already accumulated enough resources to improve his body, and the inheritance had eight more towers that he could explore. Nothing could force him to waste years in those challenging trials since he could directly cultivate while exploring the other towers and approach the breakthroughs through normal training. The inheritance went far deeper in the end. Noah had barely begun to scratch the surface of that place. "Why are you here then?" Noah asked. That was the only flaw in Don''s words. If the other trials were so useless as he said, then he had no reason to be in the second layer. Don exploded into a laugh and turned to show his grin to Noah before explaining his reasons. "I wanted to fight the Steeled Boar. This would have been my ninth attempt. Imagine my surprise when I find you making that creature puke blood." Don accelerated from time to time to make the hybrids behind them lose track of their position. He wanted to respect the Legion''s wishes, so he even relied on his "Breath" to increase his flight speed. Noah kept up with him easily, which surprised Don even more. The hybrid knew that Noah''s prowess was far above the actual level of his centers of power, but he didn''t understand how Noah could have so much energy left. Don had met Noah right after the Steeled Boar died, and they had never stopped flying since then. Even the strongest hybrids in the middle tier would feel tired after fighting for three straight months, but Noah wasn''t showing any sign of that. Even if Noah''s body was off the scale, he had to face the after-effects caused by his battle with the Boar. However, his black hole had learnt how to fight any harmful condition that afflicted his tissues after studying the lightning bolts in the Rumbling Region. Noah felt refreshed every time the black hole redirected energy through his tissues. His fourth center of power knew how to relieve the accumulated stress better than him. Noah could recover even if he didn''t rest. The duo had to fly for a while to reach their destination. Don was leading him toward the edges of the second layer, which took entire months filled with the same scenery. The second layer was nothing more than a barren land that featured a few living beings. The inheritance did most of the work by providing energy and sustaining the undefeated trials. Noah wasn''t even the talkative type, so they didn''t speak for long periods and broke the silence only when Don tried to probe into his past. Still, Noah''s answer always managed to make him regret his decision. "We are here," Don said once the duo reached the end of the second layer. The edges of the separate dimension were an immense cliff that led into the dim-azure sky. The second layer ended there, and the experts would only find azure walls if they ventured to the areas after the landmass. Noah landed on the edges to study them. They were in a perfect state. He couldn''t find any trace of corrosion or damage. Supreme Thief''s work seemed an immortal and indestructible piece of art that could survive any trial. ''How can a single existence create all of this?'' Noah wondered as his mind tried to imagine the power that Supreme Thief had wielded when he created that place. ''His existence isn''t something that laws can define anymore.'' "I will tell you one more time," Don said, interrupting Noah''s thoughts with his voice. "Clearing this is impossible, and it can very well lead to your death. I''ve seen talented hybrids who were nearing the breakthrough dying because of their greed. Those instincts run deeply in our species. I don''t want you to die because of them." Noah didn''t reply. He limited himself to stare at Don and wait for his explanation. "Fine then," Don said after heaving a helpless sigh. "There is a cave near the bottom of this cliff. Supreme Thief has thrown hundreds of peak middle tier golems there and called it a trial." Noah''s eyes lit up when he heard that. Fighting was far better than digging holes for millennia. If the trial involved battles, he would gladly give it a try. "Calm your wild thoughts," Don continued, visibly annoyed by Noah''s interested expression. "The trial forces you to destroy at least one golem every seven days. Missing this deadline will make them reappear and waste all the time spent fighting." Noah''s interest slightly waned, and Don began to relax when he saw that he was managing to make him understand how unreasonable the trial was. "The golems never attack on their own," Don explained. "They always seem to know your location, and they can perform simple battle tactics. Some even know basic martial arts. The environment works in their favor due to the low ceiling, and you can''t refill your dantian unless you clear an entire area. Trust me when I say that no one at our level has enough energy to reach the first checkpoint." Noah''s interest in the trial had almost completely disappeared, but one of his last lines made it skyrocket. "Why would I need to refill my dantian there?" Noah asked as his eyes began to shine. Don froze when he saw his expression. He had already guessed what was about to happen, but he didn''t dare to lie to him after spending entire months to lead him to that place. "You can use your "Breath" and mental energy in this trial," Don revealed, "But don''t take it as an advantage. As I have said before, you can''t refill your centers of power unless you destroy many golems. It''s impossibl-. Where are you going?!" Noah''s sudden actions made Don interrupt his explanation. He saw how Noah had turned and thrown himself over the cliff while he was still speaking. "Dammit!" Don cursed loudly. "Don''t enter the cave, or the trial will start! You should use the surface to recover and cultivate before!" Don heaved an annoyed sigh, but he felt relieved when he saw Noah''s figure reappearing from the cliff. "It''s good that you changed your mind," Don said. "Honestly, something like that shouldn''t even be in the second layer. The level of difficulty is clearly between the liquid stage and the solid stage. I don''t even know why Supreme Thief has placed it in the "strength" towe-. What are you doing?" Noah''s actions forced Don to interrupt his explanation again. Noah had begun to dig the ground while he was speaking, but he stopped to answer his question. "I''m following your advice," Noah said in a plain tone. "I''m creating a cave here to prepare for the trial." Chapter 1401: 1401. Golems Noah wasn''t underestimating the trial. Some of the features described by Don worried him greatly, but he couldn''t give up on that chance to prove his power and seize the best reward of the second layer. Don watched as Noah dug a cave near the edge of the landmass and secluded himself. He had no words to express how reckless Noah''s behavior was, but he had already explained everything he could. Noah wasn''t even part of the Legion, so Don eventually gave up trying to make him change his mind. If Noah wanted to risk his life and waste time over an impossible trial, he was free to do so. Don soon left, and Noah remained alone in that distant part of the separate dimension. The light radiated by the Divine Deduction technique shone on his mental sea and improved his mental capabilities as he reviewed what Don had explained. The trial wasn''t easy. According to Don, the underground structure contained hundreds of golems at the peak of the middle tier. Moreover, Noah wouldn''t be able to restore his "Breath" and mental energy unless he cleared an entire area. The challenge also forced the contenders to destroy one golem per week. Failing in doing so would reset the trial to its original state and make all the previous efforts go to waste. Noah knew that his power was off the scale, but he wasn''t delusional. His abilities could allow him to defeat a single peak middle tier creature, but he didn''t have the power to face hundreds of them at the same time. The limitations on his recovery were also a major issue, especially when he considered that the golems would always know his position. ''I won''t immediately succeed,'' Noah thought. ''I need to study those golems and develop an offensive pattern. My black hole will take care of my exhaustion, but I will eventually need a proper rest at some point.'' The trial sounded impossible to overcome for a single existence, but Noah had a crucial advantage. He wasn''t alone. He could count on three divine companions that could multiply his battle prowess. Noah''s workshop and the dark world could even relieve some of the pressure created by his numerical disadvantage. He was probably the only liquid stage expert in the world who could have a chance in that test. ''How long do you need to reach the middle tier?'' Noah asked through his consciousness. "I''m close," Night replied. "Leave me a bunch of that darkness and focus on a strategy. I''ll make sure to be ready before the trial." ''That''s impossible if we count the period of hibernation,'' Noah replied bluntly. ''Still, don''t worry about it. I can complete my preparations only after I learn more about these golems.'' Night went silent after that reply and focused on eating the special darkness that Noah had continued to create to nourish his companion. Its breakthrough was approaching. It was almost time for the Pterodactyl to surpass its previous peak. Noah also stopped minding the creature as he focused on absorbing the rewards gathered through the second layer. The many pills and potions were almost useless to him, but it was a waste to eat them only to obtain the energy that they contained. Yet, the same didn''t apply to the Steeled Boar''s corpse and the Uwan''s fruit. ''Is this really as poisonous as Don claims?'' Noah thought as he studied the spiked fruit in his hand. His instincts didn''t sense any danger coming from the fruit. They only felt the immense energy that it contained, and traces of hunger resurfaced in Noah''s mind as he continued to study it. ''I guess I can only try it,'' Noah concluded as he took a small bite from the fruit. An awful taste spread through his mouth as he gulped that moist material. Energy began to flow out of the piece and disperse through his body, but the black hole promptly intervened and isolated that phenomenon with the dark matter. Noah felt strange when that energy tried to reach his tissues. It didn''t seem any different from the usual primary energy that he absorbed every day, but his insides wanted to reject it before it could even land on their fabric. There was clearly something strange about the fruit, but Noah didn''t need to understand its features since his black hole would take care of the matter. Its cycles of purification would turn that strange primary energy into something that Noah could safely absorb. Noah ate the entire fruit in one bite after confirming that the black hole had successfully purified its energy. His body grew quickly as power came out of his fourth center of power and flowed inside his tissues. After the fruit, Noah ate the Boar, except for its skin. He could use that material for his fake cores and other creations, so he preferred to store it at the moment. His body improved steadily, but it didn''t reach the halfway mark of the middle tier. Even the rewards from the inheritance of a rank 9 cultivator weren''t enough to meet his requirements. Only nutrients far above his level could give him the power needed to experience substantial improvements. His body was only the first of his preparations. Noah didn''t know any traditional method to improve his dantian and mental energy more quickly. Still, he had accumulated a large stash of Soul Stones through his adventures in the Immortal Lands. The raw laws contained in that currency allowed him to cultivate smoothly and slowly restored the first ability of his ambition. His individuality couldn''t make him cross ranks again at its current condition, but forcing it to grow would improve his foundation. It would also deepen his reserves of energy, which was Noah''s main intention. Night hibernated while Noah trained. The Pterodactyl remained inside the separate space and fell asleep as a gravitational pull unfolded from its figure. The creature continued to absorb energy even after its breakthrough began, and Noah didn''t hesitate to fill its surroundings with the special darkness required. ''It''s time to enter,'' Noah concluded after he met the limits of his training. The biggest issue in that process was that he had never fought the golems, but he planned to solve it soon. Once he gained that information, Noah could modify the workshop according to his needs and understand which attacks it was better using. Noah interrupted his training at some point and moved to enter the cave under the cliff. An ominous aura began to leak out of the entrance once he stepped on it, and multiple appeared in the range of his consciousness. The insides of the cave were pale-azure and seemed to carry metallic properties. The walls, floor, and ceiling of that underground structure differed from the barren lands on the surface. They were so sturdy that Noah couldn''t even leave a mark on them when he used his Demonic Sword. Supreme Thief had done that on purpose. The underground structure''s layout was one of the trial''s difficulties, and that mighty existence didn''t want to leave any loophole. A tunnel stretched from the entrance and led into a large underground hall. The ceiling was less than seven meters tall, barely enough to contain the tall figures that filled the area. When Noah reached the end of the tunnel, he saw those humanoid golems turning toward him and sliding their heads on the ceiling as they began to converge on his position. Chapter 1402: 1402. Army Screeching noises resounded in the pale-azure underground hall as the golems moved toward Noah. He remained at the exit of the tunnel as icy-blue light came out of his eyes. The Divine Deduction technique was active. Noah wasn''t aiming to defeat the challenge already. He had come there only to study the golems so that he could prepare his abilities. The golems were a bit taller than the ceiling. They had to bend their back to move inside the hall, but their bodies were too clunky for that task. Their heads often hit the layer of metallic rocks and released screeching noises due to their movements. Those creatures didn''t have any peculiar features. They had long arms, large fists, and thick bodies. Their dark-blue skin was uneven, but it didn''t carry any crack nor flaw. They moved slowly due to their clunky structure, but the joints on their shoulders and elbows appeared a bit more flexible than the rest of their fabric. ''I need to be wary of their punches,'' Noah thought as he stepped off the entrance and shot toward the closest golem. The Demonic Sword came out of the separate space and landed on his palm as dark gas flowed out of his skin. The fiendish armor soon covered him, and other trails of dark matter expanded to deploy the dark world. Noah was going all-out since the beginning. He counted more than fifty golems at the peak of the middle tier in that hall, so he couldn''t underestimate that challenge. The dark world didn''t manage to restrain the golem, but it studied them and sent those pieces of information back to Noah. He could gain a general idea about their physical prowess and sturdiness before even clashing with his first opponent. ''Don didn''t mention this,'' Noah thought as he studied those reports. The golem''s dark-blue skin carried properties that made them resistant to the "Breath" and similar forms of energy. Spells and common martial arts would find it hard to hurt those creatures. That resistance didn''t apply to the dark matter. Noah''s higher energy worked perfectly fine against the golems, and that gave him hope to overcome that trial. Noah stopped before entering in the golem''s range and crouched as he pulled his black back. An intense sharpness spread through the dark world as the dark matter flowed inside the Demonic Sword and resonated with its intentions. The golem drew near, but Noah released his lunge as soon as the creature''s arms flickered. A trail of dense sharpness and dark matter came out of his sword and hit his opponent right in the middle of its chest. The dark world''s insides became chaotic as the golem ignored the attack and swung its arms toward Noah. He could see two giant boulders reaching his position at high speed, but he easily dodged them. Noah flew toward the golem''s shoulder, and his figure transformed into a black blade as the world in his eyes became blurry. He built his momentum before suddenly stopping and releasing a massive slash empowered by the dark world. A giant black line crashed on the puppet''s shoulder, but even that incredible attack didn''t manage to slow down its movements. The golem had swung its arms as soon as Noah stopped, and its massive limbs covered his vision as they flew in his direction. Noah had to dodge again, but he couldn''t perform another attack at that time. A second golem had reached his position and had thrown its fists on the trajectory of his escape route. That puppet had actually calculated that path and was aiming to intercept Noah mid-air. ''They aren''t as mindless as they look,'' Noah noted down in his mind as he kicked the air next to him to perform a sharp turn that made him dodge those attacks. However, his situation didn''t improve. Noah found two more punches flying in his direction right after dodging the previous attack. A third golem had appeared, and it was trying to cut Noah''s escape route. Noah kicked the air under him and rotated on himself to dodge the incoming attack. The Demonic Sword released clinking noises as it hit the ceiling, but it didn''t lose its power. By the time Noah was above the golem''s arms, the Demonic Sword had released a storm of black lines that rained on the creature and hid its entire body with the thickness of its blows. Noah''s kick also crashed on the giant''s arms and created a shockwave that spread through the entirety of the underground hall. Its surfaces didn''t tremble even after that impact, but that only proved how impenetrable and stable they were. The golem''s arms crashed on the ground after the impact, but Noah didn''t feel safe yet. Three more puppets had reached his position and were throwing their limbs at him. ''I want to kill at least one,'' Noah thought before kicking the ceiling to reappear on the ground. Noah shot again and returned toward the first golem. That creature had suffered his strongest attack, but it had continued to move even if it had a large hole on its chest. Cuts continued to appear inside the hole. Noah had used his boundless ambition to fuel his endless slashes, but they only managed to sever small pieces of the dark-blue creature. They continued to damage it, but that amount of damage wasn''t enough to slow it down. ''I''ll probably need three to four lunges to pierce it from side to side?'' Noah thought has he pulled his Demonic Sword back again. Among the attacks launched previously, the lunge had managed to damage the golem the most. Sword Saint''s technique focused on piercing abilities, so that outcome wasn''t a complete surprise for Noah. Right before he could launch another lunge, the second golem reached his position and threw its limbs toward him. Noah had to interrupt the offensive to dodge, but an intense, dangerous sensation filled his mind as soon as he stopped. Noah didn''t need to turn to understand what was happening, but he still did it to inspect the scene properly. One of the last golems had waited for him in that position while crouching and pulling back its arm. It seemed that it was charging its blow. The golem attacked before Noah could thoroughly study that form. Its fist condensed the air as it ran through the room and flung Noah back with the sole force radiated by its attack. Noah couldn''t even begin to imagine what would happen if the punch hit him directly. Still, he memorized everything he saw while he tried to escape from the dense shockwave that had engulfed him. The tough rocks of the walls and his back clashed. Noah didn''t manage to escape from that condensed air in the end. The blow had pushed him on the other side of the hall, behind many golems that promptly changed direction. Noah quickly recovered to dodge again. The golems near him were already launching their attacks, which forced him to deploy an evasive maneuver. Roars resounded through the underground hall at that point. Dragons formed inside the dark world and charged at the golems nearby. He had activated the workshop, but he wasn''t using any fake core in that offensive. Slashes also flew out of his figure and crashed on the incoming puppets. Noah''s attacks always managed to hurt them, but they couldn''t slow down their offense. The golems resembled an immortal army that would continue to march as long as it had an opponent. **** Author''s notes: I''m almost done with the last one. Should take less than 30 minutes. Chapter 1403: 1403. Math Noah had already launched many attacks, but he had yet to destroy one golem. His slashes, lunges, and techniques broke their skin and dug through their tough bodies, but they never managed to destabilize their whole structure. Only the first golem was showing signs of giving in. Cuts still dug through its injury. The opening in its chest had continued to enlarge as Noah fought all around the hall. A loud hiss eventually echoed through the underground hall. Snore formed inside the dark world and joined the army of dragons in their offensive against the golems. Dark rays shot out of its mouth and crashed on every golem that tried to find a flaw in Noah''s escape route. The violent dark matter was Noah''s most destructive attack, but it didn''t manage to pierce the golems from side to side since they always destroyed the Blood Companion before it could hurt them too much. The golems could immediately react to any danger, and they could coordinate to cut away Noah''s escape routes. Their attacks also tried to force Noah to go deeper inside the underground hall. That wasn''t a battle against a bunch of mindless peak middle tier creatures. The golems were a fearsome opponent that could take Noah''s life as soon as he let them gain the upper hand in that battle. ''At least one!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he kicked one massive arm to the side and slashed at a golem that was trying to attack him from behind. Noah had begun to feel some pressure as the battle continued. More and more golems were gathering around him. The number of attacks he had to deal with kept increasing, and he never managed to inflict a deadly blow to any of those creatures. The tunnel leading back to the outside world got farther and farther away as he kept dodging and attacking. Snore''s dark beams managed to buy him enough time to return to a decent position, but the Blood Companion lacked his agility and continued to crumble under those powerful attacks. His other abilities failed to affect the golems. Those puppets marched through his slashes, his lunges, his dragons, and his dark world without ever slowing down. It didn''t matter how much he hurt them. Everything was pointless if he couldn''t destroy them. Of course, Noah wasn''t fighting to win. He had already devised countless strategies, and he had obtained enough data to improve his workshop. He only needed to see one last thing before he could retreat and prepare. He had to understand how much damage the golems could take before crumbling. ''What are they doing?'' Noah suddenly thought when he sensed that something was off. The golems were too big to fight Noah at the same time. Only three to four of them could attack him without hindering each other''s offensive. The rest of the army waited behind them, ready to intercept him whenever he performed an evasive maneuver. However, Noah had suddenly noticed that part of the backlines had begun to move toward the exit. They were completely ignoring him to deploy a different tactic. Noah didn''t take much to understand what they were up to. He only had to imagine what he would do if he were in the golem''s position. ''They are trying to seal the exit!'' Noah concluded before kicking the air under him and transforming into a black sword as he shot toward the tunnel. Noah didn''t make it past the backlines with his movement techniques. There were too many golems on his path, so he often had to slow down to dodge them. The golems exploited that flaw in his escape by charging their simple martial arts and releasing punches that filled the entire hall with waves made of dense air. They slammed Noah to a wall before he could cross them. Snore quickly reformed and slammed its body on the golems that were trying to close on Noah. Its body made of dense dark matter managed to endure a few blows, and the violent energy shooting out of its mouth slowed down part of the backlines. Noah quickly recovered and resumed his retreat, but Snore eventually crumbled, so the golems could launch their martial arts and interrupt his escape again. The dense air slamming on his body kept him stuck on the pale-azure wall. Noah''s instincts went crazy when he heard the screeching noises drawing closer to his position. He could endure the shockwaves easily, but a direct hit would hurt. Noah knew that he had to leave before it was too late, but he felt unable to move properly with so many golems throwing their abilities at him. Even if the situation appeared desperate, Noah remained calm. He had been through worse in his life, and he didn''t approach the trial unprepared. Noah unfolded his consciousness as he tightened his grip on the Demonic Sword. The dark world seemed to stop as his concentration increased and his mind focused on the golems. Then, the dark world began to condense. The army of dragons vanished, and the dark matter in the area amassed in the form of minute shards above the puppets'' heads. Those creatures promptly tried to attack them, but an intense sharpness suddenly filled the room and made it fall into complete chaos. The shards transformed into massive blades that fell on the golems and cut through their dark-blue bodies. Those creatures remained stuck for a second, but they soon charged ahead and destroyed the black swords. Noah''s sharpness activated at that point. The giants now had a large crack that ran from their head to the bottom of their torso, and countless cuts opened inside them. Pieces of those dark-blue rocks rained from their bodies as Noah''s attack continued. He didn''t waste time gathering those materials and shot toward the exit at full speed. The dark matter that had flowed inside them after they continued their charge resonated with Noah''s sharpness and aided the many cuts that were continuing to appear. The golems finally showed signs of slowing down, but that phenomenon barely affected their battle prowess. Still, Noah used the instant gained through his technique to shoot toward the exit and cross the golems that were about to seal his path toward the outside world. Along his path, Noah noticed that one of the giants had fallen on the ground, with its body in pieces. That was the first puppet that he met in the trial. It was the creature that had suffered his lunge. Noah smiled at that sight, but he didn''t dare to slow down. He entered the tunnel and quickly flew back into the outside world to return to his cave. The scenes of the recent battles still filled his mind, but intense tiredness filled his mind and threatened to make him fall asleep. Noah''s body was fine, but his dantian and mental energy were almost empty. The last attack and the Divine Deduction technique''s continuous use had made him reach his limits far faster than usual. Still, he didn''t regret that. ''Destroying one of them was the hard part,'' Noah thought as he sat and reviewed the images of his recent battle. ''Finding a way to destroy the other ones without depleting my energy is simple math.'' Chapter 1404: 1404. Preparations Noah recovered and prepared for his second attempt in the trial after he returned to his cave. His black hole of power washed away the tiredness that afflicted his centers of power, and his mind planned strategies that would help him defeat that challenge. He had to overcome two major problems to win the trial. One involved his energy, and the other the power of his attacks. Noah''s battle prowess didn''t reflect his actual level, but the quantity of energy contained inside his centers of power did. He could defeat the peak middle tier golems, but long battles against those opponents would exhaust him. His attacks were also unsuitable for that type of battle. The golems were resistant to the "Breath" and mental energy, which ruled out most of his spells and martial arts from the list of abilities to use in the trial. The damage that he could inflict with them didn''t match the energy needed to cast them. At his current level, Noah couldn''t improve his centers of power drastically. Even the raw laws would lose their effect at some point, and abusing them would only hurt his individuality in the long run. Noah had to find the solution to those problems in his techniques. He had to rely only on stronger abilities to save energy and be more efficient during the battle. The last fight didn''t feature Noah at his peak. Night was hibernating, and he didn''t use any fake core with his workshop, so the ability didn''t express its true power. The dark matter didn''t perform any specific task either. Noah had used it to create the fiendish armor, but that protection was almost useless against the golems. It could only defend from the shockwaves. It couldn''t stop their massive punches. Noah could express far more of his power now that he knew what he had to defeat, and he didn''t waste time in completing his preparations. A new blueprint formed in his mind and the Steeled Boar''s skin transformed into multiple fake cores while he waited for Night to wake up. He even studied his martial arts. The golems were theoretically resistant to those techniques, but Noah backed his forms with his incredible physical strength. His slashes and lunges were far from useless in the trial. ''I have always planned to do this,'' Noah thought as his Divine Deduction technique helped him reviewing his martial arts. ''I can''t limit the higher energy to the passive empowerment of other abilities. I have to make it a core part, just like my physical strength, my "Breath", and my mental energy.'' The workshop and the dark world were the only techniques he couldn''t activate without dark matter. His martial arts and spells could still work without it, and that had to change. As much as Noah liked being versatile, he recognized that he couldn''t treat his dark matter as energy separate from his existence. The dark matter was part of his individuality, so all his techniques and spells had to feature it. Noah had done something similar in the past already when he had fused his martial arts and spells to create a personal school that only hybrids could perform. He only had to do it again but on a broader scale since that project would theoretically update his whole battle style. That project required a lot of time and many tests, but Supreme Thief''s inheritance was the perfect training area, especially since he had to wait for Night to wake up. The Crystal City and other eventual bounty hunters couldn''t reach him in that place. No one on the entire human side could find the inheritance since the Legion kept its location a secret and moved it whenever the cultivators became too close. The environment inside the second layer was also perfect for his level. That separate dimension had the same quality as the outer world. It was even better at times since it didn''t feature any unexpected danger. Noah was even alone now since most hybrids weren''t aware of that location. He could train in complete safety and without external hassles to handle. . . . Night was a rank 7 creature in the lower tier that Noah had improved. Its mind had also experienced the ascension twice, so it surpassed most magical beasts at his level when it came to his experience in the divine ranks. It was only normal for Night to need years to wake up. The length of its hibernation reflected its power and the might that it would wield after the breakthrough. Noah could rejoice twice when he saw that Night had continued to sleep for entire decades. That time allowed him to focus on his abilities and showed how the Pterodactyl''s potential surpassed any other magical beast in the Immortal Lands and made it closer to the hybrid realm. "I have to say, Master," Night voice suddenly echoed in Noah''s mind while he was training, "I didn''t expect to reach these peaks after you destroyed part of my mind. I''m glad I''ve sacrificed it now." A deafening roar filled the separate space when Night finished speaking, and the massive figure of a peculiar Pterodactyl shot out of Noah''s chest right after. Night flew out of the cave and rose high in the sky before bathing in the second layer''s pale-azure light. Trails of darkness followed it since it had yet to learn how to control its new power. The companion cut and transformed the matter on its path due to its newfound sharpness. ''Are you ready to jump in a battle?'' Noah asked through his mind as a cold smirk appeared on his face. "I only need to understand how strong I have become before," Night replied. "I can cut anything you want afterward." "Have fun," Noah replied before focusing again on his abilities. Night flew through the second layer in the following months. It avoided the areas featuring members of the Legion to focus on the few powerful specimens that inhabited that environment. Noah kept the Pterodactyl''s movements in check through his mind, but he didn''t apply any major restriction to its behavior. He only asked the creature not to start a war because of its need to test its power. After Night felt satisfied with its tests, it flew back to the cave and returned inside the separate dimension. It was ready to hear Noah''s battle plan and eager to face the golems. ''This is the best I can do for now,'' Noah thought as he focused on bringing his centers of power back to their peak. ''I will handle the other spells another time.'' Noah couldn''t succeed in his project in those years, not completely at least. He had to ignore some spells and finish the improvements on those that he planned to use in the trial. The others would have to wait for him to go to the next tower. Once his centers of power were ready, Noah left his cave and jumped off the cliff to reenter the trial. When he reached the end of the tunnel, he saw the army of golems turning toward him again. Those creatures had even returned to their original position after the previous battle. Noah behaved like the last time. The Demonic Sword flew in his hand, and he crouched as he pulled his blade back. Still, the golem fell backward when his attack hit its chest. Chapter 1405: 1405. Power The Demonic Sword began to shake while Noah held it. That phenomenon didn''t come from the accumulation of dark matter in its structure. It was a form that Noah had added to give an active task to the higher energy generated by the blade. Martial arts required forms to consume "Breath" and use it to produce stronger effects, and the same applied to the higher energy. Noah had already seen from Snore''s dark beam how the dark matter reached its highest destructive potential in its violent shape, so he created a move that imitated the effects of its innate ability. Noah had it easy in that task. He had invented the Snore''s dark beam in the end. Translating the movements of its organs into a form wasn''t hard. The problems had begun when the dark matter started to diminish the effects of his darkness. Still, Noah had used the years while waiting for Night to wake up to test and polish that new move. That martial art was already perfect in the trial. When Noah pushed his blade forward, his sharpness intensified, and a dark beam came out of his attack. The technique carried the same violent energy that Snore could create, but it released it in a more orderly form. That seemed to be contradictory. The violent dark matter was what made the dark beam so threatening. Still, Noah didn''t affect that feature during the execution of his technique. The dark beam appeared more orderly due to the sharpness that flew with it. Noah had found a way to condense it through his darkness and physical strength, so the attack carried the full power of Snore''s innate ability added to his iconic lunge. The attack hit the golem at the center of its chest and dug its dark-blue metallic skin to reach deeper parts of its body. During the impact, the puppet sensed an immense force pushing it back and destabilizing its balance. The beam was so dense that the golem bent backward before falling on its back. The creature waved its arms in a desperate attempt to straighten its position, but its clunky body didn''t allow it to stand up quickly. Cuts had also started to open inside the large hole that had appeared on its chest. Its fall had prevented Noah from inflicting more damage, but he had already used his individuality to increase the dangerousness of his attack. While the golem tried to deal with that annoying technique, Noah leaped toward it and held the Demonic Sword with both hands. His blade pointed at the ground, at the creature that was still stuck there due to its clunky shape. Noah''s blade began to tremble again while he performed that move. That form lacked any style or refined gesture, but it expressed the aggression carried by his individuality. It made Noah resemble a drooling beast that was jumping toward its injured prey. A massive arm appeared on its path during his descent. A second golem had arrived on the scene and had thrown an uppercut to catch him by surprise, but its attack barely managed to slow Noah down. When the trembling blade hit the giant fist, shards made of dark matter flew downward and cut away pieces of the second golem''s limbs. Some even turned into dust due to the might carried by the blow. Noah quickly pulled back his blade and rotated on himself to slash downward. His movements seemed to slow down since the world tried to restrain that intense release of energy, but his attack wasn''t something those weak laws could contain. A fast curved black line flew out of his figure and crashed on the damaged fist. The rest of the attack continued to descend toward the first golem and worsened its condition as it intensified the countless cuts that were opening inside its injury. A third and fourth golem reached Noah, and the second creature joined their offensive with its free hand. Three punches were flying toward him at the same time and threatened to smash his body into pieces. That offensive wasn''t something that Noah could stop even with his improved martial art. His centers of power were too weak for that feat. Yet, he had prepared something for that issue. His dark world suddenly expanded, and the workshop activated. In a fraction of an instant, countless thick tentacles wrapped themselves around the golems around him and restrained their movements. The tentacles also extended on their arms and stopped their attacks before they could reach Noah, giving him time to execute another form undisturbed. Noah kicked the air above him and shot past the damaged arm. The world in his vision became blurry for a second, but it soon stabilized when his weapon pierced the golem''s head, and dark matter exploded wildly in its insides. Chunks of dark-blue rocks shot in every direction as Noah turned to perform a slash while pulling his sword out of the creature''s head. A massive cut spread through its chest and fused with the large hole as the blade came out in the open and slashed at the damaged arm. Other golems arrived at that point, but more tentacles materialized inside the dark world and restrained their movements, giving Noah all the time that he wanted to focus his opponents. ''Snore,'' Noah thought before leaping off the lain golem to shoot toward the second one. Snore materialized among the dark world and opened its mouth to launch its dark beam to the first golem. The puppet was still struggling to stand up, but the creature''s innate ability kept it down and dug through its body. ''Night,'' Noah thought before moving his blade to the side and accumulating dark matter in its structure. A shadow came out of his chest and surpassed him to fuse with the golem''s shoulder. Before Noah could even reach that spot, the limb fell, and the Pterodactyl reappeared nearby. Noah had understood the weak points of the golems at first sight. The joints on their arms had to be softer to allow them to perform their attacks, and Night could exploit that information. The Pterodactyl was the only creature in Noah''s arsenal that could execute precise attacks without minding the opponent''s movements. It could reach its joints in an instant and sever them even faster. Noah reached the golem''s neck as the arm fell and stabbed the sharp side of his blade into its dark-blue metal. His feet then landed on its severed shoulders, and dark matter filled his black vessels as he focused his whole physical strength on cutting that head off. A flash of dark matter spread through the dark world as the energy contained inside the Demonic Sword exploded. A large chunk of the golem''s neck shattered as he continued to apply strength to his attack. More explosions resounded, and other golems arrived in his position, but there didn''t seem to be an end to those tentacles. The workshop''s new creation could keep those creatures restrained for a long time as long as they didn''t work together to sever them. However, Noah knew that destroying the tentacles was useless. The dark world would always refill the depleted higher energy and recreate those limbs. **** Author''s notes: I need a bit more today. Might take an hour or so for the next chapter. Chapter 1406: 1406. Initial success The new blueprint for the workshop represented a giant octopus that Noah had explicitly created for the trial. Its body didn''t exist in the world since he had invented a structure that could restrain the golems. Noah had learnt from his first attempt in the trial. An army of dragons in the middle tier couldn''t stop the golems, and he suspected that adding fake cores to their bodies would only slightly improve their efficiency. He needed something different for the challenge, something strong enough to face multiple golems at the same time, and that his workshop could create instantly. Through the Divine Deduction technique, Noah devised a blueprint that could feature multiple fake cores. The octopus contained most of his replicas of Great Builder''s oval items, with many of them occupying specific spots in its tentacles. That made the limbs far sturdier and gave them enough power to restrain the golems. Still, their destruction could cause the loss of the fake cores. The octopus wasn''t big enough to cover the entire underground hall either, so it could only protect Noah from the attacks happening around him. Noah completed his slash and severed the golem''s head. Violent dark matter flew out of his blade once it reappeared in the open, and black shards crashed on the puppets that had gathered around him. The headless golem didn''t stop moving, but Night flew inside its other shoulder and severed its arm with a clean attack. Nothing seemed able to block the Pterodactyl now that it had reached the middle tier. A prideful hiss echoed in the underground hall as Snore raised its massive head to spat a wave of that matter on the golems amassing around the battle. The puppet under the Blood Companion had died after suffering countless injuries, and the Snake wanted to announce its feat to the world. ''I can do this!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he continued to fight. If his math was correct, he had enough energy to clear the entire hall. Adding his dark matter to his martial arts had put more pressure on his body, but it had eased the weight felt by his dantian. Those techniques also required a small amount of darkness anyway, so his improvements made its consumption barely noticeable. The dark world kept enhancing his abilities and companions as the battle continued. Night and Snore could express far more power in that environment, and the same went for the giant octopus. Noah exploited every chance that he found to inflict damage. Those golems weren''t living beings, and they didn''t have any core. The underground hall itself seemed to fuel them and lead them toward him. They would stop moving once they suffered severe structural damage. The room would spend too much energy to make them function in that condition, so it left them on the ground. The golems could ignore even his deadliest techniques to launch a reckless assault. They didn''t care about their life. They only wanted to defeat their opponent. The octopus took care of most golems. It restrained their movements and allowed Noah, Snore, and Night to inflict severe injuries. The Pterodactyl and Noah could even resort to more precise attacks that left the golems either maimed or completely armless. As the battle continued, Noah began to feel some pressure. That trial was far more dangerous than his fight with the Steeled Boar. The golems could gain the upper hand and kill him if he slowed down or committed some mistake. His centers of power never stopped depleting their energy, and Noah could only keep them in check as he continued to fight. He had to follow a specific pace to make sure that he would last until the end of the battle, which only increased the pressure he felt. It was only due to his vast battle experience that he managed to remain calm and continue to execute his offensive in the most perfect and neat way. He didn''t perform any useless movement or attack. Every time he used his "Breath", the golems lost pieces of their body. Golems slowly started to die more often as the battle continued. Noah could rarely focus one of them for longer than two attacks, so he had spent most of the initial phases of the fight inflicting injuries to anything that came into his range. The real killing arrived after every golem in the hall had suffered some damage. Noah would engulf them with another series of attacks and worsen the injuries caused during the first phases of the trial. His sharpness never stopped rampaging through the battlefield either. All the cracks, severed limbs, and even minor dents were the home to countless cuts that opened and continued to damage the dark-blue metal. The more the battle went on, the more Noah neared the exhaustion. Still, the pace at which golems died also increased due to the injuries accumulated on their bodies. Noah fought like a calm madman, and the same went for his companions. Only Snore threw itself toward the golems when it didn''t have enough time to prepare its dark beam. Tentacles broke from time to time, and fake cores ended up crushed by the golems'' giant feet after they fell on the ground. The dark world would often fail it seize them in time since it had countless enemies walking freely through its dense dark matter. Noah stabbed his blade on golem''s shoulder, and a wave of violent but dense dark matter shot out of it together with his darkness and sharpness. Night promptly flew toward the other shoulder and severed the entire limb. That denied the golem''s attack and gave Noah time to cause a series of explosions with his dark matter. Once even the other arm fell, Noah shot toward the puppet''s chest and threw a violent kick while Snore and tentacles restrained its legs. The golem fell backward, and Noah held his blade with two hands before rising it above his head and thrusting it down when the creature touched the ground. A spiderweb of cracks expanded from the spot where the Demonic Sword had pierced the golem. Flares of dark matter came out of them whenever they failed to dig through the dark-blue metal. Noah stabbed his blade deeper and released more dark matter whenever that happened. The Demonic Sword eventually reached the ground after it dug through the entire puppet. Noah climbed through the cracks and prepared his weapon to resume his offensive, but he froze mid-air when he saw nothing more than boulders and debris. Nothing moved in the underground hall. Even his companions remained still in front of that silent victory. ''The others should be harder,'' Noah thought as he landed on a boulder and let go of the Demonic Sword. The blade gave voice to a growl before slipping inside his robe. The Demonic Sword was tired, but it didn''t want to rest inside the separate space. It also knew that Noah would cultivate soon, so it found it pointless to return inside the black hole. The underground hall grew darker after Noah defeated all the golems. "Breath" seeped out of its walls quickly and soon filled the entire area. A path even opened on the opposite side of the entrance. That was the last evidence that Noah needed to be sure of his initial success. Chapter 1407: 1407. Halls The victory in the first hall of the underground hall made Noah confident in his battle prowess. He had managed to defeat more than fifty peak middle tier opponents without taking any break. That feat put him among the best liquid stage cultivators in terms of battle prowess. The golems didn''t reflect the power of actual magical beasts at that level, and Noah had even invented specific techniques for that trial, but his strength was undeniable. The trial didn''t offer Noah much time to rest. The one-week rule was effective even after he cleared the first hall, so he had to focus on bringing his centers of power back to their peak during those days. Noah wanted to study the dark-blue metal, review his previous battle, and improve his abilities to make them even more perfect for the trial. Yet, the one-week restriction forced him to disregard everything to focus on his centers of power. Most cultivators would struggle to recover after such a battle, and the same went for some hybrids, even if their resilience surpassed what simple humans were capable of doing. Still, Noah had the black hole, so his condition returned to its peak even before his time ran out. His fourth center of power also sensed Noah''s need to recover quickly, so it redirected its energy to improve that process. Noah was ready for the next hall in six days. Noah didn''t waste time. He left for the next hall as soon as he recovered. A new path had appeared on the walls, and his consciousness sensed multiple presences when he entered it. The golems in the second hall activated when Noah stepped inside the new tunnel. Their number was almost the same as the previous phase. There were only two more of them there. Noah didn''t have to think nor plan anything. He knew what he had to do, and he had also accumulated experience in that type of battle. Golems moved in his direction as soon as he left the tunnel, and Noah didn''t hesitate to activate his abilities. Snore, Night, the Demonic Sword, and the octopus filled his dark world that expanded to cover most of the battlefield. The second battle went even better than the first one. Noah had polished some aspects of his battle style after the experience gained in the previous hall, and he had learnt more about the golems. He could exploit their structural weaknesses better and destroy more of them in a shorter time. He even resorted to maim a large group to lower their dangerousness and have an easier way through the battle. The second part of the trial went smoothly. The walls soon darkened, and "Breath" seeped out of their fabric to allow his recovery. Noah didn''t even wait for that energy to fill the hall and sat on the ground to rest. In a bit more than six days, Noah was ready to fight, and he shot toward the tunnel that had opened after his victory to face the third hall. An army of golems filled his view again, but their numbers didn''t worry him. It seemed that the trial wanted to test his mental resilience other than his overall battle prowess. Noah didn''t have the time to think about Supreme Thief''s intentions during the challenge, but he began to guess that the expert didn''t intend to make the "strength" tower only about physical power. The tower wanted to force any contestant to stop relying on their "Breath" and mental energy. It was a subtle difference that many ignored, but it marked the difference between Noah''s success and failure. If the Supreme Thief wanted to limit that tower to the physical strength, Noah wouldn''t be able to use his dark matter. The fact that almost every expert was unaware of the existence of the higher energy wouldn''t stop a rank 9 expert from preventing its usage. Instead, Noah had managed to exploit physical techniques that relied on his dark matter throughout the entire second layer. The dark vessels were part of his body, but that didn''t change the fact that they fed on his higher energy. The third hall went even better than the previous ones. Even if Noah didn''t have enough time to review his battle, his prowess against the golems naturally improved. His attack became more precise and began to consume less energy. His new techniques also grew in might as he kept using them against those enemies. The same went for his companions. Night had an innate insight that allowed it to find weak spots in its opponents, but Snore and the octopus had to learn from the battles to hone their skills. Still, the process went smoothly, and they soon brought their efficiency to its peak. An almost identical challenge followed the third hall, and that trend continued even for the fifth and sixth battles. Noah had spent weeks inside that trial already, but he didn''t appear able to find its end. No thoughts filled his mind. Noah barely had the time to recover, so he couldn''t waste any second in pointless reasonings. He could only accept that he would review everything once the trial was over. When Noah approached the seventh hall, he soon discovered that something was off. He had become so used to the golems'' presence that he could immediately understand that the next room featured different opponents. His worry mounted as he approached the exit of the tunnel, but his expression became determined when he saw that the seventh hall featured a single opponent. It was a bigger version of the golems, and its size reflected its superior power. ''Is it in the upper tier?'' Noah wondered as he studied the golem. The creature didn''t activate while he was inside the tunnel, so Noah had enough time to study the new challenge. The seventh hall was taller than the others to accommodate the bigger golem, but its other features were identical to the previous ones. The golem didn''t seem to be completely in the upper tier. It appeared to rest among the two levels of power, and its body carried features that belonged to both of them. Part of its rocky skin was identical to the other golems, but a few chunks carried crystal-like characteristics that hinted to a superior level. The same seemed to apply to its insides, and that gave Noah hope to win the challenge. Noah had already tested his power against a body in the upper tier. Jordan had barely bled when his fingers stabbed her palm, so he knew that his power wouldn''t allow him to fight opponents at that level. Yet, the big golem''s uneven body would allow Noah to focus the weaker parts and inflict enough damage anyway. The fight was everything but hopeless. There was even the change that it would be easier than the previous ones. When fighting against multiple enemies, Noah had to save his strength and limit his attacks'' power. However, a single opponent would allow him to go all-out and unleash the entirety of his energy on it. ''I''ve come this far,'' Noah thought as he stepped out of the tunnel. ''No point in going back now.'' When Noah touched the pale-azure ground, the golem activated, and screeching noises filled the hall as it moved toward him. The creature then stopped and half-crouched to pull its fist back. Chapter 1408: 1408. Over Noah didn''t dare to face the attack head-on. He had already endured the shockwaves released by the weaker golems, and he wasn''t sure that he could defend against the same technique performed by a creature that bordered the upper tier. The dark world expanded in an instant, and Noah shot on the side of the hall. The world became blurry in his vision as his body transformed into a flying sword that circled the golem to approach it from behind. The golem didn''t care about Noah''s tactic. It released its punch and unleashed a shockwave that created intense storms. Noah was almost behind the creature, but the storms ricocheted on the walls and filled the whole hall, hitting him in the process. Blood rose in Noah''s mouth as the storms interrupted his movement technique and flung him on the walls. The golem didn''t even hit him, but the power it could unleash was enough to dispel his abilities. Half of the dark world had vanished after the attack, and the golem began to turn toward him to prepare another punch. Noah''s determination intensified when he saw that scene, and he kicked the walls behind him to shoot toward his opponent. Noah had faced so many battles throughout his life that he instantly understood how to defeat that opponent. Its previous attack had shown him that he couldn''t escape from the storms in that closed environment. The only possible approach was to destroy the golem before it killed him. Snore, Night, and the octopus appeared among the dark world and followed Noah during his charge. The Demonic Sword also landed in his grasp as dark matter flowed inside his dark vessels, and fire came out of his mouth. Noah knew that his flames couldn''t burn much in that environment, but even the most minute speck of energy could make the difference between life and death in that situation. He had to rely on all his abilities if he wanted to succeed. A piercing beam made of dark matter shot out of the Demonic Sword when Noah stabbed it in one of the weaker spots on the golem''s shoulder. Night followed the attack by flying inside the injury, and Snore coiled itself around the other arm to restrain the puppet''s movements. The octopus helped the Blood Companion in its task, and Snore followed the exchange by biting on the golem''s head and releasing its innate ability. Two waves of violent dark matter, one chaotic and one dense, engulfed the golem. A large crack opened on its shoulder, and tiny shards fell from its head as the offensive continued. A loud clinking noise also echoed through the dark world as Night came out of the crack and released a roar. The Pterodactyl had hit one of the tough parts during its dive. Still, it had managed to enlarge the injury as much as possible. Its roar was a simple expression of its battle intent. Snore and the octopus only managed to stop the golem for an instant. The puppet soon began to pull its fist back, and its movements tore the creatures attempting to keep it still. Dozens of fake cores fell on the ground as the tentacles broke. Noah had managed to save many of them in the previous battles, so he didn''t even record that loss. Snore''s body also broke, but the dark world quickly restored the companions that didn''t hesitate to resume their tasks. Still, their efforts ended up being useless since the golem completed its technique and released another shockwave. Noah had attacked another soft spot during that time, but the storms that filled the hall flung him away again. A mouthful of blood and screeching noises came out of his figure when he slammed on the wall. Still, only a fraction of an instant went by before he shot toward the golem again. A curved black line flew out of his blade during his charge, and a violent shockwave expanded through the golem''s body when he stabbed a soft spot on its back. Night quickly entered one of the injuries, and countless dark-blue chunks fell from the puppet as the offensive continued. The golem launched another attack, and the cycle began again. Noah found himself on a wall. His body had already started to feel sore, but he didn''t hesitate to kick the rocks behind him to charge again. His moves carried no hesitation. His body moved on its own, without needing thoughts to create a specific tactic. His instincts already knew how he had to attack, and Noah relied on them to optimize his offensive. His companions seemed able to share his peculiar mindset. Noah, Night, and Snore didn''t communicate, but they instinctively coordinated to inflict as much damage as possible in every exchange. That was coordination obtained after millennia of battles. They even knew that type of opponent, so their teamwork carried no flaws. Little by little, the golem became slimmer. Large chunks of its body had crumbled under its opponents'' relentless and precise offensive. Its torso had become a mess of protruding boulders and cavities, and the same went for its arms and legs. The damage that it had suffered didn''t affect its power. The golem continued to launch threatening attacks that unleashed intense storms. Noah couldn''t escape from those storms, and injuries kept accumulating on his body. The golem had even broken some of his bones, but his incredible resilience allowed him to express the same power throughout the entire battle. At some point, Noah and Night dived toward the golem''s head in a joint offensive that aimed to deal a deadly blow to the puppet. Their figures became nothing more than vague shadows in the darkness of the dark world, and an explosion resounded through the hall when they landed on their target. Noah stabbed one of the soft parts on the golem''s head, and Night deepened the injury, allowing the Demonic Sword to dig deeper into that dark-blue material. Dark matter flowed violently out of the blade, and Noah''s sharpness mixed with it as it ran through the many cracks that filled the puppet''s body. Snore joined the offensive by biting on the largest cracks and releasing its dark matter. Part of the violent higher energy flowing through the fissures ended up flaring toward Noah, but he endured the damage as he continued to push his blade into the golem. The rivers of dark matter that flowed inside the golem eventually managed to destabilize its structure. The puppet began to crumble right before launching another attack, and boulders exploded outward during its destruction. Noah found himself with his back on the wall again. A boulder had crushed his left leg, and a few shards had pierced his chest. Blood also flowed out of his mouth, but his smile shone brightly at the sight of the destroyed opponent. Snore quickly reformed under him and acted as a mouth that carried him toward the largest pile of boulders. A book had come out from the golem''s body and now rested on top of the debris. The battle didn''t damage it. Its thick black cover didn''t have the slightest trace of dust. ''Embodiment of power,'' Noah read from the symbols on the cover, but a sudden metallic noise made him turn toward the end of the hall. One of the walls opened to create a path that radiated a pale-yellow light. It seemed that the trial wasn''t over. Chapter 1409: 1409. Sort of ''Again?'' Noah shouted in his mind. He had already seen a similar scene. The same had happened in Great Builder''s inheritance when he completed the most difficult challenge in the first layer. The arrival of the "Breath" in the hall confirmed his victory. The book in his hands hinted that the trial was over. Noah had already obtained his reward, but that underground structure had yet to end. ''I can''t recover quickly enough this time,'' Noah thought as he studied his condition. He had broken bones, a crushed leg, damaged internal organs, and a few superficial injuries. Even his mighty black hole couldn''t make him battle-ready in a week. Noah would have to focus on his recovery for months to return to his peak. Still, his curiosity had the better of him. Even in his injured condition, Noah could force himself to run if the situation required it. Yet, he had the vague feeling that he wouldn''t get another chance to explore that new path if he turned back now. Noah glanced at the book before storing it inside his separate space. Snore then shrunk as it carried him toward the new tunnel. The Demonic Sword and Night also flew next to him to ensure that nothing could reach him while he was in that poor condition. The pale-yellow light made Noah recall the insides of the pyramid. That was the main reason behind his vague confidence that the underground structure wouldn''t force him to fight again. The tunnel was also different. The pale-azure rocks transformed into polished bricks as Noah moved through the passage. That was the sign of a connection with Great Builder''s creation, but he didn''t jump to conclusions just yet. He was dealing with the inheritance of a rank 9 existence. His mind couldn''t hope to comprehend Supreme Thief''s mindset. A small room unfolded in his vision once he reached the end of the tunnel. Noah was almost expecting to see a bed there, but he found a solitary ethereal figure instead. The figure depicted a young-looking man with long hair and a patch covering his left eye. A tight robe covered most of his body, and a series of scrolls rested on his back, tied to his torso with a few thin cords. The man was playing with a cube that transformed whenever he pressed on specific spots. It shattered into a series of smaller shapes only to reform into the figure''s hands, who didn''t hesitate to sigh at that sight. "You can come out," The man said without moving his eye away from the cube. "You did a good job out there, but I''m not sure if the real owner of this inheritance would be happy to know that you cheated." Noah''s eyes widened when he heard those words, and the man gave voice to a laugh when he sensed that reaction. He then placed the cube to the ground and turned to inspect Noah, nodding whenever he glanced at his companion. "I''m kidding," The man continued. "That guy is dead. I don''t even remember his name. I stole this piece of his inheritance only to piss off the organization that controlled it. It should still be good stuff. I think that he focused on using his "Breath" to boost his body or whatever." Noah didn''t know how to answer to that interaction, but he didn''t fail to memorize the hints carried by his words. The man had clearly said that he had stolen that inheritance and Noah didn''t forget where he was. "Stop remaining speechless," The man said before exploding into another laugh. "You are the first to reach the end of a layer. Be proud of your talent! No one should even be humble after overcoming my trials." "I didn''t cheat," Noah said to avoid any misunderstanding. "I cleared the trial fairly." "Oh, but you did cheat," The man said as his smile began to give off a canny vibe. "I''m pretty sure that the owner wanted to find an heir with a strong body, not a hybrid who can use dense energy. Quite spectacular to watch, but not really in line with the trial." "He had to create better restrictions then," Noah replied, unwilling to back off from that topic. "I agree," The man said as he sat on the ground and supported his back with his arms. "It has been quite easy to steal. Your dense energy is far more interesting. I wish I could borrow it for a while." An intense aura came out of the man at that point. He didn''t change position nor expression, but something had triggered his individuality. The aura enveloped the tunnel and covered the entire underground structure, creating a pulling force that dragged all the dark-blue pieces of the golems toward the last room. Noah''s black hole didn''t escape that process. He felt his dark matter seeping out of his chest against his will and flying toward the figure. "Dammit!" The man said once he noticed what was happening. "Sorry about this. It''s hard to control myself even in this form. I guess you can''t avoid these drawbacks once you reach the peak of the cultivation journey." The pulling force vanished as the figure waved his hand. Noah quickly reabsorbed his dark matter and began to consider running away before something like that happened again. Yet, he couldn''t retreat now that he had understood who had appeared in front of him. "Are you Supreme Thief?" Noah asked once his curiosity reached its peak. "The one and only," The man said, "Destroyer of countless organizations and public enemy of the human side. No treasure is safe with me around. I guess that''s why they ganged up to kill me." Noah couldn''t even begin to describe the shock that he felt, but some greed began to leak out of his figure. He had entered a secret part of the inheritance after clearing the trial, so a part of him expected to receive more rewards. "Look at that," Supreme Thief said when he sensed Noah''s greed. "A boundless desire also curses you. You might want to learn to keep it in check. Not many can survive with such a flashy feeling." "How did you die?" Noah ignored his words to ask. "How many rank 9 existences live in the Immortal Lands?" Even if his greed made him think about potential rewards, his mind went after knowledge he couldn''t obtain otherwise. Only a rank 9 existence could have the answers to those questions. Noah guessed that even experts in the eighth rank would find it hard to know that. "I didn''t exactly die," Supreme Thief said. "Death is something that only living beings can experience. Those who reach the ninth rank are much more than that. Killing one of us is akin to destroying an entire world." "Then, why are you in this form?" Noah asked after memorizing his last line. "Well," Supreme Thief replied as he wore a shameless expression, "I sort of died. Sort of. Nothing serious though. I have a friend who is working on bringing us back." Everything connected inside Noah''s mind at that point. The similarities with Great Builder''s inheritance and the secret room inside the pyramid were part of the same insane project. Supreme Thief and Great Builder wanted to cheat death! Chapter 1410: 1410. Followers That piece of information uncovered a plan that left Noah speechless. It involved two rank nine existences that wanted to come back from the dead! Noah had no words to express his astonishment. It was clear that he knew nothing about the Immortal Lands after his conversation with Supreme Thief. There was simply too much going on under the unaware gazes of the existences in the seventh rank. "Who has the power to kill you?" Noah asked. "Is the ninth rank the peak of the cultivation journey? Can Great Builder really cheat death?" Noah stormed Supreme Thief with questions, and the latter revealed a surprised expression when he heard Great Builder''s name. It seemed that he didn''t expect Noah to make that connection. "Life can offer such wonderful twists," Supreme Thief said after sighing. "You must be quite unique. I didn''t expect to meet someone like you from towers built on stolen inheritances. Maybe you do deserve more than a simple speck of my soul." Noah''s eyes lit up at those words, but Supreme Thief didn''t give him the time to ponder about them. He stood up and played with his hair before focusing again on Noah. "This whole place is only an accumulation of my gains," Supreme Thief said. "The bottom of the towers hides paths that lead to my real inheritance. My corpse is also there. Use this information as you see fit." Chaos fell on Noah''s mental sea. That description matched what he had seen inside the pyramid. Supreme Thief and Great Builder had created similar structures to prepare for their resurrection. "Heaven and Earth have followers," Supreme Thief continued. "I have always seen them as slaves, but their power can match mine. You will eventually clash with them if you continue on this path. I couldn''t defeat them, and you will probably end in the same way." Supreme Thief wasn''t praising Noah with those lines. He was only describing the situation of the Immortal Lands for existences that carried laws alien to Heaven and Earth''s system. "Will you continue on your path even after learning this?" Supreme Thief asked, and his expression became dead serious at that point. "You ask this as if I had a choice," Noah replied as a faint smile appeared on his face. "I either succeed or die trying. My ambition doesn''t allow me to walk any other path." Supreme Thief stared at Noah for an instant before exploding into a loud laugh. He had seemed surprised about his reaction, but he didn''t appear displeased about it. "Perfect!" Supreme Thief replied as his hand went on his eyepatch. "Then come, gaze into my world and learn the true meaning of stealing." Noah bent toward Supreme Thief, and the expert lifted his eyepatch. Noah''s focus went on his left eye, but he couldn''t see anything since a blinding blue light filled his vision and made him cut any connection with the outside world. Countless images flowed inside Noah''s head. They didn''t depict anything specific. They were nothing more than emotions capable of affecting all his senses at the same time. A profound meaning seeped inside his mental sea and dispersed among his mental energy. Noah felt that he had understood something immense, but he couldn''t describe what it was with his words. His mind also felt unable to recall those emotions. They seemed too heavy for his current level. "Stealing is only a trick, a drawback of my individuality," Supreme Thief explained once Noah regained his focus. "You will eventually understand this as long as you don''t let go of your greed. For now, I can only wish you a fun journey." "I have so many questions," Noah said, but Supreme Thief''s smile widened as he shook his head. "I won''t give you more answers," Supreme Thief said. "Our time together is over. Ghosts can''t bother the living for too long." Noah felt a pushing force driving him away from the hall. His feet slid on the polished floor of the tunnel, and bricks appeared on its exit as Supreme Thief began to seal that passage. "Heaven and Earth," Supreme Thief''s words echoed through the tunnel as Noah slid away. "There is so much to steal, so much to take. You can''t suppress us all for too long. Even your infinite and immense power won''t be enough to contain us one day." Noah shouted questions, but Supreme Thief didn''t even look at him. That interaction was over, and Noah didn''t have the power to delay its end. It was time for him to go. As Supreme Thief''s monologue echoed through the walls, the tunnel closed and cut off his voice. Noah couldn''t hear him anymore and flew, driven by that pushing force inside the hall where he had fought the giant golem. ''What the hell just happened?'' Noah shouted in his mind once he returned to the previous hall. His conversation with Supreme Thief felt like a dream whenever he recalled it. The things that he had revealed hinted at a battle that involved followers of Heaven and Earth and independent existences. ''They will surely go after me at some point,'' Noah thought as he reviewed what he had learnt. He did not doubt that matter. Noah had confirmed his status as an enemy of Heaven and Earth multiple times already. They would surely send someone to kill him as long he became stronger. ''I can only focus on my personal power since I can''t avoid this outcome,'' Noah concluded in his mind, and the book seized after defeating the big golem appeared in his hands. The words "embodiment of power" appeared in his mind again when he inspected its thick black cover. The book didn''t seem old, but it lacked the mysterious vibe that most resources previously handled by powerful cultivators had. Noah opened the book to inspect its contents and was pleasantly surprised to find that it described a technique that he could use. The "embodiment of power" was a process that used "Breath" as fuel for physical strength, and it was something that only the owner of that inheritance could use properly. The only problem with the book was that its contents were incomplete. It didn''t have any missing pages. The owner of the inheritance didn''t complete the technique before writing it down. That wasn''t a surprise since the owner had been nothing more than a rank 7 cultivator in the solid stage when he died. He lacked the expertise to broaden his technique and make it more accessible to other cultivators. Still, Noah didn''t mind that incompleteness. He actually preferred it. Most inheritances would force him to modify his rewards anyway, and he would have it easier if they weren''t complete to begin with. ''I might be able to use it with the right modifications,'' Noah thought as he read through the contents of the book. The technique described a series of specific positions that he had to perform while he filled his body with "Breath". His body would slowly learn to feed on that energy after a while and obtain surges of power once it fueled its functions. That process was similar to Noah''s black vessels but also vastly different. It hinted at an idea that had the potential to become the best body-empowering technique in the world. Chapter 1411: 1411. Invasion Noah didn''t immediately focus on his reward. His body was a mess and needed attention, and the underground structure had many valuable materials that he could seize. With all the golems dead, their dark-blue rocky remains didn''t belong to the inheritance anymore. Noah could take them as part of the trial''s rewards, and he wouldn''t give up on that resource, especially since some boulders were materials in the upper tier. His overall gains there surpassed what he had managed to seize in the previous trials. The other sparse resources gained in the second layer couldn''t match that sheer number of materials. Noah could only be happy about the outcome of the trial, but those gains didn''t manage to improve his mood. He had just learnt about a massive conspiracy and incredible plans. Those few rewards couldn''t satisfy his desire to join the field where only rank 9 existences could walk. ''Recovering comes first,'' Noah thought as Snore brought him through the halls had helped to gather all the dark-blue debris left in the underground structure. ''I still have eight towers to explore. One of them has to contain something that can bring my battle prowess to a superior league.'' What he had gained in that trial and the entirety of the second layer was only a minute part of what Supreme Thief''s inheritance could offer. The "strength" tower had more floors available, and the same went for the other buildings. Noah was still far away from being over with the structure. Since the second layer couldn''t offer him anything else, Noah decided to return to the outside world to recover. He also had to hunt to refill his stash of magical beasts'' corpses, and he wanted to spend some time in seclusion to absorb the experience gained in the previous battles fully. A surprise was waiting for him in the outside world. When Noah left the inheritance and reappeared above the "strength" tower, he saw countless platoons of hybrids fixing a series of long metal bars at the bottom of the fake mountain. The air in the area was tense, and neither of those hybrids seemed interested in Supreme Thief''s inheritance anymore. The bottom of the region under the structure had become their priority. Noah could vaguely understand what was happening, but he couldn''t comprehend the reasons behind that hurry. The platoons were preparing themselves to move the region, but Noah didn''t sense any threat with his mind. Even his superior awareness couldn''t feel the slightest trace of danger. "You came out in the end," Divine Demon''s familiar voice flew in the form of mental waves and reached Noah''s mind. "Join me. I will update you on the current situation." Noah flew toward the source of his aura and found Divine Demon sitting together with Ian and Jordan. Even Don had joined that group, and his eyes studied Noah''s injuries as if trying to understand whether he had defeated that impossible trial. "What is happening?" Noah asked. "Why this hurry?" Noah didn''t fail to notice that the hybrids'' expression turned grim at his question. Still, they seemed more annoyed than concerned. "The magical beasts have resumed their invasion," Divine Demon revealed before the others had a chance to say anything. "A large part of the human side is migrating, so they have to move the inheritance toward more windy areas." Divine Demon''s words confirmed Noah''s guess, but the contents of what he revealed surpassed what Noah''s expected. He had thought that the human side was up to something, but he didn''t expect that its movements came from the magical beasts'' side. "How is the invasion going?" Noah asked. The two sides'' border was the home for many inheritances, and Noah didn''t forget about them only because he had found another one. In theory, Supreme Thief''s creation could offer much more than the Land of the Fallen, but the rewards contained there were easier to seize. They also carried elemental aptitudes that the trials in Supreme Thief''s inheritance lacked. The latter contained good techniques and valuable resources, but it wasn''t as specific as the others. Noah had managed to meet Supreme Thief by chance, and he had already received his reward. Reaching the towers'' bottom was impossible at his current level, so that inheritance had already stopped being his priority. "The families on the border are holding strong, but they always do that at the beginning," Ian replied. "They can''t stop the endless waves of beasts forever. They will eventually give up on those lands." "Silkpost city will fall," Jordan continued. "We will move Yellnbel deeper into the windy area for now, but we will fight if they try to send us deeper in the lands filled by chaotic laws." It didn''t matter what Noah did. The war was inevitable, and it had already begun. It was only a matter of time before scouts flew above those lands and spotted the presence of living beings in the region. "You won''t be able to use the inheritance while we move it," Ian explained. "It becomes heavier according to the number of existences in its insides, so I must ask you to leave. Unless you want to help, of course." Ian and offered Noah a formal invitation and was almost tempted enough to accept. He didn''t care if the Land of the Fallen ended up in the magical beasts'' grasps, so he desired to remain with the hybrids for the time being. Yet, a mental message suddenly reached his inscribed notebook. Fergie was giving him his version of the events inside Silkpost city, and he also wanted to inform him about a special event that was about to happen in those areas. Since the humans were about to abandon those inheritances, the powerful organizations had created a series of elite teams to clear anything that they could. It didn''t matter if those experts needed the rewards. The various families had another plan for them. Fergie explained that the powerful organizations wanted to create a massive auction featuring all the resources obtained in that period. They were also willing to sell some of their resources to gain some extra money. The event was quite significant. It was rare for many organizations to lift the restrictions placed on those areas and allow a proper auction. They would also hold large trades featuring many valuable resources, so Noah felt the need to attend. Noah now had many resources at hand, especially when it came to his stash of Soul Stones. He could purchase almost anything for his level. He could even aim to obtain some rare item from the auctions due to his wealth. "How will I find you if I were to leave now?" Noah asked, hinting at his intentions. Divine Demon exploded into a loud laugh, and Jordan revealed an interested expression. Instead, Ian remained stern and replied with plain words. "You won''t find us," Ian said. "Come into the Outer Lands, and the Legion will find you. This is still our home. We aren''t giving it to anyone. Migrating the valuable structures is only an insurance." "What about you?" Noah asked Divine Demon, but the latter shook his head. "I made too many enemies among the human side," Divine Demon explained. "I have no reason to leave Supreme Thief''s inheritance either. I will stay with the Legion." "I will see you all in the future then," Noah said before limping away as he searched for a place where to rest. Still, two familiar presences immediately appeared behind him and revealed canny smiles when he turned to look at them. Jordan and Don had followed him. **** Author''s notes: I''m almost done with the third chapter. Shouldn''t take more than half an hour. Chapter 1412: 1412. Group "I usually travel alone," Noah said as he sat on Snore''s head. "I like being in a group," Jordan replied, pretending that she didn''t understand the meaning behind his words. "I have been in the Outer Lands for too long," Don added. "My cultivation will stagnate if I keep on training in seclusion." The two hybrids had continued to follow Noah even after he had left the region with Supreme Thief''s inheritance. He was searching for a place where to recover properly, but the duo had slowed down his task. "I don''t work well in a group," Noah said. "You are a celebrity among the hybrids at our level," Don replied. "I''m quite curious about your power." "I''m in the solid stage," Jordan said without adding anything else. Her statement was enough to decline Noah''s almost polite words. "The Crystal City has put a bounty on me," Noah said. "It will be dangerous to travel with me." "I also want a bounty," Don replied. "The Legion will understand my value if I bring back the heads of a few fanatics." "I''m in the solid stage," Jordan added, and Noah gave up on trying to use that approach to convince them. "I will surely cause a mess," Noah said in a last desperate attempt to convince the duo to leave him alone. "It''s almost certain that something will happen. Nothing ever goes smoothly whenever I try to do things properly. The whole Legion might get involved if you are with me." "It''s fine. Hybrids don''t fear wars," Don replied. "I''m in the solid stage," Jordan said again, and Noah felt the urge to attack both of them after that pointless conversation. "Does Theodora have anything to do with this?" Noah asked, and the duo revealed shameless smiles at his question. "The members of the Legion already like you," Don replied. "Those who have watched your battle against the Steeled Boar have taken you as their role model. I wonder what they would say if they knew that you have also overcome the impossible trial." "We won''t intervene unless the situation requires it," Jordan added. "Besides, it''s always quite messy during an invasion. Being in a group can only help." Noah could only give up at that point. Don wasn''t hard to shake off, but he didn''t have the power to go against Jordan. As she had often mentioned, she was a hybrid in the solid stage. "Fine, you can come," Noah said before heaving a helpless sigh, "But I won''t change my plans because of you. If you want to follow me, you will have to abide by my schedule." The duo nodded as they suppressed a laugh. They found Noah''s helplessness quite funny, especially when he had no power over them. They could do as they wished, and Noah couldn''t stop them. The journey proceeded silently for a while. Don and Jordan understood Noah''s need to rest, so they didn''t disturb him as he searched for a suitable spot before secluding himself. His condition was quite poor, but it began to improve as soon as he focused on recovering. The Dark Womb spell worked together with the black hole and quickened his recovery. In a bit more than a few months, Noah had almost returned to his peak, so he could resume his travel with his fourth center of power took care of polishing his status. Noah had reviewed his battles during the seclusion, and his focus had mostly gone on his improved martial arts. The power that he had managed to express after fusing his dark matter with his forms was spectacular, but he could still improve a lot. That was only a first application of his higher energy to his slashes. It was the beginning of the improved version of his personal fighting school. Noah wasn''t limiting himself to his hybrid status anymore. He was finally making use of his four centers of power at the same time. The following steps would see him adding the dark matter to every technique and spell in his possession. That would set the end of his project, and the start of another focused on creating new arts without having to go through the same fusion again. Noah used part of his time to study his reward from the trial. Don showed some interest in that book, but Noah didn''t mind it since he already guessed his success against the golems. The "embodiment of power" was a strange technique that required him to create channels that his darkness could use to fuel his tissues. The same was possible with the mental energy. The idea behind that skill was to transform one''s body into a weapon that could face spells head-on. Noah had already reached a similar level due to his hybrid status and his black hole. Still, his body would surpass anything in existence if he managed to use that technique. The Divine Deduction technique illuminated his mental sea and helped Noah understanding the method. He couldn''t use it in its current state. He had to break it down and reassemble it in a shape that could affect even his incredible body. Noah didn''t limit himself to a passive study of the book and his martial arts. He also created fake cores to refill his stash depleted against the golems. He even built instabilities now that he had an abundance of materials. The dark-blue boulders in the upper tier remained inside his separate space. Noah didn''t want to show that he owned such valuable materials. Still, he couldn''t waste time performing countless tests with his other projects occupying most of his thoughts. Noah wasn''t even sure that he could handle materials in the upper tier at his level, but he wasn''t going to test that any time soon. His martial arts and the auctions had the priority. As his body returned to his peak, Noah resumed to hunt, and he soon had to admit that the duo didn''t bother him in the slightest. Their cooperation even felt natural. Don, Jordan, and Noah shared the same needs. They had to eat to improve their bodies and cultivate to improve their dantians. They also had personal training techniques meant to enlarge their minds. Since their needs were so similar, they managed to divine every part of their journey perfectly. Only Jordan had to adapt to her companions'' needs from time to time since her superior level gave her different timings. The trio didn''t use a conventional path. The human domain was a mess after the magical beasts invaded, and they were hybrids. It was better to move through the Outer Lands and turn toward Silkpost city once they reached its area. Noah had only read that path in maps that gave a vague description of the Immortal Lands, but Jordan and Don were experts in that field. The Legion lived in the Outer Lands, so most of its members had committed those regions to memory. The air grew tenser as the group neared the border between the two domains. Faint shockwaves also ran through the sky, and vague roars echoed from region to region. The trio''s superior awareness couldn''t miss those signals. Powerful existences were fighting in the distance, and the effects of their battles spread for entire regions before dispersing. The fight on the border seemed even more violent than expected. Chapter 1413: 1413. Secret area "I didn''t expect this," Fergie said when he saw the two hybrids behind Noah. The trio had met with Fergie to gain a better understanding of the situation in Silkpost city. Noah even had to refill the oval-shaped core inside his spy to keep the Shadow Swords active. Fergie didn''t complain while Noah poured energy inside him. He had accepted his status as a spy, and his cultivation level had also grown in that period. He was still in the gaseous stage, but he was about to approach the breakthrough. Seeing Noah''s ambition had allowed his power to grow far quicker than usual. "Can we enter the auctions without alerting the Crystal City of our arrival?" Noah asked, ignoring the surprised expression of his spy. "That''s impossible," Fergie said as he shook his head. "Still, nothing major should happen as long as you play by the rules. In theory, these events are illegal. The rules of Silkpost city are turning a blind eye because of the invasion, but they will intervene if you cause some trouble." Noah glanced at the duo behind him when he heard those words. A helpless sigh escaped his mouth as he considered how poorly everything could go. Still, he knew how pointless it was to ask them to leave. "Many famous figures will appear in the auctions," Fergie continued. "I suggest you keep a low profile and focus on your bids. It might be worth investing in isolated rooms if you want to avoid any trouble." Noah let Fergie explain everything he knew about the auctions. The event would occur in a secret area under Silkpost city, and only the major organizations could grant access to experts without any affiliation. Obtaining that authorization wasn''t hard. Paying a hefty price to one of the various organizations was enough to enter the secret area, but that alone wouldn''t grant access to the best auctions. The organizations wanted to keep the best resources for themselves. The best way to do it was to limit the access to the auctions that featured valuable materials and techniques. Experts without any affiliation could still enter those auctions, but they couldn''t pay their authorization with simple Soul Stones. They had to offer something equally valuable, and Noah wasn''t willing to separate himself from resources when he intended to purchase them. ''I need to use my relationship with the Balrow family,'' Noah concluded in his mind after he learnt everything Fergie knew. "I won''t join the auctions," Fergie said when it was time to separate. "The secret organization wants me to keep track of the invasion, so you will be on your own there." "It''s fine," Noah replied. "I only want to buy items. Nothing bad should happen." Both Noah and Fergie didn''t believe in those words. Events of that caliber often involved many political interactions that the duo ignored. Non-affiliated experts would usually suffer from the suppression of large organizations since they didn''t have enough wealth or power to purchase and defend their gains. Noah was an exception due to his success in the various inheritances explored in the past years. His wealth amounted to ninety thousand Soul Stones, which was an outrageous number for a single expert. His robe in the middle tier had cost two thousand Soul Stones. That had been a lucky price due to Thea Monneay''s mistake, but it was enough to describe how much resources at his level could cost. The items in the auctions would generally be more expensive, but Noah had enough Soul Stones to overpay anything that he wanted. He could also trade some of the dark-blue metal if the situation required it. His wealth made him sure that he could win some of the auctions. That would inevitably lead to problems if one of the organizations involved in the event wanted his same items. ''I can only deal with the problems when they appear,'' Noah thought as he put those worries in the back of his mind. ''No point hesitating now that I am here.'' Fergie left, and the trio traveled toward the closest wild region to wait for the beginning of the auctions. The official event would start in a few years since some of the most famous experts had yet to arrive. The invasion had been too sudden, so some organizations had to reorganize before they could send bidding teams. Those years went by quickly for Noah, Don, and Jordan. They limited themselves to cultivate and hunt in separate areas as they had done during their travel. Their hybrid status gave them an innate understanding of how much space their companions needed, and they had even gained experience in that field in the last period. When the time for the auctions arrived, the trio regrouped and moved toward Silkpost city while wearing clothes that hid their appearance. Jordan and Don would be fine even without them, but Noah didn''t want to face any risk during the event. Crowds of experts filled the streets of Silkpost city. A heavy aura coming from the border with the magical beasts covered every building, but those cultivators didn''t seem to care about it. The population of the city had also gone through a complete transformation during the last years. Silkpost city was usually the home of warriors that wanted to test their abilities in the Land of the Fallen, but they had become the minority after the invasion. The crowds mostly had experts wearing expensive and luxurious clothes who spent most of their time having peaceful conversations with members of other organizations. No one visited the shops either. Only the inscription halls and the restaurants continued to have their normal stream of clients. Noah and the others ignored everything around them and moved directly to a building situated near the city center. A green banner hanging from one of the windows of the structure confirmed the identity of its owners, and the group didn''t hesitate to approach it. A line of experts had formed in front of the structure belonging to the Balrow family. Guards with various strengths protected its entrance and surveyed the area to ensure that no one could cause any trouble. Noah and the others waited for their turn, and the guard in the liquid stage revealed a broad smile when she saw the green card held by Noah''s hand. Yet, her expression froze when she heard his request. "I want complete access to the auctions," Noah said as he waved the green card in front of the guard''s eyes. "You should call your superiors to confirm my identity. I''m sure we can find an agreement when it comes to the price to pay for the authorization." The guard didn''t know what to say in front of such confidence. Non-affiliated experts would usually try to use a humble approach to gain access to those events, but Noah saw his entrance as a certainty. "I will contact my superior," The guard said. "She will know what to do." "There is no need for that," A familiar voice resounded from inside the structure, and a bald cultivator in the solid stage appeared in the open to greet Noah. "Saul," Noah said as he performed a polite bow. "Let them pass," Saul Balrow said as he gestured to Noah to raise. "We have a lot to talk about. I''m quite sure Defying Demon also wants to know about the pyramid." Chapter 1414: 1414. Trade "How did you know about Great Builder''s inheritance?" Saul asked as he led the group inside the structure. "I didn''t," Noah replied. "I only happened to unlock the secret area when I cleared the last room. Did you take a look at it?" "Others from the family have," Saul admitted as he kept his gaze forward. "The Balrow family has immediately closed the pyramid and cleared two more layers, but the exploration is on hold for now." "Did they lead to the same room?" Noah asked. "Yes," Saul replied. "We obtained two more pieces of Great Builder''s inheritance, but the higher-ups have yet to decide whether they want to keep clearing the pyramid." "Why is that?" Noah asked. Noah couldn''t understand why such a large organization would hold back in front of rewards that it knew how to obtain. After all, they consisted in the inheritance of a rank 9 existence. Not many would hesitate in front of the chance to seize it. Saul fell silent as he continued to lead the group through the structure. They went through multiple rooms and unlocked a secret passage by activating a device hidden under a tile. The floor moved at that point, and a narrow staircase unfolded in their vision. It was only when the group had descended a few steps that Saul finally answered Noah''s question. "You know what Great Builder''s plan is," Saul said as he heaved a long sigh. "The output of energy redirected to the secret room increases whenever we clear a layer. The family has become worried that we might trigger the resurrection of a rank 9 expert." Everything became clear in Noah''s mind at that point. Great Builder was a variable that the Balrow family wasn''t willing to face. Even if it could instantly obtain valuable resources, that organization didn''t want to awaken a monster by mistake. "Is it possible to take a look at the other two parts of the inheritance?" Noah asked as a cold smile appeared on his face. Saul stopped to stare at him with an emotionless expression. Multiple thoughts surged in his mind as he studied Noah''s face. "How did you reach the liquid stage so soon?" Saul asked. "I had a series of lucky encounters," Noah replied. "My accumulation in the wilderness did the rest." "The whole world knows that you are a hybrid," Saul said. "The wilderness can explain the level of your body, but your cultivation level belongs to another field. These lies work only with those fanatics from the Crystal City." A tremor ran through Noah''s eyes when he heard those words. Saul made him understand that he knew about the events inside the Hellish Landscape. He wouldn''t have mentioned the Crystal City otherwise. Saul glanced at Noah''s companions at that point. He couldn''t use his mental waves to inspect them since Jordan''s presence worried him, but he could vaguely understand that something had changed in Noah''s status from that scene. Connecting Noah to the Legion wasn''t hard. Gathering information in the Immortal Lands wasn''t hard for a cultivator in the solid stage who belonged to a large organization. Saul only needed to link a few reports to understand what Noah had experienced after the clash with the Crystal City. Saul couldn''t imagine that Noah had also explored Supreme Thief''s inheritance and found a connection with that structure and Great Builder''s pyramid. Still, he could identify him as the cause behind the sudden disappearance of Boss Van''s guild, especially since Chief Taylor had live to tell that story. "You should never leave survivors," Saul eventually said. "Your bounty would have already gone up to ten million Soul Stones if the magical beasts didn''t decide to invade. Those creatures are the only reason why I can allow you inside the auction without having to face any repercussion." "You have my gratitude then," Noah replied, but Saul released a loud snort. "Who cares about your gratitude," Saul said. "What are you willing to give for the two pieces of Great Builder''s inheritance in our possession?" "The originals?" Noah asked. "The copies," Saul replied firmly. "I will give you the first part," Noah said as his cold smile widened. "A copy." "Nonsense," Saul said as he resumed to move. "You have the weakest part. The Balrow family is willing to trade the piece in the liquid stage for yours, but it can''t include the part in the solid stage. That''s something that even I can''t buy without relying on my organization." "I hope the other forces would understand the value of my piece then," Noah said as the coldness leaked by his figure became more intense. Saul almost froze when he heard those words. Noah had hinted at something that he feared. If Noah sold his part of Great Builder''s inheritance during the auctions, the Balrow family would have to deal with the enormous pressure coming from the forces that wanted to explore the pyramid. Instead, if everything remained between Saul and Noah, the Balrow family would continue to hold its monopoly over that resource, which was a good investment in front of a rank 9 inheritance. "I can''t give it for free," Saul said once he managed to recover. "Add something to the plate. I wouldn''t know how to explain the trade to my superiors otherwise." The duo began to negotiate after they silently agreed that they wouldn''t spread that resource through the world. The information about the pyramid also had to remain a secret to fend off interested forces. Noah eventually agreed to build a series of living weapons for the Balrow family since he wasn''t willing to let go of his resources, especially before the auctions. As for the delivery of the goods, Noah and Saul agreed that they would wait until the auctions were over to conclude that deal. Both parts had to see how the event would go before deciding to trade those valuable techniques. The staircase led to a series of underground rooms before allowing the group inside the actual areas that would feature the auctions. After they went through a few old doors, the sound of countless conversations reached their ears, and a series of crowds appeared in their vision. A large underground structure as big as the whole Silkpost city unfolded in the group''s eyes. Countless cultivators filled the area and gathered in front of small shops that featured a small number of items. However, the exhibited items weren''t their best pieces, and most of those shops didn''t belong to actual merchants. All the experts that couldn''t reach the secret area were there, selling and trading the resources obtained throughout their lives in the hope of finding something that could make their level advance. "This is only the first area," Saul explained. "No point remaining here. The auctions will happen a few more layers underground." "Lead the way then," Noah said, even if some of the items there had attracted his interest. Noah was filthy rich, but he wanted to see what the auctions had to offer before exploring the other markets in the underground structure. He didn''t want to risk losing the best items put up for sale to trade with unknown cultivators. Glances flew in the group''s direction, but the experts there didn''t have the authority to stop Saul. Jordan''s presence also scared them away, so they reached the lower layers of the underground structure without coming across any trouble. Chapter 1415: 1415. Black shard "They are guests of the Balrow family," Saul said once a guard in the solid stage stopped the group at the bottom of a staircase leading to the lower layers of the underground structure. The guard checked Saul''s green card and performed a polite bow before letting the group pass. A maze made of multiple corridors and doors unfolded in their vision at that point, but Saul promptly led them across the structure. Saul then used his green card to open one of the doors, and a large room that featured a few couches and a table filled with food appeared in their vision. Jordan and Don didn''t hesitate to jump on the delicacies, but Noah and Saul remained at the entrance to exchange a few last words. "The large forces have a shared control of the event," Saul said. "They won''t know your name, but they will manage to connect you to the Balrow family since I''ve used my credentials. Please, don''t cause a mess." "I''m here only to buy resources," Noah replied. "I wouldn''t have come back at all if it weren''t for this chance." Saul nodded, and some worry left his expression. Noah had spoken the truth, and he could sense his honesty. Still, Saul knew that Noah could stir a mess even if he didn''t intend to. "A window will open once the auctions start," Saul said. "Use the panel to place your bids. They will return into the room if you fail to win the resource. The same goes for the items when you win them. Everything is quite simple." Noah nodded, but Saul wasn''t over with the explanations. His expression became stern as he began to explain the political aspects of the auctions. "You know how important face is to the organizations," Saul said. "Pay attention to the experts in the front rows. If they start sealing loud deals, you should back off from the auction and let them have it. Failing to do so will tell them that someone inside the Balrow family doesn''t care about their fame." "Understood," Noah said in a less honest tone. Noah knew that the event could be dangerous. The atmosphere in the lower layers of the underground structure was tense due to all the powerful experts joining the auction. Almost all the guards there were in the solid stage. The same went for the other guests and participants. That place could become a deadly trap if he didn''t play carefully. Yet, Noah wouldn''t hold back if he found something that could help his battle prowess. He would try to play it safe, but his growth always had the priority. In the worst case, Noah would escape in the wilderness and spend some time with the Legion. Jordan and Don already saw him as a member of that organization in the end. Theodora had even told them to keep an eye on him. "We will finish talking about Great Builder''s inheritance afterward," Saul concluded as he approached the door. "I shouldn''t say this, but the Balrow family wants to use the workshop to gain more relevance in the political environment. Giving it a favorable price can only benefit you." Saul left without waiting for Noah''s answer. A barrier appeared around the room once the door closed. A series of shining lines came out of its walls to activate some of that structure''s functions. The panel placed after the couches lit up, and Noah studied it to be ready for the auction. Jordan and Don mostly ate while Noah kept himself busy, but they didn''t hold back from giving voice to a few comments. "The human society didn''t change in these centuries," Jordan said in an annoyed tone. "It''s one bow after another. They waste so much time in trying to be polite when they can''t even protect their homes." "You forced me to have a fistfight with other hybrids before accepting my requests," Noah commented. "How is bowing different?" "Fighting reveals your true self," Don said as he gulped a big piece of meat. "Bowing only hides your intentions." Noah gave up on arguing with the duo soon. Jordan and Don had become so used to live among hybrids that they couldn''t acknowledge the human traditions anymore. Truth be told, Noah found most of them pointless, but he couldn''t deny their usefulness, especially when it came to those connected to their political environment. "Why didn''t you attack the human side if you are so strong?" Noah asked as he sat on the couch and filled his cup with some wine. "There are too many humans," Jordan replied before heaving a helpless sigh. "They aren''t weak either. Our innate abilities can put us above them, but the Legion can''t win in an all-out war due to the immense difference in our number. We are lucky that they are too busy fighting among themselves to focus on the enemies coming from outside their domain." A few hours had to pass before one of the walls lit up and became transparent once the light dimmed. A deep structure appeared on the other side of that screen-like item. Multiple seats circled a large stage that featured a few experts in the solid stage who wore luxurious robes that didn''t carry any special symbol. The transparent wall didn''t block the sound from the stage, so Noah and the others could hear everything happening under them. Even the conversations among the experts on the stages reached their room. The auction began with a long presentation that described the identity of the solid stage experts on the stage and explained how the event would proceed. The experts had different areas of specialization. They were famous cultivators that the organizations had lent to take care of the inspection and evaluation of the auctioned items. Their tasks also involved the description of the resources once they reached the stage. The auction began right after their presentation. A series of items quickly appeared on the stage. They were chests filled with crystal-like materials in the middle tier, and their starting price was a mere one hundred Soul Stones. The price quickly rose to four thousand before the auction ended. A member of the Monneay family purchased those materials, and the expert in charge placed them over a small matrix that teleported them directly on the winner''s lap. More items came out afterward. Noah didn''t find any of them interesting, but he used that chance to expand his knowledge of the Immortal Lands. Some of those resources were quite peculiar, but they didn''t fit his situation enough to make him place a bid. That was only the initial part of the auction. Only items with vague value would appear now, and Noah didn''t dare to use his resources only to please his curiosity. Still, something capable of stirring his interest eventually appeared. Noah didn''t expect anything when he saw a simple-looking black shard appearing on the stage, but an item inside his separate space activated at that sight. Noah almost couldn''t believe his mind when he looked inside the separate space and saw that the diagram obtained in Shandal''s separate dimension had begun to radiate strange waves of energy. The black shard had triggered a reaction in an item that had been silent for millennia. Noah didn''t even need to think about it. Before anyone else could even bid, he had already placed two thousand Soul Stones inside the panel. Chapter 1416: 1416. Mistake Noah had obtained the strange diagram millennia ago and had remained uncertain about its effects since then. Nothing he did could cause a reaction in those lines, and the situation didn''t change after he reached the divine ranks. A divine item that could hide its nature from his inspection had to be powerful. Yet, Noah didn''t know what to do with it. He had kept it inside his separate space due to its potential value, but he often forgot that it was still there. "A frail mineral that can store particles of "Breath" of the darkness element," The expert on the stage explained to the audience even if Noah had already placed his bid. "It can work as a fuel for certain inscribed items and formations that require that type of energy. Other properties are unknown. Found in the Void Zone." The auction began at that point, and everyone could see that Noah had already offered two thousand Soul Stones for the shard. They didn''t know his name, but they knew that someone was willing to spend that substantial sum for a seemingly ordinary item. Noah wasn''t aware that he had committed a mistake. He wasn''t an expert in those types of auctions, so he didn''t predict that his action would cause unwanted effects. All the experts in the auction were opponents. They wouldn''t lose the chance to make someone else spend more Soul Stones. That tactic would allow them to purchase the resources that they wanted at a lower price or fight for them with fewer opponents. Noah recognized his mistake when he saw multiple bids surpassing his offer and doubling the shard''s price. Still, it was too late now. He could only deal with the consequences of his actions and continue to place more Soul Stones into the panel. The other experts eventually let him have the item. They were afraid that Noah would stop bidding if they continued to raise the price. He had to pay a bit more than five thousand Soul Stones, but he successfully purchased the black shard. The panel illuminated after the auction ended, and a case appeared above it once the light dimmed. Noah quickly opened the envelope and picked the peculiar shard to inspect its structure. The item appeared quite ordinary. It was nothing more than a mineral filled with "Breath" of the darkness element. It didn''t contain much energy either, but Noah guessed that it was part of a mine or a similar structure. "Do you know what the Void Zone is?" Noah asked the hybrids as he continued to study the shard. Noah had read something about it when he inspected the library. Some books described that place as one of the Immortal Lands'' natural danger zones, but they never explained the reason behind that. They only said that it had something to do with the void, which Noah found peculiar since it was inside a higher plane. Ripping the fabric of the world apart would take existences above the seventh rank in terms of power. "I only happened to fly near it once," Jordan said after Don shook his head. "The Immortal Lands have many strange environments, but the Void Zone stands among the strangest." "Is it dangerous?" Noah asked as he studied how the shard affected the diagram inside the separate space. Surges of energy flowed through the lines of the diagram whenever Noah neared the shard to his chest. It was clear that he had found the key to unlock that mysterious item, but he wanted to wait until Jordan''s explanation ended before proceeding with his test. "Dangerous isn''t the right word to describe that place," Jordan replied. "The fabric of the world is strangely frail in the Void Zone. Any whiff of divine energy will rip it open and create countless cracks that lead to the void. Divine entities can survive there, but you might remain on the other side forever if you aren''t careful. A species of magical beasts that can exploit those features also lives there." ''I wish I could talk with the expert who found this,'' Noah thought, but he quickly discarded that idea when he saw that a new auction had already begun. The experts on the stage were selling other peculiar and strange materials, but Noah was interested in them. His eyes closed as dark matter seeped out of his chest and took the black shard inside the separate space. Night and the Demonic Sword prepared themselves to fight as the shard neared the diagram. Noah didn''t know what would happen once the two items touched each other, so he created multiple defensive layers with his dark matter. The shard flew toward the diagram and crumbled once it touched its lines. The energy contained inside the mineral fused with the item and tried to activate its functions. Yet, that "Breath" didn''t manage to trigger anything. Noah scrutinized the diagram and sensed that one of its lines had changed after the shard fused with it. Part of it had become thicker, and energy was filling its insides. ''I think I need to charge the entire diagram to see its effects,'' Noah concluded when he noticed that detail. ''I need to go to the Void Zone.'' The auctions had yet to reach the valuable items, but Noah had already found his next destination. He couldn''t contain his curiosity now that he knew how to activate the diagram. He would fly to the Void Zone as soon as that event ended. "Where is this place?" Noah asked after realizing that he had no idea where the Void Zone was. "Inside the magical beasts'' domain," Jordan replied, "Near a windy area. It might be a good spot where to absorb chaotic laws." Jordan had already understood Noah''s intentions, so she explained other valuable features about those territories. Also, her words expressed her intention to join the journey. ''I guess it''s time to see the magical beasts'' domain then,'' Noah thought. ''It should be easier to explore during the invasion. We only need to cross the borders without joining any battle.'' The auctions never stopped, and Noah always glanced at the featured items to see if he found something interesting. Countless materials, simple inscribed weapons, and partial knowledge about certain techniques went by, but he didn''t bid for any of them. The appearance of the black shard had been a fluke. Noah found no reason to spend Soul Stones for resources that couldn''t benefit his cultivation level or battle prowess. He had to wait for the valuable items. Saul sent him a mental message as the items reached and left the stage. The expert told Noah not to leave the room since the auctions were about to get to the last phase. A few experts among the audience left the underground area after someone purchased the last of the weaker items. More cultivators also appeared on the stage, and a series of waiters brought them inscribed robes capable of protecting them from external pressure. A barrier descended on the stage. Inscribed lines appeared to protect the audience from the pressure of the following items. Some of the cultivators on the seats were in the middle tier, so they would find it hard to withstand the aura of anything stronger than them. "Should we start with a blast?" One of the experts on the stage asked, and the audience cheered at his words. The expert snapped his fingers, and Don jumped off the couch when he saw the item that appeared on the stage. Two cultivators carried a large transparent case that contained the beating heart of a rank 8 magical beast. Chapter 1417: 1417. Bids Noah''s blood echoed the beating of the large heart. Surges of hunger filled his body and created tides in his mental sea. Even if Noah had surpassed the hybrid status, his instincts were still there, and they couldn''t remain silent in front of the beating heart of a rank 8 magical beast. Don slammed his hands on the transparent wall, and saliva drooled out of his open mouth. His instincts were also going crazy, but he lacked Noah''s and Jordan''s self-control. "Don," Noah said as a growl fused with his human voice. "Sit." Noah''s pride filled the entire room and seeped inside Don''s unstable mind, bringing clarity that his instincts were trying to take away. The hybrid slowly grew calm under that influence, and he sat back on the couch while shooting an amazed glance toward Noah. Jordan also turned toward Noah. Her pupils had sharpened to show her true nature, and an evident surprise came out of them. Don''s cultivation level surpassed Noah''s, but the latter had managed to command him easily. The same shock filled Don''s mind. He couldn''t explain how Noah could remain so calm in that situation. As for the influence of his orders, Don used his unstable mind to justify it. Countless bids appeared on the panel. The experts on the seats were basically throwing Soul Stones at the item in the hope of seizing that incredible resource. "This is one of the treasures retrieved from the Land of the Fallen," The expert tried to explain. Still, the audience''s cheer and noises covered his voice and forced him to give up on that description. The bids for the beating heart quickly surpassed a million of Soul Stones and kept rising. Their growth slowed down only when they reached the five million. At the end of the auction, someone purchased the item for a total of eleven million. ''I might have underestimated these auctions,'' Noah thought as another rank 8 item replaced the heart and marked the beginning of a second bidding war. The experts on the seats belonged to large organizations that featured rank 8 experts. Noah was rich for his level, even richer than some solid stage cultivators. Yet, he couldn''t match the wealth of the forces in control of the human side. Going into an auction that could feature rank 8 items with only ninety thousand Soul Stones was a gamble. Noah had never hoped to purchase such powerful resources. He wanted valuable things that he couldn''t obtain otherwise, but the trend of the event was making him feel delusional. The auction went from a rank 8 item to another. Crystals, body parts, partial inheritances, techniques, and diagrams whose aura could make any rank 7 cultivator shake appeared on the stage. Noah watched them come and go as he committed their appearance to memory. He needed to desire them to keep growing. Don and Jordan seemed to understand that the situation had become strange. Still, they remained silent out of respect for Noah. They didn''t know what his plan was, but they wouldn''t disturb him. Also, they wanted to memorize those resources to take notes of what the human side could hide. Luckily for Noah, the auctions eventually became less intense. Items in the seventh rank began to reappear on the stage, and their prices also reached a more reasonable number. With his current wealth, Noah accepted that he could only purchase one item. That conclusion didn''t leave him disappointed after watching many resources in the eighth rank coming and going. He was already happy to have the chance to purchase something in the solid stage if he used everything he had. "A complete inheritance of a liquid stage cultivator," "An almost intact corpse of a peak rank 7 magical beast," "One of the masterpieces of the Balrow family," The experts on the stage continued to announce the various items, and Noah kept track of them as he tried to find the perfect resource to purchase. He only had one shot, so he wanted to use it well. "A cursed sword that reflects the damage inflicted to its wielder," One of the experts said at some point. "It''s a troublesome item that can make anyone surpass the limits of their cultivation level. All the previous users have died after becoming addicted to the superior power that this weapon made them express." Noah''s eyes lit up at that point and inspected the case containing that slightly curved sword. The weapon was black, with a single red sharp edge. An ominous aura in the upper tier of the seventh rank came out of the item and seemed to ask for blood. "This is an indisputable masterpiece that grows on its own," The expert continued. "Defeating opponents with this blade will make its power improve. Its creator has taken inspiration from the magical beasts to build it, but it doesn''t require actual food. It just craves battles and victories." ''Finally, something that can improve my battle prowess,'' Noah thought as he waited to see the bids of the other experts. The bids quickly reached seventy thousand Soul Stones, a low number for an inscribed item in the upper tier. Its dangerous features were scaring most of the experts away since it was a risky purchase. Noah joined the auction at that point. He raised the price by one thousand Soul Stones every time someone surpassed his offer. At some point, only an expert in the front rows remained as his opponents. The expert was a solid stage cultivator with long blonde hair and dark eyes. He had a youthful appearance, and his robe carried the symbol of the Sailbrird family. He wore a broad smile that froze whenever Noah surpassed his offer. A tinge of annoyance even appeared on his expression when the price reached eighty thousand Soul Stones. That was already too much for a cursed sword. The expert exchanged a few words with the cultivators near him and stood up to turn toward Noah''s room. He couldn''t see Noah, but someone had informed him that his opponent was a guest of the Balrow family. "I''m Ethan Sailbrird," The expert announced. "Can the guest from the Balrow family leave this sword to me? I would like to add it to my collection, and the eighty thousand Soul Stones would come from my personal wealth. I will owe you one if you do." After those words, Ethan dropped two thousand Soul Stones to surpass Noah''s bid and performed a bow toward his room. He appeared sure that Noah would give up on the sword after hearing the Sailbrird name. Of course, Noah didn''t even consider the possibility of giving up on the cursed blade. His reserves of Soul Stones were running short, but he still had the dark-blue metal at his disposal. Ethan''s face turned ugly when he saw that Noah surpassed his bid. He felt underestimated and offended, but he maintained a calm expression as he stood up again to make another speech. "I would really, really like to have this sword," Ethan said. "Having friends among the Sailbrird family is a valuable tradeoff. I wouldn''t give up on it." To answer Ethan''s request, Noah added more Soul Stones to his panel, and the audience had to suppress their laughs at that sight. Ethan had yet to make another bid, but Noah had raised the price again. Chapter 1418: 1418. Departure "What did I tell you before this auction?!" Saul shouted through the inscribed notebook. "That''s the Sailbrird family! They control almost all the libraries in the Immortal Lands. Do you know how much wealth they own?!" "Will you lend me some money or not?" Noah replied, ignoring the shouts coming from his inscribed notebook. "I have enough resources to double this price. Don''t make me use them." Don and Jordan couldn''t contain their laughs when they heard the mental interaction between Noah and Saul. The previous scene had already made them lose part of their decorum, but that conversation had brought the situation to another level. "Dammit! Yes! Have your damned Soul Stones!" Saul quickly gave up and sent some money through the panel in Noah''s room. "Don''t you dare to go back on our previous agreement. You know that we need the first part of Great Builder''s inheritance." "Thanks!" Noah replied before storing the Soul Stones and the inscribed notebook. The first part of Great Builder''s inheritance explained how to create the fake cores and the workshop''s foundation. The Balrow family could invent a suitable replacement for the cores, but it couldn''t complete the technique without knowing how it functioned. Noah had guessed that the first part of the inheritance was slightly more important than the others when they were separate, but he could confirm that only after Saul lent him the Soul Stones. That ensured his upper hand in the transaction and made him sure that he would obtain the cursed sword. Ethan didn''t know how to react to Noah''s gesture. He took it as a personal offense, even if Noah only wanted to express his determination to obtain the item. The expert from the Sailbrird family didn''t lie when he said that that money came from his wealth. There was a limit to how much he could spend to purchase a defective upper tier item, and he had already lost enough face after the last interaction. "I will leave the item to you," Ethan eventually said as he stood up and performed a polite bow toward Noah''s room. His gesture granted him the appreciation of the audience. Ethan had managed to remain calm even after what had happened. Still, Noah had interacted with enough nobles throughout his life to know when someone was hiding hostile intentions. The auction ended at that point. The case containing the cursed word appeared above Noah''s panel, and he stored it before hurrying the hybrids to stand up. The duo was initially confused about his reaction, but Saul suddenly appeared at the entrance of the room and hurried them to leave. Even he had understood that Ethan wouldn''t let the matter go. "You must leave now," Saul said. "You will only hurt my family if you remain here." Noah didn''t hesitate and grabbed the two hybrids before following Saul through the underground maze. The expert led them back inside the structure of the Balrow family, but he didn''t escort them outside. "I don''t have the copies of the other two pieces of the inheritance with me," Saul admitted. "The Balrow family is still studying them." "We will complete our trade later on," Noah replied. "I have to leave anyway. Something came up, so I will return to the Outer Lands." "I will contact you once the copies are ready," Saul continued. "We can decide the other details and a secret location for the trade later on. Everything is too messy with the invasion. Even my leaders don''t know how much the magical beasts will conquer this time." Noah limited himself to nod before turning to leave, but Saul cleared his throat to claim his attention again. "The price of the sword didn''t grow anymore," Saul said. "You didn''t use the Soul Stones that I gave you." "I will take them as proof of your good-will," Noah said before turning again and storming out of the structure. The two hybrids smiled at Saul before following him. The trio ran as fast as they could through the streets of Silkpost city. Anyone in the area could realize that their speed wasn''t human, but they didn''t do anything to stop them. They only memorized that three hooded experts had left the structure of the Balrow family in a hurry. "Lead me to the Void Zone," Noah said to Jordan as part of his attention went to the insides of his separate space. The case suppressed the aura of the cursed sword, but Noah wanted to inspect it anyway. The blade was different from the Demonic Sword. It had a circular guard and a polished handle wrapped in a soft, black fabric. The sword also had a black sheath that could contain its bloodlust. Noah had obtained the whole set in the auction, and he couldn''t wait to test it in a real battle. ''I''m almost broke again,'' Noah thought as he reviewed his wealth. He had used all his money during the auction. Saul had lent him twenty thousand Soul Stones, but they didn''t feel enough after witnessing experts purchasing rank 8 items. Millions of Soul Stones had gone by during the auction. The large organizations could make trades with money that Noah would take millennia to gather. However, the auction had also revealed to Noah that he could purchase rank 8 items as long as he had enough money. He believed that those resources were unattainable before the event, but the various forces had proven him wrong. ''I guess I still don''t have a clear understanding of the human society in the higher plane,'' Noah concluded in his mind as a loud sigh escaped his mouth. Jordan took the lead of the group and set off once they left the borders of Silkpost city. The trio moved toward the Land of the Fallen, where the intense aura radiated by the battles on the border raged more violently. The group didn''t enter the battlefield. They gazed at the multicolored lights filling the sky in the distance before changing direction. Jordan led them around the battlefield and deep into the magical beasts'' domain before slowing down. "Humans sure are petty," Don said once Jordan slowed down. "They have lived in comfort for so long that they have created different types of struggles for their kind," Jordan replied. "My time with the Legion has made me forget how hard it was to hide among cultivators." Noah didn''t join that conversation. The Immortal Lands tried to keep the three kinds as separate forces, but he didn''t care about those differences. Only power mattered in his mind, so he didn''t have any bias regarding humans and magical beasts. "Is it a brother?" The Demonic Sword''s youthful voice resounded inside Noah''s mind after a while. The living weapon had begun to fly around the transparent case after it understood that the cursed sword carried traces of a will. The Demonic Sword appeared happy to see that Noah''s new companion was a blade instead of a beast. ''We will ask it later on,'' Noah replied through his mind. ''We will have a long conversation and understand why it hurts its wielders.'' Noah gazed at the sky in the distance after that reply. It was impossible to miss the battlefield between the two domains. Multicolored lights had given the white radiance an everchanging color, and the very space of the higher plane seemed to twist due to the energy released in that area. Noah watched those lights and let his mind go wild. Resources and traces of rank 8 beings were becoming a common sight in his life. That was the proof that his cultivation level was slowly nearing that league. Chapter 1419: 1419. Cursed Sword Noah couldn''t explore the real version of the magical beasts'' domain in the first phases of his journey toward the Void Zone. The creatures that lived near the border were fighting with the human side. The trio flew over empty regions inhabited only by immense magical plants. The flora was far richer in the lands under the control of the magical beasts. The humans tended to clear entire areas to build cities and defenses, but those creatures lived in the complete wild. The magical plans died only when powerful beings fought near them. That empty environment didn''t allow the trio to hunt, but they could gather valuable materials from the unprotected and harmless magical plants. Some of the tallest trees had thick trunks that could provide tough wood. Noah seized everything he could and filled his separate space with many valuable materials. He gained more from that simple travel than from the whole golem cave in the second layer of Supreme Thief''s inheritance. Those gains would have been impossible if the magical beasts were still in those regions. Many of the magical plants seized by the trio thrived near lairs belonging to rank 8 creatures. The trio had no chance to take those resources during normal times. Magical beasts eventually began to reappear once Noah and the others flew deeper into that domain. Sparse packs made of creatures in the lower tier of the seventh rank acted like the trio and ate anything they could now that the leaders were away. The trio avoided those packs. They were too weak to satisfy their bodies, and they didn''t want to waste time since they were still too close to the human domain. Their superior awareness told them that no one was following them, but it was better to play it safe against cultivators from large forces. The Sailbrird family was wealthy enough to purchase cloaking robes for its members. When the trio was deep enough in the magical beasts'' domain, they decided to take a break and focus on their cultivation. Noah couldn''t wait for that moment to arrive since he had a promising item to inspect. Noah dug a cave in a tall forest and covered the entire habitation with dark matter before taking out the transparent case containing the cursed sword. The Demonic Sword and Night also came out of the separate space carrying a mixture of worry and curiosity. They could sense that the cursed blade was an inscribed weapon in the upper tier, but they trusted Noah enough to believe that the item would become their companion soon. Noah covered his body with dark matter, and the fiendish armor quickly formed. His clawed fingers then removed the seal placed on the case, and an intense bloodlust filled the dark world as soon as the container opened. Countless images flowed inside Noah''s mind and resonated with his memories. He recalled every battle and life that he had taken under the influence of that bloodlust. Dark-red shades quickly began to replace the colors in his memories. All the blood spilled because of him filled his mind and tried to cover his whole mental sea. "Another warmonger," A tired male voice seeped inside Noah''s consciousness. "You all kill without considering your opponent''s pain. My creator was a fool to believe that battles would stop once the aggressors learnt what their enemies felt." The voice was deep and loud. It echoed inside Noah''s mind and created shockwaves that ran through the red color filling his mental sea. "Humans will never stop fighting," The voice continued. "This is their curse. Mine is to have them as my Masters. Luckily, I won''t be your servant. Your arrogance has clouded your mind." The cursed sword was speaking about Noah''s cultivation level. He had chosen to feel the aura of the blade even if his power was inferior to the item. Yet, Noah was far from ordinary. His black hole began to rotate faster as the bloodlust tried to fill every inch of his mind, and his companions gave voice to cries that created some clarity among that dark-red scenery. Every time Noah recalled one of his bloodied memories, he sensed the emotions that had filled his being at that time. He remembered why he had killed so many opponents, and the answer was always the same. "I agree!" Noah roared. "Humans are hypocrites, but I''m no cultivator. You can call me a monster if you please, but I will use you to unleash even more bloodshed. I won''t run away from this bloodlust. Let me seize it!" Noah''s voice was a mixture of human words and roars, and a loud cry followed the end of his speech. His pride became more intense at that point, and his ambition surged to express all the qualities of his individuality. The dark-red color that had filled his mind slowly began to disappear. It didn''t fade. Noah''s mental sea absorbed and made it part of its structure. The dark-brown mental sea began to radiate scarlet shades after Noah completed the process, and his aura obtained an ominous feeling. Something had changed inside him, but he didn''t feel any different. Noah had his bloodlust. The cursed sword had intensified it and forced him to give it a form. The blade had also passed him the bloodlust of its previous Masters, and it didn''t expect him to absorb it so quickly. "Why?" The cursed sword asked through mental waves that seeped through Noah''s consciousness. "Why do you all keep on fighting? Why can''t you stop?" Noah completely opened the case and dispersed his armor at that point. The sword''s aura couldn''t hurt him anymore after he had absorbed its bloodlust, so he could wield it without facing any danger. "I will show you," Noah said as his hand closed on its handle and his ambition surged. Noah''s aura expanded. He had cultivated enough to have regained some potential, so his centers of powers slightly grew under that influence. The dark world also reacted to his ambition. The dark matter morphed and gave birth to a starry sky. Noah''s black higher energy began to shine with white color as it reflected what he saw through his ambition. His feelings flowed out of his mind and seeped inside the blade. The weapon''s will didn''t speak during that scene. It simply focused on the starry sky and bathed in Noah''s emotions. "Can humans even reach that?" The sword asked after it snapped back to reality. "I have no idea," Noah replied, "But I will kill every single living being in the Immortal Lands if that gets me closer to what I want." "I see," The sword said and fell silent for a while before giving a final answer. "I accept your determination. Use me to unleash as much bloodshed as you like. Failing to endure it will lead to your death." "Death is the easy path," Noah said as he took out the cursed sword from the case and raised it above his head. That simple movement created a fissure in his dark world and broke the ground behind it. The slash also cut a few magical plans in the area before losing its power and vanishing. A cut then opened on Noah''s shoulder. That attack had also injured him, but he expected nothing less from a blade with the label "cursed." "Now, tell me what you can do," Noah said as he came out of the cave. It was time for some tests. Chapter 1420: 1420. Encounter Noah soon understood that he couldn''t go all-out during his tests. The cursed sword wasn''t a weapon meant for daily use. It was a trump card that could force existences to unleash far more power than they wielded. The foundation of the weapon''s power was in its bloodlust. Its Master had to carry a similar feeling to wield the cursed sword, and their auras had to fuse during the attack to unleash blows that surpassed their level. Noah had an enormous bloodlust. His life had been a constant battlefield, and he had never once held back from killing his opponents. His existence suited the weapon perfectly, but that was a disadvantage when he wanted to test its power. "The bloodlust only enhances your power, but you pay the price with your energy and body," The cursed sword explained as Noah rested on a tree with the blade on his lap. "You can probably launch a few attacks with power in the upper tier before falling apart. Remember never to use me when your mind is unstable. You have absorbed the bloodlust of my previous Masters, but their influence can still drive you crazy." Noah memorized those teachings as he studied the blade. The cursed sword had yet to understand how unusual his body was, so it was treating him as a common hybrid. He guessed that he could survive at least five attacks before suffering too many injuries. That was a rough estimate that took into consideration his current level and the incredible properties of his black hole, so he could stretch his limits as long as he improved. ''I have the middle tier disposable puppet and the cursed sword as trump cards now,'' Noah thought as he stored the blade without putting it back in its case. ''The bloodlust and Supreme Thief''s true meaning are also inside my mind, but I can''t take them out at will. I even have many life-saving drugs that should help me if I eat them at the same time. This aspect of my power should be decent at my current level.'' With the trump cards in place, Noah could return to focus on his foundation. His ambition required time and experiences to grow, so he could only work on his techniques for now. The personal arts required countless tests and enlightenment. Noah had to try until he invented something that surpassed his current abilities. Yet, that process required time that he preferred to use on the "embodiment of power". The addition of the cursed sword to his level made that technique even more appealing. Any improvement in his body would stretch the limits of his bloodlust and allow him to suffer more backlashes other than making his overall battle prowess grow. Noah had begun to test the forms described in the "embodiment of power", but they didn''t work on his body. That outcome didn''t surprise him, but it still left him annoyed since he had no idea how to proceed. He could only continue his studies of the black book until he gained a sudden understanding. The trio eventually resumed their travel, but Noah didn''t pay much attention to the environment anymore. His thoughts moved from the cursed sword to his foundation and ended with his battle prowess. He didn''t lack ways to become stronger now, but he had to invest a lot of time in those projects. ''I will conclude the trade with Saul and go into seclusion,'' Noah eventually decided. ''It''s pointless to amass projects that will become obsolete once my power grows. It''s better to prepare for anything before facing dangers.'' Noah''s arrival in the Immortal Lands had been quite messy, and his life there hadn''t been peaceful either. He had gone from one inheritance to another and fought whenever he had the chance. The clash with the Crystal city had also made him improve, but he almost had to die beforehand. That never left him time to go into seclusion. The world had too much to explore, and he couldn''t give up on the many events that had happened near him. After that decision, Noah felt in a hurry to reach the Void Zone and understand its connection with Shandal''s strange diagram. Succeeding in the task would put an end to one of his oldest projects and give him enough time o go into seclusion. He planned to accumulate as much as possible before adapting everything to his level. A few traces of instability appeared on the world''s structure as the trio neared the Void Zone. They were almost there, but the environment was already revealing how influential that dangerous area was. Stronger magical beasts began to arrear around Noah and the others, and they didn''t hesitate to hunt them. They would never give up on food at that level. Dark patches even appeared in the sky in the distance at some point. Noah and Night could sense how the world was growing frail, but their main concern was toward a few presences felt by their senses. Jordan had told Noah that the Void Zone was the home to a peculiar species of magical beasts, but he didn''t expect the area to be so populated. He could already sense more than one hundred magical beasts there! Still, Noah also sensed something that made his expression freeze. A single strong presence lived in the area right before the Void Zone, and Noah felt a familiar vibe coming from it. ''We meet at last,'' Noah thought as he separated from Don and Jordan to fly in the direction of that familiar presence. As he flew through the short forest surrounding the Void Zone, Noah saw that the area had obtained a peculiar color that he knew far too well. Golden shades had started to illuminated those magical plants, and a few charred marks filled their trucks and the azure ground. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize the owner of that power, and memories inevitably resurfaced in his mind. He recalled the whole world fighting against a powerhouse that was ready for any occasion. The cultivator sensed Noah''s presence, and similar memories appeared in his mind. The expert didn''t even move. It seemed that he wanted to meet Noah. When Noah crossed one of the largest trees in the forest, a golden radiance filled his vision. He quickly adjusted to that light, and a peculiar scene unfolded in his eyes once he gazed toward the source of that halo. A cultivator with long silver hair and shining golden eyes sat next to a cauldron boiling under golden flames. The expert wore a golden crown and radiated an aura in the liquid stage. His power seemed even greater than Noah''s. The two didn''t say anything at the beginning. They glanced at each other and let their memories fill their minds. They had come from the same lower plane, but they were here now, in the Immortal Lands. The issue was that they didn''t know how to interact since they had always been enemies. "You made it here," King Elbas said without moving his golden eyes away from Noah. "That''s not surprising. Your cultivation level is." "I didn''t expect you to be deep in the magical beasts'' domain," Noah replied. "Did you cause some trouble among the large forces?" "Of course," King Elbas answered. "How could I not?" **** Author''s notes: Give me no more than half an hour for the third chapter. Chapter 1421: 1421. Short laugh King Elbas and Noah went silent after that brief exchange of words. They didn''t know how to behave in front of each other. They had been sworn enemies for a while. King Elbas had killed Chasing Demon, and Noah had banished him in the separate reality with the help of the other powerhouses. The Royals'' leader had then come back and defeated the whole world before ascending to the Immortal Lands. King Elbas could have killed Noah in the lower plane, but he had chosen to let him live alongside the forces of the other organization. The past grudges meant nothing in his mind after he became a god. The same went for Noah. The lower plane''s political situation had made them enemies, but he respected the Royal as a cultivator. Noah couldn''t hate him. They both had damaged each other''s organizations multiple times across the millennia spent in the same world. Everything resurfaced now that they were in front of each other again. Countless thoughts and memories filled their minds as they wondered how they had to act after going through so much together. ''He reached the liquid stage in a few millennia,'' Noah stated in his mind. That was King Elbas'' most striking feature. Noah had basically cheated to reach the liquid stage, but the Royal was at his same level. That confirmed once again how King Elbas was a true talent. "You are in the same situation, am I right?" King Elbas asked. "Your companions over there are hybrids, and you are in the magical beasts'' domain during an invasion. It''s not hard to guess that you have made powerful enemies already." "How did you handle the oath from the Crystal City?" Noah asked. "I''m not sure you are the type to accept it silently." "It must be the Legion," King Elbas continued. "It''s not surprising that you joined them. Still, I didn''t expect you to become part of an organization so soon." "I imagine you had many offers from the various organizations," Noah continued. "The fact that you are here can only mean that you are in trouble." Neither of them replied, but they both understood part of their opponent''s life without needing answers. They knew each other well enough to know how they would behave in the political environment of the Immortal Lands. "Shall we drop the fa?ade?" King Elbas asked. "Are you worried that I might call the others?" Noah asked. "I''m not under you anymore. Your only advantage was your age," "The whole area is my research lab," King Elbas replied. "I can handle ten of you here." "Shall we try?" Noah asked as a cold smile appeared on his face. A tinge of bloodlust leaked into his aura and gave it violent properties. The memories of Chasing Demon''s death also resurfaced in his mind as a desire to kill King Elbas began to fill his thoughts. "Why not?" King Elbas replied as small tongues of golden flames began to flicker on his hands. "This might be the right time to put an end to our battle." A minute of silence followed that exchange of questions. Neither of them was willing to take a step back and talk without leaving a battle as a possibility. Their personalities were too strong to step down from that stalemate. They didn''t want to make the move that could lead to their submission. Jordan and Don began to fly toward Noah at that point. He had been alone for too long with that powerful cultivator, and they wanted to see what was happening. King Elbas didn''t miss that event, but he didn''t dare to move with Noah''s reptilian eyes studying his every move. Something told him that he would die if he turned his back toward Noah. No number of defenses would protect him at that point. "I have turned down every offer from the various large forces," King Elbas eventually said. "It''s depressing seeing the level of their expertise. I almost didn''t believe that I was in the higher plane at first." "The refusals led you here?" Noah asked before telling the hybrids to back off. "No," King Elbas replied. "Every force would like to have me in their ranks." "How so?" Noah asked. "Because I''m the best, of course." King Elbas replied without even blinking. Noah wanted to retort, but King Elbas was right. The Royal was a genius when it came to the inscription field. Only a few experts through history had managed to match his talent. "I''m here because I want to," King Elbas continued. "The Crystal City didn''t like that I broke their oath, and every organization is hunting me to make me join their ranks." "What are you doing here then? Escaping?" Noah asked. "No, I''m only gathering the resources for the auction. Helping at least," King Elbas revealed. Noah couldn''t help but connect everything at that point. King Elbas was near the Void Zone, so one of the resources he mentioned was the black shards that carried "Breath" of the darkness element. King Elbas could know how to seize more of that mineral if Noah''s guess was on point. That would ease his search and bring him closer to uncovering the secrets behind Shandal''s diagram. "I''m looking for a special mineral found in the Void Zone," Noah said. "Do you know anything about it?" "I know a bit of everything, especially that you shouldn''t enter the Void Zone unprepared." King Elbas replied. "What about your preparations?" Noah asked, and King Elbas snapped his fingers. The entire area lit up at that point. Countless golden lines appeared on the region and released their light on the sky. Their golden halo almost suppressed the whiteness of the Immortal Lands. Noah could sense the pressure radiated by those inscriptions. King Elbas didn''t lie when he said that the whole region was his research lab. Noah was right in the middle of his defenses. "I also need that mineral," King Elbas said. "My finances are running short. There is too much to build in this vast world. I can never have enough of using these materials." "So, do we kill each other, or do we cooperate?" Noah asked without showing the slightest fear even after the golden halo enveloped his figure. His bloodlust was slowly growing. His existence was getting ready for a battle, and part of him desired it. That was the influence of the cursed sword and part of his greed''s effects since he also wanted to seize King Elbas'' dantian. "Seventy percent to me," King Elbas said after considering the situation for a few seconds. "Don''t joke around," Noah replied. "The auction only had one shard, so it''s clear that you need my help. Fifty-fifty." "Fifty-fifty it is," King Elbas said after hearing those words. The Royal snapped his fingers again, and the inscriptions went dark. The golden flames under his cauldron also stopped burning as he stood up and tidied his robe. Noah landed near him. The two experts glanced at each other before turning toward the part of the sky that showed signs of instability. They both knew where their target was. They were only waiting to regroup with the two hybrids. "How did you even break the oath of the Crystal City?" Noah asked without moving his gaze from the sky. "Because I''m the best," King Elbas replied. "It took me an entire millennium, but I found myself in the liquid stage afterward. How did you break yours?" "I didn''t. They never had a chance to place it on me," Noah replied, and King Elbas gave voice to a short laugh that he quickly suppressed. Even if he didn''t want to admit it, King Elbas felt proud that an expert from his same lower world was showing his superiority to the cultivators of the Immortal Lands. Chapter 1422: 1422. Immovable "Space here is extremely frail," King Elbas explained to Noah and the two hybrids. "We can''t unleash our full power, or massive cracks will open. You should even limit your physical strength to the minimum. You don''t want to end up on the other side. Trust me. I have been there." Noah diverted his eyes when King Elbas said that. He didn''t want to tease the expert during his explanation of the Void Zone. "Strange magical beasts occupy this area," King Elbas continued, pretending that he didn''t see Noah''s gesture. "The black crystals are on their head. I suggest you take them out of the void and collect them afterward." The last statement confused the trio, and their minds expanded to inspect the region next to them. The natural pressure radiated by their mental waves broke the frail space and created small cracks as they flew through the sky, but no magical beast appeared in their range. "Look on the other side," King Elbas said when he saw their confusion. The trio''s mental waves entered the cracks at that point, and a stunning scene appeared in their minds. Countless black tentacles fused with the blackness of the environment as they floated among the blackness of the void. Noah could sense more than a hundred different lifeforms among that mass of tentacles. He didn''t feel any creature in the eighth rank, but his worry didn''t diminish. "How can they live there?" Noah asked. As an expert in the magical beasts'' field, Noah desired to learn more about that species. Those creatures had set their lair in the void, which didn''t have "Breath". Also, they managed to remain in the same spot even if the tentacles never stopped moving. "Technically, they don''t live there," King Elbas promptly explained as his curiosity became more intense. "They live on the border of the dimensions, opening cracks to seize the "Breath" that they need to live. Their home is between the Immortal Lands and the void!" "Can they sense us?" Noah asked as his curiosity resonated with King Elbas''. "Of course," King Elbas answered. "We will be meat bags stepping into their territory." "If the region is so frail," Jordan joined the conversation, "Why are we working together? Space won''t withstand our pressure if we concentrate it in a small area." "We won''t be in the same area," King Elbas replied. "We will take different corners of the region and engage in separate hunts. I need you only to lure more magical beasts away." Everything became clear in the trio''s minds at that point. King Elbas didn''t actually want help. He needed to divide the attention of the pack to improve his success rate. That discovery didn''t make Noah regret his decision to team up with the Royal. They would all get a better chance to seize the crystals if they hunted in different areas. Those benefits didn''t apply only to King Elbas. "If one ends up on the other side," Don asked. "Can''t we simply create a passage in the void? Those creatures would be our signal. I don''t see why everyone is so scared of this place." "Are you implying that you can charge at an entire pack of magical beasts with countless limbs in their habitat and win?" King Elbas asked as a tinge of sarcasm leaked into his voice. "Try not to survive too much in the void. Those creatures won''t come out if they have targets on the other side." Don realized how hard that task was when King Elbas described it. The frail area contained an entire pack of magical beasts at various levels. Only a rank 8 existence could feel confident about that battle. King Elbas explained a few more details. He described what he had learnt about those creatures and their various features. He made a list of their strong and weak points and briefly explained his previous hunt. The octopus-like creatures were weak, but they attacked together. Moreover, their tentacles were the toughest part of their bodies, while weak spots were on the other side. Knowing their weaknesses won''t help in the fight until they successfully managed to pull those beasts back into the Immortal Lands. That task would be easy anywhere else, but it was quite challenging in an area with such a frail space. After the explanation ended, the group took four different spots around the Void Zone and used their inscribed notebooks to coordinate the attack. They didn''t share their tactics with their companions since they all had different abilities. Noah gazed at the region. It didn''t look any different from any other land. A few trees occupied the area, and the sky shone brightly on the azure ground. Yet, on the other side, countless magical beasts remained hidden, waiting for targets to arrive. "I''m ready," Jordan said. "Me too," Don added. "Don''t cause a mess," King Elbas reminded them. "Let''s go," Noah gave the order, and the four entered the region while keeping the auras and minds condensed inside their figures. Noah didn''t dare to run there. He could feel the frailty of the fabric of space as he walked on the azure ground. Something told him that he could break it if he released even more of his physical power. ''How can we even fight here?'' Noah wondered as he warned his companions not to come out of his separate space. His companions always flew out of his chest to help him when he was in a dire situation, but he couldn''t allow them to do that in that environment. If they ended up in the void, he didn''t have the power to retrieve them. King Elbas had advised the group to remain in the peripheral areas of the region and wait for the arrival of those creatures. That was the safest approach in that situation. Noah and the others would have a chance to escape without destroying the area in the process. Don, Jordan, and Noah followed his advice and walked for a few hundred meters before stopping. Small bits of their auras leaked into the environment. They seeped on the other side through the cracks that opened due to their pressure. They were acting as baits for the creatures in the void. The inhabitants of the Void Zone weren''t smart, but any magical beast in the divine ranks would have a decent amount of intelligence. The tentacle creatures didn''t attack immediately, but Noah and the others remained in their position and let their hunger grow. It was only a matter of time. Those beasts would eventually fall prey to their instincts and attack the group, giving them a chance to fight back. Signs of instability slowly began to appear in the sky. Space bent as if something was moving under it. Noah saw wave-like tremors spreading from under the fabric of the sky and nearing him slowly. He couldn''t understand how many creatures had come for him from that position, but he let them prepare their assault. Then, multiple black tentacles pierced the fabric of the sky and stretched toward Noah. Fissures opened from the spots where they passed, and a faint pulling force enveloped the area. Noah let the tentacles reach him and restrain his figure. Those limbs felt cold at the touch, but they were soft. Their flexibility mixed with their toughness perfectly and made them threatening enemies. The tentacles tried to pull Noah toward the void, but nothing happened when they tensed. For some reason, Noah wouldn''t move no matter how much strength they applied. Chapter 1423: 1423. Hunts The magical beasts that had attacked Noah were creatures in the middle tier. It was only normal for them to focus on a target they felt was at their same level. Yet, they had heavily underestimated the power of his body. Noah wasn''t only a hybrid. His black hole placed him on a superior league, and his body had gone through so many purifications that simple labels couldn''t describe its power. More tentacles broke the fabric of the sky and entangled themselves around Noah. Even some magical beast in the lower tier had joined the attack to add power to the pulling force, but that didn''t make any difference. Noah didn''t move. Cracks opened on the ground due to the strength applied to his figure, but he didn''t budge. Those creatures couldn''t even make him bend toward the passages to the void. ''You had to attack me when you had the chance,'' Noah thought as he twisted his ankles and began to turn. Small fissures opened around him as he applied his strength to pull those creatures while he turned to leave the region. Tremors filled the tentacles as he successfully turned and began to walk as if he didn''t have a mass of limbs wrapped around his figure. Noah could almost hear the screeches of the magical beasts from the tremors that filled the tentacles. He could sense their confusion and the fear that had begun to appear inside them. More tentacles came out of the void. Those magical beasts didn''t want to create too many fissures since they would lose their coverage in the process, but they couldn''t let Noah go. Noah continued to walk as the tentacles amassed around his figure. The pulling force eventually began to affect him, but he had almost reached the region''s edges at that point. He didn''t have to hold back anymore. Massive fissures opened in the sky as his aura leaked into the environment. The blackness of the void fused with the whiteness of the Immortal Lands as Noah bent his legs to gather his strength. Cracks also opened under his feet as he took large steps that dragged almost a dozen magical beasts with him. Some of the tentacles began to leave his figure when he neared the edge of the Void Zone, but Noah promptly grabbed as many of them as he could while marching through that last part. When he sensed that the space around him and returned to a stable state, Noah leaped, dragging as many magical beasts as he could with him. Many tentacles managed to escape his grasp, but he made sure to save a few of them. Noah turned once he returned to a regular land. He stretched his arms and began to draw circles in the air as he used the tentacles to pull the creatures from the void. Those beasts tried to stretch their limbs to delay that awful outcome, but Noah never stopped pulling. His arms had become a mass of entangled tentacles that continued to grow bigger as he kept drawing circles. A cry eventually echoed through the Void Zone. A small circular head, no bigger than a man''s chest, came out of one of the cracks and screamed in fear as Noah continued to pull it. The creature hand on its companions'' tentacles, but the beasts on the other side soon let it go when they saw that it was too far gone. Also, Noah''s strength had begun to affect them, so they had to get rid of their captured friend. Another head came out from a different crack, and a third followed it. Noah had managed to capture three magical beasts during his first hunt, and he wasn''t willing to let any of them escape. Eventually, the first head entered his range, and a shadow promptly came out of his chest. Before the creature could understand what had happened, its head separated from its limbs and fell onto the azure ground. The other two creatures screeched in fear when they saw that scene, but they couldn''t avoid it. Noah was too strong, and his grasp was too firm. They could only enter in his range and suffer from Night''s deadly blows. ''They are smaller than I expected,'' Noah thought when he inspected the creatures. He had killed two beasts in the middle tier and one in the lower, but they didn''t differ too much. They had extremely long but thin tentacles and small heads. A circular mouth that featured two rows of sharp teeth opened under their bean-sized eyes. The only difference between the two tiers was the number of tentacles. The lower tier creatures had only eight limbs, while those in the middle tier had sixteen of them. ''King Elbas said that the mineral is in their brain,'' Noah thought as he proceeded to dissect those creatures. As the Royal had described, the black mineral resided at the center of their head. Each creature only carried one shard, with the lower tier beast having the smaller one. Noah quickly stored the shards and inspected how they interacted with the strange diagram. The minerals crumbled when they reached the lines, and their energy flowed inside them to fuel their functioning. The energy contained in three shards wasn''t enough to activate the diagram. It didn''t even fill one of its lines. Noah was still far away from knowing what that item did, but he had a path to follow now. Noah stored the corpses and walked back into the Void Zone. The magical beasts were creatures with a darkness aptitude, so he could use their bodies for more specific creations. They could be quite valuable for him, but he would evaluate how precious they were after he activated the diagram. The cracks in the sky closed while he dealt with the beasts, but more of them opened when the beasts on the other side sensed Noah''s presence. Tentacles appeared among that whiteness and flew at high speed toward him as fissures expanded from their base. The magical beasts weren''t trying to capture him anymore. They had understood that Noah''s level didn''t express his actual power, so the only viable approach was to kill him before bringing him into the void. Noah didn''t move. He let the tentacles slam on his body and open cracks during the impact. He could catch them if he wanted, but a sudden movement of his arms would send a large area of the sky into the void. The tentacles continued to slam on him, but they eventually entangled around his figure and tried to pull him inside the void again. Those beasts had become tired of waiting, and Noah didn''t hesitate to exploit their mistake. Everything happened as it did before. The tentacles became powerless once Noah grabbed them, and he used them as ropes to drag the magical beasts outside the void. Four heads came out of the cracks at that time. Noah was already perfecting that hunting method, but some worry had begun to take root in his mind. There was a limit to how much he could exploit those creatures'' stupidity. They would eventually give up on seizing him until he died, and that would put Noah in an annoying spot. Still, he was already developing a tactic to counter a possible offensive. After all, those beasts couldn''t escape as long as he caught them. Chapter 1424: 1424. Unreasonable No one could use Noah''s hunting method. Even the strongest hybrids at his level couldn''t match his physical strength. The sole thought of opposing multiple magical beasts that tried to pull them into the void would make them escape from the region. King Elbas had developed a refined approach. His body could turn into golden flames at will, so he didn''t have to worry about the tentacles. Still, he had to make sure that his fire didn''t fall into the void. The Royal would let the creatures attack and disperse into thin flames before the impact. Part of his fire would then fly along the tentacles and explode once it reached the other side. His flames didn''t threaten the stability of the area. King Elbas had studied the tentacles enough to copy their movements. His fire did on the sky of the Immortal Lands what the creature''s limbs did from the void. Once the flames exploded, King Elbas would reform and collect any beast that had died. That approach was slow and clunky, but it allowed him to remain safe even if he had a human body. Don and Jordan had it a bit worse. They had lived with the Legion long enough to disregard any form of limitation when it came to their physical strength. They often created large fissures that threatened to pull them inside the void. Their initial hunts were messy and clumsy, but they eventually leant to use their abilities to their advantage. The solution that they reached resembled Noah''s. They defended against the attacks until they managed to grab a tentacle and drag it outside of the Void Zone. Their approach was also slow, but they didn''t completely fail in the task at least. Noah exploited the magical beasts'' stupidity as long as possible, but those creatures eventually learnt that nothing would work against him. Their tentacles didn''t hurt him as much as they wished, and restraining his figure would lead to certain death. The beasts stopped coming out of the void when they sensed Noah''s presence. They labeled him as someone too hard to hunt and began to focus on his companions since their approach was far messier. That left Noah no choice but to use baits to lure them out. He had to attach threads of dark matter to pieces of magical beasts'' corpses to have a chance to capture those creatures. Noah began to fish for the octopus-like creatures that lived in the void. His hunts also became slow, but he couldn''t do any better in that environment. ''One line needed almost thirty specimens,'' Noah thought when he inspected the strange diagram. ''The pack might end before I finish refilling it with energy.'' The diagram had more than thirty lines, but the pack only featured a few hundred magical beasts. When Noah excluded the creatures in the upper tier, he felt that he wouldn''t have enough materials by the time all the specimens in the lower and middle tier died. The creatures'' level affected the amount of energy in the mineral, but the difference wasn''t enough to make him create a plan to capture one of the specimens in the upper tier. He wasn''t even sure that he could hunt one of them, especially in that peculiar environment. Specimens in the eighth rank would probably have the amount of energy that Noah needed, but he couldn''t even come close to creatures at that level. He had to find an alternative solution that didn''t involve relying on that species. ''I need to create this type of darkness myself,'' Noah concluded as he sat at the edges of the Void Zone while holding a black thread attached to a piece of flesh. Noah had initially disregarded that idea because the black mineral was too frail. Studying it would be troublesome, and creating something usually took longer than destroying. It was easier to exterminate a pack instead of replicating the process that led to that type of darkness. Still, the requirements to activate the diagram were unreasonable, so Noah had to make an unreasonable choice to complete his task. The thread of dark matter tensed while Noah was deep in his thoughts. A tentacle had wrapped itself around the piece of meat hanging from the black string, and Noah didn''t hesitate to activate its properties. Fissures opened as the string expanded and enveloped the tentacles. It became a firm trap that Noah could pull back until the limb ended in his grasp. Nothing could make the creature escape at that point. Noah pulled until the creature''s head entered in his range. Night came out of his chest to kill it, but Noah didn''t dissect it right away to seize the mineral. The head was an important piece of his newfound approach. He didn''t know if the creatures'' brains affected the creation of the unique darkness, but he couldn''t waste it before confirming that guess. Also, he had grown bored of fishing already, so he preferred to avoid going through it another time. An icy-blue light came out of his eyes as the Divine Deduction technique activated. Noah studied the creature''s head thoroughly while ensuring that he didn''t break the mineral inside it. It took him a while to understand how the beast''s organs worked. Noah had to immerse the head in his dark matter and create an environment full of primary energy to see how that species made the minerals. To his surprise, the mineral turned grayer as that process continued. Noah had let the organs do everything. His influence was less than minimal. Yet, the head created a crystal different from the others. ''The only variable is the environment,'' Noah concluded before changing his approach. He didn''t bathe the head in primary energy anymore. Noah placed it inside an empty area of the dark world and attached some of the tentacles seized during the hunts to that severed body part. Then, he filled the tentacles with primary energy and let the creature''s organs do the rest. Noah had literally recreated the beasts'' natural environment with that approach. He was replicating their life in the void through the dark world. If even that failed, he would have to return to the hunts. Luckily for him, that process worked. The crystal inside the head turned pitch black again, and Noah tested the energy inside it by seizing half of it and fusing it with the diagram. Once he confirmed that the diagram accepted that energy, he began to work on a new blueprint for the workshop. Noah didn''t want to rely on those frail minerals. He preferred to use his dark matter for the whole procedure. Don and Jordan also stopped hunting when they saw that Noah didn''t care for those creatures anymore. They had no interest in those beasts. They were simply killing time since they had to be with Noah. King Elbas continued even after everyone else stopped. He wanted to study those beasts and obtain their materials for his studies, and nothing could stop him once his curiosity took the better of him. Still, after the number of middle tier and lower tier specimens became scarce, King Elbas stopped hunting and took out a portable habitation from his space-ring. He then entered those quarters to resume his experiments. Chapter 1425: 1425. Diagram Even if they were in a group, Noah, Don, Jordan, and King Elbas had to take care of their training and projects separately. The cultivation journey was a path that experts had to walk on their own, and the occasional team-ups could only last as long as they didn''t need to take care of their power. The four didn''t separate. They remained in different spots of the same region to focus on their cultivation or complete projects. King Elbas and Noah had to work with the black mineral, while Don and Jordan had far more serious matters to attend. The two hybrids were in a unique period of their cultivation journey. Don had to begin the preparations for his breakthrough, and Jordan needed to fill the vastness that separated her from the eighth rank. Their decision to accept Theodora''s orders came from that peculiar state. Traveling the Immortal Lands with Noah was a new experience that could help them gain insights into the next level of power. The two hybrids had chosen to leave the Legion to take a break from the stillness of that organization. Safety was the enemy of the experts that strived to reach the higher ranks. Even gods couldn''t escape that rule. Noah relied on his Divine Deduction technique to complete the new blueprint. His dark matter would remove the structural limitation given by the octopus-like creatures'' bodies. Once he replicated those beasts with his higher energy, he would mass-produce the peculiar darkness that filled their black mineral. Noah rested in a cave dug on a corner of the region. The area was mostly empty due to the presence of the Void Zone nearby, and his aura fended off the few creatures that were brave enough to venture into those lands. The dark world filled the entire cave as he floated among his higher energy. Noah sat cross-legged in the air and cultivated while the workshop kept multiple replicas of the octopus-like creatures active. His aura leaked in the environment to create primary energy that the dark world pushed toward the fake tentacles. Strands of that peculiar darkness then flowed out of the fake creatures'' heads and converged in Noah''s chest. Noah had created a system that allowed him to continue his training while he mass-produced the peculiar darkness. His attention was elsewhere while his technique filled the strange diagram with energy. ''How long will it even take?'' Noah wondered from time to time. The energy required to activate the diagram was immense. The amount of energy absorbed by those lines would make any gaseous stage cultivator pale, but the process was nowhere close to its end. Noah eventually felt forced to create more copies of the inhabitants of the Void Zone. His curiosity toward the strange diagram affected his training since he would often lose focus to check the lines'' status. He had martial arts to improve, spells to evolve, and techniques to develop, but his mind could only think about the diagram. The more energy it absorbed, the more Noah''s interest increased. Even in that annoying state, Noah managed to improve in some aspects. He managed to develop an initial form of the "embodiment of power", but the changes on his body were minimal. The creator of those forms wanted to obtain a body that even hybrids would envy. Yet, that was Noah''s starting point, and improving the technique meant reinventing it in his case. His only advantage was that he already had vessels for the dark matter. Noah only needed to find a way to make his tissues feed on his darkness and mental energy, but the task was harder than it looked. After the events with the Eternal Snakes, Noah''s body had already reached a limit in the number of different features that it could accommodate. The exploration of the Evolution Pit had also purified all his tissues, which left him with nothing to improve. In theory, he had already reached the peak. He had the strongest type of body. He only needed to nourish it to obtain far more power than his peers. ''Maybe I shouldn''t try to make it a permanent state,'' Noah thought at some point. ''The "embodiment of power" was the individuality of a human, but I can''t be sure that the expert was on the right path. He even died before completing the procedure on himself.'' Doubts formed in Noah''s mind as the failures kept piling. He even wondered whether his ambition was playing tricks with his mind again as that trend continued. ''Maybe I can turn it into a technique,'' Noah concluded. ''Something similar to a secret art that doesn''t have drawbacks. A skill that behaves like innate abilities.'' That path seemed more reasonable, and it also suited his abilities. Instead of creating forms that could permanently improve his body, Noah would aim to create a temporary boost that used all the energies in his body. Only his personal arts managed to do that. Spells and martial arts always failed to use primary energy, darkness, dark matter, and mental energy at the same time, but his innate ability gave him an advantage with that technique. ''I wonder if I should change the way my innate ability works,'' Noah wondered. ''The black vessels come from the black hole, so the main issue would be to find the right mixture of the four energies.'' Noah''s experiments changed course after that decision. He began to test how the primary energy, darkness, dark matter, and mental energy interacted. He planned to find a mixture that could provide more power than all of them once it flowed inside his black vessels. The diagram continued to absorb energy while Noah was deep inside his experiments. He would focus on the lines from time to time, but he eventually became so used to that procedure that he managed to forget about it. Whenever Noah recalled that he was creating that peculiar darkness, he would make more copies of the octopus-like creatures to increase energy output. The diagram absorbed a massive amount of darkness on a daily basis. Noah didn''t even dare to calculate how much primary energy he had wasted for that project. His cave had become a massive underground structure due to the energy that he had continued to absorb. The dark world filled every corner of the area, and countless creatures floated inside it as they continued to produce the needed darkness. The underground structure enlarged and became deeper as that process continued. Noah had yet to witness that amount of destruction in the Immortal Lands, but the scene didn''t faze him. He would eradicate entire continents to obtain the energy that he needed. The diagram eventually showed signs of activation. Noah had lost track of the passage of time by that point, but he had a vague idea of how much energy those lines had absorbed. In terms of the maximum capacity of a dantian, the diagram had absorbed enough energy to refill a solid stage cultivator. Noah''s dark matter could match that amount of power with a week of accumulation, but it was strange that a single divine item would have such high requirements. ''Don''t tell me that it''s something in the eighth rank!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as the absorption continued. ''If only Shandal knew that he had found such a promising item.'' Chapter 1426: 1426. Portal ''Is this thing for real?'' Noah wondered as astonishment filled his mind. Noah wasn''t sure of how much "Breath" a rank 8 dantian contained, but he was almost sure that the diagram had absorbed far more energy than any rank 7 cultivator could store. ''Am I really activating a rank 8 item?'' Noah thought as a bit of worry formed inside him. He didn''t know what the diagram did. It didn''t seem dangerous, but his senses weren''t able to accurately judge matters in the higher ranks. His instincts told him that he had nothing to worry about, but Noah didn''t feel completely safe near those pulsing lines. The diagram was almost active. Only a few weeks of mass-production would be enough to fill the lines with darkness. Noah was near, but part of him hesitated when he realized how much power that item had absorbed. His first instinct was to create defenses, but Noah quickly abandoned that thought. Nothing he did could protect him from something in the eighth rank. He only had to decide whether he was willing to risk activating the diagram. ''No point stopping now,'' Noah concluded while suppressing his fears and continuing with the mass-production. The diagram began to radiate a mysterious aura as it neared the last phases of its activation. Noah didn''t even sense it, but he could feel that something was coming out of the lines. It was a peculiar sensation. Noah had met magical beasts that could hide from his mind, but he had never sensed forms of energy that his consciousness couldn''t perceive. He was using his instincts to understand how that project was proceeding. At last, the diagram stopped absorbing the peculiar darkness. It didn''t matter what Noah did. The lines couldn''t contain any more energy. The item was full. He only needed to understand how to activate it. Noah took out the diagram from the separate space at that point. The dark world shrunk to create a dense environment that surrounded Noah and the item. He couldn''t do anything if the diagram tried to hurt him, but the dark world could give him a small hope. The dense dark matter would try to suppress any harmful energy that could come out of the item. Noah raised his hand to touch the diagram at that point. The lines reacted to that gesture and began to rotate to create a black oval shape that slowly stabilized. ''Is this a portal?'' Noah thought at that sight. He had traveled through dimensions with his movement techniques, and he had even teleported multiple times with the Warp spell. Noah knew what a portal looked like, so he didn''t have any doubt that he saw that shape. ''A portal to where?'' Noah wondered as his mental waves seeped inside the oval shape to inspect its insides. His consciousness couldn''t go far inside the portal, but it managed to capture a few images. Still, Noah only saw darkness when he reviewed them. The dimensional door seemed to lead to a black world. Noah inspected the insides multiple times, but his mental waves always crumbled before going deeper into the black world. That wasn''t unusual when it came to separate dimensions and similar areas, but knowing about those matters didn''t reassure him. His worries were still there. The portal could lead to great dangers. Yet, part of his had already decided to explore it, so he eventually took a few steps forward and entered that blackness. The pressure of a teleport landed on his mind and pressed on his mental walls. Noah felt nostalgic when that sensation forced him to close his eyes, but he never lost his concentration during the process. When he opened his eyes, he found himself inside a dark world surrounded by the same cave where he had spent the last period. He could even see his workshop keeping the fake magical beasts alive. Noah immediately turned to look at the portal. The oval shape was still there, and it didn''t show any sign of running out of energy. He had time to explore that area without worrying about remaining stuck in that place. The world outside that dimension moved whenever he took a step forward. It was as if Noah was still in the Immortal Lands but walked inside a separate dimension that was almost inside the real world. ''This is similar to my movement technique,'' Noah thought. ''This dimension is so close to the real world that I can see the outside world.'' Noah knew even that field. His old movement technique allowed him to see the lifeforms around him as he sprinted. That dimension was the same, even if far more stable. The dimension appeared empty, and Noah didn''t find anything even after he walked for a while. The rocks and ceiling of the outside world couldn''t stop him inside that place, but he couldn''t affect them either. ''Am I a ghost now?'' Noah joked in his mind, but the situation was stranger than it looked. At some point, his instincts gave voice to loud warnings, and Noah didn''t hesitate to wield the Demonic Sword. Nothing happened in his vision, but he could sense that something was about to come. A magical beast suddenly materialized behind him. The creature was in the middle tier, it had a small humanoid body, but it had sharp claws instead of fingers. Its head resembled Night''s, but its insides had skin, flesh, and organs. Dark-red scales also covered the entirety of its body. It was a strange creature that Noah had never seen. Noah''s weapon darted, and a flash of darkness filled the separate dimension as the blade and the claws clashed. The beast had tried to cut his neck, but he had stopped it before it could even touch his skin. The impact flung the creature in the distance, and Noah promptly shot to follow it. However, the beast suddenly vanished before he could hope to catch up. ''Is it an ability of this dimension?'' Noah wondered as another dangerous sensation appeared on his left side. Noah swung the Demonic Sword before even seeing his opponent. He could understand its shape through his mind, and he didn''t see anything different from the other specimen. The separate dimension seemed to be the home of those creatures, but Noah couldn''t confirm it before exploring all of it. Yet, he felt that his guess was on point when he saw that three more of those beasts had appeared under him and were trying to stab their claws into his feet. Noah quickly kicked the air under him to shoot upward, and a few slashes flew out of his blade. Yet, when they reached the beasts, those creatures vanished, and the attacks hit nothing. ''Can they turn ethereal?'' Noah asked to himself. ''Is this their ability, or does it come from the dimension?'' Noah saw countless beasts shooting in his direction with their claws stretched forward as the dangerous sensations multiplied. They were all creatures in the middle tier, but their sheer number forced Noah to reveal a few cards. Snore materialized and launched a dark beam that stopped the entire enemy offensive. Those creatures immediately vanished when they sensed how much power the Blood Companion could generate. A cold smile appeared on Noah''s face as he planned to chase some of those beasts, but a sudden dangerous sensation spread from his chest and forced him to stop. An opening had appeared on his chest, and blood flowed out of the injury. It was as if one of those creatures had managed to stab him. **** Author''s notes: I''m almost done with the third. Should take less than 30 minutes. Chapter 1427: 1427. Grateful ''When did they hit me?'' Noah wondered as blood accumulated in his mouth. His dark matter and corrosive smoke seeped out of his skin to create the fiendish armor and the dark world. Night also came out of the separate space to help in the battle. Noah couldn''t understand what had happened. He had fended off every creature. They had never managed to touch him, but the wound on his chest didn''t lie. Flames came out of his mouth as soon as the fiendish armor formed. His fire reduced to ashes the few beasts that appeared among the blackness of the separate dimension. Tiny tongues of flames then flew toward Noah and filled him with energy. His wound quickly closed, but part of his internal organs remained damaged since he didn''t absorb enough power to perform the instant regeneration. Noah continued to spit flames. He filled the entire environment with his innate ability, and countless magical beasts burned in the process. His wound eventually healed, but his worry didn''t diminish. There didn''t seem to be an end to those creatures. They appeared out of nowhere and threw themselves at him in a reckless assault. Noah always fended them off, but the same strange event eventually happened again. A large wound suddenly appeared on the side of his neck. His experience in the magical beasts'' field allowed him to make a connection with the previous injury. He could instantly understand that their shapes matched the claws of those creatures. ''Is this their innate ability?'' Noah wondered as flames flew toward him to heal his body. Noah couldn''t explain how the beasts did that. He didn''t sense any shift in the energy around him, and he was even in the dark world! Nothing could normally pass through it without alerting his senses. However, those creatures often managed to injure him. Cuts appeared on his arms, legs, and torso, but his flames always healed them in no time. Noah began to perform evasive maneuvers as he fought with those creatures. They had never hit his head, but he didn''t want to risk that by remaining in the same position. He wasn''t sure whether moving helped in the matter, but he couldn''t do much about it. Noah had no idea how those creatures managed to hit him. He could only try everything that he could think of. His evasive maneuvers seemed to work for a while, but wounds eventually reappeared on his body. Those beasts had yet to touch him, but he had suffered many injuries already. Noah continued to kill any creature that entered his range, but their number didn''t diminish. They didn''t slow down their assault either. Those beasts charged through the fire and corrosive smoke even if they had no chance to reach their target. Even if Noah always managed to fix his wounds, that battle had begun to annoy him. It was a pure slaughter when he suffered injuries for no reason. That fight defied logic, and he could only rely on one of his strongest techniques to vent. A surge of dark matter filled the Demonic Sword as Noah laid it on his forehead. The dark world resonated with his consciousness, and countless blades formed inside the separate dimension. The blades didn''t hit anything, but they quickly exploded, releasing Noah''s sharpness inside the whole area. The blackness of the dimension shook as countless slashes filled its fabric and continued to cut it even after Noah lowered his sword. The magical beasts that materialized inside the area saw their bodies crumbling under the might of Noah''s techniques. The cuts would continue to hurt them even after they became ethereal. Once Noah''s sharpness touched them, they would suffer from his endless attack. Noah waited as he inspected the environment. Screams resounded through the separate dimension as countless beasts died around him. ''This is effective,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind when he saw that the peculiar wounds stopped appearing on his body. The technique worked. The endless cuts didn''t let those creatures perform their threatening ability, so Noah only had to wait until all of them died now. The screams slowly became rare as countless creatures died due to Noah''s sharpness. Eventually, everything became silent inside the separate dimension. Only the churning of the dark world released a few deep sounds. ''Are they all dead?'' Noah wondered once the screams stopped completely. No beast came for him anymore. The battle was over. Noah had defeated the entire pack. ''What now? Noah wondered. He didn''t believe that the defenses of the dimension were over. Noah knew how much energy the diagram had required. There had to be something else there, and he could only explore to find it. The separate dimension didn''t feature anything special. It was nothing more than an empty space now that the magical beasts had died. Noah couldn''t see the end of that place, but he wasn''t sure that it had one. The outside world moved alongside him, so he guessed that the dimension expanded according to his movements. The strange sensation from before returned at some point. Noah''s instincts sensed that something was off, but he couldn''t see any change in the area''s energy. The sensation became more intense as time passed. Noah was almost sure that something was following him, but nothing he did manage to shake that presence off. Even the evasive maneuvers with his movement technique ended up being useless with that issue. Noah could only decide to retreat. He couldn''t defend against that danger. He would return to the separate dimension once he had understood how those creatures managed to hit him. Noah sprinted toward the portal, but the strange sensation suddenly reached its peak. A hand appeared on his path, and a loud slap resounded in the area. The slap didn''t hurt, but it made Noah understand that he had to stop. When he turned, he saw that a cultivator had appeared behind him. The expert didn''t release any aura, but she didn''t carry the ethereal features that usually characterized wills. She seemed real, but Noah could sense that something was off. The woman wore a large robe that covered her sleeves but revealed ample cleavage. She was tall, had long black hair and dark eyes, and she wore a broad smile that carried some trace of arrogance. "I would have killed you if this was a blade," The woman said. "I''m truly a genius. I have created the best techniques in the history of the cultivation world. No one can defeat me." ''Dammit,'' Noah thought after he heard the woman. ''Another maniac.'' "Look, look!" The woman said before disappearing among the darkness and reappearing quickly after. "You couldn''t feel my presence for a second, could you?" "I''ve never sensed your presence," Noah replied bluntly. "Right," The woman said as she revealed a surprised expression. "I must have died, and this is my inheritance." "Didn''t you just say that you were unbeatable?" Noah asked, disregarding that she had confirmed that the separate dimension was an inheritance. "Well, in theory," The expert replied. "I don''t doubt that my abilities are the strongest among every cultivator. My level is to blame. I was too weak to use them properly." Noah didn''t know what to think. She was the most eccentric expert that he had met in the Immortal Lands, but he forced himself to listen to her to understand the contents of her inheritance. The cultivator waved her hand when she recognized Noah''s annoyance. A slap landed on Noah''s cheek at that point. The woman had performed the same technique as those beasts. "Don''t underestimate me!" The woman shouted. "I''m Miss Void. Back at my peak, I was the only cultivator with a darkness aptitude in the eighth rank. My enemies didn''t dare to mention my name for fear that I was waiting nearby. Also, you have opened my portable dimension, so you will inherit my techniques now. Appear grateful!" Chapter 1428: 1428. Shadow Domain Noah couldn''t help but remain speechless at Miss Void''s statement. He didn''t even hear her last line, but the part where she claimed to be a cultivator with a darkness aptitude caused a mess in his mind. The inheritances that he had seized since his arrival in the Immortal Lands contained resources and techniques that anyone could learn. The divine cultivators would give more importance to their laws than to their elements. Learning those abilities was only a matter of suitability. Noah was slightly different in that field. His ambition made him desire everything, and his species allowed him to endure almost any technique. He had yet to find something that he couldn''t use. His versatility came from his vast accumulation in the lower plane. That accumulation had allowed him to shine where everyone else had failed. The impossible requirements set by some inheritances were only hard challenges when he faced them. Only the Evolution Pit had been rather easy because his black hole made him meet its requirements. Still, his gains there had consisted in a refinement of his fourth center of power. He couldn''t seize the entire inheritance. Yet, everything was different with Miss Void. With his ambition and the same aptitude, Noah could aim to learn her techniques and spells without having to spend years adapting them to his existence. Another slap landed on his cheek while Noah was deep in his thoughts. Miss Void appeared annoyed that he wasn''t paying attention to her, but she refused to speak again. She had already asked for his gratitude. ''Am I even capable of true gratitude toward her?'' Noah wondered as he performed a deep bow. Noah hoped that his gesture would be enough to satisfy the expert. His ability in those types of social interactions had always been lacking. He wouldn''t know what to do if that didn''t work. "Hmph," Miss Void snorted before wearing a cold expression. "It seems that you know how to behave when asked politely. Very well. I will tell you the secret of my greatness." Miss Void crossed her arms and remained still. Noah didn''t know what she was thinking, but he didn''t dare to interrupt her. It was better to play along when it came to eccentric characters. He had learnt that lesson with Eccentric Thunder. Minutes passed, but nothing happened. Noah was beginning to think that Miss Void was playing with him, but he continued to wait in silence. "Well?" Miss Void asked. ''Well what?!'' Noah shouted in his mind, but he didn''t dare to let his annoyance appear on his face. "I don''t think I understood it," Noah limited himself to reply. "Of course you didn''t," Miss Void said as a broad smile appeared on her face. "That''s the whole point of my techniques. They operate inside a separate dimension and manifest only when they reach their target." Noah''s mind went wild again. The secret behind her techniques was so simple that he didn''t believe it to be real. After all, separate dimensions were rare, but every cultivator knew about them. If it were so easy to create untraceable abilities through them, everyone would have already done it. "How can that be possible?" Noah asked. "Do you use a spell to hide the dimension?" Another slap landed on his cheek after his question, and Noah pretended that the gesture managed to tilt his head. "No spells, techniques, or inscribed items," Miss Void replied. "The dimension itself is the cloaking ability." "How?" Noah asked again, and Miss Void nodded when she saw the intense curiosity that had appeared on his face. "I''m quite sure that only cultivators with a darkness aptitude can use this," Miss Void explained. "Go on. Expand your domain." Noah quickly executed her order. His aura leaked in the environment as his ambition became more intense. The darkness inside the separate dimension began to expand and shrink as its fabric toughened. Even in that barren environment, Noah''s ambition managed to have some effects. As long as it touched energy, his law could improve it. "This is your world," Miss Void continued as she opened her palms to draw a sphere in the air. "Inside it, you can generate attacks from any spot. It doesn''t matter how far it is. As long as you are in your domain, anything you want will happen." Noah nodded. That was the basic theory behind the cultivation journey of divine cultivators. They could apply the effects of their individuality on the matter around them. The stronger they were, the bigger their domain would become. "I have developed a technique founded on this theory," Miss Void explained. "I call it Shadow Domain. It allows me to expand my influence in a dimension that no one can sense and reveal it only after my attacks are already inside my opponents. It''s a perfect technique that no one can dodge. Its only flaw is the time required for its expansion." Miss Void waved her hand at that point and bent forward as an immense pressure landed on his mind. An empty but heavy aura had suddenly appeared in the environment, and his existence could barely withstand it. "My Shadow Domain has already filled the whole dimension," Miss Void continued. "I can create attacks and materialize them anywhere. You might have a though body, but that innate defense is useless when a blade is already inside you." Miss Void waved her hand again, and the pressure disappeared. Noah''s eyes darted left and right as he tried to find traces of her Shadow Domain, but he couldn''t sense anything. His superior awareness felt that something was off, but that wasn''t enough to alert his instincts. ''This is incredible!'' Noah shouted in his mind. Noah had initially thought that Miss Void was exaggerating, but that demonstration changed his idea about her. The Shadow Domain was a technique that no one could block. It wasn''t as perfect as she said, but it came pretty close to that definition. "You can move anything between the Shadow Domain and the real world," Miss Void explained. "Your body isn''t an exception. Since the technique is quite slow, you will often have to hide until your influence reaches your opponents." Noah became puzzled at that point. If Miss Void could hide freely inside the Shadow Domain, how did she even die? "I have probably died because my enemies have learnt about this flaw." Miss Void said after she read the puzzlement on his expression. "They didn''t give me the chance to complete my ability, and there is a limit to how long you can stay inside the other dimension." "How can I learn the Shadow Domain?" Noah asked as his curiosity reached its peak. Noah believed that there had to be harsh requirements to learn that technique. The main issue was that laws didn''t usually create untraceable domains. Miss Void had probably changed the nature of her individuality to give birth to such a technique. "The "Breath" of the darkness element gathered to open the portable dimension comes from beings that live between worlds," Miss Void said as her smile became humbler. "I''ve harnessed their ability to cling to the thin layer between dimensions to recreate that place. After I expanded it, I obtained a space where no one can walk. You have to do the same to obtain the Shadow Domain." "Do I need to experiment on those creatures?" Noah asked. "No, the technique is complete. You will receive it once you exit this dimension," Miss Void explained. "However, it will activate only with their "Breath". I suggest you learn how to produce it." Chapter 1429: 1429. Frail Noah performed an honest bow after Miss Void''s last line. She had given him an incredible technique without asking anything in return. Even the battle against those strange magical beasts had been nothing more than a performance meant to show her ability. "This is getting tiring," Miss Void said after heaving a loud sigh. "Go. Don''t waste time with the dead. You are only in the liquid stage, but you have managed to open my inheritance. This much already tells me that you want to reach the peak." "Is the ninth rank the peak?" Noah asked as his ambition began to leak out of his figure. "Maybe, maybe not," Miss Void replied as she tilted her head to look above. "I wanted to see it, the peak, the realm beyond Heaven and Earth. I lost my chance, so it''s up to you now." Noah could see himself in that gesture. Miss Void wore the same expression that he had when he imagined the distant stars in the sky. She shared his desire to go beyond the white layer that covered Heaven and Earth''s realm. "The world is so vast that a single life isn''t enough to explore all of it," Miss Void said in a nostalgic tone. "Yet, even the most shining place hides black spots. Darkness is everywhere. Always remember this." Noah nodded before turning to leave. Miss Void began to sing a sad song as she kept her eyes fixed on the barely visible ceiling outside of her separate dimension. The song stopped when Noah crossed the portal. His superior awareness also stopped sensing that odd feeling once he returned to the outside world. The portal morphed after Noah came out. It shrunk and condensed to take the shape of an ethereal orb that contained a spherical diagram. Its black lines radiated a pale dark light that managed to obscure the cave, and Noah almost fell on his knees when he realized what he had obtained. ''A rank 8 spell!'' Noah shouted in his mind, and his hands carefully wrapped the fist-sized spherical diagram in their grasp. The Divine Deduction technique activated, and the dark world expanded. The workshop also recreated the fake octopus-like creatures to resume the mass-production of that peculiar darkness. Noah prepared for the first activation of his new spell. He needed to memorize the diagram and create the only energy that could make it function. Luckily for him, he had become an expert in the last part. Understanding filled Noah''s mind as he studied the diagram through the Divine Deduction technique. The complexity of those lines left him speechless. He could see how hard Miss Void had worked to create that spell during the process. ''Not the void, nor the higher plane, but something in the middle,'' Noah thought as pieces of information flowed inside him. ''A frail layer strengthened and expanded to create a personal space that belongs only to you. Astonishing.'' Noah had created wonders throughout his cultivation journey. He had given birth to indestructible monsters and built a world through copies of Heaven and Earth''s elements. However, Miss Void''s work surpassed what he was capable of crafting. It delved into a field that Noah had touched only by chance. The dark world stored the special darkness while Noah studied the diagram. Weeks passed while he remained immersed in the wonders that those lines contained. Then, when Noah felt that he had learnt how it worked, he stored the orb inside his mental sea and made the special darkness flow toward his mind. Noah didn''t need to transform or translate that diagram. It was a spell that worked with a darkness that didn''t belong to his existence. Anyone could activate it as long as they had that energy. The diagram lit up, and a dark light filled Noah''s eyes. The world in his vision suddenly changed. He became able to see the threads that kept the fabric of the Immortal Lands together, as well as the void that lingered right behind them. ''Darkness is everywhere,'' Noah thought as he focused on the layer between the two worlds. Miss Void''s spell only allowed him to reach that state. Noah had to create the Shadow Domain on his own, but he felt sure that she had given him a few hints on the matter. Noah stretched his hand and hung it above the line that separated the Immortal Lands and the void. He could sense the specks of darkness that inhabited that place with his mind, and he slowly made his aura flow inside them. Most specks instantly burst open, but some were big enough to endure the first wave of Noah''s individuality and expand. As his true meaning flowed inside that darkness, a third space formed between the two worlds. Noah had to adjust the speed at which his individuality flowed inside the darkness to avoid ruining his progress. That space had frail edges, so he slowly learnt what it could endure. It took him half a day to envelop his figure in the Shadow Domain and an entire week to stretch it as far as the ceiling of the cave. Expanding it became harder as its size increased, but Noah knew that the process would become easier after some training. When the Shadow Domain surpassed the cave''s ceiling, Noah moved his finger, and a small slash flew out of his hand. The attack dug inside the rocky layer above him and stopped before vanishing inside it. Noah''s slash didn''t damage the ceiling. As long as it was inside the Shadow Domain, his attack couldn''t affect the material world. The black curved line lived in a different dimension. When Noah willed it, the slash left the Shadow Domain and appeared in the Immortal Lands. A hole instantly opened on the cave''s ceiling, but his attack didn''t deplete much energy. It was as if it didn''t use its power to piece those rocks. ''Incredible,'' Noah thought as his vision returned normal. ''Since it''s already inside its fabric, the slash doesn''t use energy to piece it. Miss Void has created a masterpiece.'' His stash of special darkness was over after that prolonged activation of Miss Void''s spell. Noah had barely managed to create a Shadow Domain that reached the ceiling, but the ability had already deactivated. ''Using attacks quickens the consumption of special darkness,'' Noah thought. ''The same must be true for the other abilities, so I need to find a better way to create this energy.'' The workshop performed well, but Noah couldn''t keep it active during a battle, not while it mass-produced special darkness at least. Noah didn''t even want to spend long periods of seclusion while he accumulated that energy. He didn''t want to rely on a resource that he needed time to gather since his main focus was his battle prowess. ''It''s time to study this transformation thoroughly,'' Noah concluded. ''I''ve already created my darkness from primary energy. I only need to do the same for this one.'' Noah''s long seclusion continued for years. He mainly cultivated, but he also spent long periods studying the special darkness and experimenting on his four energies. He even tested his personal arts when he had the chance. His level slowly rose in that empty environment. No one came to disturb him since his companions were also busy with their training. An entire century had to pass before Noah felt the need to come out and resume his exploration of the Immortal Lands. When he left his cave, he sensed that the two hybrids were still cultivating in other spots of the region, and he didn''t fail to notice that King Elbas'' habitation was also there. Chapter 1430: 1430. Bored Noah had his reasons to come out of the cave. He had never liked to remain in a safe place for too long since it was easier to improve when facing adversities. Also, his last project required him to explore the Immortal Lands. The red crystals obtained in the Evolution Pit could improve his companions since they carried features similar to his black hole. They weren''t an organ that could benefit every function of his existence, but they could perform the same purification. Noah didn''t dare to test them on his companions right away. Night, Snore, and the Demonic Sword were a core aspect of his superior battle prowess. He was already stronger than an average hybrid, but the three creatures brought his might far beyond what a single existence at his level could wield. They were one of the main reasons why he could seize benefits where others ran away. Risking their structure with materials that he didn''t fully understand was idiotic. Noah had decided to create a new blood companion to test the red crystals, but he had yet to find a specimen that met his standards. The octopus-like magical beasts of the Void Zone were creatures with a darkness aptitude, but their base strength didn''t make them a suitable choice. The best approach to solve his issue was to explore the Immortal Lands, especially the magical beasts'' domain. The current political situation was also in Noah''s favor since most of the stronger creatures were either fighting on the border with the human part or settling in the conquered lands. Noah would usually leave right away, but he knew that the two hybrids would follow him. Hence, he decided to wait on the surface for them to exit their improvised habitations and join him as he resumed the exploration of those lands. As for King Elbas, Noah didn''t know what to do with him. He had initially thought that the Royal would leave in that period, but his habitation was still there. Don and Jordan quickly noticed that Noah had left his cave, and they sent him mental messages where they explained their status. After a brief conversation, they agreed to set off in a week, enough time for them to complete that training session. Noah rested on the azure ground during those days. He didn''t cultivate and enjoyed that short break from his constant training. His mind naturally wandered among the various projects that had kept him busy inside the cave, but he didn''t linger on them too much. His period of seclusion had been quite effective. His personal arts had improved again, and he had reached a decent level of expertise with the Shadow Domain. Only the "embodiment of power" still caused issues, but Noah had taken a few steps forward at least. The issue with the "embodiment of power" was that the four energies didn''t provide superior power output in their mixed form. Beating the dark matter in that field was a challenging task that they didn''t manage to complete. Alchemy wasn''t even Noah''s strong point. He knew energies, but he was clueless about the many processes and possibilities of that field. Truth be told, Noah wasn''t sure whether an alchemy master could do better than him in his task. Mixing four energies to create something more powerful than all of them was hard. It required far more than experience in a field that had similarities with that process. Don and Jordan eventually came out of their habitations and joined Noah in his rest. Still, the group soon stood up to leave when everyone felt to have dispersed the stress accumulated during that long training. However, as the trio was about to leave, the door of King Elbas'' habitation slammed open, and the Royal came out wearing a satisfied smile that expressed how fulfilled he felt. Noah didn''t know how to behave with King Elbas. He didn''t know what the Royal wanted to do, but he wouldn''t offer him to come along them. They might have worked together in the Void Zone, but that short mission didn''t change the fact that Noah didn''t trust him. Noah limited himself to perform a polite nod before setting off and turning in the direction of the Outer Lands on the side of the magical beasts'' domain. ''Other cities of the Legion should be there,'' Noah thought as he picked a direction that would lead him deeper into the magical beasts'' domain. Don and Jordan quickly followed him in the air, but they all turned when they sensed that a fourth presence had appeared behind them. King Elbas flew behind the trio without even looking at them. His attention was on the lands below, and his curiosity flared whenever something claimed his interest. Noah and the others exchanged a glance before resuming their flight, but King Elbas continued to follow them. The Royal didn''t even talk with them. He simply moved along, slowing down and accelerating whenever they changed their pace. "Why are you following us?" Noah eventually asked after he stopped and turned toward the Royal. "I have been in peace for too long," King Elbas replied before falling silent. "This doesn''t explain anything," Noah continued. "My potential will dwindle if I keep isolating myself to study materials or build inscribed items," King Elbas said. "You cause troubles wherever you go. I might as well join you and benefit from your talent." Noah didn''t even know what to answer. King Elbas wanted to use him as a portable source of problems so that his cultivation level wouldn''t stagnate. "Don''t tell me that you are bored," Noah tried to mock him, but King Elbas promptly revealed his arrogant smile. "The exact opposite," King Elbas replied as his eyes darted through the environment. "This place is so full of valuable and interesting materials that I can barely control me. I want to create something whenever I see a tree, and I want to improve my inscription methods every time I kill a beast. I have spent centuries building stuff already." King Elbas'' explanation was in line with his individuality. His arrogance and curiosity fused to create an insatiable drive that pushed him to perform countless inscriptions. Noah shared that curse, but only when it came to his power. He could understand the Royal, but the hybrids weren''t as nice as him. Don revealed a cold expression, and Jordan limited herself to smile. She didn''t need to express her feelings to make King Elbas understand her position. "You can''t defeat me," King Elbas replied when he saw the hybrids'' reaction. "You might force me to go away, but you will pay a price that you aren''t ready to face." King Elbas didn''t step down. The trio had a chance to send him away, but they would have to fight him in the process. That was something that Noah wanted to avoid. King Elbas was like him. His cultivation level didn''t reflect his battle prowess. The Royal''s higher energy was also annoying to deal with, and his expertise made him one of the most resourceful cultivators in the seventh rank. "Fine, you can follow along," Noah eventually said after a long exchange of stares. "Still, you have to be useful. You will join every battle and use your expertise to improve our travel." Chapter 1431: 1431. Scales "On your left!" Don shouted as a massive tail swung under him. Noah turned toward the tail and shot upward. His body transformed into a black blade that released a trail of chaotic dark matter as it flew high in the sky and dodged the attack by a mere meter. "Don''t make me ruin your scales!" King Elbas shouted as he threw a fiery spear on the giant body of their opponent. "Can''t we all pay attention to its skin?" "I swear," Jordan growled as she kept the creature''s mouth shut with the raw power contained in her limbs. "I will kill him if he keeps ordering me around." Noah returned to his normal appearance when he stopped above the massive crocodile-like creature. He held his Demonic Sword above his head, and flares of dark matter shot out of the blade as it accumulated power. The blade descended, and a thick slash flew out of it. The attack fell on the creature''s body, and scales shot everywhere on the battlefield. However, only a long mark appeared on the beast''s back. "You damn brute!" King Elbas cursed loudly at the sight of the shattered back. "I was going to study them! I will deduct them from your share!" "Shut up!" Noah replied as Snore and Night came out of his fiendish armor. "We are in this mess because you couldn''t suppress your damned curiosity!" "The eggs were hatching!" King Elbas replied as dense flames came out of his palms and created a warm halo on the reptile''s back. Its scales began to reform under the healing properties of the Royal''s spell. "You maniac!" Don shouted as sharp gibbers accompanied his human voice. "Stop healing our opponent." Pieces of the ground rose in the air and gathered around Don''s arm to create a massive hand that he swept toward the beast. The golden halo that was healing its back vanished after the attack, and more scales fell from its skin. The group had continued exploring the magical beasts'' domain after the events in the Void Zone. Still, their travel had been quite chaotic due to King Elbas'' unstoppable curiosity. Noah, Don, and Jordan were hybrids. They knew the rules of the magical beasts'' world and had an innate understanding of those creatures. They could easily exploit their flaws and adapt to any environment. King Elbas was different. He was a human that would rather change the environment than adapt to it. His individuality also prevented him from holding back whenever he found something interesting, so he often caused a mess in lairs that the group had yet to explore fully. Since the beginning of their travel, King Elbas had thrown himself into four different packs of magical beasts that featured one or more upper tier specimens. Noah and the others could handle threats on that level since Jordan was with them. The trio in the liquid stage had even defeated one upper tier creature by themselves once. Yet, the crocodile-like beast that had attacked them at that time was far tougher than they had predicted. For once, Noah knew the species of that creature. It was a Mountain Lizard that had grown far beyond his expectations. The beast was three hundred meters long, and its size didn''t affect its agility. Moreover, the Lizard had an incredible defense due to its tough skin. The fact that it was beyond the half-way mark of the upper tier made its scales almost impossible to pierce for the trio in the liquid stage. The Lizard also had an annoying innate ability. It could spit a sticky substance that would force even Jordan on the ground for almost a minute. The creature could kill anyone as long as it hit them with its spit. Its great defense made it capable of enduring any attack while it ran toward its restrained prey and ate it in a single bite. Jordan had the most dangerous role in that battle. She was the only one strong enough to keep the Lizard''s mouth shut, so she didn''t hesitate to follow Noah''s instructions when King Elbas suddenly awakened the creature. Destroying the scales was up to the trio in the liquid stage, but their offensive proceeded slowly since the Lizard''s skin was too tough to crumble after only a series of attacks. ''I want to try the cursed sword so badly,'' Noah thought before launching another massive slash and ordering his companions to start their offensive. Noah didn''t want to reveal his cards with King Elbas among the group. He kept most of his strongest techniques hidden since the Royal could become a potential enemy in the future. Still, his personal arts were performing well. His movement technique had become fast enough to dodge the creature''s fast tail, and his slashes could destroy a few shards with each attack. That outcome was already great since his opponent was a creature close to the last part of the upper tier. His martial arts fused with the Demonic Form, the dark matter, and his innate ability to create attacks that a cultivator at his level couldn''t normally launch. Even Don felt surprised when he watched Noah. Their attacks seemed to be at the same level, but there was a large gap between their cultivation level. Noah had just left the bottom of the liquid stage while Don was approaching the breakthrough to the solid stage. ''The Shadow Domain would also do great here,'' Noah cursed in his mind when he thought about the techniques that he didn''t allow himself to use. Noah bent forward and transformed into a blade as he flew toward the Lizard. Dark matter accumulated in his sword as he built up enough momentum to pierce the creature''s skin. Night flew with him, and Snore wrapped its lower body around the creature''s head while it launched its dark beam on the beast''s back. The gesture relieved Jordan of some pressure and allowed her to keep the Lizard still. Sharpness exploded in the area when Noah landed on the Lizard''s head. Cuts formed in the sky whenever his aura managed to affect the environment. Noah found himself on the Lizard''s head after the impact. The Demonic Sword had managed to make a small cut on the creature, and he didn''t hesitate to fill the wound with corrosive smoke and flames. Night followed right after. It dived into the wound and cut anything it could before the Lizard''s innate defenses forced it to retreat. Noah launched another wave of corrosive smoke and flames at that point, but the creature soon forced him to leave its body. King Elbas eventually gave up on saving those materials and began to attack seriously. He filled the entire area with fiery spears that rained on the creature''s back. His assault was relentless, and he also modified the nature of his flames to be more effective in the fight. Don created massive limbs that he wore as if they were pieces of armor before throwing his attacks. He didn''t limit himself to the ground. Giant metallic hands or arms would cover his figure and release shockwaves whenever he swung them. Jordan helped in the offensive by spitting scarlet flames. She never allowed the Lizard to open its mouth, and her fire damaged its skin often. The four were making full use of their numerical advantage. They dragged the fight long enough to make the Lizard fall under their relentless assault. Chapter 1432: 1432. White lake "I thought you joined us to benefit from our troubles," Don said to a not interest King Elbas, "But you are the only one causing a mess every time!" "You have the superior awareness of three hybrids at your disposal," Jordan added as she massaged her temples, "But you continue to disregard our evaluations to pursue your interests. I won''t forgive you if your behavior ends up killing one of my kind." King Elbas ignored the two hybrids. A few lenses floated in front of him as he studied the massive Mountain Lizard. His curiosity was so intense that even Don and Jordan gave up on their complaints that began to dissect the corpse. Noah didn''t join that conversation. King Elbas'' behavior irritated him, but the benefits that he brought to the group were undeniable. Also, those problems were a normal drawback in that situation. Things could unfold as he wished only when he was completely alone. King Elbas'' knowledge was immense. His expertise covered every field of the cultivation journey, and he often owned methods that surpassed what masters at his level could perform. He had also stayed true to his role in the group. King Elbas provided habitations that aided the absorption of energy from the environment. He treated the flesh of their opponents in ways that could improve their nutritional value. He even relied on sensors that went beyond what the hybrids'' innate awareness could reach. King Elbas often caused trouble, but he was also the one who gave the most to the group. Noah and the others usually limited themselves to offer their battle prowess to the needs of their team. Jordan dissected the beast and divided its bodies into four parts. King Elbas received the largest share, but he used his methods to improve the body''s quality as a whole. The group had become used to that procedure by then, so they didn''t mind waiting a few months before collecting their share. The benefits given by the process were substantial. Giving up on those free improvements would be idiotic. Noah dived deeper into the Lizard lair while his companions were busy with the corpse. His knowledge of the magical beasts'' field and his superior awareness made him the perfect scout in those lands, and he always performed his task flawlessly. ''Why were you so big?'' Noah wondered as he entered a large cave at the center of the mountain that almost covered the entire region. Mountain Lizards were big, but their opponent''s size had been off the scale. Noah guessed that the reason behind that feature had to be in its layer, and he soon found the answers that he needed. The cave ended with a large white lake that radiated an eerie aura. Noah almost didn''t believe what he sensed. Chaotic laws leaked out of the water and created a slimy liquid on that area''s rocky ceiling. The energy carried by the chaotic laws was immense, and the magical beasts could absorb them without worrying about their drawbacks. Those creatures didn''t have individualities, so they didn''t have to fear that power. It was harder for cultivators to seize proper benefits from that resource. Chaotic laws broadened individualities, which for divine experts meant an increase in their potential. Cultivators could lose their way if they kept broadening their true meaning. The raw laws were safer in that aspect since they instantly replicated the existence of the expert who absorbed them. Everyone would cultivate in the windy regions of the Outer Lands if the chaotic laws were so easy to handle. Still, finding that lake now was something that Noah and the others would definitely exploit. Noah told his companions what he found before diving into the white lake. His mind instantly entered a peculiar mindset that made him explore all the possible branches where his individuality could expand. His greed, pride, sharpness, destruction, and creation resonated with those laws and expanded. Countless ideas surged in his mind as that chaotic energy flowed inside him. When Noah felt that he was about to lose himself, he leaped out of the lake. He then landed on the ground, where his companions were waiting for him. "You are no different," Don said as a sigh escaped his mouth. "I''m starting to believe that you like to be the scout because it allows you to seize more resources." "Why do you think I''m doing it?" Noah replied before performing a short laugh. His situation was the same as King Elbas''. He brought fewer benefits than him to the group, but he was willing to risk his life to explore regions before his companions. The dangerousness of his task made him untouchable in the eyes of his companions. Even if he happened to take more resources than them, they wouldn''t complain. "I guess it''s time to settle for a while then," Jordan concluded as she threw her robe on the side and bathed naked in the white lake. She didn''t glance at anyone, but Noah could sense that her attention was on him. She wanted to see his reaction, but Noah could only think about his recent gains at that time. The same didn''t apply to Don, who quickly imitated Jordan and threw his robe away before diving into the lake. The gesture didn''t seem to irritate Jordan since she released an honest laugh before focusing on the chaotic laws. King Elbas'' approach to the white lake was different. He took a series of containers from his space-ring and filled them with chaotic laws before exiting the cave. Once he returned to the bottom of the mountain, he took out two portable habitations and entered the most luxurious. Noah had become used to that behavior. He entered the second habitation without even thanking King Elbas and quickly started to cultivate. The walls of the dimension adapted to the type of energy that Noah was absorbing and improved the process by creating pulling forces that targeted any form of "Breath". Those habitations were far better than the outside world in terms of cultivation speed. They could help anyone training faster, and that was a great feature for someone like Noah. However, even if his cultivation was going smoothly, his body improved far faster than the other centers of power. Its growth had been rapid in the last period since Noah had managed to get his hands on flew in the upper tier. That speed was still inside the range of talented divine hybrids, but Noah knew that it was already quite remarkable for him. His body was as perfect as it could get, so growing according to normal standards was incredible. The group settled at the base of the mountain for years. It was a waste to leave the white lake behind, so they decided to remain there until they exhausted the chaotic laws that it had to offer. The process took a while since they had to take long breaks from the lake to stabilize their individualities. It wasn''t easy to control the broadening of their existence with such an appealing resource near them. It was better to take the training slowly. Once they drained the lake, Noah and the others resumed their travel. The magical beasts'' domain was far bigger than the human side, so they had yet to explore countless lands. **** Author''s notes: Next chapter should come in half an hour or so. Chapter 1433: 1433. Floating island It was hard to keep track of the passage of time in the Immortal Lands. The white sky never went dark, and each training session could last for decades. Noah and the others were even fighting powerful creatures that could take weeks to kill, so they never bothered to calculate how many years they had spent together. The travel went smoothly. With Noah as a scout, the group always avoided areas that were too dangerous for their power. Also, most magical beasts were moving toward the regions on the borders, so they rarely met lands occupied by rank 8 creatures. The number of resources accumulated in that period was immense. Each successful hunt provided many corpses and the materials hidden in their lair. King Elbas'' knowledge also allowed them to recognize valuable things that the hybrids would have otherwise missed. Noah had so many resources that he resumed his mass-production of Instabilities during his breaks. He even started to invent new disposable weapons that could fit better with the Shadow Domain. His progress in that period was consistent. His body and dantian improved steadily, and he continuously increased the amount of dark matter stored inside his spherical rune to keep the expansion of his mind going. The journey was fruitful, with the only flaw that Noah had to hide his most powerful techniques. That period also gave him the time to perfect some of his projects. His martial arts and spells needed constant attention, but he grasped the use of the Shadow Doman quite well as he kept training. Even his experiments with the "embodiment of power" began to show real progress after he spent centuries testing various combinations of energies. Only the matter concerning his new Blood Companion was still at the starting point. Noah had high standards when it came to his Blood Companions. No magical beast met his requirements since Snore and Night created an almost impossible minimum to overcome. Even if Noah didn''t limit his search to creatures with a darkness aptitude, his research was inconclusive. He couldn''t find anything worthy of his existence, but his desire to test the red crystals was slowly taking over his need for another strong asset. Noah didn''t want to create a second Snore. The innate abilities of certain species could go beyond was his expertise could make from scratch. Night was proof of that. Noah had only improved its skill and removed its biggest flaw, but its power came from its species. The consciousness that the Blood Companion had to have was also an issue. Noah had picked the Albino Snake when it came to Snore because he had confirmed that the creature would be a suitable mind for his creation. However, Noah now needed a magical beast in the divine ranks, and the creatures at that level could be tricky to submit. They could also try to deceive or betray him since they didn''t rely only on their instincts. Their intelligence went against Noah in that project. It was something that he couldn''t avoid when dealing with magical beasts in the divine ranks. It was in their nature to seek freedom, and their level gave them more chances to seize it. The abilities that his creation would carry were another problem. Snore already featured the best that the dark matter could offer, so Noah wouldn''t know what to give to a second Blood Companion made entirely of higher energy. Noah eventually decided to suppress his curiosity for some more time. After all, he was exploring the magical beasts'' domain. His chances to find a good specimen were high, and he had too few red crystals to waste them in pointless experiments. As they were now, Noah, Don, Jordan, and King Elbas were running away from a pack of Silver Rhinos that featured fifteen specimens in the upper tier. King Elbas had caused another mess when he saw their silver horns. He had incurred in the pack''s wrath after using a peculiar slim thread to sever multiple horns from weaker specimens. Those creatures could manipulate the ground with their innate ability, and they could perform it at the same time to increase its effects. The group had to run for an entire region before the sky stopped being a mess of large boulders and sharp rocks. Don and Jordan didn''t complain after the escape because their group had never stood a chance against that pack. King Elbas had managed to seize some valuable horns even in that situation, so the others couldn''t scold him. Since they didn''t fight, the group soon resumed their journey, but a peculiar sight forced them to stop again. The four saw a massive island floating through the sky and moving in the direction of the border between the two domains. "Oh!" Jordan exclaimed at that sight. "Come, come. You have to meet him." Her words were for Noah and Don. She didn''t even consider King Elbas in her phrase. As the group flew toward the bottom of the floating island, a figure slowly became visible. There was a man under the big region. He was carrying the whole structure on his right shoulder. "Greetings, Lord Wilfred!" Jordan shouted before flying under the floating island to meet the man. Noah trusted Jordan enough to follow her even if his instincts were beginning him to run away. The man under the landmass radiated a rank 8 aura. He clearly was one of the leaders of the Legion. "Three hybrids and a human," Lord Wilfred said. "What a strange group." Noah could study the man properly once he reached him. Wilfred was quite fat, but his arms were as large as a man''s torso. He had blue eyes and dark hair, and a short beard grew from his chin. "The two of us are with the Legion," Jordan explained, "He will join us soon. The human is only an acquaintance." "Were you trying to reach Eenalin?" Wilfred asked before releasing a proud laugh. "We have already evacuated the city to move closer to the new border. The others should be already searching for a new place while I carry our homes there." Yellnbel was a city made of buildings that anyone could easily transport, but Eenalin moved together with its region. No one needed to move the buildings since Wilfred was strong enough to handle the job himself. "We are simply exploring the magical beasts'' domain now that the two sides are at war," Jordan continued. "Any news worth keeping in mind from these lands?" Wilfred fell silent and scratched his beard as he pondered over Jordan''s question. Noah''s eyes darted between his right shoulder and the island above him. He was afraid that the whole landmass would fall on him if the rank 8 hybrid lost his balance. "There might be something," Wilfred said. "The Land of the Fallen hidden in the magical beasts'' domain has changed rulers after the invasion. The old rank 8 beast wanted human meat, so they only left the weakest in their packs behind. You might find something good there." Noah''s eyes lit up at that point. That was one of his planned destinations, and the political situation in the Immortal Lands seemed to favor its exploration now. "The new ruler is a creature in the eighth rank, a rat-type magical beast," Wilfred said. "You can''t defeat it, but you should be able to handle the peripheral areas of its lair." Chapter 1434: 1434. Respec The invasion of the magical beasts forced the entire human domain to retreat, but some organizations remained almost unaffected by the event. Those occupying regions far away from the border didn''t need to move. The same applied to the forces that could seal pacts with some of the leaders in the army of magical beasts. The Crystal City had worked in close contact with many different powerful creatures during its reign on the border. Its location was past the edge of the human domain, in a secret place among areas ruled by magical beasts. The members of the Crystal City had benefitted for a long time from their unique political position. They were the first line of defense in the endless war against the magical beasts, so the other organizations would often turn a blind eye whenever they engaged in nefarious behaviors. The other organizations didn''t even question their behavior. The Crystal City could basically act as it wished since it performed the most dangerous role in the entirety of the human domain. That unique position had allowed the Crystal City to avoid losses during the invasion. It had only invested troops on the borders, but the rest of its members had remained in its headquarters, ready to complete other missions that would solidify their status once the two domains stabilized. The missions mainly involved political meetings with rank 8 magical beasts living near the border or specific regions. The Crystal City needed a network to remain informed about the movements of those creatures. The best informants were the magical beasts themselves. Only those creatures could truly understand the changes in their domain. Even if those missions went against their belief, the members of the Crystal City needed them. Apart from the various political missions, the Crystal City also had to handle matters that concerned its reputation. Rebels and enemies had to pay the price for their offense, and Noah had created enough chaos to become one of their most prized targets. A rank 8 cultivator sat on a throne made of purple crystals. She was beautiful, but her cold expression ruined the grace radiated by her figure. Long brown hair fell on her white robe, and her dark eyes shone on the experts kneeled in front of her. "My Lord only wants to help, Madame Canson," The cultivator closer to the throne said. "Defying Demon has offended his honor and tainted the great name of the Sailbrird family. Lord Ethan knows that he has done the same with the Crystal City. Our visit today is a simple expression of his goodwill." Madame Canson''s expression didn''t change. Her eyes didn''t even fall on the kneeled cultivator. Still, a figure promptly came from behind the throne and addressed the matter. "Does Lord Ethan think that the Crystal City can''t handle a single hybrid?" Miss Canson said as she stopped at her mother''s side. "Quite the opposite. Lord Ethan has a deep respect for the power that your force wields," The kneeled cultivator replied. "However, you must acknowledge that this Defying Demon isn''t a simple hybrid. Boss Van''s entire guild lost to him and his powerful friend." Miss Canson didn''t immediately answer that reply. She recalled Noah''s cold gaze, and the memory was still able to make a chill run down her spine. The news that he had defeated Boss Van''s guild only intensified her fear. An intense aura filled the hall at that point. The crystals that made the entirety of the room began to shine and reflect a white color. Even Miss Canson lowered her hear in front of that pressure. She could only show her utmost respect when her mother was about to speak. "The Crystal City has learnt about Boss Van''s guild long ago," Madame Canson said. "We even know that your Lord only wants to make him pay for a futile loss of face. Don''t you dare to compare our hatred to such a petty matter." The kneeled cultivator didn''t answer. He lowered his head even more in the hope that Madame Canson wouldn''t kill him in a flare of rage. Part of him even cursed Ethan for the role that he had forced him to play in that matter. "The hybrid must have returned to the Legion by now," Madame Canson continued. "Finding him is impossible, especially with the border in this state. Even our experts are waiting for him to appear again in the political scene." "I must contradict you, Madame Canson," The kneeled man said as he mustered all the courage that he was capable of. "Lord Ethan is almost certain that Defying Demon has crossed the border and is currently exploring the magical beasts'' domain. Many witnesses have seen his group leaving Silkpost city in the direction of the battlefields." Madame Canson didn''t answer. The Crystal City had an immense influence, but it couldn''t gather information about Noah during the auctions since most of its members in that area were fighting on the border. On the other hand, Ethan was free to pay off half of the city to find those clues since he wasn''t involved in the battlefields. "What are you asking the Crystal City to do?" Madame Canson eventually asked. "Lord Ethan wishes to remind you that he is making this request with the utmost respect," The kneeled man said. "He wants you to use your connections in the magical beasts'' domain to find Defying Demon and encircle him. We are simple messengers that he has sent to deliver this request and aid you in every matter that you see fit." Madame Canson''s aura became more intense, and the light radiated by the white crystal became brighter. The rank 8 expert seemed angry, but her expression continued to show no emotions. "Do you want the Crystal City to use those filthy beasts?" Madame Canson asked. "The Sailbrird family knows how it works," The man said. "We already have enough food to satisfy ten packs and an extra for the Crystal City. My team is also part of my Lord''s gift. He wants nothing more than seeing this matter end quickly." Madame Canson fell silent, but she soon nodded toward her daughter. Miss Canson stepped forward at that point, and she gestured at the kneeled experts to stand up. "You will be guests of the Crystal City from now on," Miss Canson said. "We can''t reach the deeper regions of the magical beasts'' domain, but we will spread the word among our informants. If Defying Demon shows his face, we will deploy our hunting team. You will be free to join it when the time comes." "We have no words to express our gratitude," The man said before standing up and performing a deep bow toward Madame Canson. "Lord Ethan and the Sailbrird family won''t forget this favor." The troops soon left, and Miss Canson escorted them toward quarters reserved to the most esteemed guests. That treatment was also part of the Crystal City''s political approach. Miss Canson had to ensure that the Sailbrird family would remain an ally even after the human domain stabilized. "Charles," Madame Canson said, and a slender rank 7 cultivator in the solid stage with long blonde hair appeared inside the hall. "Yes, Madame Canson," Charles replied as he placed a knee on the ground to perform a polite greeting. "How are our connections with the magical beasts'' domain?" Madame Canson asked. Charles immediately listed what his leader had requested. "We have successfully befriended the giant Crab living in the pond, the hordes of Tigers filling the southern side of the border, and the Rat King, the new ruler of the Land of the Fallen. Who do I need to hunt?" Chapter 1435: 1435. Pond Noah was aware that the Crystal City was looking for him, but he didn''t predict that it had informants among the prideful magical beasts. He felt safe among those creatures since they rarely listened to humans in his experience. Wilford soon left and carried the giant land away from their sight. Jordan only wanted Noah to see the power of the Legion in that meeting. After all, that leader was one of the strongest hybrids in its ranks. The group didn''t take much to decide their new destination. A few centuries had already passed since the beginning of the invasion, and they would spend more time traveling. They felt almost sure that visiting the Land of the Fallen was better than continuing their random exploration of those regions. Noah and the others turned back. They had flown away from the human domain until that point, but their new destination was near the old border. There was still much to explore of the magical beasts'' territory, but those lands would have to wait. The group didn''t follow their previous route. They flew in a straight line toward the Land of the Fallen, through lands that they had never explored, and they didn''t hold back from visiting each one of them. Their misadventures soon resumed. Don and Jordan had become so used to King Elbas'' behavior that they didn''t even complain anymore. They decided to shrink his share of the gains every time he caused a mess. Noah also learnt to hold back information from the Royal whenever he saw something that could trigger his curiosity. He had started to understand King Elbas'' individuality quite well in that period, so he changed his reports according to what he found during his solitary explorations. The travel back to the Land of the Fallen continued to provide valuable gains. The battle experience accumulated in that period allowed Noah and the others to polish their arts, and King Elbas'' methods gave them the chance to grow quickly. Fruitful years passed as the group continued their long adventure. Their teamwork even improved after a while, but they could show its actual value only when King Elbas agreed to cooperate. As the border became closer, the group started to sense the violence of the battles in the distance again. Someone was still fighting, even if the invasion was almost over. Still, Noah and the others ignored that battlefield to focus on reaching their destination. An immense pond unfolded in their vision when they were a few regions away from the Land of the Fallen. Murky waters reflected the white light of the sky and hid the dangers hidden in their depths. A series of magical plants that featured long roots filled the pond''s edges and different magical beasts inhabited the areas around it. Those smaller packs had upper tier creatures as their leaders, and they always avoided the pond during their daily life. Noah could immediately see that the true leader of the area was inside the pond. His senses also gave him an idea of its power. Only a creature in the eighth rank could make so many upper tier magical beasts scared of some water. The group quickly decided that they would also avoid the pond, but those murky waters captured their attention when they flew above them. The four of them could sense that the mere hid something valuable. Their minds seemed almost attracted by the faint red light that created small spots on the surface. Needless to say, King Elbas was the first to approach the pond. He didn''t rely on his reckless behavior since he feared the rank 8 creature hidden underwater, but those feelings didn''t stop his curiosity. Eight lenses came out of his space-ring as he floated above the pond and inspected its depths. Murmurs flew out of his mouth as various theories formed inside his mind. To the group''s surprise, King Elbas rejoined his companions instead of launching himself into another reckless battle. It seemed that the presence of the rank 8 beast scared him enough to keep him in survival mode. The truth behind his behavior ended up being something else. King Elbas did fear the rank 8 creature, but he had also seen something valuable that he couldn''t seize on his own. "I think the bottom of the pond contains many Bloodline Inheritances," King Elbas announced once he rejoined the others. "They seem to be part of the leader''s lair. They might even be a crucial feature behind the power of its species." "Did you manage to understand the species of the leader?" Noah asked as his vertical pupils shrunk. His greed had skyrocketed as soon as he heard the words "Bloodline Inheritances". Noah couldn''t help but desire that resource with the entirety of his existence. "No," King Elbas admitted. "Those waters carry the aura of the rank 8 leader. They are part of its existence, and my lenses can''t pierce it. You need to take a look. I might have a plan to seize the Bloodline Inheritances without alerting the beast." "How can you have something like that?" Jordan asked. "This isn''t a matter that your expertise can affect. Rank 8 creatures are worlds apart from those in the seventh rank." Don nodded at her words, and Noah also showed a doubtful expression. He trusted King Elbas'' expertise and judgment, but he was talking about stealing from a rank 8 creature. It was only normal to second guess the Royal''s proposal. "You hybrids think that your superior senses are unbeatable," King Elbas said before heaving a loud sigh. "Your mental energy carries specific waves that reflect your existence. The same happens with the magical beasts and their auras, but tricking those creatures is quite easy." Countless ideas surged in Noah''s mind, but he couldn''t imagine what King Elbas'' plan was. There was a limit to how much one''s expertise could do, especially when the difference in power was so significant. "You have cloaking robes capable of hiding your presence," King Elbas said, "But hiding is different from blending. I can create ropes that can blend with the environment and appear as part of the very matter of this area. The only problem is that I don''t know the exact nature of the leader''s aura." "Are you sure that you can do this?" Noah asked again. Noah liked the idea of obtaining Bloodlines Inheritances, but he wouldn''t gather information unless King Elbas felt sure about the mission. One mistake could alert the leader and put them in a fight against a rank 8 creature. That couldn''t happen. "Positive," King Elbas replied. "Still, everything will depend on how detailed your description is. The more features you can find, the more accurate my ropes will be." Noah could only accept the mission at that point. He couldn''t give up on a resource that could improve his mind quickly. The Bloodline Inheritances were so valuable and rare that every cultivator would pay any sum to get their hands on them. Don, Jordan, and King Elbas remained behind as Noah activated his robe and flew above the pond. The Royal even lent him his senses after Noah completed his first round of exploration. Through the lenses, Noah could inspect the red marks on the surface better. They came from tiny crystals laying at the bottom of the pond, and his mind could almost sense the different wills contained in their insides. Part of him had almost wished that King Elbas was mistaken, but he had to admit that his evaluation was on point. The pond contained many Bloodline Inheritances, and the group had to find a way to steal them now. **** Author''s notes: I need a bit more for the third. Should take less than 30 min. Chapter 1436: 1436. Fishing Noah''s knowledge of the magical beasts'' field fused with his superior awareness as he studied the bottom of the pond through King Elbas'' lenses. The faint red light radiated by the Bloodline Inheritances distracted him, but he didn''t forget about his task. His studies and instincts allowed him to create a few valuable theories about that environment. The environment didn''t carry traces of battles, so the Bloodline Inheritances had to be an inborn feature of that mysterious species. Those creatures had to be very smart and feel intense emotions to give birth to such a spectacle. They also had to die often and control their hunger to preserve the lair. Many names appeared in Noah''s mind. Details of species that he had only heard in legends and old reports came out of his mental sea and created a list of possible creatures that could inhabit that environment. The Kesier Apes were the most intelligent species he knew, but those creatures wouldn''t live underwater. The answer was somewhere else, inside knowledge that his lower plane had never managed to offer. The faint lights didn''t manage to illuminate the pond''s bottom, and its murky waters also hindered Noah''s inspection. However, the countless clues that he found as he explored that environment eventually led him toward a specific type of creature. ''Can they be crabs?'' Noah wondered as the pond filled his vision. Crab-type creatures were the only magical beasts that fit those criteria. They were relatively easy to kill, and innate weaker power prevented the appearance of restrictions on their fertility. The only variable that he couldn''t confirm was their intelligence. Noah had eliminated other impossible candidates when he created his hypothesis. Crab-type creatures were quite clever among the marine species. They lacked the innate stupidity that often afflicted other stronger beasts. Once Noah set his mind on a conclusion, he began to memorize the aura radiated by the murky waters. His mind became a vortex that absorbed every sensation released by the pond. King Elbas needed to adapt his ropes to those creatures'' aura, so Noah had to obtain a perfect image to grant him a chance to succeed in the mission. Stealing from rank 8 creatures was something that any rank 7 cultivator would deep as idiotic, but the duo was willing to risk their lives to seize those resources. An intense joy filled Noah''s mind. He felt almost high as those feelings fused with his mental sea and went through a thorough series of examinations. Noah had interacted with Bloodline Inheritances in the past, and he had even felt the strong emotions carried by the magical beasts. They had always been negative sensations. It was simply easier for them to mark the flesh and blood of their specimens. That was his first time seeing Bloodline Inheritances created from positive emotions, but that discovery fit his hypothesis. It explained how those creatures had created that environment without having been in dire situations for a long time. ''It feels like a drug,'' Noah thought. ''This aura makes me tired but active at the same time. It''s an addicting feeling that fills the entire pond. I wish I could taste its waters to understand its true effects.'' Noah and the others didn''t dare to touch the pond. The creatures inhabiting its bottom were giving the group the chance to leave the area, and even the rank 8 leader didn''t seem interested in them. However, the pond was their home, so they would probably attack the group if something happened to its waters. Those creatures would protect their lair. Noah remained above the pond until he felt that he couldn''t learn anything else. It would soon be up to King Elbas whether he could seize the crystals hidden at its bottom. Noah returned to his companions and took out a strand of dark-brown mental waves that he handed to King Elbas. Words were useless in that situation. The Royal needed to feel what Noah had sensed during his inspection. The Royal took out his portable habitation after he received Noah''s conclusions. King Elbas needed his labs to create an item that could help them in that task. Any other place wouldn''t give him the same success rate. Noah, Don, and Jordan flew toward the other side of the pond while King Elbas was busy with his inscriptions. They needed to prepare for the worst, which involved creating a series of traps that could slow down an eventual outbreak of the pack leader. The trio didn''t even think about killing it. The leader was a rank 8 creature. Their attacks would probably not affect it at all. Creating traps was the only possible plan in that situation. Noah''s expertise allowed the trio to create traps that targeted the common flaws of crab-type creatures. They had poor senses, and their legs were easy targets. It was only a matter of exploiting those weaknesses without enraging the leader enough to make it pursue the group to the other side of the Immortal Lands. Months of preparations went by. Noah and the others dug countless holes in their escape route and filled them with different traps. The holes near the pond featured the sticky saliva of the Mountain Lizard. Instead, those deeper in lands featured proper disposable weapons that Noah didn''t hesitate to place there. The group even eradicated trees to create natural hindrances. They would use everything they could to slow down the possible outbreak of the leader. Even the shortest delay could help them survive. King Elbas eventually came out of his habitation and joined the rest of the group. He added many layers of inscriptions on top of the traps, and he gave his companions his creations so that they could inspect them. Noah found a long golden rope in his hands. The item didn''t seem to have anything peculiar. It didn''t even appear as an inscribed item, but he could sense that its toughness was off the scale. Noah placed the rope on the ground, and its color changed. It became azure, like the terrain of the Immortal Lands. Then, he tested in a green spot in one of the nearby areas, and its color changed again. The ropes did what King Elbas had promised they would do. They fused with the environment and radiated little to no aura. Only a second inspection would reveal their fundamental nature as inscribed items. After the group completed their defenses, they dug an underground structure to have more chances to escape. Once everything was ready, the four took one rope each and took cover. "The ropes will naturally attract the Bloodline Inheritances," King Elbas explained. "The longer they remain inside the pond, the more crystals we will get. Still, I don''t know for how long they can trick the leader. I simply can''t evaluate the power wielded by rank 8 creatures." "Are we really going to do this?" Don asked. "I have the best chance to survive anyway," Jordan replied. "It was about time we messed with rank 8 creatures," Noah added. "I was getting tired of fighting against weak beasts." After the four exchanged a glance, they threw their ropes toward the pond and ducked. The items didn''t even cause ripples on the water. They directly fused with the pond when they touched it. Chapter 1437: 1437. Escape The ropes didn''t make any sound when they fell into the pond. They fused with the water and reached the lake''s bottom, where the various red crystals rested. King Elbas'' items released an almost untraceable aura when they touched the azure bottom of the pond. That energy affected the Bloodline Inheritances near the ropes and created a pulling force that attracted them. Noah and the others could sense what was happening on the other end of their items. They could fill the ropes with their mental energy and gain a vague understanding of the events unfolding at the bottom of the pond. The crystals moved toward the ropes and fused with their golden fabric. The four could already pull them out to seize some resources, but they left them there to attract more Bloodline Inheritances. They would continue as long as no one noticed what was happening. Something eventually happened inside the pond. Vague figures swam to inspect the strange event that was unfolding in that area of their lair. That was the signal that the group was waiting for. Noah and the others didn''t even need to talk to decide to retract their ropes before the inhabitants of the pond discovered them. The ropes left the waters silently and without creating any ripple. Their wet ends returned in the group''s grasp in an instant. Noah could barely contain his excitement. Four different crystals had fused with his rope. They were nothing more than thumb-sized red minerals, but he knew how valuable they were. ''They seem different from normal Bloodline Inheritances,'' Noah thought when he inspected the crystals. It wasn''t a surprise that the aura radiated by those Bloodline Inheritances differed from what he had obtained in the Bare Dungeon. Different emotions would give birth to diverse shapes and structures when it came to those resources. The Worm in the Bare Dungeon felt an immense hatred while crystals on the rope carried an intense ecstasy. That feeling was so dense that it enveloped the group in an eerie aura. Don almost ate one of those crystals under the effect of that aura. The Bloodline Inheritances were tempting him. They resembled the most appealing drug of the entire world. "Let''s store them for now," King Elbas promptly advised. "The leader or one of its underlings will eventually notice what we did. It''s better to gather as many crystals as possible for now." The three hybrids agreed with his proposal and suppressed their desire as they stored the Bloodline Inheritances inside their storage items. The time to enjoy their gains would arrive, but they had to continue fishing now. Their ropes flew toward the pond again, but the group decided to change their spot at that time. They didn''t move from behind their defenses, but they threw their items toward another area near the shore. The same thing happened again. The ropes released their auras and attracted Bloodline Inheritances. When shadows began to appear in the group''s senses, Noah and the others pulled back the items and inspected their gains. That process went on for a while. The group had no reason to stop until something bad happened, so they continued to fish Bloodlines Inheritances for an entire hour. Then, ripples filled the surface of the pond, and four ropes hurriedly flew out of it. "Run," Noah said calmly before turning to escape. His attention remained behind him, but his body quickly transformed into a black blade that released dark matter as it flew through the region. His companions reacted quickly. Jordan leaped backward as a pair of scaled wings came out of her back and made her cut through the entire region in less than an instant. Don dived toward the underground structure to escape, and King Elbas transformed into a sea of flames that covered most of the area. The group didn''t need to see the threat to know that it was coming. Even King Elbas'' survival instincts had begun to scream when a massive figure rose from the pond and revealed its might to the region. Noah could see how a giant azure crab came out of the pond unfolded its aura in the environment. An intense ecstasy filled the whole region, and the waters around it reacted to its influence. The leader had eventually appeared. A rank 8 magical beasts had come out of its environment to hunt Noah and the rest of his group. The crab was almost three hundred meters long. It had four claws that were nearly as big as its body, and eight massive legs came out of the pond as it moved toward the escaping experts. A series of rotating torrents rose from the pond and crashed on the shore. Golden light immediately filled the environment and tried to blind the creature for an instant. When the brilliance disappeared, the group could see that the first trap had failed. The torrents had destroyed the entire shore and most of the inscriptions placed there. King Elbas had created more defenses in that area, but the mere attack of a rank 8 creature had blasted them off before they could even activate. The crab saw the golden flames and didn''t hesitate to follow them. Its legs pierced the destroyed shore as they dragged its body out of the pond. Waterfalls fell from its claws as the rank 8 creature left the waters to chase the offenders on land. When its legs touched spots more inland, other golden inscriptions activated. The area turned golden for a second, and multiple presences that resembled Noah''s group filled the environment and tried to deceive the giant leader. The Crab didn''t care about that either. King ELbas was good, but he couldn''t deceive a rank 8 creature with his inscriptions. The leader simply walked through them and continued to charge toward the presence of its enemies. The creature could reach the next region with a simple jump, but something exploded when it bent its legs. A storm of black blades engulfed the Crab and made it stop for almost a second. The blades moved on their own and carried wills. Noah had developed another type of living weapon in the past years. Those swords had minds on their own, but Noah could control them with his mind. When he set the trap, Noah had commanded those disposable weapons to slow down his opponents as long as possible. The blades carried wills of lower tier creatures, so they couldn''t ignore his orders. The blade assaulted the Crab recklessly and even focused its joints. Still, they couldn''t even leave marks on that tough exoskeleton. Noah''s creations didn''t have the power to affect a rank 8 creature, but that applied to all his skills. He was too far away from that level. Even if the blades couldn''t hurt the creature, the deep holes created by the explosions made the leader lose its balance for an instant. Also, those detonations triggered a chain reaction that made all the other traps activate. The area between the pond and the next region fell into chaos. Golden light, explosions, black clouds, swords, spikes, shining lines, and much more filled that piece of land and hindered the leader''s advance. The four soon couldn''t see the giant Crab anymore, but they never slowed down. The intense ecstasy that had filled the region was still there, and they had to maintain their complete focus on their mental state to keep escaping at full speed. Chapter 1438: 1438. Noise A deafening clanging noise came out from the mess that had filled the area near the pond. Noah, Don, Jordan, and King Elbas felt hammers slamming on their minds every time that sound echoed through the environment and reached their figures. It didn''t matter what techniques they were using. The clanging noise hurt their minds and tried to slow down their escape. However, the four mustered all the power in their consciousness to remain calm and focus on leaving the region. Blood began to flow down Noah''s nose. The clanging noise managed to suppress the screaming of his instincts and forced him to use all his focus to keep his movement technique active. The other experts were in a similar situation. Even Jordan couldn''t escape suffering injuries when her opponent was a rank 8 magical beast. Explosions continued to resound in the chaotic area. The traps continued to detonate, and the might radiated by their power made the sky bend. The four experts had amassed so much energy in that place that event the Immortal Lands were struggling to contain it. Still, even that might couldn''t stop the giant Crab. Its massive figure eventually walked out of the messy area and revealed the source of the clanging sound that was affecting the experts. The Crab''s claws slammed on each other and released that deafening noise. They resembled small mountains as they moved left and right to create those intense soundwaves. The azure ground began to give in as the soundwaves continued to spread through the area. Cracks opened, and weaker magical beasts died under the pressure radiated by that noise. A rank 8 creature was a walking calamity, and the Crab expressed its power perfectly. Even if it lacked proper long-range attacks, its soundwaves were capable of inflicting immense damage. However, the Crab had to accept the reality of the situation when it left the messy aura. Nothing tried to hinder its awareness anymore, but it couldn''t sense the auras of its enemies. The many traps had made it lose no more than three seconds, but that time had been enough for the group to escape from the range of its senses. Even if the Crab wanted to follow them, it didn''t know where to go. The Crab vented on the ground at that point. It slammed its massive claws on the azure terrain and created as much chaos as it could. Some of the weaker beasts in the nearby areas died when the shockwaves radiated by its attacks reached them. Entire packs even left their lairs to escape from the same fate. . . . Noah felt weak. He had flown for four entire days, even if his head felt heavy. A faint crack had also appeared on his mental walls, so he was in deep need of rest. Yet, he didn''t dare to stop. He had lost track of the rank 8 Crab for a few days already, but he didn''t know how determined to retrieve the Bloodline Inheritances that creature was. His mind always prepared him for the worst outcome, so he continued to fly for two more weeks before deciding to stop. The crack on his mental walls had slightly enlarged due to his continued struggle, but his condition wasn''t as poor as it looked. Noah cleaned the blood that had fallen from his nose before digging a cave where to recover. His black hole had tried to do its best during the flight, but even that incredible organ couldn''t start healing him until he stopped. Resisting the soundwaves had exhausted Noah. The black hole couldn''t heal him until he regained some energy, but Noah could do that only once he rested. Moreover, the clanging noises that had injured him had carried the Crab''s influence. The ecstasy radiated by that creature filled the damage on his mental walls and made him suffer far more. That aura would also slow down his recovery, but Noah didn''t mind spending more time healing. He had obtained what he wanted, and his injuries were only a small price to pay for that. Noah could finally fix his condition once he sealed the cave with his dark matter. His black hole enhanced his mental sphere''s properties and helped transform his mental energy into a substance that could fix the crack quickly. No mental messages reached his inscribed notebook in that period. The other experts were also busy healing, and neither would move until they returned to their peak condition. Long months passed, but Noah eventually recovered and began his inspection of the Bloodline Inheritances. Some of them were still on the golden rope, and he didn''t hesitate to pick one of the crystals. ''I wonder what you will show me,'' Noah thought before placing the crystal at the center of his forehead. The Bloodline Inheritance melted, and its insides fell on Noah''s mental sea. Vague memories and feelings filled his mind as images began to appear in his vision. Noah saw the murky waters of the pond. They seemed the clearest liquid in the world from his new eyes, and everything appeared perfect from his point of view. The water gave him life, and a sense of coziness enveloped him. He could feel that someone was protecting him, which made him feel more willing to start living. The ecstasy continued to fill his mind until his external shell broke. The water fell on his face, but it felt dirty, tainted by the outside world. Yet, he couldn''t live without that sensation anymore. That delight was his everything! Noah turned to see the remains of his red shell fusing with the bottom of the pond. They belonged to the lair now. Desperation filled his mind when he thought that he couldn''t satisfy his addiction anymore, but more red shells soon appeared in his view. A wicked idea appeared in his mind at that point. His ecstasy was within claw''s reach. He only needed to stretch it to reach the brothers and sisters that had yet to be born. Still, before he could even move, a shadow covered the whiteness that seeped inside the pond and filled the bottom of the pond with the intense ecstasy that all the newborns sought. Noah raised his claws at the sky to worship the shadow. He saw the giant Crab spitting countless red shards from its mouth, and he easily caught one of them. When the shard entered his mouth, the ecstasy that he felt became even more intense. He was finally complete. Before he could even think about it, he had already devoted his entire life to the mighty bringer of delight. Noah woke up from the dream at that point. A small smile appeared on his face when he saw that his arms were pointing at the sky. Something similar had happened with his first Bloodline Inheritance, and thinking about it had made him nostalgic. ''A species that reproduces through Bloodline Inheritances,'' Noah thought as he laid on the ground. ''What strange creatures. Their crystals don''t improve my mind by a lot, but no one would ever refuse this free boost.'' Noah noted the pond''s location in his mind before straightening his position and checking his inscribed notebook. His companions had sent him mental messages where they asked him to wait until they divided the goods before using the crystals. ''Too late,'' Noah thought as he told them his position and took another Bloodline Inheritance from his separate space. Inside his mind, he was already calculating how many of them he could use before they began to suspect him. Chapter 1439: 1439. Hunting teams Miss Canson ran through the corridors made of crystals that radiated a purple radiance when the white light of the sky fell on them. An inscribed notebook flickered in her grasp, and a happy expression rested on her face. The expert crossed many halls until she reached a small room where a slender cultivator was meditating. The man quickly straightened his position and performed a bow when Miss Canson entered his habitation. He was stronger than her, but he had to show his respect toward the daughter of a pillar of the Crystal City. "We found something," Miss Canson announced. "The giant Crab from the pond has reported that four humans have robbed its lair. Defying Demon might be with them." "Was he with rank 8 cultivators?" Charles asked as a stupefied expression appeared on his face. Robbing a rank 8 magical beast would most of the time lead to certain death. The fact that the four humans had survived meant that their power had to be at a similar level. "No," Miss Canson replied. "According to the creature, they were no more than smart flies capable of petty tricks. The whole group must be in the seventh rank." "I can only acknowledge this hybrid''s guts," Charles admitted. "I can''t wait to meet him on the battlefield. Did the Crab mention where they went?" "Yes," Miss Canson said happily. "The creature wasn''t precise with its description, but we are almost certain that they are going toward the Land of the Fallen. I have already contacted the Rat King. It will notify their precise location once they enter its domain." "Perfect," Charles replied. "I will gather my team. I will also bring Lord Ethan''s team with me. Solidifying our friendship with the Sailbrird family can only benefit the Crystal City." "Are you sure?" Miss Canson asked. "Bringing Defying Demon''s head back to the palace should be enough. We should be careful with outsiders. They don''t know how many compromises we have to make regarding the magical beasts'' domain. They won''t understand." "The must," Charles said as a cold smile appeared on his face, "Or we will force them to accept them." Miss Canson nodded and left the room before Charles could perform another polite bow. His cold smile vanished after she left, and an expressionless face replaced it. Charles felt that something was off. Defying Demon had been in the Immortal Lands for less than a millennium, but he had already clashed with multiple forces. He had even found powerful and reckless companions, which usually hinted at something that could make his hunts troublesome. "A group of rank 7 cultivators that steals from the lair of a rank 8 creature," Charles whispered to himself. "The magical beasts'' domain is losing power. The Crystal City will soon have the strength to reclaim those lands." Charles changed, wearing one of the inscribed white robes of the Crystal City, and left his room. His inscribed notebook appeared in his hands, and multiple mental messages flowed into the item as he walked toward the habitations of Madame Canson''s guests. A slightly disgusted expression appeared on his face when he saw the state of Lord Ethan''s guards. The Crystal City had provided them with everything they requested, but they had spent all the time inside the palace drinking wine and indulging in despicable behaviors. "To think that the other forces still rely on the guilds," Charles said without hiding his disgust. The cultivators in the habitation quickly straightened their position and cleaned the area before reporting to Charles. The only solid stage expert around them neared the member of the Crystal City and performed a polite bow before waiting for him to talk. "We have found something," Charles said. "It might be Defying Demon. You will join my team for the hunt. I hope this isn''t a problem." "Absolutely," The man in the solid stage replied, but a doubtful expression soon appeared on his face. "With all due respect, don''t you think that bringing your team along is too much? Defying Demon is only a liquid stage hybrid. I have eight soldiers who are at the same level." Charles stared deep into the man''s brown eyes before heaving a sigh. He could see how lightly the organizations that rarely went to war took those situations. That approach was the main reason behind so many rebels. "Your name?" Charles asked. "Percival," The solid stage expert replied. "Very well, Percival," Charles said. "Defying Demon and his group have successfully robbed a lair protected by a rank 8 magical beast. You are also aware of what he had done in the past. I believe that experts at the same level won''t be enough to kill him." "But we are stronger than him," Percival replied. "Strength is relative in some fields," Charles said. "Defying Demon is a hybrid, so we have to consider the magical beasts around him as his allies. He has already used them to his advantage, and he has no fear in summoning rank 8 creatures because he knows that his chances of survival are higher than ours." Percival gulped. He wouldn''t summon a rank 8 magical beast even in his wildest dreams. He had seen some of those in action, and the memory would remain in his mind forever. "He also has a strange individuality and unique techniques," Charles continued. "He was in the gaseous stage before entering the Hellish Landscape, but he came out as an expert in the liquid stage after defeating our troops that featured an expert at that level." Percival could only gulp again. Charles'' tone was becoming colder, but his words were on point. Defying Demon had already survived situations when he was at a disadvantage. The best way to ensure the success of their hunt was to bring enough man-power that even the luckiest of the encounters couldn''t allow him to escape. "What do you have in mind?" Percival eventually asked. "I will take another solid stage expert of the Crystal City with us," Charles replied. "Other liquid stage cultivators will also join. I want this mission to be a crushing success." "It will be," Percival said. "This team will be stronger than most guilds. I don''t believe that he can survive this." "Good," Charles replied before leaving the room. The time for words was over. It was time to put an end to the long troubles caused by Defying Demon. . . . While the Crystal City activated its hunting teams, Noah and the others regrouped near the Land of the Fallen. Their destination was on the opposite side of the Land of the Fallen in the old human domain, so they didn''t have much information about the area. Still, the main topic of their conversation didn''t involve those regions. "Are you sure that you have only taken eleven crystals with your rope?" Don asked. "Why would I even lie?" Noah replied. "I can make a list to answer that," Jordan answered. "I can add things on that list," King Elbas added. "Look," Noah began to speak. "I might have used one or two Bloodlines Inheritances, but you can''t blame me. We literally travel with a cultivator that can''t hold back his curiosity." "Noah," King Elbas said before heaving a sigh. "We all have more than fifty crystals, and the ropes are identical." Noah could only show a shameless smile at that line, but his attention went elsewhere when he noticed something peculiar. On a tree near his position, he saw a large Rat writing something on a leaf as it glanced toward his group. Chapter 1440: 1440. Rats Initially, Noah thought that his recent abuse of Bloodline Inheritances had made him hallucinate. His mind had greatly benefited from those crystals, and he had yet to become used to its new size. However, it was almost impossible for his superior awareness to fell prey to such symptoms. Noah had a clear understanding of what was happening. His eyes weren''t lying to him. The large Rat wrote faster when it noticed Noah''s gaze on it. Its tiny fingers drew lines on the big leaf in its grasp, and its eyes darted among the members of the group. Needless to say, Noah remained speechless and confused at that sight. That was his first time seeing such behavior in a magical beast, especially since he could sense the Rat''s intentions. Its weak mind couldn''t hide anything from him. "No point in dividing them," Don concluded before noticing that something was off. Jordan and King Elbas also noticed Noah''s odd behavior. They had been together long enough to understand when one of them sensed that something was happening. Their auras instantly expanded as they turned to look in the direction of Noah''s gaze. The Rat froze when it sensed the four pairs of eyes fixing on it. Its nose trembled as it pretended to be a normal animal inspecting the environment, but its leaf fell during its act. The leaf rotated as it fell toward the ground. Its front appeared only for an instant, but the four experts didn''t fail to memorize the drawing on its surface. The Rat had depicted a lifelike picture of their faces. The four expert''s gazes returned to the Rat, who froze again. It initially tried to resume its act, but the mental waves that flew in its direction forced it to give up on that approach. A moment of silence passed before the Rat left its branch to dive toward the leaf. Loud squeals came out of its mouth as its short fingers reached for its drawing. Noah was the first to react. His body transformed into a black blade that released dark matter when he shot toward the falling Rat. The two met when the beast touched the ground, and Noah''s hand shot to seize it. Surprisingly, Noah failed to take the Rat. The creature sprinted in the distance as soon as its feet touched the ground, leaving him nothing to catch. The beast had even managed to seize the leaf before running away and continuing to release loud squeals. ''How fast is it?!'' Noah wondered as he chased the Rat. The Rat was a simple magical beast in the middle tier. It was two meters tall and coverer in brown fur. Tiny pink legs came out of its hair, and two sharp teeth stuck out of its small mouth. The creature didn''t seem special. It even appeared relatively weak due to its small size. Yet, its speed was incredible. It was even able to match Noah''s movement technique when it came to raw acceleration. Noah continued his chase as he translated the squeals in his mind. He was slowly reaching the Rat since he was faster than the creature on the long sprint. Still, its cries didn''t make him feel happy about that. The Rat was calling for help, but Noah could feel selflessness in its tone. The creature didn''t want to save itself. It wanted its companions to take the leaf, and it was willing to give its life to complete that task. It was rare to see that selflessness in the cultivation world, especially when it came to the magical beasts. Those creatures would give their life away only when a leader compelled them to sacrifice for its benefits, but the Rat seemed to have a greater purpose in its mind. Noah eventually reached the Rat, and his hand didn''t fail to seize it at that time. However, a shadow suddenly ran under the creature and took the leaf in its grasp. ''Another one?'' Noah shouted in his mind. Once the effects of the acceleration wore off, Noah could see that the shadow consisted of another large Rat. The creature had heard its companion''s squeal and had come in its help to save the leaf. ''Where did it even come from?'' Noah wondered as it shot toward the second Rat without letting go of the first. Noah wanted to interrogate the creatures. Their behavior was too strange, and their species suited what Wilfred had told them about the Land of the Fallen. Those beasts had to be part of the pack that inhabited their destination. Just like they wanted to understand who they were, Noah wanted to gather information about the Rats. Noah quickly reached the second Rat, but the same happened. He caught the creature, but a third Rat ran under it and seized the leaf. There didn''t seem to be an end to those beasts. ''Enough with this,'' Noah thought as Snore''s reptilian head came out of his chest and swallowed the two Rats in his hands. The Blood Companion didn''t kill them. It simply stored them inside its massive body made of dark matter for the time being. The Rats were fast, but they didn''t have the power to pierce Snore''s body. Noah accelerated at that point. Dark matter flowed inside his black vessels and brought his movement technique to its peak. He reached the third Rat in an instant, and his hand squeezed its neck before it could even squeal. No shadow appeared. Noah had been too fast. He saw something moving in the distance, but he had arrived before that creature could reach its companion. "Start speaking," Noah said as roar fused with his human voice. The Rat released soft squeals as Noah''s pressure filled its mind. It could feel his pride and the influence of a creature that it couldn''t oppose. If it remained for too long in its grasp, it would spill everything. The creature struggled to release a last squeal, and everything began to tremble at that point. Noah didn''t understand what was happening, but he soon saw the ground under him shattering to fall into a vast underground structure crowded with Rats. Countless creatures filled the underground structure. Most of them were in the lower tier, but many middle tier specimens also ran among them. They were an army that Noah didn''t manage to sense until the ground crumbled. The underground structure expanded for kilometers. Noah understood that his group had been inside the Rat''s domain for a while already. They had already invaded. The Rats leaped out of the underground structure and swarmed Noah. He couldn''t oppose that tide even if he waved his arched fingers to kill as many creatures as possible. Blood filled his surroundings, but there was no end to the tide. Hundreds of magical beasts used each other as platforms to jump through the air and create a barrier of bodies. Noah spat flames that incinerated that barrier. Countless Rats died as soon as his flames filled the environment, but those creatures had managed to keep him still for a whole second by now. When the flames fused with his body and dispersed, Noah inspected the Rat in his grasp. Bite marks covered its headless body, and he found no trace of the leaf in its grip. The other surviving Rats had also escaped thanks to the sacrifice of their companions. Chapter 1441: 1441. Decision Noah felt at a loss of what to do. Those Rats had outsmarted him. They had been more prepared and organized than his group. He was utterly powerless about that situation. Jordan and the others reached him one instant after his flames laid waste to the army. They had been only one step behind him during his chase, so they had seen what had happened. The same confusion that filled Noah''s mind appeared on their faces, and coldness soon filled their expressions. Their situation was clear. The pack in the Land of the Fallen was already aware of their arrival. "You are the expert," King Elbas said to Noah. The scenes of that short battle reappeared in Noah''s vision, and the Divine Deduction technique improved his analysis. Noah quickly grasped every important feature of those creatures, and he didn''t hesitate to explain them to his companions. "They are fast, but only during the initial phase of their sprint," Noah explained. "Any of us can reach them in a long chase. They have innate hiding abilities, and they are organized." Snore came out of his chest and opened its mouth. Two hairy bodies came out of the Blood Companion, but a cold expression appeared on Noah''s face when he saw their state. The Rats that he had previously captured had bitten each other''s neck while Noah was busy with the chase. That was his mistake. He had the chance to separate them with his dark matter, but he didn''t expect them to commit suicide. "They are selfless," Noah continued. "They would rather die than fall in enemy hands. We shouldn''t consider them as a simple pack. They are a full-fledged army carrying an incredible determination." The trio fell silent at his words. They had initially believed that the Land of the Fallen would have been easy to explore as long as they avoided its central areas. Still, it seemed that the new ruler of that area was far more troublesome than they expected. "They are still quite weak, right?" Don asked. "You must have killed two hundred of them just now. The main pack must feel this loss." Jordan and King Elbas glanced at Noah, and an ugly expression appeared on their faces when they saw him shaking his head. "Weakness in the cultivation world indicates a higher fertility," Noah explained. "In this case, it might very well be the strongest feature of this species." Noah had never seen a pack made of so many divine beasts. He didn''t face any upper tier creature either, so he felt sure that his opponents had been nothing more than a minor pack, a force meant only to die if anything terrible happened. "They were scouts," Noah concluded, "And they have completed their mission." His words stated how serious the situation was. Usually, Noah and the others would have nothing to fear from magical beasts, even if they featured multiple specimens in the upper tier. However, their opponent was a rank 8 creature at that time, and it was now aware of their arrival. An obvious doubt appeared in their minds after that realization. The four of them wondered whether it was wiser to turn back and avoid the Land of the Fallen. The giant Crab was probably looking for them, but that creature didn''t have the Rats'' threatening hiding abilities. The group would sense it from far away, and they would have the time to change direction accordingly. However, they had nowhere else to go. The magical beasts'' field was still vast and hid countless regions that they had yet to explore, but the group wanted to grow now. It was pointless to have an immense world at their disposal if the experts could only explore its tip. Their power needed to increase if they wanted to make the best out of their journey, and only the Land of the Fallen could provide quick improvements. Noah was the first to break the silence that had fallen among the group. His knowledge of the magical beasts'' field had allowed him to assess the nature of the threat faster than the others. He could also evaluate their situation better, so he felt the need to speak before the others made personal decisions. "They only know our faces and level of power," Noah said. "They are unaware of our abilities. On the other hand, we know their species as well as their innate skills. We are at a disadvantage now that they are aware of our arrival, but our situation remains almost the same." Noah''s reasoning was on point, but he ignored that the Crystal City had begun to search him. The picture drawn on the leaf wouldn''t help the Rat King. It was for the hunting team. "Escaping shouldn''t be a problem either," Jordan added. "They can''t fly, and any of us can launch attacks powerful enough to open a path among their corpses. Also, they can''t control every corner of the Land of the Fallen." "He said that because being in a group increases his chances to survive the exploration," King Elbas replied. "Those beasts are dangerous only if they can swarm us, which is far more difficult if we are together." Noah revealed a cold smile toward King Elbas, but he didn''t deny his claim. The Royal was right. He would never march toward the Land of the Fallen if he were on his own. "This is the meaning of a team," Don said. "We aren''t admirable characters either. His reasons apply to all of us." "Only if we decide to join the exploration," King Elbas replied. "This side of the Land of the Fallen features inheritances that the human side can''t normally visit," Noah said. "Imagine multiple Hellish Landscapes waiting for us to arrive. Our power is off the chart, so we stand a good chance to obtain something." "You bastard," King Elbas whispered as his curiosity intensified. Noah had only needed to describe the details of the Land of the Fallen to trigger King Elbas'' curiosity. The Royal had no choice but to visit that place now. His individuality forced him to explore that place. "You would have come anyway," Noah said. "I''m simply avoiding useless conversations. We might enter an inheritance before the rank 8 leader learns about our existence. If we hurry." "Defying Demon is right," Jordan added. "We are faster than those creatures. Setting off now might prevent them from warning the main pack." Don struggled his shoulders. He had already decided to continue the exploration. The sole fact that the Land of the Fallen featured so many magical beasts was too appealing for him. Jordan felt the same. The Rats were weak, but they were divine beasts. Even if they didn''t provide the same amount of energy as other creatures, their numbers could make up for that features. The inheritances were only a bonus for the three hybrids. Having the chance to kill hundreds of divine beasts was already enough for them. The power of their bodies would skyrocket if they could kill thousands of Rats every day. "It''s decided then," King Elbas said before turning in the direction of the Land of the Fallen. "We better hurry." The three hybrids imitated him and prepared for a long sprint, but King Elbas added something before setting off. "The matter of the Bloodline Inheritances is also over. We won''t divide the crystals since someone has already finished his part." Chapter 1442: 1442. Crowded It wasn''t hard to understand where the Land of the Fallen began. The group flew past regions rich in life that forests and packs of magical beasts until they arrived in a vast empty prairie. The prairie was immense. It spanned as far as the group''s eyes could see, and it only featured short strands of grass as forms of life. It didn''t contain any magical beast according to their senses. Large craters tainted that otherwise flat land. Traces of old battlefields filled the prairie, but the passage of time had almost covered most of them. The terrain of the Immortal Lands was so rich that even fights among rank 8 cultivators couldn''t turn its regions into wastelands. The emptiness of the prairie was a clue that Noah didn''t miss. He had already confirmed the Rats'' extraordinary hiding abilities, so the lack of magical beasts hinted at the presence of those creatures. No magical beast would give up on inhabiting such a vast region. The area was rich in "Breath", and its terrain contained enough power to nurture entire packs for countless years. The energy in the inheritances hidden in the prairie leaked from those structures and flowed into the outside world. The ground benefitted from the presence of those structures, especially since they weren''t proper areas meant to test cultivators. The inheritances generated by the dying wills of powerful experts were generally messier than the others. The cultivators who had died on those battlefields didn''t have the time to create proper trials. The world had simply taken the form that they desired. That made the Land of the Fallen appealing to most cultivators. The trials there would either be easy or downright impossible. Those inheritances lacked the complex challenges that could appear in structures like the pyramid. Noah and the others didn''t speak. They had already decided their approach during their hurried flight. Their goal was to enter an inheritance and ignore any creatures hidden underground. The Land of the Fallen in the human domain had signals. The cultivators had explored it long enough to find the entrance of most inheritances contained there. However, the Land of the Fallen under the control of the magical beasts didn''t have those features. Noah and the others were in the blind, but one of them could solve their issue rather quickly. King Elbas took out a series of golden lenses from his space-ring. Those curved pieces of glass floated in front of his face as he inspected the prairie. The lenses showed him the flow of the "Breath" in the area. King Elbas could analyze that phenomenon to understand which spots could potentially hide an inheritance. King Elbas could also see the nature of that "Breath" through his lenses. He could understand its element and the vague true meanings that it carried. That gave him a chance to pursuit inheritances that seemed to suit his individuality. The three hybrids knew about that, but they couldn''t do anything to stop King Elbas from exploiting his advantage. It was only normal for the Royal to make his choice according to his individuality. The hybrids would have done the same if they owned items capable of accurately detecting the "Breath". "This way," King Elbas said as he flew toward one of the large cracks. The grass was shorter in that area, and an oppressing aura came out of the crack. Something inside that structure caused those strange reactions in the environment, and the group didn''t hesitate to dive toward it. The depths of the crack featured many intricate runes on its azure walls. King Elbas wanted to stop studying them, but their situation didn''t give him the time to satisfy his curiosity. When the group was about to reach the end of the crack, the walls on their sides broke. A tide of hairy creatures flew out of the tunnels that had opened. An earthquake also spread through the areas, and countless boulders fell toward them as that destruction continued. It was as if the whole crack didn''t want them to reach its bottom alive. The Rats controlled the environment so well that they could use it to their advantage. "They want to separate us!" Don exclaimed when he gained a general understanding of what was happening. The four turned to face every side. Noah, Jordan, and King Elbas launched flames toward the countless creatures jumping on each other''s back to reach the experts. Instead, Don waved his hands to shatter the boulders above him and create monkey-like puppets to hinder the Rats'' assault. Hundreds of creatures died in an instant. That pack didn''t feature any upper tier creature, so the black, red, and golden flames killed countless specimens in a single blow. That slight loss didn''t seem to affect the pack. More Rats came out of the tunnels, and loud squeals filled the entirety of the crack. Those cries even echoed through the surface and alerted the creatures living in other spots. The group counterattacked as they continued their descent. The experts wanted to find an entrance quickly, but their expressions turned cold when they saw Rats coming out of the crack''s bottom. They could create a path through those creatures, but they wouldn''t have the time to explore the area before the Rats coming out of the walls reached the bottom. A tide of beasts also appeared on the surface. The sheer size of the army obscured the white light of the sky and made the crack fall into complete darkness. The Rats had surrounded the group in less than ten seconds. "We need to find another one!" Jordan shouted, and the experts began to launch their attacks toward the Rats falling from above them. The multicolored flames easily opened a path toward that army and allowed the experts to return to the surface. King Elbas didn''t need to take out his lenses anymore. He had already gained a general understanding of the area during his first inspection, so he could lead the group toward the next inheritance already. The group flew out of the crack and moved in a seemingly random spot of the prairie. A second inspection revealed that the grass had grown following a specific trend. When looked at it from above, it depicted a symbol that resembled a rune. Still, before the experts could reach that spot, the ground broke, revealing an underground structure that contained hundreds of Rats. Noah and the others had to stop again, but the Rats didn''t hesitate to jump toward them. Some of those creatures even managed to reach them after using their companions as platforms, and their sharp teeth tried to stab their flesh. That assault didn''t manage to injure the experts who quickly vanquished that pack. Yet, more Rats appeared inside that underground structure, and the group soon had to give up on that spot. King Elbas quickly led them toward another area. A narrow but deep pit soon unfolded in their vision, but Rats came out of it before they could even approach it. When the experts left that spot, they discovered that Rats now filled every inch of that region. Only the distant areas were still empty. Thousands of magical beasts had come out of the ground to attack them. Noah and the others exchanged a glance at that point and flew higher in the sky, in areas that the Rats couldn''t reach. Then, they began to throw attacks toward the surface. The Rats were too dangerous to face on the surface, but the experts could slowly destroy them from far away. Chapter 1443: 1443. Wave Noah was in ecstasy. His flames weren''t ideal at a long distance, but they still managed to kill many Rats when they filled the ground. Then, the minute fiery tongues that flew back at him filled his body with energy that the black hole purified and redirected toward his tissues. He had abilities that could inflict more damage on the enemy army, but the situation was too perfect. Noah could absorb an immense amount of energy without the slightest effort. The Land of the Fallen turned out to be the best training are for his body! Noah thrived on the weakness of the Rats. Those creatures didn''t give him as much energy as other magical beasts at the same level, but even that lower amount was enough to improve his body by leaps and bounds. Don, Jordan, and King Elbas noticed that Noah wasn''t using his best attacks, and they sensed that he improved as his kill count increased. Still, they didn''t say anything about the matter. Their situation was too safe. The Rats couldn''t reach them, so they could slowly clear the path toward the inheritances without meeting any danger. The experts resembled gods of destruction as they unleashed a relentless offensive toward the prairie. Countless Rats died during the assault, but their number didn''t diminish. More creatures jumped on each other to create a meat shield that protected the region''s underground areas. Noah felt that something was off. He had already confirmed the intelligence of those creatures, so he couldn''t understand why they didn''t retreat into the ground. The group''s offensive couldn''t even damage the environment too much. At that distance, rank 7 cultivators couldn''t reach the regions'' deeper parts with their attacks. The ground already stopped a lot of power. Yet, his doubts didn''t make him slow down his offensive. The Rats were probably planning something, but Noah didn''t care as long as he could continue to absorb that immense amount of energy. Eventually, the Rats began to retreat. Loud squeals echoed through the entire prairie. The whole army was going back underground, where the enemy attacks wouldn''t reach them. Noah spat as many flames as he could before a helpless sigh escaped from his mouth. All the Rats had vanished. His undisturbed hunt was over. ''My body has crossed the halfway mark of the middle tier,'' Noah thought happily. Typical hunts couldn''t even come close to providing such growth. The Rats had given Noah so much energy that his body had completed years of training and meals in a few minutes. Noah felt slightly dizzy, but his black hole quickly dispersed that sensation. His body''s sudden growth had created an unbalance in his existence, but the fourth center of power took care of harmonizing everything. Power filled every fiber of Noah''s body. That sudden change was an unusual feeling for him since he would rarely get the chance to seize such marvelous benefits. It was almost impossible to find a resource that would give him as much energy without forcing severe drawbacks. ''I wonder if I can bait them out again,'' Noah wondered as the Divine Deduction technique activated. Suddenly, Noah didn''t care about the various inheritances anymore. He only wanted to face the army of Rats again. Killing them gave him greater benefits than any non-final trial. "Maybe they will leave a few paths open now," Don said. "I hope they keep struggling till the end!" Noah replied as he turned toward his companion to show his broad smile. Still, when Noah looked toward Don, he noticed that a massive shadow had appeared in the distance. That silhouette reached heights that his eyes couldn''t see. It resembled a mountain that was quickly moving toward them. Don, Jordan, and King Elbas noticed the shock on Noah''s expression and turned. The same astonishment and confusion appeared on their face as their consciousness expanded toward the shadow to understand its nature. The group couldn''t initially make out the true nature of the shadow, but everything became clear when it was about to reach them. The mountain was nothing more than a tide of Rats piled on each other! "Forward!" A Rat in the upper tier shouted from the top of the massive wave. Its voice was a mixture of a long squeal and a human word that carried an immense pride. The upper tier creature announced itself as the leader of that army, and it didn''t mind speaking in a language that even cultivators could understand. Everything connected inside Noah''s mind after he saw the wave. That attack was the reason behind his odd sensation. The Rats didn''t stay on the surface to protect the underground areas. They needed to perform a specific movement to create that offensive. The Rats on the prairie had acted as if they were a sea. Their movements had given birth to a wave on the other side of the region. As the attack continued to move through the sea of creatures, its size increased, eventually leading to that current shape. The four experts had vast battle experience. That unusual sight didn''t manage to freeze them. Their instincts took charge of their movements, and they quickly turned to escape from the wave. The group initially tried to fly upward, but their minds soon warned them that they would fail in that task. The wave was too tall for them to fly above it. The best approach was to fly away in a straight horizontal line until the attack lost its momentum and the massive wave crumbled. There was a limit to how long the Rats could remain in that position. The experts had to last until that point. Piercing it wasn''t an option either. The wave was too thick. It would overwhelm the group after they killed the beasts in its external layers. Scaled wings came out of Jordan''s back. King Elbas transformed into dense flames. Don covered his body with a metallic material that made his momentum increase. Noah transformed into a black blade that released dark matter. The four experts deployed their movement techniques to escape from the wave. A long chase began. The group ran away from the wave that kept moving faster. Other Rats also came out of the ground to join the massive attack and preserve its momentum. The Rats'' efforts allowed the wave to reach the group. Countless creatures fell on the experts and forced them to interrupt their movement techniques to defend themselves from those beasts'' sharp teeth. Noah had to rely on Snore''s dark beam since his flames couldn''t burn the Rats quickly enough. He still used his black fire, but the Blood Companion helped him in that struggle. A single Rat couldn''t hurt him, but the thousands of them could pierce his body. Noah had to suppress his greed to preserve his life. Those beasts had the chance to kill him before the flames could save him. The wave dragged the group away until it crashed on the ground in an area outside the prairie. Noah managed to stop himself in time to see the many creatures around him sprinting away to return to the prairie. His companions soon became visible among that escaping tide. They were mostly fine. Don had suffered little to no injuries, and King Elbas had relied on his inscribed items to defend from the assault. Jordan had been the only one at ease inside the wave, but she didn''t like the recent event. She was a mighty hybrid on the path to becoming a rank 8 existence. Those Rats had humiliated her, and she decided to make them pay. However, a series of presences suddenly appeared behind them. A group of cultivators flew down the mountain nearby to inspect them. Many of those experts wore the Crystal City''s iconic robes, and three of them were in the solid stage. Chapter 1444: 1444. Inscribed items The group featured fifteen experts in the liquid stage and three cultivators in the solid stage. It was a force that could make entire guilds escape in fear. Only large organizations and families had the manpower to deploy such a fearful force. Those cultivators didn''t even try to hide their identity. Most of them came from the Crystal City, while others wore robes that featured the Sailbrird family''s symbol. Noah and the others instantly forgot about the Rats. A significant threat had appeared in front of them. The event seemed almost coincidental, but they soon noticed a familiar leaf in one of the solid stage cultivator''s grasp. "I didn''t know that the Crystal City had such a close relationship with the magical beasts," Noah taunted the group. "You make deals with them. You accept their help. What''s next? Do you also fornicate with them?" His sharp words masked his anxiety. His mind grew cold as Noah evaluated the power of his enemies. He had to admit that the situation appeared quite grim. "How can a mere hybrid even understand our greater purpose?" Charles said as he crushed the leaf in his grasp. "Defying Demon, you have caused enough trouble. It is time for you to meet your punishment." Noah didn''t answer. His mind had entered a pure battle mindset. He had no words to waste on those fanatics. The robes of the members of the Sailbrird family didn''t escape his sight. Noah instantly connected them to Ethan Sailbrird, and a silent curse filled his mind. That was different from the past. Noah had faced many attempted assassinations in his life, but his battle prowess had always been superior to his assailant. However, he had to admit that his group fell short against that force. The Crystal City and the Sailbrird family didn''t underestimate them. Their effort was almost overkill. ''Tricks won''t help me here,'' Noah thought as special darkness flowed out of his black hole and activated Miss Void''s spherical diagram. ''I need to use all the resources and techniques accumulated in the past centuries.'' Miss Void''s spell allowed him to touch the layer between the two dimensions, and his aura immediately started to expand it. Noah began to create his Shadow Domain but prepared for a tough battle. "I''m actually a human," King Elbas said as an arrogant smirk appeared on his face. The Royal seemed happy that Noah''s enemies had sent such a threatening force against them. He took their seriousness as proof that he was an existence worthy of respect. "Do you still carry our oath?" Charles asked. "The Crystal City will give you a fair trial if you didn''t remove our mark." "Oh, no," King Elbas replied. "That oath was terrible. I only wanted to point out that I was a human." Don and Jordan couldn''t help but release a short laugh, but their expression quickly turned cold. It was clear that the Crystal City wouldn''t attack only Noah, so they had to decide how to divide those enemies. "I can take care of the woman," Jordan said. "The blonde seems set on Noah, so one of you has to handle the other. Which one of you wants the solid stage?" Charles had brought a second solid stage cultivator from the Crystal City, and she seemed stronger than Percival. Jordan had decided to handle one of the greater threats and leave everything else on Don and King Elbas. Noah was the main target of that assassination, so Charles would take care of him. He seemed even stronger than the woman, but Jordan couldn''t do anything about that. "I have always wanted to test myself against a solid stage cultivator," King Elbas said. "The monkey here should be more than enough for the other liquid stage." "I''m part monkey," Don said. "You will only fail if you try to use that as an offense. Every hybrid in the Legion takes pride in their origin." "If only I could dissect all of you," King Elbas replied as he shook his head. "You might want to survive this battle first," Don added before focusing on the weaker troops behind the three solid stage cultivators. Percival felt underestimated. He would understand if the hybrid in the liquid stage was to pick him as his opponent, but having to fight a human in a lower stage was too much, in his opinion. Defying Demon had offended the Sailbrird family, so it made sense for Charles to be his opponent. Cassandra was stronger than him, so Jordan was a perfect match for her. Yet, King Elbas seemed the weakest of the group, so Percival felt the need to vent his anger. "Do you know what this is?" Percival said as he pointed at the symbol on his chest. "This is the mark of an organization capable of deploying rank 8 cultivators. Lord Ethan will turn my guild into an official force of the Sailbrird family after this mission. I don''t want this achievement to come after defeating a mere sacrificial lamb." "Sa-," King Elbas began to speak, but his arrogance didn''t allow him to repeat those words. His aura expanded, and countless inscribed items came out of his space-ring as he shot a hateful glare toward Percival. His figure turned into a golden beacon as weapons, shields, and much more showed their presence in the outside world. A golden shield filled with runes covered his figure. More runes appeared on his skin, and his crown started to radiate a blinding light that bent the matter in the environment to his will. Tens of swords floated behind his figure. Spears, arrows, and large ballistae joined that array of weapons, and golden flames soon began to burn on their sharp edges. Two massive golden puppets straightened their position in front of him. A third golem then appeared behind him and placed its hand on the ground so that King Elbas could step on it. A few fiery beast-like creatures filled the ground in front of him. They began to chant roars that echoed King Elbas'' arrogance and spread it further through the environment. All those items were peak middle tier inscribed weapons. Their number surpassed the hundred, and more of them continued to come out of his space-ring. There was no end to King Elbas'' creations. "What the f-," Percival began to say, but King Elbas snapped his fingers, and his puppets spewed a wave of golden flames that interrupted the expert. King Elbas'' attack marked the beginning of the battle. Don gibbered as he slammed his fists on his chest. A long cry eventually came out of his mouth, and the ground morphed to create a giant armor around his figure. Don then threw himself at the group of liquid stage cultivators, and his armor exploded before they could even launch attacks. A storm of metallic and rocky shards filled the sky as Don shot toward the now divided experts. Jordan''s wings came out again, and she slowly rose in the sky without moving her gaze from Cassandra. The expert from the Crystal City followed her, and the two created a battlefield above their companions. "I heard you use swords," Charles said as he straightened his forefinger and middle finger. "I wonder if your sharpness can leave a mark on my individuality." Chapter 1445: 1445. Bloodlus The white robes of the members of the Crystal City had purple drawings that represented their individuality. Charles''s clothes had a single sword that cut his chest horizontally. Noah''s instincts screamed when Charles straightened his fingers. He knew that something dangerous was about to arrive, and he quickly deployed his movement technique to dodge the attack. Noah had trained in all his new techniques during the past centuries, especially on the Shadow Domain. Noah had created a place inside the dark world where he could store primary energy and turn it into the special darkness required by Miss Void''s spell. He had freed the Shadow Domain of the workshop through that process. He had even learnt to enlarge the layer between the dimensions during a battle. However, the Shadow Domain required time to reach Charles. The expert would also move during the battle. Noah needed to drag the fight as long as possible to rely on that technique. The dark world expanded as Noah transformed into a blade. The suppression of the dark matter fell on Charles, but he snorted and fended it off by expanding his aura. An intense sharpness filled the environment. Charles'' aura cut through the dark world and brought him back under the white light of the sky. Noah''s techniques appeared utterly useless against the expert. "Mere tricks," Charles said as he waved his fingers toward the flying Noah. Charles'' sharpness intensified as a curved slash flew out of his hand and created a deep crack on the ground. Noah transformed back in his original form after the blow, and his cold eyes fell on his legs. The slash had severed his right foot. It had been fast enough to hit Noah while he performed his movement technique. It seemed that even his arts weren''t enough to fill the gap that separated him from a solid stage cultivator. "You can run as much as you like," Charles said as his sharpness intensified again. "I will cut you piece by piece." The world went dark for an instant as Noah''s flames spread through the area. The region had magical plants and ground that his fire could burn, so he didn''t hesitate to rely on his innate ability. Tiny tongues of fire flew back toward Noah and rebuilt his foot. His injuries vanished in an instant, and even Charles felt surprised about that feat. "What an unnatural healing ability," Charles said. "You consume the world to fix yourself. Your very existence is a threat to the Immortal Lands." Charles was about to wave his fingers again, but his mind suddenly sensed a threat. His eyes darted through the environment, but a black mark appeared on his white robe before it could find the hidden opponent. When Charles glanced at the mark, Snore''s reptilian head came out of Noah''s chest and launched a dark beam. The violent dark matter flew toward the expert, who promptly slashed toward the attack. A massive slash cut through the dark beam, but the attack didn''t find Noah when it reached the ground. Darkness surrounded Charles again, and a series of draconic roars filled the area. Charles'' expression became cold when he saw an army of dragons moving through the darkness and pounce at him in a reckless assault. Those creatures were only beasts with power near the peak of the middle tier, but their sheer number could make even solid stage cultivators worry. However, Charles wasn''t a simple divine cultivator. He was a proper member of a large organization. He was different from the experts that Noah had faced during his previous battles in the Immortal Lands. Charles lifted his fingers to his forehead and expanded his consciousness. As he closed his eyes, countless slashes came out of his figure and cut the dragons into multiple pieces. Many fake cores broke and fell outside of the dark world after the attack. The expert had defeated the army in a single blow. Noah''s eyes widened when he saw that slash. Charles was using Sword Saint''s techniques. The expert had probably found another piece of his inheritance during his life. ''I also have them,'' Noah thought as the Demonic Sword came out of the separate space and landed in his grasp. The workshop continued to create dragons, and countless fake cores flew out of Noah''s chest to fuse with those creatures. A small golem also came out of the separate space. Noah didn''t hesitate to activate his middle tier disposable puppet in that battle. The small puppet entered one of the dragons as the tide of beasts shot once again toward Charles. The expert waved his finger to destroy the dark matter around him, but he soon found an army of middle tier creatures jumping toward him. Charles snorted and clapped his hands. The soundwave released by his gesture was sharp and cut all the dragons into two pieces. Yet, the disposable puppet came out one of them and enlarged at it charged toward the expert. The puppet reached a height of four meters before waving its mace toward Charles. The expert''s fingers darted toward the weapon and cut its tough metal. His hand then grasped the golem''s neck and stabbed its metallic skin. Cracks spread on the golem''s neck, but a dangerous sensation suddenly appeared in Charles'' mind. The cultivator turned toward the source of that sensation and saw that a sharp beam was flying in his direction. Charles wanted to launch an attack toward the incoming lunge, but the puppet promptly grabbed his arm. A detonation followed its gesture, and the sharp beam landed on the expert an instant later. Then, Snore came out from a corner of the intact dark world and launched its dark beam. The disposable puppet''s detonation had created a gray cloud, but everything crumbled when the violent dark matter swept the area. Noah waited inside the dark world. It was in his interest to drag the battle as much as possible. Moreover, he wanted to see if his attacks had managed to injure his opponent. His understanding of the solid stage was vague. Jordan had never fought seriously during the journey, so Noah didn''t know how strong existences at that level were. Snore''s beam never stopped flowing, but a slash soon pierced the attack and cut the Blood Companion''s head into two parts. Charles then came out of the dispersing dark matter, revealing that Noah''s offensive didn''t manage to inflict any damage. "The power of our robes depends on our cultivation level," Charles explained. "This is a defensive item in the upper tier. I acknowledge your strength, but you can''t defeat me today." Night had managed to leave a mark on the robe before, but it had caught Charles by surprise. The expert didn''t cover his body with his sharpness. The defensive item had endured the Pterodactyl''s full power. When Charles'' sharpness flowed out of his figure, most attacks would crumble even before reaching his robe. The situation would be different if Noah could wield power in the solid stage, but that was the limit of his usual abilities. ''I can''t defeat him with attacks in the liquid stage, no matter how off the scale they are,'' Noah accepted in his mind. His efforts in the past centuries were pointless in front of the sheer power wielded by a solid stage cultivator. His amazing techniques were nothing more than tricks for Charles. They lacked the strength to pierce through his individuality. Charles revealed a smile, but his expression froze when an intense bloodlust leaked out of the dark world. Red shades even appeared among the dark matter, and a tired voice resounded in the area. "My time to kill has come again," The cursed sword said. "Will I taint my blade with the blood of my enemies, or will another Master die today?" Chapter 1446: 1446. Blade "Don''t announce yourself!" Noah shouted inside the dark world. His hand was on the black handle that had begun to come out of his chest. The cursed sword had announced itself as soon as Noah had summoned it. Its voice had even leaked out of the dark matter. Charles didn''t understand what had happened, but Noah scolded the cursed sword anyway. He couldn''t let the weapon announce itself in every battle. It was better to get rid of that habit now. The cursed sword fell silent, and Noah let go of the matter once he sensed its regret. He drew the blade from the separate space and held it firmly in his right hand. After the training with Sword Saint, Noah had abandoned his dual-wielding. The expert''s techniques didn''t require him to use multiple weapons. Yet, it was time to diverge from those arts. Noah wasn''t Sword Saint. The expert''s training had been helpful to unify his individuality, but he had to travel on a different path now. His law was already in harmony. Noah could finally surpass the peak reached through those arts. Red shades began to shine among Noah''s mental sea. His bloodlust slowly seeped into his thoughts, and an intense desire to kill Charles filled his mind. His instincts reacted to that bloodlust. Desires that Noah had abandoned after he surpassed the hybrid status returned and tried to make him lose control of his body. Noah felt like a hungry beast, with the only difference that he desired blood instead of food. He wanted to kill everything that lived. He craved to cut any living being on his path. Of course, that wasn''t his first time drawing the cursed sword. Noah had already tested its effects and gained experience in its handling. He didn''t let his mind fall prey to the bloodlust. He reached an almost frenzied state, but he remained in control of his body. ''Go all out,'' Noah ordered through his mind, and his companions followed his directives. The dark world also obeyed. A different blueprint lit up in Noah''s mind. The finished dragons broke up and dispersed into strands of dark matter that the workshop used to create a different beast. Snore''s head peeked out of the dark world to launch its dark beam. Charles waved his fingers and launched a slash that pierced the attack and cut the Blood Companion into two parts. A snort came out of his mouth before he blew toward his side. His sharpness intensified, and the figure of the big Pterodactyl soon appeared next to the expert. Charles had started to sense Night, and his mere breathing was enough to stop its charge. The Pterodactyl didn''t suffer any injury during the attack, but it was clear that the expert outclassed it. ''I have five to seven attacks depending on how much my body can take now,'' Noah thought as he lifted the Demonic Sword and the cursed sword above his head. His bloodlust intensified, and the Demonic Sword started to generate dark matter. The dark world resonated with the two blades, and its higher energy transformed to support those weapons. Part of the dark world began to glow with a red light, and vortexes appeared on other spots. Noah''s technique supported the two blades by enhancing their influence and the power that they could unleash. Snore and Night had kept Charles busy while Noah prepared the attack, but their assault was starting to lose its effects. The solid stage expert was too strong. It had learnt the limits of the two companions after a few exchanges, and his counterattacks had become more threatening after that. Night had suffered injuries. Charles had limited himself to blow toward the Pterodactyl whenever he sensed its presence, and the sharpness carried by his breath had slowly started to affect the creature''s body. Snore was better off. The Snake was virtually indestructible, but its ethereal figure had grown unstable after Charles severed its head into two parts multiple times. The two companions were slowly reaching their limits, but Charles had yet to fight seriously. He was only playing with those two creatures as he waited for Noah to make his move. A tentacle suddenly shot out of the dark world. Charles destroyed it with a simple hand gesture, but he soon realized that the threat was far from over. Countless tentacles shot out after the expert destroyed the first one. Charles quickly clapped his hands to create the sharp soundwave, but some of those limbs survived the attack and entangled themselves on the cultivator''s body. Noah didn''t know if Charles had really fallen for that trick or if he was only pretending. Still, he couldn''t hesitate anymore. He had to join the battle and risk exposing his new abilities. The two blades descended, and the dark world followed the energy that they released. Two massive slashes, one black and one dark-red, flew through the sky and crashed on Charles'' figure. The power released by the attack surpassed what liquid stage cultivators could wield. The two slashes together were a blow that could win against spells cast by solid stage experts! When the two slashes hit Charles, Noah felt a stabbing pain spreading from his chest. A spiderweb of wounds opened on his torso and reached his shoulders. Blood immediately flowed out of them, and a sense of weakness filled his mind. Noah roared as a wave of flames came out of his mouth and spread in the environment. His fire burned magical plants and weak spots of terrain to bring energy back to his body and heal his injuries. The many wounds closed in an instant, but a cross-shaped slash suddenly cut through the two clouds that had formed in Charles'' position and forced Noah to focus on his opponent again. The Demonic Sword liquefied and covered the cursed sword. It acted as an armor that protected the blade and enhanced its power. Noah quickly pulled the weapon back and performed a lunge as soon as enough dark matter had accumulated inside its fabric. Charles had yet to come out in the open again, but Noah attacked anyway. The space of the Immortal Lands bent due to the power carried by the lunge. No cloud came out of it, but a thin black line appeared between Noah''s weapon and his opponent. When the line hit the cloudy spot where Charles was, an explosion resounded in the area, and the smoke dispersed instantly. The expert became visible again, and his fingers were trying to fend Noah''s attack off. Charles couldn''t believe his eyes when the black line cut the upper part of his forefinger and middle finger to land on his flat belly. His robe dispersed the energy that remained in the attack, but that sight didn''t make the expert any happier. Even if Charles wasn''t fighting seriously, Noah had still managed to win in a direct clash between their sharpness. Noah''s superior power came from an inscribed item and multiple techniques, but Charles couldn''t accept that defeat. His law wasn''t so special if any inscribed item could defeat it. The expert behind that victory was even weaker than him. Charles began to have doubts about his true meaning after that exchange. Noah spat flames again to heal himself. He had almost lost his entire arm after that lunge, but his fire restored his body to its peak. He was ready to fight again. "You aren''t simple," Charles said. "You are worthy of seeing my blade." A white sword with two sharp sides appeared in Charles'' hand. His sharpness flowed inside the weapon, and a series of purple marks became visible on its structure. When the sharpness expanded through the environment, Noah saw how a series of cuts suddenly appeared on his body. Charles didn''t even attack him, but he had suffered injuries anyway. Chapter 1447: 1447. Question Noah transformed into a black blade that launched dark matter to perform an evasive maneuver. Black flames also filled the environment as he flew to escape Charles'' sight. The flames healed his body, but the sense of weakness that had begun to permeate his mind became more intense. His bloodlust also intensified. His consciousness was slowly slipping away due to the drawbacks of the cursed sword. "Disappointing," Charles said as he waved his sword toward the escaping Noah. A wave of sharpness flew through the environment. The attack destroyed every plant on its path and turned into ash the superficial part of the ground as it reached Noah. Noah felt forced to stop and slash toward the wall of sharpness that was about to fall on him. His Demonic Sword left the cursed sword and reformed in his left hand before the two blades released a thick dark-red slash. The slash pierced the wall of sharpness and allowed Noah to pass through the attack. Yet, a deep cut opened on his chest and forced him to rely on his flames to heal his injuries. Charles had stopped playing around. His blade danced in the air and launched a series of small curved slashes that flew on different trajectories as they converged toward Noah. Noah couldn''t avoid that attack. He lifted his blades above his head and slashed toward the curved blows when they were about to converge. The two abilities gave birth to an explosion when they clashed, and tiny shards of chaotic sharpness flew through the environment after the impact. A vertical wound appeared on Noah''s torso. The weakness that had filled his mind intensified even if he spat more flames to heal his injuries. Noah felt that his mind was slipping away. The bloodlust was taking over his thoughts. A part of him already desired to charge recklessly toward Charles. Noah had launched only four attacks with the cursed sword, but his condition had already deteriorated. His new blade''s drawbacks were too severe, but that weapon was the only reason he was still alive. Charles'' attacks were too powerful. Noah could block them only when he used the cursed sword, but that brought him closer to an insane state. Even his body had begun to show signs of instability. Healing it wasn''t enough to disperse the drawbacks of the bloodlust. Noah took the pills gained in Supreme Thief''s inheritance and stuffed them in his mouth. One of them wasn''t enough for his body. He had to eat all of them to feel their effects. His body regained some stability after the dark world purified those drugs and redirected their energy toward his tissues. Noah even regained some clarity, but Charles didn''t give him time to recover. Charles slashed again and forced Noah to answer with another attack. Two huge black and dark-red lines flew toward the incoming white curved cut and created another explosion. Noah fended off Charles'' blow, but his body paid the price for that feat. A large wound opened on his chest and spread until it reached his right foot. A waterfall of blood flowed out of the injury, and Noah spat flames to heal it. However, the fire didn''t return to him. There was nothing left to burn in the area. "It''s over," Charles said as he raised his sword, but Noah quickly placed both blades on his forehead. His consciousness expanded and carried his bloodlust in the environment. Noah''s sharpness intensified, and massive cuts began to open in the whole area. Each cut gave birth to more slashes. That piece of the sky fell into chaos as Noah''s sharpness created an endless stream of attacks that forced Charles into a defensive position. Charles waved his sword madly. He wore a stern expression as he replied to every slash that flew in his direction. To his surprise, some of those attacks managed to pierce his sharpness and land on his robe. Noah didn''t hesitate to fuse the two swords again and perform another lunge. Snore and Night also appeared behind him and attacked the expert, deploying the full-power of their innate abilities. The thin black line flew together with a shadow and a black beam made of violent dark matter. Noah''s sharpness didn''t affect the attacks, so they soon landed on Charles'' body. A cloud formed a vanished as the clash between the different individualities severed everything in the area. Night managed to fuse with Charles'' robe before that spot fell into complete chaos, and those inscribed clothes eventually crumbled under the might of Noah''s endless cuts. The lunge pierced Charles'' sharpness and landed directly on his body. The expert almost didn''t believe his eyes when he saw the thin black line creating a large hole on the right side of his waist. Noah had managed to hurt him. He had managed to surpass his sharpness, blade, and robe. Even if he was only a liquid stage hybrid, Noah had showed the potential to fight against a cultivator far stronger than him. The drawbacks of the last two attacks brought Noah to the brink of madness. His body became a mess of maimed skin and exposed organs. Blood never stopped flowing from his injuries, and his mind began to ask him to give in to his instincts. Noah knew that he had reached his limit. His body and mind would crumble if he launched another attack. He fell on his knees and gasped for air as he supported himself on the two swords. That was the end of his immense effort. Noah didn''t even feel able to perform his movement technique to escape. The seven attacks with the cursed sword had drained him. His endless cuts were his last hope now. Charles struggled to fend off Noah''s sharpness. The endless cuts were a technique founded on Noah''s ambition. That was the secret behind their relentless assault. The cuts eventually reached Charles'' body. The expert didn''t know what to do when injuries opened on his skin. Nothing he did seemed able to stop Noah''s technique. Charles'' blade began to shine at that point. An immense amount of his sharpness flowed inside his sword that released it in a single explosion. Every trace of Noah''s attack vanished after that blow, and the endless technique finally stopped creating more cuts. The explosion of sharpness flung Noah and the companions away. He never lost control of his connection to the Shadow Domain, but he was struggling to remain focused on his body. His mind was weak and his tissues unstable. His black hole was doing its best to keep him together, but Noah was suffering more than what that organ could fix. Charles didn''t know what to say. Many injuries had appeared on his body, and the hole on his way proved that Noah could potentially kill him at his current level. That realization made Charles'' expression even more severe. He suddenly felt lucky that he had found Noah when he was in the liquid stage. Charles didn''t dare to imagine what might Noah would wield if he reached the superior stage. Charles pointed his blade toward the crouched Noah before retracting his weapon. He was preparing a lunge to finish that battle, but a shadow landed near Noah at that point. Noah was desperate to find a way out of that situation, but his tricks were over. The Shadow Domain still required some time, and he had no way of gaining it. A shadow suddenly crashed on the ground near him. After a clash with his opponent, King Elbas had fallen there, but no injury had appeared on his body. He seemed fine, but he wore a severe expression. Noah had an idea when he saw him. His mind was on the verge of slipping away, but his black hole was keeping him sane and forcing his organs to work properly even if injuries filled them. "Elbas, how is your alchemy?" Noah asked. King Elbas glanced at him before replying with his usual arrogant tone. "The best, of course." "How can you fuse primary energy, "Breath", higher energy, and mental energy to create something stronger than any of them?" Noah quickly asked. "By fusing them? Impossible," King Elbas explained. "The higher energy will always carry more power. However, you can create an unstable product to obtain a great surge of energy for a short amount of time." Chapter 1448: 1448. Control Noah had experimented in the "embodiment of power" since he had obtained it. He had committed to memory how the four energies interacted with each other. He had tested every mixture and rearranged them in countless ways, but he had never managed to create a product that could satisfy his needs. The dark matter was always a better fuel since the other energies carried less power. ''My ambition has tricked me again,'' Noah released a short laugh when he thought that. Pain spread through his body when he laughed. His tissues were at their limit. Yet, his black hole carried enough power to force his mind to work faster than ever. His tainted mental energy flowed inside the Divine Deduction technique and gave birth to a series of bloodthirsty thoughts. His need to destroy intensified, but that desire ended up improving his creation of an unstable product that featured his four energies. When Noah found an answer, his black hole started to create the product. Mental energy, primary energy, darkness, and dark matter fused inside the center of power and triggered a chain reaction that threatened to blow Noah''s chest off. The black hole suppressed that unstable product and redirected toward the black vessels. Noah didn''t have time to consider whether those channels could withstand that violent surge of energy. Charles had almost completed the lunge. He would die if the technique didn''t work. The black vessels were a core part of his innate ability. They existed because the black hole had fused with his body and needed a channel for the dark matter. They couldn''t withstand the violent energy that was flowing out of the black hole. Most of the black vessels exploded as soon as that unstable product tried to enter them. Black spots formed on Noah''s skin as his black vessels exploded. His body convulsed, and blood flowed out of his mouth. More blood also came out of his many injuries, and his overall condition worsened. Noah''s body was about to crumble. It had finally surpassed its limits. His skin began to fall apart as more injuries spread. Still, some of the thickest black vessels managed to endure the violent energy. Noah''s tissues didn''t recognize that substance, but the immense power generated by its explosive force flowed inside them and filled them with strength. Noah slowly straightened his back and roared at the sky when he sensed that surge of energy pervading his tissues and spreading through every inch of his body. Black flames came out of his mouth as that cry echoed through the area and reached the regions nearby. Noah''s cry didn''t carry any human meaning. It was a simple roar. A gesture meant to vent part of the power that was filling every fiber of his body. His skin began to heal only to break again when that violent energy seeped inside it. The process was excruciating, but Noah could only endure it as he prevented his mind from falling prey to his bloodlust. Charles didn''t stop his attack even when he saw that something had happened inside Noah. He thrust his blade forward, and a white beam made of sharpness flew at high speed toward his kneeled opponent. No sharpness leaked into the environment. The lunge had condensed Charles'' energy, giving it the best piercing properties in his arsenal. That attack could even piece the wave of Rats. The lunge crashed on the ground and dug a deep diagonal hole. Charles'' sharpness then seeped into the terrain and opened cracks in the superficial layers of the region. A faint earthquake also spread, but a confused expression appeared on his face. Charles suddenly turned when he saw that a shadow had appeared next to him. His eyes widened at the sight of a bloodied Noah waving his hand at him. Noah was a mess of blood and injuries. His dirty long hair covered most of his face, and his swords had also disappeared. However, Charles could see the intense icy-blue light radiated from his cold eyes. Even when his body was shattering, Noah was calm. His mind was on the verge of falling prey to his instincts, and pain spread from all his tissues. However, he remained in control of himself. Charles promptly waved his blade, and a slash shot toward Noah. The attack would reach his head before Noah''s fingers could touch the expert. A deafening roar came out of Noah''s mouth as he headbutted the slash. The attack crumbled under his physical might, and shock filled Charles'' mind. Charles knew that hybrids could reach incredible levels in terms of physical might, but he had never heard of someone as strong as Noah. The latter''s body was in the middle tier, but its sheer power could withstand attacks launched by cultivators in the solid stage! Charles instinctively started to retreat, but Noah''s hand reached his chest before the expert could escape from his range. His fingers stabbed his skin and tore away his entire rib cage with a single movement. Noah chased after the expert. His mouth never stopped spitting flames, and his speed reached levels that would render even solid stage cultivators speechless. Charles found himself unable to escape from Noah''s chase. He could only continue to launch attacks and hope that his opponent died before it was too late. A series of slashes flew out of the expert''s sword and crashed on Noah. Marks appeared on his broken skin and muscles, but that offensive didn''t manage to slow him down. Noah continued to fly, uncaring of the attacks that converged toward him. His body was so in pain that he didn''t feel anything when those slashes landed on him. Charles didn''t let Noah catch him. Noah had surprised him the first time, but he wouldn''t commit the same mistake again. His figure performed short sprints that used his sharpness to cut through the air at an unbelievable speed. Noah could only spit flames that managed to envelop his opponent from time to time. Part of the energy that they managed to seize returned toward Noah, but he barely felt anything during the process. His mind was continuing to slip away even in that condition. He was even struggling to maintain his trump card active now. Eventually, the energy obtained through the violent product ended. Noah felt weaker than he had ever felt in his life as he descended toward the ground and crouched. Charles heaved a sigh when he saw that scene. His consciousness swept Noah, and another sight came out of his mouth when he confirmed that his body was falling apart. The sole fact that Noah had been able to fight in that condition was incredible. Part of him acknowledged the hybrids'' superior strength after that battle, but his belief remained firm. "This has been incredible," Charles said. "You are only a hybrid in the liquid stage, but you can already injure cultivators in the solid stage. I can''t let you leave any longer. Your future potential is too scary." Charles pointed his sword at Noah. Blood flowed from his open chest on the remains of his white clothes, but his appearance remained noble. "I recognized Sword Saint''s techniques in your sword arts," Charles said. "I will kill you with my blade out of respect for your expertise. Goodbye, Defying Demon." Noah spat flames, but the silver radiance that surrounded them didn''t spread in the environment. Charles also noticed that something was off. He had seen Noah''s fire, but that ability had suddenly disappeared somewhere. ''What is happening?'' Charles thought before something appeared inside his body. Charles lowered his head and peeked at his insides from his open chest. Countless spiked spheres had filled his body. They were inside his blood vessels, muscles, and organs. Moreover, black flames surrounded those disposable weapons. Before he could utter any other sound, the Instabilities detonated, and his body vanished into a cloud of corrosive smoke and black flames. Chapter 1449: 1449. Potential A surge of energy flew inside Noah''s shattered body as he crouched on the ground. The flames had burned anything that the Instabilities didn''t manage to destroy. That power had then converged toward Noah to restore his condition. Charles didn''t expect that sudden attack, and even his incredible individuality couldn''t help him once Noah placed attacks inside his organs through the Shadow Domain. Miss Void was right. Her technique was unbeatable once it showed its true power. The black hole was aware of Noah''s poor condition. The organ skipped many rounds of purification to provide energy to his tissues and start the healing process. The fourth center of power knew that Noah didn''t need purity now. His body was falling apart. The black hole had to keep him alive before focusing on anything else. Charles was a human, so his dantian contained most of his energy. The Instabilities had destroyed that organ during the explosion, but the black flames had burnt the "Breath" inside it. That energy resembled a tide that pressed on Noah''s tissues and forced them to heal. Skin, organs, muscles, and bones grew and stabilized under the strict attention of the black hole. Noah''s body was too far gone to heal instantly. His tissues continued to fall apart during the process, so they required far more energy than usual to return to a normal state. Pain filled Noah''s mind as his skin shattered and regrew. The process continued for a while until his body found some stability again and started to heal properly. His black hole had depleted most of Charles'' energy by that time. Saving Noah had taken almost every grain of the solid stage "Breath" contained in his dantian. As Noah began to heal properly, some clarity returned to his mind. The bloodlust retreated as his condition improved, and he suddenly realized what he had achieved. It had taken Noah everything accumulated in the past centuries to succeed in that amazing feat. He had needed every single technique and spell found in the many inheritances explored since he reached the Immortal Lands to defeat a solid stage cultivator. Noah knew that his battle prowess wasn''t at the same level as those experts. The solid stage was too far away. His victory against Charles wasn''t a fluke, but it wasn''t something he could do every time. He had been one instant faster than his opponent. Charles had the chance to finish him, but he didn''t expect Noah to have the Shadow Domain. Noah couldn''t even blame him. He had felt the same surprise when he entered Miss Void''s inheritance. The Shadow Domain defied logic, but its power didn''t lower the importance of his astonishing feat. Noah had defeated a solid stage cultivator while he was in the liquid stage. Thinking about that made his ambition explode outward. A surge of power came out of his dantian and filled the environment with his influence. The area began to transform. The destroyed and burned rocky terrain of the region started to evolve. The ashes became terrain, and the rocks became metal. Black lines also covered the land and spread Noah''s influence further. The air darkened. The white light radiated by the sky stopped shining as brightly as before. The areas affected by Noah''s aura rejected that glow to use his ambition as their new illumination. His ambition didn''t manage to stop the white light completely, but the region experienced a sense of darkness for the first time since its creation. Noah was obscuring the matter in the area as his law force it to evolve. His potential had finally grown enough to show substantial effects. Defeating a solid stage cultivator had proven how Noah had no absolute limits when it came to his battle prowess, and his individuality had reacted to that event. Normal training sessions couldn''t give that boost. Noah had spent centuries slowly increasing his influence on the environment, but his steady growth almost consumed the potential that the process generated. However, defeating Charles had proven that Noah was already strong enough to be near the solid stage, so his ambition began to reflect that. If Noah wanted, he could now use his law to increase his cultivation level again. Noah slowly straightened his back as a draconic roar came out of his mouth and echoed through the region. He felt the need to announce his victory to the world, and holding back while his ambition grew was impossible. Flames shot out of his figure and filled the sky. Noah had to treasure every grain of energy that he had, but he couldn''t stop. He had to shout and vent after that difficult battle. After his roar, Noah turned to lay on his back. The area became brighter as his ambition flowed back inside him, but a satisfied smile slowly appeared on his face. Snore reformed, and Night flew toward him. The Demonic Sword also came out of his chest to protect him. They could sense how tired Noah was, but they also felt his happiness. His body was healing. His individuality had amassed enough potential to push his cultivation level near the solid stage. He had found a solution to the "embodiment of power", and he was still alive. The situation called for a celebration, but his allies were still fighting against their opponents. Don''s situation wasn''t as bad as his companions. He was against fifteen cultivators in the liquid stage, but he was a hybrid that bordered the breakthrough toward the solid stage. The power wielded by his body was immense. His skin could endure spells launched by cultivators on a similar level, and his attacks could even fend them off. Don also had a law. His individuality carried the true meaning of adaptability. He could transform any material connected to the earth element into different giant armors that he devised according to his situation. In theory, Don couldn''t lose the upper hand. He could always create armors that suited his situation to hold his advantage in every battle. Those armors also relied on his physical strength and used it to improve their power. The hybrids in the Immortal Lands had learnt to use their superior features far before Noah, so Don could deploy arts of his own. Don created a metallic layer to cover his skin and used different materials to build armors around his figure. His fists became claws, tails, horns, and giant hands as he fought against the group of cultivators. His attacks released shockwaves that spread through the environment and forced those cultivators to retreat by a few steps. Don was a monster among enemies. His offensive was relentless, but he struggled to inflict deadly blows. Since the cultivators were working together, Don never managed to kill any of them. Divine experts were hard to kill, and the situation forced Don to focus on his defensive armors. The few times that he managed to attack safely weren''t enough to kill his opponents. The experts were also aware of that, and they didn''t hesitate to pursue a slow approach toward the battle. Their priority was to exhaust Don since they couldn''t find proper openings in his defense. Still, the hybrid quickly understood their plan and his offensive became more reckless. Injuries began to appear on his body, but a few cultivators also died. Don''s approach still featured a battle of endurance, but he removed the slow part to focus on deadly attacks. Chapter 1450: 1450. Counter Golden light filled the area where King Elbas and Percival were fighting. The expert in the solid stage threw lightning bolts from his fingers whenever he managed to find one of the Royal''s items among a dense sea of flames. Swords, spears, and flames flew relentlessly toward Percival, but a thick layer of sparks covered his body and protected him from any incoming attack. His lightning bolts always destroyed the items they hit, so King Elbas slowly lost terrain during the battle. Still, King Elbas had unleashed the full power of his creations. Inscribed items never stopped coming out of his space-ring. Percival continued to destroy them, but there seemed to be no end to that offensive. King Elbas hid among the golden flames launched by his puppets. He wore an unsightly expression as he studied his opponent. Percival was the weakest of the three solid stage cultivators, but that didn''t make him any easier to defeat. "Can you stop using these annoying tools?!" Percival shouted as he joined his hands to release a circular shockwave that dispersed countless lightning bolts in the area. The golden flames and all the items in his range crumbled under the might of his individuality. Percival was a storm that released destruction with his every move. His lightning bolts had the power to pierce anything, especially inscribed items that were weaker than him. King Elbas never stopped throwing items at his opponent. He had already lost hundreds of inscribed weapons when he spoke with Noah, and more of them crumbled after he resumed his fight. The battle wasn''t going anywhere, but King Elbas knew that he couldn''t continue like that. He would eventually use all his items, and Percival would have a clean shot at that point. However, King Elbas didn''t stop relying on his peak middle tier items. Massive bolts, flames, and puppets flew toward his opponent in a desperate attempt to pierce his defenses and reach his body. The greatest difference between cultivators in different stages was their sheer power, and Percival completely overwhelmed King Elbas in that field. The Royal couldn''t defeat his shield with those peak middle tier items. King Elbas didn''t have techniques that could make him ignore that difference in power. Even Noah had to rely on an item to express solid stage battle prowess. The Royal had to do the same if he wanted to win. Still, King Elbas had other plans. His space-ring hid many secrets, but he didn''t want to reveal them yet. His curiosity had to complete one step before he could fight for real. Percival released another spherical shockwave, and raging lightning bolts began to linger on his figure and destroy anything that entered his range. The expert shot toward the sea of flames at that point and countless inscribed items fell prey to his destructiveness. The cultivator couldn''t sense King Elbas among the golden flames, but he didn''t care about that. The Royal had to come out after he destroyed everything. Percival wasn''t even worried about his reserve of "Breath". He was in the solid stage, so he obviously had more energy than King Elbas. It didn''t matter that the Royal was mainly relying on inscribed items. Percival wouldn''t exhaust himself before his opponent. King Elbas flew through his sea of flames as he escaped from the lightning bolts that surrounded Percival. The number of inscribed items in the area fell rapidly, but no worry appeared on his face. A peculiar aura came out of King Elbas. His figure radiated intense but tiny radiations that seeped inside the lightning bolts and studied their nature. Information about Percival''s individuality quickly filled King Elbas'' mind. His consciousness also memorized features that only experts in multiple fields of the cultivation journey could list. The Royal was using his inscribed items to escape long enough to learn everything about Percival''s law. When Percival flew toward the last area of the sea of flames that he had yet to destroy, King Elbas came out of his cover and retreated through the sky. The cultivator destroyed the golden flames before chasing after King Elbas. Percival had grown so annoyed by that golden color that he sought to destroy anything that carried those shades. Percival was faster than King Elbas, so he quickly reached the Royal and prepared himself to launch the long-awaited final attack. He had already hit his opponent once before, but the golden defenses had stopped his techniques. Yet, King Elbas was almost defenseless now, so Percival felt sure that it was time to land a finishing blow. King Elbas turned when Percival was about to attack. A massive lightning bolt flew toward him, but the Royal didn''t attempt to dodge it. He simply lifted his hand and closed his eyes as his curiosity filled the entire area. The lightning bolt suddenly vanished right before touching King Elbas'' fingers. Its energy dispersed into the environment and disappeared in the white sky. "What?" Percival exclaimed. King Elbas had only lifted his hand. He didn''t use any unique item or technique. His individuality had surged for a second, and the lightning bolt had vanished under its influence. "What did you do to my attack?" Percival asked. "Those who reach the solid stage should be talents among talents," King Elbas said as he shook his head. "Look at you. You have so much power, but you barely separate yourself from things that already exist in the world. There is nothing to fear from the storm if you know what it carries." "What are you even saying?" Percival asked again. "I am the storm. Heaven Tribulations shy away in fear of my lightning. I can turn everything you have into ashes and pierce the toughest metal. I am true, unstoppable power!" "A dumb law for a dumb cultivator," King Elbas replied as he heaved a helpless sigh. "Power alone is useless, especially in front of me." "Such gall!" Percival said as the crackling noise that surrounded his figure became more intense. "I don''t know what trick you used, but it won''t work against an amount of power that would make even solid stage cultivators run away." Percival joined his hands, and the lightning bolts around his figure flowed back inside his skin. Sparks ran through him and converged toward his arms. The crackling noise intensified as Percival separated his hands. A massive surge of power spread in the environment when he revealed the small orb that had appeared among his palms. The orb released crackling noises and flares that pierced the ground when they touched it. The attack seemed powerful to generate lightning bolts since it didn''t lose any power when those surges happened. "Block this," Percival said as he let go of the orb. The crackling sphere flew slowly toward King Elbas, who tried to escape. However, he soon noticed that the aura released by the orb prevented him from using his abilities. It created a field where only the lightning bolts could exist. King Elbas'' curiosity intensified again at that point. He lifted his hand, and his whole arm turned into golden flames that crumbled under the pressure radiated by the orb. That destruction continued until King Elbas lost half of his torso. The orb had suddenly stopped before reaching his head, and Percival could only remain speechless at that sight. Percival didn''t stop the orb. His attack was still under his control, but he didn''t manage to make it continue its flight. Something was preventing it from moving. King Elbas closed his eyes, and the crackling noise slowly lost some intensity. The process continued until the attack vanished and gently released its energy into the world. Percival didn''t know what to say to that scene. He didn''t lie to King Elbas. Even solid stage cultivators would struggle to face that attack. "How-," Percival began to ask, but blood suddenly filled his mouth. King Elbas had thrown three inscribed blades during that moment of distraction, and the weapons had pierced Percival''s waist before he could complete his question. "How did I do it?" King Elbas said as he completed Percival''s question. "I learnt how your law works and created an energy that destabilizes it. Your lightning bolt can''t exist near me anymore." Chapter 1451: 1451. Transformation Jordan and Cassandra fought above the others, high in the white sky. The two exchanged violent blows, creating shockwaves that spread through the very structure of the sky. Jordan spat flames and flapped her wings to launch dense gales that detonated mid-air. Instead, Cassandra controlled the flow of her opponent''s attacks to redirect them. They had yet to start fighting seriously, but everything changed when a loud roar echoed through the area. Jordan revealed a broad smile, and Cassandra wore a shocked expression when she glanced at the land below. Jordan didn''t need to look down to understand what had happened. Hybrids didn''t need words to communicate. One roar was enough to express deep meanings like the victory over a powerful opponent. "I think it''s time to end this fa?ade," Jordan said as her scaled wings arched and released dense gales. The gales seemed alive. They flew through the sky and surrounded Cassandra before converging toward her figure. A loud detonation followed and a hurricane formed in that spot. Jordan''s true meaning was control. Her individuality depended on the amount of air that she could submit to her will. In theory, she could achieve something similar to the Shadow Domain as long as her opponents fell into her range. The hurricane shrunk into the shape of a rotating sphere. The pressure in its insides was so high that most hybrids would struggle to survive in that environment. Yet, Jordan knew that Cassandra was still alive. The sphere began to slow down. Its spin eventually stopped, and the whole attack opened to reveal Cassandra. She didn''t suffer any injury. Even her robe was perfectly fine. "Charles might be dead," Cassandra said, "But the situation doesn''t change. I only need to kill all of you by myself." "You can try if you want," Jordan said before launching more gales through her wings. The winds transformed into a sea of sharp needles that flew toward Cassandra, but the cultivator waved her hand, and the attack condensed before dodging her figure. The gale made of needles then flew around Cassandra to shoot toward Jordan. The cultivator only needed to wave her hands to send those attacks back toward her opponent. Jordan''s wings flapped again, and winds clashed with the incoming attack. Cassandra''s technique didn''t manage to do much, but that didn''t solve Jordan''s situation. "Can you use your attacks?" Jordan asked. "I have already grown tired of these exchanges." "You asked for it," Cassandra replied, and her individuality surged as a massive whirlpool formed among the sky. Water also materialized as her aura flowed into the environment. The whirlpool had Cassandra as its center and caught Jordan in its external layers. Even with her hybrid strength, Jordan didn''t manage to escape from those raging currents. The whirlpool dragged her along its rotations, and she felt the pressure landing on her body increasing as she reached deeper areas of the structure. "I prefer to use my opponents'' attacks to fight," Cassandra said from the center of the whirlpool. "My techniques put an end to battles too quickly." The pressure restrained Jordan''s wings and her movements. She felt unable to do anything to escape from that attack. Her skin also started to cave in as the force pressing on her body continued to increase. The whirlpool was a perfect trap that she couldn''t escape. Jordan could predict that her body would be nothing more than a meat paste by the time she reached the center of the technique. "I expected more from you," Cassandra said. "It''s rare to find hybrids in the solid stage, but I guess that you have reached this level by sacrificing your potential. Your attacks are below the average of cultivators at your stage." "Of course," Jordan said. "It''s hard to pretend to be a human. Your form is so limiting." Shock appeared on Cassandra''s face when she heard that voice. Jordan was already halfway through the whirlpool. The pressure there was so intense that no sound could escape. However, Cassandra had heard that voice. Something was off, and her shock increased when she glanced toward Jordan. Her opponent had disappeared. Only her robe continued to flow through the whirlpool. When the robe crumbled, a large shadow appeared above Cassandra. The cultivator saw a giant dragon when she raised her head. Amber scales covered the forty meters long creature, but its eyes were the same as her opponent. "Humans," Jordan''s mocking voice came out of the dragon before it spat a wave of red flames that covered the whole whirlpool. The pressure radiated by Cassandra''s technique captured the flames and forced them to flow along the currents. However, signs of instability began to appear on the whirlpool as that massive fire fused with its figure. Jordan continued to spit flames, and Cassandra eventually helped her technique to disperse the attack. The whirlpool absorbed the fire and destroyed it through its pressure, but Jordan''s assault didn''t stop. The currents started to fall apart as Jordan''s offensive continued. The whirlpool slowly crumbled under the might of those flames. Only Cassandra didn''t move. The fire didn''t even touch her. "What an annoying individuality," Jordan said as a sigh escaped her draconic mouth. "Your attacks are only slightly stronger than average," Cassandra replied as a mocking tone seeped into her words. "You might have changed form, but your power is still nothing compared to my law." "Your knowledge of us is laughable," Jordan said as she completely unfolded her wings. "My fire is only an innate ability. It has nothing to do with my individuality or mental energy." Cassandra understood what Jordan meant, but it was already too late for her. Jordan flapped her massive wings, and a mountain made of air fell on the cultivator. The expert waved her hands to disperse the immense gale, but her power fell short against that technique. Jordan had moved too much air with her attack. Cassandra couldn''t redirect something that carried so much energy. The immense gale slammed on Cassandra and flung her back on the ground. Blood accumulated in her mouth and on the corners of her eyes when she hit the terrain. The attack had been no different than a direct punch from a magical beast. Cassandra had survived only because her individuality had allowed her to disperse part of the attack''s power, but that didn''t change her situation. The massive dragon had begun to dive toward her. Cassandra had to do something, or she would die in the following exchange. The cultivator created a massive dome that rotated and absorbed energy during its spins. Once it had accumulated enough power, it shot a condensed vertical current that pierced Jordan''s draconic belly and opened a large injury. Jordan didn''t care about that wound. She continued to dive and gain speed under the concerned gaze of her opponent. Cassandra continued to use her dome to launch condensed currents, but the Dragon didn''t mind enduring them. Once Jordan was about to reach the ground, she unfolded her wings to stop and gather violent winds. Then, she threw those gales toward the ground, unleashing a shockwave that affected even the battlefields close to her. The dome tried to fend off that attack, but the wall of wind was too dense for the technique. Cassandra could only watch as currents fell from her spell and an immense pressure landed on her body. Before she could do anything, the pressure turned Cassandra into a bloody pulp. Jordan had only needed to hit her once to kill her. Chapter 1452: 1452. Parts King Elbas didn''t get the chance to kill his opponent. Percival began to escape after his lightning bolts became useless against the Royal, and his speed wasn''t something that King Elbas could match. Still, Jordan chased Percival and finished him off with a massive gale. King Elbas had already injured him, so she didn''t need to start another fight. Jordan also flew in Don''s aid. The hybrid had suffered many injuries during his unfavorable battle, but his superior resilience allowed him to continue to fight. Yet, his opponents were too many, so he didn''t manage to deal finishing blows after defeating a few of them. Jordan in her dragon form took care of those liquid stage cultivators and made sure that no one escaped. The less the Crystal City knew about them, the higher their chances of surviving future attacks. Noah had watched the various battles through his consciousness. He had seen Don''s violent fight against that group of liquid stage cultivators. He had witnessed the power of King Elbas'' individuality. He had felt in awe in front of Jordan''s dragon form. His companions were monsters, just like him. Don was the expert who wasn''t entirely off the scale, but his law allowed him to enhance his already superior features. The hybrid was also on his path to becoming an existence that normal labels couldn''t describe. ''To think that she could transform into a dragon,'' Noah thought as he watched the massive beast shrinking and regaining a human form. Jordan winked toward Noah when she sensed his gaze on her naked body. His stare carried no lust. Noah only wanted to see if he could understand the secret behind her transformation. Still, Jordan didn''t mind and let him watch as she wore a robe taken out of her space-ring. ''That guy is also quite troublesome,'' Noah thought as his attention moved on King Elbas. ''I guess he really is the best at what he does.'' King Elbas'' abilities seemed the best among the members of the group. The Royal could become immune to laws as long as he managed to develop a substance that countered their true meanings. Noah could force his cultivation level to grow and skip entire stages as long as his potential reflected those improvements. Yet, King Elbas could render individualities useless. His expertise could also make him the most troublesome of the opponents. If he had to speak the truth, Noah wouldn''t feel completely confident in a one versus one battle against King Elbas. He would have the upper hand in the fight, but he didn''t know if he could win. Still, one thing became certain in his mind after that battle. The growth of every living being was exponential, but no existence could compare to the hybrids in that field. The strength that they could wield once they reached the solid stage was immense, and Jordan was a living example of that fact. Noah began to wonder about the power wielded by the leaders of the Legion. Jordan appeared far stronger than any other solid stage cultivator, so the rank 8 existences inside her organization had to feature a larger difference of power against humans at a similar level. ''That difference will be greater with me,'' Noah concluded as he closed his eyes to assess the damage on his body. ''I will surpass even the monsters sitting on the eighth rank. My potential is so high that even solid stage "Breath" can''t satisfy me.'' Noah''s body still featured many injures even if the effects of the flames had run out. Spiderwebs of cracks covered his whole skin, and internal wounds still leaked blood through the body. His flames had only managed to stabilize his body at that time. Those injuries had taken roots now, so he couldn''t fly toward another area to burn something that could make him heal faster. Those injuries were part of his body now, and only a normal healing process could fix them. Absorbing, eating, and burning "Breath" would fill his black hole with energy that would reach his tissues only after the organ purified it. Jordan, Don, and King Elbas flew toward Noah and sat next to him after their battles were over. Only Jordan didn''t suffer any injury. The others were far from their peak condition. King Elbas had lost almost half of his torso. Golden flames flowed out o his injury and slowly rebuilt the missing tissues, but it was clear that the process would take a while to end. Don had suffered wounds of different nature from his many opponents. His skin featured a multitude of injuries that slowly closed as he filled his body with energy. A dantian from a liquid stage cultivator was already in his grasp. The expert was only waiting to understand the gravity of his situation before starting to train again. "Why don''t you divide those?" King Elbas asked when he saw the suppressed dantian in Don''s grasp. "Jordan has killed more than me, Don explained. "I''m only using my share." "I have the dantians that I''ve managed to save," Jordan explained as tinges of draconic voices leaked into her voice. "I will divide everything I found according to our service in this battle." Jordan took out a few liquid stage dantians and gave them to King Elbas. "Why so few to me?" King Elbas asked as he inspected the goods in his palm. "You let your opponent escape," Jordan explained. "That alone takes away points." "He was almost dead," King Elbas replied. "Almost doesn''t count," Jordan continued. "You will get less than us. Still, there isn''t much to seize." The members of the Crystal City had special items to store objects. Even King Elbas would struggle to break those defenses. It was also unclear whether he could approach those space-rings undisturbed. However, their assailants didn''t only come from the Crystal City. The members of Percival''s guilds carried unprotected space-rings that Jordan had already opened and inspected. "Don is also fine like this, right?" Jordan asked. "You all took care about the enemies in the solid stage," Don said. "Elbas deserves some of their items." Jordan sighed as she threw a few space-rings toward King Elbas. The expert fell silent after he received his resources. "Your turn," Jordan continued. "What do you want?" "What about dantians in the solid stage?" Noah asked, but Jordan shook her head. "None left," Jordan replied. "You made your opponent explode. Mine are nothing more than meat pulps now. It''s either items or items for us. You only have to decide which suits you the most." Noah expanded his consciousness at that point. His mental waves flowed inside Jordan''s space-ring and inspected the various items she had collected through the battlefield. One item immediately attracted his attention. It was Charles'' white blade, which had survived the detonation of the countless Instabilities. Part of the item had suffered some damage during the explosion, but Noah felt sure that he could restore it. The sword also was an upper tier weapon, so he didn''t mind investing resources to fix it. The other items were quite useless for him. The liquid stage cultivators didn''t own much in general, and Percival was even relatively poor. He had some techniques and notes about his individuality, but they mainly targeted experts with a lightning aptitude. Those techniques were useless for Noah, so he took the white sword, along with the notes and other potions that focused on the body. Chapter 1453: 1453. Message The group left once Noah felt able to move again. They flew for a while until they reached a distant region where they could settle and heal properly. Don''s injuries weren''t severe, and King Elbas had his methods to restore his body made of golden flames. Instead, Noah needed time to recover, so he secluded himself in a cave where he deployed the Dark Womb spell. The sword-like coffin interacted with the dark matter in the black hole to harmonize the healing process and bring his condition to its peak. Noah recovered quickly, and he used that time to review his battle against Charles. ''The "embodiment of power" is as powerful as the tome suggests,'' Noah thought during his rest, ''But I can improve the unstable substance. I need to turn it into something more reliable and less dangerous to use.'' Noah had been able to face Charles'' attacks head-on when the unstable substance flowed through his black vessels. The technique had surpassed his expectations, but his channels couldn''t completely withstand its power. The "embodiment of power" was too violent for most of his black vessels. Noah didn''t only need to improve the unstable substance. He also had to optimize the distribution of its power so that he wouldn''t hurt himself during an eventual second activation. The Shadow Domain was as perfect as it could get, so Noah couldn''t do much there. He could only improve his production of special darkness and train on expanding the layer between dimensions faster. His cursed sword had also shown its power during the battle, but the bloodlust that accompanied it was pretty dangerous. Noah guessed that he couldn''t modify that item unless he wanted to remove its unique effects, so he simply let it be inside his separate space. The battle had made him understand that the cursed sword had to be a trump card and not something he could use in every fight. Its drawbacks were too severe. Noah needed something stabler that he could use without worrying about his condition. Charles'' blade would suffice for that task. The item was in the upper tier and had the power to enhance his sharpness. Noah could definitely use it together with his Demonic Sword to perform dual-wielding techniques. The battle against Charles had brought immense advantages and paved the way for future improvements. Noah knew which aspects of his battle prowess he had to develop and modify now, and a sense of hurry filled his mind. The Crystal City had shown the group that it could find them even when they were in the magical beasts'' domain. Noah and the others didn''t know how far its influence spread, but they didn''t feel safe anymore inside those wild lands. Noah felt far more worried than his companions. He was the Crystal City''s main target, and he had just survived an ambush that featured three solid stage cultivators. The Crystal City wouldn''t stop attacking him, and it could even send an entire army of solid stage cultivators in its next ambush. Noah didn''t dare to consider the possibility of meeting a rank 8 expert in the near future, but he knew that he could expect anything from those fanatics. He had to grow quickly. The organizations in the Immortal Lands wouldn''t underestimate him. Charles'' show of force had given Noah a clear understanding of what those forces were willing to do to those that opposed them. ''Ambition, personal arts, improved martial arts, and a better unstable substance,'' Noah thought as he made a list of his projects. ''Finding and creating a new Blood Companion is also a must. I need to understand how the red crystals work. Snore and Night will become useless otherwise.'' Noah''s evaluation didn''t saw Snore and Night as weak. The two companions were handy and strong against enemies at his same level. However, they became almost ineffective against experts more powerful than him. The problem was that the companions couldn''t express power superior to their level. It was the same issue that had prevented Noah from piercing Charles'' defenses with the Demonic Sword. Only a higher strength could win against someone at a higher level. Still, the Rats could ignore their innate weakness and obtain satisfying effects with their numbers. Noah wanted to do something similar, other than testing if the red crystals could allow him to avoid the issue altogether. Noah''s potential had skyrocketed after the battle. He could now increase his cultivation level again at the price of hefty drawbacks. Yet, Noah didn''t mind enduring them to obtain that boost of power. The personal arts and sword arts required time and tests. Noah could dual-wield again now, so he wanted to create techniques that could capitalize on that ability. As for the "embodiment of power", Noah could only continue his tests until he found something better and with less impact on his black vessels. However, that also required time. A simple conclusion eventually appeared in his mind. Noah couldn''t improve his power in a short time. Only his Blood Companion was an exception, but he had yet to find suitable targets. Noah''s body fully healed at some point. He was back at his peak, but he didn''t leave his cave since he had to invest time in his normal training sessions, which began as soon as the Dark Womb dispersed. Having so much potential made his dantian enlarge faster, and the many preys seized during his travels always provided him food. His level grew smoothly, and he never met bottlenecks. "We have to talk," Jordan''s voice suddenly resounded inside the cave and forced Noah to interrupt his training. Noah knew Jordan enough to understand that something had to be off. She would never interrupt his training unless a matter required her full attention. Noah left the cave and joined his companions, who had already fathered in a spot near a lake. Severe expression covered their faces. Only King Elbas was the same as always. "What is it?" Noah asked once he joined his group. "We received a message from the Legion," Jordan said without wasting time in chit-chats. "The humans had invaded the Outer Lands. A battle between the sides has started. My organization wants us back to join the fight." Noah felt surprised about that event. He had initially thought that the Legion would escape at first sight of danger, but the situation was far different. "Why didn''t they escape?" Noah asked. "They did," Jordan explained, "But a meeting happened, and a hybrid died. The Legion can''t let go of that. We must fight." Noah studied the matter in his mind for an instant before understanding all its positive features. It was pointless to continue the exploration of the magical beasts'' side. Moreover, it was too dangerous to wander in those regions since he didn''t know how many spies they had. Going back inside the human domain would also limit the Crystal City. That force couldn''t send assassins so far away from their headquarters, and they had to respect when members from other organizations appeared. That was perfect for Noah. He could abandon the magical beasts'' field for now and focus on honing his battle prowess. A battlefield was the ideal training area for him. Chapter 1454: 1454. Pagoda Traveling through the Immortal Lands took years, decades, and centuries at times. The regions were vast, and each area featured dangers that took time to avoid or face. Noah''s group had been in the magical beasts'' domain for centuries already. They had traveled as far as the beginning of the Outer Lands in that side of the Immortal Lands, but they had to go back now. The whole human domain stood between them and their destination. The battle mentioned by Jordan was happening on the other edge of that area, and the political situation inside it was pretty messy. Many small and big battles had happened among the various organization during the migration. Certain forces had lost their home after the invasion, and finding new ones in wasn''t easy due to how chaotic the situation was. He lands on the opposite side of the magical beasts'' domain had remained unaffected by the invasion. That had forced the migrating organizations to fly past them to find new homes. The event had inevitably led them to the Outer Lands. Those areas rarely had human settlements. They were the hybrids'' domain, and those existences had grown tired of changing home whenever the human side decided to move. Noah and the others flew as quickly as possible without disregarding their safety. They avoided the Land of the Fallen and ignored the new border with the magical beasts'' domain to dive into the Outer Lands. The group still hunted and engaged in training sessions from time to time, but they mainly focused on reaching their destination. Yet, even those relatively short breaks allowed them to grow. Noah''s power increased steadily. His dantian expanded like never before, and his cultivation level slowly neared the halfway mark of the liquid stage. His body and mind also grew, and each step toward the last phase of the seventh rank made Noah far stronger than before. His growth was exponential. He was more than a hybrid. The level that his centers of power could reach was immense compared to other existences. Noah was the best specimen in the entire world, which forced him to collect countless resources to improve. The magical beasts killed along the way gave him nutrients for his body. His spherical rune provided a constant internal pressure that forced his mind to enlarge. His dantian relied on his potential to improve, and his influence slowly expanded as his power grew. Only one doubt remained inside his mind, and the hybrids shared the same confusion. King Elbas was still with them. The trio was flying in the Legion''s aid, and the Royal was tagging along. "Are you planning to help the Legion?" Noah eventually asked during their flight. "Joining? No," King Elbas replied. "Helping the Legion is the only logical path for me now. I have already offended too many forces to remain among humans." King Elbas'' words made sense, and Noah would normally leave the matter be at that point. However, the Legion now had someone that King Elbas had to learn how to respect. "Do you remember when you killed Chasing Demon?" Noah asked. "Do you want to start a fight?" King Elbas answered. "I thought we silently agreed to never speak about those events again." "I''m not doing this because I like to live in the past," Noah added. "Chasing Demon''s Master is among the Legion. He is a whimsical cultivator in the solid stage. I suggest you prepare." King Elbas remained speechless for a second. He didn''t expect that news, and Noah had been king enough to warn him. He could prepare for the meeting now, but he didn''t know how to announce himself in front of the expert. "Will you tell him my real identity?" King Elbas asked. "He has already seen you through my memories," Noah replied. "Hiding is pointless. You will have to face Divine Demon alone." The duo didn''t speak anymore for the rest of the travel. It was a silent journey when everyone knew what to do. The group had been together for so long that they didn''t need to speak to decide their approach in specific situations. The environment changed once they reached the other edge of the human domain. The lands before had been relatively peaceful, and they didn''t feature any power struggle. However, the shockwaves that only rank 8 existences could create began to fly through the sky as the group neared their destination. When the group began to see the Outer lands, they noticed how rank 8 existences were fighting high in the sky. The pressure radiated by their battle opened cracks on the azure terrain and created an area where no living being wanted to live. Noah and the others didn''t have the power to understand the battle. Their eyes could barely make out what was happening high in the sky, and their consciousness couldn''t even reach the external layers of that battlefield. The group felt forced to change direction and fly around that battlefield to search for the Legion. Jordan and Don had lived with that force for a long time, but even they couldn''t be sure about its new location. After searching for a while, tall structures appeared in the distance. The iconic buildings of Yellnbel filled the group''s vision. The four had done it. They had completed one of the longest possible travels in the Immortal Lands. Their arrival to Yellnbel wasn''t as warm as they expected. The hybrids in the city didn''t bother to look at the group. The battlefield was forcing them to leave, but they had another battle to fight. While the rank 8 cultivators fought on the border, the weaker troops had to join the offensive against the weaker cultivators. The group dived into the city and quickly found a familiar face among its citizens. Ian greeted the group and launched a surprised glance toward King Elbas. She didn''t expect Noah to bring another human toward the Legion. "You are late to the party," Ian said as a faint smile appeared on his face. "We have been fighting for years already. Come, I will show you the battlefield." Noah and the others were quite tired from the long travel, but they didn''t hesitate to follow Ian. They didn''t need to start fighting right away, so they didn''t mind prolonging their journey by a bit. Ian led the group deeper into the Outer Lands, in an area that featured a large six stories pagoda. A series of troops wearing robes that featured the symbol of the Monneay family encircled the building, and multiple guilds supported them from the side. The area was a mess. Large patches of ground were still burning. Intense winds blew through the area, and destroyed golem stood on the surface. It was clear that a battle had happened not long ago. No corpse occupied the ground. Noah didn''t understand how the battles there went, but he could guess that the Legion had to destroy that structure. Either that or killing all the troops that defended it. A platoon of hybrids rested at some distance from the pagoda. They gazed at the building while wearing an annoyed face, and they quickly turned toward Ian and the others when they sensed their arrival. A human suddenly stood up among that platoon. Noah recognized Divine Demon, but the expert didn''t even look at him. His eyes had fallen on King Elbas, and they had no intention to move. Chapter 1455: 1455. Challenge Noah didn''t want to see a fight between Divine Demon and King Elbas, but he had no say on the matter. The Royal had killed one of Divine Demon''s disciples. Noah had no right to interrupt or try to divide the two experts. Truth be told, Noah liked having King Elbas around. The two of them had similar mindsets, and they shared a deep respect for each other. Moreover, the Royal was extremely useful, especially when it came to situations that Noah didn''t know how to approach. Yet, Divine Demon was a fated ally. Noah owed him since he found his inheritance under the Great Whirlpool. The expert was even an asset in the solid stage. Noah would obviously side with him if the situation forced him to choose between the two experts. Divine Demon left the platoon of hybrids and flew toward Noah''s group. The air became tense as his influence spread through the environment. The world reflected the expert''s mood and made everyone expect a violent move. "Why is he with you?" Divine Demon asked once he stopped in front of Noah''s group. "He is useful," Noah replied honestly. "Did you forgive him for what he did to my disciple?" Divine Demon continued. "We have fought, won, and lost," Noah replied. "Our enmity has never come from our characters. Our circumstances have turned us into opponents, but we have never shared any deep grudge." "Will you help him if I were to attack him?" Divine Demon asked without moving his gaze from King Elbas. "No. He is all yours," Noah replied. "I will be the one drinking wine in the backlines this time." Noah raised his palm, and Divine Demon smirked at that sight. Two jugs full of wine came out of his space-ring and landed on Noah''s hand. "Go get him," Noah said in a mocking tone before flying toward the ground and turning toward Divine Demon. Don, Jordan, and Ian followed him and waited for the two experts to settle their matters. Ian tried to seize that chance to explain how that battlefield worked, but Noah quickly silenced him. "That can wait," Noah said as he pointed toward the two experts in the sky. "You don''t want to miss this." Divine Demon inspected King Elbas from head to toe. His eyes carried a piercing force that tried to reach the Royal''s insides, but an ethereal barrier always prevented them from studying the expert''s core. King Elbas was calm. He could sense that Divine Demon was far more dangerous than Percival, but he couldn''t avoid that clash. Going back to the human side would only turn him into a target. The Legion was the only organization that could accept his presence and temporarily shield him from his enemies. "You do seem strong," Divine Demon eventually said. "You must be to fly with my heir. How does it make you feel that the less talented of my disciples have defeated you?" "Chasing Demon died to gain mere years," King Elbas replied. "I defeated the whole world when I escaped my banishment." Divine entities had to stay true to their character. King Elbas couldn''t pretend to be humble even if Divine Demon was ready to attack him at the first sign of hostility. "Mere years, you say," Divine Demon replied. "Gaining mere years against the strongest existence of a lower plane. I call it a miracle." "Miracles aren''t real," King Elbas added. "Chasing Demon had a divine puppet and the determination to consume his life. Anyone else would have died against that opponent." "I see," Divine Demon said as a broad smirk appeared on his face. "Why don''t we test that? I challenge you, Elbas. If I win, I want the chance to take your life." "Why would I even accept?" King Elbas asked, but a heavy pressure suddenly fell on the entire region. The air became hard to breathe. The light radiated by the sky became heavier. Divine Demon was showing that he could kill King Elbas on the spot. The Royal couldn''t refuse his challenge. "What type of challenge?" King Elbas asked after he gave up on dodging that troublesome matter. "I will leave the choice to you," Divine Demon replied. "I can''t lose anyway." King Elbas'' arrogance intensified. Even if Divine Demon was a solid stage cultivator, the Royal couldn''t allow him to be so arrogant in his presence. "I choose the inscription field," King Elbas replied. "Any type of inscription is fine for me. I can''t lose either since I''m the best." "Name three areas," Divine Demon said. "I don''t think I remember three of them." Divine Demon exploded into a loud laugh. His words had left King Elbas speechless. The Demon wanted to challenge him when he didn''t even know the names of three areas of the inscription fields! "Formations, puppets, weapons," King Elbas eventually said. "The best creations earn a point. The level of the products won''t affect the final evaluation." "Of course," Divine Demon replied. "You won''t accept the loss if I relied only on my cultivation level." "I will choose your same reward," King Elbas concluded. "If I win, I want the chance to kill you." "You go first," Divine Demon said without even bothering to address the Royal''s last line. "I wouldn''t know where to start if you don''t show me what you create." King Elbas felt the need to curse, but he suppressed his emotions. Divine Demon wasn''t taking the challenge seriously. He was acting as if he had already won in areas unknown to his expertise. King Elbas snorted and took a few steps back. Countless materials came out of his space-ring, and mental waves fused with them to create golden lines that hovered around him. Initially, the lines created a simple oval shape, but the figure became messier as King Elbas added materials to the formation. His product even showed signs of instability as its size increased. When King Elbas stopped sending meanings and materials inside his creation, the formation shrunk before expanding again. Its lines stretched until they covered a large area of the sky, and the white light suddenly became unable to cross them. Golden drops fell from the lines of the formation. They contained so much energy that most of the hybrids in the distance gulped at their sight. King Elbas had created something capable of condensing the energy carried by the white light in a few seconds. "I never understood why the inscription masters here don''t exploit the white sky," King Elbas said. "It releases pressure, so it has an energy that formations can seize." King Elbas then stored his formation inside his space-ring and shot an arrogant glance toward Divine Demon. The expert was scratching his head, but he soon recalled that he had to create something better than that. "I have it!" Divine Demon said before exploding into a loud laugh. His hands went toward the sky, and his aura expanded. His consciousness seeped into the fabric of the world, and his individuality forced the matter to work for him. The world seemed to understand what Divine Demon needed. Dense currents formed in the sky around him and flowed above his head, where they gave birth to a small whirlpool. The whirlpool attracted the white light and made it converge toward its center. A large area of the sky darkened as its radiance flowed inside the rotating structure and came out as a white river. The river radiated intense energy that made the hybrids directly salivate. Some of them even opened their mouths as their desire intensified. King Elbas'' formations could turn the white light into golden drops, but Divine Demon had transformed it into a proper stream. Chapter 1456: 1456. Subordinate "How is that even a formation?" King Elbas complained. "That''s a spell fueled by your cultivation level. It doesn''t even count as an inscription." "Are you questioning my methods?" Divine Demon replied as an arrogant expression appeared on his face. "I didn''t use my "Breath". My consciousness has transformed the matter of the world and has given it the shape that I desired. It''s exactly what you did. I only wasted fewer materials." "I have used countless minute meanings and fused hundreds of materials," King Elbas complained again. "How can you even compare my creation to this?!" "You have so much to learn in this area," Divine Demon replied as he looked toward a random spot in the distance. "The world must be your canvas if you want to use its true potential." "You don''t even know the name of this area!" King Elbas complained one last time before giving up on the matter. Even if Divine Demon had basically cheated, King Elbas couldn''t argue against his creation. The whirlpool performed better than his formation, so he had to admit defeat in the first round of their challenge. "It''s time for the puppets," King Elbas said. "Your spells won''t help you now." The whirlpool disappeared before countless materials came out of King Elbas'' space-ring. Various metals with different properties melted and fused under the Royal''s strict control. His golden flames leaked out of his body to surround the materials with a scorching membrane that altered their nature. The metals transformed during that process, and a tall figure soon came out of the fiery shell. The figure depicted a tall version of Divine Demon. It was incredibly lifelike, and it even imitated his expressions. The puppet then bowed toward his creator. King Elbas stepped on its back and used it as a platform to stand higher than his opponent. He even jumped a few times to show its sturdiness. Divine Demon supported his jaw as he studied the item. He didn''t care that King Elbas had intentionally tried to mock him. The light radiated by his red eyes intensified as he tried to find a way to win that challenge. His influence spread again into the environment when Divine Demon found a solution to his problem. His aura covered the ground and the sky, transforming the matter into particles of "Breath" of the water element. Those particles began to flow and converge near Divine Demon. A massive figure slowly formed, and the hybrids in the distance couldn''t help but laugh when they saw its odd shape. Divine Demon had also created a taller version of King Elbas, but his puppet''s proportions were completely off. Its head was as big as the rest of its body, but its crown was so small that its hair hid most of it. The puppet performed a bow toward Divine Demon before it raised one of its legs and started to spin on itself. Divine Demon patted its head after it completed a few rotations, and a happy expression appeared on its face. King Elbas didn''t know what to say. Divine Demon had cheated again, in his opinion. He didn''t use any actual material to build that puppet. The world had given him special water and rearranged it to create something slightly better than his opponent''s product. Divine Demon wasn''t even doing much. He only expanded his aura, and the world did everything else. King Elbas didn''t know how he could beat that. There didn''t seem to be a limit to the Demon''s individuality. "I have already won, don''t I?" Divine Demon said as his puppet broke and fell toward the ground. "I can give you the chance to win if you want. Let''s say that the winner of the last round will win the entire challenge." King Elbas snorted, but he didn''t dare to refuse. He stored the puppet as golden flames flowed out of his body and fused with his mental energy to create a large vortex. Materials came out of his space-ring and fell into that spinning structure. Their bodies melted as King Elbas raised his hand and tightened his fist. The vortex began to shrink. Its flames condensed into a fist-sized sphere that radiated immense energy. Its power seemed to surpass the limits of middle tier items. It went beyond that stage, into the realm of the upper tier. The sphere slowly morphed. A sharp tip and a handle came out from its edges. King Elbas'' flames took the shape of a golden sword in the upper tier, and the expert didn''t hesitate to wield it. King Elbas waved the sword toward the sky, and a massive fiery slash came out of its tip. Noah couldn''t hide his surprise at that sight. The Royal had created a weapon in the upper tier in less than ten seconds. As the blade crumbled, King Elbas'' curiosity skyrocketed. His mind temporarily forgot about the challenge and focused on his creation. His eyes inspected the shards that fell from the swords and continued to watch that spot even after his hand became empty. King Elbas had surpassed himself in that challenge. Creating something at that level in such a short time wasn''t normal, especially for an expert in the liquid stage. Even with his expertise, King Elbas needed a long time to create powerful items. Yet, he had managed to build a disposable inscribed weapon in a few seconds during the challenge. Winning or losing suddenly didn''t matter anymore. King Elbas only felt the bliss coming from his success in that procedure. It didn''t matter if Divine Demon created something better again. The Royal had already obtained what he wanted. Divine Demon also had to make his individuality improve. His law required victories, so he couldn''t stop even if King Elbas had started to ignore him. His aura expanded again. Mental energy flowed into the environment and transformed it into a mass of "Breath" that listened only to Divine Demon. The expert stretched his arm, and the "Breath" gathered toward his palm. The various particles of "Breath" of the water element morphed to take the shape of a blade that shone with an azure glow. The glow slowly changed color. It became white as more energy accumulated into the blade. It seemed that Divine Demon''s individuality was making him obtain the same higher energy that the expert had used against Boss Van. King Elbas glanced at Divine Demon when he sensed the energy radiated by the blade. The Royal had been the first to create the higher energy in his lower plane, so he couldn''t fail to recognize it. A short sigh came out of his mouth. Divine Demon had won again, and King Elbas couldn''t even understand how he had lost. The Demon''s individuality defied reason. It was what the Royal''s curiosity hated the most. "Come," King Elbas said. "Take my life. Avenge your disciple." Divine Demon tightened his grasp on the white sword and neared King Elbas. The tip of his blade landed at the center of the Royal''s forehead, and King Elbas didn''t even try to avoid it. A drop of fiery blood flowed out of King Elbas'' forehead when the blade pierced his skin. Still, Divine Demon didn''t push it deeper into his skull. "You let my heir live," Divine Demon said. "I won''t call you ally, but you aren''t my enemy." The white sword crumbled after those words. Divine Demon looked deep into King Elbas'' eyes before heaving a deep sigh. A tinge of melancholy appeared on his expression, but a broad smile soon hid it. "Besides," Divine Demon said as he turned to fly toward Noah''s group, "You are already my heir''s subordinate. Why would I even hurt his power?" King Elbas felt glad that Divine Demon didn''t kill him, but anger quickly replaced that feeling. "I''m no one''s subordinate!" King Elbas shouted, but Divine Demon had already stopped listening to him. Chapter 1457: 1457. Idea Ian could finally explain how the battlefield worked after the chaos created by King Elbas and Divine Demon''s face-off quieted down. "This building is the core item to a massive formation," Ian explained to Noah and the others as he pointed toward the pagoda. "The forces of the human side know that they can''t travel here separately, so they want to build a giant diagram to teleport entire cities in these regions." King Elbas showed a surprised expression at that statement, and his reaction gave Noah an idea of how hard that task was. The Royal was the real expert in that field. The project of the human side had to be incredibly ambitious to leave him speechless. "The humans need three pagodas to complete the formation," Ian said. "We managed to stop these troops before they went too far in the Outer Lands, but they won''t be satisfied with only this region. They are too close to the edges of the human domains, so they won''t gain much terrain if they remain here." The political situation of the Immortal Lands was quite hopeless. The storms of chaotic laws surrounded the higher plane, limiting the territories that weaker divine existence could inhabit. The Immortal Lands never stopped expanding, but the same went for the magical beasts. Those creatures continued to conquer territories and forced the human side to migrate after every invasion. The cultivators lacked space where to thrive, and they could only look at the Outer Lands to find new inhabitable areas. The Outer Lands were vaster than the human domain, but their environment was harsher than the central territories. The storms were close there, so they weren''t ideal in terms of habitability. Still, as the Immortal Lands expanded, the storms would withdraw, creating new ideal areas that the cultivators couldn''t wait to conquer. Those regions were one of the most precious resources in the higher plane since the magical beasts would take hundreds of thousands of years to reach them. Any force with the power to defend their domain would want those regions. In theory, the magical beasts were their only real opponents, and conquering those lands would make them ignore that issue for a long time. Yet, the Legion had grown tired of migrating every time the humans wanted more lands. Its leaders also felt that their organization had become strong enough to fend the cultivators off, so they decided to fight at that time. "In short," Noah said. "We only need to destroy the pagoda." "I wish it were so easy," Ian replied. "You can''t feel it from here, but the pagoda is a rank 8 item. It has a barrier that can stop most attacks and many troops that protect it. Also, the building already works as a teleportation matrix, so the human side can send reinforcements whenever we kill too many of them." The situation seemed hopeless. Only the rank 8 leaders of the Legion could destroy that item, but they were busy with the experts of the human organizations. "What''s your plan?" Noah asked. "We keep killing them until they don''t need these lands anymore," Ian explained. "We might be too few to stop their plans completely, but we can make them pay a hefty price." Noah didn''t know how to answer that. He understood that the Legion lacked the manpower to create a better strategy, but it wasn''t trying to win with that approach. Killing hundreds of rank 7 cultivators wouldn''t stop the organizations from claiming those lands. The Legion would eventually lose those regions if the situation continued like that. "I already told him that this strategy sucks," Divine Demon said when he noticed Noah''s expression. "The structure needs to accumulate a lot of energy to teleport another pagoda," Ian replied. "Then, these troops have to move it and repeat the process before they can start teleporting cities. Forcing them to send reinforcements consumes some energy, so we are slowing them down." "You hope that one of your leaders wins and comes here to destroy the buildings," Divine Demon said. "How many rank 8 cultivators does the Legion even have? Can they win against the joint force of many organizations?" Ian didn''t answer, but his expression was enough to understand how he felt about the matter. Hybrids had steeper requirements compared to the other species. It was harder for them to reach the eighth rank, and their lower number didn''t help in the matter. It was only normal for the human side to have more rank 8 existences. Only a few organizations were joining that invasion, but they were enough to put the Legion in a tough spot. "Will you join us?" Ian eventually asked as he turned toward Noah. "You need these lands as much as we do." Many thoughts quickly ran inside Noah''s mind. He didn''t mind fighting pointless battles since he needed to polish his battle prowess, but a strange idea had started to take form after he understood the whole situation. "Do all those troops belong to the Monneay family?" Noah asked after a short break. "We believe they come from guilds that the Monneay family has hired for the task," Ian explained. "We have confirmed the involvement of two more large organizations in this invasion, but there should be more of them." "How did you confirm this?" Noah asked as his eyes lit up. "We have spies in the human domain and inside various forces," Ian explained. "We even know which guilds will join the invasion in the hope of becoming members of the large organizations." A cold smile slowly appeared on Noah''s face. His idea seemed more feasible than he had initially thought, and it could even bring better results than the current approach of the hybrids. "What is it?" Ian asked when he saw that reaction. Don and Jordan also became interested when they sensed the coldness leaking out of Noah''s figure. "You know which organizations are fighting for these lands," Noah said. "You know which guilds they are hiring. You even have spies inside their domains. Why are you even fighting here?" Ian didn''t understand what Noah wanted to say, but Divine Demon exploded into a loud laugh and almost spilled wine from his cup at those words. King Elbas shook his head and made a silent comment on how the Legion lacked proper tacticians. He had learnt to know Noah enough to understand what he had in mind. "You have lived at the edges of the world for so long that you can''t imagine yourself at its center anymore," Noah explained. "Stop playing a game that you can''t win. You have the chance to ruin their plans properly. Seize it before they kick you out of your home." "What chance?" Ian asked as a tinge of exasperation leaked into his voice. "What can we even do more than this?" "You don''t attack a dragon when it is high in the sky," Divine Demon said as he took a sip from his cup. "You hide into its home and wait for it to fall asleep." "The invaders'' focus is on this region," Noah explained. "They won''t expect enemies at their doorsteps. Instead of slowing them down here, we can get rid of the problem at its source. Let''s attack their homes." Ian''s eyes darted left and right as he considered that option, but a cold smile soon appeared on his face. The expert then raised his head toward the sky and gave voice to a thrilled howl. Chapter 1458: 1458. Evaluation "Are you sure they are the best for the job?" Noah asked when he looked at the group of hybrids that Ian had gathered. Noah''s group, Ian, and a small team from the platoon of hybrids had returned to Yellnbel to organize the attacks. The plan saw them assaulting the various human forces involved in the invasion, so they required a relatively large side for the task. Jordan, Don, Divine Demon, and King Elbas weren''t enough for the mission. The homes of the human forces could hide countless defenses and multiple opponents. Also, they would contain the reinforcements meant for the invasion. Noah required a team made of experts with experience in multiple fields. Those assets also needed to meet specific standards for their battle prowess and sharpness of mind. Ian had quickly gathered a group of hybrids and had led them in the structure where Noah and the others were resting. It wasn''t hard to find capable warriors among the Legion. The only feature that worried Noah was their mindset. Noah inspected the ten hybrids who waited in a line in front of him. They were all experts in the liquid stage, and a faint fear appeared in their minds when Noah''s cold gaze swept them. "You, you, and you," Noah said. "Out." The three hybrids that Noah had pointed glanced at Ian, who limited himself to shake his head. It was clear that the Legion lacked experienced tacticians, so Ian had to give Noah the power to decide who was worthy of joining the mission. "Are we taking orders from outsiders now?" One of the hybrids complained. "Look at yourself, Ian. You are taking orders from humans!" The hybrid was a tall man with a muscular body. Long hair and a long beard covered most of his face, and a tinge of arrogance filled his expression. His cultivation level was also above Noah''s. It was slightly lower than Don''s but still near to the solid stage. Noah didn''t hesitate to shoot forward when he saw that the other hybrids in line were about to join those complaints. His dark matter flowed inside his dark vessels before his fist crashed on the tall man''s abdomen. A clanging noise resounded inside the structure before the man disappeared from everyone''s sight. A violent tremor swept the building, and the hybrids froze when they glanced at the hole that had suddenly appeared on the wall. Noah had flung the complaining hybrid away with a single fist. His show of power left the other recruits speechless, and no one dared to speak anymore for fear of receiving the same treatment. "Your raw power is useless in this mission," Noah explained as roars fused with his cold voice. "Many of you don''t even remember how to fight cultivators. You have fought magical beasts for too long. I can smell their wild instincts lingering on your thoughts. You are too unstable." Noah was a lone cultivator at his core, but he had learnt how to rule throughout his long life. He knew how to prove himself worthy of being a leader, and the task turned out to be relatively easy when it came to hybrids. Those experts believed in strength above anything else, and Noah was the strongest. His cultivation level placed his power among the experts in the liquid stage, but his actual battle prowess surpassed what normal labels could describe. When the hybrids realized how strong Noah was, they began to see him in a different light. Noah wasn''t only an outsider anymore. He had suddenly become a valuable asset that the Legion had to obtain. Even if Noah didn''t bother to consider that eventuality, the hybrids soon began to think about what he could become inside the Legion. An existence with such limitless potential could very well become the most powerful leader of their organization in the future. Moreover, the hybrids naturally reacted to Noah''s pride. They could sense that his existence was already on the level when he could build his pack. Their instincts told them that Noah could be an amazing leader, and they didn''t dare to contradict them. The two hybrids that Noah had ruled out of the mission left silently, and they didn''t even dare to glance back at him. "Do I need to get three more?" Ian asked as he sent a series of mental messages through his inscribed notebook. "No," Noah replied. "A small group is better for this mission. That noble will feel too important if he has to create too many inscribed robes." "I''m right here, you know?" King Elbas sneered, but his aura went on the seven hybrids anyway. "Don''t be jealous, Elbas," Divine Demon joined the conversation. "It''s only normal for subordinates to remain in silence when the leader speaks." "I swear," King Elbas said after giving voice to a loud snort. "I will make you regret not killing me." "How will you learn my superior methods if you kill me?" Divine Demon replied. "These younglings. They always think that they are better than their seniors." King Elbas was about to curse, but he suppressed his anger. He had begun to understand Divine Demon''s personality, so he knew that words were useless with him. Only actual achievements could free him from that annoying nickname. Once King Elbas memorized the hybrids'' auras, Ian laid a map on one of the tables in the room. The item didn''t depict much, but it had a few marked areas that featured the names of specific forces. "We have paid a steep price to obtain this knowledge," Ian explained. "I have marked all the areas inhabited by forces involved in the invasion." Noah only needed to inspect the marks with his mental energy to read through their information. Each sign represented a guild or an organization, even if most of them were mere branches when it came to the largest forces. "We can attack the small guilds first," Ian suggested. "Our group features three solid stage experts. Those forces won''t stand a chance against us." "This will only make the strongest forces retreat and build joint defensive structures," Noah explained. "That won''t prevent them from continuing the invasion." "You really did this before," Ian said as an excited expression appeared on his face. "He did," King Elbas replied. "He has gained this experience by attacking my nation." "You were already in the new continent by then," Noah said as Ian''s eyes widened. "I also had a personal matter to attend. Your organization had chosen to shelter my family. Attacking your lands was necessary." Ian began to worry when he heard that. Noah and King Elbas didn''t seem to go along, and that hostility ran deeply into their past. The hybrid didn''t know if the two of them could cooperate properly. "Don''t worry," Divine Demon said when he noticed Ian''s worry. "My heir managed to kill his family in the end. Everything ended well." Divine Demon''s words only intensified Ian''s worry, but the hybrid couldn''t say anything on the matter anymore. Everything was up to Noah and that eccentric group of experts. "We will attack the strongest guild," Noah eventually said. "Facing the large organizations right away is too dangerous. Destroying one of their main hired forces is the best way to slow down their plans and undermine their influence." "The strongest guild has four solid stage cultivators and hundreds of weaker experts," Ian replied. "That number is perfect," Noah said. "Go and prepare. We will move once everyone is ready." Chapter 1459: 1459. Invasion The strongest guild hired by the organizations involved in the invasion occupied a tall mountain that featured a thick forest on its sides. The environment was easy to defend due to its geographical layout. The experts of that force had even learnt to exploit the trees to improve their battle prowess there. Many inscriptions surrounded the area. They kept track of the various magical beasts that inhabited the region and ensured that no cultivator crossed those borders. The guilds were different from the large organizations. They moved whenever a better region became empty, but that force was different. The four solid stage cultivators in charge of the guild were quite famous. They had completed many jobs for the large forces and had earned a decent reputation in a world controlled by rank 8 experts. That guild had even received multiple invitations to join some organizations, but its leaders had always refused them. Those experts strongly believed that one of them would reach the eighth rank, so they couldn''t bother to become the slaves of the large forces. The inscription master in charge of the various formations around the mountain was a slim man called Bret. He was the second in terms of cultivation level in the guild, but his expertise mostly covered the formations'' field. Bret sat cross-legged inside a cave placed at the center of the mountain''s peak. A luminous sphere floated in front of his eyes and depicted the entire layout of the region. A few bright spots indicated the various cores of his formations. Bret could inspect all of them to study how the pack of magical beasts living inside the forest behaved. He could also do the same whenever his inscriptions sensed the presence of unwanted experts. Nothing could escape Bret''s control, but something he couldn''t explain happened a few months after Noah''s group departed from the Outer Lands. One of his cores flickered before returning to function normally. That had never happened to his formations before. A malfunction on the defenses could cause a chain reaction that would leave the entire guild unprotected. Bret couldn''t allow that, but his inscription didn''t show any strange behavior after that short flickering. "Did something happen?" A woman said after she suddenly appeared behind Bret. "Your senses are as sharp as ever, Adele," Bret replied. "I wonder why do I even bother to keep track of these formations with you here." "Did your formations detect something?" Adele asked, ignoring Bret''s comment. "It doesn''t seem so," Bret replied. "Maybe I need to reharmonize some materials, but the formations work fine. I can even look through their cores." "Don''t leave your position during this period," Adele said. "The families can summon us at any moment. We can''t have you wanted around in such an important moment for our guild." "Right, right," Bret added. "The fight for the Outer Lands is necessary for our force. I didn''t forget that." "But your words don''t carry our determination," Adele said. "I can''t help but feel that the Boss is wrong this time," Bret replied. "We don''t need a larger land. The mountain is perfect for our number already. Risking everything to be the mercenaries of some organization seems pointless." "You know how a larger environment can benefit all of us," Adele said. "Besides, I don''t see any risk in this mission. The Legion will soon retreat as it has always done. Humans might not be able to do anything against the magical beasts, but those hybrids aren''t a problem, especially when the large organizations are involved." "We don''t usually underestimate our opponents," Bret continued. "They aren''t our opponents," Adele said. "The organizations will summon us only when the fight is almost over. I wouldn''t worry so much." "You are right," Bret said. "Our backing is too powerful this time. We have nothing to fear." . . . "I told you to be careful!" King Elbas shouted toward one of the new members of Noah''s group. "You are lucky that I''m here. I managed to tamper the formation before it captured your faces. It''s safe to cross it now." King Elbas was in charge of that part of the invasion. His methods allowed him to see almost every inscription in the area. He was the most suitable expert for the task. "A magical beast was about to reach this area," The hybrid answered. "I needed to protect the mission." "Protect it while following my directives," King Elbas concluded before he watched through his lenses again to see if he found more inscriptions. Noah and the others were right behind the Royal. Ian, Divine Demon, Jordan, and the other hybrids followed him closely and didn''t dare to step outside of their group. King Elbas had to deactivate and tamper with all the formations that he found. That was necessary to keep the guild unaware of their movements. "How long do you need?" Noah asked as a tingling sensation filled his fingers. Noah couldn''t wait to fight. He barely contained his excitement for that battle. He could face another solid stage, and his mind often wondered about the boost that his potential would get after he defeated that expert. "I need to be thorough," King Elbas replied. "Then, I need to create the barrier. You can''t rush this process." "I would have done it in half the time," Divine Demon said before exploding into a loud laugh. "No, you wouldn''t have," King Elbas replied firmly before starting to ignore any external input. King Elbas'' task was crucial for the mission. He had to take his time to deactivate every formation in the area and create traps through the mountain. He also had to build something that prevented eventual who decided to fly away mid-battle. No one had to know that the Legion was attacking the guilds. That would only unify them against a common enemy. It was better to maintain secrecy. King Elbas took his time. He tampered with every formation in the area and built an untraceable barrier that isolated the whole area. No one could escape anymore unless they invested weeks in taking that restriction down. "Can we charge now?" Noah asked after a satisfied expression appeared on King Elbas'' face. "Yes," King Elbas replied. "We are free to go. What''s the attack plan?" Noah smiled before giving voice to a draconic roar. Jordan, Don, Ian, and the other hybrids joined the cry and forced most magical beasts in the area to flee. Those that remained marched toward the group and bowed their trembling head toward their new masters. After receiving a few orders, the magical beasts began to run toward the mountain''s peak, led by a selfless desire to satisfy their new leaders. They couldn''t escape those hybrids'' orders after bowing their heads to them. Noah and the others followed the tide of beasts closely. They already knew who their opponents were. The issue was to find them and divide them according to their strategy. A loud alarm echoed through the area when the beasts reached the series of habitations on the mountain''s peak. Countless cultivators began to fill the sky, but a wave of red flames covered the sky and turned them into ashes. Four powerful auras came out of the mountain''s peak at that point, and the invaders divided themselves according to the level of dangerousness coming from those presences. Noah and King Elbas soon found themselves in front of a short solid stage cultivator who wore an eccentric metallic robe. He was their opponent. The two of them had decided to work together to take down one of the four leaders. Chapter 1460: 1460. Wall Noah and King Elbas'' opponent had short black hair and a long beard. His dark eyes darted between the two experts as if searching for a reason behind their presence there. The expert had understood that the guild was under attack, but he couldn''t explain why his opponents were two experts in the liquid stage. "Do you know who I am?" The expert asked when he realized that no one else would come to face him. A tinge of anger appeared on his expression. The invading force was obviously underestimating him if it thought that two liquid stage experts were enough to keep him busy. Noah didn''t answer. Two swords appeared in his hands, and Snore''s massive body came out of his chest to envelop his figure. King Elbas didn''t reply either. Countless peak middle tier items appeared between him and the expert and spread a golden radiance through the area. "Arrogant fools," The expert said in a low voice. "I, Victor, will make you regret coming here today." Victor''s robe suddenly expanded. The metal that covered his clothes transformed into a spiked wall that hid his figure. Holes then appeared on that structure, and a series of silver spears shot at high speed toward his two opponents. King Elbas exploded into a sea of flames while Noah performed his movement technique to dodge the attack. Snore spat a black beam before turning into smoke that followed Noah through the dark matter that he released. The spears exploded when they touched the ground. Countless azure shards flew through the environment after a large piece of the terrain disappeared. The shockwaves released in the explosion kicked Noah out of his movement technique, but his body managed to endure those vibrations. A cold smile appeared on his face when he sensed that he didn''t suffer any injury. He could only rejoice at that sight. Noah waved his hands, and a storm of slashes flew out of his swords. Some were nothing more than an unstable mass of dark matter, while others were neat shapes that radiated an intense sharpness. Noah had fixed Charles'' weapon during his return to the Outer Lands. The task had been quite difficult since the blade was an item in the upper tier, but his dark world had allowed him to alter its fabric and fill the damaged spots with dark matter. Adding meanings to an already finished inscribed item in the upper tier was almost impossible at his current level. The white blade enhanced the sharpness radiated by its user, and Noah couldn''t modify it without destroying the core of the weapon. Still, he liked that feature, so he had used his dark matter to fill the missing spots and reinforce the sword''s structure. The white blade wasn''t wholly white anymore. The purple marks on its shape had also changed color. Black lines now ran through its body and shone with a dark light whenever Noah''s darkness flowed inside it. Charles'' blade couldn''t contain Noah''s individuality. It was a weapon meant only to enhance sharpness, so he couldn''t add the many features of his laws to the attacks that it released. Yet, his sharpness worked well with his destruction, and the blade didn''t reject that feature. Noah could now use his Demonic Sword to launch attacks that carried his creation and the white weapon to express his destruction. The result of that duality gave birth to a storm of different slashes that transformed the environment as they flew toward his opponent. Explosions happened whenever those attacks interacted with each other, and their detonation ended up creating even more slashes. Victor felt confused in front of that attack. Noah had targeted one of the unprotected sides, so the expert could see his storm of slashes in its entirety. The area between him and Noah had transformed into a place where only Noah''s sharpness existed. Every speck of dark matter launched by the Demonic Sword changed under that influence and took the shape of slashes that flew toward Victor. Noah had launched less than one hundred slashes during his attack, but their number had surpassed ten thousand when they reached Victor! "Hmph!" Victor snorted and morphed his metallic wall again. When Noah had fought Charles, the expert''s individuality could naturally block most of his attacks. However, his new offensive had forced Victor to defend with his spells. Noah''s base slashes had become strong enough to threaten the innate defenses of a solid stage cultivator! The wall expanded, and more spears shot out from its holes. The attacks destroyed his storm of slashes and forced him to deploy his movement technique again. Still, the detonations that followed soon flung him away. ''You can help the others if you don''t plan on joining this fight,'' Noah transmitted through his consciousness after straightening his position. ''Why would I lose the chance to inspect your power?'' King Elbas replied, but their conversation only made Victor angrier. Victor could sense that his opponents were conversing mid-fight. He couldn''t accept that offense. He was a mighty solid stage cultivator, but two mere experts in the liquid stage had the gall to talk while fighting him. "I have let you play around long enough," Victor said before his wall morphed again. The wall shrunk as it enveloped the expert. A spiked sphere soon covered Victor with an impenetrable shield that could launch threatening attacks. Countless spears came out of the sphere. The weapons flew in every direction and turned the entire environment into a chaotic battlefield with their explosions. Noah barely had the time to dodge anymore. The spears never stopped flying, and their explosions always kicked him out of his movement technique. Also, his attacks didn''t manage to reach the spiked sphere through that chaos. ''Do I have to rely on the Shadow Domain again?'' Noah wondered as he continued to dodge the spears. Noah had activated Miss Void''s spell at the beginning of the battle, but he wanted to win without relying on that technique. Even if his opponent was a solid stage cultivator, Noah saw that battle as part of his training. His focus was on improving his base abilities. ''We need to destroy the shell,'' King Elbas transmitted. ''You don''t say,'' Noah replied as he closed his eyes and expanded his consciousness. Noah continued to dodge the spears even without relying on his sight. His mind was enough to keep track of the weapons'' movements, but their explosions were quickly starting to affect his body. Blood soon accumulated in his mouth, but Noah didn''t leave the area. He was searching for something inside him. He wanted to recall all the experience accumulated during the years spent wielding two blades. ''It feels so natural wielding two of them,'' Noah thought as he raised his blades above his head. A spear flew toward him as he stood still in the sky, without moving a muscle. The weapon would take less than an instant to reach his chest, but Noah needed even less to perform his technique. Dark matter flowed through his black vessels. His physical strength skyrocketed as he fixed his mind on the incoming spear. His blades began to descend at that point, and they drew a cross as Noah slashed them forward. Nothing came out of the swords, but the spear that was flying toward him suddenly disappeared. It didn''t explode nor crumble. Its entire body vanished out of thin air. Noah opened his eyes at that point, and his cold smile broadened. Even if it was only a fraction of the offensive, he had managed to stop the attack of a solid stage cultivator without using his cursed sword. Chapter 1461: 1461. Deal Noah''s vast battle experience instantly allowed him to understand the nature of his attack. When the two swords met, they created a singularity that could directly annihilate the world''s matter. The spear that had vanished after his last attack didn''t release any energy. Its power had disappeared from the world, and even Noah didn''t know where it went. ''Creation and dark matter. Destruction and sharpness,'' Noah thought as he activated his movement technique to dodge the incoming attacks. ''The fusion of these aspects of my individuality can create something on par with Snore''s attack.'' Victor didn''t even notice that Noah had destroyed one of his spears, but King Elbas didn''t miss that detail. His consciousness was covering the entire battlefield, and most of his attention was on Noah. King Elbas'' knowledge was boundless, but Noah had shown him something that he didn''t understand. Heavy thoughts surged inside the Royal''s mind at that point. Both Noah and Divine Demon had managed to leave him speechless. That wasn''t something that Noah and Divine Demon would bother to mind, but King Elbas couldn''t ignore such a rare event. It was hard to surprise him, but it seemed that his companions could walk into fields that he wouldn''t be able to witness otherwise. King Elbas was extremely arrogant, but his curiosity was the most intense feature of his existence. When he found himself in front of two existences that he couldn''t wholly evaluate, his mind naturally began to think of ways to remain with them. ''Do you mind helping out?'' Noah transmitted through his consciousness and startled the Royal out of his thoughts. ''Fine,'' King Elbas replied shortly before activating his inscribed items. The sea of flames shrunk before expanding again. King Elbas'' peak middle tier inscribed items exploded and fueled the fire with their energy. The technique reached a level of density that the spears struggled to pierce. Its power had begun to touch the next stage. Noah quickly flew toward the sea of flames when he noticed that the technique could slow down the spears. He would still need to dodge the incoming attack there, but the fire would give him the time to launch attacks more often. The sea of flames opened when it sensed his arrival. Noah hid inside the fire and closed his eyes to expand his consciousness again. Now that he had found a new path for his martial arts, he had to let his thoughts go wild and test any idea that appeared in his mind. Noah''s sword arts had always been different from Sword Saint''s. They were inferior techniques, but Noah had relied on them during one of the most significant periods of his life. He felt attached to them, but not in an affectionate way. ''The swords have to meet to express the true power of my law,'' Noah thought. The memories of his dual-wielding style surged as he acted as if he was sheathing the swords. His body remembered the feeling of having two blades. Noah crossed his arms as his blades touched his sides and began to accumulate power. More dark matter flowed inside his black vessels. His physical strength skyrocketed, and a roar came out of his mouth as he slashed his weapons toward the spiked armor in the distance. His blades touched during the unsheathing. They released a metallic sound as the power that they had accumulated fused and gave birth to a singularity. Destruction and creation clashed to give birth to something that resembled a black hole. Yet, that phenomenon didn''t stay still. It shot forward as if it was a slash that carried insane destructive properties. Two spears were piercing the flames in front of him, but they disappeared when Noah''s attack enveloped them. Part of King Elbas'' fire also vanished, but the Royal quickly refilled those missing spots. ''Don''t weaken my technique!'' King Elbas cursed through his consciousness. ''Then do something more than this!'' Noah replied as he performed his escape maneuver again. Noah knew that his new swords arts couldn''t help him defeating Victor. He would struggle against that expert even if he brought that new path to its peak. The difference between their cultivation level was too vast. Noah had only managed to make his power approach that stage, but he couldn''t rely on it to defeat the expert. A solid stage cultivator was still far away from his actual power, but that was why he had chosen to cooperate with King Elbas. With the two of them working together, he could avoid going all-out and ending with wounds that would require months to heal. ''I''m studying his law!'' King Elbas complained. ''Do you know how hard it is to understand a true meaning and build something that counters it? Brutes like you only know how to swing their fists!'' ''How long do you need?'' Noah asked. ''I don''t know,'' King Elbas replied. ''I need him to use more power. I can''t understand much if he keeps using these basic techniques.'' ''Fine then,'' Noah said as a sigh escaped his mouth. ''I will use one of my powerful techniques, but you will do the same. Do we have a deal?'' ''Define powerful,'' King Elbas argued. "Stop ignoring me!" Victor shouted, and the spiked sphere around him began to release a humming sound that filled the whole area with dense vibration. Part of the sea of flames crumbled, and blood accumulated in Noah''s mouth as he felt his insides churning under that influence. The spears didn''t stop flying toward him either. It seemed that his conversation with King Elbas had made Victor livid. ''Deal!'' King Elbas shouted through his consciousness as those vibrations filled his techniques and forced him to condense his body again. Noah''s smile vanished as his energies began to converge inside his black hole. His primary energy, darkness, dark matter, and mental energy fused to create an unstable product that his fourth center of power sent toward his black vessels. Noah had perfected the "embodiment of power" after his battle with Charles. His tests didn''t only involve the actual fuel for the technique. They also saw him finding the sturdier black vessels. The unstable substance flowed inside specific black vessels under the black hole''s control. Those veins threatened to break, but they endured that violent power and let its energy flow inside the various tissues. An intense surge of power filled Noah''s body and forced a deafening roar out of him. He had to vent whenever he sensed that energy filling every inch of his body. His very existence asked him to announce his new state to the world. Flames flowed out of Noah''s mouth as he shot toward the spiked sphere. The spears continued to fly in his direction, but his eyes could now follow their movements properly. His body also wielded enough power to avoid them while he neared his opponent. Noah found himself on the spiked sphere before he could even come up with a plan. He instinctively crossed his sword above his head and released an attack that created a cross-shaped crack on the sphere''s surface. "What?" Victor''s voice echoed from inside the sphere. "How can you damage my armor?" The expert wanted to say more, but an intense aura suddenly surged in the distance. His attention when on the source of that power, where he saw King Elbas pointing a golden spear toward the spiked sphere. Chapter 1462: 1462. Trump cards The golden spear was a disposable weapon in the upper tier, but it wasn''t the only source of the intense aura that had managed to startle Victor. Something was happening inside King Elbas. Tongues of flames leaked out of his figure. It seemed that his body was unable to contain the immense power that he was generating. A loud tremor swept the spiked sphere and startled Victor again. Noah had attacked the silver metal again, and another cross-shaped crack had appeared on its surface. King Elbas released his attack at that point. His spear absorbed his flames before transforming into a wave of condensed light that crashed on the silver sphere and created a minute hole in its structure. Flames flowed inside the sphere through that hole, and Noah didn''t hesitate to launch a third attack on that spot. Victor could only stare as the two liquid stage experts pierced his defensive spell. The vibrations released by his metal stopped the golden flames and Noah''s sharpness from reaching his body, but Victor didn''t feel happy about that. His focus moved between King Elbas and Noah, and wonder filled his mind as he evaluated their power. A series of golden runes covered King Elbas'' body. They fended off the vibrations and made him virtually immune to that attack. The Royal had yet to understand Victor''s law, but he could already counter some of his attacks. Noah seemed completely unaffected by those vibrations. His body had reached unthinkable levels of sturdiness when he activated the "embodiment of power". His bare skin was enough to fend off that attack. Victor had no words to explain what was happening, but he took his opponents'' prowess as a direct offense toward his status as a solid stage expert. The cultivation world had labels and ranks for a reason, and he had to teach that to the two liquid stage experts. The sphere began to shake, and fissures appeared on its surface. Noah was continuing to dodge the spears without distancing himself from his opponent, but that attack enveloped him before he could resort to his movement technique. A wave of energy exploded outward. The air itself transformed into a tough metal that slammed on his body and flung Noah away. When he managed to stop himself, the battlefield had transformed. Victor was in the hair, sitting cross-legged on a small metallic platform. Countless lumps of his silver metal floated around him and transformed into massive spears that pointed toward the ground. Each of those weapons radiated a humming noise that fused with the sound released by the other spears and enhanced its effect. The whole area began to crumble as the vibrations launched in the attack spread in every corner of the battlefield. King Elbas had one knee on the ground. The pressure inside that spell was too intense for him. He could barely stand, and he didn''t appear able to resort to his sea of flames. "I will kill him first," Victor said. "Don''t even bother to run. I will find you even if I have to travel through the entire higher plane." King Elbas'' mental waves couldn''t escape that pressure either. The Royal and Noah couldn''t communicate in that situation, but they only exchanged one glance before setting their minds on the same plan. Victor seemed weaker than Charles. Still, his law wasn''t as simple. King Elbas and Noah were having a hard time against that expert even if their level would theoretically allow them to win against those opponents. ''Nothing is certain in the cultivation world,'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes and placed his blades on his forehead. ''This expert isn''t as strong as Charles, but his law gives him an advantage against us.'' His black vessels were reaching their limit, but Noah didn''t deactivate the "embodiment of power". He crossed his blades and slid them across his forehead as he focused his consciousness on the many spears that filled the sky. The blades released a screeching noise when they slid on his tough skin. Two white marks appeared on Noah''s forehead after he completed the attack, and the humming sound dimmed as his influence filled the area. Slashes of different nature began to appear among the spears. Noah''s sharpness generated endless cuts that clashed on the spell and with each other. Some of the slashes were uneven. They carried the wild power of Noah''s creation and released dark matter inside the whole area. The others were neat, curved attacks that spread his destruction and sharpness through the sky. The different slashes gave birth to singularities when they touched. Black holes would form and disappear as the two types of energy fused to generate those peculiar events. Entire chunks of air would disappear along with the black holes. The spears couldn''t avoid that phenomenon either. Pieces of their structure vanished whenever a singularity formed on their surface. Noah''s attack didn''t manage to destroy Victor''s spell. It didn''t even crush one of his spears. Still, it vanquished his influence and the vibrations released by the silver metal. King Elbas could finally move freely. Twenty disposable weapons in the upper tier promptly came out of his space-ring and flew upward, exploding into a sea of golden flames as soon as they touched one of the spears. His attack destabilized the spell and allowed Noah to fly among the spears to reach Victor. The expert couldn''t avoid him at that speed. He realized what was happening only when the two blades were already about to pierce his head. The fraction of an instant before the impact would be too short for many experts, but Victor was a solid stage cultivator. His spears instantly resumed filling the area with their pressure, and their vibrations surrounded Noah in a desperate attempt to restrain his movements. Noah was at the peak of his physical strength with the unstable substance fueling his body. Yet, the pressure radiated by the vibrations made his movements clunkier and slowed down his offensive. Victor had the time to dodge the incoming attack after he reinstated his domain. Noah''s blades cut his left cheek and severed his ear, but they didn''t manage to deliver a deadly blow. A spear then appeared above Noah and crashed on his side. The weapon flung Noah on the ground, next to King Elbas. An intense pressure then fell on him and threatened to succeed in restraining him. "Don''t you have anything better than disposable weapons?" Noah asked as his veins bulged. Even standing was hard under that pressure. Victor''s spell could affect his body when the "embodiment of power" was active. Only a true solid stage cultivator could move freely inside that influence. "I was about to ask the same to you," King Elbas replied as a faint smile appeared on his face. "I have already paved the path to victory." "I also have the finishing blow ready," Noah complained. "I did it before you," King Elbas said. "You don''t even know what my finishing blow is," Noah replied. "Explain it to me then," King Elbas continued. "I refuse," Noah promptly replied. "Are you trying to trick me again?" King Elbas asked. "Why don''t we use our finishing blow at the same time then?" Noah proposed. "Stop talking to each other in my presence!" Victor shouted, and his spears began to fall. However, Noah and King Elbas suddenly turned toward him and activated their trump cards. All the silver metal in the area melted, and Victor sensed foreign items in his insides. Before Victor could understand what had happened, his figure exploded in a wave of gray smoke and black flames. Chapter 1463: 1463. Resolve As energy flowed inside his body, disappointment filled Noah''s mind. He had managed to kill Victor without ending in a poor state with King Elbas'' help, but that victory didn''t satisfy him. Noah had found a new path for his martial arts, and he had even deployed his improved version of the "embodiment of power". He didn''t suffer severe injuries during the fight, but the outcome of the battle didn''t make him happy. ''I had to rely on the Shadow Domain again,'' Noah thought as he bathed in the surge of energy that was filling his body. Miss Void''s technique was incredible, but Noah didn''t want to have that spell as his only reliable method to defeat solid stage cultivators. He wanted his whole battle prowess to reach that level before he advanced to that stage. The issue was that Noah didn''t know if his desire was feasible. After all, his current battle prowess was already off the charts. Being able to kill solid stage cultivators with his actual power was in the liquid stage wasn''t something that other experts could achieve. ''Maybe I can fight on an even field if I use my ambition,'' Noah wondered as his mind reviewed the battle. Noah''s potential had increased after the battle with Charles. He could forcefully raise his cultivation level again if he wanted. He avoided using that ability only because King Elbas was with him. That conclusion didn''t satisfy Noah either. He could understand the reason behind his lacking battle prowess. Two of his most powerful assets were still unable to join fights at that level. It was easier for the Demonic Sword to be part of his superior battle prowess since the weapon worked together with Noah''s martial arts. However, the same didn''t apply to Night and Snore. Snore''s power depended on the level of his black hole, and Night was an existence that had no ties with Noah''s power. That made the two companions useless in battles against solid stage cultivators. Their attacks simply couldn''t pierce those experts'' innate defenses. ''I need to start testing the red crystals as soon as possible,'' Noah thought as he turned toward the other battlefields on the mountain''s peak. ''I can''t let my companions fall behind while I''m making so many enemies.'' Noah''s superior battle prowess didn''t come only from his incredible body, higher energy, and fourth center of power. His companions were divine existences that could multiply his strength, and he didn''t want to give up on them. The other battlefields on the mountain''s peak featured the rest of Noah''s group against the members of the guild that didn''t die during Jordan''s initial flames. Bret was fighting against Jordan, who was already in dragon form. She seemed to hold the upper hand in the battle, but the cultivator had stored enough formations to fend off her offensive. Ian was against Adele. The hybrid launched howls that spread soundwaves through most of the sky, but the cultivator wielded two fiery hammers that fended those attacks off whenever they slammed on the air. Divine Demon was against a tall woman called Edna. She was the boss of the guild and the strongest member of her force. Her skin had an unnatural dark-blue color that reflected the white light of the sky and made her figure shine. Don was leading the other seven hybrids against the many weaker members of the guild. His group didn''t face any problem even if their opponents heavily outnumbered them. Some cultivators had even begun to run away as the battle slowly turned into a slaughter. Since he could rely on his companions, Don could express the true power of his law. His flexibility allowed him to create the best armor for every situation, and he could also equip the member of his team with those items. The eight hybrids killed all the gaseous stage cultivators in a few exchanges before focusing on the liquid stage experts. Their eight giant figures fought wildly among the hordes of warriors. Jordan filled the ground with flames, but a spherical figure always managed to survive her attacks. Bret floated cross-legged among a series of thick formations that protected his body from the hybrid''s offensive, but he wore a concerned expression. Even if his formations allowed him to survive, Bret couldn''t see a path that could lead to victory. Jordan was simply stronger than him. Nothing he did would work against her massive scaled body. "You are starting to bore me," Jordan roared before flying high in the sky and diving back toward the ground to release a dense gale. "You can always stop your attacks and go somewhere else," Bret replied. "I bet that my companions will be better opponents." Jordan didn''t like Bret''s personality, and her offensive intensified as that expert continued to speak. His behavior was angering her, and the sturdiness of his formations made everything worse. "That was stronger than before," "Stronger again," "I''m surprised my formations managed to endure this one," Bret continued to taunt Jordan, but the worry on his face didn''t vanish. Jordan''s stamina was boundless, so her offensive never slowed down nor lost power. "Ok, listen to this," Bret began to speak, uncaring that Jordan was continuing to attack him. "What if I told you that one of these formations can accumulate the power that falls on its lines?" Jordan was about to launch another wave of dense gales, but she suddenly stopped when she heard those words. She could understand what Bret''s words meant, but she couldn''t guess why he had decided to reveal that information. "I had initially planned to kill you in one blow," Bret continued, "But you are too strong. You almost destroyed the formation when you bit me before, and I can''t control it anymore. It will continue to accumulate power until it explodes." "So?" Jordan asked. "Well," Bret said as he scratched his head. "I normally release the energy when it''s too much for me to endure, but we are already past that point. The formation already has enough power to destroy the entire area. It might destroy the whole mountain''s peak if you keep attacking." Jordan understood Bret''s concern at that point. Since he didn''t control the formation anymore, those lines would keep absorbing energy until they reached the breaking point. Jordan could die in the explosion if she gave too much power to that inscription. "Do you think that I would fall prey to fear?" Jordan roared as she flew back into the sky and resumed her offensive. "What are you doing?!" "You stupid dragon!" "Stop already! You will kill both of us!" Bret continued to shout, but Jordan didn''t care. The mission was too important for the Legion, and she had already steeled her resolve. She couldn''t allow any miscalculation. Her target had to die, even if she ended up dying in the process. As Jordan dived toward the surface again, the formation exploded and engulfed her massive body in a wave of violent energy. The attack spread until Don''s battlefield, where it killed many weaker cultivators on the spot. The hybrids wore Don''s armors, so they managed to survive the event. That violent energy also reached the other battlefield, but the experts there were strong enough to fend that attack off with their power. Ian, Adele, and Boss Edna used their laws to shield themselves, but Divine Demon decided to let the shockwave injure him. The Demon wouldn''t lose the chance to increase the difficulty of his battle, and he even gave voice to a loud laugh after blood began to flow out of his mouth. Chapter 1464: 1464. Healing The aftermath caused by the detonation of Bret''s formation soon dispersed due to the various dense auras that filled the mountain''s peak. The cloud of gray smoke that had filled the sky after the detonation vanished and revealed the outcome of Jordan''s battle. Bret was nowhere to be seen. Even his formations had vanished without leaving any trace. The ground didn''t feature any blood either since the violent energy released in the explosion had turned it into ashes. The only figure that occupied that destroyed battlefield was a huge dragon that breathed heavily. Jordan appeared heavily injured. Scales fell from her body, and trails of smoke came out of her large wounds. "She won''t be able to fight in the next attack," Noah commented when his eyes fell on Jordan''s injuries. King Elbas snorted at his words, and Noah shot a confused glance toward him. The Royal''s knowledge was immense, but Noah surpassed him when it came to hybrids. King Elbas'' reaction wasn''t something that Noah expected to see after giving his evaluation. "Nonsense," King Elbas said before shooting toward Jordan. Noah followed the Royal, and his eyes lit up when he saw King Elbas taking out a series of inscribed items from his space-ring. They were sensors of various kinds that helped him understand how severe Jordan''s injuries were. "Give me a tinge of your law," King Elbas said as he stored his items. Jordan struggled to lift her eyelids, and her reptilian pupils studied King Elbas before fixing on Noah. The two exchanged a long glance that broke when Noah nodded. A tinge of Jordan''s law condensed on her head, and King Elbas promptly seized it. The Royal then took out a large structure from his storage item and started to modify the inscriptions on its surface. The building was no different from the portable habitations that King Elbas carried inside his space-ring. It had a palace-like appearance, with a large golden door and a smooth metallic surface. The structure had no windows and featured only four towers on its corners. They seemed to lack a purpose, but Noah guessed that King Elbas had taken into consideration the aesthetic of the habitation when he built it. When King Elbas completed the modifications, he placed the speck of Jordan''s law inside one of the golden lines. The building quickly changed color. Its golden surfaces turned amber as Jordan''s individuality spread through the inscriptions. "I have tuned the healing properties of this building to your individuality," King Elbas said. "According to my calculations, you should heal thirteen times faster in here. The process will deplete part of your lifespan, but that shouldn''t be a problem for you." Noah''s jaw almost fell after that explanation. He had a spell that enhanced his healing properties, but that inscribed item surpassed it. Also, hybrids wouldn''t care about its drawbacks since their lifespan was immense. Jordan was even part dragon. Her aspect would remain the same for entire millennia. Losing a few years to heal her injuries faster was a fair trade. "This is perfect for hybrids," Noah said. "Did you build it for the Legion?" Noah couldn''t help but wonder why King Elbas owned such an item. Its features seemed to favor hybrids over humans, so Noah felt confused about the whole matter. "I didn''t build it for the Legion," King Elbas snorted. "I had an idea after the ambush of the Crystal City when I saw how long it had taken you to heal. It''s already too late for me at that point. I need to create anything that I find interesting." Jordan shrunk while Noah and King Elbas talked. Her scales transformed into amber skin as she regained her human appearance. Her body in human form didn''t carry any injury, but her complexion was far from good. She could hide her wounds in that shape, but she couldn''t make them disappear. "I hope Ian manages to capture his opponent," Jordan said as she crossed the entrance of the palace. "I couldn''t win without killing mine." An amber radiance surrounded the whole habitation after Jordan shut its doors. The item had activated its healing effects, so Noah and King Elbas could divert their attention on the other battlefields again. Don and the other hybrids'' battle had become easier after the explosion of Bret''s formation. Most of the humans fighting against them had died when the wave of violent energy swept the mountain''s peak. The eight hybrids fought wildly. They overwhelmed their opponents with their physical strength. Don''s law even allowed his companions to ignore the distance from the cultivators and launch shockwaves that carried their power. That battlefield had slowly turned into a one-sided fight, and Noah couldn''t bother to watch it. The other battles were more interesting, so his attention quickly moved toward Ian. Adele wielded two fiery hammers that destroyed Ian''s soundwaves whenever they slammed on the air. She had a fire aptitude, but the might carried by her attacks could influence the hybrid''s howls in ways that only cultivators with a wind aptitude could. She wasn''t even attacking Ian. Her hammers crashed on the air, spreading her influence through the sky and playing her peculiar rhythm. Ian didn''t stop attacking her. Howls continued to come out of his mouth and create shockwaves that converged toward Adele, but her hammers were ready to stop them every time. An area of distorted air slowly formed around Adele. Her hammers hit the air more often at that point, and small flames began to appear around her. Those flames flickered according to Adele''s rhythm and helped to spread her aura. Her peculiar domain kept expanding, and the fire soon filled a large part of the sky. Nothing Ian launched managed to pierce those defenses. Adele''s aura was too thick for his soundwaves, but the hybrid never stopped howling. He didn''t appear concerned about his opponent, but the same went for Adele. "We both accumulate power, am I right?" Adele asked from behind the walls of flames. Ian smirked before launching another howl. Adele was right, but he wouldn''t give information about his law to his opponent so easily. That mission was for the greater good of the Legion. He couldn''t let his ego take over. "I understand," Adele said. "We will see which owns the stronger law after we finish accumulating power." Adele''s aura continued to expand, but a confused expression soon appeared on her face. She had guessed Ian''s law correctly, but the hybrid wasn''t spreading his influence in the environment. His soundwaves vanished whenever they touched the flames. Still, that strangeness in Ian''s law didn''t make Adele stop. She didn''t believe that Ian was weak. She planned to launch her best attack before the hybrid completed his preparations. The flames suddenly condensed in the shape of a massive bolt. Her condensed air also fused with the fiery weapon that floated in the air in front of Adele. The cultivator then glanced toward Ian before raising her hammers. Her weapons quickly hit the back of the bolt and threw it at high speed toward the hybrid. The bolt was incredibly fast, faster than Noah when he used the movement technique fueled by the "embodiment of power". It was a finishing move. However, Ian continued to smile as he blew toward the bolt. The weapon suddenly imploded before it could reach him. It was as if an immense force had crashed on its fiery surface. Chapter 1465: 1465. Arm Adele felt shocked about that outcome. Her fiery bolt contained all the power accumulated since the beginning of the fight, but Ian had destroyed it with a simple blow. Ian''s aura didn''t even go through any surge of power. His energy had remained the same. Adele could actually sense that the hybrid had used far less energy than before. "I don''t believe it," Adele said as she resumed slamming her hammers on the sky. Ian didn''t mind that, and he also resumed howling at her opponents. The two experts exchanged blows again, and neither of them managed to hurt each other. Once Adele had amassed enough energy, she created two massive bolts that she didn''t hesitate to launch at her enemy. Her hammers hit the fiery weapons'' base and made them fly at high speed toward Ian. Still, Ian blew again, and an immense force crushed the bolts before they could reach him. Adele''s attack had failed, and she couldn''t explain how that had happened. "How can you do this?" Adele asked. "Why don''t you give up and tell us everything you know about the invasion in the Outer Lands?" Ian asked. Adele snorted and resumed her slamming, but the same outcome happened again after she accumulated enough energy. She had even launched three bolts at that time, but Ian''s blowing seemed the perfect counter to her abilities. That exchange continued for a while. Adele would gather energy and launch it in the form of fiery bolts, but nothing she did could reach Ian. She felt hopeless about the whole matter, but she didn''t want to give up so easily. There had to be some trick behind Ian''s law, and Adele wanted to uncover it. She couldn''t accept defeat when her opponent had yet to show his true power. Adele changed her approach. She kept accumulating energy, but she didn''t stop any time soon at that time. Her aura continued to expand until her scarlet flames managed to illuminate the entire mountain''s peak. That energy then flowed inside her hammers, and veins bulged on Adele''s arms and neck as she swung them. Her weapons gave birth to massive ethereal replicas that tried to crush Ian from below and above. Ian blew before the massive hammers could touch him, and the weapons shattered when an invisible and untraceable force slammed on their surface. Adele''s attack had failed again, and she didn''t know what to think anymore. "I will never surrender against an enemy that can only defend!" Adele shouted. "Your law might make your defense impenetrable, but I can pierce it as long as I have enough time." "You could have told me that sooner," Ian replied. "If it''s power that you want, I don''t mind showing it." The sky transformed after that line. An immense pressure landed on Adele''s mind as soundwaves appeared in every corner of her battlefield. Adele understood everything at that sight. Her attacks had never managed to destroy Ian''s howls. His soundwaves had spread through the sky and hid in its fabric. It was a sneaky tactic that Ian had could deploy easily. The amount of energy contained in the sky was so immense that Adele couldn''t explain how a single solid stage expert could generate all of it. Ian''s power was massive, but there was a trick behind it. The soundwaves gave voice to Ian''s howls. They carried his cries and enhanced them as they amassed in the sky. The hybrid had thrown so many of those attacks that the power accumulated in the area managed to scare away Noah and King Elbas. "I can make all of this fall on you," Ian said. "I think being a prisoner of the Legion is slightly better." Adele struggled to accept that outcome, but she eventually gave in. Her guild was no more. Only Boss Edna was still fighting. Ian even had a finishing blow ready for her. She could only take back her power and raise her hands to signal her desire to surrender. Ian didn''t hesitate to reach her and place a hand behind her neck. Adele couldn''t do anything in that situation. The hybrid could kill her with the slightest pressure of his fingers. . . . "Are you stupid?" Boss Edna asked when she saw Divine Demon spitting blood. "Why didn''t you block the attack?" "Well," Divine Demon said as a broad smirk appeared on his face, "I like making things hard for me. It wouldn''t be a challenge if I could go all-out since the beginning." "I think you will need to," Boss Edna replied as her aura expanded. When her influence touched the ground, countless metallic materials came out of the mountain''s peak and converged toward her position. The metals entered her skin without creating any injury. They fused with her body and transformed her figure. Her skin turned darker, and her size increased. Boss Edna became a five meters tall giant and looked down on Divine Demon. "Wait!" Divine Demon shouted. "Don''t you want to make a bet before starting the fight?" "No," Boss Edna replied before shooting toward Divine Demon. Her size didn''t stop her from reaching a speed that left Noah speechless. She was even faster than Adele''s bolts, and her physical strength seemed of the scale when it came to humans. "Wait!" Divine Demon said as he rode a wave that formed under his feet to dodge the attack. "Are you really sure? Not even a small bet? A short exchange of lines?" Boss Edna didn''t answer and continued to chase Divine Demon. More metals came out of the mountain''s peak and fused with her body to increase her physical prowess. The expert became faster, and her cultivation level also slightly increased during the pursuit. "I hate those like you," Divine Demon said before heaving a helpless sigh. His aura spread through the sky. The matter of the world began to flow toward his figure as its nature changed. Divine Demon found a mass of "Breath" of the water element around him when Boss Edna was about to reach him. Divine Demon''s smile vanished, replaced by a severe expression. Blood flowed out of his mouth as his focus increased. A red light came out of his eyes as the Divine Deduction technique began to consume his mental energy to give birth to techniques. Boss Edna stretched her arm to deliver a fist toward her opponent, but Divine Demon waved his hand, and the water "Breath" around him flowed toward her limb to change its trajectory. Boss Edna tried to kick him at that point, but Divine Demon''s energy titled her leg before it could reach him. His palm then landed at the center of her chest, and a shockwave spread from that spot. The expert took a step back after that attack, but Divine Demon wouldn''t let her go so easily. He straightened his fingers, and the water "Breath" created blades around them. Divine Demon didn''t hesitate to throw his new weapons at his enemy. Boss Edna faced those attacks head-on. Her skin was too sturdy, and Divine Demon''s attacks slid on it. His swords didn''t even leave a mark on her. More metals converged toward Boss Edna. Her skin grew darker as those materials fused with her body and increased her physical prowess. Divine Demon wanted to launch another attack, but blood suddenly filled his mouth and forced him to stop his offensive. Boss Edna exploited that chance to punch at the Demon''s head, but the latter managed to dodge at the last instant. Still, Boss Edna managed to touch his shoulder with her knuckles, and Divine Demon''s right arm exploded during the impact. Chapter 1466: 1466. White Boss Edna had the upper hand in the fight. Divine Demon was deflecting her most deadly attacks, but he couldn''t avoid them completely. "Why don''t you take even the other one?" Divine Demon asked as he stretched his left arm toward his giant opponent. Boss Edna felt surprised, but she didn''t hesitate to slam her fists on Divine Demon''s arm. His limb exploded into a mess of blood, but the Demon didn''t show any reaction to that event. "You are crazy," Boss Edna said as she joined her hands above her head and swung them downward. Her attack was aiming for Divine Demon''s head, but the expert promptly stepped back. Boss Edna missed him, but the shockwave radiated by her blow managed to aggravate her opponent''s internal injuries. Divine Demon spat a mouthful of blood as he retreated through the sky. Blood flowed out of his wounds, and his complexion paled as his internal injuries worsened. Boss Edna had vast battle experience. She already wielded enough power to join one of the large organizations. She wasn''t like the other members of the guilds. Her strength was already on par with the experts inside the large forces. Her battle experience told them that Divine Demon was trying to worsen his condition on purpose. The cultivation world had given birth to countless peculiar individualities, so that scene didn''t leave her speechless. However, some worry began to form in her mind. The individualities could generate power from unusual procedures. Some cultivators needed to endure damage to unleash their full power, and Divine Demon appeared similar to those experts. Boss Edna didn''t know how smart it was to keep attacking him, but she didn''t have much choice. Her law increased his physical might, so she had a limited battle style. Divine Demon revealed a wicked smile when he saw Boss Edna charging toward him again. More metals fused with her body and increased her size, but he felt no fear at that sight. He rejoiced at his dangerous situation. Boss Edna had the chance to kill him, and that made the battle worthwhile. If Divine Demon managed to defeat her, his law would obtain a significant boost. When Boss Edna was about to punch Divine Demon, a current surged from under her and flung her high in the sky. More streams flew toward her giant figure, and a strange structure took form as they fused. Boss Edna was about to leave the current when more water crashed on her and pushed her back inside Divine Demon''s spell. The other rivers converged in her position and created an azure net that forced her to swim through that entire structure. Divine Demon closed his eyes, and his influence spread further. The metals rising toward Boss Edna suddenly stopped moving and began to transform into particles of water "Breath" that fused with the azure net. Boss Edna could wield an immense physical strength, but Divine Demon''s currents became denser whenever she was about to escape the technique. As the water became denser, faint white lights began to appear on the massive structure. Divine Demon was summoning his higher energy again, but he seemed unaware of those events. The net of rivers slowly turned completely white, and Boss Edna began to suffer. Her body almost allowed her to escape from the technique. Still, that changed once the water transformed into a form of energy that she had never encountered. "More, more!" Divine Demon shouted as he controlled all the energy provided by the world and sent it to his technique. The structure transformed again. It took a spherical shape that made Boss Edna accelerate as they dragged her. The expert could barely more anymore, and that increase of speed only worsened her condition. With Divine Demon in control of the flow of metal, Boss Edna found herself unable to get stronger. Still, the technique would slowly crush her if she remained inside it. She had to find a solution quickly before the waters destroyed her. Boss Edna''s body suddenly released a surge of power that made the waters around her explode. Metals shot out of her body and gave her the chance to escape the technique. The rivers tried to envelop her again, but she left before they could touch her. The expert dived toward the ground at that point. Divine Demon controlled most of the sky, so she needed to fly past his domain to refill her stash of metals. Divine Demon wanted to stop her, but he suddenly lost control of his aura when he felt the urge to spit blood. His condition was getting worse, but the Demon only rejoiced at that event. Boss Edna successfully reached the ground stabbed his hands on its surface. Her figure began to grow as the metal in the mountain fused with her body. She soon became more than ten meters tall, and her skin began to emit a humming sound that transformed the matter around her into various metals. Boss Edna shot a hateful glance toward Divine Demon as she retracted her hands and sprinted toward her opponent. However, the sky above her suddenly darkened. When Boss Edna looked above her, she noticed that a white sphere was falling on her. Divine Demon had condensed his previous technique and had launched it toward his opponent. An explosion followed the impact. The whole region trembled after the power amassed by Divine Demon crashed on Boss Edna. The mountain began to shatter, and the cultivators on its peak soon had to start flying to avoid falling together with the boulders. Boss Edna began to fall, but she quickly straightened her position and started to fly back toward the battlefield. The explosion had ripped off a large part of her skin, but she could still fight. Yet, a series of white rivers converged on her and worsened her injuries. Divine Demon''s attacks were becoming stronger as the battle continued. It seemed that the gravity of his condition made his power increase. Divine Demon''s law didn''t work like that. The world understood that he was about to lose, so it provided more energy to him. His attacks would become stronger since he had more fuel for them. Boss Edna absorbed metals, punched, and did her best to return to the battlefield, but Divine Demon always launched attacks that could push her toward the debris. Her power never managed to surpass him. He was one step ahead of her in every exchange. "I will make the challenge myself," Divine Demon said at some point. "You have a strong body, so I will cut it into two parts." The particles of water "Breath" had created a sea around Divine Demon, but they all converged toward the wound on his right shoulder. A white arm took form, and a long sword came out of that shining limb. Divine Demon descended toward the ruins of the mountain after he completed his arm. Boss Edna was among the large azure boulders, fighting with the many currents that tried to lock her on the ground. Boss Edna tried to run when she noticed Divine Demon, but she couldn''t escape from the currents. Her desperate attempt to leave the area ended up getting her trapped among the Demon''s waters. Divine Demon placed his white sword above her head and performed a simple slash. When his blade touched the ground, Boss Edna''s consciousness went dark. Chapter 1467: 1467. Targe The assault came to an end after Divine Demon won his battle. Don and the other hybrids quickly killed the other cultivators, and Adele remained the only survivor of Boss Edna''s guild. A small team from the Legion had wiped out the largest guild hired by the invading organizations. The power wielded by the hybrids and Noah''s powerful companions had overwhelmed that force. The aftermath of the battle was quite harsh. Divine Demon had suffered severe injuries, and he couldn''t rely on King Elbas'' healing habitations like the rest of the hybrids. Cultivators had shorter lifespans, and Divine Demon would never give up on his precious years to benefit the Legion. Still, with the strongest guild out of the scene, Noah''s plan became far more feasible, even if Divine Demon had to remain behind to heal. The other minor forces didn''t have so many solid stage assets, so the hybrids could handle them on their own. Of course, Noah wouldn''t miss the chance to fight, and the same went for King Elbas. Noah had just started creating his new set of attacks, and the Royal couldn''t allow himself to fall behind his companions. "We need to wipe out as many large guilds as possible before they understand what is happening," Noah said as the group gathered near the base of the destroyed mountain. "It''s important to make them fear us enough to ignore the offers of the large organizations." "When can we attack the organizations?" Ian asked. "You have seen our power. We are above humans. I''m certain Theodora would agree to send more troops on this mission after we notify her of our success." Noah shook his head. He knew what kind of power organizations that had ruled for countless millennia could unleash. The Legion didn''t have the manpower to take them out. It had to wait for them to commit a mistake. Moreover, the cultivators inside the large organizations were generally stronger than the average experts. The four solid stage cultivators in Boss Edna''s guild were already powerful enough to injure most of them. Noah couldn''t even begin to guess how hard a battle in their homes would be. "It''s too soon for that," Noah eventually replied. "Killing all their mercenaries will already force them to come out of their homes. Once outside, we can exploit every region''s wild areas to our advantage and take better fights. If possible, I would completely avoid a direct attack on their habitations." The main reason behind Noah''s worry in that approach was the possible presence of rank 8 cultivators. The plan would immediately be over if his team attacked one of the large forces and found out that it hid an expert in the eighth rank. Noah didn''t forget his status. He was a simple liquid stage cultivator with battle prowess that made him able to fight experts in the solid stage. That power could make him a celebrity among those in the seventh rank, but it would still put him under rank 8 cultivators. The Immortal Lands had many organizations, and most of them had multiple rank 8 experts. It would be idiotic to attack them directly when they couldn''t confirm those powerful assets'' absence. "Won''t they simply hire other guilds?" Don asked. "The higher plane has many small forces. Replacing those who retreat won''t be a problem." "Those who feed on crumbs are smarter than they look," Divine Demon said. "The guilds won''t join if it makes them become the targets of an organization capable of wiping them out. Surviving is always the main priority of those forces." Divine Demon''s complexion was pale, and blood continued to flow from his mouth. The injuries on his arms had stopped bleeding, and some flesh had started to regrow. Yet, his wounds were still too severe. Noah didn''t even know why he was in the meeting instead of healing in some cave. "Divine Demon is right," Noah continued. "The guilds are willing to take risks, but they won''t walk toward certain death. The key is to make them fear us more than the large organizations. You can even question our guest if you have any doubt on the matter." Ian turned toward Adele, who was standing among them. The woman nodded when the hybrid''s eyes landed on her. She didn''t dare to lie when her life depended on how much she could help the guild. Noah and the others weren''t even holding back their thoughts, so Adele was sure that they were probably planning to kill her. Her only hope to survive was to become a valuable asset in that mission. "Why do you even know so much about small forces?" Ian said before heaving a helpless sigh. "I had many small forces under my rule in my lower plane," Divine Demon replied. "I brought those small forces to the peak of the world," Noah added. The two exchanged a smirk, and Ian rolled his eyes. Instead, King Elbas ignored them to focus on the map among them. "Who do we choose as our next target?" King Elbas asked. "There are two guilds with three solid stage cultivators. We need to pick one." "We will let our guest pick for us," Noah replied as he turned to show a cold expression toward Adele. "I believe she won''t even mind adding explanations to her choice." A chill ran down Adele''s spine when she met Noah''s cold gaze. His reptilian eyes expressed his ruthlessness. She immediately understood that Noah wouldn''t hesitate to kill her at the slightest misstep. "Boss Burton''s guild is large, larger than ours," Adele explained. "Yet, the quality of his underlings is far too poor. He allows anyone to join, without even checking if those experts have proper abilities." "Boss April''s guild is quite famous," Adele continued. "Her force fewer troops, but they are well-organized. She even trains them in battle formations. They might be a tough opponent in your condition." "Well, you heard her," Noah said. "We will attack Boss April''s guild once everyone is ready. Boss Burton''s force is next. The others will follow once we take down most of the mercenaries hired by the large organizations." Everyone left after his words, and Ian escorted Adele toward a cell build recently. King Elbas had laid most of the inscriptions there, so the expert didn''t have any chance of escaping. Noah only suffered light injuries during the battle, so he could focus on exploring the mountain''s ruins as he waited for Jordan to recover. He didn''t find much, but the various corpses contained a few decent objects that he didn''t dare to leave there. Those cultivators only had materials and Soul Stones, and Noah didn''t hesitate to take all of that away. The solid stage experts had notes that involved their individualities, and Noah seized them too. During the months that Jordan spent inside King Elbas'' habitation, Noah focused on his cultivation. His potential had increased again after his victory against Victor. His dantian could improve faster. His body still grew faster than the other centers of power. Noah had absorbed most of Victor''s energy, so his tissues had received many nutrients. His mind was starting to lag behind the other centers of power in terms of improvement. Still, it continued to enlarge at a decent speed. It seemed that his walls were growing used to the pressure released by the dark matter, so it didn''t affect them as much as it did before. Chapter 1468: 1468. Attention Boss Edna''s guild hid some valuable resources. The mountain had crumbled, but most of the force''s wealth was in a small separate dimension that only its solid stage members could open. Noah and the others found many inscribed items and a stash of Soul Stones inside the separate dimension. That pile of wealth even contained some rank 7 spells, a priceless resource in the Immortal Lands. Unluckily for Noah, those were spells meant for cultivators with an earth aptitude. Don happily memorized them before giving them to Ian so that he could add those scrolls to the deposits of the Legion. Jordan came out of King Elbas'' habitation a few months after the end of the battle. She had yet to recover fully, and her complexion showed how hungry she was, but she could fight. Divine Demon''s condition was still quite poor, but he didn''t appear worried about it. Noah soon realized that the expert was purposely slowing down his recovery to make things harder for him. Still, Noah never dared to question the Demon about that. He didn''t want to hear his answer. Some of the liquid stage hybrids had suffered severe injuries, and King Elbas didn''t have enough habitations for all of them. The group also had to hurry and continue their mission, so some of those experts remained behind. Only Noah, Ian, Jordan, Don, King Elbas, Adele, and five liquid stage hybrids set off from the crumbled mountain to continue the mission. Divine Demon and the other two experts began their slow return toward the Outer Lands after they left. Their role in that plan was over. King Elbas didn''t fail to miss Divine Demon''s happy mood when they left. His questioning gaze often fell on Noah and the other hybrids, but neither of them said anything about the matter. Noah and the others knew the reason behind Divine Demon''s happiness. The expert now had the chance to explore Supreme Thief''s inheritance again. The battles against the guilds didn''t interest him anymore since he had already fought against the strongest small force. King Elbas had traveled with Noah and Don for many years, but the Legion didn''t want to reveal Supreme Thief''s location to other humans so easily. Noah respected that decision and ignored the questioning gazes that landed on his back. The group flew for a long time without taking breaks. They needed to hurry before explorers reached the crumbled mountain and discovered that Boss Edna''s guild was no more. Their timing was the key to the success of their mission. The less the guilds understood about the whole situation, the more they would fear them. The group began to slow down when a series of large rivers appeared in their view. White water flowed through those lands and divided them into small regions inhabited by the same force. Boss April''s guild changed its location often, but it never left those lands. The rivers contained chaotic laws, so that environment was a natural training area. No force would abandon that place, but many small powers desired it, which was the reason behind that constant migration. Noah and the others were unaware of the guild''s current location, but they had King Elbas. The Royal obviously had an item ready for the task. It took him less than two weeks to find an underground structure dug right below one of the riverbeds. After sealing Adele in a hidden spot near the region, the group flew above their target and began to study the area. Attacking a guild specialized in battle formations in its own home wasn''t smart, so they required a plan to optimize their assault. "How do we approach it?" Ian asked as the group remained outside the range of the surface. "We force them out," Noah said as he began to plant Instabilities in specific spots around his target. Noah even gestured to King Elbas to help in the matter. The Royal''s stash of inscribed items was immense, so he could quickly find something that could work together with the Instabilities. "We risk ruining the rivers like this," King Elbas said after the duo planted all the bombs. "It''s a pity that the Legion can''t occupy it." Those regions were inside the borders of the human domain. The Legion could approach them, but it could never control them. Almost all the large organizations would attack the hybrids since they were a foreign force. "Keeping this land intact is pointless for us," Noah replied. "I''d rather destroy it than leave it to potential enemies." "Why am I not surprised about this?" King Elbas asked, but Noah ignored him. The duo continued to plant bombs, and the force living underground never noticed their actions. King Elbas'' calculations had been perfect. The guild never had a chance to sense the group. A loud series of detonations occurred after Noah activated the traps. The ground in specific spots crumbled and created holes that connected the underground structure to the surface. Cracks spread from those holes, and the white waters of the rivers enlarged those fissures once they reached them. The group''s traps had triggered a chain reaction that made a large chunk of that region cave in. Once the ground crumbled, multiple auras seeped through the surface and expanded in the sky. The guild''s experts quickly found their assailants, but Noah''s group retreated higher in the sky to bait them out of the underground structure. Noah''s group had remained inside the range of the experts'' consciousness on purpose. They had to show the guild how few they were so that it would follow them outside of the ground. Ian and the others separated to fly in different areas of the sky. Boss April led her troops outside of the debris and divided them to go after the assailants. Most gaseous and liquid stage cultivators flew toward Don''s team, but some went after Noah and King Elbas. The three solid stage experts locked their consciousness on Ian and Jordan and tried to encircle them. Noah and King Elbas couldn''t let that happen. They exchanged a glance before their auras spread through the sky. Their oppressive influence filled the area and made their pursuers tremble in fear. An intense bloodlust then seeped inside Noah''s aura. His mental waves began to crave blood and battles as the cursed sword''s black handle came out of his chest. The bloodlust froze those cultivators on the spot. They were in front of a power that they couldn''t face. Noah was showing them one of his trump cards before their battle even started! The cultivators began to retreat, but they couldn''t escape Noah as long as they remained in the range of his consciousness. The cursed sword slowly touched his forehead as his attention went on those experts, and massive blades made of dark matter suddenly materialized on their spots. The blade engulfed the experts and destroyed their bodies. Most cultivators ended up severed into many pieces. Those in the gaseous stage directly turned into ash under that power. Not even the best experts in the liquid stage among them could survive that attack. A wave of pain filled Noah. His chest became a mess of blood and broken tissues, but his expression didn''t show any suffering. Black flames came out of his mouth and spread on the ground, where they consumed anything that contained energy. His chest instantly healed after the activation of his innate ability. Noah had killed a small team of gaseous and liquid stage cultivators in one attack, and he barely suffered any drawback. Still, he stored the cursed sword as he glanced toward one of the solid stage experts in the distance. Noah and King Elbas'' target was a woman called Blanche. Adele knew that she was the weaker solid stage cultivator in Boss April''s guild, and the two experts didn''t hesitate to identify her. They also notified her about their presence. Blanche was a tall woman with long blonde hair and brown hair. She wasn''t a beauty, but calling her ugly would also be wrong. She was about to reach Ian when Noah unleashed his attack and claimed her attention with his gaze. **** Author''s notes: I need a bit more for the third chapter. Should take less than 30 minutes. Chapter 1469: 1469. Demon Blanche abandoned Ian''s pursuit to shoot toward Noah and King Elbas. Boom-like noises resounded from under her feet as she accelerated through the sky. Noah quickly wielded his two swords, and King Elbas didn''t hesitate to take out his army of inscribed items. Yet, Blanche reached them before they could attack, and her palms shot forward when they entered her range. A dangerous sensation filled the two experts, who promptly activated some of their trump cards. Noah roared as the unstable substance flowed through his black vessels, and a disposable golden shield in the upper tier appeared in front of King Elbas to block the incoming shockwave. Blanche didn''t hesitate to launch one of her most powerful attacks toward the experts. Her blow flung Noah away and shattered King Elbas'' shield. Even their trump cards didn''t allow them to endure all the power contained in that offensive. Noah quickly regained control of his body and shot toward Blanche. The dark world expanded from his chest, and a fiendish armor covered his figure as he launched a storm of slashes that filled the area with his sharpness. King Elbas didn''t stay still. It was clear that Blanche didn''t want to waste time with them, so he had to go all-out right away. Flares of golden flames leaked out of his skin as his aura increased. A golden spear also appeared in his hands and transformed into a blinding golden beam that flew toward the solid stage expert. Blanche felt surprised when she saw the duo''s offensive. She had sensed that Noah''s previous prowess came from a unique inscribed item, but those attacks had their cultivation level as their foundation. Two liquid stage experts were able to launch attacks that bordered the solid stage in terms of power. That was theoretically impossible for existences that weren''t approaching the breakthrough. The labels learnt through her long life crumbled in front of the two experts. Still, Blanche didn''t let her surprise freeze her. An azure aura suddenly came out of her body and condensed as she joined her palms with a quick gesture. The storm of slashes and the golden beam were about to reach her. Still, a massive shockwave shot out from her figure when her palms touched. The attacks shattered when that force spread through the sky. Its power even erased Noah''s sharpness from the area. ''She can counter my endless cuts,'' Noah thought as the dark world changed form. The dark world often had a spherical shape, but the dense gas morphed when Noah saw his sharpness vanishing from the sky. The cloud of dark matter condensed until it revealed his figure. Only his back remained inside the technique. Noah was trying something new. The workshop activated and used a blueprint that he had created after his battle with Victor. A spell also unleashed its power and helped the technique. Noah had spent a long time adapting most of his spells to his divine state. He had even revised techniques that he had long since abandoned after he reached the seventh rank. One of them was the Shadow Copy spell, a technique that had helped him for a long time during his life in the lower plane. The Shadow Copy spell could theoretically replicate anything in the world as long as Noah had enough energy to fuel it. Still, its diagram had structural limits, and the training with Sword Saint had made that technique useless for a while. However, Noah had the workshop now. He had also started fusing his dark matter into his techniques. The potential of the Shadow Copy spell could reach a superior level with those features. Noah could finally use it to replicate some of his strongest assets. At his current level, Noah''s strongest assets were his physical strength and his swords. They were the only parts of his arsenal that could grant him a superior battle prowess. The cloud began to shrink as the workshop completed its work. When the cloud vanished, Noah revealed his six arms and six swords to the world. His techniques had forcefully built the shape that he achieved when he performed the Three Forms of the Ashura. Of course, that form was far different from the original martial art. The "embodiment of power" was still active, so the workshop had replicated his tissues when they were at the peak of their power. The same went for the swords. The workshop had created four exact copies of Noah''s blades, replicating their functions and abilities. Needless to say, the consumption of dark matter and mental energy to perform that technique had been immense. Noah didn''t believe that his mental sea could survive two activations of that ability. He didn''t have enough mental energy to do that. Even his black hole felt lighter after his additional arms and legs grew out of his torso. The amount of power required to build those limbs and weapons was unfathomable. Noah resembled an actual demon as he floated in the air while wearing his fiendish armor. The four additional arms had turned him into a real monster, and even King Elbas couldn''t help but arch his eyebrows at that sight. "Let me fight her for a while," Noah said in a low voice as he took long steps toward Blanche. "Do as you wish," King Elbas replied as he took a step back. Blanche''s expression turned cold when she sensed the amount of power contained in Noah''s figure. The unstable substance was still running through his black veins, and the fake arms imitated the energy that it generated. Noah''s sole presence was able to bend the sky. Noah felt heavy, but he didn''t let that sensation slow him down. His six swords cut the air, and a storm of slashes filled the sky. The attack spread so far that Don and the other hybrids had to retreat due to the dangerous sensations that it triggered inside their minds. Blanche joined her palms, and her shockwave managed to clear the area again. However, her range had a limit, and Noah''s attack surpassed it while he was in that form. The slashes that lingered on the edges of Blanche''s range clashed with each other and gave birth to more attacks. Cuts of different shapes soon filled the area cleared by the expert and forced her to resort to her shockwave again. The same process happened again. There seemed to be no end to Noah''s storm. Blanche didn''t even have the time to escape since she was too busy fending off those threatening attacks. Since Blanche was busy, Noah started testing other techniques. He crossed his six blades above his head and launched invisible cross-shaped slashes that generated singularities throughout their trajectory. Noah also tested his crossed unsheathing. He retracted his blades before launching an intense attack that created an empty tunnel between him and the expert. Blanche''s law protected her from every attack. Every inch of her body seemed able to generate intense shockwaves, so Noah''s slashes never managed to touch her. Still, Noah''s offensive kept Blanche stuck in her spot. The expert couldn''t move since the slightest distraction could lead to her death. Noah''s offensive was covering the whole battlefield, and his sharpness was merciless. **** Author''s notes: I''m taking a break tomorrow, so no chapters (I''m trying to do 1 day every 2 months). Updates will resume normally the day after tomorrow. Chapter 1470: 1470. Azure ''I''m almost there,'' Noah thought as he evaluated the power behind his attacks. His slashes in the six-armed form granted Noah the upper hand in the battle, but he remained unable to injure his opponent. His battle prowess had bordered the solid stage in terms of power, but he still couldn''t breach the innate defenses of the experts at that level. He was close. He could use a combination of techniques, spells, and higher energy to force his current power to barge into the next stage. Still, he lacked a core feature that all the experts in the solid stage had. Noah''s energy lacked density. His law was powerful and defied logic, but it couldn''t influence the world as the solid stage cultivators did. It was a simple but immense difference in power that he was attempting to fill with his vast accumulation and incredible techniques. ''If only my companions could help,'' Noah thought as his fake arms and swords grew unstable. His workshops'' products could reach the peak of the middle tier due to his higher energy, but they remained inferior assets in battles at that level. The workshop had copied his body after Noah activated the "embodiment of power". His arms contained enough energy to match a solid stage cultivator, but they lacked the stability needed to remain at that level. Noah could express solid stage battle prowess, but his power had a limited duration. Even his sturdier black vessels would eventually crumble under the violent energy released by the unstable substance, and the same went for his fake arms. A tinge of annoyance surged in Noah''s mind. He had slowly realized that he would probably need to rely on the Shadow Domain again to win that battle. His constant improvement didn''t satisfy Noah since his trump card was the only attack that could lead him to victory. He didn''t want his achievements to depend on a technique created by someone else. He desired his battle prowess to reach that level on its own. Noah joined his arms as they continued to show signs of instability. The dark matter contained in their fabric fused with his actual limbs and created a third layer of armor that carried the physical strength contained in the workshop''s product. A defensive layer also appeared on the two real swords while Noah raised them above his head. His next attack had to contain the full power of his technique. He didn''t want any special effect or trick attached to it. Blanche was still busy deflecting the endless storm of slashes. Her situation seemed poor, but her complexion remained perfectly healthy. Noah''s technique was unable to exhaust her energy. When Blanche saw Noah''s gesture, her instincts began to scream. She instantly understood that he was about to launch something far stronger than his previous techniques. She had to change tactics to defend from that blow. Noah performed a simple slash. The space between him and Blanche bent as his energy shot forward and flew toward his opponent. The storm of slashes on the attack''s path exploded into clouds that spread the different aspects of Noah''s individuality in the sky. His last blow appeared invisible, but both King Elbas and Blanche could sense it flying. His sharpness, destruction, creation, and dark matter gave birth to violent currents as they flew through the sky. Yet, they didn''t touch the path traveled by Noah''s final slash. It was as if that piece of the sky had become an untouchable domain. Blanche''s eyes widened, but determination soon filled her face. Veins bulged on her neck and hands as an azure aura filled the sky and converged toward her closing palms. Noah''s attack hit when Blanche''s palms touched. Noah and King Elbas'' vision went dark at that point. Even their mental waves crumbled under the violent energy that the clash caused. Blanche''s attack had released a condensed shockwave that had clashed with the invisible slash. Noah''s blow became visible when the two offensives touched, revealing its pitch blanch and curved body. The slash was so dark that even the white light in the environment struggle to illuminate it. Its edges were unclear, and the amount of energy that it contained was immense. However, Blanche''s attack was capable of a similar might. Her shockwave carried violence that surpassed the destructiveness of Snore''s dark beam. It could shatter anything it touched. Noah''s slash managed to fight Blanche''s attack back for a few seconds, but it eventually crumbled. The raw power contained in his blow seemed to surpass the shockwave, but it lacked the harmony carried by the offensive of every solid stage cultivator. An attack created from different techniques piled together couldn''t compare with pure expressions of a stronger expert''s law. It could lose even if it surpassed the latter''s blow in terms of raw energy. Still, the explosion caused by the clash between the two attacks didn''t leave Blanche unaffected. Noah and King Elbas were at some distance from the center of the impact, so they only had to deal with the force that flung them away. Yet, Blanche had to endure that power up close. When Noah managed to expand his consciousness again, he noticed that his fake limbs had disappeared. King Elbas'' figure also appeared unstable, but the expert quickly fixed his condition. As for Blanche, her robe had transformed into pieces of rags that failed to cover her body. A few injuries had also appeared on her. Blood flowed from a few cuts on her cheeks and neck, and she had lost some fingers during the explosion. ''My best attack for a few fingers,'' Noah thought as his annoyance grew. ''This is too little.'' Noah could forcefully raise his cultivation level with his ambition. Still, he already knew that he would be better than any other cultivator once he grew. He didn''t want to beat them on an even field. Noah wanted to be stronger than them while his cultivation level remained in the liquid stage. His same ambition was begging him to go beyond the greatness reached through his long accumulation. Blanche was livid. Violent energy flared out of her body when she looked at her fingers. A liquid stage expert had managed to injure her. She felt as if her entire cultivation journey had been useless! "Awesome techniques, strange powers, and annoying laws," Blanche said in a low voice. "You can throw anything you want at me, but the result will always be the same. The might of my waters will destroy you anyway." An azure aura leaked out of her body and spread through the sky. The white light vanished as that brilliant color covered the entire battlefield and reached even the fights happening in the distance. Noah and King Elbas couldn''t escape the expansion of Blanche''s aura. Her influence began to appear directly from the space around them at some point. No acceleration could make them dodge that. The duo felt as if they were underwater when the azure aura illuminated their figures. A pressure also fell on them. Blanche was using the sheer power contained in her law to restrain them. Noah roared and kicked the air, but he failed to leave that spot. His body contained enough physical power to fend off that aura, but the watery properties in Blanche''s law made it hard to counter by bare fists. Azure light filled the spots destroyed by Noah''s attacks. He couldn''t escape that prison and the pressure applied on his body affected the power of his slashes. "Crumble," Blanche said, and the azure aura began to converge toward Noah and King Elbas. Chapter 1471: 1471. Learning The pressure increased as the light gathered around them. Noah''s tissues released screeching noises as they bent under that force. King Elbas'' figure became unstable as Blanche''s aura filled his surroundings. Blanche''s technique appeared simple, but it carried an intrinsic complexity that made it almost indestructible. She wasn''t only forcing her law to converge on the two experts. She had also given to her power watery features, which countered most of Noah''s abilities. Noah slashed, punched, and used every last bit of energy given by the unstable substance flowing through his black veins. He could activate his "embodiment of power" again, but he found no reason to waste his precious resource before finding a way out of the technique. Snore came out of his chest, but its giant head shattered when it touched the azure aura. Even the dark matter that the Blood Companion released crumbled under the pressure amassed in the area. The Demonic Sword began to release painful roars, and Noah quickly stored it inside the separate space. A few dents also appeared on the white blade, and Noah didn''t hesitate to put it away. His Divine Deduction technique activated, and the black hole sent most of its energy toward his mind. Noah''s thinking speed reached an incredible level, but he could find only a single way out of that situation. The Shadow Domain had already expanded around him. Noah could enter that dimension and fly out of the azure aura. However, that technique had a severe drawback. Noah already owned a similar spell. His Ethereal Form spell was a technique that he had abandoned because it would require too much energy to change his body''s properties. The Shadow Domain shared the same flaw. Noah''s existence was heavy, heavier than his other assets. Transporting his body into a different dimension would deplete all his special darkness. The technique had almost reached Blanche. Noah only had to survive for a few more minutes to gain the chance for a deadly blow. Yet, it seemed that the azure aura would kill him before his separate dimension could reach his opponent. Even the Divine Deduction technique was telling him that he had no choice on the matter. ''Can I join the fight now?'' King Elbas suddenly asked through a mental message. Noah was about to transport his body into the Shadow Domain, but he stopped when he sensed those words. His head struggled to turn toward his companion. When his eyes landed on the Royal, he saw an annoyed King Elbas tapping his cheek and waiting for his answer. ''How can you move freely?'' Noah asked. ''I have created a substance to counter her law,'' King Elbas answered plainly. ''Why didn''t you tell me this sooner?!'' Noah asked again. ''You wanted to fight her alone!'' King Elbas shouted through his mind. Noah didn''t know what to answer, but he didn''t forget to not toward his companion. The azure aura around them suddenly disappeared after his gesture. Specks of golden light had come out of King Elbas'' figure and were eating that foreign influence. Blanche couldn''t believe what she was seeing. Her aura was disappearing due to something that she didn''t understand. Her consciousness could study the golden specks, but she had no idea how those small lights could destroy her law. Blanche didn''t forget that her opponents were two liquid stage experts. However, it seemed that they both were incredible monsters whose power didn''t make any sense. Noah had been able to keep her stuck among his slashes for multiple exchanges, and King Elbas had created something that could destroy her law. Their power was something that any major organization would kill to own. The azure light soon vanished, leaving only the golden specks that flew back toward King Elbas and fused with his fiery body. Noah kept his eyes on his companion. He felt surprised that the Royal had managed to activate his trump card before him. King Elbas could understand Noah''s thoughts, but his usual arrogance didn''t appear. The Royal didn''t brag. Instead, he chose to explain the reason behind his quick success in the activation of his trump card. "I''m the best, but this has nothing to do with my ability," King Elbas explained. "You allowed me to focus on her law during your fight. Your battle prowess has forced her to take out all the aspects of her law." Noah''s eyes left the Royal at that point. For a moment, he had thought that King Elbas had improved faster than him. That would have forced him to reconsider his approach to his growth. "Moreover," King Elbas continued, "I am trying something new. I despise that arrogant Demon, but the power of his creation is immense. I couldn''t let him waste it like that." The slight relief that had filled Noah vanished when he heard those words. King Elbas was talking about Divine Demon''s miracles. He had admitted that he had learnt from the expert''s law. "Are you trying to copy his power?" Noah asked. "Copy? Nonsense," King Elbas said before giving voice to a loud snort. "Imitating that mindless idiot would only ruin my foundation. I''m exploring his path and studying his power. Using the world instead of materials is a power that I crave." In his twisted way, King Elbas had admitted that Divine Demon''s power was incredible and that he wanted to obtain it. Noah didn''t feel surprised about that statement, but his focus remained on how quickly the Royal had completed his study of Blanche''s law. Noah had allowed King Elbas to focus only on his trump card, but the outcome of that battle remained the same. The Royal had been faster. The Shadow Domain had reached Blanche only after he destroyed the azure aura. "I don''t know how you did it," Blanche said as she appeared above the duo, "But it''s time for you to die." Blanche''s palms shot downward and released two massive shockwaves that fell toward the duo. However, before that force could reach the two experts, King Elbas exploded into a sea of flames and endured the attacks'' full might. His flames barely flickered when the shockwaves seeped into the golden sea. Blanche''s attack didn''t manage to do anything after King Elbas had developed a method to counter her law. The solid stage expert was powerless now. "Impossible!" Blanche shouted, but her surprise didn''t make her forged the experience amassed through her long life. A weapon promptly came out of her space-ring. It was a shield in the upper tier that featured shining symbols on its surface. Blanche had understood that her individuality had become useless. The sole thought that two liquid stage cultivators had managed to make her reach that point was incredible, but she couldn''t deny what was happening. Her only choice was to rely on inscribed items at that point. Her "Breath" flowed inside the shield and charged a powerful attack that made both Noah and King Elbas'' instincts scream in fear, but Noah activated his trump card before she could activate her weapon. Blanche''s expression suddenly froze. She glanced at her tattered robe and noticed that spikes had replaced most of her skin. Black flames also came out of those holes as her organs began to shut down. Her mouth opened, but no sound managed to come out of it. Her figure exploded into a storm of flames and fuming spikes, and a wave of energy flowed back to Noah. Chapter 1472: 1472. Fame The battle over the region divided by white rivers came to an end a few minutes after Noah and King Elbas killed Blanche. The other two solid stage cultivators had faced Ian and Jordan, but their situation had quickly turned become quite poor. Boss April and her companion were strong, but Ian and Jordan surpassed them both in battle experience and sheer power. They were hybrids who had fought for their entire lives. The two experts from the guild struggled to fend off their offensive since the beginning of the fight. Jordan had quickly transformed into a dragon. Instead, Ian had begun to accumulate his howls as soon as the two experts had left the underground structure. Even the hybrids had stopped playing around and testing their opponents. The battle against Boss Edna''s guild had already satisfied their desire for a good fight. They only wanted to finish their mission now. Boss April had a tricky law. Her power allowed her to interact with space. She could teleport boulders that exploded whenever they touched a foreign aura, and her defensive abilities also relied on her true meaning. However, her incredible ability had to have some drawbacks. One of them was its cost in terms of "Breath", and the other was the amount of energy that she could teleport. The explosions released by her boulders could be deadly for humans, but hybrids at her level could endure even her strongest attacks. Boss April could injure both Ian and Jordan, but she couldn''t inflict severe wounds. That weakness was even more noticeable against Jordan in her dragon form. She was too big, and her amber scales could disperse most of the energy released in the explosions. Ian was a bit worse off, but he could redirect his soundwaves to deny the explosions. Boss April had to take a supportive role in the battle after realizing that her ability couldn''t lead to victory. She had to rely on her companion to win. Her companion''s name was Alan. His law allowed him to create snake-shaped lightning bolts to ride to obtain massive bursts of acceleration. He could also launch those creatures toward his opponents to create piercing attacks. The core of his law was acceleration. All his lightning bolts could perform sprints able to take any opponent by surprise. Their power also depended on how fast they went, so Alan could potentially injure the two hybrids. With Boss April''s support, many of Alan''s attacks managed to hit the hybrids. She would teleport when their power was still low and let them accelerate once they arrived in a spot that could take her opponents by surprise. Yet, Jordan and Ian didn''t stay still during the fight. They quickly understood that Boss April wouldn''t be a problem as long as they defeated Alan. They soon began to focus on the expert and render that tactic impossible to deploy. Boss April did her best to support her companion, but the hybrids ignored her attacks during her reckless assault toward the lightning cultivator. Alan eventually realized that the battle could only end with his death, so he attempted to leave the battlefield and escape without minding his guild. Still, Jordan''s influence had already spread through a large area of the sky at that point. Alan had been too slow in deciding to escape. The hybrid could use her winds to stop his acceleration and deliver a deadly blow with her claws. Once Alan died, Boss April lost her will to fight. Her guild had crumbled, and her companion had tried to leave her behind. She couldn''t even try to defeat her opponents. She would rather let them end the battle quickly than continue in a pointless struggle. Her behavior made Ian and Jordan decide to take her as a prisoner. The team already had Adele, but it couldn''t hurt to have more informants in their ranks, especially when it came to guilds. The outcome of the second battle turned out to be far better than the first. Noah''s team managed to win without suffering any serious injury. They could set off in less than two months and move toward their next target as soon as they finished pillaging every resource hidden in the underground structure. Noah''s group continued their mission, hunting every guild hired by the organizations involved in the invasion of the Outer Lands. Most of those forces were nothing more than small armies featuring only one solid stage cultivator. The last battles ended up being nothing more than a one-sided slaughter. The other guilds involved with the invasion soon understood what was happening. They couldn''t confirm that the Legion was behind the attacks, but they guessed that some large force didn''t want them to join that mission. Those forces began to sever their ties with the large organizations that had hired them. They left their homes and settlements to hide from the fearful group of experts hunting them. The news even reached the other guilds. The large organizations soon found no one willing to accept their offers, no matter how generous they were. Everything unfolded as Noah had predicted. The loss of manpower would force the large organizations to deploy their own forces in the invasion. Yet, the first phases of every war would always lead to slaughters, and they weren''t willing to invest their troops in those projects. Once the sacrificial pawns disappeared, the invasion came to a stop. The pagoda in the Outer Land still had a few troops in its defense, but nothing changed even after years passed. It was as if the large forces had put their plan to a stop. The lack of expendable cultivators made them rethink their approach to the mission. They couldn''t directly attack anymore. They had to create a proper plan that could lead to fewer losses. Noah ignored the political repercussions of his actions. He didn''t need to ask about them to know how everything would unfold. The final decision was up to the organizations anyway. They had to choose whether they were willing to sacrifice their troops to invade the lands of the strongest warriors on the higher plane. His focus remained on his improvements. The mission had given Noah the chance to fight many solid stage cultivators. His battle experience increased again in that period, and he even managed to perfect his new techniques. Noah also created new abilities that could improve his battle prowess. Once he had confirmed that spells could work together with the workshop, Noah went through a long testing phase that aimed to bring his power to a new level. After all the battles were over, Noah and the others flew back to the Outer Lands, carrying their prisoners with them. Adele and Boss April had ended up being only the firsts of a long trail of cultivators trapped during their battles. When they returned to Yellnbel, the group noticed that the rank 8 auras high in the sky had disappeared. It seemed that the experts in the eighth rank had taken a break from their endless battle. The two forces had silently agreed to seal a truce while the situation was so unstable. Noah''s group led the prisoners inside the city, and Theodora didn''t hesitate to take the issue into her own hands. Those cultivators could become significant assets for the Legion, so she didn''t want to kill them or let them rot in a cell. Wilfred was with Theodora inside the largest building in the whole city. The hybrid and Noah''s group observed how Theodora handled the prisoners and tampered with their memories to protect her underlings'' identity. Chapter 1473: 1473. Memories "You will not tell anyone about this mission," Theodora said as her aura filled the large room where Noah, his group, Wilfred, and the prisoners stood. "You will not spread information about the guilds," Theodora continued as her aura intensified and flowed inside the minds of the prisoners. "You will not damage the Legion," Theodora concluded. "Forget!" Theodora''s aura transformed into a blinding blue light that filled the whole room. Mental waves flowed inside those targeted by her influence and tampered with their memories. Noah gave voice to a loud cough when the light dimmed. He didn''t like the conditions spoken by Theodora. He wanted her to be more specific about the experts who didn''t belong to the Legion. "Right," Theodora said as her aura shone again. "You will also forget about our helpers. Anything concerning the invasion of the Outer Lands will escape your mind." After the second burst of her colorless aura, Theodora sat on her throne and ignored her guests. Ian promptly gathered the confused prisoners and led them outside. Jordan and the others followed him, and Noah was about to do the same before a mental message reached his mind. ''Stay,'' Theodora''s voice resounded inside Noah''s head. Noah nodded at his companion and waited for them to leave the room before turning toward the rank 8 existence. Wilford wore a curious expression as he sat on a throne placed next to Theodora and moved his eyes between Noah and the leader. "You wanted to talk to me," Noah said when he saw that Theodora didn''t speak. A moment of silence followed his statement. Theodora waited until Noah''s companions exited the building before addressing his words. "Why do you still avoid joining the Legion?" Theodora asked. "You can''t belong to the magical beasts'' domain. You have already offended many powerful forces among humans. You have even helped the Legion. I think it''s time for you to make up your mind about our invitation." Theodora didn''t spread her influence to inspect Noah''s mind. She was respecting his privacy and leaving his thoughts away from that conversation. Noah didn''t know what to answer. The Immortal Lands still felt like a foreign place in his mind, so he preferred to avoid making decisions that would affect the rest of his cultivation journey. Joining the Legion wasn''t a simple step in his life. It would change his status and priorities instantly. "I want to delay that choice as long as possible," Noah replied honestly. "I like my freedom. I don''t mind that my current state makes me more open to enemy ambushes." "You are a hybrid," Theodora continued. "You are deluding yourself if you think that the world won''t consider you as part of the Legion. Just join us and accept your benefits." Theodora''s speech made sense, but Noah still had his doubts. He was nothing more than a small force among the complex political environment of the Immortal Lands. He lost some power by lacking affiliations, but that also made him harder to track. "I will think about it," Noah replied. Theodora heaved a helpless sigh when she heard that answer. She couldn''t offer any significant benefit to Noah. He had already access to Supreme Thief''s inheritance, and he had even gained a small group of loyal followers among the Legion. In her mind, it was only normal for Noah to join the Legion. Yet, she didn''t want to force him. She wouldn''t dare to risk losing an asset with the potential to stand among the leaders in the eighth rank. "You have already built your team," Theodora said as she changed approach. "I looked inside your existence. Your influence is already making Jordan and Don grow far faster than normal. The other humans are experiencing the same. It''s time that you accept yourself as a priceless asset." Noah''s law could make others grow faster than normal, and that feature had intensified after his ascension. He had yet to see tangible effects, but he knew that his influence was forcing those who followed him to improve quickly. That was a natural outcome of his law. Noah''s aura would always radiate his ambition, and his companions couldn''t escape his influence. He forced their existences to evolve, even if he didn''t want them to surpass his growth. Noah had finally started to notice that feature. King Elbas'' improvements didn''t only depend on his talent. The Royal had also benefited from Noah''s ambition to grasp the core idea behind Divine Demon''s individuality and improve his creations. Noah wielded a dangerous power that he preferred to keep for himself. After all, he desired to be the strongest so that he could avoid remaining entangled in the political world of the Immortal Lands. "I don''t want to create a fourth force," Noah tried to reassure Theodora. "I only chase personal benefits, and the Legion is helping me in this task. You have nothing to fear from me." "And yet, you have already created a fourth force," Theodora replied. "Maybe you have yet to realize it, but you already have loyal followers among different organizations. Saul from the Balrow family, Elbas and Divine Demon, Jordan, Don, Fergie, and those who witnessed your feats inside Supreme Thief''s inheritance would follow you. You only have to ask for their help." Theodora knew more than what words could express. Even if she was leaving Noah''s mind alone now, she had already inspected the memories that involved him from the prisoners. She could understand how deep his relationship with the hybrids and the other companions had become. "I don''t care about that," Noah replied honestly again. "We have different visions of the world. I still don''t want to consider others when my power is barely enough to keep me alive. Leave invitations and offers for when I reach your level." Theodora revealed a broad smile at his words, but she didn''t reply. She remained silent as she watched Noah''s aura become denser. The more he decided to walk a solitary path, the more his influence intensified. "What can the Legion do to help you reach this level?" Theodora asked after she stopped enjoying Noah''s aura. Noah thought about that question for a while, and his gaze eventually fell on Wilfred. Theodora and the rest of her organization couldn''t offer him anything, but that man could give him something that even the libraries in the human domain lacked. "I''m searching for a unique species of magical beasts," Noah said. "I need a creature with a darkness aptitude and great might, especially when it comes to its innate abilities." Wilfred had been in charge of a hybrid city placed in the Outer Lands around the magical beasts'' domain. Even if he weren''t an expert in that field, he would know a lot about those regions'' fauna. Noah wanted to complete his experiments with the red crystals as soon as possible. That material carried the secret behind the evolution itself, and Noah needed to absorb it into his battle prowess. The question left Wilford surprised, but the expert soon scratched his short beard as he thought about the matter. A list of creatures eventually flew inside Noah''s mind and described most of the peculiar magical beasts that met hit requirements. Noah now had the chance to resume his hunts, but he didn''t immediately leave Yellnbel. He had spent many years fighting already. It was time to take a break and focus on his cultivation level. Chapter 1474: 1474. Dragon Noah settled in Yellnbel. Even if he wasn''t a member of the Legion, the hybrids in the city didn''t complain when their leaders gave him one of the most luxurious habitations. Yellnbel was a city featuring simple buildings, but Theodora and Wilford managed to give him a large house with a few significant benefits. The structure could gather "Breath", and many of those rooms had inscriptions that reinforced its fabric. Noah could train freely inside that structure. With the invasion on hold, he and his companions could focus on turning the experience gathered in the past battles into actual power. That break was something that they all needed after defeating many guilds. Noah''s potential had skyrocketed after his many victories against solid stage cultivators. His dantian wanted to improve, and the true meaning that it contained propelled the organ faster toward the superior stage. The centuries spent in the wilderness, and the many battles had made Noah''s existence ready for the solid stage. He only had to invest time to reach that level now. Noah''s aura grew. The influence of his ambition increased, and a dark halo began to loom around his habitation. It was as if the world wanted to create a separate area featuring a night that covered only Noah. The breakthrough grew closer with every year that Noah spent in seclusion. Wilford had given him interesting leads on potential Blood Companions, but the world was too messy now. Noah preferred to focus on his foundation while the environment around him became easier to explore again. The magical beasts'' domain featured spies of the Crystal City. Many human organizations were hunting for the experts that had delayed their invasion on the Outer Lands. Noah was truly safe only inside the Legion, and he didn''t dare to waste that peaceful time. Still, before he could complete the last step before his breakthrough to the solid stage, Ian contacted him. It seemed that new troops had appeared around the pagoda, and most of them featured white robes adorned with purple drawings. That event had to happen. Noah knew that far too well. His group had killed two solid stage cultivators from the Crystal City and one from the Sailbrird family. It was only normal for them to join the invasion in the hope of finding him. Ian explained how the invasion had changed after the arrival of those new troops. The Crystal City and the Sailbrird family didn''t care that they couldn''t hire guilds for the task. They sent their core forces through the pagoda and started expanding their influence in the nearby regions. Those organizations had also sent rank 8 cultivators meant to keep Theodora and Wilford busy. They had joined the invasion, even if their political satiation made them unsuitable for maintaining control of those regions. Noah didn''t immediately join the fight. He didn''t care that the Legion was on the losing end of the invasion. His cultivation level was about to improve. Nothing mattered more than that. However, Noah soon understood that he couldn''t reach the superior stage with regular training alone. Even his vast accumulation couldn''t push him toward the solid stage. He needed to fulfill some requirements dictated by his ambition to complete the breakthrough. His ambition had allowed him to reach the liquid stage, and the same had to happen with the solid stage. Noah''s existence already desired the breakthrough, but he had to fuel that emotion with actual achievements. ''My body is also about to reach the upper tier,'' Noah thought after studying the reports accumulated in front of his habitation''s door. ''I might complete two breakthroughs if these battles give me enough potential.'' Noah decided to leave his habitation after he reached that conclusion. He wouldn''t miss the chance to hurt the Crystal City, and his existence required battles anyway. It was better to fight against the invasion than remain inside Yellnbel for who knew how long. When Noah reached the pagoda, he found a familiar face among the troops that defended the structure. Miss Canson was among those troops, and she led a group of liquid stage cultivators that seemed connected to her cultivation level. Miss Canson''s cultivation level had reached the liquid stage, and she revealed a livid expression when she saw Noah joining the troops deployed by the Legion. It was clear that Charles'' defeat weighed on the Crystal City, and Miss Canson didn''t even try to hide those feelings. She mainly felt angry, but traces of fear leaked into her expression whenever her eyes fell on Noah. Noah cared so little about liquid stage cultivations that he had almost failed to see Miss Canson as he focused on the solid stage experts among that small army. The pagoda featured more than ten solid stage cultivators and countless weaker experts. It seemed that even the Crystal City struggled to provide an entire army of powerful existences, but Noah didn''t mind killing them now that he had the chance. After a life spent fighting, Noah could immediately imagine the best and worst outcomes in every situation. He knew that he wasn''t far away from forcing the Crystal City to deploy rank 8 cultivators only for him, so he had to inflict as much damage as possible before the organization inevitably compelled him to escape. The other troops from the Legion let him pass. Those armies created a long corridor that led directly toward the frontline. The hybrids wanted to see him fight, and Noah wouldn''t deny them that chance. Noah noticed King Elbas among the troops. The Royal had also decided to join the battle after Ian''s continuous pleads. The hybrids wanted every valuable warrior in those battles, and he couldn''t think of anyone other than the experts who could face solid stage cultivators on their own. Noah stared at the enemy troops in front of him and deployed the dark world. He had completed other blueprints during his seclusion and battles against the guilds. His four additional blades and arms had become a reliable but old technique. The dark world condensed around his figure as his workshop activated. A roar came out of the black cloud when the unstable substance filled his black veins and forced his technique to use his new power as the base for its creations. The workshop consumed an immense amount of dark matter to build a new body around Noah''s figure. Two massive limbs covered Noah''s arms, and the same happened for his legs. A large piece of scaled forms also replaced his torso, and his draconic helmet enlarged as his body morphed. Before the invaders could even understand what was happening, Noah transformed into a giant dragon that roared at the enemy troops. His cry inspired the other hybrids and made them change into their beast form. Jordan wasn''t an exception. She was the first to follow Noah''s example and transform into her beast form. Other hybrids soon followed her, and the army from the Legion quickly gained messy features. The cultivators around the pagoda took a step back when they saw so many liquid and solid stage experts transforming. Even the mindless hybrids in the seventh rank were enough to frighten those humans. The cultivators soon understood that their peaceful days spent expanding were over. It was time for the Legion to strike back. Chapter 1475: 1475. Fan The hybrid army had far more assets than the invaders. The Outer Lands were the home of the Legion. That organization could deploy the full power of two entire cities against those enemies. The human army had twelve solid stage cultivators, but the hybrids featured more than twenty assets at the same level. Moreover, those existences had a body in the upper tier, so their overall prowess surpassed what humans could reach. However, the pagoda was a teleportation matrix. More troops could arrive in that region as long as the invading organizations were willing to deploy reinforcements. Noah had the shape of a black dragon with two massive wings. An armor of scales and spikes covered his real body, and his claws resembled swords when he waved them toward his opponents. His roar marked the beginning of the fight. The hybrid army shot toward the cultivators, and Noah was in the frontline. He didn''t know if Theodora had planned that, but the situation didn''t allow him to care about that outcome. Noah wasn''t protecting his home. He was fighting to gather enough experience to approach the breakthroughs. His body also needed nutrients to reach the upper tier, so he wanted to burn and eat as many enemies as possible. The human army didn''t let that sight scare them away. They weren''t members of guilds. Each of those cultivators belonged to large organizations, and they were willing to die to bring honor to their force. Noah dived toward the mass of liquid stage cultivators. His wings and claws released a storm of slashes whenever they moved through the sky. Those attacks featured the entirety of Noah''s law, but they weren''t on the level of his actual slashes. He wasn''t using his swords in that form. His offensive featured his sheer physical strength, dark matter, and the meanings carried by his darkness, but it didn''t involve any personal art. The cultivators in front of him began to disperse when they saw the storm of slashes approaching their position. Those attacks already bordered what liquid stage cultivators could face. They almost breached into the solid stage in terms of power. Before the storm could crash on the enemy army, one of the solid stage cultivators separated from the rest of the leaders and shot toward the incoming attack. A wave of fire shot out of his figure when she waved her hand, and the storm of slashes crumbled under the might carried by her simple attack. The scarlet flames burned anything on their path. They destroyed the slashes and used the energy dispersed by their form to expand. A massive fire soon appeared between Noah and his opponent, but that sight didn''t make him slow down. Noah barged into the fire and spat flames of his own. A wave of darkness spread among the scarlet attack and fought for the ownership of that area. Yet, the two abilities seemed to be at the same level, so they didn''t manage to overcome their opponent. "The Rats have told us what happened to Charles and Cassandra," The woman said as she stretched her arm toward the flames. "You have roamed freely for too long. I, Felicia, will avenge my companions and bring honor to the Crystal City." Felicia had the aspect of an old woman with long white hair and yellow eyes. Her white robe had purple flames drawn on its edges, and a large token hanged from the belt that kept her clothes still. Noah couldn''t understand the meaning behind the symbol on the token. It didn''t seem to express an actual word. He guessed that only the members of the Crystal City could comprehend its value. The expert tightened her hand, and the flames began to expand. The scarlet radiance exploded into currents that shattered large chunks of Noah''s draconic body and burnt the dark matter that they released. Noah promptly summoned his swords. The dark world expanded around his figure again, and the flames burnt it. Yet, the clouds covering his front legs resisted that influence and continued to modify his body. The claws on his front legs had stretched after the workshop modified that body part. Their sharp figures radiated the same aura as the Demonic Sword and the white blade. Noah had annexed the two weapons to his draconic form. When Noah waved his limbs, he launched a wave of slashed that pierced through the wave of scarlet flames. Singularities also formed whenever the two types of attacks touched each other. Noah''s blows had the power to give birth to wonders. Felicia soon understood that nothing in her law could allow her to stop those attacks. The singularities would appear for less than an instant anyway. Her priority was to defeat the massive dragon. Her flames morphed. They transformed into a huge fan that could cover Noah''s giant body. The weapon featured fiery marks that depicted specific months and seasons. "Summer flame," Felicia said, and the fan launched an attack that made Noah stop his offensive. A wave of scorching flames had hit the side of his body and had destroyed his right wing. His fantastic technique had already reached its limits against a cultivator stronger than Charles. "I will continue until your armor crumbles," Felicia said as she opened and tightened her hand again. The flames transformed again. They became fiery spears that pointed toward Noah and stabbed his massive body. Neither of them could reach his actual tissues, but his technique grew unstable under that constant offensive. Noah slashed, roared, and launched flames. He didn''t care if his form would lose. He only minded that his power increased during the fight. Felicia was fighting to stop that from happening. Her flames could transform into anything that she could imagine, but their density couldn''t stop Noah from barging into weaker troops. The expert saw how Noah didn''t care that his opponent was a solid stage cultivator. His body protected him from most attacks, so he would focus the weaker troops from time to time. Noah always tried to use his flames to accumulate enough energy for the breakthrough of his body. He had to gather nutrients now. That battle was only an excuse dictated by his need for evolution. Felicia didn''t let Noah do as he wished. She shot in front of his attacks and summoned a wall of flames that protected her underlings from incoming attacks. Noah launched his flames and wing attacks, but his arms remained free. When Felicia completed her structure, she shot inside it and hid her presence among her fellow troops. Noah didn''t let that trick surprise him. His arms continued to launch slashes that the fiery wall couldn''t completely block. Trains of energy flowed toward his body, signifying that his attacks were managing to kill his opponents. Suddenly, the wall of flames transformed into a giant reptilian mouth that bit on Noah''s neck. He didn''t expect that attack, and his speed was too low to avoid it anyway. The mouth severed Noah''s draconic head, but the wave of dark matter that came out of it fended off the flames for an instant. The technique broke at that point, and Noah found himself among a fire that had the power to kill him. Chapter 1476: 1476. Ambition Noah found himself surrounded by scorching flames. His draconic armor had crumbled, and only the layer of dark matter and corrosive smoke covered his body now. The unstable substance still flowed through his black veins, but Felicia had already shown that her flames could hurt him even in that state. She was strong, stronger than any other solid stage cultivator Noah had ever faced. Noah didn''t hesitate to rely on his strongest asset when he realized how poor his situation was. The reptilian mouth was about to close on his figure, but an intense bloodlust suddenly filled the area and slowed down the attack. The white sword returned inside the separate space, and a black handle came out of his chest. Noah promptly wielded it with his right hand, and the flames in his surroundings shattered when he waved his blades. The space bent under the power carried by Noah''s sharpness. The scarlet flames disappeared as slashes flew through the sky and slammed on the enemy army. Felicia didn''t expect Noah to be capable of such might. The Rats had described Charle''s fight, but they didn''t know how to evaluate the cursed sword. Their simple minds couldn''t tell the difference between the Demonic Sword and that incredible item. Even if Felicia had guessed that Noah still hid some trump cards, she didn''t expect him to destroy her flames so quickly. It only took him one attack to defeat the spell that had managed to shatter his draconic form. The army on the other side of the flames was powerless against that offensive. The massive slashes that had flown out of Noah''s figure ripped their bodies apart and destroyed their consciousness in an instant. A hole appeared among the army. Noah''s offensive had destroyed the first line of defense and left those areas unprotected. His slashes even carried enough power to slam on the invisible barrier around the pagoda. A surge of anger filled Felicia''s mind. She had failed to protect those valuable troops against an opponent that had already damaged the Crystal City. She couldn''t let her great organization appear so weak. Noah had to die on that day, or the Crystal City would have lost power for nothing. Noah''s skin crumbled as a series of injuries opened on his torso. Blood filled his inscribed robe, but the fiendish armor prevented Felicia from seeing the drawbacks of the cursed sword. Felicia raised both hands, and flames appeared around her figure. The fire flowed in front of her, and dense fireballs flew toward Noah whenever she snapped her fingers. Noah deployed his movement technique, but Felicia''s offensive was too fast. He initially managed to dodge the attacks, but a fireball soon hit his legs and turned them into a charred mess. A series of fireballs converged toward Noah after he came out of his movement technique. Felicia wasn''t giving him any break, so Noah had to rely on his cursed sword again. The Demonic Sword melted and covered the cursed sword. A massive horizontal slash came out of the blade and destroyed every fireball flying toward him. The slash didn''t stop and continued to fly toward Felicia''s position. The expert couldn''t completely block the attack, but dodging would lead to more casualties among her army. She had to make a difficult choice, but she didn''t hesitate to listen to her instincts. Flames amassed behind her figure. The fan reappeared and waved toward the massive slash. Its structure crumbled during the attack and transformed into fiery spears that flew toward Noah''s technique. "Winter flame," Felicia said as the scarlet halo hid her figure. The black slash and the many fiery spears clashed, but Noah''s attack continued to press forward, cutting anything on its path. Yet, the dense fire crashing on its structure consumed part of its power and destabilized its form. The slash had turned into a sharp trail of dark matter that clashed with Felicia''s innate defenses. A scorching aura surrounded her figure and consumed the remaining power contained in Noah''s attack. When one of the shockwaves radiated by a different spot on the battlefield vanquished the smoke accumulated in the area, Noah could see that a large cut had appeared on Felicia''s waist. Her complexion had also paled. His attack had managed to hurt her! "You can''t hurt the Crystal City anymore," Felicia said as trails of blood flowed out of her mouth. "I will stop you." Felicia joined her hands, and the giant reptilian head reappeared. More flames formed around her and fused with her technique to build a fiery body for her creature. "Spring flame," Felicia said, and the giant reptilian creature released a roar. The beast resembled a dragon, but it had three pairs of feathered wings that spread fire through the sky. Its head wasn''t wholly draconic either. It had a long mouth, and two lines of sharp teeth filled its insides. Noah''s pride exploded when he placed his eyes on that creature. The bloodlust was making his mind unstable, and the sight of that beast managed to trigger his instincts. Noah felt as if the fiery creature wanted to challenge him for the ownership of the region, and his tainted thoughts didn''t allow him to hold back. He raised his blade before the beast even completed its roar, and a massive vertical slash soon came out of its sharp edge. "Spring flame," Felicia said, and the fan reappeared. The fiery weapon flew in front of the creature and released dense flames that clashed with the slash. An explosion followed the event, but Noah''s attack managed to pierce that technique. Yet, it had lost too much power. The fiery creature raised its legs and stooped the slash with its bare claws. Its massive head also bit on its sharp edge and shattered the attack before it could even damage Felicia''s technique. Noah ignored that event and launched another slash. Wounds continued to open on his body, but he didn''t care. His mind could only focus on one thing in that situation. He had to kill Felicia. The fiery creature didn''t manage to withstand the arrival of the second slash, and Felicia had been too slow. Her injury was starting to affect her, so she couldn''t cast another powerful fire attack against that offensive. The slash severed the creature in half, and flames filled the sky after its figure crumbled. Noah''s attack even continued flying toward Felicia, but the expert raised her hands again. "Autumn flame," Felicia said, and all the fire accumulated in the sky condensed to take the shape of dense currents. The fiery currents flew toward the slash and destroyed it, creating an expanding cloud of dark matter and corrosive smoke. The attacks even converged toward Noah, who felt compelled to use the cursed sword again. Noah and Felicia appeared to be on par. They were using their best attacks without managing to overcome their opponent. Those watching the scene remained speechless. Noah was actually fending off a solid stage cultivator! Of course, that outcome didn''t satisfy Noah. His bloodlust even enhanced his greed. He wanted to kill his opponent and anyone around her. Being on her same level couldn''t make him happy. Before he could even decide to activate his ability, Noah''s cultivation level began to rise. It reached the peak of the liquid stage and barged inside the superior level. Felicia had no words to describe what was happening in front of her eyes. Her opponent had suddenly transformed into a solid stage expert. Chapter 1477: 1477. Threa "You don''t only defy logic," Felicia said. "You go against the very nature of the cultivation journey!" Felicia couldn''t help but shout when she saw Noah forcefully raising his cultivation level to the solid stage. His ambition flowed into the very fabric of the world, and his influence forced the matter around him to evolve. That part of the sky grew darker as Noah''s influence spread. Black spots appeared even inside Felicia''s flame. The expert lost control of her attacks when Noah''s ambition seeped inside its fabric. Her fire didn''t belong to her domain anymore. Noah stored the cursed sword and wielded the white blade again. He couldn''t use the black weapon when he was in that form. Its attacks would use his new cultivation level as their foundation, and he didn''t have the power to withstand its drawbacks. However, his ambition allowed him to resort to assets that he couldn''t usually use. Snore and Night came out of his chest, and their level grew as they bathed in his influence. Snore became bigger. Its fabric grew denser, and its horns stretched. The amount of power contained in its body increased, and the creature didn''t hesitate to open its mouth to launch its innate ability. Night also grew. Its figure became blurry as it fused with the world and shot toward Felicia. A black trail would taint the white sky as it flew toward the expert. The Demonic Sword also improved. Its fabric became denser, and flares of dark matter came out of its structure due to the massive power accumulated inside its body. The living weapon also gave voice to a roar that expressed the ecstasy felt during that empowerment. Noah attacked the expert. His blades performed a cross-shaped slash that launched an invisible blow toward Felicia. The cultivator saw the battle transforming in mere seconds, and she could only perform a basic technique before Noah''s offensive reached her. Her fan appeared in front of her figure. Still, a series of cracks filled its structure before the other attacks could reach her. Night came out of the fiery weapon and gave voice to a snort before diving toward Felicia again. The dark beam destroyed any lingering flame on its path and slammed on the cultivator. The scorching aura surrounding Felicia couldn''t do anything to stop the attack, and the violent dark matter soon began to devour her skin. The invisible singularity also reached Felicia. A large hole formed at the center of her belly before she could even understand what had hit her. Felicia''s maimed figure became visible when the smoke created by Noah''s offensive vanished. She appeared to be on the verge of death. Her skin had disappeared, and a hideous hole pierced her belly from side to side. Night also came out of her figure and left behind a series of cuts that worsened her condition. Felicia''s consciousness began to slip away, but she managed to give voice to a few loud words even in that state. "I understand," Felicia said. "You have the potential to become a major threat. Rejoice. The Crystal City will now treat you as one of its most feared enemies." Her token had remained attached to her body even if her robe had become a pile of rags. When Felicia closed her eyes, a purple light began to come out of the item, and the pagoda reacted to that event. The walls of the pagoda began to shine with white light, and a heavy pressure soon fell on the area. That part of the sky had become a mess due to the many battles unfolding around the building. Yet, every expert stopped fighting when that force spread in the environment. A blinding halo mixed with the sky''s light, and many figures became visible after the glow disappeared. A second army had appeared above the structure. The reinforcements from the large organizations had arrived. Noah quickly slashed toward Felicia. The cultivator was on the verge of death, but someone could still rescue her, and Noah couldn''t let that happen. Still, his fear became true when he saw two solid stage experts appearing in the trajectory of his attack. Two men wearing white robes raised their hands. A wall of ice formed between the slash and Felicia, protecting her from Noah''s attacks. The two cultivators could take their time rescuing the expert and sending her back inside the pagoda. Noah wanted to charge forward, but he forced himself to remain in his position. His bloodlust was blinding his reasoning, but he could still retain a certain amount of control. The arrival of the reinforcements placed the hybrid army on the losing end now. The humans had far more troops, and it seemed that the new platoon mainly featured solid stage cultivators from different organizations. Only a few of those experts came from the Crystal City. It seemed that the other organizations had decided to invest their resources in those regions after the initial sacrifices of their allies. The wall of ice crumbled and revealed the two men who stared at Noah. They had a middle-aged appearance. Both had pale-azure hair and white eyes, and their facial features were identical. They were twins, but it seemed that even their cultivation level had a tight connection. "We are hunters from the Crystal City," One of the men said. "We will now treat you like a peak rank 7 threat," The other man said. A third aura appeared behind Noah while he studied the twins. When he turned, he saw a middle-aged woman floating above him and analyzing his every move. "They are Abe and Ebe," The woman said. "I wouldn''t listen to them. Their individuality makes them far more powerful than any other solid stage cultivator, but their intelligence has suffered serious drawbacks." The woman wore a broad smile as her long golden hair fluttered in the wind. She had a pair of shining green eyes, and her white robe carried a purple number "9" drawn on her chest. "I''m Miss Nine," The woman said as she performed a deep bow. "I have heard a lot about you. I hope you won''t disappoint me." Noah was surrounded. The reinforcements of the organizations had arrived far faster than he expected, and it seemed that the Crystal City wanted to kill him at all costs. He could defeat a single solid stage cultivator when he went all-out, but the situation appeared quite poor. Three experts at that level were now surrounding him and closing his ways out. Noah''s only chance to escape was to fight through that blockage. Noah waved at the woman, but a metallic sound resounded in the area when his invisible singularity was about to reach her figure. The expert didn''t move during his offensive. She had only used her innate defenses to block that attack. Abe and Ebe didn''t stay still after his attack. They pointed at Noah, and a trail of ice came out from under their feet to shoot toward him. The ice spread quickly. It covered the sky and froze Noah''s ambition. The blackness that filled the sky disappeared, replaced by the azure glow radiated by the twins'' attack. ''This won''t do,'' Noah thought as flames came out of his mouth. His weapons also fused as he launched a powerful thrust, but the metallic sound resounded again when his attack was about to reach the ice. Miss Nine had interfered again. While Noah watched the ice draw closer, a familiar roar filled the sky. Jordan in her dragon form appeared behind Miss Nine and spat a wave of flames that forced her to move her attention on her. Noah could only rejoice at that sight, and his figure promptly transformed into a black sword that shot in the distance. Yet, ice soon appeared in front of him and stopped his movement technique. Chapter 1478: 1478. Losses Noah couldn''t pierce the ice. Nothing he did could make a dent in the azure walls that appeared on his path and forced him to remain on the battlefield. It was clear that the Crystal City was targeting him. The organization didn''t seem to care about the Outer Lands. All its reinforcements would fly toward him if the other troops of the hybrid army didn''t force them to fight elsewhere. Even in his solid stage form, Noah couldn''t break the ice. His slashes and companions did nothing to that element. Miss Nine''s words were correct. Noah had never faced such powerful cultivators. ''There must be a trick behind their power,'' Noah thought as he suppressed the pain that was reaching his mind. Noah was still suffering from the drawbacks of the cursed sword. His body and mind had improved and could withstand more harmful effects, but Noah had to rely on the blade multiple times against Felicia. His skin had continued to shatter, and the bloodlust had never stopped affecting his thoughts. The Divine Deduction technique activated to analyze the ice. Many plans on how to kill his opponents filled his mind due to the tainted mental energy that flowed inside his ability. Still, he could quickly find the answer to his doubts even in that condition. ''They are part of the same individuality,'' Noah concluded in his mind after a quick inspection of the ice. Noah could feel two identical auras inside the ice. They merged to give birth to something that far surpassed their power. Abe and Ebe had probably resorted to some unorthodox cultivation method to reach that state. Everything became clear to Noah once he understood that aspect of their existence. He wasn''t fighting two different solid stage cultivators. His opponents were two experts who could fuse their laws perfectly and generate far more power than usual. ''No wonder I couldn''t pierce the ice,'' Noah thought as his expression grew cold. The ice accumulated in the sky was creating a circular prison that slowly converged toward Noah. The two experts wanted to trap him, and there didn''t seem to be a way out of that situation. A clanging noise suddenly spread through the sky. Miss Nine threw Jordan''s massive body away through an invisible technique and turned toward Noah again. Her wide smile still shone on her face, and she barely felt tired after that exchange with the hybrid. "You should have expected this outcome," Miss Nine said. "You fools ascending from lower planes are all the same. You have been kings in your words for so long that you fail to realize your place in the Immortal Lands." Jordan flew toward Miss Nine again, but her head slammed on another invisible wall. Blood flowed out of her massive mouth, but her gaze appeared as determined as ever. "Look at what a large organization can do," Miss Nine continued. "These troops are a mere part of the full power of the Crystal City, and that if we consider only the cultivators in the seventh rank. My force has monsters who have lived for eras. How did you even hope to win?" Miss Nine continued her speech even if Jordan was doing her best to pierce her defenses. Cracks began to appear in the sky after she amassed enough winds, but those openings didn''t lead to the void. "You accomplish a great feat every time you manage to kill a solid stage cultivator," Miss Nine continued. "Yet, look around you. Three among the best experts in the seventh rank have flown to the other side of the plane to hunt you." "I count two," Noah said as black flames flowed out of his mouth. The flames disappeared after they flew for a few centimeters. They didn''t even reach his chest since they went into the Shadow Domain. Miss Nine''s smile froze at that sight. She had understood that something terrible was about to happen but couldn''t see what Noah had in mind. She didn''t even sense his energy spreading into the environment. Suddenly, Abe exploded into a cloud of gray smoke, black flames, and fuming spikes. Nothing of the expert remained, and the energy contained in his body flowed toward Noah through tiny fiery specks. Noah could finally experience some clarity of mind after the black hole purified that energy and redirected it toward his tissues. His body instantly healed, and the bloodlust started to retreat. Miss Nine''s smile disappeared. She suddenly felt worried about Noah''s incredible ability. He owned something that even solid stage cultivators couldn''t sense. No one was safe around him. However, she also noticed that Noah didn''t rely on that technique immediately. Felicia didn''t face that attack either. There had to be restrictions to how often Noah could activate it. Miss Nine wanted to attack immediately, but Jordan managed to break through the invisible wall at that point and forced her to diverge her attention. Noah could remain alone with Ebe. The cultivator appeared lost without his brother, and Noah didn''t hesitate to exploit that moment of weakness. He shot toward the expert with his blades pointed at his head. "No!" Ebe shouted as he waved his hands through the smoke that had replaced his brother''s body. "You can''t die! We are one! We will live as long as one of us lives!" Noah didn''t care about Ebe''s mental instability and thrust his blades on the cultivator''s head. However, a thin layer of ice appeared above his skin, and the attack didn''t manage to pierce it. The clash flung Ebe''s downward, but he didn''t seem affected by that attack. He slammed on the barrier around the pagoda and straightened his position before flying back toward the gray cloud. "No, no!" Ebe shouted. "Return to me. Come back through me. Give me your power, brother, and we will live forever." His aura intensified as his cries continued. Something was happening, but Noah wouldn''t just wait there as his opponent became stronger. Moreover, Ebe had tried to put him in a cage. Noah couldn''t even begin to describe his anger. The Demonic Sword melted to cover the white blade. Noah slashed at the cultivator''s neck, backing the attack with all the power contained in his enhanced form. The blade landed on the layer of thin ice again, but his attack only managed to fling Ebe downward again. Noah couldn''t hurt him as long as that innate defense existed. "We will rise together, Abe," Ebe said as he returned toward the smoke. "Nothing will ever separate us." Noah never stopped attacking, but his offensive appeared to be utterly pointless. Nothing he did could pierce the ice. Killing the brother didn''t make any difference in the expert''s power. When the smoke completely dispersed, Ebe could see that nothing had remained of his brother. Noah had absorbed any lingering trace of energy, so that spot lacked even ashes. "You!" Ebe shouted as his angry gaze turned toward Noah. "You killed him! You killed my brother!" Ebe''s aura increased as he muttered those words, but Noah promptly retreated. The cultivator followed him inside an area already covered by the Shadow Domain, and Noah used it to teleport Instabilities and flames inside his opponent. Miss Nine had managed to fend Jordan away again, but her expression turned ugly when she saw Ebe exploding. Noah had managed to activate his threatening technique again, inflicting more losses to the Crystal City. Chapter 1479: 1479. Limi Noah''s influence intensified even if his cultivation level didn''t increase. Defeating the solid stage cultivators after they had ganged on him made his potential increase. His ambition became denser and slowly managed to push back the ice that had accumulated in the environment. Miss Nine couldn''t put into thoughts the scene that she had just witnessed. Noah was a liquid stage hybrid at his foundation, but he had defeated three solid stage cultivators without exhausting his reserves of energy. Ordinary experts had limits. They could push their power beyond them through secret arts and unique inscribed items, but they couldn''t achieve a battle prowess that defied logic. Noah was different. He was an exception among exceptions. His law didn''t only allow him to reach the superior ranks. It also gave him enough power to defeat existences at those levels. Miss Nine had seen many talented cultivators throughout her life. She had also fought many hybrids who could exploit the innate advantages given by their species. However, Noah stood above all of them. His potential didn''t seem to have limits. "Defying Demon," Miss Nine whispered. "What a fitting title." Miss Nine''s experience didn''t allow her to remain still. She began to see Noah''s true form, and a chill ran down her spine when she realized what he could become. The Crystal City had stopped underestimating him, but that wasn''t enough. Miss Nine understood that she had to treat Noah as a threat that went beyond her power. "How high can you fly?" Miss Nine asked as her aura intensified. "Will you reach the eighth rank? Can you strive past that level and touch the peak of the cultivation world?!" Shockwaves spread from her figure. Her voice lost warmth and gained metallic features. Clanging noises accompanied her words, and a heavy force fell on the whole battlefield. Miss Nine''s influence suppressed every expert in the area. Her aura almost covered the whole region. Even some hybrids in the solid stage struggled to move properly under that pressure. Her law didn''t only affect the hybrids. Miss Nine also suppressed her allies. Her influence couldn''t differ between friend or foe. It fell on everyone in the area, forcing all the experts in the liquid stage to spit mouthfuls of blood. "Miss Nine!" Miss Canson gave voice to a loud plead as she struggled to remain in the air. Miss Canson had a series of guards around her and even a solid stage cultivator appointed to protect her. Yet, they couldn''t protect her from Miss Nine''s influence. "Be silent!" Miss Nine shouted as the clanging noises carried by her voice intensified. "I will personally explain this to Madame Canson. I can''t hold anything back against this monster." ''How powerful is she?'' Noah cursed in his mind as he struggled to move away from Miss Nine''s influence. ''Even Jordan can''t completely fight this technique!'' Jordan''s power was near the peak of the seventh rank, and she was even in her dragon form. Yet, Noah could see how annoyed she was about that pressure. Two solid stage cultivators were fighting her to let Miss Nine do as she pleased, and Jordan couldn''t shake them off inside that environment. Noah was technically at his peak. The effects of his ambition had yet to run out, and his body brimmed with power. He was a bit short of special darkness, but the black hole was already producing more of it. Miss Nine would meet the same end as the twins if Noah had enough time to enlarge the Shadow Domain and refill his stash of special darkness. Still, Noah didn''t know for how long he could survive against that expert. "Do you want to know?" Noah asked in an attempt to buy some time. "Do you want me to tell you where my ambition stops?" Roars fused with Noah''s words. Snore and Night appeared next to him and gave voice to loud cries. His Demonic Sword also joined that expression of pure defiance. "Do you want to know the limit of my potential?" Noah asked as the white sword returned inside the separate space. The area grew darker as a black handle came out of his chest. Noah''s felt a wave of bloodlust filling his mind and turning his thoughts into killing intent. The bloodlust flowing out of his figure resembled a sea of swords that spread everywhere in the environment. The cursed sword used the cultivation level of its owner as its foundation. The power that it was radiating aimed to reach the very peak of the seventh rank. The cursed sword was still a weapon in the upper tier since it had yet to defeat enough opponents. It couldn''t push the power of Noah''s attacks to the eighth rank. The peak of the seventh rank was the limit of its current form. "Tell me," Miss Nine said without showing the slightest trace of fear. The bloodlust released by Noah made the weaker experts in the area run away. Even some solid stage cultivators had to activate defensive techniques to fend off his dangerous influence. Most experts turned their attention to Noah''s figure. They could see that Miss Nine didn''t dare to move her eyes away from him, and they wondered how Noah could even think of fighting that monster. "My ambition knows no limit!" Noah shouted as he unsheathed the cursed sword and slashed with both hands toward his opponent. Miss Nine quickly waved her hand, and the space in front of her bent. Something began to appear, but a storm of slashes clashed on that invisible figure before it could gain any color. Everyone retreated. They expected massive shockwaves to fly out of that clash. However, they soon understood that something was off. Miss Nine was the first to sense that anomaly. Noah had amassed a threatening amount of power, but the slashes that had clashed on her invisible wall were weaker than the attacks unleashed against the twins. Her technique didn''t even tremble when the slashes slammed on the invisible surface. Miss Nine felt confused, but she began to suspect something when she saw that a black cloud had replaced Noah''s figure. Miss Nine waved her hand, and the cloud dispersed. The technique didn''t contain anyone. It was a simple mass of dark matter floating in the sky. ''Shut up!'' Noah shouted inside his mind as he flew at high speed toward the edges of the battlefield. Noah had pretended to use the cursed sword before. He wasn''t crazy enough to use an attack that would turn his body into a bloody pulp when he had the chance to escape. Yet, the bloodlust that had filled his mind was real, and it was begging Noah to turn back. ''Let''s kill her!'' ''Let''s feed on her belly!'' ''Rip her limbs while she still breathes!'' ''Kill her slowly!'' ''Kill her quickly!'' ''Devour everyone on your path!'' Violent thoughts filled his mind. They all carried his voice. It was as if he had suddenly obtained multiple personalities that were begging him to fight. Noah managed to remain somewhat calm. He was struggling to hold his instincts back, and he had to slap his cheeks at times to stay conscious. Those drawbacks warned Noah about the power of the cursed sword. He could barely withstand the bloodlust generated while his ambition fueled his cultivation level. He couldn''t even imagine what an actual attack would do to his body. His wild thoughts became harder to suppress when a figure materialized on his path. Noah had flown away as fast as he could, but he had to stop when trails of black dust converged in front of him and took Miss Nine''s shape. The expert had caught up with him. Chapter 1480: 1480. Sphere "How can you be so strong?" Noah asked as he interrupted his movement technique and diverged the power of the black hole toward his mind. Noah needed to think properly in that situation. He couldn''t let his bloodlust take control of his actions. There was something off with Miss Nine''s power, but he couldn''t waste time uncovering it now. The pretense from before had also tricked his allies. King Elbas, Ian, Jordan, and the other hybrids had thought that Noah was about to launch a massive slash. They didn''t notice his escape until he was already far away. Only Noah and Miss Nine stood in that part of the sky. The others would take at least a minute to reach him. Experts in the solid stage could exchange many attacks during that time. "You can''t kill me before the others arrive," Noah said as a cold smile appeared on his face. Noah didn''t attack. He didn''t even try to escape. He didn''t need to do anything to put an end to that battle. Jordan and the others had already begun to fly in his direction by the end of his line. The empowerment given by his ambition was about to end, but Noah felt no fear. Miss Nine''s power was something that he didn''t understand, but his instincts were telling him that he could survive that situation. Miss Nine didn''t seem to care about his statement. She waved her hand, and a massive force slammed on Noah''s head. The attack almost made him faint, but Snore quickly surrounded his figure and endured part of the blow. Noah slammed on the ground. He didn''t even remember how quickly he had left the sky, but he could feel that blood was flowing out of his head. A large injury had appeared among his metallic hair. The expert had almost cracked his skull open. "Told you," Noah said as he struggled to stand. He wanted to charge at the expert. He desired to stab his blades into her skin, but he suppressed those compulsions. Noah had to remain calm to gain as much time as possible. "I believe you," Miss Nine eventually said as she descended from the sky. "From now on, I will treat you as the greatest monster that has ever stepped on the higher plane." An inscribed notebook flickered in her grasp. Miss Nine was communicating with someone, but Noah couldn''t sense what her messages carried. Jordan had almost reached that spot. Flames were already accumulating in her draconic mouth. Ian was also behind her, and a series of solid stage cultivators were following the two hybrids. "What does that even mean?" Noah asked, but the pagoda suddenly released a flash of light. No reinforcements arrived after that event, but a notebook wielded by one of the cultivators near the pagoda flickered, replicating the light previously released by the structure. Miss Nine''s notebook also shone, and a dark sphere suddenly materialized next to the expert. The item was as big as a two-story building and radiated a power that left Noah speechless. The spere was a quasi-rank 8 item. Noah instinctively took a step back at that sight, but Miss Nine was faster than him. She threw the inscribed weapon toward him, and her figure began to disperse into a cloud of black dust. Noah tried to avoid the sphere. He couldn''t enter the Shadow Domain, but he still launched everything in his arsenal to fend off the item. Snore materialized again and spat a dark beam. The Demonic Sword appeared in the open and launched a sharp wave of dark matter. Night shot toward the sphere as it tried to fuse with its fabric. The dark world also unfolded in a desperate attempt to buy Noah more time. However, those attacks didn''t even slow down the sphere. The scenery in Noah''s vision suddenly went dark before a pale light restored his sight and allowed him to understand where he was. Noah was still on the battlefield. He didn''t move from his spot on the ground. Yet, his surroundings had grown darker, and he found himself unable to unfold his consciousness. Dark matter promptly came out of his figure and filled his surroundings. The higher energy soon stopped expanding after it covered a spherical area. An invisible wall was blocking its advance. Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword were with Noah. They launched their attacks toward that invisible wall, but they didn''t even manage to make it tremble. Noah grasped the Demonic Sword and wielded the white blade at that point. A singularity flew out of his figure after he performed a cross-shaped slash, but his attack failed to cause any reaction on the invisible wall. Miss Nine''s figure appeared above him and touched the sphere as her body transformed into trails of black dust. The scenery in Noah''s vision changed again. He suddenly found himself above the pagoda. It didn''t take Noah much to understand what had happened. Miss Nine had relied on a quasi-rank 8 inscribed item to trap him, and she was now attempting to bring him away from the battlefield. Noah''s gaze became cold, but he didn''t do anything. The dark matter flowed back into the black hole. Snore, Night, the Demonic Sword, and Night returned inside his body. Even his cultivation level started to fall as he descended toward the pagoda. He could see the entirety of the battlefield from that spot. Jordan and Ian were far away. King Elbas was busy fighting a solid stage cultivator, and the other hybrids had their opponents to take care of. The sphere had even severed his connection with Miss Void''s spell. Noah couldn''t touch the layer between the dimensions anymore. The item had placed him in a separate space that limited his influence to that small area. Throughout his long life, Noah had learnt to understand when he had lost. His situation was hopeless. The Crystal City had managed to trap him. "Was it worth it?" Noah asked as he gazed toward the black dust accumulating above him. "The Legion will kill your troops now." Miss Nine''s influence had suppressed everyone on the battlefield, but the hybrids could resist her pressure better than the cultivators. The Legion had quickly seized the upper hand in the fight during those moments. "You have no idea how powerful large organizations are," Miss Nine said in her metallic voice as her figure reformed above the sphere. "Losing one battle to take out a troublesome opponent is a good investment. How long will the Crystal City need to replace today''s losses? How long will the Legion take to find another monster like you?" The invisible wall muffled Miss Nine''s voice, but Noah could sense the coldness carried by her words. She wasn''t considering her companions as cultivators. The troops in the areas were mere numbers in her mind, and Noah was the highest. A solid stage cultivator dragged a fainted Miss Canson toward Miss Nine. The expert wore a worried expression, but Miss Nine shook her head and revealed a satisfied smile. "I will handle things once we return home," Miss Nine said. "Activate the matrix now." "Our troops are outside of the teleportation''s range," The solid stage cultivator tried to complain. "It doesn''t matter," Miss Nine continued. "Activate it. This is an order." A blinding light filled Noah''s vision after the solid stage expert nodded. The scenery in his eyes changed again. He suddenly found himself inside a large mansion filled with cultivators. An identical pagoda stood under him, and the symbol of the Sailbrird family occupied the walls around him. Chapter 1481: 1481. Trapped "You are lucky that the Crystal City wants you!" "Can''t we poke him a little?" "Lord Ethan will make you regret what you did during the auction!" The cultivators in the mansion shouted toward Noah, trapped inside the sphere standing above the pagoda. His cultivation level had fallen to the liquid stage. His ambition had run out, and he was dealing with the drawbacks of the forceful enhancement now. Noah sat inside the sphere. His body hurt, his dantian struggled to keep darkness inside its walls, and his mind launched painful sensations that spread through his tissues. Pieces of magical beasts came out of his separate space as Noah ate to recover. He was using his entire stash to be ready to fight. His situation was far from ideal, but it seemed that his death wouldn''t arrive just yet. "Why don''t you try to kill me?" Noah asked the figure sitting above the sphere. "You have an entire army here. I''m sure you will destroy me in no time." The cultivators standing around the pagoda fell silent when they heard those words, and their eyes went toward the figure sitting above the sphere. Miss Nine didn''t want to answer, but the gazes of the experts from the Sailbrird family forced her to give an explanation. "You don''t fool me," Miss Nine said. "I''ve already told you that I believe in your potential. You have the talent to reach the peak of the cultivation world, so I will use the safest approach that I can think of to kill you." One of the cultivators among the crowd floated toward Miss Nine. He was an old man in the solid stage, and he performed a polite bow before giving voice to his thoughts. "Miss Nine, I wish to express my honest opinion on the matter," The man said as he straightened his back and moved his long white hair away from his face. "Speak freely, Ellis," Miss Nine replied. "Defying Demon is trapped in a quasi-rank 8 inscribed prison," Ellis said before pointing at the crowd under him. "The Sailbrird family doesn''t have any rank 8 cultivator in this branch, but there are twenty experts in the solid stage gathered here. Ten more are in the various training areas, and an army of weaker soldiers fills the whole structure. We can end his life now." Miss Nine glanced toward Ellis'' confused face and heaved a sigh. She understood the expert. She had also lost assets because she couldn''t believe in Noah''s power. However, Miss Nine wouldn''t let her experience and convictions trick her anymore. Noah''s power defied logic. She firmly believed that he had a chance to escape as long as he was against experts in the seventh rank. Her belief was unreasonable, but she couldn''t suppress how she felt. Miss Nine had seen Abe and Ebe dying under her gaze. Those two experts were core assets of the Crystal City, but Noah had managed to kill them. Noah wasn''t even a real solid stage expert, but he had killed two incredible cultivators. His battle prowess already bordered the peak of the seventh rank. Only fellow monsters could keep him under control. "I know that you don''t understand my actions," Miss Nine said, "But I ask you to trust me. Even your wildest overestimations can''t describe this hybrid. We need a rank 8 cultivator to be certain that he won''t escape death." Miss Nine''s words didn''t manage to clear Ellis'' confusion, but the expert let go of the matter and descended toward the crowd. The Sailbrird family couldn''t say much on the subject. The Crystal City had lost too much because of Noah. It was up to them to decide what to do with him. "Notify Lord Ethan that the execution will happen inside the Crystal City," Ellis said once he returned among his companions. "He will know how to contact them." Noah meditated in silence. He couldn''t expand his consciousness, but he still gathered information about his surroundings. Miss Nine and Ellis'' conversation didn''t escape his ears. The duo had revealed what plans the Crystal City had for him. "Do you fear me so much?" Noah asked. "Having a rank 8 cultivator take care of a mere liquid stage hybrid. What would the other organizations say about it?" "How many plans depend on this question?" Miss Nine asked. "I know your kind. You will cling to anything to survive. Even the air that you breathe reeks of lies. I wouldn''t be surprised if your current state were another piece of your tactics." "I am an honest Demon," Noah replied. "I''m grateful for your zealous concern. You have no idea what your plan is doing to my ambition." "Enjoy the feeling while you can," Miss Nine said. "I can accept that the strongest monster in the Immortal Lands can fill the gaps among the stages of the seventh rank. Still, that potential will be useless against a rank 8 existence." Both Noah and Miss Nine had spoken the truth. Knowing that Miss Nine feared him so much had made his potential skyrocket, but she was also right in being so worried. Noah had already recovered enough to express his peak battle prowess for some time. He could fight if the situation required it, and he had also stored enough special darkness for his Shadow Domain. Noah could expand the Shadow Domain and teleport in that personal dimension as soon as the sphere opened. No one would be able to touch him at that point. His stash of special darkness would also give him the chance to fly safely for some time. The sphere that was trapping him also offered temporary protection against attacks coming from the outside. Noah could focus on his recovery and prepare plans for now. Still, his tactics would crumble if Miss Nine brought him in front of a rank 8 cultivator. His potential had no limits, but his centers of power were in the seventh rank. They couldn''t give Noah what he needed to face that threat. ''If only I could destroy this item,'' Noah thought as he glanced toward the invisible wall. ''I need to find a solution quickly, or I might really die.'' Noah had yet to lose hope about his situation. He was far away from the Outer Lands, his allies didn''t know where he was, but he wasn''t ready to give up just yet. As long as Noah breathed, he would fight to live another day. It didn''t matter how harsh his situation was. He would sacrifice every fiber of his existence to keep moving forward. ''I can''t use the cursed sword,'' Noah thought as the light of the Divine Deduction technique illuminated the insides of his mind. ''The blade might free me, but I will die due to its drawbacks. I might survive with a body in the upper tier, but I can''t gather energy for the breakthrough here.'' Countless plans ran through Noah''s mind. Ideas surged and crumbled as he evaluated every possible tactic that could lead to his escape. ''The companions are too weak,'' Noah thought. ''My ambition can''t give them enough power. I don''t even know how much darkness Night needs to improve. It''s pointless to consider them when my centers of power are closer to the breakthroughs.'' Noah could feel that his existence contained something that could help him, but he struggled to find it. Then, a realization hit him. He was relying on a technique created by a different cultivator to come up with a solution. The Divine Deduction technique had reached its limits, and it was time to improve it. Chapter 1482: 1482. Destruction The Divine Deduction technique had accompanied Noah since he was a mere rank 3 cultivator. Divine Demon''s ability had allowed him to ignore some of the harshest requirements in the creation of spells and arts. It had also been a core element in the procedure that had led to his hybrid body. Still, the Divine Deduction technique inherited by Noah couldn''t go past the seventh rank. Divine Demon had left a polished version in the lower plane before his ascension, but Noah had to modify it now. He needed something that suited his existence since his level was surpassing what the ability could accomplish. ''How can I improve it?'' Noah thought as he meditated inside the quasi-rank 8 sphere. The cultivators under him continued to give voice to loud taunts, and Miss Nine never left the spot above the sphere. Yet, Noah ignored everything and focused on the Divine Deduction technique. Noah had scarce knowledge of the inscription method used to create the Divine Deduction technique. His expertise had always covered techniques that involved intense wills. His modifications could ruin the lines on his mental sphere if he didn''t pay enough attention. The lines were also inside the fabric of his mental sphere. Noah could risk hurting his mind if he failed to improve the technique. He would typically spend entire years meditating over various approaches since the procedure could cause many problems, but his current situation didn''t allow him to be careful. Noah had to improve the Divine Deduction technique. His very life was at stake. Nothing else in his arsenal could give him a chance to escape that prison. The first issues that Noah had to face were his lack of materials and his shortage of energy. The inscribed sphere separated him from the outside world, so he didn''t have access to the "Breath" in the environment. Noah overcame that problem through his black hole. The fourth center of power could reassemble primary energy to create darkness, allowing Noah to turn his stash of magical beasts into fuel for his dantian. That was only a temporary solution. Noah couldn''t improve in that condition. He had a limited amount of energy for his experiments, but that had to be enough. Death would come for him otherwise. ''How can I improve it?'' Noah wondered as he used the Divine Deduction technique to search for a solution to his problem. ''What can I use to transform this technique into one of my powerful assets?'' His first idea involved the black hole, but Noah quickly rejected that thought. His fourth center of power could already improve the capabilities of his mind. His years spent benefitting from those advantages had made him understand that the two organs couldn''t fuse. His second idea involved his ambition. His incredible law could automatically improve anything in its range. However, the Divine Deduction technique was already part of his mind. His individuality could only force its overall level to grow. That wasn''t enough for Noah. He needed a transformation, not simple empowerment. He wouldn''t be in that situation otherwise. Noah soon exhausted his ideas. He knew his existence and the abilities that made him defy common logic better than anyone else. Nothing in his body could give him the transformation that he needed. He couldn''t even use his unstable substance since his mind lacked black vessels. Modifying his body again was also out of the question. The experiments on his lungs had made his tissues reach their limits. ''It must be something that doesn''t originate from my body,'' Noah concluded in his mind before cursing loudly. ''Where can I even find such a material in this place?!'' The environment inside the sphere was his greatest limit. Noah couldn''t hunt and had a limited amount of energy. Miss Nine had forced him into a seemingly hopeless situation. ''Is this the end?'' Noah wondered as he opened his eyes and looked toward the white sky. Noah still recalled his first life. He had now lived far more than any other human in his first world. He had lived long enough to forget his age. Yet, those millennia failed to satisfy him. He still wanted to experience many things. Noah had barely explored the divine ranks. He was only a powerful rank 7 existence, but the cultivation journey could offer him far more. ''I have yet to reach the sky,'' Noah thought as the whiteness of the Immortal Lands filled his vision. ''I have yet to see the stars.'' His dream had never changed throughout the millennia. Noah wanted to pierce the sky and reach the stars beyond that whiteness. Intense defiance had always accompanied those images, and ideas featuring sharp destruction inevitably surged in his mind. A strange idea formed as Noah stared at the white sky. He had realized something while his wild thoughts ran through his mind and stirred his desire to live. Noah had a force that didn''t initially originate from his existence. He didn''t consider it before because he couldn''t control it properly. Yet, he had no other choice at that point. The cursed sword could make Noah''s bloodlust explode. Those violent thoughts were wild energy that he had only suppressed in the past. Still, they appeared as the only material that could force the Divine Deduction technique to improve. ''An unstoppable energy that seeks to destroy everything,'' Noah thought as he dived deep into his mind to search his scarlet thoughts. ''It always ends like this with me. I should stop striving for stability.'' His dark mental sea hid a scarlet core in its depths. That spot resembled a tumor that strived to take control of Noah''s mind. It carried his most violent thoughts and wildest desires. That scarlet mental energy depicted bloody memories. Noah''s harshest battles were there, along with desires that came from his instincts. Interacting with the cursed sword had given birth to that lump of red mental energy. The weapon had forced Noah''s mind to condense his bloodlust. That scarlet mass had also fed on the blade''s aura, becoming denser and ready to scatter through the rest of the mental sea. Noah''s mental energy was atypical and could suppress that red lump, but ordinary cultivators would have to fight against that bloodlust often to keep it cornered in the depths of their minds. The cursed sword stayed true to its name. It was a weapon that could make anyone insane. ''These are nothing more than thoughts tainted by bloodlust,'' Noah thought as his ethereal figure cut a piece of the red mass. ''In theory, the Divine Deduction technique should accept them even in this form.'' Noah flew out of his mental sea and placed those red thoughts on one of the lines in the mental walls. The tainted mental energy dispersed, and the Divine Deduction technique activated. A sharp force ran through Noah''s mind. Chaos spread through his consciousness as the Divine Deduction technique showed its effects. That sensation lasted for less than an instant, but Noah didn''t forget to memorize the images that appeared in his vision. The Divine Deduction technique would usually enhance the capabilities of his mind, but its effects were different at that time. Noah''s thoughts ran faster as expected from the ability, but they didn''t feature his usual calmness. In the short instant under the effect of the Divine Deduction technique, Noah had countless ideas on how to better destroy everything around him. His focus had been on the sphere, but his thoughts didn''t stop there. When the bloodlust fueled the Divine Deduction technique, Noah obtained intense destructive thoughts that gave him ideas on how to turn the world into ashes. Chapter 1483: 1483. Decision When Noah thought about it, it felt almost natural that his tainted mental energy would give birth to bloodthirsty ideas. The Divine Deduction technique enhanced the capabilities of his mind, but its effects also depended on the type of fuel used to activate it. That brief moment of enlightenment wasn''t enough to provide a solution to his problem. Noah had to find a way to destroy the sphere and escape from his awful situation, but his hope had intensified now. ''My bloodlust can be a source of destructive thoughts,'' Noah contemplated inside the silence of the quasi-rank 8 sphere. ''I wonder what the Divine Deduction technique would be able to produce if I harmonized its lines with that feeling.'' His short enlightenment had been the product of the original Divine Deduction technique. The ability had a general use and could create solutions for different tasks. However, if Noah''s modifications could transform the technique into something that could only generate destructive thoughts, its efficiency would multiply. He couldn''t even begin to fathom how powerful it could become. A possible solution was in his reach, but Noah hesitated. Applying those modifications to the Divine Deduction technique would make it lose part of its abilities. Noah had mainly created weapons throughout his life, but he had also given birth to expressions of life. His hybrid body was one of those products. Changing the Divine Deduction technique would forever separate it from one of the core aspects of his law. The decision wasn''t easy, but Noah couldn''t find another solution. He couldn''t escape from the quasi-rank 8 sphere in his current condition, and reaching the rank 8 existence unprepared could only lead to his death. "It''s time to move," Miss Nine said as she stood on the sphere. The cultivators around the pagoda opened a path that allowed her to drag the sphere on the ground. The experts continued to mock Noah, but his gaze was empty when it fell on their ecstatic faces. ''Maybe I don''t have to sacrifice anything,'' Noah thought as countless faces ran through his vision. ''I would only lose part of my creations. I can still build creatures meant only to destroy.'' Noah had already made a decision, but he was trying to justify it inside his mind. There would be no turning back after his experiments began. He had to be entirely sure that his approach wouldn''t create conflicts in his existence. ''It can work,'' Noah concluded once Miss Nine dragged him outside of the mansion. ''I never create defensive items anyway. It seems only proper that I force my attention to converge on destructive products.'' Miss Canson, a few liquid stage cultivators, and two solid stage experts joined Miss Nine. Felicia was among them. Her complexion was awful, and she often shot hateful glances toward Noah. Yet, she didn''t speak. A faint trace of respect also appeared in her eyes whenever they fell on the insides of the sphere. Felicia was one of the few experts in the world who could understand Miss Nine''s decision to bring Noah in front of a rank 8 cultivator. She had tasted Noah''s power, and she couldn''t blame her companion for taking so many precautions. The group moved quickly. Miss Nine sat on the inscribed item that began to levitate under the effects of her consciousness. The other experts flew around her, creating a defensive formation that blocked part of Noah''s vision. It was clear that they didn''t want Noah to escape. Their attention never wavered even if he was inside a quasi-rank 8 item. It was as if they believed that he could pull something strange off. Noah guessed that the experts were flying toward the Crystal City. He didn''t know how far that was, but he couldn''t waste even a second. Death waited for him at the end of that travel. He had to create something that could make him escape before the experts reached their destination. ''I can''t hesitate anymore,'' Noah thought as he prepared for the procedure. His ethereal figure dived back into the mental sea and grabbed all the tainted mental energy he could carry. Then, he resurfaced to feed those thoughts to the Divine Deduction technique. Noah didn''t focus on the quasi-rank 8 sphere now. His attention went on the whole Divine Deduction technique. He wanted his bloodlust to tell him how to modify that ability to transform it into a source of destructive creations. Countless bloodthirsty ideas filled Noah''s mind, but he filtered them to memorize only the most feasible. Many random thoughts had also appeared in that stream of violent images, but he quickly discarded them. ''Not yet,'' Noah thought as he repeated the process. The bloodlust accumulated at the bottom of his mental sea wasn''t enough to lead him toward a solution, but Noah could generate that feeling endlessly. He only needed to summon his cursed sword to taint his thoughts again. The quasi-rank 8 sphere isolated his influence, so Noah could make the cursed sword come out of his chest without alerting the experts around him. Yet, he still arched his back to hide his torso and cover the weapon with his robe. The process continued until Noah understood what he had to do to modify the Divine Deduction technique. That answer slightly surprised him, but he couldn''t deny its effectiveness. Noah wouldn''t use the Elemental Forging method nor his Will-consuming runes. He lacked proper materials for the former, and he didn''t know the theory behind the Divine Deduction technique enough to affect it with intense wills. He would use the inscription method learnt from the natives of the other world to modify the ability. Noah would expose the lines of the Divine Deduction technique to his bloodlust to slowly change their nature. Of course, Noah couldn''t wait for too long. The original inscription method could take years to show its effects, but he needed immediate results. Modifying the Divine Deduction technique wouldn''t be the end of his plan to escape. It was nothing more than the beginning. Noah needed the new ability to find a solution to his issue. ''Time to go all-out,'' Noah thought as the spherical rune that he used to enlarge his mind came out of his forehead and dispersed the dark matter in its insides. His mind felt far lighter after Noah removed that pressure, but that feeling wouldn''t last. After reabsorbing the dark matter, he filled the empty spherical rune with tainted mental energy. That spherical rune weighed far less than before since the mental energy was lighter than the dark matter. Noah could store many more of them inside his mind without reaching its structural limits. Still, as he created more spherical runes and filled them with bloodlust, his mind soon began to hurt. Noah didn''t feel satisfied with a slow but constant modification. He wanted to accelerate the process, so he covered the Divine Deduction technique''s lines with many runes. His mind grew unstable with so many runes radiating bloodlust near its walls. Snore''s ethereal figure even hid inside the mental sea to avoid that dangerous influence. His mental walls suffered under that destructive force, but Noah endured the pain, using his dark matter to reinforce his mind''s structure and keep it stable. As the bloodlust continued to fall on the mental walls, the lines of the Divine Deduction technique slowly changed. Initially, they were nothing more than marks ready to lit up. Yet, they began to transform into scarlet strings that illuminated his mind. Chapter 1484: 1484. Demonic Deduction Miss Nine and the other cultivators of the Crystal City continued to drag Noah through the regions of the Immortal Lands. They flew, ignoring the fauna and avoiding any human settlement that appeared in their range. Noah also ignored the environment. He couldn''t understand where he was, and that knowledge wouldn''t affect his priorities. His plan didn''t depend on how close he was to the Crystal City. The many spherical runes filled with his bloodlust had never stopped modifying the Divine Deduction technique. The ability was almost ready. It only needed a few more weeks to transform. His mind was almost at its limit, but Noah endured the internal pressure. His pain didn''t matter in that situation. He was even willing to injure his mental walls if that gave him a chance to survive that situation. His black hole helped immensely during the process. The fourth center of power could understand how desperate Noah''s situation was and redirected all its energy toward his mind. His ambition also helped in the matter. Noah didn''t lie when he said that Miss Nine''s concern had improved his potential. His law was forcing his mind to remain stable because it sensed Noah''s desire to defy that hopeless situation. The travel was mostly silent. The experts didn''t speak. They limited themselves to exchange glances and shoot hateful glares at Noah. Noah also remained silent. His focus was elsewhere. The various glares that landed on his figure couldn''t break his concentration. His whole consciousness was inside his mind, ensuring that his mental walls didn''t crumble due to the insane internal pressure. As the group continued to fly, they eventually reached a vast plain that featured a few white buildings. Those structures had the shape of small castles, and a few troops surveilled the area. Those experts were nothing special. They were a small platoon of gaseous stage cultivators that defended one of the many lands under the control of the Crystal City. The cultivators performed deep bows when they saw Miss Nine and her group. They even prepared a banquet and a series of materials to help the guests cultivate and recover after the long travel. The group remained for a few days inside those castles before setting off again. The gaseous stage cultivators flew with them and escorted the experts during their travel. Noah had ignored that event. He opened his eyes only after he completed the modifications to his Divine Deduction technique, and a surprised gasp almost escaped his mouth when he gazed at the army. His potential couldn''t help but increase again when he saw that his wardens'' number had increased. Still, Noah didn''t have the time to enjoy that sensation. His technique was finally complete. It was time to test its effects. The lines of the Divine Deduction technique had become red. They ran through Noah''s mental walls and radiated a dim light that shone on his dark mental sea. Faint violent thoughts leaked out of those lines and spread both inside and outside his mental sphere. It seemed that the forceful modification applied by his spherical runes had also changed part of the nature of his mental walls. His dark mental energy suppressed the violent thoughts that flew inside his mind and stored them at the bottom of his mental sea. However, those leaking outside of his mental walls surrounded him with a scarlet halo that carried an intense bloodlust. If the other experts could sense his aura, they would notice that Noah appeared more threatening now. He gave off the impression that he could attack anyone for no reason at all. That appearance didn''t reflect his actual mindset. Noah was calm, calmer than he had ever been in his entire life. He stored the spherical runes containing his bloodlust and let his mind heal properly. Then, he began testing his new technique. Initially, Noah tried to activate the lines through his normal mental energy, but they rejected it. They didn''t want those pure and calm thoughts. Only a power that suited their nature could flow through their structure. Noah''s expectations increased at that sight. The steeper their requirements were, the better their effects would be once he managed to activate them. He couldn''t wait to see what those lines could produce. His ethereal figure went to the bottom of his mental sea to pick a handful of bloodlust before flying toward the mental walls. The scarlet lines accepted that energy, and an intense red light filled the entirety of Noah''s mind after the technique activated. A wave of bloodthirsty ideas filled Noah''s mind. He could barely make out what he was seeing during that sudden enlightenment, but his consciousness managed to capture a few images. His focus had been on the quasi-rank 8 sphere. The ideas generated by the modified Divine Deduction technique concerned that item. They described countless approaches that could lead to the destruction of that invisible fabric. Some of those ideas saw Noah detonating part of his body to obtain enough power to destroy the inscribed item. The new Divine Deduction technique didn''t care about his well-being. It only wanted to defeat his targets without minding what he had to sacrifice to achieve that. Noah didn''t immediately discard those ideas. A few of them were interesting, but they would force him to forever sacrifice part of his physical strength. They wanted him to turn some limbs and organs into disposable weapons meant only to destroy the sphere. Noah was desperate, but he didn''t want to sacrifice his power. He put away those ideas for now and activated the scarlet lines again. He would consider those options only if the technique didn''t find anything better. That process continued for a while. Noah even relied on the cursed sword to produce more bloodlust. His mind began to suffer again due to the stressful activity, but Noah could only endure for now. A decent idea arrived at some point. It still involved a sacrifice, but Noah was willing to make the trade. The outcome wouldn''t even make him lose the spell forever. It would only turn it into something that he couldn''t hope to control. Divine experts fought through domains. Their influence would affect an area and transform it into their world. Techniques like the dark world usually worked on cultivators that didn''t surpass Noah''s level, so he rarely relied on them anymore. One of those techniques was the Demonic Form spell. That ability had accompanied Noah since his first steps into the cultivation journey, but it had slowly lost power as the quality of his opponents improved. Every powerhouse in the lower plane had developed countermeasures to his corrosive smoke. The divine experts could deploy suitable defenses even if they weren''t aware of the properties of the Demonic Form. Noah had to stop relying on that spell since it was too hard to touch his opponents with his corrosive smoke. The technique wasn''t as effective as his slashes, even after he fused it with the Black Mark spell. Noah couldn''t apply its corrosive effects even with the help of the dark world. He mostly used it to obtain a slight improvement in his physical strength or as a layer of armor. That was its limit in the Immortal Lands. Still, the new Divine Deduction technique had shown him a path. Noah could modify the Demonic Form and transform it into a weapon meant only to destroy. He could turn it into something that could break the hard structure of the inscribed sphere. A cold smile appeared on Noah''s face, but his metallic hair prevented the experts around him from seeing his expression. The new Divine Deduction technique was perfect for his existence. It gave him exactly what he needed. It allowed him to identify the destructive potential of his abilities. ''This name doesn''t suit the ability anymore,'' Noah thought as he focused on the scarlet lines. ''Divine Demon will forgive me if I rename his technique. I will call it "Demonic Deduction" to honor its first creation.'' Chapter 1485: 1485. Plan At first, Noah''s Demonic Deductions were nothing more than basic ideas. Bloodthirsty thoughts accumulated in his mind and took the shape of outlines or approaches. Proper ideas slowly began to form as the small army continued to fly through the Immortal Lands. Noah had an advantage in that project. He had already modified the Demonic Form spell. That diagram couldn''t hide much from him anymore. The Demonic Deduction technique soon put Noah on an unexpected path. The most feasible approach saw him transforming the spell into a peculiar living being. His experience in the creation of Blood Companions and his knowledge of the magical beasts'' field made Noah the perfect expert for the task. The Demonic Form also had high destructive capabilities. It turned out to be relatively easy to create a general outline for his new weapon. Noah had already treated the Demonic Form spell as a living being. Still, his previous project had only modified its nature. Now, he needed to transform those black roots into something far more powerful. Since it was a spell, the Demonic Form fed on his darkness and mental energy. Its diagram was even unique since its power depended on the Kesier runes. Noah didn''t have the time to remove that requirement from the spell. He wished to separate the ability from those rare materials completely, but his situation didn''t allow him to spend entire years rebuilding the diagram. ''To think that this turned out to be useful,'' Noah thought when his focus moved on the insides of the separate space. The piece of fur depicting the Seventh Kesier rune was there. Noah lacked valuable materials, but it seemed that his decision to keep that item had granted him a chance to survive. As his deductions continued, a plan also took form. His situation didn''t allow him to gather energy, but he had a quasi-rank 8 inscribed item around him. Its invisible walls had to contain an immense amount of power. That could become the fuel required for his breakthroughs. The experts around Noah could guess that he was planning something, but they couldn''t even imagine how incredible his ideas were. Noah managed to keep most of the tests inside his mind and separate space, so his wardens never understood what he was up to. Once Noah made sure that his approach could work, he began experimenting on the black roots entangled on the Kesier runes. He desired to transform that diagram into something more interactive. He wanted to give it a destructive will. Noah slowly separated the various roots from the Kesier runes. He had to create the dark world inside his mind to make sure that the spell didn''t suffer any damage in the process. The workshop also helped in perfecting that procedure. Noah felt like a surgeon operating on a diagram. The dark world allowed him to create fake Kesier runes that could keep the spell temporarily alive. Meanwhile, the workshop modified its structure, condensing it and improving its innate abilities. Once Noah felt satisfied with the modifications, he approached the most challenging part of the procedure. He could still put back the spell on the Kesier runes now, but the following steps could lead to irreversible damages. It was time to give the diagram a will. Noah had reached the point when he had to transform the spell into a living being. Noah had no wills available. He couldn''t replicate what he had done with Snore, and he couldn''t even make a copy of his personality since that could lead to many problems. Still, his ambition could improve anything in the world. Stones would become metal under his influence, and something similar could happen to the Demonic Form. Noah could even force his ambition to focus on his spell. He severed pieces of his ethereal figure, filled them with his law, and turned them into a shining dark powder. The process didn''t stop there. Noah had to maximize his creation''s destructiveness, so he relied on his bloodlust to gather all the violent memories connected to the Demonic Form. The number of those memories was immense. Noah had relied on the Demonic Form since his escape from the Balvan Mansion. Almost all his battles featured that ability. After Noah condensed those violent thoughts, he fused them with the dark ethereal dust. A strange substance came out of that process, but he didn''t waste time analyzing it. The destructive force that it radiated was enough to tell him that it would suit the spell. Through the workshop, Noah fused the dark roots with that dark-red substance. The spell condensed even more, and it soon transformed into a minute stem covered in spikes. The stem slowly grew. That improvement didn''t only involve its size. The spell had transformed into a unique plant that was slowly giving birth to a strange flower. An intense pressure filled Noah''s mind when the flower came out of the minute stem. The plant had black petals and a black pistil. It was so dark that even his mental waves couldn''t wholly grasp its form. Moreover, his mental energy struggled to come near the plant. They would crumble whenever they gathered around its structure. A destructive aura surrounded the whole spell. The destructive aura wasn''t only a natural consequence of the new structure. The plant seemed to desire those effects. It wanted to corrode anything in its range. That intense desire eventually started to affect the dark world. Noah saw his dark matter crumbling under the destructive properties of the spell''s aura. It even reached the point when he couldn''t contain it in that safe environment anymore. Noah didn''t care about the damage that his mind could suffer if that spell went wild. His main concern was the well-being of the plant. In its current form, the plant lacked any foundation. It didn''t have the Kesier runes. ''Can''t Night do this?'' The Demonic Sword asked when Noah gave the order. The living blade didn''t like what Noah had asked it to do, but he didn''t have time to discuss. His hand shot inside the separate space and grabbed the Demonic Sword, which condensed its body until it became nothing more than a minute knife. ''Blood for the mental link,'' Noah thought as he pierced his palm. ''A suitable terrain where the plan can grow,'' Noah thought as his mental energy flowed inside the separate space and covered the Seventh Kesier rune. ''The modified spell which has yet to take its first breath,'' Noah thought as his dark matter transported the plant from his mind to his separate space. Noah used the Demonic Sword to gather his blood and cut away a piece of his skin. He then covered the Kesier rune with those materials before placing the dark world around it. The workshop activated and prepared the fusion between the piece of fur and the plant. The spell instinctively attached itself to the rune, and roots began to grow from its base. The destructive aura surrounding the plant intensified, and a shrill noise spread through the separate space after the fusion ended. The spell had spoken for the first time, and Noah could hear its voice inside his head. ''Welcome to the world, my creature of pure destruction,'' Noah said in his mind, but a voice coming from the outside world suddenly made him focus on his surroundings. "We have arrived," Miss Nine said as an immense palace appeared in the distance. Chapter 1486: 1486. Surprise Noah didn''t initially feel that because he had been too focused on his project, but he couldn''t miss it once his attention went on the outside world. A purple forest appeared in his view. Tall trees filled the land, and a few white rivers ran through that azure terrain. Noah couldn''t see any magical beast from his position, but he felt that he couldn''t find any of them even if the sphere didn''t limit his senses. The environment appeared too perfect. The trees lacked claw marks, the ground didn''t have any crack, and the rivers lacked ripples. It seemed that the entire region stood still. Nothing moved. The only trace of life in the region was the oppressive aura that filled the whole area. Noah could feel it from inside the inscribed sphere. He could even understand the level of the beings that radiated it. ''Two rank 8 cultivators,'' Noah thought as he moved his attention back on the separate space. ''I''m too late.'' Noah was exhausted. He had tested non-stop during the travel, and he didn''t even take breaks during the actual procedure. His mind was in deep need of rest. He was in no condition to make a grand escape. The plant wasn''t ready either. Noah had just planted the Demonic Form into its new environment. The roots had to spread, and the destructive aura had to stabilize before he could use his new asset to break the sphere. ''It seems that I have to face rank 8 cultivators,'' Noah concluded as he closed his eyes to maximize his recovery speed. The destructive aura radiated by the plant continued to intensify. Noah didn''t completely know its effects, but he didn''t affect its growth. Noah didn''t care if the plant grew out of his control. His first opponent was a quasi-rank 8 inscribed item. He needed all the power he could get. The army performed polite bows toward the immense palace in the distance before resuming the travel. The experts soon landed in front of a tall gate that opened to reveal the majestic insides of the structure. Noah didn''t see any of that. His consciousness couldn''t expand, and his eyes were closed. His entire focus was on his condition. He was about to face the harshest battle of his life. "Are you still planning something?" Miss Nine mocked him when she saw his state. "You are in Madame Canson''s range now. You can put away your hopes." Noah didn''t even hear her. His concentration was unbreakable. Her voice was nothing more than a buzzing noise in his ears. Still, the insides of the palace hid someone that could force Noah to open his eyes. As the group moved through the various large halls and spacious gardens, he heard a voice that made him unable to concentrate. "I''m sorry," A old-looking man with long white hair said. "I didn''t think my actions would lead to this." Noah opened his eyes and revealed a cold gaze when he saw Shandal standing near one of the corridors'' tall doors. Shame filled his expression. He barely seemed the same god that Noah had met in the lower plane. Noah didn''t immediately speak. His eyes remained fixed on the expert as countless thoughts filled his mind. Then, he opened his mouth to give voice to a simple but meaningful question. "Who?" Noah asked. "Who ascended?" Shandal couldn''t reach the Immortal Lands on his own. He had to cross the passages opened by other divine cultivators during their ascension. Noah had seen Shandal leave the main world during the invasion of the Eternal Snakes. He knew which powerhouses were in the other mortal plane. There was a high chance that the answer would feature familiar names. "I am truly sorry," Shandal repeated without giving a proper answer. A familiar man crossed the door behind Shandal at that point. Noah recognized him. He was Ethan Sailbrird, the expert that he had offended during the secret auction. "You have no idea what we have prepared for you," Ethan said. "I must admit that you have been difficult to capture. Yet, we will make an example out of you." Noah''s mind grew cold when he heard those words. His black hole spun faster as the bloodlust radiated from his mental walls intensified. He knew how influential large organizations were, and a few guesses inevitably appeared in his mind. Shandal had connections in the Immortal Lands. He had allies who had taught him about the complex political environment of the higher plane. It wasn''t hard to guess that some forces were already aware of him. Noah had arrived in the same landing zone that Shandal had used for millennia. That area was under the control of the Crystal City. It made sense that those fanatics could understand whether Noah and Shandal knew each other. Most of his friends had migrated to the other world after the invasion of the Eternal Snakes, but those Mortal Lands were relatively close. Noah wouldn''t be surprised if they shared the same landing zone or if those areas were close. With the influence generated by two large organizations working together, it wasn''t hard to target Noah''s allies. Shandal was even on their side. Those realizations could only fill Noah''s mind with worry. "Who has ascended?" Noah asked again, and Ethan exploded into a loud laugh. Shandal lowered his head even more. He didn''t want to look at Noah''s cold gaze, and he also wished to avoid those questions. However, his shame forced him to say something. "You don''t know what it feels to have a second chance after millennia spent wandering between two planes," Shandal said. "I can finally cultivate again. My journey isn''t over." "Who have you sacrificed for that?" Noah asked as roars mixed with his voice. The group reached an immense hall at that point. Two thrones stood at the center of that room. White and purple crystals made the first one, while the second resembled a simple metallic seat. A beautiful woman sat on the crystal throne. Her features resembled Miss Canson''s, but she wore a cold expression that the weak expert lacked. The other throne was empty, but a man supported his back on its side. The expert had long black hair and a pair of dark eyes. He was slender, and his expression radiated a slyness rarely seen on the natives of the Immortal Lands. Those two experts were rank 8 cultivators. They were the source of the oppressive auras that filled the whole land. Their influence could spread as far as the region''s edges, and they carried enough power to suppress every existence in their range. The quasi-rank 8 sphere tried to shield Noah from their influence, but the item failed to block their dense auras. If the experts wanted to, they could crush Noah while he was inside that prison. "This is the creature who has caused so many problems?" Madame Canson asked without moving her gaze. "Yes!" Miss Nine shouted as she kneeled on the floor. The other experts around her did the same. They all kneeled toward one of the pillars of the Crystal City. "Don''t worry, young one," Madame Canson said as she kept looking straight in front of her. "Your execution won''t start yet. You have to understand the gravity of your actions first." The wall in front of her moved after her line, and a vast garden appeared in Noah''s view. The hall also went upward, lifting all the experts above that new environment. Noah inspected the garden, and his eyes inevitably widened when he saw five familiar figures hidden behind a few trees in the distance. June, Flying Demon, Dreaming Demon, Faith, and Daniel were using the vegetation as a cover. Chapter 1487: 1487. Trap Noah''s old companions were there, in the Crystal City. They were all rank 7 cultivators in the gaseous stage, but their condition appeared relatively poor. Injuries filled their bodies. Their complexion was pale, and even their auras didn''t manage to spread far. They didn''t show signs of torture. It seemed that they had just gone through a long and harsh battle. "They are your friends, right?" Miss Canson said as she straightened her position and neared her mother''s throne. "The Crystal City despises magical beasts and hybrids, but they are useful for certain entertainments." Noah ignored her. His whole attention remained on his five friends, and his emotions couldn''t help but burst out of his figure as memories filled his mind. He had shared most of his life in the lower plane with those five cultivators. Two of them were good friends that Noah had saved from certain death. Faith and Daniel had followed him since forever, and June was his longed lover. Noah couldn''t express how he felt. The Crystal City had managed to surprise him. That force had his companions, and it was now using them to punish him. "Shandal," Noah said as low growls escaped his mouth, "Is this what you have worked for fifty thousand years? I thought you wanted to defy Heaven and Earth." "I can''t defy Heaven and Earth at my level," Shandal replied as the shame in his expression intensified. "My cultivation level had the priority. Also, I didn''t expect the secret organization to help the Crystal City." "The secret organization?" Noah asked. Noah had initially thought that Shandal worked for the Crystal City, but it seemed that his allies were part of the secret organization. His eyes went on the second rank 8 cultivator at that point. That expert was the only figure that Noah couldn''t identify. "Don''t act so surprised," The rank 8 expert said as a slight smirk appeared on his face. "Did you really think that you could place a spy among us? We might not be as united as the other organizations, but we know how to find traitors better than anyone else." The man glanced toward Madame Canson, and she nodded toward her daughter. Miss Canson then pointed at one of the doors in the hall, and two cultivators came out of it. One of the cultivators was God''s Right Hand. Pride filled his expression, and his liquid stage aura spread through the hall. The expert was dragging a poor-looking liquid stage expert who had clearly been through many tortures. Noah recognized the other cultivator. He didn''t have any hair left, he had lost one of his eyes, and part of the skin on his face had disappeared. No aura came out of him, and his hands lacked a few fingers. Fergie was almost unrecognizable, but Noah managed to see past his injuries. The expert''s face lacked any expression. He barely appeared to be alive at all. "The technique you used to control him is quite peculiar," The rank 8 expert continued, "But he continued to keep you a secret even after it ran out. How did you even obtain such loyalty? We have tortured him for years, but he never mentioned your name. Luckily, connecting the dots has been easy after we talked with Madame Canson." "Luke," Madame Canson said, "Do not say my name so casually. You are only the leader of a cell in an organization that doesn''t dare to work in the open. Remember who allows you all to exist." "Right," Luke replied. "I forgot about your temper. Please, accept my apologies." The two rank 8 auras suddenly intensified. A clash between influences happened in the hall and flung away all the experts gathered around the thrones. Only Noah could avoid facing those auras since the quasi-rank 8 item absorbed part of their power. Still, that influence managed to make him slam on the invisible walls of his prison. The two experts eventually withdrew their auras and began to ignore each other. The other cultivators went back to their position, and some of them descended in the garden to activate hidden mechanisms. "You wanted to know the secret behind my power," Miss Nine suddenly said as she neared the sphere and opened her robe. Noah glanced at her bare chest and saw that a purple crystal had fused with her skin. Rank 8 power flowed out of that material and spread through her body, improving her overall prowess. "Madame Canson can empower all of us," Miss Nine continued. "She has done the same to that failure of a god. You couldn''t beat me. You will have no chance with her." Madame Canson didn''t seem concerned that her underling was revealing the nature of her power. The other experts in the hall even nodded at those lines. Noah understood what was happening. His punishment had already begun. Those fanatics wanted to make him lose hope before the show started. "I can let your woman survive if you beg me," Ethan said as he also neared the sphere. "She would have to satisfy my guards every day, but I give you my word that I won''t kill her." Noah glanced toward Shandal. His face showed no emotions, and the sphere blocked his influence. Still, the expert could almost sense the pure anger radiated by his reptilian pupils. "Don''t blame him," Miss Canson said as she stepped forward. "Blame yourself. You have offended too many organizations without having enough power to defend your friends. This isn''t the lower plane. You are nothing more than a promising asset here." The landing zones were Noah''s miscalculation. He didn''t expect Shandal''s betrayal, so he didn''t think that they would be a problem for June and the others. He believed that they could swear the oath and fly away. Roars began to echo through the area at that point. Massive shapes appeared in the garden. They were magical beasts in the lower and middle tier. That was the treatment that the Crystal City had given to June and the others during their imprisonment. "Your law forces anything around you to improve," Luke said as he scratched his head. "You and Madame Canson are actually similar. That Fergie has improved faster than ever while he was under your control. It''s a pity that he didn''t improve quickly enough." The experts in the hall sat on the floor and began to watch the magical beasts advancing through the garden. The creatures could sense June''s group, so they quickly ran in their direction. Noah moved his attention to his separate space. The new Demonic Form was almost ready, and his mind had long since stopped hurting. He had returned to his peak, and the spell only needed a few minutes to stabilize. He was almost ready to fight, but his current situation made him hesitate. Noah had a slim chance to escape on his own, but he couldn''t save his companions. It was simply impossible to do that with two rank 8 cultivators controlling the area. Noah had to leave his companions there. He had no other option but to attempt a miraculous escape and abandon his lifelong friends. The Crystal City had prepared a trap that he couldn''t completely overcome. Chapter 1488: 1488. Hatred Noah had survived through countless harsh situations, and he had also made many difficult decisions throughout his life. However, the Crystal City had put him in front of a challenge that he didn''t know how to overcome. June, Daniel, Faith, Flying Demon, and Dreaming Demon were hiding from the magical beasts. Two rank 8 cultivators were in the hall with Noah, and an army of divine experts also encircled the area. Noah was even inside one of the headquarters of the Crystal City. It was safe to say that he had never felt so hopeless and angry throughout his entire life. Noah glanced behind him. Fergie''s figure reminded him of William during his final meeting with Thomas Balvan. Noah felt as if Heaven and Earth were mocking him. He had never expected his situation to become so awful after a single battle. ''A single defeat has led to this,'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes. That scene was too much to bear, but Noah soon reopened his eyes to fix them on his companions. He hated his powerlessness, but a stronger feeling eventually took over his mind. A stronger wave of hatred suppressed his anger and every other emotion that the situation had caused. Noah was the target of that feeling. He hated himself because his instincts had autonomously started to wait for an opportunity. Noah knew that his chance to escape would arrive once the show in the garden reached its end. Everyone would be slightly distracted when the magical beasts slaughtered his companions. That was the perfect opportunity to deploy his plan, but Noah couldn''t completely accept that. His body almost moved on its own. Noah''s rational side knew that he couldn''t do anything in that situation. Saving his companions was impossible, and attempting in that hopeless feat would only lead to his death. Instead, if Noah used their sacrifice to create an opening, he would have a chance to survive. It was pointless to throw away his life. Noah knew that far too well. Still, his emotional side wanted to lay waste to that place and save his friends. Even his vast experience couldn''t manage to suppress that feeling. Noah wouldn''t attempt any pointless heroic gesture. His very ambition forced him to do everything in his power to survive. He would use his companions'' death to escape, but he couldn''t avoid feeling that intense hatred toward himself. "You know," Noah said as his growls almost suppressed his human voice. "I had to sacrifice someone dear to me once. The force who put me in that situation doesn''t exist anymore." "Did I hear a hint of desperation behind those words?" Miss Nine said as a cold smile appeared on her face. "Definitely. I am desperate," Noah replied. "Still, I can promise you something. It doesn''t matter what will happen today. It doesn''t matter if my friends survive or not. If I ever live through this situation, you can be sure that the Crystal City won''t exist anymore." "Empty threats won''t lead you anywhere," Ethan said before exploding into a loud laugh. "Look around you. This outcome was inevitable. You can consider yourself lucky to have lasted for so long." "Don''t worry," Noah replied. "I have looked enough, and I didn''t forget you. The Sailbrird family will also fall. The human domain will have to beg me to leave a few cultivators alive." Ethan laughed, and some cultivators in the hall imitated him. Noah''s threats were too unreal, even if they didn''t consider his current situation. "I didn''t forget about you either," Noah said as he glanced toward Luke. "The secret organization will also pay." "You speak as if you have a chance to survive today," Luke replied in an annoyed tone. "It''s always the same with rank 7 existences. You wouldn''t be the first to escape similar situations, but your state would remain the same. You are alone against overlords. Your power alone will never amount to anything." "Let me live," Noah replied. "I will prove you wrong." Luke revealed a sly smile before turning toward the garden. The magical beasts had almost reached the five experts. The show was about to reach its apex. ''I should also give them a chance,'' Noah thought as he suppressed his survival instincts. ''This is a gamble anyway. I might as well make them join it.'' Noah wouldn''t try to save his companions, but they would get a chance to escape if he started his escape a few seconds before the beginning of the battle. Some of them might be able to survive during the chaos. As soon as the magical beasts and the five experts began to fight, Noah summoned the Demonic Form and activated his law. His cultivation level rose, and sharp pain spread from his right palm. Holes appeared on his palm. Noah initially felt surprised by that event, but he accepted that pain when he realized what was happening. The new Demonic Form didn''t seep through his tissues. Its roots had to pierce his skin to appear in the outside world. Roots spread under Noah''s skin and came out of his palm. The flower didn''t leave the separate space, but its structure absorbed mental energy, darkness, primary energy, and dark matter from Noah''s body. Noah''s energies weren''t fueling the spell. The Demonic Form was a living being now, so it didn''t need external inputs to work. However, it absorbed Noah''s power anyway, as if it was a parasite. Noah placed his palm between his crossed legs. The quasi-rank 8 sphere prevented the cultivators from sensing the changes in his cultivation level, and even the rank 8 experts ignored his actions. Madame Canson and Luke could sense that Noah''s cultivation level was increasing, but they didn''t do anything about it. He was still inside a quasi-rank 8 item in the end, and they expected his struggles anyway. As the battle inside the garden continued, the roots accumulated under Noah. The corrosive aura surrounding them intensified as his ambition fueled the plant, and toxic smoke slowly began to gather in the sphere. The smoke didn''t damage Noah, but it acted like his black flames. The roots and the gas were slowly eroding the invisible wall, and the energy they absorbed flowed back inside his body. The plant wanted to take all the energy, but the black hole stopped it. The fourth center of power seized that power before it could reach the core of the Demonic Form and filled Noah''s tissues with it. An intense surge of power filled Noah''s body. As expected, the quasi-rank 8 sphere contained an immense amount of energy, and his tissues used it to improve. Noah couldn''t face the breakthrough since his ambition had already forced his body to reach the upper tier. However, his tissues stored the absorbed energy and let it fill their fabric. Cracks appeared under Noah. The Demonic Form was succeeding in shattering the invisible walls, but he couldn''t feel any happiness. His eyes never left his companions as he saw the injuries accumulating on their bodies. ''Break already!'' Noah shouted in his mind, and the Demonic Form sensed the intensity of his feelings. The flower grew after absorbing more energy from Noah''s existence. Its roots also thickened, and the corrosive aura that they carried intensified. Noah grew paler, but the energy coming from the invisible wall restored any damage that the Demonic Form inflicted. The process was excruciating, but Noah couldn''t feel anything while his eyes remained on the garden. The sphere was about to break, but his friends were also about to die. Even if he had decided to begin his escape sooner, he had ended up coordinating his moves with the battle in the garden. His ambition had played him again. ''I can''t choose who I am,'' Noah said in his mind in a desperate attempt to focus on his situation, but a flash of golden light suddenly filled the sky above the Crystal City. When the light dimmed, a tall pagoda appeared in the sky, together with a familiar army. "My heir!" Divine Demon''s voice echoed through the entire region. "I have come to rescue you!" Chapter 1489: 1489. Danger zone Noah couldn''t believe in his eyes. Divine Demon stood in front of the pagoda in the sky. His white hair fluttered in the wind, and his cultivation level spread in every corner of the region. Nothing could stop his aura. Even the quasi-rank 8 sphere failed to stop Divine Demon''s influence. His cultivation level had reached the eighth rank! ''How did they even find me?'' Noah wondered without losing his focus on the Demonic Form. The answer to his doubts quickly arrived. A pale King Elbas crawled out of one of the roofs of the pagoda. His crown was about to fall, his hair was dirty, and sweat rained from his forehead. King Elbas was exhausted, and annoyance filled his face. However, an arrogance that Noah didn''t fail to recognize brimmed in his eyes. A second rank 8 aura spread from the army in the sky. Wilfred suddenly became visible on the last roof of the pagoda. He wore a broad smile that radiated an intense bloodlust as he looked toward Madame Canson. "We have finally found you," Wilfred said, and his voice carried shockwaves that destroyed most of the crystals in the hall. The rank 7 experts began to cough blood, but Madame Canson''s aura soon covered the hall and protected them from Wilfred''s influence. The cultivator also turned her head to look at the hybrid. Her expression remained cold, but a trace of surprise appeared on her face. "Do not worry, my heir," Divine Demon continued. "Your enemies are my enemies! Now, which one of you wants to challenge me?" The white sky turned azure as Divine Demon''s influence intensified. The world began to transform and provide energy to the expert. He was ready to go all-out. "You can''t do anything to us," Luke calmly said. "We have hostages. They will die if you try to touch us." Divine Demon was initially surprised at those words. He had convinced King Elbas to tamper with the pagoda to find Noah, but he didn''t expect the Crystal City to have more hostages. His eyes went toward the garden, where he saw the five experts staring at the army. The magical beasts had run away when Divine Demon''s aura spread through the environment, so they could focus on their surroundings now. Tears inevitably fell from Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon''s eyes. The duo couldn''t contain their emotions when they saw that their Master had come to rescue them. However, they also understood that something was off. They knew who Divine Demon''s heir was. Their eyes suddenly went on the floating hall, but they couldn''t see its insides. Still, they could guess who that structure contained. "Oh, you are also here," Divine Demon said when he recognized his disciples. "Remain where you are. We will talk about your punishment later." Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon''s expressions froze, but they didn''t dare to complain. They focused on the fact that their torture was over and decided to follow their Master''s orders. "Humans siding with the hybrids," Madame Canson said. "You lot are beyond saving. I will kill your heir in front of your eyes and enjoy seeing your hopes vanish." "I wouldn''t suggest it," Divine Demon said before giving voice to a loud snort. "I might have taught my heir''s subordinate how to divine this place, but the Legion''s priority is to destroy you fanatics. You shouldn''t be so arrogant." "I''m no one subordinate!" King Elbas weakly shouted. "And you didn''t teach me anything. You just provided your miraculous energy." "How could a rank 7 existence like you even understand," Divine Demon replied before waving his hand. "Don''t be shy. I might teach you something else later on." King Elbas wanted to complain, but he didn''t have any strength left. He laid on the roof and lost consciousness before a hybrid grabbed his body and dragged him away from the battlefield. "You have nothing but words," Luke said, but his eyes suddenly widened when he saw Wilfred kicking the pagoda toward the floating hall. The attack surprised even Divine Demon, who had to deploy an evasive maneuver to dodge the building. Wilfred had thrown the pagoda without even bothering to control his strength. "My heir is there!" Divine Demon complained, but Wilfred gave voice to a loud snort. "He is a hybrid," Wilfred said. "He will be fine." Smoke began to come out of the pagoda. Its surfaces started to burn due to the incredible acceleration caused by Wilfred''s kick. Even the hybrid showed a worried expression when he saw the speed reached by the structure. "He should be fine," Wilfred corrected himself before shooting after the pagoda. Divine Demon''s mental waves grabbed the five experts in the garden and threw them in the sky where the other hybrids supported them. Then, he also shot after the pagoda. Noah''s mind reached an unfathomable level of clarity when he saw June and the others disappearing from the garden. His hatred also vanished and left nothing but anger toward those who had put him in that situation. The Demonic Form began to drain his body even more. The roots covered the whole item and devoured the energy inside the invisible fabric. Noah felt stronger than ever, but he didn''t have the time to bathe in that feeling. When Luke and Madame Canson stepped forward to block the falling pagoda, the quasi-rank 8 sphere shattered, and a cloud of corrosive smoke tried to expand through the entire hall. Noah''s aura also surged and revealed his solid stage cultivation level. Miss Nine waved a hand toward him. An invisible wall was about to slam on Noah''s head, but a series of roots covered his figure and allowed him to pierce the attack. The Demonic Form had devoured the spell before it could touch him. "What is this?" Miss Nine asked before all the other cultivators in the hall shot toward Noah. Snore appeared behind Noah, and Night shot out of his chest. The Demonic Sword also appeared on his left hand as he pointed his free palm toward Miss Nine. The roots coming out of his palm shot forward and pierced every invisible protection deployed by the expert. Still, they bought some time, enough for Miss Nine to deploy a powerful spell. A massive black figure appeared above Noah''s head. A metallic wall had formed in the sky and began to fall toward the hall. Miss Nine didn''t mind her companions in her offensive. She didn''t even care that Ethan was with them. Noah''s roots retracted. He swiped the edge of the Demonic Sword with his right palm before slashing upward. A massive attack came out of his blade, and a large gap appeared on the black wall falling from the sky. The entire hall passed through that gap, and an intense explosion followed that event. The two rank 8 cultivators had destroyed the pagoda, but they were now facing Divine Demon and Wilfred. Noah slashed toward Shandal, but a thick black wall appeared on his trajectory. Miss Nine successfully protected the expert, and Noah used that moment of distraction to wield and attack with the white blade. The roots came out of Noah''s palm before he completed the attack. The curved slash that flew out of his blade carried a corrosive smoke that tried to spread everywhere in the hall. The auras of the rank 8 experts were suppressing Noah''s corrosive smoke, but it still managed to touch some of the cultivators around him. Cries of pain echoed through the sky as the smoke corroded and infected the cultivators. Miss Nine promptly joined her hands and pointed them toward Noah, but a shockwave suddenly ran through the area. Everyone spat blood. Noah wasn''t an exception. The four rank 8 experts had begun their battle, so the entire area had become a danger zone where rank 7 existences couldn''t remain. Chapter 1490: 1490. Escape The shockwaves released by the rank 8 existences were too intense for the experts in the seventh rank. Even Noah couldn''t withstand them. His insides shook and shattered every time those tremors spread through the area. The palace crumbled under the intense pressure released by the rank 8 experts. Divine Demon and Madame Canson tried to hold back to preserve their underlings, but Wilfred and Luke didn''t care. They launched attacks that carried their full power, creating a moving calamity in a place filled with rank 7 existences. Noah and Miss Nine couldn''t continue their battle in those conditions. They could barely keep their bodies together, but they didn''t dare to make the first move. The other experts ran away as fast as they could, but Noah and Miss Nine remained still. The expert from the Crystal City preferred to die rather than let him go, and Noah needed more time to deploy the Shadow Domain around him. "Why don''t you leave?" Noah asked as blood flowed out of his mouth. "Why don''t you die?" Miss Nine asked as her arm shattered. In a matter of seconds, only Miss Nine, Noah, and Fergie remained in the hall. The structure was even falling apart due to the shockwaves that spread through the sky. Everything was about to crumble, and their bodies weren''t an exception. "I know that you want to use that strange dimensional technique," Miss Nine said. "I''ll make sure that you die before meeting the requirements for its activation." Noah could only reveal a cold smile. The fact that Miss Nine had already guessed his plan shocked him, but it was better to remain silent in that situation. The less she knew, the longer Noah could use the Shadow Domain as his trump card. "I won''t spend the last seconds of my life staring at an enemy," Noah said as growls fused with his human voice. His bloodlust surged even if the cursed sword remained inside the separate space. That feeling was part of Noah''s consciousness now. His destruction intensified, and roots came out of his palm again. Noah stored the white sword before pointing his palm toward Miss Nine. A shockwave suddenly arrived and destroyed the roots shooting toward the expert, but a faint black gas remained between him and the expert. Flames came out of Noah''s mouth at that point. They burned anything in their range before crumbling when another shockwave fell on the hall. A purple radiance came out of Miss Nine''s chest and protected her already broken body. The faint trace of a rank 8 aura came out of the expert and allowed her to endure the shockwaves. Noah had an incredible body, but Miss Nine had the purple crystal. The two were almost on par when it came to their resilience. Miss Nine could resist as long as him. ''Damned fanatic,'' Noah cursed in his mind as he stored the Demonic Sword. Snore and Night had also returned inside his body. Noah''s companions couldn''t endure the shockwaves as well as him. He couldn''t rely on them in that situation. Noah took a step forward, and a torrent of blood flowed out of his mouth when another shockwave arrived. That didn''t manage to stop his advance. It only slowed him down. Noah took a few more steps before another shockwave ran past him. His consciousness began to waver, but he never stopped providing special darkness to the Shadow Domain. Miss Nine could resist as long as Noah, but she couldn''t move. She could only see her opponent drawing close and throwing a punch directed at her face. Noah''s fist slammed on an invisible wall, and his right hand opened when he saw that his physical strength wasn''t enough to take down that defense. The roots came out of his palm and pierced the invisible wall, allowing him to stretch his hand toward Miss Nine. Still, another shockwave arrived, and Noah found himself grabbing Miss Nine''s robe instead of her head. Noah didn''t let that setback stop him. Roots came out of his palm and spread corrosive smoke, but a shockwave turned them into ashes before they could reach Miss Nine. A snort came out of Noah''s bleeding mouth. Spells and companions were too unreliable in that condition. He had to use his physical strength to be consistent in his offensive. Noah ripped Miss Nine''s robe open and stabbed his fingers in her chest. Her skin opposed no resistance at all, but a shockwave forced him to stop moving. "I will take this," Noah said as his fingers grabbed the purple crystal and pulled. The crystal didn''t want to leave Miss Nine''s chest no matter how much strength Noah applied. It felt like a core part of her existence, something that Noah couldn''t rip out with his sheer power. "Madame Canson has personally awarded me this," Miss Nine said as she exploded into a loud laugh. "What makes you think that you can steal it?" When Miss Nine used the word "steal", something unlocked inside Noah''s mind. His curiosity intensified, and a deep desire to seize the crystal filled him. The Demonic Deduction technique activated on its own and fed on the bloodlust accumulated in the mental sea. The black hole also spun faster, and Noah''s eyes became as bright as stars. Something strange happened in Noah''s vision. A series of strands became visible. They connected every matter in the world, and most of them led far away. Noah didn''t know what was happening, but the crystal slowly began to slide away from Miss Nine''s chest. The cultivator''s eyes widened. She couldn''t believe that Noah was actually managing to seize that item. Once the crystal was entirely out of Miss Nine''s chest, Noah stored it inside the separate space and dived his hand deeper into her body. He soon reached her heart, which exploded when his fingers touched it. Noah didn''t stop there. He raised his hand until it reached the base of Miss Nine''s neck. The expert didn''t move nor try to defend. The loss of the crystal had made her incredibly weak. Noah could kill her on the spot. Still, a series of shockwaves fell on the hall at that point. The force carried by those vibrations shattered the floor and flung Miss Nine away. Noah and Fergie fell toward the garden, and the duo found themselves unable to stop their descent. Creating platforms of "Breath" in that chaotic environment was almost impossible. Fergie was also unconscious, so he couldn''t even try to save his life. ''Snore!'' Noah shouted inside his mind, and the Blood Companion began to form under his feet. A shockwave quickly destroyed Snore, but Noah used the creature''s dark matter to jump through the sky. He had to return to the area where the Shadow Domain had expanded to escape, but he had to make a stop first. Noah shot toward Fergie, and the expert disappeared when Noah touched him. The separate space could contain living beings, so he wasn''t a problem. Snore reappeared under Noah and allowed him to leap upward. He had enlarged the Shadow Domain enough to contain him before the fall, but the shockwave had stopped him from entering it. Noah used his Blood Companion to continue his climb, and he stopped once he reached his last spot. "He is escaping!" Miss Nine shouted, and Madame Canson turned to look at Noah''s jumping figure. Madame Canson''s aura shot toward him, and Noah didn''t hesitate to activate the Shadow Domain. His figure disappeared, but part of the expert''s aura had touched him and had forced its way through that dimension. Noah felt a massive force pushing him away. His shoulder broke, but he didn''t have time to mind his condition. The attack had made the Shadow Domain unstable, making Noah fly in a peculiar dimension that bordered the technique. Noah didn''t know what was happening, but he couldn''t stop. He didn''t have any strength left, and his mind could never expand since he continued to cross dimensions during his flight. The attack had thrown him deep into the magical beasts'' domain. It had made Noah almost teleport in an area that he had never explored. Chapter 1491: 1491. Sleep The foreign energy belonging to Madame Canson had made the Shadow Domain go wild. Noah was inside the layer between the dimensions, but that force had flung him outside the edges of the area created with Miss Void''s spell. Once Noah flew out of the Shadow Domain, the space around him twisted. He began to shift between the void and multiple dimensions that bordered the technique. He flew for thousands of kilometers in the span of a few seconds. The barriers between the dimensions resembled thin watery layers during the process. Noah couldn''t help but feel a similarity with King Elbas'' dimensional tunnel. A slight movement made him cross entire regions, and that process continued until Madame Canson''s pushing force ran out. When the force was about to run out, Noah used his remaining strength to push himself into the most stable dimension, which turned out to be the Immortal Lands. His head slammed on an azure ground, and his consciousness went dark due to his exhaustion. A chaotic sleep followed those events. Noah''s consciousness wanted him awake, but he had accumulated too much stress during the past months. He had gone from an experiment to another without ever taking meaningful breaks. Now that Noah was outside of the quasi-rank 8 sphere, his centers of power could finally feed on the world''s energy again. His black hole handled the distribution of that power, and his condition slowly improved during his sleep. The stress that afflicted his mind vanished, and the bloodlust that had tainted his mental walls harmonized with his mind, giving it a faint scarlet shade. His dantian couldn''t enlarge on its own, but the black hole made sure that its walls received enough nutrients and that its insides were full of darkness. Noah''s body had suffered countless injuries due to the exposition to the battle among rank 8 existences. Madame Canson''s attack had also touched him, and the Demonic Form had only worsened his condition. Still, Noah had corroded the quasi-rank 8 sphere, and his separate space contained the purple crystal seized by Miss Nine''s chest. When his black hole saw that the outside world couldn''t provide enough energy for his recovery, it destroyed the item and used its power to nourish his tissues. Noah''s body was already near the peak of the middle tier, but the crystal contained Madame Canson''s energy. That wave of power allowed him to meet the requirements for his breakthrough and advance. The black hole handled everything while Noah slept. It even improved his innate absorption of "Breath" to make sure that the breakthrough went smoothly. Needless to say, the Demonic Sword, Night, and Snore took care of protecting him. They came out of his body on their own and never stopped patrolling the area. Years passed. The black hole only accepted perfection, so it slowly reinforced Noah''s tissues until they met its requirements. The organ also had to harmonize the various changes that had involved his mindset, so the process took longer than expected. When Noah opened his eyes, an immense sensation of power filled his mind. The images of the battle in the Crystal City quickly ran through his vision, and his hands instinctively went on his body to check his condition. Surprise appeared on his expression when Noah noticed that his body had reached the upper tier. The breakthrough had gone smoothly, and his black hole had even stored images of the process to keep him updated. ''That was close,'' Noah thought as his expression turned cold. ''Too close.'' Surviving those types of challenges made cultivators improve quickly, but Noah couldn''t accept being completely powerless. His friends would be dead if Divine Demon didn''t show up. It was clear that his power had yet to reach the point when he could act as he wished in the Immortal Lands. Noah tried to send a mental message through his inscribed notebook, but no one replied. It seemed that he was too far away from the Legion and his friend to communicate through that item. ''Where am I?'' Noah wondered as he straightened his position. Noah recalled what had happened inside the Shadow Domain. He had managed to remain in the Immortal Lands during the teleportation, but he didn''t know how far he had gone. His notebook was a rank 7 inscribed item in the lower tier. Noah had seized it from Fergie''s group, and he had never dared to waste money to buy a better one. Its range wasn''t great, but it was still quite large when he considered the width of the Immortal Lands. ''How far did I exactly fly?'' Noah wondered as he inspected his surroundings. His companions were cheering around him, but his eyes focused on the environment. Tall yellow trees filled his vision, and a few mountains stood in the distance. The area appeared empty of magical beasts, but the plants radiated a dangerous aura. ''I must be deep into the magical beasts'' domain,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''How long has it been since humans have seen these lands?'' The Immortal Lands never stopped expanding, but the human domain didn''t enlarge. Only the magical beasts benefitted from that process, which made their territory basically immense. Noah wouldn''t be surprised if even the older organizations ignored how vast it actually was. Noah had created a deep hole in the ground during his landing. He could vaguely guess where the human domain was, so finding the way back home wasn''t an issue. However, Noah hesitated. If he went back now, he could very well incur in the same unbeatable enemies. The Crystal City, the Sailbrird family, and the secret organization were too powerful for him. Even his recent breakthrough didn''t manage to fill the gap that separated him from those forces. If Noah managed to reach the Outer Lands, he could sneak past the human domain and return to the Legion. Still, that wouldn''t change his situation. He would be nothing more than a promising hybrid hiding behind a powerful force. ''June and the others are probably safe,'' Noah thought as his lover''s face appeared in his vision. Noah had seen June only for a brief moment, but that had been enough to sweep away the millennia spent in different planes. She was alive and in the Immortal Lands. They would meet again as long as they remained alive. A warm smile appeared on his face before his cold expression returned. His mind had already decided that he wouldn''t try to return to his friends. Noah had done the same during the invasion of the Eternal Snakes. A possible safe situation was behind him, but he wanted to maximize his growth since his enemies had turned out to be far more fearsome than expected. Going back would force him to hide in the Outer Lands and use the Legion as a shield. Some experts would be happy to have that backing, but Noah could only see the drawbacks of that situation. ''I can''t take the safe path anymore,'' Noah thought as he took the bracelets that allowed him to ignore the pressure radiated by the sky. Noah closed his hand into a fist, and the bracelets broke under his physical might. The white light suddenly became a blinding force that pressed on his mind, but he ignored the pressure before stepping toward the forest. The sky was a natural training area. It was an annoying constant pressure, but Noah''s mind could benefit from it. Even if being without bracelets made his journey harsher, Noah couldn''t give up on the possibility of improving faster anymore. His opponents were rank 8 existences. Noah had to exploit anything he could find to fill the gaps that separated him from those experts. Chapter 1492: 1492. Mistake Noah hid his presence with his inscribed robe and dived deep into the forest until he found a decent spot where to dig a cave. The magical plants around him seemed to keep track of his movements, but they didn''t react even when he started breaking the terrain. Noah had decided to venture through the magical beasts'' domain, but he had a few matters to settle first. He didn''t cultivate properly for a while, so a long training session had the priority. While Noah cultivated, his mind inspected the changes that happened during his sleep and the separate space''s insides. His mind appeared sharper than before, but Noah couldn''t find any trace of Supreme Thief''s energy. The expert''s gift had allowed him to seize the purple crystal, but Noah didn''t know where that power had come from. ''What an unreliable power,'' Noah thought as a helpless sigh left his mouth. Noah could understand why he couldn''t find that power. His level was too low. Supreme Thief''s had been a rank 9 cultivator, so it was only normal that Noah''s mind couldn''t identify his influence. ''I guess I will know something more once my mind reaches the eighth rank,'' Noah concluded before moving his attention elsewhere. The Demonic Form had moved out of the separate space during his sleep. The plant was now on the insides of his chest, and its flower grew on top of the black hole. The spell acted as a proper parasite that fed on Noah''s energy. In that form, the plant didn''t manage to weaken him since his natural absorption made up for that consumption. Still, he could understand that its requirements would increase once it reached higher levels. The Demonic Form was a rank 7 living being in the upper tier that fed on Noah''s four energies. It lived to destroy, but it needed a host to survive. Noah could only accept that he had gained another creature to feed before moving his attention elsewhere. His body was perfect. The black hole had done an incredible job during the breakthrough. Noah couldn''t find any flaw in his tissues. His mental walls reeked of bloodlust, but that feeling didn''t affect his other centers of power. His dantian was also about to reach the peak of the liquid stage. His potential had increased again after Noah had managed to destroy the quasi-rank 8 sphere and survive that hopeless situation. The process toward the next stage would be smooth as long as he continued to cultivate. The separate space was almost empty. Noah had depleted his stash of magical beasts during his imprisonment, leaving him with only a few valuable materials and a pile of Soul Stones. The raids on the guilds had been quite profitable. Noah had more than one hundred thousand Soul Stones now. Still, they were nothing more than disposable energy in the magical beasts'' domain, so he didn''t hesitate to use a few of them to quicken his growth. ''This is the perfect chance to use these crystals,'' Noah thought when his attention went on the red minerals found in the Evolution Pit. His separate space also contained the dark-blue boulders seized in Supreme Thief''s inheritance, but that was it. Noah had a few useless potions, pills, and items, but they didn''t count. Only his pile of metals and rocks mattered. The separate space had stored something else. Noah had recovered Fergie while the rank 8 existences were fighting, but his condition had been too poor at the time. The Crystal City and the secret organization had tortured the expert and crippled his centers of power. Fergie was on the verge of death after he endured the shockwaves released by the rank 8 experts. The black hole had deployed the dark world to create an environment where he could survive, but he couldn''t live anywhere else. Fergie would die if he left the dark world. The expert was nothing more than a corpse kept alive by Noah''s technique. Doubts filled Noah''s mind when he inspected Fergie. He didn''t know why the expert didn''t sell him out. Luke had even confirmed that Fergie didn''t reveal anything about Noah during the torture. Noah didn''t know how to react to such loyalty. He had done nothing for Fergie. He had only given voice to a vague and unrealistic promise once. That wasn''t enough to build such loyalty, especially in an expert who had to join the secret organization. Fergie could become a spy and a mercenary if his force ordered that, but he had kept Noah''s information a secret even after reaching that condition. Noah deployed the dark world around him and took out Fergie. The expert was unconscious, and the dark matter made him float in front of Noah''s confused figure. Noah had decided to save Fergie after learning about his loyalty. Yet, he now wanted to know the reason behind that behavior. The dark world became denser, and Noah''s ambition spread through the currents of dark matter. The environment transformed to force Fergie to wake up, and the expert slowly opened his eyes after those changes. ''Am I stuck in the afterlife with you?'' Fergie said through his mental waves. He couldn''t talk. The secret organization had broken his throat. "You are alive, kind of," Noah replied. "I managed to drag you out." ''I guess I should be grateful,'' Fergie replied as a weak smile appeared on his face. ''You sure are full of surprises. No rank 7 existence could survive that, but here you are. Regrettably, I won''t see what you will become.'' Noah didn''t answer. His eyes inspected his body, and his mental waves seeped inside his tissues. Fergie was too far gone to survive. Even the dark world couldn''t preserve his condition forever. ''Don''t look at me like this,'' Fergie said as a laugh echoed through his thoughts. ''I followed my instincts. I bet on the most promising guy in the entire higher plane. I''m sure you will do great stuff in the future.'' "Why didn''t you talk?" Noah finally asked. "Why did you protect me after I kept you as my slave for years?" ''You should know,'' Fergie said. ''You are so sharp when it comes to what you desire, but you refuse to see this quality of your law. Do you know what your individuality does to those who follow you?'' Noah knew the answer. He had often ignored how his ambition could influence others, but he wasn''t blind. His law could make his companions overcome bottlenecks and improve faster. That feature was part of Heaven and Earth''s mistake. His individuality represented the flaw in their system. It allowed Noah to influence the journeys of those who interacted with him. Noah had confirmed that in the Mortal Lands, and the effects of his law had only become stronger in the Immortal Lands. He even suspected that King Elbas'' rapid improvements were partially his fault. "We are alone in our journeys," Noah replied. "We must walk our paths on our own. I can use this ability to control magical beasts, but I have never liked being a leader." ''It might be pointless in the grand scheme,'' Fergie said, ''But I know that I reached the liquid stage thanks to your influence. I didn''t even have hopes for my journey anymore, but everything changed after meeting you. To answer your question, how could I let my chance to reach the higher ranks die?'' Chapter 1493: 1493. Eccentric Noah didn''t know what to answer. Fergie''s eyes reeked of death, but a faint ambition shone from them. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize that feeling. It was the same emotion that had driven him through his entire cultivation journey. ''This power can be a curse,'' Noah thought while continuing to inspect the expert. His ambition had put Fergie in that situation. That feeling was so intense that the expert had endured countless tortures to preserve his chance to improve. Luke''s words resounded in Noah''s mind. The rank 8 cultivator had claimed something that Noah knew far too well. His power alone wasn''t enough to match the large organizations. He was nothing more than a promising expert in a world filled with overlords. ''I have overcome this challenge already,'' Noah thought in an attempt to reply to those words. ''King Elbas did the same when we went against him.'' There was a flaw in Noah''s reasoning. Both he and King Elbas had relied on organizations to survive through part of their cultivation journey. The Elbas family had always been powerful enough to stand near the peak of the Mortal Lands, and the Hive had also reached the same state after a series of wars. Those large forces were valuable tools, especially in an environment filled with large organizations. Noah had initially believed that he would eventually join the Legion due to his species, but Fergie had made him aware of a second option. Noah had never liked to be a member of an organization. He liked being in charge of a force even less. Yet, there was a middle ground between being among strangers and remaining alone. ''I have my pride,'' Noah thought. ''My ambition naturally attracts cultivators, and my hybrid status makes me a privileged existence in the world. I have everything I need to build my force. I only lack the desire to do it.'' Countless thoughts surged in Noah''s mind. He wanted to find a reason to avoid that solution, but even his Demonic Deduction technique couldn''t find anything. "Dammit!" Noah shouted inside the dark world. "Fuck it! Why do I even have to do it? Why am I surrounded by weaklings who prefer to build teams rather than focus on their paths?!" Fergie didn''t know what was happening, but Noah''s influence expanded as his loud curses echoed through the dark world. His aura seemed to cheer at his new mindset. It was as if his decision had unlocked a power that Noah had always suppressed. "Fine!" Noah shouted again. "I will do it! I will create my damned force and take this whole plane. Still, I will leave as soon as I find a way out of this annoying sky." ''What are you even saying?'' Fergie asked, and his eyes widened when he saw Noah''s crazed expression. "We will not stop until we destroy Heaven and Earth!" Noah shouted as roars mixed with his voice. "We will have but one enemy. I will create a force meant to destroy the world!" ''Oh,'' Fergie exclaimed. ''I guess it''s time for me to go then.'' A faint smile appeared on Fergie''s face. He seemed at peace. He had accepted death during the tortures, and nothing else could disrupt his mood. "Where do you think you are going?" Noah asked as he opened Fergie''s robe and undressed him to bathe his naked body in the dark matter. ''I''m about to die!'' Fergie complained. "Yes, yes. You will die soon, but not before I understand how to revive you." Noah replied as he scratched his head while thinking of a way to turn the expert into a destructive creation. ''Wait!'' Fergie exclaimed. ''I didn''t agree with any of this!'' "You have no choice on the matter," Noah replied as he turned Fergie upside down to inspect him from a different angle. "Rejoice. You are now part of my organization. I will decide the name when I feel like it." ''What organization?'' Fergie continued to complain. ''How many members does it even has?'' Noah thought about it for a second before taking out his companions. Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword came out of his body and gave voice to loud cries that echoed through the dark world. "There is also an annoying plant," Noah said. "The other sword isn''t exactly alive, but you can count it if you want." Roots pierced his palm after Noah mentioned the plant. It seemed that the Demonic Form wanted to show its power, but its absorption of Noah''s energies increased to fuel that growth. "Go back into my body," Noah ordered. "We need to have a talk about your nutrients." A shrill noise came out of the roots that continued to grow, uncaring of Noah''s orders. Yet, he promptly slashed with his fingers at the roots and closed his hand into a fist. The plant couldn''t come out anymore with his palm in that position. Another shrill noise echoed from Noah''s body, but a vague sense of helplessness filled it. It seemed that the plant had given up on coming out for now. ''What exactly is that?'' Fergie asked as fear filled his face. Fergie had sensed the dangerous aura radiated by the roots. His instincts had reacted on their own, and he could only feel fear in front of such a threatening creature. "It''s a parasite that feeds on my energies," Noah replied. "Don''t worry. We have an agreement, kind of." ''What kind of agreement did you do with that thing?'' Fergie asked. "Well," Noah scratched his head as he replied. "It needs a host, so it can''t kill me." ''That''s not an agreement!'' Fergie shouted through his mental waves. ''Do you even have it under control?'' "Shut up and let me focus on a blueprint," Noah replied while avoiding giving a proper answer. ''Blueprint for what?!'' Fergie continued to ask. Noah''s behavior was bringing Fergie on the verge of insanity. The expert had always known that Noah was eccentric, but he had understood the depths of his strangeness only during that conversation. "For your new centers of power, of course," Noah replied. "These are awful. It''s better to throw them away." ''You are talking about my body and dantian!'' Fergie said as his thoughts became louder. "Yes. See, you understood it," Noah replied as the bloodlust radiated by his figure intensified. The Demonic Deduction technique consumed his tainted mental energy to generate countless ideas on how to turn Fergie into a living being meant to destroy the world. Noah''s experience in humanoid creatures wasn''t great, but he planned to reward him for his loyalty. ''I didn''t mean it like this!'' Fergie continued to complain. "Shut up!" Noah eventually shouted. "I am trying to save your life here. Well, technically, you might have to die a few times during the procedure, but those are necessary reboots. Tell me, how much do you care about your human appearance?" ''I like my face!'' Fergie replied. "Don''t you like any magical beast?" Noah asked as a bright red light shone from behind his icy-blue eyes. ''No! I like how I am,'' Fergie said. Noah gave voice to a snort, but he accepted the expert''s desires. Noah would build a new body for Fergie and allow him to continue his cultivation journey as a specimen who stood above humans. Chapter 1494: 1494. Procedure ''It hurts!'' Fergie shouted through his mental waves. "You will be fine," Noah said as he reviewed the outline in his mind. "You can''t die in there anyway." Fergie was still inside the dark world. His condition had yet to improve, but Noah had devised a proper approach to fix his situation. The process had just begun, and its initial phases were excruciating for Fergie. ''Why can''t you let me die?!'' Fergie asked as dark matter flowed into his broken tissues and replaced part of their fabric. "You will thank me once the procedure is complete," Noah replied without bothering to open his eyes. "Endure for now. You will enjoy the benefits later." Fergie continued to scream in pain and curse Noah as the process continued. Noah didn''t lie to him. The expert was inside the dark world, which would preserve his consciousness even if his centers of power were to fall apart. That was an environment made specifically for the procedure. Fergie couldn''t see its incredible features in his condition, but Noah had made many efforts to create that space. The Demonic Deduction technique had given Noah a solution to an issue that he thought to be unsolvable. In theory, cultivators in the heroic ranks and above couldn''t survive thorough changes in their existence. Even if they did, they would find their path blocked due to the lack of harmony in their centers of power. That issue had stopped Noah from giving hybrid bodies to others. The differences between magical beasts and cultivators who had already unlocked their individuality were too great. However, the dark world could work in Noah''s favor now that he wielded divine power. Humans didn''t need to become hybrids to reach stronger states of existence. There could be more types of existence. Noah didn''t belong to that species anymore either. It was only normal that other cultivators could reach a similar state or something slightly inferior. The main issue in the procedure was the harmony between the specimen and the other materials. Cultivators could already improve their tissues through specific inscription methods, but their bodies couldn''t go past certain limits because their existences would reject the improvements otherwise. Still, Noah had access to a material that could take any shape in the world. It could also imitate elements. The dark matter that filled the dark world was the key to solve that problem. Noah kept track of Fergie''s condition. The expert''s consciousness went dark multiple times, but the dark world didn''t let it leave its edges. Fergie soon went past the verge of insanity, and Noah couldn''t help him in that matter. The procedure was a product of the Demonic Deduction technique. Making it less destructive would go against Noah''s very existence. The dark matter replaced Fergie''s tissues. It destroyed and replicated every inch of his body without ignoring his dantian and mind. The pain that the expert was suffering was immense, but the procedure was about to end since it had reached those phases. Fergie lost his body, dantian, and mind. He became nothing more than a mass of dark matter that replicated his original appearance. He still had his consciousness, but everything else had crumbled under the waves of higher energy that had seeped inside him. "It''s almost over," Noah said as he dragged Fergie''s new body outside of his cave. The dark world began to disperse, and the white light of the sky soon shone on Fergie''s figure. Lumps of dense gas escaped his new body as he kneeled on the ground and tried to understand what had happened to him. "What have you done?" Fergie asked in a low tone. "I replaced every cell of your body with a powerful material," Noah replied. "I have preserved all the features of your existence, but you have a better foundation now." Fergie didn''t seem to accept that outcome. His body felt unstable. It was a mass of dense gas belonging to someone else. He couldn''t even say that it was part of his existence. "Did you turn me into one of your slaves?" Fergie eventually asked. "I can feel the connection to your mind. This energy doesn''t belong to me." "It would be pointless to take away the freedom of my followers," Noah replied. "I don''t need slaves. My organization requires existences capable of improving past the limits of Heaven and Earth''s system. This is a war against the whole world. I can''t win it with empty puppets." Fergie couldn''t understand what Noah meant, but his words went against that new body. Fergie could see that he would never be free as long as he depended on the dark matter to remain alive. "What can I even do in this condition?" Fergie asked. "How can you ask me to fight for you when I''m nothing more than a humanoid cloud?" "Well," Noah replied as he scratched his head, "The procedure isn''t over." Noah''s ambition surged. His aura began to influence the world and resonated with Fergie''s new body. The dark matter amplified that feeling and forced the expert to express his desire to reach the peak of the cultivation world. "I can only create destruction now," Noah explained. "You can thank the Crystal City for that. This material has your features and replicates your existence, but it can''t create a body for you. Only your law knows how to build something that fits you." Fergie''s aura expanded under the effects of Noah''s ambition. It seeped in the matter around his figure, destroying it in the process. A suction forge then came out of the dark matter that made its tissues, making him absorb the energy released in the environment. "Breath" and primary energy flowed toward Fergie as his aura expanded. The ground broke, and small magical plants turned into dust to provide him with the power needed for the transformation. The dark matter that made his body slowly transformed as energy flowed inside it. The higher energy adapted to the features carried by Fergie''s aura and began to build a body that reflected his existence. Noah had understood that he couldn''t wholly replicate a law. He couldn''t avoid flaws and differences in his copies due to his lack of understanding in that unique field. Yet, Noah could let Fergie take care of that part of the procedure. The ambition would force the expert to unfold his aura, which led to the creation of something that suited him perfectly. The world had to pay the price for that process. Noah''s creations had to destroy, so Fergie had to sacrifice part of the environment to obtain the energy required to build a new body. That amount of energy would be immense due to the high standards set by Noah''s outline. Fergie would aim to reach his most perfect form, which could require the "Breath" contained in an entire region. Of course, Noah didn''t care that he had to sacrifice part of the world to give Fergie new centers of power, but the magical plants living in the area didn''t feel happy when they saw the ground shattering around them. Their sharp roots came out of the ground and shot toward Fergie''s figure, but Noah promptly stepped between them and the expert. Fergie needed time to complete the transformation, and Noah would gladly protect him during the process. Chapter 1495: 1495. Attack Fergie needed time to complete the transformation. The amount of energy required to turn the dark matter into a fabric that belonged to him depended on his existence. Still, Noah would protect him until the process ended. ''I have yet to test my new body,'' Noah thought as a cold smile appeared on his face. The magical plants in the region had different levels. They went from the bottom of the lower tier to the peak of the upper tier, but no rank 8 specimen occupied the area chosen by Noah. Regular hybrids couldn''t handle that many creatures. It would be different if they were existences near the borders of the eighth rank, but Noah was still in the liquid stage. He had to rely on his body to handle the strongest plants. Countless roots filled Noah''s vision. All the magical plants in the area had attacked at the same time when they sensed that a foreign force was threatening their environment. The attacks came from every direction, and all of them targeted Fergie. The plants could sense that he was the cause behind that destruction, and they didn''t hesitate to launch their offensive. Noah gave voice to a roar before spitting flames toward the incoming roots. He even rose in the sky to burn anything attempting to take Fergie''s life. Deafening shrill noises filled the area as the ground crumbled to reveal the complex array of roots that ran through the whole region. Those plants were the overlords there, and they started a joint offensive toward the creatures that were threatening their domain. ''I should avoid using my ambition,'' Noah thought before spitting more flames on the other roots that had come out of the ground. Noah could sense the presence of multiple rank 8 plants in the distance. Going all-out might attract their attention, so he preferred to express an inferior battle prowess for the time being. His flames kept the plants away. They also managed to destroy the roots belonging to upper tier specimens, even if those needed multiple attacks to burn completely. The bloodlust radiated by Noah''s figure intensified as he generated more destruction. Countless small flames even converged toward his body to give him the energy absorbed from the plants. The battle was going smoothly, but Noah''s actions were slowing down Fergie''s transformation. Since Noah took part of the area''s energy, the expert needed to destroy larger pieces of land to obtain the power that he needed. Noah didn''t mind that. It was a win-win situation as long as the plants didn''t manage to reach Fergie. Both of them could improve during that destruction. Still, the magical plants didn''t let the battle continue like that. They had some primitive form of intelligence, so they could understand when an approach didn''t work. The offensive suddenly stopped, but Noah''s eyes never left the roots underground. His instincts were telling him that the battle was far from over. The plants were only reorganizing. ''They can communicate,'' Noah thought as the Demonic Sword, and the white blade came out of the separate space. Noah glanced at the Demonic Sword as he wielded both blades. The weapon was still in the middle tier, so it couldn''t endure his new physical strength for long. However, Noah couldn''t continue relying only on his flames in that situation. The plants were planning something, and Noah had to be ready for them. The Demonic Sword also sensed that and shrunk to condense its fabric. A layer of dark matter even came out of its figure and surrounded the weapon to reinforce its structure. The ground began to tremble. An earthquake spread through the entire region as a tide of roots surged from the terrain and tried to engulf the whole area occupied by Noah and Fergie. The roots spanned for entire kilometers, and their sharp tips converged toward Fergie, who was still absorbing energy on the ground. Noah knew that a simple attack couldn''t stop that offensive. He closed his eyes as his blades touched his forehead and performed a cross-shaped slash targeting any foreign presence in his range. Countless cuts covered the area and created expanding singularities that turned that offensive into ashes. The ground shattered under the pressure released by Noah''s physical strength, and his sharpness even filled the area. A tornado of slashes encircled Noah and Fergie. Only a few roots belonging to upper tier plants managed to pierce that defense, but Noah didn''t hesitate to spit flames to take care of them. The storm continued to ravage the area and further slowed down Fergie''s transformation. A large hole eventually formed under his figure when the ground lost too much energy. That cavity enlarged as the procedure continued, revealing another layer of roots ready to shoot toward the expert. Noah dived toward the ground and clashed directly with the surging roots. His blades released loud noises when they touched those plants, but his physical strength eventually made him overwhelm that offensive. That process continued until all the roots under the duo had turned into ashes. The plants'' offensive stopped at that point. It seemed that those creatures had given up on protecting the area. The storm of sharpness stopped their offensive, and Noah had also depleted their reserve of roots in the ground. Those plants left the area, but Noah''s instincts didn''t stop screaming. ''They will bring reinforcements,'' Noah thought as waves of energy filled his body. Noah had destroyed multiple roots belonging to upper tier specimens, but his body barely felt anything. His requirements had increased again, bringing him to the point when he had no idea how long it would take him to reach the next breakthrough. ''I need to obtain a rank 8 battle prowess if I want my body to reach the eighth rank,'' Noah concluded in his mind. That conclusion came from simple reasoning. Noah''s body had fed on the quasi-rank 8 sphere and the purple crystal to advance. They contained immense energy, but Noah had used it to reach the upper tier. The requirements for the breakthrough to the eighth rank would be stepper. Only rank 8 materials could meet them, and only existences with rank 8 battle prowess could consistently seize resources at that level. Noah had to surpass every record again if he wanted his body to advance, but that wasn''t an immediate problem. He could take his time developing and honing his prowess while he brought his body to the peak of the seventh rank. The dangerous sensation felt by his instincts intensified, and Noah instinctively looked toward the sky. Orange lightning bolts had begun to accumulate among the whiteness, and a violent wind had started to blow in the land. Noah glanced toward Fergie. The dark matter that made his body had begun to change nature. Its gas had started to take the shape of tiny flames. The scene reminded him of King Elbas, but the procedure aimed to create something far different. The dark matter began to change color, but the danger sensed by Noah''s instincts also intensified. Something massive was about to come. ''I wonder what the Tribulation in the Immortal Lands will throw at me,'' Noah thought as his smile widened. The fact that Heaven had reacted to that procedure was a good sign. The process was going well. Fergie would soon obtain superior centers of power that reflected his existence. A massive lightning bolt eventually fell at some distance from Noah and Fergie. Sparks ran through the ground and clashed with the sharpness accumulated on the area, but they were nothing more than the after-effects of Heaven''s actual attack. A humanoid figure made of lightning bolts had appeared on the ground. The creature pierced right through the storm of sharpness and stopped above Fergie, where it began to accumulate sparks. Chapter 1496: 1496. Fear Noah transformed into a black blade that released dark matter to shoot toward Heaven. He flew past Fergie to clash directly with the figure made of lightning bolts. Heaven didn''t seem to care about Noah. Its figure exploded into a storm of lightning bolts when his blades pierced its body. The creature then reformed next to Fergie, where it resumed its accumulation of sparks. Noah performed a cross-shaped slash, launching an invisible attack toward Heaven. A straight singularity shot out of his blades and pierced the crackling figure, destroying even the ground under it. Fergie was partially oblivious of his surroundings. His consciousness could only focus on his existence since he was still under the effects of Noah''s ambition. The clash that had happened next to him only provided more energy to his transformation. Noah kept track of the lightning bolts. He shot where they converged, and his blades stabbed Heaven before it could fully reform. The creature turned toward him at that point. It had finally noticed that foreign presence. A second lightning bolt fell from the sky and created another crackling figure that pierced the storm of sharpness and threw a series of sparks toward Fergie. Noah drew his swords, destroying the first Heaven in the process. A thick slash also came out of his blades and intercepted the attacks flying toward Fergie. A third lightning bolt then fell on the ground, and another crackling figure joined that offensive. Heaven was sending an army of puppets in the upper tier, which forced Noah to rely on his ambition. Noah''s aura exploded, radiating the intense bloodlust contained in his mental walls. Waves of destruction flew out of his figure and obtained sharp features under the influence of his law. The three puppets crumbled as Noah''s cultivation level reached the solid stage. Shockwaves spread through the area as he placed his blades on his forehead and covered most of the safe zone with his sharpness. The three Heaven reformed on different spots of the sky, but Noah''s sharpness destroyed their bodies before they could even begin to prepare their attacks. Their lightning bolts then flew higher in the sky, and Noah didn''t hesitate to follow them. Those sparks fused and condensed to create a bigger version of the crackling figures, and a massive attack suddenly rained on Noah. A thick, orange lightning bolt shot out of the giant Heaven. Noah could dodge it, but Fergie was right under him. Noah had to block that attack to preserve his companion''s life. Roots pierced the skin on Noah''s right palm and expanded upward. The sky grew dark as the Demonic Form''s influence filled the area, but the orange light carried by the lightning bolt soon clashed with that blackness. The impact almost flung Noah away, but he endured the blow and continued to provide energy for the parasite. The roots expanded, and their destructive aura intensified as more power flowed into the Demonic Sword. The massive lightning bolt slowly crumbled under the corrosive properties of the Demonic Form. Even the sky bent due to its influence. A tinge of surprise appeared on Heaven''s emotionless expression. It seemed that even that creature didn''t expect Noah to stop its attack. A deafening sound came out of the crackling figure. Heaven had opened its mouth to give voice to a scream that forced Noah to cover his ears. The noise spread through the area and reached Fergie, who spat blood but continued to destroy everything around him. Noah didn''t overlook that event. Fergie had to be almost done since he had blood again. ''Let''s take it out in one attack,'' Noah thought, and his companions understood his intentions. Night flew out of the separate space, and Snore condensed next to Noah. Black flames also accumulated in his mouth as he shot toward the giant crackling figure. Snore launched a dark beam to cover his advance. Heaven wanted to launch another cry, but the violent dark matter reached its figure and forced it to throw lightning bolts to fend off that destructive power. Night was usually faster than Noah, but he reached the opponent first at that time. He crossed his arms, making his blades touch his torso before launching a cross-shaped lunge that opened a hole in Heaven''s figure. His flames then covered the sky, burning all the sparks that surrounded Heaven. A wave of energy flowed back in Noah''s body as roots spread from his palm. The Demonic Form wrapped itself around Heaven and began to consume its lightning bolts. Night arrived at that point and fused with its fabric to sever its connection with the world. Noah slashed again and dug two vertical lines on the figure''s body. Its structure became unstable, and its sparks crumbled once Night reappeared on the outside world. The plant finished consuming the lightning bolts, and the flames burned anything that had tried to fall on the ground. No sparks accumulated in the sky either. It seemed that Noah had managed to overcome that Tribulation. Noah descended toward the ground without withdrawing his sharpness. His cultivation level fell, but his centers of power endured the arrival of the drawbacks. He felt tired, but he didn''t accumulate enough stress to force himself to rest. A large area in the region crumbled. The hole created by Fergie''s absorption destroyed entire environments filled with different species of magical plants. His influence stopped enlarging only when his body had obtained enough energy to transform. Fergie had lost most of his inhuman features. His skin had obtained a fair color, and his fabric had almost completely solidified. His eyes and hair had also returned to how they were before the torture. Only a few small flames still lingered on his figure. Once the last flame vanished, the pulling force stopped affecting the environment. Fergie didn''t destroy anything else with his influence. The procedure was over, so he didn''t need more energy. "How is it?" Noah asked as he landed in front of the expert. Fergie breathed heavily and threw a punch toward Noah when he entered his range. Noah easily blocked that attack, but the ground under the duo broke due to the shockwave generated in the impact. Noah analyzed Fergie''s physical strength. It was on par with average hybrids in the middle tier, but the expert didn''t fuse with any magical beast during the procedure. Fergie had transformed without losing his human status. He was similar to Noah, but his power couldn''t compare to him since he lacked the fourth center of power. Fergie slowly began to understand how powerful he had actually become. His cultivation level was still in the liquid stage, but he couldn''t hide his happiness in seeing his centers of power working perfectly. The procedure had even fixed his eye. His existence had brought his previous appearance back, but the fabric that now made his tissues was far superior to those belonging to humans and simple magical beasts. "I will follow you," Fergie said before kneeling politely. "Dammit," Noah cursed loudly. "Why did you even kneel? Don''t let the others see you, or they might also kneel." Noah massaged his temples as he gestured to the expert to stand up. Annoyance filled his face, but Fergie couldn''t understand what had triggered that feeling. "Imagine if I had an entire army kneeling in front of me!" Noah continued to complain. "What am I even supposed to do while you are all on your knees? I have decided. I will forbid kneeling. This is the first rule of my organization." "I don''t care," Fergie replied as a broad smile appeared on his face. "I will still kneel whenever I want, even more now that I know how much you hate it." "I can still improve your body if you want," Noah replied as coldness filled his expression. Fergie quickly stood up and bowed before taking a few steps back and bowing again. A tinge of fear had appeared in his eyes. The expert didn''t want to experience Noah''s procedures ever again. Chapter 60: 60. Assea The rank 3 Earth snake retreated once the wound was inflicted but was met by the fangs of the blood companion that appeared behind it. Noah had made it retreat inside his body and released it toward the beast to speed its attack. The companion stabbed its fangs into the rank 3 beast''s body and held firmly onto it and Noah followed shooting a dozen wind slashes. The Earth snake could not avoid the assault since Noah''s snake was keeping it still and was hit by the river of flying slashes. Wounds appeared on its body as it hissed in pain, meanwhile, the rank 2 snakes left behind in its retreat had reached them and were jumping on the two enemies. Noah once again absorbed the companion and launched it at the pack while he jumped at the rank 3 beast. The blood companion thrashed out its body on the tens of rank 2 beasts and madly attacked without caring for the injuries it was experiencing. Every time its body was bitten or hit, some of Noah''s "Breath" would be expended to heal it. In the few minutes since the battle had begun, Noah''s storage of "Breath" was halved. While the blood companion was keeping the pack away, Noah engaged in a solitary fight with the rank 3 snake assaulting it relentlessly. He managed to heavily injure the beast in the initial clashes and was pressing in his attacks to slowly drain away the strength of the snake. The Earth snake was a rank 3 beast, its intelligence was superior to the one of weaker magical beasts. It understood that with the initial advantage taken by the invaders its situation was turning grim so it continued to defend its head waiting for the pack to come in rescue. Noah though, could not waste time as his storage of "Breath" diminished rapidly with every second that he spent fighting and the absorption from his acupoints was barely enough to sustain the blood companion''s battle. He violently stabbed in the snake''s skin accumulating wounds on its body as blood rained down from its figure. When more than forty deep cuts were on the beast''s body, it finally slowed down in its movements and Noah managed to deliver a firm lunge in one of its eyes. The rank 3 Earth snake convulsed like crazy when the saber stabbed in its head but was stopped by a huge mouth clenching on its throat, the blood companion had appeared below it and immediately attacked. The pack of rank 2 snakes could not keep up with the speed of Noah''s snake retreating in his body and were left behind watching their leader''s last moments. The Earth snake collapsed on the ground and Noah stabbed once again his saber in its head while his companion ripped off a big part of its throat leaving their enemy''s head hanging on a small piece of skin. The rank 3 Earth snake was dead! Its pack stared at the two figures near its body for a moment and then dispersed in fear. Noah looked at the retreating snakes and heaved a sigh of relief, he was almost exhausted and there were still around twenty rank 2 snakes in the pack. If they had attacked, he would probably have had to hide in the companion''s body and retreat. He plucked out the fangs of every Earth snake''s corpse he found on the ground and hastily retreated in the first cave he managed to find after putting them inside the space-ring. He didn''t dare to do that with the corpse of the rank 3 Horned snake because of the strong poison on its fangs. When he was in a safe space he relaxed and let the fatigue from the combat assault him. ''This battle was so dangerous! If my "Breath" had exhausted during the fight I would have been doomed. Yet, having this guy assaulting from any direction I want is really useful, I wonder how stronger it would be if it was of my element.'' The head of the companion came out of Noah''s body and stared at him. Noah simply patted its head while continuing in his thoughts. ''The capacity to enter and exit my body at will with that speed is definitely one of the stronger aspects of the spell. Another one is the healing ability of the companion that is almost limitless if I have enough "Breath" to keep it going, only a really strong attack might force the companion to hibernate to recover.'' Noah took some meat from his space-ring and ate till he was full, then he neared the end of the cave and laid himself on the ground to sleep. The ethereal snake had its head outside Noah''s body staring carefully at its surroundings. ''The expenditure is not even that much since the blood companion is mostly autonomous, only one order will keep it working for hours. I guess that is balanced by the requirements for the activation of the spell and the constant pressure that is forced on the user due to the sharing of their senses.'' He remembered some of the words in Uriah''s diary and nodded internally. ''No wonder Uriah called it "the pinnacle of their art", only by fighting as two instead of alone its power resemble the magic that Orson used and this without considering the other aspects of the blood companion and the fact that our elements are not even the same.'' Noah was extremely satisfied with the power of the spell and knew that the one showed in the previous battle wasn''t its full potential. ''When I get the dantian and find out my element I would have to change companion otherwise I would be wasting the real strength of the spell.'' He turned to look at the snake''s head that was guarding him and smiled a little. ''I guess I should give it a name while I keep it. Let''s go with Assea in honor of those that created the technique.'' Then, Noah closed his eyes and slept, with his companion now named Assea rigorously guarding him. Chapter 1497: 1497. Maniacs "We should leave quickly," Noah said as he shot high in the sky. Fergie didn''t immediately understand the reason behind his words, but everything became clear once he reached Noah in the sky. From that spot, he could see that the entire region was trembling due to the actions of the few rank 8 plants that inhabited it. "What should we do now?" Fergie asked. The rank 8 magical plants couldn''t fly, and their roots had a limited range. They couldn''t reach Noah and Fergie as long as they remained in the sky, but their sole presence made the region uninhabitable. "As I said before," Noah replied, "You are free to do whatever you want. The human domain is in that direction, and I believe that the Legion would welcome you if you manage to reach the Outer Lands." Fergie considered that option. His whole world had changed after the events in the Crystal City. He had powerful enemies in the human domain now, and he wasn''t even sure that the cultivators would accept him after his recent transformation. Truth be told, Fergie had yet to understand what he had become. His body brimmed with power, and his dantian begged him to devour the energy of the world. His mind also felt sharper than ever. It seemed that his whole existence had reached a superior state without actually improving. Fergie was still in the liquid stage, but his whole existence had gone through a complete transformation. The short exchange with Noah couldn''t make him aware of his new potential. NovelsToday.com "As I said before," Fergie replied after showing a slight smile to Noah, "I will follow you." "I usually create a mess wherever I go," Noah said as a cold smile appeared on his face. "I plan to explore the magical beasts'' domain and gather more followers while I become strong enough to destroy the Crystal City. This journey will surely get bumpy." "I can''t improve if I don''t overcome challenges," Fergie replied. "I can use you as a portable source of problems. I might even surpass you." "You should definitely aim to do that," Noah said as his gaze moved in the opposite direction of the human domain. "Let''s go. I need to catch some magical beasts." Noah began to fly deeper into the magical beasts'' domain, and Fergie didn''t hesitate to follow him. The duo crossed the region inhabited by those magical plants and moved toward the mountains in the distance. Fergie didn''t fail to notice that Noah showed signs of annoyance as the flight continued. Confusion appeared on his face, but Noah quickly explained the reason behind his situation. "I don''t have items that counter the white sky," Noah explained without adding any extra detail. Fergie quickly folded his sleeve and revealed a black bracelet. He wanted to offer his item to Noah, but the latter promptly shook his head. "I destroyed mine on purpose," Noah explained. "Heaven and Earth have created this oppressing environment to force us to improve. I might as well exploit their kindness." Noah''s words left Fergie speechless. He had already acknowledged Noah''s greatness many times, but that last interaction made him gain insights into his actual mindset. Fergie could finally see Noah''s dedication. His commitment to the cultivation journey went past common sense. After all, living under the pressure of the sky would be constant torture, but Noah was willing to endure it to improve faster. "You are a maniac," Fergie eventually said. "I''m the leader of the maniacs," Noah replied after giving voice to a loud snort. Fergie''s eyes didn''t leave Noah. Marvelous lands that the humans didn''t explore in eras filled the world under him, but he couldn''t stop looking at his leader. Noah was a complicated existence, but Fergie felt able to see the simple desire that drove his actions. His ambition was pure, and he accepted no compromises. Once Noah saw a path that would lead him to power, he had to take it. Fergie glanced at his wrist before mustering his determination. He took off the bracelet and crushed it in his grasp. The pressure radiated by the sky immediately crashed on his mind, but he endured it without slowing down his flight. "I guess I have a bad influence," Noah commented, but a slight hint of pride appeared on his face. "Definitely," Fergie replied. "A terrible influence." The duo flew for months, taking breaks whenever their minds needed to disperse the stress accumulated during the travel. Fergie used that time to test his new body, and Noah inspected him when he wasn''t busy hunting. Noah wanted to test the red crystals, but the lands he explored didn''t offer him suitable specimens. He could only focus on refilling his stash of magical beasts for the time being. Most of those regions featured rank 8 creatures. Noah felt surprised by their sheer number. If all those beasts were to attack the human domain, the cultivators wouldn''t have any chance to survive. ''The benefits of a constant expansion,'' Noah thought as he inspected the lands under him. The magical beasts had an easy time improving in that environment. Most of those packs had been at the peak of the food chain for millennia. They didn''t have worthy opponents, so they could grow freely and create immense groups. Each of those lands had certain overlords. Actually, it was better to say that the borders of those regions depended on how vast the various leaders'' influence was. The magical beasts could affect the environment with their aura, so each area represented the perfect lair for the packs that inhabited them. "This isn''t something that the cultivators can handle," Fergie said at some point during the travel. "There are too many magical beasts. The Immortal Lands belong to them already. How can any organization hope to defend their homes against this army?" "They are far from united," Noah replied. "You don''t see battles because each pack remains inside the borders of their leaders'' influence. Still, these creatures would fight over the smallest piece of land if they happened to meet." "What are you looking for then?" Fergie asked. Fergie could understand that Noah wanted to improve, but that environment didn''t suit cultivators. There was a limit to how much laws could grow among magical beasts. "I want a mess," Noah replied before he noticed something in the distance. A large battle was happening in the distance. Two immense packs of magical beasts were fighting around a tree that resembled a short mountain. There seemed to be something special about that tree, and Noah couldn''t wait to check it out, but a massive figure suddenly appeared in his view and forced him to counterattack. Noah threw a punch and flung away the creature. However, no blood spread in the sky. It seemed that his attack wasn''t strong enough to make the creature bleed. Fergie immediately prepared for battle. Scarlet flames gathered on his palms as his consciousness expanded. Then, a few figures suddenly appeared behind his back and forced him to release his attacks. A sea of flames expanded behind him, and a series of screams echoed through the sky. Those creatures were incredibly fast, but they couldn''t escape Noah''s sharp vision. A squeal then resounded through the sky, and multiple black figures set off from the ground to shoot toward the duo. Fergie couldn''t understand the meaning behind that cry, but Noah promptly replied with a roar. The many figures suddenly stopped. An army of flying pig-type magical beasts became visible around the duo. Those creatures stared coldly at Noah and Fergie without making any sound. Chapter 1498: 1498. Blue Any flying species was a big problem, especially for a team made by rank 7 existences. Since all the packs in those regions featured rank 8 creatures, Noah preferred to avoid fighting beings that could soar through the sky. Moreover, the pigs'' squeal carried specific orders. It told the army of beasts to kill the invading humans, but both Noah and Fergie didn''t belong to that species. That was what Noah had told through his roar. He had announced his belonging to a different species, hoping that the pigs wouldn''t mind him and Fergie. If even that failed, the duo would have to fight through the army and escape. "We aren''t invaders," Noah said through a growl. "We aren''t humans either, but I don''t mind giving birth to a bloodbath if you want to take us down." His bloodlust expanded as his consciousness covered the area. More than fifty creatures between the middle and upper tier had encircled Noah and Fergie. Those pigs weren''t as organized as the rats, but they weren''t completely wild either. ''I don''t recognize this species,'' Noah thought as he inspected those creatures. The pigs had a large round body and short legs. They had tough dark-pink skin and a pair of tiny feathered white wings on their back. The wings appeared too small to make them fly, but Noah couldn''t deny the fact that they were in the sky with him. The smallest of those creatures was thirty meters tall. The fat under their skin gave them an immense figure, but their tiny wings made them appear quite funny. Their proportions were entirely off. Even their mouth was too small for their giant body. NovelWell.com One of the upper tier specimens stepped forward without moving its dark eyes from the duo. A series of guttural noises came out of its mouth before a shrill human voice resounded in the area. "Can you prove that you aren''t humans," The pig asked. One of Noah''s eyebrows arched before he lifted his head to spit a wave of black flames. The pigs watched the fire in awe and took a step back, but the creature that left the formation didn''t budge. The pig continued to stare at Noah for a while before giving voice to a happy squeal. All the other creatures relaxed when that noise reached their ears, and they didn''t hesitate to echo that cry. Countless black figures shot in the sky at that point. Noah''s expression became cold when he saw that immense army gathering around them, but he gestured to Fergie to lower his hands. ''What did they say?'' Fergie asked through his consciousness. ''They are celebrating the fact that we aren''t humans,'' Noah replied through his consciousness. ''Why would they celebrate that?!'' Fergie replied. ''We are more dangerous than humans.'' Noah didn''t reply. He didn''t understand the situation either, but he decided to play along with those creatures. Since they seemed willing to talk, he could ask for information about the area. A rank 8 aura suddenly filled the sky. Noah and Fergie instinctively shot higher in the sky, but a human voice reached their ears before they could go too far away. "Do not fret," The voice said. "Your appearance has scared us, but we do not seek a conflict. Hunting the two of you would be pointless." "What do you want from us then?" Noah asked. "We want news from the human world," The voice replied. "We haven''t met a cultivator in eras. My youngest children didn''t even know what they looked like before meeting you. Please, join our banquet." Noah had always tried to avoid ending up in situations that featured existences far stronger than him, but his instincts were telling him that he had nothing to fear from those creatures. They actually felt harmless after he solved that misunderstanding. His curiosity eventually had the better of him. Noah had never faced magical beasts that didn''t trigger his survival instincts, so he wanted to understand the reason behind that odd event. ''We are flying away, right?'' Fergie asked, but fear appeared in his eyes when he noticed Noah''s curious expression. ''I have warned you already,'' Noah replied before diving toward the ground. Fergie cursed in his mind when he saw his leader going back into an army of magical beasts, but he eventually followed him. The expert wouldn''t leave Noah''s side, even if that meant entering a region inhabited by creatures that they couldn''t hope to defeat. ''Why are my instincts to calm?'' Noah wondered as he dived past the army floating in the sky and landed on the azure prairie. His eyes quickly widened when he recognized the various plants that grew in the area. They were the same short bushes that grew in the azure plain of the piece of Immortal Lands! ''These are all divine magical plants!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. Each of those plants contained an immense amount of energy. They had an awful taste, but they could provide far more nutrients than average materials. Noah now understood why those pigs didn''t care about hunting other creatures. Their lair contained so many nutrients that they didn''t need prey. Fergie landed next to him, and confusion appeared on his expression when he inspected those plants. He had noticed Noah''s excited gaze, but he couldn''t understand the reason behind that reaction. A massive figure slowly walked from a series of trees in the distance. The ground trembled due to its weight. The creature resembled a small mountain that moved among fragile plants. A rank eight aura accompanied the arrival of the creature. The duo could soon see a giant pig covered in scars slowly walking toward them while the rest of its army landed on the region. The rank 8 pig was slow, incredibly slow. Fergie almost grew tired of waiting, but Noah''s eyes lit up at that feature. He had seen how fast they were in the sky, so he couldn''t explain why they even bothered to walk. Once the pig reached the duo, it sat on the ground and bit one of the blue plants near it. Noah and Fergie had to wait for the creature to finish munching before they could talk. "You sure look like the humans I remember," The pig eventually said, revealing the owner of the human voice from before. "We are hybrids," Noah replied. "Humans don''t like us. I guess it''s the same for your species." Fergie wasn''t exactly a hybrid, but those pigs couldn''t tell the difference. The rank 8 specimen accepted that statement without bothering to ask for more details. "It''s the opposite," The rank 8 pig replied. "Humans like us very much. We have been slaves for a long time. It''s hard to find creatures as amazing as us." Noah''s curiosity intensified, and he relied on his vast knowledge of the magical beasts'' field to inspect those creatures. They didn''t use any innate ability during their sudden attack, but Noah wanted to understand how they worked. "Don''t tell me," Noah said. "You are the reason behind these plants, right?" "I see that you can appreciate part of our greatness!" The pig said as it lifted its head toward the sky in an attempt to wear a proud expression. "We can indeed increase the value of any land. Our poop turns wastelands into paradises!" Chapter 1499: 1499. Foolery Fergie began to feel uncomfortable. The rank 8 pig had basically revealed that its species had pooped into the entire region. He couldn''t help but see excrements whenever he noticed a blue bush. On the other hand, Noah didn''t care about that information. The capabilities of that species interested him. If the pigs really had that ability, they were far more valuable than his companion believed. "Our story is sad and filled with bloodshed," The rank 8 pig explained as a tear came out of its eyes. The other pigs slowly walked toward the creature and gathered around the duo as their leader told the story of their species. "We don''t like fighting," The leader continued, "But our innate talent makes us too valuable to other creatures. Our lairs were always under attack even before the humans came." The other pigs started to cry. Some of them even gave voice to sad squeals that their companions didn''t hesitate to echo. Noah and Fergie had no idea how to react to those events, so they remained silent and listened to the story. "Our lives turned for the worse when the humans found us," The rank 8 pig continued. "Our skin is tough, and our bodies can rival dragons. We discovered to be perfect mounts during our slavery. My species has fought countless wars with the cultivators." Noah didn''t feel surprised about that. His body was in the upper tier, but a simple specimen at his same level had been able to endure his punch without bleeding. That feat alone spoke for the sturdiness of their bodies. NovelWell.com "I must admit," The leader said. "The humans gave us a lot of food, but they threatened the very existence of my species. We had to rebel. No number of meals can compare to the taste of freedom." The leader lifted its head to the sky again. It wanted to wear a noble expression at that point, but even Noah struggled to recognize that. Still, the other pigs imitated the rank 8 specimen. ''Are they stupid or intelligent?'' Fergie asked through his mental waves. Noah didn''t know what to answer, but he understood the reason behind his companion''s question. It wasn''t rare for divine magical beasts to learn the human language, but the pigs were fluent in that field. However, their behavior gave off the opposite impression. Noah didn''t get why they kept looking at the sky. It was as if they wanted to point out how important their words were. "We fought a difficult war to regain our freedom," The rank 8 pig continued. "The humans had studied us for centuries, so they knew our flaws. We are slow on the ground, and we are always hungry. They always caught up or baited us into traps." "Couldn''t you fly away?" Fergie asked, and Noah glared at him. The duo was in front of a rank 8 creature, but Fergie had interrupted its speech. Noah''s instincts didn''t feel any danger, but he wanted to avoid ruining the leader''s mood anyway. "I see that you are a smart fella," The rank 8 pig replied. "If only someone told us that earlier. You would have saved many lives during our escape." The other pigs began to nod toward Fergie. They sobbed and shot admiring gazes at the expert. Some of them even stood up to walk closer to the duo. "Why didn''t you fight back?" Noah asked. "You must also be smart!" The leader exclaimed. "We understood that too late. My species was nothing more than a small pack at that point. I still recall the rivers of blood flowing through the regions." ''They are idiots,'' Noah said through his mental waves, and Fergie suppressed a nod. The pigs were strange creatures. They appeared intelligent in some fields but completely idiotic in others. Even their survival instincts seemed off if they didn''t tell them to escape through the sky during their rebellion. "How is this lair?" Noah asked. "Do other packs attack?" "The tall tree attracts invaders better than our plants," The leader explained. "We receive rare attacks, but we know how to fight back now, most of us at least. Our memory isn''t great, so we have to repeat what we have learnt through our lives every day to make sure that we don''t forget." "Would you forget that you can escape in the sky?" Noah asked as helplessness filled his face. "Of course," The leader replied. "That''s a lot to remember with so much food around us!" Noah''s curiosity suddenly vanished. He had heard enough. It was clear that they had paid a severe price for their incredible abilities. Their intelligence had probably suffered a lot from Heaven and Earth''s fairness. "Tell me about the tree," Noah eventually said. "Our story is sad and filled with bloodshed," The rank 8 pig said as it began to explain the tale of its species again. "You have already told us that," Fergie promptly interrupted the creature. The rank 8 pig showed a surprised expression which became excited once its eyes fell on the plants. A faint squeal came out of its mouth before it dived on the nutrient bushes. The other pigs imitated the leader and began to eat. Those creatures didn''t even look where their teeth landed. They bit large chunks of the ground while trying to hit the plants. Strange noises came out of their belly as they continued to eat. Fergie began to panic, but Noah ordered him to remain in his position. He knew what his companion feared, but he had to continue that conversation before the pig forgot what it said again. "What makes that tree so special?" Noah asked. "The humans called us Heavenly Pigs," The leader replied when it stopped munching, "We saw that as the mark of our slavery, so we changed the name of our species." The pig had begun to speak about the rebellion of its species again. Noah didn''t know how to converse with that creature properly, but it seemed to maintain some continuity in that topic. "What''s your new name?" Noah asked, hoping that the leader wouldn''t shift the topic again. "We are-," The leader interrupted itself and glanced toward one of its companions. That specimen looked at another pig, and that process continued until the pack found someone who recalled that detail. That creature then said the name through a squeal, and the leader repeated it in human words. "We are called Foolery!" The leader exclaimed as it lifted its head to the sky. The other pigs stopped eating and looked at the sky while wearing noble expressions. That name seemed to carry a profound meaning for those creatures, but Noah and Fergie found the whole situation quite awkward. "Did you choose it for its meaning?" Fergie couldn''t help but ask. Fergie''s curiosity had surpassed Noah''s at that point. He wanted to understand how foolish those creatures were. "No," The leader replied. "It''s just cool!" The pigs lifted their heads higher at that point, and pride flowed out of their figures. Noah could only remain speechless in front of such idiocy. He had no words to describe what was happening in front of his eyes. The situation became even worse. The pigs suddenly released smelly excrements that filled the whole area and forced Noah and Fergie to escape into the sky. ''Please, tell me that we can leave,'' Fergie begged through his consciousness. ''They are our only source of information about the magical beasts'' domain,'' Noah replied. ''Don''t worry. I hate this more than you.'' Chapter 1500: 1500. Details Noah had to struggle to get the information that he wanted. Talking with the Foolery was hard. They often forgot the topic of their conversations, and they stopped speaking every ten minutes to eat some of the blue bushes in the region. Excrements always followed their meals. Those magical beasts didn''t even try to control themselves, and Noah and Fergie ended up retreating into the sky many times to avoid that awful substance. An unbearable smell soon covered the entire region. Noah could even hear cries coming from the nearby lands due to that scent. It seemed that even the magical beasts outside of the pigs'' pack couldn''t stand their excrements. Fergie soon learnt that Noah didn''t fear that smell. The latter dived back into the region every time the Foolery were ready to talk again, and Fergie had to follow him to honor his leadership. Still, even Noah stopped touching the terrain. He had no reason to dive into that filth. He spoke to the magical beasts while remaining mid-air. Noah eventually managed to get a surprisingly detailed understanding of the magical beasts'' domain. The leader of the Foolery had traveled a lot in its life, which gave the creature a vast knowledge of those lands. The description of that domain reflected what Noah had guessed during his past inspection. The environment of the various lands depended on the magical beasts that inhabited them. The number of rank 8 creatures also spoke for the valuable resources hidden in those areas. The pack of pigs only featured one rank 8 specimen, even with that abundance of resources. Noah soon realized that the blue plants had limited effects on those creatures due to their tight connection to their innate ability. The energy in those magical plants matched those creatures, so their bodies flushed most of it out. Noah had to reconsider his initial position when he uncovered that feature. The Foolery''s greatest weakness wasn''t their intelligence. They could not grow properly through their innate ability. ''Heaven and Earth are tricky,'' Noah thought when he learnt about that, but the surprises weren''t over. The human domain rarely mentioned the rank 9 existences. No cultivator knew where they were or if any of them still lived in the higher plane. Noah had only heard about them in Supreme Thief''s inheritance. He had confirmed their existence in the secret area, but he had remained unclear about their behavior. Instead, the leader of the Foolery knew far more about that, even if its knowledge mostly involved other magical beasts at that level. "You won''t find them here," The rank 8 pig explained. "These lands are too poor for them. Most strong beasts leave for the windy regions. The air there is dense with power. Legends say that the storms hide lands full of food and delicacies!" The leader began to drool, and the other pigs imitated the creature. Still, Noah had learnt when to ignore those beasts by then. ''It makes sense,'' Noah thought when that information entered his mind. Storms made of chaotic laws filled the areas past the Outer Lands. Noah had initially thought that those regions only featured pure creation due to the constant expansion of the higher plane, but he started to wonder about their actual size. ''What if the storms hide an environment far vaster than the higher plane?'' Noah thought. The human domain vastly underestimated the magical beasts because it was unaware of how vast their territory was. The same could happen for the stormy regions. They could hide wonders that the Immortal Lands would only discover once those regions left the chaotic winds. ''Supreme Thief''s inheritance has been inside the stormy regions for eras,'' Noah thought as the small pieces of information gathered throughout his life in the higher plane connected. ''Maybe he didn''t leave it there to hide it. Maybe those lands were his home, the only home worthy of a rank 9 existence!'' Everything fitted what Noah had learnt about the divine ranks. Cultivators had to become worlds to reach the ninth rank, but a mere law wasn''t enough to cover the complexity of that feat. However, the stormy regions featured an abundance of chaotic laws. They were the perfect place where cultivators could expand their true meanings and aim to become something more than simple gods. The same went for magical beasts. The chaotic laws carried far more energy than the azure lands. The stormy regions appeared as the only areas suitable for existences that aimed to become worlds. Noah''s greed started to burst out of his figure. The stormy regions weren''t hard to reach. He only had to fly past the Outer Lands. They were within his reach, but he couldn''t survive there at his current level. Suppressing his greed turned out to be hard. Noah had found the final training ground, but he couldn''t go there. He was too weak to explore the vastness that surrounded the known higher plane. His focus had to return on more achievable resources. Noah now knew that any land featuring more than a rank 8 magical beast contained something valuable. Dangers that he couldn''t face also surrounded those resources, but they were far easier to overcome than the storms. ''The tall tree had two packs of magical beasts fighting for its ownership,'' Noah thought. ''That must count for something. Those packs have a rank 8 specimen each, but they leave their homes to fight for that resource. It has to be something good.'' When Noah reached that conclusion, his conversation with the Foolery met some setbacks. Those creatures liked to have such a valuable resource nearby because it ensured the safety of their region. It was the best bait for any pack willing to raid other lands. The Foolery didn''t want Noah to join the fight for the tree. They were afraid that he could destroy that resource due to the greed that he had shown before. That would lead to catastrophic consequences for their livelihood. Noah took a while to understand what was in those creatures'' minds. Initially, he thought that they were too tired due to the long conversation, but he soon realized that they would pretend to forget at times. Once Noah uncovered that detail, understanding the reason behind their behavior became easy. Yet, that knowledge didn''t make him abandon his plans. Even if the Foolery were harmless, Noah had to pursue his goals. He had to obtain a rank 8 battle prowess in that journey, and it would take him centuries to achieve that if he only relied on normal training. Fighting and seizing resources was the faster method, and Noah had just found something valuable. He would fight to get that resource whether the Foolery liked the idea or not. "Why don''t you take it for yourself?" Noah asked at some point during the conversation. "You aren''t weak, so why do you limit your potential instead of fighting like every other magical beast?" "The struggle for power can only lead to bloodshed," The rank 8 pig replied. "There is no end to our hunger, so it''s better to control it. We would only make countless enemies if we started eating anything in our reach." "Just eat the enemies then," Noah replied. "That''s the whole point of improving. You get strong enough to take anything you want. Suppressing your instincts can''t be the answer." "It is for us," The leader continued. "We did not forget our place in the food chain. We are strong, but not strong enough." "You will never become strong if you keep limiting your growth," Noah replied, but he soon shook his head. "It''s fine. I will go there anyway. Can I take some plants and cultivate nearby before the mission?" The Foolery almost cried when they saw that Noah appreciated their innate ability. They didn''t want to give up on their food, but they couldn''t refuse either. Also, feeding Noah would delay his journey toward the tall tree, so they allowed him to take a few blue plants. Chapter 1501: 1501. Breakthrough Noah wanted to travel to the tree straight away, but he had to complete some preparations before. He wasn''t in a hurry, and entering a battlefield that featured two rank 8 magical beasts at his current level wasn''t ideal. Luckily for him, he had been near the peak of the liquid stage for quite some time already. His potential had also skyrocketed after his feat in the Crystal City, so his dantian would soon approach the breakthrough. His preparations didn''t stop there. Noah''s power depended on many factors. His companions had to improve to obtain the superior battle prowess needed on the battlefield. Snore and the Demonic Sword depended on his dantian. They could only improve after Noah reached the solid stage. Still, Night required a different fuel. After his experiments with the special darkness, Noah had learnt how to turn the workshop into a factory that could mass-produce the energy he needed. Night didn''t need to train and transform the environment for countless years to improve anymore. The Pterodactyl could directly rely on Noah and his ability to craft most forms of energy through the dark world. Noah couldn''t use the Demonic Deduction technique to invent a procedure that could create that darkness. His mental ability could only generate destructive thoughts now, which didn''t cover the energy required by Night. It took some time, but Noah eventually created a blueprint that allowed the workshop to make that darkness. Night alternated training outside the cave and inside the dark world at that point. With the workshop in place, Noah could focus on his cultivation level. Fergie did the same, and the two experts trained in one of the safest regions next to the Foolery''s domain. The Foolery had given the duo part of their blue bushes, and Noah had gladly traded more of them for part of his stash. His approach was part of two different plans. The first saw him obtaining a better source of energy, and the second attempted to awaken the pigs'' innate hunger. Fergie soon understood the value of the blue bushes during his seclusion. He hesitated to use those plants at first due to their connection with the Foolery''s excrements, but everything vanished once he realized how much energy they contained. The expert couldn''t absorb energy like Noah. Fergie wasn''t a hybrid. He had a unique training method for his body which he had improved after his transformation. The arrival of the blue plants forced him to modify that technique further, leading him toward a complete set of abilities. Fergie had understood how strong he had become throughout the years spent traveling with Noah, but he had yet to polish his training methods. All his ideas appeared unworthy of his new status. That was a natural outcome of his sudden transformation. Noah had spent years polishing his techniques and improving his status. His growth wasn''t abrupt. He had only needed to improve his methods whenever he reached a superior level. The situation was different for Fergie. He had gone from being a cultivator to a completely different existence that even Noah struggled to define. He wasn''t even an inscribed human. His centers of power had gone through a complete rebirth, embodying the true power that his law could express. Fergie would need to spend the next centuries adapting his techniques to his new existence, but the task didn''t scare him. He wouldn''t throw his new status away to obtain an easier cultivation journey. The ambition inherited by Noah didn''t allow him to accept a lower form of power. ''They taste as awful as I remember,'' Noah thought while munching a few blue leaves. The dark world covered his large cave, and the workshop occupied most of those areas filled with dark matter. Night was outside at that time, and his Demonic Sword stood on his waist as he absorbed the energy in the environment. His dantian enlarged smoothly. It didn''t even try to slow down its growth. Noah''s existence was ready to advance, and his influence intensified whenever his organ grew. It was only a matter of months before his dantian reached the breakthrough. Noah didn''t need to prepare anything for the event, but he still ordered Fergie to build his cave far away. The only thing that bothered Noah about his breakthrough was the black hole. He vaguely guessed that the dark matter wouldn''t do anything crazy at that stage, but he couldn''t wholly predict its behavior. However, his worries turned out to be pointless. The darkness inside his dantian transformed into sword-shaped black crystals that radiated a complex aura, and his black hole barely reacted to that event. The dark matter became denser after his darkness improved. The higher energy almost lost its gaseous properties to transform into a thick liquid that carried an immense power. Yet, the black hole didn''t change shape. It remained the same even after the amount of energy contained in its insides skyrocketed. It began to spin faster, but that was all. The improved dark matter quickly started to transform Snore. The Blood Companion gave voice to a loud hiss before appearing in the dark world and undergoing those modifications. Every cell of its body carried the old higher energy, and the black hole couldn''t allow that. Noah continued to cultivate until his dantian reached a decent state. When he interrupted his training, he noticed that the entire cave had grown darker, and its azure materials had transformed into a sturdy black metal. The workshop had also benefited from that influence. Its output of darkness had increased, allowing Night to close the distance with Snore and Noah faster. ''I wonder what will advance next,'' Noah thought as he inspected the power carried by his new aura. His mind, body, and dantian were almost at the same level now, but the eighth rank was a goal that could hide many surprises. Noah had gone through many changes during his life in the Immortal Lands. His tissues had reached new levels of perfections after the events in the Evolution Pit, and his mind had also transformed with the bloodlust. Some thorough transformations had to accompany the breakthrough to the eighth rank, which often forced Noah to accumulate more power. He didn''t know how much energy his body would need, and the same went for his mind. His dantian was the only stable center of power, but his absorption of chaotic laws had also slowed down its improvements. The vaster a law was, the harder it was to make it grow. Noah was almost sure that even his darkness would give him a rough time. ''There is a first time to everything,'' Noah happily thought. His influence was a dense wave that seeped into the world''s matter and forced it to evolve. Wherever his gaze fell, materials would transform and grow dark. His sole attention could give birth to proper empowerments that lasted for entire hours. Noah smiled at those improvements, but he didn''t feel delighted. He was still far away from obtaining a rank 8 battle prowess. That breakthrough had made him stronger, but he couldn''t enjoy it since his enemies had entire armies ready for him. ''Most cultivators would kill to reach this level,'' Noah thought, ''But I can''t even appreciate it. Even this power feels like nothing since I tasted something superior.'' Noah couldn''t forget the feeling of being in the middle of a battle between rank 8 existences. The power that they could release was so immense that even his body couldn''t survive in that environment. ''That''s real power,'' Noah concluded in his mind after the images from the battle in the Crystal City vanished. ''To obtain it, I need to seize anything I can from these lands.'' After reaffirming his determination, Noah sat back on the ground and resumed his training. He had to wait for the Demonic Sword and Night to evolve anyway, so he didn''t mind continuing cultivating for the time being. Chapter 1502: 1502. Battlefield "Do you really want to remain here?" Noah asked the rank 8 Foolery as he floated in the sky. "We don''t want to engage in battles with other packs," The pig replied. "We are at peace here." Noah inspected the region. The blue plants seized before his seclusion had already regrown. The pigs had also eaten them while he was in the cave, but the environment appeared as rich in resources as ever. The innate ability of those creatures was simply incredible. One of those bushes carried far more energy than any magical beast at the same level. They were the perfect resource for hybrids and magical beasts, and the Foolery could force them to grow endlessly. The other pigs had gathered around their leader to say goodbye to the duo. Noah and Fergie had completed their training and were about to fly toward the tall tree, but Noah had insisted on having one last conversation with those creatures. Noah didn''t want to let them go. The Foolery were too valuable. Yet, they were also stubborn. He couldn''t convince them to join his attack. Noah could see some hesitation in those creatures. He had given them some of the magical beasts'' corpses stored inside his separate space, so they had tasted what it felt to eat a proper meal. The corpses didn''t satisfy their hunger like the blue plants, but their bodies could absorb all their nutrients freely. Their innate ability didn''t hinder that process, and their instincts learnt that hunting other creatures would provide more benefits. Only the rank 8 leader and a few other upper tier specimens didn''t show that hesitation. They were already aware of that feature, so they didn''t let Noah''s bribe trick them. "Goodbye then," Noah said as he shot in the distance. "Do we just leave them there?" Fergie asked after catching up with Noah. "Do we have the power to capture an entire pack led by a rank 8 specimen?" Noah asked. "No," Fergie replied, "But we could have continued to tempt them. I''m sure they would have fallen for your tricks at some point." "That''s the issue," Noah replied. "I don''t want them to follow us through lies and tricks. They have to make their choice so they won''t blame us if some of them die during the travel. I don''t want an army of those smelly pigs hunting me through the whole higher plane." "Do you think that they''ll come?" Fergie asked. "Instincts are powerful forces," Noah replied. "We have reminded them of how tasty is the outside world. It''s only a matter of time before they return to their true form." "What do you mean?" Fergie asked. "The drawback of their innate ability is too harsh," Noah explained. "I think that their forgetfulness is a consequence of the regular meals based on blue plants. Their bodies compensate for the lack of nutrients by making them dumber than they actually are. I only hope that they don''t get more eccentric." "Do you think the humans from the past knew about it?" Fergie asked. "It would explain why they have been in chains for so long," Noah replied. "Also, it is very probable that they have only eaten blue plants during their imprisonment. They literally grow wherever they are." Fergie reviewed the scenes from the previous conversation with the Foolery and realized that they had forgotten about the topics only twice. That number was still high, but it didn''t match their first interaction with those creatures. Noah had noticed that feature during the conversation. His hypothesis had formed right after the duo left. His reasoning made sense, but he couldn''t prove it unless the pigs began to eat something outside the blue plants. That was one of the reasons why Noah didn''t insist. He also wouldn''t leave the area any time soon, so he wasn''t in a hurry to convince those creatures. The tall tree became closer in the duo''s view as their flight continued. The battlefield under it appeared quieter now, but many magical beasts were still nearby. Countless corpses filled the base of the immense tree. Its thin yellow leaves couldn''t hide the aftermath of the many battles in the area. Noah and Fergie could soon inspect everything from their safe position in the sky. The two packs featured monkey-like and wolf-like creatures. Those forces were now away, but Noah didn''t hesitate to inspect the corpses accumulated under the tree. The wolves were relatively small. They were seven meters tall and had silver fur. On the other hand, the monkeys were twenty meters tall and had brown hair. Traces of innate abilities covered the area. Noah could guess that the monkeys could generate something similar to soundwaves. As for the wolves, they appeared fast, but the battlefield couldn''t give Noah more information. Noah''s attention moved on the tree at that point. The pale-brown trunk partially blocked his mental waves, so he didn''t manage to understand its value. The leaves were easy to analyze, but they didn''t have anything special either. ''Why are they killing each other for this tree?'' Noah wondered. The situation confused him, but something suddenly moved among the leaves near the bottom of the tree, and immense energy spread in the environment. A fruit slowly grew among the leaves. An intense scent also accompanied the discharge of energy that had marked the beginning of the event. The area began to tremble at that point. The two packs that had left the tree moved at full speed toward the plant in a desperate attempt to seize the fruit before their opponents. The two rank 8 specimens were in the lead of their packs. They ran through the land and clashed right under the tree without worrying about the destruction that their actions unleashed. The energy released by the fruit intensified as it continued to grow. Noah began to feel hungry as that scent filled his nostrils and invaded his mind. "Do we jump in?" Fergie asked without moving his eyes away from the two rank 8 beings. "No," Noah replied. "Let''s see how one battle goes. We will join the next." The monkeys'' chest enlarged before shrinking to release dense soundwaves that pierced the air and covered the entire area with shockwaves. The wolves were extremely fast, and their fangs and claws seemed able to pierce anything. They could often dodge the soundwaves and tear open severe injuries on their opponents'' bodies. The wolves had the upper hand, but the battle among the leaders featured the opposite situation. The shockwaves radiated by the rank 8 monkey''s attacks were intense enough to injure its opponent. The fruit continued to grow and release more energy as the battle raged. It was hard to understand who would win, but a third participant suddenly joined the battlefield. Cracks spread through the ground and revealed an intricate underground world. Large dark figures came out of those fissures and shot toward the surface, killing any unprepared beast. Those new beasts had the aspect of fat moles with long claws that could sever both monkeys and wolves into many pieces. Still, they weren''t as fast as their opponents, so the other creatures soon reacted to their arrival. When the moles died, their bodies disappeared without leaving any trace. They transformed into shadows that seeped into the terrain. They didn''t even release blood when fangs stabbed their skin. Fergie suddenly turned toward Noah. He had sensed that something had changed in his leader, and a helpless expression appeared on his face when he noticed the greed that Noah radiated. Something told Fergie that they wouldn''t wait for the battle to end anymore. Chapter 1503: 1503. Cloud A third rank 8 aura spread through the aura. That power flowed past the ground and filled the battlefield, attracting the two leaders'' attention fighting under the tree. The moles continued to invade the battlefield, killing any beast in sight. The two packs fought back and defeated many of those creatures, but they transformed into shadows and seeped back into the terrain when they died. ''Such a strange ability,'' Noah thought while inspecting the battlefield. ''Do they even die?'' The moles were quite peculiar. Noah had never seen anything like that. Night was a strange magical beast, but those creatures seemed to surpass the Pterodactyl in that field. The battle intensified after the arrival of the moles. The wolves and the monkeys silently sealed an alliance to fend off those invaders. They didn''t want other packs to contend the fruit. The ground continued to break. Pieces of terrain grew to create small hills as the largest specimens in the mole''s pack reached the surface and began to fight the other magical beasts. The whole area fell into chaos. Countless creatures died as soundwaves and shadows ran through the surface. It was unclear who would win that battle, but Noah had no intention to remain on the sidelines. The rank 8 mole eventually resurfaced. It appeared among the two leaders and swung its long claws at its opponents before understanding what was happening. The ground also shattered due to the presence of so many powerful beings on the same spot. The wolf and the monkey fell in the mole''s natural environment and lost the upper hand in the battle. Debris accumulated above them. The three leaders soon vanished from Noah''s sight and began to fight underground. ''Smart,'' Noah couldn''t help but comment in his mind. The rank 8 mole would lose on the surface, but it had gained a chance now that it was underground. That was a proper tactic deployed through the sacrifice of its underlings. Noah instantly learnt that the creature was far smarter than average. ''I have an upper tier body and solid stage darkness,'' Noah thought as he closed his eyes. ''My companions have improved, and my law still has potential. I might have what I need to survive this.'' His ambition began to spread through the sky. Black lines appeared on the fabric of the world and forced its matter to evolve. The air condensed to take a fluid shape, and the light dimmed under the influence of that dark influence. "Seize the fruit," Noah said without moving his gaze away from the battlefield. "I''m going underground." "Are you crazy?" Fergie replied. "Why should we even bother to attack now? We can study this event and create a plan for the next time!" "You can have a piece of the fruit," Noah replied before diving toward one of the cracks. The Demonic Sword and the white blade appeared in his hands, and Night shot out of his chest to dive into the underground world before him. Snore was also ready to come out of the separate space whenever the situation required it. A few creatures stood in Noah''s path. Two wolves, a monkey, and a mole in the upper tier turned their heads toward the sky when they felt that oppressing ambition reaching the surface. The magical beasts of different packs rarely agreed on anything, but their instincts made them see human beings as natural enemies. Noah had a human form, so that group instantly stopped fighting to focus on him. Noah crossed his blades above his head before releasing a powerful slash. Nothing came out of his swords, but a deep cross-shaped mark appeared on the ground right after his attack. The mark reflected the cross-shaped singularity that Noah had launched. That attack had destroyed anything on its path, turning into nothingness the body parts of the creatures that it crossed. Part of the cross went over one of the wolves, which found itself severed into two halves. The mole was at the center of the attack, which left only one arm and part of its fat when it reached the ground. The monkey lost its head in the attack, and the other wolf ended up dodging it due to its favorable position. Still, the creature couldn''t help but run away in fear when it realized how powerful that human-looking existence was. Noah had no interest in the other creatures. His attention remained on the maimed mole. The fat and the arm transformed into shadows that seeped back into the ground, and Noah didn''t hesitate to follow them. His speed increased. Noah transformed into a black blade that released dark matter and pierced the ground, reaching the shadows in less than an instant. His movement technique depended on his centers of power, so it had reached a superior level after the breakthroughs. Noah''s speed was incredible. Nothing in the upper tier seemed able to match it. His speed also increased as his ambition empowered his centers of power. Noah''s cultivation level rose and slowly neared the peak of the seventh rank. Noah had to slow down to keep up with the shadow. He risked crossing it if he continued to dive at full speed. ''Where are you going?'' Noah wondered. It was hard to keep track of the shadow during his movement technique, but Noah did his best not to lose it. He had finally found a species with a darkness aptitude. He would do anything in his power to get his hands on a suitable corpse. The journey through the underground world led Noah to a large hall. Countless shadows seeped through the area''s walls and converged at its center, where a large dark cloud floated. Mole-like shadows slowly crawled out of the cloud before obtaining their normal features. It seemed that the dark mass could give birth to those creatures, but Noah couldn''t understand its functioning. ''What is this?'' Noah wondered. The cloud resembled a breeding ground made of dense gas. It didn''t have a proper aura, but it could give birth to creatures at various levels. Those beasts didn''t even act as newborns. They directly shot toward the cracks in the walls to join the battle on the surface. Some of the newborn moles noticed Noah and converged toward his position, but he didn''t even turn toward them. There was only one upper tier creature among that group, and his hand shot forward before it could stab its claws in his torso. Noah unleashed his pride as he shot forward to grab the upper tier mole''s neck. The other beasts in that group didn''t dare to attack him after they sensed his aura. He appeared as the most fearful existence in the world in their eyes. ''It feels real,'' Noah thought as he squeezed the mole''s neck. A popping sound eventually resounded in the area, and the mole went limp. Its body transformed into a shadow that tried to return toward the cloud, but Noah trapped it into a layer of dark matter. The shadow slammed on the dark matter while releasing loud cries. It hated that prison. Some cracks even appeared on its fabric due to the many clashes with that tough substance. Snore promptly came out of Noah''s chest and ate the prison. The shadow ended up in an environment full of dark matter that didn''t allow it to move. It couldn''t hurt itself anymore there. Suddenly, a loud shrill noise came out of the cloud. Noah sensed countless gazes converging on his figure. The newborn moles had turned toward him, and many other creatures on the surface had dived back into the ground to help their companions. Noah even felt an oppressing pressure landing on his mind. The rank 8 mole wasn''t in that underground area, but it had moved its focus on him. Chapter 1504: 1504. Focus Noah didn''t hesitate to spit his flames. His fire spread through the underground area and covered its walls. Painful screams followed his attack, but his eyes didn''t leave the cloud. His flames burned part of that dense breeding ground, but that didn''t help his situation. More shadowy moles came out of the cloud and transformed into actual magical beasts before shooting toward him. Noah limited himself to spit more flames. Those creatures couldn''t cross past his innate ability while his ambition empowered his centers of power. They could only die inside that destructive, fiery sea. However, the moles never stopped trying to leap past the flames. They even suppressed their transformation into actual beasts to continue flying. Even that turned out to be pointless against Noah''s innate ability. Rank 7 magical beasts couldn''t do anything against the flames fueled by his ambition. The upper tier specimens could survive for a few seconds, but they eventually transformed back into shadows. The flames also burned the shadows and prevented them from rejoining the cloud. The breeding ground began to shrink while that process continued. It seemed that Noah''s actions were slowly destroying it. The focus of the rank 8 mole was still on Noah, but the creature didn''t show up in that underground area. The beast was fighting the other leaders, so it couldn''t crawl toward Noah to defend its home. Noah had the chance to leave the area, but his curiosity didn''t let him move. He had every intention to turn the mole into a Blood Companion, so he wanted to learn more about that species. The breeding ground started to condense at that point. It couldn''t fight Noah''s flames, so it resorted to a different approach. Its gas took the shape of a large mole, and its shadow slowly crawled out of the cloud. The new shadow soon radiated a rank 8 aura. Its power spread through the underground aura and triggered Noah''s survival instincts. The cloud had decided to give birth to a new leader to fend off that threat. Noah quickly retreated. Part of him wanted to test his new power against a rank 8 magical beasts, but his instincts suppressed those thoughts. Noah felt that even his new prowess wouldn''t be enough to defeat creatures at that level. Noah transformed into a black blade that released dark matter as he pierced the walls to fly toward the surface. His little experiment was over. Noah''s innate awareness suddenly warned him that something big was about to crash on his position. He had yet to come out of the underground world, so he deployed the unstable substance to face that new threat. The rocky walls around Noah crumbled when that threat reached him. Three large figures appeared in his view. The three leaders had moved their battle next to him, but the rank 8 mole didn''t seem interested in that fight. The creature had eyes only for Noah. It even suffered injuries since its attention wasn''t on its two opponents. Noah did his best to leave the area, but the rank 8 monkey launched an attack before he could fly away. Its chest inflated before a dense soundwave shot out of its mouth. The attack targeted the rank 8 mole, but the shockwaves that it released reached Noah and flung him away. That force interrupted his movement technique and slammed him into a wall, making him spit a few mouthfuls of blood. ''Dammit!'' Noah cursed in his mind as Snore covered his figure. Noah didn''t want to attack the three leaders. The creatures could decide to take care of him first if he made them aware of his existence. Snore launched a dark beam in the opposite direction of the three leaders, and the rocks on his path shattered. A tunnel formed in less than an instant and Noah quickly flew inside it. The rank 8 mole continued to lead the battle toward Noah, and the newborn leader did the same. Yet, the rank 8 wolf and monkey didn''t let the two creatures do as they wished, so Noah eventually managed to resurface. When Noah pierced the surface, he noticed that the environment had transformed. A sea of flames covered the ground, and the painful cries of the three packs filled the sky. A fireball suddenly flew toward Noah, but he destroyed it with a simple punch. That attack carried a familiar power. It was part of Fergie''s spell. "What are you even doing?" Noah shouted as he shot upward. The entirety of the battlefield appeared in his eyes at that point. Noah could finally notice that three sun-like structures floated above the surface and launched fireballs toward anything that could move among the sea of flames. A second fireball shot toward Noah, but a figure appeared on its path and endured the might of the blow. Fergie had intercepted the attack as soon as he noticed his leader. An annoyed expression appeared on his fuming face after he turned to look at Noah. "I have yet to learn how to control it fully," Fergie said. "It''s powerful, but it doesn''t like when I try to suppress it." "We have to run," Noah said, cutting short Fergie''s excuses. Noah could sense the four rank 8 magical beasts quickly nearing his position. The two moles didn''t stop focusing on him even after he resurfaced. They could even control their battle better now that there were two of them. Fergie eventually sensed the four rank 8 magical beasts and shot toward the sky. Noah transformed into a black blade and followed him, but two large figures imitated him. The two rank 8 moles had managed to reach the spot under Noah after he set off. They instantly jumped and spread their claws toward his figure, and one of them touched him. The impact with the claw interrupted the movement technique and flung Noah away. He crashed on the ground and noticed that a long cut had appeared on his torso. That short clash with a rank 8 creature had caused injuries that an entire pack of moles didn''t manage to inflict. The two moles leaped toward Noah once they touched the ground. A frenzy filled their expression, and anger seeped out of their eyes. They even trampled some of the moles that had survived Fergie''s flames to reach Noah faster. Noah glanced at the long cut on his torso before moving his eyes back on the two rank 8 moles. Determination appeared on his face, and bloodlust filled his surroundings. The white blade also returned inside the separate space before a black handle came out of his chest. Noah drew the cursed sword and crossed his arms. The blades cut his robe as they slid over his sides to launch a piercing attack. The blades drew a cross in the air, and an invisible beam shot out of them. The two rank 8 moles didn''t let the power released by Noah''s figure scare them, but they couldn''t ignore the force that slammed on their heads. The attack forced the two moles to stop. It even tried to push them back, but those creatures stabbed their claws on the ground to endure the blow. Noah didn''t remain there to watch the outcome of his attack. His chest had exploded when the singularity landed on the moles. His rib cage was in the open, and a river of blood flowed out of it. Once Noah reached Fergie, he turned to inspect the two rank 8 moles. A white mark had appeared on their heads, but their skin was fine. The attack didn''t manage to pierce their bodies. Chapter 1505: 1505. Experimen Noah had absorbed many nutrients when his flames ravaged the insides of the underground area. He had enough energy to fix his chest and improve, but he needed time to regrow those parts. His flames made his recovery quicker. Noah burned part of the environment in the regions near the tall tree to heal faster. Luckily for him, the two rank 8 moles had stopped following him after he disappeared in the sky. "Does your ambition multiply magical beasts now?" Fergie asked once Noah met him in his cave near the Foolery''s domain. "Not yet," Noah replied, revealing a cold smile toward his underling. Fergie heaved a helpless sigh before taking something out of his space-ring. The tall tree''s yellowish fruit appeared in his grasp, and the energy it contained filled the whole cave. Its scent also seeped into the outside world and attracted the magical beasts in the area. Those creatures madly charged toward the cave, but black flames soon engulfed them. Noah took care of the threat before it could even reach them. "I had to take it before it was fully ripe," Fergie explained once Noah returned to the cave. "I waited as much as possible, but everything fell into chaos when the second rank 8 mole appeared." "You did good," Noah replied before seizing the fruit. The fruit was as large as a man''s chest. It had a spherical shape, but lines divided it into eight parts. Noah took out his white blade and cut it, giving a quarter of the resource to his underling. "I have such a greedy leader," Fergie commented. "I had to face rank 8 creatures," Noah replied. "Consider yourself lucky." "Your loyal follower doesn''t dare to complain any further," Fergie added in a mocking tone before retreating toward a corner of the cave. Noah left the area to return to his cave. The recent battle had brought decent benefits, and he couldn''t wait to experiment on them. Once Noah reached his temporary habitation, he deployed the dark world and resumed the creation of darkness for Night. The Pterodactyl had already reached the upper tier, but he wanted to push its power even further. After spending some time training, Noah took out the fruit from his separate space and bit it. An intense wave of energy flowed inside him and forced the black hole to work at full power to purify it. That small bite already contained more energy than all the magical beasts burned during the battle. ''Don''t tell me that this can become a rank 8 resource once it''s fully ripe,'' Noah thought as he inspected the fruit. It was impossible to let the fruit grow unless Noah could fend off the various rank 8 threats. The tall tree may produce far more valuable resources, but the other creatures would stop it due to their greed. A few plans formed in Noah''s mind as he consumed the fruit, but they quickly crumbled. He had already seen how powerful rank 8 creatures could be. His current battle prowess didn''t allow him to deploy any feasible strategy. ''It would be easier with the Foolery,'' Noah thought before moving his focus toward a different project. His body was full of energy that the black hole continued to purify before allowing his tissues to absorb it. Any magical beast or normal hybrid would see their power increase after that wave of power, but Noah only experienced a slight growth. That event didn''t surprise Noah, especially after witnessing how powerful existences in the eighth rank were. The next breakthrough would elevate his whole being in ways that he had yet to comprehend fully. ''Snore,'' Noah called his Blood Companion, and the giant reptilian head soon appeared at his side. Snore opened its mouth, and a prison made of dark matter landed on the cave''s floor. The shadow of the upper tier mole was inside it, but it didn''t struggle as it did during the battle. ''Did it accept its situation?'' Noah wondered before performing a series of inspections on the shadow. He quickly confirmed that the creature was still alive, but he couldn''t understand why it didn''t react to his inspections. It remained still even when Noah pierced its strange body with his swords. ''Quite peculiar indeed,'' Noah thought before considering a few hypotheses. Noah had an idea that could explain that odd behavior. The moles seemed to have a tight connection with the breeding ground. In theory, their survival instincts could even depend on that dark cloud. ''Well, it''s alive,'' Noah thought before taking out a red crystal. Noah would have to study those creatures in their natural habitat to learn more about their innate abilities. Still, that project was impossible at his current level. The mole in its shadow form was hard to analyze. Its fabric contained laws that allowed it to transform into an actual magical beast, but Noah couldn''t trigger that event. Even his pride didn''t manage to force the creature. It was clear that the beast had lost something when Noah separated it from the breeding ground, but he didn''t mind it. He had finally obtained a creature with a darkness aptitude. It was time to test the crystals found in the Evolution Pit. The Demonic Deduction technique could help in that process only at times. Noah wanted to create something meant for destruction, but his experiment forced him to think about a fusion first. Since Noah had yet to understand how the mole worked, he couldn''t make full use of the Demonic Deduction technique. He didn''t even know which innate ability the creature had. He was almost approaching the experiment blindly. From what Noah had seen on the battlefield, he could guess that the mole wouldn''t turn into a blood companion that suited his logic-defying battle prowess. Still, he had put that off for too long, so he didn''t care about the actual value of the beast anymore. Noah only wanted to see how the red crystal worked. That material could become the key to improve his companions, so he wanted to test its power and decide whether he had to pursue that experiment. The mole seized during the battle was in the upper tier, while Noah had only red crystals in the middle tier. Still, his ambition could force any material in the world to evolve. Noah held the red crystal in his grasp as he closed his eyes. His ambition seeped out of his figure, but he forced it to focus on the mineral. His influence had only temporary effects, but Noah believed that he could force them to become permanent. He only had to expose the red crystal for enough time to reach that result. Noah spent weeks focusing his ambition on the red crystal. He often had to restart the process since the material began to lose power at some point. However, it eventually reached the point when its level didn''t fall anymore. The middle tier red crystal transformed into a material in the upper tier after weeks of nourishment under Noah''s influence. His law had forced that material to evolve. Noah had replicated the same event that had happened during his battle with Lady Lena. Noah didn''t hesitate to fuse the crystal with the mole at that point. He didn''t know which inscription method suited that procedure, so he relied on the workshop and the Elemental Forging method to be safe. The red crystal melted and fused with the shadow through a simple meaning and a dense wave of dark matter, giving it a scarlet shade that often vanished in its blackness. Initially, the mole didn''t show any change, but a transformation eventually occurred. The shadow convulsed as smoke came out of its fabric and gave birth to a small version of the breeding ground that Noah had seen in the underground area. Chapter 1506: 1506. Expendable ''This thing again,'' Noah thought while inspecting the breeding ground. The red crystal didn''t contain much. It was nothing more than a mineral filled with peculiar auras. It carried Noah''s ambition and the same law of the Evolution Pit. ''This should be its best form,'' Noah thought. ''The best form that its current energy can allow it to reach.'' The mole had evolved into the breeding ground after the fusion. Noah could understand the reasoning behind the transformation because his law carried similar properties. Yet, he was still unclear about its exact functioning. That general understanding wasn''t enough. Noah wanted to fuse the red crystals with his companions, so he wanted to know everything about those minerals. Only complete knowledge would satisfy him. Noah''s curiosity took control of his mind during his time inside the cave. Only countless tests could give him the answers that he needed. The Demonic Deduction technique couldn''t help in the process, but Noah wasn''t in a hurry. The first experiment saw a thorough study of the breeding ground''s behavior in the outside world. Noah dispersed the cage of higher energy and let the dark cloud interact freely with the matter around it. The cloud didn''t absorb energy, but the shadow of an upper tier mole soon came out of its surface. The breeding ground almost vanished, but the process allowed Noah to learn more about that species. The mole that came out of the cloud was stronger than the creature captured in the underground area. The minute breeding ground left after the process was unable to give birth to more beasts, but it didn''t disappear. Noah linked that empowerment to the fusion. The mole didn''t only evolve. It had also improved during the procedure, and that had given the breeding ground the ability to produce stronger creatures. The new mole behaved as a proper magical beast. Noah could submit it easily, but he didn''t manage to learn anything from the creature even after multiple interrogations. ''The breeding ground carries the collective intellect of the pack,'' Noah concluded after those experiments. Killing the mole replicated the process witnessed in the underground area. Noah broke the creature''s neck countless times, but it always transformed into a shadow that flowed back into the breeding ground. The cloud would then give birth to the mole again, in a cycle that didn''t seem to have an end. Still, the mole wasn''t completely immortal. The cloud lost minute parts of its fabric every time the creature died and reformed. The breeding ground couldn''t keep going forever. Feeding the mole restored the cloud. The width of the breeding ground depended on how much energy its creations managed to retrieve. The more Noah learnt about that species, the less he felt that the mole could become a suitable Blood Companion. That creature could only work as a meat shield. It had sharp claws, but its innate ability heavily affected its physical prowess. Only the ability of the breeding ground was interesting. That cloud could revive the members of its pack, and Noah wondered whether he could harness that power to transform it into a technique. ''It''s similar to the Second-Life Formation,'' Noah thought as memories surged in his mind. ''It works so well with the moles because they are quite weak and need less energy to be born again. It will take far more to revive one of my companions or me.'' Theoretically, Noah had the power and the expertise to replicate that breeding ground and adapt it to his needs. However, the power carried by his existence was immense. He would have to store an unfathomable amount of energy to make that technique work. He also had to consider the various flaws that his replica would have. Noah wasn''t as simple as the moles. His existence carried too many features, and a single breeding ground might not suit him. Noah could compensate those flaws with more energy, but that would mean adding requirements to an already unrealistic technique. Creating it was possible, but he wouldn''t know if it worked until he died. ''It doesn''t seem a project that I can approach now,'' Noah concluded. ''I desperately need nutrients to improve. Wasting them in this project will slow down my growth.'' Noah would have to amass enough energy to replicate his body, dantian, mind, and black hole. No rank 7 cultivator would gather so many resources and decide to store them for a miraculous technique. His growth would also force him to adjust the energy stored in the technique constantly. That ability would end up consuming most of his gains, ultimately crippling his cultivation level. ''This goes beyond the fairness of Heaven and Earth,'' Noah thought. Part of Noah knew that the technique was feasible, but it was too expensive. It also went against his existence. Delaying his growth had never been in his plans. The idea of fusing that innate ability with the workshop crossed his mind, but Noah eventually rejected it. His endless army of beasts and the breeding ground shared similar features, but Great Builder''s technique was better when used with the dark world. Noah could use the nigh-endless energy contained in the black hole to fuel the workshop. The breeding ground lost less power to revive its creations, but it was slower, and it required the beasts to return inside the cloud. ''What a pity,'' Noah concluded before discarding any idea of transforming the mole into something useful. ''The red crystals seem reliable at least.'' His new understanding of the red crystals was the true reward of the experiments. Noah even tried to fuse more minerals into the mole, but they didn''t manage to apply transformations anymore. They only made the creature more inclined to evolve further. With that knowledge, Noah could finally move to experiments that would improve his battle prowess. He only had to decide from which companion he had to start. ''I might lose them if something goes wrong,'' Noah thought before heaving a helpless sigh. Noah had performed the fusion only once and on a simple magical beast. The process with Snore, the Demonic Sword, Night, and the Demonic Form would be harsher since the companions were complicated existences. Noah had to make a difficult decision. His first choice had more chances to suffer from his inexperience. He was basically deciding which companion was expendable. ''Are you willing to be the first?'' Noah asked as a large reptilian head materialized in the cave. Snore''s power had surpassed Noah''s at times, and it was versatile. However, Noah had created it from scratch. He could rebuild an identical body any time. He only needed to find a suitable will to replace the Albino Snake. Night''s innate abilities were too peculiar, and Noah didn''t know if he could recreate the Demonic Sword. The parasite was also unique. Snore was the obvious choice, but he wanted to make sure that the snake understood his intentions. Snore sensed Noah''s feelings and released a loud hiss that spread through the area. Its body materialized and destroyed the cave, transforming it into a large hole in the middle of the region. Noah found himself in front of the massive snake, but Snore soon lowered its head to perform a bow. The Blood Companion was offering its life to Noah. It even radiated some excitement at the thought of becoming stronger. Chapter 1507: 1507. Evolution Noah had always claimed that June knew him better than anyone else, but the truth was that his companions surpassed her in that field. The Demonic Sword, Snore, and Night shared a mental connection with Noah, and they were with him even during his solitary moments. They had accompanied him through all his training sessions and long journeys. The companions had seen how hard Noah had struggled during the past events. They had been almost useless for many battles. Only the Demonic Sword had continued to help him due to its connection with his martial arts. The three companions hated that situation. They despised their weakness. Snore didn''t hesitate to accept Noah''s offer, but Night and the Demonic Sword would have done the same. ''I will transform the red crystal into something that suits you before starting the procedure,'' Noah said to Snore through their mental connection. ''I don''t know what you''ll become if everything works well, but it should give you a chance to evolve without depending on my cultivation level.'' Snore transformed into dark matter and flowed back inside Noah''s body. The creature didn''t fear that procedure, and it would do anything to become stronger. Night and the Demonic Sword went silent while Noah transformed one of the red crystals. The three companions didn''t bicker as much as before anymore, but they still conversed in Noah''s mind from time to time. Yet, they didn''t say anything at that time. The companions let Snore prepare for the procedure. Even the Demonic Sword had become mature enough to know when it had to leave some space to its friends. Snore embodied the destructive power of the dark world. It was a channel where the copies of the elements fused and transformed into energy capable of piercing any material. Noah couldn''t limit himself to bring the red crystal to the upper tier. He had to turn it into a material that would suit Snore. The fusion had to be perfect. The dark world recreated the black version of the elements. Noah surrounded the crystal with those energies and used his ambition to improve its fabric. The mineral and the black elements slowly fused as they remained immersed in Noah''s law. Every material could absorb energy with the right push, and his ambition was perfect for the task. The crystal slowly changed color and shape. It lost its solid form and turned black after absorbing the elements and reaching the upper tier. It was already something different from what Noah had used with the mole, but that didn''t make him hesitate. He would use the dark matter and the Elemental Forging method. He had spent entire millennia honing his expertise in those fields. Noah didn''t use a generic meaning. He focused on his memories of Snore and condensed them to create a pure expression of its existence. Then, he added a piece of his tainted mental waves to share his bloodlust with Snore. The Blood Companion was perfect for that emotion. That feeling would naturally bring its destructive properties to a new level. Snore''s fabric initially rejected that foreign material. It didn''t matter that Noah had tried to make it match the snake''s structure. The Blood Companion''s body was already almost perfect, so it didn''t want anything else. Noah had learnt how the crystal behaved from his previous experiment, and he had even expected that rejection. His influence forced the mineral to evaporate and transform into a gas that slowly fused with Snore''s fabric. Noah had created Snore. He knew exactly where that material had to go to influence the whole creature. An entire day had to pass before the crystal fused with the snake and activated. The fusion didn''t go as well as the previous. Snore''s fabric instinctively rejected that new material and tried to expel it. Yet, Noah forced it to stay in its place and continue spreading its influence through the snake''s body. Snore suffered and struggled. It crashed its massive head on the ground in a desperate attempt to force that substance out of its body. Noah soon felt forced to restrain the creature with his bare hands, and he even ended up summoning the workshop to get some harmless help. Noah couldn''t let the Blood Companion destroy its body and trigger its automatic reconstruction. Snore had to endure that pain and let the crystal alter its fabric. Snore''s pain also reached Noah''s mind. The snake was a proper Blood Companion. The two of them shared their senses. Noah felt as if his body was on fire. His tissues screamed in pain and died as the crystal rebuilt their structure. He knew that those events weren''t happening to him, but he didn''t dare to suppress those sensations. He wouldn''t let Snore suffer alone. His determination would stir the Blood Companion to endure that pain and preserve its body. Snore eventually collapsed on the ground. Its fabric grew unstable and threatened to detonate. Its body also expanded to create something similar to the dark world. Still, the innate properties of the dark matter eventually kicked in. Noah''s higher energy could replicate anything in the world, so it could adapt to any material. The cloud slowly shrunk. Noah could feel Snore''s consciousness growing stronger in his mind, and the creature''s ethereal image transformed as that process continued. A reptilian head eventually became visible among that chaotic dark matter. The rest of Snore''s body also started to condense, and Noah quickly noticed some changes. Noah had cut away Snore''s feathered wings and replaced them with three pairs of scaled wings in the past. He had made that decision to optimize the Blood Companion''s power, but the red crystal had a different opinion on the matter. When Snore completely condensed, Noah could see that its three pairs of wings had disappeared. Two immense feathered wings had replaced them. Its body had also grown. The creature had become far longer than a kilometer by then. Its head had also changed, but Noah''s attention was on the wings. Their feathers resembled sharp chunks of metal that radiated a black light. Each of them carried immense energy and featured the same destructive properties as the dark beam. The six horns had vanished. Snore only had two long horns now, and they also radiated the same destructive energy as the dark beam. Even its teeth featured that power. It seemed that its whole existence had attuned with its strongest attack. Snore quickly recovered and straightened its position. The creature lifted its head to the sky and spat a cloud of violent dark matter. Initially, that gas flowed slowly, but it soon started to pick up speed until it transformed into the familiar dark beam. ''I see,'' Noah thought. ''The red crystal has forced your existence to evolve past the black elements. You have become one with the violent dark matter. You don''t need anything else to generate it.'' Noah''s curiosity didn''t allow him to move his eyes away from the wings. He couldn''t believe that the red crystal had made them reappear, but he didn''t want to reject them before understanding what they did. ''Show me an attack with those feathers,'' Noah asked. Snore gave voice to a happy hiss and turned toward the center of the region while unfolding his massive wings. One of the metallic feathers shot out of its figure and reached that spot in an instant. An earthquake followed the attack, and a dark area suddenly appeared on the landing spot. A wave of violent dark matter also spread from there and threatened to expand through the whole region. Both Noah and Snore remained speechless in front of that destructive power, but they didn''t hesitate to shot toward Fergie''s cave. They had to leave the region to dodge that attack. Chapter 1508: 1508. Differen ''I guess we can only test your real power in battle,'' Noah said through his mental connection. Snore nodded without moving its gaze from the center of the region. Noah and Fergie were in the same situation. They were inspecting the damage caused by the black feather. The region had featured a small azure river and bushlands at its center. A mountain had also stood near that area. Still, nothing had remained after the feather landed on the ground. The wave of violent dark matter had spread through most of that land, but it had lost its destructive effects after flying for less than a minute. It had destroyed a quarter of the region before losing its power. "Do I need to build my cave even farther away?" Fergie asked without moving his eyes from the crater. "It shouldn''t be so bad with the others," Noah replied. "I bet you hope otherwise," Fergie added. "Of course," Noah said. "Rank 8 beings can affect entire regions with their attacks. I''m slowly approaching that level." "I can see that," Fergie replied. "Your cultivation level is still far away from that rank, but you have many unreasonable powers at your side. You might be able to reach that level if you amass enough beings that break Heaven and Earth''s fairness." Noah nodded. That was precisely his plan. Filling the gaps between the ranks with his centers of power was impossible. He had to rely on his companions, black hole, and innate advantages to reach a battle prowess at that level. "When will you start your next experiment?" Fergie asked. "Right away," Noah replied. "I can''t hold back after seeing this." "I will build my cave farther away," Fergie said before flying toward the next region. Noah didn''t bother to follow him with his gaze. Snore''s current power had proven that the red crystals could bring his companions to a new level. He couldn''t stop thinking about the experiments now that he knew how strong those creatures could become. Snore quickly dug another cave, and Noah spent some time analyzing the snake. The creature had transformed. It had become a being that stood between Blood Companions and beasts connected to his existence now. Its power still depended on Noah''s cultivation level, but it had started to absorb energy on its own. It seemed that Snore could now improve even if Noah''s power didn''t grow. ''More mouths to feed,'' Noah thought before moving to his next project. The Demonic Form didn''t want to come out of his chest, and Noah didn''t feel comfortable evolving it yet. The plant was powerful, but it fed of Noah''s energies. Its improvements might cripple him. The second choice for the fusion with the red crystals had to be Night. The Pterodactyl had also expressed its willingness to face the procedure after seeing how Snore had improved. Noah didn''t even need to make up his mind at that point. Adapting the red crystal to Night turned out to be complicated. Snore only had energies that came from Noah, but the Pterodactyl was a different type of beast. Noah had built Night''s current body, but he had added materials that he couldn''t replicate with his dark matter. The Royal metal was a miraculous mineral that his dark world couldn''t produce. Still, Noah could create something similar to the Royal metal, and he didn''t forget its power. It took him longer to transform the crystal, but he eventually managed to create something that met his expectations. ''Don''t hesitate,'' Night said through the mental connection once Noah began to create the meaning for the Elemental Forging method. ''You know my pride, and I know your blade. I will have no regret even if the procedure fails.'' ''I almost miss the bossy Pterodactyl that I met in the Dark Gorge,'' Noah replied. ''I was but a beast scared of the sunlight,'' Night said while raising its strange head to the sky. ''You have shown me a better way. You have given me the power to fight the light. I only ask you to give me more of that.'' Noah didn''t let Night wait too much. The creature''s power was a mixture of adaptability, speed, and sharpness, so Noah used a meaning that could cover those three requirements. He infused the red crystal with pure destruction before forcing it to reach the upper tier. Night was the perfect carrier of that part of Noah''s individuality. Its whole existence depended on severing laws. Night went through the same pain as Snore once Noah fused the red crystal with its strange fabric. Its black lines thinned, and its body grew, threatening the overall stability of its structure. Noah feared that the Pterodactyl would crumble, but Night performed better than Snore. The creature remained conscient during the procedure and used its innate ability to quicken the absorption of the crystal. It even threw away some scarlet shards that its body didn''t accept. Night didn''t change much after the process ended. Its body had rejected part of the red crystal, but the evolution had succeeded. Still, Noah couldn''t understand how strong it had become from its appearance. ''Shall we test you out?'' Noah asked. ''I will destroy far more than the snake!'' Night replied before shooting toward the center of the region. Noah flew in the sky to inspect the scene and used the mental connection to keep track of Night''s movements. The Pterodactyl had already fused with the world. His eyes and mental energy were useless in that task. The long figure of the Pterodactyl eventually reappeared in the sky and reached Noah. The ground remained the same for less than a second before a massive cut opened. The fissure covered a third of the region, and Night gave voice to a happy snort before flying back into the separate space. The creature felt satisfied that its attack had surpassed Snore''s demonstration. ''A general improvement then,'' Noah thought while analyzing the fissure. ''Night is already the best expression of itself. I made sure of it. It doesn''t surprise me that the red crystal can''t give it anything else.'' Noah closed his eyes at that point. He had one last companion to evolve. It was time to see if his Demonic Sword could survive the procedure. The Demonic Sword came out of the separate space on its own, but it remained silent. It could feel Noah''s hesitation, but it was ready to complain if he didn''t want to pursue that approach anymore. The blade wanted more power. It was an expression of Noah''s existence, so it shared his desire to improve. Not even Noah could stop it at that point. Noah knew what the Demonic Sword was thinking. He could sense the desire seeping out of its fabric. It was a mature desire that had nothing to do with its past childish expressions. ''You sure have grown,'' Noah said through his mental connection. The Demonic Sword continued to remain silent, but its shape froze when it saw Noah taking out his entire ethereal figure from his mental sphere. ''The procedure with you will be a bit different,'' Noah explained. ''The others only required meanings, but you reflect my law. Only my entire existence can express what you are.'' Night and Snore came out in the open as the dark world unfolded. Noah was about to lose any will to live, but that process was necessary. His grasp firmly closed on his ethereal figure, shattering it into dark dust that floated through the waves of dark matter. Chapter 1509: 1509. Sphere The Will-consuming runes were the only method capable of suppressing Noah''s ambition. They could destroy his emotions and turn him into nothing more than a breathing corpse. The procedure was hazardous for Noah. He wasn''t a heroic cultivator anymore. His ambition was his very existence, so depleting it could lead to his death. Still, the black hole managed to prevent any unfavorable outcome. The organ forced Noah''s centers of power to function even when his law lost strength. It kept him alive until his ambition returned. Noah couldn''t transform the red crystal while he was in that state. His only option was to amass the dark powder generated by destroying his ethereal figure in the dark world. Once he had enough of that substance, he could approach the second phase of the procedure. The Demonic Sword and the other companions protected Noah during the process, but no creature dared to approach his cave. The dark world was a natural shield against external threats, and most of the fauna in the region had escaped after his previous show of power. Only one pack remained on the other edge of the region. Its leader was a rank 8 creature, but its power was below average. It feared the Foolery too much to reach Noah''s position. ''It''s finally over,'' Noah thought once his ambition revived his existence and allowed him to focus on the procedure. The dark world had autonomously gathered the dark powder dispersed inside it. Noah only had to force the red crystal to grow and fuse that substance with the mineral to approach the fusion. That phase didn''t take him much. Noah could quicken the effects of his influence after gaining experience in the previous procedures. That training also helped his potential since he improved in using his ambition. ''Ready?'' Noah asked as he lifted the now dark crystal toward the floating Demonic Sword. The blade didn''t show any hesitation. It stabbed the ground and waited for Noah to begin the procedure. It was even ready to face the pain that usually accompanied that experiment. Noah forced the crystal to melt by infusing it with a meaning that carried his ambition and fused it with the blade. Scarlet lines immediately appeared on the weapon, and a wave of pain reached Noah''s mind due to the connection with the Demonic Sword. The fabric of the blade transformed. The Demonic Blade already had primary energy, darkness, mental energy, and dark matter, so its body took longer to accept that foreign material. The blade slowly melted and formed a pool that floated among the dark world. Noah couldn''t sense his weapon anymore at that point, but a roar soon resounded inside his mind. The connection with the sword intensified as a sharp tip came out of the pool. A long edge followed, revealing a sphere between the blade and the handle. The Demonic Sword had retaken a solid form, but its shape had gone through a few changes. The blade had two sharp edges and lacked a guard, but scarlet lines now ran through its structure, and a black sphere rotated right above the handle. The sphere resembled a strange guard, but that wasn''t its purpose. Noah noticed something spectacular when he inspected it. Dense dark matter rotated inside that structure. ''Did it gain a black hole?!'' Noah thought as his consciousness unfolded to gain a better view of the Demonic Sword. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize the similarity of the sphere with the dark world. It contained less power, and its walls weren''t as sturdy as his organ, but he couldn''t deny its authenticity. The Demonic Sword had gained Noah''s most incredible feature. It now had a black hole as a center of power. That organ couldn''t fuse with its fabric, so it took the shape of a rotating sphere carved inside its structure. The blade gave voice to a roar, and dark matter came out of its sphere. The higher energy covered the sword and transformed its figure, giving it the shape of a familiar tall dragon. Noah had transformed into that dragon when the last perfect hybrid of the other world triggered the Worldwide Tribulation. He would have maintained that shape if it weren''t for the creation of the Demonic Sword. "I feel whole, Father," The Demonic Sword said as roars mixed with its human voice. "Let''s test your power then," Noah said, revealing a smile as he stretched his arm forward. The draconic shape vanished into a cloud of dark matter that flowed back inside the Demonic Sword''s sphere. The blade then flew in Noah''s grasp and conveyed what it had learnt about its new status. ''I have a fixed shape now,'' The Demonic Sword said. ''I can''t shrink nor stretch anymore, but I can use the dark matter to transform.'' Noah nodded. He didn''t care that the Demonic Sword had traded its ductility for the black hole. That organ could give countless advantages. The whole human domain would kill to obtain that center of power. Noah flew high in the sky and raised the Demonic Sword above his head. The sphere began to rotate faster while releasing dark matter. Lumps of higher energy came out of the blade and created a tall black line in the middle of that whiteness. Power flowed inside Noah''s arm. He could feel his existence harmonizing with the Demonic Sword and forcing him to express more strength. The event reminded him of the effects of his ambition, but it seemed less forceful. Noah''s arm descended, and the dark matter accumulated in the sky shot forward. A dense slash flew together with the higher energy and radiated an intense sharpness when it fell on the ground. No earthquakes followed the impact. The attack pierced the ground and continued to dig toward its depts, meeting almost no hindrances in the process. The slash was so sharp that the world barely noticed it. The slash covered the same area as Night''s attack, but it reached far deeper spots. Its piercing capabilities were incredible, and its overall power surpassed what the Pterodactyl could achieve. That superior might didn''t only come from the Demonic Sword. The blade could now force Noah to express more power during his attacks. It could replicate a weaker version of the effects of his ambition. ''How many shapes can you take?'' Noah asked through the mental connection. ''I shouldn''t have any limit in that field,'' The Demonic Sword replied, ''But I prefer the dragon form.'' Noah nodded before storing the Demonic Sword. A sense of satisfaction and relief filled his mind as he stared at the damages caused by his improved companions. His companions had evolved. Noah had also completed a project that had been in his mind since his exploration of the Evolution Pit. He could finally focus on improving his cultivation level and techniques during the journey through the magical beasts'' domain. ''My priority is to gain rank 8 battle prowess,'' Noah thought as he crossed his legs while floating in the sky. ''I should be close after these experiments, but I won''t be sure unless I test the full power of the companions.'' Noah needed battles, and he knew a place that often featured fights. The tall tree would give birth to valuable fruits every now and then. The plant marked the perfect place where to test his power. Chapter 1510: 1510. Training Noah sorted his training methods before starting his new plan. His body and dantian didn''t need anything new, but his mind could endure more pressure. The white sky toughened Noah''s mind and slowly improved its power, so he didn''t hesitate to add more dark matter to his spherical rune. Still, he didn''t feel satisfied with that pressure, so he let the upper tier mole join his training. The creature was virtually useless as a Blood Companion, but Noah performed the Body-inscription spell anyway. He lacked a better option, so he would use the mole as part of his training until a suitable replacement appeared. Killing the mole turned out to be tricky, but Noah eventually managed to force it to spill blood. He destroyed the creature until the breeding ground couldn''t function anymore. The beast obtained proper flesh and blood that he could use in the spell at that point. ''What do I even need to do with you?'' Noah thought while inspecting the plant growing inside his chest. Noah shared a mental connection with the Demonic Form, but it never spoke. Its noises didn''t even carry any meaning. The plant was an embodiment of destruction, and it only cared about absorbing energy to grow. Controlling it wasn''t an issue for Noah, especially after the improvements of his companions. Snore could easily keep it in check, but that was the best he could do at the moment. The cursed sword was another asset that needed some attention. The blade fed on bloodlust, and defeating powerful enemies with it was the fastest method to improve it. The blade was still at some distance from the eighth rank, so it couldn''t produce attacks at that level yet. Still, Noah planned to use the weapon more often to force it to grow. Noah tested a few things and trained for a while before deciding to exit the cave. After summoning Fergie, the duo flew toward the tall tree and created habitations near its base to wait for the appearance of the next fruit. It was hard to give up on such a valuable resource. Both Noah and Fergie had already benefitted from the fruit, so they knew that the magical beasts'' domain would rarely manage to offer them something better. The best resources were in the hands of packs that featured multiple rank 8 specimens. Some of them even had creatures in the middle and upper tier. Noah didn''t even consider facing existences at that level yet. The rank 8 monkey and wolf were perfect training dummies. They could allow Noah to test and improve his battle prowess. The periods between the appearance of each fruit also gave him the time to train, so he had no reason to leave the area. Noah even believed that the Foolery would eventually leave their region and choose to migrate. Those creatures would need Noah at that point since he could act as a bridge between their pack and the Legion. It was impossible to predict when the tall tree would produce another fruit, but Noah guessed that it wouldn''t take long since he had seen packs fighting under the plant two times already. A battle was unfolding under the three when the Foolery attacked him. A second fruit had happened soon after. Noah guessed that the tree would trigger another fight soon, so he kept his senses ready to pick up that peculiar scent. His guess turned out to be correct. Noah and Fergie only had to wait a few years to see the tree give birth to a fruit again and attracting all the magical beasts in the area. ''It''s time,'' Noah said through his consciousness, awakening Fergie in the nearby cave. Fergie quickly flew out of his cave and met with Noah mid-air. The duo moved toward the tree, where they saw that two familiar packs had already started to fight. "Seize the fruit again," Noah ordered. "I will handle the two leaders." Fergie didn''t even try to argue. Changing Noah''s mind was impossible, even if his plan saw Fergie taking care of two entire packs that featured multiple creatures in the upper tier. "I''m only a liquid stage existence," Fergie whispered before lifting his arm. A small flame came out of his palm and expanded until it took the shape of a raging sun that filled the area with red light. Some of the magical beasts on the ground noticed him, but they continued to fight, ignoring the energy accumulating in the sky. Noah glanced at Fergie''s spell before giving voice to a roar that carried his pride. Both packs suddenly stopped fighting, but the two leaders promptly launched cries that forced them to resume their battles. The two leaders then fixed their eyes on Noah. His pride had attracted their attention, and they still recalled him from the previous battle. However, they didn''t feel that he was worthy of joining their fights. Noah could understand their thoughts without even needing to check their facial expressions. He didn''t believe to be at their level either, but he wasn''t there to win. Snore, Night, and the Demonic Sword came out of the separate space, and a root pierced his right palm to grow in the outside world. Noah tore the root and threw it toward the two leaders, who voiced another series of annoyed cries. ''You still don''t want to come at me,'' Noah thought before drawing the white blade and covering it in the corrosive properties released by the Demonic Form. Noah then dived toward the two leaders and raised his blades above his head. A trail of dark matter came out of the Demonic Sword, and the higher energy followed the attack once Noah performed a slash. A cross-shaped slash fell toward the ground. It wasn''t invisible anymore. A dark halo now covered the attack, but its properties had remained the same. The singularity crashed on the two leaders, who didn''t dare to dodge the attack since their opponent could exploit that opportunity. Noah''s slash slammed on their bodies but didn''t manage to pierce their tough skin. Yet, the attack destroyed their fur and left a visible mark on their bodies. Noah didn''t manage to inflict any real damage, but that outcome alone spoke for his improvements. Noah had attacked rank 8 creatures with his cursed blade during the previous fight, but he didn''t manage to do much back then. Instead, he had obtained better effects without relying on that troublesome weapon now. ''My foundation is slowly reaching their level,'' Noah thought as excitement filled his mind. The two leaders couldn''t ignore Noah anymore, but they couldn''t reach him either. Only the monkey had ranged attacks, and the creature would never show its back to its main opponent. Cooperating was impossible in that situation. Noah exploited that hesitation by launching another cross-shaped slash. He was holding his strongest attacks back for fear of damaging the tree, but he had already put into action a plan that would solve that issue. Noah gave voice to a roar as the unstable substance flowed through his black veins. The magical beasts on the ground stopped fighting again, but their leaders didn''t give them new orders because they were busy following the human figure in the sky with their eyes. Fergie threw his sun on the ground during that moment of distraction. Countless magical beasts died during the impact, and his spell continued to float above the surface to launch fireballs toward any creature that dared to move. Noah landed in the middle of the fiery ground. The wolf and monkey immediately shot toward him, but a mark suddenly appeared on their foreheads. Night soon reappeared next to Noah and helped him replying to the angry gazes of his opponents. Chapter 1511: 1511. Plan Noah didn''t go all-out even after he landed on the ground, and the two rank 8 leaders did the same. The three of them were unaware whether the moles'' pack would show up again, and they didn''t want to be in a position where those creatures could surprise them. The two leaders attacked Noah. The monkey''s chest inflated to launch a dense soundwave. The wolf shot toward him, but it didn''t use its incredible speed due to the innate ability of the other creature. Noah had landed on the ground only to attract the leaders'' attention, but he had no intention of fighting fairly. Magical beasts would almost always focus on any being with a human shape, and Noah didn''t want to end up in the middle of two rank 8 creatures. His body transformed into a black blade that shot backward. Night fused with the environment before the soundwave could reach it, and an explosion happened on that spot. The shockwaves released after the detonation of the monkey''s attack forced Noah out of his movement technique and made him spat blood. The wolf didn''t hesitate to reach him at that point, and Noah could soon see the creature''s tall figure jumping on him from his side. Noah could barely face one rank 8 magical beast, let alone two. However, he had his improved companions by his side, but he didn''t want to unleash their power while he was near the tree. Snore quickly materialized to intercept the wolf''s attack. The snake''s massive figure created a natural barrier that stopped the creature''s leap and forced it to focus on its new opponent. The wolf easily pieced Snore''s body, but a wave of violent dark matter engulfed it before it could launch another attack. The Blood Companion was pure destruction now. Even its insides featured the same substance that made its dark beam. The violent dark matter didn''t manage to injure the leader, but pieces of its fur vanished when that wave of energy engulfed it. The wolf''s anger surged before it leapt again and pierced Snore''s body. Yet, it didn''t find Noah when it reached the other side. A soundwave threatened to crash on Snore, but the snake transformed into a cloud that vanished once the attack exploded. A crack appeared on Blood Companion''s ethereal figure, but the wolf ended up enduring most of the blow. Snore was still a Blood Companion, so its body would disperse once Noah went too far away. The attack of the rank 8 monkey would normally inflict severe injuries to its ethereal figure, but the snake didn''t stay in the area long enough to endure the entirety of the blow. The wolf gave voice to an angry howl before turning toward the monkey. The creature seemed about to jump toward its previous opponent, but a cross-shaped slash suddenly crashed on its body and forced it to turn again. Noah had stopped only to launch the slash. He had immediately resumed his retreat when the wolf turned again. The creature couldn''t contain its anger and chased him at full speed, but Snore appeared on its path when it was about to reach him. The monkey launched another soundwave while the wolf was busy fighting Snore, but the snake disappeared before the attack reached the area at that time. The soundwave ended up crashing directly on the wolf''s body. Blood flowed out of the creature''s mouth. It seemed that the attack had damaged its internal organs. Noah slashed toward the wolf before it could turn toward the monkey. The creature was livid at that point. It had no idea who to attack, but it eventually charged toward Noah. ''Almost there,'' Noah thought once he reached the edges of the region. The tall tree was far away from that spot. Fergie would have a decent chance to let the fruit grow and seize it once it was fully ripe now. Noah only had to keep the two leaders busy for as long as possible. The wolf reached Noah in an instant, but Snore didn''t appear. He turned toward the creature, slashing with both his blades while a wave of dark matter surrounded his figure. The blades and the wolf clashed, releasing a shockwave that shattered the ground. Noah''s arms released screeching noises, and the swords threatened to break, but the dark matter and the unstable substance kept them intact. Still, the impact flung Noah away and made him dig a long hole through the azure ground. His body felt sore once the empowerment given by the Demonic Sword vanished. The skin on his elbows, wrists, and shoulders had also shattered. ''That was dumb,'' Noah thought before wearing a broad smile. Facing a rank 8 creature with his bare body had been a stupid idea, but Noah was willing to lose his arms to understand how far he was from the eighth rank. Noah couldn''t remain deep in his thoughts since the wolf immediately leapt toward him. The creature wouldn''t let him go now that it had managed to put him on the ground. An invisible force flung the wolf upward and created a long mark on its chest. The Pterodactyl became visible for less than an instant before fusing with the world again and resuming its offensive. Night attacked the creature again while it was mid-air, and Snore quickly formed to wrap its immense body around the wolf. The snake restrained its limbs and bit on its neck as violent dark matter flowed out of its mouth. Noah straightened his position and pulled his blades back. His knees bent as the Demonic Sword''s black hole released dark matter that covered both weapons. His ambition also activated. His cultivation level increased and reached the limits of the seventh rank. Noah was ready to launch his strongest attack, but the monkey''s offensive forced him to retreat. Snore quickly transformed into a cloud that dispersed before the dense soundwave exploded. The wolf endured the entirety of the blow again, but no slash crashed on its body at that time. Noah flew around the wolf and neared the monkey. He came out of his movement technique to resume his previous position and gather his power. The monkey''s chest inflated at that sight, but the wolf jumped on the creature before it could launch its attack. Noah could take his time to amass as much dark matter as possible before launching his double lunge. Two beams shot out of Noah''s figure. One of them was pitch black, while the other was almost invisible. A wave of dark matter covered both and enhanced their destructive capabilities. The two attacks fused mid-air. They transformed into an unstable piercing force before crashing on the monkey''s belly. The attack destroyed its fur, and Noah could even see a drop of blood flowing out of the landing spot. ''I did it!'' Noah shouted in his mind when he saw that minute drop of dark-red blood. Noah had to use his ambition, the full power of his Demonic Sword, the unstable substance, an upper tier weapon, and dark matter, but he had finally managed to pierce the skin of a rank 8 creature. The actual amount of damage inflicted in the clash didn''t matter. Noah could barely contain his excitement. He had finally approached a rank 8 battle prowess. Chapter 1512: 1512. Overreacting The wolf bit on the monkey''s shoulder and tore a piece of its skin. Blood spurted out of the creature and tainted its fur, but the injury didn''t stop it from inflating its chest again. The monkey turned its head toward the wolf and launched a soundwave. The attack exploded right in its face, separating the two magical beasts and injuring both of them. Noah couldn''t escape the shockwaves released in the attack. His organs shook, and blood accumulated in his mouth, but he remained on his feet. He would rather suffer more internal injuries than lose that favorable position. Once Noah felt able to move his arms again, he raised his blades and bathed in the incredible feeling of having his power enhanced by an external force. He was already near the peak of the seventh rank, but the Demonic Sword''s ability pushed his might slightly past that. Dark matter covered both blades and created two black rivers that flowed upward. They shot high in the sky as Noah placed the weapons on his forehead and focused his consciousness on the two rank 8 magical beasts. The two creatures ignored Noah. The wolf charged at the monkey again, and the latter didn''t hesitate to inflate its chest to launch another threatening soundwave. Noah intervened before the monkey could launch its attack. He wanted the creatures to keep hurting each other, but the wolf had already suffered a severe injury while following Noah. The monkey would win in that situation, and Noah couldn''t allow it. He needed both of them to keep them busy. The two blades slid across Noah''s forehead and filled the environment with sharp noises. The dark matter around and above the weapons disappeared to create two massive black pillars that fell on the leaders one instant before the monkey launched its attack. That broad attack couldn''t injure the leaders. It didn''t matter how much power Noah had accumulated inside it. He was still in the solid stage, so only blows featuring piercing properties could hope to tear the creatures'' tough skin. Still, the might carried by the attack managed to hinder the leaders'' offensive. The monkey had to delay its shockwave by an instant. The wolf managed to close the distance from its opponent during that time. The wolf bit on the monkey''s injured shoulder again before a soundwave exploded on its face. The attack flung away both leaders and made them crash on the ground. Their bodies had become a mess of internal injuries and shattered skin. During the previous battles, the wolf and the monkey had never managed to land such clean blows on their opponent. They would always be wary of each other and exploit their innate abilities to preserve their condition. However, Noah had rigged their fair battle. His influence prevented them from gaining the upper hand over their opponent and forced them to exchange self-harming blows. Of course, Noah didn''t forget about the magical beasts'' insane resilience. Those creatures were existences in the eighth rank. He guessed that they could stand even with their internal organs reduced to a pulp. The possibility of defeating those creatures never crossed his mind. Noah knew his power better than anyone else. He was aware that it was impossible to kill them unless his battle prowess improved. Still, that was the very reason behind that battle. The fruit was only an excuse to throw himself into fights that he couldn''t win. ''Snore. Night,'' Noah said through the mental connection. ''Go all-out. I will also unleash the Demonic Form.'' A torrent of dark matter flowed out of his figure before condensing to create Snore. A mark also appeared on the leaders'' forehead before a huge Pterodactyl became visible among the whiteness of the sky. Snore''s arrival attracted the leaders'' attention, but Night gave the snake enough time to launch its attack. The Blood Companion unfolded its wings, and a barrage of metallic feathers crashed on the two rank 8 creatures. ''It''s time to see what you can do,'' Noah thought before storing the white blade and raising his palm. A dark halo covered that part of the region as roots spread from his hand. They consumed the dark matter and primary energy still lingering mid-air, and they didn''t ignore the azure ground under Noah''s feet. The feathers landed on the leaders at that point. The ground began to shake, and two large black clouds expanded after the attack detonated. Those waves of energy engulfed Noah, but the roots sensed the threat and decided to protect their host. When the waves of dark matter dispersed, Noah noticed that the roots had wrapped themselves around his entire body. They had covered his arms, legs, torso, and face, giving him a peculiar appearance. Noah found out that he could move freely, but the corrosive properties of the roots threatened to pierce his skin. His body resisted those effects due to the dark matter released by the black hole, but his robe wasn''t as lucky. The dark matter quickly created the fiendish armor, creating a defensive layer between the skin and the roots. Noah was temporarily safe from that corrosive power in that form, and he could even use the plant''s power as a protective measure. ''You can also do this then,'' Noah thought when he inspected his body. The leaders had endured the full might of Snore''s feathers. That attack expressed Noah''s peak destruction. Not even the Demonic Sword could unleash such power in a single blow. Snore had lost most of its feathers to perform that attack, but the black hole was already rebuilding them. It would take the organ only a few minutes to restore the snake''s wings. The two rank 8 creatures found themselves covered in new injuries. Their bodies already had many wounds, but the snake''s attack had enlarged them and had exploited their condition to spread more destruction. For the first time since the beginning of the battle, the leaders considered the possibility that Noah could defeat them. The creatures sealed a silent agreement at that point. They would take care of Noah before resuming their battle. ''I knew this would happen,'' Noah thought when he saw the two magical beasts turning toward him. The leaders were overreacting. Snore had managed to inflict those damages only because the beasts were already in poor condition. The destruction that it radiated had allowed it to fill their insides with its destructive force. Still, the rank 8 beasts didn''t care that Noah would need to spend hours repeating that attack to bring them closer to their death. That opponent had annoyed them for the last time. They had to take care of him before the battle became too dangerous. ''Time for the last attack then,'' Noah thought when the wolf disappeared from his sight, and the monkey inflated its chest. His bloodlust surged as the cursed sword appeared in the open. The blade landed on his right palm, and the roots entangled themselves around its figure. A thick layer of dark matter covered both blades before the roots stretched over the Demonic Sword. Noah was in his most deadly form right now, but he didn''t waste time inspecting his power. His arms moved before Noah could even muster enough power. A horizontal slash shot out of his blades and sent forward all the energy accumulated around his figure. The roots shattered during the attack, but the corrosive force that they contained fused with the slash and transformed it into a threatening blow. The monkey felt the need to launch its soundwave before completing the preparations for the attack. The wolf also stopped its offensive in a desperate attempt to dodge the slash. The soundwave crashed on the slash, and the wolf leapt above it. The monkey ended up blocking the attack, but the other leader saw two large cuts appearing on its rear legs. After the attack dispersed, the two leaders turned toward Noah, and cries came out of their mouths when they noticed that he had disappeared. Chapter 1513: 1513. Growth "How was the loot this time?" Noah asked once reuniting with Fergie in a region near the tall tree. "I managed to wait longer," Fergie said before taking out the yellowish fruit from his space-ring. "I''m getting better at my spell. We might be able to seize rank 8 resources at some point." Noah nodded before taking out his white sword and dividing the fruit. He took three-quarters of the resource for himself and left the rest to Fergie. Fergie didn''t dare to complain. Noah had kept two rank 8 magical beasts busy while he had merely handled a bunch of rank 7 creatures. The difference between their tasks was immense. ''My powers are on point,'' Noah thought as he left Fergie''s cave to return to his habitation near the tall tree. ''My foundation is the reason why I still can''t fight rank 8 magical beasts. I need to improve my base level.'' Snore, Night, the Demonic Sword, and the Demonic Form were perfect. The first two could launch attacks capable of slowing down rank 8 magical beasts, while the other could enhance Noah''s power enough to injure creatures at that level. It wasn''t a matter of assets anymore. Noah needed to make his centers of power grow to bring his battle prowess to the eighth rank. Nothing else could close the distance from that level. Noah needed to recover. He had suffered severe injuries due to the leaders and the cursed sword. His ambition had also stressed his centers of power. His flames took care of most of his injuries, and a short period of rest allowed his centers of power to disperse the accumulated stress. Noah could soon resume his training, and his level slowly rose. The fruit provided more nutrients at that time, but Noah''s body barely noticed them. His center of power was a bottomless pit that absorbed any form of energy without giving him actual benefits. Instead, his dantian improved steadily. His existence brimmed with potential after the fight against the two leaders. Noah almost struggled to contain his ambition during his training. Forcing his mind to endure so much pressure turned out to be a good decision. The white sky honed its sturdiness and allowed Noah to fill its insides with an immense amount of dark matter. The mole''s ethereal figure also helped in enlarging its walls. Noah didn''t stop there when it came to his mind. The constant fight against the pressure of the sky made its walls sturdy enough for his mental waves'' innate ability. His mind could devour wills, but Noah rarely relied on that ability to improve because it thinned his mental walls. However, the sky compensated for that drawback and allowed Noah to abuse that feature. Finding suitable magical beasts in those lands was extremely easy. Noah even felt confident in surviving against rank 8 magical beasts that couldn''t fly. He could seize upper tier specimens from any pack and escape without suffering injuries. That approach forced Noah''s mind to improve far faster than the other centers of power. Only his dantian barely managed to keep up with that organ. Instead, his body fell behind, but Noah couldn''t do anything about that. Noah''s physical strength allowed him to remain in one piece after a clash with a rank 8 creature. No other rank 7 existence could do the same. It was only normal for his body to have insane requirements. ''It seems that I need a rank 8 prowess to improve my body,'' Noah thought after completing a training session. ''The fruits are spectacular, but they can''t give me what I need. My cells crave for rank 8 materials.'' Any other existence in the world would remain dumbfounded at that idea. Thinking that they would need rank 8 materials to reach the eighth rank would make most of them give up on the cultivation journey. Yet, Noah was different. He had already filled the gaps that separated him from the superior ranks many times. He only had to do it again. Fergie and Noah continued their seclusion near the tall tree until a new fruit appeared. The event made them leave their caves and join the battle for that valuable resource. Multiple battles happened over the years, and the duo never changed their approach. Noah took care of keeping the leaders busy, while Fergie focused on seizing the fruits. Most battles only featured the two familiar packs, but foreign forces would appear from time to time. Migrating rank 8 specimens and large armies of magical beasts would join the battlefield and force the duo to reconsider their tactics. At times, Noah had to retreat before even attracting the two leaders. The appearance of a rank 8 creature with power in the middle tier or above forced him to abandon his tactics and return to his cave. Both Noah and Fergie''s battle prowess improved during that period. Fergie had a lot to create to adapt his methods to his new existence, and Noah never lost sight of his goal. Fergie improved faster. He soon learnt how to handle upper tier magical beasts on his own, and he often managed to seize fruits with power near the eighth rank. Noah''s situation turned out to be tricky. He had hit a wall after the evolution of his companions. His centers of power improved slowly, so he couldn''t force his battle prowess to grow as fast as he wished. Still, he didn''t let that pace bringing him down. Noah had just reached the solid stage in the end. Obtaining a rank 8 battle prowess took time. The main issue in his situation was that his real target wasn''t a rank 8 magical beast. Cultivators were generally stronger than those creatures, and the Crystal City had more than one of them in the eighth rank. ''Madame Canson must be in the gaseous stage,'' Noah thought during one of his rare breaks. ''The secret organization shouldn''t help the Crystal City again, so I need to bet that no other rank 8 asset will be in the area.'' Noah even guessed that he would have to face multiple experts with the same battle prowess as Miss Nine. With Madame Canson''s, many rank 7 assets in the Crystal City could reach a level of power capable of making Noah worried. ''Defeating rank 8 beasts isn''t enough,'' Noah concluded. ''I need more, far more to take down a rank 8 cultivator, but what can I even do?'' Noah didn''t know what else to invent. He had improved his companions, and he had also turned one of his strongest spells into something that could fuse with his arts. He had other spells, but they were relics of the lower plane. The dark matter and his slashes could give birth to similar and stronger effects. Those abilities couldn''t even fuse with his martial arts due to their uniqueness. ''I guess this is my core,'' Noah concluded before standing up. ''The other spells are situational. I should focus on enhancing abilities that already work for me. Only the Shadow copy spell is useful since it can multiply my base level for a short time.'' The now-familiar scent of the fruit had reached his cave. It was time to fight again. Fergie had also left his cave and was flying toward that area. ''Maybe I can create a few more blueprints for the workshop,'' Noah thought while leaving the cave. ''I might also rework the Warp spell. I can''t perform proper teleports since my existence is too heavy, but I might be able to fuse it with my movement technique. I need to improve it anyway.'' Chapter 1514: 1514. Reques While Noah and Fergie were busy training and exploring the magical beasts'' domain, Divine Demon and the rest of the army that had attacked the Crystal City were traveling through the Outer Lands. Their assault on the Crystal City had turned out to be a massive success. The Legion had destroyed the entire structure and killed many fanatics in the attack. Only a few members of that force and the two rank 8 experts had managed to escape. The fight had not been fair. Divine Demon and Wilfred were powerful, but their opponents weren''t weak either. Yet, Luke wasn''t a member of the Crystal City, so he had eventually stopped caring about the battle and focused on retreating. Madame Canson could only order a full retreat at that point. Miss Canson, Miss Nine, Shandal, Lord Ethan, God''s Right Hand, and other core members of the Crystal City managed to escape, but they had to sacrifice all the other experts in the area. The Legion won, but its army ended up stranded in those foreign regions. Only King Elbas had a vague idea of their position, but the journey back to the Outer Lands turned out to be quite chaotic. Luke and Madame Canson had warned their allied forces about the assault. The territorial advantage allowed those organizations to ambush the Legion multiple times during their journey back to neutral zones. Divine Demon and the others were deep in the realm of the Crystal City, and they were also on the other end of the human domain. Their enemies had the chance to attack them countless times, but they didn''t manage to balance the losses inflicted during the assault. Their journey became safer once they reached the Outer Lands. Wilfred and the other hybrids had never lived in those regions, but they knew them better than their enemies. Once the Crystal City and its allies lost their advantage, the Legion managed to fend off the ambushes without suffering any loss. Still, it never managed to make its enemies lose its tracks. The forces of the human domain rarely chased enemies in the Outer Lands, but the Crystal City and the Sailbrird family were livid. The losses suffered during the assault didn''t matter too much, but letting Noah escape was a spot to their reputation. The Crystal City and the Sailbrird family had to make the Legion pay, but their assaults lost their success rate once that force reached the Outer Lands. The pursuit became a matter of endurance, but the hybrids were unbeatable in that field. "Why don''t you create something that teleports us home," Divine Demon said in an annoyed tone. "I have an inheritance waiting for me." "Why don''t you ask Wilfred to build it?" King Elbas replied. "He destroyed our transport so carelessly. He must have had a plan." The army had built an encampment near a mountain to recover from the recent attacks. Everyone had gathered around a large fire to relax and celebrate their victory over the fanatics. Wilfred pretended not to hear that discussion. He knew that Divine Demon was only blowing off steam. The expert seemed to like poking King Elbas with his sharp words. "Well," Divine Demon said while standing up. "Jordan, I need the usual. Make sure to treat my disciples with care." Jordan arched her eyebrows at that request. Divine Demon had asked that favor many times already, and she was growing bored of satisfying his eccentric needs. However, he was a rank 8 asset that could benefit the Legion, so she didn''t dare to reject him. A chill ran down Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon''s spine at those words. They were on the other side of the fire, near their companions from the lower plane, but their Master didn''t want to let them rest. "My treasured heir is missing because you had to get yourself captured," Divine Demon said after snorting. "You can''t be my disciples and be this weak at the same time." "I told you many times already," June said before taking a sip from her cup. "He isn''t missing. He is probably using his time in the magical beasts'' domain to cultivate." "You might be his woman, but I am his Master!" Divine Demon said while waving his hand. "Our bond knows no barriers!" "What''s your idea then?" June asked. "He is definitely cultivating!" Divine Demon replied. "What probably. My heir doesn''t know probably." June massaged her temples. Talking with Divine Demon was tiring. She could never argue with him, and he also reminded her of her previous Master. "Feel lucky that he doesn''t make you wear large hats," June said toward the two Demons while Faith patted her shoulder. "I will also join the training," Daniel exclaimed before standing up and walking toward the two Demons. Faith held his hand, but the duo exchanged an intense gaze before separating. June ignored the whole interaction, but she soon felt Faith''s eyes on her. "What?" June asked. "He will reappear," Faith said before a hint of doubt appeared on her face. "Sooner or later." "You know him," June replied. "He is alone among countless magical beasts. I bet he has already forgotten that the Crystal City had trapped us." "I don''t know how you put up with that," Faith said. "Because I''m the same as him," June replied. "The Crystal City has trapped us for centuries. We didn''t get the chance to improve properly during those years. I wouldn''t spend much time with him even if he were here." "Your man has already prepared everything for you," Faith said. "You have enemies everywhere. You don''t even need to do anything. Battles will come for you anyway." "I still need to improve first," June said. "This isn''t like the clash with Great Elder Diana. We had lost Noah back then, but our force was still superior to hers. Here, even Noah was about to die." "We should have amassed enough experience to reach the liquid stage," Faith replied in a cheerful tone. "Power comes from pain, and we suffered a lot. We might even reach Noah before he comes back from the magical beasts'' domain." "You can''t even imagine to surpass him," June teased Faith. "You heard Divine Demon," Faith replied. "Noah has already proven himself as a monster here. Elbas has become his subordinate, and he has also survived the shockwaves radiated by rank 8 existences. I don''t see us catching up." "I''m not his subordinate!" King Elbas shouted from the other side of the fire, but Faith and June ignored him. "What''s the point of discussing this?" June asked. "I can''t stop anyway. I will always search for another battle, and he can provide an endless struggle to be the best. I would follow him even if I weren''t his lover." "Luckily, I''m on the other side in my relationship," Faith said before heaving a helpless sigh. "Vanity is pointless," Daniel said when he heard Faith''s comment. "But you still bother to reply," Faith added, winking toward Daniel when he turned. "They are finally here," Divine Demon said when he noticed a few figures in the distance. Jordan flew in front of a pack of red dragons that she had found in the Outer Lands. Her innate ability allowed her to easily find members of those species, and Divine Demon didn''t hesitate to use that feature to punish his disciples. Most of those dragons were in the lower tier, but some were in the middle tier. Jordan had chosen a pack that the Demons and the others could face at their current level. "How many of you this time?" Divine Demon asked. June promptly stood up. She had never missed one of those training sessions. Divine Demon was brutal, but his methods worked. She could sense her potential brimming after that long journey and the many battles. Flying Demon gave voice to a loud laugh before shooting in the sky. Daniel, Dreaming Demon, and June followed him as their auras expanded in the area. The other hybrids had become used to that scene, so they took those battles as entertainment. They turned toward the dragon and observed Noah''s friends working hard to become relevant in the higher plane. Chapter 1515: 1515. Monster ''They have become used to my battle style,'' Noah thought while the rank 8 monkey and wolf kept their angry gazes on him. Fergie and Noah had never stopped fighting under the tree during those years. Their success rate in seizing the fruits was relatively high, so their opponents eventually learnt that they had to get rid of that nuisance. The many underlings couldn''t do much against Fergie. The expert could fly, and his techniques had continued to improve throughout the years spent fighting. He could handle the two packs even if they decided to focus on him. Instead, the situation for Noah became far worse. He had always managed to manipulate his opponents during the previous fights, but those creatures had slowly adapted to his techniques. Most divine magical beasts were intelligent, and that feature improved in the higher ranks. Noah''s opponents were two rank 8 existences, so they eventually understood why they kept losing the fruits. The monkey and the wolf didn''t attack each other at that time. They immediately followed Noah and waited for him to make his move. They didn''t even try to attack each other during the chase. ''I might have to retreat early today,'' Noah thought before bloodlust flowed out of his figure. Noah drew the Demonic Sword and the cursed sword without showing any hesitation. He couldn''t fight two rank 8 magical beasts simultaneously, but he still wanted to keep the creatures busy. ''How much do you need to reach the eighth rank?'' Noah asked through his mental connection. ''These half-fights aren''t enough for me,'' The cursed sword replied. ''Magical beasts don''t even give me much. You might need to kill a few of them in the eighth rank to make me advance.'' Noah cursed in his mind before focusing on his opponents again. The monkey and the wolf didn''t move. Their fierce eyes waited for him to launch one of his slashes. ''Maybe it''s time to leave this region,'' Noah thought, but a loud squeal suddenly echoed through the area. Multiple squeals followed it, and a third rank 8 aura fell on the region. The monkey and wolf couldn''t bother with Noah anymore at that point. Even he turned to look in the direction of the tree. The Foolery flew through the sky and chanted war cries before shooting toward the tree. Fergie had filled the region with flames, so only the strongest in the pack managed to reach the surface. The leader of the Foolery was also there. It charged ahead of its pack and slammed its head on the tree without bothering to mind its opponents. Those rank 7 creatures couldn''t stop it anyway. The monkey and the wolf shot toward the tree, but Noah promptly launched a slash. The latter managed to dodge the attack, but the other leader found a massive wave of sharp energy landing on its body and forcing it to stop its sprint. Noah spat flames while his chest exploded. His fire instantly healed him, but it didn''t manage to do anything to the monkey in the distance. The leader glanced at the tree before turning toward Noah. Anger filled its expression. The creature had grown tired of those interruptions. The monkey walked through the flames while its chest inflated. Noah could sense its determination to take him down. Nothing would stop it from making him pay for all the troubles that he had caused since his arrival in the area. ''It''s a one versus one now,'' Noah thought as resolve surged in his mind. ''This is a good moment to test how strong I have become.'' The dark world spread around him, and a blueprint lit up in his mind. Waves of dark matter solidified around his body and gave him a draconic form. Noah raised his draconic head at the sky and gave voice to a roar. The dark matter around him dispersed and revealed his new form to his opponent. Still, Noah had yet to complete his preparations. The unstable substance flowed inside his black vessels and brought his physical strength to its limits. His ambition also surged and forced his centers of power to reach the peak of the seventh rank. A second wave of dark matter covered Noah. The rune representing the Shadow Copy spell activated and multiplied his arms. His darkness almost vanished during the procedure, but Noah didn''t dare to stop it. Once the transformation ended, black roots pierced his palm and covered his draconic figure. The Demonic Form consumed the dark matter in the area, so the monkey could lay its eyes on Noah''s monstrous shape. The monkey hesitated for an instant. Its soundwave was ready, but it didn''t want to attack just yet. The beast had never seen something like that in its long life. Even its instincts didn''t know how dangerous that opponent was. Noah had the shape of an eight-legged dragon. Six of those limbs held long black blades that radiated a threatening aura. He had a pair of large wings and two long horns that pointed toward the monkey. Roots also covered his entire draconic body. That part of the area darkened due to the many influences that seeped into the world. ''I almost emptied my dantian to copy the cursed sword,'' Noah thought before launching a roar and shooting toward his opponent. The monkey quickly released its soundwave. The attack crashed on Noah''s chest, destroying many roots and ripping apart that armor of dark matter. The shockwaves released during the attack also reached Noah''s real body. He spat blood and almost lost consciousness due to the sheer power contained in the blow, but his ambition forced him to stay awake. ''I can fight rank 8 magical beasts!'' Noah shouted in his mind while black flames shot out of his mouth. His black hole sent the dark matter to fix the damages in his draconic armor, and the parasite absorbed nutrients from Noah''s body to spread more roots. Meanwhile, Noah reached the monkey and slashed with his six arms. The creature wasn''t as fast as him, but it managed to prepare a second soundwave that it didn''t hesitate to release. Noah''s blades touched the monkey before the soundwave exploded on his face. The detonation flung Noah and the leader away, but they both stabbed their legs on the ground to stop their momentum. A spiderweb of cracks ran through Noah''s body. His skin shattered, and a rived of blood came out of his injuries. Multiplying the cursed sword had increased the severity of its drawbacks. The soundwave had destroyed Noah''s draconic head. His real face was in the open now, and blood flowed out of his mouth. A series of cracks had also spread there, but his black hole was doing its best to preserve his most essential organs. Noah instinctively launched flames that spread through the environment and burned everything in his range to restore his body. The wave of energy that followed his attack closed his injuries, but it didn''t manage to fix all of them. The black hole quickly restored the upper part of the draconic armor, and a wave of excitement filled Noah''s mind when his eyes landed on his opponent. The monkey had suffered some injuries due to the soundwave, but six large cuts had also appeared on its arms, right in the spots where Noah''s blades had landed. Chapter 1516: 1516. Arm Noah couldn''t stop suffering injuries during the battle. He was against a rank 8 magical beast, and he wielded three cursed swords. Each clash brought his body to its limits. Yet, his flames allowed him to recover instantly. Noah would be fine as long as the environment had nutrients to burn and the monkey didn''t manage to kill him in one blow. On the other hand, the monkey had the resilience of a rank 8 magical beast. It was almost immortal in the eyes of rank 7 beings. It didn''t matter how many injuries it suffered. The creature always straightened its position and launched its threatening soundwaves. Noah never stopped leaping toward the monkey. His slashes would deal more damage if his blades touched the creature''s skin, so he couldn''t deploy safer tactics. Moreover, the soundwaves damaged the monkey whenever they exploded next to it. Noah slowly gained the upper hand in the battle after forcing many attacks to detonate in front of his opponent. ''I''m running out of things to burn,'' Noah thought before flying high in the sky and launching a series of slashes. A rain of curved black attacks fell on the monkey. Noah''s body almost crumbled, but he promptly covered some of the trees under him with flames that fixed his condition. The monkey gibbered as it chased after Noah. It performed a long leap that almost reached him, but he dodged the attack and dived toward the falling beast to exploit that opportunity. The leader couldn''t dodge the attack during its fall. Noah joined his blades to touch the center of the creature''s chest. The dark matter then came out of his back to increase his speed and build momentum. Once the beast touched the ground, Noah released his attack, forcing all the dark matter to fall on the spot touched by the blades. His physical strength also helped, and his swords eventually pierced that thick skin. Noah spread his arms to enlarge the injury. The monkey''s skin was tough and fought against that force, but a small hole eventually appeared on the creature''s chest. ''Snore!'' Noah shouted in his mind, and the massive body of the Blood Companion soon wrapped itself around the monkey. Snore then bit on the creature''s head and spat a wave of violent dark matter. The attack engulfed both Noah and the monkey, but he didn''t care that his armor was slowly falling apart. Night shot out of Noah''s chest and flew through the hole created by his blades. The Pterodactyl began to ravage the monkey''s insides, and Snore closed its wings around the creature. Noah jumped off of the monkey and covered the ground with flames. His innate ability destroyed the terrain and filled him with its nutrients. His body had been on the verge of collapsing, but it had found new stability now. Snore launched its feathers, destroying its body in the process. A wave of dark matter engulfed Noah and spread through the whole region. Even in his draconic form, Noah didn''t manage to oppose that dense shockwave. The explosion flung Noah backward, but he soon spread his wings to fly in the sky. Snore reformed next to him, and Night pierced the black cloud around the monkey to rejoin him. Noah and the two companions didn''t move their eyes from the cloud. They didn''t know how effective their offensive had been. Only the monkey could solve their doubts. An angry cry eventually filled the area and dispersed the dark matter accumulated on the ground. Noah and the companions could finally see the monkey again, but their expression turned cold at that sight. Blood flowed out of the hole on the creature''s chest. Its arms featured multiple wounds, and a few green spots had also appeared on its waist. However, the monkey acted as if those injuries didn''t exist. Noah had landed more than ten blows on the monkey, and the last attack had consumed Snore''s feathers. Night had also inflicted some damage on the inside, but the monkey didn''t grow any weaker. ''I''ll try one last thing,'' Noah thought before letting go of the swords wielded by his left arms. Two of the blades transformed into dark matter, but the other regained its original appearance. The Demonic Sword flew next to the companions before dark matter covered its body and transformed it into a black dragon. Noah drew the white sword at that point and activated the Shadow Copy spell to multiply it. The dark matter then covered those blades as he wielded them with his free arms. The Demonic Form soon covered the new swords and restored Noah''s monstrous shape. He was now using all his assets to fight that beast. If even that didn''t work, Noah would have to retreat and focus on improving his foundation. The monkey revealed a taunting smile when it saw the second dragon appearing in the sky. The creature could sense Noah''s struggles, but they only made it laugh. ''I can''t kill it,'' Noah concluded after a thorough inspection with his mental waves, ''But I can seize something.'' Noah dived toward the monkey, and the latter launched a soundwave. The attack exploded on his draconic face, and a large chunk of his armor crumbled. However, he continued to descend toward his opponent. The monkey tried to prepare a second attack, but a white mark suddenly appeared on its chest and interrupted it. Night then shot inside the hole and assaulted its lungs to prevent them from creating another soundwave. Snore restrained the monkey with its body and bit on its shoulder. The creature shattered the snake''s tissues whenever it moved, but the Blood Companion held its position. The Demonic Sword slammed its reptilian head on the same shoulder targeted by Snore. The Blood Companion opened to let that other attack land on the leader, but its teeth continued their desperate attempt to dig that tough skin. Noah joined his blades and pointed at the same spot targeted by his companions. His swords pierced the Demonic Sword''s draconic body and Snore''s head to stab the leader''s shoulder and create a deep cut. Snore bit on the creature again, focusing on the opening created by Noah. The Demonic Sword did the same, and Noah also continued to lift and stab his blades to enlarge that wound. Black flames filled the area. Noah''s body ended on the verge of crumbling every time his blades fell, but the fire always managed to stabilize it. Still, his innate ability eventually found itself unable to burn anything else, which left Noah no choice but to stop using his swords. The draconic armor dispersed, and the blades returned inside his separate space. Noah jumped through the waves of dark matter released by the Demonic Sword and Snore to land on the monkey''s shoulder and stab his hands in its injury. Black roots came out of his palm and spread corrosive energy inside the injury. Noah saw the wound enlarging under the efforts of his entire arsenal, and he eventually grabbed the creature''s arm to pull with as much strength as he could muster. The monkey cried in anger and pain, but Snore kept it in a prison of destructive energy and black scales. Night also prevented it from launching its threatening innate ability. Noah, the Demonic Sword, and the parasite could focus on the arm without worrying about their surroundings. The monkey suddenly moved its arm, and Noah spat blood when that limb hit his chest. Yet, he didn''t stop pulling. Blood spurted in his face as the wound enlarged, and a dark-red river fell on him once he managed to sever the entire limb. Chapter 1517: 1517. Regre An angry cry echoed through the area, but Night managed to contain its power by attacking the monkey''s lungs. Noah stored the arm and used the dark world to gather all the blood falling on him. He wouldn''t let any of that rank 8 material go to waste. The monkey was livid. That rank 7 existence had managed to sever one of its limbs. Its anger knew no limit. Even its safety didn''t matter anymore at that point. The leader forced its lungs to expand even if Night kept damaging them. The Pterodactyl managed to pierce their tissues during that forced inflation, but the wave of dense air that came out of them pushed the creature outside of the monkey''s chest. The creature required more time to prepare its attack since Night had pierced its lungs, but that didn''t make any difference for Noah. He couldn''t inflict more damage in such a short window. Noah grabbed the Demonic Sword through the waves of dark matter and called Snore back before kicking the monkey to shoot backward. He even relied on his movement technique to escape faster, but a shockwave hit him before he could get far away. The soundwave had grown unstable since the monkey''s lungs couldn''t perform as usual. The attack didn''t manage to reach Noah, but it exploded a few hundred meters behind him. A series of dense shockwaves engulfed Noah and flung him higher in the sky. The lower part of his robe shattered, and his legs released shrieking noises under that pressure. Noah heard his bones breaking and his skin shattering, but no pain managed to reach his mind. He had suffered so many injuries during that fight that he barely felt anything anymore. When Noah managed to stabilize his position, he discovered that his legs were limp. They had turned gray due to the many injuries accumulated under his cracked skin. He couldn''t even move them anymore. His internal organs had also suffered in the attack. Noah was in no condition to fight, and he had already burned every spot in the area that contained some nutrients. ''I need to move near the tree or in other regions to recover,'' Noah concluded before moving his eyes toward his opponent. The monkey was still on its feet. It didn''t dare to jump toward Noah, but it didn''t want to move its gaze away from its opponent either. Its missing arm had already stopped bleeding, and the hole on its chest was almost about to close. It wouldn''t take long until the creature fixed its lungs and became able to fight again. The creature''s arrogance had vanished after the last clash. It didn''t smile anymore. Instead, its eyes carried the silent determination to fight until death. The monkey didn''t do anything, but Noah understood that something had changed. He could see a trace of respect on the creature''s expression. The leader had acknowledged him as a being able to stand among rank 8 existences. ''Maybe another day,'' Noah thought before leaving the battlefield. His instincts asked him to answer the monkey''s acknowledgment, but Noah had no intention to keep fighting. He had already gone all-out, and the arm was his prize. Noah quickly found a suitable spot where to spread his flames before burning the entire area. The monkey didn''t follow him, so he could take his time to heal his body. Once every injury vanished, Noah moved his focus on the tall tree. He had ignored that spot since the wolf left to face the Foolery. When his mental waves spread through the region, he sensed that the area was featuring a battle between two rank 8 magical beasts. ''The leader of the pigs should be able to win,'' Noah thought as he flew toward the tree. ''We might be able to seize rank 8 fruits now that the Foolery have joined the battle. I knew that those creatures could become usef-.'' Noah''s thoughts went silent when he saw that the tall tree began to fall. A creaking noise spread through the region as that massive plant leaned to a side before crashing on the ground. Noah''s mind froze at that sight. He didn''t know what to think. The magical plant that could periodically produce incredible resources was no more. "I tried to stop them," Fergie said when he saw Noah flying toward him. Noah remained silent while he inspected the area. The pigs were chanting happy squeals as they fed on the tough trunk of the plant. They ate everything, leaves included. Even the fruit had long since fallen prey to their hunger. The rank 8 Foolery floated above its pack. It kept its eyes closed and its head raised toward the sky in an attempt to appear noble and heroic. Still, even its underlings didn''t bother to look at their leader while they ate the tree. "What exactly happened?" Noah eventually asked. "The leader defeated the wolf and took down the tree," Fergie shortly explained. "It said that its underlings needed to eat." "Did it choose the tree instead of the countless corpses amassed on the ground?" Noah asked. "No," Fergie replied. "It said that they would eat them later." Noah glanced at Fergie, but the expert was as confused as him. He then decided to talk with the leader of the Foolery, but the pig didn''t break its proud expression even after he reached it. "Why did you have to take down the tree?" Noah asked once he understood that the pig wouldn''t notice him unless he talked. The rank 8 pig lowered its head before lifting it again. A prod squeal came out of its mouth, and some of its underlings decided to echo it. Still, most of them continued to eat, uncaring that their leader wanted to express its pride. "I have defeated the leader of the wolf''s pack," The pig said. "This land shall become food for my underlings. They will regain their forces and turn into the best magical beasts in the entire Immortal Lands." "Do you realize that the tree could give birth to rank 8 resources every few years?" Noah asked. The pig''s expression froze. It continued to keep its head lifted toward the sky, but a drop of sweat ran down its cheek. The creature then began to wait for Noah to stop staring, but he had no intention to move his eyes. "I have defeated the leader of the wolf''s pac-," The pig tried to repeat the same line as before, but Noah promptly interrupted it. "I don''t buy it," Noah said. "You have ruined the best resource in this entire zone. Ask for my opinion the next time." The pig slowly lowered its head at that point. Its eyes moved between Noah and its underlings on the ground. A tinge of regret appeared on its expression, but it soon faded at the sight of so much food. The leader began to drool, but its desire to join its underlings faded whenever it glanced back at Noah. His stern gaze made it recall what it had done. "Just go," Noah said after heaving a helpless sigh. The rank 8 pig shot downward and joined the other creatures in their feast. The pack ate the entire tree, all the corpses amassed in the area, and even the tiny plants that grew near the region''s edges. In a matter of hours, the pigs ate all the nutrients in the region. They ignored only the ground since they began to release excrements as soon as their banquet ended. "Do they really have to come with us?" Fergie asked when the smell of the excrements reached his nostrils. "Won''t you feel better if they did this on the debris of the Crystal City?" Noah asked while wearing a cold smile. "I hope this smell doesn''t kill me first," Fergie said, eventually breaking into a broad smile that matched his leader''s. Chapter 1518: 1518. Promises Eating a rank 8 material was an arduous task for a rank 7 existence. Noah had to bathe the monkey''s arm inside the dark world while his technique enhanced his destruction to absorb its nutrients slowly. His tissues cheered whenever that energy flowed inside their cells and enhanced their power. The arm forced his body to advance significantly, but that growth didn''t match Noah''s expectations. His body didn''t reach the halfway mark of the upper tier even after Noah ate the whole arm. The improvement was substantial, but he could barely sense it. ''My body requires many rank 8 materials to reach the eighth rank,'' Noah concluded after inspecting his condition. That conclusion left Noah disappointed, but part of him knew that such harsh requirements would be a good thing in the end. The hardest his path toward the superior ranks was, the stronger his centers of power would become once he advanced. His realization didn''t change his current situation. Noah was still unable to defeat rank 8 creatures on his own. He had managed to seize the arm after going all-out against an opponent that didn''t expect such a burst of power, but his actual battle prowess barely bade him step in the quasi-rank 8 layer. The path toward the higher ranks appeared more troublesome than Noah had predicted, but he didn''t lose his determination. He had ideas on how to improve, and the magical beasts'' domain could still offer him many resources. "Where to?" Fergie asked once Noah came out of his cave. The Foolery had settled in the area previously inhabited by the tall tree while they waited for Noah and Fergie to complete their training sessions. They had turned the region into a plain filled with blue bushes in that period. Some of them had even started to invade the nearby lands. "Let''s reach the edges of this domain," Noah said before looking in the distance. "We are too weak to return to the human domain anyway. It''s better if we focus on improving for the time being." "Shall we keep fighting until we force our way into the eighth rank?" Fergie asked. "That''s the plan," Noah replied. "I also have a few other projects in mind, but their success doesn''t depend on me." Fergie shot a curious glance toward Noah, but the latter ignored that gesture. His plans conflicted with his idea of constant growth, but they represented his best shot at returning safely into the human domain. Noah had already disclosed that he wanted to build his organization, but he had no use for rank 7 creatures. He could accept only creatures with functional innate abilities like the Foolery. Still, submitting rank 8 magical beasts was almost impossible at his current level, and Noah didn''t know how beneficial it was to spare some of them. They could always work as nutrients for his body, so Noah was quite conflicted about that approach. ''I guess I should only follow my instincts,'' Noah decided in his mind as he flew toward the rank 8 pig. "It''s time to move," Noah said, and all the pigs in the region raised their heads to turn toward him. Those magical beasts showed regretful expressions while looking at Noah. It seemed that they didn''t want to leave the region after transforming it into their ideal lair. Noah immediately understood what was going through their minds. He had learnt how the Foolery thought in those years, and he had already developed countermeasures to their laziness. "Did you like the tree?" Noah asked, and all the pigs nodded. "The magical beasts'' domain is full of those delicacies," Noa continued. "You will be able to eat anything you want during our journey, and you will also obtain a land once we join my friends." Most of the Foolery fell for his words, but the leader and a few upper tier specimens remained hesitant. "How can we be sure that you won''t put chains on our necks once we meet your allies?" The rank 8 pig asked. Noah gazed at every specimen in the pack. He could sense their worry and pain. He didn''t know what to reply to that question, so he decided to tell the truth. "You can''t," Noah replied. "I will obtain the power to enslave your kind, so you will always fear my true intentions. I can only make promises for now." "What promises?" The leader asked. "I can promise that you will never become mounts again," Noah said, and his pride naturally seeped out of his figure at those words. Noah had no control over that event. His ambition fueled his pride, and those feelings were part of his existence. His words would carry them whenever Noah stopped suppressing his influence, which happened during the conversation. The leader''s eyes widened. Noah had spoken words that had hit the creature deep in its core. He had mentioned its greatest fear. "What about the humans?" The leader asked while trying to suppress its emotions. "I need to kill many of them already," Noah replied. "Most large organizations even consider me as an enemy. I don''t see how I could ever sell you to them." Noah and the pig stared at each other for a long time, but tears eventually fell from the creature''s eyes. Sniffs also echoed through the region as the other beasts began to cry. It seemed that Noah''s words had triggered their feelings. "We¡­ we will eat you if we find out that you are a liar," The leader said among its sniffs before giving voice to a squeal that summoned the entire pack. Noah rolled his eyes before shooting in the distance. Fergie quickly followed him, and the Foolery didn''t hesitate to imitate them. That moment marked the beginning of a long series of battles. The Foolery were always hungry, and Noah could be more daring now that he had a rank 8 creature by his side. The group flew through every region containing packs that featured specimens at their level. Noah could throw himself in reckless battles now that he had powerful allies, and his battle prowess slowly improved under that constant pressure. Noah always tried to face the rank 8 magical beasts by himself, but he rarely inflicts more than severe injuries. He managed to seize limbs and patches of skin from time to time, but he never killed one of those creatures. The leader of the Foolery respected his desire to improve and let Noah fight alone until his situation reached a critical state. The pig always intervened at that point and exploited the damages inflicted by its companion. The Foolery improved during that journey. That process didn''t only concern their level. Eating different types of food restored their intelligence to its real peaks and soon removed the annoying disadvantages connected to their memory. The pig remained an eccentric bunch, but they stopped forgetting things. That growth allowed Noah to create complex plans without fearing that his companions would ruin them. The group required his plans when they met packs that featured multiple rank 8 beings. Only the leader of the Foolery could defeat beasts at that level, so Noah had to devise tricky strategies that allowed them to seize benefits from those dangerous situations. Chapter 1519: 1519. Ear Noah spat blood after a giant flying elephant slammed its trunk on his torso. The attack shattered the draconic armor on his chest and destroyed his additional limbs. It even broke his right arm in the process. ''I failed again,'' Noah thought after straightening his position and covering the area with black flames. The attack had flung Noah on the ground, so he could burn a large part of the vegetation in the region. His body instantly healed, and his black hole also restored his draconic armor, even if it didn''t manage to replicate the copies of the swords destroyed during the exchange. The Foolery and Fergie were in the sky, fighting the other flying elephants. Those creatures were as tall as small mountains and had two pairs of large feathered wings on their back. Two sharp tusks also grew from the sides of their trunk. The pack of elephants featured only one rank 8 specimen, and Noah had attracted its attention by slaughtering tens of its underlings. The leader of the Foolery had also remained on the sidelines to grant Noah a one versus one battle. ''This technique is so unstable,'' Noah cursed in his mind as he fixed his eyes on the charging rank 8 elephant. ''It needs far more polishing.'' Noah didn''t move while the massive elephant dived toward his position, but his figure turned into a shadow before the creature could crush him. An earthquake spread through the area, and an angry trumpet echoed when the elephant noticed that its attack didn''t hit anyone. Noah reappeared at a few hundred meters high in the sky, but he lost his chance to attack since his back was facing the ground. ''Almost!'' Noah cursed again in his mind before shooting higher in the sky. ''It''s so hard to control the technique in this form.'' Noah had used the vast battle experience accumulated throughout his countless fights to improve his movement technique. However, the project turned out to be a partial failure since he didn''t manage to fuse his sprints with the Warp spell. Instead, his tests led to a completely different movement technique. Noah had fused the Warp spell with the Merging spell to create a different version of his usual sprints. The new technique allowed Noah to perform instant teleports, but their range wasn''t great. His usual sprints were better when it came to long distances, but they lacked the immediateness of his new ability. Both movement techniques were powerful, but their effectiveness depended on the type of opponent in front of Noah. He liked having that variety of abilities, but he had yet to perfect his teleports in his current state. The main issue in the technique was Noah''s power. His existence contained so much energy that the teleports always grew unstable mid-way, leading him to reappear in odd positions. His draconic form aggravated those difficulties, but Noah didn''t stop training in his new ability even when his opponents injured him. His mind worked faster during a battle, and he wanted to exploit that mental state to master the movement technique hastily. "I can come whenever you want," The rank 8 pig shouted from the other side of the battlefield. "Not yet!" Noah replied before disappearing again once the rank 8 elephant was about to reach him in the sky. His figure reappeared in another spot of the sky, but upside down. Noah had failed to control his teleport again, and one of the rank 7 specimens charged toward him once it noticed his odd condition. Noah waved his two remaining blades toward the creature and severed it into two parts. Still, his attack gave the rank 8 elephant enough time to reach him. The massive trunk slammed on Noah''s back and destroyed his wings, along with a large chunk of the draconic armor. Blood came out of his mouth and eyes after the impact, and his lower body went limp as he shot through the sky. Noah spat flames whenever he saw plants and soft terrain. His body quickly healed, but the elephant was already on him by the time he fixed his condition. His figure disappeared again, and the elephant ended up cracking its trunk in the air. The beast grew tired of those teleports, but it ignored that Noah had finally succeeded in performing his new technique correctly. Noah reappeared above the elephant. The cursed sword quickly replaced the white blade before he swung downward. A large cut opened on the elephant''s back, but that injury appeared insignificant compared to its massive body. A vertical cut opened on Noah''s chest and almost divided his torso into two parts. Those drawbacks reflected the power released by the cursed sword and forced Noah to accept that he had no chance to win that battle. ''Another rank 8 creature that I can''t kill,'' Noah thought before teleporting to dodge the massive trunk converging toward his position. The teleport went well again. Noah reappeared higher in the sky and activated the Shadow Copy spell to replicate the cursed sword. The fact that Noah couldn''t win that battle didn''t stop him. He had sealed a deal with the rank 8 Foolery. The pig would share part of its loot as long as Noah inflicted consistent injuries. That alone made Noah willing to go all-out every time he met a rank 8 magical beast. His body required rank 8 materials to grow significantly, and he couldn''t give up on the chance of obtaining them. Noah dived toward the elephant once his copied swords formed. The creature''s pale-blue skin darkened, and the trunk cracked once again toward him. Noah teleported under the creature. The technique allowed him to maintain his momentum, but he found himself turned in the wrong direction. His six blades stabbed the ground and created a spider-web of cracks that spread through that part of the region. Noah also suffered drawbacks for that attack, and his flames filled the area to heal him. ''Dealing with the laws of space with my true meaning is tricky,'' Noah thought before teleporting away. The elephant crashed on the ground and shattered the cracks opened by its opponent. A piercing attack fell toward the creature at that point, and one of its ears separated from its body once that dark flash disappeared. Noah stored the severed ear and activated the Shadow Domain. Roots grew inside the elephant, and Instabilities filled its organs before a loud explosion resounded in the area. The elephant kneeled on the ground after the blow, and rivers of blood flowed out of its mouth, trunk, ear, and eyes. Yet, it soon raised its head again and fixed its gaze on its elusive opponent. Noah decided to retreat at that sight. His body turned into a blade that cut through the battlefield. He stopped when he reached the rank 8 pig, and the creature understood that it was time to handle the other leader. ''I will master the teleports as long as I continue to fight,'' Noah thought as he dispersed his draconic form and stored the cursed sword. ''Still, I lack the sheer power required to kill rank 8 magical beasts. I can''t hope to pierce spells launched by rank 8 cultivators at my current level.'' A couple of upper tier specimens flew toward Noah, but his Demonic Sword flashed before dividing those creatures in half. Noah soon burned them to heal his body, and his mind wandered as waves of power flowed through his tissues. ''I need a finishing blow,'' Noah concluded. The shockwaves released from the battle between the two leaders swept the battlefield, but Noah remained still. Even if most of the pack had decided to converge toward him, he didn''t deign them of his attention. His mind could only wander through his many techniques and vast experience to find something that could lead to a powerful finishing blow, something that could even surpass the Shadow Domain. Chapter 1520: 1520. Pure expression Noah experienced nothing but losses throughout that long journey across the magical beasts'' domain. His superior awareness allowed his group to avoid dangerous packs, but his situation didn''t change even after centuries passed. The Foolery helped in misleading some of the threatening opponents during their travel. Those creatures turned the conquered regions into wastelands before transforming them into blue paradises. Other packs would fight for the ownership of those lands every time the group left. The journey benefitted Fergie and the Foolery the most. The expert''s battle prowess went through multiple evolutions, and the magical beasts began to reproduce as their bodies absorbed valuable nutrients. Noah witnessed the birth of rank 4 specimens, and he also saw them shooting through the heroic ranks due to the many resources offered by the higher plane. The pack of Foolery enlarged and grew after every victory. Their morale had never been so high. Some sense of loyalty toward Noah also appeared among those creatures. "I don''t understand why you struggle so much," The rank 8 pig questioned Noah at some point during the journey. "You can already hurt rank 8 magical beasts. Your prowess is unmatched among rank 7 existences. Maybe it''s time to accept that you can''t force your power to reach the superior rank without facing breakthroughs." "I have to agree," Fergie added. "Your flames allow you to restore your body, but you end up on the verge of falling apart many times during every battle. You might not carry lasting injuries, but this approach can''t be healthy for your mind." Their concern had reached the peak after Noah''s aura had started to grow unstable. He was still in complete control of his power, but the bloodlust radiated by his mind had intensified after fighting non-stop for centuries. Noah''s approach to those battles was also atypical. He always jumped into fights that he couldn''t win, hoping that the danger could force his mind to give birth to a new technique. That approach had allowed Noah to master his teleports in a few decades, but it had yet to lead to a proper finishing blow. However, he had found a promising path, and his unstable bloodlust wasn''t enough to make him stop. "Anyone can face rank 8 beings after reaching the eighth rank," Noah replied. "This isn''t an excuse to turn yourself into a bloodthirsty beast," Fergie replied before glancing at the pig. "No offense." "I wouldn''t be me if I took a safe path," Noah replied. "I even have the faint sensation that my ambition wouldn''t make me advance if I fail. My centers of power can be annoying to satisfy at times." "Isn''t your body near the breakthrough?" Fergie asked. "How many rank 8 materials did you already eat? You should be close, right?" Fergie''s belief wouldn''t have been wrong in a normal situation. Even the strongest hybrid would approach the breakthrough after eating so many rank 8 materials. However, Noah''s body required an insane number of nutrients. It had grown so strong that Fergie couldn''t evaluate its power anymore, but it had yet to approach the peak of the seventh rank. Truth be told, Noah had crossed the halfway mark only a few decades ago. His growth would have been faster if he had managed to eat entire rank 8 creatures, but he had to settle for what the rank 8 Foolery left. The loot from his battles even consisted of limbs or small patches of skin. There was a limit to how quickly Noah could improve with those meals. "You should focus on your centers of power," Noah said before turning toward the pig, "And you should take care of your pack. Let me handle my existence. This isn''t the worse I''ve experienced during my training sessions." Fergie and the leader of the Foolery could only heave a helpless sigh in front of Noah''s stubbornness. His battle prowess already amazed them, but he constantly desired more. The journey led the group in many valuable areas. Noah had the chance to bathe in white rivers, seize countless precious materials, and eat many valuable resources during those adventures. His law broadened, his mind enlarged, and his body improved. Everything was going smoothly, but his thoughts were slowly obtaining chaotic properties. Noah had noticed those changes in his mind before his companions. He could sense how his thoughts were slowly losing their original diversity to transform into bloodthirsty ideas. The process could become permanent if Noah didn''t spend a few decades dispersing the bloodlust accumulated throughout those battles, but he couldn''t stop just yet. His finishing blow was about to come to life. His existence prevented him from delaying that process. ''An attack without the cursed sword but in dragon form can cut a few fingers,'' Noah thought while inspecting his opponent. ''Not enough. Even an entire arm wouldn''t be enough.'' His opponent was a short crocodile. The creature was long, but its height prevented it from moving fast. Its defense was high due to the three layers of green scales covering its body, but its overall power was below average. ''This is one of the weakest rank 8 magical beasts in the world,'' Noah thought before activating his workshop to create the draconic armor. ''I must be able to kill it.'' Noah drew the cursed sword and multiplied his arms and weapons. He even summoned the Demonic Form, and he soon obtained a monstrous shape. The battle started as soon as Snore and Night came out in the open. The Foolery and Fergie kept the rest of the pack busy, so Noah could focus on his opponent. The area featured multiple white rivers that the crocodiles used as their home, but Noah ignored those resources. Everything vanished from his vision. Only his opponent remained in his eyes. Noah immediately launched one of his strongest attacks. His monstrous body transformed into a blade that pierced the sky and disappeared before reaching the crocodile. He had devised a method to build momentum through his movement techniques. The teleports allowed Noah to maintain his speed, so he had learnt how to alternate the abilities and gather power through his sprints. The black blade reappeared above the crocodile and began to dive in its direction, but Noah teleported again. He reformed at the creature''s side and repeated the process. Snore and Night assaulted the crocodile, but their attacks only managed to slow down its actions. They didn''t pierce its skin, but their relentless offensive eventually broke some scales. Once Noah built enough momentum, he performed a feint to bait the crocodile''s bite and teleport above its head. His blade converged to create a drill-like structure that pierced the three layers of scales and touched the creature''s skull. Noah''s blades stopped when they reached the skull. They couldn''t descend anymore. His attack couldn''t pierce that material. The crocodile swung its tail before Noah could try anything else, but he quickly teleported to reappear high in the sky. His cold gaze then landed on the creature, and a wave of bloodlust surged out of his figure. ''What else did I miss?'' Noah thought without launching his flames. His mind worked faster while his body fell apart. That near-death situation gave Noah more ideas on possible finishing blows, so he held back his flames to delay his healing. ''I used both my movement techniques, my ambition, the unstable substance, and three cursed blades,'' Noah thought. ''This is all I have. What else can I even do to kill it? Is my ambition tricking me again?'' Noah considered those options, but his reasoning stopped when an idea formed. Scenes from his training with Sword Saint resurfaced in his mind and uncovered the reason behind his failures. ''I will never step into the next level of power if I keep my abilities separated,'' Noah thought. ''I need to fuse them into a single blow, an attack that can act as a pure expression of my ambition.'' Chapter 1521: 1521. Attacks Noah''s true meaning could force his centers of power to grow. It could accumulate the potential to trigger transformations. It could even evolve the matter touched by its influence. However, Noah had never used his entire ambition in his attacks. His slashes and spells carried the many features in his existence, but they didn''t fuse them into a harmonious array. ''I need to use my ambition to attack,'' Noah concluded as flames came out of his mouth to heal his body. Snore and Night fought against the crocodile. The snake nigh-immortality could keep it busy even if cracks opened on its ethereal figure, and the Pterodactyl was almost untouchable. The rank 8 magical beast struggled to escape their offensive and couldn''t find the chance to attack its previous opponent. Noah remained in the sky. His mind slowed down after the flames fixed his condition, but he didn''t require the full potential of his thoughts anymore. He had to create something meant to destroy. The Demonic Deduction technique was the ideal tool for that task. ''I have fused my destruction and creation in single attacks already,'' Noah thought while looking at his swords, ''But they had never become pure expressions of my ambition. They were nothing more than features fueled by my law.'' Bloodthirsty thoughts filled his mind as the scarlet halo radiated by the Demonic Deduction technique illuminated his dark mental sea. The answer to his problem was already there. Noah had simply failed to notice it until now. ''I couldn''t have found it sooner,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''I had to taste countless defeats and hone my arts to their limits to obtain this solution.'' NovelWell.com His draconic form vanished. A layer of dark matter created a fiendish armor to protect his skin from the Demonic Form''s corrosive properties. Noah closed his eyes as his consciousness expanded and focused on the crocodile. He had to pierce its skull, but his attacks lacked power. So, he decided to concentrate the power of his ambition in his next slash. His cultivation level fell as his ambition withdrew from his centers of power and gathered on his blades. Their might remained the same, but the area around them darkened. Strange energy enveloped Noah''s weapons. It was subtle and didn''t radiate its influence in the area. However, both Fergie, the Foolery, and the weaker crocodiles stopped fighting to turn in his direction. Something was attracting those existences. Their very instincts told them that Noah owned an incredible ability. Part of them even wanted to bathe in that aura. ''I finally found the answer,'' Noah thought while reopening his eyes. ''I have been wrong since the beginning. There is no destruction or creation. There is only power and the ability to gather more of it.'' Noah began to walk toward the rank 8 crocodile. His feet landed on dark spots in the air as he neared his opponent. The beast understood that something had changed in its opponent, but it didn''t dare to reject that frontal challenge. Even Snore and Night retreated when they sensed Noah''s intentions. ''I don''t need complexity,'' Noah thought. ''I don''t need to amass numerous techniques to fill the gaps with the higher ranks. My ambition already has the power to do that. I only had to find this ability inside me.'' The crocodile jumped once Noah entered its range. It performed a long leap and opened its huge mouth to bit on its opponent. Yet, Noah disappeared before it could stab its teeth in his skin. Noah reappeared on the ground behind the creature. The crocodile had already seen his teleports, so it didn''t let that event surprise it. As soon as the beast touched the terrain, it turned to jump toward him again. The crocodile interrupted its charge mid-way. The creature had suddenly noticed that something was off. The lower part of its mouth wasn''t on its body anymore. The beast had left it in its landing spot. A wave of surprise filled the crocodile. Noah''s attack didn''t radiate any threatening aura, but it had managed to sever part of its body. His cultivation level had also fallen, so he didn''t rely on any boost to achieve that. The rank 8 beast wouldn''t ask Noah for explanations. It soon charged toward him again, paying extra attention to his blades. The crocodile couldn''t believe that a rank 7 existence could hurt it again if it were careful. Noah casually swung his blades, but the crocodile dodged them. It ducked under that horizontal slash and twisted its mouth to point its teeth on his waist. "This attack hit you," Noah said. "Or rather, it didn''t, but my ambition can evolve a miss into a clean hit." While his words reached the crocodile, the upper part of the creature''s mouth fell. The beast ended up hitting Noah''s waist with its maimed head, and the attack managed to fling him away anyway. Blood accumulated in Noah''s mouth, but he didn''t even bother to spit it. He was in a peculiar mindset, and he didn''t dare to interrupt it to mind his condition. ''The answer is always so simple,'' Noah sighed in his mind while the crocodile launched a mad charge toward him. The rank 8 creature was livid, and its survival instincts had also kicked in. It wouldn''t bother about its injuries anymore. It only wanted to kill its opponent. Noah raised his blades above his head. His body was a mess due to the drawbacks of the cursed sword, but he let it shatter. He had to complete one last attack before focusing on his condition. The crocodile jumped once it entered Noah''s range. It lowered its head in an attempt to headbutt Noah''s chest, but its assault lost power mid-air. The creature revealed a surprised expression. Once again, it found itself unable to understand what was happening. Still, a small cut suddenly appeared on its maimed mouth. The cut expanded and enlarged until it crossed its entire head. That phenomenon didn''t only involve its scaled skin. Its skull and brain also suffered the same damages. The crocodile found its head severed into two parts before crashing on the ground. Its body slid on the terrain and reached Noah''s feet. Noah didn''t attack. He limited himself to fix his cold eyes on his opponent. His mental waves seeped inside its body and observed as its resilience slowly gave in to its injuries. The beast struggled. It continued to crawl closer to Noah''s feet even after he had divided its brain into two parts. Its resilience was astonishing, but it slowly vanished, leaving the crocodile alive for only a few short moments. While its vision went dark, the crocodile raised its eyes to stare at Noah. It wanted to surrender, but it couldn''t give voice to any sound in that condition. The crocodile died in front of the attentive eyes of everyone in Noah''s group. Their threatening companion had finally succeeded. He had killed a rank 8 creature with his own hands! "It''s time," The cursed sword said before creating a pulling force that absorbed the bloodlust gathered on Noah''s mental walls. "Wait!" Noah suddenly shouted while looking at the sword held by his right hand. "Didn''t you tell me that magical beasts made you improve slowly?" "They do," The cursed sword replied, "But your achievements are only the trigger for my advancement at this time. The bloodlust that you have accumulated for centuries is more than enough for me." Chapter 1522: 1522. Underlings Noah felt light-headed as the bloodlust accumulated in the past centuries flowed inside the cursed sword. That dense mass of energy fused with the weapon and transformed its fabric. The cursed sword stretched, and scarlet lines appeared on its sharp edge. A strange red symbol also formed at the base of its blade. When Noah inspected it, he sensed a vague resemblance with the demon head from the Chasing Demon sect. "Why did this appea-?" Noah said before a sense of weakness filled his body and interrupted his question. Noah fell on his knees. His body was still falling apart, and that sense of weakness almost made him faint. Still, he quickly spat flames to fix part of his condition. "I''m attuning with you," The cursed blade replied. "This mark only expresses your influence." The corpse of the rank 8 crocodile entered his separate space, and the Demonic Sword left his grasp as Noah placed both hands on the terrain to support himself. Noah had already sensed a similar weakness. That feeling matched the drawbacks of his ambition. He was paying the price for the battle prowess showed earlier. Lumps of blood fell out of Noah''s mouth. He coughed and spat during that event. His body was rejecting the very liquids that allowed it to function. NovelWell.com The black hole did its best to keep Noah in one piece, but there was a limit to what it could do in that situation. Noah had gone overboard during the fight, and the evolution of the cursed sword didn''t help his condition. Fergie quickly flew toward Noah, but the latter expanded the dark world and kept his underling outside of his technique. Noah could feel that his centers of power had grown unstable, so he didn''t want anyone near him until his condition stabilized. Night flew through the dark world and seized the two pieces of the crocodile''s mouth from the ground. Once the Pterodactyl returned near Noah, the dark world started to destroy those materials to absorb its nutrients. A wave of energy eventually flowed through Noah''s tissues and began to fight against those drawbacks. The stress accumulated by his centers of power also dispersed as the best nutrients that his cultivation level allowed him to seize fed his tissues. Noah slowly recovered, and the cursed sword completed its evolution during the process. A wave of bloodlust flowed inside his mind at that point and made him lose strength in his arms. His head slammed on the ground as bloodthirsty thoughts filled his mind and altered his usual mindset. Noah ignored his condition to focus his full attention on his mental sphere. He had to suppress those emotions before his instincts forced him to jump into another battle. The process was pure torture. The drawbacks of Noah''s ambition and the bloodlust worked together to tear him apart, but he did everything in his power to balance their effects. Eventually, Noah suppressed the bloodlust and stabilized his condition. He still felt frail, but that was only normal when he considered what he had done. ''Maybe dispersing the dragon form wasn''t a good idea,'' Noah thought as a happy smirk appeared on his face. Noah could immediately understand why the drawbacks of his ambition had been so intense. His previous empowerment of the centers of power didn''t matter since it had been in place for less than ten minutes. The reason behind that weakness came from his foundation. When Noah had killed the crocodile, he had focused his ambition on his attacks, making them able to hurt rank 8 creatures. Yet, Noah''s cultivation level had been far away from the peak of the seventh rank at that time. He didn''t even rely on special techniques or transformations, so his ambition had to work extra hard to fill the gap from the eighth rank. The more ambition Noah used, the harsher the drawbacks would be. The density of his true meaning had also affected them, leading to an intense weakness. Noah could barely find the strength to stand up. He only wanted to sleep and rest after that successful battle. ''I still have something to do,'' Noah thought, and Snore quickly materialized under him. The dark world dispersed while Noah stored what remained of the crocodile''s mouth and the cursed sword. His figure laid on Snore''s head, and the duo rose in the sky to near their companions. The pack of crocodiles had begun to disperse after those underlings sensed the death of their leader. They had no reason to fight against a group that featured a rank 8 magical beast. Noah gave voice to a roar once he reached the other battlefield. The Foolery shot surprised glances toward him, but they didn''t dare to contest his decisions. Most of the weaker crocodiles ignored Noah''s call and left, but a few interrupted their escape and turned toward him. Their instincts also told him to bow in front of that almost collapsed existence. Noah roared again, and the crocodiles drew closer. The Foolery didn''t attack them since they had understood Noah''s intentions, and Fergie also remained silent to let his leader work freely. "You¡­ cough¡­ will follow me from now on," Noah said once all the crocodiles that had listened to his roar gathered around him. Those beasts were nothing more than rank 7 creatures. Only a few of them were in the upper tier, and their overall prowess was relatively poor. Still, Noah wanted them for purposes that didn''t only involve battles. "I thought you would aim directly for the rank 8 magical beasts," Fergie whispered after nearing Noah. "My ambition has just evolved again," Noah replied. "I don''t know how it affects the environment and the living beings around me, but these creatures can help me understand it." "Are they portable guinea pigs?" Fergie asked. "Cough. Not really," Noah replied before clearing his throat. "They are portable cannon fodder that I can study from time to time to understand how powerful my influence is." Noah''s decision had come after he became able to kill rank 8 creatures on his own. Instead of letting those magical beasts free, he preferred to keep them in his pack to increase the overall power of his organization. "Some of them might even reach the eighth rank," Noah added. "I wonder if they can develop new abilities as long as they remain with me." The Foolery felt a bit disappointed that part of their targets was no more, but they soon dived toward the ground to inspect the whole area. They began to eat any form of vegetation, ignoring that their new companions might also need nutrients. "I will dig a cave a bit farther away," Noah said before Snore began to move toward a different region. "It''s time to start working toward our goal. I need to build an army, and this is the first step." Noah didn''t consider the Foolery as part of his pack, not yet at least. Their leader was still stronger than him, so he could only see them as companions. The crocodiles were different. They answered only to Noah. He was their leader, and they were mere underlings. That role made them instantly see Fergie as their superior. Some of them even tried to become his mount, but the expert refused those beasts. It was better if they focused on protecting Noah for the time being. Chapter 1523: 1523. Army The crocodiles, Night, Snore, and the Demonic Sword protected Noah while he focused on dispersing the drawbacks of his ambition. The process required a few years, but his companions didn''t mind waiting for him to recover. His seclusion led to important revelations. Noah slowly understood his new power better and also devised methods to avoid those annoying drawbacks. The trick was to reach a power level close to his goal. Noah had to avoid using his ambition without deploying other techniques because it would force his law to express more might. Of course, Noah would have to adapt that new power to his battle style and become used to its actual efficiency. Yet, the magical beasts'' domain still hid many challenges, so he didn''t worry about that part. The situation was different when it came to the cursed sword. The weapon had evolved into a rank 8 inscribed item in the lower tier. It had finally become able to cross the limits of the seventh rank, but that only caused problems for the time being. Noah couldn''t risk his life to use the cursed sword. The drawbacks of the weapon would be far greater since it could launch attacks with power in the eighth rank now. His body already risked shattering before. It definitely wouldn''t be able to endure the injuries caused by that weapon now. Noah didn''t worry too much about that issue for now. It was clear that his foundation still required a lot of work, and he didn''t mind avoiding relying on the cursed sword to focus on other aspects of his power. NiceNovel.com The potential of his new ability was limitless, in theory. Noah also wanted to learn how to maintain the empowerment of his centers of power and enhance his attacks. Once Noah recovered and left his cave, his group resumed exploring the magical beasts'' domain. The Foolery didn''t know much about those areas. They had already crossed the regions explored during their escape. Instead, the new creatures submitted by Noah revealed their value in that field. With the knowledge carried by the crocodiles, the exploration became smoother. Noah and the others could learn about the nature of their opponents before invading specific regions. His strategies also became more effective. Noah could now kill rank 8 magical beasts, so his approach became even more reckless. He couldn''t use the cursed sword, but he had too much to test. Most of the initial fights ended up in defeats due to his focus on techniques rather than actual victories. Victories began to appear once Noah gained enough experience with his new techniques. Each battle with a rank 8 magical beast always led to harsh struggles, but he didn''t mind suffering severe injuries as long as he obtained what he desired. The rank 8 Foolery still had to help Noah from time to time. Noah''s attacks rarely managed to inflict deadly injuries in a few exchanges without the cursed sword, which led to long battles that didn''t benefit him. Still, as his expertise increased, Noah needed the rank 8 pig less and less, eventually leading to a point when he could feel confident in facing most rank 8 creatures. The species and innate abilities of those magical beasts influenced that confidence. Rank 8 creatures could have different power levels, and Noah was still on the lower end of that battle prowess. Noah''s army enlarged as the group continued their conquest. They went from region to region to defeat packs and seize resources. It was only normal for him to submit a few creatures to add to his organization. "This mountain is strange," Noah thought while looking at a tall black mountain in the distance. "It''s rare to see something that the sky can''t illuminate." The group had the appearance of a proper platoon while they studied the environment from a plain that the Foolery had transformed into a land of blue bushes. Noah had submitted wolves, bears, eagles, and elephants during the journey. His army was atypical for the magical beasts'' world, but that didn''t matter once a battle started. His influence on those creatures had led to marvelous results. Those magical beasts would naturally strive to improve after bathing in his ambition for years. Their minds had broadened, and natural mutations had also appeared from time to time. Neither of those creatures had reached the eighth rank. Yet, many of them had advanced to the upper tier during those years. The constant battle had also eliminated the specimens that couldn''t keep Noah''s pace. His army had become a fearsome force, even if it counted less than three hundred specimens. "And we are definitely exploring it, am I right?" Fergie said in his usual sarcastic tone. "How could we even fear what''s hidden there?" The rank 8 Foolery said before snorting and lifting its head to the sky. "This phenomenon must have some connection with the darkness element," Noah replied. "I can''t ignore it. Moreover, the elephants have confirmed that the mountain doesn''t contain leaders in the middle tier or above." "I am weaker than you," Fergie said, "But I''m struggling to keep pace with your growth. I''m lucky that your centers of power have insane requirements, or you would have reached the eighth rank before my breakthroughs." "You better start to work harder," Noah said in a sly tone. "I don''t mind placing you with the crocodiles if you turn out to be a disappointment." "And here I thought that you wanted me for my loyalty," Fergie replied while shaking his head. "On a serious note, my breakthroughs are close. Do you think Heaven and Earth will react to the event?" Noah turned toward Fergie and inspected his centers of power. The expert had spoken the truth. His dantian was only a few decades away from the solid stage. Instead, his body would still require a few centuries to reach the upper tier. "It shouldn''t," Noah replied, "But you never know with Heaven and Earth. They might even attack you to get to me. It''s better if you warn me before the breakthrough in case something goes wrong." "Let me try even if something goes wrong," Fergie said while dropping his sarcastic tone. The expert liked to joke around, but his desire to reach the higher ranks was pure. He also wanted to make the Crystal City and the secret organization pay for what he had suffered during his imprisonment. Fergie had never withdrawn from a fight for that exact reason. He imitated Noah''s training and adapted it to his existence to create something that worked only for him. Noah couldn''t find any flaw in his underling. "Shall we?" The rank 8 pig asked. Drool had already started to fall from its mouth due to its impatience. Noah and the others moved toward the mountain and soon understood the reason behind its blackness. The magical plants that filled the area had large black leaves that fed on the white light of the sky. Some of those plants ended up in Noah''s separate space. Their innate feature was interesting, so he didn''t hesitate to add them to his pile of materials and corpses. Once the group reached the summit, it found traces of battles on the rocky terrain. Only Noah could obtain a vague idea of the type of magical beast behind those tracks, and his eyes lit up at that realization. "Dragons," Noah said before glancing toward the rank 8 Foolery. The beast was behaving oddly. It didn''t prepare for a battle right away. There seemed to be something in its mind. "Food is calling me," The leader of the pig said before shooting toward a corner of the mountain''s peak. Noah and Fergie exchanged a glance before flying after the creature. The other magical beasts also followed them, but they inevitably remained behind. When Noah and Fergie reached the rank 8 pig, they found it staring at the narrow entrance of a cavity that dug deep into the mountain. That structure didn''t have anything peculiar, except for the Soul Stones that made the edges of its entrance. Chapter 1524: 1524. Mine The sight of the Soul Stones told Noah and the others that the cavity wasn''t a simple structure. Those materials only existed in the human domain and inside mines scattered through the whole Immortal Lands. ''I see no signs of battles,'' Noah thought while inspecting the area. It was rare to find mines of Soul Stones in places that didn''t feature battles, but it was possible. A high concentration of energy or a series of valuable resources could nourish the ground enough to give birth to those materials. "We need to explore the insides of the cavity," Noah said, interrupting the silence that had fallen among the trio. The other magical beasts in his group soon reached that area. The Foolery and the other creatures stooped behind Noah, Fergie, and the rank 8 leader to wait for their instructions. "Can''t we start eating them?" The rank 8 Foolery asked, but Noah shook his head. "This is a lair," Noah said. "I suggest we enter it only after defeating the pack that occupies this mountain." "What if they hide inside the cavity?" Fergie asked. read online free Noah stepped forward. His consciousness expanded, and his mental waves seeped inside the cavity, looking for any trace of life. His senses didn''t manage to find anything, but that outcome didn''t disperse Noah''s worries. ''This will lure out any creature hiding inside the mountain,'' Noah thought before opening his palm above the cavity. Dark matter covered his hand, and a series of spiked spheres fell inside the cavity. Noah was using the Instabilities created during his journey. His stash of disposable weapons in the upper tier had reached an incredible number after accumulating materials for centuries. "Don''t destroy the food!" The rank 8 Foolery shouted, but Noah ignored it. Some of the Soul Stones would shatter in the process, but their raw laws would flow in the outside world. The Foolery and the other magical beasts could easily absorb them. Even Fergie would have the chance to seize that precious energy. Hundreds of Instabilities filled the cavity and rolled down its walls. Noah paid attention to every sound that reached his ears, and his mind slowly learnt that the structure didn''t contain only rocks. Noah became almost sure that something was hiding inside the mountain, so he didn''t hesitate to throw more Instabilities. He stopped only when the noises with an unclear source didn''t echo anymore. "You might want to retreat," Noah said when he rejoined his companions. "To those who can fly, I suggest you prepare for the incoming wave of energy." The Foolery, Fergie, and the eagles in the army shot in the sky and floated above the mountain. Noah joined them after giving a series of orders to the creatures on the ground, and he snapped his fingers once he completed his preparations. A series of explosions immediately resounded from inside the mountain. A wave of fuming spikes, smoke, and debris shot out of the cavity and filled the sky. A dense wave of energy followed that event. The raw laws contained in the Soul Stones destroyed by the instabilities shot upward and filled the area where Noah and the others were floating. The magical beasts absorbed that energy, and Noah did the same. Only Fergie had to resort to a few techniques to seize and store those raw laws. Noah''s dantian began to enlarge. The raw laws replicated his darkness and filled his organ, improving his cultivation level far faster than any training session. Noah didn''t use Soul Stones for a long time, so he ignored the possible drawbacks that his abuse could cause. His existence already wanted to improve. Those raw laws only gave him the chance to do it faster. Still, that massive wave of energy vanished in a matter of seconds. The magical beasts and Fergie reopened their eyes to wear disappointed expressions. They expected far more after those explosions. Only Noah felt that something was off. He knew how powerful his Instabilities were, and he had even used hundreds of them. In theory, the mountain couldn''t endure their might. Yet, the mountain had stopped trembling rather quickly, and the energy that had reached the sky didn''t match his expectations. Noah slowly became confident that something had hindered his attack. "Can we go in now?" The rank 8 Foolery asked, but the mountain suddenly began to tremble and attracted its attention. Noah''s expression grew cold, and two swords promptly appeared in his hands. The others in the sky focused on the broken cavity when they noticed his actions. It was clear that a battle was about to happen. A spider-web of cracks suddenly spread throughout the summit. The earthquake continued to rage as boulders began to fall from the mountain''s sides. Then, the entire summit crumbled, and a series of figures became visible among the falling boulders. They were huge dragons that Noah had never seen before, but the aura that they released triggered his excitement. Those dragons had black scales and a pair of large wings. They had four legs and a tail, but their head carried their most peculiar features. Those creature''s head was as big as half their body. Their eyes and nose had a normal size, but their mouth was immense. Its lower part resembled a sack capable of containing entire magical beasts. The dragons were thirty meters long and ten meters tall. The lower part of their mouth could reach their legs, and a pulling force also spread from their throat. Whenever the dragons opened their mouth, boulders and energy would converge toward them. The laws of space also twisted in their insides. They carried properties that Noah had only seen in space-rings. Moreover, those creatures radiated a type of energy that Noah couldn''t fail to recognize. They were magical beasts with a darkness aptitude! The pack of dragons featured two rank 8 leaders in the lower tier. Their hungry eyes soon converged toward the rank 8 Foolery, and a series of deep roars came out of their enormous mouths. Noah snorted before giving voice to a roar. The two leaders had ordered their pack to isolate the rank 8 pig, but Noah promptly stated that he would fight one of them. War cries resounded in the sky. The Foolery and the other magical beasts chanted their desire to fight, but neither of them dared to move before their leaders. Noah glanced at the shattered mountain. He could see numerous Soul Stones hidden among the debris. It seemed that he had really found a mine. "I don''t think I can fight two of them simultaneously," The rank 8 Foolery said, and Noah understood the meaning behind its words. Dragons usually stood at the peak of the food chain. They were among the strongest beasts in any environment. The rank 8 Foolery was also powerful, but its innate abilities couldn''t help Noah in that situation. "I will defeat one of them," Noah replied. "Try not to die. They seem strong." The rank 8 Foolery snorted before diving toward the enemy pack. Its underlings followed it, and Noah didn''t hesitate to imitate it. He even ordered the other beasts to charge ahead. The two rank 8 dragons didn''t immediately believe that Noah would fight them, but they had to change their minds when they saw him turning into a black sword and reaching their position in an instant. Chapter 1525: 1525. Mouth Noah wasn''t faster than the rank 8 Foolery. His movement technique was excellent, but it didn''t have the power to make him surpass magical beasts in the eighth rank. However, Noah had learnt how to make his ambition focus on specific abilities. His speed could surpass what rank 8 creatures in the lower tier could achieve when his law enhanced his movement technique. The dragons felt surprised when they saw his figure appearing right above their face. They immediately tried to attack, but Noah exploited their surprise to slash at one of the leaders. Dark matter flowed out of his figure and Demonic Sword while his blades descended. A fiendish armor formed above his skin while his cultivation level rose. The dragon barely had the time to open its mouth before a deep cut opened on its forehead. The attack didn''t manage to fling it back, but it had the power to pierce its thick scales. Noah wore a confused expression at that sight. He had tested the power of his ambition long enough to know that the wound didn''t reflect the full might of his attack. Dragons were usually stronger than other beasts, but he had already faced creatures with high defensive capabilities. His slash should have done twice as much damage, but it didn''t even manage to reach his opponent''s skull. Noah''s eyes fell on the dragon''s mouth, but his figure suddenly disappeared when a tail cracked on his position. He reappeared under the dragons, and a second attack flew out of his blades. NovelsToday.com A large cut opened on the base of his opponent''s tail. The attack had almost severed that limb from its body. A roar then followed that event, but the cries of the other beasts suppressed it. The Foolery and the other beasts in his army crashed on the pack of dragons. The battlefield became chaotic in a matter of instants, but the two rank 8 leaders didn''t let that mess distracting them from their actual opponents. One of the rank 8 dragons remained still and met with the rank 8 Foolery head-on. Instead, the other slowly turned toward Noah while wearing an expression that conveyed pure anger. Noah''s face slightly relaxed at that sight. His second attack had met his expectations and had allowed him to gain some insight into the dragons'' innate ability. ''They must be able to absorb the energy contained in my attacks,'' Noah concluded in his mind before shooting in the distance. The injured dragon followed Noah outside of the mountain''s range. The creature kept its mouth open and darkened the areas that it crossed. Even the white light of the sky lost against its pulling force. The cuts on its forehead and tail soon stopped bleeding. Noah felt sure about his hypothesis at that point. He could link the previous odd event to those creatures'' innate ability. ''I wonder how it works,'' Noah thought before teleporting above the dragon. The creature quickly stopped its charge, but Noah managed to make his blades descend before the dragon could turn its mouth toward him. An invisible attack fell from his figure, and a large cut opened on the beast''s back. Noah tried to teleport away, but his technique grew unstable and eventually failed, leaving him in the same spot. Confusion appeared in Noah''s eyes. He had mastered the teleports after countless battles. He couldn''t commit mistakes after amassing so much experience. ''How could this happen?'' Noah thought, but the appearance of a dangerous sensation forced him to focus on the outside world. Noah flew upward to dodge the incoming tail, but he found himself unable to accelerate properly. Something was draining the energy that seeped out of his figure. Even the dark matter released during his sprints vanished as soon as it came out in the open. The tail slammed on Noah and flung him away. When he managed to stop, he noticed that the attack had broken his right arm and most of his ribs. His body had managed to withstand the blow only due to the unstable substance that flowed through his black veins. Noah didn''t blame himself. He had been surprised after the failed teleport, but he had understood what was happening now. The dragon shot after Noah. The creature kept its mouth open as it flew through the sky and absorbed any form of energy on its path. Noah studied the pulling force coming out of the creature''s mouth. Its power wasn''t great, but it seemed able to seep inside the very matter of the world. ''The dragon can absorb energy even when my abilities have yet to appear,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''I didn''t make a mistake during the teleport. I didn''t have enough power at my disposal when I activated the technique.'' Noah''s interest increased once he understood how that innate ability worked. The dragon had incredible defensive skills. It could negate techniques as long as it pointed its mouth toward its opponents. ''Will my ambition be enough to kill it?'' Noah wondered before covering the area with his flames. Part of the energy gathered by burning the environment flowed toward the dragon and ended in its mouth. The creature could even weaken Noah''s innate ability. There didn''t seem to be a limit to what it could absorb. Noah couldn''t wait until the flames healed his body. He seized as much energy as possible before expanding the dark world. Trails of dark matter began to fly toward the dragon, but Noah sacrificed them to activate his teleport. The dragon crashed inside the dark world. All the dark matter in the technique flowed inside its mouth, but it failed to satisfy the creature. Noah reappeared above the dragon and transformed. He soon entered his draconic shape, and the Demonic Form didn''t hesitate to cover his figure. Dark matter also gathered on his torso and gave birth to four additional arms. Noah had entered his strongest form. His ambition had even pushed his cultivation level to the peak of the seventh rank. The dragon turned its head while Noah deployed his techniques. The dark matter in the draconic armor began to flow toward the creature''s mouth. Even some roots broke to fly toward the beast. Noah teleported again and reappeared above the creature''s tail. His blade descended, and a second large cut appeared at the base of that limb. The dragon tried to turn toward Noah, but he disappeared before it could point its mouth at him. He teleported right under its large mouth and launched a piercing attack that stabbed his blades through its scales. Noah spread the blades, but the creature promptly slammed its head on the ground. Noah couldn''t fight against that incredible physical strength, so he teleported to reappear above the tail. A trace of blackness shot out of his blades and severed every connection between the dragon and the tail. That limb flew in the air, and Noah promptly stored it inside the separate space. The dragon gave voice to an angry roar, and the pulling force radiated by its mouth intensified. Noah failed to teleport away, and one of the creature''s rear legs slammed on his torso. Noah spat blood while flying through the sky. Two large cuts had appeared on his waist, and a large gray spot had formed on his chest. His internal organs had also suffered some damage, but his flames soon burnt the environment to fix his condition. Chapter 1526: 1526. Hear The dragon could destroy the draconic armor and damage Noah''s body with simple attacks. Instead, Noah had to be careful of his every move to inflict even the slightest injury. Now that the pulling force had intensified, the whole area around the dragon''s head affected Noah''s techniques. Even his draconic form began to melt whenever he approached those spots. ''I wish I had the time to cut it into pieces,'' Noah cursed in his mind before teleporting on the dragon''s side. His blades shot forward, and a deep cut opened through the dragon''s scales. The creature turned toward him, and he failed to activate the teleport again. The dragon slammed its leg on Noah''s draconic chest. The immense physical strength carried by the blow flung him away and forced him to activate his flames again. ''I can''t keep fighting like this,'' Noah thought once he straightened his position. The dragon often moved, so Noah always had the chance to burn something. The creature was suffering more injuries than him, but that was only a temporary advantage. Noah had to use his ambition to fight the dragon. His law had to flow inside his techniques every time he attacked or sprinted, and it also had to remain active to keep his centers of power at the peak of the seventh rank. read online free Noah couldn''t keep that empowerment for too long. He depleted massive amounts of darkness every time he pushed his techniques past the limits of the seventh rank. ''I will run out of darkness before this creature starts to feel tired,'' Noah concluded in his mind. The rank 8 Foolery had always come in his aid during battles that featured annoying opponents. Noah often had to let the pig finish his fights because his ambition ran out at some point. However, the Foolery was busy fighting the other rank 8 dragon. Noah had to handle that battle on his own, but his situation appeared quite grim. ''Snore, Night. It''s time to test that technique,'' Noah said through his mental connection. ''Can you handle it?'' Night asked. ''We''ll find out soon enough,'' Noah replied before closing his eyes to focus on his law. Snore and Night appeared by his side and let his aura flow through them. Their fabric condensed under that power, and their level increased due to the marvelous effects of his law. Noah had learnt how to make his ambition focus on his techniques, but he could apply that ability to all his assets. His battle prowess could reach the eighth rank, and he could do the same when it came to his companions. The draconic form dispersed, and part of its energy returned inside his dantian. Noah required darkness to make use of that insane amount of ambition, so he had to reduce the number of techniques deployed at the same time to endure those expenses. ''The drawbacks will be harsh,'' Noah thought. ''We must kill it.'' Snore hissed at the sky as its fabric condensed. Night also roared before disappearing inside the structure of the world. The dragon was charging toward Noah with its giant mouth spread open. The sky darkened as whiteness flowed inside its mouth. It wouldn''t take much before its pulling force reached Noah. Snore unfolded its wings and launched its sharp feathers. Some of them exploded before reaching the dragon since the pulling force made them unstable. Yet, most of them managed to explode on its body. Most of those feathers exploded inside the dragon''s mouth. The violent energy released during the detonation tried to destroy that organ, but it ended up condensing and flowing through the creature''s throat. The feathers that managed to explode on the dragon''s skin shattered its scales and destroyed large patches of its skin. The might released in their detonation even forced the creature to interrupt its charge. One of its legs suddenly separated from its body. Night briefly reappeared high in the sky before disappearing again when it dived toward the dragon. Noah shot forward, and Snore followed him. The duo flew around the dragon to avoid its pulling force and shot toward the unprotected parts of its body. The dragon tried to turn its head toward Noah, but another leg separated from its body. The creature looked at a seemingly empty spot in the sky at that point, and Night quickly materialized due to the effects of the pulling force. The Pterodactyl flew outside the range of that ability and merged with the world again. Snore used that moment of distraction to stab its teeth on the dragon''s torso and cover its body with violent dark matter. Noah also reached his opponent and slashed at its back. Snore''s teeth dug deeper into the dragon''s scales as its violent energy destroyed its skin and seeped inside its injuries. The creature eventually turned toward the Blood Companion, and trails of dark matter flowed out of the snake''s body to converge in its opponent''s mouth. Night severed another leg at that point, and Noah promptly launched a slash toward one of the bleeding injuries. Snore then bit on those wounds and ripped a large chunk of the dragon''s skin apart. The dragon didn''t know where to look. Attacks would land on its body whenever it turned. Its pulling force wasn''t helping in that situation. Noah and the others could coordinate perfectly and exploit the blind spots in its defense. The pulling force was stronger in front of the creature''s mouth and weaker behind its back. That allowed Noah and the others to focus on any other part of its body and cover it in injuries. Yet, that still wasn''t enough to kill the dragon. Noah needed to inflict deadly injuries to defeat that creature. He couldn''t continue destroying its skin in the hope that it would succumb to its wounds. ''The head is off limits,'' Noah said through the mental connection. ''Let''s aim for its heart!'' Noah, Night, and Snore alternated their offensive to force the dragon into a deadlock. The snake endured most of the pulling force and kept the creature still while Noah and the Pterodactyl focused on creating a bloody path toward its heart. ''Can you reach it?'' Noah asked through the mental connection after creating a large hole through the dragon''s rib cage. ''I can''t,'' Night replied. ''There are too many tissues along the way.'' ''Snore!'' Noah shouted, and the snake promptly stabbed its teeth on that injury. Snore''s teeth naturally released violent dark matter. The Blood Companion could also spit clouds made of that destructive energy. Once Snore bit on the injury, a wave of violent dark matter spread inside the dragon and ravaged its organs. The creature roared in pain and decided to close its mouth on a piece of the snake''s body. Its pulling force even intensified after that gesture. Snore immediately shrunk. The dark matter inside its fabric flowed out of its body and entered the dragon''s mouth. Noah didn''t have enough energy to compensate for that process. Noah teleported above the dragon. His blades pointed at its back and stabbed deep into its body after a reckless dive. The Demonic Sword even spread dark matter to transform into its draconic form and enlarge the injury to create a passage for Night. The Pterodactyl remained hidden until Noah managed to create a tunnel through the dragon''s chest. Night then shot inside the creature and severed every vital organ that it found. Once Night reached its heart, it cut away every vessel linked to that organ before piercing it. The dragon could only let go of Snore when it felt that its life was about to abandon its body. Noah couldn''t let the dragon turn for fear that its influence could affect Night. He jumped in front of the creature and performed a violent descending slash while dark matter covered his blades. The attack didn''t manage to pierce the creature''s scales, but it was powerful enough to make its head slam on the ground. During that window, Night finished destroying the heart. Chapter 1527: 1527. Drawbacks The dragon struggled to stand. It had lost most of its legs, and Night had also severed its heart from its body. However, its resilience allowed it to remain alive. The creature raised its head and spread its mouth. Everything in Noah''s vision went dark when the dragon launched a last desperate attack against its opponent. The pulling force tried to drag Noah inside its mouth, but Snore slammed on him to push him away from that ability. The dark matter inside the Blood Companion started to flow inside the beast again, but Noah promptly recalled it. Night launched a relentless offensive inside the dragon''s body, and its functions eventually stopped. The creature crashed on the ground, closing its mouth and ending its threatening innate ability. Noah quickly stored the corpse and its legs before kneeling on the ground. His white sword also returned inside the separate space, but Night, Snore, and the Demonic Sword gathered around him. An intense weakness fell on Noah''s mind. He had used the full power of his ambition in that fight. His law had enhanced his centers of power, his abilities, and his companions. He was about to face the harshest drawbacks of his life. Night, Snore, and the Demonic Sword would gladly share part of those drawbacks, but Noah''s ambition didn''t work like that. He was the only one who could pay the price of that empowerment. Noah began to convulse before crashing on the ground. His body trembled, and blood flowed out of his mouth. His consciousness also lost any connection with the outside world as a series of nightmares replaced his thoughts. NovelWell.com Snore and the Demonic Sword didn''t know what to do, but Night showed its experience in that situation. It flew inside the separate space and came out carrying a series of rank 8 materials. Noah didn''t eat all of them. He had stored a few rank 8 materials because they worked better than any pill and potion for him. Night knew that, so it didn''t hesitate to take them out after inspecting Noah''s condition. Snore covered Noah with its massive body, and the Demonic Sword did its best to cut those materials into small pieces. Noah was in no condition to deploy the dark world, so his companions had to replace that technique. The snake''s violent dark matter fell on the materials and helped the Demonic Sword in its task. Night also did its best to support the blade, and the trio eventually succeeded in severing those tough nutrients. Night then carried them inside Noah''s black hole. The Pterodactyl was aware that the fourth center of power knew what to do with that energy. Some of the rank 7 dragons in the distance left the battlefield and shot toward Noah. They had sensed the death of their leader, and they wanted to seize eventual leftovers. Still, those creatures couldn''t go past Snore. The Blood Companion filled the whole area with a cloud of violent dark matter that could shatter the ground. No rank 7 magical beast could reach Noah in that situation. Noah dreamt about his battles. He saw all his killings, but from the point of view of his opponents. His mind was punishing him for harnessing the power of his ambition. Even his drawbacks had evolved after his expertise improved. The waves of energy released by the black hole slowly brought Noah back into the real world. His consciousness regained some clarity, and his body stopped shaking. His slight improvement didn''t change his situation. Noah still felt unable to move, and his mind was too weak to think about anything. Yet, his companions changed their approach after he woke up. They started feeding rank 7 materials to the black hole to preserve Noah''s stash of valuable materials. That approach slowed down Noah''s recovery, but he felt grateful toward his companions. They had understood that the worst part was over, and they had focused their efforts on saving the results of his long journey. The battle continued to rage above the broken mountain. The dragons'' resilience was incredible. Their bodies were also on par with the Foolery. However, they lacked their speed, which eventually made the pigs gain the upper hand in the fight. The Foolery even had Noah''s troops and Fergie by their side. They could handle the weaker underlings easily and overwhelm them with their numbers. Only the rank 8 pig had to fight the other leader on its own, which led to a long and bloody battle. Noah became able to sit after spending an entire week laid on the ground. The companions had long since stopped feeding materials to the black hole. He could handle his recovery on his own now. The battle was still raging. The fight among the underlings was over, but the leaders were in a deadlock. Neither of them could gain the upper hand over their opponent. They were equally matched, even if the dragon was slowly learning how the pig fought. ''Night, help the pig,'' Noah said through the mental connection before activating his ambition again. His centers of power were a mess, and it would take Noah years to recover. He wouldn''t be able to stand even if he used his ambition on himself. However, Night didn''t suffer drawbacks. It could benefit from Noah''s power and fight without restrictions on its position. ''I will end it quickly,'' Night replied before merging with the world. Night didn''t want to fight while Noah was in that condition, but he had already reactivated his ambition. Complaining now would only prolong his suffering. Noah supported his head with his hands. The intense drawbacks were already returning. He could sense his consciousness losing its grip on the world, and spasms had also reappeared in certain spots of his body. His dantian was begging him to stop using the darkness in its insides, but Noah didn''t let any of that interrupt his plan. The sooner the rank 8 Foolery won its fight, the earlier he could focus on resting. Scenes of Night''s battle entered Noah''s mind, but he was in no condition to inspect them. His whole attention was on keeping his centers of power together. He felt about to crumble, but his willpower and materials allowed him to continue empowering the Pterodactyl. Then, Night sent a mental message, and Noah quickly withdrew his ambition. His consciousness lost its connection with the outside world again, and his companion felt forced to repeat the previous process. When Noah woke up, he found that the number of his guardians had increased. Night, Snore, and the Demonic Sword were the last line of protection of that defensive formation, and the rest of his army occupied the spots around them. Fergie floated above the army with the Foolery. They were all making sure that nothing harmful could reach Noah. After all, the pack and the army had gained access to the Soul Stones thanks to his efforts. ''Snore, make me a cave,'' Noah said through the mental connection, and the Blood Companion quickly executed his orders. "Fergie," Noah eventually said in a weak voice, "Make sure that I obtain the largest share of Soul Stones. I will disappear for a few years now." "I have already taken care of it," Fergie replied. "I have also counted the Soul Stones in each share to reassure you." Noah couldn''t help but nod before entering his cave. His army dispersed at that point, and everyone in the area began to absorb the resources obtained in the battle. Chapter 1528: 1528. Preparations Noah took a while to recover. He had pushed his battle prowess too much in the last battle, so his centers of power required years to disperse the drawbacks and the stress. Still, once the process was over, Noah found that his cultivation level had improved. Part of the empowerment had become permanent. His achievement had turned a slight amount of his fake power into his actual foundation. Needless to say, Noah had no idea why that happened. His ambition seemed to have its own will. He could only guess that his opponent''s might had triggered the same ability showed against Lady Lena. ''I wonder if I have to do something similar to reach the eighth rank,'' Noah thought in the silence of his cave. Noah quickly suppressed those thoughts to focus on more important things. He had to spend some time training to avoid stagnating, and he also had to plan a mental battle. The rank 8 dragon killed during the battle was powerful. It had a useful innate ability, and its defensive capabilities were among the best in the entire magical beasts'' field. The rank 8 Foolery had to struggle to defeat one of the leaders. Night even had to help it in the battle to secure the win. That alone proved how powerful that species of dragons was. Noah wanted to turn the dragon into a Blood Companion. He had finally found a suitable specimen, but the corpse belonged to a creature in the eighth rank. NiceNovel.com The corpse was inside the separate space, so Noah could start the procedure at any time. Yet, he had to consider the dangers of having a mental battle against a rank 8 magical beast who could even defeat most creatures at that level. Noah could have avoided those dangers. He could have seized a rank 7 dragon in the upper tier and performed the procedure without any struggle. However, he would have obtained a weaker Blood Companion, and Noah couldn''t accept that when he had the chance to create something stronger. ''My ambition is definitely trying to kill me,'' Noah cursed in his mind after completing long training sessions. It was time to start the procedure, but Noah had to complete multiple steps before feeling ready. The protections inside his mind were only the last part of that process. Noah''s attention went inside the separate space. The maimed body of the dragon floated among the blackness, ready to go through a complete study. Noah wouldn''t keep the dragon in its original form. He could make a list of the many flaws that afflicted that species, and he couldn''t let his Blood Companions have so many weaknesses. ''I must enhance its innate ability and its defense,'' Noah thought while inspecting the corpse. ''I would also like to improve its offense and speed, but I don''t know how much this body can handle.'' Noah didn''t want to create another Snore. He intended to modify the dragon''s body without affecting its innate ability. The process had to be similar to what Noah had done with Night. Still, the Pterodactyl wasn''t an actual Blood Companion, but Noah had to use the Body-inscription spell since the dragon was dead. ''Improving before binding,'' Noah thought before unfolding the dark world and taking out the dragon''s corpse. Noah would use one of the modified versions of the Body-inscription spell invented during his experiments with Thirty-seven. The technique usually used only blood, but he intended to use the creature''s whole body for the procedure. That was necessary to make the Blood Companion carry the modifications applied to its corpse. Noah could avoid having a flawed asset once the procedure was over, which was better than forcing a rank 8 will to endure countless experiments. ''Let''s see what I can do with you.'' Noah thought while filling the corpse with dark matter. The higher energy entered every organ and blood vessel to inspect the condition of the corpse. The various injuries suffered during the fight appeared in Noah''s mind in the shape of a blueprint that he had to fix. The dark world soon began to replicate certain body parts. It first seeped in every cell and enhanced their structure, but it eventually started a systematic replacement of some tissues. Most of Noah''s focus was on the dragon''s innate ability. The creature relied on its throat and mouth to create the pulling force, but its stomach also seemed to perform an important role. His dark matter slowly improved those organs. Noah was dealing with rank 8 materials, so he had to use his ambition whenever his higher energy found itself unable to complete its tasks. That use of his law brought another series of drawbacks, but Noah didn''t mind them now that he was safe. He could endure that periodic weakness as long as he completed his project. The dragon had changed by the time Noah completed the modifications. The lower part of its mouth had shrunk, but the muscles that ran through it had improved. The dark matter had also added a second layer of scales after enhancing the first. The proportions of its body had also changed. It had longer legs now, and its wings had also broadened. Noah had also added a second pair of smaller wings to improve its overall agility in the sky. Noah wanted to add more to that corpse, but his knowledge of the magical beasts'' field warned him against that. The corpse couldn''t contain anything else. That was the limit of its tissues. ''The tricky part now,'' Noah thought before taking out one of the red crystals obtained in the Evolution Pit. His ambition empowered the mineral enough to make it able to affect the dragon''s corpse. Noah then used his greed as the meaning for the Elemental Forging method. The corpse went through a second transformation after the crystal fused with its fabric. The lower part of its mouth shrunk again, and the same went for its overall size. It gained a shape that resembled an average dragon, with the only difference that its lips spread over its neck. ''The corpse is ready,'' Noah thought before taking out the improved heart from the dragon and bathing the rest of the body in a dense wave of dark matter that carried intense destruction. His ambition had to activate again to complete that procedure. Noah had to turn the whole body into ink for the Body-inscription spell. He needed his Blood Companion to carry the improvements painstakingly built through the years. The corpse slowly melted to create a dense black liquid. It resembled mud, but Noah didn''t bother to check its actual texture. He only cared that the material carried his greed and had an innate connection with his mind. ''I have the materials,'' Noah thought before closing his eyes to focus on the insides of his mental sphere. ''I need to prepare the battlefield now.'' The ethereal figure of the mole crumbled to make room for the new Blood Companion. Waves of dark matter also seeped inside Noah''s mind to create protective layers that would reinforce his mental walls. Mental weapons of various kinds slowly appeared among that dark matter. The scarlet mental energy also played a role in those preparations. It fused with certain structures and enhanced their destructiveness. With the Demonic Deduction technique by his side, Noah could create countless mental weapons in a short time. The mental battlefield slowly reached the level of perfection that Noah required. It was almost ready to fight a rank 8 will. Chapter 1529: 1529. Mental battle Noah didn''t hesitate to start the procedure once he completed his preparations. He imbued the Demonic Sword inside the dense black liquid, focused his ambition on the blade, and drew a picture of the dragon on his chest. The modified heart ended in his mouth after the destruction carried by the dark world weakened its structure. Noah could eat that organ easily and trigger the Body-inscription spell. A large ethereal figure appeared inside Noah''s mind. The environment there was dark due to the black mental energy and the dark matter that hid the scarlet halo radiated by his mental walls. An immense pressure fell on Noah''s mind when the will spread its aura. His mental walls would have crumbled if it weren''t for the long training with the white light of the sky. The dragon raged and slammed its ethereal body on the defensive layers of dark matter. However, Noah was using his ambition to empower all the assets inside his mind. His higher energy managed to contain the creature''s will, which eventually calmed down. "I would rather avoid a battle," Noah said through his ethereal figure. The dragon immediately turned toward Noah, but its eyes soon fell on its legs. It noticed the various modifications that happened after its death, and pure anger filled its expression. "I have improved your base form," Noah continued. "I''m offering you the chance to follow me to the peak of the cultivation world. We can do this without turning this place into a mess." NiceNovel.com "What have you done to me?" The dragon asked in a human voice, but roars accompanied its words. "I have defeated you," Noah said before waving his hand. A lump of mental energy flew toward Noah and played the memories featuring his battle against the dragon. The creature slowly recalled what had happened, and another wave of anger filled its expression. "You won due to those annoying creatures!" The dragon shouted. "You can''t defeat me on your own." "Those creatures are part of me," Noah replied. "You will also become like them. The only unclear part is how." "I will never be a slave!" The dragon roared before shooting toward Noah. Noah raised his hand, and a blade flew out of the defensive layers. Its edge was black, but red lines ran through its surface and radiated an intense bloodlust. A slash came out of Noah''s sword and clashed with the dragon. The attack managed to stop its charge, but it couldn''t inflict any damage. The creature had also opened its mouth and dispersed part of the power contained in Noah''s blow. "This attack would have split your head into two parts if you were in your previous form," Noah explained as the blade in his hand crumbled and fell into the mental sea. The dragon hesitated for an instant. The creature didn''t know anything about mental battles, but it could understand that Noah had spoken the truth. Its new form was far better than its previous one. "This is only a taste of what I can offer," Noah explained. "I plan to pierce the white sky and reach levels of power above Heaven and Earth. Those who follow me must be equally strong." "I am already better than you!" The dragon shouted before charging ahead again. Noah rolled his eyes before retreating inside the layers of dark matter. The dragon slammed its head on the higher energy but found itself unable to pierce it. Noah reappeared on another side of the mental sphere. The dragon quickly turned toward him, but its expression froze when it saw countless blades coming out of the dark matter. "Let me be clear," Noah said while roars accompanied his human words. "I have already defeated you in the outside world, but we are inside my head now. You have no chance to win." The dragon stared at the blades before wearing a determined expression. A roar came out of its mouth while it charged toward Noah, ignoring the countless swords that pointed at it from the edges of the defensive layers. Noah snapped his fingers, and the blades shot toward the creature. They pierced its ethereal body and opened many wounds, but the dragon didn''t stop. Still, its condition was poor when it reached Noah. He only needed to punch the dragon to send it inside the mental sea. Noah snapped his fingers again, and trails of dark matter flew out of the defensive layers to restrain the dragon. The creature couldn''t fly out of the mental sea in that condition, and a wave of mental energy soon flowed inside it. "I will show you part of my memories," Noah said. "You can tell me if you see slaves after watching them." Noah preferred the dragon to give up willingly. Blood Companions were stronger when their will wanted to defend their Master. They could use their instincts to act on their own and protect common interests. Submitting a creature with such a strong will would only lead to more troubles. Noah wouldn''t wholly trust the dragon if it didn''t give up and decided to help him. Divine wills were hard to deal with, but Noah was sure that they also had wild ambitions. Night was the proof to that feature. Noah aimed to tempt the dragon while showing his superior power to break its determination. A series of memories flowed inside the dragon. The creature saw the many battles faced by Noah and his companions, and surprise appeared in its expression. The creature wasn''t only surprised about the relationship between Noah and his companions. It felt astonished to witness the many feats performed by that group. The last set of images represented Noah''s last battle. The dragon could see how a rank 7 existence had managed to defeat a magical beast in the eighth rank. That sight was majestic. The dragon could also sense the emotions felt by Noah during the battle. The creature could basically see how grateful and attached he was to his companions. The memories had shown the dragon how Noah had improved his companions. They had demonstrated that Noah''s offer was valid and didn''t even seem bad. The dragon seemed about to give in, but a trace of anger eventually resurfaced in its expression. Its instincts didn''t allow it to submit without fighting, so it began to struggle and destroy everything in its range. Noah unfolded his pride at that time. His ambition was fueling his power and the many abilities inside his mental sphere. That was his world, and he had filled it with weapons. More blades came out of the black layers. They shot toward the dragon and almost destroyed its entire body. Only its head remained above the mental sea, but mental energy soon surged to fix its condition. "This isn''t a negotiation," Noah said while descending toward the dragon. "I already own you. The sooner you accept it, the less you''ll suffer." The dragon became angrier once it heard those words, but it couldn''t do anything to fend off Noah''s offensive. He had too much experience in those fights. Even rank 8 wills had to succumb to his desires in that domain. The creature eventually shattered into a rain of black drops that fused with the mental sea. A figure then came out of those waters and flew next to Snore. Noah glanced at the dragon before dispersing the various defenses accumulated in his mind. The creature opened its eyes to stare at him, but it soon turned to look away. Snore inspected the new Blood Companion, and intense bickering soon resounded in Noah''s mind. He could only ignore those discussions and leave his mental sphere at that point. The tattoo of the dragon solidified on his skin before its ink flowed inside the black hole. The organ would handle that new Blood Companion and bind it to the dark matter. It would lose a bit of power now, but it would gain far more once Noah faced the breakthroughs. Chapter 1530: 1530. Thoughts The black hole modified the dragon''s tattoo. The creature had already gone through two transformations, but the fourth center of power applied a third one to polish the Blood Companion further. The process took a while. Noah didn''t want to use his ambition again to quicken it since his centers of power were begging him to rest. He had boosted his might multiple times to modify that rank 8 material, so his organs were almost at their limit. Noah used that time to cultivate. His mind could benefit from the pressure radiated by the dragon, and his dantian had a lot of potential to exploit. Only his body struggled to advance. His tissues required too many nutrients to grow. That center of power remained above his dantian due to the countless resources accumulated during the past centuries, but the latter would soon surpass it. Noah summoned the dragon once the black hole completed the modifications. Dark matter flowed out of his body and created the Blood Companion in front of him. The dragon gave voice to a pissed roar. It didn''t like its time inside the black hole, but it soon grew interested in its new features. Its skin had multiple layers of thick scales that seemed far better than its previous skin. The creature also felt lighter, and even the activation of its innate ability had become smoother. "Go ahead," Noah said while wearing a smirk. "Try it on that wall." NovelsToday The dragon didn''t hesitate to turn and open its mouth. Its huge neck split open to enlarge the overall width of its mouth and create a pulling force that directly shattered entire chunks of the wall. The boulders that separated from the wall turned into dust before flowing inside the dragon. The energy that they contained nourished the creature and its tissues. The cave instantly enlarged during that short use of its innate ability. Noah made his darkness flow inside the dragon at that point. His energy empowered the innate ability, making it reduce most of the cave into dust. The dragon grew excited at that sight, but Noah quickly ordered it to stop destroying his cave. The creature then gave voice to a helpless cry before lowering its head toward its new Master. "Don''t bow," Noah said before massaging his temples. "You can''t fight the sky if you keep your head lowered." A sudden sensation of weakness had reached Noah. The dragon had maintained its rank 8 status, but its power had fallen at the bottom of the lower tier. Yet, it was still strong enough to deplete massive amounts of his darkness. The dragon couldn''t help but feel surprised. It didn''t expect Noah to be such a lenient Master. He didn''t care about the creature''s behavior, and he didn''t even mind the many thoughts that reached his mind through the mental connection. The Blood Companion was considering the possibility of rebelling. It sensed the restrains applied on its existence, but it was still stronger than Noah. Noah would have to use his ambition to suppress the dragon if it tried to escape his control. A constant struggle could exhaust him, eventually forcing him to let go of his new asset. However, Noah didn''t mention those thoughts. He didn''t even bother to suppress them. The dragon was virtually free to do as it wished. "I need to give you a name," Noah eventually said. "I plan to keep you, so I can''t just call you dragon." "Names are for humans," The dragon replied while roars mixed with its human words. "I can also call you Large Mouth if you don''t stop complaining," Noah replied. The dragon''s expression froze. It had met Snore, so it knew that Noah wasn''t joking. The creature would hate to spend the rest of its life under a terrible name, so it did its best to come up with something decent. "World-eater!" The dragon shouted. "No way," Noah replied. "It''s too cool for you." "Super dragon!" The creature shouted. "That''s not even a name," Noah said, rejecting that idea. "Ultra dragon!" The dragon said. "That''s even worse than before," Noah replied before heaving a helpless sigh and thinking about the matter properly. "Duanlong should be decent enough. It also reminds me of my old draconic Blood Companion." The dragon let that name seep into its mind and even repeated it a few times before accepting it. Duanlong was far better than Snore anyway. "What happened to the other dragon?" Duanlong asked. Noah thought about Heilong before suppressing those memories. The Body-inscription spell had harsh limits in the past, so he had often abandoned many valuable Blood Companions. "I had to learn how to maintain your ability to grow," Noah shortly explained. "I don''t need to replace my Blood Companions anymore since I can simply improve or feed them." Duanlong was a Blood Companion created after amassing millennia of experience. The dark matter in its structure made it far stronger than its peers and connected it to the level of the black hole. However, the creature was like Snore. It had the chance to improve on its own as long as it found nutrients. It could even send the energy absorbed through its innate ability to Noah since the two shared a tight connection. The only difference with Snore was that Duanlong couldn''t turn its body into gas. That made the creature slightly less resilient than the snake, but Noah couldn''t avoid that flaw since he had to preserve its innate ability. As a Blood Companion, Duanlong was a perfect example of a polished asset obtained after long studies. Noah had managed to create something so perfect only after experimenting on other beasts for countless years. ''This should seal my position in the eighth rank when it comes to battle prowess,'' Noah thought while his other companions came out in the open to instruct Duanlong about Noah''s habits. The new use of the ambition had allowed Noah to breach through the eighth rank in terms of battle prowess. He had even added a rank 8 companion now. His foundation had never been so solid, but a grave doubt remained in his mind. ''Can I face rank 8 cultivators now?'' Noah wondered while his eyes inspected his companions. Cultivators were generally stronger than magical beasts, especially when it came to experts who had lived and fought for millennia. Noah''s targets were also rich and influential, so he was sure that they had access to countless inscribed weapons and resources. ''I don''t even know how the situation in the human domain is,'' Noah thought. ''I can''t imagine Divine Demon losing, and Wilfred was also there. They must have won.'' That conclusion raised another problem. Noah wanted a large battle to welcome him upon returning to the human domain, but he wasn''t sure whether he could find the Crystal City. ''Madame Canson and the others must have changed location in these years,'' Noah thought. ''There is only one organization that might know where their new home is.'' Fergie''s face appeared in his vision when his reasoning reached that point. Noah didn''t know much about the secret organization, but he was aware that one of its cells had worked with the Crystal City. That gave Noah a strange idea. There could be a cell that desired to damage the Crystal City since one of them wanted to help it. Yet, only Fergie could know more about that topic. Chapter 1531: 1531. Over Noah couldn''t help but start planning his return to the human domain now that he had stabilized his battle prowess in the eighth rank. He wanted to see his friends, and the constant fights against those simple magical beasts had started to bore him. The magical beasts'' domain was perfect for gathering resources. Those regions had also benefitted Noah''s ambition since he had fought countless creatures stronger than him. However, that domain had limits, especially for existences that needed to enhance their laws. Noah could seize countless valuable resources and find excellent training areas, but the inheritances could give him far more. It would have been different if Noah were a magical beast or a hybrid that didn''t have steep requirements to improve. Yet, he needed to interact with other cultivators to strengthen an essential part of his existence. Noah had to return to the human domain. He could still improve fighting magical beasts, but that approach would soon reach its limits. ''When should I try to return?'' Noah wondered while continuing to cultivate. He didn''t have a correct answer to that question. It would be perfect if Noah could confirm that his battle prowess allowed him to handle rank 8 cultivators before returning, but that was impossible inside the magical beasts'' domain. Noah could only guess how powerful those existences were for the time being. His few interactions with cultivators at that level didn''t let him grasp the entirety of their abilities. NovelsToday.com Fergie gave Noah a mountain of Soul Stones when the latter exited his cave. The group had seized the entirety of the mine. His new finances amounted to more than a million Soul Stones after that meeting. Even guilds couldn''t obtain that sum, but Noah had gathered it after a single battle. He was filthy rich now, and that without considering the countless resources stored inside his separate space. ''I could buy entire regions in the human domain with this sum,'' Noah thought before focusing on Fergie. "How much did you learn about the secret organization before the events with the Crystal City?" Noah asked. That sudden question surprised Fergie. The expert had felt happy that Noah was finally ready to move again, but he didn''t expect that his leader had already begun to plan the return to the human domain. Fergie had been free of Noah''s control for entire centuries, but he had remained loyal to him during that time. The secret organizations had eventually discovered him, but he had remained one of its pawns for a while. The expert had also reached the liquid stage during that period, which had granted him a better position inside the secret organization. Fergie had to know more compared to when he was under Noah''s control. "Not much," Fergie replied. "Secrecy is a must in the secret organization, so only the rank 8 experts have a general idea of how large it is. Still, most of them don''t even know how many cells their force has." "Do you know if one of them wants to damage the Crystal City?" Noah asked. "That''s for sure," Fergie replied before explaining better. "I don''t know who they are, but I am aware of their existence. Any large force has allies and enemies among the secret organization." That information didn''t help Noah. He wanted to know if Fergie could find leads about the new location of the Crystal City. He didn''t care about the political environment of the human domain. "We shouldn''t give our enemies the time to prepare for our arrival," Noah said. "I would rather attack the Crystal City before even stepping inside the human domain. I only don''t know how to find it." Fergie fell deep into his thoughts. His position inside the secret organization had been too low to grant him information about the other cells, but an idea formed in his mind anyway. "We might not need to rely on the secret organization," Fergie eventually said. "We already know that the Crystal City has allies among the magical beasts'' domain. We can ask them if they know where it is." Noah''s eyes widened. That solution was far better than his initial idea. He even knew who they had to find to learn about that information. ''The leader of the Rats might know it,'' Noah considered inside his mind. ''Those creatures must have had a tight relationship with the Crystal City to prepare that ambush. The attack of the Legion shouldn''t have changed their situation.'' "Are we going back to the human domain?" Fergie asked, but Noah promptly shook his head. "Not yet," Noah replied. "This army is too weak, and the same goes for us. Let''s turn once we reach the end of the magical beasts'' domain." Fergie nodded, and Noah gave voice to a roar to notify his troops. The various magical beasts that had filled the region converged toward his position, and the Foolery also left their lairs to fly toward him. The pigs had turned that region into a blue paradise, so the various beasts in Noah''s army didn''t need to hunt in that period. Some of them had even given birth to weaker specimens during those years, and their overall power had increased. "Are we ready to move again?" The rank 8 pig asked, and Noah limited himself to nod. The group moved toward the next region and resumed their long journey. Both Noah and the rank 8 Foolery had silently agreed that they would turn once they reached the end of the domain, but they didn''t rush that exploration. The army went from region to region, fighting all the packs that featured opponents at their level. Noah''s underlings constantly increased, and the overall power of the group grew as they faced countless battles. Noah and the others never stopped. They didn''t even need to take long periods of rest anymore since most of their battles ended up in overwhelming victories. The group now had the rank 8 Foolery, Noah, and Duanlong. Their battle prowess surpassed what packs featuring creatures in the lower tier of the eighth rank could achieve. Noah''s stash of materials increased, and his expertise did the same. His foundation also improved as those fights honed his techniques and battle style. The long journey continued until the group reached a sea filled with white water. The wind also blew in those regions. It was clear that the group had stepped in the areas before the Outer Lands. The sea radiated a dangerous sensation. Powerful creatures inhabited its waters, and Noah had no intention to venture through them at his level. He couldn''t even see the end of that area. Noah and his group would die if they found themselves surrounded by a series of rank 8 creatures that they couldn''t defeat. The sea covered all the regions in Noah''s view. He couldn''t see any safe passage. He couldn''t even find regions untouched by its waters. It didn''t take Noah much to accept that his long journey was over. He had reached areas that cultivators completely ignored, and he had also built a powerful force along the way. Yet, the journey had come to an end. The magical beasts'' domain still had countless unexplored lands, but most of them featured creatures that Noah couldn''t face. Even if he could beat them, Noah would probably avoid them now that he had reached the edges of that wild area. ''It''s time to go back,'' Noah thought before turning in the opposite direction of the sea. The others in his group noticed his action and the determination that it radiated. They immediately understood what that gesture meant, and his cold expression also warned them about his seriousness. It was time to stop playing around and begin the hardest part of their journey. The group had to survive the reentry into the human domain. Chapter 1532: 1532. Captains The group didn''t immediately leave the sea. The white waters contained chaotic laws, which made them one of the best resources in the entire higher plane. Noah and the others remained on the shores for a while. They even fought the many packs that arrived to challenge them for the ownership of those regions. Those attacks eventually featured a rank 8 magical beast in the middle tier, which forced them to run away before that force reached those lands. The group took a different route to return to the human domain. They still wanted to fight and improve, so they decided to avoid the regions already conquered in the first part of their journey. Most of them now had new packs since the Foolery made every region that they inhabited irresistible. Still, Noah wanted to find more troops and valuable resources, so their return led them into unexplored areas. Noah and the others couldn''t go wherever they wanted. Many packs along their way featured magical beasts that they couldn''t approach. They were a powerful force, but that domain contained proper overlords. The group always had to approach their advance carefully. Noah had to inspect every region before deciding their route. He and Fergie also needed breaks from the white sky every once in a while. Their return wasn''t any faster than the first part of their journey. Many of the various magical beasts in the group faced breakthroughs during the journey. They also reproduced often, and that process happened more frequently once their number surpassed one thousand. It was rare for packs led by existences at the bottom of the eighth rank to have so many underlings, but Noah''s influence had no limit over the number of followers that he could gather. NovelsToday That feature of his existence improved quickly. Noah''s law had always given him a predisposition to lead, but he had started to use it properly only recently. Noah quickly gathered experience in that ability, but his improvements didn''t involve his leadership skills. They mainly concerned his capability to submit stronger underlings and the nourishing properties of his influence. The magical beasts in his group grew far faster than normal creatures, and the same applied to Fergie. Even the Foolery benefitted from that influence. Noah''s law could express its true potential now that he had accepted his position as a leader. That unleashed his ability to taint his underlings with his ambition, which led to faster growth. The process involved far more than the simple power level. Most of the magical beasts experienced spontaneous mutations and sudden improvements in their intelligence. Their innate abilities grew stronger. Their skin thickened, and their organs began to work faster. Their minds also improved to the point when it was hard to distinguish them from hybrids. Noah had no control over those improvements. His ambition only gave his underlings the potential to evolve, but they had to make that leap on their own. Still, most of them managed to accumulate enough energy for that growth due to the countless battles that they had to face. The pack went through a few transformations. The many battles thinned the number of underlings, but Noah kept submitting more creatures. Their fertility diminished after their growth, but the size of his army continued to increase. A few specimens also managed to reach Fergie''s position in terms of power over the troops. They remained under the expert, but they gained the ability to control large platoons and handle different sides of every battle. Noah eventually granted them names to mark their arrival in a state that surpassed ordinary magical beasts. Those creatures were still in the upper tier, but they had already shown that their potential could lead them toward the higher ranks. ''We should be near by now,'' Noah thought at some point during the journey. It was hard to keep track of his position inside that wilderness, so Noah used the growth of his companions to quantify how long had passed since the departure from the sea. His eyes inevitably fell on Fergie. The expert had obtained a rank 7 body in the upper tier recently, and his dantian was also nearing the breakthrough. ''I must have spent a few millennia here already,'' Noah concluded in his mind. The three captains of the army flew under Fergie. A tall white eagle with its beak and claws made of a transparent crystal handled the bird-like beast. A giant winged elephant managed the vanguard, and a flying wolf took care of the troops that couldn''t soar through the sky. The elephant and the wolf had gained their wings after mutations. The same went for the crystal beak and claws of the eagle. Those three magical beasts also had great intelligence, which led Noah to appoint them as captains. "White, Greeny, Grey, silence the others," Fergie shouted to the three captains. "The boss needs to explore the next region safely." Noah had named the three leaders after the color of their skin, fur, and feathers for lack of a better choice. The eagle was White, the elephant Greeny, and the wolf Grey. "The next area only features magical plants," Noah said after shooting a glance at the region ahead. "I can''t sense anything dangerous. Even my instincts are strangely silent." "Are we about to reach the human domain?" Fergie asked with a tinge of excitement. "It appears so," Noah replied, "But I have never seen these areas. They aren''t even close to the Outer Lands." The magical beasts'' domain was immense, so it made sense that Noah didn''t find anything familiar in those regions. Yet, he was waiting for something that he could recognize to appear in front of him. There was a chance that the group could enter the human domain unprepared otherwise. "Let''s try to reorganize after conquering this region," Noah said before shooting ahead. Greeny trumpeted as soon as it saw Noah move. Grey ordered the troops on the ground to charge ahead, and White didn''t fall behind the two captains. The Foolery charged ahead with Noah''s army. Their squeals filled the sky and warned every creature in the area of their arrival. Noah flew above the region filled with dark-green trees. Those plants had sharp leaves that they didn''t hesitate to launch when they sensed that danger approaching. The region featured three rank 8 magical plants in the lower tier and countless rank 7 beings. Their storm of leaves filled the sky and killed many invaders, but they didn''t manage to do anything to the leaders. Noah sat cross-legged on the air while he waited for the storm to end. Duanlong was under him, and it kept its massive mouth open to shred and absorbed all the leaves flying in his direction. ''Greedy dragon,'' Noah said through the mental connection when a faint wave of energy flowed inside his body. Duanlong was sending part of the absorbed energy to Noah, but it kept most of it for itself. Still, Noah couldn''t blame his Blood Companion since he had used his greed as the meaning for the Elemental Forging method with that creature. The dragon gave voice to a proud roar while continuing to absorb those leaves. It felt no shame in seizing most of that energy, and Noah didn''t even try to complain since he had learnt how that creature thought. Then, a dangerous sensation suddenly reached his mind. Noah wasn''t the only one who felt that threat. Fergie and the rank 8 Foolery also stopped fighting and turned toward one corner of the region. Their pupils shrunk when they focused on the figures that had appeared in the distance. A series of massive snakes were slithering on the ground while spatting a silver liquid that froze everything it touched. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize those creatures. He had lived in a world where they were the overlords. The magical beasts that had appeared in the distance were Eternal Snakes. Chapter 1533: 1533. Trap The Eternal Snakes were still far away. Noah and the others could avoid meeting them if they were in a normal situation. Yet, the storm of leaves limited their movements. Noah sensed two pairs of gazes landing on his figure. The rank 8 Foolery and Fergie had turned toward him to see if he had any strategy at hand. ''The landing zone of my lower plane might be nearby since the Snakes are here,'' Noah thought while inspecting the pack. Noah didn''t know how the connections between the higher plane and the various Mortal Lands worked. Even most rank 8 experts ignored how those dimensional tunnels functioned. He had a series of valid hypotheses, but they could only give him a vague idea of how things worked. Noah didn''t know if Shandal had fallen into the Mortal Lands because he was near the correct landing zone or if Heaven and Earth had thrown him back home. ''They appear to be migrating,'' Noah evaluated while keeping his gaze on the distant pack. The Eternal Snakes weren''t targeting Noah and his group. They were traveling, and Noah ignored the real purpose behind their actions. They could be either hunting or searching for a region that had better resources. Noah''s instincts sensed danger, so the pack featured magical beasts that could hurt him. His experience in the Mortal Lands also told him that some of the Eternal Snakes could keep the connection between the planes open. There was a high chance that the group featured multiple rank 8 beings. ''If only I were stronger,'' Noah thought before spreading his consciousness and ordering a full retreat. The Eternal Snakes opened an exciting opportunity, but Noah didn''t feel safe approaching them at his current level. He didn''t want to play with existences that he couldn''t control. Darkness flowed inside Duanlong and enhanced its innate ability. The pulling force intensified and affected a large area of the sky. Most of the storm of leaves converged toward its mouth and gave a chance to the other creatures to retreat. Noah joined that retreat, moving Duanlong only when most of his underlings managed to escape the dangerous areas. He didn''t care about the slower ones. That battle was only another skimming process when it came to his pack. However, Noah''s instincts rang again, and the same went for the rank 8 Foolery and Fergie. The trio turned and saw that a second pack of Eternal Snakes was slithering on the opposite side. The trio didn''t have the time to think since a third pack appeared on another corner of their vision. Noah could finally understand what the Eternal Snakes were doing at that point. They were regrouping. ''They must have separated to increase their efficiency!'' Noah shouted in his mind while remaining still mid-air. The Eternal Snakes had blocked three possible paths, and the last one seemed to match the destination of those packs. Noah had no idea what to do in that situation. Danger lurked in every direction. "Remain here!" Noah shouted while roars mixed with his human words. "Keep fighting the trees. We must hope that they ignore us!" Noah was already planning how to use his underlings as meat shields while speaking those words. The situation was tragic. Even his expertise couldn''t make him predict that danger. The Eternal Snakes continued their march. They kept covering the lands that they crossed with silver ice, but they seemed ignorant about the battle happening in the distance. ''At least one of these groups will notice us,'' Noah thought while his gaze went on the third pack. The third pack would cross areas near the battlefield. Those specimens couldn''t miss Noah and the others. Noah slowly began to rise higher in the sky. He would have the chance to escape if the Snakes noticed only his underlings. Yet, his hopes soon shattered when he sensed a series of reptilian eyes landing on his figure. His movement had attracted the Snake''s attention. Those magical beasts didn''t hesitate to launch hisses that filled their regions and even spread past their borders. The hisses eventually reached the other two packs, and their specimens turned toward Noah and the others once they noticed the battle happening in the distance. Noah''s guess had been on point. The entire pack of Eternal Snakes was too big for a single region, so their leaders had split it into three groups and had led their underlings into three different hunts. Those creatures couldn''t decide to ignore food. Noah and the others were nothing more than tasty meals ended up in a trap by chance. Noah''s expression grew cold as he retracted his darkness from Duanlong. His Demonic Deduction technique activated, and a series of bloodthirsty plans filled his mind. Noah had a trump card that he had never dared to use. The cursed sword was in the eighth rank now, so it could help him fight stronger beings. However, the drawbacks would be immense. Noah preferred to rely only on his ambition until his body improved. He didn''t want his trump card to kill him. ''The cursed sword is my last resort,'' Noah thought before giving voice to a roar carrying meanings that even Fergie understood. The Foolery, the various magical beasts, and Noah turned toward the third pack and shot forward. Their only chance to survive was to pierce through that force and reach areas that the Eternal Snakes didn''t dare to invade. They didn''t even need to worry about the possible dangers lurking on that path since the Eternal Snakes had just cleared it. The only problem was that they had to surpass those creatures. Noah and the others tried to avoid the third pack, but those Snakes turned to follow their movements every time. The other groups did the same, but they were still too far away to be a threat. ''No leaders in the middle tier,'' Noah concluded in his mind after his consciousness completed a thorough analysis of the third pack. ''Four rank 8 specimens in the lower tier.'' Noah roared again to explain what he had learnt about the pack. A few cries that carried all the details concerning the Eternal Snakes and a battle plan followed. There was no easy way out of that situation. Noah''s group had to crash on the Eternal Snakes and kill as many of them as possible to create an opening through their ice. Noah''s ambition seeped out of his figure and forced his centers of power to grow. His aura wasn''t targeting his underlings, but they still benefitted from that power. Their vigor intensified, and their morale also improved. The Eternal Snakes eventually arrived in front of Noah''s group. The clash was imminent, so those creatures began to fill the sky with ice to create a massive wall. Noah had fought enough Eternal Snakes throughout his life to know what was about to come. He was also aware that he couldn''t let those creatures complete that technique. ''I will do everything in my power to escape if this plan fails,'' Noah said in a mental message forwarded toward Fergie. ''Try not to die.'' Noah''s figure disappeared as soon as that message reached Fergie. A wall of dark-green scales filled his vision after the teleport ended. Noah had reappeared in the middle of the third pack. Chapter 1534: 1534. Chaos Most of the Eternal Snakes failed to notice Noah''s arrival, but his presence didn''t escape the sharp eyes of the four rank 8 leaders. Loud hisses resounded in the area as the four leaders gave new orders to their underlings, but Noah didn''t give them the time to deploy any tactic. Duanlong appeared above Noah, Snore covered his figure with its huge body, the Demonic Sword and the white blade appeared in his grasp, and Night flew out of the separate space. Noah had instantly deployed his assets and had enhanced their power with his ambition. Snore was now bigger than the Eternal Snakes. Its size even surpassed the rank 8 specimens. When the Blood Companion opened its mouth, a sea of violent dark matter filled the area and began to crush the weaker creatures. Duanlong opened its monstrous mouth to activate its innate ability. Its suction force could affect the ice that had gathered in the sky. That silver substance shattered and flew toward the Blood Companion. Night flew undisturbed through the pack. It avoided the leaders, and a series of large reptilian heads started to fall on the ground. Tens of rank 7 magical beasts had died in an instant. Noah raised his blades above his head while his figure morphed. Dark matter covered his body and created a draconic armor that featured six arms and six swords. Black flames also flew out of his mouth and joined the violent dark matter released by Snore. The dark world expanded, and the workshop activated. A series of six-armed dragons filled the waves of dark matter and began to fight the weaker snakes. Those creations were in the upper tier and had cores fueling their structure. They were basically on par with their opponents. The four leaders sensed that something was off when Noah''s flames filled the insides of their pack. They could feel a similarity with their ice, but their opponent didn''t give them the time to study that strange event. Noah unfolded his consciousness and let the blades touch his draconic forehead. Six black pillars appeared above the leaders and crashed on their massive heads. The attacks then detonated before spreading Noah''s sharpness in the area. The six pillars had opened large wounds on their head, but the ice in the environment quickly flew toward them to heal those injuries. The area occupied by the third pack had instantly transformed into a battlefield. An army had also appeared together with a series of dangerous substances. The four leaders were far from stupid, but they had no idea how to handle that situation. They had lost the upper hand in a matter of seconds, and they couldn''t even explain how that had happened. Still, they could appoint Noah as the reason behind those strange events. Anger filled the four leaders as they charged ahead and tried to slam their massive heads on the draconic figure flying among their pack. Noah teleported again. He reappeared above one of the rank 8 Eternal Snakes and thrust his blades on its head. The attack released a black flash, and an immense cavity opened on the creature. The hole pierced the Snake''s head from side to side. It even crossed its brain. Any other magical beast would consider that a deadly injury, but Noah was aware of the resilience of that species. The ice in the sky converged toward the injured leader and closed the cavity. Still, the effort depleted most of the silver substance in the area. Noah had already managed to cut their reserves short. ''This is not enough,'' Noah thought before teleporting above the pack to inspect the whole battlefield. The dark world kept Snore and Duanlong active, so they continued to perform their tasks. Most of the ice had disappeared already, and the dragon was ensuring that the Snakes couldn''t accumulate it anymore. Snore sensed that Noah had left the battlefield and spread its wings. Its feathers flew in every corner of the pack and exploded, releasing waves of violent dark matter that turned most rank 7 specimens into corpses. Night and the products of the workshop handled the remaining Snakes. A few of them managed to hide behind the rank 8 leaders, but most of them ended up dead. The Eternal Snakes couldn''t regenerate without their silver ice. Noah''s sharpness, the violent dark matter, and Duanlong were handling that part, so the dead specimens didn''t manage to come back to life. Even the creatures injured by the dark matter and sharpness floating through the battlefield couldn''t fix their condition. Their ice shattered or turned into nothingness whenever they tried to amass it in the sky. The large pack of Eternal Snakes had turned into a small group that featured less than twenty specimens. Noah had killed most of them in a few exchanges. The anger of the four leaders knew no limit. They quickly found Noah in the sky, but they couldn''t pursue him since the rest of their opponents finally reached their position. ''It''s still too little,'' Noah thought as a helpless sigh resounded in his mind. His efforts had paved the way for the weaker creatures, but he didn''t manage to solve the core issue. The four leaders were still alive and unharmed. ''I need more!'' Noah shouted inside his mind before diving toward one of the leaders. The ambition carried by his aura intensified and filled the battlefield. His influence enhanced the sharpness, Snore''s violent dark matter, and Duanlong''s innate ability, but it didn''t affect their actual power. Noah''s target raised its head when it sensed that threat. The Eternal Snake used its massive body like a spring to leap in the sky and pounce at Noah before he could complete his attack. The attack flung Noah higher in the sky. Blood flowed out of his mouth, and pain spread through his lower body, but his attention never left his opponent. The rank 8 Eternal Snakes were faster than Noah. They could catch him by surprise and even interrupt his attacks if he didn''t manage to teleport away in time. Yet, Snore and his sharpness had taken care of the ice, and Duanlong was making sure that they couldn''t accumulate that material. The rest of Noah''s group and the Foolery had also crashed on the rest of the pack. The leader that had leapt toward Noah couldn''t use its innate ability to stop its fall. Noah dived toward the falling leader as soon as he managed to stop his momentum. His flames had yet to return to his body, but he didn''t care about his condition. He had a clean shot at one of the leaders, and he didn''t dare to ignore it. Noah would always decide to suffer as long as his pain led to valuable benefits. The falling Eternal Snake didn''t see much. A flash of darkness filled its vision before a large piece of the lower part of its head vanished. The creature couldn''t even find it anymore. Its body part had disappeared without leaving any trace. Noah reappeared under the maimed Eternal Snake. He lowered his blades while Night became visible behind him and prepared for the imminent attack. The Pterodactyl wanted to follow Noah''s slash to improve its offensive, but the situation led to a disappointing outcome. One of the leaders still in the pack promptly ignored the rank 8 pig and slammed its head on Noah. Chapter 1535: 1535. Frui Noah flew through the region as lumps of dark matter flowed out of his draconic armor. The black hole quickly fixed his transformation, but his expression remained grim. Two rank 8 Eternal Snakes were looking at him. The only existence in Noah''s group that could fight those creatures was the rank 8 Foolery, but it was busy with the other two leaders. Noah couldn''t have one versus one battles in that situation. The other two packs were slithering at full speed toward the battlefield. It wouldn''t take them much to join their companions and surround Noah''s group. Noah was at a loss of what to do. Even escaping seemed impossible in that situation. His ambition would eventually run out if the Eternal Snakes didn''t stop targeting him. ''I must kill them,'' Noah concluded in his mind. Noah had a different tactic in mind, but that approach was a gamble. He didn''t know how the Eternal Snakes would react. It was better to pursue his simple strategy for now since it had yet to fail. ''Two at the same time,'' Noah thought while inspecting the battlefield. ''I don''t know if I can handle them.'' Snore could theoretically help, but Noah didn''t want to risk losing the advantage created with his sudden assault. The same went for Duanlong. The two Blood Companions were taking care of the ice, which was the most crucial task in that battle. The two Eternal Snakes leapt toward Noah, but he teleported away before they could reach him. He reappeared among the rest of his troops, right in the middle of the battlefield. ''It''s your turn,'' Noah thought while looking at his right palm. ''Try not to kill me.'' Noah''s ambition flowed inside the Demonic Form, and a wide array of roots pierced his palm to expand in the sky. The corrosive aura that they radiated dimmed the white light and forced most of his underlings to run away. The two Eternal Snakes didn''t care about that threatening aura. Noah had already inflicted unforgivable losses to their pack. They would continue to attack him even if their bodies ended up burning in the process. Noah turned toward the two leaping leaders. The Snakes were far weaker than usual without the ice, especially when it came to their movement. He could easily teleport on top of one of the creatures and place his palm on its head. A sense of weakness filled his centers of power as the roots spread and entangled themselves on the Snake''s head. They covered its neck and used their corrosive aura to pierce its thick scales. The Snake hissed in pain when the roots spread through the insides of its body. The other leader wanted to come in its aid, but a large cut suddenly opened on its left eye and interrupted its charge. Noah didn''t hesitate to point his blades at the dark-green scales. His blades slowly pierced the creature. Once their tip reached the beast''s muscles, they released a wave of energy that opened a large cavity inside its head. The Demonic Form quickly expanded in that cavity and continued its destruction, and Noah felt temporarily relieved after the plant consumed those tissues. The more it absorbed, the less it ate from his body. ''Another one!'' Noah shouted inside his mind before pointing his blades again. The swords pierced the dark-green scales and prepared to launch an attack fueled by Noah''s ambition, but the other leader managed to slam on his figure. Noah revealed a surprised expression after focusing on the second Eternal Snake. Night had severed both its eyes during that short exchange. It had managed to sense him only through its instincts. The roots had broken in the impact, but they remained materials with high corrosive properties. They continued to destroy the Snake from the inside until they depleted their power. ''Can''t you give me more?'' Noah asked through the mental connection. The plant ignored Noah, but he promptly lowered his barriers. The black hole allowed the Demonic Form to eat more of Noah''s power and gave it the chance to grow while his ambition fueled its existence. The array of roots inside Noah''s chest thickened, and the flower slowly closed to give birth to a fruit. Noah quickly seized it through the dark world, and his figure disappeared again. Noah reappeared above the Snake that had suffered from his attacks. It didn''t have the chance to heal without the ice, so it still featured a large cut on its head. A wave of pain invaded Noah''s mind, but he ignored it. He dived toward the injury and stabbed his hand inside it. When he released his grasp, the fruit entered the Snake''s body and dispersed its corrosiveness through its head. Noah teleported high in the sky when he sensed the arrival of the second leader. The pain didn''t stop after he got rid of the fruit. His eyes fell on the source of that sensation, where he saw that both his hand and his white blade had suffered heavy damage. ''I didn''t even hold it with my real hand!'' Noah cursed in his mind. The influence of the fruit had partially destroyed the white sword''s handle, and his right hand had lost a few fingers. His two additional right arms had regrown, but the fruit had managed to destroy them before. It didn''t even spare the copies of the blade. Noah thought about that issue only for an instant. His injuries proved that the fruit corrosive''s power was off the chart. His eyes instinctively went on one of his targets, and he saw that the creature was slamming its head on the ground in a desperate attempt to get rid of its pain. The other Eternal Snake couldn''t do much. It was blind, and Night had never stopped attacking it. Its body was too huge for the Pterodactyl to inflict severe injuries, but the companion still covered it with wounds. Noah withdrew his ambition from the plant and restored the limitations around it. He felt a bit surprised about the actual destructiveness of the fruit, but he welcomed that discovery happily. The Eternal Snake convulsed on the ground. Its huge body crushed the terrain during its struggles. Yet, the creature couldn''t do anything against a weapon that was already inside its mind. Its situation would be different if it had its ice, but Noah''s Blood Companions were taking care of that. Duanlong''s innate ability was so powerful that even the Eternal Snakes fighting against Noah couldn''t accumulate that material around them. The Snake never stopped struggling, but Noah and the roots had inflicted too much damage on its insides. The fruit only had vital organs left to destroy once it entered its head. The creature remained alive for an entire minute before exhaling its last breath. ''Did it really die?'' Noah wondered before a sense of weakness invaded his mind and made him lose his foothold. Noah quickly straightened his position and flew toward the massive corpse. The body of the leader entered his separate space, but Noah''s expression remained grim. The Demonic Form had absorbed too much of his power. His ambition was also fueling his other assets. It wouldn''t take much before the drawbacks arrived. Still, Noah couldn''t do anything about that. He didn''t even think about that topic. He had managed to kill one of his opponents, so he had to take care of the other leader to gain his chance to escape. Chapter 1536: 1536. Thief The Snakes hissed in anger when they saw one of their leaders dying and disappearing. They had been sure that Noah''s group couldn''t pose any threat to their pack, but the recent events had changed their mind. The battle wasn''t a simple hunt anymore. Intense hatred had built in those short exchanges. The snakes wanted to make Noah pay the price for his actions. Night was keeping the blind leader in a deadlock. The Snake never managed to touch the Pterodactyl, and injuries continued to accumulate on its body. Night was showing its innate superiority during the battle. Noah''s ambition made it able to inflict consistent damage, and the Snake couldn''t even keep up with its offensive. Noah shot toward the Snake. He felt weak, but the other two packs were about to reach his position. He had to kill the second leader to have a chance to escape. The Snake could keep track of Noah''s movements even in its blindness. Its instincts could sense the danger that neared its position. Noah thrust his blades forward, and a wave of sharpness flowed out of his weapons. The attack landed on the Snake''s head and opened a large injury, but it didn''t manage to stun the creature. The Snake charged ahead, using its huge body like a spring. That action made Noah''s attack more effective, but it also allowed it to slam on him in an instant. Noah spat blood while flying backward. The weakness that was filling his centers of power intensified, but his mind forced him to stay awake. Still, his awareness didn''t change his condition. The ambition continued to fuel his centers of power and companions, but Noah was running out of fuel. His dantian was almost empty, and even his insane resilience showed signs of giving in to his intense struggle. ''Just a little more!'' Noah shouted in his mind, and his ambition intensified. A new wave of power filled his centers of power. Noah dispersed his momentum and charged toward the massive Snake that was chasing him. Injuries continued to open on the creature''s body. Night never stopped attacking, but its effort didn''t manage to interrupt its opponent''s charge. The Snake had only one target. It wanted to kill Noah even if the effort ended up leading to its death. Sharp energy covered Noah''s draconic figure. He pointed his blades forward without interrupting his charge. The Snake opened its mouth when it sensed the incoming clash. Ice accumulated in its throat and reinforced its tissues, but everything crumbled once the creature clashed with Noah. Noah''s figure cut through the Snake''s head. The sharp aura surrounding him severed its tough scales before his blades even landed on the creature. The Snake''s vision suddenly went black. Noah had divided its head into two pieces. However, the rest of its body still slammed on him and flung him away. A river of blood poured on Noah while the corpse pushed him away. He quickly stored the body, but it took him a while to stop. His eyes quickly studied the battlefield, and what he saw turned his expression even grimmer. The two packs had reached the battlefield. They were only a few seconds away from jumping on Noah and the rest of his group. A dense aura had also spread in the environment. Noah felt an intense danger coming from those packs. They featured specimens at a level that even his ambition couldn''t make him match. Ice started to accumulate in the area. Snore and Duanlong didn''t manage to suppress that innate ability anymore now that the other packs had arrived. "Run!" Noah shouted as draconic roars mixed with his human words. His companions flew back inside his separate space, and the same went for his swords. His dark armor also vanished. Noah focused his whole existence on accelerating, but a massive figure appeared on his path before he could even decide where to go. A rank 8 Eternal Snake in the middle tier appeared above his head and threatened to slam its massive body on his figure. Noah quickly teleported away, but a second giant figure appeared on his path again. The weaker leaders couldn''t keep up with his teleports, but the same didn''t apply to those in the middle tier. Those creatures had sharp senses and could follow the movement of his energy through the sky. Noah continued to teleport, but the leaders forced him to reunite with the rest of his group. The rank 8 Foolery and Fergie searched for answers in his expression, but they only saw hopelessness on his face. "It has been a good run," Fergie said before closing his eyes. The Snakes were lowering their bodies to prepare a joint assault from every direction. They had already surrounded Noah and the others. The group had no way out of that situation. "I know where the thief is!" Noah suddenly shouted while roars resounded through his human voice. The Snakes were about to launch themselves forward, but a series of hisses suddenly came out of the leaders and forced them to hold back their assault. Countless reptilian gazed fell on Noah''s figure. His mind struggled to remain awake when the aura coming out of the middle tier specimens converged on him. Fear filled his mind. Noah''s instincts knew how hopeless his situation was. Nothing in his arsenal could make him overcome that challenge. One of the leaders left the group and stretched its massive head toward Noah. Its tongue made the sky tremble whenever it cracked in the air. That creature seemed to be at the very limit of the middle tier. "How could you know about the thief?" The Snake asked with human words. "I killed all the Snakes that you sent in the lower plane," Noah said without showing any fear. "The thief is in the Immortal Lands now. I can lead you all to him." The Snake gave voice to an angry hiss. Noah didn''t only kill two crucial members of its pack. He had also tainted the pride of its species! However, the creature hated someone more than Noah. Shandal had managed to steal an important egg from its pack. The Snake couldn''t let that human live, even if it meant letting Noah go. "Tell me where the thief is," The Snake said, and a cold smile appeared on Noah''s face. "I won''t," Noah replied while his smile broadened. The Snake cracked its tongue on one of the creatures in Noah''s pack. The beast directly exploded, but Noah didn''t flinch. He wouldn''t give up on his advantage even if the Snake decided to kill his entire group. The leader sensed Noah''s determination and gave voice to an angry hiss. Its underlings echoed its cry, but they didn''t dare to move. "I can lead your pack to him," Noah said while blood flowed out of his ears, "But only after we set terms for our agreement. I also want a piece of the thief." "The thief belongs to us!" The leader shouted, creating a shockwave that made the weaker magical beasts in the area faint. "No one can touch him without my permission!" "Then you might want to lower your voice," Noah replied without hiding his excitement. "You don''t want to kill the only existence in the entire higher plane willing to tell you where the thief is." **** Author''s notes: Lockdown ended, and I ended up celebrating too hard. My mind is also in a tough spot now, so I will take a few days to recover. I will resume publishing on Saturday, hopefully without needing to write at 6 am. Chapter 1537: 1537. Kill me The negotiations with the leader of the Eternal Snakes didn''t go as Noah expected. He could force the creature to stop the assault on his group, but he didn''t manage to make it seal a long-lasting alliance. The leader was too proud. Noah had killed two rank 8 Snakes, so he had to pay for that. Knowing about Shandal''s position only managed to buy him some time. The situation changed after Noah sealed that temporary alliance with the Snakes. Those creatures surrounded his group and made sure that no one left that encirclement without their permission. The Eternal Snakes had become powerful wardens that escorted Noah''s group, but they never dared to lower their guards. They didn''t underestimate their opponents even when their entire pack was surrounding their enemies. ''How do you plan on getting us out of this situation?'' Fergie asked through his consciousness. ''Let''s follow the plan for now,'' Noah replied. ''The Snakes have to join our assault on the Crystal City anyway. A window will open once chaos falls on the battlefield.'' ''Do we have to put our trust in our enemies?'' Fergie asked. ''The Crystal City had to face an overwhelming assault only a few millennia ago,'' Noah replied. ''Those fanatics have access to countless resources, and many large organizations are willing to help them. We might end up needing the Eternal Snakes far more than our real allies.'' Fergie went silent after that answer. His situation was far from ideal, but he trusted Noah enough to stop questioning his methods. ''It''s unwise to try to contact the others now,'' Noah thought while his eyes darted among the various middle tier specimens in the enemy pack. Noah''s group had finally reached regions close to the human domain. His inscribed notebook could theoretically contact his allies in the Outer Lands, but the presence of the Eternal Snakes prevented him from sending mental messages outside of the encirclement. A thick aura covered the stronger Snakes and destroyed any form of mental energy that tried to leave the encirclement. Noah could only use his consciousness to speak to his underlings and explore the environment. ''This might be a good thing,'' Noah concluded after reviewing the issue a few times. ''I count four rank 8 magical beasts in the middle tier here. I don''t know if I want to make the others face them.'' Noah''s army was atypical. His plan also went against the human species. He wanted to assault the first line of defense of the human domain with a platoon made of powerful magical beasts. His actions would label him as one of the worst traitors in the entire Immortal Lands. Of course, Noah wouldn''t care about that title, but he didn''t want his friends to face the consequences of his actions again. Divine Demon wasn''t an issue, but June and the others were still too weak to become enemies of the entire human domain. Noah led the two packs on random routes until he found familiar regions. From there, he searched the Land of the Fallen, the area ruled by the pack of Rats. "It''s safer if I speak with them alone," Noah said once the large army stopped at the edge of the Land of the Fallen. "I will never let you escape my gaze, cunning creature," The leader of the Snakes replied, putting an end to that conversation. The massive army barged inside the Land of the Fallen without making any attempt to hide their presence. The peak middle tier Snake even left a small platoon outside of the immense regions to make sure that the leader of the Rats couldn''t escape what was about to fall on its domain. Noah couldn''t keep his eyes away from the ground. The immense prairie and the various bordering regions featured countless Inheritances, but the situation didn''t allow him to explore them. The leader of the Snakes was already mad that Noah had partially lied about knowing Shandal''s exact position. The creature had pretended not to care about it, but Noah could sense that its grudges had deepened. Truth be told, Noah had begun to respect the Eternal Snakes after spending years traveling with them. His pride had reached an insane level of influence, but those creatures managed to remain unaffected. Noah couldn''t even force some of the weaker Snakes to create openings in the encirclement. The influence of their leader was too intense. That feat didn''t only depend on the power of the leader. It was clear that the peak middle tier Eternal Snake was special even among its species. It was a true leader, a position that Noah had begun to understand only recently. ''It is born to rule,'' Noah thought during the flight above the Land of the Fallen. The atmosphere was tense, but the environment of the Land of the Fallen managed to intensify that feeling. Both packs had to be wary of each other, and the presence of a third group hiding underground only worsened their mindset. The Rats didn''t immediately attack at that time, but both Noah and the peak middle tier leader knew that they were hiding underground. Still, while Noah could keep his cool during the flight, the Snake didn''t share the same control. "Stop staring and come out already!" The leader of the Snakes eventually shouted as loud hisses fused with its human words. The other Snakes echoed its cry, and the ice under them crumbled to let their massive bodies crash on the ground. The terrain shattered after the fall, but those creatures soon released their innate ability to freeze the whole environment. Noah promptly considered the possibility to escape, but two pairs of reptilian eyes landed on his figure before he could even start creating a plan. Two middle tier Eternal Snakes had remained in the air to continue controlling Noah''s group. Those creatures were far from stupid. A sea of large Rats came out of the underground world once ice began to cover the terrain. Their squeaks filled the sky and announced their will to fight the invaders. Rats appeared everywhere. Noah''s group was already deep inside the Land of the Fallen, so those creatures could surround them in an instant. Still, they were all rank 7 specimens that had no hope to win against the many rank 8 Snakes on the ground. "Hey," Noah said while turning toward the middle tier Snakes around his group, "I''m going down." "These resources belong to our pack!" One of the Snakes hissed while speaking human words. "Then kill me," Noah replied in an uncaring tone before a roar came out of his mouth. "Attack!" His figure shot downward, and a draconic armor covered him before reaching the ground. His pack didn''t hesitate to follow him, and the two middle tier Snakes couldn''t help but let them join the battle. ''This is the best training ground for my body,'' Noah coldly calculated in his mind. ''I might be able to face the Snakes if I manage to approach the breakthrough to the eighth rank before the assault on the Crystal City.'' Noah didn''t fully believe in those thoughts. He had spent centuries eating rank 8 magical beasts without obtaining significant benefits. Those rank 7 creatures couldn''t do much for his growth. However, Noah was already calculating Madame Canson''s defeat in his plan. There was a slight chance that his potential could finally bring his centers of power into the eighth rank after that feat, which would give him the strength to fight the pack of Snakes. ''We need to force the leader of the Rats outside of its lair anyway,'' Noah thought as a wave of flames escaped his mouth and covered the land. **** Author''s notes: Thank you for your patience. Chapter 1538: 1538. Magic Hordes of rank 7 Rats came out of the ground and assaulted the massive Snakes. Those tiny creatures were little more than dots compared to the immense reptiles, but their reckless assault managed to inflict consistent damage. The Eternal Snakes could constantly heal thanks to the ice accumulated in the environment, and the Rats had no method to stop that innate ability. Yet, there were thousands of them in the area, and the weaker specimens among the reptiles soon ended up falling apart under their relentless offensive. The Rats forced their opponents to deplete the ice too quickly. Only the rank 8 Snakes remained untouched during that offensive due to the absence of rank 8 specimens in the enemy army. Noah revealed his full power, showing how much he had grown throughout the past millennia. He didn''t have to worry about his body since the draconic armor protected him, so his ambition could focus on his flames to inflict a catastrophic number of casualties. The Rats couldn''t even try to get close to Noah. They barely managed to leave the underground world. His flames constantly covered his share of the battlefield, and countless flickering bodies converged toward his figure to give him the energy accumulated in the fight. Noah felt his body advancing far faster than he had initially predicted. He had chosen an isolated spot of the battlefield on purpose, and his decision maximized his gains far beyond his expectations. It would take thousands of rank 7 magical beasts to match the energy provided by a single rank 8 creature. Still, the pack of Rats had thrived during those millennia, and it had become able to sacrifice entire armies with every assault. Most of the specimens in those armies were also quite strong. They were either in the middle or upper tier, which didn''t reflect what Noah had witnessed during his first attack on those lands. Even the upper tier Rats couldn''t survive Noah''s flames, especially when his ambition fueled the innate ability. Those attacks could hurt rank 8 specimens, so the magical beasts could only burn as soon as their heads left the underground world. The Rats had never faced a similar invasion. Their alliance with the Crystal City had made their borders relatively safe, and the magical beasts nearby didn''t carry enough power to attempt a serious assault on those lands. However, both the Snakes and Noah''s group didn''t care about the Crystal City, and their overall power far surpassed what rank 7 magical beasts could stop. Their assault was nothing more than a one-sided slaughter. The rank 7 underlings soon failed to reach their opponents since their rank 8 leaders and Noah took care of most of the Rats. The Snakes stopped dying once the rank 8 leaders managed to freeze most of the region. The Rats couldn''t perform sudden attacks anymore at that point. They could only assault the invaders from distant areas, leaving Noah and the others enough time to counterattack. ''Their fertility is incredible as always,'' Noah thought while hovering above the not frozen surface. The Rats never stopped attacking Noah, but he didn''t mind that outcome. He even wished that the assault would last for entire years since the situation was forcing his body to grow at an incredible pace. There was a sharp difference between hunting a rank 8 magical beast and killing thousands of rank 7 specimens. The former provided far more nutrients, but it took Noah a long battle and an abuse of his ambition to achieve a clean victory. The ambition then exacted its price, forcing Noah to spend weeks dispersing the accumulated stress. The rank 8 materials obtained in the battle made Noah willing to put his centers of power through that struggle, but the approach wasn''t exactly as perfect as he desired. Instead, the Rats offered Noah a constant wave of nutrients at little to no cost. He was using his ambition only on his flames, which would almost lead to a complete lack of drawbacks. Fighting the Rats was also far safer, and it didn''t require Noah to take long breaks. Noah had already absorbed enough energy to match multiple rank 8 specimens in less than an hour since the beginning of the invasion. ''I hope the leader never comes out!'' Noah shouted in his mind without daring to withdraw his flames. His group was searching for the leader of the area blindly. Their instincts told them that the creature was somewhere near the center of the Land of the Fallen, but they couldn''t pinpoint its exact location. The Rats also lived underground, so they could theoretically escape through paths that the Snakes couldn''t sense while busy fighting. Only the reptiles controlling the edges of the region could notice any departing creature. The battlefield changed at some point. Nothing peculiar had happened until then, so the sudden absence of armies coming out of the ground didn''t go unnoticed. Noah still recalled the wave that had flung him directly into the ambush, but he didn''t know how the Rats could pull that off without an army preparing the attack on the ground. It seemed that the Rats had retreated, but even that option was far away from the truth. The Snakes on the borders would have warned their allies otherwise. A series of sharp gazes landed on Noah''s figure, but he shrugged his shoulders before the Snakes could ask anything. Even he didn''t know what was about to come. Then, a series of squeaks resounded from under the layers of ice and ground under them. They all echoed the same sounds as if they were chanting the words of their leader. Those cries also carried human words meant for the two human figures among the invaders. "We are ready to throw our entire force at you," The Rats echoed. "We are confident in taking you down, but the effort would cost us years of expansion. Do you have any specific reason behind this invasion?" ''Are they trying to buy some time?'' Noah wondered before expanding his consciousness, trying to find anything odd in the presences that he felt. Noah believed in the power of the Eternal Snakes, but the Rats were too small for those immense creatures. He wouldn''t be surprised if some of those beasts managed to escape the encirclement and warn the Crystal City or other allies. His consciousness and superior awareness didn''t find anything unusual, but that didn''t disperse his doubts. The Rats were smart enough to have methods that could hide their presence from his inspection. The leader of the Snakes was about to reply with an angry roar, but Noah''s cold gaze promptly landed on its figure and stopped its reckless action. The creature didn''t like having restrictions on its behavior, but it had experienced Noah''s ability in negotiations first-hand. The creature limited itself to expand its aura and make its pride fall on the ground while remaining silent, waiting for Noah to work his magic. The rank 8 Foolery did the same, and it also raised its head toward the sky. The pig knew how useless that action was after regaining its intelligence, but it liked that gesture too much to give it up. As for Noah, he also expanded his aura to let his pride seep into the ground. Yet, he didn''t stop there since the impatient gazes of the Snakes were telling him to handle that situation. "We are looking for the Crystal City," Noah said, mixing his human words with roars. "I know that you deal with those humans. We''ll stop attacking if you tell us where they are." The Rats didn''t answer, and silence soon spread through the entire land. Still, a series of tremors soon filled the area and shattered the layers of ice created by the Snakes. Once the silver chunks vanished, the whole surface crumbled, revealing a complex underground lair filled with countless Rats that didn''t hesitate to jump toward the invaders. A few rank 8 auras also spread from that immense army. Chapter 1539: 1539. Endless The army of Rats featured less rank 8 magical beasts than Noah''s group, but they seemed pretty threatening according to his instincts. The main reason behind that danger what that Noah couldn''t find the source of their auras among that horde of creatures. It was as if they were underground. The countless rank 7 Rats around them hid their presence and allowed them to move freely among their enemies. Noah quickly resorted to his flames, and the Snakes didn''t hesitate to spit their silver liquid. The other magical beasts and Fergie also activated their abilities while focusing on attacks that could affect large areas. The joint offensive turned out to be quite effective since countless Rats died during the wave of attacks, but the invaders soon had to change their minds. There were too many Rats. Even attacks with power in the eighth rank could only kill the hundreds of magical beasts gathered in the external parts of that wave of creatures. The Rats filled the sky and used their companions'' bodies to move through the air. They almost seemed able to fly in that situation. The decent mid-air agility of the Snakes was nothing compared to that offensive. It didn''t take much before the Rats engulfed all the existences in the sky. They resembled a sea that had taken control of the sky, and the leaders hidden among the rank 7 beasts could even move freely in that situation. Noah couldn''t see much among the sea of magical beasts swarming around him. Those creatures even affected his consciousness, forcing him to rely on his instincts to sense when something dangerous was about to approach his position. His previous release of pride had turned him into a target. Noah soon sensed that a threat was approaching his position at high speed, and his ambition promptly began to fuel the draconic armor. A large chunk of his armor suddenly disappeared as a shadow ran past him. The creature had marched through his flames and its many companions to reach Noah and launch a piercing attack. ''One of the rank 8 Rats is hiding here,'' Noah quickly concluded in his mind before a simple plan formed in his mind. Through his many talents and intelligent use of his ambition, Noah could open a path among that furry sea and find the rank 8 specimen. The massive assault would immediately lose one of its threatening aspects at that point. However, that approach could force the Rats to retreat. Those creatures were willing to sacrifice hordes of rank 7 specimens, but Noah didn''t know how they would react to the loss of one of their leaders. Noah didn''t want them to retreat. He liked that situation. The Rats were virtually unable to hurt him, and the swarm of creatures provided him with an endless flow of nutrients. Noah could obtain an unfathomable number of benefits if he managed to stall the situation. He didn''t dream of reaching the peak of the upper tier in one go, but he hoped to get close enough to the breakthrough to advance after the battle in the Crystal City. ''The rank 8 Foolery can''t defeat the stronger Rats in this situation,'' Noah thought. ''The Snakes will freeze the sky around them and slowly defeat the whole army, but that will take time.'' The situation seemed perfect for his plan. Noah had the power to inflict a significant loss, but he decided to hold back. He even withdrew his draconic armor to fake a moment of weakness. His ambition switched its focus. Noah didn''t even need to empower his flames anymore. He only needed to make his law push his body beyond its actual limits, and his innate ability would naturally benefit from that effect. Noah stood naked among the army of magical beasts. Those weak specimens managed to destroy his robe in an instant, but they couldn''t leave even the faintest mark on his body. The dangerous sensation appeared again, and an immense force soon landed on Noah''s forehead. Still, the impact only made him turn his head, even if a small cut had appeared there. ''Not bad,'' Noah thought while inspecting the prowess of his body. ''I''m getting close to the raw physical strength of a rank 8 magical beast, and my body has yet to advance!'' There was a difference between an actual breakthrough and the empowerment obtained through his ambition. Noah knew that his law could only imitate his growth, but it couldn''t express the real benefits that the process brought. Moreover, Noah wasn''t using his ambition to improve his body in terms of ranks. He was only bringing its prowess to the eighth rank without modifying its actual level. That was the same use applied to his attacks and abilities. His ambition made them able to hurt stronger creatures without actually empowering their raw power. It was something similar to what Divine Demon did with his Miracles, except that Noah didn''t rely on the world to turn the impossible into possible. His ambition made him realize what his potential believed he would eventually achieve. That second use of his ambition led to harsher drawbacks, but it also allowed Noah to surpass what the simple growth of his centers of power could achieve. Of course, that was only true while his level remained inside the same stage and tier. The first method would lead to greater benefits once his ambition allowed Noah to step into the eighth rank. His law had yet to become able to do that, but Noah didn''t know how much he desired to experience the drawbacks connected to that empowerment. Forcefully reaching the eighth rank would make him spend decades to recover. He wouldn''t even be surprised if the stress would put him into seclusion for entire centuries. Noah burned everything around him. The endless flow of nutrients healed all the minor injuries that the rank 8 Rat managed to inflict before sending the remaining energy toward his black hole. Those Rats were among the weakest species of magical beasts. They founded their true power on their fertility, but that put their leaders at a significant disadvantage. They would need four to six rank 8 Rats to match the power of an actual rank 8 magical beast, and that ended up working perfectly for Noah. He could limit the amount of ambition used during the fight to maintain his empowerment as long as he desired. The rank 8 Rat that had chosen him as its opponent soon left. It understood that Noah wasn''t really fighting, and its power alone didn''t make it able to do much against that enemy. The creature joined its companions only to find out that their situation was almost the same. The rank 8 Foolery was quite resilient, and the Snakes had too many rank 8 specimens to even think about winning that battle. The Rats had managed to kill many rank 7 specimens, but they became unable to touch them after they hid behind the ice. Even the magical beasts belonging to Noah''s pack and Fergie had to resort to the Snakes'' innate ability to survive in that situation. It was clear that the Rats couldn''t win in that situation. They were only wasting troops to defend an alliance with the humans. They soon expressed their feelings through loud squeaks, and the ground spoke again, telling them to retreat. The furry sea quickly vanished, revealing the outcome of that long battle. The Rats had lost tens of thousands of rank 7 specimens, but their opponents had also suffered. Most of the rank 7 Snakes had died, and Noah could see that even his army had turned into nothing more than a small platoon. Only the smartest creatures in his army had survived. White, Greeny, Grey, and Fergie were still alive together with less than a hundred other specimens. The Rats didn''t immediately return underground. They waited on the surface, staring at their opponents with resolute expressions. They seemed willing to resume their reckless offensive as soon as one of their enemies decided to launch an attack. Even the Snakes understood that it was time to talk. Noah and the others waited in the sky until a throne made of Rats came out of the ground. A specimen in the middle tier sat on it and adjusted its black crown while nearing its enemies. Chapter 1540: 1540. Anger The army of Rats created a staircase with their bodies to lift the throne higher in the sky. The crown on the leader''s head kept on sliding away, but the creature repeatedly adjusted it with its claws. The scene almost looked funny, but the threatening aura radiated by the middle tier Rat made the whole situation too tense for those kinds of thoughts. "I am the Rat King, you hateful invaders," The middle tier Rat announced once it reached its opponents. "I suggest you leave my domain immediately. I don''t mind unleashing the full power of my pack to send you away." "You have already tried," Noah replied while spreading his arms. "We are still here." The Rat King snorted before giving voice to a faint squeak. The beasts under it echoed its cry, and multiple powerful auras surged from different spots of the region. Those auras carried a power that Noah knew far too well. They belonged to magical beasts in the eighth rank, and some of them were in the middle tier. The pack of Rats had kept its true power hidden until now. Its platoons had been in different areas of the Land of the Fallen. Yet, they had managed to gather around the invaders during the previous battle. ''They are more than us now,'' Noah concluded after a quick inspection of the threats that had surrounded his group. The situation was still in his favor. There were only six auras with power in the middle tier, and less than twenty in the lower tier. The four middle tier Snakes were still enough to fend those creatures off, but the battle would be far bloodier now. "Tell me," The Rat King continued. "How long will you take to refill these losses? My species doesn''t need much to improve and give birth to new beasts. I bet your kind needs thousands of years to obtain a new creature in the seventh rank." The leader of the Snakes wanted to hiss in anger. The creature hated Shandal because he had managed to steal a valuable egg from its pack. It had the same feelings toward Noah since he had killed two powerful underlings. The Rats had entered that list, but the Snake would only suffer significant losses if it were to attack now. Noah had long since reached the same conclusions. The Eternal Snakes were nigh-immortal creatures capable of insane physical might and a threatening innate ability, so they had to have heavy limits on their fertility. Their pride had even forced them to pursue Shandal, which had led them to that situation. Noah didn''t know the details behind Shandal''s achievement, but he could understand how mad the Snakes were. Their situation kept worsening and continued to put them into spots where their superior prowess was useless. The leader of the Snakes could only glance at Noah again. The creature didn''t know how to handle that situation. It could only rely on its canny companion to get what it wanted. "You would have already attacked if you felt confident in defeating us," Noah said, ignoring the pressure radiated by Snake. "It''s clear that you want us to cooperate on a certain level. What''s your price?" The Rat King''s eyes sharpened when Noah''s words reached its ears. He was right. An all-out battle wouldn''t benefit its pack either. It might even force those creatures to abandon the Land of the Fallen. Many packs sought to conquer the Land of the Fallen due to its strong foundation. The energy leaked by the many Inheritances kept the environment rich in resources and allowed the Rats to expand almost endlessly. Any other region would have already transformed into a wasteland. The Crystal City also helped the Rats keeping their domain intact. Their cooperation served multiple purposes, especially when it came to preserving those areas. Still, the magical beasts were prideful beings. No number of benefits could force them into submission for longer than a few millennia. The Rats had endured that cooperation to build a pack capable of running freely through the Immortal Lands, but they had reached the point when they wanted to separate themselves from those fanatics. An all-out battle against Noah''s group would delay their plan by many millennia. The Rat King could lose the support of its underlings if it forced them to wait for so long before reclaiming complete freedom. It was a risky approach that the leader didn''t want to test. "What makes you think that we know the new location of the Crystal City?" The Rat King asked. "I wasn''t sure that they had changed location," Noah replied while wearing a cold smile. "Thank you for confirming that." The Rat King immediately recognized its mistake. The news of the attack on the Crystal City had spread throughout the whole human domain and many bordering regions. Any magical beast interested in an invasion knew about that. "You are a tricky one," The Rat King said. "And you have yet to name a price," Noah replied. Noah and the Rat King stared at each other in silence for a few seconds before the latter heaved a helpless sigh. A squeak escaped its mouth, and the rank 8 auras in its pack disappeared. "How can you be sure that we know their location?" The Rat King asked even if it had already accepted to negotiate. "I know that you have spies in the nearby regions," Noah replied honestly. "I would be disappointed if you didn''t send a few of them to follow your human allies." "It seems that we aren''t ready to devour the human domain," The Rat King sighed. "It would be a problem if we were to meet other smart existences like you." "You can always give me that crown and make me your new leader," Noah replied, but the Rat ignored his words before descending toward the surface. The army of Rats opened an ample space on the terrain, and Noah nodded at the rest of his group. They descended toward that empty spot and waited for the enemy leader to name its desires. "We don''t need much to thrive," The Rat King said once everyone landed, "But I have many mouths to feed. Satisfy our hunger for a while, and I''ll give you what you need." Noah took out the corpses of the two rank 8 Eternal Snakes. Those creatures were so big that they could probably meet the Rat King''s requests. The leader of the Snakes shot a hateful glance toward Noah, but he ignored the creature. That wasn''t the time to be angry about the dead. "Wonderfu-!" The Rat King exclaimed before suppressing its excited voice. "This satisfies us. Go, my children. Eat, reproduce, and grow!" The army of Rats jumped toward the two corpses, but Noah promptly stored them back inside his separate space. The creatures remained dumbfounded, and countless questioning gazes landed on him. "First, you need to tell me the new location of the Crystal City," Noah said in a cold tone. "Second, I want one of your middle tier underlings as a guide." "Do you dare to question the value of my word?!" The Rat King shouted, and its underlings echoed its angry cry. A series of soundwaves engulfed Noah''s group, but they didn''t carry any harm. The Rats were trying to scare their opponents, but they failed in the task. "These are my conditions," Noah said once the angry cries went silent. "Also, you might want to consider your current situation before attempting something like this again. My friend there doesn''t like this behavior." The Rat King turned toward the leader of the Snakes and realized how angry that creature was. It appeared on the verge of exploding. The slightest push would make it forsake those negotiations and resume a mindless assault. Chapter 1541: 1541. Defenses The negotiations ended quickly. The Rat King couldn''t refuse Noah''s conditions after exposing its willingness to sever its ties with the Crystal City. It turned out that the Crystal City had numerous castles situated past the edges of the human domain. Noah had already guessed that, but he didn''t expect the Rats to be aware of that feature. Still, they only knew the location of one of the castles, which was the new home of the fanatics who had survived the assault of the Legion. The Rats weren''t aware of the full power of the Crystal City. They only knew that the new location had multiple defenses capable of fending off any investigation. ''This should work in my favor,'' Noah thought after assimilating that information. ''The Crystal City must have set powerful defenses for fear of a second assault. Losing the Snakes shouldn''t be a problem once the battle starts.'' The Rat King appointed one of its underlings in the middle tier to lead Noah''s group toward the new castle. They didn''t hesitate to leave the Land of the Fallen at that point. The Snakes couldn''t waste time anymore, and even Noah couldn''t wait to face a rank 8 cultivator. The journey didn''t take much. The middle tier Rat even led Noah''s groups through paths that wouldn''t alert the Crystal City or its allies. Those creatures could only benefit from the destruction of that organization, so they tried to help Noah and the Snakes as much as possible. In a little more than a few years, Noah and the others found themselves in front of a large forest that featured a tall palace at its center. The environment didn''t have a single magical beast. Only the distant structure featured powerful entities. "My task is complete," The middle tier Rat said. "Good luck in your battle." The creature left the group to return to its pack. Only Noah, his underlings, the Foolery, and the Snakes remained in the area. "What are we waiting for?" The leader of the Snakes quickly asked. "Why don''t we simply charge ahead?" Noah didn''t answer. His mood worsened as he inspected the environment. He couldn''t sense much from his position, but his instincts told him that the area had countless defenses. ''No clear way in,'' Noah concluded. ''We can only barge into the castle. Many of us will be unable to reach the insides of the structure.'' It had taken Noah a lot to reach that secret place. He had also trained for a long time, but he still couldn''t feel sure about the success of the assault. "Can you handle the many defenses along the road?" Noah asked the leader of the Snakes. "They are quite scary. Even my instincts fear the forest." Noah had chosen his words carefully to make sure that the Snakes would take the bait. He wanted a diversion, and only those creatures were strong enough to attract the entire attention of the Crystal City. Their pride was the only flaw that Noah could exploit. Telling the Snakes how powerful the defenses of the palace were only made them want to charge ahead. "What will you do if we charge ahead?" The leader of the Snakes asked. The creature didn''t let its pride blind its decisions. It knew that Noah was smart enough to understand his situation. The Snake didn''t doubt that he was aware of its plan to attack him as soon as Shandal died. "I will attack from above," Noah replied. "My pack doesn''t have your healing ability. Most of us will die if we charge ahead." "I don''t believe your words," The Snake said. "How can I be sure that you won''t use this chance to escape?" Noah couldn''t gain the Snake''s trust in those short seconds. Words were also useless against that smart magical beast. Still, he didn''t lie when he said that his pack couldn''t handle the defenses. The memories of his imprisonment in the Crystal City slowly surged inside his mind. Noah recalled the helplessness felt in front of his dying friends and the hatred gathered after Shandal''s betrayal. His aura expanded and conveyed those emotions. Intense anger and hatred enveloped the group of Snakes before taking the shape of two faces. One of them depicted Madame Canson, while the other represented Shandal. The Snakes understood that those feelings weren''t a lie. Noah''s hatred ran deep into his existence. It was even more intense than their grudge against Shandal. The leader of the Snakes remained speechless. It had never considered Noah worthy of attention, but he acknowledged him when it sensed his feelings. After a moment of hesitation, the peak middle tier Snake nodded and gave voice to a loud hiss that made its entire pack charge ahead. ''This dumb creature!'' Noah cursed in his mind at that scene. ''It didn''t even let me prepare!'' Noah quickly roared before shooting toward the sky. His pack and the Foolery followed him, and they quickly reached a spot from where the forest was nothing more than a faint dot. "It''s time to go all-out," Noah said in his human voice. His message was for Fergie. He was the only one who had suffered more than him during the events with the Crystal City. "I can''t wait," Fergie replied while Noah inspected his army. Noah had spent entire millennia with some of those creatures, and all of them had grown in that period. Many of them had been nothing more than lower tier magical beasts at the beginning, but they stood near the peak of the upper tier now. Even Fergie had an impressive growth. He was a fully-fledged solid stage cultivator now. His body had also advanced in the upper tier during their journey back to the human domain. Nothing of his weak past self had remained in his existence. The Foolery also counted many upper tier creatures. They had thrived during the journey across the magical beasts'' domain, and they had silently decided to follow Noah anywhere he went. They were already part of his pack, even if they had yet to realize that. "Let''s go," Noah said before diving toward the palace. His pack followed him, and they all started to unleash their abilities to prepare for the imminent battle. Noah did the same, and his ambition ended up covering his group during the descent. A draconic armor covered Noah''s figure, and his centers of power reached the peak of the seventh rank. The dark world expanded, and the workshop activated, providing him with four additional arms and an army of six-armed dragons. The sky darkened as the group descended. Noah''s influence dimmed the white light and created a falling dark cloud. Still, the cultivators inside the palace didn''t have the time to focus on them. The Eternal Snakes slithered through the forest, releasing their silver liquid into the environment. Ice covered the terrain and the trees, but defenses suddenly activated. A series of explosions happened. Traps placed underground detonated, shattering the ice and reducing most of those creatures into pieces. Even the specimens in the eighth rank suffered severe injuries. The ice healed the Snakes and rendered those detonations useless. The traps wouldn''t achieve anything as long as those creatures remained able to use their innate ability. Pillars made of purple light eventually shone inside the forest. The trees and ground morphed inside that radiance and took the shape of tall golems with power in the eighth rank. The strongest Snakes separated from the pack and clashed with the golems. The impact destroyed them, but the purple light quickly forced the environment to fix their bodies. Yet, that gave the Snakes enough time to freeze everything. Once the golems transformed into frozen statues, the Snakes continued their advance and triggered another series of defenses. Beams of purple light shot out of the palace and pierced the incoming magical beasts. The ice fixed their injuries in seconds. Nothing seemed able to stop the Eternal Snakes. Even the defenses of one of the strongest organizations in the human domain were useless against those nigh-immortal creatures. Chapter 1542: 1542. Pay The Crystal City had methods to notice Noah and the others, but the Eternal Snakes claimed the full attention of their sensors. Moreover, those cultivators wouldn''t mind the small pack in the air when they had middle tier magical beasts laying waste to their defenses. A purple dome quickly covered the palace while other defenses shot out of the structure and terrain. More rank 8 golems and light appeared in the forest and clashed with the Snakes. The Crystal City had a vast network. It gathered information both from organizations and magical beasts. Having to face a sudden assault was almost impossible. However, the Rat had led Noah''s group through secret paths. The Eternal Snakes could attack before the Crystal City could deploy its defenses in a proper formation. The Snakes only had to defeat the few defenses that managed to appear on their paths before charging ahead. Their advance would have been far slower if the Crystal City had managed to deploy everything together. Two powerful figures soon appeared above the palace. Madame Canson and a second rank 8 cultivator wearing the colors of the Crystal City inspected the pack of Snakes before glancing toward the sky. The descending dark cloud carried a few threats, but they were nothing compared to the middle tier beasts slithering on the ground. The cultivators had to take care of the Snakes if they wanted their palace to survive. Madame Canson raised her hand toward the sky, and purple crystals began to appear among the various lights surrounding the palace. Both the shield and the pillars became stronger under the influence of her law. The second rank 8 cultivator spread his arms forward, and a series of walls grew around the structure. Sharp spikes also grew from them before they shot toward the incoming Snakes. The golems became bigger under the enhanced purple light. A series of metallic armors also grew from the ground, and a few solid stage cultivators exited the palace to wear them. The Crystal City was getting ready to fight the Eternal Snakes face to face. As for the army in the sky, the cultivators left them to the purple shield and the two rank 8 cultivators. ''Madame Canson is enhancing every defense,'' Noah thought while diving toward the structure. ''The other rank 8 cultivator seems to have a tight connection with the ground and the palace as a whole. Maybe he is even controlling the various protections.'' Noah believed that Madame Canson had yet to recognize him. After all, her attention was on the Eternal Snakes, and she had yet to see that the dark aura in the sky hid human figures. The area around the palace fell into chaos. Countless golems and armors handled by cultivators charged toward the Eternal Snakes while a barrage of beams attacked those creatures. The assault had yet to kill one of the Snakes, but even the middle tier specimens had to acknowledge the power behind that offensive. The defenses illuminated by the purple light enhanced by Madame Canson''s crystals had become able to overcome rank 8 magical beasts. The metallic armors handled by rank 7 cultivators weren''t an exception. Those underlings could even deploy battle formations that better suited the situation. The Eternal Snakes were among the most ruthless and powerful species that Noah had ever met, but they had to stop in front of so many defenses. Their ice shattered before reaching the ground, and injuries were slowly accumulating on their massive bodies. A golem would crumble from time to time. The Snakes even managed to crush some of the armors with their bodies. However, they found themselves unable to advance against that barrage of powerful attacks. Noah moved his attention away from the battlefield when his group was about to reach the defensive dome. The light reflected by the purple crystals managed to pierce his dark world and illuminate the area again, but his ambition continued to burn stronger than ever. ''This is a defensive method meant to stop rank 8 existences,'' Noah thought as his ambition intensified. His law used his potential to bring his might far beyond his previous limits. It made Noah feel more powerful than ever. The challenge that the Crystal City had placed in front of Noah forced his law to do more. He even believed that his ambition was almost ready to bring his centers of power into the eighth rank. ''Not yet,'' Noah thought before pointing his blades toward the dome. ''Let''s see how far I am from actual rank 8 cultivators.'' The Demonic Form spread from his palm and covered his draconic figure. The dark world also transformed, taking pointy shape with the peak where his blades converged. The rest of the pack was behind Noah and continued to follow him without slowing down. Those creatures had seen him fighting rank 8 magical beasts without advancing in the eighth rank. They firmly believed that the dome would crumble once it met his blades. The impact eventually happened. Noah''s blades touched the dome, and all the power accumulated around his figure fell on those purple crystals. Noah stopped for an instant, but a spiderweb of cracks soon spread from where his blades had touched the dome. Madame Canson felt forced to raise her head to stare at the scene, but she had decided to pay attention to the pack above her one instant too late. Before Madame Canson could send more power to the technique, the dome shattered, and a series of purple shards rained toward the palace. The other rank 8 cultivator also raised his head to stare at the scene, but his companion didn''t let him diverge his attention from the battlefield. "I will handle them," Madame Canson said, and an army of rank 7 cultivators appeared above the palace. Noah recognized some of them. Miss Canson, Shandal, Miss Nine, God''s Right Hand, and other cultivators met in his previous visit in the Crystal City were among them. "Make these beasts understand the difference between our kinds!" Madame Canson shouted, and the army charged ahead. A purple light shone from Madame Canson''s figure, and crystals began to cover her underlings. Their power immediately increased, and some of them even began to step past the limits of the eighth rank. Noah expanded his dark world, creating an immense descending cloud that covered the whole palace. Blackness and purple light had taken control of that area of the sky, and none of them wanted to retreat. ''Let''s take care of that first,'' Noah thought before moving toward a specific cultivator. Shandal was flying ahead. His figure brimmed with azure light that slowed down the advance of the magical beasts directly above him. However, a draconic figure suddenly filled his vision, and his centers of power stopped working. Madame Canson and the other powerful cultivators among the army didn''t overlook that event. Noah radiated one of the two dangerous auras among his group. They had seen how Shandal had disappeared as soon as Noah''s dark wings had enveloped his body. A vague guess appeared in their minds, but Noah didn''t give them the time to think. His figure vanished and reappeared above Madame Canson, where he launched one of his strongest attacks. Madame Canson had been able to follow Noah''s movements. The invisible sharp energy launched by him transformed into purple crystals before it could reach her face. Noah didn''t give up and teleported again, appearing right behind her. His blades flashed again, and a dark halo expanded as his sharpness flew toward Madame Canson. His attack failed to reach his opponent again. His sharpness transformed into purple crystals that added a layer of protection to Madame Canson. She was transforming his energy into power that she could use to fuel her abilities. "You aren''t a beast," Madame Canson said in a surprised tone, "But you aren''t a human either." Noah thrust his blades, and the defenses around Madame Canson shattered. However, his sharpness transformed into purple crystals right before reaching the center of her forehead. "You are Defying Demon!" Madame Canson exclaimed while her aura expanded. "I was waiting for you. It''s time to pay for what your friends did the last time." Chapter 1543: 1543. Influence Noah glanced at the rank 8 cultivator behind Madame Canson. The expert was ignoring the battles around him and focusing only on the fights happening around the palace. "You don''t have to worry about Monsieur Evan," Madame Canson said when she noticed where Noah''s consciousness was moving. "He won''t interrupt our battle." A chill ran down Noah''s spine, but he managed to suppress his instincts. Madame Canson had managed to sense his inspection without unfolding her consciousness. Her experience in the eighth rank wasn''t something that Noah could underestimate. ''I lose in sheer power and experience,'' Noah concluded in his mind. ''I guess I need to rely on my innate advantages.'' Noah had deployed the full potential of his ambition. His law was empowering his centers of power, companions, and abilities. Every aspect of his existence had grown to the point when he could hurt rank 8 beings. Snore, Duanlong, and Night flew out of his figure and took their position. The Snake unfolded its massive wings, the dragon opened its monstrous mouth, and the Pterodactyl fused with the world, waiting for an opportunity. Madame Canson wanted to maintain an aloof expression, but her eyes flickered when she sensed the power radiated by Noah''s companions. Noah''s strength had multiplied. She suddenly had multiple divine opponents in front of her. "You dare to attack the human domain with an army of magical beasts," Madame Canson sighed. "Then, you rely on those despicable creatures to increase your battle prowess. You are too far gone. My victory will seal the human superiority once and for all." Noah had enough of that speech. Power had never been good or evil in his mind. It had always been something above ethic and stupid labels. Snore spat a wave of violent dark matter. Its attack shattered part of the palace but stopped once it reached Madame Canson. Even its destructive energy transformed into purple crystals when it touched her influence. Duanlong''s pulling force began to affect the environment. Tiles and chunks of the palace rose in the air and converged in its mouth. The various energies in the area also flew toward the dragon, and the same applied to Madame Canson''s influence. The pulling force also affected Monsieur Evan''s energy. The rank 8 expert couldn''t help but turn toward Noah and reveal a surprised expression. He had heard the stories about Noah, but that show of power surpassed his wildest expectations. Madame Canson tried to raise her hand, but a layer of crystals suddenly materialized on her elbow. A large cut opened on that protection, and the force transmitted in the impact pushed her arm down. Noah swung his blades. The invisible sharpness launched during the attack fused with the violent dark matter in the area and pierced the crystals defending the experts. A few more appeared on Madame Canson''s skin, but even they crumbled under the might of Noah''s offensive. Madame Canson flew backward, but she quickly stopped herself mid-air. Her face still lacked any emotion, but her eyes were slowly starting to show how surprised she was. Noah couldn''t feel happy about that outcome. He was resorting to his full power, but Madame Canson was able to stop his offensive with basic abilities. ''I''m sure I didn''t overestimate myself,'' Noah thought while inspecting his opponent. The many battles against rank 8 magical beasts had proven to Noah that he was ready to face rank 8 cultivators. His current struggle could only mean that Madame Canson was stronger than the average rank 8 expert. "Are you done?" Madame Canson asked while floating above Noah. "Did you think that a few magical beasts and some tricks could be enough to defeat us?" Crystals grew on Madame Canson''s skin. They transformed her figure into a shining armor that empowered her base power. Even her aura thickened and intensified the effects applied on her underlings. Noah saw the army of cultivators pushing back his pack and the Foolery. A small platoon took care of isolating the rank 8 pig while the others relied on their superior battle tactics to defeat the other magical beasts. Only Fergie was managing to endure that clever assault. A raging sun rotated above his head and launched massive fireballs toward any cultivator that tried to approach him. Fergie had already understood that he couldn''t let the battle continue like that. He had to do something to regain the upper hand, but his power didn''t allow him to do much in that situation. Miss Nine and the other cultivators who had received Madame Canson''s blessing were too powerful. Their power was almost beyond the limits of the seventh rank. They were the strongest existences under the eighth rank. Fergie could handle one of them, but they would quickly overwhelm him if he didn''t let his companions share that burden. Madame Canson''s law even worsened his situation since Noah''s ambition couldn''t keep up with her influence. Noah was losing on every field. He wasn''t inferior only in experience and sheer power. His pack and law were also weaker than Madame Canson and her army. ''She is still playing with me,'' Noah concluded while glancing at the crystal armor floating in the air. ''She has yet to launch a single attack. I bet she wants me to watch my army falling apart.'' Noah dispersed his draconic armor and revealed his real body. The copies of the swords also vanished, leaving him with nothing more than a layer of dark matter covering his skin. The Demonic Form expanded. Its roots thickened as Noah forced the black hole to remove its restrictions. ''I can also play this game,'' Noah suppressed the sense of weakness surging inside his mind before teleporting. His figure reappeared among the enemy army and attracted the attention of the underlings. They all turned toward Noah and launched a reckless offensive, hoping to get rid of that threat. "No, wait!" Madame Canson tried to warn her troops, but her words were too slow. The expert tried to intensify her empowerment, but there was a limit to how much she could improve her underlings. Her law couldn''t create other rank 8 existences, and that was enough for Noah. The dense array of attacks vanished when it neared Noah. The roots coming out of his right palm spread further and created an area when even the air couldn''t exist. The corrosive aura radiated by the Demonic Form intensified. The roots tightened on Noah''s swords while he lifted his arms. The blades then released a black flash, and the battlefield went silent. Tens of solid stage cultivators empowered by Madame Canson had neared Noah in the hope to kill him. They had created an encirclement that could even threaten some weaker rank 8 existences. However, Noah was different. Those cultivators had Madame Canson''s crystals, but they couldn''t generate them without her power. Noah could kill them as long as his offensive pierced their defenses. The cultivators around Noah seemed to multiply, but Madame Canson didn''t fail to understand the true nature of that gruesome scene. Noah''s attack had cut all of them in half, and the corrosive energy that had accompanied his sharpness also devoured their tissues. In little more than a few seconds, that group of elite peak rank 7 cultivators vanished without leaving anything behind. Noah''s cold eyes landed on Madame Canson at that point, and the expert understood the meaning behind his glare. Madame Canson retracted her purple radiance, dispersing the empowerment applied to her underlings. Noah''s ambition couldn''t match her influence, but he could force her to focus only on him. "You have lost the only chance of draining my energy," Madame Canson announced in a cold tone. "I can focus all my power on you now. How long can you last with centers of power in the seventh rank?" Madame Canson was right, but her aloof expression froze when she sensed that Noah''s aura went past the limits of the seventh rank. Noah was stepping in the eighth rank right in front of her eyes. Chapter 1544: 1544. Evolution Noah had acknowledged his powerlessness in those short exchanges. His best efforts couldn''t even force Madame Canson to attack. He would only run out of darkness if he kept launching a pointless offensive. His battle prowess was almost there. The fusion of his enhanced centers of power, companions, and abilities placed him near Madame Canson''s level, but he needed to take another step forward. Noah knew that his potential could bring him into the eighth rank, but his worries had held him back. The fear of the drawbacks had applied limits on his law. Those limits mostly came from his survival instincts. Noah knew that his ambition would exact an immense price once his empowerment ran out. Still, he didn''t know what else he could do to defeat Madame Canson. Noah had three trump cards in his arsenal, but one of them was too dangerous, and the other required time to activate. Only his ambition could give him the chance to fight Madame Canson on an even field without ensuring his death. Noah felt his mind, dantian, and body crossing a limit that he knew far too well. His ambition stopped empowering his many abilities to focus its entire influence on his centers of power, finally bringing them to a level that Noah had sought for millennia. Of course, the ambition couldn''t replicate the power that Noah would obtain after real breakthroughs. It could only guess what his strength would be according to the experience gained throughout his life. His mind expanded, and his mental waves managed to seep into the matter of the world. Noah felt able to change the laws that ruled the sky at will. He could alter the environment as he wished. A wave of power filled his body. Noah couldn''t help but tighten his fist for fear of exploding due to the immense energy running through his tissues. He had never felt so powerful. Even his strongest attack couldn''t match that incredible sensation. His dantian emptied while his ambition pushed him into the eighth rank. His darkness vanished in an instant, but an unstable gas quickly replaced it. That new energy began to fuel his ambition, which completed the empowerment without needing external power. Noah''s law was improving his foundation so that it could continue to intensify. Noah felt whole once his centers of power stepped into the eighth rank. His ambition shot in every direction and transformed the white light into dense trails of smoke. The sky couldn''t fight him back anymore and let his influence taint its fabric. Madame Canson wanted to stop that evolution, but Noah''s companions promptly appeared on her path. They were also passively benefitting from his ambition, so nothing managed to reach their Master. The expert tried to launch waves of light that gave birth to purple crystals, but most of them ended inside Duanlong''s mouth. Night also cut them into countless pieces to quicken their destruction, and Snore never stopped filling the area with its violent dark matter. Noah''s eyes fell on his opponent once his evolution ended. Madame Canson sensed an immense pressure landing on her mind and trying to suppress her consciousness. Surprise finally appeared in her expression. Madame Canson had met rank 8 cultivators stronger than her throughout her life, but she had never seen a newly advanced existence capable of exerting such intense pressure. The reports of her underlings were on point. Noah was a monster that didn''t respect the power level of the three species. He was in a different league, far above magical beasts, humans, and hybrids. "I must stop you!" Madame Canson shouted while pointing her hands at her opponent. "You embody the unbalance that fills the world. You can''t be allowed to grow further!" The lumps of black smoke surrounding Noah transformed into crystals before taking the shape of humanoid armors. Those puppets grew as Madame Canson sent more energy toward her technique, and they soon became as tall as the whole palace. The roof began to crumble, but Madame Canson didn''t care about the palace. The Crystal City could always rebuild them. Killing Noah before he became strong enough to threaten her organization was the priority. "You should wait for the explosion," Noah said without minding the giants. "The what?" Madame Canson asked while the giants tried to slam their massive arms on Noah. The space around Noah suddenly twisted. The laws of the world stopped working as a dense aura covered his figure. Madame Canson could sense that Noah didn''t activate any technique, but she didn''t care about the matter enough to stop her offensive. The puppets'' arms stopped moving as soon as they landed on that dense aura. The crystals that made their limbs also shattered when the density of that energy increased. Madame Canson didn''t know what to think. She could even see that Noah was curious about that power as well. It seemed that they were both waiting for that technique to show its might. Noah''s black hole went out of control. The new darkness that filled his dantian flowed toward his fourth center of power and transformed the higher energy. A blinding dark light seeped out of Noah''s figure. The purple and white glow in the sky vanished in front of that radiance. A black gas slowly flowed out of Noah''s skin. It seemed on the verge of obtaining a liquid state, but it also appeared unable to reach that form. The higher energy expanded around Noah and created a series of raging currents that gave birth to a rotating sphere. The abilities of the weaker underlings in the sky stopped working. Noah''s black hole absorbed their energy before it could flow into their techniques. The same happened to Madame Canson and Monsieur Evan. Their "Breath" escaped from their control and flowed toward the black hole that had enveloped Noah. The black hole didn''t directly absorb that energy. It shattered and reassembled it to create Noah''s darkness before fusing it with its fabric. The gas rotating inside its spherical shape slowly condensed and eventually transformed into a dense liquid that continued to churn inside the massive black hole. Its gravitational pull began to affect the defenses outside of the palace at that point. Rivers of debris, ground, and energy flowed toward its raging waters and fused with its fabric. Noah had no control over that process, but he did nothing to stop it. The evolution of the black hole was happening right in front of his eyes, and his desire to become stronger only intensified. The black hole had catastrophic effects on the environment, and that wasn''t its true form. The rank 8 darkness reached through Noah''s ambition was a weaker version of what he would eventually obtain. His fourth center of power could become even stronger than that. The sphere enlarged as energy continued to flow into its shape. Madame Canson tried to launch attacks for a while, but everything seemed pointless against those raging waters. Her crystals always ended up fueling the black hole rather than hurting it. The black hole stabilized once all the energy in its insides had taken a liquid form. The organ began to shrink and took its place at the center of Noah''s chest again. Noah had to crouch to endure the wave of energy that had flowed through his tissues as soon as the black hole resumed its normal functions. Every inch of his body went through a second empowerment that brought his overall power to a superior level. The same went for his companions, even if Snore and Duanlong obtained the greatest benefits. They were creatures made of dark matter, so their entire body transformed once the new higher energy flowed into their fabric. Noah gave voice to a roar that made the whole area tremble. The damaged palace began to crumble, and soundwaves spread in every direction. His voice carried his ecstasy and his desire to defy the very rulers of the world. Sparks began to accumulate high in the sky. No lightning bolt fell on the battlefield, but it was clear that Heaven and Earth were paying attention to that fight. They even seemed ready to intervene. Chapter 1545: 1545. Virus Noah could sense Heaven and Earth''s influence above him. He felt their intentions, and part of his mind prepared for the inevitable clash. Yet, most of his focus remained on Madame Canson. ''One problem at the time,'' Noah thought before glancing at his blades. The Demonic Sword had benefitted from his growth. It was in the quasi-rank 8 stage now. Instead, the white sword didn''t improve. It remained a rank 7 inscribed weapon in the upper tier. ''I guess I''m going to lose you,'' Noah thought while inspecting the white blade. He had already fixed it with his dark matter multiple times, but the blade was about to reach its limits. Noah''s higher energy had almost replaced more than half of its original structure. Madame Canson didn''t waste time with words. The all-absorbing black sphere had disappeared, so she could finally start attacking her dangerous opponent. A series of three meters tall crystal armors grew around her. It didn''t matter that the palace was crumbling under her feet. Madame Canson could create those puppets from the very air that surrounded her. The puppets intensified Madame Canson''s aura and allowed her to take control of her surroundings. Her influence gave birth to more crystals, which continued to generate humanoid armors. Madame Canson''s power multiplied once the army formed. She seemed able to increase her influence at will and draw energy from the potential contained in the matter around her. ''What''s her individuality?'' Noah wondered at the sight of the puppets. He had initially thought that she could only boost the power of her underlings, but the truth appeared to be far different. ''She is spreading her existence into the area,'' Noah concluded. ''She plants seeds that can generate copies of her law.'' The memories of his battle against Miss Nine surged in his mind. Noah couldn''t help but find similarities between Madame Canson and her. It seemed that the rank 8 expert had infected her underling, transforming her power into her weaker copy. "Did you get it?" Madame Canson asked in a voice that carried no emotions. "I am the puppet master. I can transform anything in the world into my copy. My underlings even gain a share of my understanding." "You are a virus," Noah replied. "No," Madame Canson snorted. "I show the path to those with no hope to reach the higher ranks. I''m a savior capable of turning even the most useless asset into a valuable resource." Noah and Madame Canson had similar laws, but their effects differed on how they empowered their surroundings. Madame Canson created copies of her existence and implanted them into her underlings, while Noah forced the matter to evolve and reach its true potential. Defeating Madame Canson had suddenly gained a second meaning. Noah had to kill her to obtain his revenge, but he also wanted to prove that his law was superior. ''Don''t hold anything back,'' Noah ordered through the mental connection. ''We need to have enough power to face Heaven and Earth afterward.'' His companions followed his orders and prepared for the imminent clash. Snore filled the area with a sea of violent dark matter, Duanlong activated its pulling force, and the Demonic Sword covered itself with higher energy. The army of puppets surrounding Madame Canson lifted their arms to create a wall of crystals, but Noah''s Blood Companions destroyed it in a matter of instants. The new dark matter had empowered Snore and Duanlong far beyond Madame Canson''s expectations. Their innate abilities could shatter and destroy her crystals in seconds, and even her puppets began to suffer from the same fate. Madame Canson tried to join her hands, but a series of crystals suddenly materialized in front of her. Night became visible for a fraction of an instant before shattering her defense and merging with the world again. The expert tried to attack again, but a shadow materialized in front of her. Madame Canson promptly covered her surroundings with crystals, but a sharp force cut through them and reached her skin. Crystals had tried to shield her from that attack, but they had been unable to stop Noah''s sharpness. Madame Canson''s eyes widened when she saw a long vertical cut opening on her torso. Madame Canson''s robe was a rank 8 defensive item in the lower tier. She had created crystals in front of her, and a series of crystals also covered her skin. However, Noah''s simple slash had cut through all her defenses and had reached her skin. Nothing in Madame Canson''s arsenal had managed to stop that attack. A chill ran down Madame Canson''s spine. She had never underestimated Noah, even after he had pushed his power inside the eighth rank. Still, she was supposedly stronger than any other newly advanced existence! That belief didn''t apply to Noah. His techniques and companions were already able to hurt rank 8 magical beasts when he was in the seventh rank. The power that they could express now was insane. Madame Canson tried to jump backward and use her puppets as meat shields, but a series of roots spread from Noah''s figure and corroded everything on his path. Noah had a clean line of sight. The roots entangled themselves around his swords, and a dense layer of liquid dark matter covered his entire figure while he pulled his blades back. Before Madame Canson could escape, Noah thrust his weapons, making their tips converge on the same spot. A clanging noise resounded in the environment, and a wave of sharpness spread through the entire area, reducing most of the puppets into debris. That was only one of the consequences of Noah''s attack. His real blow had consisted of a straight singularity that had connected his blades to Madame Canson. A storm of purple crystals raged through the sky, but Noah didn''t move his gaze away from his opponent. Madame Canson wore an angry expression while she looked at the hole in her body. Noah''s attack had pierced the right part of her chest from side to side, severing her right arm in the process. Purple crystals covered Madame Canson''s insides. Blood flowed normally, but she had deployed a defensive spell meant to protect her internal organs. Noah''s eyes sharpened at that sight. That technique could counter his Shadow Domain. It seemed that Madame Canson had studied Miss Nine''s reports and had deployed a countermeasure to his trump card. The liquid dark matter around Noah took the shape of the fiendish armor, and a cold grin appeared on his helmet. He was taunting the expert. He wouldn''t even need the Shadow Domain if the battle continued like that. Madame Canson soon dispersed her anger and called back all the crystals that she had spread into the environment. Even a few cultivators fighting high in the sky saw their power falling when their crystals left their bodies to return to their leader. Duanlong landed in front of Noah and raised its monstrous mouth. The dragon captured part of the crystals with its pulling force, but they seemed able to resist that type of power. It was as if they wanted to reunite with Madame Canson. That desire made them ignore any external force and hindrance. The storm of crystals engulfed Noah, but Snore soon appeared above him and spread its wings to protect him from the event. He could safely observe Madame Canson''s transformation once the creature blocked that waterfall of power. Madame Canson''s skin morphed. It gained glass-like properties and began to radiate purple light. Her eyes started to shine, and her size increased as more crystals fused with her figure. The expert transformed into one of her puppets, but she maintained her facial features. Still, her existence seemed on the verge of exploding now. Noah could see how her influence had begun to crystalize the entire region. Chapter 1546: 1546. Prison Madame Canson transformed into a giant made entirely of purple crystals. Her size continued to increase as her influence spread through the region. The pieces of the environment that she managed to affect flew toward her figure to force her existence to grow even further. Noah''s instincts screamed. That wasn''t the power of an average rank 8 existence. Even powerful cultivators in the gaseous stage would struggle to radiate such breathtaking pressure. His blades flashed with a dark light, and a massive cut opened on Madame Canson''s giant leg, but her crystalized fabric stopped the attack almost immediately. "Divine Demon and Wilfred didn''t get the chance to see this form," Madame Canson''s deafening voice echoed through the sky. "Luke''s escape has forced me to abandon the old palace, but you are different." Madame Canson lifted her massive hand before cracking it downward. Her movements were incredibly fast, uncaring that she had transformed into a five hundred meters tall giant. Noah barely had the time to activate his teleport before a shockwave crashed on his previous position. The aura sent with the attack forced the air to give birth to purple crystals that quickly flew toward Madame Canson. She continued to grow, and even the cut on her leg closed under that nourishment. Noah reappeared above his opponent. His consciousness expanded, and the dark world spread to cover the entire battlefield. His technique began to suppress Madame Canson''s law while his blades landed on his forehead. Madame Canson suddenly stopped growing. Cracks also spread on her crystalized skin as her law lost power. The dark world could finally express its original purpose now that Noah''s dark matter had evolved. It could transform into an extension of Noah''s domain and enhance his already incredible properties. The blades slid on Noah''s forehead, filling the dark world with a high-pitched noise. Waves of dark matter followed the sharpness released during the attack and gave it the shape of a massive dragon that fell on Madame Canson''s giant figure. The waterfall of sharpness and dark matter featured singularities in multiple spots. The attack pierced Madame Canson in many areas, but those spherical and curved invisible blows made entire pieces of her body disappear. Noah retracted his blades, but his right hand suddenly felt empty. His white sword had crumbled during the last attack. Even his liquid dark matter couldn''t prevent the weapon from crumbling. The sudden event didn''t delay his offensive. Thick roots gathered on Noah''s right palm and took the shape of a long blade that he quickly thrust together with the Demonic Sword. The dark matter began to rotate around the straight singularity that had come out of Noah''s blades. The higher energy followed the attack and crashed on Madame Canson''s chest, piercing it from side to side. ''I can do this! Snore!'' Noah shouted in his mind, and the Blood Companion quickly formed above his head. Snore''s power had skyrocketed inside the dark world. The creature was in its natural habitat. It had access to as much dark matter as it wanted. The snake unfolded its wings and released all its feathers. Those sharp missiles fell on Madame Canson and exploded, preventing her from activating any countermeasure. The space seemed on the verge of crumbling. Even the dark world couldn''t withstand the shockwaves generated by those explosions. The liquid dark matter began to shatter, revealing the outside world once again. Those shockwaves also threatened to engulf Noah, but Duanlong promptly appeared in front of him and used its monstrous mouth to absorb that violent force. Noah wanted to attack again, but he couldn''t leave his spot behind Duanlong''s back. Even his consciousness couldn''t expand while the aftermath of the explosions raged through the sky. Night quickly appeared behind Noah. The creature snorted when it glanced at its injured wings. Snore''s attack had been so powerful that it had damaged its companion. Liquid dark matter came out of Noah''s chest and covered the Pterodactyl. The higher energy stabilized its structure and made it able to continue fighting, but the sky was still inaccessible for the creature. Once the shockwaves dispersed, Noah shot forward, and Night fused with the world. Dark matter began to fill the environment once again, but crystals covered the entire area before he could deploy his technique. Noah felt unable to move. Everything in his view had transformed into purple crystals. A third of the region and the sky above it had fallen prey to Madame Canson''s technique. A massive shape moved freely through that mass of crystal. Noah couldn''t make out its features in that environment, but he recognized a giant fist when the attack was about to land on him. His internal organs shook. The small trails of dark matter around Noah shattered. He couldn''t move inside the prison, but an unstoppable force still slammed him on those crystallized walls. "It''s ironic, don''t you think?" Madame Canson''s voice echoed through the whole mass of crystals. "My techniques allow me to hurt you with physical attacks. I hope you didn''t think that your hybrid status gave you the monopoly over this type of offensive." Another punch ran through the crystals and slammed on Noah''s trapped figure. A wave of blood tried to flow out of his mouth, but crystals filled it as soon as he opened it. The crystals tried to seep into his throat. They wanted to transform Noah into another puppet under Madame Canson''s control. He could even sense her desire to infect his existence. ''Do something, damned plant!'' Noah cursed in his mind, and a massive number of nutrients flowed into the Demonic Form. The corrosive aura covering the roots skyrocketed and enlarged Noah''s prison. The crystals around him transformed into nothing more than dust, but a third massive punch landed on his body nonetheless. Noah slammed on the purple wall, but blood could flow out of his mouth now. The crystals attempted to expand again, but the Demonic Form''s corrosive aura destroyed them whenever they entered its influence. His struggles didn''t stop Madame Canson''s offensive. She promptly launched a fourth attack, and the world in Noah''s eyes seemed to slow down while he followed her punch running through the mass of crystals. Noah had activated the Demonic Deduction technique. The red lines illuminating his mental sea led him to a solution in less than an instant, and a cold determination soon filled his expression. His bloodlust exploded. Noah suddenly felt like giving up on any strategy. An intense desire to tear Madame Canson apart replaced his thoughts and began to cloud his mind. A dark handle came out of his chest while the fourth fist was about to land on his position. Noah''s right hand moved faster than it had even done in his life. It quickly drew the cursed sword and performed a simple slash. Everything seemed to stop for an instant. Noah and Madame Canson didn''t move anymore. Still, once the first crack opened on the mass of crystals, the world fell into chaos, and the duo''s consciousness became unable to keep track of their surroundings. Noah regained control of his senses when he slammed on Duanlong''s tough back. He found himself on the ground, free of the restraints. The mass of crystals had also disappeared, and only the giant Madame Canson remained in the scenery. His chest had turned into a mass of blood and torn tissues, but the black hole quickly covered those injuries with dark matter. Noah even launched his flames, but the environment didn''t have enough nutrients to fix the wounds suffered by a rank 8 body. Chapter 1547: 1547. War Noah''s flames had the same power as his body. They turned an entire chunk of the ground into ashes while sending its nutrients toward him. However, that wasn''t enough to fix his shattered chest. ''I can''t continue fighting like this,'' Noah thought while storing the cursed sword and straightening his position. Madame Canson felt confused. The previous technique was one of her strongest attacks, but Noah had managed to destroy it in one blow. A series of deep cracks covered her giant body. The attack had hurt her even while she had hundreds of meters of crystals defending her. Noah had simply overwhelmed her. Madame Canson glanced at Noah, and anger filled her mind. She joined her palms, and a straight wave of crystals rose from the ground. The attack moved toward Noah, and he closed his eyes to focus on the insides of his dark world. His energies fused among the currents of dark matter. His primary energy, darkness, mental energy, and higher energy merged to create an unstable substance that the black hole sent toward his black vessels. The spears of crystals were about to reach Noah, but a roar escaped his mouth and created a soundwave that shattered the attack. Flames also flew together with his cry, and the countless shards floating in front of him couldn''t resist his innate ability. His chest slowly began to heal, but Noah didn''t wait for that process to end. His dark matter was containing his injuries. He could unleash his full power even if his organs didn''t have skin and muscles covering them. Noah stomped the ground before shooting forward. The charred ground under him shattered due to the massive physical strength released by his legs. He didn''t teleport, but Madame Canson couldn''t follow his movements anyway. The giant''s purple eyes darted among the environment, but an unstoppable force landed on her chest before she could notice that threat. Noah stabbed his Demonic Sword and sword-shaped roots into Madame Canson''s body. The might carried by his momentum made her massive chest cave in and filled her crystalized skin with cracks. A rain of purple shards fell from her torso, but the corrosive aura covering the Demonic Form destroyed them before Noah could even launch his flames. Noah''s whole existence was aflame. The unstable product was bringing his physical prowess at levels that Madame Canson couldn''t comprehend. He had turned his body into the best lower tier weapon in the entire Immortal Lands! "Crumble already!" Noah roared. His bloodlust exploded and enhanced his attack further. Night also joined the offensive and seeped inside the cracks, destabilizing Madame Canson''s massive body and destroying every weak spot in its range. Madame Canson tried to slam her hands on Noah, but he pointed his feet on a crack under him before forcing his way upward. A storm of purple shards engulfed him as he cut his opponent''s chest, but nothing managed to reach him. The expert''s right palm managed to slam on Noah''s back. He didn''t manage to escape its range while cutting her body. Yet, the attack didn''t even force him to crouch. Noah endured the blow with his bare body and kept stomping on her chest to move upward. "Where is your physical strength now?!" Noah shouted as his bloodlust clouded his thoughts. Noah didn''t know if he were using human words or roars, but he didn''t care. He wanted to vent his bloodlust and hatred, and his desire to destroy his opponent took control of his mental functions. Madame Canson shouted and threw a barrage of punches toward Noah. The attacks always managed to hit him, but they couldn''t slow down his advance. Desperation filled the expert when she saw that nothing in her arsenal seemed able to stop her opponent. Noah continued to move toward her head, and his blades never stopped digging through her crystalized body. Night and the sword-shaped roots also filled her insides with injuries. The Pterodactyl launched a relentless offensive that enlarged any crack, and the corrosive aura turned everything it touched into pure nothingness. "Enough!" Madame Canson shouted while opening her giant mouth. Purple light gathered in her mouth, but a draconic figure appeared in front of her before she could release her attack. Duanlong deployed its pulling force and endured the full power of that technique. The dragon''s innate ability didn''t seem able to contain Madame Canson''s beam of light. Yet, the creature was a Blood Companion, so it shattered and reformed without ever forsaking its position. Nothing but a few flashes landed on Noah''s body, and his skin easily fended them off. He had transformed into an unstoppable monster that lived to bring destruction. "Stop!" Madame Canson shouted again, but a hint of fear had seeped into her voice at that time. Her fingers transformed into massive pointy crystals that she didn''t hesitate to use to attack Noah. Her arms resembled two small mountains ready to crush the ant moving on her chest. Raging currents suddenly came out of Noah''s chest. The liquid dark matter transformed into scales that took Snore''s shape. The snake entangled its massive body on Madame Canson''s arms and did its best to slow down her attack. Noah managed to dodge that attack. Walls of crystals, sharp purple spears, and flashes of intense light continued to land on his body, but they were nothing more than frail hindrances in his current state. The "embodiment of power" had reached its highest peak while Noah was in the eighth rank. Even the creator of that technique couldn''t predict that someone would bring its power to such heights. "I said crumble already!" Noah roared once he reached the giant''s neck. His blades left Madame Canson''s body, but they launched a singularity toward her face in the process. A chunk of her chin disappeared, and Noah promptly leapt to stomp his feet on that destroyed spot. Madame Canson''s massive body rose in the air after the impact. Noah''s kick had managed to make her figure leave the ground, and countless purple shards rained on him due to the cracks that spread on her face. Noah wielded the Demonic Sword with both hands. Roots spread over the blade while he swung his weapon, backing it with his entire physical strength. Madame Canson only saw a flash of dark light before a diagonal slash cut her head in half. Her whole figure crumbled at that point, and a few crystals slowly converged to recreate her original body. Noah instantly teleported in front of Madame Canson. His free hand grabbed her throat, and corrosive energy seeped into her exhausted body. He could sense that his opponent was at her limit, but he didn''t dare to underestimate her anyway. "You win," Madame Canson exhaled while giving voice to a short laugh. "Good job. The Crystal City officially recognizes you as an organization-level threat. We are ready to negotiate the conditions of our surrender." "Negotiate?" Noah asked while tightening his grasp. His consciousness seeped inside Madame Canson''s centers of power and confirmed that she almost had no energy left. She could barely keep herself awake in that condition. "Oh, my na?ve demon," Madame Canson said. "The Crystal City is one of the strongest organizations in the entire higher plane. We have thrived for eras under the support of the human domain. Killing me won''t solve anything. You will have to face entire armies led by cultivators far stronger than me if you don''t put an end to this hostility now." Noah could sense that Madame Canson wasn''t lying. She truly believed what she was saying. ''Right,'' Noah thought as some clarity returned in his mind. ''This is the moment when I can announce my political position toward the human domain.'' Madame Canson relaxed when she saw that her opponent hesitated, but fear took control of her mind as soon as Noah''s expression broke into a cold smile. Flames flowed out of Noah''s mouth and covered Madame Canson. Her body began to burn, and she couldn''t do anything to stop that process since Noah never moved his attention away from her. "Why?!" Madame Canson asked as panic filled her eyes. "Do you really want to declare war on the entire human domain?" "No," Noah replied honestly. "My opponent is the whole higher plane. You are simply in the way." Chapter 1548: 1548. Taunts Noah didn''t take that decision lightly. He had already considered that the Crystal City and its allies would do everything in their power to hunt him down. Yet, that partially worked in his favor. Noah didn''t want his return into the human domain to mark the beginning of a peaceful period. He needed struggles to continue growing. Moreover, Noah had finally touched the eighth rank. It was time to step up his game and start messing with organizations. It was impossible to seize resources that mattered at his new level without affecting other large forces. Noah also was in desperate need of energy. His unstable substance was almost about to run out, and the weakness that he felt affected the empowerment given by his ambition. The insane might expressed by the Demonic Form even worsened his condition. The ambition had covered most of the expenses of his superior power, but his time was running out. Madame Canson tried to free herself from Noah''s grasp and the energies that suppressed her existence, but her efforts amounted to nothing. The black flames consumed her figure and brought her nutrients to Noah. The black hole quickly absorbed those nutrients and began to purify them. Madame Canson was almost exhausted, but the power carried by her existence managed to bring Noah some comfort. Still, that wasn''t enough. Noah''s cultivation level began to fall even after his black hole started to send the new energy toward his tissues. His fourth center of power didn''t know how it could fix his condition. ''I can''t return to the seventh rank,'' Noah calculated before glancing at the sky. The battle against Madame Canson had dispersed the darkness accumulated in the sky. Noah could see the remains of his pack fighting against the few cultivators left, but his eyes didn''t stop at that scene. His gaze went higher and landed on the sparks accumulated in the sky. Heaven and Earth were still ready to unleash their might, but they didn''t do anything even after the battle ended. ''What are you waiting for?'' Noah wondered as anxiety built in his mind. The battlefield was a mess. Noah''s pack had almost defeated the cultivators. Those underlings couldn''t match Fergie and the other magical beasts after losing Madame Canson''s empowerment. The Eternal Snakes were even better off. Noah''s battle had turned the palace into dust, so Monsieur Evan couldn''t draw power from the many defenses anymore. He had to rely on his existence to fend off the enemy pack, but he was inevitably suffering from the difference in numbers and power. Noah didn''t dare to jump among the Eternal Snakes. Monsieur Evan was their prey and trying to steal it was akin to turning those magical beasts into enemies. Noah couldn''t even decide to fight the Eternal Snakes. He didn''t feel powerless against them anymore, but his ambition was running out. He didn''t know if his current power would last long enough to kill a few of them and escape. His only real chance to gain a massive amount of energy was a sudden Tribulation, but Heaven and Earth had yet to attack. They even seemed about to retreat when they sensed that Noah''s cultivation level was falling. Noah knew that he couldn''t let that happen. Falling back into the seventh rank would trigger drawbacks that he had no hope to endure. He had to find a way to force Heaven and Earth''s hand. "Heaven! Earth!" Noah shouted in a desperate attempt to attract the sparks'' attention. "Did you forget about me? I thought you wanted to destroy me!" The sparks continued to disperse. Noah''s taunt had no effects on the Tribulation, but that only made him chose sharper words. "Heaven! Earth!" Noah shouted again. "What do you think about my current power? I thought you wanted me to be a counselor!" His words failed to trigger any effect in the sparks again. Noah was running out of options, and even his cultivation level was dangerously approaching the bottom of the eighth rank. The Demonic Deduction technique lit up. Bloodlust filled Noah''s mind and gave him ideas on how to taunt Heaven and Earth better. He had something that they hated to the core, and his bloody thoughts gave him an idea on how to exploit that. His aura expanded. His mental energy seeped inside the fabric of the world, and his dark world spread under him to create a dark cloud. The matter of the world evolved under the effects of Noah''s law. The dark world also helped in the process. The sky grew darker, and the whiteness that usually filled the area transformed into lumps of black smoke that began to fight with the air. It seemed that the matter affected by Noah''s ambition couldn''t stand the sight of Heaven and Earth''s world. It wanted to fight it for the ownership of that space. It wasn''t willing to share anything. It only desired to spread its influence. The existences that weren''t busy fighting turned toward Noah, but they couldn''t understand the reason behind his actions. Still, they could see the world transforming under their very eyes. Noah wasn''t transforming that matter into an extension of himself. His ambition was freeing it of Heaven and Earth''s laws and forcing it to develop its own true meanings. The air didn''t have a will, but Noah''s ambition forced it to obtain basic instincts. That matter suddenly began to desire, as if it were a living being of the world. The lumps of darkness eventually sensed the energy around them, and desire filled their simple minds. They started to spread in a desperate attempt to devour that power. They even began to fight each other for the ownership of a chunk of the sky. Those events had only involved a small area at the beginning, but they started to happen everywhere in the region as Noah''s influence expanded. He was giving the matter freedom, and that gave birth to the innate desire to grow stronger inside it. "Heaven! Earth!" Noah shouted while roars fused with his human voice. "Do you recall what I represent? I am your greatest mistake, and I will make sure that the whole higher plane becomes aware of how flawed your existence is!" Heaven and Earth couldn''t retreat anymore. Noah''s words couldn''t really taunt those mighty existences, but his actions had defied their rules enough to trigger a punishment. A crackling noise soon filled the area. The sparks stopped dispersing and began to accumulate again. Flashes of orange light also pierced the whiteness of the sky and marked the beginning of the Heaven Tribulation. ''This isn''t enough,'' Noah concluded while his eyes sharpened and landed on the lumps of darkness in the region. ''They aren''t aiming for me. These sparks barely have rank 8 power.'' Noah needed to gather enough nutrients to fulfill the requirements of three centers of power. In his case, he necessitated far more energy than any other rank 7 existence in the world. Even some rank 8 beings couldn''t match his needs. "You idiots!" Noah exploded into an open critique of Heaven and Earth. "They are nothing more than children of my ambition. I am the true enemy of the world. I am your first mistake!" Noah''s aura shot upward and created a trail of darkness that connected his figure with the layer of sparks. Part of that violent power transformed into black lumps that detonated, destroying a large chunk of the Tribulation. A heavy pressure fell on Noah at that point. He could sense an intense destructive desire enveloping his figure and triggering a change in the scene high in the sky. A new wave of energy seeped into the sparks and altered their nature. They slowly turned white, but they were so bright that they didn''t manage to hide in the sky. The white sparks condensed to give birth to four lightning bolts that fell around Noah. Four rank 8 auras filled the environment at that point, and Noah couldn''t help but smile when his consciousness enveloped the four humanoid crackling figures that had surrounded him. "Hello, Heaven," Noah welcomed his opponent while his smile broadened. "What took you so long?" Chapter 1549: 1549. Angrier The four humanoid crackling figures surrounded Noah from every side. The whiteness radiated by their sparks was blinding, but their halo dimmed when it entered Noah''s range. ''Even this might not be enough,'' Noah calculated while studying his opponents. Noah had a vague idea of how much energy he needed to complete the breakthroughs. He had kept track of his ambition''s efforts, which gave him a general understanding of his requirements. Still, he had to add a few variables to his math. Noah didn''t only need to gather enough energy to establish his cultivation level in the eighth rank. He also had to make up for his drawbacks and keep in mind that his current status didn''t reflect the actual breakthroughs. ''I guess I need to make them angrier,'' Noah thought while his cold smile broadened. Heaven started the fight at that gesture. The four figures raised their arms and released white lightning bolts that converged on Noah. Those attacks carried the full power of the eighth rank, but they felt weak after the battle against Madame Canson. Noah didn''t even bother to perform a slash. He placed the Demonic Sword on his shoulder, and four singularities shot out of his figure. The attacks dug through the lightning bolts and reached Heaven''s bodies, dividing them in half. Noah shot forward before Heaven could do anything. He stabbed his free hand inside one of the crackling masses and bit at those white sparks. A wave of energy flowed inside his body before black flames covered the whole area. Whiteness soon shone among that blackness, but Heaven noticed that Noah had disappeared once it fended off his flames. One of its figures had also vanished during that short exchange. Noah reappeared behind one of the figures. Its sparks were slowly merging its two halves to recreate a whole humanoid body, but a punch forced them to separate again. A storm of lightning bolts exploded, but those sparks didn''t manage to escape in the environment. Duanlong had appeared next to Noah, and its innate ability forced that energy to converge in its mouth. ''I''ll reward you later,'' Noah said through the mental connection. ''I need even the slightest brim of energy now.'' Duanlong could use the energy absorbed by its innate ability to nourish its body, but it decided to send everything to Noah. The creature could sense how dire his situation was, so it didn''t hesitate to forsake its greed for the time being. Noah and Duanlong had yet to establish a proper friendship. The dragon had fought by his side for a long time, but its greed still made it take most of the absorbed energy for itself. Yet, Duanlong wasn''t stupid. Noah''s death would also put an end to its life, so it prioritized his well-being for now. Moreover, every magical beast felt an innate hatred toward Heaven and Earth due to the restraints applied to their species. The dragon''s desire to defy them even surpassed its greed. The connection with Noah''s existence also intensified that innate defiance. Duanlong shared Noah''s feelings, and his desire to topple those rulers made it prioritize the greater good of its Master. The two remaining humanoid figures tried to launch lightning bolts, but Noah teleported above one of them before they could complete their attack. His sword released a dark flash, and the sparks under him shattered into a storm of "Breath" and primary energy. Flames covered the environment again and brought that energy back to Noah. The results of that absorption disappointed him, so he decided to resort to even sharper taunts to force Heaven and Earth''s hand. A lightning bolt crashed on Noah''s chest, but his body endured the blow. The attack only managed to burn a piece of his torso, but it didn''t reach his insides. "I just finished healing this," Noah roared while shooting toward the last figure. "Don''t bother attacking if you lack the power to kill me!" A wave of dark matter enveloped the crackling humanoid figure while Noah sealed his grasp on its neck. The sparks tried to break free of that prison, but the liquid higher energy wasn''t something that they could pierce at their current power. Noah shot high in the sky, dragging the cracking figure with him. The whiteness of the world tried to weigh on his mind, but his mental waves weakened those effects and kept his mind safe. When Noah reached the array of white sparks in the sky, he unfolded his ambition and forced the crackling figure in his grasp to evolve. Black shades appeared on its white lightning bolts and destabilized its structure. Noah glanced at his prisoner before throwing it toward the barrage of sparks. The instabilities accumulated in the figure reached their apex when they touched the sparks and generated an explosion. The detonation almost put an end to the Tribulation, but Noah was far from done. "Come on!" Noah roared. "You should be the rulers of this world, but look at yourselves. How did you even seize your throne? Was the previous leader more incompetent than you?" Noah''s words seemed to trigger something. He didn''t know if the change were the result of his offense or his actions. Still, dense energy began to flow into the sparks and transform their array. The Tribulation''s power skyrocketed. It quickly rose to the peak of the lower tier before barging into the next level. Noah''s instincts couldn''t help but scream at that sight. Noah unfolded the dark world and deployed both Duanlong and Snore in his defense. The white sparks quickly condensed before a white flash blinded him and flung him back on the ground. The liquid dark matter, Snore, and Duanlong were in pieces. Noah opened his eyes and saw that most of his chest and arms featured charred skin. The Tribulation''s power kept growing until it stabilized in the middle tier. The sparks then morphed into a human shape that looked more powerful than the previous ones. Heaven''s new form barely had empty spots. Dense arrays of lightning bolts ran through its body and gave them the appearance of proper skin. Some of them even took the faint shape of a long robe that hid its hands. The laws of the world seemed to bend in front of that figure. Heaven''s aura could force them to shatter and flow toward its body. That energy added power to its sparks, which made its shape even more human. Heaven didn''t appear as a dense mass of sparks anymore. It resembled a proper human being who shone with a blinding white light. Even the crackling noises didn''t resound as often anymore. That form was almost entirely stable. ''Does it slowly gain its original form as I force it to express more power?'' Noah thought while flames spread under him, and Duanlong activated its innate ability. The last attack wasn''t completely in the middle tier. Heaven had launched the lightning bolt only to gain enough time to complete that manifestation. Still, it had stabilized its power now. Its next ability would carry its full might. The fall of Noah''s cultivation level had slowed down after absorbing the energy contained in the three crackling figures, but it was picking up speed now. The injuries had forced his centers of power to recall how awful his condition was. ''I guess I have to destroy a rank 8 being in the middle tier without suffering severe injuries,'' Noah concluded after a thorough inspection of his condition. Chapter 1550: 1550. Blackness ''The amount of power contained in this form surpasses the middle tier Snakes,'' Noah calculated in his mind. ''Still, its fabric should be unstable. I wonder if I can force it to turn into primary energy with my destruction.'' In theory, Noah didn''t have many chances against that opponent. His cultivation level was still falling, and he remained an existence near the bottom of the eighth rank even without that weakness. However, his opponent was a manifestation of Heaven''s power. It wasn''t a proper living being. It was a mass of power that had taken a humanoid shape. It simply had enough energy to make its level reach the middle tier. ''I can''t let it touch me,'' Noah concluded before deploying his companions and covering them with multiple layers of dark matter. His time was running out. Noah had to maximize the energy absorbed in his next exchanges, or the drawbacks would arrive. Noah transformed into a black sword that shot toward the sky. His companions spread through the area and prepared to seize any window that he created. The scene was breathtaking. Heaven hovered in the sky, radiating a whiteness capable of surpassing the natural light in the air. Instead, Noah was a flying blade that spread currents of darkness wherever it went. Some of Noah''s underlings stopped fighting to admire that scene. A group among the few remaining cultivators did the same, and even a couple of rank 8 Eternal Snakes halted their offensive to watch Noah''s fight. Heaven''s body was the embodiment of the rules of the world. The matter around that figure sacrificed itself to fuel its structure. The higher plane was its playground, and everything was in its control. Instead, Noah embodied a primary act of defiance. His flight represented a stark opposition against the laws of the world and its ruler. His gesture expressed pure rebellion against that system. Of course, Noah was only doing minding his cultivation level. He was nothing more than a starving beast that saw Heaven as its chance to survive. Still, his influence had intensified after the forced breakthroughs. His existence seeped in all his actions and made him express his feelings even when he was only chasing after energy. Heaven lifted its arm, and a massive lightning bolt fell toward the black blade. A wave of violent whiteness raged from the sky and tried to envelop Noah in its destructive might. The attack was far faster than Noah. It enveloped his figure and landed on the region, giving birth to shockwaves that attracted the attention of the existences still busy fighting. The ground shattered as a spiderweb of deep cracks spread through the entire region. The destruction released by the attack crushed the dust before it could even rise in the air. The spectators couldn''t find any trace of Noah''s figure after the whiteness dispersed. Even his dark matter had disappeared, but his Blood Companions continued to fly in the sky and used the higher energy around them to keep their structure from crumbling. Snore and Duanlong were the only proof that Noah was still alive. Most of the audience ignored that aspect of his power, but Fergie heaved a sigh of relief at that sight. Heaven moved its attention to the massive winged snake since Noah was nowhere to be seen. Yet, a figure suddenly appeared above its head, and tiny slashes seeped into its structure. Those slashes were far different from Noah''s usual attacks. They were small, but their size didn''t affect the amount of power that they contained. A red light shone from Noah''s reptilian eyes. The Demonic Deduction technique was working at full speed to maximize the number of destructive ideas generated through his mental energy. Noah didn''t want to overwhelm Heaven. He wasn''t even sure that his current power made him able to pierce its thick array of lightning bolts. Yet, he might have a chance to destabilize its structure by letting his destruction guiding his moves. The previous lightning bolt had proven to Noah that he couldn''t endure a frontal blow. Heaven was a pure mass of power, so he had to dodge anything it unleashed. ''I only have two uses of the Shadow Domain left,'' Noah cursed in his mind while inspecting his tiny slashes seeping into Heaven''s body. Noah had to rely on the Shadow Domain to dodge the previous attack. The lightning bolt had been too fast for his movement techniques. Still, his new power had removed his past limitation on Miss Void''s ability. The black hole had evolved, so the same had applied to the workshop. Noah could create the special darkness far faster than before. It allowed him to teleport his body into the separate dimension three times before running out of that energy. Most of the tiny slashes burnt when they seeped inside Heaven''s body, but Noah focused only on the attacks that managed to unleash their destructive power. A few detonations happened inside Heaven. Its white fabric inflated before shrinking again. It seemed that Noah''s attack had amounted to nothing, but excitement shone in his eyes anyway. Noah couldn''t destabilize Heaven in a single attack. He had to accumulate enough destruction inside its structure to force its energy to fall apart. Heaven suddenly turned, and a wave of lightning bolts followed its movement. Noah had to rely on the Shadow Domain again to dodge that attack, but he quickly reappeared under his opponent. "Stop wasting my energy!" Noah roared, and a wave of flames shot out of his mouth. His Demonic Sword flashed, and a storm of minute slashes flew out of his weapon. The attacks clashed inside Heaven and the same scene as before unfolded in Noah''s view. Some of the blows burnt while others managed to seep inside that white figure before giving birth to loud detonations. Heaven''s figure inflated before returning to its normal size. Noah had poured more energy into that attack, but he didn''t manage to achieve anything once again. Heaven seemed immune to everything he did. ''One use left,'' Noah counted in his mind before finalizing his plan. His previous attacks were only a test. Noah had to find openings in Heaven''s figure to know where to make his last offensive converge. Snore and Duanlong began to fly near Noah. They only had one shot at getting rid of that Tribulation. They had to wait until Noah was ready to launch his finishing blow to join the battle. Heaven didn''t hesitate to turn again. A flash of white light covered the environment, but Noah entered the Shadow Domain before the attack could reach him. Noah reappeared next to Heaven and covered the area with flames again. His innate ability shattered before reaching the figure''s skin, but Noah only wanted to fill the environment with fire. His Demonic Sword flashed, and tiny slashes seeped inside Heaven''s figure. Almost all of them managed to avoid the dangerous sparks, but no explosion followed that event. That unusual outcome didn''t faze Heaven. The figure immediately prepared another attack, but a pulling force enveloped the area and delayed its movements by an instant. Snore then tried to restrain Heaven with its massive body, and a wave of pain reached Noah''s mind. The white lightning bolts were shattering the snake''s scales. The Blood Companion managed to resist for a whole second only due to its spectacular fabric. Heaven switched target. His figure released lightning bolts in every direction and shattered Snore''s body. Cracks appeared on the snake''s ethereal figure, but the creature dissolved before Heaven could destroy its existence. The black hole promptly sent the unstable substance inside the black vessels. A wave of power filled Noah and brought his physical prowess to its very peak. The black vessels began to crumble, but Noah didn''t care. His Demonic Sword flashed, and a storm of singularities flew out of his blade. Those invisible attacks flew inside the weak spots in Heaven''s structure and enhanced all the destructive aura accumulated in its fabric. The audience held their breath, but their vision went dark. The whiteness covering the sky suddenly disappeared. Complete blackness suddenly took control of the area. Chapter 1551: 1551. Escape The sky constantly illuminated the Immortal Lands. The night never fell on the higher plane, and only a few unique areas featured some dark moments. The existences that had spent their entire lives in the higher plane had never experienced a proper night. They didn''t even know what it looked like. They had only heard stories about it from those that had ascended from Mortal Lands. Instead, those who had ascended had slowly forgotten the night after spending entire millennia in the Immortal Lands. They had ended up accepting that they would never set their eyes on that scenery again. The whiteness retracted after Noah launched his last attack. His singularities triggered all the destruction that his previous blows had accumulated inside Heaven''s body. The detonation generated after the attack shattered those arrays of lightning bolts and dispersed the energy inside that threatening figure. Destroying Heaven didn''t only generate a massive discharge of energy. That figure embodied the very laws of the world, so its defeat paved the path for Noah''s ambition. Black waves of energy expanded through the sky and created a perfect imitation of the night that Noah recalled. The few intact sparks floating among that blackness even managed to represent stars. The audience didn''t know how to react to that scene. The bright Immortal Lands had turned dark. Noah had forced the night to descend on that destroyed region. ''I see,'' Noah thought while bathing in the blackness that filled the sky. ''My existence can create an opposite version of the white sky. Heaven and Earth try to illuminate everything with their light, but I can bring darkness.'' The waves of energy that had spread through the sky after Heaven''s detonation didn''t hurt Noah. They had transformed into part of his energy as soon as his law replaced the world''s true meanings. That piece of the sky was part of his existence. It was an extension of Noah''s ambition. Noah opened his eyes, and the tiny sparks that floated among that blackness slowly started to disappear. They resembled stars that had fallen prey to the densest darkness. Noah almost felt enlighten by watching that scene. "A darkness capable of devouring stars," Noah whispered before Duanlong and Night appeared next to him. Night didn''t manage to do much against Heaven. The insides of that white body were too dangerous for the Pterodactyl. The creature had remained on the sidelines, ready to pull Noah out of the fight. Duanlong opened its mouth, but Noah stopped the creature by placing a hand on its head. The dragon couldn''t understand the reason behind his action, but Noah soon explained himself. "Let me watch this a bit longer," Noah said in a pensive tone. "Let the Immortal Lands experience a true night." The darkness ended up devouring all the sparks, leaving only a thick layer made of black energy above the destroyed region. The audience didn''t dare to move their eyes from the sky. The scene was extremely captivating for beings that had lived among blinding whiteness for their entire lives. The energy that Noah required was around him. He only needed to wave his hand to absorb all of it. Yet, he waited until his cultivation level was almost about to fall into the seventh rank to act. "Go now," Noah whispered, and Duanlong activated its pulling force. The dragon respected Noah''s wish and slowed down its innate ability. The blackness took a while to converge in its mouth, which gave Noah a few more seconds to admire the scenery. The energy entered the Blood Companion and flowed inside Noah''s hand before ending in the black hole. The fourth center of power then purified it and sent it back to his tissues. The light slowly returned in the area. Heaven and Earth quickly took control of that piece of the sky and filled it with their whiteness. The darkness had lasted for less than a minute, but Noah made sure to commit that moment to memory. He didn''t want to forget the sensations felt during that short dream. Waves of power filled every inch of his body and spread inside the fabric of his centers of power. His injured black vessels instantly healed, and the black hole finally started to focus on his cultivation level. Noah''s mind shrunk until it stabilized a bit above the bottom of the eighth rank. It seemed that his mental walls were sturdy enough to endure the weight of that size. A red shade also spread through their fabric as the Demonic Deduction technique evolved and created a tighter link with the whole center of power. His dantian also shrunk before stabilizing at the bottom of the eighth rank. A denser type of darkness also filled its insides and forced the black hole to improve again. Noah depleted his entire potential during that evolution. His dantian and black hole overcame the quality obtained with the forced breakthroughs and spread their influence through his whole existence. Only his body fell back into the seventh rank, but Noah didn''t mind that event. He could sense that his tissues lacked a critical process to complete their evolution. He needed to experience the chrysalis again to evolve that center of power properly. Drowsiness filled Noah''s mind. He had already accumulated enough energy to make his body advance, so his center of power wanted to start the evolution right away. ''Not here,'' Noah thought while supporting himself on the Pterodactyl. ''The Crystal City will definitely come here to investigate.'' Noah glanced at his companions. Many of his underlings had died, but Fergie and the others had ended up winning the fight. Instead, the Eternal Snakes were still chasing Monsieur Evan around. The elusive cultivator appeared exhausted, but those creatures had yet to overcome the many defenses stored in his space-ring. ''He seems the defensive type. Good,'' Noah concluded before sending a mental message to his companions and letting Night drag him away from the region. The Pterodactyl shot through the sky. The Eternal Snakes had just resumed fighting against their opponent, but they quickly turned when they sensed that something strange was happening on the battlefield. Noah had disappeared, and even his companions had separated to fly in different directions. Everyone had begun to run away without bothering to warn the Eternal Snakes. Monsieur Evan played a crucial role in their escape. He also tried to leave the encirclement when the Snakes became distracted, but his actions made the creatures turn toward him again. His attempt to escape made Noah''s group gain time. The Eternal Snakes weren''t willing to let go of that prey after fighting for so long. In their minds, they could always hunt Noah afterward. Of course, angry hisses came out of their mouths when they recalled their deal. The Snakes had been so immersed in their battle that they had almost forgotten about Shandal. Still, when they turned to search for Noah and the others again, Monsieur Evan managed to leave their encirclement and forced them to chase after him. ''I don''t think we can reach the Outer Lands before my body starts evolving,'' Noah said through the mental connection. ''Find a crowded spot. I''ll handle the magical beasts there.'' Night followed his orders and brought Noah into a crowded region after putting enough distance from the battlefield. Three large packs led by leaders in the lower tier occupied that area and tried to scare those foreigners away, but Noah gave voice to a roar that silenced all of them. "I will only remain here for a while," Noah roared. "My pack will arrive soon. I will exterminate all of you if I find my underlings hurt when I come out." A chill ran down those beasts'' spine when Noah''s threats reached their ears. His pride was too intense for those creatures. They immediately understood how dangerous he was and decided to migrate. "Don''t you dare to leave the region either," Noah roared before punching the ground and opening a cave. "I want to see all of you when I come out." Noah dived into the cave and let his companions handle the rest. His body began to release a black gas that created a chrysalis and made his consciousness go dark. Chapter 1552: 1552. Hole Noah didn''t dream. His existence had long since become one. The sleep inside the chrysalis didn''t need to show him anything. A few images flashed in his vision from time to time. They were nothing more than partial memories shared by his companions through the mental connection. Noah could see his companions defending him and handling the magical beasts on the surface. Those creatures featured six rank 8 specimens, but they couldn''t do anything against the new might reached by Snore and Duanlong. His body evolved during the chrysalis and polished the evolution experienced by his centers of power. Noah''s strength kept rising as his existence stabilized in the eighth rank. That harmony also brought a new wave of improvements on his dantian, mind, and black hole. Divine existences were expressions of personal laws. Their centers of power shared a tight connection that almost prevented them from breaking their harmony. The same applied to Noah. As his body evolved, his black hole forced the other centers of power to go through multiple refining cycles until it eventually brought his entire existence to a level that no other newly advanced rank 8 being could imagine. An intense sensation of power filled Noah when he opened his eyes. He had never felt so strong. Even the level reached through his ambition couldn''t compare to his current state. Still, he sensed that something had changed. Noah felt that his existence didn''t limit its influence on his figure. It spread through the world on its own, affecting the matter around him and transforming its fabric. ''My existence naturally develops a domain around me,'' Noah concluded after studying that phenomenon. The breakthroughs didn''t only bring immense power. They had elevated Noah''s existence, putting it one step above simple laws. He felt able to affect the world with simple thoughts. He could recreate a weaker version of the dark world with a wave of his hand. ''Laws for the seventh rank,'' Noah listed his general understanding of the divine ranks in his mind, ''Domain for the eighth, and world for the ninth.'' That was the only natural progression that Noah could imagine according to what he had learnt throughout his life in the Immortal Lands. ''Maybe you can give birth to something bigger than a world in the tenth rank,'' Noah thought while the images of his ascension resurfaced in his mind. ''Maybe you can create a complete system of words at that level. It would explain how Heaven and Earth can continue to expand. I wonder what they did wrong to fail the breakthrough.'' Doubts about his future in the cultivation journey filled Noah''s mind, but he had never felt so sure about his path. He wasn''t making plans anymore. He was simply existing, and that was enough to make his power increase. His consciousness expanded and covered the entire region. Noah could immediately sense every living being on the surface and in the underground world. Fergie, his underlings, and the Foolery were on the surface. The three wild packs were also there, but it seemed that their patience was reaching its limit. Snore and Duanlong were the only reason why they didn''t decide to rebel against Noah''s orders. The Demonic Sword and Night shot inside the cave when they sensed that Noah had awakened, but they stopped once their attention fell on their Master. The entire cave had transformed during those short seconds. All the rocks and terrain had taken the shape of a black metal that echoed Noah''s ambition. Those simple rank 7 materials had even reached the middle tier in an instant. Noah''s natural pressure was far heavier than before. Even his companions couldn''t help but feel in awe of his power. He appeared as the strongest being in the entire world. "I''ll take care of your level once we reach the Outer Lands," Noah said before jumping outside of the cave. His pressure immediately unfolded through the entire region. The grass and trees that covered the surface began to evolve and develop basic wills. That quick contact with Noah''s aura had been enough to activate their potential. Fergie and the others remained speechless in front of the might that Noah naturally radiated. They had no words to describe how powerful he had become. Even the rank 8 Foolery couldn''t believe that it was looking at a newly advanced existence. "You did good," Noah whispered, but his words spread through the entire region. "We have to go now. The Crystal City and its allies must be looking for us." The Foolery gulped. Their instincts were begging them to bow in front of that powerful existence. Their desire didn''t come from a basic fear. They saw in Noah their best chance to improve. The other magical beasts went through similar sensations, but the enemy packs didn''t share the same desires. They felt the need to run away. They didn''t want to remain in the same region as that monster anymore. Noah glanced at the three packs. Fiery lions, metal tigers, and white pumas filled his vision. Those magical beasts had managed to put aside their differences while Noah was inside the chrysalis. They would never stand so close to each other otherwise. "You," Noah pointed at one of the rank 8 tigers. "Step forward." The creature tried to resist, but its mind gave in to Noah''s pride. The beast began to walk forward and stopped only when it reached Noah. Noah placed his hand above the creature''s head before tightening his grasp. His fingers seeped into its skin and turned its brain into a bloody pulp. A few slashes had also shot out of his arm during that simple gesture. The rank 8 tiger died under the incredulous eyes of the other creatures. Noah had only needed one attack to kill it. "The others can follow me," Noah said in a low tone before covering the corpse with liquid dark matter. The higher energy destroyed its fabric and sent its power toward the black hole, which purified it and spread it through Noah''s tissues. Noah shot high in the sky before turning toward the three packs. Fergie and the others quickly followed him, but the overlords of that region hesitated. The pride released by Noah''s action had freed those specimens from the control of their leaders. They could choose whether to follow Noah or remain in their packs, but their instincts still feared him too much. However, a few brave specimens decided to roar their willingness to join Noah. They separated from their packs, and Snore allowed them to use its body as a mount. Two of the five remaining rank 8 specimens and a small group of magical beasts in the seventh rank decided to join Noah. All the others creatures remained still, but they shot mocking gazes at the leavers. Snore brought those creatures into the sky before glancing at Noah. The Blood Companion knew exactly what was going through his mind. It was aware that they couldn''t leave any proof of their passage. "Turn this place into dust," Noah sighed, and Snore unfolded its wings. A rain of massive feathers fell toward the region and made all the magical beasts on the ground roar in fear. Still, they couldn''t do anything against the strongest attack of a rank 8 Blood Companion fueled by liquid dark matter. Noah didn''t even look at the outcome of Snore''s attack. He turned and led his pack away from that region. He didn''t need to inspect the ground to know that the whole area had transformed into a massive hole. Chapter 1553: 1553. Talk ''Maybe it''s time to contact them,'' Noah thought while flying through the Immortal Lands with his pack. An inscribed notebook appeared in his grasp, and Noah chose which words to use to announce his return carefully. ''I''m back in the human domain,'' Noah eventually sent through the inscribed notebook. ''I should reach the other side in a few decades.'' . . . Divine Demon took a sip from his jug before shooting a lazy glance at the fight happening in front of him. A pack of dragons was fighting against rank 7 cultivators in the liquid stage, but the battle was quite dull to watch. ''I''ve done this for millennia already,'' Divine Demon thought. ''Maybe it''s time to cause a mess and force them to clean it up. They won''t reach the solid stage with this training anyway.'' June, Faith, Daniel, Flying Demon, and Dreaming Demon had done their best to improve during those years. Divine Demon and the Legion had taken care of their training, but the lack of proper dangers slowed down their advancements. The group had also taken a tour inside Supreme Thief''s inheritance. The Legion had long since begun to consider Divine Demon and the others as part of Noah''s team, which granted them privileges that humans wouldn''t usually obtain in that organization. "How are they today?" Jordan asked while landing next to Divine Demon. Her figure brimmed with power. The hybrid had finally broken through the eighth rank during those years. Jordan was another pillar of the Legion now. "The same as always," Divine Demon lazily explained. "They fight, they say a few curses, and then they win. The same boring mess." "It''s getting harder and harder to gather dragons for this training field," Jordan commented while seizing the jug in Divine Demon''s grasp. "You might want to switch to other magical beasts soon." "Things will get even more boring then," Divine Demon sighed. "Are you sure that the human side isn''t doing anything fishy? Do we really have no enemy on our borders?" Divine Demon had begun to consider the Legion as his organization after spending so long among the hybrids, and Jordan didn''t mind that behavior. She actually felt glad that her force had gained another rank 8 asset thanks to Noah. "The humans are too scared to attack the Legion now," Jordan replied while taking a sip from the jug. "Our last assault on their domain has forced them to reconsider their alliances and borders. They prefer to fight each other for the time being." "Really?" Divine Demon almost pleaded. "Don''t we have a few grudges? Even a small enmity will do. I will pay your dragon''s weight in Soul Stones if you give me the slightest reason to attack an organization." "You know how it is better than anyone in the Legion," Jordan said while handing the jug back to Divine Demon. "The other castles of the Crystal City are in secret locations. The secret organization is a ghost. Even the other forces are doing nothing but accumulating wealth and defenses to prepare for the next invasion." Divine Demon felt as if his boredom would swallow him. He didn''t mind taking his time to train Noah''s friends, but he also desired challenges to keep growing. That peace was lasting too much. His inscribed notebook suddenly rang. Divine Demon quickly listened to the mental message received by his device, and his eyes lit up when he heard Noah''s voice. "Awesome job, my heir!" Divine Demon exploded into a laugh while holding his inscribed notebook. "You came back at the right time! Let''s rejoin and bully some large forces. I have refrained from attacking the Sailbrird family only for your sake!" Everyone in the area heard his loud words. Jordan, June, and the others couldn''t fail to understand what was happening, and excited expressions appeared on their faces. Still, before any of them could ask anything, a lump of golden flames materialized in front of Divine Demon and took King Elbas'' shape. "Did Noah Balvan come back?" King Elbas asked while wearing a smug smile. "You must be excited for your leader''s return," Divine Demon replied. "He is back. Hopefully, he can bring some excitement in our boring lives." Divine Demon''s joke didn''t manage to irritate King Elbas anymore. The Royal couldn''t feel offended by those words after becoming a rank 8 cultivator. He had proven to that annoying character that he was far better than everyone else. "Defying Demon can cause a mess wherever he goes," King Elbas snorted. "I am indeed excited, but only because I know that chaos is about to fall on our lives." . . . Noah remained speechless when Divine Demon''s mental message reached his inscribed notebook. He had expected his companions to be excited about his return, but that amount of enthusiasm had taken him by surprise. ''I need to handle a few matters first,'' Noah sent through the inscribed notebook. ''Don''t begin a war without me! Also, try to contact Saul from the Balrow family. Tell him that Defying Demon is ready to complete his end of the bargain.'' After sending the mental message, Noah forced his pack to accelerate. His aura covered his underlings and made them break through the limits of their speed. The magical beasts felt excited. They were moving faster than they had ever done in their lives without using their energy. Only the smartest among them understood that Noah was consuming his darkness to make them reach that speed. The group took a few years to reach the Outer Lands. They had to avoid human settlements for the time being, but they managed to arrive at their destination rather quickly anyway. Noah stopped only once strong winds began to fill the environment. Those currents of chaotic laws marked his arrival into deeper parts of the Outer Lands and made him feel sure about his safety. ''The Crystal City will never find us here,'' Noah concluded before ordering his pack to take control of the regions under him. The Foolery, Fergie, and the other magical beasts fought the few packs inhabiting the area and defeated most of them. Instead, Noah took care of the creatures that managed to escape by submitting them. After his pack spread through the area, Noah built a cave and entered a deep meditative state. He had to take care of an important matter before deciding what to do with his prisoner. Noah''s ethereal figure dived deep into the mental sea and inspected every corner of those dark waters. He even activated the Demonic Deduction technique to bring him closer to a solution, but he still couldn''t find his target. ''I don''t believe that he can hide something inside my mind even after I reached the eighth rank!'' Noah thought before deciding to go all-out. Waves of mental energy surged and flowed into the red lines that covered his mental walls. It was hard to deplete all that energy at his current level, but Noah kept the process going for as long as necessary. Noah disregarded the violent thoughts generated by the Demonic Deduction technique. He only needed to empty his mind to find an energy that had remained hidden inside his center of power for too long. The black mental energy eventually vanished, and the same went for the waters tainted by the bloodlust. Drowsiness enveloped his existence when his mind became empty, but the black hole forced him to remain awake. Noah couldn''t find anything inside his empty mind, but he didn''t give up on the matter. Liquid dark matter seeped inside his mental sphere and covered every inch of his mental walls, eventually uncovering a strange blue spot. "You managed to find me," A familiar voice resounded through Noah''s mental sphere. "I didn''t expect this meeting to happen so soon." Noah''s ethereal figure descended toward the blue spot. His mind immediately produced mental energy and slowly fixed his temporary weakness, but Noah used the dark matter to keep that area devoid of water. "Come out already," Noah said toward the blue spot. "It''s time to have a proper talk, Supreme Thief." Chapter 1554: 1554. Path The blue spot morphed. It rose and took Supreme Thief''s shape, who began to laugh before sitting on the mental walls. The expert even patted the ground, and Noah didn''t hesitate to sit in front of him. "Care to explain?" Noah asked in an annoyed tone. He had a vague idea about the true nature of Supreme Thief''s inheritance, but he wasn''t ready to believe him so soon. After all, both Supreme Thief and Great Builder were planning to come back to life. That could also involve them taking control of other living beings. "Do not worry, you unique fella," Supreme Thief laughed. "It has never been my intention to hurt you. This is only a speck of my existence. I only happen to have far more power than you." Noah could understand that point, but he didn''t dare to lower his defenses. Having part of a rank 9 existence inside his mind didn''t let him feel safe. "When were you planning to reveal yourself?" Noah questioned the ethereal expert. "My original plan was to manifest this shard of my existence when you were about to reach the limits of the eighth rank," Supreme Thief replied while scratching his chin. "I was willing to adapt to your potential, but I never expected you to find me right after entering the eighth rank." Supreme Thief then moved his eyes on the liquid dark matter keeping the area devoid of mental energy. He appeared utterly captivated by the higher energy, but he managed to suppress his pulling force at that time. "You are definitely worthy of attention," Supreme Thief commented. "What exactly are you? I have seen countless unique creatures and breathtaking existences, but your foundation surpasses all of them." "Why don''t you explain the nature of your abilities first?" Noah asked. "I already have too many techniques that I can''t control. I don''t want to add yours to the list." "Right to the point," Supreme Thief laughed. "You should have more respect for your seniors. I have been dead for eras, but you don''t want to grant me a few seconds of your time." "I have the ghost of a rank 9 existence in my mind," Noah replied coldly. "You will forgive me if I''m not ecstatic about this situation." Supreme Thief realized how uncomfortable Noah must have felt and stopped laughing. A serious expression appeared on his face for the first time since the beginning of the conversation. "Stealing is only a consequence of my law," Supreme Thief explained. "The core of my true meaning comes from my unfathomable greed, which is quite different from what you and your kind feel." Supreme Thief waved his hand, and the dark matter slowly flowed toward his palm. The higher energy escaped Noah''s control and became part of that existence''s power. "I have no idea how you obtained this fantastic energy," Supreme Thief said while playing with the globe of dark matter that stabilized in his palm. "I don''t know how to create it. I don''t even know what it is. Yet, something tells me that I would have obtained it if I had followed a different path. This simple knowledge makes this power mine." Noah''s eyes widened. He didn''t clearly understand Supreme Thief''s words, but his mind began to generate strange ideas. "This power belongs to you," Supreme Thief continued, "But what makes you the only one worthy of having it? You can''t be the only existence in the many planes capable of creating something similar, so why can''t I also have it?" The strange ideas became clearer. Noah didn''t know why his thoughts were moving in that direction, but he couldn''t deny them. "What if I were more worthy than you?" Supreme Thief asked. "Why shouldn''t I have this energy? I am more talented, so I can make it mine." Noah''s aura burst out of his ethereal figure. A wave of memories fused with his ghostly body and carried a large chunk of the mental sea with them. The memories going from the first experiments with the higher energy to the creation of the black hole resurfaced in Noah''s mind and appeared on his mental walls. The many years spent testing that power appeared in front of Supreme Thief and made him lose control of the lump of dark matter in his grasp. "I guess it only works on unworthy existences," Noah stated while the dark matter seized by the expert returned under his control. "Don''t overestimate yourself," Supreme Thief replied. "I managed to reach the ninth rank, while you can''t even be sure about your survival. You are lucky I had no intention to steal your power." Silence fell between the duo. Supreme Thief lost interest in the conversation and began to inspect the various scenes played on the mental walls. Instead, Noah was deep in his thoughts. He had understood something, but he didn''t know how convincing that theory was. "Can you understand whether an existence has the talent to reach the ninth rank?" Noah asked. "What do you mean?" Supreme Thief asked. "You must reach the ninth rank to prove it. Even Heaven and Earth can''t divine the full extent of our potential." "You can steal almost everything and use it freely," Noah said while pointing at the expert. "You make up for the expertise and the years spent developing techniques with your law. You can generate power from almost nothing." Noah then thought about a certain existence and explained his power to the expert. "I know someone who can invent techniques out of thin air," Noah continued. "Even the world bends to his will to help him win challenges. He also lacks training and years spent in experiments, but he makes up for those requirements with his law." Noah then pointed at himself. His strange thoughts were clearer than ever. He felt as if he had found a profound answer that many experts in the world ignored. "My law allows me to skip entire stages," Noah explained. "I can also use it to boost my cultivation level and techniques. I generate power from nothing too." Supreme Thief smiled. A wave of coldness came out of his figure, but excitement also seeped through those emotions. "No wonder you managed to reach the secret area in my inheritance," Supreme Thief said. "You are right. Rank 9 existences are worlds, which means that they must be able to generate something by depleting their "Breath". It doesn''t matter how much power your existence contains. You can''t advance if your law can''t become a source of any kind." ''Divine Demon''s Miracles are a requirement,'' Noah thought. ''Having a powerful influence doesn''t matter anymore in the eighth rank. I need to enhance the features of my existence that make me ignore the laws of the world.'' Noah had found a path right after reaching the eighth rank. He could also share that information with his friend and prevent them from wasting centuries of training. ''Every divine existence must have the potential to perform something similar to the Miracles,'' Noah thought. ''The problem is whether they can turn it into a core part of their law.'' Supreme Thief cleared his throat at that point. He didn''t want to remain in silence while Noah was deep in his thoughts. He would rather return to his slumber. "Right," Noah said. "I believe I can''t kick you out of my mind." "You can try," Supreme Thief replied in an amused tone. "Make yourself useful then," Noah ordered. "I don''t like to have no control over your ability. Tell me how to activate you." "You have always had control over this part of my soul," Supreme Thief explained. "I gave it to you. This power is already yours, and the same goes for its function. You have only forgotten my words." Noah''s eyes lit up as he understood what Supreme Thief''s meant. The expert''s ethereal figure then melted and fused with his mental sea, forever becoming a part of himself. ''I guess I''ve gained another powerful ability,'' Noah thought while watching his dark waters filling that space in his mind. ''Luckily, I also have a guinea pig ready to test it. Chapter 1555: 1555. Stealing Shandal had remained inside the separate space for years. He had witnessed the raging waves of dark matter, the evolution of the dark world, and the empowerment of the two Blood Companions. The expert had gone through desperation and fear until he felt nothing more than helplessness. Shandal knew that nothing in the world could stop Noah now. He had studied his life enough to be sure that the Immortal Lands were in for a show. When dark matter began to envelop Shandal''s figure, he knew that his time had come. The higher energy brought him back in the outside world, where he found Noah staring coldly at him. "You have overcome every expectation," Shandal sighed. "The Crystal City knew that you would eventually return in the human domain. Even Madame Canson had taken your threat seriously. It seemed that her efforts were pointless." Noah didn''t answer. His consciousness enveloped Shandal and inspected every inch of his body. The expert still had Madame Canson''s crystals fused with his tissues, but Noah''s dark matter was suppressing their power. "I hope you know that my actions have never been personal," Shandal continued. "I couldn''t resist when the secret organization introduced me to the Crystal City. I have been desperate for too many years." Shandal wasn''t trying to appeal to Noah''s pity. He had lived long enough to know that nothing could save his life in that situation. His words were nothing more than a memoir. Shandal didn''t want to die without saying some last lines. Even those few justifications made him at peace with himself. Noah slowly removed the crystals. His physical strength had reached an insane level of power. He could directly rip them off and let his dark matter absorb their energy. The process was quite painful for Shandal, but he didn''t flinch. He didn''t let out a single scream while his cultivation level fell at the bottom of the seventh rank. Noah felt quite disappointed when he inspected Shandal again. The expert was a mere existence at the bottom of the seventh rank, but he had managed to cause many problems. ''Why did I even suffer so much because of him?'' Noah wondered. He felt disappointed in himself. The whole mess with the Crystal City had been a mistake on his side. Noah had underestimated how influential large organizations could be. It had been enough for Shandal to point at his friends for Noah to experience desperation. "Is it too much to ask you to make it quick?" Shandal asked, and Noah finally decided to answer. "I don''t care about your life," Noah explained, "But your ability is quite powerful. I want it." Shandal could stop time, and Noah had long since acknowledged the power of his existence. Unfortunately, that ability directly interfered with Heaven and Earth''s laws. It was a partial copy of their true meaning, which was the reason why Shandal didn''t manage to bring it to the seventh rank on his own. After Madame Canson''s empowerment, Shandal had finally managed to step into the divine ranks. His existence was complete. His level didn''t fall under the seventh rank even after Noah seized the purple crystals. ''Madame Canson has managed to complete this power,'' Noah thought while placing his hand on Shandal''s head. ''I wonder what this ability can do with my ambition as a fuel.'' "Do you want to turn me into one of your puppets?" Shandal asked before an unsightly expression appeared on his face. "That''s not ideal, but I have seen worse ends." A lump of dark matter covered Shandal''s mouth and forced him to shut up. The silence allowed Noah to focus on the expert''s existence and study the full extent of his ability. Madame Canson had tampered with Shandal''s existence. She had to fill the gaps in his lackluster power, which ended up ruining the expert''s original idea. Noah wanted to remove Madame Canson''s influence from Shandal''s existence. He had to get rid of that virus to gain access to the core idea behind that law. Purple trails slowly flew out of Shandal''s figure as Noah''s mental waves seeped into his existence and forced Madame Canson''s influence out. His dark matter then absorbed that power and removed the virus from the world. Shandal''s cultivation level continued to fall, but Noah didn''t mind it. He had performed a similar procedure with his diagrams. He had broken them down to seize their core idea before rebuilding them according to his existence. Noah didn''t take much to complete the procedure. Shandal was a simple rank 7 cultivator. Even his mental waves were more than enough to crush him into pieces. Shandal reverted to his quasi-rank 7 state. His eyes radiated an unfathomable sadness when he experienced that familiar level of power again. Yet, Noah''s procedure had just begun. ''I hope that Supreme Thief wasn''t bragging,'' Noah thought before focusing on his greed. An intense desire to eat and seize everything in the world seeped into his aura, which began to spread destructive features. The matter naturally fell apart and generated primary energy that converged toward his figure. Noah focused on his desire to obtain Shandal''s power. He wanted to seize that ability and transform it into part of his arsenal. His desire triggered a strange process in his mental sea. Noah felt uncomfortable when blue shades appeared on his black mental waves before giving birth to a pulling force. Shandal felt as if his existence was slipping away from his body. Noah was forcefully pulling all his experiences and memories from his centers of power. That energy was nothing for Noah''s current level. A faint wave of dark matter was enough to contain it and condense its structure. When the process ended, Noah let Shandal go, and the expert fell on the ground, breaking into pieces. His tissues had lost their power, so the impact with the terrain had been enough to shatter him. Noah raised his hand, and a small sphere of dark matter appeared on his palm. An azure light shone inside that prison of higher energy and radiated Shandal''s aura. ''The technique worked!'' Noah exclaimed while inspecting the azure energy. Noah felt immediately able to activate Shandal''s ability, but he refrained from testing that. The lump of azure light was nothing more than quasi-rank 7 energy. He would need to polish it to bring its power to a decent level. ''I can move right away, but I think that stabilizing my power should come first,'' Noah decided before sitting on the ground and sending a few orders to his underlings. Noah was safe in those regions. He was deep into the Outer Lands, surrounded by his underlings and in areas under his complete control. The Foolery would soon transform those lands into blue paradises, and his influence would even force his underlings to evolve. Waiting a few decades before leaving seemed the best option. Noah also had to bring the Demonic Sword and Night into the eighth rank, other than taking care of the Demonic Form. His ambition was out of potential, so Noah couldn''t empower his cultivation level and abilities anymore. It was better to spend some time polishing his new battle prowess to feel even safer during his return. He had even gained a new technique that he couldn''t wait to add to his arsenal. Chapter 1556: 1556. Meeting The years spent in the Outer Lands benefited both Noah and his pack. He quickly learnt how to use his power better, and his underling improved under the constant influence of his aura. The Demonic Sword and Night took a while to reach the eighth rank. They both had Noah''s aura and methods at their disposal, but they still required a few decades to approach the breakthrough. The Demonic Form didn''t share the same difficulties. The parasite fed on Noah''s power, so his breakthroughs had ended up accelerating its growth. His underlings grew even faster than his abilities. Noah''s ambition seeped into the ground and forced it to produce better nutrients. His aura also covered the surface and brought benefits to all the magical beasts that lived there. The creatures that managed to evolve developed the ability to fly as their level increased. Also, most specimens in the lower and middle tier reached the upper tier and approached the peak of the seventh rank. A few underlings even managed to reach the eighth rank. The Foolery gained another leader, and the three leaders under Fergie also advanced. Fergie couldn''t approach the breakthrough in those short years, but his level grew significantly. Still, the eighth rank remained far away. Noah decided to move after his battle prowess stabilized. He had no reason to remain in those regions after his whole arsenal reached the eighth rank. The path toward the Legion''s headquarters was relatively safe. It featured nothing different from the journey across the magical beasts'' domain. Humans rarely occupied those areas, so Noah only had to be wary of the powerful creatures that had settled there to benefit from the chaotic laws. Of course, his definition of danger had changed after the breakthroughs. His underlings had also improved, making his force a power capable of scaring away most packs. The only beings that could make Noah think twice about stepping into their domain were those in the middle tier or above. He had yet to test the full extent of his prowess, so he preferred to avoid those powerful creatures for the time being. Noah didn''t change his approach toward the packs that he could defeat. He let his group assault those creatures and submitted those that managed to survive or escape. Only the strongest could become part of his army. The size of Noah''s group grew. His force only counted a hundred specimens after the battle with the Crystal City, but it soon surpassed one thousand assets. All those creatures benefitted from Noah''s law and grew past the limits of their species. As a result, his group soon featured only specimens that wouldn''t normally exist in the Immortal Lands. The journey proceeded smoothly. Noah could focus on testing his new power from time to time without facing any danger. Part of him wanted to jump in front of creatures in the middle tier right away, but he decided to prioritize his return to the Legion over his reckless desire. The travel eventually met a hindrance. Noah was overseeing his underlings fighting against a pack of tall turtles when his consciousness sensed a powerful aura approaching from the distance. Noah immediately waved his hand to fill the area with his sharpness and kill all his opponents. Roars even came out of his mouth as he ordered his underlings around. The aura''s might surpassed the pressure radiated by Madame Canson. It was even stronger than the manifestation of the Heaven Tribulation faced after the assault on the Crystal City. ''A rank 8 existence in the liquid stage!'' Noah shouted in his mind as he prepared his underlings for the imminent meeting. Escaping wasn''t a possibility. The existence moved far faster than Noah''s top speed. He didn''t even know if sacrificing all his underlings could give him a chance to run away from that situation. His only real chance was to approach the matter peacefully. Then, if a battle were to unfold, he would simply unleash his full power and see how things went. The existence neared his position in an instant, and Noah soon became able to identify that threat. His expression almost froze when he understood who that expert was. The powerful aura came from a young-looking man with long white hair and beard. He even had long eyebrows that fell over his eyes and covered his vision. Noah couldn''t fail to recognize that existence. That expert had been his training partner in the Mortal Lands for a long time. He had finally met Sword Saint in the higher plane! "Hide underground!" Noah roared. "I''ll handle this." Noah then drew the Demonic Sword from his separate space and waited. The weapon gave voice to a roar, but it soon fell silent when it sensed how tense Noah was. Sword Saint had warned Noah about his habits. The expert challenged any existence he met on his path to sharpen his law. Noah didn''t want to experience that clash, but he didn''t know if he could avoid it. "You are a swordsman," Sword Saint said before stopping near Noah. "Wonderful! Let''s exchange an attack to see who has the sharpest blade." ''He is the maniac that I remember,'' Noah sighed in his mind before performing a bow. "I have been lucky enough to seize one of your inheritances," Noah said in a polite tone. "You might not know it, but I''m your disciple." Noah then took a strand of mental energy from his mind and handed it to Sword Saint. The expert hesitated at the sight of that black substance, but he eventually absorbed it to watch Noah''s memories. The scenes of the intense training in the Divine Cut flowed inside Sword Saint''s mind and made him aware of Noah''s identity. His expression relaxed once he learnt about those events, but his drive didn''t vanish. "Even more wonderful!" Sword Saint exclaimed while raising his forefinger above his head. "Noah Balvan, let me see how strong you have become!" Noah''s actions ended up making Sword Saint even more excited. The expert couldn''t hold himself back in that situation. "I have just advanced to the eighth rank," Noah replied. "I''m not sure my power can be of any help to your existence." "Nonsense!" Sword Saint promptly shouted. "I can sense the sharpness seeping out of your body. Your existence has used my teachings, and I want to see its shape." Noah sighed while a wave of dark matter flowed out of his chest. Higher energy also seeped out of the Demonic Sword, and both of them covered the blade. The long weapon transformed into a black pillar that flew high in the sky. Noah even used the unstable substance to boost his physical strength before raising the Demonic Sword. "I thought I told you to fuse the aspects of your individuality," Sword Saint complained. "But they are part of me anyway," Noah replied. "It doesn''t matter how I deploy them. My sword arts don''t use only sharpness. They go far beyond that." "I see only a lack of purity," Sword Saint snorted before a wild smile appeared on his face. "I hope that your attack carries as much power as you say." Noah didn''t speak anymore. His Demonic Sword landed on his forehead and generated high-pitched noises as it slid over his skin. The dark matter accumulated in the environment disappeared at that point. Even the energy of the two experts vanished. Noah had covered the sky between Sword Saint and him with a massive singularity. Chapter 1557: 1557. Pointers Noah''s attack didn''t have the appearance of a slash. He had attacked with his blade, but the area covered by the singularity was too big to be part of sword arts. Those effects came from the different powers deployed by Noah during the attack. His creation and destruction generated singularities when they clashed, and his dark matter increased the size of his offensive in ways that normal "Breath" couldn''t achieve. His sharpness had reached a superior level due to the many features carried by his law. It had transformed into singularities capable of piercing everything in the world. Even the air in the sky vanished under that power. Noah inspected the area of nothing generated after his attack, and his eyes sharpened when he saw something moving inside it. There was a slash flying through the singularity. ''How is this even possible?'' Noah wondered. ''He is even limiting the power expressed by the attack to the gaseous stage!'' Noah''s many advantages made him the strongest type of existence in every stage and tier. He could defeat experienced gaseous stage cultivators as soon as he advanced. However, Sword Saint was overcoming his abilities even while limiting his power. The slash pierced the singularity and brought new energy into that empty area. Sword Saint''s sharpness filled the sky before converging toward Noah''s figure. Noah instinctively activated all the defenses that he was capable of. His dark world expanded, and his companions came out in the open. His sword also flashed again as the Demonic Form entangled its roots around the blade. Snore spat destructive dark matter, Duanlong absorbed part of the energy in the slash, and Night fused with the world to destabilize Sword Saint''s sharpness. The aura radiated by the Demonic Form at its new level carried unfathomable corrosive properties. Noah''s surroundings crumbled under that power and transformed into strands of energy that flowed inside the parasite. Sword Saint''s slash lost power before reaching the wave of violent dark matter. Part of its fabric also crumbled when it began to pierce that destructive energy. The violent dark matter forced the slash to deplete even more of its power, but the attack continued to fly forward. A singularity covered by raging dark matter eventually clashed with the slash. Sword Saint''s attack continued to pierce Noah''s ability, but it stopped once it reached the Demonic Sword. The slash transformed. It took Sword Saint''s shape. The expert''s forefinger had clashed with the Demonic Sword, but it found itself unable to pierce the weapon. The roots around the blade had shattered, but Sword Saint couldn''t move forward anymore. Noah had stopped the attack, even if he had to resort to almost his entire arsenal to achieve that. Sword Saint revealed a surprised expression while he retracted his finger. He had limited his power to the gaseous stage, but he didn''t expect Noah to stop his attack. "You should be proud of yourself," Sword Saint announced. "How so?" Noah snorted. "You were holding back, but I still had to rely on my entire arsenal to stop you." Noah lied about that last part. He still had the cursed sword, the Shadow Domain, and Shandal''s ability at his disposal. He also had Supreme Thief''s stealing skill, but he wasn''t sure whether that would work against Sword Saint. "My understanding goes beyond the gaseous stage," Sword Saint revealed. "I might have limited my power, but my law is far denser than yours. I wonder how this exchange would have gone if we were at the same level." That explanation didn''t satisfy Noah, but he had to let the matter go. His status as a newly advanced cultivator was undeniable, so he didn''t let that exchange hurt his pride. ''Though, I do wonder who would have won,'' Noah thought while inspecting the expert. Sword Saint''s sharpness went far beyond Noah''s base power. He had to rely on multiple techniques and abilities to match it. His existence alone wasn''t enough to face that law. "Did you think you could face me while holding back part of your arsenal?" Sword Saint questioned Noah. "I have built my whole existence on the sword. All my experiences, training, insights, and growth converge into the understanding of my path. My attack might look simple, but it carries my entire life." Noah stored the Demonic Sword. His companions also returned inside the separate space as both experts flew toward the ground to sit and exchange pointers. "I should still be able to reach a similar sharpness," Noah sighed. "I have taken a different path, but I still want to use your entire power as part of my foundation." "It''s too late for that," Sword Saint explained. "You have already gone beyond my teachings. Your attacks might come from swords and slashes, but they are something that can''t fit into my path. Only time will tell which one of us will obtain the greatest power." "What''s your next step?" Noah asked without revealing any hint of shame. "You first," Sword Saint replied while wearing a cold smile. "I honestly don''t know," Noah sighed. "Amassing more power, more assets, fusing them into simple attacks. I don''t strive for a result. I only pile up abilities and adapt to what comes out of them." "Ah! Don''t make me start!" Sword Saint snorted. "I have challenged so many experts in the human domain that I had to leave for the Outer Lands. Do you know how annoying it is to search for the faintest enlightenment in sword arts that I have executed millions of times?" "Are you lost?" Noah asked. "I have never been surer about my path," Sword Saint replied. "I only have to find the stage that surpasses perfection. Unfortunately, it seems that my endless training can''t help me anymore. I need something else, but I can only keep slashing to find it." ''Maybe he lacks the Miracles,'' Noah wondered. Sword Saint was a simple existence in the end. He had continued to trail the path of the blade for millennia. Noah could imagine him swinging his fingers millions of times only to make the slightest improvement. ''He is a sword capable of generating sharpness,'' Noah thought, ''But that doesn''t count in his case. He has already paid for his power with the millennia spent training. Should I help him?'' Noah felt conflicted. Sword Saint had taught him a lot, but the expert didn''t have a clear alignment. Noah didn''t know if he could become an enemy. "What do you think about the Legion?" Noah probed. "Legion? Do you mean that small group of hybrids?" Sword Saint asked before continuing when he saw Noah nodding. "I don''t think about them. Politics are useless. I only want to swing my sword." "Let''s make a trade," Noah eventually said. "I can give you a hint that might solve your problem, but you have to do the same with me. You have lived for a long time and witnessed many powerful existences. You must know something that surpasses my singularity in terms of power." Sword Saint''s interest suddenly skyrocketed. The expert explored his memories until he found a scene that met Noah''s requirements. "I don''t think there is much in the world that can surpass that," Sword Saint said while handing a globe of azure mental energy to Noah, "But this might help you. This is the strongest type of attack that I have ever faced." Noah didn''t immediately check it. Sword Saint had trusted him enough to complete his end of the bargain without hesitation. Noah would do the same out of respect for that expert. Noah stood up and waved his hand. A cut opened on the ground as his sharpness shot forward. "I will use the same energy as before now," Noah warned Sword Saint before closing his eyes. His ambition had regained a small amount of potential during the last years. That wasn''t enough to empower his cultivation level, but it could affect a simple attack. Noah waved his hand again as his ambition seeped out of his figure. The area grew darker, but he didn''t rely on any additional energy to trigger those events. A second cut opened next to the first one. The former was deeper and longer. It was clear that Noah had expressed more power than before without increasing the input of energy. Chapter 1558: 1558. Ecstasy Sword Saint experienced different emotions. He felt confused at first. Noah didn''t do anything specific, but he had managed to express more power seemingly out of nothing. Then, an idea popped into Sword Saint''s mind. Noah''s second slash carried something that an expert like him couldn''t find with his usual training. Sword Saint was a maniac. He had dedicated his entire existence to the sword and had exchanged blows with countless experts to polish his arts. His mind didn''t even contemplate the idea that there could be something outside the centers of power. However, there had to be an explanation for Noah''s superior prowess. His might didn''t come from his centers of power, so there had to be something else, a different source of energy that Sword Saint had never considered before. The answer to his doubts suddenly dawned on his mind. Cultivators and hybrids primarily relied on their centers of power, but they had something else. They had a path that influenced their might and gave them laws. "The power of an existence," Sword Saint murmured before standing up and inspecting both cuts. "It''s not "Breath"," Sword Saint continued. "It''s not mental energy either. Your body didn''t play a role in this attack, and I didn''t even sense your strange black substance." Sword Saint raised his eyebrows and dropped them from time to time. Ecstasy and confusion alternated on his face. His whole world was falling apart, and he didn''t know whether to be happy or sad about it. "Existences can generate power!" Sword Saint suddenly exclaimed. "Of course! I have been so stupid! Millennia spent side by side with my existence, and I didn''t even realize that it was my most powerful source of energy!" Sword Saint started to laugh maniacally. Noah remained silent while that scene unfolded in front of his eyes. Part of Noah understood the expert''s feelings. The cultivation journey could become a curse for those who met unsurmountable bottlenecks. ''All those who have reached these ranks are crazy,'' Noah thought while moving his eyes toward the white sky. ''We force our personalities to evolve. Our good traits transform into laws, and our flaws become curses that we have to carry throughout our entire life.'' His ambition had the power to ignore the gaps between the stages and tiers, but it also made him constantly unsatisfied. Noah always wanted more, and he knew that he would stop at nothing to fulfill his desires. "Of course! Of course!" Sword Saint shouted in an ecstatic tone. "The centers of power fuse to create existences. They can generate energy, so the existences can do the same. The "Breath" isn''t the only fuel for the laws!" Sword Saint''s cultivation level seemed to increase during his shouting. His existence purified, and large cuts opened on the ground under him due to that enlightenment. "Noah Balvan!" Sword Saint shouted while turning toward Noah. "How did you reach this solution? How did you find the path that can include every path?" Noah hesitated before letting go of his mental restraint and politeness. Sword Saint''s enthusiasm managed to affect his mind. The expert wasn''t holding his cultivation level back in that situation. The world around Noah turned dark, and the ground began to evolve. The cuts also closed, and the air transformed into a dark gas. "I have met countless experts and hundreds of geniuses," Noah replied in an aloof tone. "I have overcome every expectation, prediction, and label. I have surpassed every existence who could suppress me with a simple thought." Crackling noises began to resound in the sky as his words seeped into the world and forced the matter to develop wills. His ambition was so intense that the laws around him rebelled against Heaven and Earth''s rule. "I am a mistake, the flaw in a rotten system handled by failures," Noah continued. "I paid the price in blood and sweat for everything I have. I built myself to be the best existence that has ever stepped onto this world. Now, tell me. How could I not reach this solution?" "Do you think you are better than me?" Sword Saint asked as his aura expanded. "I am better than Heaven and Earth!" Noah shouted, and a white lightning bolt fell from the sky. The attack had power near the peak of the middle tier. It instantly filled the sky with blinding light while it descended toward Noah. "Shut up!" Sword Saint snorted before the lightning bolt could reach the ground. "My disciple is speaking!" Sword Saint''s fingers took the shape of a sword while he waved his hand toward the sky. A colorless line came out of his figure and cut the falling lightning bolt until it reached the source of the Tribulation. The lightning bolt exploded into a storm of sparks that rained toward the ground. Duanlong promptly materialized next to Noah and absorbed that energy, sending half of it toward his Master. Sword Saint began to laugh again while he shot toward Noah. The expert hugged him and patted his shoulders without dropping his feverish ecstasy. "Thank you, Noah Balvan!" Sword Saint said without separating from Noah. "You have given me the greatest of the gifts. I can finally see the path toward the peak." A sword-shaped lump of mental energy flowed out of Sword Saint''s head and floated in front of Noah. "I have no care for politics and organizations," Sword Saint continued. "But I recognize a debt when I see one. I owe you. If the situation requires it, I swear that I will abandon everything and come in your aid." Noah inspected the sword-shaped mental energy. It resembled a flare that could echo Sword Saint''s power. Still, he couldn''t understand its range from that quick inspection. "Where will you go now?" Noah asked after the expert let him go. "I was coming back from the Outer Lands to find a source of inspiration," Sword Saint replied. "I found it. I don''t need to go further. The lands filled by storms are far more interesting than that peaceful place." Noah wanted to question Sword Saint. He desired to know everything about those lands. Yet, the expert flew away before he could ask anything. Sword Saint appeared far faster than before. His figure cut through the world and disappeared from Noah''s view in an instant. Even his influence vanished once he left. Noah''s eyes continued to watch the spot where the expert had left. The previous scene had felt like a dream. Both he and Sword Saint had let their drives take control of their mind and speak in their place. Noah''s mind became calm after Sword Saint left. His usual coldness returned and filled every corner of his mental sphere. Countless plans and strategies also spread through his thoughts. He couldn''t live like Sword Saint. Noah was a different type of existence. His enemies were always stronger than him and more numerous. Only constant and careful planning could give him the chance to survive until he reached the peak. The sword-shaped mental energy seeped into Noah''s mental sphere and hid inside his mental energy. Noah instantly learnt how to activate it, but he remained doubtful about its actual utility. ''Can he sense this from the Outer Lands?'' Noah wondered. ''Even if he can, how long would it take him to reach me?'' Noah wondered whether Sword Saint had given him that item without considering the reality of their situation. Yet, he soon suppressed those thoughts and moved his attention elsewhere. His friends were waiting for him, and Noah felt the intense desire to reunite with them. Chapter 1559: 1559. Meeting A peculiar event was unfolding in a secret location of the human domain while Noah was traveling through the Outer Lands. Different organizations and guilds had gathered in an underground hall covered in inscriptions to discuss the problems that afflicted their reign. The cultivators in the hall were all rank 8 cultivators who wore white masks for the event. Their covered faces couldn''t hide their identity, but it was a tradition to wear them during the meetings. "We have lost too many lands during the last invasion," A cultivator wearing robes carrying the emblem of the Sailbrird family said after standing up. "We managed to expand, but our domain has shrunk significantly. Unrest is spreading. We might be able to witness the first civil war in eras." "Just expand into the Outer Lands like we did the previous times," An expert wearing robes with the emblem of the Rotway family said. "I don''t see why even bother bringing this topic to the meeting." "Your family has focused on the mines for too long," A third expert who didn''t carry any emblem replied. "The Legion has grown strong in these millennia. They managed to fend off our expansion." "Since when did those hybrids win anything?" The expert from the Rotway family replied. "Send more troops. Overwhelm them with numbers. We did this countless times already!" "Too much has happened since the last invasion," The expert with no emblem sighed. "I''m afraid the Legion has finally become a threat for the human domain." "Did Alexander reappear?" The expert from the Rotway family asked. "No," The cultivator with no emblem answered, "But a new wave of experts in their ranks has reached a threatening level. Unfortunately, they also have humans on their side now. You might want to ask the Crystal City for further explanations." The cultivator from the Rotway family shot a questioning gaze at an expert who wore the iconic robes of the Crystal City. "We lost two castles in little more than a few millennia," The cultivator from the Crystal City explained. "Both attacks have involved the same individual." The cultivator waved her hand, and a series of sheets materialized in front of the experts. The Crystal City had recorded everything known about Noah and his group and had put it into those pages. "How accurate is this?" The expert from the Rotway family asked. "We deployed our best experts on the scene," The cultivator from the Crystal City replied. "Defying Demon has grown at an incredible pace, but that''s only one of his worrying features. His influence seems able to affect those who follow him. Anyone who has interacted with him has improved significantly." Silence fell in the underground hall. Those experts knew how troublesome that kind of influence could be when it was in the hands of a problematic character. "Did you contact our Masters?" The expert from the Rotway family asked while turning toward the cultivator with no emblem. "The secret organization is going through a fair number of internal fights," The expert replied. "Most of our cells are independent, so they don''t share our concerns and desires." "I asked you a question." The expert from the Rotway reprimanded. "We did try to contact them," The cultivator with no emblem sighed. "I must say that we never witnessed a similar reaction. They seemed almost too ashamed to answer." "Do you even dare thinking about this?" "How can you use these words to describe our Masters?" "Heretic!" A series of insults and curses shot out of the other cultivators in the area. They didn''t accept those words, but they didn''t believe that their companion had lied about that. "This Defying Demon is a black spot in their immense power," The expert with no emblem continued. "Moreover, he covers every existence met on his path with that blackness. We can already count more than ten hybrids and cultivators who went through that process." "How powerful is this Defying Demon now?" The cultivator from the Rotway family asked while turning toward the expert from the Crystal City. "He should be in the eighth rank," The expert replied. "His current battle prowess is unclear. He is probably traveling to rejoin the Legion at this moment." Silence fell in the hall again. Everyone there knew how hard it was to find a hybrid traveling through the Outer Lands. Even their joint power couldn''t make them succeed in the task. "Hunting him is impossible," The expert from the Rotway family summarized. "Trying to kill him after he rejoins the Legion is also out of the question. Do we have anything on him that we can use?" "The Crystal City has already tried with his friends," The expert with no emblem said. "However, we might have a chance to kill Defying Demon after he rejoins the Legion. Still, it might require the sacrifice of one of our organizations." Everyone shot questioning glances toward the expert. They didn''t care about the sacrifice of a single organization. That had already happened in the past. An expert wearing the emblem of the Balrow family stood up before explaining the situation. "My organization will exchange materials belonging to Great Builder''s inheritance with Defying Demon. I will gladly sacrifice my force for the greater good of the Immortal Lands." "How is the inheritance going?" The expert with no emblem asked. "We retrieved the fourth reward," The cultivator from the Sailbrird family explained. "We decided to stop there as planned. Coming back to life shouldn''t be possible, but we can''t risk it. We had to summon our Lords to kill him back then." Everyone nodded at those words. Resurrecting seemed an impossible feat, but every rank 9 existence had power that didn''t respect the world''s laws. It was better to be careful when dealing with them. After making sure that they didn''t have anything else to discuss, all the experts stood up and performed a deep bow. Then, they chanted a few words as per tradition. "Heaven and Earth!" The cultivators in the underground hall said. "We shall serve you in this life so that we can bask in your boundless light one day." . . . Noah was unaware that he had been the main topic of one of the most secret meetings in the human domain. His eyes could barely move from the horizon. He could see familiar lands in the distance. A happy roar came out of his mouth, and the many magical beasts in his group quickly imitated him. They echoed his feelings and informed the whole area about his return. A hybrid slowly peeked out of a crack in the distance. Her eyes widened when she saw the massive army of magical beasts in the sky, and her inscribed notebook quickly appeared in her grasp. A second roar shot out of Noah''s mouth. He expressed his intentions with his cry, but the hybrid didn''t manage to relax. She informed her superiors before disappearing underground. A massive amber-scaled dragon soon appeared in his view, and Noah couldn''t help but show a smile at that sight. He could recognize Jordan even at that distance. A lump of golden flames also gathered in the distance. King Elbas soon condensed his body and gave voice to a snort when he sensed Noah''s cultivation level. Divine Demon and other familiar faces also appeared. The Legion was giving him a proper welcome, but a black lightning bolt suddenly flew through the sky and converged toward Noah. Chapter 1560: 1560. Reunion A lightning bolt usually gave birth to terror and worry in cultivators, hybrids, and magical beasts. Yet, that black energy covered with orange light signified something very different for Noah. ''She has become strong,'' Noah thought while letting that attack slam on his body. The lightning bolt carried power in the solid stage and a familiar aura that made Noah''s mind go back in time. Countless memories filled his mental sphere and forced a smile to appear on his face. ''It has been too long,'' Noah thought while bathing in that familiar aura. The magical beasts around Noah roared in anger, and Fergie even unfolded his consciousness to search the assailant. They had no idea that they were witnessing the normal interaction between their leader and his lover. "It''s ok," Noah said before any of his underlings could make a move. "Stay here until I introduce you to the Legion." Noah teleported away and reappeared on the ground under Divine Demon and the others. A woman with unruly silver hair was waiting for him while sitting on the azure terrain. "You took your time," June snorted while showing an annoyed expression. "You also kept yourself busy," Noah replied while inspecting her cultivation level. June had reached the solid stage of the seventh rank. She appeared to have just advanced, but her foundation seemed quite stable. Noah could already place her above the average expert at the same level. The experts in the sky wanted to descend to greet Noah, but Flying Demon and Dreaming Demon blocked their path. Their expressions could almost describe the nature of the interaction happening on the ground. "I was ready to abandon all of you," Noah admitted. Noah wouldn''t hide anything from June. They knew each other enough to guess how their partner thought. It was pointless even to try to lie. "I bet you would have found a replacement quickly," June replied. "The women in the Legion can''t wait to get their hands on you. This situation brings me back to the Royal Academy when the girls used to call you Dark Prince." Noah couldn''t help but smile when June triggered those memories. Millennia had gone by since those events, but both June and Noah still recalled them. "We have been through a lot," Noah sighed without forsaking his smile. June snorted before straightening her position and nearing Noah. Her previous attack didn''t manage to shatter his robe. His clothes seemed made of a dense substance that radiated his aura. "I thought I would have died without having the chance of meeting you again," June said while grabbing his robe. "Do not worry," Noah replied while giving in to her pull. "We will destroy the Crystal City and anything that carries its name. I think we also have another fight planned to happen soon." "We have yet to see how soon," June whispered before pulling Noah close. The duo exchanged a long kiss and washed away the emotions accumulated during the millennia spent in different planes. Many of them remained in their minds, but that wasn''t the right moment to take care of them. "I thought you hated being a leader," June teased him while glancing at the army of magical beasts waiting in the distance. "Part of me still hates it," Noah snorted, "But I can''t deny the nature of my influence. I have decided to conquer the whole higher plane before breaking it into pieces." "Did your dream change?" June asked. "No. My enemy even has a proper shape now," Noah replied while pointing at the white sky. "What about you?" "Same as always," June answered. "This world is so big, and you have already given me so many enemies. What a caring partner you are." "Join my organization then," Noah proposed. "I think most of the human domain is ready to hunt me down. You can have fun before I shatter this plane." "How could I ever refuse such a tempting offer?" June replied while caressing Noah''s cheek and grabbing his hand to lead him toward his other friends. The duo soon arrived in front of Divine Demon and the others. They all showed broad smiles and challenging gazes, but Noah only focused on the four who had been trapped with June. Dreaming Demon, Flying Demon, Faith, and Daniel were still in the liquid stage. June had been the only one to advance after knowing about Noah''s return. Yet, they appeared quite powerful for their current level. "To think that all of you would reach the Immortal Lands," Noah said while exchanging smiles with his old friends. Memories continued to surge in his mind. Noah almost couldn''t believe that he had shared entire lifetimes with those cultivators. The long period spent in the Immortal Lands had nearly made him forget what it was to have trustworthy friends next to him. "You surely didn''t make it easy," Flying Demon snorted. "Our arrival here has been quite bumpy." The Demon laughed, and Dreaming Demon laughed with him. Meanwhile, Faith and Daniel were searching for words that didn''t sound awkward in that situation. Noah noticed the awkwardness between the duo, and a simple glance at June''s expression solved his doubts in an instant. "You know," Faith whispered while nearing Noah. "June has taken your habit of causing a mess wherever you go. She didn''t let us grow bored in the other world." June snorted, but Jordan cleared her throat and interrupted the reunion. She had taken her human form, and she was pointing toward the magical beasts in the distance without trying to hide her gesture. "They are with me," Noah explained. "I''m sorry. I can''t join the Legion. I don''t think my existence will ever allow me to have leaders." "What now then?" Jordan asked as her expression became conflicted. "You can all join my organization," Noah exclaimed. "I never bothered to give it a name. Just call it pack or something similar. You can consult Fergie for that." "Your pigs are drooling," June commented. "They often do that," Noah replied. "One of them has looked at the sky since your arrival," Faith added. "They also do that often," Noah replied again. "I won''t abandon the Legion," Jordan said, bringing back the conversation to a serious topic. "I don''t really care," Noah replied while shrugging his shoulders. "I already consider you as allies, so I don''t see a reason to fight. Also, I''ll soon surpass all your leaders, so you''ll eventually become part of my pack." "Such arrogant remarks," Jordan commented, but a faint smile appeared on her face. Jordan had almost feared that Noah would challenge the leaders of the Legion for the ownership of those lands. She knew that Noah couldn''t win against her force, but his pack was quite threatening. Those creatures could make any army suffer. "That''s my heir!" Divine Demon shouted while exploding into a laugh. "I have a fitting name for our organization. Call it Divine Demon Sect!" "That''s not going to happen," Noah firmly rejected him. "What about Divine Demonic pack?" Divine Demon asked. "You will talk with Duanlong from now on," Noah said before summoning his Blood Companion and placing it in front of Divine Demon. "The invitation is open for you too," Noah said while glancing toward King Elbas. "I can''t have leaders either," King Elbas replied before wearing an arrogant smile. "And yet you will follow me anyway," Noah said before focusing on his weaker companions. "I don''t want to define the details about my organization now," Noah began his speech. "I don''t think I will ever want to do that. The problem is that you are all too weak, and only war can force you to advance quickly." Divine Demon stopped questioning Duanlong to listen to Noah at that point. Even the other members of the Legion ignored the matter about the different organizations to focus on those words. "I will attack the Sailbrird family soon," Noah announced. "I don''t care how many of you decide to follow me. I don''t even mind attacking on my own. Yet, I know that many will come, so go and prepare. We will attack when June and I finish catching up." Noah then turned, and June followed him since she had never left his hand. Chapter 1561: 1561. Stories June described to Noah what had happened in the other world after their separation. Of course, she had brought up those topics only after the two of them had taken their time to catch up. The Hive, the Council, and the Shandal Empire had lived in peace for many centuries after the migration. They all had to divide the world and create sources of materials, so they didn''t have the time to fight each other. However, small fights eventually happened. The other world had fewer resources due to the absence of the piece of Immortal Lands. Battles were inevitable, and they soon escalated into wars. The Hive became the target of both Council and Empire. Noah''s absence had made the two organizations believe that they could topple that force. The situation didn''t go as planned. June, the Demons, and Daniel revealed their immense potential after a few setbacks. Faith also betrayed the Council and brought a new wave of experts to the Hive, eventually ending those wars. The previous alliances didn''t matter anymore in the other world, so the Hive could take complete control of the plane after June killed Great Elder Diana. God''s Left Hand surrendered, but her enemies didn''t forgive her betrayal. With an entire world under their control, the powerhouses of the Hive improved quickly. They had the potential to reach the divine ranks, and they fulfilled it during those peaceful years. June and Dreaming Demon ended up advancing almost at the same time. Daniel followed them, while Flying Demon and Faith reached the divine ranks as last. Still, they decided to ascend together since their breakthroughs had happened during the same centuries. NovelsToday.com June''s story then became grim. The Crystal City had immediately captured her group once they reached the landing zone. The five of them had been prisoners inside the palace for many years, and those fanatics forced them to fight before they could try to improve. The Crystal City had put them through hell. The five experts spent all their time healing their injuries and never had space for their training. After the battle on the palace, June and the others had focused on their training. Divine Demon was a madman, but he was a great Master, especially for existences as talented as Noah''s friends. The five experts had cultivated and had improved as they prepared themselves for the next battle. When June''s story ended, Noah described how his life in the Immortal Lands had been. He didn''t hide anything from her, and he didn''t forget to mention the inheritance in the Evolution Pit. Noah also shared the details behind Great Builder and Supreme Thief''s plan. He even gave June the notes seized from his enemies to help her in the path toward the higher ranks. "It''s becoming a habit of yours to give me inheritances," June said when she learnt about the Evolution Pit. The political situation in the Immortal Lands didn''t allow her to fly toward the Hellish Landscape. That area was under the control of the magical beasts now, and the Crystal City was quite influential there. The inheritance had to wait until she became strong enough to face those threats. "I would have seized it if the will of the Pit didn''t force me to leave," Noah snorted. Those stories eventually ended with their reunion, and June failed to contain her amazement. Noah had seen a lot during those millennia. He had almost crossed the entire known plane and survived countless threats. Noah also explained the requirements behind the ninth rank, but June was too weak to understand them. She had yet to learn how to deploy a proper domain, but she was on the right path. The Legion didn''t interfere with Noah and his pack. Its leaders turned a deaf ear to his claims about the separate force. They treated him as an independent part of their organization to avoid overthinking the matter. Wilfred, Theodora, and Jordan also acknowledged the power behind Noah''s underlings. Those magical beasts were quite valuable, especially when it came to the Foolery. The pigs didn''t make a great impression at the beginning, but they changed everyone''s mind once they turned entire regions into blue paradises. The whole Legion could only rejoice at those resources. The Balrow family eventually contacted the Legion to reach Noah. They sent an envoy in the seventh rank that discussed the matters concerning Great Builder''s inheritance. The envoy revealed that the Balrow family had gone further in the exploration of the pyramid. That force now had three pieces of the inheritance to offer, so Noah had to renegotiate the terms of their trade. Noah had amassed countless materials and resources during the millennia spent exploring the magical beasts'' domain. He had also seized a mine of Soul Stones with his group, so his finances were more than enough to find a reasonable agreement. Noah''s separate space contained enough wealth to build multiple guilds from scratch. Even some organizations would lust after his resources if they knew how numerous they were. The envoy from the Balrow family pressed Noah to make the preparations for the trade immediately, but he firmly refused. Noah wanted to announce his return to the human domain before handling that matter. Noah wasn''t stupid. The human domain was different from the lands controlled by magical beasts. The Crystal City had managed to capture him during a battle in the Outer Lands. He didn''t dare to imagine what that force could do among allies. The human domain had to fear Noah before he could interact with its forces. He wanted to use the same tactic deployed during the invasion of the Outer Lands, but his target was a large organization at that time. The envoy had to give up on his pleads and leave the Outer Lands, hoping that Noah would eventually prioritize that trade. Of course, Noah didn''t reveal his plans to that cultivator, and the expert didn''t dare to complain. ''I guess it''s time to leave,'' Noah thought after he handled everything. Noah and June had caught up, the pact with the Balrow family still existed, and all his underlings had prepared for the imminent battle. Noah only had to give the order to start a war against the Sailbrird family. The Legion ended up delaying his plans since it requested a meeting. Noah soon found himself in a windy region inhabited only by Theodora, Wilfred, Jordan, and Ian. "I have looked into your mind," Theodora said to start the meeting, "So this development leaves me speechless. Why did you have to build a different force when the Legion was ready to welcome you?" "No reason in particular," Noah replied while shrugging his shoulders. "Existences will keep following me due to the positive effects of my influence anyway. Holding that feature back after the events with the Crystal City was pointless. It was better to embrace it and let my law express its full potential." "Couldn''t you have done that inside the Legion?" Jordan asked. "I did that," Noah replied. "I have never stopped doing that. Didn''t the Legion always lose against the human side before? I arrived and guess what? You won." Noah then pointed at Jordan and Ian. "You two were in the seventh rank before meeting me, but you are pillars of the Legion now. Your organization also lacked manpower, but you have gained many new assets." "Do you want me to believe that this is thanks to you?" Ian asked while wearing a pissed expression. "Do you want to take credit for the countless years spent fighting before you were even born?" "My law can''t help those who don''t want to grow," Noah said while spreading his arms. "I''m only saying that I did something. You can decide how much that''s worth by yourselves. I have a war to run." Noah straightened his position and turned to leave, but Wilfred exploded into a loud laugh and startled him. "We only wanted to confirm your intentions," Wilfred explained. "Hybrids don''t care about organizations anyway. We are allies, so we are good. Now, who are we going to fight?" Chapter 1562: 1562. Memories The Legion''s willingness to join the assault on the Sailbrird family delayed the beginning of the fight. There was far more to organize with the addition of those troops and powerful existences, especially when the plan involved a peculiar transport. "Are you sure that you can make us reach the Sailbrird family?" Noah asked while studying the expert placing countless formations on the ground. "It will be different from the attack on the Crystal City," King Elbas replied without moving his gaze from his work. "I could use the pagoda and your connection with Divine Demon back then. I can only bring us all into the right region this time around." "No surprise effect then," Noah sighed. "You should be grateful that I memorized how the pagoda worked before that brute destroyed it," King Elbas snorted. "I can''t believe how stupid an existence can be to break such a valuable rank 8 item." Noah left King Elbas to his complaints and returned to his cave. His pack lived in that region to benefit from his influence, and only June could go into his training area without announcing herself. June wasn''t in the cave, so Noah resumed his usual training sessions. He had to wait for King Elbas to complete the teleport anyway, so he didn''t mind investing that time to increase his cultivation level. A lump of azure mental energy came out of his mental sea whenever Noah completed one of his sessions. The images stored there were quite interesting, so he often inspected them in the hope of gaining some insight. NovelsToday.com The world in Noah''s vision changed when he inspected that lump of mental energy. His thoughts also morphed as he experienced what Sword Saint had gone through during that event. Storms filled the sky. The number of chaotic laws that filled the sky were so numerous that they could partially cover the white light. It was as if yellowish dust had taken control of those lands. Sword Saint felt unable to expand his consciousness. His senses also suffered in that dangerous environment. The gales of chaotic laws suppressed his sight and hearing, and his aura barely managed to defend his skin. It was clear that an existence in the eighth rank couldn''t survive for long in those lands. The upper tier was the minimum requirement to live inside the stormy regions. Sword Saint could see a mountain-sized figure moving in the distance even if the storms were clouding his senses. That creature carried so much power that even the chaotic laws couldn''t stop its aura from spreading and surrounding his figure. Sword Saint felt as if his body was about to crumble under that pressure. An instinctive fear filled his mind and spread through his existence, and a cold realization also seeped into his thoughts. He had found a rank 9 magical beast! Few words could describe that meeting. Sword Saint had always been proud of his achievements, but his immense power couldn''t do anything against that force. His sword had always been able to cut through everything, but he had finally met a wall that no amount of sharpness could overcome. His law was meaningless. Even his domain was nothing more than energy in front of that power. The storms suddenly stopped raging. The chaotic laws froze in the sky before flowing backward. They converged toward the mountain-sized monster and returned the area to its natural whiteness. Sword Saint could finally lay his eyes on the monster. He saw a massive armadillo standing in the distance and keeping its mouth open. The chaotic laws naturally flew toward the creature''s mouth. The armadillo wasn''t resorting to any technique. That was the amount of pulling force naturally generated by its breathing. Sword Saint knew that the massive magical beast had noticed him. He couldn''t differentiate among the various intensities of the creature''s aura, but his instincts had no doubt. The armadillo had seen him and was purposely ignoring him. The expert didn''t dare to move, but an intense danger soon filled his mind. The armadillo had raised its head after completing its meal, and energy began to gather in its mouth. That energy went through different stages. It first created a large vortex that eventually gave birth to a massive sphere. That mass enlarged until it reached a breaking point that threatened to make all the power accumulated in its structure burst outward. Still, the pulling force generated by the armadillo was too strong. The energy couldn''t leave its grasp, and it soon began to condense into something more threatening. The sphere transformed into a minute black spot that gave birth to an immense gravitational field. Then, even more chaotic laws converged toward that structure and slowly expanded it. The process seemed endless. Sword Saint lost track of the passage of time while he observed the magical beast gathering enough energy to power an entire army of peak rank 8 cultivators. A crack appeared on the singularity when it gathered enough energy. Space bent as the fissure enlarged and spread through the entire black hole. Then, Sword Saint''s vision went dark. He had only been able to sense a massive discharge of energy before his whole existence went numb. His senses eventually began to work again. Sword Saint found himself among storms of chaotic laws, with injuries filling every inch of his body. The environment had only one unusual detail. The chaotic laws dulled his senses, but he could see the sky in the distance divided by an immense black line. The higher plane was stable enough to fix that crack in its fabric in a few seconds, but Sword Saint committed those images to memory. That attack didn''t suit his law, but it expressed the highest form of energy in the entire world. Noah woke up from his vision after Sword Saint''s memories ended. Those scenes always managed to leave him speechless due to the prowess shown by the rank 9 magical beast. Yet, they also made his ambition explode. The power of the armadillo''s innate ability seemed connected to the amount of energy it could gather. Still, it also had a feature that Noah had never dreamt of use. ''My higher energy has taken the shape of a black hole because it was the most stable structure for that amount of power,'' Noah thought while going through Sword Saint''s memories again. ''It''s different with my attacks. Their nature makes them generate singularities, but that''s only one of the possible outcomes.'' Noah knew his attacks and centers of power enough to be sure that he wasn''t expressing his peak potential. His techniques could reach a superior level even without adding more energy. ''Destabilizing a black hole on purpose to gain access to the energy amassed in its insides,'' Noah let his mind wander. ''The issue isn''t gathering enough power. A singularity would normally discharge its might in every direction, thus endangering the caster. I need a method to control the ejection before attempting to evolve my attacks.'' Sword Saint had been true to his word. He knew Noah enough to understand his request and fulfill his needs. He had shown to Noah the nature that his attacks had to obtain to reach the superior level. Chapter 1563: 1563. Attack Every large organization had many branches. Those forces featured multiple rank 8 cultivators who required a personal space where to deploy their influence. It was impossible to find all the important members of an organization gathered in the same place. The situation was even more complex for the weaker cultivators since most of them were busy completing tasks in different areas. Yet, a tense atmosphere filled the Immortal Lands. The victories of the Legion had threatened the frail pace among the various organization. They had brought those forces on the verge of a civil war. Those forces didn''t experience a shortage of territories in millennia. The lack of proper regions where to expand and grow had created a tense political environment ready to blow. The only thing that stopped those organizations from going after each other''s domains was their common enemy. The magical beasts could invade again at any time, which forced the cultivators to do their best to preserve their forces. That desire didn''t stop the organizations from taking precautions. They began to gather countless defenses and assets in their mansions and castles to increase their foundation. It was rare for them to have so many cultivators and wealth in one place. That behavior increased their overall defense, but it also leaked more information to the rest of the world. The spies from the Legion could locate some gathering points of the Sailbrird family in a matter of years. That force mainly occupied large cities that featured multiple organizations, but it had a few mansions in the open. NovelsToday The most popular mansion under the control of the Sailbrird family was inside a mountain chain near Pacourt city, a large town famous for its libraries. Cultivators wearing the emblem of the Sailbrird family often moved between Pacourt city and the mountain chain to handle certain tasks. Anyone could understand that a mansion was hiding in that region. The citizens of Pacourt city were living in peace, without minding the tense atmosphere in the human domain. Cities always had leaders from multiple organizations, so battles never happened there. However, a series of inscriptions suddenly materialized above Pacourt city''s white buildings. The weaker citizens didn''t panic since they saw the rank 8 leaders coming out of their training areas, but the scene that followed gave birth to a wave of chaos. A massive army made of hybrids, cultivators, and magical beasts appeared in the sky and began to inspect their surroundings. They immediately noticed Pacourt city, and loud curses resounded among their ranks. "Why are we above the city?" Wilfred cursed. "I thought you said that we would have ended in the mountain chain!" "Most likely!" King Elbas replied. "It''s impossible to teleport many assets in a precise location without an inscribed item on the other side. If only we still had the pagoda!" "Everyone knows about our attack now," Jordan added in a calm tone. "How do we find the headquarters before reinforcements arrive?" "I know a way," Noah said before shooting toward the mountain chain and summoning Snore. The massive winged snake appeared in the sky and released a torrent of feathers. Those weapons fell on the many mountains and generated an explosion that leveled a large chunk of the region. The attack gave birth to shockwaves that engulfed the army and the city. Duanlong had to appear to protect Noah, and the rank 8 assets in his group deployed their techniques to defend their underlings. The city fended off the raging waves of dark matter with its defenses, and its three rank 8 leaders didn''t divert their attention from the army. They were still dumbstruck by the sudden appearance of those enemies. "My heir!" Divine Demon shouted from among the army once the shockwaves dispersed. "One of them has the right emblem!" "Leave her be," Noah replied. "We don''t have enough time to destroy both defenses. Let''s focus our assault on the mansion." Divine Demon turned toward the city and pointed at the two leaders that didn''t belong to the Sailbrird family. "You two remain here," Divine Demon said before pointing at the woman from the Sailbrird family. "You can come out." Neither of them dared to move. The army counted more than five rank 8 existences, and one of them seemed close to the peak of the gaseous stage. Noah, Divine Demon, Wilfred, Jordan, Ian, King Elbas, and four rank 8 magical beasts had taken control of the sky. "There!" Noah shouted while pointing toward one of the mountains. Noah had studied the mountain chain before and after the explosion. His inspection made him notice an area that had resisted Snore''s feathers without suffering any damage. Night shot out of Noah''s chest while the rest of the army rejoined him. The Pterodactyl soon fused with the world, and a series of inscriptions lit up on some mountains a few instants later. "Attack!" Noah roared before shooting forward. The rest of the army followed Noah, but only Divine Demon, Wilfred, and King Elbas could keep up with his speed. The four experts slammed on the inscriptions while releasing some of their most powerful attacks. Noah slashed the Demonic Sword, launching a singularity covered by a thick layer of liquid dark matter. Wilfred directly punched the inscriptions and generated an earthquake that spread through the entire region. Jordan spat fire, and King Elbas snapped his fingers to create tiny fiery arrows. The attacks made the inscriptions flicker but didn''t destroy them. Yet, King Elbas quickly snapped his fingers again, and those defenses began to crumble. An immense mansion appeared among the destroyed mountain chain while the inscriptions fell apart. The building featured countless cultivators who had already deployed battle formations. Words became useless at that point. Noah''s group charged ahead, and the cultivators from the Sailbrird family activated their second line of defense. A series of towers came out of the ground and began to attack the invaders with corrosive yellow light. That radiance came from rank 8 items in the lower tier and inflicted considerable losses on Noah''s side. "I''ll handle them," Jordan roared before diving directly toward the towers. Countless attacks flew toward her, but Divine Demon promptly appeared on their trajectory. The expert wore a broad smile as he saw those blows altering their course and converging toward his figure. "Who is up for a challenge?!" Divine Demon shouted, and the attacks crumbled. Their energy began to rotate around Divine Demon before transforming into azure energy that served only him. The attacks that followed ended up in the same way. The expert appeared untouchable. "I''ll help," Wilfred said before landing on the ground and slamming his massive arms. A crack opened under his feet and spread through the whole region. The fissure even ran across the mansion and destabilized its foundation, disturbing the concentration of the weaker assets in the defensive formations. Ian howled and accumulated soundwaves through the sky. The hybrid forced those attacks to detonate whenever his opponents'' offensive was about to land on the army. He even slowed down the effects of the annoying towers. Jordan eventually slammed her draconic head on one of the towers and shattered it. Yet, her attack activated a series of inscriptions that converged toward the mansion. A dangerous sensation filled the rank 8 existences on Noah''s side. The roof of the mansion lit up, and a rank 8 aura in the middle tier spread through the sky. The destruction of the tower had activated an inscribed item with unfathomable power. The experts could sense energy amassing in its insides and preparing for an inevitable discharge. Still, a beam made of golden flames landed on the roof before it could release its attack. The item immediately began to lose power, and cracks even spread through its surface. Noah and the other rank 8 existences immediately turned toward King Elbas, who snorted and began to shout toward the mansion. "Don''t you dare to make me waste another disposable weapon in the middle tier!" Chapter 1564: 1564. Brutes Chaos spread through the battlefield. King Elbas'' achievement had made the cultivators of the Sailbrird family aware that their defenses wouldn''t last for long. King Elbas had been clear. No one dared to believe that he was lying. After all, he had destroyed a rank 8 inscribed defense in the middle tier while being in the gaseous stage! A series of figures shot out of the mansion. Three rank 8 cultivators in the gaseous stage quickly appeared in the area that divided the two armies. "What''s the reason behind this attack?" One of the leaders asked. "Don''t pretend to be ignorant," Noah replied while landing next to Wilfred and walking toward the trio. "You have decided to work with the Crystal City, so I will destroy you." "That has been a small issue pursued by a single member of the Sailbrird family," The cultivator complained. "We can give you his head and the right compensation for his actions. There is no need to start a war over such a trivial matter." The cultivator''s words ended up enraging Noah. Roots spread out of his palm and covered his figure as a fiendish armor appeared on his skin. The Demonic Sword even gave voice to a roar to echo Noah''s feelings. "Can''t you see?" Noah said while raising his blade. "War is already here." Noah''s blade descended, and half of the battlefield disappeared. A singularity spread through the enemy army and destroyed cultivators, formations, and inscribed items. The trio couldn''t avoid revealing their real emotions at that sight. Noah had destroyed most of the area in front of the mansion with a single attack. Fear and worry appeared on their faces. A cold realization appeared in the trio''s mind. Their defenses and army couldn''t stop their enemies. The mansion wouldn''t survive the sudden attack. "Give your lives for the Sailbrird family!" One of the leaders shouted. "Fight! Hold them back! Reinforcements are coming!" The remains of the army activated a different battle formation. They performed complex moves while green lines lit up under their feet. One of the leaders descended to join the underlings and began to perform the same moves. The lines then rose in the sky and slowly created a massive giant that wore robes featuring the emblem of the Sailbrird family. Weapons of different kinds appeared on the giant''s arms. A long sword quickly materialized on its right hand, a giant jar formed under its armpit, and a horned helmet covered its head. Protections also appeared on its legs, elbows, neck, and chest. The style of the different pieces of the weapons and armor differed. It seemed that the Sailbrird family had fused multiple battle formations to create that figure. ''Worthy of the organization that holds the monopoly on the libraries,'' Noah thought while inspecting the giant. The massive figure radiated an immense aura that bordered the beginning of the middle tier. It was stabler than Heaven''s manifestation, but its power had similar properties. The giant was a mass of energy arrayed in ways that could generate the different weapons and defenses. Still, it lacked a proper harmony. Any expert in the field could almost see where the various battle formations conflicted. "I''ll take that," King Elbas sighed. "I''ll join!" Divine Demon shouted. "Count me in," Wilfred said while raising in the sky. "How can you two brutes even help?" King Elbas complained. "I''ve already shown you who is better at¡­," Divine Demon snorted, but he interrupted his line mid-way since he couldn''t find a word to describe the giant. "Battle formations," King Elbas sighed and massaged his temples. "Battle formations!" Divine Demon exclaimed. "See? Good teamwork." "I want to see if I''m stronger than that thing," Wilfred added while shrugging his shoulders. King Elbas almost regretted destroying the inscribed roof before it could kill his companions. Yet, the situation worsened even further when he saw that a massive pig had appeared next to Wilfred. "I won''t let you take all the glory on your own!" The rank 8 Foolery exclaimed while raising its head at the sky. "I like this one!" Wilfred said before raising his head too. "I can raise it even more!" Divine Demon shouted while joining the duo. King Elbas reviewed his entire life while inspecting that scene. He wanted to see how he had ended surrounded by so many idiots, but nothing significant came up. "Stop playing around and take it down!" Noah roared from under them. "The other rank 8 magical beasts must also help. The rest of us are enough to take care of the others." More magical beasts joined King Elbas'' group before the giant finished assembling. The battle started immediately, and the whole mansion fell apart under the shockwaves radiated by the exchanges. Noah, Ian, and Jordan were hybrids, so they could ignore the shockwaves weighing on them. The other leaders could also ignore that pressure due to their inscribed robes, but they used that chance to retreat. Their enemies counted ten rank 8 existences. Their mansion didn''t have what it needed to stop the assault after King Elbas destroyed the roof. The massive battle formation was only a method to gain time. Noah''s group would have to retreat once the reinforcements arrived, but he still wanted to inflict as many losses as possible. He planned to fill the human organizations with pure terror. ''King Elbas and Divine Demon are there,'' Noah thought while glancing at the giant. ''I can''t imagine them losing. I can focus on the others.'' Noah glanced at his underlings before teleporting away. He had to check that June and the others could handle the situation before pursuing the two rank 8 cultivators. June, Flying Demon, Dreaming Demon, Daniel, and Faith were doing their best during the battle. Ian''s soundwaves were keeping them safe from the many dangerous shockwaves that filled the battlefield. The group could fight the other underlings and focus on their small battles. Noah reappeared in front of the two escaping cultivators. The duo quickly launched a few attacks, but Noah destroyed them with a wave of his sword. "Don''t think too highly of yourself," One of the leaders said when the singularity devoured her attack. "The Sailbrird family has thrived for eras. We have roots in every city of the human domain. You might win this battle, but you will never destroy us." "You all start talking at this point," Noah sighed while slowly walking through the air toward the duo. "Let''s kill each other. I can''t bear another boring conversation." "Arrogant brat!" The second leader shouted before launching a series of lightning bolts toward Noah. A singularity devoured them again, and the first leader promptly filled the sky with a series of glass-like shards that assaulted Noah. However, he created a hole through that sharp array with a second slash. ''They aren''t putting much energy in their offensive,'' Noah concluded after those exchanges. ''They want to focus on their defense to stall the situation.'' Jordan was flying toward Noah. She would reach him in a matter of seconds. The two cultivators were almost inside the range of her flames. Yet, the world in her eyes suddenly froze, and a tinge of panic spread through her mind. She couldn''t understand the cause of that event, but she calmed down when she saw Noah cutting in half one of the leaders. Chapter 1565: 1565. Satisfaction A single second could mean the difference between life and death in battles featuring rank 8 existences. Even a slight delay in the activation of a defensive technique was enough to kill them. Noah had understood that the two leaders only wanted to buy some time. His current level made him strong enough to defeat most gaseous stage cultivators, but it was hard for him to deal with two of them simultaneously. Overwhelming their defenses while fending off their attacks would lead to a long battle. Noah strongly believed that he could defeat both his opponents at the same time, but he didn''t know if the reinforcements would arrive before the fight ended. Noah only took an instant to make up his mind. He liked to keep his trump cards a secret unless the situation required them, but he had the chance to inflict consistent losses at that time. Supreme Thief''s technique had allowed Noah to seize Shandal''s law. Noah had then transformed that true meaning into a diagram that required darkness, mental energy, and dark matter. The world screamed in pain when Noah activated the spell. His influence seeped into the matter and took control of one of its fundamental laws. Shandal''s law was part of Heaven and Earth''s system. It belonged to those mighty existences, but Noah had transformed that true meaning into a spell that could forcefully put him in charge for a second. The area darkened, and Noah shot forward. Nothing moved in the world, but he knew that the effects of his spell wouldn''t last for long. Still, the roots had already covered the Demonic Sword, which was ready to cut in half one of his opponents. Noah could only perform a simple slash in that time. Any other attack would have required him to gather more energy, and his spell would have ended by then. His physical strength was enough to pierce the defensive items and innate protections. The sharpness of the Demonic Sword also helped, and the corrosive aura around the roots performed an important role too. Noah reached the cultivator who could summon storms of glass-like shards and cut her body in half. His spell ended right after his attack, and time started flowing again. The cultivator cleaved in half was still alive after the attack, but Noah promptly covered her in black flames. The resilience of rank 8 existences was incredible, but she had suffered far too much damage by then. The second leader had watched the whole scene. The time spell didn''t affect his senses. Part of him felt glad that Noah had chosen his companion over him, but that feeling didn''t manage to overcome the terror that filled his mind. "What do you even want?!" The cultivator asked while watching his companion turning into tiny black flames that fused with Noah. "We gave you the chance to complete your vengeance. We were even willing to pay for our mistake. What else can you possibly desire from us?" The cultivator was panicking. He didn''t know how to handle that situation. He wanted to find a way out, but Noah appeared invincible after killing the other leader. Jordan stopped right outside the battlefield. She saw that Noah was in complete control of his fight, so she didn''t want to interrupt his hunt. "What do I want?" Noah asked while taking long steps toward the leader. "I want the human domain to fear me. I want every organization to be too scared to even think about hurting my organization. You are only the first name that has come to my mind." The leader could understand Noah''s view at that point, and it even made sense in his mind. A sense of loss filled the cultivator, but he didn''t let his will to fight vanish. His body transformed into a series of sparks that spread through the sky. The leader had resorted to an evasive maneuver, but Noah could quickly identify the lightning bolt that carried his consciousness. The lightning bolts were almost as fast as Noah, so he took a bit to reach them. Yet, his blade eventually fell on those flying sparks, and the leader reappeared in the sky. The cultivator had lost an arm and a leg after Noah''s attack, but no pain appeared on his expression. Instead, a series of sparks began to accumulate in the area as his domain spread. The sparks soon gave birth to countless lightning bolts that converged toward Noah. Those attacks didn''t even vanish since the leader never stopped filling them with his "Breath". The attack managed to slow Noah down. He felt a violent force landing on his body from every side, but the Demonic Form, the fiendish armor, and his skin prevented it from reaching his insides. Noah also continued to move through the storm. The leader was doing his best to injure him, but he appeared unable to leave a mark on his skin. "How can you be a simple expert in the gaseous stage?!" The leader asked without stopping his attack. "How can you walk through this with your sheer strength?!" Noah wasn''t only relying on his body to defeat that technique. The Demonic Form was giving its corrosive aura, and the liquid dark matter was covering his skin. The parasite alone was enough to multiply Noah''s might. He was adding a rank 8 creature to his power. It was normal for his strength to surpass an average rank 8 existence. The dark matter increased his level even further. His foundation was also far better than any other creature in the world. The leader had to go all-out if he wanted to hope to injure Noah. ''I''m wasting too much time to test my power,'' Noah thought before stopping moving. Duanlong came out of his chest and opened its mouth. Snore also materialized around his figure to give the other Blood Companion enough time to deploy its innate ability. The lightning storm slowly crumbled as its energy converged toward the dragon. Noah could soon shoot toward the leader without meeting any obstruction. The leader performed its evasive maneuver again, but Night cut its actual lightning bolt before he could fly too far. The expert reappeared in the sky, but he lacked another arm at that time. Noah didn''t hesitate to charge ahead again, but the expert promptly unleashed a series of inscribed items. Swords, shiels, disposable weapons, and barriers of various kinds exploded in front of Noah and delayed his victory. Snore, Duanlong, Snore, and Noah quickly dealt with those items, but the expert tried to run away again. Noah had to chase him for an entire region to reach him. The leader was out of methods at that point. His space-ring didn''t have useful resources anymore. His techniques seemed useless against Noah, and he was even slower than his opponent. The hopeless situation didn''t suppress his desire to survive. The cultivator tried to run away again, but Noah acted before his opponent could activate his evasive maneuver. Night destabilized the expert''s technique, and Noah cut off his head. The corpse tried to explode into a wave of lightning bolts to discharge its remaining energy, but Noah suppressed it with his dark matter. When Noah turned, he noticed that Jordan had long since left to help the others. He had successfully defeated two rank 8 cultivators on his own, but that achievement didn''t bring any satisfaction. Chapter 1566: 1566. Sorry ''That was disappointing,'' Noah thought while inspecting the battlefield. His opponents were two rank 8 cultivators belonging to a large organization. They had inscribed robes, defensive items, and disposable weapons, but Noah had defeated them quite easily. ''Am I finally overcoming the gap between stages?'' Noah considered that option. His breakthrough to the eighth rank had evolved his might in ways that Noah had yet to comprehend fully. Moreover, his companions multiplied his power, making him impossible to handle by experts at the same level. ''This usually happened whenever I neared the peak of the stage,'' Noah thought. ''Did it happen sooner now?'' Noah had often fought enemies stronger than him in terms of cultivation level. That had become a habit since he usually generated enough chaos to attract the attention of older existences. Still, the exponential increase of power given by the higher stages and ranks had never allowed Noah to fill those gaps until he approached the breakthroughs. He had always needed to be relatively close to the next level to express a superior power. The situation seemed different now. Noah felt able to defeat any existence in the gaseous stage at ease. Only monsters like Sword Saint could match his power when they suppressed their cultivation level. Snore, Night, Duanlong, the Demonic Sword, the parasite, and the fourth center of power made Noah far more powerful than any other existence at the same stage. The five companions in the eighth rank and the black hole prevented him from being close to the average. Noah also had powerful trump cards. The cursed sword, the Shadow Domain, and the unstable substance made him able to express far more power. He had even added Shandal''s law to his arsenal. The spell had many restrictions and requirements, but it was a powerful ability that could allow Noah to kill his opponents instantly. ''Is this my curse?'' Noah wondered. ''Do I have to keep fighting stronger beings to find struggles? What will happen once I reach the solid stage? Will I have to fight rank 9 creatures?'' Noah didn''t know how to feel about his situation. Part of him felt delighted by the amount of power contained in his existence. His constant struggles and countless experiences had transformed him into the strongest type of living being in the entire higher plane. Instead, another part of Noah felt worried. He had required many rank 8 resources to reach the eighth rank, and his current prowess could only mean that his needs had become steeper. His body didn''t improve by much after devouring the two rank 8 leaders. Those cultivators didn''t even exhaust themselves, so Noah had absorbed most of the energy in their centers of power. Yet, he had gained nothing more than a meager boost. ''I guess it''s time to test my prowess against magical beasts in the middle tier,'' Noah concluded while inspecting the area to seize his opponents'' space-rings. ''I can''t keep going like this. I don''t know if the human domain has enough gaseous stage cultivators to meet my requirements.'' The battle above the destroyed mansion had continued while Noah was busy chasing one of the leaders. King Elbas and the others had to approach the giant carefully due to the sheer power in its fabric. A direct hit could lead to their death. The giant slashed with its sword, cracked whips that grew from its horned helmet, and generated a pulling force through its immense jar. Its armor also provided a decent defense in its most frail spots, so it was handling the battle quite well. On the other hand, King Elbas, Divine Demon, and Wilfred were complete monsters. King Elbas had quickly learnt how to dissolve the giant''s attacks, Divine Demon''s white energy could almost shatter its defenses, and Wilfred made its entire fabric shake with its punches. The trio also had the help of four rank 8 magical beasts. The only problem in their case was to make all of them work together properly. Divine Demon was a madman who didn''t listen to anyone. Wilfred seemed only interested in punching things. The four magical beasts didn''t know much about battle formations, so they limited themselves to unleash their innate abilities in random spots. Only King Elbas had a vague idea of how the battle should proceed, but he had no power over his companions. He could only make the best out of the windows that they created. Wilfred was busy punching the armor on the giant''s chest. The jar was too close to that spot, so the hybrid was the only one who could remain powerful there. The suction force generated by the item made most spells useless, so his punches ended up being quite useful. The magical beasts soon imitated Wilfred, but the giant could deal with them relatively easily. The whips coming out of its horned helmet often landed on their bodies and inflicted severe injuries. Wilfred was too small for those whips. He could change his spot on the giant''s chest whenever an attack was converging on his position. His punches also destabilized its structure and made it miss from time to time. The sword mainly aimed at Divine Demon. His white energy was quite threatening since it had piercing properties that Wilfred''s punches lacked. Divine Demon could handle those attacks easily. The sword was slower than him, and King Elbas weakened those blows even further. However, Divine Demon liked challenges. Having Wilfred, King Elbas, and the four rank 8 magical beasts made it too easy for Divine Demon. The expert wanted to put himself in danger, so he purposely entered the range of the jar at some point. The pulling force generated by the weapon deprived Divine Demon of the energy accumulated around his figure, leaving him with nothing more than his actual cultivation level. The jar became too strong to fend off at that point. Divine Demon was powerful, but the weapon didn''t let him escape. It also countered some of the effects of his laws. Divine Demon never stopped smiling while the jar pulled him toward its dark entrance. The weapon only needed a matter of seconds to swallow him, but he didn''t care. Divine Demon seemed about to find a way out of that situation. The pulling force weakened as the jar started to malfunction under his influence. Yet, King Elbas suddenly snapped his fingers and turned the weapon into dust. "I''m sorry you couldn''t win your challenge in time," King Elbas commented in a plain tone before moving his attention elsewhere. The destruction of the jar allowed long-range attacks, so the battle became far safer. Only Wilfred and the magical beasts continued to bump on the giant''s chest while King Elbas and Divine Demon showered the battle formation with a series of spells. King Elbas eventually snapped his fingers again, and the crown turned into dust. That powder began to converge toward his figure, but Divine Demon promptly attracted it and altered its nature. "I''m sorry you couldn''t collect your precious materials," Divine Demon said before exploding into a laugh and resuming his offensive. King Elbas turned the giant into dust piece by piece. Wilfred could soon focus on frail areas that destabilized its whole structure while Divine Demon limited himself to fill the battle formation with holes. The giant began to fall apart, revealing all the cultivators involved in the battle formation. Most of them had suffered injuries, but King Elbas and the others didn''t go easy on them anyway. The attack on the mansion of the Sailbrird family soon ended. Noah''s army gathered all the space-rings and debris of the structure before setting a line of defense. King Elbas needed time to recreate the teleport, so Noah and the others had to protect him if the reinforcements arrived. Chapter 1567: 1567. Plan "How long do you need?" Noah asked King Elbas. "Half a day," King Elbas replied without stopping placing formations on the destroyed ground. "According to my calculations, the reinforcements will arrive when I reach the last stages of the inscription." Noah didn''t disturb King Elbas anymore at that point. His army had already secured the perimeter, and each rank 8 existence was in charge of large platoons. They only had to wait for their opponents now. No one dared to speak. That was the tensest moment of the mission. Success in defending King Elbas would lead them home safely. Failure would keep them stuck in those foreign regions. Divine cultivators, hybrids, and magical beasts could spend those hours in a fraction of a training session. That time was nothing more than seconds in their minds. Yet, it felt like an eternity in that situation. "They are here," Noah whispered at some point, and his words spread through the whole army. Wilfred and the other hybrids sensed their opponents immediately after. The other rank 8 existences also became aware of their enemies in the next seconds. The Legion had attacked a mansion near a large city. The organizations nearby didn''t take much to hear that distress call and prepare an army to fend off those invaders. Multiple rank 8 auras spread through the regions. Mental waves flew toward Noah''s army to inspect the situation, but a powerful force fended them off. "Magical beasts behind," Noah roared, "Cultivators in front of them. The hybrids will handle the frontlines!" That was a reminder of the plan that they had prepared before. Noah wanted to contain the casualties on his side, so he was willing to send only those who had a higher chance to survive in the frontlines. The magical beasts were an exception. Their incredible resilience made them formidable opponents, but they were too easy to handle by an army made of experienced cultivators. The enemy army soon appeared in the distance. Six rank 8 auras towered among the massive group of cultivators, but they weren''t the strongest existences there. A heavy pressure suddenly spread through the region and threatened to suffocate Noah''s army. That energy seemed able to carry a weight that pressed on all the existences in the area. Noah and the other rank 8 existences unfolded their domains to fend off that pressure and defend their underlings. The laws in the world went crazy as those different true meanings took control of the area and merged to create a multicolored halo. ''They have a liquid stage cultivator,'' Noah thought after the domains fended back the heavy aura. Noah didn''t need to warn his companions about that powerful expert. The other rank 8 existences had realized that as soon as they felt that pressure on their centers of power. "Change of plans," Noah roared while turning toward Wilfred. "Are you up for a fight against that monster?" "Of course," Wilfred snorted. "My hands have been itching since the battle with the giant. Will you give the order?" Wilfred had understood the meaning hidden inside Noah''s roar. Defending wasn''t an option anymore. They couldn''t hold their position against an opponent capable of such heavy might. "Elbas, we''ll leave you alone for a while!" Noah shouted. "Can you handle this on your own?" "Who do you think I am?" King Elbas replied as a series of golden flames appeared around his inscriptions. "I have never planned to rely on you." The golden flames transformed into different magical beasts. A phoenix, a nine-headed hydra, a three-headed dog, and other peculiar fiery creatures appeared around the formations. "We aren''t defenders anyway," Noah sighed while turning toward Wilfred, who limited himself to nod. "Charge ahead!" Noah roared, and a wave of black flames shot out of his mouth to create a trail of darkness through the sky. Roars and battle cries filled the sky as Noah and the others broke their formation and shot forward. Their opponents didn''t expect such a sudden development. They believed that their enemies would turtle up and exploit their favorable position. The reinforcements wore robes featuring different emblems. Noah recognized only the Sailbrird family and the Monneay family. The others belonged to organizations that he had never seen before. The cultivator in the liquid stage belonged to the Sailbrird family. She wore an expression that radiated pure anger, and her aura spread that emotion through the world. The ground shook and shattered wherever her pressure landed. Even the air couldn''t endure the power shooting out of her figure. A cold smile appeared on the leader''s face when she saw Noah and the others charging ahead. Her hand rose to point at the duo in the frontlines, and the world condensed under her attack. The space in front of Noah and Wilfred twisted. They felt heavy, and a series of cuts opened on their skin. The mere influence of the leader was enough to injure them. ''This is how it should be!'' Noah shouted in his mind before going all-out. The dark world expanded, and his companions appeared in the open. Duanlong and Snore focused on the heavy pressure that separated Noah and Wilfred from the leader, while Night inspected the environment in an attempt to understand her law. Massive black feathers flew toward the twisted space, but they detonated before they could reach its center. The violent dark matter even struggled to expand due to the weight applied to its fabric. Duanlong tried to help, but its suction force didn''t appear able to affect that twisted space. Every attack that entered its area escaped the companions'' control. Wilfred promptly punched the air, and a low noise spread through the sky. It was as if something had exploded, but the area didn''t carry any trace of his attack. ''She can condense the laws in the world,'' Night transmitted through the mental connection. ''It resembles a whirlpool capable of amassing every true meaning in the region. She is powerful.'' ''I can see that,'' Noah replied before placing his right hand on his chest. The army was behind him. Noah couldn''t slow down after ordering a full offensive, and the same went for Wilfred. The duo had to press forward, but the pressure on their centers of power intensified in the process. Their companions were in the same situation, but they were leaving the matter to them. Noah and Wilfred expressed the peak of the hybrids'' physical prowess. They were the only ones capable of finding a solution without interrupting their charge. Noah didn''t hesitate to draw the cursed sword in that tense moment. Unfortunately, he didn''t have the time to study his opponent and test how far his base strength could push him. The twisted space had to fall now. An intense bloodlust spread through the sky. Noah tried to redirect his violent thoughts forward, but some of them managed to seep into his army. The existences affected by his bloodlust ended up entering into a frenzy. Drool even came out of their mouth since they could only think about killing the enemies in the distance. Noah disregarded his negative influence on his army and performed a slash that featured both swords. His dark matter covered his weapons before he could launch his attack, and the dark world enhanced his destructive properties. A crack suddenly opened through the sky. The edges of that fissures were hard to recognize since they divided the normal space with that affected by the leader. Still, Noah and the others could see that a path had formed, and they didn''t hesitate to press ahead. Chapter 1568: 1568. Joint attack The drawbacks of the cursed sword had blown Noah''s chest off, but the black hole kept his organ in place. It created a layer of armor to replace the missing pieces of skin before generating the draconic figure. Four additional arms grew on Noah''s draconic torso, but he didn''t dare to replicate the cursed sword at his current level. He only copied the Demonic Sword and let the roots handle the empty hands. The army moved through the twisted space. Noah''s attack had opened a safe path, and the experts didn''t hesitate to run inside it. "You must be crazy to enter my domain," The leader said when she looked at the army entering the twisted space. "Let me reduce you to a pulp." The twisted space began to condense even more. Noah saw invisible walls closing on him and shrinking the safe passage. The domains that had filled that area couldn''t do anything to stop the event. Noah quickly placed his swords on his draconic forehead, Divine Demon summoned all the energy that he could gather, and Wilfred''s muscled bulged until his veins exploded. Ian gave voice to countless howls that gathered in his mouth and didn''t spread through the world. At last, Jordan condensed the air inside the tunnel to fight the twisted space back. The joint power of the five existences turned the whole area into a mess of attacks and lights. Massive singularities appeared among the twisted space, soundwaves destroyed every law in the environment, and white light mended the tunnel. Wilfred''s punches gave birth to explosions, and the air itself began to fight for Noah''s army. The rank 7 existences in the area were witnessing the full might of their leaders. Still, their centers of power suffered among that destruction. The magical beasts took care of defending the underlings. They used their bodies to absorb the shockwaves that tried to land on the army. They acted as meat shields and spat mouthfuls of blood due to the damage suffered during the attack. The leader of the enemy army remained surprised. She saw her twisted space crumbling under that joint attack. Those five existences in the gaseous had managed to defeat her technique! The expert felt that her pride had suffered a huge blow. She was a mighty expert in the liquid stage. She wasn''t an existence that those enemies should be able to oppose. Yet, Noah and the others reached the enemy army. Many had suffered injuries and had depleted a lot of energy, but they had succeeded in overcoming the attack. Noah and Wilfred immediately shot toward the leader while the rest of the army dispersed to engage in multiple battles. Their arrival interrupted the cultivators preparing formations and items meant for the assault on King Elbas. Chaos quickly spread. Divine Demon tried to take out the enemy underlings with a wave of his white light, but a rank 8 cultivator stepped forward and detonated the partial defenses to block the attack. Jordan tried to do the same, but a second rank 8 cultivator stepped forward to fight her. Ian also used his soundwaves to target the underlings, but another rank 8 existence interrupted his offensive. The only beings that could break into the enemy army were the magical beasts. They endured the attacks landing on their bodies and raged among the underlings. Some of the other rank 8 cultivators joined their forces to isolate the destruction created by the magical beasts. Still, they couldn''t do much now that they were already inside the army. The rank 7 existences in Noah''s army could exploit the destruction generated by the magical beasts to inflict a second wave of losses, but a rank 8 opponent soon stopped them. Noah and Wilfred had it far harder than their companions. Twisted space surrounded the enemy leader and made it almost impossible for the duo to reach her. Noah had lost his legs after his previous attack, but his flames had quickly covered the enemy army and had gathered enough energy to fix his body. The bloodlust filling Noah''s mind was threatening to make him go crazy, but he couldn''t stop using the cursed sword. The situation didn''t allow him to waste time. Noah waved his six arms and created a tunnel through the expanding distorted space. The leader''s technique seemed unable to stop him when he used the cursed sword. Wilfred could use that path to send his physical strength directly to the leader. The leader saw attacks coming in her direction. Wilfred was able to transform his physical attacks into shockwaves that flew through the sky. The expert had to activate her defenses for fear that her body would shatter under that might. The space twisted above her figure and blocked Wilfred''s long-range punches, but the defense tore chunks of her skin apart. The leader''s ability had clear drawbacks, but it allowed her to remain in one piece. ''Can we even win?'' Noah wondered while suppressing his violent thoughts. It had taken Noah two attacks with the cursed sword to destroy the previous technique. He had needed a third slash to pierce the expert''s innate defenses. His black flames were keeping him alive, but his mind was already about to give in to his bloodlust. ''Elbas needs more time,'' Noah thought before storing the cursed sword and creating more roots on his empty hand. A storm of singularities quickly shot out of his blades. The attacks pierced the twisted space, but they remained stuck in its density. They didn''t even cross half of that area. "Enough playing around," The leader said while inspecting her injuries. "You have managed to hurt me, Gloria Sailbrird. You can die happily." Her aura suddenly burst out of her figure and spread her pressure. Countless rank 7 existences died when her law filled every corner of the region. Her offensive didn''t even spare her underlings. Noah and Wilfred''s bodies became heavy again. Their centers of power raged in pain under the suppression, and Noah soon drew the cursed sword to get rid of those restraints. "Not so fast," Gloria exclaimed while joining her hand. The pressure suddenly intensified. Noah felt unable to move and perform his techniques in that area. Even Wilfred seemed to struggle against that power. Noah''s mouth slowly opened before a roar came out of his mouth. His cry gave birth to a soundwave that destroyed a small part of the twisted space and gave Noah enough room to move. Black vessels popped out of his skin as the unstable substance flew through them. Noah converged most of that power toward his draconic arms and performed the strongest slash that he was capable of. Gloria watched the draconic figure pulling back its arms before thrusting them forward. An intense sensation of danger filled her mind and forced her to reactivate the protection around her skin. The six arms gave birth to a straight singularity that cut through the twisted space and reached Gloria. The attack even pierced her defenses and landed on her sky before depleting its power. Gloria didn''t suffer many injuries. A series of shallow cuts appeared on her hands and face, but she quickly healed them with her energy. Noah''s efforts appeared useless, but Wilfred didn''t let his suffering go to waste. The last attack had forced Gloria to divert her attention for an instant, and that had been enough for Wilfred. The hybrid neared Noah and threw a punch through the tunnel that he created. The attacks ran through the safe path and landed on Gloria right after Noah''s thrust. The lack of new defenses allowed the punches to land on Gloria''s body. Her left shoulder exploded and took away a large chunk of her chest. Chapter 1569: 1569. Retrea Gloria had the aspect of a youthful woman. She had long blonde hair and green eyes, and her face had delicate features. However, the leader''s face had twisted into an unsightly expression. Her hatred toward her enemies had overcome her rage and had started to overflow. Flares of energy shot out of her figure and cut the battlefield. Gloria appeared out of control. Her existence was attacking both friends and foes without caring about their cultivation level. Gloria''s existence was aflame. The whole sky seemed about to fall on the battlefield. The laws in the area condensed and shot toward her figure, applying pressure on every existence in her range. "Did we break her?" Wilfred asked while veins burst on his bulging muscles. ''Is she crazy?'' Noah wondered while relying on the unstable substance to fend off the pressure landing on his body. Cultivators, magical beasts, and hybrids died whenever a flare cut the battlefield. Gloria''s kill count had surpassed five hundred in a few seconds and kept increasing with every discharge of energy. ''We can''t fight in these conditions,'' Noah concluded before giving voice to a roar that managed to seep through the twisted space closing on the battlefield. Everyone could understand the meaning behind his cry. The cultivators in his army even heard a translation into human words in their minds. Noah had ordered a full retreat. He had expected to lose many underlings during the attack, but remaining near Gloria could lead to the destruction of his army. Everyone except the rank 8 existences started to retreat. Noah and the other experts were the only ones who could prevent their opponents from chasing their underlings, so they had to be the last to leave. The cultivators in Gloria''s army didn''t have any intention to chase their enemies. The flares of energy were too dangerous for them, and some of the weaker leaders even called for a retreat. "Where do you think you are going?!" Gloria shouted while glaring at her opponents. Her eyes moved between Noah and Wilfred. Her whole hatred came from those two hybrids, and a flare soon shot out of her figure to fly toward them. "Go!" Noah roared, but Wilfred remained behind. Divine Demon imitated him while the others left to escort the rest of the army away. The three experts promptly launched their strongest attacks to fend off that flare, but the exchange didn''t go as planned. Wilfred''s long-distance punches exploded before reaching the flare. The aura carried by that dense energy destabilized the attack and made it waste its power. Something similar happened to Divine Demon''s white energy. The expert had gathered that mass of higher energy into a beam, but his attack ended up falling apart before reaching the flare. Only Noah''s slash could clash with the flare. A singularity opened at its center and cut its structure, but its remaining energy continued to fly toward the trio and eventually engulfed them. Noah and the others felt as if their bodies were going to implode. Their skin caved in, and their bones released screeching noises as that pressure forced them to condense. ''Give me more!'' Noah shouted in his mind before letting the Demonic Form absorb a massive amount of energy. The parasite''s corrosive aura began to fend off that pressure. Noah soon managed to free himself from that energy and could focus on his companions. Wilfred was doing his best to endure the attack. His physical prowess was far above normal hybrids, so he could protect his centers of power for a while. The situation was far different for Divine Demon. Noah saw his limbs transforming into a pulp. Gloria''s flare didn''t kill him on the spot because the expert had gathered all his energy around his important organs. Yet, his defenses were about to give in to the pressure. Noah promptly grabbed Divine Demon and threw him toward the rest of his army. The expert suffered a few injuries during the flight due to the immense strength used by Noah, but that also helped to fend off Gloria''s ended. The roots then spread to cover Wilfred. The hybrid suffered a few injuries, but he quickly recovered once the corrosive aura helped him get rid of Gloria''s energy. "You come in here and decide to attack organizations that have lasted for eras!" Gloria shouted as another flare shot toward the duo. "You have no idea how strong we are. You don''t know what kind of forces you have decided to fight." Noah placed a hand on Wilfred''s shoulder, and they disappeared before the flare could hit them. Then, they reappeared a few kilometers away in the direction of their army. "What was-," Wilfred began to ask, but Noah threw him before he could complete his question. Noah had to rely on the Shadow Domain to dodge the flare, and carrying Wilfred with him had almost depleted his stash of special darkness. ''Come closer,'' Noah thought while watching Gloria walking through the air between them. "Do you think I don''t know about your dimensional ability?" Gloria asked as an ugly grin appeared on her face. "Come on! Show me what Defying Demon can do!" ''It seems that I''m quite popular in the human domain,'' Noah thought while taking a few steps back. Gloria didn''t hesitate to walk toward Noah, and she even accelerated. Another flare eventually shot out of her figure, and Noah quickly teleported away to resume his retreat. Noah''s attention remained on the piece of the sky behind him. Once Gloria reached a specific spot, Noah activated the Shadow Domain and teleported what it contained around her. Gloria suddenly found thousands of spiked spheres around her. Noah''s rank 8 Instabilities filled the sky and threatened to detonate as soon as she moved. Of course, Noah didn''t put any condition on those disposable weapons. He had already activated them, and they would explode in the following instant. Noah flew as fast as he could. A series of detonations and a massive storm had appeared in the sky. The waves of power radiated by the explosions threatened to reach him, but his experience with Snore''s feathers had taught him how to avoid them in time. Those who had retreated before Noah and the others reached King Elbas and waited for him to finish the matrix. Frantic expressions filled their face, but they didn''t dare say a word to let the expert concentrate. Noah wasn''t as polite as them. He began to shout as soon as he rejoined his army. "How long, Elbas?" "I need to finish the detail," King Elbas replied. "This is the moment when I decided whether to reappear in one or many pieces." "Send your puppets forward," Noah ordered before crossing his legs and sitting right outside his formation. "I believe she is alive and angry." Gloria proved Noah to be right since the storm of spikes soon began to amass into a small metal orb. Some of the shockwaves even started to flow back to condense near her figure. King Elbas ordered his puppets to gain some time. They were his powerful creations, but even they couldn''t do anything against Gloria. She could destroy them with a single attack. The puppets detonated before dying and made King Elbas gain a bit more time. All the existences in Noah''s army began to attack Gloria at that point. They unleashed their strongest attacks in the hope of delaying her advance. Yet, nothing seemed able to stop her. Gloria''s power was useful both in attack and defense. She was invincible in that situation. Gloria reached the enemy army and raised her remaining arm, but a golden light quickly covered the area. It took less than an instant, but Noah and the others saw a different scenery when the radiance generated by the teleport ran out. Chapter 1570: 1570. Loo Familiar lands appeared in Noah''s vision. King Elbas'' formation had worked, even if it had teleported the army slightly deeper into the Outer Lands. Noah expanded his consciousness to study his army. The attack on the Sailbrird family had been a huge success, but his underlings had paid a hefty price. The four rank 8 magical beasts had suffered severe injuries. They would need years to heal, and some of them might even need to hibernate to fix their body completely. Divine Demon''s condition was even worse, and his species didn''t help his situation. He had lost his limbs, and his internal organs had suffered a lot. Only his centers of power were almost entirely fine, which hinted at a quick recovery. Ian and Jordan were ok. Wilfred had suffered a bit, but his condition wasn''t bad. All the rank 8 existences in Noah''s army would eventually recover, so his group didn''t lose any valuable asset. The situation wasn''t as good for the underlings. The rank 8 existences in Noah''s army had tried to shield them from the shockwaves generated by their battles, but there was a limit to how much they could do. Many rank 7 existences had died during the last confrontation and Gloria''s chaotic outburst. Almost everyone who survived had suffered severe injuries, and some even found themselves with destroyed centers of power. Noah knew that those losses were inevitable. His decision to face Gloria head-on had even limited that number and saved many lives. Still, that wasn''t enough for him. ''I can''t do much more,'' Noah thought while inspecting his army. ''They have to overcome these difficulties by themselves. This skimming process is necessary. I will only recreate the pampered environment of the large organizations otherwise.'' Noah raised his eyes toward the sky. The cultivation journey was ruthless, and even his power couldn''t affect that feature. He could only make sure that his underlings benefitted from his ambition as much as possible, but the rest had to come from them. ''At least June and the others are fine,'' Noah sighed before covering the entire army with his dark world. The dark world gained nourishing properties that accelerated the healing process of every existence affected by its currents. Noah couldn''t do much for the rank 8 cultivators and hybrids, but the others benefitted from his technique. The army soon set off to return to the Legion''s headquarters. Blue lands eventually filled their vision and marked the beginning of their domain. The Foolery and the other magical beasts reunited with the rest of the pack. The hybrids returned to their cities, and the cultivators created caves where to recover. Noah returned to his cave at the center of the lands filled with blue bushes, but June didn''t come with him. She had to prioritize the well-being of her centers of power, and long seclusions often followed such intense battles. ''What can I do now?'' Noah wondered while reviewing the battle in his mind. Gloria Sailbrird was a monster, but Noah could fight her techniques back when he activated his trump cards. Yet, he didn''t know whether going all-out would have allowed him to defeat her. ''Too strong for average gaseous stage existences, and too weak for those in the liquid stage,'' Noah concluded. ''Do I need to plunder every mansion and city in the human domain to push my battle prowess even further?'' The army had gained many resources after the attack. The Sailbrird family was famous for its libraries, so the amount of knowledge and wealth contained in its mansion was incredible. A meeting would come after every rank 8 existence recovered. Noah and the others had to inspect those resources and decide how to deploy them. Noah hoped to find something valuable, but he didn''t let his expectation go out of control. It was hard to obtain helpful techniques or new weapons at his level. The best he could hope for was to gain a few ideas on how to improve without relying on external abilities. The meeting eventually happened, and Noah found that his low expectations were on point. The amount of wealth seized in the attack was immense. Piles of Soul Stones and valuable materials had filled the mansion and the cultivators'' space-rings, but their inventory didn''t have techniques that Noah found worthy of his time. Noah''s standards were spectacularly high. His current techniques came for rank 9 existences or geniuses. Moreover, his abilities were often better than those seized in the attack since he had spent a long time polishing them. The most valuable aspect of the loot was the copy of the knowledge stored inside the libraries. The Legion and the other rank 8 existences could learn a lot from those notes and books, especially when it came to the complex political environment of the human domain. Noah focused only on the notes that involved appealing resources or peculiar creatures. He didn''t care about the political side of the human domain since he believed that the last attack had turned every organization into enemies. ''I guess it''s time to get my hands on the rest of Great Builder''s inheritance,'' Noah concluded once the leaders finished sorting through the resources. ''I need to improve the workshop. My experiments with the rank 8 creatures aren''t going anywhere.'' Noah was a rank 8 existence now. His dark matter had evolved and improved all the techniques connected to its power. In theory, the workshop was able to mass-produce rank 8 creatures now. Noah had enough knowledge in the magical beasts'' field to know how to recreate a rank 8 magical beast, but his products didn''t meet his expectations. Noah had tested that procedure with multiple blueprints. He had tried to create simple and complex magical beasts through the workshop, but his products barely met the minimum requirements to be proper rank 8 beings. Adding fake cores to those creations didn''t help. Noah had wasted many valuable resources to create fake centers of power that could fuel those creatures, but he only managed to obtain a slight improvement in their structure. Creating those magical beasts also required a lot of time, making the technique unsuited for battles against existences in the eighth rank. Noah had tried to smoothen the procedure, but he didn''t obtain great results. His failures led Noah to a simple conclusion. His expertise made him sure that the issue wasn''t in his knowledge or tests. He lacked important information about the superior levels of the workshop. ''The second and third pieces of the inheritance shouldn''t help me much,'' Noah thought while contacting a few experts, ''But the fourth should finally explain to me how to turn the workshop into a valuable asset again.'' The sole idea of becoming able to mass-produce rank 8 beings during a battle made Noah''s ambition skyrocket. He could gain the power to take on an entire organization by himself if he managed to get his hands on that technique. Yet, Noah didn''t trust the Balrow family enough to fly toward its domain without planning a way out. Saul Balrow seemed trustworthy, but he was only a rank 7 asset in his organization. He didn''t hold enough authority to reassure Noah. ''I guess I need to rely on that guy,'' Noah sighed before his inscribed notebook rang. "What do you want?" King Elbas'' voice resounded in Noah''s mind. "I need you to accompany me in a meeting with the Balrow family," Noah replied. "What do I gain out of it?" King Elbas asked. "I have an entire library to browse here since I''m not a brute interested only in improving my battle prowess." Noah hesitated a bit before sending an answer that he knew would appeal to King Elbas'' curiosity. "What do you know about the ninth rank?" Chapter 1571: 1571. Feeling Noah, King Elbas, Wilfred, and Jordan met in Noah''s cave to discuss the meeting with the Balrow family. The experts had decided to accompany Noah to the meeting for different reasons. King Elbas would obtain the secret behind the path to the ninth rank, while the hybrids wanted to trade part of the resources seized during the assault to the Sailbrird family. Moreover, they shared Noah''s worries. The human domain had labeled the Legion as one of its worst enemies after the attack. Noah had even become one of the most wanted existences in the entire Immortal Lands after his recent achievements. The spies of the Legion had learnt that many organizations had agreed on placing a bounty on Noah''s head. They offered enough Soul Stones to build large forces from scratch. "Try to teleport us into a secret location this time," Noah said during the meeting. "I''d rather spend some time in the wilderness to set a way back home. I have a bad feeling about this." "It''s easier with just the four of us," King Elbas replied. "Are you sure that we can''t ask the Balrow family to place a beacon for us?" "The less they know, the safer we''ll be," Noah replied. "I believe things won''t go smoothly." "I have started to feel the same since I agreed to join the meeting," Wilfred added. "Me too," Jordan said. "Still, it''s strange. Our spies have confirmed that the attack on the Sailbrird family has worked as intended. I don''t understand who can attempt to our life." "Maybe the Balrow family wants to ambush us," King Elbas replied. "I''m also experiencing the same feeling, but I don''t seem able to divine the nature of the threat." The four of them were rank 8 existences. The hybrids had superior awareness, but even King Elbas'' senses could feel when danger was approaching. The group was almost sure that something big would happen soon, and the closest event was the meeting with the Balrow family. It was only normal for them to connect the two. "This is strange," Noah explained. "An ambush shouldn''t make all of us feel like this. I bet it''s something deeper, maybe even connected with the higher plane." Noah had felt something similar during the invasion of the winged beasts. It was as if the world itself was about to bring some danger, but he couldn''t explain how that could happen in the middle of the human domain. ''Another invasion?'' Noah wondered before sending his mental waves toward the sky. ''Don''t tell me that I have to watch out for meteorites here.'' The conversation didn''t bring any solution. The experts had only understood that they would be in danger if they went to the meeting. Noah instantly stated his position. He would go to the meeting anyway since he needed to improve the workshop. The others didn''t hide their hesitation, but King Elbas eventually gave in. He wouldn''t shy away from a dangerous situation. He actually desired it. Wilfred and Jordan also agreed to come at some point. They had nothing to do among those regions, and Wilfred even had to accumulate experience for the breakthrough to the liquid stage. As for Jordan, she justified her decision by mentioning her cultivation level. Yet, the truth was that she wanted to keep an eye on Noah since he was too valuable for the Legion. Once the four of them made their mind, King Elbas began to work on the teleport while the others prepared for the foreshadowed crisis. Of course, they couldn''t do much in that short time, but adding a few training sessions to their cultivation level never hurt. The group completed their preparations in a few years. Noah and the others didn''t need much, but King Elbas wanted to sort his inscribed items after completing the formation. The four of them eventually left and reappeared at the base of a tall mountain. King Elbas had purposely chosen coordinates a few kilometers away from those sent by the Balrow family, so they appeared in wild regions. The knowledge retrieved by the Sailbrird family had taught them where the Balrow family had built some of their mansion. The group knew where they had to go even without following the coordinates, but they decided to explore the wilderness before approaching the meeting. The area featured a few packs of magical beasts, but Noah''s group could submit all of them. The Balrow family performed sporadic clearing operations to keep the fauna in check, so they didn''t meet any creature in the middle tier. King Elbas made sure that the area didn''t feature any sensor or inscription meant to locate eventual invaders. Thus, Noah and the others could safely settle in an isolated area and build a few defenses. Jordan and Wilfred couldn''t do much in that situation, but King Elbas and Noah unleashed their whole expertise in the inscription field. Noah''s traps weren''t as sophisticated as King Elbas'', but they served their purpose, especially since they managed to hide his companion''s defenses. King Elbas began to prepare the teleport after the defenses were in place. He didn''t destroy the formation in the Outer Lands, so he could quickly connect the two. It took him only a few months to complete that inscription. "I guess it''s time to go," Noah sighed once King Elbas completed his task. His group had created a base in the middle of the domain of the Balrow family. They had even submitted the magical beasts in the area. They had reinforcements and an escape route ready. Noah and the others quickly flew toward the coordinates sent by the Balrow family. Their eyes could soon see a platoon made by two rank 8 cultivators in the gaseous stage and a series of rank 7 existences in that location. One of the rank 7 existences stepped forward when Noah''s group landed in front of the small army. Noah recognized Saul Balrow and noticed that his cultivation level didn''t increase by much. "Did you spend these millennia inscribing stuff?" Noah teased Saul. "I actually did that," Saul happily replied. "There is too much to study from Great Builder''s inheritance, and new talents land on my door every day. I''m not in a hurry to reach the eighth rank, so why bother spending so much time cultivating?" "I can''t relate," Noah sighed, ending the discussion and focusing on the rest of the cultivators. The underlings tried to maintain cold expressions, but fear appeared in their eyes whenever Noah inspected them. Even the two rank 8 cultivators seemed worried that the trade could end tragically. ''They don''t appear as the types to plan an ambush,'' Noah concluded in his mind before taking a few steps forward. The two rank 8 existences also stepped forward and quickly took out a few praying mats from their space-rings. They even gestured to Noah''s companions to join him, but they preferred to remain in the backlines. "I''d rather keep this conversation private," Noah explained. "Don''t worry about them." Of course, King Elbas and the others didn''t sit because they wanted to inspect the situation from a better position. Noah had never treated the topic of the meeting as a secret. The two rank 8 cultivators filled the praying mats with wine and delicacies before revealing their names. The old-looking man with short white hair and a long beard was Irvin Balrow, while the middle-aged woman with long brown hair was Pearl Balrow. "It''s an honor to meet Defying Demon," Irvin announced. "The Balrow family has gained a lot from your discovery in Great Builder''s inheritance. I don''t understand why the whole human domain is so bent on taking you down." "Grudges are hard to quench," Noah replied in a cold tone while filling a cup. "Most organizations have been in power for so long that they have forgotten how to accept a loss." "We were happy to discover that your enmity with the Crystal City didn''t ruin our relationship," Pearl continued. "We can''t use Great Builder''s inheritance properly since we don''t know how to create a few core items." "You mean this, right?" Noah asked while taking a fake core from his separate space. Chapter 1572: 1572. Crisis Pure greed appeared in Irvin, Pearl, and Saul''s expressions. They were clearly interested in the small black sphere in Noah''s palm. "I never thought it would be like this," Pearl said while nearing the fake core to inspect it better. "We had predicted that the cores would have an oval shape." "I modified the original product with my knowledge in centers of power," Noah explained. "It''s not my first time replicating a dantian." The experts from the Balrow family remained speechless. They knew that Noah was a talented inscription master, but they didn''t expect his expertise to go so deep into the anatomy of cultivators. A chill ran down their spine at that discovery. Noah had already shown the results of his tests with magical beasts and weapons to the Balrow family. Yet, he had now explained that his experiments had also featured humans. The trio didn''t know what to think. Noah wasn''t only incredibly talented as a warrior. He was even a great inscription master who didn''t care about ethics when conducting his experiments. Of course, those thoughts went by in an instant, and their fear didn''t last long on their expression. The experts quickly suppressed those emotions and wore their polite, smiling faces again. "You overcame the lack of the other pieces of the inheritance with your expertise then," Pearl commented. "Quite commendable. I would like to discuss the possibility of tighter cooperation with you in the future." "We can discuss future trades after the situation in the human domain calms down," Noah replied without showing any emotion. "Can we ask about your position toward the human domain?" Saul asked, and the two rank 8 existences lowered their gaze. It seemed that they had planned to ask that question. It wouldn''t make sense for the weakest among them to tread on that difficult topic. "I don''t care about politics," Noah replied honestly without bothering to stop drinking. "I simply believe that my enemies shouldn''t be alive." A hint of coldness spread from Noah''s figure. His aura carried his emotions and told the trio how serious he was about his words. Saul and the others couldn''t help but tremble again. The recent attack on the Sailbrird family had told the trio that Noah had a vague definition of "enemy". He could punish an entire organization for the wrongdoing of a single asset. "Let''s start the trade," Noah eventually said. "This is still an enemy territory in the end. I don''t want to remain here for too long." The trio quickly accepted, and Noah studied their reactions from behind his cup. They didn''t show any guilt nor killing intent. They appeared completely honest. ''What is this sensation about then?!'' Noah cursed in his mind, but the trio quickly claimed his attention. Pearl had taken out three thick books from her space-ring. They were old, but they had a similar style to the tome that Noah had retrieved in the pyramid. They even carried the same aura. "We don''t mind giving you the originals since we have already made copies of their contents," Irvin explained. "I believe we agreed that you would have done the same." It was impossible to verify whether someone had tampered with the copies or omitted important information. Only the originals could do in a trade. Noah nodded before taking out his book and placing it on the praying mat. Pearl did the same before they opened them at the same time. Pearl and Noah had opened the books randomly. They didn''t pick a specific page, and they made sure that they didn''t use mental energy to alter their actions. Noah could check that the three books explained the right topics, and the trio did the same. They could confirm that the goods matched the same inheritance and continue with the trade. "Are you aware of the price discussed with your envoy?" Noah asked after raising his eyes toward the trio. "Of course," Irvin replied. "We wouldn''t mind if you were to change a few resources due to personal issues. We only care that the overall value remains the same." Noah was trying to trigger unusual reactions in the experts. He was choosing his words very carefully and inspecting how they responded to see if they had anything to do with the dangerous sensation. However, the trio appeared utterly innocent. Nothing Noah did managed to put them off. They even felt unaware of the hidden meaning behind his words. "There''s no need for that," Noah said before waving his hand. A pile of materials and Soul Stones appeared next to the praying mats. A small mountain quickly formed as those resources accumulated on the ground. Irvin quickly went to check the goods. He used his mental energy to inspect the various materials and even dug through the pile to have a better view of the resources hidden from his eyes. Everything was perfect. Noah didn''t even try to fall short on the Soul Stones. Irvin could return to the praying mat and complete the trade. Noah picked the three books and stored them in his separate space. The experts did the same and even took care of the various resources accumulated next to them. An awkward silence fell on the group at that point. Noah continued to drink, and the trio didn''t know what to say after completing the trade. "Do you want to offer something else?" Saul asked when he saw Noah''s eyes darting through the environment. "Yes," Noah replied without focusing on the trio. "We have many goods seized from the Sailbrird family that we don''t need. We can also sell information now. Yet, I would like to discuss another topic before that." "What is it?" Pearl asked. "Don''t you feel it?" Noah asked while waving his hands as if trying to catch the air. "Can you sense this strange pressure, this feeling of impending danger?" Noah could only come clean about his thoughts since the trio didn''t seem guilty. He would rather ask for a second opinion at that point. "Do you feel that too?" Pearl asked while wearing a surprised expression. Irvin reacted like her, but Saul appeared utterly clueless about the whole situation. His cultivation level was too low to sense that danger. "We wanted to cancel the meeting for this reason," Irvin laughed. "We thought that you were trying to rob us. However, it''s reassuring to know that you also feel the same sensation." ''It doesn''t reassure me,'' Noah cursed in his mind. ''What do I even have to expect? What''s considered a crisis in the Immortal Lands?'' The answer to his doubts arrived quickly. The experts'' smile froze when they looked in the distance, and that reaction made Noah turn. A pillar of light had appeared far away. That structure carried the same whiteness of the sky, but it seemed to have a destructive power. A column of smoke soon covered the pillar. That structure was melting the ground, which released a grey gas that tainted that whiteness. The pillar soon expanded. It stretched through the regions until it encircled Noah and the others. A prison of light had trapped the experts in little more than a second. The event had been too fast. It seemed that the world was welcoming that energy and allowing it into its fabric. Even the laws in the matter had transformed to help in the process. The prison melted the ground so quickly that storms of that grey smoke began to fly through the area. The sky above a few regions became unclear as the light in the distance started to move toward Noah''s group. Chapter 1573: 1573. Precise "Elbas?" Noah asked while studying the massive barrage of light. "What do you want me to say?" King Elbas replied. "The sky is attacking us. You can see that too." King Elbas was right. Noah had understood the nature of that attack, but he had hoped to be wrong. The light didn''t come from a cultivator. It wasn''t a spell or a technique launched by a powerful existence. It carried the same aura as the sky, which made it part of Heaven and Earth''s system. Its power was also unclear. Noah couldn''t understand the level of the light. It seemed able to change its might according to the matter illuminated by that whiteness. "You have been in the Immortal Lands far longer than me," Noah asked to all the existences around him. "Did you ever see something like this? Have your organizations ever witnessed a similar event?" Wilfred, Jordan, Irvin, and Pearl shook their head. They knew nothing about that dangerous event. Noah could only curse in his mind. His black hole spun faster and sent all its energy toward his consciousness. Noah wanted to find an explanation, but his knowledge didn''t contain that answer. King Elbas was as clueless as Noah. The expert had studied the records stored in the mansion of the Sailbrird family, but they had never mentioned something like that. ''Think! Think!'' Noah shouted in his mind. ''This is too coincidental to be a natural crisis. Yet, it sure resembles a Tribulation. How is this possible?'' Only one answer could explain that phenomenon. The laws bent in front of the light and changed their structure according to what it needed. Heaven and Earth were the sole existences capable of such feats. An explanation eventually dawned on Noah''s mind. The light was a precise attack sent by Heaven and Earth. Still, Noah remained unclear about the details behind that event. ''Why now?'' Noah wondered. ''Why didn''t they attack in the Outer Lands? They would have taken out most of those who fight their system.'' The situation made no sense. Heaven and Earth had other chances to send that type of attack. They could have taken care of Noah whenever he was exhausted or among enemies! ''They can''t send it whenever they want,'' Noah concluded before looking at the foggy sky. That conclusion failed to satisfy Noah. There had to be something else behind that catastrophe. ''They knew that I would have been here,'' Noah concluded while a strange guess formed in his mind. Heaven and Earth were overlords capable of breathtaking power, but they had to follow the same fairness that they had created. They couldn''t attack without a valid reason, and Noah didn''t do anything wrong during the meeting. The crisis had to be something more than a random event. There was a limit to how unlucky Noah could be. The light was a precise and planned attack meant to get rid of his existence once and for all. "This is a Tribulation send by someone," Noah exclaimed once his guess took form. Wilfred and the others turned toward Noah and began to overwhelm him with questions, but King Elbas remained silent. Noah''s explanation had forced the expert to think out of the box and consider otherwise unbelievable possibilities. King Elbas experienced Noah''s reasoning. That light belonged to Heaven and Earth, so it was a Tribulation. Yet, its timing had been too perfect. It almost resembled an ambush, which wasn''t in Heaven and Earth''s style. "You have traitors in your family," King Elbas explained at some point. "The Immortal Lands seem to have far more secrets than I expected." "I agree," Noah replied. "We have to talk with the secret organization. They might explain what happens behind the flashy political environment." Noah and King Elbas exchanged a nod. They were on the same page. They had concluded that someone had managed to trigger a Tribulation in that area to kill them. That interaction lasted less than a minute. The light had closed on the group during that time, and a crowd eventually appeared in the distance. Noah didn''t bother to look at them. They were the other members of the Balrow family hidden inside their secret headquarters. The group had decided to evacuate their homes and reach their rank 8 leaders. Panic filled the group. No one understood what was happening, and only the rank 8 experts managed to remain calm. Those existences kept their eyes on Noah and King Elbas since they seemed to have realized something. "Do you think the teleport can survive this light?" Noah asked. "It might," King Elbas explained. "The light changes its power according to what it needs to destroy. I think that our defenses will hide part of the formation. The problem is overcoming the Tribulation." "I see no problem," Noah exclaimed. "This is a Tribulation, so the light won''t have an unfair power. Those who overcome it will gain benefits. The others will die." "We can''t cooperate then," King Elbas said. "Working together will only make the Tribulation harder." Wilfred and Jordan wore a determined expression at that point. They didn''t get most of that conversation, but they understood that they had to pass through the light. "You will all come with me," Noah shouted while turning toward the members of the Balrow family. "I want to interrogate all of you." "But-," Irvin wanted to say something, but Noah gave voice to a roar before he could even begin his line. "Shut up!" Noah roared. "Someone has decided to sacrifice you all to take me down. You belong to me now. Welcome to my nameless organization." "But-," Pearl tried to say something, but Noah gave voice to another roar while grabbing one of the rank 7 cultivators behind her. Noah then threw the cultivator toward the incoming light. The expert entered those white barriers and melted until he transformed into grey smoke. The Tribulation had killed him in an instant. "I can do this to all of you only to test how that light works," Noah threatened, "Or we can work together to overcome this Tribulation. We will all enter the light at the same time and fight its effects. It might become weaker if we do that." Saul opened his mouth, but Irvin and Pearl shot an angry glance toward him. The experts feared what Noah could do before the arrival of the light. "This is a Tribulation!" Noah announced once all the experts in the area paid attention to him. "You can overcome it. Form a column and walk with me. We will cross the light and return to the Outer Lands." The experts gulped. They couldn''t oppose Noah, and they didn''t have a way out of that situation. They could only follow him and hope that his orders could keep them alive. Noah forced the rank 7 cultivators to float above him. All the rank 8 existences remained on the ground. He hoped that the light would lose a bit of power after melting the other experts. The group synchronized. The experts stepped forward at the same time and marched toward the white barrier. Their destination was the teleportation matrix on the other side of that Tribulation. "Remember that I will personally hunt down anyone who doesn''t step into the light," Noah warned his new companions once the Tribulation was almost on the group. No one dared to complain. All the experts fell silent and waited for the orders of their new leader. Countless auras filled the environment. The rank 7 and 8 existences unfolded their laws and prepared for the inevitable clash. Then, a roar echoed through the sky, and the group jumped toward the barrier of light. **** Author''s notes: I had a personal issue yesterday. I just got home. You can expect the other 2 chapters in the next hours. Also, nothing should happen today, so chapters will come out normally tomorrow. Chapter 1574: 1574. Army Noah felt strange. The light didn''t trigger any pain. Instead, it forced his existence to change, as if it wanted to bring him back inside Heaven and Earth''s system. His ambition surged to fight that influence. The light tried to seep inside Noah''s fabric, but his centers of power released their energy to fend it off. It was a strange sensation. The black hole, the dantian, the mental sphere, and the body fought while Noah was in a trance. They expressed their value while Heaven and Earth evaluated them. Part of Noah''s hair began to melt. His existence didn''t seem able to fight the light properly, but his consciousness suddenly awakened at that point. ''What is this feeling?'' Noah thought while he bathed in the light. Noah felt as if his existence wanted to become part of the light. His cultivation level and all his experiences seemed to belong to that influence. Melting was a blessing. ''Is this what Heaven and Earth fell all the time?'' Noah wondered. The light didn''t manage to take over his mind. Noah recalled everything and could focus on fighting the Tribulation. His hair stopped melting. Noah''s existence burst forward as memories of his achievements surged in his mind. Noah reviewed his whole life, from his abusive father to his latest achievements. Heaven and Earth''s influence wanted him to focus on his flaws and mistakes, but they couldn''t force him to regret anything. Noah had never betrayed himself. He had followed his instincts and obtained far more power than any other existence in the world. He felt completely at peace with his current level and past experiences. ''Is this everything you can do?'' Noah shouted in his mind. ''Are the mighty Heaven and Earth so caught up in their system that they can''t even take care of a single rank 8 existence?'' Noah had felt similar emotions in the past. Heaven and Earth were overlords, but they also were incredibly powerless. They could only enforce trials and punishments, but they couldn''t use their real might to take care of their problems. "Don''t worry," Noah spoke while the light crossed him. "I''ll take care of the world." The strange feeling suddenly vanished, and Noah found himself in the outside world. The light was still moving behind him, but he had successfully crossed the Tribulation. A small group had managed to survive the light. Noah could see his companions, Pearl, and a few rank 7 cultivators. Saul was among them, and his expression showed pure pride. "Let''s move!" Noah roared before stepping forward. His companions didn''t hesitate to follow him, but Pearl and the others glanced behind them to inspect the light. They hoped that the rest of their team would cross the Tribulation, but no one appeared in their vision. "Move, or I throw you back into the Tribulation," Noah threatened as growls fused with his human voice. "The others might still come out!" Pearl complained, but she quickly understood how hopeless her statement was. "They are all dead," Noah explained. "We better start flying. The dangerous sensation has yet to vanish." Pearl suddenly noticed that her mind continued to sense some danger. It seemed that her problems had yet to end. King Elbas promptly took out one of his inscribed items. A metal sphere landed on his hand and began to glow with golden shades. A blueprint that depicted the nearby regions quickly formed among that light. "We have a powerful army coming in our way," King Elbas exclaimed once a few red spots appeared among the golden blueprint. "We were right. They knew that the Tribulation was going to fall in this area." "Let''s hurry toward the teleport," Noah ordered, and the group shot forward. Noah and the others used their domain to force the rank 7 cultivators to move faster. The group reached the teleport in no time, but unsightly expressions appeared on their face at the sight of the leveled ground. King Elbas quickly shot toward the ground and inspected the area. His prediction had been on point. The light had destroyed the traps, but it had left part of the teleport intact. However, it needed some work before it could activate and transport the entire group. "How much do you need?" Noah asked when he saw King Elbas deploying countless formations with a wave of his hands. "Not much," King Elbas replied without moving his eyes from the ground. "Hold them back until I complete everything." Noah exchanged a glance with Wilfred, Jordan, and Pearl. The rank 8 existences limited themselves to nod. They were ready to give their everything to fend off the incoming threat. Jordan transformed into a dragon, Noah deployed the dark world, Wilfred''s muscles bulged, and Pearl took out an inscribed metal stick from her space-ring. Even King Elbas joined that show of power by deploying a series of fiery golden puppets. The rank 7 cultivators could only imitate their leaders. They had yet to accept the whole situation, but they didn''t show any hesitation in front of a threat. The light had ended up helping them. The rank 7 assets had steeled their determination during the Tribulation. Their path appeared clearer than ever, and they even comprehended their existence far more than before. "Let''s give Elbas enough time to work his magic!" Noah shouted. "You have all proven yourself worthy in front of Heaven and Earth. You are strong enough to be enemies of the world. Don''t you dare to die against these cowards!" Noah''s ambition spread through the group during his motivational speech. His existence even managed to affect the rank 8 beings. King Elbas also noticed that he was laying inscriptions faster than ever. An army eventually appeared in the distance. Noah and the others could quickly sense the presence of multiple rank 8 existences, and two of them were in the liquid stage. Noah recognized Gloria Sailbrird among the army. Her injuries had healed. She appeared at the peak of her power, and an angry expression also filled her face. "I''ll hold her back," Noah ordered. "You take care of the others and retreat as soon as Elbas completes the teleport. He won''t hesitate to leave you behind." "Defying Demon!" Gloria shouted as her pressure spread through the region. "I will take care of what Heaven and Earth can''t do. Your life ends today!" Noah memorized those lines, but he pushed them in the back of his mind. That wasn''t the time to study her words. The enemy army shot forward. Those cultivators didn''t let Noah and the others gain the upper hand at that time. They even seemed to eye King Elbas with fervor. ''They know that he is our way out of here,'' Noah concluded before shooting forward. His companions followed him while Snore, Night, and Duanlong flew into the outside world. Roots also came out of his palm and covered his body as a layer of dark matter created the fiendish armor. Gloria quickly waved her hand, and a flare shot out of her figure. The space twisted in a straight line between her and Noah, but he promptly drew the cursed sword. A singularity clashed with the flare and cut through its energy. The attack didn''t manage to reach Gloria, but her anger intensified at that sight. The other cultivators in her army even trembled when they understood that Noah could face existences in the liquid stage. Chapter 1575: 1575. Ready Noah''s chest exploded, but he didn''t let that injury slow him down. He quickly waved the cursed sword again, and a second singularity shot toward Gloria. The cultivator appeared ecstatic. Gloria was in a frenzy. Her killing intent filled the area and affected her underlings. Corpses began to fall toward the ground. Some of the rank 7 cultivators directly died under Gloria''s pressure. Her influence even reached Noah''s group, but his slash managed to dig a safe path among that energy. The attack reached Gloria, but the space in front of her twisted and destroyed the singularity. She didn''t even injure herself during the exchange, which wasn''t something that Noah could claim. A piece of Noah''s skin disappeared. His spine was in the open now, but the dark matter quickly covered those missing parts and kept his organs still. Noah knew that he couldn''t express that battle prowess for long, but he didn''t dare to hold back. His escape depended on his performance. Wilfred and the others shot toward the army, and worthy opponents quickly appeared on their path. The other liquid stage cultivator didn''t bother to fight those existences and flew directly toward King Elbas. Noah gave voice to a roar when the unstable substance ran through his black vessels. A wave of black flames soon covered the army, but Gloria forced them to crumble before they could heal Noah. "I have studied your abilities," Gloria explained. "You would be surprised by the number of reports that the Crystal City has gathered on you." Noah barely listened to her. Bloodlust filled his mind, and pure power ran through his body. He had transformed into a weapon that surpassed the limits of his cultivation level. Noah teleported above Gloria, but his technique ended up slamming on her twisted space. Noah had initially desired to appear a few meters from his opponent, but he had materialized far higher than expected. Gloria turned and revealed a cruel smile. She pointed her hand at Noah, and the space began to twist. Noah tried to teleport away, but her attack reached him before he could perform the movement technique. Pain spread through Noah''s body. He had already suffered multiple injuries due to the cursed sword, and that attack ended up worsening his condition. His skin caved in, and his centers of power started to condense. His fiendish armor couldn''t fight that power, so it slowly retreated until it revealed his poor condition. Duanlong activated its innate ability to absorb part of that energy. Noah was slowly managing to free himself from that energy, but Gloria attacked again. A second wave of energy tried to engulf Noah, but Snore appeared on its path and blocked most of the attack. The Blood Companion crumbled, and cracks appeared on its ethereal figure, but it quickly reformed to launch its threatening feathers. Explosions echoed through the sky and filled the area with raging black matter. Most of the underlings on the battlefield died due to the massive discharge of energy, but those shockwaves soon condensed in Gloria''s palm. "I acknowledge your power," Gloria exclaimed, "But you still can''t fight me. You are paying too much to match my battle prowess. How many more exchanges can you even endure?" Noah ignored her. He had finally got rid of Gloria''s energy, so he didn''t hesitate to wave his weapons. A curved singularity fell toward Gloria, but it vanished once it met the twisted space. "Pointless," Gloria snorted before joining her hands. The space around Noah twisted and began to close on his figure. Gloria had blocked his escape routes, so he had to slash again to open a path among that technique. Noah teleported away, but a sense of weakness filled his mind. The last two attacks with the cursed sword and shattered the lower part of his body. His bloodlust was even about to take control of his thoughts. ''What can I even do?'' Noah wondered while glancing toward King Elbas. A series of puppets and inscribed weapons flew toward the liquid stage existence that had reached King Elbas, but his efforts only managed to delay the inevitable. His opponent''s flames were slowly gaining ground. It wouldn''t take much before the entire area burnt. ''I have two or three attacks left,'' Noah thought. ''I guess I need to risk everything.'' Snore covered Noah''s figure, but he used that chance to teleport away. He reappeared among the army and spat dense fireballs toward multiple rank 7 cultivators. Gloria couldn''t stop his entire innate ability at that time. A few flames eventually fused with Noah''s body and started to rebuild pieces of his tissues. A determined expression eventually appeared on Gloria''s face. The expert pointed at all the cultivators affected by the flames and reduced their bodies into a bloody pulp. She would rather kill her allies than letting Noah recover. Noah teleported again and reappeared above Gloria. The expert quickly waved her hand in his direction, but the space around her suddenly froze. Shandal''s ability didn''t manage to stop Gloria completely. The expert''s hand continued to move slowly. She was able to overpower Noah''s spell with the energy contained inside her figure. Noah didn''t let that chance go to waste. He thrust his swords before activating the Shadow Domain. His initial idea was to fill Gloria with Instabilities, but her law prevented him from reaching her insides. The Instabilities materialized around her after the singularity cut through her defenses. Gloria became able to move again at that point, but the explosions made her unable to focus on her opponent. Noah quickly spat black fireballs toward a series of rank 7 experts while flying back toward King Elbas. The others noticed his retreat and followed him even if his destination featured a liquid stage expert. King Elbas was using his stash of inscribed weapons to keep the cultivator away, but he was slowly losing ground. The wave of raging flames was almost on him. The heat generated by the attack almost managed to affect the inscriptions under him. Yet, a roar soon spread through the area and forced the liquid stage expert to move his attention. The cultivator saw a singularity flying toward him, and danger quickly filled his mind. The expert stopped firing flames under him and redirected his attack toward Noah''s slash. The singularity burnt, but the fire also vanished during the process. A shadow flew next to the cultivator. The expert quickly covered his figure with flames, but his arm fell anyway. Night reappeared higher in the sky. Part of its black lines had disappeared during that short exchange, but the creature appeared prouder than ever. "Out of my way!" Noah roared before slashing again. The other experts also attacked, and a multicolored wave of spells and techniques soon flew toward the liquid stage cultivator. He had to resort to his best defensive measures to stop that assault. A heatwave soon shot out of his figure and melted the abilities flying toward him. The cultivator wanted to make Noah pay for his arm, but the assailants had disappeared from his vision. Noah and the others had directly flown toward King Elbas after their offensive. They had never prioritized defeating the expert. "Activate the teleport now!" Noah shouted. "It''s not ready!" King Elbas replied while continuing to add inscriptions. "Do it anyway!" Noah roared. "We can''t hold them back anymore." The liquid stage cultivator quickly threw a wave of flames, and King Elbas gave voice to a loud curse at that sight. Then, the inscriptions under him activated, and a golden light covered the entire group. Noah and the others disappeared before the flames could hit them, but their expressions didn''t relax after the golden light vanished. They had teleported in the wrong location. Storms of raging chaotic laws filled the sky and forced them to activate their defenses. Chapter 1576: 1576. Dive "Dive underground!" Noah roared before punching the terrain. The storms almost suppressed his voice. His companions barely managed to hear Noah, but they imitated him once they realized how dangerous that environment was. Thick currents of chaotic laws were dense. They crashed on Noah and the others and shattered their skin. Even their centers of power felt unable to express their might under that suppression. Noah managed to create a deep cavern with Jordan and Wilfred''s help. The chaotic laws seeped in that hole, but the experts promptly dug multiple branches that dispersed those currents. The group eventually gathered in a large underground hall that Noah had by shattering one of the tunnels. That quick contact with the storms had killed most of the rank 7 experts and injured their leaders. Their overall condition was awful, especially since they had yet to recover from the ambush. "I told you that the teleport wasn''t ready!" King Elbas complained. "Possible death is better than certain death," Noah sighed. "How far can we even be from the Legion? I don''t think you messed up with the amount of energy." "Teleports work strangely in the Immortal Lands," King Elbas explained. "They don''t send our bodies to another location. They allow us to cut through space itself, similar to what I did with the dimensional tunnel." "What are you trying to say?" Noah asked as a bad feeling surged in his mind. "I''m saying that we might be lost," King Elbas replied before taking a few items from his space-ring and placing them on the ground. "I will try to understand where we are, but creating a teleport here is impossible at my level. The chaotic laws will disturb my inscriptions." "You heard Elbas," Noah shouted to the group. "Focus on recovering for now. These lands are incredibly dangerous." The images of Sword Saint''s memory flashed in Noah''s mind, but he quickly suppressed them. He didn''t even want to consider the possibility of meeting a rank 9 existence. The experts followed his orders and began to deploy healing techniques. The cultivators didn''t manage to take away much from their headquarters since they didn''t plan to migrate, but they had a few potions and pills at their disposal. King Elbas used that chance to take out his inscribed habitations. Jordan and the other rank 8 cultivators entered them to accelerate their recovery, and Noah didn''t mind using those structures. The ground was tough and full of energy. Noah could use his flames, but he preferred to avoid using attacks until he felt sure that the area was safe. It didn''t hurt him to resort to normal healing sessions for the time being. The experts recovered and let King Elbas thinker with his inscribed items. Unfortunately, he seemed unable to pinpoint their exact location due to the interference of the chaotic laws, so he eventually started to build other tools that could ignore that hindrance. No threat appeared on their path. The experts could recover in peace and discuss their situation after a few years spent in seclusion. "I have understood where we have to go," King Elbas explained once all the experts gathered around him. "Still, we have a problem with the distance of the travel. We are so far away that my inscribed notebook can''t reach the Legion." "This I already good," Noah added. "We can start moving then. No point remaining here any longer." "How do you plan on making this journey?" Pearl asked. "We can''t travel on the surface. The voices about you must be true. You bring chaos and destruction wherever you go." Noah would normally contest those complaints, especially since he technically was Pearl''s leader now. However, the expert had lost too much in the last period. Most of her friends and underlings had died. Her entire world had turned upside down after a single meeting. Noah decided to ignore the complaints and show Pearl how he intended to handle the situation. He neared a wall and threw a punch on its rocky surface. The wall crumbled, and a large hole appeared. Noah turned and pointed at the cavity before explaining the meaning behind his actions. "We''ll punch our way back to the Legion," Noah announced. "Don''t worry. This isn''t my first time." Pearl had no idea how to react to that gesture. She didn''t feel surprised about Noah''s physical strength. She remained speechless at the thought that Noah was willing to dig under entire regions to return home. "I''m an expert in the magical beasts'' field, but you surpass me there," King Elbas said while looking at the hole. "I guess I need to rely on you for this task." Noah nodded before explaining all the precautions that he had in mind. He didn''t mind punching thousands of kilometers of tough ground for years, but the group had to take care of containing their presence. The expert had to hide their auras, create something that could contain the noises generated by their attacks, and avoid leaving traces. Avoiding magical beasts was a must in that environment. The fauna of the stormy regions was something that the group couldn''t face at their level. King Elbas took care of the technicalities. He deployed a golden gas around Noah, Wilfred, and Jordan to absorb all the sounds around them. A series of puppets also appeared behind him and began to burn any trace left by his companions. At last, King Elbas took out an inscribed drill to help the three hybrids in the task. Of course, he covered the item with the same golden smoke used on the trio. Noah, Wilfred, and Jordan began their annoying task at that point. The tough rocks prevented them from picking up speed, but they still managed to advance at a decent pace. Pearl and the few rank 7 cultivators who had survived the chaotic laws couldn''t believe their eyes. They saw the three hybrids punching the rocks for entire months without ever taking a break. Their stamina was otherworldly! Noah and the others didn''t dig all the time. They had to take multiple breaks to perform training sessions. Their centers of power needed that constant maintenance. Noah used those breaks to study the new pieces of Great Builder''s inheritance. A quick read to the three books immediately allowed him to solve his issue with the rank 8 creations. Noah realized that he had ignored an important aspect of those powerful beings. ''I''m so blind at times,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind while holding the fourth piece of Great Builder''s inheritance. ''Rank 7 magical beasts are easy because they don''t need specific laws. Mines are perfectly fine for the task. However, those in the eighth rank need something more specific.'' Noah had created the structure and the insides of a rank 8 magical beast, but he didn''t give them domains. His approach would have never worked because his products were no more than simple puppets rather than actual replicas of rank 8 creatures. ''I see,'' Noah thought while continuing to study the tomes. ''Great Builder describes two approaches to solve that issue. The first is to inscribe your materials beforehand. The second is to improve the fake cores.'' Noah could immediately understand what he had to do. The first approach couldn''t work in his case because he used dark matter as his sole material. However, the second was quite feasible. Chapter 1577: 1577. Digging Years went by, but the situation of Noah''s group didn''t change. Their constant efforts couldn''t make them ignore the vastity of the Immortal Lands. Creating a tunnel throughout an entire region took weeks, even when the three hybrids worked together. Moreover, they had to stop multiple times to check their current position and reestablish their precautions. Noah used his breaks to improve the workshop. He had many materials and time, so his expertise with that technique steadily grew. He even had valid blueprints already. His focus was on the fake cores now. Noah had to improve those items to finally get his hands on an endless army of rank 8 magical beasts. The journey was uneventful. The underground area was almost uninhabited since only existences interested in the chaotic laws decided to settle there. Living under the surface would defeat that purpose. The faint grievances that had appeared in Pearl''s mind after the tragedy vanished during those years. The expert learnt to accept that Noah was completely innocent. Instead, it became even clearer that someone in her organization had betrayed her. "We never kept your meeting a secret," Pearl explained, "But we didn''t spread the information outside of our organization either. The traitor has to be one of us. I wonder who would even decide to sacrifice an entire secret base to defeat you." "It''s honestly strange," Noah said without stopping punching the rocks in front of him. "I understand that I can be a pain for many organizations, but sacrificing you all requires a deep enmity." "Or a complete lack of care," King Elbas added. "It might even connect to fanatics and zealots, but that would require the existence of superior power. We are all divine existences. I don''t understand who could turn gods into sacrificial pawns." "This speech doesn''t apply to the Crystal City," Wilfred contradicted King Elbas. "The Crystal City is a special case," King Elbas explained. "Those fanatics idolize the human species. Their superior power is an idea." "Do you think that a rank 9 existence is behind the attack?" Jordan asked. "No," King Elbas promptly replied. "I don''t have a real explanation. I have a few hypotheses, but their sound too unreal for now. We need more information. The Immortal Lands still hide too much." Jordan didn''t seem satisfied with that explanation. She wanted to listen to those hypotheses and see if they made any sense. Luckily for her, Noah rejoined the conversation and told her what King Elbas had in mind. "Who is in control of the Tribulations?" Noah asked. "Heaven and Earth," Jordan replied. "Do you think rank 9 existences would bother to mess with Heaven and Earth to trigger a Tribulation?" Noah asked. "That''s pointless since they could directly kill us with their own hands." "Wait," Jordan exclaimed once a strange idea started to form in her mind. "You aren''t suggesting that Heaven and Earth are behind the attack, right? We saw cultivators ready to kill those who managed to survive the Tribulation. They had to be the reason behind the light." "They are suggesting that those cultivators worked with Heaven and Earth," Wilfred explained. "But, but," Jordan stammered a bit before sorting her thoughts. "How is that even possible? Every god should theoretically be against Heaven and Earth''s system. How can you suggest that some cultivators are cooperating with them?" ''Supreme Thief said that Heaven and Earth have followers,'' Noah thought, but he kept that information for himself. ''Is it possible that we already met them?'' "That''s why I didn''t want to speak about it yet," King Elbas sighed. "The most logical explanation features a connection with Heaven and Earth, but I don''t know what a god would desire from that." That was the major flaw in his reasoning. Gods often compromised to obtain a chance to gain more power, but Heaven and Earth were clear enemies of the cultivation journey. King Elbas couldn''t explain how a cultivator could decide to bow in front of those existences. The Tribulations should be enough to scare everyone away from Heaven and Earth. Those conversations happened often. The entire group was inside a tunnel in the end. They had to do something to kill time. Noah threw a punch at some point, and the rocky wall crumbled, revealing an enormous crack that reached far deeper than his current position. The fissure seemed to spread for multiple regions, and chaotic laws filled its insides. Noah had to make the tunnel crumble to keep those storms outside, but that only solved part of his problems. "We have to go around it," Noah ordered before changing direction. The group would dig a tunnel next to the cavity and proceed in the right direction only after they surpassed the fissure. The chaotic laws made it impossible to cross, so that was their only approach. The troubles didn''t end there since Noah soon found another immense cavity. It seemed that a battle among powerful existences had happened in that area, and the ground was still carrying its aftereffects. Noah felt forced to turn again. His group wasted months of travel to avoid the fissures, and they soon found themselves in front of a large underground hall. The hall didn''t reach the surface, so Noah and the others didn''t need to change direction again. The chaotic laws couldn''t fly into that place. The group could cross the area and press forward. Noah double-checked the area, but he didn''t sense any danger. He quickly jumped in the air and led his group to the other side of the hall. Noah and the others didn''t expect anything. Their consciousness, sensors, and instincts didn''t pick up any danger. Yet, an earthquake soon ran through that area, and a few rocks began to move. Two tall columns of rocks moved to reveal a yellow reptilian eye. Noah, Jordan, and Wilfred sensed an innate suppression landing on their minds. They were in front of a superior specimen that could submit them with a single cry. "Shut up and don''t panic," Noah said while suppressing his instincts. "Don''t attack. Just keep going." The group still had King Elbas'' techniques around them. In theory, their presence was nothing more than a faint whiff of air moving through the world. Moreover, Noah had the faint sensation that the creature wouldn''t attack them. They were too weak for its level. The creature blinked a few times before deciding to move. The earthquake intensified, and boulders began to fall inside the underground hall. A crack soon spread through the ceiling and uncovered the outside world on the other side. The fissure eventually became a proper hole due to the earthquake and revealed the entirety of the massive creature that had awakened at Noah''s passage. Noah couldn''t believe his eyes. An immense dragon filled his view and stared back at him. The creature was as tall as a mountain. It had a long, scaled neck and a fat body. Rocks covered most of its scales. It seemed that the creature had slept inside the ground for too long. ''This is a rank 9 magical beast,'' Noah thought. ''I''ve actually managed to find an existence at that level.'' The chaotic laws began to ravage their bodies, but the dragon suddenly breathed and absorbed the storms in the whole region. It would take them a while to return to a normal state. Then, the dragon lowered its head and inspected Noah and Jordan. It appeared clearly interested in those two experts who radiated a dragon-like aura. "Cubs shouldn''t be in these lands," A female human voice suddenly came out of the dragon and stunned the experts. Chapter 1578: 1578. Mercy Noah didn''t know how to answer. The dragon had surprised him, and his brain had yet to process that event. Yet, his survival instincts soon took over and made him perform a polite bow. "We have lost our way," Noah said. "It has never been our intention to invade your territory." The dragon didn''t answer. Instead, it continued to stare at Noah and Jordan without even bothering to check the rest of their group. The creature seemed interested only in the two hybrids that had dragon''s blood in their veins. "I see," The dragon said. "This is the right direction. The storms will start to lose power in a bit." Noah had so many questions. The dragon was a proper rank 9 creature. It was a magical beast at the peak of the cultivation journey. It would definitely know many secrets about the Immortal Lands. Still, Noah was scared that his questions could trigger the creature''s anger. The fact that it didn''t have any interest in his group was already enough for him. "We will proceed in our journey then," Noah said while bowing again and proceeding to walk forward. His group followed him, but the dragon continued to keep its eyes on the duo. It didn''t even raise its head once they all left. "I can give you a farewell gift, my children," The dragon said before raising its head and breathing with more intensity than before. The chaotic laws in the distant regions began to fly toward the creature''s mouth. The dragon had taken care of many storms in an instant. Noah and the others could approach the last part of their return on the surface. "Farewell, cubs," The dragon said before turning to stare at the depths of the Outer Lands. "Do not come back here until you are strong enough to survive on the surface. These lands have no mercy." Noah didn''t turn to bow at those words. He continued to march forward until he felt that the dragon''s attention had finally moved away from his figure. Then, he set off and accelerated to cover as much distance as possible. Sweat began to accumulate on his forehead. That encounter had scared him. Talking with a rank 9 creature was something that had required his complete concentration, and the effort had left him exhausted. ''The ninth rank is incredible,'' Noah thought once he managed to suppress the aftereffects of his previous conversation. ''That level of power isn''t something that I can describe with words, and that was only a magical beast.'' The dragon could breathe to devour storms capable of hurting rank 8 existences. That threat was nothing more than a quick meal for the creature. The creature''s power was in another world, something far superior to anything that Noah had ever met. ''I wonder if Supreme Thief was also like this when he was alive,'' Noah thought as his imagination went off. ''He should have been stronger, in theory. Still, I didn''t expect magical beasts at that level to be so powerful. They could stomp their feet to destroy a distant region.'' Noah couldn''t even come close to evaluate the dragon''s power. His mind was unable to sense its energy. The creature appeared in a separate league that Noah couldn''t approach, touch, or see. "Why did it even spare us?" Pearl asked. "Because we aren''t worthy of its time," Noah explained. "Also, it should have something to do with our species." "Such a lucky encounter," Pearl commented while enjoying her flight. The dragon had cleared many regions, so the experts could finally fly again and make up for part of the time lost digging underground. "Lucky indeed," Noah commented. "We have a power level to strive for now." The group flew as fast as possible and felt forced to return underground once the storms resumed blowing through the sky. Still, they had covered a lot of land by then, so they could soon resurface again and finish the last part of their journey in the air. Various emotions appeared on the experts'' expression at the sight of the blue regions. They were the most beautiful scenery in the world after spending entire years underground. However, Noah and the others could soon sense that something was off. A battle was happening in the distance. It seemed that someone was attacking the Legion. The experts had accumulated a lot of stress during the past years. The sudden Tribulation, the ambush, the failed teleport, the long time spent underground, and the meeting with the rank 9 magical beast had brought their mind to their limits. They all wanted to vent their emotions, and an enemy was right in front of them. Noah and the others shot forward, creating a small challenge to decide who of them could have that battle. Noah reached the battlefield before his companions. Cheers and cries had echoed through the sky after his underlings recognized him. The battlefield appeared quite messy. Cultivators belonging to the Crystal City, the secret organization, and the Sailbrird family were fighting against Theodora and all the assets who had been too injured to follow Noah. Theodora and the others had long since lost the upper hand in the battle. The enemy army featured one rank 8 cultivator in the liquid stage who wore the robes of the Crystal City. The enemies didn''t fail to notice Noah''s arrival. Surprised expressions appeared on their face, but ecstasy soon replaced those emotions. The cultivators didn''t expect Noah there, but they felt happy now that he had arrived. The expert from the Crystal City had a lot to avenge. The liquid stage expert stopped attacking Theodora and turned toward Noah. The ground under the cultivator rose in the sky, and a few metal spears began to rotate around his figure. "It''s finally time to put an end to these hostilities," The cultivator shouted. "I will bless you with my strongest attack. Remember that you have died at the hand of Arthur-." The expert couldn''t finish his line since a hooded figure had suddenly appeared on the small mountain that had formed under him. "Who would you be?" Arthur asked, but the figure limited itself to raise its hand and point it toward the expert. A wave of flames came out of its palm and burnt everything in the sky. Only those who had been on the ground could escape that spell. ''What is happening?'' Noah wondered as his eyes went on Wilfred and Jordan. Nothing came out of the flames after they vanished. Arthur and all the cultivators behind him had turned into ashes. A single ability from that hooded figure had been enough to defeat many enemies. Wilfred and Jordan wore solemn expressions. Noah had never seen them so serious. It seemed that they had understood what was happening. Still, the duo was too interested in the spectacle to answer. "Maybe I returned too soon," A male voice came out of the hooded figure. "Why are you attacking us?" The single rank 8 cultivator that had remained on the ground raised his hand to point a finger toward Noah. "Who is he, Wilfred?" The man hidden by the hood asked. "A new powerful asset," Wilfred explained. "His physical strength is a match to mine. He might even surpass you in terms of hybrid quality." "He is a friend then," The hooded man said before stretching his hand and launching a storm of lightning bolts that hit all the enemies and had killed them on the spot. Noah couldn''t help but feel confused at that sight. He had seen the expert launching fire at the beginning of the fight, but he had now used lightning bolts. Chapter 1579: 1579. Faces The hooded cultivator had taken care of the assault in no time. Two attacks had been enough to kill all the invaders and clean up the battlefield. "Who exactly is he?" Noah asked while his mental waves spread through the destroyed battlefield to study the nature of the expert''s attack. Noah knew that the Legion had other leaders among the Immortal Lands. The hooded expert was clearly one of them, but he seemed to be more special than most hybrids. His mental waves didn''t manage to understand much. The expert had an unclear cultivation level, but it was high enough to confuse Noah''s senses. Yet, Noah could see that mental energy still lingered both in the sky and on the ground. ''They were spells,'' Noah concluded in his mind. The hooded expert had used spells with two different elements. He wasn''t like Jordan, who could spat flames even if she had a wind aptitude. A strange guess formed in Noah''s mind. He had heard about a type of hybrids who could gain different abilities depending on the creatures that they ate. He couldn''t help but wonder whether the expert belonged to that kind. "He is the true leader of the Legion," Wilfred explained. "At least when it comes to battle prowess and cultivation level." "I can see that," Noah replied while focusing back on the hooded expert. The man glanced at the battlefield one last time before lowering his hood. Long golden hair and a pair of glowing red eyes became visible to everyone in the area. The expert had a youthful face, but his aloof expression gave him a faint maturity. "It''s been a long time," The man said while flying toward Noah''s group. "I''m Alexander. It''s nice to see that the Legion has grown so much while I was gone." Alexander wanted to shake Noah''s hand, but the latter sensed that something was off. Noah didn''t know how to explain that feeling. His instincts were telling him that he shouldn''t touch Alexander so easily. "Good instincts!" Alexander exclaimed while wearing a surprised expression. "Most hybrids can''t feel anything after I deploy my cover. You must be as good as Wilfred says." That compliment didn''t make Noah happy. His senses were still unable to understand Alexander''s cultivation level. He had felt a faint danger, but that was it. "Don''t be so serious," Alexander laughed. "I only wanted to check your power. This ability requires physical contact, but I guess your instincts know how much you like to keep your secrets." "How many abilities do you even have?" Noah asked. "I have forgotten that a long time ago," Alexander replied. "I can''t bother to keep track of them anymore. At least I can always recall what my aptitude is." Noah didn''t ask that question randomly. He wanted to make sure that his guess was on point, and Alexander had confirmed his suspects. "I didn''t think that your kind could be so stable," Noah said. "I knew that hybrids like you ended up caught in their hunger." Alexander''s eyes widened. He didn''t expect Noah to know so much about his species. Even the human domain was unaware of most of his features. "I let myself go every once in a while," Alexander explained. "I travel deep into the Outer Lands and let my instincts go wild for years. That keeps me stable for some time." "How does it even work?" Noah asked. "Do you just eat magical beasts to develop their abilities?" "Well, it''s not so simple," Alexander replied. "Maybe this will make you understand more about my kind." Dark shades suddenly materialized above Alexander''s figure and slid away. That darkness transformed into a black gas that dispersed into the sky and stopped covering his cultivation level. An intense surge of energy shot out of Alexander''s figure and engulfed the entire area. Noah could finally inspect the expert''s power, and what he discovered left him speechless. Alexander was a hybrid in the solid stage. Both his mind and body neared the peak of the eighth rank, but that wasn''t his most peculiar feature. His aura was a mass of chaotic energy that featured countless faces. Noah could almost hear the cries of all the magical beasts that the expert had eaten throughout his life. Those faces were screaming in pain. Their cries intensified Alexander''s instincts and made his pride overflow with power. Noah could sense the innate desire to bow in front of that existence. Alexander alone wasn''t strong enough to trigger that reaction, but the countless faces in his aura made his influence impossible to match by a single being. ''Incredible,'' Noah thought while bathing in that chaotic aura. ''The sole fact that he is partially stable proves his value.'' Anyone would go crazy with so many creatures screaming inside their head. Even Noah didn''t know for how long he would be able to suppress those cries. However, Alexander appeared entirely in control of his functions. He could even make sure that his aura didn''t hurt anyone. "What do you usually do after returning to the Legion?" Noah asked as a faint smile appeared on his face. "The human side has dared to attack my dear organization," Alexander replied. "I can''t let that slide, can I?" "Can I suggest a few names?" Noah asked as his smile broadened. "I don''t mind using you as a diversion while I pursue my own interests." "Are you asking me to be your diversion?" Alexander laughed while a similar smile appeared on his face. "Why not?" Noah coldly replied. "You don''t seem the type to stay put anyway." "Remember that I am your leader," Alexander said while a hint of coldness seeped into his aura. "You should show some respect. Maybe even bow a little." "Technically, I''m not part of the Legion," Noah contradicted Alexander while shrugging his shoulders. "I plan to submit you all and destroy the higher plane one day." "Why would you even want to destroy the Immortal Lands?" Alexander asked as a confused expression appeared on his face. "Heaven and Earth care about it," Noah replied while shrugging his shoulders again. "I don''t see how I can surpass them without destroying their creation." Alexander didn''t know what to say. Noah''s claims sounded crazy. He was nothing more than a rank 8 existence, but his desires already stretched far past the ninth rank. "You are a crazy one," Alexander eventually sighed while reactivating the technique that hid his cultivation level. "Who do you want me to attack?" "The Crystal City, the Sailbrird family, the Monneay family," Noah counted. "I think you can attack every force except for the Balrow family and the secret organization. I need to save the former and interrogate the latter." "How did you manage to make so many enemies?" Alexander asked while glancing at his companions. Wilfred and Jordan avoided his gaze. They didn''t want to admit that they were partially at fault for the current situation. "Don''t worry!" Noah exclaimed while pointing toward King Elbas. "He will take care of teleporting you in every important location." King Elbas and Alexander wanted to say something, but Noah quickly turned to fly toward his cave. He only stopped to add a few words that left all the experts speechless. "Elbas, make sure to retrieve him if he dies," Noah exclaimed. "I don''t want to miss the chance to study him." Noah disappeared from the experts'' view after those last words. Wilfred and Jordan revealed awkward smiles, but they didn''t dare to say anything. As for Alexander and King Elbas, they exchanged a series of confused glances. Alexander almost didn''t notice what had happened. He only knew that Noah had involved him in his plan against the human domain. Chapter 1580: 1580. Pity "Is he serious?" Alexander eventually asked once the awkward silence became unbearable. "Does he always order around existences stronger than him?" Jordan and Wilfred wanted to deny that statement, but they limited themselves to sigh. Noah could be overbearing at times, but he had brought indisputable benefits to the Legion. "Let''s talk for a while," Wilfred sighed. "I will tell you who Defying Demon is. You can choose whether to listen to him afterward." . . . Noah ignored the events happening in the sky. He didn''t care too much about them. Alexander was an incredible existence, but he had to focus on his power and targets. ''I must improve the workshop before searching for the secret organization,'' Noah thought while sitting cross-legged inside his cave. ''I need more trump cards. I can''t rely on the cursed sword as often as before.'' Gloria Sailbrird had shown that she could restrain Noah''s flames. Her actions had proved that the human domain was aware of the healing properties of that innate ability. Noah couldn''t let his enemies understand the entirety of his arsenal. He always had to be one step ahead to surprise them and seize otherwise impossible victories. June flew inside the cave a few weeks after his return. The duo talked about the trade with the Balrow family and the events that followed that meeting. Noah didn''t hide anything, and he didn''t hold back to express how lucky he had been with the rank 9 dragon. "The windy regions sound like a fun place," June said once Noah''s stories ended. "I can''t wait to be strong enough to face those creatures." "There is a lot that I don''t understand," Noah sighed. "I want to interrogate the secret organization right away, but I''m afraid that my current power isn''t good enough for another exploration of the human domain." "You never stop placing these impossible standards on your growth," June complained while taking his hands. "Look at yourself. You have reached Divine Demon, you are on the right path for the ninth rank, and the whole human domain fears your potential. Give yourself some time to stabilize your power and improve properly." "You know that I can''t stop," Noah sighed. "You are also unable to restrain your battle intent. Moreover, I can''t stay put after witnessing that Tribulation. The sole thought that Heaven and Earth can attack at any time is annoying, to say the least." June understood Noah better than everyone else. She could see the determination in his eyes. Noah would leave those lands as soon as he completed his project, and nothing could make him change his mind. "Laws can be troublesome," Alexander''s voice suddenly resounded through the cave. "Our species even worsen our condition. Believe me when I say that I understand your unrest." Alexander slowly materialized inside the cave. The dark matter around the structure couldn''t do anything to stop that ability. Noah was powerless against that expert. "Can we have a word, leader to leader?" Alexander asked, and June let go of Noah''s hands before walking toward a corner of the cave. "Wilfred and Jordan told me a bit about you," Alexander continued once he landed in front of Noah. "I bet you don''t care about the Legion, but I can''t deny how much you have helped it. Your victories against the Crystal City are also commendable. You are definitely an ally, even if you tried to order me around." "You gave me the chance to inspect your aura," Noah said while fixing his eyes on Alexander. "I heard the cries that fill your existence. You need to hunt, so I gave you targets." "I won''t fight a war for you," Alexander exclaimed. "Fight it for the Legion then," Noah replied. "You can keep all of them safe for a few years, but your instabilities will return at some point. You have to make sure that the human domain doesn''t dare to attack these lands even after your departure." Alexander remained silent. Noah''s words made sense, but his pride prevented him from accepting those words so easily. Alexander couldn''t let a weaker hybrid give him orders. "I can''t accept your orders," Alexander eventually announced, "But we can seal a pact. I can give you the diversion that you need, but I want something in return." "What can you possibly want from me?" Noah asked. "It''s pretty simple," Alexander laughed. "The drawbacks of my species will eventually kill me. I managed to survive in the windy regions for so long because I have countless survival instincts fused in my mind, but I will definitely die someday. I want you to promise me that you will take care of the Legion at that point." Noah''s eyes widened. It was rare for experts at that level to care so much about their organizations. Those powerful existences usually severed their ties with the political world to focus on reaching the ninth rank at that point. Yet, Alexander seemed different. "I would have done it anyway," Noah answered. "They are allies, and I already consider them part of my pack." "That''s good to hear," Alexander sighed before standing up. "The human organizations will focus their full firepower on me once they learn about my return. Don''t waste this chance." Alexander appeared strange. His words resembled a farewell, and Noah almost took pity in that cursed existence. Alexander was one of the strongest hybrids that Noah had ever met, but his existence was a mess. The expert had amassed so many abilities that his law had begun to vanish under their pressure. "You know," Noah said while the expert started to become ethereal. "I might be able to find a solution to your drawbacks one day. Try to stay alive until then. I want to add your battle prowess to my organization." "I thought you wanted to dissect me," Alexander laughed. "I only hate to waste materials," Noah replied. "You probably are the best rank 8 resource in the world. It''s better to keep you away from the large organizations." "That might be true," Alexander laughed again before wearing a serious expression. "I will attack as soon as you leave these lands. I will take your friend with me." Noah nodded, and Alexander vanished. His departure left only June and Noah in the cave, but none of them spoke. ''An existence cursed by the same features that make him amazing,'' Noah thought while trying to imagine Alexander''s life. ''We are similar under some aspects. I wonder if that''s why I want to help him." Noah had already solved issues connected to the hybrid status. Alexander''s situation was a bit outside of his expertise, but Noah wanted to help him anyway. "How long will it take you to be ready to go out?" June asked and disrupted the silence. "Will you come with me?" Noah asked after sensing the meaning behind her question. "Of course," June replied. "The secret organization has hurt us. I want to vent the feelings accumulated in those years." "Give me a few decades," Noah said after calculating how much he needed to improve the workshop. "We''ll leave as soon as my technique is complete. We should be quite safe with it." "Another crazy technique?" June asked while inspecting the waves of dark matter flowing out of his chest. "You have no idea," Noah explained. "I should become unbeatable after I finish devising this new weapon." Chapter 1581: 1581. Sly Trying to find an organization that had spent its entire existence living in the shadows was far from easy. Noah had the knowledge of the Balrow family now, but he didn''t manage to learn much about his target anyway. According to Pearl Balrow, the secret organization appeared when it desired to reveal itself. It was possible to contact some of its members through specific locations in each city, but Noah had no way to approach them safely. Moreover, Noah didn''t know whether the secret organization would accept an envoy from the Balrow family. That force had different cells, but they all shared the need for secrecy. "Let''s gather the rest of the Balrow family for now," Noah eventually ordered during a meeting with the experts who wanted to follow him in the mission. "I''ll spread the rumor that I want a meeting with the secret organization. I believe one of their cells will eventually decide to face me." Noah''s group didn''t feature many experts. Pearl, Divine Demon, and Jordan had decided to come with him, but most beings in the seventh rank didn''t like the idea of jumping into another mess. Only June, Daniel, the two Demons, Faith, and Fergie decided to go with Noah anyway. They didn''t care that they couldn''t join most battles due to their poor level. They would rather risk dying than remain in seclusion any longer. King Elbas couldn''t come with them since he needed to help Alexander with the teleports, and Wilfred had to prepare for the breakthrough, so he couldn''t join the mission. Theodora generally loathed battles, so she ignored Noah''s invitation. Many magical beasts wanted to come with Noah, but he ordered them to stay put. He couldn''t attract unwanted attention inside the human domain, and bringing those creatures with him would only make the organizations more inclined to hunt him down. Still, Noah gave the magical beasts an important role. The Outer Lands were big, and they featured many regions that had bearable storms. Those creatures could focus on expanding their domain while he was away. The group left almost in a hurry. They had to travel a long way to reach the nearest city, and the absence of teleports would force them to spend years in enemy lands. Jordan acted as a guide and led the group across the Outer Lands before making her companion enter the human domain. The experts didn''t meet any danger along their path, but they still indulged in hunts and long rests. After a while, the group reached Belsier city, one of the settlements near the Outer Lands. That place only featured two rank 8 cultivators that didn''t belong to the Balrow family, but it still had an inscription hall owned by Pearl''s force. Noah and Pearl entered the city without even bothering to hide their cultivation level. The two rank 8 cultivators in charge of that settlement notified their organizations as soon as they recognized Noah, but they didn''t dare to engage him. Defying Demon had become an infamous name during the past years. Noah had fought cultivators far stronger than him on multiple occasions, and he had often come out as the winner. Even when he lost, he managed to complete his task before running away. That made Noah one of the most dangerous existences in the Immortal Lands. The level of his battle prowess was unclear, so no gaseous stage expert dared to approach him. The two leaders in Belsier city limited themselves to raise the defenses in their buildings and wait for reinforcements. Noah and Pearl didn''t waste time inside the city. They flew directly toward the inscription hall of the Balrow family and forced all its members to join them. Pearl''s authority even allowed Noah to avoid threats. The rank 7 cultivators gathered their resources inside the inscription hall and followed the duo in the sky. However, before they could leave the city, Noah turned to give voice to a simple phrase. "I''m looking for the secret organization," Noah shouted, and his voice spread through the entire region. The group left the area in a hurry and rejoined Divine Demon and the others before leaving the region. Reinforcements were about to arrive, so they had to disappear among the wilderness. Noah''s group repeated the same approach in the two following cities. One of them was one of the major bases of the Balrow family, so a small army formed around Noah after their departure. Noah didn''t like how smoothly his mission was going. The members of the Balrow family rarely complained about their forceful migration, which only made Noah more paranoid. He knew that the Balrow family had traitors, but he couldn''t waste time interrogating the recruits now. Noah''s priority remained the secret organization since he feared the arrival of another Tribulation. Pearl justified their willingness to leave the human domain with the fear of another attack, but Noah couldn''t believe them so easily. He remained ready to act at any time, even if those recruits couldn''t overpower him and his companions. A message eventually reached Noah''s inscribed notebook. King Elbas confirmed that Alexander was unleashing chaos deep into the human domain. The diversion had finally begun. "We can finally hit the big cities now," Noah announced after receiving that message. The group began to dive deeper into the human domain at that point. Noah soon found himself in front of the familiar Vagona city, which didn''t lose its peaceful aura in those years. Of course, the limitations and rules in Vagona city didn''t apply to Noah anymore. The five rank 8 leaders that ruled over that settlement couldn''t do anything against his group, especially after they had spent their entire travel recruiting new troops. Another small army left Vagona city and joined Noah''s group. Pearl felt ecstatic, but that sheer number of new assets only made Noah more worried. Still, something finally happened and turned his mood for the better. When the group was about to leave Vagona city, Noah noticed that a single hooded figure was staring at him from the beginning of the mountain chain. Fergie and Pearl quickly explained the meaning behind that gesture. The secret organization did that to express its desire for a meeting. Yet, Noah had to go alone. "Remain in the mountain chain," Noah warned before leaving to meet that envoy. "Defying Demon of the Legion," The hooded figure announced with a female voice when Noah reached her. "The secret organization thinks that you deserve far more than a simple meeting, but we''ll make it do for now." "Do you belong to one of the cells that want to kill me?" Noah teased the envoy before landing on the ground. The hooded woman was a simple rank 7 cultivator. Being so close to Noah made her understand how immense his aura was. His influence even generated black lines on her body. "Let''s move," Noah said while turning toward the envoy. "I have never been good at waiting." A chill ran down the envoy''s spine and forced her to move. She quickly brought Noah deeper into the mountain chain and pressed on a few inscriptions that appeared at their passage. The scenery soon changed. A few mountains disappeared and revealed a large passage that led underground. Noah hesitated a bit before deciding to follow the envoy into the underground structure. He kept his trump cards ready, even if his instincts were reassuring him. The lack of danger didn''t let Noah relax. Once the duo reached a large underground hall, Noah recognized one of the rank 8 cultivators sitting at the table. He saw Luke sipping some wine while wearing his iconic sly expression. "This is an ambush then," Noah exclaimed while unleashing his aura. His entire existence became ready to fight, but Luke promptly stood up and begged him to stop. "My cell ended up having a change of heart," Luke explained. "We don''t want to have anything to do with the Crystal City anymore. We are ready to give you full support to make up for our mistake." "I only want to kill you," Noah exclaimed while drawing the Demonic Sword. "Are you sure?" Luke asked as a sly smile broadened on his face. "Don''t you want to know how simple cultivators have managed to trigger a Tribulation?" Chapter 1582: 1582. Punishmen Noah had a firm policy about his enemies. Luke had been part of the kidnapping of his friends, so he had to die. However, he had information that Noah couldn''t wait to obtain. "Speak before I turn this place into a mess," Noah threatened without storing the Demonic Sword. His aura expressed how serious he was about the whole situation, but Luke remained unfazed. The threat didn''t ruin his sly smile. "The secret organization has always supported powerful forces throughout its existence," Luke explained. "The Crystal City has a significant role in the whole political system of the human domain, so we had to make sure that it remained in power." "It''s always the same with humans and weak existences," Noah commented. "You want to preserve your lifestyle so badly that you end up being the very reason for your destruction." Noah could barely contain himself. There were only three rank 8 cultivators in the gaseous stage in the underground hall. He could go off and destroy everything, but he needed his answers first. "We do," Luke sighed. "I can only hope that what I''m about to reveal to you can still save my cell." Noah remained silent. He didn''t want to waste more words until he obtained his answers. "The higher plane isn''t just ground and air," Luke explained. "They are part of a larger system that involves cultivators and other beings that live on their surface." Luke took a sip from his cup before exchanging a glance with his companions. Both rank 8 existences nodded to him. Their face expressed their determination. "Heaven and Earth need us to walk new paths," Luke continued. "They have failed in their breakthrough to the tenth rank, so they rely on cultivators to create new laws. One day they might find what they have missed and obtain the power that stands above words." "Cut it short," Noah threatened. "I don''t have all day." "Some cultivators know how limited they are," Luke continued after clearing his throat. "You can''t expect to surpass Heaven and Earth while living inside their world. So, a small group of enlightened individuals has decided to stop opposing their system and join their great plan. They will take care of generating new laws in exchange for the chance to live in the new world." "That sounds like a weak motivation," Noah replied. "Why would existences who have worked for millennia to build their laws give up on everything over a faint promise?" "Because Heaven and Earth is the first and largest organization," Luke answered. "You have only seen a small Tribulation. Do you think that is the full extent of their power? They can turn your entire life into a living hell." "Heaven and Earth are petty existences," Noah replied. "Their fairness is a limit that they can''t overcome." "Of course," Luke laughed, "But where does their fairness end? What happens when you have broken their laws and they label you as a parasite? They can make the ground break under your feet and turn the air into poison. You can only submit in front of that power." "Why did you decide to meet me?" Noah asked while giving voice to a cold laugh. "Don''t tell me that you want to submit me?" "I wouldn''t dare to try anything," Luke explained. "I''m only here to tell you what will happen if you continue on this path. The world will become your enemy, and your very existence will turn into a curse." "That''s enough," Noah sighed while his aura unfolded through the room. "Let''s kill each other. I''m tired of this speech." "Good luck with the rest of your life then," Luke announced, and a humming noise suddenly followed his words. Noah''s instincts began to shout. Something strange was happening, but his consciousness couldn''t understand the nature of that threat. The air that touched Noah''s body started to scream. It began to fight his very existence and self-destroy when it found itself unable to kill him. The same happened to the ground. The terrain didn''t accept that Noah could step on it. Cracks opened and forced him to float to remain in the same position. Crackling noises spread through the world. The air generated sparks that targeted Noah''s existence. An ominous aura converged on his figure and made him sense danger all around him. ''What is happening?!'' Noah shouted in his mind while inspecting his surroundings. His consciousness couldn''t sense the presence of inscriptions or traps. It seemed that the world had labeled him as an enemy and was trying to get rid of his existence. Noah found himself unable to breathe. The air would rather crumble than end up in his lungs. He had become something that the world didn''t accept. "You should be proud of yourself," Luke announced. "Very few existences have managed to obtain this treatment. You are the first rank 8 existence in history who has reached this point. All the others had to step on the ninth rank before becoming enemies of the world." Noah unfolded the dark world. His ambition seeped into his surroundings and forced the laws around him to obey his will. He became able to breathe again, but his achievements only triggered harsher punishments. A lightning bolt suddenly pierced the ground and fell on the dark matter that covered his figure. The attack didn''t manage to reach his skin, but the danger didn''t diminish. A second lightning bolt fell into the underground hall and tried to pierce the dark world. Noah could only watch as that destructive energy filled his technique and dispersed among the currents of dark matter. The dark world slowly condensed to create the fiendish armor. Noah was livid. Heaven and Earth wanted to punish him, but he would fight back. "You shouldn''t have done this," Noah roared. "We didn''t do anything," Luke replied. "This is all Heaven and Earth''s work." Luke and the others began to turn ethereal. Their bodies started to disappear while the world continued to attack Noah. Noah''s ambition shot forward and filled the whole hall. His violent energy disrupted the technique that was teleporting the experts away and forced their bodies to return material. "Did you really expect that I would let you go away?" Noah roared. "You can''t stop us with your aura alone," Luke laughed while a wave of inscriptions spread through the rocky surfaces of the underground hall. "We are still willing to cooperate, but you must overcome this challenge first. We''ll contact you if we learn that your existence can survive this." Barriers and techniques activated. Luke and the others began to disappear again, but Noah promptly waved his sword to interrupt those inscriptions. The singularity that shot out of his figure didn''t manage to pierce the barriers, but Noah promptly drew the cursed sword and slashed again. His attack made the barriers tremble, but it failed to pierce them again. Luke and the others vanished and left Noah alone. Noah couldn''t describe how angry he was. More lightning bolts fell on him, but the dark world always managed to stop them. Noah filled the area with flames to heal the damage caused by the cursed sword. The ground burnt and gave its energy to his body. The white sky eventually appeared in his vision, and Noah could see that sparks had covered the whole region. There was nothing to destroy. The sky didn''t feature any Tribulation. The air itself had become the punishment that the world wanted to force on Noah. **** Author''s notes: Same issue as last time. I just got back home. You can expect the other chapters in the next hours. Chapter 1583: 1583. Return The Immortal Lands expressed their rage. Crackling noises filled the sky, and lightning bolts shot toward Noah''s figure. Noah didn''t know how to handle that situation. He didn''t have anything to defeat. The world had become his enemy without giving him a target. Jordan and the others wanted to come in his aid, but Noah raised his hand to stop them. "Don''t come near me!" Noah shouted. "I need to handle this on my own!" The world continued to launch lightning bolts that landed on his figure and destroyed part of his fiendish armor. The black hole always rebuilt it, but Noah still felt unable to find a solution to his issue. Vagona city fell into chaos due to the crisis. The sparks didn''t target its buildings. Yet, the cultivators didn''t feel at ease in front of such a display of might. ''How do I solve this?!'' Noah shouted in his mind, but his situation seemed helpless. His instincts were telling him that something had broken. Noah felt exposed to Heaven and Earth''s will, and nothing he did could turn his situation back. The armor began to transform. Noah focused on suppressing his existence and hiding his aura. His dark matter created a personal space that forced only matter affected by his ambition to exist. His higher energy took care of removing every trace of Heaven and Earth''s will from his surroundings. The dark world expanded before condensing. Noah was creating a spell meant to hide his existence from Heaven and Earth. His understanding of the Immortal Lands fused with his higher energy and gave it properties that could shield him from external influences. Noah had to remain in the same position for entire days. The experts inside Vagona city tried to summon reinforcements, but no one arrived since Alexander was taking care of that aspect of the mission. Jordan and the others also enveloped the city in their threatening aura. They made the five leaders understand that they shouldn''t do anything against Noah. Noah had to wave his sword multiple time to fend off the incoming lightning bolts. Those attacks never put him in real danger, but they were relentless. The world never stopped assaulting him and depleting his energy. A change happened at some point. The dark matter found a wavelength that could cover his presence from the world. The crackling noises suddenly stopped, and some peace spread through the sky. The dark world began to condense in the shape of a thin transparent layer that covered his skin. Noah felt as if a bubble had appeared around him. He felt as if he had severed his connection with the world. ''This can''t be a lasting solution,'' Noah thought while inspecting his new spell. The layer of skin relied on the black hole to work. It had a nigh-unlimited amount of energy at its disposal, and Noah''s dantian always provided more darkness to refill the expended dark matter. The spell didn''t deplete much energy. Noah could keep it up for decades and stretch its duration even more through training sessions. However, it was a bother that he didn''t want to withstand. ''I didn''t expect this,'' Noah sighed in his mind while reviewing the past events. Noah had partially obtained the answers that he desired. Luke didn''t explain much, but he had basically admitted that Heaven and Earth were working together with some cultivators. Noah had already figured that out, but hearing it from Luke had confirmed his worries. Heaven and Earth had an assault team that could take care of the threats that their fairness didn''t allow them to reach. Jordan and the others flew toward Noah at that point. They wore worried expressions when they inspected his figure. The Tribulation didn''t hurt him, but they could sense that something about his existence had changed. The new spell made Noah''s existence hard to read. The rank 7 cultivators were almost unable to sense him at all. Even their eyes struggled to focus on his figure. "I can''t continue the mission," Noah said, but only the rank 8 existences managed to hear his voice. "I need to hurry up back to the Legion." Noah glanced toward June and his friends. They couldn''t even begin to understand what was happening to him, but he trusted that Jordan would eventually explain everything. "The world can''t allow me to exist anymore," Noah explained. "It wants to kick me out of its structure. I need to find a solution before returning to you all." Jordan and Divine Demon didn''t know what to say, so they limited themselves to nod. They could see that Noah was struggling, so they didn''t investigate further. Noah left in a hurry. He shot in the direction of the Outer Lands without stopping to study his condition further. The constant use of the new spell slowed him down and dulled his senses, but Noah didn''t let his annoyance get to his head. Noah already had a plan. He knew one existence that had suffered due to Heaven and Earth''s influence. Only Supreme Thief could tell him how to get rid of that annoying condition. The flight back to the Legion was uneventful. Noah reached his companions in no time and asked for the new location of Supreme Thief''s inheritance. The hybrids didn''t hide anything from him. Noah could travel toward the inheritance right after meeting his companions. The immense mountain soon appeared in his view. Noah directly flew toward the palace and entered the "strength" tower. The inheritance wanted to send him toward the lower layers, but Noah had no intention of surpassing trials. Noah dispersed his new spell. The inheritance contained multiple separate dimensions that hid his presence, so his surroundings didn''t turn into a mess again. Noah could finally relax and recover from the long travel, but he didn''t start a training session just yet. "Come out, Supreme Thief!" Noah shouted, scaring away all the other hybrids busy choosing trials. "I know that you are watching! I have a serious matter to discuss!" Noah''s words didn''t seem to trigger any reaction in the outside world, but an azure light suddenly lit up under him and teleported him away. Noah found himself inside an underground hall with the familiar expert tinkering with an uneven orb. "What is it?" Supreme Thief asked in an annoyed tone. "I don''t like you barging in so suddenly and revealing my existence to the other challengers." "Heaven and Earth have labeled me as a proper enemy," Noah quickly explained, ignoring the expert''s annoyed tone. "I need to use a spell to hide my existence. The world goes crazy otherwise." "Oh," Supreme Thief exclaimed while moving his attention on him. "They already did that. I think you broke some record." "Is there a solution?" Noah asked. "What solution do you even want?" Supreme Thief replied. "The world belongs to Heaven and Earth. They can do what they want with it." "How did you handle it back then?" Noah continued to ask. "I didn''t handle it," Supreme Thief explained. "The world will continue to attack you until you turn into dust. Don''t worry. You will become used to it soon." Noah cursed in his mind. That was worse than having his mind assaulted by constant pressure. He would have to keep his spell active through the rest of his cultivation journey. "Well, you can always go to the windy regions if you hate this so much," Supreme Thief added. "The storms of chaotic laws already are a Tribulation, so Heaven and Earth won''t add energy to their power. They won''t even target you." Chapter 1584: 1584. Surprise Noah didn''t even consider that option. He had already seen how dangerous the windy regions were at his current level. He couldn''t go there only to get rid of his annoying condition. "I guess this had to happen at some point," Noah sighed and calmed himself down. His situation wasn''t downright awful. He had already found a temporary solution to his issue, and he could polish it while he was inside Supreme Thief''s inheritance. The spell had a few drawbacks, but it could keep him safe. Moreover, it also worked as a cover for his presence. The only issue was that it worked too well. Noah bowed toward Supreme Thief, and an azure light soon lit up under him to teleport him away from that underground hall. Noah found himself in the fourth layer after the light vanished, and he quickly dug a cave to create a training area. Polishing the spell took a while. Noah wanted his friends in the seventh rank to be able to see him without affecting the hiding qualities of the cover. The dark world expanded and condensed multiple times while Noah tinkered with its properties. He eventually reached a decent result and linked the ability with his black hole. Part of his dark matter would always have those properties now. Noah felt at a loss of what to do after he completed that project. He only had to cultivate and become strong enough to live inside the windy regions in theory, but the path was still long. Noah cultivated while he pondered about his situation. He wanted to start another mess to improve quickly, but Alexander''s return had limited his options. Alexander could take care of all the enemies of the Legion without Noah''s help. Actually, Noah''s presence would be superfluous since the expert was here. The hybrid would probably attack all the known mansions belonging to Noah''s enemies and force them to hide. Peace seemed about to fall on the world, and Noah despised that situation. ''Maybe I should cooperate with the secret organization,'' Noah wondered without interrupting his training. ''They might give me some interesting options.'' Noah didn''t want to face the trials in Supreme Thief''s inheritance. He had no interest in the pyramid either. Great Builder''s studies were interesting, but Noah had already obtained what he needed. ''Secret organization it is,'' Noah sighed before leaving Supreme Thief''s inheritance and flying toward the Legion''s headquarters. Jordan and the others were still busy gathering the experts from the Balrow family. They had decided to continue the mission after Noah''s sudden departure, and Alexander''s efforts made their travel uneventful. The magical beasts had followed Noah''s orders. They had transformed more regions into blue bushes and expanded his domain. Noah had a lot of space at his sole disposal now, so he enlarged his underground training area. It was hard to expand his influence without revealing his presence to the world. Noah wanted to make his ambition reach his underlings, but he couldn''t let Heaven and Earth resume their relentless destruction. Noah had to create large spheres made of his condensed aura to solve that issue. He built portable dispensers of his influence and placed them in specific spots of his domain. He had to cover the spheres with his dark matter to hide his aura from the world. That approach allowed him to avoid the world''s destructive force while unleashing his ambition anyway. June and the others eventually returned with most of the Balrow family. Pearl didn''t manage to find a few experts even after searching all the mansions of her organization. It was as if they had disappeared from the human domain. Theodora used her innate ability to scan those new assets. She found many biases toward the hybrids in those cultivators, but they were innocent when it came to the crisis. The Legion decided to put that force in the outskirts of its domain. Only time would tell whether they could become trustworthy assets. For now, they had to remain unaware of the true power of the hybrids. "What will you do now?" June asked Noah while the duo rested in his cave. "Wait until something happens," Noah sighed. "I''m too weak for the deep areas of the Outer Lands but too powerful to bully weak forces. I don''t even find Supreme Thief''s inheritance interesting anymore at my current level." Noah didn''t have to wait for long. A small group of envoys soon reached the borders of his domain and requested a meeting. Luke and other cultivators from the secret organization had flown across the entire human domain to meet Noah again. The experts wore solemn expressions when Noah and the other rank 8 experts of the Legion encircled them, but they didn''t show any fear. "You managed to put it under control," Luke exclaimed after inspecting Noah. "We weren''t wrong in deciding to side with you." "Did you come back to taunt me?" Noah asked. "Your evasive maneuvers can''t keep you safe forever, especially in these lands." "We have no intention to fight the Legion," Luke replied. "We actually helped you. Heaven and Earth wanted to label you as their enemy right after the light Tribulation. We managed to delay that event until our first meeting." "I bet you have no way of proving that," Noah laughed. "We can," Luke said before taking out a small dark orb from his space-ring. Noah''s eyes widened when he inspected that inscribed item. The orb seemed to radiate an aura similar to his ambition. Heaven and Earth even began to attack it as soon as it touched the air. "It was far bigger before," Luke explained. "We had to use many valuable resources and inspect those who had interacted with you to build this. It has baited Heaven and Earth''s destructive force since the Tribulation." Lightning bolts fell on the orb and finished destroying it. The world fell silent after that, and Luke revealed his sly smile at Noah''s surprised expression. "What can you give me if I decide to cooperate with your cell?" Noah asked. "The secret organization is one of the oldest forces in the Immortal Lands," Luke explained. "We have studied most of their known surface and have kept track of any valuable resource that came out of the windy regions. We also have experts capable of prying into Heaven and Earth''s mind. I think you can come up with something that you need." Luke''s words managed to capture Noah''s attention, but he couldn''t trust him. The secret organization was too shady, and nothing could reassure him about its actual loyalty. "What do the other cells say about this meeting?" Noah asked. "Some of them agree with our new position," Luke sighed. "Others feel that only by fusing with Heaven and Earth we can unlock the tenth rank. I believe they will create countermeasures to our knowledge at some point. You might want to make use of us soon." "Start talking then," Noah snorted. "I will decide what to do with you after listening to everything you know about the higher plane and Heaven and Earth. I also want the names of those involved in the ambush." "As you wish," Luke said while a broad smile appeared on his face. "However, do you want to do this here, in front of so many ears?" "I have nothing to hide from them," Noah announced. "What about that strange existence hiding in her clothes?" Luke asked while pointing at Faith. Noah and the others suddenly turned toward Faith. Their consciousness scanned her figure, but they couldn''t find what Luke had mentioned. "Come out," Luke said while taking out a series of mirrors that gathered around Faith. "It''s commendable that you managed to hide yourself from rank 8 existences, but your methods can fool the secret organization." "Crap," A familiar voice resounded in the area before white flames slowly came out of Faith''s robe. Noah couldn''t believe his eyes. The flames condensed to take the shape of an existence that he knew far too well. Second Prince suddenly materialized among the experts and heaved a loud sigh. "I had grown tired of pretending that I was an inscribed item anyway," Second Prince exclaimed. "Well, I can''t wait to see my father now." Chapter 1585: 1585. Unique Second Prince''s appearance left everyone on the scene speechless. Those from the secret organization and the hybrids couldn''t understand the whole situation, but the expert''s feat managed to surprise them anyway. "Care to explain?" Noah asked before Faith and the others could vent their anger. Second Prince''s cultivation level was in the solid stage of the seventh rank. He was as strong as June, but his presence was faint. Even in his new form, Noah could barely sense him. "What''s there to explain," Second Prince announced. "I fixed the dimensional portal and hitch-hiked a passage to the Immortal Lands. I planned to reveal myself only once I reached my father''s level, but this shady guy ruined my big surprise." "Wait," June shouted. "Have you been with us since before the ascension? Did you watch while the Crystal City tortured us?" "What do you want me to say," Second Prince shrugged his shoulders. "You are worthy of being Noah''s friends. I reached the other world when you were in the middle of a war. I decided to hide since you were too powerful for me, but your situation didn''t improve in the Immortal Lands. Then, seeing that my father couldn''t sense me felt good, so I continued to remain hidden." "How did you even shield yourself from our senses?" Noah asked while disbelief still filled his mind. "I''m not a human, remember?" Second Prince replied. "I can easily turn into an inscribed item, robe, or even something that doesn''t radiate any cultivation level. The hardest part has been opening the dimensional tunnel without anyone noticing it, but the rest has been quite easy." Noah didn''t know what to say. He couldn''t even understand Second Prince''s motives properly. "Were you too scared to reveal yourself?" Noah eventually asked. "Of course!" Second Prince shouted. "You are all madmen who do nothing but fight. I didn''t want to go through years of battles again, so I remained hidden while accumulating power. Everything was going so well." "I guess you know each other," Luke exclaimed, but Noah shot an angry glance at him. The expert fell silent, but he didn''t stop smiling. Luke found the whole situation quite funny, and he didn''t even try to hide his feelings. "Did you hide on me the whole time?" Faith asked as anger seeped into her aura. Daniel reacted in the same way. Clear anger seeped into his aura, but he managed to keep his cool. "It has never been sexual," Second Prince snorted. "Also, I even helped with your training. Why do you think you are closer to the solid stage compared to the others?" "Fight back there," Noah said while pointing toward the edges of the blue regions. "I need to talk about serious stuff." "Won''t you protect me?" Second Prince asked, but Noah had already begun to ignore him. Faith, Daniel, and Second Prince eventually left that area, and the noises of a battle soon echoed through the sky. Noah didn''t even bother to check the fight since Luke claimed his full attention. "You were about to reveal why I should cooperate with the secret organization," Noah said. "Right, right," Luke replied. "As you already know, the secret organization has the best network in the Immortal Lands. We learn about important events or resources far before other forces." "You and the other cells," Noah contradicted him. "The other forces will learn everything anyway since the secret organization will continue to help them. You are only balancing the field here." "Alexander is making a mess in the human domain," Luke explained. "Every organization fears you and the Legion. No force would dare to start a fight now. It''s the perfect moment to turn that balance into an advantage." "This implies that you already have something valuable at hand," Noah added. "Of course," Luke exclaimed. "Something has appeared at the border with the windy regions. We suspect that it comes from a rank 9 existence." "What makes you believe that?" Noah asked. "Even the immense Immortal Lands had seen only a few rank 9 existences," Luke explained. "The secret organization had always kept track of them, so we can understand when a place carries their mark." "Is it an inheritance?" Noah asked while some curiosity surged in his mind. "We aren''t entirely sure," Luke continued. "It resembles a lair rather than an actual building. We believe you all should be perfect for the exploration." Noah didn''t buy that. That chance sounded too perfect for him. He would rather believe that the secret organization had chosen to give up on one of its valuable locations to create that alliance with the Legion. The noises of the battle happening in the distance eventually stopped. Noah could see that Second Prince was completely fine, while Faith appeared exhausted. Daniel seemed annoyed, but he didn''t feature any injury. "Let''s go then," Noah said. "We must use this chance while Alexander is claiming the human domain''s attention, right? I don''t see why we should hesitate." "Well, we have to complete a few preparations first," Luke exclaimed while his smile froze. "No preparations," Noah rejected his offer. "I don''t want to give your force time to prepare stuff. We either go now, or you leave these lands." Luke gulped. He could sense Noah''s seriousness during his speech. He was ready to depart at that exact moment. "Hurry up!" Noah shouted. "Lead the way. You all are free to come." Noah broke that encirclement and turned toward the depths of the Outer Lands. Divine Demon, Jordan, June, Fergie, and the others quickly imitated him, leaving Luke no chance but to follow him. "Are we allies then?" Luke asked once he reached Noah. "I''ll think about it after this mission," Noah replied before focusing on Second Prince. "You must also come. I want a full report concerning what has happened after I ascended." "Overbearing as always," Second Prince sighed. "There isn''t much to say. I rebuilt the dimensional tunnel and remained hidden. End of the story." "I thought you would rebuild the tunnel for my friends in the other world," Noah replied. "Well," Second Prince hesitated while trying to find the right words to describe those past events. "You were only a newly ascended god, and my existence is quite peculiar. I broke free of your oath but respected your desires anyway. I just handled them differently." Noah couldn''t help but sigh. He had to admit that Second Prince was as unique as he claimed. The expert''s existence was strange since he didn''t belong to any of the three major species. "Don''t worry," Second Prince continued. "I didn''t forget what you did for me. I am an ally, and I''ll eventually prove it. I don''t want to fight with you ever again." Noah didn''t answer. He began to ignore Second Prince and moved back to Luke. The expert was leading the group now, but Noah still wanted to probe him about that resource. "We managed to connect that place to Radiant Eyes," Luke explained. "She has always been interested in hybrids throughout her life, but the reports about her become vague after she approached the peak of the eighth rank." "We''ll see what this is all about soon enough," Noah exclaimed while moving the focus on a different topic. "Now, tell me about the resources that you decided to keep a secret from me." Chapter 1586: 1586. Bees Noah''s guess had been on point. Luke had withheld crucial information and only revealed one of the valuable locations that could interest Noah. Yet, the higher plane was vast and had seen many powerful existences throughout the eras. All the experts who had managed to approach the ninth rank had left something important behind, and the secret organization had kept track of most of them. The main issue behind those locations was that the entirety of the secret organization knew about them. That made every force in the human domain aware of those resources since the many cells would have different agendas. Alexander was giving Noah the chance to inspect the location connected to Radiant Eyes, but the human domain wouldn''t normally remain on the sidelines in front of those resources. Many organizations had even taken control of some of them during the past years. Noah let go of that topic to focus on something far more important. Luke and the other two rank 8 cultivators from the secret organization knew a lot about Heaven and Earth, and Noah wanted to learn everything. It turned out that almost every large organization had experts connected to Heaven and Earth. An existence would gain a chance to join them after approaching the solid stage. Luke''s force had specific cells meant to recruit assets for that task. Of course, joining that part of the secret organization wasn''t mandatory, but Heaven and Earth''s offer was quite appealing. The lack of constant punishment was tempting, but that wasn''t everything. Heaven and Earth had complete control over their system. They could help certain existences as long as they surrendered their laws. Luke didn''t know the specifics behind that process, but he had gained a general idea of what it caused in cultivators. Noah could vaguely understand that point and why certain existences couldn''t ignore that offer. However, he knew that most cultivators wouldn''t give up on the laws that they had built over millennia so easily. The main issue was that cultivators had no way to escape Heaven and Earth while in the Immortal Lands, which made the whole journey harder. Even incredible existences like Supreme Thief and Great Builder had ended up dying because of that. Luke didn''t know too much on that topic. He could only repeat Supreme Thief''s words and tell Noah that Heaven and Earth had powerful underlings throughout the higher plane. The expert had a personal theory about their identity, but it was only a vague hypothesis. As for the methods to contact Heaven and Earth, Luke couldn''t explain much. The secret organization had a place capable of reaching those existences, but its actual location was one of the greatest secrets of his force. Only the most powerful experts would learn about it. The conversation left Noah with many doubts. Luke had revealed that every existence would eventually have to face Heaven and Earth''s suppression at some point. The records even showed that only a few of them managed to remain alive after that. "You can''t develop proper countermeasures to that issue," Luke explained. "You are against worlds-builder beings. Techniques can hide your existence for a while, but you will always deplete your energy before Heaven and Earth." "And you get the lackeys if you end up creating something that can last for a long time," Noah sighed. "Exactly!" Luke exclaimed. "It''s honestly hopeless." "Why did you have a change of heart then?" Noah asked. "You could have lived a peaceful life." "I''m still a cultivator," Luke snorted. "I will walk on every path before giving up. There have to be flaws in the system. It''s all a matter of finding them in time." Noah didn''t know how honest Luke was, but he respected the idea behind his words. The expert''s determination wasn''t something that he could hide. Luke sounded driven and serious about his whole plan. The wind intensified as the group flew through the Outer Lands. It wouldn''t take them much to reach their destination, and Noah even began to sense the arrival of the dangerous regions. A strange structure eventually appeared in his vision. A scarlet mountain that featured countless cavities stood at the center of a barren region filled by intense gales that seemed to ignore the ground. Barren regions were a rare sight in the Immortal Lands and often featured unique environments, but the mountain seemed to be the cause for that phenomenon in that case. The structure attracted the chaotic laws and made them flow inside its cavities. The mountain seemed alive. It wasn''t an inscribed item like Supreme Thief''s palace and the pyramid. It appeared as a proper living being that had taken an immense shape. Noah could finally understand what Luke had meant before. The mountain didn''t have the aspect of an inheritance, but it contained a lot of power. "Are you sure that this isn''t a mine?" Noah asked while inspecting the mountain. "We found some Soul Stones around the edges of the cavities," Luke explained. "Yet, they stop appearing deeper in the tunnels. Something else absorbs that energy." "Didn''t you explore it any further?" Noah questioned the expert. "We found this place only a few centuries ago," Luke revealed. "The secret organization has kept it hidden while it studied the political environment. We wanted to show this place to some powerful forces before resuming its exploration." Noah nodded before nearing the mountain and covering it with his mental waves. His consciousness couldn''t seep inside the cavities, but he could understand that the structure hid some danger. "How did you even connect it to a cultivator?" Noah asked once Luke approached him. "What can you tell me about Radiant Eyes." "Her interest in the hybrids had always been famous," Luke explained. "Legends say that she has eventually managed to obtain a body similar to a magical beast. She liked bees, and this has the aspect of a beehive." Noah knew how hard it was for cultivators to alter their existence after reaching the divine ranks. He didn''t believe that Radiant Eyes had managed to overcome that issue, but it was hard to predict what powerful experts were capable of. Night appeared in the open and shot inside one of the cavities. Noah kept track of its movements through the mental connection, but the insides of the tunnels disrupted it. "We tried something similar with a few inscribed items," Luke explained. "This whole structure isolates and absorbs energy, so you can''t send and receive much." "I guess we can''t only enter it and explore its insides," Noah replied while recalling Night. "You are free to enter whenever you want," Luke continued. "The secret organization has sent some powerful assets inside the mountain. Still, those who have reached its depths have yet to come out." "Don''t worry," Noah said. "We will have a powerful guide and a few meat shields this time around." "Do you trust me so little?" Luke sighed when he understood the meaning behind Noah''s words. "Even less than you think," Noah promptly replied. "Now go before I start a mess. The same goes for your two companions. I will follow behind you." Luke could only sigh again before calling the other rank 8 existences on the scene. The two cultivators joined him in the frontlines and continued to follow him even after their sense of danger told them to go back. Noah followed closely behind them and threatened to remove his cover whenever one of them trembled. The cultivators felt danger both in front and behind their backs, but that didn''t affect their overall performance. Chapter 1587: 1587. Swarm Noah''s group entered the tunnels slowly. They didn''t dare to seize the few Soul Stones at their entrance for fear that it could trigger a reaction in the whole mountain. ''It seems alive,'' Noah thought while inspecting the rocky surface of the tunnels. The rocks and ground seemed able to breathe the chaotic laws flowing in their insides. It felt as if those materials were actively attracting the gales to feed on their energy. Second Prince tried to use inscribed items to learn more about the whole structure, but his inspections didn''t lead to significant results. The group could only rely on their instincts and mental waves to search for dangers. Noah felt that something was off, but he couldn''t pinpoint the source of that sensation. The mountain appeared dangerous, but for reasons that he couldn''t explain. A red halo illuminated the tunnels and prevented the group from flying through complete darkness. Many branches spread through the mountain''s insides, but most of them seemed to lead toward its core. A bright fissure eventually appeared in their vision. The tunnels had led to an underground hall that featured a large scarlet crack that tore space itself. ''This does look like an inheritance,'' Noah thought while studying the crack. The fissure seemed to lead to a separate dimension. That portal never closed since the mountain took care of absorbing energy from the storms, but Second Prince quickly understood that there was more to it. The mountain used most of the chaotic laws to keep the portal open. The space in the Immortal Lands was incredibly resilient, so that crack consumed a lot of energy. Yet, Second Prince calculated that part of that energy ended up inside the separate dimension. Something on the other side of the crack consumed that power, but the expert couldn''t understand much from his position. "It''s probably something for rank 8 experts or above," Noah commented while glancing at his rank 7 companions. His words didn''t manage to scare them away. June and the others wanted to see the other side of the crack. Their existence badly needed those adventures. "We respected our side of the deal," Luke announced. "I don''t see a reason to linger any further. I wish you good luck and a series of meaningful reward-." "You first," Noah said, interrupting the expert''s line. "I think I prefer this spot," Luke replied. "I don''t think you do," Noah contradicted him, and his companions supported him by shooting glares toward the expert. Luke suddenly found Divine Demon, Jordan, and Noah glaring at him while wearing severe expressions. It was clear that they wouldn''t let the expert back off now that they were so close. "Off you go," Noah said, and Luke sighed before jumping inside the crack. The other to rank 8 cultivators from the secret organization did the same, and Noah studied the reaction of the portal before feeling confident about its functioning. The passage of the three experts didn''t seem to affect the crack at all. Noah could even sense their existence disappearing as they traveled through that area of unique space. Noah didn''t manage to suppress his curiosity any longer. He nodded at his companions and jumped inside the dimensional tunnel before his vision became a mess. The familiar sensation of a teleport filled Noah''s mind before a bright scarlet light appeared in his vision. Noah suddenly found himself inside a barren red world that rarely featured different shades. Luke and his companions were there. They were inspecting the separate dimension, but they couldn''t find anything interesting. The separate dimension was nothing more than a charred red ground and a scarlet sky that radiated a bright red light. It was a simple world that seemed to lack any trace of life. Noah glanced above his head. The crack was still there. The separate dimension had a clear exit that made the disappearance of the other experts somewhat worrying. The separate dimension didn''t force them to remain inside that world. There had to be something else, but Noah couldn''t understand it from his position. The other experts soon arrived and landed next to Noah. The density of laws in the area was relatively lacking, but they all managed to become used to that new environment. "What now?" Luke asked as a tinge of annoyance entered his voice. "Thorough exploration," Noah limited himself to answer before starting to walk forward. The separate dimension featured a few mountains in the distance. They were the only logical target during that exploration, so Noah quickly moved toward them. The rest of his group could only follow him. Luke and the others from the secret organization had lost any meaning now, so Noah had instantly become the new guide. The separate dimension seemed empty, but Noah couldn''t shake away the constant dangerous sensation that tried to take control of his mind. The scenery rarely changed, but the mountains drew closer. It took the group a while to reach the mountains, and a few peculiar features appeared on their surface when the group arrived at their base. Those structures had the same cavities seen outside, only smaller and without the absorbing properties. Noah and the others quickly climbed the mountains, but they didn''t see anything meaningful after reaching their peaks. The separate dimension seemed to end there, but a buzzing noise soon spread through the area. The noise came from underground. Cracks suddenly opened on the terrain and the surface of the mountains, and large creatures came out of them. An army of giant bees quickly filled the sky and began to point their stings toward Noah and the others. The experts activated defenses at that point, but Noah''s loud cry made them almost forget where they were. Noah roared as the unstable substance spread through his black veins. The swarm of bees featured multiple rank 8 specimens in the lower tier, but Noah didn''t care. He had already tested that he could handle that danger. It didn''t matter that the bees were nimble and had three meters long stings. Noah had transformed into the best lower tier weapon in the world. Noah leapt forward without relying on movement techniques. The sheer strength generated through the unstable substance made him arrive among the specimens in an instant. A wave of black flames soon spread among the bees. The rank 7 specimens among the swarm died as soon as they touched Noah''s innate ability. Meanwhile, he launched singularities toward the rank 8 creatures. Noah''s decision to attack made his companions far more confident about the whole situation. The bees were big and hideous, but they were relatively easy to kill as long as attacks went past their tough exoskeleton. Divine Demon and the others began to assault the swarm, even if Noah seemed able to handle the situation by himself. Snore and Duanlong appeared among the bees while Night severed countless heads in seconds. The rank 7 cultivators tried to help, but their spells appeared lacking compared to Noah''s offensive. His flames, slashes, companions, and sheer physical strength inflicted massive damage to the swarm. Noah was unstoppable among that army of powerless magical beasts. The bees tried to hit Noah with their stings, but their body parts would always stop before piercing his skin. He ended up taking care of the whole army almost by himself. Chapter 1588: 1588. Chrysalises Divine Demon and the others wanted to help, but they soon lowered their hands. Noah was giving them a spectacle that they didn''t want to miss. Noah was an exceptional warrior. He could fight without allowing those bees to touch him. However, the situation didn''t require him to be so careful. The bees'' stings often landed on his body, but they never managed to leave marks. The clash with his skin generated clanging noises that spread through the red sky but never led to injuries. The unstable substance turned Noah''s body into something more than simple skin and flesh. It allowed him to step past perfection and become almost immune to magical beasts in the lower tier. Bees would shatter whenever his sword flashed. Night was an untouchable shadow that severed heads whenever its figure reappeared. Snore was an all-devouring monster that covered the sky with violent dark matter. Duanlong''s innate ability weakened most of those creatures and dragged them into its mouth. It was a massacre. The bees never managed to gain the upper hand, but they didn''t retreat either. They continued to assault Noah until he exterminated all of them. Noah slowly landed back on the ground. His eyes didn''t end up on his companions. He was busy reviewing the battle since there was something off with the bees'' behavior. ''Why didn''t they try to escape?'' Noah wondered while using his dark matter to devour the various corpses that had accumulated on the ground. It was rare for divine creatures to keep fighting a battle that they had no hope to win. Only the orders of a powerful leader could force them to be so selfless. "This place is strange," Noah commented when he noticed that his companions were waiting for his evaluation. "You can''t expect rank 9 existences to be normal," Luke commented, but Noah didn''t feel at ease anyway. Inheritances had specific structures and layers. They put rewards behind trials meant to find a suitable heir. Yet, the separate dimension seemed to have a different purpose. "The surface shouldn''t have much," Noah eventually said. "I say we dig until we meet creatures in the middle tier. We can''t face anything more than that." Doubts had appeared in Noah''s mind after the battle. The strange layout of the mountain made it a danger zone rather than an inheritance. That small adventure had instantly become far riskier after that realization. The others didn''t challenge Noah''s evaluation. They trusted his expertise, and the sight of so many rank 8 magical beasts had also made them aware of how dangerous the separate dimension could be. Noah and the others began to enlarge the cracks opened by the bees. They dug the red terrain and performed multiple inspections to remain aware of their surroundings until the journey led them into a large underground structure. A series of underground halls connected by tunnels appeared in their vision. Multiple chrysalises covered those scarlet walls, but most of them were open. Only a few of the chrysalises were still intact, even if they appeared wilted and dead. It seemed that the magical beasts inside them had failed in the breakthrough. ''These are fresh,'' Noah thought while inspecting the open chrysalises. A dense fluid still flowed out of those silky spherical structures. It covered the walls and seeped into the floor. The scarlet rocks and terrain didn''t stop it. Instead, they absorbed that material until it completely disappeared from the hall. It didn''t take an expert to understand what had happened. The previous bees had flown toward the sky right after coming out of the chrysalises. ''Is this a defense mechanism?'' Noah wondered. ''Did the separate dimension force them to wake up?'' The chrysalises were also strange. They didn''t resemble the nourishing materials that usually preceded a breakthrough. ''Luke described this place as a beehive,'' Noah thought while pointing at the floor. His companions quickly understood his intentions. They began to punch or launch spells at the terrain to dig toward deeper parts of the separate dimension. The experts had to dig the ground for hundreds of meters before they could find something interesting. A second series of underground halls and tunnels appeared under them, and their walls even featured chrysalises. ''There are almost five hundred chrysalises here,'' Noah counted after expanding his consciousness. ''They didn''t react to our arrival.'' Noah could see the bees inside the chrysalises in the second layer. His inspection revealed that the creatures weren''t ready to appear in the world yet. They weren''t even completely alive. The chrysalises didn''t come from breakthroughs. They were breeding new specimens that could directly be born as divine beings. "I don''t think we should remain here for too long," Noah suggested. "Let''s take these chrysalises and leave. I don''t want to enrage the existence behind such a spectacular structure." Noah felt in awe of that separate dimension. Radiant Eyes had created a breeding ground for those bees and had also removed certain limitations. Certain species of magical beasts could give birth to rank 7 specimens. Yet, Noah had fought multiple creatures in the eighth rank before, and they had come from similar chrysalises. ''What was she trying to create here?'' Noah wondered. ''Why even bother with this structure?'' Noah had many doubts that he couldn''t appease, but they didn''t slow him down. He seized a few chrysalises and stored them inside his separate space before setting off. His companions imitated him, but a buzzing noise suddenly echoed through the second layer of halls. The chrysalises that they had left behind broke in front of their eyes. They gave birth to hundreds of almost dead specimens in a matter of seconds. Noah glanced at that swarm before flying back to the surface. That army didn''t feature any middle tier specimen, but he didn''t want to fight them underground. A second battle happened on the surface. Noah quickly overwhelmed those creatures and made sure to absorb their energy. That type of training was quite beneficial for his body, but Noah didn''t know how long he could stretch it. "Are you sure that leaving is a good idea?" Divine Demon asked after the battle ended. "I think we can dig far deeper." "I''d rather avoid seeing the true power of this separate dimension," Noah explained. "Also, this place doesn''t have any valuable resource except for the magical beasts. The mountain itself is the treasure here, but we can''t seize it." Noah wanted to play it safe. He didn''t need to dig deeper into the separate dimension to test his power. He could find middle tier magical beasts in the outside world, where he didn''t have to fear for the secret abilities of a separate dimension. Yet, his plan to leave immediately ended up facing a hindrance. A large crack opened on the ground, and a series of human figures slowly came out of it. Noah and the others couldn''t miss the appearance of those experts. Their auras had unfolded right after they returned to the surface. They had announced themselves to Noah''s group. "Duke, Ava!" Luke shouted while performing a bow. "It''s nice to see that you are fine." The new group featured three rank 8 cultivators, with two of them in the liquid stage. The two leaders were among some of the experts that the secret organization had lost during the previous explorations. The trio didn''t answer. A scarlet radiance flashed behind their eyes while buzzing noises came out of their figures. A pair of insect wings also grew out of their back before they shot toward Noah''s group. Chapter 1589: 1589. Copies "Jordan and I will face the two liquid stage experts," Noah roared. "The others will take care of the gaseous stage before supporting us!" Noah had understood that his group couldn''t escape that threat as soon as the trio started moving. The two liquid stage experts were faster than him, while the third cultivator seemed able to match his speed. The unstable substance flowed inside his black veins before a wave of dark matter covered his figure. A draconic armor that featured six arms enveloped him before roots spread around his higher energy. The roots gave birth to three blades in his empty hands. Night, Snore, and Duanlong also came out of his separate space. Noah was going all-out from the beginning of the fight. Noah didn''t divide the opponents casually. The cultivation level of the two liquid stage existences was too high for normal humans. Only hybrids could endure the inevitable beating that had to follow. The trio didn''t appear human anymore. Their glowing eyes and the insect wings gave them a monstrous appearance, but Noah could sense that they still had mental energy at their disposal. The three of them were using spells to fly forward. That partial transformation didn''t remove their ability to rely on centers of power that magical beasts didn''t have. Yet, the process had clearly affected their mind since they didn''t even bother to speak in front of a friend. Duke clapped his hands before his aura exploded forward. A wave of azure light blinded Noah for an instant, but it didn''t manage to suppress his mental waves. Noah could sense Duke multiplying inside that radiance. When the light vanished, he saw that the expert had created three exact copies of himself. Duke didn''t suffer any drawback to activate that technique. His copies carried the same cultivation level and aura. Noah suddenly had four liquid stage cultivators to take care of. The sword-shaped roots on one of his right hands opened while a black handle came out of his draconic chest. Noah drew the cursed sword and slashed toward his four opponents, backing his attack with everything he had. A massive singularity came out of his figure. The whole area became empty of air, energy, and terrain as his destructive attack filled the land. Azure shields appeared in front of the four Duke. They tried to block the singularity, but Noah''s attack ended up piercing those spells and landing on their body. The four Duke shot backward until they crashed on the ground. Limbs and pieces of their torso had disappeared after the clash. One of them had even lost his head, but his body continued to move. ''What the fuck?'' Noah cursed in his mind at the sight of the headless human figure standing up and clapping his hands. The other three Duke did the same, and an azure halo soon shone in the area again. When the light disappeared, Noah could see that the expert had created four more copies that didn''t have any injury. Noah covered the area with flames before launching another attack. The expert didn''t manage to avoid that singularity, but he tried to block it with shields again. The eight figures suffered fewer injuries during that clash since Noah''s singularity didn''t manage to pierce many shields. Still, the expert clapped his hands and multiplied himself again. Noah remained speechless. He now had twelve liquid stage opponents ready to unleash their full power. The expert''s ability didn''t make any sense, but Noah didn''t let that sight scare him. Duke had gone through a transformation, but only severe drawbacks could justify that amount of power. Cultivators couldn''t just multiply themselves. Noah would have already done it otherwise. ''I need to push him until the drawbacks take over,'' Noah concluded in his mind while storing the cursed sword. Noah couldn''t overpower so many liquid stage experts, but he had something that could delay them. It was time to use his new ability. The dark world expanded and covered the whole battlefield. The workshop activated while Noah remained hidden inside his currents of dark matter. Duke sent some of his copies forward, but the dark world suppressed their power and made them unable to find Noah. The expert snapped his fingers to launch shockwaves that destroyed entire chunks of the technique, but he still failed in uncovering Noah. Dark matter constantly refilled those destroyed areas and gave Noah more space to find a safe position. He never stopped moving and planned his new destination according to where his opponents were. ''It''s still too slow,'' Noah sighed in his mind while inspecting the twelve copies laying waste to his technique. The dark world managed to suppress the expert and his attacks, but the latter remained a liquid stage cultivator. It only took him three series of attacks to destroy most of the technique and corner Noah. A massive six-armed dragons came out of the last lump of dark matter when the twelve copies approached that area. The creature had the power of a magical beast in the lower tier, but its figure radiated Noah''s energy. The twelve copies quickly attacked the dragon and destroyed it in a single wave of attacks. They only had to snap their fingers to shatter the dark matter that made its body. ''I wonder how much energy they can use in this state,'' Noah thought while commanding the workshop to send the second specimen. A second six-armed dragon came out of that lump of dark matter, and the twelve copies quickly took care of the creature. However, the dark world expanded during that time and engulfed them again. The twelve copies launched shockwaves, but they found out that two lower tier dragons had appeared in front of them. Duke didn''t hesitate to shot toward the creatures, but a series of tentacles came out of the dark world and cracked at them. The tentacles hit the surprised copies and flung them on the ground. Large pieces of their body had disappeared after the exchange, but they all stood up and clapped their hands to multiply. ''How many times can he even do it?'' Noah wondered when he saw twenty Duke watching toward the dark world. ''Well, this should reduce his time, at least.'' More tentacles cracked out of the dark world while the copies tried to shot toward the sky. The expert quickly created shields that blocked those attacks, but he soon found the two dragons on top of him. The twenty copies destroyed the dragons in a matter of seconds. Those creatures were stronger than the average magical beast due to the dark matter, but Duke was too powerful. He was a one-man-army ready to unleash his full might in an instant. Yet, the twenty copies didn''t manage to go far. Noah kept expanding the dark world and put them into a position where he could surprise them with the tentacles and send them back on the ground. ''This doesn''t seem the arsenal of a liquid stage cultivator,'' Noah thought while inspecting his battle and the other fights. Noah noticed that the winged cultivators didn''t use many spells. They only relied on their iconic ability before limiting themselves to less powerful techniques. The gaseous stage cultivator was even alone against Luke''s companions and the rest of the rank 7 experts. It didn''t take much to take the expert down, and Second Prince didn''t hesitate to study him. Chapter 1590: 1590. Chase Noah used the dark world to run away and buy time for the workshop. Facing Duke in that state was suicide, so he had to rely on petty tactics to keep himself safe. Duke''s assault was relentless. Noah had to give up on creating dragons to maximize his number of tentacles since they were the only weapons capable of slowing down his opponent. The twenty copies charged toward the dark world and destroyed huge chunks of dark matter with the shockwaves generated by their fingers. Yet, Noah continued to retreat while forcing the workshop to give birth to more octopuses. ''When will he finish his energy?'' Noah cursed in his mind. Noah''s battle prowess was incredible, and the expert didn''t even seem able to use his full power. However, Duke continued to gain ground. Noah had long since stopped hurting his opponent. Duke had too many shields at his disposal, and his lower tier magical beasts couldn''t pierce those spells. The sky had become a mess of dark matter and tentacles, but Duke continued to advance. It wouldn''t take him much to reach Noah. The inevitable eventually happened. Duke''s twenty copies cornered Noah in a lump of dark matter and forced him to activate the Shadow Domain to dodge the incoming attack. Noah reappeared higher in the sky. He was almost back at the exit, but he couldn''t fly away in a straight line since his opponents would reach him in no time. His only shot at survival was to exhaust the expert slowly. Noah didn''t know how much energy a liquid stage cultivator had, but he guessed that it was almost time for Duke to reach his limit. Duke continued to press forward until he forced Noah to activate the Shadow Domain again. Noah unfolded the dark world once he reappeared high in the sky, and the expert resumed his chase. Noah didn''t bother to keep track of the number of rank 8 fake cores consumed during the chase. He was wasting countless priceless items during the battle, but he had no other choice. Duke eventually managed to corner Noah, but a singularity shot out of the last lump of dark matter and bought him enough time to retreat. Then, the dark world expanded again, and the chase continued. Noah had almost reached the exit when something happened. Duke''s copies began to slow down, and their assault lost power. Some of them even stopped relying on the shields when the tentacles cracked in their direction. ''Almost there!'' Noah shouted in his mind while forcing the workshop to produce even more octopuses. The tentacles created a storm that the twenty copies seemed unable to overcome. They managed to destroy those creatures in a couple of attacks, but Noah always had new beasts to throw at them. The copies slowly grew unstable. Their skin started to radiate an azure light that dispersed part of the energy contained inside their centers of power. Noah began to use the cursed sword more often at that point. His new limit was around ten attacks, and he didn''t hesitate to use all of them to increase the amount of damage that those copies had to suffer. Then, some copies detonated and released a massive wave of energy that forced Noah to use the Shadow Domain. He decided to reappear closer to his companions at that time, and his dark world promptly followed that event. The copies continued to detonate, but Noah was aware of that ability now. He stayed away from Duke and let his magical beasts handle the rest. That safe approach forced Noah to waste more fake cores, but he ignored that loss. The bloodlust that filled his mind made that task easy since he could only think about destroying Duke. The copies continued to explode until only one of them remained. Duke appeared exhausted after that long chase, but the buzzing noise still came out of his figure. ''It''s similar to what has happened with the bees,'' Noah thought. ''Something forces him to fight even if his dantian is mostly empty.'' Noah was quite fine even if he had gone all-out. He had mostly relied on the dark world and workshop during the chase, so his dantian and mental sphere didn''t waste much energy. ''How do I kill him now?'' Noah wondered before summoning Snore inside the dark world. Duke flew inside the currents of dark matter even if the technique suppressed his influence. The expert didn''t even have the power to fight against those restrictions, so Noah could wait until he was deep inside the dark world to launch his attack. Snore unleashed the full power of its wings and gave birth to a series of explosions that destroyed the dark world and generated shockwaves. The violent dark matter spread in every corner of the battlefield, but Noah was too far away to affect his companions. Duke had reactivated his shield to face that attack, but his defenses eventually shattered due to his lack of energy. The violent dark matter managed to land on his body and crush him piece by piece. The expert tried to use his remaining brim of energy to fend off that power, but Night cut off his head before he could change his approach. Of course, his body continued to move even after the beheading. Noah didn''t know how to handle that existence, so he limited himself to launch everything he had on Duke. Night could finally show its actual value in that battle since the expert didn''t activate defenses anymore, but Noah also relied on Snore and Duanlong. Night cut Duke piece by piece while the other companions assaulted him or ravaged his energy. Noah also relied on the Demonic Sword and the sword-shaped roots to launch more attacks. Duke eventually crumbled under Noah''s relentless offensive. The expert crashed on the terrain and slowly transformed into the dense liquid that Noah had seen underground. Noah didn''t let that happen. His flames, dark matter, and Duanlong flew toward Duke and used their destructive power to absorb the energy contained in the dense liquid. Part of the dark world even seized that liquid and stored it inside Noah''s black hole. He wanted to study what had caused the transformation. He was very curious about the story behind that mountain, and only the corpse could give him answers. Most of the corpse ended up fusing with the ground, but Noah managed to obtain a large chunk of energy for his centers of power and Duanlong. He even seized a second sample of the liquid, so he considered himself lucky. ''I did it,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind before dispersing the dark world and inspecting the outcome of his battle. Duke wasn''t at his best, and his ability had evident drawbacks. However, Noah had managed to hold his ground against a being capable of liquid stage might. That was something that even his ambition acknowledged. Noah felt his potential surging whenever he reviewed the scenes of the battle. His Shadow Domain, unstable substance, workshop, and cursed sword gave him great flexibility in a fight, and the base power of those abilities almost granted him the chance to make his might step on the next stage. Noah wasn''t sure whether his battle prowess had reached the liquid stage since his opponent had many flaws. Still, he had finally killed an expert at that level. He felt as if his ambition could burst out of his waist and fill the entire world. ''They should end their battle soon,'' Noah eventually thought while glancing at the fight happening in the distance. Chapter 1591: 1591. Order Jordan had followed Noah''s orders and had handled Ava''s offensive while her companions took care of the gaseous stage opponent. However, Divine Demon had eventually seized control of the battle and forced the others to settle for a supportive role. Ava was like Duke. She only used a fixed set of abilities during her battle. Her law made her able to turn her blood into different weapons that exploded whenever they touched her opponents. Instead, her spells forced the ground to wither and use its energy to fuel various barriers. The winged expert usually used her blood to create spears that flew toward her opponents. Jordan had quickly become unable to handle that offensive since her attacks couldn''t match the power of a liquid stage existence, so Divine Demon took her place. Divine Demon''s law countered Ava''s spells. The expert tried to use the ground to fuel her shields, but Divine Demon took over the world and forced it to help him. The azure halo around him never ceased to shine, and it eventually overcame the scarlet radiance that filled the separate dimension. "Give me more!" Divine Demon shouted. "I shouldn''t even be able to touch you, but your techniques can''t match my expertise. Is that everything you can do?" Divine Demon''s taunts didn''t manage to make his opponent''s flinch. Ava wore an aloof expression that didn''t reveal any emotion. She limited herself to open her skin and draw blood that turned into various weapons. Spears, swords, hammers, and more flew toward Divine Demon, who deployed all the energy taken from the world to create marvelous techniques. Divine Demon didn''t need Noah''s teachings on the path toward the ninth rank. He had always been a monster capable of following his journey without lingering on bottlenecks and similar hindrances. Still, his cultivation level didn''t allow him to defeat Ava. He didn''t even have Noah''s incredible techniques and advantages at his disposal. He was a simple cultivator, so his law had to create unique abilities to fend off that offensive. The space opened whenever Divine Demon''s influence spread through the area. Those cracks attracted the various weapons and sent them into the void. The others could attack Ava at that point. Jordan, Luke, and their companions sent waves of spells toward the winged expert who didn''t manage to create defenses due to Divine Demon''s influence. Noah observed the exchanges. He had never underestimated Divine Demon, but he knew that his influence shouldn''t surpass Ava''s. His achievement mainly depended on the same flaws that had afflicted Duke, even if it remained pretty amazing. The ability to take over the world''s energy with a liquid stage cultivator contending that power spoke for Divine Demon''s might. That feat left Ava defenseless and allowed her opponents to injure her weak body. Noah could finally notice how Ava''s body seemed above the human standards. She wasn''t near the level of the magical beasts, but she went beyond the limits of her species anyway. Noah linked that power to her partial transformation. It was clear that the separate dimension had tried to force her existence to evolve, but the result was nothing more than a flawed product. ''I wonder if Radiant Eyes has also gone through the same process,'' Noah thought while inspecting the battle. ''That shouldn''t be the case with a rank 9 existence, but it''s better to leave this separate dimension anyway.'' Noah was slowly becoming aware of the nature of the mountain. Ava and Duke''s condition and the chrysalises were enough to explain part of the many functions of that separate dimension. His conclusions made him feel even more worried about that place. The deeper layers of the mountain had to feature dangers that even liquid stage cultivators couldn''t overcome, and Noah didn''t want to see them. "This is too easy!" Divine Demon shouted while cracks opened around him. "I promised that I would defeat you without attacking, but this is too boring." His taunts failed to trigger any reaction in the expert again. Ava continued to throw weapons at her opponent, but her attacks always ended up inside the void. Ava''s human body made her quite frail. Her opponents'' attacks could injure her due to the lack of defenses. She soon lost her limbs and entire pieces of her torso, but she continued to use her blood to create storms of weapons. Divine Demon didn''t even bother to watch that assault. He crossed his legs and sat on the air before taking a jug of wine from his space-ring and filling a cup. Dark-red weapons were flying toward him, but the world opened to protect him. His companions'' offensive always followed that event. Jordan and the others used that chance to launch their attacks and inflict injuries on their opponent. Ava''s blood allowed her to remain in one piece most of the time, but her enemies were slowly shattering her into pieces. Luke eventually threw a gale that seeped into Ava''s skin and made her tissues explode. The expert had nothing more than torn muscles and shattered bones at that point, so the following attacks reduced her to a bloody pulp. Divine Demon didn''t bother to watch Ava''s death. He had no care for that event. He limited himself to sip wine while his cultivation level increased due to his successful challenge. "I guess I will join Wilfred once I get back to the Legion," Divine Demon said when he sensed Noah approaching from behind. "You did great on your own. You definitely are the only existence worthy of being my heir." "We should leave," Noah exclaimed while ignoring those words. "We don''t know what the dimension hides. Let''s go before we trigger another defense mechanism." "I still think we can handle a few more layers," Divine Demon complained. "Look! These liquid stage experts couldn''t do much against us. We can keep going until we meet solid stage threats." "Something has forced those cultivators to transform," Noah explained. "They couldn''t defeat that influence, so I have to believe that we can''t do it either. There is no point risking our lives for a bunch of corpses." Divine Demon sighed before storing his jug and cup. Noah was right. The separate dimension only offered challenges without ever giving rewards. It was better to spend their time inside Supreme Thief''s inheritance at that point. "I can contact a few experts and work something out," Luke said once he neared Divine Demon and Noah. "It''s a pity to leave the mountain here. We should hide it from the human domain to gain a monopoly over this resource." Noah wanted to nod. Luke''s plan was the best compromise in the current situation. However, a buzzing noise suddenly came out of the ground and made the whole separate dimension tremble. The sky and the ground shook while echoing that noise. The sound wasn''t painful, but it made Noah and the others unable to move. They felt as if an external power had taken control of their bodies. Noah felt unable to use his consciousness. He could still think, and he even retained complete control of his thoughts. Yet, he couldn''t use them to manage his centers of power. Even the black hole went dormant. The buzzing noise was suppressing his law and influence, and it gave him an order that he couldn''t oppose. Noah and the others quickly formed a platoon and began to attack the ground. They created cavities and dived into them in a matter of seconds. The orders carried by the buzzing noise didn''t feature human words, but its meaning was clear. The sound wanted the group to reach the bottom of the separate dimension, and they didn''t have the power to fight it. Chapter 1592: 1592. Control Noah could vaguely understand what was happening. His mind was working perfectly, so he could sense how that buzzing noise was affecting his power. His instincts warned him about a threat that he couldn''t fight. Noah felt powerless against that influence. His entire existence was under the control of the vague orders conveyed through that sound. Noah''s group dug large tunnels through the separate dimension''s ground. They reached the second layer and continued to dive deeper into the insides of that structure. A third layer eventually appeared in their vision. That structure was almost identical to the previous, but it featured far more chrysalises on its walls. Noah let his instincts study his surroundings. He couldn''t cover the underground hall with his consciousness, but his senses were still active, and they could inspect the environment. ''They don''t have middle tier magical beasts in this hall,'' Noah thought while his body moved on its own. Noah didn''t have much time to study his surroundings. His eyes went on the ground as soon as he reached the third layer, so he had only caught a glimpse of the chrysalises. Still, he couldn''t see any middle tier creature during that short inspection. The buzzing noise forced the group to dig deeper. It led the experts into the fourth layer that featured even more chrysalises. Noah repeated his short inspection while his eyes moved through the area and landed on the ground. He didn''t see middle tier magical beasts there either, but he began to wonder whether he had ended in the wrong hall. The answer to his doubts arrived after the group reached the fifth layer. Noah could finally see middle tier bees inside chrysalises at that point, and that sight only made him sigh. ''Why is this even happening when we stopped so early?'' Noah wondered while the noise forced the group to dig deeper. Risks always accompanied explorations through the Immortal Lands. That was part of the cultivation journey. Yet, many danger zones often allowed careful experts to cross them. Noah had always been careful unless his situation required him to do otherwise. He had used the same approach inside the mountain, but it seemed that his luck had run out. ''I guess it had to happen at some point,'' Noah sighed inside his mind. ''Being careful can''t keep you safe forever. You will eventually find a danger that you can''t overcome in a plane that features rank 9 existences.'' Noah felt at peace. He had long since accepted that experts could be unlucky at times. It was impossible to avoid that randomness in a world filled with experts stronger than him. The group reached and went past the sixth layer. More underground halls continued to appear as they kept digging through the separate dimension. Noah could even lay his eyes on chrysalises that contained upper tier bees at some point. The buzzing noise intensified as the group dived toward the depths of the separate dimension. That sound eventually lost any obstruction when they reached the twentieth layer, but their eyes couldn''t see anything since they felt forced to stare at the ground. The noise eventually allowed them to raise their heads. The group could finally inspect their surroundings, and that scene made their minds freeze. Countless silk-like threads covered the floor, walls, and ceiling of that underground hall. Noah couldn''t see any tunnel in front of him, but he was still unable to turn, so he couldn''t check the area behind him. The threads converged toward a ten meters tall chrysalis that was the source of the buzzing noise. Noah and the others bowed as soon as they saw that cocoon, and their heads continued to look at the ground for a whole hour before the sound forced them to straighten their position. "You will soon become part of my pack," An eerie female voice suddenly resounded from the cocoon. "Rejoice! I turn you into my children and lead you into a glorious conquest." The buzzing didn''t stop while those human words spread through the underground hall. That sound forced Noah to step forward and bow again to accept the expert''s blessing. "I acknowledge your power," The voice resounded again. "You will be the first to transform into one of my children." A dense liquid came out of the scarlet floor and enveloped Noah. He felt that material invade his tissues and try to alter his fabric to improve its overall power. However, the black hole suddenly started rotating again and took over that part of the process. The organ forced all the energy transmitted by the dense liquid to pass through its dark matter before sending it back to Noah''s body. Noah''s power slowly increased. He felt that every cell of his body improved under that intense nourishment. The dense liquid contained enough nutrients to trigger a transformation, so he could seize a lot of power from it. The expert inside the cocoon continued to summon more dense liquid, but the black hole never allowed that energy to transform Noah. That resource even accepted the organ''s authority and let it take complete control over the procedure. "What is happening?" The female voice suddenly resounded again. "Why don''t you transform?" Noah wanted to reply, but he couldn''t move. He could only bathe in the marvelous feeling generated by the fast growth of his centers of power. The process didn''t only involve his body. Even his dantian, mind, and black hole improved under those nutrients. "What are you?" The voice asked before a dense wave of mental energy seeped inside Noah''s body. The expert inside the cocoon inspected every inch of Noah''s body. Her mental energy even studied the black hole, but she didn''t seem satisfied with her discoveries. "Speak!" The voice eventually exclaimed. "Tell me why my energy can''t force you to transform." Noah suddenly regained control of his body. He crouched while his consciousness instinctively expanded and gave him a clear view of the entire underground hall. The area didn''t have tunnels, but it was quite big. It featured only one cocoon, but the power inside that form seemed able to overcome all the other bees in the higher layers. ''She must be in the ninth rank,'' Noah concluded after that brief inspection. ''What can I even tell her now?'' "My body already is the epitome of perfection," Noah explained while straightening his position. "Your liquid can force me to improve, but it can''t change my species." "Are you telling me that I can''t improve you?!" The voice asked in an angry tone. "Quite the opposite," Noah continued. "Your liquid has no harmful properties. It has realized that my species is already perfect, so it only focuses on providing nutrients." The expert inside the cocoon went silent, but Noah could sense from her influence that she was accepting that explanation. Her aura could affect any existence under the ninth rank, so Noah''s words had to be the truth. "Well," The voice continued, "I will move on the others then." "If I may," Noah exclaimed before the noise took away his control over his body again. "Speak freely," The expert replied. Noah cleared his throat before trying to find a way out of that situation. "I presume that you are Radiant Eyes. I would like to know your intentions before choosing my next words." Chapter 1593: 1593. Energy "Are you asking for my story?" The expert inside the cocoon asked. Noah limited himself to nod. He didn''t want to give any hint that he was only trying to find a way to deceive that expert. "My story is quite similar to every other existence who managed to approach the ninth rank," The expert explained. "I departed toward the storms once my cultivation level had reached the proper level and worked to perfect myself." "Why did you build the mountain?" Noah asked while wearing a curious expression. "Hybrids are undeniably better than every other species in the Immortal Lands," The expert replied. "I had to evolve myself to fend off Heaven and Earth''s annoying punishment. I couldn''t stand another day of that constant Tribulation during my time as a simple human." "I do happen to suffer from the same punishment," Noah revealed. "My hybrid status can''t protect me, sadly." "Did you trigger Heaven and Earth''s rage at your level?" Radiant Eyes asked. "I had to overcome the breakthrough to the ninth rank before receiving their offer. No wonder my influence can''t improve you." Noah bowed again in front of that compliment. His curiosity wasn''t a lie, but his behavior wasn''t sincere. Noah felt nothing but respect toward experts who had managed to reach the ninth rank. Radiant Eyes had also refused to join Heaven and Earth, so she deserved his admiration. However, Noah didn''t care about those polite gestures. He was truly curious about the expert''s story, but he was going out of his way to please her. "I built this mountain after reaching the ninth rank," Radiant Eyes continued. "My patience was at its limits, so I had to do something. This whole structure is a breeding ground capable of turning energy into magical beasts that follow my orders. It can also alter other species to make them similar to my idea of perfection." Noah nodded, even if his worry intensified. He had avoided Radiant Eyes'' influence due to his black hole, but his companions didn''t feature his same perfection. The dense liquid would transform them if he let the expert continue. "Are you also transforming yourself?" Noah asked while his mind worked at full speed to find a viable solution. "Of course," Radiant Eyes replied. "However, my procedure isn''t perfect, so I''m holding it back while I experiment on other beings. I always end up creating mindless puppets." "May I suggest something?" Noah asked as an idea popped into his mind. "Always!" Radiant Eyes explained. "I''m not an arrogant leader." "I suppose you want to use all of us as guinea pigs to perfect your transformation," Noah said. "You are correct," Radiant Eyes quickly replied. "Then, you must know that you won''t learn much from us," Noah continued. "You need to learn how to transform humans into hybrids, not hybrids into your creations." "Do you dare to question my methods?" Radiant Eyes shouted, and her heavy influence spread through the hall. A scarlet halo seeped out of the chrysalis and pressed on Noah and the others. They soon became able to understand the nature of her law. Her light seemed to carry the very essence of transformation. "I happen to have experience in this field," Noah revealed. "My current body comes from a fusion with a magical beast. I''m not a natural hybrid." Noah had decided to reveal that detail of his species when he noticed that Radiant Eyes was letting him speak. He didn''t fail to sense that the expert seemed desperate for a solution to her issue. The revelation left Jordan and Luke''s group speechless. They had always thought that Noah was a natural hybrid, but it seemed that they had to add that feat to his many achievements. "How did you manage to succeed?" Radiant Eyes asked after a short silent moment. "The fusion has to happen between suitable creatures," Noah explained. "You keep failing because your process is forceful. Your idea of perfection can''t work for everyone. It can only work on you." Radiant Eyes remained silent for a long time. She wielded the power of a rank 9 existence, but she had continued to fail in her transformations. She had even created a cocoon multiple times to perfect herself, but she had always fallen short in that aspect. "What do you suggest?" Radiant Eyes eventually asked. "Holding yourself back hurts the procedure," Noah replied. "Your fear of ending up like your puppets makes you unable to go all-out during the transformation. You aren''t allowing yourself to evolve." "I have already obtained a hybrid body," Radiant Eyes contradicted Noah. "Then, why are you inside a cocoon?" Noah asked. The buzzing noise suddenly stopped. The silk-like threads snapped and freed the cocoon. A crack eventually opened on the chrysalis, and a tall figure slowly came out of it. Noah''s companions had regained their freedom after the noise stopped. They could turn toward the cocoon and remain in awe of Radiant Eyes'' figure. The expert still had a humanoid body, but the abdomen of a scarlet bee grew from her back. Three pairs of insect legs also came out of her torso and additional body part. A short layer of scarlet fur covered her insect body parts. Two antennae grew from her forehead, and her eyes were almost as large as her cheeks. Noah almost lost himself inside those giant scarlet eyes. They lacked human features and were nothing more than a pair of red lights that radiated their color on the hall. Noah had never laid his eyes on something so powerful. Radiant Eyes'' cultivation level even surpassed the dragon met in the windy regions. She was a monster among monsters, and the world could only bow in her presence. "I''m intrigued by your idea," Radiant Eyes announced. "I have the complete procedure already in my mind, but these lands can''t give me enough energy." "Why don''t you travel deeper into the Outer Lands?" Noah asked. "I''m sure that the chaotic laws will eventually meet your requirements." "No," Radiant Eyes quickly rejected that idea. "I need a constant flow of massive energy once I start the procedure. The storms alone can''t satisfy me. I need existences who contain a lot of power and many of them!" Noah had felt slightly relieved after Radiant Eyes had accepted his idea, but that new development had made his worry return. He didn''t know what the expert had in mind, but it didn''t sound good. "The magical beasts are too weak," Radiant Eyes pondered. "I don''t want to sacrifice the hybrids either. I guess that the humans will do." Radiant Eyes stepped forward, and the ground morphed under her influence. The terrain opened before the whole hall shot upward and carried Noah''s group across the superior layers. The entire separate dimension began to transform. The underground layers broke while carrying all the chrysalises toward the surface. Tall mountains quickly began to fill the insides of that area and changed the very nature of the whole structure. "I won''t be able to gather energy once I start the procedure," Radiant Eyes explained. "You will side with my bees and gather resources from the human domain. Bring me back as many cultivators as you can. Don''t hold back even with the experts in the seventh rank." Chapter 1594: 1594. Hand "When will you start your plan?" Noah politely asked while eyeing his friends. Jordan and the others could understand the many meanings hidden behind his gesture. They needed to find a moment to inform the rest of the Legion and get Alexander out of the human domain. "We''ll start it immediately," Radiant Eyes announced before waving her hand to bring the exit closer to her position. "I have wasted too long due to my fear." The crack flew toward Radiant Eyes and enlarged until it could envelop Noah''s group. That fissure crossed them and brought them to the outside world, in one of the fissures that filled the mountain. "This shape won''t do," Radiant Eyes said before expanding her aura. Her law covered the entire mountain and began to affect its structure. The scarlet rocks and terrain transformed while kicking Noah and the others out of the fissures. "What''s your plan now?" Jordan asked once the group left the range of Radiant Eyes'' aura. "What do you want me to say?" Noah snorted. "I don''t see insect wings growing on your back, even if she is a rank 9 existence. I handled the situation quite well, all things considered." Jordan wanted to rebuke, but she had to accept that Noah''s words were on point. He had saved them from that threat, even if he had to sacrifice the entire human domain for that. "I have a beginning of a plan," Noah whispered as the mountain transformed, "But I''d rather avoid deploying it. Let''s follow her orders until the situation becomes too tragic. Who knows? She might actually turn the Legion into the ruler of the Immortal Lands." Divine Demon and the others shot a curious glance toward Noah, but he didn''t reveal anything. Noah didn''t want to deploy his plan, but he wouldn''t hesitate to start it as soon as Radiant Eyes became a threat. Noah knew that Heaven and Earth had underlings capable of dealing with rank 9 existences, and he even had a connection with the secret organization now. He wouldn''t hesitate to use those mighty existences to take care of Radiant Eyes for him if the situation required it. Of course, Noah would rather avoid relying on Heaven and Earth, but he had to suppress his pride since his opponent was a rank 9 existence. His priority had always been to remain alive, even if that meant contacting his sworn enemies. The mountain slowly transformed into a massive scarlet giant that began to walk toward the human domain. Radiant Eyes'' aura didn''t spread through the nearby regions, but Noah and the others followed that structure anyway. Neither of them believed that they could escape from a rank 9 expert. The entire Immortal Lands might not have a safe place against that existence. Noah and the others tried to fly next to the giant, but that structure was too fast. It could cross entire regions with a single step, which made it far quicker than Noah''s team. Noah eventually decided to sit on the giant''s shoulder, and his companions imitated him. The titan would take a while to reach the human domain even at that speed, so the group could use that time to cultivate and maximize their gains. The environment wasn''t ideal since the giant''s body trembled whenever it stepped on the ground, but the group could easily ignore those earthquakes. They could cultivate in peace for months and prepare for the inevitable battle. Dreaming Demon and Flying Demon managed to approach the breakthrough during the travel. The recent experiences and battles had improved their centers of power to the point that the liquid stage couldn''t contain them anymore. The two Demons underwent the breakthrough while the giant continued to cross entire regions in a matter of seconds. They reached the solid stage and stepped on the same realm that June had obtained a long time ago. Only Daniel and Faith were still in the liquid stage, even if the latter was about to approach the breakthrough. Daniel was also close, but he seemed to need a bit more than his companions. On the other hand, Divine Demon didn''t even try to approach the breakthrough. He cultivated, but that environment didn''t allow him to grow properly. Divine Demon couldn''t affect his surroundings since they belonged to Radiant Eyes. Her aura was so intense that every law automatically fell prey to her power. Noah focused on absorbing the power obtained during Radiant Eyes'' attempted transformations. His black hole had already handled most of that process, but he liked to spend some time trying to understand how strong he had become. ''I wonder if I can get a whole sea made of that dense liquid,'' Noah sighed inside his mind before resuming his normal training sessions. Noah was the less anxious among the group, and only Divine Demon could be as calm as him. Both of them had understood how hopeless their situation was, so they were doing everything they could to gather more power during that short time. The golem eventually reached the borders of the human domain, and a large mansion soon appeared in the group''s view. Almost every organization had gathered resources in specific locations. That mansion was full of cultivators, inscribed items, and valuable materials. However, those cultivators trembled when they saw a monstrous figure flying out of the giant and filling the entire region with her consciousness. "Monneay family," Radiant Eyes whispered while inspecting the whole area. "You will do for now." Radiant Eyes raised her hand before lowering it slowly. A massive palm suddenly materialized in the sky and began to fall toward the mansion. The cultivators tried to attack the palm, but nothing they did could leave a mark on that technique. The massive hand fell, and the whole mansion crumbled under its might. The inscribed defenses, spells, and techniques used to stop the palm shattered and transformed into a wave of energy that fused with the mountain. The attack reduced the cultivators inside the mansion to a bloody pulp, and their energy followed the previous trend. Their power amassed above their corpses and flew toward the giant. Noah almost started to drool at that sight. The energy that had fused with the mountain seemed enough to bring his body in the middle tier, but Radiant Eyes had taken all of it. "Let this day mark the beginning of my great domain!" Radiant Eyes announced before turning toward Noah''s group. "Rejoice when I say that I will grant perfection to every being in the world." Noah pretended not to hear those words, and he even ignored the stares of his companions. He was only going along with Radiant Eyes'' plans right now. Everything else would come once he learnt more about her condition. "There should be a city ahead of us," Noah explained while pointing in the direction of the next settlement. "You must handle that," Radiant Eyes replied. "I have enough energy to activate the transformation, but I need you all to keep gathering resources for me. Any energy will do." Noah sighed when he saw Radiant Eyes returning inside her golem, but his mood soon improved. Countless bees were going out of the mountain, and they didn''t hesitate to fly where Noah had previously pointed. Chapter 1595: 1595. Curse The golem, the swarm of bees, and Noah''s group advanced through the regions until they reached a small city called Solma. The settlement only had two rank 8 cultivators, but it featured countless defenses that instantly activated at the sight of the massive threat. "The human domain will never forgive us for this," Jordan transmitted through her consciousness. Radiant Eyes'' aura didn''t spread outside of the titan, but the bees could still hear Noah''s group. The experts had resorted to their consciousness to speak, but they limited those interactions as much as possible. "We managed to bring the Balrow family to safety, luckily," Noah replied through his mental waves. In theory, the human domain only featured enemies now. The mindless assault launched by Radiant Eyes wouldn''t hurt any of their friends. Noah and the others could avoid holding back and warning other forces. The army of bees featured countless lower tier specimens, many creatures in the middle tier, and two leaders in the upper tier. The swarm was at the peak of the human domain in terms of power. Noah''s team didn''t have to worry about the outcome of their battles. However, those experts still wanted to find ways to benefit from their situation. The bees would tell Radiant Eyes everything, so Noah''s team had to come up with something that could make them improve during those battles. Noah and the others limited themselves to think those plans. They didn''t dare to test them before knowing how those bees acted in the outside world. The bees didn''t hesitate to shoot toward the city as soon as they confirmed the presence of cultivators. Noah''s team followed them, but they let those creatures act as cannon fodder during the first part of the assault. The human domain had deployed most of its reinforcement against Alexander, who was attacking regions far away from Noah''s position. They wouldn''t have the time to return in time, especially since most of the teleports were around big cities. Multicolored shields and various defensive mechanisms tried to fend off the bees'' assault. Lightning bolts, massive arrows, and large fiery boulders cut through the swarm, but they only managed to kill or injure the weaker creatures. The bees in the middle and upper tier could hold their ground against those protections. The two leaders even destroyed the shields in few attacks, so the assault soon turned into a slaughter. Those magical beasts weren''t smart. Most of them were newborns that had yet to develop their bodies completely. The two rank 8 cultivators tried to escape once the defenses fell, and the bees didn''t bother to chase them. They had countless rank 7 cultivators in front of them, so they barely noticed the duo running away. Instead, Noah and the others knew how to handle that situation better. Noah quickly teleported in front of the two escaping experts and blocked their retreat while Divine Demon and Jordan chased after them. "You are a curse!" One of the experts shouted when he recognized Noah. The two experts were gaseous stage cultivators. One of them was from the Monneay family, while the other belonged to the Sailbrird family. They were both quite important in the political environment of the human domain, but they were nothing more than targets in Noah''s eyes. Noah glanced at the swarm behind his targets before focusing on the two experts again. He suppressed a roar when the unstable substance entered his black veins and shot forward to secure a quick kill. The cultivators deployed their best abilities. Dense mental waves created an ethereal barrier, and potions exploded in the area to give birth to toxic clouds. Noah drew the Demonic Sword and summoned Duanlong to weaken those abilities. The dragon took care of a large chunk of the toxic clouds before Noah slammed on the ethereal barrier. The dense mental waves tried to seep into Noah''s mind and alter his thoughts, but that technique didn''t manage to do much against him. Noah had opposed his bloodlust since he obtained the cursed sword. That influence succeeded in slowing him down, but it only delayed the inevitable. Noah filled the area with dark flames that burnt the mental waves and what remained of the toxic clouds. Duanlong handled the remaining energy lingering in the sky, and two figures soon appeared in the distance. The two cultivators had used that chance to escape again, but Noah quickly caught up with them. The experts were slower than him even if he didn''t rely on his teleports. Mental waves and red pills flew toward Noah, but he teleported before they could touch him. He reappeared above the expert from the Sailbrird family, and his blade promptly descended toward his opponent. Both cultivators activated their defensive measures. Mental waves seeped into the world and transformed its fabric into a crystallized wall. Poison also spread through the area and created a dark-green barrier that the air couldn''t withstand. Noah didn''t interrupt his attack. His blade continued to descend until it crashed on the poisonous barrier. A fissure eventually opened in that defense, and a singularity continued to fly until it pierced the crystals. Noah could finally see the two experts again and his hand shot before they could rely on other defensive measures. Black roots came out of his palm and crossed the barrier until they reached the cultivator from the Sailbrird family. The expert''s skin became dark-green and began to radiate a corrosive aura that fought the roots. Still, the Demonic Form managed to keep him in the same position for an instant, and Noah didn''t hesitate to exploit that chance. Noah performed a thrust that launched a precise singularity. That invisible energy crossed the fissure and made the expert''s head vanish. A wave of flames then came out of Noah''s mouth while he glanced behind him. The bees were still busy collecting rank 7 cultivators, so he could exploit one of the many loopholes in Radiant Eyes'' orders. The fire burnt the headless corpse and forced the second expert to escape. Noah didn''t hesitate to chase after him, but a white beam soon pierced the sky and blocked the cultivator''s path. More flames also covered the area. Jordan and Divine Demon had finally reached that part of the battlefield, which left the cultivator alone against two monsters and a dragon. "The Monneay family will reward you if you spare me now," The expert shouted. "I serve no purposed as dead. You can use me as a consultant if you need it. "Can''t you see what is happening?" Noah laughed while shooting forward and grabbing the expert''s neck. "A rank 9 existence is roaming through these lands. The old rules don''t apply anymore." "Please!" The expert pleaded, but Noah pierced his low-waist before he could continue. Dark matter quickly covered the expert''s dantian and sent its energy back to the black hole. Noah then crushed the cultivator''s neck and stored everything in his separate space. The bees didn''t sense anything. They even rejoiced when they saw Noah throwing the corpse toward the titan, which disappeared as soon as it touched those scarlet rocks. ''This might even work better than I expected,'' Noah thought while the bees finished gathering corpses to throw at the titan. ''I expect these creatures to improve, but it doesn''t hurt to exploit this situation for the time being.'' Chapter 1596: 1596. White Noah was a prisoner, and his companions weren''t any better. However, the poor control over the battles gave them the chance to seize a few benefits. June and the others didn''t actively join the assault. They had no reason to fight rank 7 cultivators when they had a swarm of rank 8 bees battling on the frontlines. The same went for Luke and his two companions. They could exploit the chaos of the battlefield to seize the many resources hidden inside the city. Jordan and Divine Demon had done the same after Noah killed the second rank 8 expert. The battle had lasted a little more than a few minutes, but Noah''s team had greatly benefitted from that victory. Noah was happy as long as he continued to gather resources. Cultivators provided far more nutrients than magical beasts due to their dantian, so they were perfect targets. Solma city wasn''t as important as Vagona city or other larger settlements. However, it had still existed for eras since it was far from the border with the magical beasts'' domain. Yet, a few minutes had been enough to turn it into a pile of bloodied ruins. The bees gathered didn''t stop at the rank 7 cultivators. They began to seize the various debris across the city and send them into the giant. After all, every building in the Immortal Lands featured valuable materials. Noah and the others helped in the process, even if they had different motives. They did their best to uncover every deposit or inscribed container to seize valuable resources while the bees were busy prioritizing their queen''s well-being. Cleaning the entire city took a bit. The battle had been far shorter in comparison. Still, the army soon set off to travel toward the next settlement. Luke had memorized the entirety of the human domain throughout the years, so he was a perfect guide. He led the titan toward a new settlement, even if he often stopped to clear packs of magical beasts. Radiant Eyes had been clear. She needed energy, and those magical beasts could provide it. It didn''t make any sense to avoid them only because they weren''t the perfect target for the rank 9 existence. The bees seemed to have similar thoughts since they always followed Luke inside the wild regions. Noah and the others joined those battles, but they couldn''t enjoy them with two upper tier specimens fighting with them. Easy fights provided a limited number of benefits, especially for battle-oriented existences. June suffered more than anyone else in the group since her laws wanted her to go all-out often. The army eventually reached another small city, and Noah had to witness the same one-sided battle again. That settlement also had two rank 8 cultivators, but he could seize only one dantian since the bees had grown smarter after the first assault. Noah didn''t manage to fight on his own at that time. A middle tier bee had flown toward him as soon as he attacked the two leaders. He had to cover the area with flames to pretend that killing his target had been an accident. Radiant Eyes didn''t speak anymore. She was completely immersed in her transformation and only required more energy. The two upper tier bees were in charge of the army, even if they needed Noah''s group to point the way. Luke became a guide that led the army across the human domain. The group attacked cities, mansions, and any settlement. They didn''t even spare the many magical beasts met along the way. ''These cowards didn''t hesitate for a second before sending a Tribulation against me,'' Noah cursed in his mind after completing his seventh battle. ''Yet, they let an all-devouring army led by a rank 9 cultivatior roam freely through the human domain. Dammit! Don''t tell me that I really have to rely on Heaven and Earth for this crisis.'' Noah liked his current situation, but he didn''t accept his lack of a solution. Escaping from a rank 9 existence was simply impossible at his current level. He had to rely on external powers, but that was also an issue. ''I don''t believe that the human domain will keep ignoring this threat,'' Noah thought while the army resumed their endless advance. ''They have to do something at some point.'' Noah''s guesses didn''t come true even after his twelfth attack. He had also failed to seize any dantian during the battle since the bees reached the escaping experts before him. The assault didn''t seem able to end, but that wasn''t a surprise. Radiant Eyes had two upper tier specimens in her army. The experts who could face that threat were deep into the Outer Lands. Noah relied on many tricks to keep seizing dantians and valuable resources. He used Duanlong to absorb all the energy lingering on the battlefield. He deployed the dark world to block the bees'' vision and have some time alone with his opponents. His tricks didn''t stop there. Noah used Snore at times to fill the energy with violent dark matter, even if part of that power was simple higher energy that didn''t carry the snake''s destructive power. The constant assault almost prevented Noah and the others from cultivating, but Jordan and Noah had fewer problems compared to their companions. Noah and Jordan could use those battles to improve their bodies since they only needed nutrients. Instead, the others had to find free moments during the assault to cultivate a little. Neither of those experts dared to touch the golem''s skin. They were too afraid that Radiant Eyes would label them as food and absorb them. The experts had to find other places where to cultivate, and time was also an issue. The army moved quite quickly, so they couldn''t build training areas between a fight and the other. "Fine!" Noah transmitted through his consciousness. "Contact Heaven and Earth. I''ve had enough of this situation." "I have tried to do that for a while," Luke replied through his mental waves. "My methods are useless. We must go to the secret location, but I don''t know where it is!" "I guess it''s time for you to contact your old superiors," Noah replied. "This situation is almost impossible to bear. Tell Heaven and Earth to do something useful this time around." "I refuse," Luke promptly transmitted. "This situation isn''t too bad. We get free resources and countless inscribed items. I think you should accept your new condition." "You sure like to give up," Noah commented before putting his worries aside. Noah couldn''t do anything to change his situation at his current power. The mindless destruction continued, and Radiant Eyes grew stronger inside the giant. More bees also started to come out of the giant. It seemed that Radiant Eyes didn''t stop giving birth to magical beasts during her transformation. Her mountain would use all the leftover energy and use it to create new underlings. The battles continued. The army had destroyed more than forty mansions and cities by then, but their gains had started to decrease. The various organization had understood the nature of the threat by then, and they had ordered a full retreat. That wasn''t a permanent solution since the organizations didn''t have many regions at their disposal. They had the magical beasts'' domain on one side and the Outer Lands on the others. Enemies surrounded them. A change eventually happened during that endless invasion. The army was taking care of a magical beasts'' pack in one of the wild regions when a flash of white light spread through the sky and blinded both Noah''s team and the bees. When the light dispersed, the army could see that a single human figure had appeared on the ground. The man was in the middle of a fuming cavity, but the smoke twisted and transformed under his influence. Then, a heavy aura spread through the nearby regions and landed on the army. Noah''s team barely had the time to hide behind the golem before a catastrophe unfolded in their vision. All the rank 7 bees died instantly, and the same went for many creatures in the eighth rank. Chapter 1597: 1597. Puppe Noah and the others had managed to avoid the expansion of the expert''s aura, but their instincts didn''t stop screaming in fear. They could sense that the new threat wasn''t something that they could face. The expert had the aspect of a middle-aged man with long white hair and no beard. He wore a white robe that didn''t have any spot nor emblem, and a white halo covered his figure. Noah couldn''t understand his cultivation level. He could vaguely sense that the man existed past the eighth rank, but his energy was too different from the "Breath" to belong to the world. ''We can''t stay here,'' Noah thought while trying to find a way to convey those words to his companions. His team had managed to avoid the deadly attack, but their power ended there. The golem had shielded them from the heavy pressure, but there was a limit to how much they could rely on Radiant Eyes. The bees filled the sky with a threatening buzzing noise. The golem echoed that sound and made the air shake. The whole army was showing its intention to fight, but Noah and the others couldn''t share those feelings. "The puppet has finally arrived," Radiant Eyes'' voice came out of the giant and filled the sky. The air transformed as her influence spread through the air. Dense shapes made of scarlet light gathered in the sky and flew toward the few remaining bees to cover them with their radiance. The two leaders in the upper tier and many of the middle tier specimens had survived the expansion of the expert''s aura. The buzzing noise released by their wings intensified when the scarlet halo covered their figure, and their power also increased under that nourishment. The expert raised his eyes toward the army. Pure disgust appeared on his face when he looked at those magical beasts. His white irises also featured anger at the sight of the massive scarlet giant. Noah tried to keep track of the expert''s gestures, but his senses seemed unable to capture him. The cultivator was in a different world. It was as if he existed in a separate dimension even while walking on the fuming ground. "I will use your energy to complete my transformation," Radiant Eyes'' voice came out of the giant again. "Rejoice! You are about to become part of a perfect existence." "Perfection already exists in the world," The expert whispered, but his voice reached all the nearby regions. "Your very life is nothing more than a spot, and I will take care of cleaning it up." A white halo burst out of the expert''s figure. His light pierced the scarlet light around the bees before melting their bodies. The massive army transformed into trails of white smoke in a matter of seconds. The light also affected the scarlet giant. The red rocks and terrain that made its figure began to melt and release white smoke under that influence. Noah felt pure terror. He was calm, but his instincts had never screamed so loudly. The expert embodied their fears. He was Noah''s natural enemy. Battle intent instinctively flowed out of Noah''s figure. His centers of power wanted to fight that existence. His bloodlust exploded outward and tried to find its place among the dense auras that filled the sky. The expert''s eyes flickered when he sensed Noah''s bloodlust. He felt slightly surprised to sense that aura, but a smile soon appeared on his face. "You are also here," The expert whispered. "Don''t worry. I will take care of you after I handle this sinner. My Masters didn''t forget you." June and the others turned toward Noah. Worry filled their expressions. They knew that Noah had fought Heaven and Earth many times, but they didn''t expect that a rank 9 existence was aware of him. Those words left Noah speechless. Heaven and Earth were rarely vocal about their intentions, but it seemed that their followers didn''t share that feature. ''Do they make up for Heaven and Earth''s flaws?'' Noah wondered while trying to suppress his bloodlust. Noah couldn''t help himself. His centers of power had found their most hated enemy and wanted to express those feelings. They wanted to show how they had survived after the many punishments sent by Heaven and Earth. "Stay here and witness my greatness!" Radiant Eyes shouted from inside the golem. "Do not fear death! Feel blessed to have served one of the greatest existences in the Immortal Lands!" "I''d rather avoid that," A voice suddenly resounded from behind Noah and the others. The voice surprised Noah''s team, the white expert, and Radiant Eyes. They all turned their attention to the source of the sound and saw a smiling young-looking man. Alexander sighed when the heavy auras radiated by the two rank 9 existences landed on his body. A multicolored halo quickly seeped out of his skin and fended off that pressure. Noah could sense that Alexander wasn''t relying on a single ability. The multicolored halo came from countless spells activated simultaneously to generate something able to fend off those auras. "It''s time to leave," Alexander announced before waving his hand. A multicolored aura shot out of his figure. Dense gales that featured different elements and effects crossed Noah''s team and crashed on the giant. Noah and the others widened their eyes when they saw the gales flinging the giant away and throwing it toward the white expert. Alexander''s attack had worked against an item created by a rank 9 expert! A series of formations suddenly appeared under Noah''s team. Golden flames also flowed out of those lines and covered them in a dome that quickly affected their figures. Noah and the others became ethereal before disappearing. Their vision went black before a blue light shone on their faces. The familiar regions of the Legion filled the scenery and made them feel relieved. "How did you even cause this mess in a few years?!" King Elbas shouted and made Noah''s team turn toward him. "Well, congratulation, you mindless brutes. We have to deal with two rank 9 experts now." King Elbas'' anger froze when he saw Second Prince standing among Noah''s team. Countless emotions surged on his face while he tried to understand how to react to that sight. "You have failed to sense my arrival," Second Prince proudly announced. "You have actually failed to sense me at all." Noah ignored that interaction and shot toward Alexander. The expert was on the ground, and pure pain filled his expression. Alexander started to slam his head on the ground while giving voice to different roars. The many magical beasts'' faces inside his aura spread forward, but he managed to suppress them before they could reach his companions. Noah waited for that violent aura to return inside Alexander before approaching the expert. His mental waves flew inside his mind and studied his mental sphere to understand what was happening, and the scene left him speechless. Countless ethereal figures were spreading chaos inside Alexander''s mental sphere. His mental walls shook whenever their cries spread through that area, and waves of mental energy surged in a desperate attempt to suppress them. The ethereal figures depicted countless magical beasts. They weakened Alexander so much that Noah could easily inspect the insides of his mental sphere. **** Author''s notes: Sorry for the delay. The other chapters will come out in the next hours. Chapter 1598: 1598. Crazy Noah had never witnessed such a chaotic mental battle. Alexander''s mind contained an army of magical beasts that tried to destroy his mental walls as soon as his suppression vanished. The various specimens had different levels. They went from the heroic ranks to the peak of the eighth rank. Noah could even see some creatures that bordered the ninth rank among that massive army. Dark matter flowed out of Noah''s chest and entered Alexander''s mind. The expert''s mental walls could withstand that pressure, especially since Noah focused on stabilizing the mental walls. His black mental energy also entered Alexander''s mind. His mental waves immediately attacked the weaker ethereal figures and devoured them to reduce part of the power of the immense army. Alexander slowly regained some clarity. His mental waves stopped being a mess of violent waves and began to suppress the various magical beasts through organized attacks. Noah continued to use his mental energy to devour the ethereal figures while slowly withdrawing his dark matter. Alexander didn''t need the higher energy anymore after Noah''s efforts. Alexander eventually calmed down, and Noah stopped devouring ethereal figures. A pressure landed on his mind when his mental waves returned inside his center of power, but his mental walls quickly took care of it. "You are quite resourceful," Alexander laughed while laying on the ground. "And you are a mess," Noah sighed while sitting in front of him. "Though, I must thank you. I didn''t know you could hold your ground against rank 9 existences." "I can''t!" Alexander exclaimed before exploding in a laugh again. "Do you have any idea of how many innate abilities I had to fuse to launch that attack? You are lucky I didn''t end up eating you all." "I actually have an idea now," Noah said while giving voice to a faint laugh. The others went through different emotions while watching that interaction. Initially, they remained speechless at the sight of their leaders ignoring the imminent threat. Then, they sighed before sitting next to them. It was clear that they had to discuss how to handle Radiant Eyes and the white expert. They had escaped before understanding how the battle between the rank 9 existences would go, but they had to prepare for the worst. Yet, they had some time now. Alexander had managed to get them out of that hopeless situation, so they could prepare for the threat. Of course, they didn''t have many ideas when it came to fending off rank 9 existences. Divine Demon took out a few jugs of wine before handing cups to the other experts. No one dared to reject that offer, so they soon found themselves drinking in silence. "Do you lose abilities when the ethereal creatures vanish?" Noah eventually asked. Alexander shook his head. "No. They are part of my drawbacks. They become part of my existence and try to break out of my mind whenever I turn my attention elsewhere." "I might be able to take care of that issue one day," Noah explained. "I can even start working on the weaker magical beasts for now." "Your mental waves are quite peculiar," Alexander replied. "I won''t mind relying on you in the future. The Legion needs strong leaders." "Does anyone want to talk about the two monsters in the human domain?" Jordan eventually asked and forced the group to focus on the main issue. "I can''t fight them," Alexander quickly said. "Maybe I can block an attack, but that''s it." "They might kill each other," Second Prince exclaimed. "Luck won''t help us," Noah sighed. "We can only hide for now. Let''s gather our troops and move deeper into the Outer Lands." "Actually, we can hope in Heaven and Earth''s victory," Luke explained. "They won''t come after us, not with a rank 9 cultivator at least." "How can you be so sure of that?" King Elbas asked. "They must respect their fairness," Luke continued. "The laws of the world will lose power if they break their own rules." Luke''s explanation gave the group a greater understanding of the Immortal Lands. Those few words managed to make them consider the higher plane as a consequence of Heaven and Earth''s individuality. "There might be something else now that I think about it," Noah suddenly announced as an idea appeared in his mind. Talking about Heaven and Earth had reminded him of the two existences who had died because of those powerful underlings. Great Builder and Supreme Thief had been monsters during their eras. Noah didn''t know whether they were stronger than Radiant Eyes, but having them at their side would significantly improve their situation. "How can you even have ideas that can work against rank 9 existences?" King Elbas snorted. "Are we about to do something completely crazy, right?" "I have done crazier," Noah whispered. "Kind of." "That''s my heir!" Divine Demon shouted. "Let''s do that!" "You don''t even know what he is proposing!" King Elbas complained. "You should trust your friends more, dad," Second Prince commented. "I thought the Immortal Lands had to push me on a solitary path," King Elbas sighed. "How did I even surround myself with these idiots?" "We must resurrect Great Builder and Supreme Thief," Noah explained his plan while those experts bickered. His announcement made Luke''s team, King Elbas, Jordan, and Alexander spit their wine. That revelation had been too sudden, and its contents were far crazier than they expected. "Do you want to resurrect rank 9 existences to take care of rank 9 existences?!" King Elbas shouted. "That''s completely idiotic! We want to take care of our threats, not increase them." "Do you even know their character?" Luke asked. "Do you want me to tell you some of the stories recorded in the archives of the secret organization?" "I must say that they aren''t completely wrong," Alexander whispered. "We shouldn''t trade a threat for another." "A possible threat is better than a clear one," Noah snorted. "Don''t chicken out now. I''d rather avoid spending the next millennia running away." "I''m with you, my heir!" Divine Demon shouted. "Though, who is Great Builder?" "Can you stop forgetting important things?" King Elbas complained. "This is the secret behind my power," Divine Demon snorted. "You should try it sometime. I don''t mind instructing you on my ways." "This might actually work," Jordan said while Divine Demon and King Elbas continued to bicker. "It''s set then," Noah announced while standing up. "Luke and his team will take care of gathering the various allied cells in the secret organization. Elbas and his son will work with the Balrow family to create the teleport. The others must focus on their training. We have an inheritance to complete." "I will join this mission," Alexander explained, "But I will run in the Outer Lands as soon as we complete it. My mind can''t take it anymore. I need to let my instincts go wild for a while." "Nonsense," Noah snorted. "You have just become the best training method for my mind. I will slowly devour the magical beasts inside your mental sphere and stretch your stable period." "I can think of something to help," King Elbas announced. "I became curious about your condition anyway. I already have a few blueprints in mind." "I will help Elbas with the blueprints!" Divine Demon announced. "I''m considering switching sides," King Elbas sighed. "We have a plan then," Noah exclaimed. "Alexander, come with me. We have a lot of work to do." **** Author''s notes: I wish I had a method to warn you all about eventual delays, but I can''t do anything here unless I publish a chapter. I try to use discord for that, but even that has limits. Just trust in the fact that I won''t miss releases. Chapter 1599: 1599. Mission The experts started working on the plan after the jokes quieted down. Jordan and one of the cultivators in Luke''s team informed the rest of the Legion about the plan. They also summoned Pearl and the other experts from the Balrow family to help them convey the news. King Elbas and Second Prince began to work on the teleport while listing ideas on how to handle Alexander''s issue. They even had a lot of catching up to do since both had changed throughout the years. Divine Demon secluded himself to complete the requirements for the breakthrough. The gaseous stage had stopped being able to contain his existence. June and the others also secluded themselves. They had grown tired of their cultivation level after witnessing their companions facing powerful opponents time after time. They wanted to get their hands on a rank 8 battle prowess as soon as possible. The other rank 7 assets inside the blue regions were in a similar situation. Their leaders wanted to resurrect a rank 9 existence. Those underlings couldn''t accept to remain so useless. Theodora began to send mental messages toward the other experts of the Legion. That organization had other powerful leaders in the Outer Lands, human domain, and magical beasts'' reign, but it was time to group up. Wilfred couldn''t learn the news because he was busy with his breakthrough. Still, he could sense the commotion happening around his training area, which made him decide to quicken his process. Alexander followed Noah in his training area. The two experts immediately began to work on Alexander''s situation, and they even contacted the hybrids handling the Legion''s inventory to receive further help. Potions, pills, and similar resources rarely worked on Noah. Most of them targeted cultivators, so their effects never managed to improve his innate features. However, the Legion had gathered countless resources after the recent attacks. Alexander''s force had even annexed multiple organizations that brought their inventories with them. Noah could compensate for the lack of efficiency with quantity. He was unaware of the outcome of Radiant Eyes'' battle, but he could still sense that his time was short. Alexander and the other hybrids had similar feelings that made them go all-out in their procedures. Every expert in the Legion stopped saving resources to get as much help as possible from those items. Noah mostly used drugs that could help his mind. His training with Alexander saw him relying on the innate features of his mental energy to take care of the instabilities inside the expert. The procedure forced Noah to devour countless ethereal magical beasts. Initially, he took care of the horde of weaker creatures since they barely affected his mind, but he soon started working on the stronger ones. Devouring the ethereal figure of one of the rank 8 magical beasts made his mind suffer like never before. Noah would normally take long breaks when it came to that ability, but his situation didn''t allow him to be careful. The drugs managed to remove the need for long breaks, but they couldn''t eradicate the various drawbacks that accompanied that ability. Noah''s mental walls grew thinner as his mind expanded, and a splitting headache soon became a constant aspect of his days. On the other hand, Alexander''s state improved as the procedure continued. He was experiencing Noah''s resolve first-hand. The powerful expert could see how relentless Noah was with his training. Noah never stopped nor took breaks. His mind was a bottomless pit, and his mental walls were firm materials that seemed able to handle any pressure. The time spent without protection from the white sky had made Noah''s mind reach new levels of stability. The various drugs also helped during the procedure, so Noah could go all-out. His centers of power had started to harmonize as his cultivation level increased. The path toward the higher ranks had made his existence converge toward a stable shape, but Noah ruined that process with the recent training. His mind grew exponentially. His mental waves cheered whenever Noah brought them more food. He felt as if he was finally unleashing the full potential of his center of power. The plan eventually took form while everyone was busy training. King Elbas completed the teleport and moved to his next project. His son started devising drugs to help the various rank 7 hybrids and magical beasts in the blue regions. Wilfred came out of his training area and began to help with the plan. His breakthrough had been a success. He was a proud existence in the liquid stage now. Divine Demon also approached the breakthrough during that period, and he eventually advanced. He didn''t meet any problem during the procedure, so he could soon join the others and help where he could. Daniel and Faith also advanced in that period, and Fergie pushed his power toward the peak of the seventh rank. It was evident that Noah''s first underling would reach the next level before his old friends. Noah did his best to fill the regions with his ambition after Alexander left. He bathed in the white light of the Immortal Lands and cultivated in the open while his pack thrived around him. Pearl and the other experts from the Balrow family taught everything they knew about the pyramid to the various experts in the Legion. Their force had cleared the fourth layer, so their knowledge was vital to the mission. Luke''s team gathered the allied cells in the secret organization before activating a series of sensors previously placed in the human domain. The experts tried to understand the outcome of Radiant Eyes'' battle, but they couldn''t see much. A battle between two rank 9 existence was a massive event, even for the Immortal Lands. The space of the higher plane could barely hold that spectacle. The energy released during the fight was enough to transform countless regions forever. Luke''s sensors couldn''t see anything. There were only light and earthquakes. Weaker existences didn''t have the right to witness that fight. The Legion and Noah''s army eventually gathered above a series of golden lines that stretched for entire regions. Every expert with rank 7 cultivation level or above had to join the mission. The survival of both organizations could depend on its outcome. The overall power of the group was enough to shake the very foundation of the Immortal Lands. The army featured so many rank 8 existences that even some of the strongest human organizations would retreat at that sight. "I must say," Wilfred whispered while glancing at Noah. "I''m starting to think that you really had some influence on our growth." "No point wasting time," Noah roared. "Elbas, activate the formation!" King Elbas snorted before snapping his fingers. Golden light and flames filled the formation and covered the army. Noah and the others slowly disappeared, and a massive pyramid eventually appeared in their vision. The structure shook from time to time. It almost seemed alive, but not in the same way of Radiant Eyes'' mountain. The Balrow family had dug the pyramid out of its previous position, but its appearance had remained the same. Time was unable to affect those dark-yellow bricks. "I will start clearing the last layer," Alexander announced while turning toward his companions. "Follow the plan! Take care of the fifth layer before joining me. Remember that our survival depends on the mission!" Countless roars and battle cries followed his words. Every expert in the army gave voice to their determination before entering the pyramid. Chapter 1600: 1600. Trials The Balrow family didn''t have much intel on the higher layers. The main issue was the lack of suitable experts willing to spend entire centuries exploring those areas and clearing various trials. Great Builder''s tests were also far above normal standards in terms of difficulty. The expert was a monster, so only monsters could obtain his resources. Noah felt partially out of place in the fifth layer. In theory, only existences in the liquid stage could overcome the tests there, and his battle prowess had yet to reach that level completely. However, Noah wasn''t alone. The whole Legion and his organization were with him. Wilfred and Divine Demon were in the liquid stage. King Elbas and Second Prince were geniuses of the inscription field, and the various magical beasts and hybrids had nigh-endless resilience. Noah could rely on his companions to take care of most of the tests. The corridors of the pyramid had enlarged after the army''s arrival. The structure wanted to be able to contain those troops. Yet, the tests didn''t change. Noah had initially thought that overcoming the tests would be accessible in that situation. After all, he had a whole army behind him. However, he soon had to accept that Great Builder had foreseen that possibility. The tests on the fifth layer mainly featured environments that negated the advantage of Noah''s group. The experts had to cross poisonous corridors, ethereal blades that tried to take control of their mental waves, and seemingly endless armies of middle tier puppets. The various layers of the pyramid were also labyrinths. Noah and the others had to spend a lot of time finding hidden doors and secret passages to reach the deeper parts of their floor. Of course, their wealth increased as they continued to overcome trials. Great Builder wasn''t stingy on the rewards. The group obtained mountains of Soul Stones, inscribed items at a suitable level, and even techniques that inscription masters could add to their arsenal. The quality of those rewards was incredible, and they were even valuable enough to become a core part of the Legion''s assets. King Elbas could barely contain himself in that environment, and most of his companions shared his feelings. Only the rank 7 assets couldn''t do much on that floor. They limited themselves to swarm certain trials with waves of attacks, but that was it. Their cultivation level was too low for the fifth layer. "How long until you can take down that annoying shield?" Noah roared while ducking to dodge a massive tail. "I told you that it was better to approach these defenses with fewer troops!" King Elbas shouted. "This almost goes past my expertise!" Noah and the others were fighting a massive, scaled sphere that floated in the middle of a large corridor. A series of long tails had grown on that inscribed item after the experts started the trial, and their number matched the contestants. The sphere also had a dark-yellow shield that protected it from every attack. Noah and the others had yet to touch it because of those defenses. King Elbas had understood the features of the scaled sphere before approaching the trial, but Noah didn''t want to send only a small group. Divine Demon, Jordan, Wilfred, Pearl, and Luke had joined the battle, which made the item grow seven tails. The tails were far faster than all the contestants. They could land on the experts before they even noticed the attack. Noah, Divine Demon, Wilfred, and Jordan had ended up acting as baits for those limbs since they were the only ones who could withstand them, but that led to further problems. The four experts had to deal with seven tails while King Elbas, Pearl, and Luke tried to find a viable solution to the shield. Still, the process took a while, which forced Noah''s team to endure the assault of the tails for a long time. A tail cracked on Noah before he could straighten his position. A large cut opened on his chest as the brute force carried by the limb flung him away. The unstable substance made Noah able to survive the clash and stop himself at some distance from the trial, but his companions had to handle all the tails during that time. Divine Demon''s aura made the tails lose track of him from time to time. He could sneak past those limbs and reach the scaled sphere, but the dark-yellow shield around the item made it impossible to touch. Wilfred was even better off. His recent breakthrough had made his battle prowess skyrocket. Many tails would land on him, but they only managed to leave marks on his skin. Jordan couldn''t do much. She had a giant hybrid body, but her transformation only made her an easy target. The tails shattered her scales whenever they landed on her, and her complexion slowly began to suffer from that constant beating. "I''m almost there!" King Elbas shouted, and Noah gave voice to a loud curse before shooting toward the scaled sphere again. Two tails quickly flew in his direction and slammed on his body. They opened two large cuts on his chest, but the dark-yellow shield suddenly vanished and allowed his companions to exploit that moment. Tails flew toward Jordan, Divine Demon, and Wilfred, but the latter quickly leapt forward and attracted the attention of the other limbs. They crashed on Wilfred''s chest, arms, legs, and head, but they only managed to push him back. Divine Demon and Jordan could use that chance to reach the scaled sphere and launch a proper attack. Jordan used her dragon''s claws to target the flaws pointed out by King Elbas, while Divine Demon transformed his azure energy into something that could damage the item. Jordan''s attacks were effective even if her cultivation level didn''t put her at the same level of the inscribed sphere. Still, King Elbas'' tactic was on point, so she could focus her efforts on the structural flaws of that defensive mechanism. The battle went differently for Divine Demon. King Elbas had explained to him how to handle that defense, but the expert didn''t care. His azure energy turned white, and a series of spears gathered next to him before shooting toward the sphere. His attack shattered many scales and allowed Noah to see the insides of the item. He could even find a fake core after its superficial layer had fallen apart. The sphere tried to activate the shield again after that offensive stopped, but King Elbas spread a peculiar powder through the area that stopped that function. Noah and the others could alternate between the tails and the main item at that point, and they soon managed to inflict consistent damage. Wilfred ended up delivering the finishing blow. Noah took care of three tails. Jordan and Divine Demon handled the other four, so Wilfred could approach the sphere and punch directly on its damaged insides. The attack made the inscribed defense explode. A storm of scales and metal spread through the corridor, but Pearl and Luke took care of stopping it. The door on the other end of the corridor unlocked after the team destroyed the scaled sphere. Noah and the others quickly entered the room, and their eyes widened at the sight of a massive battle formation. A small book that contained instructions for the formation stood on a pedestal at the back of the room. According to those teachings, rank 7 experts could deploy that technique and temporarily obtain rank 8 battle prowess. Chapter 1601: 1601. Copy Noah''s group could skip most of the trials. They could search for the various secret passages and reach the most challenging part of the fifth layer since the hidden area was probably there. However, the quality of the rewards had made them decide to invest time in clearing the whole inheritance. The battle formation found after the battle against the scaled sphere was only the last of the many valuable resources obtained in the process. The weakest part of the army took a break from the trials to learn the battle formation, and King Elbas joined those assets to modify the technique. Great Builder had already modified that formation back in the days, but he didn''t adapt it to the different species of the higher plane. Noah''s army featured hybrids and magical beasts, so King Elbas had to change something in the technique''s structure to make the best out of those lines. The other experts continued exploring the fifth layer while the rest of the army trained. Clearing the various defenses brought benefits to many powerful assets, and even experts like Wilfred managed to obtain something valuable. King Elbas valued everything connected to the inscription field. Wilfred found a martial art that could match his existence after a few modifications. Jordan obtained disposable weapons that suited her law, and the list continued for most of the powerful assets in the army. Only Divine Demon and Noah struggled to find something perfect for them. The former''s law was too unique to rely on items and techniques, and Noah''s standards were so high that even middle tier resources failed to meet his requirements. That eventually changed as the army approached the last trials of the fifth layers. The exploration became smoother after the weaker assets mastered the battle formation and managed to provide proper assistance during the fight. Great Builder''s trials were smart and managed to ignore the difference in numbers most of the time. Still, having more power at their disposal improved the army''s overall experience. Clearing harder trials led to better rewards, and Divine Demon eventually added himself to the list of experts who had benefitted from the inheritance. He found a technique that could temporarily improve his mental capabilities, and he quickly added it to the few abilities in his memory. Only Noah remained unsatisfied at that point, but the pyramid eventually managed to give him something decent. He found a spell of the earth element that seemed similar to the workshop. ''This place mostly has resources,'' Noah thought while inspecting the diagram of the rank 8 spell. ''Techniques are rare, but they are quite decent.'' The spell resembled a weaker version of the workshop. It allowed the user to morph metals and ground to create almost everything. ''Maybe, Great Builder obtained the idea behind the workshop from this spell,'' Noah thought while studying the diagram. Noah couldn''t use the spell in its current state, but he could add it to his arsenal by shattering and rebuilding the diagram according to his existence. In his mind, Noah didn''t plan to turn the spell into one of his main weapons. He already had the workshop and incredible abilities, so that new technique would be redundant. Still, Noah could turn it into a passive ability, a technique that could improve all the crucial roles played by the black hole. Noah used the black hole to create special darkness meant for Miss Void''s spell. The organ also handled the production of Night''s food. It had many tasks at hand, and they often put limits on Noah''s power. Instead, transforming that diagram into something that could improve his organ''s performance might remove some of the limits on his stronger abilities. Increasing the production of special darkness already made the spell a decent asset to add to his arsenal. Noah immediately began to work on that project while his group continued to clear defenses. He never stopped helping with the trials, but he slowed down on his constant training to complete the transformation of that ability as soon as possible. Great Builder''s pyramid didn''t offer Noah anything else even after the group reached the last area. Noah had begun to consider that trend quite normal after spending years inside the fifth layer. He had also started to understand the mindset of that great expert, which he had been unable to do during his first visit. Rank 9 existences were complete monsters. They could seize anything in the world and create masterpieces that could remain with them forever. The greatest limitation of those existences was their inability to ignore their laws when handling techniques and spells. They were both too personal since their creators had made them for themselves. That was one of the reasons why Great Builder''s pyramid mostly contained resources. The Balrow family didn''t consider it an inheritance due to the nature of trials and rewards, but Noah almost justified the expert in his mind. Great Builder''s law was quite clear. He had the workshop, the pyramid, and all the puppets inside that environment. Noah wouldn''t find anything about blades there, but he was fine with that since it depended on the expert''s power. Having found a suitable spell already surpassed his expectations. "What do you think it is?" Noah asked while King Elbas studied the corridor before the last room. "Hard to say," King Elbas replied while shaking his head. "I can only see sensors on the walls. The pyramid might start the test as soon as it understands how dangerous we are." "You all speak too much," Divine Demon snorted while taking a step forward and entering the corridor. "It''s not a challenge if we spend more time planning the trial than clearing it." The sensors inspected Divine Demon, and materials slowly seeped out of the wall. Black metals gathered in the corridor and gave birth to a puppet that radiated Divine Demon''s aura. The copy was almost perfect. It even carried Divine Demon''s iconic law, and that sight made everyone worry. The copies could surpass the original if the latter didn''t have trump cards. The precious materials used to create that puppet would make it surpass humans in terms of physical strength. The hybrids didn''t fear that outcome. They even desired to test themselves. Instead, the situation was far worse for humans since they lacked the physical strength and resilience of those metal copies. "Nothing in the world can imitate me!" Divine Demon snorted before unfolding his aura and turning his surroundings into azure energy. The copy did the same, and a dark-yellow light soon gathered around it. The puppet even managed to steal part of the energy amassed by Divine Demon. Divine Demon didn''t let that sight scare him. He raised his hand, and his copy imitated him. They both condensed their power until they gave birth to higher energy. The two halos turned white before shooting toward their opponent. The attacks exploded as soon as they clashed, and a shockwave spread through the entire corridor. A white light blinded Noah''s group for a while, but they eventually saw a fainted Divine Demon on the walls of their area. The puppet was still standing, and that was enough to declare the strongest among them. Chapter 1602: 1602. Secre Witnessing Divine Demon''s defeat made the group hesitate to approach the trial. Great Builder''s sensors were able to copy the contenders'' laws in that unique environment, so the army had to create a proper battle plan. Noah and the others knew how powerful Divine Demon was. His sudden defeat gave them a clear idea of how dangerous the trial was and how they had to approach it. Divine Demon had lost due to a physical difference. The puppet carried his law, but its body was a mixture of precious metals that could bring its power to a superior level. The approach became evident after the experts considered that part. Humans would always be on the losing end in that trial. Only hybrids could have a chance to win. Noah had to step back from that situation. The test could probably create a middle tier version of his existence, which would put him at a complete disadvantage. It was better to send a hybrid who had already reached the liquid stage and had a body that could match those precious metals. Wilfred ended up being the obvious choice. His physical strength almost knew no equals, and his cultivation level also had the right power. Only he could have a chance to overcome that challenge. Wilfred didn''t need his companions to explain that solution to him. He directly stepped forward once he understood how the trial worked, and a puppet soon formed in front of him. The puppet had his same cultivation level, and its aura carried Wilfred''s explosive features. Still, the expert seemed far stronger than his opponent. A violent battle soon unfolded in front of the army. Wilfred and the puppet didn''t waste time performing spectacular moves or complicated techniques. They only punched each other and continued until one of them fell apart. Wilfred bled at first, but the puppet soon began to lose pieces of its metallic body. The hybrids'' resilience kicked in, so the expert remained on his feet even after his face had turned into a mass of torn tissues and blood. The puppet didn''t share the same incredible innate abilities. It was sturdy, and its metals were tough, but the lack of proper healing properties soon left it with nothing more than a shattered torso. Wilfred didn''t stop his offensive until the door unlocked. The expert left the broken metals and entered the reward room, which was empty. It only had a narrow staircase that led to a secret area of the pyramid. Noah and the others decided to rest for a long time and perform a few training sessions. The secret area would feature a powerful opponent, so they had to be at their peak before approaching it. A few years had to go by before everyone in the army felt ready for the test. The staircase enlarged when the army moved toward the secret area, and the space twisted as they walked through the corridor connected with Great Builder''s room. A large hall eventually appeared in their eyes. The area activated once the army stepped out the staircase, and countless lines lit up on the walls, floor, and ceiling to mark the beginning of the test. Materials came out of the walls and amassed inside the secret hall. The area enlarged as a massive creature took form. Noah could soon lay his eyes on a winged lion with three heads and eight legs. The creature was twenty meters tall, and sturdy metal made every inch of its body. Its wings created storms whenever they moved through the air, and its low growls gave Noah an idea of how strong it was. ''Upper tier,'' Noah sighed in his mind. ''This will be tough.'' The rank 7 assets immediately deployed their battle formation. They performed long but quick movements that transformed them into a tall nine-headed hydra with power at the bottom of the eighth rank. The rank 8 cultivators from the Balrow family and some of Luke''s companions joined the battle formation to increase its power. Its level quickly grew until it reached the middle tier, but that wasn''t enough for their situation. Luke, Ian, and Jordan eventually decided to join the battle formation. The hydra''s power rose until it approached the upper tier, and King Elbas didn''t hesitate to help at that point. A series of inscribed items came out of King Elbas'' space-ring and began to cover the hydra. Golden runes and flames suddenly appeared on the creature''s ethereal skin and solidified its structure. Its level also increased until it entered the upper tier. Noah deployed Snore and his companions before covering his figure with dark matter. The Demonic Form came out of his palm and covered his fiendish armor. The Demonic Sword flew out of his chest to land in his hand. Bloodlust also exploded outward. Noah didn''t hesitate to draw the cursed sword in that situation. His opponent was two whole tiers above him. He couldn''t risk dying because he was holding back. The unstable substance flowed inside his black veins, and the special darkness started to enlarge the Shadow Domain. His dark world also expanded before Noah activated his new spell. A diagram lit up inside Noah''s mental sea and generated a long series of benefits. The black hole began to work faster than ever, and the same applied to the workshop. The new spell gave Noah the ability to control the dark matter better. He already had power over his dark matter, but the spell quickened everything. ''I can use the Shadow Domain more often now,'' Noah thought while inspecting the benefits of his new spell. ''The workshop is also far faster. I guess I will waste most of my stash of fake cores in this battle.'' King Elbas deployed countless inscribed items. His assets went from disposable weapons in the middle tier to formations that covered the immense hall. Divine Demon gathered all the power he could get, and a white light soon shone next to him. His "Breath" had transformed into higher energy again. Wilfred and the others who were outside of the battle formation deployed their techniques and expanded their aura. They were an army against a single monstrous puppet, but they didn''t feel at ease in front of that creature. "Do it!" Wilfred shouted while glancing at Noah. Noah quickly activated Shandal''s ability. The world froze for the winged lion, but Wilfred and the others were still able to move. The whole army attacked at that point. They launched their best attacks in the hope of inflicting significant damage. The nine-headed hydra spat multicolored flames, Noah thrust with both swords, and Wilfred leapt toward the winged lion to slam his massive arms on its head. King Elbas threw the entirety of his inscribed army at his opponent, and the formations under him went after them. The winged lion could still move a bit, but Noah''s spell had managed to slow it down long enough for all the attacks to land on the creature. White lines lit up across the large hall. The pyramid was suppressing those unnatural earthquakes, but it didn''t do anything to protect the creature. The explosion generated by that wave of attacks forced Noah and the others to stop their offensive for a second. The smoke that covered the winged lion made it impossible to know its state. The smoke eventually vanished, and a low growl resounded in the hall. Noah could finally see the effects of their attacks. They had only managed to break two of its legs and ruin part of its right wing. Chapter 1603: 1603. Legs ''We didn''t do anything to the heads,'' Noah thought while spitting flames. The cursed sword had inflicted its drawbacks on Noah''s chest, but the dark matter had quickly covered the missing pieces of skin. The outcome of the exchange didn''t bring any positive news. The entirety of Noah''s team had attacked the winged lion without leading to decent effects. Breaking two legs and ruining one wing was nothing when it came to the overall power of the creature. "There are a few frail spots near the base of the legs and necks!" King Elbas shouted right after the exchange. "The heads are the sturdiest parts, but they also contain centers of power. Rip the creature into pieces until you reach those spots!" King Elbas had taken care of identifying the frailest spots on the winged lion. No one had noticed the weakness at the base of the legs. Noah and the others had mainly focused on the heads, but they understood why they had remained unaffected by the assault now. "Don''t hold back!" Wilfred shouted. "The weak will die, but the strong will survive. Jump forward and find out where you belong!" Noah knew his place in that battle. He was among the strongest hybrids in the army, and his position as a leader forced him to jump in the frontlines. The pyramid had also closed the path back to the staircase. The army could either defeat the winged lion or die there. Noah wasn''t the only expert to jump forward. Wilfred, Divine Demon, Theodora, Ian, and Jordan joined him without bothering to launch battle cries. The hybrids had to take care of the vanguard since they were the only existences capable of surviving the winged lion. As for Divine Demon, he was too reckless to remain in the backlines. The winged lion gave voice to a screeching noise. Its cry created soundwaves that tried to converge on its opponents, but King Elbas promptly took care of that threat. The formations that had shot toward the metal creature activated and revealed their power. Golden lines lit up around the winged lion and suppressed part of its power. They couldn''t handle its physical strength, but they could stop sound attacks and similar techniques. Noah and the others jumped forward while unleashing their best techniques. Wilfred punched the air while trails of mental energy followed his attack. His existence allowed him to send his physical blows toward his opponents, but the addition of the mental energy made him able to enhance his offensive mid-air. Jordan spat flames while creating different shapes made of condensed air that flew toward the winged lion. A torrent of slashes and weapons converged toward the monstrous creature and tried to spread her influence through the large hall. Ian howled many times in the span of a single second to create a dense soundwave that took the shape of a defensive wall. The following cries then crossed that barrier and came out as large currents that slammed on the metal creature. Theodora''s law was unique. She could use her mental waves in ways that Noah had rarely witnessed. Her consciousness expanded, and a series of dense thoughts seeped inside the winged lion. It seemed that the will contained in that mental energy managed to calm down the creature and delay the beginning of its offensive. Noah didn''t change his approach. The unstable substance was empowering his body, and the cursed sword gave him the chance to surpass his actual cultivation level. He slashed at his opponent without hesitation. He didn''t care about the severe drawbacks at all. Divine Demon was the slowest of the group. His attention seemed to be elsewhere, but only he knew where it went. Truth be told, Divine Demon rarely took his losses lightly. The metal copy from the previous trial had managed to defeat him, so it was hard to improve his mood for the time being. Of course, Divine Demon didn''t care too much about that defeat. Great Builder had created an improved version of his existence. There was no shame in losing against himself. Yet, Divine Demon felt that he had something to prove to the pyramid. That structure had the privilege to see him fall, so he had to defeat all the trials to be at peace with his existence. Azure energy transformed into a white radiance before flowing inside Divine Demon''s body. The technique forced his tissues to go far beyond what regular hybrids in the middle tier could achieve. His Miracles brought his physical strength in a league that only a few existences in the liquid stage had managed to touch. Divine Demon shot forward after his energy finished empowering his body. He slammed on one of the creature''s legs and kept it still while his companions'' offensive converged on that spot. A singularity, an invisible force, soundwaves, and a series of attacks made of compressed air landed at the base of the leg. Divine Demon laughed while the techniques exploded above him, but neither managed to hurt his body. The leg fell apart during the offensive. The winged lion was a creature in the upper tier, but it couldn''t oppose the joint assault of experts who could fill the gaps among stages. The rest of the army attacked after the third leg fell. The nine-headed hydra launched its multicolored flames on one leg, and the magical beasts behind the battle formation shot forward to slam their powerful bodies on the same spot. King Elbas supported the magical beasts by activating one of his disposable inscribed weapons. Golden lines suddenly appeared around those creatures and enhanced their bodies to make them able to inflict decent damage. The fourth leg fell after the army of magical beasts flew through the multicolored flames and slammed on that limb. The dark metal that made the winged lion''s body shattered under their assault. It didn''t take much to destabilize that weak spot, but the creatures'' achievement surpassed what Noah had initially expected. "Tear them apart!" Noah roared while storing one of the legs. "Focus on restraining its movements. Target the legs and don''t die." A series of "yes, sir" and roars followed his orders. Most of the magical beasts in the eighth rank pressed forward and joined that display of power, but the winged lion suddenly tried to move. The formations around the creature shattered when it applied its physical strength. King Elbas tried to reinforce them, but the winged lion was too strong. Still, they managed to slow the beast down, and Theodora''s mental waves helped in the process. The magical beasts in Noah''s army ended up slamming on the fifth leg, and their companions promptly followed their example. Noah didn''t hesitate to launch another slash, Wilfred punched the air, Jordan flapped her wings, and Ian howled. The fifth limb could only fall after that offensive. The winged lion didn''t accept anything else after that. It broke free of King Elbas'' lines and Theodora''s control before turning toward Divine Demon. The expert couldn''t avoid the creature, but he didn''t seem inclined to do that. His eyes shone with a red light when the three heads filled his view and tried to bite him. Noah almost couldn''t believe his eyes. The beast disappeared before it could complete its attack. When it reappeared, it was free-falling from the ceiling. Chapter 1604: 1604. Easy The winged lion had yet to launch a single attack. Noah''s team had kept the creature locked in a chain of techniques that had prevented every attempt to defend or react. The existences in Noah''s army were experts in different fields, but they had been together for so long that they could cooperate perfectly. Moreover, their battle experience allowed them to adapt to any situation and unknown technique. The winged lion had lost five legs and part of its right wing. The creature had suffered a decent number of injuries, but that didn''t weaken it in the slightest. Three legs were more than enough to make it able to charge ahead. The winged lion had Noah and the other experts waiting for it on the floor, but it didn''t give them that satisfaction. The creature''s legs cracked on the air before it performed a sharp turn. It was about to fall in Noah''s hands, but it suddenly shot toward the massive nine-headed hydra in the back of the room. Divine Demon promptly appeared in its trajectory and slapped one of its three heads. The creature changed direction after the attack and slammed into an area that Noah and the others didn''t hesitate to reach. A massive singularity shot toward the sixth leg. Jordan, Ian, and Wilfred joined that offensive until they severed the sixth limb from the main body. Noah didn''t stop there. His body was a mess due to the drawbacks of the cursed sword. Also, his flames didn''t manage to burn much. Yet, he didn''t hesitate in front of a chance to inflict more damage. The winged lion tried to stand up, but Noah arched his fingers and grabbed two heads to keep the creature stuck on the ground. A massive force landed on his arms and shoulders and threatened to rip them off, but the empowerment given by the unstable substance made him able to endure it for a few seconds. His companions launched their best techniques while Noah kept the creature still. King Elbas even sent a few formations to help him in the task. Divine Demon and Wilfred silently decided to join forces and focus their attacks on the same leg. The two experts flew toward their target and unleashed a flurry of punches that ended up crushing the limb. As for the others, Jordan and Ian tried to take care of the last leg, but their level couldn''t amount to much. They had to accept that only Wilfred and Divine Demon wielded enough power to handle it. They could only support them in the task. Noah let go of the winged lion, which didn''t immediately attack. The creature had to overcome Theodora''s suppression before it could decide to charge again, and King Elbas'' formations were still around its body. Snore and Duanlong appeared next to the winged lion and began to suppress it. The snake entangled its massive body around the puppet''s figure, and the dragon spread its mouth to absorb all the energy that tried to flow through its opponent''s fabric. Noah flew above one of the heads before thrusting both blades downward. The attack didn''t manage to pierce its metal skin, but it destabilized the creature enough to slam it on the floor. Divine Demon and Wilfred used that chance to help Jordan and Ian. They shot toward the last leg and unleashed their attacks to crush it. The winged lion soon lost its last limb and found itself stuck on the floor. Pearl, Luke, and the other human experts finally saw their chance to shine at that sight. The winged lion''s physical strength was too threatening for their frail body, but they could begin to approach it now that the hybrids had taken care of its ability to move freely. Luke joined Theodora, and the duo applied a twofold restriction of the winged lion. Pearl and the other experts from the Balrow family helped King Elbas and followed his orders to deploy suitable inscriptions. The army of magical beasts outside of the battle formation began to assault the defenseless puppet. The creature could only flap its left wing, so its opponents could ravage its right side. The Foolery and the other magical beasts used all the power at their disposal to pierce that thick skin. Some even died while eating it due to the massive amount of energy inside that metal. Those creatures had the best prey in the world right in front of their eyes, but they couldn''t taste it properly. Noah soon moved his focus on the heads. A sense of weakness had pervaded him after he stored the cursed sword, and his mind was already near its limit. Noah deployed the entirety of his arsenal. He used the Demonic Form, the Demonic Sword, Night, Snore, Duanlong, the unstable substance, the dark world, and the draconic armor. However, there was a limit to how much he could achieve at his current level. His attacks could only slam the winged lion''s heads to slam on the floor. They couldn''t pierce its skin nor force it to submit. It was clear that Noah was too out of place for that situation. Divine Demon and Wilfred had different ideas. Their attacks could shatter the tough metal fabric of that creature, and removing its limbs had given them the chance to go all-out without incurring useless risks. The duo felt that the fifth layer was their home. They had fought to the best of their potential and had succeeded. The pyramid was judging them worthy of getting Great Builder''s inheritance. Of course, the last defense of Great Builder''s structure couldn''t be so easy. It didn''t matter that Noah had some of the best experts in the Immortal Lands. There had to be something else, and those suspicions eventually led to him. "I don''t think I have time for a proper evaluation," Noah explained while supporting a missing piece of his skin and pretending that he didn''t suffer any injury. "Give me something," Wilfred almost pleaded to receive additional information about his opponent. "The battle should be over after we sever its heads," Noah commented. "Rip his wings off and see what happens. That amount of damage should be enough to trigger any hidden ability." Wilfred didn''t hesitate to resume the battle. It didn''t take him much to seize the wing since he had hordes of cultivators, hybrids, and magical beasts supporting him. Noah helped where he could. His attacks were almost useless, but they managed to change the trajectory of some of the creature''s attacks. The winged lion was dangerous even in that form, so his efforts saved many lives and stopped multiple attacks from reaching their destination. White lines spread through the room after the experts severed the wings. They converged toward the lion and made its three fake cores shine. The heads began to radiate a white halo that almost blinded the opponent army. After the halo dimmed, Noah felt a sudden surge of pain coming from his body. He had sensed an impact, but the situation was too strange to understand what had happened. His senses soon gave him a general idea of what had happened during the outburst of white light. The winged lion had attacked everyone in its surroundings, and Noah was one of them. Chapter 1605: 1605. Heads Noah found himself on the wall of the large hall. A horizontal cut threatened to divide his already maimed body into two parts. The unstable substance had saved him from the sudden attack, but his condition was far from ideal. Divine Demon, Wilfred, Jordan, and Ian were in a similar condition. The attack had divided Jordan and Ian''s bodies into two parts and left them without legs. Wilfred''s waist only featured a large cut, while Divine Demon had lost a large chunk of his torso together with the lower part of his figure. The winged lion had also changed. The burst of light had added a few body parts to its figure. Multiple sharp limbs now grew from its back and allowed it to stagger toward its opponents. Those new limbs resembled sharp spider legs capable of performing sudden attacks. They were so quick that King Elbas and Theodora had to retreat to escape from their range. ''Why would you even give it power-ups?'' Noah cursed in his mind before unfolding his dark world. His annoyance toward Great Builder had reached a new level after that exchange. His body would be fine, but Jordan and Ian were in critical condition. Divine Demon wasn''t fine either, but his azure energy was already helping him recovering his dantian. The currents of dark matter picked the severed lower bodies and forced them to reconnect with their owners. Jordan and Ian felt better after "Breath" resumed flowing through their organs, but they immediately understood that their battle was over. The dark world could only help them recover faster. The technique couldn''t heal such severe injuries, especially in hybrids due to their high requirements in terms of energy. Jordan and Ian had to stay still and let the natural healing properties of their bodies do their work. "Who can still fight?" Noah asked, even if the dark world was giving him the answer to that question. "I''m up," Wilfred snorted before standing up and forcing his muscles to bulge until they sealed the cut on his waist. "I think I can handle one last attack," Divine Demon shouted while his azure energy slowly reattached his torn flesh. "I will fight!" Jordan announced. "Me too!" Ian joined that conversation. "I don''t need corpses to be in the way," Noah snorted while applying a series of dense layers of dark matter around Jordan and Ian. "Did anyone die yet?" Noah asked. "I need to burn something." Some of the magical beasts took his joke seriously and shot through the dark world to reach his position. Those creatures were willing to give their life to make him recover, but Noah only sighed at that sight. "We will make rules for that," Noah sighed before focusing on the golden expert. "Elbas, give me something to recover. Try to help Jordan and Ian too." "Do you think I can fix your mess every time?" King Elbas asked. "That''s your role in my great organization," Noah proudly announced before forcing himself to stand up. His condition was awful. Bloodthirsty thoughts filled his mind, injuries covered his body, and blood poured from the last cut on his waist. The lack of materials to burn in the trial had rendered his flames useless. His innate ability couldn''t burn the winged lion either, so Noah had never managed to recover since the beginning of the battle. "I might have something for you," King Elbas sighed while continuing to retreat. King Elbas let a flask float among the currents of dark matter, and Noah promptly made it fly in his hands. The bottle contained a dark liquid that seemed to radiate an aura that matched Noah''s law. "Did you make this for me?" Noah teased King Elbas while breaking the seal on the bottle. "I did not!" King Elbas shouted. "I have happened to see your flames a few times, and I grew curious. That method is so inefficient, so I created something only to prove that I was right." Noah had already stopped listening to King Elbas. He emptied the bottle inside the dark world and studied that substance with the help of his technique. The black liquid resembled a simple mass of pure energy that carried Noah''s aura. His instincts even told him that he could directly drink that substance instead of burning it. Noah decided to give the liquid a try. The black substance condensed in the shape of a pill and flowed toward his mouth. An immense surge of power filled Noah''s body. His injuries instantly healed, and his bloodlust vanished. The drug had made him return to his peak in an instant. "How many of them do you have?" Noah asked while checking his condition. "I did only one of them," King Elbas snorted. "I''m not as selfless as my son. I don''t waste my skills on others." Noah had begun to ignore him again. The winged lion was running through the hall, and only its casual stumbling allowed the others to survive. Its coordination was awful, but Noah couldn''t underestimate it anyway. "Let''s focus on the heads this time around," Noah conveyed through the dark world. "We can''t survive with the slow approach." "The new legs are weak on the joints," King Elbas explained. "They are too fast for us. I don''t know how you plan to reach the heads." "Can you slow them down?" Noah asked. "It''s quite impossible," King Elbas revealed. "What if I join you?" Theodora asked, and Luke, Pearl, and other experts also appeared behind her. "How slow are we talking about?" King Elbas asked after glancing at the other experts. "Make them stop for an instant," Noah ordered. "Wilfred with me. Everyone else must wait for my signal." "What''s the plan?" Wilfred asked while flying toward Noah. "We blow one head after I take care of the new legs," Noah announced, and his words spread through the entire hall. "The others must destroy the other two." "How can we even pass through those legs?" Wilfred continued to question him. "One instant won''t be enough. Many will die." "We send the expendable troops then," Noah laughed as a series of dark figures materialized among the waves of dark matter. An army of massive rank 8 turtles gathered around Noah and Wilfred before flying in front of them. Those products of the workshop would be their meat shield. Noah glanced toward the winged lion. A storm of slashes flew out of its violent legs, but they always dispersed after flying for a few meters. Those attacks were only consequences of the immense power released by those new limbs. "Slow them down!" Noah roared, and the experts activated their methods to stop the puppet. King Elbas threw runes, Pearl used a strange ethereal whip, and Luke gathered mental energy until he launched a dense needle. The other experts were also working with the trio, and they joined their offensive to stop the legs. The sharp legs stopped for an instant before moving again. Still, they seemed heavier and out of shape now. It was as if something had seeped into their insides. A series of explosions suddenly ran through the hall. Noah had relied on all the Instabilities inside his separate space to destroy the legs. His tactic also featured Snore, Night, and Duanlong. The three companions had to launch precise attacks toward the joints. Most of those quick legs slowly fell apart, and the rest of the army finally had free access to the puppet. Noah and Wilfred shot forward, and the turtles stepped up whenever the creature wanted to stretch one of its maimed legs. Noah and Wilfred attacked together. The singularity and the punch landed on the lion''s neck at the same time. One head fell toward the ground, and a figure suddenly appeared next to the experts. Divine Demon was barely alive, but he didn''t hesitate to place his head on one of the necks and turn it into a melted mess. "The others now!" Noah roared while grabbing Divine Demon and retreating. Wilfred ran in the opposite way, but he left a path for the rest of the army. All the experts there managed to attack the last head in a matter of seconds. Chapter 1606: 1606. Improvements A rain of magical beasts, multicolored flames, and cultivators fell on the winged lion. The army targeted the base of the last head with their offensive, and they eventually managed to rip it off. The metal creature crumbled at that point. The energy that kept it together vanished, so its fabric shattered and transformed into black shards that acc.u.mulated on the floor. Noah quickly went to gather those materials, and a few experts followed him. Wilfred, King Elbas, Pearl, Luke, and other cultivators interested in the inscriptions behind that creation couldn''t wait to study the metal. The group didn''t have to talk about the distribution of those resources. They had been together for so long that they could quickly decide how to split the materials. Noah had already taken one leg, but no one dared to speak when he decided to store one of the heads. The same went for King Elbas since he had been crucial in clearing the whole layer. Instead, Wilfred decided to let the other experts study the last head before claiming it. Divine Demon didn''t care about those materials. Jordan and Ian wouldn''t say no to those resources, but their influence on the battle didn''t grant them that privilege. The two hybrids settled for a large share of the metal shards and felt satisfied. The rest of the shards went to the remaining hybrids and magical beasts. That material carried many nutrients that those existences could use to improve if handled correctly. After all, the upper tier was only one step behind the ninth rank, so any piece of metal was a priceless treasure. The army didn''t have the time to cheer after that victory. Some magical beasts had died during the battle, and many of the leaders had suffered severe injuries. They all had to recover, especially since they still had another layer to clear. Noah sat among his underlings and let his aura fill the hall. A door had opened on the other side of the staircase, but he didn''t care about it just yet. ''I didn''t think I could improve my body so easily,'' Noah thought while inspecting the severed head. An oval fake center of power tried to activate the severed head. The item contained enough energy to fuel an upper tier creature, so Noah ended up desiring to eat it right away. Noah suppressed his instincts to study the fake core. The item didn''t radiate any peculiar aura. It was a simple mass of power, but it was far more complex than the prototypes described in the four books. ''I might be unable to understand its real power,'' Noah thought before closing his eyes and gathering his consciousness around the severed head. Noah''s ambition surged. He had managed to acc.u.mulate some potential after the last victories in the fifth layer. Every trial could defeat liquid stage cultivators, so his law had grown after his multiple feats. His aura flowed inside his mental waves and transformed them into something more than thoughts. It made them become pure carriers of his existence that managed to sense the faint meaning inside that seemingly neutral energy. An intense desire to live suddenly filled his mind. Part of the energy contained inside the item tried to reach his mental sea, but the black hole promptly sent dark matter to create a defensive layer around his mental walls. Noah could soon think clearly again, but he didn''t disregard the emotions felt during that inspection. The oval center of power contained far more than pure energy. It was a clear statement of Great Builder''s inheritance and feelings. Noah bathed in those sensations while his companions recovered. The faint feeling contained in that energy flowed inside him and gave him a better understanding of Great Builder''s law. The expert''s law carried features that Noah had already seen before. It was an expression of life, but it had far more complexity to it. Great Builder seemed able to turn bricks into lifeforms. His influence was strong enough to force stones to breathe. Noah could study the materials, but his companions met many hindrances in that process. The ones who could find part of those meanings didn''t care about them. Divine Demon and Wilfred were brutes. Only King Elbas could reach Noah''s conclusions. "Who wants to pick it up?" Noah asked, and King Elbas didn''t hesitate to stand up. The expert walked toward the new room and quickly returned while showing an old tome. King Elbas had retrieved the fifth piece of the inheritance, and the pyramid cheered about that event. The whole structure trembled. It sent Noah and the others back into the fifth layer and chanted mysterious hymns that made the earthquakes more intense. The same neutral aura coming from the head flowed through the various corridors and empty rooms. That energy wanted to make the air transform, but it suppressed its influence before anything could happen. ''We are close, but not yet,'' Noah concluded in his mind before sending the severed head and leg inside the dark world. The currents of dark matter proceeded to weaken those materials so that Noah could finally absorb them. Some of the experts in this group deployed similar methods to turn those resources into nutrients. The dark world took care of handling those materials. It slowly turned them into energy that the black hole could send to his body. Noah had the time to study the new book while the dark world handled the purification. The fifth piece of the inheritance explained how to improve the products of the workshop further. Noah had already understood that he had to fill his creations with his law to make them reach the eighth rank, but the middle tier teachings dived deeper into that topic. Those creations weren''t a matter of laws or domains. They had to become separate existences after they left the workshop. The technique could only set their meanings, but they had to remain different existences. Noah had done the same with Snore and Duanlong. The two Blood Companions shared a tight connection with his existence, but they were separate entities. The next level of the workshop required him to do the same with all the disposable magical beasts created through that technique. ''I should be able to solve everything with my ambition and expertise,'' Noah thought once he finished reading the fifth book. ''My connection with the dark matter should never give them the chance to escape my control anyway.'' Noah''s workshop was different from Great Builder''s technique. It only used two resources, and Noah avoided wasting fake cores most of the time. That difference didn''t allow Noah to rely on the fifth book completely. It granted him the knowledge that he lacked, but it prevented him from abiding by all those teachings. ''I can''t even use resources coming from rank 9 cultivators anymore,'' Noah cursed in his mind, but his annoyance soon vanished. Noah was in that situation because his existence was unique, and he already had multiple techniques that covered most fields. He didn''t need anything else. The books could only improve his version of the workshop and polish some of its aspects. "Is it time to go up?" Pearl asked and broke the silence that had fallen in the hall. "Nothing more to do here," Divine Demon shouted. "I wonder how Alexander did on the sixth layer. I wouldn''t mind challenging him in some trials." Chapter 1607: 1607. Cool Noah couldn''t do much with the fifth book, but that reward still taught him something. Its lessons didn''t only involve the workshop. They even explained ways to improve the fake cores. Of course, Noah didn''t need those teachings for himself. His centers of power were nigh-perfect due to the influence of the black hole. Still, his companions might need some work at some point, and he wouldn''t dare to miss that knowledge. Noah reviewed the teachings of the fifth book while the army approached the sixth layer. The energy contained inside the head also flowed toward his black hole while the clearing of the pyramid reached its last phase. Absorbing energy in the upper tier wasn''t easy, especially since Noah was still in the gaseous stage. It would take him time to absorb that power, but he wasn''t in a hurry to complete the process. Noah was confident that the energy inside the head would push his body into the middle tier. A long sleep would follow that breakthrough, and Noah couldn''t allow that during the exploration. The group was mostly safe inside the pyramid, but they didn''t underestimate the power wielded by rank 9 existences. Noah and the others were unaware of Radiant Eyes'' condition and whereabouts, but they didn''t dare to waste time anyway. The state of the sixth layer left the entire army speechless. Pearl had confirmed that the Balrow family didn''t explore much of that place, but its current condition was far different from her reports. All the trials in the sixth layer were empty. The army couldn''t find a single room that still featured defenses. Someone had overcome every test and snatched the resources hidden behind them. ''He did a great job,'' Noah thought while countless empty rooms crossed his vision. Peal had confirmed that the pyramid was empty before their arrival. The only expert in the sixth layer was Alexander. The expert had cleared all the tests on his own while the army was busy in the fifth layer. King Elbas did his best to find the path toward the deeper parts of the layer quickly. He unraveled the maze and led the army in front of the last trial, where they found a familiar face waiting for them. Alexander sat in front of the last trial. His aura was a mess of magical beasts'' faces and violent shockwaves. His influence almost hurt his companions, but he suppressed it as soon as he sensed their arrival. "You really went all-out," Noah commented while studying Alexander''s poor condition. "The Legion needed my help," Alexander laughed. "Suffering this much for my organization is nothing." Noah could sense Alexander''s resolve inside those words. Most experts abandoned their organizations once the ninth rank became close, but Alexander was the opposite. His selflessness intensified together with his cultivation level. "Can we help out in the trials?" Noah asked, but Alexander limited himself to shake his head. The expert wasn''t underestimating his companions. Alexander had long since realized that most of the newcomers were monsters, but his recent experience inside the sixth layer made him decide to keep them outside of the tests. "You wouldn''t be able to surpass the initial tests," Alexander explained. "Leave everything to me. I''ll take care of this layer and complete the inheritance." Divine Demon and the others wanted to complain, but they couldn''t say anything in that situation. They had also sensed Alexander''s resolve, and they didn''t want to disrespect it. "Open your mind," Noah eventually sighed. "I''ll take care of as many ethereal creatures as possible before leaving the rest to you." "Don''t go overboard," Alexander whispered while revealing a broad smile. "You can''t say that after clearing a whole layer by yourself," Noah replied. "You could have left something for us." "These are the resources gathered in the previous tests," Alexander ignored Noah''s last words while handing a space-ring to Wilfred. "I shouldn''t die, but don''t try to approach the test at your current level nonetheless. Hide here until you become strong enough to approach the ninth rank." "That sounds like a bother," Wilfred snorted. "Clear the damned test, and don''t make me wait." "Anyone wants to make bets on Alexander''s performance?" Divine Demon shouted. Most of the army ignored Divine Demon, but some of the experts in Pearl and Luke''s team slowly approached him while handing of space-rings that contained their bets. Almost all of them believed that Alexander would complete the trials in less than two months. Noah and Alexander ignored the commotion around them and began to focus on the procedure. Noah''s mental waves seeped inside Alexander''s mind and devoured every ethereal figure in sight. His ability had improved after the continuous use back in the Outer Lands. Noah felt more confident during the process, and his experience in mental battles allowed him to devise new approaches. Noah preferred to devour the ethereal figures inside Alexander''s mind since he wouldn''t be in danger there, but the situation didn''t allow him to play it safe. He could suffer annoying mental injuries, while Alexander had to be at his peak. The training sessions took a long time. Noah had already devoured all the weak magical beasts, so he had to deal with the strong ones now. Fighting those ghosts inside Alexander''s head was complex due to his limited amount of mental energy. Those mental battles also lasted longer since the ethereal magical beasts had power in the eighth rank. Noah had to build a mental bridge between their minds and let part of the ethereal figures flow inside his sea of consciousness before starting his mental battles. His head ended up screaming in pain due to that sudden pressure, but Noah endured that feeling and slowly destroyed those ghosts. Alexander slowly regained some calm. He even grew stronger after Noah took care of most of the lower tier creatures. Noah didn''t stop there. He soon began to approach middle tier magical beasts, even if he didn''t dare to fight them among their army. He had to rely on his entire experience in mental battles to handle that mess. Powerful creatures entered Noah''s mind while the dark matter assaulted them and suppressed their power. Noah''s sea of consciousness became a battlefield that featured only one enemy at the time, but his mind still trembled non-stop whenever an exchange happened. His mental walls had thinned after his recent abuse of the devouring properties of his mental waves, but the dark matter took care of reinforcing them. Noah could go all-out inside his mind without worrying about hurting himself. Only the sudden outburst of the middle tier creatures could threaten to injure him. Still, Noah remained extremely careful, even if the mental battles were his realm. He managed to win those fights, and Alexander soon gained a level of clarity that he didn''t experience in millennia. "I wish you could have been here during my past outburst," Alexander exclaimed after Noah broke the mental connection. "I didn''t know you could be so efficient." "I must go overboard from time to time," Noah sighed. "A safe approach can''t always work." "Will you be fine?" Alexander asked in a worried tone. "Some tempering under the white sky will solve my issue," Noah revealed. "You should focus on the trial for now. Go and enjoy being the cool leader. You won''t have that privilege once I surpass you." Chapter 1608: 1608. Meaning Alexander left right after Noah devoured as many ethereal magical beasts as possible. He only remained outside the trial to give a series of directives and goodbyes to his companions before approaching the test and disappearing behind the large metal door at the end of the corridor. Noah felt weak. His mind had enlarged quickly, and the energy inside the head was improving his body at a steady pace. Yet, he felt drained and frail. ''My mental walls have reached their limit,'' Noah thought while inspecting his condition. Devouring ethereal magical beasts thinned his mental walls and made him uncomfortable about his current condition. Noah knew that he couldn''t fight in that state. A mistake during a battle could make his sea of consciousness crumble right now. It was rare for Noah to decide to put himself in such a poor condition, especially when he didn''t gain clear improvements in battle prowess in exchange for those drawbacks. The process had brought immense benefits to his mind, but it had been too sudden and forceful. Noah would typically take his time to reinforce his mental walls after every devouring session, but his situation didn''t allow him to make his benefits a priority. Great Builder was his best chance to survive the rank 9 threats in the human domain, and Alexander was the only existence inside the Legion who could complete his revival. Noah had to sacrifice himself in that situation. ''No point playing it safe anymore,'' Noah thought after Alexander''s figure disappeared. ''I have enough energy to push my body into the middle tier. I should approach the breakthrough.'' The inheritance didn''t give Noah the chance to do anything else, so he decided to focus on improving his foundation. He would have to take Alexander''s place if the expert failed, so it was better to close the gap that divided him from that level of power. Radiant Eye''s dense liquid had already benefitted Noah''s power. Absorbing upper tier resources would make him able to push his body toward the peak of the lower tier and approach the breakthrough. The harsh requirements of his body didn''t worry Noah either. He had amassed countless resources and entire mountains of Soul Stones during his past adventures. The black hole could use all of them to fill any gap that the upper tier materials didn''t manage to fill. Noah went into one of the empty rooms of the sixth layer and approached the breakthrough. His dark world expanded on its own as drowsiness filled his frail mind. He felt unable to delay that sensation in his current condition, so he fell asleep in an instant. The sleep felt strange. Noah was completely aware of his surroundings during that procedure, but his mental waves barely managed to leave his mind. That discovery made Noah feel quite elated. It seemed that his mind was strong enough to keep him partially awake even during the breakthrough. ''I might have underestimated my improvements after devouring so many ghosts,'' Noah thought while keeping track of the energy flowing through his body and reinforcing its tissues. The amount of energy depleted during the process was immense. Most middle tier magical beasts wouldn''t ever come close to that power during their breakthrough to the upper tier. Noah''s requirements had only grown steeper as he advanced through the cultivation journey. The energy given by the upper tier resources eventually ended, but the black hole promptly controlled his separate space and began to crush Soul Stones to use their power. Noah had long since acc.u.mulated more than a million Soul Stones. He was richer than entire organizations led by multiple rank 8 cultivators, but the breakthrough depleted his resources at a breathtaking pace. Mountains of Soul Stones vanished whenever his body required more energy. The black hole wasn''t stingy when it came to that procedure. It aimed to make Noah''s body perfect, which required an immense amount of power. No one dared to enter the room while Noah faced the breakthrough. The other experts even imitated him and secluded themselves to improve their foundation. They all knew that a battle would arrive soon. It didn''t matter whether Radiant Eyes had survived the fight. Noah''s group had gained Heaven and Earth''s attention, so someone would eventually hunt them down. Multiple breakthroughs happened while Noah''s body evolved. All the experts and magical beasts in the army had gained many resources and experience during the trials, so most of them were ready to improve. Fergie''s breakthrough surprised most experts. He entered a room as a peak rank 7 cultivator and exited it a few months later as an existence in the eighth rank. He had finally stepped past the realm of gods, and his companions couldn''t help but rejoice at that feat. Some concerns arose after a few years passed. The army couldn''t hear anything from the other side of the huge door, so they couldn''t check Alexander''s condition. Still, they had nowhere else to go. Focusing on their training sessions seemed the only feasible tactic. Noah eventually opened his eyes, and a roar came out of his mouth. His cry announced to his companions that his breakthrough had been a success. A series of experts soon gathered in front of his room and expressed their compliments. The breakthrough didn''t bring any new ability. It had significantly improved Noah''s physical strength and reinforced his black vessels, but nothing more than that. Noah couldn''t complain about the breakthrough. He didn''t expect anything significant to happen since his abilities had mostly remained the same during the last period. The addition of Supreme Thief''s technique didn''t even involve his body, so he knew that nothing would change because of it. His awakening didn''t manage to keep his companions'' attention on him for too long since the tall door at the end of the corridor suddenly opened and revealed Alexander limping through the area. The expert appeared exhausted. Alexander had powerful healing abilities in his arsenal, but he didn''t have any energy left to activate them. Alexander had lost one eye and his left arm. His robe was nothing more than strands of torn clothes that didn''t manage to cover his awful condition. Countless injuries covered his body. Entire chunks of his skin and organs had disappeared, and blood continued to flow from his wounds since he didn''t have enough energy to stop it. However, Alexander wore a hideous broad smile as he approached his companions. An old book rested on his hand. It seemed that the expert had succeeded in completing the last trial and seize the reward. "Elbas, take care of healing him," Noah ordered while hurrying toward Alexander. "Pearl and the other inscription masters have to come with me." "Being half a step in front of me doesn''t give you the right to order me around," King Elbas snorted even if he took out a series of precious potions meant for hybrids. "I will reach the liquid stage before you. I already sense the approach of the breakthrough." "This isn''t the time for that," Noah reprimanded him before pointing at the tall door that divided them from the last parts of the inheritance. "We took the last book, but nothing happened. I don''t even see the usual white lines running through the corridor." "What are you implying?" King Elbas asked. "I know for a fact that Great Builder is trying to come back to life," Noah explained. "Clearing the inheritance and seizing the books didn''t trigger that process. He might be a liar, but there is a higher chance that we have missed something." The confused expressions on his companions'' faces forced Noah to continue his explanation. "The books aren''t simple rewards. They must have a deeper meaning, which might be the technique to resurrect him." Chapter 1609: 1609. Revelations All the inscription masters inside the pyramid gathered to inspect the six pieces of Great Builder''s inheritance. There had to be something in the books that could lead to the expert''s resurrection, and they had to find it to take care of the rank 9 threats in the human domain. Noah, King Elbas, Pearl, her companions from the Balrow family, and one expert in Luke''s team met in one of the empty rooms to review the six books. Most of them took a while to understand their contents. Still, Noah and those who had already accomplished something in that field didn''t hold back their explanations. "We know that the entire pyramid is a huge workshop," Pearl said after everyone had committed the contents of the six books to memory. "We also know that it contains countless valuable materials. This can''t be a case." "We explored the entire pyramid," Paul, the expert from Luke''s group, replied. "I didn''t see anything capable of activating something so massive." "The trigger must be inside the secret chamber," King Elbas explained. "The problem is that neither of us is up for the task. I might be arrogant, but I can only dream about building something in the ninth rank." "The pyramid must have multiple methods to trigger the procedure," Noah added. "I don''t see a rank 9 expert relying on random contestants for his resurrection. We wouldn''t even think about doing it if it weren''t for Radiant Eyes." "What are you implying?" Pearl asked. "Do you think that the resurrection will start on its own even if we don''t do anything?" "It would make sense," Noah continued. "I would never put the greatest achievement of my life in the hands of some strangers. Great Builder must have created a failsafe or something similar." "That only makes the situation scarier," One of Pearl''s companions said. "An expert at that level would normally start the procedure right away, but Great Builder is giving us the chance to complete it on our own. I don''t know. It feels like a secret trial." "What would the purpose of the trial even be?" Paul asked. "We cleared the entire pyramid. We are worthy of his inheritance. I don''t understand why Great Builder would add this last hindrance." "Did anyone try to leave the pyramid?" Noah asked before the experts could fall silent. "Of course not," Pearl replied. "We don''t know how far Radiant Eyes'' consciousness can reach. The pyramid is covering our presence, so no one can leave the structure until Great Builder comes back." "What do you have in mind?" King Elbas asked. "I''ll send one of my magical beasts outside," Noah sighed. "We will know if my guess is right soon enough." Noah contacted Fergie and told him his plan. The expert ordered one of the rank 7 magical beasts to leave the pyramid, but the creature found the exit sealed. Fergie tried to do the same for all the exits on the other layers, and he even tested the secret doors hidden under trapdoors and similar passages. Neither of them gave his underlings the chance to leave. The pyramid had trapped all of them. "It should be as I feared," Noah explained after hearing Fergie''s report. "We might be a core part of the second approach to the resurrection. The pyramid might sacrifice us to bring Great Builder back to life." His revelation made sense, but that only caused his companions to worry. They couldn''t help but feel that their efforts had been in vain. After all, they had struggled to explore one of the most dangerous places in the entire human domain only to end up in a trap. "A trial doesn''t only lead to death," King Elbas suddenly announced and forced the other experts to suppress their complaints. "Great Builder has never been stingy on rewards. I bet that this last test will also give something great." "What can this madman even offer us at this point?!" Pearl shouted to express her anger. "We have been in this place for entire years already. We have enough resources and techniques to build a force capable of taking down the entire human domain. What else can we even desire?!" The experts fell silent, and King Elbas did the same. He didn''t have the answer to that question. He couldn''t understand what else he could desire either. "You will get to see the path," Noah eventually revealed. "The pyramid will give us the chance to create a rank 9 item if we are right about this. This experience is worth more than any resource." Noah couldn''t be sure about that, but his words made perfect sense. Rank 8 existences could survive without resources and techniques, but they wouldn''t be able to advance without understanding their path. Great Builder wanted to give that to his contestant. He desired to teach them about the path toward the ninth rank. Noah had no idea how the expert planned to do it, but he couldn''t wait to find out. "It''s pointless to hesitate," Noah sighed before standing up. "Let''s take this matter directly to Great Builder. I hope he will tell us what to do." King Elbas'' eyes lit up before he nodded toward Noah. Pearl and her companions did the same once they understood what Noah was talking about. It was time to bring the matter to the only expert who could give them proper answers. Noah and the others had to go inside the secret chamber and hear what the aura had to say about the whole situation. King Elbas and Pearl decided to follow Noah on his trip toward the secret area. The army saw them walking by, but no one replied to the growing concern. Fergie didn''t withhold information. He had told Wilfred and the others about the sealed exits. It was only normal for the various underlings and experts to feel scared about that problem. An intense pressure fell on Noah, King Elbas, and Pearl when the trio entered the secret chamber. The scenery was identical to Noah''s last visit, except for the lack of items outside of the invisible barriers. The aura of the pyramid conveyed its feelings before Noah could ask any question. A current of information suddenly flowed in the trio''s mind and made them aware of Great Builder''s actual plan. At first, the aura confirmed Noah''s worries. The pyramid was ready to take his life and turn every contestant into materials for Great Builder''s resurrection. Then, it began to describe other approaches. Some of them even saw the pyramid branding the army and sending it to the outside world to gather more resources. In the end, the pyramid explained the first method. It told Noah and the others how they could activate the massive workshop and find all the resources they needed. The rewards offered by the pyramid for the first method surpassed Noah''s imagination. The structure wouldn''t only show his army how to reach the ninth rank. It would also guide them through the various breakthroughs that they had yet to face. The pyramid even explained why it couldn''t start the procedure right away. It turned out that the method was far from perfect due to the lack of proper inscription masters. The structure couldn''t recreate Great Builder in its best form. It would forsake its master''s harmony without actual experts helping in the process. Chapter 1610: 1610. Help The pyramid explained how it intended to make Noah and the others approach Great Builder''s resurrection. The procedure was extremely appealing for those experts. It would make them experience the creation of rank 9 items first-hand. Inscription masters would pay any price to gain access to that knowledge. They would gain experience in the creation of items that stood at the peak of the cultivation journey. No one would even dare to refuse that offer. Noah and the others felt the same. King Elbas was so excited about the whole procedure that he risked starting it before warning his allies. The preparations for the resurrection began immediately. Noah and the other inscription masters involved during the procedure brought the army at the center of the third layer and made it wait for further dispositions. The pyramid then proceeded to give more directions. It made Noah summon specific experts who were essential to the procedure due to their unique existence. Noah summoned Divine Demon, Wilfred, Alexander, Luke, Theodora, and even a few magical beasts. The leader of the Foolery and some other creature in the eighth rank had to gather in the secret chamber before the procedure could start. "We are ready," Noah announced once all the experts gathered among those invisible barriers. The pyramid replied to his words by unleashing a series of earthquakes that spread through the whole structure. The dark-yellow bricks shook as walls, floors, and ceilings moved to create an inscription hall worthy of witnessing Great Builder''s resurrection. The room containing Great Builder''s corpse descended toward the center of the pyramid. The structure had created a large empty area there, but waves of resources soon fell inside it. A series of walls became transparent and allowed the rest of the army to watch the scene. The pyramid had even created stages from which the experts could inspect the whole procedure. Noah and the others remained speechless. Countless materials in the eighth rank fell from tunnels that filled that immense dark-yellow hall. Those resources created proper waterfalls made of items that organizations would kill to obtain. The clanging noises generated by the multicolored waterfalls stopped at some point. Then, a dense aura spread through the immense hall and attracted the experts'' attention. Three oval cores that radiated a blinding white light came out of the tunnels and fell among the piles of resources. Their aura was almost able to suffocate the inscription masters and the experts on the stages. Even Alexander struggled to remain calm in front of those materials. ''Three fake cores in the ninth rank,'' Noah thought while studying those items. His senses didn''t allow him to go past that suffocating aura, but he had no doubt. The pyramid contained three rank 9 fake cores, and it wanted to use them to resurrect its master. An even denser aura then filled the dark-yellow hall. Noah and the others could sense the pyramid''s will trying to seep into their minds and desiring to take control of their bodies. The experts were aware of that procedure. The pyramid had warned them. Noah and the others were too weak to handle the resurrection, and their knowledge was also unsuitable for the task. The structure had to take control of their bodies to empower their abilities. Noah let the aura seep into his mind. A deep knowledge crossed his mental walls and fused with his mental sea, giving him an understanding of the procedure that he couldn''t obtain otherwise. The other experts soon imitated Noah, and they immediately felt glad to be in that situation. The pyramid was giving them the understanding of a rank 9 existence. It was making them take a trip inside Great Builder''s mind. Noah didn''t know how to express what he felt. He had been through a similar experience with Shandal''s thoughts, but the feelings generated by that experience made him partially change his view of the world. Great Builder''s experience was immense. Very few experts had reached a similar level of knowledge, and even fewer had done that while stepping into the ninth rank. The world in Noah''s eyes had changed. He didn''t see materials or resources anymore. There were only laws in his vision, and Noah could instinctively understand which item they created through their structure. His eyes also told him how to transform those laws into actual living beings. Great Builder seemed fond of improving everything in the world. He could see lifeforms in every material that entered his vision. Noah felt strange. A peculiar power had slowly begun to run through his veins. He was stronger than ever, but that power didn''t belong to him, so he didn''t let it trigger his instincts. The power forced his body to move against his will. Noah and the other inscription masters raised their hands and chanted hymns toward the incredible expert they wanted to resurrect. The pyramid even made them express their laws during the process. Noah''s ambition, King Elbas'' curiosity, Alexander''s hunger, Divine Demon''s desire to win, and many other peculiar laws flowed through the inscription hall and fused with the heavy aura. The aura slightly changed after absorbing those influences. It empowered those different laws and created ethereal copies of the experts who had taken the role of inscription masters. Noah''s vision went dark for an instant before everything became clear again. Yet, he didn''t find himself in his body. His whole figure had turned ethereal during that short moment. The same had happened to the other inscription masters. Their consciousness moved on the ethereal figures generated by the aura. They had become products of the pyramid after that process. The pyramid had explained that too. Noah and the others needed to oversee the procedure, but they couldn''t do it in their real bodies. Neither of them carried enough power to handle the resurrection of the ninth rank existence. "Let''s do this," Noah eventually announced once every ethereal figure began to move. The massive wave of knowledge that had flown inside their minds had taught them how to proceed. The ethereal figures even removed their physical limits. Noah and the others could go all-out and perform inscriptions meant to build rank 9 resources. Great Builder''s corpse was the core material behind the resurrection. However, it was far from enough. The expert''s centers of power had suffered too much during the eras spent without using them. The pyramid wanted to rebuild the centers of power. Great Builder had to be the last creation of the workshop, and he even had to go beyond the usual standards of those products. Great Builder had to resurrect as a rank 9 existence that carried all his previous abilities and power. The pyramid even wanted the expert to come out better than before, but Noah didn''t bother to overthink that. The experts immediately started the procedure. They waved their hands, and countless materials began to melt. The piles of resources transformed into multicolored pools that rose inside the hall to create dark pillars. Those structures then sent the power inside Great Builder''s body and began to awaken his stagnant centers of power. The three rank 9 fake cores eventually rose, but they remained in front of the inscription masters as if waiting for them to pick them. Noah would love to seize one of those items, but his very survival depended on the success of the mission. It didn''t take him much to understand what to do, and the dark world soon came out of his real body to fill the entire hall. Chapter 1611: 1611. Danger The dark world transformed during its expansion. The nature of the dark matter flowing in its insides changed as its power increased. The dense liquid-like currents solidified until they became a black metal that filled the whole dark-yellow hall. Then, their power increased further until they exploded into a raging black storm. A similar process happened to his companions. A pure expression of their laws flowed through the hall and improved until it reached levels of power that they had yet to touch. King Elbas'' curiosity intensified as it flew through the hall. It became a golden radiance that seeped in every material and made him understand their structures. The world around Divine Demon fell apart under the influence of his aura. Even the bricks of the pyramid seemed unable to withstand his overbearing law. Alexander''s hunger shattered the bricks and multiplied the primary energy released in the process. He seemed able to generate power from nothing. Theodora''s mental waves became able to see the true nature inside the laws around her. She could understand the faint desires carried by that matter, and part of its power flowed inside her after obtaining that knowledge. Luke''s thoughts began to transform the matter and force it to obtain a different nature. The laws morphed according to his will without requiring additional energy. The Foolery''s influence transformed some of the weaker materials into resources full of energy without investing anything. He could generate power by simply spreading its aura. Similar events happened for the other experts. The pyramid had copied their laws and put their consciousness inside ethereal figures to make them able to withstand that power. The structure was showing their path and was replicating its effects. The benefits of that procedure didn''t only involve their sight. Noah and the others were wielding that superior power as if it was theirs. They were experiencing those techniques in their strongest form. The effects the techniques caused in the matter around them also gave more hints about the end of their path. Those experts could partially see what they would become at the peak of the cultivation journey. The experience was breathtaking. The various auras didn''t even affect each other. The pyramid was restraining their effects on the bricks that made the immense hall. Noah felt that his control over his power often vanished. The pyramid automatized as many parts of the procedure as possible, so he rarely had to act. Still, Noah didn''t feel the need to do anything in front of that spectacle. He only wanted to watch and learn how his law would play out once he reached the ninth rank. More materials began to melt or shatter while the various auras pressed on their structure. Even the sturdiest metals bent in front of influences that had become able to handle rank 9 materials. Great Builder''s corpse left the bed and flew toward the center of the three rank 9 fake cores. A vertical cut that ran from his head to his toes then opened and made everyone in the area suppress gasps. The pyramid''s aura was keeping Great Builder''s corpse in the air and ready to receive the new materials. Noah and the others could only move on the three fake cores at that point, and those items transformed under their influence. The experts'' auras worked together to improve the fake cores and adapt them to Great Builder''s existence. Great Builder was right in front of their eyes, so they could study him while completing the procedure. The fake cores crumbled before regaining their original shape under the influence of those auras. They became stronger and changed form as the process continued, but they soon transformed into entirely different items. One of the fake cores took the shape of Great Builder''s body. It copied his face and various features perfectly before halting its transformations. The second fake core transformed into a small shining sphere that reminded Noah of a dantian. It even contained rank 9 "Breath" that suited Great Builder''s law. The third lost its shape. It became a dense gas of white thoughts ready to flow inside Great Builder''s mind. That material was almost as shiny as the dantian. The experts then finished melting the materials acc.u.mulated on the floor and made their energy flow inside Great Builder. His injury slowly healed, but the pyramid opened the cut again since it needed it to complete the procedure. The three modified fake cores then flew toward Great Builder. They fused with his centers of power and tried to give life to those organs. The effects of the pyramid''s aura slowly disappeared. The ethereal figures began to vanish as the heavy aura''s attention went on Great Builder. Noah and the others slowly returned to their bodies and regained control of their actions. The experts fell on the floor and experienced the most intense weakness of their entire life. Their centers of power were almost empty, but neither of them dared to complain about their state. The pyramid had given them the best experience of their life. They knew where their techniques and laws would lead them at the end of the cultivation journey. The process continued at the center of the immense hall. The pyramid closed the injury after the three fake cores fused with Great Builder''s centers of power before creating a series of defensive layers around the expert. The array of defenses gathered around Great Builder and created something like a chrysalis. His aura then vanished altogether, and even the pyramid stopped applying its heavy pressure. Everything went silent. Only the white light radiated by the strange chrysalis in the air made the experts understand that the procedure was still ongoing. The light radiated by the dark-yellow bricks dimmed, and the random tremors that ran through the pyramid stopped. The resurrection had reached its last phase, so the structure had to focus its entire attention on Great Builder. Noah and the others didn''t have the time to mind those changes. Their minds were still wandering through the many feelings experienced during the procedure. They wanted to seclude themselves right away and see how beneficial that experience had been, but a series of lights suddenly ran through the floor and reached them. The same went for their companions on the stages. White lines ran through the dark-yellow bricks and stopped only when they reached them. Noah and the others were about to devise methods to contact the pyramid''s will, but their vision suddenly changed. A heavy force enveloped their figures and dragged them away from that structure. The white light of the sky shone on the army for the first time in decades. The experts were right outside the pyramid, but neither of them managed to return inside it. White lines ran on the surface of the pyramid, and earthquakes spread from its area. The structure didn''t tremble, but the power that it was acc.u.mulating made the air and ground around it shake. "We should focus on recovering our energy," Alexander exclaimed once a dangerous sensation appeared in his mind. Noah felt the same after a few seconds, and the other experts followed. They also began to sense that an immense danger was about to fall on them. Those experts didn''t have to say anything else. Their best hope to handle rank 9 threats was behind them, so they had to hold their ground until the resurrection was over. Noah and those who had been a core part of the procedure immersed themselves in training sessions to refill their centers of power while the others began to deploy defenses in the area. Neither of them would hold back in front of an imminent threat. Chapter 1612: 1612. Poetic The pyramid continued to release flashes of white light as shining lines flowed through its surface. Earthquakes filled the nearby regions and shattered the air above, but the army never stopped working. Noah and the others didn''t even dare to leave that dangerous area. Their instincts told them that something dangerous was coming, and Great Builder was their best chance to survive. The experts who had taken part in Great Builder''s resurrection secluded themselves to refill their centers of power. The knowledge and experience gained during the procedure were still vivid in their minds, which benefitted their training sessions. Noah felt as if his centers of power couldn''t stand to remain at their current level anymore. They wanted to improve and reach the realms experienced during the procedure. Even his newly advanced body couldn''t settle for the middle tier. The tense situation prevented Noah from testing his new power, but he could sense that his battle prowess had taken a long step forward. The breakthrough of his body didn''t only give him access to superior physical strength. It also granted him a larger amount of better primary energy. The unstable substance and his martial arts would immensely benefit from that improvement. His new body would also allow him to endure more drawbacks from the cursed sword. It wasn''t a stretch to say that Noah had stepped on a whole new level. Months went by as the army prepared for the unknown threat. It didn''t take much for the experts to come out of their training areas. King Elbas was the first to rejoin the rest of the troops, and he immediately became the leader of all the inscription masters handling the various defenses. Noah and the others soon followed King Elbas. Alexander was the last to come out of his training area since his centers of power required more energy, but he eventually joined the rest of the army. A tense period followed that event. Noah and the others did their best to prepare for the imminent threat, but there was a limit to how much they could do. Their power couldn''t amount to much against a rank 9 existence. The dangerous feeling intensified until it began to affect the army''s mood. The magical beasts soon fell prey to that sensation, but Noah''s pride managed to keep them in check. The cultivators eventually began to suffer under that constant pressure. They became jumpy and irritated since their mind could only sense death around them. The feeling then hit the hybrids, and they had to rely on their leaders to keep their cool. Alexander even had to rely on some of his techniques at times to keep their mood in check. The dangerous feeling only became stronger. Nothing seemed able to affect that mysterious power. Even the shockwaves radiated by the pyramid didn''t manage to suppress it. It seemed that the tense situation would last forever, but a sudden event ended up bringing it to an end. An intense white radiance ran through the sky, and a human figure appeared on the ground at some distance from the army. Noah and those who had been with Radiant Eyes during her invasion of the human domain recognized that cultivator. He was the same expert that Heaven and Earth had sent to stop Radiant Eyes, but his condition was far worse than they recalled. The white expert''s face was ashen. His robe was a torn mess, and large patches of blood covered the few pieces of fabric that still hung on his body. His aura didn''t radiate light anymore. The expert appeared extremely weak, and he didn''t even care about the existences in front of him. Noah and the others didn''t know how to react at that sight. They were ready to launch their best attacks to that threat, but they weren''t sure whether the expert was dangerous anymore. The white cultivator didn''t even look at the army. He only glanced behind his, and anxiety built in his expression whenever his instincts sensed something. ''Heaven and Earth are getting sloppy,'' Noah said in his mind. It was clear what had happened, but most experts in the army didn''t even dare to consider that option. Noah wasn''t among them, and an accurate guess played in his mind as the white expert struggled to catch his breath. Radiant Eyes had clearly won the battle, and she had continued to chase the white expert while the army was inside the pyramid. Yet, the cultivator had grown exhausted by then. It was clear that he couldn''t escape anymore. ''He should hurry up,'' Noah thought while glancing at the pyramid. A scarlet light eventually suppressed the white radiance and filled the sky. A massive humanoid giant appeared on the horizon and closed on Noah''s position in mere minutes. The army could soon inspect the giant in its true might. The inscribed item didn''t feature any crack, and it had also grown during the past years. It seemed that Radiant Eyes had become stronger since the first clash with the white expert. "You would have managed to survive for a few centuries if you didn''t step outside of that building," Radiant Eyes'' familiar voice came out of the faceless giant. "Everything will end now. I can''t condone betrayal." Noah and the other leaders ignored her. They had prepared for a similar situation. They were ready to fight that hopeless battle and delay their death as long as possible. ''Do you think you can hold her back?'' Noah asked through his mental waves. ''Not at all,'' Alexander replied. ''She is a rank 9 expert. I can only block one attack if she isn''t serious.'' ''Don''t hold back on the disposable weapons,'' Noah reminded Alexander. ''Every second count. We must survive until Great Builder comes out.'' ''If he comes out,'' King Elbas complained while joining that conversation. ''We would have been crazy enough to face a rank 9 expert at least,'' Wilfred replied. ''They''ll make songs about us.'' ''Did he always have this poetic vibe?'' Divine Demon asked. ''Lord Wilfred is deeper than any of you,'' Ian answered. ''You are all idiots,'' King Elbas sighed. ''Imagine dying with us,'' Divine Demon laughed. Noah and Alexander completely ignored that mental conversation and focused on their opponents. Radiant Eyes wasn''t minding the army either. The white expert claimed the entirety of her attention. "We can work something out!" The white expert shouted. "I am a follower of Heaven and Earth. My Masters can give you everything you want!" "Where is the fun in that?" Radiant Eyes'' voice echoed through the sky while the giant raised its massive hand. "Heaven and Earth couldn''t stop me, so I''ll take everything I want anyway." The giant''s hand shot downward and reduced the expert to a bloody pulp before he could say anything. A rank 9 existence died right in front of the army, but its leaders didn''t flinch. "It''s your turn now," Radiant Eyes'' voice echoed through the sky. "You threw away the chance to rule the Immortal Lands with me. I can''t stand that offense." "How can you be so sure that your species can rule over the higher plane?" Noah suddenly shouted. "You want perfection, right? Why don''t you test your underlings against us?" "I can understand when someone is trying to buy some time," Radiant Eyes replied. "There is no fun in killing us with your power," Noah shrugged his shoulders. "I am trying to buy some time, but you are a rank 9 existence. What can we do to scare you?" Noah''s words seemed to have the desired effect since a series of bees came out of the giant and filled the sky. Their buzzing noise was deafening, but it was the best sound in the world in Noah''s mind. Chapter 1613: 1613. Talent "How can you make people angry so easily?" Alexander asked without bothering to use his mental waves. "He got his individuality all wrong," Jordan sighed. "His ambition is incredible, but he could have been far stronger in that field." "He might have gotten that from his Master," King Elbas added. "I won''t deny it," Divine Demon said before the leaders landed on the ground in front of the army. The bees had changed during the past years. They had become bigger, and an additional pair of legs had grown from their torso. They also had long pinchers now, and their bodies seemed sturdier than before. Some of the bees had even gained an additional abdomen. Those improved specimens resembled an elite force capable of commanding entire platoons. They even had a unique aura flowing out of their bodies. A platoon made of hundreds of bees shot forward as soon as the enemy leaders landed on the ground. That group contained many rank 8 specimens, but Noah''s army didn''t falter. A series of golden lines lit up when the bees were about to approach the army. The light gathered in the sky and gave birth to a group of golems and puppets. They immediately flew toward the swarm and began to slaughter its specimens. Countless bees died during the first clash, but no one cheered in front of that small victory. That platoon was only a tiny part of the enemy army, and the leaders didn''t even know how many specimens were still inside the giant. The puppets detonated when the bees were about to destroy them. Flares made of golden flames shot through the sky and killed every magical beast in their range. The first platoon died in a little less than a minute. "I''m playing your game," Radiant Eyes'' voice resounded from the giant, "But I make the rules." The giant raised its hand before an intense buzzing noise came out of its scarlet fabric. All the magical beasts and hybrids in the area managed to understand the meaning carried by that cry. Radiant Eyes had given the order for a relentless assault. The entire army of bees shot forward. Noah and the others saw hundreds of specimens in the eighth rank flying toward them to launch a selfless assault. None of those creatures cared about their life. Noah and the others didn''t need to exchange any word. They had already prepared a battle tactic. They limited themselves to roar toward the incoming army and prepare for the imminent clash. Even more golden lights lit up around the army and gave birth to an army of fiery puppets. Those defenses leapt among the bees and began to kill as many specimens as they could. The bees directly ignored those puppets. They didn''t care about those defenses. Their targets were on the ground, and they would stop at nothing to take them down. The rank 7 cultivators, hybrids, and magical beasts performed battle formations until they transformed into five nine-headed hydras in the eighth rank. They were only in the lower tier, but they could join the fight properly in that form. Noah, Wilfred, Alexander, Jordan, Ian, and Divine Demon stepped forward and waited for their opponents to arrive. They all picked a target among the incoming swarm and prepared to face them. A middle tier bee dived toward Noah. The creature could sense that its opponent was at its same level, but Radiant Eyes'' orders made it unable to understand the actual difference in power. Noah didn''t even bother to draw his sword. He raised his hand and waited for the stinger to land on his open palm. A clanging noise echoed through the sky when the stinger hit his palm. Noah didn''t feel any pain, and he didn''t even take a step back. The attack couldn''t make him move nor bleed. The bee didn''t care about that show of power and continued to press forward, but Noah promptly ripped off its stinger before stabbing his hand in the injury. The creature tried to give voice to its pain, but Noah instantly waved his hand. A singularity shot out of his fingers after that gesture, and the bee ended up divided in half. More middle tier magical beasts tried to dive toward him, but they met the same fate. Noah tore their bodies apart with his bare hands. He didn''t need anything else against creatures at that level. Radiant Eyes had turned the bees into selfless creatures, but she didn''t make them stupid. They didn''t have the best intelligence compared to other magical beasts, but they could understand that middle tier specimens couldn''t handle Noah. One of the specimens with an additional abdomen soon left its position and dived toward Noah. His instincts warned him about that new threat. They could sense that an upper tier creature was approaching his position at high speed. The black hole quickly started to push the unstable substance inside the black vessels. Noah felt a surge of power flowing through his entire body, and he smiled when he sensed that his tissues could now endure that technique. The breakthrough had reinforced the black vessels since Noah often relied on the unstable substance. His existence had moved toward those fields, so his body knew where it had to improve. The massive bee crashed on Noah in an instant. A grey cloud soon filled that part of the battlefield and hid the result of the clash. The other experts didn''t have time to worry about Noah. They had been clear when they prepared the plan. That battle had to leave only the strongest among them alive, so they couldn''t neglect their fights to help others. Of course, that implied Great Builder''s actual resurrection. ''I''m getting there,'' Noah thought as a red radiance shone from behind his eyes. The bee''s legs had stabbed his body in multiple spots, but they had never managed to pierce past Noah''s muscles. On the other hand, Noah had stopped the stinger with his bare hands again, and he couldn''t help but feel elated at that sight. The creature tried to break free, but Noah''s grip wouldn''t budge. The bee struggled and launched attacks, but a series of black figures appeared in its path. Noah slammed the bee a few times on the ground before approaching its head. The creature was still trying to attack him, but he pressed his foot on its left eye and kept it in its position while he drew the Demonic Sword. The blade flashed with a black light multiple times, and a head eventually rolled on the ground. Noah had only recently stepped into the middle tier, but he was already able to take down upper tier magical beasts. Noah stored the corpse before jumping among the storm of bees that was engulfing his army. A series of roots spread from his figure, and countless creatures died due to their corrosive aura. That stunt granted him special attention. Noah saw countless bees turning in his direction and interrupting the attack on his troops. A wave of winged creatures soon tried to engulf Noah, but only the middle tier specimens could survive around him at that point. The Demonic Form had obtained a new source of food after his breakthrough in the middle tier. Noah had provided the parasite with superior primary, and the results were spectacular. Chapter 1614: 1614. Reckless bunch The bees were stronger than the rats, especially after Radiant Eyes'' influence had forced their bodies to evolve. Yet, they remained below the average in terms of physical prowess and innate defenses. Noah could slaughter those creatures at ease. Even the upper tier specimens couldn''t threaten him. Only the bees that were about to approach the peak of the eighth rank managed to match his blows. The unstable substance turned his body into a perfect weapon. The Demonic Sword enhanced his physical prowess and transformed his slashes into deadly weapons. The parasite fused its corrosive aura with his techniques and gave them far more power. Snore and the other companions also came out in the open. They couldn''t handle the upper tier specimens, but they could fight and defeat the creatures in the middle tier. Noah counted for an entire army, and his efforts inside the swarm relieved his companions by a lot of pressure. Alexander quickly imitated his approach while Wilfred and the other hybrids remained behind to handle any bee that managed to get past the monster duo. The battle was spectacular. The swarm of bees tried to engulf the enemy army, but Noah and the others never lost their ground. They fought those creatures back and filled the battlefield with maimed corpses. Noah decided to rely on his flames once enough magical beasts gathered around him. His ambition even surged to empower his innate ability and give it enough strength to kill the middle tier creatures in a few seconds. A massive surge of energy flowed inside Noah every time the tiny flames fused with his body. Magical beasts in the middle tier would have to work for entire years to gain access to that immense energy, but Noah barely minded it. His body contained an insane amount of power. Its might was beyond what middle tier creatures could wield, and his requirements matched its strength. Noah was burning every lower and middle tier magical beast that entered his range, but he didn''t feel any increase of power. His body was a bottomless pit that didn''t show any reaction at that immense surge of energy. The situation was too tense to mind those details. Noah limited himself to memorize those feelings while remaining focused on the battle. The upper tier specimens could hurt him, so he had to show part of his battle style to stay untouched. More bees came out of the scarlet giant, but the situation on the battlefield didn''t change. Those creatures could not gain the upper hand, and most of their opponents even surpassed them in terms of resilience. That sight honestly surprised Radiant Eyes. The battle was showing her how weak her underlings were compared to other creatures. Her species needed a lot of work, especially against beings that stood at the peak of the food chain. "You are a disappointment," Radiant Eyes sighed, and her voice shook the entire sky. A buzzing noise came out of the giant and reached every bee. Those creatures released deafening sounds before falling to the ground. Noah and the others wore solemn expressions when they inspected the fallen bees. Radiant Eyes had killed her army, and she had done that with her voice. The destructive power wielded by rank 9 existences made Noah''s ambition skyrocket, but he didn''t let it flow into his aura. He had to gain more time, and showing his desire to obtain that battle prowess wasn''t the best move. ''What can I even say at this point?'' Noah wondered as the Demonic Deduction technique activated to give him violent thoughts. Noah looked for anything that could trigger Radiant Eyes'' anger and keep her outside of the battlefield at the same time. However, he couldn''t find anything suitable for his situation. He could only think about childish mocks. "Do you have something better inside that mountain?" Noah shouted, but his expression froze when a giant hand formed above one of the hydras. Noah didn''t even have the time to turn. The hand shot downward, and the hydra disappeared. His weaker companions had transformed into a pool of blood in an instant. ''This is the end then,'' Noah sighed in his mind. Sword Saint''s flare was still inside his mind, but Noah had no reason to activate it. The expert was a monster, but Alexander was right next to him. A simple glance toward the leader''s expression was enough to tell Noah how hopeless the situation was. ''Can we do anything?'' Wilfred asked through the mental connection. ''I might be able to make a hole in the giant,'' Alexander explained, ''But that won''t solve anything. It''s all a matter of how you want to die now.'' Noah had already gone through a similar situation. His eyes met King Elbas'' gaze. The duo had been on opposite sides at that time, but they were about to die together now. "Hitting a rank 9 existence must feel good," Noah eventually sighed. "I bet it does," Alexander laughed as his aura expanded. "I never thought I would fight for glory," King Elbas snorted and massaged his temples. "You never thought many things," Divine Demon laughed. Wilfred wanted to add something, but an even bigger hand formed above the army and shot downward. Noah didn''t even have the time to lift his head. His consciousness went dark before he could have last thoughts. A snort came out of the giant after Radiant Eyes took care of the enemy army. She had defeated all the experts that had offended her, but that left her with no real plan. Her thoughts quickly went on the Outer Lands. Being the ruler of the human domain was appealing, but she wanted to take care of her condition first. The battle against the white expert had delayed her transformation, so she needed to gather more energy. Her mental waves spread through the battlefield and began to gather the various corpses acc.u.mulated on the ground. She wouldn''t waste those materials, and she even planned to study some of those hybrids to fix the flaws of her species. However, Radiant Eyes noticed something odd while her consciousness studied the battlefield. Corpses would typically begin to disperse their energy, but that wasn''t happening there. Even the dead bees didn''t radiate their energy. It seemed that the whole area prevented stopped the natural deterioration of those corpses. "Body, dantian, and mind," A deep voice suddenly came out of the pyramid. "Living beings aren''t so complicated. Resurrecting a few thousands of them is child''s play." A white aura flowed out of the pyramid and covered the entire battlefield. Radiant Eyes'' mental waves shattered under that influence, and even her giant suffered under that halo. Scarlet chunks and debris fell from the giant whenever the white light touched its surface. The pyramid was able to affect a rank 9 item. Radiant Eyes could only stop playing around in front of that new threat. "I mean," A half-laugh came out of the pyramid. "Rank 8 beings have managed to resurrect an existence in the ninth rank. I would consider myself a failure if I were unable to do the same for my saviors." The white light intensified and forced Radiant Eyes to shield the giant with her consciousness. A metal layer also appeared above the puppet''s skin and protected it from that blinding halo. Noah suddenly opened his eyes. His mind quickly spread to check his body and companions, but he had no words to explain what he saw. His centers of power were in a perfect state. Even the Demonic Sword and the rest of his companions were in a similar condition. The rest of the army was also fine. It was as if the battle against the bees had never happened! "Do not worry, reckless bunch," A voice came out of the pyramid again. "I won''t forget what you did for me. Taking care of your enemies is the least I can do." Chapter 1615: 1615. Resurrection "You have a unique law," Radiant Eyes said from inside the giant. "What price did you have to pay to perform these resurrections? What''s your drawback?" "There are no drawbacks," Great Builder explained from inside the pyramid. "I''m nothing more than an expert with the right tools. Living beings become quite easy to understand after you study millions of them." Noah felt grateful to Great Builder, but the current situation didn''t allow him to feel at ease. He had come back to life only to find himself between two rank 9 experts ready to fight. The pyramid began to tremble before Noah could think about anything else. The white halo retracted and gathered into a vertical line that cut the structure in half. Noah''s instincts screamed, but he had nowhere to run. The entire army couldn''t move with those two existences controlling the edges of the battlefield. The pyramid suddenly opened. Its bricks started to separate from the main structure and reveal its insides. The various corridors and rooms became visible to everyone in the area, and a shining figure soon appeared at their center. A middle-aged man with long white hair and no beard floated among the flying bricks. His white aura spread in every corner of the region, and a heavy pressure accompanied his show of power. Noah could sense that the aura was heavy, but that power didn''t apply any pressure on his mind. It even shielded him from the white sky and protected him from the shockwaves released by the pyramid. "It has been too long!" Great Builder shouted as his aura expanded. His hair fluttered in the wind generated by his figure. His overwhelming might spread violently through the regions and seeped into all the matter around him. Great Builder''s influence didn''t trigger any reaction in the matter. It simply seeped inside it and became part of its fabric. It seemed that the expert was limiting himself to taint those materials. Noah quickly inspected his body. His ambition even surged to empower his mind and give him a better understanding of what had happened. The inspection didn''t amount to anything. Noah couldn''t find anything strange in his centers of power. Everything was as it was before the battle against the bees, except for his acc.u.mulated energy. "Heaven and Earth!" Great Builder shouted while spreading his arms and looking toward the sky. "I came back! Did you miss me?" His taunts seemed to trigger something in the sky. White sparks acc.u.mulated high above him and threatened to launch attacks carrying power that Noah couldn''t even understand. The sparks gathered to generate an intense crackling noise. Everyone in the area understood that a massive lightning bolt was about to fall on Great Builder, but the expert soon lost interest in that event. The bricks around Great Builder began to arrange themselves in a different shape. They took the form of a huge cannon that pointed at the sky. Its muzzle even lit up to announce the arrival of an attack. The lightning bolt eventually fell, but the cannon didn''t hesitate to fire back. Two attacks wielding insane might clashed mid-air and exploded, generating intense destructive shockwaves that spread through the nearby regions. Noah and the others wanted to escape, but their situation prevented them from moving. Still, Great Builder''s white aura protected them from any shockwave or tremor that tried to reach their position. The white sphere launched by the cannon and the lightning bolt exploded. They carried the same amount of power, so the attacks ended up destroying each other. Heaven and Earth didn''t want the tribulation to end and gathered even more sparks, but Great Builder acted faster than the sparks. His cannon shot again, and an explosion happened in the sky. The Tribulation dispersed after the last attack, but Heaven and Earth''s influence surrounded Great Builder anyway. Sparks soon began to acc.u.mulate around him and converge toward his figure. Heaven and Earth had marked him as an enemy of the world again. Great Builder snorted, and a series of lines ran through his body. That technique quickly hid his presence and prevented his aura from triggering Heaven and Earth''s punishment. The expert had developed something similar to Noah''s spell. "They are always so unforgiving," Great Builder commented while shrugging his shoulders. "I''ve only come back to life. It''s not a big deal." "Are you done?" Radiant Eyes snorted from inside the giant. "Can we fight already?" "Sure, sure," Great Builder laughed. "Forgive me. It feels great to be back. I didn''t think I would have missed this cursed life so much." Radiant Eyes stopped speaking and decided to begin her offensive. The giant waved its hand, and a trail of scarlet light flew toward Great Builder. The army between the two rank 9 experts could only remain still in front of that massive discharge of power, but Great Builder took care of protecting them. White light ran through the ground and gave birth to shining plants covering the army with their branches. Those trees seemed able to block any shockwave running through the area. They were the perfect shield for those weaker existences. The trail of scarlet light continued to fly toward Great Builder, but the expert snapped his fingers and surrounded himself with a white halo. The area transformed under those influences, and the laws of the world stopped working properly. The air went through different transformations. Great Builder''s influence rearranged its laws until it gave birth to a series of phantom-like living beings. Then, Radiant Eyes'' aura tainted those creatures and made them grow insect wings. The white radiance took over. It reassembled those corrupted living beings until they became humanoid figures that didn''t carry insect features. The scarlet aura then regained control over that area and applied its transformations again. The two experts didn''t even touch themselves, but their auras were able to influence the whole world. The space around the exchange twisted and transformed. Tiny living beings appeared around the duo as their auras struggled to win against their opponent. Wings soon grew behind their back, but a second series of modifications arrived before they could leave the area. ''He should have the power to send us away,'' Noah thought while memorizing every aspect of the battle. ''He has chosen to let us witness the fight to teach us something.'' Noah could see through Great Builder''s scheme, and he ended up appreciating him even more after that discovery. The expert had given his group the chance to study experts at the peak of the cultivation journey. Great Builder and Radiant Eyes never touched each other. They never sent massive attacks of specific techniques aimed to kill their opponent in one blow. Instead, they studied their power to see if their existences had an advantage in the battle. Great Builder mostly laughed. His white halo never stopped to shine, and his cannons soon transformed into a series of smaller rifles that shot bullets made of condensed light. The leftovers of the pyramid could also become something else, but Great Builder didn''t need them. He was still in the process of studying Radiant Eyes'' aura, so he didn''t dare to reveal all his techniques. "Enough with these games," Radiant Eyes eventually sighed. She didn''t want to interrupt her transformation again, but Great Builder seemed strong enough to defend himself. He even appeared capable of overpowering her through the divided pyramid. Chapter 1616: 1616. Promising Every move of the two rank 9 existences transformed the world in ways that the weaker existences couldn''t understand. Great Builder gave birth to life. His influence transformed everything it touched into living beings that served him. On the other hand, Radiant Eyes tainted the matter of the world and transformed it into something that reflected her deepest desire. Even the creatures born from Great Builder''s law couldn''t fend off her influence. Their battle resembled a contest between domains. The two experts launched their auras and waited to see which one would take control of the world. Still, they never stopped spreading their influence, so the matter went through endless transformations. Radiant Eyes didn''t want to continue fighting like that. Great Builder had the advantage with that battle style since he used his law and pyramid. Instead, Radiant Eyes was only relying on her giant. The giant suddenly stopped moving before its figure started to transform. The creature crouched, and its limbs fused with its torso to create a tall mountain that spread Radiant Eyes'' aura. The aura intensified until the sky turned red. Even Great Builder''s radiance didn''t manage to fight that light. Radiant Eyes was about to become serious, but her opponent didn''t show any fear. The red halo slowly condensed toward the peak of the mountain. Its radiance continued to intensify, and it soon solidified into a monstrous shape. Radiant Eyes appeared on top of the mountain. Her monstrous figure didn''t change much. Her insect legs, wings, and antennae had grown, but she looked like Noah recalled. However, her aura was far more intense than before. Noah still recalled their first meeting, and he felt sure that his instincts didn''t sense the same amount of danger back then. ''The transformation is working,'' Noah sighed in his mind. Noah didn''t lie to Radiant Eyes during their previous meeting. He couldn''t trick a rank 9 existence, so he had to advise her properly. Radiant Eyes had then spent many years inside the human domain, and she had also perfected her transformation. She was already a self-made hybrid, but she would become even stronger if the procedure ended. ''I wonder how strong she would become at that point,'' Noah thought, but he quickly suppressed his curiosity. His expertise in the magical beasts'' field made him desire to study Radiant Eyes after her transformation, but his current level didn''t give him much freedom. The expert had to die now, or he wouldn''t live to see another day. "Why are you even interested in saving these weaklings?" Radiant Eyes asked while turning her monstrous face toward Great Builder. "They have served their purpose already. No point in keeping them alive." "You fail to see the real enemy," Great Builder laughed while waving his hand to morph the dark-yellow bricks into different weapons. "Experts stronger than you have died at the hands of Heaven and Earth. I''m only preserving existences who have a chance to reach this stage." "You lost the battle against the world," Radiant Eyes snorted. "I survived it. Your methods aren''t reliable." "I bet you hid in that inscribed item because you were too scared of Heaven and Earth," Great Builder laughed. "I hid to acc.u.mulate power," Radiant Eyes replied while spreading her arms and the legs that didn''t touch the scarlet ground. "Every living being uses the same approach. You can''t blame me for doing what was necessary." "You might not be a coward," Great Builder explained, "But you did nothing to defeat Heaven and Earth. You only want to improve and hope to avoid those enemies for the rest of your life." "I guess words are useless at this point," Radiant Eyes sighed. "They have always been useless," Great Builder laughed. "Come on. Show me the core of your world." "With pleasure," Radiant Eyes said while wearing a hideous smile. Her aura spread through the mountain, and a swarm of bees gathered around her. Her influence continued to fly through the army, and those creatures slowly transformed. The weaker bees directly died, and their bodies fused with the stronger specimens. Additional abdomens, legs, pincers, and eyes grew on those creatures as their power increased. Their skin also transformed. The bees'' fur thickened as scarlet layers covered their exoskeleton and improved their overall structure. "My law might be common," Radiant Eyes explained, "But I deploy it in ways that other existences can''t replicate. Come, join my world. I can grant you perfection." Great Builder arched his eyebrow before waving both his hands. The various dark-yellow bricks spread through the nearby regions and fused with the matter. The bricks fused with the ground, air, and living beings that were still in the area. They became cores for different workshops that began to absorb the energy in the world to give birth to peculiar creatures. A series of armored humanoid figures grew from the workshops and carried different features, depending on the materials used during their creation. Some of them were white, while others were azure. Of course, their abilities also changed. Bigger creatures came out of the workshops after that army. A series of dragons similar to Duanlong appeared in the world and opened their mouth to affect the bees. Magical plants also grew from the ground and began to radiate a scent that seemed to distract the bees. Great Builder had given birth to creatures meant only to defeat Radiant Eyes. "It will be a battle of worlds then," Radiant Eyes announced. "You can give life, but I can force evolutions. It''s time to see who is on the right path." Radiant Eyes raised her hand, and the bees shot forward. Her aura continued to cover them and trigger evolutions, so the swarm had a completely different appearance when it reached Great Builder. Great Builder glanced at the bees for a second before telling his creations to fight the enemy army. Yet, he didn''t let his guard down since a dangerous sensation had suddenly appeared in his mind. A series of wh.i.p.s made of pure white light came out of his figure and cracked at a shadow that had tried to move behind him. The attack made him understand the actual identity of that threat, but he didn''t feel surprised at that sight. The wh.i.p.s entangled themselves around Radiant Eyes'' monstrous body. Her figure was still above her mountain, but she had decided to trick Great Builder and rely on her hybrid body to surprise him. The sudden attack didn''t turn out as she expected. Great Builder had predicted that Radiant Eyes would rely on her physical strength. After all, every hybrid did that. The wh.i.p.s burnt Radiant Eyes'' skin and kept her stuck in her position. Yet, she had many legs and immense physical strength. She was even in the ninth rank. There was virtually nothing stronger in the entire world. Radiant Eyes gave voice to a buzzing noise that forced Great Builder to retreat. The many puppets that had come to finish her also shattered in front of that deafening cry. The rest of the army fought against the swarm of bees. They had to remain there since Great Builder had to understand how to handle that situation. Great Builder found a dangerous solution, but he preferred to avoid it since he had been away for so long. Still, he couldn''t think of anything else. Radiant Eyes'' army was slightly weaker, but she had her physical strength. She had turned the tables with the last assault. "You are really forcing me to do this," Great Builder sighed before taking out an oval item. The aura of a rank 9 item spread through the sky and made Radiant Eyes hesitate, but her expression completely froze when she saw Great Builder absorbing the fake core. Great Builder''s aura suddenly skyrocketed after the absorption, and his size grew until he became a nine hundred meters tall giant. Chapter 1617: 1617. Upper hand Great Builder''s existence suited the fake cores perfectly. His body accepted that new power and didn''t stop it from transforming his figure. "Let''s take care of your item first," Great Builder said in a deep voice that spread for entire regions. The expert bent his knees before shooting in the distance. He destroyed countless bees and puppets during his violent charge, and the power generated by his jump gave birth to storms of dust, debris, and wind. Great Builder''s massive figure appeared above the mountain. His fist was already descending on the item, but Radiant Eyes suddenly materialized under him and raised her hand to stop the attack. The clash between the two attacks generated a soundwave that made the entire surface of the nearby regions shatter. Even the magical plants that protected Noah and the others shook and threatened to crumble under that pressure. Part of the army of puppets flew toward the magical plants. Two workshops moved and began to fuse those living beings. The defenses around Noah and the others improved while gaining metallic properties that could stop the aftereffects of the battle. The new magical plants worked perfectly, so Noah''s group could focus on the battle again. Their expression froze when they saw that Radiant Eyes didn''t even budge when Great Builder''s massive fist slammed on her. "Did you think you could match my physical strength by increasing your size?" Radiant Eyes asked as a hideous smile appeared on her face. "This is only a trick, a technique at best. Instead, my physical prowess comes from my species." Great Builder didn''t give up. He raised his second arm and tried to punch Radiant Eyes from her side. Yet, she moved her hand to intercept the blow again. "You must have misunderstood," Great Builder explained without retracting his hands. "This isn''t a technique. This is an inscription that adds a fourth center of power to my body." "Calling it differently won''t help you here," Radiant Eyes continued. "You have decided to challenge my physical prowess. This mistake will cost your life." Radiant Eyes stabbed some of her legs and fingers inside Great Builder''s flesh. She felt as if she was cutting through butter. The expert barely had any defense worthy of concern. Radiant Eyes easily tore away large patches of Great Builder''s skin, but the latter didn''t stop smiling. He was only pretending with her to see if she had other trump cards. "Is that it?" Great Builder asked. "Don''t you have anything else?" "This is enough to defeat you," Radiant Eyes continued. "You have seen me with a fourth center of power that mainly focuses on size." Great Builder explained. "I wonder how you''ll feel after I add a fifth." Radiant Eyes'' expression froze at those words, but she couldn''t stop what was about to happen. A second rank 9 fake core appeared above Great Builder and fused with his body before triggering another transformation. Great Builder''s body didn''t grow at that time. Instead, his skin began to glow and radiate a white light that corroded everything it illuminated. Radiant Eyes tried to resist that radiance, but her body began to melt under its influence. She soon had to let Great Builder''s hands go and give him the chance to deliver his strike. The massive fists slammed on the mountain and opened a series of cracks on its surface. Great Builder raised his arms again to launch a second attack, but Radiant Eyes kicked his chest and flung him away. Great Builder fell in the army and killed countless specimens again. He also destroyed many of his troops, but he didn''t even consider them as a loss. Radiant Eyes reappeared above Great Builder and stabbed her legs on his head. A scarlet radiance began to flow into his body, but the white aura soon became too unbearable and forced his opponent to retreat. Great Builder didn''t give up on his initial plan. He leapt toward the mountain again and prepared himself to destroy the item during that dive. Radiant Eyes appeared in his trajectory and kicked his cheek. The attack led him off-tracks and made him miss the mountain. "So much for five centers of power," Radiant Eyes commented. "This fight would be fair if you added a few more of them." "I might do just that," Great Builder replied after straightening his position. Two more rank 9 fake cores appeared around his figure and fused with his body. His consciousness expanded beyond its normal limits, and a strange aura started to seep out of his skin. Radiant Eyes didn''t know how to react to that. She couldn''t understand how stronger Great Builder became after each new center of power. She only knew that he gained additional abilities through them. Great Builder jumped toward the mountain again, and Radiant Eyes tried to intercept him. However, the strange aura and the heavy consciousness managed to suppress her power for a few seconds, enough for the expert to continue his flight. The two massive fists slammed on the mountain. Its structure had already suffered some damage, so those attacks managed to shatter its entire upper part. Radiant Eyes tried to attack Great Builder, but his aura was enough to fend her off for a few seconds. Great Builder could continue to attack the mountain undisturbed, and Radiant Eyes had to watch how her strongest inscribed item transformed into nothing more than dust. "No army now," Great Builder announced while turning toward Radiant Eyes. "You''ll also have to find a new place where to continue your transformation. Also, Heaven and Earth will be on you too from now on." "Do you think that I''ll let what you did slide?" Radiant Eyes replied in an angry tone. "I think that you have no choice," Great Builder said while showing another rank 9 fake core. Radiant Eyes'' expression froze again. She had seen the five rank 9 resources with her own eyes, but she didn''t believe Great Builder to have so many of them. A massive hammer grew from the ground and ended up in Great Builder''s grasp. The expert raised the weapon and waved it in the middle of the army. Countless magical beasts and puppets died, but that destruction didn''t manage to satisfy him. Killing those specimens did nothing to his situation. They were an annoying army, but they couldn''t even try to touch him in that form. Radiant Eyes limited herself to kick her enemy every once in a while. Her plan was to wait for that empowerment to go away, but it seemed that Great Builder had perfected the procedure in ways that his opponent couldn''t understand. The battle raged and left Noah''s group to marvel about that spectacle. They couldn''t see much about the two experts since their blinding auras made them impossible to inspect by rank 8 experts. Still, they could understand that Great Builder had the upper hand in the battle. Radiant Eyes never managed to inflict more than a kick, but she kept losing her ground since Great Builder was relentless. His hammer hit Radiant Eyes multiple times, but her resilience was too high. It didn''t matter how many times she endured that weapon. She never backed down, and Great Builder''s movements eventually started to slow down. Chapter 1618: 1618. Counter Great Builder didn''t add other centers of power even if his movements had started to slow down. His empowerment seemed about to reach its limits, but the expert continued to swing his hammer and wear his smile. On the other hand, Radiant Eyes wore an unsightly expression. The innate advantages given by her hybrid body were slowly tilting the scales of the battle, but she felt pretty annoyed about the whole situation. Radiant Eyes believed that her current form was approaching perfection. In theory, she had to surpass every other existence in the world in terms of power. However, her influence didn''t manage to taint Great Builder, and her superior physical strength couldn''t even leave injuries on his giant body. The battle was damaging her belief. Her path wasn''t as perfect as she thought. Even a rank 9 cultivator who had just come back to life could suppress her quite easily. Noah and the other hybrids had a different view of the situation. Great Builder seemed overall stronger than Radiant Eyes, but she could use her innate advantages to make up for that difference in power. The battle was relatively even, and no one could guess who would win. Yet, Noah and the other hybrids could notice how Radiant Eyes'' advantages became more significant as the fight continued. Countless thoughts ran through Noah''s mind, but none of them involved a possible involvement in the fight. Noah knew that he had no place among those experts, so he limited himself to study what his senses managed to capture. The ability to add centers of power at will was interesting, but Noah didn''t know whether he could create something similar. Instead, Radiant Eyes'' influence had something that resembled his ambition. Their laws had some differences. Radiant Eyes'' transformations were unnatural, while Noah''s ambition forced the matter to express its true potential. Still, Noah felt that he could work something out after witnessing the battle. ''Maybe I can fuse part of the parasite''s corrosive aura with my law,'' Noah wondered as the spectacle of lights filled the sky. Great Builder rarely managed to hit Radiant Eyes anymore. The hybrid was now able to dodge everything that flew in her direction. The army of puppets couldn''t even attempt to restrain her without the help of their Master. Her kicks even disrupted Great Builder''s offensive. Radiant Eyes flung him away whenever her feet touched his skin, and her attacks eventually managed to open large injuries in that massive body. "This is where tricks end!" Radiant Eyes shouted as she flew around her opponent, launching a flurry of kicks. "I acknowledge your achievements, old monster, but your life has to end here." Great Builder didn''t let those words affect his mind, but the truth was undeniable. He had gotten slow. His current power would inevitably lead to a defeat. "Dying quietly doesn''t suit rank 9 existences," Great Builder whispered, but his words reached every corner of the nearby regions. The workshops suddenly stopped creating puppets. The chunks of terrain and air that had transformed into those techniques flew toward Great Builder and surrounded his massive body. A white light came out of the workshops and engulfed Great Builder. That radiance fended Radiant Eyes away and prevented her from affecting the procedure. The energy around Great Builder started to condense in the form of raging currents that flowed toward the white light. The workshops created a cocoon made of pure power, and Radiant Eyes could only wait to see what would come out of it. A flare of whiteness eventually pierced that impenetrable light. A vertical crack spread through the whole cocoon and filled the region with a blinding radiance. The light soon dimmed, and Noah''s group could finally watch Great Builder''s new transformation. The expert had regained his normal size, but his skin radiated pure white light that killed the few remaining bees in the area. Even Radiant Eyes struggled to keep her gaze on her opponent. She felt unable to withstand that presence. Her whole existence suffered because she was too close to Great Builder. "Living beings are imperfect," Great Builder announced. "We often modify ourselves to strive toward a greater power, but the world always finds flaws in our new forms." Great Builder stepped forward, and Radiant Eyes instinctively retreated. Her instincts took control of her body and made her shoot in the distance, but her opponent''s mental waves forced her to stop moving. "Fire has ice, light has darkness," Great Builder continued after he reappeared next to Radiant Eyes. "Perfection doesn''t exist in this world. Even Heaven and Earth have failed to achieve that state. You can always find something capable of countering your abilities." Great Builder placed his hand on Radiant Eyes'' head, and grey smoke came out of that spot. Pure pain appeared on the expert''s expression, but she couldn''t move under Great Builder''s suppression. "My world is everchanging," Great Builder explained. "Everything I build leads me one step closer to perfection. I want to surpass these flawed rulers. How can I even lose against someone who spends her life hiding from them?" Great Builder raised his hand and revealed that a deep mark had appeared on Radiant Eyes'' face. His influence had managed to scorch her skin and reach her bones. Her hybrid status couldn''t do anything against that nefarious light. "You have been a decent adversary," Great Builder said while clasping his hand around Radiant Eyes'' neck, "But I can''t respect you." Radiant Eyes slowly regained control of her body. Her instincts begged her to run away, but she couldn''t satisfy them. Great Builder''s light made her too weak to escape from his grasp. "Turn into one of my puppets already!" Radiant Eyes shouted as her limbs stabbed Great Builder''s body. The limbs didn''t manage to go past the expert''s skin. The white radiance weakened their power and forced them to melt. Still, they succeeded in sending her scarlet aura into Great Builder''s body. The white halo radiated by Great Builder''s figure dimmed in the spots tainted by the scarlet aura, but the expert didn''t let go of his opponent. Radiant Eyes had to die against that technique, or she would win the battle. "I can''t become immune to your influence," Great Builder explained, "But this form is quite resistant against your aura. I should prevail, but you still have a chance." Great Builder exploded into a laugh even if Radiant Eyes continued to stab her limbs into his body. The scarlet substance spread through the whiteness, but the expert didn''t even bother to defend himself. "You are almost there!" Great Builder laughed. "I can feel your influence reaching my mind. Come on! You can do it!" The scene left the army dumbfounded. Noah had seen Divine Demon performing idiotic deeds, but Great Builder belonged to a superior league. The leader of the Foolery and Divine Demon didn''t share Noah''s feelings. The scene seemed to inspire them. Their eyes shone, and their mouths hung open. They were utterly captivated by Great Builder''s brazen gesture. "Let me go already!" Radiant Eyes shouted before her eyes lit up. An intense scarlet light came out of her eyes and illuminated the whole region. Her radiance carried her law and forced all the matter in the area to transform. The ground turned red, the air lost its whiteness, and the few puppets still in the area transformed to resemble Radiant Eyes'' underlings. The light also tried to affect Great Builder, but it failed to get past his aura. Radiant Eyes'' insect features began to shrink. They retreated into her body while she spread her law through the regions. It seemed that the technique used her mutation to obtain stronger effects. However, that trump card couldn''t surpass Great Builder''s defenses. His hand never left her throat, and grey smoke continuously flowed out of that spot. Chapter 1619: 1619. Save Radiant Eyes struggled as her body reverted to a normal human form. Even her eyes shrunk at some point and became small red dots immersed in Great Builder''s whiteness. Shouts, curses, and, eventually, pleas filled the sky. Radiant Eyes expressed her desire to live and tried to seal deals with Great Builder, but her opponent never let her go. Great Builder''s grasp tightened as his aura succeeded in corroding her skin. His fingers then went past her muscles until they reached her bones. It was hard to kill rank 9 existences, especially those with a hybrid body. Yet, Great Builder seemed able to suppress Radiant Eyes'' entire existence in his final form. He had transformed into her worst enemy, and he didn''t show any mercy. Her bones eventually gave in, and Radiant Eyes'' body separated from her head. Great Builder didn''t bother to stop it from falling. He only raised his free hand and continued his corrosion on his opponent''s face. Radiant Eyes was still alive even if most of her body had fallen on the ground. She was nothing more than a talking head, but Great Builder soon took care of that issue. Great Builder''s hands dug through her face until they turned it into nothing more than dust. A sigh then escaped his mouth as his whiteness dimmed, and his peculiar aura vanished. His new transformation had allowed him to suppress a hybrid and kill it with his bare hands. However, that was only a temporary form obtained after gathering information on his opponent. Great Builder had managed to turn his existence into Radiant Eyes'' worst enemy, and he had used his new advantages to kill her in a few moves. The workshops and puppets stopped working after Radiant Eyes died. The few remaining bees also collapsed on the ground and died on the destroyed surface. Their bodies even started to lose all the empowerment obtained through their leader''s aura. Something strange happened to the world. A large chunk of the sky shattered as Radiant Eyes'' influence vanished. That tainted matter couldn''t keep existing after their core died. "Some of them can''t live past death," Great Builder sighed while turning toward Noah and the others. "It''s incredible that she had reached this level without leaving a permanent trace of her life. I guess that inscribed item was her whole world." The magical plants that had protected the army retreated into the ground. Noah and the others were finally free to leave the area, but most of them didn''t dare to move. Only the magical beasts leapt over the cracks left by the magical plants and shot toward Radiant Eyes'' corpse. They couldn''t contain their instincts in front of such a priceless meal. "Where are you even going?" Noah said through a chilling roar. His pride flew inside his mental waves and reached the running magical beasts. Those creatures suddenly stopped when they sensed how angry Noah was about that development. They could immediately realize that Noah wouldn''t hesitate to kill them if they took another step. "Come back here," Noah roared, and most of the magical beasts flew back. A few creatures remained in the distance. Their instincts were a mess, and a violent battle between their hunger and Noah''s pride happened in their mind. Noah quickly teleported among those magical beasts. The creatures lowered their head, but some of them continued to glance toward the rank 9 corpse. "Evolve past your hunger," Noah said through a growl. "You can''t eat that body anyway." His ambition flowed inside those hesitant creatures and brought some clarity to their mind. All of them managed to calm down, but none of them raised their head even at that point. "What did I tell you about bowing?" Noah snorted, and a second wave of chilling aura spread from his figure. Noah was ready to take care of those magical beasts. He valued stability a lot, but those creatures had already demonstrated their loyalty. One of them had even offered itself to refill his centers of power during the events inside the pyramid. Noah wanted to try a peaceful approach before resorting to his usual slashing. He preferred to save those magical beasts if possible. After all, they were his underlings. The magical beasts slowly raised their head. Noah could finally notice their expressions, and he saw nothing more than shame on their faces. "Go back to the army," Noah ordered. "I have the faint feeling that someone wants to talk." Noah glanced toward the descending Great Builder. The expert was slowly losing all the empowerment obtained during the battle. His body reverted to a normal human figure, but the white light continued to flow out of his skin anyway. "Your feeling is on point," Great Builder announced while landing on the ground next to him. "Do all rank 9 existences become invincible during a long battle?" Noah probed the expert''s law. "No one is invincible," Great Builder explained. "Even Heaven and Earth can fall." The hungry magical beasts eventually turned to run back toward the army. Instead, the various leaders in Noah''s group left their underlings and flew toward him. Wilfred, Theodora, King Elbas, Jordan, Ian, Alexander, Fergie, and all the other rank 8 existences in the army flew toward Noah. They wouldn''t miss that chance to talk with a rank 9 cultivator out of fear. "I''m surprised you managed to clear the pyramid," Great Builder announced once everyone gathered around him. "Part of me only wanted to protect my items." Jokes appeared in the expert''s mind, but no one dared to speak. Great Builder seemed friendly, but Noah and the others didn''t know how much they could trust him. "Heaven and Earth won''t let this slide," Great Builder continued. "One of you has already attracted their wrath without reaching the ninth rank. I expect all of you to get the permanent curse in the next months." "Why months?" Noah suddenly asked. "Why won''t Heaven and Earth activate the curse immediately?" "Do you think they have been unfair toward you?" Great Builder asked while revealing a smile. "I only want to understand them better," Noah calmly replied. "You aren''t the only one who wants to destroy them." "This explains why they gave you this punishment so soon," Great Builder laughed. "It will only get worse. The sparks are only the beginning of the curse." "I have also faced humanoid beings made of lightning bolts," Noah added. Great Builder arched his eyebrow. He had to admit that Noah appeared unique even among experts who had managed to clear his pyramid. "You are the existence with four centers of power!" Great Builder eventually shouted. "The addition of the organ is flawless. You managed to surprise me." Noah didn''t know what to answer. He had vaguely suspected that Great Builder knew about his existence since he had resurrected him. Still, Noah didn''t expect the cultivator to talk about that so openly. "Perks of being a hybrid," Noah limited himself to reply. "Indeed, but you lose something once you reach the peak of the food chain," Great Builder sighed. "I could have transformed myself long ago, but my existence focuses on the various aspects of life. Gaining access to your physical strength would only make me lose interest in that." "Are you afraid that you could lose your path?" Noah asked. "We grow stronger by fixing our weaknesses," Great Builder explained. "Reaching a stable state near perfection is the doom of every researcher. I need my human flaws to remain an amazing cultivator." Noah fell silent, but he didn''t move his gaze away from Great Builder. He had asked a different question before, but the expert had yet to answer it. "Oh, right," Great Builder said. "Well, they have many worlds to sustain. The lower planes don''t require much energy, but the Immortal Lands and the Cities in the sky put a lot of pressure on Heaven and Earth. They need to save power for a few months before applying another curse." Chapter 1620: 1620. Obviously Great Builder''s words made the experts widen their eyes. The fact that Heaven and Earth needed to acc.u.mulate energy every once in a while was quite surprising, but his lines contained something far more interesting. ''What in the world are the Cities in the sky?'' Noah shouted in his mind, even if the name already described a lot. "You must consider that Heaven and Earth deplete most of their power in the constant expansion," Great Builder explained after noticing the surprised faces. "These lands only get the leftovers of their full might. Conquering planes and filling them with "Breath" is the real deal." His explanation only made the experts more surprised. The structure of the planes and Heaven and Earth''s projects had always been a vague topic in the cultivation world, but Great Builder seemed to know everything. "What did you expect?" Great Builder continued. "Heaven and Earth need to capture planes for their survival and goals. They still want to reach the tenth rank. I guess they sacrifice a plane or two every few eras. The Immortal Lands always become a mess during those periods." "Slow down!" King Elbas suddenly shouted while lowering his gaze to show his respect for the expert. "Can you repeat everything from the Cities in the sky?" The others didn''t hesitate to nod, and Great Builder finally understood the reason behind their amazement. A shameless smile then appeared on his face, and an awkward laugh soon resounded through the area. "I forgot what it was to speak with existences under the ninth rank," Great Builder explained while scratching his cheek. "You shouldn''t have learnt about this so soon. This knowledge shouldn''t be free." "Too late," Noah announced while sitting closer to the expert. "Explain now." Great Builder wanted to refuse, but he felt awkward in front of so many curious faces. Moreover, those experts had been a crucial part of his resurrection. He didn''t know how right it was to keep them in the dark. A sigh eventually escaped from his mouth. Great Builder opened his palm to create a series of white orbs that began to float in front of him. "We all know that Heaven and Earth have blessed us with their "Breath" and all the other stories," Great Builder explained. "Their energy goes both ways. Part of it flows into their planes, while most of it spreads outside the sky, toward the worlds that they have yet to discover." His spheres morphed to match his explanation. Great Builder represented Heaven and Earth''s domain as a circular area with the Mortal Lands at its edges. The lower planes were right outside the white sky, even if its radiance enveloped them in a massive spherical structure. Instead, the Immortal Lands were inside that barrier. Worlds would enter the white aura from time to time. Some fell apart and sent their energy toward the sky, while others remained outside the sky to serve as a new lower plane. "I don''t know everything," Great Builder reminded. "A lot of this knowledge is purely theoretical, but this should be the exact structure of Heaven and Earth''s domain." "Can we return into a lower plane if we leave the sky?" King Elbas immediately asked. "The lower planes might be outside of the sky," Great Builder replied, "But they are inside Heaven and Earth domain. Space itself belongs to them in that area. Traveling through it without the proper tools or an adequate cultivation level is impossible." "Did you try to do it?" Alexander asked. "I did, a long time ago," Great Builder revealed. "I left from one of the holes above the landing zones and ventured through the void. It wasn''t a nice experience. I never managed to make it past Heaven and Earth''s domain." Everyone fell silent. The idea of returning to lower planes was interesting, but the dangers that accompanied that mission outweighed the possible rewards. "How did you find your way back?" Noah asked. "My group had a rank 9 inscribed item that remained attached to the hole to remind us of its position," Great Builder explained. "Yet, it''s easy to lose yourself in the void, especially when Heaven and Earth control it. My team lost two powerful cultivators during the mission." "Why did you make the journey?" King Elbas asked. "I was bored, and Heaven and Earth continued to annoy me with their Tribulations," Great Builder snorted. "Also, lower planes have resources limited by their environment. Heaven and Earth had even cursed a few of them. Bringing them into the Immortal Lands and pushing their power to the divine ranks could lead to decent benefits." Noah could immediately think of a few things that he would bring into the Immortal Lands. The Kesier species was his first idea. He could finally have the best training method for his mind with those creatures up there. "We never made it to a lower plane," Great Builder revealed before the experts could let their minds run too far away. "Heaven and Earth don''t want us to leave. It keeps you spinning in circles until you are ready to surrender your existence." Noah had already had a conversation about the lands past the sky. He knew that they were hard to explore, but he didn''t expect Heaven and Earth to be against him even there. "What about the Cities in the sky?" Alexander eventually asked. "They are nothing more than cities inside the immense large barrier," Great Builder said while pointing at the sky. "Only Heaven and Earth''s followers can live there. I tried to interrogate a few of them, but I didn''t learn much." "How many followers do they have?" Noah asked. "I don''t know," Great Builder replied while shrugging his shoulders. "Going there is also suicide. I bet Heaven and Earth have multiple rank 9 existences under their rule. That part of the sky is too dangerous for forces of your size and a few decent experts." Sparks gathered in the sky during the conversation. They flew toward the group and amassed around Divine Demon. Heaven and Earth had cursed him on the spot. "It has already begun," Great Builder sighed when he inspected that scene. "It seems that Heaven and Earth have a lot of energy to waste on you. You shouldn''t remain here for too long." Great Builder stood up, but Noah imitated him and attracted his attention again. "Where are you going?" Noah quickly asked, and Great Builder appeared quite displeased by that question. "I can''t protect you forever," Great Builder said in a cold voice. "I think I have already repaid my debt. I have to wake up an old friend before flying back into the stormy regions. These places are too calm." "Are you talking about Supreme Thief?" Noah asked again, but Great Builder''s reaction was completely different at that point. "How do you know that name?" Great Builder asked, and Noah revealed a shameless smile. "I will give you the location of his inheritance if you give me part of Radiant Eyes after transforming her into something edible." Noah proposed while trying to play the expert and obtaining part of the loot. Great Builder limited himself to smile and turn toward a different speech, but Noah felt forced to interrupt him again. "Give us some resources and far more knowledge," Noah said. "Supreme Thief''s inheritance is in a secret location, but I bet we seal a deal. We will even show you the way if the negotiation satisfies us." "What could you even want?" Great Builder snorted. "Your body is too strong already. You will explode if you add anything more than that." "You are a rank 9 cultivator capable of creating marvelous items," Noah replied. "I obviously want everything." Chapter 1621: 1621. Enemy Noah''s request didn''t only apply to him. Actually, he didn''t need Great Builder''s items. He would even avoid getting resources if the expert could tell him more about Heaven and Earth''s domain. He had requested everything out of habit, but the pyramid had already given his army a massive amount of wealth. Noah wasn''t even sure whether Great Builder had anything left after fighting Radiant Eyes. The leaders made a list with their requests, and Great Builder only glanced at them before accepting everything. The expert didn''t mind them at all. After all, he owed the group his very life. Great Builder turned out to be completely broke after the battle. The bricks of the pyramid had suffered too much damage, and he had even consumed most of his valuable resources. Still, the expert was an existence in the ninth rank capable of wonders. Great Builder could give the hybrids something that they had always lacked. He could create a proper stronghold that would seal their ownership over the regions in the Outer Lands. That suggestion came from Alexander. The expert didn''t want anything for himself, so he requested a structure worthy of his organization. King Elbas, Luke''s team, and the experts from the Balrow family joined Noah in his request for knowledge. Wilfred and the other hybrids accepted the new home as their reward, while Divine Demon asked for a conversation with Great Builder. The magical beasts didn''t ask anything, but the leader of the Foolery decided to join Divine Demon and hold a private conversation with Great Builder. No one knew the topics about that interaction, but the duo wore satisfied expressions after the chat ended. Great Builder took Radiant Eyes corpse but left everything else to his saviors. The battlefield contained countless corpses and broken puppets that the experts could use for multiple projects. The group then left the area and flew across the human domain to return to the Outer Lands. Great Builder could create a teleport, but the experts preferred to study how the environment had changed during Radiant Eyes'' rule. Destruction spread everywhere. Radiant Eyes had chased the white cultivator across the entire human domain, and she had never spared the few forces that she met. The human domain was a desolate land now, and only a few packs of magical beasts occupied its surface and underground world. Those areas would soon attract new creatures, but the process might take centuries. Great Builder continued his description about Heaven and Earth''s domain during the travel. Most of his ideas came from vague clues found during his long life, but they sounded pretty accurate when they reached the experts'' ears. The Immortal Lands stood at the center of the domain. The white sky surrounded the higher plane and worked as a filter for the many resources captured during the constant expansion. Heaven and Earth''s aura covered the sky and kept the various lower planes inside a separate space. Their influence also spread in the immense void and searched for new worlds to absorb. The constant absorption led to a steady expansion. The sky stretched, and the Immortal Lands grew day by day. Heaven and Earth never stopped, but their real motives were unclear. Reaching the tenth rank was the obvious explanation, but Great Builder believed that there was something else. Such powerful existences couldn''t be mere beings that cared only about energy. There had to be more to that immense structure. Noah felt very interested in the Cities inside the sky. He believed that they contained clues about Heaven and Earth''s true nature, but Great Builder often reminded him not to search for them at his current level. The expert knew a lot about Heaven and Earth''s power, but Noah had to admit that the Tribulations had never managed to pose a decent threat to him lately. He didn''t want to underestimate those mighty rulers, but his experience forced him to think otherwise. "Tell me how you died," Noah eventually asked. Noah couldn''t let himself underestimate Heaven and Earth, so he needed an accurate description of their might. Hearing about Great Builder''s death could be the key to solve that issue. "The air became an unbearable poison," Great Builder explained. "I solved that, but I had to face the anger of the ground afterward. Imagine the terrain shattering whenever you try to step on the surface of this world." "That''s not enough to kill you," Noah replied. "This is what you are experiencing," Great Builder sighed. "The next step will feature constant lightning bolts falling on yourself. Then, you will have the "Breath" of the world against you. I bet you can sense how the whole plane is trying to get rid of your existence." "You have yet to explain how you died," Noah reminded the expert. "I''m getting there," Great Builder snorted. "I still remember my death. I was at this level when Heaven and Earth managed to put an end to my life. My law is too strong to die, but I had to lose to acknowledge the might of my opponents." Noah didn''t complain. The expert wanted to take his time to describe that story. It was clear that those memories still hurt his pride. "I was in the middle of the stormy regions," Great Builder continued. "Heaven and Earth couldn''t reach me there, but that didn''t apply to their followers. I have seen armies appearing around me. I tried my best, but the world began to suppress my existence, and those troops eventually overwhelmed me." Noah arched his eyebrows. Great Builder was too strong to die due to a few armies. He was a rank 9 cultivator by that time, so most existences in the world had to lower their head in front of him. "The armies weren''t a problem," Great Builder added. "Imagine having to face three rank 9 cultivators empowered by Heaven and Earth while the whole world tries to suppress you. Those beings went beyond Heaven and Earth''s limits. It''s hard to put their power into words." "Limits?" Noah asked. "Heaven and Earth can make their followers ignore their fairness." Great Builder continued. "They can wield energy that goes beyond the "Breath". Even their laws feel strange." Great Builder took a few breaks during the travel to stabilize his cultivation level. He had just come back to life. He required those moments to harmonize his existence and make sure that Heaven and Earth didn''t keep track of him. "This is a safe period, but problems will eventually arrive," Great Builder explained. "Heaven and Earth will learn how to exploit your innate flaws after each Tribulation. Your superior body won''t help you anymore at some point. Your existence will become your very limit." "Is that how you died?" Noah eventually asked. "Yes," Great Builder sighed. "I had so many projects at hand, but the world wasn''t ready for that. I didn''t think Heaven and Earth would bother to create a punishment that targeted my very existence. I wasn''t even arrogant. I didn''t think they could do it due to their fairness." "I guess I''ll also face the same Tribulation," Noah continued to ask. "Undoubtedly," Great Builder explained. "Your existence will become your worse enemy. Broader laws have a better chance to survive, but you shouldn''t take that for granted. There is only suffering from now on." "So be it," Noah sighed. "This is the path toward the peak," Great Builder explained. "I''ve seen your centers of power and studied your existence. I can already imagine Heaven and Earth tricking you with a fake understanding of the superior ranks. Beware of what you feel. Don''t trust yourself during a Tribulation." Chapter 1622: 1622. Study The conversation left Noah partially unsatisfied. He had understood that Heaven and Earth would modify their punishments according to his existence, but the most threatening Tribulations seemed to feature rank 9 experts. Noah would have to face those existences only when his battle prowess reached the ninth rank. That was part of Heaven and Earth''s fairness. The followers could ignore those limits, but the rulers had to abide by them. Normal cultivation levels didn''t apply to Noah. He only had a middle tier body, but he could already fight upper tier magical beasts. Having to face rank 9 existences once his battle prowess reached that level didn''t sound too scary. Great Builder''s story didn''t manage to instill fear inside him, and Noah couldn''t help but feel disappointed about it. ''I guess it''s up to Heaven and Earth,'' Noah thought as the travel reached its last phase. The human domain didn''t feature anything interesting since Radiant Eyes had seized every valuable resource. The travel had only confirmed that the Legion wouldn''t have enemies in a while. After all, the various organizations had to reclaim the lost lands first. The Legion and Noah didn''t have any interest in taking those regions. The Outer Lands were better in terms of sheer energy, so they wouldn''t care about those damaged areas. The blue regions eventually appeared in Noah''s vision. A series of packs had taken control of those lands due to the nourishing properties of the blue bushes, but Great Builder''s presence made them run away before they could sense the other auras in his group. "This is not bad at all," Great Builder commented at the sight of the blue lands, and the leader of the Foolery couldn''t help but raise its head to express its pride. "I don''t know how much you can do right now," Alexander probed. "I wish you could create something that covers both cities, at least. We can handle the rest." "Nonsense," Great Builder snorted, and his consciousness spread through the regions. His law flowed inside his mental waves and forced the lands to morph. Magical plants grew out of the ground and created a series of tall domes that covered the entire area occupied by the Legion and Noah''s group. The magical plants soon died, but they left behind their thick structure and the domes. Their materials seemed able to fend off every aura that reached their surface. They resembled impenetrable walls, even if they had many holes inside them. Great Builder continued his creations inside those structures. He rearranged the matter in the ground to give birth to tall open buildings that could contain cultivators, magical beasts, and hybrids. Those structures had all the best features of the inscribed habitations. They enhanced the absorption of energy and granted a higher recovery rate. Some of them also had features that quickened the thinking speed. King Elbas couldn''t help but take notes whenever Great Builder waved his hands. Everything he did inspired the cultivator and gave him new ideas. The new home of the Legion quickly took form. Its final shape saw entire regions covered in magical plants that hid tall structures capable of benefitting every creature in the world. Noah felt the need to seclude himself in front of such structures, but he suppressed that feeling. Great Builder had yet to complete one task before departing toward the stormy regions. He had to wake up a powerful friend. The leaders left most of their underlings inside those new habitations before leading Great Builder deeper into the Outer Lands. An immense mountain soon appeared in their vision, and a large palace couldn''t escape their inspection. "I wonder where he stole that," Great Builder commented at the sight of the palace. "Supreme Thief has never learnt how to build something so big. I bet he took various mansions and merged them into this shape." Noah and the others ignored that comment and waited for the expert to work his magic. Great Builder soon neared the palace and made his consciousness converge among the towers. He didn''t care about the various separate dimensions hidden inside those structures. He only wanted to find his old friend. An azure aura soon seeped out of the palace, and Great Builder didn''t hesitate to focus on it. A curse soon escaped his mouth, and his figure began to fade right in the middle of Noah''s group. "I''ll be back soon," Great Builder said before his figure completely disappeared. Noah and the others waited for entire days in front of the palace before deciding to dig training areas around the azure mountain. They didn''t know when Great Builder would come back, but they had a lot of experience to absorb after the events with Radiant Eyes. Witnessing the battle between two rank 9 existences gave them a general idea of how that power level worked. They had seen how the world reacted to those presences. The fight wasn''t something that they could study in a few training sessions. Noah didn''t hesitate to rely on the Demonic Deduction technique after memorizing those scenes. He recalled the battle, but his focus had always been on the various abilities used during the face-off. Great Builder had won the battle, but Radiant Eyes had also shown how the innate advantages of the hybrids weren''t enough in a fight at that level. It was hard to justify Radiant Eyes'' defeat. Noah could only blame her lack of viable techniques. Her toxic influence was only a passive power that couldn''t match her physical prowess. Great Builder had also been useless when Noah gathered information about the battle. He had studied Radiant Eyes'' law, but his understanding was purely theoretical. He had only learnt about certain features before creating suitable countermeasures. Noah was on his own during his seclusion. He mainly focused on cultivating and stabilizing his centers of power, and he rarely lingered on new projects. His idea of exploiting the parasite to create an attack similar to Radiant Eye''s influence was only a vague project that would require years to set off. The main problem with that ability was its application in a real battle. Noah already had powerful spells and techniques that could inflict damage over time, but they didn''t suit his battle style. The corrosive aura was the same. Noah had to work hard only to make that power useful. That attack didn''t match his singularities or movement techniques, but he felt confident enough to create something valuable. Great Builder returned as his idea began to form. The expert brought the entire corpse of a rank 9 magical beast and began to dissect its body right in front of the palace. Noah quickly flew out of the cave to inspect the scene. Great Builder created nine weaker versions of the rank 9 fake cores and placed them on each tower. An ethereal figure appeared at the center of the palace when the halo dimmed. Azure light surrounded his body, and his long black hair fluttered in the wind. A dark eyepatch covered his left eye, and a confused expression filled his face. "You have come back to life," Great Builder said. "I must admit. Surpassing your defenses has been quite easy." Supreme Thief didn''t reply. His body slowly regained a physical form. Waves of threatening azure light flew through the world and converged in his position, giving him the various pieces of aura that he had spread through the plane during his life. Chapter 1623: 1623. Departure "My defenses?" Supreme Thief asked while continuing to inspect his surroundings. "I stole them too. Why would I bother to build something when I can take them from better inscription masters?" "Death didn''t change you," Great Builder commented. "Death changes nothing," Supreme Thief replied. "We are worlds inside Heaven and Earth. We can only expand." Supreme Thief inspected his body. He raised his hand and checked that everything was in place. Azure light still converged toward his figure, but his existence was almost ready to live again. Heaven and Earth didn''t like that process. They marked Supreme Thief''s existence, and they quickly reacted when the pieces of his world converged toward his figure. A series of sparks acc.u.mulated in the sky, but Supreme Thief instinctively performed a pulling motion and tore them away from the whiteness. Huge sparks and lightning bolts froze mid-air and flew toward Supreme Thief. Those attacks didn''t dare to move in his presence. They could be nutrients, but the expert only put them into the palace under him for the time being. "We are back to life!" Supreme Thief eventually commented. "I bet the great masters won''t like it. How strong are you right now?" "I''ve mostly recovered," Great Builder replied. "I need a few more years to refill my inventory and gain access to my whole battle prowess." "That''s not bad," Supreme Thief replied. "I should be a bit better than that. We can''t let those annoying existences take over us again. We must be one step ahead of them from now on." Noah and the others began to inspect their surroundings. They were ready for the appearance of another rank 9 cultivator, but Heaven and Earth didn''t send anyone. Heaven and Earth had spread their punishment on the entire group after the events with Radiant Eyes. Almost all the members of the army were now suffering from that annoying curse. "Nothing?" Supreme Thief asked in a surprised tone while inspecting his surroundings. "That''s strange. I thought Heaven and Earth hated us." "Give it time," Great Builder. "They have just lost one of their powerful followers. I think they don''t want to waste assets on us right now." "Boring," Supreme Thief sighed. "I wanted to steal something. Heaven and Earth''s followers are easy targets." Noah and the others remained in silence during that interaction. They didn''t know how to join the conversation, and part of them didn''t want to attract the experts'' attention. Still, Supreme Thief turned toward Noah''s group before they could say anything. A faint smile appeared on the expert''s face, but he remained in his position since his body had yet to solidify completely. "You should be grateful to them," Great Builder said before Supreme Thief could do anything. "Don''t steal anything. You are alive because of their efforts." "I was only looking," Supreme Thief replied in an annoyed tone. "I already know a few of them, especially that guy with the strange energy." "I''ve also noticed it," Great Builder exclaimed. "I wish I could have more time to study it." Noah felt the need to take a few steps back after those remarks, but he could sense that the experts didn''t have any ill intentions. Supreme Thief waited until his body solidified before entering the palace. He took a few items and returned to the outside world to join his companion. The two experts talked while their auras suppressed their words. Noah and the others couldn''t understand what they were saying, and they didn''t try to inspect their conversation out of respect for those powerful existences. The Legion had gone from being one of the weaker organizations in the Immortal Lands to having two rank 9 cultivators conversing nearby. The scene was quite surreal, especially when considering the past of that force. "I guess it''s time to go," Great Builder eventually said, and the weaker experts around him managed to hear his words. "No point remaining in these barren lands," Supreme Thief sighed. "We need the storms to advance. I hope Heaven and Earth can send an expert or two in the meantime." "Heaven and Earth already know what we can do," Great Builder complained. "We need to improve quickly, or they will overwhelm us again. I don''t think my existence can survive another death." "I don''t think we''ll have the chance to come back to life again!" Supreme Thief laughed before turning toward Noah''s group. "I''ll leave the palace here. It still has many resources, so it works as an inheritance. You can sacrifice it if the Tribulations become too harsh to handle." Noah felt curious about their worries. He wanted to see the duo fight Heaven and Earth. Still, he respected their fears. The rulers of the world had to have something powerful in store since Supreme Thief and Great Builder felt in a hurry to advance. "I must leave," Great Builder announced while nearing Noah''s group. "We should be even now. We will meet again if you manage to survive through the next millennia." "Don''t forget your greed," Supreme Thief said while winking at Noah. Great Builder quickly neared Supreme Thief, and the duo disappeared from their position. The innate heavy aura radiated by their figure also vanished, which confirmed that the two experts had left. Noah and the others inspected that spot for a while before glancing toward the palace. Some of them decided to enter the inheritance in silence, and none of them dared to stop those experts. The rest of the group remained outside. A long training session was waiting for them back into their domain, but they didn''t want to start it right away. They wanted to watch more battles that featured experts at the peak of the cultivation journey. They desired to stir chaos among the remaining human organizations. They wanted more from the Immortal Lands, but their current level had already given them everything they could seize. The group returned inside the blue regions now protected by magical plants and various structures. The experts could inspect the many training areas and special environments created by Great Builder, and that sight left them completely satisfied. Noah solidified his breakthrough inside those training areas. His body had shown signs of improvements only after he devoured many corpses stored inside his separate space. The upper tier seemed an immensity away, but Noah believed that he could do something to quicken his growth. The battle against the bees had shown him that he could hunt creatures in the upper tier. Magical beasts at that level could give him far more nutrients and significantly improve the pace of his growth. Noah also focused on his dantian since it was the only center of power that had fallen behind. Improving it required a lot of time, but Noah already had clear ideas about his path. He only had to invest time and effort, and his breakthrough would arrive. As for his mind, Noah had already booked a series of appointments with Alexander. He wouldn''t let his portable training area run away, especially in a period so heavily focused on centers of power. A long period went by as the experts rested and improved inside the blue lands. A series of breakthroughs happened, and most experts grew. The Legion and Noah''s team were waiting for the human forces to reclaim their domain, but they didn''t expect a series of them to appear at the edges of the defensive magical plants. Noah and a few experts decided to investigate the matter, and their eyes widened at that sight. Most of the leaders among the human forces had reached the blue domain even if they had yet to reclaim their old lands. **** Author''s notes: Timer bugged out. I had to publish the chapters earlier. Chapter 1624: 1624. Call The group from the human domain didn''t feature many experts. That team only had one envoy for each organization, with a few exceptions. Noah recognized many emblems when he reached the enemy group. The Monneay family, the Sailbrird family, the Rotway family, and other forces had sent their envoys in the Outer Lands, but they didn''t seem to have ill intentions. The group lacked experts from the Crystal City, but Noah expected much. Their hatred toward Noah ran too deep even to consider the option of having a normal conversation with the Legion. "I can''t understand if you are reckless or desperate," Noah commented after inspecting the group. A tinge of shame appeared on the experts'' faces, but they managed to maintain stern expressions. They didn''t want to lose their cool in those regions. "We are grateful," Gloria Sailbrird replied. "Your organization has taken care of a threat that had brought the human domain to its knees. We are here to express our desire to put an end to our past enmities." "What if I didn''t share that desire?" Noah asked while wearing a cold smile. "You have opposed my organization and me for millennia. Forgiving you doesn''t sound proper." "We don''t have a home," Gloria explained. "The recent catastrophe had shown us who can stand at the peak of the Immortal Lands. Our organizations have failed, and your force has won." Noah wanted to give voice to sharp words again, but he suppressed that desire. He couldn''t find a reason to continue with his stubbornness. His old enemies didn''t have much to lose anymore. "Just tell me what you want," Noah sighed. "I believe you didn''t come all this way only to thank me." "You are correct," Gloria replied. "We have an offer, but we don''t know whether you''ll even consider it." Noah turned toward Alexander and the others who had come with him to meet the envoys. They were also unclear about the nature of that offer, especially after Great Builder had described the entire layout of Heaven and Earth''s domain. The higher plane didn''t have much to offer anymore. Noah had long since guessed that his focus had to be on the stormy regions from now on. His only issue was the lack of exciting adventures. The windy regions were still too dangerous for Noah. He guessed that the liquid stage would allow him to endure that harsh environment, but that power level wouldn''t give him the chance to experience those lands properly. Noah had met a rank 9 creature during his short journey through the windy regions. The liquid stage wouldn''t make him feel safe there. It was only the bare minimum requirement to survive the chaotic laws. Alexander shrugged his shoulders, and King Elbas limited himself to nod. It didn''t hurt to listen to those envoys. They didn''t have the power to damage the Legion anyway. Noah let the envoys inside the domes. He didn''t show them the core buildings under those structures, but he still led them into one of the various training areas. "Speak," Noah said after he sat on the ground and took a jug of wine. Divine Demon and the other experts quickly handed him the cups, but Noah didn''t offer anything to the envoys. Those members of the human organizations weren''t worthy of his respect. "I''d like to begin our offer with a description of the Immortal Lands," Gloria explained, ignoring the fact that Noah didn''t offer her wine. The expert began to describe matters that Noah and the others had recently learnt from Great Builder. She drew a simple map that described Heaven and Earth''s domain in the air without giving many details about the lands on the other side of the sky. Noah and the others pretended to feel some interest in those drawings and remained silent as Gloria reached the main topic of the meeting. Her fingers pointed at the central landmass that represented the higher plane before she began to explain the nature of that offer. "The Immortal Lands isn''t a planet," Gloria explained. "They are nothing more than a landmass with intense storms at its edges. Our domains occupy only one side of this structure, but there is another side right under it." "I hope you aren''t suggesting to reach the other side," Noah snorted. "We indeed are," Gloria continued. "Imagine having access to a second higher plane that isn''t ready for our arrival. We can suppress and raid entire organizations before returning here." "How would you even reach the other side?" King Elbas asked. "The storms surround the plane, which leaves us with no path." "We are planning to dig the ground until we reach the other side," Gloria revealed, but her words only managed to make Noah and the others explode into a laugh. "For how long do you even plan to do it?" Noah laughed. "You don''t even know how thick the higher plane is. You might have to spend entire millennia digging only to find a surface invaded by magical beasts." The envoys'' expression changed after that remark. They weren''t angry. Instead, they appeared hesitant. It seemed that they wanted to say something, but they suppressed their words. "We are done," Noah sighed at that sight. "You can leave. I don''t have time to waste in political games." The expert from the Rotway family immediately stood up and pretended to leave, but the other envoys convinced her to stay. The meeting was far from over. They only had to give the last news before deciding. "Digging is the wrong word," Gloria continued. "Truth be told, we already have a viable route. Heaven and Earth have opened it for us after the events with Radiant Eyes." Noah couldn''t help but wear a stern expression once the topic shifted to Heaven and Earth. He wanted to know more about that tunnel now, but only to understand the intentions of those rulers. "I know that some of you can contact Heaven and Earth," Noah announced. "How much did they tell you about this tunnel? Did they force you to come here?" Noah couldn''t shake the feeling that the tunnel was a trap. It didn''t specifically target him, but it attracted his interest. "We tried to ask," Gloria revealed. "Our main guess was that Heaven and Earth were giving us a way out of Radiant Eyes'' threat, but that hypothesis shattered after you took care of her. Our new idea is a bit scarier, and that''s the exact reason why we are here." "Do you want a meat shield?" Noah asked. "We need powerful warriors," Gloria continued. "Our second guess sees Heaven and Earth in need of help. There might be a threat on the others side that their Tribulation can''t handle." "Why would I bother to come then?" Noah asked. "I like seeing Heaven and Earth struggling. I have no reason to help them." "We decided to contact you due to your power," Gloria explained. "Your affiliation doesn''t matter. We only want more lands to conquer." "You can go," Noah replied. "I''m not interested." "Do you prefer to spend your journey till you are strong enough for the windy regions?" Gloria asked. "Welcome to the top. Try not to get bored. I will wait for your call." **** Author''s notes: I''m still editing. Give me a max of twenty minutes per chapter. The next ones will come soon. Chapter 1625: 1625. Offer The envoys left, and one of the experts in Noah''s team escorted them outside of the domes. Instead, Noah and the others remained inside the training area and held a meeting to discuss that matter. The experts had different opinions about that offer. Most of them agreed that the tunnel was a trap set by Heaven and Earth to take care of those who fought their system. However, the group couldn''t find common ground during the discussion. Gloria had spoken the truth. The Immortal Lands didn''t offer much in their current state. The rank 8 experts in the gaseous stage could still find something interesting in those areas, but those approaching the liquid stage had already set their eyes on the windy regions. The magical beasts'' domain and the various inheritances could keep them busy for a while, but they weren''t the best training methods for experts at that level. Noah and the others needed adventures to improve their existence. Their current options could only give them techniques and materials. "Do we really care if it''s a trap or not?" King Elbas shouted. "I almost wish it was a plan set by Heaven and Earth. Overcoming that hindrance would make us stronger." "You aren''t thinking about the Legion," Jordan complained. "We would lose a lot of power if many experts were to leave for this mission. The other organizations might use that chance to take everything we have obtained during the last years." "It''s pointless to linger on these topics," Noah eventually said to put an end to that conversation. "We have organizations, but we are also existences who strive to reach the higher ranks. We need these adventures to grow and improve our power." "Don''t tell me that you want to go there," Jordan asked. "I''m considering it," Noah explained. "Gloria is right. I have nothing to do until my battle prowess reaches the ninth rank. Long periods in seclusion would only hurt my centers of power." "It''s still better than jumping into an obvious trap!" Jordan shouted. "I''m with you, my heir," Divine Demon exclaimed. "This peaceful life doesn''t suit me anyway." "They only want to affect our power!" Jordan continued to complain. "We have finally become one of the strongest organizations in the Immortal Lands. Why would you throw this status away?" "Boredom," Divine Demon replied. "Curiosity," King Elbas added. "Need for struggles," Noah continued. "They aren''t completely wrong," Alexander sighed. "This peaceful lifestyle would affect our power anyway. We might as well invest it into this quest." "Do you also support this?" Jordan asked while turning toward Alexander. "Adventures are the main source of growth in the cultivation journey," Alexander explained. "You can''t ask experts to remain inside a cave forever. Everyone would reach the ninth rank otherwise." "We have awakened a rank 9 existence to obtain this peace," Jordan sighed and began to massage her temples. "Jordan has a point," Noah eventually said. "We shouldn''t send too many experts into the mission. Only the strongest among us should go." "How do you plan to find that out?" King Elbas asked. "Let''s hold a tournament among those who want to go into the tunnel.," Noah explained. "The winners will get the chance to join Gloria and her group for the mission." Noah''s solution met a few complaints, but the other experts couldn''t have much to say on the matter. None of them had the power to force other existences to remain in the Outer Lands. Those missions were necessary for the cultivation journey in the end. The various rank 8 experts soon spread the news about the imminent tournament, and the rest of the Legion prepared a suitable battlefield. King Elbas created a few sensors and placed them into regions outside of the blue lands. The battles wouldn''t happen inside the domes, so the experts could go all-out without worrying about the consequences of their actions. Noah soon created a series of rules. He wanted to keep everything simple, but he also desired to leave the weaker experts outside the mission. Those who managed to win at least one battle would gain the chance to join the mission. The fights also had to happen among experts with similar battle prowess to set an even ground where everyone had a chance to defeat their opponents. The rules even put limits on those who could join the event. Sending rank 7 experts into the mission was mere suicide, so Noah restricted the tournament to existences in the eighth rank. Crowds of hybrids, cultivators, and magical beasts gathered under the domes and at the battlefield''s borders to inspect the imminent fights. Their leaders were about to have friendly challenges, so the underlings didn''t dare to miss them. Only those interested in joining the mission gathered on the battlefield. Noah, Divine Demon, King Elbas, Luke''s team, and the others from the Balrow family left the domes to search for contestants, but Noah stepped forward before any of them could say anything. "I want to join the exploration," Noah announced to the small group in those lands. "I''ll be the first to fight." Silence spread through the group, but an expert quickly stepped forward. King Elbas wore an arrogant smile, and battle intent leaked out of his figure. He seemed almost unable to contain his desire to fight Noah. "I''m not surprised about this," Noah laughed while the other experts left the area to gather at the edges of the battlefield. "We have to settle this score," King Elbas replied. "We have to understand who is stronger." "My body is in the middle tier," Noah added. "I have the upper hand here." "That''s what makes it so interesting," King Elbas announced. "I want to see how far my power stretches." The tournament didn''t feature any signal that marked the beginning of the fights. They were all friends there. They could find a way to keep things fair. "You can deploy your puppets," Noah said while wearing a mocking smile. "You can try to jump toward me as fast as you can," King Elbas replied. "I want to see what you can do in the middle tier." Noah didn''t let King Elbas'' words affect his tactic, but he still shot forward. His figure transformed into a black blade that reached his opponent in an instant. King Elbas limited himself to smile, and his expression didn''t change even when Noah punched his shoulder. Pure golden flames spread through the environment as his body part exploded. "You shouldn''t underestimate me so much," King Elbas said as a tinge of arrogance flowed inside his words. "Try launching deadly attacks. We both know that I''m hard to kill." "I''d rather avoid it," Noah explained while the golden flames flew into the distance. "I don''t want to kill you by mistake." "You should try to survive first," King Elbas laughed as an army of fiery puppets filled the battlefield. King Elbas'' figure reappeared behind the army of gaseous stage puppets, but Noah shot through them. Those creatures couldn''t even begin to stop him. Noah reached King Elbas'' new position and threw another punch, but the expert transformed before he could experience his first. His flames flew toward the distance again and allowed his puppets to surround him. Chapter 1626: 1626. Holding back Waves of golden flames crashed on Noah, but they didn''t manage to pierce his skin. They didn''t even burn him. Attacks at that level couldn''t hurt his middle tier body. Noah''s consciousness expanded to find King Elbas. The expert was behind his army of fiery puppets, and his hands moved non-stop to create shining inscriptions. ''I can''t give him time to create formations,'' Noah thought before shooting through the flames again. The puppets shattered whenever Noah crossed them. They couldn''t do anything against his physical might. He could fly through the golden flames and reach King Elbas again, but the expert repeated his evasive maneuver. "Do you want to fight me in a battle of resilience?" Noah shouted before chasing after King Elbas. King Elbas never stopped deploying fiery puppets. Armored humanoid creatures and magical beasts of various sizes filled the battlefield and threw their flames toward Noah, but their attacks didn''t do anything. They didn''t even manage to slow him down. Noah punched and sprinted without ever taking a break to inspect his situation. Giving time to King Elbas was a fatal mistake that he couldn''t commit. ''Fine then,'' Noah thought once he grew bored of those relentless exchanges. Noah waited until King Elbas materialized in a new position before activating the unstable substance. Raw power flowed inside his black vessels and gave him the chance to reach his opponent in an instant. King Elbas didn''t expect that sudden burst of power, but he was ready for that event. His figure exploded into a wave of raging flames when Noah was about to reach him. That fiery attack managed to slow him down and make him fail his offensive, and the puppets didn''t hesitate to launch another wave of fire that engulfed his body. Noah spat his flames. His black fire burnt the golden one that filled the sky. It also expanded until it covered the entire battlefield, and all the puppets eventually vanished under his powerful innate ability. King Elbas soon became visible. He was in a spot far away, and his hands continued to leave inscriptions on the sky. He also snapped his fingers at some point, and the lingering black flames vanished as his influence spread. Noah arrived on top of King Elbas in an instant, but a golden radiance blinded him before he could reach his opponent. A series of snake-like items also entangled themselves around his arms and tried to restrain his movements. Noah tore those restraints apart and used his consciousness to keep track of King Elbas'' position. The expert was still under him, but his figure started to vanish when he sensed those mental waves. The Demonic Sword quickly came out of his separate space and landed in his hand. Noah waved the blade and launched a massive curved singularity toward the expert. "I was waiting for that!" King Elbas shouted, and a series of inscriptions lit up on his robe. The singularity tried to fall on King Elbas, but its structure grew unstable before it could reach him. Energy began to leak out of the attack until it exploded into a dense wave of power. That violent energy engulfed Noah and flung him away. His consciousness also lost track of King Elbas'' position during those short seconds, and more flames landed on his figure. ''This is getting annoying,'' Noah cursed in his mind before summoning Duanlong, Snore, and Night. The dragon took care of absorbing the flames in the environment. Night fused with the world and preceded Noah whenever he charged toward his opponent. Snore struggled to keep up with the pace of the battle, but it launched feathers whenever King Elbas tried to activate his evasive maneuver. King Elbas slowly lost his confidence against that relentless offensive. He didn''t want to use too many inscribed items, but the situation had become too dangerous after Noah revealed his puppets. A series of inscriptions suddenly became visible on the battlefield. Noah felt that those lines lacked part of their structure, but he never lingered too much on them since he had to keep pressuring King Elbas. The inscriptions gave birth to a series of trails of golden light that converged toward Noah and surrounded his whole figure. They didn''t initially manage to do anything, but they soon started to slow down his movements. "I''ve spent years with you," King Elbas announced from the back of the battlefield. "I have memorized your battle style, and I have already invented many countermeasures." The golden light hovering above his skin triggered something peculiar. The flames that had tried to pierce his skin since the beginning reappeared and began to detonate. Countless explosions happened on Noah''s skin. His consciousness couldn''t expand with so much destruction happening around him. More flames flew toward Noah, but he didn''t remain in the same spot. He shot upward and let his abrupt acceleration take care of the light that surrounded his body. The golden light tried to resist that pressure, but black roots soon came out of his palm and covered his figure. A layer of dark matter also appeared above his skin to protect him from the corrosive aura. King Elbas'' ability couldn''t survive against the parasite. Noah soon found himself able to scan the environment again, and he quickly discovered his opponent in a spot covered with inscriptions. Noah shot forward and waved his blade multiple times. A rain of singularities fell toward King Elbas, but he snapped his fingers and made those attacks explode. Noah was waiting for that. He transformed into a black blade that pierced the violent energy and made him reach King Elbas in an instant. The expert didn''t expect Noah to be so reckless. His skin had become quite fragile after the golden light and multiple detonations. Crossing the violent energy had opened many cuts. The inscriptions lit up before Noah could crash on King Elbas. They summoned a series of middle tier golems that radiated the same aura as before. Flames tried to reappear on his skin, but the Demonic Form took care of that influence. The golems slammed on Noah and tried to restrain his movements, but the parasite made them basically useless. Pure golden flames and inscriptions made their bodies, but the corrosive aura destroyed them in no time. Noah could finally continue his assault on King Elbas after the golem vanished. His blade descended again, but he deployed the dark world before the singularities came out of his weapon. King Elbas had to endure the pressure generated by the dark world and the incoming singularities. He used most of his power to activate a gem that made him teleport outside the technique, but he found Noah waiting for him there. Noah didn''t hesitate to slash with his sword. King Elbas partially transformed into a wave of golden flames, but blood spilled in the area and burnt when it touched the fire. King Elbas tried to leave again, but Noah followed his consciousness and enveloped him inside the dark world. His sword was ready to launch another storm of singularities, but he held it back in that situation. "I can almost match you without using the best inscribed items in my space-ring," King Elbas laughed while inspecting the Demonic Sword. The outcome of the battle didn''t resemble a loss. King Elbas had almost forced Noah to go all-out, even if he were overall weaker than him. The expert also had many trump cards in his space ring that he decided not to use. Chapter 1627: 1627. Surprise Noah and King Elbas had held their trump cards back. Their battle was only a friendly contest meant to establish how strong they had become. Those who had seen Noah and King Elbas'' battles knew that they didn''t show even a quarter of their true power. Still, the fight had been a spectacle capable of inspiring many weaker troops. That was the hidden meaning behind the tournament. The mission on the other side of the plane would probably last for entire millennia, and the Legion would lack a core part of its power during that period. The underlings had to improve to ensure the stability of their organization, and inspiring them was the best way to quicken that process. "Who do you think will win if we were to fight seriously?" Noah whispered while both experts inspected their injuries. "I must admit that we both are resourceful existences," King Elbas sighed as his eyes fell on Divine Demon. "I''m still the same cultivator that you have fought in the Mortal Lands, but I''m also completely different. Deciding a winner between us would require a death, and that''s something I don''t want to see." "Did the great King Elbas turn soft?" Noah tried to mock him, but King Elbas mostly ignored that remark. "Soft is necessary, especially for a maker," King Elbas explained. "The matter is not the limit. There are realms beyond the mere logic, and I stumbled on them thanks to you." "I don''t have control over that part of my law," Noah said as his tone turned serious. "And yet it''s still part of you," King Elbas replied. "It''s funny how things evolve. I have turned into the lone eccentric, while you have become the overbearing leader. The cultivation journey can hide surprises even after millennia." "We have yet to approach the final stage," Noah added. "Do you want it to end?" King Elbas asked. "I would rather create new ranks than stopping," Noah laughed. "We are maniacs. Staying still doesn''t suit us." King Elbas chuckled before wearing his stern expression again. His challenging gaze went on Luke. He was ready to fight again and join the mission officially. Noah flew toward the sidelines with a heavy mind. Various memories ran through his vision, and a smile eventually appeared on his face. His life had been incredible, but he wanted more. Those adventures never managed to appease his endless d.e.s.i.r.e. ''To think that I might end up helping Heaven and Earth,'' Noah laughed internally. ''I can''t wait to start this mission.'' King Elbas stepped into the battlefield again, but Luke didn''t accept his silent challenge. Instead, one of the experts from the Balrow family decided to face him. The two experts decided to avoid the pointless exchange of attacks since King Elbas'' battle prowess was on the winning side. The duo showcased some of their best inscribed items and declared the best inscription master as the winner. King Elbas won by a large margin, and the expert from the Balrow family requested a private conversation after the battle. The other members of that faction also joined that event since they saw in King Elbas an inscription master that could lead them toward new heights. Jordan and Ian decided to ignore the mission. They didn''t want to cooperate with the forces of the human domain, especially during such a crucial period for the Legion. Theodora and Alexander had a similar mindset, but for different reasons. Theodora loathed battles, while Alexander was the living deterrent of the Legion. His decision to remain in the Outer Lands would ensure peace. Other experts in the gaseous stage decided to fight. Luke, Pearl, and other cultivators wanted to join that mysterious exploration, but Noah felt forced to change the rules because of them. Noah had initially stated that one victory was enough to join the mission, but he had to meet specific standards. Most of those cultivators would be useless with Gloria Sailbrird and similar cultivators around them. Noah wouldn''t deny that chance to gaseous stage experts, but he couldn''t bring everyone either. Having a liquid stage battle prowess became the minimum requirement to join the mission. Only Luke and another cultivator met those requirements. Noah was even surprised with the latter''s battle prowess. He couldn''t help but smile when he saw that Fergie could now unleash spells capable of touching the liquid stage. A massive raging sun floated at some distance from the ground and sent destructive flares in every direction. Fergie sat on top of the fiery sphere while wearing a proud smile. His eyes found a similar smirk on Noah''s face when he looked at him. His opponent was one of the cultivators in Luke''s team. The expert had his back on the ground and was staring at the massive ball of fire with wide eyes. Fear and disbelief filled his expression. The cultivator couldn''t understand how a simple gaseous stage expert could generate so much power without losing control of his technique. "I have gone through desperation, death, rebirth, and anger," Fergie said without moving his eyes from Noah. "You granted me peace, so I had to put these emotions somewhere." Fergie straightened his position and leapt to land in front of Noah. The expert wanted to kneel, but he respected his leader too much to ignore his rules. "My anger becomes fire," Fergie explained. "My greed makes me d.e.s.i.r.e to consume the entire world. My ambition gives me control over these violent feelings and transforms them into a fiery star." Fergie performed a bow before continuing. "This power belongs to me, but it is for you to use. I know that I don''t quite fit in this mission, but I wish to accompany you anyway. Let me come." Noah didn''t expect Fergie to be so polite, especially after everything they had been through. However, it seemed that the mission really interested him. Also, Noah could guess that he had something to prove to the human organizations. "Things usually get messy in these missions," Noah said while wearing a cold smirk. "You can even be certain of that since I''ll be there." "That''s exactly what I want," Fergie replied. "It''s set then," Noah concluded. "We only have to wait for the others in the liquid stage before being ready to leave." Both Noah and Fergie turned toward the battlefield. Two experts had stepped forward as soon as the raging sun vanished. Pure battle intent flowed out of Divine Demon and Wilfred as the duo decided to fight. "Why do they even fight?" Fergie wondered. "They are already in the liquid stage, and their battle prowess is even quite amazing. There is no need to join this test." "Let them be," Noah said while patting Fergie''s shoulder. "Maniacs must behave like maniacs. I bet those two want to understand who has a better foundation." "Do you think they will be able to stop themselves once the battle becomes too serious?" Fergie asked. "Not at all," Noah laughed. "Actually, start warning everyone. We will definitely need to intervene." A chill ran down Fergie''s spine. He had seen Wilfred and Divine Demon fight on multiple occasions, and the scene had always been quite spectacular. Still, he didn''t dare to imagine what would happen now that the two of them were opponents. Chapter 1628: 1628. Challenges "You know me," Divine Demon announced while waving his hand. "Give me a topic, and I''ll surpass you. I guess you will choose physical strength." "No challenges," Wilfred snorted. "I know how your law works, but I want to see what form it takes when you don''t have to surpass anyone." "I think I don''t remember my true form," Divine Demon laughed while spreading his arms. "I take what I need from the world to seize victories. My existence lives through challenges. I might be nothing more than an empty body without them." "Let''s find out!" Wilfred shouted before throwing a punch. A shockwave spread from the spot where his fist hit the air, and a series of deep noises resounded through the sky. The world quickly began to send energy toward Divine Demon, but a hole appeared in the azure array that had appeared in front of him. The attack ran through that raw energy and flew past Divine Demon''s shoulder. The sheer power carried by the punch managed to destroy a large chunk of his skin, but his limb remained intact, even if badly damaged. "You want a battle of ranged attacks then!" Divine Demon shouted, and the azure energy began to transform as his battle intent intensified. "No, you are better than me at that," Wilfred contradicted Divine Demon before he could use his dangerous law. The azure energy suddenly lost its power. Wilfred had declared his inferiority before Divine Demon could make anything out of that silent challenge. His law didn''t create anything special, and the world felt unable to understand what the expert needed. Wilfred punched the air again, and another hole appeared among the azure mass of energy. Divine Demon saw one of his legs exploding and falling toward the ground, but he ignored the event completely. "Resilience it is!" Divine Demon shouted, and a tremor swept the azure "Breath", giving it a new purpose. "You are better than me there too," Wilfred replied, and the azure energy lost its purpose again. Wilfred waved his hand, and a current slammed on the array of azure "Breath" to disperse it. The remaining power contained in that gesture hit on Divine Demon and flung him away. "I can still fight without challenges!" Divine Demon shouted, and azure energy began to gather around his figure. The "Breath" flowed inside his injuries and restored part of the missing chunks of skin. The energy even recreated an ethereal version of his leg to stop the bleeding. Currents began to flow around Divine Demon and created an array that resembled a technique. However, Noah and many others could see that the expert was forcing the "Breath" to take that shape. He wasn''t giving it any special purpose. ''The small victories are making him stronger,'' Noah thought while inspecting the battle, ''But he can''t put that new power into his abilities. Is this Divine Demon''s great weakness?'' Divine Demon gained power by overcoming challenges. His growth would match the harshness of the trials and the restrictions that he forced on himself. Yet, the lack of challenges led to a mass of power that had no purpose. Divine Demon had enough "Breath" to defend himself and launch counterattacks, but he wasn''t using it at all. Divine Demon behaved like a mindless brute, but he wasn''t stupid. He knew his flaws better than anyone else, and his personality had developed around that. He had a sharp tongue capable of tricky words. Divine Demon could always manage to lead his opponents into challenges, but Wilfred was going out of his way to avoid that. The hybrid didn''t even want to win. He was only curious about Divine Demon''s power. On the other hand, Divine Demon was struggling to show his real power. His opponent was accepting losses on purpose, so he consistently failed to give a proper nature to his energy. The world wanted to help Divine Demon, but it didn''t know how. The cultivator couldn''t use its power to create techniques without choosing a specific field. "Come on!" Wilfred shouted while unleashing a flurry of punches in the air. "I have spent entire years clearing the pyramid with you. I acknowledge your power, but I don''t want to see it in the shape of another challenge. Show me the real you!" The attacks pierced those currents and landed on his body. Wilfred had held himself back, but his punches still managed to leave deep holes in his c.h.e.s.t. Truth be told, Divine Demon could express average liquid stage battle prowess even without challenges. However, Wilfred was a hybrid who had improved his fighting style after seizing rewards from the pyramid. Wilfred''s physical strength was also far above normal hybrids. He could surpass average liquid stage cultivators even when he held back. Divine Demon didn''t have a chance against him without his challenges. "This is getting boring," Wilfred eventually sighed. "I challenge myself to defeat you in ten blows!" Divine Demon shouted when he saw his opponent turning to leave. The azure energy began to flow into his body and improving his physical strength, but Wilfred suddenly turned and said words that made the audience fall silent. "I challenge you to win without challenging anyone," Wilfred said, and the azure energy lost its power again. Wilfred''s challenge bypassed Divine Demon''s self-imposed limits. The latter had finally obtained what he wanted. Yet, he didn''t know what to do in front of that issue. "Challenge without challenges," Divine Demon mumbled as he brought his hand on his chin. It was clear that Wilfred had taken him by surprise. Divine Demon appeared completely confused. He didn''t even pay attention to the battle anymore. "Do you think he will recover before the mission?" Wilfred asked while turning toward Noah. Noah ignored the expert. His eyes remained on Divine Demon. His instincts had begun to sense something, but he was still unable to translate them into proper feelings. ''He must have faced similar situations in the past,'' Noah thought. ''I guess we are about to discover how he overcame them.'' "Winning challenges to improve," Divine Demon continued to mumble. "Improving is important. Victories lead to the higher ranks, and the higher ranks are everything." The battlefield was silent, so everyone could hear his confused words. Even the underlings watching the battle from inside the domes could understand what Divine Demon said due to King Elbas'' sensors. "Victories without challenges," Divine Demon continued. "Definition of victory, defeating opponents, winning without challenges is a challenge!" The world released a humming noise, and Noah''s eyes widened when he heard the laws screaming in pain. He had already witnessed a similar reaction. The matter did the same whenever he used Shandal''s ability. ''Is he about to use the laws of the world?'' Noah wondered, but the surprises weren''t over. The matter shattered and transformed into the usual azure energy generated by Divine Demon''s law. However, the world wasn''t giving that power willingly. Divine Demon''s aura was ripping it away from the sky and forcing it to become part of his existence. "I need victories," Divine Demon whispered. "Victories will bring challenges, and challenges will bring power." The azure energy gathered around Divine Demon, but it didn''t have its usual orderly shape. It was an unstable array of power that took different forms under the influence of his aura. Noah had seen Divine Demon fight many times, so he could recognize some of the shapes taken by the azure energy. That "Breath" transformed into many techniques that the expert had used in the past. Some spots even became white and marked the arrival of the higher energy. "Give me victories!" Divine Demon shouted, and the energy around him shot forward. Wilfred could immediately understand that he had to go all-out. Divine Demon wasn''t even trying to hold back. Chapter 1629: 1629. Out of control "Victories!" Divine Demon shouted while raging waves of azure "Breath" shot forward. Larger chunks of the world shattered and gave their energy to the currents. Those attacks enlarged and transformed, becoming different techniques that Divine Demon had used in the past. Some of the currents became beams of higher energy that accelerated and surpassed the other techniques. Other waves of power transformed into weapons and shining lights. Part of that energy even entered Divine Demon''s body. It healed his injuries and enhanced his physical strength. His muscles bulged, and his size increased by a whole meter. His nails stretched and turned into tiny knives, and his canines grew until they peeked out of his mouth. Wilfred''s veins bulged. He gathered his physical strength, and the space in front of him bent. Booming noises filled the sky as Divine Demon''s techniques clashed with an invisible force. Multiple holes appeared on the array of azure and white energy. It was as if countless punches had slammed on the attacks and had stopped their charge. Divine Demon shot forward and dived inside his azure energy. That power flowed inside his body and enhanced his morphed features. His fangs and nails grew, and his muscles also bulged until they inflated beyond human levels. The azure energy began to rotate and transform into a whirlpool that stretched forward. Wilfred could see a monstrous figure at the center of those raging waters. Divine Demon wanted to have a physical contest! "I don''t know what happened to you," Wilfred sighed while bending his knees and crouching on the air, "But there aren''t many creatures in the Immortal Lands that could face me at this distance." Divine Demon appeared unable to hear those words. He continued to shoot forward, and the azure energy never stopped following him. Wilfred leapt forward right before Divine Demon could stretch his claws toward him. The two experts clashed mid-air, and the power generated by the impact made the azure energy shoot in every direction. Noah and the few experts in the duo''s range had to deploy evasive maneuvers to dodge the threatening azure energy. That power still carried Divine Demon''s aura even after the impact. ''Incredible,'' Noah thought when he turned to look at the battle. Wilfred had managed to stop Divine Demon''s charge, but he found himself unable to push the cultivator back. Divine Demon was holding his ground, and his claws had also stabbed the hybrid''s shoulders. Divine Demon opened his mouth and bit on Wilfred''s shoulder. His teeth managed to pierce that tough skin and rip away a large chunk of his flesh. The azure energy that had shot in the distance flew back. Divine Demon''s aura forced the world to provide more power that fused with his techniques and began to assault Wilfred. Beams of higher energy, dense currents, flashes of azure light, and weapons of various sizes landed on Wilfred''s body and riddled it with injuries. The hybrid spat blood, but he didn''t move. He continued to keep Divine Demon''s waist in his arms. Wilfred''s embrace tightened. His attack threatened to make Divine Demon''s insides explode, but azure energy would constantly flow inside his body and reinforce his organs. Meanwhile, Divine Demon continued to scratch, bite, and use his azure energy to attack his opponent. Wilfred''s body soon became a mess of torn flesh and blood. Noah almost couldn''t believe that such a strong hybrid had suffered so many injuries in such a short time. Noah glanced at King Elbas, and the expert nodded. A series of inscribed items began to surround the cultivator, and a dark matter started to fill the battlefield. It was clear that Divine Demon wasn''t in control of his actions. Something had happened when Wilfred had pushed the limits of his law. That battle wasn''t about the mission on the other side of the Immortal Lands anymore. Wilfred was holding part of his power back since Divine Demon was an ally and a friend, but the situation would eventually force him to use lethal force. Noah couldn''t allow that. They had to stop Divine Demon before he killed someone or forced his allies to put an end to his life. King Elbas shot higher in the sky while his hands moved at an unbelievable speed. Golden lines appeared in the air wherever his fingers passed, and a large formation slowly took form. The various inscribed items deployed previously moved to the edges of the battlefield and acted as cores for the formation. The golden lines fused with their structure and drained their power to expand faster. The unstable substance flowed inside Noah''s black vessels as he shot toward Divine Demon. Snore, Duanlong, and Night flew out of his figure and dispersed in the sky as the dark world spread through the entire battlefield. Divine Demon noticed those new threats, but everything suddenly stopped moving. His body didn''t even answer his commands anymore. Something powerful was restraining him, but he couldn''t understand the source of that technique. Noah arrived on him in an instant. His hand closed on Divine Demon''s throat, and Snore entangled its body on his figure. The two then dragged the expert higher on the sky and made him touch the golden lines. Shandal''s ability ran out at that point, and Divine Demon turned his attention on Noah. The cultivator waved his claws toward him, and his azure energy also flew upward to join the fight. Yet, Duanlong and Wilfred interfered. Duanlong used its innate ability to absorb a large part of that power, but it couldn''t affect the higher energy. Even the azure flashes were too fast for its suction force. Wilfred took care of the attacks that escaped Duanlong''s ability. His injuries didn''t slow him down in the slightest. His punches flashed, and the attacks exploded before they could reach Noah. Trails of energy still tried to converge toward Divine Demon, but massive fissures opened on those currents before they could obtain any purpose. Night was managing the parts of the battlefield that the others couldn''t reach. Snore bit on Divine Demon''s upper body and endured the damage created by his claws. His hands could rip its flesh apart, but the Blood Companion was too big and resilient to care. King Elbas completed his formation and pointed his hands toward Divine Demon. The inscribed items began to fly in a circle around the expert, and the golden lines attached to their structure quickly enveloped him in a shining cocoon. The golden lines didn''t touch Noah at all. They were ethereal shapes that took a physical form only when they landed on Divine Demon''s body. Even Snore appeared immune to their power. Divine Demon struggled to no end, but he couldn''t do much without his azure energy. The cocoon closed on his figure and sealed him in a golden prison. "Did you unlock some hidden potential?!" King Elbas shouted from high in the sky. "He is probably unaware of this technique," Noah sighed while turning to help with the azure energy that still tried to converge on Divine Demon''s position. "It seems that he can call upon everything generated through his law." "He did beat Elbas in a contest of inscriptions some time ago," Wilfred commented, and the trio quickly turned toward the cocoon. A small azure dot had appeared on those golden lines. That spot enlarged and covered half of the cocoon in no time. Cracks even opened in those tainted areas. Chapter 1630: 1630. Fast "Elbas, it''s time to surpass Divine Demon!" Noah shouted while using the workshop to create multiple rank 8 creatures that reinforced the cocoon. "I have never been inferior!" King Elbas snorted, but his hands began to move at an unbelievable speed to create more inscriptions. "What should I do?" Wilfred asked while nearing Noah. The hybrid didn''t know much about inscriptions. His power didn''t even allow him to restrain his opponents. Wilfred was only a slightly sophisticated brute who carried a lot of energy. "Keep his energy away from his body," Noah ordered. "We can''t let Divine Demon give it a purpose. His body is too troublesome already." Wilfred shot downward, and Noah''s companions followed him. They would help the hybrid containing the world''s energy while Noah and King Elbas took care of restraining Divine Demon. "Don''t hold back," Noah said while the Demonic Sword and the black roots appeared in his hands. Dark matter flowed out of his figure and gave birth to a draconic armor. The sword-shaped roots and the Demonic Sword multiplied as the six-armed dragon took form. Noah didn''t dare to underestimate Divine Demon. The expert was in the liquid stage, and his law was extremely troublesome. He couldn''t let him have a chance to gain the upper hand. The cracks on the cocoon spread as its structure turned azure. The golden color vanished as the restraints broke and revealed Divine Demon''s shining figure. "Victories!" Divine Demon shouted, but Noah charged ahead before his opponent could do anything with his energy. A singularity shot out of his weapons and crashed on Divine Demon. The attack dug through his flesh, but it didn''t manage to pierce the mass of energy that had reinforced his muscles. Noah didn''t hold back, but Divine Demon had easily stopped his attack. The expert didn''t even try to stop the slash, but the power amassed inside his body was enough to block Noah''s energy. "You''d better wake up," Noah whispered while reaching Divine Demon. "I don''t want to kill you for real." "Victories!" Divine Demon shouted while ignoring Noah''s words. The cultivator''s hands shot to cut Noah''s body, but the latter let them slam on his draconic figure. The knife-shaped nails pierced his draconic armor, but they only managed to leave white marks when they slammed on his skin. "You can be stronger than this," Noah sighed before throwing a punch. Roots covered his arm, so his fist destroyed a consistent chunk of Divine Demon''s face when it hit him. The cultivator didn''t even react to that damage. He continued to smile and reveal his hideous grin to his friends. Divine Demon retracted his arms before thrusting them forward. Noah saw those sharp claws reaching for his abdomen, so he cracked his leg on the expert''s stomach. A shockwave spread through the sky. Divine Demon shot backward, and a deep hole appeared on his c.h.e.s.t. Noah''s attack had been effective, but the cultivator didn''t seem affected by the attack. ''He''s not as fast as me,'' Noah concluded in his mind after the exchange. Divine Demon''s physical prowess was incredible, but he lacked proper techniques. Even his law couldn''t imitate the struggles faced by the hybrids when they created their martial arts. Noah chased after Divine Demon. His sword slashed the air multiple times, and a storm of singularities shot out of his figure. The attacks tried to converge on Divine Demon, but a tremor swept the area and forced them to detonate. The cultivator only had to endure the shockwaves released after the explosions, so his body remained almost untouched. Divine Demon raised his claws and pointed them toward Noah. A massive amount of energy tried to converge toward his fingers, but Wilfred and the companions managed to stop it before it could reach his body. Divine Demon still tried to launch a ranged attack, but Noah appeared in front of him before he could give a new purpose to his energy. The cultivator immediately deployed his evasive maneuver, but Noah released a flurry of punches before his opponent could disappear. The attack resembled Wilfred''s technique, but it lacked his theory. Noah had done nothing more than unleashing a series of punches toward his friends, and the expert suffered a lot during the exchange. Noah was only a gaseous stage cultivator, but his body was already in the middle tier. The techniques that relied on his physical prowess could overcome any expert at the same level. ''I can suppress him as long as I''m faster!'' Noah shouted inside his mind, but Divine Demon seemed able to understand that point. Divine Demon''s nails and canines retracted until they regained a human shape. Then, the expert tried to punch at Noah, but the latter dodged the attack with a simple movement of his head. The shockwaves released during the attack made Noah feel dizzy due to the sheer power carried by the attack. Yet, Noah didn''t stop his assault and continued to unleash his physical might on his opponent. Noah punched Divine Demon''s waist, c.h.e.s.t, and legs until he saw blood flowing out of those spots. Noah stopped whenever he saw the injuries growing too deep, but Divine Demon made him continue his assault. Divine Demon slowly transformed into a zombie-like creature who did nothing more than replaying his previous techniques. Those abilities also carried his battle experience, so they could easily adapt to Noah''s fighting style. "Nuisance!" Divine Demon snorted as he joined his clawed hands above his c.h.e.s.t. "I''m just me," Noah whispered, and his figure disappeared. Noah used his movement techniques whenever he saw an attack that he couldn''t dodge. After all, Divine Demon wasn''t weak. His offensive was quite threatening, even for his incredible body. Divine Demon never managed to touch Noah. He was too fast, and his offensive always managed to disrupt the cultivator''s attacks. There was a limit to how much Divine Demon could do in that situation, and Noah made sure to restrain those powers. Noah and King Elbas weren''t the only ones who decided to help to suppress Divine Demon. Luke and Fergie soon joined the battle and tried to support the group with their power. "Continue!" Noah shouted, and King Elbas worked even faster than before. Meanwhile, Luke and Fergie unleashed their best techniques to force Divine Demon to waste power. The massive sun and the captivating wind affected his figure and made his body lose energy. "Make him waste as much power as possible!" Noah continued to shout. "It doesn''t matter how you do it. I want to see him in a human shape by the end of the next exchange!" Luke and Fergie continued their assault, and Noah didn''t fall behind on that field. Slashes, punches, kicks, and bites shot forward and suppressed Divine Demon whenever he tried to launch an attack. King Elbas eventually finished improving his formation. New golden lines fell on the expert''s figure and covered his body before enveloping him in a cocoon again. The technique didn''t stop there. It expanded until it covered the nearby area with a golden radiance that blocked the influence of the experts stuck inside it. The azure energy that Wilfred and Noah''s companions were fighting stopped converging toward Divine Demon. The world couldn''t hear his call anymore. It could finally return to its usual endeavors. Chapter 1631: 1631. Strange King Elbas had finally managed to isolate Divine Demons'' existence. His body couldn''t feed on the world''s energy anymore, so the expert slowly lost power as he remained inside the golden prison. Fergie, Luke, Wilfred, and Noah''s companions focused on taking care of the azure energy that still lingered in the area. They didn''t know how Divine Demon would react to that prison, so they wanted to disperse his source of power before it was too late. Instead, Noah and King Elbas remained near the golden cocoon. They trusted Divine Demon too much to believe that those restraints could hold him. The cultivator would break free of the prison sooner or later, and they had to be there to stop him. Minutes of silence disrupted only by the exchanges of the other experts passed while Divine Demon remained inside the golden prison. Noah and King Elbas never moved their eyes from that structure, and their hands shot whenever they saw an azure spot appearing among that blinding radiance. Noah neared every azure spot and touched them with his right hand to send black roots. He instructed the parasite to eat Divine Demon''s energy, and King Elbas helped in the process by making the prison immune to the magical plant. The roots seeped inside the golden prison and destroyed every trace of Divine Demon''s energy. Noah had to make the parasite feed on far more power to make it suitable for the task, but the magical plant ended up performing better than he expected. The Demonic Form had evolved alongside his existence. The parasite fed on his energy, so his growth would improve the quality of its meals. The parasite''s corrosive aura also benefitted from Noah''s ambition. The roots could damage liquid stage tissues if he d.e.s.i.r.ed, and the battle against Divine Demon required those features. King Elbas and Noah continued to restrain Divine Demon, but their efforts didn''t seem to lead anywhere. They could sense the expert struggling inside the prison, which confirmed that his mental instability was still in control of his body. Their struggles intensified after their companions took care of all the azure energy in the area. Divine Demon only had the power contained inside his body at that point, but he never stopped unleashing his physical might to break free. "How can a rank 8 existence be so unstable?" King Elbas wondered while adding inscriptions to the golden prison. "Our flaws only intensify as we reach higher stages of the cultivation journey," Noah sighed while continuing to send black roots inside the golden prison. The parasite didn''t feed on the golden power, but its roots continued to shatter whenever they met the human figure restrained inside it. They always managed to absorb part of Divine Demon''s energy, but they eventually fell apart after a few seconds. Divine Demon was still wary of external threats even from inside the prison. His confused state didn''t affect his experience as a warrior. The blue spots eventually stopped appearing on the golden prison, but Noah and King Elbas didn''t dare to relax. They could sense that Divine Demon had yet to regain his clarity, so they remained outside of the inscriptions to act as the first line of defense. Wilfred, Fergie, and Luke quickly flew behind them. Snore, Night, and Duanlong did the same, but they waited for Noah''s orders. They didn''t attack nor activate their innate abilities in front of such a threat. Tense minutes went by until a deafening silence filled the area. No sound came out of the golden prison, and even Divine Demon''s aura stopped trying to surpass those restrictions. "Did we win?" Wilfred asked, but Noah limited himself to shake his head. Divine Demon was too strong to lose due to those poor techniques. The expert had used trump cards and secret abilities in the past. Noah could only hope that he didn''t deploy them. His hopes quickly shattered since an explosion resounded from inside the golden prison. A tremor ran through the various inscriptions and bent their shape, but nothing came out of them. A second tremor then spread through the golden halo, but Noah ignored that event too. He had King Elbas by his side, so he would always understand whenever a formation was to fail his expectations. The third tremor made the golden prison fall apart. Shards made of golden light fell toward the ground as those restraints crumbled. King Elbas wore a surprised expression at that scene, but his curiosity soon took the place of his arrogance. Noah tightened his grip on the Demonic Sword and the sword-shaped roots. He was ready for Divine Demon''s return, and he wouldn''t hold anything back against the expert. Wilfred, Luke, Fergie, and the companions did the same, but they remained behind Noah. They trusted him enough to have the first attack of the assault, especially since he had higher chances of sparing Divine Demon''s life. The cocoon of light soon broke. An azure crack spread through the remaining golden light and opened a passage that led to the insides of the prison. A figure soon came out of that tunnel, and the experts eventually became able to witness Divine Demon in all his might. The world didn''t give Divine Demon any energy, but azure light came out of his body and gave birth to the same amount of power that he usually gathered from the world. His monstrous features had vanished. His nails and canines had retracted, and he had also shortened. The expert had returned the Divine Demon that they had always known, but his gaze expressed pure coldness. "You are far from being back, right?" Noah asked while tilting his blades toward Wilfred. "I''m always myself," Divine Demon replied, but his voice was strange. Divine Demon wasn''t speaking normally. His tone morphed and gained different features throughout his lines. No one could understand where those different voices came from. "Don''t worry," Noah replied while keeping his swords pointed toward Divine Demon. "I won''t trust you so easily." "You would be right," Divine Demon announced, and the world in their eyes changed. "I''ve never seen something like this," Noah commented at that sight. Everything in the experts'' vision transformed. Azure lights filled the sky and morphed to take the shape of different techniques. Divine Demon''s aura had filled the region in an instant, and his power had given birth to countless small azure spheres that floated throughout the battlefield. "I seek victories," Divine Demon announced in his strange voice. The lumps of azure light began to gain a purpose, and Noah''s team tried to suppress them. However, those attacks detonated before Divine Demon''s opponents could do anything about it. A wave of energy forced Noah, King Elbas, Wilfred, Luke, and Fergie to slam on the ground. The two hybrids were mostly fine, and even Fergie managed to remain at his peak. The same didn''t apply to Luke and King Elbas. Luke suffered severe injuries, while King Elbas ended up with his back on the ground as he experienced the terror generated by his opponent. Divine Demon remained high in the sky. His hand rose and gathered azure energy that created an array of azure spheres that gained different natures. Those attacks transformed into multiple abilities as they locked on the various opponents. Noah prepared for the imminent clash, but a shadow suddenly appeared behind Divine Demon. A massive pig slammed on the expert''s back and flung him far beyond the edges of the region. Chapter 1632: 1632. Teachings The leader of the Foolery gave voice to a proud squeal. Its aura spread through the region and announced to the audience its new power. The magical beast had succeeded in the breakthrough to the middle tier while the experts were busy with the tournament. Its power was quite breathtaking, and even Noah had to admit that it went far beyond specimens at the same level. "I won''t remain behind!" The Foolery shouted while the battlefield was silent. Noah and the others remained speechless at that announcement. They had never considered bringing a magical beast in the mission, but the Foolery seemed to have a different idea about the matter. Still, the situation didn''t allow them to linger on that issue. The Foolery had flung Divine Demon away, but the world was still giving him energy. That alone explained that the expert had yet to regain complete control of his mind. "Elbas, give me a reason not to kill him!" Noah shouted while dispersing his draconic armor and making his ambition flow into his companions. "I have something that might work," King Elbas said. "I''m not completely in control of this technique, but it should be perfect for Divine Demon." "Perfect!" Noah shouted again. "We aim to kill him if Elbas'' technique fails. Prepare yourselves to say goodbye to your friend." Wilfred, Luke, Fergie, and the Foolery wore stern expressions at that order. They knew that Noah was right, but they still had to muster their determination. It was hard to kill a friend who had been with them for millennia, especially when he wasn''t guilty of any major crime. Divine Demon had only gone berserk, but that alone was a threat that the whole Legion couldn''t underestimate. A figure soon appeared in the distance. Divine Demon had regained his monstrous shape, and a massive wave of azure energy was rotating behind him. The pressure generated by his figure was immense. Noah and the others almost struggled to keep their consciousness unfolded. Divine Demon''s aura was so intense that their mental waves shattered whenever they entered his range. "What''s the plan?" Luke asked while joining his fingers to create a dense rotating sphere between his palms. "Launch your best attacks," Noah ordered. "Divine Demon will survive, but we must weaken him enough to give Elbas a chance. Don''t even try to hold back." "A true expert never holds back!" The Foolery shouted. Noah glanced toward the magical beast before focusing on Divine Demon again. He had felt the urge to have a proper conversation with the creature, but that wasn''t the right situation. Divine Demon ignored that conversation. The faint awareness that he had regained during the previous exchanges had vanished after he became able to affect the world again. The expert couldn''t even speak proper words. He only let out grunts and growls as if he were a hungry beast. Noah was the first to attack. His Demonic Sword and sword-shaped roots touched his forehead, and sharpness spread through his consciousness. Snore unleashed the full power of its feathers, and Duanlong opened its mouth to prepare for the azure energy. Night followed the snake''s attack and fused with the world to exploit the moment of weakness generated by their explosions. Wilfred closed his eyes before joining his palms. Power built around him before dispersing all of a sudden. The space in front of him bent, and an invisible attack shot forward. Luke launched his rotating sphere, which expanded until it transformed into a storm that converged toward Divine Demon. Part of his influence removed the expert''s aura from the azure energy and made it disperse into the world. Fergie created a small version of his sun and threw it forward. The fiery sphere released massive flares far bigger than its actual structure, but the attack didn''t lose power while flying toward Divine Demon. The Foolery almost teleported at the edges of the churning azure energy and began to eat. The creature devoured anything that carried Divine Demon''s aura at an unbelievable speed. It didn''t even seem to care about the destructive power contained in that substance. The attacks converged toward Divine Demon and gave birth to a massive explosion. Multiple techniques detonated on the expert and destroyed the azure energy acc.u.mulated through his law. The whiteness of the sky vanished for a few seconds as those attacks discharged their might. The various powers in those techniques could suppress that light and fill the area with a multicolored radiance. The aftermath of the explosions eventually vanished. The grey smoke that had filled the horizon dispersed and revealed the outcome of the exchange. The azure aura had vanished, and Divine Demon''s body was on the ground. Countless injuries covered his skin. Any expert would die after suffering so many wounds. However, the world couldn''t let Divine Demon die. Cracks opened through the sky and revealed black spaces among their edges as their energy transformed into azure power. The energy flew toward Divine Demon and flowed inside his body. His injuries quickly healed, and his aura soon began to fill the region again. ''How can we even defeat something like this?'' Noah wondered in his mind. Divine Demon''s power made no sense. The expert could do everything since he had the backing of the whole world. He seemed almost unbeatable by existences at the same level. Noah glanced toward King Elbas and found that the cultivator had long since stopped waving his hands. The expert had his eyes closed and his arms lowered. His consciousness didn''t even inspect the battlefield. Noah could recognize when someone was gathering his power to unleash a trump card. King Elbas wasn''t even the type to retreat, so Noah could feel at ease. His instincts had also started to feel something unusual. King Elbas wasn''t using his usual power. He was relying on something entirely different, and Noah couldn''t help but feel curious about that. Divine Demon slowly rose in the sky again, but King Elbas suddenly opened his eyes. His hands remained still, but a strange aura came out of his figure and began to affect the world. The aura locked on Divine Demon before giving the world a purpose. The air then generated dark-blue inscriptions that gave birth to multiple formations. Those techniques flew toward Divine Demon and began to devour his aura. The azure energy that had started to gather around Divine Demon shattered when the formations converged on his position. His aura also stopped spreading through the world and began to flow back into his figure. King Elbas had created the perfect counter to Divine Demon''s law. His new formations could remove the expert''s aura from the "Breath" and force it to retreat. They even affected the energy inside his body. A golden halo started to shine from the dark-blue formations once they neared Divine Demon''s body. Their power increased even if they didn''t draw energy from the world. They seemed attracted by Divine Demon''s law. "We will have to free him as soon as he regains consciousness," King Elbas explained. "These formations are too curious to stop. They will suck him dry if we don''t break them." "I see that you followed my teachings!" Noah shouted when he noticed that King Elbas was using a power suitable for the path toward the ninth rank. "Shut up," King Elbas snorted before nearing Divine Demon. The expert couldn''t do anything against those formations. King Elbas had created a trump card that could counter his very existence. The expert ended up entangled in those dark-blue lines in no time. **** Author''s notes: I''ll take a break tomorrow, so don''t wait for chapters. I''ll make a deal with the old gods to restore my sleeping schedule. They might be able to help. I''ll go buy the sheep for the ritual now. Chapter 1633: 1633. Sadness Divine Demon struggled, but his existence seemed useless against the dark-blue lines. King Elbas'' inscriptions fed on his law and grew stronger as they restrained his powers. Divine Demon couldn''t contact the world anymore. The energy inside his body even stopped transforming his figure. The battle was over, but his mental instability continued to have control of his mind. Noah and the others neared the expert. Fergie and Luke remained behind out of fear for an eventual outburst of energy, but they continued to hover above the battlefield. "I won''t remain behind!" The Foolery shouted as soon as it reached Noah. "We''ll talk about this later," Noah sighed before moving his focus on Divine Demon. "Vict-!" Divine Demon wanted to shout, but the dark-blue lines covered his mouth and began to affect his insides. His power fell as the inscriptions fed on his law. King Elbas'' technique was scary. It resembled a parasite that existed only to suppress and devour Divine Demon''s existence. "You are one scary fella," Wilfred commented while patting King Elbas'' shoulder. "These are simple restraining measures created specifically for him," King Elbas explained. "It would normally take me far longer to make this technique, but Divine Demon has inspired this new power, so I could build something quickly." "Yes, yes," Wilfred nodded and continued to pat King Elbas'' shoulder, but he didn''t even bother to hear the explanation. "That''s obvious," The Foolery said while imitating Wilfred. The magical beast nodded and tried to put its short leg on King Elbas'' other shoulder, but the latter shot a chilling glance toward the creature to stop it. Noah ignored that idiotic scene and inspected Divine Demon. The expert slowly regained his clarity as the energy of the world left his existence. It seemed that his mental instability depended on that power. Muffled noises came out of Divine Demon''s mouth while the expert continued to struggle. Still, his efforts to break free of those restraints lost intensity as his mental instability vanished. The experts watched as Divine Demon''s craziness left his eyes. The cultivator began to inspect his surroundings while wearing a confused expression. He appeared unable to remember how he had ended up there. King Elbas and Noah exchanged a glance before the cultivator waved his hand. The dark-blue lines that covered Divine Demon''s mouth dispersed, so the expert could finally talk again. "Did I win?" Divine Demon asked in a plain tone. Wilfred felt the urge to punch him, but he restrained himself since Divine Demon was too weak to endure his attacks now. "You lost control and tried to kill everyone," Noah explained. "I do that at times," Divine Demon laughed. "I''m still trying to find a way to control that power." "Did you live for millennia with that instability in your power?" King Elbas asked. King Elbas felt shocked. He didn''t expect Divine Demon to be aware of that power. It was even more surprising that the expert did nothing about it during his cultivation journey. "What can I even do?" Divine Demon snorted. "Power is power. It doesn''t matter if I can''t control it. I might forget a lot of things, but my creations mark my existence. They become part of me, and they come out during these outbursts." ''I see,'' Noah thought after the explanation. ''He can''t possibly control something like that. That''s the necessary flaw of the technique.'' Divine Demon could theoretically gain access to all the techniques created throughout his life. That alone was enough to explain how powerful the ability could be. "Can you remove these things now?" Divine Demon asked. "Unless you want to challenge me to do it." King Elbas quickly removed the inscriptions. He didn''t want to hear the word "challenge" anymore. "We have the final team then," Noah explained after everyone gathered around him. "I guess you really want to come along." Noah turned toward the Foolery, and the latter nodded without showing any hesitation. The middle tier pig had already made his mind. "I can feel that something great will happen!" The Foolery shouted. "I want to evolve!" Noah studied the creature with his mental waves. The Foolery had been under the influence of his ambition for millennia already. It wouldn''t be a surprise if its existence evolved into something more than a magical beast. ''That might be interesting to watch,'' Noah thought before inspecting the experts that had to join the mission. Luke, Fergie, the Foolery, Divine Demon, Wilfred, and King Elbas were waiting for his directives. They had yet to decide when to depart. They even had to warn the forces of the human domain about their mindset. "The human organizations won''t leave right away," Noah explained. "We can ask for a few decades to prepare. We might even stretch that period to a century since they want our power." Noah could always recognize when he had the upper hand in a situation. The human forces had to be quite desperate to ask for his help, which meant that he could act as he wished. "Elbas and Luke will take care of buying us time," Noah concluded. "The rest of us will immediately go in seclusion and handle our stuff. Say goodbye to friends and lovers. This mission might last for entire millennia." Those words were mostly for himself. Noah knew that he had to talk with June. The couple had to separate again, but that event was inevitable due to their difference in power. Noah didn''t waste more time in pointless words. The experts separated and went toward their training areas to prepare for the imminent mission. The excitement generated by the tournament soon dispersed. The various underlings resumed their usual routines, and many benefitted from the powers displayed during the battles. Those who had managed to become part of the mission were monsters among existences. They were far stronger than normal experts, and their battle prowess also made no sense at times. All of them could express liquid stage battle prowess, even if some were still in the gaseous stage. The various underlings obviously wanted to achieve the same with their power, and only a firm foundation could lead to those heights. Noah found a familiar figure waiting for him inside his training area. June sat at the center of the blue plain that Noah had claimed for himself, and battle intent flowed out of her body. "Do you want to attack me already?" Noah asked while wearing a smirk. "That would be pointless," June sighed before calming down. "You are improving quickly. I can only be happy for you." Noah inspected his lover, and a tinge of sadness appeared in his mind. June was about to approach the breakthrough to the eighth rank, but she was still too weak. Part of Noah had already considered the worst possible outcome. There was a chance that June would never catch up with his power, and that difference could only lead to a separation. Noah didn''t want that, but he couldn''t deny that possibility either. He would continue to shoot higher in the sky, so June might lose sight of him at some point. "I think I''ll also leave once your mission starts," June revealed while glancing at the sky. "You can''t come with us," Noah sighed. "The whole mission might even be a trap. You will only slow us down." Noah didn''t hold his words back, but June didn''t mind that. They had always spoken the truth to each other, and that wasn''t the time to start lying. "I didn''t mean that," June shook her head. "The Legion and your organization need more lands, but the human forces will soon start expanding again. I will fight them. I want to live the millennia without you on a battlefield." **** Author''s notes: Do you know the feeling when you turn your alarm off, close your eyes, and discover time travel? Well, the chapters will come out in a few hours. Sorry for the delay. Chapter 1634: 1634. Tests Noah and June didn''t let the sadness that lingered in the area make them waste the few years they had before the mission. They cultivated and remained together without ever leaving each other''s side. King Elbas and Luke contacted the forces of the human domain, and they settled for a period of one hundred years to prepare for the mission. All the experts had to polish their techniques and plan life-saving abilities in case something went wrong. A lot could go wrong in a mission like that. Everything could even be a trap set by Heaven and Earth. Noah and the others weren''t even sure whether the human organizations would turn on them. Other worries also lingered in their minds. There was a chance that the human organizations and Heaven and Earth had been honest about the whole matter. The troubles on the other side of the Immortal Lands could be far more threatening than anyone expected. Noah couldn''t develop life-changing abilities in that short time. His companions had already reached a perfect form, his sword-arts were incredible, and his centers of power were nowhere near breakthroughs. Still, Noah could focus on an ability that had been in his mind since the battle between Great Builder and Radiant Eyes. The corrosive aura radiated by the parasite was incredible and could become stronger depending on how many nutrients it absorbed. Yet, it had a short range, and Noah could only use it to support his regular slashes. That was almost a waste of the parasite''s power. The Demonic Form was a living being that could rival powerful existences on its own. Having it as a mere enhancer of his attacks didn''t express its true might. Radiant Eyes'' scarlet aura had inspired Noah. The Demonic Form already had toxic properties due to the fusion with another spell, so it could theoretically act as a ranged attack if handled properly. The parasite''s nature was the main issue in that procedure. The magical plant didn''t want to cooperate with Noah. It only wanted his energy. Noah''s words couldn''t reach the magical plant. The parasite ignored them while continuing to feed on his energy. ''You handle this idiot before I rip it out of my c.h.e.s.t,'' Noah sighed through his mental connection. Snore, the Demonic Sword, Duanlong, and Night handled that part of the procedure. They were similar to the Demonic Form in terms of existence, so they managed to make it understand what Noah wanted to do after a few days. The next step was trickier. Noah wanted to take control of the corrosive aura, fuse it with his ambition, and use it as a ranged attack. However, that power had no owners. Even the parasite couldn''t suppress it. That discovery forced Noah to change his approach. He couldn''t transform the corrosive aura into one of his techniques, but he could give it to the parasite. The procedure changed after that decision. Noah went from trying to suppress the corrosive aura to enhancing it. He had to improve the magical plant to obtain his new technique, but that growth had to happen inside specific limits. Noah wanted the parasite to evolve, but only if it reached a specific state. He wouldn''t accept random mutations, especially when it came to a creature that could hurt him. The black hole took care of that part of the procedure. The organ activated the workshop and tinkered with dense currents of Noah''s ambition. Noah''s law was the perfect material for the process. It naturally forced evolutions, and the workshop could push that power toward specific fields. Of course, Noah had to perform countless tests. He could see if his ambition expressed the intended power only after the materials evolved. Noah had to cut away roots and test his new ambitions on them. It was easy to keep those materials alive inside the dark world, so he could study the effects of the corrosive aura once they evolved. The roots didn''t change after the dense ambition seeped inside their fabric and forced them to evolve. Only the corrosive aura carried the changes that happened during the transformation. The corrosive aura would intensify and obtain different natures depending on the type of ambition used on the roots. That power often became unstable, and it rarely met Noah''s requirements even when it reached a decent form. Noah had to waste entire decades to find the ambition that could produce the intended effects. His tests stopped when he managed to transform the corrosive aura into a dense black substance that seemed attracted by every living being. ''Now the annoying part,'' Noah sighed once he completed those steps. The last phase of the procedure would put him in danger. Noah was about to improve the Demonic Form while it was inside his body. The evolution would require a lot of energy, and the parasite would take it from his tissues. Noah didn''t let the procedure scary him. He had done worse in his life. He still recalled the time when he had to cut his arms to create blades. The workshop created a large amount of the special ambition obtained after the many tests. That energy then flowed inside his c.h.e.s.t and fused with the parasite''s core. The magical plant grew restless when Noah''s ambition forced it to evolve. Its roots spread inside his body and began to drain tissues, muscles, and organs to obtain the energy required in the transformation. A sense of weakness filled Noah''s mind, but he discarded that feeling. His body contained enough energy to sustain the evolution. He wasn''t scared of the parasite''s hunger. The magical plant improved as the evolution took place. The parasite was in the lower tier like the other companions, but its power increased during the transformation. Noah''s body was far above the standards of the middle tier. His physical prowess could match some of the weaker upper tier magical beasts. A magical plant in the gaseous stage saw the primary energy inside his tissues as the best nutrient in the entire world. The black hole helped in the process by shattering part of its dark matter and create more primary energy. The parasite had an endless flow of nutrients at that point, so its growth met no obstructions. The parasite slowly reached the middle tier as its corrosive aura transformed. A black substance began to cover its roots, and its overall shape grew. It began to fill more of Noah''s c.h.e.s.t, but he didn''t feel its weight. The magical plant eventually stopped requiring that massive amount of energy. Its form stabilized, and its hunger also decreased. Noah felt surprised by its new requirements, but he decided to ignore that matter. Noah could only be happy that the parasite required so much energy. That was a clear sign that its power was incredible. ''I finally have a new weapon,'' Noah sighed in his mind after the procedure ended, but a familiar aura suddenly appeared near his training area. "Noah," King Elbas whispered through his mental waves, "It''s time. Everyone is ready." Noah turned toward June. His lover smiled as battle intent built inside her figure. His departure would mark the beginning of her mission. She couldn''t wait to jump into the human domain and create an endless battlefield that could keep her company during their separation. June and Noah didn''t need words. They exchanged a kiss and separated. Noah flew toward King Elbas to join the rest of the team, while June contacted the weaker troops to start the invasion. Chapter 1635: 1635. Space Hounds Noah and the others left the domes and blue lands right away. They were already late, but they didn''t care about that issue. They simply couldn''t wait to start the mission and explore the other side of the Immortal Lands. King Elbas, Wilfred, Divine Demon, Fergie, Luke, Noah, and the Foolery left and flew across countless regions to reach their destination. They could teleport, but they didn''t trust the human forces enough to go there without inspecting the environment. Noah also wanted to fly across the sky to let Heaven and Earth''s pressure improve his mind. Devouring Alexander''s ethereal creatures had made his mental sphere quite frail, and Noah wanted to get rid of that flaw right away. The human forces waited patiently for the experts'' arrival. Noah''s evaluation had been on point. Those organizations were quite desperate for the Legion''s help in the mission. King Elbas made sure that the regions didn''t have any trap or sensor. The group could safely fly toward their destination and inspect the power deployed by the human organizations. Multiple families had decided to join the mission, and Luke described all of them before the experts met. They had also agreed to send only three liquid stage existences each, so there were less than thirty cultivators in the area. "I thought we said that the mission was dangerous," One expert from the Rotway family shouted when it gazed at Noah''s group. ''He is Harold Rotway,'' Luke explained through his mental waves. ''It''s rare to see him out in the human domain since he takes care of few mines of Soul Stones.'' Harold''s eyes were on the Foolery. He could accept that Noah brought existences in the gaseous stage, but he didn''t understand how a magical beast could help. Moreover, the magical beasts were Heaven and Earth''s enemies, while the mission required them to help those rulers. Harold obviously had doubts about that creature. "You can try to convince it to remain behind," Noah sighed. "We all tried." The Foolery took that remark as a compliment and raised its head. The gesture left the human experts confused, but Noah''s group acted as if nothing unusual was happening. "We are ready to leave then," Gloria Sailbrird announced once Noah''s group landed on the ground. "Yes, but I''d like to say something before the mission," Noah said and claimed the experts'' attention. "I still have my doubts about this whole quest," Noah explained. "I don''t trust you, and I have every reason to treat you as enemies. I wouldn''t even decide to cooperate with you if the mission weren''t so interesting." Coldness seeped into his aura, and the same happened to his companions. King Elbas and the others wore stern expressions as they eyed the human experts. "We have already proved our worth," Noah continued. "The human domain couldn''t stop us. The Crystal City has also failed to win after resorting to petty schemes." The human experts began to understand where Noah was going. He was giving voice to a threat meant to remind them about his power. "We will kill all of you if this is a trap," Noah concluded. "We will remove your name from the historical records and destroy every trace of your existence. You will fail if you dare to test us." The atmosphere turned tense. The human experts could immediately understand that Noah was serious, and a chill ran down their spine when they sensed his cold aura. Noah was still a gaseous stage expert, but it was clear that his battle prowess went far beyond that. Those cultivators were theoretically stronger than him, but they felt weaker in front of his might. A few snorts and a couple of laughs eventually resounded among the human experts. They decided to remain silent in front of that threat. Accepting Noah''s words was the only way to make him cooperate. "The passage to the other side is nearby," Gloria explained. "We don''t know when it opened, but we are certain that Heaven and Earth are behind that." "How can you even decide to side with Heaven and Earth after living for so long?" Wilfred complained. "We didn''t," Gloria replied. "Our organizations have experts connected to that power, but we merely exploit it. We aren''t so crazy to curse our lives before hitting the ninth rank." "What about them?" Noah asked while glancing at the trio without emblems. Those three experts came from the secret organization, and Luke recognized only one of them. ''The red-haired woman is Althea,'' Luke explained through his mental waves. ''She is strong even among the liquid stage.'' "Heaven and Earth are the very world," Althea replied while wearing a peaceful smile. The cultivation journey forces us to fight them, but it doesn''t prevent us from seeking their help. They are power, and power is innocent." Noah and the others couldn''t see Heaven and Earth in the same way, and even some experts among the cultivators didn''t agree with Althea''s words. They had experienced those rulers'' suppression throughout their life, so they couldn''t consider them innocent. Silence fell among the group after those short exchanges. The experts flew through the regions and eventually reached a deep ravine filled with white light. The ground of the Immortal Lands usually had azure shades, but that whiteness matched the sky''s color. It was almost obvious that Heaven and Earth had something to do with that structure. "Did you explore something already?" King Elbas asked as a series of inscribed items came out of his space-ring. Sensors and items meant to study the ravine spread through the structure and sent data back to his mind. King Elbas could instantly learn some important information, and he even confirmed the presence of Heaven and Earth''s aura. Yet, King Elbas couldn''t sense anything past the edges of that massive hole. Something was blocking his items. It was as if the insides of the ravine led to a different dimension. "We didn''t dare to go past its edges," Gloria explained. "I believe you can sense it too. Heaven and Earth want us to reach the other side quickly." Noah glanced toward King Elbas, but the expert could only shrug his shoulders. Gloria had spoken the truth, but the problem remained. He couldn''t understand what was waiting for them. "It''s similar to a dimensional passage," King Elbas said. "It won''t lead us directly on the other side, but it will shorten our journey consistently. I can''t speak about eventual threats, sadly." ''A dimensional tunnel shouldn''t have a fauna,'' Noah thought before landing on the edges of the ravine. His consciousness spread, and his instincts took over his senses. Noah tried to understand whether the dimensional tunnel leaked something that could clear his doubts, but nothing came out of it. "We tried everything already," Harold snorted. "How could you discover something that we couldn''t find?" A laugh followed his comment, and a tense aura began to build between the experts from the Rotway family and Noah''s group. "Divine Demon," Noah suddenly said without moving his eyes from the white depths of the ravine, "I bet you can''t tell me whether magical beasts live inside this tunnel." "Everyone knows that my divinatory techniques stand at the peak of the higher plane," Divine Demon shouted before closing his eyes. The world began to send energy toward his mind, and an ethereal cloud soon appeared around his head. An azure light also seeped out of Divine Demon''s closed eyes and illuminated the area. "A species capable of moving through dimension is currently in control of the dimensional tunnel," Divine Demon revealed in an ancient voice. "The species'' name is Space Hounds. They might also have a rank 9 specimen among them." Chapter 1636: 1636. Exploration The group from the human forces didn''t believe Divine Demon''s claims. They couldn''t trust a rank 8 cultivator when it came to that inspection. Their best inscription masters had tried and failed in studying the dimensional tunnel. In their minds, an expert couldn''t reach better conclusions in such a short amount of time. On the other hand, Noah and the others wore stern expressions. They knew how powerful Divine Demon could be, especially when challenged. They immediately covered themselves in defensive techniques and inscriptions since he had confirmed the presence of an enemy pack inside the dimensional tunnel. That serious reaction made some of the experts from the human organization wonder whether that scene was an act. They could guess that Noah and the others wanted to give the Legion some credit, but they didn''t believe that their companions would go to such lengths to prove it. After all, Noah''s team didn''t need to brag. Their fame had already spread through the whole higher plane. Defeating the Crystal City on multiple occasions had been enough to turn them into the most famous experts in the Immortal Lands. The human organizations had also learnt about Radiant Eyes'' defeat. They didn''t know the details behind that feat, but they were aware that Noah''s group had something to do with it. Having experts who had managed to take care of a rank 9 threat as their companions was incredible. Some of the cultivators from the human organizations even wanted to use the mission to establish a friendly relationship with Noah''s organization. The oldest forces could understand how the political environment would evolve. Siding with the organization containing the higher number of monsters was the best approach in any situation. Noah was one of the few experts who didn''t activate any defensive technique. Wilfred and the Foolery imitated him, but their actions had no connection with those events. They simply didn''t need inscriptions or protections. "We are ready when you are," Noah eventually said without moving his eyes from the ravine. Gloria, Harold, and Althea soon tried to push the other experts to cooperate. Someone had to lead the group inside the dimensional tunnel, and Noah''s team had no intention to take the vanguard role. The team from the Monneay family eventually took the lead and crossed the edges of the ravine. The trio''s figures disappeared once they entered that whiteness, and their auras even stopped reaching the surface. Gloria glanced at Noah, but the latter only pointed at the ravine. His team would be the last to enter the dimensional tunnel. He wanted that group to think that Divine Demon could also sense the imminent threats. Some experts wanted to complain. Noah and the others were the less trustworthy existences among them. Yet, they couldn''t say anything on the matter, especially since Noah''s force was a guest among those teams. The experts slowly began to enter the ravine, and Noah''s team soon remained alone on the surface. Everyone else had gone inside the dimensional tunnel, leaving only his experts on the outside world. "We can still turn back," Noah teased his companions, who gave voice to snorts and loud complaints. The experts had no intention to leave. They knew that they had to play along to maintain their stern scene, but the dimensional tunnel was too interesting to ignore. The Foolery quickly shot toward the whiteness, but Wilfred stopped its flight. The magical beast was reckless, but the hybrid couldn''t let it take all the risks on itself. Wilfred and the Foolery ended up crossing the edges of the crack together. Fergie and Luke followed them, and the rest of the group soon imitated their companions. Noah was the last to enter the whiteness. The scenery in his vision changed as soon as he crossed those edges. His consciousness also became able to sense the difference between the two environments. The outside world was calm but also full of life. Instead, the dimensional tunnel appeared as a dead environment that couldn''t offer anything. Dark rocky walls filled Noah''s vision. He found himself in an underground structure that resembled the lands in the lower planes. He couldn''t see any white light or higher power in that terrain. King Elbas and the others experienced a similar surprise. Even the experts from the human domain felt the same. The dimensional tunnel didn''t seem to have anything interesting, but the existences ignored that feature due to the possible rewards on the other side of the Immortal Lands. Noah''s senses began to send strange signals toward his mind. His mental waves could pick the traces of unique magical beasts inside that environment, but he couldn''t understand where they lived. King Elbas and the other inscription masters reached similar conclusions, and they didn''t hesitate to convey them to their companions. They were in a foreign environment filled with empty areas, but danger lingered in the air. A strange tension also fell among them, but they couldn''t pinpoint the source of that sensation. Noah felt quite happy about that. He wanted the mission to be hard since he needed to improve faster, and only troubles could give him that. "Divine Demon was right," One of the experts in Harold''s team announced. "We are entering a pack''s domain. Some of these areas might hide spies in special spots that we have yet to recognize. We need to spread to cover more ground." "No spreading," Noah firmly replied. "Your organizations didn''t even bother to send a decent number of troops. I won''t listen to your orders." His remark made a series of angry glances turn toward him. Noah ignored the stares and abided by his role. He wanted to make it clear that his group was more important than the other experts. It wasn''t hard to find the right direction in that place. The experts only had to go down to dive deeper into the Immortal Lands. The group began to descend, and the first part of their journey went smoothly. The experts even decided to take a few breaks and focus on their cultivation during that exploration. Noah didn''t mind using those extra days to cultivate. His centers of power always needed improvements, and his friends had the same idea about the matter. Cultivating in that area slowed down the mission, but a careful approach was the best path in a foreign environment. The tunnel also came from Heaven and Earth, so Noah had no reason to hurry. The team eventually found actual traces of the fauna. The exploration of the underground structure had continued smoothly, but chunks of fur and distorted space soon appeared in their vision. Noah immediately put his expertise into use. The fur couldn''t tell him much about those magical beasts, but the areas of distorted space spoke for their innate ability. They were clear clues about the magical beasts sensed by Divine Demon. The dimensional tunnel barely had any flaw. The terrain inside it wasn''t the product of inscriptions or similar techniques. It was actual ground that didn''t contain much power. The environment was also stable and could endure the pressure radiated by the group. However, those few spots could tell Noah about the passage of creatures that could ignore the boundaries among dimensions. Only that conclusion could explain why the tunnel featured those clear marks in such a stable environment. Chapter 1637: 1637. Assault Having distorted space inside a dimensional tunnel wouldn''t typically force the experts to worry about their surroundings. However, Divine Demon had already confirmed the species of the pack in charge of that environment, and Noah knew something about those magical beasts. The Space Hounds were unusual creatures. Very few records kept track of their existence. Noah had learnt about them inside the libraries of the Sailbrird family. Still, he had guessed the rest of their features through his expertise. The areas of distorted space completed the puzzle about his idea of those magical beasts. It became clear that the Space Hounds could walk freely through the edges of the dimensions, and that led to a scary conclusion. Those magical beasts could already be around the group. Noah had no way of confirming the presence of that threat from inside the dimensional tunnel, but he could guess that some scout had already noticed their arrival. The Space Hounds weren''t famous for their intelligence, but Noah''s worry came from the usual behavior of the magical beasts. The arrival of an external threat inside a lair would often force the entire pack to act, and that meant attracting dangerous specimens. "Prepare for battle," Noah whispered, but all the experts in the area heard him. His words were for his companions, but some of the experts from the human organizations listened to his advice. His friends did the same, while the most arrogant cultivators decided to ignore that warning. It was hard to believe in such a warning when the group only found pieces of fur. The distorted space didn''t even classify as a clue to the Hounds'' presence since it could be a common sight inside dimensional tunnels. The layers among the dimensions prevented Noah from learning more about that fauna, but his instincts told him that a threat was approaching him. His dangerous sensation also intensified as the group continued to dive through the dimensional tunnel. The Demonic Sword and his companions came out of the separate space on their own after the dangerous sensation reached a critical intensity. Those creatures were almost sure that something was about to fall on Noah, so they prepared for a fierce battle. Mocks resounded through the dimensional tunnel when the arrogant experts saw that scene. They couldn''t understand why Noah was so scared, but an explanation soon appeared in their vision. The space around the group suddenly began to bend. The terrain and air in the area twisted until it gained dark features. It seemed that something had broken, but that was only the beginning of the event. A series of tall figures slowly flew out of that distorted space. Dog-like creatures with silverish fur and a series of black signs on their back came out of those spots and leapt toward the experts without bothering to launch battle cries. Noah''s senses immediately screamed. Most of those rank 8 magical beasts were in the lower and middle tier, but two were in the upper tier. ''This is a proper platoon!'' Noah shouted in his mind at that sight. The pack wasn''t underestimating the invading team. Those magical beasts had sent enough troops to wipe them away, but those creatures appeared far below the average in terms of pure battle prowess. The ability to travel through dimensions was an incredible tool that Heaven and Earth had definitely punished. Noah didn''t believe that such unique magical beasts could keep their innate skills without having serious drawbacks in other fields. Heaven and Earth usually lowered the fertility of a species to punish it, but they took drastic measures when certain innate abilities went overboard. They had done the same with the Light-devouring Dragons, so Noah guessed that his opponents had to be inside specific standards to remain outside those rulers'' radar. The tall Hounds shot forward, and their figures turned ethereal while flying across the dimensional tunnel. The experts quickly launched attacks, but their spells crossed those magical beasts and landed on the dark walls behind the distorted space. The two upper tier specimens immediately went after the experts from the Monneay family. The three cultivators were in the group''s lead, so they became the target of those magical beasts. The rest of the pack assaulted the group. Small teams of lower and middle tier Space Hounds charged at the other experts while showing their fangs to the world. Noah studied the creatures flying toward him. He waited until those magical beasts turned material, and his blade immediately flashed at that sight. The four magical beasts in the lower tier that had decided to attack Noah quickly regained a material form, but a storm of singularities landed on their figures. Their bodies almost disappeared after those attacks crossed them. The rest of the group handled that threat quite well. The Space Hounds were nothing more than hungry magical beasts after their bodies returned material, so a few spells could take them down. That didn''t apply to the two upper tier specimens. They appeared able to turn specific spots of their body ethereal and dodge most of the attacks that flew in their direction. The exchange for the experts of the Monneay family turned out poorly. Their opponents were quite threatening, and one of them managed to reach one of the cultivators. The expert found the creature''s teeth stabbed on her arm before she even had a chance to retreat. The cultivator had tried all her techniques to keep the Space Hound away, but the magical beast didn''t let those abilities reach it. The creature turned most of its body ethereal before materializing its teeth and ripping away the cultivator''s arm. Nothing could stop that attack. Even King Elbas would struggle in the task. Noah''s focus returned to his friends after he witnessed the cultivator losing her arm. His Demonic Sword cut the air non-stop, and sharpness acc.u.mulated on his surroundings. Noah could make singularities appear whenever one of the magical beasts in the area turned material, but one of the experts from the human forces seemed to do better than him. The cultivator had created a gravitational pull around him. The force attracted the creatures even in their ethereal form, and it seemed able to damage them in that status. The technique ended up backfiring on the expert since a horde of magical beasts gathered around him and tried to jump on his figure at the same time. Noah had to handle that issue, and his companions soon supported him. A series of singularities that carried a dark aura opened around the expert and allowed him to ignore the imminent threats. The cultivator couldn''t sense much among that destruction, but he quickly turned toward Noah to nod. The expert was expressing his gratitude, and Luke didn''t hesitate to describe him. The cultivator knew him as Isaac from the Putgan family. He wasn''t famous, but he wasn''t unknown either. Harold, Althea, and other experts who had benefitted from Noah''s calculated destruction tried to exploit that event and seize a few intact corpses. The Space Hounds could lead to the next discoveries regarding teleports and separate dimensions, so all the group members wanted those creatures. Still, when the experts were about to contend the few intact corpses, King Elbas appeared among them and stored those bodies before returning near Noah. Chapter 1638: 1638. Important "I need them for my research," King Elbas commented before focusing on the battle again. Harold and Althea could only ignore that event and resume their relentless discharge of abilities. There were too many magical beasts in the area, and they had yet to decide how to handle the two upper tier creatures. That wasn''t the time to overthink petty thefts. The battle grew harsher even if the number of specimens diminished. The Space Hounds had a limited fighting style, but they could adapt to the experts'' abilities and become material only after making sure they were safe. The unusual battle style of that species made most experts struggle to keep up. Even Noah''s team didn''t expect something like that. Wilfred and the Foolery didn''t manage to do much since their abilities were predictable. Noah limited himself to spread his sharpness throughout the battlefield. He let the others fight and waited for the perfect moment when to unleash his singularities. His attacks could kill many magical beasts at the same time, so he didn''t waste his efforts chasing single specimens. His slashes were even quite effective against middle tier specimens. Noah''s physical prowess surpassed those creatures by leaps and bounds, so his attacks were deadly abilities capable of severing their bodies in half. The trio from the secret organization ended up joining the experts from the Monneay family against the upper tier Space Hounds. Instead, the others took care of the rest of the horde and made sure not to suffer any significant injury during the battle. Noah eventually found a good chance when to unleash his sharpness. Many Space Hounds had decided to attack the trio from the Putgan family, but a series of singularities opened around them and killed multiple creatures. Harold tried to seize a few corpses again, but Noah unfolded the dark world and took those corpses for himself. He wouldn''t let others grab such peculiar magical beasts without storing many of them inside his separate space first. "I need them for my hunger," Noah explained before resuming his role in the battle. Harold couldn''t say much, but it was clear that his mood had darkened. He was fighting like everyone else, but Noah''s team had already stolen his loot twice. Still, complaining during the battle was pointless. Noah and King Elbas were even quite helpful against those creatures due to their experience and ability with formations. Arguing now would only put the whole group in danger. The trio from the Saibrird family eventually joined the cultivators fighting the upper tier specimens. Those nine experts were doing their best to defend themselves while waiting for openings, and their cultivation level barely allowed them to match those powerful opponents. Noah felt relieved when he noticed that his companions weren''t leaving everything on his team. The experts from the other families had started to understand those magical beasts, and their battle style adapted to their abilities. A large group of Space Hounds soon tried to help their leaders. They didn''t want to fight Gloria and the others. Their purpose was to distract the cultivators enough to let the two upper tier creatures escape the relentless assault. Noah took that chance to unleash his sharpness again. Waves of singularities and dark matter filled the area and saved the nine cultivators from that new threat. Strange expressions appeared on those experts after they realized what Noah had done. They didn''t like to feel indebted to an enemy of the human domain, but they couldn''t deny that his role was crucial in the battle. Harold tried to seize some corpses again. He didn''t even try to take all of them at that time, but a figure still appeared on his path and made him curse loudly. "I don''t need them," Wilfred said while waving his hand and storing those corpses. "I just want to piss you off." That statement left Harold speechless, but Wilfred retreated before the cultivator could find a proper answer. The hybrid''s role was also quite crucial in the battle. He had to make sure that no Space Hound had the chance to attack Noah and the others. The battlefield had quickly divided the experts into two sides. Part of them could invent or modify techniques to counter the Space Hounds'' innate ability. Others had to limit their efforts on defending their companions since they couldn''t touch those creatures. Wilfred, the Foolery, and Fergie belonged to the second side. Their techniques weren''t flexible, so they could only focus on defending their companions. Instead, Divine Demon, King Elbas, and Luke could adapt to that threat. Their abilities also allowed them to affect the Space Hounds in their ethereal form. They were the core part of that battle. Noah was between the two sides. He could try to affect the Space Hounds in their ethereal form, but he preferred to hold back and attack the magical beasts only when they turned material. He didn''t want to launch attacks that had no chance to kill those creatures to disrupt their innate ability. He preferred to unleash deadly slashes and take out of the battle as many specimens as possible. The pack quickly shrunk as the battle continued. The cultivators didn''t suffer many injuries, and they could mostly ignore the few wounds that appeared on their bodies. Only those fighting against the upper tier specimens had a harsher time remaining safe, but their condition had improved by a lot after the reinforcements arrived. The experts could soon turn their attention on the two leaders after they took care of the pack. Yet, the magical beasts decided to leave the battlefield once they understood their position. Noah and the others had taken care of tens of specimens without suffering any loss. The Space Hounds'' intelligence was below the average, but they could understand when a battle was over. The experts gave voice to loud curses and taunts once the two upper tier creatures opened a path through the distorted space and disappeared from the area. Their departure marked the end of the battle and made all the existences relax. Most of those experts turned toward Noah. They had to admit that he had been able to sense that threat before the space showed signs of distortion. His senses were too reliable to ignore. Everyone had noticed Noah''s behavior toward Harold, but no one talked about it. Even Harold decided to let go of the matter to avoid pointless discussions. The battle had shown how Noah and his companions were necessary to that mission. They could even take care of important roles that only hybrids could fulfill. Moreover, King Elbas was an inscription master that even liquid stage experts had to respect. Those who knew about formations had seen how the cultivator had handled the Space Hounds, and they could only approve his approach. Noah didn''t care about that acknowledgment. An obvious conclusion had appeared in his mind during the battle, and he couldn''t help but worry about it. The pack of Space Hounds had managed to send two upper tier specimens and an entire army of creatures in the eighth rank during the first attack. Only a powerful pack could deploy so many specimens at the same time, and that high number of rank 8 creatures hinted at the presence of an even stronger magical beast. Noah felt almost sure that the dimensional tunnel hid a rank 9 specimen, and he had no idea how to handle that issue. **** Author''s notes: I''ll take a break tomorrow, so don''t wait for chapters. I''ll make a deal with the old gods to restore my sleeping schedule. They might be able to help. I''ll go buy the sheep for the ritual now. Chapter 1639: 1639. Strategy The group decided to rest after the battle. Those experts didn''t suffer many injuries, but the fight had been tiring nonetheless. The sheer number of Space Hounds and their annoying power had forced Noah and the others to fight for a long time to defeat the entire pack. A simple platoon had also threatened their safety, so the experts needed to reorganize and create battle plans. The magical beasts were theoretically easy to fight, especially for a group that featured multiple experts. Every species had specific flaws that existences who wielded many abilities could exploit. The Space Hounds weren''t an exception, but their innate ability was quite annoying to counter. Only some experts had attacks that could touch those creatures once their bodies became ethereal. The battle didn''t only clear eventual doubts about the Space Hounds. It also made the group gain an idea of the overall strength of its members. The cultivators from the Monneay family had proven themselves worthy after keeping the two upper tier magical beasts busy, but other experts also gained a decent reputation during those exchanges. Everyone acknowledged Divine Demon and Wilfred''s power, and the same went for their weaker companions. The cultivators almost couldn''t believe how Noah and the others could do so well in a battle against hordes of rank 8 magical beasts. Noah''s battle prowess wasn''t a surprise since those cultivators had heard stories about him, and seeing him in an actual fight made them understand that he deserved that fame. Instead, the others came out as a surprise, especially when it came to King Elbas. The cultivator had quickly understood the Space Hounds'' flaws, and he had adapted his abilities to counter those creatures. That battle prowess and Noah''s judgment made his group gain a decent reputation among the cultivators. The initial arrogance showed by some of those experts vanished after the fight. It was clear that Noah''s team could help them greatly. "Are you sure that this place holds a rank 9 specimen?" Isaac Putgan asked after the experts healed and gathered on the dark ground. "I don''t see how such a large pack can exist without a rank 9 leader," Noah explained. Noah''s judgment had been on point before, so the cultivators began to value his opinion when it came to the fauna in the dimensional tunnel. Accepting the presence of a rank 9 magical beast wasn''t easy, but the situation wasn''t completely hopeless. "We might be lucky enough to avoid it," Harold said to disrupt the tension that had fallen among the group. "Weaker species usually have a tight control over their lair," Noah explained while shaking his head. "We even have to make this path twice. Missing the leader is impossible." "What do you suggest?" Althea asked while turning toward the experts of the Legion. "Can you repeat what you did with Radiant Eyes? My team will give you full support in that matter." "The Putgan family will do the same," Isaac announced. "The Sailbrird family won''t retreat if you have an actual plan," Gloria continued. "Same goes for my group," Harold added. "I only wish that your plan is solid. I like to be alive." The other teams followed that trend and expressed their willingness to follow the Legion against the rank 9 leader, but Noah and his friends could only exchange awkward smiles at that scene. The human organizations had already left the human domain when Noah and the others teleported on the pyramid. Their sensors didn''t even work with rank 9 existences since their power disrupted the correct functioning of those inscribed items. Most forces ignored how the Legion had escaped from Radiant Eyes. They knew that Heaven and Earth had intervened at some point, but they could understand that they didn''t manage to take care of that threat. Noah and the others wouldn''t be alive otherwise. "We can''t use the same method," Noah explained shortly. "We might need to face the rank 9 leader with our own forces." "Which is impossible," Gloria commented. Noah glanced at King Elbas, but the expert appeared distracted. His mind was elsewhere as he pondered about that issue and tried to find a solution. "I can''t create something to stop the leader," King Elbas eventually sighed. "We don''t have the power to face a magical beast at that level. The task would be hard even if we were in the solid stage." "Is that it?" Fay Sinnell asked. "Do we retreat before the situation becomes too dangerous?" "I don''t want to give up on the mission so easily," Althea complained. "Heaven and Earth have issued this mission. There has to be a way to get past this problem." "We might need to get creative to reach the other side," Noah sighed, and the other experts soon turned toward him. Even his friends felt surprised about those words. They studied Noah while wearing questioning gazes. Wilfred and the others knew how amazing Noah was, but the matter involved a rank 9 magical beast. He couldn''t have weapons against a creature at that level. Noah took one of the dead Space Hounds from his separate space. Harold snorted at the sight of that almost intact corpse, but he didn''t give voice to complaints. "These marks should work like the runes of the Kesier species," Noah explained while pointing at the Hound''s back. "A higher number of marks describes a better proficiency in the dimensional travel." "Many of us have noticed that feature," Daisy Newhall complained. "You aren''t the only expert in the magical beasts'' field here." "The power of the Kesier species comes from similar marks," Noah continued, ignoring Daisy''s words. "It''s safe to assume that the same goes from the Space Hounds. These spots might be the key behind their dimensional travel, so they can also be the core to a weapon that counters that ability." His words immediately made King Elbas widen his eyes, and the same went for the other inscription masters in the area. They had understood something that Noah had yet to explain, so they quickly took out their sensors to study the marks. "The fabric of space is quite firm here," Noah continued. "Piercing it requires a lot of power, even from species that can travel through it. I wonder if we can create something to stop the Space Hounds before they reach our position." Space bent before the arrival of the Space Hounds. Those creatures left distorted areas after their passage, so their travel through dimensions wasn''t completely natural. Noah wanted to exploit that feature. The marks could contain deep secrets about the laws connected to space, and the experts could turn them into weapons that made the environment even sturdier. Fighting an endless horde of rank 8 magical beasts led by a rank 9 specimen was impossible. However, preventing them from reaching their surroundings was doable, especially since space would work against them. "We can go past that," King Elbas explained as ideas finally surged in his mind. "Sealing the space around us is a good plan, but we have to take into consideration that the rank 9 leader will have nigh-endless physical strength. It might enter this dimension anyway." "What do you suggest?" Noah asked. "We can turn space itself into a weapon," King Elbas continued. "I can recreate the Space Hounds'' innate ability and close the distortions at will. I believe even rank 9 specimens won''t be able to enter a dimension when their power works against them." Chapter 1640: 1640. Weapon Noah didn''t know how to turn those marks into an inscribed item that could control the Space Hounds'' innate ability. His expertise covered different fields, and ideas on how to fuse those materials with his techniques already filled his mind. Yet, Noah also had a vast experience facing threats that his cultivation level didn''t allow him to overcome. He had often relied on tricks and shameless tactics to win certain battles, especially when it came to his time in the lower plane. His idea to turn the runes into a weapon was crucial to developing a strategy to give the group a chance against the rank 9 leader. King Elbas and the other inscription masters immediately began to work on those marks, but the experts didn''t stop their advance. The inscription masters required materials to create the intended weapon. Most Space Hounds only had three to four marks, and they weren''t enough to cover the needs of the tests. Noah, King Elbas, and Wilfred also didn''t want to give up on their loot for the team''s sake. They preferred to advance through the dimensional tunnel and hope in new attacks to gather more materials. The dimensional tunnel seemed to have checkpoints. Noah and the others would travel for months without meeting magical beasts, only to find a massive army waiting for them in the following areas. Noah guessed that the dimensional innate ability didn''t give the Space Hounds complete control over that area. That power probably had limits, which would even explain how that species had decent fertility. King Elbas and the other inscription masters soon confirmed his guess. Studying those marks gave them a deeper understanding of the laws concerning space. The experts could eventually find weaker spots in the fabric of the dimensional tunnel that the Space Hounds used for their attacks. The inscription masters didn''t hide their discoveries from the rest of the group. They passed their understanding to their companions so that all of them could learn to find where the Space Hounds were likely to appear. The development of the inscribed weapons proceeded smoothly since the group always found new materials. Those experts ended up having so many corpses that they started side-projects while the inscription masters handled the main aspect of the plan. The marks interested Noah. He could sense that the laws contained inside those materials would help his movement techniques, but his ideas didn''t stop there. The dark world had always been a powerful technique, but his opponents rarely gave him the chance to use it properly. Noah often fought experts stronger than him, so the dark matter failed to affect their laws. That weakness was inevitable, but the evolution of the dark matter limited those flaws. The dark world could affect liquid stage experts at its current power, but it was too frail to be important in those battles. Noah mostly used the dark world to support his other techniques, but he didn''t dare to forget about it. The ability was a natural evolution of the domains, and it could still improve. ''The six elements can''t be the limits of the dark world,'' Noah thought during one of the usual breaks. ''It can''t have light due to my nature, but I should be able to add something else. I wonder if I can create a dark space after studying these marks.'' Noah would never waste time learning how to wield Heaven and Earth''s laws. He preferred to copy and transform them into personal versions of the same true meanings and add them to his existence. ''Maybe I can even add time to the dark world,'' Noah wondered. ''I already have a first version of dark time thanks to Shandal''s existence, but it needs far more work to become something that belongs only to me.'' Limits that had always afflicted his existence began to vanish as his power increased. Noah was already a rank 8 expert who knew the path toward the ninth rank. His influence naturally started to flow into fields that he had never dared to affect before. The travel resumed before the experts took another break. The group had developed a silent cooperation during that period, and tension built as they dived deeper into the dimensional tunnel. The number of upper tier magical beasts continuously increased. Every new battle featured more creatures at that level. The group was clearly about to approach the center of the pack, and they even began to expect the rank 9 leader to appear soon. That tension forced the inscription masters to work even harder and eventually led the entire group to stop the exploration until those experts developed the weapon. They had reached the point when it was too dangerous to proceed without their trump card. Noah lost himself in his tests while King Elbas and the other experts continued their project. He had to give up on part of his loot to help the team, but he kept most of those corpses for himself. ''This ability is far different from Miss Void''s technique,'' Noah thought during his tests. ''It affects a different aspect of space, something that I''ve only destroyed in the past.'' It was normal to face those difficulties, especially since Noah didn''t want to copy the Space Hounds. He only d.e.s.i.r.ed to understand how they affected the space before creating his version of that power. His studies remained inconclusive since King Elbas and the others eventually completed their procedure. They created a series of disposable upper tier orbs that could force the space to stabilize and reinforce the barriers among the dimensions. King Elbas even believed that the distorted areas would close on their own after the items activated, but he couldn''t test that. He had spots with distorted space at hand, but he lacked enough materials to make new disposable weapons. The group decided to resume their travel after the inscription masters succeeded in their feat. The tension didn''t vanish since they still had to face a rank 9 creature, but their fears lost intensity. The experts even took fewer breaks since they didn''t need to focus on their strategy anymore. A few battles without any trace of the rank 9 leader followed their departure. The experts took that chance to gather as many corpses as possible, but they didn''t have much success in that field. The platoons of Space Hounds now featured almost ten upper tier specimens, and they required most of the experts to suppress them. Only the few existences that avoided that battle could gather corpses, but they failed to reach a decent number most of the time. The Space Hounds didn''t even remain in those areas for a long time. They mostly tried to inflict some damage with their sudden attacks, but they always retreated with they saw their numbers falling. Fighting those magical beasts had almost become a habit for the experts. Their studies had led them to develop battle tactics that could ignore the overwhelming difference in numbers. Everything seemed to go smoothly, even better than the first part of the journey. The Space Hounds'' attacks also stopped being a reckless charge but turned into precise assaults meant to weaken the group. That situation didn''t last since the group eventually met what they feared. The dimensional tunnel shook as areas of distorted space appeared around the group. The experts had reached another checkpoint, and they had predicted that outcome. Yet, something different happened during that event. The distorted space in one area expanded until it covered half of the tunnel. A silverish halo also seeped out of that twisted air and announced the arrival of something powerful. A dense aura spread through the dimensional tunnel as the rank 9 leader peeked out of its twisted space and moved its hungry eyes on the group. Drool even fell from the creature''s mouth, and a deafening growl filled the area. The terrain and rocky walls trembled as those loud growls spread through the air and reached Noah''s group. The experts had to recall their consciousness to resist the pressure that its voice carried. Chapter 1641: 1641. Pressure The sole presence of a rank 9 creature was enough to suppress every other existence in the area. Noah''s team could barely withstand the heavy pressure generated by the leader of the Space Hounds, and the creature had yet to leave the distorted space. Only the leader''s head had crossed the distorted space. The rest of its body was still inside a different dimension, but its hunger could already force the experts to deploy defensive measures. It was clear what would happen once the leader stepped on the dimensional tunnel with its entire body. Noah and the others would die without having the chance to escape. The rank 9 creature was in a different realm. Of course, their strategy saw them activating the inscribed weapons before that event. King Elbas didn''t hesitate to shatter the dark orb in his palm. The cultivator always wielded one of those items when space began to bend, so he was ready to activate it even during the suppression of the leader. The orb didn''t make any sound when it crumbled. Its shards flew toward different areas of the dimensional tunnel and fused with the fabric of the environment to reinforce the space. Something strange happened in the areas with distorted space after the shards fused with the environment. The dimensional tunnel forced its fabric to stabilize, reverting the Space Hounds'' effects. The areas with distorted spaces were portals for the Space Hounds. Those creatures could use them to fly through different dimensions, so they didn''t expect them to close on their bodies before they could step on the tunnel. The Space Hounds experienced the collapse of their passages. The pressure inside the areas with distorted space increased as the instabilities flowed toward their center. The magical beasts had to use their entire physical might to resist that pressure and make a quick decision. They had to choose whether to retreat or jump into the dimensional tunnel. The angry growls of the leader soon forced its underlings to ignore a possible retreat. The rank 9 Space Hound was the only specimen among the platoon that could keep its portal open with its physical might, so it could continue to give orders even in that dangerous situation. One of the inscription masters, a member of Althea''s team, shattered an inscribed orb to force the space to stabilize quickly. More shards fused with the environment and fought the innate abilities of the enemy pack. The leader gave voice to an angry roar when it felt the portal closing on its neck. The inscribed orbs didn''t carry much power, but they could borrow the space''s weight to fend off those creatures. Noah and the others almost fainted when the roar reached their ears. The pressure carried by that cry even forced them to disregard the defenses on their limbs to focus everything on their core organs. The rank 9 specimen didn''t need to do much to kill them. Roars were enough to put an end to their life. Noah felt incredibly weak in front of such a creature. He had already experienced a similar feeling, but it always managed to surprise him. The innate inferiority felt in front of a rank 9 magical beast wasn''t something that Noah could ignore. His instincts were weak against creatures at that level. The dark world had to help to stabilize his mind to allow him to remain calm. Wilfred also managed to keep his cool in that situation. The hybrid already had a leader, so it was easier for him not to fall for the Space Hound''s orders. The Foolery didn''t have it as easy as its companions. The pig was nothing more than a magical beast, so the rank 9 Space Hound had a lot of influence on its instincts. Still, an inscription master from the Rotway family suddenly shattered a third disposable orb and accelerated the stabilization of the area. The rank 9 Hound soon had to ignore Noah''s group to focus on its passage. Its physical strength had begun to fall short against that power. It couldn''t fight space when the world itself wanted it to stabilize. Heads fell on the ground as the weaker Space Hounds failed to defend against the closing tunnels. Some of them found their bodies divided in half after they crossed their distorted space. Those underlings couldn''t retreat due to their leader''s orders, but the results of that decision were catastrophic. Even some of the upper tier creatures died once space fell on them. Noah and the others couldn''t rejoice at that scene since their senses had to remain shut to stabilize their mind. The leader had stopped focusing its cries on them, but it still filled the environment with its dangerous aura. An inscription master from the Sinnell family activated a fourth orb. The experts wouldn''t hold back their inscribed weapons since that dangerous situation had yet to end. A deafening roar filled the dimensional tunnel. The might carried by that cry made some of the experts faint and crash on the ground. Even the Foolery, Fergie, and Luke couldn''t endure that pressure anymore and fell. The innate defenses of those existences activated. Their centers of power wouldn''t let an external aura prey on their moment of weakness. They even deployed spells that those experts had previously prepared. Only the Foolery found it difficult to remain asleep. The creature didn''t have any special technique, so it had to endure the full power of the Space Hound''s aura. The pig puked blood, but it remained alive since it didn''t have a mental sphere to shatter. The heavy aura eventually started to retreat. Noah could finally find a moment to open his eyes and inspect the scene. The other experts did the same, and the sight of the battlefield left them speechless. Countless heads and maimed corpses filled the ground, and only one spot still featured distorted space. The last spot with distorted space belonged to the leader, but the creature had already disappeared from that area. Only its faint presence continued to seep out of that passage, and that was enough to suppress the experts. King Elbas turned toward one of the inscription masters and nodded. The latter quickly wielded another dark orb and shattered it to reinforce the area once more. The last spot with distorted space finally began to close. Its instabilities quickly vanished, and the leader''s aura stopped reaching that part of the dimensional tunnel. The experts fell on the ground after the pressure left their minds. Even Noah felt exhausted after that experience. Facing a rank 9 creature had left him drained. "Did we really do it?" Fay Sinnell asked while turning toward the companions who were still awake. "Seems so," Gloria replied as her gaze turned toward Noah. Gloria knew that a large part of the merit had to go to the inscription masters, but she respected Noah for his idea. He had started that whole procedure in the end. His plan to fend off a rank 9 creature had worked perfectly. The most surprising aspect of that matter was that Noah didn''t see the rank 9 existences as unbeatable beings. Even creatures that stood at the peak of the cultivation journey couldn''t make him run out of ideas. "What now?" Gloria eventually asked. "We gather all the materials in the area and create more disposable orbs," King Elbas explained. "The leader will return, at least in this part of the dimensional tunnel. We need to be ready for its arrival." Chapter 1642: 1642. Breaks The exploration ended up proceeding as the experts had predicted. The group had reached the central part of the dimensional tunnel, and the rank 9 leader was in charge of that area. Multiple attacks featuring that powerful creature followed their advance, and the disposable orbs were their only effective weapon. The group had experienced warriors. Those experts had lived for a long time and obtained a liquid stage battle prowess after surviving through countless trials and adventures. However, their mission involved a rank 9 magical beast, and no training could prepare them for that threat. The deadly pressure that reached their mind whenever the leader appeared was an unbearable punishment that they could only endure. They didn''t have better tactics at hand, and that reoccurring danger eventually started to affect their mental state. The experts had to keep their eyes closed, and their senses shut whenever the leader appeared. Then, they had to activate multiple disposable orbs during that suppression. Moreover, they had to kill multiple rank 8 specimens to keep up with their consumption of materials. Noah felt lucky that the human organizations didn''t hold back when they chose the members for that mission. Their mental endurance was far above normal cultivators, and that allowed them to persist through that painful journey. Surviving the leader''s pressure brought benefits to their mind, but the process left them drained. The experts soon stopped speaking to preserve their strength, but their teamwork continued to improve, which allowed them to waste even less of their power. Noah gained even more recognition during that period. His mind continued to acc.u.mulate stress, but he only limited a short time of his breaks to dispersing it. He spent most of his time studying the black marks and improving his understanding of the laws of space used by those magical beasts. The procedure could lead to immense benefits, so his ambition didn''t let him focus on his recovery. His behavior ended up worrying his friends, but they opted to remain silent. They couldn''t change Noah''s mindset, and they had greater problems at hand. King Elbas had multiple drugs made specifically for his existence, so he could disperse the stress far better than his companions. Instead, Wilfred, Divine Demon, and the others had to go through long periods of rest to stabilize their minds and return to a decent condition. The Foolery was faring far worse than them. The creature was only a magical beast, so it could handle mental stress better than its companions. Yet, its instincts had slowly started to show signs of instability, and only Noah could take care of that issue. The pig had yet to accept Noah as its leader officially, but it listened to his orders. Noah forced the Foolery to remain calm and in control of its instincts during that difficult part of the journey. The creature would have long since gone crazy otherwise. The group had to spend entire months in that condition. Their mental state continued to deteriorate as they kept overcoming the attacks of the rank 9 leader. The tension among the experts intensified, but their experience allowed them to remain calm. Noah, King Elbas, and Wilfred even refrained from teasing the other cultivators for fear of triggering their anger. The faintest trigger could make those experts discharge the tension acc.u.mulated during those months. Everyone opted to remain polite and handle eventual grudges after they crossed that difficult part of their journey. Luckily for them, the disposable orbs forced their surroundings to remain stable for a long time. They could keep the fabric of the dimensional tunnel reinforced long enough to give the experts a few weeks of rest. The group wouldn''t have survived for so long without that feature. The experts required those breaks to remain in control of their power. They would have retreated or killed each other already otherwise. The tension that had forced the experts to go all-out to retain their sanity eventually vanished. All it took was another attack from the Space Hounds. The group saw large areas of the tunnel twisting, but they couldn''t feel the presence of the rank 9 leader. Pure joy filled those experts at that sight. They didn''t let their feelings take over their normal mental faculties, but part of them had already understood that the worst part of the travel had ended. The experts overcame that battle and rested in silence before advancing again. The Space Hounds soon attacked them again, but they only felt a second wave of excitement filling their mind. Even the second attack didn''t feature the rank 9 creature. The experts didn''t dare to relax just yet, but they could start to hope. The attacks from the Space Hounds grew weaker as the group proceeded through the tunnel. The inscription masters didn''t even need to rely on the disposable orbs anymore. They could face those creatures with their own power and let their corpses acc.u.mulate in their storage items. The group eventually decided to relax when they saw that the attacks had begun to feature less than five upper tier specimens. It seemed that only weaker platoons occupied those areas of the dimensional tunnel. They had successfully crossed the domain of the rank 9 leader. "It''s finally over!" Harold shouted once the group took their usual break. "We should spend more time resting now that we are out of the leader''s reach. I know that you like to act tough, but it''s clear that most of us are about to collapse." "No resting until we are out of this damned place," Noah coldly replied. "We are inside enemy territory. It''s better to take a long break once we approach the exit." Harold wanted to complain, but he couldn''t find words to do it. Inspecting Noah made him lose any d.e.s.i.r.e to argue. Noah had never stopped studying the black marks. He was doing the same even during that break. He was sitting cross-legged on the ground while his mental waves inspected a few pieces of silver fur featuring black marks. "You shouldn''t push yourself so much," Althea complained. "The real mission is on the other side of the Immortal Lands. Preserving our strength before reaching our destination should be mandatory." "I didn''t survive Heaven and Earth''s tricks by playing it safe," Noah gave another cold reply, and growls fused with his human voice. "You might trust those existences, but they are nothing more than enemies in my eyes. As such, I''ll keep training." Wilfred and the others in his team shared Althea''s worries. Noah had grown jumpier during that part of the travel. It was clear that his mind still held on to a lot of stress. Yet, they couldn''t say anything to stop Noah. His stubbornness even surpassed his greatest qualities. They could only hope that the dimensional tunnel came to an end before his mind shattered. The dimensional tunnel ended up satisfying their hopes. The group only had to face a few more battles before a white light began to shine from the distance. The experts had done nothing more than diving through that structure, so they had never been completely certain about their direction. Still, finding the white light stated that their travel had been a success. They had finally reached the other side of the dimensional tunnel! ''The other side of the Immortal Lands is right ahead,'' Noah thought while punching one of the rocky walls to create a cave. ''I wonder what can even worry Heaven and Earth so much. A trap would explain a lot, but the dimensional tunnel would lose its purpose at that point.'' Doubts filled Noah''s mind, but he let them be for now. The answers were finally close, but he had to recover properly before approaching them. The experts saw Noah''s actions and decided to imitate him. It was finally time to take a long break. Chapter 1643: 1643. Jokes ''The studies have already improved my movement techniques,'' Noah thought while inside his cave, ''But I can''t understand the core aspects of these laws. I''m still far away from approaching the transformation into a dark element.'' Noah was continuing his studies during his time inside the cave. He didn''t care that his behavior was wasting the group''s time. Heaven and Earth''s mission would have to wait for him. His friends were partially aware of that behavior. They knew Noah enough to guess how long it would take him to recover, so they understood that he was up to something once that period expired. Still, they didn''t even bother to contact him and waited patiently in the last area of the dimensional tunnel. The cultivators from the human forces eventually understood that Noah was doing far more than recovering, but they decided to ignore the matter. Noah''s mental resilience had surprised them. Some had even developed a deep respect for him. Noah left his cave after spending a few years recovering and studying the black marks. His mind had returned at its peak, but his project with the dimensional abilities didn''t meet a similar success. "I needed to spend these years in seclusion," Divine Demon exclaimed after leaving his cave right after Noah. "Rank 9 magical beasts sure are scary!" "Indeed," Wilfred continued after leaving his cave. "It has been hard to disperse this stress. Our companions must be better than us to be already here." "I''m the best there is!" The Foolery shouted after imitating the experts. "Shut up," Divine Demon whispered, but everyone in the area could hear his words. "We are trying to cover for my heir. Don''t ruin our act." "Oh, sorry," The Foolery replied before turning toward the cultivators from the human forces. "I am the best, but I also needed to recover. I didn''t require much, but it''s better to be safe when dealing with Heaven and Earth. I can be as reckless as I want, but I need to be at my peak to help you all. I''ve delayed my time in seclusion due to my crucial role in this mission." The Foolery''s words made no sense, but those who knew the creature could understand what had happened. The pig had tried to blame that delay on itself, but its pride had eventually taken over its pretense. "Do you always behave like this?" Isaac Putgan asked. "All the time," King Elbas sighed while joining the rest of the team. "You should ignore most of what they say." "My latest disciple is too shy," Divine Demon sighed. "He will never achieve greatness if he doesn''t accept the true source of his power." "And what would that even be?" King Elbas asked. Divine Demon waved a hand, snorted, and announced the answer to the group. "I''m your greatest inspiration, the true source of your power. Come and kowtow to me. Pay respect to this benevolent master." King Elbas turned toward Isaac and nodded. The latter could only show an awkward smile at that scene. He would take King Elbas'' advice and ignore Divine Demon and the pig. Only Wilfred still deserved a second chance. "And I''m his greatest inspiration!" The Foolery joined that conversation while placing one of its short legs on Divine Demon. Noah had his eyes on the two idiots, but he was ignoring their words. His mental waves were inspecting the Foolery since something had changed inside the magical beasts after the travel. Faint red strands had begun to gather inside its head. They were nothing more than soft lumps of energy, but Noah''s eyes widened at that sight. That power resembled the mental waves. ''Is it developing a sea of consciousness?'' Noah wondered, but his thoughts soon went in another direction. Noah had seen seas of consciousness inside magical beasts during the events in the other Mortal Lands. Those creatures were transforming into hybrids, but they still had developed human centers of power during the process. Yet, that new center of power seemed different when it came to the Foolery. It resembled a complex Bloodline Inheritance that could work as a proper mind. ''The pig has gone through enough suffering to develop a Bloodline Inheritance,'' Noah thought. ''I can address the other unusual features to its divine state and my ambition. I wonder what will come out of this process.'' The Foolery''s new center of power was far from complete. The creature was only acc.u.mulating strands of energy that resembled mental waves into the inferior sea of consciousness of the magical beasts. It would take time to complete the process, but Noah would be there to study it. He even guessed that he had to blame his ambition for that sudden evolution. "Can we go now?" Althea asked in a pissed tone. The cultivator didn''t mind that delay, but she felt bothered by the attempt to conceal it. There was nothing wrong in asking for more time to recover, especially when they were about to approach the actual mission. Her companions limited themselves to nod before their expressions turned stern. The time for jokes was over. They were about to discover why Heaven and Earth had decided to summon them there. The experts didn''t bother dividing themselves into smaller teams to approach the exit. They had built some trust during the travel through the dimensional tunnel. Surviving the attack of a rank 9 creature had made them believe in their good intentions. The teams obviously had different purposes, but none of them seemed inclined to betray their new companions. Some of them even sided with Heaven and Earth, but they wouldn''t endanger the mission to fight over their belief. The experts wielded their weapons and activated their defenses before jumping into the white light at the end of the dimensional tunnel. A familiar pressure soon landed on them, and their senses quickly allowed them to inspect their surroundings. The group could immediately understand that they had left the dimensional tunnel. They were in the outside world, and the familiar pressure of the sky landed on their figures. Still, the scene that had unfolded in their eyes was far different from the Immortal Lands that they recalled. ''What happened here?!'' Noah shouted in his mind as his eyes became able to inspect his surroundings. Large chunks of the azure ground floated in the sky and reflected its white radiance. A dense layer of air filled the almost empty surface, and sparse lightning bolts flew in every direction. The lightning bolts shot from dark clouds that had gathered in the layer of air over the surface. They flew toward the floating azure chunks above them and tried to remove their laws from the world. Fissures that led to the void opened on their own. The azure ground where Noah and the others were standing seemed to be the most stable aspect of that place, but chunks still rose in the air from time to time. ''Are these the effects of a Worldwide Heaven Tribulation in the Immortal Lands?'' Noah wondered, but his instincts told him that he was wrong. His consciousness quickly spread and began to study the laws that filled the matter. His mind quickly noticed that something was off. The true meanings in the area seemed to have different natures, even if they belonged to the same field. The chunks of ground didn''t separate due to external effects. The laws inside them were the reason behind that unusual behavior. They fought each other until that material changed nature and escaped Heaven and Earth''s system. The air and the other materials in the area were going through the same process. The laws inside them fought against Heaven and Earth''s true meaning until they managed to transform their nature. It was as if an entire world had started a rebellion against Heaven and Earth. Chapter 1644: 1644. Devils The laws were rebelling against Heaven and Earth''s system. Natural mutations happened in their true meaning before they started fighting those that didn''t change. The world transformed under that process. The ground shattered, and large chunks rose into the sky. The air gained unnatural density and acc.u.mulated under the crumbled terrain. Multiple Heaven Tribulations also appeared, but the direction of their lightning bolts was all over the place. "What can even cause this mess?" King Elbas asked as his curiosity seeped out of his figure. King Elbas wasn''t in control of that event. His law had acted on its own in front of that spectacular scene. The other experts had similar reactions. Their mental waves spread through the environment and tried to understand what had happened to the other side of the Immortal Lands. "This shouldn''t be possible," Althea eventually exclaimed while the experts were busy conducting their inspections. "It''s too soon. Our calculations had placed this event a few millennia from now." "You might want to explain everything quickly," Noah threatened as growls fused with his human voice. Althea seemed to struggle with that decision. She didn''t want to reveal things that she had learnt through Heaven and Earth, but the situation didn''t allow her to hold anything back. The other teams had all turned toward her. Even her two companions appeared unaware of that issue and were shooting curious glances at her. Althea bit her lower lip, but she eventually gave in to that pressure. "The Immortal Lands are annexing new materials from outside the sky. The lower world involved in the process is forcing the laws to rebel." "Is that even a thing?" "How can a lower plane affect the Immortal Lands?" "Are we in danger?" The experts stormed Althea with questions, but the members of Noah''s team remained silent. They had recently learnt about the layout of Heaven and Earth''s domain, so they could develop some hypotheses on their own. King Elbas also appeared to be close to a conclusion. Countless inscribed items had appeared around his figure and were aiding his mental waves in their inspection. The expert wanted to find the source of those mutations. "I didn''t think that could happen," King Elbas eventually exclaimed in an excited tone, "But there isn''t any other explanation. Simple materials shouldn''t be able to transform the higher plane so thoroughly, especially when they come from weaker worlds." "Elbas?" Noah pressed the expert to explain himself. "Materials without wills can''t affect laws," King Elbas explained. "They can trigger a few reactions in specific cases, but this event is affecting even the distant regions. I guess that the new world annexed by Heaven and Earth has developed a will in a desperate attempt to survive." That revelation was incredible, but Noah didn''t let it take control of his emotions. The event was breathtaking, but learning about it did little to improve his condition. His eyes returned on Althea. The cultivator didn''t say anything after King Elbas'' revelation, and her expression told her companions that she had reached similar conclusions. "The new world must have been quite big," Althea explained after breaking her silence. "It would explain why its materials are flowing into the Immortal Lands instead of remaining outside of the sky. As for the birth of a will, that can happen on rare occasions." "Give me something that I can work with," Harold snorted. "I don''t care about cosmology. I only know that I''m in the middle of a world that had gone crazy." "These are the effects of the new world''s will," Althea replied. "Its influence is strong enough to affect this side of the Immortal Lands, but it lacks order and purpose. It''s only a chaotic mass of power that forces laws to mutate and escape Heaven and Earth''s system." Althea suddenly went silent after that revelation. Something had popped into her mind, and traces of fear had appeared on her expression. That rare event could lead to something else, but she didn''t dare to consider that outcome. Noah landed next to the cultivator, and his Demonic Sword pressed on her neck. Snore, Duanlong, and Night had also appeared around Althea and prepared for Noah''s orders. The two cultivators from Althea''s group remained shocked about that sudden development. They didn''t sense Noah approaching. He had simply appeared among them. "How dare you betray us now?!" Lisa from Althea''s team shouted. "The stories about you were on point," Fred from the same group added. "You are an untrustworthy demon. You have waited for the chance to turn on us since the beginning of the mission!" The two experts could only shout since Noah''s blade and companions were already on Althea. Their attacks could force Noah to act, leading to the death of their companion. "She has yet to explain everything," Noah growled while pretending to sniff her hair. "I can smell your worries. What should we fear during this event?" Noah''s claim made Lisa and Fred hold back their anger. The duo didn''t share the same knowledge about Heaven and Earth, so they were also curious about the whole situation. The group''s attention turned on Althea once more. Tense and angry mental waves gathered around Noah and tried to inspect the expert, but his companions forced those powers away. Althea was the only cultivator who seemed to know something about that chaos. He wouldn''t let anyone hurt her. Crazy laughter suddenly filled the sky and made the various Heaven Tribulations crackle in anger. Althea even shook at that noise. Her great fear had come true. Noah and the others moved their attention to the source of the laughter, and their eyes widened when they noticed a dark-red figure flying through the sky. The creature had a humanoid shape, but it was completely dark-red. It didn''t have facial features, and only a large mouth occupied its head. Also, a dense mass of energy flickered behind its head as if it was hair fluttering in the wind. The creature wasn''t flying on its own. It had a series of leashes bound to four reddish trails of energy that dragged it through the sky. A faint redness also spread whenever that group passed, and more mutations happened in those areas. The sparse dark clouds unleashed lightning bolts with power in the lower tier of the eighth rank, but those attacks fused with the creature''s figure without inflicting any damage. The creature gave voice to its crazy laugh again, and a lump of dark-red energy came out of its torso before joining the other four trails. Its speed increased at that point, and even more laws started to experience natural mutations. "What''s that thing?" Noah asked while moving his attention back on Althea. The dark-red creature didn''t seem to care about Noah''s group, but he couldn''t classify it as a magical beast. Noah couldn''t even sense centers of power inside its figure. It appeared as an existence made entirely of chaotic laws. "I''ve never actually seen one of them," Althea explained, "But I''ve learnt about their existence during my exploration of Heaven and Earth''s knowledge." King Elbas and the others continued their inspections without failing to listen to Althea. Their ears were on her, but their mental waves were on the environment. "Heaven and Earth call them Devils," Althea concluded. "They are existences born from chaotic laws that won''t merge with the Immortal Lands. They are poison to this plane, and Heaven and Earth can''t do much about them. Only experts who have created their laws can hope to defeat them." Chapter 1645: 1645. Unique ''Are they immune to Heaven and Earth''s laws?'' Noah wondered while inspecting the Devil. A lightning bolt had hit the creature, but the latter had absorbed that energy and increased its influence. The attack didn''t manage to inflict any damage. It only strengthened the Devil. ''I won''t learn anything if I keep relying on Althea,'' Noah sighed in his mind before stepping forward. His companions turned to shoot surprised glances. Some questions even reached Noah''s ears, but he ignored them. Althea wasn''t a friend. She was barely an ally who could contact Heaven and Earth. That alone put her closer to the status of an enemy, so Noah couldn''t trust her. The same went for the other experts. They were clueless about the whole situation and couldn''t tell Noah anything. Even his friends didn''t know what the Devils were, so he had to take a personal approach to solve his doubts. It was hard to discern the Devil''s cultivation level. Noah''s mental waves didn''t help him in the task, so he had to rely on his instincts to gain a vague understanding of the creature''s battle prowess. His instincts placed the Devil between the gaseous and liquid stage. That amount of power was perfect for Noah''s current battle prowess. In theory, he couldn''t even come close to losing. The group saw Noah crossing the area with dense air and stepping among the floating boulders. The Devil continued to ignore him, but he didn''t plan to remain silent much longer. Noah waved the Demonic Sword, and a singularity flew toward the Devil. The attack destroyed its trails of energy before crashing on its humanoid shape. ''Strange,'' Noah thought while inspecting the damage caused by his slash. A few dark spots had appeared inside the singularity before hitting the Devil. The attack''s purity had fallen while approaching that opponent. The Devil didn''t even suffer much damage. The singularity had taken half of its torso away, but the event didn''t seem to affect the creature, which continued to laugh and ignore Noah as if nothing had happened. ''I did hold back, but the attack should have blasted its entire body away nonetheless,'' Noah thought without moving his eyes away from the strange creature. A second slash shot out of the Demonic Sword. The singularity crashed on the Devil in an instant and finished destroying its torso. The creature only had its lower body and head left, but it continued to laugh and ignore its surroundings. ''Does it ignore me because I don''t carry Heaven and Earth''s scent?'' Noah wondered before shooting forward until he arrived in front of the Devil. The creature wanted to continue to ignore Noah, but he had appeared right in front of it. He didn''t even move. He wanted to see how the Devil would react once someone sealed its path ahead. The Devil eventually stopped laughing and turned toward Noah. Its head had continued to float above its lower body even after the singularities had destroyed the torso. It seemed that its existence didn''t depend on the integrity of its figure. Noah felt a strange pressure landing on his mind. That force wasn''t heavy, but it carried a peculiar aura that he couldn''t completely understand. The absorption of chaotic laws could cause a similar effect, but Noah felt that it was different. That aura carried a distinct hatred that resonated with Noah''s feelings. ''They are born to hate Heaven and Earth,'' Noah concluded as that aura remained around him. ''Still, they should only be a mass of chaotic laws. Why would they even gain a human figure?'' The Devil required more study, and Noah couldn''t wait to get his hands on that creature. Its existence could develop an apparent immunity toward Heaven and Earth''s laws, and it even seemed resistant toward other types of true meanings. Noah had to learn its secret. The creature''s aura began to spread past Noah. All the mutations that the Devil had triggered stopped affecting the matter and gathered on its figure. Its torso soon reappeared after that energy converged in that spot, but the nature of its laws remained unchanged. The Devil raised its hand as soon as its body healed. A trail of dark-red energy shot forward and exploded right before hitting Noah. A cloud with the same shades soon covered his figure. Noah had let the attack hit him on purpose. He couldn''t understand the Devil''s power through exchanges alone. He had to feel what its energy could do to his existence. The dark-red cloud sent unique energy toward his body. It didn''t have much power, but it also seemed to carry an unstoppable force. Noah''s existence remained firm, but a few instabilities appeared, especially on his centers of power. The aura seemed able to force part of his law to mutate, but the black hole always got rid of those tainted spots. A wave of destruction ran through Noah''s aura and forced the dark-red cloud to disperse. Its power transformed into higher energy and converged toward Noah''s nostrils, which gave the black hole a chance to inspect it. The black hole wasn''t ideal for the task, but Noah didn''t have much better. The primary energy passed through its waves of dark matter and revealed everything to the organ while the purification began. Noah could gain a deeper understanding of that energy during the process. His initial guess had been on point. The Devil''s chaotic laws saw Heaven and Earth as their main enemies, and their state gave them an innate resistance against those attacks. ''I wonder if I can obtain similar features,'' Noah thought as his eyes lit up. The Devil had resumed its mindless destruction, but Noah quickly appeared in front of the creature. His blade directly descended, and a massive vertical singularity opened through its body. The creature''s laugh distorted after Noah''s attack had cut its mouth into two pieces. Still, the Devil soon noticed him again and decided to take the threat seriously. The Devil raised its arm, but Noah punched it before it could discharge the dark-red energy. The limb shattered during the impact, but Noah felt as if he had attacked a pool of water. His attack didn''t stop the Devil. The creature barely noticed that it had lost an arm and continued its offensive. Its second limb began to rise, but Noah cut hit away with a clean slash. The severed limbs exploded into clouds of chaotic laws that began to affect the world. Their influence triggered mutations in the environment and altered the correct functioning of the matter. Noah memorized everything. He didn''t let a single event escape his mind, and he even continued to attack the creature. A flurry of punches came out of his figure and landed on the Devil''s c.h.e.s.t. Night and Snore soon joined that fight, and multiple injuries appeared on the creature''s body in less than a second. The creature found countless holes in its c.h.e.s.t, missed all its limbs, and even its head appeared quite corroded. Still, it remained alive, and its aura didn''t dwindle at all. A wave of dark-red gas shot out of the Devil''s mouth, but Noah didn''t even bother to defend. He ate that energy and let his black hole handle the rest. "Can you even die?" Noah asked before waving the Demonic Sword. The head and the small chunk of the lower torso vanished after the attack. The singularities engulfed those body parts in an instant, but the Devil''s aura didn''t disappear even after that event. **** Author''s notes: I have no electricity. My laptop is literally about to turn off. I started to write the next chapter, but everything is about to go black. I will post the other two chapters tomorrow when the electricity should be back on. Maybe I should get another sheep. Chapter 1646: 1646. Peace The Heaven Tribulations continued to rage and fill the sky with crackling noises. The destruction of the humanoid figure didn''t put an end to the Devil''s life. Its chaotic laws were still in the environment, but Noah couldn''t pinpoint their exact location. The Devil''s aura was all over the place. It was everywhere, and Noah couldn''t find a core to destroy. He had never met such a unique opponent, but his excitement grew as he discovered more about that strange species. The mutations intensified. More laws fell prey to that strange aura and escaped the nature imposed by Heaven and Earth. The whole sky seemed about to transform into a sea or rocks. However, the mutations stopped affecting the world before radical transformations could happen. The tainted laws that had escaped Heaven and Earth''s system began to converge near Noah and gave birth to the dark-red figure he had destroyed a few moments ago. The Devil took form, but it seemed far stronger than before. Noah could sense his instincts sending warning messages, but he didn''t raise his blade. Attacking during the creation of that new body would be a wise choice, but Noah wasn''t fighting. He was studying that unknown species since he had already set his mind to develop that innate resistance. The crazy laughter soon filled the sky again, and the black clouds didn''t hesitate to send more lightning bolts. Those attacks crashed on the Devil, but its structure absorbed their power. A long blade soon grew out of the Devil''s left hand as its aura stopped spreading through the sky and amassed inside its figure. The creature had finally decided to fight Noah, but its transformation revealed part of its power. It wasn''t a case that a sword had grown out of the Devil''s left hand. Noah had shown a similar battle style just a few moments ago. He couldn''t believe that the creature had always had experience with that. ''Did it copy me?'' Noah wondered before reaching different conclusions. ''No. A copy wouldn''t have this energy. It has probably learnt something about my battle style when my existence started to mutate.'' Noah stopped waiting and launched a slash, but the Devil quickly raised its sword. The singularity clashed with the blade, and multiple black spots appeared inside its structure. The singularity was about to cut the Devil''s blade, but its impurities took over and forced that energy to shatter. The attack crumbled before it could inflict any damage. The Devil had tainted it before it could be a threat to its life. ''Its influence has intensified,'' Noah thought after studying the clash. The Devil shot forward and tried to wave its blade at Noah, but a massive snake appeared in front of the creature and tried to crush its body. Snore could release violent dark matter from every spot of its body, so the Devil soon found a wave of dark energy trying to destroy its figure. The snake didn''t only manage to restrain it. It had even started to suppress its power. Still, the Devil''s influence eventually managed to affect Snore. The laws inside its structure began to mutate, and its body started to change under that power. A few chunks of that massive body transformed. They became water, rocks, air, and light that couldn''t remain attached to Snore. Its existence couldn''t keep those different materials inside its fabric. ''Night,'' Noah thought, and the Pterodactyl promptly shot toward Snore. Night cut away the tainted pieces of Snore''s body and let the creature recover. The snake had to let the Devil go, but its figure quickly healed. The Devil transformed again. Part of its damaged skin turned into a gaseous layer that hovered around its figure. A destructive force even filled that aura and increased the danger felt by Noah. ''Is it learning?'' Noah wondered when he saw those changes. The new features that had appeared on the Devil resembled his dark matter. The Devil had learnt from Noah''s techniques and was evolving again. A roar suddenly escaped Noah''s mouth. The unstable substance ran through his black vessels as his companions returned inside the separate space. Noah left only the Demonic Sword outside since its black hole could protect the weapon from that threatening influence. Snore, Night, and Duanlong didn''t have Noah''s miraculous organs. The Devil could get a chance to take over his companions, and Noah couldn''t allow that. Noah pressed his blade on his forehead. His consciousness expanded and locked on the Devil before a wave of sharpness filled the area. A massive singularity suddenly opened on the Devil''s spot. The creature disappeared as soon as Noah''s attack landed on its figure, but its aura didn''t vanish. The singularity dispersed quickly and revealed that the Devil was still on the same spot, even if multiple injuries had appeared on its body. Yet, the creature raised its sword without caring about its wounds and slashed it toward Noah, A massive dark-red slash shot out of the Devil''s sword. The attack had fuming trails coming out of it and contained a dense mass of chaotic laws that transformed the air they crossed. ''It can''t completely copy my attacks then,'' Noah concluded. ''It still retains its nature even if it imitates my battle style.'' The Demonic Sword clashed with the dark-red slash and cut it in half. The chaotic laws that landed on the weapon modified its structure, but dark matter quickly came out of it and fixed those flaws. Noah glanced at the Demonic Sword. The process had not been harmless for the weapon. The blade had suffered some slight structural damage that would require a few hours to fix. ''I might be unable to use my full power here,'' Noah thought before storing the Demonic Sword and shooting toward his enemy. The Devil launched another slash, but Noah punched right through it. The chaotic laws that dispersed around him tried to modify his existence, but a layer of dark matter covered his skin and stopped that process. Noah''s fingers took the shape of a blade before he waved his arm. His hand fell on the creature''s shoulder and opened a deep diagonal cut. A punch quickly followed that attack, and Noah soon found his limb stabbed inside the Devil''s c.h.e.s.t. The mutations intensified at that distance. The Devil didn''t care about injuries. It was an entity meant to bring change into everything in its range, and Noah was deep inside that power. A scarlet light filled Noah''s eyes. The Demonic Deduction technique produced violent thoughts that enhanced his destructive capabilities. A viable approach eventually appeared in his mind, and he didn''t hesitate to deploy it. An azure light shone from behind Noah''s eyes. His greed seeped out of his figure and filled the sky. His aura was so intense that the noises generated by the Heaven Tribulations became unable to leave the dark clouds. Noah d.e.s.i.r.ed the power held by the Devils. He wanted to know how they could oppose Heaven and Earth so effortlessly, and Supreme Thief''s ability was giving him a chance to avoid countless tests. A suction force spread from the arm inside the Devil''s c.h.e.s.t. Noah began to absorb the dark-red fabric of its body and turn that material into knowledge. A series of information filled his mind, but a dense will also tried to fuse with his existence. Noah found himself forced to interrupt Supreme Thief''s technique mid-way and summon the parasite. Roots came out and spread across his arm before expanding toward the rest of the dark-red figure. The parasite''s corrosive aura destroyed those chaotic laws without bothering to absorb them. The black hole was making sure that the magical plant didn''t let that energy affect its structure. The Devil quickly vanished. A dark halo covered the area before its figure completely disappeared. Even its unique aura died out at that point, and the sky finally found some peace. **** Author''s notes: I think I have been unclear yesterday. I''m not taking another break. I just needed electricity to keep my laptop up. I''ve literally had nightmares about the missing chapters ahah. Don''t worry. You''ll get the other chapter in the next hours and three tomorrow. Chapter 1647: 1647. Separation ''What a strange creature,'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. The chaos that had filled that area died out. The mutated laws continued to fight the true meanings inside Heaven and Earth''s system, but they began to lose ground without the Devil spreading chaotic laws. Those battles usually resulted in mutual destruction. Entire chunks of the floating boulders fell apart, and pieces of the layer made of dense air dispersed. The dark cloud vanished now that the Devil was no more. Heaven and Earth wouldn''t bother to punish the laws that had turned rogue. They saved their energy and let the world pay the price for that battle. The area slowly reached a new harmony. Heaven and Earth''s laws couldn''t destroy all the mutated true meanings, but they managed to remove the rebelling will. Part of the mutated laws didn''t go back to their previous nature but only stopped fighting Heaven and Earth. Some boulders continued to float through the sky, air covered the ground, and small pools filled the sky. ''It seems that I can''t take the easy path to obtain this power,'' Noah sighed in his mind after reviewing what had happened when he had activated Supreme Thief''s technique. In theory, Supreme Thief''s technique could steal any ability as long as its owner wasn''t worthy of that power. Noah even firmly believed that he would eventually learn to wield those chaotic laws. The technique had all the right cards to go smoothly, but it failed anyway. Yet, Noah had managed to understand something about those chaotic laws from the procedure. He had sensed that a massive will filled their fabric and guided their actions. The owner of that will was quite clear. Noah had never sensed something so massive from a single living being. He had touched the other world''s will while Supreme Thief''s technique tried to steal that ability. ''I guess the problem isn''t with Supreme Thief''s technique,'' Noah eventually concluded. ''I simply can''t endure the will that would flow inside me.'' That outcome left Noah slightly disappointed, but he couldn''t ignore his joyous mood. He had learnt a lot about the Devils during that short battle, and he had even found new projects to pursue. Noah''s abilities had been the same for a while by then. It was hard to improve from his current state, especially since he had spent a lot of time perfecting his battle style. He also lacked proper sources of inspiration. Noah was in the eighth rank, so external techniques couldn''t help his existence too much. Yet, the mission had already given him multiple ideas on how to improve. The Space Hounds had opened the path for multiple improvements. Noah wanted to understand their innate ability to make his movement techniques reach new heights. Moreover, those creatures could allow him to create his dark version of space and add it to the dark world. The Devil had shown Noah that it was possible to develop immunity to Heaven and Earth''s laws. Those creatures were inherently different from every other living being on the cultivation journey. Still, Noah believed that he could create weaker versions of that ability if it turned out to be incompatible with his existence. Then, Noah still had to improve his singularities. Sword Saint had shown him a path, but he had yet to understand how to reach that realm. Having so much to do reinvigorated Noah. He could improve in many ways, and that sensation made him feel elated. He had yet to hit the peak of his potential. His law could still expand and encompass other fields. "That was a bit reckless," Wilfred commented while nearing Noah. "You didn''t know anything about your opponent." "I do now," Noah replied. "This mission might become more fruitful than we initially thought. Heaven and Earth have led us here because they can''t handle the Devils, and we can learn from those creatures." Noah didn''t bother to speak through his mental waves. It didn''t matter if the other experts listened to him. He felt pretty sure that they had all thought about the same thing. "Any idea on what Heaven and Earth exactly want?" Noah asked. "I like this place. I want to see if I can leave it in a poor state to piss them off." "We identified the cause of the crisis," Althea explained. "Heaven and Earth probably want us to take care of the Devils. They can handle the refilling of laws after the threats are no more." That conclusion was quite obvious, but Noah hoped for something else. The Devils weren''t exactly his enemies. He even liked those creatures due to the damage that they inflicted on Heaven and Earth''s world. He would love to leave some of them alive if the mission gave him a chance. ''I wonder if I can learn how to create them at some point,'' Noah thought while the experts gathered around him. ''I don''t know how powerful rank 9 minds are, but I should be able to replicate that will, even if in a weaker form.'' Noah even began to think of ways to kidnap one of those creatures and unleash it on the other side of the Immortal Lands. He would gladly sacrifice everyone''s safety to hurt Heaven and Earth. "Wicked thoughts already?" King Elbas asked when he noticed Noah''s pensive expression. "They never leave," Noah laughed. "I wonder what else can we expect from this mission." "Natives probably," King Elbas replied. "Definitely more Devils. I bet that this side of the Immortal Lands also hides something else. I''ve never seen such conditions in normal environments." King Elbas'' words reminded the group of an aspect that they had decided to ignore until then. The other side of the Immortal Lands obviously had landing zones and lower planes connected to them. It was only normal for organizations to reside there. ''Some force must have survived,'' Noah thought while inspecting the environment, ''But it will be hard to find them here. This place is a mess.'' "I think that we should split up now," Noah exclaimed and broke the silence that had fallen among the group. "Why now?" Althea asked. "Do you have something in mind?" "Of course," Noah replied honestly. "This is a world full of resources. Why would I even bother to share them with you all?" "You didn''t share much even when we were together," Harold commented. "I did give some corpses for the group," Noah snorted. "It was either that or death," Harold continued. "And you didn''t look too happy about it." "Don''t get all sad over a few hundred rank 8 corpses," Noah replied. "I counted more than a thousand," Harold complained. "Are you that stingy?" "You have no idea," King Elbas sighed. "Well, this is goodbye then!" Noah cut that conversation short and tried to leave in a random direction, but the other experts followed him closely. "Why don''t you go somewhere else?" Noah eventually said since the other teams didn''t leave him. "Don''t you have Heaven and Earth to help, or a world to save? Go and be heroes!" "That''s not happening," Isaac replied. "I have the faint feeling that you can be more dangerous than Devils," Althea commented. "They figured you out already, my heir," Divine Demon sighed. "You should be humble like your master and stab them in the back when they don''t expect it." "I fear the day when you reach the ninth rank," Wilfred laughed. "Heaven and Earth will have to create Devils for your existence." "What did the Devil taste like?" The Foolery asked. "Do you want to spend an entire mission with them around?" Noah asked while turning toward the other experts. "You would gain in mental sanity by leaving now." Some of the experts considered his proposal, but they couldn''t leave Noah on his own, especially when the fate of half of the Immortal Lands was at stake. The excitement that filled Noah''s eyes sent chills down their spine. The cultivators could feel that he had something dangerous in mind, so they couldn''t let him roam freely. They had decided to keep an eye on him. **** Author''s notes: I just want to thank you for being so patient with me. I know the recent period has been a bit messy, and I''m grateful to have such a good fanbase. You are the best. Chapter 1648: 1648. Threats The group didn''t have a clear destination. Heaven and Earth didn''t bother to inform them about the contents of the mission, so they had to understand everything on their own. The Devils were a problem that Heaven and Earth couldn''t defeat with their laws. Noah''s battle had cleared some doubts about their power, but the experts still felt that they lacked a complete view of the situation. The chaotic laws carried by the Devils caused mutations in every material and living being. Their influence didn''t have specific purposes, but it could still generate trouble. Noah''s ambition and Radiant Eyes'' aura could trigger similar effects, but they forced the laws to evolve on a specific path. Instead, the Devils'' mutations were completely random, so it was unlikely for them to lead to stable forms. The living beings affected by those mutations would probably die due to the many instabilities in their structure. Yet, the Immortal Lands had countless magical beasts. Noah wouldn''t be surprised if he found a few species that had benefitted from the Devils. That led to a silent issue that Noah didn''t want to bring up until he gained a clear view of the other side of the Immortal Lands. A good mutation could generate new overlords that could live in a world infested by Devils. Broken environments crossed the group''s vision. That side of the Immortal Lands had gone through a deep transformation that hindered the experts'' exploration. It was hard to move when the ground and the sky had switched places. Keeping track of their exploration in such a different environment was troublesome, and the experts often had to rely on inscribed items to help them with the issue. The experts didn''t lack inscription masters. That team had even developed a decent relationship after the issues in the dimensional tunnel, so the cooperation went smoothly. The group could explore every crack of the floating ground and lake suspended in the sky. They could explore the vast sky illuminated by the regions hanging above it, and something off eventually popped out. "Did the Devil kill everyone?" Harold shouted. The group had explored the other side of the Immortal Lands for months, but they couldn''t find a single magical beast. The environment also lacked magical plants and other living beings. "The mutations might have left very few living beings alive," Noah explained. "I''m more surprised about the lack of cultivators. Did they all die? Heaven and Earth may have purposely sent us in a safe area." "That would explain a lot," Althea exclaimed. The expert didn''t worship Heaven and Earth, but she felt deep respect toward those mighty existences. She could accept that they had placed the dimensional tunnel in an empty area on purpose. A loud noise suddenly filled the area and interrupted that conversation. A few regions went dark and forced the experts to look above their heads. A massive landmass had appeared among the whiteness. Scorching and fuming patches of ground covered its edges, and cracks opened through its structure as the vast region fell. The landmass slowly shattered during the descent. It transformed into large chunks that continued to fall apart until they became nothing more than dust. The dust didn''t manage to reach Noah''s position. It fused with the world during its journey through the sky, and an angry aura spread after the event. Screeching noises filled the sky as the laws carried by the landmass began to fight Heaven and Earth''s matter. Their influence forced other true meanings to escape that system and transform into something chaotic. The group could finally observe part of the absorption, and curious expressions appeared on their faces. Their mental waves studied how the laws transformed under the other world''s influence and gave birth to spectacular events. The matter of the Immortal Lands transformed right in front of their eyes. Yet, part of the tainted laws didn''t fuse with the world. They remained a chaotic mass of power that slowly spread their influence through the regions and continued to generate mutations. Those masses of power gained a dark-red shade as the mutations continued to spread. The laws that didn''t fuse with the world joined their structure and increased their size until their gained a humanoid shape. Crazy laughs eventually resounded in the area. Noah and the others didn''t hesitate to wield their weapons at that sound. They were witnessing the birth of a large group of Devils, and they didn''t know how they would behave in their presence. Multiple Devils appeared in the sky. Their auras fused and intensified their influence. Some of the chaotic laws even tried to reach Noah''s group, but the experts quickly sent their mental waves to stop that energy. "We don''t need to fight them now," Daisy Newhall reminded. "We can ignore them until we learn more about this environment." "Trouble is coming in our way," Noah whispered while turning toward a seemingly empty spot in the distance. His instincts had sensed something. His words alerted his companions and made them turn toward that seemingly empty spot, but nothing appeared just yet. "Are you sure that your senses aren''t off?" Althea asked, but her words didn''t gain the support that she hoped for. Wilfred, King Elbas, and the other experts in Noah''s team had taken that threat very seriously. Noah''s senses had never been wrong, and they could often perceive things before his companions. Noah couldn''t understand what was happening. He could sense the danger drawing close, but his eyes and mental waves couldn''t identify the source of that sensation. The dark world quickly expanded and covered the entire region. Noah deployed all his investigative methods to identify that danger, and something eventually appeared when the currents of dark matter ran through the sky. Large invisible figures moved through the dark world. Thin layers of dark matter covered their shape and gave them a form that Noah could sense. Those creatures resembled shark-like magical beasts, but some of their features were off. Noah recalled the dark world without dispersing the dark matter around the creatures. His companions could finally see that new threat, and they didn''t hesitate to prepare for the imminent battle. However, the sharks didn''t seem to care about the group. Screeches came out of their mouths as they flew toward the Devils and crashed on their figures. The sharks became visible at that point. Noah dispersed his dark matter to inspect their features more in detail, and surprise soon appeared on his expression. Those creatures had long bodies and sharp fins. A dark-blue shade covered their figures, but they also had sparse multicolored patches of skin. Sparse rows of sharp teeth grew from their skin. Even some of their fins had those strange features. The teeth appeared completely unnatural. It was as if they had grown there only recently. ''A mutated pack!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind. His fears had come true rather quickly, but he still felt that something was off. He couldn''t understand why magical beasts would decide to target Devils over cultivators. The latter contained far more energy due to the different centers of power. The answer to his doubts arrived quickly. The Devils didn''t immediately fight their new opponents, so the sharks could devour a large chunk of their chaotic laws during the first exchange. The chaotic laws enhanced the mutations that afflicted their bodies. More rows of teeth grew from their skin, and changes even happened in their insides. Noah could almost see organs appearing out of nowhere due to those mutations. The sharks seemed able to absorb the chaotic laws and use them to evolve their species, but the process was far from natural. Still, Noah could only open his mouth in awe when some of the sharks raised their head and released waves of scarlet flames. A species with a water aptitude was using the abilities of the fire element, and he didn''t know how to react to that sight. **** Author''s notes: I can only be sorry about this constant issue. I don''t seem able to fix my sleeping schedule, so I just collapse on the bed at times. You can expect the other chapters soon. Chapter 1649: 1649. Sharks Noah felt that his vast knowledge in the magical beasts'' field was useless when it came to the sharks. He had seen creatures with multiple innate abilities, and he also knew about rare species that could ignore their aptitude. Yet, everything seemed off there. ''Do they do this on purpose?'' Noah wondered. ''Do they want to enhance their mutations to evolve their species?'' "Give me something," King Elbas whispered without moving his eyes from the sharks. "I don''t know," Noah replied. "They are developing new abilities through the chaotic laws. Their species must have been quite simple at the beginning. Their innate stability has given them the chance to mutate without falling apart." "How does this involve us?" Harold asked. "Heaven and Earth probably want us to get rid of the Devils. We can leave the magical beasts alone." "These sharks can benefit from mutations," Noah explained. "Obtaining a couple of new abilities should have been enough to trigger a Tribulation. The fact that they are still here might be a problem." "That''s Heaven and Earth''s problem," Harold snorted. "They should have sent a stronger Tribulation." "I''m wondering whether they have developed the same troublesome ability of the Devils," Noah sighed. "It would explain why they don''t have negative effects from the mutations." The group finally understood his point. The sharks might have developed a resistance to Heaven and Earth''s laws, and that would put them among the experts'' targets. "A species with limitless potential can also end up hurting our organizations," Althea added. "They can become strong enough to take over the entire higher plane." "Wouldn''t that be quite a sight," Wilfred laughed. Noah ignored part of that conversation. Strange thoughts had appeared in his mind after his explanation. In theory, the chaotic laws were nothing more than power. They could force the matter to transform and give up on its original nature, but that was only a side effect of the will that they carried. Still, that side effect had allowed the sharks to break free from their innate restrains and evolve their species. Those creatures could benefit from that power and strive to reach the peak of the Immortal Lands. ''Can I do the same?'' Noah wondered as the fight broke out. The Devils finally decided to fight, but they couldn''t manage to do much against the sharks. Their power relied on the mutations to inflict damage, but those creatures seemed able to avoid any harmful effect. ''Can I even evolve past this form?'' Noah continued to think about the issue. Noah had fought the chaotic laws during his previous battle with the Devil. He had cut away any mutation that tried to spread through his existence. However, those chaotic laws could bring benefits if handled correctly. Noah felt even sure that he could avoid the ugly mutations that afflicted the sharks. He could do a far better job than those creatures. Of course, various dangers would accompany that procedure. The mutations would affect his very existence and make him lose sight of his path. ''Is my ambition trying to trick me again?'' Noah wondered. ''Is this Heaven and Earth''s doing? Do they want me to approach this procedure to ruin my law?'' Noah couldn''t feel sure about anything. He only knew his d.e.s.i.r.es, and his expertise told him that they were achievable. The procedure might take time, but he believed that the chaotic laws'' influence could enhance his existence. ''My greed is so troublesome,'' Noah sighed in his mind before turning toward King Elbas. "Do you have something to contain the Devils?" Noah asked. "Do you want to capture one of them?" King Elbas replied. "Don''t you?" Noah asked, and a smile appeared on his expression. King Elbas looked Noah in the eyes, and the same smile eventually appeared on his face. The expert shared his same d.e.s.i.r.e, even if his reasons were different. "Can you not put all of us in danger?" Harold exclaimed. "It''s too late for that," Wilfred laughed while patting Harold''s shoulder. "Are we about to fight?" The Foolery asked. "I wasn''t paying attention. The sharks looked too tasty." "Can we make a plan at least?" Althea asked. "Only a few Devils left," Noah whispered before shooting forward. King Elbas promptly followed him. The two experts had ignored the rest of their group. They had their eyes on the Devils, but the sharks had almost eaten all of them. The pack of sharks featured a few hundred specimens. Only a third of them were in the eighth rank, and their leader was an upper tier creature. Only the leader could be a threat to the group. The other specimens could be dangerous, but that depended on their innate abilities. Noah had yet to understand their full power, but he believed that no middle tier creature could defeat him. ''Let''s use the higher energy to contain one of the Devils,'' King Elbas ordered through his mental waves. ''Focus on the weakest, the one that barely reaches the eighth rank.'' The Devils'' level was hard to discern, but Noah and King Elbas could vaguely understand where they stood in terms of power. One of the Devils seemed to struggle to reach the eighth rank, so it became their target. The sharks didn''t bother to turn toward Noah and King Elbas. They only cared about the chaotic laws. They almost appeared addicted to that energy. Even the spreading of the dark world didn''t make those creatures turn. They continued to feed on the Devils even if Noah''s technique was trying to suppress their senses. Wh.i.p.s made of golden fire came out of King Elbas'' hands and shot toward the sharks assaulting the weak Devil. Only the rank 7 specimens were attacking their target, so the expert got rid of them in a single blow. The Devil laughed and tried to spread its influence through the dark world, but Noah''s technique was too powerful for that creature. The dark matter forced the Devil to shrink. It suppressed its chaotic laws until the creature turned into a dark-red sphere. That new shape gave the Devil a chance to intensify its influence. The condensed chaotic laws slowly began to affect the dark world, but King Elbas arrived before they could do any damage. King Elbas deployed countless items, but he didn''t activate all of them. His hands moved quickly as he tested how his creations reacted to the chaotic laws. Some of the inscribed items remained unchanged, while others experienced deep mutations. Some even shattered after the chaotic laws altered their structure. ''This should work,'' King Elbas said through his mental waves. A series of golden threads began to envelop the mass of chaotic laws. King Elbas even stamped his hand on the item to create runes that sealed certain spots. The Devil didn''t care about that event. Its chaotic laws didn''t mind ending up in a cage as long as they could continue to affect its surroundings. King Elbas quickly completed the prison and stored it inside his space-ring. Noah and the expert exchanged a nod and prepared to leave, but a large figure soon appeared between them and shattered a large chunk of the dark world. A screeching noise filled the area and forced the two experts to cover their ears. A red light shone from behind the leader''s eyes while it expressed its anger toward the duo. The upper tier shark had noticed that King Elbas and Noah had stolen its prey, and it wouldn''t forgive them for that. **** Author''s notes: Thank you for the support. The next chapter should come out in a few hours. Also, I''m thinking of taking a break tomorrow to make another attempt at fixing my schedule. Only thinking about that for now. Chapter 1650: 1650. Overwhelming ''It could see through the dark world!'' Noah exclaimed in his mind as lumps of dark matter covered his figure. The shark''s screeching cry was a sound attack capable of hurting both Noah and King Elbas, but the experts quickly deployed countermeasures. The dark matter stopped that painful noise and gave Noah the chance to counterattack. His companions quickly came out of his figure, and black roots also spread over the black defensive layer. Golden light came out of King Elbas'' ears to block the sound attack. A series of runes also appeared on his body to create a series of shields that matched his shape perfectly. A fiery spear even flew out of his space-ring and landed on his hands. Those were inscribed items in the middle tier, but their power seemed unstable. It went up and down depending on how many flames King Elbas generated. Noah shot a curious glance at King Elbas'' inscribed items, but the upper tier shark quickly claimed his attention. The creature swung its tail and generated a gale that crashed on him. ''Innate ability of the wind element!'' Noah shouted in his mind before charging ahead. The raging winds that flew toward his figure shattered when they entered in the range of the parasite. Its corrosive aura could disperse the attack before it could reach the layer of dark matter. King Elbas waved his spear, and a trail of golden flames shot forward. The fire took the shape of a giant arrow that exploded as soon as it touched the shark. The creature turned toward King Elbas, but a cut suddenly appeared on one of its fins. Snore then bit the beast and covered it with its violent dark matter. Snore entangled its body around the shark before Noah landed on the creature''s head. The roots that covered his feet dug deep injuries into its body, and the Demonic Sword soon touched its skin. A wave of sharpness filled the area when Noah thrust the blade downward. The Demonic Sword dug the shark''s skin, but it didn''t manage to reach decent depts. An azure glow filled the shark before an explosion rang in the area. Noah found himself in the distance. His protections had shattered, and a few injuries had appeared on his legs. ''Another innate ability,'' Noah thought. ''There is no difference in power even if it matches its element.'' Sparks began to run through the shark''s body, but King Elbas suddenly appeared above the creature. The power of his inscribed items increased as golden flames came out of his figure, and a golden radiance soon took over the whiteness of the sky. King Elbas pointed his spear toward the shark, and the golden radiance converged on the weapon during that movement. The sky regained its white color, but a sudden flare took over the area again. The spear released a dense wave of power that fell on the shark and targeted some of the injuries inflicted by Noah. That scorching energy pierced the creature''s skin and made it scream in pain. Noah teleported under the creature at that point. A singularity came out of his blade and crashed on its belly. The attack shattered some of the creature''s teeth and removed a large chunk of its skin. The azure glow reappeared, but Snore promptly ate the shark. A wave of dark matter shot in the area when the creature released its explosion, but Noah managed to remain nearby. A singularity shot out of his blade as soon as the shark reappeared. King Elbas joined the offensive by throwing the spear. The two attacks converged on the creature and unleashed a massive surge of power when they clashed on its figure. The shark didn''t have a chance to attack. Noah and King Elbas were suppressing the creature even if its physical prowess was incredible. The beast also had multiple innate abilities, but they couldn''t compare with the duo''s techniques. A dark glow covered the shark after the power released by the attacks dispersed. A rocky substance had appeared on its skin and had protected it from the experts'' offensive. "I only need a few seconds to counter this defense," King Elbas shouted. "Force the shark to keep it up!" Noah shot forward and kicked the shark on its head. The creature endured the blow and tried to bite his leg, but he teleported on its back and launched a singularity. The shark waved its tail to launch its storms, but Noah was too fast. He teleported in another spot and launched another singularity. His attacks didn''t manage to do much. The rocky substance prevented his singularities from reaching its skin, and his physical strength wasn''t enough to cause internal injuries. Still, the shark couldn''t follow his movements. Noah was free to assault the creature from every direction without having to face its innate abilities. Sparks suddenly began to run through the shark again. Noah tried to stop that ability, but the creature shot forward before his attack could reach its skin. The sudden acceleration sent sharp slashes in every direction. Noah''s defenses didn''t manage to stop the attacks. The roots and dark matter that covered his c.h.e.s.t disappeared, and a series of long cuts opened on that spot. "I''m ready!" King Elbas shouted while the shark turned to charge at the experts. The sparks were running through its body again. The creature wanted to launch its slashes, and Noah silently prepared for the attack. ''Try to endure it,'' Noah said through the mental connection as he wielded the Demonic Sword with both his hands. A thick layer of dark matter covered the weapon, and roots spread over that membrane. More unstable substance flowed inside his black vessels as he prepared for the incoming attack. The shark shot forward, and the teeth that covered its body released slashes during that sudden acceleration. The creature transformed into a bullet ready to pierce everything on its path, and Noah was directly in front of it. Noah matched the shark''s movements with his slash. The Demonic Sword descended and met the creature''s head. An immense force then slammed on his shoulders, but he endured that pressure and gave his everything to stop the charge. Duanlong and Snore helped in the struggle. The dragon drained the shark of its power while the snake wrapped itself around the creature. Night couldn''t do much in that situation, but it still tried to pierce that annoying rocky substance. The charge eventually lost its power. Noah had managed to stop that innate ability without breaking the Demonic Sword! The shark wanted to release an angry cry, but King Elbas suddenly appeared above it. The expert threw a golden liquid to the creature and laughed when he saw that the rocky substance melted under the effects of his item. Noah quickly stored the Demonic Sword, and a wave of bloodl.u.s.t spread from his figure. The cursed sword soon appeared in his hands, and a sharp singularity flew out of it. The singularity was nothing more than an invisible line that flew across the creature''s head. The shark didn''t even notice that attack, but it soon sensed that something was off. The creature tried to muster its power, but it couldn''t find its energy anywhere. It was as if something had severed its connection with its incredible body. A cut eventually opened on the shark''s head. It ran from the tip of its mouth to its dorsal fin. The light in the creature''s eyes soon dimmed as its body opened and revealed its insides. **** Author''s notes: I''ll take a break tomorrow, so don''t wait for chapters. I''ll make a deal with the old gods to restore my sleeping schedule. They might be able to help. I''ll go buy the sheep for the ritual now. Chapter 1651: 1651. Change The rest of Noah''s group didn''t remain on the sidelines. The other experts joined the battle once the upper tier shark attacked, and they quickly took care of the various underlings. The experts from the other teams didn''t only want to help the duo. They also d.e.s.i.r.ed to experience the conditions generated by the Devils. Heaven and Earth''s mission probably saw those creatures as the primary targets, so the group had to learn how to fight them. The transformation of their existence was a strange phenomenon that they had to learn how to counter. The group defeated the pack before focusing on the Devils. Noah and King Elbas had no interest in those creatures since they had already captured one of them, so they limited themselves to watch the fight. The duo took that chance to have a secret conversation. They wouldn''t mind talking about that with their companions, but Noah wanted the experts from the other teams to remain unaware of those topics. "Why do you want the Devil?" King Elbas asked. "You know me. I can''t control my curiosity, but you are different. You don''t need their energy since magical beasts are less troublesome to get. What am I missing?" Noah and King Elbas were on the ground and kept their eyes on the sky to inspect the battle. However, their attention soon moved to their conversation. "This might sound a little crazy," Noah whispered. "That''s not surprising," King Elbas commented. "You know that I can''t suppress my ambition," Noah revealed. "I have to explore every path that can give me more power." "How could I not know that by now?" King Elbas snorted. "What do you have in mind?" "The chaotic laws carried by the Devils feature the very power of change," Noah explained. "Yet, this energy doesn''t have a clear path. It simply changes everything randomly." King Elbas wasn''t stupid. Actually, he was one of the smartest experts in the whole plane, especially when it came to inventing inscribed items and training methods. He could immediately understand where Noah''s explanation was going. After all, King Elbas had also studied his ambition, so he could imagine a synergy between the two energies. "This is far crazier than I expected!" King Elbas shouted, but Noah used his mental waves to contain the expert''s voice. "You would risk your very existence for a slim chance to improve. How can you even consider that path?" "I need you to tell me how crazy this is," Noah sighed. "My mind likes to play tricks. In theory, the procedure can work, but I want a second opinion on the matter." King Elbas fell silent. It was rare for experts at that level to doubt their path, but Noah was disclosing his insecurities openly. It seemed that his latest idea worried him deeply. "It definitely is crazy on multiple levels," King Elbas eventually said while scratching his jaw. "Existences aren''t easy to affect, and they shouldn''t go through great changes at all in the divine ranks. The cultivation journey tells us to expand and improve them. It rarely requests complete transformations." "Power is power," Noah commented. "And you might lose everything you have achieved if you chase it through this procedure," King Elbas replied. "I can relate with your insatiable d.e.s.i.r.e, but the risks are too great here. I strongly advise against it." "I only need to know if it''s possible," Noah explained. "Is there a chance for this procedure to work?" King Elbas didn''t want to lie. Noah''s law could make the whole procedure work. It was one of the few energies in the world that could give a purpose to the Devils and force an actual evolution. Still, he wanted to choose his words very carefully. Noah''s decision would depend on his evaluation, and many adverse events could follow that. "It is possible," King Elbas sighed. "Your ambition could force the power of change inside the chaotic laws toward a stable path. It might even produce something far better than the sharks. I just don''t know if you can improve anymore." "I guess I can only perform tests in a safe environment," Noah concluded. "I can lend you some of my stuff," King Elbas added. "I have items that can copy laws to some degree. I would use them before approaching the experiments on yourself." "Of course," Noah commented. "I''m crazy, not idiotic." "Do you want my opinion on that too?" King Elbas mocked Noah, and the latter limited himself to give voice to a short laugh. The battle in the sky eventually ended. The experts took a while to learn how to defeat the Devils without endangering their laws. That experience would improve their future fights and give them more chances to complete the mission. A series of complaints flew toward Noah, but the latter ignored them. He didn''t care about the safety of the group when those risky procedures filled his mind. The group divided the loot and proceeded with the journey. Noah kept most of the shark''s body, but King Elbas gained the chance to study it. The expert didn''t care about that flesh. He only wanted to see how the mutations had affected its body. The event that they had just witnessed turned out to be quite rare. The group guessed that something similar happened in other areas of the higher plane, but they didn''t have to face it again even after months of exploration. Yet, the experts encountered the sharks on multiple occasions in that period. Their initial guess had been on point. Heaven and Earth had led them into a safe area, so the number of threats increased as they dived deeper into the higher plane. The group didn''t meet any powerful specimen. The packs on their path mainly featured middle tier creatures, and they could handle them quite easily. The experts also had to face sparse Devils from time to time, but their power was relatively low. It seemed that they had yet to reach the areas where those threats touched a dangerous level, but they didn''t lower their guard nonetheless. The exploration eventually became quite dull. Noah and the others were in a spectacular environment that carried unusual features, but they couldn''t do much with it. The Devils offered some excitement, but their behavior was erratic. Those creatures always tried to ignore the experts and only started to fight after suffering some damage. Moreover, their attacks were nothing more than mutated copies of the group''s laws, which worsened the overall situation. The sharks couldn''t provide much either. Those creatures had evolved in different ways, but they remained magical beasts. They were powerful, but they could only give flesh and peculiar materials to the group. Noah didn''t see any difference from regular hunts. "Do we have to spend millennia like this?" Harold complained after the group defeated another pack of sharks. "I understand the need for our help, but I expected more." "Maybe the stronger Devils can give you the excitement that you seek," Althea replied. "Why would you even complain about easy battles? We are gathering materials while studying how our existences can mutate. These are free benefits." Althea was right, but that didn''t lift the group''s mood. They preferred to face dangers and improve quickly rather than repeat the same tedious battles over and over again. Still, a change in their routine eventually happened. A series of white lines manifested in front of the experts while exploring a lake suspended in the sky. King Elbas made his companions stop, and his curiosity soon burst out of his figure. The experts had found traces of inscriptions, but King Elbas didn''t manage to sense them before they revealed themselves. **** Author''s notes: I have no electricity. My laptop is literally about to turn off. I started to write the next chapter, but everything is about to go black. I will post the other two chapters tomorrow when the electricity should be back on. Maybe I should get another sheep. Chapter 1652: 1652. Meeting The change in the scenery helped the group break out of the monotonous exploration, but the inscriptions also lead to problematic conclusions. The inscriptions hinted at the presence of cultivators. There was a high chance that the lake hid the natives who had survived the absorption of the new world. "Let''s unravel these inscriptions," King Elbas ordered, and the other inscription masters gathered around him. King Elbas'' curiosity had gone out of control. It rarely happened that his sensors failed to find inscriptions laying around, so he had set his mind to study them. Noah and the others didn''t get in the inscription masters'' way, but they still studied the white lines from afar. They also struggled to sense them. It was as if those formations were part of the world. ''Did they also mutate?'' Noah wondered while the inscription masters tinkered with the white lines. The inscriptions almost had no aura at all. Noah couldn''t even sense the amount of power that they contained. They barely existed in the world, but he couldn''t deny what he was seeing. The inscription masters had to deal with those problems. Trying to break something that barely existed without triggering its effects was a tough challenge that they had to approach slowly. The rest of the group began to cultivate after the inscription masters remained immersed in the study of those white lines for an entire week without making any progress. They would rather spend their time training than observing those experts at work. The travel didn''t give Noah much time to focus on his many projects. Althea and the others were keeping an eye on him, and he didn''t want to slow down the exploration by secluding himself for years. That approach had been acceptable inside the dimensional tunnel since Noah didn''t know what to expect from the other side of the Immortal Lands. Yet, doing it again during the actual mission seemed a waste, especially since he couldn''t gain immediate benefits. All his projects would require decades or centuries to provide benefits. Noah preferred to wait until he acc.u.mulated enough knowledge about the chaotic laws to seclude himself for a long time. His situation didn''t completely stop him from testing a few things. The black marks from the Space Hounds were still with him, so he could study them from time to time. His movement techniques improved whenever he gained a better understanding of the laws of space contained in those materials. Noah didn''t even feel completely lost about the creation of the dark version either. He was making progress, even if at a slow pace. The white lines eventually crumbled. The event marked the inscription masters'' success in overcoming those formations, and the environment changed after that event. Faint dark figures appeared inside the lake suspended in the sky. The inscriptions stopped covering those structures, so the experts could finally learn more about that environment. The lake contained large buildings that the group couldn''t properly make out from their position. The azure water surrounding them seemed to be part of a large defensive mechanism that hid most of the insides and blocked external mental waves. "We have another riddle to solve," King Elbas sighed while studying those defenses. The water itself was part of a large formation. The insides of the lake also hid multiple defenses that the inscription masters could only sense through their instincts. The group had met a complex array that only true experts could build. Noah began to consider the possibility of starting one of his long projects when he understood that the inscription masters would take a while to clear the path. Still, something changed before he could build a cave. The water suddenly churned. Dense currents ran through the lake and created an empty path that connected the outside world to the faint buildings. Noah and the other experts on the ground quickly flew toward the inscription masters. Those events usually led to a meeting, and their experience ended up being on point. A powerful aura flew out of the tunnel and covered the experts. The group could immediately sense multiple solid stage cultivators walking through that watery passage and leaving the lake to begin the meeting. Three solid stage cultivators soon appeared in front of the group. The trio studied the experts while wearing stern expressions, but they seemed to lack ill intentions for the time being. "I don''t recognize you," The only man in the trio announced. "Where did you hide until now?" Noah and the others exchanged awkward glances. It was hard to explain their presence there, especially to a group that had to survive an entire plane turning upside-down. "Heaven and Earth have created a tunnel leading to this side of the Immortal Lands," Althea eventually tried to explain their situation. "We believe they wanted us to help with this crisis. Maybe they even predicted that we would join you in the task." The trio didn''t reveal any emotion at those words, but their silence hinted at something. The lack of a proper answer told Noah''s group that the three experts were aware of part of that mission. "Is this all of you?" One of the women asked while revealing a displeased expression. "Didn''t you have stronger experts at hand?" "We have also gone through a few crises in the last period," Althea continued. "Our organizations need to recover from their losses. Still, I can assure you that we are quite powerful." "You even brought a magical beast," The second woman sighed. "How can this creature even help? Did you come here to mock Heaven and Earth?" Noah''s eyes sharpened. The woman had stated her position toward Heaven and Earth. She sounded like a follower of those distant rulers. "I can eat your as-," The Foolery tried to shout, but Noah promptly closed its mouth. Noah didn''t like that arrogance either, but he wanted to play along until he learnt more about those natives. The power showed by the white inscriptions was quite fearsome, so those survivors had to feature some mighty experts. ''I don''t think I can handle solid stage cultivators,'' Noah thought while eyeing the Foolery. ''I''m able to fight liquid stage experts now, but these three seem a bit too strong.'' Knowing about his limits didn''t make him abandon the idea of fighting those experts. Noah wanted to test his power against a solid stage cultivator, but that wasn''t the right situation. "We have asked Heaven and Earth for help," The man said while changing the topic. "The Devils are troublesome to fight for those belonging to the Great System. Most of our experts are like that. We need external forces, but I hope that your loyalty is in the right place." The man was clearly asking whether Noah and the others worshipped Heaven and Earth, but the group could only exchange another series of awkward glances. Even Althea''s team could barely claim to be on Heaven and Earth''s side. The three experts respected those existences, but they had yet to decide whether they would give up on their laws after reaching the higher ranks. "Don''t you have forces outside of the Great System on this side?" Noah asked before Althea could speak again. "The initial stages of the crisis have been the harshest," The man sighed. "Devils filled the entire plane while destruction spread in every direction. We lost our battle and hid in these structures. I don''t even know how many cultivators are still alive on this side of the higher plane." **** Author''s notes: I think I have been unclear yesterday. I''m not taking another break. I just needed electricity to keep my laptop up. I''ve literally had nightmares about the missing chapters ahah. Don''t worry. You''ll get the other chapter in the next hours and three tomorrow. Chapter 1653: 1653. True ''They don''t like experts outside of Heaven and Earth''s system,'' Noah thought, ''But they would still accept their help. Desperation might explain this behavior, but it doesn''t ensure my safety after the mission is over.'' Noah had dealt with a group of maniacs already. He could imagine the natives loyal to Heaven and Earth turning on his team once the mission was over. His d.e.s.i.r.e to remain on the other side of the Immortal Lands dwindled as he learnt more about that political environment. Noah didn''t mind fighting mutated magical beasts and Devils, but the situation was different when it came to cultivators. Organizations made of zealots and fanatics could become dangerous in an instant. Those experts would easily give up on their life to take care of their enemies. Noah didn''t believe that he could hide his position toward Heaven and Earth, and part of him didn''t even want to pretend. Still, he didn''t have many options in front of three solid stage experts. ''How can I turn this situation to my advantage?'' Noah wondered, but the trio gave him a chance before he could find a solution. "We can''t trust you so easily," One of the women said, "But we have issues that we can''t solve for now. We have a map that marks the position of other possible settlements, but we can''t risk the safety of our people to look for survivors." "Do you want to reunite the organizations of this side before the final battle?" Althea asked. "There won''t be a final battle," The woman replied. "The Immortal Lands are almost stable. I can feel that the other world will soon exhaust its will. We only have to clear the plane to get rid of the mutated abominations." "The mutated magical beasts that we met have developed a resistance to Heaven and Earth''s laws," Harold commented. "Your help won''t do much even after the Devils are no more." "We can still fight like normal cultivators," The second woman snorted. "We avoid doing that out of respect for Heaven and Earth, but survival comes first in this situation." ''How does it even work?'' Noah wondered. ''Do they have multiple laws at hand?'' His doubts didn''t make him ignore that conversation. Noah had already formulated a basic plan, but he needed to know more to deploy it. "What do we gain from helping you gathering your companions?" Wilfred asked. "Do you think that you can clear the whole plane with this small group?" The woman continued. "You need our help, and we can give you access to our resources while we are allies." The cooperation immediately felt more appealing, and the group quickly accepted those conditions. They couldn''t do much in the end. The three solid stage experts had no intention to share resources until Noah and the others proved their worth. The trio provided the group with detailed maps and inscribed items that could grant them the chance to keep track of their position even in that transformed environment. Those items were quite amazing, and King Elbas found himself giving voice to nice comments about them. The group could leave right away, but the experts had to divide themselves before approaching that task. Noah tried to end up with his friends, but Althea and many others opposed him. The experts didn''t trust him enough to leave him alone with existences that wouldn''t stop him from creating a mess. Harold and Fay Sinnell ended up in his team. His friends received a similar treatment, and the Foolery wasn''t an exception. Althea decided to take care of the creature and keep an eye on it. The various teams separated and flew toward different destinations. The maps covered most of the old human domain on that side of the Immortal Lands, so their journey would take a while. The only positive aspect of that task was the lack of hindrances on the path. That side of the Immortal Lands was quite desolate due to the recent crisis. Only a few sharks and rare Devils occupied those areas. There could be other mutated magical beasts, but the group had yet to meet them. Noah, Harold, and Fay flew across the regions for years before reaching their destinations. The team could sense that they had succeeded in finding the right place when a large floating lake appeared in their vision. White lines materialized around the lake as soon as the team neared it. The same protections that defended the other settlement covered the massive structure. Noah and the others could try to unlock the defenses, but they didn''t want to go through that process again. Moreover, only Fay was an inscription master with some experience with those inscriptions, and she would need years to remove a few lines. "Castor, Rebecca, and Melissa sent us," Noah shouted from behind the white lines. "We want to gather the forces left on the higher plane and launch a massive clearing operation." The three names referred to the three solid stage cultivators met in the previous lake. Noah had decided to take a calm approach rather than wasting years working on those inscriptions. His words seemed to have some effect since the white lines disappeared, and a tunnel formed among the raging waters. A few experts came out of that passage, but none of them was in the solid stage. The experts mainly were in the gaseous stage, with only the two leaders in the liquid stage. Those cultivators even appeared rather friendly compared to the stern aloofness of the three solid stage from the first floating lake. "We were waiting for a similar call," One of the two leaders announced. "Please, come inside. We need time gathering everyone, and you can definitely help." Noah and the others remained still. They wouldn''t go inside a foreign structure, especially when it belonged to organizations they couldn''t trust. The two leaders seemed to understand that mindset, and they quickly clapped their hands. The water of the lake began to evaporate and disperse the energy contained in its structure. The various palaces and other buildings soon became completely visible. The lake contained a small city that featured countless weak auras. An entire army of rank 7 cultivators was living there, and some even came out of those structures to welcome those guests. Noah and the others had no chance but to accept the invitation now. They could sense that the various structures had lost their hiding properties. No expert could escape from their mental waves now. "We have waited for this call for a long time," The leader explained as he led Noah''s team inside the structures. "We even performed sacrifices to Heaven and Earth to quicken their work." "Do you all venerate Heaven and Earth here?" Noah asked as his consciousness spread to cover all the buildings. "Of course," The leader replied. "Many of us weren''t true followers before, but the crisis has changed our minds. Heaven and Earth have saved those who gave up on their laws and must say that I''m not disappointed with my new existence." "How can you give up on a law that you have built for thousands of years?" Noah asked. "It''s better than death, isn''t it?" The leader continued. "The white light of Heaven and Earth has saved me when a horde of Devils was about to transform my existence. I would have lost my law anyway." "What it is to be a follower of Heaven and Earth?" Noah continued with his questions. "It''s not bad at all," The leader replied. "Your previous law will join the system, and Heaven and Earth will give you something in line with your power. You won''t exactly change. You''ll simply become part of a greater world." "Which makes you a dog for unreasonable leaders," Noah commented. "Dogs won''t reach the peak of the cultivation journey," The leader whispered. "I imagine you won''t either." "Let''s try to remain polite," Fay said. "We have different beliefs, and only time will tell who has chosen the right path. We can only be ourselves in the journey." "You are right," Noah sighed. "I hope you can forgive my rudeness." Noah stretched both his hands toward the two leaders, and the duo didn''t hesitate to reach for them. However, Noah''s fingers suddenly arched, and the experts'' heads shattered as countless cuts opened on their surface.